#i will simply be a little grumpy for half the day At least

[naivety]

no i really love working on my saturday off, which also happens to be my birthday, for a closing shift, which also happens to be my third closing shift in a row 👍

[delusional-day-dreamer]

U My Everything - p.b

‣ paige x grumpy reader: part two here!

‣ wc: 3178

‣‣ synopsis: paige's harmless joke is taken a little too personally by her sensitive and grumpy girlfriend; slight angst? but very fluffy by the end! (the song is most relevant for the end part of the fic as it's inspired by KK's 05/31/24 live, can u tell I live for uconn lives?)

‣‣‣ a/n: I'M SORRY, i know y'all chose emily in the poll but I alr finished this one and I've promised myself I would try to release at least one fic a day; emily's will be out very very soon, writing smut for the first time is just very nerve wracking lmao. this is lightly based off the, good morning gorgeous, tiktok trend going around rn; Also, I'm so sorry for the amount of times I use y'all, like, literally, and really because I try to make my dialogue and what not as realistic as possible, but as a Southern Californian they're literally engraved into my vocabulary 😭😭.

Rolling over in bed half-conscious, your arms reach out, patting around the bed in an attempt to locate your girlfriend's warmth without having to open your eyes. However, to your sheer disappointment, your fingers are met with cold, rumpled sheets on Paige's side of the bed.

Now fully conscious with confusion as to how your girlfriend managed to slip from bed without you realizing, the pounding in your head became all the more severe as you sat up in bed, frustrated that the one person who could comfort you simply with their presence was nowhere to be found.

With your right hand massaging the temple, attempting to soothe the deep ache that had settled into the front portion of your head, your left hand blindly felt around your nightstand for your phone, knowing Paige wouldn't have left you alone in bed without so much as a simple text message. But to your surprise, her name was absent from your list of notifications.

Even more annoyed than before, you forced yourself out of her bed, stumbling your way to her adjacent bathroom, wincing at the sudden intrusion that was fluorescent lighting. By the time you began brushing your teeth, you heard the front door open, hearing Paige call your name as she entered the dorm.

"Bathroom," you yelled out to her, despite your head screaming at you to shut up and crawl back under the safety of Paige's comforter.

"Hey baby," Paige greeted as she entered the bathroom while you spit toothpaste into the sink, coming up behind you to hug your waist, resting her head on your shoulder. As you stood back up to meet her gaze in the mirror's reflection, you saw her tuck her bottom lip into her mouth, clearly trying to hide her shit-eating grin.

"Well don't you look... interesting this morning," she teased, the sarcasm apparent in her low voice. You knew her mocking was all in good fun, the two of you often poking fun at each other for little things. But perhaps it was the headache still waging war in your skull, or the final three midterms you had to take later today, or your remanent annoyance at having to wake up alone, despite her knowing your favorite part of the day was waking up, warm and all loved up in her arms, or perhaps it was the fact that looking in the mirror, you genuinely looked wrecked this morning.

Your curly hair was reduced to nothing but a puff of frizz overnight, sticking out in all directions, your eyebags particularly prominent this morning, combined with the pesky anxiety breakout that had settled into your forehead a few days prior, you just couldn't handle her jokes today.

"Yes, thank you for pointing that out Paige," you shot back, setting your toothbrush back in its cup holder, exiting her hold to wipe your hands on the small towel before pushing past her to get dressed in her room.

Paige followed close behind you, curious as to why you were giving her so much attitude so early in the day, especially over such a harmless statement.

"What's up with you, this is the first time I've even seen you this morning," She questioned from her seat on the unmade bed as you began changing your clothes with your back facing her, which was another thing that struck out to her as odd. After dating for over a year now, the two of you were incredibly comfortable with each other, and it was rare for you to completely turn your back on her, even when changing.

"Nothing, I'm just not in the mood today," you grumbled, tugging your, her, sweatshirt over your head. Heading over to her floor length mirror with your makeup bag and necessary hair products in hand, you settle down on the floor in front of it, convinced to improve your appearance a bit before you head off to your exams today. Still ignoring Paige's presence in the room, you began getting ready.

Hearing her scoff as you started applying your makeup, she got up and began making the bed, intent on ignoring your bratty mood until you fixed it. You knew you were being petty and acting bitchy to your girlfriend, who had technically done nothing wrong, you just couldn't force yourself to drop the attitude. By the time you finished your makeup and smoothed out your slickback, you managed to go the entire twenty minutes without so much as looking at your girlfriend through the mirror, who had now perched herself on her side of the bed, scrolling mindlessly on her phone.

Your headache hadn't subsided yet, but now that you were more awake, you had gotten used to the throbbing sensation. Making your way over to your side of her bed, you collected your phone, headphones, watch, school bag, and other items from your nightstand and around the area to get ready to leave.

"Your heading out already? You still have over an hour before your first class," Paige finally addressed you, putting her phone in her lap to look at you as you packed your things.

"Yeah I'm gonna head to the library early so I can review before my first midterm," You answered, speaking to her normally for the first time in the last hour she had returned.

"But what about breakfast, you're not gonna be able to concentrate and stuff when you're all hangry," she said, only slightly teasing you with her statement.

"I'll just grab something to eat from the coffee shop next to the library, I was gonna stop by and get matcha from there anyways," you responded, a small part inside of you glad that despite your attitude, Paige made sure that you were well taken care of.

"Dude I still don't understand how you drink that stuff, tastes like straight grass," she had dropped her concern and switched back to joking, her automatic setting. "But I guess it's fitting," she continued, "cause yk, cows just love their grass," she sighed, holding back her laughter at what she thought was a brilliant joke.

In her defense, if it was any other morning, you would've joined in on her teasing, either mooing at her in response or poking fun at her in return.

But today, it just ticked you off even further. I mean, you were clearly already in a bad mood, stressed the fuck out, hangry (but Paige didn't need to know she was right), and the sharp pressure in your head was only getting worse. Plus, Paige had already easily finished off her midterm exams two days prior, which meant she didn't truly understand why you were so worked up over your exams. And the worst part, your bloating and exhaustion really did make you feel a little bit like a cow.

“P I'm just not in the mood to deal with you right now," you sighed, exasperation laced in your tone. "I already feel bad enough this morning, I can't handle you piling more onto my plate, I'll see you later," you barely even said goodbye to her properly as you gathered your stuff, put on your shoes, and left her dorm.

The second you closed her door behind you, you could feel the pit forming in your stomach, full of regret and shame. You knew it was unfair to be so rude to Paige when she was just trying to lighten your mood, but your anxiety always caused you to last out at anyone who tried to help you. You made a mental note while walking to your favorite coffee shop to apologize and make it up to her when you saw her in the evening, after the stress from midterm week had diffused and your raging headache calmed down.

***SMALL TIME SKIP***

You were flipping through your study notes and flashcards while listening to one of Paige's playlist on the lowest volume possible when you saw your phone screen light up from next to you. Deciding it would be good to take a quick thirty second break, you reach for your phone and matcha latte at the same time, clicking on the text message you received from Paige.

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

From P 💜:

I'm so sorry for making fun of you this morning baby, I know you're stressed about your tests today and I had no intentions of making you feel worse with my jokes, I just wanted to cheer you up a bit because I know how bad your anxiety can get. Good luck on your test today killer, i love you 🤍.

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

Shit, now you really felt bad for snapping at her earlier today. All remnants of your misplaced anger had long since disappeared, now replaced with embarrassment. She was right, your anxiety was hitting you hard today, but that was no excuse for bitching out your girlfriend just for trying to improve your mood. You quickly hearted her message and began typing out a short response, as you knew you needed to apologize in-person for your behaviour.

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

To P 💜:

Thank you so much P, I'll see you later tonight baby. I love you too 🤍

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

***SMALL TIME SKIP***

You breathed a sigh of relief as you finally reached the floor of Paige's dorm room, exhausted from your long and mentally tiring day of midterms, but you were finally done, your headache was finally gone, and you now had the weekend to relax and spend time with your girlfriend.

As you reached for your keys in your pocket, you heard the loud commotion of voices that you recognized to be KK, Aubrey, Sarah, Allie, and Paige in the living room. It wasn't uncommon for the girls to be over, as the team always spent hung out together outside of practice, and since you started spending more time at Paige's dorm, you had quickly stocked her near bare kitchen full of snacks, baked goods, and home-cooked meals the girls loved to steal.

You entered the living room greeting everyone as you took off your shoes, making a beeline straight to where Paige was sitting on the couch. You stood in between the space of her legs, wrapping your free arm around her shoulders to lean down and plant a kiss on the top of her head.

"Hey P," you spoke softly, looking down at the small smile that had settled on her face.

"Hey yourself, how were you midterms? Today was your last day right?" She questioned as her fingertips began running up and down the back of your legging covered thigh.

"They were fine, I think I did good on majority of them. My math midterm was a little shaky, but not too bad yk?" You answered her quietly, afraid to pop the little bubble of peace you two had created around yourselves among the chaos of the living room's occupants.

"I," you began, as your hand had made its way to the front of her face as you pushed back a small piece of hair that had escaped out of her bun. "Will you come in the room with me real quick?" You asked her, practically whispering at this point.

"Yeah of course baby," she answered quickly, letting her hand travel up your body to rest at the small of your back as she stood up, leading you past everyone to her bedroom.

"We'll be right back," she announced to the group as the two of walked by. "Oooo, Paige is in trouble," KK sang out as the two of you reached her closed room door, Paige still standing behind you. She turned the knob quickly, gently pushing you into the room first as she turned around to stick her tongue out at KK before she closed the door.

By the time she turned around from the door to face you, she barely had a moment to adjust to your body barreling into her, as you had already dropped your bag off next to her desk. She quickly wrapped her arms around you, being able to sense that you just needed to be held for a minute before speaking.

She lightly rubbed your back and shoulders with her hands, knowing exactly what it was that immediately calmed you down. You stayed silent in her comforting embrace for a few more minutes, having craved her touch all day when you were around campus.

"I'm sorry," you finally spoke up, unburying your head from her chest to look her in the eyes. "I was really rude to you for no reason this morning. My headache when I woke up and all the stress I had was completely unrelated to you, but I still ended up taking it out on you," you sighed before continuing, "I really appreciate the fact that you were trying to cheer me up this morning, even though I was being a total bitch. And you are never a burden or someone who adds more onto my plate, I love you and I'm so sorry I said that to you, I would never want you to feel that way and-" as your eyes began to well up with tears, the last of your apology was cut off by Paige.

"Hey hey it's okay baby," she pulled you slightly away from her as the tears began flowing from your eyes. "I know you," she maintained eye contact as she reassured you, "And I know you would never act like that normally, you are not a bitch. You were just stressed out and not feeling well. I understand, and I promise I'm not mad at you at all," her right hand moved up from your back to your face, wiping the tears streaming down your face.

"Thank you P, I have no idea what I would do without you," you sniffled lightly, your hand coming up to wipe your face as well. "I love you so much, you have no idea," you professed.

"I love you too y/n/n," she whispered as her hands wrapping around your waist as she pulled you into her, leaning down slightly to kiss you. Your hands flew up the moment your lips connected, one cradling her jaw while the other rested on the base of her neck. The kiss was slow and languid, an apology met with forgiveness as your lips moved together.

The loud rumbling of your stomach, interrupted your sweet moment with Paige, forcing the two of you to separate as a giggle slipped out of her.

"Didn't realize a small kiss made you that hungry for me," she smiled, now at peace knowing that you were no longer upset. "Shut up," you smiled back, lightly hitting her chest as you broke away from her. "I am for real hungry though, but I need to shower first," you told her as you moved around the room, grabbing your towel and a fresh pair of pajamas to change into.

"I'm pretty sure Aubrey is ordering Domino's so I'll tell her to add in something for you, and it'll probably be here by the time you get out," she kissed your cheek as you went to exit the room, heading for a quick shower as she remained in her room.

***SMALL TIME SKIP***

As you entered the living room, curls freshly washed, a soft pair of Paige's sweatpants resting low on your hips, and a small off the shoulder sweatshirt over your sleep tank top, you witness KK showing her tik tok live her "hips dance", if it could even be referred to as that.

"Oh wow," Paige commented dryly at the sight while getting up from the couch so she could grab her laptop from the kitchen counter. You moved past her to Aubrey's desk, grabbing a piece of garlic knots from the Domino's box she left partially open (i don't think she actually bought any but I'm craving them so i added it in here). You rested your hip against the table, waving at the live while KK queued up Sexyy Red on her Siri.

Everyone knew you and Paige were a couple, when Paige accidentally hard-launched you by posting a cute couples pic on her main instagram story instead of her close friends. But since then, the two of you kept a private but not secret relationship, very occasionally posting together, but fans often saw candids of the two of you on dates or together in the team's lives or other events.

You licked the remaining cheese and butter off your fingers as you watched Paige, KK, and Aubrey dance in front of the camera to "U My Everything", smiling at their so-called dance moves, especially Paige's.

"Man we go together tell them hoes we go together," Paige sang, before doing her little "attitude now walk" move, making you double over with laughter at her with the other two girls.

You scratched the back of your neck as you continued to watch the girls mess around, too tired from your day to join them, but content just from watching them. As the second chorus approached, Paige walked up to your leaned figure on the desk, grabbing your bare waist and pulling you into her as she sang.

"Bae, I love you, you my everything, I'm your main bitch, fuck a wedding ring," you laughed at her awful singing, but you couldn't deny the blush that rose to your cheeks at the thought of her singing you the lyrics while very clearly in the live's frame. "We both in fast cars and we switchin' lanes, when I'm away from you, you always on my brain," she continued, adding in her sassy facial expressions with the corresponding lyrics.

You couldn't help but laugh at her actions, the pure giddiness coursing through your veins was a complete 180 from your mood this morning, and you couldn't help but think there was nowhere that would make you happier than in her arms.

Thank you for reading all the way through! The recent support has been crazy and I appreciate all of you! Should I make a part two to this with smut so r can properly apologize to p.... 😏😏😏

[inmyheaddd]

walkin’ out the door with your bags - grayson hawthorne x reader - part 3

⤷ “pardon my emotions, i should probably keep it all to myself”

wc: 3k summary: things are as normal as ever between you and grayson, and gigi comes up with a plan… a double date. a/n: sorry i’ve been SO SLOW with these updates 😭 i had to cut this in half because it was getting sooo long (the flashback will make a lot more sense in the next part lmao)

masterlist || part 1 || part 2 || part 4 || part 5 || part 6

the past…

you and your class were on a trip to a planetarium of some sort.

you had just turned 9 and entered your astronomy phase - that never ended up fully leaving you - and were absolutely thrilled. you had a permanent smile on your face the whole day. 

it was now a break time, kids could spend their money on whatever they wanted; magnets, souvenirs, in the gift shop, and by far, the most popular choice: ice cream. 

“are you not going to get any?” you asked the boy sitting beside you on the bench, before bringing your plastic spoon to your little cup, and then to your mouth again. 

grayson barely looked at you, “no.”

“why? this ice cream is so good.”

he looked at the rocket keychain he held in his hand. he told you earlier he’d bought it for his youngest brother, xander.

“i’m not hungry.” he said flatly.

“yes you are, i can see it on your face hawthorne!” you pointed a finger at him, “you want ice cream sooooo bad it hurts, but you’re too scared of acting normal.”

“no i don’t,” he said, “and i am not afraid.”

“sure you are,” you said with an overenthusiastic nod, taking another bite of your ice cream.

grayson eyed you, “are you insinuating i’m not normal?”

you giggled, “yeah, because you don’t like ice cream. that, or you pretend to not like it. both are super weird.”

he furrowed his brows at you, absentmindedly twirling the keychain around his fingers. “…what if i simply haven’t had it before?”

your jaw almost dropped. there was no way that was just a hypothetical question. 

“you’ve never had ice cream?” you exclaimed, eyes wide with surprise. when he didn’t respond, you continued. “woah, grayson. that’s actually kind of sad…” as your best friend it’s my duty to get you to try all the best flavors one day— and trust me, there’s a lot.” 

“i’m perfectly fine without ice cream in my life.” he retorted, quite snappily too. “and without cavities. i’ve seen my brothers get a tooth extracted … it does not look pleasant, to say the least.”  

you took another bite of your ice cream, “what’s life without a little risk— or too much sugar?”

he eyed you, “less trips to the dentist.” 

the present…

it had been a few weeks since that hawthorne event, and things were back to normal with you and grayson. no more awkwardness, no more almost confessions, just you and your best friend.

you found yourself outside grayson's house, tapping your foot impatiently after ringing the doorbell twice.

you

— hello — bro — i’m outside  — no one’s opening the door — are you leaving me on seen?? 

you waited a moment, seriously debating whether to go home or not as you glanced  at your phone, watching the bubbles form and disappear.

grumpy blonde 👎

— No.

you

— …is this because i called you bro — sorry — sorry grayson davenport hawthorne***

*grumpy blonde 👎 reacted 👎🏻 to your message* 

how fitting.

grumpy blonde 👎

— Do you not have a key? I had one made for you months ago.

you

— oh — well — i kinda lost it

grumpy blonde 👎

— I’ll have a new one made soon.  — I’ll be down now, apologies for the wait.

you

— aw — it’s ok oren just let me in — i think he feels bad for me LMAO 

when the door finally clicked open, you barely took 3 step before you heard the front door shut close. the coldness of the house immediately hit you. 

why was it always freezing in this place?

grayson came down within 10 seconds of your arrival, and 10 minutes later, you were sitting on his bed as he organized the new suits he had bought earlier that day. 

so that’s why he was taking so long. 

now, you just finished explaining the long winded plan you and gigi had been planning for a week now. 

it sounded his worst nightmare. 

you loved it.

“so… yeah. what do you think?” you asked, a coy smile on your face as grayson turned to look at you.

“you came all the way here to ask me to ask me this?” there it was: the eyebrow arch.

“well, if i called you or asked over text you’d just say no.” you shrugged, “but in person i can just annoy you until you say yes.” 

“i’m not going on a double date.” of course he was going to say that. “nonetheless with gigi and noah.”

you sighed frustratedly, nearly falling back on his bed. “but why? it’s all friendly and platonic, and he’s actually so nice! i’ve even talked to him a little and—“

he quit reorganizing his suits and swiftly turned his head around to look at you. “when have you spoken to him?” 

you laughed nervously at his intense gaze, “chill,” you said, “he just drops gigi off at our door sometimes, or waits outside if she’s about to come out.”

“i do some subtle interrogations of my own for your information, hawthorne,” you continued, your voice a little quieter, more meaningful. “youre not the only one who cares about gigi, you know.” 

the knit in his brows loosened, and his eyes broke away from yours for a second. “you’re right. i apologize.” and just like that, his eyes quickly flickered away again.

his back as turned to you, “i do want gigi to be happy.” he said, knowing how gigi jokingly says otherwise. “however, not everyone has the best intentions. it’s difficult to not be wary.” 

you watched him open a table drawer and pull out his glasses box. he put them on, and then took out his phone. 

after a moment of silence, you continued your persuasion attempts. 

 “i know that, this’ll be your perfect chance to see what’s going on,” you said in a singsong voice towards the end, “and gigi already promised no public displays of affection between them, if you were worried about that.”

he just hummed, clearly not showing any interest in the whole ordeal, not wanting to discuss it any further.

you sighed again, and briefly checked your phone. you realised you would have to leave soon if you wanted enough time to get ready. 

you still sat watching him, though. it looked like he was trying to inspect something closer on his phone - that, or he had really bad eyesight - because he squinted and pulled his glasses down his nose bridge momentarily as he looked at his phone. 

he looked from his phone to you, “what time is this… double date happening?”

you stifled a laugh, “you look like a grandpa.”

he raised a judging brow, but you could see that smile creeping in. “i’ll repeat myself, when is this double date you speak of happening?”

“wait,” you realised what that meant, “you’re coming?!”

“i did not say that.”

you jumped up from the bed, beaming at him as you placed your hands on his arms,  “i knew you’d come to your senses!” 

he tilted his head back but made no attempt to move. and maybe it was your imagination, but it almost looked like he was smiling. 

“it’s at that one restaurant with the name i can’t pronounce and the weird logo, and gigi said to pleasewear something with colour, and that we should be there at 7!”

he sighed, looking like he was about to say something, but then he hesitated for a moment. his frown disappeared, and it seemed whatever complaints had too.

“i’ll be there to pick you up at quarter to.”

you blinked at him, your hands falling back to your sides, “quarter to?”

“6:45.”

“why didn’t you just say that then?” you joked. “quarter to,” you mocked him in a deep voice. “so extra” 

“extra?” he asked with a hint of a laugh.

“you’re extra, grayson hawthorne.”

his expression stayed the same , “it seems like you have new words to call me every week.”

“yeah, ‘cause you’re easy to make fun of.”

grayson accepted that and managed a smile, and also seemingly ignored everything you had just said. 

he changed the subject completely. “your glasses really suit you. have i told you that yet?” 

you willed yourself not to smile as you tilted your head to the side, “are you being sarcastic again?” you brought your hands to touch the frames you had promised to wear, and have gotten so used to them that they’d become second nature.

“i wasn’t ever being sarcastic,” he instantly replied, but his voice was rid of any teasing. 

you felt a few butterflies dance in your stomach, but you wouldn’t let that have any visible affect on you. “i’d believe that if you didn’t have such a good poker face.” 

his smile faltered slightly, “why would i lie to you?” 

butterflies at this point your stomach was turning into a mosh pit at the point, “because you’re my friend and you’re annoying.”

he nodded, that kind of slow nod that said that he wasn’t following what you were saying at all. “fair. good point.” 

“when do i not make good points? ” you asked, half laughing as you took a step back, not giving him any time to respond before you called out. “actually, don’t answer that! and don’t forget to wear some colour!”

—

to your surprise, he actually did wear some colour. and somehow, the colour of his tie complimented your dress perfectly. his suit was a mix of biege and grey, with a stark white button up underneath. 

and true to his word, he was outside your door at exactly 6:45. gigi had left the house much earlier with noah — they were going to some indie concert before the dinner. 

when you and grayson were brought to your table, you shared a surprised glance. noah and gigi were already sitting down, and you don’t think you’ve ever seen two people looking more blissfully happy in eachothers company. they couldn’t take their eyes off one another, so enamored with eachothers company. 

when they noticed you two, noah smiled nervously as his eyes landed on grayson, and gigi nearly jumped in excitement.

—

“are you currently working?” grayson asked noah, before raising his glass to his lips.

you felt so bad for the nervous boy, this had been going on for the past 30 minutes. he was adorable in a puppy sense, he reminded you of a pug, or a golden retriever, maybe, with his curly caramel coloured hair, and big brown eyes hid behind circular frames, that stayed on gigi for the majority of the time.

“yes!” noah’s voice picked up, before he heard his own enthusiasm and cleared his throat. 

“i’m a, uhm, veterinarian.” he spoke more leveled, and grayson didn’t say anything, so noah filled the silence between the table.

“my parents own multiple law firms around texas and some other states, but… it was never what i really liked.” he said with an almost wistful tone in his voice, “my siblings are all lawyers, but i prefer dealing with animal problems than people problems.” he added, chuckling nervously.

“yeah! he’s the cutest with cats, you should see it!” gigis voice was full of enthusiasm as her hand lightly grabbed noah’s upper arm, “but he’s actually a dog person, which is totally okay, actually! opposites attract!” 

they looked at each other and shared a small laugh, while you thought: 

opposites? 

they were practically written in the same font, gigis was just in bold, with a little cat emoji beside the text. they worked so well, gigi once told you half asleep at 3 am; “you know, i think i’ve missed him in my life before i even knew him. does that make sense?” 

quickly being brought back to the present, you smiled warmly at gigi, and soon enough conversation flowed between all four of you. 

it wasn’t long before you lost all track of the conversation as you zoned out on what noah was doing to his plate.

he was pecking at his food, seemingly separating the chicken from his alfredo on one half of his plate, and the pasta on the other half. 

this was going on for a full 2 minutes.

grayson turned to look at you as he noticed your unusual silence, and his eyes followed your focused gaze. 

he gave noah a very stern questioning look, and noah looked confused as his eyes flicked between you two, wondering why you looked so confused. 

“what?” he asked nervously, almost hesitant before looking down at his plate. “oh,” he realised your confusion, “i um—“

gigi seemed to have picked up on what was going on, “—he’s separating the chicken from his pasta for me because he doesn’t like it, and because i’m obsessed with it! isn’t that right noah?”

a sheepish smile grew on his face, before looking at gigi with so much love in his eyes, it made your heart warm and leap for your best friend. “yeah,” he said, “that’s right.” 

grayson hummed bedside you, “oh, of course.” he offered them a small smile out of politeness— an unusual act for him, but you assumed it was for rare occasions like these when he saw the sheer happiness beam off gigi’s face.

he must’ve sensed it too; they were an odd couple, but they worked perfectly. 

as if on cue, gigi reached over with her fork, abandoning all the cutlery rules she had been taught as a child, poked the chicken with the utensil and waved it just infront of  to her mouth, “om nom nom,” she giggled as she looked at the curly headed boy beside her, non stop quiet laughter from the both of them as she put her fork down, not even taking the bite she intended.

you and grayson shared another glance, chuckling, but wondering what was so funny that they were still laughing— nothing objectively funny had even happened, she had just said one thing. 

but you quickly realised that was one of the things that just wasn’t for you to get. 

that was probably how people thought of you and gigi, you thought. 

like when you’d be shaking with laughter with tears in your eyes over the stupidest things, and when someone would ask what’s so funny, they’d look at you strangely once you attempted to explain. 

it was just for you two to get. and now, she had someone else to have that with.  

you couldn’t have been more happy for that girl. she deserved it, more than anyone.

you were now thinking selfishly— wondering when you could experience that with someone you loved. even though you did have someone you loved so dearly: gigi, it was just like romance was just not in your playing field. 

everyone you had talked to always expected something from you, or expected you to be someone you weren’t. that, or they just didn’t care. 

you took your eyes to your hands, habitually fiddling with your fingers under the table to stop your thoughts from going any further. 

it wasn’t the time to be acting like this. you looked up and your eyes found their way to grayson, who’s head turned just as his eyes caught yours for a split second.

he looked at his plate, gigi and noah’s laughter died down now, and grayson was already asking him another question about his life. 

suddenly, you felt gigi’s leg nudge yours under the table, one of her ways of silently asking you if you were okay. 

you nodded at her to let her know you were fine. and in response, she attempted to raise a interrogative brow — she told you she’d been trying to learn how to do grayson’s eyebrow raise — and then narrowed her eyes to comically thin slits. 

“i’m okay,” you mouthed at her, but she gave you a look that said “we’re talking about this later,” before you both returned to the main conversation at the table. 

the rest of the evening was fine, with the dim lighting and soft piano in the background and the quiet chatter from everyone else in the restaurant. you shared funny embarrassing stories

when the bill came, noah immediately reached for his wallet, fingers fumbling a bit as he pulled out his card. across the table, grayson was also pulling out his wallet.

“hey, it’s alright, i can pay” he said, glancing around the table with a nervous smile.

grayson briefly looked as he set his card down on the table. “allow me, it’s no worry.”

noah hesitated, glancing between grayson’s card and his own. “no, really—i want to,” he insisted, voice a little shaky but clearly set on it.

grayson shook his head lightly, "please, i insist.” the words were even and polite but left no room for argument.

“no, seriously, i have no problem paying—“

“and neither do i. please,”

“it’s okay, actually, i’d love to pay.” noah managed, scratching the back of his neck, looking between you, gigi, and then back at grayson.

your eyes flickered between the two like a tennis match. you and gigi exchanged a look, both stifling smiles as noah shifted uncomfortably. then gigi spoke.

"hey, how about i pay?"

both grayson and noah turned to her instantly, in sync, and said a definite, adamant,

"no."

you couldn’t hold back a snort, catching gigi’s eye as she rolled hers, before her face lit up with an idea. 

finally, after an intense game of eenie meenie miney mo —suggested by gigi, noah payed. 

grayson reluctantly put his card back in his wallet, tucking it back in his pocket as noah flashed gigi a nervous smile. 

when they caught eachother’s eyes, grayson offered noah a slight nod, almost of respect. noah returned it with a smile.

you and gigi once again glanced at eachother. in both your eyes, that seemed like a success. 

a/n: this is such a filler chapter but i wanted to properly introduce my new fav, noah, and showcase his bond with gigi 😋 I PINKY SWEAR there’s so much fluff in part 4 you might have to check in with ur local dentist…

taglist: @x-liv25-jamieswife @wish-i-were-heather @thecircularlibrary @whatsamongus @hermesenthusiast

@littlemissmentallyunstable @anintellectualintellectual @lovethornes @maybxlle @sheisntyou

@emelia07 @midiosaamor @sweetreveriee @charsoamerican @hxress23

@imaseabear @soleilars @clarissaweasley-10 @off-to-the-r4ces @thelov3lybookworm

@lanterns-and-daydreams @graysw1fe

[lovebugism]

Some blurb with grumpy fem reader and sunshine eddie?

He's constantly flirting with her and she only teases him or talking him down.

One time some cheerleader trying to flirt with Eddie and reader is so possesive, taking his hand and walking away. Eddie is wide-eyed, big smirk on his face and going after her with jumpy steps full of joy.

✶ ┄ SHE'S SO UNUSUAL !

summary: eddie's pretty sure he's loved you since the day he met you. you're pretty sure love is a neurochemical con job pairing: eddie munson / f!reader word count: 2.8k warnings: none? maybe just the faintest hint of angst? a/n: let's play a game of spot the steven universe reference because a clip popped on my tiktok fyp a couple days ago and even though i've never seen it, i simply haven't been able to stop thinking about it <3 anyways thanks so much for your request! hope you enjoy!

( BLURB SLEEPOVER ) | ( MASTERLIST )

Eddie’s pretty sure he’s loved you since before he understood what the word really meant. He didn’t know a lot of things, really, especially not as a lanky-limbed teenager trying hopelessly to navigate puberty in a world filled with assholes and uncertainty.

The only thing he could be certain of was all the love he had for you.

He’s seventeen and hopelessly stupid and you’re beautiful and eons out of his league. He concludes that having the majority of your gen-ed classes has to be fate and that making fun of you is the easiest way to talk to you without feeling like he needs to throw up. 

So he takes to bothering you every day before class and sitting at the table beside you — despite the fact that it had been assigned to someone else at the beginning of the school year — until the teacher ultimately gives up and lets him sit next to you. He pokes fun at your Blondiemerch and how the same She’s So Unusual Cyndie Lauper cassette has been in your walkman for a week straight and the way you dot your eyes with pretty little hearts.

Every joke is sprinkled with the faintest hint of truth, though.

He tells you that he hates Blondie but that the shirt looks good on you, because everything you wear looks good on you. He says it’s hilarious that you can’t seem to listen to anything other than Cyndie Lauper but that he understands because he’s been obsessed with Metallica lately — and that he’d love to show you some of their music sometime. He says only children put hearts over their i’s, but that it's real cute when you do it, when you do anything.

“You’re so annoying,” you inevitably tell him with the roll of your eyes when he tells you exactly that. He can’t tell if the way the corner of your lip quirks up is from a half-concealed smile or a look of disgust.

“Sorry, sweetheart,” he shrugs and knocks his leather-clad shoulder with yours. “It’s not my fault that I’ve been in love with you since the moment I saw you. Actually, now that I think about it, it’s kinda your fault.”

He says it all with a playful lilt to hide how much he means each word. That he’s in love with you and has been since you were in middle school, when he had a godawful buzz cut and loving Rocky Horror Picture Show was your entire personality — at twelve. 

“Love at first sight doesn’t exist,” you argue while you mindlessly jot down notes from the textbook spread open between you, dotting every i with a practiced heart. “Love takes time and work. At the bare minimum, you should at least probably know the other person — and you don’t have a single clue who I am.”

He’s momentarily knocked asunder at your words, at how profound they are. It’s like a century-old philosopher is using a pretty highschool aged girl as a mouthpiece, and it only makes him love you more.

“Well, I could get to know you,” he retorts with a frown. “You just won’t let me.”

“Did you hear anything I just said?” you squint over at him. 

“Yeah. That love takes time,” he echoes and a grin pulls slow at his lips. “Good thing we’ve got all the time in the world, sweetheart.”

When two years fly by, and you’re finally a senior (and Eddie’s repeating his last year of high school over again because the one before it knocked him on his ass), you realize that he wasn’t kidding around. He still tries hopelessly to get to know you and jokes that he’s a second-year senior only because he “didn’t want to leave you behind.”

“Couldn’t just leave you by yourself, sweetheart,” he says with a defiant shake of his head. “No way. Not with Jason Carver and all the other freaks roaming around here.”

“Yeah, I don’t think they’re the freaks here, Eds,” you monotone as you put in the combination for your locker.

He immediately notices the use of the nickname. It took you a year to call him anything other than Munson, and now he’s moving into Eds territory? It feels like his heart might burst. But you don’t seem to notice it so Eddie decides to keep it to himself, like sunshine in his pocket, lest he brings it up and he never gets to hear it again.

He presses a hand to his chest and leans in next to you. “Ouch, babe. I’m wounded. Truly. Sorry for wanting to protect a sweet little thing like you.”

You scrunch your nose and swat his hand away when he tries to squeeze your cheek.

“Some would say I actually need protecting from you.”

 “I am capable of pretty dangerous things, sweetheart.”

“Like what?” you scoff.

Eddie only grins. “Wouldn’t you like to know?”

You ignore the chill that his words shoot down your spine and pretend to be unbothered by the way they make your heart race. You choose to roll your eyes at him and stuff your arms with textbooks. “You better have a massive dick to back up that attitude, Munson, or people are gonna be real disappointed.”

“And by people you mean you, right?”

“Obviously not,” you monotone.

“Well, joke's on you, I’ve already disappointed everyone I know.”

“That’s not true, Eds—” you shoot back but then swallow the words when you realize you were about to say something too sweet. “There are billions of people in the world you haven’t met yet. There’s still plenty left to disappoint.”

“You’re real sweet, you know that?” he jokes with a smile. “Besides, if you’re really worried about the size of my dick, we can always break out a ruler and, you know, test your theory.”

“Ooh, sorry,” you wince. “I left my magnifying glass at home. Maybe some other time?”

“How about tomorrow?” he answers quickly and easily falls into step with you when you shut your locker and head towards your next class.

“I have a date tomorrow, actually. No can do.”

His heart stops and his throat swells and he forgets what words are for a moment or two. He can only blink at you for a few seconds. “A— A date?”

“Uh-huh. Jason Carver. He asked me out this morning.”

“You’re kidding,” he retorts bitterly with a scowl on his face. Then you start laughing at him and the world starts spinning again. He starts laughing too, but it’s more of a sigh of relief than anything else. “You— You are kidding?”

“Obviously I’m kidding,” you shove him. “Hell will freeze over before I am willingly anywhere around that guy.”

Eddie’s freshly beating heart starts to swell. It feels like more of an honor than it already has been, for you to want to willingly be around him.

“Oh, so you were just trying to make me jealous, then?” he squints over at you.

This time, you’re the stuttering mess as you try to figure out what to say.

He chuckles at you. “Because it worked, sweetheart.”

A couple of months or more go by and graduation nears — well, for you. Eddie’s still hellbent that he’s going to have to repeat another year, but you’ve made it your mission to get him to pass English.

He doesn’t even mind that it means he actually has to do the homework, as long he gets to spend time with you in the Hellfire room after school or share a snack with you at the picnic tables at Forest Hill.

It’s got him living in a state of grandeur. He’s hopelessly deluded, not only that he’s in love with you, but that you’re in love with him. And, for obvious reasons, you know that can’t be true.

Neither of you can be in love because you’re kids and you’re stupid and you don’t know a single damn thing about anything, let alone something as trivial and philosophical as love. It’s a neurochemical con job, everyone knows it. It’s not real.

Everyone thought Nancy and Steve were in love at one point, and then she called him bullshit at a party before fucking off with Jonathan Byers.

Everyone thought Jason and Chrissy were in love, too — that they would be everything Steve and Nancy couldn’t — and then she dumped him in front of the entire school after catching him being an asshole to a bunch of Hellfire club freshmen.

So, obviously, no one knows what love is. 

And by that logic, they can’t know when they’re in it either.

So you chalk up the butterflies and burning cheeks you always get around Eddie to being a dumb teenager who’s lonely and touch starved. Because it’s not love. It just can’t be.

Eddie begs to differ, though, and he swears he’s got the test to prove it.

It’s the spring assembly at Hawkins High, which means everyone’s gathered in the gymnasium on bleachers that are not nearly big enough to accommodate everyone, doing fuck all and grateful for not having to do any actual work. 

The cheerleaders do a couple of dances, the basketball team prances around the court — it’s all hopelessly pedestrian as far as you’re concerned.

You and the rest of Hellfire are located at the very top of the bleachers, as far away as you possibly can be from whatever the hell is going on below you. It checks out, though, because everyone else opts to keep their distance from the lot of you, too.

And you’re not exactly sure how the conversation started, but somehow you end up talking about crushes, and Eddie makes the too bold proclamation that you’ve got the fattest crush on him of all people.

“Leave her alone!” Dustin scolds him over the band, the only one actually trying to stick up for you. “Maybe this is something you should discuss, I don’t know, in private?”

You roll your eyes. “There’s no need. Because I don’t have a crush on you, Eddie Munson,” you tell him, stern and unwavering, as you squint over at him. Your glare follows the boy as he paces up and down the bleachers, two levels below you. “Sorry to bruise your ego.”

“Oh, so you won’t care if I tell Chrissy that I wanna take her on a date?” he asks you with a knowing grin.

“Why would I care?” you retort, then grumble. “It’s not like she would say yes anyway.”

“Well, she did ask me first.”

That quietens you instantly “…You’re lying.”

“Wanna bet?” he teases and leans down, resting his weight on the seating in front of him, until his face is level with yours. You can smell the nicotine on his breath and the mint gum he smacks between his teeth. 

If you were alone — and in some godawful teenage drama — you might’ve pulled him in for a kiss right there. At least, that’s what your brain tells you to do because your lips have started to tingle just thinking about it.

You hope Eddie hasn’t noticed the way your gaze falls on his own pink, plump, and very kissable ones. But the grin that paints his features then tells you that he has.

You play it off with a stoic expression and crossed arms. “Chrissy going from dating the captain of the basketball team to the town’s local freak would be an unprecedented low.”

“I’ll be sure to tell you all about our trip to Lover’s Lake tomorrow morning, sweetheart, don’t worry your pretty little head,” he promises before rising and spinning on his heels. He makes the trek to the lower level of the bleachers — a feat made more difficult by the crowd and the distance between it and him.

He makes sure to turn and look back at you every now and again, to make sure that you’re still watching him. You are. Of course, you are. And you hope the seething anger in your chest doesn’t show on your face.

“He’s not actually gonna ask her out, right?” Mike wonders.

“No way,” Dustin denies with the shake of his head. “The president of Hellfire can’t date a cheerleader… Right?”

Gareth shrugs. “He’s obviously bluffing.”

“Yeah, he wouldn’t do that,” Jeff agrees. He turns to look over at you. “He’s been in love with you since middle school. He just wants to upset you.”

“Well, it’s fucking working,” you grumble under your breath. Your heart races and your vision swims as you watch him near the group of cheerleaders sitting on the floor of the gym. 

You want to believe that he’s bluffing, you really do, but you don’t doubt that Chrissy’s asked him out.

After she dumped Jason, she’d gotten strangely protective over the Hellfire club — constantly making an effort to talk to them all, ensuring that the rest of the school wasn’t acting total assholes around them. Hell, she’s even started being nice to you and you weren't even in the damn club.

She’s been hanging around with Eddie a lot more lately, catching up in the library and ranting about tests between classes. Everyone’s seen it. You’ve seen it. And it’s made you unbelievably jealous. 

Maybe you never noticed it before now because you used to be the only girl interested in talking to Eddie. But now he’s got the head cheerleader around to keep him company, to ask him out on fucking dates, and it leaves you seething in your rage.

And if love is anger, then you’re head over heels for Eddie Munson.

You rise suddenly from your seat and shove your way through the bleachers, muttering lackluster excuse me’s under your breath as you go and elbowing those who refuse to get out of your way. 

You reach Eddie just before he’s about to tap on Chrissy's shoulder. You take that hand and nearly jerk it from its socket the way you pull at him. Eddie is stunned, for all of half a second, thinking it must’ve been a fuming Jason Carver at the force of the grip around him. 

But it’s just you, all but dragging him out of the gymnasium with the strength of ten men in one angry teenage girl, and it makes him smile so hard it hurts.

He traps the grin between his teeth and locks eyes with the rest of Hellfire from across the room. He brings two fingers to his forehead in salute before he’s pulled out of the gym entirely.

“What’s wrong, sweetheart?” he teases as you lead him down a long hallway. “Thought you didn’t give a shit if I asked her out?”

You don’t respond to his teasing. You just keep tugging him by his wrist through the empty school. He’s not even sure if you’re even breathing just now, or if you’re moving strictly on autopilot and rage.

You shove him into Mr. Kamisnky’s vacant classroom and lock the door behind you.

Eddie’s chest rises and falls with the heavy breath he exhales. “Well, shit, sweetheart... If I knew making you jealous was all I needed to do to get you alone, I would’ve done it a long time ago—”

“Say you didn’t mean it,” you interject, less than amused at his teasing.

“…What?”

“That you wanted to take Chrissy on a date,” you elaborate with arms crossed over your chest, protecting yourself, your heart. “Say you didn’t mean it.”

And Eddie laughs. He fucking laughs. Like everything’s a joke to him, like the mere thought of you being heartbroken over him liking Chrissy is funny to him.

It’s not. Well, at least not that bit. It’s laughable to him that you would even think he wanted anybody but you after he’s spent so many years fawning over you.

“Of course, I didn’t mean it,” Eddie scoffs. He tries to take a few steps closer to you, but you back away, not believing him. He softens. “I just wanted to make you jealous, sweetheart. I didn’t wanna… hurt your feelings.”

“Well, you did,” you monotone.

The boy’s brows furrow. “Hurt your feelings or make you jealous?”

“…Yes.”

A smile pulls slow at his lips. He tries to hide it but fails miserably. “Well, if it’s any consolation, I just wanted to see how you would react. And I am very pleased by this reaction… Even though my wrist feels like it’s broken.”

“Sorry,” you murmur to yourself, already embarrassed at how angry you’d gotten.

“Don’t be sorry,” Eddie declines with the shake of his head. This time when he walks toward you, you don’t back away from him. You even let him take your elbows in his hands and rub his thumbs over your warmed and jealousy-prickled skin.

“Actually, you know what, do be sorry,” he corrects playfully. “And make it up to me by taking me out. Somewhere fancy.”

You purse your lips to the side in attempts to hide your smile. 

“Benny’s Burgers?” you offer after a moment.

“Ooh. Burgers, fries, a milkshake, and a hot date?" he lists with a nod of approval. "You really know how to get a guy to swoon, don't ya sweetheart?”

[haveyouseenthisskeleton]

How would the main 10 react if they were sleeping in the same bed as an S/O who had a nightmare, and when they woke up was scared of the skelly for just a moment? Like who would be offended vs. just concerned? Sorry if this has been asked before! I thought I looked hard enough.

Undertale Sans - Definitely concerned. He knows what bad nightmares are. He waits for you to calm down before slowly asking if you want to discuss it. Sans is good at finding words to comfort you so you two can go back to sleep.

Undertale Papyrus - He's very concerned. He lived this scenario a lot with Sans already, so he doesn't mind you being a bit scared. He pats your back until you feel better then starts to talk about random things to change your ideas.

Underswap Sans - He jumps a little at your stare but doesn't take offense more than that. He's just relieved you're ok. Now, he's not the best at comforting people, but he tries some bad jokes to change your ideas.

Underswap Papyrus - He hugs his S/O tight until they're fine again. Honey is a bit concerned, but he knows how bad nightmares can be. He shows he's there for you and will keep you in his arms until you fall back asleep.

Underfell Sans - It hurts a bit, but it's not important. Red can tell you're not ok right now and he prefers to focus on that. He asks you if you're ok, and then awkwardly pets your back or your head to comfort you. He's not sure he's doing it right, but he's trying.

Underfell Papyrus - It definitely hurts. He was about to hug you but he freezes at your reaction and then decides to give you some space. He's unsure what to do or say as he's not sure if he did something wrong. He simply stays in bed, sitting next to you, waiting to see if you're going to reject him or accept his help. You decide.

Horrortale Sans - He's not awakened enough to notice honestly. Eye sockets half closed, he grabs your arm and kinda yanks you against him. He then starts to purr to soothe you while he falls back asleep, hugging you tightly.

Horrortale Papyrus - He acts like nothing happened because you're clearly distressed and simply comforts you like usual. You understand at his stress baking the rest of the day that he actually noticed a lot and that it made him very insecure about himself. Willow doesn't want to bother you by talking about it so he kinda bottled his feelings.

Swapfell Sans - You getting spooked of him actually spooked him and he punched you in the face instinctively as a defense mechanism lol. Well, at least you're back asleep very fast. You're a bit confused when you wake up with a headache a few hours later.

Swapfell Papyrus - Uh. He's a bit nervous and just boops your nose hoping to stop that scared expression in your eyes. Come on, bud, it's just little old' him, nothing to be scared about. Rus is strangely a little more silent than usual that day.

Fellswap Gold Sans - "Are you going to stop staring at me like that tonight or tomorrow?" Ah... Wine and his legendary compassion. He's a bit grumpy that you woke him up and just turned his back on you to go back to sleep lol. Go see Coffee if you want comfort, he's not helping for sure.

Fellswap Gold Papyrus - He looks behind him in fear, thinking you saw a monster behind him or something and just... stares in confusion. As there's nothing there. Uh. Ok. Now he's scared to. So how about you two hug until you both forget what just happened?

[mosaickiwi]

“Bad” Gift Giver Angel Headcanons

Just some ~silly and wholesome thoughts~ I put on disc but wanted to share here too! I'm a lil spammer. cw// Slight mention of violence at the end.

14 Days With You is an 18+ Yandere Visual Novel. MINORS DNI

Ren/dacted with an Angel that gives weird ‘just because’ gifts but they don't realize how strange they are since he genuinely cherishes everything they give him. <3

🎁 Giant 5 pound gummy bear! Ren tries like hell to finish it, but his tummy hurts. He ends up preserving it in epoxy to put on a shelf. Half of its head is missing.

🎁 Angel finds one of those train sets that hung from the ceilings in some McDonalds stores way back in the day. (video) Ren sets it up in his room and rigs it to work as a morning wake up alarm. Or just lays down and watches it go when he’s trying to sleep. He might paint over Ronald's face though.

🎁 Customized Furby that looks like an eldritch horror? They thought it matched his vibes and now they regret giving it to him. 

💝 When Angel stays over, it scares them when they wake up in the middle of the night. Ren imprisons it in his shrine room after Angel wakes him up in tears begging him to move it somewhere else. The battery died a long time ago, but sometimes Angel still hears it laughing through the walls.

🎁 The UGLIEST sweaters imaginable. They light up, they make noise, they itch, they burn the eyes of all who see them. Dude is overheating himself in the summer cause he just feels so loved every time he puts one on.

🎁 There’s a phase of food gadgets and utensils, despite neither of them being a decent cook. Angel is disappointed since some of the items simply don’t work the way they wanted, but Ren adores the small everyday use ones. 

💝 A tabletop s'mores maker—it takes too long to burn marshmallows the way Angel likes, but Ren is endlessly patient about it while he hands them a blowtorch. Tiny novelty gumball machine that he puts on his desk and fills with mint chocolate candies. Hello Kitty waffle maker but they both keep burning it. 

💝 A pizza cutter shaped like an axe, Thor’s hammer meat tenderizer that he uses incorrectly, cat paw oven mitts, tongs, and serving spoons. Imagine this tatted, grumpy eboy pulling a frozen pizza out of the oven with his cute little paws??? He totally wears the matching apron if Angel asks.

🎁 It’s almost suspicious how he’s never surprised at a gift, but Angel still tries to catch him off guard. They’ll not so discreetly leave tiny presents around his apartment for him to find. Whether they’re just love notes, weird greeting cards for holidays he wasn’t aware of, or hand sized plushies in brightly colored capsules so he can experience some type of surprise at the very least. Even so, he always spots them immediately, but pretends it's taking him a few hours or so to notice anything different. Once he 'finds' one he'll teasingly thank them for the scavenger hunt.

🎁 Ren absolutely SEETHES on the inside whenever anyone else gets a gift, no matter how ridiculous it is. He wants the exact same thing immediately and drops the most obvious hints possible. 

💝 A hideous, singing, wall mounted fish for Teo’s birthday? Ren’ll talk all about how he’s always found them entertaining, his favorite fish is a bass—what do you mean he used to make a weird face whenever he caught one in Stardew? The moment it gets thrown away he’s digging through the garbage and bashing Teo over the head with it for not appreciating such a thoughtful present.

[pinkrifle]

Can you do some Headcanons of Reader comforting Clay when he's in a bad mood?

— 🥃 comforting Clay Puppington when he’s in a bad mood ! 。゜゜(´Ｏ`) ゜゜。

i noticed there has been a grave shortage of clay puppington fics !!1!1

TWs . . . cussing, drinking

“Jesus, as if they couldn’t give me ENOUGH paperwork and have me answer ENOUGH calls! it’s like they fucking want me to quit. . . I need a drink.” your darling boyfriend uttered as a greeting, stumbling through the door a tidbit late from his job. Being the mayor, nothing was or ever would be easy, but you wanted to lessen the blow for your sweetheart.

“Before you take that drink!—” you whisper-shouted, trying to sound as normal and calm as possible. Clay, with his glass raised mid air and a bottle of jack in his other hand, sighed at you. “Whaaa…..”

Embracing Clay in a hug, he flinched. It caught him off guard, greatly, even though you two were well dating. He sighed once again but let himself sink into your arms, resting his head back, it seemed like all he could do was sigh.

You both slowly sunk down into his study chair, Clay still grumbled and upset. No signs of Clay feeling any better yet, but that didn’t discourage you from peppering soft little kisses on his cheeks, going down to his neck (which tickled and made him chuckle a little bit, but he’s stubborn, so his face quickly went back to its grumpy frame.)

A smile spread across your face, blush spreading across both of your faces. Both for different reasons, you loved how Clay reacted with the smallest of actions and touches, and Clay, although he would never say it, loved how your soft lips fell on different parts of him.

“This uh . . . This is better than just a drink between the two of us?. .Not—Not that i don’t like your kisses, but wouldn’t it be muuuch better to just laugh over some jack?” He looked up at you, pleading. Your only response was a shake of your head and a half-disappointed look on your face, he sighed and his head bowed back down.

You knew that wasn’t him speaking, rather his stress that’s been piling on his shoulders. That’s all he knew. Drink, complain, cry, drink, complain, cry. But you didn’t think that was right, you wanted to show Clay something could be different. That he didn’t have to swim in his tears and musky alcohol that sat in his cup day to day, leaving a stench on him that put a frown on the inside of you, but you knew it didn’t have to be that way. Small steps.

Still is old grumpy self, you placed your hands on his shoulders and began to rub, Clay let himself relax for once, still a little grumpy he couldn’t have his afternoon drink, especially on such a terrible day. But he let himself feel good for once.

Your hands worked its way through the knots in all the spots of Clay’s back you could reach, a couple of moans and groans escaped him as he simply melted under your touch.

A couple extra kisses here and there, with the fire crackling in the background and the sun’s rays melting through the curtains, you both felt at peace for a little. It was so relaxing, the feeling being mutual despite sharing two different roles in this position.

Clay looked up at the dim light that shone above his study, then darted his eyes to the fire. He was too relaxed and frozen in place to really turn his head and look at you, but all he had to do was close his eyes some more and imagine your beautiful face, that—that is what calmed him the most.

Your face lightened and your gaze softened some more, watching a pink blush spread across Clay’s cheeks no amount of makeup could ever fake.

“See? Isn’t this . . . great?” You struggled to find words, but you knew exactly what you wanted to say, and he understood as well. “I know you think alcohol is your only partner, your only outlet, but i’m confident that you could confide in other things to make you feel.. at least the tiniest bit better. You don’t even have to do this in front of people.. just us, here, cozy and warm.” you whispered, hoping your words could touch Clay the way you wanted them to. (Clay didn’t understand shit you said LMAOOO)

“But alcohol gives me the same warm and cozy feeling, and we could both share it, no?” Clay muttered, probably half joking.

“Is the feeling of appreciating empty, bitter tasting liquor that costs too much and lasts too little better than simply just. . . being appreciated by someone that could actually appreciate you back?” You didn’t hesitate with any of your words, you didn’t sound pitiful, or sad, you sounded genuine. And he needed that.

“Oh…” was all Clay could utter, closing his eyes and letting the stress of his day melt away. As long as he was with you, simply basking in your presence, he had to admit all his worries went away in those moments. But not out loud, never.

A/N . . . OMFG. I AM SO SORRY GUYS 😭 i had MASSIVE writers block for .. a YEAR . A WHOLE YEAR. gosh i am so fkn sorry ahh 💔 i’m only just getting back into moral orel and stuff, requests will be slow but WILL be done by the end of the moonthhh ~ thank you for waiting! <3 xoxo, pauline

i LOOOOEVEVEVEVd writing this, even though Clay was a little OOC (i’m sorry ahhh!!! <\3) i hope you enjoyed, thank you so much <3

[gimmethosedaddymilkers]

A Bad Day Turned Good

Okay! This one was a request from @kieropal​, and, as most of my works go, this is right off the top of my head, so I hope it lives up to expectation! 

The ask was for a grumpy Arthur, and the reader helping him calm down, as to how, you ask, you shall see....

Female reader!

18+ ONLY

Arthur Morgan’s day had been terrible from the moment he woke up. 

First of all, his cot had been empty, you weren’t in it, which had made him upset to begin with. Dramatic? Maybe a little, but that had been the least irritating thing that had happened all day. 

He already had a job settled up to do, and then it was pushed back because someone else wanted to push one of their jobs onto him. 

So, he knew he was going to be tired, hell, he planned on being tired. 

Well.

Going on that bank job that Bill had ended up pushing onto him ended up with him being bucked forwards off his horse onto the hard ground, his face was bruising and he’d ruined a pair of his favorite pants. 

He’d gotten mud in his mouth, and his lip broke open. 

Then, after that, he went on the job he’d originally planned on doing, only to find out that the information he’d been given had been shit. A coach he’d been hoping to rob ended up having next to nothing in it. A couple dollars at best. 

So, to make up for that, he’d spent much of his day scouting out more jobs. He couldn’t return to camp with just five dollars to show for his days effort. 

He’d traveled across what felt like the entire country. 

He’d tried hunting, hoping to maybe sell some of the skins and bring meat back to camp, only to scare off every single animal he attempted to hunt. 

He followed one of the maps he’d found, and it only lead to a different map, and he knew he didn’t have enough time to start a whole hunt, so that had been given up.

Then, as he’d finally decided that today had just been a bust, and that he was simply going to get a drink and head home, some dumbass at the bar had decided to throw a punch and he’d been thrown into a bar brawl with no choice but to fight back. 

You hadn’t known any of this until he’d shown up at camp, covered in bruises and blood, his jeans torn at the knees and his jaw clenched so hard that you were afraid there was a chance he’d crack a tooth.

He’d beelined straight for you, ignoring the others as they tried to say hello. 

The moment he’d reached you he gripped your forearm and started to drag you to his tent. 

You’d nearly yelled out at him, his grip was so firm on your arm you were almost afraid he’d bruise you, but you could clearly see something was wrong with him.

As soon as you’d stepped into his tent, he pulled the tent flaps down and turned to you a scowl on his face.

“Arthur I’m sorry I-”

“Look at me,” He cut you off, gesturing to his body. “Look at this bullshit, you see this? All the shit I went through today?” 

“Arthur I-” 

“I just wanted to do one simple job, just one, and that was a fuckin’ bust,” He snorted and started to pace back and forth. “Bill’s job was successful at the cost of my pants, some jackass wanted to fight in the saloon when I just wanted one single fuckin’ drink.” 

“I had to run around half the goddamn fuckin’ country, tryna rustle up at least one fuckin’ job that would actually mean somethin’ so I had more than a couple quarters in my satchel for camp.” 

He snorted and smacked his thigh.

“Animals fuckin’ ran at the sight of me, so I couldn’t even bring food home.”

He took a deep breath. 

“Y/n. I’m fuckin’ tired.” He looked at you, and you felt nothing but pity for your outlaw, the bruises on his face, the tired bags under his eyes, and the look in his eyes. 

“Oh, Arthur.” You opened your arms and stepped forwards, and waited as Arthur looked at you, clenched his jaw, and then caved.

He stepped forwards and let you wrap your arms around him, and leaned his chin against your shoulder, you could feel his breath against your neck.

“Here, go sit.” You stepped back and gestured towards the cot, walking with Arthur as you made him take a seat. 

He sat in front of you now, looking up at you with that same tired expression. He seemed almost completely drained now of all the fury he’d seemed to have.

“’M sorry for yellin’.” Arthur mumbled. “I didn’t mean it.” 

“Arthur,” You coo. “You didn’t yell, I’m okay. Let me take care of you okay? Clean up these cuts and bruises, okay?” 

He nodded quietly and then watched you as you went to the end of the cot and started digging for the supplies you needed in the chest there. 

You were able to find what you needed easily, and returned to your lover with a smile on your face. 

“Why don’t you tell me something good that happened?” You asked, taking his face in your hands.

He seemed to melt in your touch, as he always did, closing his eyes and leaning his head to the right, directly into your palm, offering a small kiss in the middle of it.

“Nothin’.” He muttered. “All of it was horrible.” 

You rub a gentle circle around his cheek, feeling the stubble under your thumb and smile again, even though he kept his eyes closed. 

“Come on, I’m sure you had at least one thing good happen.” You chuckle, and quietly begin to patch him up, placing small bandages over the cuts littered on his face. 

“You, I got you, always got you.” He sighed. “Too damn good for me, always have been.” 

You scowl now, and gently tilt his head towards you, making him actually face him.

“Open your eyes.” You mumble. 

He listens, and you stare him directly in the eyes.

“Don’t say that. What have I told you about that? You’re much better than you give yourself credit for.” 

“I’m sorry Darlin’.” He closed his eyes again and leaned into your hand once more. “I just...I feel...I feel like I didn’t do shit today, nothin’ helpful at least.” 

Maybe there’s something I can do to cheer him up a little....

You lean in, and place a kiss on his lips, which at first he doesn’t react, but after only a few seconds he kissed you back, a little bit of his energy seemingly returning. 

It wasn’t long before his hands made their way to your hips, and then to your ass.

You let your hand wander over his chest, almost with a featherlight touch, putting your hand under the collar of his shirt. 

You manage to push him back a little further onto the cot, placing a knee up on it, nearly straddling him. 

Your other hand traversed lower, grazing over his thigh, and you listened to the groan Arthur offered which you easily muffled. 

Arthur tried his best to pull you further into his lap, but you resisted, and pulled away from his lips, leaving another disappointed look on his face.

“C’mon now, that ain’t fair gorgeous-”

“Let me take care of you Arthur.” 

“Huh?” 

“Let me take care of you, alright? Don’t worry about me, let me do all the work.” 

“No, that ain’t fair-”

“It’s more than fair,” You state and lean a little further over him, your hand slowly gliding ever so closer towards the center of his tightening jeans. “You take care of me all the time, you take care of the camp like the strong, handsome man you are, and now today you’ve had a bad day. I want to make you feel good Big Boy.” 

He swallows and looks at you, and for a moment you think he’s going to fight you again, but he nods silently instead, his face going red, and his ears following suit. 

A smile creeps along your face and you lean in to kiss him again, taking the lead, slipping your tongue in his mouth, tasting the small bit of whisky left there from his earlier endeavors. 

Again, Arthur’s hands find your thighs, and you do your best to keep quiet. 

Your hand finally finds his arousal, palming it through his jeans, and another groan escapes his mouth, and you feel a familiar heat begin to pool at your stomach. 

“Princess....” He mumbles against your lips. “Please, don’t tease me-” 

You smirk, and decide, for that, you will. 

You settle yourself down on his thigh, and begin to kiss his neck, sucking and biting at the places you knew were the most sensitive to him. 

While still managing to palm him you begin to rock gently against his thigh, giving yourself just a little bit of pleasure from the friction of your own clothes as well as his jeans.

“Darlin’...please...” He’s nearly begging, tired from the day already, but the fury he’d felt earlier is no where in sight, and for that you’re proud of yourself. 

“Arthur,” You move your head to his ear, keeping your voice low. “Let me show you just how excited you get me, and you aren’t even doing anything.” 

You reach for his wrist, taking it gently and guiding him to your jeans, you’d unbuttoned them earlier, when you weren’t sure, but you figured it wasn’t exactly important when it had happened. 

Arthur takes the hint and places his hand down the front of your jeans, and swallows as he reaches your heat.

“Jesus...” He looks at you, a look of almost disbelief on his face. “I ain’t...Sweetheart-”

You take his wrist and pull it away from you as he starts to move his fingers, and he gives a confused look.

“I said let me take care of you, I can worry about myself later,” you mutter. Gently you guide his hand to your mouth and lick your arousal from his fingers. 

“Christ...” His voice is breathy and he leans his head back against the wagon behind him.

You’ve decided he’s had enough teasing, and you remove yourself from his thigh, which in return he gives almost a whimper. 

“Don’t go-” 

“Spread your legs Arthur.” 

He furrows his brow but watches as you kneel before him, placing your hands on his knees and pushing his legs apart. 

You glide your hands up, going slowly over his thighs, watching the recognition in his eyes.

“Sweetheart, you ain’t gotta-” 

You unbutton his jeans, and watch as his cock springs forward, the tip red and alreadly leaking precum. 

“Arthur, look at this,” You mumble and gently run your thumb over the tip, listening to the almost whine that comes from him. “I really haven’t done much.” 

He’s silent as he watches you, disheveled, his chest red and so are his cheeks.

“I always forget how big you are.” You mumble. “I doubt I can fit the whole thing in my mouth.”

“Jesus...” He leans his head back again and just as he does you lick from the base to the tip of him, and listen as he inhales sharply, trying not to make a sound. 

“Why don’t you make some sound for me,” You look up at him, feigning innocence. “Can you do that for me? Can you be a Good Boy?”

“Yes Ma’am.” 

You look him in the eye as he leans back forwards, and put him in your mouth, licking the tip, tasting him.

You do your best to take all of him, but what you can’t fit you use your hands for. 

You even gently caress his balls, which really makes him moan, a prettier sound you’ve never heard. 

You’ve never been particularly good at this, at least you didn’t think so, but you did your best, moving your head back and forth, using your tongue to the best of your ability. 

Arthur’s sounds make you believe that maybe you’re a bit better at this than you thought.

His hand manages to find it’s way to the back of your head, entangling in your hair, and before you know it he’s guiding you, pushing and pulling where he needed, groaning throughout with each hum you give him.

His hips buck forwards and for a moment he apologizes but it’s lost soon after as you continue without stopping.

“Fu...fuck...sorr...sorry..” 

The bucks only begin to get more frequent, his apology forgotten.

One of his hands grips your hair, the other the cot beneath him, his knuckles going white.

He looks down at you, and in his eyes you’re the most beautiful thing, your eyes streaming tears down your face and the corners of your mouth trailing spit down your chin.

Looking at you almost finishes him off, but he quells it, if only just for a moment, he wants this to last. 

Then, suddenly with one specific flick of your tongue he loses it. 

His bucking only gets faster and more erratic, you feel the tip of him hit the back of your throat, and you gag, but you do your best to ignore it, and then finally.

You feel the warm feeling of his seed hit the back of your throat, and you swallow until he’s finished. 

His cock comes out of your mouth with a pop, a string of saliva connecting you to it, and you wipe your mouth with your forearm, looking up at Arthur.

“Jesus Christ woman...” “Can you name one good thing now?”

“Fuck yeah I can...” 

Please, I hope this is good, I’m literally so bad at writing smut tf, anyway, let me know! I hope this matches up to your expectations >:)

[safely-in-vhagars-belly]

Aemond x Reader (AFAB!)

Sweet Nothing (formerly known as games in the libarary part 2!)

Aemond x reader (Tutor/gamer au) Fluffish and also smuttish

🔷Summary: Your GPA is tanking and you need help. Luckily there is the grumpy antisocial Aemond to help you out.

🔷Author's note: Based on tutor aus but I made my own spin on it.

🔷Wordcount:5389

🔷Warnings: Au universe, smut, depraved thoughts, bullying, (not aemond or mc bullying each other) rich privilege and bad parenting and the word so*p.

NAMECHANGE: A reader left a comment saying they were listening to the song ''Sweet nothing'' by taylor swift and wrote it fitted them really well so I changed the title! I hope you all like the new title:))

There is something aesthetically pleasing about college parties. Especially if they are thrown by one of your best friends, Baela Targaryen. You heard Aemond is her older something, although the Targaryen family tree has the same effect as math on your brain: It turns to soup.

You despise soup.

It is the wettest of foods, the smell, but most, you hate the name. The word appears unnatural to you, as if someone had just thrown it together-

‘’You OK?’’ A gentle yet rough edged voice brings you out of your moral debate about why soup sucks. Aemond Targaryen has followed you loyally around (with your consent, this is not a stalker situation) campus and now you both approach one of the frat houses. The house is as big as a mansion and you sometimes wonder what illegal schemes the boys of the frat house and the university you attend get up to even afford the rent of this bohemian building. 

It is odd. Prior to this whole day, you didn’t know Aemond could care about anything but himself, his grades, and his silly little motorcycle (he calls it Vhagar, and it’s a ‘’she’’ apparently. You find that a bit silly, but some things that men are oddly attached to receive that treatment. Like boats) Yet here he is, asking if you are OK. 

You want to cheerfully ring out that you never have been better, but realization soon hits you that it's been a while that anyone was truly interested in how you were doing. If anyone cared at all.

‘’That is a complicated question.’’ You admit. 

‘’With a complicated answer, I assume?’’ He is too clever for his own good.

You chuckle. ‘’Yeah. I’m doing fine.’’ Why you feel the need to lie to him, you don’t know. 

Finally you both approach the gold with blue gatework where the three Valyrian words are chiseled into the framework of the gates. Aemond crosses his arms over his chest, his backpack over half his right shoulder, threatening to fall off any moment now. He clears his throat and reads the words out loud to you. ‘’Dracarys, Dona Daorun.’’ You know some of these words. One, to be exact. ‘’Such a odd motto.’’ He adds. 

Even from the garden you can hear the noises of the party, chatting, spattering of water and even loud music as someone likely brought a speaker. Or three, if you know your friends well. 

Aemond seems to stiffen at the noise, his blue eyes alarmed and doubt written across his face. Instead of letting him run off, you lace your fingers through his own,and simply drag him inside with you.

‘’Pool parties are my favorite.’’ You tell Aemond with a wink. ‘’I love swimming. I always wanted to be a mermaid when I-’’ You notice his cold and suddenly icy stare at the host of the party, who approaches you in his swimming trunks. 

Jacaerys Velyaron simply runs a hand through his brown hair, pushing it back slightly before greeting you as if you two are long lost friends. ‘’Y/n! You made it!’’ He grins, likely already tipsy to say the least. He looks Aemond over and you both look like you’d belong anywhere but a pool party. ‘’And you brought a friend.’’ He adds. You chuckle uncomfortably at his icy tone. As if you brought a wooden horse in and the soldiers have crawled out. 

‘’I hope it’s cool?’’ you say, waving enthusiastically at your friends. They don’t wave back, red plastic cups in hands and judgemental stares all over you, but especially over Aemond who is holding his backpack only tighter, regret mirroring in his good eye as he plays with a ring on his fingers.

Luckily Jace seems to agree.

‘’You know me too well.’’ He puts his hand on your back, escorting you quickly away from Aemond. ‘’Baela wants your help, I believe. And Daemon wants to play seven minutes but he has no one who wants to play.’’ You wrinkle your nose. Daemon is a sweet, but very intense guy. He means no harm, he is just a bit too intense for you. Plus, you were certain he and Queen B Rhaenyra were dating. You at least assumed so, after Rhaenyra’s claim was made on Daemon in the form of some pretty aggressive tongue locking.

You feel so glad to see Baela that you forget all about Aemond. ‘’Oh my gosh, Y/N! Finally free of your horror session!’’ She exclaims, perhaps a bit too loud before pushing you into an exeratated and perhaps bone-crushing and soul-vanishing hug. You hug her back, of course, pretending to go alone with her agreeing you enjoy your freedom…

Although you aren’t sure why she thought you were in peril?

And horror sessions?

You think back of the way that Aemond topped you in the library, fucking you just in the right spot at the sweet oak desk-

The only horror of it was the numbers perhaps. The rest of it felt nice. Your eyes wander to some of the guys, mostly jocks and athletes drinking in the corner of the room, gathered around in a circle when placing bets and boasting about their conquest. Aemond didn’t need to be nice, yet he treated you better than most of your ex boyfriends. He maybe wanted to be inside you all the same, but he bothered to offer lunch after, and when you talked, he listened. He paid attention. Your exes mostly were lost in the front of your shirt, or tried to shut you up with kisses. You thought it was affection. Now it sickenings you to think of it.

And just like that, your usual jock conversations don’t do the thing for you anymore. A tall jock named Laenor jokes with you about how a girl had a stutter when asking him out and all you think about is how Laenor and your friends would react if they would find out you are far from perfect.

That numbers cause wars in your head, that math frightens you, that your brain can’t handle puzzles and that it all is sometimes so much to handle, to know your brain works differently, it’s sometimes a lot. It would be nice, if someone would understand. Just once.

You notice Baela has gone missing. So has Jace. Not this again. ‘’I thought we all had agreed that we would not let Baela hook up with Jace again?’’ You scold the other girls. One of them, named Sara just shrugs. 

‘’O, we totally agreed that we would, this morning when getting boba. You were missing, so you didn’t notice it.’’ She smiles sweetly but you have played Stardew Valley. You have endured the caves. You know when a skeleton is smiling at you. Fuck, you watched the vampire dairies. You know when someone is out there, for your neck. ‘’When you did your cute little charity project.’’ 

‘’Aemond is just a friend.’’ You hear yourself say the words before you can control yourself. 

Is he? Then why do you feel the sting of that lie? Then why let him fuck you in a library? Then why tell him more about you than any of your friends? Then why invite him?

You think back of Aemond, suddenly all alone by the gates and turn back around, looking for him. The more ground you cover, passing by making out couples and gambling, the more your mind tells you something is wrong.

When you arrive by the pool, you hear Jace and his closest circle of friends laughing, as well as Baela. ‘’You saw the way he looked? I thought he was gonna cry there for a moment.’’ Jace taunts, kissing Baela drunk all over her cheek. Baela giggles and turns to face you. 

‘’Y/n. Rhaenyra wants us all to get coffee tomorrow. I know you are currently busy with your charity project but do keep in mind that we must all respect the social hierarchy.’’ You nod absent, more dread filling your stomach as you eye the water, where something or someone clearly came out of or someone was pushed in.

‘’Did you guys see Aemond?’’ You ask, almost ignoring Baela’s suggestion, and Rhaenyra’s clear invention to once again snoop in your life.

‘’Aemond? What do you want with that loser?’’

Daemon finally has enough of Rhaenyra and walks over to you, but Rhaenyra remains watchful as a hawk, her arms crossed and her lips perfect in a scowl. In your circles it's unheard of to steal one’s boyfriend, even if the relationship is broken up. Aside from that, Daemon is hot but also hotheaded and a real pain in the ass when he wants to be.  

You lie again. ‘’Nothing. I just have his books.’’ You don’t. He took them all with him. You only have his cum likely inside of you, thank the gods for the pill. 

He scales you up and down, and you feel uncomfortable. ‘’Hm. You go do that, little thing. I have something for him.’’ He takes a moment and dramatically picks up something near the pool. You watch in horror as he pulls out a soaked notebook in your eyes proof that they threw Aemond and his books in the pool.

You feel the blood leave your face.

You brought him here.

You did this.

‘’What did you do?’’ You demand, your voice becoming unnaturally sharp and cold.

Daemon is not used to that and turns to Baela who looks shocked that you dare to address Daemon that way, over someone as Aemond. ‘’We threw his backpack in the pool.’’ Daemon says, like it's obvious, gesturing to the pool like you can’t see for yourself. ‘’The little shit had it coming all those years ago. He went after it. It was like watching a little puppy drown.’’ He likely went to grab his bag. Can Aemond even swim?

Jace laughs. ‘’Daemon jumped in and held him under water for a few minutes.’’ You nearly choke on the air you take.

‘’You what?’’ You don’t care that Daemon can beat you up or is the king of the school. That goes too far in your book. Aemond could have died.

Baela grabs your wrists, so she can look into your eyes.

‘’Why do you care? It’s funny. Aemond is a loser.’’ She says, as if she is somehow hypnotizing you into becoming her mindless follower again. 

But this time, you win.

‘’That’s…not funny, Baela. That is dangerous and messed up.’’ You pull your hands away, and take off running back to the gates, looking for Aemond. You have made a mistake. But how long ago did you make this? How long were you a silent bully, a witness to a tyrant? How many Aemonds did you ignore?

You finally spot him, his jacket drenched walking down the dark street, his backpack half open and his face wet of either tears or water. You rush over, calling his name. At first he ignores you. The second time, he turns around glaring at you. ‘’I should have known it was too good to be true.’’ He says, finally his voice strangled. ‘’Which of them came up with the little game? I bet it was Baela.’’

‘’What Game?’’ But you already know. He thinks this was all a cruel joke to harm and humiliate him. To break his heart.

He scoffs. ‘’This game. You are pretending to care about me. You fucking me and letting me-’’ He points a finger at you accusingly but does not have the energy left to fight.

You rush after him. ‘’I’m sorry. I didn’t know you and Jace had history. And I didn’t know they would do this to you. Whatever you need replaced, I can-’’

And that is even worse. You are a rich girl, after all.

‘’Don’t bother.’’ He snaps at you. ‘’I want you to leave me alone.’’

You don’t know how to convince him to let you in again. You suppose honesty is the best approach. ‘’I’m sorry. I never should have brought you here. But you always seemed so lonely and-’’ 

‘’Why do you care?!’’  You are startled by his harsh tone but don’t back down. Instead you fold your hands and blink away tears you didn’t even know you had. Your voice is a soft, sweet whisper.

You know why you care. ‘’Because perhaps I know what it's like to be lonely. Perhaps I liked the guy you are when no one is around. Maybe I wanted to know you a bit better. Not all of us rich kids are malicious assholes like Daemon, you know?’’ He seems to take his armor off at those words, his face softening and avoiding your eyes, a clear sign of regret for yelling at you. You reach out to him, kneeling at his feet.

Aemond blushes in the light of the streetlights, quickly looking around for witnesses and anyone else who might see.  ‘’Wow-’’ He nearly shouts in pure surprise, and you grin at where his mind went.

‘’Don’t get excited, mister. I’m just checking the damage.’’ You tell him. ‘’Sir.’’ You add with a cheeky grin. He holds back a soft groan, although you hear it perfectly. You open the backpack, taking his books out for him and putting them on the street, oblivious to your surroundings as you start examining them. 

Most of these cost at least 500. And they are all ruined. Aemond mentioned before, he isn’t a ‘’rich little girl’’ like you, and likely does not have the funds to replace these books he needs for his study. You put them back in his backpack, but you and Aemond are not stupid.

You can both tell these books are done for.

And so is Aemond if you don’t fix this mess.

‘’I am so sorry.’’ You tell him. ‘’I had no idea they were capable of this.’’ You were blind. Just as blind as Aemond.

He nods, pretending to be aloof and cool about it, but you can judge by the way his eye is glued to his shoes that he is anything but cool about this. ‘’Nothing that can be done now.’’ You refuse to believe that. There’s gotta be something. Anything.

‘’That is not true.’’ You look at his books. ‘’I’m sure there’s a solution.’’

There has to be.

Certainly.

But Aemond does not want to hear it. Instead he heads toward his dorm. You follow him, lost as a puppy, carrying his backpack for him as he gave up on it. He may have given up on it, but you won’t give up on it yet. 

–

Half an hour later, the door of the dorm door opens as you enter it. Aemond is laying on his bed, playing with a sapphire. He looks at you and you are confronted with the hole where his eye used to be. He curses, quickly covering his eye and searches for his eyepatch. You put the new textbooks on the table. Aemond’s mouth drops as he takes in the brand new books. ‘’No.’’ He simply declares. ‘’No, I can’t accept this. This is insane this must cost-’’ You will murder this man.

He smells freshly showered, and judging by his hair he just got a shower, a fresh set of clothes that haven’t felt your skin yet, and a attitude that makes your inner brat go wild. Focus!

You did have to pull some strings but you don’t mind. So what if your stepdick does not give you allowance for two whole weeks? So what if your mother is ‘’beyond disappointed?’’ Like she cares. If she really cared, she’d ditch that awful guy and fly home from her paradise fucking in Dorne. 

If she cared, she’d know you had the diagnosis NVLD since you were six and would never even be considered to graduate in a math study like Aemond. She would know, these books are not meant for you. She would, if only she cared. Which she obviously, does not.

You silence Aemond with a gesture. ‘’Nothing. Consider it your payment for being patient with me during our lessons. If you still wish to continue it, of course.’’ You say. ‘’I took care of it. It’s fine.’

‘’Of course it is.’’ It does not matter if you meant well, Aemond sees it as a confirmation that he, as an average earning person, can never not have the same chances as a rich girl like yourself. He could be Einstein reborn and nothing could open the doors that are thrown open for you. 

‘’If you feel bad, you take some classes I don’t do. And not all your books were in your bag. You can take the books from those subjects, and we can share during our shared subjects? Unless you think it’s stupid and want nothing to do with me, I’ll vanish from your life like a sock in a washing machine-’’ He simply cups your chin, kissing your forehead. You feel heat rush to your cheeks, fighting your emotions. He waits for you to push away.

You don’t.

So he leans in, kissing your lips.

‘’Thank you.’’ He whispers. ‘’This is like the coolest thing anyone has ever done for me.’’ He says, a bit emotional. 

‘’That’s what friends do.’’ You tell him.

His response breaks your heart. ‘’Hm. I never counted myself lucky enough to find that out.’’

You notice the mood changes quickly and becomes sad again. You don’t deal with that very well. If at all.  ‘’So, show me around!’’ He chuckles at your eagerness, getting up from the bed, putting the sapphire he was playing with aside on his nightstand. 

‘’So, this is where the magic happens.’’ He gestures to his bed, with Pokémon covers on it. He seems to notice that a moment too late  and shakes his head at you, blushing brightly. ‘’I- they’re a gift from my brother.’’ He quickly blurts out. ‘’We give each other silly things for the solstice. I gave him a Charmender plushie.’’ 

‘’I like squirtle.’’ You tell him with a wink. ‘’He’s perhaps a bit rough around the edges, but he’s a good guy.’’ 

Aemond blushes again, catching on. 

‘’He’s pretty great. Do you have a favorite Pokémon?’’

You think, for a moment, and only the yellow little electrician shows up, the one that clings to the main guy in the show (or is it an anime?) who goes ‘’Pika! Pika, pika!’’ and shoots lightning out of his butt. Or tail.

That is not very impressive to you, to pick Pickahu. It’s a cliche. Aemond likely will want to hear another Pokémon. A clever one, a cute Pokémon that befits your personality and your whole life.

You think back to when you were alone for your 7th birthday party. The chefs at your home had put on pancakes and you had more toys and gifts than you could count. But your mother wasn’t there. Again, gone with the Stepdick. But you know who was there? Pikachu. It was all you could rely on. Pikachu would always be there.

‘’I can only think of the main one. Sorry.’’ you confess. ‘’Pikachu.’’

He looks you up and down, as if picturing you…perhaps as a Pokémon?

‘’Don’t be. I think it fits you very well. Pickachu is a little happy fella with a big heart. That suits you perfectly, actually.’’ He tells you, smiling still like an idiot. You bet you have the same smile.

You notice his room is clean of clothing. By the desk stands a small tv, with a clear Nintendo switch docked in. You cautiously walk over, eying the switch without touching it.  ‘’Yep. That is my pride and joy.’’ Aemond confirms, following you like a shadow.

You notice a big purple controller on the desk. When you accidentally bump against the desk, the controller lights up, showing you beautiful neon lights in rainbow colors.  ‘’Wow. Cool controller.’’ You gently pick it up. You feel a thick almost rubber coating on the controls, and despite your hands being much smaller than Aemond’s, the controller fits perfectly.

‘’Feels funny…’’

Aemond does not say much, but you know he wants you to put it back. So you do. ‘’Uhm, yeah.’’ He comments, blushing. ‘’Uhm, purple was all there was left.’’

‘’O. I saw they have cool Zelda ones.’’ You tell him. 

He looks away. ‘’They’re..expensive.’’

‘’O, right. Sorry.’’ You continue your tour. Aemond turns his controller off, and you notice some walls are there that weren’t there before. You notice a small box with a figurine sitting on a shelf by his bed, you didn’t notice before somehow. Likely too busy staring at Aemond’s wet silky hair, and his deep sad eye….

‘’Oh my gosh,’’ you mutter delightedly. ‘’You have Funko!’’ It is true. There are at least ten boxes with famous characters sitting on his shelf. You walk over, inspecting them closer, but without touching them. 

Aemond rubs his neck, a bit blushing. ‘’You dig?’’

You nod, enthusiastically. ‘’Absolutely. My stepfather and I don't agree on a  lot of things, But we agree that Funko’s are worth investing in. And just look how cute they are!’’ You notice a funko of GhostFace, the killer of scream, a funko of Squirtle (of course) and likely more of fantasy books and series you never truly got into.  

Aemond laughs, relieved. ‘’I’m glad you like them. I sometimes worry people might find them stupid.’’ You stop glancing at his Funkos, looking back at him.

‘’I would never find anything stupid. I know too well how hurtful it is when people think you are stupid.’’ You say. Aemond nods at your words, agreeing. He is busy with rubbing his neck muscles, a pained expression almost printed on his face. 

‘’Aemond, are you OK?’’ You move a bit closer to where he is sitting on the bed. 

He nods, rubbing his neck still. ‘’It’s just my muscles. So annoying.’’

You look around for a pillow, picking one up from the ground. 

You put it on the bed for him. ‘’I like your dorm. It is calm here. I live in a sorority. Sometimes I can barely think.’’ You admit to him. 

Aemond pushes the pillow behind his back, nodding to you as if to say that you can continue your rant. ‘’You know your secret is safe with me?’’ He asks, confirming your gut. ‘’I made the mistake of telling Daemon something, and he turned it against me. I will keep it a secret.’’ He promises. 

‘’What happened at the pool?’’ You ask eventually.

Aemond recalls it all too well. ‘’Well, Jace came over. He told me to get the fuck out, that you were tongue deep wrapped around a guy’s cock? Laenor or something?’’ He looks at you, giving you the chance to deny it. 

You open your mind.

Aemond interrupts however. ‘’However, I know Laenor is gay. He once paid me to do an essay for him for History and he had company over when I was handing it in.’’ You don’t notice any scoffing or mocking or ill jokes.

‘’Aemond Targaryen, did you help someone cheat?’’ You tease, grinning. You like that he has a darker hidden side. He only raises his brows, slightly blushing and avoiding your eyes, biting on his under lip. Gods, that’s so hot.

He nods. ‘’It was justified. I needed money to buy a controller.’’ And controllers are expensive. 

He picks the story back up where he left it. ‘’Daemon came over, told me that playtime was over. I tried to walk away, I did. He and his friends cornered me and Daemon threw me in the pool, bag and all.’’ Playtime is over? What does that mean?

‘’I tried to get out, but Daemon was faster. He grabbed me by the skull and kept my head down underwater. I am not a good swimmer. I tried kicking, resurfacing and even biting him, but he was stronger. I really thought he’d kill me.’’ You listen, imagining Aemond dead at the bottom of a pool. You don’t like that idea.

Aemond sighs, covering his face with both his hands. ‘’Oh, now I need to tell you, don’t I?’’ He sighs. ‘’The truth is: The controller is not expensive. I needed to get this one, because it has ergonomic grips.’’ So that is what you felt. ‘’I need special controllers. I have special pencils too. Just stabilos but, still.’’

It clicks.

‘’You have something with your muscles, don’t you?’’ You recall the way he wrote down the sums in your notebook, his handwriting beautiful but the way he held onto that pencil…

Aemond nods. ‘’Yeah. I’ve got Hypermobility, basically. It moves my joints much further-’’ To prove his point, he moves his thumb, now bent in an unnatural position. At first you are shocked by the ease and how quick he could do that. Then, you become curious.

‘’So, is that why you can’t swim?’’

‘’Ouch.’’ Yet he keeps smiling, likely happy to tell someone, anyone about this. ‘’No, I can swim. Just not that long, and not that fast. My muscles tire faster than usual but if I just exercise regularly, it should not be an issue.’’ He wrinkles his nose, grinning as if telling you what he thinks of that. ‘’I should swim more, but I haven't had the chance yet with classes and stuff.’’ 

You sit there in silence. There have been countless days you cried because you always assumed you were the only one at college who had these things. Things like your math-soup. Yet here is someone else, who too, is struggling in their own way. In a way it is disgusting to think about it, but it makes you feel less alone. It makes you feel something you haven’t felt ever before. It makes you feel ….

Good enough.

Capable.

Hopeful for the future.

Aemond switches his thumb back in its regular position, and you wonder if the long fingers are part of the condition he has. It likely is, as Aemond’s fingers are really tall. ‘’Now you know something about me too.’’ Aemond says. ‘’Although, I would appreciate you keeping this a secret.’’ He adds. ‘’I don’t want pity or special treatment. I’m sure you can relate to that.’’ Yeah, you do.

‘’Or worse, people telling me what I can and can’t do. Just because I have a condition, a disability, so to speak, does not mean that I’m helpless or something.’’ He rambles on. You nod.

You see the final shelf above the closet of Aemond’s room. You take note of a few plushies, mostly squirtle but another one takes your interest. It is a adorable devil like creature with big ears and a wooden stick in its hand.

‘’Who’s that?’’ You ask him, pointing to the red little fella. Aemond follows your finger, looking at the plush. He breaks into a grin, quickly rushing over to the plush, picking it up so you may see it up close. 

‘’That’s from Zelda.’’ He begins to tell, excited to share this with you.

‘’That’s Link?’’

He looks a little different than on the box art you’ve seen. Link is usually a humanoid guy with blonde hair. Not a red devil creature with a smile so big you’d assume it learned when the world will end.

‘’No, that’s a Bokoblin’’ Aemond gently corrects you. ‘’He’s like the goomba of the game. They attack Link.’’ Aemond rambles off to tell you about Zelda, where you would encounter the creatures, and how they prefer meat, but accept fruit as well, almost as humans. He also shows you different patterns of bokoblins, and depending on the color, the level of difficulty to defeat them changes. 

‘’So what do you do once you got them all beaten?’’ You ask.

He breaks into a grin. ‘’Oh, that’s the wonderful thing about this game. Once in a few days, there is a Blood Moon. All enemies you killed respawn. The bad guy resurrects them. The souls find their bodies, once more.’’ He shows you a video he made on his switch.

From the very first time you saw that moon rise up on where Aemond’s Link was standing, slowly covering the world in the red, threatening life and hearing the tense music play, and just Aemond being next to you on his bed, unaware of you holding his hand, you were done for. The bokoblin looks at you from where Aemond put him on the desk. A temporary spot, you are certain. 

‘’Hey, uhm Aemond?’’ You ask, breaking his concentration as he searches for more videos to show you. He looks up, and you are confronted once again with his elf-like face. 

‘’Remember when you said that I would like Zelda?’’ You ask.

He nods. You nod to his switch. You are nervous but shoot your shot.

‘’If you want, can we perhaps play it? If you are near me, I can ask whatever questions I’ve got without feeling stupid.’’ Aemond perks up at that, nearly causing his head to bump at your own. 

‘’No one knows everything on their first play through. You are not stupid. This game came out in 2017, I picked it up years later for my birthday, and I still discover stuff years later.’’ He says. You nod, still awaiting his no or yes.

‘’Of course, I want to play Zelda with you.’’ 

Aemond and you nestle up on the bed, forgetting all about the world outside his dorm. He takes the controller from the desk, handing it to you. He creates a special profile on his switch for you, although you protest at first. He has however 3 empty slots so he claims he does not mind. After your profile has been made, he opens Zelda for you. Then he just watches you, plays, discovers and lives.

—

You run around as Link in circles, not bothering to put the clothes on that you found earlier. You notice beautiful mushrooms near the cave, so you pick them. Aemond watches you play, an amused smile on his lips as you discover the truly wild and boundless experience of this game. 

You notice an old man sitting near a fire. ‘’Talk to him. He is important.’’ Aemond says, without spoiling too much. You have Link run over, still wearing just his underwear. In enthusiasm, you double click, but by doing so, you steal a cooked apple in front of the man, likely the owner. 

‘’Hey, that’s my apple! This won’t stand!’’ The man says. 

’Oh fuck, will he hate me now?’’ You ask Aemond. Aemond laughs, but not at you. He just seems to enjoy being with you.

He shakes his head and moves a little closer to you. ‘’Nah. He can’t hate you. You’re kinda perfect.’’ You blush as he moves a little closer, kissing your cheeks.

—-

Soon after that encounter you finally see a bokoblin wander around. Well, it kind of came jumping out of a bush and tried to kill you, but you do not mind.

You rush at them. ‘’Hug time!’’ You declare. In your hand is a stick. You don’t expect to actually hug the creature, but to hit them. That is actually a lot more difficult than it appears, as the creature jumps out of the way, attacking you back.

Eventually you are defeated and turn to Aemond for help, who gives you a few tips. 

Together you slay the monster. 

And take his horns, for some reason.

—----

It is late now, almost one in the morning. It is sunday today and thank the gods for it. 

You and Aemond are still up, bottles of soda and pringle cans opened up around you, as your eyes are glued to the screen. You and Aemond have just met Impa, and you are tired, but you can’t seem to stop playing. A yiga clan member ambushes you, and despite your pathetic little squeak of surprise, you manage to defeat it. Alone. 

Eventually you fall asleep, in Aemond’s room, his body close to yours. The controller remains on the bed, between an empty bowl of pringles and Aemond’s bokoblin plushie. You hear Aemond’s gentle snore and just close your eyes and welcome the sound of nothing.

Just Sweet nothing.

[xoxomoonlightxoxo]

Somewhere Between Hello and Goodbye | Ch. 4: Strangers With Memories

a/n: more angst but at least they aren't as awkward, however, after this chapter, I fear it's only going to go downhill for my babies :(

The dreadful No Contact Rule. Difficult not to break when the relationship is over and even more so when the relationship comes to a sudden halt but the feelings are still brewing inside. When the distance is forced and fueled by the guilt of losing that person again. However, I would be lying if I said that Jungkook is no longer part of my life. That I have somehow completely barricaded myself from his presence. How could I, when not even a conscious stream of thought can overcome the yearning of a broken heart? One that still longs for his touch, his sweet smile, his laugh. One that has been holding on to the memories of our past despite the lack of recollection in Koo’s eyes. To him, we are simply picking things up from where they were left off. Not a complicated task in nature until you realise that our story left off with his first and last “I love you, Mira”. So, no matter how hard I try to push him away, the heartstrings of my own soul seem to pull us back together. Even if he sees me as just a friend, I am willing to fight for everything we could have been, until one day he finally remembers it all. Remembers me, remembers us.

Unfortunately, with school starting, everyone has been getting back into their routines, leaving little time or opportunity to actually hang out. Despite this, Jungkook has made a special effort to “build back what he can’t remember”. So, seeing him has actually become part of my daily ritual. Whether that be going on a morning jog or grabbing a quick coffee after class. Like the good old days, we are connecting as close friends, since everything began that way. Before anything, Koo was my friend, one who somehow filled the void of my family when we were separated by an ocean. For that, I will forever be grateful to him. 

Today was like any other. Tae and I met our new cohort leader, the head of the ER department in the local children’s hospital, who was this older gentleman who wasted no opportunity to crack one of his dad jokes. He absolutely adored Tae, said that he saw his younger self in him, and unless he was a sleep-deprived, broke college student, I’m not sure what the correlation was. To be honest, Tae hasn’t been having it easy either. His grandma was recently diagnosed with pneumonia, so he spent the entire summer working three jobs to send as much money as he could back home. Being the only man, and thus, the breadwinner in the family after the passing of his father, he constantly tells me about the guilt he endures being far away from his mom, younger sister and grandma. The three women in his life he would give up anything for. And, as I’ve watched him slowly run himself thin, I have grown to be protective of Tae myself. Although he is older, in my eyes he will always be like a little brother to me. One whose shoulders carry the weight of a whole lineage.

Packing up our staff after class, Tae recommended we try the new pastry shop that opened by our dormitory. One that he first mentioned when Jungkook was admitted into the hospital in hopes of cheering my numb self. However, during that period the aching pain in my heart wanted nothing more than to be by Koo’s side. So, seeing that this time Tae was the one in need of support, I made sure to take him up on the offer as we indulged in our daily debrief. At the end of the day, we might not know how to properly give an IV but you best believe that we know how to run our mouths. In the span of half an hour, we managed to cover every possible topic known to men, ranging from the rise in the cost of eggs to the hideous new haircut the grumpy librarian decided to debut today. Our conversation could have gone on for hours until it was abruptly interrupted by the buzzing of my phone. 

Koo: Will 20 minutes be enough for you to get ready?

Mira: Depends … where are you taking me? 

Koo: It’s a surprise, just wear something comfy ;)

“Who got you smiling like that?” Tae chuckles teasingly, seeing that his words have lost my attention.  

“Oh nothing, I’m sorry, it’s just Jungkook,” I say, nibbling on my lips to suppress the urge to keep smiling. 

“What did he say?” he leans forward taking a sip of his Americano. 

“I think he wants to go somewhere?” my words drag on as he searches my scattering eyes. 

“Now?” 

“Well, no you’re right, I’m just gonna tell him that I’m busy,” I try to comfort Tae with a smile, sensing the guilt of leaving him alone.

“No, I mean, don’t you want to freshen up? How much time do you have?” he mumbles, gaze softening at my flustered state. 

“Oh, are you sure? I hate to pause our little hangout,” 

“There’s always tomorrow,” Tae assures with a boxy smile. 

“Okay, I’ll see you at breakfast, alright?” I say, packing up my stuff before we wave each other goodbye.

Thank God, the pastry shop was a short walk away from the dormitory as I suddenly realised how valid Tae’s suggestion of a shower was. Let’s just say that today’s clinical was one for the books. Not only did I spill a whole IV bag on my scrubs but I’m pretty sure that there are still some pieces of dried cream in my hair as one of the older patients refused to cooperate. So, as I finally managed to open the front door, I headed straight into the shower, washing myself free of the chaotic aftermath. 

Debating between a woven sweater and a cashmere pullover I settled on the one Koo loved the most. “Peaches, you’re so soft,” he used to say, pulling me into a tight hug as his hands caressed the delicate cashmere. I wore it on our last date before the incident, the one we spent on Oceana Beach talking about the future, our future. Miraculously, after all this time, it still had his scent, the sweet vanilla musk lingered like the memories of our past. I remember crying sleepless nights, holding the cashmere close to my heart as if it were the only thing left of Jungkook. With my eyes closed, I could almost feel his warm embrace. 

Beep Beep 

My reminiscing, however, was interrupted by Jungkook’s arrival. Quickly touching up my makeup, I grab my purse and phone before locking the door behind me. Maybe it’s from the actual physical rush or the fact that I get to see him again, but my heart sure is beating hard. I could practically feel it in my throat. And, the appearance of his bunny smile as our eyes finally met certainly did not help it either. 

“Sorry to make you wait,” I say out of breath, tucking some stray pieces of hair behind my ear. 

“No worries, I just came,” Koo assures softly, leaning back on his car. 

“So, where is this mystery destination?” I grin teasingly, folding my arms in front of my chest. 

“Surprise, remember? Ladies first,” he grins back, opening the passenger door, before helping me buckle up. And, just like that, my heartbeat went through the roof again. 

Driving down the bridge, we were in awe of the beautiful sunset that covered the sky in warm tones. Blasting our favourite song, Jungkook rolled down all the windows before pausing his phone just in time for the high note. And, as silence filled the car I could feel the flush rise up my cheeks from the sheer embarrassment that was my singing. It wasn’t just a voice crack, it was the complete demolishment of my dignity. 

“Yah, how could you betray me like that?” I scoff in disbelief, rolling the windows back up to shield myself from the passing cars. 

“I couldn’t help it, you looked so concentrated,” Jungkook chuckles, mimicking my singing face. 

“Okay, relax, eyes on the road bunny boy,” I smirk, turning the music back on.

“We’re here,” he says, turning into the parking lot. Looking around, chills run down my spine as I realise where we are. The Oceana Beach. This means that while I was fully immersed in our karaoke session, Jungkook unknowingly drove past the exact spot where he lost consciousness on that cold, winter night. All this time, I’ve been trying to avoid this place in hopes of erasing the image of Koo’s frail body lying on the side of the road. Now, I have to act like none of that happened, since he doesn’t remember any of it. 

“Hey, are you okay?” Jungkook’s voice pulls me out of the spiral, as my chest heaves up. Feeling his hand on mine, my body almost jolts from his touch, unable to hide the fear rushing through my veins. It all felt so surreal, to be looking at him alive in flesh but knowing that the Jungkook I once knew was no longer there. 

“Yeah, I … I just remembered something,” I lie with a nervous chuckle, unbuckling myself. Helping me out of the car, Jungkook looks concerned, eyes searching mine. 

“You sure, you’re alright? I can drive back jus…” 

“No, no don’t be ridiculous. I swear I’m all good,” I interrupt his sentence with a reassuring smile. Reaching for my hands again, only this time with slight hesitation, his worried eyes meet mine as his thumb caresses the back of my palms. 

“Mira, you’d tell me if something was wrong, right?” his words are layered with a tone of fear, uneasiness, and genuine worry. But, there’s a short period of silence, as my mind filters through possible replies. 

“Of course,” I manage a small chuckle, swallowing down the lie. With a nod of acceptance and a soft sigh, he intertwined his fingers with mine, taking the bags from his trunk before walking us toward a small spot by a campfire. Setting everything up, I was commanded to just relax, covered under a woven blanket.

“I used to love making smores when I was little,” Jungkook smiles, handing me a bag of marshmallows, before covering himself under the same blanket. Jimin was right, he could still remember the earlier years of his life, but nothing of the recent events. 

“Can’t relate, I somehow always burned mine,” I frown as he can’t help but laugh, scrunching his nose and letting that bunny smile come on full display.   

“Hey, don’t laugh,” 

“I’m sorry, but how does one mess this up?” he leans closer, nudging my shoulder before looking back at the sparks. If only time could stop and we could stay this way forever. If only he could feel the way my heart ached at that moment. 

“So, Mira, do you have a boyfriend?” his sudden question brought me back again, as my eyebrows visibly furrowed from the bluntness of his curiosity. 

“Why? Are you trying to pitch an offer?” I chuckle, leaning closer to the fire to warm my hands, before looking back at his teasing grin. 

“Just trying to figure you out,” he replies softly, eyes searching mine. 

“I used to,” 

“Oh, yeah? What happened? 

“He moved away. Long distance didn’t work out,” I reply slowly, allowing the fake story to play out without succumbing to the tears. 

“That sucks, you guys don’t keep in touch at all?” Jungkook’s curiosity is innocent in nature but naive to our past. I can’t even get mad at him for digging deeper, even if it hurts.  

“I’m not sure he remembers me anymore,” I sigh, replying almost defeated. 

“That’s a lie. Who could forget you?” he laughs, shaking his head in disbelief, blind to the irony of it all. 

“Yeah …” a little chuckle escapes me as well, as my eyes dissociate into the distance. “I'm pretty unforgettable, aren't I?” 

“Pretty and unforgettable,” Jungkook replies with a quick wink, covering my shivering body with his share of the blanket before taking a bite of my half-burned marshmallow.

--

Replaying our last conversation in my head, I felt bad for snapping at Jiah at the mall. It was totally uncalled for and simply a projection of the thoughts that haunted my mind. Not a fibre of my being meant it as we rarely ever fought or even came to a slight disagreement with each other. To be quite frank, during that time it seemed like every interaction I had was like walking on a minefield. With one wrong move, I was destined to blow up and take everyone else down with me.  

Not being able to talk to her freely pained me, as I grew to miss my best friend with each passing day. And if one thing was for sure, then it was that Jiah deserved an apology as she fell victim to my self-destruction. So, after a few hours of crafting a well-developed apology, I made my way to her apartment, which was literally a level below mine. Nonetheless, the walk there seemed never-ending, most likely due to the sheer panic I was experiencing. It wasn’t fueled by the fear of her reaction but the shame I felt from how I treated Jiah. However, none of it mattered anymore, as I stood in front of her door, hand ready to place a few knocks. That is until it suddenly swings open and our eyes finally meet again. 

“Jiah,” I mumble before she pulls me into a tight hug as tears stream down both of our faces. No words needed to be said. Everything was understood through the emotions we were experiencing. Melting deeper into her embrace, my face dug deeper into her hair as the sweet smell of coconut filled my senses, reminding my body of her aura. I missed her so much that I could physically feel the void in my heartache as my teary eyes searched her sad gaze. 

“Jiah, I’m so sorry,” I manage to let out as she gently wipes the tears off of my face. Holding onto her hand, I keep it close to my chest as my heart beats faster. 

“It’s okay, love. I’ve missed you so much,” she says softly, tucking a few pieces of stray hair behind my ear. And, just like that, we were back in each other’s embrace, making up for the lost time we were apart. Catching up, we spent the whole afternoon discussing everything that happened since our falling out. She showed me the emerald jewellery set Jimin gifted her for their 1 year anniversary and the pictures they took following their celebration. They looked so happy that I couldn’t stop smiling. If they ever break up then I’ll know that love isn’t real, because in my eyes they were destined for each other. No one understands Jiah better than Jimin and no one cares so deeply for Jimin more than Jiah. Simply put, they’re soul mates. 

Feeling lightheaded from all the tears we’ve cried, I suggested we go out to grab some late lunch, or early dinner before going on a walk around campus. Jiah was quick to agree as she changed into some jeans and a hoodie before grabbing her purse and keys. Stopping by my dorm, I quickly touched up my makeup in hopes of not scaring innocent civilians from the aftermath of my mental breakdown. And, as we rode the elevator down to the main lobby, Jiah and I were inseparable once again. That is until my eyes widened at the sight of Jungkook standing by his car, shuffling in place to keep himself warm.  

“Oh? Jungkook? What’s wrong?” I stutter, worried eyes searching his. 

“Sorry Jiah, but could I steal her from you?” he asks softly, as Jiah's face turns to mine. Hiding the way her chin was trembling, she didn't know how to reply before taking a deep breath. 

“Call me when you get back?” she nods, separating her hand from mine as I pull her into a hug.  

“I’ll bring you some pastry from the new shop Tae recommended,” I say with a reassuring smile before waving her goodbye. Making sure she got in safely, my eyes turned back to look at Jungkook’s bunny smile. 

“How did you know I was here?” I ask with a skeptical tone, slowly making my way towards the car. 

“You really don’t think I pay attention, huh?” he says teasingly before opening the passenger door. 

“You mean to tell me that you’ve memorized my schedule?” I scoff, looking up at his softened gaze. 

“Pretty much,” he replies with a grin, leaning onto the door frame before caressing my cheek with the back of his palm. 

“Hey, were you crying?” Jungkook asks, concerned, as I cover my red cheeks with my hair. Way to not be obvious, Mira! I guess, my attempt to hide the fact that I’ve been sobbing for hours failed miserably since he managed to notice it after one glance. 

“Oh, yeah, it’s nothing. I promise,” I shake my head with a soft smile before looking back up at his worried eyes. 

“Mira, you know you can always talk to me, right?” his words are followed by a deep sigh as he crouched down before my still form. 

“Of course, I know that, Koo,” I manage to let out a giggle, patting his head in hopes of making him feel at least somewhat at ease. In all honesty, however, I knew that he wasn’t fully convinced, but I also didn’t necessarily hate that. Because a small part of me hoped that maybe, his curiosity would somehow help him regain the memories he once lost.

“Anyways, where are you taking me this time?” I try to change the subject, as his eyes look back at mine. 

“I need your help,” he replies, buckling my seat belt before heading to the driver’s side. 

“May I know with what?” 

“A song. A love song,” his voice is abrupt, but still layered with tease. 

“I beg your pardon, a love song? Jungkook If you think I’m going to sedate you with some vocals then you are greatly mistaken,” I scoff with my arms folded in front of my burning chest. A love song? As if seeing him again isn’t hard enough. Now, he is giving me yet another reason to cry at night. 

“Shhhh, I’ll explain everything when we get there, just sit back and relax,” he assures me with a sly wink. 

“Mmhhm,” I nod, loosening up the seatbelt before crossing my arms over my chest. Navigating through all the turns, my mind is trying to piece together our destination, until we finally stop at a brick building near the campus gymnasium. 

“Koo, where are we?” I ask cautiously, scanning the premises as he opens the passenger door. 

“It’s a studio my buddy owns. Don’t worry the inside looks more welcoming than the outside,” Jungkook grins, locking the car as we make our way up the stairs.

“Be careful here, they’re still under construction,” he points to a hole in the wooden floor, grabbing my hand as I tip-toe behind him.

“Right, and this buddy of yours, you know how?” 

“He used to produce for the band the guys and I were in. The Bulletproof Boys,” he replies proudly until I burst into a cackle, which promptly faded the smile on his face. I couldn’t help it, I was still not over the first time he mentioned the infamous band name. The Bulletproof Boys. Peak comedy if you ask me. 

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry. I’m not laughing at you, I’m laughing with you,” I try to regain my composure looking at his pouty lips. 

“I’m not laughing,”

“Okay, then I’m laughing at you,” I tease again, poking his side as he opens the door to what seemed like a small recording studio.  

“Hey, guys! Come on in,” a man’s voice welcomes us into the dimly lit room. 

“Hi hyung, thank you again,” Jungkook shakes his hand, before looking back at my flustered face. I’m usually not as awkward but something about being in a room with a stranger, Jungkook, and a hypothetical love song just did not sit well with me. 

“This is Mira, she’s going to be our female lead,” Jungkook smiles, giving me a sly wink. A lead? I really do hope he is kidding. Is today April Fool's or something? Where are the cameras? 

“Sounds good to me, who wants to go first?” the man asks the both of us, as I try my best to avoid his eye contact. Fiddling with my thumbs, Jungkook could sense that I was becoming more and more uncomfortable. So, he suggested that we go in together since it is my first time doing something like this after all. 

“Just follow me okay?” he says softly, helping me put on the headphones before handing me the lyric sheet.

“Alright, let’s just see how the melody plays out, okay? Jungkook, if you want to jump in with your vocals now, by all means. But, Mira, you can just use this take as practice. I want you to get comfortable with the lyrics,” the producer explains, giving me a thumbs up as I nod okay. 

Following Koo’s lead I tried to mumble the words under my breath, getting the feel of the song. And, to my and probably everyone’s surprise, everything was going somewhat okay? We were able to finish recording the intro in under an hour and have just gotten to the pre-chorus. After some practice, I was beginning to feel capable of managing this project, until my ears were pierced with a sudden “I love you,” projecting from Jungkook’s microphone. 

“Oh?” I let out a loud gasp, covering my mouth as my eyes shot up at his form across the booth. Searching my flushed face, he grins, pointing to the lyric sheet on my stand. Furrowing my eyebrows I begin scanning the lines with my finger, realising that he was singing one of the adlibs. However, what came after almost made me sick. Suddenly, it all felt a bit too real. Shutting my eyes, I tried to regain my composure, and within a second, I was back in that hospital room, sitting across from Koo’s frail body as his thumb caressed my palms. 

“I love you, Mira. I’ve been loving you this whole time,” his sweet words played in my head, as tears rolled down my face. Feeling the knot in my throat, I was practically screaming, but nothing came out. I couldn't do it, not then and not now. I couldn’t say the words he desperately deserved to hear. And just like that, I was back in the booth, only this time, my heaving body was plopped on the floor surrounded by both Jungkook and his producer. But, before they could ask me anything, I rushed out of the room, virtually sprinting towards the nearest washroom, where I hoped to lock myself from the outside world. Closing my eyes, all I could see were the replays of that scene before they were suddenly interrupted by the knocking on the stall door.

“Mira! Mira, open up, it’s me,” Jungkook’s voice is heavy, almost breathless. 

“Are you in the women’s washroom?” I yelp in disbelief, wiping the tears off of my face. 

“There’s no one here, come out, please,” he pleads softly, moving back as I slowly open the door. Lowering my gaze, I fold my arms over my chest before leaning back on the stall as if I didn’t just pass out in front of him. Taking a deep breath, I tried to explain myself before feeling his arms wrap around my shoulders as our bodies melted into a tight hug. Oh, Koo, if only you knew how much I missed your warm embrace. 

“Mira, please tell me what’s wrong,” Jungkook whispers, burying his face in the curve of my neck, as I feel his breath on my skin. 

“Koo, I told you, I’m fine,” I managed to lie, placing my hands on his shoulders to create at least some distance. 

“Fine? You dropped to the floor and were unresponsive,” he shouts, furrowing his eyebrows from frustration as his hands grab mine. 

“I … I think my period is coming soon. The days before are always killer,” I explain, trying to convince the both of us, before feeling his worried gaze search my scattering eyes. 

“Your period?” he confirms. 

“Mmhm,” I give him a few nods, feeling his grip on my hands slowly loosen. Tucking the stray hair behind my ear, Jungkook leans closer, tracing the trail of dried tears on my face before letting out a soft sigh. 

“Okay, I believe you. I’ll always believe you, Mira,”

Please, don't.

Previous l Index l Next

[redfurrycat]

🤠🥐☕🐓Bakery & Coffee Shop AU Fic Recs🐓☕🥐🤠

(Includes B, CS and the lovely combo of the two)

(May also include AUs close to B and CS but not quite)

Check the Top Gun Masterlist post for the latest updated version. 💕

Ao3 Authors: Bahjrc, Curapick, Dalearden, Dandeliondick, Fuddlewuddle, Greenstuff, Haridwar, Infinitejaust, Nimuetheseawitch, SunMonTue, Winterbucky, Xo_em.

Flower Shop & Tattoo Parlor AU > Mechanic AU > Chef, Bartender & Waiter

Can I take you to go? by Fuddlewuddle {E}

/☕/

Jake Seresin only went into the coffee shop to get a drink. He didn't expect to meet the love of his life.

The Way to a Man's Heart by dalearden {T}

/☕/

Jake Seresin is a pilot, currently on medical leave from Naval duty as he recovers from injuries sustatined in an ejection during a training exercise. He's grumpy and bored when he takes a chance on a random coffee shop on a rainy afternoon and meets one Bradley Bradshaw, manager and possibly world's best barista. Bradley wastes no time taking such a pretty broken bird under his wing, winning Jake over through pastries and charm and also by being insanely hot. Then therer's an attempted robbery on the premises, and everything accelerates.

The Color of Malibu Blue by curapick {G}

/☕/

Or, simply put, I've liked you long enough to remember all your likings and hope to make them right for you only to bring a smile to your face. But no, I won’t tell you all these… at least not just yet, Bradley mutters to himself. or - in which Barista Bradley's secretly in love with his blond customer with blue-green eyes without him knowing... until one day.

A Brand New Start of It by xo_em {E}

/☕/

“When you asked me out for coffee I didn’t think you’d be the one making it.”

lover be good to me by haridwar {M}

/🥐☕/

Jake picks a random coffee shop to go be pensive in when he receives a birthday card he doesn't want and things turn out better than he ever could have imagined

Extra Hot by greenstuff {E}

/☕/

Of course it’s Extra-Hot-Means-180 Degrees guy, in his absurdly tight black Las Vegas Fire and Rescue t-shirt with his abysmal personal mug that never fails to rub off a smudge of permanent marker onto Jake’s palm once it’s hot. And it’s always Jake’s palm because of course Las Vegas’ hottest man insists that only Jake makes his triple grande blonde latte (extra hot) correctly. Features flirting via coffee cup, hand holding, rock climbing, and a daring rescue.

a spoonful of sugar (helps the medicine go down) by bahjrc {G}

/🥐☕/

Bradley Bradshaw is a tired college student coming home for summer break. All he wants to do is come home, catch up on sleep, help his family's business and maybe figure out what the hell he's going to do with his life. He's not expecting a mysterious man and his weird cat that just moved into the apartment down the street to become a thing in his life. And he's definitely not expecting that golden cat to be such a pain on his ass.

31 Flavors and Counting by infinitejaust {G}

 /🍦/

Jake has a terrible sweet tooth. He doesn’t indulge it much - you don’t get to have great abs and dessert every day. But there's something about that little concessions stand down the beach... For the prompt: Meet-cute at the beach! Bradley works at an ice cream shop and meets lifeguard Jake.

Baker Bradley by nimuetheseawitch {T}{G}

/🥐/

Bradley owns a bakery. Jake can't sleep. They meet in the hours before dawn when only bakers and insomniacs are awake.

The Roost by SunMonTue {T}

/🥐/

The Dagger Squadron have put Jake in charge of organizing a cake for Mav's 60th birthday and retirement celebration. Little does he know he's about to ask Mav's son to make it.

Jake's Cakes by SunMonTue {T}

/🥐/

Iceman has tasked Bradley with organising Maverick's 60th birthday cake. This goes as planned until Mav decides to be a gremlin.

coffee court dates by winterbucky {T}

/☕/

An assignment in a coffee shop isn't what Special Agent Bradshaw dreamed about, but it's not half-bad. The only downside (aside from the mafia meetings that take place there) is a particular blonde mafia member who can't seem to take a hint that Bradley is not interested Though, it turns out, that maybe it's not all as it seems and it's Bradley who can't take a hint or coffee shop au with special agents and mafia (but not really) and stupid bradley who should really learn to read assignment files

The Need for Caffeine by dandeliondick {E}

/☕/

The man was tall, taller than Jake’s 6’, with chestnut curls and dark eyes. Even the porn-stache he had was attractive much to Jake’s dismay. He wore a tight black shirt which was straining against his shoulders and pulled taut around his frankly obscene biceps. Jake had the insane thought that he wanted to climb the guy like a tree and lick those disheveled curls. Jake startled realizing he was staring, “I heard you in the back, figured I would wait. Didn’t mind prolonging my payout.” Those dark eyes sparkled with mischief, reminding him of Maverick, “You must be Hangman.” - When Jake loses a bet against Maverick, his payout is coffee with a side of paternal scheming. Bradley never joined the Navy, instead opening a coffee shop and Jake is...well still Jake...but when the blonde gets himself into trouble he is grounded. But what happens when his punishment is up? Flying away is so much harder when the ground is where you want to be.

[hedgehog-university-au]

"Go to Sleep" means "I Love You"

Okay so I'm obsessed with platonic forms of affection and also the joke about "kissing the homies goodnight" but like in an literal platonic way, and also love having Vector fully take on the Dad role. And as a college student I know the struggle of staying up way too late and needed to be forced to go to bed. So this is a little silly thing I wrote for the boys.

Espio blinked back his weariness as he stared at his glowing laptop screen and labored over how to finish this sentence. Just three more paragraphs to go, and he'd be finish with the first draft of the paper. Then he could go back, make a few rounds of edits and proofread, and he could actually maybe submit it. It was so close.

He'd been sitting in the mostly dark lounge, lit only by his and Charmy's computer screens and a singular lamp, for the last few hours, trying to type this out. His writing speed had significantly decreased as the night dragged on. The quality of his writing might also be decreasing, but his eyes were getting blurry and he couldn't focus enough to re-read anything. He stared at the flashing text cursor at the end of the last word he'd written.

Charmy, the only other person in the lounge, laughed loudly at whatever brainrot video he was watching at this point. Espio glanced up at the noise, blinking again as his eyes tried to adjust away from the light of the computer screen. Charmy laughed again; a prolonged, unhinged set of snickers that indicated he was verging on loopy from being tired. He pulled out his earbuds. "Espio, you-- you gotta see--!" His voice was lost in his fit of snorting laughter.

Espio shook his head. "You already showed me five videos. I need to finish up this paper."

"You're so lame." Charmy pouted as he put one earbud back in. His disappointment quickly disappeared as he started laughing at his video once again.

The door to the lounge burst open, and Vector poked his head in. He was already dressed for bed in a t-shirt and boxers, his eyelids drooping as he glared at them. "Guys, it's 1 am. What're ya doing?"

Charmy attempted to suppress his loopy laughter, which only succeeded in making him laugh more. "Watch-- snort-- watching YouTube," he finally got out.

Espio scoffed, only half-glancing up from his laptop. "At least I'm actually studying."

Vector rolled his eyes. "You've been studyin' all day. You can rest a little too, ya know."

"I have to finish this paper."

"When is it due?"

Espio had enough decency to feel a bit embarrassed. "A week from now?"

"FOR FREAKING SAKE, GO TO SLEEP, ESPIO!"

"It's almost done. Just let me finish it and I'll go to bed." Or at least, go sit in his bed and get his reading done. Maybe then he'd be enough ahead he could feel justified to actually relax...

Charmy piped in, "Yeah, and I'm keeping him company, so I should get to stay up too!"

"More like distracting me," Espio muttered under his breath as he went back to his laptop. He felt a twinge of guilt as the words left his mouth. He didn't really mean it. But Charmy didn't even seem to notice.

"No, you need sleep," Vector told Charmy. "You get all hyper and grumpy when you're tired."

"I'm not tired at all!" Charmy complained. As if on cue, he yawned.

Vector yawned in response, then growled under his breath. "Nope," he groaned, walking towards them. "That's it. C'mon, ya little brats."

Suddenly Espio was being lifted off the couch. A flash of panic hit him, but Vector simply picked him up and flung him over his shoulder. Like he weighed nothing. He grabbed Charmy under his other arm and marched them down the hall.

Charmy protested the indignity loudly. Espio craned his neck to see what Vector was doing with them. Vector stopped at Charmy's room first, kicking the door open with no regard to quiet hours and legit throwing Charmy onto his bed. "SLEEP," Vector ordered, chucking his bee plushie at him. He stomped over and kissed Charmy's forehead, like he was a little kid. Then he wheeled around and carried Espio to his room.

He was tall enough that he barely even had to hoist Espio up to dump him in his loft bed. Vector flung a blanket onto him.

Then he pulled Espio over to the edge of the bed and planted a kiss on the top of Espio's head.

Ummmmm...

What-- what was that? Heat rose to Espio's face. With Charmy he'd thought it was a joke. He did act like a kid sometimes. But Espio hadn't thought...

"Now get to sleep, punk," Vector said. His voice, as always, was gruff and growly. But there was a hint of... affection. He shut the lights out and closed the door.

Espio curled up under the blanket. His mind buzzed. As far as he could remember, he'd never had a goodnight kiss. His parents were not... affectionate people. And he'd certainly never expected one from Vector, of all people.

But it had seemed so natural. Was that what most parents were like? Did they playfully put their kids to bed, with roughhousing and teasing? Did they give their kids goodnight kisses?

Did those kids know how lucky they were?

No, this whole thinking was ridiculous. Vector was his RA. Just his RA. Yeah, sometimes he called him "Father," and Vector would called him "Son," but that was a joke. Surely Vector was just doing the whole thing "for the bit."

But... Curled up on his bed, Espio felt warm. Complete. Like his whole life, some part of his routine had been missing. And Vector had just put in the missing piece. It was ridiculous. But despite himself, there was a smile on his face.

It was strange. There was such a distinct difference between being sent to bed by his parents and sent to bed by Vector. Vector was louder and gruffer and more grouchy than his parents. His parents never yelled at him to go to bed. They said it with the same cold monotone they said everything else in.

And yet, he felt more warmth when Vector called him a brat or a punk than when his parents called him by his name.

It felt like...

It felt like, when Vector said the words "go to bed," he really meant...

"I love ya, kid."

[rain-ghoul-appreciator]

I would wish it all away, if i thought tomorrow, they'd take you away

kinda nervous but first little ficlet thing on good old tumblr dot com

just 744 words of swiss being so incredibly in love with mountain and rain that it hurts

✭✭✭✭

under the cut or on AO3

if you were to ask "what would you change about your life?"

swiss would simply answer with a laugh and say nothing. which is true. so incredibly true.

why would he change anything in the first place? he already has everything her could possibly hope for. 

every morning he wakes up next to the people he loves the most in his life. every morning he traces his thumbs over the spattering of freckles that adorn mountain's cheeks. every morning he plays connect the dots with the moles and rain's arms.

he wouldn't trade them for the world.

and when mountain eventually wakes up, swiss smiles and tells him good morning, giggles at his half conscious mumbling, and knows that it's gonna he a good day. 

the two bask in the rays of sunlight peeking through the curtains for hours until rain finally rises from the dead. 

swiss tells him good morning, kisses the tip of his nose, and smiles when that lavender hue spreads across the water ghoul's face. 

mountain reaches over eventually, brushing the hair from rain's face before rain eventually rolls over to fetch mountain's glasses. and swiss smiles and the familiarity of their routine. smiles at the familiarity of his mates, curled up next to him, sunbathing in the morning rays. 

coffee is the next most important thing on their list, after kisses of course. mountain grabs their mugs from the top shelf, specially hidden there so that a certain mr dewdrop ghoul cant steal them; while swiss grabs the coffee he knows rain would turn into a puddle without, the tea mountain made himself out of the flowers and herbs in his greenhouse, and hot chocolate for himself because he's already too awake for caffeine. 

they all have it down to a science now. rain gets to use the coffee maker first. it's always been that way. swiss refuses to watch rain stand there all grumpy and tired when he has to wait to make his coffee. 

only once the coffee is brewed and the princess is happy will swiss touch the machine. mountain watches the two work around each other in perfect harmony, content with just waiting for his water to boil on the stove instead of getting it from the coffee maker. 

they all sit in silence afterwards, save for the occasional sniffle or tail thumping against the ground, sipping their chosen drinks in peace. 

swiss loves mornings like this. when it's just them.

he still loves the others, of course. he cant go at least one day without terrorizing a grumpy little fire ghoul in the mornings. and he obviously will still reluctantly leave bed when he smells the signature scent of aether making pancakes. and who is he to deny cumulus a night of cuddling after a hard day of mindless ministry chores. 

but it doesnt stop him from loving, needing, craving, mornings like these. morning where him, mountain, and rain just exist. mornings where he can curl up on the couch sandwiched between the two. 

and even on days when he knows it's gonna be bad, he still won't deny mountain his snuggles or rain his kisses. and if he where to deny them of their wants, he knows they'll be waiting for him with open arms when he finally comes around. 

because even on the days where nothing seems to go quite right, he knows that once he is in his favorite earth giant's arms, or his favorite siren's nest of pillows, everything will be fine.

so if you were to ask swiss what he would change about his life, he would say absolutely nothing.

even if you were to offer him the most appealing prize in the world, he would shake his head and move on. 

swiss loves mountain, and rain, and his pack, and all the little things they do to piss him off, make him cry or smile. 

he wouldn't trade his life even if it were to save the world. 

but if it were mountain, or rain, or his pack, or his papa, then he would give all he could just to know that they would be okay.

because a world without mountain is a world without warmth. because a world without rain is a world without knowledge and beauty. because a world without his pack or his papa is dull and bleak. because a world without the ones he loves is a world that is not worth living in.

[aphrodisiac-siren]

Dynasty of Flames

Aemond Targaryen x Targaryen-Royce Reader

Summary: Being born into the most respected and equally feared houses in the realm made people look up to you as if you were a god and the devil himself, in equal measure. People say that when a Targaryen is born, the gods flip a coin; and when news of the birth of Daemon’s firstborn- a girl, spread, people could only wait in anticipation to see which side of the coin faced up during her birth. 

Warnings: Incest (duh), maybe some swearing??

Part 1, Part 2,

Part 3

The morning air was cold and a thick fog surrounded the boat that swiftly floated top the waters, sailing along the path that led to King's Landing.

Y/N stood on the upper-deck, facing the port side of the boat to gaze into the distance as she doodled in her little pocket book; though there was very little she could see, courtesy of the fog. She wondered why there was such a big concern regarding Luke's succession when he was already named Lord of the Tides and furthermore, why it required the entirety of the family to travel to the Keep to settle the dispute. It was not that she did not like the Red Keep, she just did not like sailing.

"Have you eaten?" Jace walked up the stairs to join his half-sister on the upper deck. Even though he was a few years younger, he'd formed a habit of mother-henning his siblings, fitting into the role of being the one who would one day sit the throne and take on the job of protecting them.

"I did, before we left home" Y/N sweetly smiled at the boy, momentarily looking toward him. Jace had grown up to be rather loving around her, given their history of never getting along at first and she was glad to have someone such as himself by her side.

"It's a good thing you do not get seasick like our brother" he chuckled "he's finally fallen asleep now, though I believe he will awake in a rather bad mood"

"He does get grumpy after his afternoon naps" Y/N playfully grinned at all the past memories of Luke waking up and just being an irritable puppy until it was time for tea "Are you nervous about going back? Luke seemed a touch uneasy"

Jace sighed at the question. He did feel a bit hesitant with regards to going back and facing the other half of his family; the half that did not like him. Though, even if he would never admit it out loud, he knew he and his brother played some part in creating a tense atmosphere between them and a certain uncle.

"I won’t lie, I am a bit nervous yes" Jace pressed his lips into a line.

"Aemond?" Y/N asked and Jace heaved a long sigh before he nodded silently.

"Whatever happened, it was all years ago" Y/N tried to provide some comfort "I'm sure he won’t lash out at the mere sight of you"

"Of course you'd think that, he's your friend" Jace chuckled softly to himself "but us boys, we've never been even remotely close to that"

"Again, that was years ago. People change Jace" the older girl looked at him adoringly "and if he initiates anything, I promise I'll be by your side unlike the last time"

"Thank you sister" Jace replied with an appreciative glance though he had a feeling that deep down the princess would side with Aemond. The both of them had been together ever since they’d learned how to walk and he knew that if things ever got heated like the last time, Y/N would once again rush to Aemond's defence.

It took all morning to reach King's Landing and everyone was more than happy to leave the boat and walk on land once again. Thankfully the carriage ride back to the castle was a short one.

Upon their arrival, neither the queen nor her children were present to welcome Rhaenyra and her family. No one had expected for the King to be present for he was far too ill to do so. Still, at the very least his hand, Otto Hightower could make himself present. Instead, Lord Beasburry stood at the doors to welcome them.

"How lazy can one get to not make any effort to simply walk to the doors of the courtyard" Y/N mumbled to Luke and Rhaena "Is it really that big of a task to greet your guests?"

Luke chortled at the older girl's rant. She most certainly was Daemon's daughter.

Once they'd all entered the castle, everyone headed off into different directions to look around. Rhaenyra and Daemon to meet with Alicent, Baela and Rhaena to look for their grandmother Rhaenys, Jace and Luke to have a look at their former training yard. The younger boys went along with their mother while Y/N decided to visit her old nursery.

The castle felt so familiar but at the same time, so different. It was hard to describe but it did have that sense of home that Y/N found rather welcoming.

As she grew closer to her old room, she heard a faint and distant sound of someone singing from within so she cautiously and silently walked closer. She stood by the doorway as she looked into the nursery. It was so much different from when she'd last seen it. The drapes were no longer blue: her favourite colour, but they were now a pale shade of yellow and the cradle that used to sit closer to the window was now in the very middle of the room. There was a baby inside cooing at a man who was looking into the cradle, playfully wiggling his fingers in the child's face as he sang a calming melody.

He had his back facing Y/N but judging by the pearly white hair, It couldn’t be anyone other than the king's sons. He had a lovely voice, Y/N thought. She couldn’t see his face but he had hair that was short, and slightly wavy.

"Aemond?"

The boy leaned away from the cradle, standing at his full height before turning around to face Y/N. There was a moment of confusion before he smiled warmly.

"Princess" he stretched his arms out "I am so happy to see you Y/N, though I am a touch insulted you mistook me for my brother"

Yes, I can see that now, Y/N thought to herself when she saw the boy she was talking to had both his eyes.

"Apologies, prince Aegon" the younger girl smiled back "It's just that Aemond too has short hair and I noticed-"

"Oh, it’s fine Y/N" Aegon laughed as he waved his arm at her "I was just teasing. Did you just arrive? How was the journey?"

"Quiet tiresome. Terrible storm that toppled our boat and then I had to fight off a sea serpent" Y/N scoffed as she pretended to wipe sweat off her forehead "I had to swim all the way back"

"Quiet the adventure" Aegon chuckled but was interrupted by the sound of the baby giggling "Ah, seems like Maelor is just as fascinated by your voyage. Come, let me introduce you to my youngest son"

Aegon gently picked up the babe in his arms who cooed adorably in his father's embrace.

"Maelor, I would like to introduce you to the most beautiful girl in all of the seven kingdoms" Aegon softly bounced the little boy, a gesture that made him giggle.

"Oh hush now" Y/N laughed as she lovingly smiled at Maelor "Hello little prince"

The small boy stretched his arms toward the girl, indicating that he wanted to be carried by her and Aegon let Y/N hold the baby. Maelor looked up at the princess, wide-eyed before he reached up to grab her hair in his little hand, pulling it closer to put in his mouth.

"Ah ah" Aegon tutted as he uncurled Maelor's fingers to free his grasp "Please do not tug on her hair, I'm afraid that job is solely reserved for your uncle, Aemond"

"Aegon" Y/N gasped at the statement that made the older boy chortle at her reaction "Aemond is my friend"

"Of course princess" he suppressed his laughter "do not use that word in his presence, might upset him"

Y/N rolled her eyes. Ever since they were children, Aegon had been teasing them both.

"Y/N?"

The girl tilted her head to see Helaena by the door and immediately her face lit up. The both of them used to write to each other a lot over the years and had grown quiet close. Aegon took Maelor from her arms so that she could greet his sister-wife.

"Oh, I've missed you my dearest" Helaena engulfed Y/N in a warm hug.

"And I you, my darling" Y/N hugged her tighted as Aegon cleared his throat.

"You see that?" He turned toward Maelor "Y/N is stealing away your mother from us"

"Stealing?" Y/N raised a brow "Helaena was always mine. It was you who stole her away from me"

"Oh shut up" Aegon rolled his eyes with a chuckle.

"Perhaps we could run away tonight and get married in Dorne" Helaena nudged the younger princess' arm "You ready the kids and I'll ready Dreamfyre"

"I'm right here, you childish imbeciles" Aegon made a face that had both girls burst into fits of laughter.

"Have you met Aemond yet?" Aegon asked "He should be at the training yard, if I’m not mistaken"

"Why aren’t you training as well?" Helaena asked.

"I was on my way, but Maelor wasn’t in his best mood" the older boy explained "I decided to stay with him in the nursery"

"In the training yard, you say" Y/N gave each of them a curt nod "may I be excused? I should go and.. meet him"

"If you intend to snog him, now would be a bad time" Aegon shouted from the nursery as Y/N walked out "Cole is with him presently but I would be happy to drag the knight away to give you both privacy!"

Y/N shook her head as she laughed at his antics.

By the time Y/N arrived at the training yard, it was for the most part, empty.

The twins who served as knights of the king's guard, Ser Erryk and Arryk Cargyll were putting away the weapons near the little shed under which all the weaponry was kept.

Y/N spotted Ser Criston Cole not too far from the twins and made her way toward the knight.

"Ser Ciston" she greeted and she could swear she saw him jump just a little when she called his name while approaching from behind.

He too, just like Aegon, did not recognise her at first but one look at her unique hair seemed to remind him of who it was he was talking to.

"Princess" he bowed "how nice to have you back after all these years. You've grown even more beautiful from when I last saw you"

"Oh you flatter me" Y/N smiled at the compliment "I was told I would find Prince Aemond at the training yard, is he here?"

"He is"

Y/N bit her lip to reign over the girlish grin creeping to her lips. She hadn’t heard his voice in years but she knew exactly how he spoke despite him sounding nothing like how he used to. The accent, the tone delivery; it was obvious that it was Aemond who was stood right behind her.

The girl spun around slowly to look at the prince. He was taller, so so much taller than her. And his hair too was much longer than how it was a child. She found it funny how she mistook Aegon for Aemond because of how short he'd kept his hair meanwhile Aemond outgrew his hair like how Aegon once did. The only difference was, Aemond's hair wasn't as wavy and unkept as Aegon's. His left eye, or more like the place where his left eye would’ve been, was covered with an eye patch.

He wore black, as opposed to the green he always incorporated into his wardrobe as a child. Y/N liked it, he looked absolutely dashing.

"Hello" she simply said with a smile and Aemond's facial features softened

"Lovely to see you again, princess" he reached out to take her hand in his and brought it to his lips to place a gentle kiss, never once tearing his gaze away from hers.

"You've grown taller" the girl stated and Aemond breathed lightly in amusement, without even a hint of his familiar warm smile.

"And y-you.." Aemond trailed off, still processing the fact that she was standing right before him, her hand still in his. Not realising he'd momentarily zoned out, his gaze fixated on something his mind wasn’t aware of in the present.

"If you are contemplating commenting on my breasts, I would advise you not to" Y/N raised a brow and she heard Cole drop one of the weapons behind her, perhaps in response to her blunt forwardness "Unless you are attempting to have me despise you"

"What- no, that’s not what I-" Aemond fumbled over his words, something he never did. He only just realised that while he had spaced out into oblivion, his disassociated gaze had fixated the décolletage of her dress, that allowed for a bit of her cleavage to be exposed without compromising her modesty "My apologies princess, I did not mean to-"

Y/N chuckled at how his cheeks turned pink, just a tiny bit. She did frown inwardly when she noticed that his freckles that she liked so much had faded away.

"I've missed you" the princess earnestly said as she looked up at him with her beautiful lavender eyes "Issa rōvēgrie naejot rȳ mōrī rȳbagon aōha elēni"

"It feels nice to finally hear your voice"

"Likewise" Aemond responded tenderly. He was slightly surprised to hear her speak Valyrian with such fluency. When they were little, they used to have lessons together to learn the language and she always had a hard time with it. He knew he shouldn’t be that surprised though, she was Daemon's daughter after all. He was well aware her father used to help her a lot when it came to speaking Valyrian, something he wished his own father would’ve done.

"You don’t smile as much" Y/N pointed out all of a sudden. He seemed so closed up and cold. He usually was rather talkative around her, always ranting about something he'd read in a book or about how one day he would have a dragon of his own and they could both fly together. But now he was so rigid, barely saying a few words at a time. It made her a touch disappointed that she was so eager to see him; meanwhile, he seemed not to be.

"You weren't at court" the boy simply replied; a comment that had Y/N grinning ever so slightly and lifted her spirits a bit after his cold demeanour had drowned them.

She wanted to stay and talk some more after years of being able to do so only through letters but she knew her father would be expecting her along with the others. He'd told her that he needed all of them present in a bit when they would go to greet the King. Besides, Aemond did not seem to want to talk to her as much as she did.

"I'd love to talk some more but I must find kepa, he'll be expecting me" she informed as she took a few steps away from him and walked toward the castle. Deciding to push her luck, given her bold nature, she made another statement that she hoped would make Aemond loosen up a bit.

"Ēdā mēre hen olvie gevie līrinon" she told him before she turned away.

"You had one of the most beautiful smiles"

"īlē se drīve inkot bē pōntoma" Aemond whispered to himself as he watched her walk back inside the castle.

"You were the reason behind almost all of them"

Taglist: @yentroucnagol

[littlemissaddict]

Simply Meant To Be - Eddie Munson x Fem!Reader

So I started this before Christmas while watching The Nightmare Before Christmas and had planned to have this up New Years Eve but as usual I'm late. This is such a self indulgent fic and there is no real plot to it other than me wanting my own Sally/Jack moment but this is the only way I'm going to get it so I hope you guys enjoy it just as much.

Word Count: 2621

She'd begun to wish she'd never even brought up the idea of the stupid New Years Eve party. Normally Eddie was all for them knowing he'd make a bit of extra cash in his dealings that would mean he wouldn't have to ask Wayne for the cash just to be able to fill his gas tank, which Wayne was more than happy to do, it was just Eddie hated asking as he knew he struggled to get by as it was.

"I just don't understand why someone is throwing a fancy dress party in December, it's not fucking Halloween" he ranted, not taking his eyes off the joint he was rolling although she wasn't sure if it was really the party bothering him or the fact she suggested they go as Jack and Sally. Which had been slightly selfish on her part as she hoped to have her own 'Simply meant to be' moment like the one at the end of the movie but that was just wishful thinking going on Eddie's reaction.

She sighed knowing it wasn't going to happen, "tis fine Eds you don't have to come, I'll just tag along with Steve and Robin" she told him, accepting defeat and trying to change the subject as they were supposed to be hanging out and a grumpy Eddie was no fun.

“So you're still going ahead with this then?” Robin asked.

It was the night of the party and Robin had come to hers to get ready, then Steve would be picking them up at 7. It had been a couple of days later when Robin had asked if she was still going that she spilled about the incident with Eddie and his outburst at her suggestion.

“It's the only costume I have, seeing as I presumed Eddie would at least pretend to be as excited about this as me, seeing as he knows it's my favourite movie” she told Robin, and while it wasn't a lie that she'd only bought this costume even though she'd had plenty of time since his rejection to get another one, part of her hoped that he would come around to the idea.

“You could always join me and Steve” Robin offered her a small smile, “You can never have too many Men In Black” she added, hoping to lift her mood.

She stared at the dress hung up on her closet door, the beautiful patchwork that was Sally's dress and made up her mind. “Thanks for the offer but this is what I want, even in spite of Eddie” she smiled, resolution clear in her tone as she made for her make up set on the dressing table. Robin watched as she turned herself into the character, forgoing the blue skin as they had left it too late to start getting ready and the both knew Steve would get impatient about having to wait for them.

“Looking good, ladies”

It was about half an hour later when the sound of Steve’s voice from her bedroom door startled them both, thankfully they were both suitably dressed and he hadn’t walked in on either one of them changing as she doesn’t think either of the three of them could have dealt with the outcome of that.

“Your mom let me in” he shrugs in explanation to his sudden appearance as they both glare at him for the scare he just gave them, wandering into the room and peering around as if it was the first time he’d been there. It wasn’t. “Oh come on, don’t look at me like that, we're going to a party it’s supposed to be fun” he says exaggeratedly, acknowledging the looks the two of them were sharing between themselves. “There'll be no grumps tonight or I ain’t taking either of you” he adds, causing her to scoff and mumble to herself.

“Yeah that’s why Eddie’s not here” she repeats a little louder this time at Steve’s request as both he and Robin missed her the first time.

“Yeah, yeah I heard all about ‘Mr I’m Too Good For Fancy Dress’ now let’s get going” he urges, pulling out his sunglasses and putting them on even though there was no possible way he could see with them on.

“I’m gonna walk if you plan on driving in those” Robin threatens as they follow him down the stairs.

Her mother calls to them as they reach the hallway, making for the door, telling them to have a good time but to be safe. She also reminds Steve of her curfew, making it his responsibility to have her home on time and Steve, being Steve, can’t refuse her not for fear of making it into her bad books. The scene in front of them has her and Robin holding back laughter as Steve reassures her that he'll have you home on time and not a minute later.

“Kiss ass” Robin says between bursts of laughter as soon as the car doors shut behind the three of them and she can't help but join in.

Steve spits out protests to the statement, his face beet red as she leans across from the back seat to rest a gentle hand on his shoulder, “Don't worry Steve, you can do no wrong in her eyes, hell she'd probably even let you get away with murder” she jokes, unable to resist the urge to tease him a little bit more and this time he realises what they're doing, brushing off their laughter at his expense and starting the car. “I'm serious though Steve, I swear my mom loves you more than me sometimes, you know after the first time you and Robin came around she asked me if we were dating” she revealed.

“I'm taking that this was before you and Eddie got together” Robin asks, interrupting her.

“Obviously, you know how much she adores him though” she smiles, they'd all seen the way her mom would fuss over Eddie whenever he came around, the same way she fussed over Steve, “she was so disappointed by the fact that you weren't going to be her possible future son in law, even tried to talk me into dating you and that was only after the first meeting” she adds, it was the first time she'd told either of them this, not that she’s purposely kept it a secret there just never seemed a reason to bring it up until now.

“You know there's still time to make me her future son in law” he smiles, catching her eye and winking at her in the rear view mirror.

She laughs in response, knowing that he was joking but Robin groans in protest as if thinking he was being serious. “God no, please don’t” she whines turning to face her in the back seat, “I love you both and I want you to be happy but I don’t wanna be a constant third wheel” she adds, a very serious look on her face.

“Chill out will you, I’m already taken and Steve doesn’t like me like that” she reminds her over dramatic friend as Steve agrees with her from the front. Robin sighs in relief as they pull up outside the house she assumes is their destination if the music booming from inside is anything to go by.

They make their way inside to an already crowded house and head straight to the kitchen to get a drink. Steve sticks with a soda as he’s the designated driver, since he’s the only one out of the three of them that actually has a licence, while Robin grabs two solo cups and fills them with the first thing she finds.

She takes the cup from Robin and hesitantly takes a sip, spluttering at what tastes like neat vodka. “Jeez Rob, did you actually put any mixer in this?” she asks, looking at the drink cluttered counter tops for coke, lemonade or anything to add to the alcohol.

With drinks in hand they made their way into the thick of the party, losing track of time and of how many drinks they’d had until half past eleven when the music was suddenly halted so that they could all be warned of the time. “C’mon let’s head outside, don't want to miss the fireworks” Robin urged tugging on her hand and weaving through the crowd towards the back door.

She cast a glance at Steve who merely shook his head, having had enough of their drunken antics even though she’d had nowhere near as much to drink as Robin and was only a little tipsy, yet he still followed them out to the back yard. They were the only ones out there, except a few stragglers who were either having a smoke or just escaping from the madness inside.

“You sure you want to wait another half an hour out here, it’s a little chilly” she asked, already feeling the goosebumps prickling along her skin and making her shiver after mere minutes in the cold December air.

“Sure as sure can be” Robin nodded vigorously, a little too excitedly as she unexpectedly reached out to grab her arms to steady herself and would have tipped the both of them over if Steve’s quick reactions hadn’t kept them on their feet.

“I’m gonna go get you some water just stay here” he told her with a shake of his head as he disappeared inside, leaving her with Robin who for some reason could not seem to keep still all of a sudden and she had no idea why.

The excitable jitters didn’t seem to stop once Steve was back with the water and she began to wonder if it was a way of keeping warm and she was tempted to join her until she felt the warmth of a jacket being wrapped around her shoulders. Turning she was met with Steve’s kind smile as she realised that it was his jacket, “M’not going to let you freeze out here just cause she’s too excited for the fireworks” he chuckled, nodding towards Robin who seemed to be in a world of her own as she scanned the backyard as if looking for someone though again she had no idea why until a figure walked into view from around the side of the house. A figure she’d recognise anywear, dressed in all black with wild curls.

Eddie.

As he came closer she could see what looked like white chalk marks running in stripes down his jeans and leather jacket, a jacket which underneath sported a white t-shirt and on his face the familiar markings of Jack Skellington. She couldn’t believe it, he decided to come albeit very late but he’d still shown in a matching costume for her.

Slipping Steve’s jacket from her shoulders, she thanked him again even if she’d only worn it for a short period of time as she made her way towards Eddie. As she came to a stop in front of him, he reached for her hands and started speaking before she had a chance and although it took her a minute to realise what he was doing when she did it had tears of joy filling her eyes that he was doing this for her.

“My dear friend, if you don’t mind,

I’d like to join you by your side,

Where we can gaze into the stars

And sit together, now and forever,

For it is plain to see,

We’re simply meant to be”

She joined him at the end, it was silly and sappy but god it was perfect. “I’m sorry I upset you, I didn’t realise how much you wanted to do this and if I did, I wouldn’t have hesitated to come” he told her afterwards.

“It’s okay Eddie I-” she was going to tell him that she forgave him but then it hit her, she hadn’t told him that he’d upset her with his dismissal of the party, “how’d you know?” she asked, interrupting herself.

“Robin, she called me this afternoon and called me allsorts or names, telling me that I owed you this after all you do for me coming to shows at the shitty bar, sitting through hellfire meetings and putting up with me when I fuck up just like I did with this” he explained and she cast a glance over her shoulder to where she’d left Steve and Robin and now her strange behaviour of wanting to be outside and the jitters made sense, she was on the look out for Eddie making sure he kept to the promise he made her. “And I would have been here earlier but I tried to get a costume but nowhere had one in stock so I had to improvise with this shitty excuse” he added.

She shook her head at him, “I love your attempt” she told him, her hands squeezing his hands from where they were still clasped together.

Her words seemed to put him at ease as he carried on, “and then I felt like I had to make it up to you so I rented the film and watched it, that’s when the idea came to me so I watched the end scene on repeat until I knew it word for word just so I could surprise you with it” he carried on with his explanation, pausing to take a breath, “I love you sweetheart and I’m so very sorry I’ll spend the whole night grovelling at your feet if it’ll make up for my fuck up” he promised, making her laugh.

“I’m sure that’d be very entertaining but you don’t have to” she assured him, “in fact I’d never thought I’d get this in my wildest dreams so thank you for making one of my dreams come true” she chuckles and they both know she’s referring to his little sing song.

“If you stay the night maybe I can make a few more come true” he suggests, a pout on his lips but a mischievous glint shimmering in his eyes that has her shaking her head at him but the smile is irremovable from her face.

There’s more the both want to say but it’ll have to wait as the countdown begins from inside the house, growing louder as everyone makes their way into the garden, “Happy New Year sweetheart” Eddie smiles as the first firework lights up the sky.

“Happy New Year Eddie” she replies, leaning in to fulfil the well known new years tradition and kissing him.

“Okay lovebirds, I’m happy that you're good again but we’ve got a curfew to keep” Steve’s voice breaks them apart as Eddie’s stares blankly at him while she can’t help but laugh.

“Oh Steve, she was kidding, she’s not expecting me home because we were supposed to be spending the night at yours” she reminds him as Eddie joins in the laughter as he realises what was going on, “only there’s been a slight change of plans, I’m staying at Eddie’s” she tells him.

“You’ll have to stop by for your overnight bag” Steve relents, remembering that you and Robin dropped your bags off the day before to save time now that he’s sure your mom won’t kill him for having you home late.

“Don’t worry about it man, she won’t need it” Eddie winks as Robin fake gags at his words.

“Ok didn’t need that mental image” Steve grimaces as he catches on to what Eddie is implying, “I’ll see you guys later then I guess” he finishes and she nods as she and Eddie say their goodbyes before heading to his van and then his trailer which they have all to themselves for the rest of the night.

[edwinspaynes]

Happy International Cat Day! I couldn't resist writing a short Thomastair drabble about it :) I've really missed writing them, and this was so refreshing.

Read it on Ao3!

---

1905

“I cannot believe,” Alastair started in a dour tone, “that we agreed to look after this little hellion simply because your parents wished to go to Dublin for several long weeks. It is a wonder that they could not have brought the creature with them, considering how many ridiculously large bags your mother packed.”

Thomas smiled, stroking Cleocatra as she kneaded at his trousers. “You say this as though it were not your idea, amor,” he told his hamsar-am fondly. “I do believe that your exact words were ‘Thomas and I would be pleased to be of service,’ or something of that nature. You volunteered us both, if I am not mistaken.”

Alastair glared and shook his head. “Of that nature does not inspire me to believe that you are making a direct quotation.” He sighed. “I suppose that I must carry the burden of my words as quite the heavy regret, then.”

Thomas laughed brightly. “Simply because she does not wish to sit on you? Perhaps she believes that you squirm about too much.”

“You know as well as I do that I do not squirm,” Alastair reminded him.

“Right. Well, perhaps she does not wish to go on your lap because you elegantly resituate regularly.”

Alastair sighed. “I suppose. Well, I suppose I have nothing to lose by making another attempt. Cleo,” he said, leveling his gaze at Cleocatra. Thomas was amused by the sound that she made as she opened one eye to assess Alastair. It was a sort of half-curious purr, and combined with the rapid head-shake that she offered, it was in Thomas’s opinion adorable.

Judging by the upward quirk at the corners of Alastair’s mouth, he seemed to believe so as well.

Alastair held out a hand to Cleocatra, whose whiskers twitched. She sniffed him tentatively before putting her ears down and readjusting herself in Thomas’s lap.

“Well, then,” Alastair said. “I suppose that I am an eternal persona non grata from here on out, then. Unfortunate, that, as I am the one who came bearing the treats today.”

“I suppose,” Thomas agreed with a laugh.

“She seems to like me well enough when I wave that stupid teaser about in her face.”

“Well, she certainly likes the teaser.”

“More’s the pity for her. She seems staunchly unaware of its terrible orange hue. It is unholy.”

“Did you know,” Thomas said, still stroking Cleocatra’s gray head, “that cats are only able to detect shades yellow and blue? At least, that is what my mother says. But it seems that they mostly view the world in black and white regardless.”

“I suppose that colourblindness is the only decent explanation for enjoying orange feathers,” Alastair said. He reached out to scratch the cat’s chin, and Cleocatra purred as she leaned into Alastair’s touch.

“See?” Thomas’s voice was proud. “It is not as dismal as you believed. She likes you well enough, as she always has.”

Alastair sighed. “I suppose I shall go get the teaser abomination, then. Get back into her good graces.”

-

Alastair loved animals. He always had. And, as Thomas watched the love of his life wave a teaser in front of his old family cat, he felt a small spark of warmth settle in his heart.

Alastair coaxed Cleocatra close to him with the orange feather – Thomas did have to admit to himself that the shade was unfortunate, even if he did not wish to encourage Alastair’s affected grumpiness. But Alastair looked content as the cat jumped from Thomas’s lap and swatted at the feather, making the bell attached to the end of the stick ring softly.

“Silly moosh,” he grumbled as Cleocatra spun in circles. “Quite easily amused, aren’t you?”

“Once, she stared at a spot on the wall for five hours. Eugenia thought there might have been a ghost.”

“Did you tell her that she was being ridiculous?”

“No,” Thomas laughed. “I convinced her that there was, in fact, a ghost. And that the ghost was another cat. I was a rather devious ten-year-old.”

“I have never been prouder of you,” Alastair said approvingly.

Cleocatra, who was apparently unhappy that Alastair had stopped moving her teaser, jumped onto his lap and began to stretch out on his shoulder.

“You cannot really say anything,” Thomas grinned. “As you wanted so badly for her to sit on you.”

“Do shut up,” Alastair said good-naturedly, and Thomas could not help but laugh.

tsc taglist (lmk if you want to be added/removed): @staywildefairchild @sourlemons262 @belle-keys @drunkonimagination @alastaircarstairsismybff @vwritesaus @claritywithclary @purplebass @what-ho-christopher-put-in @life-through-the-eyes-of @alastaircarstairsdefenselawyer @bluewrite @lulusofis @oursoulstheyplay @tessherongraystairs @athearaej @faithfromanewperspective @vwritesaus @imabitchforjemcarstairs @emmalovesfitzloved @daisymydaisycarstairs @fangirlghost-19 @angeldaisies @celias @hanelizabeth @fangirlghost-19 @tiredandoptimistic