#it'll take you less than a minute just PLEASE CALL

[fandom-frenzy]

Hey, here's another script to call your senators. Remember that calling tends to hold more weight than email -but maybe you'll be lucky like me and your senator's voicemail inbox will be full and you'll be forced to email instead. And either is better than not contacting anyone at all!

Are you also horrified by the things elon is doing in government like getting access to social security data and classified intelligence reports?

call your senators. please. you'll basically always be directed to a voicemail and won't have to talk to anyone, and if you call on an evening or weekend you'll have an even better chance! let them know this is SO SO WRONG.

I've tailored this personal message to a republican so I'm trying to keep it even in tone, marginally respectful, and focusing on checks and balances, the role of congress, all those things GOP says they care about so that I have a better chance of being heard. but you can change this however you want.

-------------

Hi, my name is [name] and I’m a voter in [state]. I’m calling to urge Senator [person] to speak out and take action against the recent actions taken by the Department of Governmental Efficiency. As a group created by an executive order with no oversight by congress or leadership confirmed by congress, this committee’s actions show overreach and no regard for the system of checks and balances.

Classified information, personal information, and certainly the way funds are paid - explicit power of Congress - should not be in the hands of a committee with no oversight and no legal authority to act without the support of Congress. I urge you to ensure government stays strong by staying distinct.

[sams-butt-dem0n]

i loved ur hc about breaking up with the gang! could you do the gang breaking up with reader?

The Gang Breaking Up with Reader

DARRY would have the simple excuse of not having enough time for you due to his busy work schedule and taking care of his brothers in the small amount of spare time he had at the end or beginning of each day. You had tried to convince him that you didn't care that the only time you got to spend together was in bed after a long day, but he wasn't having any of it.

"I'm sorry," he says. "I really am. I don't want to do this but it's only fair."

"Darry, how often do I have to tell you that I don't care about you not being here all the time? I enjoy the time we have together already and I know that you're busy and stressed but that's okay. I love you. Please don't do this to me."

"I'm sorry," he repeats, turning to look away from you. "I'm heading off to work in five minutes. I want you out of here before I get back."

SODAPOP would hate to have to break up with you but he feels like it's the right thing to do. It's definitely due to his lack of self-confidence in a relationship since he found out about Sandy cheating on him and moving away. Don't get me wrong, he's confident in his looks and everything but when it comes to relationships, he tends to beat himself up about every tiny detail.

"Y/n, I gotta tell you something," he says, his voice quieter than usual as he stands at your front door.

"Yeah? What's wrong baby?" You ask, confused as to why he was at your house when you were supposed to be at his place in less than an hour.

"Please don't call me that. It'll only make this harder."

You were really confused now. "Huh? Soda what are you talking about?"

"I can't do this anymore." He says, straightforward as ever.

"What?" You ask, tears welling up in your eyes. "Why? What are you doing? Did I do something wrong?"

"I don't know. I don't know if you did something wrong. Tell me if you did won't you?"

"Soda, you sound crazy right now," you say. "Talk to me, don't do this."

"I can't. I just can't How do I know you aren't two-timing me, huh?"

You were shocked at what he just said to you; appalled even. "You think I'd do that to you? You really think that low of me?"

He stays silent. You nod, close your eyes tightly and when you open them again, a single tear rolls down your cheek.

"Stay there," you say, walking away from the door and leaving him standing there for about 5 minutes, wondering if you were ever going to come back.

You dump all of the shirts and jackets and little crafts he'd given you in front of him on your patio and throw a plastic bag at him afterwards.

"I can't believe you think I'd do that," you said. "So much for trust."

PONYBOY was nervous when he realised he wanted to focus more on school than on his relationship. He didn't want to disappoint Darry with his grades dropping since he was with you. He felt as though you held a restriction against him from succeeding even though he knew you weren't in his heart.

"Y/n," he says to you as you're walking him home.

"Yeah?" You ask, turning your head to look at him.

"I- um. I have something to say but I know you won't like it."

"What is it?" You ask. "You can tell me anything, I promise I won't get mad."

"I want to break up." He says, bluntly.

"What?" You ask, stopping dead in your tracks, his house is only a few hundred yards away.

"I need to focus on my schoolwork and you're not letting me do that," he explains, angering you more and more by the second.

"What do you mean I'm not letting you do that? Pony, all we ever do Is read and study whenever we're over at each other's houses," you reply. "And the one day a week where we aren't studying, we spend some time together and out with the gang. Just like everybody else on a Saturday."

"Just respect my decision," he says.

"Respect? Why should I?" You ask, getting angrier by the minute. "You want me to respect you breaking up with me for pretty much no reason because the one you 're giving me makes no sense."

"Just go home," he snaps before turning around and walking away, leaving you standing there, tears rolling down your face.

DALLAS would break up with you right after he gets out of the cooler. He had convinced himself you were cheating on him with Sodapop, similar to Sylvia. You had gone over to Buck's the second you had found out he was free again and walked in with a huge smile beaming across your face. However, when you opened the door, Buck gave you the dirtiest look he could before mumbling something under his breath and watching you walk past him and up the stairs. Weird.

"Hey, Dal!" You exclaim, opening the door and jumping onto his, wrapping your arms around him. "I missed you."

Usually, he would hug you back and kiss you on the head, telling you how much he had missed you too; even when he was only in there for a couple of nights. This time, he shoves you away from him, anger displayed across his face.

"Dal?" You ask, confused. "What's wrong? Did something happen while you were in the cooler?"

"You tell me, y/n. You tell me what happened," he says, snarling at you.

"I- I don't know what you're talking about. I haven't done anything. At least, I don't think I have," you say, trying to think if you had done anything wrong in the three weeks he had been gone.

"Don't pull that shit!" He yells, scaring you and making you jump a little. "I know what you did, you little whore! I know you fucked him!"

What the fuck was this guy talking about. "What!? I didn't fuck anybody! I haven't had sex since a few nights before you got done in, and that was with you."

"Oh, bullshit!"

"Who did I fuck then, huh? Who are you convinced that I slept with?" You ask, yelling in his face, hurt in your eyes.

"Soda."

You almost laugh in his face but remember that probably would be the smartest thing to do.

"Seriously? Soda?" You say. "You really think I would do something like that? How could you?"

"How could I?" He yells. "How could you! You fucked my friend!"

You shook your head and scoffed. "I don't know why I bother. You're clearly not listening to me and you don't want to believe me. Ask Soda about it and then you'll see that I have not laid a finger on him."

JOHNNY breaks up with you after weeks of weighing up the pros and cons. He felt that you were too good for him and someone with a life as messed up as his doesn't deserve someone as perfect and as gorgeous as you.

"Johnny?" You ask, seeing a figure lying on the concrete in the lot as you're walking home late from the drive-in. "Is that you?"

"Y/n," he says. "I'm sorry."

"Why are you sorry?" You smile, helping him up onto a bench, sitting beside him and holding his hand. "You have no reason to apologise."

"I do, though," he says, hesitating before continuing. "I can't keep doing this."

"What do you mean?" You ask, worry clouding your eyes.

"I can't keep doing this. I'm constantly embarrassing you when we're out together; I can tell that people make fun of you for dating me. I'm nowhere near good enough for you. I can't sit here and watch you waste your life away for someone like me. You deserve some rich, fancy soc like Randy or Bob."

"Johnny, what the hell are you talking about?" You say, letting go of his hand. "I love you more than anything. I don't care what anybody else thinks and if you think that I should then why? Why should I care? if they saw you the way that I do then they'd all understand."

"I've made up my mind," he says, not bothering to look you in the eyes as he gets up, his back facing you. "And there's nothing you can say to change it."

With that, he walks away, leaving you sat on the bench with hot tears streaming down your cheeks, leaving red lines on the skin. Cold. Lonely. And confused.

STEVE has some trouble with girls. He always ends up saying the wrong thing and, similar to Johnny, he feels that you are way too good for him to treat you the way that he knows he eventually will. He knows damn well that one day, you'll get sick of him being a dick and leave him anyway, just like everyone else. So why bother waiting until then when he could just end it right now?

The phone rings. "Hello?" You say, picking it up after a couple of dials.

"Hey, babydoll," Steve says, his voice making you smile.

"Hi, handsome," you reply. "What can I do for ya?"

"I have to talk to you about something," he says. "But I want you to hear me out first."

"O...kay?" You say, confused about what is about to happen. "Am I in trouble?"

"No," he chuckles. "But I know I will be soon."

Your smile drops. What is he doing?

"Firstly, I want to tell you how much I love you. I think you are the most amazing woman I have ever met and I want you to know that this is not your fault and I have loved every moment with you." He says, making a tear form in your eye. You know what he's doing.

"Steve," you whisper.

He never shows his emotions like this. the most he's ever said to you is that he loves you and thinks that you're the most gorgeous broad he's ever seen. He has never admitted his feelings this extremely before.

"I can't let you be with me anymore. I don't want to be a part of your life anymore. I know I'll just ruin it. I'll be over tomorrow morning to pick up my stuff. I love you, y/n."

He hangs up. You hold the phone to your ear and drown in the continuous beep of the ending line. You had never been so hurt in your life.

TWOBIT breaks up with you because he finds someone else. I know this makes him out to be a bad person but I feel like he has so much love for you but when he meets this other girl, he knows that if he loved you as much as he thought he did, she wouldn't have sparked so much interest.

"Two," you say, looking up at him. "Who's Kathy?"

He lowers his head, looking at his hands in his lap. "Shit, baby."

"Just tell me," you say, a tear falling onto your cheek.

"She's a girl I met a few weeks ago," he admits. "I bumped into her at the dingo while I was waiting for you and the gang and I realised that I liked her. I'm so sorry"

"Do you love her?" You ask.

"What?" He says, looking at you with watering eyes himself.

"You heard me," you say. "Do you love her, Kieth?"

You only ever called him Kieth when you were upset or angry. Right now, you were both.

He nods, "I think so."

You say nothing and stand up, picking up your bag, putting your shoes on and taking one last look at him. One last look at the man you thought you would spend the rest of your life with. The man who had made you so much happier in the three years of dating you had been through.

And you leave. Never to speak to him or your friends, the gang, ever again.

[1-ker0sene-1]

i’m the era of disabled!reader, would you write something for reader who has epilepsy? 🥺 can’t find any fics in my chosen fandom with epileptic reader (or oc) and it makes me sad 🥺

{I hope you don't mind me pairing with Simon on this one ♥️ I hope you enjoy! And please if I get anything wrong lemme know! I'm more than willing to come back and edit!}

CW: improper seizure safety (not by you or Simon), epilepsy seizure description

In full honesty, Simon didn't know if he could do it in the beginning of your relationship. He didn't think he could handle your seizures.. Of course now- having been properly educated about it. He would absolutely scold himself for thinking that, you just need a little bit of help sometimes. You aren't a damn charity case and he hates when people treat you like it. You deserve to be comfortable and safe, not pitied and prodded at. Not only is he your partner and best friend, Simon has become your biggest advocate. Of support for your condition, but also your independence.

One of the first things you both sat down and talked about when getting serious, was seizure safety. Simon needed to know how to help, at least as much as he possibly could without hurting you. He also learned throughout this, that not all seizures are the same. Sometimes you're just.. Absent, with a flutter of your eyes or a quiet mumble as your gaze flickers to nowhere. You just seem lost for a couple minutes. Other times it's the seizures everyone thinks of, where you stiffen, twitch and seize, sometimes even falling to the floor. How can he help? He's a little stressed when learning that there's not much he can do but carefully maneuver you into a recovery position, put something under your head, and just be there for you.

Simon won't ever forget your scariest seizure, you two were just shopping. Simple. He left your side for forty-eight seconds. Exactly forty-eight, he remembers. He just went to grab something you forgot in a different aisle. Picking up a box of chicken stock for dinner, he hears the slam of your body hitting the floor. He remembers the feeling of his stomach twisting into knots, dropping the container and making a run back to your aisle when he hears someone call out.

It's not you calling, you're far into the seizing, a citizen found you before Simon did. Now it's not the bastards fault, this stranger didn't know how to help you, so in the panic the man was holding your shoulders down trying to still you. Simons hackles raise, words ripped from the masked mans throat instantly.

"Off her- NOW."

Simon didn't think, he just moved, his big meaty hand grabbed the man by the back of the neck and threw him away from you. He's honestly been nicer to enemy soldiers. He didn't even spare the stranger another glance, falling hard to his knees next to you.

" 'm right here baby.. Right here.."

He rips the balaclava off his head, definitely taking a tuff of hair from his scalp. Not that he would notice right now. Simon carefully lifted your head just to slip it under, the softer fabric better than the hard floor. Stroking your hair away from your face, he doesn't hold you down- but his hands are close to you, resting featherlight on your cheek.

"You're safe doll.. I'm right here.. it'll pass."

He murmurs to you, unsure if you're hearing, but either way he keeps talking you through. Now, his arms gently hook under your leg, being as gentle as he can- his hands position you to your recovery position and on your side. Fishing out his phone quickly, he's already got the timer going. Less than five minutes. Please be less than five minutes.

"I have you sweetheart.."

Simon is right by you, watching your every movement closely. He's shoved away any items, just you and him on the floor.

"Should we call an ambulance?"

A stranger asks, Simon shakes his head. Never taking his eyes off you. You just had to go through it. If it's not a long one you should recover alright.

"I have her. Just stay back and move on-"

He snaps, he's stressed, he knows they're just concerned but he doesn't want anyone fucking with you right now. Simons eyes light up as the seizing calms, under two minutes, you're coming back to him. He finally lets out the massive breath he's been holding in. His thumb caresses your cheek.

"You're alright.. there you are.. you're okay."

Simon curls himself closer to you, stroking your cheek as your eyes slowly start adjusting back. You're foggy, confused, he's holding you a little closer and whispering softly.

"it's Simon, love.. Your Simons right here. You're right here.. we're in the store baby."

Now that you were coming back from it, Simon slips himself behind you as he moves you to lay against his chest. It's a while before you're able to be moved, waiting until you're fully alert again, he's taking it slow carrying you back to the car and getting you home. The rest of the week is spent easing you through the recovery. Low lights, he knows your head is aching. Lots. Absolutely lots of sweet talking. His strong girl.. he calls you. Making sure you take your meds on time and get plenty of rest.

"I'm sorry Si.. I didn't mean to scare you.."

You mumble, in bed together. Simon is sat up against the headboard, holding you close on his lap. His hand strokes locks of your hair, shaking his head sternly.

"Don't be apologizin' for anything. Didn't do a damn thing wrong-"

His hand slips to hold your chin, making you lock eyes with him.

"Hear me? Nothin'. I got you.. I'll always have my girl."

[boughkeeping]

SOUR until SUGAR ☆

Suna rintarou x fem! reader

Fluff (⁠◡⁠ ⁠ω⁠ ⁠◡⁠).

For Minnie <3

You moved on, you really thought you did but seeing him happy with somebody else while you were still where you are now triggered something within you, well someone wishes to change that... A regular customer maybe?

/ Pls lemme know the artists @!

"Good morning" your coworker greeted you

"morning" you replied with a smile, for some reason today you felt like everything would go well.

You were in charge of taking orders today.

"Excuse me-" A familiar voice called out to you.

It was your ex, you were stunned you didn't know what to do unless he snapped you out of it again "Two strawberry shortcake, One latte and one Watermelons soda please." He only said that and returned to a table. With a girl.

Maybe your gut feeling that things would go right today wasn't correct after all.

"he didn't even say a hi... Of course why would he hah"

You wrote the order immediately down in a sticky note, you stole a glance at them before giving it to your coworker.

She was pretty, she really was. You felt she was even prettier than you taller than you and probably smarter than you too who knows.

You sighed and opened your phone to text your friend.

[You]

You won't believe ts,

I'm at work and for

some reason my ex who was in kyoto

Is in Tokyo's café where i work

Fml

[Friend]

WHAG

the odds are less but ever zero huh

GOOD LUCK

don't sweat it you guys ended it on

good terms isn't it?

Nth to worry abt

[You]

He's here with a girl :)

Probably new gf :))))

[Friend]

Oh....

Rip soldier ..

You closed your phone and almost went for a washroom break to bang your head on the wall but then the regular customer for 2 months walked in.

He approached the counter, "The regular?" You asked. He scratched his neck "Actually I have yet to decide" you handed him one of the sticky notes "After you decide you can write it here and bring it to me okay?"

40 seconds later he handed you the note.

Iced lemon soda

Blueberry cheesecake

You chuckled as you read it "he was going to write iced lemon soda anyway huh" then you saw there was an extremely scribbled line at the bottom you squinted your eyes but still couldn't read it.

That night you went home and devoured a whole box of ice cream watching comedy shows hoping it'll make you feel better.

The next day after school it started raining, it seems that the weather has been matching your mood lately and your bad luck has been consistent too, you held out a hand feeling the raindrops contemplating if you should wait till it stops or just run through it so you don't get late for work.

You sighed, you didn't want to get scolded by your manager again so you decided you'll just make a run for it, by running you'll reach there in 6 minutes of course it came with the risk of falling down and embarrassing yourself but you'd prefer that over getting scolded anyday.

Just as you put one foot into the slightly muddy ground something covered you from the above, a grey umbrella you turned your head to see it was the regular customer. "...what" it just came out of your mouth automatically. "Hm? Never seen me before?" He questioned, well you really didn't you entered this school only 4 months ago. "You go around here?" You asked. He smirked "That sounds like you're hittin' on me"

You raised your hand and waved it "huh no really.. I didn't know you studied here too.."

He just looked at the sky and then back at you "Well in any case we're heading the same way aren't we?"

"...to the café?" You asked. Just to be sure.

"Walking with me would be better than getting wet isn't it?"

Months passed and autumn arrived.

Of course you were working and he came again.

You walked to his table and folded your arms

"we're about to close"

"make some time for me yeah?" He put his one leg above the other.

Two people entered after him, it was your ex and that girl again.

You were less bothered by it this time because someone you knew was there. You tapped your feet "hurry I've gotta take orders of other people too y'know?"

He rested his chin on his hand "Actually I haven't decided yet"

You sighed and handed him a sticky note "you know what to do"

Before walking away you told him "It's my last day working here today by the way"

He hummed "My order today needs to be even more special then I guess"

After a minute he handed you the note.

Since you were already slightly annoyed and nervous from your ex and his girlfriend or whatever being there. You just handed the note to your co- worker who is also the manager without reading it. 4 seconds later she taps on your soldier "what is this..." You read it.

1 lemon iced soda

1 Jasmine milk tea

1 chocolate fudge

1 taro lava cake

1 chicken delight pizza

2 half cheese half sausage corn dogs and,

For the pretty cashier to share this with me

Custom order : her heart ♡

It was full of your favourite snacks from the café and most importantly what the hell was the last note, you immediately turned your face towards the opposite wall trying to hide your red face. Your manager sighed and put her hands on your shoulder. "Listen just go for it okay, you can take a leave today I won't reduce it from your paycheck"

"what????" You looked back at your manager, before you could say anything else she just pushed you "now off you go"

You pulled a seat in front of Suna and just sat there. "Why did you order so much? No way I can finish that" he leaned into the table now both his hands supporting his face. "I'll finish it for you then" you chuckled "like a trash panda?" He scoffed "yes. Like a trash panda."

Your gaze moved behind him, where your ex and his new girl were sitting Suna noticed that and his frown deepened he poked your cheek to face you towards him "How insulting, looking at others when I'm before you"

"I'm not..." You were about to pick your phone that was on the table to distract yourself but he pulled your phone back to him, you couldn't help but shamelessly notice his pretty hands "I'll repeat again, how can you focus on other things when I'm right here?"

Well let's say maybe you were gonna be getting a new boyfriend.

Everything felt sour until he added sugar.

[a-spes]

I litteraly can't stop thinking about this post from @whumped-by-glitter ~ Like, can we (please) take a minute to think about how perfect it's for Wandanat or BlackHill x young!R where they take her out of the Red Room?? | Warnings & Tags : messy blurb? (imagine? idk, just wanting to share my thoughts, and couldn't stop writing), mainly BlackHill, mentions of the Red Room/past abuses, no idea if that makes sense. Imagine, teen or young adult R that fails a mission, and is captured by SHIELD/The Avengers. R isn't really cooperative, even if she is not under mind control anymore, she firmly believes that. However, Nat just can't accept the idea of leaving her rotting in a cell for the rest of her life for something that isn't really her fault. Despite what R can say, Natasha wants to believe that it's not true, and that she will be able to show her that life is way more than the Red Room.

But it's not that easy. Nat more than anyone else knows that you don't come back from the Red Room that easily, and she can only assumes that it would be worst for someone that went under mind control. And she was right. At first, she tried to introduce you to how life outside is, how sweet it could be, but she quickly noticed that it didn't work. Whenever she asks you a question about what you would like, she gets no answer. If she doesn't tell you to eat or to go somewhere, you don't do it. The amount of time you didn't followed her or talked because she didn't especially told you to do so is insane, especially in the beginning. So she decides to do what she thinks it's best, even if she hates it: giving you order, being stern with you, offering you a place you know, where you feel safe (no matter how sick it's) because you can predict it, a space where you'll be fine as long as you do as your ask. The world is a big and scary place in which to evolve in, especially when you don't have the keys to understand it - what you do something you're not supposed to, and you're punished for that? R will eventually come here, but it'll definitely takes a lot of time.

But obvsiouly Nat' is hating herself for that. She knows she has to do it, for you, but it doesn't make it easier. She does it because she believes it will help you to feel better, and because if you're under her orders, they have less reasons to be worried that you would attend something under Dreykov's name (or try to go back to him). She feels guilty, and old thoughts about her not being better than the man that made them are coming back. But Maria/Wands are here to help their wife <3

AND SO, here is how I see things if it's WandaNat we're talking about - I picture Wands as the soft mom she is shown as in Wandavision, and she would definitely not appreciate Nat's methods. She trusts her wife, she knows that she has her reasons, and it must be the best way to help you, but she still doesn't like it. She hates the way you always look down, the way you would do everything her wife is asking without thinking twice about it, and most of it, she hates when you're calling Nat' "ma'am" or something else of that kind. She hates even more than her wife isn't saying anything. She didn't know you for long, but she already loves you as her own, and it pains her when you reject her. Sometimes, she and Nat would argue about the whole situation (and those arguments would definitely go too far).

BUT imagine if it's BlackHill?? Even better in my opinion, and definitely can't stop thinking about it ~ Because, unlike Wanda, Maria is directly concerned. She read your file, she saw footages of you killing dozens of people, she tracked you, lost men in the process, and she saw how you didn't seem to regret anything when she questioned you. So Maria has every reasons to be worried, especially for her wife's security (physically and mentally). What if it's just a part of a biggest plan to attempt to kill the redhead? Or worst, to take her back there? I can easily Maria being upset, and taking it out on the other recruit she is training (poor them), not daring to do much more than glaring at you, knowing her wife wouldn't appreciate. And even if she doesn't appreciate R, she trusts and love her wife, so she lets her do her thing. But she is always somewhere looking at you with a stern face, waiting for the moment you would make a mistake to step-in. But you never really make a mistake, always following Nat's orders at the perfection, which is kinda frustrating because then she has no reason to get rid of you. Except if one day R's misunderstood one of Nat's orders, which lead to a heavy situation <3 It's honestly the only situation I imagine leading to an argument between Maria & Nat. Like, maybe you hurt someone or stole something or idk, thinking you did good, and they would be proud, but when you come in the room they're just looking at you with that shocked face. But you did what you had to, no? That's exactly what you were asked to do, so why are they angry? AND IMAGINE THE ANGST FROM NOW. R's confusion, Nat' desesperatly trying to find a solution, trying to convince Maria that it was just a mistake (that was her fault because she is the one that wasn't careful with her words) but she doesn't change her mind. Pulling the "what if it happens again?" and "I am your superior, you don't get to discuss my order" cards, knowing that it would pain Nat', but she has to do it in order to keep her safe. Bonus point if Nat turns to Fury, trying to convince him as she knows her wife won't change her mind, but he doesn't say much, just agreeing with her agent, mumbling a simple "sorry" Nat doesn't want to hear. Obviously, it would eventually

AND (because there is more), I also can't stop thinking about that comment from @light-me-on-pyre ;

Like, I can easily imagine R hating Nat'. It would make so much sense because she grew up in a place where Nat' was pictured as the enemy, the one that betrayed "the ones that gave everything to her". But it wouldn't be the exact reason why R is hating Nat'. I mean, right, she hates her because she left, but mainly because of the consequences it had for the ones that came after - the worsened conditions, the mind control, etc - and how she succeed what's supposed to be impossible: leaving the Red Room. Not only physically, but mentally. Imagine R seeing Nat' on the news when she is on a mission or seeing her interacting with Maria/the Avengers, witnessing Nat' being happy. It's something she was told she doesn't deserve/will never have from a young age, so why would Nat' have the right to be happy when so many didn't? It was so much easier to hate on Nat' than on Dreykov all these years because she wasn't here, and no one would blame her to do so. But now? It's easier to continue hating Nat', for R to convince herself that the redhead is bad despite the appearances because it's easier than admitting that her whole life is a lie (kinda). And the fact that Nat' has to take the "bad guy" role in order to help R only makes things easier because, in the end, she is not different from the others, right? And so, as Nat' can't provide R the comfort she needs, it's all on Maria (at least for the beginning) who doesn't have a choice. But we all know that despite her cold demeanour, she is all soft, she is just scared for the ones she loves <3 Which includes Nat', because she saw how her wife is affected by your arrival. First, she has nightmares again because, with you, inevitably came back old memories and traumas. Then, Maria can see how her wife is so invested in your case that she barely sleep/eat/ (which is one of the reasons why she doesn't really appreciate R ...). But also, what would happen if they can't save you?

Bonus point if things get better but something happen, and everything get worse again, throwing away all these months of progress. But what if they don't have the patience to start all over again?

It's definitely (one of) my favorite trope because the amount of angst/comfort it holds is insane, and I am going crazy about it (you can tell by the lenght of that post that was supposed to be a few lines ...). Do I want to write something like that when I already have too many WIPs? Yes. Will I do it? I don't know, but I'll definitely be thinking about it 24/24 & 7/7.

[fairielux]

i'm not finished with the second scene yet, but it IS going well and it's getting late too so here is your second snippet from the festive-ish domestic, restaurant owner landoscar fic!

please please please let me know what you think, i love the feedback. i still have no clue when this is gonna be done or how long it'll end up being, i'm just along for the ride cause this fic is writing itself.

i hope you enjoy!

"Service runs smooth, sparing Lando any additional headaches. By the time they see the last guest out, Lando is all but ready to collapse. He can't yet though so he cycles through their routine, closing the restaurant, checking everything's in place for tomorrow, and stacking up the next set of special menus by the waiters' desk. Only after does he head to the kitchen to check how Oscar's going with his part of the cleanup. Usually, the chefs would leave the clean up to their cooks, but Oscar likes his station to be in a particular way, he rarely lets anyone help him with prep or cleanup. So he stays and does it himself - it's just another thing Lando adores about him.

As he enters the kitchen, he is greeted by a warm plate and a tired looking Yuki.

"I know you didn't have a break" he says as he shoves the plate into Lando's hand "and you might be the boss but you still need to eat" he finishes before heading to the changing rooms. Lando can't even utter a thanks, his head chef is gone so quick.

The smell of Yuki's warm food pulls a rumble from his stomach, he was right, Lando did forget to take a break. He does it more often than he likes to admit, and he appreciates how his staff - his friends - make sure to look out for him. He sets the plate down on the service counter and grabs a freshly washed fork from the drying rack. Yuki made him the usual plate of tomato and mascarpone pasta, but it might as well be the best dish he's ever had. Within minutes the pasta is all gone and his plate is cleaned and put away, so with his fork still in hand he makes his way to the back of the kitchen, where he suspects Oscar may be. His husband is nowhere to be seen when he gets to his station however, the only thing that greets him is a small plate with a single slice of cheesecake on it that Oscar left for him. They have a long running tradition of this - Oscar leaving sweet treats for Lando - that started way before they had their restaurant, but Oscar still kept it going after all these years and Lando wouldn't have it any other way. He takes a careful look at the slice before digging in - him and Oscar have this ongoing game where Lando tries to guess the flavours Oscar has packed into his gift sweet of the day - the cream is light and velvety, the biscuit is crunchy and he is flooded with the flavours of Christmas. His husband has managed to make christmas into a cheesecake, he thinks. He is on his third bite - still trying to pinpoint exactly what festive spices Oscar has used in the cream - when he hears a set of heavy boots on the kitchen tiles.

"Any idea on what cheesecake it is yet?" Oscar asks, with a glimmer in his eyes. He enjoys their little guessing game as much as Lando, if not more. The man is insanely competitive, though Lando can't say shit, he is even worse at times.

"Well, if my tastebuds don't deceive me, you've made the base from crushed gingerbread" he states, quite proud of himself and he immediately knows he is right when he sees Oscar's smile widen. "and then you called up Santa and asked him to give you some kind of Christmas-essence that you cooked into the cream." His conclusion has Oscar folding in half, Lando thinks that isn't quite enough yet, so he keeps going. "Or maybe you've just poured the entire spice cabinet into the cream and kept adding nutmeg until it magically transformed the taste into Christmas." Oscar is nearly in tears when he is finished, pulling a genuine smile out of him. When his husband finally manages to stop the endless giggles, the cake is gone and Lando feels less tired as well.

"Not quite but you've got nutmeg so I'll give you that love. I mixed the spices from our mulled wine recipe into the cream - minus the wine, obviously. But I like your idea better." They make their way to the office to pick their coats up, and head to the car after.

"Does that mean I can tell our customers that you personally went and visited Santa for this cheesecake cream recipe?" Lando asks as Oscar starts the car.

"Well that's definitely better than giving out my trade secrets" Lando is happy with that, he so will be telling their guests just that, when the cheesecake makes it to the menu."

[erikahenningsen]

Regina takes up 2/3 of the bed but it works for them because Cady sleeps curled up in a little ball. Regina hates having to sleep without Cady because sometimes she has nightmares and she always feels guilty about calling Cady in the middle of the night.

Now, please do this 😔🙏, or if you could, elaborate more. I'm currently in the midst of brainrot.

#grad school universe / Angie's fic

Regina wakes up just as the bus is about to hit her, breathing hard.

For a moment, she's completely disoriented, before she realizes she's in her bed, her apartment dark and silent.

Regina presses a hand to her forehead and finds it tacky with sweat, and her throat is a bit tender. She wonders if she had been screaming in her sleep. That's happened before—and completely scared the shit out of Cady the first time.

Cady.

Instinctively, Regina reaches to Cady's side of the bed, and finds it cold and empty. Right. Cady is at her apartment in New Haven. Regina is still getting used to spending more nights apart than together. She'd never tell Cady, but she thinks the nightmares have become more frequent as a result.

Regina wants to call Cady. She needs to hear her voice. It's the only thing that slows her heart, which is still pounding inside her chest with panic. But it's the middle of the night, and Cady has class in the morning.

Regina rolls over and tries to ignore it, to will herself back to sleep—or at least into a calmer state. But every time she closes her eyes, all she sees is Cady staring at her with horror as the bus plows into her body. Sometimes, in the dreams, the bus hits Cady instead. Those are the worst ones.

After a couple of minutes of trying to relax by sheer force of will, Regina tries deep breathing. She tries listening to some calming music. She even tries a free meditation video on YouTube, even though she thinks it's stupid. But she doesn't feel even a little bit better.

Before she can overthink it, she taps on Cady's contact and holds her breath as the phone rings.

Just as Regina thinks the call is going to time out, Cady picks up. The screen is dark, but Regina can make out part of Cady's face on the screen.

"Regina?" Cady mumbles sleepily. She squints against the light of her phone. "You okay?"

"Hi, baby," Regina whispers. She feels guilt flare in her stomach at Cady's sleepy face, but she already feels less like she's having a heart attack.

Cady runs a hand down her face. "Did you have a bad dream?" she asks.

Regina cringes a little at the wording—it makes it sound like she's four years old—but now is not the time.

"Yeah," Regina says. "I just needed to see you."

Cady makes a vague gesture that might be a wave. "Here I am."

"And so beautiful, as always," Regina says. She's always found it quite unfair how Cady looks gorgeous all the time, even in the middle of the night.

"I love you," Cady says, with so much affection that Regina physically aches to be with her. "I'm glad you're alive."

"Me, too," Regina says. "Most of the time."

Cady makes a displeased noise, and Regina knows if it weren't the middle of the night and they weren't in separate states Cady would insist on having A Conversation about the most of the time part.

For a few moments, Regina just looks at Cady's face. Well, more like half of her face. At a weird angle. But her breathing has returned almost to normal, and she isn't trembling anymore.

"I'm gonna fall asleep," Cady admits, eyelids drooping, "but I'll leave my phone on."

"Good night," Regina says. "I love you."

Cady kisses the tips of her fingers and taps them against the screen as her eyes close.

It'll have to do, for now.

[dr-trafalgar-law]

Trafalgar Law X CisFem Reader

18

Loud thunder rattled the windows. You grumbled and rolled onto your side trying to go back to sleep. It had only been a few hours since you passed out after drinking all evening with Roci. The room was still dark and quiet save for the weather outside. Law shifted in front of you but remained facing the wall.

"You ok?” He asked quietly.

Normally you enjoyed storms, but right now it was so incredibly loud. Your head was pounding and full of static. Even with your eyes closed you could feel the room spinning. The churning in your stomach made you think twice about speaking.

"F/N?" Your fiance rolled over carefully to look at you.

"-I-I'm.." You flinched at the volume of your own voice.

"Hungover." He stated, a small understanding smile bending his lips.

You didn't need to say anything to confirm. Even in the dark he could see you'd gone clammy. His hand tenderly brushed over your forehead to check your temperature. You closed your eyes to try and regain your bearings.

"Breathe, please.” Law gently commanded, “In through your nose and out through your mouth.”

"Too nauseous." You muttered.

"I know,” he replied,"it'll help I promise."

You did as instructed, but it only took a few seconds to confirm it was too late for breathing exercises. The way you jolted up and frantically tossed the blankets aside had Law moving just as quickly.

"No!” You called sprinting for the bathroom and slamming the door before Law could follow.

"F/N-ya, I've seen people vomit." He began to knock as you lost your dinner.

"I-I'm fine!" You coughed and gagged.

When you were sure your stomach was empty you brushed your teeth and washed your face before stepping back into the bedroom.

Law was sitting cross-legged in the center of your bed. He'd had a harder time respecting your wishes than he thought he would. For a few minutes he stood at the bathroom door anticipating a change of mind. But you didn't.

You didn't need him.

There was a dull sting of rejection. Of course rationally he knew you weren't actually rejecting him. You didn't want him to see you retching and crying. He was a doctor, arguably used to this, but at home he was your fiance. It was a much longer time before Marco was allowed to see you this messy.

He shifted on the mattress and moved the blankets back, “Feel a little better?”

“Sober-” You winced at your own raspy response.

Bile had done a number on your throat.

“I'll get you some water.” Your fiance stood as you crawled back into the comfort of your bed.

He was gone less than a minute, shutting the door softly behind him before placing the glass of room temperature water on your nightstand.

“I don't feel like it has been long enough for you to take pain meds, but if you're still uncomfortable in an hour it should be ok.” He slipped into his side of the bed and laid facing you.

“I don't even know what time it is.” You sipped the water and inched down to get comfortable in your pillows as thunder rumbled outside.

“Close to four, there's still plenty of time for rest.” He watched you sigh and stare at the ceiling, “Is there anything else I can do?”

“Just let me rot.”

“I'm sorry to tell you, the prognosis is good.” He chuckled, “Just some temporary suffering.”

“Ugh.” You groaned, “Never drinking again.”

“Let's just practice moderation next time.” Law suggested sliding his arm under his pillows so he could be more comfortable.

“Mhm.” You hummed, closing your eyes as a new wave of nausea washed over you.

Recognizing your discomfort, Law moved a little closer and shifted onto his back, “Here,”

You glanced over at him confused and squeaked when he slipped his arm under you to pull you close. Finally catching on, you moved on your own to rest your head against his shoulder. Once settled he began rubbing soothing circles over your back while humming softly. His voice was pleasantly deep, even and in key. For a moment you were distracted enough to not realize you'd been clinging to Law’s bare torso.

“My mother used to do this when we were sick,” He explained, “to help us sleep.”

“I don't hate it.” You murmured cheekily through a yawn.

“I know.” There was a smile in his voice before he started humming again.

Soon your nausea subsided enough for you to drift back off to sleep.

Law laid awake a bit longer. Having you nestled against him snoozing comfortably made his chest tight. Not the usual anxiety that seemed to reside there.

This was a flutter of excitement.

A small taste of happiness that had felt so far away months ago.

Daylight poured through the small part in the curtains across the room casting a thin golden line down your face. Scrunching your nose you attempted to move out of the sun spot. As your brain began to reboot you quickly realized you'd been snuggled into your fiance’s chest. His arms still loosely wrapped around you, your legs tangled under the blankets.

In the last few weeks you'd shared each other's beds but cuddling had never really come into play, you were still very conscious of personal space.

He was so unexpectedly warm and soft and comfortable.

“Go back to sleep.” Law murmured, not bothering to open his eyes.

“The sun.” You whispered back.

His left eye slowly opened to confirm your soft complaint. Wordlessly he shifted away to allow you to move facing away from him while he slipped his arm around you and nuzzled into your nape. Goosebumps flashed over your skin. There was no way you were going back to sleep now, it didn't matter how exhausted you were.

Law drifted off again while you took the opportunity to inspect his hand. You wondered what made him get such a macabre tattoo, especially considering his profession. Gently you ran your fingers over the clean black lines. This was the first time you'd purposely touched his hand. His skin was soft and well taken care of. You'd almost expected them to be dry and chapped from scrubbing multiple times a day.

Suddenly he flexed, halting your motions, “That tickles.”

“Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you.”

“I don't mind.” His voice was still low and tired, “How do you feel?”

You scoffed, “Like I've been hit by a bus.”

He slid his hand over yours gliding over your fingertips, “You're probably a little dehydrated.”

“I'll get some more water when I make breakfast.”

Law sat up and leaned over taking in your dark circles and puffy eyes, “You'll be resting today.”

“But I promised Roci-”

“And he'll survive his road trip on the snacks you packed him yesterday. Today you rest.” His expression was stern but there was a soft edge in his voice.

You'd denied him the opportunity to take care of you overnight, but this morning he wouldn't allow that. Your stubbornness was going to have to get used to allowing him to help you.

And so the morning began. You were too awake and queasy to go back to sleep anyway. While you showered Law and Roci made breakfast and coffee. After everyone had eaten it was time for your soon-to-be father-in-law to make the trip back to Olympia. He squeezed you and made plans to come back soon before instructing his adopted son to be sure you would be feeling better at the end of the day. Your doctor rolled his eyes like an annoyed teenager but agreed that he'd do everything he was told.

[axxio-sriracha]

Could you please make a fic on basketballer Remus and Sirius drooling over his boyfriend, you're works are great

Sorry about the late reply, but here you are, my love!

⋆˖⁺‧₊☽◯☾₊‧⁺˖⋆

Wins and Losses (But Mostly Wins)

A Wolfstar One-Shot.

⋆˖⁺‧₊☽◯☾₊‧⁺˖⋆

"God, these games are so boring." Lily complained, walking up the bleachers to the very top row, "Why did you pick this as our extra credit assignment?"

"Quit whining, the game's gonna start soon." Sirius hushed her, sitting beside her and pulling out his drawing pad, "It'll only take like an hour, than we're free."

"Damn, I should have brought my sketchbook." She groaned and leaned back against the wall, "Can you at least keep me entertained so I don't have to sit through this alone?"

Sirius glanced up from the paper to see her signature puppy dog eyes, "First of all you know those eyes don't work on me. And second of all stop acting like I'm torturing you, it's just a game."

"Hi! Mind if we set up in front of you?" A bubbly voice asked from the court. It was the cheer captain, Pandora, her hair pulled up into a ponytail so high Sirius couldn't imagine how it didn't hurt.

"Um... sure." He gave her a quick nod and turned back to Lily, "You'll survive the game."

She groaned again and leaned dramatically on his shoulder, "I think I might actually die."

He laughed and shoved her off just as the rest of the cheer squad made their way across the court.

"Isn't that Alice?" Lily asked quietly, pointing out one of the girls in the group, "From art?"

Sirius nodded, "Yeah, some people have other hobbies, you know."

She rolled her eyes and settled into her seat, her expression nothing less than dreadful.

Sirius quietly put his things away, not wanting to miss the announcer calling the players out.

The bleachers filled up quickly, the smell of snack bar food came right along with it. Sirius' stomach rumbled at the thought. Lily seemed to be thinking the same thing,

"I'm going to go get nachos, want anything?"

"I'll take some too, thanks."

She nodded and stepped through the crowds down to the floor, making her way towards the other end of the gym.

The announcer started speaking about the game, something about emergency exits and to grab a bite to eat before it begins.

His first player announcement was the team captain for the other school, a guy named Malfoy with long blond hair, he looked like the type of person who caught ants on fire for fun as a kid. He announced the rest of the team, most of them just as sour-faced.

Sirius felt a hum of anticipation shoot through him as he began announcing the home team.

"Hogwart's team captain, number 60, James Potter!"

A tan, curly haired guy jogged out onto the court from the other direction, his expression wasn’t serious like the other team's had been. He gave a dorky smile and waved at the crowd before he reached the center of the court were the Ref stood, who's name Sirius remembered was Miss Hooch.

"Number 03, Regulus Black!"

Sirius' head whipped towards the locker room doors as his brother walked out. He had the same goofy expression the captain had on, only he never stopped to wave to the crowd. He gave Potter a weird handshake and jogged over to collect one of the practice balls from the side.

A couple names were called Sirius didn't recognize, he was too busy watching Regulus warm up with free throws. It didn't look like he missed a single shot.

"Number 29, Peter Pettigrew!" A nervous looking boy came out then, joining the rest of his team at the back of the line, he didn't seem too eager to hold the ball for long.

Sirius glanced towards the snack bar, glad to see Lily was still in line. He checked the time, the game would start in less than five minutes.

Secretly, Sirius was relieved by Lily's distraction. He didn't want her to know the real reason he picked the basketball game for their assignment.

"Number 71, Remus Lupin!"

Taller than most of the players and far better looking, Lupin jogged across the court. He had a slight grin and honey colored eyes that scanned the crowd. Sirius' heart fluttered when they landed breifly on him.

There it was.

He turned and watched the doors swing open again.

Lupin took his spot at the back of the line to warm up, shaking his tawny hair out of his face. He was, in every aspect of the word, beautiful.

Sirius felt his cheeks heat up when he realised he was staring, he quickly straightened up- literally- and glanced away before his eyes had the chance to get too dopey.

Potter saw Lupin and beamed, running over to ruffle his hair even further. Lupin laughed and pushed him away, pointing at the basket while he spoke.

Sirius couldn't tell what was said, but Potter's expression held a challenge as he ran over to get an extra basketball.

Sirius felt his heart sink along with the ball. Did Potter wink at Lupin for a reason? Did he like him? Were they together in secret? What if they were? How long could this have been going on?

Sirius didn't miss the quick wink he gave Lupin before making the shot.

He shook his head in attempt to clear his thoughts. He knew he shouldn’t down that rabbit hole, it wasn't going to do him any good.

The cheerleaders started their first chant, waving their pompoms and trying to get the crowd excited. Sirius couldn't care less, unable to tear his eyes away from number 71.

"Hey, nacho delivery." Lily's voice called over the noise as she climbed back up the bleachers, narrowly avoiding a rogue toddler.

"Thanks." He accepted the tray from her and moved his things so she could sit down beside him.

"What'd I miss?" She asked, watching the teams warm up. Sirius shook his head,

"Nothing yet, just the announcements."

The ref called for the jumpers to go to the center, Malfoy and Lupin stepped away from their teams. Malfoy had a sneer on that Sirius could see even from the bleachers.

"That guy looks like a total douche." Lily whispered, nodding towards him. Sirius laughed,

"Trust me, he is." He agreed.

"This is the coin flip right, where they decide which side to play on?"

"Welln sort of, it's called a tip off, it's based on whoever gets the ball first."

The rest of the players gathered around them at a distance, Potter looked certain they would be getting the ball.

"Why did they send 71 instead of 60? 60 is the captain right?"

Sirius nodded, "Yeah, 60 is the captain, but 71 is the tallest. They want him to jump for the ball since he'd have the highest chance to get it."

Lily frowned suddenly, "Since when do you know so much about basketball? I thought you hated sports?"

He cleared his throat, trying not to seem obvious, "I've watched a few games."

She rose an eyebrow but otherwise let it go. They turned back to the court just as the whistle blew.

Lupin did, in fact, get the ball, passing it immediately to Regulus. Regulus dribbled it across the court and passed it to the closest open player, a scrawny kid with the number 52 on his jersey, who passed it to Potter next, who scored with little resistance. The crowd went crazy at such an early basket. Potter raised a hand towards the stands, nodding excitedly and smiling as the team clapped him on the back.

"Damn." Lily laughed, "They really don't stand a chance do they?"

Sirius shrugged, feeling a proud smile tug at his lips, "Not really, no."

"You seem pretty invested." Lily commented, munching on a chip, "You've barely even touched your nachos."

He found himself watching Lupin again, the way his expression was so focused, how his hair somehow looked even better clinging to his forehead with sweat.

Gods was he a sight to see.

Even on defence his skills were incredible, he managed to block the person from scoring, passing the ball to one of his own teammates instead.

He looked down at the uneaten tray, in all honesty, he'd completely forgotten they were there.

"I'm just watching. I figured might as well enjoy it since we're here." He feigned indifference, barely managing to pull his eyes away from 71.

She shrugged, looking towards the cheerleaders, "I think they're going to do a stunt."

He had no idea what that meant, but didn't really care enough to ask. His eyes still tracked Lupin as he jogged across the court, when the ball was finally in his possession, Sirius was practically at the edge of his seat.

"And 71 scores! Another point for Hogwarts!" The announcer called. Cheers erupted once again from the stands. Lily clapped half-heartedly, her attention still focused on the cheer squad as a few of them gathered in a weird looking circle.

"That was Lupin." Sirius told her, even though he knew she wouldn't care, "The one with the ball right now, he's the captain. His name's Potter."

She nodded, not even bothering to glance at them.

"One, Two, Three, Four! Our mighty Gryffindors have scored once more!" The cheerleaders shouted, bringing his attention briefly to them when he saw a girl being lifted into the air. She held a sign that read Go Hogwarts in black and gold.

"And Malfoy gets the ball, passing it to 82, who passes it back to Malfoy... who scores! Three points to Slytherin!" The announcer called as the board changed again.

The other side of the stands cheered now, their own cheerleaders chanting about getting on the board.

Sirius turned back to watch Lupin again and noticed his attention wasn't on the court anymore, he was looking at the Hogwarts cheerleaders.

Sirius saw Potter looking in that direction too, even as the other team dribbled the ball towards their side of the court.

"What are they staring at?" Sirius whispered, Lily gasped right as he realised, the girl who'd been tossed into the air had accidentally kicked one of the other ones in the head, knocking them over.

There wasn't anyone there to catch her.

"Shit-" Sirius started to get out of his seat, but loud footsteps across the court made him realise both Lupin and Potter were already running towards her.

Potter slid on his knees with his arms held out, catching her just before she hit the ground. Lupin helped up the others who got injured.

The crowd cheered, and for a second, Sirius thought it was for them. Then he realised it had come from the other side of the gym, the Slytherins had scored a basket while Lupin and Potter were distracted.

Potter sighed when he realised, looking thoroughly upset. He still helped the girl to her feet, talking quietly with her for a moment to make sure she was okay. The coach called for a timeout, jogging over to pull Lupin and Potter back to the player's bench.

He didn't hear what was said, but he could tell from their faces they were being lectured.

Lily scoffed, "I can't believe they're getting in trouble for saving her. What he did was-" She shook her head, "This is ridiculous."

"Do you... like him?" He teased. Her face got bright red immediately

Sirius watched her, he had noticed the way she looked more than a little awed when Potter ran over to catch her. She couldn't seem to take her eyes off him now.

He knew the feeling.

"What? No! Of course not!" She hissed, turning away quickly.

"I think you do." He poked her side, wiggling his eyebrows at her, "You liiike him." He drew out the word, making a heart with his fingers.

She shushed him, putting her head in her hands, "Oh my god, you're so embarrassing."

He laughed, patting her shoulder gently, "It'll be alright Evans. I'm sure you'll have the chance to charm him soon enough."

She scowled at him and turned back to the game.

The players took their positions on the court without Potter and Lupin. Pettigrew and another nervous looking player were put in there place instead.

Sirius realised once the whistle blew that he didn't care a single bit about the game. Finding himself content to watch Lupin on the sidelines instead.

"Look who's uninterested now." Lily whispered when the stands cheered and he didn't react.

He was greatful in a way that Lily was also watching the bench, so she couldn't see his expression as Remus tilted his head back to get water from a squirt bottle.

Remus watched the game intensely, groaning and putting his head in his hands when his replacement did something wrong.

He turned to find her watching him with amusement.

"What? No, I just- I was thinking about my assignment next week."

She rolled her eyes, "Please, like I haven't noticed you watching him the entire game."

He could feel the blush on his face and looked away, "I have no idea what you're talking about."

She gasped, "Oh my god. That's why you picked this extra credit opportunity, didn't you? You just wanted to watch Lupin!"

"Keep your voice down." He laughed, holding a hand over her mouth, "You don't have to shout it."

She licked his fingers and he jerked his hand back. The smile on her face was disbelieving,

"I can't believe you've been lying to me this whole time just so you can pine for some jock!"

"Look, I can explain, okay?"

"Malfoy scores, again! Another basket for the Slytherins." The announcer called.

She shook her head, "Not another word, lover boy." She swiped his untouched nachos, "I'm taking these as punishment for your wrongdoings."

"I've gotta go to the bathroom, be right back." He told her, she nodded and gave him a quick wave,

"They really need to get them back out there, the team is drowning without them." Lily commented.

Sirius nodded, watching Regulus' furious expression as he chewed out one of the stand-ins for whatever it was he didn't do.

"Don't drown!"

He rolled his eyes, stepping carefully down the bleachers until his shoes hit the court.

"Lupin, where the hell do you think you're going?" He heard the coach call. Lupin turned around with a mock salute,

"Bathroom, sir." He retorted. The coach raised a hand to yell at him but was drowned out by the noise from the stands.

Sirius had to stiffle his smile.

"And that's it for this half folks, I am proud to introduce our cheerleaders for their half-time routine!" The man's voice came from the loudspeakers again. Sirius picked up his pace a little more, not wanting to block people's veiw of the performance.

"Lupin." He greeted when he stepped into the bathroom.

Lupin turned, tilting his head to the side as he leaned against the sink,

"Sirius." He whispered.

"We alone?" Sirius asked, lowering his volume to match. Remus nodded,

"Yeah, we're alone."

Sirius couldn't contain his smile then, his eyes roaming his boyfriend's body hungrily,

"Game's not over yet." He murmured, leaning in to press kisses all over Sirius' face, "The next basket's for you, darling."

"You played good today." He walked up and slung his arms around Remus' shoulders, "You looked even better."

"You gonna point at me like they do in the movies?" He teased. Remus picked him up and turned him around, sitting him down on the counter,

"Maybe I will." He kissed him deeply, his hand reaching up to tangle in Sirius' hair.

"I spent forever working on that bun." Sirius complained when they pulled away.

Remus winked, pulling him into another kiss, "You know I'm just going to mess it up the next time we see each other."

Sirius hopped down, checking the door to make sure nobody was coming, "It seems to be your specialty." He laughed.

"Alright, go on then. Your friend will get suspicious if you're in here for too long."

Sirius perked up suddenly, "Does James have a girlfriend?" He asked. Remus thought about it for a moment,

"No, why?"

"My friend, her name's Lily." Sirius rose an eyebrow and Remus nodded.

"Got it. I'll point her out to him and send him your way after the game."

Sirius pulled Remus closer by his jersey, "You better be coming my way after the game too." He kissed him one last time, "I'll see you tonight?"

Remus nodded, "Love you."

"Love you too." He called back as he turned and made his way to the door, fixing his hair the best he could.

He made it back to his seat a few minutes later, Lily eyed him skeptically,

"Where have you been? And... why do you look like that?" She stared at his hair. He pulled it quickly out of the bun,

"I fell." He shrugged, "Some arse bumped into me and ruined my hair."

She narrowed her eyes, "Mhmm."

When half time was over the players filed back onto the court, Sirius' eyes caught Remus instantly. Watching the muscles in his arms as he practiced, the way he looked with his lip caught between his teeth, how his chest rose and fell, showing off the contours of his back beneath his jersey...

And he was staring again. He looked away, trying not to be too obvious.

The game resumed, Sirius noticed Lily was a little more invested too.

Remus had the ball now, Sirius felt his heart beat faster, watching as he dribbled to the other side of the court. He threw the ball and...

"Three points to Hogwarts! Remus Lupin with the score there." The announcer called.

Remus' eyes skimmed the bleachers, he found Sirius sitting in the top corner and pointed towards him, the most ridiculous smile on his face. Sirius couldn't stop his own smile from spreading either.

People in the crowds looks around for who Lupin pointed towards.

Lupin, the popular jock who could have absolutely anyone he wanted in the stands.

Was pointing at Sirius.

Lily gasped, "Was that to you?" She hissed, trying to avoid all of the stares from the stands. A few of the cheerleaders looked over at them too, he could hear them giggling.

"Maybe." He whispered back. Something in his expression gave him away and she gasped again,

"Oh my god. You're together?" Her voice was not exactly quiet, people around them now spoke in hushed whispers, he could see a few point between him and Remus excitedly.

Well, there goes that secret.

"How did you- When did you-" Lily started before she shook her head, "You know what? I don't even want to know."

Sirius laughed, "Sorry Lils, he didn't want to come out yet."

"Well I think he just did." Lily commented, nodding towards the buzz coming from the home seats.

Sirius watched understanding dawn on Remus' face as he listened to the crowd. They knew.

Potter looked around, confused about the amount of times Lupin's name was said from the stands,

"What's up?" He asked Remus, Sirius had to read his lips to make out what he was saying.

Remus only shrugged, turning back to focusing on the game.

The game went by quickly, Hogwarts made a lot more baskets. (Mostly thanks to Potter, Regulus, and Remus)

"And that's the game! Hogwarts won! Thank you to everyone who came out to support tonight! There will be-" The announcer went on about sponsors and other things.

Sirius didn't care. His eyes were locked onto his boyfriend.

"Oh god you're drooling over him right now." Lily pretended to gag.

He only smiled. Most people had already sort of pieced it together by now, why not go all the way?

Sirius started down the bleachers without waiting for Lily, bee-lining towards Remus before the people in the stands had the chance to get up.

Remus saw him coming, his smile was easy, he knew what Sirius was planning. He held out his arms and let Sirius barrel into them, swinging him around in a circle before he set him back down,

"You really don't do things halfway, do you?" Remus joked as all of the eyes in the gym fell on them.

Sirius shook his head, "Nope." He whispered, just before he pulled him into a long kiss.

Potter was the first to start cheering, running over to jump onto Remus' back excitedly. They were pulled away from each other as Regulus came over and wrestled Sirius into his arms.

"Dude! Why didn't you tell me?!" He called, ruffling Sirius' hair up, "Congrats!"

Sirius laughed and hugged him, listening as the students all processed what just happened.

Remus and Sirius were together.

And now everyone knew it.

The after party was a bit wild, Remus led Sirius through the crowds, dragging him around by their linked hands as he introduced him to everyone.

Sirius couldn't help but smile every time Remus proudly called him his boyfriend.

A short while later they accidentally walked in on a couple in one of the bedrooms. They were about to apologise and shut the door when they realised who it was,

"Lily?" Sirius called in disbelief.

"James?" Remus said at the same time.

The pair broke apart, both red in the face and a little disheveled.

"Sirius!" Lily pulled the blanket over them, covering things he really wished he hadn't seen, "What are you doing here?"

"Teaching you idiots to lock a door apparently." He replied.

Remus snorted, "Have fun guys."

They shut the door, staring at each other for a moment before they broke out in laughter.

"Oh my god." Remus wiped a tear from his eye, "I guess we didn't need to introduce them after all."

Sirius shook his head repeatedly, "I really did not need to see that." He groaned.

Remus tugged his hand, "C'mon, I'll get you a drink, hopefully we can take your mind off of it." He was still laughing all the way downstairs where they met back up with Regulus.

Needless to say, the five of them became very good friends, spending the rest of their time in college together.

Lily and Sirius went to every single basketball game after that, drooling over their partners and giggling when they dedicated every basket to them.

And there were a lot of baskets.

⋆˖⁺‧₊☽◯☾₊‧⁺˖⋆

[baldurs-gape]

Seven Minutes in Hell

Bulettes were plain rude and that was putting it mildly. It wasn't enough that they appeared, caused trouble and left before they could be killed, they also left parts of the path dangerously unstable. This Gale unfortunately found out first hand. One moment he was picking his way over what he thought was a path while lecturing Astarion on the merits of having clothes dyed a single colour than the monstrosity of clashing that the vampire spawn was sporting, and the next the world was lurching and falling from under his feet.

Hitting the ground hard, Gale was winded and he coughed, letting out a groan as rubble settled on and around him.

"Well, this is inconvenient," he grumbled and tried to look around. It was pitch black but an all too familiar scoff of a laugh was reassuring rather than annoying for a change.

"Is this what you'd call inconvenient? I dread to think what your definition of a drastardly nightmare is." There was the sound of rocks and earth shifting. "Well, I can't smell the acrid stench of your blood so I'm guessing it's all in your body, where it's supposed to be?"

Taking stock of himself, Gale had to agree with Astarion. Aside from a few scrapes and what will probably turn into bruises that would rival the colours of the myconid colony, he was surprisingly intact. Coughing for good measure, he nodded - which wasn't very helpful in the dark.

"Yes, I'm okay, thank you. How are you?"

"Just peachy! I've always wanted to be stuck under some collapsed path with a catankerous wizard I like to fuck to keep quiet as my sole source of company."

Harsh. Actually, that kind of hurt and Gale wished he could see Astarion, just so he could glare. "You don't complain anywhere near this much when you're stuck balls deep in my hole."

"Yes, well, they do say that outside a wizard a book is man's best friend. Because inside it is too dark to read."

Something niggled at Gale's mind about that. Too dark...Astarion's sight was so much better than his in the dark but if there was no light what so ever... "Astarion, are you scared of the dark? I can make a bit of light."

"Don't!"

It was too late, a soft glow illuminated the pocket of space they were in. Nothing more than a small gap between rocks piled on top of them and Gale had to swallow thickly. Best to think of something else. Like the way Astarion was curled up and covering his face, eyes squeezed shut, less than a handspan from him.

"It's okay. Starling, look at me. Please."

As always, Astarion did as Gale wished. For all his obstinancy, somehow Gale had wriggled his way into his trust. What Gale didn't expect was to be met with wide, terrified eyes. They tracked around the rocks, taking in just how small and confined they were, not enough space to stand up, to stretch out, to do much other than maybe wriggle a bit closer to each other if they didn't mind their limbs tangling.

"Starling?" The nickname had Astarion staring back at Gale, eyes wide with terror. Trembling set in a second later. "Oh little star. It'll be okay."

Astarion shook his head vehemently and closed his eyes tight again. Even though his breathing had stopped, Gale could still see the other telltale signs of an impeding panic. Reaching out, he gave Astarion's ankle a squeeze.

"We're getting out of here. Karlach if probably already lifting rocks while Wyll is telling her what to lift next to keep us safe."

He might as well have been talking to the sole of his own foot for the difference it made. The soft whimper as Astarion tried to curl up tighter was heartbreaking. In all their time together, not once had Gale see him reduced to something less than an arrogant, insufferable bastard who he'd grown to dote on. This was, well, it was concerning to say the least.

"Come here." Heart soft as ever, he wriggled to try and get closer to Astarion. As he pulled his legs free, the rocks above them shifted and Gale found himself squeezed up against Astarion. What little room they had became that much smaller. "Would it help if I put the lights out?"

Astarion shook his head, nodded then shook his head again.

"You're okay." Words raspy and thin, Astarion didn't raise his head from where it had burrowed into Gale's shoudler.

Of course Gale was okay, they'd already established that. He wriggled to wrap an arm around Astarion's waist and pulled him in.

"I'm okay. You're okay."

Looking around in the small space, Gale couldn't help but shiver. It really was cramped, his legs were already sore from being tucked under him. The silent panic from Astarion wasn't leaving him unaffected. Small mercies that only he needed to breathe of the two of them. Air was a precious commodity, stale and dusty as it was. Which wasn't a good line of thinking to go down, not when he started trying to guess just how much longer he could survive there. At least his lights weren't like regular fire and eating up air. But when air was going to become scarce, he was going to have to stop casting. Which was quite possibly what Astarion was meaning.

"Want to tell me what you're so scared of?"

Astarion's head rose and looked around at the earth and rocks. At the same time, Gale couldn't help but wonder what he was seeing because it wasn't the look of someone in the present.

"I- I can't do it again. Not again." His voice was a trembling whisper and hands dug into Gale in a desperate clutch. "The grave. The coffin. Now this. And you."

If only Gale had pushed to know more about Astarion's past, this all might have made more sense. For now all he could do was nod. "You don't have to. As soon as there's a gap, you take a potion of gaseous form and I'll misty step after you."

"Can't. No space. No air. You'll die." Gale's words might as well have fallen on deaf ears. "I don't want to sit with your body."

Perhaps it was for the best that Gale didn't mention that in the eventuality of his demise the orb was going to blow them all clear of the cave-in anyway. Though nobody was surviving that. Instead, he gave Astarion a squeeze.

"We'll be out long before that happens. Until then I'm right here, keeping the lights on."

"I scratched to get out. Broke my nails, wore them bloody. Screamed and shouted. Nobody came."

"Karlach and Wyll are coming. I promise. And I'm here, I'm not leaving you."

"Promise?"

Heart breaking, Gale nodded. "Of course. I promise. You're not alone. Never again."

Rather than the anger that perhaps would have been in Astarion' voice before, it was now just broken. "Don't make promises you can't keep. Once you know the truth. What I did. Who I served."

Absolutely not the time to have such a conversation and Gale tried his best to redirect it by pressing a kiss to the top of Astarion's head. "That's a hurdle for the future. It doesn't sound like an easy topic. And once you know me, you may not want me to stick around, ever thought of that?"

A small shake of head and Gale let out a soft sigh. Sex was so much easier when emotions didn't get entangled in it. Alas, he was a begger for love so couldn't choose so to speak. This was his lot now.

Above them the rocks shifted and they were showered with dirt and pebbles as things moved. Astarion ducked in closer to Gale with another whimper.

"Fangs! Magic man! Great thinking with the light."

"Karlach, good to see you again." Gale smiled and tried not to notice how Astarion was staring at the gap to freedom with singular focus. "Think you could pass a potion of gaseous form down?"

"Right-o. I'll take this with me." With that, she disappeared from view and took another rock with her, leaving a bigger gap.

A knee to his ribs and the pressure of a foot on his calf was the first sign of something changing. Gale left out an 'ooft' as Astarion all but used him as a springboard in a mad scramble to get out. It wasn't graceful or elegant, pure desperation made him push his limits. For a second it looked as though he wouldn't make it, rocks tumbled under his foot as he tried to pull himself out but with a heave and a grunt he was out. As promised, Gale was only a misty step behind.

Astarion was on his knees and leaned over, head pressed to the ground, gasping big, unnecessary heaves. Tentatively, Gale crouched and laid a hand on his back.

"We're out. It's okay."

Next to them, Wyll and Karlach looked on as Astarion pulled himself together, layers of haughty indifference built up in front of their eyes as he visibly hardened.

"Let's never do that again." He pulled a dagger from his belt. "We have a bulette to kill. I want revenge."

[lanawinterscigarettes]

requesting fluff with dhawan!master x their gn! companion

I tried to make this extra cute and fluffy because I'm such a sucker for those kinds of things (also shout out to my bestest bud @your-next-daydream for helping me come up with this corny ass pun of a title. I love you sm <3)

The One Who Rocks My World (Dhawan! Master x reader)

Warnings: soft! Master (he might be slightly ooc due to a part in this where he gets a little emotional), teeny weeny bit of hurt/comfort, but mostly just lots and lots of fluff

"Ooh, let's go there!" You said in excitement, pointing at a random alien marketplace that popped up on one of the TARDIS console's many screens.

The Master merely sighed, knowing you wouldn't stop pestering him until you got what you wanted. He usually wasn't a fan of random, one off trips (he wasn't The Doctor) but something about you always made it so hard for him to say no.

"Fine, but we're staying for no longer than two hours, three tops. And I'm not buying you anything there." He said sternly, glancing up at you while he punched in the coordinates. "Do you understand?"

You simply squealed happily in response, clapping your hands together. "Yay! I knew you'd say yes!"

Less than twenty minutes later, the two of you arrived at the marketplace. You'd grabbed The Master by the hand and were already starting to drag him towards it before the TARDIS had even landed properly.

"Slow down, the market's not going anywhere in the ten minutes it'll take us to get there," he grumbled, though he made no real attempt to stop you, something he could very well do if he so pleased.

He lingered a little behind you, following you around from vendor to vendor as you oohed and awed over the different wares being sold.

"Remember, I'm not buying you anything, so don't pick anything up if you don't have the money to pay for it," he called after you, watching as you picked up a piece of fabric that was similar to a scarf.

You frowned slightly before putting it back down, knowing full well that even if you did have the money, you most likely wouldn't know how much to give them, and you had no interest in being scammed by some random alien seller, again.

The Master shook his head at your antics, smiling softly to himself. As irritating as you could be sometimes, he did have to admit he found it to be pretty endearing.

He turned to say something else to you before realizing you'd run off again, though to where he wasn't entirely sure. He was about to start tearing apart the entire marketplace looking for you before you suddenly popped up again, this time holding something in your hands.

He narrowed his eyes slightly, trying to figure out what you had. "What's that in your hands?"

"Oh, I found it on the ground over there!" You said while pointing to a beachy area that was littered with small, multicolored stones. "It's for you."

He looked at you in confusion as he took the stone, not quite sure what to say. "What is this?"

"It's a rock." You stated plainly, doing nothing to actually answer his question.

"Yes, I'm well aware of that." He did his best to supress an eye roll. "I mean, why are you giving it to me?"

"Well, because I care about you," you stated as though it should've been obvious. "And you give gifts to people you care about."

That made sense, he supposed, though The Master never really did view himself as someone other people would care for. But, still. A rock?

"Why a rock?" He asked curiously, turning it over in his hands.

"Because it's purple," you simply replied, an unwavering smile on your face. "And you wear purple a lot, so I figured it must be one of your favorite colors. Plus, it reminded me of you."

Your words made him want to cry. You thought about him enough that you were reminded of him in even the smallest of things?

"It's- it's very nice," he choked out, blinking back a sudden onslaught of tears.

You frowned slightly, your forehead creasing in concern. "Aw, don't cry." You immediately wrapped your arms around him, pulling him in for a comforting hug.

He wasn't nearly as stiff as he was the first few times you showed him physical affection, but he was obviously still a little awkward about it, holding his arms out to the side while you hugged him.

He glanced yet again at the rock in his hand, watching as the mixture of colors shined brightly in the sun, like his very own kaleidoscope.

The purple color of the stone made him smile, and he very slowly did his best to hug you back properly, not missing the way you seemed to hold on for a bit longer after that.

If this was always what happened when you went on trips together, then he'd have to make sure to plan them more often.

Likes < reblogs | comments are greatly appreciated <3

Main masterlist | Doctor Who masterlist | wanna be added to my taglist?

🏷 taglist: @theonetruepotato87

[thotsforvillainrights]

~Sunday Morning~

Au: Roommates

Part: 5

Theme: Fluff

The sun casts it's morning light through the cold glass on your apartment window. You remain still in bed, savoring the quiet moment of a work-less Sunday morning. Although you were thankful everyone had secured the jobs needed to keep the lights on at this place, you still felt what every worker feels during an off day...

Relief.

You smile to yourself and roll to the other side of the bed facing the wall. You mindlessly scroll through your phone, watching funny and sometimes pointless videos with the volume as quiet as possible when (as to be expected) Toga bursts into your room. You groan in slight annoyance and sit upright, placing your phone on the nightstand next to bed. "Dude, can you please stop doi-"

Toga cuts you off with panicked words. It's only then that you truly notice the look on her face. "There's something wrong with the car!"

You end up following her downstairs to the designated parking area where Magne stands next to Spinner and Shigaraki. "Shouldn't we at least try one more time to jump it off at least?" She says to Tomura in a worried tone. He sighs and moves away from the open hood. "We tried it like 5 times already. If you do it too much I'm worried it'll end up causing more harm than good. Let's call a tow company and see which mechanics are open. She nods and begins looking on her phone. Spinner looks up and notices you standing next to Toga. He makes his way over to talk to you. "Sorry, I told her not to wake you up." He frowns at Toga and she rolls her eyes. "It was an emergency, duh. How are we going to GET TO WORK???" She grumbles at him. Spinner sighs and runs his hand through his hair. "Well I already give you ride sometimes. I can help these two as well." Spinner turns his eyes back on you and slightly blushes. "It's no problem to help anytime I can."

You shake your head and frown. "Shuichi I appreciate it but you already helped enough by getting Toga her job. I'll talk to my boss and see if there's anything more that I can do. He's understanding and already adjusts my time for me anyway." Suddenly Tomura speaks up at a distance. "Mr. Kurogiri has a soft spot for anybody that puts up with the excess workload as his assistant but there are a few limitations to what he can do before the Dean gets involved. His last assistant got fired for tardiness. Although they ended up just taking advantage of his kindness after all." Tomura approaches you and looks you up and down before scowling and looking over at Magne. "I'll give you two a ride until that piece of shit is out of the shop. Spinner can continue to give a ride to To-"

A familiar face comes out of the doorway and observes the mess around him. He rolls his eyes and approaches. "I was hoping to have a peaceful commute to the shop yet here you all are, doing what you do best...making an absolute racket of an otherwise quiet morning." Dabi complains. You softly apologize but Toga and Magne instead opt to stick their tongues out at him. Dabi then looks at the car and sighs. "Move, let me see it. I got a little before I need to clock in and there's no reason the skills my piece of shit old man taught me outta go to waste just yet." Tomura nods and moves over slightly. Within minutes Dabi is able to figure out what's wrong with it. While he's chatting with Magne and now helping discuss which mechanic to take it to, Spinner is busy twiddling his thumbs. "Hey uh...I know this is a shitty time to ask this but uh...I uh...I mean, are you free later on? Like free to maybe go to-" You look engaged at the conversation unfolding until Toga and Magne both ambush you in excitement, completely cutting Spinner off from talking.

"Good news! It shouldn't be more than a week!!!" Magne spoke while Toga happily nodded.

After all the commotion ended, Dabi departed to his Sunday morning tattoo shift, Shigaraki went to get caught up on his studies at the college library and Toga was sitting on the kitchen counter while Magne cooked a little breakfast. You were taking your time talking to Spinner about various things out in the apartment hall when Magne stuck her head out the doorway and told both of you to come eat. You smiled and nodded at him to join. Then entire eating was spent exchanging different words of various topics by you and your two roomies. Meanwhile Spinner was nibbling small bites of food never looking away from you unless you looked at him. Here lately you were all that was truly on his mind. He'd felt slightly embarrassed having fallen for someone so quickly but he felt as though you had that effect on people. He'd taken weeks to muster up the courage to tell you what he wanted to say. All that effort down the drain when he was cut off earlier today. His heart remains even more so panicked when he remembers the way Kai looked at you during the party that night.

Competition? Perhaps...

Oh who was he kidding. There wasn't a snowballs chance in hell he could stack up next to a MEDICAL STUDENT at a university. The boy seemed to have it all. Connections due to his father's company, status, good looks, a nice car, and money above all. Spinner became saddened once more at the thought of what would be better for you. His heart just couldn't let him give up. There was no way he wanted to stay 'just neighbors' and he was going to do something about it.

He just had to figure out what first.

[anime-fan-05]

Hello! I'd love to see an imagine or headcannon of Jin with a human girlfriend that has glasses(like her eyesight is BAD). I think he's such a sweetheart he'd just love on her! Please and thank you!

Three times

Manga/anime: Yu Yu Hakusho

Warnings: nothing

(Y/N): your name

Jin loves (Y/N)'s glasses. Better said, he loves stealing her glasses to see her eyes twitch and her try to chase him to get them back. In fact, there are three times he steals them from her.

The first time was during their first meeting. That was... strange...

~ ❤️ ~

6.17pm, 25th December.

(Y/N) was walking on the snowy sidewalk, lit only by a street lamp which produced a dim light, as she returned from the Christmas celebrations at her parents' house, carrying with her a large bag containing the gifts she had received from her relatives. She was burying herself in her scarf, feeling cold.

Suddenly, she felt a gust of wind pass by her and, in less than a second, her glasses disappeared from the bridge of her nose.

"Wow -the girl heard a voice from above her- are these what you humans call 'glasses'? They're so strange!"

(Y/N) tried to squint to see the one who stole her glasses, but she couldn't make out his appearance. She could only make out a mop of red hair and one thing that shocked her: the thief was flying!

"W-who are you? How can you fly?"

"I'm Jin! And you're beautiful!" The strange boy, Jin, exclaimed, making the girl blush deeply.

"Thank you? Can you give me my glasses back, please?"

"No."

"Please! I can't see anything without it!" (Y/N) cried, starting to try to take her glasses from Jin, forgetting her bag, but with little success, considering her almost total blindness.

They continued chasing each other for a few minutes, but the girl still hadn't managed to get her glasses back. Eventually, the boy reached down and put the glasses on her.

"C-can you step away a little, please?" (Y/N) whispered after seeing Jin didn't move away from her, but rather he remained staring at her, with his face very close to hers.

"Why?"

"Because, if you look at me like that, it's disturbing!"

"Can't I stare at a beautiful thing?"

"Huh? What did you say?!" The girl didn't know whether to be embarrassed and happy at being called beautiful or angry at being defined a thing.

"You're cute without glasses, but you're beautiful with them!"

"Stop complimenting me! And then, you still have to answer one question from me: how can you fly?"

"Who knows?" Immediately after saying this, Jin flew out of (Y/N)'s sight, leaving her stunned.

~ ❤️ ~

The second time is what happens every day: every morning, before she wakes up, Jin makes her glasses disappear, so, when she wakes up, (Y/N) frantically searches for them in every corner of their house. Their "glass hunt" always ends with a sweet kiss.

~ ❤️ ~

"Please, tell me where they're!"

"You're almost close, (Y/N)!"

"Come on! Give them to me!"

"No! You have to find them!"

(Y/N) is walking with her arms extended forward to avoid bumping into furniture or doors, while trying to find his glasses, but not knowing Jin was the one holding them. However, the girl doesn't see the carpet in the living room. She trips on it, and she loses her balance and falls. Actually, she would have fallen if it hadn't been for her boyfriend, who caught her before her body hit the ground.

"We certainly don't want to ruin your beautiful face..." Jin takes her glasses and puts them on her face.

The girl blinks and remains silent for a few seconds; then, making her boyfriend chuckle, she shouts: "So you've had them all this time?!"

"Joke!"

"Jin!"

"Sorry, beauty." Jin approaches (Y/N); he bends down slightly and takes her cheeks in his hands, giving her an affectionate kiss.

~ ❤️ ~

The third time hasn't happened yet. It'll happen during Jin and (Y/N)'s wedding, which took a lot of convincing from her to be made, since she didn't even know what it was.

~ ❤️ ~

(Y/N) will walk on the beach, arm in arm with her father, towards her future husband. Theirs will be a small wedding, with only her relatives and his closest friends, and it'll be on the beach, a location chosen by Jin.

The youkai will be super happy, and he won't listen to any of the master of ceremonies' words; the human will be super touched to have finally managed to marry the man who loves her.

Time will pass very quickly, and the ceremony will soon reach the final moment: that of the kiss, which will establish their union forever.

"You can kiss the bride."

Jin will amaze everyone present, because he won't kiss (Y/N), but he'll take her glasses and start running away, shouting that's their daily ritual.

They'll chase each other for about five minutes, then Jin will give (Y/N) back her glasses and, finally, they'll kiss amidst the applause of those present.

💮 Rules 💮 Masterlist 💮

[oh-saints]

sweetest devotion (p.3)

serena thought she was doing her husband a favour but mason had never felt so frustrated and angry towards his wife than right now.

playboy!mason mount x princess!OC

tw: as mentioned in the masterlist only, but extramarital affair to a marriage of convenience for this particular chapter

wc: 1.9k

note: sorry i fell asleep last night bcs jetlag truly sucks! i'm sorry i can't give you guys (yes you guys that left some notes on my asks 👀) a happy chapter now but i swear it'll get better next one! but as usual, i happen to write at dawn so this is not beta-read yet.

tags: @pingyu-in-wonderland @ironmaiden1313 <3 (lmk if you wanna be added!)

<<part 2 - part 4>> sweetest devotion masterlist here

“turn it off, mase.”

elena had been holding back since before both mason and her walked out of her flat but she couldn’t take it anymore. mason’s phone had been vibrating every 30 minutes since then, and it was supposed to be their date night. out of all their weekly quality time, she looked especially forward to tonight because mason had pulled out a reservation at the most sought-after place in london, despite their usual full-booked slot.

but mason’s distracted state-of-mind wasn’t what she had the problem the most. it was the fact that he couldn’t seem to shake off the what-ifs he’d probably be having—what if he just took the call—whenever he peered over the screen of his phone and found the other woman’s name.

serena.

good god, had she never despised a name. one sentence, and it reminded her of everything she could’ve had with mason. yes, she admitted she should take some blame for being the reason why mason and serena happened in the first place—had she not broken up with mason the night he sought refuge in alcohol and night life, her boyfriend now wouldn’t have trapped himself in a loveless marriage with the princess.

fucking hell, elena hated her more because of what she was. a royal princess, no less. elana had never dreamt the day she had to compete with a princess for a man.

“what?”

mason looked up from his phone this time, done from replying to stacy because it was rare for his eldest sister to continuously ping him. but he so wished he’d kept replying to stacy because he’d never seen his girlfriend seething with anger when his attention was diverted back to the alluring lady in red.

“i was replying—”

“serena, i know,” elena folded her arms against her chest, and mason knew better than to debate an angry woman with the correct answer. “now turn it off.”

so he did, with the mind of turning it on shortly after they’d reached back to her flat.

but he never remembered.

now he had to face the reality of waking up to hundreds of texts and missed-calls from his family, mostly asking where he was. others were divided between angry texts for not picking up calls, disappointed ones too for neglecting them. but none was as striking as the last text from serena.

please pick up my call. your mother’s in critical condition.

mason didn’t even think twice as he jolted out from the bed, deserting elena behind in her drowsiness. her usual come back here, baby didn’t work much wonder this time around, his mind was too busy searching for his phone and car keys.

he was far too blinded by the worst possible scenario that could’ve happened to his beloved mother, that he didn’t even think about anything else. not even the countless violations to the traffic laws he committed just to get to the hospital—just as long as he got to his mother’s side in time, just as long as he got to see his mother doing okay.

but that also meant that he forgot about fetching serena from the house. he forgot about the existence of his wife, at least to the rest of the world, and his own marriage. he forgot about the mask he had to put on in public.

he would’ve gone straight to apologising for not getting to the hospital earlier but the sight of serena sitting amongst his sisters, even to the extent of having her arms around a sobbing stacy, clamped his mouth shut. moreover, lewis stood up, arms already folded in front of his chest, and mason had never seen lewis this angry during his short span of life so far.

lowkey, mason could feel his insides cowering because he knew he fucked up so bad—like seven shades of Sunday level of fucked up—for not picking up any calls from his family members but before he could admit his guilt and mistakes, lewis mustered his lowest baritone.

“where have you been?”

his unwavering tone basically confirmed mason’s ultimate sin. “I’m sorry I was—”

“that busy that you let your wife, a foreigner in this country, to take a midnight train to Portsmouth, a city she’s never visited?”

to say mason was surprised, was an understatement. the footballer thought his oldest brother would reprimand him about not picking up his calls when there was a dire emergency at hand.

“what were you thinking, mason mount?”

uh oh, full name was reinstated. mason badly wanted to defend himself but he couldn’t find the ground because in all honesty; what the fuck? the mounts had a worse reality to talk about—the matron of this household was still fighting for her life, for god’s sake!—and lewis wanted to cover other bases instead of the most important thing right now? instead of filling him in about the conditions of their mother?

mason badly, very badly wanted to disclose that he wasn’t responsible for serena’s well-being. like, if she wanted to come it was because she can. not because he asked her, and he would never ask her because he’d very much keep his family away from the impending doom that’d befallen them as soon as the contract expired.

but he kept his mouth shut. partially because he didn’t want to dishonour the agreement between serena and him—because mason would very much prefer to find faults in serena’s stance to this agreement, instead of his own fault—but mostly because he was so mad. how could lewis defend someone he barely knew and accuse mason of something that was out of his control?

“lewis,” serena spoke up gently, as usual. if mason wasn’t blinded with rage towards the said princess, he would’ve admired how regal she was behaving, despite the unspoken chaos blanketing the waiting room. “I think beranting Mason is not necessary,”

the older brother turned his head towards her, asking confirmation if he was hearing her right.

“he must’ve fallen asleep at the coach’s house,” serena continued, giving lewis some sort of reassurance probably that mason wasn’t deserting her behind and that she wasn’t lying about his alibi. “mason overtrains himself lately with both physical and visual training.”

mason would’ve expressed his gratitude behind the scene—why she lied for him, he’d never known—if the woman wasn’t enticing more anger inside of him. always trying to save a fucking face, mason groaned inwardly.

＊✿❀○❀✿＊＊✿❀○❀✿＊＊✿❀○❀✿＊

the midfielder stayed put in the long hallway of the pristine white hospital, deciding not to join the rest of the family on his mother’s side. the wife to his dad for decades had been rolled to her room since hours ago but mason didn’t think he had the capacity not to snap in front of everyone.

especially when serena was the midst of his family, acting as if she belonged there when mason kept the information himself. that she was only doing that to save her face, like she’d been doing since the beginning. since the first time she trapped mason into her loveless marriage arrangement.

mason was only too blind to recognise it.

but now that he noticed all the red flags, mason didn’t want his family to fall into the same blackhole.

“you should break up with her.”

mason’s body jumped slightly at jasmine’s voice, certainly shocked his older sister joining him to oversee the boring central garden of the hospital. “but I’m married to serena.”

“you’re smarter than to miss my point, mase,” jasmine chortled sarcastically. “break up with your mistress.”

jasmine’s gaze might be staring the distance, as if the night scenery was fun and pretty, but her words succeeded pouring mason ice cold water over his head. “what do you mean, jaz?”

“don’t play dumb with me,” the ice was now stabbing mason’s heart because jasmine was always the warmer one between them. she was being ruthlessly cold and distant and her tone was so level it scared him. “dad raised you better than to keep a mistress. it never ends well and we all know she’s always up to no good.”

how could jaz be the judge of one’s personality, when she’d never met elena before? what did she know about elena?

mason gritted his teeth out of annoyance. “I can’t do that.”

“you can’t do that to serena, either. it’s not fair.”

serena again? did the princess pull off some black magic over his family or something? why did everybody suddenly care for her instead of him, their flesh and blood? how come no one in his side went to care for him now?

fucking hell, mason had never desired to scream out loud. at anyone, but preferably at his own kin. “lately, I think life’s never fair to me, too.”

“life’s never fair to anyone, mason mount,” mason had never been called by full name twice in a night from different older siblings of his. if stacy decided to do the same in the next hour, mother nature should give mason a prize or something for hitting a homerun. “when are you going to learn that?”

“why are you siding with serena?”

“I am not,” jasmine’s eyebrows distorted in disbelief. “I swear I’m not siding with anyone here, but you really should start thinking like a father. your baby’s coming in less than 6 months, do you think what you’re doing right now is fair to your baby?”

the older took the following silence as a sign she’d nailed the coffin. which could only mean her job here was done and over with.

“jaz,” but mason’s call halted her straying steps from him. “how do you know?”

“you reek of cheap perfume, mase.”

＊✿❀○❀✿＊＊✿❀○❀✿＊＊✿❀○❀✿＊

while jasmine’s words rang true in his ears, it still didn’t soothe his anger and annoyance towards the woman sitting shotgun beside him, as he cruised his Lamborghini in the direction back to London.

“why did you come here?”

serena immediately decided she’d choose a cocky mason over this version of him. “I thought—”

“see, that’s your problem. you think,” mason raise a decibel to his voice and serena flinched visibly because she wasn’t used to anyone raising their voice at her. it was rather off-limit to the royal’s etiquette. “but every time you think, you only think for your own good. you never think about what I think or what’s best for us.”

serena was rather taken aback at mason’s outburst that she couldn’t produce any response to him.

“have you ever thought you can jeopardise our false pretence by coming here alone?”

“no, I—”

“exactly!” serena flinched away from mason as the footballer hit the steering wheel out of frustration and anger. “so don’t ever fucking think again, you got me?”

suddenly her fingers looked so much interesting than ever before. “I’m sorry, mason.”

“you better fucking be,” mason sighed deeply. “if you still want to live.”

how could serena possibly have a decent reply when he reminded her that she was on the losing end?

next chapter contains:

“mason…” his lover whimpered, trying to reach for mason but the man only shook her hands away and stood up, towering her over. “surely you’re mistaken, we can talk about this–” “leave.”

[noelle666]

Tiny fanfic with no title

Heinrix van Calox/Noelle von Valancius Place and time: Lord Captains quarters, right after the "ice scene"

"Together. We're together. That is all I need".

Heinrix was holding his beloved Lord Captain in his arms: his body started to slowly warm up, the scent of her hair helped him to calm down. Noelle raised her gaze and looked into psyker's eyes:

"Heinrix, I know you will probably tell me there is no need to call for healers because you are strong and capable of taking care of yourself, but please, let me take care of you. You will stay with me tonight".

"I am your eternal servant, - Heinrix smiled faintly, - And will do all what is needed".

In several minutes ex-interrogator was standing under warm streams of water; he leaned back against grey and white marble wall of a shower cabin [1] and looked through the glass door: he saw a blurry silhouette of Noelle, she was doing something and then she rushed out of bedroom, probably to the entrance of her quarters. Even though the distance was not that short and the door's glass was translucent, the man noticed her moves were twitchy, filled with a degree of panic. He continued to look through the glass, waiting; it took less than a minute when Noelle appeared in a room again holding somethink which looked like a tray and something was standing on it. Heinrix exited the cabin, he wiped water off his body and covered himself in a towel.

For several years Noelle was a part of an Ecclesiarchy missionary group: they traveled through two large hive-worlds, visited many communities of loyal Emperor servants, rich and poor, those who are in need and those who bathe in wealth. Most of a time her role was to help sick and dying people, she was skilled in medical science and could comfort with kind words and empathy. Priestess knew how to treat hypothermia but was not sure if her methods could work on psyker who almost turned into an ice statue because of his powers. Still, she couldn't just stand and do nothing. Noelle heard footsteps behind her back while she was conjuring over a beverage she believed could helped her beloved at least a little bit.

"Please, take sit on a bed, it'll take only a moment. It is almost ready, I think..."

The last words were spoken quietly and meditatively, Noelle froze next to a table with a slightly raised hand as if she was calculating something in her mind. Heinrix came closer and smelled a citrus scent; he sat on the edge of the bed and observed what was on a tray: a cup with a spoon, steam was swirling above it, next to it a small bowl filled with sugar cubes and the last one was a little fancy saucer with several pieces of a fruit (Heinrix did not know what it was but remembered he saw short trees on Janus covered with the same fruits, but they were smaller and greener - probably still in a process of growth). The woman took a spoon with her thin elegant fingers, a light sound of it hitting porcelain cup made to think about little bells ringing. Noelle took a cup and gave in to Heinrix.

"What is this?"

"Solian tea. [2] Never thought I could ever drink it again, at least not in the closest future. But it seems Mistress Vyatt and I had something in common. It may sound odd to you but I don't really like recaf. I used to drink the most simple and cheap tea but to me it was the best of all drinks".

"I heard Solian one is a very expensive drink and pretty rare".

"Yes, I foung out they grow it on Janus on limited plantations and only for nobles. Sadly, I don't know about its homeland".

Heinrix took a sip: the drink had rich taste, a little bit or bitterness mixed with sweetness of sugar and notes of sour fruit. Differs from recaf he used to drink, but he couldn't say it was bad, maybe not very stimulating but this effect was not needed under present circumstanses. The tea was warm, psyker drank in one gulp as if it was a medicine and returned a cup to Noelle.

"I am sorry if it looks like a torture to you, - Noelle chuckled and put an empty cup on a tray, although her face expression had no notes of fun, - I hope it helps. Tea and lemons or other citruses usually are the best cures for someone who needs to be warmed up. They say these fruits are very rich with vitamins, but I completely forgot their name. Hm, what was it..."

Heinrix noticed that yet again Noelle's movements become twitchy - she was nervous and trying to cover it with a small talk. The man reached out to priestess' hand and pulled her closer, he embraced her and looked at her. Noelle wanted to avert her eyes, but then she looked at Heinrix and touched his cheek: he looked as usual "him" and no one could've ever guessed that about half an hour ago this man could've been dead. Heinrix started to gently caress his beloved's back, he noticed the tip of her nose turned pink, her lips started to tremble and eyes were about to be filled with tears; he put his head to Noelle's chest and she squeezed him in her arms just the way she did when psyker was about to be swallowed by warp's powers.

The man closed his eyes, he was listening to priestess' heartbeat - it was faster than it should be, her heart was like a little bird caged against its will, trying to break free, so passionate and scared. The same heartbeat helped him to see the real world again and not to dive into dark abyss. And her trembling voice, her words:

"Wake up... please".

Heinrix saw Noelle crying for the first time when they shared a dinner together. That evening had to be a merely sweet date for two of them, but one word after another, and her heart cracked. They both knew their bond is more than spending time together whether it is a game of regicide or more intimate moments but no one ever said the most important words because their road sooner or later supposed to be split in two. You cannot build happiness if you are not fully honest. Heinrix could not lose the one and only who gave him this ablsolute happiness and he did what he was avoiding the whole time (not because of cowardness but because he didn't want to hurt Noelle). He opened his heart and told her about his love which was burning in his chest for some time, he dropped the shackles of silence, and the scales have tipped towards his desires and feelings. And yet there was "duty".. That night Heinrix promissed his beloved he will never hurt her, he will never make her cry again. But he failed. His heart sank when he saw frozen tears on Noelle's cheeks, yet he gathered all his will and strenght to remain calm - this is what she needed since she gave all her powers to save her beloved. She needed peace because it is all over, otherwise she could've been broken into many pieces.

Noelle was combing Heinrix's hair with her fingers, slowly she managed to put all her feelings together. Heinrix looked at her and gently kissed, he smiled as if he said to her that there is nothing to be feared of, no need to worry.

Psyker fell asleep as soon as his head touched a pillow: in one moment his eyes closed and he was swallowed by deep slumber, the moment after he opened his eyes, and it was already morning. Noelle, on the other hand, couldn't really sleep: she was awaking almost every hour to check if everything is alright with her beloved, whether he is breathing or if he is tortured by nightmares. Only closer to morning her restless heart and mind fully calmed down.

"He is with me. I am with him. Where the road will lead us matters not, for nothing can tear us apart anymore".

[1] - Noelle asked to install a shower cabin to her bathroom since she is a humble person and sees no need in huge pool of water.

[2] - Solian tea - an expensive variety of tea. Was mentioned in "Eisenhorn. Xenos" novel. Unfortunately, there are no other detailes.

[noxexistant]

ai-less whumptober; day thirty-one

@ailesswhumptober 31 — panic attack, facing a phobia, “You need to get out of here!” ↳ the refuge, circa 1894 word count; 1.7k

cw; abuse, dissociation/derealisation

✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦

The guard grabs Oscar by the ankle. Yanks him back so hard his chin smacks into the floor, teeth colliding with a force that sends shockwaves through his jaw, but he doesn't stop fighting. He's hitting and scratching like a man possessed, rage burning red-hot in his empty stomach, his hammering chest, and he's desperate to not let it end. Perhaps half for the remaining fury — the sense that it isn't enough despite the blood spattered against his skin, the boy he's being dragged away from wailing with the pain of what's surely a broken nose.

And half for the knowledge of what comes next.

"Get him up," Snyder orders. He's stood watching, tall and menacing and as immaculate as ever, a wide berth around him from all of the other boys. Wider than the berth the brutal fight had earned, and Snyder isn't even doing anything.

Oscar is pulled unceremoniously to his feet. His arm is wrenched behind him, the joint of his shoulder bearing all of his dangling weight, and despite his best efforts he can't get his feet under him to remedy it. The guards know just how to hold him, hold all of them, so that they're helpless. It hurts, but it'll hurt worse in a minute when he gets his caning, and, knowing that, Oscar knows better than to put up a fight. He only looks up and finds Morris' face in the watching crowd, meets his eye to give him a look he hopes conveys the sense that it's going to be alright.

Mo hates Oscar being punished more than Oscar does. Always has, even when they were at home, so Oscar's gotten used to toughing it out. He'll grit his teeth and bear it if that's what it takes to not scare Morris more than the usual level of terror he lives in — and, really, Oscar's well-versed in beatings. He can take them, take whips and canes and fists and feet.

But he isn't steered into Snyder's office like he's expecting.

Instead, they keep walking, a pace that has his dangling feet scuffing and scraping against the ground, and a sense of dread starts building in Oscar's gut, replacing the warmth of anger with a distinct chill.

"Where," he croaks. "Where're we—"

He sees the staircase down to the cellar approaching and his words die immediately in his throat.

"No," he says then. "No, no, no—"

It's not the first time. The first time had been the worst, when he'd had no idea what was happening, no idea what to expect. No idea how Snyder had found out, because Oscar knows for a fact he's never said out loud how enclosed spaces terrify him. It had seemed in that moment like another impossible thing that Snyder just knew, the way Ma always said the Lord knows everything, and despite his terror at that notion, the time spent in that room had been worse.

Solitary, he knows it's called now. That's what Snyder calls it, at least. And it's certainly solitary, a confined brick room without windows besides a thin barred slit near the ceiling. A thick wooden door that bars shut, locks with an utterly definitive force that doesn't shake even when Oscar throws his full weight against it. The walls are damp stone and the ceiling drips where the wooden beams are rotting through, the air is thick and stale and impossible to breathe, though Oscar can never be sure if that's more to do with the fear that consumes him whenever he's in there.

"Please," he chokes out as he's forced down the uneven steps, already starting to smell it. Taste it. "Sir, please."

"Shush," Snyder tells him. "You know full well this is for the best. A punishment for your discretions, sure, but also another opportunity to steel yourself against your fears."

"No." Oscar's begging now. His chest is tight, and it's not until his head starts to swim that he realises he isn't breathing, but he can't. The guard won't stop pushing him either. "No, no, please, please, I'll do anythin', can't you hit me instead? Jus'—whip me with one a' them canes, or kick the shit outta me—"

"Oscar, be quiet."

"—or starve me, or—or anything—!"

It cracks into a scream as he's shoved inside. The tiny room at the bottom of the staircase, so cold inside that he can't tell as his palms collide with it whether it's wet or just the temperature, though the burn of pain in his hands and knees makes it hard to focus on that regardless. He scrambles to turn around, trying to get to the door, but it's closed long before he has the chance. A slam that echoes throughout the cellar, sends vibrations through his gut that make him want to heave.

"Please!" he screams. He crawls to the door and slams hopelessly on it, even as he hears Snyder and the guard walking away. "Please, I'm sorry, I'll do anythin', I'll do anything, Sir, please, please—"

He's not sure how much time has passed when he's forced to give up. It's sooner than he wants to, he feels as if he's still got countless more pleas left to scream to the empty air, but his lungs are empty too. Burning like fire's ravaged through them the way it does to hotter places, an arid landscape of dead grass that's now caught up his throat, choking him.

He's going to die here.

He knows, logically, that Snyder has long since left the hallway — knows the door to the stairs has likely been closed on him too — but he continues slamming his hands into the door like a compulsion. Some blind hope, perhaps, that it'll give under the barrage, but more than anything just something to focus on as his mind bends and twists. His knuckles burn, his palms are numb, but he can hardly feel any of it beyond the rest of the numbness, the all-consuming kind that's taken his hands and feet and head. His mouth is so dry, dry all the way down his throat, and he's sure he's going to vomit but how could he when it feels like he's been force-fed sand.

His eyes, at least, aren't dry.

He's sobbing, he realises. It's an awful sound, even to his own ears, but he finds he can't stop. His body doesn't feel like his own, won't obey him — some wild animal, entirely out of his own control, the way dealing with the cows and sheep and dogs on the farm always felt — so he has no choice but to listen.

And then suddenly it's silent.

He feels dazed, disoriented. It isn't until he processes his cheek against the floor that he realises he must've passed out, or gone to sleep, or — something. He's cold. He aches all over. His hands and feet are numb, head pounding, and in a moment of desperation, he lets his eyes slip closed again, hoping to fall back asleep.

"Os?" a voice whispers. There's a tapping, a knocking, and he realises it's what must've woken him up. "Os, c'mon. Please."

His head swims.

"Mo?"

Through the door, he hears a shuffling against the floor, the excited inhale Morris always does when he sees him. Used to always do when he'd notice Oscar was awake beside him in bed, or when Oscar would sneak up on him out back on the farm. It'd always come right before a smile, but Morris hasn't smiled in a long time now.

Oscar wouldn't know if he did now, anyway. Not with a door between them.

"Os. Os, are you—Missed you. Didn' know where you was, but—Snyder—Wan'ed—"

"Mo, you can't be here."

Oscar doesn't understand how Morris is. He must've snuck away from the guards and Snyder, and there'll be hell to pay when they find him if they notice him missing. God, Morris is supposed to be the useless one, supposed to be good when Oscar isn't there because he's too stupid to do anything for himself, but here he is. On his knees on the other side of the door to Oscar's cell, judging by where his voice is coming from.

Oscar wonders how long he's been there.

"Mo, c'mon, you—"

"I missed you," Morris repeats. Oscar has to swallow hard, pulling himself slowly to sit up. Cross-legged, opposite where he pictures Morris to be.

"Yeah," he breathes. Rests his forehead against the door between them. "Yeah, I miss you too, Mo."

"Did Snyder say? How—how long you gotta be in here?"

"No. No, he…but it ain't gonna be long, okay? You can be tough 'til then, an' then I'll be back to look after you. Yeah?"

Oscar's chest aches with the need to hold his brother. Pull him close and squeeze him until he feels the uncomfortable press of each bony joint, bury his face in messy curls, pretends that the world begins and ends at Morris because — it might as well.

"Yeah," Morris mumbles.

Fuck.

"You. Listen, you gotta get out of here. Okay, Mo? 'Fore you get caught."

"I don't wanna."

"I know. I know." Oscar wants him to stay too. "But you can't."

"…D'you promise you'll be okay?" Morris asks, voice tiny. So tiny it almost gets lost to the damp brick all around them, the grime and musk and utter hopelessness. He sounds so scared. Just a kid amongst it all, and maybe Oscar's a kid too, but he's Morris' big brother first.

"I promise," he says. "Pinky swear."

"Don't count if we can't hold pinkies on it."

"I know," Oscar breathes, with a weak huff of a laugh even though nothing could be less funny than this. "You jus' gotta trust me now."

He hears Morris sniff. "Always trust you, Os," he whispers. And Oscar feels sick again.

"Love you," he says, as he hears Morris climb up to his feet.

"Love you, Os."

He hears his brother's clumsy, childish footsteps recede, and prays to God he won't be caught. Won't be hurt. He'd stay here forever if it would keep Morris safe, but unfortunately the world doesn't operate so fairly — and Oscar is the only one who has ever held the mantle of looking after his brother.

It's a sense of purpose to cling to as the world goes silent again.