#i have more thoughts but i think id need my brain to be prodded for them to activate cuz i can just feel faint rattling in my skull

[greasydumbfuck]

oh yeah i watched the 1989 movie with my boyfriend btw

[deepcollectionunseen]

Catching Up at the Reunion

I don’t know why I even came here.

The gym was packed. It isn’t exactly how I remembered it 10 years ago, but then again, there were decorations, and drinks, and adults here now, instead of the teenagers that graduated with me. I saw Miss Homecoming Julia, and she hadn’t lost her beauty. Mark, the football quarterback was pudgier now, but it just made him even more rugged looking. And there was Connor, my deep dark crush, whose dark hair and swimmer body had only become even more perfect since graduation ten years ago.

I took another slug of my drink as I felt my face growing red. I felt like I was the only one that hadn’t grown up eat all since high school, my wiry frame was still scrawny, and my face still lopsided. So I did what I did in high school nd jut stood and watched.

“Jake?”

Oh no.

‘Hi, oh, Melissa, right?” I said, mostly just seeking out the name on her chest.

“Yeah. Smooth reading.” She had caught me. “So, Jake, do you actually remember me, your only friend, or is the name tag the only thing helping you out?”

“Melissa, yeah I remember you.” Who could forget her, the spooky Wiccan girl who had been my only friend during high school.

“Yeah? How much do you remember?”

All of a sudden I wasn’t sure. I had id it with such immediate confidence. But as I racked my brains, I couldn’t think of a single memory. 

“Why about Chem lab?” 

What about chem lab, I thought? Nd then remembered sitting next to her, seeking glances and laughing when the teacher said something silly. How could I have forgotten that?

“Sorry, Mel. Yeah, Dr. Avery’s lab. What a time! You used to make those little doodles that you did in the corner of my pages that you always said would bring me luck. Guess that never turned out my way?” I said the last bit gesturing to my lanky body. A wistful glance across the room to Connor might have been too obvious.

“What? The muscle stud never got lucky? You must be kidding?”

“Muscle stud? I mean. Sure, I was strong, and good looking in the right light, but stud?”

“Oh, come on, you told me how you were trying to make yourself the strongest boy in the school. And clearly you never gave up on the bodybuilding.” She said poking me in by pecs. While her fingers prodded solid flesh, I paused. My clothes were tight. I definitely needed a new wardrobe, as clearly my latest clothes were already reaching their limit. I flexed a bit, and tore the sleeves.

“There they are. I was worried those guns of yours had gotten smaller. I used to admire them sitting next to you. Not as much as Julia obviously. I mean, you got her pregnant with what, triples on prom night?”

“Don’t remind me. But god look at her now” I admired the voluptuous form of Julia across the room. She had definitely filled out since high-school, my triple sons had stretched her out for sure. But she was prime MILF material now, and she clearly had several more on the way.

“What number are you on with her now? 23?”

“Something like that” I said, looking over at my fertility goddess of a wife. Her body was like something out of a kink blog, and her massive pregnant belly simply refused to give up the center of attention.

“She looks satisfied. Doesn’t she Jake?”

“Ooh, yeah, I keep her satisfied Mel.”

“But does she satisfy you? As much as the football team did?”

“Don’t I know it. I had those boys begging on their knees for me.” I looked across the room at Mark again. He was still looking at me enviously. When he saw me looking at him, he glanced away wiping his chin. Caught drooling, again. Somethings never change. The other boys around him I couldn’t remember all of their names. But they definitely looked familiar enough.

“Yeah, you must’ve made most of the football team your little cum-dumps by the end. What was their nickname at that last pep-rally?”

“Oh not the Beaumont Bitches, it was so crass”

“Yeah, always in heat for their stud breeder. His massive python couldn’t be satisfied”

“Yeah. I was a lot.” My cock twitched in reminiscence. My pants strained. To keep it contained. “Still am”

“But that’s just for Connor now, right?”

“Connor?”

“Your little cock-sleeve?”

“What?” Oh right. I looked down at the sexy man bound to my cock. His little whimpers as I filled him were hard to notice at this point. ‘Oh yeah. He’s great. Like I’d always had a thing for him. I’d always dreamed of having his bubble butt near me. Apparently all I needed to do was take it.” I grabbed Connor’s ass in my large palm.

“And your wife doesn’t mind?”

“Julia loves it. She calls Connor my sheathe, so that when I need my sword it’s ready at a moment’s notice. And Connor loves it, I mean just listen to him.”

Connor gave a brief excited noise from behind his gag.

“It must’ve taken some convincing to let him ride you like that here.”

“Mel, are you kidding? I’ve been the most desired guy since freshman year. They wanted a show. Hell they all wanted to be part of the show. Isn’t that right Connor?

“Mmmphhmmm!”

“Good boy.”

“Well, Jake. You look great. It’s been great catching up with you.” Mel said, rising to her feet. She barely reached my waist. “Connor, good to see you again.”

“Mmmhmmm”

“And Jake, don’t forget about what a god you were in highschool. Everyone still dreams of you every night” And with that, the witchy woman wandered off. I gave Connor a small squeeze, grinding into his toned butt, which made him rocket a brief orgasm off again.

“Come on, toy. Let’s go remind everyone what they’re missing.” I’m wouldn’t miss my high school’s reunion orgy for the world.

[mr-voorhees-husband]

< < ' *Slides in*

More Yandere shocker mayhaps? Possibly some Otto as well?

Wow, you're mentally ill. I mean I am too so, no harm here lol

How about I set you up with a drabble for Shocker and Otto? Haven't written for them in a couple months so I apologize if it's a bit OOC (also you didn't specify which version, but I'll assume TSSM)

Warnings: Yandere, Gore, Otto kills a guy, unhealthy relationships, manipulation tatics, slightly OOC

Reader: Gender Neutral

Jackson Brice "Montana" "Shocker"

It was a stupid mistake on your part. You should have known better to ignore the drunk text from him. You could barely remember his name anymore, but none of that mattered. Not while you were sitting on the couch as Montana scrubbed brain matter and blood from the hardwood floor.

"Why'd you answer him?"

"I didn't even remember his name, Montana." You sighed, running a hand through your hair as you did your best to ignore the crimson beginning to stain your shared home red. "I didn't even think he remembered where I lived!"

Montana stood up, boots clicking against the floor as he dropped the bloody rag into a bucket of sudsy water. It was a rusty color, red, orange, and brown all at the same time. He crossed the room quickly, caging you in the room to keep you from rushing away. "Darlin', ya' love me, don't you?"

"Mhm.." It was hesitant, but Montana grinned nonetheless, wrapping arms around you and dragging you to his chest. He pressed a kiss to your head, humming deep in his throat.

"So, how about you think about me next time? I don't want anyone taking my darlin' away from me."

Otto Octavius "Doctor Octopus"

Blood dripped from the razor-sharp claws that Otto called a second and third pair of arms. They clacked nosily, two prodding at the body while the other two stood high above their brothers, swerving around to make sure no trouble arachnid spotted their master. In his defense, he hadn't meant to loose his cool, he was just so angry about what happened earlier.

His phone ringing snapped him out of his trance, his arms sweeping the body into a nearby dumpster before tucking under his labcoat. He grabbed his phone, not even bothering to check the caller ID. It was probably Osborn calling to bug him about Otto's most recent breakthrough. "Yes? Hello?"

"Otto?"

Otto's breathing stuttered for a moment, your voice alone making him stumble. He'd just killed that sickly date of yours, and now you were calling him. Did you know? You didn't sound upset. So maybe you didn't? "Oh! I- I thought- Ah- sorry- sorry, what did you need?" He cut off his own rambling, nervously wiping off his shades before replacing him with his usual square frames.

"Um- I was wondering if you could come over later?" Your voice was embarrassingly soft, the barest hint of nervousness in your words. Beneath it all though, Otto could hear despair.

Were you really upset over that waste of space?

"Oh- well- yes of course!" Despite it being late, Otto would never pass up an opportunity to be with you. Especially if you were as vulnerable as you sounded. "I'll be by as soon as I can, is- is that okay?"

"Yes- yes." You sighed, "thank you so much Otto.."

"Of course, after all," he glanced at the blood coated cement with a smile, "what are friends for?"

[sharkboygirlish]

Messy.

ONE-SHOT

Word count: 2793

Disclaimer:  One piece and all it’s characters belong to Eiichiro Oda, I just like to write about them.

Warning: None

Rating: T (i guess?? there’s cursing)

Author’s Note: Whale, this is the first fanfic I’ve posted on the interwebs since high school so please keep that in mind, lol. I do plan to finish it sooner than later so check back in a few days if you want to read the rest, sorry I don’t have it all done right now.  At long last it it FINISHED.

Feel free to tell me what u think! Unless it’s mean, then I ask that u keep those thoughts in ur noggin because I’m just writing these for fun not for grades.

Without further ado, here ya go.

Author’s Note pt 2: So i didn’t end up going the smut route like I originally planned, but I think it worked out better bc this one got nice and Emotional.

Summary: Zoro really shouldn’t agree to be Nami’s drinking partner if he wanted to keep their friendship from getting... Complicated.

__________________________________________

The moon was floating high in the night sky when Nami wandered onto the deck, unable to sleep even after a few hours of sketching. 

She wanted company – specifically, she wanted the company of the crew’s resident alcoholic. It only took a few minutes to find him on the lawn deck with his back against a tree and his eye closed. ‘How typical.’

Nami smiled a small, excited smile as she strode over to him and squatted between his parted legs. An unconscious sigh left her nose as she swept her gaze up and down his face. She caught herself thinking, ‘He really is easy on the eyes isn’t he.’ ....again. 

Who was she kidding? She’d been thinking the same thing every time she looked his way lately. 

Two years ago she’d been able to keep the immature crush she had on him locked tightly away but somehow - it had gotten out and was slowly consuming her entire being. 

Nami hoped he hadn’t noticed how often she invited him to drink with her because she didn’t think she could handle being rejected. So she settled for spending time alone with him whenever and however she could. 

“Hey, moss-head,” the navigator said finally, leaning in to squint at him, “Are you asleep?”

He had literally just settled down for a nice cat nap when the navigator appeared suddenly to interrupt him. ‘Damn. What the hell did she want now?’ 

Instead of answering, Zoro chose to ignore her and pretend like he was deep asleep. ‘Why won’t she go bother someone else?’

Nami started prodding his cheek with one finger to rouse him if he really was sleeping, ”Zorooo wake up, I wanna drink,” she whined and his eyelid opened instantly.

‘Why’s she so damn pretty..’ was the first thought he had when he realized that she was a lot closer than he’d anticipated. 

He mentally chastised himself after, trying to remind his id that Nami had never once indicated that she wanted to be anything other than friends and he should respect that. 

But… There was no harm in looking from time to time was there? And she was pretty. She’d always been... ‘Oh for fuck’s sake, now he sounded like Sanji. He needed to get a grip.’

“Helloooooo,” Nami waved her hand in Zoro’s face until he snapped back to reality and snatched her wrist up, pulling it away. He scowled but it wasn’t deep, and now he was refusing to look her in the eye. “What was that about, huh Zoro?”

“Nothing.” The swordsman replied perhaps a little too quickly to avoid suspicion, “Thought I heard a noise, doesn’t matter – oi, didn’t you want to do something?” 

He couldn’t remember what exactly it was. He’d been so distracted by the way her bangs framed her face and sometimes got caught in her eyelashes—’Damnit! He was doing it again.’

Nami smirked again but didn’t press the subject anymore. She’d do that later once they started drinking. “Weren’t you listening to me? You’re so rude, maybe I should find someone else to share my booze with.”

Was it a good idea to go drink with Nami when he kept catching himself thinking about feelings that he’d been suppressing for the last two years? Probably not…

But he couldn’t just decline an opportunity to get buzzed. ‘And... Maybe he wanted to get buzzed with Nami, specifically.’  

Zoro scoffed, mostly at himself. “Quit playing games, damnit, do you want me to drink with you or not?”

“You’re so stubborn,” The navigator teased with a pleased smile that made his heart beat unevenly, “I could care less if you join me, but you’re not allowed to come unless you say you’ll be nice.”

“Nami. I am older than you, quit treating me like a fucking child or I swear-”

“That’s no way to talk to a lady who’s getting you drunk for free, Roronoa Zoro. If you can’t be nice then I’ll just add the cost of everything you drink to your debt and-”

Zoro didn’t have time to ruminate over the way hearing her say his full name made him shiver because he had to shut her up before she did charge him. 

“Okay, okay. I’ll be... nice.” He hissed through gritted teeth and her answering giggle made his pulse flutter. He had to fight to keep himself from smiling. ‘What the hell was going on with him tonight? Was he sick?’

“Good boy,” she turned and started walking towards the Sunny’s aquarium bar, glancing back over her shoulder to make sure he was coming.

“Don’t push your luck, woman.” Zoro snarled to mask his confusion over the sudden need to touch her that he felt scratching at the back of his head. He really shouldn’t agree to be Nami’s drinking partner if he wanted to keep their friendship from getting... Complicated.

He knew it, but he followed her up the stairs all the same.

                                                       * * *

“Why d’you always want to drink with me anyway, witch?” Skeptical of her intentions, his narrowed eye fixed itself on Nami as she approached him holding two maroon tinted bottles. She offered one to him and he accepted it – but he didn’t let his guard down yet.

Zoro lowered his gaze to check the label out, whistling long and low when he read 23% alcohol per volume. A couple puzzle pieces clicked together in his head ‘Oh, that’s why. Because if she tried to drink this with anyone else they’d pass out after two glasses.’

“Would you believe that I just like hanging out with you?” Though her tone was teasing she was actually being genuine, she had a lot of fun with him whenever they went out.

“No–“ He paused when Nami kicked him in the shin hard enough to make him swear. Reaching down with his free hand he rubbed the sore patch of skin and glared daggers at his crewmate. “What the fuck was that for?!”

“You said you’d be nice, Zoro! So be nice or I’ll charge you a hundred thousand beris for that bottle.” Nami uncorked hers but waited to hand the corkscrew over until he behaved himself. The look he was giving her would probably frighten a small child but she didn’t flinch.

‘This was his choice.’ He reminded himself. Of his own free will he chose to get drunk with Nami instead of napping, and that meant dealing with her bossiness no matter how much he loathed it. ‘Sometimes he just wanted to grab her by the shoulders and make her shut up, there were better things her mouth could be doing anyway-‘

“Why do you keep staring at me like that, do I have a zit or something?”

Zoro sat up so fast that he banged his shoulder on the underside of the countertop. ‘What the hell was that? What the hell was wrong with him?’ He hadn’t even opened the damn bottle and he was already making himself look like an idiot.

“No,” the swordsman grumbled, wracking his brain for a believable excuse, “Just thinking about how I’ll owe you money even after I’m dead if you keep charging me for bullshit.” That made her laugh and Zoro cursed himself for how much he liked hearing it. “Don’t see how it’s funny for me, witch.”

Nami let him take the corkscrew from her, eyes crinkled with amusement while he opened his bottle. “You’ll just have to stay alive until you pay me back in full, I guess!” She trilled before taking a long, heavy drink from hers.

“Yeah?” Zoro snorted before mimicking her and downing about half of the wine in the container. It tasted disgusting, which he’d expected, but that didn’t make the bitter aftertaste any less miserable. His nose wrinkled slightly as he set the bottle down. “I bet even if I did try to pay you off you’d find a way to charge me more.”

“You make me sound so heartless,” the navigator batted her eyelashes innocently, pretending to look hurt, “Why would I ever do such a thing?”

“Hah.” He scoffed before chugging some more wine and failing to keep track of how much he was drinking each time. “Because you want to keep me on a leash since I don’t throw myself at you like that dumbass cook.”

An impish smirk crawled it’s way onto Nami’s face that made him immediately regret what he’d just said. ‘Fuck. Damnit!’

“So…” She began slowly, savoring every second that the swordsman spent avoiding direct eye contact with her, “You admit that you are one of my lap dogs?”

A muscle in his jaw flexed and he stopped drinking for one second to grunt, “That’s not what I said.”

“That’s what I heard!” Chimed Nami as she rose from her seat, stepping over to Zoro and tracing a finger under his jaw while he drained the last few drops of liquid. “I should get you a collar, so people know who to bring you to when you get lost.”

Normally he would have snapped at her for poking fun at his sense, or lack thereof, direction but he wasn’t listening to her. She’d come close enough for him to pick up her scent and maybe it was the alcohol intensifying his feelings, but it was suffocating him in a good way.

He loved the way she smelled. Tangerines from her soaps mixed with salty seawater and traces of sunscreen. A hint of orange blossom, but only when she was close to him like this. 

Zoro inhaled deeply through his nose and, without realizing it, his expression melted into something affectionate and gentle. ‘In two years she’d changed in so many different ways… but she still smelled the same. She still smelled like home.’

                                                        * * *

“What are you thinking about, Zoro?” Her voice void of it’s usual teasing tone, Nami’s curiosity was piqued by his sudden shift in demeanor. He looked soft and peaceful, like he didn’t have anything to worry about. She wanted to know why.

‘Ah, fuck.’ What was he supposed to tell her? That he was thinking about how good she smelled? ‘Yeah right.’ Zoro was quiet for a while, mulling over his words until he came up with an explanation that didn’t sound as creepy – but also wasn’t a lie.

“I guess..” he finally murmured, his gaze shifting to meet hers, “It’s just been a while and… I was thinking about how nice it feels to be back here, with everyone…” a brief pause then he added, “I missed you guys.” ‘Look at him being all gushy and emotional, this wine really was something else.’ Zoro reached to brush his fingertips by her temple, catching a stray lock of hair and tucking it behind her ear, “I missed you.”

When had Zoro ever been this honest with her about the way he felt? Never was the answer, but now he seemed to trust her well enough to know she wouldn’t spill his secrets. Nami took his face in both of her hands, surprising him, and pulled his head down so she could kiss his forehead. “I missed you too, Zoro.”

Something about hearing her say that she’d missed him too broke a dam in his chest that he’d been trying to keep together for two years. Hormoness flooded through his bloodstream quicker than Zoro could even process them and before he knew it he was practically throwing his arms around Nami’s waist and crushing her against his chest.

“Nami—” he pressed his face into her neck to hide the tears that he couldn’t hold back anymore. Sober he might have cared about losing it like this around her but she was here and… ‘He just – needed to hold her.’ Hold her and smell her and feel how real she was because she had almost been taken from him.

‘He’d barely begun to process what he had been through on Thriller Bark when they were attacked in Sabaody. If he tried to think back on it his memories would get hazy and his bones would ache from their very cores. He knew what had happened but it’s like his brain was protecting him from understanding how close to death he’d come. Then – to be torn away from the people he loved with all of his heart? Who he had just nearly killed himself to protect?

It had ripped him apart and rubbed salt into every wound. And it fucking hurt. The same kind of pain he felt when he saw Kuina dead on the floor of their dojo. He was scared, he was furious, he was devastated – all over again but this time it was so much worse. So, so much worse.

That was why he had trained so hard over the last two years. Because he couldn’t bear the grief that came with loving them so deeply – so he got stronger. And stronger. And stronger. No matter the cost to his body, he would become powerful enough to defeat anyone who crossed them. Then… He would never have to feel the agony that he did when he first woke up on Kuraigana Island ever again.

Taking on all of Luffy’s suffering in Thriller Bark had been the most physically painful experience of his entire life – but that was nothing compared to how much it hurt to think that his friends were gone forever, that he hadn’t been able to protect them.

Training made it easy not to think about what had happened -- but now he was home, and they were safe - and he was realizing just how close he’d come to losing all of them. At once. And he could do nothing to stop it.’

Startled by him grabbing her, Nami was prepared to give the pirate a good smack if he was getting handsy but… He started trembling. ‘Was he not feeling well?’ Her mouth opened to form the question then stopped. His breathing hitched while his entire body jerked and she realized…

‘Zoro was crying.’

Roronoa Zoro, who prided himself on his strength, was sobbing wretchedly into her neck. ‘He must have been holding this in since Sabaody.’ Nami’s heart ached for him and his stupid pride that forced him to torture himself instead of letting him cry like he needed to. She’d been expecting him to crash at some point, how couldn’t he? Even someone as strong as Zoro was still a human being.

One of her arms cradled his head while the other wound round his shoulders, her fingers combing gently through his hair. “Oh you sweet, sweet boy…” she spoke in the tone that Bellemere used to use when Nami and Nojiko were frightened by a passing thunderstorm. It always calmed her, maybe it would calm Zoro, too.

‘Quit fucking crying you loser you’re supposed to be a man.’ But he couldn’t, he literally could not stop because he was trying to. “I wasn’t strong enough,” his voice quivered at the edges and he hated it. ‘He was definitely never going to drink this kind of wine again ever. Not if it turned him into a blubbering mess like this every time.’

“Shhh, no. No. Don’t you dare try to blame yourself for what happened. Hey, look at me.” Nami urged his head off her shoulder and cupped his face in both of her palms, “None of us were strong enough, okay? Not even Luffy.” Each tear that fell she tenderly swept away with the pad of her thumb. The corner of her mouth turned up as she assured him, “But we are strong enough now. We can take care of each other. Nothing is ever going to tear us apart again, Zoro.”

‘She was right. Of course, she was right. He needed to have faith in his crewmates and his captain. They could do anything as long as they had each other.’ His breathing slowly evened out as he focused on anchoring himself back to reality. He wasn’t in Sabaody or Kuraigana – he was on the Sunny. In the bar, with Nami who had grown so much since he last saw her. The look in his eye softened like it had before his breakdown.

“You’re staring at me again, Zoro.” The navigator teased, her hands falling to rest on his shoulders. He hadn’t let go of her yet but she didn’t mind, he could hold on to her for as long as he needed.

A ghost of his usual smirk passed across his face. “Sorry, Nami…” Zoro took a little risk by leaning in to press a chaste but lingering kiss to her cheek, then traced a path with the edge of his nose to her ear, murmuring, “Wine makes me a little… Messy.”

[platypanthewriter]

Guess Again

Day Four of Harringrove AUgust, Profession AU!  Steve runs into a hot guy named Billy on his plane flight back to Indianapolis, and Billy lies about what he does for a living, then, laughing, admits he lied.  The prize for this guessing game: an exchange of phone numbers.

Steve found his seat, in coach, because that was the only seat available on the overbooked flight into Indianapolis a week before Thanksgiving.  He shoved his carry-on under the seat, and wedged himself in the limited leg room, opening his laptop to answer the emails that had been pinging his phone before the plane was ready to take off, and he—blessedly—had to go into airplane mode.  

He barely even noticed the guy wedging himself in to sit by the window, and trying to get the damn table to stay up.  Steve typed away as the busted table mechanism flapped onto the guy’s lap over and over.  Finally, Steve grimaced, glancing over.  “You can use my table,” he offered, registering only that the guy was tattooed, and kinda...hot.  “I’ll put this away as soon as we taxi to the runway.”

“It’s fine,” the dude said, smacking the floppy table with a sigh.  “Not like there’s a meal on this flight.”

“You can lean in and share my pretzels,” Steve told him, grinning over, and was met with big, long-lashed blue eyes, an annoying mustache, and curls that curved around an attractively firm jaw.  

The guy nodded, and put the broken table away.  “...kind of a workaholic?” he asked, probably because it was nearly ten o’clock at night, and Steve was glaring at his screen and typing emails like his survival depended on a high word count.  

He snorted a laugh.  “I left them all until now,” he said, grimacing.  “They really don’t need my input, but if I replied earlier, they’d just ask me something else.  Something they could google.”  He narrowed his eyes at an email from a coworker who’d actually emailed to ask for exact details of what was allowed under the sexual harassment policy.  Talk to HR, he sent back.  Creep, he thought.  He finished the last of the replies, hoping he wasn’t sending anything too weird in his distraction, and closed his laptop.  “Um.  Sorry.  What do you do?”

“I sell life insurance,” the guy said immediately, with a toothy grin.  “I’ll sell you so much insurance on this flight.”

“Uh,” Steve said, blinking at him.  “Umm...oh.”

“That’s a lie,” was the dude’s followup, and Steve stared at him, starting to regret his offer to share a table, or catch the flight at all.  “I don’t sell life insurance, I swear.  I promise,” the guy said, laughing.  “God, your face.  I just...my job is...I started telling people I sell life insurance, so they wouldn’t talk to me.”

“I can just sit over here,” Steve offered, pretending to zip his lips.

“No, no, it’s, uh.  Sorry I lied.  Talk to me, it’s a long flight.”

“Why do you have to lie?” Steve had to ask, and the guy grimaced.  

“My job’s kinda awkward,” he said, laughing.

“Are you a...porn star?” Steve asked, trying to figure out what kind of job would get the worst people to talk to you, and the dude cracked up.  

“Jesus, no, but thanks for the ego boost,” he said, and Steve snorted a laugh.  

“Um.  What about…” Steve thought, opened his mouth, and then closed it.  “Can I guess?” he asked, grinning, and the guy snickered.  

“Sure.  Give it your best shot.  Just don’t tell me any horror stories.”

“Do you embalm bodies?” Steve tried, already holding back a tide of questions, like did you ever drop one and have to fix a broken nose.

“Nope!” said the guy, turning to lean more against the window, to face Steve.  “How many tries do you want before I just tell you?”

“Oh, no, no, lemme guess,” Steve said, thinking as they came around asking for drink orders.  “Horror stories...um.  Are you a soldier?” he asked, wide-eyed, and the guy laughed again.  

“No!  No, nothing like that.”  He leaned to see Steve’s ID as Steve pulled it out to order a beer, and Steve grinned.  

“I’m Steve.”

“Billy,” said his mysteriously-employed seatmate, offering his hand, and Steve flipped it over investigatively.  

“You don’t have those, like, love/hate knuckle tattoos,” he said, feeling like a detective.  “So...maybe not a biker?”

“I’m not a biker,” Billy snickered.  His hand was warm in Steve’s.  “Is that even a job?”

“Oh!  Oh!” Steve leaned forward, sure he had it this time, and Billy moved the armrest between them out of the way.  “A writer?”

“What?!” Billy laughed, which probably meant Steve was wrong, but he argued his point.  

“People tell you horror stories,” he said, narrowing his eyes.  “So—so probably everybody tells you they have a great idea for your next novel—”

“No, uh.  One clue,” Billy said, grimacing.  “They’re true stories.”

“True stories,” Steve said, going to cross his arms in thought, and realizing Billy hadn’t taken his hand back.  “Uh, what do I get if I guess right?” he asked, squeezing Billy’s hand, and Billy snorted a laugh, grinning like he couldn’t quite believe what was happening.

“I dunno, I feel like Rumpelstilzkin, you want like my firstborn or—”

“No, nope,” Steve made a face.  “I got enough kids around, thanks.  Oh—” he blinked, realizing how that sounded as Billy started to pull his hand back, and lean away, “—not, like, I’m not a dad, I don’t have a wife and kids or anything.  I just have some little shitheads that come over all the time and eat all my popsicles and pizza.”

“Oh good,” Billy said dryly.  “I’d feel terrible if holding my hand ruined your marriage.”

“No other knuckles can fulfill me, now,” Steve said soulfully, and then when Billy burst out laughing, Steve couldn’t hold a straight face.  

“You know how fucking dirty that sounds, right,” Billy whispered, rubbing his face with the hand Steve wasn’t holding, and Steve snorted a laugh.

“Don’t worry, I’m not trying to get you to fist me on the plane,” he hissed back.

“Coward,” Billy shot back, and then they started giggling again, like they were ten.  

 “True horror stories,” Steve repeated, later, as they leaned together over the napkin on his tiny airplane table, where he was keeping track of the guesses he’d already made.  “True horror stories.  Are you a reporter?” 

“God no,” Billy said, making a face.  “Imagine this many tattoos in front of the news cameras?  We’ve got a ways to go before they allow that.”

“Oh, true,” Steve nodded.  “I mean, unless you worked for, like, a tabloid.  Circling everyone’s stomach in pictures and writing ‘BABY BUMP?!’ on it.”  

Billy jumped when Steve yelled ‘BABY BUMP’, and half the plane twitched and mumbled.  “Fuck no!” he hissed, laughing.  “Ssh!”

“Huh,” Steve said, studying the napkin.  “Oh!  Um,” he grimaced.  “Police officer?”

“No,” Billy growled, and Steve nodded, writing that down and crossing it out, and sipping his third beer.  “We never worked out what you got if you guessed,” Billy said, watching.  

“Oh, yeah,” Steve agreed, nodding.  “Uh, what about...dinner?”

“We’re gonna land at like six in the morning,” Billy pointed out, and Steve fingergunned him.

“Breakfast.”

Billy laughed.  “I dunno if I’m willing to put out on our first plane trip together.”

“Lemme get you, like, bacon and eggs,” Steve said, leaning in and waggling his eyebrows, “—and my phone number.”  He smirked as Billy cackled, leaning his head in the window.

“Yeah, okay.  Gimme some breakfast sausage, Steve,” he said softly, the overhead reading light making his curls glow a little, like a halo.  

“Now I haveta figure it out,” Steve said, frowning at his list, and Billy’s fingers twitched towards him.  Steve grabbed his hand, lacing their fingers together, and accepted another beer from the flight attendant.  “I wonder how many beers that is,” he said, prodding at the label with his thumbnail.  “I think they’re like ten bucks a pop.”

“I bet the alcohol will really help you think,” Billy said dryly, and Steve made a face at him.  

“Shut up, I got it.  I got it this time,” he said, tipping his head back for a long, satisfying drink of beer, and wiping his mouth.  Billy’s mouth hung a little open when he finished, and Steve licked his lips, grinning.  “You—you’re a doctor.  A—a doctor of butts.  A butt-doctor.”

Billy started laughing so hard, silently, that Steve was starting to wonder whether he could breathe.  

“I’m right, right?” Steve said, taking a triumphant swig, and Billy shook his head, wheezing for air.

“You mean a proctologist?!” he gasped.

“Yeah, and you understood fine,” Steve told him, annoyed.

“I’m not—I’m not a butt doctor,” Billy choked out, tears of laughter in his eyes.  “I don’t have a doctorate in ass—”

“Your loss,” Steve muttered, glaring at the napkin with the list.  “Man, my cousin is one, and he has some stories.  Dude, that’s everything, that’s every damn job.  Ever.  Do zookeepers get told horror stories?!  Oh!”  He pointed the beer bottle at Billy.  “Dentist!”

“No,” Billy giggled, his hair rising with static in the dry air of the plane, and sticking to the wall and window behind him.  He looked ruffled and fond, and Steve squeezed his hand again, trying to think of what he’d missed, before the plane landed, and he’d spent the entire flight guessing jobs, and Billy hadn’t even given him a last name.  

“Shit,” Steve said, then straightened again.  “No, okay, this time,” he said, the beer making his words a little soft around the edges, “This time I really have it.  You’re a Mickey Mouse person.”

“I’m a what now,” Billy said, still snickering.

“You know,” Steve said, his eyes narrowed.  “You crawl up the ass of one of those suits and let kids think you’re a Disney princess.”

“No, Harrington,” Billy said, breathlessly, as he shook with laughter.  “No, I do not.  Do people tell mascots horror stories?!  I don’t even want to know.  Which princess?  Just for scientific curiosity, Steve, which princess do I crawl up the ass of, in your brain?”

Steve tried to remember them all.  “Not Jasmine,” he said with certainty.  “Um.  Wait, Peter Pan?  Maybe?”

“Peter Pan’s not a princess,” Billy choked out, wiping his eyes as he tried to muffle his laughter.  

“Hrm,” Steve said, accepting another beer and huffing a sigh, but Billy leaned in suddenly and just kissed him.  His lips were warm and chapped, and Steve hummed happily against them.  Their teeth bumped, a little, because Billy was giggling so hard, and Steve was grinning so wide his cheek muscles ached.

“I’m a drug and alcohol counselor,” Billy said with a grimace, and Steve glared at his beer, betrayed, "—so, um, horror stories.  Yeah."

"I just have butt-doctor horror stories," Steve said quickly, trying to salvage the situation, and he shoved his beer behind him.

Billy laughed harder, shaking his head.  "I’ll still take that number,” he whispered, kissing Steve again—and snickering, his cheeks flushed.  “And breakfast?”

Here’s my other Harringrove stuff!  Or check out the Harringrove AUgust collection on Ao3!  Add something!  =D 

[shhhlikeme]

“Losty Aone” / “Losty Mountain Man🏔” Series:

Outtake Collection #3 (NSFW)

————————————

A/N: sticking to these right now because I’m obsessed! This one was long so the other 3 in the collection will be in collection 4.

‼️THIS IS THE 7TH PART IN A SERIES READ THE OTHER PARTS BEFORE THIS ONE: ‼️

TABLE OF CONTENTS

————————————

Aone 8 1/2 Months Into Crushing On You And Having His First Ever Wet Dream💦😴

Kenji Futakuchi woke up with a startle. He actually fell out of his bed due to the loudness of his phone ringing that was charging on the other side of his room.

Groaning in pain on the floor, Kenji swiped his iPhone to answer. He didn’t even need to look at the caller ID to know who was calling him. Kenji spoke first when he picked up:

“I love you man. You’re my best friend. But care to explain why the fuck you are calling me 5 times at 4 o’clock in the morning?!”

On the other end of the line, Aone Takanobu sat up in his camouflage coloured bed, clutching his iPhone to his ear for dear life.

“Good, you answered.” He said simply.

“Fuck you, I fell off my bed. What is it? Someone better either 1) be dying or 2) wants to marry me—and her name better be Aja Naomi King.”

Aone deadpanned. “Neither.”

Rolling his eyes, Kenji yawned. “Tell me what’s wrong, Takanobu-san.”

“Um..... I‘m unsure of how to phrase it.”

“Well, get sure. I’m going to fall back asleep.”

“Please don’t fall back asleep. I need your help.”

“I’m listening to you, you freakishly tall polar bear!!”

“You’re rather grumpy at 4:04am...........”

“Aone! I’m hanging up—“

“No! I apologize. I need....er.....your help. Or your advice. I....uh.....had an......interesting.......dream. A dream like none I’ve ever had before.”

Kenji couldn’t believe his best friend was calling him at 4:00am on a school night to tell him about a crappy dream. “Okaaaaaay.......?” He prodded rudely, trying to get the white haired athlete to elaborate.

“It was about Y/N.”

So?

“Okay and.......?”

“And now I feel very on edge.”

“Okay and.......?”

Aone sighed, knowing that he’d have to spell it out for his sleepy friend. “Y/N was.....um.....naked........in my dream.”

Kenji’s eyes widened. Although he knew his middle blocker friend liked girls and girls liked him—in all Futakuchi’s years being friends with Aone he’d never seen or heard of Aone being so physically attracted to a girl to the point where he’d dream about her naked. He was really respectful and rarely even checked out women. That’s why girls loved him at Date Tech but the Mountain Man never paid attention to them because he ‘had’ you. Well, Kenji should have really seen something like this coming considering how much Aone liked Y/N, but it was still surprising because this was a first.

“Yeah? Was she naked and alone in your dream?”

“Uh....no.....I was there as well....”

Kenji smiled. “And were you two....shall I say....having a good time?”

“.....Yes.”

“Tell me about it.”

Aone’s eyes widened as he immediately went red. “N-no, Kenji-san.”

Kenji yawned nonchalantly, putting his hand behind his head comfortably on the ground. “Why not? Wet dreams are normal for guys our age, Aone. There’s nothing to be ashamed of. You’ve really never had one before?”

“Never. Not once. And it’s referred to as a wet dream? Why in the world do they call it that?”

“Aren’t your pants wet....?”

Aone glanced down quickly, immediately jumping and flushing in slight horror when he saw a large wet circle in the middle of his boxers crotch. He scrambled out of his bed in shock.

“Um....I am going to call you back.” Aone mumbled.

7 minutes later after Aone had successfully cleaned himself up and changed into clean pyjamas, Kenji picked up his call again.

Kenji now has a bowl of ramen with him in his room and he was sitting up on its bed.

“Tell me about the dream, big guy.” He says with his mouth full.

Aone blushes slightly before starting:

💤 💤 💤

Aone was in class.

He looked to his right where you were giggling and passing notes with your friends, ignoring the teacher like always. Aone thought you looked really pretty today in your uniform, though for some reason your skirt seemed shorter than usual. He really liked it like that.

Takanobu watched you pass notes enjoyably, when suddenly a random student’s hand next to him was holding out a note to him.

Aone took the note, confused, and looked down at it.

He flipped the paper and before unfolding it, he read:

To Aone

From Y/N

Aone felt his heart speed up as he looked up in your direction and noticed that you were staring back at him from across the classroom. You smiled at him and blew him a kiss.

He froze, genuinely afraid he was going to internally combust.

🚨 You were noticing him! You were looking at him! You sent him a note! You blew him a kiss and you seemed actually happy to be giving him attention! 🚨

Forgetting that he even had a note in his hand because the girl he liked was giving him googly eyes, Y/N pointed cutely at the note in his hand to remind him.

You cupped your mouth with your hand so that the teacher couldn’t see what you were saying and looked at Aone. “Open it!” You mouthed with a gorgeous smile to boot.

Blushing profusely because he was embarrassing himself by forgetting the note just because you merely looked at him, Aone nodded stoically and looked back down at the piece of paper.

After taking a deep breath and silently praying that this wasn’t a letter telling him to quit staring at her because she’s not interested and he’s creepy, he unfolds the small note.

Inside, it read in beautiful calligraphy (which is very dream like bc your handwriting was nothing of the sort):

Dear Aone,

You’re always staring at me so I just thought I would ask you...... can I suck your dick? *smiley face kissy face*

- Y/N

***

Looking back up again, Aone was somehow still in the classroom, only there was no one there anymore except for him and Y/N. The walls were painted white now as if they were in a cloud’s waiting room.

Even his desk was gone and he was just sitting in the chair he’d been in.

In the place that your desk should be, you now stood there watching Aone with dark eyes. You were toying with your shorter skirt and Aone automatically couldn’t breathe.

You skipped toward him and stood in front of him, smiling that beautiful smile.

Aone thought you looked breathtaking so close to him. Without warning, you dropped down to your knees in the empty classroom and began making work of removing Aone’s school pants.

Aone gulped as he looked down at you.

“Y/N. C-can I ple-please take you out on a d-date fi-first, perhaps? If that wou-would be okay with you?? I would like to sh-sh-show you how much I like y-you—“

His pleas were interrupted when you swallowed his cock whole.

Dream-Aone moaned louder than he ever has before and tilted his head back. He was trying to tell you that you didn’t have to do this and that your pleasure was infinitely more important than his, but he was still a boy and the horniness he felt seeing the—dare I say—like of his life with your mouth wrapped around his shaft made him unable to think.

You hollowed you cheeks around his dick and sucked him hard, using both your hands to twist and pump the remaining centimetres of his large dick that couldn’t fit in your wet mouth. You were slurping and it made Aone feel so good. He never felt anything better and he’s never seen a more erotic sight than his dick being swallowed into the wanton mouth of his crush.

Wet-dream-Y/N flicked her heated eyes up to Aone’s, who groaned when he saw your beautiful eyes staring into his, egging on his orgasm without even trying.

“Fuck,”

Aone moaned as he removed the ponytail from your hair and placed his large hand at the back of your head. He didn’t even need to guide you because you were amazing at it. Your mouth was small and wet and the horny side of Aone’s brain couldn’t wait to send his load shooting down your throat.

Aone excitedly thought about giving you head after this in order to show you how much he treasured you.....and the thought alone almost made him cum.

Feeling like he never wanted your soft lips off of his dick again but also feeling conflicted because he wanted to date you and show you how much he could spoil you with anything you ever wanted before any of this—Aone felt the need to try and stop you again.

“Y/N—-I don’t want you to think I’m li-li-like those other guys. I have genuine feelings for-for you. Re-really strong f-feelings. I want to be your boyfriend and make you the happiest g-g-gir-girl ever.” He was panting as he spoke.

In response, you popped his dick out of your mouth and smiled up at him sweetly. “Aone. I’m already your wife. You didn’t forget, did you?”

You lifted your hand to showcase your huge engagement ring that should really weigh your small hand down but somehow didn’t.

dreams are a funny place

Aone gasped in surprise seeing it, though more than anything his heart swelled with love and overwhelming happiness!

“Y-you married m-me?!” He couldn’t help but smile.

You started pumping his cock again with your hand while looking up at him. Aone’s head fell back again in pleasure. “Yep!” You cheered. “Don’t you remember our honeymoon?”

***

Suddenly the setting changed fast again. You two were in the backyard of a beautiful private mansion at night. It was the mansion Aone had rented for your honeymoon so that Y/N could be as loud as she wanted without any hotel complaints from neighbours:

This proved to be worth every penny because Aone Takanobu currently had your thighs wrapped around his head as he penetrated your sensitive vagina with his powerful tongue after your second orgasm. Aone was standing up tall to his full height, and he had a naked-you propped up on his shoulders so that your heat was level with his eager mouth. You were so high on the Mountain because you were sitting on Aone’s shoulders frontwards🏔, straddling his face. You were pulling onto Aone’s healthy white hair as he darted his tongue in and out of your entrance and then sucked on your clit with vigor.

“AONE! OH MY GOD, AONE! WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN ALL MY LIFE?!” You moaned. “YES! UH! YES! TAKANOBU ALL I NEED IS YOU FOREVER! I WAS SADLY MISTAKEN TO LOOK YOU OVER FOR THAT TRASHY BASEBALL PLAYER WHEN YOU WERE THERE ALL ALONG WAITING TO GIVE ME EVERYTHING I COULD EVER DESIRE! YOUR TONGUE FEELS SO GOOD, AONE!”

A/N: girl bye if you think your moans are too extra - it’s Aone’s dream, remember?

You were screaming in ecstasy and Dream-Aone was so fucking turned on by your erotic sounds and screams that he couldn’t take it.

Mountain man moaned into your heat. He began flicking your puffy bud with the tip of his tongue like rapid fire while he moaned along with you so you could feel the vibrations on your clit.

You gripped his hair tighter and screamed.

“AONE YOU ARE THE BEST HUSBAND EVER! I AM SO GLAD I AGREED TO MARRY YOU! NO ONE CAN LOVE ME OR FUCK ME THE WAY YOU DO! AHH YOU ARE THE ONLY ONE I WANT! I’M SO SORRY I DIDNT NOTICE YOU BEFORE! AHHH, AONE-“

When you screamed his name for the sixth time, a long groan escaped from Takanobu’s lips as he thrust into the air and ejaculated in his swim trunks.

His feelings were way too strong for you (HIS DREAM-WIFE) not to cum to hearing you continuously scream and moan his name for the first time.

He only stopped giving you head for a second in order to finish orgasming before you were wiggling your hips trying to get him to keep going. Loving that you loved what he was doing to you, Aone dove his tongue deep into your folds and right back into your deliciousness.....

before he woke up in his bed panting.

💤💤💤

“Jesus Christ,” Futakuchi himself couldn’t help but feel slightly aroused by Aone’s very detailed explanation of his wet dream. “That was your first wet dream ever?!”

Aone nodded earnestly even though he couldn’t be seen over the phone. “Indeed.”

“Sheesh. My first was years ago but it was just about making out with my celebrity crush, but yours.............well, I guess you’re the most passionate guy I know—your world stops when Y/N walks into the cafeteria—so I guess I shouldn’t have been surprised.”

“What does it mean?” Aone asked. “Is there something wrong with my feelings for Y/N? Am I one of those guys that she hates?! That only want her for her body??”

Kenji heard the panic rise in his friends voice so he rushed to reassure him:

“No, dude. Not at all this DOES NOT makes you like those other guys! You’ve crushed on Y/N for MONTHS and you see her parade around in her hot cheerleading uniform all the time and you’ve NEVER looked at her the same way all those pervy guys do. It shows how much of a good guy you are and how you like her for her. You just suppressed your sexual side deep down because youre so crazy about her that I think it comes out tenfold in your dreams. You’re attracted to her so it’s bound to show somewhere, right? I know you’re hopelessly romantic when it comes to Y/N. You tell me about your dreams about surprising Y/N with flowers, or kissing her forehead and all that PG shit but your hormones have to say hello at some point, right? It’s human nature. No matter what—It’s just a dream, though, so you and Y/N didn’t actually have mind blowing oral sex. Meaning you have nothing to worry about. Tomorrow at school everything will go back to normal and you’ll just be whipped for the girl like you always are and everything will be the same. You’re fine.”

There was a long silence on the other end of the line.

“Uh....Aone? You fall asleep over there?”

“....No.”

“Then why so silent?”

“I......I....” The Date Tech volleyball player sighed. “I.........just don’t want things to go back to normal, as you put it.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean that I wanted my dream to be real.”

“Oh, the sex part? Well of course you do, seeing Y/N naked would be—“

“Not the sex part.” Aone interrupted. “I could go without sex forever if Y/N didn’t want it. I’d do anything for her.”

Kenji couldn’t believe that he couldn’t trace an ounce of insincerity in his middle blockers voice. He was serious that he’d give up sex if it meant being with Y/N. “Then what part to do you wish was real, Aone?” Asked Kenji.

Aone turned red again as a blush overtook him. Kenji could basically sense the blush from his house.

“The marriage part.” Aone admitted, feeling slightly pathetic. “In my erotic dream, Y/N had agreed to marry me.” Takanobu’s heart ached as it often did when he thought of you.

“So I was saying that I wish, in the very least, that that part was real.”

————————————

Outtake #4: CLICK HERE

[lambourngb]

Aaaaaany chance of a little tiny sneak peek at your Lost Decade prequel to Last Year’s Wishes?

For you, anything!

I’ve shared the first bit before, but here’s more of Michael’s first day as a rider, other than a laborer.

**

This was his third season at Fosters Homestead Ranch and Michael’s first off of the punishing duty of the “fence and feed” crew. 

Repairing breaks in over 100,000 acres of fence line or hauling endless fifty pound bags of feed for ranch’s dairy operation, had lent Michael strong wiry-bound muscle and burned his skin to a golden brown. Mindless, back-breaking labor had banked the anger that burned inside him, leaving him numb and able to drift through spring, summer and fall without taking much notice of how his siblings were passing him by. Isobel was dating a newly hired lawyer at her father’s firm, Max was finishing off his AA in criminal justice, and Michael? 

His aspirations were more a little more earthbound for once and closer on the Maslow order of needs.

He had an eye on an Airstream at the Chaves County impound lot, sitting under bank-repossession. His greatest hope was that he could spend a winter in the safe confines of his own home, instead of squatting in empty houses that were under foreclosure. The silver lining of the housing market crash was that he had multiple choices for his lock-picking brain. It certainly beat camping at the Wash, the makeshift homeless encampment nestled on the banks of the Berrendo Riverbed.

If Michael could have a place to call home, maybe he could convince Alex to spend his holiday leave in Roswell. Maybe the idea of being together wouldn’t seem so impossible to them both. Maybe they could part with a wistful ‘see you next time’ instead of a stone-cold ‘this can’t happen again’. There was news at least that President Obama was working to change and remove the DADT policy. Maybe he could finally be what Alex wanted. 

I want to be with you.

The admission of a worried seventeen year old’s desire for him kept Michael going. He just needed to meet a few markers of progress, even if he was mired in Roswell to keep an eye on Isobel. Alex would be done with his service in another two years, and he could decide to come home to Roswell, despite his father being a homophobe. If Alex had somewhere to go home to, he might stay. Michael needed to be ready.

The ache that hope brought sliced straight through his carefully cultivated dulled feelings, dropping away apathy and leaving him raw for a moment. 

It was just a fresh thin layer of skin barely stretching over his heart as protection. This was how seeing Alex always left him, a newborn toddling through life without the calloused layers. Dice and sliced up by hope. Not seeing Alex was objectively worse. He was just a painted up corpse then, lying in repose while the world moved on. ‘Here lies a promising student, made of lost opportunities’.

Not lost though, actively forsaken. To protect Isobel. He was the architect of that choice, but at least she could live safely in the cover his lie built.

“Hey Curly Sue, you paying attention?” A loud, annoyed voice cracked across Michael’s attention, dispelling the thoughts of the past. 

Michael looked up at the foreman Paul Foster, the young grandson of the ranch owner and shaded his eyes with his left hand, “yes sir, sorry sir.”

The crowd of this year's labor force twittered softly around him. Most of the group were somewhat familiar to Michael, the typical migration of men who were only suited for outdoor work. Following work with the ever-changing seasons, instead of the toil of monotonous cubicles and repetitive memos. The young ones, new to ranching, worked their way through the shit jobs, sometimes literal shit jobs of mucking, to earn a path up the rungs of responsibility to the trusted, returning crop of herdsmen and horsemen. 

“Joe, here,” the foreman nodded to the head of the outriders, “thinks you’ve done enough time digging irrigation lines for the hay fields, and doing feed and fence work, that it’s time we put you on a horse.”

“Mr. Joe is dreamin’,” a voice called out, “look at that hand of his, how the hell is he gonna ride a horse with two fingers?”

Michael dropped his left hand abruptly, shoving the evidence into his pocket uselessly. It wasn’t new knowledge at the Fosters Ranch, his first months out of high school meant he had hauled fifty-pound grain bags on his shoulders while the crooked breaks healed enough for him to hold a pitchfork for stall cleaning. Some of the workers had protested that he had skipped the worst of the chore duty as a green ranch hand. 

Stubbornness kept Michael frozen in place, even as he wanted to slink away. He could do another year repairing fences in the sun, it wouldn’t make as much money as the riders did but it was a job he knew. He’d even grown accustomed to the soft foggy place his brain took him once the hammers started swinging to secure wire and boards. His sense of spatial awareness, sharp and alien in nature, had kept him from hurting himself as he had drifted away in the meditative sounds of thunk, thunk, thunk.

Still making less money was disappointing. His goal of buying the Airstream would need amendment, or a trip to a casino further out than the Mescalero Res. Perhaps north to Isleta Pueblo casino, he wasn’t known there.

“Michael will be a better rider than you assholes. That hand means he can’t ruin a horse's mouth.” 

The unexpected shock of hearing someone advocate for him jerked his wandering attention back again. The head outrider, Joe, was watching him in turn. Dark, kind eyes, familiar but in the face of a stranger, met his from under a black cowboy hat. The head rider ran his gaze up and down Michael’s shabby jeans and Max’s cast-off hiking boots, before his lined mouth smiled, “besides, you’re supposed to ride off with your legs and ass, not off your damn hands.”

There was a moment where Michael thought Joe was looking at him in a different expectation than just riding a horse. That spark of interest. Curiosity about a man and what he could with his hands and generous mouth. He wasn’t wholly unfamiliar with that type of appraisal, but the look disappeared too quickly for Michael to really categorize it. He was probably just lonely or used to seeing that in a set of dark eyes set on similarly molded features.

With that, Joe swept off his black cowboy hat to mop off the sweat from his tan skin marked with sun damage, before resetting it on his head. His words were clear and invited no argument, secure in the knowledge that Mr. Foster himself waited every spring in hope that he was returning to New Mexico after working the winter cattle season in Argentina. No one could ride a horse, handle a herd, or command the type of respect in men better than Joe did and everyone knew it.

“Well?” The foreman Paul prodded pointedly, “why are all of you just standin’ there? Go get yourself a horse so Joe here can teach you something before dinner time.”

The lucky ones, Michael included, that were selected to work the beef cattle this year, headed for the upper field that held the horses. The rest of the new greenhorns and returning laborers headed to the equipment sheds to outfit themselves for fence repairs, or worse, start the task of mucking out the dairy barns. 

Without realizing it, Michael found himself falling in step with Joe as they headed for the fenceline. It was uncharted ground for him, but gratitude was circling his throat and he felt like he needed to say something. “Mr. Garcia, ah-”

“It’s just Joe, although my id says Joseph. But no Mr. And don’t thank me, kid.” He slanted his eyes over to Michael, another swift once over, lingering longer on Michael’s shoes then over to where Michael’s hand was still hiding his jeans pocket. “I meant what I said, you’ll be fine to ride.”

“I know I will be, I just appreciate the chance and I won’t let you down.”

“We all deserve a chance, and I’ve seen you work here for the last few seasons, uncomplaining and quick to pick up a skill. I mean you looked like a sullen raincloud most of the time, but you worked hard. And no one has ever complained about your attitude other than your penchant to flirt in town on payday. And man, I was a young man once too, so more power to you,” Joe commented dryly. 

Once again, Michael felt a little warm hearing that he had been noticed, but he didn’t comment as Joe slowed to a stop as they reached the horse pasture. The fenceline was decorated with worn nylon halters and mis-matched colored lead ropes hanging off of every fence post. Michael squinted in the bright sunlight at the herd of grazing horses spotting shades of brown, black, grey and even dull gold in the green grass of the ten acre field. It was a familiar sight from past years, he used to take his lunch and sit under the trees just to watch the ranch horses enjoy the fresh shoots of grass.

He had been told that in past years, the Fosters had needed to drop large bales of hay in the fields to keep their hard working four-legged staff fed through the long summer months, but every year Michael had worked there, the grass had grown thick and plentiful.

“Take out that hand of yours, I want to see what I’m working with here.”

Well damn. It was one thing to know his hand and disability was something of an open secret at the ranch, and even to old man Sanders at the salvage lot, it was another to let someone examine it closely. Brief bed partners, mainly the female tourists that were drunk enough to find his advances charming but not so drunk they weren’t aware of what was on offer in regards to casual sex, were mainly too engrossed with his efforts at bringing them to orgasm to notice his left hand. Max and Isobel had noticed, but both had agreed that a doctor would bring too many questions.

Alex, of course, knew. Alex, who had spent two weeks chasing his own demons in Michael’s body over Christmas, had made an effort to hold and touch his hand but still his gaze had skittered away from the scars and evidence of Jesse Manes’s rage.

Swallowing hard, Michael pulled his hand from his pocket and offered it meekly. Joe in turn pulled off his work gloves with his teeth and cradled Michael’s hand between his bare, rough palms. 

“Make a fist for me?”

Michael’s thumb and forefinger easily tucked into his palm, while his middle, ring and pinky finger slowly, crookedly bent into an awkward fan pointing to his wrist unable to curl fully in a ball. 

Joe made a soft humming sound in his throat, before reaching for the lead rope from the fence post. “Okay, open up for me.”

A squirming feeling snaked down his spine at the command, but Michael obeyed again as Joe draped the shot of line across his palm. Slowly he wrapped the line in a firm loop, squeezing Michael’s fingers over it, his eyes intent on the flexibility of Michael’s grip. The tug of line around his hand and then wrist sent another shock of almost arousal. Michael inhaled sharply, as Joe looked up in question. 

“Feel that tension? You’ll never need more than that when you’re riding, unless something has gone horribly wrong, okay? Less is more. I can teach technique, but I can’t teach you feel. That’s something you have to find on your own?” 

Michael wet his lips, struggling to focus again on the instruction and nodded.

After a moment, Joe made another off-hand humming sound, and unwound the rope from Michael’s hand and wrist. The strange atmosphere broke as he slapped the halter and rope into Michael’s right hand, and pointed out to the field, “see that horse over there? The one with the white butt but brown body? That’s Rocky. He’ll be a good one for you to learn on. So go get him and we’ll get started.”

It was strange, Michael felt both hot and cold as he fumbled his grip on the halter. It was like surfacing from a deep dive in the lake, his ears almost wanted to pop and his lungs felt tight. He tucked those feelings away and ducked through the slats of the fenceline.

[shhh-no-ones-home]

behind the barrier din djarin x reader

+++++++++

Im back! or at least for right now i am. this is the only story i have for a while because i started writing a new book during my break and have been focusing on that more than anything. i promise i will be back with something else before the month is over, i just dont know how soon that will be right now lol. until then though i hope you all like this one because i have thought of nothing but the Mandalorian since the season two finale absolutely wrecked my body and soul :)

themes of nightmares, war flashbacks, and surgical ptsd. its nothing too heavy, i dont think, but as always read at your own risk

Song: disguise by motionless in white

tag list: @cynic-spirit

+++++++++

I sat at the end of the bed, head in my hands and shaking it lightly to a beat that wasn't there. Din had been asleep for a good while now, curled up behind me. God I wanted this to be over, I wanted the nightmares to be over. I stood up, rubbing my hands over my face as I started pacing the otherwise empty room. It had a bed and a small table and a sink placed outside the privy. It was cozy, or at least it should've been. When I heard the bed creak I drew my blaster, pointing it to din as he sat up slowly.

"Y/n? What time is it?"

He asked groggily, his voice gruff coming through the modulator. I sighed, holstering the gun.

"Almost day light."

I said reluctantly, moving to the small window and pulling the wood slat back. We probably had about two hours till the suns came up.

"Have you slept?"

He asked, sounding more awake now as he started the walk around the bed to get to me. I shook my head no as I leaned against the window sill.

"We have a long day ahead of us, you might want to try."

He said and I scoffed, a laugh barely audible emerging from my chapped lips.

"I'll be alright."

I said, Finally looking to him. He was still in full armor, helmet too. He was still on the fence about removing it, despite having taken it off for the kid he spoke so fondly about. I grew up hearing about Mandalorians and it was never anything like what he told me, even in the few months id known him. And I still hadn't seen his face, or the foundling. He puzzled me sometimes.

"You're lying to me aren't you?"

He asked and I sighed.

"Just go back to sleep. I'll figure something out."

I said, being startled by him leaning into the window beside me, causing me to scoot over in the small space.

"I hear you screaming sometimes."

He said and I tensed up.

"And?"

I asked, seeing him turn to me out of the corner of my eye.

"You haven't told me everything have you?"

He asked and I shook my head.

"I'm not what you see on the outside that's for sure."

I said through a dark laugh.

"Do you trust me?"

He asked and I shrugged.

"Do you trust me?"

I asked back, a long silence following.

"Touche."

He finally said, standing and walking away. I closed my eyes and breathed deeply before standing and turning to him, now on the other side of the bed where he had started.

"Din-"

I said quickly and he stopped, his back still to me.

"Don't take it personally, I don't trust a lot of people. But I'm glad you took me in when I had nowhere else to go. It's just-"

I paused for a second, trying to collect my words and he turned to look at me over his shoulder.

"You don't know what it's like out there, to be stripped of your identity and put back together piece by piece."

He slowly turned his whole body to look at me.

"I close my eyes and I see them. I'm so tired of running but I know I cant really face myself either."

I said softly, looking to the ground.

"Maybe we're more alike than I thought."

He said nonchalantly before turning back around and opening the cabin door. I sighed as he disappeared down the hall, pinching the bridge of my nose in frustration.

"If you only knew."

°°°°°°°°°

"What happened?!"

He yelled as we ran through town, shots being fired.

"How should I know?"

I quipped back, ducking behind a metal beam, grabbing him and pulling him into me. We both panted, looking to each other as the red flashed around us.

"I can't keep this up."

I said through a harsh breath and he tilted his head.

"We don't have another choice right now."

He said, looking over my shoulder before grabbing my hand and pulling me along.

"Din I can't!"

I yelled over the crashing behind us, feeling my legs and eyelids getting heavier. I was exhausted. I hadn't slept in over 38 hours and we had been working all day. My body just couldn't keep up anymore.

"Keep going."

He said through what sounded like gritted teeth as he drug me around.

"Din."

I said softly, feeling my feet go out from under me, his hand slipping from mine as I hit the ground hard.

"Y/n!"

He yelled as my eyes closed. The last thing I felt was a gust of wind before everything went blank.

°°°°°°°°

More running. Except this time it was from a tall, dark, hooded figure. I couldn't quite make him out but he was chasing me. He was gaining on me, his hand outstretched as the sounds of gears grinding filled my brain. No. No. I wasn't being put under again. I couldn't take the pain anymore. No. Don't take me back. No. I can't do this again. Let go of me. Get off. Why won't you all listen? I don't want to go to war for you again. No. I just want to be normal again. Stop it. Let me go. No. No!

"LET GO!"

I yelled, jolting upright in bed, feeling my body drenched in sweat. It was then that I realized I had pushed din backwards away from me. He was stumbling back at the foot of the bed and we were somehow back at the inn. Everything was painted in the low glow of orange light and this was the first time I'd seen him without his helmet. But I knew it was him, he still had his other armor on. Then I realized. He looked scared. Was that because of me? I let out a staggered breath, one I didn't know I was holding, as I swung my legs over the side of the bed. I closed my eyes for a second before snapping them back open and placing my head in my hands.

"I'm sorry."

He said, peaking my interest. His voice was harsh, like he'd been screaming too. I wonder if his throat burned like mine did.

"For what?"

I asked, barely above a whisper, now noticing I wasn't in the same clothes I had been in before. I sat upright, looking to my exposed arms, the metal and wires of my upper arm and shoulder shining under the tank top straps. I was mad but only for a second.

"I'm not sure."

He said a little lost and I laughed.

"I guess we know each other's secrets now."

I said looking from my arm to him. He sent me a small knowing smile, matching my own.

"Does it hurt?"

He asked, noting the irritated skin where the metal was attached both at my chest and my forearm. After they configured my new shoulder and upper arm they had reattached it to the metal. I inspected it as he moved to sit beside me.

"Sometimes."

I said softly and I could see pity flash across his face.

"Is that what you dream about?"

He asked, me looking around for my jacket. I nodded as I found it and slipped it on.

"Sometimes."

I said again.

"Is that what you where dreaming about this time?"

I sighed, sending him a look.

"yeah. They were hunting me, holding me down and bolting me back together."

He nodded once, clearing his throat.

"I see why you wanted them to let go."

He said and I laughed.

"It's not all bad I guess, I'm more ashamed than anything and I only dream about it when it hurts. Or I guess it hurts when I dream about it, I've never really figured out which it is."

"How did it happen?"

He asked, turning to face me and running his hand over my arm, tracing his finger tips lightly over the leather of my jacket and pushing the wires flat.

"I got shot by a battle droid, point blank. It completely blew out half my shoulder, chest, and arm. I was a soldier at the time, drafted, not willingly; and because I was one of the poorer soldiers they decided I was a perfect test subject for their new med team. I couldn't afford proper help and my forearm was barely holding on by a few tendons so they experimented on me. Sometimes I can still feel the pain of their needles digging into my skin and tacking my muscles to the metal."

I said, looking down at my hand, opening and closing it a few times.

"It took months to figure out how to use my hand again, after more poking and prodding, reattaching the nerves to more wires."

I shook my head, squeezing my eyes shut. There was a flash of white light and I could see the doctor clear as day, coming at me with a scalpel. I opened my eyes back up when I felt him hug me.

"I won't let them do that to you again."

He said softly and I froze, not sure what to do.

"Din-"

"I promise I'll keep you safe."

He whispered and my face fell. There was a long moment of silence like he needed this as much as I did but I finally hugged him back.

"Thank you for being a friend din."

I said and he nodded against me.

"I'll keep you safe."

He repeated and I could feel tears burning my eyes. No one had ever done anything like what he'd done for me in the few short months we'd been traveling together. Maybe this was it, this was what family felt like. I squeezed him tighter to me, digging my face into his neck and he let out a shaky breath.

"I'll always keep you safe."

[ksoap-ie]

‘Selfish’ // Ha-Eun

A/N: I’m back after a CRAZY two months. I suddenly felt inspired to write so here I am. It took me sometime to figure out if I wanted to write something based on shows ASTRO have been on or if I wanted to write more about Eun herself.

In the end, I thought we’d dive deeper into the mess that is Eun’s family and I’m telling you, it only goes downhill from here. I hope you enjoy! 

“Let’s take 5 guys.” Jinjin says, laying on the ground, arms spread out. Ha-Eun sits on a bench. She brings her water bottle to her mouth, only for it to be empty. 

“Hey I’m gonna go fill up my water bottle. Anyone else need refills?” She asks, to which the boys respond with a chorus of grunts. MJ stands up and offers to help out. The pair gather everyone’s bottles, walk out the room and head down the corridor, towards the fountain. They get halfway though filling the bottles up, when Eun’s phone rings. She takes it out her back pocket, seeing the caller ID as “DAD <3″ and then answering the phone.

“Hi Dad, what’s up?”

“Hi darling, I’m just calling to say that I’ve got some news!” 

“Oh really?” She asks, tightening the lid of Moonbin’s bottle “What’s going on?”

“Your sister is getting married! She’s been telling me it’ll be next year in January, and they’ll be going to Spain!”

“Oh wow, that’s great! I don’t think I’ll be able to make it though. We’re preparing for comeback in February so I’m going to be really busy soon. Tell Areum congratulations for me though! I’ll give her a call tonight.”

“Can’t you just opt out? Everyone is expecting you.” 

Ha-Eun begins to frown, and switching her phone to her other hand, she replies, “You know I can’t do that, I’ll struggle so much if I get behind.”

“It would do no harm in asking your managers.”

“Dad, please.” She sighs, rubbing her forehead.

“Fine, whatever. Did you send your paycheck to my account yet?”

Upon hearing this, Ha-Eun’s mouth falls open and she stumbles, almost dropping her phone. 

“Are you not going to work? I can’t, Dad. I can’t keep asking the boys for help because I don’t have enough money to look after myself.” At that, MJ tilts his head in concern, mouthing an ‘are you okay?’ at her. She nods, and listens as her Dad inhales sharply.

“Are you kidding me Eun?! You’re an idol for god’s sake. How damn hard is it for you to earn money and help your family out? You poor mother is sick, and I’m the one who’s got to look after her. Would it kill you to stop being so selfish and help out for once?” He spits. 

Feeling her vision go blurry, Eun puts down the bottle and turns away from Mj. 

“Sorry, you’re right.” She begins. A tear manages to slip out and she quickly wipes it away, “I’ll send you the money right away but I’ve got to go now. I’ll speak to you later, send everyone my love.”

With red eyes and a big smile, Eun back round to MJ. She picks up some water bottles and gestures for them to walk back. His eyebrows are creased and eyes filled with concern but regardless, he follows her back to the practice room without another word. 

When they get back, Ha-Eun passes the bottles back to their owners and sits back on the bench. Hands buried in her head, hair covering her face and thoughts corrupting her brain. 

He’s right, I am selfish. What kind of daughter am I if I can’t provide for my family? I probably won’t be able to pay for rent but maybe if I ask the boys for some extra chores, they can give me some cash. Or maybe I can sell some of my stuff-  

“Okay everyone!” Jinjin stands up, clapping his hands, “Let’s start from the beginning.”

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

Later that evening, Eun is in the kitchen, mindlessly stirring chicken in a pan as she repeats the phone call she had that day in her head for the nth time. 

The boys dragged MJ into the larger bedroom as soon as they got home. MJ, Sanha, Eunwoo and Rocky sit on the bunk beds while Jinjin and Moonbin are on the single bed. 

“Myungjun, is everything okay with Eun?” Jinjin asks, leaning forward slightly. A sigh escapes MJ’s lips, and not long after, he begins speaking.

“Her Dad called her again, I couldn’t exactly hear what he was saying but based on the replies she was giving, I think he was asking for money again.”

“Again?” Rocky’s mouth falls open, eyes widened “He’s asked every time we get paid.”

“And she’s left with pennies for the rest of the month...” Adds Eunwoo.

“Well that’s the thing,” MJ starts, with his thumb and pointer finger rubbing his chin, “It was different this time. She normally just agree’s but this time she tried to refuse. I don’t know what he said to her but I could hear him shouting. Whatever he said, she’s not happy about it and she’s still giving him money this month.”

“I don’t believe he’s using her money for essentials, it’s got to be more then that.” Rocky states, and Moonbin nods in agreement.

“Minhyuk is right, our parents don’t even ask us for money. We give it to them if we can afford it but this is outright stealing. If she’s refused then he’s aware that she can’t afford it.”

“Right...” Jinjin hums, “but if she’s refused then there’s nothing we can do about it. Let’s just figure out how to cheer her up and keep her safe for now, we can get to that issue later-”

Tap, tap, tap.

Simultaneously turning towards the door, the group is greeted with a forced grin. Since they got home, Eun changed from her dance wear into an avocado pyjama set. The top is white and the shorts are a mint green with avocados printed and spread out along the fabric. Covering the whole outfit is Sanha’s black zipper hoodie, which lands at her knees. If the situation wasn’t so dull, they’d be joking about her height, but they could only smile back and gather in the kitchen. 

Eun-Ha hands each boy a bowl filled with veggies and meat. She grabs an apple for herself and munches on it while sitting on the sofa with the rest of the group. Eunwoo immediately notices her lack of meal, and scoots closer. 

“Why aren’t you eating too?” He asks, frowning. 

“Oh, I just didn’t fancy any meat today. If I left it, the chicken would’ve gone off and I don’t want to waste food so I made it for you guys instead. I’m not that hungry either.” She shrugs and turns towards the drama playing on TV. 

“Here, at least have some fried potato,” Eunwoo offers, holding it to her mouth but she purses her lips and shakes her head. “It’s your favourite, come on.”

“I really don’t feel like it today, I had some for dinner yesterday anyways.” 

Eunwoo sighs, knowing that wasn’t the case. Sanha cooked ramen yesterday because he couldn’t be bothered to cook a full meal. Even so, he watches the drama and continues to eat his meal. 

The dinner was slightly awkward. Not on purpose of course, a joke was said here and there but aside from that, everyone was just stuck in their thoughts. 

“Okay everyone, hand your plates to me. It’s my turn to wash up today.” Eunwoo orders after standing up. He collects everyone’s dishes and then walks to the kitchen. Turning on the hot water, Eunwoo drifts off in his own world as he got to work.

“Um, hey Eunwoo. I have a favour to ask of you.” a voice whispers, gently prodding at his arm. He rotates his head, seeing Eun’s tiny figure behind him. 

“What’s wrong?”

“Well, I was just wondering...” With her eyes glued to the floor, Eun takes a deep breath and stumbles over her words. “You don’t have to agree to it, entirely your choice bu- but um... could you lend me some money for this week and I’ll do all your chores for you. I promise I’ll give it back when we next get paid... Oh! I’ll even let you use some of my special face masks, and I can make your bed in the morning-”

“Eunnie, you know that you don’t have to do any of that.” He places a hand on her shoulder and she responds by bringing up her gaze into his eyes. “Don’t be afraid to come to me when you need financial support, okay? I know you’ve been struggling, and it’s completely fine to ask for help.”

Her chin trembled, and a few seconds after, her gaze fell back to the ground. Nails digging into the soft palm of her hand when she clenched her fists. Eunwoo wrapped his arm around her shoulder, and slowly lead Eun to the couch, where they both sat facing each other.

She was almost still if it wasn’t for a tightening in her throat which caused her to let out short and repetitive intake’s of breath along with a river of tears to flow down her cheeks.

“Hey, hey, hey,” Eunwoo whispers, gently taking her chin in his hands. He uses his thumbs and tenderly wipes the tears spilling from her eyes. “what’s wrong Eunnie? I’m here for you, what’s wrong?”

“It’s just- I’ve just got so much on my mind.” 

“What’s on your mind Eun? I’m here to help you.”

“My Dad keeps demanding I send him money... I’m not in a position where I have money to spare but I send it anyway. I even tried only sending over half of my wages but he asked for more and I- I couldn’t say no, Eunwoo. I feel so bad having to ask for you to lend me money when it’s not something I should have to do. It’s not fair, you- you should have that money to treat yourself but it’s being wasted on me. I tried to explain that to him but he just-” She takes a deep breath, calming herself down from the rambling. “He called me selfish Eunwoo and it’s true. I’m selfish if I don’t send money to my family and I’m selfish if I take money from you guys. I’m so, so selfish...” 

Eun’s head hangs in humiliation and she clenches her fists even tighter. Blood slightly covering the edge of her finger nails and smudging along the bumps of her palm. Eunwoo takes Eun’s hand and unravels her fingers. 

“Oh Eun, I’m so sorry you have to deal with this. We’ll figure something out, okay? Maybe for now, don’t answer his calls. Create some distance so he won’t be able to ask. I’ll support you until our next pay check, okay? If you need anything, ask me or one of the guys. They’re so worried about you Eun. We’re all so worried...”

She nods while concurrently sobs escape her lungs. In an attempt to calm her down, Eunwoo traces circles along her back. Eun scoots closer and lays her head on Eunwoo’s chest. Hearing the thumping of his heartbeat restores her breathing, and she listens to his hushed voice. 

“I hope you know that it’s not selfish to ask for help. It’s wrong of him to call you selfish when it’s your property. He doesn’t own it and it’s wrong of him to demand for it and then guilt trip you when you say you can’t provide it. He may be your dad but that doesn’t suddenly make him equivalent to God. The position you’re in right now, the way your feeling, the only person who is at fault for that is him so please don’t blame yourself.”

Eun nods. The pair sit in silence for a few moments before Eun turns herself around so that she can bury her face in his chest and wrap her arms around him.  “Thank you Eunwoo. Thank you so much. I’m so grateful.” 

“Anytime little one,” he ruffles her hair and smiles. “I’ll tell you what. Go grab some of my face masks, I’ll go get some hot chocolate and a first aid kid ready. We can watch a drama together, sound good?”

“Hmmm,” Crossing her arms, a frown is placed on her features. For a second, Eunwoo panics, thinking he’s suggested something wrong. Oh god, I’m sure she likes hot chocolate. I swear she had it yesterday. Or did she have tea- “It sounds good but... it would sound even better if I can braid your hair.”

Eunwoo’s lips break into a grin. 

“If that’s what will make you happy, then braid until dawn”

[paradisobound]

Sail Away With Me: Part 8

Summary: It was a fluke. Dan shouldn’t have ever gone with Sam to a party on a yacht. He shouldn’t have trusted her to go. But in a chance encounter, he ends up in bed with Phil Lester, a billionaire CEO of a luxury clothing company. When he thinks he’s screwed up enough, he realizes he’s in way too deep. Because Phil Lester has fallen in love with him. The catch: Dan gave Phil a fake name and all Phil has to remember Dan by is the tattoo on his hip and the necklace he left behind.

Rating: Explicit

Word Count: 2.7k

Warnings: None

Pairing: Instagraminfluencer!dan and CEO!Phil

This is a chaptered work. Updates every Saturday around 1pm EST

**MASTERLIST | ARCHIVE OF OUR OWN | WATTPAD**

PHIL POV

It was morning when Phil wakes up and sees Ethan curled onto his side on the bed beside him. His chin resting on his hand and his hair pressed disheveled onto the pillow. The light from the window was streaming down onto him like the sky opened up and sunshine poured through the clouds down. It was like the first ray of sunshine on a summer day.

Warmth.

Phil realizes this sounds incredibly cheesy but it’s hard for him to not feel that way when he finally has the man he’s been looking for in his life. It felt like all of the weeks leading up to this were worth it with all of the sadness and defeat that would well up inside of him.

It was like he was finally able to feel the same feelings he felt for Lucas all those years ago.

As he looks down at Ethan and smiles, he lets out a sigh through his nose. It had been so long since Phil has allowed for himself to feel this way about another man. He had withheld these feelings for so long because a part of him was saying that he was betraying Lukas. He felt like he wouldn’t—no, couldn’t—be in love with another man because that would meant he finally no longer loved Lukas.

But that’s not really the case at all and Phil realizes this now. He realizes all of this as Ethan’s shoulders rise and fall just the slightest amount as he breathing picks up a bit and then he’s turning in bed, the sheets rucking up on his lower half.

Phil forgets that they’re both naked until he notices the hair on Ethan’s happy trail peeking out from under the lowered duvet and it makes his heart swell as he remembers the night before, and how amazing it was to be in the throes of passion with Ethan again.

Ethan stirs a little bit more and then his eyes open and it’s like golden honey pouring into Phil’s soul.  

“Morning.”

Ethan’s eyes open a bit more and he reaches up and rubs the tiredness out of them by rubbing his fisted hands onto them. He then stretches and the blanket slips down a bit more and Phil looks down just in time for Ethan to grab it and pull it back up, covering all that he can.

“Did you sleep well?” Phil decides to ask.

Ethan looks up at him and nods with a sleepy smile. “Yeah. Did you?”

Phil nodded and leaned down, pressing their lips together in a quick kiss. Ethan lets out a sigh against Phil’s lips and his body goes lax as he relaxes and melts into it. Phil reaches out with a shaking hand to Ethan’s arm and rubs up and down on the skin.

The same electricity that was there before was there again and it feels like more.

The kissing doesn’t progress much because as soon as Phil begins to roll Ethan onto his back to hover over him, his phone begins to ring loudly from the bedside table. He groans and pulls back, rolling onto his back as he reaches for it and grabs it in his hand. He doesn’t bother to see who it is, he presses answer and then presses for speaker phone and let’s the voice ring through.

“Phil! Where are you? You’re missing the meeting with Luxor.”

Phil quickly sits up in bed with the sound of Geoffrey’s stressed voice ringing through his speaker. “Oh shit. That’s this morning isn’t it?”

“Phil, it started a half an hour ago. We were putting it on hold until you arrived but you’re still not here.”

Geoffrey sounded upset and Phil understood it. He should have been more responsible. He had been a bit reckless with Ethan but in his defense, he never thought he would see Ethan ever again so this was a major deal to him to have Ethan with him.

“I can be to the office in 20,” Phil says, throwing the duvet back and hissing at the cool temperature of the room hitting his naked flesh. “I’m so sorry.”

He hangs up before Geoffrey can say anything back and he goes to turn around to Ethan when he notices Ethan is already out of bed and stepping into a pair of boxers. “I’m so sorry.” Phil began, causing Ethan to jump. “I completely forgot about the meeting with Luxor today. My company is collaborating with them and this was our project planning meeting so I need to be there to give my input.”

Ethan lets out a small smile and nods. “It’s okay. I should get going anyway.”

He’s slipping his shirt back onto his arms when Phil jumps up and rushes over to him. “Please tell me I’ll see you again?”

Phil feels a bit pathetic, a bit desperate, asking Ethan if he can see him again but the nod and blush that Ethan supplies him with is enough to help him brain from overthinking it. “I’ll call you later, okay?” Phil says.

“I’ll be looking forward to it.” Ethan says before he brushes up against Phil and gives him a chaste kiss on the cheek. He finishes dressing and slips out the door before Phil has time to say anything else.

His heart hurts a bit to see him go and a part of him is worried it’ll be the last time. But another part of him is telling himself that this is definitely not going to be the last time and everything will be okay and Phil will see Ethan as soon as possible.

***

“Where were you?”

Phil is rushing into the building with Geoffrey waiting for him just past the security clearance desk. “I was busy.”

“Doing what?” Geoffrey prodded. “Having a final shag with a bloke you met last night?”

Phil rolled his eyes. “No, in fact, Ethan spent the night.”

Geoffrey pressed the button for the elevator and scanned his ID badge in to activate it. “Ethan?”

“The guy I met in Italy.”

They stepped into the elevator and made their way up to the 10th floor. When the doors opened, they both stepped out and hurried to the conference room.

“The guy you’ve been looking for?” Geoffrey asks and Phil nods. Geoffrey gives him a cheeky smile and elbows him gently in the ribs. “Phil, you sly—“

“Shhh!” Phil warned. “I don’t even know if it’s quite a thing yet so just—”

They push open the conference door and Phil greets all of the people sitting there with handshakes. “I apologize for the lateness,” He begins but as he sees that no one else is impressed with his excuse, he shuts up and looks up at the powerpoint that Geoffrey is now referring to.

It’s halfway through the meeting when the words, “Amalfi office” catch Phil’s attention. He looks up from his notepad and sees that Geoffrey is talking about how they believe their Amalfi office could help establish and international shipping point for their clothing.

Phil’s intrigued now because Amalfi, while it never had much place in his heart before, had plenty of space now. It was the small coastal town where he met Ethan and it’s the city where his life changed forever. And yeah, he was just there not that long ago but if he can experience that all over again he—

“I’ll go to Amalfi and oversee the company.”

The words are out of his mouth before he can even process what he has just said. He just agreed to temporarily uproot his entire life to Amalfi to oversee that international branch.

Geoffrey set down his laser pointer and leaned on the table. “Phil…are you…?”

“I really think it would be the best,” Phil says. “I can manage the company from Amalfi and help overlook the proceedings while everything is underway here in London. It only makes sense if I go instead of sending someone else there who isn’t going to know what they’re doing.”

“Are you positive this is what you can do?”

Phil bites his lip and nods his head and then the entire table erupts into chatter as Phil stands up, grabs his notebook, and leaves the room.

Jeanna finds him in his office a short time later with a scorned look on her face. “Are you mad?” She says.

“Possibly.”

“You’re absolutely mental to go to Amalfi and oversee the company from there while this major collaboration is happening.”

“It’s not mental,” Phil says. “Amalfi was the best thing that ever happened to me. I want to go back there.”

“But Ethan is here.” Jeanna counters. “So are you going to leave Ethan behind while you uproot to Amalfi for a few months?”

And just like that, a lightbulb goes off in Phil’s head and he excuses himself out of the office. He makes his way to his private bathroom and steps inside as he dials Ethan’s number.

Ethan answers after a few rings and a confused but hopeful “hello?” rings through the speakers.

“Do you want to come to Amalfi with me to live for a few months?”

Phil hears a loud boom on the other side of the line.

DAN POV

He dropped his phone. He dropped his damn cell phone as soon as Phil spoke those words because what the ever-loving fuck was happening? They just reconnected and now Phil is asking him to stay with him in Amalfi for a few months. Could he even do that?

“Ethan? Ethan? Are you there?”

It still makes Dan cringe to hear Phil use his fake name. “Yeah, I’m here. Sorry I dropped my phone.”

Phil laughed on the other side. “So what do you say?”

Dan feels his mouth slack open and he runs a hand over his face before he finally says. “Yeah.”

“You’ll come with me to Amalfi?”

Dan nods and then laughs. “Yeah, I’ll come with you.”

“Oh my god, I didn’t think you actually agree!” Phil says. “I have to work out the logistics but we’ll leave in a few days. No need to worry about money or flights, I have you covered okay?”

Dan feels the giddiness bubble up inside of him as he says a quick okay and then they both hang up. Dan falls to the floor of his bedroom and Sam looks up at him from where she is sat on his bed.

“What the fuck was that?”

“I was just asked to go to Amalfi with Phil.”

Sam shot up from the bed. “WHAT?”

Dan just nodded with a massive smile because he couldn’t believe it had been real either.

“Did you agree?”

Dan nodded again and Sam screeched. “DAN WHAT THE FUCK!”

“I’m going to Amalfi with Phil.” Dan repeated. “I’m fucking going to Amalfi with Phil for a few months and we’re going to drink wine and cruise around on his yacht and have lots of sex and I’m—this can’t be real, right?”

Just as soon as he questioned reality, his phone buzzed again and he looked down to see a new text from Phil telling him that he wanted to see Dan that night. Dan bit his lip and smiled down at his phone as he answered that he would definitely be there.

“We need to get you some new clothing to take!” Sam exclaimed. “Oh my gosh, we need to go now!”

“Sam, you know I don’t have the money to buy a bunch of brand new clothes.”

Sam rolled her eyes and walked over to his closet. She opened the doors and begin to rifle through his various shirts and hanging pants. “How do you not have any nice clothing to take to Amalfi? Didn’t we buy you some before we left the last time?”

Dan shook his head. “Most of it was rented from a company, remember? It was part of my sponsorship deal. All of those clothes got returned.”

Sam shut the door and turned around on her heels. She reached out, grabbing Dan’s arm in her palm with a hard grasp, and she yanked him towards the door.

“Come on, let’s go.”

“Where are you going?”

“I’m taking you shopping,” Sam exclaims. “We’re getting you some expensive clothing just for Phil to remove and through on the floor of his home every night.”

Dan lets out a loud laugh and follows her out of the flat.

***

The shopping was just as eventful as Dan had thought it was going to be. He tried on--and he’s not exaggerating--hundred of tops. Sam had also been super strict about what he was allowed to buy and after seeing the price ring up on the till every time, he would try to wrestle the black credit card out of Sam’s hand. But of course, Sam bought him a bunch of new clothing even though he protested to most of it. And now, after putting it all away, he’s on his way in a car called by Phil to Phil’s penthouse.

Dan’s extremely nervous, but not in a bad way. He’s super excited to be able to see Phil again but he’s also nervous because this is a lot happening all of the sudden. Just a few days ago, he was figuring out whether or not even wanted to show up to meet Phil. And now he’s kissed Phil, spent the night with again, and he’s going to Amalfi.

The car stops in front of the penthouse and Dan gets out, nodding a thank you to the driver as he goes inside and buzzes to go up to Phil’s place. When he gets inside the elevator, he pushes for Phil’s floor?l, which is appropriately labeled, and the doors open just outside of Phil’s penthouse.

Phil opens the door as soon as Dan steps up to it and he wraps his arms around Dan without a warning and Dan slips his arms around Phil’s waist as Phil kisses up and down his neck, sucking lightly on the tender skin. It’s not enough to leave a mark but it’s enough for Dan to feel the pleasure from it.

Phil stops and walks them back into his living room and he brings Dan to his couch where he has two glasses of red wine poured and a plate of meat and crackers setting out. “I didn’t know if you wanted anything to eat but I ordered us sushi from my favorite place that will be here in a few. I poured us a glass of wine while we wait.”

“You didn’t have to do that,” Dan blushes. “You don’t have to do any of this.”

Phil smiled. “Well, then think of this as a celebration of you agreeing to come to Amalfi with me.”

Dan smiled and picks up the glass. He raises it up to his lips and takes a sip and it’s easily the best wine he’s ever had. He pulls it back and looks at Phil with a stunned look who just laughed. “Never has wine before?”

Dan scoffed. “Of course I have but I’ve never had wine this good.”

Phil laughs a bit more. “Well, expect it from now on. Because you only deserve the finest everything.”

Phil leans over and attaches his lips to Dan’s neck again. Dan reaches up and puts his hand on the back of Phil’s neck and holds him in place, letting Phil suck and leave bruises on his skin. He’ll have marks for a few days now but he doesn’t care. Let people see them and see that Phil did them.

Dan let out a moan and Phil pulled back, connecting their lips. Dan sighs into the kiss and melts again. His body feels so relaxed with Phil, so ready. Everything feels so good, so right.

“I still can’t believe that you’ve agreed to come with me,” Phil says pulling away. “I never thought that this would ever happen.”

Dan smiles. “I can’t wait to get to explore Amalfi with you.” He says. “I can’t wait to be there and relive the night when we met.”

Phil blushes. “I can’t believe you’re real, Ethan.”

He leans down and kisses Dan and Dan feels a bit caught off guard by Phil still thinking his name was Ethan. He should correct him. He should say something before this gets too far deep and he no longer can say anything.

He pulls back and opens his mouth to say the words but the doorbell buzzing into the penthouse interrupts his thoughts and he decides that he’ll wait until a better time.

[atthediscowithoutpanic]

Filling in the Pieces

This is for @sagechanoafterdark 2k celebration challenge! Congrats on the milestone my dear!! Thanks for hosting this challenge.

My prompt is “I deserved a better goodbye.” It will be in bold. 

It is my follow up to: Not Everyone is as they Seem

Bucky and OFC Belle Norris

1.4k word count

Language warning (Ya girl’s got a mouth) 🤷🏻‍♀️maybe some angsty angst.

Bucky held a sobbing Belle in his lap, unsure if it was really a good time to move. Here they were sitting on the floor in formal clothes, he was certain part of her dress was ruined at this point unworried about his suit. Finally wiggling enough to pull his cell out of his pocket and text Steve where he was. What had started off to be a pleasant evening had quickly completed a 180 spiral downward, stuck with his feelings and crying woman. Even more uncomfortable feelings of knowing HYDRA was still brainwashing people and had stooped low enough to start using women. 

Suddenly, the door open and Steve was barreling toward him. “What happened Buck?!” Steve crouched to the ground and started rolling Belle over to face him. “She’ll need to go in a holding cell.” Bucky said softly as if she was asleep. Steve shot him a puzzled look, “Holding? Seriously?” Bucky shook his head. Steve scooped Belle up in his arms and allowed him to get up. “If you say so, but you have some explaining to do.” Steve’s tone had shifted from best friend to a cold and authoritative tone. Steve headed to the service elevator and Bucky followed quietly behind him. 

The time between Steve coming to him, and down to the holding area next to the lab felt like an eternity to Bucky, lost in his own thoughts. Steve would glance back at him every so often. Steve placed in her in the cell and had FRIDAY lock it. 

“FRIDAY, run facial recognition on her, anything you can find.” Steve commanded as he went to sit next to his friend outside the cell. 

“Right away, Captain Rogers.” 

Steve could tell Bucky was lost in his own head, unsure of what had transpired. “Whoever she is, is safe for now, how about we go back up there and enjoy the rest of the party? We can sort this out in the morning.”  Patting Bucky’s shoulder with a smile. Bucky sheepishly nodded and followed Steve back to the party. Bucky’s feelings started to become even more meddled realizing there was finally someone who had shared life experiences as him in one way or another. 

Bucky was restless the rest of the night. When his digital clock finally read 4:30 in the morning he decided to go ahead and head down to the cell and hopefully see if she was up. After wrestling with sleep he decided it was just better to face the day whatever came of it. Steve and Tony were already down there, speaking with each other away from the cell. He walked right up to them concerned what was going on. “Hey.. did FRIDAY find anything?” Steve turned the computer screen over to face Bucky. The face on the florescent screen was sure enough her, smiling like she was at first at the party. The first picture was her California driver’s license showcasing her name, Orabelle Ann Norris and then another picture showing what at some point recently was an employee ID card for Cedar Hills Psychiatric Research Hospital with Psy.D. after her name. Hmmm. She’s thirty-three..Bucky mumbled to himself. Feeding the small but growing flame inside for her, before he could chase that thought anymore his head spun around to hear Tony banging on the bulletproof glass of the cell to wake her up. 

Belle wiped her eyes in an attempt to wake up and immediately sprang to her feet when she realized she was in a cage and someone was staring back at her. Now, three somebodies were standing there staring, her brain calling to recollection about the long-haired brunette from last night.  The older looking one looked familiar as well but she couldn’t place him. They had started to wipe her memory so it does not quite surprise her that she didn’t know who he was. As she started to walk towards the men standing in front of her, she met the floor after tripping in the evening gown she still had on that was intertwined between her ankles and shoes. Oh my god… Fuck me..  Hastily getting back up to finish walking toward them. 

The older one was a decent amount shorter than the blonde and other brunette but stood with the confidence like he was ten feet tall. 

“Hey Princess, I just want to start out by saying I deserved a better goodbye.” 

Belle cocked her head to one side and wiped her brow, as if the harder she stroked it the more her memory of where he knew her would come back. 

“Also, you look pretty good with the dark hair instead of being a blonde.” 

The Blonde interrupted him, “Tony, how do you know her?” 

Her eyes widen like saucers, hoarsely she opened her mouth, “St. Tropez.” answered the question the man asked. 

More questions than answers filled her brain, “Wait, does this mean you are Captain America?” She could see more of his muscle at the moment than the pictures of him in the tight ass suit. The black under armor tee clung to every nook and cranny of his muscles, evergreen colored basketball shorts showcased that he certainly never skipped leg day. But she preferred to look at the dark brooding one. His ice-blue eyes seemed to speak volumes with him not saying a word, Orabelle wanted to pull his hair out of the short ponytail and run her hands through it.  Okay quit being horny, and get ahold of yourself. that isn’t going to help you get out of this.  She shook her head to get rid of the horny thoughts running her mind. She did not want to go back to the endless questioning, prodding, and doing more things that will plague her mind at night, but was she safe where she was now? 

“Yes I am Steve Rogers, and you have Tony Stark and Bucky Barnes here as well.” Steve pointed to each of the other two men as he spoke then continued on,

“We do have a question though, do you want to continue working for ermm well your current employer? Here if you agree, you can access to the best tools to help your recovery, as well as using your knowledge for good.” Steve tried to avoid using the one word we all knew was coming… HYDRA. 

The long pause she could tell made the men a bit uncomfortable, the answer was screaming in one part of her brain YES! HELP ME LEAVE while the other side was fueled by the fear they had instilled into her that if she left they would just hunt her down and then the punishment would be much worse for trying to leave. A perky young blonde girl maybe in her early twenties in green scrubs walked up to the cell. Steve started to speak again, “Anna here is going to come in and take your blood so we can make sure you do not need medical attention, okay? One of us will be back once the tests are done.” Orabelle quietly shook her head in agreeance. 

Walking away, all Bucky wanted to do was tell her to not listen to fear that was currently in her mind. That she was so much more than what they had her do, swallow her up in a hug. The fact he was attracted to her did not matter much, he knew exactly what had happened to her and felt any human that had experienced it deserved to not walk through it alone as he had. 

Steve caught up to Bucky leaving Tony behind, “Buck, I think they gave it to her too.”

Bucky’s brow furrowed, “You think they gave her the serum?”

Steve stopped them both in the middle of the hallway still just steps away from the cell, “It may not be what we got, but yes I think we did.”

[jamesmydeer]

passing notes

james sirius x reader

notes: i didn’t intend for this to have multiple parts, but it was too long for just one post. it’s a bit different than my usual writing, but i guess it’s alright. i quite enjoy writing for jsp! i hope you enjoy! as always, feedback: appreciated. xoxo

word count: 2.9k

warnings: none

part ii

James Sirius Potter had seemingly grown accustomed to the sporadic camera flashes and countless ‘Over Here!’s. After all, he had grown up with his mom going through the same thing. He enjoyed the spotlight, clearly taking after his namesake. However, when he had to give an interview, that was a different story.

James had been dreading Puddlemere’s press conference all week. The number one thing Ginny had cautioned him on when he received the news that he was a contestor for a spot on the team was press. She knew firsthand that, as a Potter, the questions that were asked of her son would be different than his teammates.

She was right, James had come to learn. It also didn’t help that Lee Jordan made sure to attend every single press conference James was involved in. He’d go through and answer all the reporters’ generic questions alongside his teammates, few off topic questions being thrown directly at him. When he would go to leave is when Lee would snatch him, knowing James would never tell him no.

Today was no different. James could see Lee Jordan just off the stage. He smiled to himself; as much as he complained about Jordan’s questions, they were by far the highlight of his night.

As the press conference ended, James stood when his teammates did, politely smiling and waving to the crowd in front of him. Sure enough, as soon as he ascended the last step, he was tapped on the shoulder. He turned around, mock annoyance on his face.

“Let’s get it over with then,” he joked, fixing his hair for the camera. Lee laughed at him and walked over to the cameraman, making sure everything was ready to go. Once the interview was ready to begin, Lee turned to James.

“Today is gonna be a bit different,” he smiled shyly at James, who raised an eyebrow and scrunched his nose.

“I got fans to send in questions,” Lee continued, grimacing playfully at his best friend’s nephew. James groaned, immediately filled with dread. It was no secret that James was a rather attractive man. The majority of his fans, let alone fans that would submit questions, were girls. This meant that the questions would be very personal, and not about his job at all. He loved his fans, but he really wasn’t in the mood. James was pulled from his thoughts by Lee telling him they were rolling.

“Good morning everyone, welcome back to Potterwatch. I’m your host, Lee Jordan, and today I’m joined by one of my absolute favorite guests, James Sirius Potter!” James smiled brightly and waved at the camera.

“Alright James, ready to answer some fan questions?”

“As I’ll ever be,” he joked, smirking at the camera.

The interview was going good so far. The questions had been respectful. James made a mental note to thank Lee for filtering out any inappropriate questions.

“Last question, and might I say I saved the best for last. Laura from Cambridge asks ‘If you could go back and change anything from your Hogwarts years, what would it be?’”

James bit his lip in thought, wracking his brain for a suitable answer. He could always go with the generic ‘practiced more’, or ‘studied more’. For some reason, he felt the need to get a little deep with this question. He smiled at the thought of her.

“Well, I’m still single, so maybe dated more in school,” he spoke, winking at the camera; he was known for being a flirt in interviews. Lee turned to the camera and gave a suggestive look.

“Would you like to elaborate, Mr. Potter?”

James slumped his shoulders and sighed, as if to say no, but he did anyway.

“Well, there was this girl that I liked in school, but I never talked to her. I would go to the library every single day and tell myself I was going to talk to her, but then I’d chicken out.”

“Ooooooh, was she pretty?” Lee prodded.

“Yeah, she was. She was in the year below me, so we didn’t have any classes together. She would write in the same yellow book everyday for, like, four years. I’d pay good money to know what she was writing about,” realizing he was rambling, James felt the need to justify the reason why he had noticed the notebook in the first place.

“I think she wanted to be a writer,” he added, looking down towards his feet as his cheeks grew warm. Lee noticed this, and decided to wrap up the interview. Usually he would prod, but this subject seemed a little touchy.

“Well James, thanks for talking to us. We wish you good luck tomorrow,” James smiled and nodded, shaking Lee’s hand and turning towards the camera.

“Don’t forget to tune in tomorrow to see Puddlemere United take on the Chudley Cannons. River out,” and with that, Lee and James shared their goodbyes and parted ways.

When James arrived home, he started thinking back over the interview. He cringed when he remembered what he had said.

“Dear Godric,” he muttered, bringing his fingers up to pinch the bridge of his nose and trudging to his room to get ready for bed.

-

Of course everyone had seen the interview, no one Y/n’s age would dare miss a James Potter II interview. Except Y/n. Sure, she thought he was cute, but it was nothing more than a schoolgirl crush. In fact, that was exactly what it was. She had spent the duration of her Hogwarts attendance fawning over the boy.

Flipping through the channels, Y/n stopped when she saw Puddlemere LIVE! Pregame. As she settled into her couch to hear what the announcers would say about the two teams that were about to play, her phone rang. Y/n groaned, she hated talking on the phone. After checking the Caller ID, she almost didn’t pick up.

“Have you seen it?” Alice asked, skipping any sort of greeting. Alice had been Y/n’s closest friend in school, and still was.

“Seen what?” Y/n asked, grabbing the remote and turning the TV down, noticing that an interview with James had just come on.

“So you haven’t. James talked about you in an interview.”

Y/n nearly dropped her phone. There was no way he had. She didn’t even think he knew her name.

“You’re lying,” she spoke, dumbfounded.

“Serious as his middle name,” she laughed, but Y/n hadn’t seemed to hear. She remembered what was on the TV.

“I’ll call you back,” she hung up. Scrambling for the remote, she quickly unmuted her television. She pressed record as well, just in case.

She hated watching his interviews. It reminded her too much of the fact that she was infatuated with a boy she had never spoken to. Every time he smiled, smirked, or winked at the camera, Y/n’s stomach erupted with butterflies. She hated it.

She started thinking that Alice was making fun of her crush on him when Lee Jordan stated that he was on his last question.

“Last question, and might I say I saved the best for last. Laura from Cambridge asks ‘If you could go back and change anything from your Hogwarts years, what would it be?’”

If she wasn’t going to get a name drop, she might as well turn off the interview. She felt pathetic, of course he wasn’t going to say anything about her. They had been out of school for three years. If he saw her on the street, he’d probably think she was a muggle.

She reached for the remote, but it wasn’t there. She looked over, figuring it was just out of reach, but it wasn’t where she left it. She stood, looking all around her living room for the remote, but stopped when she heard Lee ask James if a girl was pretty. She looked up at the TV, and he seemed to be blushing.

“Yeah, she was. She was in the year below me, so we didn’t have any classes together. She would write in the same yellow book everyday for, like, four years. I’d pay good money to know what she was writing about.” Y/n’s jaw dropped. Alice was telling the truth. James Sirius Potter was talking about her. She needed to rewind it to get context or she thought she might explode.

“I think she wanted to be a writer.” Y/n squealed as James blushed and looked down at his feet. She turned back around to her couch, and the remote was right where she left it. She began to get frustrated, but then remembered that she hand intended on changing the channel. She plopped down, rewinding the interview to watch it from the beginning, allowing her feelings to display themselves freely.

All the other questions were tame. Favorite color, favorite teacher at Hogwarts, most memorable match while in school. One question stood out, giving Y/n an idea.

-

Y/n L/n entered the coffee shop that she did almost everyday, but this time with intentions other than getting coffee. James had said in the interview that his favorite restaurant was this coffee shop, which left her confused as to why she had never seen him there. Nonetheless, she walked up to the counter and smiled at the woman before her.

Y/n had grown close with the owner of the coffee shop while she was still in school. Mrs. May was a portly woman. She had coarse white hair that she wore naturally everyday. Her apron was yellow, stained with coffee and flour. She had smile lines that Y/n had figured she’d had for a long time; Mrs. May claimed to come out of the womb smiling.

“Hello Miss Y/n, how are you doing today?” Mrs. May spoke, smiling brightly at the young girl across the counter. Y/n adjusted her grip on the package.

“I’m doing just fine, thank you. Yourself?” she asked politely.

“Busy busy busy. That Potter boy said something about us in an interview. I’ve never seen so many little girls in my life.” Y/n chuckled. Of course people would come here hoping to see him.

“Well, I came here to ask a favor of you,” Y/n smiled hopefully up at the woman she shared a family-like bond with. Mrs. May pursed her lips and squinted her eyes playfully.

Y/n placed the package on the table.

“Could you give this to James Potter the next time he’s here?” Y/n asked shyly, looking down at the package. She hadn’t even thought about the yellow notebook in three years.

“You too?” Mrs. May prodded suggestively. “Lose your owl?” she joked.

Y/n shook her head, sighing. “I just–”

She was interrupted by Mrs. May putting a hand up, signaling for her to stop. She lifted the package, inspecting it. She noticed there wasn’t a to or from anywhere on it.

“You want me to tell this boy it’s from you?” she asked, eyes still trained on the uncharacteristically neat packaging. Y/n shook her head.

“You don’t have to. It’s inside.”

“Of course I’ll give it to him dear. Now, your usual?”

“I actually have to get going,” she apologized.

“Well I hope you have a wonderful day.”

“Thank you Mrs. May! Have a nice day.”

“I’ll make sure loverboy gets the package.” Y/n shook her head, turning around and walking backwards so she could face the woman she was speaking to. However, before she could get any words out, she bumped into someone.

Turning around to apologize profusely, she was met with someone she hadn’t expected to see. She looked up at him, keeping eye contact for a strange amount of time.

James spoke first. He was just as caught off guard as she was. He smiled down at her, breathing out a soft “Hi.”

“Hi,” Y/n whispered back, smiling up at him. When she realized she had just whispered, she had to force her hand from smacking her forehead. James chuckled.

“I’m really sorry, I wasn’t watching where I was going,” she muttered, avoiding any more eye contact.

“It’s quite alright,” he dismissed, bringing a hand up to run through his hair. He was just about to ask her if he could buy her a coffee when she rushed out the door.

James thought the whole situation was weird. He hadn’t seen her since Hogwarts, and a couple days after he talks about her on TV, here she is. He pushed the thoughts to the back of his head and made his way to the front counter.

“Hey Mrs. May, how are things?” he asked the woman he had grown to consider a friend.

“Crowded, thanks to you.”

James figured that much. There was a group of teenagers in a corner booth staring at them. He waved at them, hearing them all squeal when he turned back to give his order.

“Sorry about that, but I’ll have–”

“Before I forget,” Mrs. May cut him off, reaching behind the counter and pulling out the package. “I was instructed to give this to you.”

She placed the package on the counter. James furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. His face fell when he realized what it was. He leaned across the table and whispered “Did they tell you to give me this?”, motioning his head towards the girls.

Mrs. May just chuckled, turning to fix his coffee and shaking her head. “Your usual?”

“Uh, yes ma’am.” James spoke, grabbing the package and going to sit down at a table at the other side of the shop from the teens.

As soon as he sat down, he tore open the package. He never had been patient, and he was eager to find out what was inside. When he saw, his eyes widened.

The yellow notebook. Her notebook. He quickly opened it, noticing the note that was tucked neatly in between the cover and the first page. He grabbed the note, deciding to read it before anything else.

Hi James!

I’m very glad you finally worked up enough courage to talk to me, so be it inadvertently. Some Gryffindor you are. You know, when someone smiles at you when they catch you staring at them in the library, it’s usually a good sign. I believe this is the book you alluded to. It does me no good collecting dust in a drawer. Enjoy!

p.s. journalist, not writer.

James was at a loss for words. He didn’t even know what to think. Did she mean she liked him too? Probably not, it had been a while. James folded the paper neatly, moving it to the side. He began to flip through the pages of the book, expecting to find stories and poems. Instead, he was met with mindless doodle and miscellaneous lists. Movies to watch, books to read, and favorite songs of all time we’re not what he expected to litter the book. His favorite page was one full of all her personal usernames and passwords. He felt himself fall a little harder at her careless actions.

After going through all the songs she had listed as her favorites, James flipped to a page title ‘Celebrity Crushes’. He laughed to himself. There was no way she had looked over the book before she gave it to him. His eyes scanned over the list. He almost missed, at the bottom of the list, his own name. An ear to ear smile broke out on his face. There was no way.

Mrs. May walked over to him, handing him his coffee. She glanced at the note beside him and knew exactly what was going on. She winked at the blushing boy and walked back to the register.

He flipped to the very back of the book and ripped out a page, writing his own note.

Hi Y/n!

I don’t think you understand just how much this means to me. I spent a good chunk of my life convincing myself to try and talk to you. Some Gryffindor I am? I thought Hufflepuffs were supposed to be kind. Now that I know you felt the same way, I partially blame you for our lack of communication. I’m gonna assume you went back and added my name to the crushes.

p.s. you probably shouldn’t go handing out your personal information to people

He folded the paper, tucking it in the same place Y/n had left hers. He walked up to the counter, but before he could speak, Mrs. May reached her hand out.

“I’ll give it to her if you won’t,” she joked, giving him a pointed look.

“Thank you so much,” he handed her the book, then turned towards the door. As soon as he was outside, he pulled out his phone, calling the number of the Puddlemere publicist. When he didn’t answer, James left a voicemail.

“Hey, sorry to bother you. This is James. I was just wondering if you could maybe work out an interview for me with Y/n L/n. I think it would be really good for the team and all. Thanks mate.”

[mythicalsecretsanta]

I Am Not (G)

This gift is for: Elyssa (AKA @rhinkityrhink​) I hope you enjoy your little ficlet “I Am Not”. It’s based off your request for jealous!rhett; however, it is impossible for me NOT to include some hurt/comfort (no blood, though!) From your Secret Santa, Christy (AKA @your-borderline-babe​)

Link to AO3, or read below:

Rhett was a reasonable man. A man of intellect. He may not be the most intelligent man in the whole world, but he felt comfortable in believing that he was the smartest man in any given room. So, when he began to feel uncomfortable when Link discussed his time at the gym, he immediately began to analyze those feelings. His therapist was trying to get Rhett to feel these feelings. Advising him to take a moment to let those feelings register. Take note of what part of the body he felt those feelings. But knowing and doing are two separate things and Rhett wanted to know where these feelings came from. Then make them go away.

It’s not like Link had just started going to the gym. It’s been years since they both made working out a part of their weekly routine. In the beginning they discussed going to the same gym but they had made a conscious decision to spend more time apart. Given a choice they would naturally gravitate towards spending every waking moment together, but, for the health of their relationship they knew that time apart was healthy. They were in this for the long haul. Friends til the end. So, whatever they could do to make that happen they were willing.

Rhett had been sitting at his desk staring at his email inbox, unfocused and in deep thought when Link entered their shared office. It wasn’t strange that Link did not greet him with a ‘Good morning.’ They just didn’t do that. Had rarely done it in decades. Does one greet the other half of themselves?  Link went through his well-conditioned morning routine. Just listening to the sounds, Rhett could tell exactly what Link was doing: Hanging up his jacket and backpack. Turning on his desk lamp. Lining up any desk top items that had been pushed askew from Jenna being there. Changing his glasses from prescription outside to prescription inside.

Rhett smiled to himself. He knew Link better than Link knew Link. And that thought made him happy. He knew the intimate details of Link’s life. They shared so many experiences, but even those he experienced during their times of planned separation, Link was quick to share the details. As was Rhett. He felt confident that Link held no secrets. No really big ones, definitely. Rhett was sure of that.

“What’s got that big brain working so early this morning? I can literally hear the gears turning.” Link deadpanned from his desk, not looking up from the mail he was reading.

Rhett huffed in amusement and benignly responded, “Nothin’.”

“Hey, I’ve got an idea for a show.” Link spun around in his chair, suddenly fully animated. Rhett turned his chair around as well full concentrating on Link. “Trent was telling me about these games they played at a party he was at. It’s called Minute to Win It. They do these crazy activities in competition with each other. What he described was pretty juvenile, but there is plenty of room to spice it up.”

Immediately, Rhett felt it. His skin started to crawl. His anger piqued. A small pain expanded in his chest.

“Trent?” Rhett repeated tightly.

“I told you about Trent. At my gym?” Link raised both eyebrows and gave a small jut to his jaw.

“Oh, yeah Trent.” Rhett acknowledged dryly.

“So, what do you think?” Link prodded.

Rhett thought about it for a minute, “Even though you’re just finding out about this, it’s actually been around for a while and we want to keep things new and cutting edge. Right?”

Link shrunk in his chair looking dejected, “Oh, right. Yeah. No, you’re right.” Link’s head sinking to his chest.

Rhett studied his business partner and felt Link’s disappointment in his own bones, “But, we can throw it to the writers to see if they can come up with a new angle?” His head angled down to see Link’s fallen face.

Link raised his head with his expression lightened, “ Great! I’m so excited. I can’t wait to tell Trent we might actually use his idea.” Link spun back around and attacked his projects for the day.

Rhett sat there looking at the back of Link’s head. His irritation spilling over. He stood abruptly and walked quickly out the door. What the actual fuck? Who was this Trent? Who was this Trent to Link? They both have friends individually. Maybe not close friends. But, they definitely have casual acquaintances individual from each other.  But now there’s this Trent person who works out with Link several times a week, who Link shares ideas with, who Link probably laughs with. What kind of name is Trent, anyway? A dumb name.

Rhett stood there dunking the tea bag into his mug over and over on the kitchen counter. Stevie walked in and greeted Rhett with a ‘Hey’ and bent to grab a flavored water from the fridge. As she stood she studied Rhett.

“Uh, Rhett. Did you get that tea bag to admit it was a witch yet?” Stevie quirked her mouth.

Rhett snapped out of his thoughts, “What? Oh, yeah.” Rhett pulled the bag out and wrapped the string around it and pulled.

“What’s on your mind?” Stevie pulled her eyebrows together.

“Nothin’. Hey, you go to the gym. Do you have a gym buddy?” Rhett asked without context.

“Nah. I pretty much get my cardio in and hightail it out of there. Why?”

“No reason, really. Just wondering about something.” Rhett dismissed.

Rhett went about his day and thankfully his obsessive thoughts of the morning were pushed aside with Mythical business. His reprieve ended that evening. He lay in bed his mind drifting in the limbo between sleep and wakefulness. 

Why do I care who Link hangs around with? Why is this bothering me? Am I afraid of losing my friend? That somehow Trent will replace me as Link’s best friend? When Rhett articulates the concern, he recognizes the lunacy of the thought. He reassures himself that that will never happen and he lays there and waits for the resolution to wash over him. But the anxiety does not lift. That wasn’t it.

He was close. He was afraid of Trent usurping Rhett in some aspect of his and Link’s relationship. He knew that. But what was it? He lay staring at his ceiling as if the answer would soon be projected there. Rhett was a smart man. He would figure this out.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

The next morning, Rhett was on his second cup of tea when he realized Link had not yet arrived. He made the rounds of the office to see if perhaps Link had gone directly to speak with someone. Coming up empty, he sent a text off. After a few minutes he sent another. Ignoring the fear starting to creep into his chest, Rhett finally called Link’s phone. After quite a few rings, an unknown voice answered.

“Hello?” Not-Link answered.

Rhett pulled the phone from his ear, making sure he dialed the correct number.

“Hello?” Not-Link repeated.

“Uh, is Link there?” Rhett ventured a response.

“Rhett? Oh hi. Yes, he’s right here.” Not-Link answered casually, obviously reading his name from the caller ID.

“Can I speak with ‘em?” Rhett asked with a sharpness entering his voice.

“Yeah, not right now.” Not-Link responded matter-of-factly.

“Why?” Rhett’s voice rose, all pretense of pleasantness erased. “Who’zis anyway?’

Rhett has been known to lose his temper on occasion. Well, if he was being honest with himself, quite a lot. Okay, maybe he has an issue with his anger. And at this moment, he was very angry. Scratch that. He was pissed. 

“Oh, yeah, sorry. This is Trent.” The man sounded distracted.

Rhett was dumbfounded that this person, Trent, was either incapable of sensing Rhett’s full blown anger or had chosen to ignore it. Rhett sat there in stunned silence as he felt his face burn, his body shaking, and his blood pressure skyrocketing. He heard Link’s voice in the background. He was asking a question and he was sure he heard his name.

“What the fuck is goin’on?” Rhett bellowed at a decibel that would certainly attract attention from nearby staff.

He could hear a rustling, then murmuring, and then more rustling. He was sure that if he didn’t hear from Link and soon, he was going to hurt someone.

Finally. Finally.

“Rhett?” Link’s voice was weak and strained. If he was in a better mood, he might even characterize it as a little whiny.

“Link, are you okay? What’s wrong?” In response to Link’s tone of voice, Rhett had dialed back his anger considerably to mildly irritated.

“I fell.” Link sounded pitiful.

“Fell? Off of what?” Rhett questioned.

“Don’t laugh.” Link asked in a small voice.

Rhett rolled his eyes and sighed. All parties involved were testing his patience this morning.

“I promise.” He tried to make it sound calm and reassuring.

There was a pause. He imagined that Link was gathering the courage to share something potentially embarrassing. Rhett steeled himself to take in the information stoically.

“I fell off the treadmill.” Link whispered, barely audible.

Rhett’s emotions dove from intense anger to amusement. He bit his lip to stifle the laugh that had bubbled up.

“I see.” What Rhett could not cover was the smile in his voice mirroring the one that had broken out on his face.

“You promised!” Link exclaimed with new strength.

“I didn’t laugh!” Rhett contradicted his statement by laughing around the response. Biting his lip again to stifle it.

Link responded with silence.

“I’m sorry. Did you hurt yourself, bo?” Rhett transitioned to a sweet coo.

“A little.” Link responded back in his small voice.

Rhett waited for Link to continue.

“Skinned my knees and hurt my wrist. I’m icing it down.”

“Do you need me to come get you?” Rhett would not have sounded any different talking to a small child.

“Trent said he’d bring m-.” Link started.

“I’ll be right there.” Rhett cut Link off, pressed end and sprinted out of the door.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

When Rhett entered the gym his eyes immediately started scanning for Link. Some guy waved enthusiastically from the back of the room. He had a head of light blond hair and a round face belonging to someone not older than 16.

As Rhett approached the pair, he saw Link sitting in a chair with beet red scratches on the front of each knee. He was holding his left wrist with a towel containing was Rhett assumed was ice.

Link looked at Rhett with eyes that were red from crying and obviously in pain.

Rhett squatted next to Link and wordlessly opened up the towel to examine the injury. From his years of playing basketball, he had become an expert determining a sprain from a fracture.

Rhett poked a few places which caused Link to suck air between his teeth. When he finished his probing he left his hand on Link’s forearm.

“Move your fingers for me.” Rhett’s voice was gentle.

Link moved his fingers easily.

“I don’t think it’s broken but we can go to Urgent Care if you want to double check?” Rhett soothed, gently rubbing up and down Link’s arm.

“Yeah. If you don’t mind.” Link leaned on Rhett. Rhett smiled at how a moderate wrist injury had apparently made Link so “weak” that he had to lean on Rhett.

“Sure thing.” Rhett gave his arm a soft pat.

Rhett rose to his feet and saw the blond jutting out his chin to the music from his earbuds and playing some game on his phone.

Rhett looked at Link,”Trent, I suppose?” Link nodded re-wrapping his wrist in ice.

Rhett touched Trent’s arm to get his attention. His head shot up and he pulled at the earbuds.

“Uh, thanks, man, for, um taking care of Link. Sorry, I was, uh, like that on the phone.” Rhett was feeling all kinds of embarrassed for his earlier behavior.

“No biggie. Mr. Neal is an okay dude. Hate to see him face plant like that. I kinda wish I had caught it with my phone. You know?” Trent elbowed him conspiratorially.  

Rhett smiled and nodded his head in acknowledgement, “Gotta get those clicks.”

“It would have gone viral, man!” Trent picked up his gear. “Feel better Mr. Neal.”

“Thanks Trent. Good luck on the Algebra exam.” Link called out.

Rhett shouldered Link’s bag and helped him stand. Link winced as he straightened his knees.

“Hurts like a son of a bitch.” Link winced.

Rhett rubbed Link’s back sympathetically.

As they made their way through the gym, Link looked up to Rhett, “What was that about you being some kinda way on the phone?”

Rhett burned again with embarrassment. He looked away, not wanting to own up to his behavior. Knowing Link like he did, he knew that he would eventually pull it out of him, so he came clean.

“I sorta yelled at him.” Rhett mumbled.

Link stopped and stepped back, “You what?”

“It’s not important.” Rhett dismissed and directed Link to start moving.

Link acquiesced, but continued to study Rhett. His expression of someone calculating all the reasons behind why Rhett would have reacted that way.

Link’s face flashed with realization, he snapped his fingers and pointed at Rhett, “Oh my god, you’re jealous!”

It was Rhett’s turn to stop and step back. Hand on his chest. “I. Am. Not. He’s just a boy!”

“Yeah, but you didn’t know that!” Link excitedly poked his finger into Rhett’s chest.

Rhett felt called out. His mind raced to defend himself. Get out from under this accusation. He needed deflection.

“Why didn’t you mention that Trent was a teenager?” Rhett responded triumphantly.

Rhett must have struck a nerve because Link’s smile faltered and a red blanket of guilt descended over his face, neck and chest. He quickly began to move to the door.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Rhett got Link settled in the car and buckled in. They started towards the clinic in silence. Link had been correct. Rhett had been jealous of Trent, initially. Not of his friendship necessarily but he had been jealous nonetheless. Of what, he wasn’t sure yet but he owed Link that much.

“Maybe I was jealous. A little.” Rhett said quietly, glancing at Link and then back to the road.

Awkward silence. 

“Maybe I wanted you to be. A little.” Link said in the same volume glancing up to Rhett and then back at his bandaged wrist.

Really awkward silence.

The staff at Urgent Care was efficient and friendly and in no time Link was x-rayed, medicated, and splinted. 

The whole experience was fairly routine but as Rhett watched the medical staff work on Link the terrifying thought of one day losing him floated into his consciousness. Then that feeling came back. That anxiety. Then it dawned on him.

That’s what I was worried about with Trent! Losing Link to him. 

Rhett sat with that thought for a minute. 

What if circumstances or another person takes Link from me? Oh, god. Please don’t take him. Don’t take my sun. My moon. Don’t take my heart. My … love.

Rhett chastised himself for being so stupid. Not realizing what was right before him. And Link had wanted him to be jealous. Did that mean he feels the same way?

When Rhett got Link back in the car. His mind was playing one thought on repeat. I love Link, I love Link, I love Link.

Link let his head fall against the headrest. “Boy, that shot they gave m—-“

“Link, I love you.” Rhett blurted out. 

Link pulled his heavy head off the headrest and struggled to focus on Rhett. “I know ‘m high asa kite, buddy roll, b’ that sounded like ya tellin’ me ya love me.” Link slurred out.

“I know it’s terrible timing, but I just realized it and if I don’t say it, I’ll end up back in that clinic with a stroke or something.” The words spilled out.

Link blinked slowly then his head fell back on the headrest one last time, eyes closed. Rhett watched his jaw relax and heard a light snore. He smiled warmly at the sight of the man. His man. He hoped.

Rhett opened Link’s car door when they got to Link’s house. He bent down and whispered in Link’s ear, “Wake up buddy, you’re home.”

Link looked around and nodded in recognition. Rhett supported Link’s unsteady efforts and guided him into and through the house. He got Link’s clothes off down to his boxer briefs with very little help. Rhett tucked Link in, propping his wrist on a pillow. He looked down at Link’s angelic face and couldn’t resist kissing his forehead. 

As his lips pressed against Link’s skin, Rhett heard his sleepy voice, “Now that we love each other, can you stay with me?” 

“Yes.” Forever.

~ The End Beginning ~

[waltzofthewifi]

Kota Chapter 26: That Afternoon

Master Post/Table of Contents

Marinette headed to the Liberty right after school.

Luka was in his bedroom, strumming his guitar and making notes on a notebook. He smiled when Marinette entered.

"Am I interrupting something?" Marinette asked.

"No," Luka replied. He placed his guitar gently against the wall and moved the notebook, inviting Marinette to sit on his bed with him.

Marinette sat down, place her bad against the bed and crossing her legs. Tikki flew out of her bag and settled on Marinette's leg.

"I'm glad you're doing this," Tikki said. "If you don't mind, I'll leave you two alone."

Luka nodded. "Juleka, Rose, and my mom are probably around, but feel free to look around."

"Thank you," Tikki said. She flew off, phasing through the wall.

"I think she has a good idea of the layout of the Liberty," Marinette said. "From all the time I spend here."

"It must be nice having her around," Luka said. "I've wanted to give Sass a tour."

Marinette nodded. "A lot of the temporary heroes have expressed similar wants. I'm starting to wonder if maybe I could leave the Miraculous with you longer, if only so you can bond with your kwami like me and Tikki are. I don't know what I would do without her."

"I would appreciate that," Luka said. "Are you ready to start our meditation lesson?"

Marinette nodded. "Ready."

"Close your eyes," Luka said.

Marinette obliged.

"Most meditation instruction tells you to clear your mind," Luka said. "I've never found that very helpful. Instead, I like to think of a simple melody. Either way works. I've always heard of people picturing waves or something else - just enough thought to focus on, without having your brain start wondering."

"Okay."

Marinette pictured a wave - which was easy to do, on a boat.

"Whatever it is should be calm," Luka continued. "Now, what I do is I tense then release each individual muscle, starting in my toes."

Luka continued talking Marinette through the exercise, and Marinette was surprised to find herself actually relaxing.

She hadn't even realized how tense her muscles were. She supposed, with everything going on, it wasn't a surprise how tense she'd become. It was like her body was being pulled taught.

Marinette rolled her shoulders, trying to relax her muscles.

It felt -

It felt like a dam was breaking.

A tear rolled down her cheek. Then another. And another.

Marinette wiped at her cheek with her sleeve.

"Are you alright?" Luka asked.

Marinette opened her eyes to see Luka staring at her in concern.

"Yeah it's - it's nothing." She took a shaky breath in. "I just - I didn't realize how much I - how tense I've been - I mean I-"

Luka grabbed her hand. "It's okay. You're allowed to cry."

"No I'm not!" Marinette pushed his hand away and wiped at another tear. "If I get akumatized-"

"You can cry without being akumatized," Luka replied. "I've watched several experts who say that crying can even help you not get akumatized."

"Wha - what do you mean?"

"Crying isn't causing a problem," Luka reasoned. "It's just releasing emotions. People say you get akumatized because you feel hopeless, like there's no escape - well, crying is a way for your emotions to escape."

Marinette sniffled. "I guess that makes sense." She sniffled again. "It feels like - sometimes -"

She didn't finish her sentence. Instead, Marinette buried her head in her hands and just cried.

Luka reached out and placed a hand on each of Marinette's arms. "It's okay."

Marinette nodded, and in a moment of pure instinct, reached out and engulfed Luka in a hug.

.

Lacy nervously watched the laundry machine, as if her stare would help clean her shirt. She was Aphrodite's daughter, shouldn't she have some magical un-staining power?

When her phone rang from the living room, Lacy finally moved from her watch post. She was surprised to see Chloe as the caller ID.

"Yes?" Lacy answered.

Chloe grinned evilly. "So remember the other day when me and Césaire went to the principle about Rossi?"

"Yeah?"

"Well, usually I could get her expelled, and instantly, but I'm trying to play nice," Chloe said. "But I was able to pull some strings."

"I thought you already got her detention?" Lacy questioned. "For threatening Adrien?"

"Yes, well, I did a little more," Chloe said. "Especially with the way she was picking on you today, trying to get you in trouble with Miss Bustier - as if! I don't think Bustier's given out more than a detention since Ivan was akumatized."

"What did you do?" Lacy asked.

"I got her moved to another class," Chloe said.

"Oh thank the gods," Lacy sighed. "Best news I've heard in a while!"

"I know, right? Who's awesome?"

"You are," Lacy replied. "Whose class is she going to be in now?"

"To Ms Mendeliev's - who is the most no non-sense teacher in the school. Rossi's lies will never fly with her."

"But she gets out of chemistry all the time?"

"Yeah, I guess. Either way, she's not in our class."

"Thank you, Chloe," Lacy said. "I do feel bad for her new classmates though."

"Dupain-Cheng will probably try to warn them when she finds out," Chloe reasoned. "Whether they listen or not is entirely up to them. She's not our problem anymore - unless she continues picking on Adrien, that is. Oh, I talked to Adrien, and he's already agreed to move to Sabrina's and Lahiffe's project, so they don't even have to worry about that! Aren't I so thoughtful?"

"Yeah, that is really thoughtful," Lacy agreed.

"He thought so too," Chloe continued. "He even prefers working with Lahiffe, for some reason. Anyways, I have important people things to do. See you in school tomorrow?"

"Yeah, see you."

.

Marinette took a big drink of the nice, cold water and slammed the empty glass back onto the table.

"Ugh, I was dying of thirst," she said.

"I can tell," Luka replied. "Feeling better?"

Marinette nodded. "Much. Thank you."

"Of course."

The two of them lapsed into a comfortable silence.

The boat rocked almost rhythmically. Marinette folding her arms across the table and watched the clock on the wall change. It was peaceful, and Marinette let herself relax.

Her eyes drifted to Luka, who was taking a sip of water.

"You're a good friend, Luka."

Luka smiled. "I try to be."

Marinette looked down at her elbow. "I wish I was too."

"You are," Luka replied. "To me, and even more to Juleka."

Marinette shook her head. "I feel like I'm just using you. You're always there for me, and I know I can rely on you."

"I enjoy being there for you, Marinette," Luka said.

"But I feel like I'm never there for you," Marinette argued.

"I'm not the one who needs the support," Luka said.

"Everyone needs support," Marinette countered.

"Marinette, it's fine. I've grown up used to having be there for Juleka, since our father is no longer in our lives and our mom... she's still recovering from him."

"Then you need someone even more," Marinette argued. She reached across the table and grabbed Luka's hands. "Promise me, if you ever need something, you'll ask for help. Maybe not from me, but somebody."

Luka stared at her hands for moment. "Yeah, okay."

.

"You're heading out?" Elisabeth questioned when Lacy walked down the stairs.

"Getting a little restless," Lacy replied. "I'm just going to the store down the street to get some pictures printed. I'll be fine."

"You're going alone?" Elisabeth prodded.

"I'll be fine," Lacy repeated. "I have my pocket knife and the dagger Piper gave me."

"Just. Be careful."

Lacy nodded.

The fresh air felt nice, and so did the walking. After being holed up all afternoon, Lacy needed to move.

The drugstore wasn't too crowded, and only two other people were in line in front of Lacy.

Someone stepped in line behind Lacy. Lacy could hear him flirting with someone else, but tuned the conversation out.

The line moved up.

The conversation behind Lacy rose in volume. Lacy was startled to hear the girl sounded suspiciously like Lila, but when Lacy glanced behind her, the girl looked nothing like Lila.

Lacy thought she was being discreet, but the girl caught her glance and scowled.

"Problem?"

"No," Lacy said, quickly glancing back to the line in front of her.

The customer in front of her was having difficulties, so Lacy resigned herself to a long wait.

Unease slowly began unsettling her stomach.

The conversation continued behind her, but Lacy kept her eyes ahead. Getting caught eavesdropping once was bad enough.

The way the girl was talking, though, it almost sounded like Charmspeak...

The customer in front of Lacy was now demanding to speak to the manager.

Someone else was now joining the line behind Lacy, and talking the other man. Sounded like his girlfriend just caught him flirting with the charmspeaker.

Lacy didn't know which conversation she least wanted to hear.

The person's girlfriend was now dragging him away, and the manager had been called. Lacy stared at her feet.

"A shame," the charmspeaker muttered. "I was looking forward to dinner."

Lacy kicked at the carpet, debating whether to leave and come back later. She didn't really need the pictures printed, except to add to her wall.

Something hit her in the back, and Lacy went flying.

Lacy hit the ground, skidding across the carpet. Her bag landed several feet away.

The charmspeaker was approaching her, and she flashed a smile.

With fangs.

Lacy cursed.

"But if I can't find myself a man, well, a demigod should do," she continued, moving to block Lacy's path to her bag - and her weapon.

Lacy's heart pounded.

What would Piper do?

She'd probably use her Charmspeak.

Not helpful.

Okay, what would someone without powers do? What would Annabeth do?

She would use her surroundings to her advantage.

The monster was approaching, and Lacy scooted backwards. She scanned the store for something.

The monster lunged, and Lacy rolled out of the way and up to her feet.

Lacy sprinted to the shelves, grabbing a sample perfume bottle. The monster followed. Lacy sprayed the perfume in her face, causing her to recoil.

Lacy kicked her in the stomach, knocking her backwards.

The monster was still between her and her bag, and between her and the door, so Lacy turned and ran the other way.

She turned down the last aisle - the cosmetics aisle - and grabbed a hairbrush off the shelf.

The monster rounded the corner, bearing her fangs, and Lacy threw the brush. It didn't land in her eye exactly, but it caught the monster by surprise.

Lacy took the opportunity, running at the monster and sliding between its legs. The carpet burned, but Lacy didn't slow down and darted for her bag.

The monster pursued.

Lacy grabbed the bag by its strap. She didn't have time to grab her knife, so she swung the bag and smacked it against the monster's face.

It was enough to make the monster stop, and Lacy took advantage and kicked her in the face.

She stumbled backwards, and Lacy reached into her bag for her dagger.

Her hand wrapped around the sunglasses case just as the monster recovered.

Neither got the chance to strike.

The monster exploded into monster guts, revealing another behind her.

"Nora?"

.

Adrien was really struggling to pay attention.

It wasn't Kagami's fault. Usually, hanging with Kagami was invigorating - whether they were practicing fencing, getting away with something their parents would hate, or just talking. But the akuma earlier had worn Adrien down, and while he wasn't sleepy, he didn't have the mental energy to focus on the conversation.

Adrien gave another half-hearted "uh-huh" and took a sip from his empty glass.

"Adrien?" Kagami prodded.

"Yeah?"

"Why did you ask me to this cafe with you?"

"Because... because I like talking with you?" Adrien answered.

"Then talk," Kagami commanded.

Adrien sighed. "I'm sorry. I know I'm not myself today."

"What's wrong?" Kagami asked.

Adrien shrugged. It's not like he could tell her, as much as he wanted to. He envied Marinette's time with Luka - Adrien could tell Luka how tired and sore he was.

Kagami sighed. "Be honest with me."

I can't.

"Look, I'm just tired, and I don't want to go home right now."

"I can understand not wanting to go home," Kagami said. "But you told me you wanted to hang out, but you don't."

"I do want to hang out!" Adrien said. "I enjoy your company, Kagami. Even when I'm tired."

Kagami made a noncommittal sound.

"Come on, I can't help it if I'm a little worn out," Adrien argued.

"You could have been more upfront about your intentions," Kagami replied. "It feels like you only seek me out when avoiding your father."

"That's because I'm always avoiding my father!"

"You told me this was date," Kagami insisted.

Huh?

"When did I do that?" Adrien questioned.

"When you approached me about this afternoon," Kagami said. "You said, 'would you like to go to the cafe with me after school?' I inquired if it was a date, and you said yes."

"I... don't remember that," Adrien admitted.

Kagami huffed. "I would have said yes, even if it wasn't. Which this clearly isn't."

"I'm sorry if I hurt you-"

"Save it."

Kagami grabbed her bag and stood up.

"I'll see you later, Adrien."

.

Kagami let the door to the cafe close loudly behind her.

Of course it wasn't a date, Kagami scolded herself. He was half asleep when he said it was. He didn't mean it.

She marched down the street, forcing back the embarrassment she felt. She had presumed, once again. She was always too fast, too quick, and it always backfired.

After the day she had today - getting a B on an assignment, having to deal with her mother finding out about it, and then having her favorite part of the day, fencing practice, cancelled - Kagami thought she deserved to be optimistic. When Adrien said yes, this was a date, she didn't even second guess it.

Stupid, stupid, stupid.

Riposte.

Kagami froze, alarmed by the voice in her head.

You've had a tough day today. Your mother thinks your grades are slipping. Your friend was dishonest with you. All you want to do is fence, but even that's been cancelled.

Well, I'm giving you the power to take out your frustrations on all of Paris. All I ask in return...

.

Next Chapter

[ctl-yuejie]

the grandmaster of demonic interior design or mound squatting & a smitten renovator

⇨ for @howdydowdy​ who wisely suggested a home renovation tv series au based on my crack gifset

Ia . IIa . IIIa . Ib . IIb . IIIb. Ic . IIc . IIIc . Id . IId . IIId . Ie . IIe ⭐︎ . IIIe ⭐︎⭐︎ . extra

(longest part yet....)

Ie.

Wei Wuxian panics.

“Lan Zhan!” He softly prods Lan Wangji’s cheek with his finger. “Lan Zhan! Are you okay? What happened?” Lan Wangji’s skin is hot under his touch and it hits him. “Are you drunk? Lan Zhan-ah, Lan Zhan-ah, it must have been hard on you today. Thank you for keeping troublesome me company. But you really do have to warn me before passing out like this.”

After checking Lan Wangji’s vitals he almost cries laughing, unsure about what to do next. His fingers now rest on Lan Wangji’s cheek, his thumb drawing soothing circles.

The film crew has left him, the squatters have scattered and he is stranded in this town he never really intended staying in with the Hanguang-Jun, passed out drunk.

Most likely the footage they have will never get aired in fear of the Wen clan pressing charges for trespassing and the bombardment of cease-and-desist-orders they might unleash.

Just then he starts to feel sorry for everyone involved Lan Wangji’s phone rings. Whoever is calling is quite persistent so he fishes the phone out of Lan Wangji’s pocket and takes the call.

Lan Xichen has already heard about the incident on Burial Mound. If he’s surprised that Wei Wuxian picked up the call he masks it well. After assuring him that Lan Wangji is fine, just incapacitated, they exchange some small-talk. He promises Lan Xichen that he will look after his brother and somehow that is enough for him to leave Lan Wangji in his care without further questions. Weirdly stumped by the progression of things he hangs up, not able to recall what else their conversation was about.

He wants to return Lan Wangji’s phone when the background picture catches his eye.

A dark and a white bunny are snuggling in the lap of someone wearing the traditional white Lan sect garments, the edge of a Guqin visible in a corner. Wei Wuxian is hit with a sudden feeling of deep fondness and silent realisation nagging at the back of his mind.

He pays for the drinks, pushes the still passed out Lan Wangji onto his back and stumbles into the street.

Despite having held out on Burial Mound for quite some time, he’s actually not that familiar with the town itself, nor does he have any clue where Lan Wangji’s hotel might be. Lan Xichen might have told him on the phone. Well, that’s not of any help then.

He hoists Lan Wangji higher, heart beating faster when his head drops onto his shoulder. With his free hand he thumbs over his display in deep thought. MianMian should be in Yiling, shouldn’t she?! He opens up their chat and texts a ridiculously desperate sounding message, begging for a place to stay. Before he can switch his screen off her reply appears in the left corner.

MianMian > *9582 <

Followed by an address in the city. “No!” He hears Lan Zhan mumble against his ear. “Lan Zhan! You are awake! Come tell me the name of your hotel!” MianMian’s apartment surely’d be nice, but hotel beds are a thing. Also sharing a hotel bed with Lan Wangji is a possible thing. “No!” Lan Wangji says again.

MianMian > That’s the pin for the 🚪! Am away on business 🌈💪！Help                    yourself!💕<

It gets more and more exhausting dealing with Lan Wangji on his back, who now for some reason is trying to reach for Wei Wuxian’s phone. “Stop it! Just tell me where you stay Lan Zhan!” He can’t help it if it comes out whiny. “I stay with Wei Ying.”

Oh.Oh! He didn’t even consider bringing Lan Wangji back to the hotel and staying at MianMian’s by himself. Oh.

“Lan Zhan! Let us at least get your things, or you will be very embarrassed when you wake up and have no change. Please tell me where your hotel is, yes?” Despite MianMian’s offer, the hotel bed still sounds very soft and nice. “No. I stay with Wei Ying.” Wei Wuxian sighs. “Do you like MianMian?” Lan Wangji sounds like he’s tearing up. Wei Wuxian sighs again, fondly.

He quickly texts MianMian, now balancing a very sad second young master of Lan on his back.

                                                                      > Is there room for two.                       drunk! half of the lan twin jades is with me. dont’t ask. < YuanDao

MianMian > 👀< MianMian > only one 🛏< MianMian > ... <

                                                                          > Thanks! I owe you! < YuanDao

MianMian > you already do. don’t get the precious ✋✨jun killed. <

He knows that she tortures him on purpose with the emojis but retaliation has to wait.

Luckily Lan Wangji gets easier to handle once he puts his phone away. He looks almost cute when Wei Wuxian flags down a taxi and gives the driver MianMian’s address, which makes Lan Wangji’s face light up.  

Once they are in the small but tidy apartment, he lowers Lan Wangji down onto the carpet and plops down next to him, exhausted from the walk.

Under the harsh overhead light, he feels like he’s waking up from a dream.

“It’s always like that you know,” he tells a solemn Lan Wangji, who’s head is swaying into the direction of his shoulder. “I get attached. And then I let go.” Surprisingly Lan Wangji seems to have found his voice again. “Don’t you get lost?” Wei Wuxian shivers. “It’s a bit disorientating, for sure.” Lan Wangji turns to look at him, like he wants to anchor Wei Wuxian, help him stay fixed at his side. He fails moments later when his eyes become unfocused. It is very endearing.

Later, after drinking some water and refreshing themselves Wei Wuxian starts to feel better.

There is no need to feel so weighed down when there’s Lan Wangji by his side. Pretty and immaculate Lan Wangji. He chokes on a laugh when he comes across the scene in the bedroom. The pretty and immaculate Lan Wangi is currently levelling a stare at his sash, still too intoxicated to will his fingers to untie it. “Lan Zhan, let me,” he offers softly and Lan Wangji obediently moves his hands out of the way, looking at him expectantly. The outer robes are removed easily enough, he doesn’t dare to undress him more than that, only pulling out the hairpiece to make it easier to lie down. It feels surprisingly heavy in his hand.

When he looks up Lan Wangji has fallen asleep. The clock on the bedside table reads 21:01. He snickers, silently leaving the room.

Their robes reek of smoke and dead soil. Wei Wuxian strips down to his shirt and underwear, putting the rest inside the washing machine.

It takes him some time to find the right setting, hoping that Lan Wangji’s robe won’t get too damaged.

Finally finding a minute to breathe he’s confronted with a whole other dilemma.

Thinking about lying next to Lan Wangji in bed had felt so natural, but now he’s unsure whether to follow through.

It suddenly feels rude to just sneak under the covers without permission. Shamelessness was usually his strong point, so what made him hesitate now? There’s only one bed, it’s not that he has a choice. And Lan Wangji had insisted to come with him. Leaving without him had been no option anyways.

He gets startled by a noise at the entrance. Sticking out his head from the bathroom he finds Lan Wangji rearranging their boots, putting them in a neat line, toes pointing towards the door. Wei Wuxian’s body shakes with silent laughter. He really wouldn’t want to miss Lan Wangji at his side. Especially when he’s like this.

“Lan Zhan?” He tries calling out. “Hm.” Oh, he’s sober again. “Lan Zhan, how are you feeling? Why don’t you sleep some more?” Lan Wangji just stands there in the narrow hallway, looking a little bit forlorn in just his undergarment. He lifts his head to meet his eyes, the amber hardening in determination. “Will Wei Ying sleep as well?” “Sure! I can’t leave you unsupervised, not when you just passed out in public.” He tries to lighten the mood, but the flirtatious jokes taste stale on his tongue. But somehow Lan Wangji understands, his gaze softens as he beckons Wei Wuxian back into the bedroom.

He throws himself onto the bed and hears the light switch click, the small lamp on the bedside table being the only thing left to illuminate the room. A small haven of light. Lan Wangji follows, sitting gingerly down on the edge and turning to look at him.

He props his head onto his crossed arms, searching for the right words. “Lan Zhan...I...thank you.” Lan Wangji’s posture stiffens and Wei Wuxian springs up, urgency written across his face. “Sorry, I’d thought. I....no one...I never wanted to tell someone so much about my projects – and you listen to me! – even when you ignored me in school.”

He’s now sitting next to Lan Wangji one leg dangling off the edge.  

“Always listened to you.” “What?” “I – always listen – to what you say. Now. Back then.” “Huh.” It is really too easy for Lan Wangji to make him speechless. “But, I mean...I really want to be around you, to have you with me and have you show me your world. Like I did with mine. And if you’d want that then...”

A finger brushing the bangs out of his face stops him mid-rambling.

“You. Want to be around me?” Lan Wangji sighs the words in tentative relief, a smile on his lips.

He carefully moves closer. Lan Wangji doesn’t pull back. Soft light bathing his face in warmth. Wei Wuxian holds onto his robes, feeling Lan Wangji’s hands close around his.

Their lips meet in a soft kiss.

He’s so overcome with joy, he feels like he might burst. He wants to pull away, to place more kisses on Lan Wangji. The tips of his ear, his neck, anywhere he can reach.

But Lan Wangji’s other hand moves behind his head, holding him firmly into place, fingers getting tangled in his hair.

Wei Wuxian smiles against his lips, desperately clinging onto him.

Lan Wangji is there to ground him, intently pulling him close and letting them both fall onto the bed.

He wakes up to Lan Wangji calling his name.

It is way too early, whatever Lan Wangji is saying, his brain doesn’t compute, so he settles on inspecting Lan Wangji’s face between yawns.

“Wei Ying.” He gets called softly and doesn’t know what to do about it.

Rolling onto his other side he reaches for his mobile phone, checking the messages that have been piling up overnight.

Lan Wangji lies completely still besides him.

Grandmother Wen has sent him a couple of reassuring and warm-hearted messages and Wei Wuxian is relieved to know that they all found temporary places to stay at. The last thing she sent is a short voice message, so he opens it. Ah-Yuan’s cheery voice gets blasted through the room.

“I hope Xian-Gege is alright! Tell Ah-Die that granny invites him to dinner! He was so cool yesterday, I was flying with him, Xian-Gege!”

Lan Wangji stills even more, stumped by the message. Wei Wuxian finally shakes off his worries and rolls around laughing. “Congratulations, you are a dad now!” There is still no reaction from Lan Wangji.

Still laughing he scrolls through his feed, slowly remembering yesterday’s frustration. It looks like no one is talking about the Burial Mound incident, just some people demanding to see Wen Ning again, and Lan Wangji seems to have been really too drunk to remember anything.

His thumb swipes faster, irritation building up inside of him.

Lan Wangji suddenly sits up, startling him.

“I can make them broadcast yesterday’s footage. If you want me to.” Wei Wuxian decides it is finally time to meet Lan Wangji’s eyes, even if it’s only to try and discern what is going on in his mind. “I will talk to my brother about it.” Wei Wuxian sits up on the bed as well. “I really don’t want the crew to get sued.” “They won’t, –” Lan Wangji looks genuine– “and the law firm can handle the rest.” “You would do that?” There is it again, yesterday’s silly happiness making him feel giddy. Lan Wangji gives him an insistent nod. “It is a good cause.” “You will be made an outsider if your name gets tangled up in this. Don’t you have a scholarship to protect?” “Not that important.”

He affectionately strokes his cheek, and Wei Wuxian knows that he remembers.

That he still feels sure of...whatever they are.

Lan Wangji will make the broadcast happen, not only for him but for the community and for the cause.

Filled with so much love and hope Wei Wuxian excitedly flops around on the bed. “I could use some of the footage I took in the chaos and upload it as a preview on my site to draw attention!”

Lan Wangji looks approvingly.

He loves it when Lan Wangji looks approvingly.

Catching Lan Wangji in a boisterous hug he peppers his face with soft kisses, and he can feel Lan Wangji smiling before he is pulled into his lap.

IIe

[mdelpin]

Small Sacrifices - Chapter 3 (Final)

Gratsu Bingo 2019 Prompt: Love

Chapter 3

It had been a week since the incident and Natsu was going stir crazy. The hospital had kept him under observation for several days poking and prodding him incessantly. They’d checked his brain and his heart and everything else they could think of before finally discharging him.

He’d been lucky, aside from the rather severe burns on his hands, the damage hadn’t been too bad. His organs were fine, but he’d suffered some muscle injuries as well as a dislocated shoulder from when he’d smashed into the wall behind him, and he felt generally sore.

Gray had been a nervous wreck throughout, refusing to leave his side. Natsu knew he was terrified that if he left for even a moment, Zeref would swoop in and take him away. It was ludicrous, but Natsu didn’t fight him, he knew Gray had his own issues, and he certainly didn’t mind getting so much attention from his man.

Through it all, there had been no more word from his brother and although he’d like to think Zeref had seen the error of his ways It wasn’t like him to give up so easily. So Natsu waited for him to make his move.

He heard the apartment door open and found himself relaxing, Gray had left that morning for his dissertation defense and had promised to be home for lunch. He looked up, smile at the ready only to see Lyon coming into his bedroom.

“Hey Pikachu, how you feeling?” Lyon greeted, smirking at Natsu’s heated glare. He helped Natsu off the bed and into some clothes.

“You’re not funny,” Natsu complained, he hated needing help, but the burns on his hands were still very tender and even he wasn’t stubborn enough to subject himself to that much pain just for the sake of pride, “What are you doing here anyway?”

“Gray called me, his defense is taking longer than he expected, so he asked me to check on you,” Lyon explained as he walked Natsu over to the bathroom, being careful to give him as much support as he could since Gray had mentioned sometimes Natsu’s muscles would spasm randomly.

Natsu stopped mid-step and glanced at Lyon worriedly, “Wait, is that bad?”

“No, I think it’s good, they just had more questions than what he’d anticipated, he sounded pretty upbeat actually. I think in a few hours we’ll have to start calling him Dr. Fullbuster,” Lyon beamed at the giddy expression on Natsu’s face at hearing those words.

“We should have a party or something,” Natsu clapped his hands, forgetting his injuries in his excitement and almost passing out from the pain.

“You really are an idiot,” Lyon sighed as he grabbed hold of Natsu and held him against his body while the younger boy rode out the wave of pain. “Where are your pain meds?”

When Natsu didn’t immediately answer Lyon sat him down on the toilet and looked in the medicine cabinet. Reading the instructions on the Vicodin bottle, he grabbed the appropriate dosage and poured some tap water into a rinsing cup.

“Open up,” he placed the pill on Natsu’s tongue and held up the cup to his mouth to allow him to drink it down. “Stay here, I’m gonna get you a snack, you shouldn’t have that on an empty stomach.”

Natsu nodded listlessly, he couldn’t wait until he could do things for himself again. He didn’t mind it so much when it was Gray, but anyone else irritated him, especially if it was someone from work. Lyon soon returned with a glass of milk and a cereal bar. He fed him, and after helping him use the restroom, he looked at the bandages nervously.

“Come on, we might as well change your bandages,” Lyon declared bravely. He was rather squeamish, but he’d promised Gray he would take care of Natsu and so he would do it.

He grabbed the instructions and assembled all the pieces. Natsu stared at him with wide eyes, but he took a shaky breath and presented his hands without complaint.

Lyon donned some gloves per the instructions and after twenty of the most torturous minutes of both their lives, they were done, and Lyon walked Natsu over to the living room setting him down on the couch before sitting beside him and grabbing the remote.

“Have the pain meds kicked in yet?” Lyon asked guiltily, wondering if perhaps he should have waited. Natsu’s glare was reply enough. They sat in companionable silence, neither of them really watching the TV.

Soon, he could see Natsu’s body relaxing, and after some deliberation, he finally blurted out, “What’s the deal with your brother?”

Lyon wasn’t sure Natsu would answer him, but after a week of nagging his brother for information and getting nowhere, he figured it was at least worth a try. He needed to know how much of a threat this guy really was so he could take steps to protect them.

“I never told you about that, huh?” Natsu sounded very calm, and it was a bit unnerving to see him this way, even though Lyon knew it was just the effect of the opioid on his brain.

“You know, considering how overprotective you both are you’d probably have gotten along pretty well.” Natsu smiled at Lyon, his eyes closing briefly in thought. “I don’t remember much of it, but when I was five years old, I almost died, well technically I was dead for a few minutes. Zeref could never get over it.”

Lyon peered at Natsu in confusion not understanding what that had to do with anything. He waited for more information, not wanting to push, but none seemed to be forthcoming. His cellphone rang, and he answered it, assuming it was Gray while Natsu sat quietly, lost in his thoughts.

“Hello?” A slew of frantic babbling came over the line, and Lyon looked down at his Caller Id to make sure he was talking to who he thought he was.

“Laxus?” Lyon called out, “You gotta slow down, dude, you’re not making any sense. What about Natsu’s brother?”

He listened for a few minutes and in a voice filled with rage, he announced, “We’re on our way.”

Lyon nudged Natsu to get his attention, “We gotta go to the office, your brother is threatening to sue the business for negligence. The lawyers need you to come in for a deposition.”

O-o

Gray still couldn’t believe it was over, after all the months of research and writing he had finally presented his dissertation, and it had gone much better than he could have ever hoped. The professors had asked so many questions it had gone way over the scheduled time, and now with their approval, he was officially a Doctor! He’d even been offered a few job interviews. After all the years of struggling to make ends meet, everything was starting to look up for them, and he couldn’t be happier.

He couldn’t wait to celebrate with Natsu and Lyon, both of whom had encouraged and made it possible for him to pursue his dream. He’d stopped at Natsu’s favorite pizza place on the way home and ordered two of their favorites pies before stopping at a convenience store to get a twelve-pack of Lyon’s favorite beer since Natsu couldn’t drink while on his pain meds.

Gray knocked on the door, but when no one answered, he figured Lyon was probably helping Natsu. He balanced the pizza boxes and case of beer as best he could by pressing them between his chest and the door as he fumbled in his pants pocket for his apartment key.

Somehow Gray managed to make his way inside without dropping anything, and he pushed the door shut behind him.

“I’m home,” he announced loudly, heading towards the kitchen to put the food down on the counter. He opened the box of beer putting four in the freezer and the rest in the fridge before grabbing a pile of plastic plates from a cabinet. He was a little surprised no one had come out to greet him yet.

He walked out towards the living room, “Where are you guys?”

“They’ve been called away, I didn’t want our conversation to be interrupted,“ a voice replied. It was a voice Gray had only heard once before, but it had managed to imprint itself in his mind.

A sheen of cold sweat covered his body as he turned to see Zeref Dragneel standing in his living room, his expression disgusted as he peered down at a framed picture of Natsu kissing Gray at the beach. It had been taken by their friend Levy a few years ago, and it was one of Gray’s favorites.

“How did you get in here?” Gray snarled, trying to hide the fear that he couldn’t seem to shake after so many years.

“This dump?” Zeref took out his wallet and showed him a credit card. “Does Natsu really enjoy living here?”

“He’s never complained,” Gray bristled at the man’s haughty tone as he stood there looking down on their home. Gray walked over to the door, pulling it open roughly, “Thanks for stopping by, now get the hell out.”

“There’s no need to be hostile,” Zeref smirked, sitting down on their couch, “Gray, is it?”

“You know damn well what my name is, I’m sure by now you’ve had me checked out.”

Zeref chuckled, “I have indeed. I have to admit given your proclivities, I was expecting to find something more...scandalous.”

“Sorry to disappoint,” Gray retorted, and when Zeref made no move, he growled, “Am I going to have to drag you out?”

“Sit down, Gray,” Zeref ordered, his voice infused with authority. “We have a lot to talk about.”

Gray could feel his blood turn to ice as his previous elation turned to dread. What did Natsu’s brother want with him? He thought about Natsu, and it helped bolster his courage, whatever it was didn’t matter, there was nothing this man could do to tear them apart.

“There’s nothing for us to talk about, you’ve made your feelings quite clear,” Gray snapped before closing the apartment door with a frustrated grunt and sitting down in an armchair.

“Where’s Natsu?” Gray demanded.

O-o

Lyon and Natsu had rushed to their workplace to find the office in chaos. There were several men dressed in business suits that Natsu had never seen before along with a white-haired man that seemed vaguely familiar. It bothered him that he couldn’t place him until Lyon reminded him he had been at the hospital with his brother.

Another group of men was talking to Laxus in the office’s conference room. They could hear Laxus muffled shouts before the door was pulled open so hard the room shook around them.

“This is bullshit!” Laxus yelled at the group of lawyers who only nodded politely and entered the room, shaking hands with the men inside, closing the door behind them. Freed hurried in with a pitcher of water and some cups.

Sting was also in the office, and he looked positively terrified. Natsu felt terrible for him, it had been a stupid accident, and now his brother was using it as some sort of excuse to come barging into Natsu’s life.

Freed came back out and informed Sting the lawyers wanted to speak with him first. Sting took a shaky breath before going inside.

It was slowly beginning to dawn on him that there was only one way for this to end. Zeref would threaten to put the company out of business unless Natsu went home with him. It was despicable, but it was just the type of thing he’d expected from his brother.

“I have to quit,” Natsu thought out loud, it was the only way for Zeref’s threat to disappear. He wasn’t willing to go back home, but his friends shouldn’t have to suffer for it. But if he quit, what would they do for money? They didn’t really have a lot saved up, and until Gray found a full-time job, they’d be screwed.

“Like hell, you will! You’re one of my best employees and more than that, you’re family,” Laxus protested, grabbing a stress toy and squeezing it in his hand, “There’s no need for any of that, Pikachu, this will blow over.”

Natsu rolled his eyes at the nickname. Great, it had stuck. Fucking Lyon!

“They just showed up requesting a bunch of documents,” Freed reported, looking a bit flustered by all the activity in the usually quiet office. “Then they asked for you, and when they learned you were still out, they demanded you and Sting come in for depositions. They want to talk to a bunch of the others too.”

“You’re an adult,” Laxus pointed out, hand squeezing the toy ever faster, “He shouldn’t be able to initiate legal matters on your behalf. Come to think of it shouldn’t they be talking to you first, seeing as you’re the injured party? How’re your hands healing, by the way?”

Natsu and Lyon looked at each other at the same time and yelled, “Gray!”

“We gotta go,” Lyon held the door open for Natsu, and they rushed back to his car.

O-o

“Natsu should be fine, I’m sure by now he’s beginning to realize what he’s up against,” Zeref’s smile was almost predatory, “But let’s talk about you. How long have the two of you been together?”

“Ten years, “Gray replied defiantly, wanting Zeref to know how strong their relationship was. They’d been together through some tough times, clinging to each other just to get through it.

“Ten years, huh? I have to hand it to you, that’s a long time,” Zeref whistled, “That’s actually longer than our parents managed to stay together.”

“So tell me, what are those ten years worth to you?”

“They mean everything to me, he means everything to me,” Gray replied simply.

“No, I mean, what do you think would be adequate compensation?” Zeref took out a checkbook from his jacket pocket, “How about one hundred thousand for each year, that’s a million dollars just for shacking up with my brother.”

“A bribe? After all these years, that’s the best you can manage? This is what I was so scared of?” Gray laughed in disbelief.

“Take it and leave. It’s not a bad haul for someone like you.”

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?”

“We both know you’re nowhere near Natsu’s league. If he hadn’t run away when he did, you would never have even met.”

“Do you believe in fate?” Gray asked, suddenly.

Zeref scoffed, “I believe you make your own way in the world.”

“I believe that Natsu and I were fated to meet, that we are two halves of one whole and there’s nothing that can break us apart. Not your money, not your lawyers and certainly not you,” Gray sneered.

“I know you don’t approve of us, and frankly, I don’t care. For years, I’ve had to watch as Natsu worked his ass off just so we could have a life on our own. He paid for everything, including my school, and he did it all with a smile. But that’s about to change because Natsu deserves the world and now that I achieved my dream, I’m going to give it to him, not you.”

“You can’t seriously believe this is what’s best for him? I’m his brother, I know what’s best for him,” Zeref roared.

“You’re so full of shit, you know that? You know nothing about him. With all your resources, you could’ve found Natsu at any time, but you didn’t even bother looking for him, did you? You were probably expecting him to come running back to you. Tell me something, is your father really back, or was that just bait?”

“That’s enough!” Natsu’s voice was full of rage, and Lyon immediately moved next to Gray, as if he expected Zeref to attack him at any moment.

“What are you doing here, Zeref?” Natsu asked, “I thought I made myself clear at the hospital.”

“Natsu, for God’s sake, look at this dump. How can you live here when you could be back home?”

“I don’t have to explain myself to you,” Natsu snapped, but when he saw a flicker of something real in Zeref’s eyes, he reined himself in. “I wish you’d understand. There’s more to life than money, Zeref. I’ve never been happier anywhere than I am here.”

“There is nothing you can do or say that will make me leave Gray and I think you realize that or you wouldn’t be here. Did you try to bribe him?” Natsu chuckled already knowing the answer.

Zeref looked at the ground, making Natsu laugh harder.

“How much?”

“One million dollars,” Zeref responded grudgingly.

Natsu whistled, “That’s a decent chunk of change, Gray.”

Gray crossed his arms, annoyed at how Natsu didn’t seem to be taking the situation seriously, “Perhaps I should have taken it.”

Natsu laughed, “Nah, don’t be a sucker. I’m worth way more than that.”

He suddenly looked over at the kitchen counter, “Is that pizza I smell? Why don’t we go eat it at the beach? I want to hear everything!”

“Aren’t you forgetting someone?”

“Zeref?” Natsu looked confused, “He can come if he wants to.”

Gray and Lyon were both looking at him as though he’d grown a second head.

“Actually, why don’t you guys go ahead and set it up, we’ll be right behind you.”

Natsu waited until the two brothers had left with the food, smiling at Gray reassuringly when he noticed his worried expression before turning to face Zeref, his smile replaced with determination.

“If you want to give me my life back, with Gray in it, I’ll consider it. But I won’t be your whore. Either make the deal without me or not at all. And back off my boss, he runs a good place and helps a lot of people out.”

“I don’t get you,” Zeref growled with frustration, not used to not getting what he wanted.

“I don’t expect you to,” Natsu shrugged, “Our lives are too different. All you really have to do is accept me, Zeref. Love me for who I am, not who you wanted me to be.”

“I’m going to lose a ton of money on this,” Zeref complained, but he didn’t try to change Natsu’s mind, and he took this as a good sign.

“It’s only money, Zeref, you have plenty of it,” Natsu reminded him, “Loosen up a little, have some fun. Eat pizza at the beach while drinking a cold beer. Get to know my boyfriend, he’s amazing.”

Natsu motioned for him to open the door to his apartment so they could head over to meet the others. Zeref only stared at him in confusion until Natsu waved his bandaged hands in his face. Zeref paused for a moment before complying.

Natsu began ambling towards the beach, and Zeref settled in next to him, matching his pace.

“He does seem to care for you,” Zeref admitted reluctantly, “He didn’t even consider the money.”

“I give amazing blowjobs,” Natsu retorted with an evil grin, enjoying his brother’s obvious discomfort at his words.

“I really don’t want to hear about that,” Zeref groaned uncomfortably, “Oh God, please tell me you never did anything like that for money.”

“I could have if things had been different,” Natsu stopped to look his brother in the eye, his tone serious, “Your words really hurt me back then, and I didn’t ever want to go back. I would have done anything to stay gone. But I found Gray instead, and he saved me. He introduced me to Gramps, who made sure I stayed in school and got me a job with Laxus when I graduated.”

“Natsu, I—,” Zeref began but didn’t expand, only managed to look embarrassed.

“I’ve had to work hard for everything I have, and I’m proud of it. I like my life. I enjoy my job, and my friends even though they’re dicks half the time. I found someone I love, and I do love him Zeref. He makes me want to be the best I can be to be worthy of him. I would do anything for him, “ he stared at his brother, daring him to say anything against his next words, “and I plan to marry him as soon as I can.”

Zeref stopped in his tracks, “Marry?”

“Yes, Zeref, marry,” Natsu deadpanned, “It’s a thing we can do now. And I’d like you to be there and be happy for me, but I can’t make you accept me. That’s up to you.”

Zeref considered his words, remaining quiet for what felt like forever and staring at Natsu the whole time.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry I said those awful words to you,” Zeref sighed in defeat, “I know I’m an asshole, but I really don’t want to lose you again. I’ll try.”

Natsu gave him a hug as best he could with his injured hands, “I forgive you, we’ve both grown up a lot since then. At least I hope so.”

They arrived at the beach and were able to see Gray and Lyon by the picnic tables. Gray was pacing while Lyon tried to calm him down. Natsu smiled.

“You’re right, it’s kind of nice here,” Zeref commented beside him, “The view is beautiful.”

Natsu, who only had eyes for Gray, replied with, ”I couldn’t agree more.”

Zeref snorted marking where Natsu was looking, “You really have it bad, don’t you?”

“Hmhm, and he’s a doctor now, you know,” Natsu grinned proudly, “That’s what we’re celebrating, his dissertation was approved.”

Zeref rolled his eyes at his excitement but smiled before looking suddenly ashamed. “Hey uhm, Natsu? Igneel didn’t really come back.”

“I figured, let’s just go eat, okay?”

They made their way to the table with Zeref getting a slice of pizza and putting it on a plate for Natsu while Gray fussed over him.

“Everything’s gonna be fine, Doctor Princess, we’ve come to an agreement. Zeref’s gonna try not to be an asshole, and I will no longer deny he’s my brother,” Natsu grinned happily at Gray’s disgust at the new nickname and Zeref’s annoyed grunt. “Now tell me all about your dessert presentation.”

Gray glanced at the two brothers, and although he was a little hesitant to take Natsu’s words at face value, he dared to believe they might be true. That they could move forward without having to worry about Natsu’s family ever again.

He wrapped his arms around Natsu, being careful of his injuries and whispered, “I love you.”

“I love you, too,” Natsu replied before kissing him sweetly, “and you don’t have to get me the world. Everything I need is right here.”

“Really? That’s too bad, cause I thought since you were injured, I could do this,” Gray whispered some words into Natsu’s ear that made him blush and peer at him with undisguised desire.

When Natsu tried to coax him into doing whatever it was Gray shoved a pizza in his mouth, and the two of them began laughing hysterically with Natsu almost choking on the food.

They could hear Zeref ask Lyon, “Are they always like this?”

“You don’t know the half of it…”