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amandaoftherosemire · 4 years ago

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And Hell is Just a Sauna -- Part One

Fandom: Marvel/MCU

Pairing: Bucky Barnes X Reader

Characters: Bucky Barnes, Sam Wilson, Natasha Romanoff, Steve Rogers, Wanda Maximoff, OMC Joseph

Author: @amandaoftherosemire

Rating: Mature

Word Count: 6,121

Format: Short Series (Complete)

Warnings: Language, violence, references to captivity, implied abuse, angst.

Summary: You meet Bucky Barnes upon your mysterious and deadly escape from a power obsessed cult leader and his followers. Though you carry a secret in addition to the wariness of trauma, you can’t help your attraction to Bucky and his irascible demeanor. As for Bucky, he is drawn to the light he sees in you while he fears the things you’re hiding. Can you trust him with your secrets, and your life? Will you have a choice?

A/N: I haven’t posted anything in five months, so this may be a little on the odd side. I guess I’m working through some stuff?

This takes place in between Black Panther and Infinity War but is not consistent with MCU canon because I do what I want.

I used my old taglist, but only as a way to let y’all know I’m posting again. As always, feel free to ignore me. 😊 Heads up, future parts will get smutty.

Part One // Part Two // Part Three // Part Four

And Hell is Just a Sauna -- Part One

The first time Bucky saw you, you were literally on fire. Not just a little flame, either, but a full-on conflagration engulfing your entire body and crackling with cheerful menace. You’d turned to him, your eyes blazing white in a face painted in flame, and intoned with a voice that both popped and roared.

“Are you a god?”

Bucky’s eyes widened over the barrel of the gun he continued to keep trained on you despite his uncertainty that it could do any good should you decide to attack. Unsure how to prevent that decision, but wanting to try, he responded slowly. “I have no idea how to answer that.”

From the woods around him, Bucky heard a shout. He stood at the edge of a clearing in which you stood at the center, a scatter of charred bodies surrounding you. He went no closer, not willing to discover the hard way what your range was.

Sam was yelling as he walked closer, “Ray, when someone asks you if you’re a god, you say, ‘Yes!’”

Bucky was fascinated to see blue flames dance along your teeth as you smiled. He couldn’t explain it, but something about the way the flames whipped and whirled around you was unbelievably beautiful. It was also incredibly terrifying, but Bucky had needed to survive horrors best left undefined, so had long since learned to find the beauty in terror. In the next moment, Sam was stepping into view on the other side of the clearing, his own gun out and ready.

You turned, and with a happy, surprised sob, cried, “Sam!?” The next moment, the fire was flickering into nothing and you were just a lovely woman wearing nothing more than the ash from what had once been a long white dress.

Sam immediately holstered his gun and ran forward. “Y/N? We knew there were prisoners but--"

"Sam," you whispered brokenly as you stumbled on knees turned to jelly toward the concerned face of your friend and former colleague. You hadn't seen him since before your abduction, not long after that last doomed mission in Lagos. When he'd gone on the run with Captain America after the fallout over the Accords, you'd been nothing but happy to hear that he was alive and free. His face was one of the last you’d expected to see upon your escape, but the sight of Sam was a joyous relief.

"What are you doing here?" Your teeth chattered on the question, reaction and your own nakedness leaving you freezing and shaking. You didn't see where the silver emergency blanket came from, but Sam was nevertheless wrapping you in it and then in his own arms, to your everlasting gratitude. You'd never been anything more than friends, but he'd always been a true and loyal one, with a giving heart and wicked sense of humor.

You let him comfort you, the bone-shattering terror of your ordeal hitting you now that it was over. Now that someone you knew and trusted held you, the sick horror of what you'd endured sent tears flooding into your throat. The exhaustion of everything you'd done that day turned your muscles to water and so you didn't resist when Sam bent and slid his arm behind your knees to lift and carry you out of the clearing where you'd hurt so many. Instead, you buried your face in the crook where his neck met his shoulder and let the tears fall.

"Do me a favor and tell the others I've found Y/N Y/L/N and that I'm taking her back to the jet."

Bucky had lowered his weapon when the fire had flickered out with your recognition of Sam, but his eyes were still narrowed with a hint of suspicion. He was pretty sure you weren't a danger to Sam, at least, but that didn't mean he thought you harmless. He nodded slowly and lifted his microphone to his lips to report in even as he fell into step behind Sam as he headed back the way they'd came.

"I'm sorry, sweetheart," Sam said gently as he walked briskly back to the jet, "but do you know who is in charge of all of this?"

"Joseph." Your voice was a rasp with the tears that still shivered out of you, but all of the emotion had left your tone. "I don't think he survived."

Bucky glanced back at the clearing where they'd left a half dozen charred bodies and figured he knew how Joseph had met his end. When he turned back, you were peeking over Sam's shoulder at him, to his admitted consternation.

"I'm sorry about the dumb joke." The emotion was back, remorse in your eyes and tone as you looked at him. "I wanted to either make you laugh or scare you. I just didn't want to hurt anyone else." With that, you buried your face back in Sam's throat and started crying again.

Bucky tried to resist but his heart throbbed in sympathy, with understanding. He knew all about being forced to do things he didn't want to, both by cruelty and circumstance. He'd be the last to blame another for what they'd done to escape. He was concerned about your apparent propensity for bursting into flame, but he understood why you'd done so, since you could.

"He probably hasn't seen Ghostbusters, sweetheart." You lifted your head, a frown on your tear-streaked face to glare with narrow-eyed suspicion at Bucky, who was at a complete loss as to what the two of you were even talking about. Sam laughed when he saw your face and went on. "This is Bucky Barnes."

Your face cleared in understanding and Bucky wondered who you were that you recognized his name so quickly. "Welcome back, Sergeant," you said softly, with a shy smile that Bucky couldn't help but find charming even as he wondered who you were and how you seemed to know so much about him when he'd never heard your name before.

"At least now I know why we're here," Sam called back to Bucky, his voice cheerful as he tramped back towards the jet. "Nat's got a soft spot for this one; I'm willing to bet she had an idea we'd find Y/N."

Bucky murmured as he kept his eyes on yours from where they peeked over Sam's shoulder at him. "I didn't know we were looking for Y/N."

"I was part of the supply chain." You didn't like the wariness with which this man watched you, but you could hardly blame him, considering your introduction. You weren't normally so dramatic, but he couldn't know that. "Natasha would have noticed when I disappeared."

Sam shook his head with a smile and moved toward the edge of the forest, now in sight. "Why am I not surprised? Were you Nat's secret source?"

"Of course." You couldn't seem to stop looking at the man following you and Sam with such deadly grace and aloof readiness. You'd never seen anyone look so dangerously bored. You were damned if you didn't find it sexy as hell. "She asked me if I wanted to help and I said yes. The Accords are a human rights violation."

Bucky's eyes flicked to yours and warmed as the corner of his mouth lifted just a little. Your heart skipped in the first beat of attraction as Sam laughed out loud. The sound had you smiling even as he replied, "Like I said, not surprised." He turned his head to call over his shoulder, "Bucky, this is Y/N. She used to be support staff for the Avengers, was one of the researchers there. She helped me when Steve and I were looking for you."

Bucky bent his head in acknowledgement and smiled fully for the first time. Now that he had more of a handle on things, he could roll with them. And he'd ever been the sort willing to go the extra mile for a pretty woman. "Pleasure to meet you," he rumbled, and sounded like he meant it.

You thought about the sacrificial dress you'd been wearing when the fire had blown through and carried you out of the building, remembered the fear in the eyes of the henchmen sent to recapture you as they'd circled you like a pack of wild dogs. "Believe me. The pleasure's mine."

As Sam broke through the tree line where the quinjet that had brought them sat, the little bottle blonde assassin behind the controls, he turned to catch your eye. "So, Y/N, are you gonna tell me how you're a firestarter now?"

Natasha turned in her chair at the sound of his voice as they mounted the ramp into the jet. "Good, you found her," she said briskly with a gentle smile for you. You smiled weakly back as Sam set you down in one of the chairs. Natasha turned back around and continued, "Strap in. Steve and Wanda are almost back and I want to be in the air five seconds after that."

Bucky's eyes flicked to you in puzzlement at the sound of a soft hiss, like that of a snake, followed by a crackle or a popping noise. He may have looked elsewhere, but you'd made a soft shushing noise that drew his eye.

That shushing sound was followed by a tired sigh when Sam lifted a brow at you as he went about helping you rearrange the blanket so you could strap in but remain covered. "I wish I knew, Sam," you replied to that lifted brow and Bucky wished he knew why he didn't believe you.

You sat in the sand and watched the ocean crash against the shore, letting the sound soothe you. Feeling hot and itchy most days, thanks to your experience at the hands of the weird cult that had abducted you, this was often the only peace you could find. Most days saw you driving down from the house in the mountains to sit here and let the wind and the waves ease your mind and soothe the soul.

Today, however, you couldn’t seem to settle, upset by the conversation you’d had with Steve that morning. He’d wanted to apologize for overstaying their welcome, and assure you they’d be moving on soon.

After your rescue, they had come to stay with you in the house you’d inherited from your uncle. Tucked away in the heavily forested mountains of Oregon’s Coastal Range, it was big, secluded, and ideal for hiding five fugitives. You’d simply been happy to help, to give them a safe place to rest.

Now you were dealing with the fact that you didn’t want them to leave. You were chilled, sick at the thought of rattling around in the big house with nothing for company but your thoughts and the memory of what had happened in a house in upstate New York. You may have traveled three thousand miles to escape what had happened that night, but you couldn't escape what was now yours, whether you'd wanted it or not.

The soft hiss in your ear warned you that someone was approaching, but you were surprised when that someone flopped onto the cool sand next to you with a huff of irritation. "Huh. What a shitty day at the beach."

Damned if you knew why the surly bitch did it for you, but Bucky Barnes had charmed the fuck out of you by not being the least bit charming.

He wasn't mean, or rude, not by a long shot. He was unfailingly kind and polite and genuinely grateful for the shelter. You could see the good man underneath the pissiness, but Bucky was perpetually baffled and annoyed by most of the world around him. He never complained, really, but he regarded everything with a vaguely hostile skepticism. You could not understand why you thought him adorably sexy, the big, grumbly bastard.

"Good thing we’re not at the beach," you replied with a laughing sneer, your habitual attitude towards him as it prompted that ridiculous half-smile. You fucking adored that sly smirk. "We’re on a beach. We’re at the coast."

Bucky gave you his amused disgust face and made you melt. He picked up a handful of sand and held it up to let it run through his fingers in a rather accusatory fashion. You waved him away. "I would think a Broody McBrooderface like yourself would immediately get this."

You gestured at your surroundings, a lonely beach on a winter day in the Pacific Northwest. Clouds covered the sky and boiled over the sea, turning the waves into a stormy bluish gray that reflected in the eyes of the man that watched you with a reluctant fascination. The wind whipped around you both, tumbling his hair around his sculpted face and making you think of the covers of trashy romance novels from an earlier era. Moody and bleak, a cold winter day at the coast was made for Bucky Barnes.

A long, charged pause as he stared at your profile in disgusted astonishment.

"What?"

You couldn't stop the snort at the sound of pure stupified horror in his voice. You didn't know which part of what you said he found objectionable, but the insult of something clearly offended him. You didn't usually get this much reaction out of him, so you had to assume it was the new nickname.

"The beach," you replied snottily, "is where you go to relax in the sun or swim in the ocean." You tilted your head to fix him with an intense stare. "But we’re in the ring of fire, Bucky, and the ocean doesn’t play with the shore here. We’re at the coast, where the sea meets the land with force." You gestured out at the dark waves as they continued to crash and pound on the sand, curls of violent energy breaking upon the shore. "The beach is for fun; the coast is where you go to brood."

With that, you uncrossed your arms and placed your hands at your sides on the cold, dry sand behind you, bracing yourself as you leaned back, a smirk on your lips. You loved informing him of opinions as though you had just bested him with facts. The way his lips tightened when he was holding back laughter made your heart gallop.

Your breathing joined your heart in its race and sped as well when Bucky's eyebrow quirked in addition to the happiness that gathered in the corners of his lips. "Broody McBrooderface?" he asked, doubt collecting in his eyes and his furrowed brow. His voice was still rich with the disgust that had characterized his earlier question. The combination made you sputter with mirth before giving up and dissolving into a fit of laughter. You fell back onto the sand to wrap your hands around your middle and hold on as you cackled and snickered.

When you calmed enough to look at Bucky, he'd shifted so that he was leaning on one arm, turned towards you to grin delighted at your laughter. He was so pretty, white teeth against the dark brown of his beard, thick hair tumbled in the wind around him. You hoped you didn't look as starry eyed as you felt. Some days it was harder than others to not bodily tackle the man, but it seemed tacky, not to mention gross, to accost a houseguest.

His satisfied smirk turned into a look so hot with promise you could feel it in your toes. "So you don't wanna go skinny dipping?"

You laughed even as you cringed, your body tightening at the memory of underestimating the Pacific Ocean's wilder moods on visits to your uncle during your childhood. You shook your head as a chill at the thought ran down your spine. "I double-dog dare you to jump in that water." Bucky crooked another brow and then surprised you by leaping to his feet in a move shockingly graceful in its deadly arc. He was off in a run in the very next second towards the waves. You sat up to shout after him but he was faster than you'd thought possible. "But don’t say I didn’t warn you about the FROSTBITE!"

If he hesitated for a second, you didn't see it. Fully clothed in the athletic wear he’d donned to run down to the beach, he leapt over a terrifying curving beast of a wave into the now dark gray and, you expected, freezing cold water. You got to your feet to follow him to the edge where the sea lapped at the shore, a little wary to find out how the grumpy super-soldier would react to the Pacific's bite.

The two of you argued all the way back to your car.

"The least you could do is give me a ride back to the house." Bucky didn't seem like the water had really fazed him beyond pissing him off. He wasn't shivering, his teeth weren't chattering, but his jaw was set in severe irritation and his eyes blazed with banked anger. He was so fucking hot it made you crazy.

"My seats will get soaked." You couldn't help it; he was so sexy when he looked like he wanted to murder the world. You didn't know what was wrong with you, but the way he was striding up the beach toward the parking lot where you'd left your car made you shudder with lust. You had to fuck with him a little more, irritate him just that little bit extra. Maybe it was because of what had happened to you, but you needed to toss a little more gasoline on the fire. "I only brought a towel for sand, not for swimming. Besides, I told you it was cold as fuck; you jumped in anyway."

"I can't run home like this, I'm fucking freezing." The look Bucky shot you was so vicious, your heart kicked in response, but in desire rather than fear. He was perfectly bristly and annoyed now, his bright blue eyes blazing and his sculpted cheeks flushed with temper. You could eat him alive.

"You should have thought of that before you jumped in an ocean that is obviously not into your shit right now.” You deliberately kept your tone and demeanor casual as you stopped at the water fountain at the top of the beach to rinse the sand off your feet. “It's not like I would have thought less of you if you'd stopped when I warned you about how cold it was."

Mostly clean and aware based on experience that mostly clean was the best you were going to do, you dropped the rubber flip-flops in your hand and slipped your wet feet into them as Bucky glared at you.

“I would have thought less of me,” he replied with a sneer that made you want to lean in and bite his plump lower lip. “I took a dare. I'll finish a dare.”

Unable to help yourself, you burst into delighted laughter, throwing your head back in the pure enjoyment of him as you nearly stumbled down the sidewalk toward your car. Bubbling and cheerful, the warm chuckles poured out of you until Bucky was grinning at you, albeit reluctantly.

You were somewhat calm by the time you got to your car. You turned to Bucky with a sparkling smile, the laughter still trembling on your lips and Bucky’s heart kicked in response this time.

“You’re fun, Bucky.” You leaned against the driver’s side door and grinned at him over the roof of the car. “A little bonkers, but fun.” Shooting him a sassy wink, you opened the door and slid in. “Fine, get in the car."

“I know this is a big ask.”

Bucky was sweating, but he was determined not to let you see that. He was asking a lot of you and he knew it. If he didn’t believe it was important, for you as well as himself, he’d never have had the courage.

“I’m really more confused.” Bucky made himself stop watching the way your lips shaped the words when you spoke, your eyes wary and your brow furrowed. “If you don’t mind me asking, why don’t you want to go with them?”

He didn’t think you’d noticed how he watched you, fascinated by the curving whip of your movements, like flame had become part of you. He couldn’t help but focus on you, obsessed with both the magic and mystery of you. How could he stop himself when he could also hear your mutters under your breath? He was concerned yet intrigued by the admonishments to behave yourself.

He’d had numerous fantasies about misbehaving with you.

Bucky’s attention moved to the way your fingers fidgeted with the book in your lap. He couldn’t explain why, but he loved to watch you move. There was a grace and beauty there that he’d rarely seen and always treasured. He’d seen too much ugly and cruel to take anything as pretty or as kind as you were for granted. He'd made a study of you because it soothed him somehow to do so.

Your hands weren't fidgeting in agitation, concern, or fear; all of which he'd seen and memorized. Through trial and error he'd learned how to distract you from whatever had you picking at your cuticles in anxiety and, sometimes, something that looked perilously close to panic, but he could see that wasn't necessary now. You were fidgeting absently, the same way you had been for the entire conversation, not in response to his request.

Bucky was still a little struck by his daring in asking if he could stay when the others moved on. He hadn't known if he'd have the nerve when he walked to the little library where you often sat in the window seat so you could read with your face to the mountain air coming through the open window. But when you'd looked up with a smile when he'd poked his head in and asked for a minute, he'd known even if you said no, he could trust you to be gentle.

"I don’t want to fight anymore."

By the way your eyebrows flew up and your lips parted before you paused, Bucky could see that you were as surprised by the blunt honesty of his answer as he was. But he was asking a lot of you and he knew it. Harboring an international fugitive was only the least of it. You knew his reputation, and that it was based on fact, yet you'd welcomed him into your home. He had to be honest with you if he was going to ask anything more than that already unimaginable kindness.

He smiled at you, but he couldn't stop the sadness, the exhaustion of a century's worth of years from quivering around his mouth. Your eyes, scanning his face under those expressive eyebrows, softened and your lips twisted with wry sympathy. "Of course you don't. Why would you?"

Bucky relaxed back into the plush little sofa where he'd taken the seat you'd offered when he started this conversation. He now knew it was going to be reasonably painless. Something about you almost always put him at ease within only a few minutes in your company. Maybe it was the way you listened to him, both the things he said, and the things he could only speak around.

Somehow he always ended up saying more than he'd intended.

"I didn’t volunteer, you know." You tilted your head in question, so he continued, not sure where the words were coming from. "Not like Steve, who wanted in so bad he kept trying to get past the physical. I was drafted." Bucky laughed a little and lifted his hands to rub them over his face, dragging them through his hair before threading his fingers together behind his head. "I just wanted to settle down to a normal life and try to keep my best friend from dying from one of the thousand things trying to kill him. Instead…" As he trailed off he shrugged and noticed your eyes drop to his chest in what he would swear was appreciation.

The corner of Bucky's mouth was lifting in a crooked half-smile when your eyes flicked to his. Bright and intense, he felt pinned by your gaze as the still forming grin fell from his face. "Instead you got to be a prisoner of war for sixty-odd years," you said, your voice full of the wry sympathy that still lived in the slight curve to your lips, "only to discover that things are still trying to kill your best friend?" In the next instant, that searing stare was gentle with understanding, your eyes warm with concern. "You're a little fucking tired?"

Bucky huffed out another of those little laughs, the only kind he really had these days. A little fucking tired was an understatement if he'd ever heard one, but the fact that you saw that so easily explained why he was even asking this of you. "You get it," he said, that half-smile coming back in a sweeter form. "That's why I'd like to stay here, actually." Your lips had started to curve in response to the little half-laugh, even that much heard only occasionally, when the warmth in his face sparked an answer in yours, charming you with the little glimpse of sweetness under all the salt.

Bucky's breath caught a little at the look on your face, the way the movement of your hands had smoothed as you absently toyed with the hardback still in your lap. He could see you relax by degree in his presence and wondered if you were as soothed by his company as he was by yours. "I don't want you to think you have to say yes," he heard coming out of his mouth, more honesty he couldn't help, but he didn't want you to feel pressured. "I'd rather stay here in the States, but I'm not homeless if it doesn't work for you. If it's a no, I promise, no hard feelings. I have another option lined up. I understand if you don't want to stay alone with a man you barely know."

He was starting to worry based on the soft, gentle look that remained on your face. You normally smirked and teased him, poking at his gruff exterior with a playfulness that had charmed him completely. You may not have known it, but you had him firmly wrapped around your fingers. This tenderness made him afraid you were about to let him down easy. He braced himself for rejection.

"Alright," you murmured thoughtfully, your eyes kind if shrewd as they rested on his face. He wondered what you saw when you looked at him, how much you saw beneath the surface. "If you wanna stay, we'll have to have a few ground rules, a couple of understandings."

Bucky's face lit up in surprised delight as his heart began to pound. He hadn't really expected you to say yes, and so hadn't prepared for the rush of excitement and satisfaction that ran through him at the prospect of getting to know you without feeling like he was being watched by his friends. His heart speeding a little, a hot shudder of anticipation working through him at the prospect, he shot you a bright and reckless grin. "I was afraid you were gonna say that."

Something dark and hungry moved in a flash over your face. Bucky's heart raced in answer despite his uncertainty that he'd even seen the lightning fast emotion. He wanted to be your friend first, but he couldn't deny he'd found inside himself a well of desire for you so deep he'd yet to find the bottom. He could only hope you felt some fraction of that for him.

"First and most important understanding," as you spoke your eyes flattened and your mouth tightened, your gaze on his face reminding him of the first time he'd seen you, "I am not afraid of you." The words were a warning, not a threat, but the hair on the back of Bucky's neck stood up. "If you're going to live here for the foreseeable," you continued, your face softening again into something lonely and sad, "I need to be clear on this point. I have no reason, whatsoever, to be afraid for my own safety. Not anymore."

The hollow tone to your voice was a chilling counterpoint to the fingers wrapped in white-knuckled terror around your book. Bucky could see you were trying to tell him that you were still dangerous, despite how deceptively harmless you looked when not bathed in flame.

"The fire?" Bucky didn't know he still had that much tenderness inside him for anyone, but he could hear the gentle sympathy in the two words clearly. By the tentative smile teasing the corners of your mouth, you could hear it, too.

"I would tell you if I thought you weren't safe." You looked sick with worry that he'd reject you and Bucky could see that he was right; the two of you needed each other. You went on in a little rush, your eyes dipping to your hands still clutching the book in your lap. You frowned as you spoke and he watched you deliberately uncurl your fingers as though you were carefully calming yourself. "I don't believe you're in any danger here. I will absolutely tell you if that changes."

Bucky always preferred when people were matter of fact in their questions about him and his issues. He figured he should start there and see how you responded. "Can you control it?" he asked, his voice unconcerned, his posture unchanging from his easy sprawl against the corner of the couch.

Apparently, you also liked plain speaking as you smiled a little more, this time with a wry exasperation that piqued his interest. "Some. More persuade."

Bucky's heart throbbed as he asked the question he knew you'd least like to answer. He wished he didn't feel like he had to, but he needed to know how not to incite the blaze. His voice soft as a whisper, as tender as a touch, "What set it off that night?"

The look on your face sent a chill down Bucky's spine, your eyes empty and cold and nothing like the warmth he'd come to expect and adore. Your voice as hollow as he'd ever heard it, you answered with just enough information to somewhat explain. "Joseph was going to hurt me."

Upon your recovery from the forest surrounding the house in upstate New York where you'd been held against your will, it had become clear that you'd been snatched up by one of the occult offshoots that often split from HYDRA. As HYDRA was itself founded as an occult offshoot of the Nazi war machine, it wasn't really a surprise that it so often shed more of the same. The one that had taken you, however, had apparently been particularly weird and cultish, the leader, Joseph, convinced of his own superiority and seeking the power he believed to be his due. You hadn't spoken much of what had happened to you while held captive by them, by him, but Bucky could recognize pain and trauma when they were right in front of him.

"Since I won't be hurting you," he said gently, the words both reassurance and promise, "it shouldn't be a problem." When your eyes, blurred with memory, focused back in on his face, Bucky's lips curved slightly, the smile sweeter than any he'd given you yet.

Your lips curved in response as a soft sigh that didn't come from you whispered at the edge of Bucky's hearing. His ears perked even as he kept his eyes on yours, his expression betraying nothing but the warm appreciation he always had for you. The next moment, however, his attention was caught and held by the grin you flashed, sparkling and friendly. "That's what I was thinking," you chirped and looked happier than he'd ever seen you.

The sight had his body tightening in lust even as his heart squeezed. Bucky had always been a romantic with a love of making a pretty girl smile. Being able to make you smile like this made him feel like he was getting another piece of himself back. Still, he wanted you to know that you could trust him with more than just your physical safety.

"Do you wanna tell me about it?" he offered, his voice gentle again.

"Maybe," you said, and Bucky cursed himself when your smile dimmed. You shrugged and looked back down at your hands where they'd tried to tense around the book. "I might need to. You gonna tell me about you?"

"Some." He answered quickly, without hesitation, though he grinned sheepishly when your eyes lifted to his in suspicion. "Probably."

When your eyes remained narrowed on his even as the corners of your mouth twitched with suppressed humor, Bucky narrowed his eyes back at you. To his surprised delight, that sparkling smile came back. You stretched the denim clad legs you'd had curled under you out and relaxed into the pillow at your back.

"Then rule number one," you said cheerily, an interesting heat in your eyes, "is that you continue to be your usual hostile self. It revs my engine." The cheer on your face took on a darker edge, your smile more like a dare. Bucky's eyes narrowed once again, but this time his gaze glittered with desire, with the urge to take that dare.

"Does it?"

You bit your lower lip as his voice rumbled through the air and into you. Bucky could swear he saw goosebumps erupt over the skin of your arms when he spoke, the desire riding him clear in that quiet question.

You laughed, a little breathless, and grinned at him, a cheeky taunt all over you. He was dazzled by the flash of your smile, the sparkle in your eyes, the whipping movements of your hands as you gestured while you spoke. "Rule number two is that you make yourself at home." You pointed a mock stern finger at him and made him smile. "Don't be a houseguest or stand on ceremony. I want you to be genuinely comfortable. If you have to stay under house arrest for now, you should be able to do so as painlessly as possible."

There you went being sweet and kind in addition to being sexy and adorable. Bucky didn't know if he could take it. He was beginning to think he was in over his head but he couldn't find a thing not to like about it.

"Steve keeps me in line." Bucky smirked as he teased. "Once he's gone I'll make you regret that."

You looked delighted with him and Bucky could have wept with gratitude. Spending time with you was helping him remember parts of himself he'd thought long dead, like the boyish flirt he'd once been, but he was equally grateful that he seemed to be good for you, too.

"Okay," you purred as you smirked back at him, "in case Steve has kept you in line in other ways, rule three is you clean up after yourself. I will be very annoyed if you start leaving dirty dishes or clothes around once he's gone." One eyebrow lifted in mock warning and Bucky could have cuddled you.

"He’s the slob, actually." Bucky huffed out a laugh and shook his head. "You're making this too easy, doll."

He couldn't be sure, but for a moment you looked shy and a little vulnerable. Bucky's heart squeezed again as he quivered with the conflicting desires to both ravage and protect. When you glanced at him from under bashful lashes, he felt torn between.

"Am I?" The murmur of your voice was rich with something dark and exciting, something that lit up his ear and made his stomach tighten.

Bucky's voice was husky on his reply as he offered both clarification and escape route. He wanted everything on the table before the negotiations came to a close. "Any other rules?" His face spread in a hot, almost feral grin, one that left no doubts as to what rules he was asking about. "Any other lines you don’t want crossed?"

The corner of your mouth lifted in a grin equally hungry, equally reckless. "Nothing comes to mind." Your eyes reminded him of sultry whispers, heated words. "I think we can play it by ear from there."

Bucky felt his heart race in exhilaration and wondered what he'd gotten himself into. He couldn't wait to find out. "I’m happy to dance to your tune."

Part Two here >>

Taglist:

@hellzzzbelle @bucky-the-thigh-slayer @cheekygeek05 @lbouvet @diinofayce @bibliophile1773 @thatawkwardlittlefangirl @miraclesoflove @nerdy-bookworm-1998 @destiel-is--endgame @irritated-bisexual @peaceinourtime82 @badassbaker @walkingtravesty97 @fashionworld12 @readermia

#bucky barnes x reader #bucky barnes fanfiction #bucky barnes fanfic #bucky x reader #bucky fanfiction #bucky fanfic #marvel fanfiction #marvel fanfic #mcu fanfiction #mcu fanfic #and hell is just a sauna #pantswrites #short series

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awhitehead17 · 4 years ago

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Whumptober 2020: Day 7 - I’ve got you

Prompt: Support

Summary: When Bruce pays Tim a visit, he finds that his son is burnt out. Being Tim’s father it’s his job to make sure Tim knows he has support no matter what.

Enjoy! :D

When Bruce entered Tim’s office he was fully expecting to see his son sat his desk either typing away on some sort of document or on the phone talking to someone.

He was paying Tim a visit because Bruce had brought some food for the two of them to share as a late lunch. According to Tam, Tim hasn’t yet eaten today and since Bruce had been wanting to see his son anyway, bringing food along with him seemed like a good idea.

Walking into Tim’s office Bruce immediately freezes at the unexpected sight of Tim with his head pillowed in his arms on top of his desk. He wasn’t on the phone or typing away like Bruce had predicted.

Closing the door behind him Bruce goes to the desk and places down the bag of food opposite Tim. “Tim? You okay?” He asks worriedly.

At his question his son bolts into an upright position and wildly looks around for an imminent threat. Bruce watches with concern as Tim seems to get himself together upon realising that there was no threat and how it was only Bruce in the room with him.

Tim lets out a long breath and runs a hand through his hair. He sends a smile at Bruce, one of which was forced. “Oh hey Bruce, what can I help you with?”

Bruce continues to watch with wearily, deciding to go along with it for the time being. He gestures to the bag on the desk, “I brought lunch.”

Tim’s gaze goes from Bruce to the bag. “Oh? Anything good?” Despite his apparent interest, he doesn’t make a move to look inside the bag.

“It’s Thai,” Bruce answers, “from that little place across the street. Thought we could share as I too have missed lunch today.”

Leaning back in his chair, Tim lets out a sigh. “Thanks Bruce I appreciate it but I don’t have time to eat right now, though I’ll save it for dinner this evening instead.”

That makes warning bells go off inside of Bruce’s head. If that was the case, then why did Tim look so wiped out and stressed? Why was his head down on the desk and not busily on the computer?

Deciding he’s played along long enough Bruce moves around to the other side of the desk so he was next to Tim and leans against the desk facing his son. “What’s going on Tim? I came in just now and you had your head on the desk and you startled when I called your name.”

Tim suddenly looks affronted and frowns up at him. Bruce simply raises his eyebrows in question. After a moment he looks around at Tim’s desk to find no books or papers were actually on the desk and his computer wasn’t even turned on. It was like Tim just came into the office and placed his head on the desk.

“Nothing’s going on Bruce. I’m fine, just a little tired.”

It seems to be a lot more than that. Tim looks exhausted, the dark rings around his eyes suggest he hasn’t been sleeping a lot, his hair his a wild mess meaning he’s ran his hands through it countless of times and the lack of work going on in that moment is suggesting that he’s just too tired to do it (or even care).

“Tim,” Bruce says softly, “talk to me. This isn’t like you. Is everything okay?”

“Yeah Bruce everything is fine, jeeze.” Tim sends him a smile but like that first one, this one is forced and doesn’t meet his eyes.

Bruce sighs. Looks like he’s going to have to go digging for information then. “How’s WE work? You don’t have anything out at the moment.”

“It’s good, it’s just a slow day today. All is going smoothly just working on a couple reports at the moment.”

“What about your night-time activities? Anything exciting happening?”

“It’s all quiet on that front. Nothing new or exciting has happened recently, it’s suspiciously too quiet.”

“What about your siblings? I think Dick was planning some kind of bonding activity on Saturday, has he spoken to you about that yet?”

“Yeah, Dick is planning for us to go to the zoo. I don’t particularly want to go but Cass is going so I might, she’ll make it bearable.”

“How’s Conner? I haven’t seen him for a while recently?”

When Tim doesn’t immediately answer, Bruce knows he’s hit the nail on the head. Something’s happened between him and Kon. That may explain why Tim’s been spending time at the Manor this week more than usual.

“Did you two have a fight?” He questions Tim gently.

It really does seem to be the answer to Tim’s mood because his son takes a shaky breath and wipes his rapidly blinking eyes as if he’s trying to stop himself from crying.

Suddenly Tim jumps to his feet which causes the chair he was using to go rolling backwards into the war not too far behind him. He looks at Bruce almost frantically, his tired eyes now open wide and his hands clenched at his sides.

Tim steps away from the desk, moving around it and starts pacing the room. Bruce turns with him and watches Tim as he travels back and forth.

“You want to know what’s going on Bruce? You want to know what’s going on!” Tim yells at him. “Everything I just said is a lie! I’m sick and tired of it all! I can’t deal with it for much longer! All the work that I have to do, all the responsibility that I’m carrying and what everyone is expecting of me, I am done with it.”

Tim stops his pacing and faces Bruce his hands making wild gestures as he lists off everything going on. “Board members are expecting four different reports, all due in the same week. I am going insane in trying to collect the data I need for them.

The Titan’s are driving me crazy because there isn’t anything to do except train, work on protocols and patrol. All they’re doing is whining about it like it’s my fault!

I am this close to killing my brothers Bruce. This close. Jason won’t stop pestering me for new weapon upgrades, I said to him that I’d work on them when I get the chance and I haven’t had the chance to. All Dick wants to do is cuddle and bond, like give a guy some space! And Damian, don’t even get me started on the brat!

As for Kon, where do I even begin? Yes he and I did have a fight. I have been spending time at the Manor to avoid him but I’m not apologizing until he does because it’s all his fault and the asshole won’t admit.

I am sick and tired of it all Bruce! I’m done, just done with everything.”

Tim finishes his ranting by collapsing on the sofa in the corner of the room with his head buried in his hands. Bruce’s heart feels heavy in his chest, he had no idea that Tim had been feeling like this. That all of this was even going on for his son.

He was burnt out and in need of a break.

Bruce goes to the sofa and settles down beside Tim, not yet touching him. “That certainly is a lot Tim. I’m sorry that you have all of that going on right now.” He comments evenly. His job, as Tim’s father, is make sure he knows he’s got his support no matter what.

“Right first thing, when are those reports due? I haven’t been able to keep track of them due to the contract meetings going on recently, which I should have been helping you out with so I’m sorry for that.”

“They’re due at the end of the month.” Tim mumbles from his hands.

“Okay, that's three weeks from now. What you’re going to do is give two of them up and hand one over to Tam to take care of and I’ll handle the other. Okay?” The only response Tim gives is a defeated humming sound. “That’s two less things going on for you.

As for your team if all they’re doing is whining then mute them and ignore their calls for a couple days, unless of an emergency of course. You need a break and that isn’t helping.

In the next day or so I’ll have a conversation with each of your brothers about giving you some breathing space. They shouldn’t be bombarding you like that, they’re all grown up enough to know better, even Damian knows the difference.

Now your relationship with Kon. Are you still together, are you taking a break for a week or two?”

“I don’t know Bruce!” Tim whines, still not looking up from his hands. “I stormed out of the house in rage and haven’t spoken to him since.”

“Tim, you know you’re going to have to talk to him soon right? Avoiding him isn’t the answer and is pretty immature. You’re better than that. Talking with one another will clear the air a lot quicker and then you both can make decisions on what would be best.”

“I know that. I just don’t want to.”

Bruce huffs in mild amusement, because of course that would be the case. “Well I can’t make you contact him but your problems will be over quicker if you do chat with him.”

Tim doesn’t answer to that, instead he finally lifts his head up and leans into Bruce. Bruce takes the motion in stride and wraps an arm around Tim in comfort, he even presses a kiss to his temple. “I love you bud and if it all builds up like this again then I want you to tell me so you don’t end up burning out and struggle to deal with everything. I’m here for you.”

Tim’s hums almost contently. “Yeah, thanks Bruce.” With a glance down Bruce sees Tim leaning heavily into him with his eyes closed. He smiles and allows Tim to stay there. He deserves the rest.

#Whumptober2020 #day seven #support #Tim Drake #bruce wayne #good dad bruce #break downs #yelling #hurt and comfort #supportive bruce #stressed tim #mentioned timkon #fanfiction #father and son

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midnightsimmmer · 4 years ago

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I decided I’m posting spoilers

In my creative writing class, I decided to take season 2, episode 4 of Bite The Bullet and make it into a short-story-esque read. Scattered scenes from the episode will be below ;) Would love feedback!!!!

“Well, have you tried… maybe like-”

“Give it up, Kiyami.” Beatrix fumbled to get her fingers untangled from her curls. Kiyami slumped onto the table and placed her cheek in her hand.

“Bee… he’s not going to stop bugging you until you tell him to stop.”

“He’s never going to stop.” Beatrix's hand flung free, nearly knocking her tea off the table. Kiyami helplessly opens her phone after a slight ding emerges, and she lets out a sigh.

“Are you still answering his calls?” Beatrix freezes, and without a word Kiyami knew the answer. She was disappointed, but not surprised. The room suddenly grew colder, Kiyami rubbing her arms for warmth, looking to see if the air conditioning kicked back on. It didn’t. She watched Beatrix pick at her nail polish for what felt like hours.

“You don’t understand.” Beatrix’s voice choked under the pressure, barely finishing the last word.

“What do you mean I don’t understand? I thought I knew you better than anyone ever has.”

“Well, clearly you don’t.” her stare lingered from her nails to the painting Kiyami hung up above their table. It was a piece of Japan Kiyami spent an entire night telling Beatrix about when she couldn’t sleep. Kiyami practiced tai chi there every day after school as a child, she loved the way the cherry blossoms fell onto her as she swiftly moved her limbs. It was one of the only places Kiyami could be at peace, and Beatrix wanted her to always have a way to be there.

“It’s been 7 months. You need to let him go or-”

“Or you’re going to leave me, right?” The cracks in Beatrix’s voice echoed the pain she was feeling. “If you loved me you wouldn’t make me choose.”

“If you really loved me, there wouldn’t be a choice.” Beatrix’s face grew red, for the first time since she got home, she finally made eye contact. Kiyami could see the pain, the overwhelming amount of confusion, anger, frustration, sadness, everything.

“He was the first person I ever loved and trusted, I told you he wasn’t going to let me go.”

“He murdered people, Beatrix!” Kiyami’s hand slammed onto the table and the deep voice of her past crept up. Frustration overpowered the estrogen Kiyami had been on for years, and hearing her old voice broke her heart even more.

“He did it to protect me.” Beatrix’s teeth began to grind, she continued to pick at her polish without breaking from the stare.

“You’re so stuck on a man that you’re going to make excuses for the murder of your own father? What kind of hold does he have on you?” Kiyami pulled her hand off the table and rested it on Beatrix’s hands. “It wasn’t this bad when we got together, Bee. What happened?”

That’s when she broke. 7 months of tears all came out at once, causing every spec of black eyeliner to smear down her cheeks. She wanted to tell her everything, help her understand, but how? How do you explain the way you’ve been once again manipulated, when you don’t even know it? Weston’s smooth words through the scratchy connection of a prison phone echoed through her mind, and she couldn’t let him go. There’s no way it could ever be possible. Kiyami wrapped her arms around Beatrix, but she pushed her away.

“Hey, let me help you.” Kiyami was back to her soft and light-hearted voice, caring more about Beatrix’s emotions than whatever hold Weston still had on her. “This is part of my job.”

“A relationship isn’t a job, Kiyami!” She hid her frustrations through anger, unknowingly burying every ounce of progress she’s made with Kiyami. “I never felt like work to him.”

“That’s not what I’m saying!” Kiyami’s hand frantically flew to cover her stomach, the other smearing her makeup to the side of her face rather than down her cheeks.

“I need to go.” Beatrix struggled to stand, overrun with emotion that she couldn’t control. She practically ran out the door as Kiyami turned, thinking of following her. Instead she leaned out the door to ask Beatrix to call her, but she was long gone.

Calista opened the door to find Beatrix, who had wiped all of her makeup away on the walk to her place. Her eyes were red and glossy, but Beatrix refused to let another tear fall. With an instant gasp, Calista’s girlfriend, Aia, joined by her side to welcome Beatrix in with a warm hug. Beatrix politely asked not to be touched, and they both backed up, allowing her to sit down wherever she pleased.

“What happened?” Calista sat by Beatrix as Aia began to brew black tea, something that Calista hated but kept around just for Beatrix.

“I don’t think Kiyami wants to be with me anymore.” Beatrix mumbled as she tried to steady her hand.

“Kiyami wants to be with you, Beatrix. Don’t let your insecurity take over the situation at hand.” Aia handed the cup to Beatrix, who only responded with a dirty look. “Too straight forward… right.” Aia stood there for a few moments, and realized that there was no way she was going to help. Kiyami may be her sister, but Aia still hasn’t figured out how to talk to Beatrix. Calista turned and locked eyes with Aia, the pair communicated almost telepathically.

It’s okay, I got it. Aia read from Calista’s soft nod. I think I’m gonna go. Aia said through sucking in her lips and looking down to her right.

“Just know that Kiyami loves you, I hear the way she talks about you every day. She wants you.” Aia picked up her phone from the glass coffee table and left into Calista’s room, hardly making a noise.

“Beatrix, you have to tell me the truth.” Calista put a hand on her knee, which was cold despite Beatrix wearing thick black tights. “Is this about Weston?” the tightening grip on the mug of tea told Calista all she needed to know, and she let out a sigh. “I told you to stop taking his calls.”

“He offered to pay for me to go to art school.”

“And you’re going to take it?!”

“What? No! I-”

“I told you to stop taking money from him! I told you to stop taking calls from him!” Calista moved a cushion away from Beatrix, eyebrows furrowing.

“I did! But then I-”

“But then you decided to take the call! You know how he affects you, and you know how his affect on you hurts Kiyami! For fucks sake, Bee, do you even care about her feelings?”

“I do!” Beatrix’s unsteadiness hurled out in her words, slowly growing more and more exasperated.

“Then why take his call?”

“I-”

“He’s manipulated you. Again.”

“No he hasn’t! I have everything under control!”

“Then why are you crying?!” Beatrix paused to touch her cheeks, she can’t hide her feelings as easily as she used to. Calista’s shoulders dropped. “I can’t keep supporting this.”

“What?”

“I could understand if you weren’t taking his calls anymore, but that’s not the case. You’re letting him do this to you because part of you still wants him to.” Beatrix croaked, trying to say I know, but she couldn’t. There was nothing she could do. The purgatory of emotion, trampled between anger and despair. Calista was exhausted, and Beatrix knew it was over. Not just with her friends, but with Kiyami as well. She’s let him ruin everything for her. Her family, her friends, and any potential romance she could ever have. Beatrix accepted her fate with her best friend and left, trying her best not to slam the door behind her and failing. Aia poked her head out into the hallway to see Calista turn to look back at her.

“I don’t think you should have done that, Cal.” Aia sat next to Calista, her head barely able to lean on her shoulder.

“I don’t know what else to do, she’s stuck.”

“Not everyone needs to hit rock bottom in order to get better. This isn’t a movie.”

“Then what do you suppose I do?” Calista rested her head on Aia’s, letting out a sigh that drew on for what felt like forever. Silence echoed through Calista’s apartment, doubt filling in any cracks left over.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Three days had passed since Beatrix called Kiyami from the corner of Arcadia Way and Charles Lane. She sulked on the bench painted blue in front of Mike’s Cornerstore, slowly typing in Kiyami’s phone number. The skips between words weren’t because of poor cell service. Beatrix crashed on Malachi’s couch, which only bugged his parent’s a little bit. As long as she paid a little rent for their troubles, everything would be alright… right?

“Beatrix…” Malachi shook her awake, no light shone in through the curtains yet. “You were sleep-talking again, my baba asked me to take you into my room.”

“I’m sorry.” she wiped the mixture of drool and tears from her chin and strained her eyes to see the clock on the wall. “What time is it?”

“Late.” He stood from his knees and went into his room, opening his dresser drawer for a t-shirt. Beatrix awkwardly followed in, hesitating to sit on his bed at first.

“You’re sure they don’t mind I’m in here?”

“Just as long as we’re fully clothed, not sharing a blanket, and the door is wide open.” He closed his dresser with his hip as a white v-neck was pulled down to cover his thin but toned waist; Beatrix failed to notice. Instead of laying back in bed to sleep, he leaned against the wall parallel to Beatrix. “Why did you come here?”

“Because I have nowhere else to go.” she bit her lip, eyes avoiding his.

“I know that’s not true. You came to me before your brother.” A wall of awkward silence built brick by brick as the clock ticked on.

“I don’t want to explain everything to him.”

“Don’t you think your own twin would understand what’s going on in your head more than your eh- uh, whatever I am to you.”

“I think you count as an ex.”

“Cool, so you ghosting me hurts a little bit more now.”

“Aren’t you happy I came to you?”

“Don’t get me wrong, I am. I just... don’t get why. You haven’t talked to me since you left.” His arms crossed with defense, preparing himself to say something that could set off what he knows to be a ticking time bomb. “You haven’t even apologized yet.”

“I know.” She looked at all the baseball trophies Malachi’s parents demanded be kept on the shelves. “That’s because I’m not sorry.”

“What the hell kind of response is that?” Malachi’s arms fell in dumbfoundedness.

“It’s my response. It’s the truth.” She bit her lip, the taste of blood spilling onto the side of her tongue. Malachi was perplexed, there was no way he could possibly respond to that. The two of them sat in silence for a while, until Malachi muscled the ability to ask the question that’s been lingering for months.

“Why’d you do it?”

“There’s a lot going on that you don’t know about.”

“With Weston?”

“With… Weston…” Malachi could see she was ready to open up, and maybe give him the answer he’s been longing for. She explained everything. How she fell fast and hard for Kiyami, simply because Kiyami made her feel like Weston didn’t exist anymore. Malachi had a lot of qualities Weston had, and whenever he said something Weston had said before, it threw Beatrix off guard and she felt reminded of everything he’d done for her. Even though everything Weston did was monstrous, it was still for Beatrix; The deep-set manipulation was making Beatrix feel that maybe, just maybe, murdering 6 people wasn’t so bad in the end. Beatrix told Malachi about Weston paying for her rent up until she moved in with Kiyami, and how Weston offered to pay for art school on top of that.

“Wow…” Malachi looked out to the sun rising through his window, suddenly sitting next to Beatrix on his bed. “That’s… a lot.”

“I know.”

“I really liked you, Beatrix.”

“Do you still?”

“No, not the same way.”

“Good.” The sound of an alarm buzzed through the walls, Malachi’s mother was getting up for work.

“Coffee?” Beatrix shook her head. “Oh, that’s right. Tea only.” She failed to hold back her smile. They sat there for a while, enjoying each other's aura in the silence. Malachi turned to see the bags under Beatrix’s eyes, the restless nights were really beginning to show, especially since she hasn’t had the chance to put makeup on since the last time she cried it all off.

“What do I say?”

“What?”

“In my sleep.” Beatrix looked to the ground, twiddling her thumbs.

“Oh.” Malachi pondered for a moment, wondering whether he thought she was ready to hear the truth or not. “Maybe I’ll tell you later.”

“Maybe you’ll tell me now.” a stern tone rode over her voice.

“Maybe I’ll tell you never.” A cheesy smirk made Malachi’s left dimple show, and he got up to grab his towel. “I’m gonna shower.” Beatrix kept her eyebrows low until the door was completely closed before letting her face relax as she flopped backwards onto the bed.

The way Malachi’s hair fell into his deep brown eyes when it was wet could weaken the knees of any girl, or guy for that matter. Droplets of Old Spice scented water drizzled down his jawline, which was the perfect mix of smooth and angular. He shook his head as water flung everywhere, annoying Beatrix, but causing the group of teen girls at their bus-stop to melt in the 40-degree cold.

“Can you fucking not?” Beatrix wiped droplets off her cheeks as she glared upwards. “You’re practically giving me a shower over here.”

“Oh come on,” Malachi pulled his hood up before opening his car door “It’s not like you didn’t need one anyway.” Beatrix reached out to him from the other side of the car, only for him to poke fun at the fact that she’s far too short to reach across his car.

“You’re lucky it’s cold.” she grimaced.

“You’re lucky I’m letting you come to work with me, again.” her eyes rolled so hard she could see her brain, if there was any light.

“I don’t want to sit at home all day with your father watching a jewish priest read the Torah. I’m sorry.” Malachi let out a laugh.

“Me neither. That shit’s awful.” He pressed a cigarette between his lips before turning the corner, the teen girls once again gushing over him.

“Looks like you’ve got groupies.”

“They flunked classes so bad they need to go to summer school.” He lit his cigarette and drove off from the girls, who were still looking at him and waving to his car. “They’re also sophomores.”

“And for a moment you had me thinking bad grades were the only thing holding you back.” Beatrix joked, but he didn’t seem to take light to it.

“I’m not going to fuck a 15 year old.”

“It’s a joke, dude. I know you’re not like that.”

“Kay well that doesn’t make it funny.”

“I’m sorry, holy shit.” A few seconds of silence were cut off with Beatrix awkwardly turning on the radio, alternative music blasting through the speakers.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Kenji looked over to Cedric, both of them with concerned looks on their faces.

“You’re allowed to ask her what happened, you know.” Cedric rolled his eyes.

“She doesn’t respond when I do that, she has to tell me herself.”

“Maybe she’s doing that thing where she wants someone to reach out to her, but she’s too scared to ask.” Cedric looked over to Kenji, telepathically asking: are you sure about that one? “Yeah no, you’re right. It’s Beatrix we’re talking about here.” Kenji’s british accent stumbled over her name, as it always has. Seeing Cedric worry about his sister made Kenji frustrated, he can’t solve problems that have to do with Beatrix because of her stubbornness. A slight knock on the open door revealed Kenji’s dad, with slicked back blonde hair and a dark 5 o’clock shadow.

“You lads all set for lunch?”

“I’m not hungry.” Cedric spit out, Kenji’s muscles tightened.

“Well, your mother and I are going out for lunch with your sister. I assume you boys can make your own once your appetite comes back.” He stepped back to head down the stairs before facing them again. “I hope everything gets sorted, Ced.” Cedric rubbed his temples as the footsteps down the stairs echoed into the room.

“He’s trying to father me.”

“It’s not like it makes me any more comfortable than you.” Kenji sighed, trying to think of any possible way to make Cedric feel better. “How’s chocolate chip waffles sound for lunch?”

“Extra chocolate chips?”

“Extra chocolate chips.” Kenji smiled before the two of them rushed down to the kitchen, pulling the waffle maker from the cupboards. Once they noticed the van pull out from the driveway, Kenji turned on the radio to its highest setting. Cedric’s awkward and lanky dancing paired with off-pitch singing brought warmth to Kenji’s heart, who sang along in perfect pitch as he put the waffle mix together. To Kenji’s surprise, Cedric’s elbow wacked against the bag of flour. White powder filled the air, sticking to Cedric’s black jeans and Kenji’s dark green pullover. They stood in silence, Cedric’s large brown eyes widened and staring right into Kenji’s hazel deep-set eyes, before breaking out into laughter, hugging the flour even deeper into their clothes.

#sims3series #sims 3 series #spoilers #bite the bullet #btb #lgbt #short-story

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justoneday-namjoonii · 6 years ago

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It burns, doesn’t it? [Pt. 16]

Genre/au: Mafia!au, Mature, Fluff, Angst. Violence and all that good mafia stuff. Warning: Depictions of graphic torture and brief/mentioned sexual assault. This story contains graphic imagery, mental health problems, mature subject matter, improper drug usage, suggestive language, self-medication, crude/unnerving behavior, toxic coping, intensity, bloodshed. If you’re easily triggered, please proceed with caution or don’t proceed.

members: Jungkook x Yoongi x Namjoon x Jin x Hoseok x Jimin x Taehyung x Ft. Got7

pairing: Jungkook x reader x ?

summary: Why am I hurting alone? Why am I in love alone?

word count: 10k +

author’s note: wow, its been almost 9 months, the long-awaited pt 16 is finally here!! I apologize for the wait, I had a lot going on in my life but I’m good^^ Anyway, I’m excited to see how this series continues to progress and all I really have to say is...its getting real♡

| Prologue | Pt. 1 | Pt. 2 | Pt. 3 | Pt. 4 | Pt. 5 | Pt. 6 | Pt. 7 | Pt. 8 | Pt. 9 | Pt. 10 | Pt. 11 | P. 12 | Pt. 13 | Pt. 14 | Pt. 15 | Pt. 16 | Pt. 17 | Pt. 18 | Pt. 19 | Pt. 20 |

Another late night.

It seemed like the only constant in his life right now is the smiling faces of his two children. They’re often asleep when he gets home, so it’s no surprise that he doesn’t hear their giggles and bickering at this time of night. He walks down the hallway, pulled at his tie and opened his bedroom door. That’s when he saw his wife sitting with a book up to her nose, eyes shifting to him upon his arrival.

“How was work, honey? You’re back much later than I thought you’d be.” His wife greets him with a kiss on the cheek as he enters their bedroom fully, briefcase being dropped to the side so he could embrace her.

“Yeah, I’m sorry, the station is a mess right now.” He released her so he could go to the restroom. He continued to speak, “I’m hoping that’ll change soon.”

He showered, tiredly washing the day off of him with the help of steaming hot water. The idea of all of the mayhem he’s in weighed on his mind, there are so many people involved and it’s all up to him to put it to a stop, for once and for all.

After he showered, he turned off the lamp and sat on the edge of the bed, just gazing out of the window.

“Honey...” His wife pipes up from her side of the bed. “What’s wrong?”

“Do you ever feel like what you’re doing won’t really make a difference? Like your work won’t pay off in the long run...Or have you ever been faced with a decision that could change lives? And you just feel scared.”

She smiled in sympathy for her husband's distress.

“Of course honey, every nurse feels like that sometimes.”

“But what do you do? Do you leave it for someone else whos more capable? Or do you just, go for it?...”

“Well, is it the right thing to do?”

He nods.

“Then the answer is simple, sweetheart.” She pecks his cheek, a grin on her beautiful face.

“If you have the chance to do good, then you do it.”

- The night after you met with Jungkook. -

[ 2:09 AM ]

It didn’t feel real, it couldn’t be. But you still feel his hands on your skin, his lips on your neck, and his breath against your ear—he leaves his imprint on you every time you two touch, and he hasn’t touched you in what feels like forever. Empty, that’s the word that comes to mind. A hollowness in your soul that cannot be sated, not anymore.

Jimin drove you back home, or at least back to what you call home right now. You two made it to the base and you were silent, you didn’t say anything, neither did Jimin. It wasn’t because of any hard feelings, it was because you were in shock and Jimin was just processing what he just did. He took you to see Jungkook, he gave you what you wanted, so why does it feel like he made it worse?

“I’m-...” Jimin began to say something but stops, causing you to peer at him for a moment. When he meets you curious gaze, he lets out a sigh. “I’m glad you got to see him.” He thought you would agree, or thank him, the last thing he thought you would do is start to cry.

He was completely caught off guard, so much so that he diverted his gaze. He turned the car off and waited—what he was waiting for, he wasn’t quite sure, but he wanted to tread lightly.

“I’m gonna go to my room...” You choke that out and before he registers what you said, you’re out of the car and running to the back door he took you out of.

What went wrong? You shouldn’t have been upset, he let you see Jungkook and that’s all you’ve wanted, so why are you crying all of a sudden?

Jimin understands all too well the turmoil that goes on within the head of a brokenhearted person—your heart was broken over having to leave Jungkook.

He walks into his bedroom and crashes on the bed, mind begging for a break from the mental exhaustion of the night.

The night goes on and you’ve been completely quiet for a few hours, until now. He kept hearing a bumping noise like something kept falling or something was being hit repeatedly. He got up from his bed and tiptoed to your room, even though there were still quite a few people awake, he didn’t want to be obvious as he ventured to your room.

He knocked on the door, once. When you didn’t answer, he knocked again. “Y/n? Are you okay?” You respond with an unconvincing, ‘I’m fine.’

“But I heard a bumping noise, did you fall?”

He grips the door nob and slowly pushes it open, and there you are, sitting on your bed, but laying half your body on your side. You don’t look back, even after he closes the door, you still don’t look to see who it is. He circles around the bed to where you are and furrows his brows. You’re wearing a tee-shirt, and that’s it—you must have just finished applying ointment.

“Hey,” Jimin approaches you, “Is everything okay?”

“I was hurting, everywhere...” He studies your surroundings and sees that a pill bottle was on your nightstand. It was open and it looked like you took a few out. “I took some medicine and it stopped, I’m fine, you didn’t have to come to check on me.”

Worry is deeply engraved in his brows. “Y/n, you don’t need those anymore,” He goes over to quickly close the bottle and tuck it in his pocket, “how many did you take?”

“A few...” Your speech is slurred and he notices a bunch of scars on your thighs that he’s never seen before. But rather than focusing on those, he decides to address a more pressing issue.

“Why did you do that? Those drugs are addictive, you know better than to get back on them. Especially without telling me-” He stops talking when you sit up and stare blankly at yourself, you look dazed but at the same type laser-focused.

“But I’m in pain, my insides hurt, everything hurts.” You blink slowly. “The pills...they help, a lot...”

“You’re not supposed to use drugs like that.”

“But you’re not feeling the pain I’m feeling...” You frown.

“I know but you can’t just take anything, it can really hurt you.” He comes to sit beside you and he rubs your back soothingly.

“Look...” You muttered, pointing to your thighs. You were healing considerably, the scars you’re pointing to are really not that bad anymore but you thought otherwise.

“Look at me, look at this.” Your tone was getting progressively more tense, angry almost—you poked at the skin with a look of disgust on your face, making him increasingly more worried. “It’s gross,”

“Stop,” He grabbed your wrist to stop you from jabbing at yourself, “don’t do that.”

You stare at him, blankly, just before grinning. “Why?...”

“Just don’t.”

“But I want to...” You begin to trace the scars with your index finger, looking at him at the same time and this time he grabbed your hand, but he didn’t let you go.

“Stop.”

All of a sudden, your stomach begins to turn and twist painfully and you hunch over with a hand clamped to your mouth. “I think- I-”

You yank away and run to the bathroom as quickly as your feet can take you to and Jimin immediately runs after you. You’re sitting hunched over the toilet, expelling your insides. He sits on his knees to rub your back as you have painfully, body forcing you to throw up all you had eaten in the last few hours. He can’t say he’s surprised, that’s what happens when you just swallow random pills, of course, your stomach isn’t pleased with intense drugs on an empty stomach.

“Baby...” He tentatively grips your hair and holds it up in a makeshift ponytail. “Why did you do this?”

You cough, head hung low and legs folding under you painfully. You flush the toilet after you realize your stomach had stopped attempting to murder you. Empty—your mind is empty, your stomach is empty, and Jimin is just looking at you. Embarrassment sinks in, your cheeks begin to burn red, and your head feels unbearably heavy.

“I’m sorry,” You unsteadily stand to your feet, holding on to the counter for leverage. Jimin watches you from the doorway as you turn the sink on to brush your teeth. When you finish, you lean against the counter, too ashamed to look at him, let alone the mirror.

“I’m sorry, you probably think I’m crazy, I didn’t mean to-...” You pause when he walks toward you. He effortlessly lifted you into his arms and walked you out of the bathroom, despite your protests.

“Jimin, p- put me down...” He doesn’t give in to your low request, instead, he holds you tighter and continues to walk you to your bed.

Jimin will always take care of you, always. It doesn’t matter what you look like, what you do, he grabs and puts you right back in bed. The plush mattress welcomes you as he eases you down to the corner near the nightstand. He pulls the blanket over you, and you can tell that he’s really worried because he doesn’t have that slight smile he normally has. You just saw Jungkook, you got to see the man you’ve been longing for, he wasn’t expecting a relapse like this. You’re blinking slowly and staring at nothing in particular. He was about to walk away but you grabbed his wrist to keep him from leaving your side

“I left him...He was crying, he didn’t want me to go, I didn’t want to go...” You push the covers off of you and curl up, pressing your knees to your chest. “I shouldn’t have gone...”

“I thought you wanted to see him? I wanted you to be happy and it seemed like you were but now...” He sits on the edge of the bed, looking down at you pouty lips and watery eyes. “Now you’re-”

“Now I’m alone.” You pipe up, tears tumbling down your cheeks. “And I just want him more...and it hurts even more.”

Jimin is no stranger to the feeling of loneliness.

That’s why he understands your pain better than anyone.

“You’re not alone,” he said, trapping you with an arm on each side of you. “I’m right here.”

“I know but...” You reach a hand up to cup the side of his face and his heart began to beat faster—what is happening. “But you’re not Jungkook...”

For some reason, he doesn’t say anything but his eyes look heavy, and you can practically see the gears turning in his head. He dips his head down and kisses the corner of your lips lightly, so lightly that you barely registered that he did it. He leans down again to press his forehead against yours, letting his eyes fall shut.

Your eyes widened and you freeze, not knowing what to do. He shouldn’t have done that, this isn’t a good idea, but he takes your silence as an invitation to do what he’s wanted to do for the last few days. He kisses you again, but this time it’s a real kiss, movement and all. He melts at how your lips are really as soft as they look, how you don’t completely oppose his actions. The room is completely silent aside from small sounds and his deep inhale.

This is the last thing you thought he’d do. He’s pressing against your lips, velvet draping touching you in a heavenly way. He tongues at your lips, making a chill run up your spine. You squeeze your eyes shut, trying to convince yourself that this is okay, that this isn’t Jimin trying to make you feel some type of way. You know he would never do anything to hurt you, he would never hurt you... It’s only after he pulls away with an audible smack, that he sees the alarm etched in your furrowed brows and your glistening lips. You’re scared.

He recoils immediately. “I'm sorry, I just-...I won’t do that again, I’m sorry.” He mutters, getting off of you. “I don’t know why I did that-”

“I- it’s okay, um,” You feign a small smile, trying to convince him that you’re not as uncomfortable as you look. “I think you should go, Jimin...”

You had never asked him to leave before.

When you turn on your side, he gets up and quickly leaves your room. Guilt settles into his stomach and his lips tingle with the regret of his sin. Did he want to do that to you? Or was it just the lust of the flesh? Because you were out of it, you were confused as to why he did it. Sure, you two have touched and stuff but he’s never kissed you, that’s one thing he told himself he wouldn’t do. Because kissing you meant something—if he kisses you it has to mean something.

On his way back to his room, he hears a creaking noise. In the darkness, his eyes dart to the window, thinking that that’s where the noise was coming from and he slowly approaches it. It’s cracked open and he lifts it to peek over the ledge.

He nearly jumps out of his skin when he sees Taehyung staring up at him.

“What the hell are you doing?!” Jimin pulls Taehyung up by the collar so that his upper body is through the window but he easily throws his legs over the windowpane so that he is standing face-to-face with Jimin.

“Not so loud,” He keeps his voice low while holding up his index finger, “I’m not trying to let the whole compound know I’m here.”

“You could get killed over here.”

“Yeah, I'll take my chances.” Taehyung walks past him and ventures to what he believes to be the kitchen. “You guys have a nice place, Yoongi hyung has good taste.” He opens up the fridge and Jimin is beyond confused.

“Why are you here Tae?” Jimin closes the refrigerator but Taehyung just swipes an apple from the dish on the counter instead.

“Where’s Jin?”

“I don’t know-” Why is Taehyung asking the questions? “Wait, you still haven’t answered my question! Why are you here?”

“I don’t think that really matters. You did your fair share of visiting us when Jungkook’s girl was around, but she’s with you all now. So, I guess there’s no reason to visit us anymore...huh?” He turns from Jimin to walk off to the staircase.

“It’s not like that.” Jimin persists. “She’s Jin’s little sister, I had to make sure she was safe, that’s it.”

Taehyung walks upstairs with urgency and into that hall that leads to what he believes is Yoongi’s office, and he’s right. Jimin doesn’t understand why Taehyung is here, and so casually at that like he’s just dropping by to say hello. Just when Tae grabs the doorknob, Jimin blocks the door with his body, keeping Taehyung from entering. They have somewhat of a stare-off.

“Leave, Tae. Yoongi’s not in there.”

“I know that. I’m not here for him.” Taehyung tries the door but Jimin grabs his wrist, painfully tight. “Relax,” He detaches Jimin’s handle on him, “I’m just looking for a document.”

“What document?”

Taehyung smiles, head tilting. “I can’t tell you that.”

“Then you can get the fuck out of here.” Jimin seethes. “Go, before I have to escort you out myself.”

“Ok, ok, I’ll go.” He holds his hands up in surrender, that same smile still present on his face. But that simper quickly turned into a devious look. “But...not before I go say hi to Y/n, I think she’s missed me.”

With that Taehyung takes off in a sprint and Jimin is quick to bolt off after him.

Jimin catches him right before he can even touch your doorknob and Taehyung is dying of amusement, not bothering to keep his laughter at bay. He’s always gotten a crack out of fucking with Jimin.

“W- woah,” He holds Jimin’s arm that is currently wrapped around his neck in a chokehold, “w- what’s the big d- deal? Someones a little jumpy.” Tae coughs.

“Shut up and get out, before I call someone up here to beat your ass.” They both know that’s just a bluff.

“But-” He coughs for air but manages to pull away from Jimin. “But deep down inside, you think she’s yours, or you want her to be at least.”

“What’re you talking about?” Jimin turns around, pushing his hair from his forehead in frustration.

“She’s messed up,” Tae leans on the wall beside your door, eyes focused on his hyung, “don’t get attached.”

“She’s been hurt, she’s not ‘messed up’. If you were thrown into his hell you’d be the same way.” Jimin defends you.

“You overcompensate for her. Just by the way you talk about her, I can tell.” He states with not a doubt in his mind. Jimin, on the other hand, is caught off guard—he stares at Tae, not really knowing how to respond. “You feel guilty and you try to be something for her. That’s not a safe move my friend. Jungkook doesn’t like that kind of stuff, you know that.”

“So what.”

“’So what?’” He scoffs. “You really think you mean something to her...She’s a user—tell her you’ll keep her safe, and at this point, there’s not a lot she won’t do for you. But it’s not just that, she’s selfish too, and Jungkook falls for it. She wants what she wants, but she can tell him no if she doesn’t like what he wants. God forbid he tell her no, all hell will break loose...”

“It’s not that easy.” Jimin cuts him off, walking up to him to stand eye to eye with him. “That’s just your problem, you think everyone is as simple as your little mind games, but they’re not.”

“My ‘mind games’ as you like to call them, aren’t simple at all. In fact, those exact same tactics you call ‘simple’ greatly contributed to what made her what she is today.”

“And what is she?”

“She’s exactly what hyung wanted, she’s got all of the qualities that’ll drive Jungkook insane.” His casual tone is borderline unnerving. “It’s funny to watch.”

“What did you do?”

“Namjoon told me to make sure she remembered that it was her fault she ended up getting tortured, the reminders are all over her now.” Jimin thinks to what he might be referring to—your scars. The ones you always cover and the ones he saw on your thighs earlier tonight, those are Taehyung’s doing.

“That was you? You’re fucking sick...” Jimin murmurs to himself. “None of this crap is her fault, she doesn’t deserve to be caught up in this shit. Life is screwing her over and it’s not because of anything she did-”

Jimin falls silent when they hear the creaking sound of your spring mattress. The sound isn’t heard anymore after a few seconds and they deem that you had stopped stirring.

“It’s not her fault but her family’s in it,” He grins, “that means she is too, she’s in too deep.” He sighs, eyes roaming in contemplation.

“What?”

“Do you feeling something for her, Jimin? Hm? Do you kiss her?” Tae stared at him, expression unwavering from the blank one he’s had for some time now. “Like, on her lips and where ever else.” He giggles at the way he said that.

Jimin hopes the heat coming to his face is undetectable. He stammers, “W- what kind of question is that-”

“It’s a simple question.”

“No, I don't.”

“Hm.” Tae shrugs, his nonchalant air coming back. “It was just a question, I mean, you spend a lot of time with her and you have a past with women, one would only assume that something was going on between you two.”

“Just leave, Taehyung.” Jimin just stared at him, waiting for Taehyung to get off the wall and go on his way, “seriously.” Taehyung walks back to the window of which he came, and without a word, he slipped out and Jimin promptly closed it behind him

He stands in front of the window, chewing on his bottom lip until he hears a door creak and his head snaps back.

“Jimin, who was that?... I heard someone outside the door...” You stand there, looking slightly spooked and all he wanted to do was crawl into the center of the earth and burn because his feet began to bring him toward you.

“It’s okay, everything's okay, just- Just go back to bed...” He looks stressed and you pick up on it instantly. He ruffles his hair, and he won’t look at you directly, you frown. Slowly, you walk towards him to dimish space between you two and he still won’t look at you.

“Jimin,” You’re all in his personal space, just staring up at him, “what’s wrong? You can tell me...” You grab on to his arm lightly and he pulls away.

“Nothing, go back to bed.” He sighed, irritation gradually building up in his tone of voice.

You frown even deeper because his tone wasn’t as sweet as it often is. You reach for his hand. “B- but-”

“I said go! Just go back to sleep, will you?” He snapped all of a sudden and that was enough to scare you off. When you scurry off into your bedroom and shut the door, he instantly regrets snapping at you like that. But just when he tries to walk into the room, he realizes that you locked the door.

He gave up on asking you to let him in and opted to go to his own room,

where he should have been this whole time.

-Flashback-

“He was loved by so many. He was a friend, a brother, a husband...A father. And- And he will be missed dearly.”

It was raining, not a hard rain, just misty—it felt that even the weather prepared for the funeral. His daughter seemed unusually detached like she had cried all she could and now she’s run out of tears.

The preacher of the funeral told her that she was strong and then looked at me. People were saying kind comforting things to me, but mainly her. The guests were leaving and I had somewhere to be so I was about to leave to but I stopped. She stood in front of the coffin that had already been lowered. I walked up to her, a white rose in my hand as well as her.

“He didn’t deserve this...” You uttered lowly. “This never should have happened...”

I glance at her, then back to the silver coffin. “Yeah...But we all have to go some time, unfortunately.”

“Dad, right before they pulled me away from him, he told me to tell you that he was sorry.” She turned to me, eyes looking sad but somewhat content. “And that he loves us...” I was prepared to hear something like that and it actually comforted me. I love my father, there’s no denying that, but every father and son have their quarrels.

“At least we can say goodbye to him together, I know he’s happy about that...”

She extends her hand and for a moment she just waits. I get the cue to give her my hand and this is the first time we’ve ever held hands. And in that very moment, something deep down inside of me came to the realization that I had a sister.

We say goodbye and drop the flowers together.

That was the last time we saw each other before that one dreaded night.

“Jin?…is that really you?”

She looked at me, her eyes so innocent, uncorrupted by the life I live.

“I’m sorry Y/N…I’m so sorry.”

‘Well, we’ll leave you guys to talk. See you later, baby.’ Jimin and Hoseok left the room.

“He was right…you are pretty.” I broke the silence and looked at her with a weak smile. “He wanted me to come and see you but I’d always say no…”

Jin shakes his head, settling to push those thoughts aside as he straightens his hair in the mirror, preparing to face the day looking his very best. The stunt he and Wei pulled went perfectly. Now everyone knows who killed Hakyeon and the fire isn’t under him anymore, but his guard is still very much up.

But there’s a lot of good in all of this. Jaebum has become an ally, quite an essential one at that. His enemies are closer then they’ve ever been and it’s just a matter of time before his plan becomes reality. He’s staying the night at one of his personal condos for reasons that are quite obvious, Wei needed a place where he and Jin could work closely with the details of the end goal. After the stunt they pulled, Wei won’t be able to show his face around there. But that’s a small price to pay to keep Jin’s name in the clear, just a little longer.

He tilts his head in thought, he needed to talk to you and tell you that you're coming with him when this is all done. But more importantly, he needs Jimin to fill him in. He’s Jin's eyes and ears right now, if he needs to know something about Hoseok, Yoongi, or even you, Jimin will know something. But oddly enough, Jimin hasn’t been answering his calls, his messages, nothing. He can’t imagine what that’s about, but he’ll have to worry about it later.

“Ready? Jin?” Wei knocked on the door.

“Yeah,” He opened the door, “let’s go.”

Wei nodded as Jin walked past him and down the small flight of stairs, off to one of the cars in the garage. Soon they were in their respective cars and on the road. After about fifteen minutes, Jin started to read through the messages about the plan on his phone and that’s when he decided he should call Wei.

Wei picks up.

“Hello?”

“Hey, make sure you talk to the rest of the guys and I’ll contact you throughout the day to update you. I’m going to meet with Jaebum for a little while to go over what we’re about to do.”

“Jin, what about the FBI situation? It’s been all over the news that they’re getting involved, do you think they suspect us?”

Jin sighs. “It’s not likely. They know we have something to do with it but they’ll never pinpoint it to me. When I sent Jimin off with a team to get Jungkook and my sister, they planted bombs there too and the building went up in flames. Two explosions, two gangs, they’re catching onto what’s happening. It’s only a matter of time before it all boils over and we’ll be at the forefront of it all.”

“I hope so, I’ll talk to you later.”

Jin makes a sound of agreement and hangs up.

After some time, he arrives at the lounge, gets out of the car, and makes his way inside. He’s not surprised to see that Jaebum is already here, anxiously waiting. His eyes drift over to Jin who steadily approaches him, confidence in every step he makes.

“Jin.”

Jaebum addresses him first, giving him a small bow.

“How was your drive down here? I know it’s a ways from your base.” Jin ushers a waitress over to get him something to drink.

“It was fine.” He lifts his glass, taking a much-needed sip before looking up at his senior.

“Good. Well, let’s get right into it, shall we?” Jin pulls a sheet of paper out of his blazer and places it flat on the table. “Yoongi and I haven’t been on the same page these days. I’ve made some decisions and choices for the greater good, but he doesn’t see it yet, he might not ever.”

“So, this is all you? Min doesn’t know anything about this?”

Jin shakes his head. “Oh God no, Yoongi and I aren’t on the same page right now. Anyways, did you send the last shipment?”

“Yes, I sent it last night, should arrive sometime today.”

Jin beams. “Perfect.”

“Can I ask, why do you need more? I mean, I thought you had access to sellers from all over.”

“Those purchases are tracked. If I buy from the black market, who knows what they’ll do with my receipts. Now getting supplies from you is untraceable, I have to be smart about this.”

“So, in your message, you said you want the shipment delivered by a third party, none of my men?”

“Exactly.”

Jaebum had wondered why Jin wanted him to be so hands-off about getting this stuff to him. Of course, he understands the need to stay off the grid. But he can’t help but wonder, why does Jin seem more interested in what he has—rather than Jaebum as an ally. But the thought crosses his mind as Jin explains more of the plan in the background of his internal monologue, I’m I being used?

“Wait, wait, why? Jin, it sounds like you want my material but not the help of my organization as a whole. My men, they’re smart, they know what it takes to get jobs done and it just seems like you’re overlooking that. What are you planning to do with the shipments?”

The air shifts.

Jaebum can tell by the way Jin rolls his shoulders and eyes darken.

“Does it matter?”

“Hell yeah, it matters. It’s my money, my resources, I should know what it’s being used for, shouldn’t I? I deserve to be front in center with this.”

Deserve?

“I hate to have to break this to you so soon, I thought we’d be able to keep up this little relationship for a little while longer but you’ve already made your opinions and what you believe you’re entitled to pretty clear...” He sighs, rubbing his chin in thought. “Jaebum, do you know who you are?”

“Of course I know who I am, what does that have to do with anything?”

“I don’t think you really know who you are. Im Jaebum, son of one of the richest men in the city. You were born with a silver spoon up your ass and this life was handed to you, so don’t ever think that you did anything to get where you are. All the power you have, you did nothing to deserve it. The rest of us busted our asses trying to make it by, but you? You didn’t have to do shit. Yet, you bitch more than the whole mafia combined about shit that you don’t even really understand, and never will.” He scoffs, tone already past condescending. “And you blame me because my father had something to do with your father's death, do you know how pathetic that is?”

Jaebum stares at him completely caught off guard and quite frankly about to lose his cool. Did Jin really just pull a 180 and flip on him? He’s one of the many victims to fall prey to Jin’s betrayals.

“Oh yeah, and don’t think I forgot about you kidnapping my sister and torturing her aunt all just to get to me.” Jin seethes. “Do you know how fucking difficult it is to pretend to not care that you are the bastard who dragged her into this? You are the reason Yoongi traded her off to Namjoon and now she’s screwed for life. And even after you managed to send your people out to get her back, you still didn’t realize you had lost. You’re not essential to anyone Jaebum, especially not me. I just happened to need you for one reason, and now that I have what I need, I don’t really care what happens to you.” Jin stands to his feet.

Jaebum doesn’t even know how to respond, he looked like all the blood had left his face. He stands as well. “H- How dare you...How dare you speak to me like this! You come to ask for my resources and then disrespect me like- like-”

Jin cuts him off by pulling him forward by the upper arm. “You think you’re so deserving, it’s sickening...And that’s why nobody in this damn country will ever give you the respect you want.”

The only thing Im Jaebum has ever deserved is an ass whooping. He is one of the most well-off gang leaders in this city and it’s all inherited. Jin may have worked and learned from his father, but everything he has? He went out and got it himself, so did a majority of the other gangs in the country. Nobody deserved power less than Im Jaebum, that was a well-known fact.

By stating that he was entitled to anything Jin has worked for—it rubbed him the wrong way.

This mission has lasted a total of two years.

Two years of forming relationships, compiling information and evidence in the mafia world. He’s been the middle man between Min Yoongi and Kenneth Yu for years now and he’s received unprecedented amounts of money to do favors for both of them. And he’s done it. He’s kept bad people out of jail, he’s given Yoongi top secret files, there's so much that he’s done that could compromise his integrity. Junghyun is also a big part of this but Seo doesn’t have anything on him. He does have people giving him information but he can’t figure out who those people are. Junghyun is preparing to campaign for Kenneth's position as director of health and welfare. He wants him to find Jungkook, Seo has a good idea as to why.

“Okay...” He sighs, sipping his coffee in order to stay alert on this busy morning.

Seo walks out of his office and the police department cubicles are all filled with workers and cops are coming in and out.

“Officer Kim Suho, and officer Lee Donghae. Can you two come to my office please?” Seo caught the eye of both of them and they quickly dropped what they were doing to see what their chief needed.

“Yes, Chief?” Lee comes in first and Kim follows right behind.

“Close the door please.” Suho gives him an odd look but does it anyway. They both watch as Seo closes the blinds, that means whatever he’s about to tell them is important.

“What’s going on, Chief?”

“Listen, I’m telling you both this because I trust you two, you should know about this first,” Choi walks behind his desk and to his board, “before I let the whole Department know.”

Seo flips the board around and the two officers slowly approach it.

“Wh-” Lee furrows his brows, “What is this Chief?” He inspected all the papers and little bags pinned to the board. There are papers and Min Yoongi’s name is all over it, along with Kim Namjoon, Jeon Jungkook, Jeon Junghyun, Kenneth Yu—most of these names are familiar to him.

“The department is buzzing about the explosions in those gang territories, the FBI is now involved, and the mafia activity has been more rampant than ever.”

Officer Kim Suho reads over the first news article he sees, ‘Suspected Terrorist Attack?’ Then another, ‘Who Are The Masterminds Behind Attacks, Why Are They Still Slipping Through KPD’s Fingers?’ Then another, ‘Alleged Mafia Member on the Run From Seoul General Hospital.’ The articles go on and he diverts his gaze to Seo. ‘Cha Hakyeon, Drug Dealer, Found Fead in Apartment.’

“I know it’s said that we don’t have exact names, but I do. Min Yoongi, he’s the big baller. He’s been able to stay under the radar for the longest but I know him. For years now, I’ve been the middle man between him and the law. Min has money all throughout the system, there are people in high places that know him and fear the damage he could do if any of them were to test his hand. He’s a drug lord, yes, but he’s got his hands in a lot of places.”

“Chief, how does he trust you? You’re a cop.”

“I’ve proven myself. I’ve been able to get several of his men out of jail, keep him informed of the political activity that might affect him, and keep his name out of the media. I’ve done some risky things just to maintain that relationship...But it’s all worth it. Nobody knows this but me, but Kenneth Yu, director of Health & Welfare, is married to Yoongi’s mother. In order to keep her safe, Yoongi doesn’t interact with her or associate himself with her.”

The officers look askance.

“What?... Kenneth Yu is involved in this?”

“Min uses her as a threat to keep Yu from exposing him. And to keep Yu quiet, he’s been sending him money...Me as well. And I’m talking tens of thousands of dollars at a time, and I’ve kept every penny as evidence of bribery.”

Seo points to a picture on the board.

“Kim Namjoon, the arms dealer. He also dabbles in trafficking, larceny, extortion. The two of them used to be one group, they’re feuding right now and it’s getting worse. I can put a stop to it now. I’ve already filled in the FBI and they’re preparing for a STING operation. The debriefing for that is in a few minutes.”

The two officers are at a loss for words. The mafia has always made it difficult for the law to keep things in order. The gang's activity, the amount of contacts and inside people involved makes it almost overwhelming to deal with. After asking their fair share of questions before the officers are dismissed to resume their activities until the debriefing.

After a few minutes of getting his thought together, he takes a deep breath and walks out of his office.

Agents Song Mingi and Lisa Ban.

They’ve already called the men and women, both officers and agents, to the common meeting room and they’re caught up in a conversation with the other agents until they see Seo.

‘Chief, come on over!’ They wave him over, unintentionally bringing attention to the well-respected man's presence. As he walks up to the front, officers are bowing and greeting him as they always do.

“You’re right on time.” Seo shakes both of their hands. “Thank you both for coming, I really appreciate it. It’s not often that we have to arrange STING operations with you all for cases this big.”

“Absolutely, what we’re about to do will change the city and it’s all made possible by you, sir.” Agent Song states.

“Thank you, chief, for sacrificing your integrity for all these years for the sake of the people. You’re the reason we’ve been able to see what these guys are doing and continue to find ways to put a stop to it.” Lisa adds to the praise.

“Chief,” Agent Song reaches for the stack of files they brought in and handed it to Seo. “With what you’ve given us over the past few months, we’ve been able to develop profiles on some of these guys and we prepared files for all of them. You probably already know most of this stuff but having it on paper sometimes makes it easier.”

Seo sorts through them as the agents get everyone's attention. There are files for Kim Namjoon, Min Yoongi, Park Jimin, Cha Hakyeon, Jeon Jungkook, Jung Hoseok, Kim Taehyung, and Kim Seokjin.

“Ladies and gentlemen, I would like to introduce you to Chief Seo, he's going to be running point on this operation. We owe Chief a great deal of appreciation for being able to infiltrate one of the most dangerous gangs in the city. The Chief will debrief you all.” Lisa gives Seo the floor. “Sir?”

“Thank you agent Ban.” He steps to the front and looks out at the crowd.

“Well, first I’d like to say that this has been a long process of forming relationships, bending rules, and compromising my position all for the sake of weeding out corruption for once and for all. Our plan is to take down gang leaders,” He takes out mugshot-like photos of the leaders and pins them to the board.

“Kim Namjoon and Min Yoongi. Their groups have been feuding for months, that explains those two explosions. The first was orchestrated by Kim on an abandoned compound but the second was an attack from Min’s side, I believe out of retaliation. Kim’s men are on the run but Min is still in the city, we need to bring him in first. Many of you may know Kenneth Yu, Director of Health & Welfare. I have been the middle man between him and Min, his stepson.”

The room is filled with shocked faces and low murmurs of disbelief.

“I’ve accepted large sums of money as bribery to stay quiet, so has Kenneth Yu. In fact, he’s been sending portions of rally funds, charity events, and government events to Min for years now. He uses their relationship to threaten him more than anything. If it got out that his stepson is a mafia boss who he’s done favors for and accepted money from he’d lose his position in minutes. Before we go after Min, we’ll go after him first. We need to get into his office and see what he has.” Seo pauses, deciding to add all of the photos to the board. “As for Kim Namjoon, most of his men have fled the city but I have a feeling they’ll be back. Are there any questions?”

Multiple people raise their hands and ask questions about the relationship with Min Yoongi, Kenneth Yu, how the feuding started with Kim Namjoon. Seo answers as he sorts through the last few files and stumbles upon a blank one. He continues to talk, but he opens the file and it’s a photo of a question mark. Unnamed female, early twenties, hospitalized after a car accident with Jeon Jungkook but vanished shortly after.

One of the agents taking notes in the back pipes up. “What about Jeon Jungkook, sir? Since he broke out of the hospital, nobody has been able to get a hold of him. It’s all over the media that he escaped, where is he now?”

“We’re not quite sure yet, but most probably where ever Kim Namjoon is located.” Seo puts the anonymous female on the board and immediately agent Song raises a question.

“Chief, do we have any idea who that might be? We tried everything to find out who she is but we only got little things, it’s like she’s been wiped off the grid.”

“That woman...” He sighs. “I don’t know if she’s the same one, but I believe I’ve seen her with Min Yoongi.”

“Do you think she’s a threat?”

“No, but we’ll look into it, just to make sure.”

Agent Ban comes over with a few agents and officer. “Chief, this is the group that’ll take care of Yu. I’ll leave the organizing of the operation to you.”

“Alright, when do you plan on going in?”

“Within the hour.”

That’s faster than he thought.

“Okay, report to me when the job is done.” Seo dismisses her and she’s off with her team.

“Chief,” Officer Lee calls for him, hand over the bottom of the phone that’s to his ear, “we just got an anonymous tip.”

“About?”

“It’s about Kim Seokjin, he’s supposedly planning a rendezvous at Min’s compound tonight. I thought they were on the same team, should we trust this?”

“Did you track the number?”

“Yeah, nothing. But the guy said he just wanted to make things right, he went on about getting rid of those who shouldn’t be in this city...”

“It’s worth a shot, we’ll get to them either way.” Seo makes his way to one of the head officers. “Gather unit 2 and 7, we’ll head to the compound at 9 tonight.”

Namjoon swats at the back of Taehyungs head.

“You had one job, one job Tae.”

The papers Namjoons is referring to are the papers Yoongi gets from the court hearings, political meetings, and basically any of the details of his governmental relationships. Yoongi keeps them hidden somewhere and he thought, of all people, Taehyung could find them. But that was a month ago and at this rate, they’ll never get it.

“How many times do I have to say sorry, hyung? I’m sorry, I told you something came up,” Taehyung soothes the back of his head with a gentle ruffle of his hair. “Park Jimin that is. He saw me come through the window and he was fussing about getting me out of there, what was I supposed to do?”

“I get that, but still. Yoongi’s got a ton of inside contracts with those guys and if we’re gonna do this right, it would be nice to have that type of info on him.” Namjoon stands at the table in the basement where he was steadily taking account of the remaining firearms, salvaged from his beloved base that was burnt to ash.

“Jungkook should’ve gone with me, probably would’ve taken care of the Jimin-problem.” he pouts, but they all know that if Jungkook went, and saw you, he’d try to bring you back. And that would only fuel that psychopaths desire to demolish Jungkook for loving you. Namjoon mentally recalls the distress Jungkook experienced once you two were separated, he hadn’t seen him that sad since his mother left him. Jungkook isn’t mentally ready to be in the same vicinity as Yoongi, Jin, and you—that would be a deadly combination.

“He can’t be over there, it’s way too risky. If he decides he wants to take her from their base, that’ll make him an even bigger target then he already is. He’s wanted and Jin, quite frankly, wants to kill him.”

“We will need her back soon though, she’s become essential to Jungkook’s wellbeing and Jin’s insanity.” Namjoon doesn’t further explain his views but Taehyung gets the gist of it. You are the main element of the great divide. Without you, Jin would be way less high-strung, he wouldn’t be so revenge-hungry, but adding you to the mix ignited a flame in Jin. And that tickled Namjoon pink.

Jungkook enters the basement suddenly, all suited up and ready for the day. He’s dressed in a black tee-shirt, charcoal-colored bomber jacket, and heavy boots.

‘Speak of the devil.’ Namjoon simpers but Jungkook either doesn’t hear the comment or simply ignores it.

“Hyung, what’s on my agenda today?” Jungkook’s eyes are focused, but he seems somewhat relaxed. “I thought you would’ve given me my assignment last night.”

“I don’t have anything for you, the best for you to do right now is to stay hidden, we can’t risk exposing you.” Namjoon pats Jungkook shoulder.

“What? You just want me to sit around and do nothing?” He grimaces, getting close to Namjoon’s personal space. “Fuck no, I need to do something, I can’t just sit here.”

“Well,” Namjoon turns to him, unphased by the brittle tone in his voice. “I’m sorry, but you need to lay low for a little while.” Namjoon takes a bit of a firmer tone, and they stare at each other for a few seconds. Jungkook is the first to break it off.

“Fine.”

Namjoon turns to continue his conversation with Taehyung and Jungkook turns a deaf ear to it. He walks over to a corner and slouches in a seat, arms crossed and expression agitated.

“Let’s just scratch that old idea, he probably doesn’t have them anyway.” Namjoon sighs. “Jimin’s probably already told Yoongi so the papers are either under lock & key or he got rid of them, like last time.” He tilts his head in thought.

“Boys,” Namjoon looks back at Jungkook and then looks at Taehyung with a bright smile, “we’re going back to the basics, a classic raid seems to be the answer here.” They haven’t done one of those in a while, it’d be nice to do it like they did back in the day. “We’ll prepare our people, pick a time and go in tonight. If I don’t get to have a base, neither does he.”

“So soon?” Tae interjects.

“Yeah, why not? We don’t have much to lose at this point.”

Jungkook brows creased as if he weren’t fond of the idea and of course Namjoon knows immediately what that face means. “A raid? But-”

“Jungkook, Jin has Y/n under high security right now, I’m sure she won’t be in the crossfire.”

“Um,” Taehyung interjects, knowing what he’s about to say will surely make Jungkook upset, he giggles, “I wouldn’t call Jimin, ‘high security.’“

Namjoon can’t help but laugh. “What?”

“Yeah, I snuck in on the living quarter's and there he was. Jin can’t be that concerned about her safety, not if Jimin is always with her.” Taehyung pouts, perplexed to see that Jungkook didn’t even bat an eyelash at his statement.

“My suspicions were correct then.” Namjoon shifts to the other side of the table to tally up the last few sets of revolvers.

“Jin’s been off doing his own thing for a while now. But you’d think he’d have his little sister at least in the vicinity with him, right? Especially after going through all of that just to get her back...” He takes the completed register and tucks it in the beige folder. “I’m confused-”

“He doesn’t fucking care about her.” Jungkook pensively got up to approach the two. “This whole, ‘your big brother is here to save you,’ thing is an act. He doesn’t want her to be with me, that’s why he took her, not because of brotherly love. He doesn’t give a fuck about her, he just wants to look like he’s capable.” Jungkook prods at his cheek in annoyance.

“And you know that, how? Jungkook, you didn’t know even know there were brother and sister until just recently—how could you know if he cared about her? You don’t know that-”

“Yes, I do!” Jungkook slams a fist on the table but they're unstartled by the little outburst.

“Fuck! How do you not see it?! He doesn’t want her to be with me, that’s his fucking deal. He wouldn’t give her the time of day until he realized who she was with.” He gets closer to Namjoon, eyes beady, vicious and unsettling. Oddly, Namjoon looks at him as if this type of behavior is a part of their normal everyday conversations.

”He knows I love her, and he hates me for it. He parades around like she means so much to him, she means more to me than she ever will to him. I’m sick of sitting here and pretending like just because she’s with him, she’s safe, that’s not the case. I can’t fucking take it, if I have to go one more week without her I think I’m gonna fucking lose my mind.” Jungkook rambles on, pacing and spouting whatever thoughts come to his mind so Namjoon figured now would be a good time to cut this off.

Jungkook grits his teeth. “And if it wasn’t for fucking Min Yoongi-”

“Stop. You need to take it down a notch.” Namjoon’s voice is low but demanding of submission, of which Jungkook gives in a mere few seconds.

“You don’t know everything so stop fabricating these scenarios in your head. Use your head and think about this, why do you think I fucking took her in the first place, Jungkook? To piss him off. They may not be close, but she’s his only known his flesh and blood right now, he does care, even if it’s only for her life, that’s enough to use against him.” Jungkook backs down from his aggressive stance, diverts his gaze reluctantly. Namjoon would have a sensible explanation for this, wouldn’t he? Jungkook got so caught up in the idea that this is all a tactic to hurt him that he forgot that this is a lot bigger than his relationship.

“Don’t misunderstand, I do need her back with us. She’s what I use to hurt him, at least I thought that up until now. Either way, Jin knows what he did fucked us all over and Yoongi doesn’t seem to be taking any disciplinary action.” He walks up to the stairs and the two follow closely behind him. “So now it’s time for us to take action.”

Jungkook leaves the two of them without a word, most probably to sharpen some knives in the room or work out, something to take his mind off of things.

“Tae, you know what you need to do, just report back to me as soon as possible. As for Jungkook,” Namjoon sighs, “tell him not to leave the premises, and that if I hear he tries to go out, he can forget about being apart of the raid.” Namjoon heads off to do his own thing and Tae trails off to Jungkook’s bedroom. Taehyung entered the bedroom and Jungkook was sitting on the floor, a dozen daggers on the floor in front of him as he takes out the tools to sharpen and clean them.

“Jungkook,” Jungkook shoots him an uninterested glance. “how do you know that Jin and his sister are fighting?”

“What?”

“You said they were fighting. You haven’t seen her for weeks now, how could you know if they were fighting or not?”

He swallows, avoiding eye-contact. “I just know.”

“But you’ve never even seen them interact, you don’t know the temperament of their relationship.” The more Taehyung pries, the more Jungkook’s face twists in irritation. “You went to see her...Didn’t you?”

It’s obvious in his eyes, no sense in hiding it.

“Yeah, I did...”

“How did that go?”

“She doesn’t want to be there. You should see her, she’s not as healthy as she was, it’s obvious that she’s not eating...I don’t know where her head is, it’s like she’s there but she’s missing something...God, I want her back so bad. I can tell Jimin is getting in her head too, she was going on about how he helps her in difficult times and all that, it makes me crazy to think that she’s always alone with him...I didn’t want to upset her because she’s been through a lot but I asked her if anyone touched her, she didn’t really answer...” Jungkook’s tone was heavy with concern.

“Jungkook, I wasn’t going to say anything but-...Well,” Taehyung bites his tongue. “when I got there, Jimin was leaving her room. Out of curiosity, I asked him if he feels something for her, he said no but-...I don’t know, Jimin falls back into those pathological liar tendencies every now and then. And he savors intimacy, with most women...”

Jungkook’s stomach twisted.

“He fucking wouldn’t. Not unless he wants me to kill him, he wouldn’t touch her.”

“How can you be so sure?” Tae pries.

Jungkook snaps. “He’s the one who brought her to me.”

Early this morning, Junghyun bid his wife farewell, pulled out of the driveway of his beautiful home, and went on his way to work. If you look at Junghyun’s life compared to his little brother, he lives quite a wholesome lifestyle. He has a beautiful wife, an adorable set of 6-year-old twins, a great job, and a nice home—what more could he want? You’d be surprised.

It’s around lunch time and he’s going to meet with a special person. He pulled out his reserved parking spot in the hospitals private parking garage. It’s been a while since he’s heard from Seo about Jungkook but he knows he’s still wanted. It was odd though. He personally asked Seo to find Jungkook for him but he’s suspected that his request wasn’t a priority right now.

As soon as he stopped at a red light, he sat down and made a phone call. It rang for a few seconds before he finally picked it up.

“Dr. Jeon, good morning.”

“Good morning Donghae, any updates?”

“Chief Seo gathered us all for a debriefing this morning, he said Jungkook is most probably with Kim Namjoon.”

“Damn, I guess I can forget about getting him back. He sees that man as more of an older brother than me...It’s fine, I’ll try to contact him eventually. I heard from a reliable source that something bad is about to happen, he’s probably involved in it.”

“Yeah, I’m actually apart of the STING operation of his rival gangs compound, he might be there.”

“Oh really?” Junghyun grins, turning his wheel into the restaurant parking lot. “Perfect, let me know everything after it happens.”

“Will do, I’ll talk to you tonight.”

He hangs up just in time for Junghyun to head inside of one of his favorite lunch places. When he walks inside, he immediately sees her sitting at a table near the window and smiles. She grew out her hair he noticed, she looked beautiful, healthy, and her overall aura was glowy.

When she looks up and sees him, she smiles from ear-to-ear.

“Junghyun.” She stands to her feet and walks toward him. “How are you, honey?” She wraps her arms around him and he returns her adorably light embrace compared to his.

“I’m fine Eomma,” He pulls away, “you look beautiful.”

They both take a seat. “Thank you, sweetie. This is so nice, I haven’t been able to just sit and talk with you for a little while.” A waitress kindly brings them ice water and lunch menus. It doesn't take them long to choose their dishes so they order it right before the waitress leaves.

“How are my grandbaby’s doing? Does Joy still look like me?”

“Every day, and Jungwoo? You wouldn’t believe how much he’s starting to favor Jungkook.” Junghyun sips his water, eyes skimming the wine menu. “It’s crazy

He expression saddens a bit at the mention his Jungkook, and he notices. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing, I-...I haven’t heard from him in a long time...I miss him.”

“I actually saw him not too long ago, he came to the hospital.”

Her eyes widen. “Really? Was he hurt?”

“He was in a car accident, with a girl.” He sighs, remembering how well that meeting went.

“A girl?” She can’t help the smile coming to her face. “Oh my goodness...He has a girlfriend?”

“He told me that he’s not telling me anything about her so I assume that she was his significant other.” He scoffs.

“Aw, that’s sweet...” She lowers her head, mind wandering off into dreamland as she wonders who fell in love with her son. She sighs. “So, um, hows your campaign going?”

“It’s great, I really think I have a shot at the position. I have a feeling that-...” He takes a bite of food, eyes finding the news channel on the TV in the background. His mother looks back too upon his sudden silence.

‘Early this morning, adored political figure and Director of Health & Welfare Kenneth Yu, has been theorized to be in cohorts with leaders from the mafia world. It’s not yet been confirmed, but It’s speculated that he has been receiving and sending money from these groups. We will be updating this story every hour so stay tuned.’

One down.

To be continued...

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razorblade180 · 5 years ago

Text

Lasting Embers pt23: Difficult Decisions

[Menagerie, Oasis]

It’s still early out; every still lays in bed asleep. All except for Jael who’s just floating in her room thinking about the future; her future. The entrance exam to be accepted into beacon is only a month away. Her dream of freedom and her father’s blessing is only a month away. One more month until she meets her...

Jael:(A mere thirty more days and then my real test begins. I thought I’d feel more anxious but I don’t. Maybe I’m finally comfortable with my progress; hope I didn’t over train for this. Wouldn’t be fun if the other applicants weren’t up to par. Oh well, as long as the one I care about does. She’s hogged my father long enough so she better.)

She scrunches her face before taking a breath to relax. Floating is supposed to relieve the pressure constantly on her heart and clear her head. Getting riled up serves no purpose; a Taurus knows that lesson well.

Jael:(Now now Jael, no need to tense up. Keep an open mind like father said; I don’t know her. I know of her, that’s not the same. I’ll get the chance to evaluate her soon enough. Maybe dad can tell me more about her when he gets back ho-)

*whimpers*

Jael:Huh? *floating to her feet* was that, crying? The only ones here is mom and....*gasp*

Without further delay she rushes out her and to her sister’s old room. She had forgotten that she’s home for awhile just like Adam. Sure enough, Sienna layed in her bed tossing and turning as tear marks stained her face. No doubt from her nightmare.

Jael:Sienna, get up *shaking her* come on You’re having another nightmare. Wake up and it goes away like always.

Sienna:Please....*sniffling* don’t take him please...! I....I need him! I need-

Jael:Sienna!

The tiger faunus jumped awake with her class fully out and dangerously close to Jael’s neck. Good thing this isn’t her first rodeo; her older sister’s arm was already grabbed the wrist and was weighing it down. Cat like reflexes or not, gravity had a part to play in everything. Even the frown her big sis currently had.

Sienna:I’m....*huff*I’m sorry.....

Jael:It’s alright *holding her hand* I’m used to it. Didn’t know you still got nightmares; the mines?

Sienna:*nods* Every so often I see myself as that scared little six year old kid again. Lately it’s a bad omen when I get this nightmare. Hopefully pops is okay. With Ilia gone I can’t go on missions. Just because I’m new doesn’t mean I should be kept out of the loop.

Jael:I’m sure everything is okay. He’s just supposed to be escorting Blake to see her friends. Then they’ll be back home in no time and we can finally spend some quality time with dad that’s not about work.

Sienna:Heh, haven’t had that in awhile.

Jael:Well there’s gonna be plenty of it this month; my days are numbered her. So I guess we better start right now. *smirking*

Sienna:I know that look. Jael you better not-ahh!

Suddenly the of them are suspended in the air. Jael pulls her sister into a hug and curls up underneath her; closing her eyes.

Jael:Try sleeping like this; does wonders for me. *yawn* by the time we wake up....dad will be home....before you......Zzzzzzz...

Sienna:...*smiles and holds her close* Fine, you when this one you little trouble maker. I’ll follow your lead. *dozing off* this is pretty.....pretty.... zzzzzz

Jacquelyn stamds in the door way as she quietly leaves with a smile.

[Tai’s house]

The living room is devoid of sound except for ticking of a clock. All of our well known huntsman remain motionless as they stare at Yang. Her eyes fixated on the door her daughter hastily went out of. Seconds felt like hours until she finally snapped out of her trance and grabbed the doorknob.

Ruby:Yang....

Yang:I have to go after her...

Ruby:Yang we have to figure out who’s going to-

Yang:That can wait! I’m going to find Yujin and-

Jaune:*holding her close* Yang, she needs time to process all of this. There’s nothing you can say or do now that can reach her.

Yang let’s go of the door knob slowly. She returns to the couch in defeat; gripping her knees.

Yang:Neo, are you sure that map is accurate. Isn’t there any chance he strung you along or-

Neo:Torture is complex thing to do. People who beg for mercy and ready to talk after a few minutes usually tell the truth; they can’t take pain. Jericho lasted hours. People like that might say anything when they’ve had enough.

Weiss:So, all this might be a complete hoax.

Neo:Unfortunately no. Anytime it takes that long I become extremely thorough. I still keep going with the torture after the answers he gave until any lies were wiped away. *places another map with one hundred X’s* these were the locations he gave me at first. As you can see, they don’t match up with the first one I showed you.

Weiss:He already tried lying to you....

Neo:More than once; dozens of other fake maps are in the ship. This, this is the real deal. 87 bases and I’ve already had a few confirmed to be legit. Sorry everyone, wish I could bring better news. I’m...I’m going to get some air. *steps outside*

Ruby:Is she alright?

Adam:Neo is excellent at what she does but that doesn’t mean she likes it. Torture like that will churn anybody’s stomach. She’ll be fine.

Blake:Back to the topic at hand then; who’s leaving?

The uncomfortable silence once again fills the room but only for a few minutes before everyone gathers there thoughts and steals their convictions. Running into a war has no one scared; the challenge is stopping people from going...

Ruby:I’m still heading out and that’s final. I’m not going to sit at here when I’m part of the reason we’re in this situation.

Weiss:I’m going too. Atlas doesn’t really need me for anything and no way I’m letting my partner do this solo.

Ruby:*smiles* That’s two people; anyone else.

Jaune:I-

Ruby:Don’t even.....

Yang:Yujin will be just as angry. Besides, you haven’t done intense missions in awhile. Like it or not, you’re a bit rusty.

Jaune:You act like I don’t know how to adapt. This mission needs a strategist.

Adam:Which is why I’ll go...

.........

Blake:Absolutely not!

Adam:Strategy, peak fighting condition, I’ve been all over Remnant’s most secretive places; frankly I should’ve been helping the first time around.

Blake:Do you realize what you’re suggesting? If somehow authorities tie you to this then it’s over for you.

Adam:I’ve been traveling regularly for over ten years. This will be no different from the jobs I already do Blake.

Blake:But-

Adam:You can’t go because your people just got you back. Sun can’t go because it’ll look suspicious. I’m perfect for this job.

Blake:And if you die on it? You promised to spend time with Jael remember?

Adam:.....

Yang:Uhhh “Jail?”

Adam:She’s my other daughter I mentioned. Same age as Yujin....

Yang:*eyes widened*....

Blake:You know this might crush her right? Scarcely coming home was hard enough for her as it is.

Adam:Sigh...*leans against the wall* I know this but......this is something I have to do. The cult came to my home once; that’s one too many.

Blake:.....You’re not gonna change your mind are you?

Adam:Sorry, minds made up. I just hope Jael can handle the news. Actually, I hope all of them can; I’m in for a ear full.....

Yang:.....

Raven:Well if he’s going then so am I. I’ve been itching to face these people.

Tai:What!?

Ruby:I think you’re forgetting that maidens are also something they want Aunt Raven. Dead, controlled, or otherwise.

Raven:*shrugs* Sounds like the same old song and dance to me. Adam isn’t the only one who wishes to have gone the first time.

Yang:Don’t be like that mom. Making sure things were fine here was important too.

Raven:You put life as you know it on hold for Yujin. I should’ve done the same for you. Besides, I bet Qrow would’ve done the same if... if our roles were reversed.

Tai:*holds her hand* So....trying to go off again. *smirks*

Raven:Yeah uhhhh.....I’ll be honest. Don’t know how to take the sting out this. It won’t be like before I promise! Ruby will hold me to that and- ow!

Tai:*flicking her forehead* Be safe Raven. Kick enough ass for the both of us. For Qrow too.

Raven:They won’t know what hit em. A bit a magic and a map might just be what we need to turn a ten year manhunt into something way more tolerable. I’m guessing two years maybe?

Nora:We’ll make it one. I...I want to go too.

Ren:......

Nora:You don’t have anything you want to say to that?

Ren:Sigh.... I’ve been attacked, you’ve been attacked twice, and our son is on that list despite our best efforts. Trying to remain under the radar clearly hasn’t been working. If this is what you want to do then go for it. I’d offer too but I’m still no good in a fight like this. Looks like my treatment has to be put on hold. Tenzen and I can-

Tenzen:You’re going to get that surgery

No one heard him walking upstairs or even going down them but there he was sitting on the first few steps. The look on his face showed a calm but clearly exhausted demeanor thanks to his body still healing his injuries. His presence welcomed by everyone with relief of him finally being awake.

Tenzen:Sorry I didn’t say anything earlier. Yujin was supposed to make me some food but when I heard the door slam I walked down and- *hugged tightly*

Nora:Thank the stars you’re alright!

Ren:You has me so worried!

Tenzen:Ribs...ugh my ribs!!!!

Ren and Nora:*let go* Sorry....

Tenzen:*rubbing his side* I guess the pain means I’m alive at least. Thanks Mr.Arc, wouldn’t be up on my feet as fast without you.

Jaune:There would be less people in this room without you.

Emerald:We should be the one thanking you.

Mercury:Seriously, we owe you one.

Tenzen:*smiles* If that’s the case, can you guys escort my dad while on his trip? Then when he’s done, watch his back on the battlefield?

Mercury:Huh?

Tenzen:*looks at his parents* I think both of you guys should go after the cult.

With ten simple words he got the undivided attention of everyone. His mind and surprising opinion created the same atmosphere he gets from his fans. Right now, he owns the floor.

Jaune:I take it you have some sort of plan in your head?

Tenzen:Not really a plan but just facts I guess. Beacon has an entrance exam in a month and I doubt another attack would come so soon. If I- when I pass the exam I get to live at the most guarded school Remnant has to offer; I’ll be safe. Dad getting healed and meeting up with the rest of you afterwards could make a difference. Eight people is better than five.

Weiss:He has a point...

Ren:Maybe so, but a month alone?

Nora:Anything could happen in that time.

Tenzen:It’ll be fine. I’ll stay at home and I know how how everything works. I’m sixteen, not twelve. Frankly my biggest problem will be boredom hehe.

Ren:What if-

Tenzen:I want this fight over with already....that dude hurt you both and seem to enjoy it. *clenches his fist* the cult needs to know....they need to know they messed with with the wrong family. *looks around the room* they messed with the wrong families.

Ren:Nora I don’t think he’s going to back down from this.

Nora:......A video per day.

Tenzen:What?

Nora:I want you to upload one video per day and without fail until you make into Beacon. If I don’t see one while I’m away then I’m going to assume something is wrong and be a complete mess you understand? *sniff*

Tenzen:....Yes ma’am. *hugs her* can’t disappoint my biggest fan can I.

Emerald:Guess it’s settled then.

Tenzen:Sorry I just sort of drafted you guys into going hehe.

Mercury:I was gonna volunteer anyways. Payback sounds really satisfying instead of twiddling my thumbs.

Yang:Guess I’m the only one left to decide huh?

As fast as the mood was lightened, it was gone again with that question. No one would ask her to join given the circumstances but she also knew just how much she could make a difference. The unwavering strength behind many of team RWBY’s successes ever since they were formed. Paired with her sister’s indomitable will and Weiss’s brilliance in synchronized moves, surely they could all compensate for Blake’s unfortunate absence. Especially with Adam most likely taking her place as her partner; it would be the obvious choice. Six well versed fighters working together until three more show up to keep the momentum going. Sure they could probably achieve the same results with without her, but what if they couldn’t? Who looks out for the fifth person? All of these thoughts fill her head has she tries to keep it together; taking slow breaths to prevent what would be a serious panic attack.

Yang:I.....I.....

Adam:Let’s give this a week.

Blake:Huh?

Adam:We should all return to homes and prepare and say our goodbyes. Then meet up again in a week. Those who show up will go on with the mission. If anyone decided to change their minds within the week then so be it; can’t fault anybody who does. Sounds fair right?

Yang:*staring down at the floor*Sounds fair...

Ruby:We’ll meet at the train station that leads right out of Vale and into the rest of Anima. That way no one has to travel back here. I love how our house is out of the way but it would also be the prime spot to get attacked if somehow the cult catches wind of us. No more private transportation either; it needs to look like we could be at anyplace or still at home.

Weiss:Just when I got used to flying first class again. Oh well, it was fun while it lasted. *leaving* better go tell Whitley and Winter to cancel their plans for a week. Their about to get a decades worth of sibling love in seven days. Also, don’t worry about money too much; the Schnee secret account has enough for ten life times. *closes the door*

Neo sits on the porch holding a bucket. Her face a little pale and sweaty.

Weiss:Are you okay? I could give you a lift back h-

Neo:The body is still in the ship. I wanted to get rid of it before you were done but.....*heaving over the bucket* I don’t think I can look at what’s left of him again.

Weiss:*Picks her up* don’t worry about it. I was gonna get rid of the ship itself anyways. Let’s get some food and head out.

Neo:Thank you.....

Back inside the house Blake and Adam begin to leave as well. Nora and Ren also begin to get escorted by Mercury and Emerald.

Yang:Adam....

Adam:Hmm?

Yang:.....thanks.

Adam:*nods* It’s in your hands now. Word of advice, your daughter will feel hurt no matter your decision. So pick the one that you truly feel is right, then do everything you can to ease the pain of the path you don’t decide.

Yang:Meaning......

Adam:Fill the void. *Walks out*

Blake:Take care, menagerie will always be a haven if you need to regroup. *walks out*

Ruby:We’ll keep that in mind; see ya.

Jaune:I’d hate to be a bother but can Tenzen stay back a little while longer? It might be best for Yang and I to stay here a bit longer but...

Tenzen:Of course I’ll check on Jin. If that’s okay I mean.

Tai:I’ll take him home so you two don’t have to worry about him being alone.

Nora:.....

Tenzen:......*smiles*

Nora:Sigh......be safe and please take things slow for once? You’re injured and haven’t eaten yet.

Ren:speaking of eating...*pulls out granola bar* can you actually grab it on your way out this time?

Tenzen:*takes it* This would’ve been useful earlier. Love you both. *hugs them both and runs out the door* (Next stop, Jin’s place. Probably not even home yet knowing her.)

Yang:You both have an amazing child. I’m thankful him and Yujin are close.

Ren:She’s just as amazing and we’re just as thankful. I don’t think he knows just how much he talks about her. Get some rest okay?

Nora:You deserve it.

Finally the house is only filled with family members, but still feels very smothering. Yang’s eyes are fixated on the map that holds a daunting journey her sister will soon take. A journey that could use every pair of hands possible. So why? Why can’t she just make the logical choice already? Why can’t she can’t she tell everyone the answer she’s already chosen? Reason and emotion clashing cause her to lay down on the couch as tears roll down her face.

Yang:Can I have some time alone please?

Everyone leaves, except Jaune. He chooses to sit beside the couch and extends his hand; causing her to grab it instantly.

Yang:Jaune......?

Jaune:Yes? *tearing up*

She rubs her finger across her wedding ring before slowly taking it off. Her hand trembling terribly as she places it in his. Try as she might, there’s no amount of strength that could make her look at him as she breaks his heart again. Energy in her voice drained completely and left weak.

Yang:I’m sorry.....*sniffles* I’m so sorry Jaune. I’m so, so sorry.......

Jaune:*takes the ring and pulls her into a hug* I’ve waited this long; I can keep waiting.

Yang:It’s not fair! I don’t want to keep you waiting anymore, or Yujin! I love you both so much!!!

Jaune: But knowing how things might go if you stay behind scares you. As much as it hurts me, I get it. Do what you think is best. *crying*

*upstairs*

Ruby:.....Dad, I need your help. You really haven’t changed this place at all right?

Tai:Been this way since you guys left for Beacon in the first place. The only changes have been the small stuff that’s piled up through the years.

Ruby:Like our letters, pictures, and stuff.

Tai:Yeah, why?

Ruby:That’s a lot of memorabilia. *looking into her room* a lifetime in fact. Help me find all of it please? I want to try something .

Tai:What’s going on in that head of yours kiddo?

Ruby:*picks up an old scroll* Ways to help Yang cushion the blow.

[Dirt Road]

Tenzen:*sprinting* (Geez I thought I’d run into her by now. I doubt she ran home if she’s sulking. I should see her any min-) *stops *......

He was right about catching up to her. As mad as she was, it made sense why Jaune wanted someone to check up on her. The negative emotions had attracted some unwanted visitors and Tenzen was witnessing the aftermath. Plumes of smoke from fallen grimm littered the path and through it was his friend glowing brilliantly. Standing still in front of a lonely beowulf that snarled wildly at her. Tenzen couldn’t see her face but her knew she wasn’t fazed one bit.

Tenzen:Yujin?

Yujin:Get lost Tenzen; not in a good mood.

Tenzen:I can see that. Your dad wanted me to come check up on you. After everything that’s happened and all.

Yujin:I’m fine.....these things tried to hurt but it didn’t go so well for them. I’m already in more pain than they can cause.

With that statement the Beowulf lunged right at her. Immediately latching onto her bitting down on her shoulder, but his teeth didn’t sink in. Instead they chipped and broke apart like if it had bit marble. Before it got a chance to let go of her it’s life was over; a whole right through it’s chest was easily made with a single punch from the future huntress in training. She finally turned around to see the shock on Tenzen’s face. Was it because this is the first time seeing her semblance, or because she did all this with no weapon?

Yujin:I’m doing just fine as you can see. You ran here for nothing.

Tenzen:I didn’t come here for nothing. So you don’t need help fighting. Maybe there’s another way I could-

Yujin:I want to be alone Tenzen....

Tenzen:.....Well that’s a lie. From here it looks like you’re tired of being alone. You want-

Yujin:*covers her ears* OH MY GOD, JUST SHUT UP!!! You always have to be the sensible one right!? Help poor little Yujin anytime she’s feeling low. Maybe I’d be more sensible too if I had both of my parents at home too! Injured or not, they were always a room away and-

Tenzen:Currently on their way home to prepare for their journey.

Yujin:......*eyes widened* They both decided to go....?

Tenzen:Mom wants to make a difference, and my dad really needs that surgery. He didn’t want to go at first but it’s the best thing to do. Then he’ll fight as well. Can’t say this puts us in the same boat at all but I think we can both agree this situation is pretty shitty. *smiles*

Yujin:.........*eyes turn blue*

Tenzen:Come on and let’s get you home. *takes her hand and walks ahead* We don’t have to talk about anything if you don’t want to.

Yujin:......

She wanted to apologize but couldn’t. There was too many emotions she desperately tried to contain. Any more words, and single act of vulnerability would give way to sea of feelings she did not want to face right now. So she just held his hand quietly and firm; praying that he understood what she was trying to convey.

Tenzen:I forgive you.

No response was given and he never turned around. The only sounds heard was pained sniffling from his friend trying to keep it together. He felt her other hand rest on top his as they continued to walk. Nothing else was said. Nothing else needed to be said.

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bugheadtrash · 6 years ago

Text

Yeah It’s Always Better When We’re Together

Prompt Request: 82. “Just breathe, okay?” 88. “I’m better now that you’re here.” - Requested by @bugheadobssesed as a peraltiago pregnancy fic. Here you go, love! Hope you enjoy.

Amy winces as yet another contraction courses through her body. She pushes out a steady stream of air as she looks at her watch, 8 minutes 20 seconds. A little closer together but still... too sporadic. She's fine. She just needs to relax. Deep breaths, Amy. Calm, relax, it's all fine. She repeats this mantra in her head, tapping her fingers against her desk nervously. Admittedly, she isn't sure everything is fine. The baby isn't due for another 3 weeks, Jake left for a stake out with Rosa a little over an hour ago, and Charles is heating up leftovers in the precinct, despite multiple requests from basically everyone to stop doing that. Needless to say, now is not the time for Baby Santiago-Peralta to make an appearance. She has a plan and today—here, now—is not part of her thorough delivery agenda.

Another contraction. Just six minutes after the last one and continuing for nearly a minute. She can feel her entire uterus closing in on itself, and its worse than any menstrual cramp she’s ever experienced. She wants to curse whoever told her ‘oh it’s just like PMS-ing’. Amy bites her lip and clenches her arms around her stomach, trying to avoid yelling out a profanity and causing a scene. She thinks it works until she looks up from her desk to see both Terry and Charles rushing to her desk. She waves them off with a hand, "I'm fine, really." There's that word again. Fine. It's fine. She's fine. Really.

The two men standing in front of her clearly are not convinced, but after a signature Santiago glare, they back down.

***

It's shortly after the fifth contraction (still over five minutes apart, it's fine) that her cellphone rings and Jake's name appears. Amy takes a deep breath and counts to three before answering the phone. Logically, she knows she should tell Jake what’s going on, but he is going to try to convince her to go to the hospital. Doesn’t he know that she isn’t ready for that yet? There’s no point avoiding him now though because she is sure someone— ahem, Charles—ratted her out.

"Hello?"

"Ames?" His voice is calm but knowing, like he has already prepared for the protest she is about to give.

"Yeah babe, what's up? How's the stakeout?"

There is silence and then, "Seriously? 'How's the stakeout' - nice try. How are the contractions, more like it?”

"Oh. That. Yeah, it's fi-" Amy sucks in quickly, this one comes after four minutes and 57 seconds. Hardly what she would consider under five minutes. Slowly, she exhales and focuses on steadying her breath. In and out, just like she learned in her Lamaze classes.

"Do you think it's time to go to the hospital? Charles can sub in for me here; I can meet you there.”

Under different circumstances, Amy would be impressed with how cool and collected Jake is (she fully expected him to be freaking out), but she can't think about that right now. Finally, relief comes after just forty-five second. Her uterus relaxes and her organs feel back in place.

"I'm fine. Really, Jake. I promise I will go to the hospital when it's time, but right now there's too much to do. Besides, you aren't here, and we aren't due for three weeks. I only have my just-in-case-emergency hospital bag with me not my it's-time-for-the-baby hospital bag.”

More silence.

"Jake-"

"Ames, you know the baby will come when she or he wants to come and not when you feel ready, right? And I hate to say it, but I don't know if we'll ever be as ready as you want. But I promise you, Ames, you are ready for this," his voice is soft and so full of love.

"How can you say that? I'm not ready for this Jake, oh my god. I was supposed to have another three weeks. What if something is wrong? This isn't supposed to happen right now," Amy can feel the tears swelling in her eyes, the hot sting relentless as she desperately tries to get Jake to understand, “We've barely touched the surface of our One-Month-Until-Baby binder, I have more work to do, it's not - I'm not - I just mean, everything is going to change and I'm just not ready and—”

“Shh, Ames, it’s okay baby. You’re okay, just breathe,” Jake continues to soothe her as more tears fall and she hiccups, trying to catch her breath, “You have to listen to me, okay? Amy… Ames, do you know why I’m not freaking out? Why I’m not scared about becoming a father even though my own dad sucked? Because of you. You have only ever made me a better detective, person, boyfriend, husband and I have no doubt, a better father. You make everything better. This baby is so damn lucky to have you. I know you’re scared and worried about the change and if you’ll be good enough, but you need to take a step back. Yes, everything is going to change, but it’s going to be better. And you are enough, right now. You were enough 9 months ago before you started reading books and planning in your crazy excessive binders and you are enough now. I promise you, you just have to trust me. Can you do that?”

“I love you so much,” Amy is full on sobbing now, which should be embarrassing given the fact that she is surrounded by cops and criminals alike, but she can’t bring herself to care. Before Jake can respond, another contraction hits and she doesn't need to look at the timer to know it's been less than five minutes. This time, she doesn't try to hide her pain and wails out.

She hears Jake hiss on the other line, "It's time, Ames."

***

The next 20 minutes is a blur. Terry drives her to Brooklyn Methodist while Charles goes to finish Jake's stakeout. Despite Amy's warnings that it's improper use of their authority, Terry throws the sirens on and they get to the hospital in record time. After informing the staff that her contractions have been pushing three minutes apart, she is quickly ushered to the Labor & Delivery Unit. Everything is happening so quickly, and Jake still isn't with her. If the contractions weren't keeping her otherwise preoccupied, she'd be freaking out for that reason alone. But god, she is in so much pain and just wants it to be over. Amy doesn’t think it’s an exaggeration to say that it literally feels like a freight train keeps ramming into her stomach.

It's not until after they give her the epidural (which Amy describes as the most euphoric experience - sweet relief from the pain) that Jake finally opens the door to her room. He's grinning from ear to ear and holding a bouquet of Amy's favorite flowers, "It's happening!!!"

Amy smiles, feeling content as she watches her monitor and sees (note sees-- not feels. This epidural thing is amazing) what looks to be a huge contraction, "Yeah, it is."

"How are you feeling?" Jake takes the seat next to her bed, kissing her forehead as he sits down.

"I'm better now that you're here."

***

Over the course of the hour, members of the squad trickle their way into Amy’s room. Even Gina makes it. When she hugs Amy and murmurs something about how amazing motherhood is, Amy tears up again. She wishes she could capture this moment—a rare ‘Gina is actually my friend’ moment—forever. When Charles and Rosa arrive, they tell her and Jake all about the end of the stakeout.

“You should have seen Boyle. Literally crying while reading through the Miranda rights,” Rosa describes, “I’ve never seen anything like it. The perp was so confused.”

“I can’t help it! We are about to meet the summation of your love for each other, who wouldn’t be emotional?” Charles explains, and the whole room groans.

“Ugh, why do you make everything so weird?” Jake is laughing so hard and his eyes are crinkled. Amy takes a mental picture of her husband and their weird co-workers/friends. This baby is going to have the best life with the best people.

The squad is a good distraction from what's about to happen. Their families arrive too, each taking turns to spend time with Jake and Amy. The entire time, Jake is by her side, grasping her hands in his own. His smile hasn’t faded. She's never seen him quite so giddy. It's a good look on him.

Eventually, the doctor comes in and tells her it's time. Jake squeezes her hand again before he leaves to get in scrubs. Amy is so scared, but at the same time she’s never experienced such anticipated joy in her life—it’s almost time. She's almost a mom.

***

Several hours later, Amy is leaning against Jake, purely exhausted but running on so much adrenaline she can't sleep. Jake is cradling their baby, a daughter they've named Ella. Visitors have since come and gone, and it's now just their small family. Ella is sleeping soundly, bundled in a soft knitted blanket Karen made for her with a matching bow covering her dark, curly hair. Her eyelashes are long and thick, and Amy is certain she's never seen anything so beautiful.

Jake presses a kiss to Amy's temple and speaks so softly, "You did amazing, baby. I'm so proud of you."

She blushes, leaning further into his side and gently brushing her finger across Ella's cheek, "You were right, Jake. This is so much better."

***

The End.

Also on ao3: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18042836

#b99 #b99 fic #peraltiago #peraltiago fic #fluff #pregnant!peraltiago #jake x amy #prompt requests #my writing

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sf9pentascenarios · 7 years ago

Text

[Pentagon] It’s Over.

Member: Jinho

Genre: Angst/drama

Words: 2.2k

Author: Jessie

Notes: I am so sorry that I took so long to write something. I hope you enjoy this. I feel like it’s absolutely terrible. T^T It’s not a request, just something that I was hoping would get me motivated again. Please let me know what you think. Even if you think it’s terrible.

Finally!

You’ve finally finished cleaning the kitchen for the second time today, sixth this week alone, not that it even needed it, but you wanted to be ready. Jinho was coming home today. Home to the one bedroom apartment that you shared together, just a few blocks from CUBE. You have had so much energy stored up, anticipating his return after the two months he has spent away in Japan, that you have cleaned to apartment from top to bottom, again and again, not really knowing what to do with yourself otherwise. It has been so boring being all alone, and painful to be so lonely, but you are so ready for things to be back to normal. Having Jinho back will make everything right again.

You were sure of it.

And as the phone rang from it’s perch on the counter, you were sure of it. So sure, in fact, that you didn’t even bother to say hello. You just jumped right into things. “Did you land? How was the flight? When will you be home? I miss you so much. Did you eat yet? Do you need me to grab you some food for when you get here?” You never bothered to give him a chance to respond, nor yourself a chance to breathe. Breathing just wasn’t as important right now as having your long time love back at home, in your arms, happy.

“I think I'm going to stay at the dorms tonight...” is his only response, his voice sounding even smaller than normal. The words ghost through the speaker, hardly even making it to your ears, not that your shocked brain could comprehend what was even said. At least, for a few seconds.

Although they are simple words, they hit you like a truck, sinking your heart into the pit of your stomach. It's been too long since you've seen him last. It's been months, yet he wants to spend his first night back in the dorms? Why? What would make him want to spend the night at the dorms? Why would he want to wait to see you again? Hasn’t it already been too long?

As your mind races with questions and possible reasons or excuses, you manage to ask the one question that you aren't quite sure you want to know the answer to. “Why?” You practically spit it out, the taste of uncertainty sour on your tongue. Every ounce of happiness drains from your body, leaving nothing but a sickening feeling in your gut. What is happening? Why is this happening?

Your thoughts are firing faster than your mouth can keep up, and no more words come out. You only stand, dumbfounded, awaiting an answer. Any answer. Why?

When Jinho finally speaks again, he doesn’t provide you with the answer you seek. Instead, he only fills your head with more questions, more doubts. When he speaks, even though his voice is gentle, his words are like daggers to your heart. His words are sharp and cold. All he says is, “I’m tired. I’ll see you tomorrow.” And with that, the call ends, leaving you stunned. When the call goes silent, your knees hit the cold, tile floor and the phone slips from your fingers, bouncing off it’s corner before settling a few inches away, a spidery crack spreading across the screen. You don’t reach for it. It doesn’t matter. Nothing matters right now. Not even the million pieces of your heart that is now as shattered as your phone screen. Not even the tears that stream down your face. Tears that you didn’t even know you were crying.

What was happening? Why was this happening? What happened in Japan to cause this? You ask yourself over and over again, but you couldn’t answer anything, only come up with many ridiculous tales. Did he meet someone else? Did the others talk him into coming back to the dorms? Did you do something wrong? What have you done to cause this change in him?

For the next hour, you cry, curled up on the kitchen floor, exactly where you fell, letting the chill of the tile seep into every bone in your body, embracing the cold to help numb the pain growing inside. The tears sear your eyes, leaving them red and swollen, but they continue to fall, even though the sobbing has subsided.

After another hour, you find enough strength to lift your head from the hard floor. Your mind blank of all thoughts, except one. One question that you needed to know the answer to. Is this it? Is it over?

You open your eyes in the morning, the sun shining through the window and directly onto your face. Some time during the night, you moved from your icy ball in the kitchen, to where you currently lay on your bed, snuggled up in the comforter. As your brain slowly remembers what happened yesterday, you pull the blanket tighter around you, breathing in the faint scent of the man that shared this bed. Up until now, you barely paid any attention to his scent that lingered there, but now, on the verge of it being gone forever, you close your eyes and inhale deeply.

With his scent, your mind fills with memories of the many nights spent in this bed together, wrapped in each other’s arms, bodies nestled against one another. But when your eyes open again, you are alone. He should be here with you. Why isn’t he? And as much as it hurts, you needed answers. You needed to get up and face the day. After all, the one thing he DID say, was that he would see you today.

With this newfound determination for answers, you shower, washing away the dried tears that stained your face, and dress in one of Jinho’s favorite outfits. Every time you would wear it, he couldn’t help but stare, telling you every chance that he got just how stunning you looked in it.

Despite the events of yesterday, somehow you allow yourself to become excited at the thought of seeing Jinho once again. You let yourself become optimistic, chalking the whole situation last night to just him being exhausted from travel. Today will be better, you tell yourself. I will see him, and things will be like normal.

But first, you needed to get your phone fixed. After assessing the damage of the screen and checking its function, you determine that it would just be better to take it to the carrier to get checked out. There is no way that you could use it in this state, and no way to find out where and when Jinho wanted to meet today.

You pack your phone into your bag before slinging the strap over your shoulder, grabbing your coat from the hook near the door, and heading out the door. As you make your way down to the main floor and out onto the sidewalk, you settle on getting a coffee first. You definitely needed a pick-me-up today after the long night that you had.

Just a block from your apartment was Jinho’s and your favorite little cafe. You would stop here almost every morning as you walked with him to the company, before heading off to work yourself. It became a daily routine and was something that you looked forward to every day. Today is no different, even as you arrive alone.

As soon as you step through the door, there, at the front of the line, stands the small man that you loved so dearly. Jinho buried his nose in his phone as he awaited his coffee, a ballcap pulled low over his eyes and a mask to cover his face, but you knew it was him. You would know him anywhere. You continue to watch, as he takes the cup from the barista and moves to the small two seater in the back corner, your usual spot. Some things never change. And after you get your coffee, you will join him there.

When the barista hands you your coffee, the warmth seeping into your hands immediately, you take a step towards the table only to stop short as butterflies fill your stomach, like you were meeting with him for the first time. It takes a moment for you to regain your courage, but you swallow hard and step up to the table, your presence suddenly drawing his attention. As soon as his eyes meet yours and he registers who is standing before him, his head drops quickly, diverting his attention back to his phone.

You barely hear him over the din of the cafe around you, but you manage to make out a soft, “Good, you’re here. Take a seat.” He doesn't bother to make eye contact again until you take the seat across from him, which strikes you as odd. He always looks you in the eye when he talks to you. There has to be something wrong here...

“Jinho, I missed you,” you say after a moment of silence, both hands cupped around your mug, hopeful that you are just overly worried from his actions. When you get no reaction, you continue, “ Will you be coming home today?”

With this question, he finally raises his eyes to meet yours. After a good look at them, you see the redness that rims his lids and the sadness that fills the deepest depths of his rich brown eyes. He was crying, you think to yourself.

“Jinho…” you start, only to stop short of really saying anything. But just saying his name was enough to make him focus on his coffee instead. He doesn't take a drink, he merely stirs the straw around the cup in circles.

“I,” he croaks before clearing his voice and starting over. “I won't be coming home,” he states plainly, as if it was the most mundane fact ever, trying his best to mask what really lingers beneath the surface.

“Wha-...” you are stunned. What did he say? What does he mean?? You force a chuckle, as the words threaten to sink in fully and destroy everything. “You are going to stay at the dorms again today too? That-...that’s ok. Will you be coming home tomorrow then?” You ask, hopeful that this is all just a bad dream or that he is just busy with work and needs to stick close to the other members.

“No. I won't be coming home. That's not my home anymore,” he looks away from his coffee, only to move his eyes to stare out the window somewhere behind you.

“Jinho, what… why…? What do you mean?” You just couldn't believe what you were hearing, believe what was happening. How could this be happening? You love him. He loved you too, right?

With a sigh, he finally focuses back on you, biting the inside of his lip nervously, fighting back his own emotions that were clearly ready to spill over. “What I'm saying is… It's over.” His voice is steady and clear, only to be betrayed by the amount of pain that has spread across his face. He looks back to his coffee and wraps both hands around the mug firmly.

“Jinho… no…” You shake your head in disbelief, but there are no more words. Your brain is too blank, too shocked to speak. Your vision blurs as tears pool in the corners of your eyes, threatening to break free of the dam holding them in place and make a fool of you in front of a cafe brimming with a morning rush of people. This can’t happen. This isn’t how this was supposed to go…

“Baby, I’m sorry. It’s over,” Jinho says, but his voice goes nearly unheard on your dead ears, your mind blocking out any more pain from the man you love, too far gone with disbelief to make sense of anything. As soon as the words leave his lips, he stands, cup in both hands, and walks away from you for the last time, leaving you staring blankly at the wall across from you.

His words slowly seep into every piece of your body and mind, leaving you numb and broken. How could this happen? I don’t know. How could you let this happen? I don’t know. Should you go after him? I don’t know. You are not any closer to answers than you had been, nor will you find any of those answers now.

Now.

What are you going to do now? Everything is going to change. Everything will be different from the life that you have grown to know and love. Jinho was the love of your life… how will you ever be happy again? How can you ever go back to the place that you call your home? A home that you built with him… and as your world crumbles at it’s seams, one thing stands out. A small glimmer of hope in a storm of pain and fear. One word sinks into your mind and burns itself to memory, giving your heart the chance to beat again. One word that you will remember forever.

“Baby.”

#pentagon #pentagon scenario #pentagon scenarios #jinho #jo jinho #pentagon jinho #pentagon jo jinho #jinho scenario

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everlastingcaptainswan · 7 years ago

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Seven Encounters (Modern Royalty AU)

Summary: It took seven times for Emma Nolan to realize she loved His Royal Highness Prince Killian, but it only took him two times to realize he would chase her to the ends of this earth.

AO3

The Fourth Encounter

After a long night of research and missing a certain Prince, Emma flops down on her bed and falls asleep immediately not even bothering to take her clothes off.

A few short hours later she is shaken awake by none other than August with Graham and about five other agents in her room.

“What the fuck are all of you doing here?” she asks when she realizes she isn’t alone or asleep anymore. She sits up and blinks several times before fully waking.

“Emma, get up and change. You’ve got fifteen minutes until we leave. Pack an overnight bag as well,” August instructs her.

“Swan is secure, I repeat, Swan is secure,” Emma barely heard Graham say into his phone. This grabs Emma’s attention and she rises from her bed coming eye to eye with August.

“August, what the hell happened? Who needs to know that I am safe? Are mom and dad alright?” Emma asks quickly, her volume raising with each question.

“We have to leave get ready now,” August tells her.

“Not until you tell me what the fuck happened,” Emma demands stubborn as ever. She crosses her arms demanding an answer.

“Emma, you need to calm down. There was an attempt made on your mother’s life. One shot hit her that’s all we know,” August says in a calm, even tone. This whole time he hasn’t been able to meet Emma’s eyes. It’s unsettling, it’s the worst news she could hear and he can’t even look her in the eye. Her mother’s been shot and she’s a whole ocean away from her. Her mother could be dead and she doesn’t know.

Some grabs her arm and turns her towards him. When she looks up Graham’s gaze meets hers.

“Emma, I know this is tough and scary, but I am going to need you to pull yourself together here. Now you got ten minutes get together whatever you can and we’re leaving,” graham demands and she nods. All of the agents file out of her room and door shuts.

Emma’s still in her outfit from yesterday, so she doesn’t bother changing. She grabs a small duffle throwing in some clothes and toothbrush. Emma grabs her purse and throws in in the duffle along with her phone and charger, her hands shaking the whole time. She just wants to know if her mother is alive. She needs more than her mother’s been hit by one shot. Her ten minutes are up. Emma puts on her shoes and her agents practically drag her out of the apartment, the door slamming shut behind them.

“I need more than she was hit. August, I need to know she’s alive,” she demands as the take her down to the car.

“Emma, this happened an hour ago, I know she’s not dead, but all I know about what happened is that she was hit,” he explains as the put her in the car.

“Dammit, that’s not good enough!” she yells at him, “This is my mother we’re talking about. She isn’t some protectee to me she’s my goddamn mother and I need to know she’s going to be alright.”

“I am sorry that’s all I know,” he says sternly as the car speeds away, where to well just like everything else Emma doesn’t have a goddamn clue. She leans back in her seat hoping her mother is alive.

About fifteen minutes later they are waved into a royal airstrip and Emma is even more confused and angry than she was before. She needs to be with her mother. What the hell is going on? Why are they here? The car pulls to a stop in front of a jet and Graham gets out and opens the door for her.

She climbs out of the black SUV and sees Killian climbing down the jet’s staircase. She launches herself out of the car and towards him.

“Killian, what the hell is going on? All I’ve gotten out of these people is that is that my mom was shot! August won’t even fucking look at me,” she practically screams, tears pooling in her jade green eyes. Killian reaches out and takes her hand. She doesn’t push him away, but tears start to stream down her face. He gently takes her into his arms holding her until she stops crying.

“Emma, I am sorry about your mother. She’s a strong women. She’ll pull through. Now, she and I had a conversation when you moved here about a contingency plan if something were to happen back in the states. The plan was exactly what happened tonight your agents brought you here and I have my jet prepared to take you home,” he announces.

The two of them share a look and he gives her hand a squeeze. Emma turns towards the jet, but doesn’t let go of his hand quite yet. He is letting her use his jet. He’s always here for her; steadfast and strong and when she needs to be alone he actually listens. He gives the space she needs it. They have only been together a couple of months and here he is willing to do anything for her. He would do anything for her and she cannot bear the thought of being on that plane alone. Her grip tightens on his hand and her head snaps backs to him.

“Come with me,” she says quickly.

“What?” he asks her, shocked and not entirely sure what she just said.

“Please come with me. I am going to lose my mind stuck on a plane for eight hours with the seven agents on my detail, who can’t and probably wouldn’t tell me anything about my mother’s condition. Please come with me,” she pleads with him. He places a hand on her cheek and she gives him the smallest smile. It’s all she can manage at the moment.

He can’t leave her, not when she’s like this. This is the most vulnerable he’s ever seen her. Although she would never in a million years admit that. She has walls and he’s been attempting to take them down, but it’s a slow process. Despite the walls he’s been able to read her like an open book. She’s scared out of her mind and he understand her fear all too well. He doesn’t want to leave her. He had no idea how he thought he could’ve watched her get on a plane and fly away from him.

“Let’s go,” he says as he leads her towards the plane.

“You can actually go? There’s nothing more pressing here?” she asks as she tries to keep up with him shocked that he actually agreed to leave with her. She asked him on a whim. She hoped he would say yes, but didn’t think he would.

“There isn’t anything more important than this, I assure you. I had a function, but it’s nothing a donation to the charity won’t fix,” he smiles.

“Are you sure?” she asks as they board the plane. All her agents file in behind them.

“Positive, love. Now sit down, that chair reclines. Get comfortable I have to go talk to the pilot,” he tells her and presses a kiss into her forehead. Emma tries to stay awake, but sadly she’s running on a couple hours of sleep and honestly they won’t get any information until they land. No matter how much she fights it her eyelids close and she falls asleep.

When Killian comes back to their seats he finds Emma sound asleep. He’s glad she’s resting she probably won’t get any rest when they land. He was afraid she wouldn’t sleep, but the last of her adrenalin must’ve worn off. He settles into the seat next to her and tries to get some rest as well.

A couple of hours later his phone rings and Killian jolts awake. He answers it without looking at the caller ID.

“You know when you’re going to another country it is customary to let your family know you’re leaving,” Liam chides him. Killian groans.

“I am sorry. It was very last minute I didn’t even bring a change of clothes,” he grumbles, still trying to wake up.

“I understand, just please call next time. How’s Emma holding up?” Liam asks.

“About as well as can be expected. She’s sleeping now I can’t imagine there will be much of that when we get there,” he comments.

“No, I wouldn’t think so. Give her family our best wishes. Just wanted to check in,” Liam says.

“I’ll pass it on. I’ll call back when we land,” Killian says. They exchange goodbyes and hang up. A loud ringing comes from Emma’s bag on the floor. Killian leans forward and pulls her phone out of her bag, seeing that the ringing hasn’t woken her up. He looks down at her phone and her father’s caller ID is flashing on the screen.

“Mr. Nolan,” Killian answers the phone.

“Prince Killian?” David says shocked, “Is Emma alright?” his voice filled with concern.

“Emma’s fine. She was busy with studying tonight and didn’t get much sleep, so I think she was exhausted when we got on the plane and she passed out. How’s the President?” KIllian asks, sure Emma will want the information as soon as she wakes.

“Still in surgery, but they were hopeful it was a clean shot. I’ll have more information by the time you guys get here. Tell Emma I love her,” he says.

“Of course, we will see you soon,” Killian says and David hangs up. Killian doesn’t envy his position. Waiting to hear what will become of the women you love is a cruel fate. He looks over at Emma, even in sleep she is beautiful he can’t imagine anything happening to her. For a while now he’s known he loves her, but he knows saying that will scare her off, freak her out. He’ll wait until she’s ready; she’s got walls for a reason. He cannot imagine what David is going through right now nor does he ever want to. He manages to drift to back to sleep.

A couple hours later Emma gently wakes Killian, although it takes him a few seconds to really wake up.

“Come on sleeping beauty,” she says softly.

“I’m awake I promise,” he claims as he slowly sits up, “Your father called and you were sleeping and you didn’t wake up so I answered. I hope that’s alright. He told me that she was still in surgery, but they were hopeful it was a clean shot. He said to tell you he loves you,” he recounts the phone call.

“Thank you. I didn’t even hear it ringing. I’m glad we know more, even though it isn’t much,” her voice gets all choked up and the tears threatening to fall down her face. He pulls her into his arms and holds her close.

“He seemed very hopeful, love. Your mother will be fine. I promise it will be okay,” he whispers into her ear. She pulls herself together and looks up at him.

“I really hope what you’re saying is true.” All he can do is hold her closer.

The plane lands and the Secret Service Agents whisk them away to the hospital. David is pacing in the waiting room and when he sees them approaching there is a smile for a brief moment. Emma collides into her father and he wraps his arms around her, tears in his eyes.

“She’s out of surgery, but is under from anesthesia. We’ll be able to see her soon they had to move her to a different room,” her father explains as Emma releases him.

“What happened, dad? All I know is she was shot. No one will tell me anything,” Emma says frustration evident.

“I don’t know all the details exactly, everything just happened so fast. One minute we were leaving an event and everything was fine then seconds later shots were fired, people were screaming, and then suddenly we were surrounded by agents. They pushed us into the car and drove straight to the hospital. Most of it is a blur,” he sighs. A doctor approaches the group, ending their conversation.

“Come this way, she’s all settled in. She should wake up any moment now,” he says reassuringly. They reach her room and Killian pauses at the door.

“Love, I’m going to wait out here. Give you two a moment,” he says abruptly. Emma looks back at him and grabs his hand.

“No, you should come in. Mom likes you; she won’t mind,” she says with a soft smile and he smirks. He nods and she leads him into the room. When they enter David is holding Mary’s hand, who’s still unconscious.

“The surgery was very successful, no complications. It was a very clean shot, really it’s a miracle. One more inch to the right and it would’ve tore through her liver,” the doctor comments. The whole room just nods, not really feeling that anything in this situation had anything to do with miracles. The doctor leaves and Emma lets go of Killian’s hand and moves to her mother’s side. Not wanting to disturb any of the wires and tubes connected to her Emma lightly holds her mother’s hand.

All the stress of the last few hits her in a wave and she pulls a chair to her mother’s bedside, her father sitting on the other side of the bed. Killian settles in one of the chairs on the wall. Her head slowly lulls off to the side and she slips into slumber never letting go of her mother’s hand. Her mother is safe and out of surgery. Everything will be okay.

With a jerk Emma wakes up and realizes her mother has too. She feels a smiles spread across her face. Mary is propped up on some pillows and looks a little disappointed. Emma sits up in her chair, wondering how long she was out for.

“Charming, I told you that would wake her up,” her mother scolds her father, using his nickname. It brings up childhood memories and it makes Emma smile.

“You wanted to sit up, you can’t have both things,” he points out.

“Mom, I am glad you’re alright. I was so worried about you,” Emma says grabbing her mother’s hand again.

“I know, so was I. It was the most terrifying moment of my life. They got me here fast and everything is okay. The doctors did their job,” Mary reassures her daughter.

“Good. I’m glad you’re okay,” Emma smiles and Mary just squeezes her daughter’s hand. Emma looks around the room and notices Killian’s absence.

“He had to take a call from the King,” Mary says before Emma could even ask, “Speaking of, it was never the plan for him to come with.”

“I thought you liked him? Now you disapprove?” Emma says confused.

“Emma, I like Killian you know I do. I was surprised is all. I didn’t know he planned to come with,” Mary says quickly.

“He didn’t I asked him to come,” Emma blushes, not looking at either one of her parents.

“You’re serious about him,” David comments.

“Can we not talk about this now,” Emma says flustered. Mary just nods giving David a knowing look. Killian enters the room and Emma smiles at him.

“The King wishes you a speedy recovery,” Killian says with a tight smile. Emma can tell something is wrong. The phone call couldn’t have gone well.

“Thank His Majesty for me,” Mary says and Killian nods. In usual Mary style she gives her husband the least subtle look and he sighs.

“Emma, you need some rest. Your mother is suggesting we all go home get some rest and come back later,” her father says with a look that says that it’s not a suggestion.

“Secret Service will drive you home. I want all of you out and only come back when you’ve had a few hours sleep,” Mary orders them. Emma sighs, but gently hugs her mother, knowing there is no sense in fighting her. David smiles and gives his wife a kiss. Killian nods and waves goodbye. The three of them file out of them room and Mary lies back in her bed closes her eyes. Rest, what The President needs now is rest.

The car ride back to The White House is silent. All the adrenaline has worn off and the three of them are exhausted. Emma’s hand rests in Killian’s, both of them not needing to say anything. David notices this behavior and it warms his heart. Emma isn’t one to show affection, especially in front of him and Mary. He won’t press the issue, but he knows that Killian means more than she lets on, or perhaps she hasn’t realized it yet.

Once they arrive the trio makes their way to the Residence, not speaking to anyone due to sheer exhaustion. Killian and Emma slip into her room and Emma thinks her father will say something at this, but he doesn’t. He quietly goes into her parent’s room.

Emma’s door closes and she sits on the end of her bed. The room is fairly bare due to the fact that most of her possessions are in London. Killian plops down next to her on the bed.

“Are you alright?” she turns to him and he laughs.

“I’m fairly certain I should be asking you that,” he says and she smiles.

“Well you should be and I’m offended you haven’t,” she jokes, “No, seriously I know when something is wrong with you,” she says with an all knowing look. Killian runs his hand through his hair.

“My father, the dear king, is not pleased with me I’m afraid,” he cringes.

“Because you came here?” she asks.

“Yes, all about abandoning responsibilities. I told him that was ridiculous that I wasn’t running off and partying. It was an emergency and you needed me by your side, it’s where I wanted to be,” he shakes his head. Emma breath catches slightly at this statement. There’s moments where it’s too much and she knows he’s in deeper than she is. She likes to ignore those moments and pretend they don’t exist. Sometimes they are very hard to ignore.

“Maybe you should go. I don’t want you fighting with your father over me,” she says never quite looking him in the eye. He reaches out and brushes her cheek, she moves away from him. It’s something she’s never done before and Killian won’t lie the action stings.

“Emma, he would’ve found something else to fight about. If you truly wish for me to go I will, but I don’t want to,” he says, knowing she’s trying to shut him out, trying to protect herself. He finally catches her gaze and she pulls him close. He kisses her fiercely, he wants her to know that he isn’t going anywhere. She loses herself in the kiss she doesn’t want to think about what any of this means, about what they’re becoming. Tonight she’ll get lost in him.

--&--

The next morning after much needed sleep Emma, Killian, and David return to the hospital. Ruby joins them, claiming that there is urgent business that needs the President’s attention. Emma suspects that Ruby just wants to check on her. Mary is feeling much better and has improved significantly.

“You all look much better and rest. Well except you Ruby have you gotten any sleep?” Mary asks, worried about one of her oldest friends.

“Wouldn’t have been able to sleep anyway, too much work to be done,” all Ruby does is smile.

“Emma, you and Killian should head back. I’m fine and you have your program,” Mary says and Emma grabs her hand.

“You’re ridiculous I’m not going back until you’re out of this hospital bed. I exchanged emails with my professors before we came here they understand. You can’t get rid of me that easily,” she reassures her mother.

“Fine, but you’re on a plane the minute I’m back in the White House. Education is important, young lady. Now, Ruby what do you have for me,” Mary turns her attention toward her chief of staff.

“Director of the Secret Service, Agent Lance will be by shortly for a briefing on the young man they arrested early this morning,” Ruby says calmly.

“Do they know anything else?” David asks, placing a hand on his wife’s shoulder.

“Just that this brotherhood group was not happy about the new gun control bill we just passed. It was the reason for this attack. I got a quick update from Agent Lance after the arrest,” Ruby says quickly. David looks like he’s about to burst. Mary and Emma share a look.

“Dad, come on we’re getting coffee,” Emma says practically dragging him out of the room.

“I just- I mean- how?” David sputters, “No, I’m going to get Agent Lance to take me to this boy. I’ll show him a thing or two.” Emma grabs his arm and pushes him into an empty room.

“You’ll do no such thing. I want him dead just as much as you do, but this isn’t how this is handled. He deserves proper justice, not trial by a family member. We’re all angry, but don’t lash out. Don’t let them get the best of you, that’s what they want,” Emma scolds him. He’s angry and has every right to be, but her mother needs to heal and he needs to be there with her. After a couple minutes he calms down.

“You’re right. I know all that, it’s just difficult. I feel useless,” he sighs.

“We all do,” she responds and pulls him into a hug. They break apart and leave the room. Outside Mary’s room Killian is waiting.

“What are you doing out here?” she asks.

“Agent Lance is here. Just giving them some privacy,” Killian explains. David heads into the room, giving the couple some privacy.

“Your mother tried to send you away,” Killian states.

“I know I can’t believe her. I was serious I am not leaving until she’s out here. My program can wait; My professors will understand,” Emma just shakes her head, frustrated.

“She just wants you to do well,” he says, “She seems to be recovering quickly they’ll send her home soon.” He pulls her into his arms and holds her.

They do release her mother three days later, but she doesn’t return to work for another two days. That’s what truly drives Mary crazy; being in the White House, but not being able to work. Finally her Vice President steps down and Mary Margaret Nolan is reenacted as President of the United States of America. Emma watches her ceremony from London only because her mother forced her and Killian back on his plane about two hours after being home from the hospital. Emma calls everyday just to check in on her mother. Emma just needs to know she’s okay.

#cs #cs au ff #CS modern AU #cs au fic #cs mc ff #cs mc #captian swan #emma swan #killian jones #Prince!Killian #firstdaughter!emma #Modern Royalty AU

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