#if we don't pick a name for ourselves we will only ever be called the names others give us

[heavyhitterheaux]

Under the Influence (Slight NSFW)

First Lady of Private Garden Fic

AN: a little twist on the pheromone perfume trend 🤭

Synopsis: An argument earlier in the day is still lingering in the air as Jack tells you his plans for the rest of the night. However, once you get a whiff of his new cologne, you quickly try to put a stop to them.

Pairing: Husband!Jack Harlow x Wife!Reader

Requested by: a beautiful anon 💕

Please Do Not Repost My Content Anywhere

Tension was lingering in the air as you eyed Jack as he walked into your shared bedroom. The argument that had taken place earlier left the two of you not speaking to one another since early in the afternoon. You wanted to put an end to it because the last thing that you ever wanted to do was fight with your husband.

“Um, babe? Where are you going?” You asked as you sat up from your position on the couch in the corner of the bedroom as you saw him getting an outfit together.

“The Hub. I'm doing a set.” He quietly responded as he took off his shirt and threw it into the hamper without bothering to look over at you.

“Since when? You didn't tell me that.”

“Aren't you going out with Taylor? I only did it because I thought you told me you would be with her. Besides I do recall earlier you saying that you didn't want to be around me. So I'm doing what I was told.”

“Well that was earlier and I want to call a truce. You had an entire attitude with me for no reason. But no, she had to reschedule. I thought we could stay in with it being just us. We haven't had a night to ourselves in a while.” You told him as he walked over towards you with an expression on his face that you couldn't quite read.

“Y/N, I dropped the triplets off with my parents so I could go.”

“I-... not you calling me by my first name. Well, can't you do it another day?” You asked as you wrapped your arms around him. But it didn’t look like you were about to change his mind.

“When I stop being mad at you, that's when your name goes back to being baby. And no, I already told them I was coming.” He replied as he moved your hands away from him.

“But…”

“I have to get ready so I won't be late. Call hot chips and bad decisions.”

“They're busy and I want my husband.”

“Hmm, tough because you said the opposite earlier.” Jack replied as he walked away from you and headed towards the bathroom as you rolled your eyes.

“I know you rolled your eyes at me and if you keep doing it they're going to get stuck like that.”

“You weren't even looking at me!”

“Doesn't matter. How long have I known my wife? Since I was fourteen? I know you like the back of my hand.”

A few minutes later, you heard the shower turn on and you went back to reading your book as you sighed. This had been your first night without the triplets in a while and as much as you were trying to take advantage of it, your husband wasn't budging.

When Jack walked out of the bathroom with a towel wrapped around his waist, you slowly lowered your book so that you could look at him. He wasn't paying you any attention and it made you feel some type of way.

“Smush?”

“Yes?”

“You still have an attitude with me but I want a kiss.”

“You'll get one before I leave and no I don't.”

“Yes you do! And you NEVER deny giving me kisses. Stop being mad at me!” You whined as you put your book down next to you and pouted as you crossed your arms.

“No one is denying you anything. I'm trying to hurry up so I won't be late.”

“You hate me.”

As those words left your mouth, Jack slowly turned his head to look at you and gave you a blank stare.

“If I hated you, we wouldn't be married. Stop saying stupid shit that isn't true. Starting to piss me off all over again.”

You made a face at him before proceeding to pick up your book once more to let Jack finish getting ready. When he was fully dressed, you got a whiff of his cologne as he put it on and it immediately made you stop in your tracks.

Got damn he smelled good.

“Is that new?” You asked him and all he did was shake his head no.

“I've had it for a while, just never used it. Got it in Cannes.”

As Jack turned around to come towards you, he was startled as he noticed that you were now next to him and wrapped your arms around him once more.

“Who are you wearing that for!?”

“Do not fucking start.”

“That smells really good. Can I have my kiss now or multiple? Or you can just take my clothes off too. Whatever works.” You said as you squeezed him tighter.

“I… what?”

“I don't want you to leave.”

“I'm giving you a kiss and then I'll see you when I come back but you'll probably be asleep.”

“But…”

“Take it or leave it.”

“Fine.” You mumbled as Jack leaned down to kiss you and you made sure to keep a tight hold on him. He noticed that you wouldn't let him go and simply placed several more kisses on your lips.

“Y/N, I can't go anywhere if you don't let me leave.”

“I know that's the entire point. How long will you be gone? And stop calling me Y/N!”

“Not that long. The sooner you let me go, the sooner I come back and that was the name you were given at birth.”

“Actually it wasn't, but that's a whole nother story. My mother, well grandmother changed it. But I don't think you need to go anywhere anymore.”

Jack let out a frustrated sigh as he wiggled out of your grasp.

All you did was go and stand in front of the bedroom door and cross your arms.

“What…. What are you doing?”

“Standing here so you can't leave.”

“That's cute. Really cute actually.”

“I'm not cute, I'm horny and you are NOT fulfilling your duties as my husband!” You explained to him and he did not look impressed.

“Remember what you said earlier or do I have to remind you again?” He replied as he checked the time on his phone.

“Well that was earlier and now I want you to rearrange my guts.”

All Jack did was walk over towards you and you thought he was leaning down to kiss you, however he simply picked you up and moved you to the side but not before leaning down to whisper in your ear.

“Excuse me, little one.”

“I… JACKMAN!”

“See you when I get back and stop all that yelling.” Jack replied as he was walking down the steps and you were right behind him.

“Nooooo! We're not done here! Just put the tip in!”

“You are no better than a man, I swear.” As he went to open the door, you hugged him from behind.

“Babyyyyy! Pookie! Smush!”

“No.”

“Damn, you probably won't even let me suck your dick so I know you're mad at me. You probably put that cologne on to find another wife.”

“Your mouth gets you in so much damn trouble sometimes.” Jack responded as he turned around to see you looking up at him.

“But, it also gets me out of it.”

“Hmm.”

“Hmm, what?”

Before he responded to you, he took hold of your neck and lightly squeezed it.

“I will put you through the fucking mattress and you won't be able to walk properly for a week if you keep playing with me.”

You couldn't help but to smirk at him knowing that it would piss him off more.

“Who's playing, babe? Certainly not me. You got your wife so wet right now and she can't understand for the life of her why you won't do anything about it.”

By this point, you knew he was completely done with you with the way his neck vein was protruding, indicating his frustration.

“Don't you want to see how wet I am?” You asked as you grabbed his hand and moved it to the waistband of your shorts.

When you heard him sigh, you knew that you had won.

“Get on the couch and do not making a fucking sound or I'll stop. Face down, ass up. I have ten minutes.”

“Yesssss! I knew you'd fold. With the way things are going, you're probably going to make me come undone in five.”

“This doesn't change anything and I’m still mad at you.”

“We'll see about that in ten minutes.”

“I'm definitely wearing this cologne every day if this is your reaction to it.”

“Jackman, we will end up with twenty children if you do that.”

“Doesn't bother me. I love how you look when you're pregnant. And your boobs will probably get even bigger so it's a win for me.”

“Hmm, just like a man.” You mumbled as you rolled your eyes as the two of you were now on the couch.

“Well you were yelling at me to just put the tip in earlier so you aren't any better.”

“And I'd do it again too.”

[canirove]

Canary boy | Chapter 18

Author's note: And we've made it to the end ☹️ I hope you've enjoyed Inés and Pedri's love story, and as always, thank you very much for reading! 💜

Previous chapter

Masterlist

“Inés, the boss wants to see you.”

“Me? Now?” 

“Yes, once you've showered and gotten dressed. He'll be waiting for you in his office.”

“I… Ok” I nod. 

“What was that about?” Carla asks me as we watch the staff member leave the changing room.

“I don't know… I haven't done anything wrong, have I? Like, I know today I was late for training, but so were others because of how bad the traffic was.”

“Him the first one” she says. “Maybe he wants to congratulate you because of how well you've been playing all these months?”

“Has he ever done that with anyone else?”

“I don't know” Carla says. “But I'm sure it is nothing important.”

“I hope so. Things are going so well…” I sigh.

And not only with football, where I've kept playing at my best and gotten to be player of the match a few more times, one of them during one of our toughest Champions League games.

After finally talking with Pedri and telling each other everything we needed and had to tell each other (or almost because I still haven't been able to tell him I love you back), we've been living on cloud nine, and everything is so perfect that at times I cringe at ourselves because of how cheesy we are. But we are happy, in love, and finally together after years or being simply stupid, so… you know. 

But besides that, things with my parents and my sisters have improved too. I don't know what has happened, but since Christmas it is not just Jules checking on me after a game. Now all of them text me or call me, and they've actually been at a couple of games. My dad has been at some home games here in Barcelona with his girlfriend Minerva (who has become my number one fan), and my mum and Matt went to watch me in London when we played against Arsenal in the Champions League. That is the game where I was named player of the match, and now my mum proudly has the little trophy in her living room next to my first official photo with Barcelona's first team for everyone to see. 

And when it comes to my sisters, Irene has already started to plan her wedding (she isn't getting married until the next spring but apparently starting to plan things now is late), and I am going to be one of her bridesmaids. She came over to visit me one day by surprise (or maybe not so much, because that day I had a date with Pedri and he had canceled last minute with the excuse of Mario being sick and wanting to keep an eye on him), took me out for lunch just the two of us, and asked me if I wanted to be her bridesmaid, gifting me the cutest bracelet when I said yes and promising that I would wear a dress I like and am comfortable with as long as she can pick the colour.

And Ingrid… Well, she's Ingrid. She's texted me a couple of times asking me if some of my teammates are single, which means that she at least knows the team I play for, something I've always suspected she had no idea. Until now.

━━━━━━❃━━━━━━

“Are you home alone?”

“Hello to you too, Inés” Pedri chuckles.

“Yes, hi. Are you alone or not?” 

“I am. Mario is…” But I don't let him say anything else. I just throw myself at him, wrapping my arms around his neck and kissing him, closing the door of his apartment with my foot. “Woah” he laughs when we break apart to catch our breaths. “What did I do to deserve a kiss like that?”

“We are celebrating.”

“Are we?” he asks, arching an eyebrow.

“Yep” I nod. “Because I got the best news ever, Pedri. Like… I still can't believe this is happening. I've been dreaming about it since I started playing football.”

“Are you signing for Real Madrid?” he says with a teasing smile.

“Idiot” I reply, rolling my eyes. “But I will actually be playing with some Real Madrid girls.”

“What?”

“I've been called up, Pedri. I've been called up by the senior national team for the first time!”

“No!” he gasps.

“Yes!”

“No!” he says again, raising his voice.

“Yes!” I repeat doing the same.

“Oh my God, Inés. Oh… my… God!” 

“Pedri!” I laugh when he lifts me in the air and starts spinning us.

This was the reason why my manager had called me to his office earlier today. He had gotten a call from Spain's manager asking about me because they wanted me to be part of the team during the next international break. Me… playing for the national team. Can you believe it? Because I still can't. I still feel like any moment now I am gonna wake up and that it all has been just a dream. 

“This is fucking amazing, Inés” he says when he finally puts me down. “Like… aaahhh!”

“You are gonna break me in half if you keep squeezing me like that” I laugh.

“I'm sorry, I'm sorry. But ugh, Inés. This… I… I am so proud of you, Inés. So fucking proud” he says before kissing me, my heart threatening to burst inside my chest after hearing his words. 

“And there is more.”

“More?”

“During this international break there will be two games, one home and one away. Guess where we are playing the home one.”

“Here in Barcelona?” 

“Cold.”

“Cold because it is somewhere with that weather or because my guess was too bad?” he asks.

“Tenerife” I smile.

“What?”

“We are playing in Tenerife, Pedri. I will probably play my first international game with the senior team in Tenerife. In your hometown.”

“Wait, really?”

“Really.”

“Oh my God, Inés!” he says before spinning us again.

“You are gonna make me dizzy, Pedri!” I laugh. “And if we are dizzy, you are not gonna be able to show me how proud of me you are” I smirk when he puts me down.

“True…” he replies with a matching smile. “Do you have anything in mind?” 

“I do have a few ideas, yes. But we'll be more comfortable in your room to do them than here.”

“I see… Is that why you asked me if I was home alone?”

“Maybe” I shrug. 

“You are such a naughty girl, Inés” he whispers, the way he looks at me while saying it making my knees feel weak. “Let's go.”

“Pedri!” I laugh when he lifts me in the air again. But this time he is carrying me in his arms as he walks us towards his room, something that is very welcomed if we keep in mind the way my legs were feeling a second ago.

━━━━━━❃━━━━━━

“Inés… Inés, are you laughing?”

“No.”

“Then why can I feel your stomach moving under my kisses?” Pedri says, moving up and now kissing me between my boobs.

“That's called breathing, Pedri.”

“That's called laughing, Inés. I just ate you out…” he says, biting one of my nipples and making me gasp. “And you are laughing” he says, doing the same on the other.

“I'm not laughing” I manage to say.

“You are” he whispers when he makes it to my mouth, now biting my lower lip before kissing me. “See? You are laughing!”

“I'm sorry, I'm sorry!” I say, trying to stop my giggles. “But I'm just… happy.”

“That usually is what you feel after having an orgasm, yes.”

“Idiot” I say, hitting his arm. “But it's true. I'm happy. I'm really happy.”

“Because of the call up?” he says, caressing my temple and gently putting away some locks of hair. “Is that making you feel so happy that you are laughing while having sex with your boyfriend?”

“Pedri!” I say, now pinching his arm but only managing to make him laugh. “But that's the main reason, yes. Though if I'm being completely honest, I'm happy because of everything in my life right now. My football career, the way my studies are going, the relationship with my family, with my friends… You… Us…”

“Do I make you happy?” he says, now caressing my cheek.

“The happiest. I… I love you, Pedri.”

Boom! There, she said it!

“I love you too, Inés” he smiles before kissing me. And maybe I am exaggerating a bit (or a lot), but that is the fucking best kiss of my entire life. Like… the way it has made me feel… Wow. Just wow. “I love you” he whispers before kissing my jaw. “I fucking love you, Inés” he keeps saying as he kisses, touches and caresses me everywhere. 

And he keeps whispering those three magical words, sometimes adding my name, sometimes another word (may have moaned just be hearing “I bloody love you”), as we become one, as we melt into each other. And if that kiss from earlier was the best of my life, the way we just made love... I know I don't have anything to compare it to since he is the only guy I've been with, but we've made love before. For example, that's what we did the first time we slept together. And none of those times have felt like this. 

None of those times I've felt real love. 

━━━━━━❃━━━━━━

I'm on my way.

That's what Pedri's last message said, that he was on his way to the hotel where I am staying with the national team in Tenerife. But that was twenty minutes ago, and he still hasn't shown up, so I am obviously starting to worry. One, because I only have an hour to meet with him and his family before having to go back with the team, and two because… what if something has happened to them? What if they weren't allowed to close the bar and they aren't coming? What if…

“Inés!” a familiar voice says behind me, stopping me from imagining the worst scenarios you could think of.

“Fer, finally!” I sigh. “Where were you?”

“Uh?” he says, giving me a hug.

“Pedri texted me saying that you were on your way twenty minutes ago and I was starting to worry.”

“We…”

“We are late because of me” his mum says behind him. “I wanted to make this for you and the girls.”

“Croquetas?” I say, looking at the tupperware she just opened. They smell so good…

“Pedri's favourites” she smiles. “I don't know if you'll be allowed to eat them before the game, but they'll still be good tomorrow.”

“Thank you very much. I'm sure they won't mind if we eat one tonight for dinner” I smile back. “But wait, speaking of Pedri… Where is he?” I ask them. 

“He's on his way, don't worry” his dad says. “Now, tell us, Inés. Has the gaffer told you anything about making your debut tomorrow? You already got qualified after winning the other day, this game isn't that important in that sense.”

“He…”

“Inés!” someone screams. 

“What the…” I say, looking at the person running towards me. “Irene?”

“Inés!” she screams again before hugging me and almost making us both fall. 

“What are you doing here?”

“Hello to you too” she chuckles. “And I'm obviously here to watch you play, you silly!”

“You… what?”

“We couldn't miss your debut with the national team, Inés.”

“Jules? You are here too?”

“Did you think I would come without him?” Irene laughs. “I need someone to explain to me how football works.”

“See? I'm not the only one” Pedri's mum says while looking at her husband, who as a reply only rolls his eyes. 

“Oh, hi! So rude of me to not introduce myself! I'm Irene, Inés’ sister” she smiles, introducing herself to Pedri's parents and instantly starting a conversation with them as if they had known each other their whole lives. 

“Blink, Inés. And close your mouth” Fer laughs next to me. “If you don't, I fear your eyes may pop from their sockets and end up eating a fly.”

“I'm sorry, but… Is this real?”

“Very” Jules smiles. “And there is more” he says, nodding behind himself.

“More? What do you… Ingrid?” I gasp when I see her walking towards me.

“Hello, little sis” she smiles.

“What… what are you doing here?”

“What do you think I am doing here?” she says, pinching my arm like she used to do when I was a kid to tease me. “I've come to watch your debut with the national team!”

“You too?”

“All of us” Ingrid says.

“All of…”

And then I see them. My parents. Together. Here. They… what the fuck?

“Mum! Dad!” I say, running towards them and hugging them at the same time. “You came! You are here!”

“Of course we are” my mum says.

“We couldn't miss your debut for anything in the world” my dad adds.

“I just… I… I don't know what to say.”

“You don't have anything to say, Inés” my mum says, wiping away a tear from my cheek. “We are the ones who have to tell you something.”

“What?”

“We're sorry, Inés. I am sorry” my dad says.

“What?” I repeat, looking even more confused than before. 

“We are sorry about never being there for you, Inés” my mum says. “About never supporting you and your career, about missing all those important moments for you.”

“We all are” Irene says behind me, Ingrid nodding in agreement next to her.

“You… I…” I mumble, looking from my sisters to my parents.

Is this really happening? Are they all here? And how did they know? How did they know that I had missed having them with me in moments like this? That I needed them? There is only one person I've told about it, about how I've felt all these years. Only… No.

“Where is Pedri?” I ask, looking at everyone.

“Here” he says. He is standing behind my parents, his hands in his pockets and an innocent smile on his face. Him. Innocent. Ha!

“You did this, didn't you? You brought them all here.”

“Maybe” he shrugs, his innocent smile turning into a cheeky one.

“You… you… urgh” I say, letting go of my parents and throwing myself at him with the same strength Irene had done earlier with me. 

“Careful” he chuckles, hugging me back.

“Let's give them some space” I hear my mum say before she starts introducing herself to Pedri's parents and, like had happened with Irene, starting to chat with them as if they were old friends.

“I can't believe you did this” I say, moving to look at Pedri. “You've brought them all here. My whole family.”

“I have, yes” he smiles, wiping away my tears. Now I am properly crying. “But there is more.”

“More than this?”

“Vic, Ander, Nacho, Lucía and Mario are flying tomorrow and will be at the game too, and your cousin Daniel is trying his best to catch a last minute flight. But if he can't make it, know that he will be cheering for you from his living room. And my friends have already made a huge banner with your name to show during the game to hopefully be on tv” he chuckles.

“They all are coming?” 

“All of them” he smiles. “None of them wanted to miss your debut with the national team, Inés.”

“I can't believe it. I…” I say, looking back at our families, at how they all are talking to each other, Ingrid actually laughing at something Pedri's dad has said. “How have you done it? Have you bribed them with bananas or something?”

“Maybe” he laughs. 

“Maybe?”

“I may have told them that tomorrow we are having lunch at my parents’ bar. And they all have tried my mum's food before, so…”

“Oh, so you've bribed them with food. Clever” I chuckle. “And my family? I can't remember the last time I saw my parents together in the same room.”

“I may have had a chat with all of them after the New Year.”

“After… wait, wait, wait. That was you too?”

“Yeah” he shrugs. “After what you told me, I just knew I had to do something. I couldn't bear to see you like that again, to know that you were hurting so much. So I did some phone calls, went on a few coffee dates... And here we are.”

“Pedri, I just… I… I don't know what to say.”

“You don't have to say anything, Inés. Just seeing your face right now is enough” he says, caressing my cheek.

“I love you, Pedri. I fucking love you.”

“I love you too” he smiles. And when we are about to kiss…

“Oi!” Ingrid says. “Can you please leave that for later? There are miserably single and not stupidly in love people over here!”

“Exactly!” Fer adds.

“Urgh” I groan.

“We'll sneak out later and have a proper make out session, don't worry” Pedri winks. 

“Does it really have to be later?” I say, already feeling… things. Will seeing him wink ever stop turning me on? Probably not. 

“It has, Inés. But it will be worth it, I promise” he smirks. “Now, let's go join the others. I fear Ingrid and Fer may end up becoming bffs, and we do not want that.”

“We don't, no” I chuckle. “But Pedri… Thank you. Thank you for bringing them all here today. Thank you for caring about me like this, for loving me. I… I don't deserve it.”

“You deserve the world, Inés” he smiles, forgetting about what he had just said and kissing me in front of everyone, Ingrid and Fer booing behind us. 

But we don't care. I don't care. 

Because in that moment, even if I'm surrounded by both our families (mine finally together for a good reason), probably feeling the happiest I've ever felt and about to achieve one of the most important goals of my career… it is just us. 

In that moment, is just me and him. Two people who, after years of loving each other in secret, are finally together. Pedri and Inés. Or as some people like calling us… that girl who plays football and the canary boy. 

My canary boy. 

━━━━❃━━━━ FIN ━━━━❃━━━━

[byechristopher]

⠀

In Another Life.

– CHRIS STURNIOLO ANGST.

Author's note: omg hi, again. You'll soon find out how much I love angst, trauma and just "dark" fics. It's a way to express myself every once in a while. I hope you all like it, if you have any requests in mind, feel free to let me know. I will make it up to you all with some fluff, I promise, lol. Do not copy/steal my work. :)

Warnings: (not proof-read) this is pure angst, mentions of death, coping with death in general, trauma bonding. If any of this is triggering to you, do not read, please. Have a great day, instead.

Playlist:

It is only 6:00AM and I am up and running, ready to start my long day, although my sluggish gait says otherwise. I always loved waking up so early in the morning – it gave me time to start doing things when people were still sleeping. It is always a struggle to keep myself awake, though.

"I'm outside."

The screen lights up and I can see Chris' name from here – he must be outside already. I sigh and I quickly put my jacket and scarf on, not forgetting my boots, of course. With my bag in my hand, I quickly leave the house, trying to be as quiet as possible so that my mom doesn't wake up.

Chris is waiting in the car, I take a better look at my surroundings – the fog makes it hard for me to see, it's dark and it's cold, and the humidity makes it look like it rained.

"Hey, Chris. Thanks for picking me up." I mumble, he nods with an understanding look on his face. He's got that sickening purple colour under his eyes and his skin is even paler than usual. We match, he looks like a mess, too.

How couldn't he, anyway? It was a difficult day today. It's only been three years and how could we ever forget?

Me and Chris have known each other for a long time. Ever since we were babies – our families were very close. That was until my parents got divorced and we never saw my father ever again; made my mom isolate herself. My father came back one day, asking for forgiveness for leaving like this. Not from my mom, from me. I didn't want to trust him but I still talked to him every now and then. Now, Chris never really liked me and I never really liked him, it's not like we ever had an actual conversation. Before something terrible happened, to the both of us. On the same day. On the same plane. The plane crashed – my father happened to be there and Chris' best friend happened to be there.

We were both devastated so we found ourselves hanging out more than usual – is it called trauma bonding? I think so. That's what we did. Bonded over trauma. Because that's what we needed most; a person who knows and feels what we feel, who goes through the same experience. I don't think it was he healthiest thing to do, but who is really healthy inside on this earth?

"Give me, like.. fifteen minutes. I'll be back, okay?" he says and I give him a reassuring hug, pecking his cheek. I nod, watching him go visit his best friend's grave while I visit my father's.

"I can't believe it's already been three years since you've been gone." I chuckle, making sure everything is clean and the flowers are nicely put in the vase, "right when you were about to actually spend time with me, hm?" I can feel the tears in my eyes, and every time I speak, it's like I'm digging an invisible knife deeper into my heart.

I don't know how long it's been because I'm still cleaning and trying not to think about anything, but I see Chris walking over to me. It's so obvious that he's been crying, but he offers a smile anyway. His nose is red, it's kind of cute.

"You feeling okay?" he wraps an arm around my shoulders, giving me a reassuring squeeze. I nod.

"What did I always tell you? Everything happens for a reason." I chuckle, wiping the tears away from my eyes as we walk away, and towards the car.

"I used to hate hearing that. But I believe it now." he nods and clears his throat, "Connor believed it, too." it took him a while to say his best friend's name without crying. I told him that Connor wouldn't be happy to see him crying like this – that was the only way to make him stop.

"I gotta go to work, now. But we'll meet later, yes?" I say, wrapping my arms around his waist, looking up. The combination of the sky, his tears and his pale skin make his eyes go icy blue, I can't help but smile a little bit. He nods and cups my cheeks, bringing me closer to him to give me a soft kiss on the lips.

I'm not sure what me and Chris have going on. We definitely hang out a lot, we kiss, I basically have all of my stuff in his house, we have sex, but we've never said anything about relationship, or anything like that for that matter. We've been going through the most traumatic and difficult experience in our lives, so I feel like we desperately need the affection but we're the only ones who feel the same. So we just.. do stuff together. I try not to think about it too much.

I definitely not want to think about it when I'm in his arms. We're in front of the fireplace, sitting down on the carpet. I'm sitting in between his legs with my back pressed against his chest, and his arms wrap all the way around my shoulders and knees (that are pressed to my chest), keeping me warm.

"I'm so glad to have you here with me, being by my side on this horrible day, every year." he whispers in my ear and I close my eyes.

"So am I. You're making me feel like I'm not as alone as I thought I was." I whisper back and let my head fall on his shoulder, turning my head so that I'm able to look up at him. We sit in silence for a bit.

"I was thinking.. what you always say. Everything happens for a reason. What if.. what if all of this never happened? What if they were both still alive, what if our families kept being this close, what if we kept hating each other.. would we still find a way to be where we are now?" his voice is low and steady, I can see the fire moving in the reflection of his glistening eyes, "or was this tragedy meant to happen for us to find what we wanted in each other?"

I stay silent for a little bit. I've thought about this a million times and every time makes me go crazier than the previous one, "is love supposed to grow in souls and bodies that are filled with so much pain? Because if so, then it's nothing like what they taught us love would feel like."

"Do you think love is what we feel for each other?" he presses a kiss on my warm cheek.

"I don't know." I say truthfully, "I think that we both find shelter in each other's pain. We feel the need to be heard, to be understood, and then we want to hear the other, to understand their pain. To help each other, to be there whenever they might need, to care."

"Isn't that what love is?" he asks innocently, "in its most tragic form?" he looks me in the eyes and smiles softly.

"I suppose so.. yeah.." I say because, indeed, love could also bloom in shattered hearts, it doesn't always have to be flowers and rainbows, "and to answer your question.. I think I would definitely imagine myself loving you, without all of these." my voice is as soft as it can get.

"I would definitely fall in love with you, too." he says, looking into my eyes. And for a moment, I imagine us just like this. In a life where we would be happier. In a life where we would be able to love each other, without anything holding us back, in a life where we could keep the people that we wanted in our lives. In a life where we would have the space and time to express our feelings, understand our feelings.

"So, stay with me forever and even longer than that.." he says and I smile, leaving a trail of kisses on his neck, all the way up to his cheek and lips, "I might be able to become someone who loves you even in the good times."

"That's a promise, then. Because I'm definitely staying, till I'm ready to love you in the good times, too." I smile and slowly turn around to face him this time, wrapping both of my arms and legs around him, like a koala.

He laughs, he's hugging me and kissing me softly, "want me to make you some hot chocolate?"

"Yes, please."

⠀

[xmissrogersx]

The Way I Loved You | Joel Miller

my writing is entirely my own. Any adaptation and/or copy is forbidden.

i hope you are enjoying my stories! U help me a lot if you give me a ♡! All the love.

priscila masterlist

-So that's what teenage girls did, they only cared about how pretty they looked to like the boys. That's rubbish —Ellie exclaimed in the back seat.-Please tell me you weren't like that, Payton.

-Ellie, I was only 6 years old when the pandemic started —I replied with a rarched eyebrow.

-I don't know, all my life my home was FEDRA. I don't know how normal children acted.

I layed under my breath to turn to my left and see Joel focused on the road. He was the most beautiful man I had ever seen.

Over the past few years I met guys who only caused me repulsion and disappointments. Not because the end of the world had arrived meant that the stupidity of the male gender ceased to exist.

Parties, drugs and easy sex were the menu of the night. I always thought that maybe there would be a flaw in me. A year ago, at Boston QZ, I met a young man named Tim.

Cataloging him as a prince in shining armor would be too old, but I think my mother would call him that way to define him.

We went out for 6 months. We worked in the same area, went for a walk and talked about our tastes.

The time we spent together was pleasant. We enjoyed our afternoon walks, and arrived in time to listen to the distribution of tasks to the population.

He smiled together with his blue eyes, to which I corresponded. Or that's what he wanted me to believe. ¿Why couldn't I love him and look at him the same way he did? ¿Could it be that the love I want to give to Tim I can't experience it?

I sighed frustrated and looked up to my right, to suddenly run out of breath.

There he was again. Tall, brown hair that together with gray nuances, slightly tanned skin due to outdoor work. His look hard and with marks on the side of his brown orbs. Losing myself in them was the longing I had every night when I went to sleep.

He looked like a fucking god with his big arms crossed over his chest.

His face most of the time was rough to push people away, wanting to show that he was not the kind of person to mess with. Joel was not easy to intimidate. But I knew that deep down there was only one wounded man with a past that torments him to this day.

-Hey, are you okay? —I took his voice out of my memory, bringing me back to the present.

-Yes...of course -I vocalized as best I could. He nodded not very convinced. My totally red face must have already been betraying me.

We continued the trip without further talk until it began to get dark. Joel went into the forest so we could rest until the next morning.

I arranged some sleeping bags that we had gotten from Bill's house. Ellie approached shitering a little due to the cold that was beginning to feel in the place. I picked up a blanket and put it on his shoulders.

-Thank you, shit, I feel like I'm going to freeze.

-¿Why don't you try to get some sleep? —I pointed to the improvised bed. She nodded and lay down.

-I can take the first guard —Joel exclaimed, to which I sighed.

-You drove all the way, you have to rest. I can watch about 5 hours at least.

-You have to sleep too —he approached me slightly, to which I held my breath again.

-Joel, please, I can be perfectly awake. Now lie down and get some sleep —I finished to get away from him. He decided to take my advice and lay down next to the chestnut.

I decided to walk away for a moment towards the lake that was meters from us.

I took a seat on a small log and began to write in my little notebook. A small form of escape that made me get out of the reality in which we found ourselves.

-Are you writing again?

-Fuck, you scared me —I turned to the direction of his voice.-¿And wouldn't you have to be sleeping?

He didn't answer my question.

-¿Didn't he get angry? -he suddenly exclaimed, to which I frowned.-The guy who was with you.

-Tim? Why would he be angry with me?

-You decide to go and cross the country to take a girl with me...-he didn't finish the sentence.

-Joel, I felt I had to do it, the decisions I made with my life are only mine.

-I doubt your boyfriend thinks the same.

-He's not my boyfriend. I couldn't reciprocate. I just didn't want it that way.

-I thought it was, because of the way I looked at you.

I advanced towards him, somewhat afraid that he would retreat, but she remained static.

-I could never see him that way, not Tim... I... I'm sure of what you're going to tell me if I let the words come out.

Take a breath of air, and look towards the floor.

-I couldn't see it that way... God, he's not you.

And in the blink of an eye, he cradle my cheeks and put our lips together, silencing myself.

-So perfect for this destroyed world, just like me.

-Don't say that —I spread small kisses on his chin, forehead and cheekbones.-You're a great man, Joel.-No one imagined everything that was going to happen. But here we are, we survive day by day, together.

-25 years of difference between us. You're young, you must look for someone...

-Don't come to me with that stupidity, Miller. I don't care. Whatever people say or think, they just talk more about them. At least... you don't...?

-Shit, Payton. I love you from the moment I saw you in the task distribution row. But I'm complicated, sometimes I don't know how to express myself...

I just nodded with a small smile while he spoke, to which he noticed and frowned.

-I know, but I love you that way. My sexy grumpy old man. I'm not perfect either.

-You are the kindest and sweetest person I know, darlin’ -I smiled at the nickname.-I want to wake up next to you and see your beautiful face. I long for you to be mine.

-I already am, Joel —I exclaimed, clinging to him.-I just want to be with you and Ellie. And I know you want it too.

[harpsinfinity]

Heyyyyy, can I get a Chris Redfield x reader who is English and he’s like obsessed with her accent. She works with him, she’s apart of the hound wolf squad and he’s just obsessed. Maybe some smut at the end?

This is perfect because I happen to be English and have an English accent 🔥🔥

also, because we don't use "y/n" in this household, readers name/callsign is "viper"

Mild NSFW below !! ↓↓↓

"Chris !"

A familiar English accent calls out to him, snapping him out of his thoughts.

it was none other than you, one of the team mates he'd had the pleasure of working with and growing close with.

though now wasn't the time to be getting lost in though, especially not when a hoard of undead freaks were currently hurdling your way. chris quickly sprung into action, blowing their heads off one by one until the ground was a mass of guts and gore. the coast was clear, a sign to keep moving before the next round of creatures came their way.

"nice job there, viper" chris praises before reloading his weapon

you nod in response "come on, lets move"

it was only the two of you on this mission, the BSAA had picked the two of you specifically. their best soldiers to handle a very sensitive task.

yet another bioweapon on the loose, though this one was nothing that had been seen before. a creature capable of manipulation and possession of the poor victims that faced it.

"the quicker we neutralise this thing, the sooner we can get ourselves out of here"

you remark, as the pair of you walked through the abandoned building, the last known coordinates of the b.o.w.

chris had to admit, he loved your accent. it was so much better than the boring, american accent. the way you pronounced certain words, corrected him when he called football, 'soccer'. it had him whipped for you. he was obsessed, the thought of anyone else being close to you made him sick to his stomach.

it wasn't long before the two of you ended up crammed in a small room, hiding from yet another hoard of zombies. as much as chris wanted to gun them down, he couldn't afford the loss of bullets. and you couldn't either. he could hardly complain, the situation gave him the close proximity he wanted with you. his favourite, pretty little teammate

your hips were pressed dangerously against his, face level with the bulging muscles of his chest.

"have i ever told you how much i love that accent of yours, viper?"

chris murmured lowly, lips level with the shell of your ear, he had to resist pressing his half-hard bulge against your core.

"captain, this isn't the time"

you hiss quietly, peering out of the small gap in the door

crap.

those flesh eating monsters were still there?

a large hand brought your face to meet his, lips inches away from yours

before you could even think, chris' lips locked with yours. not waiting a second to swirl his tongue around yours. the taste of his last cigarette made you moan.

his bulge presses against you fully, making you throb. slick was leaking into your panties as you pressed your thighs together

"here's what's gonna happen; i'm gonna fuck you, and you're gonna keep talking to me with that pretty accent" he all but growled

it's safe to say you passed the time very well together

[sleepy-sirin]

Incarnation (Honkai Star Rail x Child! Herrscher! Reader)

Summary: In which Y/n, the creation of Will of Honkai, successfully defeated her own creator with the help of her friends. After defeating the Will of Honkai, for using too much of her power she goes into a deep sleep.

Previous | Next chapter

Chapter 2

Second POV:

"Jarlio-Vl, we're here." Dan Heng said.

"Brrr. It really is one big snowball." March said, as she hugged herself for some warmth.

"It really is one big snowball." Stelle commented.

"Hey, get your own metaphor!" March said to Stelle.

"*Sigh* Snow as far as the eye can. Which direction should we take?" She asked.

"Based on the coordinates, the target should be up ahead." Dan Heng said.

"Then what are we waiting for? Let's- Wait! Where's Y/n?" March panic, knowing they lost you.

The trio search everywhere for you, only to find you sleeping peacefully through the snow. Dan Heng picked you up and carries you into his arms.

"How come she can sleep at this cold temperature?" March asked.

"Considering what Mr.Yang said, that she's not exactly a human but a herrscher." Stelle stated.

"I'll look after her since Mr.Yang entrusted me, knowing if she ever attack anyone of us." Dan Heng said.

"Remember, we should stay vigilant. We know very little about this world." He said.

"Calm down. Between the four of us, nothing will stand in our way." March said.

"I mean c'mon, Stelle, you've got a Stellaron in your body, I have my special Six-Phased Ice powers, Dan Heng... Uhh, he's got that mysterious past thing going for him... and Y/n being a dangerous herrscher, we don't know if she's in our side or not..." She said.

"So, if people start creating trouble for us, they're gonna regret it!" She said.

"Let's just make sure that we're not the ones creating trouble..." Stelle sweatdropped.

"Well, let's not get ahead of ourselves, hehe... Let's go. Braving the unknown... that's the real spirit of trailblazing!" March said.

The four of them walk away and find what they were looking for. They've encountered some of Fragmentum monsters and fight them off to clear their path. Dan Heng was having a hard time since he was holding you while fighting.

The four of them notice a large snow bump along their way, knowing that someone was hiding underneath the snow, hearing someone shivering.

"Hey, get outta there or you'll shiver to death." March said. The person who was hiding is holding their breath to not make a sound.

"Holding your breath won't help..." She said.

"I got this, March. If someone's got their head stuck in the sand, or the snow in this case... they just need a helping hand." Dan Heng said.

"You idiotic human, are you asking for a death wish." You said, you finally awake from your sleep. The trio looks surprised that your awake now.

"Can you put me down now?" Y/n asked Dan Heng.

Dan Heng complied as he puts you down. You walk behind the person who was hiding in snow, and kick them as hard as you can.

"Ouch!"

The man finally left the snow he was hiding. He was slightly hurt from the kick you gave him, and you don't give a damn about it.

"Little girl, was that really necessary? Is crawling around in the snow a crime these days? I mean, c'mon, surely it doesn't warrant a kicking?" The man said. The four of them glared at him.

"... But then again how can I blame you? I mean, I caught you off guard. It had to happen, you could even say I deserved it, huh? Besides, I've made a gallant group of new friends as a result, hehe..." He said.

"... Is Captain Gepard around? H-He's an old buddy of mine..." He asked, slightly worried that he would be caught.

"Who?" March asked.

"Wait, you're not Silvermane Guards? Well, why didn't you say so? Turns out we're on the same side after all! Pleasure to meet you, the name's Sampo Koski." Sampo introduce himself.

"I'm Stelle." Stelle introduce herself.

You didn't introduce yourself but told him:

"Call me Herrscher of the Sea, since you don't have the privilege to call my name."

Sampo sweatdropped, knowing that you don't fully trust him to utter your name, he decided to play along with it. Unaware that you spoke of is your real title.

"Excellent. I'll remember the names. I never thought I'd run into friends from the same line of work out here in this frozen wasteland. *sigh* Business is bad these days, but fear not. Sampo Koski isn't interested in hoarding. There's more than enough treasure to go around, so let's get rich together! Hahaha." Sampo said.

"Say, why don't we join forces? I have reliable intel the main strength of the Silvermane Guards is being deployed to the front line. This is a golden opportunity..." He said.

"What business are you talking about?" Stelle asked, still wary of Sampo.

"Come now, friends. I can understand the mistrust, but there's no need for the charade. Then again, I know the rules, vigilance is the name of the game in our profession. It's my fault for letting my enthusiasm and sincerity get the better of me..." Sampo said.

"Anyway, a meeting like this has to have been written in the stars. Ask me anything you like, I won't skimp on the details. Still, make it snappy, you're never more than ten feet from a Silvermane Guards..." He said.

"Is there a settlement nearby?" Stelle asked.

"Settlement? What a literary turn of phrase. Why, there's only one place in this world where the living still reside, our beloved Belobog! The further away you get, the dicier things become." Sampo said.

While the two of them continue their conversation, you get bored listening to them and decide to go to sleep again, not caring about the conversation they have. Dan Heng and March 7th notice that you fell asleep again.

"*sigh* She fell asleep again." March said.

"Looks like she got bored listening to their conversation." Dan Heng said, he carries you into his arms again.

"Aww, she looks so innocent when she sleeps. How come you get to carry her but I don't?" March pouts.

"Mr.Yang told me to look after her and you will probably drop her somewhere." Dan Heng stated.

"No I won't!" March argue.

Some time later, Stelle and Sampo are done talking to each other.

"By the way, why don't just take us to the city? We don't really know the way." March said.

"The city? Already? I haven't even started trading yet. Showing you the way is easy enough, missy, but it would cost-" Sampo was about to continue but Dan Heng gave him a hard glare.

"...B-But it would be my pleasure! "Kindness" is Sampo Koski's middle name. Follow me, friends, and keep quiet. We don't want to be spotted by the guards." He stutters.

Sampo guided them the path where Belobog is, and started a conversation. Sometime later they were stopped by the Silvermane Guards.

"...Who are they?" Dan Heng asked.

"Uh, you remember the Silvermane Guards I mentioned? That's them..." Sampo explained.

"Help me, old friends! I don't wanna be caught!" Sampo cowers in fear.

"It's the suspect and his accomplices! Arrest them!" A soldier said.

"It's now or never! Over to you, dear friends!" Sampo said, as he runs away from them.

"Hey! Where do you think you're- and he's gone." March deadpanned. She summons her bow and arrow ready to fight the soldiers.

Stelle, March 7th, and Dan Heng, they all fight the soldiers one by one. Dan Heng managed to avoid you getting hit while fighting off the soldier. The soldier on the other hand didn't want to accidentally hit you while you were sleeping.

When March 7th uses her burst on the soldiers but only to be blocked by someone.

He is a tall, stout man with a fair skin, blue eyes and blond hair. Gepard is dressed in thick white clothing with blue and gold trimmings and gold garments, alongside a breastplate and armor for his left hand which appears to have a blue, crystalline design.

"I, Gepard Landau, Captain of the Silvermane Guards, order you to relinquish your futile resistance." Gepard said.

"Grr, that Sampo cheated us all. Wait till I get my hands on him..." March muttered.

"Suspect! Relinquish your resistance!" A soldier said.

"Ugh, so I'm a criminal, huh? Forget Sampo, wait until I get my hands on YOU!" March said.

Dan Heng put you down and placed you away from the fight, so you wouldn't get hurt. From all the fighting they have been doing for an hour, they felt the ground began shaking and out of nowhere some blue tentacles appeared, only to wrap it on Gepard and his soldiers, squeezing them tightly.

The trio felt a dark aura around and turn where it was coming from. It was coming from you, who was woken up with their fight and feeling pissed for disturbing your dream.

"Isn't it rude to fight here when someone is enjoying their dream, hmm~?"

[my-little-delusions]

To the Ends of the Universe Pt. 2 - Dick Grayson x Reader

Pairings: Dick Grayson x Reader (Romantic), Bruce Wayne x Assistant!Pennyworth!Reader, Donna x Reader (Platonic)

Warnings: Death, cursing, violence, talk of self harm, talk of domestic abuse, talk of terminal illness and hospitals, experiments, smut (skippable)

(It's a long summary I know I'm sorry. Read it or don't.)

Summary: When you were 6 years old, you were diagnosed with a terminal illness. The doctors said there was nothing they could do, and your health would rapidly decline. You wouldn't live past 8 years old. Your parents refused to take that answer and decided to make their own cure for you. However, they couldn't stop there, they didn't just want to make you healthy, they wanted to make you super. Make sure nothing could put you in harms way ever again. After a faulty experiment when you were 10 years old, the lab they worked out of, killed your parents and left you a sole survivor.

When reports of a "super kid" loose on the streets reached Wayne Manor, Bruce picked you up. Alfred ended up adopting you legally, but when Bruce realized you had no control of your powers, he decided to train you. Teach you how to use your powers and keep them under control.

A year later Bruce adopted Dick. Growing up and Training side by side you and Dick were inseparable. Your crush on Dick, the cute guy you would with a year older than you, only got worse. As well as his protectiveness over you. Your relationship flourished and you two seemed unstoppable. But what happens when Dick convinces you to leave Gotham? Make a new life for yourselves all on your own.

Disclaimer: I am fully aware my timeline/numbers are screwy, don't think about it. This is based solely on the Titans show, it is definitely not comic accurate lol.

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

"I wish I didn't have to leave you baby," Dick mumbles, his arms wrapped around my waist.

"Baby," I smile looking up at him amused, "We can't do this every morning. You need to go to work, you said you would commit to this,"

"I know," He groans, pulling away, "You know they keep trying to give me a partner, I don't want to work with anyone but you,"

"I already told you I am not joining the force, there is too much surveillance on the cops,"

"But-"

"No. Look, Dick, being the Green Jay with you and Bruce on occasion was fun, but it put too many targets on my head, I can't risk my powers getting linked to my identity. Even by the PD. I mean, can you even imagine what they would find if they drug-tested me?"

"You're right, you're right," Dick laughs, "I guess I just miss you is all, I'm not used to not seeing you all day every day you know," He says, placing a kiss on my lips.

"I miss you too," I say once I pull away, "How about when you get back tonight we have a night just to ourselves, alright?"

"Oh yeah?" He quirks, "Alright, I'll look forward to it.... Orrrr we could have right now to ourselves,"

"Oh my god just go to work," I smile, shoving him away a bit.

"Okay, okay," He throws his hands up in defeat, grabbing his keys and coat, "I'll see you when I get home."

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

"HEY BABE!" Dick calls, his voice laced with concern and an assertiveness I haven't heard since Gotham.

Swiftly I hurry my way towards the staircase, worry coursing through my veins. However, once I reach the stairs I freeze.

There Dick is at the bottom of the stairs, his lips pulled tightly in a like and a girl tucked away behind him.

"Fuck," I whisper under my breath, running up to him and pulling him into a hug. Dick just stands there, his shoulders slouched in defeat.

Pulling away, my eyes scan all of his features, my eyes glossing over slightly. His hardened face softens as he looks at me.

"I'm gonna go pack our stuff." He says, his tone is serious again,

"Okay.." I say, following him with my gaze as he brushes past me, his fingers lingering on mine. "Hi," I say, facing the girl. Her head whips up. "I'm Y/N, what's your name?"

"Rachel"

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

Dick opens the car door to pop open the trunk.

"This is yours?" Rachel asks as she steps into the garage.

"Family heirloom," Dick answers, tossing our luggage in.

I walk up to him, my back to Rachel. Reaching out my hand, I rub his arm through his jacket, attempting to comfort him.

"I'm sorry baby," I whisper to him, aware that Rachel is most likely listening, but at least whispering doesn't invite her to chime in, "I know you really wanted to avoid this sort of thing again."

He looks at me with a soft smile, reaching his and over and placing it on top of my hand on his arm.

"From the circus?" Rachel asks,

Dick chuckles, looking up from me to Rachel, "Not the one you're thinking. Come on let's go."

I adjust my posture from leaning on the car and walk to the passenger side.Opening the door, I lean in to u latch the front seat, revealing the small 2nd row of the car.

Giving Rachel a smile, I motion for her to get it, but she hesitates.

"We'll keep you safe, I promise,"

"That's not something you can promise," Rachel says to me before getting in the car anyway.

I push the front seat back into place and get in.

This feels like something we can't turn back from.

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

The awkward silence in the car since we left the garage is slowly becoming unbearable. Tensions are high. I can practically feel the stress radiating off of dick.

Looking over at him, I can see his emotions plastered all over his face. It's a look I haven't had to see since we left Gotham. Exhaustion. Sadness. Anger. All of it.

My heart clenches and I reach over to Dick's free hand, pulling it over to my lap and holding it. Giving him reassuring squeezes throughout the drive every time I feel him tense.

"Where are we going?" Rachel finally speaks up,

"Somewhere safe," Dicks says, swallowing hard,

"My mom, says there's no such thing as monsters," Rachel turns her head to look out the window, "I think she was wrong."

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

"Thank you," Dick says to the waitress, "You want a hot chocolate or something?"

"Just a coffee, black," Rachel says,

"I bet they have marshmallows," Dick smiles. My heart swells a bit as I look at him. I haven't seen many smiles like that from him in a long time. Definitely not in Gotham.

"I'm not a kid, okay?" Rachel snaps at him a bit,

"Rachel..." I say, with a bit of a warning tone, glancing at the waitress standing there awkwardly.

"Okay, same for the lady," Dick says and the waitress fills up Rachel's cup with a smile, gesturing to offer me some.

"I'm okay, thank you,"

The waitress gives me a smile before walking away.

"My mom didn't like me to drink coffee," Rachel says, reaching for the sugar and pouring a long steady stream of it into her cup.

Dick chuckles, "Sweet tooth, huh?"

Rachel says nothing.

"Rachel, has anything like.. like what happened happened before?"

"No, not like that," Rachel takes a deep breath, her voice growing shaky, "I didn't mean to kill that guy,"

"How did you kill that guy," Dick presses further, but Rachel only takes a sip of her coffee and stares off to the side. "We're gonna go see some old friends of ours," Dick glances at me, They're safe, they'll give us a place to lie low for a second, get our heads together. Give us some time to get our heads together."

"You're scared I get it," I say to Rachel, "But sometimes there's no time to be scared,"

And then.

Pain.

Blinding pain.

That's all I could feel.

It felt as if my head was boiling and my bones were freezing and cracking.

"Fuck." I say, my eyes squeezing shut my body beginning to curl in on itself. My hand reaches out to grip Dick's arms, gripping him hard, my nails digging into his forearm.

"Y/n? Baby? Hey, hey what's going on?" Dick's worried tone just barely breaking through the crackling noises sounding in my head. Opening my eyes, I can make out Dick's worried expression through my blurred vision, his brows furrowed, eyes wide, lips parted slightly.

"Dick?" I say, my voice is shaky as my vision begins to grow dark, my body becoming numb.

"Babe, come on, talk to me, what's happening right now?" Dick begins to tap my face lightly, trying to get me to wake up.

All of a sudden, it feels like my body is getting pumped with pure oxygen and I gasp loudly, drawing attention from.others in the restaurant.

My chest heaves and I look around the room frantically as Dick continues to stare me down with his worried expression.

Dick's hands cup my face, "Are you okay? What just happened right now?"

"I-I don't know," I say, "I think I'm okay... I'm okay"

----------

Authors Note: This fic really is for the girls who just wanna take care of the poor baby. :/

Request Open!

(If there's anything specific you want to see in this story as well, just comment it, I am open to suggestions)

Lemme know if you wanna be on the taglist

[y01ky]

Phighting Incorrect Quotes

Hyperlaser: Are they sleeping, or dead?

Medkit: Hopefully dead, I hated them.

Coil: Yeah, me too.

Subspace, getting up: Phirst of all, phuck you guys.

---

Sword: They, well... I wouldn't call it inheritance, but, What do you call it when you kill someone and get their stuff?

Slingshot: Umm, murder?

Skateboard: Adventuring!

Subspace: Tuesdays.

---

Shuriken: I will send my army to attack!

Shuriken: (Releases a dumpster of insects)

---

Hyperlaser: Our relationship is strictly professional.

Subspace, sitting on Hyperlaser's lap: Absolutely!! Only on business.

---

Scythe: Gatekeep, girlboss, what's the other one?

Medkit: There isn't another one. You're crazy.

---

Banhammer: (Picks up hammer and breaks ringing cell phones)

---

Subspace: Let's bury the hatchet, Meddy!!

Medkit: I won't be burying any hatchet unless I get a clear shot at your head.

---

Vine Staff: Anyone care to explain why we have 6 dogs in our apartment?

Shuriken: They're golden retrievers, sis. They retrieve gold. I did this for ourselves.

---

Rocket: Dumbest scar stories, go!

Boombox: I burned my tongue once, drinking tea.

Slingshot: I dropped a hairdryer on my leg once, and it burned.

Sword: I have a piece of graphite in my leg for accidentally stabbing myself with a pencil in the first grade.

Shuriken: I was taking a cup of noodles out of the microwave and spilt it in my hand, and I got a really bad burn.

Medkit: I have emotional scars.

---

Rocket: Do you ever get pre-annoyed? Like you already know someone is gonna piss you off.

Medkit: What? No, I-

(Subspace enters the room)

Medkit: (Jaw clenches)

---

Subspace: Tomorrow's Garbage Day!

Medkit: I can't believe they made a whole day dedicated to you.

---

(Playing Chess)

Medkit: (Easily beats everyone because they know how to play)

Skateboard: (Doesn't know the rules and wins anyway)

Shuriken: (Doesn't know the rules and loses)

Slingshot: (Knows the rules and still loses to those who don't)

Coil: Actually, you can't do that because I said so.

Biograft: THEY NAMED A GAME AFTER CHEESE?

[littlebluentebook]

Alastor x Reader pt.6

A/N Oh my goodness! I didn't expect the story to get this much attention! Im going to do some sort of second story where Alastor and the reader are in hell. If theres no objections I'll also feature some helluva boss characters (just to advance the plot!)

I am very sorry for not updating! I went out of town, nearly broke my hip, got sick, and started a new job all in the last 2 weeks. I should be able to post once every three days now :)

Thank you to everyone reading the story! I love sharing my ideas and feel free to reach out if there are any stories you want to see!

TW-Animal Blood(?)

Chapter 7

You woke up in Alastor's arms. It wasn't on purpose! You both had agreed to split the bed, pride getting in the others way. Apparently, somewhere in the night you each reached for the other. Not minding the extra warmth, you fell back asleep. There was no point in moving away; you liked him, he was comfy, and kept you warm. The second time you woke up, the sun was bright and the bed was empty. Worried you checked the clock to make sure you hadn't overslept to open the shop. You had forty five minutes to get the store open. Not as much time as you would have liked, but also not anything too out of your range.

"Ah! My sleeping beauty, glad you're now awake!" a voice said from the doorway. Alastor? You thought he had left. "Come now! I have made us breakfast."

Alastor could cook. Breakfast tasted like it was picked up from a five star restaurant on the more expensive side of town. Over breakfast he told you that he was unable to leave such a beautiful person alone and you needed the rest from the previous night. He actually didn't leave you at all that day.

He sat talking with you in your shop keeping well mannered company. Alastor would never admit it, but he absolutely loved listening to you talk. He spent so much time talking on the radio it was nice to finally be listening to others. He never really cared for sewing but asked you questions about how you did certain things and complimenting your stitch work. He also would assist you while you worked; measuring, flipping things right side outing grabbing fabric as needed. He liked feeling useful to you and watching you work on something you were passionate about.

:Thank you so much for your help today Allie."

"Allie?" He tilted his head like a puppy hearing 'no' for the first time.

"Yeah! Like a nickname," you beamed at him. Alastor mulled the name over in his head before deciding it was okay when it rolled off your tongue and into his ears. No one else could ever be allowed to call him Allie aside from you.

"Hmmmm. Alright" He was at a loss for a nickname truly just wanting to call you his. "Why don't we go and fetch ourselves dinner. I know the most exquisite place!"

"that would be lovely!" Your demeanor was much calmer than your racing thoughts. First, Alastor had stayed the night and made breakfast. Secondly he spent the entire day with you. And now he wanted to take you to dinner! You felt like a romance character from the books you had read and heard stories of.

He had helped you close the shop, took your arm in his (it was the only way you two ever walked together) and he led the way to the restaurant.

It was a nice place with candles and flowers on the table. There was a live band playing softly to entertain guests as they dined.

Alastor was sweet and kind with you, he made excellent recommendations about what drinks to try and meals to order. You both split a cake together for dessert. The night was wonderful, absolutely perfect! The only thing that there you off was the way in which Alastor ordered his steak.

"Alastor!" you had whisper-yelled "that cow is so undercooked I can still hear it moo-ing in the fields. Do we need to have the waiter take it back for just a moment longer?"

"Haha oh no darling! I just enjoy my cut of meat like this. It holds so much more flavor!" You gave him a quizzical look swearing you had just seen blood dark as your wine pool on the plate.

When your night had come to an end, Alastor had walked you home and kissed your cheek. It had left you red and blushing thinking about it as you slept.

The next morning you had awoken ready to start your chores. You folded the blanket and pajamas that Alastor had borrowed and cleared a drawer for the items to reside in. Today you had a new activity you hadn't done in years.

You walked down the stairs leading to your shop and to the circular display table at the center of your shop. Grabbing the wilted flowers and vase you got to work and put them in your oven to dry them out. You loved keeping gifts, flowers were beautiful but difficult to keep but you made it work.

The entire day you were all that was on Alastor mind. He simply could not get enough of you despite spending the entire day together before. He was talking to his mother about the feeling and how he had never experienced it, unsure of what to do he was searching for advice. His mother was not helping the situation, she merely laughed at him. "Oh Al, why don't'cha go onna date together and court the poor thing!" What if you didn't like him back? What if he made a total fool of himself. His mother could sense his worries, "well whoever can put up with ya for a full day definelty doesn't not like you." She pinched his cheeks and went back to cooking for the both of them

[c-m-stuff]

Undercover

-Description: You and Spencer are married. When you needed to go undercover, something went wrong.

-Warnings: Angst, language, mention of rape, mention of fight

-Word count: 1214

-Note: Hey guys, I'm back with a somewhat more angsty one. Speaking of the warnings, those are only mentions, nothing got discussed in detail. This is also a repost from Wattpad! If you have any requests, send them in! Much love!

Request Guidelines

Masterlist

_________________________

Y/N POV:

'Are you ready?' Aaron asked, while we sat in the black SUV with Derek and JJ.

'Yes, I'm ready.'

I was about to go undercover, meeting with the unsub on a so called date. After creating a fake profile on one of the most popular dating sites, it took me an hour of chatting, before he finally asked me out.

I wore a beautiful, black dress, with stunning, black heels under it. A necklace was hugging my collarbone, while my hair was just loosely behind me. I got an earpiece in my ear, hearing everything the team said.

I took my little handbag, and stepped out of the SUV. While I took place in the sweet restaurant, Derek and JJ came walking in, taking place not much further. While we were all waiting for the man to show up, Penelope began talking.

'While we need to wait for that creep, I really need your advice, cupcake. I am stuck between two choices for a gift for Kevin's upcoming birthday. Either a thick book with lots of words in it, or a lame men's perfume.'

'Garcia, let's keep this professional.' Hotch joined the conversation, before adding:

'But, I would go for the book.'

'Look at that. Boss man has taste.' Derek chimed in.

'I agree. Thank you, sir.'

'He's coming.' Aaron announced, making my heart beat faster out of nervousness.

There he was. Victor Parker, the unsub we needed to catch. Thanks to the pictures, we've sent of ourselves, we were able to recognize one another. He looked around, before spotting me. I smiled, waving him over.

'So you must be my gorgeous date? I'm Victor Parker as you know, it's nice to meet you.' he kissed me on the cheek, before taking place on one of the seats.

'Thank you, I'm (fake name), it's nice to meet you too.'

We began talking about whatever came up in our minds, the team telling me to keep him distracted. The food came quick in, as we ended it later with a dessert. He was quiet easy to talk to, you wouldn't say, he's the bad guy. But, maybe that was the dangerous part.

After a lot of talking, eating delicious food and laughing, our date came to an end. But, not if Victor has anything to say about it.

'Hey gorgeous, would you want to watch a movie at my place? You can pick.' he smiled widely at me, a glistering in his eyes, that made me somehow shiver.

'We still don't have evidence, agree on the invitation.' my boss ordered through the earpiece, as I smiled, sweetly.

'I would love too!' I told him, as we left after paying. While we were walking towards his car, the team was talking in my ear.

'JJ and I, will drive right behind you, pretty girl.' Derek reassured, as Penelope chimed in.

'I'll watch the street security cameras, keeping an eye out for you two.'

'Be careful, love.' the man I much rather have a date with, spoke a bit concerned, as I cursed in my head for not being able to answer them.

__________________________

Spencer's POV:

I was watching the camera footage with Garcia, seeing the car my wife was in, while Morgan and JJ drove right behind them.

'And, boy wonder. Now you two are married, have you ever thought about having baby geniuses one day?' she asked, curiously, but I hadn't need to think about the answer.

'I-um, I actually would love to be a father someday.' I admitted, causing her to let out an enthusiastic shriek.

We turned our full attention back to the screens, Garcia switching from one security camera to another, the unsub and my wife still talking.

'Are you also scared of spiders? I'm terrified of them.'

My eyes went wide, hearing the sentence, (Y/N) just said. Garcia looked at me, worried as well. She just spoke the safety word, meaning something was wrong.

'Oh no, this is not good.' she turned around again to look at the screens, only seeing the car of Derek and JJ. She immediately began typing, the footage jumping from one to another.

No (Y/N) to be seen.

'Shit, we lost them.' I heard Derek curse through the walkie-talkie. I was quick in calling Hotch, my panic increase.

'Hotch, we got a problem.'

After explaining everything, it only took moments before he came storming in.

'Garcia, can you trace her earpiece?'

'No, I can't trace anything. They're probably somewhere without a signal.'

'No, no, no, that's not what I meant. I loved our date, I'm grateful we met.' (Y/N) her panicking voice sounded loudly through our walkie-talkie, she was clearly afraid. I began to panic more, scared something would happen to (Y/N).

'So, do you own this place?' she asked Victor, with a shaky voice.

'Oh, it's from your mother.'

'Garcia-'

'I'm on it!'

After the quick typing, she gave us the address, as we ran towards the SUV's. While driving with high speed, I couldn't maintain my emotions, my fears and concern visibly for everyone. It only got worse when hearing a terrified (Y/N) yelling.

'No! You don't have to do this! Please!' Morgan pressed harder on the gas, the inability of hearing the unsub bothered us every second more.

'No, please, stop!'

The next moment, we heard several screams and background noise. It looked like a fight was going on.

'We're here!' we immediately ran inside, our guns pointed in front of us.

As Morgan kicked in the door, we saw (Y/N), sitting on the back of the unsub, firmly holding his hands. Morgan quickly took it over from her, cuffing and escorting him away. Her shirt was off, leaving her in her bra. She had a blue eye, along with some other bruises.

I ran towards her, finally allowing the tears to roll. We both allowed. I wrapped gently my arms around her, scared to hurt her. After a lot of tears, I slowly pulled away, looking into her scared eyes.

'Did he?-' she shook her head, knowing what I was referring for. I was quick in taking my FBI coat off, helping her in it.

'He didn't. He only took my shirt off, before I hit him in the balls. It was a whole fight.' I sighed a breath of relief, glad she reacted fast, glad she was safe.

'I was so worried. You did so good, my love. I'm so proud of you.' I wrapped her in another hug, as I pressed kisses on her head, while rubbing her back, gently.

'Spence?'

'Yes, sweetheart?'

'Bring me home, please?'

'Of course! But, let's first go to the ambulance. I want to make sure you're alright.'

So said, so done. The paramedics checked her out and took care of her wounds. Afterwards, we went home, took an relaxing bath, and fell peacefully asleep in each other's arms.

[xxfangirl365xx]

Question: "What is a day you'll never forget?"

Ghoul's answer: The Day we met Show Pony

NOTE: Written in my wattpad a few months ago, i posted Jet's and Kobra's here so here is Ghoulie's (:

Mine predates all of the other guys' stories and it's kinda sappy but why not. Mine was the day I met my fellow prankster Show Pony. Despite popular belief they didn't just roll up and start hanging around with us.

The four of us ( Poison, Kobra ,Jet and I) had been in the zones about a year and had pretty well adjusted to life out in the middle of nowhere. We were on patrol by ourselves, one of the first times Dr.D let us do that alone. Basically we got to drive around all day, nothing usually ever happened. On this day in particular we were on our way home and spotted something off in the distance...Dracs? Possibly. We drew out ray guns and headed over only to be met with a horrifying scene of three people, all fairly young, seemingly dead.

"Dear Destroya" Poison remarked observing the sad scene

They definitely had just escaped the city and made it pretty far into the zones...unfortunately they were unarmed and didn't stand much of a chance.

Jet went to the three and looked to see if by some miracle they were alive. First two were a sad head shake no.

The third person had long dirty tangled black hair and was maybe about 17 years old...about the same age as me. Jet gently grabbed their wrist expecting nothing and were were all shocked when he found a pulse.

" Guys! This one's alive!"

" They're bleeding from somewhere on their head" Kobra noted, hiding behind his brother, scared for who knows what reason.

It's not a secret that I hate blood, I get a paper cut and nearly pass out and the guys make fun of me for it a lot, but this time it didn't bug me, I was much more bothered by the fact this poor kid was now hurt and alone laying next to their dead friends. I wasted no time In gently picking them up and we headed back to the car so we could go back to the diner and hopefully help this kid. I rested their head in my lap to keep them as comfortable as I could on the ride home. I took my vest off and covered them with it because it was getting cold. I felt really bad, you know, I was so lucky to have found a good group to rely on and call my family and I think this made me realize how fortunate I really was. This kid needed a friend and I decided to be that friend.

We got home and I carried their limp body in the diner and laid them on an extra mattress we had.

" YO DR.D" Poison yelled

" What's up boys?" He asked coming into the room a few seconds later ( this was before he hurt his leg)

"We found this wanderer on the route home" Poison explained " Their buddies were dead but they're alive for the time being"

He stood over my shoulder looking at the kid

" Should I call a doctor?" he asked after a second

" Aren't you a doctor?" Kobra asked confused

He laughed, realizing he had never clarified where that title came from

" It's just a name, I ain't got a degree to back it up. I don't know shit about medicine" he continued

" Ohhhhh..." we exclaimed in unison

"I'll call someone" He said leaving the room

I sat next to the kid for a while, just watching the rise and fall of their chest for what seemed like hours until an actual doctor came.

He looked them over before coming to the conclusion they were in perfect health other than a head injury.

" Just keep a close eye on them for the next few days,once they wake up they may be a little out of it but I'm sure they will be okay." He said before him and Dr.D went outside to smoke a cigar and gossip for a while.

" Well, you heard him. I guess they're gonna be alright" Jet said. "Well' I'm gonna go change the tire on the Trans-am, it's got a leak."

" I'll come watch." Poison said , Kobra following right behind his brother

Jet poked his head in the doorway after a second.

"You coming Ghoul?"

" Nah, I'm gonna sit with them." I said

" alright"

I sat for a while enjoying some silence until the kid began to wake up. Of course I had never been in a situation like this before.

I sat next to them and gently moved the hair out of their face.

"Ugghhh-shit" they mumbled groggily

'"Uhhh...Um.." what are you supposed to say in this situation?! " He-y?"

They looked over at me and the first they they said...I kid you not was

" Why do you have a bee on your sleeve?"

I looked at my shirt sleeve..I do have a bee on my shirt. Huh...good observation.

" Who...are you? You look funny." They said again

" I'm Fun ghoul, I'm Killjoy." I explained " what's your name?" I asked, unsure if they could answer that question. To my surprise they answered rather quick

" I've been waiting foreverrr for someone to ask me that. My name's Show Pony." They said slurring their speech.

" Nice to meet you, Show Pony... How ya feeling?"

"I dunno" they giggled

"Looks like you hit your head pretty bad huh?"

" I think so" they said continuing to giggle like a crazy person

" What's so funny?" I asked starting to laugh too

" The room's spinning it's like a carnival ride"

" Oh yeah that is fun- do you like carnivals?"

"Yeah...no clowns though"

" Oh you don't like clowns?"

" nu uh they're creepy and smelly...am I smelly? The dessert is gross." They thought for a second before they started crying

" Am I a clown? I'm weird looking and I smell" they said in between tears

I forgot the kind of wack mood swings that happened when you were going through withdrawals from BLI brainwash drugs.

'"Hey, you're not a clown, don't cry" I said, trying to comfort them.

Without a second though I knelt down further and hugged them.

They stopped for a second and were perfectly still.

" I overstepped and made them uncomfortable!" I said in my head " Oh Ghoul you idiot!"

To my surprise they hugged back and quietly whispered

" Thank you"

I spent the rest of the night doing my best to take care of Show Pony and just chatting and giving them a hard time while they tried to tell lame jokes such as this fun one at 2:07 AM

" Hey Ghoul Knock Knock"

"Who's there?"

" Boo"

" what?"

" Nooo you're supposed to say boo who!"

" Aww don't cry Pony"

" Your a jerk"

Show Pony became very good friends with us all and impressed Dr.D with their intense knowledge of music and when he started his station he made Show Pony his official helper.

So yeah, I love Pony, they're one of my best friends no matter how annoying they can be, one of my favorite people and a part of my large Zone family.

Anyways that's my story, see ya later

-Fun Ghoul

[aishangotome]

Yi Yu (Possessing an Aura of Trustworthiness)

Meeting Incidents

Incident 1:

I don't know if it's because of the humidity of the rainy season, but wild snakes appear from time to time in Yi Yu's modern courtyard. However, I've only ever caught a glimpse of them from a distance before they quickly disappear.

But this time, when I saw a dark, almost black, snake in the courtyard, it didn't leave. Instead, it lingered and slithered around.

I immediately turned and ran. In my panic, I even hugged a big tree and climbed up it. Suddenly, I missed my footing and woke up with a start. I opened my eyes to see Yi Yu softly calling my name.

Unlike the light rain in my dream, the weather today is clear, and sunlight is streaming through the glass windows into the room.

And I am clinging to him just like I was clinging to that tree, my arms and legs wrapped around him. I immediately adjust myself. "Sorry, did I make your arm go numb?"

Yi Yu shakes his head, his gaze gentle. "Did you have a nightmare?"

"Yeah." Only then do I notice that his clothes are also rumpled, revealing a bit of his chest.

He sat up slightly, seemingly intending to pull the quilt, which had been kicked to one side, back over me. As he moved closer, his chest loomed larger and larger in my view. Subconsciously, I turned my head away, but I still couldn't stop my face from flushing red. Out of sight, out of mind, as they say.

A chuckle came from above. "Do you want to sleep some more? If so, we'll have to have a late lunch."

I haphazardly grabbed the quilt and rolled myself up in it. "I, I'll just laze around for a bit longer."

"Alright, but..." His breath suddenly drew near, his voice laced with amusement. "You're grabbing my sleeve."

I immediately opened my eyes and looked at my hand. Sure enough, I had trapped the quilt and a bit of his sleeve under my elbow.

"Oh, oh..." I lifted my hand and quickly returned his sleeve to its original position, then pretended to be still half-asleep and continued to lie there.

My brain, which wasn't very clear to begin with this early in the morning, felt even more muddled now.

Incident 2:

On weekdays, I often accompany Xu Xian to the mountains to gather medicinal herbs, and I also pick some wild fruits to bring back home.

Fresh wild fruits don't keep well, so I save some for ourselves and sell the rest at a discount to the neighbor who runs the pastry stall.

This way, I've slowly managed to save up some money. It's not much, but it's enough to buy Yi Yu a small gift.

After careful consideration, I chose a silk hair ribbon. It's a light blue color with dark stripes that resemble feathers.

"It's not very expensive, but I'll get you something better later."

Yi Yu seems genuinely surprised, which is rare for him. Finally, he gently accepts the wooden box, a clear smile in his eyes.

"Thank you, I like it very much."

Ever since then, Yi Yu has worn that hair ribbon almost every day. When the ribbon flutters gently with his movements, it resembles willow branches swaying in the wind.

One day, I was organizing medicinal herbs when I heard a commotion. Suddenly, Yi Yu stepped in front of me.

It turned out that two customers who were picking up medicine had gotten into a conflict and knocked over things on the counter.

Because Yi Yu shielded me, I wasn't hit by anything, but his back was splashed with ink from an inkstone.

He didn't care about his clothes, though. He immediately took off the hair ribbon to check it, and the end was inevitably stained. Seeing his expression turn cold, I tugged on his sleeve.

"It's okay, I'll give you another one." Yi Yu turned to look at me, and his expression softened.

"There's no need to buy a new one. We can just modify it together."

Then, he took me along as he painted the stain to look like bamboo leaves.

"See, now it's one of a kind, isn't it?"

Incident 3:

It's the rainy season, and the locals are taking advantage of the seasonal bounty by frequently going up the mountain to dig up bamboo shoots and gather mushrooms.

Many of our neighbors who have been treated at the clinic also share these delicacies with us.

While sorting through the ingredients, Yi Yu asks me, "What would you like to eat for lunch?"

Looking at the fresh bamboo shoots and mushrooms in the basket, I naturally can't resist the temptation to try them.

"Can we eat these?"

Seeing me staring intently at him, Yi Yu smiles. "Of course, how would you like them prepared?"

"Hmm..."

Now I'm actually having trouble deciding.

"No worries, follow me."

Yi Yu washes his hands, leads me to the table, and picks up a brush and paper.

He wrote down a variety of cooking methods on the paper, with dishes and flavors from all different cuisines. As I looked at the names of the dishes, it felt like the words themselves had taken on flavor.

"To choose which one you want, and how strong you want the flavor to be, just tick the box next to it."

I couldn't help but laugh. "You writing it all down like this makes it even harder to choose. Why don't you just pick for me?"

Yi Yu's eyes curved into a smile, as if he wasn't surprised at all. Then he selected a few dishes, all with flavors that I usually enjoy.

"I'll make the rest for you later, we can alternate."

"If there's anything else you want to eat, you can add it yourself."

"Do you know how to make everything else too? That's amazing!"

Yi Yu shakes his head. "If I don't know how to make something, I can learn. As long as you're willing to put in the effort, it's not that difficult."

Actually, I originally wanted to take on the task of peeling the bamboo shoots, but Yi Yu said it's better to experience it once and not overdo it, because peeling too many can make your hands hurt. So, in the end, I didn't peel very many.

Incident 4:

It was a rare day with fine weather, and the clinic wasn't busy, so Yi Yu took me out for a boat ride on the lake. With a gentle push of the oars, the small boat glided smoothly across the water, which was as smooth as silk. A large expanse of early lotuses along the shore had already bloomed.

The boat weaved through them, and then Yi Yu stopped in the area where the lotuses were blooming most beautifully. He said,

"If you'd like, you can pick some to take back with us."

"Okay."

The lotuses were within easy reach, making it easy for me to pick them. Just as I picked two flowers and reached out for another, a large something suddenly darted out in front of me.

Caught off guard, I let out a startled cry and fell backward. The next thing I knew, I had tumbled into Yi Yu's arms.

"What's wrong?" He instinctively wrapped his arms around my waist and asked softly in my ear.

"There's... there's something that dashed past."

"Don't be afraid." He turned me around in his arms, gently patting my back. "It was probably an egret or a wild duck. I'll pick some lotuses for you in a moment, alright?"

I nodded, leaning against his shoulder.

Because of my sudden movements, the small boat lost its balance and rocked back and forth, causing Yi Yu and me to bob up and down with it.

The close proximity of our bodies and the intermittent touches made my face feel hot.

"Why is your heart still beating so fast? It seems like you were quite frightened."

Yi Yu seems to have a knack for bringing up exactly what I'd rather not talk about. His tone was clearly concerned, but his soft whispers, so close to my ear, only sent shivers down my spine.

"Come, let me take a look."

He said it as if he was going to examine me, but when I saw that familiar playful glint in his eyes, I knew he was just teasing me.

I gave him a light punch. "No way, you quack doctor."

Incident 5:

I looked at the two bowls of noodles on the table, then looked at Yi Yu, and asked uncertainly, "Are both of these for me?"

"Yes."

Yesterday, I had complimented the noodles from a noodle shop, and today Yi Yu had recreated them for me. However...

"Why did you make the same bowl of noodles twice?"

"The one made earlier and the one made later are naturally different."

"No need to force yourself. Just eat whichever bowl you think tastes better."

I instantly understood. He had probably done that stubborn thing again where he gets fixated on a minor detail and keeps trying to improve it.

So, to be fair, I decided to eat half a bowl of each. And as it turned out, there really wasn't any difference in taste.

Since Yi Yu always likes to buy me things, I decided to take some time to organize my dressing case.

Just as I started tidying up, Yi Yu knocked and came in, then placed a box of rouge on the table. Seeing me put a velvet flower into my hair, he asked, "Do you like that one?"

Actually, I had just bought it and hadn't worn it before, so I was trying it on. But then, remembering the two bowls of noodles from lunchtime, I changed my response.

"Didn't you say this morning that you thought this one looked good?"

Yi Yu raised an eyebrow subtly. "Which of these two do you think suits me better?"

He seemed to consider it for a moment, then picked up another flower and said, "Apologies, it seems I was mistaken earlier."

"Although they both look good on you, this one suits you better."

"Oh, no, I remembered wrong. You said this one looked good this morning, too."

I took this opportunity to express my thoughts: "So you see, you are you, and that won't change no matter what, right? The same goes for me."

Yi Yu paused as he was handing me the flower, then smiled. "Indeed."

----

Card Story

Yi Yu picked up a segment of orange from the plate. It was juicy, but the taste was sour and astringent.

He picked up another segment, but in the end, he swallowed it whole.

The same season, the same variety, yet he still couldn't recapture the taste from his memory.

He had become like the fool who carved a mark on the side of his boat to find a sword he had dropped into the river.

On the stage, the actors were singing, "Let go of the flowing water, turn back from the sea of suffering, and quickly awaken to the root of the orchid."

Tears flowed freely, and the singing stopped abruptly.

Listening to this line, he gave a self-deprecating laugh, stood up, and quietly left the place.

-

The rainy season in Jiangnan is always lingering and tender, but the abundant moisture also easily allows fungal toxins to breed in dark places.

Damp, riddled with holes.

After many years, he returned to Lin'an City.

Since she left, he had embarked on a journey to find her.

Perhaps he should have waited in place, but here, everywhere he looked, there were traces of her life, constantly reminding him of her departure.

The rocking chair by the window, where she liked to keep snacks beside her while lying down and reading novels.

The broken corner of the fan by the medicine-boiling stove, with her slightly crooked stitches from when she mended it.

His usual hair ribbon, the ink stain accidentally splashed on the end, which she carefully painted over to resemble bamboo leaves.

The shop they frequented, where the owner would smile familiarly and say, "Here to buy something for your wife again? The usual?"

Every brick and tile, every plant and tree, seemed to be filled with her presence.

But that rocking chair never swayed again, the fan was quietly placed in the corner.

There was no pair of hands to tie his hair ribbon for him anymore, the snacks he bought remained untouched in the bag until they turned cold...

It was a strange feeling, like lying in damp bedding that hadn't seen the sunlight, as if his whole body was about to grow mold.

So he left too.

He needed to find the fire that would warm him up again.

It was ironic, he was a snake demon, yet he couldn't bear to be without sunshine.

But where to go, he didn't know either. He just kept dredging up and sifting through those memories, piecing together possibilities from her fragmented words.

-

He traveled across the Central Plains, the northern borders, the mountains and rivers, and the lakes and seas. He witnessed heavy snowfall, vast deserts, and perilous peaks shrouded in clouds.

The four seasons flowed beneath his feet, and time slipped through his fingers.

Her scent on his old clothes gradually faded. No matter how much his magic improved, he couldn't preserve even a trace of it.

He curled up slightly within those clothes, as if touching her warmth once more.

This day, he had a dream.

It is very rare for demons to dream.

He dreamt of the time when he first took on human form. The moment he opened his eyes, he saw a flower in full bloom.

It was a color he had never seen before, vibrant and passionate, piercing through all the previous gloom.

Before taking human form, as a snake, his world had consisted only of monotonous colors, because he didn't need them. His special visual abilities were enough for him to hunt and survive.

Then, he dug up the entire flower.

He liked it, so he had to have it.

The law of demons was that simple.

He bought the most exquisite flowerpot, prepared the most fertile soil, planted the flower, and watered it and removed insects on time.

But the flower began to wither.

He was a little puzzled. Was the flowerpot too small?

So, he transplanted the flower to the courtyard. Although it stopped wilting further, its leaves seemed to dim.

Why? Wasn't it good here? The original place had sharp gravel and the mountain forest was overgrown with weeds competing for nutrients. Wouldn't it be able to grow better here?

The flower remained silent.

It couldn't tell him the answer.

In the end, he took it back to its original place.

It took root again in the familiar soil, its branches and leaves stretching freely in the wind, as bright as when he first saw it.

Dreams are fragmented and illogical. The next moment, he was sitting by the window of the clinic, holding a book in his hand.

Beside him was she, lying on the rocking chair, smiling at him.

It was a rare sunny day, and the sun was shining brightly. The sunlight streamed through the window lattice, as if trying to melt her into that warm color.

She asked, "And then? What is the ending of the story?"

He looked at the book in his hand, but he couldn't make out the words, only a blur.

He said, "They overcame all obstacles and lived happily ever after."

"Really?" she asked. Her face also started to blur along with the pages.

"Really." He immediately grasped her hand.

She smiled, her eyes curving. "You're lying. I've read this book before. In the end, one of them forgets everything and the other dies. They can never be together."

The brilliant sunlight seemed to melt everything, and even that smile seemed to become cruel.

He raised his hand, but only grasped emptiness.

The book fell to the ground with a thud.

The dream shattered just like that.

...

He opened his eyes. The room was as empty and silent as ever, only the comb she used to use had fallen beside the bed, lying there quietly.

He got up, picked it up, put it back in the case, and then walked to the corridor.

The rain had just stopped, and there were still water droplets on the eaves and grass blades. He sat down at the wooden table in the corridor and took out the hairpin from his arms.

It was a green jade bamboo hairpin, still carrying his faint body warmth. He caressed the hairpin and looked at the copper coins and divination symbols on the table.

He didn't actually believe in fate, but when it came to her, he was like a devout believer, burning incense and driven to madness.

Throughout the long years, he had also divined countless times, trying to find out where she was and when they would meet again.

But without exception, it was impossible to calculate, impossible to predict.

She was nowhere to be found, as if such a person never existed in the world.

But he clearly remembered everything about her, every word she said. She said they would meet again, so he firmly believed it.

He casually started a divination. It might be another disappointment, but it didn't matter. He was used to waiting.

A sudden gust of wind ruffled the spring water in the pond, and the wind chimes under the eaves made a clear, melodious sound.

The scales on his chest suddenly became hot, as if dead ashes had been rekindled.

The spinning of the copper coins on the table stopped, revealing a surprising result that seemed like an illusion.

He looked up in the direction of the Broken Bridge. The real stirrings in his heart, the re-intensified connection, clearly told him:

She had come back.

Like a long-awaited spring finally arriving after a hundred years.

[docholligay]

Shamash Day Points: Misc Nominations

The question was to pick any line of mine from a fic post whatever that was your favorite this year! Only five answers, which, on the one hand, OUCH, on the other hand, well, I gave each of you five points just for playing so suck it everyone else.

responses below! There is one person I can't tag so make sure you check.

Euri! (I don't know your tumblr name so you'll have to watch close in case you win, since I can't tag you.

"Ah see, so your little game of condescension was unnecessary after all . When you put it all your effort, still, you could not prevail. So perhaps we shall find ourselves learning something about our own arrogance, hm?"

Ah Michiru, how much fun you are to write. With no other character do I get the chance to really flex my actual knowledge of insane vocab and grammar bullshit because everyone else is a human person ahaha.

@seolh

You know I love your writing. Your descriptions and imagery are fantastic. I mean. "The flat darkness was turning to one she could feel, plush, soft, like one of Michiru’s winter dresses, or the pillows on the couch at the country club. Something so thick it could suffocate you in its luxury." Come ON who describes darkness that way? (More people should because it is evocative and legitimately sensory.)

But I am a slut for my blorbos and so: "but it was another thing to know that Angela had known Fareeha was the one when she, with military precision, had cupped a moth flying inside, and simply released it out an open window." MY HEART

I was SO HOPING you would read that. You know how I'm forever saying there are things you need to know about your characters, that your audience does not need to know, necessarily? I have known that Angela knew about Fareeha at this moment for PROBABLY FIVE YEARS AT LEAST. But there was never a reason to bring it up, because it's not material. But! When I'm me, in the story, I can just say that shit! That in this moment, Angela knew she was not only dedicated and detailed and reliable and all that shit, but under all of it, she was merciful to creatures she did not have to be. That she was not, exactly, tender or soft, but she was kind. Strong like a steel bridge, built to bear in the service of others. Not unlike Angela in some ways. Perfect for her.

@katrani

I'm still catching up on being away from the blogs I like so I don't have much! So nothing poignant but I love the idea you swung of Mustang and Hawkeye getting a call to confirm Ed's identity and denying it for the lulz. Absolutely, amazingly in-character for all you've seen them for maybe 30 minutes.

Roy and Hawkeye are my absolute favorite part of FMA so far and I probably never will given everything in my life including my real struggle with writing, but if I were going to write fanfiction ever it would be about them.

@automatuck9

From the May Choose Your Own Adventure: “ People didn’t take the power of belief seriously enough. If you could get people to believe something, anything could happen. You marched armies based on the power of belief, people died and killed for it. People love to believe, all you need to know is what they need to believe in.” I think it’s very nicely phrased, it’s great character stuff for Mina, and it’s a good opener for the connecting idea between the POV switches in the chapter.

On a less serious side I keep coming back and laughing to the FMA post when they first meet Tucker and hear his chimera died: "It turned out God could not suffer such a thing to live! Anyway, I've got some analogy study guides you'll want to work on for the exam"

I love Mina because she's in competition for Worst Person, and part of that is because she is so smart when it comes to people. People are her gift, and her tool, and she knows how to wield them. I think she's probably the most naturally manipulative character I write. Love that for her, love that for me.

And humor is totally allowed! The tonal break of that moment is so funny to me.

@madegeeky

"She was a red pen made flesh, and it was an unstoppable flaw, that she could not simply be kind. There always had to be a post-script to any kind word." I love this line for so many reasons. The imagery is great and it does such a good job describing a character. But the more I've thought about it, I also like it for how much it also describes Minako, but in a completely opposite way.

Both can't stop themselves from adding extra into the thing being said. But Fareeha adds to it at the end of her thought, a "but" disguised as a post-script, that changes the entire feel of what she's just stated. Minako, meanwhile, scatters her extra thoughts throughout the things she said, footnotes to her words, asides that are kept secret between her and her audience.

The meaning, the extra, the technically not needed, is there whether they want it to be or not.

And I keep thinking about how Fareeha's current situation, where she's trying to keep herself from writing that post-script, is a direct result of Minako losing her ability to keep her true thoughts in the footnotes, the asides suddenly heard by the entire rest of the cast.

Yes! The saving grace of Fareeha, if we're going to call it that, is that she is only as critical of other people as she is of herself. That being said, she is insane. And she KNOWS this, she KNOWS she is a hyper critical person, and she still cannot stop herself from pointing out where someone could stop fucking something up. She's the queen of saying, "I appreciate this/you did well/I care about you BUT, which, as you say, has a tendency to erase every word before it.

Fareeha is correcting, Minako is annotating.

[larentsbabie]

Okay, so I have a lot to say about Louis’ little “chat” and I'll start with a bit of a recap.

A few weeks ago, there have been articles that said Louis is single and doesn't have children. Granted, the articles were not credible enough as it is an obvious lack of basic information since Louis Tomlinson has a son named Freddie and it's all over Wikipedia just a click away. But that just means that the general public has no idea that Louis Tomlinson has a son without googling about the information.

Then the LATAM tour was announced. Louis said it himself that he was offered the rooms of same size as the last tour but he wanted to go big and bold so he chose stadiums. To get the general public interested in an artist, the very common thing to do is to bring them into news, and negative publicity gets more clicks. People will click away to see a celebrity be ‘rude' or 'fight' someone for not respecting their space cause tell me how many of y all not love drama. It's tea, right?

Another way to get into public's eye is by getting into a new relationship. Which is what I've been predicting for Louis for a month now. So, imagine my shock when he went and said "NO" to a "stunt" and instead just took a simple path of bashing fans.

This is not the first time Louis has done this.

I've more to say, so read it all before you come after me for disagreeing on something.

I'll spell it out for y'all!

We should all be very thankful that Louis just got the stunt done with a simple foolish reply to a tweet that was totally unrelated rather than going out hand in hand smooching the face off of another girlie.

Because if that had happened, the media would've been out like crazy about that and it'd have gone on for we don't even know how long.

To me, even a 2 month stunt sounds long ass at this moment cause I can't deal with that shit!

Secondly, remind me of all of those times when Louis intimated us prior of a "chat", like proper

"announced" and "invited" us to chat with him with an hour of replies to our tweets. But he did that on Monday. He wanted all of our attention on his replies yesterday cause he wanted the attention to his stunt. If that doesn't tell you something's fishy- there's more.

Half the tweets Louis replied to yesterday seemed hand-picked. Call me a conspiracy theorist but the conspiracy theories aren't just born out of no where. Where there's smoke, there's fire. If he hadn't given us something to build our theories on, there would've been no theories at all. But ALAS!

If he wanted to deny the conspiracy theories of conspiracy theorists as he names it, he would've found hell of a lot of tweets. There's never any scarcity of Larry tweets or posts on any platforms. But no, he went and made a fool out of himself by denying Larry on one tweet where there was no relation to Larry at all.

And if you think he was actually foolish in doing that, you're absolutely out of your mind. That man is a bloody mastermind who destroyed a man like Simon Cowell one step at a time.

Louis would NOT go so unrelatable on replies for no reason at all. He HAD to deny Larry one way or the other. If it hadn't been over "chicken parmesan", it'd have been over something more serious that would've actually hurt us all. So, y'all should be thankful that THAT man was willing to make himself look "confused" while he denied it rather than make us all question ourselves over other sensitive topics.

Now, about "chicken parmesan". My man Louis William Tomlinson got so off the track- it gave me major second hand embarrassment. Like, babe, Louis, I love you.

We will hand craft tweets for you to deny Larry the next time, just let us know beforehand. We'll hand craft tweets in a way that none of us look foolish and the public gets the message, too! What you did yesterday was hysterically funny!

Like, sir, think about it a minute.

You mentioned all through your career of that ONLY DISH you've ever cooked driven by pure romance for the love of your life. The infamous, chicken stuffed with mozzarella cheese wrapped in Parma ham with a side of home made mash.

Not to mention that you used to bring it up every chance you got ALONG WITH the crazy hand gestures. Ooofff!!! And you'd think it's an old story, one he used to tell 8 years ago while in ID. But oh, may I tell you how wrong you are? The latest he mentioned that was in 2019. One would think he'd forget it after all those years but my man always bragged about his one time in kitchen every chance he got even almost a decade later. He even mentioned that he cooked it out of love for his girlfriend. Sure, sir. I mean why not a girlfriend who at the time was vegan? But I'm not gonna question it at the risk of looking like a conspiracy theorist. Absolutely not. Can't afford that.

But when a fan asks for the recipe of a dish WHICH IS NOT EVEN THE SAME ONE HE COOKED AND BRAGGED about every chance he got for a decade, he flips it over and calls them a conspiracy theorist. Sit your ass down, sir. This is a pr nightmare as it is. Like look at that!

If y'all ever need a reason to laugh in life, this should be it.

I have many serious questions but I'll only ask one.

When the fuck did we let you in on our conspiracy theories about your beloved dish? If you know about the fandoms deepest darkest theories, that only means that you go lurking to dig them up for yourself.

And if you're so interested in the theories themselves, that only means that you care about them all cause they are not just theories but the truth of your life.

For someone who says, "I've never been asked about it directly. It's funny. I mean, PEOPLE CAN BELIEVE WHAT THEY WANT TO BELIEVE but it's comes across SOMETIMES a little bit disrespectful to not me but) my girlfriend. Like genuinely, if you google a conspiracy on iPhones, you'll get a conspiracy you know what I mean?" when asked to make a comment to deny Larry, it sounds an awful lot like you know every thing we talk about cause you are interested to know. And to be fair, we know that you care and we know that you know. And we know that you want us to understand and not give up. And we know that you trust us to not give up. So, we'll be here.

And can I take this moment to remind you all of the fact that Louis, when Dan Wootton put him on the spot to deny Larry, has not once made proper eye contact with the camera and fidgeted like crazy while talking about google, iPhone conspiracies and saying obviously, genuinely? And may I also remind y'all that he made Dan fucking Wootton take that interview down very soon after it was released? They LEGIT had to take that interview down cause Louis couldn't handle denying Larry in front of the camera like that!

So, if he had to put a rock on his heart all those times he had to deny Larry through tweets, I'll fucking understand his struggle and be happy with the outcome, no matter what!

In conclusion, I know that was a lot to read so for those who skipped. What Louis did was for the best.

Him denying Larry specially through that one tweet that's totally unrelated was very much his plan.

He wanted to get his job done as his management wanted him to but he simultaneously failed them very willingly and made a mess for them to pick up after him.

That man is a genius and doesn't do things for no reason. It is what it is. Laugh at it while you can and move on!!

[takobaki]

𓆩♡𓆪 Snowy innocence 𓆩♡𓆪 // PT: 3

彡Like a kid in a candy shop彡

˗ˏˋSams shop´ˎ˗

A/N: So this one has a bit of Alkni's backstory or well the events leading up to her being transported to NRC lol, also Ik what imp means just in case lmao

Fun fact Alkni's name is pronounced Alk-e even though that isn't the actual way to say the name

Word count:

WARNING:

Other parts here

"Welcome to Mister S's Mystery Shop! My friends on the other side tell me you came here looking for something. Ee hee hee!" Sam said as he waved to the the Octavinelle students, a warm and welcoming smile on his face "Oh- Whose that little imp!" Same asked as he pointed to Alkni, who only buried her face into Floyds neck, trembling slightly

"That's what we're hoping you would tell us" Azul said as he grabbed Alkni, setting her on the ground. "Do you think you could get your friends on the other side to help us find out" He continued while gently rubbing the 5 year old girls head. Sam let out a hum as he nodded, before turning to Alkni with a smile "Of course I can, my store will meet anyone's needs! Now little imp, what's your name" Sam asked as he slightly bent down to look at the little girl, before turning around to grab her a octopus shaped lollipop

Alkni happily took the candy from him, quickly popping it in her mouth as Sam let out a quiet chuckle. "A...Alk...n..i" The 5 year old girl spoke as she grabbed Azul's pant leg, still slightly weary of Sam

"How are we supposed to even feed that- that- kid if we cant even feed ourselves!?" Yelled the woman, venom lacing her tone as she slammed her fists against the creaky wooden table "Just throw her out again. She'll probably find some way to eat and maybe someone will take her so we don't have to deal with her" The light haired male said as he leaned back, his head resting against the wall as he picked at his teeth. Alkni flinched hard as she peeked through the door leading into the room they were talking in, as tears grew in her eyes. Quickly wiping her tears with her scarred fist, she quietly went to find even the smallest bits of food so she wouldn't have to go hungry for as long as she currently has

Sitting on the cold ground, the little hugged her knees close to her chest as she listened to the people happily chatting with one and another, completely obvious to the child left all alone again. Pushing herself up with the help of the wall, she peeked over the corner of her hiding place, hoping to find maybe a food vendor or a new shop that might've opened. Taking a step out, she reluctantly walked over to the bakery since there where no such things that she had hoped for, while silently begging that the owner would maybe allow her to get something this one time Peeking in through the large windows, she saw that there seemed to be a new person working there, making her eyes light up in hope. Yet all that hope went down the drain as she felt a hand grip her arm tightly. "What did I tell you about trying to steal from my shop. How many times do I need to kick you out for you to understand that you. aren't. getting, Anything" The owner hissed, his tone full of venom as he glared at the small girl, making her winch as turned her head away. The man clearly didn't know of her situation as if he did, he may have been nicer- or not. Dragging her harshly through the streets, he turned a corner, appearing in a rather messy alleyway, pieces of glass and cardboard littering the floor, as he tossed her down harshly onto the dirty floor, causing pieces of glass to cut her skin. "If you ever come back again to my shop, I wont hesitate to call the police on you like I should've done awhile ago" The man hissed before walking away Alkni attempted to push herself up, her hands trembling as they got nicked on the small shards of glass, making her let out quiet yelps. As the extremely small childs stomach let out a rumble, she sat against the wall of a building, tears filling her eyes as she let out a quiet sob while she wrapped her arms around her stomach in a attempt to quiet the rumbling. After sitting there for longer then she thought, she felt drops of rain hit against her pale skin, making her flinch as she snapped out of her zombie like trance. Alkni let out a quiet yawn as she looked up to the sky as the rain rewet her dried tears Gathering pieces of cardboard she attempted to form them into the shape of a bed, just wanting to go to sleep and wake up from the nightmare she was forced to live in, even if it was impossible

Alkni was sat on the counter, swinging her legs back and forth as she slowly chewed on her lollipop that Sam had given her. Sam stared at the little girl, as he thought about what his friends from the other side had told him about her, and what she had gone through. Walking over to her, he bent down to meet her eye to eye, as he gave her a warm smile in a attempt to comfort her.

"Do you see anything that you would like little imp, " Sam asked Alkni with a warm smile as he gently rubbed her head "I'm sure you will be able to find something you like!" He continued as he gestured around the store.

Alkni looked at him surprised for a moment as if she was asking as if he was serious, making the shop owner let out a chuckle as he nodded "Whatever you want" Sam confirmed as he picked her up, before setting her on the floor

As Alkni was looking through the store, albeit wearily, Sam went over to the three Octavinelle students, using the fact that she was focused on something else to explain to the three boys about what had happened to her

As Sam was finishing up speaking with Azul, Jade, and Floyd, he felt a small tug at his pants leg, and upon looking down, he saw Alkni holding a bread shaped stuffed animal, Alkni thinking that it was actual food instead of a toy. "You want that little imp? Well then its all yours" Sam exclaimed with a warm smile as he gently ruffed her messy dusty black hair.

Standing up, Sam looked towards the students again, his gaze slightly darker then usual. "Be careful with them" Sam spoke to them as he crossed his arms ocer his chest, before looking down at Alkni with a warm smile, only to see her trying to eat the bread shaped stuffed animal, making him cover his mouth in a attempt to cover a chuckle

[thefreakydeaky]

After the Thrill is Gone

Part thirteen Fourteen

Negan Smith x Reader

Daryl Dixon x Reader

Modern AU

Summary: From the first moment you laid eyes on Negan you were inexplicabley drawn to him. The passion between you is hot and only grows more intense the longer you see each other. There is only one problem, you're both married to other people.

Warnings: Dark Fic , Rape/Noncon, Violence, Stalking, Stalker behavior, Smuttyness, Adult Language...

"Yeah, every Wednesday he gets so drunk he can't get home and every Wednesday we find ourselves driving him there." Rick told you all of a local congressman.

You laughed then took another sip of your beer.

"Good to know we're not the most boring town you've ever worked in." Daryl commented

"Not by far." Rick assured him. "The first town I ever worked in, my hometown was a one stop light town. Now that was boring."

After you had helped Lori clean up, as mich as she would allow you to anyway, you got ready to leave. You gatheres your kids and reminded them to retrieve anything they had brought with them. As Hunter went to retrieve his handheld video game, you looked ahead and saw Daryl and Rick talking still near the back door that led to the backyard. Your husband's stoney expression worried you. Rick had a hand on Daryl's shoulder and from the look on his face the conversation was definitely serious.

Not wanting Wyatt to notice, you turned your face back to your kids. It turned out you hadn't had a reason to do so as you noticed he was busy talking to Carl. Both the boys' eyes were on the screen of Carl's phone.

Oh Great. You thought. He's gonna ask us to get him a phone again.

It was an argument that kept coming up as he got older. He insisted that he needed a smart phone and you and your husband insisted that if a situation arose where he needed to call someone there was always a phone he could borrow from the person he was with. It wasn't as if you allowed your child to go off anywhere on his own yet. He was too young to be responsible enough yet. Wyatt of course did not understand and continued with increasing frequency to ask you for his own device.

Daryl came in from the back yard then. You smiled a little. He looked at you and there was something dark in his eyes some emotion you couldn't quite name. You took a breath and looked away. You turned your attention to saying good bye to Lori and her family and picking up Millie. You took hold of Hunter's free hand and followed Lori to the door which she held open for you.

"Thank you again." You said as you went passed her.

The drive back to your house was quiet. Daryl was usually quiet, but his mind seemed preoccupied with some worry or another.

That night as you were getting ready for bed you could feel Daryl watching you undress. You felt a bit self conscious, but tried not to show it.

"I thought we were gettin' better." Daryl said suddenly. "I thought we were makin' progress, but we aren't are we?"

You turned, surprised by his remark.

"We are. I think we are. You don't?"

His green eyes were on your chest until you pulled your night dress over you covering up.

He sighed.

"Doesn't feel like it...lately."

You frowned.

"How do you mean?"

"I mean, we did...our homework once and that was a month ago maybe more." He watched you get into bed beside him. "You've been actin' weird. real weird for a while now and I'm not sure what to make of it."

You tried to keep your expression neutral.

"The only thing new I've had on my mind is Wyatt playing baseball. It worries me. I don't want him learning from that-that man." You finished lamely.

Daryl nodded.

"And that's all it is. Stress?"

"Yeah, Just stress." You assured him.

He rolled onto his side, closer to you.

You did the same, facing him.

"I know we still have a long way to go toward workin' this out, but I hope we're learnin' that we can talk to each other about anythin' that's botherin' us, anythin' that's goin' on. That we can trust each other." Hesitantly, he reached for your hand.

You took it into yours and held on gently.

"We're tough enough to face whatever comes at us, together." He told you.

You looked into his serious forest green eyes and then down at your hands, entwined. You weren't entirely sure you believed his words to be true.

•••••••••••••••••••••

The sun shone brightly above you as you pushed Millie's stroller down the sidewalk. You could see the tall figure of Negan standing by a bench near the empty playground in a black wind breaker and matching black pants.

He said your name as you neared.

"I'm sorry. My clock must be behind I thought I was on time-"

He reached for you. You flinched as he pulled you into a hug and kissed the top of your head. You felt your hair move slightly as he inhaled your scent.

"Now, now, calm down, Doll. You're on time. I got here a little early. That's all."

You were somewhat relieved by the revelation, but remained wary.

He let go of you and bent over to release Millie from her seat.

Together the three of you walked over to the little covered playground. Negan set your daughter down onto the first stair so she could climb up to the slide and you waited near the bottom where the slide wound down like the bottom of a twister.

You watched as Millie climbed the steps and used the metal posts to steady herself. She took a big step up and sat down at the mouth of the slide. She giggled as she slid down. You caught her at the bottom then walked her back to where Negan was so he could set her on the stairs again. Then you went back to the slide.

"So, does he suspect anything?" He asked casually.

You thought back on the conversation you had with Daryl.

"I don't know." You kept your eyes on Millie as you brought her to Negan again.

"Well is he acting different, talking to you different, asking questions?"

You sighed.

"He said that I've been weird. So, I told him it's because I'm stressing about Wyatt being in baseball."

"Hmm." Negan helped Millie back up the stairs.

"I can't help, but be stressed having this part of my life collide with my family life, my home life. I constantly feel like Daryl will notice some random thing and somehow that'll make him put it all together. To be honest, living like this, it's exhausting."

"Is that why you tried to end it with me? Stress?"

You nodded.

"Although, it's definitely more stressful now than it was then."

"Your life would have become complicated even if you hadn't tried to break up with me. I would have ended up being Wyatt's teacher anyway. I'm the only Gym teacher at that school."

You frowned.

"Yeah, I guess you're right."

You caught Millie and placed her on your hip.

Negan came over to your side. He ran a hand over your baby's head then did the same to you.

"My beautiful girls." He said the words with something like ownership in his tone. It made you shiver unpleasantly. "Why don't we go for a walk?" He took your free hand in his and led the way off the playground.

You set Millie onto her feet and held her hand in one of yours, Negan's hand in the other. You walked along the trail together quietly for a time. Not thinking about what he had done to you was nearly impossible, but you had to try otherwise you would follow your instincts and flinch away from his touch. He wouldn't like that.

"Have you thought about putting Millie into pre-k?" He asked.

You gasped.

"Pre-k? She's only three."

"She'll be four soon enough and there's a pre-kinder class at that religious school, Sacred Heart. You can start looking into it now. See what you'll need to get her acepted and registered, that way she'll be set next fall."

You frowned.

"That's a private school. We don't have the money to-"

"Don't worry about money. I know someone in the front office who can get her a scholarship. I'll take care of that part of it. You just tell Daryl you found a scholarship program. He's not gonna say no if it's free."

She nodded. It felt gross to be discussing parenting decisions with Negan when Daryl had been the one by your side raising Millie with you. You swallowed your distaste to get through the visit.