#if you've got love to get queued

[victorluvsalice]

Welcome to another episode of "I have decided to upgrade the Valicer farmhouse!" It's been a while since Victor, Alice, and Smiler's home got a refresh, and this particular one was prompted mainly by the following two facts:

A) Thanks to all their various side hustles (Victor selling the produce from his greenhouse and occasionally licensing songs, Alice writing books and selling paintings, and Smiler making SimsTube videos), plus the profits from their grocery store and Alice's brief career as an official Artist, the gang had LOADS of money to spend on new furniture and the like

B) My parents agreed as a birthday present to buy me 100 bucks worth of Sims 4 packs, and I spent a good chunk of that on them purchasing Horse Ranch and Home Chef Hustle, so I had some new Build/Buy items to play with!

So yeah -- figured it was time to upgrade some furniture and add some new fun stuff for the trio to use in their daily lives! Let's take it room by room:

Smiler’s Party Barn – This space was pretty much all about the furniture upgrades -- I updated the couch by the stairs to the most expensive and comfortable one (in of course the most wild swatch I could find – purplish-pink with zebra print details on the frame); changed out the chairs around the games table to more expensive and comfortable ones from that actually matched the puzzle table and were still just as colorful; and updated Smiler’s bar to a bigger one (it’s now a three-tiler, black with glowing yellow lights along the bottom -- aesthetic!) and got the most expensive and comfortable barstools to go along the front. Gotta make sure the guests are comfy! :D Even more importantly, though, I ended up changing around a bunch of the pictures and posters – the two sky prints the trio’s picked up from observatory visits are now behind the bar with a couple of space-themed posters; the DJ posters previously behind the bar are now above the ottomans on either side of the karaoke machine; a cute purple painting of a woman previously above the bar is now over the stairwell; and the big portraits of the Valicer wedding (Victor and Alice kissing and Victor and Smiler kissing) are now by the ping-pong table, in a collage with the two biggest pictures of the trio posing in their swimsuits on their honeymoon. :) But where did the other pictures of the wedding and honeymoon go? I’ll tell you shortly...

Cow Paddock – But first, let’s go outside and around to the back of the barn to Moory’s pen! Where, with the power of Horse Ranch, I added some patches of prairie grass and a proper water trough for our cow (moving the CC bucket fountain from "Cottage Garden Stuff" by @plumbobteasociety I was using to represent a source of water for Moory over to the corner of the pen for decoration purposes...though it occurs to me it might be nice to put in the chicken pen to pretend it’s now a drinking fountain and bath for the chickens). The water trough is probably just going to be for decoration (it’s intended for the horses that came with Horse Ranch and I’m not sure other animals can drink out of them), but the prairie grass actually serves a purpose – I know from seeing the option grayed out on the shed previously that you can refill a cow or llama’s feed with the stuff! So that’s cool. :) (And yes, I saw that option BEFORE I owned Horse Ranch, so, uh, great job Sims team.)

Living Room – I changed out the rug under the couch, coffee table, and TV stand for one of the new colorful Horse Ranch ones (doesn't it look cool?), and upgraded the couch and the two chairs in front of the fireplace into more expensive and comfortable models (though I made sure to keep the bright and wacky colors -- the Get Famous and Growing Together furniture have really good swatches in this regard, I'm pleased to report). Again, though, the big change was updating all the stuff on the walls -- mostly because I absolutely had to clean up all the photos around the house so I actually had room for NEW snaps. Plus I'd started looking at some of the photo collections and going “Do we really need this many pictures of you guys in front of your house at the family reunion?” XD I mean, I like them, but maybe some variety would be a good thing. And look a little less self-important. XD So what I did was remove the four-picture collage of the gang doing various poses in front of the house at the family reunion from one side of the TV, grabbed one medium-sized photo out of the set to keep, sold the rest (and the frame), and moved into its place the picture of everyone posing in front of the store that was upstairs by Smiler’s room previously. And THEN I moved the collage of photos of them on their honeymoon that was previously in the little notch next to the kitchen (which no longer exists as I made the kitchen bigger -- more on that later) over to the corner by the phonograph! So it’s right near the other big wedding collection. :) So THAT’S a little better!

Study – Mostly more picture rearranging in this room, though I did upgrade the chess set and chairs on the left wall to fancier versions – and discovered that the black and red chessboard also has black and red pieces, so I decided to go with that as a color theme. *shrug* If I can’t have white and red, I’ll go with black and red! Anyway, over the chess table, I stuck four of Victor and Alice's original Selvadoradan honeymoon snaps into one of the four-photo collage frame sets I unlocked, then arranged the remaining two photos on top of them in a way that made them look like part of the set (you can tell they're not because the frames aren't as thick, but still works). Then, over by Smiler's guitar, I got two more three-frame collage sets, put the photos from the trip to Granite Falls in those, and arranged them appropriately behind the rug, next to the window. The picture Alice painted of Smiler playing their guitar and the the one she painted of the Granite Falls ranger station sign then went up on the side wall next to the rug (because Victor has the picture Alice painted of him playing piano next to his piano, so I wanted Smiler's portrait to be next to THEIR instrument). After that, I moved the picture of Alice scratching herself that Victor did on the Valicer Honeymoon out of there and upstairs to the attic rec room (I couldn't bring myself to delete it, it amuses me too much XD), then moved the sketches and fancy light Alice unlocked from the Artist career over a little, into that space. Making room for a little photo collage of sorts next to her fancy easel -- the photo of her painting at their old house that Victor took on the top, one of the photos she took of Rory to become friends and get her to turn her into a werewolf on the bottom –

And one of those Moschino Stuff slideshow photo frames in the middle! Because I've been meaning to start using those for AGES now. This is where a bunch of the smaller photos went – I put all the little photos of the wedding from the party barn, one of my favorite little photos from the family reunion, a snap of them posing in front of the store, and a snap from their New Year’s Eve trio date into there and turned on the frame to display them as a slideshow, changing once per hour. :D So now I have a spot to keep tiny photos that I may like, but don’t have room for on the wall! Yay! :)

First Floor Hallway – Bunch of little changes here -- first up, I made the washer and dryer brighter colors (because why wouldn't I?) and put the MySim trophy of Yuki Alice found recently on top of them – turns out that WASN’T a duplicate after all! Nice! Then I got one of the three-photo-frame collage sets I unlocked with the family reunion, put the best three photos of the scenery around their honeymoon island in it (and sold the fourth, which was of a rainy miserable day anyway), and slapped the set up next to one of the windows beside the study. Wasn’t sure where else to put them, and they looked good there! And finally, I grabbed myself the egg-shaped decorative egg display shelf I downloaded from @somecreativecc (seriously, if you need displays, they are the place to go) and slapped it up where the previous hanging shelf with all the eggs had been (right by the entrance to the kitchen and the cats’ downstairs scratching post), moving all the eggs (with the help of “moveobjects on” to access all the slots) onto there! So now all ten eggs fit properly on those shelves, and there’s a dedicated space for the remaining two that need to be found, yay.

Downstairs Back Entrance/Mudroom – I had to move one of Alice’s paintings out of here into the kitchen, and rearrange the boots so they were along the wall next to the coat rack – reason being, the room is now smaller! And why is it smaller?

[amiscreations]

A question for my concert going friends: how do you feel about artists/venues doing priority entry? As in early entry, not disabled etc. Personally I really dislike it, as it pushes that idea that you can only be a "real fan" if you have enough money to do so. And "real/better" fans are always perceived as the ones at the front or with the best merch.

I'm probably just bitter as I don't have the money to be able to do priority entry lol, but I think it is just generally unfair, and I really wish more artists would stop doing it. Also if you're in the UK you probably know how the O2 venues work, and I just think thats ridiculous.

[stellophiliac]

how to build a digital music collection and stuff

spotify sucks aaaass. so start downloading shit!!

file format glossary

.wav is highest quality and biggest

.mp3 is very small, but uses lossy compression which means it's lower quality

.flac is smaller than .wav, but uses lossless compression so it's high quality

.m4a is an audio file format that apple uses. that's all i really know

downloading the music

doubledouble.top is a life saver. you can download from a variety of services including but not limited to apple music, spotify, soundcloud, tidal, deezer, etc.

i'd recommend ripping your music from tidal or apple music since they're the best quality (i think apple music gives you lossless audio anyway. .m4a can be both lossy and lossless, but from the text on doubledouble i assume they're ripping HQ files off apple music)

i also love love love cobalt.tools for ripping audio/video from youtube (they support a lot of other platforms too!)

of course, many artists have their music on bandcamp — purchase or download directly from them if you can. bandcamp offers a variety of file formats for download

file conversion

if you're downloading from apple music with doubledouble, it spits out an .m4a file.

.m4a is ok for some people but if you prefer .flac, you may wanna convert it. ffmpeg is a CLI (terminal) tool to help with media conversion

if you're on linux or macOS, you can use parameter expansion to batch convert all files in a folder. put the files in one place first, then with your terminal, cd into the directory and run:

for i in *.m4a; do ffmpeg -i "$i" "${i%.*}.flac"; done

this converts from .m4a to .flac — change the file extensions if needed.

soulseek

another way to get music is through soulseek. soulseek is a peer-to-peer file sharing network which is mainly used for music. nicotine+ is a pretty intuitive (and open-source) client if you don't like the official one.

you can probably find a better tutorial on soulseek somewhere else. just wanted to make this option known

it's bad etiquette to download from people without sharing files of your own, so make sure you've got something shared. also try to avoid queuing up more than 1-2 albums from one person in a row

tagging & organizing your music

tagging: adding metadata to a music file (eg. song name, artist name, album) that music players can recognize and display

if you've ripped music from a streaming platform, chances are it's already tagged. i've gotten files with slightly incorrect tags from doubledouble though, so if you care about that then you might wanna look into it

i use musicbrainz picard for my tagging. they've got pretty extensive documentation, which will probably be more useful than me

basically, you can look up album data from an online database into the program, and then match each track with its file. the program will tag each file correctly for you (there's also options for renaming the file according to a certain structure if you're into that!)

there's also beets, which is a CLI tool for... a lot of music collection management stuff. i haven't really used it myself, but if you feel up to it then they've got extensive documentation too. for most people, though, it's not really a necessity

how you wanna organize your music is completely up to you. my preferred filestructure is:

artist > album > track # track

using a music player

the options for this are pretty expansive. commonly used players i see include VLC, foobar2000, clementine (or a fork of it called strawberry), and cmus (for the terminal)

you can also totally use iTunes or something. i don't know what audio players other systems come with

i personally use dopamine. it's a little bit slow, but it's got a nice UI and is themeable plus has last.fm support (!!!)

don't let the github page fool you, you don't have to build from source. you can find the releases here

click the "assets" dropdown on the most recent release, and download whichever one is compatible with your OS

syncing

if you're fine with your files just being on one device (perhaps your computer, but perhaps also an USB drive or an mp3 player), you don't have to do this

you can sync with something like google drive, but i hate google more than i hate spotify

you can get a free nextcloud account from one of their providers with 2GB of free storage. you can use webDAV to access your files from an app on your phone or other device (documents by readdle has webDAV support, which is what i use)

disroot and blahaj.land are a couple providers i know that offer other services as well as nextcloud (so you get more with your account), but accounts are manually approved. do give them a look though!!

if you're tech-savvy and have an unused machine lying around, look into self-hosting your own nextcloud, or better yet, your own media server. i've heard that navidrome is a pretty good audio server. i unfortunately don't have experience with self-hosting at the moment so i have like zero advice to give here. yunohost seems to be a really easy way to manage a server

afterword

i don't know if any of this is helpful, but i just wanted to consolidate my personal advice in one place. fuck big tech. own your media, they could take it away from you at any moment

[joelmillerisapunk]

How quickly can you take your clothes off, pop quiz

Joel Miller x reader

Masterlist

Wordcount

Summary: The enemies to lovers/one bed/forced close proximity/light grumpy x sunshine/patrol partner fic no one asked for.

Warnings: 18+, unprotected p in v, grumpy joel, reader is called "the new kid", reader has breasts but no physical description. It's more tension filled fluffy bickering than smut, but I couldn't help adding a little drop of it in.

Notes: I've been so sick this weekend and was strictly supposed to read fic, but this idea came to me anyway, so I queued it up. I hope you like them as much as I loved writing this. Ty @saradika-graphics , what would we all do without you?

Evening, Day 1

As you fasten the straps of your worn-out boots, the reality of your first patrol with Joel Miller, the cornerstone of Jackson's defence, settles in. You've heard stories about his exploits, and you're determined to prove your worth, that you're more than just another mouth to feed.

The morning air is crisp as you meet Joel by the gate. He grunts a greeting, his eyes scanning the perimeter with practiced vigilance. You fall into step beside him, the weight of your rifle a comfort against your shoulder.

"So, where are we headed?" you ask, trying to break the ice.

Joel's response is terse as he nods in front of himself. "Out there."

You nod, swallowing your disappointment and try again. "So, Joel, I've been studying the maps, and I think if we—"

"Save your breath. We'll check the traps, clear any infected, and get back before dark. That's the plan."

You nod, a little deflated but still hopeful. "Got it.” You press your lips together, taking his words to heart. 

The rest of the patrol is silent, save for the crunch of leaves underfoot and the occasional direction from Joel. You're vigilant, alert, and when you spot a tripwire, you quickly signal to him, earning a curt nod of approval. But upon returning to Jackson, you go to sign out in the patrol book, and your brows furrow at the entry Joel has already made. 

Patrol Log - Jackson Settlement

Date: Indeterminate, Outbreak

Pair: Joel Miller/The New Kid

Entry Signout: All clear minus the constant chatterbox that seems to think their voice is a homing beacon for every clicker in a ten-mile radius. - J

You didn't even talk that much. You roll your eyes and close the book a little too hard.

Evening, Day 2

You meet Joel at the gate once more, you notice a flicker of surprise in his eyes when you simply nod in greeting, foregoing the usual stream of words. He grunts in response. You're determined to show him you're not just the “constant chatterbox" he'd written about. You've spent the day replaying his words in your head, using them as fuel to prove your mettle.

—

"Up ahead, there's a blind spot by that old truck. Cover me while I check it out." 

You nod, taking up position without hesitation. 

As he disappears behind the rusted vehicle, your heart pounds in your chest. Every sound is amplified in the stillness of the evening—the distant hoot of an owl, the rustle of leaves in the wind, and then a low growl that sends a chill down your spine. An infected emerges from the underbrush, its eyes locked onto Joel's last known location. Without missing a beat, you take aim and fire—a clean shot that drops it instantly. 

Joel reappears just as quickly as he vanished, his expression one of mild surprise at your swift action. "Nice shot," he grunts begrudgingly before moving on as if nothing happened.  A small victory for you; perhaps he's not entirely immune to your efforts after all. 

The adrenaline from the encounter with the infected is still coursing through your veins as you and Joel continue your patrol. His rare compliment echoes in your mind, fueling your determination to prove yourself further. 

As you make your way back to Jackson, you can't help but feel a sense of accomplishment. You've not only held your own but also protected Joel's back when it counted. 

Back at the settlement, you hurry to the patrol book before Joel can beat you to it.

Patrol with Grumpy McGrumpface complete. All infected cleared. Check back in a few days. And for the record, this chatterbox saved our asses tonight. Maybe next time, you'll  remember to check your blind spots—and your attitude.

You add a little smiley face next to your entry, a playful jab at his perpetual grumpiness.

As you walk away from the book, you glance back to see Joel reading your entry, a slight smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth. It's a small crack in his tough exterior, and it gives you hope that there's more to Joel Miller than he lets on.

Evening, Day 3

The air is tense as you approach the gate, the familiar silhouette of Joel Miller waiting for you. There's a certain expectation hanging between you two, a silent challenge that has been building since your last patrol. You greet him with a nod, the same flicker of surprise in his eyes, quickly replaced by his usual stoic expression.

As you set out, the landscape feels different, almost as if it's holding its breath. You're more attuned to the subtle shifts in the wind, the way the light filters through the trees, and the distant sounds that could signal danger. You move with a newfound confidence, your steps sure and quiet, your senses heightened.

We're going to sweep the old high school today," Joel says, breaking the silence. It's the most he's volunteered about the day's plan, and you take it as a sign of trust, however small.

You acknowledge his words with a simple, "Understood," and follow him towards the dilapidated building that looms in the distance. The structure has seen better days, its windows shattered, the playground overtaken by nature, a haunting reminder of a world that once was.

As you approach, you signal for Joel to hold position while you scout ahead. You move with caution, your eyes scanning for any signs of movement. The silence is broken only by the creaking of a swing, swaying gently in the breeze.

You clear the perimeter, finding no immediate threats, and signal Joel to advance. Together, you methodically clear the classrooms, the gymnasium, and the cafeteria. 

As the sun begins its descent, casting long shadows across the desolate high school, you and Joel finish securing the premises. The tension between you has simmered down to a low hum. It's eerie how the remnants of childhood laughter still linger among the abandoned desks and faded educational posters. You can't help but wonder what became of the students and teachers who once filled these halls with life.

"All clear," you report, as you finish sweeping the last room, your voice echoing through the empty halls.

Joel grunts in agreement, his eyes lingering on the swing set outside, its melancholic creaking a stark contrast to the silence that now fills the school. "Let's head back. It's getting dark."

You nod, but as you turn to leave, a sudden storm rolls in, the sky turning an ominous shade of grey. The wind howls through the broken windows, whipping up leaves and debris in a frenzied dance. Within moments, the heavens open up, unleashing a torrential downpour that shows no signs of letting up.

"Damn it," Joel mutters under his breath, his gaze fixed on the rapidly deteriorating weather outside. "We ain't makin it back to Jackson in this."

Your heart sinks at his words. The high school isn't equipped for an overnight stay—at least not comfortably—and sharing close quarters with Joel Miller is an entirely different kind of danger than what you've faced so far today. But there's no other choice; safety comes first. You follow him to the least damaged classroom and start gathering materials to make it through the night: some old mats from the gym for bedding; whatever dry wood helps you start a small fire, and some canned food from what remains of the cafeteria's supplies. 

As night falls and darkness envelops your makeshift shelter, you can feel Joel's unease mirroring your own—two predators forced into an uneasy truce by circumstance. You both know that despite your differences and his gruff exterior, survival often requires uncomfortable compromises... like sharing body heat when temperatures plummet during stormy nights like these... like sharing a “bed” when there's only one dry spot left in an abandoned high school turned refuge from infected monsters lurking outside.

—

The storm outside rages on, its fury unabated, as the match from your hand hisses out against the wet concrete floor. The darkness inside seems to thicken and you can feel the cold creeping in, the dampness seeping through the layers of your clothing, chilling you to the bone.

Joel's silhouette is barely visible across the room, his frustration palpable in the heavy silence that follows the failed attempt to reignite the fire. The tension that had momentarily subsided now returns with a vengeance, amplified by the primal need for warmth and the instinctual fear of the unknown dangers lurking in the darkness.

Joel rummages through his bag, the sound of items being shuffled around punctuating the silence. He pulls out a small waterproof match case, flipping it open to reveal just three matches left inside. His fingers, roughened by years of survival and hardship, gingerly pick up the first match. The strike against the side of the box is sharp and swift, but the wind howling through the broken windows extinguishes it before it can catch. A second attempt meets with the same fate, and Joel's jaw clenches in frustration. "Damn it," he mutters under his breath, his voice barely audible over the storm. He looks at the final match with a mix of resignation and determination. "You know, if you were more careful, we'd have more to work with," Joel grumbles.

"Oh, so now you're worried about being more careful?" you retort, unable to keep the sarcasm out of your voice. "A little too late for that now ain't it Miller?” 

Joel glares at you, his eyes narrowing in the dim light. "I've been careful," he growls. He strikes the last match, shielding it from the wind with his hand. But again it fails, leaving you with no heat. 

You can't help but feel a sense of satisfaction at seeing Joel struggle. "Yeah, well, maybe you should've thought about that before we ended up in this situation," you say.

Joel shakes his head. "You think this is fun for me?" he asks. "Stuck in this godforsaken place with someone who can't stop talkin?”

You glare at Joel, his silhouette a dark shadow in the dim light. "You think I wanted this?" you snap back, frustration seeping into your words. "I'm here because I have to be, just like you."

Joel grunts in response, his gaze fixed on the remnants of the failed fire. "We don't have time for this," he says gruffly, standing up and brushing off his pants. "We need to conserve body heat."

Reluctantly, you both make your way to the makeshift bed, nothing more than a pile of old gym mats and whatever dry fabric you could scavenge and a small emergency blanket meant for one person. The thought of sharing such close quarters with Joel is unsettling, but survival trumps discomfort every time.

You lie down first, turning your back to him as he settles in behind you. The awkwardness of the situation is not lost on either of you. You can feel the heat radiating off his body despite the layers between you. As minutes pass in silence, save for the howling wind and rain lashing out, Joel shifts slightly behind you. His arm drapes over your side as he tries to find a comfortable position—and then his hand accidentally brushes against your breast. You stiffen instantly; it's an intimate contact that neither of you expected nor wanted under these circumstances. 

"Whoa! Watch it!" you exclaim indignantly, trying to wriggle away from his touch while still maintaining contact for warmth's sake—a delicate balance indeed under these cramped conditions.

Joel recoils as if he's been stung by a wasp. The tension in the room spikes, and for a moment, neither of you moves. Joel's breath hitches, and you can feel his body tense up behind you. The accidental touch has set off a chain reaction of awkwardness, and you're both acutely aware of the other's presence. "Sorry," Joel mumbles, his voice rough with embarrassment. "I didn't mean to..." His sentence trails off, lost in the sound of the rain pounding against the roof.

You nod, acknowledging his apology, but the damage is done. The line between survival and intimacy has been blurred, and the close proximity is playing tricks on your mind. You can't ignore the warmth of his body, the steady rhythm of his breathing, or the fact that you're both very much alone in this abandoned high school.

Minutes tick by, and despite your best efforts to keep a respectful distance, the reality of your situation becomes increasingly apparent. The cold is seeping in, and the need for warmth can't be denied. Slowly, almost imperceptibly, you find yourself leaning back into Joel, seeking the heat that his body is so eager to provide. He stiffens at the contact, but he doesn't pull away. Instead, he cautiously wraps his arm back around you, pulling you closer. 

It's been a long time since either of you has felt the touch of another person, the comfort of human contact that goes beyond mere companionship.

Joel's breath is warm against your neck, and you can feel the evidence of his arousal pressing against you. It's a startling realization, but it's met with an unexpected surge of desire that you can't quite suppress. The knowledge that he's affected by your closeness is thrilling, and you can't help but wonder if he can sense the effect he's having on you as well.

The line between necessity and want is blurred, and in the end, it's the human need for connection that wins out. With the storm as your only witness, you turn to face Joel, your eyes meeting in the dim light. There's a silent question hanging between you, one that's answered with a soft, almost hesitant kiss. The kiss is an exploration, a rediscovery of a basic human need that has been long neglected. It's a slow burn, fueled by days of tension and the shared experiences that have brought you closer than either of you could have anticipated. Joel's hands find their way to your face, cradling it gently as he deepens the kiss, his tongue tracing the contours of your lips before slipping inside to meet yours in a dance that is both familiar and new.

The cold is forgotten as warmth spreads through your body, ignited by the friction between you. You find yourself pressing against him, seeking more contact, more heat. Your hands roam over his chest, feeling the firm muscles beneath the fabric of his shirt. The sensation sends shivers down your spine, and a soft moan escapes your lips as Joel's fingers deftly undo the buttons of your shirt, revealing skin that is hungry for his touch.

There's an urgency building between you now—a primal need that cannot be ignored or denied any longer. Clothes are shed hastily; each piece removed reveals another patch of warm skin eager for exploration and connection

As the last of your clothes fall away, the cool air of the high school classroom is a stark contrast to the heat that radiates between you and Joel. His hands trace a path down your sides, exploring the curves of your body. The rough pads of his fingers leave a trail of goosebumps in their wake, and you can't help but arch into his touch, seeking more.

Joel's gaze meets yours, and there's a vulnerability in his eyes that you've never seen before. It's as if the walls he's built around himself are crumbling down, brick by brick, revealing the man beneath the hardened survivor. You reach up to cup his face, feeling the stubble scratch against your palms, grounding you in this moment—a moment that feels both surreal and more real than anything you've experienced in a long time.

With a tenderness that surprises you both, Joel lowers his lips to yours once more, kissing you deeply as he positions himself between your legs. The anticipation is palpable; every nerve in your body is attuned to his presence. As he enters you, there's a brief moment of discomfort followed by an overwhelming sense of fullness—a completion that transcends physicality. You move together in rhythm; each thrust is punctuated by gasps and moans that echo off the walls of the abandoned classroom. The world outside has ceased to exist; all that matters is this connection—this desperate need for closeness in a world gone mad.

Joel's pace quickens; his breath comes in ragged gasps against your neck as he drives into you with an urgency born of months—if not years—of pent-up desire and longing. You meet him thrust for thrust, your fingers digging into the muscles of his back as waves of pleasure crash over you both.

The tension builds within you like a storm gathering strength—a tempest that threatens to sweep away everything in its path until there's nothing left but raw sensation and pure ecstasy coursing through every fiber of your being until finally - release washes over you both in a rush of heat and sensation that leaves you gasping for air. The world around you fades away, replaced by the pulsating rhythm of your shared climax. It's a moment of pure, unadulterated bliss.

As the aftershocks subside, you find yourselves entwined in each other's arms, your head resting on his chest and the steady beat of Joel's heart is a comforting sound against the backdrop of the relentless storm outside. The cold is kept at bay by the warmth generated by your bodies, and for the first time since this ordeal began, you feel truly at peace. 

Eventually Joel's breath evens out as he falls into a deep sleep, his body relaxed and sated in a way you've never seen before. You take a moment to study his face—the lines etched by years of hardship softened in slumber, revealing a hint of the man he might have been under different circumstances. With gentle care, you extricate yourself from his embrace and pull on your clothes, intending to keep watch over the sleeping giant beside you.

The hours pass slowly; dawn is still a distant promise when you hear it—the unmistakable sound of movement outside your refuge. Your senses immediately go on high alert; adrenaline courses through your veins as you cautiously approach one of the broken windows, rifle at the ready. The storm has lessened but not enough to obscure the shapes moving in the pre-dawn gloom. Infected? Or something worse?

You glance back at Joel, still lost in sleep, and make a split-second decision. You won't let whatever danger lurks outside reach him while he's vulnerable. Steeling yourself, you slip out into the storm-ravaged landscape. The rain pelts against your skin, a relentless barrage that does little to dampen your resolve. You move with purpose, your eyes scanning the darkness for any signs of movement.

The high school grounds are eerily quiet, save for the occasional clap of thunder echoing in the distance. You keep low, using the remnants of the playground equipment as cover as you make your way towards the source of the disturbance. The last thing you want is to lead any potential threats back to Joel.

As you approach the perimeter of the school, you catch sight of a small group of infected, their grotesque forms illuminated by the occasional flash of lightning. They seem disoriented, their movements erratic as they struggle against the wind and rain. It's clear they're not here for you; they're simply passing through, driven by some primal instinct to seek shelter from the storm.

You take a deep breath, steadying your aim as you prepare to engage. The first shot rings out, echoing through the deserted schoolyard. One of the infected drops to the ground, its body convulsing before falling still. The others turn towards the sound, their milky eyes searching for the source of the threat.

You fire again, and then again, each shot carefully placed to conserve ammunition. The infected fall one by one, their bodies piling up in the mud as you advance, keeping the upper hand through sheer determination and skill. But as the last one drops, you hear a new sound—a low growl that sends a chill down your spine.

You turn just in time to see another infected emerging from the shadows, its jaws snapping hungrily as it charges towards you. You raise your rifle, but the mud beneath your feet gives way, sending you sprawling to the ground. The infected is on you in an instant, its weight pinning you down as it tries to bite through your rain-soaked jacket.

With a surge of adrenaline, you manage to free one arm and reach for the knife strapped to your belt. You drive the blade upwards, aiming for the infected's exposed throat. The creature gurgles in pain, its grip loosening just enough for you to wriggle free and deliver the killing blow.

Panting heavily, you push the infected's lifeless body off of you and take a moment to assess the situation. The immediate threat has been neutralized, but you're acutely aware that more could be drawn by the sound of the struggle. With no time to lose, you make your way back to the school, your heart pounding in your chest.

You slip back inside and secure the door as best you can. You turn around and see Joel is already awake, his eyes scanning the room as he reaches for his weapon. The sight of you, unharmed, brings a look of relief to his face, quickly replaced by a scowl. "Where the hell were you?" he demands, his voice rough with sleep and worry.

"I heard something outside," you explain, keeping your tone even. "I went to check it out."

Joel's expression darkens. "You should've woken me up, you could have gotten killed out there," he grumbles, his concern for your safety masked by his usual gruff demeanor.

"I didn't and you needed the rest," you reply, meeting his gaze. "Besides, I can handle myself.”

Joel's jaw clenches, and for a moment, you think he's going to argue. But then he just nods, acknowledging your capability even as his protective instincts chafe at the thought of you facing danger alone. "Next time, wake me," he repeats, his tone leaving no room for argument.

You can't help but smirk at the gruff concern in Joel's voice. There's a part of you that enjoys getting under his skin, challenging the walls he's built around himself. "You know, Joel," you say, your voice light but your eyes serious, "I think you might actually care about what happens to me."

Joel's scowl deepens, but there's a flicker of something else in his eyes—something that looks a lot like vulnerability. "Don't get the wrong idea," he grumbles, looking away. "I just can't afford to break in a new partner."

You chuckle softly, shaking your head. "Sure, Miller. Keep telling yourself that." You walk over to where he's now sitting and nudge him playfully with your foot. "Admit it. You like having me around.”

Joel rolls his eyes, but the corners of his mouth twitch upwards in a reluctant smile. "You're alright," he concedes, his voice gruff. "But don't let it go to your head.”

You can't resist the urge to tease Joel a little more. "I think you protest too much, Joel Miller," you say with a playful grin. "I mean, first you can't stop complaining about my chatter, and now you're almost starting to sound... affectionate."

Joel's eyes narrow, but the ghost of a smile still lingers on his lips. "Don't push your luckp," he warns, his voice carrying a note of fondness that he's unable to fully conceal.

You lean in closer, lowering your voice to a conspiratorial whisper. "You know, for someone who pretends not to care, you sure were... attentive last night," you say with a sly grin, your eyes dancing with mischief.

A flush creeps up Joel's neck, and for a moment, you think you might have pushed him too far. But then he chuckles—a low, rumbling sound that you feel more than hear. "You're a pain in the ass, you know that?" he says, shaking his head in mock exasperation.

You beam at him, feeling a sense of triumph. "Maybe," you admit, "but you like me anyway.”

—

As the first light breaks through the retreating storm, you and Joel prepare to leave the high school behind. You gather your belongings, exchanging quiet glances with Joel as you both acknowledge the shift in your relationship.

The journey back to Jackson is uneventful, the aftermath of the storm leaving the world outside quiet. You walk side by side, your boots crunching on the wet gravel. Joel seems more at ease, his usual stoic demeanor softened.

Upon your return to the settlement, the familiar sight of the gates brings a sense of relief. The guards nod in recognition as you pass.

You make your way to the patrol book, your fingers brushing against the worn pages as you prepare to document the latest entry. Joel watches you, his expression unreadable, as you pick up the pen and begin to write.

Patrol Log - Jackson Settlement

Date: Indeterminate, Post-Outbreak

Pair: Joel Miller/The New Kid

Entry Signout: Patrol complete. High school secured. Infected cleared. Storm provided unexpected overnight stay. No serious injuries to report. 

You pause for a moment, considering your next words carefully. With a small smile, you add a final note

Casualties: Zero. Zilch. Nada. Unless you count the ego of a certain grumpy individual who may or may not have been out-shot by yours truly.

You cap the pen and step back, allowing Joel to read your entry. His eyes scan the page, and you see the ghost of a smile tug at the corner of his mouth as he reads your postscript. He doesn't say anything, but the look he gives you speaks volumes. 

As you turn to leave, Joel's hand catches yours, his grip firm yet gentle. 

Hey," Joel says as he pulls you closer. "I, uh... I don't know how to do this," he admits, his gaze dropping to where your hands are joined.

You give his hand a reassuring squeeze, offering him a small, encouraging smile. "Do what, Joel?" 

He takes a deep breath, his throat bobbing as he swallows hard. "This," he repeats, gesturing vaguely between the two of you. "The... talking about feelings stuff." 

You can't help but chuckle at his attempt to articulate his feelings, the corners of your mouth curling up into a smile. "Is this the part where you tell me that despite your better judgement, you've grown fond of me?" you tease, squeezing his hand in return.

Joel rolls his eyes, but there's a hint of amusement in his expression. "Somethin like that," he admits gruffly, releasing your hand to run a hand through his disheveled hair. "You've got guts, I'll give you that. And maybe... maybe I don't mind the chatter as much as I let on.”

Your heart skips a beat at his words, the gruff admission meaning more to you than any grand declaration of love ever could "Well then," you say, stepping closer to him, "I guess this means we're stuck with each other."

Joel's response is a low chuckle. "Yeah," he agrees, his hand finding its way to the small of your back in a gesture that feels both new and familiar all at once. "I suppose it does.”

[elliesmainhoe]

need ellie to take care of me drunk desperately

i love your writing 😭

Rescue Remedy

e.williams x fem!reader

summary: you call Ellie to come and rescue you from a bar after having a few too many drinks

warnings: alcohol, cigarettes, mentions of hangovers, slurred speech, drunk crying, fluff.

just realized this is basically a self insert vent post of a very similar situation I've been in LMAO

WC 1K

DAY 4 OF SAPPHIC SUMMER

you were relieved when the familiar beaten up Ford focus pulled up beside you. you'd been sitting on the curb for almost 15 minutes- tear stained cheeks, smudged glitter and mascara as your body shook and jittered from both the cold Seattle night and the mixture of cigarette smoke and alcohol causing the most humbling case of hiccups you think you've ever had.

"Ells!" you whined, a new flood of tears streaming from your eyes at the sight of your night in shining armour- your girlfriend.

"c'mon sweet girl" she huffed, hair thrown up messily in the usual half up, half down style, clad in red and black checkered pyjama pants, black hoodie that was splattered with paint topped off with the obnoxious lime green crocks you'd gotten her for her one Christmas, of course decked out in charms shed collected over the past few months.

before you could even process it you were sitting in the passenger seat, leather seats sticking to your sweat glazed skin, and sobs turning to hiccups.

this had been the worst night out you'd had since your 21st. and as soon as the car revved and moved down the road, Ellie's hand pressed firmly on your bare thigh, the fabric of your dress not long enough to cover the majority of your thigh.

"what happened sweet girl?" oh and by that one question, it's like Ellie had opened a flood gate.

firstly, you got to the club of choice after having to walk almost a mile from where your designated driver had parked, accompanied by a couple of friends. after queuing on the curb for almost thirty minutes, you reached the front of the queue and then promptly realized you had left you purse. with your id. in the car. a mile away.

so after you'd trekked all the way to the car, retrieving your purse and id, getting back to the club, queuing for another 30 minutes, on your own this time- as your friends who had not forgotten their id decided to go in and leave you to sort your shit out.

let's just say you were already a little pissed off.

secondly, you got in the club and it stunk. not just of sweat and booze, but piss. fucking piss. and to top that all off you couldn't find your friends so- you did what any other sane person would do and ordered shots.

shots that were actually doubles, but of course you hadnt realized that until way too late.

which leads into the final stage of the night, your head being deep in a grimy toilet bowl, knees bruised from having to kneel on tiles that were not grouted properly and pieces of them shot out and cut at your skin.

and by that point you had gotten out your phone, which was now on 7% charge because you had offers to use your GPS and it drained all your battery, and was a blubbering mess on call with your girlfriend.

you would later have to retell the story again, as apparently according to Ellie- she couldn't understand a word you were saying, just nodding along in a desperate attempt to keep you awake long enough to get a glass of water and a slice of toast down you.

it must have been during your tangent when you'd gotten home, as when you finally finished your incoherent mumbling you were sitting on the beat up leather couch of yours and Ellie's apartment, a couch you'd hated as soon as you moved in, but Ellie had a weird attachment to so it stayed in it's place, the first thing you saw when you entered the home.

Ellie was kneeling in front of you, sitting between your thighs and facing you, holding up a large glass of water,

"sip baby" she spoke softly, to which you groaned.

"do- do- I haveeeeeee to?" you whined, batting your eyelashes in an attempt to distract your girlfriend "jus' wan' sleep"

"you can sleep after you drink that." after another groan you took a sip of the glass of water- admittedly, it was refreshing, however you still gagged to prove a point.

"good girl" she purred, standing up and kissing your forehead, moving over to the cabinet to grab a packet of pills.

"fuck off"

she laughs, moving back with a small white pill in the palm of her hand, to which you begrudgingly take after Ellie promises to take you to get ice cream the day after.

you felt your eyelids droop once more, you couldn't tell if it was sleep, or just your false eyelashes becoming suddenly very heavy, you whine "'m tired ells..."

"alright I hear you, c'mon baby" she sighs, leaving a half eaten piece of toast on the coffee table, one arm supporting your back and the other under your knees as she made her way to your bedroom, plopping you on the mattress and you sigh, already drifting to sleep before you screech at the feeling of something wet in your face.

"hey- hey" Ellie laughs, "I'm just taking off your makeup baby, just taking off your makeup", she smiles, dragging a cotton pad across your skin, taking off the creams and powders you had applied previously, smudged mascara coming off with it.

Ellie was thankful you'd taken off your clothes as soon as you stepped foot into the apartment saying something which she thinks was "dresses like these are modern day torture devices"- but with the way you slur your words when drunk she could never be sure, leaving you just in your underwear, making her job a whole lot easier.

trying to maneuver you, who had now dropped on the mattress like a deadweight, would've been a too strenuous task for 3am.

after discarding the used wipes and pulling your hair back into a very messy ponytail, Ellie scooted in beside you, the mattress sinking as you unconsciously snuggle in closer, head nuzzling into the girls neck, her hand going around to caress your back, soothing you into an easy sleep.

the hangover tomorrow was going to be horrible.

••••••••••••••

The third time I've tried to write this, I almost gave up 🥰

[freyito]

⎯ ᴋᴇɴꜱʜɪ ᴛᴀᴋᴀʜᴀꜱʜɪ & ᴊᴏʜɴɴʏ ᴄᴀɢᴇ + ᴀ ꜱᴛʀᴇꜱꜱᴇᴅ ʀᴇᴀᴅᴇʀ

i don't really know what im doing. this is self indulgent. i've been have a really rough time and theres a lot of stress and pressure put on me and i think i may crack? it's not cause of tumblr, i find writing here calming. but hey, i'm moving, im still working on three certs, im worried about college, im writing a book, and im playing therapist to friends.

cw: gn reader, just fluff, proofread

Kenshi Takahashi

Kenshi can feel your stress from a mile away. He doesn't need sight, he doesn't need sento, he doesn't even need to touch you to know. He can see you so clearly in his head, hair messy, eyebrows near constantly furrowed, and just how tense your body really is.

So, when you dodge out of his touch and end up hiding in your room, he doesn't take it to heart. However, he understands. And he will do everything in his power to get you to destress.

He opens the door ever so softly, yet makes sure his presence is known. He reaches out to you, hunched over at your desk, hands hiding your face, your fingers digging into your hair. His hand meets your shoulder, squeezing it gently.

He leans in closer to your ear, and whispers for you to come to bed with him. When you refuse his request, he's a bit more firm. He doesn't demand that you join him, no, but you can hear the traces of longing and concern in his voices.

Once he's convinced you, he leads you to the bed. He's memorized the layout of the house, don't worry. He won't ask questions, he won't press for any answers. All he knows is you're stressed and overworking yourself, and that's cause enough to pull you away.

Kenshi prefers to give you a massage, not only does it work out the knots of your body, but he believes it is a great way to destress by being close to the one you love. He works his way down your body, kissing the nape of your neck when he reaches your waist.

Once he's sure he's gotten all the stress out of your body, he finally cuddles up to you. He wraps his hands around your waist and pulls you close, burying his head in the crook of your neck. He refuses to let you leave his arms. You need sleep, and he's going to make sure you get it. And don't even think you can slink away from him in the morning, he's going to pull you right back into his arms.

Johnny Cage

Johnny can't let you get away with sulking, he needs to see you relax, stress free. Seeing you messed up (and not cause of him), it makes his heart hurt. Of course, he understands. He's got a bad habit of overworking himself, too.

But, he isn't going to let you hide from him. Don't think for a second that you can get away with that. Before you can even run into your (shared) room to hide away, he whisks you off your feet.

Don't even think you can convince him to let you down, either. Nope. You're stuck with him now. And what is he going to do? Funny you asked, he's already ordered your favorite food, and he's got your favorite movie queued up. And one of his own.

If he could tie you to the bed to make sure you couldn't escape, he would. Fortunately, his mind is a lot sounder. And he knows your going to stay and wait with him for the food to arrive. Meanwhile, he's trying to get you to talk. About anything. He just wants to hear your voice, really.

Johnny doesn't leave your side. Once. He's dragging you along to go get the food with him, and he's holding your hand during dinner. So what, he's having a hard time cutting his food? He doesn't care. He needs to know you're still with him, not only is it grounding for him, it's meant for you, too.

After dinner, he's already on drawing a bath for you. (and for him, c'mon, he has to!) He's thrown in whatever he can think of- Epsom salt, bath foam- and lights some candles. He tries to make it look all romantic, with rose petals scattered in the bath and around it, too. You can feel just how proud of himself he is when he carries you to the bath. Which, is also a non-negotiable.

Johnny doesn't care if you've reached the height of relaxation after the bath, either. Nope, he's made sure your schedule is cleared for the next week, at least. He condemns you to stay with him, he'll take you wherever you'd like. All the fancy restaurants you could eat at. Or, if you'd rather just stay home alllll week, he doesn't mind that either. As long as he gets to stay with you.

© freyito, 2023 | masterlist | queue | kofi DO NOT REPOST AS YOUR OWN OR USE FOR AI/AI CHATBOTS.

[whousestypewriters]

friends till the end right? - k.a x reader

pairing: kai azer x reader

requested: yes / no

warnings: swearing

a/n: im living off of these crumbs until i get my hands on reckless fr. this'll be he last fic queued/posted until i get back lovelies. hope you enjoy mwah <33

taglist: @nqds, @lxvebelle, @reminiscentreader, @off-to-the-r4ces, @ecliphttlunar

@tornqdowarnings

kai azer was your friend.

your bestfriend.

you grew up together, he, just one week older than you basically being your guide into life. you both know he's full of shit and that he just likes to brag that he's older.

you've been by his side for all of it. the awful way edric treated him - which you still want to shove a dagger up edric's ass for by the way - to sneaking into the kitchen and eating lemon tarts with him.

you're his other half and he's yours.

he was by your side when your parents died, never once leaving you during those awful days. he pulled you out of your slump and brought you back to life.

so yeah....

you were close.

and although you were possibly the closets friends in ilya. you wanted more. you wanted to be the girl he looked at in every room the girl who he would recognise anywhere. you wanted to be his girl.

but that wasn't happening anytime soon. it was mere delusional thinking.

"hey, darling," kai's voice snaps you out of your thoughts. "you just gonna lie there all day?"

sighing you open your eyes and look up to kai. "it is rather comfy," you grumble at him. shutting your eyes and the image of kai and the colorful morning sky out.

"well its not my fault you tripped mid-spar."

"EXCUSE ME?" you practically fly up off the ground in anger. "I DID NOT TRIP YOU LITTLE SHIT-" you yell before kai cuts you off with a hand to your mouth.

"hush, you don't want to wake the entire kingdom with your loud ass mouth, you'd think you were a damn amplifier not tele."

you scoff and shove him back, causing him to stumble a little. "i'm going to murder you in your sleep."

"i get to look at your pretty face while dying? thats the greatest gift," kai smirks at you before shoving you back into a nearby tree, "and that was payback for shoving me."

"you deserved my shove. I didn't deserve yours," you huff leaning against the tree while kai looked at you from a few feet away. "what?" you ask. "do i have something on my face? if its dirt im blaming you, i've got lessons all morning after this."

he had an indecipherable look on his face. it only added to your confusion when he stepped closer, his body crowding yours the heat rolling off his skin and onto yours. still looking at you strangely he raises his hand slowly moving towards your face.

"what are you doing?" you meant it to sound questioning and stern but it just came out all breathy and high pitched.

his hand brushed you cheek as he raised it and pulled a twig from your hair. "you had something in your hair," his voice was soft and the moment crackled between the two of you.

there was no reason for you two to be standing that close. it was purely choice. and when kai's head dipped a little you almost gasped at how close you two were.

this was it, oh my god, you were getting your moment? that delusion was turning into a reality.

your breaths mingled together and you're ninety percent sure when kai's hand cupped your cheek and the other grabbed your waist you died a little inside - in the good way.

this was it.

"good morning guys!" a voice came from the other side of the training grounds as kitt strolled leisurely into the area.

kai stepped back from you quickly and headed over to chat with his brother but not before sending you a look that made you want to grin like a school girl.

maybe those delusions weren't so wrong after all.

[skele-bunny]

This thought got implanted in my brain like a chip and it hasn't turned off since.

WHAT the fuck is up with Ghouls and the Emeritus brothers! Sure, it was extremely taboo to date one of your ghouls up until Terzo taking over as Papa but who's to say there wasn't some... Conflicted feelings? Some wantings?

Primo just whispering soft delicacies to Aër, letting his ghoul hold his face so gently before moving down to let his old master rub through the feathers along his body. How Aër would do anything if Primo would ask, even down to damning himself if his Papa so asked. How he'd pick every feather out if it simply made the man happy. Primo always held affections for him, he just never truly knew how to express or have it.

Don't get me started on Secondo and Alpha. You've seen those two. Oh, Secondo had the heaviest hand, but Alpha had the biggest bite. How they'd always be at a head in some decisions, but in the end Alpha would bare his neck like the obedient dog he was. Worshipping at his master's feet, being granted with such privilege to even simply touch him that it burned. Secondo would hold his head down with his boot, yet comment on how much he adored Alpha. He refused to acknowledge his craving towards the ghoul both sexually and romantically.

Of course, Terzo and Omega. Being the first ones to date in secrecy while Terzo was still a cardinal. Like teenagers, giggling as they sneak out and find each other in hallways. Unable to keep their hands and mouths off one another, constantly leaving love letters, gifts, or just detouring from their current task just to see each other if only a quick glance. Such a big beastie who didn't even wait for permission to bring justice into his own hands if someone even looked at Terzo wrong. And Terzo loved it.

Copia was a strange one, outright being involved with ALL of his ghouls. He never minded the questioning, nor did he acknowledge the distaste from the higher-ups as it wasn't proper for a master to be so romantically involved with a "tool" in their eyes. But Copia seen them all more than that. From when he was Cardinal, up to being Frater. He loved each and every one of them, took time to learn them, their interests, what they liked and disliked. What made them feel good, what made them feel REALLY good, and what killed it. Wasn't uncommon to find a ghoul pile with Copia right in the middle.

Then, the two eldest whispering over the same fire ghoul Secondo ignored. Cowbell being the first Alpha even started dating, absolutely obsessed with each other and in such a new light of how the other worked. How Bell loved physical affection, and how Alpha was nothing but an eager to please puppy. And when Phil joined the picture? HAH. Their relationships were separate, but it didn't mean they didn't gossip with one another playfully about their shared partner. When Phil found out about the puppy mentality, he strangled it to the max just to hear those soft whimpers and that soft whisper of "please."

Those damn Emeritus brothers >:(

(this is a queued post don't kill me.)

[james-is-here]

𝙰 𝚍𝚊𝚢 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚊 𝙲𝚎𝚕𝚎𝚋𝚛𝚒𝚝𝚢 𝙼𝚊𝚜𝚝𝚎𝚛𝚕𝚒𝚜𝚝/ 𝙸𝚗𝚝𝚛𝚘

𝘍𝘪𝘳𝘴𝘵 𝘏𝘰𝘶𝘳: 𝘉𝘢𝘯𝘨 𝘊𝘩𝘢𝘯

𝘚𝘦𝘤𝘰��𝘥 𝘏𝘰𝘶𝘳: 𝘓𝘦𝘦 𝘒𝘯𝘰𝘸

𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘳𝘥 𝘏𝘰𝘶𝘳: 𝘊𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘣𝘪𝘯

𝘍𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘵𝘩 𝘏𝘰𝘶𝘳: 𝘏𝘺𝘶𝘯𝘫𝘪𝘯

𝘍𝘪𝘧𝘵𝘩 𝘏𝘰𝘶𝘳: 𝘏𝘢𝘯

𝘚𝘪𝘹𝘵𝘩 𝘏𝘰𝘶𝘳: 𝘍𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘹

𝘚𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘩 𝘏𝘰𝘶𝘳: 𝘚𝘦𝘶𝘯𝘨𝘮𝘪𝘯

𝘌𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘩 𝘏𝘰𝘶𝘳: 𝘑𝘦𝘰𝘯𝘨𝘪𝘯

𝘕𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘩 𝘏𝘰𝘶𝘳: 𝘛𝘣𝘥

You honestly loved your job at Buzzfeed, who would've thought you would get to a point where you get to hang out with famous artists and actors for a day? Intern you would never believe it!

You've only made videos with one other person, like Tom Holland and Dove Cameron, but the moment you you were told you were doing more than one person, you were beyond nervous. The next celebrity, or celebrities, you were to hang out with was kept a secret from you, all you were told was to be packed and ready to fly somewhere with some of your crew, apparently everything had already been planned, that's never happened before, you tended to plan as the day went on.

On the plane, your camera operator and best friend gave you the list of activities. The names were covered and some activities as well, all you knew was that you were painting, baking, and going to a gym. "Wait, a gym? I have to work out?" You asked her and she laughed at your expression. You do work out but it's practically rare.

You also had no idea what flight you got on, you just followed the people you knew and your best friend, Sara, took your ticket before you could read it while Eric, your co-editor, covered your eyes and ears.

The moment the pilot welcomed everyone to Seoul, your jaw drops and you turn to Sara. "You're kidding, wait, who are we here to see? Who am I hanging out with?" You kept spewing questions but they wouldn't answer. Not just yet.

Next you find yourself blindfolded again before being walked into a building. You stood off to the side as you heard your team set up and then you were put in front of the camera, the blindfold taken off you and Sara fixed your hair before stepping away and you look towards the camera confused, you go to turn to look around but were told not to as Sara queued you to start.

"Hello everyone, it's Mn, and welcome to another episode of 'A day with a celeb'. I'm gonna be honest, I have no clue who today's guest is, I was told absolutely nothing but today, um..." Sara zoomed in on your face as you furrowed your brows. "We're Seoul, South Korea." You chuckle nervously. "Um, the only suspicion I have is that I'm going to be hanging out with my first K-pop idol or idols, I was told there was more than one."

"What group do you think you're hanging out with?" Sara asked you with a grin. "Girl, that smile is so creepy." You laugh and you hear a snicker behind you which made you jump (It was Felix, shh). "Wait, is there someone behind me?" "Mn, just answer the question." "Um, Ateez would be pretty cool to hang out with- Oh, wait, you gave me a list." You pull it out of your pocket and unfold it.

"The names are crossed out but there's some activities that I can read. There's eight things crossed out and I can only read cafe, painting, gym, and shop. That doesn't give me much." Sara laughs, her gaze appears to be over your shoulder. "Mn, real quick, can we film your ootd?" "U-Um sure." You readjust your footing and put the paper away. "Today I'm wearing Converse, Jeans, a cream shirt with a little blue pocket, and a Maniac Varsity Jacket from my favorite small business. They customized it to have Wolf.Chan from Stray Kids peaking out the pocket." You point to the embroidery with a smile.

"Who's peaking out of the pocket?" "Um, Chan's animal counterpart, he the leader of-" "Heard someone call my name." An arm is suddenly draped over your shoulders and you look to your left as the sudden arm around you made you jump but your immediately walking away with a scream, hiding your now rapidly warming face as you turn completely, only to be met with the other members as well.

"Are you kidding me?!" You turn to Sara who's laughing with the others. "You are so evil!" You jokingly scold her as Chan approaches you, you cover your face as he wrapped his arms around you and pulled you back in front of the camera, seeing as you ran off behind the camera out of shot.

"This can't be real, is this really happening?"

You have to be dreaming.

You get to spend the day...With Stray Kids?!

[chaotic-orphan]

Hey! I've just read your defiant leader x confident villain story and HOLY SHIT is it good. I love the personalities that you've given the characters, and how the villain doesn't really want to hurt the leader and is trying to ignore all of their feeling. Ugh!

I would love it if you could write more of the story. I have a feeling there's a lot more twists and turns on the horizon 👀✨

Defiant Leader x Confident Villain (5)

Read part one here

Continued from here

Guys… i am so sorry to everyone who has requested more parts for this series… it has taken literally months, I am only finished now because I queued it when I discovered it again! I am very sorry, it is an active WIP again!! I hope you enjoy!

TW: NEEDLES

~*~*~*~*~*~

Leader woke to the door of his room opening. He was still sitting in the chair in the room where Supervillain left him. The last thing he remembered was staring at the wall to pass the time, limbs still tied down tightly. Sometimes, when he was feeling adventurous, he’d glare down at the hammer that mangled his hand, but even that got boring. He didn’t realise he fell to sleep until he was waking up with the click of the lock in the door.

He didn’t have time to wake up, so his mind shot alert, clearing the fog that usually came with waking suddenly. He felt his body come alive at the thoughts of Supervillain coming to destroy his other hand. His limbs were asleep but still Leader made a fist with his free hand trying to get feeling back into it just in case.

What he could do to fight against Supervillain he didn’t know, but… but who was he kidding?! Supervillain seemed to smash every bone in his good hand, his strong hand, his punching hand.

Leader wanted to cry out as he tried to make a fist with his hand on instinct, but swallowed the cry to a sharp hiss as loud, quick footsteps thundered behind Leader’s chair and they froze.

Those footsteps were unmistakable, and there was only one set. A swift slap to the back of the head and Leader let out a startled: “ow!”

“You deserve more than that, you fucking idiot!” Villain hissed, coming to stand in front of Leader, setting a doctor’s bag down on the floor in front of Leader and dropping to one knee, unzipping it. “What were you thinking, pissing Supervillain off, Leader? Do you know how difficult you are making everything for me?”

“How about you just let me go and I’ll be out of your hair.”

Villain jerked their head up, piercing gaze furious and accusing. “Would you? Be out of my hair?” Villain challenged. Leader was the first to look away, and Villain scoffed, before dipping their head again and searching through the bag beside him. “Yeah. Thought so.”

“Villain… I…” Leader began, searching for the words to express themselves, but none came, and Villain didn’t seem to be in the mood to hear them even if they did somehow miraculously find the words to defend themselves. “Look, you don’t have to keep coming to my rescue.”

“Clearly I do,” Villain ground out, accusing eyes finding Leader’s again. “If you keep riling Supervillain up, Leader, he will kill you. I’m not fucking around. He will murder you, but you won’t die quickly. It will be long, drawn out, torturous.”

Leader’s brows lowered over their eyes, hooding the sockets in shadow. “I know that, Vil.”

“I don’t think you do!”

Leader’s eyes widened at the intensity colouring Villain’s voice, the slight fear in their eyes as they spoke. It was almost… desperate, almost helpless. Villain scoffed and looked away, running a hand through their hair, pulling slightly at the end of the strands.

Leader frowned. “Villain… what’s that look?”

Villain didn’t answer right away but a million different thoughts seemed to flash across his expression— doubt, fear, disgust anxiety. Every time Villain opened their mouth to speak they seemed to pause, chew their words, search for a better way to say what they wanted to tell Leader.

Eventually a grim resolution moulded their features and they looked at Leader again instead of through them.

“Supervillain,” Villain began hesitantly not quite meeting Leader’s gaze, and instead running a nervous hand through their hair. “He didn’t exactly trust me when I wanted to join his side so he devised a sort of… test, or trial run and he gave me the job he thought I would run away scared from.”

Villain risked a glance at Leader’s expression, then let out a long sigh and pinched the bridge of their nose, rocking back on their heels.

“It’s not something I’m proud of but I had to prove myself and if I didn’t do it someone else would have—”

“It’s okay, Vil,” Leader told them. Startled eyes found Leader’s and Villain’s expression softened slightly, shoulders losing tension. “Go on.”

“He made me the interrogator… or that’s what he called it, he made me his torturer,” Villain said quietly and it was as if all the oxygen had been sucked from the room. Leader stared at Villain, studying their face. Villain let out a shaky breath. “Every Hero we captured, or enemy someone brought in I would take care of them. Get information, work the confessions out of them, or just make them suffer— whatever Supervillain told me to do.”

Villain licked their lips, their eyes looking down to their hands before continuing.

“That’s not even the worst part, Leader,” Villain continued, tightening their hands into fists. They raised their head, gaze steeled and said: “The worst part was that I was good at it.”

Leader would rather Villain pick up the hammer and smash their other hand, or every single bone in their body rather than tell them this. Rather than this be true, because Villain wasn’t… Villain couldn’t— Villain… it felt like all air was robbed from their chest as they stared at Villain and for the first time since they came, Leader finally saw Villain.

They saw how much Villain changed. The little moments that were shining through of the old Villain were only that. Fleeting moments. Villain looked the same, although they had a new haircut and a crueller smirk. They carried themselves a little taller, but they looked like Leader���s Villain, but there was something now that seemed to finally let Leader see the real Villain.

The new Villain.

As if a blindfold had just been taken off Leader’s eyes.

Villain looked older, not by much but they had a less innocence in their eyes. Instead they were hard, certain kernels of experience. They didn’t just carry themselves taller, Villain had a new confidence about them as if they had finally found their calling. As if they were born to be a Villain, to be an… interrogator.

Villain’s expression softened and they turned away, letting out a shaky laugh. “You hate me now, don’t you?”

“Not even a little bit,” Leader said without hesitation. Villain let the shock show across their face as they met Leader’s eyes again.

Leader forced their resolve to show on their face, as sure as anything. “You did what you felt you had to do, Vil,” Leader continued softly. “You did what I always knew you could: you survived everything that life threw at you. How could I hate you for that?”

Villain looked so vulnerable in that moment, and Leader wished that they had seen it sooner. They wished they noticed how lost Villain was within the team, how sad they were. Always lashing out, always a little more distant and reserved.

“I should have done more, Vil,” Leader said and Villain rocked back on their heels, shaking their head side to side. They opened their mouth to reply but Leader beat them to it. “No, I should’ve, I’m sorry you felt like you had to leave the team. I’m sorry about the way things ended… I— I miss you, if I’m honest. But sometimes…”

The words were rushing out of Leader’s mouth now, all emotion. “Sometimes when we start out life presents us with opportunities and we just go along with them because, well, what other option do we have? But you… I’ve never seen you more alive, more at peace. You really seem to have found your place in the world Villain and I couldn’t be more happy for you.”

“You can’t say that, Leader,” Villain whispered.

Leader laughed. “Says who?”

Villain frowned. “We are enemies, we’re on the opposing sides. We can’t— there is no world where we’re friends.”

“Just because I don’t agree with you, Villain, doesn’t mean I don’t know you. I don’t still care for you, that the years we shared mean nothing.”

“It does,” Villain protested. “It has too.”

Leader leaned forward in their chair. “If it does, then what the hell are you here for, Villain?”

The question was like a slap of reality that stunned Villain for a moment before they sighed. They glanced down to the bag they brought in and rummaged through it, pulling out a small black case and flicking it open.

Inside was a needle and a small bottle of something. Villain reached in and grabbed the needle. Villain reached into the bag and drew out two medical gloves and slide them onto their hands, snapping the band at the end of one and grinning up at Leader.

It unnerved Leader a little as they stared down at the bottle, trying to read whatever it was Villain was so happy about showing them. Now with the knowledge that Villain was the resident torturer.

Not that it was particularly news to Leader. When rumours started circulating about Supervillain’s new vicious agony agent it was Rogue who brought the idea of Villain to Leader’s attention. Rogue ran with other people before Leader; heroes, vigilantes, villains… probably the one with the most contacts across the city.

“How certain are you?” Leader asked them.

Rogue shrugged one shoulder. “I trust contact with my life. They’re not the gossiping type.”

Leader didn’t show it then, but the thought, the very possibility that it could have been Villain terrified them. How wrong did they go with Villain to make them want to hurt people? But looking at them now, Leader couldn’t help but see the same Villain they had always known. Maybe just more grown up and sure of themselves. The way they were working so deftly with the needle and vial. Drawing some liquid into the needle and spurting it back out again to re-draw.

They smiled up at Leader once they were satisfied and started rubbing Leader’s hand with cotton balls covered in rubbing alcohol. Leader hissed jerking their arm back, but Villain continued as if Leader was sitting quiet as a mouse.

“I know, but you gotta hurt to get better. No pain no gain, right?” Villain asked with a grin. Leader smothered their anxiety at that grin. Villain’s old reassuring grin, the same one they wore before they ran recklessly from the group to defend them. When they directly disobeyed Leader’s orders to intercept their enemies before it was time.

Now, it wasn’t any of that. It was reassuring and light, so Leader nodded and set their jaw into a tight line as Villain smoothed the skin on Leader’s hand. Leader clenched their teeth as their bone rubbed off bone.

“Okay, this will hurt.”

That was all the warning Leader got before Villain plunged the needle into their hand. Leader jolted forwards, swallowing a scream to a mewling whine in the back of their throat instead.

They felt the liquid being injected into their hand, it was a strange sensation but not one that was unfamiliar. Once Villain had thumbed down the plunger and injected all of the liquid they pulled it out gently. They replaced it with a cotton pad the dab the blood away.

Leader stared at Villain. “Okay. That actually wasn’t that bad,” Leader told them.

Villain grimaced. “Leader, that was the easy part.”

Leader frowned and then the pain came. It was a simmering kind of burning at first and Leader’s wide eyes shot to Villain’s.

“Vil… what is this? What is this?” They rushed out, gasping between the questions.

“It’s okay, Leader. It just resets the bones in your hand.”

“It what?” Leader shrieked, closing their eyes as they felt their bones start to move in their hand.

“Fuck, fuck, fuck!” Leader cried as their hand ignited in agony. They gasped and shot forward as far as the ropes would allow them, their neck muscles straining as they tried to not scream but their hand was on fire.

“Hey, Leader. It’s okay, I know. I know.” Leader only very distantly heard Villain whispering assurances and comforting words to them as they writhed beneath the ropes.

“Villain!” Leader gasped, throwing their head back as a guttural scream was torn from their throat. Leader kicked out and tried to buck themselves out of the chair but the ropes just remained firm as Leader screamed louder than they ever have before. The pain ricocheted from their hand — where their bones were moving and mending under their skin — all the way to their shoulders and then deeper into their chest.

It was too much.

Stars burst behind their eyes as they felt their bones crack into place.

Villain was speaking to them. Lips moving but Leader couldn’t hear a word they said. Villain’s eyes widened as Leader let the blackness swallow them, the last thing they saw was Villain lurching from their crouch.

*~*~*~*~*

Continued here

Orphanage roll-call (tag-list, lmk if you wanna be added or removed): @nameless-beanie @aarika-merrill @criohfreeze @bandnbookbag @gala1981 @theonewithallthefixations @libellule888 @cardboardarsonist @shywhumpauthor r @written-by-jayy @memepsychowhowantsuperpower-blog @whump-is-love-whump-is-life @icarusignite @shirtzip @honeyed-euphrates @shameless-dumbass @dutifullykrispyland @starlight-hope @thatlittlefirestarter

[victorluvsalice]

-->And then heard a weird musical sting, and looked over at Smiler to realize they were absolutely Hysterical from all this fun. AKA, one good giggle fit away from death. D: I quickly got them away from the games to chat with Victor, who laid a Heat Of The Moment kiss on them as a distraction. XD Once they’d gotten their flirt on a bit, I had Smiler go calm themselves down in the bathroom mirrors (never mind they have no reflection to do so) -- once they were safely just Very Inspired, I then let them hop on the DDR machine while Victor shot some hoops at the basketball machine. As my game threw out ANOTHER barista-related error. *grumbles* I don’t know if that’s the game, one of my mods, or what, but seems I’m gonna have to be careful playing for a while...

-->And then I looked at the date timer, saw that they only had thirty minutes left, and was like “crap, forget the games, finish socializing, do more cute things together!” XD Fortunately they were more than amenable to kissing and flirting some more, and the date ended with them having reached Gold level as well, yay! Not like I need those VIP buckets, but fuck it, we can recycle them or something. I just wanted my boy and my enby to have a good time.

-->With that date done, it was time to send the pair home, where I found Alice, still in werewolf form, sitting on the couch watching some classic Sims TV. Which gave me an idea – VICTOR had already fulfilled the “watch Romantic TV” tradition I slapped on the holiday a while back, but Alice and Smiler hadn’t. And despite the fact it was past midnight, the holiday wasn’t quite over yet (they don’t end until 2 AM the next morning). So I had Alice turn off the classics, let out a somber howl to keep her Fury down, change back into her human form, then put on the Romance channel before sending Victor and Smiler over to join her on the couch. Holiday ended with the three of them hanging out for a while, watching goofy medical dramas and doing a little bit of flirting, before Smiler got up and left Alice and Victor to it while they made a drink over at their bar in the party barn. XD At least they all had an extremely successful Love Day!

*whew* Yeah, that was a bit more chaotic than I wanted – at least for Victor and Alice, at any rate! Seriously – I can get that the problems with them getting their food was because the cafe’s probably a little too small and was built with form over function in mind, but the FUCK was with townies just randomly flirting with Alice?! Like I said, that didn’t happen on Victor and Smiler’s date – everyone just left them alone! Does Alice have some sort of setting on her that makes townies think it’s okay to get up close and personal on her, because I have GOT to turn that off if so. Talk about the most unAlice thing ever... But at least I got my two good dates in the end. Next time, we wrap up in-game spring with another trip to Van Liddelton Groceries! The gang filled the shelves, and now we have to empty them. See you then!

[thezombieprostitute]

Tech Tuesday: Syverson

A little short, sweet and spicy chapter inspired by this post by @navybrat.

Warnings: Mentions of anxiety, Mild/Implied smut. Please let me know if I missed any!

A/N: Established relationship. Reader is plus sized female. No other descriptors used.

A/N2: Sorry this is late! I swear I had it queued up and ready to go earlier today!

Previous

Tech Tuesdays Masterlist

Spa days weren't exactly something you were interested in. Having strangers wash your hair, rub your feet, cover your eyes with cucumbers. It was all just too much for your anxiety. And that was before you took the cost into account. But that didn't mean you couldn't still find spa adjacent ways to relax.

Sometimes, when it was just you and Lily, you'd enjoy soaking your feet in a little spa-like soaker. The warm water and gentle massage were very relaxing. Especially after Lily learned it wasn't an second water bowl. When your periods got rough, sometimes all you could do was sit there, feet soaking, heating pad over your pelvis. Lily snugged up to you, unsure of what was wrong but knowing you needed help.

Your favorite, though, was when Sy was home. Anytime you asked for a spa treatment, he smiled and prepared the body lotion for the hour long massage you were going to get. His hands were damn near magical with how good they felt. So warm, so strong, yet able to be gentle for you. Your entire body felt like jelly by the time he was done with you.

Though, in truth, he still wasn't done.

After your massage, when you can't move from how good you feel, Sy flips you onto your back and starts eating you out. He calls it his "payment" for the massage and who are you to deny him when he makes you feel so damn good? He knows he's done a good job when he has you crying out his name for the fifth time. That's when he pulls away from your oversensitive pussy and gives you a deep kiss, your juices still in his beard.

"Tell me what you need, Darlin'," he growls.

"You, Captain," you breathe. "Need you."

"That's my girl," he replies as he moves away just long enough to take off his clothes. One time he tried to keep his shirt on but you pouted that you wanted all of him. Since then, he's always removed the shirt as well.

You swear you'll never get used to the way he so easily manhandles you into whatever position he wants. It's thrilling, if only because you trust him so much. He loves to position you so that he can watch your tits bounce as he pounds into you. Loves watching your face when you cum. Loves how you call his name. He swears there's nothing more beautiful.

He always tells you that there is no "keeping score" in these kinds of things, but you're not one for receiving all the pleasure without giving some back.

On his bad days, when the nightmares wake him up, when the PTSD hits again, it's not just Lily that helps him. You know what smells to keep out of the apartment, which ones to keep to help him get back to you. You know when he needs space and when he needs to be held. You've abstained from alcohol because it was always too tempting for him to keep around. You know when to push him to talk, when to let it go.

You take care of each other, like you promised to when you exchanged vows. Neither of you ever regrets it.

Next

Tech Tuesdays Masterlist

Tagging: @alicedopey; @delicatebarness; @ellethespaceunicorn; @icefrozendeadlyqueen; @jaqui-has-a-conspiracy-theory;

@kingliam2019; @late-to-the-party-81; @lokislady82; @ozwriterchick; @ronearoundblindly

[hrts4hanniehae]

Take a Chance with Me || fifteen (finale)

ib Daytime Star

~2 years later~

of course she was upset that cheol's schedule had been so hectic lately, but she too had been drowning in work. sure it was their careers... but their schedules had ruined not only their first relationship anniversary but also their get-back-together anniversary! they were not even in the same country for BOTH of those dates. it was a bit painful but she had to deal with it.

the greetings for the fan meet went really well with her performance being almost perfect (except for her small wardrobe malfunction when her ripped jeans ripped even more than they should) but fans all got even more excited when they saw her in a much more flattering dress.

some of her celebrity friends came to visit her and of course, pretended to be die-hard fans. even the twitter fans @ yn_hrts and others were also present. this was the happiness of being an idol that she remembered.

it was coming to the end of the fan meet. the stack of gifts she had received were all behind her and she was focused on drawing something on a fan's notebook.

when that fan had moved on, she greeted the next person without looking up. "hi! thank you for waiting and thanks for coming! shall i sign something?"

"yea. could you sign this?" the paper before her was filled with text in black and white. without reading the contents she looked up at the person in front of her.

"CHEOL??"

"hello my love."

"what the hell r u doing here?"

"yn, my dear, please read the paper."

she finally looked down.

"oh my god."

it was a marriage certificate.

the whole room was screaming and she looked to her right.

choi seungcheol, the alpha of kpop and the leader of seventeen, her boyfriend, was on one knee holding a small box with the most beautifully intricate ring she'd ever seen.

"oh my god."

"The first day we met, you tripped and fell into me. But it ended up being me who fell for you first. Your laughter, your kindness, and the way you make every day brighter – it all captured my heart. We've been through so much together, shared our dreams, and faced challenges hand in hand. And through it all, my love for you has only deepened. We had our problems and we had our happiness. And now, I only want to bring you tears of joy and not sorrow. Not now, not ever. Those 3 years of distance from you were our darkest times. Now, I want to be happy together. Yn Ln, my love, my happiness, will you take a chance and marry me?"

she was crying. she couldn't believe it. he was proposing? here?

"yn?"

"yes. yes i'll marry you, my cheolie." and she signed the certificate.

"SHE SAID YES!" - hoshi

"oh my god hoshi not so loud!" - seungkwan

seungcheol had planned to be the last "fan" for the day, but in his haste, he had accidentally started queuing too early. so yn had to continue the fan meet for the rest of the fans with him sitting beside her.

"congrats on your engagement, yn-noona and seungcheol-oppa!!"

"thank you."

"oh my god i'm so nervous. bn do i look okay? oh my god." - yn

"yn you look great. don't worry so much" - bn

"yn your hair is out of place at the back." - jae

"thank you jae. see, bn, i don't look great." - jae

"oh my god don't do this right now." - bn

"jeonghan where are the rings oh my god." - seungcheol

"i've told you five times, they are with dino." - jeonghan

"do i look okay? oh my god, i see her dad." - seungcheol

"you've seen her dad so many times..." - wonwoo

"hyung, stop freaking out." - vernon

"i'm getting married, how can i not be nervous?" - seungcheol

"it'd better not be cold feet..." - hoshi

"it's not. i'm just scared that something will go wrong. I want to marry her so badly but what if something goes wrong?" - seungcheol

"we'll be there to sort it out, hyung." - dino

"you're getting married today in the best wedding possible. end of story. stop freaking out." - jeonghan

of course, the wedding went smoothly. cheol's vows made yn cry and yn's vows made seventeen cry. seungcheol was surprisingly very teary when yn put his ring on and he almost burst into tears after their first kiss as a married couple.

the dispatch photographer took so many photos that they had to dedicate almost 10 posts just to this wedding.

when it came to the bouquet toss... who knew that it'd be wonwoo to catch it, leaving mingyu a bright red mess. (luckily the dispatch photographer had left)

they were finally married.

"i'm glad you decided to take a chance with me, seungcheol. because this love we have, you can't find it with anyone else. thank you for loving me, choi seungcheol. today is the day i become choi yn. i've never been happier to be yours."

"thank you, yn, my love, for allowing me to take a chance with you. because you are the one thing i can't lose. i look into your eyes and i see forever. i'm forever yours. i'd be ln seungcheol if you insisted, but seeing how you're so happy to be my mrs choi, i'm so happy i get to call you mine."

-fin-

a/n thank you to those who always commented/reblogged my posts. yall have a special place in my heart!! we are finally at the official end of "Take a Chance with Me" and i hope y'all enjoyed it! do stay tuned for my other smaus!!!!

note to my taglist: please reblog and comment abt the chpt so i know that you're actually reading my stuff.

summary: 3 years after your breakup with seungcheol, you release an album to cope with your still-broken heart. you didn't expose his name but quickly, your fans and fans of svt begin to connect the dots to the past you wish you could relive. little did you know, the man you loved so desperately would begin to chase you back with the same desperation you so very much desired

inspired by: take a chance with me

pairing: idol!choi seungcheol × fem!idol!reader

genre: past relationship, fluff, angst, best friend!booseoksoon, smau, miscommunication, pining, 2nd chance

warnings: implied self harm/depression, hate comments, updates irregular but will finish because i cried when i thought abt this idea

started: 13.12.23 ended: 28.12.23

taglist: fill out the form in my pinned post to be added to the taglist (specify this smau in the pw section)

smau masterlist

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tags! @fairyofhour @megseungmin @sun-daddy-yoriichi @woozixo @euphoric-univers @christinewithluv @haowonbins @ocyeanicc @asyre @cynthiaaax13 @superhoshisvt @bangantokchy @chimmy-bts @angelarin @daisawa @writingbarnes @jeonghansshitester

@belladaises @wonwootakemyheart @wonwooz1 @luchiet @atinybitlonely @kookssecret @caratsland @peachescreamandcrumble @thepoopdokyeomtouched @isabellah29 @leah-rose03

[pepsiboyy]

HEARTSTRINGS. - p6

p5 ⚜ masterlist ⚜ p7

pairing: chris sturniolo x fem!reader summary: after moving to massachusetts from florida, y/n lives with her half brother, nathan doe, who is part of a small garage band. their sassy guitarist, chris sturniolo, can't help but get on her nerves. but there's something about him. warnings: no pov, cursing, slight angst maybe?, some fluff, use of y/n lol a/n: hi lovelies time for an update!! you guys have been loving this series, so here's a much needed update. let me know what you guys think!!

you allowed your leg to bounce anxiously as you sat at the foot of your bed, eyes glued to the baseboards in front of you.

you couldn't help but think about what had happened earlier today, ben's confession, you turning him down, and overall just how the day went.

their first gig went amazingly, at least you thought so. they always have things to work on.

you buried your face into your hands. you wanted to tell chris what happened, but you didn't want to throw his bandmate under the bus. you felt guilt lace your mind. but you knew what was right.

you reached for your phone and searched for chris's contact, listening to the sound of the dial tone. you swore this had to have been the first time ever he wasn't just in the next room over.

only a few rings and chris picked up. "y/n?"

"hey," you replied, letting out a breath that you didn't even realize you were holding in. a few moments of silence went on before you continued, getting ahold of yourself. "hey, yeah, uhh.. are you busy?"

there was silence before you heard shuffling on the other end. "not at all, did you need me?"

"yeah, like.. can i talk with you about something?" you questioned, nervousness evident in your voice.

chris let out a slight breath. "am i in trouble?"

you chuckled softly. "no, chris. don't worry, you've done nothing. i just... need advice and.. i don't know, i feel like you should know something."

a few moments went by again, before you heard chris on the other line. "okay, yeah. i'll be there soon. wait for me, okay?"

you nodded as you sighed softly. "thank you, chris. nate's asleep, so.."

chris hummed in approval before you exchanged your goodbyes and hung up.

you sighed deeply, burying your face back into your hands. why was this happening? you felt so much guilt, feeling as though you were tearing apart your brother's band, your lover's band, fuck, you were tearing apart your only source of entertainment and reasoning for going outside, really.

after about twenty minutes, chris pulled up out front. you quickly slid out of bed and slipped on some slippers before tip-toeing out of your room and down the stairs to the front door.

chris waited in his car, turning down the music that he had queued up.

as you approached the car, chris quickly got out and offered to open the door for you, before pulling you into a tight embrace and burying his nose into your hair.

"chris-"

"are you okay?" he questioned softly against your hair, worry very clear in his tone.

"i'm okay, really." you gently wrapped your arms around his torso, smiling as you leaned into his shoulder. "let's get in the car."

you guys had driven to a further away gas station, picking out snacks and drinks before driving to a dark and secluded spot.

"is this okay?" chris questioned, making you nod.

"no distractions.. just us."

you both sat in silence for a few seconds before chris gently reached over and took your hand in his. "what's wrong?"

you bit your lip and sighed deeply as you looked at chris. "uhh. you know when you and nathan went off to the restroom before the show?"

chris nodded softly, intertwining your fingers as his eyes remained on yours as you spoke.

you sighed and gently squeezed his hand before you let it go, taking a deep breath.

chris moved his hands to the steering wheel, but his eyes remained on you.

"ben... he confessed to me. he told me he likes me."

chris froze for a moment, his blue eyes fixed on mine before he turned to the dashboard and let out a soft sigh. "when was this?"

you swallowed hard, looking down at your hands. "uhh.. earlier today. i let him down gently, but.. he seemed really hurt by it."

chris bit his lip as his hands clenched the steering wheel. "i knew he had a thing for you, but i didn't think he'd actually..." he trailed off before he turned back to you. "are you okay?"

you nodded softly as you turned back to chris to face him. "yeah, i just.. feel bad. i didn't want to hurt him, and i'm really worried about what this means for us.. and the band, especially."

chris sighed softly as he leaned back in his seat, running a hand through his hair. "this complicates things, doesn't it?" a soft smile formed on his face though, and his expression softened as he turned to you. "i'm sorry you had to deal with that. i wish i could have been there."

you bit your lip as your face turned back to your hands that rested in your lap. you felt your eyes start to burn and well up, taking your lip between your teeth. "i- i didn't know what to do. i didn't want to make things worse."

chris immediately sat up and reached over, taking your hands into his reassuringly. "hey hey, it isn't your fault... we didn't plan on any of this happening," he gave her hand a gentle squeeze, "we will figure this out... together. okay?"

you nodded softly, now facing chris as you smiled weakly at him. "do you think we should tell them? about us?"

chris hesitated, thinking hard before he hummed. "part of me wants to. i hate hiding it. but with ben just confessing... it might make things even more messy. especially for nathan."

you nodded and sighed softly, looking out the window. "i know. i'm just scared of how they'll react."

chris shifted in the driver's seat, moving to lean closer to you and wrap an arm around your shoulders. "we'll take this one step at a time. for now, let's keep it between us until we can figure out a better way to handle this. i don't want to lose you, and i don't want to lose the band either."

you nodded, sighing contently as you leaned into chris's embrace. your arm moved to gently wrap around his waist. "okay. we'll figure it out together."

chris gently placed a kiss to your forehead, a hum leaving him. "always."

"y/n, you mind if we use your phone to connect to the speaker?" nathan asked as everyone set up their instruments.

you always sat between nathan and chris, ben more across from you.

"yeah sure, here." you shifted to plug in your phone to the speaker, which sat in the center of everyone.

"cool, let's run through our setlist for our gig in three days!" nathan announced, a wide smile on his face.

you smiled and took a seat in your lawn chair, playing with your hands in your lap as you glanced at everyone.

rehearsal was going well. after about the third or fourth song, you stood up and rubbed your eyes. "i'm gonna run inside and get a drink. can i get you guys anything?"

"i'll take a dr pepper," nathan called with a giddy smile, clearly excited for his beverage.

"please, for the love of god, a pepsi," chris responded with a smile, sweat dripping down his forehead, causing his bangs to be slightly damp.

you chuckled and nodded, turning to ben, who just looked at you and shrugged. "i'm good," he said.

you nodded and turned on your heel, making your way to the kitchen.

chris went onto his phone, taking a breather.

nathan was messing around with his drumset, making sure everything still sounded good and was in place before running a few warmups.

your phone suddenly dinged through the speaker in the center of the garage.

due to the loud noise, your phone had slid off the speaker and landed, face up on ben's side. the screen had lit up, where a text message showed up.

from: chris🧡 can't wait to see you tonight.

ben's eyes widened, and immediately shot over to chris, who had a small smile on his face, cheeks pink.

"back! dr pepper for you, and pepsi for you!"

you stepped in and handed nathan the dr pepper, and chris the pepsi, and for a moment, your fingers lingered on one another.

ben picked up on this. he picked up on your eyes linking, he picked up on the knowing smile you to show one another, and he picked up on the way you smiled widely at your phone after retrieving it. oh, and he definitely picked up on the way you knowingly sent chris a glance, to which he gave you a cheeky smile.

nathan's pencil tapped against the notebook in his lap as he smiled widely in thought.

everyone had packed up their things, and were ready to get going. it was tradition to sit in a circle after set and work on lyrics, plans, their next rehearsal or whatever the next gig is.

"alright, three days. our next gig. it's going to be a bigger venue." nathan smiled as he wrote down the name of the venue, making chris gasp and smile widely.

"we're performing there?" he questioned excitedly.

ben had his eyes locked on his lap, his fingers toying with a stray string on his jeans.

"ben, aren't you excited too?" nathan questioned, biting his lip to contain his excitement.

ben looked at nathan, his eyes not changing, but he shrugged and smiled half-heartedly. "yeah, sure."

but this seemed to throw nathan for a loop. "dude, ben, what's your problem? you've been like this all fucking day- what's your problem? are you hiding something?"

you and chris exchanged looks, shocked by nathan's sudden outburst.

but this sent ben over the edge.

"why does all this even matter!? this shit is falling apart anyways."

nathan's eyes widened as he stood up. "what!? we've been doing so great and getting so far, what even makes you say that dude!?"

ben stood up as well, his eyes darkening with anger. "why don't you ask y/n? or better yet, chris? they seem to know everything about hiding something!"

everyone sat stunned, but chris quickly stood up. "ben, let's not do this here."

you quickly stood up, being the last to do so, biting your lip. "ben, please-"

"how long have you two been sneaking around? how long have i been the idiot in the fucking dark!?" ben raised his voice.

nathan wore an expression of pure confusion, turning to look between you and chris. "wait, what's going on?"

chris took a few steps towards nathan. "look, nathan, we were going to tell you. we just didn't want to hurt anyone," chris then turned to ben with a sympathetic look, "especially ben."

ben crossed his arms and looked away bitterly. "too late for that."

nathan turned to you, his expression one of hurt. "is this true..? you've been.. hiding this from me?"

you felt your chest rise and fall in a panic. tears welled up in your eyes. "nathan, i'm sorry.. i- we didn't mean for this to happen this way.."

nathan turned to chris, expression now one of betrayal and almost anger. "and you, chris.. my best friend..!?"

chris lowered his voice as he sighed shakily. "i'm sorry... we didn't want to lose the band.. or your trust."

nathan stood in front of us, his expression one of devastation. he looked down at his hands and inhaled sharply, biting his lip as he felt his eyes well up.

everyone stood in silence, their eyes on nathan with a look of guilt.

"everyone," nathan started, taking a shaky breath,

"get out."

p5 ⚜ masterlist ⚜ p7

taglist;; @sturnsxplr-25 @vampiree-555 @wh0resstuff @jetaimevous @sturnioloshacker @nickgetsmewetter @matthewsturniolosgirlfriend101 @chrissgirlsstuff @nsjsnshey @sturniolosarethebest @sofie-1 @sturniololol @larnieboox88 @eliana-4200 @chrisgetsmewet @55sturn @lovesturni0l0s @sarosfilms @sturnclouds @l34n @str4wberryk1ss3s @pepsiluvr0209 @fratbrochrisgf

[readychilledwine]

Halloween Costume Headcanons

Warnings - Some sexual references, ships.

A/n - Ship and let ship on this one, my loves. I had an idea too cute to ignore. Remind me to pay some of our artist friends for commissions next year 💕

Ps- Added by Liz after this was queued, I'm playing spicy sadness catch up. I'm going to get all of the 2024 Monster mash posted by Halloween, though. Setting goals. Setting goals..

🕸2024 Monster Mash Masterlist🕸2023 Halloween Masterlist🕸

Nessian -

Cassian and Nesta wanted to go off the beaten path this year.

Nesta was reading one night and the idea came to her, a book and a librarian. It was niche. It was perfect. What was Cassian going to do? Say no?

She knew the stereotype was sexy costumes, especially around Velaris, but she decided instead to honor the females she loved and admired.

Nesta purchased her own light blue robes, presenting the idea to Cassian with a glare.

She wasn't asking. She demanded.

They had to hand built Cassian's book costume. A t-shirt with a title wasn't enough.

She made the cover, the spine, and the pages from a crafting material, turning him into an actual book.

Feyre helped and painted the cover, ensuring it looked as realistic as possible.

The book of choice? The first Sellyn Drake novella her and the other valkyries read

Feysand and Nyx -

Rhysand wanted to do family costumes this year.

Nyx wanted to do animals.

Cats, Feyre decided. They were going as cats.

Feyre decided to be an orange cat, Nyx a black one, and Rhysand, Rhysand she forced into all white.

Feyre just shape shifted her fluffy tail and ears, Rhysand and Nyx both got to wear little headbands and fake tails.

Once Nyx went to bed, Feyre's costume became significantly more provocative. A tight corset with a short dress.

They did not stay long at the party.

There was a certain little kitty Rhysand was very interested in petting.

Listen… before we get up in arms… I'm giving you all of them..

Eriel -

Azriel told Elain to pick whatever she wanted to be and he was all smiles when she pulled out Rhysand and Feyre clothing.

Elain does know how to pull a great joke and the humor of winning Rita's couples costume contest dressed as the High Lord and Lady was not lost on anyone in the Inner Circle.

Elain was bold, so very bold, and Azriel could not have been more proud and she stepped out of their bathroom in the first outfit Feyre had worn to Hewn City.

Azriel helped her make it slightly more modest, finding one of his favorite lace bodysuits Elain had to layer under it.

“I just didn't want to wear black,” her sweet voice said as he helped her get into her heels.

“I know, my flower.”

Rhysand hated every moment of it and that only made Azriel happier.

Tell him to leave his girl alone, he'll steal your clothes. At least, that's the joke that went around the Inner Circle

Gwynriel-

Assassins.

The sexiest assassin couple you've ever seen.

Gwyn saw this as a chance to hide her face in a mask as she pulled on the skin tight black catsuit.

Azriel didn't even have to buy a costume, which made him happy.

Her thoroughly enjoyed helping Gwyneth strap weapons to herself, a quiet lesson with each throwing knife on why he preferred that location over another.

Azriel then let her attach his, seeing if she could remember the complexity of his custom Illyrian leathers.

They lingered in his shadows all night, another joy Azriel had. His female all to himself in the dark corners of the Halloween party.

They also did not linger long.

Elucien-

I was told this was required.

Cinderella and Prince Charming.

Lucien spared no expense on Elain's dress. A beautiful blue ballgown that glittered like water.

He purchased himself the tailored white jacket, the tight pants. All to fit Elain's vision as she had Feyre draw out exactly what she was picturing.

Rhysand had been kind and took his favorite sister in law down to the archives where his family jewels and crowns were stored.

Much like Feyre, Elain was smitten with the glow worms and it almost gave Rhysand a flashback when she asked if she could pick a glow worm instead of a crown.

Tamlin and Briar -

I wanted to include these two. I don't know if this is a confirmed ship, but I want it.

Tamlin and Briar are going as a bee and a rose. So innocent to the naked eye, so very not.

Briar’s dress was made to look like soft petals. Her hair was pinned with small teacup roses weaved throughout the long dark waves.

Tamlin looked ridiculous, a little headband with bee antennas. Black pants with yellow fuzz all over them.

“If we leave now, I can make sure your flower is properly pollinated, my love.”

Cue Briar blushing profusely as those jokes increase as the fae wine does.

She's all giggles as Tamlin laces his fingers in hers, pulling her upstairs for the evening.

Bonus:

Cassian and the Valkyries -

Nesta could not leave Emerie and Gwyn out this year. Tradition had the 3 of them always dressing together and her marriage to Cassian would not change that.

They had just finished the legend of Dracula and his 3 brides. The thick old book provided the most beautiful descriptions of the brides and their flowing clothing, outfits made to show the female form like the art work it was.

Cassian did not mind being dressed in his normal all black and the fake vampire teeth. Not when his wife looked so beautiful, abs and breasts exposed.

He also loved the way Mor couldn't stop staring at Emerie. And Azriel Gwyn.

His favorite girls were getting all of the love and attention in their group costumes, and he was more than happy to give the 3 of them their spotlight.

[etherealily]

​🇷​​🇴​​🇨​​🇰​ ​🇨​​🇦​​🇳​​🇩​​🇾​ ~ ​🇫​​🇪​​🇱​​🇮​​🇽​ ​🇨​​🇦​​🇹​​🇹​​🇴​​🇳​

Felix Catton + fem! reader. SFW, but discretion advised, slightly dark, abuse.

Part 1: Hard Candy Part 2 : Sour Candy

Desc. : " you taste like rock candy, sweet like beaches, leave me all sandy"

You do NOT have permission to repost and/or translate any of my fics.

Queued + not proofread. Sorry if it sucks.

════════════════════ ⋆🪩⋆ ════════════════════

You've woken up in Saltburn before.

You actually had an honorary room that only you stayed in, mostly, and even picked out the bed covers and decor for during your summer stays when you were seven.

You weren't allowed - or eager - to pick them out this time.

Yeah. You've woken up in Saltburn before, to the sun warmly kissing your face and the open windows letting gentle summer breezes rouse you.

But waking up to Felix's head between your legs was new.

You couldn't even tell him to stop, because, a) why the FUCK would you do that? and b) his hand was covering your mouth, albeit, mildly lovingly.

The long string of profanities spewing out your mouth seemed to circle twice around the room and then wrap around your own neck, like some sort of crude reminder that you were, once again, humouring Felix Catton, like every other living thing on this planet.

Okay. Maybe we should try justifying this, maybe rewind, so that you don't seem like some hypocritical, weak-willed idiot. Or maybe justify why you are.

════════════════════ ⋆🪩⋆ ════════════════════

TWO DAYS EARLIER

"It's the same, isn't it? Well, more or less."

"What do you mean more or less? It's the exact same.", you replied, basking in the fading glory of the odd summer you'd spend here.

"Well, yeah, but this is the first time you're stepping into this room as a non-virgin."

"Oh, yeah, the new experience, it must be riveting. Doesn't the furniture seem to be looking at you differently or sm'n?"

"What?"

"Nah, nah, he's got a point. Society's judging you, as is the sofa. Can you hear them? 'Slut! Slut! Slut!'", chanted Felix, in your ear.

"Get out! Both of you!"

Felix chuckled, jogging out of the room as you did, trying to dodge whatever pillows you could throw at him. The other one, however, stayed.

"You want him around you, in you- with you so bad, don't you?"

"What?" Oh, yes, this bitch! He had a stupid name, what was it?

"Y'don't remember me? Farleigh."

Oh, yeah, Farleigh. The bitch you'd always had a tolerate-hate relationship with.

"Sorry, I couldn't place a name to the face. Yeah, hey."

"Hey yourself.'

"What did you just say to me?"

"Well, his cock.", says Farleigh, as if you'd just asked what side the sun set on and he'd just said 'west'. "You want it, right?"

"No."

"Oh, c'mon. You're essentially in love with him."

"I'm not in love with anyone, much less Felix Catton."

He mock gasped. "Full name! That's a tell-tale sign."

"Full name? That doesn't mean shite."

He took a long drag of his cigarette, his chocolate eyes lighting up with amusement, derision and quite a lot of judgement. "When you shagged or fucked, or whatever.", he began, raising a brow. "Did you try to forget it afterwards?"

"Well, yeah, because we were both drunk, it was-"

"Denial isn't just a river in Egypt, my dear."

The only thing keeping you from punching him was overwhelming nostalgia.

════════════════════ ⋆🪩⋆ ════════════════════

If you thought Felix hugs were brutally nice, Elspeth hugs were worse.

"I knew you wouldn't grow up ugly. I simply knew it. You and I connected too much for fate to let you be ugly."

Trust me, as backhanded and narcissistic as that sounded, that was the equivalent to her calling you the blessing of her life.

"And I'm so glad you've got the virginity thing out of the way, darling.", she whispered, her voice lovely enough to make you forget this was even an awkward and inappropriate conversation in the first place.

"I-"

"And I'm glad it was my Felix. Y'know, in college, girls have a new sense of... freedom. They'd give it up to, well, any troglodyte who pretends he cares. But you, sweetheart, were smart.", she praised, tapping the tip of your nose. "Congratulations."

"There's no need to-"

"And as for this, uh, 'proper-proper' reunion, I think it'll have to be a couple days before our Christmas party, so that people aren't clubbing them both together."

"Um, yeah, but you don't really need t-"

"Darling, you know I love any excuse to throw a party."

That, you knew.

"You're not going to advertise-"

"What, have a banner saying 'happy proper-proper reunion?' You think so cheaply of me?", she scoffed, pulling you into another mildly condescending hug. "Unless you want one."

"No! No, no, I'm fine, thank you."

"FELIX! Felix?!"

Felix almost left skid marks as he ran into the room. "Yeah?"

"Show her around the estate. Explore, like you two used to.", she smiled, a hint of reminiscence on her face.

He saluted, dragging you away from Elspeth and her endearing inimitableness.

════════════════════ ⋆🪩⋆ ════════════════════

"...So that's what it's like, EngLit. I actually think it's really going to help me out.", he muttered, folding the last bit of his paper airplane and launching it in front of him, into the field in front of the pillar at which you two sat.

You nodded, playing with the hem of your coat. "You're becoming a writer?"

"God, no.", he laughed, ironing out paper on his lap to begin creating a new plane. "No offense to the Tolstoys and Hemingways of the world or whatever, but no. I just think it'll help me out, because art leads to passion, leads to overall joy."

You hummed. Okay, an uncharacteristically deep sentence. "You don't have joy right now?"

"Do I look joyful?"

Yes. That was your first response. Because his eyes shone and his smile glowed and he was warmth personified. If you were him, you'd be joyful. "You're not?"

He shrugged. "I'm okay. Like, I'm thriving, but I'm not living. Ya know?"

No, you didn't know. What the fuck did he have to complain about?

"I mean, look, it's sort of like...", he began, shuffling closer and pointing out at the fields in front of him, seemingly not noticing you struggling with his scent. Did he extract and infuse his pheromones in his cologne or something?

"...It's sort of like I've got everything I need, and the means to get everything I want, but there's this... block, yeah? I want to do so much, but I've got responsibilities."

"Everyone does. You just do the things anyway, because at the end of the day, it's you and your happiness."

"Easy for you to say.", he grumbled, beckoning you to turn around so he could play with your hair.

"Why? 'Cause I don't have to 'take over the family business'?"

"Yeah, actually. I've known forever that I'm takin' over and shite, but lately it's like... what else?"

"You can quite honestly do whatever the fuck you want, and you still feel 'trapped'?`"

"'M braiding it.", he informed, gathering the hair over your shoulders back to him. "And yeah. You just wouldn't get it."

You fought an eye roll, deciding that, for once, it's nice that Felix is braiding your hair instead of pulling it.

"Usually when we're alone, we shag. You want to?"

You played with your fingers for a bit, before shaking your head.

"Don't move- you've gone and messed it up!", he scolded, giving you a sharp tug of punishment. "And yeah, me neither. 'S weird."

Weird that he's not on his usual testosterone filled autopilot mode of shag-everything-in-sight? Yeah. Kinda is.

"Where'd you learn to braid?"

"You forget I have a sister."

Oh, yeah.

"Is she...", you trailed off. How were you supposed to ask about something as delicate as that after years of not interacting with her? You could be hit by a 'you didn't care enough before' and you couldn't even refute it, although it'd be untrue.

"Yeah, she's still not eating. Going to absolutely force feed her, genuinely."

After a while, the silence that you were relaxing into seemed to realise just how restless he was, so it allowed itself to be broken. "Why do you let it happen?"

"What?"

"Me. Like, honestly. I mean, I got so drunk I threw a bloody vodka bottle at you and sent you to the ER and you're still not absolutely petrified around me."

You'd be lying if you said you hadn't asked yourself the same thing every time you let him into your dorm.

Shrugging, you pulled out a couple tufts of grass. "Used to it."

Silence as your hair got braided.

Then, "I didn't mean to. The ER. I wasn't... I didn't leave because I didn't care, I left 'cause I was scared."

"You were scared? After everything, I woke up and-", you cut yourself off for a moment, biting back the words 'fucking cunt' , "And you weren't there."

The braiding stopped.

Felix being like this was like swimming in the ocean and buying rock candy, feeling the sharp contrast of sugar on a salt-etched tongue.

At least, that's what you tell yourself. It's not the contrast of salt and sugar, it's the shock of a tongue suddenly being reintroduced to taste after a while.

And you wanted to force him to taste this.

"I woke up, and I was in a fucking ER, being told shit like I had slimly missed 'cranial fracture' and shite I didn't even understand, and I looked over for my best fucking mate, and you weren't even there!"

You felt his forehead on the back of your neck. "I thought if I paid-"

Scoffing effectively shut him the fuck up. He sighed. "How is it you don't hate me?"

"I can't really blame you. You- you were spooked. Happens.", you grumbled, begrudgingly. You hated your own rationality, sometimes.

"And it's me."

"And it's you. You do stupid things, sometimes."

"Like you?"

Offended, you turned around, about to actually say 'fucking cunt' for that little comment, but his kiss cut you off.

It really wasn't a let's-fuck-right-now-kiss, but more of a I'm-sorry-but-you-know-this-is-the-only-way-I'll-say-it-kiss.

"We have got a proper-proper reunion party to help plan.", he reminded you, his thumb rubbing an arc on your cheek. "Let's go."

════════════════════ ⋆🪩⋆ ════════════════════

ONE DAY EARLIER

For a 'proper-proper reunion', there was a lot of propriety lacking.

With the party - and lunacy - in full swing, you could happily ignore Felix without it being noticeable.

Well, as unnoticeable as you could be with him inside you.

"Happy- fuck - happy proper-proper reunion.", he breathed out, against your shoulder as he kept his pace, in a way he hadn't, ever before.

The lights and music from the party blended with the starry night sky to make what should have been a cheap hookup, that made both of you feel dirty and worthless, into something almost romantic.

Uh oh. That not-love-feeling again. What a little parasite.

And before you know it, you're screaming, drowned out by the music, but still screaming, biting into his shoulder to muffle yourself. The sharp intake of breath he took before laughing breathily at you did nothing to calm you down.

In fact, it just infuriated you.

How could he just... do this?

Bring you into his arms and into his bed effortlessly?

Convince you it was love without ever saying it?

Convince you he's sorry without ever meaning it?

You were still in your post-orgasmic, post-epiphany haze as he helped you down off the edge of the maze fountain.

"M'lady.", he grinned, as if he hadn't just fucked your brains out, as if he hadn't just done the least gentlemanly thing ever.

You rolled your eyes, shouldering past him before he rudely grabbed your wrist, yanking you back to him. "Where the fuck you going?"

"Back to the party."

"The hell you are."

"Why?"

"Uh, Mum invited Logan. No way in hell are you goin' out there with your tits half out."

"What are you, jealous?", you scoffed, not really expecting an answer.

He clenched his jaw. "You wish, don't you? Why are you friends with that perv, anyway?`"

Holy shit. Felix never answers a question with another one. He's always got a cheeky ass answer for everything. This was a tell. A tell!

"You're jealous! You- oh, fuck, mate, I can't believe this!"

"I'm not jealous. He's probably like, this big.", he retorted, pinching his index and thumb together.

"You always think about other lads' cocks? Or only Logan?"

Chuckling, he scrunched up his nose as he wrapped his arm around your neck from the side, using his knuckles on his other hand to scratch at your scalp. "You are a wanker."

"Wow. Original.", you laughed, trying to leave his chokehold. "You are in love with me, and you are jealous of Logan!"

"I will kill you if you don't shut up!", he replied, mocking your tone. "Seriously.", he warned, the hand not around your shoulder grabbing a drink from a waiter's tray as the sounds and lights of the party hit both of you like lightning. "I don't do love."

"Yeah, yeah, I know, I know.", you snorted, shaking your head as he brought the rim of the glass to your lips.

"Drink. You're gonna need it.", he informed, taking a large chug and then kissing you, backwashing his champagne into your mouth so you had no choice but to gulp it.

"Why?", you rasped out, coughing slightly as you wiped your lip.

"People you haven't heard from in years? And even worse, people you have. Your cousin that had a thing for me that one week we spent in town, yeah?"

"No, that was your cousin, you incestuous prick."

"Oh, yeah.", he mused, shrugging. "Third cousins don't really count, I don't think. But I'm sure I heard someone in your little family liked me. Maybe it was you. Maybe you're projecting your love onto me?"

He bloody wishes.

----

As the night had ended, he'd told you he missed you, he'd shagged you again, this time drunkenly speaking of babies and marriage and picket fences and stuff that mildly terrified you, because what Felix Catton wants, Felix Catton gets.

But he didn't mean it, he mutters as he kisses down your stomach in the morning. He'd never do that to you, baby, c'mon, you know him better than that.

And you did.

And that was how you ended up awake at six in the morning with his tongue between your thighs. Because you were just that fucking lucky. Is it justified? Who fucking cares?

════════════════════ ⋆🪩⋆ ════════════════════

And suddenly, Christmas flashed by, then New Years, then Valentine's, and some other holidays you were blurry on the details about and then you were back where you started. This time, though, you and Felix hosted the Welcome-Slash-Bullying party for the freshmen.

Well, essentially just your entire batch, but they preferred leaving it all to the two rich kids who basically grew up partying.

Plus, he was an Upperclassmen. You need a rager, you go to him.

And that's how you ended up being twirled around an even cheaper club by Felix Catton that year. Weirdly enough, he didn't scope out any freshmen to pursue. I mean, neither did you, which was even weirder. You'd thought you'd have at least flirted, but no.

For once, Felix's company kept you content and didn't make you vomit in any way.

He sucked up your cigarette smoke before kissing you, and his hands never left your ass. Even when he was drinking.

Yeah, he made you pour the liquor into his mouth, hold the cigarette up to his lips, wipe the molly from your fingers onto his tongue, all because Logan was circling around. Allegedly.

"C'mon, c'mon.", he'd murmur if you weren't actively touching your tongue to his at any given moment. "If you don't kiss me, you love me.", he'd tease. "You wanna have babies and picket fences and suburbian lives with me."

"If I don't kiss you?", you'd snort.

"Yeah. Because snogging and shagging are for us. Marrying and baby-having is for them."

And that's how you ended up brushing your teeth and then coming back to Felix Catton's bed for the, well, hundredth time, maybe?

"Morning."

"Morning."

He rolled over onto you, groaning. "I'm not going to that lecture. I fucking can't. Being hungover should count as disability or sickness. "

"That's only in the evening. You've got time."

"Yeah, but it's still happening."

"Hey, I, um, I wanted to run something by you."

"Yeah?", he asked, standing to stretch and go brush his teeth. Your bite marks paint his biceps and red scars from your fingernails adorn his trapezius. You tried not to grin.

"So your mate, right? Jason? He asked me out."

The tap water stopped and you knew you'd got his attention. "Really?"

"Yeah. So, would it be weird if I said yes?"

His head emerged from the crack in the door, and he raises a brow. "You wanna go out with him?'

"If it's okay with you, of course."

"Ooh, asking for permission from your weekly shag, are we?"

He dodged the pillow thrown at him. "Just 'cause he's your mate. If it's weird, then I'll say no."

"Say no..."

What?

"...Say yes. Say 'fuck you'. I don't care."

That was an incredibly feeble attempt to play it off. It was clear as day.

"Sure you're not still jealous?", you taunted, laughing as the pillow you'd thrown was launched right back at you in record speed.

"I swear, one of these days, I'm going to shut that mouth of yours up with gaffer tape.", he warned, jumping onto the bed. "And you'll regret it.", he chuckled, pressing multiple kisses to your neck to make you giggle.

Jesus fucking Christ, you'd seen Felix's face change.

And yes, he was, clear as day, maybe not in love, but in-something with you.

Which kinda sucks when you want to score with some fit guy called Jason. To whom you now had to go and tell 'no'.

Because what's worse than Felix Catton?

Being kinda-loved by Felix Catton.

More on that later.