#i just. wish it was ready for you all now when the stove is hot.

[its-all-papaya]

heyyyy there has been a ~buzz~ on the dash with all the landoscar + children content this week and it feels like a good time to remind the tag that I’ve got a ~70k driver!oscar / single dad!lando fic in the works, hopefully dropping towards the end of this month. wanted to give you all a little snippet AND start a tag list for when i post the first chapter so :,) comment if you’d like to be tagged when this debuts ! and enjoy, hopefully, a peek at dad lando:

“Uncle Max!” she props one hand on Lando’s knee while she points with the other at the McLaren. It’s not, obviously, but she can’t tell helmets apart and he never really has the heart to point out when she’s right or wrong about whose car is whose. He finds he sort of wants to, though, as he watches Oscar edge closer, start nibbling at the margin. It’s an odd feeling. It doesn’t matter, she doesn’t know the difference and won’t until someone’s standing on the podium, but it spins in Lando’s belly all the same. But then, he’s never really given a second thought to Max’s teammate, never really cared where they finished. Not when it was Danny, and not about Oscar until now.

It isn’t on the straight that Oscar makes the move. It’s on the exit. A beautiful, smooth glide around the racing line until he’s clear through the corner. Lando watches his name marker swap places in the standings with Sainz’ and the feeling in his stomach blooms into something near to what he probably would feel if it were Max. Different, though. Pride, probably, but also a twisty category of excitement, a little embarrassing, a little thrill. Like a crush, Lando’s stupid brain supplies, even though he most definitely did not ask.

“He did it!” Emma’s clapping, looking up at Lando to affirm her excitement.

“He did!” Lando bumps knuckles with her when she offers. Oscar did it, he thinks

McLaren undercuts. Ferrari pushes Leclerc too far on mediums. With less than three laps to go, Lando watches Oscar slip around on the outside, and a handful of minutes later, he watches both papaya cars follow Verstappen to the checkered flag – 2-3, a double podium.

Emma cheers over the commentary on the cool-down, all the way into parc fermé, when the podium sitters start climbing out of their cars. Lando’s heart is beating hard again for reasons he does not care to examine, and he’s more than a little distracted from whatever Emma’s saying about the finish.

“Daddy,” she plants both hands on his thigh and rocks her weight back and forth. Her voice is bordering on whiny, so Lando snaps his focus back where it belongs and blinks at her.

“What, baby?”

“He’s three?” little fingers up again, always.

“Yeah,” Lando nods, eyes back on the screen. Oscar’s working on his helmet, tugging the strap, and Lando remembers with stunning clarity the way those fingers had burned in his brain for no logical reason a week ago. Oscar’s just through pulling his balaclava off when Max appears from the side of the screen to clap his hand in congratulations, and Lando realizes- “Wait, no,” he covers Emma’s hands with one of his own, “Uncle Max is two, Em, he got ahead of the Ferrari. Sorry.”

“Oh,” she sucks her lip into her mouth for a second ahead of a grin, “Oh! Two is better!”

“Yep,” Lando looks down at her again, forcing his brain to cooperate for both of their sakes, “Two is really good. He’s gonna be really happy."

[luvyeni]

❛MY DOG ROOMMATE❜ ( l.jeno )

p. hybrid!jeno x fem!reader w. 1.9k

warnings? unprotected sex, breeding kink, squirting, big cock jeno

— 𖦹 ( jeno can’t spend another heat with his mate ) !

freaktober masterlist

jeno first figured out you were his mate the day you moved in – it wasn’t common for hybrids and humans to roommate , but you both were strapped for cash and needed help paying bills. the day you came through the doors , boxes in his hand he felt it , his need for you.

not wanting to scare you off , he decided to push it aside , but as time went on and you got closer , it was so hard for the hybrid to deny it , especially with his heats becoming stronger , you knew about his heats , but he’d often just lock himself in his room for a week , you weren’t aware that he’d be in there , wrapped up in pool of clothes he’d stolen from you , fucking his fist , wishing it was you , cumming over all your clothes with a whimper , his cock still hard and twitching against his stomach.

even though you didn’t know about the mate thing , you didn’t really help either – your constant touching , the scratches behind his ear randomly which sent him into overdrive , you were also extremely caring , buying him things , making his food , packing him lunch for work , make sure he had his protein shakes after working out – you were practically his acting as his mate already.

“good morning jeno.” he was met with your beautiful smile. “good morning.” he sat down , immediately being bombarded with your sent , it was much stronger – way stronger than ever before. “did you go to the gym today?” he questioned , your eyes widened , it always shocked you when he would guess. “i just got back , i heard you moving around in your room , so i got your breakfast and protein shake ready before my shower , i know you normally eat all this after the gym , but i’ll be out with a friend when you get back so i wanted to make sure you’d have it.” you said.

there it is again , the pulling at his heart – it was even more painful than before , he hissed grabbing his chest. “you okay jen?” you questioned. “just some chest pains , i’m okay.” you ignored his answer , walking over to him , your scent even stronger. “fuck.” he whispered , something was definitely wrong , this was a different type of pain. “jeno , hey.” you snapped him out of his thoughts. “huh?”

you put your hand up to his head , his body immediately calming down due to your touch. “you’re a bit warm , maybe you shouldn’t go to the gym , i’ll call my friends and tell them i can’t make it.” he stopped you , grabbing your hand. “no , it’s fine.” he said. “told you just a bit of chest pain , i’m fine now , go have fun with your friend.” you nodded. “well take it easy at the gym , don’t over do it.” you warned. “okay mom.” you chuckled. “good boy , i’ll go shower now.” you reached up , scratching behind his ears , before walking back to your room , he bit his fist to cover up the painful moan that left his lips

he couldn’t focus on his workout , the pain in his chest getting worse and worse – to the point where he’d almost dropped a weight on his foot. he ended up coming back to a empty house , you must’ve left out already , the food sitting covered on the stove , his protein shake sitting in the fridge with a cute little note that made him smile.

he decided to shower , not having anything else planned , he made his way to his bathroom , opening the door , your soap still lingering in the air – it wasn’t uncommon for you to use his shower , your hot water never working. the pain coming back in his chest , he groaned , leaning over the sink. “fuck.” he picked up his phone , dialing jaemin , his friend who was another hybrids number. “yo wassup jeno.” the boy shouted into the phone , jeno hissed in pain , his scenes heightening , the boys voice ringing through his head. “bro , you okay?”

“no , i’m in so much fucking pain right now.” he growled. “what kind of pain?” jaemin asked. “a pain in my -fuck- in my chest.” he said. “it hurts so fucking bad , it feels like i’m dying.” he slammed his hands on the sink. “bro , you’re going into a early rut.” jaemin said. “what , that can’t happen.” he said , jeno was growing frustrated. “it can when you have a mate , but it’s not a good thing.”

“why?” he said , jaemin explained to him , “because combined with the chest pains , that means you mating bond is being rejected , if you don’t do something , you’re slowly gonna descend into madness , and that won’t be safe for you or your roommate.” he hung up on jaemin , making his way back to his bed , throwing his body on to the bed , his thumb hovering over your number.

you could barely focus on the guy in front of you , your mind was stuck on jeno , he did not look so well before you left , you should’ve made him some soup before you left. “everyone okay?” soobin , the sweet boy in front of you asked. “yeah i’m-.” you were cut off my your phone ringing. “just a second , i’m sorry.” you read the number , it was jeno , he never called when you were out. “you have to answer that?”

you smiled apologetic , before answering the call. “jen?” it was silent. “are you okay , what’s wrong?” you heard a groan , a painful one at that. “i-i c-can’t.” you stood up worried. “hey , i’m coming home now.” you turned to soobin. “something is wrong , i have to go.” he nodded , understandingly, you grabbed your things , giving the boy a quick hug and another apology before almost running out the restaurant. “i’m coming now , just holding on.”

the ride home was torturous , worry filling your body as you asked the taxi driver to speed up – getting on the elevator , making your way to your floor. you opened the door , making your way to jeno’s room. “jeno.” you knocked on his door , his groans made you push the door open , where he laid against his headboard shirtless. “oh my god.” you ran over to his bed , sitting down.

he was sickly pain , skin all sweaty like he had just been working out. “my god jeno.” your hand came up to feel his forehead. “you’re burning up.” you gasped , he wrapped his hand around your wrist , pulling you close to his body , sniffing. “j-jeno.” you stuttered. “why do you smell like that?” his voice deep. “why do you smell like a guy?” you furrowed your eye brows. “jeno that’s not import- why do you smell like a fucking guy (y/n)?”

“i told you i was going out with a friend.” you said , holding yourself back hand on his chest. “that’s why it’s rejecting , you were out with another guy.” you were confused. “rejecting? jeno what are you talking about , you aren’t well.” you said. “because of you , i’m not well because of you , i’m at home in pain while my mate it out with another guy.” he scoffed.

mate? you’d done research on hybrids and mates and stuff when jeno moved in , just to be prepared , but you only thought hybrids mate with other hybrids. “jeno , how was i supposed to know , you didn’t tell me anything.” your hand came up to scratch behind his ear , he grabbed your wrist , pulling you down , flipping your body over , hovering over you. “mine.”

he pressed his lips against yours , grinding his hard cock against yours. “his scent is all over you.” he groaned against your neck. “he touched what was mine.” his sharp teeth scrapping against your neck. “je-jeno.” you moaned. “gonna mark your pretty skin , let everyone know you’re fucking mine.” you yelped as he sunk his teeth into you. “fu-fuck!”

he sat back on his knees , yanking the front of your dress down , your tits spilling out , jeno was salivating , taking one of your boobs into his mouth sucking while squeezing the other one , rocking his cock against your heat. “sh-shit jeno.” you moaned. “jeno i’m gonna cum.” he bucked his hips against you , the fabric of his gym shorts rubbing against his cock , his tail wagging side to side in excitement as dry humped you. “jeno!”

you came , your panties sticking to you. “fuck i’m gonna cum , gonna fucking cum in my shorts , ngh fuck!” he groaned , his cock twitching as he came , messing up his underwear. this didn’t nothing his cock was still hard , he needed more. “need to fuck you , stuff your cunt full of my cock.”

you moaned at his lewd words , whining. “pl-please fuck me.” he practically ripped your panties off , pulling his cock out from his shorts , he was above average , and really thick – his tip red , cum still dripping from his hole. “y-you’re so big.” your eyes widened. “might not fit.” he spread your cunt , rubbing his cock against your clenching hole. “fuck , then i’ll make it fit.”he pushed it thick tip in. “sh-shit.” he pushed his cock in. “tiny fucking pussy , my cock can barely fit.”

you screamed in pain and pleasure as he slowly bullied his cock into you. “w-wait jeno.” you moaned , your legs shaking as you came for a second time. “f-fuck.” he finally pushed himself fully inside you. “you came just from taking my cock.” he groaned , thrusting.

“shit , such a warm fucking cunt.” he grunted. “had to spend all these ruts alone.” held your waist , fucking into you. “fucking my fist to your scent , while you were only feet away , could’ve filled this pussy with my pups a long time ago.” you couldn’t speak , your brain completely shut off , only thing on your mind was jeno. “pl-please.” you moaned.

“is that what you want?” he wrapped his hands around your throat. “fuck you full of my pups , fill your tiny pussy until your stomach is bulging from my cum.” he pressed down on your stomach , you screamed. “that’s my cock , gonna fill your womb with my cum , make you take my knot.” he grunted , his thrust becoming sloppy. “je-jeno i’m gonna cum again!”

he slapped your cunt , you yelped. “go ahead cum.” your back arched off the bed , cumming – coating his abdomen with your juices. “that’s it , squirt for me , gonna fuck you full of my kids.” he stilled himself inside you. “shit.” he groaned , his cock swelling as he empty his cum inside of you – you were shaking as his cum leaked out around his cock. “sh-shit , too much!” he kissed your lips. “just a bit more , just hold on.” he came a lot, his cock finally softening , but not fully. “sh-shit i’m still hard.”

“c-can’t take anymore.” you whimpered. “it’s okay baby.” he rubbed your waist. “i’ll let you rest now.” he slowly pulling out of your spent cunt.

“we still have all week for me to fuck you

©LUVYENI

[luveline]

kbd steve and r dealing with two of the girls holding a grudge/fighting and helping them make up 🥹🥹🥹

kbd —mom!reader and dad!steve attempt to get their girls to forgive each other

“I thought they’d just forget,” you whisper. 

Steve looks over your shoulder, hand on your waist, the smell of hot butter bubbling on the stove like an itch in his nose. “Right? Like, they’d sleep and forget. Especially ‘cos they like sharing the bed.” 

Avery and Beth sit as far away from one another as is humanly possible. Beth sits with Dove toward the head of the table, frowning as her little sister climbs onto her legs and tries to comb her hair, while Avery sits by the open kitchen door. She’s pretending to poke at the snail that lives under the stoop, but she’s really on the edge of tears. 

They’re fighting because Avery took one of Beth’s fruit slices yesterday at lunch (warm pastries that all the kids can’t get enough of). When Steve asked her about it, she lied and said Beth actually ate one of her fruit slices, and Beth had been so betrayed she actually got mad. Beth never gets mad. 

Avery couldn’t take the guilt, confessing in tears the night before that she’d lied, and so you and Avery knocked Beth’s door together to apologise. Only Beth didn’t forgive her. 

It’s weird to see them not getting along. Avery and Beth are so sweet to each other usually. It’s odd that they aren’t sharing their breakfast, that they aren’t trying to feed the baby her mushy eggs. You and Steve are used to a more lovey-dovey feeling in the mornings. 

You dip down to sit with Avery when she does eventually start crying. “What’s the matter?” you whisper. 

Steve knows you’ve got the reins on that one, taking a seat by the other disgruntled party. 

“Is she crying?” Beth asks him softly. 

“Yeah, baby.” 

“‘Cos of me?” 

“It’s not like that.” He pulls Dove off of Beth’s lap before the toddler can trample her. Dove frowns at him but decides to allow it, resting in a lump against his chest. He pats her back. “She feels bad that she upset you, and she lied, and she wishes you were feeling better.” 

It must be strange to be young and be terrified that nobody will believe you, even over something as small as a fruit slice. Steve can’t imagine what he’d feel like now having to justify things to his parents. Or maybe it was that Avery’s never done something like that, at least not that Beth could remember. 

“She lied,” Beth stresses. 

“I know. But she did say sorry, honey, and she promised you two of her fruit slices today to make up for it. Maybe we can be friends again?” Steve says. 

If Beth wants to be mad a little while longer, that’s okay, but from the looks of her where she’s looking back and forth between Steve and the open kitchen door, she’s ready to forgive, or make her sister feel better at the very least. 

“It’s nice to forgive someone,” Steve says. “It’s kind. Avery didn’t wanna get in trouble, but she got you in trouble instead, so it’s cool if you’re still grumpy.” 

“I’m not grumpy.” 

Steve gives her an encouraging smile. “I know. It’s up to you, baby. Between you and me though, I think Avery’s super duper sorry.” 

In your lap, Avery sniffles. Dove climbs down off of Steve as Beth slips from her chair, then looks back for Steve. “Will you tell her I’m not mad?” Beth asks him. 

He wriggles his fingers. She takes his hand. 

It’s an unusually cold morning for the season, Steve can see your arms have wrinkled with goosebumps where they’re wrapped tight behind Avery’s back. You’d already given her a scolding for lying last night, and you and Steve are one and done with parenting; you don’t comfort her reluctantly, you just comfort. “It’s okay,” you say under your bread, swaying her from one side to the other. 

“Hey,” Steve says, crouching down to catch your attention. 

“Hello.” You see Beth, and you smile with relief. “Hi.” 

“Beth has something she wants me to tell you, Ave,” he says, nudging her arm gently with his knuckles to catch her attention. She peers up tearily from your arm. “She said she’s not mad anymore, okay? She wants to be friends again.” 

Avery looks at Beth cautiously. “Really?” she asks. It’s hard not to hear how hopeful she sounds. Steve feels extremely sympathetic, and he can’t help thinking she’s cute. She’s such a sweetheart, just like Beth, and Dove, and baby Wren he’s sure will end up the same. Like you. He can’t count how many times you and him have argued over the years, but every time it ends with you being more sorry than you need to be, and usually some of Steve’s guilty tears. 

“Yes,” Beth says, “so please don’t cry anymore.” 

Avery pouts. “You wanna give your sister a hug?” you prompt. 

Avery jumps up and throws herself at Bethie, almost knocking her younger sister down. Steve puts his hand behind them to stop a calamity. “I’m sorry, Bethie,” Avery squeaks, her voice high with upset and scratchy as she squeezes Beth tightly. 

“It’s okay! I’m not mad!” 

“I know!” Avery sniffles. “I’m still sorry. I told dad you ate my slice but you didn’t, I’m sorry.” 

“She’s forgiven you, baby,” you say, patting Avery’s shoulder. “It’s all water under the bridge. Yeah?” 

Beth holds Avery by the arm as they pull away. “Yeah. Water un’ the bridge.” 

“Thank you,” Avery says. “I don’t like when you’re mad.”

You and Steve make similar expressions of love and empathy over their small heads.  

[msbigredmachine]

Santa Daddy - A Roman Reigns One-Shot

All the Tribal Chief wants for Christmas is you.

PAIRING: Roman Reigns x OC

Word Count: 3.7k words

A/N: Sorry I brought this in so late, I got sick. Better late than never though! Enjoy!

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

It was Christmas morning. Your face was a picture of utmost focus as you wiped away the hair stuck to your forehead. It was a mini madness in your open layout kitchen, but at least it was your controlled chaos. In a few hours' time, a select mix of friends, co-workers and family members would converge at your place for a Christmas sleepover for the ages, to mark your first holidays as Roman Reigns' fiancée.

What a crazy eighteen months it has been for you. If anyone told you that within that timeframe, you would escape from your abusive boyfriend, move states, find a new job and a new place to live, you would have laughed in their face.

And Lord knows how you'd have reacted if they added that you'd be dating a professional wrestler in that same timeframe. And not just any wrestler, but the marquee name, the number one guy in WWE. But here you were. In the house you lived in together. Diamond ring on your finger. Prepping dinner and being quite giddy about it too. It had been a long time since you were giddy about anything, but that changed after you said yes to a coffee date with Roman a lifetime ago, it felt like now.

The honey-glazed chicken, roasted potatoes and gravy were ready, as were the salads and greens. Your centerpiece was undoubtedly the smoky Nigerian jollof rice you couldn't wait for everyone to taste. The chocolate was fragrant as it melted in the pot and the sweet crème caramel was setting nicely. You really wanted everything to go smoothly today. Dinner first, after which everyone would gather in the den for gift swaps, karaoke, play some raunchy adult games, then go to bed whenever they liked before leaving in the morning for their drives home. It was the perfect itinerary and you planned to make sure it was.

You were whisking the chocolate sauce on the stove when the shuffling of a familiar pair of size fifteens invaded your ears. Your heart pounded a little harder anfd your brown eyes lit up as he walked into the kitchen, drinking him in with your heart-shaped mouth curving into a smile. It was incredible how he gave off the exact same aura and energy as his grand entrances to the ring with just entering a small room. It was intimidating in the sexiest way.

"I see someone found one of their gifts." Your voice was soft and sweet - a tone you used only for him - with the gentle tinge of a tease. Your man looked so good in his red Christmas-themed pajama set that matched yours, which he complemented with a Santa hat covering the top of his head.

Roman came to stand behind you, wrapping his arms around you as he kissed your neck. "You look amazing in yours," he told you. Taking a deep breath, he welcomed your fragrance deep into his lungs. Your scent reminded him of hot chocolate on a cold winter's day and the roaring fireplace several feet away in the living room. It reminded him of home. You were home.

"Merry Christmas, my beautiful wife-to-be. I love you." His voice was a low, tender rumble in your ear, and you shivered slightly as his hands massaged your waist, his warm breath caressing the sensitive nape of your neck.

"I love you too, Daddy. Merry Christmas," you greeted back, absorbing the aura, the love and affection radiating from him like a bright light. Gosh, how did you get so lucky, winding up with this incredibly handsome, sweet, gentle giant of a man as a life partner?

"It smells so good in here, babe," Roman complimented, dipping his finger in the gravy boat for a taste. "I wish you woke me up to help out," he added sheepishly.

You shook your head immediately. "Don't worry about it. You needed your rest from all the traveling you've been doing."

"What time do the festivities start again?"

You turned off the stove to temp the chocolate down and turned to him. "Not till like, three."

"Hmm, and it's only nine-thirty now. That's a whole lotta time to ourselves," he pointed out, his eyebrows wiggling suggestively as he tugged at the waistband of your pajama pants. "I know I got a lot of presents, but Daddy wants to open this one first. Can I?" he asked with a syrupy sweet voice that promised something much more carnal.

"That depends on if you were naughty or nice this year," you replied.

The dramatic pout that came with his puppy dog eyes was so cute. "I promise I've been a good boy."

You arched a manicured brow at him. "You sure? Not even the tiniest bit bad?"

Roman puffed out his chest and grinned proudly. "I'm positive. I made my woman very happy this year. That counts as good, right?"

The glittering rock on your finger answered that question. "Definitely," you agreed.

"Exactly. By the way, look up."

You followed his pointed finger. A sprig of mistletoe dangled from the cabinet right above you. You met your fiancé's stormy stare, and your pussy purred from the mischief and lust you saw in them. You licked your lips with anticipation, knowing full well he was going to have his way with you, like he always did. Like you always wanted him to.

"C'mere." He guided your face to his own with his hand on the back of your neck. Your hands clutched his broad shoulders as your lips melded together in a soft, passionate dance. You stood in the kitchen for what felt like hours, worshiping each other's mouths, the smacking of your lips and hushed sighs mingling with the soft Christmas ballad playing through Alexa.

As you kissed, Roman couldn't help but get turned on. He let his hands slip down into the back of your pants and over your backside, molding your bare ass cheeks in his palms while you pressed yourself against him. You continued the increasingly intense makeout session, neither of you seeming to be in any hurry to stop.

"Santa Daddy thinks you've been a good girl this year," he murmured against your lips, "so good that you deserve a special present."

"Mmm, I love presents, Santa Daddy," you replied, allowing him to pick you up and place you on the countertop. He stepped into the space between your thighs and wrapped your legs around his waist, while your arms curled around his shoulders as you dove into the kiss. He caressed your mouth with his luscious tongue in a way that made your knees weak. Your hands and his moved in unison, pulling off each other's clothes until you were both completely nude. The second your top was off, his fingers teased your nipples, which instantly pebbled at his touch. His broad chest was hard and warm against your palms, and you scratched your nails along his ribs just to hear him hiss in a breath right before his mouth latched onto your throat. You whimpered and gripped his hair. God, his mouth and tongue felt so good on your skin. He nibbled and sucked on you while massaging your right breast, and you felt the pit of stomach heat up with the rabid need for your pussy to be filled. The moisture pooling between your thighs could probably fill a lake.

With your eyes closed as you savored the sensations, you never quite saw him take the pot of chocolate, dip the whisk in it and wave it over your nipples. The chocolate that dripped onto your skin seared with heat, but his tongue was there to quickly lick it away before the pain registered as anything more than a turn-on.

"Mmm, that's tasty," he commented.

You watched him and his lethal mouth like a hawk. "You like that, Daddy?" you inquired, resting back on your elbows.

"Oh, I do." He drizzled more chocolate over your breasts. Your mind swam as he took his time sucking each soft flesh, activating your erogenous pressure point. He then dipped his finger in the warm chocolate then made a long trail down your lower belly. He licked that away, then used two fingers to paint your entire pussy with the hot chocolate, his face a mask of concentration as he worked on his masterpiece. Your body jerked and you sucked in a breath at the fire that raged between your legs. Then his tongue was down there, splitting your soft folds apart to delve into your sweetened essence.

Yanking the Santa hat off his head, your fingers threaded through his messy ponytail, pulling his face flush against you, writhing against him and begging for more. "Unnnh, babe, that feels so good," you groaned, your brain growing fuzzy as he French-kissed your pussy, pleasure licking at you with the same devastating impact as his tongue. "Fuck, baby, I love you!"

"I know," Roman moaned back, pushing your thighs further apart. "Spread your legs, baby...wider," he instructed you, his burly arms winding around your thighs and yanking you closer to him. "Mmm, perfect. Imma eat you off this counter, girl."

And he was. With gusto. Desperate for release, you tried to squirm but he had you pinned down to the kitchen island, keeping you still. You were panting hard as the tension coiled tighter in your belly. You were almost there, just a step away from that cliff, when he nuzzled his face against your wet pussy and flicked your hard little clit with his thumb. The pressure sent you over the edge and you moaned through the orgasm, your back arching against the cool surface of the counter. Your string of moans was an aphrodisiac to Roman, and he kept up his tender licking and sucking until your legs fell from his shoulders and you gave a shuddering sigh.

"Jesus," you whispered.

Roman resembled a kid in a candy store with his beard stained with cum and chocolate, eyes bright and lust-filled. He looked up, licked his lips with a smug smile and said, "Nothing tastes as good as you, baby," he praised, and your ego swelled. He always knew the right things to say to make you feel good. Twining your fingers in his, he pulled you upright and kissed your lips, sharing your tangy sweetness with you.

"Your turn," you announced, and slid carefully off the counter, pushing him to sit on one of the stools. You moved to take the pot of chocolate, but the three mason jars filled with homemade caramel sauce caught your eye. A devious little idea popped up in your head. Grabbing one, you unscrewed the cover, licking the sauce around the rim before grabbing Roman's dick with one hand, bringing the jar up to his plum-shaped tip.

"Fuck, girl," Roman shivered, his eyes wide when you dunked his dick right inside the jar. Your eyes shone excitedly as you pulled him back out, the thick, succulent syrup dripping down his pipe and around the rim of your hand.

"Mmm, look at all this sweetness on your dick, Daddy," you moaned, bending at the waist to capture his cock between your lips, your husky sigh vibrating against his sensitive skin. Roman moaned softly as you angled your bobbing head, sliding his dick further down your throat with the same rhythm as your hand stroking him, the sensations leaving him boneless.

"Shiiiit, just like that, baby, eat up my dick like a good girl, how's it taste, huh?" he managed to ask.

"Good," you hummed, working your tongue from the tip of his dick down to the veiny underside of his shaft, causing his breathing to grow labored as his cock throbbed in your hand.

"Oh my god, your tongue, dem juicy lips," Roman clutched your hair, watching you intensely. "Keep suckin' my dick, baby, show me what that mouth do."

Wordlessly, you drew his cock deeper into your mouth with a deep breath and started sucking him with only your jaw doing all of the work. His dick was more than sizable, but was no match for your mouth. Daddy had trained you well to handle all of that fat dick with your mouth and pussy. You paused to scoop more caramel sauce with his dick like a spoon, licking off every drop off his shaft with lavish swipes of your tongue.

"Put some on my balls," Roman instructed.

He held his dick up and out of the way while you rubbed a mix of chocolate and caramel all over his balls. As you sucked on them, Roman slowly massaged his dick, occasionally slapping your face with it. The visual of your arched back mesmerized him, the deliberate twerking of your plump ass cheeks as you pleasured him short-circuited his brain. Even hotter was the sight of his balls hidden in your mouth and the sauce mixture smeared on your chin. The contrast of the dark substance on your brown skin was so fucking sexy.

"That's it, baby, that's it...shit!" The Tribal Chief's deep voice was a strangled gasp, his breaths becoming even shallower as you popped his balls out to recapture his dick. His eyes rolled in the back of his head, lost in toe-curling pleasure as you lodged him in the back of your throat, your warm mouth swallowing around the base of his shaft like a suction. It was his turn to fidget in place, his fingers digging into your scalp as ecstasy loomed ever closer. "Baby I'm gon' come," he whined.

You moaned at his warning, the vibrations shuddering around his length. Your eyes locked with his as he started to fall apart. With a loud groan, he held your head still and gasped helplessly with each spurt of his cum gushing down your throat, his hips bucking from the force of his release. His eyes squeezed shut as he felt you swallow, drinking your fill, your tongue lapping up whatever you spilled. You pulled him out and gulped air back into your lungs, then glanced back up at him with those mischievous pretty eyes, pursing your pouty lips against his blunt head and making his cock twitch in your grasp.

"How the fuck am I still hard?" he half-laughed, half-choked, earning a proud grin from you.

"I got that magic mouth, baby," you declared haughtily, twisting your hand around him in gentle soothing strokes, "And you got this magic dick. You gonna put it on me, Santa Daddy? I know you want to."

"Damn right." He got off the chair and spun you around, bending you over the kitchen table. The tabletop remained cold against your bare, chocolate-streaked skin, and you shivered in response. It was only seconds before he guided your hands to grip the edges of the table in front of you. You moaned softly as he nudged your legs wider apart, hiking your ass slightly higher to press himself up against you.

"Ay, Alexa, turn that shit off, I wanna hear my girl scream for me," he growled at the air, and you burst out laughing when the kitchen fell into an abrupt silence.

His hard dick throbbed between your ass cheeks. He ran the thick head up and down the slit of your pussy lips. When he pushed the first few inches in, you whined pitifully. Your velvety womanhood pulled him in, eking a groan from the Tribal Chief as his big hands roamed your back and ass. His thrusts were slow at first, savoring the feel of your tight, wet pussy tugging at him with each languid stroke. You responded by bucking up against him, luring him even deeper into your body. You moaned together in mutual pleasure.

"God, so tight, so wet...bomb ass pussy," he grunted, smacking your ass and squeezing on the soft juicy flesh, knowing it would make you that much wetter as he stretched you open with that good dick. Your keening moans were nothing but fuel for him; he knew you loved it when he fucked you deep and hard and a little rough, ticking all your little sexual boxes that no one but him knew about. His rhythm was steady yet heavy, keeping you on edge with deep strokes right up on your g-spot. Leaning over you, he swept your hair out of your face to kiss your cheek, a hushed moan slipping from his throat when you squirmed against him, pressing your ass closer to his hips every time he pushed into you.

With the table pressing into your belly and his body trapping you against it, you felt his dick swell inside you, girthier and harder with every thrust. Your body was so sensitized from your previous orgasm that you felt another one build in record time. You wanted your second nut so bad, and you rolled your ass against him, hoping to put enough pressure on your clit to bring it on.

"Unnh yeah, throw that sexy ass back at me," Roman grunted with another hard smack to your ass which jiggled from the impact of his big hand. Said hand then made its way into your hair, the other gripping your waist as he grinded against you and you against him. He loved it; loved you, loved the feel of your bodies moving together, your juices dripping all over his dick, loved the fact that you couldn't seem to control the noises you were making as the kitchen echoed with the erotic sound of them.

"Oh, baby, I'm fuckin' close," you whimpered through your moans.

"How close?" he asked, his lips brushing soft kisses between your shoulder blades and trailing them down your back. His warm breath and his soft beard tickled your skin, and too aroused to answer, you merely whimpered again and bounced your ass more impatiently on his dick. The tension was there in your belly, swirling around so close to explosion, and you needed it like you needed air.

Roman's grip on your hair strengthened, anchoring himself to you. "Don't move. Lemme get that pussy." He was like a Ferrari engine, accelerating with harder pummeling thrusts that filled you to the brim. He was now balanced on just the balls of his feet in an effort to drive deeper into you, pounding you out until you were leaking down your thighs and all over his dick and balls. It felt so good. Too good.

"Yes, Daddy, beat that shit up...unnhhh, my god, I'm coming," you moaned long and loud as you unraveled like flimsy wrapping paper. Stars sparked behind your eyelids as the orgasm tore through you, leaving you shaking uncontrollably from its intensity.

"Mmm, there you go sweetheart, soak my dick,  come all over it," he snickered proudly, his tongue tracing the shell of your ear. "Was that nut good, baby?"

"Yes, Daddy, so good," you grinded out, lightheaded, your eyes glazed over and unfocused, even more so as you felt his hand spread over the back of your neck and hold you down to the countertop, his hips winding against your ass as he stayed burying his long, girthy dick in your warm, snug depths.

"Good, cuz I'm 'bout to nut too...shit, baby girl, this pussy amazing...You gon' make me put a kid in you..."

The thought of him breeding you with his seed had your pussy clenching around his cock, the suckling sensation reducing his husky taunts into yet another helpless moan. You could tell from his breathing that he was indeed close, his frenzied thrusts becoming sloppier as white-hot pleasure surged through both of your bodies in incredible waves.

"Oh shit, Y/N," Roman grunted, squeezing your hips for dear life as something snapped inside him. Slamming his dick into you one last time, he went completely rigid with a shout as he came hard for you. The warm wet spurts of cum emptying inside you caused your body to shiver against his as you milked his dick dry. His heavy weight kept you pressed into the hard marble table, both of you so limp that it didn't seem to matter that you couldn't breathe. Somehow, you managed to stand back upright, making him do the same behind you. As he wrapped you up in a hug, he was still inside you, and you tilted your head up to gently bite his bottom lip before licking at his tongue. It made him smile, and you couldn't help but smile back as he shared a long, greedy kiss with you before finally pulling out with a groan, slapping your backside one more time as he stepped away.

"Save some of that chocolate stuff for us," he said, grinning when you shot him a questioning look. "I want you to use 'em on me again later tonight."

You picked up the two sets of pajamas off the floor. "Hmm, you won't be too tired from dinner and all that?"

"Too tired to fuck you? Never, my baby girl."

"Then I'll make sure to bring a jar of each." You laughed as his Adams apple and his cock bobbed simultaneously, his imagination running wild with all the nasty things you would do to him.

"Good idea. Nah, scratch that, great idea," he corrected himself with a chuckle, lifting you into his arms bridal-style and carrying you out of the kitchen. "Right now, we both need a shower."

"Why do I got a feeling this 'shower' is gonna keep our guests waiting?"

He laughed with you and ascended the stairs. "You know me so well."

It was two p.m. by the time he was through with you. When you determined that your legs could function properly again, you dragged yourself out of his bed, changed into another set of pajamas and made your way back downstairs to put the finishing touches on the food and the rest of the house. You had just finished cleaning up the kitchen when this man came up behind you and ran his hands all over your body. His dick was hard.

"Again?" you breathed, biting back a gasp when he started undoing the strings of your pants. The guests would be arriving anytime soon.

"Just one more," he groaned huskily in your ear, grabbing a jar of chocolate sauce, "I've missed you so much, baby, I need to taste you one more time..."

About half an hour later, the doorbell rang. Jey and his wife Larissa were your first guests. When the front door opened, they took one good look at you and Roman; disheveled clothing, hair out of place, the smear of sauce over your left breast and on the corner of Roman's lips, and put two and two together.

"Y'all nasty," Larissa giggled and entered the house, with Jey merely shaking his head behind her.

🎄THE END🎄

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

This is definitely my final story for the year. I'm so proud of how many I was able to churn out and EXTREMELY happy and proud of how much you all like it. Thank you all, I appreciate all your support and feedback more than you'll ever know! 🥺

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Thank you all so much for reading!

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[miffysrambles]

Hi! I have a request, but feel free not to write it!^^

I also dont know if you have already wrote something like this so sorry if you have! But could you possibly, mayhaps, do a Macaque and Wukong (Separate) x reader where it's THAT time of the month for the reader and she's just in a lot of pain?

Wukong and Macaque with an S/O on Their Period

Wukong:

Since he is a monkey, he kinda freaked out the first time when he smelled blood on you when he walked through the door.

“Did anybody hurt ya peaches? Just give me the word and I’ll take care of it…” He held you by the shoulders as he furrowed his brow, the thought of you hurt made the anger rise in his chest. 

Of course, you explained to him what was going on as you lay in a fetal position, clutching your stomach on the couch. 

Wukong doesn’t really understand it at first, to be honest.

If it’s unpleasant, just stop having one?

Wukong…

After you explain to him you can’t control it and that’s not how it works, he’s more informed about the pain it leaves you in. 

However, it takes some time for him to fully wrap his head around the concept. 

After all, he wasn’t around mortals for many MANY years.

But don’t worry, that doesn’t mean he thinks you’re overdramatic! He can tell by the smell and the way you act you are genuinely in pain. 

Between the way your moods are different and the groaning as you two cuddle, he wished he could take the pain away from you.

You had to deal with this every month?

Damn, he admires you so much to be honest.

As mentioned before, you two cuddle twice as much when you’re on your period and that’s saying a lot considering you two cuddle quite often. 

Will rub your back and/or stomach (if you allow him to) as he kisses your forehead.

Of course, he has all your favorite snacks and drinks ready next to you guys so you can just take it easy!

"You just lay here in my arms peaches, forget about everything while ya rest."

Will even share his peach chips like the generous and oh-so-handsome boyfriend he is.

Praise him please.

Macaque:

Like Wukong, he was caught off guard when he smelled blood on you after you messaged him to come over. 

He was already planning murder in his head before you could even question why he was looking at you so intently.

“Where are they sugarplum… Who hurt you?...”

…Huh?

“You’re bleeding… Who hurt you?” His nose scrunched, twitching with fury.

Ohhhh!

After you explained to him what was actually going on, a sigh of relief escaped his lips.

Unlike Wukong however, he was familiar with periods as he lived in the city and was around humans more often. 

Be prepared to get treated like a princess during your period.

You want food? Sit right there while he goes and gets you takeout along with your favorite snacks.

Need something hot to press against your aching abdomen? He’s already heating a water bottle on the stove for you with some painkillers which he totally paid for. 

Don’t you dare worry about anything right now, you just relax and let him take care of everything.

Don’t worry about mood outbursts as well, he knows your hormones are out of wack during that time.

Your favorite part of your period is when he lays your head in his lap and plays with your hair as you both lay in bed while the TV plays in the background.

Of course, he does it for you all the time, but his fingers running through your hair are just extra soothing and distracts from the pain in your uterus. 

Smiles down at you as he mumbles praises to you, 

“Look at how pretty you are right now. How did I get so lucky, huh?”

“You did get lucky, don’t forget it.”

He laughs at your playful response, nodding as he chuckled some more.

“You got it sweet cheeks.”

[somber-sapphic]

Cooking With A Cold

〖500 Follower Prompt: “Oh sweetheart, you’re worse than I thought” + “Sorry, I can’t stop sneezing” + 🏥〗

〖Summary: You hurt yourself while trying to cook a romantic meal for your girlfriend.〗

〖Word Count: 1.5k〗

〖Pairing: Natasha x Sick Reader〗

〖A/N: Hello! So, some of you may know there was a bit of a "situation" last week which threw me off a bit and I decide to postpone posting this. I know, it's been months, but I really needed to recompose and regroup which changed my plan. Sorry, I know this is a bit long but I hope you enjoy!〗

☾Masterlists☽ ☾500 Masterlist☽

Natasha had just gotten home from a long mission and when she had come into the kitchen you’d screeched at her to get out, not wanting to ruin the surprise. She’d left laughing and was currently sitting on the couch in preparation for what she didn't expect to be an incredibly fancy dinner. She knew that you hated to cook and assumed you’d just thrown a few frozen things in the oven and mac and cheese or something on the stove. 

Instead, you had taken it upon yourself to make her favorite dinner and a dessert to go with. Over the two weeks that she had been gone, you’d been watching cooking videos and practicing in your spare time. There was a lot of spare time. You had decided to make her a medium-rare steak with baked asparagus and sauteed mushrooms. Following that there was a cheesecake in the fridge that had come out much better than you’d expected.

When planning this fancy meal that you very much didn't know how to cook, you had been so excited. You were thrilled to get to spend real time with your girlfriend and you wanted her to tell you everything about the ocean and beach and blue skies. It hadn't been a particularly dangerous mission, and you were sure that she’d be happy to tell you all of the more fun details. 

So of course, your body had decided to throw something at you. Maybe it was the long nights spent awake wishing you weren't alone in your bed, maybe it was the fact that one of the Avengers (Clint) seemed intent on spending time with you even though he was clearly sick (it was probably the second one), but the cause didn't matter because you were sick. Sick sick. 

You didn't have a little sniffle that you could push through with a dose of cold medicine and a few tissues, you had a full-on everything hurts, whole body feels hot and cold, stuffy and runny nose, dizziness, chest cough that won't let up kind of cold. Or maybe the flu. You weren't sure, but that didn't particularly matter to you either. For now, all that mattered was you staying upright for long enough to finish this meal. 

Between breaks of sitting on the floor and about one million tissues, you’d managed to get down to the last stretches. The steak was done, and ready to be cut. The mushrooms were sitting on the stove covered by a pot lid to keep them warm. All that was left was the asparagus sitting in the oven and the timer for those had just gone off. 

You pulled yourself to your feet and stumbled slightly, the world shifting quickly around you as your center of gravity changed. It was all you could do not to grab the hot stovetop and stumble into the counter instead, hoping that you hadn't made too much noise. You may have felt awful, but you didn't need Natasha to know that. 

With your brain on autopilot, you stuck your hands into the oven and grabbed the metal pan with a bare hand. You were so out of it and ready to be finished cooking dinner that you hadn't realized you had forgotten the oven mitt until you felt white-hot pain shoot through your hand. 

You pulled back with a strangled gasp, catching the back of your hand on one of the oven racks as you did. Tears of pain clouded your vision momentarily and you clutched your hand to your chest, unsure what to do. The gasp led to a fit of coughing that left you doubled over and panicking. If you just kept standing there your dinner would burn, but you were pretty sure that your hand was useless. And the room was still spinning.

Now you’d have to get Natasha and she would be upset because not only had you ruined dinner, but she’d also need to take care of you. You stood there frozen, and to your utter horror, you began to cry. The frustration of it all was too much. All you’d wanted to do was make a nice hot dinner for your incredibly busy girlfriend and now you needed her help. 

“Hey Nat?” You called out in a watery voice, congestion seeping into your worlds. You sniffled and brought your tightly clenched hand up to wipe your nose on your sleeve, doing your best not to disturb the burn. A tiny part of your brain was telling you that you should probably be running it under cool water or at least stick it in the fridge, but it hadn't quite caught up to the part that was shutting down the pain. 

Natasha, bounced into the room, her smile lighting up her eyes falling as she saw the twisted expression on your face and the protective way you were holding your hand. You could feel your lower lip quivering and your nose might have been running again but you weren't sure, you were just humiliated. To be safe, you swiped your hand against your fist and sniffled. 

“Oh dorogory, what happened?” She asked, rushing over to wrap her arms around you. You laid your head against her shoulder and let out a whimper, wishing that you didn't have to admit to your failure out loud. This was all so humiliating. 

She pulled back for a moment and cupped your cheek, lips pursed, and eyebrows furrowed. She glanced back at the half-open oven, then at your hand, then back into your eyes and you watched her face go from pure terror for your safety to understanding concern. 

“Show me please?” Nat murmured, not wanting to force your hand open and risk hurting you more. You started to nod, but quickly wrenched away to sneeze into your elbow. One sneeze turned into four which turned into a bout of raspy coughing which made you glad you’d managed to turn in time. You didn't want to get her sick too. 

You extended your hand at the end of the fit, revealing the blistering burn across your palm. 

“Oh, Y/n, I could tell you were sick, but sweetheart, you’re worse than I thought!” She exclaimed, studying your burn intensely as she flicked her eyes up to your mess of a face. You wrinkled your nose and sniffled again, blinking rapidly at her. Black dots had appeared in the corners of your vision in these last few seconds, and you were beginning to wonder how much longer you’d be able to stand up. 

“Shit, okay. Let's get you sitting.” You didn't have to say a word, Natasha was right there wrapping her arm around your waist and leading you to the living room. She even managed to turn the oven off as she practically carried you out and set you down on the sofa. 

You leaned against the arm of the couch and rested your head on the cushion, another low rumbling cough echoing through your chest. It hurt to breathe, and you could hear a slight wheeze that might be more audible to those with less clogged ears. 

“Okay. This hand really doesn't look great baby and I don't like the sound of your breathing. You’re going to hate this, but there’s an Urgent Care a few minutes away and I think we need to go. They might be able to get you something for the pain and something to open up those lungs, okay?” She didn't bother to sugarcoat (much) and her tone made it clear that she wasn't asking. Whether you wanted to or not, you had earned yourself a trip to Urgent Care. 

Instead of answering you sneezed again, barely able to direct the sneezes to your lap rather than in her direction. You knew it was gross, but you couldn't seem to make your limbs cooperate the way you wanted them to. Lifting a pinky felt like lifting a thousand tons. 

“M’sorry. I can’t stop sneezing.” You mumbled, hoping those words were enough to convey just how sorry you were, not just for the sneezing but for everything. Natasha kissed the top of your head and pressed a tissue to your nose, guiding your uninjured hand to hold it there. 

“No apologies my love, just sit tight. I’ll get your shoes and your favorite blanket then we’ll head out, okay?” She soothed, running your fingers through your hair as she talked.

Her voice was the sound of summer rain on a warm night, slow rolling waves on a white sand beach, and birds chirping in a lush green forest. It was every comforting thing anyone could think of plus ten more. She was all that. She never failed to make you feel safe, loved, accepted, and, most importantly, worthy of feeling all of those good things. 

You nodded wearily and let yourself melt against the couch as she moved around you, turning off lights and gathering whatever she thought that you would need. You were dreading whatever might happen at Urgent Care, but if she was there you knew that it would be okay. She’d make sure that it was all okay. And when you felt better, you’d make her that damn dinner. 

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[softspiderling]

risk it all | b.r.b

summary: the gym fic™️

pairing: bradley "rooster" bradshaw x reader

warnings: breaking gym etiquette, thirsty reader

word count: 3,4k

author's note: coming back with a bang i guess🤪thanks to jordan, may and sol for the continuous support ily guys.

He was staring.

You thought it was a fluke at first, that he was looking at someone that was standing behind you, but there wasn’t anyone. 

You had checked. 

Several times. 

The moment you realized that he was looking at you, you started sweating profusely. And it wasn’t because of the exercise, even though it was indeed kicking your ass. You weren’t a gym junkie by all means, and you didn’t even know if you were doing the exercise correctly. 

About your second rep in, you had enough and lifted your head to meet his gaze head on. His eyebrows shot up in surprise and he had the decency to flush when he turned his eyes away. Letting out a grunt of annoyance, you finished your last rep, picking up your water bottle and taking an angry swig from it. You glared daggers at the man, who had his back turned to you by now and headed to the changing rooms, grabbing your stuff.

“What’s got you all hot and bothered?” Natasha asked when you came home, kicking the door shut behind you. 

“There was an asshole at the gym who was staring at me.”

Natasha pulled a face, twisting her hair into a bun, the heat of the stove getting to her. 

“You know I keep telling you to come to my gym instead.”

“UGH! I wish I could, but I literally just made a year-long contract with my gym like two months ago,” you groaned, dropping down on the couch like a sack of potatoes. “Couldn’t you have told me about your gym before I made my contract?”

Natasha peaked her head out of the kitchen to laugh at you and you couldn’t even be bothered to glare at her. It was weird how comfortable you were around each other, even though you’ve barely known each other for a month. You had posted an ad online that you were looking for a roommate and after countless interviews with people that were okay-ish, but not really your vibe, you met Natasha at a coffee shop and after bonding over your lactose-intolerance, you offhandedly mentioned you were searching for a roommate.

Yeah.

Admittedly a very weird thing to bond over, but now you always had a carton of oat milk and a carton of coconut milk in your fridge and a very cool roommate. 

“Well, then you gotta power through it. I’m sure you won’t see him again, and if you do, don’t hesitate to confront him, babe,” Natasha said, ever the strong woman. “Now go shower, you stink. Dinner is ready soon.”

She disappeared back into the kitchen and you forced yourself up, dragging a hand over your face, your hair sticking to your sweaty forehead. You always liked to think that you were as strong as she was, but all your bravado usually left you as soon as you opened your mouth.

You just hoped you wouldn’t see him again, so you didn’t have to confront him at all.

The next time you were at the gym, it was about two weeks later and you had completely forgotten about the guy. Over the past week, it had gotten unbearably hot and you couldn’t find the strength to go to the gym to sweat even more so you gave yourself a time off until it cooled down again. It wasn’t exactly chilly, but at least it wasn’t that humid in the gym. The gym wasn’t packed as it usually was around this time, so it didn’t take you long to get through your workout. When you sat down on one of your last machines, you tensed slightly when you saw him right across from you, doing weighted pull-ups. 

To your annoyance, you realized that he was hot. 

Like, really hot. 

The shirt he was wearing was thin and white, miles of defined muscle just underneath,  His arms were huge, biceps straining as he pulled himself up and then lowered himself again. With a grunt he dropped down from the bars and you quickly averted your gaze, getting busy with your own weights. When you were all done, you straightened up your back and started the exercise, seeing how he was standing basically straight across from you, slightly to the left. 

Opting to just stare into the mirror on the other side of the wall, you could still see him looking at you out of the corner of your eyes. You couldn’t help it, but for a split second, you glanced over to him. Unlike the last time, he actually held your gaze and until you turned away, your cheeks turning red. 

God, what a fucking dick. 

You dropped the weights with a loud thunk, reaching for your phone.

roomie one: that fucking douchebag is here again

roomie two: Gym starer?

roomie one: … yes

roomie two: Get him!

roomie one: i’m not going to confront him in the middle of the gym

roomie two: Well, he’d deserve it.

The timer on the chest press indicated that your resting time was over, so you put your phone away. getting back to your workout. While you had been texting Natasha, gym starer had gotten back on the bar, his back to you. Small beads of sweat started to form on the nape of his neck, running down the back of the straining shirt that stretched across his shoulders every time he flexed his arms to pull himself up. 

After a while, you realized that you had done way more reps than you were supposed to, your muscles aching in protest. Cursing, you dropped the weights, gently this time, and wiped your face with your towel. Lifting your head, you could see that he was looking at you again and since you didn’t want to be that creepy person who stared at someone else in the gym, like he kept doing, you decided it was enough for the day and went to the locker rooms. Luckily, no one was in there, so you leaned your head against the cold metal of the lockers, letting out a frustrated scream. 

“Cut your workout short?” 

Wordlessly, you held your hand up, shutting the front door behind you, too annoyed with yourself to talk, and Natasha raised an eyebrow at you, putting her book away. Dropping your gym bag on the floor, you took a seat at the dining table and laid your head down. 

“He’s hot,” you muttered against the wooden surface. 

“I didn’t understand a thing.”

With a long sigh, you lifted your head, looking at Natasha with a pout. “Gym starer. He’s hot.”

“Ah, so now he’s not the creepy gym starer anymore,” Natasha snorted, putting her feet on the coffee table and you glared at her. Because she was right. Screw double-standards.

“God, you should’ve seen him,” you moaned, covering your face with your hands. “His arms are huge. And his shirt was so thin, I could basically see through the fabric and ugh-”

Natasha pulled a face. “Gross.”

“Shut up. Not everyone can like women,” you huffed, standing up. “I need to take a shower. 

“Yeah you do, you’re dripping all over the floor.”

“Jesus, Tash,” you exclaimed and Natasha only cackled at you as you headed to the bathroom to grab a shower, hoping to wash this dirty feeling away. While you stood under the stream of the water, you let out a sigh. You could not develop a crush on gym starer. That would be against your principles and it would be just, really fucking inconvenient. 

Unfortunately you weren’t one of those girls who got cute gym sets and looked like they just walked out of a Lululemon ad. Instead, you wore the most basic black running tights with a random sports bra and your hair ALWAYS stuck to your sweaty forehead, no matter how you wore it. And it was fine with you, because you weren’t going to the gym to pick up guys, you went there to stay fit and challenge yourself.

But a gym crush? No thanks. 

Toweling your wet hair, you exited the bathroom, leaving the door open so the warm air could escape. You plopped down on the couch next to Natasha and crossed her arms, looking at you in amusement.

“Have you ever thought about why he’s staring at you?”

“He’s probably laughing at me because I’m doing the exercise all wrong. Or because I sweat so much.”

“Or he’s into you?”

“And that’s why he’s staring at me?” you scoffed, draping the towel around your shoulders, tugging it from both ends. “He’s probably just like one of those weird gym rat bros who judges everyone who doesn’t go to the gym every day. I mean, he’s fucking ripped, Tash.”

“I know, you already said that!” Natasha groaned, pinching the bridge of her nose. “I’m heading out for drinks with my squadron soon. Do you want to come along? Maybe you can find someone hot who will take your mind off of gym starer.”

“I doubt it. Maybe next time, Tash. Thanks for the invitation, though.”

You exhaled as you pushed through the last reps of your first set, your legs trembling. It took you a few days until you dared to go back to the gym. You were terrified you’d get caught staring at gym starer (oh the irony in that phrase), but when you were certain that you’d forgotten what he had looked like, you packed your bag and went to the gym. 

Relaxing your legs, you lifted them out of the machine when, out of the corner of your eye, you saw someone standing next to you. Pausing, you glanced at him, just to see gym starer looking at you. His mouth was moving, but the music from your headphones was too loud. Holding up your finger, he pressed his lips together until you tugged the headphones out of your ears.

“Sorry, what were you saying?”

“Um…” Gym starer paused, his cheeks red. “I- uh… I wanted to know how much longer you’re gonna take on the leg press.”

“Oh. Uh, two more sets?”

“... Okay,” he said, pausing like he wanted to add something, but then quickly turned on his heel, walking away.

Furrowing your brows, you put your headphones back into your ears. Weird. As you shifted your weight in the seat, you looked to the right, doing a double take when you saw the other leg-press, unoccupied. 

“What the fuck,” you muttered to yourself, leaning your hands on your legs. When you left the gym twenty minutes later, gym starer was nowhere to be seen. 

A few days later, you were lounging on the couch, catching up with some of your favorite tv shows. You needed a break from the gym, at least until you’d get your thoughts sorted. You didn’t know how he did it, but whenever you walked into the gym he was there, even though your gym routine was pretty irregular. Just as the credits of the latest Suits episode started rolling, Natasha suddenly barged into the apartment, making you jump.

“Jesus, what the hell?”

“I’m heading to the bar with my squadron, do you want to come with me?”

You sighed, burrowing deeper into the couch. “I don’t know… I’m so comfy. And I don’t even know anyone there.”

Natasha gave you a look, leaning her hands into her hips, which could only mean that you were about to get a lecture from her. You gulped. 

“You don’t know anyone because you always turn me down whenever I ask you to come out, seriously! I am not accepting a no.”

“Fine, okay,” you huffed with wide eyes, raising your hands in defense. “Just let me get changed, I guess.” With a nod, Natasha disappeared into the bathroom while you headed to your bedroom to get changed, reluctantly. While you were miffed that your plans of staying in had been thrown over, you respected Natasha enough to admit that she was right. Half an hour later, a cab dropped you off at the beach, in front of a small bar aptly called the Hard Deck. 

“Hey, is this like, a Navy bar?” you asked Natasha with a frown as you walked through the door. 

“Yeah. I did tell you that we were getting drinks with my squadron.”

Letting your eyes roam when you got inside, you noticed that almost everyone was dressed in uniform, one way or another, but luckily, there were some people dressed in civvies, so you wouldn’t stick out like a sore thumb. You stopped mid-walk, when you saw him, narrowing your eyes.

Gym starer. Because of course he’d be here. 

God was just pulling on all the strings in your life and laughing at you like you were his personal entertainment. It took gym starer a few seconds to spot you, but when he did, he basically spat out his beer all over the counter. 

“Jeez Bradshaw, what’s gotten into you?”

Natasha laughing, having rounded the bar, standing behind gym starer and clapping him on the back and while you gaped at her.

“You know him?”

Gym starer - Bradshaw, or whatever - was coughing, his cheeks flaming red as Natasha raised an eyebrow at you. 

“He flies with me. Bradley Bradshaw- Rooster’s in my squadron.”

“He’s gym starer.”

“I’m what?” 

“Ew,” Natasha only said, looking Bradley up and down, clearly unhappy with him. “Do you not know gym etiquette?”

“I wasn’t staring!” Bradley protested. “I mean, maybe I was, but I didn’t mean to. I swear.”

You sighed, pinching the bridge of your nose. “I need a drink,” you muttered, moving over to the bar to flag down the bartender. Out of the corner of your eye, you saw Natasha berating Bradley and him scowling at her, a bit miffed, before she rolled her eyes at him. 

“Hey, what can I get you?” 

Turning your eyes away, you looked at the smiling bartender. 

“Gin and tonic?” 

The bartender gave a brief nod, and went on to mix your drink, handing it to you after you slapped a ten dollar bill on the counter. You sipped your drink through the small black straw, relaxing slightly as the liquid burned in your throat. Your relaxation was cut short however, when you realized Bradley was walking towards you, rubbing the back of his neck bashfully. Taking another long sip, hoping the liquid courage would help you out of this incredibly awkward situation, you raised your chin to look at him. 

“I, uh. Was made aware that I might’ve come across as creepy,” Bradley said, his cheeks still pink. 

“You think?”

Bradley winced. “I’m really sorry. I don’t like to bother people during their workout, but I just didn’t know how I was supposed to start talking to you. And when I finally got the courage to approach you, you kind of shut me down.”

You narrowed your eyes in confusion, trying to think back when he came up to talk to you in the gym. 

“Wait… You mean when you asked me how many sets I had left?”

You didn’t think it was possible, but Bradley flushed an even deeper pink as he nodded. 

“Yeah… I actually kind of asked you out, but you didn’t hear me, so I just felt weird and made up a lame excuse.”

“Wait, what?”

Bradley chuckled nervously, and you only stared at him in disbelief. So Natasha was right. Now it was your turn to blush

“I didn’t realize,” you explained and Bradley waved his hands around, giving you an embarrassed smile.

“Don’t worry about it, seriously. I’m sorry, again. I understand that you’re not interested, I am not here to pester you or anything, I just wanted to apologize.” Bradley turned to leave, but you stopped him, grabbing his arm.

“I didn’t say I wasn’t interested!” You protested, making Bradley turn back to you, the corner of his mouth ticking up in a grin. 

“Yeah?”

You let go of his arm, rolling your eyes a bit. It was comical how quickly his facial expressions could change.

“Why don’t we start over?” Bradley asked, offering his hand. “I’m Bradley Bradshaw, nice to meet you.”

*

Zoe straightened her back after she adjusted her weights, letting her gaze wander through the gym. It wasn’t extremely busy and there were just a few people working out. She didn’t usually like coming to the gym after work, because she usually couldn’t get herself to leave her apartment after she got home. Today however, work was so crazy that Zoe had to release her stress somewhere, so gym it was. Zoe’s eyes stopped on the brunet guy when doing a double take when she noticed that his gaze was set on you and she could literally feel her eye twitch. 

She didn’t really know you, but she’s seen you around the gym sometimes when you were working out, always by yourself. The guy didn’t really seem too focused on his workout as he kept his eyes steady on you and Zoe bristled. Sometimes she really hated men.

Zoe tried to channel all her anger in her workout, while still keeping an eye on you just in case. Throughout her workout, she wasn’t able to keep her eyes on you for the whole time, but when she got into the changing rooms and saw you packing your bag, she sighed in relief. 

Shooting you a small smile, Zoe grabbed her bag and her jacket and headed outside, stopping in the doorway when she saw him waiting by the door. He looked up from his phone, looking at her puzzled when she only glared at him and turned on her heel to head back inside, the door falling shut in its hinges. She walked towards you, waiting until you looked up before she spoke.

“Hey, I’m Zoe,” she said and you introduced yourself as well, if a bit bewildered. 

“I’m sorry, I know we don’t know each other at all, but there’s this weird guy hanging around outside the changing rooms. We could walk to the parking lot together.”

“What?” you asked, confused and Zoe took a deep breath, laughing nervously.

“Um, there was this guy who kept staring at you while you worked out? I don’t know if you noticed, but he was pretty focused on you. He’s standing right outside the changing rooms like a creep.”

You blinked at her before your facial expression completely changed, as you burst out in laughter. Now Zoe was very confused. 

“Oh, please this is too funny. It’s really sweet of you, but I’m okay, really. He’s my boyfriend,” you explained and Zoe flushed. 

“Oh god, I’m so sorry!”

“Don’t worry about it,” you said with a laugh. “He’s a bit dense sometimes. Come on, I’ll introduce you.”

You swung your bag over your shoulder and Zoe had no choice but to follow you, even though she willed the ground to open up and swallow her whole. When you opened the door, your boyfriend slipped his phone into his pocket, surprised to see Zoe following you closely. 

“Hey, everything okay?” he asked as you only snickered, shaking your head at him. 

“Babe, this is Zoe. Zoe, this is my boyfriend, Bradley,” you introduced them, and Zoe could only plaster on a smile, while Bradley shook her hand, looking at you a bit lost. “Zoe thought you were creepy because you were staring at me the whole time like a creeper.”

“Oh,” Bradley muttered dumbly, his cheeks tinging pink. “Sorry, bad habit of mine. But thank you for looking out for my girl,” he told Zoe and she laughed nervously. 

“Sure. We girls gotta look out for each other, right?”

“‘course. Hey, when are you coming here next?” You asked and Zoe shrugged with her shoulders. 

“I’m not sure yet.”

You reached for your phone, holding it out to her. “We could go together, if you want? I’ll leave Bradley at home if we do, I promise.”

Bradley only groaned, turning his face away and your face was split open in a big grin, so Zoe only smiled as she punched her number into your phone, before handing it back to you. 

“Great, I’ll text you, okay,” you promised, putting your phone away. “It was really nice meeting you Zoe.”

“It was nice meeting you too, bye.”

Bradley only waved his hand in wordless goodbye as you left, his arm wrapping around your waist. As you walked out, Zoe could hear the beginnings of your conversation. 

“-you. It’s creepy and clearly, I’m not the only one who thinks that!”

“I’m sorry! You know I want to focus on my workout, but you keep distracting me, especially when you wear those leggings…”

x

a/n: i like to think that while bradley does have game, he can be quite dense sometimes hehe. i hope you liked it!

taglist: @littlebadariell // @labellapeaky // @solacestyles // @shaded-echoes // @madielake //  @diorrfairy // @luckyladycreator2 // @ssaic-jareau // @xoxabs88xox // @averyhotchner   // @avada-kedavra-bitch-187  // @tiredqueen73 // @alexxavicry // @classyunknownlover

[gretavanlace]

Blank

Josh Kiszka x reader

18+ only! Minors do not interact!

Warnings: graphic sexual content, language, dirty talk, discussion of poor self image/shaky mental health, praise, degradation, dumbification, impact play (spanking), etc

You’re standing in front of the floor length mirror when Josh’s voice finds you…turning this way and that with your t-shirt pulled tight around your belly and a frown furrowing your brow.

“The movie’s ready, baby.” There’s a smile in his tone, and a dramatic flare, as there so often is, as he leans against the door jamb. “And I made the popcorn on the stove like you like. None of that microwaved bullshit for my darling doll.”

You’d like to find your excitement in order to match his own - movie night is his favorite night of the week. Often, it turns into several nights a week, in keeping with his passion for film and curling up snug and warm with you on the couch.

And normally, you look forward to it as well, but tonight…

Well, tonight you’d just as soon crawl into bed alone and in the dark. How else will you ever manage to tune out all those poisonous thoughts hissing through your mind? Obsidian. Ominous. Hateful.

“What are you doing, babe?” There is concern in his query. He knows you far too well.

Dropping your shirt as if it’s white hot, you slip away from the mirror, praying he’ll let the matter drop. Though, you hope in vain. You know him far too well, too. “Nothing. C’mon, whatever masterpiece you’ve selected isn’t going to watch itself.”

He steps into the room and you suppress a sigh of defeat. “Waterloo Bridge.” He clarifies, studying you intently. “And you’re a shitty liar. What’s wrong?”

“I said it’s nothing, Josh,” there’s a touch too much venom in your tone, but sometimes you wish he didn’t see so damn much. Sometimes you wish you could skate around things with him.

“And that’s a lie,” he points out, sidling up behind you when you turn away. “Do we lie to one another?”

“No.” You concede quietly as his arms cradle you from behind.

“So, would you like to try again?” His embrace is soft, but it makes you feel safe and protected all the same. He has this way about him - he is love and light, sunshine and smiles, gentle poetry…but something lies hidden away behind it all, something only you get to see, and it makes for the most deliciously dark and menacing aura when it comes out to play.

“I just,” now you’re stammering like a child caught with a crayon in her hand and scribbles on the wall.

His lips move along the nape of your neck, brushing over your skin and the whispers of hair that have fallen from your bun, “You just, what?”

“I had lunch with my sister today.” You offer meekly. Can’t he ever just leave things alone? Can’t he ever just let you curl up with your self-loathing?

“Yes,” he nods, now pecking at the curve of your jaw, “And I adore you for not making me come along…she’s exhausting.”

“I know.” His palms are now running along beneath your shirt, circling your belly with tender possessiveness��it’s soothing and filled up full of love, but you wish his hands would land somewhere a little more flattering “But she’s also truthful. She thinks I should start going to the gym with her, and she’s right.”

He stills behind you instantly, and you can feel him shaking his head, though you’ve closed your eyes against the embarrassment of it all.

Eager to fill the room up with words rather than your own vulnerability, you rush on “She’s is, though. Right, I mean. I’ve put on weight, and the older I get, the harder it will be to take off. Obviously, I’ve never been small, but—“

He cuts you off with a loose palm around your throat and a snapped, “Stop.” Breathed in your ear.

“Josh,” Christ, you want to melt into the floor, “I love you for always being so sweet, but I,”

You haven’t the chance to finish your thought and his grip is tightening, “I said, stop.”

A joke will quench the fire burning in your cheeks, “C’mon, what if I got all adorable and tiny like your little hippy girls in the crowd? I—“

A sharp pinch to the curve of your hip shocks you into silence, which he promptly fills. “Don’t say things like that. You’re fucking beautiful. Soft and warm. I want to nestle my face right here,” his hand is splayed out wide across your belly again, “and right here,” his touch drops to find the dimples in your thighs, “for the rest of my life. If we get to choose our heaven, you will be mine. Gorgeous, perfect girl.”

Now you’re struggling to squirm out of his insistent embrace. You feel too seen. And though you know he is nothing if not sincere, always…those lovely words of his, they feel like untruths.

“Josh,” you snap, a little too harshly, “let’s just go watch the movie, okay?”

But it’s too late, he has spotted the quiver at your bottom lip.

“Hey,” he spins you around to face him and you know it’s useless to shut him out at this point. “What’s going on up here, hmm?” He taps your temple gently, “Is it getting loud?”

You know he means those intrusive thoughts that plague you when the love and admiration he beams in your direction isn’t enough. He knows the way they scream and yell at you no matter how badly he’d love to quiet them for good.

Ashamed, you stare down at his t-shirt, toying with the cotton between your fidgeting fingers, “Maybe a little,” you hush.

His fist tucks under your chin, tilting your face upward, but still, you refuse his gaze. “You need it, baby?”

Voice soft and leading, he lures you out of your bashfulness just enough for you to find the bravery to blink up at him with the tiniest of nods.

“Yeah?” He sounds so unlike himself - but also, exactly like himself. “You need me to make it go away? Wipe that wild mind until you’re as blank as you are pretty?”

Josh is small, and he has never shied away from that, but in these moments, he feels larger than life…looming like a God sent to bring you peace. “Can you, please?’

With a taunting flick of your nipple, he switches on. “Well, how could I ever say no to such a sweet girl? You sound like honey when you say please.”

The warmth of his body, so near to yours, is suddenly missing, but you’re feeling a little too meek to glance up to see where he’s gone…opting to stare at your thumbnail in earnest instead, resisting the urge to pick your cuticle.

“Come on, doll,” his voice comes hushed as a siren’s secret song floating through a cove “Miss you already.”

You feel unworthy of this. Of him. Of all the tiny ways he loves you just right. How he has memorized you in and out. The way he looks at you like he could happily stare forever. How he understands even when he doesn’t quite understand…how he took your heart and turned it round and round until he had mapped out every inch. How he dives inside your mind every day and does the same, no matter how tragic and treacherous it can be to wade through those waters.

When you had stumbled upon this, it had been by accident really. A harsh crack of his palm against the globe of your ass by way of quieting you when you’d argued with his stuttering praises as he pushed into you over and over from behind. Your brain had short circuited in the most welcomed and stunning way. That stinging impact, the shock of it, the tangible pain, had left no room for cruel thoughts…your mind was muffled up like lavender cotton with nothing but Josh and what he saw fit to give.

Most times, he loves you hard enough just by being himself. Golden, shimmering aura, grinning heart, sure and tender hands…but sometimes you need this from him - and he is always willing to oblige. You hold the key that turns all his locks, and he would sink into a bed of hot coals for a nap if you thought to ask it of him.

With a clipped call of your name, he’s got you hustling across the room to fold yourself shyly over his knee at the foot of the bed.

“That’s perfect, baby.” He coos down at you, palm stroking over the backs of your thighs before bunching your t-shirt up around your waist. “Gonna make it all go away, aren’t I? Is that what you need? You need me to take it all away?”

“Please.” You sound pathetic, but already it’s a sweeter sort of shame. One you can name. One you can love.

His fingers tuck under the cotton of your panties, hooking at the soft lace that adorns the edges, straightening them as though he’s adjusting the ribbon on a present he’s waited a very long time to receive.

“If I had to guess,” he hums, a little like the kindest bully you’ve ever known, “I’d wager your pretty pussy’s feeling lonely already. Maybe a little whiny. Maybe starting to swell…” his hands continue to pet at your ass, your thighs, your hips, “I love that, you know? Watching how puffy and swollen you get. It’s adorable…and fucking sexy. Your body begs without a sound.”

Your grip is twisting into the blanket beneath you now as your cheek nuzzles against the downy softness “Josh…”

“Quiet,” he bestows a single, much too delicate smack in the wrong place. It’s too far off to the side for your liking, and he knows it. “We’ll get there. You’re gonna listen first.”

An obedient nod tugs yet another delicious hum of approval from him and you squirm lightly under his hands, thrumming with pleasure at the sound of his validation.

“You’re alright, baby…” he’s being so gentle. Too gentle. But you would lie here beneath his hands and his gaze for all of eternity if that’s what would suit him. “My poor thing just needs it, doesn’t she? Busy little head needs to just leave…” a soft swat lands upon your cheek just below the waist, “her…” another, “alone,” and another.

“Harder, Josh…” it’s a piteous plea, one that pairs nicely with the honeyed, condescending melodies drifting off his tongue.

“Tell me what you’d like me to do to you.” He’s coaxing so kindly, but you know what lurks below that shiny surface. “Say the words, my darling doll. Say the words.”

With a deep, centering breath, you find the calm in your storm by way of his scent…eucalyptus and bergamot…woodsy hint of lemon soap lingering beneath. You find strength in his presence, and love there, too.

“Spank me.” It pants out of you like an urgent prayer. “Make it stop.”

As if in punctuation to your begging, he lands a harsh, loud, cracking strike against the fat of your ass. It comes quickly, shaking your equilibrium though this is exactly what you’ve been imploring him for.

“Fuck!” The curse pushes out of your lungs, long and grateful. Blindsided and aching.

Another blow lands in exactly the same place, setting the flesh there on fire. “Yeah? Fuck?” He taunts, “That’s a good fucking doll…you just take it.”

“More,” you’re rocking around, blissful at the pain and the twitching of his hard cock beneath you.

He begins laying into you without restraint, blow after blow raining down on you like merciful salvation. Your brain is numb now - quiet, hazy and clouded with his perfect wrath.

Tears are streaking like fire down your cheeks, a graven image of mother Mary sobbing blood in a candlelit room of worship come to life. He is your alter. He is your God.

“That’s my girl,” his accolades stutter out between smack after smack until he pauses to jerk your legs apart. “You’re dripping all over me. Baby needs it right here, too?” There is his touch, love and reverence woven into the very fingerprints nudging at your covered entrance. “Dirty little cunt needs a spanking, too, doesn’t she?”

Embarrassingly, a mumbled, indecipherable sound croaks out of you, and your entire body flushes hot with an indignity you happen to relish.

“What was that?” He sounds like sex…like he’s thinking with his throbbing cock - but if your mind’s eye could see straight, you would know better. He is careful and controlled in these moments. Never losing sight of himself, never risking a move too far. “Aw, poor doll is just a dumb little baby, now? Spanked all quiet and wet? I like that, beautiful. I like that very much. No thoughts, right? Shh, no thoughts.”

Again, you manage merely a sound, a murmuring of his name no one but yourself could ever transcribe.

A violent strike buries its way into your covered folds. You jolt and cry out, writhing against his thighs, fighting for more.

You want him inside in any capacity. Fingers, tongue, cock..it matters not, just inside. That’s the only word you seem to know in this moment - inside, inside, inside. But with another sound slap against your cunt, it explodes through your nerve endings like a wire kicking up sparks and skittering against desolate, lonely pavement. You’re climaxing hard and fast, releasing all over the fleece covering his thighs, thrusting against nothing, mourning the heat of his impact though it was there for but a breath.

“Yes!” It wails out of you, warbling and wild…teeth clenched and grinding, body wound so tightly your muscles will protest and complain later.

There will come a time tonight where you’ll long for a way to thank him. For a way to call his name and cradle his face and express your absolute gratitude for this blank slate he molds your mind into…for the way he takes all the ugly and chases it right out of your orbit…

But for now, you fall limp and spent against him. Breathing heavily and deeply. Drawing oxygen way down into your chest that no longer feels so tight. And for now he’ll hear no talk of reciprocation, for now he continues to cater to you with devotion in his touch and a worshipful cast in his gaze as he slips away to draw you a bath.

Taglist: @gretasintrees @greta-van-chaos @celestialfauna @s0livagant @groggyvanfleet @kiszkathecook @brokenbellz @llightmyllovee @doodle417 @seventieswhore @jake-kiszkas-smirk @weightofdreams-gvf @imdepressedaf1996 @alisonwonderland29 @gretavanfleas @gretavangroove @sparrowofthedawn @xserenax-13 @tbagggvf @obetrolncocktails @tripthelightfandomtastic @tripthelight-fanfic @poofyloofy @jakeslovehandles @70sgroupielovr @heatmyfleet @age-of-nyahh @sammiboo162 @gretasmokerising @spicedandicedtea @jakekiszkasleftnutsack @saoirsemaeve @mywickeddivinity @thelvnternskeeper @paintmyhouse @mckenna4 @sarakay-gvf @theweightofjake @thewritingbeforesunrise @joshsmama @sammysvanfeet @rhythm-of-space @highladyofasgard @jordie-gvf-admin @calumspretty @sad1lynn @demolitionndann @gvfpal @starcatcher-jake

[cod-imagines-fanfiction]

Jealous Alejandro kidnaps Valeria's girlfriend to be interrogated by the 141 (2k words, part 1)

Summary: Inspired by one of my headcanons for Valeria. Valeria has gifted you a whole wing in her massive residence in Las Almas. Alejandro infiltrates the mansion to gather intel and finds you, Valeria's girlfriend. You are kidnapped by Alejandro and interrogated by the 141 on Valeria and her whereabouts. Got a bit carried away and will make a part 2! Link to fanfic on A03

Notes: Sorry for butchering Mexican Spanish, I Google-translated everything! Also tagging @lesvii in case u wanted to read it! TW: mentions of cheating, toxic Alejandro, threat of violence.

It was another beautiful night for you at the rich luxurious mansion of your girlfriend Valeria Garza, the infamous cartel mogul of Las Almas and Latin America. In the lowest basements of the estate sat enemies, tied on their chairs and ruthlessly interrogated by Valeria's henchmen. Blood stains littered the floor, the moans of these victims muffled by the layers of concrete that stood between them and the world above the surface. And much further above, on a secluded and spoiled part of the estate, you stretched lazily on a golden bathtub filled with hot water and bubbles, feeling the dolphin-shaped taps that winked at you with diamond eyes as you played around with the water. Your bathroom was filled with the scent of lavender and honey and you enjoyed another night of hard-earned relaxation. It wasn't easy being this loved and spoiled, but someone had to do it! Sure, Valeria had a prominently dark side that demanded constant attention, and could be a handful to love. Valeria needed three warm homemade meals every day, love each morning and night and a massage break during her siesta, and you met all of her wishes. In return, Valeria loved you hard and expensively.

Today was an especially tough day because Valeria needed to leave for a business trip.

"It's just three days, okay mi amor? I'll be back before you know it," she fussed over you at her doorstep, one of the few times she'd let you be seen by her henchmen. Ever since you were moved into Valeria's residence, she had scarcely left your side. And now here she was, needing to leave for some kind of business meeting that she refused to elaborate on. You knew it must've been important because you would hear various personnel discuss it carelessly when they thought you weren't listening from your balcony. And it must've been very important if it meant keeping her away from you for days. "But what about morning cuddles?" You sulked and held on to her shirt with the tip of your fingers. It was a bit self-indulgent and dramatic, but you really were going to miss her, and Valeria loved to feel needed anyway, so such pathetic displays were more than welcome. "I'll call you whenever I can, okay? Now give me a kiss."

And that's how you ended up having to amuse yourself for several days.

And that's when Alejandro decided to infiltrate the Las Almas residence.

You were soaking in the warm water, completely oblivious to the fact that your girlfriend's ex-lover was eyeing the residence for a vulnerable entry point. As you lathered your body in oils and creams, he was butchering the guards and dumping their bodies behind the bushes. As you sat on your Queen sized bed ready to rest for the night, he stood behind the door, listening. Alejandro had guessed that this must be Valeria's private area of the mansion because it was significantly nicer than the rest, and that said something. Whereas the rest of the mansion looked like it came from a luxury housekeeping catalogue, this part was more...personal. It had a personal touch to it, a woman's touch. And he knew Valeria had no interest in interior decoration. He passed hallways with floral and sensual pieces of art, past vases with carefully arranged flowers that probably had a deeper significance than he realised. Past a fully stocked kitchen with something freshly cooked on the stove, past a well-used sitting area decorated with pictures of two women smiling at the camera. Jealousy tugged at his heart at these displays of domesticity. He pulled a spy cam cord from his pocket and slid it underneath the door. And there on the bed, amid fluffy cushions and blankets, sat you.

And he remembered exactly who you were.

"Hermano, all good in there?" Soap's voice came through in his earpiece, jolting Alejandro from his revenge fantasy. "Si, be out in five," he whispered and pulled the camera back. It'd be more efficient to knock on the door and wait to take you with chloroform, but he could bet on his life that you were not part of the cartel. This was very much a regular civilian woman, a little trophy wife. And trophy wives can't fight off military personnel. Alejandro rammed through the door and lunged for you before you even had a moment to turn around. Having tucked yourself in your blankets, you had no time to even get up before this strange man put his hands on you.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Strange men with various insignias on their uniforms paced around the residence as you were pushed forward and towards the garden. The man was with Mexican Special Forces, that much you could tell. He laughed darkly and tightened his grip on you. "So, big El Sinobre left you behind, eh? Not so big and scary now, are we?" To your horror and surprise, a helicopter was lowering itself to the ground and shone a bright light on you, like you were a criminal. You wanted to protest that you hadn't actually done anything, but you were guilty by association. Another man leaned out of the helicopter and extended his arm to grab you. "That don't look like cartel to me, brother," a slightly Southern American accent decorated his speech as he grabbed your elbow and chucked you in. The Mexican man followed you along with some others. "She's the next best thing after Valeria, trust me. She'll come running to us in no time."

"Hermano, you sure about this? There are different rules for civilians." Another man spoke, a man with a mohawk and the Union Jack flag on his vest. The helicopter started raising itself off the ground and took off to God knows where. You were in your pyjamas still, feeling silly and vulnerable, too afraid to say anything. Valeria always warned people to stay quiet in front of enemies, and you couldn't be blamed for anything you hadn't said. "I'm positive, Hermano. I know how she works. We take something from her, and she'll come looking." The man sat right across from you, his eyes never leaving you. He was tall and dark, around Valeria's age you'd guess, maybe older. There was a menacing look in his eyes, as though he couldn't stand to look at you, yet his dark eyes never left yours. There was something else lurking underneath that you couldn't put your finger on. It was almost like hatred, though you couldn't understand why he'd hate you personally - you'd never seen him before. And yet he spoke of Valeria with such familiarity...it chilled you.

Next thing you knew, you were in some headquarters. Masses of soldiers marched to and from the facility, taking the time to glance your way as the men brought you to one of the warehouses. Amidst the uniformed men with pounds of kit on themselves, you felt naked. Within the warehouse was a metal container that, to your horror, seemed to be your new resting place. You were thrown on a chair and the container sealed shut after them. "She's being surprisingly cooperative so far," the man with the skull mask grumbled as he leaned back with his arms crossed. "Either that or poor thing doesn't speak English," said the American.

"I can speak English," you whispered and nodded to them, the first thing you said so far. "Perfecto." The American clapped his hands and walked towards you. He lowered himself to your level and brought his face menacingly close to yours, so close you could feel his breath on your cheek. "Now, we can do this the nice way. Or we can do this the army way. What will it be, sweetheart?" He stared you down with his blue eyes and you noticed the scar on his cheek; a clean slice on his combat-hardened face. You swallowed hard. "The nice way." He grinned with satisfaction and raised himself. "That's what I like to hear."

The man who kidnapped you stepped forward, towering over you and not bothering to lower himself like the American. "Where's Valeria?" He spat her name out like poison and your heart sank. "I don't kn-," you'd started saying but stopped when you saw how his eyes darkened. "She doesn't tell me anything. She keeps her business separate from me." "And who exactly are you?" The masked man spoke, his deep voice reverberating within the container. The Mexican man scoffed and paced around mumbling to himself. "This should be good." "Alejandro, please." Another man scolded in a whisper. Alejandro glared at him and shook his head, then looked at you with a deep frown that contorted an otherwise handsome face. His eyes, you realised, were looking at your fingers, one of which wore a thick golden band.

"I'm her partner." You resisted the urge to play with your ring, afraid of making any move in front of them. The American laughed loudly, making you jolt in your seat. "A cartel run by a lesbian, eh? Man, I love my job." "She's not a lesbian," Alejandro snapped quickly. The American stood up taller. "My friend, I think you need to cool off." "¡Anímate y díselo!" He yelled at you. "Alright, now hold on. How do you two know each other?" The American demanded as he pointed to you and Alejandro. "I don't know him," you mumbled and shook your head. "Mierda! You know perfectly well who I am." He exploded again. The man with the mohawk and the other Mexican man looked at you wearily, moving a little bit closer to you in light of Alejandro's outbursts. "I'm sorry, I really don't," you said with a wavering voice. That seemed to really set him off. Alejandro charged at you while swearing. "Vete al infierno hija de puta-"

The two men reached forward and drew him away from you. "Alejandro-" "Calm down, Commander." He shook them off then span around and looked at you again, his firsts curled on the handles of his vest. "Okay, go on. Speak." "I already told you she doesn't tell me anything! She doesn't want me to be involved and she doesn't tell me where she goes. I just take care of the house and that's it. And she'll be mighty pissed when she sees I'm gone." You threw your words at him.

"And now, you," the American pointed at Alejandro. "Valeria served in the Mexican Army, same unit but different squads. Until she betrayed us for the cartel. That's how I know her."

Suddenly, you realised who he was. You'd heard whispers about him amongst Valeria's friends. She would frequently be teased about 'moving camps' and being a heartbreaker. One of them even joked about how you were a homewrecking housewife. Valeria made sure you didn't see those people again. You thought it was all part of a big joke, until now. That part of her past, you guessed, must be him.

The American looked at you and you nodded. "Yes, she did that when we first met. But I don't know anything specific, she didn't tell me." The man who called Alejandro 'commander' looked at you closely and he, too, seemed familiar. He was also part of the Mexican Special Forces and seemed to be paired up with Alejandro. He had large, round brown eyes that were not unkind. He spoke up: "I remember her too. Valeria and she met just a bit before Valeria left the Mexican Army." The American looked at you with disdain after that, and the other man continued. "But she's not lying about not knowing Alejandro. Valeria kept her out of our business." You looked at him with relief and he looked away.

"Well we just pulled a heck of an operation to weed this one out, and we're not leaving until we get some answers," said the American man. "And I don't believe for a second that you're entirely clueless. Now you can either start singing or I'm gonna show you the difference between the military and me."

Notes: Thanks for reading! Link to part 2 :> Link to part 3

[mari-the-bimbo]

hi! can you write something about dorm mate!geto arguing with reader but then they would apologize (idk whose fault it was) please 🙏

A/N: Thanks for the idea bby!! Plot twist: they don’t apologise, you know I love miscommunication tropes right? 😋

Dorm mate Geto: Just friends

It’s Friday night and you find yourself at one of Gojo party friends’ party again. It’s kind of a tradition. You, Gojo and Geto heading out for a party so get that much needed social time in your busy lives. You don’t join them all the time, but when you do, you feel good.

You and Shoko laugh at the drunk Utahime who was having the time of her life. You enjoyed watching your usually uptight friend letting herself go once in a while.

But when she started loudly explaining why Gojo was unfuckable, you and Shoko decided maybe it was time to leave the party.

“Come on Princess” Shoko says sarcastically to Utahime, while you help bring the drunk girl to her feet. “Let’s get you home. Hey y/n, you need a ride home babe?” Shoko asks, swirling the car keys around her finger.

“Nah I’m good thanks Shoko” you say with a smile. “I’ll see if Geto’s ready to go” you add, knowing Gojo was probably hooking up with someone right now.

“Cool. See you later chick” Shoko says and you wave goodbye to them before walking back to find Geto. You check your phone, 00:31 it reads. Past midnight, okay time to leave a party right?

You squint, looking to find the black long haired man, but when you finally spotted him, you wished you didn’t.

Your handsome dorm mate sat on a sofa, with some pretty girl wrapping her slender arms around his broad shoulders. He whispers something in her ear with his signature lazy smirk, the girl laughs brightly. No doubt Geto said a dry but flirty joke, something you thought was reserved only for you.

You think you feel a bit sick. Heartbroken was what you actually felt. He hasn’t seen you yet, you hope it stays that way. You hope he didn’t see you foolishly waiting on him, while he got cosy with some other girl.

Was it always like this? Did he always get cosy with other girls but your delusions made you think it was only you? How silly. What you once thought was a sweet blooming romance between you and a dear friend was nothing more than a minor situationship to him.

You turn your heel and speed out the house before you could embarrass yourself anymore.

1:01 AM

You swirl your ramen absentmindedly in the pot, hoping the warm noodles will fill the emptiness you feel in your stomach.

Suddenly you hear the door open and shut. You didn’t dare look up, there’s so much to stay but you choose to stay silent, hoping Geto won’t notice you in the dim lighting in his drunk state.

But that never works.

“You hungry doll?” Geto chuckles as he spots you. You don’t answer, scared your voice will crack.

“Well how about I help out and make you some hot cocoa yeah?” He says, with a smile that feels fake to you now.

“No. I don’t want a drink” you say abruptly, you cringe internally, knowing how rude you sounded, but you can’t help but feel resentful.

Geto stops in his tracks, slowly turning towards you, long hair strands framing his face.

“You okay hun?”

You wince, ‘hun’ was the last thing you needed to be called by the man who just broke your heart.

You silently just stare at your ramen, trying to play it cool, be the chill girl who doesn’t really care, but you already messed up. You were a born a person who cared too much.

“You shouldn’t call me that.”

“What? Why?” He says, an unimpressed frown on his handsome face. You stare silently at your ramen again.

You sigh when Geto pushes in front of you and turns off the stove so that he can have your attention.

“Look at me and tell me what’s wrong” he says.

You cross your arms almost in defence, disobeying him by staring out the window instead. “What am I to you Geto?”

“My favourite girl, of course” he answered softly in a heartbeat, taking a step closer to you, but you move backwards.

You shake your head. “No” you say, “that’s not what I am. What is our relationship? Are we friends or more?”

The room falls silent.

You sigh, wishing you never asked and hurt your own feelings. The silence answered your question. Friends.

“If we are friends, then we should put some distance between us” you say bravely.

You look up at Geto, to find the usually composed, chill guy look shattered. Black eyebrows furrowed, mouth slightly open. You’ve never seen Geto look off guard, you almost feel bad.

“Oi… what do you mean by that?” You can hear the anger bubbling through his throat, he’s trying his best to stay calm.

“I mean stop flirting and touching me Geto, do that with the girls you’re romantically interested in” you assert your stance, slightly raising your voice to your own surprise.

“Thats-“ Geto starts but he doesn’t finish his sentence.

He pauses before starting, now stepping away from you.

“I’m.. sorry I caused any inconvenience for you. I won’t do it again.” He says formally, putting his hands in his pockets and walking out the small dorm kitchen. Black hair stands dangling in front of his face as he keeps his head down.

Leaving you alone with your broken heart again.

[yuna542]

[1]

>Bad Idea<

Pairing: Hong Woojin x Reader

Genre: Fluff, Angst, Enemies with benefits to Lovers

Warnings: 18+, under 18 DNI!, Fem!reader, Suggestive Themes, Swearing, pet names, jealousy, ANGST, blood, sexual assault, violence, mentions of sex, alcohol

Word Count: 9.1k

Note: Here we go. Wanted to write an Oneshot. It escalated and it became a Story with 4 Parts. Hope you like it and you are also obsessed over the show! It’s amazing!

Summary: As Gunwoos little sister he wanted you to finally meet his best friend. Unfortunately you don't get along. He gets on your nerves, you fight all the time and yet you can’t stop messing with each other. One evening you get into a dangerous situation and end up bruised and bloody at his apartment. And you suddenly have to ask yourself: Why do you feel so attracted to that idiot?

"What do you want me to say?" you breathed, struggling to keep your voice steady.

"What you feel," he replied, anger reflected in his eyes as well. He hated that he felt that way. That you had done this to him.

"I can't stand you," you replied, and every word hurt like someone was pressing red-hot iron against your skin. Maybe if you denied it, the feeling would go away on its own.

He came even closer, sparkling at you with mesmerising eyes.

"You don't mean that."

"You don't know what i mean. It's okay. Just leave! If I never see your face again, I'll be happy," you shot back at him, something inside you breaking more with each word. "I wish i never-" but he interrupted you by grabbing your hand.

"Don't say something you don't mean. Don't you dare," he growled.

Chapter 1:

The Idiot

„Gunwoo! Come on! Hurry up!", you shouted through your apartment, leaning on the doorframe, ready to leave.

Now your brother had already talked you into coming to a boxing match that wasn't his own, and now he was making you wait. You heard the rumble in his room and he was probably gathering his things in a panic so that you wouldn't change your mind at the last minute.

Beside the hustle you heard his cell phone ringing behind the door and he answered in a rush:

"Yeah... Yes we're on our way... See you soon."

Then he finally opened the door and ran into the kitchen to plant a kiss on your mom's cheek.

"We're off, Mom."

The woman with the same kind eyes as you and your brother turned from the stove and raised her finger.

"Just watch your little sister for me!"

You sighed loudly as your brother gave you a doubtful look and eyed you. You raised your eyebrows, as you would probably always be the little girl to your mother.

"I'm sure she can do that very well on her own," he said with a gentle smile and you snorted in amusement. But you were grateful that he didn't put you down.

Even though you were way shorter and narrower than your brother, most people had more respect for you. Or they were quickly intimidated. Unlike your reserved, polite brother, you stood out because of your confidence and cheeky manner.

If you didn't have the same eyes and handsome face, nobody would have guessed that the quiet muscleman and the little hothead were siblings.

"Come on now! Otherwise we'll be late!"

Gunwoo shoved his cell phone into his pocket and you waved goodbye to your mother as you disappeared through the door. As you walked down the stairwell, you could see your brother smiling conspiratorially.

"I thought you weren't interested in the boxing match."

"I am interested in your boxing matches. You're making me watch your friend's, aren't you?" you retorted, skipping the last two flights of stairs as you had always done.

Originally, years ago Gunwoo had told you that there was a monster lurking under the last staircase that would grab your ankles and pull you down into the basement if you weren't careful. When you were six you just stuck your tongue out at your brother who was four years older than you and called him a fool, but even today you skipped over them out of habit.

As soon as you stepped out into the fresh air, you took a deep breath. It was a summery day and the birds were chirping. Sitting in a stuffy hall all day, enveloped in the smell of sweat and blood had not been your plan.

"I just want you to finally meet Woojin! He's my best friend and a great boxer."

"Mhh," you replied, remembering the day a few months ago when Gunwoo had come home late from a fight and told you that he had been out to dinner with his opponent all evening.

You used to be his best friend. You shared everything, were always together and you even helped him train for his dream. But since this Woojin showed up, your brother only hung out with him and therefore you had little interest in getting to know him. It would be an understatement to say that you already disliked him without even knowing him.

"This is going to be great. Woojin has been training for today for a long time. I'm sure he'll rock it. And I'm sure you guys will get along great. You guys are actually very similar."

"Oh yeah?" you asked suspiciously, and Gunwoo just smiled knowingly.

-

"Watch it! Idiot," you hissed as you picked yourself up off the ground and rubbed your aching neck. The idiot who had just knocked you over was staring at you with wide eyes, completely frozen.

He had run around the corner unannounced and hit you full on. Not only was he quite a bit taller than you, but he was also broadly built and his chest, against which you had crashed, felt exactly like a wall.

Slowly he seemed to come back to reality and ran a hand through his curly mane, allowing you to see his earrings.

"Man shit! I'm really sorry about that. I didn't see you..."

"What you don't say..."

The amazed man held out his hand to help you stand up, but you ignored it. Irritated, you stood up on your own and patted your skirt while the curly-head still held out his hand.

"I was in a hurry and I just overlooked you. You're so small and light... Shit you really flew really far", he said almost enthusiastically and you scrunched your nose indignantly.

"Well, open your eyes next time, douche bag!" you snapped at him and he stared at you in surprise. He hadn't expected such a sharp tongue from such a pretty girl.

Then, fortunately, you spotted your brother at the other end of the hall, looking out for you with two bottles of Coke in his hands.

The one with the curls was now eyeing you more closely, and he was speechless as soon as you looked at him out of those shimmering eyes.

"Are you watching the boxing match?" he asked, putting on a confident smile.

"No... I just hang out here a lot. It's all full of testosterone-fueled machos and the air is so nice and stale around here."

Now there was silence again and you could clearly see in his face how he was weighing whether it was sarcasm or the truth.

"Really?" asked the rascal now and you just shook your head with a snort.

"You're really not very smart, are you?"

Maybe you weren't particularly nice, but he was getting on your nerves big time, with his handsome face that was sure to drive any other girl out of her mind.

He leaned down toward you with his hands in his pockets and grinned mischievously.

"You're quite bitchy, dollface."

"Fuck you!" you hissed at his provocation and stormed past him.

"I knew it was a mistake to come here," you muttered as you passed, not giving the macho another glance.

Instead, you disappeared among the people and joined your brother, who had gotten you into this whole mess in the first place.

"Where have you been?" he asked, handing you the Coke he'd gotten you. You brushed a strand of hair out of your face and together you stood at the entrance for the bleachers.

"Some idiot knocked me over."

"Oh. Are you okay?"

You nodded with raised eyebrows and leaned against his muscular shoulder.

"Yes ‚Oh'... I‘m fine.“

You hadn't been a fan of the idea of coming along to a boxing match from the beginning, but you had been to every one of Gunwoos fights and he had begged you to come along to his friend's fight until you had said yes.

Well, he had also bribed you with pizza and sushi, but in the end you said yes anyway. He was a boxer himself, so you already knew a lot about the sport. Most guys who boxed at your age were pumped-up, arrogant machos who had nothing but their sport on their minds. That's exactly what the idiot had just proven to you one more time.

"Trust me this is going to be really good today!"

"Let's see. If I don't get squished first."

The first rounds were indeed exciting, and you had to admit that you were soon eagerly following the fight and cheering along. But when the next fighters were announced, you froze in your seat.

The next up-and-coming boxer was announced as Hong Woojin, and Gunwoo applauded beside you as he entered the ring. As soon as the realization hit you, you gasped out loud.

This couldn't be true. As soon as you recognized the curly-haired man, you laughed in disbelief.

"That's him! That's my friend Woojin. He's unbeatable in his class!" your brother began to tell you excitedly, and you could only watch the muscular young man prance across the ring, provoking his opponent even before the fight began.

"That's the guy who knocked me down!" you said then and the start of the fight sounded simultaneously with the incredulous „What?", of your brother.

You had to bite your tongue as you watched the fight. Sweat glistened all over his toned body and with every punch, every tense, his defined muscles looked even more delicious. Gunwoo had been right. He was damn good at boxing and after an exciting exchange of punches, he won with ease.

His movements were fast and precise. Like a bee that stung when you didn't expect it.

Together you waited for him outside the locker room and when he came through the door and discovered your brother, his eyes shone with pure joy.

They fell into each other's arms, laughing, and Gunwoo patted him congratulatory on the shoulders.

It was almost cute how they jumped around clutching each other tightly and were happy like dogs who were allowed to play together in the park.

When they were done with their greeting, you cleared your throat loudly so they finally paid attention to you.

"Oh. Yeah. That's my sister, by the way. Y/N. This is Woojin," Gunwoo eagerly introduced you. Woojin stared at you wide-eyed as he recognized you, and you just pressed your lips together into a line.

"Hey."

You raised your hand and waved shortly at him.

"It's you?" he asked, perplexed, and you rolled your eyes at his disgusted expression.

"Believe me, I imagined it differently too," you said, walking ahead.

Over the next few weeks, you got to know each other better and, more importantly, you hated each other. Woojin was annoying and a pain in the ass. When you went out to eat together, you argued most of the time until Gunwoo intervened.

He teased you incessantly and enjoyed it when you glared at him angrily. It was a gift of his that within no time he knew exactly how to make you mad.

Nevertheless, you often went out together and did things as a trio, because despite your quarrels, you had one essential thing in common. Your love for Gunwoo. You had to admit that Woojin was a great friend to him and they got the best out of each other.

As much as your brother wanted you two to get along, that was probably never going to happen.

It was a few weeks later and you came up to the roof to check on the boys and let them know that dinner was almost ready.

They were working out again.

At the sight of Woojins muscle-bound torso, you swallowed hard. They lifted weights and spurred each other on until they spotted you.

Woojins gaze traveled up and down your body, lingering for quite a while on your cleavage, set off by the new dress you had just put on.

"Hey your sister is here!" he said and your brother put the weight down to look at you.

You walked over to them, trying to ignore Woojins intense stares. Maybe you should have changed your clothes. He always made fun of you, when you were wearing something more revealing so he could unsettle you. It was only a matter of time till he would make fun of you.

"Mom says dinner is almost ready."

Gunwoo nodded and grabbed one of the towels hanging over the back of the chair next to you, wiping the sweat from his forehead and chest.

Inconspicuously, you kept glancing at Woojin as he took the water bottle, his muscles pumped and tense from the workout and his hair stuck to his forehead.

It was outrageous how good he looked.

He pointed to the other towel.

"Dollface be so kind and give me that!" he said with a grin. He had given you that nickname at the very beginning and you didn't know exactly why, but you got heart palpitations every time he called you that.

Annoyed, you took the towel and threw it harder than necessary into his face.

"You're welcome," you purred provocatively, crossing your arms.

"Is that dress new?" asked Geunwoo, looking less than enthusiastic.

"Yes. Don't you like it?" you asked, looking down at yourself. It was a burgundy dress that was tight and came down to your thighs.

"Yes it does, you look good. It's just a little short, isn't it?" he said, protective brother coming through once again.

Woojin ran the towel over his abs and came closer until he was standing in front of you, eyeing you closely.

"I think it's cute. How did you know red was my favorite color?" he teased and you just rolled your eyes.

"Don't get your hopes up Woojin. Even if you were the last person on this earth, I wouldn't let you touch me."

"Ouch and I thought you were wearing those sexy outfits just for me."

Playfully shocked, he grabbed his chest and you wanted to wipe that annoying grin off his face.

"You should go take a shower... You stink," you shot back and turned around to disappear back into the house. That was a lie. In fact, he always smelled so good that you automatically wanted to move closer when he sat next to you. Even when he was sweating, he smelled seductively tart and masculine, which didn't help you loathe him.

"Is she on her period or why is she so sensitive?" he asked extra loudly so you could still hear.

In response, you just raised your middle finger and slammed the door behind you.

Another time, you wanted to watch a movie, but the argument over the remote control got so out of hand that Gunwoo had to pull you apart by force.

Woojin ended up with big scratches across his chest and you were missing a tuft of hair.

Sighing, Gunwoo had come between you and you sulked at each other for a week until your brother persuaded Woojin to apologize to you.

Secretly, you were grateful that the argument was finally over, so you invited them both to the cinema.

When you got the tickets and Woojin saw that it was the movie he'd been talking about for weeks, he'd just looked at you completely dumbfounded.

"I thought you hated horror movies, I have the taste of a preschooler and this was just another cheap copy..." he had whispered to you in the movie theatre and quoted your exact words from a few days ago.

You had just shrugged your shoulders.

"Maybe I've changed my mind."

Then the curtain went up and he had no chance to question you further.

Actually, you still hated horror movies and you wouldn't like this one either. But this was your way of apologizing without losing your pride.

When Woojin held out his bucket of popcorn to you without comment, you smiled in the darkness and took a handful.

That's how it continued to go. You didn't become best friends, yet you were constantly seen together. It had also become normal to go not only to Gunwoo's fights, but also to Woojin's. Especially when Gunwoo didn't have time because he had to help mom at the café, you would go to the fights alone.

When Woojin's eyes wandered through the crowd and he met yours, the corners of his mouth would automatically twitch upwards, as if he knew you would be there.

Even if it was just to laugh at him after a defeat or to poke him in the side on the way home when he got painful bruises. There was absolutely no middle ground with you both, constantly at each other throats, ready to pounce.

-

Chapter 2

The Party

It was a Saturday night when you were getting ready for a party. Half the town was invited and it was going to be a big event.

You checked your appearance in the mirror one last time and pulled your hair into place. You had half of it up and the rest fell in shimmering waves over your shoulders.

The dress was perhaps a bit daring with the emphasised cleavage and it was tight around your waist.

It artfully brought out your every curve and with the high boots and red lipstick, the black minidress looked much more expensive than it had been.

Glancing at your phone, you ran out of the bathroom and bounced right into something big and hard. Cursing, you staggered back, but two strong hands were already at your waist holding you down.

"I hate it when you do that..." you grumbled, looking up at Woojin through your thick eyelashes.

He was about to say something mean, you could tell by the glint in his eyes, but it got stuck in his throat.

Your eyes shone like diamonds, rimmed with eyeliner, that made you look like an attentive cat, and as his gaze traveled down your body, his mouth stood open as if he couldn't believe what stood before him.

He knew you as his best friend's annoying little sister, usually in sweatpants and comfy clothes when he was around, but right now you were a goddess whose presence he couldn't escape.

"Hello? Woojin?? Earth to Idiot?" you asked, waving both hands in front of his face when he didn't respond and also didn't let go of your hips.

Slowly, that brought him back to the here and now, and he looked into your eyes, caught, as if you'd saw him stealing cookies.

"Uh yeah? What did you say?" he asked and you furrowed your eyebrows in confusion.

What was wrong with him? You really had never seen him speechless before.

"I asked if you didn't have your own home?“

Gradually the teasing grin returned and he pinched your side lightly as his hands were still tightly closed around your waist. Your skin tingled strangely at the spot and even though your mind was literally screaming at you, you couldn't put any distance between you.

"What's the point when it's so much nicer at your place?"

You tilted your head a little and eyed him briefly. Surprised, you realized he wasn't dressed as casually as usual. He was wearing jeans, albeit ripped, and a dark red buttoned up shirt that sat tight against his biceps and chest. Slowly you realized what was going on here and you shook your head slightly.

Woojin just grinned wider as he saw the panic rise in your eyes.

"No. Oh no! No! GUNWOO!" you shouted almost hysterically and that's when he burst out of his bedroom door while still buttoning the last buttons of his blue shirt.

"What's the matter? What happened?" he asked, confused, looking back and forth between you.

Briefly, his gaze lingered on Woojins hands, which were still on your hips, whereupon he quickly took them away and clasped them in his neck.

"You're not coming to the same party! He just wants to embarrass me in front of my friends" you shouted, and Gunwoo put a hand on your shoulder reassuringly, but Woojin beat him to it:

"In fact, I've been invited, and Gunwoo is my companion."

Angrily, you glared at him and groaned in annoyance.

"You look gorgeous, by the way, dollface," he said, winking at you charmingly. You searched for sarcasm in his tone, but you didn't find it. Overwhelmed, you just stared at him and then walked away.

Your cheeks glowed and your hands cramped, forcing you to take a deep breath.

At the party, you immediately mingled with your friends and began to booze one drink after another. Bodies moved ungracefully around you, shimmying and shoving through to the living room or to the terrace at the back yard where people were throwing each other into the large pool. All these strange feelings were so confusing that you just wanted to drown them in alcohol. It was around midnight when you first saw your brother and Woojin again.

The older one was bringing a drink to a girl with long black hair and a pretty face. Next to her, Gunwoo was talking to her friend, and even though the alcohol was already clouding your vision, it was obvious that she was head over heels in love with the curly-haired boxer.

Directly something stung in your chest as he laughed at something she said and nudged her.

His hair shone like chocolate in the light and fell messily into his forehead. As the world spun around you and your friend's conversation slowly faded into the background, you stared at his hands for a while. The veins and pronounced knuckles had long fascinated you and you had rarely seen anything more attractive.

But when he put an arm around the girl, something similar to a growl crossed your lips.

You broke away from the circle with your friends without saying a word, and the plastic cup with the Coke-Vodka mixture in your hand crackled dangerously due to the way your fingers tightened around it.

You didn't know why or where this anger came from, but the alcohol prevented even a clear thought from breaking through the thick fog of rage.

As soon as you reached her, you changed your angle and stumbled into the girl with a really convincing startled "Oh". As you did so, you aimed accurately and the entire contents of your drink landed in the girl's face and on her light blue dress.

Shocked, she stumbled back a few steps and Woojin jumped to the side in time to avoid getting hit. With her mouth open, she wiped the burning alcohol from her eyes and you watched with satisfaction as the stain on her dress spread and her makeup ran as if a bucket of water had been poured on an oilpainting.

But from the outside you had a completely surprised expression on your face and held both hands in front of your mouth, to feign concern with your most convincing voice:

"Oh no! I'm so sorry about that! I shouldn't have drunk so much."

Stunned, the girl stared at you and you could see Woojin convulsively stifle a laugh at the angry expression on her face.

"Shit! What the hell!" she screeched at you, stomping like a little kid as she realized the extent of the disaster on her dress.

Gunwoo and the other girl watched silently, seeming to want to help but not daring to.

Woojin on the other hand, only looked at you. When your eyes met, he glared at you questioningly and he could have bet that the corners of your mouth twitched up in satisfaction for a moment.

Before you could fake a guilty conscience any further, she raced past you and disappeared somewhere in the direction of the bathroom.

Her friend ran right after her, and that's when Gunwoo turned to you and pulled you aside by the arm.

"What was that about?" he whispered as anyone around would care.

Of course he knew you did it on purpose. You couldn't hide anything from him. He knew you too well. Woojin crossed his arms and still said nothing. They both knew how much you could drink. You even drank Woojin under the table.

You just shrugged your shoulders unconcernedly and returned your brother's intense glare.

Yes, what was that all about? You had no answer to that. You were simply disturbed by the way the pretty girl looked at Woojin.

"It was an accident," you said unconvincingly, and now the amused smile came through after all.

"Don't bullshit me!" said Woojin and of course he had seen through your charade too.

But he couldn't even guess why you had done that. Maybe he thought you were crazier than he already supposed.

Astonished, he tried to read any answer from your facial features, but you were just as unreadable as usual. He never knew what was going on in your head and that made him curious.

You turned to him and leaned forward until your face hovered close to his.

"Oh. Did I mess up your one-night stand? I'm so sorry about that."

You smiled sweetly, your voice dripping with sarcasm. Woojin opened his mouth, but no sound came out. Instead, his gaze wandered aimlessly across your face.

Your noses were almost touching and the alcohol was messing up his mind. Your body in the dress was already hard to resist and he had been trying not to look in your direction all evening, even though he was almost addicted to the way you shifted your weight to the other foot, the way your curves endlessly flared under the thin fabric. If you weren’t so annoying…

Why had he never noticed how beautiful your nose was? How artistically your eyebrows were curved and how full your pink lips were?

Did they feel as soft as they looked?

"Now I guess you'll have to fill in for her. It would only be fair..." he murmured, narrowing his eyes.

You froze as his intense gaze drove heat into your cheeks. His eyes were fixed on your lips and you wanted to reply something provocative, but the amber around the black of his eyes shone so beautifully that you unconsciously bit your lower lip.

Of course, he was just teasing you, but something about his tone made you feel embarrassed.

Your fingers twitched and you fought the urge to brush the strand of hair from his forehead. You caught yourself, inches away from your face. You saw him, looking down at your lips, causing you to gulp loudly. You wanted to lean in, push away all the doubt you had in your mind, and follow your stupid heart.

It was only seconds, but the moment seemed to captivate you for an eternity. The music and the people around you only seemed like background noise by now.

"No way would I sleep with you!" you finally replied, but why did the words feel so heavy on your tongue?

Like when you claimed, chattering your teeth in front of Gunwoo, that you weren't cold, even though he had told you a hundred times to bring a jacket.

He tilted his head a bit and just smiled in amusement until Gunwoo put a hand on his shoulder and called out to fight the loud music:

"I'm going home! Mom called. She needs help. Some pipe at the sink broke. Are you coming too?"

Woojin seemed snapped out of a trance, and you both looked in different directions so quickly, as if you could use it to undo the strange moment.

"Uh yeah. Yes I'll be right there."

Then your brother turned to you.

"Are you coming?"

Briefly you were tempted to agree, but your stupid heart only raced when you looked at Woojin. Whatever was wrong with you, you desperately needed to do something about it. It was disgusting.

"No. I'll stay for a while."

Gunwoo was going to protest, and he'd throw you over his shoulder if he had to, which is why you quickly disappeared between people until he lost sight of you.

Your head squeezed uncomfortably and you clutched your chest in which your heart just wouldn't calm down. Like a wild bird fluttering incessantly in its cage. You grabbed another cup and rushed out of the living room, the atmosphere suffocating you. You needed another drink, a cigarette, and some alone time.

Actually, you didn't smoke. You hated the taste and the smell of smoke. But Woojin hated it even more and that was reason enough to put the cigarette between your lips and take a deep push.

But on the second puff, you coughed in disgust and threw the cigarette into the trash can.

Confused, you ran into the bathroom on the second floor. There was less going on and in front of the large mirror you first took a deep breath and looked at your reflection.

Your cheeks were pink, but otherwise you looked like before.

Then why did it feel like the world had turned around you?

Woojin's eyes and that annoying grin just wouldn't leave your thoughts. Annoyed with yourself, you dabbed some water on your forehead and chest, perhaps to lessen the effect of the alcohol.

Because that had to be the reason. You had simply drunk too much.

After you were reasonably calm again, you mingled with the people. Your brother and Woojin were fortunately nowhere to be seen. They were probably long gone.

You found your friends again and the conversations distracted you a little from the chaos in your head.

"You look stunning," said a guy about your age as you stood at the bar getting another drink.

"Thanks," you smiled lightly and with a quick glance you had to admit, he was really good looking. He was tall, well built and had a striking face. You struck up a conversation and he was actually funny as well. Actually he seemed to be kind and smart. Also the complete opposite of Woojin.

"Do you want to dance?" he asked after a while.

"Sure."

He led you by the hand to the dance floor and you moved to the music, laughing and goofing around a bit. However, a strange feeling crawled up the back of your neck. Like someone was watching you.

You glanced over your shoulder a few times, but in the middle of the party, among the tightly dancing couples, drunken teenagers, and loud music, you couldn't make out anyone.

The alcohol quickly made the moments flow into each other and you lost track of time. You finally found yourself in a dark corner, the guy whose name you had already forgotten, had his hands firmly on your hips, pressed you against the wall and spread hungry kisses on your neck. You closed your eyes and really tried to concentrate on the moment.

It wasn't the first time you made out with someone at a party and this time he was even friendly, charming and good looking. You rarely got that lucky and it was a welcome distraction.

You just didn't want to think about Woojin anymore.

But as soon as his fingers ran over your sides and his lips brushed your skin, you imagined how the idiot would touch you.

Would he be gentle and cautious, or dominant and rough?

A gasp escaped you as the guy cupped your breast with a hand and somehow sounded suspiciously like Woojin in your head, and when you opened your eyes and stopped seeing the boxer's broad shoulders in front of you like moments before in your imagination, your heart stopped for a moment.

What had you just been thinking about?

Panicking, you pushed the guy away from you, who looked at you in confusion.

"Did I do something wrong?" he asked, and you just shook your head. The lump in your throat was getting bigger and bigger and you feared choking on it if you didn't get out of this place soon.

"What's wrong?" he continued to ask as you picked up your purse and pulled out your cell phone.

'I just imagined you were my brother's best friend, who I actually hate, and kind of liked the idea.'

Instead you said:

"Nothing. Everything's fine. But I really have to go home now," you assured him, patting him clumsily on the shoulder as a goodbye, not knowing what to do in such a situation.

He was completely flabbergasted and looked after you as you hurried down the stairs and left the party in a complete rush.

Only when you had passed the large estate a few streets behind you, you dared to breathe a sigh of relief. The fresh night-air blew your hair out of your face and it smelled like wet asphalt and leaves. The streetlight illuminated the side streets just enough so you could still read the street names on the signs.

While you were trying to call a cab on your cell phone, you realized what kind of neighborhood you had landed in. It looked like an industrial park and there was no one on the street. You started to feel uncomfortable and when you thought you heard footsteps behind you, you ran faster.

Cursing, you tried several cab companies, but none answered. The line was busy and the constant beeping seemed to mock you. You winced when the sound was behind you again. You definitely hadn't imagined it.

Your heart was already pounding in your ears and just as you tapped Gunwoo's number, your wrist was jerked back hard and the next thing you felt was a blow on your temple.

Then everything went black.

The next time you opened your eyes you were already being dragged into a dark alley. Your vision was blurry and your head throbbed painfully, but you could make out at least three black figures.

Only when your back hit a cold stone wall did your sanity seem to return.

"Well, what have we here?" you heard the tallest of them say. His raspy voice vibrated in your ears and when you recognized the three black-clad and masked men, fear ate so deeply into your chest that your eyes instantly filled with tears.

You wanted to scream for help, but before a sound could pass your lips, a hand was pressed over your mouth and you were slammed hard against the wall. Painfully you groaned and stared at your attacker with wide eyes.

"Such a pretty thing, out so late, all alone?" he asked, and there was nothing but coldness in his eyes.

The other hand was firmly on your hip and you thought you would faint from fear, but with your last willpower you stubbornly returned his gaze and tried not to let your despair show.

The other two thugs were standing menacingly behind him. One had a baseball bat in his hand, the other had brass knuckles on both fists. You felt like you were trapped in a bad movie and wanted nothing more than to just wake up. You could see your cell phone lying on the ground behind them. The screen still glowing and Gunwoo just one call away. It had to have fallen out of your hand when he hit you.

"Listen, if I take my hand away now, you're going to be nice and quiet and not cause any problems, otherwise I'm going to have to be rude, understand?"

He talked to you like you were a little kid and you pressed your hands against your thighs to keep them from shaking.

You nodded and your heart drummed so wildly you feared dying of a heart attack.

"Good girl..." he purred, slowly removing his hand from your mouth.

Instead of screaming, you clenched your teeth hard, jerked your knee up, and caught him right between the legs. Gunwoo had shown you often enough what to do when you were attacked.

Never by three armed men, though.

At that time you had only laughed and said:

"What could happen to me? I have you. You always protect me."

Everything happened so fast that you could hardly take a breath. Fortunately, you had hit it dead on.

Groaning in pain, he slumped forward and you lashed out, hitting him in the nose with your fist, just as you had seen many times with Woojin and Gunwoo in the ring. Taking advantage of the moment of chaos, you wriggled out of his grasp and ran towards the street, the adrenaline rushing in your ears.

Your breath caught in relief as you almost reached the main road, but you were thrown back hard by your hair. Screeching, you flailed around as rough grips closed around your stomach and yanked you all the way back again.

Desperately you tried to hit something, but most of your blows came to nothing, until you were thrown against the wall again and the anger-distorted face of the gorilla appeared in front of you. You felt something warm run down your temple and you instantly fell silent as his hand closed around your neck and squeezed until you were gasping desperately for air.

"Stupid bitch! Get her purse! Look how much she's got on her!" he ordered his minions, and they ripped the purse from your body.

They quickly found your wallet, took the money inside and threw the rest aside. The one with the baseball bat handed the leader the money and he pocketed it before looking back at you and you fervently hoped they would take the money and leave.

You tugged at his hand, but it remained iron-clad around your throat and you felt your field of vision getting smaller and smaller.

Blood soaked his mask and he had trouble speaking. At least you got him right.

"Shit, she's really tough..." he laughed and tore the mask off his face.

When you saw the cruel face, your heart sank and desperation slowly made your resistance collapse. His eyes wandered lustfully down your body and the grip on your neck loosened a little.

"She looks really hot... I guess we got really lucky today," he said and his minions laughed disgustingly.

"What do you think? We have a little fun and you make up for beating me, huh?" he purred, and the fear took on entirely different proportions.

The tears now flowed freely down your cheeks and you tugged harder on his hand, but he didn't move a millimeter. The other two walked a few steps away and turned their backs on you. Maybe to keep watch, maybe to ease their consciences.

With his other hand he grabbed your hip and pushed your legs apart with his knee. In your mind you prayed to whatever God there was to help you. You felt alone and completely helpless that you were about to give up.

Like in a trance, you only noticed how he tore the dress at your chest and pushed it up your legs. You squinted your eyes, your heart ached and fear gradually made you drift away as soon as you heard his belt buckle open.

"Hey you fucking asshole! Hands off her! Now!"

Your eyelids fluttered at the aggressive shout and before your tormentor could turn around, he was yanked away from you and a fist hit him in the jaw with such force that he staggered back.

As soon as you regained your breath, you gasped and slumped against the wall. Your legs no longer supported you and you could only watch, crouched on the floor, as Woojin stood in front of the gorilla and raised his fists.

"What's the matter? Have you lost your tongue?" he shouted at him and now the others also became attentive and rushed to help their boss. He seemed to notice them only now.

"Shit," he muttered and gave you a curt look. The tears in your eyes and the blood slowly running down your temple were enough to make his anger boil over and something animalistic entered his eyes.

You grabbed your aching throat and couldn't believe he was really here. But the relief was quickly overshadowed by new fear as you saw them circling him, baseball bat at the ready.

Woojin breathed calmly and fixated his attackers intently. As he did so, he gritted his teeth aggressively and his jaw muscles twitched with tension.

"You little bastard. Do you really think you can stand up to us?" the one with brass knuckles asked provocatively and Woojin just laughed bitterly.

"Let's try."

You knew the look from the ring, only this time it was aggressive and angry. There wasn't a glint left of the enthusiasm of sportsmanship flickering in his eyes.

There was only blackness and unbridled hatred there.

With that, the gorilla charged at him, but he dodged with ease. He also dodged the next blows and countered with a series of quick, precise punches, all of them hit forcefully. But already the one with the baseball bat swung out and missed him by a hair's breadth.

Woojin kicked him in the knee, punched the third in the face and fended off more blows from the goon. With a well-aimed kick, he managed to knock the gorilla off his feet, but a startled growl escaped him as the baseball bat hit him hard on the rib.

Woojin staggered back, gasping, took the guard up and cashed in a few more blows with the baseball bat until he found a gap and with a clean blow to the temple took out the attacker.

Quick as a flash, he grabbed the baseball bat and threw it at the goon, who was just getting back up at the same time as the other hit the ground.

With a rattling breath, you looked around for anything you could help with.

Woojin ducked away under a few more punches and seemed more tense. He was in pain and the blows with the baseball bat seemed to have hurt him. One precise blow with the brass knuckles would be enough to knock him out.

The gorilla huffed and grumbled like a bear as he tried to get back to his feet.

That's when you spotted a rope behind a trash can. You quickly grabbed it and crawled on all fours to the giant before he could get up and wrapped it around his neck from behind.

He gurgled for air as you pulled the rope tight and tried with all your might to fight his resistance.

You lay on your back and tugged at the rope with all your body weight until your arms trembled, but the gorilla just didn't weaken.

Like a worm, he writhed on the ground, gasping and trying to get rid of the rope. Glancing at Woojin, you winced violently as a blow hit him hard in the face. His head was thrown back and as soon as you saw the blood on his cheek, it flooded your body with renewed energy.

A tortured cry escaped you and you tugged harder on the rope and finally the resistance weakened.

"You stupid asshole! Go to sleep already!", you pressed out and felt the rope cutting into your palms.

Woojin slowly straightened up and fought against the dazed state with all his might. He lunged again, throwing punches so fast you couldn't even follow them.

Just when your muscles were burning so badly you were afraid you'd have to let go, the huge body went limp and you let go of the rope as if you'd been burned by it.

Woojin dodged away under a hard punch at that moment, knocking the thug off his feet and letting a shower of punches rain down on him until he lay motionless.

Getting on his feet again, he swayed briefly and shook out his wrists before rushing to you and kneeling in front of you.

You wrapped your arms around your exposed body and looked at him with those beautiful eyes that he took your face in his hands and said worriedly:

"Are you hurt? Are you okay?"

His voice rolled over with concern and you put a hand on his reassuringly.

"I'm fine. Thanks to you," you replied, still in a raspy voice. In the pale light of the lantern, you could see the blood running down his cheek and you felt guilty that he had caught so many bruises for you.

"You're bleeding. Those fucking assholes..." he cursed, his voice dripping with anger as he saw the blood on your temple. The concern in his eyes overwhelmed you. There was nothing else for him but you at the moment and as he scanned you for more injuries, he saw your torn dress.

He quickly slipped out of his jacket and put it around your shoulders. You pulled it tightly around your body and deeply sucked in his scent that clung to it and it made you immediately feel safe.

"Come on, let's get out of here. Can you walk?" he asked carefully, putting an arm around your stomach to help you to your feet.

"Yes I can do it," you dismissed it, trying to look strong, but in truth your head was throbbing, it hurt to swallow, and your knees were as soft as jello. Reaching the gorilla, he carefully let go of you and picked up your purse, cell phone and wallet that were scattered around him.

He handed them to you and you watched as he knelt down to him and slapped his face.

"Hello!" he shouted.

"Wake up, asshole!", and slapped him again until he grumbled and slowly regained consciousness. He groaned in pain and writhed on the ground, making a pathetic picture.

Then Woojin straightened up again and put a foot right to his throat so he couldn't move any further. Anyway, the guy's face was so swollen that you could barely make out any structure.

Then Woojin looked to you and asked:

"How much did he steal from you?"

After a moment's thought and a look in your pocket, you answered truthfully:

"About 200.000 won."

He patted it down and pulled his wallet out of his pants pocket where he had put your money earlier. Then he took out the bills, counted them out quietly, and handed you a wad of them while the gorilla watched, panting angrily.

"Then this is yours."

He took out the rest of the bills, which definitely were a total over 500.000 won. Apparently you weren't the first one they had robbed tonight.

Then Woojiin handed you the rest of the money as well.

"And this is for the unpleasant trouble he caused you, isn't it my friend?" he asked emphatically, pressing his foot on the gorilla's throat until he gurgled and nodded with a groan.

"Let's go," you muttered, glancing at the unconscious thugs. All of them were covered in blood. Woojin had really raged and from their injuries you could clearly see his anger like a handwriting. He quickly put an arm around you again to support you and together you walked out of the alley onto the street.

After a few shaky steps, he looked at you worried from the side:

"Are you sure you can walk?"

"Yes everything is fine. Stop worrying, it's annoying!" you drove at him a little too harshly than intended.

He raised his eyebrows and before you could react, he lifted you up bridal style and carried you across the street.

"What are you doing? Woojin what..." you stuttered, but he just smiled softly, which silenced you.

"Where are you taking me?" you asked after a while.

"I don't live far from here. I'll take you to my place."

He expected resistance, but his eyebrows furrowed in surprise when you gave in. You were too exhausted and going to his place really seemed like the best idea. Sighing, you relaxed in his arms for the first time and leaned your head against his chest.

His jacket warmed you and his strong arms made you feel safe and secure. He looked down at you as your eyes fell closed and smiled in relief.

At his front door, you opened your eyes again when he lowered you down. As he unlocked the door, he groaned in pain and held his side with a resigned laugh.

"Shit that guy hit me clean with that bat."

A shaky gasp escaped you. Seeing him hurt like that burdened you more than you thought it would and you wanted to take all the pain from him he was suffering because of you. You silently examined his profile and inevitably tears rose again when you saw the bleeding wound on his cheek.

"Woojin?" you murmured in a brittle voice and he looked at you concerned, afraid that something might be wrong with you. Astonished, he watched you step close to him and gently placing a hand against his cheek.

Your lower lip quivered dangerously and he wanted to say something to make the sad gleam in your eyes disappear. But when he said something, he usually made things worse and he didn't want to risk that right now, when you were so close to him. Your breath bounced against his face and his gaze was magically drawn to your lips.

"I'm so sorry," you breathed and your voice broke on the last word as you brushed a strand of hair from his forehead and a bruise was already forming underneath. The guilt was overwhelming and never would you have thought to care so much for the macho man.

Almost panicked, he shook his head and took your hands in his so you looked at him.

"No. Don't. You have nothing to be sorry for. You didn't do anything wrong. It's all those assholes' fault!" he tried to cheer you up, but you just smiled tiredly.

Feverishly he considered and then grabbed his cheek, wincing slightly as it wound was already burning like hell.

"Oh that? That's nothing! I've gotten worse as a boxer!" he said, knocking his fist against his head.

"That's probably why I'm such a idiot, like you always say."

That actually made you smile and you even laughed slightly. He would have loved to jump in the air with relief, but his aching ribs wouldn't allow it. He squeezed your hands gently and then held the front door to the stairwell open for you.

"Come on. Let's go inside and get something good to eat."

Quickly you nodded and let him lead you to the door of his home. As he let you into his apartment and you looked around the room, you noticed that you had never been here before.

You were always at your place or out on the town.

"Do you live alone?" you asked as you kicked off your shoes and he turned on the lights.

The living room was tranquil and empty except for a small red sofa and a television. The kitchen was right next to it and the sink was stacked with pots, plates, silverware and even pizza boxes. Amused, you brushed a line through the dust at the large window through which the light from the street lamps shone.

"Yes. My father and I don't get along well... Tension flew regularly and so I thought it's better to keep my distance," he said, spreading his arms.

"Welcome to my kingdom. Had I known you were coming, I might have cleaned up," he said and you looked over your shoulder in disbelief.

"You wouldn't have."

He snorted in amusement and pulled the blinds closed.

"Yeah you're probably right."

He gathered up a few clothes that were all over the place and tossed them into a pile that only grew.

Despite the mess, which you wouldn't have expected any other way from Woojin, it smelled incredibly good. It was the scent that clung to him as well and was burned into your head.

Meanwhile, the blood on your temple had dried and began to itch.

Actually, you didn't want to know what you looked like. You probably bore more resemblance to a scarecrow.

"Where's your bathroom? I'd like to take a shower."

He was already standing in the kitchen, throwing a handful of ramen into a pot. At the mere sight of it, your stomach grumbled like crazy.

"Down the hall. The door on the left. Towels should be in the closet," he called as he worked, and you smiled as he threw a kitchen towel over his shoulder.

Before you left, you turned back to him.

"Woojin? Can you please not tell Gunwoo about today? He'll just worry unnecessarily."

Woojin pressed his lips together and looked pained.

"I don't like lying to him."

"I know. I'll tell him. I promise. Just not today okay?"

With that, he seemed satisfied and he nodded.

"All right."

In the bathroom, you slipped out of his jacket and carefully folded it. Your dress, however, was beyond saving. You put the torn rag aside and looked at your body in the mirror.

Dark spots were already forming on your hips and on your neck and you got goosebumps when you thought of the large hands that had grabbed you there. Your makeup was completely smeared and there was a wound on your temple from the first blow.

Sighing, you opened your hair and marveled at all the beauty products lined up outside the shower. He had more conditioner than you did. However, that was the last thing you would complain about.

But you made a little mental note when you needed something again to get on his nerves.

As soon as the warm water hit your skin, you sighed in relief. The blood dyed the ground brown and with the water you also tried to wash away the events of the evening.

Hissing, you looked at your wrist. It was swollen from the pumch you had thrown and your knuckles were cracked.

How did the boys always do it without hurting themselves?

Fresh again and with renewed energy, you stepped out of the shower with only a towel wrapped around your body.

"I feel like a new woman ," you commented as you walked into the kitchen, the smell of fresh ramen making your mouth water.

Woojin looked up from the two bowls he was preparing and when he saw your bare legs under the towel, he gulped first.

"I texted Gunwoo that you were drunk as fuck and now snoring on my couch."

That was still better than troubling him with the truth, which is why you nodded and ran your fingers through your hair.

"Thanks."

But you didn't seem to mind just standing in front of him in a towel. By being with Gunwoo all the time, he had often seen you in your pajamas, without makeup, or in sweatpants. It was almost as if he lived with you. Probably you had spent too much time together or you saw him as another brother. The thought tasted bitter in his mouth and he didn't know why.

„Do you have anything I can wear?" you broke the awkward silence, and that's when he finally stopped staring at your legs.

"Sure," he quickly replied and disappeared into the only other door next to the bathroom.

When he came back he handed you a pair of yellow sweatpants and a black shirt with blue flames on it.

Disgusted, you lifted the clothes up with only two fingers.

"You've got to be kidding me..." you commented, and he laughed throatily.

"I'm sure it looks great on you!" he grinned and you wanted to punch him.

"Your clothing style is really questionable sometimes," you muttered, and it was obvious that he had picked out the ugliest things to tease you.

Or maybe he really meant it?

-> [2]

-

© Sky-yuna — 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐞𝐝.

Taglist (open):

@littlebaby-bunbun @officialshania @choisoorin @fanaticnae @lola2004sworld @penny44224 @tasteskz-sworld

[sanjisboyfie]

DOMESTICITY : sanji's special dessert

jus some fluffy <3

(keep safe) sanji + male reader

-> i do have to say though: this doesn't really give OUTRIGHT romantic relationship/vibes but underlying tones are THERE trust. it's literally supposed to just be domesticity with sanji and the male reader. so SORRRY for not directly feeding into it ;( but i wanted to share this anyway because i do love the concept of this one in particular >:)

read the original fanfic where this sanji and the mc are based from !!

surprisingly, sanji and [name] got along more often times than not. it was only when they were really in the heat of the moment among their crewmates did they end up arguing. but also whenever [name] said anything about nami or vivi that sanji could have deemed invasive (it wasn’t, sanji was just really over protective of the women on their ship).

regardless of that fact, though, [name] really enjoyed sanji’s company.

“coffee cake! coffee cake!” [name] cheered from behind the counter, making sanji glare at him over his shoulder.

“hold on a minute, goddamit!” sanji shouted, putting the baking pan on the stove, fresh out of the oven. [name] ran around the counter and almost grabbed at the burning hot pan with his own hands, if it had not been sanji that stopped him right before he could touch it.

sanji restrained [name]’s greedy hands, cursing under his breath at [name]’s troublesome appetite.

“you’re gonna burn your hands, idiot!” sanji scolded, holding on [name]’s hands and pushing him back behind the counter, “wait for it to cool off a little, you can’t eat it right after it comes out of the oven,”

“but — you said it was ready!” [name] yelled in annoyance, a pout on his lips, “i want the coffee cake now! you just put it on there to taunt me, huh?”

“stop yelling for a second,” sanji said, sitting [name] down and lighting his cigarette. “let’s just wait a couple of minutes and then you can eat all of it,”

“really?! all of it?!” [name] had stars in his eyes.

the blonde chuckled, resting a hand on [name]’s shoulder to make sure he didn’t launch himself off at the hot pan on the stove. “well, you could eat all of it if you just kept your mouth shut,” sanji said, bringing a finger up to his lips, “you know luffy and his ear for food, he’s gonna come running down if you keep screaming about it,”

“roger,” [name] said obediently, his lips turning into a tight line as he sat very, very still. sanji chuckled, ruffling [name]’s hair and counting down the minutes.

after complete silence, [name] literally shaking in his seat from withdrawing himself from shouting out for the pastry, sanji was finally able to serve it to the starving man. he plated it carefully, placing it down in front of [name] with a mug of coffee to go with it.

“thank you sanji, you’re really the best!” [name] shouted before shoving the piece of cake into his mouth. he chewed it quickly, gulping down some coffee, before repeating the process over and over.

sanji wished he had the heart to scold [name] for eating so carelessly, but the longer he watched the scene, he simply let [name] be. sanji would be there to wipe his face clean anyway.

“this is so yummy, sanji, it’s not sweet at all,” [name] praised, bringing the empty plate up for another slice. sanji nodded his head, following the needs of the man easily and putting another thick slice of the cake onto [name]’s plate.

out of nowhere, luffy barged into the room and had stars in his eyes at the sight of the pastry. just as he was about to launch himself at the plate, sanji had easily kicked him away.

“don’t touch [name]’s food, bastard,” sanji said gruffly, putting his foot down onto luffy’s head and rolling his foot over his cheeks several times, “i already prepared you and the rest of the crew a cake, it’s out on the deck,”

“but, sanji, i already finished it!”

“well, then i’ll make you another one,” sanji simply said, walking away from luffy’s body that was in the corner of the kitchen, “[name] gets to have his own dessert since he can’t stomach the ones i usually make, so don’t ruin his own cakes!”

“but, sanji-!”

“out, out of the kitchen! don’t bother me again, unless you don’t want your cake anymore!” sanji threatened, waving a whisk at luffy, which effectively made the captain run out of the kitchen. it sounded as he was complaining how cruel sanji was, but it was honestly hard to tell.

“thanks, sanji,” [name] smiled sweetly, taking a languid sip of his coffee, “i almost gave him some of mine…”

“tsk, learn how to be a bit more selfish,” sanji scolded [name], chopping him lightly on the head. “or that baffoon is gonna eat all your food,”

“but-”

sanji shoved the spoon of coffee cake into [name]’s mouth to shut him up, shaking his head, “no buts, just don’t do it again,”

[name] quickly chewed, going to argue further, but sanji only repeated the same action and shoved another spoonful into [name]’s agape mouth. after savoring the dessert, [name] finally decided to give up and simply enjoy the food sanji had made him.

“thanks, sanji, i appreciate you making this for me,” [name] said, an undenaibly happy look on his face, “i know it’s probably more work for you, you have to make a separate dish from the rest of the crew-”

“just shut up,” sanji groaned, running a hand through his hair, “if you just shut up and eat, i’ll accept your thanks.”

[name] paused, looking at sanji with a soft look in his eyes. he tilted his head to the side, “c’mon, let’s finish it together,” sanji hummed in thought before leaning against the counter on his elbows. he took the spoon from [name]’s hand and tasted some of his own baking.

with a content hum, he relished in the bitter taste. sanji really had no preference for sweet or bitter, but since everyone on board merry preferred sweet, he had been used to eating only sugary desserts.

[name] joining allowed for him to get a taste of less sugary delights. and he enjoyed that, genuinely.

he stayed leaning against the counter, mindlessly sharing the spoon with [name] and exchanging small talk as they slowly finished the last crumbs of the dessert. [name] grinned, happily licking his lips, “the best chef and baker, sanji!!”

the chef’s back was turned to [name] since he was taking care of the dishes, so [name] couldn’t see his small smile.

“quiet down! i don’t want yelling in my kitchen!” sanji scolded the screaming man.

but [name] kept on cheering. and as his shouts of praise got louder, sanji’s grin got wider.

[hibiscuswrites]

Not sure if you allow this but I love your Crybaby series on your other blog and was wondering if you could do a Ghost and Price HC for how they react to crybaby!reader trying to make them sleep in the guest room because she's mad at them for missing another date

**As an overly sensitive cry baby Pisces I love doing these so it's absolutely allowed 💕 Also be gentle I've only written for them twice now 🥺**

He's not happy

He already feels like shit

Seeing the puffiness of your eyes when he walks through the door 4 hours late and finds you sitting on the couch watching TV all by yourself

He'll sigh and come up to you, reaching down to grab your chin

And feel a pang when you shift your face just out of his reach

"Don't touch me, please."

The raspiness of your voice that comes with a long cry plus those words hurt just the same as any blade or bullet he's taken

He'll stand there silently for a beat, trying to figure out what to do next

Because all he wants is to gather you into his arms and apologize

But not touching you?

It's cruel and unusual punishment, that he unfortunately deserves

He'll keep his hands to himself per your request, but that doesn't mean that they don't itch at his sides as he keeps them balled into fists to refrain from ignoring your wishes

He'll apologize, telling you that he's sorry

That he tried so hard to get home on time

That Price even tried to speed things up

But that time got away from him

And he'll make it up to you

But you've grown tired of what feels like another empty promise

And with a sniffle you wipe away another tear, getting up from the couch and making your way to the bedroom

"I'm going to bed."

He'd be hot on your heels, ready to get undressed and shower quickly to then hop in beside you and cuddle you close once you fall asleep

But your hand on his chest stops him

"Alone. I set the guest room up for you already."

His brain would short-circuit

Alone??

Half of him would want to give you the privacy you're asking for

But the other half says no chance in hell is he letting you sleep alone so you can cry yourself to sleep over him

"Come on, love. Don't be like that. I'll stay on my side, yeah? Won't even know I'm there."

And against his better judgment, he'd reach out and place his hand on your side, thumb rubbing soothing circles

He'd see your resolve crumbling and wiggle his way in, both hands on you now as he tugs you into him

"Let me put you to bed. Show ya how sorry I am."

He'd wince as he walked in the front door to find everything off

TV, lights, everything

You'd even turned off the little light above the stove that you usually left on for him to get around without tripping

Not even that was on

And he knew he was in for it

You'd planned this date out for weeks

Even sent him a selfie once you were all done getting ready

And he'd never even gotten the chance to see it until he got in the car, hours after the fact

He knew he would have to do some serious groveling once he got in bed with you, and he was fine with that

Nothing his mouth couldn't fix

So his surprise was endless when he grabbed the door handle to the bedroom and found it locked

"Sweetheart?"

Your lack of a response would make him knock gently as he rested his forehead against the door

Surely you locked it because you were afraid to be home alone with an unlocked door

So your sharp voice coming through the door would startle him

"Go away. You can sleep in the guest room since you don't like to spend time with me."

He'd stare at the door for a handful of seconds before chuckling, positive that you were only being a brat

"Come on, my love. Enough of this now. Open up so we can talk."

And he'd genuinely expect you too

Never once had you ever asked him to sleep in the guest room

But apparently, he had missed one date too many

"I'll talk to you tomorrow. Leave me alone and let me sleep."

He'd jiggle the doorknob a few times and then it'd be silence

And you'd figure he finally went to lie down in the spare room

Only for the knob to jiggle again, the sound of metal scrapping, and then the door to open, some gadget in his hand as he stepped into the room

A sheepish grin on his lips

"Not sleepin' anywhere other than right next to my baby."

General taglist

 @jigsawlover10  @titty-teetee @vibranium-soul @ateliefloresdaprimavera @glimmerglittergirl @hatterripper31 @lilac-tea-time @krysiewithak @witchygagirl

[agirlwholovesrockstars]

°𝄞 𝐒𝐄𝐏𝐀𝐑𝐀𝐓𝐄 𝐖𝐀𝐘𝐒 °𝄞

☆ 𝙲𝚑𝚊𝚙𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝚂𝚒𝚡 ☆

"Is a Hero or a Criminal?"

♬♪ 𝙨𝙚𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙨 𝙢𝙖𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙡𝙞𝙨𝙩 ♬♪

ᯓ★ previous chapter | next chapter ★ᯓ

✶࿐ Summary : was it wrong to defend someone you hardly know but also you knew too well?

✶࿐ Word Count : wishing that you won't get bored lol

✶࿐ Warnings : 18+ Eddie Munson x Future!FEM!reader, cursing, use of y/n, g0re, vi0lence, d3ath, action, upside down, police chase, false accusations, Jason and his gang reoccurring, misunderstanding, denial, I'm gonna stop right here! 🤭

✶࿐ What to Expect : reader lives in 2024, ANGST, FLUFF, fantasy, romance, comedy, time travel

✶࿐ Note To Reader : fasten up seatbelts guys, because this is going to be a tough one to read

✶࿐ Author Note : I'm so sorry for y'all keeping on waiting I'm so caught up with my life lately but I'm here now! 🥺

𓆩♱𓆪 𝙚𝙙𝙙𝙞𝙚 𝙢𝙪𝙣𝙨𝙤𝙣 𝙢𝙖𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙡𝙞𝙨𝙩 𓆩♱𓆪

❦ 𝙖𝙜𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙖'𝙨 𝙢𝙖𝙞𝙣 𝙥𝙖𝙜𝙚 ❦

"Ow!"

A big thud that made you jump as you flip the pancakes and you turned around to see Eddie looking groggy as he tries to get up from the floor

You snort as you continue to cook the rest of the pancake batter, "Morning" you shake your head of what just happened to him

He rolled himself over in the couch too much that it made him fell over

Eddie had to blink twice to make his vision clear as he grunts, "Uh- good morning"

You heard his raspy voice as he went beside you to grab a glass as he opens the fridge fills it with water

"That smells good" He watches you from the back as he gives him a full idea of what it could be like

This feels so domestic, you with that collar loosed gray shirt with pajama shorts and your hair is down, shit- he even had to check his heart to feel if it's still beating

You glance at the back, you smile, "Yeah? this will be all ready soon to be plated"

"Jesus Christ!"

You flinched at the high pitched voice from Eddie as he shook his head at Chrissy who is now standing so still in the hallway

"How long you've been standing there?!?" Eddie asks as he huffs out of air from his lungs as he went over at the table

She blinks dumbly, "Uh, I don't know" she shrugs as you give her a threatening look as you point the spatula at her

Chrissy bits the bottom of her lip to hide the teasing smile but you know her deep down

As you turn off the stove and stack up the rest of the pancakes as you place it down on the table

"Chrissy, if you won't stop I'm not giving you any" you give her a final warning look as Eddie chuckles when you move the plate away from her as she groans

"Fine, I'll behave" she snickered as she poked your side as she reaches for the mug and a teabag in the counter and filled it with hot water and let it steep for a while

Eddie grimaces at the faint smell of the tea brewing "I seriously have no idea why people enjoy drinking that"

"What? Tea?"

"Yeah, it tastes like leaf!"

"it has benefits that's why we drink it"

"We? Who's we?!?"

You washed and cleaned all of the mess that you used for cooking as you listened to their silly banter as you chortle to yourself while you dry your hands with a paper towel

"Eddie, it's healthy!-"

"Nah, that's like a death sentence-"

"Alright, children! Y'all done arguing?!?"

You start clapping to get their attention as they both went silent as you sit at the center of the table

"Jeez, I'm like the peace maker of this home" you say as you placed two pieces of pancakes in your plate and you know damn well that Eddie has a stomach of a dinosaur so you made well enough for all of you to eat

"More like our mom" Chrissy teases as you kick her foot under the table

"Hi mommy" Eddie says it with a forced baby tone as you cringe at it as Chrissy bursted cackling

"Oh my fucking god! Just stop the both of you and let's eat!" You said it with a laugh as you throw him a blueberry originally you aim at his face but instead he catches it with his mouth as he shoots you a playful wink as you roll your eyes at him

"Y'all are a menace"

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"Do you really have to go?" Will emphasizes his words to his mom, obviously begging her to not leave

"Yes, dear" Joyce gives him a small smile with a sad glint on her eyes

"He's already there waiting for us" Murray saids as he carries his duffel bag over his shoulder

"Jonathan, you're the one in charge, okay?" Joyce calls out before she closes the door

"Uh, yeah, mom- I got it" He says nervously as he clears his throat

"Joyce-"

"El, how many times do I have to tell you-"

"Yeah, I know, sorry- I just wanted to say something"

"What is it, honey?"

"My friends back in Hawkins, they're kinda having a trouble in there and they found someone who is....." She trails off and she averts her eyes elsewhere

"Who is what?" Mike chimes in the conversation as El gulped, Joyce waits for her patiently to continue

Will gave her an encouraging nod as Jonathan listens while standing in the doorframe

"I-I wanted to tell you, I just don't want all of you to worry but our friends found someone who is from the future"

"What?!?" Murray hurriedly walks back in the house as he overhears El

"I know this is going to sound crazy but Dustin told me without her a lot of teens might've been killed"

"Killed?!?" By who?" Jonathan uncrosses both of his arms as he tries not to worry about Nancy

Will who walks out in the middle of the conversation as he went by the living room and turns on the television

"Vecna" El saids it plainly

"Guys?" Will calls out to everyone without taking his eyes off in the television screen

The rest of them walked closer and they saw Eddie Munson's Wanted picture along with other Hellfire Club members saying he's the cause of the murders

"Wait, Eddie? That's not- this is a hoax!" Mike exclaims as he took the remote from Will's hand as he switches the channel but everything is a headline now that Eddie is a wanted man and that frustrates and infuriates him

"That's why Dustin was so urgent to talk to us" Will manages to put the dots together, Jonathan drags his palm over his face

"There is something you should know about Yuri" El immediately saids before they tried to leave again

"Woah, wait- we never told you about-" Joyce and Murray we're both appalled as they both looked at each other

"It's Y/N, the girl from the future, she told me"

That alone left the two adults enthralled by this

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"Shit, we we're so close!" Enzo pants as he grimaces at his new scar on his arm

"Now, that's the real question....if we could ever make it out alive here" he kicks the door out of frustration

Enzo heard Hopper's quiet sobs in the corner as he straightened himself up

He has never seen or even heard him like this

"Everyone that I care, the more danger that comes to them"

One of the Russian guards threatened him with words that he knows that isn't true, they're just trying to get in his skin but sometimes he just fears that some of it might be true

When someone exposed Enzo's agenda with Hopper he got himself imprisoned and he is still got the shivers from the story that Hopper told about the rest of the prisoners while they're chosen for having a free feast

It's the way that Hopper eeriely said it

"We're not prisoners here, they're using us as bait, that's why they're feeding us like this so we can be plumped and fresh for the monster to devour us"

Enzo can't even spoke a word after that, this is the only time he ever seen his friend on this vulnerable state

Only thing that he can ever do is to just listen

"This girl, El, and there goes Joyce, I told myself that they needed me, turns out I was the one who needed them"

He sniffles as he sits up properly and Enzo didn't catch Hopper getting something on his prison jacket

"So, that's why the answer to your question, we're going to make it out here alive"

Hopper reveals that he successfully stole the lighter from one of the Russian guards when Enzo thought they lost their chance when the rest of them are outnumbered and they got beaten brutally

Enzo is mixed up with a lot of emotions showing up to his face, his jaw is slightly open and his eyebrows are raised as he begins to chuckle in disbelief

The gloomy demeanor has been diminished when seconds ago, he thought his friend was already losing hope

He must be executed from underestimating his friend's faith

"Y-You.....you motherfucker" he chuckles yet again as he shakes his head

"Don't make me laugh, my ribs are cracked"

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Gareth, Lewis and Jeff are sitting at the small coffee table as they inhaled every waffle that Steve cooked while the kids....are getting on his nerves

"Hey, hey! No dirt on the carpet!"

"Yeah, we know, Steve" Dustin rolls his eyes sarcastically as he munches chocolate chip cookie on his mouth

"The crumbs are now all over the place!" Steve exclaims as he points out his parents most beloved carpet in the living room

"You know you already ate a lot of those, man" Lucas snatches the cookie jar away from Dustin as they start a commotion in the kitchen

"I wasn't finished eating that!" He shouts out loud as he chases Lucas

He runs a stressful motion on his hair as he takes a deep breath, "They can stay but I need a little respect here!"

Unbeknownst to Steve, Fred is silently observing him, it's not his place to be nosy about his best friend's life but he can't help but to feel like Nancy is too good for him, he is well-aware that Nancy thought highly of him but since he also knows the history of King Steve, since he's here, he has to be sure that he truly changed

Steve goes to the other side of the room where it seems more quiet, so, he can deal with his thoughts for a minute

"What's troubling you?"

He is so locked in with his thoughts that he didn't catch Robin stands beside him by the window

He sighs, "I-I am not so sure about what's bothering me"

Robin processes his words for a while and then she goes, "Is it Y/N?"

"What?"

"We might be acting unserious all the time but I know what's going on with those eyes ever since the time you saw her for the first time"

He sighs, "Alright, fine, you beat me to it" he says as he put his index and thumb finger on the bridge of his nose

"We're going over there right? why won't you just talk to her?" she says as she slightly open the blinds by the window

"It's not that easy, Robs-"

"What do you mean it's not that easy?!? the Steve Harrington all of the sudden doesn't know how to talk to girls?!?"

He huffs, "No, I don't mean that- I just met her..... it's not even a week and yet I am here losing my mind over at her"

"You got it so bad, huh?" She says with a grin like a Cheshire cat would do

He throws a pillow at her but she manages to catch it before it hits her she laughs

He chuckles as he ignores the butterflies in his stomach, "Yeah, yeah, come on, let's tidy up, so, we can visit there"

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"This is why I don't let my children be exposed to that music"

"Yeah, I trashed my son's Dungeons & Dragons game"

"Good riddance that Munson boy is gone"

"He's a bad influence, he could ruin lives of our kids"

".....Back in 1986, many speculation and a lot of conspiracies in this town of Hawkins, what really happened on that day? some people still believe that Eddie Munson, the leader of the Hellfire Club is the crime suspect as well in the deaths of these ghastly things circled around the area back then, is it really natural causes? The Earthquake?......this case is remained unsolved....but today, I must question you....is Eddie Munson, a Hero? or a Criminal?"

"Fuck, this media shit, of course, he is a goddamn wild criminal!"

"I heard he sells drugs in highschool"

It's 2024, and yet, people still grew hatred towards him, you got tantalized by that question in the news from a TV store by the window that is surrounded by parents with a scowl in their faces as their conversations overlapped in your ear

He didn't deserve this, he didn't asked for this, you want it to stop

It's crazy how you care so much about the so-called dangerous man in this town, when you didn't even born at that time, maybe, it's different for them

Sure, maybe, they're right, but also maybe they're wrong

You're going to prove it, someday

He is a hero to you

"Y/N?"

"Uh- yeah?"

"You okay? You looked like you're thinking again"

You stare at him with blankly as you let out a deep sigh, "Am I easy that to read?!?" he sits down beside you at the platforms in the back of the house as you both stare the scenery in the lake

"It is given that I don't know you yet fully but this" he gestures to your face as you chuckle, "I know you well enough with that"

"I just want all of this to be over" you say as you bring your knees closer to you as you duck your head down

His smile slightly falters as he rests his hand on your shoulder, "Hey"

You turn your head to face him with worry, "I know, we will be fine"

"Why?"

"Because you're here"

You smile fondly at that, he looks like he wanted to say something more but Chrissy came in hurriedly

"Chrissy?" You say as Eddie turns his head as he follows your gaze as she walks closer to the both of you

"Yeah, sorry, uh- I think I need to go home"

"What?" You stood up quickly and so does Eddie who is looking at her like she's grown two heads

"Jason, he will find out about everything that we do here, I know him, I know what he is like he won't rest until he finally got what he wanted, I fear, he is now suspicious, I'll just show up and I'll come back here"

You think about it carefully and you agree even you don't want her to leave

"You promise, you'll come back?"

"Yes, I promise"

You both shared a tight hug as she does the same to Eddie as well

"Whoever starts this fiasco, I'm gonna kick them in the balls for you"

He chuckles at that, "I'm gonna be so honored that the Queen of Hawkins High defended me"

She snorts at that title, "I would rather be one of you than some fake ass boring title like that"

As you both watch her leave, Eddie is still amused by this version with Chrissy that he hasn't seen in her

"What's gotten into you looking like that?"

"My bad, Y/N, it's just.... that's the first time that I ever heard Chrissy swear"

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"It's Patrick, isn't it?"

You look at Lucas, he saw the answer in your eyes as you nod slowly

He purses his lips as he starts to twiddle his thumbs, "I-I saw him while I was with him in the car, I-uh- I saw the signs"

"What did you do about it then?"

"I didn't do anything even I wanted to do something, but whenever I overheard him a couple of times in the men's locker room after our basketball practices, when someone asked him, he always saids it was just nothing but now obviously it isn't"

"The fuck is wrong with kids nowadays" Steve scoffs

"Hey language!" Dustin nudges his shoulder as he mutters an apology

"I mean, I don't blame Steve either, I hate it when you show some care, they get mad or when you don't, they're still mad" Robin rambles

"Guys, have you ever thought about that maybe it's their household is the problem because they got no one else to talk about it?" Max speaks up as everyone had a agreeable nod in unison

You sigh, "just like Chrissy" you say in a whisper

"Y/N, tell us, what we should do?" Nancy places her hand on top of yours as she give you a warm smile

"Yeah, Y/N, you know all of the answers" Jeff stands up, Gareth and Lewis chimes in the conversation

All of them are in straight forward attention with you, all eyes are in you

When you shift in your seat, Steve notices it, "You don't have to-"

"It's alright, Steve, I got it" You held his hand as you give him a tight nod

"Okay" ignoring the warmth from your hand as he says softly as he stands beside you

"So, uh, do any of you know the story about Victor Creel and his family?"

"What's the old man got to do with this?" Eddie asks in confusion

"Because Vecna is Henry Creel"

"What?!?"

They all say in unison, they said it so loud, that you have to shush them in an instant

If only this wasn't a life-threatening scenario for you, you would've laughed at their comical reactions

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"Steve?"

"Yeah?"

"Can you check Chrissy for me? She said she'll come back soon but it's been an hour and I'm worried"

"O-Oh yeah, sure"

"I hate asking favors but-"

"Y/N, it's fine"

He held both of your shoulders as you exhale and smile at him as he tries to not get too much a leap of his feelings in the process

He doesn't wanna ruin this let alone scare you

"Okay, uh- thanks for everything, really" you gesture at the grocery bags in the counter as he nods

"Yeah, well, anything for my friends"

"Friends?"

His heart pangs slightly when you said it that word again but he knows it's too soon, but this....he will be so contented if he's included in your life

"If you want to"

You pinch him by the arm as he exaggerated his reaction, "Hell yeah, I wanted to" you say with a proud smile at your face

While you're talking to Steve, there's someone else watching the both of you, a pair of chocolate brown eyes locking in as you interact with him, he doesn't know how to feel, a slight wave of insecurity or jealousy?

My god, he needs a reality check, he's not even yours but yet, he's here acting as if he is your boyfriend

So, he left before he could tear himself apart if he continues watching the two of you

When everyone else left, saying they'll keep a look out of what going on with the town and the news

"Hey" you say as you walk outside while zipping up your jacket, he takes a drag of his cigarette

No response

That's weird

You're trying to unshake the feeling of the obvious weight of the mood shift but still you wanted answers

An hour ago, you saw him being a chatterbox that you almost forgot that you're helping him get out of this fuckery that Jason did, he was okay, and now you thought maybe his social battery was drained but no

This is far more different than that

This is something else, but you hope that you're thinking, what he is thinking

"Eddie?" you say as you place yourself in front of him but he moves away clearly dodges your eye contact on him as he takes the last remains of his stick as he stuff it out on the ashtray in the tabletop

"Is there a problem?" you move closer to him, fuck, if you keep doing that, he might kiss you

Even when he tries to avoid you, he can't do it in an hour, please, it doesn't take him a minute to ignore you

He acknowledges you finally with a brief glance "No" he says flatly

"Eddie, I know you're new to all of this but please-"

"Shh-"

He shushes you as he places a hand over your mouth as he saw a freaking headlight towards in the front of the house

The both of you looked at each other in fear as the both of you investigate outside

Neither of you can't identify what's going on of how dark it is, both of you see people but you don't know who it is

"Take Chrissy with you but make sure she's stays put in your hold, alright?"

"Got it, Carver"

The dark circles around her eyes and the red stinging because of crying and she is tired of this and being abused like this, so, she takes the matters into her own hands, adrenaline rushes through her system

Before, Jason and his friends come any closer to the property

She elbows the guy holding her mouth and her hand as she kicks him in the balls and manages to dodges a hit from a baseball bat as she punches him in the face

She picks up a weapon and also catches a glimpse of the car keys as she pocketed it as she screams

"EDDIE AND Y/N GET OUT OF HERE!"

Everyone shooked at the loudest shout from Chrissy that echoed

Now, you know why Chrissy can't come back

She is now being held against her will by Jason

"You fucking dumb bitch!"

"That's for you, Jason!" She flips him off as he angrily stomps forward to her

"Don't you dare come any near from me!"

Jason exasperated sighs as he closes his fists aggressively, he signals his friend that was about to come and grab her but stops him

"I should've done this a long time ago" she says as she walks backwards as she reaches at the car door and gets inside of it and locked every door

"Chrissy, you're siding with the wrong people" he places his hands on top of the car

"Am I? tell me, Jason, who do you think who is at wrong here?!?" Chrissy says as she turns on the ignition of the vehicle

"Spoiler fucking alert, it's you, Jason, willingly to end someone's life for a crime that he doesn't even commit and I know you're the one who brainwashed everyone's minds to this bullshit"

"I told you they gotten into her" says one of his friends beside him

"Oh, fuck you!"

"Chrissy-"

"Just stop, you're sick, Jason, you're the one who's supposed to be everyone is afraid of, it's over"

She leaves at that as she takes one last look at the lake in the rearview mirror she weeps as she wishes she was there to help the both of you

She couldn't bear being so far away from you

Millions of emotions runs through your core, you don't know if you should be terrified or burning with huge fit of fury

You swallowed your gasp as you couldn't pack up anything that you both needed as you watch Eddie grab the walkie-talkie he whispers the emergency many times but nothing ever picked up as the both of you went off in the backyard

You both ran towards at the speedboat as you both discreetly get on with it, you both paddled at the middle of the lake before Eddie starts to pull the engine

"There's someone here"

"The son of a bitch was playing on us this whole time"

"Hey!"

One of the goons saw the both of you in the window as they jump in the lake

The terror in your eyes mirrors with Eddie as he quickly pull the engine, but your nerves got even more rattle than before when it didn't work

"Help me out here, man" Eddie panicked as he keeps banging at the engine

"Eddie, we need to defend ourselves, they're swimming towards here, they're getting closer"

He takes one of the oar as he swings back and forth, "Hey! back off, man!"

Patrick, you saw him behind Jason, you hit him in the side of his face as he almost grabbed Eddie

He exclaims in pain as you yell at him, "You're about to witness, the death of your friend you careless stubborn motherfucker!"

Eddie gets alarmed by your tone of your voice as he breathes heavily of what's going to happen.....again

Your heart cracks piece by piece when you realized that you can't even took that trauma away from Eddie

He saw this not once, but twice, most people overlooked that part of him

"You should've listened to Chrissy" you say in defeat as Jason looks at you in confusion

You already know what she did and they didn't believed her, obviously, my god- all of you ever wanted to do is to give her a hug when you know damn well for sure that she anything to save Patrick

"Ah- fuck, come on, man, we're close"

He keeps looking from his behind but no one is there

"Patrick? What's going on-"

His body out of nowhere jumps out of the water and you and Eddie freaked out from the sudden scene as the both of you fell from the boat

Jason his mouth is hanging agape as he couldn't understand what's going on and then suddenly Chrissy's words are all connecting now

"It almost happened to me, he is denying it, I know he heard the clock chimed!"

*EYES WENT WHITE*

"You want to help your friend, right? Ask him what is his favorite song!"

*BONE SNAPS*

"Regret, you're going to regret this, you're not listening to me, he will die because he is the next target!"

*LEGS TWISTED*

"He saw what I saw in the trance, Vecna, he's the one who is killing the kids not Eddie!"

*JAW CRACKS*

"Believe me when I tell you this, there is evil in this town and you're just too stupid to see it"

*EYES SUCKED OUT OF THE SKULL*

Patrick's lifeless deformed body dropped back down in the water like it was nothing as he stare at it into a blank space as his mouth moves without any noise that is coming out of it

You felt Eddie's body stiff as you try to get his attention, he wished he won't see that you're crying, but you are as you steady your voice

"Eddie, we have to get into the surface"

"Y-yeah, o-okay"

₊˚ʚ ᗢ₊˚✧ ﾟ.₊˚ʚ ᗢ₊˚✧ ﾟ.₊˚ʚ ᗢ₊˚✧ ﾟ.₊˚ʚ ᗢ₊˚✧ ﾟ.₊˚ʚ

Steve is a man of his word

He checked Chrissy for you but no one is in there in her house, neither Jason's

You told him to call you right away when it's done

No word from the both of you, the silence is killing all of them

Extremely and overall shaken of how long not receiving anything from you and Eddie

"They're not picking up the phone?" Max freaks out as she kept pacing at Steve's house

"I've lost count at how many times I called them!" Dustin redialed as much as he can

"I-I tried the walkie-talkie too, no update" Fred stumbles over his words as Robin gave her a small smile for the effort and help that he gives

"Do you think we should drive over there now?!?" Steve stresses out as swings his keys on his finger as he went out for the door

"Hey dude, let's not rash-" Gareth blocks the path as he tries to get away from him

"Harrington, we saw the cops outside, they might think we know something, do you wanna get caught?" Lewis pushes Steve by the shoulder

"She's with Y/N, she knows what to do-" Jeff adds

"Don't put all of the weight on her, man- she has feelings too!" Steve reasons as Robin tries to calm him down

"Let's just hope that they're okay" Nancy bites the tip of her tongue as she tries not to be frantic when everyone else is already is on the edge and she doesn't want to fuel it more

When everyone clashes out with an argument, Lucas wipes an exhausted hand over his face as he heard the tire screeching sound outside of Steve's house

"Guys?"

All of them shut up finally as they whipped their heads towards to Lucas

When Steve opens the door, shit, he rubbed his eyes at the person standing on his front door

Gareth emotion's swirls in beyond relief when she saw her in the flesh but his gladness slowly diminishes when he saw the bruises and wounds all over her

Before all of them speak up all at once, she holds up a finger

"I need all of you to come with me at the police station"

The ride on the way there is so disturbing for everyone else because it's too quiet, but of course, the rest of the young adults are mature enough not to ask about what just happened to Chrissy

The elephant in the room

The kids however are slowly dying inside wishing to know about what happened to you and Eddie

When Chrissy caught Dustin staring with a longing and worried expression desperate for answers, he stops staring as she inhales before she spoke

"They're alright, all of you can take a breath now"

Everyone cheers in hushed whispers as Chrissy continued to explain further

"Damn, they showed up?"

"Yeah"

"How you ever manage to-"

"I've handled it" Chrissy says it so coldly and pointedly that Steve slowly nods in understanding

He knows it's not targeted at him but he knows something else is deep within that

When they arrived at the police station, a bunch of parents curious eyes looking at them as they stepped into the premises, all of you ignored the shocked gasps from the other adults in the neighborhood when they recognized Chrissy as everyone tailed behind to hear some scoop

"Officer Powell and Officer Callahan?" Chrissy called out as they were both stunned at her appearance

She catches a missing poster of herself as she chuckles bitterly as she shakes her head

"Yes?" They both said in unison

"We need to talk"

₊˚ʚ ᗢ₊˚✧ ﾟ.₊˚ʚ ᗢ₊˚✧ ﾟ.₊˚ʚ ᗢ₊˚✧ ﾟ.₊˚ʚ ᗢ₊˚✧ ﾟ.₊˚ʚ

taglist <3 : @paleidiot @marsmallow433 @whothefckissofia @letsfallinlove-blog @silky-luxe @imagine-all-the-imagines @theladyasgard @mayaluvzyou @mewchiili @crystalr @sadbitchfangirl

(hey y'all, I'm so sorry again for this chapter, I know it been long overdue, but my life has been eventful lately but I am truly okay! I really hope that you didn't forget about me and this story! I tried it make it fully detailed and enjoyable, thank you for your patience and your support, I am grateful! stay safe! 🥺🫶🏻✨)

[glorious-spoon]

may i request “…casually” for the kiss prompts, if it inspires you? 🤗

- @buckactuallys

Hi, and thank you! Have some morning after sappiness, I hope you enjoy! ☺️

-

The bed is empty when Buck wakes up.

This isn't an unusual thing, actually; given the chance, he likes to sleep in. And a lot of hookups like to have some space the morning after: get showered, get dressed, start their days, make it clear that it's time for Buck to show himself the door without actually having to kick him out. He knows that whole song and dance by heart, and it doesn't bother him that much, usually.

It doesn't usually work like that when he sleeps over at Eddie's. Chris is an early riser, and while Eddie is hit or miss, he's not usually much good at staying quiet before he's got a cup or two of coffee in him. Buck has woken up more than a few times to the sound of Eddie stumbling into something in the kitchen and then cursing about it in a blurry, sleep-hoarse voice.

The thing is, usually when he sleeps over here, he sleeps on the couch.

Buck rolls over, squinting at the clock that Eddie keeps on his side of the bed. It's not actually that late; just past 8:30. The door is closed, and the room is full of hazy, diffuse morning sunlight. The walls are still painfully bare even a year after Buck helped Eddie patch and paint the smashed-up plaster, but there's a new rug on the floor, a handful of framed photos on the wall by the door. Mostly Chris, but there's one of Eddie and Buck there, from May's graduation party, draped in beads and hamming it up for the camera.

It makes Buck smile a little as he folds himself upright, but he's not sure where to go after that. He can hear noise coming from the kitchen: the clatter of dishes, soft conversation. Chris is home. And Buck is here, in Eddie's bed, clearly having spent the night there instead of on the couch. It's a little late now to try to sneak out, unless Eddie wants him to go out the window. And they really didn't talk about any of this last night. It seemed very distant then, with Eddie pressing him against the mattress, Eddie's mouth hot against his, the searing eagerness of his hands as he pulled Buck closer and touched him like he'd been thinking about it for a while, but now—

Now, Buck really wishes he'd thought to ask.

Footsteps in the hall. He freezes, and has a moment to be profoundly grateful that he pulled on a pair of sleep shorts last night, because there's a knock at the door, and then Chris ducks his head in without waiting for an answer. He does not seem surprised to see Buck there.

"Oh good, you're awake," he says. "Dad says breakfast is ready. He burned the first two pancakes, but the rest are fine."

"Oh," Buck manages, slightly airless. "I'll, um. I'll be there in a minute."

"Don't take too long, or you'll get stuck with the burned ones," Chris warns, and retreats back out of the room. Over the roaring in his ears, Buck can just hear his clear voice saying something to Eddie that includes his name.

He swings his legs off the bed, scrounges the t-shirt he abandoned on the floor last night, and gets up. His heart doesn't stop racing all the way down the hallway, but when he steps into the kitchen, Eddie glances up at him and smiles.

It's easy, that smile. There's none of the panicked regret Buck was fearing in it at all.

"Morning," he says. "You sleep okay?"

"Uh, yeah." Buck scrubs the back of his neck. Chris is in the dining room, setting the table for the three of them. On the counter next to the stove is a plate of pancakes covered by a dish towel to keep it warm; butter and syrup and orange juice for Chris are already out on the table. There's a full pot of coffee steaming fragrantly on the counter

There's Eddie, leaning over the stove to slide the skillet off the heat. He scrapes at the patch of spilled batter that scorched on the burner, then sets the spatula down and turns back toward Buck. He looks—he looks soft, a little bit sleepy still with his fluffy hair and his rumpled t-shirt. He looks like Eddie. The way he's looking at Buck isn't even new, now that he's paying attention to it.

"Can I, uh, can I help with anything?"

"Mostly all done," Eddie says, but he hands the plate of pancakes to Buck. "Here, take this to the table, I'll grab us coffee."

Then he cups Buck's cheek, leans up just a little, and kisses him briefly on the mouth, so sweetly casual that Buck kisses back without even thinking about it.

It feels different than kissing him last night, all that heat and urgency. It feels different than lazily making out in the sleepy afterglow. It feels—easy, comfortable, real.

"So we're really doing this, huh?" Buck asks, soft, when they finally break apart.

Eddie laughs under his breath and kisses him again. "Yeah. As long as you want to."

"I want to," Buck says, so fast that Eddie laughs again, louder, as he steps away.

"Still need to talk to Chris," he says, pulling out a pair of mugs.

"I think he, uh, I think he's probably figured it out," Buck says with a faint wince. He was in Eddie's bed this morning. Chris is definitely old enough now to read between the lines there. Though at least he didn't seem upset.

Eddie snickers. "Yeah. But I want to do this right. This is important." He glances at Buck again. "You're important."

"Oh," Buck says, helplessly warm.

"After breakfast," Eddie says firmly, passing Buck one of the coffee cups in his hand. Cream swirls through it, and the porcelain is warm. "Come on."

Buck takes a deep breath, nods, and follows him out into the sunlit dining room.

[yutaholic]

codename: viper (M)

PAIRING: Yuta (NCT) + reader (female)

SUMMARY: ten years ago, Yuta walked away from a life of villainy to be a husband and father, but when an enemy comes lurking, he is ready to protect his family by any vicious means necessary...

WARNINGS: mild language; violent scenarios with mentions of blood; dialogue related to pregnancy and childbirth; explicit sexual content

NOTES: 17k words; this is part of my villain series, beast mode

There was nothing like the view of your house after a brutal day at the office. The sun had long set over the neighborhood as you drove down a street of identical houses. Hiding in plain sight, your husband called it.

Parking in the driveway, you gathered your bag and your high heels, which you had kicked off the moment you got into the car. It had been a grueling twelve hours, the majority spent in court. You walked up the path through the yard, the cold pavement soothing on your bare feet, and opened the front door quietly.

Your babies would be in bed by now, unfortunately. And you didn’t want to wake them.

The moment you stepped into the house, the savory smell of hot food wafted into your nose and your stomach growled, hitting you with hunger pains. “Yum,” you muttered to yourself, dropping your high heels beside the row of shoes by the front door. The sight of two small pairs of sneakers always made you smile.

Yuta was in the kitchen, stirring something on the stove, and at the sound of your approaching footsteps, he turned and greeted, “Hello, District Attorney Nakamoto.”

You grinned, marching right over to your husband and slumping into his chest.

Yuta hugged you tight, kissed your temple, and asked, “Put away a lot of bad men today?”

“A few,” you replied, your energy running on empty, but with every second spent in his arms, you could feel yourself refueling. “Some bad women too.”

Yuta rubbed your back as you broke reluctantly from his hug, though you still clung to his waist, and teased, “I remember when you used to threaten to lock me up forever.”

You gave him a wry smirk. “That was just my way of flirting.”

“Or the times you grilled me in interrogation for hours. Handcuffs included.”

“That was foreplay.”

Yuta snickered. Then, he turned serious for a moment to say, “It’s been a pleasure watching you climb your way to the throne.”

You flushed a little, taken aback by the compliment. “Do you think I’m worthy to sit on it?”

Yuta was stern, as to be expected. “There’s no one more worthy than you.”

You sighed, all the tension breaking in your chest.

Yuta pressed a tender kiss to your lips, which you returned, overlapping your arms on his shoulders and deepening the kiss. It took the loud popping of food over the fire to draw your husband away from you.

“How are the babies?” you asked as Yuta prepared you a plate.

Your husband grinned from ear to ear and gushed, “They’re amazing. Together, they’re smarter than both of us combined.”

You pretended to wince. “Oh, dear. Make sure they never hear you say that.”

“My lips are sealed.”

“And no sign of any…”

Powers.

Yuta shook his head. It was around this age his abilities had fully surfaced. He studied the twins intently, painstakingly, every day. They were his children; it was likely he passed the gene to them, but there was a chance your genes could have defeated his.

You dropped the subject. It was no secret Yuta hoped his children hadn’t inherited his gift. And given they were five years old now, there was a strong chance he’d gotten his wish. It was bittersweet, to say the least.

“I hate when you work late,” Yuta mumbled, walking over to the dining table with your plate in hand.

“I know, but we’re spread so thin right now,” you told him tiredly as you took the seat he pulled out for you.

Yuta sat beside you, keeping you company while you ate your dinner. Propping his head on his hand, he smarted, “No one wants to work for the justice system? I’m shocked.”

You chuckled as you chewed your food, but sadness seeped into your voice when you said, “We get some really good people, especially the younger ones, but the system breaks them eventually. It’s stacked against all of us.”

“No wonder villains choose to play by their own rules,” Yuta said snidely under his breath.

You gave him a look. It wasn’t the first time he’d made that kind of comment and it wouldn’t be the last. Yuta fully supported the work you did, but a life of villainy had shaped him in ways you would never understand.

“Humanity has to have laws that separate us from the animals.”

Yuta whispered darkly, “Some of us are animals, my love.”

You cocked your head and flirted, “Not you, Viper.”

Yuta smirked. Then, his expression shifted and he caught himself staring at you with admiration. You were the only woman that had ever embraced his darkness. You never punished him for his past, but you pushed him toward a healthier future.

“I want a better world for our babies too,” he whispered, reaching over to tuck some of your hair behind your ear. “If anyone can do it, it’s you.”

That meant everything to you. If Yuta was in your corner, believing in you, you knew you could do anything. You leaned toward your husband and kissed his cheek, which made Yuta blush. He was a sucker for affection.

“This is delicious, babe,” you said a moment later, dabbing at your lips with the napkin. “You’ve outdone yourself.”

Yuta retorted, “The spawn have been begging for steak for days. Daddy is getting pretty good with the grill.”

You snorted back a laugh. You still remembered the days Yuta could barely cook noodles without setting the house on fire. Not to mention the time he put both of you in the hospital with food poisoning for accidentally cooking well-expired ham. To this day, you and your husband still gave sideward glances toward ham.

Yuta made it a point to prepare home cooked meals for you and the kids. And after many, many classes (which you were forbidden from telling any of his friends about because he had a ruthless reputation to protect), he had gotten pretty good at it. Your husband’s newest favorite method was the grill on the back porch that you bought him for his birthday. He had grilled almost everything that could be grilled at this point, much to the delight of your children.

Speaking of the precious spawn, your twins came running out of their room, Suki practically sprinting and dragging Yuma by the hand behind her.

“Big news,” your daughter announced loudly.

Yuta shot them a glance and said, “The two of you are supposed to be sleeping.”

“Daddy, this is important,” Suki countered without missing a beat. She gave her brother a little push in your direction and said, “Tell them, Yuma.”

Yuma shifted nervously, his eyes on the floor. Holding eye contact was very hard for him. Your son was painfully shy. “I, um, I was thinking,” he started.

You and Yuta waited patiently, always prepared to give him the time he needed to put his thoughts into words.

Suki rubbed his arm in comfort. “It’s okay, Yuma. You can tell them.”

Yuma sucked in a breath and said, “I… want to be an artist.”

You exchanged looks with Yuta, both of you fighting back delighted smiles.

“That’s great,” Yuta said brightly.

You nodded emphatically. “I would love to see your art, baby.”

Yuma made a noise. “It’s not ready yet.”

“Oh.”

“Yuma wants to do art,” Suki said with excitement. “But he thinks people will say it’s stupid.”

Yuta snorted. “If anyone says your art is stupid, Yuma, then they are idiots with no taste.”

“Exactly,” you agreed.

Your son smiled, relieved. With the three of you on his team, he was ready to try.

Yuta lowered his tone to something mischievous and asked, “Now, be honest, did the two of you stay up waiting for Mommy to come home?”

“Yes,” the twins answered in perfect sync.

You quickly rose to your feet and exclaimed, “Then, you better get over here and hug me before Daddy takes you back to bed!”

Suki and Yuma rushed toward you, colliding into your chest and you enveloped them in your arms. Yuta let out a fake growl and held up his hands, chanting, “I’m coming to get you!”

The twins squealed and laughed as you raced through the living room with them in your arms, keeping them out of their father’s clutches.

Not long after, you met Yuta’s eyes and smiled contentedly. Suki and Yuma were nestled between you and their father, sound asleep. Yuta traced his thumb over your cheek as you drifted off.

Everything was right in the little world you shared with your family.

Only a few years ago you’d wondered if you would ever be where you were now.

“It’s killing me, Yuta,” you cried, on the verge of tears. “I wanna get pregnant. I want to have a baby with you.”

“I know,” Yuta sighed, level. He was reluctant to show you just how distressed he was, because Yuta was an empath where you were concerned. He tended to reflect your emotions. Especially when they were running high.

You paced in front of your husband, who was leaning against the doorway of the bedroom. Little by little, you’d stripped out of your clothes from work and Yuta had tossed you one of his shirts to wear over your naked body.

This was less of an argument and more of an unresolved conflict. And if there was one staple in your relationship with Yuta, it was that the two of you could talk through anything.

“But the work I do is important,” you continued, voice breaking with sadness and longing. How you could miss a baby you’d never met was beyond your understanding. “I can’t give up my job, but I’ll be damned if I let a stranger raise our kid.”

Yuta finally approached you, crooning, “Babe, calm down for a second.”

“It’s eating me up,” you whimpered, spinning your wedding band on your finger the way you always did when you were stressed.

You and Yuta had recently celebrated your second anniversary of marriage. The discussion of babies was coming up more often. You both wanted kids. It was something you talked about together even before you got married.

But everything in your career was falling into place. Your dedication did not go unnoticed by Hel’s brutal justice system. You were a fierce prosecutor, sorely needed in a city rife with both lawless villains and corrupt heroes.

You found yourself at a crossroads of your dreams - being Hel’s hammer of consequences and making your hometown safer or being a mom and having a baby with the love of your life.

Yuta called your name and said, “I’ll raise the baby.”

You stopped dead in your tracks, eyes wide. “What?”

Yuta nodded and said it again, “I will raise the baby. You can keep your career. It’s okay.”

You gawked, like your brain had short-circuited. “You’re okay with me being the breadwinner?”

“As long as there’s bread to eat, I really don’t give a fuck who wins it,” Yuta quipped.

“God, Yuta,” you groaned as he gathered you in his arms. “You keep setting the bar too fucking high.”

Yuta laughed at that.

You melted into him, stars in your eyes. He had the most beautiful laugh and smile you had ever seen. The sight still made butterflies dance in your stomach, even after all the years spent together. Your body was already on fire. It was taking all of your restraint not to pounce on him.

Yuta could tell and the corner of his mouth lifted in that trademark smirk of his. It was going to be a very long night of baby making, Yuta sensed, and he had a feeling you’d be calling out of work in the morning. Kneading at your hips, your husband asked, “What do you say? You bring home the bacon and I’ll cook it.”

Your heart was so full you thought it would burst at any second. “You’re gonna raise our baby?”

Yuta stole a quick kiss and said, “Gladly. It would be my honor to raise our children.”

You bit your lip, shivering as his hands ran up and down your back. Then, without another word, you walked over to the dresser and grabbed the packet of birth control pills, holding them up dramatically before dropping them in the trash bin.

Yuta kept his promise. After your babies were born, you went back to work, determined to make Hel a safer place.

Raising the twins was Yuta’s greatest pride. He loved watching them grow, enjoyed teaching them everything they needed to know about life. Every day, he would catch himself staring at Yuma and Suki in wonder.

How such beautiful, pure creatures came from him was a goddamn mystery.

It was early in the afternoon when Yuta returned with the twins after a few hours of kindergarten. Schools in Hel were a little different. The affluent could afford to send their kids to very secure private schools and you didn’t mind shelling out the extra money for that.

Regardless, Yuta tended to hover near the school until it was time to pick the kids up. Just in case. He had no idea how he was going to cope with the following year when they would be at school all day. Yuta was seriously considering getting a job at the damn school, but Suki would be opposed. She often called him out on his hovering, much to Yuta’s amusement.

Yuta drove home with the twins in the backseat, all three of them singing along to the radio. Suki belted her little lungs out while Yuma mumbled the words he knew here and there. Yuta constantly caught himself smiling until his cheeks ached.

Back at home, he set out snacks for the kids and Yuma made himself comfortable at the coffee table in the living room to work on his drawings. Since he told you and Yuta about his passion for art, Yuma’s pictures were beginning to collect on the walls. It was the boost his confidence needed.

Yuta’s hand shook with the urge to chuck the calculator against the wall. God, he hated balancing the fucking checkbook. One of these days he was going to hire one of his friends to do it. Someone good at math. Probably Jungwoo.

Suki finished her snack and walked over to the dining table where her father was slowly but surely losing the will to live and called, “Daddy?”

Yuta looked over his shoulder. “Yes, Suki?”

“I have a problem.”

Well, that was Yuta’s least favorite phrase. Nothing unnerved him quite like it. Setting down his pencil and turning to her, he asked, “Okay, do you want to talk about it or is it something I need to fix?”

Suki replied flatly, “I would like to talk to you about it.”

Yuta patted the seat next to him and said, “Alright. I’m all yours, baby girl.”

Suki clambered into the chair and began, “There’s a girl in my class.”

Yuta waited patiently.

“We held hands today.”

Yuta breathed a little easier, having expected something a bit more dire. “That’s nice,” Yuta said with a smile. “Did you want to do that?”

Suki nodded happily. “Yes, I liked it.”

Yuta fought a laugh. “Good. Okay.”

“I want to marry her,” she announced, very matter of fact.

“Oh. I see.”

“Is that okay?”

Yuta chewed over his words carefully before answering, “Well, I think it’s sweet you found someone you like, but Suki, marriage is a very big step.”

“Hm.”

“Do you think you’re ready for that?”

Suki’s face was filled with determination. Yuta’s daughter feared nothing and felt the world was hers for the conquering, and he’d be damned if anyone ever told her otherwise. “Yes. I love her,” she told him.

Yuta was grinning, trying desperately not to giggle. Judging by the look in her eyes, Suki had no idea the gravity of what she was asking. She was only five years old, after all. “And while I appreciate that, do you have money for a wedding?”

Suki thought about it, tallying up her allowance money in her head, and replied, “I have a little bit.”

“And a house? Do you have money for a place to live with the person you marry?”

His daughter grimaced. “I didn’t think about that.”

Yuta reached over to take her tiny hand and gave it a squeeze, explaining delicately, “That is why it’s important to go to school so you can get a good job one day and have a nice house for you and your partner. Because marriage is a partnership.”

“Like you and Mommy?”

Yuta smiled warmly at the thought of you and said, “Yes. Mommy works very hard to give us this nice house.”

Suki sighed and her eyes sparkled. “I love Mommy.”

“I do too.”

A thought struck Suki. She looked to her father expectantly and asked, “Did you want to marry Mommy when you held hands?”

Yuta bobbed his head. “Absolutely. Holding hands with a pretty girl triggers all the happy feelings in your brain.”’

Suki giggled.

Yuta peered down at his daughter with joy. She was the cutest thing in the world with her sweet smile and bouncy pigtails. She looked a lot like you while Yuma looked more like him, but Yuta could see himself in Suki when she was up to no good. She had his mischievous grin and his penchant for trouble.

Suki seemed content with the conversation and gave her father a grateful kiss on the cheek before sliding off the chair.

Yuta stopped her to ask, “One question, Suki. Did anyone say anything to you about holding hands with a girl?”

She seemed puzzled by that, brows furrowed. “No.”

“Good,” Yuta said. He would not hesitate to march into that school and give them a piece of his mind if necessary. Yuta was always in fight mode when it came to his babies. Fortunately, the school knew you were Hel’s biggest lawyer and went out of their way not to piss either of you off.

“Did I miss anything today?” you asked that night after finishing your dinner, following Yuta over to the sofa in the living room.

Yuta poured you a glass of wine and took the empty spot beside you, putting his own glass to his lips and replying, “Your daughter wants to get married.”

You lurched, almost choking on your drink.

Yuta was beaming, sidling closer to you as he added, “To a pretty girl in her class.”

“I’ll be damned,” you said, shaking your head with a laugh. “What did you tell her?”

“I told her that while marriage is admirable, it’s also very expensive,” Yuta quipped, draping his arm around your shoulders.

You downed another mouthful of wine and groaned, “God, why are they growing up so fast?”

“We’re gonna blink and they’ll be our age.”

“Don’t say that. I swear, I just birthed them yesterday.”

Yuta snorted.

You mulled it over and spoke like you were presenting closing arguments for a case, “Tell them they can’t get married until at least thirty. They’re ours. We don’t want to share them with anyone else for a long time.”

Yuta clinked his glass against yours. “I’ll be sure to tell them.”

You lowered your head, breathing out a sigh. Blinking rapidly, because your eyes had begun to burn, a tear escaped and rolled down your cheek. You did your best to quickly wipe it away with your hand, hiding the evidence as it were, but Yuta saw. He could feel your body tensing up.

“Baby, don’t do that to yourself,” your husband whispered. He knew you too well, better than anyone else on earth.

You sniffled and more tears followed when you cried, “I feel like I’m missing out on so much. What if I look back and I’ve missed everything, Yuta?”

“Come here,” Yuta crooned, tugging you close.

You buried your face in his chest and closed your eyes, dampening his shirt with your tears.

Yuta rubbed your arm, trying to warm you because he knew a cruel chill was working its way through your body. You were exhausted and burnt out, and for every criminal you put away, three more took its place. You were a warrior locked in an endless war with a hydra.

You hated working late, hated that the sweet beautiful moments with your children were few and far between, but you were determined to fix the system before they had to live under it.

There were days you wished you could live somewhere else, but the rest of the world had designated Hel the only sanctuary for those with powers. If they ventured anywhere else, they were hunted to the death. Regardless of Yuta’s abilities, you would never ask him to run forever.

Once you were spent of your tears, Yuta slipped his fingers into your hair and tugged your head back so he could search your face. You weren’t surprised when he kissed your wet lips, tasting the salt on his tongue.

The two unfinished glasses of wine were left behind on the coffee table as Yuta popped your legs around his waist and carried you into the bedroom. You disappeared with him into a haze of kisses and touches, lust and passion.

Yuta wasn’t satisfied until he broke you. Until your body was as exhausted as your heart and mind had been. Seconds blurred into minutes and minutes blurred into hours. You were covered in sweat, tangled in damp sheets. Tears of sadness became tears of pleasure as he took you again and again.

You screamed into his hand clamped over your mouth, because Yuta dared not let the sounds you made travel outside of the bedroom. You shook with orgasm, your body an unhinged livewire, and darkness rolled over your eyes like a blackout.

It was times like these you were convinced you and your husband were made only of ecstasy. And only for each other.

“Look at me,” your husband growled, clasping your jaw. He was propped over you, rocking his cock in and out of your core at a lazy pace.

You were sore and overstimulated, shivering each time he bottomed out inside. The slow strokes of his cock were too much and yet not enough. You held onto his arms for dear life and stared into his eyes, lips parted as you panted for breath.

“You’re a good mom,” Yuta told you gently, his voice low and husky. “They love you so much. Almost as much as I do.”

Fresh tears spilled from your eyes and you whimpered just as Yuta smashed his lips on yours, silencing all of your doubts and fears with his words and with a kiss.

You were lingering in that place between awake and asleep as Yuta lowered you into the hot bath he’d prepared. With your head on his shoulder, you closed your eyes, letting the heat seep into your bones while Yuta hummed along to a familiar tune. You barely remembered him drying you off and tucking you into bed.

“Goodnight, my love,” he whispered, leaving one last kiss on the corner of your mouth.

In the morning, you roused out of bed, careful to be quiet as Yuta still slept. You always envied him a little extra on Saturdays. Not only did he get to sleep in, he got to spend the day with the babies.

You showered and dressed, and walked over to the bed, propping yourself over your husband and kissing his cheek. “I love you so much,” you murmured, leaving one more kiss near the corner of his mouth.

Yuta garbled a vague “love you” in his mother tongue, still asleep.

You grinned that even in his dreams he could hear you and tiptoed away to another long day of putting down Hel’s worst criminals.

Sunday was the only day of the week you had off and they were without contest your favorite day of the week. You and your husband were reluctant to leave the bed at a reasonable hour, catching up on much-needed rest, and eventually the twins crawled in to cuddle. Rather than get up, Yuta put on a movie for them, the latest Pixar release, which they happily watched in the comfort of your bed while you and Yuta dozed a bit more.

The next time you woke up, your daughter was pushing on your shoulder. She jumped up and down on the mattress, chanting, “Wake up, Mommy. Wake up!”

You stirred, blinking to clear your vision, and snatched your daughter, bringing her in close for a hug. Suki was all giggles, hugging you back.

“Daddy made pancakes,” she told you hurriedly, trying to roll you off the mattress.

“I’m coming, baby,” you rasped, staggering out of bed. You wobbled over to the dresser, putting on some sweatpants to go with Yuta’s tee you were wearing, and followed your daughter out to the living room.

Yuta was holding your son over the counter and you watched as Yuma scattered chocolate chips onto the pancakes. Your husband glanced up and flashed you a grin. “Hey, Mama. Finally out of hibernation, are you?”

“And whose fault is that?” you shot back playfully.

Yuta stuck out his tongue. The images of you howling his name into the pillow and scraping your nails down his back were still fresh in his mind.

“I’ll get my revenge tonight,” you murmured under your breath, stealing a chocolate chip from the bag and popping it into your mouth.

“Mommy,” Suki whispered quietly, tugging on your shirt.

Discreet, you handed her a few chocolate chips which she crammed into her mouth with a victorious grin.

The four of you sat at the table and ate your pancakes. Laughter echoed through the house. You couldn’t put into words how much you enjoyed eating with your family. After a week of solitary dinners, nothing warmed your heart than when the four of you were together.

Suki was a riot of personality. You and your daughter went back and forth, arguing facetiously over the most mundane things. Yuta was already making jokes about her following in your footsteps as a vicious lawyer.

Yuma was just like his father. In the tiny lulls between you and Suki’s fast-paced conversation, he let monotonous comments pass. The epitome of Yuta’s dry humor. Your son was hilarious without trying. Yuta would throw his head back and laugh, chiming in as well. It was only when with his family that Yuma defeated his shyness.

Where Suki had Yuta’s mischief, Yuma had your balance. While Suki had your snark, Yuma had his father’s wit. Yuta often said the twins inherited the best parts of you and him.

With breakfast finished, you gathered the plates and took them into the kitchen to clean. You had to chase Yuta away more than once, insisting he relax on the couch. It wasn’t often you got to actually wash something. Yuma and Suki came to help you, but more or less ended up just keeping you company.

In keeping with Sunday tradition, the four of you went to the park not far from your neighborhood. It was a nice, breezy walk, your fingers intertwined with Yuta’s. Suki led the way, not surprising, and Yuma was a step behind her.

Once the playground was in sight, Suki took off running, rushing over to join her friends. Yuma stopped and turned to look at you, and you encouraged him forward. Your son meandered over to the swings, watching his sister who was gabbing away with the other kids as if she’d never left.

You sat comfortably on one of the benches, returning the waves of familiar parents nearby. Yuta traced senseless patterns on your shoulder, leaning his head against yours. The two of you were content to watch your kids play.

What was mundane to others was paradise to Yuta. His life had been chaos; absolute, utter chaos, but now, it was beautiful and calm. He wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world.

“Yuta?”

“Hm?”

You nestled deeper into his embrace and said, “I need to take a step back.”

Yuta made a tiny noise, as if in agreement, but without saying it outright.

“I miss them so much,” you whispered, then turned to him. “I miss you.”

“I’m right here, babe. We’re not going anywhere.”

You chewed on your lip. “I want to be home more. The kids will be in school full days next year. At the very least, I can try to stop working until night. That way I can see them in the evenings.”

“What will that mean for justice?”

“I won’t be able to pack in as many cases in a day as I usually do, but maybe that’s a price Hel will have to pay.”

Yuta was gleaming. “I support whatever you want to do.”

You smiled, happy, and turned your eyes back to your children. Their smiles warmed you down to your very soul.

By the time you returned to the house, Yuma was sound asleep in your arms and Suki was drooling on Yuta’s shoulder. You tucked them both into their beds and turned off the light, closing the door as quietly as possible.

“One minute past their nap time and they are out,” you joked, tying up your hair into a bun on your head.

“They don’t even realize they’ve worn themselves out until it’s too late,” Yuta added, standing before the television with the weather report on. His phone was in hand and Yuta viewed his unread messages. He liked to be kept up to date on the state of the criminal underground and the dangers on the city’s surface, but he never told you that.

You were better off not knowing that Yuta kept his fingers on the pulse of Hel.

Plopping down on the sofa, you let two whole seconds of quiet pass before whining, “Ugh, go wake them up. I miss them.”

Yuta chuckled and turned off the television. Setting down his phone, he made a beeline for you and you cried out in surprise when Yuta steered you onto your back on the couch and crawled over you, leaving playful kisses across your neck.

Your giggles shifted into moans. Yuta pinned you under his weight and stroked his clothed cock on your thigh, his hand down your pants. You sighed his name into his ear and arched your body into his, the two of you writhing together and getting each other off.

Yuta made you feel like a teenager again, sneaking off to hook up in the car or stealing a quickie in the bathroom. There was no end to his desire for you. You were his other half and the mother of his children. Every day, he fell more deeply in love with you.

And you with him.

Yuta’s breath was hot on your neck as he let out one final moan. Your husband clambered off of you and slumped back against the couch, both of you disheveled and panting. And buzzing with that post-coital surge of dopamine.

“Fuck,” you groaned, eyes fixated on your husband. His cheeks were red and sweat glistened across his collarbones. With your legs still around his hips, you flexed your thighs, intentionally trying to get a reaction out of him.

Yuta swallowed to wet his dry throat and smoothed his hand over the lowest plane of your stomach possessively. “Woman, you’re insatiable,” he growled, feigning annoyance.

“You satiate me just fine,” you purred, grabbing his hand and dragging it underneath your shirt until he landed on your breast.

Yuta instinctively squeezed your mound, teasing his fingers over your nipple, and asked lowly, “Think you can wait until tonight for more?”

“Yes,” you said, but the fire in your eyes betrayed your words.

Yuta bit his lip, raking his eyes down your body. Knowing your warm, wet cunt was right there, inches from his cock, made him start to heat up again. Your husband shifted, draping himself over you once more, and teased, “It would be just like the babies to come running out here as soon as I get it in.”

You laughed. “Like the six-week mark?”

Yuta dropped his head to the crook of your shoulder with a groan and his reply was mumbled against your skin, “How could I forget?”

Six weeks after you gave birth was the imposed limit for intercourse your doctor had given you. And god knew you were counting down the days. Yuta pretended to have far more patience than you did, acting unaffected by the lack of intimacy. Honestly, having two newborn babies was distraction enough.

But as the clock winded down, you and Yuta were doing a mating dance of frustration and downright insanity. It was endless flirting and touching and the most obscene sexts you’d ever seen. Or sent. On more than one occasion you messily dry humped each other to the finish line over the nearest surface. Not your proudest moment, but you had to take what you could get.

When six weeks came and Yuta called your doctor to make sure it would absolutely be okay for him to touch you again, the two of you nearly destroyed the house on the way to the bedroom.

And just before Yuta was about to cautiously sink inside you, the baby monitor burst with cries.

This pattern continued for two weeks. Every time you were about to get railed by your husband, your beloved twins let their feelings be known on the other side of the house, screaming for milk or a diaper change or just to be held. Which effectively ended the mood.

It wasn’t until Yuta’s saint of a mother offered to take care of the twins for a day that you and Yuta enjoyed twenty minutes of fucking around and then, hilariously, spent the remaining ten hours catching up on sleep.

“How was your nap?” Yuta asked your son as he dragged his feet out to the living room. You and your husband were sitting on the couch, cleaned up, and had been talking quietly amongst yourselves.

Yuma rubbed his sleepy eyes. “Good,” he finally said, remembering his father had asked him, and climbed into your lap, using your chest as a pillow.

Yuta smiled fondly and reached over, smoothing down Yuma’s fluffy dark hair.

Suki joined not long after, her face puffy and her eyes squinting. Unlike her brother, she was too tired to speak and merely collapsed into Yuta’s lap in the most dramatic fashion.

The debate was soon on for dinner. Yuta always ordered something rather than cooked, since it was the day of rest and all. Traditionally your husband and kids would play rock-paper-scissors to decide. You never played, because you rather sucked at it and always lost so why bother.

When Yuma emerged the victor, Yuta and Suki threw up their hands and whined over their defeat, much to you and Yuma’s amusement. Your son excitedly declared, “Pizza!”

Fresh, hot pizza was delivered to the door in twenty minutes. Yuta carried the big box to the dining table and called, “Come and get it, spawn!”

Your twins were already tripping over themselves to take their place at the table and you were a few steps behind. As Suki impatiently grabbed at the slice her father had put on a plate before her, Yuta made a disapproving sound and chided, “Wait a second, silly girl.”

Suki lifted her chin as Yuta tucked a large napkin into the collar of her shirt, protecting her clothes from the mess she was undoubtedly about to make. You did the same for Yuma, who rarely ever spilled, but he never wanted Suki to feel like she was the only one that had to wear a bib. Yuma was all about sibling solidarity.

The evening was defined by full bellies and endless laughter, much like the rest of your day. Suki decided to stand on her chair and regale the rest of you with a recap of the latest episode of Sailor Moon she’d watched. Yuma would calmly chime in here and there with major plot details she missed and Suki was ever appreciative. He was the only one allowed to interrupt her, on account of them sharing a womb and all.

As night fell, Yuta snuck away to prepare a bath and once it was ready, the twins followed you eagerly in. They played in the bubbles while you washed their hair and made sure to splash you right in the face. Yuma pretended he was a sea turtle, while Suki decided she was a walrus.

Everyone brushed their teeth and washed their faces. Suki treated both as if they were Olympic events and Yuma was content to watch you in the mirror the whole time, trying to imitate you. The twins dressed in their pajamas without much fuss, but Yuta knew better.

“I don’t wanna go to sleep,” Suki cried loudly, racing into the living room. “I wanna stay with Mommy!”

Yuta reminded, “Suki, you get grouchy if you stay up past ten.”

Yuma turned to you and asked, “Why is the weekend over?”

You snorted. “I ask myself that every Sunday, baby.”

Suki darted between Yuta’s legs, escaping his intentionally slow attempts to catch her, all the while yelling that she wasn’t tired.

Sensing both of your kids on the verge of a meltdown, you spoke firmly, “Suki and Yuma, come here to me. Now.”

No one dared contend with that tone.

The twins did as told, flocking to your outstretched arms. You hauled them up with you onto the sofa and steered your babies to lay their heads on your chest, as you’d always done since the day they were born. Pressing a kiss to each of their heads, you started to hum.

Yuma and Suki held each other’s hands in your midst and smiled at each other before closing their eyes. Listening to your heartbeat reminded them of the warmth and safety of your womb. You rocked back and forth a little, humming that familiar tune. Yuta braced his hands on the back of the couch, watching over you and your babies.

When you were pregnant, Yuta made a habit of talking and singing to your growing belly. It was hard for you not to join in even though you didn’t have a beautiful singing voice like he did. Yuta would beg to differ, but that was an argument for another day.

Around your eighth month, you were put on bedrest which almost made you lose your mind with boredom. As someone who was perpetually busy, laying around was the quickest and most effective way for you to go insane. Yuta was forever brainstorming ways to keep you occupied.

It also lent itself to fear. You had nothing to do but think and your brain decided to fixate on all the things that could go wrong with a twin pregnancy. Add hormones to that and you were a messy ball of nerves wound up so tight you thought you would snap.

Yuta cradled your face and pressed his lips to your brow, humming softly. Telling you to calm down would only frustrate you more, so he treated you like a fussy baby. And it worked. You sniffed back the tears and closed your eyes, letting him rock you back and forth with his hand on your big belly as he hummed that little tune he’d come up with for the babies inside you.

And here you were, five years later, soothing the twins with those same low notes. They had no meaning outside of your house, but for your little family, they were everything. Yuma let out a soft sigh and you knew he was dozing off. Suki fought sleep for the sake of her pride, but her little lashes batted heavier and heavier.

You kept humming as Yuta took your son carefully from your arms and you continued humming as you carried Suki into the bedroom behind him. You gave each of them a kiss on their foreheads and whispered, “Goodnight, my darlings. Sweet dreams only.”

Then, Yuta turned on their night light that shone a galaxy on the ceiling and closed the door behind you.

Yuta took you by the hand and led you with him to the bedroom. Just shy of the bed, he gave you a little spin, twirling you like at the start of a dance, before pulling you into his arms. You giggled, meeting his oncoming kiss.

“I wish every day was like this,” you sighed longingly.

Yuta hummed an agreement against your mouth, slipping his tongue between your lips. Seeing you hold those babies made Yuta out of his mind with love for you.

You kissed him hotly, running your hands beneath his shirt to palm at his warm skin, feeling the taut lines of his abs. When the kisses grew out of control, you braced your hands on his chest, cocked your head toward the bed and said, “Lay down.”

Yuta smirked at you and did as told, taking off his shirt and laying on his stomach over the mattress.

You climbed on top of him, straddling his hips and sitting squarely on his butt. Then, you started running your hands up and down his naked back.

Yuta let out a little moan. You could break every knot in his muscles until he was mush in your hands.

“No matter how hard I work, I know you work twice as hard,” you told him, massaging his shoulders. “You’re doing an amazing job with our babies.”

“I’m doing my best.”

You put forward more pressure, working away the tension in his muscles. Every now and then, Yuta grunted or moaned and you knew you were on the right track.

There were lines in his back. Battle scars, he called them. You often wondered how much evil Yuta had seen in his lifetime, but he never told you. He kept those secrets buried deep within. You knew your husband was a force to be reckoned with and that was part of the reason you slept so soundly in his arms.

You dragged your lips down his spine, kissing across his scars, making Yuta shiver beneath you. You pressed wet, open-mouthed kisses over his broad shoulders and tongued your way along the ridges of his muscles.

Yuta shifted, all the blood rushing to his cock. Your every touch was enough to drag him to the edge of ruin.

“You feel like getting pegged tonight?” you teased, licking your lips a bit hungrily.

“I’m not in the mood,” Yuta said, nonchalant.

“Oh?”

Yuta glanced at you over his shoulder and growled, “I’d rather fuck the shit out of you.”

You snickered. “You already did last night. Tonight, I wanna make you feel good.”

“You always make me feel good, baby.”

“Well, I’m ready when you are.”

Yuta turned over beneath you, grabbing your hips. He peered up at you in reverence and whispered, “I love you so much it hurts sometimes.”

“Babe, don’t talk like that,” you purred, running your thumb over his perfect lips. “I’ll suck the soul out of you and then there won’t be anything for me to ride.”

Yuta brought your hips down, grinding his hard cock into your clothed folds. The presence of pants between your bodies irritated him. “I’d get it back up for you in a heartbeat.”

“I know,” you said, bending down and kissing him.

You stripped each other naked between kisses. Slowly. Intimately. Like you had all the time in the world to explore and pleasure each other’s bodies with a familiarity belonging only to lovers that had been through heaven and hell together.

And not until you were begging him to take you did Yuta guide you further up his body to sit on his face.

“Mm, fuck,” you groaned when Yuta raked his tongue through your slit, teasing around your bundle of nerves. You were already throbbing with want and the lightest of touches made your body spasm.

Yuta looped his arms around your thighs, making you lower even more. He knew you were hesitant to put too much weight on him, no matter how many times he’d told you otherwise, but he was determined to have his way with you.

Your arched your hips slowly, almost barely at all, tentatively thrusting your sex closer to his mouth. Yuta worked you with his tongue, tasting your arousal and grunting lowly in the back of his throat at the taste of you.

“B-baby,” you stammered, threading your fingers through his hair. You dared not look down, because the sight of him sucking at your clit like his last meal would end you on the spot.

Yuta reached up to squeeze your breasts roughly before caressing his fingertips over your nipples until they were stiff to the touch. God, he loved your body so much he couldn't stand it.

You bit your lip to quiet yourself, but between his hands and his mouth there was no hope for you. You whimpered and whined, riding his face at a languid speed, just enough to keep his lips from getting ahold of your engorged clit.

Yuta knew that and he brought his palms to your ass. Then, he started tapping and drumming his fingers on your skin. It was a warning.

You picked up the pace, arching your cunt closer to his mouth. Gathering your bouncing breasts in your hands, you pressed them together and pinched your nipples.

That still wasn’t enough for Yuta. He reeled a hand back and landed a hard smack on your ass, making you jolt and squeal.

You sped up a little, feeling him tickling his fingers over your ass again. Reminding you how easily he could give you another spank. “Yuta,” you pleaded.

He parted from your dripping cunt to growl, “I know you can ride better than that. Just ask my dick.”

Your stomach clenched as you let him suck more intensely at your clit. The stimulation was almost too much. Your body began to shudder involuntarily.

Yuta let a hand slip from your ass, holding it at the ready, and he smirked against your lower lips as you rolled your hips frantically in response. The moment you shied away from his tongue, he brought his hand down on your ass, sending a loud slap through the room.

“I can’t, baby,” you choked out, craning your body back and bracing your hands on opposite sides of his waist.

Yuta pinched your hips in his hands and lifted his head, flicking his tongue mercilessly on your clit. You can and you will, he thought to himself, chuckling against your folds.

You fisted the blanket and panted, your breaths loud and downright pathetic. Eyes winched closed, you bucked your pussy into your husband’s face, seeking the wet warmth of his tongue while everything in your body tried to escape it.

Yuta tightened his hold on your hips as you came, grinning smugly at the lecherous sounds leaving your mouth. He could feel his fingers sinking into your flesh to the point of bruising, but he knew how much you loved that. All his energy was on his tongue, rubbing your sensitive clit until you begged him to stop.

Your legs were like jelly and your head was stuck in a fog. Yuta steered you back into position over his hips, rutting his hard cock against your soaked folds. You swallowed to wet your dry throat and ran a hand through your hair, peering down at your husband and shaking your head. “You’re a fucking god. I hope you know that.”

Yuta chuckled, draping his hands lazily on your thighs while he kept grinding into you, waiting. Your pussy coated his length in your juices, evidence of how hard he’d made you come.

Part of you, when things became serious in your relationship with Yuta, wondered if the fires between you would ever die down. Years of dating passed, then marriage, culminating with the arrival of your children and the answer was still no. Yuta still drowned you in his passion like it was the first time.

“You’re mine,” Yuta had hissed into your skin on your wedding night, crushing you in his arms as he buried his cock inside you. “Every inch of you is mine. Every breath you take is mine.”

With that memory fresh in your mind, you grabbed one of his hands and brought it to your neck to hold. Lifting your hips, you wrapped your fingers around his hard cock and guided him into your entrance, sinking down on him. You were so slick from orgasm, he pressed right in without resistance. But you still moaned at the girth of him stretching you.

Yuta squeezed your throat, clenching his jaws at the tight heat of you enveloping him. “Fuck,” he staggered out, abs flexing as he fought the urge to pound his cock into your perfect pussy.

Adjusted, you braced your hands on Yuta’s chest and started to ride him, moving in a way that he stroked deep inside you. You locked eyes with your husband, watching the pleasure on his face, and purred, “You’re mine.”

“All yours,” Yuta said, breathless.

You bounced on his cock until Yuta lost the last of his restraint. That was when he wrapped his arms around you, trapping you to him, and began to thrust up into you, hips slapping into your ass at inhuman speed. You held onto his shoulders and moaned desperately into his neck, enduring his brutal pace until another orgasm ripped through you.

The echo of your cries and the clamping of your cunt around his length made Yuta burst, stuffing his cock into you as deep as he could go and filling you with his load. He shuddered and groaned, fisting a hand into your hair and biting down on the base of your neck.

Utterly spent, the two of you slumped limply into the bed and held each other tight like no force on earth could ever tear you apart.

In the morning, you couldn’t bring yourself to get up for work after the third night in a row spent tangled with your husband. You called to let them know you would be coming in late and since you were technically the boss, no one could tell you otherwise.

Funny enough, your secretary applauded you for finally taking a little break.

The moment you tossed your phone back onto the nightstand and folded the pillow under your head, Yuta was on you. You hummed when he settled his weight on your back, trailing kisses over your cheek.

If you thought you would be getting extra sleep after presenting a rare opportunity of morning sex to your husband, you were mistaken.

Yuta glanced up at the clock and mumbled, “The babies won’t be up for a while.”

You smirked, closing your eyes and feigning indifference, but you lifted your hips, making your ass bounce into his stiff cock. Like intimacy with Yuta was all your body was capable of craving. Still naked from the night before, you arched your back into his body, moaning softly when his dick rubbed against your folds.

Yuta whispered filth in your ear as he pushed the blankets and pillows away from you. You held the edge of the mattress and cried out when Yuta steered you into position roughly, bending your leg up and pressing a hand into your lower back.

You wiggled your ass, enticing him to take you, and sucked in a breath when two fingers slipped into your hole.

“You’re still wet,” Yuta hissed, biting down on the bridge of your shoulder and pumping his digits between your folds to prepare you.

You taunted, “I stay wet for you. You know that.”

Yuta gathered a handful of your hair in his fist, yanking your head back to kiss and tongue at your throat while he withdrew his fingers from your pussy and guided his cock in, impaling you on every last inch.

“Yuta,” you moaned, your eyes rolling back. You gripped the edge of the mattress harder, your mouth gaping.

Yuta let out a noise of pleasure as he coaxed his cock deep into your cunt, the kind of sound that made you clench on him. “So fucking tight and swollen, baby,” he crooned in a tone meant to rile you up. “Does it hurt?”

You shook your head, biting your lip. His hands roamed over you, playing with your breasts and nipples, whilst Yuta sank his hard dick into you slowly, moaning in your ear at the warmth of you around his cock.

“I love you,” he sighed, stealing a kiss.

Rather than answer, you decided to goad him. You glanced at Yuta over your shoulder, arching your hips to meet his languid pace, and whispered, “I know you can fuck harder than that. Just ask my pussy.”

Your husband could and gladly would fuck you for an hour, but you were too sore for that. You wanted a quickie. Hard and fast.

Yuta chuckled, remembering his words from the night before, and used his grip on your hair to shove you face first into the mattress. You would definitely need to stifle the noises you were about to make.

You winched your eyes closed and held the mattress for dear life, eventually biting on the edge too as Yuta smacked his hips into your ass, throttling his cock into your pussy.

“Don’t wake them up,” your husband warned, pinning his hand to the nape of your neck. He had you whimpering and moaning like he’d fucked all the goddamn sense out of you.

“I’m coming,” you told him in a matter of minutes, squirming in his hold, trying to get yourself the rest of the way.

Yuta thrust into you faster and faster, at an almost inhuman speed. Almost. Sensing you at the edge, Yuta bore down on you with his weight, whispering dirty praises in your ear, and rammed his cock into your sweet spot until you came with a cry.

“I love you,” you chanted, because it was much less embarrassing than saying thank you over and over again for the mind-shattering orgasm he’d just ripped out of you.

Feeling your pussy try to push out his cock with the intensity of your climax, Yuta got a punishing grip on your hips and plunged his length into you, releasing with a mangled groan, finishing with one hard thrust after another.

You gasped to catch your breath, bouncing ever so slightly to milk his cock. Being fucked full of his cum made you arch your back and moan, wanting every last drop he had to give.

Yuta gave your ass an appreciative slap when he reluctantly drew his soft length from you, and said, “Atta girl.”

You lay there, your entire body thrumming and satisfied, and dozed off the moment Yuta finished cleaning you with a cloth from the bathroom.

Your husband dragged the blanket over your naked body and left the room quietly, knowing that if he stayed in bed with you, it would undoubtedly result in another round.

So instead, Yuta made himself comfortable on the couch and waited for the kids to wake up. He shook his head, thinking of you and your beautiful body. Fuck, he wanted to march back in there and drill you to another toe-curling orgasm.

Yuta fixed a pot of hot coffee, knowing you would want some when you woke, and blew the steam billowing from his mug as he watched the TV. The news was reporting a steady decline in city violence; a result of the new district attorney’s efforts to put away bad men and corrupt cops.

Seeing your picture on the screen unnerved Yuta. He didn’t want your face to be so widely known. Fortunately for you, however, Yuta still had friends in low places. They would keep it known that you belonged to someone that was not to be crossed. A venomous serpent slumbering in its den, as it were.

It was half past ten when you dragged yourself out of the bedroom, forcing yourself to get ready for work. To your surprise, you found both of your children waiting for you.

“Mommy, you look beautiful today,” Yuma greeted, smiling widely at you when you emerged from the bedroom.

“Thank you, darling,” you told your son, pressing a kiss to his brow. Then, you checked the time and remembered what day it was. “No school today?”

“Teacher work day,” Suki replied. She was seated at the counter and Yuta stood beside her, jotting things down on a list.

“Anything you need from the store, Mama?” Yuta asked, spinning the pen between his fingers.

“I can’t think of anything,” you said, looking between your son and daughter. “Are you going with Daddy to the store?”

“We always do,” Suki replied excitedly.

Sadness washed over you, but you hid it quite well on your face like any seasoned lawyer. You wanted to spend some time with the babies.

Yuta saw right through you, as only he could. Turning to the twins, he started speaking rapid fire Japanese, to which they giggled because they understood perfectly.

You scowled, though it was insincere, and whined, “That’s not fair. You know Mama is still working on her Japanese.”

“You’ve been working on it for ten years, my love,” Yuta teased under his breath, then he changed his tone. “I was just telling them how smart you are.”

“Bull… poop,” you started, quickly correcting yourself before using profanity in front of your children. Yuta grinned with amusement at irritating you.

At the word poop, Yuma and Suki giggled again.

A very loud bang sent a reverberating shudder through the house, making picture frames rattle on the walls. No one flinched. Undoubtedly a villain and a hero were duking it out in the center of the city again.

One moment Yuta was beside Suki, in the next he had crossed the room, caught a falling vase and set it back, and returned to her side in the time it took you to blink.

You mumbled, “I saw that.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Yuta said blithely.

“Daddy says he’s not fast,” Suki announced. “Everyone else is just really slow.”

You snorted back a laugh.

“Alright, Suki, let’s hit the market,” Yuta said a moment later, tucking the shopping list into his pocket.

You blinked in surprise. “You’re not taking Yuma with you?”

Yuta shook his head, a tiny smile on his face. “He wants to stay with you.”

You looked back at your son on the sofa, who was beaming at you warmly.

Yuta and Suki gave you and Yuma parting kisses and left.

Yuma sat beside you, watching a movie intently. He held onto your hand, absentmindedly playing with your fingers, and leaned against your side like he couldn’t quite get close enough to you. While Suki could talk a mile a minute, Yuma was rather quiet. She was the one to always drag him out of his shell, while you preferred a more gentle approach.

You reached over and brushed his hair from his brow before running a finger over his cheek. It was wonderful getting to spend time with him and you wanted to catch up on things you’d missed. “Anything you wanna talk to me about?” you asked sweetly.

Yuma shrugged.

“No pressure. Whenever you want.”

Yuma nodded and flitted his eyes between you and the television, pensive. He shifted a little and after a long pause, he said, “I want to make friends.”

You turned toward him, giving your son your undivided attention, and asked, “Do you have friends at school?”

Yuma couldn’t meet your eyes and shook his head, mumbling under his breath as if he were embarrassed, “Suki has lots of friends.”

You chuckled a bit. “Suki is very… assertive.”

Yuma peered up at you with furrowed brows. “What does that mean?”

You pinched your lips, thinking of the best way to explain. “It means she goes after things very strongly.”

Your son was staring at you, admiring. He was looking at you like you were the whole world. The same way you looked at him. “She’s like you,” he said, sweet as could be. No anger or jealousy to be found.

You snorted. “I suppose so.”

“Is Daddy like that?” Yuma asked curiously.

“A bit.”

“Why not me?”

You took his hand and gave it a squeeze, saying, “You’re a little different, Yuma. But different doesn’t mean wrong. You’re just you and that’s more than enough.”

Yuma relaxed. “Okay.”

“Do you want to be more assertive? Because I could teach you.”

“I don’t.”

“See? It’s just who you are. You’re perfect.”

Yuma was comforted by that. “But I want to make friends.”

You slipped a finger under his chin, tipping his head up. “Then, you make friends that are more like you. Does that make sense?”

He nodded. “It does.”

“I never had many friends,” you told him. Once upon a time, you would never have been able to verbalize that. A large part of your life had been spent with a lonely heart.

It was something you and Yuta had in common.

That caught Yuma by surprise. He looked up at you with wide eyes and nestled closer to you, putting his little hand on your arm as if to comfort you. “You didn’t?”

“No. People thought I was weird. I was obsessed with doing good in school and becoming a lawyer.”

“What about Daddy?”

Your face lit up at the mere mention of the love of your life. “Your father is my best friend in the whole world.”

“What made you be his friend?” Yuma pressed. He was suddenly an endless well of curiosity. He liked hearing about you and Yuta before he was born. Yuta told you that Yuma asked the most questions about how the two of you met and fell in love.

Suki, on the other hand, was more inclined to hear that she came out of your tummy first and was therefore, the oldest of your twins. By nine whole minutes.

“He told me I was perfect the way I was,” you replied, smoothing back Yuma’s hair. God, he really was Yuta’s spitting image. It was like looking into his eyes even though he was miles away from you. “And that there was nothing that could ever stand in my way if I wanted to do something.”

Yuma bounced and exclaimed, “He told me the same thing!”

“Your father is very wise.”

“He is.”

You pretended to wince and put a finger over your lips, whispering, “Don’t tell him I said that. It will go straight to his head.”

Yuma covered his mouth with his hand, playing along with your little joke. “I won’t.”

You wrapped your arm around your son and pressed a kiss to his nose, cooing, “You’ll be a great friend, Yuma. I promise.”

Your son hopped into your lap, hugging you tightly.

A quiet thud made you turn your head sharply toward the front door, every hair on the back of your neck standing up.

Yuta spoke to his daughter in his mother tongue as they walked through the farmer’s market. Suki loved looking at everything there was to see and the vendors always let her taste test things because her reactions were dramatic, but very genuine.

And because Yuta was generous with his money.

“Much better,” Suki declared after eating a grape.

“Yes, Miss Suki. They were a bit watery last time, weren’t they?”

She nodded.

Yuta chuckled, then told the seller, “Two bags please.”

Gripping her father’s hand tightly as they meandered, Suki asked, “Daddy, when are we getting takoyaki?”

“Soon, princess.”

“I’m being very patient.”

Yuta’s face tensed with the threat of laughter. “Yes, you are and I appreciate it.”

Suki suddenly went rigidly still, her hand slipping from around Yuta’s fingers as she stopped dead in her tracks. The smile vanished from her face in an instant and her eyes went out of focus.

Yuta jolted, all of his attention centering on his child. Crouching down before her and holding her arms, he asked frantically, “Suki, are you okay?”

His little girl trembled, tears filling her eyes. She looked like she’d seen a ghost. For the first time in her life, she was terrified. “Daddy, something’s wrong,” she whimpered, reaching for him.

Yuta lifted her into his arms, adrenaline tickling up his spine. “What is it, baby? Do you feel sick to your stomach?”

“No, it’s Yuma. And Mommy. Something’s wrong!”

That was all Yuta needed to hear. He dropped the basket of food and cradled Suki to his chest, feeling her cling to him. “Take a deep breath and hold it, Suki.”

She did as told and in a flash, they were gone.

But he was too late.

Yuta walked slowly through the house. His hands were shaking.

The front door was splintered into pieces. The living room was destroyed like a goddamn tornado had swept through. You put up a hell of a fight. Yuta knew you would. A mother’s instinct to protect her baby was formidable even against the strongest of enemies.

Yuta stepped over the broken coffee table, analyzing everything. He could safely assume there were a number of attackers. You were no match. Hell, even in his prime he would have struggled.

There was blood smeared on the wall, but Yuta breathed a little in relief when he didn’t recognize the scent. He had been right beside you when you gave birth. He was the one that put bandaids on all of your clumsy little cuts.

He knew the scent of you intimately.

This blood was not yours. It belonged to someone that foolishly tried to separate you from your child and learned you would die or kill before that happened.

“Suki, you can come out,” Yuta said lowly. “It’s clear.”

A panel above in the ceiling moved and Suki jumped down, landing in Yuta’s arms. He held her snugly to him, feeling her shaking with emotion, and coaxed, “I know this is hard, baby, but I need you. I know you can sense your brother.”

Suki nodded.

“Is Yuma hurt? Is your mother hurt?”

Suki paused, tapping into the connection she shared with her twin. “Yuma is okay. Mama is okay,” she told him, lips quivering. “Yuma is really scared, Daddy.”

Yuta took a steadying breath. He would rend this goddamn city inside out to get back what was his. “Can you find them, Suki? Can you lead me to them?”

His daughter nodded. “I think so.”

Yuta set her down on the floor and pulled out his phone. “I need to make a call. Go grab your panic bag, okay?”

Suki trundled to her bedroom. It went without saying Yuta taught his children extensively what to do in situations like these.

He was very aware of the dangers in Hel. But he never thought someone would dare enter the Viper's nest.

Pressing the phone to his ear, Yuta paced and after two rings, a familiar voice answered. “Someone took my wife and son,” Yuta said, skipping any greetings. He didn’t have time.

“I know,” Mark replied gravely. “It’s already spreading underground.”

Yuta grit his teeth and hissed, “Who did this?”

“I'm already looking into it. Give me fifteen minutes.”

“Thank you. Call me the second you have anything.”

“Done.”

Yuta hung up just as Suki returned with a little purple backpack. He gave her a proud smile and lifted her into his arms. “Ready, baby?”

She grabbed his face, staring into her father’s eyes, and asked, “We’re gonna find Mommy and Yuma. Right?”

Yuta gave a single nod. “Yes, Suki. We’re going to find them. I promise.”

By his tone, Suki knew her father would move mountains. She found her courage again and took a deep breath.

Despite the blindfold over your eyes and the cords wrapped tightly around your wrists, binding them together, your son was curled on your chest and you had managed to mold your entire body protectively around him.

You spoke softly and soothingly to him, but Yuma had whispered in your ear, “Daddy’s coming.”

Part of you already knew that. In your heart you knew Yuta would stop at nothing to bring you and your baby home. All you had to do was buy enough time. You kissed Yuma’s head, holding him even tighter.

Cradling your son, feeling his terror, knowing danger was closing in, was another kind of hell.

You closed your eyes and thought of Yuta. The one thing that could distract you from the suffocating grip of fear on your throat. You thought back to the moment you met, at the police station of all places. As a junior district attorney, you had been brought in to consult on whether a case could be made against him.

The Viper.

Sitting in a dimly lit room, Yuta was handcuffed to the table, but you knew you were the one in a cage with a lion. He was not captured. On the contrary, he was rather entertained.

“Everything you have on me is circumstantial,” Yuta stated plainly.

You took the seat across from him and said, “I know.”

Yuta narrowed his eyes, assuming you were manipulating him, and asked, “Then, why are you here?”

You shrugged. “Just following orders.”

“You don’t seem like the type.”

“The type of what?”

“To just do what you’re told.”

You stared into his eyes. Yuta’s gaze was hypnotic. You couldn’t look away. He was drawing you in slowly.

So began a dance of Yuta intentionally getting himself caught, prompting you to be summoned to the station to question him. Questions ended up ranging more toward you, the things you liked, the things you hated. The things you were interested in.

Who you were interested in.

As Yuta was led out of custody, free to go once again, he made sure to stop by you and whisper, “I would love to take you out to dinner.”

It took every ounce of your restraint not to smile. It was about goddamn time, to be honest. He was the most attractive man you’d ever seen. Not just his face, but his mind. Nothing about him was simple and that thrilled you.

“I can get a reservation at the Blood Raven tomorrow night. Interested?”

The Blood Raven, one of Hel’s most illustrious, high-end establishments. Known to be frequented by villains on the regular. “I’m interested,” you murmured softly.

It wasn’t like you to flirt with danger, but when danger flirted back, you kinda liked the rush it sent through you.

Yuta grinned victoriously. “Seven o’clock then. I’d offer to pick you up from work, but I’m sure that would be frowned upon, considering your profession.”

“I’ll see you then.”

Yuta sauntered out with an extra swagger to his step while you were screaming internally.

You snapped out of your reverie when the van jerked to a stop. Your son jostled on your chest, but you secured your hold on him as the men grabbed your arms and dragged you out.

Though they made no attempt to separate you from Yuma again.

Yuta folded his arms and glanced around the back alley. There was an overturned trash bin and tire marks on the ground.

Suki ambled along the alley, searching with her wide eyes. Your beautiful eyes. Yuta smiled at her fondly, hiding the ice cold fist of terror wrapped around his heart.

His daughter turned to him anxiously, but Yuta was quick to assure her, “Take your time, baby girl. You’re doing great.”

Suki nodded and kept looking for traces of her brother to follow.

Finally, she pointed and said, “That way.”

Yuta scooped her up and bolted.

He came to a sharp stop, mid-sprint, when he felt a vibration in his pocket. Holding his daughter, Yuta answered the phone, “Yes?”

“Your wife recently put away three upper-rank members of the Cyrus Gang, including the second-in-command.”

“Mm,” was all Yuta said. He knew exactly where this was going.

The Cyrus Gang had popped up after Yuta went into retirement. From what he knew via his friends, their leader was a villain with unknown powers and he ruled with an iron fist. They were organized, ruthless and known for their brutality.

No wonder you had made it your mission to put them behind bars.

“Camera footage on the street shows thirteen of their known members breaching your house,” Mark continued.

Yuta seethed. “Keep going.”

“Additional footage shows them dragging your wife and son into a different unmarked van two alleys over. Premeditated counter measures, obviously.”

Yuta assumed that was the alley he and Suki had just left. “Anything else?”

Mark’s voice filled with disappointment. “Footage shows evidence of tampering. We lost sight of them after that. I’ve got guys working on it.”

“Thank you. In the meantime, I have a very reliable source leading me to them,” Yuta said, looking to Suki.

She smiled at him, emboldened by his words.

“Good luck, brother,” Mark said.

Yuta hung up.

Suki put a hand on Yuta’s chest, subconsciously searching for his heart rhythm to settle her own, and asked, “Did they find Mommy and Yuma?”

“No, baby,” Yuta told her levelly. “It’s up to us to find them.”

Suki nodded. She was ready.

You giggled as Yuta kissed his way up your big pregnant belly. Both of your babies were stretching and kicking, and Yuta thought it was the most delightful thing he’d ever seen. He tickled his fingers near a foot and laughed when that foot sent a retaliatory kick in his direction.

“I can’t possibly get any bigger,” you groaned, though you didn’t mean it. All you wanted was two healthy, happy babies, and you were prepared to get as big as necessary for them.

“Don’t jinx it,” Yuta joked. He glanced up at you, his long hair falling into his eyes. “Are you hungry?”

“I’m always hungry. They’re always hungry.”

Yuta smoothed his hand over the crest of your belly, marveling. “They’re strong. I can feel it.”

You placed your hand over his and said, “Me, too. I can’t explain it, but… I can feel their bond.”

“They’re inside you. Of course, you can feel it.” His voice was soft, reverent, like he was holding all the answers to the universe between his hands.

“It’s something magical.”

Yuta turned somber, a frown tugging at his lips. “I hope they get all of your magic and none of mine,” he huffed under his breath.

“I don’t have any powers,” you reminded him, ready to scold if any self-deprecation chose to rear its ugly head. You’d become somewhat of a master at making it crawl back inside its dark hole.

“It’s a heavy burden.”

You sighed and carded your fingers into his hair. “We’ll help them carry it.”

Yuta finally turned away from your belly and propped himself over you, losing himself in your eyes. “Just like you help me carry mine,” he whispered.

You drew your husband close until you could press your lips to his.

“You have a magic all your own,” Yuta said, kissing the corner of your mouth.

Your son’s voice brought you back to the present. Peeking down at him worriedly, you asked, “What is it, baby?”

“Suki,” he said distantly, feeling his sister’s emotions. “She’s sad.”

Your eyes welled with tears. You were tucked in a corner of a rundown warehouse. There were locks on all the doors. With you secured, the captors removed your blindfold and restraints. Which was surprisingly considerate of them. And yet all it did was unnerve you more. “We’re gonna see them again, Yuma,” you told your son firmly.

He believed you, nodding before tucking his head beneath your chin and hugging you tight.

You wiped at your tears with a clenched fist and cried, “I should have sent you to the store with Daddy and Suki. It was selfish of me. I wanted to spend time with you.”

Yuma didn’t seem bothered by that admission. He merely said, “That’s okay, Mommy. It’s better this way.”

You blinked in surprise.

“I’m here with you. You’re not alone.”

You devolved into sobs, curling inward with your son hidden in your embrace. You kissed his sweet face and he kissed your cheek, looping his arms around your neck.

Suki had never seen the city at the speed of light. She was getting better at holding her breath, but keeping her eyes wide open. No matter how much it stung. She didn’t want to miss a thing.

She could feel Yuma. He was far away and no matter how much her father ran, they didn’t feel closer.

Yuta sprinted between cars, between buildings, between people. No one saw him. They would feel a wisp of wind that was gone as quickly as it came.

A killer in the night; that had been Yuta’s reputation in the not so distant past. No enemy could see him coming. No defense could be prepared. No lawman could pin a single shred of evidence on him. He was a silent blade in the darkness. Uncatchable and unstoppable.

Never had Yuta killed with anger. He was a cold and calculating villain. It was all business. This time would be different. The Viper would have its vengeance.

Suki tugged on Yuta’s collar and he grinded to a halt, the atmosphere shifting around them. Suki’s eyes were full of tears and she was trembling.

“What is it, Suki?”

“Hurry, Daddy,” she cried, choking on a sob. “They’re trying to take Yuma from Mommy!”

Yuta had never known rage and madness like what unfurled inside of him at that moment. He knew you would fight. He knew you would kill. But who would they keep alive?

They were running out of time. The men that took you knew who Yuta was and what he was capable of. And that he was coming. They would have to be quick.

Suki turned her head this way and that. Light shone in her eyes as she fought back her tears to focus on the task at hand.

Yuta recognized her determination and stroked a thumb over her cheek. “You’re very brave, my Suki. Find them and I will take care of the rest.”

Yuma was screaming. Suki could hear it as if she were in the room. Though he was miles away, his increasing emotions made his signal to her stronger. Suki pointed. “That way!”

Yuta didn’t need to remind her to take a breath. The moment she’d told him, Suki inhaled a big gulp of air and they were gone again.

You tapped into a reservoir of strength you’d forgotten you had. It was the same bottomless pit you’d fallen into when you gave birth. It didn’t matter that these men were inherently stronger than you. You could rip them apart with your bare hands every time they reached for your baby.

Yuma, though he was only a child, tried to push the men away as they pinned you to the concrete ground and shoved a phone against your ear. Your son didn’t understand. They screamed in your face, threatened unspeakable things against your children, if you didn’t orchestrate the release of some very bad men.

You relented, because of course you did. No criminal was worth the life of your son. Bloodied and bruised and choking on your own tears, you gave the order to release the Cyrus Gang’s second-in-command.

Satisfied, the men hung up the phone and warned they would keep you a little longer to make sure he was free and clear.

Then, your fate would be decided.

Yuma bolted to you the moment his captor let go of his arm and curled his small body around your head, trying to shield you from them. Every inch of you was trembling and you were breathing hard and fast, tasting the metallic sting of blood in your mouth. Adrenaline had seized ahold of you and torn its way through your system.

Your life flashed before your eyes. You saw yourself sigh tiredly as Yuta held you in his arms, two newborn babies sleeping soundly on your breasts. Only moments after birth, they had reached across your heart to hold each other’s hands and didn’t let go.

Yuta had never run so hard in his life. He was trying to outrun his emotions and his memories. He was thinking of the day you married him, when the two of you promised your lives to each other with the sea and the mountains as witnesses. Yuta had sworn to love you and only you for as long as he lived.

It was an easy vow to make. Yuta knew he’d found his soulmate. No woman on earth would ever get to hold his heart like you. It was yours.

He thought of your gentle smile when you kissed his brow and held him to your chest, lulling him to sleep after another nightmare. He thought of your grin when you showed him that positive pregnancy test. Yuta picked you up off the ground and spun you around. He could hear your laugh in his head. It was his favorite sound.

Then, he thought of all the times you told him, “I love you.”

Even before you had carried and birthed his children, you had given Yuta what he always wanted, but never had - a family.

This was life and death. If Yuta lost you, he would lose himself. He would raze the city to the ground and then throw himself into the ashes.

Because he would never be able to live with the monster he became if he lost you.

Your eyes snapped open when the door creaked. A lone man walked toward you and your son, his steps heavy and ominous.

“You have served your purpose,” was all he said.

You ignored the pain in your bones. Those words ignited a spark inside your chest like no other. This man should have known by the bloodstains coating your fingernails that you were a caged mother bear. Steering Yuma behind you, you crawled backwards until he was nestled against the wall. You guarded him with your body and got your legs underneath you.

Suki let out a scream of agony that knocked the wind out of Yuta. He was at full momentum and stumbled, instantly curling around her as they toppled into the dirt, rolling and spinning in a heap.

“Suki,” he shouted, searching her frantically for injury, but finding his daughter unscathed.

She wailed, “He’s killing Mommy!”

Yuta couldn’t move. He couldn’t breathe. He sat there in the barren wilderness outside the city with his daughter in his lap, the last tie to you that was about to be severed forever.

Yuma wasn’t brave. He never had been. Suki had courage. She always protected him. He wished she was there. She could destroy this man with her power.

Power. Yuma looked at his hands.

The man threw you to the ground and each time he stalked in Yuma’s direction, you charged him again. You knew he was toying with you, drawing it out for his own sadistic pleasure. You couldn’t beat him; you could only buy time.

“Yuma, run,” you screamed at your son, over and over, but he wouldn’t leave you. He refused to leave you.

Suki gripped Yuta tight, breaths staggering in and out. The tears streamed down her cheeks. “Yuma’s too scared to do it.”

“Do what, Suki?”

“Use his power.”

Yuta gawked. “Yuma has powers?”

“He hides them,” she said shakily. “They scare him. He doesn’t want to be bad. He doesn’t want to be a monster!”

Yuta knew that feeling all too well and it broke his heart. But his only concern in that moment was you. You needed a monster. Yuta cradled Suki’s cheeks in his hands and whispered lowly, “Tell him to protect his mother. Tell him to do whatever he has to do.”

Suki nodded.

The man braced his hands on his knees, winded, and chuckled. “You’re strong for a bitch.”

You were an unhinged creature, reduced to your most primal form. You had cut him with your nails, sank your teeth into his flesh. Anything you could manage to deter him from your child. Your own life meant nothing to you as long as your son could live.

The man grabbed you by the throat and lifted you off the ground, cutting off your oxygen. Darkness seeped into the edges of your vision. You clawed at his hands and kicked at his torso, but to no avail.

Yuma rushed over and wrapped his arms around the man’s leg.

In an instant, the monster choking the life out of you screeched and dropped to his knees, staggering back as thousands of volts of electricity coursed through him.

But not you. You coughed and choked, scrambling to get your bearings and reaching for your son. The tiniest shock pricked your hands and then it was gone. Yuma shuddered, jumping into your arms as fast as he could.

You looked at the man and knew he was dead. And you didn’t question it for a second. Hiding yourself in the corner with your son, you kept his head turned away.

Suki exhaled loudly, wiping at her tears.

Yuta asked, “Is it done?”

She nodded.

“Let’s go, baby,” he said, getting to his feet again.

There was a rhythmic drop from a leaky pipe above. It echoed in the silence of the warehouse. You knew it was only a matter of time before the others came to finish you off.

You peered up at your son as he held your face, your head in his lap. Your injuries were dire, you could feel it. Part of you wondered if you were bleeding into your own body. That was kind of a relief. Your son wouldn’t have to see you die in a pool of your own blood.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” you asked him gently.

Yuma frowned. “I don’t want to be bad.”

You simpered. “You could never be a villain, my Yuma. You have a good heart.”

Yuma looked at his hands currently cradling your face and said, “But my power hurts people.”

“Then, use it to protect us from bad people. Like you did for me.”

Yuma smiled, comforted by that. After a pause, he asked, “Are you okay, Mommy?”

“I’m okay,” you lied. Under no circumstances would you tell your son any different. You would hide your pain until the very end.

Yuma studied you. “I can’t feel your heart as good anymore.”

You steered one of his little hands to your chest and asked, “How about now?”

“Your heart sounds tired.”

You fought back the tears and rasped, “It is, a little. But if I need to protect you, it will beat hard again.”

“For me?”

“For you.”

Yuma leaned down to press a tender kiss to your forehead and said, “I will protect you too, Mommy.”

“I know you will,” you said with a smile, thinking of your husband. “You are your father’s son.”

“I want to be brave like Suki,” Yuma murmured, evoking the bond with his sister. He wanted to tap into her courage.

Reaching for his hand, you let your eyes flutter closed, running out of strength. “You are very brave, Yuma. No matter what happens, never forget that you are a dragonslayer living in a city of dragons.”

Yuma raised his chin a little higher. It was what he needed to hear.

Suki urged Yuta to stop and told him, “Yuma says Mommy’s heart is slowing down.”

Yuta tensed. His world was coming to an end. It had been beautiful while it lasted. Looking into Suki’s face intently, seeing you in every feature, he said, “Tell Mommy that I love her.”

“I love you too, Yuta,” you sighed, eyes still closed.

“And tell her to remember what she promised me.”

The faintest smile tugged at your lips. “I remember.”

You fell into that memory. You were young and reckless and in love. So in love it honestly terrified you.

“Yuta, I know we’ve been… avoiding this conversation,” you told your boyfriend, wringing your hands nervously. “But I didn’t know you felt this way and I’m sorry.”

Yuta waited. He had just confessed his love to you. Neither you or him had vocalized your feelings yet. There was a silent fence between your hearts, because you were on opposite sides of the law. And Hel.

You found your courage, risking your heart, and began, “I’ve never felt like this before. When I go to bed at night, I think about whether you got enough to eat. When I wake up in the morning, I wonder if you had nightmares or good dreams.”

Yuta swallowed the lump in his throat. He could feel the emotion rushing up his chest and heating his cheeks.

“When you kiss me, I feel like I can do anything. When I think about the future, I picture marrying you on a beach somewhere. I imagine spending days in bed with you. I want to have beautiful, happy babies with you.”

Yuta smiled. No one had ever wanted that life with him and little did you know, it was his most precious dream. One he had long convinced himself was unattainable. Until he fell in love with you.

You continued, voice trembling, “I want to get through all the decades of our lives together. Hand in hand. I want to watch the world change with you. Or burn. Whatever the fuck it decides to do.”

Yuta snorted, fighting back a laugh. Yeah, he could picture sitting beside you, watching the world burn.

He would never let the fire touch you. He’d probably be the one to light the match.

You walked toward him, confident. The twinkle in his eyes drew you closer. “I wanna grow old with you and tell our grandchildren about how things were in our day,” you quipped, then your tone shifted. “I wanna die in your arms and be buried beside you. Because next to you is where I belong. In life and death and whatever comes next.”

Yuta closed the rest of the distance and swept you up in his arms, kissing you with abandon and tangling his fingers in your hair. “I love you,” he said over and over between kisses. “I love you.” He seared those three words into every inch of your skin that night.

You had never known such all-consuming love before. You kissed him like you’d never kissed anyone else.

It was that moment Yuta knew he had to give it up. He was ready to leave the life of a villain behind. He would give you everything.

If you were going to die today, then so was he.

Yuta would not watch the world burn alone.

Suki eyed the warehouse. Her father was perched low to the ground, moving her behind him, but Suki wanted to see. The building was miles outside the city limits, rundown and abandoned. There was a strange aura about it.

Someone had cast a field around the perimeter. Though Suki couldn’t fully wrap her head around it, she knew that had been affecting her bond with Yuma. It was why they had felt so far away no matter how much her father ran.

“Suki, stay here,” Yuta told his daughter sternly, sweat dampening his hair. He’d sprinted to the point of exhaustion. “If anyone comes near you, do whatever you need to survive. Do you understand what I’m saying?”

Suki knew her secret was out then. She gave him a solemn nod. “Yes, Daddy.”

Without his daughter in his arms, Yuta was free to break the sound barrier at last. Her little body couldn’t sustain his true speed. And so, the Viper coiled and struck. He vanished inside the building in the time it took to blink, kicking up dirt in his wake.

But Suki had no intention of staying put. She would not ignore her brother’s frantic calls, telling her their mother was drifting further and further away, and headed right for him.

Yuma’s fingers touched your cheek and you woke yourself up again. It was getting harder to stay conscious no matter how much you tried.

“Daddy’s here,” Yuma whispered under his breath.

You heaved a sigh. The weight lifted from your chest. You could finally let yourself slip away. Yuma was safe. Knowing your son would be alright, you had done what you needed to do and you could finally succumb to the darkness dragging you into its warm embrace.

Shouts began to reverberate through the corridors. Bullets fired made Yuma jolt in place. Something was happening on the other side of the wall.

A shadow was picking men off, one by one, before some of them could even draw their weapons. There was a tiny flicker of movement followed by the spatter and spray of blood.

Men wailed in horror. Their comrades fell to the ground, limbs ripped clean off their bodies or gaping holes left in their chests like a fist had punched through with the force of a fucking machine.

A few screams were cut short, belonging to those who had their heads taken clean off their shoulders.

“Suki,” Yuma exclaimed at the sight of his sister rushing toward him. Tears poured down his cheeks in relief.

Suki hugged her brother, but he kept his arms around your head, as if letting go of you would cause the last of you to part from him.

Yuta could feel himself slipping into that darkness, like an old friend he had cut out of his life because they brought out the worst in him. He could see you in his mind, telling him to stop. This isn’t you, Yuta, you pleaded.

But this was him, wasn’t it? Bloodlust. It was as potent a venom as any. The Viper was exacting his revenge. He was killing in the most evil ways possible.

Without a word, Suki lifted her tiny hand. The pipes groaned and burst. Water began to rain down in every corner, flooding the warehouse. She kept her arm outstretched and the water didn’t dare touch you or her brother.

“Yuma,” was all she said.

He carefully drew away from you, laying your head gently on the ground, and stood, reaching out toward the water.

You heard the crack of lightning in your dreams and then an endless collision of screams. Electricity surged through the water, amplified and lethal. Anyone touched by Suki’s water was consumed in Yuma’s sparks. Death was instantaneous.

Yuta could hardly believe his eyes as he ran. The water was up to his calves now, but it didn’t touch him. It coursed around him like a river around a rock. The water cleansed the blood from the walls and the ground, and swept away the remains of what he had done.

And now, there was no one left to kill. Yuta felt a tear slip down his cheek.

His babies had saved him from himself.

When he sprinted into the last room, breaking the locked door off its hinges with the force of his speed, his daughter and son looked toward him innocently. Yuma was once again holding your head, while Suki had her hand over your heart. The waters receded until disappearing completely, obedient to their masters.

Yuta spoke to the twins in his mother tongue, words they would remember for as long as they lived. His children weren’t dragon slayers, after all. They were dragons, just like him.

He hurried over and gathered you in his arms, surveying your bloodied, swollen face. For a moment, Yuta wished he had powers of resurrection. So he could kill those men again and again. But then he remembered what you had told him and let it go. For now. “Hang on for me, baby,” he whispered for your ears alone, knowing you could hear him. Wherever you were.

Still crouched, Yuta instructed his children to clamber onto his back. They clung to his shoulders and arms, and Yuta walked away, carrying his family with him.

You held Yuta’s hand tightly as you walked down the path between trees. Your eyes were on your children, the two of them rushing a few feet ahead of you. Every now and then, they would turn back to smile at you and their father.

It had been three months since that day; three long, grueling months of recovery. This was the first time you could walk freely with your husband and kids without needing to sit and rest every few steps as your body healed.

Yuta found an empty bench and you got comfortable, watching your babies rush to the playground to join the other children. Yuta looked with caution briefly, doing a quick scan of all the nearby parents before taking his spot beside you.

You patted his thigh and teased, “Everyone pass the villain check?”

“Mm,” was all he said.

You chuckled and leaned into his side, Yuta’s arm around your shoulders.

The two of you watched Yuma and Suki on the playground. Naturally, Suki was surrounded by other kids, giggling and running about. To your delight, Yuma had made a friend recently. The two were off in the sandbox together building castles.

“A little birdie told me that word of our kids’ powers has spread through the underground,” Yuta said a moment later.

You arched a brow. “Oh?”

“No one will be breaking into our house ever again,” your husband murmured.

“That’s not why.”

Yuta’s brows stitched as he turned to you. “What do you mean?”

You kept your eyes on your babies, watching them play, and replied, “I got a call last week.”

“From?”

“The force,” you said calmly. “They said the entire Cyrus Gang was wiped out.”

Yuta was oddly quiet.

“A silent killer. Gone without a trace. There’s no hard evidence, of course, but every last member in the gang was killed execution style. Except the leader, who was dramatically beheaded.”

Yuta shrugged, but his jaw was clenched with anger. “Good riddance.”

You faced your husband and whispered, “I know it was you.”

Frankly, you were surprised he’d waited this long.

Yuta stared you down, his eyes filling with that familiar darkness, and snarled, “I sent a message.”

“I’m glad you did.”

He was a little stunned by that. It wasn’t like you to sanction his violence. Yuta had a feeling this would be the one instance such retribution would be allowed. “No one would have ever dared hurt you back then. They thought I went soft. They’ll never think that again.”

Warmth filled your chest. This had been a reckoning not only for Yuta and your twins, but for you as well. “If you come in the viper’s den, you’re gonna get bit,” you joked, but there was definitely an edge to your words devoid of humor.

Yuta rubbed your arm. “The viper, the mama bear,” he said with a chuckle, then looked to Yuma and Suki, his face and voice filling with pride. “Tsunami and Lightning.”

You leaned your head on his shoulder and closed your eyes contentedly.

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