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wincestisasincest · 3 years ago

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Waves on the Shore - Chapter 4: The Kraken's Teeth

Viktor x Fem!Reader slow burn enemies to lovers

x posted on ao3 // WOTS masterlist

Summary: Jayce and Viktor questioning you about your weapon (made with farm-fresh Hextech) is the only thing keeping you from going to jail for science crimes. You and Viktor are literally at each others throats lmao. Also you’re from Bilgewater because pirates are fucking rad

Notes: Whooo boy she's a bit long. I had like a super busy day and then went home to grind on this chapter and I think that's very girlboss of me. In other news, I will also probably be making Friday my update day (so I actually have time to do work for class), but I will keep posting previews of stuff throughout the week!!! Anyway, enjoy this chapter and y'all are the best :)

Word Count: 7.9k

Taglist: @edenstarkk, @modernamilf

Mentions of: alcohol, dead bodies, vague implications of a nation in crisis

Triggers: guns, explosives, blood, knives (!!!!!!), language

You could smell it on him from the moment he coyly walked by your table this morning. Brine, salt, fish, rotting wood – the hallmark odors of any respectable sea vessel. You unconsciously trailed after him with your nose, following that sailor’s perfume like a siren’s call, which resulted in you obtusely gawking at his ass as he left the room.

You could ask about it later. You were busy now, dancing the illiteracy tango with these logbooks in hopes of getting a lead.

The greatest crime of any pirate is that he is also a businessman, meaning that he is not just unyielding in his greed, but in his bureaucracy. The records that Iron Leg kept were both thorough and indecipherable, since they were only meant for his eyes, so there was a wealth of information that law enforcement had no chance of understanding. You didn’t have any chance with written information, but that was no matter. You knew what would miss, and those numbers didn’t lie.

Humming to yourself to fight the boredom of reviewing four journals completely filled with this crap, you pieced together your observations on a sheet of paper.

And then the smell of the sea was back.

“You have been quite devoted to studying those journals. Would you care to discuss your findings?”

Like a headache that comes and goes, the return of the Czech accent was even more grating this time against such a lovely aroma. Vulturous, he loomed over you, waiting for an answer. You rubbed your temple.

“You got a point to make or what?” you didn’t spare him a glance.

“I do. I was waiting until Jayce had left for lunch as to not embarrass you further. Seeing as that has happened, I will be frank: you cannot read. What do you hope to find in those books?”

You knew there was something off about him last night. He might have known even longer; it wasn’t a hard thing to figure out, especially in such an academic setting. Though, if he was hoping that this would throw you off, he was going to be sorely disappointed. You put your pencil down and lifted the journal you were working on closer to your face.

“Simple. I was curious about their trip to Ionia three months ago,” you replied, nonchalant as a spider spinning her web.

“There was no trip to Ionia three months ago,” and, like a very smug fly, he fell straight into your trap.

“I knew it,” you lowered the journal, your voice dancing with glibness, “you went to Iron Leg’s ship last night, didn’t you?”

He succeeded in maintaining composure for the most part, but the disbelief unfolded in his wide eyes. In the moment of awed silence, you heard the grip on his cane tighten.

“How did you know?” he accepted defeat gracefully.

“You need to take a shower. You smell like boat. And, you just graciously confirmed for me that you read these journals. So, let me ask you,” you snapped the journal shut, “what got you so interested that you decided to break the law for it, hm?”

The boat had been quarantined to a side-area of the port for the sake of the investigation, and was proclaimed strictly off limits to the public. Your chin coquettishly resting on your folded hands, you drank in the sight of him realizing that you could accuse him of tampering with a crime scene.

“I-“ he cleared his throat, “well, for the reason I just told you. You had an ulterior motive when you asked for them.”

“No, no, no, you’re still the one in trouble here. Keep talking. What were you looking for last night?” you had him cornered and you both knew it. Now, you just had to wait for his pride to crumble.

He sighed.

“You will think me paranoid, but… I read the entries, the trade logs, specifically, and I noticed something peculiar about a merchant from Bilgewater. This person was known for their expediency in transporting things to and from Piltover. According to the captain’s records, and I see no reason why he would lie about this, every time man went to Piltover and came back, it took less time than before.”

“How do you mean?”

“In the 3rd book, pages 14, 50, 216, 236, and 273. In the most recent one, pages 44, 79, 106, 154, 197, 225, and 264,” you opened the journals and fluttered through the pages that he mentioned, “the merchant in the text is represented by the letter ‘P.’ It looks like a tennis racket cut in half longways.”

“Yeah, I see it,” you took his teaching in stride, allowing yourself to be pulled along in this conspiracy.

“You will notice that, at first, a round trip takes a month, and then three weeks, and then two weeks, then one, until, in the most recent entry, it took this man no more than five days to go to and from Piltover.”

“That’s impossible. It takes at least 30.”

“I thought so too, but that is not the most troubling part. I took the distance that one could normally cover in those travel times and subtracted it from the total distance between Piltover and Bilgewater, giving me the number of kilometers that were effectively missing from this person’s journey. And, I realized that… ugh, do not tell Jayce this, but I realized that the distances of the missing kilometers was very similar to the distances that we have successfully been able to transport things with our portals.”

You opened your mouth to say something, but he beat you to it.

“I know! I know it sounds crazy, but the resemblance was uncanny. I took the data from our portal tests and compared the missing kilometers with our recorded maximum distance from the same week. It was near identical – not just the distance, but the rate of improvement over time. And now, our portals are developed enough to possibly transport someone from Piltover to Bilgewater in the blink of an eye, and this merchant is the fastest he’s ever been. Then, this ship just happens to land in Piltover. Is that not strange?”

“And… you went to the ship because you wanted to see if you could find something to support this?” you said it slowly, entirely nonplussed with what he had just dropped on you.

“Yes. Naturally, I could not explain it to the Enforcers without sounding insane. But it doesn’t matter,” he frowned, “I did not find anything.”

You looked at the floor, completely frozen with consideration. The only sign that you were still alive was the rise and fall of your chest as you breathed.

This man actually thought that someone random merchant had managed to copy his highly secret and dangerous portal technology, and then used that knowledge to sell things? While completely going under the radar of literally everyone? Granted, stranger things had happened in Bilgewater, but there was always a reason for them. You couldn’t imagine why someone would go to all that effort just to keep it a secret and transport standard goods.

Unless the goods weren’t standard.

“You might be on to something,” you peered at the circled row of dates on your paper, “can you, uh, can you look up August 12thfor me? From 2 years ago?”

“No need, I recall this one. This was the first interaction that they had with this ‘P’.”

“Oh? No shit?” the words might’ve been sarcastic, but you visibly perked up with excitement.

“Yes.”

You put a little star next to that date.

“Okay, I’ve got some more.”

You rattled off 4 more dates, yielding one uneventful transaction with ‘P’ and 3 random days at sea. It wasn’t until the final date, exactly 4 weeks ago, that you struck gold.

“I believe…” Viktor was flipping through the most recent journal, “ah, yes. They met with him in Bilgewater this day, just after his return voyage from PIltover.”

You drew an urgent, chunky box around that date with your pencil.

“That all but confirms it, then,” you determined, “alright, you’ve been straight with me, so I’ll be straight with you. If your information is accurate, then I think that this ‘P’ is the one who sold Iron Leg the hextech crystals.”

He didn’t say anything, but he leaned back on his cane dubiously, relishing his turn on the skepticism.

“So, as you made a point to mention, I can’t read,” you said through gritted teeth, “but! I know numbers. Specifically the logs of the ship’s weight.”

You grabbed the journal that he had been reading straight from his hands and turned to a random page. Holding it open with your thumb and pinky finger, wincing slightly as it pressed against your burn wound, you pointed to a row of four unmarked numbers that appeared with each log entry.

“Ah. So that’s what those are.”

“Right! They’re unmarked, because only Iron Leg would ever need them, but I remember that these were the weights of specific kinds of items on the ship. He kept them on hand to make sure that it didn’t sink too low into the water. These are,” your finger hopped down the list, “the weight of the rum, the weight of the cannon balls, the weight of the gold, and the weight of all the other cargo.”

“So,” you put the book back on the table, “I noted any significant changes in these numbers. That’s what those dates I just told you were. And, it just so happens that, on that day, 4 weeks ago, he lost a lot of gold and his miscellaneous weight went up 10.63 kilograms. About. He wasn’t exact. Hextech crystals are 2.12 kilograms, which is 10.63 divided by 5. If you divide the number of the gold lost by 5, you get the average price of a hextech crystal on the black market. So, it stands to reason that-“

“There were 5 crystals originally purchased.”

“Thank you,” you quipped, “yes, there were 5 originally purchased, and since the only miscellaneous weight lost between then and now was the 2.12 kilograms of the crystal that I used, the other 4 might still be on there.”

“Gods, that actually does make sense,” he admitted, rolling his head back to stare at the ceiling like the realization that you were right caused him physical pain.

“I know. And, if this ‘P’ really is using portals- heh, wait, I just realized, ‘P’ for portal-“

“That is definitely a coincidence.”

“Shut up. If he’s using portals, then it makes sense that he would have access to hextech crystals. So, my last question to you, cabin boy, is if you found a safe during your little night cruise.”

“No,” he huffed, facing you “no. I did not. But there is one?”

“Yup. And I know where it is. If the crystals are anywhere, they’re there.”

“So the ship requires a second look, then,” he groaned, “and I suppose you would like to come?”

“You got it. Cause if you don’t bring me, then I’ll have no choice but to tell on you for your break-in,” you mocked him with the glee of a child on the playground.

“I don’t suppose you have a key or a combination?” he raised an eyebrow, to which you shook your head, “Then this will require lockpicking.”

“I won’t say anything if you won’t.”

“I won’t. For now.”

“Good enough,” you nodded, eagerly getting up from your chair.

*****

Even though you were breaking into a boat in broad fucking daylight, the most difficult thing was still Viktor. He wouldn’t leave until he had written a note to Jayce and left it on the table, spinning some bullshit yarn about how you two were going to the docks to “take a break.”

“You couldn’t have at least lied about where we’re going?” you whined once you were out on the quad.

“If you kill me, I want them to find the body,” he was only half-joking.

You were a little insulted at that, but chose to not tell him that you would never stoop to murder. Perhaps it was better if he feared you.

“If you want me to push you into the sea, all you have to do is ask.”

“I don’t think you could, but it is better to be safe than sorry,” he shrugged. How was it possible for someone to be so conceited?

“You don’t think I could? You’re lucky I’m not going to take that as a challenge.”

“You would do well to remember that, despite appearances,” he shifted his weight on his cane, eyeing you coldly to ensure that you got the message, “I am not helpless.”

“I don’t care about your leg,” you brushed him off, “please. I hang around sailors, remember? I’ve seen people with busted limbs raise all kinds of hell. No, I just think I could take you because you suck.”

“How egalitarian.”

Silence. The wind howled. You found yourself rubbing your shoulders, trying to keep some warmth in your upper body. He’s being slow on purpose, you thought, practically green with envy at the sight of a warm coat and shoes with functional soles. You would dig through the lost and found again when you got back.

“You never told me what initially prompted you to ask for the journals,” he commented, pretending not to notice your glare.

“Remember when I was gone for the afternoon a few days ago,” you kicked a wayward rock and shoved your hands in your pockets to keep them from numbing, “I was getting questioned by the Enforcers about Iron Leg. It just made me think about some stuff.”

“You’ll need to be a little more specific.”

“Everyone, even the Enforcers, agree that there’s something weird going on here.”

“But it’s not your job to figure it out. It will not prove your innocence,” he regarded you with less aggression than normal, not unlike the man that had questioned you in the Enforcer station. He was trying to guide your train of thought into a confession that you didn’t even have.

“Thanks, I know that. I guess I was just curious. Y’know, despite appearances I don’t like being jerked around like some dog’s fuckin’ chew toy. I figured that, with what little freedom I had, I could try to figure some of this stuff out. For my own closure if nothing else.”

“I see,” he paused, deliberating “well, at least we do not have conflicting motivations.”

“Oh, right,” you rolled your eyes, “because someone touched your baby.”

“It is not a protective instinct,” he lied, instantly recognizing his voice’s unconvincing pitchiness.

“Okay, good,” you feigned belief, putting on an especially annoying type of sardonic innocence, “because I think most people would agree that it’s unreasonable to be protective of a rock made in Shuriman that anyone can obtain.”

“It’s not like that.”

“Then what’s it like?”

“I don’t have to explain myself to you. We’re wasting time,” he stormed forward to the empty docks. You didn’t even mind, already distracted by something far more important.

The cold was awful, but it did keep potential witnesses at home, making it easy to catch the sight of your former prison in the distance. You jogged right past Viktor.

Even now, after everything, you were tempted to unfurl those sails and disappear over the blue horizon. It would be so easy, too - perhaps Viktor was right to be suspicious. Upon seeing your work, your cannon, mounted proudly on the ship’s starboard side, the idea of a blitzkrieg revenge and a swift exit was very tempting.

But there would be time for that later.

“They called her the Kraken’s Teeth,” you told Viktor when he caught up, basking in its glory. He seemed unwilling to entertain your sea farer’s admiration.

“Let’s just get this over with.”

“Aw. Excited for baby’s first crime?”

“Perhaps the first crime where I get caught, if you keep being so careless,” he said lowly, making a point to keep his voice down.

“Alright then, asshat. What’s the plan?” you matched his volume.

“We board the- oh…” he frowned at the edge of the dock.

“What?”

“When I came here last night, there was a boarding plank. But it appears they removed it.”

You could practically hear the gap between the ship and the dock, where the plank should’ve been, laughing at you.

“Man, maybe they noticed that someone broke in or something,” he rolled his eyes at you, “welp, time to get creative.”

You rubbed your hands together, approaching one of the thick ropes wrapped around the dock post that kept the ship from floating away. Following its incline, you tracked an unobstructed and relatively short path to the upper deck.

“How good of a climber are you?” you asked without looking back at him.

“I can hold on to a rope, but other than that, miserable. Please tell me that is not your plan.”

“Hear me out,” you spun around, gesturing wildly, “I could climb the docking rope, which will get me up there. Then, I could take down the halyard, throw it over the side, and pull you up with the davit.”

“The… what?”

“The pulley system,” you pointed, “they took the rowboat and the ropes off, but once I reattach the halyard to it, pulling you up will be a breeze.”

“I do not like that idea,” he was stern, though you couldn’t actually figure out what you did wrong this time, even in his own little twisted system of morality. It felt like he was doing it just to turn you down.

“You got a better one?”

“I cannot rely on you to get me up and down.”

You let out a rowdy exhale and dropped your arms to your side.

“Literally no one is gonna know about this, you don’t have to keep up appearances,” you nagged impatiently, “and, even if I did want to drop you, which I don’t, the davit has an automatic stop, so you that would catch you.”

“I do not trust you with my cane,” he said bluntly, “I would have to give it to you in order to get up and down in the way you propose. I will not risk that.”

“Alright, fine then. You can stay here,” you grumbled.

You saw his point. While there was a failsafe against you deciding to drop him, his cane, this part of himself, would be completely exposed for you to chuck into the water if you wanted too. Might as well ask him to hold your hand as he dangled over the edge of a cliff.

Not that you would chuck his cane into the ocean. You were selfish, not cruel. But still, even if you felt like explaining that to him you had a feeling that it wouldn’t stick.

“Do not take long,” he said to your back as you began to crawl up the dock rope. Nestled between the words were the hollow tones of disappointment.

*****

The ship made Viktor feel small. All of the cannons lining the starboard edge stared at him like the eyes of sea monster. He had to crane his neck to watch you contort over the railing before you were swallowed by what he assumed was the Captain’s Quarters. The sails were curled like fists and the ropes shimmied in the wind. Every part of this thing was alive.

Except for that damn figurehead. The dead-eyed woman, with whorls of rusty tentacles for hair and an anchor in her suffocating grasp, was the only thing properly spiritless on this ghost of a ship.

He caught a whiff of what you must have smelled on him this morning, and though he could not understand your fondness for it, you were right – he should shower.

You certainly weren’t more tolerable out here, but it was peculiar to see you in your element. He had never pictured you as athletic, probably because he never pictured you on a boat at all. Now that he saw your trademark modifications attached to the cannon that you were beaming at, phantoms of your life abord this ship dotted his vision unavoidably, like the spots that he got when he stood up too fast. He saw you spending days in the same hunched over position, cranking out new versions of your designs and avoiding the bare feet of crewmembers that did not care if they stepped on you. You were hanging off the side of the boat, tied to the mast, on one of the ocean’s calmer days to make adjustments to the very end of the cannon’s muzzle. You were skittishly knocking on the door to the captains quarters to announce that you were finished, knowing that his dissatisfaction meant pain and possible death.

And yet, you still greeted the ship like an old friend.

He almost mistook you climbing back down to him with a rope slung over your shoulder as another vision, but the thump of your landing on the deck confirmed that you were, indeed, real. You were furrowing your brow with an emotion that he couldn’t place.

“I need you to read something,” you confessed, pulling the rope off of yourself, “if I tie the thing to you so you don’t need to give it to me, then will you get your ass on the ship?”

“It will not fall?”

“Once again, I must remind you that I hang out with sailors. I can tie a knot,” you strung the rope out in front of you, “so, are you in or out?”

He had no desire to be back on that boat, but he was voraciously curious, as per usual, and he didn’t want to be stuck just asking you questions. No, he had to be in the field.

“Give me a moment,” he walked over the dock post and leaned his back against it to support himself, before nodding to you, “ok.”

“Arms up. And tell me if anything is too tight.”

He complied, gingerly lifting his hands and his cane into the air. You kneeled down, wrapping the rope twice around the small of his waist.

“Ok. Now hold the cane how you would walk with it.”

He pressed it to the dock, holding it steady for you to work around. You looped over it once, twice, then thrice, securing each with a knot as you did. Your fingers were nimble, punctual for each complex movement as if you were just braiding hair. You pulled it taught, leaving plenty of slack for him to maneuver with.

He tried, honest to gods tried, not to cringe ever time he felt his clothes indent with your touch. You were doing the same thing, he noticed, trying to keep your hands on the rope and only the rope, though there were a few slip ups. Whenever you did happen to brush against his skin, by necessity or accident, you kept contact as light as possible, which he appreciated. Still, he felt the rope fight against his fidgeting as you tried to keep your work neat.

“Is something too tight?” you asked, intently focused. When he didn’t answer, you looked up at him, and he found himself lost in his own tiny reflection in one of your pupils. Your eyes were different right now – not tapered off with any emotion or intention, just there, waiting and full of potential. And he was staring right into them like an idiot.

“No,” he responded, forcing his vision out into the stretch of non-prohibited ships along the dock.

He was just momentarily caught off guard by such a rare occurrence, he told himself. The same way that a zoologist would be intrigued by some species’ new migration pattern.

“Wrist.”

He held the cane in place with his left hand and surrendered his right arm. You caught It just under the elbow and wound the rope a few times around his wrist. Another knot. Leaving the same amount of slack that you did before, you doubled the rope back on itself and tied it around his waist again, finishing with a final, firm tug.

“Okay. You have more knots that most pirates have teeth,” you stepped back to get a full view of him.

You were right. The rope stabilized around his waist, then the cane, then his wrist, and then back again, with enough spare rope so he could use it without restriction. And, he had to admit, it was not the most hideous thing he’d ever worn.

“This works.”

“Finally,” you exhaled and let your shoulders relax, “alright. I’m gonna go up there and let down the rope. Once I start to pull it, I’m not gonna be able to see you, so yank it three times when you’re ready for me to start pulling you up. And if anything happens, yell. But only if it’s, like, really bad, or else someone else might hear us.”

“Understood.”

“I’ll see you on the other side,” you turned and scurried back to the upper deck.

*****

“I never thought I would say this, but aren’t you, Councilor Medarda, being a little optimistic?”

“Not at all. The Council is not entirely tone-deaf, you know, and this would present a clean solution to the labor shortage. Above all else, they would like to avoid getting involved with Zaun’s workers, so there’s no reason why they wouldn’t be entirely in favor of your proposal.”

“Damned if you do, damned if you don’t,” he sighed into his drink.

“What do you mean?”

“Getting Zaun workers in Piltover. That was… something that Viktor and I have been wanting to do for a long time. It would do wonders for city integration, take power away from the industry lords, and give the workers a good shot at unionizing if they wanted too.”

“Which, as you know, is exactly the reason that the Council is opposed to it,” Mel swirled the wine in her glass, watching it sway like a snow globe.

“Their apathy is starting to try my patience.”

“Then I suggest you focus on something else for now. Perhaps when relations are better with Zaun we can try again, but at the moment there is no way that following through with this proposal wouldn’t directly affect you future chance of hiring Zaun workers.”

“How are we supposed to wait while they’re in a crisis?!” he slapped a thick hand against the table, causing the silverware to stir from their carefully selected placements.

Mel knew that he wasn’t angry with her. Jayce, as bright as he was, did not yet have the entry-level cynicism to emotionally process most politics. He kept propelling himself forward in this vicious cycle of relying on the Council to do something, getting disappointed when they don’t, trying to figure out what he can do to change their mind, and then relying on the Council to do something all over again.

He was living the average diplomat’s entire emotional career every 3 days. At one point, Mel thought that this would kill any trace of idealism left in him, but, to her surprise, it only fueled him. Righteous indignation would rise like a phoenix from the ashes after every defeat, stronger than before, and while it would still go down in the end, there was always a fight.

No, it wasn’t killing any idealism. It was just killing Jayce.

“You can’t solve every problem at once,” Mel put a reassuring hand on his forearm, “you are one man. One brilliant architect of the next Utopia, sure, but still just one. No one will think less of your devotion to your ideals if you choose to focus your energies into fewer projects.”

“No one thinks about my ideals at all.”

“That’s not true. Most people think about lofty ideas and never actually get around to implementing them. You are lonely because you are doing something with your principles. Even around here, progress can scare people.”

“Heh. That I can believe,” he faltered, “They were not happy with Penny.”

“Is this your way of trying to casually bring up the topic of her sentencing?”

“I’d just like to know your thoughts as my trusted ally, Councilor Medarda.”

“I must admit that her escape does not bode well, even against the amount of research that you’ve managed to complete in such a short time,” she folded her hands together, “but, I think that the best way to convince the Council to keep her would be to prove, beyond the shadow of a doubt, that she is invaluable to Hextech.”

“They won’t just take my word for it, huh?”

“No. You need evidence – an invention or discovery to show the fruits of their mercy.”

“We’ve got some stuff coming up that would probably do the trick.”

“Good. However, there is nothing you can in regards to the, let’s call it, ‘moral’ portion of what the Council is evaluating. They want to see that someone who has done wrong is punished for their crimes. And seeing that you and Viktor are not even in consensus about her moral status, it is unlikely that the Council will be any better.”

“Viktor and I disagreeing is not like the Council disagreeing.”

“Oh? And how so? Viktor seems just as convinced as most of the Council does that reform is simply not worth the effort.”

“I don’t know how to explain it but- look, the Council? They’re trying to keep her here because they’re scared. Viktor, he’s not scared of her. Worried, uncomfortable, even, but there’s no fear. It’s just different. Trust me on this.”

“And is there any way that this worry or discomfort may be alleviated?”

“I’d like to think so, but that’s really between them. But the Council is a governing body, they’re supposed to be better. What if we could give them some evidence of this reform stuff?”

“Can you?”

“Well, not right now. But if it comes along down the road, it should be factored in, shouldn’t it?”

“It will be too late.”

“This kind of thing doesn’t take a day,” his anger began to churn again.

“The Council believes that it doesn’t happen at all. They do not like moral grey areas. It complicates things tremendously.”

“Just because something is complicated doesn’t mean that it’s bad.”

“No, but it does mean that you need to lift your head up and look it in the eye. And they aren’t ready for that.”

*****

“The combination is where you left it on the mast.”

“Okay. Keep going.”

“That’s it.”

“That’s it?! That’s all it says? That gives us, like, nothing!”

“What were you expecting?”

The safe was bolted down underneath the fetid rug and floorboards of the Captain’s Quarters. It was a tiny thing, more like a lockbox, with a note attached to the top of it rendering that cryptic sentence.

“I dunno, something like ‘this safe is filled with explosives and will blow up if you try to open it,’ or whatever.”

Viktor pulled his legs in and stood, his knees quivering with a small, but insistent ache.

“It will not blow up. So now, we can open it.”

“Yeah, yeah,” you laid on the floor, resting your chin in one hand, your legs kittenishly bobbing up and down like you were at a preteen sleepover. Viktor grimaced the idea of sprawling himself out across that flea-infested green carpet, stained with gods know what.

He still could not accept the idea that this was supposed to be the most lavish space on the ship. It was tiny, with a crotchety iron bedframe and an old desk with boot prints permanently marking its surface. The air smelled of rum and gunpowder, which, while not the worst on their own, did not mix well. He couldn’t even imagine how cramped it was with all of the furniture still in here.

He found that he much preferred the open air of the deck, where at least he knew he wasn’t wallowing in his own filth.

“This will take a minute,” you gave him the hint to leave you alone.

He meandered through the doorway, drowning around in the fresh sea breeze and being intimidated by the height of the mast up close. During his solo visit, he had been so fixated on proving his theory that he had sort of just… wandered past everything. But with you here, there was a lot more waiting around.

He found himself drifting towards the stairwell on the opposite end, spurring him to explore below.

He peered at you, still concentrating on the lock, and decided that it wouldn’t hurt.

The lower deck was less muggy than the Captain’s Quarters, but it smelled way worse. Congested with the body odor of its former tenants and something that had soured a long time ago, his nose shriveled defensivley. The floor was laden with mounds of blankets while hammocks boughed above, all in disarray after the place was searched by Enforcers. He couldn’t even see what was on the other end.

Taking a step forward, the tap of his cane was muffled by one of the sheets, thought the weight of his shoe still sent an agitated creak through the cloth jungle. He brushed a hammock to the side and ventured further, gradually adapting to the floor’s whining. As he distanced himself from the rafter, the shadowy mass that clung to walls absorbed more of the room.

He finally stopped in the center, the darkest part. The floorboards stuttered, and then stopped a second too late. Viktor was still.

Those weren’t his footsteps.

“Shhhhhhhhh,” someone in the dark wheezed, pressing the business end of a revolver against Viktor’s left shoulder. Viktor funneled all of the words that he wanted to shout into a punitive squeeze of his cane. A jolt of adrenaline rustled his senses, a reminder that his Zaunite ingenuity never left, it was just hiding.

He saw their fingers, the creases puckered with dryness.

Grabbing his cane by its middle, he snatched their wrist and dragged the gun away from his center and off to the side, where it tumbled into his waiting palm. He managed to wrench the gun from their grip as his attacker startled with a yelp, very much caught off guard. In a single practiced motion, Viktor brought the cane back and then whacked into the dingy emptiness, feeling something hit the handle with a satisfying crunch. They howled furiously.

Turning the gun and audibly pulling the hammer down with his thumb, he aimed it outwards, making his intentions clear as he stumbled back up the stairs. He did not let his guard drop for a second, even when he felt the warm sunlight on his back.

*****

4 crystals, just as you predicted, in a delicate velvet bag. You peaked in through the top, embracing the satisfying blue glow that pooled with their weight.

You took a minute to search through the other things in there. A sketch of a child, no more than 6 or 7, a simple gold ring, and perhaps the coolest knife that you’d ever seen. The blade was still sharp, and the large holes on the outside edge trailing straight through the metal made it extremely light and easy to control. The handle was black and gilded with bronze filigree.

The only complaint that you had was that there was no sheath, meaning that you were carrying around this random safety hazard. Oh well, can’t have everything.

“PENNY!” Viktor’s voice was wavering as he called to you from the deck. At this volume, passerby were bound to hear you.

“This better be good,” you said under your breath, shoving the other two items into your pockets and keeping the knife in one hand, “you tryna get us-“

“There’s someone below deck! We have to go.”

“What?!”

Swinging your knife around to reverse grip, you walked up behind Viktor, who had a revolver dead set on the stairwell.

“Eh, you don’t happen to be a good shot, do you?” he murmured to the side, eyes still glued forward.

“Nope. You?”

“No.”

“Great. I’ll take point – cover me,” you began to edge forward.

“We are not going back down there.”

“If we want to get to the dock, that’s gonna leave my back exposed, and I am not gonna die on this fucking ship. Let’s go,” you passed him, knees bent, as you reluctantly descended the stairs.

You stopped just before turning the corner. If someone tried to charge him, then you would have a clear path to stab, and if someone tried to charge you, he could shoot them. People always thought that the one with the firearm should go first, but that usually left them uncovered.

“Alright, jackass,” you yelled to the lower deck, “we got all day. So make this easy and come out with your hands up.”

Click. An object emerged from the dark and rumbled onto the stairs next to you, rolling in a half circle.

Shit.

“HIT THE DECK!” you barreled back up the stairs and grabbed Viktor’s arm with your free hand, dragging him forward.

“Cover your head,” you panted, and threw yourself and him to the floor without waiting for an answer. You bent your arms over your neck.

He copied you just as the boom went off.

Smoke wreathed the upper half of the deck like storm clouds, forcing you to crawl on the floor to where you remembered your coil of rope was. Kneeling, and ignoring the sting that traveled through your sinuses and forced blunt tears from your eyes, you tossed the rope over the side.

“Can you get down okay?” you asked him under the blanket of fumes. He looked up at you and comprehended instantly.

“Yes,” he holstered the gun and let his cane dangle at his side.

“Yank it twice when you’re done,” you said over the ledge like a goodbye, watching him scale down to the docks.

Ignoring the smoldering of robe burn and the numbness in the tips of your fingers, you waited in the dark for 10 very tense seconds. For the last five of them, you wondered if he would tug at all or just leave you here to die.

Two sharp jerks. You let the rope slip and vaulted over the railing to the dock rope, your fingers sprinkling blood on their jagged edges as you practically fell back to solid land. You and Viktor trudged behind the dumpsters and back into the pristine streets. You didn’t stop walking until you could no longer see the smoke blossom in the sky.

Resting for a moment in an alleyway to cut his rope belt off with your new knife, you felt the urge to say something.

“You know you didn’t have to bring me along with you,” you said, letting the ropes fall from his waist as your blade slid through them, “even if I did try to report you, no one would’ve believed me. What, am I gonna say that this law abiding citizen did a crime just because he smelled funny?”

“And you did not have to bring me onboard. You could’ve just brought the note down,” he replied into the extra careful silence of you slicing the ropes around his cane.

“I know. Consider it a debt repaid, I guess. No one really likes to do this sort of thing alone,” you released the final loop from his wrist, looking dead into his eyes, “but this never happened, got it?”

“Of course. And do not expect me to cover for you if the Enforcers come knocking.”

“Wouldn’t dream of it,” you were pleased with the understanding, so you decided to throw in some bonus bad news, “ohbythewaytherewerefourothercrystalsandIforgottotakethem.”

“YOU WHAT?!”

*****

You cracked the door open. The lights in the lab were still off.

“Wasn’t Jayce supposed to be back by now?” you said quietly to Viktor.

“He was,” Viktor muttered, following you inside.

Everything was just as you left it. Except Viktor’s note. That was gone.

“Oh, hey guys,” a voice boomed from the darkest corner. You jumped, almost falling over but catching yourself on the table. Jayce stepped into the light, “woah there, Penny. You look a little on edge.”

“I’m fine,” you put a hand to your chest as you caught your breath, eyeing him suspiciously.

“That’s good. That’s good that you’re both fine,” he looked at Viktor, “because I heard that there was a terrible accident at the dock. You know, the on that you guys were taking a break at. Because you love to take breaks, especially in the middle of the work day. And you just happened to take this break near that ship you were both researching.”

He advanced, looking down on you two like he was your mom.

“This is why you lie about where you’re going,” you whispered to Viktor.

Jayce took a long, tortuous inhale.

“And you both woke up this morning smelling like smoke, of course,” he crossed his arms, “you don’t have anything to tell me, do you?”

You felt like a kid watching their parents argue. Yeah, you were also part of this, but delinquency was to be expected of you. Most of Jayce’s anger was directed at Viktor, so you waited for him to answer.

“Eh… I suppose it’s about time we told you,” he caved, scratching the back of his neck, “all I ask is that, while we explain, you listen to everything we have to say, and then ask questions.”

And surprisingly, Jayce did. All the way through he looked wholly bewildered, but he kept signaling that it was alright to continue. You and Viktor traded different parts of the narrative, with you skipping over your illiteracy and Viktor skipping over that time you tricked him. All things considered, you were both pretty animated storytellers.

“And then Penny-“

“I’ll take this one. So, yeah, since we were kinda being bombed,” you gave Viktor a pointed stare, “I forgot to take the crystals. Heh. Sorry.”

You rubbed your arm. Now that every bit of adrenaline had been used up by your system, the weight of your little slip up was beginning to sink the bottom of your stomach with dread. Of course, you were going to be questioned about the investigation, and if they figured out that you actually were there, you had no way to justify the break in.

“I don’t care about the crystals. I’m just glad you both got out alright. For real, this time,” his smile was pleasant. Of course, he meant it more for Viktor than you, but who’s counting?

“We did get this, though,” you dropped the sketch, the ring, and the knife on the table after you swatted away the pocket lint.

“A ring?” Jayce lifted the gold band up and stared through the center, “He was married?”

“He was. And they had a kid. That’s who the sketch is,” you pointed to the crude, but loving, drawing.

“And the knife?”

“Oh, I dunno, it’s just awesome.”

“Ah, right, speaking of weapons,” Viktor carefully placed the revolver on the table, “I got this off our assailant.”

“Wait, that’s not yours?” you asked, and he shook his head, “so… so if you sell it can we split it 70/30?”

“Yes, of course, because selling a gun is not suspicious at all,” he retorted, crossing his arms like Jayce had a few minutes ago.

“I’m just asking.”

“And why would you get 30 anyway? I took the guy out.”

“Yeah, and then I got you out.”

“Hmmmm…” he was genuinely considering your offer, which left you a bit taken aback, “80/20.”

“What?! Are you saying that making sure you didn’t die is only worth 20?”

“I’m docking 10 for the crystals.”

“Bullshit.”

“80/20, take it or leave it.”

“Fine.”

“You can get 80 for the knife.”

“Oh, I’m not selling that. That’s mine,” you smiled possessively.

“Hey, this one has a date on it,” Jayce, who had tuned you both out, was looking at the back of the sketch.

“May I see it?” Viktor asked.

Jayce spun the thing around with his fingers, holding it up so his partner could thumb through a journal while reading it.

“Oh… August 12th, 2 years ago. This is the oldest mention of ‘P.’ Penny, you said that this day was important as well, did you not?”

“Yeah.”

“What was so significant?”

“Well, we lost a lot of rum that day. More than is standard,” you explained, taking a seat on the table, “if people decide to drink from the ship’s store, then they aren’t permitted more than a half gallon – about 1.9 kilos – of rum a day. But on that day, we lost 35 kilos, which doesn’t make sense since only the 13 crew and the captain were on the ship that day, and they were very far out at sea. So, either the captain partook, which he almost never does, or somehow they lost a bunch of rum and no one noticed.”

“What’s your take on it?” Jayce asked.

“Sailors are protective of their rum. If someone took more than they were owed, there would be hell to pay. 20 lashes at least. And that would be recorded. I think it’s more likely that Iron Leg had a wild night.”

“So,” Jayce continued, “we have a sketch of his kid that was drawn on this day, the same day he met ‘P,’ and then something happened that drove him to drink for the first time in years. His kids not alive, are they?” Jayce stared into the eyes of a sketch as though it had an answer.

“No one’s really sure. But we know that his wife’s grave is in the bay and his kid’s isn’t. And… yeah I think that started circulating about two years ago, so it makes sense with the timeline,” you paused, collecting your thoughts, “I dunno if it’s a coincidence or not, but… never mind, I have no idea what we can do about it either.”

“Yeah, as, uh, convincing as this all is, there’s no way we could bring it to the authorities without getting in trouble,” Jayce conceded.

“We would need something bigger to justify such extreme actions. Like, perhaps, 4 illegally purchased hextech crystals,” Viktor added bitterly.

“Thanks, I got it,” you flashed an overexaggerated smile.

“We’ll think of something eventually. We always do,” Jayce patted his friend on the back, “but for now, I think we’ve had enough of playing detective. We’ve got preparations to make.”

“Ah yes, of course,” Viktor sighed, “the cannon.”

You hummed in agreement, scooping your pile of stuff off the table and returning to the workshop to do a final check-up on the modifications.

You kept the sketch and the ring in your pocket, but the knife you had to leave in the station as to not get it confiscated by Enforcers. You just hoped that the boys would remember your claim to it. You had plans for that knife.

After all, you almost died for it today.

~ End Notes ~

End credits song: "As the Romans Do" by Theo Katzman

#viktor x reader #viktor arcane x reader #viktor arcane #viktor #viktor x you #enemies to lovers #slow burn #viktor x y/n #arcane x reader #jayce talis #mel medarda #caitlyn kira #mel #caitlyn #jayce #waves on the shore #Spotify

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oohfluffy · 5 years ago

Text

TIHM Ch.4 | BBH

Group: EXO

Member: Byun Baekhyun

Theme: Angst | Fluff | Rated M | University!AU | Football!AU

Word Count: 2,782

chapter 4

"Stop eating! Cheer with me!"

You rolled your eyes as you took another bite from your corndog, ignoring your best friend's complaints. The crowd has calmed down a bit and was all settled down on their seats as the game started. It has been 30 minutes since then, and you were not really paying that much attention.

A certain 04 guy kept on glancing this way though.

"Those foxes won't be able to catch up, I'm telling you." Jiwon smirked as she sat back down next to you with her glow sticks in her hands. "Let me have some."

You sighed before letting her get some of your fries. You looked up at the field and saw how they run around like dogs. You cringed as you saw how hard they bump on to each other, almost bouncing off for a good meter away. You watched as number 61 passed the ball to someone from an almost 10 meter distance, making you gasp in awe.

That was a strong pass.

What surprised you more was when the receiver didn't even budge when he grabbed the ball, as if it was nothing. He just continued running away from the opponents, swift and quick as a thief. The crowd suddenly started to shout louder, making you look around in shock.

"BYUN BAEKHYUN! BYUN BAEKHYUN!" They chanted like a mantra as the number 04 guy, who seems to be Byun Baekhyun, pushed his way from the annoying foxes blocking his way from the field goal.

"He seems to be really popular, huh?" You mumbled at your best friend, who was grinning widely beside you.

"Well, he's the quarterback. Suho might be the cap, but Baekhyun is the game manager." She proudly said, waving her glow sticks as the crowd roared in victory. "WHOOO! ANOTHER FIELD GOAL, YAAAS!"

When an hour passed, you stood up from your seat, wanting to have a break from this noisy crowd. Jiwon was on the railings, not running out of energy as she screamed with the other girls. You didn't bother disturbing her and went down the bleachers. You looked at your watch and saw that it was past 8pm.

"I'll just go to the restroom." You muttered as you held on to your bottle of water that Jiwon has bought along your food.

You trudged your way to the restroom located at the side of the field. You can still see the game continuing from here, seeing how bright the glow sticks on the bleachers. Most of the professors were present as well, surprisingly. They were even shouting with the crowd with proud grins.

You looked back at the field and nodded in agreement. Well, you admit those wolves are impressive. With your water bottle swinging in your hand, you entered the dim-lit girls' restroom, squinting your eyes at the blinking fluorescent light on the ceiling.

It seems that they haven't changed the lighting here yet.

Pushing the scary thoughts aside, you quickly entered a cubicle and did your business. You were consciously tapping your bottle on your knee, when the light stopped blinking. You sighed in relief as you stood up and—

"Holy..." You cursed under your breath as you zipped your pants up before raising your hand to locate the cubicle door. The light went out with a quiet thump, awakening those scary thoughts you just had earlier. "No, no. Calm down."

When you got to grab the lock, you opened it in a blink and hesitated.

It's too dark. You won't be able to get out of here. Just like before. In the dark—

"Damn." You scolded yourself for thinking those kinds of things in this situation. You gathered all your courage to open the door and get out quick. When you got to open the door, you carefully went out with your hands in front of you. You can still visualize where was the way to the door, so it won't be that hard, right?

With your heart pounding against your chest, you walked forward with long strides. When your hand hit on the wooden door, you let out a deep relieved sigh. You grabbed the door knob and turned it—

"FUCK!"

"THE HELL!"

Your heart must have stopped thumping as light entered the dark restroom, and a scared-looking puppy looked back at you. You noticed how sweat trickled on the sides of his face, down to his neck. His grayish hair was wet, and his uniform dirty. He probably took a short break, seeing that the game was still on going.

"What were you doing in that..." The number 04 guy looked back at the dark restroom behind you with a cringing expression. "...haunted-looking restroom?"

You instantly remembered you were still inside, and quickly moved out of the room, shutting the door behind you with a slam. You feel like your heart was left inside that dark abyss.

"The light suddenly went out, I didn't get to get out easily. It was too dark." You calmly explained despite the perturbation you felt earlier until now. You let out a breath.

"You okay?"

You blinked your eyes in surprise, darting your gaze up at him.

"Y-Yeah." You tried smiling at him as he seemed so worried. "I-It's just I was surprised."

"Your hands are shaking." Baekhyun furrowed his brows as he reached for your hands. They were indeed slightly shaking. Under his touch, your skin warmed in comfort. "You must be really frightened back there, hmm?"

As he caressed your hands, your cheeks flushed at the scenario. All the scary thoughts of the past were easily wiped out by a mere touch of his smooth skin on yours. You quickly snatched back your hands from his hold, his eyes showing shock and hurt at the same time.

"I-I'm sorry—" You cut him off as you looked away.

"I'm fine. Thanks."

Without another word, you walked away from him, leaving him with his concerned but interested eyes following you.

You didn't mean to offend him. It's just that, the sparks you felt along the collision of your skins surprised you.

"Where have you been?! I thought you left me." Jiwon welcomed your comeback with a pout, her glow sticks on her sides. "But then I realized that you still have an unfinished snack in the paper bag, so I knew you'd be back." She grinned as she pointed at your seat, where your paper bag with a half corndog left sat.

"You know me so well." You grinned weakly as you sat next to her, noticing your almost empty water bottle. You forgot to refill it at the water fountain near the restroom. You suddenly remembered your nerve-wracking experience in that restroom.

And your encounter with the quarterback.

"You alright, Jin-ah? Want water?"

You looked at your best friend, who was staring at you with worried eyes. You smiled and gratefully took her bottled water.

"Thank you. I just forgot to refill mine." You said before taking a gulp from her water bottle. She must have been slightly convinced as she saw your bottle, but her eyes didn't let go of your distracted gaze.

"Are you sure? You seem out of it."

At times like this, you don't know if you should be thankful that Jiwon is such an observant friend. Whenever something's wrong, she'll know it in no time. She looks after you like a mother would.

But sometimes, you just don't want to dig that past back. You just want to keep it in yourself.

You nodded enthusiastically, which probably too fake and not you, before looking at the field. You saw that 04 got back into the game, skipping his way into the field.

"I'm alright."

I'm not.

—

That Friday night ended with the Eve Academy's win as expected.

Jiwon talked endlessly about the game as you both went home, that you felt guilty not being able to contribute much enthusiasm in the whole conversation. Just a few nods and commentaries said.

Until Monday came, everyone was still buzzing in excitement as they talked about the game. You already heard enough from Jiwon, what more in campus? You begrudgingly closed your locker door before securely hugging your book for the second period.

"Only a subject left before lunch, my peaceful time of day." You mumbled to yourself as you turned on a corner towards the stairs.

You were looking ahead the hallway of the second floor, relieved at the minimal noise from the people around you. It was more chaotic on the first floor as everyone chats loudly near the lockers area—

"Oof!"

You almost dropped your approximately 50 thousand won book as this huge and irritating force catch you off guard. Fortunately, your fast muscle response didn't disappoint you. You planted your other palm that wasn't holding your book on the nearest wall, balancing yourself as a tall person's well-built body hit the floor.

"ARGH!" He whined as he met the floor with a wince.

"Hey! Stop roughhousing in the hallways, Park and Byun!" A familiar stern voice rang through the walls, making you look back at the small crowd beside you. They were walking from the adjacent hallway you were walking from earlier. This guy on the floor looks familiar as well.

"It was Baek! He pushed me all of a sudden!" The poor floor guy complained, his back flat on the ground. He accusingly pointed his finger to the culprit. "YAH! WHY DID YOU DO THAT?!"

"Hey. I'm sorry about that. Are you alright?" A soft and gentle voice took you back to earth, big comforting eyes staring back at you. You stepped back from the wall before looking at the incoming group. "They're too playful, but they mean no harm."

"I-It's fine. I'm okay." You looked down at the wincing guy, who got help from another tall guy with sharp features. "I think he should be the one you should ask. He fell quite hard."

"Oh." The guy in front of you glanced at his friend with indifferent eyes. "He's fine. He should be used to falling on the ground. Football requires being friends with the earth, you know?"

You tilt your head in confusion as you processed his words. Before you could come into conclusion, a cheery voice pulled you back.

"HEY! You're that early bird fangirl!"

Your eyes widened in recognition as you see their familiar faces and hear their familiar voices. The cat-like smile of the loud guy overwhelmed you. However, because of his loud announcement, the other nine guys with him, including the one on the floor and the one in front of you, looked at you.

"Uh." You tried forming words in your mouth, but nothing seems to come out. Being the center of attention like this is totally not your thing. Especially they were boys. Who the hell won't freak out?

"Oh! Are you a freshman?" The captain, whom you recognized with his stern voice but soft features, asked nicely. "You must be really lucky, huh?"

"Yeah! Managing to watch us practice alone, and bumping into us all!"

You looked around the group, feeling uncomfortable with the attention you were getting, until your gaze fell to him. His cute slanted eyes lit up with mischief and amusement as they met yours, his thin pinkish lips pulled up into a smile.

"I-I'm sorry if you misunderstood me, but I'm not really a fan." You managed to find your voice as you looked away from a certain boy's stare. "But you guys played really well. Congrats on your win." You mentally face-palmed yourself as you realized you blabbered too much.

Are we being too feeling close? They must think I'm very talkative and a desperate secret fan—

"Is that so?" The cat guy pouted, but then smiled. "Thank you still for watching! That meant a lot already for us."

Your eyes widened a bit with surprise. Everyone was smiling gratefully. Even him.

"Y-You're welcome." You looked away before looking at your watch. "I-I need to go. Uh, my class will start in 5." You backed away with an awkward smile.

"Oh, sorry to keep you. See you around!"

You bowed slightly before turning your back at them. Your mind was fuzzy and all you can think about was if that really happened, if you really just talked to so many people at once.

People who didn't look at you with disgust and judging stares.

Your eyes welled up a bit as your lips formed a small smile.

"What a friendly bunch." You whispered to yourself as you shook your head.

—

♫ Ch. 5

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dhwty-writes · 4 years ago

Text

Day 1 - Tattoo Artist/Flower Shop AU

Whooo, it’s @writersmonth again! I have been waiting a whole year for this because last year it was amazing! I actually hoped to do some work up front - and failed spectacularily. The only thing I acutally managed was this 10k monstrosity (and I love it)!

Anyways, all the prompts are about my original work, so if you’re interested in the specifics just ask! But you should unterstand the AU’s just fine and for the canon works I’ll provide some additional info.

Just enjoy reading!

"Looks like we've got new neighbours," Saryan stated as she leaned against the counter.

"Looks like," Aidiya replied without looking up from the phoenix she was sketching in her notebook, a favour Irian was calling in.

"Have you seen them already?" she asked and started shuffling the neatly stacked business cards in front of her.

"No," Aidiya answered, trying to focus on her sketch before clasping her hand tightly over her best friend's. "Stop that," she said exasperated.

Saryan pouted. "You're no fun," she complained but complied and started restacking the cards. "You must've seen them! You've been here all day!"

"I've been working", she sighed, "Unlike someone else." Saryan started drumming her fingertips on the counter-top. Finally, Diya stopped and closed her sketchbook. No use trying if she couldn't concentrate. No use concentrating when her best friend demanded her attention. "Why do you even want to know so badly? It's a flower shop."

"Exactly!" Saryan beamed. "It's a flower shop. Which means it's surely run by a woman who is reasonably hot." She blinked a few times expectantly. "So?"

"So?" Aidiya replied dumbfounded.

"So, have you seen a reasonably hot woman carrying boxes into that flower shop?"

She chewed on her lip as if she was genuinely thinking about it, then she answered: "Not sure actually. Come to think about it, I don't think I've seen a reasonably hot person in my life."

Saryan groaned, burying her head in the crooks of her arms. "You're no fun", Aidiya caught the muffled words.

"Really?" A lopsided grin appeared on her face. "Because I think I am hilarious!" She pushed to stand. "Anyways, get moving. It's your next appointment is in five minutes and I don't see any preparations."

Saryan straightened and saluted her mockingly with a "Yes, ma'am" before vanishing into her room where Diya soon heard the satisfying noise of ink cartridges getting like up and the calming buzz of a tattoo gun only interrupted by the occasional yelp of the newbie getting inked for the first time.

The afternoon passed in a flurry of greeting customers, ushering young girls and their mothers to Boru and Roban for their first piercing embracing regulars as well as a dragon scaling a calf and a branch of cherry blossoms on a shoulder, she got to ink herself.

By the time the sun set the familiar buzz of exhaustion a lack of meds clouded her mind but she welcomed it for once. It stood no chance compared to the satisfaction.

She was sat in the backroom with Boru, Roban and Saryan, the shop closed early, wolfing down Chinese take-out and complaining about the annoying customers of the day when the bell rang. Roban arched an eyebrow but before he could get up Aidiya was already out of the room, the 'sorry-we're-closed-and-no-we-don't-take-walk-ins', speech on the tip of her tongue.

But when she opened the front door, she could do nothing but stare perplexed. The woman and the man - boy, rather - in front of her were not their typical walk-in customers. They customers were not white, middle-aged and female, with a haircut that already beckoned for the manager. They did, however, hold an oversized flower bouquet.

The woman nudged the boy in the side who started talking: "Umm... Hi. We- we're new here. My mother and I. So, we... umm."

"We thought we'd bring you a gift," the woman - his mother - cut in. "Like a reverse housewarming gift. We're from-"

"The flower shop!" Saryan chirped cheerfully. When Aidiya turned around she saw her three co-worker-best-friends crowded behind her in the small door frame of the backroom, ogling the newcomers. Saryan, ever energetic flurried past her and practically ripped the poor boy the bouquet out of the hands. "Hi! I'm Saryan." She presented the woman with her outstretched hand.

"Ehehu," the woman replied shaking it. "That's my son, Goran." The similarities were uncanny. While Goran's bronze shoulders under his tank top were broad and packed with muscle hers were slim. Still, they were almost of a height, which meant freakishly tall for Aidiya, yet rather normal for everyone else. They had the same face, though. The same almond-shaped dark eyes and straight nose, the same high cheekbones, even the same sleek black hair that tumbled to their shoulders.

Saryan beamed. "Pleased to meet you." She slung an arm around Aidiyas neck, pulling her into a choke-hold. "That's my best friend, Aidiya. She runs the business. And the two idiots behind us are Roban and Boru. Our piercer and newbie."

With an elbow to her stomach Aidiya managed to break free and straightened herself. "Right," she said, now taking the flowers, "Thank you. That's really thoughtful."

"Well, we're not really in short supply," Goran mumbled and Aidiyas eyebrows shot up. It took him a second to realise what he had just said but then he quickly looked away.

She chuckled. "I guess you're not."

"Well, anyways," his mother jumped in, "We don't want to intrude any longer. We just wanted to come over with the flowers and to invite you to our opening. It's this Friday at 3 pm. I guess you'll be busy but maybe you'll want to hop by."

"We'll come," Saryan promised before Aidiya had even opened her mouth.

"Great!" Ehehu replied. "See you there!"

A weak "See you" echoed after them as they crossed the street where a van stood waiting before Aidiya closed the door again.

As soon as it fell shut a mean punch hit her in the shoulder. "You told me," Saryan whined, "that there was no hot woman over there!"

"I told you, I have never seen a hot person in my life," she corrected her, "And I really did not see her. Besides she's like... three times your age."

She gasped as if the comment had offended her instead of the new neighbour. "She is not! She's twice my age max." She wiggled with her eyebrows. "Also, let me introduce you to the wonderful concept of a MILF-"

Before she could say anything else, she clamped her hand over her mouth. "Nope!" she declared loudly. "Not having it!"

"Well the boy's a snack," Roban chimed in from the door frame.

Aidiya wrinkled her nose. "Is he? Wouldn't have noticed. I-" With a shriek she pulled her hand back. "Saryan! That's disgusting! What are you, five?!" She yelled, staring in disbelief at her best friend who had just licked her hand.

"You wouldn't let me talk. So anyways. The cutie. The cutie boy. Not your type?"

Aidiya groaned. "No. He is not my type. No-one is my type. Do you even understand what 'asexual' means?"

Saryan opened her mouth, undoubtedly to say something incredible clever but Roban beat her to it: "Anyways I'm calling dibs. There's no way that a guy working in a flower shop is straight." He turned towards the backroom. "And we are so going on Friday."

Aidiya groaned internally. She knew she was fighting a lost battle.

~*~

Aidiya sat at her desk sketching to calm down. The day had been more than stressful which might or might not have been related to the meds she had forgotten at home. 'Simply great,' she thought grumpily, 'Did not concentrate to pack my meds that help me concentrate.'

So, when Saryan draped herself across the table with absolutely no regard for pencils, sketchbooks and personal space, she was naturally grumpy. "What," she asked quickly rescuing her book, "do you want?"

She gasped in mocking offence. "I am your best friend! Can't I just come and talk to you for the fun of it?"

Aidiya raised one sceptical eyebrow.

"Right." She hopped of the desk. "Seeing right through me as usual." She picked a stray hair of her shirt. "I want you to come shopping with me."

She wrinkled her nose. She knew exactly how that was going to go, namely her stuck in the lingerie department for hours on end with a half-hearted promise of visiting the dress section after and then whoops the store is closing, I guess we'll go next time. They never went next time. "Not a chance."

"Not that kind of shopping," she added quickly. "I want to buy a housewarming gift. For our new neighbours!"

"Are you still trying to seduce her?"

"Still?" She laughed. "Diya-Darling, I haven't even started. But no. I just thought we should return the gesture. Seeing as they brought us flowers even though it's them who's moving here."

"They just brought us something from their shop."

"Well, I told her to give them a free tattoo," Roban chimed in from the doorway, "or piercing, whatever they like. The notion was not appreciated."

"They own a flower shop", Aidiya and Saryan said simultaneously and Roban raised his hands in silent defence.

"Great!" Saryan chirped. "So, you agree with us!"

Aidiya groaned. "Are you ganging up on me? Seriously?"

"Well, we wouldn't have to if you just got your ass moving," Roban said entirely unhelpfully.

"I know," she answered with false enthusiasm. "Why don't you two pick out something nice? Seeing as I am not going at all..."

She hadn't even completed her sentence and was already interrupted by Saryan's shriek: "You what?!"

Aidiya shook her head. She had thought about it. It was not that she was antisocial or didn't want to go to a party. It was just that she knew exactly how this was going to go.

Sure, the pair had seemed friendly enough and not at all appalled to see three of them inked head to toe with Boru still decidedly lacking. And she honestly did not think that Ehehu and Goran were decidedly against tattoos and piercings. Otherwise they wouldn't have come over. No, it was not the owners that were the problem.

It was the customers that Aidiya definitely had no desire whatsoever to meet. Because honestly, what was the standard clientele for a flower shop? She was willing to bet a lot of money that the entire opening would be chock full with after-hour-walk-in-customers with a haircut that demanded to see the manager. It was August, hot as fuck outside and there was no way she would wear anything more than a crop top and hot pants. Which meant that her tattoos would be at full display. Which meant that she would be ogled by a store full of judgemental Karens for hours. No, that she could do without.

Saryan snorted. "Like hell you aren't!"

"I've really got no desire to be ogled at for hours on end by stuck up white people."

That issued an unbelieving laugh from Roban. "Really. You're scared of a few side-glances?"

"I am not scared", she tried to defend herself even though she knew it was a lost cause. "I just don't want to-"

"Want what?" Saryan grinned. "Meet new people?"

"Be a good neighbour?" Roban helped entirely unhelpful.

"Have fun?" Saryan tried again. "We know you don't!"

With a groan Aidiya got up and grabbed her bike keys. "Where are we going?" she admitted defeat.

~*~

Friday rolled around more quickly than Aidiya had hoped or wanted. They had gone shopping and between endless bickering - "We can't buy them a plant, they're a flower shop!" - and pulling Saryan out of the lingerie department - "I just wanna take a quick look!" - they had finally settled on locally manufactured chocolate - "Everyone likes chocolate, right? Let's go home."

So now Aidiya was crammed into the unbearably hot bathroom with Saryan and suffered through her best friend doing her make-up while picking at the loose threads of her shorts.

"Stop fidgeting," Saryan ordered sharply, "Or I'm gonna mess up your eyeliner. Besides, you look fine!"

"I'm not worried-"

"You are! Now stop talking."

Aidiya obeyed dutifully and closed her eyes again to let her best friend continue to tinker with it. When she was finally satisfied, she leaned back and whistled. "Damn, girl, you look hot. Always forget about that."

She shot her a genuine smile. "Thanks."

Winking Saryan turned to the mirror to take care of her own make-up. "I'm sure Goran will think so, too," she said quietly concentrating on drawing a straight line with the eyeliner.

She laughed. "And I know that I don't care." She tried to squeeze past her towards the door. "Besides, Roban called dips."

"I sure as hell did!" they heard him muffled through the closed door making even Saryan in her concentration chuckle.

"Now move, it's stuffy as hell in here." She slapped her butt weakly, making Saryan wriggle it before she finally moved out of the way.

In the parlour the air wasn't much better, Aidiya had to admit, nor was the humid air coming in through the open door. That's just how it was in mid-summer. Thankfully most people were sensible and didn't get a tattoo in that time, knowing it meant long clothes and no impromptu trips to the lake for at least a month so they didn't have to stay that long for most days.

Actually, though she wouldn't admit it out loud, she was quite glad that the opening party gave them an excuse to close early that day. She'd just go over, say a few nice words and then she'd be on her way home with her bike. If Saryan insisted on staying any longer she could take the bus home.

"Penny for your thoughts?" Boru asked with a timid smile. He had been very impressionable at first, admitting that he had long admired them from afar, basically stalking her Instagram up to the point that he knew some of her designs than she did. In the end the little celebrity crush had subsided quickly and with a recommendation of Irian and Eloa, her own tutors, she had been basically forced to give him the job. Now she was glad she had. Their parlour was expanding rapidly, all thanks to Irian, who had directed her girlfriend Kalia to their studio. With her platform as international model they were now overrun with jobs and it was good to have a third tattoo artist on board.

She pulled a grimace. "Just wondering how fast I can get out of that shitshow."

"Why so pessimistic? I'm sure it will go just swimmingly."

She shrugged. "Just not my cup of tea."

Before Boru could say anything else Saryan burst out of the bathroom. "Alright!" she announced stuffing her make-up bag into her bigger bag. "Let's go!"

Roban marched out of his room, manufactured chocolate in hand. Before Aidiya could even react, the package was thrust into her hands unceremoniously and Saryan and Roban linked arms with her so she could not escape. "Why me?" she whined as she was escorted across the street.

"Because it's your shop and the gift comes from the shop. So quit whining and get cheerful," Saryan ordered.

And while she grumbled until they had reached the other side of the street she was smiling brightly once they entered.

The first thing she noticed was that there were already way too many people crammed into the tiny space that was the flower shop. The second thing was that thankfully there was air-conditioning humming. She made a mental note to invest into one as soon as possible. Then she was noticed by Goran.

He was talking to two boys roughly in their age wearing outfits expensive enough to pay for one full sleeve at least. She shot him a hesitant smile he acknowledged with a nod of his head before her attention was forced to Saryan.

"Ehehu, hi!" she said loudly and waved over-exaggeratedly before tearing lose and vanishing in pursuit of their new neighbour. Roban stayed with her for the better part of a minute before vanishing too with a half-hearted excuse that they had lost Boru at the food buffet leaving her completely deserted in the strange environment.

She stared down at the chocolate slowly melting in her hands and sighed. 'Fuck.' Unsure what else to do she started venturing closer to the flowers maybe in search of inspiration for a new tattoo. She had wanted an under-boob for quite some time. Just as she was pondering how a lion with a flower wreath would look a voice behind her startled her: "Found anything you like?"

She whipped around and found herself face to face with Goran - or rather face to chest. "Oh." She laughed a little. "Not sure yet. I don't really have green fingers."

He blinked with both eyes and smiled, too. "Luckily most of our plants are already cut. If you put them in a vase with a bit of water and there's not a lot that can go wrong." He shrugged. "Well, they'll die after a week or so but they're supposed to."

She smiled, too. "In that case I think I prefer them inked on my skin. That way they won't wither."

"At least not until you do," he shot back.

Aidiya raised an eyebrow in a silent question.

Seemingly it took him a minute to realise what he had just said and he visibly paled. "Shit!" he cursed under his breath. "I'm sorry, that came out totally wrong! I didn't want to-"

"Oh, I think it came out just right." She snorted, barely stifling her laughter. "You're hilarious," she added after a moment. "And I don't get offended that easily."

As if on cue the two boys from before stumbled closer, one of them wrapping an arm around Goran's neck. "Hey Go-Go," he slurred, obviously having one or the other glass of champagne too much, "You left us all alone back there."

Goran visibly tensed. "Piss off, Eliot," he hissed, "I'm trying to have a conversation."

"I see," Eliot said giving Aidiya a once-over and wrinkling his nose in disgust. "Who invited the freaks over?"

She saw Goran’s face dropping, scrambling for words, but Aidiya was quicker.

She huffed and crossed her arms. "Better a freak than an asshole. At least I chose this instead of being born like that."

"I wasn't-" he spluttered but she didn't even let him finish: "Oh, really? Then what? Did a ten-year-old insult you fashion sense?" She did a very similar once-over before settling on his face again. "Not that I can blame them. Did you raid your grandpa's closet or did you actually spend money for this?"

The three boys in front of her gaped at her with open mouths. Suddenly she realised that most of the people in the store were staring at her and a blush crept up her cheeks. "Sorry for ruining the party," she mumbled and pressed the chocolate into Goran's hands. "This is for you and your mum."

With that she hurried up and fled the scene.

~*~

It was early in the morning - way too early than could be healthy for any human being. Still Aidiya was already sat at the counter sketching away, waiting for Roban and ready to deflect any walk-in customers. But even for them it seemed to be too early.

The door opened with a jingle of the bell. Roban was late. Without looking up from her sketch she said: "Sorry for ruining your chances with the hot guy."

"Hey, I just- Wait, what?" answered a voice that belonged decidedly not to Roban.

She looked up in horror to see Goran standing in the frame, hand still on the door looking every bit as shocked as she did. "Oh," Aidiya said eloquently. "What are you doing here?" She would very much like to slap herself now. That was not at all how you started an apology.

"I'm, uh-" He looked around and started gesticulating wildly.

She raised her eyebrows. "Yes?"

He wrinkled his nose and honestly, that was not fair. No guy this size had any right to be this adorable. "Can we talk?"

"Uhm," she looked around but there was no-one there to come to her help. "Aren't we already talking?"

"Yeah, sure!" he said quickly his eyes wide. "I just- I wanted to apologise and you left so quickly yesterday I didn't have the time!"

She held a hand up. "No, actually, let me stop you right there. I am sorry I caused such a scene. And that on your opening day." She winced. "It was kind of a reflex. I'm allergic to arseholes." Realising what she just said she pressed her hands over her mouth. "Oh shit," she whispered, "listen, I'm so sorry, they're probably your friends and-"

"Nah, it's alright." Goran waved his hand with a lopsided grin. "You're right. They're total douches and I don't even know why I invited them in the first place. Oh wait. I didn't. They invited themselves and then proceeded to insult my new neighbours. If you ask me, they deserved to be kicked in the balls."

She blinked dumbfounded. "What?" she managed after a while.

A sigh passed his lips and he ruffled his hair. "I'm sorry, Aidiya. I'm sorry they offended you while I stood at the side-lines watching. Not cool."

"Oh," she said as her brain began to process his words. "Oh," she said again and giggled while pushing her hair out of her eyes. "So, you came here to apologise?"

"That's what I just said, isn't-"

"And I hoped no-one saw me entering because I thought you hated me."

He stared at her for a moment. Then he blinked with both eyes before grinning widely. "So, I guess, we're even then?"

"We are," she agreed and held out her hand for him to shake it.

"So," Goran said then leaning on the counter. " Now that that's settled. Who were you expecting when I came in? What hot guy are we talking about?"

"Oh," she said and chuckled, "ohohohh, no way. I'm not betraying my friends like that. We're not friends yet. It's more like... a truce!"

"Friends, huh?" He looked around. "Saryan, then?"

The words were out of her mouth before she could stop herself: "Pffft, she hasn't got a straight bone in her body," she snorted.

"Roban?" he teased further and Aidiya winced visibly. "Hah! I knew it! What hot guy?"

She rolled her eyes and fixed him with a piercing stare.

"Me?" He seemed genuinely surprised as he pointed at his own chest. "Oh, I'm flattered!" His smile widened and Aidiya was relieved that it seemed to be a good kind of surprise at least.

Still she groaned and buried her face in her arms. "He's going to skin me alive..."

"Are you sure he'll not rather puncture you with a thousand needles?"

Aidiya looked up to see a teasing grin on his face. Slowly a smile spread on hers, too. "I expect you to hold a speech at my funeral."

He laughed and for a moment their banter felt so genuine that she wondered if this really only was their third interaction and not their thousandth. Then the sound of a sputtering engine outside broke the silence.

"I guess that's my cue, then," Goran said and moved towards the door. "Tell Roban I said hi," he said with a wink and left.

A few moments later a sweaty Roban threw the door open again, damp hair clinging to his forehead from being trapped under his helmet and panting for surely entirely different reasons. "What on earth was that?" he demanded to know.

Aidiya made an effort to show off her most innocent face. "Goran told me he says hi. Why?"

"He asked me for my number! What did you do?" He discarded his helmet on the chair next to the door and lunged to chase after her. "Aidiya Inkhar, what did you do?!"

~*~

"Sooooo..." Aidiya kicked off her swivel chair to roll closer to Roban. She leaned onto the table and rested her chair on her laced fingers. "How's the dating going?"

"Aidiya, I'm trying to work," Roban whined and tried to shoo her off but she would not give up that easily.

"No, seriously." She followed him rolling after him. "You've been chatting for the last month or so. When will you go out?"

"When's the wedding?" Saryan shouted from the other room.

Aidiya made a vague 'See?' gesture while Roban rolled his eyes. "Probably never," he answered. "He told me very gently that he was not interested in me."

"What?!" She pushed to her feet. "Why?!"

"I don't know, ask him! Probably straight."

"Hm," she made wrinkling her nose.

"Don't give her ideas!" the faint voice of Saryan called and Roban paled.

"Oh, no, you wouldn't! We're friends, Aidiya, don't do this to me!"

"Of course!" she said quickly and held up her hands as if that would prove her innocence. "I would never do anything to lessen your chances with the hot guy. In fact, I would only further them." She smiled brightly and Roban groaned.

Grinning Aidiya kicked her swivel chair back to her own table. "I love you, too, Roban. And I will get a date for you!"

~*~

It was her turn to close up the shop, again. And it was late. She wanted nothing more than go home and sleep. But when she stumbled outside, she saw that there was still light in the flower shop on the other side of the road.

Curiously she drew nearer and knocked at the door. She almost wanted to leave when a very tired looking Goran opened the door. "Oh," he said, barely stifling a yawn. "Can I help you?"

"No!" she said quickly. "I just wondered why there was still light on and wanted to check in. Just making sure, you know."

"Right." He nodded.

"So,...," she said after a few moments of silence. "Why are you still here?"

"Gotta finish some arrangements for a wedding tomorrow. I'm almost finished, though."

"Right!" She bit her lip, unsure what to do next.

"Do you want to come in?" he asked suddenly. "If you've got no other plans, that is. Would make the whole endeavour a lot less boring."

"Sure!" she said quickly and stepped inside. The flower shop looked almost like she remembered with the exception that the bouquets on display had changed. Well, it was another season, she supposed. To her surprised he led her to the back room, where an impressive array of bouquets was already lined up and oldies rock droned softly from a Bluetooth speaker. The table in the middle with the chipped blue paint was littered with freshly cut flowers, scissors and wire besides a lot of other stuff Aidiya couldn't even begin to name.

Goran made a bit of space on the counter so that she could settle on it more or less comfortably. "I really like AC/DC," she said to break the awkward silence.

A smile danced around his lips as he went back to work. "It's Led Zeppelin."

She blushed and only silence followed. He hummed softly while he bound up the flowers and she watched, not much else there to do.

"Alright," he said, turning around. "That's the last one. Will you now tell me why you're really here?"

"What?" she squeaked.

"You turn up on my doorstep in the middle of the night and then you continue to stare at me like I've grown a new set of eyes or something. What's the matter?"

"Nothing," she said quickly. "I'm just trying to figure out whether you're straight or blind for rejecting my friend."

"Hm," he made and smiled, leaning against the table which creaked loudly under his weight. "And what if I tell you I'm neither?"

"Then I'd be at a total loss."

He looked at his shoe tips, the faintest hint of a blush creeping up his neck. "I'm not interested in him, because I'm interested in someone else."

"Oh!" Now she felt very stupid. "I'm sorry for being so nosy."

"It's alright," he said quickly. "You weren't."

Well. That didn't make it any more awkward in the slightest. "Can I offer you a ride home, at least? I've got a spare helmet in the shop."

"Sure. That'd be nice," he said with a wide grin. While he closed up the shop, she went to get the helmet and they met behind the tattoo parlour in front of her bike.

"It's, uh, pretty?" he said questioningly startling a laugh out of her.

"Thanks! Quite an unusual compliment." She went on to pull the additional foot rests out. "Your first ride on a bike?"

He nodded and scratched his head. A dead giveaway that he was nervous as hell.

"Don't worry. Just hold onto me. And don't fidget!" she instructed him while she got on the bike and instructed him where to put his feet and hands. "Ready?" she asked starting the engine. She could feel him nod against her. "Just tell me where to go."

They only got lost twice on the way home, which Aidiya counted as a success. When they finally stopped in front of a modern apartment building, he was trembling when he got off. But he was good at hiding it. "Thanks!" he said as he handed her the helmet. "That was actually fun!"

She lifted her visor and smiled. "Any time."

She expected him to wave and go inside, instead he was writhing his hands and looking anywhere but her. "Do you- uhm, do you maybe want to get a coffee, sometime?"

She grinned even wider. "Sure. Just come by the parlour tomorrow and we'll settle for a date."

With that his face lit up and that sight alone was worth it all. He waved, just as she had thought and vanished in the building.

The door and the visor fell shut as Aidiya's brain finally processed what had just happened. "Shit!"

~*~

"So, just let me get this straight. The guy that I called dibs on won't go out with me not because he is straight but because he has the hots for you?!"

Aidiya winced. Roban sounded actually offended. "I'm sorry!"

"Oh, no, you don't get out of this that easily."

"What do you want, that I call off the date?"

He laughed. "Oh no!" Aidiya opened her eyes warily. Roban looked positively gleeful. "No, not at all. Please go, this whole thing is hilarious."

She groaned and threw her head back. "Well, joke's on you because I won't go. I know this kind of guys and I had my fair share of them."

"Oh, come on!" Saryan sat down beside her putting her head in her lap. "At least one of us should get some action with the sculpted gods that moved in next door."

"Yeah, and that won't be me." She sighed and threaded her fingers through her hair by habit. "Honestly, your ignorance is bordering on offence."

"It's just coffee, though, right?" Boru piped up from where he was standing in the doorway. "I mean, it can be just coffee. Maybe we're all misinterpreting this whole situation and he just wants to spend some quality time with you."

Diya huffed, still not fully convinced.

"Look, what's the worst possible outcome in this?" Roban asked crossing his arms. "Either you get to spend a chill afternoon with a chill-"

"-and hot," Saryan interrupted him.

"-and hot," he admitted, "guy. Or he tries to make a move on you and you tell him no."

"And if he's an arse about it we'll just... egg his house or something," Saryan proposed. "You know where he lives after all."

The thought put a smile on Aidiya's face.

"There's always that option," Roban agreed. "Though I don't think that'll be necessary. He's a nice guy."

Aidiya and Saryan groaned simultaneously and rolled their eyes. "Yeah, we all know what those are like," her best friend muttered.

Before anyone could answer that the bell over the door chimed and they all sprang apart trying to look positively busy and very normal. Goran stared at them with bewilderment. "Um... am I interrupting something?" he asked warily. "I could come back later."

"No, definitely not!" Saryan answered far too quickly with a smile that was much too wide. "Come on, Boru, we really should look at that horse of yours."

Aidiya knew that was total bullshit. There was no horse sketch at all to be looked at and while she suspected that Goran knew that already it was Roban who completely ruined the illusion: "Right! I should... clean my... needles!" he exclaimed and vanished behind the curtain of the next room that offered nervous teens a semblance of privacy when they got their ears pierced to feel edgy.

Goran watched him go with a frown. "I thought his needles were single-use."

Aidiya sighed and shook her head. "Just ignore him. He's an idiot anyways." She smiled and put on her customer voice: "And how may I help you?"

He blinked a few times, seemingly taken aback. "I- uh- um- coffee," he stammered.

"I'm sorry, due to health regulations we do not offer beverages. I can point you to a nice place, though."

His expression grew even more confused. "No! I meant- We said- Do you want to get a coffee me?"

Diya snickered quietly. "I know, Goran. I was just teasing."

Relief seemed to flood over him as his shoulders relaxed.

"The offer still stands, though. Do you know any nice places or would you like some pointers?" She looked him up and down wondering how such an imposing person could look so innocent.

He smiled. "I guess I'll follow the recommendation of a local."

"A surprise, then," she said with a wink. "Believe me, you are in capable hands. When are you free?"

"Saturday, 3 pm?" he asked with a timid smile. "Don't have plans for the whole day."

"Pick you up at 3, then."

He laughed quietly and leaned on the counter. "Are you going to tell me now to wear something pretty?" he asked a bit quieter than before.

She bit her lip and shook her head. "I'm sure you look dashing whatever you're wearing."

"A surprise, then," he echoed her words and turned to the door. "See you on Saturday."

"See you," she muttered but the door had already closed behind him.

It took only a moment for her friends to reappear: "Phew. Girl's got it hard, huh?" Roban asked and she could hear the insufferable grin in his voice.

"Nah, she's alright. That poor boy, though," she heard Saryan sigh. "Went straight into cardiac arrest."

Only then she awakened from her state of shock. "What do you mean?"

Saryan was grinning now, too. "Aidiya Inkhar was flirting. I thought I'd never see the day."

"I was?" she asked confused.

Her best friend rolled her eyes. "Would you like some pointers?" she quoted. "Gosh, Aidiya!"

"I mean, the whole clothes thing at the end?" Roban joined her. "Can you get more obvious?"

"Believe me, you are in capable hands." Saryan fanned herself and feigned unconsciousness. "So freaking hot." Cracking one eye open she asked: "Marry me, please?"

"She winked!" Roban added. "For god's sake, she winked! And she doesn't realise she's flirting?"

"A hopeless case..." Boru called from the other room.

Aidiya stared at all of them angrily and raised both her middle fingers. "I don't have enough of those..."

The three of them burst out laughing and she was tempted to throw something at them. "I hate all of you."

~*~

She was leaning against her bike enjoying the last warm sunrays of early October debating her own stupidity. It wasn't really that she was nervous. She was not feeling anxious before her coffee... getting - not date! - with Goran. It was just that it was six minutes past three and she had been waiting for the better part of twenty minutes and maybe she was feeling a little fluttery in her stomach after spending two hours in her bedroom with Saryan trying to pick out a fitting outfit - really, you should think that an easy task after both of them spending so much time in the closet - and letting her do her hair and make-up which had been completely ruined by her make-up and now-

the door opened. Goran stepped outside blinking against the autumn sun.

"I was right," she called as a greeting, stuffing her sunglasses into the pocket of her leather jacket. "You do look dashing."

Goran laughed at that and spun in a circle, showing off the plain dark jeans and the Led Zeppelin shirt he was wearing beneath a simple button up. "As do you."

She looked down at her own attire, not so different from his except that her black jeans were ripped showing off her tats and she wore a grey shirt proclaiming 'I don't give a fuck' in purple letters. Looking up he was a lot nearer than anticipated and she nearly tipped over her motorcycle. She grinned to override her nervousness. "Especially the AC/DC shirt," she joked and handed him the spare helmet.

The ride to the café wasn't too long yet it long enough to calm down. "This is one of my favourite places around here," she explained as she took her helmet off and held the door open for him.

"I think I get why," he answered as he stepped inside. It wasn't a large place. Quite the contrary, honestly, with mismatched couches placed around more coffee tables the shop should reasonably be able to hold. Yet already upon entering it smelt deliciously of freshly roasted coffee and the barista behind the counter smiled as she waved hello. "You're a regular, then?"

"Addict is more accurate," she confessed. "Tekan," she nodded in the direction of the barista, "moved here with his parents from Italy. There's nothing quite like it."

They took their time settling down and ridding Aidiya ridding herself of her leather jacket while she explained the menu to him. She ordered a cappuccino and bombolone as always and watched with delight as Goran ordered the same.

Thereafter their conversation moved to other topics: where Goran was from (a tiny isle off the coast, you wouldn't know it), where Aidiya was from (the south-west), why she opened her tattoo parlour (because she hated the company her family ran and wanted to have fun), why he worked with his mom (because he'd like his own flower shop one day), how she had met Saryan and Roban, how he had met Eliot and S'ikan, what it took to become a tattoo artist.

Before they even knew it, they had drained their second cup of coffee and talked their throats raw. With a satisfied smile on her lips Aidiya leaned back in her seat. "So, you're not straight, huh?"

"Nope. Bi and out and proud." He grinned widely mirroring her pose. "You're ace?" he asked pointing to her shirt.

"Yup."

"Cool."

From there on their conversation continued with other topics, covering their favourite bands and books and shows as well as the weirdest facts they had stored away in their brains. When the sun set, they paid their bill (well, Aidiya paid) and she gave him a ride home.

She was already halfway on her way back home when she remembered that it had supposed to have been a date.

~*~

"What do you mean, nothing happened?!"

Aidiya held her phone a bit farther from her ear. "Stop screaming," she ordered Roban, "I heard the same shit already from Saryan."

Said best friend of hers snatched the phone out of her hands and set it to speaker. "Right?! So weird!"

"Tell me exactly what happened!" Roban's tinny voice yelled from the phone. "Every. Single. Detail!"

And so Aidiya did. Again. Not like she had explained all of that the Saryan already who kindly supplied the details Aidiya left out.

When she was done a few moments of silence followed. Then: "Weird."

"Right?!," Saryan screeched again.

"I mean, literally half of that is so cheesy that it would put every romcom to shame. You can't tell me he wasn't flirting with you."

"Maybe he changed his mind," Saryan supplied helpfully.

"Maybe," Roban admitted, lost in thoughts.

Aidiya sighed and let her head fall back. "I should be relieved," she muttered, "the last thing I need right now is a boyfriend." She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "I am relieved."

"No, you're not," both of them said simultaneously.

"No," she admitted. "I'm not." A long pause followed. "Mostly, I am just confused."

~*~

When Aidiya came to the parlour the next Monday a slip of paper with a hastily scribbled phone number waited for her on the counter, signed with a single 'G'. "He wanted to give it to you himself," was all the explanation Roban offered with a shrug.

Aidiya tried to talk to him that evening when she closed up but there was no light burning in the flower shop. So, she saved the number in her phone and texted him when she got home.

They went out a few times after that but all the banter that felt like flirting had vanished and turned into exactly that - friendly banter that flitted over sharp tongues just like with all of their other friends.

Soon after Saryan and Roban and Goran joined them, eradicating any trace of awkward togetherness. Instead he was just absorbed into their group of friends and by the time New Year’s Eve rolled around and they were all crammed into Aidiya and Saryan's tiny two-room flat she almost couldn't imagine what it would be like without him.

He all but moved in with them, often just showing up with one or the other after the closing shift for a movie or two or three and soon it felt only natural to have a blanket and a pillow of the couch and a third toothbrush in their bathroom or too large clothes occupying the dark corners of their closets or waking up to Goran humming along to Led Zeppelin while he made breakfast.

Aidiya still called them AC/DC at every opportunity.

That, however, was the only trace left of those two early meetings of them. Aidiya was glad for it. Really, she was. All that friendly behaviour made it easier to suppress the fluttering feeling that appeared in her belly whenever she saw him until she didn't even remember if it had been there in the first place.

~*~

It was a nice warm evening in early spring and Aidiya was only going to finish that one sketch, then she'd go home, really. But she had to finish it, because else-

A loud thumping noise broke her concentration followed by muffled swearing.

She rolled her eyes. Oh, how she hated after-hour walk-in customers. "We're closed!" she called.

"Even for me?"

Now it was Aidiya swearing as she bolted for the door to open it for Goran. "What are you doing here?" she asked with a frown. It wasn't that late, honestly, that wasn't the problem. But normally Goran sent her a text these days before coming to visit and if just to know on which door he should knock.

He grinned and held up a bottle of vodka and a bag that hopefully held something to mix it with. "Get drunk with me?"

And well, Aidiya was a simple woman nearing her thirtieth birthday. How could she say no to such a proposal when it was so sweetly made? As only answer she went back inside to fetch some glasses and a knife for the cucumber leaving it to Goran to lock the door again.

When she returned, he had already settled on the couch reserved for waiting customers and arranged his assortment of drinks and snacks, gladly accepting the tableware she offered.

"So...," she began while she was clearing up her desk. "Any reason why we're getting drunk?"

"Ask me again after two of those," he answered and handed her one of the cups while making grabby hands at her sketchbook. "Gimme," he whined like some toddler.

With a roll of her eyes she handed it over. "I honestly don't get why you're so obsessed with our sketches."

"Not all of them!" he tried to defend himself while quickly flicking over the sketches he already knew. "Only yours."

She settled down comfortably next to him. "Question still stands."

"They're beautiful!" He took a deep gulp from his cup and pointed at the page he had opened. "I mean, look at that! I've got no idea how to do that!"

"They're half-finished." She smiled as she looked at thee lion she had drawn after that opening party. It had long since been transferred to her skin. "And it's just practice. I mean, I've got no idea how you make the flowers stick together while they are hanging down or something."

He huffed and laughed, continuing to flip through the sketchbook.

"I'm not describing it well, am I?"

"Not in the slightest."

"Well, anyway." She drank a mouthful of her drink, too. "If you're impressed with that you should see the finished tats. Those are masterpieces."

He raised an eyebrow and tilted his head. "Show me, then."

Adiya wrinkled her nose and toasted him. "Two more and we're talking."

"Fair," he admitted and stood up to leave the sketchbook in a safe distance. From there their conversation shifted to easier topics. Mostly, they were complaining: About customers and roommates and mothers with the occasional debate over the newest show on Netflix thrown in and before she knew it, she held her third cup in her hands.

"Remind me," she was concentrating hard to talk clearly. "Why are we getting drunk again?"

"My dad's an arsehole," he grumbled leaning back.

"Shit happens. How did you notice?"

"Wants me to return home. Finish university or some bullshit. He screamed at my mum first, then she cried and I took the phone. Then he screamed at me, too."

"Hm. What did you do then?"

"Told him to go fuck himself. Bought booze. Came here."

She nodded slowly, not sure how to answer that.

With a groan he sat up and looked at her expectantly. "So?" he asked.

For a moment she pondered to feign ignorance. Suddenly she felt much too sober for this whole endeavour. "Hm?"

"Your tattoos. You promised me masterpieces."

"Right... So, that was my first one." She held out her arm and showed off two shapes vaguely resembling Simba from the Lion King. "Courtesy of Irian, my aunt Warkuya paid and got the same one."

He smiled tracing the lines with his fingers. "Why?"

Aidiya blushed worrying her lip between her teeth. Well, she had promised, hadn't she? "She called me her little cub when I was little. So..."

"The Lion King."

"Obviously."

He continued looking at the many shapes on her arm until his gaze snapped up. "Wait. Did you say Irian? As in Irian Iuan, Kalia Au'eli's girlfriend."

"Wife, actually," she said unimpressed. "I learned to ink in her parlour, Saryan too. And I did the sun on Kalia's back."

"You're kidding."

She shrugged. "A year ago, maybe. Look it up. It's on my Instagram and hers. So, do you want to know more about my tats or not?"

He quickly closed his mouth and nodded.

"That's the first I designed myself." She pointed to a chain around her wrist with a broken link. "Was pretty depressed back then. Still proud of it though. Eloa Tuanar did it."

"Am I allowed to ask?"

She winced only a little. "I told my family I wanted to be a tattoo artist. They kicked me out."

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be, it's for the better." She shrugged out of her jacket and showed off her other forearm with a broken sword covered in vines. "That's the first Saryan designed. Didn't ink it though. We added the plants later. You know? Because I'm a plant ace?"

He grinned and nodded. She went through most of her tattoos - at least those she didn't have to lower her trousers for. They might be friends but they were not quite there yet. The longer they talked the emptier the bottle grew.

"Ah," she said with a lopsided smile, struggling a bit to stay upright. "Wanna see the newest one?"

"Sure."

Without thinking about it she pulled her shirt over her head to show off her under-boob: the lion head surrounded by grasses and flowers.

With satisfaction she watched as his jaw dropped. He raised his hand as if he wanted to touch it but thankfully, he lowered it again.

"Told you, it's a masterpiece. Irian's again. She's simply the best."

He smiled fondly, his alcohol-induced mind struggling to focus on her. "Little cub, huh?"

She laughed and pulled her shirt back on. "All grown up now," she answered draining her drink.

After that they sat together in comfortable silence for a bit.

"Rum's empty...," Goran slurred finally and yawned.

Aidiya nodded. She was about to puke anyways. "Let's go home?"

Together they managed to call a taxi and actually not vomit inside even though it was a close call for Goran. Then they only had to stumble up four flights of stairs and get the key inside the keyhole - admittedly the most difficult task of the evening.

Once inside Aidiya found herself still holding onto Goran's waist as they stumbled towards her room. Normally, he would leave her there and go to sleep on the couch. Today he didn't. Today she didn't care. It was nice, not sleeping alone. Nice and warm and dangerous.

~*~

When Aidiya woke she was far too warm and her head was pounding like a bass drum. "Fuck," she murmured and tried to kick the blanket off.

"Ow," the blanket answered.

Suddenly, she was wide awake. She found herself pressed firmly against another body, held in place by two arms wrapped around her waist. Their legs were tangled with the blanket and her face was settled on his chest and ew- she had drooled on Goran's shirt.

'Wait a fucking minute-' She slowly raised her eyes to stare in horror at Goran who seemed to be sleeping soundly. Something in her chest that she had kept under lock and key for quite some time flared up again like wildfire. Aidiya decided that that was an appropriate moment to start panicking.

'Fuck,' she thought while she frantically tried to disentangle heir two bodies without waking him. 'Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck.' She had decided to just let that go after that unsuccessful first date-that-hadn't-been-a-date. Her friends had let it go and Goran certainly hadn't brought it up again. And she had been doing so well. And now this. The fact that they both were wearing most of their clothes was only a small solace.

The panic in her chest didn't subside even when she had finally managed to get out of bed and tiptoe to the door without so much of a reaction as a tired grunt from Goran while he turned over. She grabbed a fresh change of clothes and slipped out of the room.

"Good morning, sleepyheads," Saryan greeted without looking up from her phone. "How's the bed, Goran?"

"Shhhh!" Aidiya said wide-eyed and quickly started changing. "He's still asleep," she whispered.

"Oh." Saryan looked up, interest and mischief glinting in her eyes. "Well, how's the hottie?"

"Will you keep quiet?" Aidiya hissed and made her way over to the kitchen to get some coffee. She was in desperate need for one, although she'd preferred something stronger. "Nothing happened..."

Saryan raised her eyebrows. "What do you mean 'nothing happened'? It can't be 'nothing happened'. I was ready to collect my money!"

"For fuck's sake, Saryan, nothing happened and nothing will ever- Were you betting on this, you absolute menace?"

She pointedly looked down on her phone. "Ooops."

"Well, it doesn't matter. Just pass me the betting pool because no-one is gonna win anything."

"Aidiya, you don't have to keep pretending-"

"Ughhh." She slammed her cup down on the counter. "Damn right, Saryan. I don't have to keep pretending because nothing happened and I don't want anything to happen so nothing is ever going to happen." She watched with at least a little satisfaction how Saryan's eyes grew wider and wider with every word. "We were drunk and could barely open the door so whatever was between us last night was a mistake and is never going to happen again. Got that?"

"Got that," Goran's quiet voice said from behind her.

'Fuck,' she thought, not daring to turn around.

"Uh, do you want breakfast?" Saryan offered.

"No, uh- I'll be going now," Goran answered.

The door closed behind him, the sound footsteps on the stairs quickly fading. When she couldn't hear them anymore, she turned around to Saryan. Her heart was still beating in her chest, head dizzy from more than just the alcohol, oh so much more. "Fuck," she whispered softly.

~*~

"I fucked up," Aidiya sniffled, hugging the pillow closer to her chest, "I fucked up so bad. I don't even know why I said all of this, I didn't mean any of it! And now he hates me!"

"Now that's maybe a bit harsh, don't you think?" Roban tried to soothe her and patted her arm gently. "It can't be that bad."

"You didn't hear what I said!" she sobbed.

"She's got a point, you know," Saryan said quietly.

Aidiya looked up at her and her lower lip started wobbling again, tears filling her eyes. "This is the worst day of my life!" She buried her face in the pillow.

She hurt a sound that sounded suspiciously like Roban hitting Saryan and Boru murmuring: "Way to go, Saryan."

"Alright," Roban tried again. "So, what we need is a plan for you to apologise and confess your eternal love."

"But he hates me!"

"Yeah, that's why we'll start with an apology," Boru said with a sigh.

"Besides," Roban added, "you were hungover and probably still drunk, he'll hardly hold you responsible for your actions."

"Nah, he won't," Saryan said, "you maybe broke his heart but he's too much in love with you to really hate you. Strongly dislike maybe, but hate? Never."

"You are not helping," Roban grumbled.

"But how?" Aidiya whined.

Saryan raised her hands in defeat. "I don't know, for fuck's sake, alright? You know him best of us, what does he like?"

"Coffee," she sniffled. "And flowers."

"We never would've guessed," her best friend mumbled and Roban quickly clasped a hand over her mouth.

"Callas are his favourite. And cornflowers. And he likes it when bouquets do the swoopy thing."

"You're not describing it very well," Boru offered.

"I know!" She let her head thumped back against the couch. "He used to say that all the time."

"I think we can work with that," Roban interrupted her self-pity. "Now, for the plan-"

~*~

They didn't get a lot more done that day, mostly attributed to the fault that Aidiya was feeling terribly hungover and that Goran didn't work in the shop that day. She could always just drive by his house but they unanimously agreed that she was in no way capable of driving any vehicle in her current state.

The next morning Aidiya woke early, though she didn't feel much better than the previous day. The whole affair had left a sour taste in her mouth and truth be told she dreaded the moment she had to see Goran again and apologise for... well, a lot.

Still she drove to the tattoo parlour, stopping for coffee on the way and then braced herself. With one deep breath she stepped into the flower shop. Goran was there as well as Ehehu - not that she needed the encounter to be any more awkward. Still, she smiled.

"Hello," she said and placed the coffee on the counter. "I'm here to pick up a bouquet."

Goran was stone-faced and stared at her as if she'd just grown a second head. "Excuse me?"

"I'd like to pick up a bouquet," she repeated. "I ordered it yesterday and was told I could pick it up today."

"Of course, sweetie," Ehehu said with a large grin as she poked Goran in the side. "I'll get it for you." She vanished in the back, leaving the two of them to their uncomfortable silence and when she returned, she just thrust the flowers into Goran's hands before leaving again.

"Can I get you anything else?" Goran asked monotonously, his autopilot evidently kicking in.

She chewed on her lip before asking: "Do you have apology cards?"

He sighed and let the bouquet fall on the counter. "Alright, Aidiya," he said exasperatedly, "what the hell?"

"I am trying to apologise for my behaviour," she said quietly. Awkwardly she pushed the coffee forward. "Look, it says 'sorry'. It even has a pouty face."

He scowled and eyed the coffee warily. Then, finally, he took it and took a sip. "Thanks." That she took as an improvement.

"I'm saying sorry, too," she said quietly, "You weren't meant to hear all of that-"

"Yeah, I guessed as much."

She winced. "It's just stupid, I lashed out at Saryan because she keeps telling me that we're perfect at each other and fuck, I'm rambling again-" A bright blush crept up her face. "-but anyways, I'm just tired of it and it makes everything just so much more complicated because it's-"

"-not what you want, I know," he interrupted her. "Look, Aidiya, I'm sorry, too. If I'd known that being around me mad you so uncomfortable, I'd never-"

"But it doesn't!" she said quickly. The blush on her cheeks burned even hotter. "Quite the opposite, actually. And that's just the problem. It- all of this was going so well and then I fucked up because I got my stupid feelings in the way."

He blinked stupidly. "Come again?"

"And I get that you don't feel the same so I am really sorry for ruining all of this and-"

"Why on earth would you think that?" When she looked up, he seemed genuinely offended. "What- why?" Now that was just pure agony spreading through his features.

"Well, um- when we went for coffee, I thought... I thought it'd be a date and then nothing happened and- well, I thought you weren't interest."

"Well, shit," he whispered, a stunned look on his face. He stayed like that for a few moments before laughing frantically. "Well, that's just my luck, huh?"

"Goran, I don't understand."

An agonised look passed over his face. "Aidiya, I'm in love with you! And I thought I'd ruined it!"

"...what...?" she said eloquently.

"Pretty much since I first laid eyes on you and I thought we'd manage but I couldn't and now-"

"Hold on, hold on, hold on! Go back and say that again!"

"I'm in love with- wha- wait, why are you crying?"

"You idiot!" she sniffled and punched him in the shoulder. "You beautiful, huge fucking idiot! I can't believe you. I can't believe us! We could have had this conversation months ago and spared us-" She gestured at their general surroundings. "-all of this!"

He smiled awkwardly. "I guess."

She shook her head. "Ridiculous." Then she gripped his shirt and pulled him forward into a short kiss. "Good that that's settled now."

"Y-yeah," he stammered.

"Are you quite done, now?" Aidiya heard Ehehu's voice from behind Goran. But when she leaned over to look, she saw that she had a smile on her face. "Take the day off and get the hell out of my shop. You two seem to need it."

Aidiya smiled brightly, too, and took Goran's hand. "We will. Come with me?"

"Where are we going?" he asked but followed her anyways.

She just shrugged. "A surprise?"

"A surprise, then," he agreed.

#my writing #WritersMonth2020 #Original Work #original fiction #original character #this was so much fun #i look forward to the other prompts

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justkending · 5 years ago

Text

Used to Be Overlooked. Chapter 24.

Series Summary: Steve Rogers was walking down the streets of Brooklyn after finishing a mission. The goal was just to take some time to clear his mind along the city streets, but when he runs into a gorgeous young lady that looks extremely familiar… How can he go about moving on? Who is she? What does he know her from? Was that memory even from this decade?

Pairing: Steve Rogers x Reader (Rosalyn Ember/ Y/N ?)

Word Count: 4300+

Series Masterlist

A/N: A little longer cause I’ll be at camp for a week. Then I’m moving out! Whooo hooo!

Chapter 24:

After Banner came in with another doctor to run a few test just to see how you were functioning awake now, everyone else started trickling in to pay a visit. Steve staying close to your side with every new visitor. Of course, everyone apologizing for letting this happen to you, and every time you telling them that it was none of their faults.

First Wanda and Vis who brought you flowers and candy.

Then Nat who just talked with you for a while about other things which was comforting.

Then Sam who said something along the lines of knowing you were a badass who would pull through no matter what.

Then Thor came for only a little to tell you he was sorry he wasn’t here, and by the time he got the call he was too late in coming. He brought you a beautiful gem from some other galaxy as an apology, and said that he would send ‘this Garrison Bates man’, as he put it, in a jail multiple galaxies away if you wanted him to. You laughed him off and told him not to worry about it. You would handle it yourself. Which made a large grin form on his face.

Then Tony and Pepper stopped by bringing you new clothes to replace the hospital gown. Mainly leggings, sweatpants, and sweatshirts since the room was always cold. They also bought an extremely, over the top, bouquet of flowers that you knew cost a fortune. Tony went on about how the compound should have been safe, it was on him, and yada yada yada. Of course you had to basically tell him to shut up and stop blaming himself like everyone else. He laughed you off and finally gave into you being right, but deep down you could see guilt still there. You would talk about that later.

Lastly, Bucky came in while Banner was drawing blood for another test.

“Hey champ. Good to see you’re back to your sassy self,” he smiled walking in with his hands in his hoodie pocket.

“Good to see you too James. How are you?” you said adjusting in the bed as your arm hung over the side and Banner inserted the needle.

“You’re getting your blood drawn after you were just kidnapped from a crazy scientist who just injected you with God knows what, and you’re asking me how I’m doing?” Bucky said quirking an eyebrow and standing at the end of the bed.

Steve laughing from the chair he was relaxed in and shook his head at his friend.

“Gee thanks for reminding me of that Barnes,” you sassed rolling your eyes.

“Sorry I didn’t mean-”

“I’m joking Bucky,” you laughed. “I’m a lot tougher than you think.”

“Well, I think your pretty tough so that’s saying a lot,” he winked.

You smiled before feeling another prick of a needle and winced looking down at the pain.

“Sorry, needles a little bigger on this one,” Banner explained.

“It’s ok. I’ve had worse,” you smiled at him before taking a deep breath. “So, Bucky, back to my original question.” You turned back to the long haired man. “How are you?”

“I still don’t know why your asking me that question,” he said acting dumb.

You gave him a bitch face and his dumb act disappeared immediately. Turning to a ‘oh no I’ve been caught’ look.

“Buck, she can read everyone like a book. No use in lying,” Steve said crossing his arms and laying back in the chair as if he were going to take another uncomfortable nap.

“Same goes for you Steve,” you said turning your head to him. “When’s the last time you got actual decent sleep?” you raised an eyebrow.

He peeked over at you and shrugged.

“I get 3-4 hours every night,” he said as if that was normal.

“People are supposed to get 7-8 hours every night. In a bed. At their house. Not in a hospital room in chair that is 10 times smaller than them.”

“I-” he started, but the bitch face that you had now turned on him, shut him up. “I’m fine Y/N. I just want to make sure you’re ok,” he said going back to his slumped position.

You rolled your eyes knowing there was no fighting him on it.

“You know how to make him listen?” you said turning to Bucky.

He let out a loud laugh, and shook his head.

“If I did we wouldn’t be where we are in life, now would we?” Bucky said tilting his head toward you.

“Touche.”

“Ok Y/N. I have everything I need. I’m going to go run these through the machines and I’ll get back to you on the results,” Bruce said standing and grabbing the vials with your blood as well as a clipboard.

“I’m assuming a couple of days?” you asked.

“Maybe less with Stark’s technology,” he winked. “You should be discharged in about an hour or so though. If that’s the case, I’ll bring the results to the compound when they’re done. You are staying there with us until everything gets settled right?”

“If that’s ok with everyone else-”

“Yes!” All three men answered at once. Steve sitting up from his chair and moving closer to you.

“Wow. Ok, yes I’m staying with you then,” you chuckled at the reaction.

“Sorry, it’s just we want you to be safe, and,” Bucky started.

“I know. I know. I’m ok with that,” you reassured. “Who else get’s to say that the Avengers are their body guards,” you winked.

“Very true,” Banner laughed, reaching the door. “I’ll keep you updated. Keep getting better Y/N.”

“Will do Doc,” you saluted.

He chuckled and left the room leaving you with the two super soldier best friends.

“So what exactly is the diagnostic. Are you getting better or...” Bucky asked timidly.

“I’m healing, but extremely slow. Almost like a normal human would,” you sighed leaning back sitting criss cross in your bed. “I got to say, it’s been a while since I’ve felt so normal. It’s nice actually.”

“You were beaten up pretty bad Y/N/N. Are you sure you aren’t in pain?” Bucky asked stepping closer.

“I’m in some pain yes, but I’ve got medication for that. I’ll be fine,” you shrugged off. “Are you ok?”

“You’re not going to stop asking are you?” Bucky huffed.

“Nope cause every single one of you hero’s is beating yourself up more than I am bruised,” you said crossing your arms. “Talk.”

“Nothing to talk about.”

“Skip the whole, ‘I’m ok. I wasn’t the one tortured, poked, and prodded’ talk. You were hurt in all this too,” you said.

“Y/N-”

“Fine if you won’t admit it, I will for you.” you sighed sitting up and straightening your posture. “You, just like everyone else, feels like me being hurt, is on you.”

“We could’ve-”

“Is your name Garrison Bates?”

“No.”

“Did you kidnap me and knock me unconscious in the woods at the compound?”

“No, I didn’t, but-”

“Did you inject me, torture me, and experiment on me for your own amusement and knowledge?”

“Of course not, but it wasn’t that that-”

“Then you have no reason to blame yourself. Case and point.”

There was a pause as Bucky stared at you trying to wrap his head around it all, and then he turned to Steve who was looking down at his hands. Clearly he had heard you reassure everyone else already, but you could tell even Steve wasn’t accepting it himself. No matter how clear of an argument you were making.

“I don’t want anyone else taking on the burden that is me anymore. You all don’t need to wallow in something that is out of your control. This is the last I’ll speak of it, ok? You all saved me. You didn’t hurt me. Get that through your thick, world saving, avenging skulls, ok?” you sassed looking between both boys. They looked up and slowly shook their heads. “Good. Now, anyway we can get a doctor in here to discharge me? If I have to sit in this bed for another second I think I might keel over.”

The boys let out a soft chuckle at your annoyance, and Bucky went to go find someone.

___

Luckily, the doctor said that you could do the rest of your healing and resting at home. He said you would need supervision and to remember to take some pain meds and antibiotics on a schedule to. Lots of sleeping to heal your body would be ideal as well, and with how the medication was affecting you, you weren’t angry about that order.

“Ok, you’ll stay in the room that you stayed in the other night after the gala,” Steve started as he directed you into the compound’s living room. His arm was wrapped around your waist, and the other holding you hand since you were still kinda weak. Not that you really needed the extra support, but the touch was nice.

Wanda, Nat, Sam, and Bucky were all there too making sure you were comfortable and right at home.

“Actually, can I stay in the living room for a while? The couch seems better than being holed up in a room.” you asked looking up at his big blue crystal like eyes.

He smiled looking down at you, and nodded.

“Of course. Wherever you feel more comfortable.”

“Thanks,” you hummed.

He helped you get situated on the couch bringing you big fluffy blanket and some pillows for cushion. Sam brought over the TV remotes showing you all the buttons and things to push to get to Netflix, Hulu, and all those fun things. Of course at the end Nat just said you could ask FRIDAY and she would set it up.

You laughed and got comfortable as the crew, besides Steve, went into the kitchen to start on dinner for everyone.

“So, are we going to talk about it?” You asked Steve once everyone was out of the room, and it was just you two.

He was sitting beside you on the giant sectional and had an arm thrown behind where you were laying as he searched through the movies on Netflix.

“Talk about what?” he said never breaking concentration from the TV.

“Don’t play coy,” you sighed.

“I mean there’s a lot that’s happened in the past few days. There are a number of things that we could talk about,” he said scrolling.

“The most recent thing.”

“Hmmm?”

“Garrison, Steve. I want to talk about Garrison.”

Steve stopped his search and froze dropping his hand from where he was clicking the remote.

“Which part?” he said looking straight ahead.

“The part where he said he would only talk to me. Where I’m the only one who can get the answers out of him,” you answered softly.

“Right. That part,” Steve breathed out finally turning to you. “How do you want to do it?”

“Exactly how it needs to be done,” you answered looking up at him. You looked down and grabbed his hand and interlaced your fingers through his. He looked down at the motion and you both got lost in it as you started running circles over his knuckles with your other hand. “I go in, and interrogate him until we get the results we want.”

“Interrogate?”

“He’s not going to make it easy. He’s going to want more than just me talking to him.”

“How so?”

“I don’t know yet, but I do know that he is anything but an easy man,” you sighed.

“I can tell,” Steve mumbled.

You looked up and leaned your head into his shoulder.

“I’m going to wait ‘till I can at least walk without cringing at the feeling in my ribs. Those straps he had on me were tight, and those bruises that they made are going to take a little to heal.”

“I know,” he sighed in defeat.

“Hey,” you said moving his chin to you. “I’ll be ok. I just need some time to get back up.”

He smiled sadly down at you, and wrapped his free hand around yours.

“I know, but that doesn’t make it any better,” Steve muttered.

“No, but remember? Things could be worse. Be happy about the little things.” You smiled making his lips slowly turn up.

“Always so positive.”

“It’s all you can do,” you shrugged snuggling into him more. “Those pills are kicking in. I’m probably going to be out in a few minutes. Wake me up for dinner when it’s done.”

“Sure thing doll. Get some rest,” he said leaning down and kissing the top of your head.

Within just a few minutes, you were out like a light. The pain medication knocking you out hard.

___

You woke up to the TV playing some show. It sounded like Friends.

You stirred a little and realized that two strong arms had enveloped you fully. You were burrowed into Steve’s chest, and couldn’t be more comfortable given the pain that your body was in.

You heard some shifting next to you and moved just enough to see who was there. Sam.

Glancing at the clock on the wall you saw it was 3 am. You must have fell asleep there, and Steve never woke you up for dinner. You weren’t really hungry so it wasn’t a big deal, but you had been knocked out for a solid 6-7 hours.

Sam was laid out on the other side of the couch, and laughing softly here and there at the jokes Chandler was making on the screen.

You moved in your position slightly to readjust, and Steve grunted holding you closer. You chuckled under your breath at the giant of a man cuddling with you. He was so cute asleep. Lord knows he needed the rest so you didn’t move too much, but just enough to get Sam’s attention.

“Can’t sleep?” you whispered.

Sam turned over to you and smiled.

“No. Happens sometimes. Bed’s too soft,” he whispered back.

“Hmm,” you hummed. “Want some of my pills? They’ll knock you out,” you joked.

“I may take you up on it if you’re not careful,” he joked back. You chuckled making Steve shift again, and hold you closer. You sighed in content, and readjusted with him. “I think this is the first time in years that I’ve seen him sleep this well.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. Man is up early morning all the time training, and in bed late at night trying to map out the next mission. I don’t know how he functions with the little amount of sleep he gets.”

“Why do you think that is?” you asked.

“Stress? Feel’s like he isn’t where he needs to be? I think he feels like he doesn’t fit in where he should. Time wise and all,” Sam guessed.

“I can relate to that,” you mumbled to yourself.

“Only time he feels normal is when he trains or is fighting bad guys,” Sam continued. You looked up seeing Steve completely calm and content with you in his arms. “I think you make him feel more at home. More at ease.”

“Why?” you said confused looking at him.

“You can relate to things we can’t. Sure he has Barnes, but that’s a whole other relationship.” he shrugged. “He lost a lot of things he never thought he would have the chance at again. Then you came along. I’ve never seen the man light up as much as he does when he’s around you.”

You smiled up at the man who was holding you so close to him. Almost like you were a lifesaver and he would drown if he let go.

“Well, I got to say, he saved me when I needed someone like him the most too,” you said never breaking your gaze from him.

“A match made in heaven,” Sam mumbled to himself.

“What?”

“Nothing. Just thinking out loud.” he turned over to you with a wide grin. “Go back to sleep. Doctor said you need the rest.”

You yawned proving him right.

“Can do. You get some rest too Sam. Watching Friends at 3am shouldn’t be a habit.”

“I don’t see what’s wrong with it. A little mid-morning comic relief never hurt anyone.” he shrugged chuckling.

“Sure,” you smirked as you snuggled more into Steve’s chest. “Night Sammy.”

“Night Y/N.”

With that, you knocked out thinking how lucky you were, even with everything happening. I mean you had Captain America to keep you warm at night. It was win no matter what else was going on in your life.

The next 3 days you spent building up your energy. Your healing began speeding up little by little, and the soreness from your bumps and bruises was finally starting to lessen.

Steve, as well as the rest of the crew, were helping you rest and lending a hand where they could. It could become a lot at points with how much they wanted to help, but you knew they needed it. For their own mental health.

So when Nat offered to make a coffee run, you ordered something small. When Sam asked if you wanted him to rent you a movie and have a night in, you picked a movie. When Tony and Pepper asked if you needed anything at all, you actually denied, but they insisted. Basically buying you a whole new wardrobe for your stay at the compound. When Wanda offered to check on your house and bring anything back, you gave her a short list of things you needed.

Of course, you didn’t want to take advantage of their kindness so every time they asked you told them you were fine every time. But that just caused them to ask over and over again until you relented.

Now it had been 3 days of being cooped up at the compound, and you were starting to get a little irritated. One, because you had little to no alone time, and another because every passing minute you were here, you weren’t questioning Garrison for more answers.

“Hey Y/N, it’s about time for your pain meds,” Steve said coming into the kitchen where you were making breakfast for yourself. “Whoa, what are you doing up cooking? You should be resting!” he said running to your side as if you were going to fall over right then and there.

“I’m fine Steve. I know how to walk,” you grumbled pulling away and going to the toaster to pull out your now burnt toast that you forgot. “Damn it,” you groaned throwing the pieces away angrily.

Steve stood back giving you space that you clearly were needing in the moment. He knew you had started to become frustrated with all the attention everyone was giving you, but this was the first time you were showing it so clearly.

After you placed two new pieces of toast in the toaster. You grabbed your hurt ribs and let out a deep breath before walking to the eggs you had going. Giving you a second to breath Steve finally spoke up.

“Want to talk about it?” he asked leaning on the counter and crossing his arms.

“Nothing to talk about,” you mumbled stirring the eggs not looking at him.

“Yeah, I definitely believe that,” he smirked. You looked up staring daggers at him before turning back to the food. “See that look alone is enough for me to believe you. You’re really selling it,” he said sarcastically.

“Hmmm,” you groaned.

There was a pause as you finished the eggs put them on a plate, and then moved around getting the rest of your breakfast.

“You’re tired of being in one spot. I can tell,” Steve spoke up. “Plus, there’s someone who you’re dying to rip a new one on and you can’t because you aren’t better yet.”

You froze looking down at your plate. All of a sudden your appetite gone. The thought of Garrison made your anger boil more, and you knew you needed to step out before you exploded on Steve or the next person to walk in.

“Y/N-”

“I’m going to go for a walk,” you said untying the sweatshirt from your waist and throwing it on.

“You can’t go by yourself Y/N. Here, let me-”

“Nope. I need to be alone,” you mumbled adjusting it and starting to walk out.

“You know what happened last time!” he shouted toward you making you stop in your place. “I-I, just let me grab a jacket and I’ll come-”

“Watch me from a distance Steve I don’t care. But I just need some space.”

You quickly started to make your way out hoping to out run him calling after you. In the quick escape, you ran into Bucky who was coming in just as you were leaving.

“Whoa there doll, what’s got you running off in such a hurry?”

“Excuse me,” you mumbled pushing past him.

Steve was rushing to you, but Bucky held up his hands stopping him. “What did you do?”

“I didn’t do anything! She- I-” Steve let out a loud groan before throwing a hand down his face. “Just let me by, she can’t go off by herself anymore.”

“Maybe that’s the problem,” Bucky said still blocking his way.

“What-”

“I hate to tell you this Steve, but you can be kinda smothering at times,” Bucky crossed his arms making Steve raise his eyebrows.

“What are you talking about?”

“Nothing, just,” Bucky let out a sigh seeing where you ran off to. “Let me talk to her. I’ll keep an eye on her.”

“Buck, I can-”

“I know you can, but you don’t need to. Take a minute for yourself just like she is. You both need some time without the other.”

Steve hesitated, but gave in after a few seconds. “Fine, but hurry. She can’t be on her own out there too long. She still isn’t healed fully and I don’t want what happened to happen again.”

Bucky nodded and turned jogging where you left to catch up with you.

You hadn’t gotten far, and were standing just a few yards outside of the door. Your arms were crossed in front of you and you were looking up into the clouded sky. It looked like it was going to rain soon, and you were kinda happy about it. Rain calmed and grounded you. You wouldn’t mind some of that right now.

“Hey,” a deep voice said behind you.

“I just want to be alone. I promise I won’t go far,” you sighed staring up.

“Yeah, sorry sweetheart. Can’t do that,” Bucky said coming up next to you and looking down at you as he put his hands in his sweatshirt.

“Sure you can. You just turn around and walk until you aren’t by me anymore,” you said, giving him a fake smile before frowning and looking back up at the sky.

“You feel smothered. I get that.”

“Do you?”

“You’re forgetting I was messed up too for a while after Steve found me. Hell, I still am,” he explained. You turned and looked at him seeing he was looking out into the yard. “I however didn’t last three days like you have. It took me less than 24 hours before I wanted to run away from the constant attention.”

“He just wants to help, but-”

“But it can be overbearing sometimes,” he finished for you. “Yeah, I know.” He looked down and sent you a small smile. You took a deep breath before a tear made its way down your face. You were tired of being helpless. It was taking a toll on your mental health. “Hey, hey. Come here.”

Without hesitation Bucky wrapped you in his arms and you gave in just wanting to not be seen while you cried. Burying your face in his chest you let the tears you hadn’t known you were holding back go.

“Shhhhh,” he hushed. “It’s ok. Let it out.” He rubbed up and down your back as you caught your breath.

After a few minutes of crying you pulled back wiping the tears off your face.

“Sorry, I don’t usually,” you let out a forced laughed. “I- Thank you. I needed that.”

“I know,” he smiled. “Let’s take a quick walk before the rain starts up. Venting helps,” he said throwing an arm over your shoulder and guiding you around the compound where you were still in view of others, but at a distance.

You vented for a while to Bucky. He was a great listener and let you get it all out. You told him how you felt helpless and you hadn’t felt that way in a LONG time. You had been hurt in the past, but you always had to push through it by yourself. Now having the whole Avengers crew cater to your every need was a whole different world. It was nice, and you knew it was helping them more than it was helping you, but it was becoming way too much now. You didn’t want to be rude and tell them to back off, but you also didn’t want to let them keep helping you every second of the day. You were too independent for that. Always had been.

Bucky explained to you how when Steve found him after Hydra, and he had to help build him back to his old self it became suffocating. Steve just wanted to help by being by his side 24/7, but sometimes being alone was for the better. Steve eventually caught on, but it took time and a deep talk to bring him to understand. The man just had so much love and want to help, that it became too much for both you and Bucky at times.

Pausing in your step you turned to Bucky.

“Thank you. I really needed this,” you smiled softly.

“I know. It’s kinda why I’ve kept my distance all week. I had a feeling you were going through the same things I was back then. At least a little,” he said turning to you.

“I guess so. I appreciate it though.” you shrugged. A raindrop fell hitting your cheek and you looked up seeing that the rain was about to come down hard. “We should probably head back in before we get drenched.”

“Probably. One last thing though.” You tilted your head at him. “The thing with Garrison.” You nodded taking a deep breath. “Don’t push yourself. You are healing, so hopefully that means whatever he did to you isn’t harming you. Wait until you’re better before you see him.” You shook your head reluctantly knowing Bucky was right. “When the time comes and you do talk to him though, give him hell,” he smirked.

“It’s what I’ve been dreaming of,” you chuckled.

Instantly, the rain began to downpour. You were pretty far away from the entrance so you turned to Bucky and both yelled in sync.

“Run!”

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