#if it helps i once spread a rumor that the coworker i thought was hot was gay because i thought he confirmed it to me and he confronted me

[ghost-proofbaby]

i NEED to tell someone what happened at work today bc the amount of times i nearly embarrassed the hell out of myself… (apologizing now for my rambling)

first off, i sort of have a teeny crush on my manager which we won’t get into and a friend of mine came into the store and asked who it was AS HE WAS BEHIND HER and so i gave a sly little nod as he walked by. a few minutes later i’m sending a snapchat to another friend about that interaction and i’m describing the guy and it’s not until afterwards that i remember the walkie talkie attached to my belt,, the walkie talkie that has been acting weird all day,, that i’ve been hearing background noise from,, and i’m sent into a PANIC thinking that all my coworkers heard me talk about this crush on our MANAGER and i hide in the back for a solid twenty minutes but when i step out, no one says anything or gives me weird looks, AND my manager was in the office at the time and didn’t appear to have a walkie on him so i figure i’m in the clear and was worried for nothing.

THEN, my coworker is messing with one of the walkies bc they’ve been beeping all day and he speaks into it,, and he tells me he’s not even pressing the button. so again, i panic. but he turns it off and the beeping stops and i don’t hear anymore background noise so i figure it was just the one acting weird and i’m safe.

THEN i find out my friend from earlier who asked who it was i had the crush on thought i was talking about the coworker testing the walkies and i send her a snapchat while i’m standing in the restroom talking about how i’m 90% sure THAT guy is gay,, and then i realize there is someone in the men’s room which is RIGHT next to the women’s and i don’t know how well sound travels so again,, panicking,, but it wasn’t gay!coworker, i think it was old man!coworker so pretty sure he either didn’t hear me or didn’t care and i’m safe.

THEN friend comes back into the store and she asks me to point out directly which guy it i have the crush on is so i’m describing him and she says “the one messing with the radio?” and ghost i stg i never switched off my walkie so damn fast and i’m standing there ready to jump off a BRIDGE but then i remember i haven’t heard a sound from it since the other one was turned off,, and none of my coworkers are giving me looks and none of them say anything to me about it so i actually think i am safe now.

i finally shut the fuck up after that but lord have mercy on my soul i hate those fucking walkie talkies so damn bad and i’m definitely going to make sure i’m alone and turning that thing OFF when i’m saying stuff i don’t want people to hear from now on 😭

NOT THE MANAGER CRUSH NOOOOOOOOOO (it’s a canon event i can’t save you)

walkie talkies at work are a nightmare. when i was a manager i was once doing closing stuff as the floor was being fixed and my workers heard me get scared shitless by an animatronic 😭 like EXCUSE ME?? i was also 99% sure our store was haunted (ironic given the store… not naming names but… it was halloween themed) and that the walkie talkie incident was proof but it’s so reassuring to know it happens to other people (ALTHOUGH IM SO SORRY IT HAPPENED TO YOU 😩)

it sounds like you definitely didn’t embarrass yourself though love <3 the walkie gods are on your side i’m manifesting it

[twilightttlovee]

can i get sexually frustrated enemies ada x fem reader meeting on a mission just taking their anger out on another <:)))))))) 🥺👉👈

”Good Girl”

Ada Wong x !Fem reader

warnings : NSFW, Fingering,Ada being hot HSHSJSJSKSK, slight angst?, degrading, mommy kink, rushed 😢

There she was, the girl you once loved, it was really her.

Ada Wong. That bitch!

6 years ago, she betrayed you, had you head over heals for you. And for hells sake, you even let her kiss you. Yet just a couple hours later, she revealed her true self..a spy, before shooting you, and taking the briefcase in your possession, as it contained valuable information she needed.

And she did the same thing to your coworker, Leon Kennedy, except she was rumored to be dead.

Yet here she was, holding a gun against the back of your head.

“Drop your weapon.” She smirks, finger ghosting the trigger, and as much as you didn’t want you dropped your dagger.

“Good girl” she adds as the blade skitters across the wooden floor, causing your body to heat up. No, you can’t let her get you like this, not again, not after what happened, not after she hurt you.

“what the fuck do you want?” You grit as Ada face transforms into a sarcastic hurt expression “Is that any way to greet your long lost friend?” She purrs seductively, moving her gun from the back of your head

Her comment sends shivers down your spine, sucking your cheeks in and sighing, you say “You aren’t my friend.” A chuckle leaves her, “Ouch”

You ignore her response, turning around and taking your handgun from your gun holster, pressing it against her forehead in one swift move “What the hell are you up to now? Gonna try and seduce me and trick me again, do what you did to me and Leon?” You hiss, eyes glaring into her un phased ones. “Hm, Leon told you about me? How sweet” she says, her seductive tone returning, now added with a shit eating grin. You press the gun further into her forehead, finger resting on the trigger, “don’t fuck with me, I will blow your brains out right now.” She rolls her eyes, grin being replaced with a lower lip bite “Relax, sweetie, just came to help you out.”

Your eyes widen, face flushing, knees weakening. Shitshitshitshit! You thought. Not this shit again. You hated how Ada had this effect on you, you hated how Ada could talk to you, melt you like this, and most of all..

you hated that you liked it.

You remove the gun from her forehead, huffing and looking away as Ada turns around, “Getting quite late, isn’t it?” She smiles, “We should find a place to stay for the night.” she adds, walking away. Your eyes scan her body, how her hips sway as she walks, how the her tight red dress hugs her curves so beautifully, as if she was sculpted by the gods.

A sight that had your body heating, and your core soaking.

“Dear, don’t you agree?” She asks, catching onto your gaze.

You snap out of your trance, eyes fluttering, “Yeah yeah, whatever..sure..yeah” you babble, cursing at yourself mentally, she can’t know her effect on you! She can’t realize that she has you wrapped around her finger, just so she can leave you again!

Time skip

you two find an abandoned cabin to stay in, it was quite dusty and outdated, but it worked.

You drop your gear on the table, “You’ve been working out, huh?” Ada grins, looking you up and down, before approaching you. “Why does it matter?” You say, putting on a aggravated face, body secretly melting at her words. “You know, I’ve missed you..and I’m sorry, seriously” she sighs, looking away, guilt spreading across her face, your body untensed, “You say that, yet you went and did the same thing to Leon.” She sighs once more, turning you around to face her, placing her long fingers on your shoulders “I..I had to..please love I’m sorry…just..please forgive me..”

you snap at that, pushing her hands off of her, “What the fuck?! Don’t play that shit with me!” You snap, seeing Ada’s face fill with rage “Can you not be a fucking bitch all the goddamn time! Jesus, I said I’m sorry, can you at least just forgive me?!” you feel your body bubble with hate, “What? So you can take advantage of me again? Yeah, sure Ada, sure” you snicker as she approaches you, shoving your body against the table, breath ghosting your neck and she presses herself against you “Y’know, your such an ungrateful bitch.” she whispers, feeling your body tremble against her, she looks you up and down again, before latching her lips to your neck, sucking and nibbling on your pulse. “Up on the table, now.”

You do what she says, whimpering as she attacks your neck once again, feeling slick moisten your core, “Good girl..good fucking girl..” she taunts, undoing the zipper of your cargo pants, seeing your satin panties, now stained with all your wetness, “Mm, little slut all wet for mommy, huh?” You nod your head, moaning as Ada rubs her middle and ring finger along your clothed folds, “Please mommy, I need you” you whine, slightly grinding against her fingers, “Little slut so needy for my fingers, huh?” You nod again as she nearly rips off your panties, spreading out your legs more, putting your glistening cunt on full display for her, seeing her lick her lips, before going back to your neck, rubbing her fingers along your folds once again, causing a moan to pull out from you. “Cmon, sweetie, let mommy know how good she makes you” she says, slipping her fingers into your hole, body shaking as she starts pumping and curling her fingers into you, you feel a knot build up in your stomach, becoming somewhat painful. “P-please..m-mommy..I’m gonna-“ you mumble out, before she thrusts her fingers into to you more, snickering as she feels your breath become more heavy, “so needy for my fingers..mm..you like that?” You nod, walls clenching around her fingers as she presses her thumb against your numb, tracing slow circles around it, throwing you over the edge as you cum on her fingers, eyes rolling into the back of your head “Good job, dear, you did ‘s good..so proud..” she says, removing her fingers and planting a kiss on your forehead “Cmon, let’s find something to clean you up with..”

Thank you for the request dear! Sorry this was so short (and bad) , this is my first time doing a request :((

[beskarhearts]

The Marshal (Din Djarin x reader)

gif credit @stwrsdaily

Connection series Pt. 12

Pairing: Din Djarin x f!reader (no use of Y/N)

Warnings: cursing, jealous Din and reader, a little ~sexual~ tension/mentions of sex (no smut), canon typical violence, chapter 2 spoilers

Word count: over 15.7 K words (ooof this is a long one)

Summary: Din and you land on Tatooine to find a Mandalorian, instead finding a marshal with a very specific request.

Notes: Did I finish editing this today and I decide I didn’t want to wait until tomorrow to post it? Absolutely. Anyways, I really enjoy this chapter and I hope you all do too. As always, tell me what you think and enjoy!!

Previous Part ____ Next Part

_________________________________________

“Are we just headed straight to Mos Pelgo?” you asked Din as he sat in the drivers seat of the Crest, flying through canyons. You had reached Tatooine and though you had never been there before, it felt very familiar. It reminded you of Jakku in many ways: monotone and mostly desert, with the only distinguishing features being sand dunes or canyons. While this kind of terrain wasn’t your absolute favorite or the most beautiful, it put you at ease. It was something you were familiar with and could hold onto when in unfamiliar territory. And while you had heard rumors of Tatooine being a rough place to live, with many spending their lives fighting to just get water and avoid the scoundrels who were spread throughout the planet, even that aspect of it felt familiar. You were used to rough types and having to work hard to get through the day. 

“No. We have to stop at Mos Eisley first.” Din said, reaching over to press a button on the dash as he began to lower the ship closer to the ground. 

You furrowed your brow, leaning forward in the passengers seat to look out the window where you saw small spots in the sand pop up, probably Banthas. “How come?”

“I looked at a map, can’t find that town anywhere. I know a mechanic who might be able to help out.”

You let your jaw drop slightly, looking over at him incredulously but also playfully, letting one of your eyebrows quirk up. “Are you cheating on me with another mechanic? I thought I was your favorite mechanic.”

Din shook his head at your dramatics, not letting a chuckle out this time as he continued to focus most of his attention on flying over the hills and through the canyons. “You are. She is a friend and I trust her to help.”

You couldn’t help the way your stomach lurched at his explanation. Din didn’t really talk about any friends, only saying he had a few there and there. You had bothered him for more information on these ‘friends’ of his, but he always gave you a classic Din answer: nondescript and vague in every way. You definitely would of remembered if he had mentioned a friend on Mos Eisley. A mechanic friend who was a female. A female he trusted in a galaxy where there were very few people you were able to trust.

You instantly felt ridiculous but couldn’t help the way your eyes furrowed and the gears in your mind went off, thinking of every possible situation in which this woman was anything but ‘just a friend’. Din hadn’t known you for that long in the grand scheme of things. That means there were people before you. Perhaps female companions who had kept him company. You supposed it wasn’t impossible. He was a man after all. It wouldn’t be unreasonable to assume that it was very much a possibility that he had some ‘friends’ spread throughout the galaxy. 

 “A friend.” you tried not to sound so pinched up, like you were talking about something that absolutely disgusted you. But you knew he heard it when he slowly turned to face you for a second, his helmet tilting just the tiniest bit.

A chuckle passed through his modulator as he saw your face, shaking his head in response as he turned back to pay attention to where he was flying. “Are you jealous?”

You stubbornly put your arms over your chest, raising your eyebrows as if what he said what the most lubricious thing in the world and not absolutely true. You shouldn’t even be jealous. You didn’t have a claim on him. For all you knew, you were just two very close friends. Who happened to kiss and spend nights sleeping in the same beds. Who happened to whisper sweet nothings to each other and run your hands through each others hair at night. You know, just that casual friendly stuff everybody does...

“Uh, no. That would be stupid.” You let out a laugh after, trying to show just how not jealous you were. But it was dry and sounded forced and if anything, it expressed just exactly how jealous you were.

“Really?” you heard the tone of his voice, knew he read right through you, even though he wasn’t looking at you. 

You rolled your eyes and turned away from him, hoping your face wasn’t as flushed as it felt. “No way. Can’t wait to meet this friend of yours. Maybe she is a hot babe.” You looked over at him quickly, to see if he would nod in confirmation or say something to give you a hint.

Instead, Din just broke out into complete laughter, a sound like sounded so sweet like honey to your ears usually but now it just made you scowl. “I think you will like her.”

The ship suddenly lurched, starting to land into a hanger of what was obviously a Spaceport. It wasn’t the nicest, but far nicer than the one you had worked at in Jakku. Definitely larger and it looked well taken care of. You couldn’t help the way you narrowed your eyes, trying to find this mysterious female friend but you only saw port droids scurry away as the Crest landed. No sign of any hot babes. Once parked, Din looked over at you. “She is going to insist on working on the ship.”

“You are letting someone else work on the ship?” you said with shock. Not only was there a possibility of a hot babe, but a hot babe who was going to touch the ship you worked on? You knew the pang in your chest wasn’t necessarily because of her touching the ship, but the idea of her touching the other hunk of metal that sat before you.

“I though you hated this ship?”

You pouted slightly, tightening the arms across your body. “I do but it will miss me. I may not be your favorite mechanic, but the Crest loves me.”

Din chuckled, starting to head down the ladder and leave your dramatic antics behind, into the hull where the child was sat in the hammock. You followed him down to find Din grabbing the child and putting him in the bag on his waist. “You ready to see an old friend, kid?”

The kid just looked up, not being the one to respond as you let out a gasp. “The kid knows this mysterious friend? I feel very out of the loop.”

“And not at all jealous.” Din responded and you froze in your tracks as Din began to open the hull of the ship, walking down the ramp without you and leaving you stunned in your spot.

“When the hell did I allow you to get so cocky?” you muttered, shaking your head in wonder.

“Hey, hey, hey! Sorry, gang. Come on! You know he doesn’t like droids!“ you heard the yelling from inside the ship, accompanied by the clatter and beeps of droids. You felt intrigued right away. It was definitely a female, but it didn’t sound like what you had expected (maybe because you were expecting some sultry voice but that didn’t matter). It was higher pitched but sounded older than you would of guessed. Please, Maker or Force or whatever, don’t let this be a hot babe. 

You straightened your shoulders, trying to keep a blank face and let the red of your cheeks calm before strolling down the ramp of the Crest, arms still crossed over your chest. But you didn’t even make it halfway before you froze on the ramp, the woman coming into view. That was not what you were expecting. She was yelling at the droids, her brown curly hair frizzy from the heat of the planet. She wiped her hands on her jacket as she walked over, looking at Din but not seeming to notice you yet. She didn’t smile, just looking already exhausted by his presence and exasperated, as if ready for him to bother her entirely too much.

Shit, Din was right. You were going to like her.

“May as well let them have at it. The Crest needs a good once-over.” You couldn’t help but to let your jaw drop. You didn’t know if she detected the teasing edge of his voice but you heard it clearly, watching as he turned just slightly to look at you with a tilted helmet, as if asking ‘is this what you expected?’ You wanted to storm down the ramp and punch him in the shoulder, but instead you tried to hold back the grin from your face.

The woman continued to ramble on, her attention now focused on the droids as she huffed away at them. “Oh! So he likes droids now. Well, you heard him. Give it a once-over!” She huffed and looked at Din. “I guess a lot has changed since you were last in Mos...”

She finally looked over his shoulder as you resumed your way down the ramp, her eyes widening and the areas where her brows were supposed to be shot up. She looked over at Din and then her head whipped down over at you as you finally stopped next to Mandalorian. “Oh, Maker. It’s a woman!”

“Well, I’m glad that is clear.” You responded with a grin.

The woman looked back and forth between you and Din, the shocked expression not leaving her face even a bit. Her lips were moving, as if she was trying to find something to say to convey the shock she felt. She finally set her sights on Din, raising a brow. “What happened? What did you do?”

You chuckled at the accusatory tone as Din just looked over at you. “This is Peli Motto, my friend.” He placed extra emphasis on the friend and you could feel the grin that was on his face. “Peli, this is my...” Din paused, his helmet still aimed at you.

You just looked back at him, waiting for his response. You suppose he could say friend or maybe coworker of some sort, though that seemed like a mockery to the relationship you now had. But what else would he say? Girlfriend? That sounded silly. Companion? Now that was just ridiculous sounding. You guys hadn’t spoke about it but you couldn’t even imagine Din saying any of those words, nonetheless to another person. 

The silence continued on for an inordinate amount of time, the expression on your face not even breaking Din out of his newfound trance. “I’m a friend.” you slowly said, filling in the rest of the sentence. Din just nodded before turning back to Peli, whose look of shock was now replaced with obvious confusion.

“Well that was weird.” She said, stating the obvious and you may of laughed at it if it weren’t for how uncomfortable the situation was for you.. “Where is the kid?”

Din grabbed the satchel on his side, holding it up so Motto could look straight at the kid. The child seemed to recognize her, staring straight up at woman. A grin broke out on her face instantly and she threw her hands up in joy. “Oh! Thank the Force! This little thing has had me worried sick. Come here, you little womp rat.” 

You chuckled as she called him by the same nickname you often used, her hands reaching out for him and bringing him into her arms, her body starting to sway just slightly. She chuckled as the kid stared up at her. “Looks like it remembers me. How much do you want for it?” She paused just a moment, before continuing. “Just kidding. But not really. You know, if this thing ever divides or buds, I will gladly pay for the offspring.”

“We’ll get working on that. Make it a booming business.” you responded and she looked up at you with a grin.

“She is funny.” She directed the statement towards Din who sighed. “Where did you find a funny woman who was willing to stick around with you?”

“Lots of credits and no contact with the outside world.” You sarcastically responded but her face just dropped in shock, obviously believing the statement.

“She is kidding.” Din responded and you couldn’t help but to laugh at the exasperation in his voice.

“Oh, kriff. Good!” She looked back at you. “Seriously though, why are you with this guy?”

You chuckled at her question, looking over at Din briefly. “Let’s just say he is lucky the kid is cute.” You teased.

She nodded. “That’s the only reason I let his hunk of junk park here.”

“And not because of the credits?” Din asked.

Peli scowled in response, about to answer when her attention was broken by a loud bang. “Oh, geez. Watch what you’re doing up there! He barely trusts your kind! What, you want to give all droids a bad name?” She continued to yell at the droids, one of which got an air tube stuck to his face. 

You leaned into Din a little as she turned away, whispering, “What is with the whole droid thing? You don’t like them?”

“Long story. Don’t mind them now.” he briefly responded and you told yourself to remember to ask him about that later.

Peli suddenly looked back over at you two, eyes narrowing as she saw how close the two of you stood together. You took a small step to the side but her gaze remained steady. “I’ve got to ask. How did you get such a pretty girlfriend? This makes no sense.”

You brought your hand up to your mouth, trying to not choke or laugh at the question. You felt your face flush brightly and you just looked over at Din who stood frozen, just looking at Peli. “I need your help.”

The statement was made to avoid the question but she still scowled at the response. “I assume she is at least.” Her gaze dropped down to you. “Am I right? Because I think I’m right and I have lots of questions if I am. Like why? How? Does he take the helmet off or does that stay on during-”

“You know, we really do need your help actually.” You interrupted, wanting her to stop because you had no clue how to answer any of those questions and fearing what else she would say.

She rolled her eyes, clearly not happy with the lack of answers to her many questions but just nodded. “Fine, then business you shall have. Care for me to watch this wrinkled critter while you seek out adventure?” The question was said hopefully, her arms wrapping around the kid tighter.

“I’ve been quested to bring this one back to its kind.“ Din responded and she chuckled.

“I can’t help you there. I’ve never seen any like it. And trust me, I’ve seen all shapes and sizes in this town.” She looked over at you. “You wouldn’t believe it. Shocking.”

You laughed at her expression, thinking you could probably share a few stories of your own with her. “You’ll have to tell me some time but for now, we need to find a Mandalorian that is supposed to be here.”

“That friend of yours has been the only Mando here for years from what I can tell.” She stated and you sighed. Just like Din had thought.

“Where is Mos Pelgo? I’m told there’s one there.” Din asked.

“Oh. Boy, I haven’t heard that name in a while.“

“It’s not on any map.” You said and she nodded.

“That’s ‘cause it was wiped out by bandits. Once the Empire fell, it was a free-for-all. I didn’t dare leave the city walls. Still don’t.” You couldn’t help but to sigh. Couldn’t Din have to go somewhere that was nice? Just once.

“Can you tell me where it used to be?” Din asked and she shrugged.

“Depends who’s asking. I’ll let you and your friend see it.” She smirked at the way she said friend before shouting to a droid, “R-5! Bring the map of Tatooine.”

You watched as a R5 unit strolled over rather slowly, continuously beeping in response. You noticed a panel on the back of it’s head that looked busted, looking like it was a bad motivator.

“No, take your time.” She looks over at you two, shaking her head. “Seriously. You just can’t get good help anymore. I don’t even know who to complain to! Let’s go, let’s go.” The droid responds back with a melody of beeps, seeming to be yelling at Peli in response. 

The droid finally stopped moving, projecting a map which Peli reached over to touch, moving it around and pointing at it as she began to talk. “This is a map of Tatooine before the war. You got Mos Eisley, Mos Espa, and up around this region, Mos Pelgo.”

You squint your eyes, trying to look into the map at where Mos Pelgo was but finding absolutely nothing. Like you had observed earlier, Tatooine seemed to just be a giant desert with a few sparsely located towns and not much else. “I don’t see anything. Is this the right map?”

“Yep. It’s there. Or at least it used to be. Not much to speak of. It’s an old mining settlement. They’re gonna see that big hunk o’ metal long before you land.” Her head tilted towards the ship and you nodded. She was right. A town small enough to barely appear on the map would definitely be alarmed to the presence of a ship, especially one as large as Dins. 

“You still have that speeder bike?” Din asked and you felt yourself get excited. You had always wanted to get a speeder bike, almost getting all the parts to fix one you had found on Jakku but that had been stolen before you even had the chance to learn how to fix it. 

“Sure do. It’s a little rusty, but I got it. Let me get it ready.” She said, beginning to stroll away. 

You looked over at Din with a grin. “Can I drive the speeder bike?”

He looked over at you. “Do you know how to ride one?”

You twisted your lips and shrugged. “No, but it probably isn’t too hard.”

“It is harder than you’d think. I’ll drive it that way you don’t kill us.”

You huffed at his sarcasm, crossing your arms over your chest as you looked up at him quizzically. “I wouldn’t kill us. I’ve always wanted to ride one.”

“What if I promise one day we’ll get a speeder bike and I’ll teach you how to drive it?”

You bounced on your feet, grinning up at him. “Really?”

“Yes.” Din nodded.

You looked up at him, beginning to step a little closer to him as he aimed his helmet down to look at your face. “It is a shame there are people and droids around.”

“Why is that, sweet one?”

“Because I really want to kiss you right now.” you stated and watched as Din shook his head as if trying to not get flustered. You giggled, still smiling brightly up at him even as he turned away from you, seeming to make sure no one was nearby.

“Didn’t know speeder bikes would make you this happy.” He said, quieter than he had spoken before.

You bit your lip. “What can I say? I’m a sucker for a hunk of metal.” You winked at him as he chuckled at your statement.

“Oh yeah, this looks just like a friendly conversation to me. Nothing more.” You looked up to find Peli staring at you two, shaking her head. You bit your lip, trying to bite back some laughter as she looked at the two of you with discontent, clearly wanting more information. Instead of saying anything, you and Din just looked right back at her and she rolled her eyes, placing her hands on her hips. “Your speeder bike is ready to go.”

__________

“We need to stop for the night.” Din said loudly, speaking over the wind that rushed past your ears. The speeder bike was a little rocky, not in the greatest condition, but it was fast and thrilling. You had now spent hours riding on it, sitting behind Din and holding onto his waist. The child had been sat at his side, his little ears flapping in the wind as he smiled and giggled. Much like you, he absolutely loved the speeder. Had spent most of the time just letting the wind rush past him and occasionally cooing loudly if you hit a bump or moved sporadically, loving the thrill of it.

“Okay.” It was now night time, the double suns of the planet just barely skirting the horizon. Din brought the speeder to a stop and you lifted your head up, looking around. You felt your eyes widen as your saw a group of Tusken Raiders not too far away, beginning to rise from the fire they had set and looking over at the three of you. “Umm... Din, we should probably go somewhere else.”

Instead, you felt your arms fall away from his waist as he rose from the bike, stepping off it on one side and reached a hand out for you to come down. Instead of grasping it, you just looked at him in shock, eyes widened. “Din, there are Tusken Raiders right there.” you whispered, starting to get panicky as they got nearer and nearer.

“I saw them.” He stated, as if a whole bunch of Raiders was just a normal sight and no big deal.

“And...?” you asked, looking at him in complete bewilderment. Din was usually calm, almost unnervingly so at times, but this was shocking to you even.

“And maybe they will let us sit by their fire.”

You couldn’t help but to gulp, your jaw slacking a little bit as you let it hang open. “What?” you whispered, your voice getting a little screechy.

“I’m good with Tusken Raiders.”

“Oh, yeah. Sorry. I just forgot how you were such a people person.” You sarcastically responded and Din chuckled.

 He brought his hand closer to you, wanting you to come down. “Trust me, cyar’ika.”

You groaned but grasped his hand, jumping off the speeder with a frown. “If I become a Tuskens wife tonight or they kill us, I will rise from the grave just to kill you.”

Din shook his head at you, not bothering to respond as he looked over once a couple of the raiders reached where your bike was parked. They were both dressed in the traditional brown fabrics of Tuskens, both holding intimidating sticks in your hands that made you wince as your remembered stories of how they could kill a man with just a stick. They began to speak to you two but instead of words, a string of grunts, loud yelling, and rough sounds tumbled from them. You had no clue what they were saying, but it didn’t sound welcoming and you just stood back as they faced the both of you, waiting for a response. 

You were just about to hiss to Din that you should leave when he began to respond to them in their language, grunting and speaking in a way you couldn’t even begin to understand. His hands moved along with his words (if that’s what you could call them) and you watched closely. Your jaw dropped just the smallest bit, not wanting the Raiders to mistake it for disrespect but shocked by Din. You didn’t know he could speak any language besides basic and hearing such a rough, primal language coming from him was surprising but also made sense in a weird way.

The three of them continued to go back and forth for a while before the two Tuskens walked off, leaving you alone. Your head whipped towards Din as soon as they got further away. “What was that?”

“What?”

“That language you were speaking!” you said, looking at him with wide eyes. What else would you be talking about?

“Tusken.” Din responded like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

“You know Tusken?”

“I told you I was good with Tusken Raiders. You need to trust me, sweet one.”

You bit your lip, feeling bashful at not believing him right away. “What did they say?”

“They said we can stay by their fire tonight.”

“Really?” You said, shocked. You had heard rumors of Tuskens and they were never described as the most charming nor welcoming individuals. Tales about them usually consisted of them brutally attacking humans or being barbarians, not welcoming weary travelers to sit by their fire when in the middle of nowhere.

“As long as you treat them with respect, they are good.” You couldn’t help but to smile at his explanation. You hadn’t seen Din interact with many people, but you knew he was respectful to all kinds of creatures and people, not seeming to judge anyone or come to assumptions too harshly. It made sense, since the armor he wore made him susceptible to people making assumptions what kind of person he was based on rumors and stories of Mandalorians. Of course Din would be more likely to give people a chance, not judge them based off common knowledge which was many times wrong or unfairly dramatized for effect. 

“You are a good guy, Din.” you said softly.

Din just looked up at you, tilting his helmet a little. “We should probably head over.” Whenever you told Din that, he always seemed to shrug it off. Like he didn’t believe it himself or he still had something to prove. It always saddened you because you just wanted him to look in the mirror and see the man you saw. The kindness, respect, and care he put into the people around him was so admirable. 

You nodded but once he started to walk towards where the Tuskens sat, you grabbed his arms and stopped him in his tracks. He didn’t look back, just settling the child who seemed to be uncomfortable. “I have to admit something very, very weird.”

“What is it?” he grumbled, not seeming to put much focus on you.

“You speaking Tusken was kind of hot.” Din’s helmet whipped towards you, and even the child on his side looked up at you as if he understood what you said and was judging very harshly. 

“W-what?” He muttered.

You felt yourself flush. “You know, that sounded dumb even while I was saying it so never mind.”

Din finally chuckled, shaking his head and letting his gloved fingers drift down to your hand, his body now facing yours and his back covering what was happening so the Tuskens couldn’t see. “I’ve never been told that before.” you could hear mocking tone in his voice and you tried to pull away from him but he still held onto your hand just barely. 

“Alright, let’s never mention that I said that.” You said, completely embarrassed at this point and now finding yourself very eager to join the Tuskens, so nothing else could be said about the topic. 

“Remind me to speak to you in Tusken next time we sleep in my bed.” 

Your jaw dropped at Din and the meaning behind what he was saying. “I-I didn’t say it turned me on.” you rambled.

Din was the one to freeze this time and you felt your whole face get warm. You realized how foolish you had sounded. You and Din hadn’t done anything more than making out, neither of you pushing it forward more. You didn’t because you were self-conscious, not wanting to make of a fool of yourself. Him because... well, you didn’t know why.

“I didn’t say it turned you on either.” he said to you and you looked up at him, blinking slowly.

“You implied that.” You justified, getting even more flustered as Din began to rub circles into your hand. Your skin already felt warm enough warm enough from all the awkwardness and every time he did that, it made it worse. 

“You said it was hot.” he responded plainly.

“It was joke!” You lamely refuted.

“A joke?”

“I thought I said to never mention it again.” You felt like a child but you wanted the conversation to end and hearing Din tease you and talk about it so easily made you frustrated. 

Instead of letting go of your hand and heading to the Tuskens, Din just stepped the tiniest bit closer to you and straightened himself up, making himself taller and broader. Your chin tilted up to look at his helmet directly, which you didn’t want to do, but you also weren’t going to look down at your feet like a child. You tried to give him a plain expression, though you could feel the redness that flared across your cheeks and the way your eyebrows were furrowed slightly. Din tilted his helmet slowly, the T-visor looking straight down at you. “Do I turn you on?”

You gasped up at him, your jaw dropping. “Din Djarin!” you quietly hissed at him. But he didn’t back down, just staring right down at you. You hated his ability to make you so self-aware of everything. You feel that because of his armor and helmet, you had to hang on to every small movement and the slightest change of tone in order to read him well. And everything he did made your senses go into hyperdrive, especially when he was purposely trying to fluster you. You tried to speak, but just tripped over your words, getting annoyed with yourself. “W-well... you know you’re e-ego is a little...I think we s-should...” You bit your tongue. You were supposed to be the one with the wise mouth and quick tongue. You found yourself cockily thinking he must of learned this from you, because the Mandalorian you first met was certainly not this cocky.

“Sweet one.” He teased and you gaped up at him.

“Fine, yes! There!” You hissed and pulled away from him. Din nodded at your answer, seeming satisfied. He began to pull away but you now wanted to fluster him like he had with you. “Do I?” you blurted out.

He paused and looked back down at you. “Do you what?”

“Oh, you know what I mean, you kriffing ass.” You responded and Din chuckled, watching as you placed a hand on your hip and looked up at him expectantly.

“Yes.” The question was meant to fluster him but he answered so easily, like you asked him if he wanted some water. There was no teasing or any theatrics involved. Just a plain, simply answer. You thought of several things to say in the moment, small jabs to get back at him, but you just flushed even more, your heartbeat quickening at the answer. Say something.

“Well, good. I better.” You said, crossing your arms over your chest. You began to walk away from him, heading towards the Tusken Raiders who were sat in the circle. You could hear Din’s chuckle as he followed closely behind.

__________

You had finally reached Mos Pelgo and now you understood why you couldn’t find it on a map. It was a small town, though small sounded like the understatement of the year. The whole entire place seemed to stretch over the small portion of road Din was now slowly driving along, a few buildings on each side of it the sandy single street that passed through it, just as empty as the rest of it.The buildings were small and aged, not necessarily in bad shape but you could tell this was a town that had gone through something and didn’t have the opportunity to spruce things up. This was the kind of place where it seemed people simply had to fight each day to just live, not much focus being spent on anything. It made sense, considering its history and it being secluded so much, more so than every other town on the planet already was. It was probably afternoon now, the two suns of Tatooine blaring down on the planet and causing your clothes to stick to your skin a little. Most towns at this time would be full of people working, traveling, getting lunch, and making their way to where they had to go, this town showed no sign of the usual hustle and bustle of places during the week. It was barren except for a few curious eyes here and there, either from people stood on their porches or people peering out from their windows, eyes seeming to dig into you. Each face you saw made you feel like a suspect, like you weren’t welcome. You suspected a town like this didn’t get a lot of visitors, perhaps none for that matter. The last time there had been outsiders may have been the time it was wiped out by bandits following the fall of the Empire. And the only other life you had seen nearby had been Tusken Raiders and while Din seemed to not be bothered by them, they were, well... raiders. And very possibly could be the kind to try to swindle and rob their way through a town like this since it seemed like such an easy target, though you couldn’t imagine there was much value here to be found. After thinking about it, you could understand the judgmental and curious looks. People like this had to be this way and you couldn’t blame them.

Din slowly drifted down the street, seeming to look around for something that stood out. A place where he could find a Mandalorian. You looked around as well, straightening your body up and removing your arms from around Dins waist to bring them up to your eyes, shielding them from the piercing rays of the suns. You didn’t see any places of particular interest and with so few people around, you imagined a Mandalorian would be easy to find if there was one here, strolling around. The speeder bike eventually eased into a slow stop and you turned to your head to the left to see where Din was looking at. It appeared to be a small cantina of sorts and you couldn’t see inside its entrance completely, but you knew it was empty. No music, no sounds of voices, nothing. Just complete silence filled the air and you felt your nose scrunch up. You weren’t a fan of the silence but it seemed to swallow a place like this whole. Like there was no reason to make some noise, have some fun, spark some conversation. Din eventually rose from the bike, you joining him and watching as he made his way to the entrance. You turned back to look at the child, who was sat in the pouch on his bike. He looked up at you, seeming to not know why the ride has stopped. “You stay here for a second, kid.” you told him with a small smile.

Your feet followed Dins path in and once you entered the establishment, your assumption that it was empty was confirmed. There were no day drinkers, nor people grabbing a bite to eat or conducting business. All that stood was a lone bartender, who seemed to be mindlessly stirring a drink mix together with not much care. Definitely no Mandalorian here. Din stepped into the building more and it seemed to grab the bartenders attention, making him look up at you and Din. “Can I help you?”

“I’m looking for a Mandalorian.” You were praying for a quick answer. A simple ‘oh yes, our friendly local Mandalorian is right over there.’ Something to make your trip here worthwhile but you felt any hope dissipate as the bartender just looked at you blankly, no sense of recognition crossing his features as his hands continued to work away on the drink mix.

“Well, we don’t get many visitors in these parts. Can you describe him?” The bartender asked and you let out a sigh. If this man didn’t even know what a Mandalorian was when he had one standing right in front of him, you couldn’t imagine there was one here at all. A Mandalorian would stand out like a sore thumb in a town like this.

“Someone who looks like me.” Din explained plainly, not seeming exasperated but you knew he was thinking the same thing you were.

The man nodded slowly, letting out a hum as a flash of something seemed to finally settle in. “You mean the Marshal?”

Your eyebrows scrunched up. “Your Marshal is a Mandalorian?” You had learned quite a bit about Mandalorians since being with Din, and you had never heard him mention once any Mandalorian being a Marshal of any kind. In fact, you had never even heard of Mandalorians being anything other than bounty hunters. Probably not the type to love law enforcement, none the less become a member of it even in a small town like this where there wasn’t much to look after except a few Raiders every now and then.

“See for yourself.” He grunted and gestured his head to the door you and Din had entered. You both turned around to find a Mandalorian stood in front of you, with quite the outfit on. You knew Dins armor wasn’t the norm. He had never bragged about it or wanted to speak about how much he had paid for his beskar, but you and practically everyone else knew. It was immaculate and pristine, the kind of armor that sparks intimidation and power. Dominance and strength. This armor on the other hand... didn’t give you the same feeling at all and it didn’t even seem to match the individual wearing it. The armor it self had been painted a green and red but you had guessed that must of been many years ago due to how aged and worn it looked. The colors looked half cuffed off, the metal of it sprinkled with marks and dents that had shown it had seen much better days. The helmet that the man adorned was a bit unruly, not seeming quite right on his frame. A pair of wrist-cuffs and a chest plate matched the helmet, looking just as off and bizarre to you. You don’t know what you had expected of a Mandalorian other than Din, but this wasn’t it.

“What brings you here, strangers?” The Mandalorian finally spoke and you could hear a bit of an accent peaking through his modulator which must of also been older, not sounding as clear as the one you were used to that Din wore.

“I’ve been searching for you for many parsecs.” Din stated. You looked over at him to find him calmly stood back, looking at the man before him with no care. It was a curious thing to see him seem to be somewhat comfortable with a stranger. He was an inherently weary man, for good reason, and he didn’t warm up to people. But this wasn’t just a person. This was one of his own. Like a brother of sorts. You wondered how it must feel to have an instant connection with someone. To meet someone who swore by the same Creed you swore to, presumably meaning they had the same morals and beliefs as you did. It must be so nice, especially for a Mandalorian. You didn’t have a lot of people you could trust (or could trust you for that matter) and company wasn’t a norm meaning that when they were with other Mandalorians, there must be this two-sided relief and comfort.

“Well, now you found me.” The man teased and you raised an eyebrow. He already gave you an air of boldness, perhaps even cockiness though you gave him a benefit of a doubt because of the metal strapped to his body. He gave you a small nod, seeming to acknowledge your figure standing besides Din before he strolled to the bar, giving the bartender nod “Weequay, three snorts of spotchka.” 

He grabbed three small glasses and a flagon of blue liquid. The Marshal took a seat at a table with three chairs, gesturing to the three cups. “Why don’t you guys join me for a drink?”

You looked over at Din, who remained glued to his spot, and wondering if the same thought was going through his mind. Why was one Mandalorian offering another a drink? Why the three glasses? You curiously walked over to the table, plopping down on the seat besides the Mandalorian and studying him intently. You were about to ask him about the drinks when the answer to your question was answered by a familiar hiss and click. His hands were attached to the helmet, pulling it off his face. Part of you almost looked away, like you would of done if Din had accidentally taken his helmet off. But you already knew deep down this was no Mandalorian so you continued to look at him as the helmet completely uncovered his face and he revealed himself to everyone in the room. He had a big smirk on his face as he looked up at Din’s frozen figure. He had a handsome face with salt and pepper hair that sat on his head and trailed over his chin and jaw. The thing you noticed first though was the cocky smile on his face. A beaming grin filled it as he looked back and forth between the two of you, his eyes landing on you for a little longer as he took in your shocked but also rather annoyed expression. He began to chuckle softly, as if finding amusement in the reactions he had caused. He began pouring the liquid into the cups, each one quickly being filled by the glowing blue liquid. The scent of the alcohol filled your senses as he smoothly slid a glass across the table your way, your hands reaching out to catch it so it didn’t slip off the edge of the metal. He gave you a small nod before looking back at where Mando stood. He was still frozen but you could see how the comfort was gone from just mere seconds earlier. He was standing a little broader than before, his legs widened out into a slightly yet not overtly threatening stance. He was no longer with a Mandalorian but an imposter. An imposter who was smiling at him as if no wronging had occurred and sliding you a drink like you were an old pal and not a potential threat. “I’ve never met a real Mandalorian. Heard stories. I know you’re good at killing. And probably none too happy to see me wearing this hardware.”

You looked over at Din, your eyes catching the sight of the child in the corner, seeming to be studying some container of some sort. You looked back at Din, who hadn’t moved an inch, his helmet still steadily aimed at the Marshal before you. This was not good.

“So...I figure only one of us is walking out of here. But then I see the little guy and the beautiful lady...and I think, maybe I pegged you wrong.” The man continued, the same smirk still on his face. He was handsome but he seemed cocky, arrogant. Two things you didn’t have the energy to deal with. 

“Who are you?” you asked and he sends a glimmering grin in your direction.

“I’m Cobb Vanth, Marshal of Mos Pelgos.” He winked your way. “You can just call me Cobb though, sweetheart.”

You raised an eyebrow, sending a exasperated look in Din’s direction before drinking the cup of liquid still held in your hand. Oh, boy. This was certainly going to be interesting.

“Where did you get the armor?” Din asked.

“Bought it off some Jawas.” Why the hell did Jawas have Mandalorian armor? That must of meant there was a Mandalorian on Tatooine at some point, but it definitely was not the man in front of you.

“Hand it over.”

“Look, pal, I’m sure you call the shots where you come from, but ‘round here, I’m the one tells folks what to do.” He explained, resting his hand on the table calmly. “Why don’t you sit down with me and the pretty lady?”

“Take it off. Or I will.” Din commanded and you couldn’t help but to snort at it. You swore sometimes he said things that sounded so inherently sexual just on purpose.

Both men finally turned to look at you and you widened your eyes, realizing the tension in the room had been interrupted by you chuckling. You looked back and forth between the Marshal and Din. “Are you okay?” The marshal asked slowly, seeming intrigued by your reaction.

You nodded very slowly, pouring yourself another drink as you felt uncomfortable with both men just staring at you. “Oh, yeah. Mando here might just want to buy you a drink before he tries taking your clothes off but...” you trailed off, trying to make a joke but Din just looked back at Vanth.

Vanth on the other hand laughed, his eyes twinkling as he kept looking at you. “So far, you are much more enjoyable to deal with.” He looked over at Din. “Maybe the lady and I can work something out.”

“Take it off.” Din repeated, not in the mood for playing games. His hand itched towards his blaster, a subtle movement but once the Marshal was supposed to notice and he did, sighing.

“We gonna do this in front of the kid?” he asked, causing the child to look up from the object he was studying.

“Oh, don’t worry. He has seen much, much worse, pal.” You said with a small smirk of your own, tipping back the drink you had poured. 

“Right here then?” Cobb asked.

“Right here.” Din confirmed. 

You scooted your chair back as Cobb stood up, sighing. Both him and Din stared at each other, their sight not straying to you or the child rustling around in the corner who seemed to now be watching intently. Both of them reached for their respective blasters, just wrapping their hands around the holsters without pulling the gun itself out. You looked between the two men, exasperated. You loved Din, but if he was going to force the armor off the guy, he should just do it already. You didn’t understand why he was putting on such a show. You let out a loud sigh, crossing your arm over your chest and leaning back in the chair. You once again captured both mens attention, their heads aiming towards you and you shrugged. “Oh, ignore me. This whole ego, macho-man competition is rather thrilling.” You sarcastically muttered. 

Before either man had the chance to respond, a loud rumble tore through the atmosphere. You stood from your spot as you the Marshal raised a finger, beginning to walk outside, Din following closely behind. You swooped down to grab the child into your arms, watching as the bartender ran out the back exit. What the hell had you and Din walked into? 

You rushed out to where the Marshal and Din were, hearing an alarm start to blare. The child folded his ears onto himself slightly, tucking himself into your chest as if he was trying to hide. You stood next to the two men, watching as they both looked in the same direction. You looked over the same way and that was when you saw it. The sand in the center of the road was moving, seeming to shift from something coming below. A huge array of scales role up from the sand, only showing a small portion of the creature below who tore through the town with reckless abandon. “What the kriff?” You muttered under your breath, barely even hearing yourself over the commotion.

Just when you thought it couldn’t get any more bizarre, the creature rose from the sand like a creature breaching out of the water. A gigantic head rose up, the skin scaled and gnarled with what appeared to be almost horn-like structures rising from the head. You watched as it crashed down, swallowing a bantha whole in the process as if it was nothing. “What was that?” You asked as it finally slithered back down into the sand, seeming to disappear just as quickly as it came.

“Greater Krayt Dragon.” Din answered as the Marshal stepped forward, watching the people of his town slowly exit their homes and businesses, fearfully checking to see if the threat was truly gone before beginning to pick up the pieces of the damage.

“Maybe we can work something out.” Vanth said, beginning to walk through his town.

You and Din followed him, the child still held in your arms. “What is it?” you asked.

“That creature’s been terrorizing these parts since long before Mos Pelgo was established. Thanks to this armor, I’ve been able to protect this town from bandits and Sand People. They look to me to protect ‘em. But a Krayt Dragon is too much for me to take on alone.” For the first time, you could sense some genuine emotion in the mans voice. You heard the compassion for his people, the way he wanted to help. It was the first time you felt empathy for the man. “Help me kill it, I’ll give you the armor.”

“Deal. I’ll ride back to the ship, blow it out of the sand from the sky, use the Bantha as bait.” Din explained, seeming satisfied to come to such an easy conclusion. You couldn’t help but to raise an eyebrow. It wasn’t your luck for this to go so smoothly.

Cobb confirmed your suspicions with a tiresome smile. “Not so simple. The ship passes above, it senses the vibrations, stays underground. But I know where it lives.”

“Of course. Cause that would have been too easy.” You said and Cobb laughed.

“Exactly, dear.”

“How far?” Din asked.

“Not far. I can take you two there.” Cobb offered and you huffed. Fighting a creature to get some Mandalorian armor. Okay. Fighting a creature that can sense vibrations and having to walk into its territory? Not so okay.

“Give us a second.” You said and Cobb nodded, tipping his head towards you.

“Anything, my lady.” He said like a proper gentlemen, throwing a wink your way before strolling a few feet away to help a towns person pick something up.

You looked over at Din who just looked back at you. “This sounds dangerous.”

“We need to do it.”

“For what?”

“We get the armor and find who it belongs to.”

“Mando, this sounds like a real pain in the ass.” You whispered back at him. You understood he wanted the armor, not just for this mission but because it was considered disrespectful for someone to wear a Mandalorians armor if they weren’t one. But you also knew you didn’t want to kill yourselves over it.

“Look around, sweet one.”

You furrowed an eyebrow but looked around. You saw the people cleaning up the mess that had been made, looking exhausted but not surprised. This was a common occurrence for them. Just another part of life. But life was hard enough, especially for people in a small town like this on Tatooine. In a place like this, getting water was a chore in and of itself. They shouldn’t have to fight off a creature, one who ate their animals and Maker knows what else. You understood where Din was coming from. It wasn’t just about the armor or honor, it was about being able to help people. It was about doing the right thing.

You looked back at Din who still stared back at you and you nodded slowly. “Fine. Let’s get Vanth to show us where it is.”

Before you could walk away, Din grasped your arm just slightly, the child held within them looking over at Din to coo at him. He took it away quickly but had captured your attention. “I don’t like him.”

“I mean he seems egotistical, but I think he will stick to his word. Sounds like he needs help.” You reasoned but Din nodded his head.

“I don’t like the way he is... with you.”

You couldn’t help the sly smile on your face. “Well, well...”

“What?” Din asked, seeming confused by your response.

“Oh, just look at who is jealous now.” You sent him a wink before turning around and waving your hand, capturing Vanths attention. “Come on, marshal! Let’s kill a dragon!”

__________

Back on the speeders you were, heading towards the location of this Krayt Dragons home as you tore through rocky terrain. You clung onto Din as he slowly rode on the edge of a cliff, following Cobb Vanth who was riding on his own speeder bike.

Suddenly, a terrible and intimidating loud growl filled the air and Vanth raised a hand to alert you, both men stopping their speeders and jumping off them, readying themselves for what was to come. You joined them, jumping off the bike you shared with Din and grabbing your blaster off your hip. The kid remained on the side of bike, looking around in wonder. The animal-like noises continue on, echoing off the walls of the cliffs that surrounded you. You and Cobb both glanced around rather nervously, trying to see the source of the noise that grew closer and closer. Din stood tall, his hand tightly clasped around his blaster as he moved towards you slowly, placing his body in front of yours to shield you.

You heard the sound of what must of been foot steps coming closer, the canyon making the sound echoe and sound much more intimidating than it was. Before you could ask Din what to do, something started to round the corner, revealing a large four legged creature with scales and dark skin. It appeared almost dog like, snarling at you four while more started to appear, a whole pack coming closer.

The marshal brought his blaster up, aiming it at the creature but you raised a hand up as Din stepped forward, staring directly at the creature. If Din wasn’t shooting right away, it either wasn’t that dangerous or he had a plan. You quietly waited to see Din’s course of action so you could follow his lead. You and Vanth both suddenly jumped as the Mandalorian suddenly let out a loud cry in what sounded like the Tusken he spoke last night, the inflection in his tone and growl of his voice sounding similar. The creatures seemed to calm instantly, allowing Din to stroll towards the one who led the pack

“What the hell you doin’?” Cobb asked, his face pulled into complete shock as he stared at the scene before him. Din brought a hand up, indicating for Cobb to drop his weapon which he did slowly, seeming hesitant to do so. You put your own blaster back on your side, listening as Din let out more Tusken calls, the animals seeming to listen to them intently.

Then Din did something that made you literally laugh with joy. He bent down at the creature directly in front of him, bringing his gloved hands to the hide of its skin and began to scratch and pet at it. The animal happily leaned in the joy, almost jumping with joy at the contact. You looked over at Cobb, whose eyes were just widened as he stared curiously at the creature and Din. You just gave him a shrug as you looked back at Din, smiling as he eagerly pet the creature who seemed to be enjoying the contact thoroughly. 

You walked forward slowly, eventually making it to Dins side and he looked up at you, still petting at the sides of the creature. “Give me your hand.”

You reach one out and he grabbed it, giving another grunt to the creature right before Din’s gloved hand pulled yours downwards until it pressed into the hide of the creature’s skin. It was rough and bumpy, but also warm from the sun that bore down. It had a leathery type of feeling, not exactly soft but it was fine with you. Din let go of your hand, letting you run them over it’s side and the creature let out a satisfied little noise that made you giggle.

Your attention tore away from the creature as a group of Tusken Raiders rounded the corner, seeming to be looking for the pack of animals who had ran ahead of them. Din rose in his spot, beginning to speak to them while his hands moved.

“Hey, partners, either of you want to tell me what’s going on?” Cobb called out and you looked back at him, rising from your kneeled position.

“Dont worry. He is good with Tuskens.” You said, repeating the Mandalorians very words from yesterday and watching as he gave you a bewildered look that you guessed was very similar to your own. 

Din continued to speak for a few more moments before turning back to you two. “They want the Krayt Dragon, too. We are going to camp with them for the night and then form a plan.”

__________

Night fell and once again you were spending it surrounded by a fire, sat next to Din as he spoke with Tuskens. You found it funny how he spoke so infrequently to humans but seemed to go on and on with these creatures. Part of you wished you knew the language, if only to know what Din was talking about and what each hand gesture he made meant. Was he talking strictly business? Or was he just having a normal conversation?

Din sat on your right side, the child sat on the ground in between his legs and staring at the creatures before him. On your left was Cobb Vanth, who looked just as confused as he had earlier. He stared incredulously at Din and the Tuskens, eyebrows raised in a state of shock. He leaned into you just a bit and you felt his shoulder brush yours. “Do you have any clue what they are saying?”

“None.” You responded with a grin.

“They could be plotting to kill us for all we know.” He whispered back at you and you couldn’t help but to chuckle.

“Mando wouldn’t let anybody kill me or the kid. But you...” you sarcastically trailed off, teasing the man who looked over at you with widened eyes.

“That was a joke.” He sounded like he was trying to convince himself and you just laughed at the expression on his face. “You think you are real funny, don’t you?”

“I’m kind of hilarious.” you stated and the marshal shook his head in disbelief, a smile forming just the smallest bit.

“Can I ask you something?”

“Sure, marshal. Why not?”

“What is a beautiful woman like you doing with him?” He gestured his head to Din, who appeared to be listening intently to the Tuskens.

“If I didn’t know better, I’d say you were trying to woo me, Vanth.” You said with a joking tone causing him to chuckle.

“Cant blame me for trying.” He responded back just as you had, grinning at the joking.

You shook your head. “I mean you can keep trying if you like to fail. And I do love to hear about how pretty I am.” You sarcastically muttered, making it clear you were just joking.

Vanth was about to respond when a Tusken suddenly shoved what appeared to be a bowl, filled with a black liquid that steamed. You scrunched up your nose as the scent of it hit you and you nearly gagged from it. It smelled absolutely horrid in every way.

“What am I supposed to do with this?” Vanth asked, looking down at it with disgust, clearly smelling the same deplorable scent you had.

“You drink it.” Din explained and you almost laughed at the shock on the marshals face.

“It stinks.” he stated plainly, as if expecting Din to understand.

“Do you want their help?” Din asked.

“Not if I have to drink this.” Vanth stubbornly responded.

As soon as Cobb answered, the Tuskens started to yell at him, throwing their hands up and you couldn’t understand much but you knew they were not pleased. “He says your people steal their water and now you insult them by not drinking it. They know about Mos Pelgo. They know how many Sand People you killed.” Din explained.

“They raided our village. I defended the town.” The Marshal shouted, clearly becoming agitated himself and defensive

You looked over at the man and narrowed your eyes. “Just shut up and drink it.”

He looked at you with a crazed expression, as if shocked that you weren’t defending him. “Do you smell this?”

You did smell it, and it smelled like complete shit. But it certainly seemed better to drink it then being torn apart by Tuskens who were now rising from where they sat, screeching out and positioning themselves, ready to fight. “It smells better than us getting killed.” You hissed and he just rolled his eyes.

“These monsters can’t be reasoned with!” Cobb yelled out, rising from his seat as well and looking absolutely furious at this point.

“Men...” you muttered, resting your face against your hand as you shook it. 

Cobb took no notice of your exasperation with his attitude, continuing to yell at the creatures. “Sit back down before I put a hole through you! I’m not going to say it-”

Suddenly an explosion of fire erupted next to you, causing you to jump up from your seat. Your head snapped to the right to find Din, an arm stretched out as flames erupted from it, causing the the Tusken and Cobb to stumble back in shock and fear. The child sat between his legs looked shocked as well, gazing up into the orange burst of heat with pure curiosity. It only lasted for a few moments, but it worked incredibly well. Both groups fell silent as their gaze fell upon Din. You could feel the frustration radiating off him and moments like this made you realize why he wasn’t a people person. You continued looking over at him as he turned his head just slightly to look at you, as if checking on you. “Well, that worked.” you mumbled with a small chuckle, your lips quirking slightly to show a small smile. Din only nodded in response, turning to look back at the Tusken and continue conversing with them.

Cobb looked down at you, his expression warped into confusion, anger, fear, and disbelief. You were certain he had probably never had a day quite like this before. “What is he saying now?”

“I’m pretty talented but believe it or not, I didn’t learn Tusken in the last few minutes.” You dryly responded, the same quirk of your lips present. That seemed to break him out of his trance, making a small chuckle pass through his lips before his gaze wandered over to Din.

“What are you telling them now?”

Din finally looked over at Cobb and you swore you could feel him roll his eyes. “The same thing I’m telling you. If we fight amongst ourselves, the monster will kill us all.”

You shook your head in agreement. “And I think we can probably all agree that none of us wanna be a light meal for this dragon.”

The Marshal nodded in response, rubbing his hand through his beard as if thinking. “Yes, that’s true.”

“Well then glad we agree.” you said, standing from your seat.

“I don’t have to drink this still, right?” Cobb pointed at the drink he had rested on the log he had been sitting on, the black liquid in it still steaming.

“Oh, fuck it.” You rolled your eyes and grabbed it. It smelled absolutely terrible, like bantha waste and rotten blue milk all wrapped in one. But it wasn’t a lot and if you didn’t think about it, you could get it down. You had been through much worse. You brought the shell that acted as a cup to your lips, throwing it back quickly and letting the liquid pass through your lips and down your throat. To your dismay, it tasted as bad as it smelled and looked, but you just chugged to try to get it over with, your face involuntarily scrunching up as you did so. Once you finished, you let the cup drop for your hands to the ground and rested one of your hands on your stomach, suddenly feeling very full and slightly queasy from the grotesque drink. Your other hand reached up to wipe at your face, where you could feel a few drops of the liquid dribble down your chin.

As you brought your hand down, you looked over to find everyone was completely silent. Cobb looked at you like you had grown a third eye, his jaw slightly dropped. The child looked up at you, making a face like he was disgusted and had taken a sip himself. You couldn’t read the expressions of the Tuskens but they were all looking in your direction, not grunting or making the slightest noise. Even Din stood next to you, a hand on his hip as his helmet tilted down to get a good look at you.

“No offense, but that tasted like complete shit.” You said, breaking the silence that was beginning to become overwhelming in every way. To your complete shock, the Tuskens started yelling and whooping and for a split second you thought you had done something wrong. Until one walked over to you and patted your shoulder, causing you to grin. You guessed they were shocked and amused that somebody had been willing to drink it. You had only wanted to show no disrespect but you found yourself overwhelmed by the response. You looked over at Din with a big grin but he only stared right back at you, making no movement towards you.

“Ma’am, you have managed to exceed all my expectations.” Cobb said and you looked over to him, to finally see him smiling freely. It was different from the cocky grin from earlier, seeming more genuine. You could see why some might find him a handsome man, with the scruffy beard and charm and good smile.

“I am very impressive.” You stated confidently.

He nodded in response and brought a hand to pat at your shoulder. “So I see.”

You felt a hand grab the back of your arm just slightly, starting to pull you back. You turned your head to see Din, one arm holding the kid and the other hand holding onto you. You smiled at him but he didn’t make any indication to acknowledge it. You understood why he acted differently in front of other people. It was almost like he had a role to play. A reputation to uphold. It probably wouldn’t be very intimidating if he was treating you like he always did, with people around. You also knew that wasn’t who Din was. He wasn’t comfortable with other people, nor ready to display any comfort he did feel with someone with the world. You don’t think it was shame or disgust he felt towards you, but merely you and Din were almost in your whole own world when you were with each other. And you didn’t need others in it.

“What’s up?” you asked.

“They set up some tents for us. We should go sleep.”

You raised an eyebrow, hearing an edge to his tone you were familiar with, but he had never taken it with you before. It was his rough, stoic Mando voice. The kind he gave people like Cobb. Not you. “I’m not really tired. I should probably wow everybody again and drink some-“

“We need rest before tomorrow.” Din said it quietly, not trying to capture the attention of others. The Tuskens didn’t seem to notice anything different, paying no attention to you two. But Cobb did, stepping forward just slightly.

“I can keep an eye on her if you want, partner. Wouldn’t mind the company.” He said, throwing a wink in your direction.

“She is fine.” Din insisted and you felt so much confusion. Why was he acting this way? It was like there was a wall between you. You wanted to reach out, hold onto him and ask him what was wrong but you knew this wasn’t the time nor the place.

Instead you just looked at Cobb and smiled. “You know, I should actually get the kid to bed. He becomes a monster without good sleep.  Goodnight, marshal.”

“Goodnight to you. And you too, Mando.” He said, tipping his head towards Din. Instead of responding to him, Din simply jerked his body away, your arm still held tightly in his hand as he began to march away from the fire.

You looked back apologetically at Vanth. Sure, Din could come off as cold initially. But he was a good man, and certainly not a rude one. You had seen the respect he had shown to the Tusken Raiders, so what was his problem?

“Din, what is going on?” You finally said once you were further away, the fire of the camp starting to fade away. Two small tents were set up further away from the others, and you assumed it was for privacy for Din.

Din didn’t respond and you huffed, jerking your arm away from him. He finally stopped stomping, freezing in his tracks before turning to you. His helmet aimed right at you, T-visor seeming to stare straight into you. “Why aren’t you talking to me?”

“I figured you were too busy thinking of the marshal.”

You couldn’t help the way your jaw dropped slightly and anger flared in you. “What are you talking about?” You spat out and Din sighed. The child in his arms looked back and forth between the two of you, beginning to whine in discomfort.

“You know what I’m talking about.” Din coldly responded and you scoffed.

“I don’t think I am. Why don’t you enlighten me?”

“Maybe I should of let you stay with Vanth like you wanted to so much.”

“I don’t want to stay with Vanth. I want to know what you are going on about.”

Din stayed silent, not responding to you and treating you like he did with so many others. You stepped towards him but instead of reaching out for him, you grab the child from his arms, who continues to whine softly, his eyes drooping. “I’m putting the kid to bed.”

You turned away from him, waiting for no response as you trudged off to one of the two tents that were set up.

_____

Once the child finally fell asleep, snuggled into a ball of blankets, you considered just going to bed. But it wouldn’t stop nagging at your mind. The way Din treated you and what he had said. Stay with Vanth like you wanted? What the hell did that mean?

You crawled out of the tent, feeling the warm Tatooine air hit you, but with a cool night breeze pulling in that relieved you from the heat of the day. You rose your head up, finding Din standing outside of his tent, arms crossed over his chest and head aimed up, as if looking into the sky. He was still clad in his armor but it seemed like a layer had been taken off him. Like he was finally able to relax and get rid of the Mando persona, become the Din you knew again.

You stepped over, your boots crunching softly in the sand and Din looked over at your approaching figure. You stopped right next to him, looking up at his helmet. It was dark outside, but the moon shone brightly and a lantern sat outside each tent, illuminating the metal of his armor enough so you could see him. “Care to explain what is happening?” you calmly asked.

“Vanth and you seem to get along.”

Oh. Oh. Was this... Din being jealous? You had teased him earlier for it, but you had only been teasing him in an attempt to get him back for the way he had teased you about Peli earlier. You didn’t think he could be jealous in any way because you knew there was no reason for him to be. You were hopelessly devoted to Din, almost stupidly so even though there was nothing tying you two together. No label. No title. Just the shared nights in his bed and the kisses you exchanged in the dark. “What?” You mumbled out and Din sighed.

“He finds you attractive. I see the way he looks at you.”

You couldn’t help but to awkwardly chuckle. “Oh, please. I think that is just his natural expression. Pretty sure he might of been undressing you with his eyes earlier.” You joked but Din shook his head and sighed, causing the smile on your face to drop.

“No. He wants you.” Din insisted, now looking away from you. You couldn’t help but to wonder if he was flushed from jealously or insecurity. If his face was tinted red likes yours was starting to be.

“That is silly, Din.”

“No it isn’t. You are a very attractive person. Strong. Smart. Of course he wants you.”

You wanted to flush from the praise, allow yourself to bask in it but all you felt was a sting of sadness course through you. You could hear the inflection in Dins tone and though it was one you couldn’t place, you knew it wasn’t good. It wasn’t your normal Din.

“Din-”

“Do you want him?”

You gasped quietly, looking up at him with complete shock. “What?” You sputtered out.

“He is handsome. Flirtatious.”

“Gee, are you interested?” You sarcastically responded but Din seemed to find no humor in your joke once again, his helmet finally tilting to look over at you again.

“You kept smiling at him. Talking to him.”

“I was being polite, Din. Treating him like I treated Peli.” You explained but his head tilted.

“Peli isn’t a man. A man who is intrigued by you.”

“Hey, you don’t know. Peli could find me extremely alluring.” Din sighed and you bit your tongue. This was not the time for jokes but that was usually was you reverted to when uncomfortable. “Din-”

“I don’t want you to.”

You raised an eyebrow. “What?”

“I don’t want you to want anyone.” He now turned, his body facing yours and helmet looking down at you directly.

“W-what?”

“I only want you to want me. I didn’t like when you... smiled or joked with him.”

“Din, you have nothing to-”

Din stepped towards you again but you didn’t move back, allowing his frame to be only inches from yours. “I only want you to want me.”

Your breath caught in your throat and now you felt a blush spread through your whole face, your chest feeling like it had been caught on fire. Oh, Maker, all you wanted was Din. Sometimes the want you felt, the need you had for him, was so overwhelming. You didn’t know how you had gone so many years of your life without him and now that he was here, he was like a drug you couldn’t get rid of. One you needed more and more of. One you needed to swallow you whole and intoxicate all your senses until they just become a part of you. Like they were just an extension of your being. And hearing Din say this, say how he wanted you to feel that way, made your legs want to give out. “Din.” You gasped as his hands reached out to your waist, holding onto you tightly.

“What do you want, sweet one?” This is one of the first times you heard an almost dangerous edge to his voice. Not one that was threatening or scary, not directed towards you necessarily. But it was dominant and complex and it made your stomach clench.

“All I want is you.”

Din paused for a moment, pulling your hips against his frame as he looked down at you. His chest remained steady, taking deep breaths in and out, completely calm and in control. You on the other end felt like you were gasping for air, like you couldn’t get enough oxygen in your lungs because Din was just consuming you. “Say it again, sweet one.”

“You, Din. All I wanted was you. All I want and will want is you. No one else.” You repeated, hoping you didn’t sound as needy and eager as you did in your head.

Din leaned down, his helmet brushing down your face, the cool metal of it gliding against your warm skin and sending shivers down your spine. “You are mine, cyar’ika.”

You nearly whined at the huskiness of his voice, how rough it sounded through the modulator. Your chest pressed against his and he clutched onto you even tighter. “No one else can have you. I am yours. Always will be here to take care of my girl. You don’t need anyone else. You understand?”

“Yes, Din. Yes.” You felt like you brain couldn’t process anything, the husk whispers tumbling from his lips making your body feel numb.

His fingers dug into your hips even more and this time you let out a whine, just the smallest noise but you knew Din heard it. “All mine. No one can care for you like I do. Be there for you like I do. Kiss you like I do.” You let out a frantic nod at that one, wanting to kiss Din so badly but knowing you couldn’t. Though you were further away from the camp site and from the other tents, you were still in the open. Exposed. Just one person had to walk up and they’d see you. See the way Din held onto you and the way your arms began to wrap around his neck, pulling him tighter against you. “We haven’t talked about it.”

You raised your eyebrow just slightly, wondering what he was meaning. “Talk about what?”

“What we are.”

Oh. You hadn’t. It wasn’t that you didn’t want to have the conversation. But things were so good and you didn’t want to scare him away with some type of commitment. Before you and the child, Din had only ever been committed to his work, his Creed. No person or personal ties. Of course there was something between the two of you. That was clear. But what was it exactly? “We haven’t I guessed.”

“How come?”

Din’s hands continued to clutch onto you, his thumbs now drawing lazy circles into you. “Well, it’s just been good-”

“Really good.”

“Yeah.” you agreed, smiling. “And I just didn’t mention it cause, y’know, it isn’t really necessary. We can just keep doing what we are doing.”

“Is that what you want?”

Your heart quickened at his question. “I just want you.” you admitted, looking away from him just slightly.

A hand left your waist, grabbing onto your chin gently and lifting it up to look directly at him. “Cyar’ika.”

“Yes?”

“You’re important to me.”

“I know.”

“No.” He interrupted, letting his hand drift up so his fingers brushed your cheek. “I am dedicated to you, okay? I’ll be yours.”

You pulled away just slightly, to look at him more clearly but you wished so desperately it was his face you were looking at. That you could look into soft eyes barely illuminated by the soft glow of the moon and lanterns. See the lips you always craved so much. Feel the chin you had pressed kisses along and held in your hand. See the hair your fingers ran through every night. But instead you just smiled softly into the helmet, looking right into the T-visor and hoping you were making eye contact. “Yeah?”

“Yes. If that’s what you want.”

“That’s what I want.”

“Good.” Din said lowly as he pulled you in, now wrapping his arms around your lower body to pull you in for a hug. It wasn’t the most comfortable due to all the bulky beskar he wore but it was your Din holding onto you, and that made it the best feeling. As he continued to hold you close, his hands started to drift down your lower back, fingers brushing against the bottom of your shirt and jacket, pulling the fabric up just the smallest amount so his gloved fingertips could craze bare skin. You felt goosebumps rise on your skin instantly.

“Din...”

“Yes, sweet one?”

“We should probably go to our tents.”

“I don’t want to.” He continued to rub the skin and you tried to gently pull away but he held you close.

“Someone could see.”

“Let them see.” He murmured roughly.

“Din... we should go to bed.”

“Come to my tent.” Din now whispered, leaning his forehead against yours and you sighed at the contact. Ever since you learned what a kedblade kiss was, it made it so special whenever Din went out of his way to do it because you knew what it mean to him.

“We can’t leave the kid in a tent alone. You’ll have to sleep alone tonight.” You heard the way you even whined, how clear it was that you weren’t happy with it. But the tents were extremely small and you had already put the child to sleep in what was supposed to be your tent.

“I don’t want to sleep.” He said and you sighed.

“Well, you need some rest. We’ve got a Krayt dragon to kill tomorrow.” You told him, listening to him grunt in response.

“I need you.” The way Din grumbled was barely audible but you heard, nodding against his helmet.

“I know I’m just so great to sleep next to but I think you will survive.” You respond sarcastically but Din let out another grunt.

“I don’t want to just sleep next to you, sweet one.”

You froze as his large hands grab onto your hips, letting out a small “Oh” as he squeezed them. Not roughly but just enough for you to feel the pressure of his hands, to make you gasp quietly. “Din, you may have picked the worst time to try to seduce me.”

“Is it working?” He asked and you let out a chuckle at the question, shaking your head in disbelief. Part of you couldn’t believe this was the same man who had barley spoken a word to you for the first few weeks on the Crest. The man who you thought you drove crazy with every word that left your mouth. Now he was holding onto you, saying how he wanted you and making a warmth fill in you that you’ve never felt before. Made your chest heave as your heart slammed in your chest, not out of fear but thrill and excitement. This was the man who now made you feel so many things, things you never even felt before.

“It’s working very well but we can’t.” You knew Din knew you couldn’t. It was too risky when you weren’t within the safety of the Crest. Too many people around and you were in the middle of the desert of Tatooine. Not the prime location.

Din let out a sigh as you slowly pulled away from him, his helmet still aimed right at you as his fingers began to slip away from your skin. His shoulders sagged slightly as you moved out of his reach. You knew if he didn’t stop talking to you like this and touching you like that, you wouldn’t be able to stop and you’d both do something stupid. “Sweet one, you are killing me.”

You’ve never heard Din sound so desperate in his life and you almost wanted to laugh at it. Instead you just smirked and nodded, knowing exactly what he was feeling but not wanting to show it. “Let’s kill this dragon, get the hell off Tatooine, and then we can...” you drifted off, feeling your face flush.

“Kill a Krayt dragon. Should be easy.” Din sarcastically responded and you chuckled.

“Eh, you’ve dealt with me this long. Krayt dragon should be a piece of cake.” You smirked at him and he shook his head.

“Sweet one?”

“Yes, Din?”

“Close your eyes for a second.”

You looked around. No one was near by, the sounds of the Tuskens could no longer be heard and you could just see the flame from the bonfire coming to an end. “Din, what are you-“

“Just close them real quick.”

You stayed where you were, standing a few feet away from him, but you closed your eyes. You listened closely as you heard Din step closer, feeling him lean against you just slightly as he stood in front from you. A small click rang out into the emptiness of the desert but the usually hiss didn’t follow, making you believe he hadn’t taken the helmet off completely. “Is your helmet-“

You were cut off by his lips pressing down against yours and you let out a small, content sigh at the feeling. You hadn’t kissed him in what felt like forever. All day yesterday you had traveled and the Tuskens last night didn’t have tents so you both slept outside, where you didn’t have any privacy. And today you had either spent the whole day with Vanth or Tuskens, leaving not a single moment for just you and Din.

You rested the palms of your hands against the chest plate he wore, letting the slight toughness of his lips take over. One hand reached out to grab at your hip and he pulled away, leaving one last peck before a click rang out again. “You can open your eyes.” You let them slowly flutter open, wishing you could still feel his lips against yours, the way they moved with you and conveyed things that couldn’t be said with words. “I just needed to kiss you.”

His hand drifted away and you smiled at him. “Very understandable.”

Din nodded at your tease and started to step back, towards his tent. You almost felt yourself whine as he started to move away from you. You hadn’t realized how used you had gotten to sleeping next to Din until you were faced with the realization that you had to sleep alone. You could probably squeeze in with Din and the kid in one, but you didn’t know if he could do that. Couldn’t risk somebody finding the Mandalorian tangled up in a tent with you. Probably not the most intimidating thing. But it still didn’t ease the way you felt. It might of been silly. It was only one night, but you had become addicted to him and you had already spent the last two days with minimal contact. But instead of saying anything, you just smiled at him softly as he neared the entrance of his tent, bringing yourself closer to yours. He was only a matter of a few feet away. You’d be fine.

“Goodnight, cyar’ika.”

“Goodnight, Din.”

__________

“Well, you really missed out on some fun after you left last night.” Cobb said with a grin as you approached him. He stood by the remnants of the bonfire from the night before, his legs spread and his arms crossed over his chest with his helmet sat on the ground besides him.

You stood a few feet away from Cobb, looking as his head lolled over towards you. The child in your arms was the first to respond, cooing and squirming. You let him down, watching as he seemed to relax and start to waddle around. He was becoming more dependent, not wanting to be held as much and wanting to explore on his own.

You looked around, seeing where everybody was. It was early in the morning but you had had a hard time falling asleep last night. And you didn’t want to admit it was because of Din not being next to you, but that was definitely the case. The child had woken up early along with you and instead of sitting in the tent, you decided to walk around before everything got started. You presumed that the Tuskens were probably in their tents, still asleep. Din hadn’t heard you earlier and you assumed he was still asleep in his tent, not wanting to wake him up earlier than you had to with the work ahead of him. It appeared you and Vanth were the only ones around. “Oh, really? What happened?”

“Tuskens finally got me to drink that stuff.” The face he pulled as he told you what happened was enough explanation. It twisted up into utter disgust, like he was still tasting it on his tongue and feeling the effects of it.

“Tastes like absolute shit, doesn’t it?” You asked him and he nodded fervently.

“I don’t know how you got it down so easily.”

“Pure willpower. And I used to drink lots of cheap alcohol which is almost as bad.” Cobb let out a laugh, shaking his head.

“Are you always this... spunky?”

“Spunky?” You asked, raising an eyebrow just the smallest bit.

“Can’t think of a word to describe ya.” He chuckled as he dropped down, planting himself onto one of the benches from last night. “I hope that Mandalorian of yours wasn’t too upset last night.”

You now let your eyebrows shoot up, looking down on him from where you stood. “What do you mean?”

“Well, let’s just say I now know why he isn’t too fond of me.”

You chuckle, shaking your head. “He isn’t too fond of anybody to be honest.”

An eyebrow of his quirked up. “I don’t think that’s true. Seems to be fond of you and that kid.” He looked over at the child, who continued to waddle around. “I just didn’t know. That’s all.”

“Know what?” you asked.

“Well, when you walked in with the Mandalorian yesterday, I figured you were a nanny or some bounty he dragged along to work with him. I didn’t know you two were...” he trailed off, shrugging his shoulders slightly.

You felt your face flush and you had no clue what to say. Should you deny it, say you are just a work partner of his or something? Or did you confirm his suspicions? You and Din had never discussed what to tell people about your situation. You figured on his end he probably found it unnecessary to discuss with others because it was none of their business. And what do you even say?Saying he was your boyfriend or something along those lines felt so silly. “Um, well, y’know we are j-just pals.”

Cobb now laughed heartily at that, clutching onto his stomach as his eyes crinkled up. He kept going like that and you rolled your eyes, crossing your arms over your shoulders as he continued to loose it. “Okay, you can shut up now or I’ll kick your ass.”

“What’s going on?” You jumped at the voice behind you, turning around to see Din standing a couple feet away from you. Vanth began to straighten up but his face was still red from the laughter and he kept snorting, trying to hold it in but seemingly unable to do so.

“Your girl here was just telling me about how you two are such great pals.” He said, a giggle following the words as he smiled up at you. 

You didn’t even bother to glare at the marshal, just looking over at Din who tilted his helmet at you, as if asking ‘Pals?’ “The marshal here was just being an idiot.” you uncomfortably said, shifting in the spot where you stood.

“I was just trying to say I was sorry for my... advances.” He stood from where he was sat, looking at Din now and finally looking like he recovered from his laughing fit. “I didn’t realize you two were pals.” He said the word with a knowing grin.

You looked over at Din who stared right back at Vanth, his helmet aimed right at him. “Well, now you know.” 

An uncomfortable silence fell over and you looked down to find the kid joining in on the awkwardness, just standing there and staring between the two men. You cleared your throat, causing all three to look over at you, and clapped your hands together. “Alright, boys, why don’t we go hunt down a dragon?” 

“Sounds like a plan to me.” Cobb said, beginning to walk off towards the Tuskens who finally began to exit their tents and leaving you and Din alone with the child. 

You looked over at him and felt the corner of your lip quirk up. “That went well.”

“Yeah. We should tell everybody we are pals.”

You smiled dropped as your narrowed your eyes at him, not amused by his sarcasm. “You know, he suggested that there was something between us-”

“Because there is.”

You rolled your eyes at his need to clarify, even though your chest squeezed at the confirmation. “-and I didn’t know what to tell him.”

“What do you mean, tell him?”

“Like do I say we are friends? Or work partners? It’s not like I can say something silly and ruin your very serious Mando reputation.” 

“Something silly? Like what?”

“Oh, I don’t know.” You looked down at your feet, becoming flushed from the way he continued to just stare right at you. “Boyfriend or something like that.” You mumbled very quietly, hoping he didn’t hear it all.

Din just nodded. “Say we are partners.”

You looked up at him and tilted your head. “Partners?”

“It’s a good word.”

You thought about it and supposed that it was the perfect word. Partner didn’t necessarily indicate something romantic. Could just mean you worked alongside him. But it could also mean he was your partner, your person. It didn’t require any explanation and a person could just take it either way. You nodded your head and smiled. “Alright, partner.” 

Din chuckled at you and bent down to grab the kid, lifting him up into his arms. “Are you ready?”

You nodded your head, looking out to see the Tuskens preparing to travel to the home of the dragon. “Yeah. I’m ready.”

Tag List: @ilikethoseodds @dindaddy @poguesvixen @starspangledwidow @fangirlalexia @the-scandalorian @ka-x-in @keepcalmandblogstuff @the-lady-of-stars @orneryscandalousevil @spaghetti-666 @afootnoteinyourhappiness @the-darkempress @dream-alittlebiggerdarling @dee-vn @eury-dice3 @rb4writers @just-me-and-my-obsessions00 @lxdyred @queen-since-97 @honey-hi @periptill​ @seninjakitey​ @guiltyegg​

[ayatosmlktea]

Oh! Thank god you're ok with im requesting an imagine. Um if its not much to ask, can i have uh angst turns happy modern au levi x s/o imagine. Levi's s/o suffers from anxiety and mild depression so she gets really anxious and scared when she heard rumours that levi is cheating (which he is not) thank you!!

𝑹𝒖𝒎𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒔

Y/N knew that she hadn’t been the best company the last few weeks. She knew that her depression was getting the best of her, coupled with her anxiety Y/N found herself more often than not retreating into herself. Levi constantly told her that he was there for her and that she could always come to him but Y/N knew that he was busy, now so more than ever. She put up a fake smile long enough to have him believing that she was fine but behind the facade she just wanted to lie in bed and disappear. 

Unfortunately, being a responsible adult with bills to pay meant that she had no choice but to drag her ass out of bed and go to work. Everyday was the same, spending eight hours a day sitting at her desk, filing paperwork, making phone calls and forcing herself to sit through conversations at lunch she didn’t want to be a part of. Y/N was taking a much needed bathroom break, the day was dragging on and she had woken up with a migraine that no amount of caffeine could tame.

 She needed five minutes to herself where people weren’t screaming at her over the phone over issues that were out of her control. It wasn’t their fault their director had decided to completely bypass their advice and do the exact thing they had told their client NOT to do. Y/N massaged her temples, willing her migraine to leave, she still had a few hours of work left and knew that it was going to be a long day. If Levi hadn’t been swamped with work negotiating new trade deals she would have gone to see him for a quick head massage. His fingers could work miracles. Just as she was about to open the stall door she heard hushed voices entering the bathroom.

“Are you serious?”

“I saw it with my own two eyes dude! They were kissing!” Y/N rolled her eyes, the office was always buzzing with gossip and she didn’t ever care for it. Especially not when all she wanted to do was hide under her blankets at home.

“Why would Levi be kissing Petra?”

Y/N’s hand froze over the latch of the stall door, the air was suddenly kicked out of her lungs.

“Have you seen the way she looks at him? You can practically feel the sexual frustration radiating off of her”

A ball of nerves settled in her stomach, her eyes were wide at hearing Levi, her Levi, being seen kissing someone else. A million thoughts were racing through her mind as she tried and failed not to picture the two of them together. Petra was nice, she knew they were together. She wouldn’t do something like that to her...would she.

“Oh my God do you think Y/N knows?” Y/N could hear the blood rushing in her ears, her whole body felt uncomfortably hot.

“I don’t think so. They came in together this morning and I saw him kissing Petra last night.” 

“That’s so embarrassing! I kind of feel bad for her”

The voices gradually grew fainter as the girl’s left the bathroom. Y/N felt like a  knife twist was being twisted in her gut, why hadn’t Levi told her? He had mentioned that he was going to be working late and had told her not to wait up for him, was this why? Y/N felt like throwing up, finding out that her boyfriend was cheating on her, from work gossip no less, didn’t help the growing feeling of despair. 

Rubbing her eyes to wipe away any tears that she refused to let fall she finally stepped out of the stall. Grabbing a paper towel she tried to dry her eyes as best as she could, there was only so long she could stay in the bathroom without drawing suspicion towards herself. Her eyes were bloodshot but there was nothing she could do about that, at least she could blame it on her migraine.

As luck would have, Y/N bumped into Petra on the way out of the bathroom. The orange haired girl smiled brightly at her like she always did and while Y/N usually returned it, she couldn’t bear to look at her. The fact that Petra was acting like she hadn’t been kissing her boyfriend behind her back was enough to make Y/N want to punch her in the face. Heat spread across the back of her neck and she stared straight ahead, completely ignoring Petra.

Sitting back at her desk she tried to focus on getting her work done but her thoughts kept torturing her with images of Levi doing things with Petra that he’d done to her. It was masochistic but she couldn’t stop them. A sinking feeling settled over her and the longer she thought about it the more she realized that it was probably her fault that Levi had felt the need to seek comfort from someone else. She knew that she could be unpleasant to be around, she had a tendency to push people away when she was going through a depressive episode.

Guilt and self-loathing made themselves at home weighing on her heart heavily, maybe it was for the best that they broke up.

Petra was Levi’s equal in their field and Y/N was, well, unimpressive. Nothing about her really stood out, she wasn’t funny or outgoing or as friendly as Petra was. Y/N bit her lip hard enough to keep herself from crying in front of all her coworkers. The final hours of her shift dragged on but she had somehow managed to survive until the end. Grabbing her bag she hastily threw on her jacket hoping to avoid running into Levi or Petra on her way out.

It seemed that the universe and everything else was against her, before she could even make it to the elevator she had been pulled into Levi’s office. The familiar smell of his cologne made her want to sink into his embrace but after having spent the entire afternoon stewing in her own self-destructive thoughts it made her feel sick.

The kiss he pressed against her temple left an acidic feeling in her throat.

“I missed you, what do you say we order in tonight? All these shitty contracts are giving me a headache” It had taken a while for Levi to completely warm up to her, while he wasn’t one for pda especially at the office she had taken pride in getting him to at least kiss her in the privacy of his own office. Now it felt like all that time they had spent getting to know each other was for nothing.

“Actually, I think I’m going to stay at my place tonight.” Y/N refused to meet his gaze, keeping her eyes glued to the floor.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing! I’m just not feeling well, I don’t want my bad mood to rub off on you” She mumbled, pulling herself away from his embrace but Levi’s grip on her biceps tightened.

“I know when you’re lying to me, brat. Now tell me what’s wrong” Against her will hot tears threatened to spill over.

“Do you still love me?” Levi’s eyebrow raised, his eyes bore into hers wondering why she was asking him such a pointless question.

“You know I do” Her eyebrows knit together, turning her face away from him. She wanted to believe him but her anxiety was getting the best of her. He was probably only saying that because he didn’t want her to find out about him and Petra. He couldn’t really love her, not when she was such a mess. She could barely get out of bed in the morning, why would he want to be with someone like her?

“Hey,” Levi’s voice is soft, the tone he uses for when they’re alone. The pads of his thumbs brush away the tears that were falling down her face.

“Are you in love with Petra?” Gunmetal eyes narrow as his fingers stop moving along her damp skin.

“Where the hell did you get that ridiculous idea?” Y/N felt herself shrink under his gaze, no matter how many times she had seen it this was the first time she had ever been the subject of it.

“I uh, I heard some of the girls in the bathroom talking about how they saw you kissing Petra last night.” Levi sighed, his hands cupped Y/N’s face.

“I didn’t kiss her Y/N, I would never betray your trust like that!”

“Then why are people saying they saw you kissing her?” Y/N really wanted to believe Levi but if there were witnesses then maybe he was just really good at lying to her. She didn’t want to be caught off gaurd and end up looking stupid for not seeing the signs of a cheating boyfriend right in front of her.

“Baby, listen to me. I would never cheat on you! I love you so much and I wouldn’t do anything to ruin us. Petra wasn’t even with me last night. Please trust me” Levi’s eyes never lied, but she was too far gone in her doubts to shake them off.

“Why me?” Once again trying to pull away from Levi’s grasp she felt a wave of disgust course through her. She wasn’t special! There were so many other people who were better than her! She wasn’t pretty like Petra, she was just ordinary! Easily overlooked, there was nothing about her that Levi could possibly love. Who would want to be with something that was always depressed? It would be better if she just disappeared, he’d be better off without her.

Levi looked heartbroken, he couldn’t believe the words coming out of her mouth.

“Is that really how you feel about yourself?” Y/N felt her cheeks burn with embarrassment as she realized she had exposed the thoughts that were in her head had come out without even knowing it.

Tilting her chip up with two fingers Levi’s lips brushed against hers in a soft slow kiss.

“You are beautiful” he mumbled between kisses. There was no room to escape, Levi’s dominant presence always managed to make her feel cornered more so now that her back was literally against the wall.

“You are an amazing woman, I don’t care who you think is better than you because everyone else pales in comparison to you.” Y/N’s eyes began to water again, she hated crying in front of Levi but fuck if he didn’t know just what to say. Burying her face in the crook of his neck her hands gripped the material of his suit jacket like he was her anchor, the only thing keeping her from slipping into the dark recesses of her mind.

“I’m sorry” her words almost completely muffled but Levi caught them. It made his heart heavy to know that stupid rumors had caused Y/N to spiral into a mess of self-doubt and hatred. The fact that she had even considered the possibility of him cheating on her meant that he wasn’t doing his job of loving her properly.

“Come on, let’s go home. I think we could both use a shower and some pizza” Kissing the top of her head Levi stepped back, the sight of her bloodshot eyes and tear stained cheeks pulling at his heartstrings painfully.

“I love you, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have listened to those stupid rumors.” Y/N tugged her bottom lip between her teeth, an anxious habit Levi had picked up on before they had started dating. Grabbing her hands in his he held them over his chest.

“I want you to be able to come to me when you’re feeling down. I don’t care how busy I am, your feelings are important to me! You are no less beautiful or strong to me, even when you’re struggling” Y/N’s face lit up in a way that he hadn’t seen in weeks. He missed her smile and would do anything to make sure she always felt loved. Before the night was over Levi was going to make sure Y/N knew exactly how special she was to him.

[alison-anonymous]

second chances pt. 3 ♡ lou

Second Chances Part 3  ♡ Lou Imagine

Requested: Yes, thank you @dorkqueen1 and @ricksanchezxmypitifulself for asking for this continuation of the Second Chances fic for Lou from Uglydolls! 

Warnings: FLUFF, some bullying and harrassment

♡ ♡ ♡

       You were on cloud nine. 

       Only mere hours ago, you had scored yourself a date with the one doll you had been in love with for years. Or maybe months, the whole time thing was sort of weird around here. Anyways, nothing could knock down your mood now that you knew you were going to get to go out with Lou. That out of all of the dolls in Imperfection, he had chosen you. It amazed you how someone as perfect as Lou could ever find something to love in someone like... well, you (a/n: YOU ARE PERFECT THE WAY YOU ARE). 

       As you went about the rest of your day at work, it didn’t take too long to see some of your coworkers giving you rude looks or even death stares. Normally you would have wondered what their problem was but due to the rumors spreading around that not only were you and Lou together, but that you had slept together, it was kind of a no brainer. But nothing could knock you down from the big horse named Happiness you were riding on right now. As you went about your day, you couldn’t help but relive some of the moments you spent at the Institute. The time where you got lost and Lou had to pick you up in his limo, the very first time the two of you met, listening to him sing for the first time. 

       It was insane that so much time had passed since then and yet the feelings that you had for him were still the same, if not stronger now. How every single word he spoke to you, every time he even looked at you made your stomach feel like making you puke up rainbows and cupcakes. How you got all light headed around him and everything he did seemed like the most amazing thing on earth. How he occupied every single thought in your head and how every time you thought of him, your face would threaten to set on fire if the heat in your cheeks got any warmer. 

       It was safe to say that you were in love with him. 

       And lucky for you, your date came before you even knew it. The thing about Lou is that he is a sucker for romance. Behind all of the charisma and flirtation, he is actually a big sucker for the big romantic gestures. And even better? He’s pretty awesome at executing them. The thing is is that he only ever stretches his limbs on these gestures for dolls that he really cares about, dolls that he thinks are actually going to be worth his time of day. 

       And that doll was you.

      The date began with a blindfold (or that glittery pink scarf from your closet that you never wore). There had been a lot of nervous giggling as you allowed Lou, who you warned him that you were trusting him completely, to lead you to the place where your date would take place. It was a little bit of a walk filled with playful banter and you trying to guess where he was taking you. Finally, he took off your blindfold to see that you were on top of the cliff that looked upon the old village of Uglyville. 

       It had a perfect view of the sunset and was the absolute best spot for those who needed some alone time. As your mouth nearly dropped to the fabric ground, you took in the rest of the scene before you and noticed that he had also set up the most romantic red-themed picnic you had ever seen filled with all of your favorite foods. You turned to him only to see his eyes already set on you and gave him a sly grin. 

       “How did you know what foods I liked?” You asked. He simply shrugged, but a smirk played across his lips as he made his way over to the food and motioned for you to follow. 

       “I have my ways. A good boyfriend never reveals his secrets.”

       You froze with (favorite food) halfway to your mouth. Did he just say what you think he said? “Oh, boyfriend now, huh?” 

       His chivalrous facade seemed to falter for a bit as his adorable flustered self showed, his face turning a light shade of pink and his eyes widening. “I-I mean, it came out wrong- I mean I do, but I-”

      “Lou,” you chuckled, enjoying how you had such a strong effect on him. “It’s okay. I... like you too.” 

       A huge grin broke out across his face, making you think of a child on Christmas Day. As time went on, you both ate and talked and had one of the most amazing times you had ever had as you watched the sun set over the waters. Lou was so easy to talk to that you barely even had to think about what to say next because you were already saying it. You didn’t even notice the decreasing distance between the two of you as you scooted closer to one another until you were both practically sandwiched together. However, just as the night was about to come to a close, a sudden boom of thunder cracked over the sky. 

       Your heads shot up to look into the dark clouds and it wasn’t a second later that rain began coming down. The cool rain felt good on your warm skin and it was quite refreshing since it hadn’t rained in quite a while. You were about to stand up in order to take shelter when suddenly Lou beat you to it, already shouldering off his jacket. You were about to tell him that there was no need when he suddenly threw it not over your shoulders, but over your head. 

       “Lou!” You giggled, letting out a shriek as he suddenly picked you up by the waist and slung you into his arms, bridal style. You could hear his laughter as he began sprinting into a direction of what you assumed was shelter.

       “I have to protect you!” You heard him yell over the rain hitting the pavement and rustling the trees. You were probably going to get some wicked abs from all of the laughing you did as it seemed like a long time before he finally set you down and removed the blanket from your head. It took a moment for your eyes to adjust and you finally realized that you were standing outside your house on the patio. You took in Lou’s form and noticed how out of breath he looked, with water droplets dangling from his yellow yarn hair and dripping into his eyes, his nose a bright pink from the cold. 

       “My hero,” you giggled, stealing his jacket once more and pulling it around your shoulders as you shuddered from the cold. He chuckled, but then grew serious for a moment, his mouth forming a line as he stared at you. Before you had a chance to ask him what was wrong, he beat you to it.

       “Did you, um... did you mean what you said?” You were shocked to hear how timid his voice sounded, like he was afraid to ask. His blue orbs looked into yours filled with nothing but sincerity and maybe even worry. It broke your heart to see him so nervous. 

      “About what?” You asked. 

      “About... liking me back,” he laughed nervously, scratching the back of his neck. Your heart began to pound inside your chest as the butterflies began fangirling inside of your stomach. And in the heat of the moment and the mood that the rain set and the feeling in your gut just screaming that this was right and that Lou was your sun, you offered him a small smile, stood up on your tip toes, and pressed your lips against his. 

♡ ♡ ♡

       “So, how’d it go?” Lydia asked you, swirling her tea bag around in her cup. “We need all the juicy details!” 

       It was your weekly tea and gossip meeting with your girlfriends and as usual, the hot topic of gossip was between you and Lou. You felt your face grow warm as you recalled the events of last night and more importantly the events of this morning when you had just been about to leave for the day and Lou surprised you with a kiss. Cheers erupted from your friends as they watched you try to regain your confidence. 

       “It was insanely romantic,” you giggled, proceeding to tell them every detail about the fantastical night, including the storm and him picking you up and carrying you back home. “And I also, might have, just a little bit... kissed him.”

       That was when the screaming began. All four of them rose out of their seats and ran to you, encircling you in a ginormous group hug. You couldn’t help but laugh at their reactions and savor the warmth of their embrace. At least you had some amazing friends to share about your romance with. 

        “Nice to know you’re a traitor, Y/n,” a voice suddenly chimed in. Your eyes zapped open to see Megan, a lawyer with bright purple hair and a cold stare. She snorted once she realized she had caught your attention. “But love trumps justice, right?” 

        Oh, dear.

♡ ♡ ♡

To be continued? Let me know in the comments if you want a continuation after Flawsome Bandits is finished because I’ve got some plans for this one ♡

♡ a.a.

[zigtheeortega]

unrequited

✿ pairing: bryce x mc

✿ word count: 1920

✿ tags: @dadrianraines ; @adrixnrxines ; @t-yril ; @messofakind ; @bloodxbound​ 

✿ author’s note: so obviously we saw all the discourse ab this last chapter, and i genuinely wish we spent time with bryce, besides him admitting that he spread around the news of the hospital’s financial issues. i thought i’d write an angsty fic that explains why bryce has been absent, and why he told. for perspective, i’ve romanced all male li’s in open heart. i’ve been guilty of making bryce an afterthought, and i thought’d it be interesting to give the characters this self awareness. this is my first true bryce fic, so please let me know if he’s ooc! i hope you enjoy reading this! if you did, please like/reblog or leave a comment!

As soon as the chaos died down, and the clusters of gossiping interns and attendings dispersed, Spencer made her move.

“Hey, Bryce? Can I talk to you for a sec?” She called to his back, pulling him away from the group of laggards that stayed behind to hound Naveen.

“Yeah, what’s up?” he said, in a tone she couldn’t recognize.

He’d been cold with her since she confided in the group, revealing an earth-shattering secret that she wanted to keep between them.

They walked towards the nearest closet, shutting the door behind them. An uncomfortable silence settled between them, as they both sized each other up, waiting for the other to speak first.

“I–”

“You–”

He chuckled, and she laughed with him. He leaned against the shelf behind him, crossing his arms. She matched his relaxed stance, allowing her shoulders to slump ever so slightly.

“I guess it’s just easier for me to be straightforward, even though it might be abrasive,” she said, still fighting back the uneasiness that churned her stomach.

“I’ve always liked that about you,” he smirked softly, but it faded as quickly as it appeared.

“I’m still a bit uncomfortable with you spreading around something I told you in confidence. I risked someone’s trust for telling you in the first place. And I don’t take that lightly,” she said, holding his gaze.

His brows furrowed. “Are you serious?”

“Dead serious,” she replied firmly, preparing herself for the worst.

“If you can’t understand why I did what I did, I don’t know if you’ll get it even if I break it down for you,” he said, his usually warm gaze rigid and devoid of the usual Lahela charm.

“I think I will if you just try. I want to move past this. Apologize, and move on –”

“Apologize?” He quirked a brow at her, then let out a hearty laugh. When she didn’t join him, he shook his head. “Apologize for what, exactly? If anything, you owe all of your friends an apology for not telling them sooner.”

She blinked, stunned. “Whoa, whoa, whoa. You’re the one who spread around confidential information like a rumor and started mass hysteria.”

“And you’re the one who held all that power in your hands in the first place.”

“Okay, but can’t you see that you betrayed my trust just a little bit?” She pleaded, desperately wanting to move past it.

He turned away from her, pacing to the back of the closet, before swiveling around, his expression a foreign one. One she couldn’t recognize on his features. Anger.

“You think I liked spreading something that devastating, Spencer?” He whispered angrily, his voice raising an octave. She stepped back, back pressed against the shelf of boxed rubber gloves and swabs. 

“These are people’s dreams, their livelihoods. People uprooted their lives to work at one of the top hospitals in the nation, underneath the smartest healthcare professionals on this side of the U.S.,” he continued, anger and empathy laced through his words.

“You know how selfish it would be to keep them from the knowledge that they could be scrambling to find a job in one of the most expensive cities in the country? I couldn’t just sit back and do nothing. The fact that you wanted to keep it from your colleagues – hell, your friends – shows me I don’t know you as well as I thought I did.”

The words hit her like a brick wall, and she was the crash dummy in the crumpled car. She had no chance at recovering.

“I’m sorry for raising my voice at you, but I’ll never apologize for telling,” he shook his head, leaning back against the shelf again, his hands balled into fists at his sides.

“I’m so sorry Bryce. I didn’t know you felt that way,” she said, wanting so desperately to tangle her fingers in his hair and pull his head to her chest in a comforting embrace. Instead, she steadied her trembling hands by fidgeting with the hem of her white coat.

Someone reacting like that had seen and dealt with so much more than Spencer could ever imagine. He’d never shared that personal, intimate side of him, and it always made her wonder what adversity he’d faced throughout his life. It was evident that Bryce was no stranger to disappointment, and she could tell he’d endured so much back home.

The air settled between them, a stillness replacing the tension. She watched his face, an unreadable expression splayed out like an abstract painting on his features. She couldn’t tell what he was thinking, and it terrified her.

Bryce was usually an open book, unless it came to the topic of his family or home. He quickly changed the subject or deflected, leaving her wondering how deeply his upbringing affected him.

She waited a couple beats, then decided to speak. She stepped towards him, feeling less and less confident with each second.

“You’ve been so distant since I told you that secret, Bryce. I only brought this up because I want to fix this. I want to get back to normal,” she said, reaching out to brush her fingertips against his bicep.

He scoffed, retracting from her touch like it was a hot stove. “You’re kidding, right?”

“No… I don’t get what you’re trying to say, Bryce… I really don’t know what you mean,” she said slowly, coercing him to fill in the blanks.

“I’ve been avoiding you for weeks, Spencer. You really haven’t noticed?” he eyed her incredulously, running a hand through his hair exasperatedly.

“I guess I noticed we haven’t been talking much, but I assumed it was because of the diagnostics team… We’ve both been really busy –”

“You’ve been busy, Spence. With him,” he practically spat. His jaw clenched, his eyes wild.

She stood, stunned, mouth agape. A soft “Ethan?” was all she could muster.

“Yeah. Him.”

“I don’t understand, Bryce. If you explained I would know what to do –”

“Don’t go all diagnostics on me, please. I’m not in the mood. I’m just trying to let this all out before my heart bursts,” he paced restlessly, his outburst snowballing.

“I’m not jealous. I’m not territorial. Hell, I’m not even into labels. But I had to stay away from you because I can’t stop thinking that you’re mine,” he continued, refusing to look at her.

“Trust me, I know you’re coworkers. I know that we’re in completely different sectors, and that we barely see each other on the job, but I can’t help but feel something negative when I see you with him.”

Her throat cinched, allowing no words to come through. Even if she wanted to speak, she couldn’t muster a cohesive thought.

“You don’t invite me over anymore, Spence,” he whispered, his voice cracking. “Why don’t you invite me over anymore?”

She wanted so desperately to wrap her arms around his muscled frame, and pepper kisses across his face until he smiled his 1000-watt smile again. But she couldn’t. She still couldn’t move.

“I know you probably didn’t mean it, but I took a backseat. I know Rafael hurt you deeply. Ramsey did, too. But I spent so long missing you, and you didn’t even miss me back.”

She couldn’t think of a single word in the English language that would comfort him. He’d lashed out like a wounded animal, and she couldn’t blame him. She’d been a shitty friend, and an even shittier lover, if you could even call her that.

“Bryce, I do miss you… so much. I’m so sorry that I haven’t shown you how much you mean to me. You mean the world to me. I miss the old us –”

“Stop saying that, Spencer. I’m still here. You’re just not paying any attention.”

She veered back, the words backhanding her.

“I don’t even know how to feel about you right now,” he whispered, turning away from her once again. “Are you really only with me because it’s convenient? I thought I was okay with that at first, but it’s because I thought what we had didn’t go deeper than sex. But I was wrong.”

“Even when you had the chance to choose me, you didn’t. When we all worked out together, I was practically crying out for a crumb of your attention, and you chose him. You always choose him. And that’s okay. I just can’t sit around and wait for you to put me first. And If I do, that day will probably never come.”

Her heart sunk deeper than it ever had before. She could feel it swelling, tightening her chest. She could barely breathe.

“I know I didn’t tell you how I felt and that’s on me. I know I should’ve told you sooner. I just thought that what we had was enough for you to at least… I don’t know, think about me? God, I sound so brainless,” he laughed humorlessly, and met her eye for the first time.

“Can you at least say something, Spencer?”

She stood frozen, frantically racking her brain for something – anything to say to help the situation. “What can I do to fix this?” She said, finally, determination strengthening her voice.

“I don’t know if you can, Spence,” He glanced away, training his eyes on anything but her. “I just… don’t know if I can fool around with you anymore. It’s fucking with my head.”

“I’m sorry,” was all she could say. The tension thickened between them, a soft sound of a rolling cart passing by their door. 

“I’d ask you to choose, but I don’t think I’d like the answer,” he sighed tiredly, looking at the ground. “It wouldn’t be fair to ask anyways.”

He turned to the door, glancing back at Spencer’s frozen figure.

“I can perform a 24-hour surgery on a human brain, with the pressure of the world on my shoulders. I can hold someone’s life in my hands, but I can’t even look you in the eye right now,” he murmured, defeated. “I have to go.”

“Bryce, wait –” she called, reaching out to stop him. She didn’t know what she could say to make it better, but she couldn’t just let him leave.

“Please don’t tell your roommates that we had this conversation. Don’t tell Ramsey, either. I just want to pretend like this didn’t happen.”

“Okay,” she squeaked, her voice sounding foreign to her ears.

He inhaled, a slight shudder in his intake of breath. “I’ll be okay. I just need some time. Please don’t let this get in the way of what you really want, Spencer. Anything you choose, I’m happy for you. I just had to tell you how I felt.”

He stepped out into the hallway, instantly greeting Elijah, high-fiving him, his signature Bryce Lahela charm back in an instant, as quickly as it left. Her legs wobbled, threatening to buckle underneath her. She grabbed onto the shelf for support.

She’d pined after Ethan, who’d all but written her off. She’d been using Rafael and Bryce as buffers on the side until Ethan gave her what she wanted.

Raf moved on. Bryce moved on. And she had no one to blame but herself.

---- 

[ubernoxa]

The Token: A GNR FanFic

Chapter 3: You’re Insane

(Masterlist)

Story Summary: Story inspired by the movie She’s the Man. A female Duff is tired of dealing with the bullshit of trying to make it on the strip as a female bassist.

Chapter Summary: Betsie confront Michelle aka Duff about how stupid her plan is. Michelle realizes that keeping up the charade might be harder than she originally thought

Taglist: @smokeandmirrorz

“Are you fucking insane,” I looked up into the bathroom mirror to see Betsie standing behind me. She knew who I was no doubt about it.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I replied before drying my hands.

“Give it a break Michelle, I locked the bathroom door, so it’s just you and me in here. You don’t need to keep up the act,” it was clear that Betsie had seen right through my act, but here was no way I was admitting it.

“Michelle?” I continued my charade hoping she would leave.

“Don’t play dumb bitch, I know your eyes! Don’t forget I’m the one who would do all of your eye makeup when you were apart of Pixie,” she shot back while I remained silent staring her down. Maybe if I don’t talk, she would leave?

“Oh fuck this,” it was in the moment that Betsie jumped towards me and placed her hand on my fake dick.

“Is that a sausage,” I pushed her off of my before he could continue messing with it.

“Well yeah, I’m a guy so I have a dick,” I replied trying to keep it nonchalant. Spoiler, I was failing. I wasn’t ready for someone to lunge at me and grab it.

“Jesus fucking Christ Michelle, I know it’s not real because it’s currently sliding down your leg,” she shouted back. For the first time all night I was glad that the music was loud.

It was there in the bathroom that I admitted my defeat and pulled my pants down to fix my sausage that was currently sitting at my knee.

“Didn’t know you were so religious,” was the only comment I could muster as I fixed myself. There was something wrong with adjust my sausage in front of Betsie, and by something I meant everything.

“Cut the crap, what the hell are you doing?”

“I’m dressing as a guy to join a band. After I ‘left’ Pixie six months back I’ve been apart of 5 bands. I’m sick of it. I’m sick of being treated different than any other male bassist ....People don’t take female musicians seriously, you know that. I just don’t understand why they treat me differently. I’m just a musician no different than them.......this was actually Walter’s idea,” by now the two of us were sitting on the countertop talking.

“He seriously recommended you to do this?”

“Why? You don’t think he would recommend it?” I quickly shot back earning a giggle from Betsie.

“I would pray he wouldn’t. He the most sane out of the three of you,” without thinking I let out a quiet snort.

“I like to think I’m pretty sane,” I teased back causing laughter to fill the bathroom.

“What?” I quickly questioned only earning more laughter from Betsie.

“You? Sane? You have a sausage taped to your fucking thigh! Sane people don’t do that,” she gestured towards the sausage.

“He meant it as a joke, but it actually worked. It was the easiest band audition I’ve ever had. We didn’t play music until like two to three hours into it. It’s different you know. Being a boy musician versus being a girl. I feel like I’m actually apart of the band, not just the token girl. They weren’t dicks when I started playing, and we just had fun!” I sent Betsie a warm smile to only receive a frown.

“You know this is wrong..right? This won’t work! I get you’re able to hide your boobs and shit, but they will find out one day. This is going to blow up in your face, and you won’t recover from it. Enjoy it while it lasts, but one day you’re going to slip up. Everything you’ve worked for will disappear, and you will forever be known as the girl who dressed as a guy to get in a band. Guys will hate you because you pretended to be one of them...they’ll probably think it’s weird as fuck. The girls though..we will never forgive you. You’re betraying all of us. You’re sending the message that a girl can’t make it unless she is a guy,” I immediately cut her off.

“I’m showing the guys that I’m just as good, maybe even better than them. I can play the drums, guitar, and bass, but you don’t see ANYONE coming and knocking on my door asking me to join their band. You wanna preach how I’m betraying girls everywhere? You wanna bring up how I’m not ‘loyal’ to the other female musicians on the strip? Take a moment to look in the damn mirror, and think about what you and Pixie did to me when I was forced to leave the group,” before I could continue, it was her turn to interrupt me.

“We didn’t force you...”

“Oh really? Don’t get on that bull shit! You kicked me out and then spread shit about me. Do you know what it’s like when you show up to an audition and everyone thinks you’re a whore? Do you know how differently guys treat you? Pixie destroyed my reputation with the bullshit lies y’all spread. Don’t you dare give me crap about how I’m betraying the girls of the strip. Y’all betrayed me a long time ago,” I shot back. Silence filled the bathroom as neither one of us was going to break eye contact.

“You can’t just throw us all in a group and blame me for what was said about you too!” Before she could continue, I interrupted her again absolutely don’t with her bull shit.

“When you sat quietly and did nothing while they spread those rumors about me, that’s when we stopped being friends. Actions speak louder than words. Your action of doing nothing spoke volumes,” I shot back.

“They would have kicked me out of Pixie, Michelle.”

“Oh shit! They would have kicked you out of the band? Pixie has never done that before! That sounds terrible...so sorry to hear,” I sarcastically replied. I wasn’t bitter, I was pissed.

“I don’t give a damn what you think of me. All I want to do is to play my bass. I want to do what I fucking love, no matter the cost,” I added breaking the silence.

Betsie nodded her head before she headed towards the door. It must have been clear to her that there was no way she could talk any sense into me that would result in me changing my mind. Before she left, she turned to me and asked, “What are you going to do if you actually make it big? You know you can’t keep this charade up forever.”

I didn’t answer. Not out of stubbornness, but because I didn’t have an answer. The truth was that I had no fucking idea.

“Just promise me you won’t forget who Michelle is,” with that final statement she left me alone in the bathroom as I pondered what the fuck just happened.

After carefully splashing some water on my face and trying to calm myself down, I was left with one question. Could I trust Betsie with my secret? As I stared myself down in the mirror, still not used to my own reflection, the answer was yes. Not because I trusted her or knew she would never betray me or some shit like that. The answer was yes because that was the only answer. I had to keep the charade going. I had to keep being Duff.

————————-

I stood in my uncle’s coffee shop sporting a brown wig as I took orders from the next customer.

The wig was rather annoying and created several problems for me during my work shift. The first was that you could tell it was a wig by the fake hairline, so I had to wear a hat at all times. The second propblem was that it was hot as hell under that wig and my head was sweating like no tomorrow. The third was that I could only pull it back in a low lose pony which sadly was the hairstyle I spotted throughout middle school. Also known as the highly debatable worst years of my life, but who know that might soon change. It all depends on if Betsie opens her big fat mouth about me dressing up as Duff.

“Did you do something to your hair Mic? It looks different?” I perked up at my Uncle’s words.

“Just dyed it. I was tired of the old color and Macy offered to do it for free,” in my defense it wasn’t a complete lie, so he shrugged it off and went back to his office to work.

“What did you really do to your hair?” My coworker Derek quizzed once my uncle left.

“Dyed it a color he wouldn’t approve of,” I answered the questions just like I practiced with Macy maybe it wouldn’t be too hard.

“Ohh how very punk rocker of you. The wig looks realistic thought, where’d you get it?”

“Stripper friend of Macy. How’d you know it was fake?”

“I saw you take you hat off to scratch you head. The hairline is a dead giveaway. Don’t worry your secret is safe with me,” he whispered before heading to the back room to do inventory.

I peeked up at the sound of the door creeping open. Great, just what I needed. I watched as Axl and Izzy cautiously walked into the small coffee shop.

I was thrown for a loop as I watched them get in line behind an older woman who was a frequent customer who seemed to be holding her purse a little bit tighter than she was moments ago.

“Be careful of those two boys behind me. I think they’re up to no good,” I smiled at the older woman and promised that I would make sure everything was going to be okay. I looked around the room and like clockwork my uncle offered to make her order. There was no doubt in my mind that he had a crush on her

“Can I help the next customer please?” I put on a fake smile as Axl and Izzy stepped forward.

“Is this a joke?” I crossed my arms as the pair stood in front of me.

“What I’m not aloud coffee?” Axl protested as he seemed determined to keep up the charade.

“Only paying customers are aloud it,” I turned to Izzy before continuing, “What are you here for?”

“Did you dye your hair? It looks different,” I took a deep breath as I nodded my head. There was no way Izzy knew I was wearing a wig.

“Yeah, Macy offered to dye it, so I thought why not. I could use the change. Now cut the small talk, why are you here?”

“We’re looking for Duff, thought you might know where to find him,” Axl admitted after a couple seconds of silence. It was weird seeing him cooperative.

“Yeah, I know where to find him. I live with him. What’s up? You kicking out of the band or some shit?”

“No, he’s one of the best bassists we have had in our band. We have a gig coming up and we wanted to tell him our new practice schedule,” Axl continued before he handed me a piece of paper. I bit my tongue hard at his comment. Interesting on how yesterday he said Michelle was only mediocre.

“Does he have a job?” Izzy’s words pulled my attention from Axl. I didn’t know why, but he was staring me down. I didn’t like it, not one but.

“Yeah, works for Walter’s father. Walter was nice enough to get him a job so he could feed himself,” I was rather proud of how casually I was able to respond with another rehearsed lie.

Izzy remained speechless, but nodded his head. By the way he was staring my down I thought he was trying to look into my soul or some shit like that. Long story short, I felt uncomfortable.

“Will he be able to make these practice times?” Axl asked breaking the awkward tension between Izzy and me.

“From what I’ve heard, he will be working mornings, but I don’t know if that is his entire schedule,” I shrugged back. I was relieved to see that the practices were all in the afternoon which worked perfectly with my work schedule.

“Practice starts tomorrow, so just have him stop by. He knows the address,” Axl and Izzy began to walked towards the door, but before they left Izzy stopped.

My heart sank as he turned around and walked back towards the counter. Luckily I was just cleaning and there wasn’t another customer.

“Do you have a pen and paper?” I raised a brow at his question.

“Yeah,” I calmly replied curious to see what he was up to.

“Don’t worry, it’s just our number so Duff can call us if he can’t make the rehearsal,” Izzy said as he seem to write a lot more than a phone number on the paper.

“See ya,” Izzy said before hurrying to join Axl who was still receiving several glares from customers.

Once they left, I opened the note which caused my heart to sink.

Duff,

Below is our number if you can’t make it to practice.

*insert number here*

- Iz

Also, blonde was a good choice Michelle, brings out the color in your eyes.

Fuck. He knew.

[fuck-customers]

Big Bird Deli, Part 3

Continued from https://fuck-customers.tumblr.com/post/185625162330/continuation-of-the-big-bird-deli-story-found

Now, I know you all want me to say I got a new job and rubbed it in my store manager’s face. Sadly, reality is often disappointing. My top choices so far sent back general rejection emails and I’m looking into different industries to branch into. Now, it's not all bad news, but in order to get into the good news, I need to tell you all a story about one co-worker; our constant call off, whom I’ll refer to as CCO. Buckle up for a long story.

CCO was transferred to our store from the one about five minutes down the road a little under three years ago now. I was still in my first year when she transferred in. As I worked with her, she seemed like a good co-worker. Knowledgeable, dependable, she even taught a bunch of tricks to make the job easier. Then, some things started to bubble to the surface.

At first, the only bad thing about her is that she took a long time in the bathroom, 10-15 minutes, pretty much a break without clocking out for one. CCO’s explanation for this was biological, but she couldn’t identify her condition. Skeptical, but ok. Then, she’d also take a long time to get a drink (Non-alcoholic). Managers caught sipping a drink in the break room, and even the training room (Small room with computers for basic training/OSHA/Food Safety) and told her multiple times, she could only do that on breaks. She’d also do stuff that led to numerous signs in our back hall. She’d try store dry food there, take drinks back there, and she’d be on her cell phone on her shift way too much (Mostly showing her cats, making notes, not talking or playing games).

Then, she began to talk constantly. She’d talk with customers even after their orders were done. I constantly saw customers get that “I need to get going but I don’t see my chance to leave yet” expression, and she’d keep blabbering on for a few more minutes as the customer slowly tried to inch away. But it wasn’t just customers, CCO would do the same to co-workers. She’d blabber on while doing nothing or only very small tasks. Sometimes her conversations sucked you in, even though the topics were things from youth, church, or constant updates about her cats (she and husband got up to FIVE cats, and yes, introductions to them included pictures.) I had the highest tolerance for these stories, not sure why.

Now, I can handle those things above. But it got worse. So. Much. Worse. After our store got remodeled just before CCO came in, tasks were updated to include not only sweeping the department floor every night but also washing and squeegeeing the floor. CCO made excuses so she wouldn’t be the one doing it. She’d do anything she could to pass it off on that night’s co-worker. She made excuses that it hurt her back, but refused time and time again to get a doctor’s note to excuse her from the task. She also made excuses that it was tiring, but she stopped those excuses after only a couple weeks. This, coupled with many closers forgetting some tasks, provoked our Deli Manager to make daily task sheets starting this past summer, mostly focused on the closing staff. I, personally, am ok with the sheets, as I view it as a tool to acclimate new employees to the department tasks.

But here’s the big one. She ‘began’ to get migraines within six months of her transfer. She’d slow and become less useful during work, taking long treks to get water and basic medicine that seemed to do the trick at first. The kicker is that she began to call off once every two weeks. Now, you may think that’s not so bad and it’ll count against her. Wrong. She applied for FMLA (Family and Medical Leave Act) for her migraines. She could spend a TON of hours towards it, and she could reapply when she ran out. I started out sympathetic, as I have family members with migraines, but they have methods to curb it so they can work. CCO started calling off once a week. Twice a week. This year, it went up to three times a week. And it was almost always on the same co-worker, Nice Coworker (NC). NC became stressed, she didn’t even want to be scheduled with CCO because of it, but sometimes had no choice. I saw NC break down in tears multiple times. She threatened management to not call her if CCO called off on Sundays, cuz she wouldn’t come in at all. Our deli manager retaliated by trying to schedule CCO less. CCO retaliated by complaining about her hours and claiming hours of other co-workers due to seniority!!! She’d just take their shifts and call-off anyway! So not only was she causing hours to drop, she was basically stealing money from people who actually show up for work.

This all caused morale and productivity to plummet. We were stressed, aggravated even. All the while management still wanted everything perfect while not addressing the problem. And since we’re union, management has to give CCO chance after chance before she’s finally fired or CCO will just run and cry to the union about ‘unfair termination’. We also got wind from people in the store down the street (Sometimes people over here have to cover over there and vice versa) that this behavior happened down there, but not to the extent it got down here, and was the reason CCO transferred. We also learned that she’s had this behavior at all the past jobs she told anyone about. This woman is ten years older than me and hasn’t learned any lessons about her behavior.

Oh, but the cherry on top of this comes in the form of gaslighting and manipulation. CCO dared to call NC her friend while she was claiming NC’s hours and calling off on her! CCO would apologize and say that she “was a shitty person,” and that we “must hate her”. Insincere apologies, self-bashing designed to make you say “No, you’re not a piece of garbage!”(even though she was). CCO also spread rumors about a friend who’s like a brother to me (from another department) when he briefly got in deep trouble. She did this because she thought she could get his full-time position once he was fired (A position that took him being there 12 years and his manager begging multiple times on his behalf to get). Needless to say, I heard through the grapevine and began to truly hate her.

Oh, and remember those call-offs? CCO’d often do those on the weekend, y’know, the busy times. Especially Sundays. Since she was a “Good Christian™”, she’d want to go to church on Sundays. Ok. Reasonable. Then, she called off on Sunday evenings, a shift that’s hell to close alone. Again, on NC mostly. She’d do this repeatedly until our Deli Manager decided to not schedule her on Sunday, two weeks in a row. CCO smirked and told NC that “Her plan had worked!” and that she won’t work Sundays (She didn’t put them off on her availability because it was discouraged, and sometimes even rejected, to not work weekends). To say that, and say that to the person she called off on constantly, is just despicable. Many of us told our deli manager as soon as possible. If she didn’t schedule CCO on Sundays, she’d work on Sundays in any department she had experience in (she’s cross-trained in the Hot foods and meat departments).

At the start of this year. Everyone in the department hated her. Some would be catty or strictly business with her. I opted to pretend to not want to rip her face off, otherwise, I risked forwarding that bile to customers, and I have cried on CCO’s shoulder in the past due to previous work-related bullshit (not the story above). But, we finally had some news from the grapevine; CCO’s doctor AND corporate had picked up on her FMLA abuse. It was flagged as abuse because during times her FMLA expired and needed to be redone her migraines had ‘mysteriously’ disappeared. No call-offs until after FMLA was reinstated. Her doctor told her that he wouldn’t approve more and even if he did, it wouldn’t be approved by the company. By our calculations, she’d run out at the end of May. She ran out mid-May. All we had to do was wait.

And this past week, the good news! Turns out CCO didn’t help NC much the Saturday of my paid vacation. NC went to Store Manager on Wednesday, on her day off, to report CCO. Store Manager told NC that CCO, and potentially all of the deli, was going to get pulled into the office soon one by one. Details couldn’t be said due to confidentiality but NC said that shit was about to go down, we all just didn’t know what. On Friday, now mid-June, our Union Steward (A worker to represents the union while not working for the union directly) came and got CCO and pulled her into the office with Store Manager. Ten minutes later, CCO was escorted out of the store by Loss Prevention. The scales finally tipped when the customer complaints stacked up, and that she got into a verbal argument with a co-worker (Not me or NC) with a manager as a witness. Said co-worker was at the store on her day off, shopping and chatting with us briefly. While CCO passed by, CCO called her a bitch, in earshot of Loss Prevention. But that was the last we’ve seen of CCO.

Slight dancing was had, and upper management reminded us that this is an opportunity to turn the deli around. We got a new person who started during my vacation. She’s absolutely amazing and gets along with everyone. It’s only been a few days, but already other departments are commenting that the deli seems happier and that a great weight has been lifted. I always joked about giving CCO this big speech in a dark, even tone and saying she needs to go on disability or welfare if her work ethic or migraines are that bad. But, I decided against doing a big Facebook drama thing. Instead, I blocked her on social media and her phone number. I’m glad to finally cut her out of my life permanently.

As for me? I’m still at Big Bird. Now that the main problem is gone, I can take my time finding a good job and not go for the first one that gives me an interview. I still want to leave because of upper management, and I haven’t received confirmation that my write up was overturned. Things are looking up, and I’m glad we now have a solid, competent team as we get ready for the 4th of July sales.

Last word: I was going to post this as is, but today, I heard something amazing. A co-worker had to work a split shift, beginning down the road then coming up to our store. Turns out, CCO didn’t tell her husband that she got fired! She told him she was on vacation! And he works down the street! I busted up laughing, imagining scenarios when he finds out she lied. Oh, what I wouldn’t give to be a fly on the wall for that confrontation. :3

TL;DR

Not much has happened other than a co-worker getting fired and absolutely deserving it after putting the deli under so much stress.

[currebunz]

Burn The Candle At Both Ends Ch 3

AO3 link

You were distracted, that much was obvious. Your coworkers repeatedly complimented you on your 'glow', stating that you looked refreshed. A small rumor was going around about "good sex", but you ignored it. Even though it was true.

Your mind would occasionally wander to the note in your bag. You had already saved the number in your phone, but there was something special about the note. The message held a strong connection to you despite it being a ransom for your underwear. As of now, it served as your connection to Dabi. You hadn't called or texted yet, at first you thought it was a fake number.

It wasn't until he was absent from the club for a few nights did you push yourself to take action. One afternoon, you were leaving work and you decided to text the number. While you rode the train, you punched in a simple greeting and waited for a reply. Before you reached your stop, your phone buzzed with a reply.

<What took so long?>

You could hear the snark in his voice. You stepped off the train and leaned against the wall as you typed out your reply.

<I was busy, you could've asked for my number>

<Did you forget I have something of yours?> Dabi replied.

Right, the underwear. You had to work the rest of the night without panties. It wasn't so bad until cool air would blow, reminding you of the wetness between your legs. Part of you almost wanted to say fuck it and have him keep them. However, you suspected this was apart of the odd game you were playing with him. At no point have either of you talked about your weird relationship. You weren't together for more than an hour before it became a sexual encounter.

<So, how am I supposed to get them back?>

<Call in tonight, meet me at the park>

You followed Dabi's instructions and arrived at the park. You had contacted your friend and told her tonight was no good, she didn't mind. The sun was setting and it cast an orange glow on the park. You waited on a bench, most of the people were already leaving. Just before you were about to text Dabi to hurry up, a finger tapped on your shoulder. You tilted your head back and met familiar blue eyes.

"You look different out of work" he mused with a playful smirk. "You don't" you commented dryly. It was true, he appeared to wear the same kind of clothes each time you met. "You haven't complained yet" he sat down on the bench next to you. His arm draped around the back, disappearing behind the metal. "So, are you going to return my panties?" you blurted out. Dabi cocked a brow and tilted his head. "Straight to the point, it almost feels like you're trying to get rid of me" he teased.

"No, I just want my panties back" you played along. Dabi chuckled and brought his arm around your shoulders. He pulled you closer until your thigh was flush against his. Your shoulder brushed his and your hips bumped his. "Well, each time we meet, I spoil you too much" Dabi lectured with a sigh. You stared at him to continue, he was hinting at something. "So I had an idea, what if this time you showed me some attention?" he continued as he turned to you. While he was talking, his hand had hung over your shoulder and lowered to your breast. You felt him palm your breast through your blouse.

You sucked in air as his fingers pressed your nipple. Only two nights and he already knew where they were through your clothes. "That doesn't sound half bad right?" he leaned his head closer and kissed behind your ear. "D-dabi...there are people..." you shuddered as you raised your hands to his chest. You pushed him back enough to see his apathetic look. "I don't mind an audience" he grinned, grouping your breast roughly. You bit back a gasp and gave him a hard shove. "I. Do." you growled.

Dabi looked surprised for once, but only briefly. "Fine, follow me" he ordered as he released you. He stood up and walked over the grass and into the trees. You followed him quickly, making sure no one was watching. Dabi stood near a large tree, waiting for you to come closer. His arm grabbed your shoulder and pushed you against the tree. He kissed you roughly, causing you to relax your grip on your bag. Your arms wrapped around his neck and pulled him close. You felt Dabi's hands rest on your waist. He tightened his grip and pushed you back.

"You have a nice mouth, I wonder if you know how to use it?" he mused. You swallowed, catching the drift of what he meant. You knelt down slowly, nervous about what he wanted from you. "Ah, pull up your shirt" he added in quickly. You hesitated before rolling your shirt up past your breasts. Dabi's eyes shined with interest as he examined your bra. "Lose the bra" he comanded, he was already palming himself through his pants. You slowly unhooked your bra. With shaky breaths, you let the article slip through your fingers and fall to the ground. Dabi whistled and walked closer, crouching slightly.

"Not bad, kinda cold out huh?" he smirked. He flicked one of your pert nipples to emphasize. You shivered against the tree, he was toying with you. "Play with yourself a bit, I gotta get ready" he lazily rubbed his cock through his pants, eyes on you. A bit distraught, you began playing with your breasts in front of Dabi. You mimicked movements you saw him do, you weren't familiar with doing this with an audience. Dabi let out a hum in interest, his eyes following your hands. You squeezed and pressed your breasts together, causing them to bounce around slightly. "Down there too, I want to watch you get wet" he interrupted your thoughts. You shimmied out of your jeans and slipped a hand into your panties.

At first, you rubbed along your folds. When you slipped a finger inside, you hear Dabi inhale sharply. "Yeah, just like that" he leaned in closer. His eyes were transfixed on the hand currently in your heat. You noticed him grow rougher with his movements. Saliva pooled in your mouth at the thought of Dabi's dick. Even from here, it looked like he had a good size. You slipped another finger inside and gasped. Dabi licked his lips and stood up.

"Alright, let's move on" he announced. He unzipped his pants and tugged his erect cock out. It bobbed in front of your face, standing painfully erect. You watched it twitch, the bulbous head burning an angry red. "As much as I like your admiration for my dick, I'd rather have your lips around it" Dabi cut in impatiently. He pressed his head against your lip, running the leaking head along your bottom lip. He tasted salty and bitter, something you hope you'd get used to.

You parted your lips slightly, taking a bit of the head inside your mouth. Dabi groaned as you took him in slowly. He was thick, you felt your mouth fill up quickly and you were only halfway down his length. You ran your tongue around the underside of him and pulled back. You sucked as you returned to the head. Your tongue drew small circles on the slit, lapping up the beads of pre-cum. "Damn, you're surprisingly good at this" Dabi threw his head back. You hummed out a response, causing him to groan as the vibrations hit his cock.

"Come on, a little faster" Dabi urged you. His hips jutted forward slightly, making his head come dangerously close to your throat. You sped up your movements, bobbing at a good pace. Your hand left your breasts and covered the rest of his dick. While he wasn't looking, you slipped a hand into his pants and fondled his balls. "Ha, ha, look at you" Dabi sighed leaning against the tree above you. His eyebrows were knitted together as he held back his release. He wanted to prolong it, it felt too good to stop.

You hollowed your cheeks and took him in deeper. Your jaw began to hurt, but you ignored it. Dabi's fingers tangled themselves in your hair. He tugged near your scalp, testing his grip. Suddenly, you felt him push in deeper. He pushed your head forward, making you take more of him in. You felt your throat spasm around him as he reached a depth you weren't prepared for. Your nose brushed up against the hairs at his base and the cool metal of the zipper tickled your cheeks. Tears stung at your eyes and it became harder to breathe. Dabit felt you slacken in his grip, urging him to release. He groaned loudly and stopped with his dick in your throat. Thick hot liquid flowed down your throat, causing you to swallow the odd substance.

Dabi pulled out slowly, watching your cheeks fill with his cum and you choke as you swallowed it. Your cheeks flushed red and you coughed as you tried to calm your body. The need for air made it hard, not to mention you were getting over his cum in your mouth. "Now that was what I was talking about" he praised you, his hand caressed your burning cheek while he looked down at you. He wouldn't admit it, but there was something captivating about you looking so helpless with trails of his cum on your lips. He felt something in his chest when he looked at you like this.

"Hey, you didn't touch yourself at all" he observed looking at you. By now, your panties were soaked but you had made no effort to get off. "No..." you said quietly, your throat still recovering. "I can't have that, come here" Dabi hooked his arms under yours and lifted you up on wobbly legs. He leaned you against the tree and plunged his fingers into your panties. You let out a shaky gasp and dug your nails into the wood behind you. "Wow, drenched again" Dabi pulled his fingers out and displayed them before you. He smirked as you shied away from it. "It's getting late, so let's not prolong this" he declared. He squatted down and hooked his fingers into the hem of your panties. He pulled them down, helping your legs through the holes. He spread your legs apart and buried his face between them.

"Dabi!" you hissed, tossing your head to the side. You could see a few couples walking around in the dim light from the lamps. "Shh, unless you want someone to see us?" Dabi hummed against your folds. His tongue licked up and down the expanse of your warm flesh. He left no edge unturned as his tongue neared your clit. He flicked his tongue against it a few times. You had to bite your lip to keep from crying out. "Man, you taste so good, I'm really am going to get addicted" he sighed against your heat. Dabi plunged his tongue into you, running his tongue along your walls. You inhaled sharply, producing a strained gasp.

"Did you say something?" you heard a man ask. You covered your mouth with your hand and glanced at Dabi. His eyes were staring directly at yours, challenging you to hold back your noises. He pulled back slightly, allowing you to see his tongue scoop your leaking fluid into his mouth. The subtle sliding of his throat and his exaggerated gulping did nothing to quell you. Dabi's fingers slid up your thighs. Groping your flesh roughly. When he felt your thighs tremble, he hooked his arms under your thighs and lifted you onto his shoulders. His face was pressed against your crotch and he sucked hard. His fingers played with your clit and he slipped one in alongside his tongue.

You were practically crying at this point. Your frustration with being loud and your desire to release created an inner turmoil. "Just do it" Dabi muttered against you, teeth grazing your skin. You gave in and whined loudly against your hands, your body writhing on Dabi's shoulders. You panted as Dabi lowered you to the ground. He cleaned your excess fluids from your thighs and placed you gently. He pocketed your underwear, leaving you bare again. "Don't worry, they already left" he snickered as he gathered your clothes. "Can you walk?" he asked. You shook your head, truthfully you were still dizzy. "Put your shirt on at least" he tossed you the article while he crumpled up your bra. Dabi removed his coat and draped it over your legs.

Before you could ask, he lifted you bridal style and began carrying you. "Tell me where you live, we'll take the back ways" he explained. You were hesitant, but you complied. "No one will mess with us, at least not the smart ones" Dabi smirked. You didn't worry, something told you Dabi would protect you in some way.

You just hoped you'd get your panties back this time.

[let-it-raines]

Dude. But what was Tina's deal? But also yay they got together!

Anon, this has been sitting in my inbox for so long that I didn’t know what it was referring to for a moment. But it’s about the Are We Friends? prompt. You don’t really get any answers but you do get this thing @kmomof4 asked for: “Killian taking Tina to task over the whole thing…with emma in the room…then having sex on his desk once dismissed.” Kind of. So just going to post this before I forget, and it ends up sitting in my docs for two more weeks :D

There are few things he hates more than having to reprimand coworkers. Or subordinates, really. He hates reprimanding subordinates (he also hates the word subordinate) because they’re people and often his friends, and fussing at them makes his skin crawl, especially if it’s over something as minor as using the wrong kind of stationary or mixing up some of his files while taking them to the file room – thank goodness for their new electronic system.

But then there are things a little bigger than that.

There are things like his secretary going around and talking about his sex life to his coworkers, even if the sex life isn’t real…his sex life is real. Just the one Tina was talking about is not. And even if she hadn’t told those lies to Emma but to someone else, he’d still be pissed. He’d be pissed, and he’d likely have to do a little more than simply talking to her. It’d be a whole thing with the human resources department, and God is it awful filling out all of that paperwork.

Amongst other things.

And while the words Tina said to Emma helped guide Emma forward and guide them forward two days ago, he can’t very well let his secretary go around spreading lies about him and talking about his sex life, even the fictitious one, to others in the office. If she’ll say things to Emma, who knows who else she’ll speak to?

And then he’d have to speak to HR.

It’d be like some never-ending cycle of things that he hates.

He’s pacing. He knows he’s pacing. He’s actively trying not to pace, but he can’t stop, likely running a hole in the floor of his office. He hopes the guy in the office below him doesn’t mind having a skylight.

“You’re freaking out, you know that?”

He looks over to Emma who’s sitting on edge of his desk, a soft smile on her face that calms him the slightest bit. The way her shirt frames her curves does not.

“Aye.”

“Why are you freaking out? You never freak out at work.”

“I’m not exactly sure how to go about this, love. I don’t want to go to HR because I don’t want this to be a bigger thing than it has to be. But the lass obviously has feelings for me. She’s not going to be thrilled about this. And she’s not going to be thrilled that you told me. And if it’s not a feelings thing, then she might just be a little unstable. I can’t think of another reason why she’d lie like that. I just…I don’t know.”

“Yeah, I know. But this was your idea. I was the one who said it was fine leaving it be.”

“I know, I know. I just can’t let this settle. It’s both my personal and professional reputation here. While you and I can date, we’re not technically supposed to date anyone below us.” He pauses when she lifts an eyebrow. “Don’t say it, Swan.”

She shrugs and bites her bottom lip, her eyelashes fluttering. “Wasn’t going to say anything.”

“Yes, yes you were.”

She finally breaks out into laughter, her shoulders heaving while she smiles. “You just left it sitting there, Killian. What was I supposed to do? Not make a joke about being on the bottom?”

“Help me figure out what to say.”

Emma rises from his desk, coming to stand in front of him, her fingers running through his hair and pushing it back, her touch soothing. “You practiced. Just be honest.”

“Do you want to…do you want to stay in here for this?”

She quirks her eyebrows, and he leans down to touch his lips against hers. “Isn’t that inappropriate?”

“No. it’s a discussion between the three of us. You’re technically involved.”

Tina comes into his office at seven thirty, a smile on her face until her eyes fall to Emma sitting on the arm of his couch, awkwardly fidgeting with the hemline of her skirt and the non-existent wrinkles in her shirt. He would know. He’s becoming very fond of that shirt.

“What are you doing here?”

“I was asked to be in here,” Emma answers, the tone she’s using the one she does with clients she absolutely cannot stand. It’s also the one she used with him when they first met.

“Why?”

“Just listen please, Tina,” she sighs, her voice much more soothing this time. “It doesn’t have to be a whole thing if we don’t make it any more than it is.”

Tina turns to him, her eyes blown wide and her lips quivering until she steels her emotions. “Okay, so would you like to tell me while I’ve been called in an hour and a half before work? Because it’s obviously not what I thought it was.”

What the hell did she think it was?

“Miss Swan tells me that you told her we were sleeping together. I’m not going to gloss around or over it, Tina. You and I both know that we’re not, and even if we were, you shouldn’t be spreading that around. I could get you in actual trouble with the office for this, but I’m not going to do that. I just want to talk.”

“Talk about what?”

“You know exactly what, Ms. Alan. Why would you lie like that? What could possibly make you want to go around telling your coworkers, especially one who you know is my friend, that we’re sleeping together when we’ve never had anything but a professional relationship?”

“I don’t know.”

He’s heard a lot of idiot excuses over the years, a hell of a lot of them from himself, but “I don’t know” has to be on up there for lack of effort. He crosses his arms and perches himself on the edge of his desk, raising his eyebrows as Tina stands across the room with her hands on her hips. At least she’s not denying it, but she’s also not giving any answers. He doesn’t much care for them at this point. He just wants to know that something like this won’t happen again.

“Not a part of me believes that. Don’t do it again.”

“You know,” Tina huffs, practically spitting at him, “you’ve got some kind of superiority complex thinking you can call me in to talk about this when you and Emma are obviously together, which I’m pretty sure is against the rules.”

“We’re not, and it’s not for us. But it’s also none of your goddamn business. And we’re not the ones who undermined a superior.”

“But – ”

“Tina, don’t spread rumors again, or I will actually do something more about it. This isn’t high school. It’s a business, and you need to go before you say something you regret or cause me to actually want to fire you because I’m getting a hell of a lot closer to that.”

Tina’s lips part, and he swears that he sees her jaw tick. If she’s going to say something, she best rethink it. He’s done with this conversation and with talking about his love life with anyone other than Emma who has been suspiciously quiet over on the couch when he wanted her to be a part of this conversation.

“Thank you for your time,” Tina stutters before walking away, stopping at the door after she twists the knob and giving him the most sarcastic smile he’s ever seen grace her face. “I’m sorry for my inappropriate behavior.”

“I’m sorry for it as well.”

Well, hell. That went far better than expected. He was expecting much, much worse. He didn’t get any real answers, but he’ll take it. He’s sure that she’s going to drop his calls and misplace his files from now on, but he can handle that. He’d just rather his work be for work and not misplaced dramatics.

“That was kind of hot,” Emma whispers when Tina slams the door behind her. She takes several steps forward, the sound of her heels clicking on the floor muted by the carpet underneath her, until she’s standing directly in front him, her hands running up and down over his chest until they settle at his tie. “Actually, really hot.”

“Me having to reprimand my secretary for spreading lies and then me blatantly lying about you and I being together? That was hot to you?”

“Mhm,” she mumbles as her fingers undo his knot, his tie falling to the floor while she undoes the buttons of his shirt, nails dragging across his chest while all of his blood rushes to his cock. “I don’t know what it was because I’ve worked with you for forever and never found you to be anything but annoying.”

“Annoying?”

“So damn annoying.” She pops the last button at the bottom of his shirt before running her hands up his bare chest and hooking her hands underneath his suit jacket, pushing it off his shoulders with a little help from him before he moves his hands to rest at her hips and she wraps her arms around his neck, their lips tantalizingly close so that their breaths intermingle. “But I don’t know. Now you’re my boyfriend, and maybe I’m not nearly as sexually frustrated.”

“Were you not being pleased, darling?”

“I was, but not quite in the right ways.”

He dips his head to capture his lips with hers, yanking her hips closer so that they press up against his, the friction fucking incredible even as he focuses on slanting his lips over hers and threading his hands into her hair so that he can change the angle, their tongues tangling together in a hot, wet slide. When he pulls back, his chest is heaving as he tries to breathe air back into his lungs, his lips already swelling while Emma’s face looks particularly red.

He wants her, needs her, and he doesn’t care that they’re in the office.

“Lock the door, Swan.”

Emma slowly saunters back to the door, obviously swaying her hips, and he’s never quite appreciated the way she wears a skirt like this until now. But then when she flips the lock, the bolts clicking into place, her face breaks out into a wide smile as she begins to laugh.

Has she lost her mind? Has he lost his?

“Why are you laughing?”

“Because we’re really about to have sex in your office.”

“I don’t see why not.”

“What if people hear us? We could legitimately get fired, and you’d be the biggest hypocrite in the world.”

“I guess you’ll have to be quiet, love.”

He captures her response with his lips, grabbing onto her scalp and pushing her back against his desk, stepping around her thighs and pressing himself into her. They may have been dating for two days – though they haven’t been on a date – but he’s been sleeping with her for a hell of a lot longer than that. So when she whimpers and her hands grip into his hair so much that it’s painful, he knows that she’s keyed up without too much work on his part. His lips trails from hers across her jaw, nipping at her soft skin before he gets to her ear and she throws her head back, allowing him more access to her neck.

“So that turned you on then, darling?”

“Yes,” she sighs, her voice breathy and labored and everything he likes to hear.

“That’s surprising, but I can’t say that I mind.”

“I didn’t think that you would.”

He pulls back from her neck so that he can focus on getting her shirt unbuttoned, every popped button revealing more skin until he gets to her bra, while she nibbles at his neck, making his fingers fumble the slightest bit. He’s just about to pull the cup of her bra down when her hands grab his wrists and stop him. When he looks up at her, her lips are pulled into a small smile and her gorgeous green eyes are blown back.

“What are you doing, Swan?”

“I don’t need it, and we’ve got to hurry.”

“What do you mean you don’t need it?”

She laughs before kissing the underside of his jaw, guiding his hand down to pull up her skirt until he can touch her underwear…her slick underwear. When he looks back at her, every bit of his blood rushing away from his head so quickly that he’s practically dizzy, she’s absolutely beaming even with her dark, hooded eyes and blush ridden cheeks.

“You get it now, Mr. Big Shot?”

“I get it now.”

From there it’s a quick fumbling of his pants, undoing his belt and sliding them down along with his boxers while Emma gives his length a few quick pumps, making his cock throb and his breath stutter.

“How are we going to do this?”

“Turn around and prop your hands up on the desk.”

“Kinky.”

“Shut up,” he chuckles, kissing the back of her neck while he nudges her legs further apart so he can slowly guide himself into her, her walls tightening around him while her heat envelopes him. The both of them groan, and he covers her body with his while he buries himself into her and his nose into her hair. “You have to be quiet, sweetheart. Remember?”

“That does seem familiar.”

He laughs before beginning to move inside of her, continuously kissing the back of her neck while his hands rest over his against the desk, squeezing her palms before tracing the clothed lines of her body with his hands and resting them on her hips, pushing up her skirt even more so that he can feel skin.

“I hope you feel this for the rest of the day, lass,” he grunts before increasing his thrusts, their skin slapping together so loudly that he bloody hopes no one else came into the office early – or that he comes earlywhile in the office. There’s no way he can keep that quiet along with his grunts and Emma’s gasps. His grip on her hips is so tight that he knows it’ll bruise, but he can’t completely release her without losing control of himself far before he wants this to be over.

Emma whimpers when he moves his hand to palm at her ass, holding onto the pliable skin there while he continues to sink himself into her heat, her walls squeezing him like they always do. She’s a marvel. Always a marvel.

“You feel so bloody good. Always so good.”

“Ah fuck,” she moans when he gets into a particularly harsh rhythm, his spine beginning to hum with his release when she speaks again, “Ki-Killian, s-stop.”

It takes him a moment to register her words, his thrusts ceasing when he does before he pulls out of her with a hiss, helping to turn her over so that she’s facing him, her chest heaving up and down as she holds onto her stomach. His fingers are cupping her face immediately, feeling the soft skin as he coaxes her to look at him.

“Darling, what’s wrong?”

“Your desk was killing my stomach. I can’t…I can’t do it like that.”

“Bloody hell. I’m sorry. I didn’t even think about it.”

She waves him away before leaning forward and resting her head against his shoulder, her skirt still pushed over her ass and his pants still around his ankles while his cock continues to throb. They make quite the pair. “It’s fine, really. You just always think things like that are going to be hot, and then you’ve got mahogany digging into your stomach and you’re totally turned off.”

He runs her hands across her back, moving them in unplanned circles while he kisses her hairline in a move so tender he knows she wouldn’t have allowed it a few days ago. “Why didn’t you say something earlier?”

“Didn’t start hurting like a bitch until right about then. The chair or the couch or this itchy as hell carpeting would probably be more comfortable.”

“You still want to give it a go after I basically fucked you into a piece of hard wood?” She laughs against his shoulder as she nods. “Yeah, yeah. I heard it, too. You can make a dirty joke out of anything, Swan.”

“So can you.” She reaches down between them, grabbing his hand and dragging it through her folds so that he can feel the slickness that’s still settled there. “If we can find a more comfortable position, I could really go for the morning orgasm right about now or I’m just going to be in a bad mood all day.”

“Well please,” he waggles his eyebrows up and down, knowing it makes Emma laugh, “if not for you, for the sake of all of us.”

She slaps his chest, her touch stinging a bit, but he simply captures her wrist and kisses her palm, chucking against her skin. “Come on.”

“That’s what I’m trying for here.”

He settles down onto his couch, and Emma splays her knees on either side of his thighs before sinking back down onto him and leisurely kissing him. They move slowly despite their lack of time and earlier pace, and this feels more like what they did last night than anything else. It’s not a fast and furious fuck, but a slow and sensual joining together. He dares not think love making. He might be there, but Emma’s not. Though right now, with the way she’s moving above him and whispering words of affection in his ear, he thinks she might very well be on her way.

She cups his face, her fingers soft against his skin, and slowly kisses him while his hands move down to her ass, kneading the firm skin and helping her movements above him. She’s so good, so tight and wet and warm, and he doesn’t think he’s going to make it much longer, especially with the way her breasts are moving against his chest and she’s moaning into his mouth.

“Fuck,” he stutters when she picks up her pace, and he has to release her lips to breathe, his chest heaving and the pleasure increasing in his spine while sweat begins to form at his hairline. He moves to kiss along her jaw, peppering kisses there and listening to her gasp against him until he starts whispering in her ear. “So bloody tight, love. You feel so good.”

“So do…so do you.”

“You getting closer?”

She gasps when he moves his hips up, sheathing himself completely inside of her, before she rests her head against his neck and nods against him, her nose brushing right up under his ear and making him shiver. God, it feels good being connected to her like this. He never wants it to stop, never wants to leave her warmth.

He bites on her lobe, a shriek emanating from deep in her throat, and he barks out a deep laugh at how poorly they’ve remained quiet. Snaking his hand away from her ass, he moves to where they’re joined, rubbing his thumb in quick hard circles that match the intensity of the pleasure in his spine.

“That’s a good girl. Come for me, Swan.”

Emma doesn’t speak, but her breaths come out heavy and her chest continues to heave against his while her walls flutter around his length. The moment she comes, she bites down on his pulse point, muffling her moan with his skin while he thrusts himself up into her, his legs straining with the movement. She comes back to herself after a moment of complete stillness and swivels her hips while worrying a bruise into his shoulder, building him higher and higher until the sensations in his spine burst and he releases himself into her.

“Fuck,” he grunts while working himself through it, grabbing Emma’s face and pulling her lips to his so that he doesn’t scream out his love for her as he pulses inside of her.

“How have we never done that before?” she whispers while he catches his breath, her forehead resting against his and her hands caressing his face while her warmth continues to invade him. She’s so bloody warm.

“Believe it or not, I don’t usually have sex at work.”

“Just in bathrooms at a coworker’s apartment and one time at a company Christmas party at a hotel?”

“Exactly,” he laughs, kissing her nose. He’s softening inside of her, but he doesn’t dare pull out of her quite yet. He knows they’re pushing it with the time, but he doesn’t care too much right now. “This was nice, though.”

“Nice?”

“Fucking fantastic. Or fantastic fucking. Whichever you prefer.”

“Such a wordsmith.”

“Well, that’s why they pay be the medium bucks.”

“Medium?”

“I felt like I’d be lying if I said big.”

She wiggles her hips above him and hums. “Seems pretty big to me.”

A snort escapes him, and Emma simply raises her eyebrow. “You want to go grab something to eat after work today?”

“Like a date?”

“Exactly like that.” He presses his lips against hers. “I’ll even let you pay.”

They eventually get themselves together, straightening out clothes and hair, Emma braiding her hair to contain that tangled mess. Emma has to apply some of her makeup to his neck where a bruise is already forming, and he’s sure that’ll make it more obvious than the hickey would have been. They likely look like a mess, but he doesn’t bloody care. Not with how he’s feeling right now.

He only sees Emma once throughout the entire day, and it’s from across the office, just a glimpse of her red skirt and blonde hair. But then when six o’clock rolls around and he finally finishes for the day, Emma’s waiting for him at her desk.

“You ready to go, Swan?”

“Absolutely.”

[literarycat]

(2525 words). post-finale taz: dust fic.  errol, augustus, and gandy cope how they can with the aftermath of the last eight hours.

Michael himself told Errol that Dylan was going to make it, so he supposed that was as good an assurance as any.  Still, Errol found himself at the boy’s hospital as soon as visitors were allowed, just in case.  He didn’t doubt the immortal’s word, per se, but it was in his nature to make sure that people were taken care of.  And someone needed to bring the boy flowers.

He was recovering nicely.  The surgeon had stitched him up and given him a considerable amount of pain medicine, so much that Errol thought Dylan might not have recognized him the first time he came.  He had just awoken from surgery, after all, and Errol was only the second visiting party (his mother and sister, of course, being there as soon as the doctor allowed).

Dylan squinted at Errol for a long time, apparently trying to place a name to the face that hovered just in his quarter’s doorway.  Errol edged a little closer, still keeping his distance so as not to startle the boy.  Then suddenly, Dylan’s face lit up.  “Mr. Ryeson, I didn’t think you’d- please, come in.”

Errol smiled, relieved, and came closer to the bed.  He placed a small vase of lilies on the table near Dylan’s head.  “I’m glad to see you in good health.”

Dylan nodded as best he could from his half-laying position.  “Doctor says I’ll make a full recovery, with enough rest.” He craned his neck, trying to peek past the ragged tear in Errol’s coat.  “And- and how are you doing?  You were shot, right, did- did the doctor take care of that for you?”

Errol was almost surprised, not expecting a man who’d been stabbed through the ribs mere hours ago to be so concerned with other people’s injuries.  “Oh, yes, the doctor stitched me up right after taking care of you.  No painkillers though.”  And he laughed a little to himself, ignoring the jolt it sends up his side.

Dylan nodded again, slowly.  “I’m glad to hear it,” he said softly, leaning his head back on the pillow.  He was quiet for a moment, and then his gaze drifted to the flowers Errol brought.  “Are those for me?”

Errol snorted.  “Wouldn’t’ve put them on your table if they weren’t, kid.  They’re from my garden.  Carrion Street’s garden, really.  It’s a- a community effort.  Why they call it a community garden, I suppose.”  And he laughed again, though this time at himself.  It was a miracle he’d been able to become a politician given the atrocious habit he had of rambling awkwardly whenever anyone gave him the chance to speak.

Dylan looked at the flowers a while longer, then smiled.  “They’re beautiful.  Thank you.”  His brow furrowed, then, and Errol leaned in with concern.  “Do you… Do you know what they’re saying, out there?”

Errol blinked.  “I’m not sure I quite understand the question.”

“About me.” Dylan’s voice wavered.  “About me killing the sheriff.”

Errol’s posture stiffened.  “I wouldn’t worry about that, Dylan.  What you did was beyond understandable.  No one’s gonna blame you for killing Jeremiah’s murderer.”

“But-” And Dylan’s voice caught in his throat.  “But he was the sheriff, Mr. Ryehouse, and I didn’t even give him a trial.  I didn’t think, I just acted, I just- I transformed.  You’re a fur, you know how hard it is to transform at sunrise.  But as soon as I knew he was the one who killed Jeremiah, I just- I couldn’t help myself.” His voice was barely audible, now, and Errol had to lean in to hear.  “I wasn’t being rational, I was- I was savage. A beast.  They have to blame me for that.”

Errol is startled by the intensity of Dylan’s words, but there is no hesitation when he speaks.  “What you did isn’t your fault.  You can’t blame yourself for a crime that wasn’t really a crime at all.  Remember what my, uh, ghostly coworker said?” Errol paused for a moment to see if his half-joke land.  It didn’t.  He sobered, and said quietly, “Dylan, if you didn’t stop him, he was going to kill us all.  You saved my life back there, I- I owe you a tremendous debt.”

Dylan is quiet.  “Mr. Ryehouse.  What are they saying about me?  My mother refuses to say anything, and even Anne is keeping quiet, even when I beg her.  I drove a knife through the heart of our town’s sheriff in a rage.  What do they think of a monster like that?”

Errol’s heart tightened at the sight of Dylan, hardly old enough to be considered an adult and yet saddled with the conviction of a murder he didn’t commit and the burden of another he committed in the defense of those he loved.  Errol had loitered around the town for a while, after the doctor had patched him up but Dylan was still unconscious from his own surgery.  He’d conferred briefly with his coworkers, who’d each promptly vanished to do their own soul-searching. There was nothing left for him to do but loiter, milling around Carrion Street to ease his people’s worries; patrolling the town square to answer the burning questions of those who awoke too late to see Uncle Oni’s explanation.

No one was bold enough to speak ill of Dylan to his face (he was a fur, after all, and he’d played his own role in the sheriff’s demise).  But Errol didn’t become a politician without learning how to discern people’s true intentions.  And the way that they spoke about Dylan in hushed tones, when they thought no one was listening- it was sickening.

Dylan pleaded with Errol to tell him the truth.  Bedridden as he was, he’d probably be able to avoid the brunt of the rumors for at least another few days while he recovered.  His family had clearly taken the route of shielding him from the truth, and if he didn’t tell Dylan, no one would.  The idea was tempting.

But Errol didn’t become a politician to lie to people.  And, as Errol had just said, he did owe Dylan a debt.

“I’m gonna be honest with you, kid.” Errol said.  “It’s not looking too hot out there.”

He wasn’t sure whether to be relieved or heart-broken when Dylan didn’t seem surprised at all.

---

Augustus was rather pleased with himself after his grand entrance.  After all, his comrades might have defeated Connors, but only he saved them from the wrath of the residents that would have immediately followed.  His task complete, Augustus had leisurely floated down to where Errol and Gandy were standing, shell-shocked, outside the police station.

“Rather clever of me, don’t you think?  Escaping with Gandy’s, ah, eccentric eyepiece like that?” The two hadn’t responded, and the ghost pinned it on their exhaustion and potentially life-threatening injuries rather than a lack of interest in him.  The two excused themselves to, you know, get their lacerations patched up, and Augustus waved them off with a cheerful smile.  When they were gone, Augustus didn’t leave the square.  He had someone he wanted to see.

It was a long shot, really.  He was rather embarrassed to admit that he had no idea where his daughter was at any given moment.  When he died, she had been in town, sure, but she was nearly grown by now.  Perhaps she’d decided to pack up and move elsewhere, away from her father’s legacy and (literal) ghost.  Or, perhaps, she was still in the care of The Church’s nearby chapel, and she was one of the many who’d heard the commotion and come to the town square…

Augustus shot a glance in the church’s direction, then quickly looked back towards the crowd proper.  No, no, of course not.  The church was much farther than the immediate residences and it would take time for news to travel there.  Anna was likely still asleep!  It was seven o’ clock, and teenagers tended to sleep late.  Though, perhaps not under a Father’s watchful eye?  Augustus’s gaze drifted again, and he immediately busied himself with performing an animated introduction to two yet unmet residents.

News would spread to Anna eventually.  It had to.  Even if she had left to live somewhere else, it had to be nearby.  It seemed unlikely she’d want to move so far away from home, or that The Church would let her- her being underage, and all.  What Augustus had done today must have been front-page news, especially for a town as quiet as this.  Some day this week, she’d hear snippets of conversation in whatever place she lived, maybe the city- and she’d hear Drywater mentioned.  And she’d perk up, thinking, that’s where my dad’s cashew company is! They would tell her what had happened, and she’d be ecstatic to hear that Augustus Parsons, ghost of her previously corporeal father, was the one who had saved the day.

Or, Augustus thought bitterly, she would hate him for being in town and not visiting.  Hell, he hadn’t even taken the time to find out if she was available to visit.  He hadn’t seen her in, what, five years?  And even though he’d passed over guardianship to The Church, there had to be a part of her that resented him, right?

The most likely option, and the one Augustus loathed the most, was that Anna merely forgot about him.  Not that she literally couldn’t remember him, because who doesn’t remember their father’s unfortunate and suspicious cashew-related death?  But since he wasn’t a presence in her life, it would be easy for him to fade from her recollections.  For him to become merely a shadow. A ghost.

Augustus looked around the crowd again, noting it to be considerably thinner than the last time he’d bothered to check.  His station outside the police building was as much an opportunity to garner attention from passerby as it was a necessity: unlike Errol and Gandy, he really didn’t have a place to go.

The sun was high.  It was noon, or whereabouts; the town bell hadn’t yet rung but Augustus could see people shading their eyes from the late morning heat.  If Anna hadn’t woken by now, she was not long for this world herself.  And everyone in town had come to hear what had happened once they’d woken up.  So she must not have been around.

She would hear about it, eventually.  Augustus knew this.  And when she did…

Augustus drove the thoughts from his mind.  He’d died, and that meant he had to literally leave his life behind.  His work with the Graysons was merely a means to an end, something that would enable him to make up for his sins here, or whatever, and pass onto whatever business ventures awaited him in the afterlife.

A fine thought.  He chewed on it a while, floating there listening to an exhausted Rosa’s nineteenth explanation of the hour.

“S’pose I should go check up on Gandy and them, make sure they’re all alright,” he muttered.  Rosa, still in earshot, gave him a weary look.

“Who are you talking to, Parsons?”

He had to pull the “sinking into the ground” bit for the second time in a day just to avoid embarrassment.  (It wasn’t quite as hilarious, this time around.)

---

Gandy sat in her Sanctum Sanctorum, idly flipping through the pages of a book used to contact chaos demons and willing the queasiness in her stomach to go away.  She’d gone to Uncle Oni’s side almost immediately after the confrontation, ignoring even the growing numbness in her arm in favor of showing Uncle Oni exactly what she’d confiscated from Connors’s house.  The enthusiasm was, of course, partly real, but she’d be lying not to admit that part of her urgency in sharing the news was the unexpected presence of Death himself in the square.

Only when Michael was gone did she allow herself to be pulled away by a concerned Errol and the town surgeon, and she submitted easily to treatment.  Squinting at the stiches on her arm, afterwards, Gandy thought it might make a good scar.

She had plenty of those.  One didn’t study magic as thoroughly as she did without a few accidents, and one didn’t travel the globe running multiple “How do you play poker, again?” grifts without getting into a few scrapes.  And, of course, her work with the Graysons hadn’t helped either.  She was no stranger to injuries.  But Death?  Capital-D, eyes-that-stare-into-your-soul, surprisingly handsome but incredibly terrifying Death?  That part was new.

She’d told Uncle Oni, eventually.  It had taken until well after eight, but she’d caught him up on who she’d met that morning.  He was her partner in this quest of hers, for better or for worse, and she wanted to ease her nerves about it anyway.

“You met Death, you say?” Uncle Oni said, as obnoxious as ever.  “How astounding!”

“Yeah, yeah, I know Gus put the glasses on your head so you saw all that stuff already.  Cut the act,” she muttered, not particularly annoyed.

“I’m not acting!” Uncle Oni insisted.  “What a wonderful opportunity, to meet Death himself!  To know what awaits you at the end!”  His grating voice took on an infinitesimally more sinister tone.  “To have a chance to glimpse Death’s weaknesses, hmm?”

Gandy swallowed down the lump of bile in her throat that arose from even thinking about Michael’s face.  “My thoughts exactly,” she said instead, to distract from the way her stomach was apparently rising up her windpipe.  “Now that I know who he is, perhaps I can know better how to avoid him.”

“Or destroy him,” Uncle Oni suggested, and Gandy could hear rather than see his smile.

A smile tugged at the corners of her own mouth as she pulled Connors’s book into her lap.  “Let’s not get ahead of ourselves.  We have a lot left to do.”

“But of course,” the demon said.  “We have all the time in the world.”  A pause, then he added, “Or, well, I do.”

Gandy’s smile became tight.  “I will too, Uncle Oni, once I know how to beat that bastard who took my parents.”

Uncle Oni’s pitch rose.  “You mean Death, dear?  Don’t tell me now that you’ve seen his face you’re too afraid to say his name.”

Gandy forced herself to keep an even tone.  “Don’t tell me you’ve lost faith in me already.”  Then, to prove herself, she added, “This only makes me more determined to find a way around death.  Death, or Michael, or whatever he wants – he doesn’t stand a chance.”

The doll containing Uncle Oni’s form grins, and it’s truly grotesque; though he has a limited command over the doll’s physical body, he very rarely uses it unless he has to (by which he means, Gandy offers him something so that he intervenes).  “Well said, my dear.  Well said, indeed.  Now, why don’t we crack into that chaos god’s book which you so smartly liberated from its previous owner, hmm?”

Gandy is all too happy to oblige, if only to chase away the images in her mind of a man, tall and broad and handsome and not entirely unkind, standing over her body with a scythe in his arms.

[jeonggukingdom]

Hello!! Could I request number 27 with Namjoon please? 😊 thank you!! ❤️

[ ˌdɛsɪˈdɪərɪəm ]noun; a powerful desire or yearning.

Prompt: “Are you sure there’s enough room to do this in a hospital bed?”Pairing: Namjoon x ReaderGenre: SmutCount: 1.735 words 

warnings: graphic depictions of sexual intercourse

The door closes behind your back and you find yourself enveloped in the darkness of the empty staff room, a sigh leaving your mouth as you check in the time on your phone and you realize it is still 2 a.m. – your work shift getting closer to ten hours now – and you have a long way to go before the morning sun rises and you’re finally free to go home and take your well-deserved rest.

You move towards one of the beds and sit on it with another sigh, pondering if you could take just a little nap now that the emergencies seem to have cleared.

You still have your pager, you argue with yourself, and being someone with a light sleep actually comes handy when working overnight into a hospital.

Yet, you sigh again, and you’re about to turn back up and leave the room – and therefore avoid any temptation – when the door swings open and the handsome face of Dr. Kim gets in your line of view.

“Dr. Kim!” you smile as soon as his eyes focus on you and he smiles back, his dimples showing in that cute way of his that makes your heart beat a little bit faster.

“Miss __,” he winks as he closes the wooden door behind his back and you can’t help but giggle at the way you’re forced to address each other while being inside the hospital. It is not a written rule for coworkers to not date each other but it is also not encouraged in the slightest which forces you to pretend to be nothing more than a colleague with a nice friendship – not that it stops rumors from spreading around anyways.

“Rough night, huh?” he asks as he plops down on the bed right next to you, his eyes closing almost instantly at the sensation of the soft fabric underneath his body.

“Tell me about it,” you sigh again and all resolves about leaving the comfort of the bed come instantly to an end once he lays down, behind your back, and grabs your hips to guide you right next to him.

“Were you planning on sleeping?” he asks, his voice nothing more than a whisper, almost as if he’s already dozing off into dreamland, and you can only hum in return, too dazed by the soft expression that graces his features. It never matters how tired you are, or mad, or anything else really: watching him can always calm your senses and clear your mind.

“You’re staring,” he whispers, his eyes still closed and it makes you wonder how he can even tell.

“I don’t think I’m sleepy anymore,” you don’t know why you say that when you’re not so easily open about your feelings, usually, but the words leave your mouth in a hushed tone almost as if it were an unspeakable secret you were sharing, and his eyes open, studying your expression.

“Really?” he smirks as he turns completely towards you, his face only mere inches apart from yours due to the confinement of the small bed you’re resting on. “So, what would you suggest we do, then?”

You immediately catch on the dirty implications laced in his words and you can’t help the rush of blood that turns your cheeks into red cherries that he’s quick to kiss with his plump lips as he chuckles under his breath.

“I just meant I don’t feel tired any longer,” you look around the small room more out of habit than real dread, the smell of antiseptics that fills every room of the hospital – almost like magic – serving as a reminder that you’re not safe from prying eyes or ears, not even behind a closed door.

“Relax, __” he whispers, his hand catching a strand of your hair and pulling it behind your ear in an affectionate manner, “No one’s here beside you and me.”

“I still don’t think it’s a good idea,” you sigh exasperated because you already know: it wouldn’t take much convincing on his part to make you cave in and give him whatever it is that he’s after.

He chooses not to reply to that but instead, he leans forward and catches your slightly pouting lips into his own, successfully knocking the air out of your lungs for more than one reason.

Your mind tells you to stop him, to pull back and jump off the bed before it’s too late but then your heart beats uncontrollably in your chest and you’re reminded again of the fact that the heart always wins.

“Wait,” you whisper as you feel his hands under your shirt, slightly pulling upwards so he can brush your skin and, possibly, get access to your breasts – a part of your body he loves to kiss and touch whenever he’s given the occasion.

“Stop thinking so much, petal” he murmurs as he manages to take you out of your shirt and unsnap your bra in the blink of an eye.

You’re about to try and defend your case when his mouth drops on the softness of your breast and the only sound you can produce is a soft whimper at the feeling of his tongue around your nipple.

He hums in return, his eyes closed as he focuses his entire attention on your tit, the other hand roaming up and down your stomach, the other breast, everything it can reach including the hem of your pants.

“Are you…” your breath is already ragged and he hasn’t even started yet, your mind already too confused by his passionate touch to be completely rational,

“Are you sure there’s enough room to do this in a hospital bed?” you finally ask, your words followed by another whimper as he sucks hard on your nipple causing your back to arch forward.

“Plenty of room, petal,” it’s his quick response and with his words all resolves come crumbling down and you soon find yourself in nothing but your underwear, your pants trapped at your ankles, not completely removed just in case your pager decides to go off at the most inappropriate of times.

His mouth leaves your breast and captures your lips in his, his teeth grazing gently on your bottom lip until you open your mouth and he can deepen the kiss and encircle your tongue in that peculiar way of his that makes you moan every single time.

“Hush, petal, or they’ll hear us,” he whispers in your ear before descending between your legs, his breath hitting the cotton fabric of your underwear which you’re surprised to find already wet by your arousal.

He smirks between your legs and your insides contract almost painfully whilst his long fingers pull down your panties and immediately reach for the hotness of your core.

He strokes the clitoris gently at first, his fingers circling around it just to make sure your arousal keeps wetting your vulva enough to allow his fingers to pave the way for him.

It doesn’t take long for him to start stimulating your labia, his fingers curling in the sweetest of way, your eyes rolling back as you bite down hard on your lips to not make a single sound.

“Please hurry,” you whisper, your voice a reflection of the hot mess you are as your juices come dripping down his hand, reaching his wrist with an ease you had never experienced before meeting him.

“And here I thought you were against all of this,” he whispered back, the playfulness in his voice a clear signal he’s the one in full control of the situation.

Still, he complies, most likely because he’s afraid himself of the fact that you could be interrupted any second now, and he’s soon half naked in front of you, his arousal no longer conceived by his thick pants.

He positions himself between your legs, capturing your lips an instant before the head of his cock enters you, slowly, followed by every single inch of his length, the tiny whimpers you emit all shushed by his gorgeous swollen lips.

He strokes you mellowly at first, his hips rocking against your own in waves that make your walls constrict around him and elicit grunts in return every single time.

“Faster,” you whimper as you meet his speed with your hips, trying to get as much friction as possible and he gladly complies, slamming in and out of you faster with each single stroke.

You bite down your arm to suppress the moan that escapes your lips as he inches forward a bit more with any penetration until he’s balls deep inside of you, one of his free hands playing with your clitoris to make sure you’ll reach your orgasm as soon as him.

Droplets of sweat poll between your legs, behind your back, on your forehead, wetting your hair behind your neck and you have no idea how you’re going to cover up the very fucked-up appearance you’ll have once you leave this room.

He steals your breath away with another searing kiss and your legs start to tremble as a wave of pleasure hits you hard, taking you by surprise.

“I’m,” you whisper, licking your lips, “I’m c-close.”

He slams into you harder and you almost scream again whilst he grabs your hair and guides your hips down on him roughly enough to certainly leave a mark there in a few hours.

“Then cum, petal,” he grunts and that’s all it takes for your vision to turn white and your release to coat the white sheets beneath you, the hand he has between your legs and everything else within reach.

He whispers your name inside your ear, almost choking on the simple word and he comes right after you, his breath as hard as yours as he collapses on your body, his head between your neck and your shoulder where he makes sure to leave a tender kiss.

“I think I’m sleepy again, now” you whisper with a suffocated laugh as your breath slows down, his arms encircling you to keep you in place a little bit longer.

He chuckles in return and you could swear to God it’s the most beautiful sound in the world. The worst one, however, is the one of your pager that forces you to disentangle from him, dress up in a rush and leave the room in mere seconds, your heart still beating frantically over your delicious rendezvous.

Copyright © 2017 by jeonggukingdom. All rights reserved. 

[thewayshefeels1]

There’s no good guys left... and other lies we tell ourselves

I totally get it girls. The last guy you slept with never called you again and the one before hooked up with your ex best friend. They say they love natural girls best yet they like girls photos who have fake butts, fake hair, fake everything. So this must mean all guys suck right? Wrong. I used to be a man hater myself. I’ll admit it. “Men are a lost cause” was my religion & I used to share it with anyone who would listen. “All guys are assholes and only want one thing. Men can’t be trusted. I wish I could just be a lesbian.” Maybe one of these is true… the lesbian part. Or half true at least since I am bisexual. But I digress gals… why do we spread this rumor we know is false? Why do we convince ourselves that it’s true? To make ourselves feel better perhaps? In hopes that IF ONLY we lived somewhere else we would find the man of our dreams. Well I’m here to bust this myth once and for all. It wasn’t long ago I said to my friend, “guys are jerks & only care about sex” This might’ve rung true for me at the time… maybe I was frustrated with a situation I was dealing with or was subjected to some unappealing male behavior at some point during my day. However, I know this is far from the truth. I love men. My first crush was when I was 4 years old. His name was Jimmy and he was a teenager. I apparently really had the hots for him. I had a new crush every year after that. Kindergarten, first grade, and so on until 4th grade when I thought I found my first love, Nick. I liked him for 3 years. Fast-forward many years later, my mom still tells me I’m boy crazy. And as much as I wish I could turn off my feelings and attraction for the opposite sex, it’s not going to happen. No matter how many times I get burned, my heart won’t give up. Yes, I am bisexual but if I ever saw myself married, I’d say it’d be to a man. I for one, know what it’s like to encounter the worst of the worst. I attract narcissists, abusers, I’ve been played, lied to, used, time and time again, yet I still keep trying... I know I’m not alone in this; women have this fantasy of happily ever after since childhood. Fairytales and rom coms definitely don’t help. Still, after everything I’ve been through [don’t get me started] I still believe in love. I’m not proud of this per se… like I said, I wish I could just switch to being a full on lesbian rather than bi at times… girls are gentle and sensitive, sweet and delicate, whereas guys tend to be hostile, aggressive and shut down emotionally. But I know myself and I know this is what I like in a man [to an extent]. I’ve tended to lean towards the more dominant male… perhaps since I’m more of a submissive type. I’ve definitely avoided men and have gone to great lengths to steer clear of anything with a penis. I didn’t have much guy friends when I was a kid. I struggled with severe social anxiety and my social phobia was debilitating and made me extremely awkward, especially around boys. In high school my relationship with guys didn’t get any better, I just craved their attention and tried to impress them by any means necessary. My first actual male friends were in twelfth grade but still, I felt I had to live up to this expectation. It wasn’t until 2014 that I started developing strong, intimate connections with members of the opposite sex. I got a retail job at Target… exciting right? Well it was. It was probably the best thing that ever happened to me until that point since I didn’t know how to interact or communicate with anybody. My friendships were superficial and I felt very alone. I have since (temporarily) quit Target, but from it I have gained a numerous amount of friends. Although when I’m dating someone, this can be an issue since jealousy creeps in… but I promise, guys and girls can be just friends. So where am I going with this? I am trying to say, not all men are bad. Please trust me on this. There are loads of great guys out there. I didn’t believe it either until recently, but most of my friends now are male. I have maybe two good girlfriends and the rest are men. We are nothing more and I love these guys to death. Being the only girl hanging with a large group of guys in the past would’ve sent me running for the hills. I would’ve thought they’d attack me or have hidden agendas but in reality I trust these guys with my life. They have protected me from harm, been there for me in times of great stress and danger, and love me for who I am, all made up or bare faced. It’s because of them, and other important male figures in my life like my dad and old therapist, that there’s more amazing guys out there. It may just not be what we’re exposed to on a daily basis. I need you to find one guy as a role model so you don’t lose all hope. It can be your brother, a friend, coworker; really any guy you know that has a huge heart. It can be easy to get frustrated and discouraged, especially if you’ve had loads of negative experiences like me with the opposite sex. But it starts with looking for the good in people, not vice versa. It also helps to learn the psychology of the male species. This post isn’t just for you, it’s sort of a mini reminder to myself. If we continue to spread the word “all men are dogs, rude and disrespectful” we are doing ourselves a great disservice. It’s true, a lot of guys can be that way, but let’s not forget, so can we! We all have positive and negative qualities inside us, it just depends what we choose to act on. We must stop categorizing and putting everyone into a box because when we do this, we are no better than people who discriminate against a certain race, etc. If you look for the bad in people, then you will see just that. There’s light and dark all around us, it just depends what you focus on. We tell ourselves these lies so we don’t have to take a deeper look inside ourselves. But that is precisely where we must begin if we are going to find real love.