#i know that everyone has been talking about him like he's for sure the guy ever since then. which he might be.

[prankprincess123]

I genuinely feel like it depends WHY they don't approve, and regardless of why you should at the very least still hear them out, but for me personally it would easily be the end of the romantic relationship.

My family is close and I respect my loved ones opinions enough that depending on why literally any family member doesn't approve of the man I wish to marry, I might break it off or at least postpone the wedding until the issue is resolved. Like if my uncles know something about him that even I don't, and explain such to me when I ask, I'd definitely respect their opinion because I know they genuinely have my best interests at heart. Or if my grandparents or aunts & uncles feel they don't know him well enough for me to marry him yet, I'd ensure that they got the chance before the wedding, whether that mean delaying the wedding or simply within the engagement period. Genuinely one of the first things I've done in most instances of even semi serious relationships is make sure my family approve - partly because they showed me the same respect when they were dating and courting their now spouses even when I was a toddler. For my entire childhood whenever one of my uncles had a new girlfriend it was tradition that we would do a trip to the zoo, just my uncle, their new girlfriend, and all the nieces and nephews with the goal of our approval - I remember a time at 7yo when I decided I didn't like the girl one uncle was dating at the time, and he broke it off that night because my approval was worth that much in his relationship. In my dating experience so far there has never been a guy who my family didn't approve of - my most serious relationship even started with my uncle playing matchmaker and I genuinely think both of our families were the ones most disappointed when I ended things - but any time a relationship has been serious enough that I've even considered giving it an official title I've either already gotten everyone's approval or that is the very next step I take.

I've had uncles drop girlfriends because I was a petty child who simply wanted my uncle's attention to myself, and instantly become more serious with and in one case eventually marry a girl because I admired her so much. I have an aunt who got back together with her now husband because us kids commented that we missed how much happier she was when they were actually dating rather than him just being our uncle's best friend. Every relationship my older cousin was ever in he asked my opinion and advice every step of the way, I was the first person admitted his feelings to every time, the one he trusted to let him know and if needed talk him out of any even yellow flags, I was the first person in the family to meet his now wife and he then begged me for my opinion about her for hours, the first after his mom that he told about proposing because he needed to have that conversation with me personally, the one he cried to and consulted with regarding who should stand beside him at the alter when I couldn't due to covid, and the first to find out about my niece because he was scared and wanted my advice on the matter. I'm lucky enough that I've never been in a situation where a parent or grandparent was courting, as all three couples are still alive and happily married, but I have no doubt that if one of them were to die and the widowed parent or grandparent wanted to get re-married they would respect my opinion just as much as my aunts and uncles have (though likely not to the extent of my older cousin, as I think he trusts my judgment and opinions more than his own). Like my BIL's opinion on my future spouse sure as heck doesn't matter in the slightest because he doesn't respect my opinions on anything. And my one sister's opinion holds far less weight than it previously would have because she didn't respect me enough to listen when I suggested that dating a 25yo when she was 17yo might not be a smart idea and screams at me whenever I express worry over that relationship. And one aunt & uncle who's oppinions matter less because they don't respect me, my mama, or sisters in general. But every other family member has at the very least listened to my voice and opinions in everything, including their relationships, so why wouldn't I do the same for them?

I'm in a situationship with a guy right now that seems like he wants to formalize the relationship, but I won't even consider such until he's had a chance to meet everyone and I know that they approve. And when I get to the point of engagement and marriage it's even more important, as whoever it is isn't just marrying me they are also marrying into my family. Not only am I consulting with my grandparents and aunts & uncles before accepting a proposal, I'm getting approval from my 4yo niece and newborn-5yo cousins before it can even be a serious relationship.

[mintmatcha]

"Kenma."

The game buzzes on, the battle music intensifying. The thing his character is facing has changed, taking on its second form as Kenma's character rolls and swings its sword. The man himself is curled into his knees, chest tucked forward in anticipation, like he's about to hop out of his chair.

"Ke-"

"In a second," he cuts you off. His unblinking eyes never leave the screen, peering through his blonde bangs. "I just have to beat this boss."

With a huff, you sink back into your chair.

"Last time you said 'just a second' it took you two days to beat the damn thing," you remind him. "I'm not immortal-- I don't have time to sit around for you."

Frankly, you often forget Kenma is immortal until moments like that. You had always thought that vampires would be menacing or carry some sort of grandeur, but everyone you've met has been so spectacularly normal. Kenma, for instance, seems like every other guy your age: aloof and obsessed with video games.

"Get bitten then," he shrugs. "Kuroo would be happy to."

Your spine trills at the thought of it. When you first met Kuroo, you thought her was odd in the most normal way possible. He was practically nocturnal because he claimed to work remotely overseas, but he still went to bars and played indoor volleyball: average activities for an average man-

Or, that's what you thought, until you learned about the whole vampire thing.

Honestly, it's only made you more attracted to him. The mystery, the danger-- what's not to love? You'd be lying if you said you had never thought of his teeth on you, his hands on your body-

"That's what I wanted to talk about."

Kenma's head whips around. This game doesn't pause; the monster smacks his avatar across the screen.

"You're turning?" His voice is either bright with surprise or shock. You've known Kenma for a while now and you still can't seem to read his motivations. You're not sure why Kuroo incorporated you into the fold of his undead friend group, but here you are, sitting in their living room.

"No, uh-" What you're about to ask suddenly feels silly. "I wanted to... Can I see your teeth?"

Kenma's expression settles and he picks up the controller that you hadn't realized he dropped.

"I died for that?" He flicks the game off. "You could have waited for that. I'll still have teeth in a week."

You have to bit your tongue to stop yourself from losing your mind. Kenma just goes back to gaming, eyes narrowing with effort.

"I could be dead in a week."

"You won't be."

"I could be," you say. "I could have a stroke at any moment."

"You won't." He mashes the buttons extra hard, so hard the plastic creaks. "And if you did, we'd know before you did."

The character dies much earlier than it usually does.

"How would you know if I had a stroke before I did?"

"It smells sour when..." His eyes finally turn your way again. "Whatever. It's fine."

"Fine to touch?" you say.

He beckons you over with a nod of his chin. "Yeah."

Pushing off from your seat, you walk over to where he's sitting. Kenma doesn't bother to stand. He tilts his head back, looking up at you with a slight smile.

Already, you can see them. The sharp, vivid white teeth behind his pale lips. They have the usual shape, but anything uncanny edge makes your skin crawl. It's something you can't quite place, maybe something not there at all.

To get closer, you slide a leg onto his chair, angling yourself over him the best that you can. You're surprised when his hand rests on your thigh for support.

"Don't look so scared," Kenma says, a bit too coy for your liking.

You hadn't realized you'd been making a face at all.

"Just don't bite me."

Kenma opens his mouth and his teeth catch the dim light, strange for how dry his mouth seems to be. His canines are slightly elongated, just a hair more than a usual human. Gingerly, you run your fingers across the front of his teeth, then down to their edges. There's almost a razors edge to them, enough that you can feel the ridges of your fingerprint catching.

"Sharp," you quip. You leave a pause for Kenma to respond, but then you realize he can't, not with his mouth open for you. He just watches you, eyes flickering from one of your eyes to the other.

This isn't intimate, you remind yourself. It's scientific curiosity.

It can't be intimate, because you like Kuroo. Not Kenma. No, you don't like it at all that his hands are around your waist and you're cupping his cheek with your free hand, that his breath somehow smells soothing-

His canines seem longer now. More jagged, sharp. You press the pad of your thumb against it and watch how your skin easily skins in, no resistenxe whatsoever. Then, you pull away. A drop of blood wells up at the spot; there's no pain whatsoever, but the thumb tingles, like menthol and cocaine, riveting and calming all at once.

Kenma leans into the palm of your hand, then cranes his neck ever so slightly to envelop your finger in his lips. It's the most delicate of touches, a ghost of a memory of a kiss, but when he pulls away, crimson has settled into the cracks of his lips.

"Your heart's beating-" his tongue runs over his lower lip. "Really fast."

Kenma pulls you closer, arms now tight around your waist. You don't know when you got so close, when your bodies suddenly were pushed together, but now they are--

and now your finger is in his mouth. The gentle, crushing pressure of suction surprises you, but not more than the desperate whine he makes when blood hits his tongue.

That buzzing had spread up your arm and you can suddenly feel it, feel how your heart runs heavy and fast for him. Kenma's eyes are so lidded, barely open, heavy with want, that you can barely make out how his pupils have narrowed into cat scratch slits.

"Oh," you babble. "Oh, it's--"

"Feels good?" Kenma isn't speaking, but you can hear his voice.

"Y-yeah."

"I can make you feel good." There can't be that much blood from that tiny spot, but Kenma swallows deep as if there is. "Anytime you want."

The plush of his tongue swipes up your digit. Oh, maybe you are bleeding out. Maybe he's killing you. You're hot and cold and weak and strong and, and, and--

"You never have to ask Kuroo for-"

The front door of the apartment slams closed. A familiar set of boisterous laughter echoes through the halls-- Bokuto and Kuroo are hone. When you pull away, Kenma gives no resistance, his eyes still fixated on you.

An unjust guilt rises in your throat. You examine your hand, expecting a torrent of blood, only to be greeted with the smallest blossom on your finger tip.

"Were we supposed to do that?" you whisper.

"It's fine." Kenma adjusts himself in his chair, pulling at his pant legs. "They'll scold me, not you."

That doesn't make you feel better.

"Thanks," you say, awkwardly heading for the door. "For the-- thanks."

"Hey," he's using his real voice this time. You pause, turning back to him to catch his wide, Cheshire grin. "Thanks for the snack."

[nickfowlerrr]

something good and true - part 3

part one / part two / part four

pairing: mob boss!bucky x reader

warnings (for all parts in whole): 18+ only. domestic violence. retelling of abuse and battery. minor character death mentioned. angst. sweet and protective bucky. fluff. not sure if this qualifies as a slow burn or not 👀 smut. there’s a happy ending! (as per usual)

words: 5.5k

notes: the way almost none of this was in the original draft of what i was planning on posting lol 😂 thank you for your patience as i reworked and added a bunch of stuff to this little mini series of sorts! i hope you like it. feel free to share your thoughts and comments. thank you for reading and as always, reblogs and comments are welcome and so appreciated. enjoy! 🩵

The dinner was lovely, and the company too.

You don’t think you’ve ever had such a simple dish taste quite that good, or had conversations quite that interesting. Bucky really is as much a charmer as he’s been said to be.

He had a lot of questions about you and answered some of your own. Your rapport was easy, though you already expected from your previous conversations at the restaurant that it would be. You don’t know how you lose yourself so easily when you talk with him, and actually, lose isn’t the best word. There’s a kind of ease when you’re talking to him that has you fully being you. Aside from your usual shyness that shows through now and again, you speak with him without hesitation. Like you’re on the same level, though you know you’re nowhere near Bucky’s status and stature.

Still, you have similar outlooks on life, and seem to communicate and think in similar ways. By the time he was driving you home, you had almost completely forgotten about his social status and were in part failing to realize that you indeed had just had dinner with the city’s notorious mob boss.

There were certain things throughout the dinner that did remind you of that fact now and again, though. Not always what he said, but what he wouldn’t…

It was a quiet moment, a lull in your conversation when you decided to just ask. Your dad refused to tell you, and you had all but let it go, until Bucky said what he did about his guys finding Freddy. You don’t know what morbid curiosity was nipping at you, but some odd little part of you wanted to know.

“Can I ask,” you began slowly, unsure you really did want the mental picture, “where you found him?”

He looked at you, and seemed to have a split second of contemplation before he answered quite simply and calmly.

“No.”

You blinked down from his gaze to your plate, wetting your lip out of habit. You were kind of expecting that, but still. You picked up your fork and returned his stare, about to ask him why, when he continued and stopped you before you could question him.

“You don’t need’a know that, doll. You know, your dad probably didn’t tell you for a reason. Wasn’t exactly a pretty find.”

You swallowed the bite you had taken and watched as he took a sip of his drink. You didn’t push any further, and you had a feeling you wouldn’t have gotten much of anywhere if you had.

There were other questions you had asked, too, that he would only give a vague answer to, or evade completely.

“I won’t ever lie to you, sweetheart,” he had said. “But there’s just some things you’re better off not knowing.”

You couldn’t argue with that, and you knew he meant it when he said he wouldn’t lie.

His reputation precedes him, and he’s known to be a man of his word. Granted, those words are usually cold, callous certainties spoken to anyone who’d be dumb enough to try and cross him or do dirty work behind his back. Everyone’s heard the stories.

You’re fortunate that all his words toward you have been the complete opposite. It’s almost funny how safe you find yourself feeling around the man whose name alone struck fear in you just a few months ago. You can’t imagine feeling that way about or around him now.

He drove you home, a little later than you’d expected to be back but you didn’t really mind, and like he always did, he opened the car door for you, helped you out, and walked you to your front door.

You got the niceties out as you stood before him after unlocking your front door, the twinkle in his brilliant blue eyes momentarily holding you captive.

”Sorry I kept you so late,” he apologized.

“No, don’t be,” you shook your head lightly, “It was…good,” you breathed. “Talking with you was good. And the food was good,” you felt yourself on the verge of a ramble but couldn’t stop yourself, “It was-“

“Good?” he cut you off with a playful smirk. You felt your face heat up as your stomach fluttered.

“Yeah,” you smiled demurely, looking down at your feet for a second.

“I’m glad you had a good time,” he said, “so did I.” You looked up to meet his eye again as he continued, “I like spending time with you. Hopefully we can do it again.”

Your eyes widened ever so slightly and you took a breath before forcing yourself to swallow and your tongue to move. “I would like that,” you nodded.

“Good,” he simpered. You bit on your small smile in return. “I’ll be seeing you then.” He reached for your free hand, taking it gently in his as he raised it up to his lips, your breath stuttering as you watched him. He placed a delicate kiss on your hand, his blue eyes meeting your gaze as he did. “Sleep easy, sweetheart,” he said as he lowered your hand, squeezing it just a touch before he took a step back. “And happy Valentine’s Day,” he added as you pushed your door in.

“Happy Valentine’s,” you returned. “Have a good rest of your night.”

He gave you a crooked smile as he backed up further and you found yourself smiling again too as you closed the door and locked it behind yourself. You watched from the peephole as he walked to his car and waited until he pulled away to head to your room to start your nighttime routine.

Sleep came easier than it had in a long while.

-

You woke up in the morning to find a text message from an unsaved number. Unlocking your phone to read it, a giddiness came over you as you read the first sentence and realized who it was from.

Morning, doll. I hope you had a good night. I know it’s early, but call me when you can.

You were a little confused as to why he wanted you to call him, your mind wandering with the possibilities as you got out of bed, but of course you would.

He’d sent the message about an hour ago and it was barely half past 7 now. He must’ve been up really early and a bit of guilt for staying at his house so late nips at you. He’s a busy man and here you are taking up his time.

But, he is the one who asked you to dinner for reasons other than just getting the whole story about Freddy. He said himself that he wanted to have dinner with you, it wasn’t an obligation.

And this is him asking you to call him, not you invading on his morning.

A part of you wants to call right now, feeling like you’ve kept him waiting long enough, but another part of you - a stronger part - wants you to brush your teeth and not deviate from your daily getting readies. You can call him in twenty minutes, you’re sure it’ll be fine.

It’s minutes away from being 8 when you’re done with your brushing and skin care and you still wear your pajamas as you make your way down the hall to the kitchen, your phone in hand. You click on the still unsaved number, making a note to store it after the call. You dial and then put it on speaker as you listen to the usual tone and wait for an answer. It’s not long before you get one.

“Barnes,” his gruff voice comes through your cell. You’ve never heard him sound quite like that before, but you’re not entirely taken aback. This must be the Bucky most people are used to. You nibble on your lip as you grab a clean mug from the cabinet, holding your phone close to you as you multitask.

“Bucky?” you say, curious to see if his tone will change.

“Hey, sweetheart,” he greets, causing a smile to break out on your face at the abrupt change. His voice sounds smoother, and you don’t picture him looking so stoic or angry as you did a second ago. ”Sorry, I didn’t check who was calling before I answered. Been a busy morning.”

“It’s okay,” you ease as you put in a pod for your coffee. “I’m sorry I had you out so late. I didn’t realize you had to be up early, I would’ve tried to leave before.”

“No, don’t worry about it. ‘M used to early mornings. And I wouldn't ’ave wanted you to leave any sooner as it was.”

You smile at his words as your coffee starts to sputter, filling your mug three quarters full.

He continues, “Look, doll, I’m not gonna be around for the next couple days. Have some business to take care of outta town, but I wanted to call you before I got too busy to set something up for next week.”

“Oh,” you say, brows raised.

“I don’t wanna rush you here, sweetheart, so feel free to tell me what you’re thinkin’. If next week is too soon, I can wait… I think I’m just used to seeing you at least once a week now,” he chuckles softly. “And I do wanna see you again - even more now than I usually find myself wanting to, after last night.”

“I think I’m used to seeing you weekly, too,” you smile, laughing lightly. “Next week’s not too soon, I - yeah, I wanna see you too.”

“You free Tuesday?”

“I have a feeling you already know that I am,” you answer, earning a short, huffed laugh from Bucky on the other end.

“I was giving you an out if you wanted it.”

“Well I don’t.” The reply leaves your lips faster than you even realize, but it’s true. ”So, Tuesday?”

“How’s 2?”

“2 works.”

“Great, I’ll pick you up.”

“Okay,” you reply simply, smiling softly down at the mug you’ve set on the counter, still steaming. Bucky sighs, sounding a bit agitated as you hear a car door open in the background.

“Alright, well, as much as I’d like to stay on a little longer, I gotta go, doll.” Your smile falls just slightly as he goes on, “I’ll see you on Tuesday. And if you need anything in the meantime, anything comes up, you call me.”

“Yeah, okay. I will,” you murmur, wrapping your mind around his words and trying to name the feeling they’ve sent through you. “Talk to you later, then,” you trail off softly. “Bye.”

“Bye,” he bids, ending the call right after.

You readjust your hold on the phone and save Bucky to a new contact before setting it down completely.

Tuesday it is.

You take a drink from your mug. Now, what does one wear to a lunch date?

-

It was a long weekend. You spent Saturday not doing much aside from cleaning and catching up on some TV, while Sunday saw you going over to your parent’s for breakfast and then lounging the rest of the day away in the comfort of your own home. Sunday night, though, you received a text from Bucky that had that warm giddy feeling filling your chest, and that familiar fluttering flying in your tummy. It was simple, but so sweet.

Hope you had a good weekend, sweetheart. Was just thinking about you, wanted to wish you a goodnight.

Monday, you had work that evening but spent the earlier part of your day finalizing your outfit. The restaurant was slow but you still ended the night with a nice amount of tips. When you got home you followed your typical routine as normal and just as you were getting into bed, your phone started to ring. Your brows scrunched as you pulled it from where it was charging and upon seeing Bucky’s name on the screen, answered with your heart ticking a little faster despite yourself.

“Hello?” you answered.

“Hey, sweetheart. How are you?”

“I’m good,” you answered a bit trepidatiously. “Why? Is everything okay?”

“Yeah,” he reassured right away. “I was getting ready for bed and realized I hadn’t confirmed with you for tomorrow. 2 still work for you?”

“Oh,” you breathed a little easier, “yeah, it does… I’m looking forward to it,” you said before biting your lip. Was that silly to say? You wondered briefly before he responded.

“Me too,” he said, and you swore you could hear a hint of a smile in his voice when he spoke. “Sorry I couldn’t call earlier, I got held up with some business.”

“That’s okay, I was at work most of the day, I probably wouldn’t have been able to answer if you had.”

“Right,” he said before you heard what sounded like a water faucet being turned on. “How was your shift?”

You were a little surprised at the question, just not having expected it, but you answered in turn. The conversation lasted a little while as you both talked briefly about your days - all the while you heard what you assumed was Bucky going about his washroom getting ready for bed like he said he had been doing. It was oddly familiar, but not in a bad way. Just, comfortable. The way he spoke to you, like he genuinely cared about what you had to say, about how your day went, it lit something inside you that you don’t think you’ve ever felt before. It was the feeling that you really, truly were cared for. That someone wanted to know about your day, not just because they wanted to get in your pants, but because they were genuinely interested in you.

You went to bed with a smile as Bucky wished you a good night, his low soothing timber reminding you he’d be seeing you tomorrow before you ended the call.

-

You’re dressed and ready for lunch half an hour early, the buzzing excitement you’re trying hard to not let overwhelm you causing you to move faster than you normally do on your days off.

Instead of sitting impatiently on the couch, checking the time every other minute, you decide to get some air and wait out on the porch.

It’s a nice afternoon, a light easy breeze drifting through the cool, sunny day as you sit. The sun is out but it’s still early spring, so not too warm yet. You wear a sundress that hits just above your knees and your pair of walkable, low heeled sandals.

You sit back with a sigh, close your eyes, and take some breaths. The time passes by faster after your eyes fall shut, a warm tiredness washing over you as the sun shines near. You’re like a cat in a window. You manage to rest your eyes for about fifteen minutes before you wake yourself up. You pull your phone from your purse and decide to spend the next fifteen minutes scrolling through your socials.

Your head perks up as you hear a car approaching and you move to see Bucky coming down your way. You stand as he pulls in front of your house and start to make your way to his car as he gets out himself. You meet at the car door as he stands before you.

“Hey, doll,” he greets with a half smile, coming close to kiss your cheek softly, then pulling away and meeting your twinkling eyes as you gaze at him.

“Hi,” you return, sounding a little more affected by the simple gesture than you maybe wanted to.

“You look beautiful as always,” he compliments as he opens the door for you, helping you in.

You respond when he gets back in on his side. “You look really nice,” you admire in turn, earning a charming grin from him as he pulls away from your house.

“Thanks, sweetheart,” he says as you watch him drive. He wears a nice pair of dark trousers, a white tee, and a white, undone short sleeve button up over it. His beard is short and well kept as usual, his dark hair pushed back and kept there with his sunglasses on his head. You see a silver chain peeking out from the collar of his shirt as he mindlessly wets his lips, making sure he’s clear to turn from the stop you’re at. He glances over at you as he turns and catches your stare, his lips tilting up as you smile shyly at being caught.

This is the most casual you’ve ever seen him, and you really like it. He looks incredible in a suit, but there’s something about him right now that feels a little more free, and maybe a little more him.

When Bucky pulls up to the front of the restaurant, there is a valet waiting. A young man opens your door for you and as you get out, Bucky is there to take your hand. He passes off his key to the man he thanks by name before he leads you to the entrance.

“Mr. Barnes,” a pretty blonde greets at the front, “lovely to see you again. Miss.,” she greets you with a smile. “Your table is right this way.”

You don’t even realize your hand is still in his as he guides you to follow behind the woman, not until you get to the seating area. It’s almost instantaneous, all eyes on you and Bucky the second you enter the area. You try not to look at anyone yourself as your hand squeezes Bucky’s a little tighter without thought. He pulls you almost imperceptibly closer to him as you walk hand in hand to the table reserved for him.

He pulls your seat out and pushes you in once you’re sat before taking his own across from you.

“Here are your menus,” she says as she places them before you both, “your server will be right with you, but can I get your drinks started for you in the meantime?”

“I’ll take a water, please,” you answer with a polite smile.

“I’ll have water, as well,” Bucky says. “Thank you.”

“Of course, I’ll get those right away.”

You watch the blonde as she flits away and then feel Bucky’s eyes on you. You turn to him with curious eyes as you grab the menu to pursue. “What?” you say with a light laugh.

He takes a second before he responds, then gives a small shake of his head, “Nothing.” He grabs his own menu and continues as you both look it over, “Have you been here before?”

“Here?” you ask, almost disbelieving the question. “Uh, no,” you answer honestly, “I think it’s just a bit outta my tax bracket,” you joke.

He smiles at you across the table, but really the distance isn’t all that far.

“I have always wanted to eat here, though. I’ve heard good things.”

“Yeah, they have some quality options. And don’t worry about the prices, order whatever you like, please.”

You exchange a glance and an easy smile before you continue browsing the menu.

Not even a minute later do you find yourselves being interrupted.

You’re a little startled at first as a man makes his presence known at the table, you don’t know how you missed him walking up to begin with, but you did. He’s average height, with an athletic build. Medium brown hair, brown eyes, and clean shaven. He wears a suit and tie that speaks to his class and an expensive watch on his wrist. You’ve never seen him before, at least not in person, but he looks oddly familiar. You think he might be that attorney with the commercials that play everywhere all over town. You can’t remember his name. Not that that is your concern at all at the moment. You felt the energy change the instant he got to your table. The man looks a little miffed, but also a little unsure in his actions, as he looks at Bucky. Your eyes are on him as you wait for him to speak.

“Mr. Barnes. David Dunlap,” he introduces himself, “I have been trying to get in contact with you for almost three weeks n-“

Your eyes shoot to Bucky at Dunlap’s abrupt silence and see that he’s raised his hand in pause. There’s a harshness in Bucky’s gaze that cuts through the man before him as he makes him stand in his silence for a long, uncomfortable moment. His face is stone before he speaks, unsettlingly calm, with an edge to it.

“You see the lady sitting right here across from me?”

David nods slowly, changing a glance at you.

“Why don’t you show some respect and start off by apologizing for startling her and interrupting our lunch.”

David’s eyes find you again, a little wider now than they were a second ago. He swallows thickly before he does just that. “Excuse me, miss, for the interruption. I certainly didn't mean to startle you, I’m very sorry.”

You don’t know what to say, you just give a small nod and a tight lipped but polite smile before your eyes find Bucky’s again.

“Great. You do have manners. Now take a second and ask yourself, do I really look like I’m here to do business right now? And even if I were, do you really think it’s a good idea to come approach me the way you just did?” He waits a second for a response he doesn’t get before continuing, “Right. Why don’t you keep using those manners of yours, go back to your table, enjoy your lunch, and continue to wait patiently, like half the other people here, until someone at my organization returns your calls.”

“I understand I’m not the only one trying to reach you, sir,” the man starts again, sounding overly agitated as he turns more toward Bucky, knocking the table on your side a bit as he does. The second you recoil from the bump, just out of surprise at the table moving, Bucky is out of his seat, easily standing taller than Dunlap; his jaw set and his eyes dead on him.

“Step away from the table,” Bucky says. His voice is low and deadly and you can hear his ire as clearly as you can see it in his eyes.

Your gaze is only on Bucky as you find yourself entranced by him.

You sense Dunlap step further away, a fast apology spilling out past his lips.

“Go finish your lunch, tip your server, and stay the hell outta my line of sight while you do it.” His voice remains steady as he speaks clearly, “I’m with company, so I’m bein’ nice, but the next time you forget who you’re talking to when you’re speaking to me, the next time I have to repeat myself,” his warning goes unfinished as Dunlap cuts him off by rushing out another apology - his previous agitation now gone completely in favor of a more submissive, and even scared, tone as he tries to appease the domineering man before him. He leaves quickly, and with an assurance of his understanding as he does.

It’s only then you realize the place had gone silent at the unexpected interaction. There’s not many eyes on you, people know better than to stare right now, but you know they were all fully listening. The silence though is quickly replaced by the return of idle lunch chatter as Bucky sits once more. He fixes his shirt as he does, and meets your enraptured gaze as you watch him. You feel flustered and a little embarrassed by how attractive you actually found that display of dominance and authority.

“I’m sorry about that, sweetheart,” he apologizes.

“Please, don’t be,” you say with quick reassurance, looking into his eyes. “I uhm,” you swallow, hoping he can’t somehow read your thoughts and figure out exactly what it is that you’re thinking, “I thought you shut that down well. But I appreciate the apologies,” you add with a smile. “Yours and his.”

Your waiter approaches with your waters and apologizes themselves for the disturbance you experienced at the hands of another guest. They assure Bucky they’re handling him as well and he won’t be dealing with that again, not that Bucky is worried about it in the slightest. You both place your orders and are thankfully able to continue with your lunch as normal. Or as normal as a lunch date with a mob boss can be. The curious glances and whispers can only be so ignored…

Bucky paid the bill, of course, and you thanked him for lunch as he took your hand and walked you out to his awaiting car.

“I’m sorry again about what happened earlier,” he apologizes when he gets in, your brows furrowing at his words. “Stuff like that doesn’t happen often, but it does happen - now and again.” He begins to drive off but you can tell there’s something more he wants to say, so you wait for him to say it.

“Comes with the job. The life,” he looks at you, a bit pointedly, and you think you know what he’s getting at. “I’m not trying to scare you or make you uncomfortable, I just don’t want you to slip too far into something you don’t really want to be a part of.”

“…Your life?”, you clarify.

He looks at you again and without saying anything, you know his answer is a yes.

“I’m not under any illusions about what it is you do, Bucky; who you are to people, the life you live. If I was uncomfortable, or I didn’t want to be around you, you would know it. And for the record,” you add, “I feel the complete opposite of scared when I’m with you. Like earlier, I… I like that side of you, too.”

He eyes you as he drives and sports a half smirk at your words, “Yeah?”

“Yeah,” you smile shyly back.

-

You thought lunch was the only thing on the table today, but when Bucky asked if you wanted to go to the art museum as you came up on it, you were more than happy to say yes. You probably would’ve said yes to anything he suggested, really. You didn’t want to go home and say goodbye so soon.

The museum wasn’t too busy so you really took your time wandering the exhibits, admiring the artwork and sharing your thoughts on certain pieces that really spoke to you.

You knew Bucky was a smart man, but you didn’t know to what extent. He was quite the historian, sharing facts and giving you background on certain artists and historical events you’d never studied before yourself. He seemed a real patron of the humanities and it added another level to him entirely. You thought back to the artwork that adorned the walls of his home and were now more interested than before on why he’d chosen to display the pieces he did. What they meant to him, why he liked them. You wanted to hear his thoughts. Suddenly, you wanted to know his thoughts on everything, really. You could listen to him talk for hours.

Eventually, after walking the whole museum, you made your way back to the entrance and then to the parking garage.

Bucky led you to the car as you walked close to his side. You felt…happy. Genuinely happy. His hand brushed yours as you walked and though the distance to his car was relatively short, he still took your hand in his as he led the rest of the way; helping you in when you reached it.

There was a weird kind of excitement buzzing around you as he drove you home. And along with it, an odd kind of contentment. It all felt so new, and yet so safe.

When Bucky pulled up to your house, around 5:30, he got out to open your door for you, offering you his hand as you moved to stand. You took it with a soft smile and met his ocean blue gaze, “Thank you.” As you began up the way to your front door, you spoke again, “I had a really nice time today, Bucky.”

You were walking awfully slowly, side by side, wanting to spend as much more time with him as you could before you’d call the date officially over with your goodbyes.

“Me too, sweetheart,” he agreed with a simpering smile while he looked at you.

He walked you all the way to your door and as you unlocked it, you had a thought. Turning to face him once again you decided to just ask.

“Do you wanna come in for a drink?”

He takes a breath then released it heavily, “Ah, I wish I could,” he says almost wistfully. “I have a business dinner. Next time,” he assures. It’s not a question, it’s a promise. You’re a little disappointed to have to say bye now, but you understand.

“Okay,” you agree with a demure smile.

“Okay,” he echoes with a lopsided smile of his own.

You both stay standing in front of one another for a long moment, neither of you wanting to leave, and after a second, you unthinkingly let your eyes leave his, trailing down and landing on his lips. You realize instantly just how badly you want to kiss him.

Your eyes flick up to meet his, only to find his gaze on your own lips instead. You think for a second that he might kiss you, but then you see the hesitation, the restraint as he mindlessly wets his lips before biting his own lip gently and letting it go.

You know then why he has yet to kiss you. He doesn’t want to rush you into anything and you’re getting the feeling he’s waiting for you to make the first move, to let him know what it is you want.

You take a breath, mustering up your courage and confidence as you slowly inch closer to him. You don’t think you’ve ever made the first move on anyone before. God, this is kinda nerve wracking…

Bucky is still, not moving as he watches you take a step closer, leaving very little distance between you now.

You look in his eyes and it’s like he can read your mind. You’re breathing just a little heavier now as his eyes float down to your lips once again, telling you it’s what he wants, too.

You angle yourself, tilting to kiss him. Your eyes flutter shut at the contact of his lips on your and it’s less than a second before Bucky is kissing you back. It’s soft, and sweet, and at the same time, so charged. Bucky reaches to hold your face with one hand and gently places the other on your waist as you kiss him a little deeper. Your own hands find their way around his neck, your fingers slipping into his hair as the kiss grows more sensual and you seem to pull each other closer still. You wouldn’t mind staying there with him all night but you have to part to take a breath.

With your nose against his, your eyes still shut as you catch a breath, bodies still close, lips not too far apart, you breathe a quiet question.

“You’re sure you don’t wanna come in?”, you ask, sounding a little drunk off the kiss already as you press your lips to his again, soft once more. You can feel his smirk at your question as he kisses you back before he breaks it with a groan. Your eyes blink open as you watch him.

“You’re killin’ me, doll,” he grouses in jest, pressing his forehead to yours as he holds you to him, his hand gently squeezing the soft curve of your waist before his thumb smooths soothingly over the fabric of your dress. “You know I’m trying to be a gentleman here.”

You can’t help your own soft smile as you apologize with a titter, “I’m sorry.”

He breathes a soft laugh, pulling away from you ever so slightly, “I don't think you are.”

He lets his thumb rub your cheek, looking in your eyes as if to check in with you before he leans closer once more, kissing you gently. He pulls away fully then, though his hands linger as he does, slipping softly off your cheek first, but keeps his one hand now on your hip, like he doesn’t want to part just yet. You’re not complaining, the feeling is more than mutual, and you like the weight of his hand on you. You’ll take it for as long as you can.

“I do have to go,” he says apologetically. You keep your soft smile as you nod in understanding before he continues, “I’ll call you.”

“I’ll answer,” you reply easily.

His hand slips off your hip as he moves instead to take hold of your hand. He brings it up to his lips and places a quick but delicate kiss on your hand, making your tummy flutter once again at the newly familiar gesture.

“Have a good night, sweetheart.”

“You too, Bucky,” you return as he lowers your hand, releasing his hold. “Bye,” you bid as you step to your door, opening it and then waiting at the threshold as you watch him go back to his car. Just before he gets in, he sends a charming, boyish smile your way.

You watch him go before you finally close and lock your door behind you, feeling like you’re floating as your lips still tingle from his kiss and you warm at the phantom feeling of his hands holding you.

[gotta-winwin]

(𝄞⨾𓍢ִ໋) how seokmin falls in love

⭐ starring: seokmin

💌 genre: fluff | wc: 1.8k

💬 preview: House SEVENTEEN grapples with the idea that their resident bachelor might be in love…as all the signs start to show up.

tw/cw: college au, inspired by the song ‘ when emma falls in love’, lowkey crack!seventeen

🪽fic rating: pg

☁️ masterlist & a/n: this is partly a homage to b0y - every sign you see in this fic has been something he’s done for me - yes, he has a fic with him written all over it. yes, he’s still on thin ice :) anyways...another instalment of our 500 followers event!

p.s thank you so much to @diamonddaze01 for beta reading <33

this is a part of my 500 followers event

When Seokmin falls in love, it’s fast-- nearly instant, exploding his world with color and song. Everyone around him is greeted by the sudden glare and it’s certainly hard not to notice. 

Seungcheol knew Seokmin had fallen in love when he started extending his bed time. 

Seokmin had always been an avid preacher of sleep early, wake early. He’s up by six in the morning making coffee for the rest of them and in bed by 10pm, his lights dimmed down and a satin eye mask over his face. 

So when it’s already past midnight and Seungcheol could still hear talking from Seokmin’s room, he paused.

“No, it’s great.” 

Seungcheol hovered in the hallway, his ears straining to hear past Seokmin’s closed door. 

“I think you look beautiful.” 

Seungcheol’s eyebrows raise. Seokmin was calling a girl, because no straight man would call a bro beautiful. 

Then Seokmin giggled and Seungcheol decided that was his sign to go to bed.

“No, I’m telling you, he fucking giggled.” 

Jeonghan shook his head, licking the residue of burger sauce off his finger. “Seokmin doesn’t giggle. He laughs, sure, but in a witchy cackle, not a giggle.” 

“It was definitely a giggle.” Seungcheol stood his ground. “I heard him last night when I got home from my shift at the bar.” 

Jeonghan frowned. “Didn’t you work closing? You would’ve gotten home past midnight and we both know Seokmin has never seen that kind of time on a clock before.” 

“That’s exactly my point.” Seungcheol set his cup down on the counter as if to emphasize his point. “He stayed up late on the phone with some girl and he also giggled. He’s in love.” 

Jeonghan shook his head again. “I still think you were just hallucinating. Seokmin doesn’t talk to girls.” 

Seungcheol knew he was right. The last time Seokmin had contributed to House SEVENTEEN’s love life was in elementary school, and anyone knew romances that young were meaningless. “Maybe I was hallucinating. I was pretty out of it last night-- some guy was mucking up the bar and I nearly lost it.” 

Jeonghan shot him a sympathetic smile. “Maybe you heard the ghost giggle.” 

“For the fucking last time-- our house does not have a ghost.” 

“Tell that to Chan, he still sleeps with the small light on.” 

“Did you hear the thing about Seokmin being on the phone with some girl a couple nights ago?” The word was spreading like wildfire around the house, Joshua being one of the last ones to hear it. 

“Yeah, man.” Soonyoung nodded. “We all heard from Seungcheol last night.”

“How come no one told me till today?” 

Chan shrugged. “You would’ve heard if you had come to beer night-- which you didn’t.” 

“Okay.” Joshua raised his hands in acknowledgement. “But I’ve been noticing some odd things about Seokmin for a while now.”

Joshua had accidentally taken a glance at Seokmin’s browsing history-- that one time he had been in the washroom taking the longest shit and had left Joshua unattended with his phone unlocked. 

“No single guy searches up ‘how to wrap a bouquet’ and ‘best pasta place in town.’” 

Soonyoung slapped Chan on the back. “Bro’s in love.” 

“Then why hasn’t he said anything to us?” 

Joshua laughed. “Maybe because he knows he’ll be teased for it?” Exiting out of his research paper and closing his laptop, Joshua got up to leave. “Got a shift at the library, I’ll see you guys at home.”

He fails to mention the fact that he had spotted flowers sitting in the back of Seokmin’s closet just last night-- a plethora of pink and red roses, carnations and baby breath. 

Jun liked to keep to himself as often as possible, although he couldn’t help but nose his way into Seokmin’s business when he stepped into his room and realized the place was spotless. 

“You cleaned your room?” He wondered aloud, noticing how the handful of empty cups and the usual heaps of clothes on the floor were gone. 

Seokmin nodded. “Yeah.”

“And you changed your bedsheets?” 

“Yeah…?” Seokmin glanced at Jun oddly from the corner of his eye. “What about it?” 

“Nothing.” Jun mumbled, sitting down on the crisp bed sheets, trying to shake the feeling that something was off about his housemate. “I just haven’t seen your floors this clean since…well, since we moved in.” 

Seokmin shrugged. “Thought I’d get my shit together, y’know?” 

“Yeah. Yeah.” 

Me: something’s wrong with seok. 

Hao (housemate #8): wdym? 

Me: i think he’s dating someone. 

Hao (housemate #8): ykw you might be right.

Minghao had caught Seokmin leaving the library late one night, his bag swung over his shoulder and an unusual pep in his step. He had never seen anyone leave a library looking that joyful, let alone Seokmin, who hated studying and anything scholarly. 

A girl had left with the same glowing look on her face just 10 minutes later. 

Minghao had chalked it up to mere coincidence, a million other reasons running through his head. Maybe Wonwoo had forgotten something at home and had employed Seokmin to get it for him. Maybe Seokmin had finally turned over a new leaf and decided school was worth working hard for. Or maybe, just maybe- Jun was right and Seokmin had been there to meet a girl. 

“No, you’re not listening to me.” Seungkwan waved his hands in agitation. “I saw Seokmin holding a girl’s drink after class today.” 

“How do you even know it’s a girl’s?” Mingyu questioned through a mouthful of soup, gently balancing a spoonful for Wonwoo, who was standing next to him. “It could’ve just been his.”

“Mingyu’s right, Kwan.” Wonwoo accepted the soup from Mingyu. “Don’t jump to conclusions.”

“It was a venti white mocha, quad shot, 2 shots on bottom, two on top. Almond milk, caramel drizzle.” Seungkwan recited. “Don’t tell me that isn’t a girl drink.”

Wonwoo frowned. “How do you even know all that?”

“Doesn’t matter.” Seungkwan brushed their questioning looks aside. “I’m telling you, Seokmin has a girlfriend.”

“He would’ve told us.” Mingyu defended his friend. 

“No, he wouldn’t.” Wonwoo muttered from the side, knowing full well Seokmin wouldn’t. He might be one of the more naive ones in the group but he was still smart enough to know that information like this was passed around at the speed of light. If he wanted any privacy with this girl-- Seokmin would keep his mouth shut. 

“Maybe we should just ask him.” Mingyu proposed the idea hesitantly. “What harm can it do?” 

“No!” Seungkwan shook his head, hitting Mingyu’s shoulder. “Not until we get more proof.” 

“Guys.” Chan walked in, waving various pieces of white paper in his hands. “I found something.”

Chan had gone through Seokmin’s trash, setting down three crinkled receipts onto the kitchen island. 

One to a fancy restaurant down the street, another for an escape room booking for two, and one for a We’re Not Really Strangers card game. 

“You went through his trash??” Seungkwan shot him a look. “What are you, a raccoon?” 

Chan shrugged. “They say you can really understand a man by looking through his trash.” 

“Yeah, in serial killer movies.” Wonwoo mentioned, although he had leaned down to check out the receipts for himself. “Oh yeah, Seok’s definitely not single.”

“He got the card game for us.” Mingyu offered. “Was talking about it for our next wine night.”

“Okay,” Chan wasn’t ready to give up. “But the restaurant and escape room were definitely dates, right?”

“I’m keeping these as evidence.” Seungkwan gathered the receipts up and folded them into his wallet. “Good job team.”

Wonwoo rolled his eyes. “This is not Brooklyn 99, Seungkwan.” 

Soonyoung and Vernon made it barely ten steps out of the house before they were both sprayed down with a garden hose. 

“What-”

Seokmin smiled at them apologetically through their blurred vision. “Sorry, guys. Trying to wash my car.”

Vernon frowned. “Why?”

“Picking up a friend and the car was kind of musty so I thought I’d rinse it down.” 

Soonyoung and Vernon exchanged a knowing glance. 

“A friend?” 

Seokmin nodded, redirecting the water jet to spray against the passenger door. “Yeah, from Physics 200.” 

“What’s their name?” Soonyoung pushed, and Vernon nudged him from behind. They had all promised not to broach the subject. 

Seokmin shook his head. “You wouldn’t know them.” 

“Washing his car to go pick up a friend.” Soonyoung mimicked Seokmin’s lovesick voice in an exaggerated rendition as they walked further up the street. “He’s so seeing a girl.”

Vernon frowned. “Maybe he was just picking up a friend.” 

“Friends other than us?” Soonyoung scoffed. “As if.”

“Wonwoo!”

The boy in question raised his head, pausing the music that was coming from his headphones. “What’s up, Seok?” 

Seokmin slid onto the bench directly opposite him, an imploring look on his face. “I need a book rec.”

Wonwoo blinked, pushing his glasses up with the back of his hand and closing his medical textbook. “You,” he paused, enunciating his words as slowly as possible. “Need a book. To read?”

Seokmin nodded. “Yes, to read. What’s the best book you can give me?”

Wonwoo thought for a moment, as his conversation with Seungkwan and the others resurfaced in his mind. “Seok, are you sure? I don’t think I’ve seen you pick up a book since…middle school.” 

Seokmin let out a huff of annoyance. “Just give me a book, please?”

“Okay, what genre of literature are you looking for?”

Seokmin blanked. “Um…just- a book?” 

Wonwoo sighed, an amused laugh escaping from his lungs. He had been skeptical about the whole ‘Seokmin in love’ theory at first, but now it was becoming increasingly hard to avoid. “Seok, be honest. Is this for a girl or something?”

“Yes.” Seokmin’s shoulders sagged. “I really need her to like me. And she loves reading so-”

“Go pick up Gatsby.” Wonwoo pointed Seokmin towards the section of the library that he knew the book was housed in. “It’ll work if she’s a girl worth chasing.” 

All this talk about Seungkwan and his silly theory about Seokmin being in love had left Jihoon with no option but to leave the house, too annoyed by all the delusional conversations and Seungkwan imitating Captain Raymond Holt. 

Maybe it was because none of them had ever seen Seokmin with a girl before-- not even remotely interested in one. For the longest time, they had been carrying a bet that he might just not like girls. Or maybe he didn’t like anyone at all. 

“Oh my fucking-” Jihoon dropped his protein shake, the contents spilling over the concrete floor. 

There he was, in the middle of the school courtyard, arms around a girl’s waist, a bright smile on his face. Jihoon watched, horrified, as Seokmin leaned in for a kiss, his lips meeting hers in a passionate embrace. 

Jihoon pulled out his phone to send exactly one message into the groupchat. 

Me: everyone owes Seungkwan $10. 

[penguinlife]

Honestly, it all seems super sus. Jake's IG story post of Nic at the SAG awards was my first, what now. The comment from Jake on the pic and like from Nic. Strange, but ok. Now Nic and the dancer are following each other. If Jake and A have been misdirections/decoys all this time, it totally makes sense. If this is damage control to save Luke's relationship, it is odd. We all saw what we saw. Authenticity is key. We don't believe Nic and Jake are together. The way sweet kind Luke treats A is so out of character.

If Nic and Luke is so set on selling the narrative that they are not fucking and are just friends. Maybe find plausible other halfs, not a backup dancer and an aspiring actor. They are way too young, and it looks bad for both of them.

Something else I noticed is the reference that Nic looked like Cinderella in that pretty blue Dior dress. You could see the panic in her face when the reporter said it. Benophie is supposed to be a Cinderella adaptation. There was almost no fan attention paid to the Benophie story after the Tadum Valentine's Day event. Everyone was pretty focused on Polin and baby Featherington. I wonder, and it is just my thoughts. Maybe their contract renewals for S5-S8 might be on the block. Does Shondaland want them out of the way for the other stories. The way Nic and Luke pushed so hard that Yarin Ya and Luke Thompson are doing such a great job and that it is going to be great. It sounded very odd. As both were specifically asked about them in S4. Not a general question of the show. Also, Nic has changed focus to baby Polin in interviews. She rarely talks about Pen and Colin. I'm pretty sure there is pressure from Netflix for more Polin. They look at numbers and don't care about whose turn it is to lead.

Then I also thought that maybe they were not allowed to date, that it was in their contracts. If so, it is a major overreach.

I have said it before and I will say it again. You can not control SM. It is a beast of its own. Nic and Luke want to lie to themselves. That is also fine. Do you know who were just besties before they hooked up in a carriage? Pen and Colin. So good luck, besties. May you have lots of intimacy scenes to act out your heart without dealing with your feelings in rl.

I almost forgot to also mention, has anyone seen any photos with Nic and the rest of the enamble except for Luke?

The way Luke and Nic saw each other on the red carper was so authentic. He was doing an interview, and the interviewer pointed her out. He had a truly honest reaction seeing her. No cameras were on his face, but we could still see his jaw fall open the same way as it did on the BTS wedding clip. He then stands there for a second, deciding if he should interrupt her interview. But he is so overcome that he can't control himself. Then she has a totally real reaction to seeing him. She looked surprised. There was an honest delay in her reaction. And then she looked elated.

He pulled her into the hug that lasted just a few seconds too long to pass for a friendly hallo. It looked more like they needed that hug to survive. Then Luke immediately steps back when the interviewer comments that their outfits match. Realisation that they were just called out. They proceed to do 2 other interviews together. The one where the guy interviewer put his hand on Nics' shoulder, and Luke looked like he could murder the man. His stare so intense that the interviewer actually steps away, and the woman interviewer takes over. Luke was standing so close to Nic towering over her like a bodyguard. It was by far the best entertainment I have seen in 8 months.

[ashwhowrites]

SO excited a fave is back!!!!

i was wondering if we could have some fwb angst to fluff with eddie? like eddie has been super vague about his feelings for r and shes super sad abt it but then he invites her over for valentines day and they have a cute date with a cute confession?

I hope this is what you wanted and you enjoy it. Thank you so much for requesting❤️

Valentine's Day

It was supposed to be a one-time thing, one night, and mean nothing. She and Eddie were only meant to cross the lines as best friends one time.

Only

One

Time

"Can I ask you something?" Y/N asked, fiddling with her fingers nervously. A few beers scattered on the floor, giving her the courage to ask.

Eddie nodded as he inhaled his cigarette, keeping his eyes on her. She sat across from him on his bed, the two were just spending a typical Friday night together. Something they always did.

"Have you ever had sex?"

Eddie coughed as he exhaled, not expecting his girl best friend to ask him something so personal. He blushed as he ashed out his cigarette.

"Um no," he mumbled embarrassed, "have you?"

Y/N was a little surprised he was still a virgin, but in a way, it comforted her. She felt embarrassed as she shook her head no, taking a swig of her drink as her throat got dry.

"Really? I'm surprised," Eddie mumbled, leaning over to grab her beer as he took a swig.

"What? Why?" She asked, her head turned to the side and Eddie thought about how cute she was.

He shrugged, passing her the beer. "I just find it hard to believe, that's all."

"Do you think I'm a slut or something?" She questioned a little hurt by his response.

He panicked, eyes wide as he waved his hands. "Of course not! It's just you are... attractive." He stumbled out, he wasn't sure if it was the embarrassment or the beer that made his body hot.

"Oh," she whispered, slightly smiling to herself. "I would say the same about you," Eddie swallowed harshly as she looked at him with batted eyelashes.

"You think I'm attractive?" Eddie chuckled

"Don't laugh!" She said as she smacked his arm. "You're handsome and I think everyone can see that."

"Handsome? What am I four? I wanna be smoking hot to the babes," Eddie smirked, placing his hands behind his head. Y/N stopped herself from staring at the way his arms bulged out in the new position.

She was pretty damn sure from this point the alcohol did all the talking. And that's where it got complicated.

"You are," she confessed, "trust me, we all think it."

Eddie had a big grin on his face as he sat up, leaning over so his face was closer to hers. "You all think I'm smoking hot? Including you?"

She didn't know but her words were making his heart race. He didn't care if he was hot to other girls, he wanted to be hot to her.

"Yes," she said as she shyly looked away but Eddie didn't let that happen. His finger rested under her chin as he pushed her head up.

"I think you're smoking hot too, baby," he whispered. She nibbled on her lip as she looked into his dark and intense brown eyes. Her stomach did flips when his eyes flashed down at her lips. "Why did you ask about sex?"

"I don't want to be a virgin anymore," she whispered honestly. The alcohol gave her no shame or boundaries. "And I'm too scared to do it with a random guy."

Eddie couldn't help but feel himself getting turned on by the idea. A teasing glint in his eyes made her nervous. He leaned in, his nose nudging hers as his finger stayed on her chin. She was so close to him that she could taste the beer and cigarette in his breath.

"Are you saying you want me to fuck you?"

She mindlessly whined, her body betraying her as she felt something between her thighs. She closed her eyes as she pictured it. His warm body was on top of hers as he made her feel things she'd never felt.

"Yes," she said with her eyes closed. Too scared to face the reality.

"Ask nicely," she could hear the teasing in his voice. Eddie always loved to pick on people and tease them to get them riled up. And she wasn't shocked he did the same thing in the bedroom.

She opened her eyes, and the nervousness she felt washed away as she remembered it was Eddie in front of her. No amount of his teasing was serious. He'd be gentle and he'd do anything she wanted.

"Will you please-" she couldn't even finish before he pushed her body against the mattress, and his lips landed on hers.

~

The morning after was so awkward and they didn't know how to act. It was silent the whole car ride to her house. It took days before either of them got the courage to talk. They realized they might have ruined their friendship for one night.

But the problem wasn't that the sex was bad that it made it impossible to see each other. It was that the sex was so damn good that they craved it.

Instead of talking it out and trying to resolve it, they ended up back up in bed together. Their relationship wasn't awkward in the sheets, her under him and calling out his name.

So that's how a friend with benefits came to be. It's been a hot few months and neither wanted it to end. But Y/N couldn't help but realize she was falling for him. She wished she could keep it as only sex but she wanted to kiss him whenever she wanted. She wanted his hand in hers at all times. She wanted to be claimed and to claim him.

But Eddie was very hard to read. He was so vague with his feelings unless it was during sex. She did try to talk about it but he got this uncomfortable look on his face and changed the subject. Unfortunately, she believed that was him telling her nothing more would happen.

Eddie noticed she was different during their pillow talk. Her eyes didn't hold the same passion, almost like her eyes got sad. She didn't look at him during sex much anymore, keeping her eyes closed as he tried to touch her back to life.

He wasn't sure what was going on but he was scared to ask. He didn't want to lose her like he almost did last time. So he figured it was best to do what they felt comfortable doing.

He wasn't aware that his cold feet were making Y/N want to change her mind.

~~~

Y/N pulled up to Eddie's trailer, a question on her mind and she was ready to demand an answer. She let herself in, heading to his bedroom.

The door was open as she looked in. He was scribbling in his notebook, looking up as he heard footsteps.

"Hey baby, what are you doing here?" He smiled

She ignored how beautiful he looked with his hair tied up. She sighed and moved to sit across from him, taking the small notebook out of his hands so she had all his attention. He watched silently, letting her do so.

"I want to talk about us," she said

"What about us?"

"What do you think we're doing?"

Eddie was confused, treading lightly. "Friends who enjoy sex together?"

"Is it just sex?" She asked. Her soft eyes stared into his as he fumbled for an answer. He wasn't sure what the right answer was.

"I don't know," he shrugged, "we haven't discussed how this works."

"Because you refuse, Eddie!"

"I just don't think we need to have a conversation about it! We like what's going on so what needs to change."

Y/N tried to hide her disappointment. He was fine with what they were and that's all she needed to know.

"You're right," she faked a smile.

Eddie felt relieved as she seemed to be fine. "Yeah? We're good?"

"Yes," she lied, leaning in to press her lips against his.

~

Eddie wasn't interested in becoming her boyfriend so she figured to look elsewhere. In the meantime, she could enjoy sweaty sex with Eddie, and find a rebound to fix her heart.

Luckily for her, a guy in one of her classes has been waiting for her to say yes to a date. Finally, she did.

"So how come this place?" Zack asked as they walked into the Hideout.

Y/N felt guilty for using the poor guy, but she wanted to punish Eddie for not wanting her. She wanted him to feel jealous and find out he did want her. Zack was a pawn and it was wrong, but she was out of ideas.

"One of my favorite places to hang out. Good music, drink and food," she explained. The two sat at a small booth after they ordered their drinks at the bar.

~

"No way, dude. Not interested," Eddie laughed as he and Gareth walked into the Hideout.

"Why? You already said that you and Y/N are still only sex," Gareth explained.

"Doesn't mean I want to get involved with another girl and create a mess," Eddie said heading to the bar. He sat on the stool and ordered a beer as Gareth sat next to him.

"Then what the hell are you doing? Fucking your best friend but won't date her. But also don't want to get involved with another girl."

"Why does sex immediately mean a relationship? I love Y/N but I don't know if I could be a good boyfriend. But what I am is a good friend and that's why I'm not going to sleep with her and then randomly go on a date with a girl. She'd be crushed," Eddie explained as he took a swig of his beer.

"Would you be crushed if she did it to you?" Gareth asked, his eyes looking past Eddie. Confused, Eddie turned around and felt his stomach drop.

"Is that Y/N?" Eddie asked, staring ahead. Y/N was sitting very close to a random guy, his arm thrown over her shoulder. "She's on a date." Eddie gulped.

"See a problem with it?" Gareth asked. It was clear Eddie wanted to be with her and Gareth was pretty sure Eddie wouldn't do it on his own without a push.

"A little," Eddie growled. Anger and jealousy filled his body as the boy scooted closer, his face getting close to hers. Before the boy could press his lips against hers, Eddie threw him out of the booth.

"Dude, what the hell?" Zack said as he stood up. Y/N looked at Eddie shocked, quickly getting out of the booth as she stood between the boys.

"Eddie, what is wrong with you!"

"Wrong with me? You were in my bed last night and now you're on a date with this loser?" Eddie growled as he puffed out his chest. His anger-filled eyes locked on the man behind her.

Y/N felt her cheeks burn in embarrassment. "Calm down and let's go talk."

Eddie followed her outside but nothing calmed the jealousy in his body. The door closed, and she went to speak, but Eddie didn't give her a chance. His tongue was in her mouth in seconds, she gasped as she melted into his touch.

She moaned into his mouth as he gripped her ass and took control of the kiss. Her head was spinning as her back found the brick wall of the bar, his body pressed against hers.

Even though she got lost in him, she gained her composure and shoved him off. "I said talk, Munson."

"I don't want to talk," he said against her lips, going to kiss her again but she shoved him off again.

"You never want to talk! It's only physical with you. I'm fucking done," she spat. She turned to go back to the bar but Eddie grabbed her arm.

"Done? Why are you mad at me? You're the one on a date," Eddie argued.

"Yes, I'm done. And I'm mad because I've given you so many chances to make this more. And you never once seemed interested. Now that someone else is interested you want to get jealous? Screw you." She fought. He didn't know this was what she wanted. She wanted a fight; she wanted him to fight for her, run after her, and beg for her.

"Fine," he said with a straight face. "You want whoever that dude is, go for it. But when you realize no one will touch you the way I do, don't bother calling."

She scoffed and rolled her eyes. "Oh please, Eddie. You only want sex, I can find that in anyone. But you can't find love in anyone. I'm not settling anymore."

Eddie felt the blow to his chest. Hurt that what they had was her settling. And he hated the idea of her finding sex with anyone. He pushed down his jealousy, prepared to say everything she needed to hear to say.

"I can give you love. And I'll prove it to you. But please don't leave with him," he begged. He moved closer, watching to see if she moved. When she didn't, he pressed his forehead against hers. His deep eyes bored into hers.

"One chance, Eddie. That's all I'm giving you," she sighed.

~

She did as he asked and went home alone. Her brain was exhausted from his back and forth she was fine to be alone. She wasn't sure if Eddie could give her the love she needed, but giving it a shot was worth it.

The next day she received a call from him asking her to stop by his trailer for dinner. She was nervous to see how it would go. They never were able to talk about whatever they had going on, and now she was going to find out the truth. It was Valentine's Day and she couldn't lie that she was thankful he didn't have another girl to spend the holiday with.

Could Eddie love her the way she wanted?

She took a deep breath as she walked into the trailer. She froze as the trailer was lit up in ways it never was before. Fairy lights along the walls and pink and red decorations hung up. Flower petals scattered along the floor.

"Eddie?" She called out moving into the trailer but he was nowhere to be seen. After calling his name, he came out of his bedroom, holding a single rose as he was dressed in dark jeans and a white button up.

She gulped as she took him in. He was insanely gorgeous and her stomach fluttered.

"Happy Valentine's Day," he said softly as he passed her the rose. She took the rose and smiled. He was close enough that she could smell his delicious cologne, see the sparkles in his eyes, and feel his shaky breath touch her face.

"Thank you," she whispered. Her nerves were building as the room felt thick. "What's all this?"

"You said I have one shot, and I'm going to put everything I got into this one chance," Eddie said. He gently grabbed her hand and walked her over to the couch. Snacks on the table, all her favorites.

"Eddie you don't have to do all of this. I just want to talk," she explained, "but this is all very beautiful."

"And I'm ready to talk and I'm going to be honest about everything. " His breath was shaky as he sighed. He kept his hand laced with hers. "After we had sex for the first time, it was awkward and we almost didn't know how to fix it."

She nodded along, that was true. She was terrified they messed everything up.

"But when we found ourselves in bed again, it was fixed. I wanted us to focus on the part we didn't struggle with. I knew whenever we were intimate that we would be us again. I almost lost you, and I'm terrified if we move forward, get into a relationship, and it falls apart. Then I'm losing you forever. And fuck, I can't lose you." Eddie explained, all his feelings on the table.

She gripped his hand as he seemed to be nervous. "Honestly, that all makes sense. I can understand why you didn't want to change what we knew was working. But Eddie, I fell for you. I didn't think that's what would happen and I was so scared I was going to fuck it up because I realized I love you. If we go down this route of only sex, we are going to lose each other because I'm going to end up heartbroken."

"So you want to be with me?" Eddie questioned

"Do you want to be with me? Could you fall in love with me?" She asked, biting her lip as she nervously waited for him to answer.

"Darling I already did,"

She smiled at his words, feeling the need to scream with excitement. "So ask me."

Eddie unlaced their hands, moving down to one knee as he dug into his pocket. Her eyes widened as she panicked. But felt relief when he pulled out a candy heart necklace.

"Y/N, will you be my Valentine and spend our first Valentine's Day together as my girlfriend?"

She smiled as she nodded her head, "I'd love nothing more."

Eddie smiled and tossed the necklace on the table, "Wait I want that!" She fought but Eddie grabbed her legs and yanked her to the edge of the couch.

"Yeah, later; right now, I want to taste my girlfriend and make up for all my stupid mistakes," he smirked as his hands ran up her thighs. She shivered under his touch and leaned down, her lips softly pressing against his.

@bmunson86 @mxcheese @ladymunson @michaelfuckinglangdon @z0mbie-blah @biittersweet @mirrorsstuff @somethingvicked @micheledawn1975 @ago-godance @magnificantmermaid @tlclick73 @hargrovesswifee @cityofidek @silky-luxe @lokiofasgard616 @loving-and-dreaming @eddiemunsonsbitch69 @ashlynnkennedy @strangerthingsstories5255 @harringt8ns @pleasinghellfire @whoscamila @stusdollface93 @gretavankleep37 @bellaisswagger @arlxt @ineedmentalhelp123 @emxxblog

[okaysonny]

hiiiii, if it isn't too much to ask, is it possible to request a little continuation of the jake x reader (the one where reader is 🤰) who ended up winning the bet and how jake's is while reader is pregnant, thankk you very much❤️

a continuation of ⤷ ACCIDENTAL PREGNANCY 😧

ACCIDENTAL PREGNANCY 😄 ¦ jake kim

a/n: wasn't planning on continuing this, so it's shorter 😭 i now feel like i'm pregnant. hope you like this one too!

★ okay so...jake wasn't planning to be a father, but i think he's the type to just slowly fall in love with the baby. not that he wasn't before, but the idea was still foreign to him! it starts when he feels the child kicking for the first time. jake's hands would be on your stomach and then he suddenly just gets it.

★ he starts becoming really enthusiastic about parenthood, probably even more than you. a sharp contrast to what he was like when you broke the news!

"...i heard you shouldn't do that. i've been reading up on it and it's bad for the baby" "did you read that up 5 minutes ago?" "...yes"

★ jake kisses your stomach and talks to the child every night. it's part of his routine now (^_-)

★ big deal HIGHKEY acts like you're disabled 😭 before you sit on any chair, someone rushes over with a pillow to place on it. before you open any door, someone runs to open it for you. you should tell them to stop, but it's really funny.

★ yes, yes...jake balancing big deal while being a dad is inevitable. but everyone there knows that family life >>> gang life. jerry INSISTS to jake that he can take over, that jake should stay with you, at least until the baby is born. honestly, just marry jerry atp...

★ so now you're subjected to more stomach kisses 😒 yay...

★ jake may not be a perfect dad, he'll mess up, he'll be busy, you'll argue with him about it. but i firmly believe he'd shower his baby with so much love. he'll never ever let his child go through what he did.

bonus continuation! - who won the bet?

"so uh..." you start. "we were gonna announce this to all of big deal, but i didn't know you guys had a little thing going...so i figured i'd tell you first"

jason, lineman, lua and jerry stand in a horizontal line like they're about to be executed. they're all stiff, each one trying to act casual while also looking like they're dying to hear the result.

jake rubs your shoulder, his expression protective. "hey" he says gently. "don’t feel pressured" he shoots the four an unimpressed look. "you don’t have to tell anything to these guys"

the group flinches at his icy stare, as if jake just whipped them.

you roll your eyes with a small laugh. "it's alright. i don't mind"

placing a hand on your stomach, you gently rub it and smile. "we’re having a girl—"

SMACK!

before you can even finish, lua and jerry high five so aggressively that the sound echoes through the room.

"HELL YEAH!" lua whoops in victory.

jake immediately snaps his head towards jerry, glaring at him. "jerry!" he hisses.

jerry, who had completely forgotten himself in the moment, turns bright red. a giant thumb turned into a giant...sausage? "ahem. i mean...congratulations you both" he nods, trying to act composed.

meanwhile, jason and lineman had gone pale.

"no…" lineman mutters, staring at the floor like his world is crumbling. "our money..."

jerry whispers quietly so that jake can't hear. "it's our money now"

jason drags a hand down his face. "i thought for sure it was a boy..."

lua, still grinning like she's won the lottery, smacks lineman on the back. "you shoulda listened to me! i told you it was a girl!"

you blink in disbelief at the chaos unfolding in front of you. "anyway…we’re really excited"

jake turns to you and whatever irritation he has melts away as he laces his fingers with yours. "yeah" he murmurs, his voice warm. "really excited"

jason and lineman, however, are not over their loss.

jason mumbles something under his breath, and lineman sighs dramatically, shaking his head.

the room settles.

not for long though, of course.

"sooo…" lineman begins, his tone innocent. "does anyone have thoughts on what her first word might be?"

jake’s eyes narrow immediately.

jason perks up. jerry and lua exchange a knowing look.

"like i dunno..." lineman continues, stroking his chin. "just hypothetically, if someone were to put money on 'jake' or let's say, 'big deal' —"

lineman trails off as he comes face to face with jake's palm.

SMACK!

a/n: i used a pink theme in both parts...obviously i wanted to see girl dad jake 😏

divider: @thecutestgrotto

[misakiisstupid]

Jason Todd and the Unexpected Librarian Friendship™

Look, we all know that Jason Todd is a complicated guy. He’s got a history with his family, a painful past, and a very unconventional sense of justice. But what Gotham doesn’t know is that there’s one person Jason has a soft spot for: Mildred, the retired librarian who knits like a boss.

You know her. The sweet old lady who always smells like lavender and has glasses perched just below her nose. But Mildred? She’s a woman of surprising depth. Oh, she’s been around the block more than once, and she’s got stories—like that time she was a retired drill sergeant and probably taught Jason more than one useful combat technique when he stumbled into her library bleeding out in his Red Hood costume after a particularly rough night. No one ever talks about that. No one needs to know.

Anyway, Jason didn’t mean to become friends with Mildred. But one day he stumbled into her library, half-dead and covered in blood (because Gotham’s really fun like that), and she just… patched him up.

No questions asked. No weird stares. Just, “Sweetheart, you look like you need a nice cup of tea and a bandage, so sit down before I put you in the corner like the misbehaving little brat you are.” Mildred, who’d probably spent her days dealing with soldiers and their egos, knew exactly how to patch up his wounds. And she definitely wasn’t phased by him being ridiculously cranky about the whole thing.

But what started as a simple “You’re not dying in my library, kid” soon turned into a bookish bonding ritual. They started meeting regularly—because, of course, who else would Jason talk to about his low-key obsession with classic crime thrillers and weird conspiracy books? Not the Batfamily. Definitely not the Batfamily. They'd just never get it.

But Mildred? She’s on a whole different level.

They would swap books like old pals, each giving the other recommendations and predictions of what they’d like. Jason would show up, all casual, and say things like, “I know you’ll probably like this one. It’s got a plot twist that made me want to smash my own skull into the nearest wall, but in a good way.” Mildred would just smile and nod, handing him a book in return, with the quiet confidence of someone who has read everything already.

But here's the fun part: Jason never tells anyone about Mildred. His family, specifically, has no idea about this… special relationship. When they ask about the next crime scene or where the Riddler's clues are hidden, Jason's like, "I know a person who’s already read that book. I’ll just give her a call."

The family: Huh????

“Wait—what? Who? You know a person who’s read the book the Riddler mentioned?”

Jason: “Yeah, she’s read, like, everything. I’ll just ask her about the Riddler’s clue, no big deal.”

Tim: “Jason. Who is this person???”

Jason: "Oh, just Mildred. She works at the library. Old lady, real cool, might have taught me how to knit. Do you want me to tell her you said ‘hi’?"

Everyone: Completely and utterly confused, because there’s no way Red Hood, the angry guy who punches people in the face for a living, is besties with a sweet librarian who knits sweaters.

But here’s the kicker: Mildred knows. She knows Jason is the Red Hood. Of course she does. She’s not an idiot. She may be an old lady who looks like she’s just there to shuffle through books, but Mildred has seen things. She’s a retired drill sergeant who still has the instincts of a soldier. The second Jason walked into her library bleeding, she knew exactly who he was. And she didn’t blink an eye.

“Now, you listen here, sweetheart,” she’d say as she patched him up. “Next time you’re gonna get yourself shot up, at least do it in a way that doesn’t ruin my upholstery.”

Jason would just grunt, knowing that Mildred had more layers than an onion. She never asked how he got hurt, she never pushed for details, but she always made sure he left her library better than he came in.

So they’d sit in the library together, sipping tea (Green Tea for Jason, obviously), discussing books, and occasionally knitting. Yes, you heard that right. Jason Todd, the brooding vigilante with a chip on his shoulder, knows how to knit. Mildred taught him after one particularly intense evening when Jason was all “I’m gonna destroy my enemies” and Mildred was like, “Yeah, yeah, kid. But first, let’s see if you can make something cute with these needles.”

And maybe, just maybe, the occasional slip of vulnerability would come out. The tiny moments when Jason was just Jason, without the mask or the anger or the gun. Just a guy sitting across from an older woman, talking about Jane Austen, and debating whether Emma was a complete brat or an oddly relatable character.

Moral of the story: Jason Todd has a very unlikely, deeply wholesome, and underrated friendship with a librarian who’s way more badass than she lets on. And even though he’s a tortured vigilante trying to hide his wounds—both literal and emotional—he’s found someone who doesn’t need him to be anything other than himself. The Batfamily may never know about Mildred, and maybe that’s for the best. After all, what happens between Jason and his book club buddy stays between them—and frankly, it’s the one thing in Gotham that’s completely normal.

[altacctforastarion]

(Im hoping you finished bg3 if your reading this or saw orin)

So in my playthrough I defeated cazador (after the grave scene) and forgot about orin until she took Lae'zel and I didn't notice since I thought it was yenna and I was curious if you could write sfw hcs of Astarion seeing tav act more violent when they are usually a reserved quiet person and how astarion would react to having to save tav/ after saving tav after they saved him from ascension

Hey! Thanks for requesting and also I have finished the game!

Warnings: Orin behavior (some violence and such) and also you are saved after you’ve been in the temple for a bit so you’re not doing so hot and she hurt you in some vague way, kinda angsty tbh.

-Astarion is the kind of guy to watch your every move. He trusts you and loves you but you don’t endure that kind of trauma and just stop looking for red flags. He learned your behavior early on, he knows you’re a reserved individual who kills when they have to and you don’t get pleasure from it 99% of the time. And even then it’s less at doing the killing and more that whoever it is can’t get back to hurting others.

-So when you start to seem visibly happy to pick fights or while killing someone that attacks your group, it raises a flag. And when he asks you about it and “you” tell him that you craved their blood, he immediately punches you in the face and tackles you to the ground because that is not you.

-I feel like the other companions have a “but who’s the imposter” time bc Astarion just punched the love of his life in the face but also you seemed really happy repeatedly stabbing someone earlier. So like, you’re both weird. But Astarion tells them that Orin is pretending to be you and then ignoring the rest of their questions (and threats bc what if he’s the imposter beating you up lmao) as he questions Orin.

-She breaks pretty fast, (based on how she runs up to you as your friend in the sewers and if you don’t give her the answer she wants or whatever she changes back to herself just to taunt you pretty much), and she changes back to herself. He’s got a dagger out, up against her neck, throwing out questions and she’s just laughing at him before disappearing, telling him to come find you.

-It’s not hard to find Bhaal’s temple, which is good because Astarion is going fucking insane. I think it would eat him alive that you were taken and you’ve been gone for gods know how long before Orin gave herself away. I think he’s ready to kill anyone and anything that gets in his way and your companions are doing anything they can to get him to be even somewhat sane.

-They get there and he sees you on an altar, bleeding and filthy, and is immediately running down there, fuck stealth- he wants Orin dead and you safe. Your companions run down after him, trying to keep up, also out for blood but not quite like him.

-He keeps his eyes on you as much as he can while fighting Orin and the worshipers, needing to see that you’re still breathing and making sure no one tries to hurt you.

-the second everyone is dead he’s running over to you, demanding that someone heals you, shaking you and checking your pulse.

-you wake up and see him there, starving (because there’s no way in hell he does anything besides looking for you and killing for information. Maybe he’s bitten someone in a fight- maybe- but he’s not wasting a second the whole time he’s trying to get to you) and beaten up and looking down at you terrified, then tentatively relived to see you awake.

-He doesn’t talk, I think he grabs you and holds you while someone heals you. I think he sobs and when he finally does talk he tells you he’s sorry he didn’t protect you, then he asks if you’re ok, if anything still hurts. I think he doesn’t let you go until he has to. I think if it’s physically possible for him to carry you he does and if he can’t he demands someone else does while he holds you hand.

-you’re carried back to Elfsong and he’s a million miles away the whole trip. He puts you in a bath and cleans you off wordlessly, but he listens when you talk.

-I think it’s a lot of comforting eachother. He’s devastated and you went through some awful shit. He needs to know that you don’t hate him for not protecting you from Orin.

-He doesn’t sleep or hunt that night. He watches you breathe, and feels your pulse.

-in the morning you offer your blood and he refuses, but you manage to convince him because he NEEDS to feed.

-I think it takes until you’re all healed up and back to normal before he starts to truly process how he felt about what happened, and to tell you how terrified he was.

[cixerr]

DAISUKE X READER HEADCANONS PT2 🌺

SFW/NSFW - MINORS SHOO 🔞

Back with more dating headcanons for our favourite boy :3 this time including SFW ones!!!

Part one can be found here!

No gender specified for reader

(tiddies are mentioned like once)

Enjoy <3

SFW

🌺 -he's EXTREMELY clingy once the relationship has been established. Where you go HE GOES.

🌺 - physical touch!!! He can NOT keep his hands off you weather that's having a hold on your hand all the time or trapping you in a cuddle. He's definitely a "5 more minutes" typa guy hehe

🌺 - speaking of cuddles... I'd say he's the big spoon. he holds you tightly like you'd disappear the moment he lets go of you. He loves burying his face in the crook of your neck.

🌺 - please give him head pats!! Play with his hair and scratch behind his ear. He's your human sized puppy! (He's also a sucker for you playing with his hair...)

🌺 - you're the only other person who has the privilege of playing on his gameboy. He likes to rest his head on your shoulder while he watches you. Probably complaining about all the wrong things you're doing but it's still fun. You think his little complaints are cute anyways. it also makes him proud to know he's better at it than you.

ALRIGHTTT he also helps you out by placing his hands over yours as he controls the game with your hands.....

🌺 - nobody talks about how he's a party freak much but he's DEFINITELY buying you the drinks. Knowing full well how hectic parties can be he's always by your side and clinging on to you to keep you safe

🌺 - if you're upset about something, he's gonna try to fix things no matter what. He'd be searching the Internet for HOURS just to find the best solution. he is not giving up.

Mostly likes to cuddle you and keep you close to make you feel even slightly better :)

🌺 - loves receiving words of affirmation. It makes him feel happy and worthy when you tell him how good of a boyfriend he is. How proud you are of him. Ohh he doesn't deserve a partner like you... he definitely does!

🌺 - LOVES SHARING!! Food, drinks, clothes... you name it he loves sharing absolutely everything ever with you

🌺 - if he sees something that even slightly reminds him of you, you bet he's getting it and randomly surprising you with it

NSFW

🌺 - he definitely had more one night stands than actual relationships in the past. (Not too many, but you were most likely his first serious relationship) So he's more experienced with what goes on in the bedroom more than anything else...

You're not quite sure on what you're supposed to do? Don't worry he gotchu

🌺 - smear your cum all over his face...he'd like that. and let him suck his own cum off your fingers while you're at it... ALL WHILE REMAINING EYE CONTACT ARRGHHHH

🌺 - not sure if this is much of a headcanon cause I still don't know if he'd actually do this but.....he likes to wear thongs 😔 (he first started wearing them because he thought it'd get more people drooling over him LMAO) He knows how hot you find it so he makes sure they're always on show (just for you 😉) oh and he likes matching thongs with you too ❤️

🌺 - LOVES WHEN YOU WEAR LINGERIE. He thinks it's so incredibly hot and sexy and yeah he's a drooling mess over you

🌺 - risk it for a biscuit! He loves having sex in the most risky places. Just something about the thought of getting caught makes him feel all excited

🌺 - he's obsessed with giving you hickeys, especially on your neck where everyone can see. He's always proud of the millions of bruises he leaves on you, and it's showing that you belong to him (uωu*)

When your bruises start to heal, he's right back on your neck again ♥︎

Other places he likes to leave them are your breasts and shoulders ❤️

🌺 - if you can't be with him for whatever reason, he has a collection of dirty photos of you he likes to jerk off too. He keeps them in a very special/fancy box because they're incredibly important to him :3

I'm running out of nsfw ideas I'm afraid I spilled my most freaky stuff in my first post ☹️

[insomniac4000]

Chained Together Part 7

“We have a problem,” Florence sighed. Her and George were sitting on the sofa in the living room of the hose. The other four were actually playing pool in the other room but neither Florence nor George wished to join.

“What apart from the fact we’re shackled together?” George replied not taking his eyes off his phone.

“Why did you agree to be a part of this video if you didn’t want to be with someone? Is it really worth ruining a video over?” Florence asked. Since the others were playing pool the cameras were on them, leaving Florence and George with their go pros, because of that she was feeling a lot bolder talking to him, people had been walking over her most of her life, she wasn’t about to let him do it too.

“If I knew I was going to be stuck here with you I probably wouldn’t have,” he scowled.

“I don’t know why you’re making such a snap judgement about me when you don’t even know me.”

“I’ve heard enough. Anyway what’s this problem?

“How are we going to get ready for bed?” Florence asked brushing a hand through her hair sighing. There were clear instructions about showering and dressing in the morning but no one had mentioned about getting dressed for bed. There was no way she was going to sleep in her clothes, it was daunting enough having to sleep next to the guy who clearly hated her for reasons unknown.

“Am I going to have to sit through your beauty routine?” George whined rolling her eyes.

“Don’t tell me you sleep naked,” Florence feigned disgust. Sure he had those beautiful eyes, chiselled jaw, perfect hair but the way he was acting was making her hate him. The last thing she wanted was to feel even more conflicted having to sleep next his muscular frame.

“You wish,” he winked at Florence who rolled her eyes.

“Look I know you have this idiotic pre conceived notion that I’m this horrible person but you could not be further from the truth. You on the other hand are acting like I’m supposed to fall at your feet despite the fact you’ve been nothing but cruel to me. I’ve had enough shit in my life without egotistical shitheads like you trying to ruin my career and is supposed to be a fun shoot.” George was incredibly taken aback by Florence’s outburst. He was about to open his mouth to say something when everyone else came rushing into the room, Theo and Cal in a very good mood.

“I’m not having that, I demand a rematch!” Chip shouted

“You alright mate?” Arthur asked George who had a very pensive look on his face, his eyebrows pulling down, eyes looking deep in thought and his mouth was pursed and in a slight frown.

“Fine.”

“We were just wondering how we were going to get ready for bed, unless we all plan to sleep in our clothes?” Florence steered the conversation, despite blowing up at George just now she really wasn’t one for starting drama and was hoping he wouldn’t stir things up either. Luckily for her it was Simon who spoke first.

“You know we didn’t think about that…”

“Does this mean I’ll find out Arthur’s beauty routine which will reveal why he looks so youthful,” Chip joked elbowing Arthur.

“I secretly think he’s a vampire,” Florence joked. She could feel the tension radiating from George’s body, she could feel the heat, not warmth in a good way but in a red hot anger way. She was hoping bringing Arthur into the conversation would calm him down a little. George was acting awfully to her but she still had to be around him for thirty six hours.

“We’ll allow you time to get dressed but any other vampire ritual has to be done together,” Simon eventually informed everyone after talking to all of the producers. Everyone decided to all get dressed together quickly thinking it would be better that way and they were all going to reconvene for the night.

“Actually I think I might turn in if that’s okay,” George commented when he came out of the bathroom, the handcuffs were placed back onto his wrist.

“Oh? We were just talking about the beginning of all or careers?!

“Yeah Florence I’ve heard you have such a great story. I mean you don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to,” Arthur’s big brown eyes had a hint of sadness to them, Florence’s breath caught her throat a little, how did he know? She felt all eyes on her, no more so than the man currently chained next to her.

“Maybe not in front of the cameras eh, save the editors a job. Plus I guess I’m turning in,” Florence looked at George who stood frozen for a few moment before nodding.

When the pair were safely in their bedroom with the door closed George turned to Florence and placed his free hand on hip, his eyebrows were furrowed which accentuated the small scar on his eyebrow he sustained by falling off the e-bike.

“What did Arthur mean when he said you had a story?” George asked her. Florence bit her lip, she knew she had to talk about it one day but George was not someone who had proved trustworthy of knowing. She also thought and wondered why Arthur knew she had a story to tell, suddenly it dawned on her, Esme and Chris had been talking he must have mentioned something to Arthur.

“Earth to FloMC?” George’s voice pulled her out of her train of thought, his voice was a lot softer this time, Florence couldn’t remember a time when he had spoken to her without any hint of distain or sarcasm.

“I know it’s going to sound weird because of our job but there are just some aspects of my life I’m not comfortable with making public,” Florence responded, rubbing her upper arm a little, she always did something like that when she was nervous, fiddling with her sleeves or her hair. George’s eyes looked a little shocked, almost taken aback initially before they softened, the mulleted man nodded in understanding.

“That’s completely understandable. Here was me thinking you live your whole life in front of a camera,”

“Well you can add that to the long list of wrong assumptions you made about me,” Florence replied as she started to climb into bed. George followed, he had no other choice but to join her. Florence closed her eyes as soon as she laid on her back, she let out a sigh. She hated this, she had visions of going to lie on her side which fling George across the side of the room by the joined arms. Florence smiled a little bit at the imagine before squeezing her eyes tight and ignoring the warmth and the breath of the man lying next to her.

[sanemiss]

Sanemi is Jealous (of your friends Tomioka and Obanai)

If she can get past your deplorable character, she's all yours.

+ short bonus Sanemi comforting you while crying

+ bonus Obanai/Sanemi ~friendship

Part 2: Sanemi has a Crush on you- and asks for advice (ft. Obanai and Tomioka)+ confession

>fluff, fluff, fluff

TW:

>cursing

>slight angst //v short & it is not central to the story

1.5K

Sanemi really thought he could not hate Tomioka even more, but here he is. The whole hashira group is laughing at something you said, loud laughs bursting and echoing around the room. Ugh, that always happens, ever since you got here.

He can't help but stare at Tomioka and his stupid fucking laugh, his face lighting up in your presence, so close to you, evidently the closest person to you, as if you were complementary parts of the same piece. Sanemi feels like he could smash his dumb fucking face through the wall right about fucking now.

"Punch him already or calm the hell down. I can feel you vibrating", Obanai observes his friend distantly.

You're all having a little gathering with food and drinks, just to take your minds off of trauma, missions, or recovery. To relax, just for one moment. Of course, it was your initiative, strongly supported by Mitsuri and Tengen, both who then dragged everyone else to the event without leaving room for a "no".

"I fucking hate being in the same room as this guy. Fucking Tomioka and his little fucking friend who forced us to be here."

Obanai would normally agree, he hates gatherings. But he gets to see Mitsuri outside of work, and maybe he could even talk to her today. Or maybe he's just repeating the words you told him in order to convince him to come. You've been bugging him to make a move for some time now.

"She's pretty cool, you know? The new girl", Obanai comments absently.

"You're such a fucking idiot, shut up."

"Aw...", Obanai says mockingly, "is Shinazugawa upset that the new girl is friends with everyone but him?"

"First of all, I'm gonna fucking kill you. Second of all, what, you consider yourself her friend now? As if!", he scoffs.

"Actually we've been spending most of our evenings together for more than two months now."

"Wow, have a great fucking wedding, then", Sanemi barks and searches for an exit with his eyes but he would have to pass by the entire group of loud people. He knows they would make a fuss if he tried to leave. Annoying.

Obanai is amused. Is this dumbass actually jealous or something?

You guys truly became very close. As loud and outgoing as you seem, you are very much like Tomioka on the inside. Gloomy, hanging from a deep, heavy emptiness. One night, you finally dropped the mask and let Obanai see this version of yourself, and your vulnerability gained his trust. Hell, he could relate to your intricate emotions so much. This grew into a connection that he'd never had before, where now he actually feels so safe that he openly talks about himself, where he actually trusts someone, a woman, and even has fun. But you guys are basically like siblings now, you even swear at each other, lovingly but harshly.

"Hey, guys! Can we sit here? All the other seats are taken", you're almost excusing yourself, because you know Shinazugawa doesn't like Tomioka and you're pretty sure he's not that fond of you either.

"Yeah, sit down, we were just talking about you", Obanai says cheekily. Sanemi wants to shove a fist into Obanai's face.

"You were?" You're slightly worried.

"Shinazugawa here wants to be your friend, it seems", Obanai responds, playing dumb.

You can sense Tomioka get uncomfortable, holding his breath. The air is now thick and cold and screeching. Awaiting an explosion.

Suddenly, Sanemi breaks the anticipation by sending Obanai flying right through the outside wall, an explosion of thick smoke rising and blocking everyone's sight. You could only hear the sounds of Sanemi trying (and failing) to attack Obanai again and again.

Well, people are pretty impressed it took so long for a fight to break out today.

+++

Life continued as usual for another 3 months. Trainings, missions, trainings, missions. You had no time to rest, your free time didn't sync with neither Tomioka or Obanai and the lack of connection with the people you can be yourself around has been getting to you.

You just drop to the ground. You feel so physically and emotionally exhaused, so stressed and so incredibly alone that it all starts to feel unbearable. Loneliness starts tearing at your heart and in no time, it's starting to rip it. Spiriling under the night sky, you're crying cascades, the heaviness in your heart growing and moving through your entire body, your senses blinded by exasperation, pain, fatigue.

"Hey, hey, what the hell, look at me, y/n."

The presence sends shivers through your body, immediately embarrassed that someone is witnessing this.

"Hey-", you wipe your tears and you see Sanemi's face, worried and alert at the sight of your breakdown.

He's squating, holding your hands tightly, his eyes turning into a deeply kind, caring gaze.

Instinctively, you try to force a smile, "Sorry, it's okay, you don't have t-"

He pulls you in a hug, to his chest, and now his big, tough, warm body is shielding you.

"It's okay, I got you", the powerful, deep, yet calm voice reassures you. His chin is gently pressing on the crown of your head, holding your body firmly with one hand while carefully patting your head with the other.

+++

"-anything right, you fucking idiot?! If you're so high and mighty and better than us then why can't you even take care of her?!"

The screaming outside has been going on for a couple of minutes now, only to finally open the door and see Tomioka- just having arrived from his mission- staring, confused, at a screaming Shinazugawa.

He sees you coming behind Sanemi's back and makes the kind of eye contact that translates to "Help, what the fuck is his deal now?"

"Hey", you say loudly, trying to cover the screaming, hoping that if you start talking normally, the screaming hashira would just stop. "Good to see you're back, Tomioka! How was the mission?"

Sanemi is taken aback, then yells "Fine, whatever! Do whatever you fucking want, idiot!", then storms away.

He's furious, fuming, could tear the entire world apart- so he's going training.

"What the fuck is up with you now, Shinazugawa?", the familiar voice interrupts his determined walk. He doesn't need to look up to the tree, where the sound came from, to know who it is.

"Not in the mood. Unless you wanna fight."

Obanai shrugs, climbs down the tree, takes out his sword. "Sure, let's go."

After around an hour of sparring, Obanai tries again, "So are you gonna tell me what happened?"

In-between metal clinks and dust rising up from the heavy steps, he says, "I just hate incompetence. You'd think trusting someone to be your boyfriend or whatever would mean they'd actually be worth it."

Obanai stops, moving out of the way right when the blade was about to strike "Huh, what are you talking about? Who has a boyfriend?" The thought that it could be Mitsuri passed his mind for one second and it honestly made him want to fucking burn and die. But no way, why would Sanemi be so bothered by that?

"Stop being stupid, you know fully well I mean y/n and fucking Tomioka."

Obanai remains stunned, and with the risk of getting decapitated, he throws his blade to the ground and starts laughing so hard he's basically screaming, so loud and wide that he even risks his bandages to rip.

"Oh my god, Shinazugawa", holding his stomach from laughter, "I knew you were fucking stupid but this is incredible", wiping off his tears.

Sanemi's growing a new thick layer of confusion and anger, still charging attacks at a defenceless Obanai who just casually avoids his increasingly violent attempts.

"I didn't know you were such a sensitive, jealous loverboy", his laugh picks up again.

"What, you can't stand Tomioka being close to her?" he's enjoying this childish torment so much. "I thought she was my girlfriend though? What happened with that? I thought you had a wedding planned for us, no?", not even landing a slash on Sanemi's face would feel this satisfying, this is the most fun he's had in his entire life.

Eventually Obanai's empathy wins. "Okay, okay, stop. Listen to me, loverboy", he chuckles. Sanemi's veins cannot hold onto his face any longer, the angrier he gets the more satisfying it is for his sadistic friend. "Okay, okay, listen-".

"Tomioka is not her boyfriend, no one is her fucking boyfriend, okay? If she can get past your deplorable character, she's all yours."

+++

┈➤・❥・

Part 2: Sanemi has a Crush on you- and asks for advice (ft. Obanai and Tomioka)+confession

[gatorbites-imagines]

Hi! I hope you’re having a great day! 🌟 I absolutely love your blog and your writing—it’s always so creative and immersive. I was wondering if you could write a Reverse Flash (Eobard Thawne) imagine for me? Here’s my idea: - [ do you know the fanfic that you did about him and normal reader? Well, I thought you could write about the wedding reception or what when on during the wedding] No pressure, of course���I just think your writing style would bring this idea to life in the best way! Thank you so much for considering my request, and keep up the amazing work! 💖

Eobard Thawne x male reader

Headcanons

I’ve been sending out job applications, how’s everyone else doing? I actually know like, nothing about weddings. The one wedding ive been through was thrown together in like three weeks.

you can find the fic mentioned here

The wedding could go multiple ways. It could be a huge wedding that costs more money than you could ever imagine. Or it could be something small and personal.

I think it makes more sense if it was a smaller wedding. Because sure, Eobard could show off, but he also has like no one to invite from his side, and he knows you prefer things being down to earth and calm.

The only person really invited on his side is Barry and that’s because you invited him, claiming that being rivals for so long pretty much made them family.

Your family has always loved Eobard, even if he has his moments where his villainy shines through. They’re all as normal as you, and could care less about his evil deeds. Eobard helps them repair stuff around their houses, and chased off your cousin Linda’s evil abusive ex. That makes him good in their books.

I think Eobard has little idea how to really plan a wedding, especially with someone he loves as much as you. Good thing he’s got you, and your one cousin who’s a wedding planner who’s helping you guys’ plan as a wedding gift.

Your family is pretty damn big, and you got people in all fields. Theres your uncle Bill whos got a major catering business, and your younger cousin who has a band willing to play. Your aunt Jenna gets the flowers for cheap, and your uncle Michael and his husband Diego run a security company.

I can even see Eobard being close to uncomfortable with just how open and supportive your super normal family is. Your nieces and nephews love Eobard for many reasons, from his red hair to him teaching them self-defense.

If it wasn’t for you, Eobard would become a major bridezilla, or should I say groomzilla? He wants it to be perfect, from location, time, season of the year, everything. It needs to be just as you guys planned. You succeed in pulling him in before he starts spiraling most days.

I can imagine Eobard would want to wear a yellow suit, but you and your groomsmen and bridesmaids end up talking him out of it. Instead, he wears a black suit with a yellow, and you wear a white suit with a red tie.

You spend quite a lot of time talking him out of stress or anger when things don’t go right, or when he’s starting to get overwhelmed. Theres multiple times you have to talk him out of time travel to get what he thinks is best.

The wedding goes off with little issue. There is a moment where Eobard wants to be mad about Barry showing up. But at this point it’s more just because he’s so used to being evil when he sees Barry. It’s like a trained reaction.

Barry brings a gift of course, off the registry since he doesn’t really know you too well.

Your family assume that Barry is related to Eobard in some way since they have a “similar energy” around them. Barry gets along well with your family, and fits into the wedding guests easily.

Eobard will never admit it, even if your family get it on video, that he started crying when you guys were saying your vows. His vows aren’t long, but are meaningful to the two of you, and it’s obvious he’s trying his best to express those feelings to you verbally.

The rings you guys wear are probably made out of some material Eobard got his hands on. something that can’t be broken by him using his powers or in battle, and something that cant be copied by others since he’s possessive.

There is of course a large party afterwards, with lots of hugs and congratulations from everyone in attendance.

As your family are all over you, laughing and celebrating, Eobard pulls himself to the side for a breather. He loves you so much, but it can be so overwhelming sometimes to feel so normal and accepted, loved even.

Barry would saddle up beside him with a drink in each hand, so the two of them end up standing side by side as people dance, drink and eat.

Barry would express how happy he is for Eobard, that he found someone who matters so much to him. That Eobard looks so much happier and healthier than the last times he saw him. Eobard would grumble but flush, mumbling about how he’s obviously better because he has you.

In the end you guys celebrate to your heart’s content, and when the party is over you guys don’t go to a hotel. Instead, Eobard runs you guys’ home so you can cuddle in bed and just be together.

Theres not much reason to hold a honeymoon in the way most others do. If you guys want to go to another country, Eobard will just run you there. Instead, you take as long time off work as you can, so you guys can just be together and do whatever you want.

[seasonalmoss]

just going to put this out there since it’s an actual problem that I have but I can never word it since I’m always afraid I sound too rude or something but I swear I’m not trying to attack anyone or be mean nor am I claiming anyone is a bad person, I just want to inform.

Almost everyone who is active in this fandom treats Wooly and Amanda odd, especially especially Wooly and I don’t like it.

Peoples takes and theories and analysis of Wooly are always so, ignorant? They always claim one thing or another which simply isn’t true or makes no sense for who we see him as. It’s clear a lot of people simply aren’t educated on things like trauma and psychological and I’m just now realizing that. Because almost more then half of what everyone says about Wooly? They would not be saying if they had more forethought and empathy for him. A lot of this could apply for Amanda too! But Wooly is the more mysterious character out of the two which makes people say more wild stuff about him.

I don’t want to sound pretentious or cocky, I’m not saying everyone else is dumb and I’m not, I’m coming from a place of hurt. It hurts seeing the way this fandom acts about Wooly and Amanda, especially Wooly. People often aren’t coming from a place of true understanding for him, they fully aren’t recognizing how he and Amanda are abused.

and yes they are. they, by definition are abuse victims since, they are getting abused by Hameln. We can not have a proper conversation about these two if we don’t call it what it is. We can not have a empathetic discussion about this if we don’t address the root of a lot of their trauma. We need to talk about the awful, we need to talk about the topics that are hard and uncomfortable, because the treatment that they aren’t any of those things? Is an awful rhetoric that can and has effected how people are with reality, if you don’t admit some things to be abuse then you are giving yourself a path to deny someone’s actual experience.

so much of how this fandom treats these two is so underhandedly dismissing, ignorant and uneducated and I’ve actually spiraled about this. Because it made me feel as though I for also being a traumatized hurt kid was bad in some way for simply wanting to be safe and loved. Please be careful with your wording please.

again this isn’t meant to call anyone out or be rude or anything like that, I just want people to be more empathetic. I’ve talked a lot about this in my drafts and I’ve always been iffy about weather or not I should show them or not but you know what? At this point if someone takes offense to what I’m saying despite my constant points to make sure they know that I am not attacking them, then that’s on them.

one thing I also really need to bring attention and drive home is how this fandom treats Wooly specifically. HE IS A CHILD. people always say that they want to or they are extending the same amount of empathy they have for Amanda to Wooly but they actually aren’t, they are not actually fully extending that empathy to him whatsoever. Your words don’t mean anything if you don’t actually do it. People act as though Wooly is 10x more sinister then he actually is, as if he has more forethought and planning then he actually does. They genuinely lack a lot of empathy for him and are never fully 100% admitting

HE IS A CHILD. An ABUSED CHILD. Don’t shy away from that, say it with your chest say it Loudly and proudly.

here’s something else I put in my drafts regarding this specifically.

I might delete this for many reasons but I just feel like the ATA fandom on tumblr needs to see some of this

I’m going to @ all of my mutuals because I feel this is important. I’m not @/ing you guys because I’m trying to call specifically you out, I just want the fandom to be aware of this especially my mutuals since they are my mutuals

@maddyk-madwriter @curliiwurlii @dannyatnightfall @daze-bunny

[nottodayupstarts]

That's what I've been SAYING. the chozen-hawk duo could've been so good and yet. yet it remains so unexplored.

if their narrative parallels and mirrored character arcs don't convince you, then let me say that hawk would see chozen doing ONE (1) cool takedown and instantly start clinging to his arm like a puppy.

hawk asks him to demonstrate something he did earlier in class, and once chozen shows him he picks up on it in just a couple tries because hawk is hawk. and chozen's like "ah well, you are the champ for a reason." and hawk kinda shrugs it off, "oh I guess so. I don't really feel like it sometimes tho"

and they get to talking and chozen tells him about his past with Daniel. and hawk is blown away that this guy in front of him was ever anything like he himself was. and soon enough they start bonding and next thing you know hawk is staying after lessons each day to do one-on-one sparring with him. and chozen refines his offense and teaches him defense because god knows he internalizes "best defense is more offense." after all, he wins fights not by avoiding or blocking hits but by bulldozing past them, layering aggression on his opponent in the moment , willing himself not to feel the pain until the fight's over, and icing his wounds in the night.

hawk gets his ass kicked over and over again while he learns, but eventually he starts scoring more and more hits. until one day he and chozen are sparring, and he manages to deflect chozen's knife hand, grabbing his palm, and uses the opening to duck under his arm and twists behind his back, jabbing his ribs and pinning chozen in an s-arm, all in the matter of a couple seconds.

and it's just silent for a minute.

chozen's proud of his student, impressed by the way he used miyagi techniques in his own, hawk-like way he hadn't seen before. he knows how to get out of this hold but he doesn't see the need to, not when hawk has surprised him in a way he hasn't surprised like in a very long time.

but hawk?? he's internally freaking out, "I should not have done that." because his hands still hold the memory of just how much force it took to break Demetri's arm, just how much he twisted, hell the exact angle he had it at. and kreese? when he and kreese had sparred, kreese had been unforgiving. He never pulled his punches but he sure as hell had no trouble pulling out his knives. his words still echoed through his bones, "finish the fight"

and he knew chozen wasn't like that, that he's not going to put him in a situation like that, but for a minute he was back at the cobra kai dojo, staring at white words on a black wall.

and then reality comes back, he breathes and releases the arm he's been holding for too long. and he's shaky and upset, and he just sits down on the deck he engineered, lost and a little afraid chozen is going to be upset. but chozen just sits down next to him and has a deep heart to heart, assuring him.

"Healing is not linear. It takes time."

"But I don't need to heal! I was the one who hurt them."

"You hurt them because you were being hurt. You have redeemed yourself, Hawk. They have forgiven you."

Chozen lets the words hang in silence before continuing: "Now you must forgive yourself."

Hawk proceeds to have a complete mental breakdown, but chozen is there for him for all of it, and helps him stand back up almost an hour later. hawk thinks maybe he can forgive himself, and he begins healing.

those two form a bond just as close as Johnny and Miguel, and it's frankly both adorable and concerning to see (they'd prank everyone in the dojo to hell and back and get away with it each time). hawk talks about chozen to literally everyone. his friends. his parents. his neighbors. even counselor blatt gets some of it (he still hates her and he sure as hell doesn't trust her but at least she was kinda entertaining now that she wasn't a conduit for creating his hell anymore). and chozen talks about him to Daniel and Johnny too. "he mastered this kata yesterday!" or "look at this grappling hook he's picked up." they tease him for adopting his own karate kid but they're both happy for him.

and chozen openly admits it, hawk is is favorite and everyone knows it by now. he gifts him his personal sai blades he's had for almost 20 years for his birthday and everyone pretends not to see hawk shedding a couple tears. a few days later, when chozen finally gets his own apartment, hawk helps him move in and when they finish, he shyly hands him a framed photo of them sam had given him, taken weeks earlier unbeknownst to either of them, bowing to each other as they finished sparring for the day (nobody comments during the housewarming party when the picture was prominently displayed in the middle of his living room wall).

anyways, I really do love the chozen-hawk duo and I wish s5 had given us that (two or three scenes would've been enough to fulfill my desires but of course not). what a missed opportunity.

my biggest cobra kai regret is that they didn't roll with hawk and chozen as a sensei/student pairing. those two would have been incredible.

[bayetea]

seeing non-black people critique rick's portrayal of black characters is interesting sometimes. only like 30% of the critiques I see make any sense to me to be honest