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notlhecxzsa · 3 months ago

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The Asylum Where I Was Raised - N.R

Summary: Born and raised inside a very privileged family clan has its pros and advantages. But, why does Y/n feel like the poorest child ever growing up? Will it ever change?

Author's Note: Here's chapter 1 of The Great War, hope you enjoy! This is 3,4k words.

Warnings: Deprivation of parental care, verbal abuse, physical abuse, violence, cursing, angst

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3rd Person's POV:

"Who is that, Mama?" The small child with a fiery red hair asked her mother, who was sitting beside her on a very long table, having lunch with one of their family's closest friends.

Natalia has gotten used to these kinds of meetings and events, it was a way to keep their ties with their people stronger. At first, it was a blurry knowledge to her little mind, but as time passed by, it all came down to her, especially with her father's strong words and lessons.

The question caught the table's attention, the clattering of utensils against the plates was cut short, the ongoing conversation died down slowly as they looked towards the big backyard through the big glassy doors from the dining area of the monstrous house.

There was a pool outside, many trees and farther more is a huge vast amount of open space to do different activities. Somewhere along the scenery in front of them was a kid, a girl with two ponytails, wearing a pink princess dress and Mary Jane's shoes. If it weren't for the cute little dog and a worn out teddy bear, she would look almost utterly lonely.

"Oh my, is that Y/n? She has grown so much!" Melina, Natalia's mother, exclaimed with a shocked expression on her face, a smile forming on her face.

"It is her, yes." Phoveus, Y/n's father said with a straight tone. Natalia's ears perked up, she couldn't understand the tone the man had used, but she couldn't careless as her attention stayed on the younger girl.

Natalia is at the age of 12, already close to being a teenager. The kid could be somewhere around 7 or 8 years of age.

"Why isn't she dining with us?" Melina asked, turning her attention back to the table as they started eating again. She looked in between the two married adults, who they also claim as one of their closest friends. It has been so long since they got to see each other again, maybe that is why Natalia has forgotten about her ultimate best friend.

"Oh, well-..." Natalia looked back and averted her gaze to the woman, who she learned was Carmilla. "She already ate earlier, that kid has got a big stomach, she couldn't wait anymore for you." She watched as the woman cut into her steak while explaining. "Also, she has become a very shy girl, I bet she wouldn't even want to be here at this table." Letting out a chuckle that made Natalia's ear almost bleed with how fake it sounded.

All those years of having a very different type of education from other children, provided by her parents, had made Natalia so different from any other kids. It was also why her father had become so proud of her, of the woman she's becoming.

She is a very observant child, and it was no help to have such lessons on how to learn different people's expressions, attitudes, and actions. Turning to look back at the young girl, she saw her panting, dropping to the floor to sit beside her dog after running around with who seemed to be an invisible friend.

As she gazes at the girl, the clattering of utensils started again, along with the voices of her father and the man they were with. Her mother's voice invaded her hearing, "Do you not remember her, sweetheart?" Her mother asked, and she frowned, turning to look up at her.

She thought for a moment, too long that she forgot to answer her mother as the woman at the table got her attention before she could even come up with an answer. She couldn't seem to put a finger on it, but after the question her mother had thrown, there was a familiarity that surged through her.

Looking back at the girl, she stood up, averting her gaze to her father. "Can I go play with her, father? Please?" She asked, once again all the attention went to her.

"How about you ask her parents, Natalia?" A small lopsided smile formed on Alexei's face, motioning her head towards Carmilla and Phoveus.

She blinked and swallowed a lump in her throat, clearing her throat before she started to speak. "Can I play with your kid, Mister Y/L/N and Mrs. Y/L/N?" Alexei looked so proud, seeing her daughter fearless, not shying away like a normal child as she stood tall.

"Of course, you can darling. If anything happens, tell us quickly, alright?" Phoveus agreed, nodding her head.

Natalia thought about how he sounded like the kid might do something rude, which Natalia won't fall for, she can see with her own eyes how harmless the kid is. And, if she ever was hurt by you, she can clearly protect herself.

Natalia thought nothing of it before replying with only a nod of her head and muttering an appreciation. She turned on her heels, ready to leave before the delicious cupcake on her plate caught her attention, taking it in her hands, Natalia made her way outside.

"Tammy, no!" She heard before that cute little giggles were caught by her hearing, she almost unconsciously smiled as she looked towards the girl who was sitting down with so much curiosity in her eyes.

She saw the dog licking the girl's face, with that, freely, she let herself smile unconsciously. So cute, she thought before shaking her head to get rid of the thought.

"Lucy will go mad at me again for getting very dirty, TamTam. Let's play no more, okay?" She heard, once again, the small voice that makes her stomach churn in a good way.

"Hey..." She started, stopping just a few feet away from the girl. If I was a killer, she'd be so dead by now with how oblivious she is around her surroundings, she thought.

She saw how the girl jumped in surprised, quickly turning to look at her, clutching her teddy bear before standing up. The little poodle ran up to her, looking alerted by the new presence and somehow ready to surge to protect her owner.

Natalia only scratched its head with her one hand, looking down at it as the smile on her face grew.

"Who are you?" Natalia's attention averted once again, looking up she finally saw the girl's face clearly.

If she was cute in Natalia's mind earlier, god, right now she might be the angel that Natalia has first ever seen. With her doe eyes, small plump lips and flustered cheeks, Natalia could almost feel her heart pump so hard that it almost started to hurt.

She watched as the girl's eyes averted to the cupcake she was holding, before it was met by her own eyes again.

"I'm Natalia, you're Y/n, right? Your parents said I could play with you." Natalia explained in a very gentle manner. No, she had never talked like that to her family.

She saw how Y/n's eyes stayed on the cupcake for a while before answering. "Really?" Her high pitched voice muttered, looking up at Natalia with curiosity in her eyes.

"Yes-" Natalia was cut off when a voice came out in the middle of nowhere, a middle aged woman who seemed to be at the age of her mother, wearing a maid uniform came walking in a fast pace towards Y/n.

"Oh god, you child! How can you go out that fast- Oh look at you! You're already dirty, you just had a shower! Your mom's gonna kill, me, peanut!" The woman rambled, bending down to Y/n's level, wiping her sweaty face with a soft handkerchief.

Natalia studied her for a while, figuring that she's no harm and seemed to be the maid of the younger kid in front of her. She saw a small guilty smile formed in Y/n's face, before the dog that was by her feet surge to the woman, licking wherever its tounge can reach.

"But- but, Tammy wanted to play, Lucy!" The girl reasoned out, Natalia almost smiled with how dumb it sounded. A dog can't talk, stupid.

"Right, missy. It's Tammy's fault again, huh?" Natalia watched the banter in front of her, figuring that it's a usual event that happens from time to time.

"Oh, I see you've got someone here? Who is she, hmm?" Natalia watched the woman turned the small child around, facing her, as she put another towel on the small child's back inside the most pinkish clothes that Natalia has ever seen.

"She's my new friend!" Y/n started, and Natalia frowned. They just met and did not yet started to play together, how can she be her friend, Natalia thought, but said nothing. "Mommy and Daddy said we could play, Lutsy!" She almost chuckled hearing the lisp that was let out as she observed how Y/n's eyes gaze at the cupcake in her hand once again.

"Oh well, I hope you had fun playing with my baby." The woman smiled warmly towards Natalia and she replied with a nod, not saying anything. "You seemed to have grown so much already, Natalia. It is nice to see you again, but, sadly Y/n her has got some lessons to do. You guys can play again later, alright?" The woman rambled as she picked Y/n up, probably knowing that Y/n will fussed and ran away.

Natalia frowned, wanting to protest but the woman was already turning around. "Wait!" Natalia blurted out, looking at Y/n who was also looking at her already.

She ran up to her side, holding up the cupcake. "Do you want it?" She saw how Y/n's eyes widen along with a smile on her face before practically leaning in immediately, taking the cupcake in her hands, licking the sweet icing on top of it.

Natalia couldn't help but notice a bruise on her small arm, a cut on the other that seemed to be healing already, again, she didn't say anything, only frowning until Lucille started to talk.

"Oh, sweetheart. That's so nice of you, Y/n! What do you say?" Lucille asked the young woman in her arms with a smile plastered in her face.

"Thank tyuo..." Y/n mumbled around the cupcake, her attention only on the sweet food in her hands.

Natalia unconsciously, once again, smiled. Her heart had never felt this warm until now. "Natalia... My name's Natalia, Y/n." She said softly, looking up at the younger kid.

The kid only nodded, smiling down at Natalia with her eyes brightening.

"Well, we should get going. Promise, you guys will have more chance to play, alright?" Lucille bargained, hoping to not keep the tutor waiting.

As they walked away, Natalia kept her eyes on Y/n, with Y/n doing the same while muching the cupcake she just received from someone that made her happy for a small amount of time. Finally, she had a friend. Or, that's what her little mind thought so, having to grow up in a very secluded and be protected too much.

But, in all, for her, she had a friend to play with. She only read those in the books she was almost forced to read. Sometimes the books that Lucy will read to her before bedtime. She just hope she gets to play with Natalia the girl with a red hair more soon! She has a really pretty hair, Y/n thought.

Natalia sighed, turning around to gaze at the place that Y/n was playing on. Frowning as she saw something, before her name was called out.

With a hope in her heart to see her again soon.

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"Shhh, I know, sweetheart, I know. Come on, we need to get you up to your room, your parents will be mad if they saw you here." Inside the maid's quarter is crying sixteen year old Y/n. Lucille comforted the child, her heart breaking as she hear the helpless whimpers and cries of the kid that grew up in her arms.

It's so heart shattering, and how she cried so quietly was enough to build a lump on Lucille's throat. After all those years of being treated like a prisoner in a world she did not deserve to live in, Lucille's heart warmed at the reality of how Y/n could still keep her heart and sould despite of everything.

"Can't I sleep here only for tonight, please?" Lucille's heart couldn't break more at the sound of Y/n's voice breaking, keepting it low down quiet, almost sounding like a whisper.

She cupped the younger one's bruised cheek, a cut on the side of her lips and a couple more bruises already forming on her arms.

"Darling, you know that's impossible. Remember what happened last time?" She said softly, slipping her fingers through the soft shiny hair of Y/n.

She felt the kid nodding, another quiet sob coming out of her, followed by a whimper.

"My head hurts so much, Luce. I-I think Dada also broke my pinky." Holding up her hand, Lucille saw how it was bent slightly, finally taking notice on the black and blue color on her wrist.

"Oh baby, don't worry, I'll make it better, alright? We just need to go to your room first to clean you up, yeah?" With a nod, she helped the young woman stand up, the lack of shoes broke Lucy's heart once more.

"Here, sweetheart. Wear this." Taking out another pair of slippers, she helped her put it on, like she always did when Y/n was still a child.

"Will you sleep there with me, Lulu?" Her heart warmed at the nickname, and she smiled sadly as she guided the girl up to her room, taking notice how the kid tensed up as they reached the living room, looking for an invisible monster that might come out of nowhere.

"Baby, you know I can't..." She said softly.

"What about Tamtam?" She can feel and see how helpless the little girl looked, she wants- no, need someone to be with her. By her side.

No kid should ever feel like this, experience like this, especially coming from their parents. God, if she just had the privilege of having a family and a child of her own, she would make sure to give her all. Like what she does to Y/n right now.

"Sure, darling. Tamtam can stay with you, just not up in your bed, alright?" Lucille said, and with a nod from thw younger one, she left a comforting kiss on her head.

"Good girl, peanut."

She felt so much anger towards her bosses, she know she's not in place to feel like this. But, as Y/n grew up, it is becoming harder to just stay put and watched it all unfold in front of her.

May it be a fight between to married couple, a problem on their business or literally anything, it's always taken out on their child. God, how cruel can they be?

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"Mama?... Mommy?" The sixteen year old kid called out, pushing gently and slowly the office of her mother. Excited for her mother to see how well she did in her tutoring class, while a canvas of painting on the other hand, wanting to give her mother a gift.

There was no occasion, it is one of the young woman's love language, gifting handmade gifts for everyone she loves dearly. It's one of the things that the maids in their house, along with the big bulky bodyguards who she made friends with, really adored about her. Their heart warming at the appreciation for hard work they are receiving, especially, for Lucille.

Lucille thought that no money from the child's parents could ever go beyond the gifts she was receiving from the youngling.

She heard faint noises from the inside, but she continued pushing slowly. Upon opening, she caught the view of her father, throwing things around in the air, her eyes landed on her mother who was looking so disheveled sitting on the office chair.

"You're such a fucking whore, do you know that? How many time have you fucked that bitch, huh?-" Her father's booming voice made her flinch, even with the thousands of times that she was already met by the sound, she's still not very used to it.

"Oh, stop! Don't act like you weren't fucking that secretary of yours, huh? Do you think I didn't know that?" Her mother replied, still, she went unnoticed by the both.

With her heart thumping, she bit her lips, not clearly understanding what was happening. Frowning as she stepped towards her father who was standing closely to her, holding the paper and the painting in one hand as she reached out with the other.

"Dada?..." With only two tugs of her father's shirt, she was met with a very hard push after her hand went flying away from her father's wrist.

The things she was holding cluttering on the floor as her lips wobbled.

"Hey!... don't hurt her!" She heard her mother shouted, she sounded like she was scared in Y/n's head, but she just hesitated.

"Fucking bitch, get out! The adults are talking, Y/n. Do you want to go to the black room again? Huh?" Her eyes widen with tears, before shaking her head vigorously.

"N-No..." She muttered with her voice shaking, almost coming out as a whimper. She wanted to turn around and get out, but it seemed like she was stuck from where she was standing.

"Fuck you, Phoveus! Come here, Y/n. Don't you ever come near that man again." A hand gripped her forearms, she let out a small yelped, but it was ignored as she was practically dragged outside, tears clouding her vision, no idea where they were heading before she was pushed away.

Closing her eyes, waiting for the impact of something hard, only to be met by a pair of awaiting arms whom she grown to find comfort in.

"Shhhhh, come on. I'm here, no one's gonna hurt you again, peanut. I'm here, alright? I'm not leaving."

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"Tammy! No, baby, you can't eat that. That's my paint brush, you crazy dog!" Exclaiming with a smile on her face is the nineteen years old daughter of the married couple inside the Y/L/N manor.

Underneath the willow tree where all her endless summer and winter was spent, she painted different things that caught her eyes. Accompanied by her dog that had grown up a lot from the past few years.

A cast on her arm made her frown, feeling it graze on her skin in the most uncomfortable way. It is such a bother for her living, especially when she is painting. Sighing sadly, she continues painting the birds that had flown across the huge backyard they have. Humming to a random tune that would come up in her mind, a glasses that she rarely wears, perked up on her nose.

She used to have such an amazing vision, until an accident forced her to live having a spectacle. She rarely wears it, only when a familiar headache would spike through her head, along with her vision slightly blurring.

"Y/n?" She looked up, along with Tammy, who ran immediately towards the maid that was walking towards them.

"Yes, Lucy? I'm just painting here..." She said, quick to explain what she does. The woman look down on where the younger on was sitting, shaking her head, choosing to ignore the unnecessary explanation she just received.

"I know, peanut. Come inside, there are visitors that just came in, your parents want you to be with them." Lucille explained, bending down to clean up the things that was scattered on the ground, with Y/n immediately leaning in, on her knees, helping her caregiver.

"Why would they want me to be there?" She asked, her voice lacing with so much curiosity. It was not normal for her parents to want her by their side when visitors would come in.

Lucille hesitated, she was formally informed of what the future holds for the kid that grew up in her arms. Having a high position inside the manor, and being the caregiver for the child whom the parents trusted the most. "Just come inside, alright? Make sure to composed yourself and look presentable." Y/n frowned, hearing Lucille's voice with an edge lacing through it. It wasn't her usual tone, but she said nothing, only nodded as they made their way inside the mansion.

"Will you be there, Lucy?" A question that the woman had grown accustomed to.

"Of course, peanut."

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Author's Note: Finally posted the first chapter! Hope you enjoyed!

Tags: @natsxwife @esposadejoyhuerta

#lhecxzsa #natasha romanoff #natasha marvel #natasha romanoff angst #natasha romanoff fanfic #natasha romanoff x reader #natasha romanoff imagine #natasha x reader

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kimberly-spirits13 · 11 months ago

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Moving In

Pairing: Jason Todd x reader

Warnings: None

Summary: a short Drabble on you convincing Jason to move in with you

Word Count: 963

Your house was a haven for Jason. It was somewhere where he could lay down and forget all his troubles or simply sit in silence and not be overwhelmed by the life outside of your front doors. Despite the occasional complaints he hears from you about the woes of homeowning, he sees no flaw in your home. You were well off from your job, able to buy a nice home in the same area that Wayne Manor sat. It wasn’t intentional, you had been living in this home before you knew Jason, and through the years you had completed various renovations and upgrades to make it reflect you. There was a garden in the backyard filled with your favorite flowers, a sizeable kitchen where Jason likes to spend most of his time, sunlight poured through the floor to ceiling windows, and a few additional rooms catered to your interests were settled between the walls of the home. Convincing Jason to move in was not a hard thing to do. He hated living in an apartment and hearing his neighbors talk or walk around in the middle of the night when he was trying to sleep. You and Jason also found that it was a hazard climbing into the windows during the waking hours of dawn after patrol. A few close calls meant that most of the time when you were out on patrol, you two went back to your place to crash. It’s easy to say that he was delighted when you offered to let him move in after a long week of patrols gone south.

“You know, you should ditch the apartment, Jay.” You were laying on top of his chest, legs sprawled out over his and blankets nearly covering your face.

“Whatcha mean Doll?” He stopped combing his fingers through your hair and started twisting small loops into it with his fingers.

“Come live with me. You always talk about hating living in the city anyways and you sleep better there.”

“It would make patrols easier.” He commented, “You’re not delirious right, you’d actually want me to live at your place?” There was a tone of insecurity in his voice like at any moment you’d tell him you were joking.

“I am not delirious Jason.” You sat up and looked at him, “I have plenty of empty room that needs you to fill it.” “There’s plenty of room for your books in the library and you practically already live there. I’m pretty sure more than 60% of your things are already somewhere in the house.” “You could literally move in right now.”

“I would love to live with you.” He said smiling, “but I think we’d need to, you know, make sure everything is taken care of before I move out. My lease ends in a week and I’d need to pack everything up”

“We can get boxes tomorrow.” You said, “You can just start leaving things for the next week, plus, you don’t have to stay in the apartment even if your lease isn’t over.”

That was exactly a week ago and Jason was ready to move into your place. He pulled into the space in your garage that was meant for him with boxes loaded in the back of his car. There weren’t many boxes in his trunk, but he had a few odds and ends that he couldn’t send to Goodwill or throwing away. Most of the contents of the boxes were his books, some old mugs and pictures, the clothes that weren’t already in your house, hygiene stuff from his place, and other knickknacks he had around. After a few seconds of collecting his thoughts, he looked up to see you coming into the garage from the side door into your house with a smile.

You took his hand as he got out of the car and shut the door to walk to the trunk and start unloading. Taking a few boxes at a time, the two of you gradually unloaded everything and put it into the room connecting to the garage. It wasn’t going to take a long time for you two to unload everything, the most daunting thing to Jason was permanently invading your space. Taking the box filled with mugs, you opened the cabinet in the kitchen that kept all the mugs and started carefully putting them in like they were meant to be there.

“Hey doll, do you have a place you want all of this?” He asked timidly.

Usually moving in somewhere wasn’t a problem for him and he knew where everything was meant. He knew that you didn’t mind and just wanted him to be comfortable, but at the same time, Jason was afraid he would mess something up, make you regret letting him live with you.

“You know you can put stuff wherever. I mean obviously shampoo and conditioner belong in the bathroom and dishes in the kitchen but Jay, this is your home, I don’t mind.” You said comfortably.

Jason felt his heart swell at your words. This was his house now. You might have been there first, but you were telling him that this was allowed to be his home. Everything was perfect, nothing was popping Jason’s bubble now.

He set his stuff down and watched as you walked over to him and wrapped your arms around his waist. In a moment of silence, he ran his fingers through your hair and put his chin on the top of your head.

“I’m glad you’re here now.” You said softly, “I hated when you had to leave.” Jason held onto you tighter and lifted your chin with his finger, “I love you y/n/n. You’ve given me the best life I could have ever lived.”

“I love you too Jay.”

#dc x reader #dc comics #dc characters #batfam x reader #batboys x reader #batfam #jason todd x reader #jason todd x reader fluff #jason todd x y/n #jason todd x you #red hood x y/n #red hood x you #red hood x reader #red hood fluff #red hood imagine #jason todd imagine

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ladyyatexel · 4 months ago

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Behold: A Crow

Michaels Haunted Forest Collection 2024. It's not very forest-y (especially the floral snake toilet), but there are definitely "I decorate like that all year" options

#in the end getting more haunted Victorian backyard garden party than haunted forest #some of it is very cool and some of it makes me fear that the sad beige moms have invaded my favorite thing

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heeseungiez · 3 months ago

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RESOLUTION 3) become popular at school

pairings! park jay x fem!reader, sim jake x reader, mentions of heeseung x reader

synopsis! park jay always thought of you as the annoying little miss perfect who could do no wrong in the eyes of his, yours and heeseung’s parents. he wasn’t fond of you in the slightest for that very reason. but when you dropped the act after your perfect image had shattered in front of everyone, he can’t help but feel drawn to you. when he discovers another one of your secrets, he thinks he might truly have to ruin you for the whole world to know how far from perfect you truly are.

content warnings! smut (mdni! 18+), swearing, all of them are idiots, heeseung is desperate and so is jay low-key

word count! ~12k

taglist! OPEN! send an ask to be added!

a/n! i have no idea how the last part's gonna turn out i'll be very honest

masterlist | next

Good morning, Decelis!

Have you ever looked at someone and thought: “Wow, what a sad little life they lead.” Well, that’s how I feel like looking at Park Jay these days. What’s he up to anyway?

XO, Miss Decelis

Jay hated it here.

The one place where he was to be safe from you, his home, had been invaded not just by your family, but you as well.

Okay, maybe, obviously, since his parents wanted to have a huge barbecue with the other families, but still, seeing you at his backyard made him want to dig himself a hole in the ground and stay there forever. Especially when he saw the adoring looks on his parents faces whenever they regarded you.

“We are so happy you’re healthy, Y/N,” his father said.

His mum couldn’t keep her hands off of you, placing them on your shoulders, then cheeks to examine you. “When we heard what happened, we tried to help as much as we could.”

“And you did,” you replied with a bright smile, softly pushing his mum’s hands away from you without voicing out your discomfort at the excessive skinship. “My parents told me I was staying at your summer house in the summer?” And that you got me into the rehabilitation centre I went to.”

Well, Jay did not know that. She lived at his family’s summer house? In one of the guest rooms, he supposed. But did she snoop? Jay didn’t have that much stuff in there, but some personal things could be found here and there. He shifted in his place uncomfortably.

“Yes. That is true. But we still felt like we could do more,” Jay’s father sighed, glancing at his son. “We didn’t imagine Jay would ever let anything like this happen to you.”

And look, he probably wouldn’t. He might’ve disliked you, but what happened was fucked up and had he been there to witness it, he’d help you. Of course, he’d help you, he’s not a monster. But he wasn’t there because the last thing he wanted to do was to be stuck to your side at a party. You had your own friends.

Yet it still ate at him from the inside.

The thing was, although Heeseung was the oldest of the four of you, getting him to actually care about something was as difficult as trying to turn a stone into a living being. So it was up to Jay to look after everyone as the second oldest. But with you, he didn’t want to do it because you annoyed him.

How? Well, this. The way his parents were fussing over you because Jay’s mum always wanted to have a daughter and apparently you were the next best thing. Plus, you were a star student and just perfection incarnate to the point literally nobody even considered the fact that you were bullied. If Jay had known, he would’ve put a stop to it before it could get any worse.

Which he also hated. That he didn’t know about it. It pissed him off that you kept it a secret and didn’t tell anyone just to remain a little miss perfect in the eyes of everyone rather than admitting that there was something wrong and you needed help.

You glanced at him. Pursing your lips, you shook your head. “I’m sure he wouldn't if he knew,” you replied because you knew Jay well enough.

He disliked you, but he never let you get hurt physically. Even mentally, it was mostly Jay giving you the cold shoulder rather than being an actual dick the way Heeseung had been. So while Heeseung would watch you fall just so you understood he wanted to have nothing to do with you, Jay would try to catch you.

And really, it wasn’t just his caring nature at this point. You were just so… irritating in a way Jay couldn’t describe because despite Jay’s insistence to ignore you, you’d always show up with something to get his attention over the years.

When you were thirteen, you gifted Jay a pick because you heard he liked playing the guitar.

When you were fifteen, you spent your entire savings just to gift Jay a guitar he couldn’t shut up about a few months before. That was how desperate you were for his acceptance. But it also came from a genuine, generous place in your heart where you liked to see the stunned expression on Jay’s face and the inability to hold in the smile forming on his lips.

And then at sixteen, you had heard Jay complain about losing his favourite pick somewhere in school, only for you to turn up some hours later with the pick in hand, saying that you found it on the desk of some girl in your class because she was boasting about having stolen it from the Park Jay.

“You’re too sweet, Y/N,” Jay’s mum said, grinning. “Is there anything you need now?”

“I’m good, Mrs Park, but thank you.” You shook your head, before bowing out of the conversation to join Jeonghyeon’s side again. Jay watched you bump his shoulder with a smile.

“Look after her, yeah? Clearly, she’s been through a lot.” Jay’s father approached him, patting his shoulder.

Jay nodded. “I know, dad,” he said. “I’m trying. But we don’t share all classes.” It surprised him how bitter he sounded about it. That he couldn’t keep his eyes on you at all times. But there were many classes you had with Heeseung.

And Jake.

The boy who had been dreamily staring at you this whole time while you mingled with the others. But they knew why. Every single time Jake would get lost at school, Jay, Heeseung and Sunghoon knew exactly where they would most likely find him (or preferably not).

“Maybe you could keep her company at the annual Sim family event for Jake. It’s coming, and I know neither of you boys usually bring dates. So take Y/N. Look after her,” Jay’s father suggested with a pointed look. It wasn’t a command, but Jay wished it had been because then he could ask you and pretend he didn’t want to.

“Yeah, dad, I will.”

But when Jay glanced at you again, laughing at something Jeonghyeon had said, he had to take a deep breath and tell himself that your face did not look angelic in the sunlight nor that your laugh was the loveliest song he had ever heard. Perhaps he could even will his guitar into repeating that exact same sound — no.

And maybe Miss Decelis would finally have something normal to say about him then, instead of constantly talking shit about his business. Seriously, calling his life sad? Who the fuck was this person to attack him like this? Had he done something to them?

It’s like now that they couldn’t attack you, they switched up to Jay and his lack of anything. But he blamed you for that. Most of his actions were driven by spite, and he could hardly be spiteful if you barely looked at him, could he? And it wasn’t his fault that he could not stop thinking of the day of Changbin’s party when he could quite literally see your boobs because your strap was falling off. Or the fact that he knew Heeseung did something shortly before even without Miss Decelis’ report.

He didn’t even realise you were standing in front of him until you spoke up. “Look, I know you don’t like me and whatever, but you don’t need to keep glaring at me,” you said, unimpressed.

“I’m not glaring at you,” Jay responded with the same energy, looking you in the eye. “But are you going to Jake’s birthday party with someone?” he asked sarcastically, since the birthday party was more of a boast event for Jake’s parents to show off their amazing son.

“Uh, with Jeonghyeon and Hanbin?” you replied with a raised brow, confused as to why Jay would ask you this. And although Jay knew it was impossible for you to go with Jake as he was very much going to be a decorative doll tagging along with his parents the whole day, he was relieved you didn’t say he asked you to go with him. “I guess Hanbin said he’s going with some other friends, Sunoo and Jungwon? So maybe just Jeonghyeon… which also means Hee—”

“Go with me.” Jay didn’t let you finish the sentence. It made sense you would go with Jeonghyeon and Heeseung together since they were family, but Jay didn’t like to hear that either way. Whatever Heeseung’s deal with you was, Jay thought it would be better to keep you away from him. As far away as possible.

“Why?” Of course, you’d ask that.

“Because I said so.” Jay shrugged. “Is that so hard to understand?” He rolled his eyes.

“Yeah, duh?”

“Just go with me, Y/N,” Jay sighed, running a hand through his hair. He had no proper explanation for why he wanted you to go. He could say his father ordered him to do so, but you would most certainly say no in that case. And he didn’t know what force in the world actually made him want you to say yes.

“And what will I get out of it?” you asked, crossing your arms. “I imagine you might finally get Miss Decelis to say something nice about you again, but what is in it for me?”

“A thank you?” Jay offered seriously. “For everything. Not just going with me, but also all that you’ve done for me in the past while trying to befriend me. Because I do remember every single thing. Especially last year, when you brought back my pick. Honestly, I wanted to thank you then, but I was just… too stunned to speak, you could say. I still have the pick you gave me, too, and the guitar.”

“Yeah, I’d bet you wouldn’t throw that guitar away. It cost almost as much as a whole Porsche,” you scoffed.

But Jay ignored you, pulling out the pick you gave him when you were kids from his wallet instead. “And what about this? Why do you think I wouldn’t throw this away?” he asked, shaking his head. “Look, I’m sorry for being a dick, but you were so—”

“Perfect?” you supplied for him. “See, that’s the funny thing. I used to think that being perfect would make people like me, but instead, what I got was you and Heeseung being assholes, and being thrown into a pool. I don’t even know why I tried so hard.”

“It’s our nature to want to be liked,” Jay said wisely, shrugging. “I am sorry, though. I was petty, but not any less grateful about these things.” He placed the pick into your palm, wrapping your fingers around it.

“No, it’s yours, keep it.” You shook your head, returning it to Jay. “I don’t play the guitar, so it’s useless for me.”

“Right.”

“But sure, I’ll go with you if it makes you feel better,” you said, pursing your lips. “We can start over and all that. With me not being fake, and you being less petty over it.” A smile graced your lips, and Jay hated how pretty it made you look.

“Hey, Y/N, Jay! Come eat with us!” Jake called after the both of you, a raised brow aimed at you both in a silent question — what could you two possibly be talking about?

Jake was speechless. “You’re going to my birthday party with Jay?” he asked in front of your friends as you all sat at the Academy’s courtyard, trying to process the words that had left your mouth moments ago.

“He asked me,” you replied with a shrug. “Look, he started apologising for being a dick and I would’ve felt bad if I said no after that. He still had that pick I gave him as a kid.” The frown on your lips appeared against your volition. But when you gave it to him, you liked him. Out of the three boys, you liked Park Jay the most when you were kids. When you heard he liked playing the guitar from Jeonghyeon, giving him that dark green pick with your initials carved into it in the smallest letters was your best way of conveying that. And he still had that damned pick.

“Oh yeah, he carries it in his wallet,” Jake said knowingly as if he wasn’t trying to be angry that you agreed to go to an event celebrating him with a different guy.

In your defence, whatever you had with Jake wasn’t a defined relationship. You never asked what the two of you were, and you preferred it that way for the time being, because a relationship was the last thing you wanted. You still struggled with taking care of yourself, let alone having to share that with another person, even if that person would be Jake.

“What an interesting turn of events,” Ning hummed, a smirk permanently stuck to her face.

“I said it. Weird obsession with Y/N. Not surprising,” Jeonghyeon spoke, rolling his eyes.

“Yeah, just because a guy doesn’t like you, doesn’t mean he doesn’t want to fuck you,” Ning added, which led to a glare from Jeonghyeon, and she giggled innocently. “Look, hate-sex is a thing. Fight me.”

“Whatever.” You shook your head. “It doesn’t matter anyway. Even if I enter the building with Jay, it won’t change anything about the rest of the event. Jake’s parents plan far too meticulously for anything out of line to happen.”

“I mean, that is true. But I still don’t like it.” Jake pouted, and you cupped his cheeks, squishing them. His eyes softened as he gazed at you, turning to your friends. “Have you guys got your invitations already?”

“Yessir!” Ning saluted.

“Cool.” Jake bit his bottom lip, turning to face you. “Me and the guys are planning an after party, so you should all come. My parents are not gonna suffocate me with unconditional praise forever, so I plan to sneak out, and y’all can just… leave on your own.”

“From your house?” Jeonghyeon asked with a raised brow, reminding everyone that the birthday event hosted by the Sims happened at the Sim residence. (Unexpectedly so.)

“Well, it’s a plan. I never said it was a logical one.” Jake deadpanned, and you had to remind yourself that Jeonghyeon and Jake have known each other as long as you have. The separation of your friend groups over the years really messed with your brain, so all of you speaking together now felt… a bit strange. But in a good way.

“Yoi, Jake, here you are.” Sunghoon approached your group. At first, he had tunnel vision on the blond boy only, but then he noticed you right next to him, and he smiled. “Oh, hey, Y/N.”

“We’re here too, you know,” said Jeonghyeon, rolling his eyes. But Sunghoon completely ignored him, and even Ning who intently glared at him for not greeting her either. Sunghoon didn’t even blink, keeping his attention on you and Jake only.

“What’s up, Hoon?” Jake asked, tilting his head to the side. It made him look so much like a golden retriever, you couldn’t help the grin that decorated your lips nor the warmth that spread through your chest.

“I need your help with my English assignment,” Sunghoon replied, not hiding the fact that he needed help. It was kind of a known fact that his English was not the best, which was why he didn’t share English class with you, Jake and Heeseung. Jay just didn’t want to bother with the higher level.

“Why don’t you ask Heeseung?” Jake raised a brow, not wanting to leave you.

“He’s not Australian.” Sunghoon blankly stared at Jake.

“Okay, okay, I get it. I’ll help you,” Jake sighed, getting up from his seat. “Don’t forget what I told you guys, okay?” He gave Jeonghyeon, Ning and you one last look, adding a kiss to your temple before joining Sunghoon’s side.

As they left and you watched them, you wondered how come Jake was so unaffected by the tweet from Miss Decelis that came out not long after your first time together. Surely, it had to be weird between the guys if they were aware, right? But then again, Jake didn’t seem uncomfortable talking about or to Heeseung either.

You wanted to ask about it, but you weren’t sure you wanted to know the answer to that question.

Good morning, Decelis!

The annual Jake Sim party is almost upon us! Who’s excited? I already RSVP’d for the event, but did you?

XO, Miss Decelis

Being at Jay’s house on your own without anyone else accompanying you was weird. Usually, you wouldn’t step foot in here unless your parents were on your tail. But today, you were there, because your mum sent you here. Apparently, she had something to pick up from Mrs Park but couldn’t make the trip herself, so you were the one who was sent on a mission to the house.

But you clearly didn’t time your visit correctly because the person who opened the door for you was none other than Jay.

He smirked at the sight of you, his eyes roaming from head to toe before fixating on your own. Today, you didn’t bother wearing contacts, so your casual look with glasses on was back for a time being. It was the weekend, after all, and you had nobody to impress.

“Missed me?” Jay said a bit too confidently for your liking, and you scoffed, pushing him aside to enter his house without his permission.

“Is your mum here? She has something to give to my mum, apparently.” You looked around the hallway, but it was empty.

“Funny you asked,” Jay chuckled, “‘cause Mum gave it to me to give to you. Wait here, I’ll go get it. It’s in my room.”

You let out a sigh, looking around you again, not liking how eerie the hallway felt when it was so empty. Usually, whenever you were here, it was with other people, and that meant this house was bustling and full of chatter. Today, it seemed like the only person inside this house was Jay. Even the faint music playing from his room (probably) creeped you out.

“Or you can go with me,” he said, noticing the discomfort in your expression. “C’mon, it’s just some files for your mum, so it’s on my desk right now.”

Without thinking much about it, Jay took your hand in his and lightly tugged at it to get you to move. “You kinda get used to the emptiness when you live here long enough,” he added. “It’s nowhere near living in a penthouse inside a constantly packed hotel.”

“Yeah, it’s really not,” you said mindlessly, letting Jay pull you up the stairs to his bedroom. Your eyes fixated on the photos of Jay as a kid, doing all kinds of things. Cooking with his mum, playing the guitar while his dad played the piano. It was slightly different to the hall of fame dedicated to Jake at the Sim residence. And what you also noticed was the few photos that included you when you were younger, with Heeseung, Jay and Jake. You were trying to smile and be happy alongside Jake, but Heeseung and Jay had the fakest smiles possible plastered to their faces.

Your feet stopped moving then, firmly planted to the ground as you stared at the pictures for longer than was necessary. Jay had to stop with you. When he realised what you were looking at, he chewed on the inside of his cheek. Another thing to apologise for.

“If I’d known how much harder—”

“Don’t, Jay.” You shook your head, stopping him with your hand in front of his face. You softly yanked the hand that was locked with his out of his grasp and looked him in the eyes. Your stony expression spoke for itself. “I don’t like thinking about it.”

Jay pursed his lips and momentarily averted his gaze to the ground. He didn’t want you to see how guilty he felt about everything. Because he saw most of what had happened to you during the time when he was completely ignorant. When the principal found all the proof he needed to expel the people who caused you harm, your parents were brought in to see it for themselves. And when they told the other parents, Jay also found out. He didn’t tell either Heeseung, Jake or Sunghoon about it, but he knew.

The girls who bullied you kept videos of most of the things they’d done. Like spilling banana milk all over you. And the worst part was that Jay remembered the day when it happened. He knew you’d come to school in your uniform, but then spent the rest of the day in your P.E. clothes, and he never questioned why. Maybe he should’ve.

“Still—”

“There’s nothing more to say.” This time, you glared at him. The last thing you wanted was to be reminded of your past. Jay was definitely the last person you wanted to recall it with. He didn’t care then, and now it was too late to care. Besides, if you were to delve into it and he was actually trying to help you now, you’d just be more upset with him for the things he hadn’t done in the past.

Closing his eyes, Jay nodded. “Right. Of course.”

“Let’s just get what I came here for so I can get out of your way as soon as possible,” you said with a sigh, pushing past Jay because you actually knew exactly where his room was. You never saw inside it, but you knew where it was from when you were a kid who just met him. It was the place you’d always wanted to step into, but were never allowed.

And a part of you, the old you, wanted to wait in front of the door and get Jay’s permission to enter first because that was the polite thing to do. It would also mean Jay’s approval. But there was no reason to care about it anymore. So you just opened the door to the room that was basically an equivalent of the Forbidden Forest for you.

The first thing you noticed was how big his room was. The next was the wall lined with expensive guitars as if the room was an instrument store. And third, the most important, was the guitar you had given him for his birthday when you were younger. It wasn’t on the wall with the other guitars. Instead, it hung right above his bed alongside a photo of all of you: the Parks, the Sims, the Lees, your family. You and the others had to position yourself on the ground so that your parents could all stand behind you, and it was the one photo where none of you looked miserable.

“Welcome to my room, I guess,” Jay said once he caught up to you, shoving his hands into his pockets. He didn’t want to show how nervous he was for you to see it. Maybe if he hadn’t remembered that your guitar was right above his bed, he wouldn’t have been, but… it was too late anyway.

You let out a huff, your eyes roaming the gaming setup Jay had. There was also a TV with PS4 and Xbox consoles and a Nintendo Switch laying around because why wouldn’t he have all of it?

“So, where’s the files?” you asked, glancing at him.

“Right.” Jay nodded, crossing the room. It was the plain black folder on his desk, but you didn’t want to assume and intrude more than you already have. You had some manners left in you, after all. “Here.”

You accepted the file with a grateful smile. “Thanks,” you said. “If that’s all, I’m gonna go.”

“Wait, Y/N.” Jay didn’t even know what he wanted to say. He just didn’t want this moment to be so awkward between you two. So he mindlessly grabbed your wrist to keep you in place and make you look at him. To look into his eyes.

“Yeah?” You bit your lip, and Jay followed the action a little too eagerly.

“Does everything have to be so awkward between us?”

“I’d argue that’s pretty much your fault,” you said casually, but it was the truth.

“I’m sorry.” Jay ran a hand through his hair.

“Stop apologising. It just makes it less genuine the more you do it. The words lose their weight.” You shook your head. “You know that saying about actions speaking louder than words? Maybe try to do that.”

Jay scoffed. “I can’t exactly go around threatening people the way Heeseung does,” he said, and you raised a brow at him.

“Of course not. Because he’s doing that for himself. Not for me,” you replied. “Maybe just try being my friend for once, Jay. An actual friend. We’ll see where that goes.”

Jay pursed his lips, nodding. “Okay…” he said. “I think I can do that.”

“So? Can I leave now?”

“Actually, Y/N, would you like to watch a movie with me?”

“What?”

“I’m bored.” Jay shrugged. “And the house’s gonna be empty for a few more hours.”

“And you don’t think I have plans?”

“Not in that outfit, you don’t,” Jay countered, examining your whole figure once more. But he was right. You would’ve probably watched movies at home by yourself anyway.

“Ugh, sure. Whatever,” you agreed.

“Action?” Jay asked, letting go of your wrist. He approached the TV in his room, looking at you quizzically.

“Yeah, I wanted to re-watch—”

“Captain America?” Jay cut you off, and your eyes widened. He was right. You did want to re-watch the Captain America movies. They were your favourites among the Marvel movies, and you could never get quite enough of Captain America: The Winter Soldier.

Tilting your head to the side, you asked, “How did you know—”

“Just because I pretended to ignore you, it doesn’t mean I didn’t actually listen.” He rolled his eyes, but he couldn’t blame you for thinking that he wouldn’t know anything about you. Though the fact was that he probably knew a little too much for his own good. (Another reason why it angered him that he didn’t know about your bullies.) “And yes, I will put on The Winter Soldier,” he added, controller in hand.

You were speechless. But you didn’t ask this time.

How well did Park Jay actually know you?

So you were now friends with Jay. You and Jake were in a non-committed relationship — a situationship, if you will — and Heeseung was doing whatever it was that he was doing in regards to you. Which meant one very simple thing: people were now looking at you. Really looking at you.

Which was convenient because your third resolution for the year was to become popular at school. This counted, right? At least among other things, anyway.

People actually turned whenever you passed by, and while the attention wasn’t what you imagined, you still held your head high and walked forward as if there was nobody but you. One thing had been people’s initial shock over you being back, but now… they were judging again, and perhaps even more harshly than before.

Ugh. You just wanted to get to English class.

“If you let them know that you know they are watching, it’ll just make it worse,” Heeseung whispered in your ear. It startled you, jumping away from the boy who suddenly appeared by your side.

“What the hell, Heeseung!” you scolded him, slapping his chest with your hand. A lopsided grin decorated his lips, and he knew he looked good at that moment.

You wondered how many girls were at the receiving end of it before you.

“I’m just offering useful advice.” He shrugged, stepping closer to you. “I also wanted to talk to you, but you seem to avoid me like the plague.”

Your brow rose. “You’re the one still trying to pretend you don’t like me,” you said matter-of-factly, and he made a non-committal sound in response. “Maybe that’s where you went wrong.”

“Maybe.” Heeseung nodded, shoving his hands into the pockets of his trousers.

“What do you want?”

Humming, Heeseung smirked at you again. “Just wondering if you and Jake are exclusive and all that.”

“Why don’t you ask him?” You deadpanned.

“He talks about you as if you were his girlfriend, I don’t think I have to know his side.” Heeseung clicked his tongue and shook his head. “So I wanna know what you think. Since you two clearly haven’t had that talk yet.”

Stopping in your tracks, you turned to Heeseung and crossed your arms. “We did,” you said. “Literally right after Miss Decelis exposed that mistake I made inside Sunghoon’s car, by the way. If I’d known—”

“You’d still want it,” Heeseung said nonchalantly, laughing. Which sounded a lot like it was aimed at you. To mock you. “Wish we weren’t interrupted…” he mumbled, eyeing you.

“Out of everyone, I think I really hate you the most,” you said, reminiscing of your childhood alongside Heeseung.

Why were you even trying so hard back then? With Jay, you’d always gotten the smallest snippets of hope whenever he looked slightly surprised and pleased despite trying to pretend he was not. But Heeseung had always been careless. Nothing mattered to him.

Heeseung’s brows furrowed, and he frowned. “No, you don’t,” he said.

“Yes, I do,” you countered, glaring up at him.

And you hated what followed afterward even more, with Heeseung invading your personal space to claim your lips for himself. You hated the way your body reacted automatically, responding with just as much heat, your kisses matching his own.

You hated the way your hands roamed his broad shoulders until you had your fingers tangled in his hair, bringing him even closer to you.

You hated the way your whole body sought him out, heart beating in your ears. The way you arched in an attempt to be pressed flat against his body, feeling the growing bulge between his legs on your stomach. Heeseung groaned into your mouth, and you swallowed the delicious sound, rubbing your thighs together.

And then the spell was broken when the bell rang.

People had been watching, and you realised that you were royally fucked.

Good morning, Decelis!

I’d like to say that Lee Heeseung might finally be marking his territory but… I fear a little birdie has told me that our lovely Y/N is going to the annual Sim Jake praising event with Park Jay.

It seems that our childhood friends have finally become… friends?

XO, Miss Decelis

Heeseung wanted to be pleased about what happened between you and him. He especially loved the way you squirmed under his gaze after the two of you made your way inside the English classroom, and Jake was right there.

But they were featured on Miss Decelis the next morning, and he realised that maybe it wasn’t such a good idea with all the replies underneath the post.

He knew he shouldn’t care. He never cared before anyway. But this was you. And he couldn’t get past the nasty comments that called you an attention whore because you were taking advantage of everyone feeling sorry for you.

He hoped you didn’t read any of it. But he also knew you were basically a walking and talking Miss Decelis encyclopaedia.

Not the greatest way to start off the day of Jake’s birthday event. Especially knowing that your date was going to be Jay.

Jay.

They really were the most pathetic guys on the block. All it took was not seeing you or hearing from you the whole summer, and suddenly they both missed you and neither actually disliked you.

Jake loved any kind of attention, and you gave him plenty. It was enough for all three of them to suddenly become a whole mess of losers for you.

Maybe if Heeseung had Sunghoon’s resolve and simply didn’t talk to you, he’d be doing far better. But something told him that Sunghoon’s case was just a matter of time.

All these thoughts were going through the boy’s head as he stared at himself in the mirror, overthinking his outfit. It was simple, a suit tailored just for him without a tie. But perhaps it was too simple.

Jay and Jake were absolutely going to wear something in an attempt to impress you, and Heeseung was only lucky that Sunghoon couldn’t afford doing so. Unless his suit was going to come from your father’s pocket as another donation to the up-and-coming figure skating champion.

Not even his Prada cologne felt like enough when he knew how excessive Jay’s collection was, and how he always had a specific scent for each event, and how good his colognes actually were.

Why was he even overthinking this stupid event? It never mattered to him that you were in attendance. Because you would always try to approach him to at least say hi and start any kind of conversation. Which he would cut off very early on. Your dejected pout gave Heeseung a twisted sense of accomplishment whenever he watched you leave. But the reason behind why changed over the years.

At first, he just liked watching you suffer because he, as a very young idiotic kid, thought you were making him suffer. But then, when he was old enough, he kept thinking — and refusing to acknowledge that those were his thoughts in the first place — if you would have that exact same pout during sex when he’d forbid you from cumming.

Heeseung groaned when he felt his cock harden, and he hated that the mere thought of you did that to him. Especially when you were fucking Jake… of all of them, you chose Jake.

Running a hand through his hair, Heeseung bit his lower lip. What was he supposed to do about you? Because somehow, you made him feel clueless, and he’d never felt that before.

“I’m not gonna ask.”

Heeseung startled when his cousin entered his bedroom without knocking.

Jeonghyeon looked Heeseung in the eyes through the mirror instead of laying his gaze literally anywhere else, intently holding the eye contact.

“The fuck you want?” Heeseung said indignantly, walking away from the mirror, hiding his boner out of his cousin’s sight.

“We’re heading out,” Jeonghyeon replied nonchalantly. “But I also wanted to talk to you for a bit,” he added, keeping Heeseung stuck in place, although he couldn’t exactly go quite yet, either.

“What now?” Heeseung rolled his eyes.

“Stay away from Y/N,” Jeonghyeon spoke plainly, straight to the point. He did not want you to get hurt, and knowing Heeseung, exactly that was going to happen.

Heeseung scoffed, licking his lips. “Funny. But no, thanks. You’re not my mother.”

“No, but I’m your cousin. And I’m Y/N’a best friend. The last thing she needs is your pathetic little ass to hurt her more than you already did in the past… So stay the fuck away.”

“I’m guessing neither Jay or Jake got this cute speech of yours?” Heeseung’s brow rose.

“They don’t need it. Jake was always good to Y/N, and I talked to Jay. He, unlike you, is actually sorry and wants to make shit up to her… and, oh, did I mention he’s not trying to get in her pants?”

“Boo-hoo, if you really think that, then you know jackshit about Jay.”

“All I need to know is that he’s better than you,” said Jeonghyeon.

Heeseung’s jaw clenched, and he clicked his tongue. “Was that necessary?”

“Very.” Jeonghyeon nodded. “At least Jake and Jay know what it means to care. Maybe once you acquire that skill, we can have this talk again. But until then, just stay away.”

“Jeonghyeon!” Your voice carried through the corridor as you called after Heeseung’s cousin. “Where are you guys, we’re about to leave without both of you dumbasses.” You approached Jeonghyeon, peering through the door into Heeseung’s room.

A very plain room at that. Just like his outfit. Its main attractions were the bed, the gaming setup and his showcased collection of mechanical keyboards — which he had put together himself (!) with his own hands. But that still left a large empty space in the middle of the room. Jake and Sunghoon had joked about being able to play Twister in it way too many times by now.

You, on the other hand, were the exact opposite of plain. Your dress was gold, glittery and tight, hugging your curves and stopping at your mid-thighs. Last year, he would’ve made a remark about you looking like a golden disco ball, but he dared not say anything now. Last year, you wouldn’t even fight him on it and simply glare; but this year, you looked like you would have no issue coming up to him and slapping him for being rude.

Not to mention this year, Heeseung wasn’t afraid to admit that he would love to tear that dress off you. He craved feeling your heated skin under his touch again, and you being within reach so often did not make it any easier for him.

“Heeseung has a bit of a problem right now, so I think he’ll take a while,” said Jeonghyeon, smirking when he saw the mortified expression on Heeseung’s face. “You and Jay can probably go ahead anyway. Is he taking you in his car?”

“Yeah.” You smiled softly. Because, yeah — that’s fucking right — you and Jay were now friends. Heeseung had to hold in the annoyed groan.

But at least this reminder served like a nice, ice cold bucket of water being poured over him, dealing with the little problem in his crotch area.

He was ready to go.

“I’ll see you guys at Jake’s.” You grinned with a small adorable wave aimed at — strangely enough — both him and Jeonhyeon.

Except, unlike Heeseung, Jeonghyeon received a kiss on the cheek which you had to lift yourself up on your tiptoes for and he had to slightly bend down in the knees.

Then you were gone with a wink.

“Stop glaring at me, dickhead,” Jeonghyeon said. “She tried to be your friend. It’s not my fault you’re stupid.”

This time, Heeseung let out the indignant and frustrated groan that had been building. He ran a hand over his face.

“Let’s just go.”

Sim Jake did not hate his birthday per se, but it was fair to say he wasn’t fond of it. Well, he would be if he was allowed to simply spend the day with his friends, but that wasn’t possible with his parents.

They didn’t care that all Jake really wanted to do was to be stuck by your side, maybe steal a kiss or two, and call that his best birthday ever. His parents needed to have a whole house party to show everyone — over and over again — the photos and diplomas and medals that Jake had acquired through his 18 years of living. Maybe if it hadn’t come to him so naturally, his parents wouldn’t be so adamant at showing him and his achievements off. But here he was.

Watching his parents and staff run around the house as the last finishing touches were being done for the first guests to arrive.

Jake was stuffed in a dark blue tailored suit his parents forced him into getting done, the material tight and soft on his skin. He hated how stuffed it made him feel, especially with everything going on around him.

He was just excited to see you again. As if he hadn’t texted you minutes ago or saw you yesterday. It was something he realised recently — that he sought you out wherever he went. Jake would always sport the largest grin in your presence, loving to make you smile. Your laugh was a virus he kept catching, and he lived for those moments when he would tease you and you’d scrunch your nose and lightly hit his chest or shoulder.

To him, it wasn’t just about those intimate moments he shared with you, but also your friendship and how much he’d grown to like you over the past few months. It was different when he barely knew you and the two of you acknowledged each other from time to time. This was about your shared love for superhero movies and the way you laughed softly and cooed whenever you saw Jake’s enormous Lego collection, saying it made you like him even more.

He wanted to make you love him, but it seemed that the exact opposite happened instead.

So it wasn’t wrong of him to feel a bit upset, if not jealous, about you coming to his birthday event with Jay, right? (He tried to pretend nothing ever happened between you and Heeseung these days, too.)

Running a hand through his hair, Jake made his way to the foyer where he would be tasked with greeting all the guests. It was about time for the event to start, and the first ring of the bell signalled just that.

Jake sighed, opening the door.

“Hi! Happy birthday!” you greeted the boy enthusiastically, wrapping your arms around his neck. And then you pulled away and left a big wet kiss on his cheek, which left a faint pink print of your lips from your lip gloss. “This is the first time I’m here this early,” you remarked with a smile, gazing at Jake.

“Hey, man.” Jay’s hug was less warm and he patted Jake’s shoulder. A bright contrast to your crushing embrace.

“Hi.” Jake smiled at both of you, nodding. “You’re the first one’s here, so feel free to go wild at the buffet while everything’s stacked.”

“Will do!” you said, saluting. “Will probably need it to survive the day anyway. Just remind me I have a big gift for you, Jake.”

Jay deadpanned, glancing at you. “What? Are you letting him fuck your ass or something?”

“Pervert?” you said, hitting Jay’s chest. But there was a light-hearted smile on your lips. “You’re just jealous.”

“Am I? I didn’t notice,” Jay replied. But it was a big fat lie. Jake saw Jay’s ears redden with the lie, and he wasn’t sure how to feel about that knowledge. Should he be surprised? Probably not.

Of course, he wanted you. He’d be stupid not to. Fucking MILFs was never going to last anyway. Not when you were right here, and you were perfect. Then there was Heeseung. And Jake saw the photos from yesterday.

Heeseung and Jake had shared too many girls to count by now, but with you, he wanted to be selfish. He would’ve preferred to have you all to himself, but he was scared of making the next step. What if you rejected him because you didn’t want a real relationship? Was he even ready for a relationship?

He never was in one to begin with. Neither of them have. Never had they before become serious with a girl. It had always been casual fucks, usually not more than once with the same girl except for some special cases; and now there was you. For Jake, at least, there was you.

How was he supposed to act around a girl who made him inexplicably happy?

“Find me if you’re bored, Jakey. I’ll be around with Jay, I guess.” You glanced at the slightly taller boy with feigned annoyance, and Jay rolled his eyes.

“You could’ve just said no.”

“But that’s no fun.” You grinned.

Fuck, Jake was down bad for you.

You were true to your word and stuck around Jay even when your friends arrived. It was almost as if you could sense his discomfort when he wasn’t with his group of friends. You were always quick to take hold of a conversation whenever someone approached you, usually to speak to you about what had happened. That was when Jay would step in and keep you from reliving your past memories because unlike with him, you couldn’t exactly tell these strangers to shut up.

The least he could do was be short with those people for you. Because despite everything, you were still trying to keep the perfect image around your parents’ associates. At school, nothing mattered anymore, but at events like these? They all had to pretend to be the pliant little dolls raised by their successful parents.

But it was hard to even be here. For Jay, at least, since all he could think about when he saw you in your dress was what it would look like on the ground — which he was really disgusted with himself for, by the way. He just managed to establish a solid friendship with you, and all he could think of was whether the moans you made whenever you tasted something really good would be the same when he tasted your pussy.

God, he needed to get it together.

You were hooking up with Jake. And the three — no, four — of them promised each other they would not try to sleep with the same girl nearly half a year ago. It was part of their history that neither was very proud of, and Miss Decelis had a feast of the four of them once it was found out. But realistically, it wasn’t their fault that the girl couldn’t keep up with all of them.

Maybe you could.

You snapped your fingers in Jay’s face with your eyes narrowed at the boy in disapproval. “Could you not undress me with your eyes in public? It’s inappropriate as hell, and if you haven’t forgotten, it’s Jake’s birthday.”

“Why don’t you go to him and suck him off if you care so much?” Jay retorted, internally cringing at himself. Why would he even suggest that? You might actually do it, and he was not—

“You’re right, I should,” you hummed. Licking your lips, your eyes easily found Jake in the crowd with his parents, speaking to an elderly pair that kept touching Jake’s hair and cheeks and shoulders with large smiles while he looked mildly uncomfortable. “He looks like he needs saving. And a break.”

“Y/N, I wasn’t serious.” Jay ran a hand through his hair, and you tilted your head to the side.

“Does it matter? Jokes aside, today is Jake’s birthday, and he deserves to enjoy at least a tiny bit of this bullshit event before we all get lost,” you said, nodding to yourself as confirmation of your own logic. And Jay couldn’t claim you were wrong because he knew better than anyone how much Jake hated this annual event.

“You’re right, but, Y/N—”

“Can you look after my phone?” You handed the device that had been practically stuck in your hand since you arrived over to Jay. “I’ll find you later. Pretty sure I could find you anywhere just by the smell. It’s actually really good,” you said with a smile, and Jay wanted to be proud of picking the right cologne, but once he accepted your phone, you were already halfway through the room to approach Jake.

Jake was one hell of a lucky bastard.

Jay sighed, ready to put your phone away in his pocket when it lit up with a new notification. Which would be nothing special had he not seen the user above the Twitter notification. A new message from a random user meant for the eyes of everyone once it got relayed.

It was a DM for Miss Decelis.

“You’ve got to be fucking joking.”

“Was that my birthday gift?” Jake stared at you through dazed eyes, his voice breathless. He sat at the edge of his bed while you got up from your spot on the floor to nestle on his lap, his cock still hard and covered in saliva.

“That would be a terrible birthday gift,” you replied, moaning when you felt Jake’s hardness against your clothed cunt. Jake adjusted his hips, forcing another whimper out of you, and you cupped his cheeks to make him look in your eyes. “Stop moving, Jake, or we’ll never leave this bedroom,” you breathed out, and he just lazily grinned at you in response.

“Maybe I don’t want to leave,” he replied, wrapping his arms around your waist and bringing you closer. “Oh fuck, I want to feel you now,” he groaned, restraining himself from doing anything else for you.

“It’s not— oh— the time yet,” you whispered, barely thinking coherent thoughts with Jake’s dick between your legs, though not the way the two of you wanted it to be. “Later, you can get anything you want, Jakey.”

“Anything?” he repeated, biting his lip. One of his hands slipped underneath your dress, his digits sneaking their way inside your panties.

“Mhmm,” you hummed, pleasure striking your whole body as Jake’s fingers began circling your clit. Your lips attached to Jake’s while he worked his magic on you, but he pulled away, biting at your lower lip.

“I want words, baby. A weak hum is not a yes,” he said, his movements becoming harsher and faster.

“Fuck, Jake, yes,” you cried out, your orgasm coming quickly. It was weak, but there wasn’t much to expect from just his fingers atop your clit. But you didn’t want to give yourself to him just yet. It wasn’t time, as you said. Not this early in the evening. He still had guests to please and parents to appease.

“I want to take this dress off you so bad,” Jake mumbled against your shoulder, his lips trailing to your clavicle.

“Later.” You smiled when his mouth made it back to yours, hands tangled in his blonde locks at the back of his head.

“I hate that word,” Jake whispered. “But thank you anyway,” he added, finally coming to peace with the fact that this moment had to end because you were right, and his parents were waiting for him.

You smiled, getting off his lap to stand. Adjusting your dress back to its place, you gazed at Jake and his still hard cock. “I’ll leave first. Give you time to recover,” you teased, pointing at his crotch. “Always remember you’re pretty, and that everyone is here to talk your ego all the way up to heaven.”

Bending down, you connected your lips with Jake’s one last time before heading toward the door. “Maybe later we can ditch your afterparty and just go to my house. While my parents are stuck here with yours.”

Jake chuckled, capturing his bottom lip between his teeth as he tended to do out of habit rather than to purposely flirt. “I don’t think the others will let us do that,” he said and shook his head.

You groaned, your hand on the handle. “Well, we’ll see about that.” With a grin you disappeared out of Jake’s view, leaving him alone in his bedroom while you barely made a step into the corridor when someone grabbed you roughly by the wrist.

“We need to talk.” Jay’s tone was curt as he dragged you by the arm into the nearest guest bedroom.

He locked the door behind the both of you, clutching your phone in hand as he loomed over your figure with a scathing glare. It occurred to you that you completely forgot to turn your notifications off.

You were used to being alone at these events, always stuck to your phone, so you didn’t need to turn them off unless you were at school and around friends. But you gave your phone to Jay without a second thought. Without thinking about what he could see.

“It’s you,” he spat, holding the phone up to your face.

He lit it up with a touch, opening the string of new notifications, each filled with texts and photos from anonymous sources, feeding you with hourly gossip about Decelis Academy students.

But before the mortification set in, you wondered why it was Jay who was mad at you. Because the whole reason behind you becoming Miss Decelis was because of how he and Heeseung treated you. It was your tiny payback, merely making sure nobody could suspect you for focusing on just a specific group of people.

“Why?” Jay asked, stepping closer to you, invading your personal space. You tried to back away, but the moment your body hit the cool wooden door, there was nowhere to run.

And Jay was right in your face.

“Yeah, why?” you questioned back, narrowing your eyes at him. “Why would I start an anonymous gossip blog in freshman year when I was sure everyone hated me?”

Instead, you leaned in, pushing the phone out of your face. Perhaps you should’ve cared more about Jay dropping it on the ground, but if he was angry, then you were furious. Clenching your jaw, you met Jay’s gaze with fire blazing behind your eyes.

“Why would I make something that tried to humble you and the rest of the guys when all I’ve ever gotten from you was your dismissal? And ‘cause of what? Because I wasn’t pretty enough for your standards? Because I was annoying? Because I liked you and you were disgusted by it?”

The last sentence wasn’t supposed to ever be spoken out loud, but when you were fifteen, it was one of your biggest insecurities. You liked Jay, and he wanted nothing to do with you, no matter how hard you tried to be his friend. And with the girls who set out to make your life a living hell, of course you thought that the reason behind Jay’s dislike for you was your looks and your awkwardness and the fact he was disgusted by you.

Miss Decelis wasn’t just a way to shoot some of the popular people down a peg. It was also created as your way of venting all of your biggest insecurities by speaking them aloud as Miss Decelis. In a strange way, it was your way of coping with your life.

Jay’s eyes widened, looking like you struck him in the face.

When he spoke next, it was like you never said anything. Like he didn’t just discover your secret second identity. All he could hear was your angry confession about liking him.

“Why?” he asked again, but this time, it wasn’t about Miss Decelis. “Why did you like me?”

“That’s not the point,” you sighed and moved away. You wanted to escape, but Jay’s arms shot up, trapping you by the door on each side. “Jay—”

“Why, Y/N?” he asked again. In eighteen years, he had received many confessions of fancy. But it was always through cutesy letters in his locker or notes passed in class, unless they were brave enough to approach him and try to flirt with him. But those girls never had a proper reason to like him.

“Because I’m not blind!” you exclaimed in exasperation, trying to push against Jay’s chest. He caught your arms by the wrists to keep you in place. Locking his eyes on you, he refused to let go until he had his answer.

“You hated me,” you said defeatedly, hands going limp as you acknowledged that you were not strong enough to fight Jay. “But I saw the way you cared for other people. And sometimes me, whenever our parents were around. You would always look out for Heeseung and Jake when they messed around the pool when we were kids. And then you started helping the parents with barbecues and you always made sure that Heeseung and Jake got the biggest portions because they love samgyeopsal. You even cooked ramyun for them whenever our parents refused to make more because they already had five whole packs together.” You paused, remembering your childhood, when life was a little bit easier. “And I really liked listening to you playing guitar. It always fascinated me how good you were. And the adoration you had for the instrument. That’s why—”

“You gave me the pick,” Jay finished for you, and you nodded.

“That’s why I gave you the pick.”

“I always thought you were too perfect to be true,” Jay chuckled, shaking his head. “But you’re probably the stupidest person I’ve ever met.”

You narrowed your eyes at him in a silent question.

“Because you liked me despite the way I treated you. No sane person would do that.”

“When have I given you the impression that I’m sane?” Your brow rose challengingly, but instead of replying, Jay cupped your cheeks, bringing your mouth to his as if he didn’t know that you just gave his best friend a blowjob.

Jay had gone insane.

He sought you out after finding out you were Miss Decelis to be angry with you. To confront you. You were the one shit-talking him on the blog for the past few months, and he was supposed to tear you a new one.

What he wasn’t supposed to do was kiss you when he literally found you leaving Jake’s room.

What he wasn’t supposed to do was let you wrap your legs around his hips while he secured your body with his hands on your ass, carrying you over to the bed inside the guest room he locked the two of you in.

He wasn’t supposed to do many things, yet here he was.

Going insane because of you.

“I never hated you,” Jay whispered against your skin as his lips moved from your mouth to your cheek, your jaw, your neck and lower, still. “What I hated was the stupid act you put up,” he said, not hesitating to unzip your dress.

“It was a dumb act,” you agreed with a hum that turned into a moan when Jay’s mouth found your nipple, working quickly at getting your clothes off. Not that it was hard when all you wore was the golden dress and lace panties. You ran your fingers through Jay’s hair as he continued his assault on your skin, constantly moving lower while he slipped the dress off you alongside your drenched panties.

You smelled heavenly. Jay didn’t even care that some of it was likely residue of your moment with Jake. You were with him now, and clearly wanted him as much as he did you.

What could he do with you, but have you in ways he couldn’t dream of before?

Jay gripped your thighs, pulling them apart as he took a proper look at your beautiful pussy. He licked his lips, and when your head rose to glance at him, your eyes were drunk with lust. “You want me to taste you?” he asked.

“Yes,” you replied instantaneously, nodding your head like a madwoman. “Please, Jay,” you whispered, your hands reaching for him.

Jay smirked, positioning you at the edge of the bed so he could have the best access possible from his spot by the bed, his hooded eyes drunk on the sight of you. Naked and defenceless and so perfect, not like when you pretended, but actually perfect — with all your imperfections.

You were a petty little creature. You created a whole blog just to shit-talk Jay, Heeseung and others because they were making your life more difficult than it needed to be.

“I don’t know if you deserve it.” He watched you squirm as you looked up at him through your lashes, your lips twisting into an adorable furious pout.

“After everything you put me through, this is the least I deserve,” you mumbled, glaring at him. But you reminded him of those cute angry kitty memes more than anything else, and he smirked.

Jay hummed, leaning in to kiss your pretty lips, his tongue swiping across your clit. It elicited a beautiful sound out of your mouth. A moan worthy of his neverending devotion. But he couldn’t give you everything so easily.

Your gasp reverberated through the room when Jay bit down on your clit, and your hands shot up into his hair to pull at it in an attempt to get him away. But he wasn’t letting go.

“Jay, holy shit.” You bit down on your bottom lip to keep yourself from screaming, letting the twisted pleasure warm your tummy. Brain going hazy, you could barely fight him.

Not when he kept switching between licking your clit and lapping up all your wetness, and then biting again as if he was a vampire trying to feed. Your pussy sucked Jay’s tongue right in, and your orgasm was inevitable the longer it went on.

“You’re so fucking delicious,” Jay mumbled, staring up at you and your arched back. He had to work to keep your legs apart so you wouldn’t squish his head between your thighs. But at least his regular gym visits with Sunghoon were worth something.

“Jay, I’m—” you whimpered, unable to finish your sentence when Jay thrusted his tongue as deep inside you as he could, your pussy vibrating with the pleased hum he let out.

“So good for me,” he said. “You’ll feel amazing on my dick,” he claimed, sporting a huge tent in his trousers, humping air in a feeble attempt to bring some pleasure for himself. But your sounds alone could probably make him cum.

“Jay!” you exclaimed one last time when ecstasy shot through you, and you tugged at Jay’s hair with enough strength to pull some out. He continued to eat you out as you rode your high off, drinking every bit of your release as if it was a drug, and he was an addict that could not get enough.

Before you even recovered, Jay was already up on his feet, speedily taking his clothes off. His jacket, shirt, tie, trousers. All pieces of clothing disappeared within a blink of your eyes, and then all you could see was Jay’s pulsating cock with precum leaking from the head.

You brought out an incredibly needy part of Jay out of him, and it made you even hotter, more beautiful to him. Jay lifted you once more to adjust your positions on the bed to fit the both of you while he crawled over you, lust-filled eyes meeting yours.

“Tell me what you want, darling, and I’ll take care of you,” he said, and you closed your eyes to drink the moment in.

“I want you,” was all you said in response.

Just him.

That was all you needed.

Park Jay. The boy you had liked when you were younger.

So you connected your lips, tasting yourself on Jay’s tongue. He groaned when his cock made contact with your stomach, and your hands roamed his body until you reached his hard cock. Your thumb swiped across the head, drawing a moan out of Jay, and you smirked against his lips, guiding him toward your entrance.

“This is all I want,” you said again, teasing yourself with his cock, his eyes already half closed at the tiniest bolts of pleasure.

So when Jay finally thrusted inside of you, rougher than he should’ve, you whimpered while his lips captured yours again, letting you adjust to his size. You were so warm and so wet, ready just for him.

He closed his eyes, testing how comfortable you were as he moved his hips the slightest bit. You moaned, back arching to let him go even deeper, to find the spot that would drive you over the edge. And he complied, pulling out slightly before going in again, deeper. He groaned when your walls clenched around him.

“So perfect,” he mumbled, letting you cling to him like your whole life depended on it.

“Jay,” you whined, “I need you to move faster.”

He smirked. But your word was his command, complying mindlessly. Jay began moving, picking up his pace gradually until all that could be heard inside the bedroom were the skin-on-skin contact, the squelching sound of your wetness, your moans, and Jay’s pants.

He was drunk on you, not thinking of anything else but the need to pleasure you. To give you the best sex of your life. To ruin you.

“Jay, I’m s-so close,” you managed between laboured breaths, reaching for his lips with yours. It made him go even faster, chasing his own release. “Jay, Jay, Jay!” you screamed, your whole body convulsing with the orgasm that nearly blinded you.

It was the loveliest sound Jay had ever heard, and he almost forgot to pull out as he stared at your spent figure underneath him. But he did, his hand already working on finishing the job as he pulled away from you.

But you didn’t like that. You lifted yourself up on your elbows and then went to your knees, putting your hand over Jay’s.

“Let me,” you said, licking your lips.

It was confusion that kept Jay from stopping you as you guided his hand away. And then your lips were making contact with the head of his cock. Only a little peck at first. Then your mouth wrapped around it, and before he could even process anything else, you had his dick as deep inside your throat as possible, using your hand to take care of whatever didn’t fit.

Jay lasted what felt like five seconds before he cummed inside of your mouth as you stared up at him with an innocent glint in your eye.

He blamed it on the shock of you giving him a blowjob out of your own volition. And in this case, whatever you and Jake were doing, Jay was grateful for all that Jake must’ve taught you.

You swallowed his load, eyes never leaving his, and the two of you collapsed on the bed together, spent but willing to go a second time.

“So, you’re Miss Decelis.” Jay laughed at the fact. You were never actually perfect. You just hid the other side of you behind an anonymous profile.

“Are you going to tell anyone?” you asked, turning to lie on your side and stare at Jay’s side-profile. It always fascinated you. He was gorgeous, and his jawline was unreal.

“Are you going to keep calling me boring?” he turned to face you, brow raised.

“Maybe if you hook up with another MILF, I’ll stop,” you joked, but Jay deadpanned, pressing his lips in a thin line.

“You do realise we just had sex, right?” Jay said matter-of-factly, and you hummed.

“Is it any different to your other casual hook-ups?” you asked nonchalantly, and Jay hated how constricted his chest felt at your words.

You were probably right. It shouldn’t be any different. But it was. He wanted this again. He wanted you again. And it dawned on him that he had lost his chance years ago. You said it yourself: you used to like him.

And when the afterparty with just you, your friends and the guys came around, Jay had to watch you be wrapped all around Jake again.

Because, yeah… it was his birthday.

tags: @strxwbloody @starsenha @mitmit01 @chaconadine @in-somnias-world @tmtxtf @missychief1404

#enhypen #enhypen fic #enhypen ff #enhypen x reader #lee heeseung x reader #heeseung x reader #heeseung fic #park jongseong fic #park jongseong x reader #sim jake fic #sim jake x reader #sim jaeyun fic #haia writes

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myosotisa · 10 months ago

Text

deep end - s.h.

Steve Harrington x Reader

‖ summary: You and the gang have a pool day and some bad memories come up.

‖ tags: angst, hurt with very little comfort, post season 4, everyone lives (but that don't mean they ain't got trauma lmao), no y/n, no pronouns, reader is referred to as "honey". depictions of PTSD, anxiety/panic attacks. tw for fear of drowning. past tense? present tense? the fic is tense, that's for sure.

‖ word count: 2k

Today, May 6th, 1986, was a good day.

Up until very recently, most of the days had not been good at all. Spring break had done a number on all of you – nightmares, panic attacks, flashbacks. Some worse than others.

But today was a good day.

At least, until it wasn't.

Summer sun had invaded Hawkins and left everyone sweating and seeking shade after even a few minutes outside. AC blasted indoors and opened windows begged for a breeze to come through and bring some solace from the heat. The community pool was packed shoulder to shoulder and nearly impossible to get into – but that was fine.

Because Steve Harrington had his own pool.

Eddie, Lucas, Dustin, and Max were all already in the suburban backyard by the time you showed up with Robin. Steve had joined the other boys in the shallow end to start up a game of chicken – Dustin on Steve’s shoulders and Lucas on Eddie’s. Max sat on the pool’s edge with the water up to her shins, not able to get in further with the cast still on her right arm, and rolled her eyes as her friends tumbled over and into the water just to get back up again.

Robin went to go and sit by Max while you let yourself into the Harrington home, a container of drinks destined for the fridge just inside. By the time you had them chilling and pushed back out into the oppressive heat, Steve had pulled himself out of my pool to wait for you.

“Hi honey,” he said with a sticky sweet smile, ducking in to press a kiss to your cheek and dripping water on your cover-up.

“Hey handsome,” was your easy reply, Steve's smile lighting up further at the compliment. You called him handsome all the time and he still reacted like he'd never heard it before.

“Harrington, come on!”

His smile fell slightly as he rolled his eyes, shrugging at you before jogging back over to the pool.

You were just about to pull out your book and set up on one of the deck chairs when Nancy and Mike pushed through the fence gate.

More happy greetings, a hug from Nancy, and some chatting about the things she'd brought with her. Mike stripped off his shirt and shoes before walking over to the pool steps beside Max, submerging to his chest as he watched the others continue their game.

Robin came over and helped you and Nancy blow up the 3 inner tubes she had brought – Robin having to rescue you both with her superior musicians lungs. She quickly claimed the green dinosaur float, falling into it in the water as Dustin and Mike started to squabble over what kind of dinosaur it was supposed to be.

While you had originally grabbed the unicorn float, with it's pink hair and blue horn, you were quick to notice the longing glances from Nancy and offered a trade. She never would've ended up asking for it – she thought it was too childish to actually want the unicorn float – but you didn't miss the giddy grin on her face as she traded with you and settled into the pool a lot more gracefully than Robin.

So, with your strawberry frosted donut float and book in hand, you laid out on the sticky plastic and began to roast beneath the summer sun.

You and Nancy both had paperbacks cracked open while Robin seemed content to attempt a nap beneath her shades. Max busied herself by using a foot to gently push your floats around like a slow and lazy game of bumper cars. Mike finally succumbed to peer pressure and joined in with the boys playing with a volleyball toward the deep end and everything was good.

Everyone was smiling and laughing. Warm and lazy with the heat of a good, summer day.

Focused on a particularly intense chapter, you hardly noticed someone approaching your float until a wet chin draped itself over your arm.

Steve was looking at you with that lovesick smile again, his hair wet and pushed back as his tan skin glowed beneath the golden rays. “Enjoying your book?”

“I am, thank you very much.” But still, you placed it down on your stomach and turned your attention to your pretty boyfriend. “Are you having a good day?”

“Might have a couple bruises tomorrow, but not a big deal.” He hooks a wet arm over the side of your float, anchoring himself to you, and the skin along your thigh breaks out in goosebumps from the sudden brush of water.

“Steve, that's cold!”

He barely conceals a laugh, grin growing wider, before he tilts further toward you. “What, this?”

Was the only warning you got before he shook his head out like a dog, water flying from the ends of his hair and sprinkling all over you.

You nearly squealed, shoving him off and shouting about him getting your book wet, even though the smile on your face betrayed you.

After a few minutes of insisting it was funny as you fake pouted, and then Steve giving you some pathetic puppy dog eyes, you accepted his half hearted apology and settled again – one hand intertwined with Steve's as he held onto your float.

“Nance seems fine,” he said quietly, bringing your attention to the brunette. You had told him earlier you were worried about today, about bringing her back to the pool she spent two years barely able to look at, but she seemed perfectly at ease on her unicorn float. Just slowly turning page after page as she continued through the fantasy romance novel you’d lent her last week.

“Yeah,” you agreed, exhaling a relieved sigh, “I'm glad. She deserves it, y'know? We all do.”

Steve's hand squeezed yours, bringing your attention back to him on your other side. “You're the best, you know that, right?”

Not expecting the compliment, you got slightly flustered with the praise. “No, that's you,” you joked with a light flick to the tip of his nose.

He released your hand in mock offense, pushing your float slightly away as he put on a dramatic frown. He inhaled to reply, mouth parting, before he suddenly disappeared beneath the surface of the water.

The next few moments played out in slow motion.

In reality, Lucas and Eddie dove under the water to sneak up behind Steve – each of them grabbing an ankle and tugging him under as a practical joke.

To Steve, his heart stopped.

His chest constricted as his heart rate doubled, eyes squeezing shut as the panic gripped him tight and he waited to be pulled through the gate and thrown out on the other side.

Water filled his mouth from his half completed inhale as he was dragged under – his eyes widening and immediately beginning to burn from the chlorine.

But he wasn't in the pool anymore. It was dark; so, so dark and cold. He couldn't see anything through the murky water as he sunk lower and lower. The vice around his ankle held tight as he gave a kick, continuing to pull him back down to hell again.

To you, the world flipped on its side.

The last thing you saw before Steve went under was a flash of panic in his wide, brown eyes. Just like that night, on the boat. When he got dragged down and didn't come back up again.

“Steve?!” Your call is shrill, very quickly panicked as your adrenaline surged and your body tensed for a fight. It gets the attention of the rest of the group but you don't notice – eyes hyper focused on the spot he was before he disappeared.

In reality, you could glance down and see him in the clear water, just barely a foot below the surface. But you're not there in the Harrington’s pool. You're on a boat at Lover’s Lake and the man of your dreams just disappeared into the murky depths below.

“Steve?!” You scream again, rolling off your float and into the cool water, just like you had that night. I have to go after him, I have to get to him.

You vaguely register someone calling your name but you’re diving under, eyes burning instantly as you continue to look at Steve.

Eddie and Lucas have let him go now after sensing some sort of commotion from above, but Steve isn't moving. He isn't trying to swim up, though he is slowly ascending toward the surface. He's completely frozen there in the water, curled in on himself defensively.

You grab him and he grabs you in response, his nails digging into your bicep painfully as his eyes shoot open again. He doesn't even seem to realize its you before the two of you break the surface again.

Steve gasps for air – choking slightly on the water that was still in his mouth – and then starts to cough as he grabs tightly to you with both hands.

Your heart is pounding against your ribs like a hummingbird as your eyes rapidly scan him for the battered bruising across his throat, the blood coming from his mouth. “Steve? Can you hear me? Are you hurt?”

Robin is by your side an instant later, her head and shoulders still dry as she comes around the side to place a gentle hand on Steve’s shoulder while he coughs out chlorinated water.

Steve gives a stuttered nod as the coughing stops and he's able to take another deep breath in, his grip on you loosening to not be so painful as he closes his eyes. His inhales are coming through quickly, his eyebrows drawn together tight like he's in pain.

Your tunnel vision begins to scope out and you catch sight of Lucas and Eddie looking pained and apologetic in your periphery. They're both treading water in the deep end as you turn on them, anxiety and panic filtering out quickly into rage.

“What the fuck is your problem, huh?!” You snap, causing both of them to jump. Lucas's eyes are wide as saucers and Eddie looks like he's half tempted to book it just from the look on your face. “What the fuck kind of trick was that?! Maybe I should pull a gun on you, Lucas, just for fun. Or maybe, Eddie, I'll loop a rope around your neck for a few minutes and see how the fuck you like being reminded of almost dying!”

Both of them wince, drawing back from your outrage, which only makes you want to advance.

“H-honey,” Steve stutters beside you, half scolding and half terrified as he tries to put on a brave face. “It was just a joke.”

You turn your wild eyes back on him, body still reeling in fight or flight mode, as you realize his hands are trembling and the wetness to his eyes isn't from the pool at all. While you could easily continue to scream at them (which, when you're in a rational headspace again, you will feel guilty for), you focus in on Steve.

“Come on, let's go get you dried off, okay?” You offer much quieter, hovering close to him to try to keep you both grounded. He gives another shaky nod and lets you lead him over to the steps and out of the pool.

No one in the group says a word as you wrap him in a towel and then drape one over your own shoulders before sitting both of you down on one of the deck chairs. He continues to tremble slightly beside you as you tuck yourself tightly to his side, resting your head on his shoulder as you try to comfort him (and yourself).

We’re safe here. We’re okay. We’re going to be fine.

Everyone else watches silently as your paperback continues to collect water until it sinks down to the bottom of the deep end.

It was a good day. Until it wasn't.

#steve harrington imagine #steve harrington x reader #steve harrington x you #steve harrington blurb #steve harrington angst #steve harrington hurt/comfort #steve harrington oneshot #steve harrington fanfic #steve harrington fic #stranger things fanfic #stranger things fic #myos ideas #myo4harrington

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weirdly-specific-but-ok · 10 months ago

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pt II australia but i've never been there

I didn't even have to wait for y'all's responses on part I to make this because Australia is WILDING. As per usual, salutations to Arthur's grandmother's boyfriend Brian.

Everything remaining that I know about Australia:

There was an emu war. There were many emu casualties, and no human ones, but the emus won anyway. Sun Tzu is making way for the emus.

That was the only research I did on the emu wars, but as someone who met a few emus once, they were very lovely to me and very soft to pet. They also were very jabby. One of them looked deeply concerned as they looked at me, I believe they thought I was a deformed emu. I am on the winning side of the war.

During Christmas, Santa does not have a sleigh. He has a surfboard, and he does slay.

There are a lot of animals. Many have no placenta, as I recall from biology. Due to the nature of the continental drift and geographical isolation, Australian marsupials evolved separately from placental mammals, and were not wiped out by invading species. Due to convergent evolution, there are also analogous species between the placental mammals and the marsupials.

What just happened I'm sorry deep science trauma was unearthed. The point is, a lot of animals. A kangaroo is probably in your backyard. A koala just stole your girlfriend. An alligator murdered your classmate. It just happens.

KOOKOOBURRA SITTING ON THE OLD GUM TREE MERRY MERRY SOMETHING SOMETHING idk I was 3 when my mum sang me that.

The internet is awful. Rumours are that the local snake ate it.

Australia is very very pretty, I know this because of an Australian Tourism Department ad that I saw when I was 12 and had cable TV.

You must not forget your Hat. It's like the three little kittens song, but with the Hat instead of mittens.

The Wibbles are a thing. I thought they were a band. Spotify said no. I no longer know what they are.

Crocodile Dundee is a thing. I saw him in Snoopy/Peanuts.

Steve Irvin met his wife in an animal area and his daughter met her husband in an animal area. I don't know anything more these lovely folks, or what the animal area was, I'm afraid.

There is a cake with white stripes that is the Best for Birthdays.

The accent is beautiful, but I admit for years I couldn't differentiate it from British and American accents as a child because to me it sounded like the lovechild of them both and it made me very confused.

Uh, Australia exists.

Yeah, no, that's all I've got. Love to the Australian maggots.

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munsonsreputation · 4 months ago

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I THINK THERES BEEN A GLITCH

CHAPTER SIX: GLORIOUS HAPPENINGS OF HAPPENSTANCE

↢ chapter five | series masterlist | chapter seven ↣

🎧 soundtrack

steve harrington x fem!baker + artist

word count: [13.2K]

warnings: no use of y/n, cursing, idiots pining, shitty ex being an idiot, talks of anxiety/panic attack, overall fluff

summary: the small town of hawkins finally hosts their first official farmers market, but it certainly wouldn't be a town affair without some drama and saboteurs.

You wanted to soak it all in, let it bathe you in the rays of the sunlight, blanketing you in a warmth that you never wanted to forget. The plush of his lips against yours, chest to chest with your hearts beating in synchrony, hands gripping you closer and closer until—

“Rise and shine, lovebirds!”

You groaned, sinking your face deeper into Steve’s chest, pulling the covers over your head in an attempt to go back to the dream that was ebbing away by the second. Steve raised his head off the pillow, staring at the group of children who crowded the end of his bed with shit-eating grins like they had won the lottery.

“Get the heck out!” Steve hissed sharply, eyes going wide, silently telling them all to leave that instant.

The kids clearly didn’t know anything about personal space. The act of knocking on a door or ringing the doorbell was a foreign concept to them. Matter a fact, it was an accurate depiction of what went down yesterday afternoon. And while Steve never minded the kids and their shenanigans, it was the very first time he genuinely wished they had considered minding their own business for his sake.

“Please,” were the last words Steve had whispered to you.

The gap was nearly closed, lips inches away and your eyes fluttering shut letting in the daylight that you were both ready to step into, but that all changed at the clamoring of voices in the distance followed by the creak of the rusty garden gates.

“Holy shit!” They chorused in unison, halting in their tracks seeing you and Steve entangled in each other’s arms in the middle of the pool, closer than you two have ever gotten before.

“Oh, my god!” You shrieked, nearly drifting away from Steve at the shock, trying to keep yourself upright in the deep end.

He seized you, hugging you to his chest where you simultaneously hid your face with its flushed embarrassment in the crook of his neck.

“What the hell are you guys doing here?” Steve barked, staring at them with those eyes that told them all that they really messed up big time.

“We—Mrs. Byers said she was over and we wanted to stop by to say hello!” Dustin stuttered, pointing at you yet feeling regretful for letting himself and his friends in with the memorized padlock code.

“Why didn’t you try the front door!” Steve continued to argue, still clearly agitated at their ambush, torn between showing them out of this backyard or sticking there with you.

Mike tilted his head, evidently unbothered by the situation of invading Steve’s personal space, because in his eyes, the babysitter never needed personal space to begin with.

“We did, but you guys didn’t answer and Max didn’t have a bobby pin on her to pick the lock.” He replied dryly, going over to the loungers to make himself comfortable like nothing even happened.

“B-but we can go! We’ll bike back home and tell mom we’ll see you guys tomorrow,” El’s voice piped up, coated with sincere remorse, quickly snatching Mike’s hand to pull him out of the chair.

Sure, the kids totally interrupted what would have been you and Steve’s first kiss, but they didn’t know that. If they were some sort of fortune tellers that would have known, you were sure they wouldn’t have barged in unexpectedly.

You finally pulled yourself away from the hiding spot in Steve’s collar, looking at the kids with the softest eyes, holding your open hand out towards them causing them to stop in their tracks.

“No — you guys don’t have to go!” You started taking a deep breath to tear your eyes away from them to look at Steve, doing your best to communicate in the silence to which he nodded slowly, mouthing ‘sorry’ to you.

He let out a deep sigh, closing his eyes for a moment to settle his annoyance before opening them and jutting his chin towards the back door.

“Don’t touch anything in the kitchen. That’s all for the bake sale tomorrow. Raid the pantry for all I care, but I’m not cleaning up after you guys!” He shouted and before he could finish the children were racing past the sliding door leaving you both alone only this time graced with their shouts from the inside.

You let out a shaky breath, wincing at how you suddenly became aware of the position you and Steve had been in for quite some time. You met his eyes worriedly, shrinking your shoulders in self consciously.

“I—Did I mess it up?”

His head rocked back and forth without missing a beat, assuring you with a genuine look of sincerity, “Of course not. I meant what I said, you know.”

Steve flashed you a comforting smile, fingers pressing gently into your skin as you relaxed your shoulders.

“We’ll talk about it? Us, I mean… when we’re alone?” He tried hoping you wouldn’t let it end like this.

“Please.” You nodded, running your hands over his shoulder blades, passing each other a hopeful smile for whatever was to come.

Only you and Steve didn’t get any alone time to talk about it.

The teens had spent the afternoon bathing in the sunlight, taking full advantage of Steve’s stocked snack pile and the swimming pool. And by the time you were acting as referee and giggling while they raced across the water, all the initial irritation Steve had felt dissipated — that and the fact that he got to throw Dustin in the water for payback.

But the afternoon had blurred into the night, leaving you and Steve as acting babysitters when they decided they were too tired to bike home and Steve was definitely too tired to drop each of them off. After you all washed yourselves clean of the chlorine and sunscreen, you ordered pizza while Steve set up the new tape in the living room.

It was a rom-com, “Can’t Buy Me Love”, something he thought you both would enjoy with each other, but the kids seemed to like it too — the boys more so tolerating it, preferring to be playing video games in the Wheeler basement, but the girls were thoroughly entertained, you would have been too, if it weren’t for the fatigue dragging your eyelids shut.

You and Steve were practically smushed together on the couch, your legs thrown across his lap and your cheek pressed to his bicep. His hand kneading the skin from your shin to your knee, bringing you closer to sleep despite the loud talking from the kids.

Steve had noticed your quietness, peering down at you and seeing the state you were in — eyes shut as soft snores left your mouth, your hands hugging yourself acting as a blanket.

“Sweetheart,” He tried, wiggling his shoulder a bit to see if you’d wake up, but to no avail you remained glued to his side.

“C’mon,” He carefully positioned one of his arms under your legs while the other cradled your head, “Let’s get you to bed.” He murmured quietly, slowly standing up from the couch with you in his arms.

He turned back, looking at the kids whose attention was on you two now. They weren’t surprised to say the least, considering the position you two were in just a couple of hours ago, but they just wondered what was taking you both so long to finally put a label on it.

“You guys make sure you clean up and turn off the TV when it’s finished. We got an early day tomorrow, alright?”

They nodded, waving and whispering their goodnights as he walked up the stairs and to his bedroom. Using his elbow, he nudged the lights on, padding to his bed and laying you gently on the mattress, before gathering the blankets and pulling them over your shoulders.

You shuffle, instinctively closer to the opposite side of the bed to make space for him as you lifted your arms from beneath the covers, making weak grabby hands at him. He chuckled, taking hold of them and winding his fingers between yours that instantly gave him a feeble squeeze.

“I’ll stay okay?” He promised, letting go and tucking your hands back underneath the covers before he went to switch off the lights and take his spot beside you.

And like second nature you settled into his side and he pulled you in a little closer — sleep came easy and he wanted to savor the feeling and bottle it up for those lonely nights he spent tossing and turning he was sure were long gone by now. All there was left was you and him, and he’d be forever grateful to spend every night in his bed with you, even in the aura of his empty house.

Dustin sauntered over to the windows, seeing as though you and Steve were making no plans to actually get up and get going. He swiped the curtains back, letting in more of the sunlight, smiling to himself as you began moving around under the covers and Steve rubbed at his eyes — surely you both were awake now.

“It’s almost 8 and we’re supposed to be at Hawkins Square at 9.” Dustin crossed his arms over his chest, tapping his foot against the floors like some kind of parental figure, if Steve wasn’t so tired, he’d poke a little fun at how he was sorta taking after him.

But instead he sat up on his elbows, staring at the kid ridiculously, finger pointing towards the door, “Out.”

Max smirked, walking over to her friend and leading him away by tugging on his sleeve and urging the rest of her friends to follow along and leave you two alone.

“Cut him some slack and let him cuddle with his girl for a few more minutes.” She snickered, not missing the sight of Steve’s cheeks flushing.

Dustin gripped the doorframe, fingers slipping weakly as Max gave him another keen tug, pulling the door handle with her as Dustin shouted out quickly.

“Nance said she’s coming over in fifteen to pick up some stuff, so you better be up!”

The door slammed shut, jolting your half awake self fully up this time. Steve let out a deep breath, falling back against the mattress, apologetically whispering out to you as he closed the space once again.

You twisted in the sheets, throwing one of your arms across his back to tug yourself closer into his chest while the other lifted the blankets off your head from where you were hiding.

Despite the rude awakening, you were sure you could fall right back asleep from the warmth radiating off of Steve alone. He had that effect, the ability to be your personal sanctuary even in the midst of the chaos. While the idea of letting you drift back into dreamland was sweet enough as lying there beside you, he couldn’t possibly let you two run late.

“Cupcake,” He whispered, a warm hand moving down to massage your collarbone gently to spur you awake, “we gotta get up.”

Your fingers threaded into the material of his t-shirt, grabbing him tenderly as a sleepy whine knitted with your mumbling poured out, “Ten more minutes?”

His chest rumbled beneath you with a laugh, “Sorry honey, but we can’t. Nancy is dropping by in a bit to pick up some stuff.”

Taking in a deep breath, you took him in. The smell of his laundry detergent and body wash filling your nostrils. The mix of the two and the knowing that Steve was still there beside you, enough to wake your bones up and want to spend the rest of the day with him and your friends.

“Mmmm,” You pulled away, stretching your arms out, yawning for a few seconds as he watched you, until your eyes opened and met his.

“Morning.” You greeted with a tired smile, blinking your eyes again trying to rid them of the sleepiness.

“Hey sweet thing,” He scooted back against his headboard, patting his chest, motioning for you to lay your head there because at the very least he could spare just five more minutes savoring the morning with you.

You got comfortable, looking up at him through your lashes, fingers mindlessly tracing fingers over his shirt, just enjoying the sight that seemed to be a special rarity now. Waking up in Steve’s bed was certainly not something you had grown accustomed to, but it was a nice feeling. Knowing that he had fallen asleep beside you, dreamt along with you, and now lay awake with you in his arms – a special kind of intimacy he saved for you.

“Did I fall asleep?” You didn’t remember coming up to Steve’s bedroom by yourself let alone finishing the movie last night.

He hummed, his fingers a mirror to yours, moving over your shoulders affectionately, “A little less than halfway through the movie, then I carried you up here. The kids crashed in the living room.”

A warm smile spread across your features, always swooned by Steve’s consideration even when at this point you shouldn’t expect anything less of him. Trailing your fingers away from his midsection, you walked them up his collarbones, fingers thumbing the freckles on his chin that you were just admiring yesterday afternoon.

“You’re too sweet to me.” You let your touch stay on him without worry, doing everything besides meeting his eyes, too enamored by the beauty marks you had come to adore.

“I always will be,” His eyes glazed over with affection that not even words could describe.

Yet if there was the time, he would try to do it, to tell you how much he adored you and finally muster up the strength to let all his feelings loose. But despite how tempting that idea was, he knew it wasn’t the right time for it.

The kids would probably burst in at any given moment to get you both up again or worse, Nancy would already be downstairs shouting at the poor use of time given the special day.

“Do you wanna get dibs on the bathroom first?” Steve suggested, hoping it didn’t seem like he was purposefully steering the conversation elsewhere.

You nodded, sitting up to stretch your arms wide with another yawn. “Just to brush my teeth, then you can get ready first. I’ll get the kids fed and the stuff ready for Nance.” You threw the covers off and let your feet hit the wooden floorboards.

He watched you gather your things while he began making his bed, pulling the sheets up and straightening it out.

“You sure? Usually they’re a lot in the morning.”

“Take a break for once, yeah?” You reminded him with a tsk, “Isn’t that what you’ve been telling me?”

He mocked out a laugh, shooing you out the room as you giggled and shut the door behind you.

You took the bathroom first, brushing your teeth and combing your fingers through your hair just to get it to look somewhat put together before you actually had the chance to get ready for the day. As you exited the bathroom, you knocked on his door, signaling his turn before you jogged down the stairs, pleasantly surprised to see it so tidy without any reminder.

The blankets were folded and stacked on one end of the couch, as the other had a pile of pillows. The candy wrappers that littered the coffee table were no longer there and the tape that Steve picked was already back in its case ready to be returned.

You could hear their voices coming from the kitchen, groans and complaints echoing through the house as you rounded the doorway, quietly watching the scene before you with a self-indulgent smile.

Domestic chaos, as each of them called out different pantry items hoping everyone had an idea of what to make — just tired, hungry teenagers craving a proper meal to get them through the day.

“Good morning squirrels,” you chirped, finally making your presence known as you crossed the boundary into the kitchen.

“Morning,” they chorused, relieved looks washing over their faces knowing you’d be there to save their Saturday morning.

“Hungry?” You lovingly ruffled their heads as they made way for you to get into the fridge.

“We’re starving! But Steve said we aren’t allowed to eat any of the stuff for the bake sale, and Dustin and Mike ate all the pizza while we were sleeping.” Lucas shot the pair a glare.

“We did ask you if you wanted a slice.” Mike defended, nudging the curly-headed boy who agreed.

“It was one in the morning, Michael.”

You shook your head, amused at their silly banter that continued while you opened the fridge, scoping out what you could whip up in a limited amount of time but still give them enough energy throughout the busy day.

There were a few eggs left in the carton and more than enough tangerines to go around, plus a half bag of white bread that was going to go stale in a few days. You took the ingredients out, laying them on the counters as you turned to the kids and rubbed your hands together.

“Why don’t I whip something up, huh? You guys can go watch TV in the living room while you wait or you guys can stay and help if you’d like.”

You waited less than a second, fully prepared to see them rush the television, but instead they stood in their places, nodding and waiting for you to give them instructions on what to do. Surely enough, the kids didn’t like the idea of knocking on doors or ringing doorbells, but they did know how to lend a helping hand, making up for it all.

Soon the kitchen was filled with their voices, talking up a storm even in the early morning hours as you stood over the stove, trying to recreate Steve’s famous scrambled eggs all while listening to their teenage updates on life.

Will and Max juiced the remaining tangerines, sticky fingers squeezing it until the pulp gave out and the pitcher was filled nearly to the brim.

Lucas was sharing his own recipe, guiding El step by step as put the slices of bread slathered with butter and a good shaking of cinnamon into the toaster oven, making an easy and delicious cinnamon bread concoction.

Dustin and Mike set the table but of course not without a little more bickering, one wanting to use paper plates to reduce the dishes to be washed and the other wanting to use the ceramics because it wasn’t everyday they got to eat a fancy breakfast, even if it was just scrambled eggs and cinnamon toast.

Rest assured, you ironed away Mike’s worries about the dishwashing task, telling him you’d wash and let them air dry while you and Steve were gone. For the past week you’d been doing dishes nonstop and a few more wouldn’t hurt, plus you were starting to feel some muscle grow after all that scrubbing.

The glasses were filled with ice and juice, plates served with a good helping of eggs and one and a half slices of cinnamon bread. They finally took their seats, a little cramped together, but nonetheless they dug in.

“Eat up.”

You knew that the boys had been close to one another ever since childhood and it wasn’t until middle school that El and Max had entered the picture, but even through all the phases that came with growing up, it warmed your heart to see them still be fully involved with each other’s lives.

El chewed up her food, looked over her shoulder at you before she spoke happily, “The cupcakes look yummy!” she praised, having seen it in the fridge when she chilled the pitcher.

“Steve frosted them! He's a total natural at it if you ask me.” You winked.

The kids looked at you torn between surprise and speculation that he actually did a decent job on them with zero prior experience.

“Well, I bet they taste delicious.” Will said, knowing that there wasn’t anything their babysitter couldn’t do.

“After everything gets set up, I’ll let you guys pick some freebies alright?” You offered, and they all nodded, mumbling out a “thanks,” in advance.

In the meantime, you shuffled around the kitchen, gathering spare brown bags and loading them up with the scones and cookies so Nancy could take them to the event ahead of time. You made sure to jot down the ingredients for each of the goods on index cards just in case any customers were curious or had allergies.

The kids ate with some comfortable chatter while you were busy before Dustin cleared his throat, catching your eyes as you placed the full bags near the doorway.

“So you and Steve, huh?” He smirked, wiggling his brows teasingly while he rested his elbows on the table as if he was getting down to business.

You groaned, rolling your eyes as you brushed past the table and headed for the sink. “I’m so not talking to teenagers about my love life.”

He tsk’ed loudly, “Why not? I give the best advice! When Suzie and I got together, I did all the right things and made her swoon.” He bragged before the red head cut in abruptly.

Max furrowed her brows, turning to him.

“Didn’t she just break up with you because you didn’t call for a week?”

His friends looked at him, eyes being able to see through the facade that Dustin was the most perfect boyfriend out of all of them.

“That doesn’t count! No one would take me to weather top and it’s way too hot to hike up there with everything all by myself.” He argued as everyone else uttered their disagreements and shook their heads.

You snorted, shaking your head at the boy as you dried your hands.

“Well, I’m happy for you and Suz, but I think Steve and I got our thing handled.” You assured him, giving his shoulder a pat.

“Oh, it’s more than handled. We just were waiting for you two to finally make a move on each other.” Mike piped in, chugging the rest of his juice.

Lucas jumped in not long after, huffing dramatically as he spoke, “I mean first the crushing, then the pining, and then the yearning… god you guys took forever!”

El, with her ever so cheery voice, bursted with a wide smile, looking at you kindly. “Well, I’m glad it finally happened. You and Steve are perfect for each other and make an even more perfect couple!”

Perhaps it didn’t hit you until the word fell out of her mouth… couple, and when it did, it hit you like a ton of bricks. The topic alone wasn’t something that you and Steve even got to properly talk about — it was just hanging in the air waiting for you or Steve to snatch and finally discuss.

In the eyes of the teenagers and even the rest of the gang, you and Steve already did the couple-y things. Spending the night at each other’s places, gushing about each other even when the other wasn’t around, shy touches that you suspected no one else could catch, and being around each other every chance you got.

The thoughts alone nearly sucked you in completely, not even aware of how Mike and Dustin argued over the fact that Steve hadn’t even asked you out yet. It was only when the doorbell began ringing through the house that you were suddenly aware of everything.

You shuffled on your feet, choosing to ignore the children and their nonsense as you went to get the door. Swinging it open, you smiled from ear to ear, already engulfing the person on the other side into the biggest hug.

“Nance!”

“Oh, I really needed this!” She exhaled, smiling into your neck where she hugged you just as tight, “Thank you again for helping out.”

“It’s no problem, plus, it wasn’t so much work with Steve helping me. Have you eaten?” You asked, raising your brow.

“No, I’ve been busy around, calling and checking in with the other booths—"

You stopped her, reaching for her wrist.

“How about you come in and get some food before you head off, yeah?”

She smiled thankfully, following your lead as you pulled her inside and closed the door behind her, waiting as she unlaced her shoes and walked with you to the kitchen.

Thankfully, the kids had moved on from their conversation about you and Steve, somehow now talking about the movie they had watched yesterday. You really didn’t want to tell Nancy about it with them all around — eventually you’d tell her, but preferably when they weren’t around to hear all the details.

“Everyone say good morning to Nance! It’s a big day for her and she’s going to do amazing!”

You rubbed her shoulders, kissing her cheek playfully as she laughed and leaned into you.

“C’mon and eat.” Max gestured her over, scooting onto El’s chair as they made more room at the table.

Nance nudged her brother, raising her brow at him. “You didn’t tell me you guys were spending the night here.”

“It wasn’t the plan, but we were too lazy to bike home. I called mom, and she said it was fine.”

Her eyes darted to yours with a questioning look, “They didn’t give you any trouble, right?”

You shook your head, looking around at all of them who half expected you to bring up the little afternoon incident.

“None at all… just making me feel old.” You joked, watching as they all eased up and laughed.

After a while, the kids had finished their helpings, beginning to stack the plates and cups taking it over to the sink before you assured them they all helped enough and you could handle one more load of dishes before you’d be clocking out for the next week.

Nancy hummed, reaching into her purse and finishing out the keys, tossing it over to Max.

“Why don’t you guys load up the car and while you’re at it, load yourselves up too because I need some extra hands.”

Their groans of protests about wanting to ride with you and Steve to the event were ignored as Nancy shooed them off. You flashed them all an encouraging smile, watching as they picked up the bags you prepped and waved goodbye before they were all out the front door.

When you heard it shut, you immediately darted over to Nancy, taking the empty seat beside her as you screeched as quietly as you could and reached for her hand, grasping it with a tight squeeze.

“Okay, what’s going on?” Her eyes went wide, promptly setting down her fork as she jostled your held hands in the air.

Your eyes were pressed shut, cheeks raised with a smile, “Steve and I… we almost kissed!”

She clasped her free hand over her mouth, squealing behind it.

“Oh, my gosh! Tell me everything!” She spoke, flapping her hands with you as you both began to excitedly slap each other.

“Well, we were in the pool and we just kinda admitted our feelings and,” You paused, looking out the doorway checking to see if Steve was coming down, “I—I was about to kiss him but then the kids kinda barged in.”

“Those little shits,” Nance shook her head knowing they were always up to some kind of trouble.

“But it was fine! Everything was fine between us and nothing felt awkward, you know? I mean we slept in the same bed and woke up next to each other, so I’m sure we’re on the same page.”

“Wait, you guys haven’t talked about it since then?”

You stared at her blankly, slowly nodding your head as your lip got caught between your teeth, gnawing on the skin nervously.

“We said we would when we got some time alone, but then we got busy with the kids and then I fell asleep before we could talk about it and then when we woke up this morning we really didn’t have enough time.” You blabbered nervously.

She nodded understandingly – relationship stuff was always tricky especially when it was fresh and you both were figuring it out. The same thing happened with her and Jonathan when they first got together, the anxiousness and worrying about every little thing.

But she knew that you and Steve would figure it out eventually. From the looks of it alone, you both harbored the same feelings even from the very beginning when you thought you’d both just be friends.

“Don’t get too in your head,” she reassured you simply, prompting you to release the breath you didn’t know you were holding.

“Trust your feelings and go for it.”

You would have hugged her a little long if it weren’t for the horn sounding off from the driveway. The impatient kids debated on letting Max drive them to Hawkins Square if Nancy didn’t wrap it up and hurry. Waving goodbye and watching the car skirt out of the driveway, you found your way back to the kitchen tidying up as you waited for Steve.

Resting against the counters, when you picked up on the footsteps jogging down the stairs before he came through the doorway sporting a pair of medium wash jeans and a classic polo — you were sure he had a hundred colorways and still he made all of them look good.

“Where’d they go?” He frowned, peeking past the back sliding doors to see if they were outside causing a ruckus again.

“Nancy recruited their help.” You waved him over to you.

He came swiftly, letting his arms rest on either side of the counter, caging you in close. There was a pleasant domesticity to it, something Steve wished he could feel every day, whether it was on weekends like this or busy mornings where he didn’t care to know better.

Your eyes moved to the little piece of hair dangling in the middle of his forehead, straying away from the rest. Carefully, you pushed it back, running your finger gently through to make sure it stayed put for the rest of the day.

“That’s better,” you cooed, patting his cheek with a soft tap, feeling his skin rise with laughter.

“Have you eaten yet?” He suspected, looking over at the table that was severely lacking in food.

“Without you?” You lifted your brows, before shaking your head, “Of course not.”

Steve chuckled, stepping back while you shuffled away.

“You made eggs,” He blurted, reaching for the pan that sat on the stove with a few pieces of eggs left.

“They’re not as good as yours.” You complained with a dramatic whine, and Steve grinned, popping a piece of it into his mouth with a hum.

“I’ll have the rest of this and then I’ll make you some, alright?”

You clapped your hands victoriously, as if scrambled eggs made by Steve Harrington was the best prize of them all.

“You’re the best! Mind if I shower real quick?”

“Yeah, go ahead. I left a clean towel on the rack for you.”

You raced up the stairs, hurrying because you didn’t want Steve waiting on you but also you knew you had to get to the town square to finish setting up. Your bag sat on his desk chair, and you rummaged through it, pulling out the floral slip you packed and the extra intimates.

You cranked the water to warm, stepping in and letting the water slide across your body. His products were already akin to your skin, the familiar scent of Steve slipping across the slopes and valleys of your body before you rinsed the suds off.

Getting out of the shower, you quickly patted yourself dry, getting your skin care products on your face before the moisture was lost. You didn’t pay too much attention to your makeup, settling for some concealer to hide a few blemishes and the bags under your eyes. You swept a dusty pink shade over your cheeks and dabbed the excess over your lips for a cohesive look.

You opened the door, letting the fresh air cool your skin, walking across to Steve's room to put everything away and chucking your dirty clothes into the hamper along with his. Checking yourself one more time in the mirror, you pulled your dry hair from the bun, fluffing it at the roots and sleeking them at the ends before you were out and back down the stairs into the kitchen.

A plate of streaming scrambled eggs sat steaming on a fresh plate right beside his. He had already portioned out the remainder of the food for you both, getting rid of the extra dishes that were now cleaned and air drying in the rack.

Steve sensed you, looking over his shoulder as you twiddle your fingers at him from the doorway. He stopped his movements and turned around fully to get a good look at you before stepping forward.

“You look beautiful.” He complimented charmingly, fingers coming down to your shoulder, adjusting the strap of your dress that was slipping.

You looked down at yourself, smoothing out the fabric and then meeting his again.

“So do you… sorry I didn’t say it earlier! I got so caught up.” You laughed faintly, shaking your head.

“Can I be beautiful?” He pondered, head tilting.

“Like an angel.” You promised, bopping his nose with your finger as he chuckled, grabbing at your wrist and tugging you to the table to sit beside him.

The two of you began digging in, and while most of it was cold by then, neither of you cared too much. Breakfast was slowly becoming both of your favorite meals to share with one another, whether it was from Taylor’s or scraps of leftovers.

“Are you excited for today?” He broke the comfortable silence, watching you take a bite out of the eggs.

“Very, but I’m just a teeny bit nervous.” You scrunched your nose, fingers pinching just a tad.

“Care to share?”

“I just hope people like the sweets and I also hope they like the paintings, I mean they’re the ones that never really sold, so I figured I’d give it a shot here and if not they can go to the salvation army—”

“Don’t say that,” Steve interjected with a shake of his head.

“You’re right, maybe I should give them out for free—”

“Not that,” He leaned into you with a grunt, smiling stupidly as he heard you squeal and weakly push against his weight.

“They’re special, each and every single one of them, and if they don’t sell, it’s not your fault. They don’t get how special your art is.” He reasoned, letting up on your shoulder whilst he grabbed ahold of your hand.

Without even thinking, your fingers laced through his, pulses in your fingertips beating off one another while you stared at each other like fools in love. There was that out of the blue kind of fondness again, the one that neither one of you could escape.

“I feel as though you were a poet in your past life.” You ran your thumb against his skin.

“Really?” He curled his lips up — he’s been called an idiot that could barely hold onto a job that was slinging ice cream, yet there you were making him rethink career paths just so he could tell you everything he loved about you.

“Everything you say is so sweet and earnest.”

“Earnest?”

“Heartfelt!” you chirped happily, watching the berry pink hue coat his cheeks bashfully.

You didn’t dare look away, and he didn’t plan on hiding his blush, more than comfortably showing you that it was you who got him like this – only you.

“Always when I’m with you.” He settled softly, bringing your clasped hands to his lips with a chaste kiss.

For a second, it was the closest thing to your heart exploding… then you remembered the almost kiss that was a definite heart stopper.

It happened once every few lifetimes, this kind of feeling Steve couldn’t shake for you. Years ago, he thought that moment slipped from his grasp, yet maybe all of this time — all those failed feats of searching for his other half was meant to glitch because there you were in front of him and all he ever wanted to look at forevermore was you.

The paths that had been crossed and all the stars that aligned caused a cosmic shift where you both finally intertwined and ended up here. You weren’t just a phantom of his imagination that he thought up and longed for. It was really the person sitting in front of him that was all he ever wished for and he swore that this was that once in every lifetime feeling he wasn’t going to let slip.

His quietness wasn’t anything new, you had gotten used to the pleasant silence that came between you and Steve, but you couldn’t ignore the way his eyes were boring into your skin as you finished up your breakfast while his sat half finished.

You set down your fork, reaching for a napkin to wipe over your mouth.

“You feeling okay?” You mumbled, raising your brow toward him, watching his glazed over features come to.

He blinked wildly, nodding his head with a hum, “Oh, yeah! Sorry, I just—just love having you here.” He confessed sheepishly.

You pursed your lips into a smile you couldn’t control and then you were throwing your head back laughing too enamored by his charm.

“I love that you let me stick around this long.” You caught your breath, shaking your head at him ridiculously.

“Stick around forever.”

“Are you sure that’s a good idea?”

Steve furrowed his brows, crossing his arms across his chest and leaning back in the chair wearing a playful smirk.

“Best one I think I’ve ever thought up.”

Maybe it was that new found confidence or maybe it was you being done acting too impaired by fear that you opened your mouth, and went for what was lingering – the one thing you needed reassurance from.

“S-should we talk about…yesterday?” You coughed awkwardly, instantly cringing and regretting, letting it fall out of your mouth the way it did.

“Hey, don’t do that,” He reached for your hand, rubbing his palm over the top of yours, “I’ve been wanting to talk about it, but the kids kinda had to ruin the moment and all.”

“I think their timing is just a little off sometimes.” You said trying to give them the benefit of the doubt.

He laughed shortly, before drawing your body closer to his. Knees knocking and thighs side by side — a skin to skin contact that felt almost reminiscent of yesterday's events, starting back up where you had left off.

“I meant every word I said, you know, about how you could never mess things up between us.”

Still you worried, biting down on your lip, gnawing restlessly on the skin, “But what if I do, like, accidentally?”

“Accidents happen all the time. You just gotta learn how to work through them and see it through.” He shrugged slightly, keeping his tone gentle.

“Are you always going to be this encouraging?” You sighed dramatically, halting your assault on your lip trying to lighten the mood.

“If I say yes, will you finally realize that I’m just as scared as you are about messing things up?”

Your eyes went wide, rocking your head side to side, finger poking into his chest.

“You have nothing to worry about! You’re like… so effortless. You make it look so easy and I’m just, I don’t know,” You shrugged reluctantly, “A mess?”

“You don’t think I’m screaming inside, nervous that I’m looking like a complete idiot in front of you?” He retorted, comically gesturing at himself.

“You could never look like an idiot in front of me!” you gasped, slapping his arm lightly, as you were wide eyed giggling.

“See, just like you could never be a mess to me!” He was half laughing and smiling then, motioning between the two of you.

You closed your eyes, sucking in a deep breath because you knew he was right. Nervousness was never one sided even for someone who was as suave as Steve Harrington.

“I meant that, every part of it. You don’t have to worry about making a fool out of yourself in front of me or being afraid you’re gonna mess anything up.” He spoke.

“If anything… we could give it a try? Mess it up together?” He offered with a dimpled smile, bringing his hand to glide across your cheek holding you to him.

“Together?” Your cheek rose against his palm, a smile too genuine to play off as shy watching him nod.

“Yeah, if you want to take a chance on me,” He murmured, inching his face closer to yours.

“I’d take all of them.” You whispered, your heart pounding as you leaned in.

The moment was too perfect — a cage left undisrupted, the sanctuary it became as it was all you two had ever wanted. Just as your lips were about to touch, of course, the cage was rattled. A loud ring resounding from the living room, causing the both of you to flinch and snap your necks in its direction.

“Goddamnit!” Steve groaned, throwing his head back baffled, as the ringing continued to pitch through the house.

“I think we’re cursed.” You sighed, burying your face behind your hands, shaking your head in between a laugh and a groan.

The wooden chair screeched against the tiles as Steve stood up, running a hand over your shoulder as passed by.

“I told you, we’re not the ones messing it up, it’s everyone else!” He called out.

You couldn’t make out who was on the other side of the phone, but you could hear the faint voice as Steve let out a string of “uh-huh’s,” and “okay’s.” It was a few seconds more of that until Steve said goodbye and placed the phone back on the receiver.

“Who was it?”

“Robin,” He replied with a huff, “Apparently she needs us there ASAP or else she’s gonna lose her mind because Nance is hounding everyone.”

You nodded, rubbing your hands over your knees, “We should go then.”

You stood up, going to gather the plates in a stack, but the gentle pull on your elbow stopped you and forced you to twist right into Steve’s chest, face-to-face breath fanning against each other until he spoke under his breath.

“I’ve been dying to kiss you for a while now,” He admitted, letting his eyes fall from your orbs to your lips back up to your eyes.

“R-really?” You swallowed, licking over your nearly raw skin, only then noticing his dilated pupils drinking you in.

He nodded, before that charming smile came to play with his hunger, “Yeah, and I’m gonna make sure when I do, we don’t need to rush.”

“I’m counting on you.”

Steve of course offered to let you drive, dangling his keys from his finger after you both finished loading up the car but you had turned down his offer, claiming it was his turn to take you out on a spin and who was he to deny you that reward after all the hard work you put into it?

His hand lingered on your knee and your fingers ran across his forearm as he drove through town. Music low and windows down, coasting down the roads that you never thought would lead you to him. Before you knew it, Steve had turned into the center of town, grabbing a free parking space right between Eddie's van and Mrs. Byer’s Ford Pinto. The sun was beaming past the windshield, nearly blinding you and Steve as you quickly lowered the visors and began unbuckling.

The two of you had failed to notice the running figure approaching the car until a knock sounded on the hood prompting you and him to see Robin standing there with her hands on her hips waiting around for you both to hurry.

“It’s gonna be a long day,” Steve exhaled with a weak laugh.

“We’ll get through it.” You tapped his thigh and unlocked the door to get the show on the road.

“Finally!” Robin shouted, skipping over to your side. “Nancy is driving all of us crazy!” She wrapped her arms around you in a hug as you did the same, rocking your bodies back and forth.

“She’s just stressed, Ro. This is a huge deal for her and she probably wants it to be perfect.” You attempted to console her, rubbing a comforting hand over the middle of her back.

“Where is she, anyway?” Steve looked around surprisingly not seeing her near the large cluster of tents and people setting up.

Robin waved her hands in the air absentmindedly, opening the backdoors to help you grab the rest of the things from Steve’s car. “She’s somewhere around here bugging someone else, trust me.”

You and Steve shook your heads, retrieving the rest of the bags of treats while Robin waited around carrying the crate of painting before the three of you walked through the parking lot into the grass area where a bunch of tents were being set up. Nancy was able to get a handful of local businesses like Miss. Driscoll’s Flower Shop and Benny’s Burger to participate — even residents who just wanted to pitch in to help and support their town’s brick and mortar.

Robin jutted her chin out towards the group of pavilions smack dab in the middle of the square patch.

“Your booth is over there.”

She led you to the area that Nancy deliberately set aside for you in order to give you ample space where you wouldn’t feel cramped between the others when it got busier in the day.

Fold out tables were placed towards the front and on the sides of the tent. El and Max smoothing out the pale yellow covers over them as Mike tied off the ends that flooded too long on the ground.

“What’s with the ladder?” You squinted, catching sight of Lucas climbing up with a roll of tarp in his hands while Will and Dustin held steps still from the bottom.

“It’s a surprise.” Robin’s voice leaking with glee that she was trying to suppress all the while the boy unraveled the tarp and hooked it over the screws.

“A surprise?” You furrowed your brows at her, bemused.

You expected some explanation, but all she did was giggle to herself, biting down on her lip in an attempt to keep it a secret for just five more seconds until you looked up and saw it for yourself.

“No way!” Steve exclaimed, laughing infectiously, catching your attention.

Your name was written in whimsical cursive letters, decorated with doodles that the children associated with you: sunshine, hearts, bumble bees, sparkles, and everything in between adorably cute.

“You did this?!” you blurted, setting down the bags with a thud while you lifted a hand to block the glare of the sun in order to get another glimpse of the banner.

“We did! We spent all of last week working on it.” Lucas bursted, hopping down from the ladder to get a good look at it himself.

The kids flocked around you, proudly peering up at their creation that they worked tirelessly on, just finishing it the day before, which is why they had crashed Harrington’s place with such excitement — barely keeping it a secret in time for today… thankfully their unmatched timing had their lips sealed for the perfect reparation gift.

“You guys!” You pouted sweetly, holding your arms out to all of them, prompting them to walk into your embrace.

“We wanted to surprise you with it and it was so hard to keep under wraps, but we knew it would be worth it.” Will smiled at you as you ruffled his hair.

“Are you kidding me?! This is the most amazing thing ever. Thank you guys for doing it.” You said again, making sure to place a peck on their temples.

You spun around, eyeing Steve and pointing at him with an accusatory finger. “Did you know about this?”

He rocked back on his heels, neither confirming nor denying, “I did begin to get a little suspicious as to why they were covered in paint for two weekends in a row.”

“I guess their timing isn’t bad after all… they’re just too sweet to me.” You moped towards Steve, puppy-dog eyes staring at him like they could do no wrong as he took your shoulders into his hands.

“And now you’re wrapped around their pinkies again,” he murmured with a chuckle, slinging his arm around your frame and walking you both into the booth. “C’mon let’s go set up before Nance goes crazy on us next.”

He helped organize all the baked goods, making sure to keep anything with frosting away from direct sunlight and instead on the bed of ice that Jonathan had dropped off before scurrying away with a mutter that Nancy needed him somewhere else.

Max and Dustin got the cookies laid out in a presentable manner as El and Lucas gave them pointers from the front view of the booth. You and Mike worked together, laying out the fresh canvases on the opposite side of the booth, and Mike pitched in to hang a few canvases on the posts of the tent for display.

It all was coming together, and you were in awe looking around at what Nancy was able to put together for her beloved town. For a first time local farmers’ market, it looked as if Hawkins had done this a million times before and you were sure this was just the beginning. You’d be lucky if Nancy asked you to come back and help out again, and even then, there was no chance you would be saying no.

“Can we grab our freebies now?” Dustin tapped your shoulder.

“Pick whatever you guys want! You deserve it for all the help you’ve given, and that cute banner.” You said warmly, smiling as they all went for their pick.

Steve stuck by your side, snickering when the kids struggled to pick what they wanted, as if you wouldn’t let them grab more freebies throughout the day because he knew you most certainly would. In the end, every kid picked something different and shared it with each other so they all got a taste of the delicious creations you had spent days whipping up.

“Hey, you,” Eddie whistled, knocking his fist into the post of the stall to get your attention from where you were folding up all the extra bags that were emptied.

“Eddie! Oh my gosh, I felt like I haven’t seen you in forever.” You walked around the booth, going to greet him with a proper hug.

“That’s because Steve’s been hogging you from all of us.” He teased, giving his friend a wink who rolled his eyes behind you.

“I have not been hogging her,” Steve retorted, resting his hands on his hips, pointing at the outline of the cigarette box in Eddie’s pocket, “It’s not my fault she doesn’t like the smell of smoke.”

You scowled playfully towards Steve, turning your attention back to your friend and rubbing his arm kindly.

“He’s kidding, but you know I’m always concerned about your lungs.” You sulked, cringing at the thought of Eddie getting sick because of those cancer sticks.

“I tried telling him that too, hon, but he’s just as stubborn as his mother.”

An older man rumbled beside him, knocking his shoulders with a punch as Eddie chuckled, and gestured to him. He was as tall as Eddie, sporting a salt and pepper beard — if you squinted hard enough, he had some resemblance to Eddie, except the lack of curly hair.

“That’s my uncle Wayne.” He grinned, waving him over to you.

“Nice to meet you!” You held your arms wide, greeting him with a friendly hug.

“Nice to meet you, honey. My nephew said you got a car that needs to be looked at?” He suspected curiously.

You nodded eagerly, watching as Eddie and Wayne darted their eyes to the parking lot, trying to spot your car through the bustle.

“Well, it’s not here right now. It’s actually back in Roane, but it’s been giving me a little bit of trouble. It’s making some sort of rumbling noise, and I don’t know if it’s the engine or something else.” You said with a slight tilt of your head, hoping you were making sense with your limited knowledge of cars.

“Could be something with the exhaust.” Wayne scratched his head, looking towards his nephew.

Eddie tilted his head, tapping his foot against the grass before there was a snap of his fingers. “Or it might be out of alignment.”

The two men made noises of agreement, still trying to think up what could be wrong despite not having the car there to access for themselves.

Wayne threw his hands down to his sides, looking over at you when he extended a kind offer.

“Why don’t you let us take a look at it? I work part time at the shop and Eddie has a shift there sometime next week. We can work you in then.”

You twiddled your fingers together excitedly. “Oh, that’s perfect. Thank you so much! Here, I’ll give you my number so that you can call me when to come down.”

You motioned for Eddie to follow you into the boot, ripping off a scrap piece of a brown bag and searching for a writing utensil to jot down your number for him. Steve and Wayne had striked up talking, catching up and making jokes about how sorry he was that his tapes were probably way past the return dates because he had no time after working two jobs and barely any sleep to stop by the store.

You scribbled down your phone number, folding it up and watching as Eddie slipped it into his pocket before he took his turn and wrote down the direction of the shop ahead of time.

“You baked all this stuff yourself.” Wayne called out fingers skimming over the packaged cookies and other treats.

Steve stood with a proud smile, nodding his head, “From scratch and all by herself.” Wayne flashing you an impressive nod.

“I really couldn’t have done it without Steve’s help, though.” You nudged him from across the table — Eddie and his uncle not missing the sweetness that lingered through your adoring eyes for Steve.

“Mind if I buy a few things already, or do I gotta wait until this whole thing actually gets started?” Wayne said, already moving to get out his wallet.

You shook your head, hands held out declining the bills he held out to you.

“First dibs on whatever you want, and it’s on me!”

“No, I couldn’t let you give it to me for free.”

“It’s no problem, really. You taking the time to come down here to ask about my car was enough!”

Wayne settled on a baggie of chocolate chip cookies and, after hearing that Steve had frosted the cupcakes, he couldn’t turn down a raspberry hibiscus one. It wasn’t long after his praise that he told you he’d try to stop by to pick up more treats later the day, before he excused himself to go check out the other booths for who needed help to set up.

Everything looked to be coming together — more booths pitching up their tents and getting set up with all their goods and tarps of their own. Coincidentally, Vickie’s lemonade stand was directly across from yours, giving you and Steve a front row view of how giggly she and Robin were as they prepped for opening — you definitely had to catch up with her when you got the chance.

Steve rubbed his hands together, scanning your booth in search of a task to steal from you, but all that was left was to wait until people were allowed in to start shopping. You were straightening out all the treats, doing last-minute touches to make sure everything looked perfect, even creating a small space where the cash would be handled.

Steve lingered beside you, tsking at you being on your feet all day, “Do you need anything? I could get you a chair to sit on. I mean I don’t have one on me right now, but I can find Nancy and ask?”

He peered past the booth, looking around, hoping to spot her or Jonathan running around somewhere.

“I’m okay, Stevie, but thank—”

Eddie clicked his tongue noisily, cutting you off guard, when he sauntered over to his friend with a grin.

“Ah, ever the gentleman you are, but I actually need some help,” He threw his arm over Steve’s shoulders, eliciting a groan, hating how the leather jacket clung to his neck in the heat.

“Nancy put me in charge of helping Miss. Driscoll unload all her flower pots, but I don’t want to do it alone. You know she gets all talkative about her plants, and I need a way out.”

“Why don’t you ask one of the twerps for help?” Steve reasoned toward the kids who looked minutes away from a sugar rush.

“I was thinking of it, but considering she’s been hogging you, I think you owe your friend a hand.” Eddie half joked, glaring at you.

“I have not been hogging him, Eddie!” You gasped, wagging a finger in the air.

“Whatever you say, sugar. Don’t worry, we won’t be long.” Eddie whistled, dragging his friend along with him.

“I’ll be back in a bit!” Steve shouted over his shoulder, heading a few booths down to Miss. Driscoll’s booth.

By noon, the farmers’ market was swarming with more and more people, hoards of families walking around Hawkins Square and taking the time to enjoy all the booths and each other’s company on a rare occasion that wasn’t an angry town hall meeting.

And, of course, like Steve promised he was back in time to ease your nerves before your booth was enveloped with patrons ready to see what you had to offer. He, of course, didn’t come back empty-handed, presenting you with a succulent from Miss Driscoll’s, claiming you needed a real one to blend in with the fakes on your porch.

Before everyone arrived, he volunteered himself to be in charge of handling all the transactions, thanking his experience at Scoops and Family Video for his brisk change counting and his charming customer service. And as you expected, he was effortless at it.

“The mocha walnut loaf? Oh, that one is going to knock your socks off. But have you seen her paintings too? All her, and you won’t find these anywhere else.”

Steve paired his convictions with a wink, counting up the bills while you bagged the items with an amused smile clinging to your features, cheeks reddening from the compliments that the customers praised you with but more so the ones that Steve kept repeating like a motto. All those nerves faded into nothing when he was by your side, spurring you on.

Besides Max and Will, the other kids came and went, helping the other booths and exploring what was offered. Funnily enough, many of the kids’ parents, whom you hadn’t had the pleasure of meeting yet had stopped by to introduce themselves. Apparently, the kids really did yap about you all the time, so it was only right that they all got to meet who the heck their children were so fond of.

Mr. and Mrs. Sinclair was as sweet as ever, even Erica who according to Lucas was a “pain in the butt little sister,” was incredibly kind, sparking up a conversation about the Cherry Pie that Lucas told her was the best he ever had, and how one day she hoped you would be able to bake another so she could try it herself.

Mrs. Wheeler took the time to leave her book club booth, stopping by yours to introduce herself and gift you with a few books about art and recipe booklets she’d thought you’d like. She reminded you of Nancy in many ways — caring and headstrong just to name a few traits.

Ms. Henderson was a spitting image of Dustin — personality and all. She met you with such joy and excitement, practically buying one of every treat and even picking up a canvas that she claimed was going to hang perfectly above the mantle where all of Dustin’s science awards stood.

To your surprise, even Dorothea stopped by, bragging about how Steve had invited her and she could not deny the invitation to catch up with you for a little and get to explore the town that she hadn’t been to in ages. The kids even got the chance to meet her, cheeks being pinched as if their grandmothers were visiting, while you and Steve stifled your laughter as they all tried to converse shortly with her.

The hours ticked by fast, people coming and going, leaving with a creation of yours while they left you with an ever-growing sense of gratitude. In some weird way, Hawkins felt a little bit like home, surrounded by your friends and new company that you could get used to soon enough. By the time the day slowed down and the temperature cranked up it was midafternoon and you were all left waiting for the last call to pack up and get going.

You tossed your hair over your shoulder, fanning yourself lightly as you eyed the kids who settled themselves on the grassy ground, trying to shade themselves from the unrelenting sun.

“You guys doing good over there?” You giggled, bending down to press the back of your hand over their necks.

Max groaned, wiping the sweat off her forehead for the millionth time.

“How much longer until this is over? I think I’m gonna have a heat stroke soon.” She exasperated dramatically, prompting Lucas to fan her with his flapping hands.

“Soon.” Steve chuckled, drumming his fingers against the table tops, setting his sights across the town square where the crowds began to dwindle little by little.

“I’ll get you all lemonade from Vickie’s booth just before we start packing up.” He added before the kids mumbled out their fatigued “thank you’s.”

You stood up straight, settling next to Steve, leaning against the tables and facing opposite of where the sun was beaming down on the front of your booth. For a while there had been no customers, because you had already sold out of all the baked goods, and there were only a few of you and Will’s art pieces left — you thought that maybe some late straggler would take a pick at them before you left.

You and Steve glanced at each other, smiling faintly until his arm slung over your shoulder, pulling you toward him, closing the space.

“Are you feeling hot too?” He wondered, not minding the stickiness of your skin together when he brushed your hair behind your ear.

You opened your mouth ready to assure him that you were not on the brink of a heat stroke but Mike gagged dramatically, causing you both to close your eyes anticipating what smartass remark that would fall from his lips.

“Dude! Right in front of us?” Mike choked, looking at you both with a look of revulsion, “Take your flirting elsewhere!”

“I swear to god, Wheeler.” Steve spat, shaking his head at the boy before shooting you an apologetic look that was quite common nowadays.

You ignored the boy's middle school behavior.

“I’m okay, not too hot or anything. Just a bit warm.” You assured Steve, stroking his back lightly, thanking him for still being so concerned about you.

“Are the coolers out of water already?” Steve lifted his brow, briefly dropping his arm from your body to head over to the icebox that Hopper had dropped off in the middle of the event, filled with ice cold water bottles and Capri-Suns.

“There should be one left,” one of the kids mumbled.

He stuck his hand into the pleasantly freezing water to retrieve it for you, walking back and already having the cap twisted off, holding it out with a grin.

“Here you go.”

“You’re the best.” You whispered, taking it from him as you tipped the bottle back taking a few sips.

“Wow, I can’t believe you still have this one! I remember you made this when we were dating and I told you then it wasn’t good, and it being here now just comes to show how right I was.”

The foreign voice tumbled into the quietness, the kids perking up their heads and faces covered with confusion, while Steve looked rather shocked, instantly whipping his neck to the person speaking.

You felt frozen in fear, nearly choking on the water as you felt your heart sink into the pit of your stomach and your palms began to sweat. The plastic bottle crinkled when your shaky fingers capped it closed. Unsure, you didn’t know whether to turn around and face him or run away and hide.

“And you’re still baking for fun? Don’t tell me you haven’t found a real job yet.” The voice snickered cruelly, causing you to tighten your jaw, eyes pinching shut.

“I’m sorry, what did you just say?” Steve cut in, trying to understand why some stranger would come up to you and say some horrible things unwarranted, but you didn’t allow the man to give him an answer.

“You need to leave.” You seethed, whipping towards him and snatching the canvas away from his hands with enough power to cause him to lose footing for a second.

His face twisted into something evil, so condescending like he didn’t change at all, “What? Can’t take a little joke?”

“Not from you. Now go.” You replied dryly, planting the canvas back down and pointing him out the other way.

“That isn’t any way to treat a paying customer.” He teased with a pout, reaching back for his wallet, as if you would ever take a penny from him.

“I don’t want your money, so you can leave.” You shook your head with the roll of your eyes.

“Why so cold all of a sudden? I just wanted to pop in and say hello. I couldn’t resist when I saw flyers hanging around when I was visiting. How’s rent? Are you short this month because I can give you a few extra—”

An irked puff of air left your mouth, arms crossing over your chest, “What the fuck do you gain from this? Humiliating me? Getting a kick off seeing me happy without you? What is it, Brad?”

Brad. Now Steve had a name and face to put to your ex — punchable in so many ways. But unbeknownst to you all, El and Will immediately ran off, going to find their dad who was acting somewhere wandering before things could escalate into something bigger that none of them wanted to see.

“Happy?” Brad scoffed, laughing in your face, “You call working a stall in the middle of nowhere a source of happiness? What could have made you happy was getting a real job and moving out to the city to make real money.”

You looked at him disappointingly, eyes glaring with storms in them — the same ones he used to cause.

“You’re so pathetic, coming all the way out here to do this to me. Was six years not enough for you? All that time and you still haven’t had enough of making me feel bad.” You accused sharply.

“It’s called a reality check. Some people find it helpful.”

“Well, I don’t need it. I didn’t need it six years ago. I didn’t need it when we broke up, and I don’t need it now.” You retorted, slamming your hands onto the table, getting face to face with him.

Steve immediately extended his arm between you both, but you hadn’t even internalized his protective gesture, too busy staring the man in front of you down for all those years he stole from you and that moment right then that he tried to claim as his.

In the distance, coming closer there were the two kids, jogging ahead of their father, leading him to the commotion that was starting to attract the eyes of strangers and the other booths that stuck around.

“Is there a problem here?”

Hopper announced his presence, approaching the front of your booth, giving Steve a look of confusion seeing as though you were the unlikely bet to be in this position when his kids alerted him of what was going on.

You didn’t budge, ignoring Hopper and instead, standing your ground the way you were too scared to do before when it was behind the walls of your apartment. He didn’t deserve an ounce of your sympathy, let alone civility for the way he tried to slither his way back into your life.

“All those indiscretions of yours that I used to take in good fun? That’s not me anymore and I’m happy, and I don’t need to prove it to you or anyone else.” You sneered, watching the way he rolled his eyes to cover the bruise you had just given to his ego.

“Keep telling yourself that because the next person who has to endure dating you for as long as I did is going to feel sorry for themself when they realize they wasted their time on a train wreck.”

“Shut your mouth!”

Before you could even process what was happening, Steve wedged himself between you both, grabbing your ex by the collar, nearly dragging him across the tables as he shook him harshly. You gasped, stumbling back only to be caught by the hands of the children, springing quickly into action. The tussle didn’t last long, Hopper immediately jerked the two apart, all while a crowd formed, loud chatter and pointed fingers reveling in the sight that you wished was all a bad dream.

It felt all too real, reliving everything that you once put up with, and the air was beginning to getting thicker, harder to breathe through with everyone gawking. Your eyes darted left and right, Robin sprinting out of her booth to see what was going on, and Nancy on the opposite side dropping her clipboard to run over. But before they could even come close, you did what you knew how to do best — run.

Steve stepped back, muttering out a “sorry” towards Hopper, seeing as though this was the last thing that was supposed to go down today. He ran his hands roughly over his face, catching his breath and attempting to calm the adrenaline rushing through his veins.

“Are you alright?” He spoke gently, turning around expecting to be met with you, but you were already gone.

The kids were shaken up, pointing in the opposite direction where your figure was weaving through booths trying to get away.

“Go,” Two voices said behind them, Nancy and Robin nodding him along, before they worked on getting everybody to clear out and give Hop some space to escort your ex out.

You felt stupid hot tears rolling down your cheeks, angry at yourself for letting his words get to you after all this time apart, and even more sorry that Steve and the innocent kids had to see you get so worked up over a loser like him that wasn’t even deserving of time….yet you were there, visibly upset.

There was a pit in your stomach, the one that came back for the first time in ages, the one that you thought you had repressed so much so that it would never show up again. You thought the day he broke it off was it — the last time you’d ever see him or hear his voice, and for a moment that brought you all the closure you needed, but now it was as if the stitches to that wound were becoming undone once again.

Then there was that familiar voice coming to you. Not the one that was poisoned with malice, but his that was always a consolation during times of sadness, only this time, your own anxiety wasn’t the cause of your despair, but in fact another soul who dared to hurt you.

“Sweetheart! Wait up, come on honey, just—just slow down for a second.”

Naturally Steve had come after you and you’d be lying if you said you didn’t expect him to do so, but just didn’t know what you were going to say to him when he’d meet you face to face. How he could look at you and see the person he had been spending most of his time with? If that version of you was even a semblance of someone he could actually be with, or maybe the version he just saw seconds ago was the train wreck he was dodging all this time.

“I—I can’t go back there!” You shouted with tears in your eyes.

You turned into the brick alleyway of the radio shack barricading yourself from being embarrassed even more than you already were. Your hands covered your face, sobbing uncontrollably as you paced back and forth until Steve caught up, gently halting your footsteps and pulling you into his frame.

“Hey, c’mon, I’m right here.” He breathed softly, drawing your hands down just so he could see you.

You couldn’t bring yourself to look him in the eyes, pinching them shut as you bit down harshly on your lip trying to silence violent whimpers that risked escaping. His heart ached just looking at you, tear-stained cheeks with rivers continuing their paths all while you did everything but look at him — the way he wanted you to, just so you could see that he was right there with you and there wasn’t a chance he’d leave.

“Please, Steve, you have to find a way for me to get outta here. There must be a back road or something, right? Y-you can bring the car around here and take me home.” You reasoned, eyes darting around nervously, attempting to peer past his figure to think up a great escape.

He hushed you quietly, taking your face into his hands, guiding you slowly, “Sweetheart, breathe…” Your tears didn’t stop, but your staggered breathing shallowed into something gentler, “Yeah, just like that, it’s okay.”

His thumbs ran under your eyes, swiping the traces of tears that kept pouring as you tried to keep your breathing at bay. “I’m right here. I’m not going anywhere, alright?” He assured you sincerely, never letting up on the softness.

“I-I’m stupid,” you whispered, letting him hold your face as you hung your head low letting the teardrops splat onto the concrete beneath you.

“No, you aren’t. Don’t say that.” He scolded lightly, shaking his head in disapproval.

“I am,” you whimpered chin quivering, “I caused a scene and everyone is probably talking about it because I had to make myself the center of attention.“

“You’re so wrong.” He spoke in a tone that felt almost upbeat for the situation at hand, that you really had no choice but to stare up at him in disarray.

He looked over shoulder, then straight back at you with a faint smile on his lips.

“Hop is probably threatening him with jail time. The kids most likely heckled the hell out of him. And if I’m not wrong, Nancy and Robin are searching for you, wanting to make sure you’re okay.”

You sniffled, eyes crinkling as the tears fell, not knowing how he could be so optimistic after what had transpired. You were deeply convinced that there was no plausible way he wasn’t concerned with his own choices, settling to be there with you instead of bolting knowing you were a mess he was in for.

Without missing a beat, he continued thumbing away the tears that came, words spilling out of his mouth.

“You don’t get it do you? How much everyone here adores you, and would do anything for you at a moment’s notice?” He kept that wide-eyed look on his face, trying to get you to see yourself in the light that he did.

“You don’t even live in this town, yet you have everyone dying to be around you because you’re so kind and special.”

You croaked out a cry, swallowing back the lump in your throat, while your head rock back and forth in his cradle, unconvinced that’s how anyone saw you. But he hummed surely, picking your head up as he nodded and stared at you with a sentiment of so forthright written across his face.

He stroked your cheeks, getting impossibly closer to you, his chestnut orbs staring into your sodden ones, “I’m a little bias but you wanna know something else?”

You ran your tongue over your lips, shrugging as your sobs slowly died with each second that passed. “W-What?”

“Every time that you’re away, I feel incomplete. Like I’m missing the one thing I can’t have and I can’t take it.” He told you, feeling your jaw quiver beneath his fingertips.

“Steve…” you whispered, closing your eyes only briefly not wanting to take any of it for granted.

When your eyes met his again, his lips moved with another string of words falling from them.

“It’s you that I want. I want you with every fiber of my being.”

“I want you too,” You sniffled, hands wrapping around his wrist, holding you both there, “God…you—you have no idea how long I’ve been wanting to tell you and I’m so sorry it had to happen like this but—”

He smiled, shaking his head interjecting, “Are you gonna stop apologizing and let me kiss you? I’ve been dying to, after all.”

You cracked a laugh, eyes crinkling, and the tears stood still. All that was in front of you was all that you wanted to see forevermore.

“Yeah,” you murmured, draping your arms across his neck, “please.”

There was a promise in his eyes, to give you everything you wanted and more, an unspoken vow to always be yours if you were to be his. Those same eyes flickered over your lips, breath hitching in your chest as your lashes fluttered with your lids shutting. Lips closing the distance until everything felt like it was melting away.

Soft and tender, a gentle invitation granting you both to step into the daylight together. Your lips meshing synchronically, his hands sliding to the back of your head, pulling you closer into him, and without thinking your foot kicked up — the outside world becoming nothing when you both had your own oasis to call home.

Every brush and graze etched upon your skin, your lips making their permanent mark on his, and then it was for certain that your lives couldn’t exist without this feeling again.

Breathlessly, you both pulled away foreheads resting against each other as your starry eyes gleamed into his. Silence filled the air, yet you both knew what it meant—everything you both had been anticipating and hoping for since the beginning.

And who were you both to fight it?

💌 reblogs, tags, comments, + likes are greatly appreciated! leave a comment and let me know if want to be added to my taglist!! 💌

a/n: i haven't updated this series in forever, but at the same time it feels like i have been working on it since forever (just writer things yenno?) the kiss finally happened!!! i've been dying to write this scene since the beginning of glitch, and im so sorry i had to drag it out six chapters, but all good things come with patience hahaha. thank you all for sticking around this long, and i think i have a few chapters left before i wrap this series up, but glitch will always have a special place in my heart for the sole reason that it came to me naturally and i was able to forge it up for you all, and most importantly you all showed such immense love for it--truly it means the world to me <3 a big thank you to my baby @translatemunson for always being my biggest motivator and bestest proof reader (i love you sm babes!!!) and i love all of you, thank you for sticking around and being the best!

taglist: @translatemunson @kennedy-brooke @manda-panda-monium @tvserie-s-world @givemeth @steveharringtonswife @astolenkiss @loving-and-dreaming @awkotaco24 @engenelxver @elfiaaaa @pbs-theundeadmaggot @johnricharddeacy @gaysludge @keerysfolklore @micheledawn1975 @ihatepeanutss @bakugouswh0r3

#steve harrington fic #steve harrington fluff #steve harrington imagine #steve harrington one shot #steve harrington x fem!reader #steve harrington x reader #steve harrington x fem!artist #steve harrington x fem!baker #steve harrington stranger things #steve harrington x you #steve harrington fanfic #steve harrington smut #steve harrington x taylor swift #taylor swift x stranger things #steve harrington x glitch reader #steve harrington #stranger things imagine #stranger things x reader #stranger things

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charmingly-helpless · 5 months ago

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the agent and the killer

A/N: oh man I am not good at coming up with titles. anyway i can't get unsub!emily off my mind so here's a small fic. just two parts for now while i decide if i want to write more :) enjoy!

pairing: unsub!emily prentiss x agent!reader

warnings: talks of murder, emily being scary, intimidation, i think that's all?

word count: 1121

Read on AO3

Part 1 Part 2

You hummed in your kitchen as you cleaned up after dinner, enjoying the silent night after a very long and tiring case. As you loaded the dishes into the dishwasher, some movement outside the window caught your eye. You brushed it off as a deer that frequently wandered through backyards in your neighborhood and continued with your chores.

Behind the bushes, the brunette woman smiled when she saw you alone. It’ll be easier to get you. She started walking to the back door that separated the two of you. Reaching the handle, she picked the lock, smiling when the handle became loose. Now she can get her latest victim.

The door jiggling behind you raised the alarm bells in your head. You whipped around to see a dark haired woman in the doorway. You reached for your gun that was placed on the kitchen counter, aiming it at the woman.

Emily made a tsk tsk noise at you, shaking her head.

“Now, now… Is that any way to greet someone in your home?”

You lowered your gun slightly as you recognized the intruder.

“Emily Prentiss.”

“Ah… You know who I am,” Emily said mockingly. She closed the door behind her and stepped closer to you.

You kept your face stoic. “What are you doing here?”

Emily chuckled before replying. “What am I doing here? Well, what I’m doing is hunting for my next victim. And I’ve got my eye on you.”

You freezed momentarily to process her words.

“It’s you.”

Emily cocked her head, “Who am I?”

“You’re the serial killer we’ve been looking for. You target men in law enforcement who abuse their power. We’ve been following your trail for the past six months.” You paused. “Why am I your next victim? I don’t fit in your criteria.”

Emily continued backing you up into the wall, smirking once you had nowhere else to go. “You’re a profiler, you tell me.”

You swallowed thickly, never taking your eyes off of her dark brown ones. “Because I’m your replacement.”

Emily hummed with a quirk of her lips. “Good girl. You really are good at your job, just like Hotch said.”

You slowly moved your heel to hit the SOS button you had installed underneath the kitchen cabinets to alert the team. However, Emily’s keen sense of hearing caught the faint buzz the signal made.

“What’s that sound? You’re signaling your fellow agents to come over and rescue you?” Emily shook her head. “Here I was hoping for a private time with you. Now they’re gonna come and ruin our fun…”

“Why are you killing all of those people?”

“You know why.”

“But why?”

“Those men needed to be taught a lesson.” Emily paused. She steps right in front of you, pushing your gun aside to make room for her body. “They always underestimate a female agent… They see me as weak. I’m tired of it.”

You shuddered as she invaded your space. “You aren’t the only female agent to be underestimated. Not the first, not the last. I became a Supervisory Special Agent at only 28, and I continue to be looked down by most of the men I work with. What makes you different? What made you snap?”

A dark chuckle escaped Emily’s lips when she thought about your question. She shook her head before looking back into your eyes, observing your face with an annoyed expression.

“You think you understand exactly the position I’m in? You know nothing about how they look at me… Judging me behind my back that I don’t know what I’m doing. Do you know why I lost my job?”

When you shook your head, she continued.

“I killed the man who stabbed me and left me for dead. He made my life a living hell, always lingering over me wherever I went. I lived in fear for years, and when I had the chance to end it, I took it. And that cost me my job that I worked so hard for. And yet, when Hotch killed the person who murdered his wife, he got a paid absence from work. Don’t you see what’s wrong with that? People saw him as a person acting on his grief. And they see me as a killer.”

You noticed the pain and rage she held in her eyes as she told her story. “Not everyone looks at you that way.”

Emily scoffed at your attempt to make her feel better. “Oh… What? You think you’re different? That you don’t look down on me? You’re just like them, thinking you have control over me.”

Your gaze softened, your empathetic nature getting the best of you. You set your gun down on the counter, pushing it away. Emily’s eyes followed your movement and then snapped back to your face in surprise.

“What are you doing? Why didn’t you shoot me?” she asked, her voice calm but held a sense of disbelief.

You stayed silent, also wondering why you would potentially let a criminal get away. When Emily’s eyebrow lifts prompting you to answer, you sighed.

“I don’t think I hold control over you. I don’t want to have control over anyone.”

Emily’s eyes darkened at the double entendre. She took hold of your wrists and pinned them above your head as she leaned in closer.

“No control, huh?”

Your eyes flutter closed as her breath fanned your ear. Why am I feeling like this towards a serial killer we’ve been chasing for months, you wonder.

Emily noticed your breath quickening and smirked to herself. “What’s this, agent? Are you feeling something for me…?”

You let your head fall back against the wall, relishing in her small kisses on your neck, her teeth grazing your skin so softly. However, the reality of your situation pulled you out of your daze.

“The team will get here soon.”

Emily pulled back with a groan of annoyance. “Well, this moment can’t last forever, can it?”

She let go of your wrists, stepping away from you and heading toward the door.

“Emily,” you called out, to your own surprise.

Emily stopped when she heard her name, turning around with an eyebrow raised.

You racked through your brain, thinking of what to say.

“Stay safe.”

Emily’s eyes softened at your words, but her face remained expressionless, not wanting to reveal her weakness to you.

“How interesting… An agent telling a wanted criminal to stay safe.”

You hold back your words as Emily lingered by the door. She broke her stare to look out the window where she could hear sirens approaching, but still a good distance away.

“I’ll see you next time, agent,” she said softly before slipping out into the darkness, like many nights before.

#emily prentiss x y/n #emily prentiss x reader #emily prentiss x you #emily prentiss #criminal minds #unsub emily prentiss #unsub!emily prentiss #criminal minds evolution

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marsbutterfly · 4 months ago

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Bad Dreams & Morning Hugs

a/n: I had a bad day at work yesterday, so I started writing this during my lunch break. I love Hanji so much, your honor.

warnings: tooth rotting fluff, some anxiety on both ends, fem!reader, modern au, not beta read (we die like men ♡)

ao3! | wattpad! | wc: 1.4k

It's a quiet morning, maybe even too quiet. Hanji opens their eyes, quickly raising their right hand to try and shield themselves from the bright sunlight that invades the room. A quick look at the clock and they realize it's far too early for them to be awake.

"6:45 am? Hell no," they think to themselves, immediately snuggling their body underneath the covers once more. In an instinct, almost like muscle memory, they flip over to the side, eager to spoon their bare chest against the skin of your back. Except you are not there.

Their eyes snap open again and their expression morphs into one of confusion. They touch the pillow softly, carefully analyzing it. "It's cold…" They think, and the realization that you probably have been out of bed for a while hits them like a pile of bricks.

Immediately, they reach for their glasses and sit up on the bed. "Moonlight?" They call out to the dark, hoping to hear your usually so cheerful response. But they don't hear anything, the only sound that meets them is the cars outside the window, rushing towards their destinations.

Immediately, they throw the covers to the side, their bare legs now exposed to the cold wind of the air-conditioner. They quickly throw some sweatpants and a tank top on, just enough so they aren't walking around the house completely naked.

Hanji ponders for a few seconds if they should turn on the lights, but maybe you simply fell out of bed and they didn't want to disturb you more than you were already disturbed. They poke their head out of the edge of the bed, looking at the empty ground and frowning.

Their heart begins to palpitate, a cold sweat dripping down their left temple as they make their way out of the room, their voice a little louder than before but still with that same shaky tone, "Moonlight?"

Nothing. The house feels empty and cold, almost as if you are completely gone. Their breathing begins to come in nervous patterns, a wave of fear and anxiety washing over their body as they continue to look around for you. Trembling hands turn every doorknob in the house: the guest room, the supply closet, even the guest bathroom.

They go down the carpeted stairs, tired eyes now highly alert as they search for any little piece of you. They look in the living room, hoping to find you in front of the TV but no such luck.

So they move onto the kitchen, looking around some more, hoping that maybe you decided to wake up earlier and make some breakfast. It wouldn't be the first time you woke up early just because your stomach was growling. Unfortunately, no such luck either.

A knot forms on the back of their throat the more they look around. With a quick peek outside, they sigh a small breath of relief as they realize that your car is still in the driveway.

"So you are in the house, after all…" Hanji thinks to themselves. Now that their brain is a little more awake and alert, they realize there is only one place they haven't checked yet, the place you often go when you want to isolate yourself and your emotions.

So they immediately rush to the backyard, to the spot behind the big oak tree, right by the swing.

And there you are. Your back touching the trunk of the tree, knees pressing firmly against your chest while your head hands low, buried in between them.

They watch you for a few seconds, their feet lowly moving through the fallen leaves but still somehow hoping to remain silent. It isn't until they notice just how shaky your breathing is that they make themselves known.

"I've been looking for you," they say, slowly sitting next to you. A quiet gasp escapes your chest as you lift your head, the back of your hand immediately coming up to your face to wipe away the tears, though it's no use. The sniffles and trail of water left on your cheeks are a clear indication of just how much you have been crying.

"Oh… Sunshine…" You say, clearing your throat in a failing attempt to be more convincing, "I… Just needed some fresh -"

"Don't lie to me… Please," Hanji cuts you off, their voice slightly firmer but still maintaining that same caring and comforting tone to it. It almost has a begging edge mixed with desperation, like they need you to tell the truth just like they need air to survive. You sigh.

"I… Had a bad dream and just started having a lot of anxiety," you sniffle, your eyes filling with tears once again. You want to look away, to hide your face and run so they won't see you in such a pathetic state, but it's almost as if Hanji can sense your intentions before you have time to put them to practice because their hand gently wraps around your wrist.

"I'm sorry," their thumb brushes above your skin, their eyes filled with adoration in ways you have never felt before, "do you want to talk about it?"

You shake your head, your lower lip trembling as you turn to the side, your arms wrapping around Hanji's torso while tears immediately pour down your face, hiccups erupting from you like a volcano that had been dormant for years. You cling to them as if your life depends on it, like they are your lifeline and only connection to this world.

In response, Hanji wraps their arms around your shoulders, their head resting on top of yours as they hold you as close as they possibly can.

They shower your skin with kisses, from the very top of your scalp to the bottom of your cheeks, kissing away the tears as they go by. You shake your head, sobbing so hard you can barely form coherent sentences. Your whole body trembles in their arms but Hanji clings to you so dearly, almost as if they are afraid you are going to disappear any second now.

The sun begins to make its way higher up in the sky, a comforting warmth surrounding the two of you as you sit under the tree. The morning breeze dances with the leaves as their hair tickles your face.

You aren't sure how long the two of you stay like that, with their hands gently brushing above your skin, leaving goosebumps behind. And slowly, your tears begin to slow down, the world comes into a more clear view and you can take a deep breath.

"You feel any better?" Hanji asks, not moving a single muscle. You nod, still clinging to them like your life might end the second the two of you are separated.

"With you here, I feel safe…" You whisper back in response and you can tell by the simple way their breathing shifts ever so slightly that they have the biggest smile on their face. "Will you stay home with me today?" You plead, feeling almost pathetic but the idea of Hanji leaving for work is nearly enough to bring more tears to your eyes.

"Of course," they whisper in the same tone of voice, already pulling their phone out of their pocket while still keeping one arm tight around your shoulders, "I'll text Erwin and let him know I'm not coming in today, that I have a family emergency."

You nod and smile, your head resting on their chest, your ear right above their heart so you can focus on the beating sound. You can almost hear it calling your name as it continues to pump.

"Maybe we can watch some movies, get some takeout, play some video games," Haji begins suggesting and you sniffle, a smile twitching at the corner of your lips.

"Yeah… That would be amazing…" You whisper, nuzzling your head against their body, "You know me all too well…"

Hanji chuckles, clinging to you a little tighter, nearly forgetting to make sure you need some space to breathe, not that you mind at all The two of you decide to sit under the tree for a little while longer, enjoying the warmth of the sun and each other's.

"Thank you, Sunshine," you whisper and Hanji smiles, shaking their head.

"No need to thank me, Moonlight," they whisper, "I will always and forever be here for you. No matter what, I will always love you."

"I love you too…" A whisper, barely audible but loud enough that Hanji can hear you. In response, they tighten their grip once more, wanting to make sure you can feel every little bit of the overwhelming amount of love they hold for you in their heart.

From their hugs alone, you forget all about the bad dream you had. You can't wait to see what the rest of the day will have in store for the two of you.

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maurauderswhxre · 7 months ago

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whispers in the smoke || r.c

pairing: rafe cameron x f!reader

Summary: A solitary after party smoke session night at Tannyhill welcomes an unusually peaceful talk with the broodiest kook in obx.

Warnings: smoking, light cursing, mentions of alcohol and drugs, partying, slight talk about insecurity.

words: 3.6k

a/n: this is my first fic! show some love and lmk what you think abt it ˚｡⋆୨୧˚⋆ ˚

The loud music that once blared through every hall of Tannyhill mellowed into a slight hum and tune as people cleared out from the house. Scattered red solo cups, beer cans, confetti, and small grains of sand decorated the floor in an orchestrated mess. Walking your way through the trashed house, you try and find Sarah. A small part of you hoped she wasn’t blackout drunk, knowing the pain and the struggle it is to carry her up to her bed from her previous recklessness and ignorance of how much liquor she could hold.

You passed by a few people who were too hammered to realize the party was over and a few maids who diligently started cleaning up the mess left. Smiling at them appreciatively, you made your way to the backyard, where you found a very drunk Sarah Cameron bent down and talking to what seemed like the head of a broken garden gnome.

“I'm sorry.. Charlie. I will fix you. I promise…I swear. I-I will find out who did this to you,” she slurred as she placed the cracked head on its neck, trying to make it stay. A giggle left your lips as she babbled the broken ceramic empty promises. The sight was too funny for you not to take your phone and take a picture of her. Shaking your head, you walked over to her and bent beside her.

“Sarah, I think it’s time to leave Charlie and go to bed. You’re drunk, and I’m pretty sure you’re going to pass out drunk in your backyard any moment,” you spoke to her, trying to distract the blonde from the broken gnome. She turned and looked at you, her brown eyes glossed over and brimming with tears. God, you were not drunk enough to deal with this.

“But I can’t. He’s broken, and h-he needs to be fixed,” she pleaded like a small child whose balloon had just popped.

“He will be fixed. I will fix him, okay?” you said as you slowly grabbed her arm to get her to stand up. She got up, stumbling a bit, as you guided her back inside the house, her incoherent babbling filling the once-quiet house. After a rather tedious task of making it safely up the stairs, you walked her to her room and tucked her in, placing a trash can next to her and a bottle of water.

She called out your name, making you hum in acknowledgment from the bathroom as you looked for a bottle of painkillers.

“You promise to fix Charlie?” she mumbled, voice laced with slumber.

“Yes, I do. Now sleep. We’re gonna go get breakfast in the morning, okay?” you said, walking back and placing a bottle of Tylenol on her bedstand. Hearing a lack of response, you looked at her and found her fast asleep. You made sure she had everything she needed before going to the bathroom.

You sigh tiredly as you grab the spare pjs you kept in her cupboard due to the frequent sleeping over and changed your clothes. Tying your hair back, you dug in your bag for your lighter and carton of cigarettes; stowing them in your pocket, you walked out of the bathroom and headed to the window that let you out to the roof. After some struggle, you opened the window and carefully crawled onto the roof, sitting comfortably, taking out your cigarette and lighting it. The hot smoke invaded your mouth and burned your throat as you took a drag. The familiarity of the bitter taste on your tongue as you blew out the smoke left a slight smile as you looked up at the cloudless night.

The black blanket had a few dispersed stars that glowed in the moonless sky, mimicking the fireflies down near the grass. A cool breeze wrapped around you as you smoked in solitude, floating freely in your realm of thoughts, and your brain racked with all the memories of the party that evening. Lost in your thoughts, you didn't notice the head that popped out of the window and saw your silhouette against the dark sky. However, that presence was soon made known through a rough grunt, which startled you out of your trance to look at the now-emerging figure of Rafe crawling out of the window. He sat down with a huff and rubbed his head, wincing lightly. A smile broke out on our faces as you brought the cigarette to your lips and inhaled the dizzying gas.

“Thought you left with Barry; I didn’t see you around the house,” you said as you blew out a thin ribbon of smoke that floated lazily around you. “I was on my way to go, but I found you on my roof,” he spoke, digging into his pocket to grab his cigarette and light it, the flame of the lighter illuminating his sharp features. “And I don't trust you or Sarah enough to leave you in the house after drinking your weight in margaritas,” he added as he blew out the smoke that invaded his mouth.

“Hey, I can hold my liquor. Sarah can’t” you defended yourself taking a drag. “If anything, I don't trust you around me after your little coke business,” you retorted, laughing out the smoke.

“Oh, really now? Keep those same words when you ask for a discount next time you want a line,” he remarked, smirking as he brought his lips to the filter, hollowing his cheeks and inhaling the hot smoke. Your eyes lingered on his lips a second too long as you reluctantly looked out over the glittering lake.

“I’ll have you know that you just lost a very loyal customer,” you gasped lightly, placing your unoccupied hand on your chest as you feigned hurt.

Rafe raised an eyebrow and looked at you with a smirk, taking a long drag on his cigarette. "Okay, and what are you going to do? Go ask Barracuda Mike instead?" he asked, making a joking grimace. You both chuckle, remembering Barracuda Mike and the shitty, cut-with-baby-powder products he sold.

"I mean...I can if I want to," you teased back, knowing damn well Rafe had a point. You couldn't get your drugs from anywhere else unless you wanted to be dealing with a bunch of random dealers.

Rafe chuckled, taking another drag of his cigarette.

“I know you can, but I also know you won't.” He said, eyeing you playfully. Rafe was always great at reading you.

“Fine,” you said, rolling your eyes. "I'll stick with you, but only because I have to get my fix somehow.”

“That's what I thought,” Rafe replied, taking another drag of his cigarette. You both sat silently on the roof, smoking and watching the stars.

"So cocky," you mutter back as you take a long drag on your cigarette. The warm tobacco fills your throat, and the dizzying nicotine sends your head spinning. You look out over the water at the sparkling lights of distant boats that signal the liveliness of the summer night. The nights that both keep you up at night and give you a sense of comfort.

The silence between you and Rafe is deafening. You've known him for years, yet it never got easier to speak to him when you were alone together. How you guys acted when you were around people was nothing like how you were alone. It was like you were different versions of yourselves almost. Rafe takes another drag of his cigarette, the ember illuminating the sharp features of his face. You've always thought he was handsome, but you've never let yourself dwell on those thoughts.

You two sit there, smoking cigarettes and staring at the sparkling lake together.

“You know, I like you the most out of Sarah’s friends.” He said, breaking the silence.

You look over at him, coughing out the smoke you inhaled, surprised by the sudden statement. "wha..." you mumble, unsure of what to say. It takes you a moment to process his words, because the truth is that you've always had feelings for him, even though you never admitted it to anyone - even yourself. So this sudden revelation was not helping your case. Suddenly, you feel an intense heat wash over your body, and you're not sure if it's from the cigarette or embarrassment. "Thanks?" you ask, your voice shaky as you try to gain your composure.

"I mean it," Rafe says, looking at you intently. You can't tell if he's serious or not, since he has a habit of teasing you sometimes. But that compliment felt different than the other times he'd teased you. Was he saying what he meant? Before you can ask him or respond in any way, he takes a long drag of his cigarette and then blows the smoke out in a cloud in front of him. "You're the only one out of her friends that actually cares for her. And she seems to be less of a bitch with you around, so.."

"She's not a-," you start to say, quickly cutting yourself off at the end. It's no secret that Sarah can be difficult to deal with sometimes, and you tend to take care of her when you go out together. You can't help but feel your cheeks warm as you realize he's being serious for once. You try to play it off like it's not a big deal, but deep down, you know you're starting to get flustered by his words. "Oh, so you think I'm a good influence, huh?" you ask, sounding playful and taking a drag. In reality, you're not sure what to say. Rafe always surprises you when he acts like this, making you wonder if there might be hope for more than friendship between you two.

Rafe chuckles at your response and takes another drag of his cigarette. "I mean, putting aside doing drugs and all, yeah, in comparison to her other friends, you are," he says with a sly grin. "And I meant what I said earlier - you're the only one who cares for her. I see how you sometimes look out for her when I'm around. It's kinda nice. And you're always there for her, even when she's being...well, a total bitch."

As you blow out the smoke, you can't help but feel your cheeks heat up. As he continues, a slight flush creeps up to your ears. He notices this and smirks, taking another drag of his cigarette. You can't help but feel your heart race as the conversation continues, and you can't help but notice how handsome he looks in the moonlight. The way the light plays off his features is almost mesmerizing.

"I guess so," you whisper, sounding casual even though your voice is slightly shaky. You tap the cigarette to let the white ashes float down from the burning end.

“What? You sound so conflicted and confused,” he laughs as he crushes the butt of the cigarette into the roof tiles and looked at you.

"Nothing," you mumble, looking at him and smiling before using the last bit of cigarette. You do the same as rafe and extinguish it; you bring your knees to your chest and hug them. "It’s just…it’s odd to see you so relaxed and all." You pause momentarily, feeling his gaze on you as the silence settles. It feels intense but not uncomfortable. Just awkward. “It's new. I like it,” you continued, your voice small and whispering, almost as if you were talking to yourself.

The silence lingered for a few seconds more as if Rafe was also trying to gather his thoughts. You could tell he was a bit flustered as well, but it was different from yours. His words carried a weight that couldn’t be missed, and there was an intensity to his gaze that couldn’t be ignored.

“I'm not always a dick,” he said, chuckling dryly as he looked at you; his face wore an expression you couldn't deduce.

“I didn’t say you were; it’s just you’re a little more heated most of the time with whatever you’re dealing with,” you said, trying to explain yourself. You looked away momentarily before slowly turning back to him. To your surprise, his gaze was still on you, and it felt like he was staring into all the secrets you held deep within.

“Yeah, well, there’s a lot to deal with sometimes….especially with my family,” he said, looking away for a second. You could tell that he wasn’t comfortable talking about his own emotions, and you knew better than to probe.

“I know,” you muttered, scooting a little closer to him. “I know you just care about your family and want to take care of them, and I know that Rose, Ward, Sarah, and Wheezie all appreciate it.”

"Thanks,” he responded, putting his head in his hands and rubbing his eyes. "It’s just…it’s not the easiest thing to do."

You nodded, understanding what he meant. Taking care of a family as large and seemingly dysfunctional as Cameron’s was never easy, but you respected the responsibility Rafe carried on his shoulders.

“And I don't think anyone else can do a better job,” you say softly with a small smile as his beautiful eyes meet yours.

His gaze flicks back to you, and you can feel the tension in the air. A slight rumble of thunder echoes in the air, but neither of you pays any mind to it right away.

Rafe looked away from you, focusing on the distant, sprawling scenery before you. You could feel the intensity of his eyes on you, but he didn’t say anything. A comfortable silence fell between you two as you sat side by side, looking up at the stars and listening to the crickets as the summer evening stretched before you. Suddenly, Rafe’s expression shifted slightly as he looked back at you.

“Can I ask you a question?” he said quietly, breaking the silence.

You could only nod as you wondered where he was going with this. Did he want to change the subject? Had you said something wrong?

“Are you gonna tell Sarah you had to find her in the backyard talking to a broken garden gnome?”

You laughed at his question. It was reasonable, considering the situation. Rafe chuckled and nodded his head at your response.

“You saw that?” you said, laughing as you recollected the memory of drunken Sarah. “Oh definitely, it's such good blackmail material,” you giggled; Rafe couldn’t keep his eyes off you. Maybe it was the buzz of the alcohol and drugs that made him see a halo of soft light around you, or perhaps it was the way you captivated his heart and mind since you started spending more time at Tannyhill. Whatever it was made him feel a slight burn of yearning in his chest as he took in your appearance; your hair was tied up messily, and small remnants of glitter and eyeliner glistened on your cheeks and eyes as they caught the light. And that smile you had upon your face made him feel so warm—what he would do to keep that smile on your face.

Reluctantly, Rafe pulled himself back from the cloud of admiration he got lost in and ran his hands through his hair. He laughed in response, shaking his head at how the scenario had unfolded. “I can only imagine how that conversation will go…”

You giggle lightly and before you could reply to to him again a low thunder rumbling sounded again, indicating more rain to come but once again ignored by the buzz of the chemistry that filled the open air.

As you sat on the roof, the rain began to fall in a light drizzle. Neither of you wanted to go back inside and leave the tranquility of the night air, but the threat of a heavier shower made you feel like you should.

"We should probably go in soon,” he said, as your jokes and laughter seemed to lighten the tension in the air.

“You’re right,” you muttered, feeling the cool rain drop on your skin. "We shouldn’t push our luck.”

You looked around, feeling the dizzying buzz of the alcohol mixed with the nicotine from the cigarettes. Rafe stood up, his gaze still on yours.

You looked up at him as he outstretched his hand, which you took gratefully smiling appreciatively as he pulled you up onto to your feet.

“Thanks,” you said softly as you looked at him. He didn’t drop your hand; his warm calloused hand covered yours entirely.

“You’re welcome,” he whispered, his tone hushed as the soft rain fell around them. His gaze remained on yours, his breath quickening as he took in your intoxicating presence.

The two of you carefully walked towards the window back, carefully avoiding the puddles of rainwater that had started to make the roof tiles slippery. The rain had begun to pick up in intensity, the quiet pitter-patter of the droplets turning into a loud pounding sound as they hit the roof.

He went inside the first and helped you inside. As you entered the house, you felt the rush of humidity hit your face. Rafe closed the window behind the two of you, blocking the sound of the rain and the sight of the summer showers. You could feel the heat of his body as he let go of your hand, leaving you standing on your own.

As you stood there, feeling the warmth of the house enveloping you, you couldn't help but notice the way Rafe's eyes lingered on you. There was an intensity in his gaze that sent a shiver down your spine, and you found yourself unable to look away.

As you stood in the warmth of the house, the residual chill from the rain still clinging to your skin, you couldn't help but feel a slight flutter in your chest. The electricity in the air was palpable, and the tension between you and Rafe seemed to crackle with anticipation. You tried to brush it off, attributing it to the intoxication of the night and the rush of adrenaline from being caught in the rain, but deep down, you couldn't deny the growing attraction you felt towards him.

Rafe, too, seemed to be affected by the charged atmosphere. His eyes lingered on yours, his gaze intense yet soft, as if silently communicating a thousand words. You felt a heat rise to your cheeks under his scrutiny, and you couldn't help but fidget nervously under his gaze.

"So, uh... that was quite the adventure, huh?" you quipped, breaking the silence as you attempted to lighten the mood with a playful remark.

Rafe chuckled softly, a crooked smile playing on his lips as he nodded in agreement. "Yeah, definitely wasn't expecting a rooftop rendezvous in the rain tonight."

You laughed, the sound ringing through the air as you shook your head in amusement. "Well, you know me, always up for a little spontaneous adventure."

"Clearly," he replied, a teasing glint in his eyes as he took a step closer to you. "Although, I think we might need to work on your timing. Getting caught in a downpour wasn't exactly part of the plan."

You rolled your eyes playfully, nudging him with your elbow as you shot him a mock glare. "Hey, I'll have you know that I'm an expert at improvisation."

Rafe grinned, his gaze softening as he looked at you. "I have no doubt about that."

The air between you seemed to crackle with tension as the moment stretched on, neither of you willing to break the spell that had enveloped you. You could feel the heat of his body radiating towards you, his proximity sending a shiver down your spine.

And then, without warning, Rafe reached out and gently cupped your cheek, his touch feather-light against your skin. Your breath caught in your throat at the sudden intimacy, your heart pounding wildly in your chest as you met his gaze, your eyes locked in a silent exchange of longing and desire.

"Hey," he murmured softly, his voice barely above a whisper as he leaned in closer, his lips hovering dangerously close to yours. "You know, for someone who claims to be an expert at improvisation, you sure seem caught off guard right now."

As he leaned in closer, his gaze intense and unwavering, you felt your heart skip a beat in anticipation. The air around you seemed to crackle with tension as his lips drew nearer to yours, a silent invitation hanging between you. Before you could formulate a response, his lips met yours in a gentle yet electrifying kiss. It was as if the entire world had faded away, leaving only the two of you suspended in a moment of pure bliss. It was like a spark had been lit between you, a profound connection that left you breathless and wanting more. Remnants of smoke and alcohol could be tasted on his lips, but you wouldn’t want it any other way.

At that moment, as the rain continued to fall outside and the soft glow of the house enveloped you, you couldn't help but feel like everything was falling into place. Lost in the moment, you melted into his embrace, your fingers tangling in his hair as you kissed him back with equal fervor. All you could think about was how right it felt to be in Rafe's arms, lost in the warmth of his embrace and the sweetness of his kiss. You knew deep down that this was exactly where you were meant to be.

a/n: hope you liked it, like and repost is highly appreciated xoxo ˚｡⋆୨୧˚⋆ ˚

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