#if you're seeing this it means this should've stayed in the drafts

[discjude]

Sometimes playing Roblox is silly and goofy and just an alright experience and then sometimes you guide two identical bacon hairs through a horror game and you get so far and they both do so well and then one dies and you spend a minute waiting for him (with the other one) to walk through the door alive and he doesn't so you both begrudgingly move on because you have to keep going and then the other one dies not a few rooms later. and there is nothing I could do about it. they waited for me by locked doors because they trusted I'd find the key. We waited for each other if one got lost. my beautiful sons. the universe is so cruel to the innocent.

[vickyyoon]

Miss You

Synopsis: you and your boyfriend hyunjin haven't seen eachother for months due to busy schedules, one day you catch him crying about not being the best boyfriend

C/w: smut, unprotected sex, established relationship, angst with fluffy ending, hyunjin is kinda sub? (idk what old me was thinking, it was in my drafts)

-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-

The relationship seemed to be sinking, both of you trying to deal with personal problems outside the relationship. Struggling with thengs you weren't in charge of but still had to deal with, thought you two never argued or fought but you never really had time to even do that.

Hyunjin would be always in the deep end thinking about what to do to keep you in his life. He truly loved you and didn't want to let go of you but even if you stayed the guilt of not being committed to the relationship.

You would be so caught up in so many problems, that he would never understand but the only common problem you Two shared was the guilt of ghosting each other.

The days went by so fast, you couldn't even call him. You didn't blame him for not calling you first or not planning things with you because you were going through the same thing and could relate to his excuse.

Dispite living under the same roof, you two barely saw each other, you were gone in the day and he was gone in the night. And coincidentally those days when you have night shifts, he has day shifts meaning you'll never get to see him.

You couldn't even tell if he was home or in the dorms practicing in the company.

Since when did time fly so fast? How long has it been since you saw him in person?

.

Those reckless days, you're heart was crashing. Problems after problems on your hand.

That day you just felt like you wanted to see him, seeing him might ease your heart. You stood outside the building waiting for him to come out, it was day time, a meeting he was attending. The meeting was supposed to end so long ago. What was he still doing in there? Was he gonna stay in the dorms?

You were greeted by the members as you entered their apartment. His door was unlocked and he was huddled up in his blanket on his side, his back facing you.

You thought he was sleeping, you went closer but heard sniffles coming from the other side. Wait... Was he really crying?

You sat at the edge of his bed. He began to speak.

" hyung, I feel like I don't deserve her, she needs someone who's involved in her life. I wanna see her so bad."

He thought it was one of the older members sitting in his bed. You came closer and brushed a strand of hair from his face as his gaze widens at the sight of you.

" y-y/n? What are you doing here?"

" I just wanted to see you, it's been so long. I guess I should've known how hard it was getting for you. I should've visited you earlier."

He sat up right wiping his tears and hiding his face in his palms.

" hey, don't hide from me. Who said you don't deserve me? Sometimes I think I don't deserve you at all. I mean I don't even get the time to attend your concerts or fansigns."

You said calmly holding his hands flashing a soft smile at him.

" sometimes I think you would be happier with someone like jeongin or Lee know. They would hold your hands, stay by your side, visit you. -"

You shush him. He stared at you like you were a mythological creature as anither tear slipped down his face, he continued to look at your face with pure content as tears slipped endlessly down his eyes. You wiped away every single one of them.

" I thought I was a bad girlfriend for not being there for you, not visiting you, not calling you. I could understand where you would be coming from. We're too busy-"

"please!" he held your wrists that were on his cheeks.

" a-are you alright?"

" please don't leave me. I'll change for the better I swear!" you couldn't believe what you were hearing. Your heart dropped at his words.

" jinnie I'm not gonna leave you, why would I leave you? I just told you it's not your fault."

" I-I just can't think of being without you. Even if you're not here, atleast you're mine."

He hugged you and you ran your fingers through his hair not saying a single word letting hin cry all he wanted, it's been haunting him for months.

" I don't know what got into you but, all I know is that you've got it all wrong."

You cooed him while he soaked your shoulder with tears. You felt terrible for him, how could he think like that?

You stayed like that for a while letting him crying all he wanted in your shoulder as you sat on his lap on the edge of the bed stroking his back and hair till he finally ran out of tears.

" Don't look at me, I look so ugly like this. I should be the one comforting you when you're upset."

" sweetheart, you're always beautiful, atleast to me you're always perfect, and if I don't comfort you then who will? It would be one sided."

You cupped his face in your palms and wiped his tears with your thumbs smiling at him. He still looked so pretty even after crying.

" Want me to make you feel better?"

You could feel him nodding against yours shoulder and lightly kissing it, you smiled to yourself.

.

The room was locked and he was on the edge in the bed with only his shirt on, you straddling on his lap, holding his face in your hands.

" you're so pretty gosh" you whispered

" I wish we did this often, I missed this so much."

You clenched around his cock making him gasp, you put the hair stands on his face behind his ear.

" I miss your face, your kisses, your hugs, your touches, your voice, your warmth, your cuddles, I missed you alot."

He purs against your palms, his lips pouting. His face still tear stained.

Suddenly you feel his grip on your hips, lifting it and moving it to a faster pace.

"faster.."

You were riding him clenching tight on him, and he was loosing it, his mind was going dizzy reeling back and forth with lust.

" I missed you too..."

He was moaning too loudly now, you had to kiss him to swallow the deep, lewd, lustfilled noises leaving his mouth.

He came not too long after with tears, panting mess, crying again.

" it felt so good, I missed having sex with you.."

You came right after him, wiping his tear.

"I wont leave you"

You whisper and press a soft kiss on his forehead

[intimacyequalsdeath]

Greif (Bo Sinclair x AFAB Reader)

This has been sitting in my drafts for awhile now cause I never felt good enough about it to actually post. I wanted to make a good hurt/comfort but not make it too over the top extreme and I'm really confident in this version of it to finally post it. This is the first time I've posted a heavier fic like this so please head all the trigger warnings I put for this one.

Notes: Minors DNI, This fic is written with an AFAB reader in mind though no specific descriptions are used the pronouns She/her are used in relation to the reader. Trigger warnings: Pregnancy, abortion talk (Briefly). Bo is really mean at least in the start, Hurt/Comfort. Afab reader with she/her pronouns used. Excessive Cursing.

"If you fuckin' think I'm lettin' you bring a fuckin' baby into this town you're fuckin crazy!"

Bo yelled as he paced around the living room of the main house. You had finally come clean and revealed to him that you were most likely pregnant. He was taking the news about as well as one would expect Bo Sinclair to.

"I didn't ask to get pregnant Bo! Maybe you should've been more careful!"

You screamed right back at him. Bo scoffed at your argument and shook his head, a nasty grin overtaking his face.

"I shoulda never let you fuckin stay here. I told myself the day you rolled into town that you were gonna cause me nothin' but trouble"

"Maybe you should let Vincent make me into one of his wax figures then Bo, or better yet, you can keep me in the basement under the station."

Bo froze at your statement and fixed you with an expression you had never seen grace his face before.

"You better watch your fuckin' mouth if you know what's good for ya"

"Why Bo? You can't handle the truth of what you were doing in that basement before I came along?"

"You have not got a fuckin' clue what you're talkin' about. When what you need to worry about is what your gonna do with bastard you got growin' in there cause it's not gonna have any relation to me"

He spat, motioning to your stomach.

"If you don't wanna keep the baby what do you suppose I do then?"

"I mean hell if I know, I'm sure the pharmacy in the next town over has some pills or somethin' to nip the problem in the bud"

"Y- you'd really want me to go through with that? After everything we've been through together? Are you fucking serious?"

"No darlin' I want you to go all the way over to the next town over and go on a fuckin' shoppin' spree!"

"How could you even suggest something like that Bo? After everything we've been through?"

"A baby ain't nothin' but a liability, a liability ain't a single one of us got time for. 'sides do you really fuckin' think Ambrose is the place to raise a baby?"

"You, Vince and Les grew up here! Plus it's not like you'd let me fuckin' leave and go somewhere else to raise the baby. You'd turn me into a wax figure before that ever happened"

"Exactly, so what happens when that rug rat grows up and starts askin' questions? Askin' shit about what his daddy and uncles do? Askin' about the figures? What the fuck are you gonna do then?"

"You explained what the 3 of you do to me pretty damn near perfect didn't you?"

You countered Bo's argument. You watch his face as another unreadable expression crossed it as he finally sat down in his recliner and put his head in his hands. You sat and watched him in sick curiosity before the overwhelming feeling hit you like a truck.

Bo Sinclair was afraid.

An emotion you quite honestly never thought you'd see Bo experience. Sure Lester had told you stories from when they were kids and scared of their parents, storms or the usual childhood fears. But this was different. Bo wasn't a child and this wasn't a storm that would just pass if he hid under his covers and waited long enough.

You sat looking at a broken son in the body of a man, a son who had never healed from the torture his own parents put him through. The cracks that Bo tried to conceal so well from his own upbringing were crumbling in front of you. The fears coming back to him, his mother's voice echoing in his head that he would just grow up to be like his father.

The fear that it would be twins, like him and Vince and he'd have to watch them be separated and not be able to do a thing for them. Not being able to take them to a hospital just to protect Ambrose and his brothers.

"You're not going to be like them Bo"

You broke the silence with a whisper. You could hear Bo sharply suck in a breath, you were treading on unprecedented territory with Bo. His childhood was just something he didn't talk or think about at all and now it was at the forefront of his thoughts.

"Shut up"

He mumbled back. A usual response for when Bo felt like you were trying to back him into a corner and he was running out of ammo to fight you off.

"You're not going to be like them Bo. You aren't them and you never will be."

You exclaimed louder. Bo threw his hands off his face and stood up so fast the chair tipped on it's back legs. He stood, in front of the chair, just starring at you, breathing heavily as emotions swam through his eyes. You decided to be bold and test the waters, you began to take small steps toward Bo, he wasn't attempting to walk away so you continued this until you were right in front of him.

"Bo"

You said softly as you stood directly in front of him. He finally snapped his eyes down to meet yours.

"Bo, you're going to be better then them. You're going to be a good dad Bo, you've had a first hand experience of what not to be like as a parent, it's going to be rocky sure but-"

"My mama always told me I'd end up being just like daddy, Just a mean son of a bitch who never had anything nice to say to no one."

Bo cut you off, a much softer tone then before when his fear was translating to anger.

"Do you want to be like you dad? Are you gonna hate this baby if it doesn't come out to be what you were expecting?"

Bo look at you as if you had grown three heads.

"Of course not, it's my kid, how could I not love my own flesh and blood."

"If you know that, and aren't planning to emulate your father, then why are you so worried about ending up like him?"

Bo was stunned, no one had ever talked him through his emotions like that.

"T-that was the only image of a father I ever got. I don't know what a good dad is like. I don't know how "normal" kids who parents actually wanted 'em around had it"

You reached down and grabbed his wrist gently. Bringing it up and rubbing your fingers over his scars, the scars that told many glaring stories of what shaped him into the cold man he was today. You were thawing him out though, slowly but surely.

"You'll learn, No ones saying it'll be easy, but you're capable of running this whole town and taking care of the four of us, I'm sure you'll pick up fatherhood just as quick as anything else."

"Well that ain't my only issue with this whole baby thing though"

"What else is wrong then Bo?"

"It's- It's fuckin'" He sighed and ran a hand over his face. "What if it's twins, and their conjoined like- like me and Vince were."

"Oh Bo"

"We ain't got no doctors here, and it's not like we could go stay in another town for the duration of it that would be too risky, god forbid you have complications too. I just- I don't know if I could do that darlin'"

Everything was coming together and your vision on why Bo was so angry was becoming clearer and clearer. Bo wasn't angry at you, he was scared of loosing you. Scared of being alone when he had finally found something he never thought he would ever get to have.

"Bo honey, I know it's scary, but what happened with you and Vince was rare. There's no guarantee that this baby will even be twins. You should've brought this all to me instead of just yelling."

"I know darlin', I should've went about it better. But I guess when you told me you were pregnant I- I got scared. The entire time you've been here I've had these scenarios in my head, worryin' about what would happen"

You were speechless as you watch as he turned away from you and began pacing again, this time without the yelling. The entire time you had known Bo you had never known him to be one to talk about his feelings. "I'm not a fuckin' pussy" He was remark to you when you would ask him what was wrong.

The front door swung open as Vincent returned from the wax museum. Bo stopped as your gazes moved to Vince who was now frozen in the doorway of the living room.

"Am I interrupting something?"

Vincent signed. You looked at him apologetically before flicking your eyes over to Bo to see what he would say.

"Nah Vince it's nothin'. Just uh- She's pregnant is all"

Vincent perked up and his gaze immediately flicked over to you.

"Really?"

He signed, giving off an aura of excitement. You nodded at him and mustered a smile

"I'm gonna be an uncle!. I'll start reading dad's old medical books and learn things to help with the delivery"

"Now Vince we ain't even-"

"I know he had an entire book about it, I'll start getting set up for prenatal appointments too. Maybe we could even go to the next town over for checkups and stuff, we'll need stuff for the baby too"

Vincent kept rambling in sign, something he did often. You couldn't help but laugh at his childlike wonder at the prospect of being an uncle. You looked over to Bo, who was noticeably less tense as he watched his twin's excitement over the new member of the family.

"Vince chill out for a sec, having this baby is so risky. What if it's twin and they come out like us? You're gonna separate 'em?"

"Well all things considered, the pregnancy only has a one in 250 chance of becoming a twin pregnancy. Plus we're identical twins, only fraternal ones run in families which means two separate eggs would have to be fertilized instead of the egg splitting."

Bo and you look at Vincent in dumbfounded shock as he signed the information as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Where the hell did ya learn all that?"

Bo asked still in shock as he looked at his brother as if he had grown another head.

"In dad's old medical books" Vincent shrugged "I'll leave you two alone now though, I should go get researching"

Vincent signed in reply before turning and heading upstairs to his bedroom. When you heard Vincent's bedroom door close you turned back to look at Bo who was already looking at you when your eyes met his. A lighter mood fell over the living room and smile at him.

"A one in 250 chance huh?"

"Yeah, I reckon so"

"You wanna take that chance daddy?"

All the emotions of the night wash over Bo's face as he thinks for a moment then answers.

"If you think it's a good idea, can't really argue with facts I suppose. But there's gonna be rules."

With that Bo is back, the rule making irritable Bo you fell in love with when you rolled into the gas station all those years ago.

"What rules are we talkin' about?"

"For starters your gonna take it easy, when someone comes into town your gonna stay here at the house and out of sight. No heavy lifting, no helping Vincent anymore, no walk-"

"Bo, Just wrap me in bubble wrap then yeah?"

"I mean I could go to the next town over and find somethin-"

"I was joking Bo, You're not wrapping me in a protective layer"

"I can if I want too"

He mumbled under his breath. I bit back a laugh and rolled my eyes.

"Whatever you say Bo"

"Hey I run this town-"

Bo begins the spiel you've heard about 20,000 times since you began living here as you walk into the kitchen, the cravings starting to take over, as he follows you to explain how he runs the town and how what he says goes and if he has to make more rules to keep you he will.

As you stand in the kitchen, eating your snack and listening to Bo's spiel. Something deep down inside you, lets a feeling wash over you that maybe just maybe, everything will be just fine.

[novelant]

Movie Night

Pairing: Phillip Graves x Fem! Reader

Summary: Feelings for your dad's best friend can't go wrong can it?

Genre: Smut

Words: 4.1k

Warnings: MDNI: Dom! Graves, unprotected!sex (wrap it before you tap it), P-in-V, implied age gap, some after care, some praise

Reminder: This is purely fiction and will have no correlation to in game character or backstory

A/N: I know that the fic before this is a dad's best friend scenario but shoot me because this is all i have in my drafts that I needed to get out so I can escape the trope. :)

Masterlist Here !!!

Phillip Graves, your dad's best friend, was taking a break from military duties and decided to stay with your family for a few weeks. He was always a busy man so you two rarely met, but you had heard a lot of good things about him from your dad. While watching some late night horror movies in the living room, you heard Graves’s deep, raspy voice coming from behind.

“You are still up this late?” He asked while sitting down next to you with a cold beer in hand. Jumping from his sudden presence behind me. You turn to see Graves sit down beside me. "Can't sleep." You lift the blanket covering me offering him some to keep warm. "Why are you up so late?" You enquire. "Can't sleep either," he took a sip from the cold beer while leaning his elbow on the arm of the couch. He looked at you, and a wave of heat washes over me, feeling your warm breath.

Graves shifted a bit to make himself comfortable, sitting with his legs crossed and one arm over the back of the couch, almost blocking me in with his massive presence. Feeling his body so close to mine. My cheeks flare up. The only thing hiding it is the darkness of the room. You shift your body closer to his to keep warm. Your head is lightly resting on his shoulder. Your eyes focused on the movie playing on the TV.

I've always had a thing for my dad's best friend but it's wrong, so wrong. I've not met him occasionally as he's busy but he's a charmer and won me over.

As Graves takes another sip from his beer, the aroma of the alcohol tickles my nose, and my mind drifts to thoughts of his smooth, soft skin as you lean closer to him. Your breath hitches when he slides his arm to rest on my lower back. "Still single?" he asks with a bit of a smirk, staring at me from the corner of his eye. "Hmm... Oh... yeah, put off guys for a while." You shrug but equally as shocked by his question. "Just annoying and they don't care for girls like me anymore." Pulling back from his shoulder. Muttering, "Sorry l should've asked to rest on you."

"What do you mean by 'girls like you'?" he asks and reaches out to place one of his fingers under my chin. You look up to see his sharp, handsome features as his eyes scan every inch of me, the intensity and heat of his gaze causing a stirring sensations within me. He seems genuinely concerned by what you said. The feeling of his fingers lifting my chin gives me butterflies in my stomach. You go nervous, he's so handsome as his blue eyes pierce into me.

"I mean girls who want a proper relationship, want all the romantic stuff. Guys nowadays just want to have sex and leave. They don't want romantic stuff." You explained to him. "So you want a committed, serious relationship?” his smile softened and he lets go from my chin, taking another sip from his beer while leaning back on the couch, stretching and letting out a small grunt in satisfaction. He raises his eyebrows as he looks back to me, "and the guys you've recently been dating haven't been giving you that?", "Yeah. I do . I want to go on dates and be loved. And you're right... The other guys haven't given me that." You give a weak smile and lean back,  resting my neck on his arm which is stretched over the back of the couch. Graves shifts his arm to drape its length around you as you lean against him. He takes a deep breath into your hair, relishing the aroma of your perfume as it lingers in his nose. You can feel his body slowly relaxing as he begins to drift into thought.

“Tell me," he says softly while looking out the window, "what are your thoughts on dating older men?", "... Older men... I umm I've never thought about it." His cologne and the alcohol mixed together lingers in my nose. A comforting and relaxing aroma you relax further into his body. "Would you ever want to try it out?" he asks while turning back to look at you. His eyes narrow on your beautiful face and your full lips as he brings his lips closer to yours. His voice is low, almost a whisper, "would you ever want to date someone as old as me?"

"I've never thought about any of it. I've dated people my age the whole time." you realise him checking you out. Getting closer to me as he speaks. You look up into his blue eyes, seeming to draw me in.  "Well," Graves lifts one of his hands, lifting your chin once again so you can look up at him. His touch stirs something deep within me, making it hard to breathe as you feel my heart beating out of my chest. My body feels a sudden rush of heat as the scent of alcohol and his cologne linger in the air.

"Could we try it?" he asks softly while bringing his lips just inches from your own. My tongue darts out to wet my lips instinctively, when his hand lifts my chin again. "Phillip... You're my dad's best friend... I'm his daughter... It's not right." You want this and you're very aware that he knows that you do as well.

"Does that really matter?" he asks while tilting his head to the side and letting his other hand come around you as both of his hands now frame your head, gently massaging your cheeks. You can feel his breath on your lips as his voice grows deeper and his gaze grows darker, "Is there anything stopping us but our minds?" He leans in slightly closer, his lips just barely skimming past yours as your breath grows erratic.

"Phil..." He lets out a small grunt as he pulls away from your lips, his breath quick and shallow. The air feels heavy around the two of us, the heat of his breath still lingering. His eyes search yours as a small flicker of uncertainty and doubt creeps into his eyes. "I shouldn't..."

You couldn't hold back anymore. You take his cheek in my hand and press my lips to his. Taking it slowly but it felt right like his lips were meant to fit with mine.

Graves whole body relaxes as his lips eagerly meet yours, his breath becoming more shallow as his tongue darts out to meet you. His hands drop down to your waist and he pulls you into him, your warm body now pressed up against him. His lips part, his breath growing quicker and hotter as he kisses you harder. Pulling away from the kiss. A smile tugging on your lips. Finding yourself situated on his lap now. I end up getting shy and hiding my face in his neck. He lets out a small grunt as you slip onto his lap, his hands now finding their way to hold your hips. The heat from your bodies mingled as you buried your face into his neck. The smell of his cologne and alcohol still lingered from your kiss, both mixed together as his hands move up to caress your back and sides in long, slow strokes.

Going all shy on Graves. Feeling his breath on my neck his lips ghosting over it. The lone kiss planted down my neck and onto my shoulder as well as his hands stroking my hips and back. The feel of Graves's warm lips against the sensitive skin of your neck sends hot ripples down your back and a wave of heat washes over you. He continues to kiss the soft skin of your neck, his lips now moving back up to your shoulders. His hands move to the small of your back, squeezing softly and pressing you into him. The smell of his cologne fills the air once more, this time more intense than before.

"Phillip..." you mumbled into the crook of his neck. I can hear the murmur of the movie you were watching in the background but your focus is on his lips kissing you neck. "Shh... it's okay." he whispers softly, his lips kissing your neck again. His hands run gently up and down your back, holding you closely as his lips slowly move back up towards your ears.

The movie playing in the background suddenly goes silent, the two of you are now in your own little world. His lips now finding the skin of your face again as his hands reach under your shirt and starts stroking the skin of your back and sides.

Feeling his calloused hands touch my soft skin sends a jolt of electricity up my spine. The blush on my cheeks deepened to a darker red. You emerge from the crook of his neck when his lips find my face again. The feeling of his hands and his slowly lust darkening blue eyes and me on his lap is a lot to take in. As your lips meet his again, the two exchange a long passionate kiss, feeling each other's bodies pressed against one another. The kiss was slow and teasing at first, but now grows faster and hot, your tongues twisting and twining together as you each taste the other's lips. Graves' hands move further up towards your waist, bringing you even closer to him, feeling your heartbeat in your pulse pounding against him. Graves' face heats up as you kiss him, your lips tasting so sweet as he kisses back. Your hands wrap around his neck as he pulls you slowly into him, his own hands coming to wrap around your body.

The two linger on this kiss, their bodies pressed together as their mouths slowly part and Graves holds you steady by your waist on his lap, with your legs wrapped around his waist Another kiss ensues starting off slowly and then forms into tongues fighting for dominance. Amongst the heightened moment I lightly grind my hips against his lap. Graves' grip on you becomes tighter as your kiss grows more intense, your tongues locking together as your bodies grow hotter. Your grinding against him sparks a reaction within Graves as his body begins to grow harder beneath your body. 

His hands move up and down your sides, gently squeezing them as your lips separate for another breath. Your mouth opens as Graves begins to give small bites to your lips as his hand moves up to your chest and starts sliding under your shirt.

You start to undo the buttons on his light blue shirt in a haste to take it off. Your hands roamed his bare and sculptured chest, until they rested behind his neck once again. The kiss only gets more passionate but slower to take in the most of it all. As you undo the buttons on his shirt, you feel his muscles flex underneath his skin as he lets out a small grunt against your neck. Your hands roam up and down his chest as your lips grow more impatient, wanting more of each other.

Graves let's out a soft moan as the two kiss, his lips pulling away from yours for another breath. It was only for a moment but his hands begin to drift down your body until they reach the button of your jeans. Feeling his hands rake down my body until they reach my button of my jeans I let out a strangled whimper the feeling of his rough hands working wonders on my skin. Your hands are still roaming his bare upper body tracing his abs and scars which adorn his chest exploring each one as your body slowly grinds on his lap. He is in complete ecstasy as he feels your breath against his bare skin, your hands grazing over every curve of his muscle.

Graves fingers swiftly pop open the button to my jeans, his hands still caressing other parts of your body while he does. Before hastily removing them. His lips sucked mine. Hands roaming and groping each other’s hot bodies while filthy noises spilled from our mouths. “Please..” you whimpered, “I need you— I need to have you.” He pulled away slightly, panting heavily. His dark siren eyes held me captive. My eyes were half-lidded with pleasure, lips burning from how roughly he kissed you. He was all teeth and tongue, kissing with the intention to take, to seize. As if you weren't the only one dreaming, aching for this moment. "God..." Graves gasped for a breath, your body grinding against him as he leaned forward slowly to kiss you again. His eyes searched your's as he took in more of your warmth, your lips tasting sweeter each time.

His hands gripped onto your waist, pulling your body tighter against him as you could feel his breath in your ears as he whispered. "We shouldn't be doing this..." his voice had a slight edge to it as he suddenly pulled away from your lips. My cheeks flushed with heat, lips slightly parted as you try my best to find the right words to respond. My mind didn't seem to comply with that request as you went blank and simply let out a sharp breath in embarrassment. All resemblance of self-control broke loose as you removed your hands from his body to hastily tear your top off with one swift move, desperate for skin to skin contact, leaving me half bare with my bra  as the sole obstacle. Graves's breathing grows faster as your top slumps off your body, your skin looking so smooth and inviting. His eyes grew wider as you pulled off your top, revealing a bra that was just hiding your breasts.

The sight of you in just your underwear and bra was one of the hottest things he'd ever seen and it took everything in him not to rip the bra off as well. He looked at you with a hunger in his eyes as he leaned forward and started kissing your neck, your breasts pressing against him even more. Graves' hands travel down to your ass and give it a quick squeeze. He lifts you slightly and places you down so your back is now on the sofa. He leans over you and starts attacking your breasts and body with kisses. His kisses tickle and you start squirming underneath him. His spare hand comes down and pins you in place by the waist.

The feeling of Graves's hands squeezing down on your rear sends a wave of warm heat up your back. His tongue flickers out, licking all around your neck and down to your breasts, his breath hot and intoxicating as he continues to kiss down your body. As you squirm against him, his other hand grabs onto your wrists, holding both of them down as he continues to kiss down your stomach. His lips start to tease the line of your underwear, kissing and biting softly and teasingly. His hands ran up the backs of your legs, causing you too shiver in anticipation. His breath was close to where you wanted him and you whined in response, tilting your hips back ever so slightly. At the movement Graves clicked his tongue and slapped my ass. 

“This pussy’s mine, y’hear?” He growled a possessive tone in his voice, fingers digging into the sides of your waist, keeping you from moving away from him. "Look at you doll. So eager for me, huh?" One finger gently traced along the length of your clothed slit. "Hmm and so wet too." and you keened, trying to push my hips back to gain more friction, but his other arm wrapped around your hips, pinning them to the couch. Already, your legs were trembling as his thumb brushed against your clothed clit. You bit my lip, fingers pressing into the cushion below you as you felt him lift up the soaked underwear and pull them to the side. 

That quick slap on your ass made your body shiver, sending a wave of heat all the way through your body for a moment. It was as if you'd hit the switch and your body grew even more desperate for Graves's touch. His breath fell against the line of your underwear, now growing even hotter as his fingers moved underneath them and you could feel his breath tickling you. His thumb brushed against your clit, and you could tell he was teasing you on purpose.

"P...hil..." You breathe out "Stop teasing."

You grab his wrists which are still pinning you down as some sort of support while he is teasing you. Your back can't help but arch off the sofa at the sensations you're feeling and your head tilts back pressing deeper into the cushion supporting it. His body moves up so you can feel his breath on your neck but his hand remains brushing against your clit and pussy. You can feel his hardness pressed against your inner thigh as he reconnects your bodies after what felt like hours but in reality was only minutes. Your words have no effect on him now, Graves seems to be enjoying himself as you beg for him to stop teasing you. You feel even more desperate as the pressure of his hand moves even closer to you, your body instinctively arching up and wanting an even bigger sensation.

Graves is now leaning in closer than you've felt before as his body touches you intimately. The feeling of his hardness pushing against your inner thighs is driving you wild with anticipation as your back presses back even more into the cushions. His lips connect with my neck once again and leave dark purple marks in their wake from his relentless attack. Your hands slide into his blonde hair and lightly tug at him while a quiet whimper escapes my lips. You wriggle again to try and achieve some friction between you both. Hoping he'd take the initiative to continue this dirty act. Your small tugs on his hair bring him back into the moment with you, your body's movements letting him know just how much you want him. The lack of friction and the teasing drives you so crazy that the sound of your whimper is like music in his ears.

His hands grip onto your thighs as he shifts his body lower, his own breathing growing heavier even in this moment. He pulls you closer to your body using your waist, getting rid of the small gap between your bodies. Graves dip his hand lower once again before slowly pressing into me closing the gap completely between us. He gives you a little bit of time to adjust to the intimate moment before he begins to slowly move. All while your head is still thrown back and your mouth is locked in an open gasp. The feeling of him on your inner walls felt tight but you eventually got through the initial pain before the lust took over.

The moment you realize what is happening is almost too much for your body to handle. The feeling of him pressing into you sends a sharp tingle up your spine as the sensation grows and the pain gives way to the most intense feeling you've ever felt. Graves makes sure to take things slow at this step, trying not to hurt you as you gasp against the couch, your body now completely enraptured in desire. Graves continues to take things slow as he watches your mouth stay open in pleasure, your body growing hotter with each movement. Your hands are clamped on the couch, still needing support for the motions he is making. The lack of friction and the slow speed drives you crazy at how intimate this moment is, your breaths coming in and out in small rapid breaths while you're now trapped between the couch and his body.

As you adjust to the feeling, Graves slightly starts increasing the speed and your body tries to keep up. Your arms start to strain under the constant pressure so you have to let them relax off of the couch itself. This also means Graves gets deeper and deeper with every movement and by the time you're nearly about to reach the climax of your body, you're so used to the feeling that your breathing has picked back up. The slow pace and the gentle feeling in this moment makes it hard to believe that something this intimate is with someone like him.

The moment hits before you even realize it, and the feeling of you reaching your climax is the most intense sensation you've ever felt. Graves slows down even further, the last few motions making your body shake on the couch as your eyes are squeezed shut tight and you feel yourself getting overwhelmed by the sensation.

Fully collapsing on the sofa once you both reach your climax, Graves pulls out and lies on top of you. Holding you through the moment that just happened. Giving you pepper kisses on your face and neck. Your breath slows down from the rapid breath from being in the act you both did. Graves wraps his arms around you and pulls you in close, kissing you all over your face and neck. Your body is exhausted and your breathing slowly returns back to normal. His hand stroking your hair and whispering in your ear, "You did amazing for me doll and "Couldn't have been any more perfect sweetheart." which makes you feel cared about, it seems to bring back the comfort that was missed during the more aggressive moments.

In an all dazed out state, your bodies pressed together. You whispered in his ear, jokingly, "Did that just happen."

"It did... How do you feel?" Graves whispers in reply, his body still pressed next to yours as he strokes your neck softly. He sounds genuinely curious about how you feel about what just happened with him, having a slight tone of nervousness in his voice. "I feel tired but I feel good." You lean up a little to give his a chaste kiss on his lips. You feel my eyes getting heavy and sleep threatening to take over. "Me too... Are you ready to rest?" Graves whispered, noticing how tired you seemed to be as well. Your body pressing back against him and your eyes starting to get heavy made you feel even warmer as you lay against his broad chest. Continuing to whisper "Hmm I think I am. But I think the comfort of my bed will be lovely."

"Then let's get you to bed then." Graves said softly, his fingers stroking through your hair still. He started to get up quickly after that response and took your body in his arms, standing up with you in them as he quickly walked you towards the bed in the bedroom. You could see the slight blush on his cheeks from the activity and how excited he was to spend time with you after what you've just done together. Getting to the bed, Graves sets you down on the comforters surface letting you lay down. He crawls in with you, making sure to hold you close as he pulls the covers over the two of you.

With that, he lays next to you, his body pressed next to yours and holds you close to him. The blankets are heavy and the heat of the room is now much warmer with both your bodies under the blankets. "You alright?" Graves whispered, the heat and the weight of the covers making him wonder how you felt after all this time of being together. He laid a gentle hand on your hips, softly caressing your skin while you were still catching your breath. He pulled you slowly closer to him so that his arm was fully wrapped around you, and your bodies were now lying almost on top of each other under the blanket. "Hmm much better now..." You trail off. His warm body heat lulled me off to sleep. His hand caressing me creating a soothing atmosphere. "How are you? I never asked" You ask your voice a whisper. Your hand caressing his chest. "I'm good... Better than good." Graves said as he laid his head back onto the pillow, the softness of your voice and the feeling of your hands caressing him made him feel even more at ease. He sighed happily as he got a tiny bit more comfortable, getting closer to you so that he was holding you like a body pillow. It almost felt like you were a couple, cuddling together in a warm bed.

Masterlist Here !!!

[the-dragon-hearted]

Part 2

There is a universe, somehow, where Silco drowns again.

It's not a quick sort of thing - never is. That time he spent under the waves, tasting the sick concoction of Piltover filth and Zaun's rot, it may have been the longest moments of his life. Vander's hands around his throat didn't help in that regard.

This drowning is... different.

The decay of Zaun's dying streets is still there: the taste of his home akin to a corpse. It's curling up on itself after too much abuse and crying for justice. The stench of Piltover is there too: metals and shoe polish. Smoke too... if he went up to the surface and took a breath he'd smell Vander's last moments of glorious violence.

He doesn't.

He stays in his office below the waves, the river waters twisting the light into geometric patterns that dance around the sad conglomeration of lost souls. He's... drowning, and it fills him with familiar rage. This helplessness. This confusion. The same damn question ripping into his brain like a certain mouse into his late cat.

Why, Vander. Why?

What did he do to deserve... this?

The wily witty one, Mylo, sits at Silco's desk, at its corner. He's spinning a pencil around mindlessly, staring at the fish through the glass. Claggor's taken a seat on the floor, close to the door but out of harm's way should it slam open. He's taken to picking at his sleeves, suffering in the silence that must be drowning them all.

Silco doesn't quite care to change that. He's drafting letters to critical players in his game and prestigious business partners (he's sticking his head in the dirt and hoping that if he tries hard enough it'll all go away).

The blue girl, Powder, she has no qualms with breaking the silence, humming away an old lullaby. A pathetic sort of call for Piltover's better nature, a reminder of the siblinghood between Zaun and her filthy brother of a nation. Powder doesn't know that, she just knows it at Felicia's lullaby - perhaps Vi's lullaby. She was too young to remember much of Felicia, surely. She's snatched one of Silco's nicer pens and taken a seat next to her sister, intent on taking that mechanical pen apart. Vi is unnaturally still, staring into space when ever Silco dares to glance at her.

He's glancing at all of them, like a cornered rat. Which is wrong in itself. He's the danger here - likely more dangerous than any enforcer the children could've run into. Yet they lounge, unsure of what else to do and far too shaken to question.

What Silco would give for Vander to kick down the door. What he would give to see that familiar rage burning in the man's eyes as he demanded to know where his children were. Only then would the world make sense again.

Silco would grab Mylo - the boy was the closest - and the knife in his desk was always in arm's reach. Vander would trade himself for one of the children and there the plan would all fall back into place. Vander, helpless. The children, dead. Silco, victorious, his vengeance complete and Zaun's future ensured.

Instead, he's playing office worker with four awkward orphans.

Why, Vander? Why him.

Of all the people - of all the requests -

The door flies open and Silco hates how his heart soars. The children jump to defensive positions in a familiar dance they've all learned from Vander. Big ones protect the younger. Weapons are whatever you have handy. Look mean - look tough. Don't show them you're scared.

It's not Vander, it's Sevika. She's hardly in the room before the exclamation leaves her shocked lips: "Vander's dea-"

She cuts off as her eyes snap to Vi, the biggest and brightest colored of the bunch. It seems even the ever-ready Sevika is shocked silent by this... ridiculous situation.

"Sevika?" Vi manages in desbelief.

Silco's newest enforcer looks to him for direction. Oh, joyous reunions all around. Silco leans back in his chair and throws her a scathing look.

"Sevika, say hello to our guests," he emphasizes, massaging his head.

This is a nightmare, somehow. It should've been the greatest turn of events - a ridiculous stroke of luck from a dead man's foolishness. Instead, it's a weight around Silco's neck, heavier than any hand. Trust. A fickle, dangerous thing.

A heavy thing.

Sevika does not say hello. She takes a long look at all the children and then stared incredulously at Silco, it doesn't take a mind reader to guess what she's asking.

What the fuck is going on, Silco?

He'd like to ask a certain someone the same thing, but apparently, Sevika heralded the news he'd expected and dreaded.

"You have news on Vander," he supposed.

Sevika shook her head with a sharp scoff of disbelief: "Yeah. He's dead. The enforcers just shot him down a few blocks from the Last Drop."

The children take the news predictably. Quietly, though. None of them speak a word, eyes watering but keeping their jaws clenched. Claggor and Mylo sit back down, Mylo laying back on the desk and spinning his pencil once again. Powder sniffles, trying to muffle her cries. Vi stays standing.

Vander's dead.

This isn't a bad joke. This isn't a trick or a trap or an idiotic attempt at... anything. Vander's dead and he left Silco everything.

He's drowning.

It's Vander's fault again. This time though, things are different. Silco fought his way out of that river, blood running down his face and sickness bubbling out of his lungs. A baptism of pain and betrayal - he'd walked away with a purpose: the same determination a gnawing fox has to escape a trap that caught its foot.

Now, there's no determination. There's no direction.

"You wanna tell me what's going on here?" Sevika demands as she saunters into the room and gestures to Vander's four children. Lost and alone and looking to Silco for his answer.

Vi's watching him closely, hands closing into a fist. She doesn't trust him, maybe she knows something. Maybe she's smart enough to recognize that Vander's friends wouldn't take the news of his death with a smile. She's hurting. She's angry. She's moments away from snapping - just like Vander would be in her place, but she stays quiet for the younger one behind her.

"I assume you mean our guests," Silco hums as he looks away from Vander's successor. There is a smile on his face, but it's one of necessity. He doesn't know how to feel so he settles on the reliable guise of amused near-apathy. It keeps him confident and all others unnerved.

Sevika throws him a very demanding look. She thinks he has the answers.

"Vander sent them," Silco muses after a moment, pretending to return back to his work. "It seems I'll be looking after them for the immediate future."

It slips out of him as easily as blood from a head wound. It trickles to the floor and stays there, staining the soles of his shoe with... sentimentality. And yet the moment he says it, the confusion eases.

Sevika is staring at him in disbelief. Mylo and Vi are watching him something... softer.

Relief.

This doesn't change anything - if anything it makes his path clearer. Vander's out of the equation. With proof of his backing, his territory and his sympathizers open themselves to Silco like clams in boiling water. The children are... useful.

They're Vander's. No point in killing them now that the old Hound is dead. Silco's never been one for waste... they'll be capable and useful.

This changes nothing.

"We'll move into his territory tomorrow. His absence will leave certain fools the fester," the order seems to relieve some of Sevika's nerves too. She likes plans of action.

"We're going home?" It's Powder who asks it, hope in her teary voice.

Silco manages a dry chuckle: "If only it could be so simple."

There will be turf wars, at least until Silco utilizes some of his more... useful tactics. Hopefully, Vander's softer alliances will be sympathetic to the children. They'll have to stomach Silco. It's taking a breath of fresh air as his mind begins to churn again: reworking his plans around the children and their painfully reminiscent late Father.

Like he said: they're useful. That's enough.

He can make it mutually beneficial, while not completely forsaking the words on that damn napkin he has half a mind to burn.

This changes nothing.

[sashaisready]

Chapter Fourteen - A new development

Bucky Barnes Mob AU x Femme Reader

You're hard at work in Pepper's Bakery when notorious mob boss James 'Bucky' Barnes darkens your doorway one typical afternoon, and life is never the same again

Warning: Near car/pedestrian collision, angst! Bucky still being terrible, but don't worry - a taste of his own medicine is teased in this chapter..

18+ - see Masterlist for full list of warnings

Chapter 15

Series Masterlist

It had been nearly a week and you hadn't heard anything from Bucky since That Morning. You had replayed the events over and over in your head but you still didn't know what you'd done wrong, how you'd gone from falling asleep in Bucky's arms with his tender whispers in your ear...to being unceremoniously barged out of his house with the offer of fifty dollars for your trouble. Your best bet was that he wanted to sleep with you after all your back and forth over the last few months, and now he'd achieved that, the mask had slipped and he had no reason to play nice. Another notch in his bedpost. Another item off his to do list.

You knew at the time you should've asked him outright what exactly had changed, but you were hurt and embarrassed, and you lashed out in anger like you always did. And you didn't want him to think you were weak and pining over him.

Wanda had been shocked by the evening's sharp left turn after she'd gone home. You had caught her up in the bakery and she was disgusted by Bucky's actions. She had stood there angrily frosting a birthday cake while you recounted what happened, uttering a series of curses under her breath in response. Some were in Sokovian – you didn't know what she said but could tell they were bad.

You were hurt. You knew sleeping with someone didn't mean you were exclusive or they owed you anything, but you expected a bit more kindness and respect – especially from someone you had got to know quite well over the last few months.

But maybe that was your own naivete, you knew what Bucky did for a living – it wasn't a stretch to imagine that he would be just as cold in his personal life too.

It was a relatively quiet morning in the bakery when the bell went. You looked up smiling ready to greet the customer when you felt a wave of nausea hit you as you saw who it was.

Bucky walked in...with a beautiful blonde woman on his arm. She was stunning. Of course she was. She smiled at you sweetly and you managed a small one back at her before your eyes flicked over to Bucky.

He was stoic, unreadable. You glared at him, doing your best to convey your anger to him without completely losing it. He gave you a smirk in return.

Asshole.

Bucky knew this was a risky game. He hadn't spoken to you since you stormed out of his home and he missed you. He didn't know what to say, how to make it right. He knew he should stay away, he'd tried, he knew that you were too good for him – but he couldn't resist. You were like a magnet he couldn't avoid. He knew you were angry and he wanted to apologise but his pride was getting in the way.

He had drafted countless texts but sent none of them, he frequently brought your name up in his contacts and tried to summon the courage to press the call button. He wanted to go back to how it was before, teasing each other, bantering and besting one another. He thought if he could bait you into an argument then he could draw you out again, rile you up and see that electricity in your eyes he loved so much.

And what better bait was there than another woman?

You cleared your throat and greeted them sweetly. "Hi, welcome to Pepper's Bakery. How can I help you today?"

Thankfully your voice betrayed none of your true feelings. That was years of customer service experience paying off.

"Oohh..." said the blonde. "I mean it all looks so good but I'm on a diet right now and shouldn't be eating sweets...I'm sorry, I'm probably the last person you want in your store!" she giggled.

You had no interest in being cold to the woman, no interest in punishing her because of Bucky's childish little games. She hadn't done anything wrong, and she seemed nice enough. No, there was only one person to be angry at here.

"Well if you're ever in the neighbourhood and having a cheat day you're always welcome here" you told her warmly.

She smiled back at you and nodded encouragingly as she looked over at the display cases. Over her shoulder you looked at Bucky. You kept your face frozen, not wanting to give him the satisfaction of getting worked up, but your eyes made it clear you were unimpressed.

"I'll take a couple of danishes, and a cannoli" he told you gruffly.

Prick. And what ever happened to 'please'?

Your hands began to build the pink box on autopilot and you wordlessly packed his order.

Bucky frowned. He was hoping for fireworks, to push you that little bit further and ignite that anger within you, resulting in his favourite back and forth. He wanted to see the fire from you which always sent a quiet thrill through his belly.

But no. Nothing.

Your face was neutral, there was no fight in you. No appetite to go toe to toe with him.

He realised suddenly that he had gone too far. You weren't angry. You were hurt.

His eyes searched yours as you pushed the box over the counter at him and he pulled out his wallet. He was almost trying to communicate with you telepathically, telling you his true feelings and that you were all he thought about. You only stared back at him defiantly, eyes narrowing as you handed him the card reader. Your mouth was a thin line of disappointment.

He tried to smirk to see if that would light the fuse for the reaction he so desperately sought but you merely dropped his gaze.

He pulled a hundred dollar bill out and slid it across to you but you grabbed it from him, crumpled it into a ball with your fist and flung it back at him. He flinched as it struck his chest, then swept it back into his wallet.

"That won't be necessary" you said coldly, eyes burning into him again.

He tried to say something but you cut him off.

"Thanks for your custom Mr Barnes" you deadpanned, making it clear that this interaction was over.

"And lovely to meet you" you said to his companion in a kinder tone.

She earnestly grinned back at you. "I'm Allegra by the way".

Allegra then gushed about how lovely the shop was, peacefully oblivious to the tension in the room.

Wanda watched nervously from her side of the store as the scene unfolded, examining your face. She knew you were hanging on by a thread.

Bucky opened his mouth to speak but closed it again quickly. He wanted to apologise, to take it all back. He thought about how you felt in his arms. How your moans had sounded in his ear. How thrilled he'd been to finally get to that point with you...and now he'd ruined it. Ruined everything. Destroyed the foundations of everything he'd built with you. Guilt and shame overwhelmed him but he still wore his stoic mask.

You just continued to glare at him as Allegra spoke, your brow furrowed. You felt nausea rising up inside you once more. His eyes looked different now to the smugness they'd reflected when he walked in. Was there...regret in there? Surely not. He was probably relishing your humiliation.

Allegra hooked her arm with Bucky's and guided him to the exit as she shot you a cheerful goodbye. Bucky followed meekly, watching you intently over his shoulder as he left the store. His eyes were on you for as long as possible until he disappeared out of view.

You waited a moment before your knees finally buckled and you crashed onto the counter as the tears finally broke the dam and began to fall. Wanda was on you in an instant, her arms wrapped around your torso as she nuzzled her head into your back, quietly soothing you.

*

You were feeling a little more together when you closed up, locking the doors and stepping out onto the street. You had cried a bit in front of Wanda, embarrassed for her to witness your vulnerability but grateful for her comfort. She had asked if she could do a spell to punish Bucky which cheered you up, but you declined, insisting she shouldn't waste her precious energy on such unimportant subjects. You had managed to power through the rest of the day, throwing yourself into work and distracting yourself with customers as the clock finally rolled around to closing time.

Your tears had dried but you still felt awful. Embarrassed. Hurt. You didn't expect to marry Bucky after your night together and you knew that neither of you had made any commitments to one another. Still, cancelling your date and rubbing another woman in your face at your workplace was uniquely cruel. You felt stupid for allowing yourself to get caught up, to have feelings for him, for entertaining the idea that he might like you too. It was clear now that you were nothing but a plaything to him. A toy to wind up and watch it go. Something to amuse him, a way to blow off steam between whatever hideous mob business he was getting up to in his 9-5.

You understood now.

And that Allegra woman he was with - she was the type of girl he wanted on his arm. Tall, willowy, beautiful. The type of woman who looked like she'd stepped off a fashion magazine. A walking Instagram filter. Not you, who was pleasant enough to look at and fun for a quick fuck, but not someone you want to show off - not beautiful. How stupid you were.

You were lost in your thoughts as you wandered towards home. But not so oblivious as to miss the black SUV parked across the street, as subtle as a pink sock in a drawer of white ones. You waved mockingly at it and it slowly rolled around the corner out of view, but you could still glimpse the back of it if you squinted. You knew he wasn't in it as he would've made an appearance by now. Just his goons inside, most likely. Was it not enough that he'd humiliated you, he had his little lemmings following you again??

Your hurt began to mutate into anger as all of your emotions twisted and fizzed within you. All of the fury and outrage you felt towards Bucky was now channelled like a laser beam onto this stupid car. You let your rage lead the way as you stormed towards it, determined to give the occupants a piece of your mind regardless of how big or terrifying they might be.

Any common sense evaporated as you marched into the street in pursuit of the SUV. In fact, you were so single minded that you didn't even notice the yellow taxi speeding towards you until you heard the screech of brakes and tyres squealing on asphalt. You turned at the last second and caught a glimpse of the driver's panicked eyes before you realised it was about to hit you, and it was too late for you to move...

You squeezed your eyes shut and braced for impact as a forceful pressure wrapped itself around your torso and yanked you onto the sidewalk. Suddenly you were on the ground, trembling as you realised you were looking at the sky - wondering where the car had hit you. You thought it would hurt more than this, was it a bad sign that it didn't hurt? Oh god, were you paralysed and that's why it didn't hurt?! Wait...something else had hit you...

A handsome man with sandy brown hair popped into your view, his forest green eyes filled with concern as he watched you carefully. You glanced at him, realising you were laying on your back in the street.

"You all good? That was a close one huh??" he said. His voice was friendly, warm.

He turned to the cab driver who had parked up and was watching you just as nervously.

"She just came outta nowhere...I tried to stop but...I mean if you hadn't been there..."

"It's alright" said the green eyed man calmly, cutting him off. "She's fine, she just had a shock. Don't worry, I'll make sure she's okay".

The cab driver muttered angrily as he stepped back into his car and pulled away.

"Do you think you can sit up?" asked the green eyed man.

A few passers-by were watching with morbid curiosity. The man extended his hand to you and you took it gingerly, pushing yourself up as he pulled you upright so you were sitting up on your knees. You blinked, looking down at yourself to check you were still in one piece. You certainly seemed to be. Just slightly winded by how you hit the sidewalk.

"I'm okay" you said nervously as you wiggled your fingers and toes to check for any pain.

"Oh good, phew".

He sounded genuinely relieved. And kind.

"Did you...save me?" you asked with trepidation.

He smiled. "Saving is a bit of a strong word but right place right time I guess" he grinned. "I'm just sorry you had to eat sidewalk in the process".

You felt yourself soften at his caring smile, all of your anger and upset about Bucky suddenly gone. He seemed...nice. Really nice.

"Thank you. Really, thank you" you smiled bashfully as you stood up, brushing yourself down. "If you hadn't been there..."

You trailed off as you looked him up and down. He was dressed casually in a red leather jacket and dark jeans. A far cry from Bucky's expensive tailored suits. You could tell he was in good shape though, sturdy and strong. Handsome...

"I'm Peter" he said happily as he extended a hand to shake. "Peter Quill".

You took his hand and shook it shyly, giving him your own name in return.

"Of course you have a beautiful name too, why I am not surprised?" he said.

You blushed at the compliment, visibly taken aback by his forwardness. You weren't used to men picking you up so openly. It was a refreshing contrast to Bucky's little games – not having to wade through words and implications and figure out what exactly was meant.

He screwed his face up in embarrassment. "Oh God. I'm sorry. That was cheesy..." he said, his voice pained.

You chuckled, feeling yourself smile widely for the first time all day. "Actually it was very sweet" you countered.

He grinned at you, his eyes drifting over your dungarees. You felt a bit underdressed in your work attire, covered in flour and icing stains, suddenly wishing you were a bit more presentable.

"I like your overalls" he said.

"Thanks" you replied, fingers pawing nervously at the buckles. 

"I work at Pepper's Bakery down the street. Although I did realise earlier I'm wearing a yellow t-shirt with them today so I look a bit like a Minion..." you joked.

Peter's eyes widened with amusement. "Oh my god...you kinda do..." he spluttered.

You laugh uproariously. "You're not supposed to agree??" you snap incredulously.

"I'm sorry but it's true. But the minions are super cute right? So you fit right in..."

He shot you a wink and you felt a surge of warmth in your stomach. This was exactly the balm you needed after a horrible day.

"Pepper's huh? Love that place" he grinned.

You light up at that. "You do?? Oh that's great to hear. Yeah it's a nice place to work".

He nodded earnestly. "Best danishes in the city, in my humble view".

"I'll have to save you a few when you next come by. Y'know, least I can do for saving my life and all". The words seductively roll off your tongue before you even realise it.

You stop dead, wondering if you've been too forward with him. Bucky had really thrown you for a loop when it came to interacting with men. But Peter's grin just grew wider and he leaned in closer, his face near yours.

"And tell me...do you get much downtime? Time away from the bakery? Or is it all work and no play?"

His voice had dropped an octave as he moved in and his eyes locked onto yours. You find yourself instinctively leaning towards him too as your heart beats heavily in your chest. You're so close you could almost...kiss him.

"I do work shifts so my days off can be different. But I always have at least two off a week" you smile.

"Oh that's good, so a lotta free time to spend with your boyfriend then?" he asks coyly.

You giggle and your face flushes at yet another direct question. "No boyfriend, currently..."

Absolutely no-one, actually.

He nods again. "So, hypothetically...if I were to ask you out...you'd be able to meet me for dinner one evening?"

"Absolutely, hypothetically. But maybe we should stay away from cabs" you quip.

He laughed. "Sure. But I may need some pointers on where to go as I have no idea what minions eat..."

You exchange smiles as he passes his phone to you to add your number, which you give him gladly. You chat for a bit longer and suddenly Bucky feels like a distant memory. You've even completely forgotten the reason for your impulsive stroll into traffic.

As you say goodbye to Peter and practically skip home with glee, the SUV emerges from its poor hiding spot and follows you from a safe distance. In the passenger seat Clint pulls out his cell, hitting the first number on his speed dial.

"Boss...uh, a new development for you..."

*

[noir-drabbles]

Draft 3

Summary: You bring in a new guest that you probably should've left for dead in the ditch he put himself in. Oh well, he seems interesting enough, despite his clear exhaustion. At least you can help him bathe.

(Honestly still don't know if I want to stick with this concept of Viper. I like miserable men that's for sure. Viper is such a sourpuss in my mind, especially before his inevitable corruption at the hands of the Reader who may or may not be connected to the family tragedy that kickstarted Viper's need for revenge.)

“Hmm, you're not pushing me away,” you noted as you sprayed a small cut on his arm, watching the blood and muddy muck flow right down, “Didn't take you for someone that would be calm in good company.”

Or any company for that matter. When you pulled his arm over your shoulder, you were pretty much expecting him to fight you until he passed out. Would've let him too, just so you could drag him to a dry place all the easier. But no. You offered a helping hand and he didn't reject. He didn't accept either but the lack of resistance was enough. You're not one to take no for an answer

“It doesn't matter,” he wasn't even watching you. In fact, he hasn't looked at your eyes since you dragged him in here in your small little house you inherited. Just kept dazing off, gaze landing on any corner of the room, not quite here, “I got enough of 'em.”

And he sounded sleepy too.

“Heyo, wake up,” you tapped at his shoulder and he jolted, sloshing the water right over the rim of the tub and onto your bare feet, “Don't fall asleep. I want to talk. Who's them? The corpses?”

“Rats, vultures, the lot of them,” his words were slurring and he sunk deeper into the warm bath. You should probably get him out of here soon, but you'd like for him to be clean before you leave him be on your freshly washed sheets. Infections are nasty, festering on the aging of waste and grime. “Didn't get them all, but I got enough. Enough, enough… I'm enough, and I'm tired.”

Sounds like quite the long hunt. And exhausting, to place your self worth on whatever vengeance journey he’s on.

“Alrighty alrighy, lot of carrion feasting I see,” you washed the bubbles out of his white hair, “though, you might want to stop with the dramatics, you're not dying yet. I mean, look down.”

He already was so all it took was a movement of the eyes.

“…it's gone,” there was no shock, simply disappointment. Only then did he finally slide his attention to you, “You…”

“Yup, that big ol hole is gone now,” you grabbed your pot, scooped up some scarlet water and pour it over the rest of his now clean injuries. They sealed over just like that. The benefits of one who was swallowed a drop of the Headless Snake's blood, “Sorry if you wanted to die in that ditch over there. It's too bad that you were doing all that while I was on my walks.”

You don't live close but you lived close by enough.

Leaning off his arm, the man pressed his fingers into his now solid stomach in the water. His lips pulled back, teeth grinding against one another. He slammed his fist into your bathroom wall, shattering the tiles into shards and fine powder.

You dropped your pot, seized his jaw and yanked him to face you properly. His eyes widened and his hand lashed out and grabbed your neck. The muscles in his palm twitched, as though about to squeeze, but like him, your expression didn't change.

As you both glared at one another, you spoke.

“I placed each and every one of those tiles in this bathroom by hand, stranger,” it was a personal project you did out of pure enjoyment. Hours upon hours of effort, and he had the gall to smash it in front of your face like you'll just stay there and watch, “This house is precious to me, left behind by people no longer here, dead and gone. If you're going to hit anything, hit yourself. At least those bruises will take minutes to heal from.”

The shower head dripped. The fog of humidity passed around the both of you as it floated out the water. Both of your breathes were mixing with one another.

“Don't go ruining what little I have left,” your words sparked something in him, because you saw his eyes finally look away.

He let go and let his hands sink into the water. He was his dour self once more, all hunched to the side, eyes clouding over in the air of grayness he had around him.

There we go. Now you can continue.

[phantomdoofer]

A Brother's Tale - Running Hell

Gustavo strolled into the briefing room, holding his pack over his shoulder. He could see Giuseppe was already there, Anita beside him. Something was wrong. Giuseppe was slumped forward, his shoulders tighter than normal. Anita had her hand on the man's shoulder, with an expression of uncharacteristic concern.

Gustavo set down his pack and went over to his friend. I mean, with all the shit we've gone through, we've all got problems, but something feels... extra wrong.

Giuseppe looked devastated. He was staring at his hands, which held what was probably some kind of report. Gustavo knew the enemy had unveiled some terrifying new weapon, which was devastating the entire world. Plus they'd somehow found a huge group of new soldiers, and the allied lines were being pushed incredibly hard. Somehow, this feels more personal. Oh no, was our hometown targeted? Mom, Dad, Gustavo, Mama Spaghetti, Peppino... "Sepp?" He said tentatively. "What's happened?"

Without looking up, Giuseppe spoke. "Peppino may be dead."

Gustavo was stunned. A huge chunk of why this wild bunch of essentially super-powered individuals stayed in line was the knowledge that their other selves were being kept safe. I mean, accidents happen, but... "How?"

Giuseppe continued. "Somebody fucked up the paperwork that was supposed to keep clones out of the draft. A lot of clones got drafted... including Peppino and Gustavo."

Gustavo's heart stopped. Mine? But what... what about my parents? They need him! His parents, both ill from a chemical attack early in the war, relied on the other Gustavo for help and income.

Giuseppe shook his head. "They've been in the front lines a while now. Yesterday there was a bad ambush. Peppino and Gustavo's unit got wiped out, except for them. Peppino took one of those new shredder rounds right in the chest." He choked. Most of them considered their clones to be siblings. "Gustavo was wounded too, but he managed to get Peppino to a field hospital. They're working on him, but they don't know if he's gonna make it."

Suddenly Giuseppe wadded the paper into a tight ball, and threw it across the room. "My brother may be dead! Peppino might be dead! Because some goddamn pencil-pusher forgot to do their goddamn job!" He leaned over, clutching his sides, growling as he tried not to scream in grief and rage.

His friend's distress overrode his own fear for his brother. And there's not a damn thing we can do about this. Anita leaned over and hugged Giuseppe. "I'm so sorry, Sepp," she said.

The Major walked in, not doing his usual act for once. His face was grave. "I see you've gotten the news. If it's any consolation Giuseppe, I had no idea until it was too late myself. He's getting the best care they've got there, but they can't afford to move him." Giuseppe looked at the Major, who looked him in the eyes and said, "I truly hope he makes it."

Giuseppe's eyes were harder than Gustavo had ever seen them. They looked twisted, demented. This is worse than when he's running. When he spoke, his voice shook. "I hope so, Major. If my brother dies, I... I..." he looked back down. His voice grew tiny. "I don't know what'll happen."

The Major came over and stood in front of them. "Easy, soldier. You're getting close to talking about defection... or worse. I understand how you feel, but keep it under control. I guarantee you, the ones responsible for this are already on the way out. This was a major blunder, one that should've been caught several times over." He smiled grimly. "Now, I need you to come to the Theater," the Major said, referring to their rarely-used main briefing room. "We have a new mission."

~~~~

The three of them looked around as they entered the Theater. Here was where they'd been introduced to their new lives. Told the whole deal: the clones, the special talents, the works. Haven't seen this many of us together since we left boot. From one side, a hand waved at Giuseppe. "Oy! Rapitaliano! You break the sound barrier yet?" The voice was teasing, but friendly. Must be Enrique. Only one who ever called me that. He waved back, but didn't trust himself to speak. The guy was the only one faster than him in their original group. They had developed a friendly rivalry. Giuseppe wasn't too surprised he was still around, as fast as he was.

There were a lot of faces missing. We've been lucky. A lot of new faces, too. They all looked nervous. Must be new recruits. He frowned. This has got to stop. The NEED for it has to stop.

As they sat down, Gustavo had his laptop out. "They're hitting cities really hard," he said, looking nervous. "This thing is insane. It just... vaporizes the target. Melts it. Twenty cities now. They're not even just aiming at us. Even the neutral countries are being hit."

"Bet that's the Demons again," Anita said. "They like pain and suffering."

Giuseppe nodded. So far his and Gustavo's hometown had been too small to target. But it was only a matter of time. "They'll destroy the whole world at this rate."

"Attenn-SHUN!" The Major bellowed, and everyone stood straight as an older man strode into the room, moving to the podium. Mentally, Giuseppe whistled. A Five-Star. This is really serious.

The General cleared his throat. "Thank you. Be seated." They sat. "I just want to say thank you all for all your sacrifices. Without you, we would have lost this war long ago." He gestured at the screen behind him, which lit up with a map. "Some of you may have heard that we have located the enemy's secret weapon. This is true. We taken to calling it "Inferno.""

Inferno, Giuseppe thought, "Hell." Good name for a weapon that burns everything.

"Two days ago, the Demons and the Talpas betrayed the Ninda. They had since proceeded to systematically destroy the five biggest Ninda cities." On the map, the Ninda capitol and the four largest cities blinked out.

Anita snorted. "Good riddance." Gustavo elbowed her hard in the side. Giuseppe had mixed feelings. While they were the enemy, he thought about his own family. Can't punish everyone for a few's evil. This is genocide.

"Since this betrayal, the Ninda have offered intelligence and begged for assistance. They've offered an immense amount of information on Inferno, starting with its location." A light appeared on the map. "Our own intelligence agencies have confirmed the Ninda's information. It's close enough for a full strike, but it's heavily protected. And they're using old technology to shield it. There's no way we can take it down with conventional weaponry, or even using old tech. Or so they think." He gestured at the map again, which zoomed in. "Our forces will engage theirs at this location. We're bringing everything in: air support, ground troops... and you." He gestured. "Some of you will join our forces, being distributed to units where your special talents will be useful." He pointed at a few of them, Giuseppe included. "For the ones of you with speed-based abilities, we have a special mission. You're the key to this operation." He clicked again, and a diagram of a piece of Old Tech appeared on the screen.

"A teleporter," Gustavo spoke softly. "I thought they'd all been destroyed."

"We've kept a supply of these in deepest secrecy for just such an occasion. Thanks to the information provided by the Ninda, and some of our own scientists', efforts, they should go right through those damned shields. You fast types will teleport inside, find the control room, and plant a special-made device in their base which will overload this monstrosity."

Giuseppe gulped. He immediately started sweating. Gustavo and Anita both grabbed an arm each, and he untensed a bit.

But not much.

The General looked grim. "I won't lie. This is going to be incredibly dangerous. They will defend it tooth and nail. We'll give you as much time as we can, but if they get that thing charged up, they'll wipe us out. The war will be over. And they'll torch the planet."

Not a sound echoed in the chamber.

"We're counting on you all. It's been seven years since this program began. Hopefully, you will be the last we need."

~~~~

The actual briefing had taken an hour, then they'd been handed their unit assignments. Anita and Gustavo were going with a unit or Army troops.

Giuseppe, of course, had his own assignment.

He stood up to move towards his group. Anita touched his thigh, saying nothing. Gustavo spoke. "Hey, meet us up top afterwards. I've got something I want to do."

Giuseppe nodded, and moved to meet the rest of "Team Blitz."

Enrique was leading the discussion, of course. "Glad you're still here, 'Seppe. Honestly, I think you've got the best chance of pulling this off. Even if I am faster." He gestured in front of him. "No built-in shields."

A teenage girl spoke up. She's so young, Giuseppe thought, from the ripe old age of twenty-two. "Do they really think we can do this? You know the inside of that place will be a deathtrap."

"Exactly why they're sending us," Enrique said, "we might be fast enough to avoid some of it."

Giuseppe spoke, "We have to be. You heard the General. This thing can wipe out the whole force with one shot if they decide to use it. This is a Hail Mary - that thing can just snipe us anywhere in the world. If they spread out enough to not get hit all at once, they'll just be broken. The Demons seem to have endless troops."

Another one, an Ogre woman, spoke. "Think maybe they've found some cloning tanks?"

That thought was sobering. "If they found enough to make this many troops this fast, then that would explain the haste. It's not just Inferno they're worried about. They'll overrun us with endless troops," Enrique said.

"No wonder the Breads are scared, " the Ogre said. "They're gonna join the rest of us in getting wiped out."

All of them stared at the floor for a minute. This really is do or die. For everyone. "We can't afford to fail," Giuseppe said. Everyone nodded. "If we fail, it all fails."

~~~~

Giuseppe found Anita and Gustavo outside, staring up at the sky. He sat beside them. Out here, the stars were a river of light. Truly secret bases don't generate a lot of light, after all. Not on the surface. For several minutes, they sat in silence. Finally, Anita spoke. "Sepp... do you think we're getting out of this one?"

"Why are you asking me? You're the boss," Giuseppe said. "You tell me."

"Sepp, I may take the lead, but it's always you pulling our asses out of the fire." She shrugged. "This is... big. Too big for me." She looked back up. "If... when I get out, I want to just come live someplace like this. Away. What about you two?"

Gustavo shrugged. "I dunno. I kind of want to learn to cook. Wasn't your father a pizzaiolo, Sepp? What about you? Maybe open up a pizzeria?" He smirked.

Giuseppe thought about it. Maybe. "I don't know. I'd have to check on Ma and... and Pino..." his voice trailed off.

Gustavo reached into his pocket. He handed something to each of them. "Here. I made these a while back, but I never got a chance to give them to you until now."

Giuseppe held it up to the starlight. "A leather bracelet?"

"For my truest friends." Gustavo said. "I know, it's stupid and sentimental, but... if something happens... I wanted something for us to remember each other with."

Anita already had hers on. As Giuseppe gently wrapped his around his wrist, Anita hugged him. "I love you, you little boulder." She gathered Giuseppe into the hug, and he leaned into it. He reached around and enveloped the two smaller ones, holding them close.

"You two are family to me, just as much as Ma and Peppino. I won't ask for promises, because I can't make any. But... if don't make it... know that I love you."

The stars watched as the three huddled in silence.

~~~~

Giuseppe stretched and warmed up as they waited for the signal to go. Anita and Gustavo should be with their unit by now. Without his friends there, he was even more anxious than usual. Of course, this possibly being the end of the world as we know it might have something to do with that, too. The others around him were silent. Every face carried a mix of anxiety and determination. Even Enrique wasn't cracking jokes. He gently touched the leather bracelet, and his nerves calmed slightly. Thank you, mio amico. Be safe, both of you.

"Hello there," a familiar voice said behind him.

Giuseppe turned. "Doctor... Houlwea, wasn't it?"

The Ninda smiled. "I'm surprised you remembered! Yes, I've been working to get these teleporters set up." He handed Giuseppe a small cylinder, the size of a pen. "The button on that will bring you back to this." He held up a small briefcase-like device. "It's very old though, so try not to abuse it."

"Thanks, Doctor." He place the small item in one of the many pockets on the front of his suit.

The Ninda hesitated, then placed a hand on Giuseppe's arm. "I want to say thank you again for rescuing me. My notes turned out to be vital in figuring out a way to get these teleporters to work through those shields." He looked down. "I wish I'd known about this Inferno thing. Maybe I could've done... something."

Despite himself, Giuseppe smiled. "Doc, you know they'd probably just have killed you or something. You did what you could."

The bread-man shook himself. "I guess. I hope I get to see you again. We're all rooting for you."

As he walked away, Giuseppe patted his pocket. Hope this thing works. If it doesn't, it'll be charcoal time.

The Major stepped forward. Everyone but Giuseppe jumped. The Major's mustache twitched in amusement. "All right, listen up. The battle started a few minutes ago, and it's fierce. So far there's no sign of them using Inferno. They probably think they don't need to. When you get there, we estimate you'll have about five minutes between them noticing you and the weapon being charged enough to fire. Do not take chances, and don't get fancy. Get to your target, insert that drive, and use those porters to leave. Now, get your arms ready!"

Giuseppe nodded, and pulled his shotgun out. You and me again, he thought. One last run.

Houlwea worked a control panel, and a swirling green and pink portal appeared in front of them. The Major yelled, "That's it! Team Blitz, give em hell!"

They charged through the portal as one.

The transition was instant, moving from their meeting zone to the inside of one of the biggest rooms Giuseppe had ever seen.

All hell broke loose. Bullets began pinging all around him. He dashed forward, Enrique right behind him. They'd agreed at the briefing that he'd lead, acting as a shield for the other runners. Despite his desire to weave and juke, he charged straight ahead, using his special talent to provide a little cover to his teammates.

He heard a cry behind him. Someone had been hit. He heard the thump as they fell, the others hurtling over the body. Nothing I can do for them. Gotta go, gotta go!

The fire was intense. The only thing saving him was the field of pure speed and rage in front of him. Several Talpa and even a few Demons stepped out of alcoves, aiming weapons at them. The runners went on the evasive, the fire too broadly spread now for Giuseppe's shield to offer much protection for them. He heard several cries behind him as runners were hit.

He didn't hear any teleporters going off. Every hit was a kill. He turned the grief into rage, which he turned into acceleration. Faster, faster. Push it, break your limit. Don't let them die in vain.

As he ran, Giuseppe caught glimpses of rooms filled with glass tanks. Cloning tanks. He grinned hugely. Good. Two birds with one stone.

Guiseppe hit a straightaway, and he risked a quick glance behind him. He was shocked to see only himself, the ogre woman, and Enrique left. Oh Mio Dio, we might not make-

As he turned his head forward, a searing pain tore through the right side of his face, from right beside his right eye along the side of his head. He screamed, still running. He felt blood running down the side of his face. How did something get past the shield from that angle? He saw a flash, and a beam of light shot past him. Ahead, a group of Demons fired fiery blasts at the trio.

Oh shit, whatever those are, my shield doesn't stop them! His boots screamed as he started evading, hoping to throw off their aim.

The Ogre woman got past him, charging at the demons. She roared as she was grazed several times, then took a shot full in the chest.

Then Enrique blazed past him. What the hell is he doing??

"Go, 'Seppe! Go! You've got to do it!" He pinballed amongst the Demons, breaking their line and throwing off their aim as he bounced around. Giuseppe had just enough time to see one of them blast him before he was past.

I'm the last one. As he ran, tears streamed from his eyes. He screamed in pain and rage. Rage became speed. Tears mixed with blood as he accelerated more, pushing himself past the limit. Go. His heart felt like it would fly out of his chest, but he ignored it. Go. He skidded around a hairpin turn, barely losing speed. Don't let them have died for nothing. He bounced off a wall, spinning in a desperate attempt to avoid the beams and bullets around him. He felt several grazes, but no real hits. Do it for them. He jumped down a flight of stairs, slid down the handrail of a catwalk, a fall a million miles deep just below his feet. Do it for Anita and Gustavo, Ma and Pino.

DO IT.

Giuseppe ran right through a Demon who stood in front of him, who didn't even have time to respond before exploding into messy bits.

Faster, you bastard, faster!

The sound of alarms dopplered down as Giuseppe pushed himself harder and harder. Suddenly the air seemed to open in front of him, and he saw a shockwave fly away. Sound barrier. True Mach 1. He put everything he had left into his run.

Objects shattered in his wake.

Suddenly he realized he was there. He skidded to a stop, bursting through the door to the control center as he decelerated. It was surprisingly small. Only a couple of Demons were there, holding their heads as the sonic boom deafened them. With burning determination Giuseppe gunned them down. Fuck you and fuck you. Then he stepped over to the control panel. This is for you, guys. He plugged the small drive into the port, and it quickly did its job. He heard the rumble as Inferno's core started to overload. Ok, thirty seconds and this place will melt itself. Good riddance. Now to get out of here. He pulled the small pen trigger out and clicked it.

The pen garbled a strange noise, but nothing happened.

Giuseppe looked down at the pen in horror. "CAZZO!" He shrieked. He started running, back towards the entrance, clicking the pen rapidly. Fuckfuckfuck! The building was shaking, a roar like an angry god chasing him through the halls. He hurtled over fallen soldiers, enemies and allies both. Debris and fallen weapons threatened to trip him constantly.

As he ran, he clicked rapidly. "Come on, come on...!"

*click* *click* *click* *click* *cli-BWIP*

~~~~

The sound of cheering stirred Peppino from his stupor. Wha... what's... He felt so tired, like his body was made of lead. There was a pressure on his face. An oxygen mask. And everything hurt. Last thing I remember was... blood... pain... Gustavo, repeating my name over and over...

He blearily opened his eyes.

From the next bed over, Gustavo looked over. "Oh hey! You're awake!" He hopped down and came over, hopping up on a stool. He grabbed Peppino's hand.

"What... what-a happened?" Peppino said.

Gustavo looked grim. "I almost lost you, Pino. We got ambushed. You got shot, I brought you back. You didn't respond to anything. There was so much blood..." He pointed at the heavy bandages on Peppino's body. "You were close to death, my friend."

"We were... ambushed?" Peppino said. "What about... the others?"

Gustavo looked down.

Peppino's eyes filled with tears. All gone. Like that. I miei fratelli.

Gustavo looked up. "But look! Look at the TV! They did it! They destroyed the enemies' weapon!"

Peppino worked to focus on the screen. The words "Enemy Superweapon Destroyed" floated above a picture of what looked like a mountain of slag.

Peppino sighed. All he could think about was his friends. Riposate in pace, amici miei. He laid back, their faces floating across his mind's eye.

Gustavo patted his hand. "I'll let the doctors know you're awake. They'll be so excited!" As the gnome jumped off, Peppino noticed he had bandages wrapped around his own waist, stained with blood. "Gustavo, you're-a wounded, too?"

Gustavo waved a hand. "Non è niente. I got a graze while I was bringing you in. Nothing serious." He ran out the door.

Guilt filled Peppino's heart. Mio amico, that was no graze. You nearly got yourself killed saving me.

He looked back at the screen. People were celebrating in the cities. Outside, someone was setting off fireworks.

Peppino cringed, the sound distorting into bombs and gunfire, screams and curses.

~~~~

Be glad you didn't lose your eye, Giuseppe thought as he touched the bandage covering the right side of his face. Or your head. Part of his right ear was gone, burned away. The skin between his eye socket and ear had been fried, too. It would heal, but he'd have a hell of a scar.

I'm still here. If it hadn't been for the pain, he might not have believed it.

When Giuseppe walked in, the Theater erupted into raucous cheers and applause. Before he could respond, Anita and Gustavo wrapped around him.

"You did it, you did it!" They yelled together. Suddenly Anita dragged his face down and kissed him full on the lips, causing the crowd to erupt in whistles, catcalls and jeers of "get a room!" Giuseppe grinned despite himself. "Anita, I didn't know you cared."

She pressed a hand to his lips. "Don't read too much into it, Sepp. I'm just glad you're alive, friend."

The reminder of the other runners sobered him. "How many did we lose?"

Gustavo looked sad. "A lot. All the other runners. And most of us that were outside, too. There's maybe a dozen of us left." He looked up at Anita. "We got really lucky."

Giuseppe looked down. Riposate in pace, fratelli miei.

With mixed feelings, he let his friends drag him into the crowd. He didn't feel much like celebrating, but everyone else did. Can't blame them too much. The world didn't end.

A few minutes later, the Major came in, and pulled him aside. "I wanted you to know, your brother pulled through. In fact, he just woke up."

Giuseppe felt a band of tension snap in his heart. Ih grazie a Dio. Giuseppe grinned hugely, and gave the Major a giant hug that lifted him off his feet. Putting him down, happy tears in his eyes, Giuseppe threw up both fists and yelled "MY BROTHER LIVES!" Anita and Gustavo cheered loudly, the crowd cheered back, despite not knowing the context, and the Major straightened his tie. "I'll let that one slide this time, Spaghetti. Don't do it again." Then he smiled. "I'm glad. We've lost too much already."

Giuseppe smiled at him. "Amen per questo, Major."

~~~~

Standing outside in the predawn gloom, Giuseppe looked up at the fading stars. It's a new world from here on out. The program was officially being shut down, once things had been wrapped up with the war. Or at least, the original version was. Some of them were staying, including the three of them, to form the core of a new military branch. The world would still need guardians. Some sort of mixture of elite strike forces and intelligence operations, no name yet. But Giuseppe understood. There were far more threats than one alliance of aggressors.

Giuseppe smiled. It all meant something, in the end, after all.

Gustavo and Anita walked up on either side of him. He wrapped his arms around his smaller companions.

The three stood and watched as the sun rose.

~~~~

Peppino leaned back in his recliner, looking at his brother with newfound respect. "That was you!" he said in awe. "You're the one they called the Hellrunner."

Giuseppe grinned meekly from his position laying on Peppino's couch. "Yes. I don't know who came up with that, but it eventually became my call sign."

"The news channels were full of-a people speculating about the soldier who took that Demon superweapon down. It all sounded so fanciful and-a overblown. But knowing the kind of people who did it now..." He looked down. "Its still hard for me to believe I survived." Peppino said.

"You shouldn't have been in the war at all," Giuseppe said, frowning. "None of you. I found the ones who lost that paperwork and we had... words."

Peppino laughed. "So where are the bodies buried?"

Giuseppe chuckled. "Words. Just words. Not to say there weren't a few... implications."

Peppino grew serious. "All I did was take down a tower. You saved the world."

Giuseppe sat up. "Don't sell yourself short, Pino. We'd been trying to track down Pizzahead for years. If I'd have found him, I'd have sent in several teams. The technology in that tower could have done untold damage." He pointed at Peppino. "You are a strong man. Don't forget that."

Coming from the old soldier in front of him, that was quite a compliment. Peppino tried not to swell with pride. "Thank you for the story, fratello."

"Any time, fratellino."

[folliesandfolderols]

Writing prompts day 9

From this prompt list. I set a goal of writing at least 150 words per day in 2024, which sounds pretty pathetic but if you take into account the fact that I haven't written any fiction since 2019 it felt like a feasible target. Anyway I've finished the first draft (it topped out at 88k words) and will be unlocking each post as I edit.

read from the beginning here

Day 8 here

***

71. "How are you feeling?"

***

They all had nightmares, and they almost all had protocols for how they were supposed to be woken up in case they dreamed around someone else.

Dick didn't react badly to being touched, so usually a hug was the right choice until he opened his eyes.

Jason had to be left utterly alone until he woke himself up, and then sometimes whoever was with him was allowed to sit next to him without talking while he clutched the knife under his pillow and pretended he wasn't pressing into their side.

Steph needed someone to call her from safely out of arm's reach, and then hold her hand while she stared at the ceiling.

Cass dreamed silently, without providing a clue of what was happening in her sleeping mind. Her companions only knew she'd had a bad dream if she chose to tell them.

Duke would wake himself up and then talk about literally anything else. It was the job of the person with him to laugh at his jokes and act like nothing had happened.

Damian was mean as a snake for a good half hour after being awoken from nightmares unless it was Dick who did it, so whoever was with him had to be careful not to be caught checking on him.

And Tim . . .

Well, Bernard had just straight-up called it creepy, though only in the most affectionate way when Tim was past the worst of it. Tim couldn't disagree with the description. His brain wouldn't shut down even in the middle of relived trauma, and he usually ended up talking out loud in his sleep, so whoever was nearby got half of whatever dialogue he was trapped in. He'd had a lot of run-ins with talkative villains, people who preferred to frame their violence with words. So if he was having a bad dream, usually the best way to help him was to talk back, to tell him he was safe and it was over.

Of course, none of that helped when he wasn't dreaming, like right now. Standing in his father’s apartment. His father lay on the floor opposite Captain Boomerang.

“Oh God . . . oh God, not again . . .” he quavered in the doorway. “I'll get it out . . . I'll get help . . .”

You should've .  .  . tried harder . . . Jack whispered.

You weren't drafted, his own voice added. You waltzed right in and demanded this role. So why are you so bad at it? No answer? Beautiful. Then we'll just have to run it again, won't we?

“You think this is a game?” Tim demanded.

Wow. Fifty-two times and not even close. Not once.

His father lay dead on the floor again.

“I can save you, Dad- - you just have to trust me. I can do it--I have to do it!” he panted out.

Face it, Bird Boy, you can't save anyone. You’ll get everyone you know killed someday. It's just too bad that your best was never good enough.

His father lay dead on the floor again. 

Batman didn't have any training when his father died- - what’s your excuse? Stephanie sneered. Now stay back before you get anyone else killed!

“Stephanie, wait!” he shouted after her. “You can't do this! You're one of my best friends! I can't lose you too - -”

You wanted to carry the world on your wings, little Robin . . . the doppelgänger rasped.

His family lay dead on the floor.

How do you even go on breathing? the other Tim asked, acid in every word.

“Leave me alone,” Tim cried, but none of it made any difference because they were dead again, they were always dead on the floor and it was always his fault--

"Ssh," a voice said in his ear, low and soothing. "You're home. You don't have to save anyone tonight."

Tim sobbed and curled into a ball. Everything was so cold and he would never see anyone he loved ever again--

But heat curved to press against his back and wrapped around his chest, pulling him close to the person still murmuring reassurances. "You're no longer there. You're in your Nest and there are no active threats to the others. They're finished with patrol and in bed."

With another shuddering sob, Tim finally woke fully and pushed his body even more tightly against Damian's. The dark surrounding them was a relief when he still saw the bodies sprawled in puddles of blood every time he blinked.

"I'm awake," he whispered when his voice started working again. "Thanks."

Damian brushed a kiss against his temple. "How are you feeling?"

"My head hurts but that's it. Fuck. I'm so glad I'm not really there." Tim overlay Damian's arm with his own and pulled it closer to his chest.

"As am I."

day ten here

[afterhourswjay]

I'm regards to the MHA character sh prompt I sent, I would like to clear up a couple things for ya! So, the characters I'm looking for are mainly Deku and Sero, because I need some wholesome stuff lol.

I'm thinking that their S/O already did something, but not life threatening, and the two boys (separately) try to help their S/O? If that's too angsty, just go ahead and do a really cold bath ❤❤

Also, sorry that it took me this long to see your private response 💀

I don't mind writing this!! I hope you don't mind, but I'll be basing this off of how I used to act when I really struggled with harming myself. Sorry if this wasn't what you had wanted, feel free to send in another ask if you were expecting something a little bit different. Also, so sorry that it's taken me so long to get to this!

Warnings: Mentions of self-harming, bleeding, not sure how people spell 'self-harm' so i added tags with and without the hyphen, if this is something that is potentially upsetting to you please please skip this. I have a lot of drafts in the works, so you won't be missing much for long

Izuku Midoriya

- you had been slicing some fruit up for a snack and you hadn't been paying as much attention as you should've and ended up cutting your hand pretty bad - and you were a little bit surprised to realize that other than the initial surprise of getting the cut, you didn't really feel anything. which makes sense, you suppose, since you've begun to feel overwhelmed by school, and hero studies in general - while your staring at the red fluid dripping down and off your fingers, izuku comes into the kitchen for something, probably water ngl - he walks in and barely contains his worry and concern. mom-friend izuku to the rescue. he drags you by your non-injured hand to the bathroom in his dorm room to help clean and patch your hand up - he gently asks you what had happened, and you explain that you'd been struggling with the growing numbness - he nods, not really understanding what you mean, but he also wants to help you out a bit he also doesn't want to leave you alone - so he helps you out by cutting the fruit, replacing any of the slices if they have some blood on them - he then guides you to his bed and hands you a snack and asks if there's anything you want to watch or if you'd rather talk about it - if you want to just watch some movies or tv shows, he's more than willing to grab a bunch of pillows and blankets for you two to snuggle under as you watch whatever you want - if you'd rather talk about everything that had led up to the injury, then he's more than willing to let you talk to him - he wants to help you and also to distract you. really, he just wants to know that you're safe. he's well aware that you have feelings and that you struggle sometimes, so he wants you to realize that you can depend on him

Sero Hanta

- you had woken up in the morning feeling strangely sluggish, your joints feeling stiff and sore. you weren't sure why, but you just wanted the day to be over despite having not really started - as you trail behind your classmates, you take note of how heavy your bag feels. strangely, it feels like there's a million bricks instead of just your textbooks - as the day wears on, so does your focus. don't get it twisted, you're putting 100% effort into listening, but... ok, well... maybe not 100%. but you're trying to, you really are - lunch time couldn't come faster, and you're the first person out of the classroom it's strange, cuz you always feel like chatting... but not today, you don't have the energy. after grabbing food from the cafeteria, you make a beeline for the rooftop courtyard - after lunch, everything passed by in a blur. you don't remember much of anything, other than today being friday, and that you have tomorrow to rest before getting right back into training - you stagger into your bathroom and draw a hot bath. and that's where you stay, for hours, until well passed the water has turned cold. yet, you can't muster up any energy to drag yourself out and to get dried off - your limbs feel like lead, your brain like mush. your brain tells you to get out and get dressed, while that little voice tells you to grab the knife - you, however, remain where you're at. no need to bother, you think - that is, until you realize someone's pounding on your bedroom door, calling for you. its only then that you gather yourself, draining the water from the tub, watching the water as your eyes start to tear up - you slowly towel yourself off, getting your pjs on, and move slowly to your door. you open it and almost get hit in the face by the person knocking. it's... sero? - he tells you how he and the rest of the class was very worried about you today, and that he's just checking up on you. are you hungry? do you want to talk about it? do you just want to go to bed? or would you prefer to hang out? or study? - as you listen to him ramble on about his worries and how the class is worried too, you start crying even harder than you had been previously. he immediately gathers you in his arms and carries you through the dormitory to his room where you two have an impromptu cuddle session

[goldnn-harry]

harry is your vampire boyfriend but you're mad at him

(i hate this but it’s been in my drafts for a really long time 💪)

you were mad at harry. first, he took all the blankets last night, second, he didn't call you all day today, and third, he watched two episodes of your show without you.

so, you the did the only thing any person with common sense would do. you wore silver.

you went all out, bracelets, earrings, rings, necklaces. anything you could find. if you were being honest, you looked ridiculous. you had way too much jewelry on for your liking, and even though all of it was silver it didn't match at all. but it would have to do.

after cooking and serving the food, you made sure to only put silver utensils on the table. you grinned slightly at your prank—to be honest you were mostly messing with harry now instead of being mad at him — now all you had to do is wait.

“darling? i'm home,” you heard the front door close, but you stayed put in the living room.

“jesus- what is that smell? is that silver?”

you giggled quietly and walked over to the front door. “harry! hi,” you grinned and started walking towards him.

“no no y/n- what is all this?” he walked away from you while motioning to your jewelry.

“oh that? i just wanted to try something new, see if i like wearing jewelry now.”

“y/n baby- you know why we don't have silver in the house right?”

you pouted, “but dont you think it looks nice?”

“yes yes, you look lovely. but the smell is horrible!”

“oh it's not that bad, come on let's eat.” you walked over to the dining table and sat down.

“is that silverware?!”

you had to contain your laughter. harry looked like he'd seen five ghosts.

“oh is it? i didn't notice! oops,”

“love come on, please put it away?”

“hmm.. no,”

“y/n!” harry pouted.

“you were mean to me!”

“i was not!”

“you were!”

“when?!”

“well last night you took all the blankets. and you didn't even cuddle me so i was freezing. secondly you didn't call me at all today! and you watched our show without me. and- uhm-”

“baby love you don't even remember why you're mad at me. last night i did cuddle you. but you were fast asleep, so you don't remember. i didn't call you because i was super busy, but you're right, i should've. and, i watched our show because you watched it without me and i had to catch up. now can you take the silver off?”

you blushed, “okay well now i just look stupid,”

harry chuckled, “off baby off,”

you sighed and took the jewelry off, setting it aside to put away later.

“kiss me now?” harry walked over to you and pressed a kiss to your lips.

“my stubborn girl,” he smiled, “i love you.”

[snexy-the-snail]

Conference room troubles.

I think this is a squeal to but idk its been sitting in drafts for a while-))

After recusing Peter from his kidnappers Tony expected to be able to go to the tower and cough the kid up.

The second he stepped into the tower Pepper was by his side. "You have a meeting and no you cant skip this one." Was the first thing out of her mouth.

Instinctually he had a hand over his stomach as if she could see the now wriggling kid tucked away in within him. Her eyes follow the movement.

"...Is he alright?" Pepper asks soflty, seemingly understanding. She remembered being in the kids spot. While disgusting she had to admit that it was the safest spot.

"He's fine, just a little upset." Tony responds quietly not wanting to draw anymore attention than he had. While he wanted to let the kid out as soon as possible it was becoming obvious that it wouldn't be as soon as he would like.

"Mr.Stark? Is Uh- something wrong?"

God bless Peter and his patience. The kid had been sitting in his stomach for roughly and hour and a half and still hadnt complained much.

"And theres no way out of this?" Tony asks with a grimace. He hated not answering the kid but he had a feeling his free time was running out quickly. Pepper shakes her head, tapping her clipboard anxiously.

"Tell him I'm sorry." She says with a small sigh. A worker was waving her down, so with a reluctant smile she went off to see what was the issues.

"..Mr.Stark?" Peter echos again, sounding more anxious than before. That jolted Tony out of the awkward silence. He sighs tiredly and heads towards the elevator. It probably wouldnt look good if he started talking to himself.

There was a flutter in his stomach which he recognized as tiny hands feeling around.

Never any violent kicking or punching.

The kid was obviously terrified and he still hadn't started flailing around. Tony was thankful for that, he wasnt sure if he could handle that.

The second he was alone he was speaking. "I'm here kid." He reassures, pressing at where the kid was. There was a small jolt meaning he probably spooked Peter slightly.

"Are we at the tower? Can you let me out?"

Were the next things out of Peter's mouth. He couldn't blame the kid really. Being in complete darkness with no idea of what was happening had to be hell for the kid.

"Easy kid, yes we're at the tower as for letting you out..that's going to be a little complicated." He responds with a grimace. The weight inside him shifted, Peter probably trying to process what he had said.

"Am- Mr.Stark am I stuck here?"

Tony sighs. The small quiver in the kids voice nearly broke him so did the trembling. "No no- I can get you out I just..I have a meeting that I cant skip."

The doors dinged open to the floor, his stomach flip flopping when he saw everyone getting seat. He was just on time. "As soon as this is over, I swear I'll get you out." He reassures his kid quickly.

Before peter could respond he was heading into the room, all eyes now on him. He stuck his hands in his pockets to keep them from protective resting over his middle. They couldnt see Peter and if they could they had bigger issues.

"Welcome everyone, I hope you're ready to talk about stocks and new designs." Tony announces. The room stayed silent for his presentation that Pepper had been kind enough to put together.

The meeting lasted a painful hour. Tony wasnt exactly sure but he had a feeling that Peter had fallen asleep somewhere around the 20 minute mark.

He didn't blame the kid there wasn't much to do in someone's stomach.

There was another five minutes eaten up by thanking the people who showed up before he was back in the elevator and heading back up to the penthouse.

"Kid? You awake?" Tony asks softly. After a small whined response he decided to let the kid sleep, it might've been better that he wasn't awake for the next part.

He sighs to himself and heads over to the sink, grabbing a bowl and filling it with warm water. It would suffice until the kid woke up enough for a bath.

Coughing the kid up was as pleasant as trying to throw up a stone, but at least he didn't panic on the way up.

He grimaces slightly as he gags again Peter spilling into his mouth. He carefully pulls the kid out by the back of his soaked sweatshirt. He made a mental note to buy Peter another one.

Just in case he kept another hand under the kid as he lifted him out. How the kid could sleep through this he would never know.

[eagles-translated]

Answering Eagles questions before the season 3 finale (Part 1/2)

I've received a bunch of questions since 3x08 and 3x09 dropped, so I compiled all the questions into two posts. I had to split them up because Tumblr only allows 10 images per post. Anyway, keep reading to see my answers and enjoy! 👇

My theory is that everybody will be gathered together for some event and then shit goes down. Sort of like the ending of 1x08.

We've seen an image of Adam, Omar, and Ludde together at a party of some sort. I can't post it here because of Tumblr only allowing ten pictures, but you can find it in Ludde's prediction post that I made prior to the season 3 premiere.

Felicia might be absent from this considering how her mental health has been recently, and instead opting to stay at home rather than attending a party.

I have my suspicions that Elias will be attending this party, though. We saw him at some concert in the season 3 trailer and they made it look like he was watching Amie singing in Stockholm. But maybe Amie will be performing at this party and Elias is watching her here instead?

It seems like Amie singing at the end of the season has become kind of a recurring theme. She performed "Follow" in 1x08 and "Second Sight" in 2x10 (on the radio, but my point still stands). I wouldn't be surprised if they followed this trend by having Amie perform a new song in the season 3 finale.

Maybe Elias approaches her after the performance to express how good she is. He hasn't really seen her do a live performance since 1x08, where she still hadn't really come out of her shell. They've also grown a lot closer this season. Perhaps Elias even has something more to tell her?

I can't help but feel like this party will end on a bad note, though. We have that whole thing with Andreas potentially buying a gun or whatever he's up to (discussed this more in another question down below).

I have a feeling this party is going to get interrupted in some way and that the season is going to end on a major cliffhanger.

I don't even know what they'll do with Ludde and Felicia. Ludde has no idea what happened to Felicia in these last two episodes, and I hope they'll have a conversation just to clear the air surrounding the whole press situation. Ludde still loves her even if he broke things off, and I would really like to see him reassure Felicia that the blame lies with Jack and not her. I don't think they will get back together and repeat what 2x10 did since the drama is still so fresh. Felicia shouldn't really get into a relationship right now, either.

I'm unsure about Klara. I feel like she's mostly done her part this season, but maybe things aren't completely finished between her and Elias. Maybe there were some things left unsaid on Klara's part when she met with Elias at the café, and Elias never really confirmed where he was at.

This talk regarding their relationship (and Eagles?) might happen in the season finale. I'm leaning towards them ending it for good since I doubt they will be getting back together. However, I'm pretty sure that it will be on good terms now after everything Klara did for Felicia.

I somewhat agree with this, even if it was worded a little harshly. Felicia shouldn't have been so quick to share the most personal thing that had ever happened to her on her first date with a guy she had just met. And she shouldn't have done the same thing with Jack, even if it was someone she'd known for longer.

I think she should've at least waited a while to see if the person she told her secrets to was trustworthy—sort of like Ludde did when he told Felicia the truth about how Andreas landed in prison. That's a huge secret and it made more sense to have it be shared closer to the end of the first season rather in the first three episodes.

On the other hand, I can definitely understand why she was so quick to share her problems. Felicia was really lonely when she first came to Oskarshamn. Her parents were fighting all the time, and her dad was only focused on Elias' hockey career. She carried these huge traumatic events and had nobody really supporting her when she ended up at the hospital and was sent to rehab. Felicia couldn't share the secret about her dad's affair either. She really had nobody in her life that she could talk to about any of this.

So it's reasonable that when she finally met a person who she really connected with, she felt comfortable enough to finally share these burdens she had been carrying. She actually started out by saying this to Ludde in 1x03:

I don’t know why I’m telling you this. I don’t talk about it to people.

I don't think Felicia set out to tell her whole backstory to Ludde. It just happened. I'm not saying it was the right choice, but Felicia probably realized that she desperately needed someone to talk to. And she said herself that it felt really good to just get these secrets out (until it didn't when she thought Ludde had spilled the beans to Klara). Felicia even made sure to stress to Ludde that he couldn't tell anybody about her experiences in the US.

Felicia: I don’t want this to come out, that’s really important. Ludde: Of course, I’d never tell.

A similar situation arose with Jack. Felicia was more isolated than ever and she had aborted a child that nobody knew about—not even her mom. That's a huge secret to carry on your own.

Felicia had known Jack since she was a child. She trusted him and he was a family friend. Not only that, but Jack has the ability to be incredibly charming when he wants to be. If anything, it makes more sense that Felicia told her personal things to Jack rather than to Ludde. She couldn't predict that Jack would turn out to be a cheating asshole who would leak everything in the press. It's kind of sad that Felicia would have to constantly keep quiet about all the wounds she's carrying when support from the people around her is the thing she needs and craves.

I've never said that the Kroon family's reaction to them being slandered in the press wasn't valid. I actually understood their anger and frustration quite well, but they let their emotions get the better of them. Yelling at Felicia did nothing to help the situation even though it's fair that they would direct their anger at the person who was to blame in that situation.

It wasn't pretty, and ganging up on Felicia (when her personal business had also been leaked) wasn't the best way to deal with the situation. But because their privacy was violated, I understand it. I can agree with you on that part.

It just sounds like you're implying that Felicia isn't allowed to share personal stuff at all because it would be "gifting ammo to expose her family". If Jack had actually been a decent person and never ruined her family's reputation in the press, you wouldn't be as harsh on her. The situation just got blown out of proportion for everybody.

Put these questions together since they were sort of asking the same thing regarding the last scene of 3x09. Here is the full transcript from that scene if anybody needs a reminder:

Man: Hey. Andreas: Hello. Man: Wasn’t yesterday. Welcome to the outside. Andreas: Thanks. Hey… The last time I saw you, you said you knew somebody who sells. Man: Are you thinking of a fully automatic? Andreas: Yeah, whatever. Man: There’s a guy in Stockholm. I’ll fix it. I’ll send you the number. Just tell him I sent you. Andreas: Alright, good. Got it. Man: Good. Good, see you. Andreas: See you.

It actually didn't click for me at all when I first saw this scene that Andreas could've been talking about buying a gun—my first thought was actually that he was talking about a car because I'm that stupid lmao.

Anyway, there is definitely potential for the season to end on a cliffhanger involving a gun and Andreas. I have a few theories on what the season could end like. Season 3 has been so much darker than previous seasons, so while this might feel too serious for a show like Eagles it's definitely not out of the question after the recent episodes. Anyway, here's what I think could happen.

1. The season ends with Andreas having the gun—but we don't know if he'll actually use it 2. The season ends with Andreas just about to shoot someone—but we don't know who (?) 3. The season ends with Andreas having just shot someone—but we don't know who (?)

I don't know which one of these theories I'm leaning more towards, but I really hope this won't be the outcome for Andreas. He just spent close to a year in prison for something he didn't even do. Andreas is not a criminal, and it would be disappointing if he actually ended up doing this. They could be throwing us for a loop.

I mean, personally I don't think shooting somebody because they were the reason my younger brother didn't get into his dream school is enough reason to risk ending up in prison for. Yes, Ludde got his reputation ruined, but there are other ways to solve that than to resort to crime. Andreas should know that too, considering the whole thing where he got landed in jail because he tried to protect Ludde.

This could absolutely be the case but at the same time I'm a little unsure. Hopefully things will just go up from here since the last two episodes were so dark, but I'm unsure what that last scene in 3x09 will mean for the season finale.

I hope they will do something similar to 2x10, where the ending was more bittersweet than just sour. We had the moment with Elias finally being drafted to the US and then Felicia and Ludde finally getting back together. We saw Amie achieve her dreams as a pop star. And yet there were still sour tones with us seeing Klara's dad passing away, Ludde being brought to the police station, and Amie being entirely alone and heartbroken.

2x10 was a really good episode and the ending montage gave me goosebumps the first time I saw it. I think ending a season like that, with both positives and negatives, hits you more emotionally rather than just ending on one or the other. The 1x08 season finale was really depressing and while the cliffhanger was intriguing, it didn't hit as hard for me as 2x10.

I'm kind of curious if they'll be able to top that episode—it's definitely among my personal favorites.

My stance is that if Elias and Amie won't happen in 3x10, they will be guaranteed to happen in season 4. There is no way they're passing that opportunity up. They have clear chemistry, are fan favorites, and it absolutely makes sense for them to get together considering where they're at in their journeys—both having realized their dreams but then coming back to Oskarshamn because it didn't turn out the way they thought it would.

I think they have a mutual understanding of each other—in season 3 more than ever—and it would definitely be a shame if their potential was wasted. So I can't see the writer(s) passing up that opportunity.

There is a possibility for Elias to make a move in the season 3 finale, but I think it's better to keep our expectations low. We just had Felicia go through something really traumatic and her whole family is dealing with the ramifications of Jack slandering them in the media. Elias's relationship with Amie might have to take a backseat because of that.

There's also the thing where we thought that Petra might forbid Amie from seeing Elias because the newspapers painted him as a sex addict. But I think Petra and Amie have reached an understanding in their relationship after the whole Michael thing, and I can see Petra taking Amie's word when saying that Elias isn't what the press makes him out to be—and that he's not like his father.

I really do want to see something happen between them in the season finale, though. I'm excited but impatient for Elias and Amie and I think there are many fans who feel the same way.

But there is a reason they've been so slow to develop their relationship. Elias and Amie have grown as people separately and they're at a point where I believe they're more compatible than they ever were previously. They've been building their character development, slowly but surely, and I like that they haven't been rushed together like Felicia and Ludde were.

If nothing happens between them in season 3, don't lose hope. I think season 4 will absolutely be Elias and Amie's season.

I hope so. I hope Petra isn't listening to the tabloids and tries to see what's in front of her instead, which is that Elias is not Mats.

Elias is entirely his own person. I know Petra was heartbroken when Mats left her after getting drafted, but when Elias was put into this exact situation he hesitated because he didn't want to leave Klara alone.

Klara: Elias… I don’t understand why you’re even thinking about this. Of course you’re going [to the US]. You’ve always wanted this. Right? Elias: But I don’t want to leave you.

Petra doesn't know about this, but we as the audience do. Elias's actions have always been caring and supportive (and I'm not just saying this because Elias has always been my favorite character). It should only be a matter of time until Petra realizes that, if she just gave him a chance.

I think that Petra will eventually see that Amie has finally found someone special who makes her happy. That Elias isn't at all like how Mats was at his age, or like Michael who didn't even bother to support her.

Petra has been so unlucky in love and I hope she can see through her prejudices and let her daughter be happy and loved, in the way that Petra never really got to be.

It could happen, but even if it does I don't think they will be separated for most of season 4.

Maybe Amie decides to finally take charge of her career and tells the record label that she's doing this her way or not at all. Maybe she even decides to quit to try a music career on her own terms, or with a different label that doesn't make her as successful but doesn't control her.

I never felt like the particular record label Amie ended up with was a great fit for her. Yes, she's very talented and I would love to see her become an even bigger star, but only if it's done the way Amie wants it to be done. There could be the possibility of Amie leaving the label, just like how Elias left the US.

I definitely think Felicia has picked up on Elias overworking himself. He's been at the gym constantly, even during the school field trip to Stockholm. Elias left this huge opportunity in the US to come back to Eagles, and the overworking could be a result of him feeling like he has to prove to both himself and the people around him that this decision was the right one.

They've been super subtle about this whole thing and I hope they will be discussing it properly soon instead of just giving us small snippets. There was discussion about this being an eating disorder, but I think it's leaning more towards overworking like you said and bad eating habits (in my opinion, we would need to see something more drastic before drawing the conclusion that Elias might have an eating disorder).

There's so much that needs to be brought up in the season 3 finale—like what exactly Andreas is planning and its outcome, Felicia healing after her suicide attempt and potentially having a conversation with Ludde, and maybe some sort of triangle drama between Elias and if he'll choose Klara or Amie. There are so many possibilities here that I have my suspicions that this storyline won't be fully resolved in just one episode.

I think it will be pushed forward into season 4 because that seems to make the most sense right now. I've been wrong before though, so something else could definitely happen.

[riyuu-bsd]

I Love You [Edgar Allen Poe x Reader]

"Edgar?" a feminine voice cooed, "Edgar?" The second call had more energy to it, the young lady stepping through the door to the apartment he had bought.

"(Y-Y/n)?" the male whispered, turning to face his friend, "I-I never expected to see you, o-oh dear, I would've tidied up if I ever expected to have you over, I-I'm so sorry for all the clutter-"

"Edgar, it's okay," she chuckled, "I don't mind."

The clutter of the room only seemed to add to the effect of how "him" it was. The walls were dark, painted a blackish-grey, curtains drawn closed and the rooms lit by a few candles he had littered around. The scent of lavender lingered around, the scented candle you had given him in order to help him sleep better obviously well taken care of. Karl lay asleep on the sleek black desk, the rather bulky chair he always kept around half under the desk, half out. She smiled to herself, looking at him fondly,

"Great to see you're feeling at home here in Japan," she chuckled, taking a seat at his desk.

"(Y-y/n), I have to work.." he whispered, motivated to finish the new novel he was working on but not wanting to brush off his closest friend.

"Edgarrrrrr," she whined, standing up and pulling him into a hug, "Please just spend the day with me.. I've missed you."

A shiver ran up his spine at their closeness, his arms wrapping around her feebly.

"I-"

"Or are you really gonna spend another six years trying to beat that guy, huh?" she whispered, "At least make time for me, Edgar, please.."

Her voice wavered heavily, cracking up at times. It nearly brought tears to his eyes, hearing her sound so hurt.

"A-alright, (Y/n)-Chan.." he cooed, the lady pulling away with a small smile as she whiped her eyes,

"Really? Oh that's great, Edgar!" she said, "Have you made any new friends?"

"I.. I think so.." he muttered, "There's Ranpo, after I showed him my novel he asked me to give him more puzzles sometimes.."

She hummed,

"Ah okay," she smiled, assured that the tall recluse would make time for her. He sat in his seat, rubbing the back of his neck nervously.

"It's been so long since we've talked.." he whispered,

"If you ever gave me your number, I could've called or messaged you," she whined slightly, leaning on the desk.

"I-I know.."

Before he could think, she had already picked up his phone and began punching her number into his contacts.

"Now you can call me!" she beamed brightly.

.

"So, what are we gonna do?"

"I.. Maybe.. I'm not sure.. Maybe we could go to a library of sorts?" he suggested, watching as she petted Karl adoringly.

"Could we not stay here?" she objected, "Maybe I could read the draft for your new book?"

"I- Okay.." he whispered, leaning over his desk to pick up the notebook he had drafted in. "I-it isn't all that good.."

"Edgar," she said curtly, "Stop doubting yourself; if it's written by you it's amazing,"

"I-" he began, cutting himself off as he felt himself blush,

"Actually," she began, looking up, "Can you read it out for me? I feel like it's better if I hear it from the author,"

"O-okay.." he muttered, retrieving the notepad and reading outloud what he had written.

As he did so, he noticed his close friend sit on the desk, swinging her legs lazily and looking at him encouragingly.

The first chapter he drafted went by, his voice steady and calm, completely emmersed in reading out to her.

"That's amazing!" She beamed, jumping off of his desk and sitting sideways on his lap, "I love it," she smiled.

The man blushed heavily, about to protest at her (in his opinion) bold action.

"Is it okay if I sit like this?" she cooed, voice barely above a whisper as she leaned into him, "It's more comfortable than on the desk and there are no more chairs,"

"I-I ca-can go g-get you a chair..!" he stammered, about to jump up and find one for her. She stayed still, leaning against his chest as she smiled slightly,

"It's comfortable like this.." she whispered, "But if you insist," she stood back up, the male still blushing madly.

.

Hurrying into another room to retrieve a spare chair for his close friend, the reclusive male began to panic,

"Oh dear.. She was so close.." he whispered frantically, "I- She-.." He attempted to string his feelings into a mental note to himself.

Eyes scanning the room, he found no trace of a chair.

Of course, he wouldn't mind her sitting like that with him were it not for his nerves.

He could barely speak when she was sat so close.

"Edgar?" she cooed, peeking through the doorway. She stepped behind him, wrapping her arms around his waist and cuddling him, "Could you not find one?" she sighed, the man stiffening under her hold as he turned around to face her.

"(Y-y/n).." he whispered, blushing madly,

"What is it, Edgar?" she cooed looking up at him, "Do you need help with anything?"

"I-N-no.." he breathed, relaxing slightly.

"Okay," she hummed, "Can we sit down?"

The way she said we sent a shiver of nerves down his spine,

"S-su-"

Before he could finish his answer, she had tugged him into the room they were in before, a smile bright on his face as he sat down, the lady cuddling up to him in his lap once more.

Poe couldn't quell the frantic beating of his heart as she remained so close to him, simply enjoying him being there.

"Edgar," she began, barely above a whisper, "You're really comfortable.. Can we do this more often..?"

His face flushed further,

"O-okay.." he nodded weakly, "(Y/n)..?"

"Mhm?" the lady nodded, wrapping her arms around his neck loosely,

"Th-there's something I should.. Probably tell you.." he muttered, looking at anything but her.

"What is it, Edgar?" she said with a small, encouraging smile,

"Well.. I.."

It was then that he rethought what he was doing.

He was confessing, right?

Of course.

But he was confessing to his best friend, who was currently hugging him.

Sure, it was something that gave him confidence in his feelings.

But it made him more nervous as he choked on words he couldn't quite say.

If she said no, it would only make everything so much more awkward.

If she said no, his confidence would be shattered. Worse than when he lost to Ranpo.

"Edgar.. You can tell me anything, you know," she coaxed, "You don't have to, but it might help yo-"

"I can't stand this, (Y/n)," he said suddenly, cutting her off, "I can't stand being so close to you when I know you'd never like me back,"

He sounded more confident, but his words were filled with anxiety and self doubt,

"I can't stand being like this when I know tomorrow you're just gonna treat me as a friend again tomorrow," he continued, voice edging further and further onto the line of being angry, "I can't stand beingg so close to you.. But if there's ever distance, it makes me feel sick.. Like I'm never going to be good enough to confess.."

"I-.." she whispered, not sure how to react.

"No," he snapped, lifting her off of himself, "Dont say anything,"

"Edgar I-"

"Don't call me that, (L/n)-San," he said coldly, "Don't give me hope like that."

He stood up,

"I'm going to my room, get comfortable or leave, I don't care," he hissed, turning away and leaving.

He knew he cared.

He knew he loved her; wanted to be with her.

But he couldn't let himself fall anymore than he already had.

"Poe."

Her voice was steady.

"We can talk about this," she continued,

"No we can't, (L/n)," the male snapped, turning on his heels o face her, "We can't work this out, okay? Not everything is gonna sort itself out, not everything gets better with time, not everything can be talked ove-"

"Fine," her voice seemed to waver slightly, "At least I know I tried."

Before he could think over what he said, she was gone.

Regret began to sink in, the weight of everything he said crashing down.

How could he be so rude to the only one who supported him over those long six years?

How could he snap at someone he cared about so much?

How could he say that to her?

Guilt began to consume him.

It riddled gaping holes in his already withered self confidence, tears pooling in his eyes,

"How could I ever.. How could I ever do that.. To her.." he whispered, staring at where she once stood, "How..?"

.

.

.

Days passed, dragging on unbearably slowly.

He felt choked by guilt, nothing else on his mind.

He thought over and over.

Things he could've done differently to stop it.

To have her still there with him.

But no.

He was horrible to the only person who had stuck with him. The only person who seemed to really care about his feelings.

And he shoved her away.

A loud knock on the apartment door ripped him from his thoughts, the male deciding to ignore it.

"Edga- Poe.. Please answer.. I know you're there.."

It was her.

Why?

Why did she still care about him?

"Poe please.. I know you think we can't talk things over, but I have to tell you at least one thing first.."

He longed to see her again.

Say he's sorry.

Tell her he didn't mean all the things he said to make her sad.

But how nervous seeing her would make him shattered him.

"I know you're listening, Poe.." she said once more, "Please let me in.."

He lifted himself up, unable to resist the thought of things being okay with her again.

He swung the door open, instantly leaning down slightly to hug her.

"I'm sorry, (Y/n)-Chan.. I'm so, so sorry.." he whispered, tears threatening to fall,

"It's okay, Poe," she cooed, rubbing soothing circles on his back as she stepped inside, weary to move too much or bother her close friend, "I'm sorry I acted the way I did, I shouldn't have been like that," she whispered.

The man stayed quiet, wrapping his arms around her tighter,

"I just.. I just wanted to try and let you know I like you.." she confessed, "I'm sorry I left you like that, I should've tried harder to help you,"

"You didn't do anything wrong.." he spoke up, "I shouldn't have snapped like that,"

Her words began to sink in. She loved him?

"It's okay," she cooed, leaning her head against his chest, "It's okay.. I'm here now.. You're here now.."

He nodded slightly, pulling away from the hug with a small smile.

"I.. I guess I never said it properly, huh..?" he whispered, face bright red, "I love you, (Y/n)."

"I love you too, Edgar," she smiled, planting a quick peck on his cheek and wrapping her arms around him once more.