#jenner used to work there too but he quit and works for something at home

[harvestmoth]

what do we think about pet store workers team xen

[zealouscanonindeer]

Dangerous games 5

Synopsis : If you win, good. If you don't, even better.

(After her carelessness, the rumor mill is well on its way but luckily, she knows exactly how to make it up to him.)

Rating: Mature. NSFW ( Strictly 18+). Minors DNI. You have been warned.

Category: Smut.

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The moment my shift had ended, I rushed out, cheeks flushing as heads turned in my direction, the hospital gossip train well on its way by now. I met Naveen leaving, he insisted on driving me.

"I'm afraid I'm yet to learn your address. "

"Actually, I'm headed to Ethan's. " I meekly replied, feeling a crimson blush rise, turning my face into a beetroot. Naveen only smiled, before throwing me a look of 'I knew it. '

"The hospital gossip has gotten quite trustworthy these days. Don't you agree, Dr Kallie? "

I only stared back at Naveen incredulously, unable to respond. How was I to deny anything when he was literally driving me to the place where his protegee would be once again pounding into me in just a couple of hours time?

Deciding to spare me further embarrasment, for which I was immensely grateful, Naveen admitted.

" Aspen, don't mind my teasing, you're good for him and I believe he's good for you too. You need each other, I saw how much he relied on you during my sepsis and even now with the whole situation with his mother and the hospital. He needs you. "

"And there is no way I could have survived the aftermath of the attack without him. He anchors me. "

Naveen only nodded, already pulling up at Ethan's apartment. A silent unspoken moment lingered, one of understanding before I got off and waved as he drove off.

I used the key to let myself in, Jenners excited barks welcoming me. I caressed his shiny coat as he gleefully rolled onto his back.

I began formulating a plan for tonight. To make it up to him for all the stares, whispers and not so whispered comments at the hospital that Ethan was sure to receive.

After feeding Jenner, who now was happily curled up in his favorite corner I began to work on dinner. Boiling a pot of water, I poured the raw pasta, working on a chicken mushroom spicy sauce that Ethan liked. It miraculously even tasted good enough.

Next, I ran up a bath, sending Ethan a quick pic of me in the bathtub before donning on a new white lacy bodysuit.

I ran my hands over the white lace covering my stomach, well not really covering but rather showcasing. The pattererned lace hugged against my body, my hair stark in contrast to the material. I let my hair run down my shoulders, slightly wild, knowing how much Ethan liked to tug at them.

I opened my lipstick, staining the burgundy color against my lips, if there was one thing I loved it was sloppy open mouthed kisses ending with my lipstick all over him.

I poured two glasses of red wine, waiting in anticipation for him to come home. The door opened and my legs were already moving, the tiles cool against my bare feet.

"Ethan! " I breathed out, colliding into him and almost knocking us both over.

"Whoa! " He laughed, the deep rich rumble that I could feel against our pressed chests. Suddenly his eyes darkened, taking in my attire, eyes snapping up to meet mine.

"And what do we have here? "

"Just a little something after my foolish oversight today. "

"Hmm." His attention no more on my words as I began loosening his tie, removing it. He pushed his shirt off. I slowly moved backwards as he advanced, impatience written all over his face.

I hit the cool glass wall, pushing further against it. Ethan stopped in front of me, rising to his full height so that he was towering over me. He placed both his hands on the glass on either side of my face, his palms pressed against the glass. Leaning down, his lips connected to mine, for the first time that evening.

"Was it terribly bad? The hospital gossip? "

"What can you even expect. I almost quit. " He responded in a flippant tone.

"Then let me make it upto you. Show you how sorry I am. " I slowly got down on my knees, my hands busy unbuckling until all he was left bare.

I looked up at him and his handsome features had already shifted into an expression of pleasure and awe. Not breaking eye contact, I held his thick, engorged cock in my hand, now fully erect and giving it a squeeze. His eyes closed as groans left his mouth.

"Ahhhh."

I continued, pumping him a few times before pressing my lips to his shaft in a kiss. Licking my way down his entire length, I swirled my tongue once before taking him in my mouth.

Cheeks hollowing, I continued first gently sucking, once his hands tangled into my hair, guiding my rhythm and the jerking of his hips, I gathered pace. I firmly held onto the sides of his hips, rocking back and forth with the snap of his hips.

My dark lips sucked him off as he threw his head back, thrusting deeper into my throat. My eyes watered accommodating his size. He continued, hitting the base of my throat, small shudders of his body indicating that he was close.

"Penny. Stop, not yet. "

I reluctantly stopped as he pulled me up to him, his grip firm on my shoulders. I glanced sideways at my reflection in the glass, my hair unruly and tangled from his hands, my slightly parted lips smeared and messed.

"Now what am I going to do with you? "

"Today's all about you, anything you say goes. That includes ripping. " His darkened eyes momentarily turned regretful as he no doubt remembered the amount of clothing and underwear I had forgone in his overzealous frenzy. Sending his hesitance, I added.

"Don't worry, you paid for it. "

"If that's the case... "

RIPP!!

The fabric loosened at the apex of my thigh, a piece of white lace dangling haphazardly. Ethan turned me around, lowering me down on the carpet. His chest pressed against my back and I rested my head in the crook of his neck.

His hand cupped my breast before dipping into the lacy material and flicked my nipple expertly all the the while trailing kisses from the base of my neck to my shoulder. His fingers tightening on the right strap and then..

RIPPP!!!!

The fabric instantly fell from my breast and Ethan's eager hand wasted no time in squeezing it. His hot breath against my ear, he gently bit onto it, whispering.

"Rookie.. " His Rhode Island accent seeping into his speech.

I pushed my hips backward, rubbing onto his hardened cock, leaking with precum. His hands gripped my hips, face burrowing in my neck as he thrusted inside.

I snaked my hand to the back of his head, clasping onto his hair as I planted other hand on the floor to steady myself. Ethan pulled out all the way, with only his tip inside me before slamming his hips into mine, his cock hitting my spot perfectly. His deep strokes continued getting faster until he was remorselessly pounding into me.

My whimpers turned into loud gasps and moans which were now replaced by screams as my fluttering walls clenched hard, milking his cock as tremors filled my body.

"AAAHHH ETHAN!! OHHH... GODDD!! YESSS!! ETHAN!! ".

His dam broke as he finally filled me, his moans quenching my loud screams.

"ROOKIE!!!"

We both stilled, slowly riding out our highs as the stars in my vision subsided, bringing me back. Ethan's sweat dripped against my shoulder as he laid his head against my skin to gather himself.

He eased out of me, holding out a hand to help me to my feet. Walking over to the couch he settled down, pulling my hand but confused at my resistance. Hooking up a eyebrow in question, he looked at me.

"I made you dinner and the wine's just sitting there. I'll get it, yeah? "

He only nodded, leaving my hand as I picked up a glass, glancing at him sitting with his legs slightly spread, head resting on the backrest. An idea popped into my head as I walked back. Straddling him and staring into his eyes, I took a big sip of the wine, holding his face with my hand I pressed our lips together, nudging his mouth open and allowing the liquid to flow from my mouth to his.

He gulped as I pulled back, grinning cockily at his speechlessness.

"So what do you think? "

"I think I need to fuck the insubordination out of you. Time for round 2, rookie. " With that he flung me over his shoulder, my core already throbbing with need. Luckily, he knew exactly what to do.

*********

@liaromancewriter @potionsprefect @jerzwriter @cariantha @peonierose @rookiemartin @kyra75 @queencarb @tessa-liam @genevievemd @coffeeheartaddict2 @openheartfanfics @choicesficwriterscreations @tveitertotwrites

[nikofortuna]

JTTW Chapter 24 Thoughts

Chapter 24 for the @journeythroughjourneytothewest Reading Group!

Ah, the beginning of the Arc the movie Monkey King Reborn is based on! It will be very delightful to spot the similarities for myself!

But first we have to finish the previous trial. I really don’t like how the emphasise is kind of put on women as being tempters. Especially when the exemplary lady is explicitly stated to be sixteen, that is a child!

Still not a fan how they put so much ridicule on Zhu Bajie as well when they equally pressured him into the whole situation.

Hm Sun Wukong schooling his Shifu. We love the communal grandpa dispersing his knowledge.

And here are the two sillies! I’ll take it in immortal years they’re closer to being old tweens or young teens. That’s the feeling I get from them at least.

Ah, teaching the kids that uhm, actually just make friends with people if they’re nice, religion should not be of any importance there. There are some really good lessons to be taken away from this novel.

One could say they are… Home Alone.

I wonder if the sight of the Daoist Abbey makes Sun Wukong melancholic with thoughts of his first Shifu.

Clear Breeze, I most certainly prefer the J. F. Jenner and movie’s translation and technically also the German translation of Pure Wind, and Bright Moon are notably nicer in the novel than the adaptation. They only get rude when they actually have been wronged. Just looking at their movie counterparts, these aren’t the same kids.

Plants you say? Now don’t mind if I look them up! Spoilers this turned out a bit of a difficult ordeal so take all of this with a grain of salt.

For accuracy, spinach yes and celery yes.

Mare’s tail… maybe? My search came up with Beta vulgaris aka Chard/Swiss Chard instead, though both plants fall under the term vulgaris in their scientific name and are plausible options as they are both native to Western Asia. Since it is a vegetable garden for people however I might be inclined to personally go with Chard, in part also because I have eaten that vegetable before and it is not only quite tasty but also nutritional.

Funfact in German Chard is called Mangold, definitely sounds like a plant an immortal would eat. But again that’s just personal bias, in reality it could still be either.

Back to the list, I have no clue where beet comes from in this line, but ginger yes.

Seaweed no. It seems to actually be moss of some kind and I looked up as to possibly why it’s in this garden. Indeed certain types of moss are used for medicinal or culinary purposes in some cultures. But don’t go out and just eat moss you find in your garden! A lot of mosses are toxic and no good for eating, so be careful!

Bamboo shoot yes and melon yes. Squash, more like gourd, but technically yes. Watercress no, my research came up with wild rice instead, but watercress is still native to Asia as well.

Now for this next line I would like to remark that there is some potential difference in the Chinese Original. Chive technically yes the Google Translate said just onion though, garlic yes, coriander yes, leek and scallion technically yes though if the characters for those two are put together the translator says they translate to chives instead.

The second paragraph I will not touch as that one is more complex.

The local Tudi really tends to be the living loremaster, in a way that makes a lot of sense in world too, something I can always appreciate.

Heh, Sun Wukong doing a little trickshot with the mallet. Not that it worked, but he tried.

Sha Wujing being the good little brother getting roped into shenanigans by his older brothers. The feeling of found family is strong with this one.

At the end I would like to shill the movie a bit as I really like that one and it does make for quite a good companion piece for this Arc. It also has one of the best Sha Wujing designs in my opinion.

[erodasfishtacos]

#HendallReunited

prompt: request was to write broad but to write something angsty

Word count: 5.2k

Warnings: language, sexual content, angst

Harry always had issues with saying ‘no’ to people. He never quite grew out of his manners even when he should have.

He said ‘yes’ to way too many things- signing autographs for rude fans and paparazzi, and agreed to way too many things Jeff suggested.

Saying yes to everything didn’t make his life any easier is the thing. Especially when it came to his wife. She was usually left with the aftermath of him being too nice.

The media painted Y/N in a negative light occasionally and so did the fans because she would stand up for Harry and not let him say ‘yes’ to every single request.

She would tell disrespectful fans he’s not signing autographs because of the way they were screaming and interrupting his work.

Harry wished he could do it himself - admired that his wife didn’t give a fuck what people thought about her. He cared entirely too much what the world would think.

The couple didn’t fight about much - no, not really. Normal couple stuff for the most part. But this was the exception, this is where Y/N found most of their turmoil.

Every few months it would rear it’s ugly head and they’d find themselves in the same position over and over again.

This time - it was really fucking bad.

The couple had been staying in their Los Angeles home for the last few months whilst the singer finalized his album and began promotion.

It was boring meeting among boring lunch outings to get all their ducks in a row. Jeff - his manager the main orchestrator.

He was a great manager and a good friend, but it was also business too which Harry didn’t always comprehend.

At the end of the day, Harry was making Jeff millions upon millions of dollars. But Harry didn’t think that way.

**

Harry was in a stuffy conference room at the The Late Late Show to work on the script and ideas for the show. Promo had been nonstop.

He was a bit tired as it was nearly just hitting eight in the morning and he had been up late with you - having some late night loving in the hot tub.

“As for guest - Kendall Jenner,” James Corden’s producer states. All the men agree but Harry is taken aback.

“Why...why would we have my ex-girlfriend as one of my guests?” Harry interrupts, confusion knitting his brows.

Kendall and him didn’t end on a bad note - not at all. They hooked up a few times after their ‘break-up’ but once he’d met Y/N she was understanding when he cut it off.

Y/N wasn’t necessarily jealous of the model, but didn’t love when they’d run into each other at events. She was still overtly flirty with Harry without much shame. 

Harry also didn’t have an desire to see her or host her as a guest on the show. She was nice but he wasn’t interested in being friends with her. They didn’t have much in common and he was head over heels for his wife.

“The media will eat it up, dude. Harry Styles and Kendall Jenner reunited on a show after four years?” Jeff smiles, the others nodding in amicable agreement.

This is one of this times where Harry needs to say “no,” that it’s disrespectful to his significant other to use an old flame for promo for his album.

He already knows ‘hendall’ will be trending within minutes and he can’t imagine how that would make his parter feel.

“I just...this doesn’t seem like a good idea?” Harry begins hesitantly, making it sound more like a question than a statement. 

“Why not?” Eric, one of the writers asks.

“Y’know, I’m married. I don’t think m’missus would appreciate if I did somethin’ like that just for promotion,” he states, scratching at his jaw uncomfortably.

“Look Styles, we’re not asking you to fuck the girl. It just a interview, c’mon,” The executive producer gruffs - wanting those guaranteed views.

Harry swallows - looking at his manager and then at everyone else at the table looking at him for an affirmative answer.

“Uh-sure,” Harry fumbles, feeling anxiety rise into his throat. Fuck, he’s such a god damn pushover.

He’s trying to find his voice to go back on his agreement but the meeting wrapping up and people are leaving with final handshakes.

**

Harry doesn’t know how to tell Y/N what is going on. He’d been keeping in stored in the back of his mind, not ready to have a blowout.

He never found the perfect time to bring it up and now it was too late. It was the morning of the show and he was due to be at the rehearsals this afternoon.

Harry had finally decided he was going to tell her this morning over coffee but forgot that she had a girl’s day planned with a few friends.

She was already out to breakfast with them when he woke up. His phone had one text from you.

Hi baby. I’m out with the girls. See you at the show tonight. I’ll meet you there around six! Love you!

He was fucked royally and he had no one to blame but himself. Maybe it’d be okay, maybe she’d roll her eyes and tell him he’s an idiot.

Realistically he knew that was just a sweet dream at this point.

—

Harry was fidgety and kept mucking up his lines during rehearsal as it got closer to the showtime and his missus arriving.

Kendall had arrived for hair and makeup without seeing her ex-boyfriend yet. He dreaded seeing the model.

Kendall and Y/N had met a few times at different events. It was always cordial. Kendall was always casual - their relationship was never more than a couple fun dates and sex.

They were kind to each other when they met but he couldn’t deny how much harder his partner kissed him on the mouth afterwards.

Before he know it, his wife is hugging him from behind as he talks to a producer about which cameras to look at.

Y/N noticed the way he tensed up at first and thought about how unusual that was for him. Normally, he’d lean back into her with his full weight causing them both to stumble and laugh.

He slowly, cautiously turns around and his face  relaxes a little bit but not completely. “Hi baby,” he hums, leaning in for a kiss.

“You look so handsome,” she replies, admiring his brown pinstriped suit and her pearl necklace that he’d snagged awhile back. She thought it looked better on him anyways.

“You look even better, s’fuckin’ pretty, love,” he gushes, coming back in for another kiss - a little too sensual for the setting.

She was donned in a cropped white shirt, showing of the smooth expanse of her tummy. An oversized blazer of Harry’s, ripped jeans, and heels. 

Harry thought fleetingly he couldn’t wait to fuck her after the show. Then remembered that mostly wouldn’t happen.

Reggie, the musical lead, slides up to you two. He smiles wide at you, saying, “Can’t believe you agreed to the guest this evening.”

Her eyebrows furrow in confusion, Harry’s raise nearly to his forehead, but when she opens her mouth to ask him to explain they’re interrupted.

“Harry!” The leggy model trots over to the little group. Dressed in an interesting one-piece suit that has sewn in heels. She looked beautiful as ever, of course she was a model.

Both of them turn towards the oblivious girl, “Kendall,” Harry replies with a twinge of anxiety - eyes repeatedly looking at his significant other’s profile as multiple emotions flash.

“Hiya, you’re Y/N right?” Kendall smiles kindly, offering her manicured hand.

She accepts, “Yeah, uh-good to see you again.”

Harry knew she had connected the dots quickly in her head. The hurt, confusion, had hit her eyes before narrowing into full-blown rage at her partner.

“I promise I’ll go easy on him,” Kendall jokes before pinching at Harry’s cheek teasingly. The model was a natural flirt with everyone she got along with.

“Oh, sure,” she replies lamely, attempting to not let her feelings burst out in that moment with her husband . She knew it wasn’t Kendall’s fault.

“I’m going to go grab a bite to eat. I’m probably gonna puke when we do ‘spill or fill’. See you guys soon,” the model waves before trailing off with her assistant.

“Did you kn- of course you knew she was your guest,” Y/N seethes, turning to fully face the guilt-stricken-singer.

He rubs the back of his neck, avoiding eye contact, “I did.”

“How long have you known for?” She demands to know, keeping her voice at an angry whisper to not draw attention.

Harry wasn’t going to lie to his love, “About two weeks.”

Y/N replies with a laugh, “let me guess, you let Jeffrey talk you into this bullshit, again.”

His silence is all she needs to know it’s true.

“For Christ’s sake, of course,” She huffs bitterly, “what’s even worse is you didn’t fucking tell me. What the fuck?”

Harry bites his lip, not able to rasp out anything but a pathetic, “m’sorry, love.”

He wasn’t usually good at taking responsibility during a fight. He was stubborn at best but he couldn’t deny his way out of this.

“You will be, you-“

They were cut off by the staff, the audience was trailing in and Harry needed to get mic’d up now.

“This conversation isn’t over,” she points her finger at his chest before storming off to the side of the stage where she’d watch from.

Fucking shit.

**

Harry was a performer. It’s easy for him to push things to the back of his mind so he can entertain a enamored audience.

But tonight, he was struggling. Eyes flicking over to the teleprompter more than usual, his demeanor not as vivid and carefree.

Not when his wife was glaring daggers at him from stage right. Her hand constantly at her mouth, biting at her nails - a nervous tick of hers.

“Next up, the one, the only, the beautiful model and one of my good friends, Kendall Jenner!” Harry introduces when she walks out and waves at the crowd.

They hug and when they pull apart they step over to where they were playing the game. Either answer the question or eat a nasty food picked out by the other.

They weren’t allowed to see each other’s questions before the game started- both going on blind which put Harry more on edge.

“Okay, Kendall. Rank the members of One Direction on most to least attractive or you will be eating...” Harry spins the table, “Cow tongue.”

She flinched at the disgusting plate, smirking up at Harry before considering her course of action, “I think I can answer this one.”

He wasn’t looking forward to her answer. Neither was Y/N by the way she nearly shaking her foot off her leg.

“Okay, I got this. You - the most attractive, then uh- Zayn....Louis...Niall...Liam,” she laughs, “but all of you are hot!”

Harry fake laughs and acts like he’s impressed by her answer as the crowd roars and cheers. 

When Kendall picks up her notecard - she laughs in surprise at the question before looking at him with bright eyes.

“Okay, um, bull penis!” She giggles before starting the question, “I’m dying to know this answer. So...your first album HS1 was released four years ago, correct?”

He nods, apprehensive.

“Which songs were about me? Especially was only angel?” She laughs at Harry’s pale expression before without another thought he shovels the rancid food into his mouth.

Harry looks off to the side to see that his missus is no longer sitting there. Just Jeff - who gives him a thumbs up.

**

The first thing he did when the show ended and the lights dimmed was bolt off to Jeff - ignoring Kendall who was about to say something to him.

“Where’d Y/N go?”

He thought she might have went out to get a breathe of fresh air but for the next hour and a half he hasn’t seen her once.

“She said she wasn’t feeling very good. She told me to tell you she’d meet you at home,” Jeff shrugs unbothered.

“Damnit!” Harry curses loudly, ripping out of the microphone and the little pack in his back waistband.

“Harry,” Jeff scolds at his unprofessionalism that was abnormal for him.

“No! Don’t fucking ever ask me to do shit like this again. You fucking knew what questions were on those notecards and you said it wasn’t anything about our previous relationship.”

“Harry-“

“Don’t fucking talk to me. You’re a real shit manager sometimes, you know that? Do not contact me tonight or tomorrow for that matter, you douchebag,” Harry barks before storming off towards the dressing rooms.

All the employees were standing around in shock, staring at the popstar as he ignored everyone around him.

Harry was famously known for being a kind, amicable guy. So it took everyone by surprise to hear him speak like that. Even Jeff was shaken up a little.

—

The house was pitch-black as Harry pulled up. The house’s first floor was lined with large, bay windows and not a single light was on.

He could find one room illuminated which was your bedroom. A dim side lamp must have been flicked on. He imagined her purposely turning off all the lights on the trek up the staircase.

Harry didn’t want to admit how much he was trembling with awful nerves and anticipation as he slowly turns the knob of the shared bedroom.

Y/N wasn’t laying in bed as he expected but found the bathroom door shut tightly. He noticed a little yellow bag with tissue paper off to the side by a dresser.

He knocks on the oak door, not daring to enter without permission.

“What do you want?” Y/N answers, tone flat and emotionless. 

“Can I come in, baby? Please...” He wasn’t ashamed to beg for forgiveness at this point. Hearing the emptiness in her tone scared him shitless.

“I really could care less,” She replies coldly from her spot in the scalding water decorated with bubbles.

Harry had never felt more unsure in his life as he enters the bathroom.  Y/N had gotten proper pissed at him or vice versa before - right before a concert, an award ceremony but she’d never left without him.

Her head was laying against the foam headrest and her body was covered by the soap water. She looked tired and her eyes were puffy from crying.

Harry kneels next to the tub, “look at me, please pet.”

 Y/N takes a moment before turning her head and opening her eyes. They were distant, disappointed in the man in front of her.

“I should have told you about Kendall. I should have put up more of a fight to get someone else on instead,” Harry admits, his hands desperately wanting to reach out for her.

She shakes her head with a heart-wrenching sniffle, “it’s not just tonight, Harry. We’ve had this conversation continuously for three and a half fucking years. You try to please everyone, despite them giving no fucks about you.”

“Are you that much of a pushover? You let your ex-girlfriend flirt with you in front of millions. Do you know how embarrassing and unfair that it to me?” She wipes at her eyes to stop the tears spilling over.

Harry hadn’t thought of it like that - to be honest. But he agrees, it wasn’t fair and downright cruel to do that to her.

What? All because he couldn’t say ‘no’ because he didn’t want people to be mad at him? It was pathetic and ridiculous.

“I-I won’t let it happen again, lovie. I mean it, I truly do,” Harry whimpers reaching over to cup her cheek and wants to cry when she pushes him away.

“You’re a broken record. You’ve said that a million times before but don’t change,”  Y/N points out, eyes boring furiously into his wife’s.

“I’m goi-“

She cuts him off with a sharp edge in her tone, “Just leave me alone, get out.”

The man’s face crumbles and for a second, she wants to just end the fight and makeup but then nothing would change.

“Baby-“

“Get out!” She finally bellows, tears streaming down her face steadily.

He obliges, head hung in defeat as he closes the door behind him. He stands there’s blankly for a second before going to the walk-in closet.

He’s pulling out a fresh pair of cotton underwear and a large sleepshirt for his partner, laying them neatly on the bed.

Harry doesn’t know what to do with himself while he waits so he pulls out his phone to mindlessly scroll.

He throws it against the wall when he sees #hendallreunited is trending number one on Twitter at the moment.

The singer strips down to his briefs and sits with his back against the tufted headboard, staring blankly at the wall.

His eyes catch a neon pink pair of his swimshorts tossed carelessly on the decorative vase in the corner of the room from the night before .

“Fuck, baby - no need to rush,” Harry groans into Y/N ‘s mouth as she pushes him until he’s sat on the edge of their California king.

She reaches impatiently for the tie on his neon pink swimshorts and yanks them off his slim, peach-fuzz thighs before throwing them onto the vase without a care that it was worth over twenty-thousand pounds.

After edging her in the hot tub with his fingers and mouth, she wasn’t waiting any longer before clambering onto his lap, pulling her swim bottoms to the side, and sinking onto him.

He felt guilty when his cock twitched at the thought of it. But when reality set back in, the arousal with the memory evaporated.

It isn’t much longer until the door is pulled open and  Y/N’s padding into the room with a towel secured around her.

She looks at the clothes Harry set out for her and pointedly walks past them to pick out her own nightwear. 

That really shouldn’t make his eyes tear up as he watches her slide on a similar pair of panties and an oversized shirt. Spotting a purpling bruise on her upper in thigh from his mouth.

 Y/N silently walks past the bed and to the bedroom door, looking back before bleakly stating, “I’m going to sleep in the guest room.”

He frowns, wrinkles appearing on his forehead, “You can sleep in here, love. I’ll take the guest room.”

Harry doesn’t get a reply as she just shakes her head and closes the door loudly behind her. 

It’s just - he’s never seen her this upset. She was usually fantastic at communicating her feelings and hashing things out.

She wasn’t one for the silent treatment or ignoring the topic. It had his chest rising faster than usual with anxiety. The serious of it overwhelming him.

He states at the wall for a very long time without wiping the fat tears brimming over his trembling lips.

*

He couldn’t sleep - it was half past three and he hadn’t even laid down or clicked off the lamp.

Harry accepted sleep wasn’t coming so he begins to tidy the already clean room. He picks up the shorts and tossing them in the hamper.

He refolds some joggers he’d carelessly shoved in a drawer and when he went to move the little yellow bag - curiosity got the best of him.

There was no card and he wasn’t sure who it was for or if it had been a gift already give to Y/N that she had returned home with.

Harry really shouldn’t - but he does. Gently tugging out the paper and reaching in to feel fabric.

Pulling it out, it takes him a minute to identify what it is - two baby onesie. Who was having a baby?

He lays them in front of him, eyes widening in surprise as he reads what is printed across the black cotton.

The first one was the colors and font of his upcoming tour merch with the photo he used on his tour announcement with the heeled boot and white pants.

Love on Tour - Due Date: September 2025

With Special Guest Appearance from Baby Styles

The second one was simple and read across the chest:

I’m having your baby (and it is your business) with embroidered kiwis all of over it.

He frantically reached back into the bag to pull out a bundle of pregnancy tests tied with a silk bow.

They weren’t necessarily trying for a baby but they’re weren’t not trying either. Harry wanted a baby as soon as his missus was willing to give him one.

“No, no, don’t one,” she’d whined into his mouth when he’d reached over to grab a condom off the nightstand.

“Oh sweet thing, you want me bare? Fill you up?” He croons happily, coming back to grip at his thick base and tease at her entrance.

“Ye-yeah, H. Please,” (Y/N) whimpers, bucking her hips in the hope he’d slip inside her.

Harry hums, “Might give you a baby though, y’want me to knock you up?”

“Want it, wan-“

He cuts her off with a hard, blissful kiss as he thrusts all the way inside before pulling out to do it again. 

“Gonna give it to you, whatever you want, lovie,” he promises.

The two had never used protection afterwards. It had start about seven months ago and from his knowledge she’d still been getting her periods regularly.

Occasionally, he would palm at her flat tummy and pout, “Haven’t put a baby in you yet, ‘ave I?”

He was so ecstatic but disappointed in himself for ruining everything and pleasing everyone other than who he should be.

Harry needed to fix this. He didn’t want Y/N to lose the excitement of having their baby over a dumb choice of his.

The man’s out of the room and not knocking before entering their guest room. His now pregnant love is laying on-top of the covers.

One hand subconsciously on her belly - which she removes and places next to her when her wife walks in.

The television was on but the volume was low and Y/N wasn’t watching it in the first place anyways.

Harry sits on the edge of the bed, “I opened the yellow bag.”

She looks at him with wide eyes, a little taken aback. she was going to surprise him tonight and forgot to store it away for another time after the fight.

Harry has happy tears dribbling down his cheeks, “you’re having my baby?”

Y/N nods, running a slight hand through his curls. She still had a nasty knot of anger and uncertainty in the pit of her stomach.

It pains her, wanting to share this moment of excitement with Harry but she just couldn’t. The uncertainty of whether Harry would put everybody’s needs before his own baby.

“Come back to bed, want t’talk and celebrate. M’so bloody excited,” Harry murmurs, a large smile decorating his face as he smooths a palm over the expanse of her tummy.

His wife shakes her head and places a hand over his, feeling the cold metal of all of them. “I want to be left alone.”

The twinkle in Harry’s eye diminishes to devastation as he realizes that he’s fucked up so badly that she doesn’t even want to celebrate.

“Pet, can...we just forget about it tonight and be happy ‘bout the baby?” Harry asks selfishly, knowing it was unlikely she’d agree.

She didn’t, a firm expression on her face, “no, I have a lot to think about.”

“Like wha’?” He asks anxiously, unknowing of quite the reason she was so furious.

“Like how you say yes to everything and everyone. We talk and talk about how you need to say ‘no’ and do what’s best for you - for us. You agree to and never follow through”

She takes a shaky breath and continues, “it’s affected our relationship before when you’ve had to cancel our vacation away from all this for a charity concert you’d agree to perform at last minute, dinner reservations because you told your friend we’d be at their art showing they wanted you at.”

Harry knew she was right. He did those things. He wanted everyone to be happy with him - to a fault.

“Tonight was just icing on the cake, you allowed your manager to talk you into hosting your ex on that show. Out of all the people in the world - her. With flirty questions and jabs from her. You let that happen. You care about making everyone happy but in return you don’t care how it affects me. That’s pretty shitty.”

“I’m...I’m really fucking scared you’ll do that even when we have the baby. I need you to put them first and right now...I’m not sure if you’re going to. You can’t put the person you want to spend the rest of your life with first now, how do I know you’ll do it with the baby?”

Harry chokes out a sob as he presses his forehead against the bed, his broad shoulders shaking. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d cried this hard - years ago maybe. He felt like his wife didn’t have any faith in him and he was to blame.

He looks up at her with swollen eyes - at a loss for what to do or say. He loved her so much and was over the moon that they were going to have a baby.

“How do I fix this, darling? You’re right, I really fucked up. M’sorry,” Harry cries, grabbing at her hands and she allows it.

“Just saying you’re sorry won’t fix it,” Y/N replies flatly, letting Harry squeeze and kiss at the backs of her hands.

“Then what do I bloody do to fix this?” Harry raises his voice in frustration, staring in bewilderment at his wife. 

Y/N narrows her eyes at him, “Do not raise your voice at me, Harry. Actions speak louder than words.”

Harry swallows harshly, pressing one finally kiss to her hand. “Okay.”

“Okay?” She repeats.

“I love you, I’ll fix this,” he promises with conviction. He knew what he needed to do and do it tomorrow. So he and his wife could enjoy her new pregnancy.

“I need space tonight, I just...please”Y/N says quietly, rubbing at his shoulder.

It wasn’t the first time they’ve slept in separate rooms because they weren’t getting along but they normally found their way back to each other before sunrise.

Harry nods, lip still tremble with the residual anxiety of the conversation. She allows him to press a soft kiss to her mouth before leaving the room.

—-

Cafe Habana was busy - but no one was paying much attention to Harry and Jeff. It was the morning after and Harry had demanded a meeting over breakfast with his manager.

“Y/N pregnant,” Harry states bluntly after their drinks arrive.

“Oh? Congratulations, dude. That’s exciting!” Jeff leans over to pat him on the shoulder, a big smile.

“The baby is due in September. My next tour starts in next July. The baby will be about nine months. I want to be at home with them for the first year.”

Jeff doesn’t look pleased, “what are you getting at Harry?”

“Reschedule the July and August tour dates. Tack them on to the end of the tour,” Harry lays out flat. 

He hadn’t talk to his wife about this but he knew this was how he could prove that he could say ‘no’ and not be a pushover.

“No Harry. Look I get you’re excited about the baby - but that will be such a fucking hassle,” Jeff frowns, sipping his mimosa.

“I’m not asking, Jeff. I’m telling you that’s what needs to happen,” Harry replies firmly, tone strong and unwavering.

Jeff is definitely taken aback by his client’s conviction. 

“While we’re on the topic, do not ever put me in a situation like you did yesterday. It affected my wife and I. And I will choose her over this career any day.”

The manager nods in surprise, “Harry, I’m sorry.”

“I’m not asking for an apology but if you ever pull something like then I’ll be looking for a new management team. Are we clear?” 

Jeff once again nods, unsure of where this is coming from but at the thought of losing his biggest client would be disastrous so he’d do whatever to accommodate him.

“Consider it done,” he tells Harry before clearing his throat in a slight panic.

—

Y/N woke up to an empty house. She was restless, she asked Harry to prove to her that he could be what she needed. However, it was a bit unfair because she didn’t know how he could do it.

It’s just…she had a baby to think about. They both needed to be put first and if it took a gnarly fight for Harry to realize it...so be it.

“Baby? Love, where are you?” She hears Harry echo through the whole house. She was sat in the kitchen, on a stool by the island, idly sorting through mail.

“In here!”

Harry jogs in, panting like he sprinted from the garage up to the kitchen. He comes to stand in front of the love of his life.

“I might have not completely fixed everything but...I tried,” Harry tells her, cradling her face in his large palms. “ I just got back from lunch with Jeff. I told him about the baby.”

He takes a deep breath before continuing, “I rescheduled tour dates so I can be with you guys at home in London for the first year. Then...maybe you guys can join me after?”

“Harry…” she’s at a loss for words.

“And I told Jeff that if he ever puts me in a situation like that again, I’m firing him.”

Y/N stares at him, in awe and admiration of the man she chose to marry and keep forever. His face was so sincere and vulnerable.

Harry didn’t know whether it would be enough. If it wasn’t he’d keep trying but all he could do was hope. He waited with bated breath as she processed his words.

“Baby, you-for me?” She murmurs as she stands up and crowds into his space. He instantly wraps her up into a tight hug, missing her touch.

“Of course, pet. I’d do anything for you, I mean it. I’d quit this whole career if you wanted tha’,” he tells her truthfully - lips brushing her forehead.

“I love you, so so much,” Y/N murmurs, pressing a kiss to his lips.

“We’re havin’ a baby,'' Harry sighs dreamily into her mouth, tongue sliding against hers. A large hand came to palm at her belly.

“Yeah, m‘having your baby,” She giggles as he begins to trail the kisses down her jaw and neck - pressing her into the marble countertop.

“Should we name it Kiwi?” Harry rasps as he slides the tank top strap off her shoulder so his lips can meet the cap of her warm shoulder.

“We are not going to be that celebrity couple who names their baby something weird,” Y/N groans as he grounds his hips into hers with intent.

THE END

[peonierose]

Home is where the heart is

Book: Open Heart x Red Carpet Diaries Crossover

Pairing: Bryce Lahela (M!MC) x Luna Auclair (F!OC)

Rating: Fluff

Words: 3,000+

Summary: It’s Christmas time. Luna and Bryce get visited by Ethan & Hayley. But it looks like Luna gets to fangirl a little first.

A/N: I’m participating in the @choicesficwriterscreations Holiday Event as well as @choicesdecember2022 Day 7 - Middle of the Night

It’s that beautiful time of the year. Christmas. Though it is a very non-white Christmas in Hawaii. We still enjoy having a great dinner with family and friends. Sharing laughs and great stories. Exchanging gifts.

Our family loves to spend time at the beach. Going surfing, swimming, and having a great time with the family.

These are things that we want to do with our kids when they arrive in March next year.

When I think back to last year? So many things have changed.

Bryce and I were living with Keiki in Boston. I was working at that awful art gallery, which I’m glad I quit. I found something new and something better.

I proposed to Bryce. Which he still doesn’t shut up about. He says ”She put a ring on it“ I laugh silently at that.

B and I moved to Honolulu. We came back to where we both feel at home and alive. It’s our happy place, because home is where the heart is.

We’re carving our own path. Both B and I. While he works at the Kuakini Medical Center I accepted a job offer to teach art at the University of Hawaii.

Months later Bryce and I got our own little miracle when we found out we were expecting twins. Two girls. Can you believe that? It’s still insane to me and I have to grin at that.

We’re getting married, though we’re postponing it for the time being. We’ve both got so many things going on we just don’t want to get married in a hurry and without our close family and friends on our special day.

We also made some new friends. Two wonderful and amazing women. Meilani and Aubrey. Who are a great addition to our friend group.

”Luna?“

I get thrown out of my straying thoughts when I hear a deep male voice.

I sigh as I have to look up and up.

”So what’s on your shopping list? Did we get all the ingredients for the cookies, pies…and tartelettes? I don’t even know what that is, to be honest,“ Ethan says and moves the shopping cart further down the aisle. Past the bread and cereal. I have to grab some lucky charms for Bryce.

Ethan and Hayley are visiting us for a couple of days, before they fly back to Boston. Let’s not forget Jenner. Cutest dog in the world.

So I took Ethan grocery shopping. Best idea ever.

Damn, I hate the fact that Ethan is so tall. I basically have to run to catch up with him.

”Can you slow down? I’m way shorter than you and I’m also 6 months pregnant.“ I say and Ethan slows down blushing furiously.

”How’s the pregnancy going? Any weird food cravings that drive Bryce up the wall?“ he jokes and laughs.

”Does Bryce count as a food craving?“ I ask.

I am trying to act serious but I have to laugh at Ethan’s expression. He looks as if he bit into a lemon.

”I shouldn’t have asked,“ he mumbles.

I want to pat his shoulder but reach his midriff instead.

I grin.

”Don’t get your panties in a twist my little orange blossom.”

He sighs but endures my teasing.

”I know you love me too much to say anything about these cute little nicknames that I use. Between you and me I know I’m your favorite person next to Hayley.“

He just gives me a look and I grin.

”No weird food cravings. If you don’t count peanut butter and jelly sandwiches with banana slices inside as a food craving. Bryce makes a really good one. His pj and jelly sandwiches are the best.“

”Yeah because he can’t screw that up.“

Ethan laughs.

I pinch his arm and he rubs it afterwards.

”Don’t be mean. You don’t have to play the role of the grinch. It’s too early for that.“

I say and ask him to hand me the shopping list. To see what else we need.

We’re all going to make some delicacies this Christmas.

All of the Auclair family. Meaning me, my cousins Soraya, Evie, and Sky. My gran, my grandpa, mom and dad, my aunt Joe and my uncle Joseph.

Everyone is making a Hawaiian specialty. Can’t wait for that food fest.

Keiki and Bryce are going to help too. Although Bryce is just going to steal cookies and act as if the dog ate them. Nice try Lahela.

Soraya and her girlfriend Meilani, who is my OB/ Gyn and works together with Bryce and his other colleague Aubrey will join us too.

Maxi my best friend and her lover? Date buddy? Adam. I honestly don’t know the status of their relationship, but I’d say it’s somewhere between figuring things out and it’s complicated.

Maxi's mom Amara is going to be there too.

As for Maxi‘s brother Caelum? I don’t think he’s going to join us. Since he and Maxi have to meet again and start to patch things up. I just don’t think they are at that level yet. Rebuilding a relationship takes time. It doesn’t happen overnight.

But hey Christmas miracles happen all the time. I‘d wish they would be as close as they were before Maxi's dad died in a car accident.

Let’s not forget my brother and sister whom mom and dad recently adopted. It’s their first Christmas with all of us. It’s going to be magical.

A static voice sounds from the speakers above.

”Attention all customers. Don’t forget today is 50% off on all products from the produce and dairy aisles.“

Ethan and I move further into the condiments aisle.

”I need some cinnamon. For the snickerdoodles.“

I say and when I turn around I can see Ethan looks like a kid on Christmas morning. I smile and love the fact that he feels open enough to share his feelings. Whether he voices them out loud or just shows them.

We reach the produce aisle. Ever since I got pregnant with the twins I‘ve started to love fresh fruit and vegetables more and more.

I grab some mangos and look up when I almost drop said mangos.

I sigh and gently put the mangos into the shopping cart.

”Oh my god. Do you know who that is?“ I grab Ethan’s shirt.

Ethan looks around and tries to figure out who I could mean.

”Who?“

I take his chin and move it in the direction I meant.

”It’s Matt Rodriguez. Oh my god, I need to get an autograph. How do I look?“

Ethan eyes me as if I don’t have all cookies left in the jar.

”You look beautiful as always, but what about our ingredients for the cookies?“ he asks, looking down into our shopping cart.

”Who cares about cookies when you have Matt Rodriguez standing at the produce aisle.“

I say getting super excited.

”Who is Matt Rodriguez?“ Ethan asks.

”Have you been living under a rock E?“ I shake my head in disbelief.

”Does Bryce know you have a crush?“ he chuckles.

”Pfft. Please his guilty pleasure is Matt’s movie, Cactus Rose. We watch it together all the time.“

Ethan whistles.

”I’m seeing Bryce in a whole new light.“

I grin and can’t believe my luck. To meet an actor I admire and let’s be honest he’s hot. He’s got nothing on Bryce of course, but still, he seems nice and he’s a damn good actor.

I look up at the ceiling.

”Santa, if you're out there, thank you for making my wish come true. I promise I’ll make Bryce’s wish come true too if I can get Britney Spears to sign an autograph.“

Ethan snorts.

”Santa doesn’t exist.“

I gasp and look at Ethan as if I swallowed something rotten.

”How dare you, sir! I don’t even recognize you, Ethan Jonah Ramsey! I’d never think that these are the words that would come out of my male best friend's mouth.“

Ethan shrugs his shoulders.

”Well I was just honest. So how about that autograph?“ he asks and points to Matt who is moving his shopping cart away. I’ve got to go there and ask him for an autograph and maybe a selfie.

”Nice segue. Don’t think this conversation is over. But autograph first, cookie ingredients later.“

I breathe out and take all my courage to go over there and ask Matt for an autograph.

”Excuse me?“ I ask and Matt turns around flashing his megawatt smile. I swear I sighed a little.

”Yeah?“ he asks still smiling.

”I don’t want to be rude but my fiancé and I are big fans of yours would you maybe sign my…“ I ask and realize I don’t have anything for him to sign.

He smiles and gets out a card with the logo of his latest movie Cactus Rose to sign for me.

”Could you make it for Bryce and Luna? Otherwise, he’s never going to believe me I met you,“ I smile and Matt grins.

”Officially I’m on vacation with my wife who’s here somewhere. Here I’ll sign these for you Luna.“

I smile and just nod. Not able to form words.

”I’m sorry I’m usually not that starstruck. I think I’d be even more starstruck if I met Frida Kalo or Pablo Picasso.“

When Matt looks at me with a confused look on his face.

”I’m an artist and work as an art professor at the University of Hawaii.“

Matt’s eyes widen.

”No way! Really? You know it’s funny my wife and I are looking for an artist. We wanted to commission a piece for our new home here in Honolulu. Would you be interested in making an art piece for us? I wouldn’t want you to overwork yourself,“ he says and points to my stomach.

”Oh don’t worry I’d tell you if it was too much. But you know what? You can always check out my art pieces for art on the fence. It’s a non-profit group of local artists who present their work. You can take a look and even buy some art pieces. But if you’re looking for something specific I’m sure we can work something out.“

Matt grins and hugs me.

I must’ve squeaked like a mouse.

”Damn I’m sorry I didn’t mean to hug you too hard. Are you alright?“

He asks concern lacing his voice.

”I was just hugged by Matt Rodriguez. Santa sure was good this year.“

He smiles and we exchange numbers. He promises to reach out so we can meet and discuss the art he’d like to commission.

He walks away but then he comes back.

”Can I take a picture with you? I think you’re one of the prettiest pregnant women I’ve seen, including my wife, so I’d really love it if we took a picture together.“

Matt asks, smiling.

Again I just nod.

We take a pic and he waves goodbye. I must’ve looked like an idiot.

I stand there holding my phone and the autographs and just smile.

As I walk towards the shopping cart where Ethan is waiting for me, a grin on his face, I feel as if I’m floating on fluffy clouds.

”Happy?“ Ethan asks.

I nod.

”Very.“

He shakes his head and grins.

I can’t stop smiling all the way to the cash register. We pay for all the ingredients and go to the parking garage. Hopefully, we got everything, and in my fangirling haze, we didn’t forget any ingredients. If not I’ll just send Keiki or Bryce to the store.

When we reach home I almost rip the door open in my haste to get inside.

Jenner greets me, his tail wagging.

I pat him, walk further into the house and he looks with sad eyes at me.

”Sorry buddy I have to share some news afterward you can have as much Luna time as you want.“

He licks my hand I and I smile at him.

I look around for Bryce as Ethan gets the ingredients inside. He said he won’t let me carry the groceries.

My mom smiles at me and Hayley greets Ethan with a kiss.

”Bryce is outside with Keiki.“

Mom says and I nod. Jenner walks over to Ethan. Who showers him with love.

I spot Bryce and walk towards him and almost knock him over in his seat.

He laughs and steadies me so we both won’t fall over.

”Looks like someone missed me.“

”You’re a sight for sore eyes.“ I hug him, because despite my fangirling moment? He’s my forever love.

I inhale his scent of fresh laundry, the ocean, and Bryce.

He kisses my temple and I relax in his arms.

We hear footsteps and see Ethan walking outside, as he joins us in the garden. He hands me a glass of hibiscus lemonade. My gran made it fresh this morning and brought it over.

”Guys you won’t believe who I met.“

Bryce and Keiki share a look and shake their heads.

”Who?“ Bryce asks.

”Matt Rodriguez. At the produce aisle.“

”Come on there’s no way you met Matt. Pics or it didn’t happen.“

Bryce says and looks at me as if he doesn’t know if I’m making it up or not.

I grin and can’t wait for him to eat his words.

”Oh I got pics alright babe. I got a job for a commission for Matt freaking Rodriguez. He gave me his number and wants me to commission an art piece for him and his wife.“

Bryce and Keiki speak at the same time.

”What?“

They both scoot closer as I show them the picture of me and Matt. Both of us smile at the camera.

Ethan grins as Hayley walks out too.

”What are they all so excited about?“ she asks.

Ethan shakes his head.

”Luna met some guy called Matt Rodriguez. Don’t know who that is. So now everyone is fangirling over him. Even Bryce.“

Hayley squeals and joins the fangirling fest too. Ethan just shakes his head.

They all enjoy some time in the sun until they move back inside to prepare the sweet delicacies.

Three hours later….

”I know you love the British bake-off, but it looks as if you’re not very good at making pastries or sweets in general, am I right?“

”I don’t watch the British bake-off.“ Ethan replies but I just can’t take him seriously when he wears an apron with the face of the grinch. He lost a bet against Hayley and now has to wear it.

I laugh and Hayley joins me but tries to turn it into a cough when Ethan turns around to look at her.

”Even though he watched many episodes he can’t make a pie. Or cookies. Let’s not even talk about pancakes.“

Hayley laughs and steals a piece of apple that’s lying in a bowl for the pie filling.

”You can’t make pancakes? Oh, don’t feel bad pumpkin spice. Bryce can’t make them either.“

I say and roll out the dough for the pie crust.

”Hey come on.“

Bryce says flustered.

”You know it’s true B.“

I say and take the pie crust and put it into the tart mold. So I can pour the filling in and make a beautiful apple pie.

”You’re probably right.“ Bryce sighs.

Ethan grins.

”You folded so quickly.“

He says to Bryce.

Bryce just winks at him.

”Although I’d say Bryce is a little better at pancakes than you are Ethan.“

Bryce kisses me on my temple.

”Beat that Ramsey. Lunes knows her stuff.“

Ethan just stares at us until he smiles.

”I just can’t be mad at Luna.“

Ethan admits.

Hayley grins.

”He’s having a hard time saying no to you.“

Hayley grins and Ethan just sighs but nods.

”He’s not the only one. I meant myself if it wasn’t clear.“ Bryce grins and hugs me from behind.

Everyone laughs and has a great time.

I grin and we continue making pies. Cookies. Anything sweet.

Bryce steals cookies again and tries to blame Jenner.

Shaking my head at him, because we all know he ate most of the cookies.

4 a.m.

I walk down because I didn’t feel Luna next to me in bed.

When I walk down the steps I see a blue light coming from the tv.

Luna snuggled on the couch and enjoying some apple pie.

”So that’s where you disappeared to.“

I say and Luna almost jumps off the couch. Her apple pie flies out of her hand, but I catch it before it can land on the floor and create a mess.

”Oh my god you scared the hell out of me. Never do that again. It was just getting interesting.“

She glares at me.

”You look way too cute for me to be mad at you.“

I notice that Luna isn’t alone.

”Hey buddy. Why is Jenner on the couch? Shouldn’t he be with Ethan and Hayley?“

I ask and Jenner scoots closer to my hand so that he can get some pats. I grin and pat him behind his ears.

”He got kicked out.“

She replies and sits down again.

”Oh? Oh! Got it.“

We both grin as I join her and she leans into me. Jenner doesn’t want to feel left out so he joins us too.

Sprawled over our legs.

”I hope he’s potty trained.“

I smack him on his arm.

”Bryce! Poor Jenner is potty trained. If you’re going to watch tv with us, there are no mean comments allowed.“

”Am I forgiven?“ I ask and hand her apple pie back to her. She sighs.

”Sure.“ She says and I grin at her.

”So what are guys watching?“ I ask.

Luna swallows a bite of apple pie.

”Sailor Moon. Jenner and I are huge fans. It’s just getting interesting.“

”Oh my god. It’s been a while since I’ve watched Sailor Moon.“

I say and steal a bite from the apple pie.

”Wait, you've watched Sailor Moon? That’s really hot.“

She says and stares at me as if she’s seeing me for the first time.

I laugh.

”It was one of Keikis favorite animated tv shows of all time. Next to Scooby-Doo and Power Puff Girls. But Sailor Moon was Keiki's favorite. Every Sunday morning she’d get up early and tune in for Sailor Moon. At first, I didn’t want to admit that it was good but I started to like it. I even bought the mangas. They’re really good.“

Luna gasps.

”I love the illustrations. I’ve wanted to try myself at creating mangas. You know art is very widely ranged. So manga is a part that I haven’t branched out to yet but I’d love to.“

Luna gets all excited and I’m happy for her.

I love her, even more, when she’s all excited and passionate about a new area of art or a new art piece.

”You can borrow my mangas if you want.“ I offer and she nods.

I smile as we continue to watch Sailor Moon stumble upon a cute cat with a moon on her forehead.

Luna smiles at the cat and we keep watching episode after episode until we all fall asleep right on the couch.

It’s a beautiful feeling to fall asleep next to the person you love the most.

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[coffeeheartaddict2]

This life (9/13) No Escape

Book: Open Heart (book 1)

Pairing: Ethan Ramsey x Casey Valentine

Warnings: ****trigger warning- this series deals with issues of abandonment and addiction- reader discretion advised****

Language, sexual references, mentions of characters deaths, punch thrown

Rating: 18+

Summary: A trip to Providence gives Ethan a different perspective and a plan in the background, a realization gives another dynamic change and the fallout. Louise’s past finally catches up with her and a news article she sees gives her the courage to reach out.

Disclaimer: Characters, dialogue (actual and paraphrased) belong to Pixelberry.

💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔

It was the morning after he spectacularly quit from Edenbrook, the place where he had given a decade of his life only to have it all come crashing down. The face of a distraught Casey haunting him all night. He felt bad that she had become collateral damage in his fall from grace but he had let her in and when he let people in it always ends badly. He had a shower and packed a bag. He went via Naveen’s lakehouse, he saw him sitting on the deck reading a book. He was relieved about that. He then left. He knew he needed to get out of Boston but had no idea where. He was on autopilot so he was not surprised that he pulled up at the place where his pain started, his childhood home.

Alan was not home, Ethan surmised that he must be at work. He let himself in and was greeted by Jenner. He took him for a walk. His old neighbourhood was a far cry from the Boston Waterfront and even though it looked the same, everything had changed and it was where everything changed for him that fateful august day 25 years ago. Jenner enjoyed his walk and Ethan decided to make a start on dinner.

Alan turned into his street after a shift. He had to look twice as he approached his house. Ethan’s car was not what he was expecting to see. He was always happy to see his son and it had been awhile but he knew he was busy. He pulled up and entered the house. He was greeted by dinner being cooked.

“Don’t get me wrong Ethan, I am happy to see you, but what are you doing here?”

“Can’t I just come and visit my dad and my dog?” Ethan retorted. Alan was taken aback, he had not seen Ethan this upset and dejected since the falling out with Tobias.

“Of course you can Ethan, not what I meant, I am

Happy to see you but also surprised.” Said Alan. “You never come down mid week unless it is a holiday so what is wrong?”

Ethan took a breath to compose himself but to no avail. He started to cry.

“Naveen is dying, my good friend Delores died and Casey, who has been helping me with Naveen I don’t think I can help, especially with raising suspicions of anything untoward happening between us even though it has not.

Alan was shocked. He knew of his disdain for interns generally and he was surprised that there had been one that he had spoken somewhat fondly about but to see his son in his kitchen devastated and broken partly because of her was a shock. Alan had to ask if his feelings for Casey were more than professional.

“Of course they are dad, I do not know if it is love but certainly more than what I should be feeling.”

Alan does not know what to say. He had never had too many girlfriends and he certainly never suspected that Ethan thought it maybe love with any of them. It was moments like this that he missed Louise. He and Ethan were also closer and also offering a female perspective that he could not. All Alan could do was state you will figure something out. Alan was also saddened about Naveen. He knew that Ethan looked upto Naveen but also Naveen was a father figure that Alan wished he could be but was not. The resentment from Alan was brief. Alan knew that he would go on to do great things and was glad there was someone there to push him in the way he could not bring himself to do.

Ethan went to bed after dinner he was exhausted, the troubled and lack of sleep catching up with him. He is awoken by his phone. It is Harper. He answers it.

“Hello Ethan, I am glad you answered. I was calling to make sure you are ok.” Said Harper.

“I am not ok Harper. I need time to figure some stuff out. I am safe though, I am in Providence with dad.” Replied Ethan.

“Glad to know you are safe Ethan…”

“How is the investigation going against case…I mean Dr Valentine” asksEthan, hoping her association with him has not tarnished her. Harper sighs before continuing.

“I know you have maintained that you have not favoured Dr Valentine in anyway Ethan but that slip of the tongue was telling. I am glad you are well Ethan”. The call ends.

The next day he calls Harper. He feels like he is in a slightly better head space and wants to talk about his quitting and getting all of his paperwork finalised. He is informed that Casey has requested an Ethics hearing. Ethan does not hesitate in asking if he can testify for her.

“Absolutely not Ethan. The hospital has been awash with rumours of something going on for awhile now. I have seen some interactions that give some of the rumours creedance. You getting up there and testifying is only going to add fuel to the fire.”

“I can be impartial Harper, you know it, I know it.”

“The answer is no Ethan. End of discussion.”

Ethan hangs up in frustration, the original reason forgotten. Despite Harper telling him he can not testify, he feels he has to do something. He knows that Casey will be hard pushed for a fair hearing. He thinks to the email he received from Teresa when she made it to Paris, how happy she was to have made it there. All of which was made possible by Casey. She did not give up when others did. He also had the contact details for Luis. He sent the following email.

To Luis

My name is Ethan Ramsey. I was one of the many doctors who got to know your mother, Teresa. We were all saddened by her passing. As you know she embarked on a journey she had been wanting to take her whole life. Enclosed is a picture she sent us of her at the Sacre Couer . As you know she wanted more than anything to go there. I know she passed away but shouldn’t we be glad that she got to go on her own terms. As you know she did resent the treatment for Rhodes Disease. Being couped up in hospital all that time. The doctor who gave Teresa the drug did give her the chances and risks and Teresa s chose to go ahead with it. She was doing what it took to give your mum quality as well as maintaining quantity. Sadly there was no quantity but surely the quality of what she did have is worth it. If you have any further questions please feel free to contact me.

Regards

Ethan Ramsey.

Next he contacted Alma, he knew that she was appreciative for what Casey did for Delores and baby Ethan. Alma was thankfully willing and able. I hoped it would help her but I was still feeling like a poison chalice so I did not hold out too much hope. I head back to Boston again via the lake house. Naveen is still alive.

I have been back a day and a half. I am again wallowing. My mind turns to Casey, hoping that she will get a fair hearing, how I wish I could do more to help her. I receive a message from Casey wanting to talk. I ask her to come here, I do not like texting. About 30mins later she arrives at my door. I make comments about joining a cult, even though all I want to do is rip her dress off and take her where she stands. I offer her a scotch. She takes it. The question I dread comes.

“Will you testify for me at the Ethics hearing.”

I tell her I can’t. That I am too damn biased. In that moment I know Harper is right no matter how hard I tried to deny it. She tells me she came to learn from the best, to learn from me and I tell her this is me. She reminds me that I taught her to never give up and that is what she is doing. I tell her that I no longer work there and in all reality she will not be for much longer. A realization dawns on me and I can see Casey coming to the same realization. I do not know who moved first but when out lips hungrily meet again, all I wish I did at Miami come flooding back. I carry her to my room. Our lips only separating to get her dress off. She asks to show me the view from the windows. I oblige but Casey in her underwear is at that moment a better view. I stand behind her, kissing her neck. I then start to caress her breast. It is as beautiful as I remember it. A rush of carnal hunger washes over me. I turn her around, fall down to my knees and worship her the way she should be. Reality is no comparison to what my imagination had conjured. Watching Casey succumb to her climax was exhilarating. Casey gets me out of the rest of my clothing whilst we make our way to my bed. She says she does not want to forget this night and I said neither will I. I kiss her, pouring all my emotion into it as I slowly enter her. She feels even better than what I imagined. I start off slow, wanting to savour and enjoy Casey. This is more than just sex for me. I quicken my pace and and she starts to clench. I moan as a kiss my way down to her breasts. Casey’s moans get loader, bordering on screaming. She moans my name and tries to get out how close I know she is. I assure her that I have her. She falls, her climax triggering mine. In my wildest dreams I could not have imagined a more perfect time together. Over the course of the evening we go another two rounds. I fall into an exhausted but satisfied sleep.

I am awoken the next afternoon by Casey. Telling me she has figured it out. In my hangover induced confusion I ask her what. She tells me it is Naveen. She runs through her methodology and I agree with her conclusions. She tells me that need to do phage therapy and have what is making Naveen unwell. I get up but the room spins. Casey goes to make her hangover cure. It is disgusting but it does the job. She kisses me, telling me it is for luck. I tell her I am going to need more luck before I kiss her again. The only thing stopping me from going further is the fact Naveen needs saving. We get the therapy made. On the way to Naveen’s lake house I can not help but be proud of her. She had not given up when I had. We arrive at Naveen’s. He is still alive and I administer the phage therapy. The scrawny intern is there. The only thing stopping me from ripping him to shreds is that he helped Casey with Naveen. He says he is leaving to go to Kenmore. I said I would give him a satisfactory reference. Casey leaves with him. She wants to stay but she has a trial to prepare for. She asks me if I will attend and I will be there if she wants me too. I state that I will be.

Trial day arrives and the suit Casey chose is very distracting. I stay up the back. Alma is there ready to testify. My biggest card is Luis Martinez. I have not heard back from him. Surprisingly so far Casey is holding her own. She has picked patients well. She also has Dr Yannick, Dr Calais and Dr Myles come in and speak in support of Casey. Now the country club is making sense. Then Luis comes. Walks up to Casey and hugs are and announces that he is dropping the lawsuit. I breathe a sigh of relief. Then the door opens. It is Naveen. The panel are of course shocked. Naveen then goes on to explain what was happening and how Casey gave up her time preparing for the trial in solving his case. He calls for a vote. It ends up being unanimous in Casey’s favour. In that moment I never felt more wrong about anything. Naveen was saved, my work in the background I think helped and Casey still had a career. I slowly make my way down to congratulate her. She then punched Declan Nash. I shouldn’t but I do feel proud of her especially if some of that punch was for Mrs Martinez. I let her go with her friends. I make my way to Naveen and he is regaling Harper about how I was treating him. He requested there be no action taken. I am relieved to hear this. I chat to Alma and I am glad to hear that baby Ethan is going well. Finally I get to see Harper. I know there is stuff from my quitting that needs finalization but instead of that I am offered my job back. There is no mention of if the competition is still running. I go through all the paperwork. I finally make my way to Donahue’s. I am met by Casey who proposes that we head to her place before we return to our roles. I am saddened but agree with the reasoning. We have a night filled with passion and tenderness and it is then that I know I can not go back to a pre-Miami footing with her. It is then I decide to put an expression of interest to go down to Brazil. I end up staying and we are busted by two of her friends. We are eventually back at work for announcements. Harper is stepping down as chief and instills Naveen. Then the kicker, Casey is awarded the Junior fellowship on the team. On one level I am proud but the rest of me is in a panic. All I know is that if I continue a romantic relationship her achievements would be tarnished by the rumour mill. I say that we sort this out but I have no idea how. The day goes on and the week. I note that Casey is only talking to me on work related matters which I am thankful for as I have no answers. I then get the email I am hoping for. I am wanted on the Amazon team. I make a meeting with Naveen. He questions my intent and I could not hide the ulterior motive. He asks me to tell Casey but I can’t. The hospital is not safe and I do not want to do so at Derry’s.

That left her coming to mine and I know that if I tell her at mine it would lead to her convincing not too and given how I think I feel I know she could be successful. So I decided to be a coward. The morning I fly out I am torn. I realize that I am no better than the woman that abandoned me all those years ago. Whilst waiting to board at Logan I text that I am

sorry but did not say what for. What they had started to build meant a lot to him but he could not have that ruin her. As much as it was going to hurt I needed to rid myself of the feelings he had in order to be the mentor I needed to be.

I hit the ground running work wise but the evening after dinner is my downfall. My mind shifting between the nights we were intimate and the rest haunted by the hurt that I know I have caused. After a week I know the plan is futile. I pen letters that I know will never be sent. In a way I am dreading going back. I doubt that Casey would want to give me the time of day when I return but it is the medicine I have to take. I take solace in that I am returning to her in some way. The knowing that I am acting just like the one person I never wanted to be like haunting me. Various media outlets are with us too, sharing the work that the team is doing. I begrudgingly do my part but I am there to work.

Two months fly by. It is time to face the music of my cowardice. I hear her friends before I see them then I see Casey. I make my way over, calling her rookie. She tells me she is not one anymore as she is now officially a second year. I tell her it was a force of habit whilst I am internally chastising myself for calling her something so familiar. She stays back after last call which surprises me. She tells me why I did not contact her. I tell her we were in the depths of the Amazon. I then tell her we needed to reset and that is why I went. I do badly wanted to kiss her but I could not. How I don’t return her kiss surprises me. I tell her it is not a matter of want, because I do but I can’t. I can tell she is angry at me but I know in that moment that I will be struggling to keep those feelings buried.

Whilst in the Amazon Louise sees a news article in a waiting room of a community clinic in Southy. She reads it and takes a double take at a photo she sees. It may have been nearly 26 ago but she knew that was Ethan. She knew he would go on to do great things in life but in her wildest dreams did not think he would be a leading doctor helping those less fortunate. Louise’s addictions were starting to take a serious toll on her health. She was only 59 but most days she felt so much older. She was seeking treatment for an infection which she was able to get but she knew she could not keep this up forever. Rehab was not an option due to the cost. She did not know how much time she had left on this earth but she knew she needed to apologise to Ethan for the harm she caused him. She decided though to reach out to Alan. It took her a week to get the courage to make the call. She calls the number that she is surprised she remembered.

“Hello, you have reached Alan Ramsey” said Alan as he answered.

“Hello Alan. It is Louise”

Alan is shocked and did not know what to say.

Louise then said.

“I want to contact Ethan, can you help me?”

Alan was shocked. He had hoped this day would come but as time went on the hope got smaller.

“I need to think on this Louise, it is a shock. Can I call you another time?”

Louise gives Alan her number and hangs up.

Alan is shocked, he always suspected that if Louise ever called it would be to speak with Ethan but did he have the right to give his details out. He thought the best case would be to get more information and pass onto Ethan and let him decide but he was troubled too, nearly 26 years had passed and he could not help but be suspicious of any intent.

Louise is surprised that Alan took her call but was relieved that he wanted to have a think about getting her in contact with Ethan. While she waited she took another hit hoping it will dull the pain of the thoughts in her head.

Authors note : well this seemed to get long but I had alot yo cover and some that I have done in various fics as well so I was straddling thr line of repeating myself but meaningful to this story.

Coming chapters we will see more of Alan and Louise so fair warning there and as stated before when we get to post attack we will be following my timeline.

Tagging: @jerzwriter @jamespotterthefirst @potionsprefect @liaromancewriter @tessa-liam @cariantha @genevievemd @binny1985 @schnitzelbutterfingers @ofmischiefandmedicine @crazy-loca-blog @a-crepusculo @bex-la-get @lucy-268

@choicesficwriterscreations @openheartfanfics

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[watchmegetobsessed]

Don’t Worry - Harry Styles

a/n: i’m so excited about this!!! this fic is my take on the song Don’t Worry by The 1975 for @harrystylescherry ‘s Playlist fic challenge! it took me a lot longer to finish this one, mostly because i chose to write about a topic that’s painfully close to my heart and life and i hope to help those of you who are struggling with similar problems. it’s a touchy subject and i really hope i can at least help just for a little by putting this piece out! also, huge thanks to Nat for this challenge and i can’t wait to read all the other fics!!

warning: eating disorder, lots of self-hatred but even more fluff and love!

word count: 3.8k

masterlist

Your teeth sink into your bottom lip a little harder than they should, it’s starting to feel painful but you don’t even realize. You’re way too fixated on the Instagram post in front of you, swiping through the same four pictures over and over again, crippling anxiety crawling up your spine, clouding your every thought.

Oh how you wish you could say that you’re not the jealous type. Well, in a way, you are not. You don’t think your boyfriend would ever cheat on you or leave you, that’s just not him as a person. Your jealousy roots in your insecurities about your body and it creates more of a confusion in your head about why Harry, your boyfriend of three years is really dating you when he could have anyone, any model or super gorgeous singer, actress out there, yet he settled for… you.

Your thumb swipes across the screen again as you keep staring at the bikini photos Kendall Jenner has recently posted. She is stunning, the perfect model type with her long legs, skinny torso and snatched waist. Hell, she could make you question your sexuality on other days even, but today she is feeding your burning insecurities.

The thought that at one point in life, your boyfriend was with her makes you feel sick, because you are simply nothing like her. In every sense, you are what others like to call curvy, however you often use other terms, some not too nice ones on your worse days. Your hips are wide, holding quite some meat on them, your full thighs never heard of such thing as thigh gaps, not even when you were a kid. Your tummy brings you a headache sometimes when you want to wear something tight, the urge to hide it stronger than your fashion sense. It’s been ages since you last dared to step out of the house without a bra on, your full breasts always need the support if you don’t want them to sit a little lower on your chest than what you prefer. There are rolls, extra skin, stretch marks and all that jazz on your body and has been for a long time. No model looks like this and you are more than aware of that. But if your boyfriend can get any of them, why did he settle for you?

Tears are threatening to roll down your cheeks when you finally close the app and stop staring at Kendall’s perfect body. You ball your hands to stop them from shaking as you make your way to the bathroom in need of some freshening up. The cold water in your face feels nice, but the moment your eyes fall on your reflection you almost cringe at your own sight, as if it’s a reminder of everything you thought about in the past hour.

What is Harry doing with someone like me? The question keeps playing in your head on repeat and you wish you had a relevant answer, but your tainted thoughts keep bringing you back to the same point: He surely will realize it himself and leave me.

You try your best to shake it all off your mind, but it’s not easy. Sitting at the dining table you busy yourself with some work you brought home, hoping the files will keep your wandering thoughts at bay, however the attempt is not quite successful. And then you hear the front door open and close, followed by Harry’s sweet greeting.

“I’m home, baby!” he calls out and you can tell he is in a great mood just from his voice. You force your best fake smile to your lips, not wanting to ruin his mood with your petty party. He walks in, eyes falling on your sitting figure at the table and though you don’t know it, his heart flutters, like always, even after three years together.

Harry is obsessed with you, to say the least. Every little thing about you fascinates him, he loves everything about you, inside and out, just the way you are and he vowed to never stop telling you how much he adorns you.

“Hey there, wha’cha doin’?” he asks, kissing into your hair as he scans over the papers on the table.

“Oh, just… some extra work,” you shrug, chewing on your bottom lip again, the skin is about to break soon for sure.

“Baby, you work too much. Take some time off,” he tells you, shuffling around before he disappears in the bedroom for a moment before reappearing. “Fancy taking a bath with me?” he offers with a cheeky smile.

Bath, for that you’d have to be completely naked in front of him. That cannot happen in this state of mind.

“Um, I want to finish this. Maybe next time,” you tell him with a faint smile.

“You sure? I could massage your shoulders the way you like it so much, we could try that new bath salt we bought.”

“I really want to get this done, H. You just go and enjoy your bath,” you insist, the stern voice catches him a little by surprise.

“Everything alright baby?” His eyebrows pull together as he watches you from across the room.

“Mm, everything is fine. Just… working,” you tell him, eyes on the papers in front of you, pretending like you’re reading the lines, but in reality you have absolutely no idea what the words are saying. You hear him mumble a soft alright before he disappears again, leaving you alone.

A shaky breath leaves your trembling lips once you hear the water running in the bathroom. You bury your face in your palms, feeling so defeated and lost, the only thing that would comfort you would be Harry, but he cannot know what’s been going on in your head. He would never understand the struggle.

These thoughts usually only last for a few days. You always manage to forget about them eventually and return to normality, but not this time. Days turn into weeks and you find yourself sinking deeper into the hole you created for yourself. It starts to effect more parts of your life too. You’re having a hard time sleeping, always waking up several times during the night and sometimes you don’t even fall back asleep after one point. You lose your appetite, your mind tells you that you don’t need the nutritious food, that you need to lose the fat because that’s the only way you can keep Harry. You stop wearing your favorite clothes, always opt for the looser ones that hide every inch of your body and spend way too much time zoned out. You keep catching yourself completely lost in your thoughts during the day, thinking about how Harry might be comparing you to his exes every time he sees you, especially naked.

It’s been long since the last time you were intimate with Harry and you feel so bad for it, but you haven’t been able to bring yourself to bare your body in front of him. You always blew him off with some lame excuse and though there’s a chance he didn’t catch onto whatever was going on, now you know he is suspicious.

And you’re right. Harry notices every little thing, all the changes you’ve been going through. How you leave half your plate uneaten at dinner or how he finds you lying awake next to him in the middle of the night. He also notices how your favorite dresses and shirts remain untouched through the weeks even though you always wear them whenever you have the chance. Instead, he only sees you in big hoodies and loose pants, hiding the delicious curves of your body. But what truly pains him is how you’ve been ignoring all his tries to get close to you, the way you move away from his touch.

The last straw however happens on a Friday afternoon. You are sitting on the couch, mindlessly clicking through Netflix on the TV, trying to find something to watch when Harry is roaming through the cabinets in the bathroom, looking for the lotion he only uses when his skin feels extremely dry. He is going through every drawer and shelf, not finding what he is looking for, but then something odd catches his attention. Some weird named pills are sitting at the back of one of the shelves, hidden behind your perfumes so he hasn’t noticed it, but as he takes it out to have a better look at them, he almost throws them across the room. He has heard of similar pills before, they do more harm than help in weightloss, ruining your digestive system so badly you can actually get way more serious health problems if you use them too long. He frantically tears the box open and see that one third of the pills are gone, meaning that you’ve been taking them for a little while now behind his back.

With the box in his hand, he marches out to the living room where you are still and holding the pills up, he needs everything in him not to flip immediately.

“What the fuck are these?” he grits through his teeth. Your breath gets caught in your throat, he was never supposed to find those, but the cat’s out of the bad and now you can’t think of anything to bring up to your defense, knowing well he very much does not approve these kind of stuff.

“They are… I’m doing a cleanse,” you say, but there’s no use to lie.

“Drinking juice is for cleansing, this shit ruins your body,” he spats, throwing the box to the couch and you bite into your bottom lip, feeling the tears building up already. “Why would you even think about taking these?”

“Why?” you chuckle bitterly, your vision blurry from the tears. “Oh come on, don’t be so oblivious.”

“Y/N, these stuff are dangerous!” his anger turns into despair and concern as he sits beside you on the couch. “Baby, why did you take them?”

“Because I’m desperate, Harry!” you snap at him, the hot tears running down your cheeks. “You have no idea what I go through every fucking day!”

“Then talk to me! I want to know everything, I want to help you!” he pleads, reaching for your hand but you move away from him. “Please talk to me, baby!”

“So you can feed me lies? I’m not naïve, Harry,” you shake your head vigorously.

“What are you talking about?”

“Me! I’m talking about… this,” you growl gesturing at yourself. Harry runs his gaze down your body, but he still can’t figure out what this is about. You look beautiful, you always do in his eyes, he has no idea what the matter is. “I’m not one of your exes and all those models you’ve been rumored to date, Harry.”

“Okay and why is that relevant?”

“Because how am I the right person for someone like you? I’m not skinny, I’m not pretty and I’ll probably never be anything like the girls you dated. Why are you even wasting your time on me?”

By the time you get to the end, your tears are flooding and it breaks Harry’s heart to see you like this. Feeling so unworthy when in his eyes, you deserve everything. You’re perfect.

“I’m not wasting anything on you, baby. Why do you even want to look like them? I love every inch of your beautiful body!”

You flinch at his words. Deep down you know he means them, but there’s this barricade on your mind that tells you he is not serious, that he is only saying those things because he feels like he has to say them, not because he means them. That evil little voice in your head keeps telling you not to believe anything he says.

How could he love your body? How could a man like him be okay with someone like you? He doesn’t want to be with you. He’ll realize it and leave you!

You wish you could turn it off, you wish there was a switch that would shut out all these thoughts, but they just keep coming and coming. Harry watches you break right in front of his eyes and he has no idea what to do, panic is setting in. He feels like a failure that he let you reach this point.

“Baby, I fucking love you. Everything about you. Please don’t feel like you have to change for me. I love you no matter what, I think you are the most gorgeous woman I’ve ever seen. If you want to change, do it because you want to do it for yourself! You don’t have to change for me!”

He is practically begging, desperate to get you to understand that you’re perfect to him just the way you are, that he is in love with every inch of your beautiful body. He reaches out to your face again and though you move away again and it pains him so much, he still goes through with the action and cups your face in his hand. His clammy palm meets your wet cheek as he turns your head so he can look into your eyes, but you are relentlessly keeping your gaze focused anywhere but him.

You can’t bear looking at him or yourself, you just want to disappear, vanish into nothing, existence right now feels like just too much.

“Love, please look at me,” he quietly begs and you shake your head no. “Please, let me see those beautiful eyes I love so much.”

You wince at his words and try to turn your head away, but he cups the other side of your face with his other hand, keeping it in place. Your eyes are wired shut, you just can’t look at him, it would break you.

Harry is kneeling next to the couch now where you are curled up, your arms wrapped around your knees as you try to hide yourself. You feel so lost, so miserable and you wish he didn’t see you like this.

“I can’t, Harry. I can’t,” you tell him shaking your head vigorously. Part of you feels so stupid for acting like this, but you just can’t help it. It’s not you anymore who is in charge of your mind and actions, you feel more like just a witness who sees herself from the outside and she doesn’t like what she sees, not even a bit.

Harry pushes himself up from the ground and takes the thick blanket from the back of the couch, draping it over you as he shimmies himself next to you, arms wrapping around your frame as he pulls you to his chest, covering you with the warm blanket as if it was some kind of shield from the world and that’s exactly what you need. A hiding spot.

You let him pull you to him, face buried into his chest as you sob into his shirt, his strong arms holding you so tight, you feel like nothing can hurt you with his hold around you.

“I love you, baby. I really do. And when I tell you I find you gorgeous and that how pretty I think you are, that’s the truth. I love everything about you. Fell in love with you the first time I saw you and I’m not even joking. Please don’t ever think that you have to change for me.”

“But I can’t stop thinking about how I’m so different from the people you’ve dated,” you whimper shaking your head. His hands squeeze your upper arm as he kisses the crown of your head.

“Different is not bad, baby. I didn’t date my previous girlfriends because they looked the way they did. If I’m thinking about it, I should feel a little offended you think I’m so shallow to care about these stuff,” he jokes, earning a faint huff that’s somewhat a laugh from you.

“I just think that you’re not blind.”

“That is correct,” he chuckles. “I’m not blind, that’s why I find you so incredibly sexy.”

“I really don’t see how you can use the word sexy to describe me,” you mumble closing your eyes as a headache is starting to form from how hard you were crying just a minute ago.

“What do you think there is on you that I shouldn’t find attractive?” he prompts the question in all seriousness.

“Please don’t get me started because we’ll never get to the end of the list,” you huff bitterly. It might have come out as a joke but there’s just plenty of the truth behind your words.

“No, seriously. Tell me what you think I don’t find attractive on you,” he nags and you give up with a sigh.

“Okay, I… I have fat rolls on my stomach,” you start off with the first thing that’s on your mind.

“Everyone has them.”

“But not as big as mine. Yours aren’t as big as mine.”

“So what? I love your tummy. It’s soft, keeps your organs safe, especially the ones that will help us start a family at one point. For me, your tummy means that you are enjoying the wonderful foods of the world, that you are well and have a great appetite. I fucking hate it when girls are just poking around their salads, complaining about calories and all that stuff. Do you have any idea how much I enjoy watching you eat? I think it might be a fetish at this point,” he chuckles, making you laugh as you hide your face in his chest.

“Please don’t say that.”

“Why? I love it when you enjoy the food, I love trying new food with you, cooking with you, see you satisfied when you’re full, you have no idea how happy that makes me.”

“Really?” you ask in a whisper.

“Absolutely. I love your tummy, it’s just even more of you to love on,” he hums kissing the top of your head. “Okay, what’s next?”

“I have so many stretch marks,” you whine with a scowl. “They are everywhere, on my thighs, my ass, my stomach, fucking everywhere!”

“I literally have nothing else to say than… I couldn’t care less. Honestly, most people have them, baby. It’s natural, your body is changing, it’s just trying to keep up with the pace. But you know what I’m looking forward to?”

“What?”

“I can’t wait till you have marks from pregnancy, Love,” he huffs dreamily and you can’t help, but smile at his words. “Those marks will be a reminder to me how much you’ve gone through for our family. I think those are just so wonderful.”

“Why are you linking everything with having babies?”

“Isn’t it obvious?” he asks chuckling. “Because I can’t wait to have babies with you. I can’t wait to see you with a big belly, so I can love on you, take care of you and that our babies, I’m so excited for that.”

“You want all of that… with me?”

“Have I not made it clear to you?” he asks, looking down at you and moving your head your eyes finally meet his. “I’m not just saying all those things for nothing, Love. I see my future with you.”

Closing your eyes you let his words sink in and for the first time in a while, your mind is not trying to convince you that he is not telling you the truth.

“Okay, next,” he mumbles, his fingers dancing up and down your arm as he holds you tight.

“My boobs are weird,” you say out loud, cringing at your own words. You hate talking about this.

“Excuse me? What’s wrong with my girls?” he gasps, making you laugh.

“They are not as round as I would want them to be, a little saggy because of the weight gaining.”

“But they are boobs,” he points out, making you furrow your eyebrows.

“Yeah?”

“Okay, so that’s all that matters. Boobs are great, nothing else matters. Men are simple, baby.”

“I can’t believe you,” you laugh swatting his chest playfully.

“What? I mean it! Do you think I think about all that stuff when I see your boobs? My mind goes: Oh my God, boobs! And that’s it. I just get excited to see your tits.”

“You are such a pig,” you laugh, snuggling closer to his side.

“Are you shaming me for my preferences now?”

“Your preferences?”

“Yeah, you are my preference,” he remarks smugly, kissing into your hair again. “I literally don’t know how to say it differently, and I’m sorry for being so vulgar in advance…”

“Oh God,” you mumble, already fearing what he’s going to say.

“But you have nothing to worry about until you see my dick getting hard at the sight of you.”

“That was highly inappropriate.”

“Yeah, but it’s true. I find you sexy and there’s evidence. I can’t really hide it,” he chuckles and when you look up at him you see a dirty, twisted smirk on his pink lips. “Please don’t ever doubt any of my feelings for you, alright?” he asks in a more serious tone. “And if you feel like this again, I want you to tell me. Those pills and bottling it up inside you don’t help. I don’t want you to risk your health just because you have doubts about me. I love you, and when I say that I mean that I love all of you. Everything.”

“Okay,” you answer in a faint whisper.

“Don’t just say okay because you want me to get out of your hair. Promise me that you won’t keep it to yourself. I want to help you, I want to be there for you like you are always there for me.”

“I promise,” you nod, sinking your teeth into your bottom lip.

“Alright. Have you eaten today?” he softly asks and you fear to give him an answer, because you haven’t been able to push anything else down than just your morning coffee. “Okay, then let me make you something.” “I don’t… I’m not hungry…” you quietly tell him.

“Mhm, then I’ll make something for myself and being the romantic boyfriend that I am, I’m gonna share it with my lovely girlfriend as a cute gesture,” he says, rephrasing what he said earlier. You don’t argue with him, just let him slip out of your hold and go to the kitchen to make something for the two of you.

It’s a tiny step on a lifelong journey and you know that. You know that your feelings and opinion about yourself won’t change from one day to the other, but you slowly start to accept it. You have a lot ahead of you, the road might get bumpy sometimes and maybe other times you’ll have to take a few steps back. But at the end, you know it’s all going to be alright, because you will never be alone. Harry will be your greatest support through it all and now you can finally see that.

Don’t Worry - The 1975

When you're in love but you don't know what to do with it When blackness hangs overhead like a cloud

Don't worry, darlin' 'Cause I'm here with you Don't worry, darlin' The sun will shine through

When you wake up and you don't know what day it is When the pain flows through your heart and your bones

Don't worry, darlin' 'Cause I'm here with you Don't worry, darlin' The sun will shine through

When you feel no one knows just what you're goin' through When your insides feel much colder than snow

Don't worry, darlin' 'Cause I'm here with you Don't worry, darlin' Oh, don't worry, darlin' Don't worry, darlin' I'll always love you You

Thank you for reading, please like and reblog if you enjoyed it!

[goldencherryhazz]

skin to skin

A/N: just imagine how cute this would be!!! Notes would be much appreciated, pls don’t copy my work 🤍

boyfriend!harry x reader

Warnings: cockwarming, smutty-ish, soft dom Harry (just taking care of his girl) and lots of fluff

WC: 1k ish

Y/n had had a long day, she was a designer for Gucci, meaning that she was a very busy woman, and had to focus a lot on her job, designing suits and dresses for all kinds of people, but she just couldn’t seem to focus today, not really through any fault of her own as Harry had other plans last night, just not any of them included sleeping.

She had to make four alterations to just one suit, because she couldn’t get it right, realised that she ordered wrong materials for a dress for one of Lady Gaga’s appearances, meaning that it wouldn’t be made in time, so had to rethink everything, which can be a long process, but she had to make it quick. Then to finish she helped one of her fellow designers sew about a million sequins onto a dress, meant for Kylie Jenner.

She felt physically and mentally drained, and could have cried with relief once she finished everything. Yn had to admit, she was driving a little over the speed limit practically racing home, nearly making the breaks of her car squeal when she stopped at a red light, the force of the abrupt stop made some of the contents of her bag fall into the passenger footwell, including her notebook which had all the suit, dresses and every kind of crazy outfit she had ever designed, it had flipped onto a page with a suit, it made her smile because it was one of the many suits that she had designed for Harry’s first ever solo tour.

She remembered how nervous he was to ask her as it was quite early on in thier relationship, they were layed in bed all cozied up ‘y/n I need you to ask you something’

‘What is it Harry’ she questioned

‘You don’t have to, and if I’m asking too much please tell me to shut up, but I’m looking for someone to design all of my suits for the tour, and I was going to ask you, if you could’

She put a finger to his lips sensing that he was going to blabber on about how she didn’t have to do it, because he feared that she would see this as using her, but she would never think that.

‘Of course I will H, in fact I already have some ideas drawn up for you, my beautiful boy’ he blushed a little, a wave of relief washing over him as he leaned up to kiss her multiple times muttering a ‘thankyou’ as she laughed at her boyfriend’s antics. She was brought out of her reminiscing when the car behind her beeped thier horn, signaling for her to start driving again.

/ / /

She walked into her and Harry’s home, shoving her shoes off and hanging her coat up, dropping her bag on the floor and heading to the living room in hope that Harry was in there, she turned the corner ‘hello baby, how are you’ he says from his spot on the couch, wrapped in a fluffy blanket, his hair all messy, looking completely adorable. ‘I’m tired and in need of a cuddle’

‘C’mere then, come cuddle me’ he said stretching his arms out for her, in which she gladly accepts, pulling the blanket from him, kneeling between his legs before pretty much collapsing into his chest, his arms wrapping securely around her, thier legs tangling together, ‘hmmm that’s better’ she sighed happily into his warm chest.

‘How was your day H’ she said wrapping her arms around him

‘Better now that your here, would be even better if I got a kiss from my lovely girlfriend’ he hinted

She smiled turning her head to to look at him, they made eye contact immediately, she gripped his neck with both hands and pulled him in for a sweet kiss, he gripped one of her hands in his as thier tounges danced with each other. They pulled away after a while smiling lovingly at each other, she layer back in his chest, turning her head to focus on the tv, where ‘love actually’ was playing.

After about 5 minutes in comfortable silence she suddenly felt the need to be even closer to Harry, she felt a bit shy asking him even though they had cockwarmed plenty of times before, ‘H c-can I have you inside me’ she stuttered out.

He turned his head towards her ‘is my baby feeling a bit empty’

She nodded her head ‘maybe a little, just wanna be close to you’ she pouted, her big doe eyes practically begging him.

He stared at his girl in awe, he loved it when she was like this, it just made him fall in love with her even more if that was possible, he didn’t think he could ever decline her, even if he tried.

‘Course you can angel, how about you start taking your clothes off’ he said deciding that if they were going to do this now, that they would probably be asleep within the next 20 minutes.

Once they are both undressed, both completely bare to each other, he tugs his cock a few times, not being hard at all but still impressively big. She manoeuvred so that she was straddling his lap, her hands on his chest as his hands smooth over the smooth skin of her thighs and hips. ‘Gotta go slow angel, don’t want you hurting yourself’

She nodded, gripping his thick shaft and lining him up with her entrance, running the head through her folds a couple time to try and collect the little wetness she had before finally slipping him into her, she slowly took him in inch by inch ‘doing so good for me baby’ going a little bit breathless, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. Once she was fully sat on him she whimpered, she felt so full and could feel his cock poking at her stomach, they were both in heaven, Harry loving the feeling of her warm walls wrapped around his cock.

‘you good baby’

‘Yeah’ she smiled down at him

‘Look soo pretty, sat on my cock like that’ he praises making her look away bashfully.

‘Hey don’t shy away from me, come here’ he chuckled reopening his arms for her.

She layed on his chest, her ear right above his heart, she could hear the steady thumping, oddly calming her.

They were skin to skin, they could feel every inch of each other, they both felt like they were in heaven. she lazily traced the swallows on his chest, his skin soft under her touch. He ran his hands up and down her back, massaging her tight spots, in which she hums in appreciation.

‘Feel good lovie’

‘Yeah’ she breathed out, finally feeling blissfully content

‘Go to sleep love, you’re tired, you’ve had a long day’ he said planting a kiss to the top of her head, before she lifted her head up to capture his lips in her own one last time before going to dreamland.

‘Hmmm I love you baby’ she whispered into the peaceful atmosphere of thier living room.

‘I love you more angel’

And with that they slowly drifted off to sleep, completely and utterly wrapped round each other.

[imaginesforjohnnydepp]

Met Gala (Johnny Depp x fem reader)

for anon @kittenlittle24 @evelynrosestuff

for the vibe of this, listen to Could It Be? by Christy Carlson Romano here 

You looked absolutely stunning, but you were always stunning. This was Johnny’s exact thought as you ascended up the stairs into the Met Gala, and he just couldn’t tear his eyes away from you; the lights from the camera flashes and the tent seemed to bounce off your metallic/silver dress... and the large diamond on your right hand that seemed to mock him. Johnny hated the way your fiancé’s hand gripped your waist, hated the way you smiled up at him as he did so. As the night progressed, you found yourself in the bathroom trying to get in Kylie Jenner’s Met Gala selfie with your head on some pop star’s shoulder. After dinner and the musical guest, you roamed the exhibit alone after Alex had to leave early.

The entire thing was absolutely beautiful, you thought as you snapped pictures for your friends and family back home, and you made a mental note to visit during the rest of it’s duration. While you thought you were the only person on this side of the museum, you were proven wrong as you heard the scuffle of feet on the marble floor and the hushed voices bouncing off the walls. “Are you out of mind? Y/N’s engaged and definitely not into me.” It was Johnny’s voice and it sounded like was talking on the phone. Johnny was quiet for a while as the other person spoke.

“Tim, I promise it would not make a difference if I told or not. You should’ve seen the two of them. The way she was looking at him, it was disgusting, and the worst part is that she can’t see that he’s using her.” You almost choked on your breath. What did he mean by that? Johnny’s in love with you, and if so, for how long? You quickly turned back in the direction in which you came, trying not to trip in your heels.

There was no way Alex was using you, right? He loves you, and yeah, it was a bit too fast, but when you know, you know. Isn’t that what everyone says? This wouldn’t be the first time someone said something like this about Alex, your fans online thought so too, but they were wrong about him, they don’t know his heart the way you do. You quickly ducked into a restroom and into a stall to check your Twitter feed, and after reading a few messages, you felt a little sick.

oh god, the met gala is going downhill. how tf are so many “influencers” getting invited? one said. Another one: y/n looks so gorgeous but that rat ruins it. And the last one: funny how y/n and alex have been together for less than a year and he’s already signed to a modeling agency and going to the met gala. The other comments were pretty much the same and you wanted to throw up. You thought back to everything that had happened since you confirmed our relationship with Alex; his following on social media had grown exponentially, he did sign with a modeling agency and landed a L’uomo Vogue cover and campaign for Gucci and countless other brands.

Your friends in the modeling world told you it took them twice as long to get steady work and to get their foot in the door. And then the paparazzi to deal with, they were always popping up, even at the most secluded places... like at your favorite restaurant in your hometown. You’ve never had to deal with that while visiting your family, and while you would take pictures with fans, that was it. All of it was starting to click.

You needed to end things with Alex, like yesterday, and you thought back to Johnny’s conversation: “It wouldn’t make a difference if I told her how I feel about her.” How could you miss that? The first time you ever met him was at an audition for one of his movies; the movie was based off a book and it was between you and another girl, and even though you didn’t quite match the physical description of the book, he fought tooth and nail for you to be in the movie. You had a small crush on him while filming, but at the time, he was in a committed relationship with two kids. You were a law school drop out trying to prove to your family that this “acting thing” could work, so you never acted on it.

He had taken you under his wing and supported you in the early days of your career, and still does. All of that was a decade ago, and now you’re at the top of your game and still remain close friends (which Alex doesn’t like), even filming a movie with Lily-Rose and interviewing her for one of her first magazine covers. Your little crush on Johnny never really went away, and before you could tell someone, you met Alex and the rest was history. You never thought Johnny would ever be interested in you and that you could ever have a chance with him so you let it go.

But now Johnny is single, and you’re engaged and ten years older. It was completely unfair. It’s not like you could pretend everything was normal, but what could you do? Go up to him and admit that you overheard his very private conversation? Yeah, that’ll work.

As the night wore on, you danced to the music the dj was playing with your celebrity friends and took pictures and videos with them before heading to an after party that Rihanna was throwing. You turned on your phone to see the multiple calls and text messages from Alex wondering where you were so you typed back: going to the rihanna after party. see you when i get back to the hotel. This was one of the things you hated about Alex. He could be so clingy and could constantly blow up your phone asking where you were. You turned it back off and went on with your night.

“Hey you. I’ve been looking for you all night.” You finally found Johnny at the bar nursing a glass of water. “I’ve been... around.” He took a sip of water before asking the bartender for another refill. You took a deep breath and let it out slowly; it was now or never, and you know that if you don’t do it now you’ll never do it.

“Johnny, can we talk? Like really talk? Because I feel like I haven’t spoken to you since I got engaged. You got engaged two months ago, and you and Johnny check in with each other every week. “Johnny, I know. About everything.” His brown eyes widened in fear and it reminded you of a child who got caught with his hand in the cookie jar before dinner. “God, Y/N, I’m so sorry, you must think I’m disgusting---”

You cut him him off. “No Johnny, I don’t” You told him about the crush you had on him while you were filming together ten years ago and you could feel your face heat up in embarrassment, then it was over. You kept your eyes down on the bar top the entire time. “Johnny, what are we going to do?”

All of this felt so wrong, and it felt like you were cheating on Alex, which you weren’t but still. Alex is your fiancé, you’re supposed to be in love with him. Of course you love him, but lately you’ve been feeling annoyed, about everything. You’re tired about being asked about wedding plans, fighting about where to live, Alex speaking calmly to the paparazzi as they invade your privacy. Sick and tired of all of it.

“Y/N, you’re engaged, not married. There’s still time.” For a second you thought about what it would be like with Johnny, how easy it would be. The both off you are private people and you get along with his kids, so nothing bad on that front. You fiddled with the engagement ring before pulling it off; that felt much better and your hand felt a lot lighter. “I don’t think I can marry Alex. I think I made a mistake.”

You finally said it. Said the four words you’ve been trying to push down for the last two months; it felt good to say out loud. You slipped the ring in your clutch. You threw your arms around Johnny and quickly kissed his cheek. “I have to break it off with Alex.” If all went well, then you would make plans to leave L.A. before the media storm could hit. 

Maybe your place in the countryside just outside your hometown? You could only hope that this break up could go smoothly.

[bex-la-get]

A Very Important Question (Ethan x f!MC)

Book: Open Heart

Pairing: Ethan Ramsey x Natalie Cusack

Special Appearance: Sienna Trinh

Word count: 2012

Summary: Ethan has a very important question for Nat.

Author’s Note: This is dedicated to the anon who asked if I had written Ethan and Nat’s proposal story. Surprisingly, I had not so, of course, I had to rectify that immediately. Hope you enjoy it! 😘 Also this is unedited so sorry in advance for mistakes.

Ethan was acting weird.

He was constantly stepping away from work to attend meetings off-site, closed his laptop anytime someone walked by, and seemed to be in a constant state of anxiety. Whenever Natalie tried to talk to him about it, he always brushed it off, reassuring her he was fine. 

“I’m just under a lot of stress, Nat, that’s all. Being Chief is more involved than I realized,” he would say.

Natalie wasn’t convinced.

“I don’t know, Si. I’m worried about him,” Nat said one night when getting drinks with Sienna. “You don’t think he’s having money trouble and he’s trying to hide it from me, do you?”

Sienna furrowed her brows. “You mean like gambling debts? That doesn’t seem like Ethan.”

Natalie shrugged. “I know it doesn’t. I’m just grasping at straws here. Trying to make sense of it all.”

Sienna squeezed Natalie’s hand reassuringly. “Don’t look too much into it, Nat. He’s probably just stressed; lord knows Bloom doesn’t make things easy and the Chief’s job is pretty demanding.”

Nat sighed. “Yeah, you’re right. Thanks, Si.”

“Anytime.”

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

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

When Nat returned home that night, she found Ethan sitting on the sofa, watching an old black-and-white movie. His eyes lit up when he spotted her and he jumped off the couch to greet her. “Hey you.”

“Hi,” she smiled.

Ethan pulled her close and kissed her softly, smiling as Natalie immediately relaxed in his arms. “I missed you,” he said, pulling away.

“I just saw you a few hours ago,” she replied.

“I know and then I went several hours without seeing you and I missed you terribly during that time.”

She laughed and caressed his cheek with her hand. “Well, I missed you too.” Her brows furrowed and she stepped closer to him. “Are you okay? You’ve been so stressed this past week; I’m worried about you.”

His eyes softened and he nodded. “I know; I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to worry you. This-- this whole thing with being Chief and trying to navigate my new responsibilities while still having to answer to Bloom has been overwhelming. And I kind of bottled it up; I know I have no reason to, it’s just-- just an old habit, I guess.”

Natalie smiled understandingly. “I know, I’m quite familiar with those old habits of yours.” He chuckled and she nuzzled his nose with hers. “You don’t have to bottle it up anymore, my love. I’m here for you, always. And I want to support you through everything, be it good or bad. I’ve got you.”

He held her close and rested his forehead against hers. “Thank you; I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

“Just talk to me, okay? Even if it’s minor, I always want you to feel like you can come to me.”

“I will, I promise.” His forehead still resting against hers, he closed his eyes and held her close for a long moment, just enjoying having her in his arms. He was fully aware of how lucky he was to have her and while it killed him to lie to her, he hoped she’d forgive him when she realized the reason why. 

Nuzzling her nose with his, he moved to kiss her forehead then looked at her. “Are you hungry? There’s some leftovers in the fridge I can heat up.”

She smiled and nodded. “That sounds great. Let me change though, these jeans have overstayed their welcome.”

He chuckled and watched as she made her way to the bedroom. “Hey,” he called. She turned and looked at him expectantly and he smiled. “I love you.”

She grinned. “I love you more.”

“Never.”

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

Ethan looked around the apartment, triple checking his packing list in case he missed something. They were only going to be gone for the weekend but he needed to make sure that nothing was missing or left behind. This had to go perfectly; and with a lot of luck, it would. But that assumed he remembered everything-- did he pack enough underwear? What about the wine, is the wine in the cooler? Ring. The ring’s in his suitcase. Should he double check again?

The lock in the front door turned and Ethan had a brief moment of panic before shaking it off. He’d been preparing for this for over a week, everything was set. He just needed to remember to breathe.

Nat smiled at Ethan as she walked in. “Hey you.”

Ethan visibly relaxed and returned her smile. “Hi. How was lunch with Sienna?”

“Good! We got our nails done too. Lookie!” She extended her hand out to him and he admired the bright red she had chosen. He tried not to lose himself in the visual of a diamond ring on the very hand he was looking at, instead focusing on the color. Don’t give it away!

He cleared his throat and smiled. “Very pretty. Good color choice.”

“Thank you,” she said, smiling. Then, noticing the duffle bag that sat on the couch behind him, she furrowed her brows. “Are you going somewhere?”

“We are,” he corrected. “We’re taking the weekend off and going to Martha’s Vineyard, just the two of us. And Jenner.”

She smiled. “Really? Wait, I’m supposed to work tomorrow!”

Ethan shook his head. “Not anymore. I cleared your schedule and got your shifts covered. You’re free until Tuesday. Perks of dating the Chief.” He winked.

She raised her eyebrows. “Thank you, Ethan; that’s so sweet of you. But… what’s the occasion? I’m not forgetting an anniversary, am I?”

He chuckled. “No; I just thought we could both do with a weekend off. I hope it’s okay that I decided that?” The thought suddenly crossed his mind that she might object to having a trip suddenly sprung on her without warning.

She smiled and quelled his nerves with a gentle kiss. “It’s more than okay. Thank you for being so thoughtful.”

“Anything for you, my love.” He pointed to the duffle bag. “Everything’s already packed, we just need to get it all into the car. Will you leash Jenner?”

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

Their first night in Martha’s Vineyard had been relaxing and romantic. After arriving at the AirBnB Ethan had rented, the two had gone out to dinner and enjoyed a quiet date overlooking the beach. Nat had looked beautiful in her sundress and windblown hair, her smile lighting up the entire patio. If Ethan hadn’t left the ring at the house, he might’ve proposed just then. But he had put too much planning into this proposal, damn it, he wasn’t about to ruin it all with an impulse, no matter how tempted he was.

After a lazy Saturday morning stumbling around the house, Ethan, Natalie, and Jenner made their way to the beach, picnic basket and blanket in hand. “This was such a good idea, babe!” Nat said as she popped a cheese cube into her mouth. “We haven’t been on a picnic in forever!”

Ethan smiled. “That’s why I thought we could have one while we were here. The beach seems like as good a place as any for a picnic.”

Natalie smiled. “This reminds me of our first date.”

“Does it now?”

“Mhm,” she said, sipping her wine. “The two of us and Jenner, enjoying a beautiful day outside. We had a picnic then too.”

“I remember,” Ethan said, smiling fondly. “I was nervous for that date. I wanted to make a good impression on you.”

“Really? You had already made a good impression on me.”

“Not as a boyfriend, I hadn’t. I wanted everything to go perfectly; it mattered to me that you knew how much I care about you. How much I love you. I may or may not have agonized over how much cheese was too much for that picnic.”

Nat smiled and squeezed his hand. “I knew then as I know now how much you love me. It’s as much as I love you, which is a lot. And you made a wonderful impression on me, Ethan. You always do. Also, there is no such thing as too much cheese.”

He laughed. “I know that now.” He leaned towards her and kissed her softly, caressing her cheek with his free hand. “I love you,” he whispered as he pulled away.

“I love you too,” she replied. She looked back at their picnic basket and smiled. “Any chance you packed some sweet stuff in there?”

“Mhm,” Ethan nodded. “There’s some chocolate covered strawberries at the bottom of the basket.

Nat’s eyes lit up. “You spoil me!” 

Ethan watched with bated breath as Nat dug her way to the bottom of the basket, fully aware of what she’d find on top of aforementioned strawberries. His heart pounded as he watched her hands slow in their search and listened to the quiet gasp that escaped her lips. With one final reach, she pulled out a small velvet box, her eyes wide. “Ethan… I-- what?”

He moved closer to her and clasped his hands over hers, holding the box in place. “I love you,” he told her. Deftly, he maneuvered the small box out of her grasp and held it in front of her. “I love you so much and I want to live the rest of my life with you by my side. Natalie, you are kind and intelligent and passionate and beautiful both inside and out. You have such fire in your eyes, it could set the whole world ablaze and I would but happily burn in the flames. 

“You have made my life so much better, from the first day you stepped into it. You light up my darkest days, your embrace is my home; I am a better man because of you and I know true happiness with you. Wherever you go Nat, I will follow. I love you and I can’t wait to grow old with you. Will you marry me?”

Nat was crying, a beautiful watery smile on her face. She sniffled and hastily wiped the tears that were falling away as she struggled to find her voice. “Ethan, I--” she choked back a sob and smiled even bigger. “I love you so much. Yes. Yes, I will marry you!”

Choking back a sob of his own, Ethan pulled Natalie into a tight embrace, her arms flinging around his shoulders and they held each other tightly, crying tears of overwhelming happiness and whispered “I love you’s.”

Eventually, they pulled apart and wiped each other’s tears away before Ethan pulled the ring out of the box and slid it onto Natalie’s finger. Sienna’s tips about Nat’s ring size had been correct and it fit like a glove, much to his relief. The ring looked better on her hand than he could have ever imagined. And now it would live on her hand for the rest of their lives, a symbol of their undying love for each other.

Natalie smiled at the ring and sniffled. “So is this why Sienna insisted we get our nails done yesterday?” she asked.

Ethan laughed. “I suppose so. She had mentioned it to me but I didn’t think much of it. It does make a lot of sense, though.”

She giggled and nodded. Then she looked at him thoughtfully. “You weren’t stressed about work at all, were you? You were stressed about this.”

He nodded and ran his thumb over the ring. “Yes. I’m sorry I worried you; and I’m sorry for lying to you about it. I wanted to keep it a surprise as best I could. I didn’t know how else to go about it.”

She smiled and shook her head. “It’s okay, I understand. I’m just glad to know this was what you were stressed about and nothing more pressing; like gambling debts or something like that.”

“I only gamble when it comes to Declan Nash, you know that,” he smirked.

“Of course,” she laughed. “How silly of me.”

He leaned in close and rested his forehead against hers. “I love you, Nat.”

“I love you more.”

He smiled and kissed her soundly on the lips, very nearly forgetting what they were talking about. “Never.”

A/N: Hope you guys liked it! 💙

Tag List (let me know if you want to be added/removed):  @genevievemd @jamespotterthefirst @paulfwesley @ethansdique @openheartfanfics @perriewinklenerdie @little-flowers-on-heaven @stateofgracious @coffeeheartaddict @liaromancewriter @potionsprefect @mm2305 @gryffindordaughterofathena @actuallybored @writer-ish @queencarb @takeharryandgo @lsvdw-blog @itsjustwinter​ @imaneditorthankyouverymuch-deac @chaoticchopshopheart​ @ohchoices​ @maurine07​ @oldminniemcg​ @parisa-kh​ @shanzay44​ @uberamsey @izzyourresidentlawyer​ @adiehardfan​ @custaroonie​ @mia143​ @a-crepusculo​ @takemyopenheart​ @toadfrog26​ @quixoticdreamer16​ @barbean​ @headoverheelsforramsey​ @natureblooms24 @choicesaddict5 @jerzwriter​

[openheartthot]

All I Want for Christmas

Pairing: Ethan Ramsey x f!MC (Camille Prescott)

Word Count: 1,636

Warnings/Rating: T, some mentions of light sexual activity 

Summary: The evolution of Ethan and Camille’s relationship from one Christmas to the next. 

***

I’ve been having such a hard time writing lately, but I love the Christmas season so much I had to do something haha. I hope you all have the most wonderful holiday season :) 

intern year

Ethan stands by the window in his office, staring out in idle contemplation. By this time on Christmas Eve, most of the non-emergent hospital staff have already left. They’ve gone home to their families and friends, to their bright Christmas trees and rooms full of laughter. 

Part of Ethan is glad to be left alone. At least now he can try to make some progress on Naveen’s case. But some other part of him keeps him rooted to his spot by the window, unable to look away. 

The sun has long since set, and the only light in the snow-covered city comes from the soft yellow glow of the streetlights. There aren’t many people out, save for a few commuters heading towards the train. 

Inadvertently, Ethan finds his gaze lingering on a couple, who walk arm-in-arm through the flurrying snow. There’s something about the easy closeness of their bodies, the way the man’s arm curls around the woman’s waist… 

His hand rises to the window, unbidden, and he touches the frosty glass with his index finger, the couple’s merriment seeming to call to him from outside his quiet office. 

A hesitant knock on the door shakes him from his reverie. Ethan drops his hand from the window and turns on his heel, startled by the interruption so late in the evening. 

“Dr. Ramsey?” 

It’s Camille. Of course. She’s the only person brave enough to enter his office without an invitation. 

She’s dressed for the snow in a puffy coat and gloves. Her blonde hair curls over her scarf like a golden halo. It’s clear that Ethan’s office is her last stop before she leaves for the night. 

Ethan’s voice sticks in his throat, unsure of what to say. Things have been immeasurably awkward between them since his lapse in judgment in Miami. Whenever he sees her, all he can think about is the softness of her lips on his, of the thundering of her heart against his palm. 

“I, uh, have something for you.” Camille says, breaking the tense silence. She presents a green gift bag, filled with red tissue paper, taking a few steps forward and pushing it into Ethan’s hands. 

For a moment, she hesitates in front of him, but Ethan stares at the bag  in bemusement. The silence stretches once more, until Camille flushes pink, and turns abruptly to leave. 

Before Ethan is entirely conscious of his movement, his hand reaches out and closes gently around her wrist. Her breath catches, and her wide green eyes look at him expectantly. Ethan swallows hard. 

“I apologize, I didn’t think to get you anything.” He says truthfully. Christmas gifts rank very low on his list of priorities, lower still a gift for an intern.

“Don’t worry about it.” Camille insists, the pink blush creeping down her neck. Ethan's eyes follow the rosy bloom, longing to press his lips to her smooth skin. 

“I’m broke, so it’s not much.” Camille explains, gesturing to the gift bag. “It’s just something I make for my friends...and my bosses, sometimes.” She adds the last part hastily, avoiding his eyes. 

Overcome by a strange curiosity, Ethan reaches into the bag, brushing aside the tissue paper until his hand brushes something soft. He pulls out a simple gray scarf, and his fingers run over the pattern. 

“You knit?” He asks, his voice inexplicably gravelly. Impulsively, he winds the scarf around his neck, his throat tightening at the thought of Camille’s handiwork pressed against him. 

Her eyes dart to the scarf, and she takes a step closer, reaching up to straighten it. Ethan shivers as her glove brushes the underside of his jaw. He finds himself wishing desperately it had been her bare skin. 

“I crochet.” she corrects, avoiding eye-contact and focusing her gaze on her hands as she carefully tucks the scarf around his neck. Her hands pause, and her brow furrows. 

“I didn’t know your middle initial, or I would’ve included it.” 

Confused, Ethan looks down to find Camille touching the tail end of the scarf, just above the fringe, where the letters E.R. are embroidered in blue thread. 

Ethan touches the initials too, hearing Camille gasp quietly as his fingers brush hers. He doesn’t pull away, and when she looks up at him with a searching expression, Ethan realizes just how close together they are. 

“There’s also a scarf for Naveen in the bag.” Camille blurts out. “And a bone for Jenner, I just thought--” 

“Thank you,” Ethan interrupts her, and his other hand finds her waist as his head dips down. Camille’s lips part in expectation, and the warmth of her breath on his cheek sends a wave of longing through him. 

Ethan wants nothing more than to close the distance between them, to claim her lips and never let her go. His grip on her waist tightens, his fingers flexing as he fights against his instincts. He catches himself before their lips meet, but he can’t quite make himself pull away.

“I can’t.” Ethan whispers, and Camille’s eyes cloud with disappointment. She slides her hand out from under his, and takes a step back. 

“Merry Christmas,” she says quietly before reaching for the doorknob.

Ethan wishes he could call her back. He wishes desperately that they could be close enough to know each other’s middle names and exchange presents under a Christmas tree. He wishes they could hold hands in the snow and spend Christmas Eve together somewhere other than his office.

But for the sake of her career, he lets the door swing shut behind her. 

“Merry Christmas, Dr. Prescott.” Ethan murmurs to his empty office. 

***

one year later

“Hey, you.” 

Ethan glances up from his laptop, a smile already tugging at his lips at the mere sound of her voice. 

“You look ridiculous.” Ethan says, raking his gaze over Camille’s oversized green sweater and the Santa hat perched atop her blonde hair. “I can’t believe you’re wearing that getup at work.” 

“The kids in the pediatric ward loved it, and I think I look festive.” Camille gives a little shimmy, and Ethan’s eyes lock onto the movement of her chest, his mouth going just a tiny bit dry. 

“You look like an oversized elf.” Ethan snorts, but he can’t stop himself from reaching for her. His hands close around her hips, and he pulls her against him, fighting against the sudden urge to slide his hands under her ugly sweater. 

“Elves are sexy. Haven’t you ever watched Lord of the Rings?” Camille teases with a smirk. Ethan quirks an eyebrow at her, knowing fully well that she hates fantasy movies. “Okay, I haven’t seen it either. But Orlando Bloom is hot.” 

“Oh, is he?” Ethan growls, backing Camille against his desk and lowering his head to nip at the sensitive skin of her neck. She gasps, tilting her head back and granting him further access. 

She smells like peppermint, and Ethan groans as his lips rove across the column of her neck. He lifts her with ease to sit on the edge of his desk, and presses his knee between her legs. He pulls back, smiling triumphantly at her slight moan.

“Okay, I take it back.” Camille whispers, grabbing the scarf around his neck and tugging him closer. “Just don’t stop.”

“Trust me, I have no intention of stopping.” Ethan murmurs as he trails kisses up her neck until he reaches her mouth. She sighs as Ethan parts her lips with his tongue, cupping her chin in his hand. 

Her hands spread across his chest, and Ethan’s muscles flex under her touch. His mind seems to fog over as Camille’s thighs lock around his waist, and he hardens at the friction of her hips against his. 

“Wait…” Camille pulls back with obvious difficulty. “I know I told you not to stop, but we should go. Someone might see us.” She casts a pointed look at the glass walls of the office. 

“This late? On Christmas Eve?” Ethan snorts. “I think it’s safe to do as we please.” He slides his hands up the back of Camille’s sweater, and she shivers at the warmth of his palms spread over her back.

“A tempting offer, Dr. Ramsey,” Camille says with a flirtatious grin. “But we have to leave now or we’ll be late for Bryce’s Christmas party.” 

“For the record, I would much rather ravish you on my desk than attend the Scalpel Jockey’s party.” Ethan mutters. 

“Come on.” Camille slides off his desk and Ethan begrudgingly helps her into her coat, tenderly brushing her hair out of the way. 

They hold hands all the way from his office to the empty lobby of the hospital. There’s something deliciously freeing about the knowledge that they’d still be holding hands even if they weren’t alone. 

Camille shivers as they step out of the hospital and into the snowy Boston night. Instinctively, Ethan wraps an arm around her, pulling her snugly against his side. 

“I feel terrible that I didn’t get you a present.” Camille pouts as they trudge through the snow towards Ethan’s car. “We’ve been so busy with the hospital closing…” 

“I don’t need anything.” Ethan says vehemently. “Christmas is little more than an obnoxious display of capitalism, anyway. Gifts are wholly unnecessary.” 

Camille smiles sweetly, reaching up and patting his chest with her gloved hand. 

“Then why are you wearing the scarf I gave you last year?” 

Ethan feels his demeanor soften immediately, and he smiles gently down at her. 

“The exception that proves the rule, Rookie.” 

What Ethan doesn’t say out loud is that no gift could ever make him as happy as Camille does. That precious thought he keeps for himself as he and Camille walk arm-in-arm under the golden haze of the streetlamps towards the best Christmas Ethan has ever had. 

***

Tagging separately :)

[tabloidtoc]

Us, May 3

You can buy a brand new copy of this issue without the mailing label for your very own at my eBay store: https://www.ebay.com/str/bradentonbooks

Cover: Pregnant Meghan Markle: My Baby, My Way

Page 2: Red Carpet -- rufflemania -- Hollywood style stars are tier-ing it up in this flattering design with feminine flair -- Tracee Ellis Ross, Kaitlyn Dever, Margot Robbie, Logan Browning, Nicola Coughlan

Page 3: Lizzo, Maude Apatow, Lucy Boynton, Jessica Alba, Lily Collins

Page 4: Who Wore It Best? Anya Taylor-Joy vs. Isla Fisher vs. Regina King in Stuart Weitzman Nudist sandal

Page 6: Loose Talk -- Shonda Rhimes on the intense backlash she received over Rege-Jean Page's exit from Bridgerton, Kelly Ripa on her most embarrassing interview, Luke Bryan on his mother LeClaire's Instagram fame, Blake Shelton on The Voice's new coach Ariana Grande, Reese Witherspoon joking about wearing bottoms that aren't sweatpants

Page 8: Contents

Page 10: A Final Farewell to Prince Philip, his four children Prince Charles and Princess Anne and Prince Andrew and Prince Edward were among the loved ones who participated in the emotional ceremony, feuding brothers Prince Harry and Prince William (and his wife Duchess Kate) put their differences aside after the intimate service, due to Covid-19 protocols the grieving Queen Elizabeth stayed socially distant from the other 29 people who attended the funeral for her husband of 73 years

Page 11: ACM Awards 2021 -- Maren Morris teamed up with her husband Ryan Hurd and won Female Artist of the Year, Thomas Rhett won Male Artist of the Year, Carrie Underwood took the stage

Page 12: Hot Pics -- Rosie Huntington-Whiteley wore an orange coat during a visit to NYC, John Stamos plays a coach on the TV show Big Shot, Zach Braff goofed around on the set of Cheaper by the Dozen in L.A.

Page 13: Eva Longoria on her trampoline while aboard a yacht in Miami, Howie Mandel arrived to the set of America's Got Talent dressed as a bug in Pasadena

Page 14: Jon Hamm and his rescue dog Splash strolled around the neighborhood in L.A., Heidi Klum in all white in Pasadena, Sara Gilbert and Linda Perry take a stroll in L.A.

Page 15: Eddie Cibrian and LeAnn Rimes held hands after dinner at Il Segreto in L.A., Patrick Dempsey shot a scene for his show Devils in Rome

Page 16: Rachel Brosnahan in a blue dress and carrying a clear umbrella on the set of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel in NYC, Lin-Manuel Miranda at the opening of a vaccination center for Broadway workers in Times Square, Trisha Yearwood feeds one of her rescue pups

Page 18: Gen Z Has Spoken -- these celebs are making the young kids proud -- Baggy Jeans -- Hailey Bieber, Tracee Ellis Ross, Bella Hadid

Page 19: Middle Parts -- Busy Philipps, Lizzo, Jennifer Lopez, Kourtney Kardashian, baguette bags -- Dua Lipa, Elsa Hosk, Irina Shayk, Kendall Jenner

Page 20: Seeing Double -- stars bear a striking resemblance to their famous counterparts -- Elizabeth Banks and Chelsea Handler, Emmanuelle Chriqui and Nina Dobrev, Betty Gilpin and Jodie Comer

Page 21: Rob Lowe and Ian Somerhalder, Jaime Pressly and Margot Robbie, Isla Fisher and Amy Adams, Rupert Grint and Ed Sheeran, Kyle Richards and Kacey Musgraves

Page 22: Clueless Crew -- stars are totally buggin' over Cher Horowitz's style in yellow plaid -- Robin Roberts on Good Morning America, Katie Holmes was rollin' with her homie beau Emilio Vitolo Jr. in NYC, Vanessa Hudgens, Dianna Agron

Page 23: Gabrielle Union

Page 24: Stars They're Not Like Us -- Jay Leno took one of his vintage automobiles out for a spin in L.A., Chrissy Teigen and John Legend took a selfie with a fan while grocery shopping in Beverly Hills, Kylie Jenner has custom vending machines

Page 25: Carrie Underwood in her massive walk-in closet, Denzel Washington signs autographs for fans in NYC, Megan Thee Stallion on a private plane, Drake and his bodyguard in Beverly Hills

Page 26: Stars They're Just Like Us -- Sarah Jessica Parker catches a yellow cab after working at her shoe store in NYC, Brad Paisley picked up five pizzas to go in Montecito

Page 27: Kelly Osbourne handed out goods at a drive-thru food distribution event at the Islamic Center of Southern California, HGTV's Egypt Sherrod transformed her closet into a meditation space in Atlanta, in between filming Law & Order: SVU's Mariska Hargitay and Ice-T take a selfie

Page 28: Hollywood Dads -- Scott Porter on parenting his two kids McCoy and Clover

Page 29: Jonathan Tucker on life with twins Hayes and India, parenthood is a lot tougher than Jovi Dufren imagined, Maksim Chmerkovskiy can't wait to show son Shai his work

Page 30: Love Lives -- Rihanna and A$AP Rocky are showing no signs of slowing down -- the pair enjoyed a night out in L.A. hotspot Delilah where they were holding hands and laughing and they're not hiding the fact that they're dating but they just don't want people in their business -- they're a good match and are each other's best friend

Page 31: Justin Bieber and Hailey Bieber may look like the picture-perfect couple, but Justin admits that their first year of marriage wasn't what he expected, saying it was really tough and there was just a lack of trust and he blamed the strain on his own personal struggles and said before he didn't have someone to love or someone to pour into but now, more than two years after exchanging vows with Hailey, he has that

* Kacey Musgraves' romance with Dr. Gerald Onuoha is giving her butterflies -- the pair are so happy they found each other and while Kacey, who split from her husband Ruston Kelly last summer, is trying not to get too ahead of herself, her connection to the Nashville-based doc is off the charts and it's got the potential to go a very long way

* Today's Savannah Guthrie is thankful to have husband Michael Feldman in her life, especially given the demands of her early morning work schedule

Page 32: Kourtney Kardashian and Travis Barker are getting serious -- all the details on their whirlwind romance

Page 33: Adapting to parenthood has been a breeze for Emma Stone and she's soaking in all the precious moments of being a mom for the first time -- she and husband Dave McCary welcomed their baby daughter in March and Emma is super protective and a very hands-on mom and Dave is also hands-on and helps with their daughter -- thanks to the little one, Emma's marriage with the comedian has also gotten stronger and having a baby has brought them closer in a way they never expected -- Emma is looking forward to getting back to work; she's taken this time off to embrace motherhood and her number one priority is to raise a healthy baby so that's what she's focused on right now

* Britney Spears is setting the record straight -- despite her ongoing conservatorship battle with her dad, Jamie Spears, she is doing totally fine, assuring fans that she's extremely happy and she has a beautiful home, beautiful children and she's taking a break right now because she's enjoying herself -- although the legal drama with her father is heating up, Britney is staying strong and she has this wonderful ability to see the positive even when the odds are against her

* Keeping Up With Us -- production for the Downton Abbey sequel is underway, Mossimo Giannulli is a free man, Chrissy Teigen returned to Twitter 23 days after announcing that she was leaving the platform, Vanessa Bryant remembered her late husband Kobe Bryant on what would have been their 20th wedding anniversary, Helen McCrory lost her battle with cancer at age 52 according to her husband Damian Lewis

Page 34: A Day in My Life -- Whitney Port

Page 35: Colton Underwood is ready to live his truth -- during an interview on Good Morning America, the former Bachelor came out as gay, saying he's run from himself for a long time and he came to terms with his sexuality earlier this year and he's the happiest and healthiest he's ever been -- now that he feels like he can finally breathe, Colton is excited for his next chapter, which fans will get to see on an upcoming reality show with Olympian Gus Kenworthy -- a huge weight has been lifted off of Colton's shoulders and he is looking forward to being his authentic self

Page 36: Moms Tell All -- Happy Mother's Day! From milestones and manners to rules and nanny-bans, celebs and insiders talk about raising kids in Hollywood

Page 37: Bindi Irwin says life at home with her daughter Grace Warrior has been positively blissful and her family with dad Chandler Powell is so full of love, adding that the newborn has already met some of the wildlife at the Australia Zoo where Bindi and Chandler live and work and of course she's seen some crocs and really lit up when she saw them -- while the Aussie conservationist is sad Grace won't get to meet her late dad Steve Irwin, Bindi's brother Robert Irwin and mom Terri Irwin have been by her side constantly and Robert is obsessed with Grace and has been helping out so much and her mom has been the biggest guiding light and she's already taught Bindi so much about being a mother, both in how she raised her and by showing her things day by day and Terri is quite the baby whisperer and she's so great a calming Grace down when she's crying -- first-time father Chandler is also a natural with Grace and he's been the most supportive and involved dad and together, he and Bindi make such a great team -- for now, Bindi, who stars with Chandler in Crikey! It's a Baby!, is hoping Grace will follow in her animal-activist footsteps, saying having three generations of strong women working as conservationists is a dream come true

* Jennifer Garner said teaching your kids is a lifelong job, and certainly values are something you have to show them -- Jennifer, who shares kids Violet, Seraphina and Samuel with ex Ben Affleck, is staying true to her word and has led by example when it comes to things like kindness and patience and she won't let anyone in the house to judge or speak ill of people, and she enforces the same wholesome, traditional values that she was raised with and the kids have been taught to be loving, hardworking and fair -- Jennifer has always taken a kids-come-first approach to parenting, and it shows as they bake together, enjoy movie nights, read books and have very active lives and it's a very healthy, happy household filled with laughter and love

Page 38: Gwen Stefani has her hands full with her sons Kingston, Zuma and Apollo with ex-husband Gavin Rossdale, but she wouldn't want it any other way -- Gwen's a tomboy, so having three boys wasn't daunting for her at all, plus she has fiance Blake Shelton by her side to pitch in with parenting duties and Gwen and the boys have a blast at Blake's ranch in Oklahoma where they enjoy riding their ATVs, and they play baseball and football -- it's not all fun and games, though because Gwen is big on boundaries and manners and she doesn't want to raise Hollywood brats and it's important to her that her sons be gentlemen

* Meghan Markle's pregnancy with Archie was no walk in the park, as she revealed during her bombshell TV interview with husband Prince Harry, the couple had concerns over whether or not the royal family would provide security for their son and claimed there were conversations about his skin color -- but this time around, as Meghan and Harry gear up for baby No. 2 at home in L.A., she's doing everything her way, without the royals and Meghan and Harry feel blessed that they're able to raise their daughter in the U.S. and can live by their own rules and make the decisions they feel are best for their children; having independence is the most important thing for Meghan and she's got free rein to be exactly the kind of mom she wants to be -- her parenting style is really like most mothers out there, and she's been craving pasta and doing yoga two times a day as her due date nears and she keeps a lot of art supplies out to foster creativity and healthy snacks around and she's a devoted mom and wants the best for her kids

Page 39: Kate Hudson has a lot on her plate, so the mom of three, who shares son Ryder with former husband Chris Robinson and son Bingham with ex Matt Bellamy and daughter Rani with boyfriend Danny Fujikawa, knows when to put her foot down as things can get a little overwhelming at times for Kate, but when she says no, it absolutely means no, and the kids respect her very much because of that

* Gigi Hadid, who shares daughter Khai with boyfriend Zayn Malik, wants to spend every waking moment with her precious little girl -- Gigi could easily afford to employ a team of nannies but chooses not to and she prefers to do everything herself and besides, she can't bear to be away from Khai for more than a few hours

* Candace Cameron Bure's three grown kids are flying the coop, but she's still super involved in their lives, despite slowly becoming an empty nester -- the mom of Natasha, Lev, and Maksim with former hockey player Valeri Bure says it's been a very transitional time and she's been trying to help them make decisions they feel good about and it's challenging, but they're figuring it out

Page 40: Oh, Baby! Meghan Markle's due date is just around the corner, and here are all the details

* Bump Brigade -- Halsey, Gal Gadot, Shawn Johnson East

Page 42: 10 Years of the Cambridges -- a look back at Prince William and Duchess Kate Middleton's solid marriage for their anniversary

Page 44: Jennifer Lopez and Alex Rodriguez: What Really Happened -- cheating and lies? The truth behind J.Lo's split from fiance A-Rod

Page 45: Friendliest Exes -- these former couples managed to stay close after going their separate ways -- Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin, Jennifer Aniston and Justin Theroux, Orlando Bloom and Miranda Kerr, Demi Moore and Bruce Willis, Lisa Bonet and Lenny Kravitz

Page 48: Gifts for Mother's Day

Page 54: Entertainment -- Ben Barnes on Shadow and Bone

Page 58: Fashion Police -- the most daring Oscars looks -- Bjork, Whoopi Goldberg, Charlize Theron

Page 59: Rachel Weisz, Gwyneth Paltrow, Lady Gaga

Page 60: 25 Things You Don't Know About Me -- Julia Michaels

[ri-ahhh]

bad day

MJ has a bad day dealing with her snotty coworker, who wants MJ’s promotion and her boyfriend.

4.8k

warnings: potentially triggering BD thoughts/language; smut; obnoxious amount of fluff cuz idk about you but I need some softness

“Hi sweetheart,” Grayson says with a smile as MJ stalks into the living room with a scowl. She plops next to him on the couch and hurls her heels off with a flourished kick, glaring at where they land a few feet away on the shaggy rug. His grin falls when he notices her pinched face and lack of returned greeting. “Rough day?”

MJ nods and curls into his side, silently pleading for him to wrap her in his arms. Grayson obliges immediately and pulls her into his lap, tucking her as close to his chest as he can. When MJ asks for physical affection as comfort, which isn’t as often as you might think considering that’s one of the best ways she shows love, Grayson knows she really needs it.

“’S the matter, Peach?” he asks gently with a kiss to her forehead. He smooths her long hair down and scratches his nails lightly on her thigh as she snakes her arms around his waist. “Chanel again?”

Chanel Marten is MJ’s coworker and a petty, idiotic thorn in her side; every bit the LA bimbo with the stereotypical Barbie looks and meanness to match. When she isn’t calling MJ fat behind her back or constantly trying to undercut her to their bosses in light of an upcoming promotion they’re both up for, she’s actively hinting at how much she disapproves of MJ and Grayson together. She’s been a fan of the twins for years, and doesn’t make it a secret that she is very much attracted to Grayson, which MJ finds partly amusing and wholly fucking annoying.

“God, how do you let him go to those influencer parties alone?” Was what she asked earlier today at their office. She was scrolling through the series of photos on Grayson’s latest Instagram post from the night before, looking his sexiest in that half-open linen button-down and his Louis pants. “I wouldn't let him out of my sight in public if I were you.”

MJ glanced over at her blonde coworker and couldn’t believe the audacity of this woman to go through her man’s Instagram right in front of her. She didn’t acknowledge it, answering her question instead. “I trust him. And he’s not alone, he’s always with Ethan.”

Chanel twirled her hair and sighed, clicking her tongue disapprovingly. It was the end of the day on a Friday, and she probably could have gone home already, but had instead chosen to wheel her desk chair into MJ’s office across the hall from her own. For what, exactly, MJ didn’t know; they were far from friends, barely amicable coworkers at best. Antagonizing MJ was probably the start of a good weekend for Chanel.

Her suspicions were answered a moment later with Chanel’s next choice of words, her irritating vocal fry even more prominent than usual. “Yeah, but all of those IG models in one room, and you guys aren’t, like, super public. What if he wants a taste of what he doesn’t have?”

MJ squeezed her mouse in a death grip, but didn’t divert her gaze from her screen. “What are you implying, Chanel?” she asked irritatedly, her patience running at the thickness of a piece of paper for the bitch by then. She had already thrown MJ under the bus in their morning meeting with their bosses for something MJ’s intern had screwed up in their presentation, and MJ had caught her making snide comments in the break room about her ‘birthing hips’ and ‘thunder thighs’ to Annie the Asshole from Accounting. Annie was another coworker who, upon learning that MJ wouldn't invite Grayson along to after-work drinks simply so she could meet him, had immediately put MJ in her hypothetical burn book.

Right then, she finally had a moment to go back into their projections and fix what her intern Alessia had mistyped in the final presentation copy, and Chanel was only serving as both a reminder of her actions in the meeting and a distraction from her getting her work done.

MJ wanted nothing more than to be at home with Grayson by then, a tension headache creeping steadily up the back of her neck and into her temples. She had been the lead on this client presentation, so staying at the office until nine or ten at night hadn’t been an unusual occurrence lately; she was only glad by then that this was the end of a rough few weeks of work as soon as she was done fixing Alessia’s errors.

Chanel smirked but hid it as a simper of sympathy, clearly thrilled she was visibly getting under MJ’s skin. “I’m just saying, MJ, you’re super pretty, but, like, you don’t work out that much, right?I never see you in the gym here, or hear you mention going to one after work. I mean, Grayson being surrounded by girls who do fitness for a living would have to be like being in a candy store for him. We both know how much he cares about living a healthy lifestyle.”

She double-tapped the post, her too-long nails that were clearly trying to emulate Kylie Jenner’s or the like clicking obnoxiously against the screen, and sat back in her office chair. “I think if I were you, I’d quit this place and concentrate on building a following. Maybe try the fitness influencer route, yourself. It’s a pretty good trade-off, if you think about it; Grayson gives you clout, and you get snatched for him. And, you’d be able to keep a close eye on him. Boys will be boys, after all.”

That did it. Chanel Marten didn’t know her life, and she sure as hell didn’t know Grayson’s character. MJ finally took her attention off her iMac to give Chanel a glare that rivaled Lily’s ‘you’re dead to me’ look in How I Met Your Mother. It took every ounce of self control she possessed to hold herself back from acting on the overwhelming urge to punch Chanel’s newly-doctored nose.

Upon realizing MJ was done fucking around, Chanel’s smug smile slowly faded, until all pretenses were dropped, and the two women just stared at one another. No more fronts — not cordial coworkers anymore, but rival ones.

MJ knew what this girl was doing. Trying to make her insecure in her relationship with Grayson, and question her position in the firm so she wouldn’t go for the promotion. Chanel was as dumb as she looked if she thought either of these would work, but MJ had had enough of both her intelligence and her appearance being so blatantly insulted. She swiveled back to her computer and started doing the last couple of tweaks to the report that she had started before Chanel so rudely barged in.

“You know, next time you wanna pull a fast one and make me take the fall for an intern error, I’ll be happy to let Lacey know you’ve made us all rush this presentation by turning your last three sections of analytics in late, which is why I didn’t have time to review Alessia’s portion since I had to work your shit in last minute. I have time stamps on my email to prove it. Not to mention, the screen recordings of Snapchat stories of you at Saddle Ranch that someone showed me from the same nights you sent them. Should be pretty beneficial for my interview for Executive VP next month, don’t you think?”

MJ smiled and emailed the altered report back to her boss, Lacey, and made sure her computer was completely locked down before reaching into a cabinet for her purse and lunchbox. She stood and looked down at Chanel, who had her arms crossed tightly and her overfilled lips pursed so they were unusually pale and thin. MJ was going to leave it at that, but she was very much done being the bigger person, and a brief moment of pettiness came over her.

“And I hope you do find a man as good as Gray one day; maybe having someone as kind and real as him will make you less of a cold-hearted bitch.” MJ dug her keys out of her purse, motioning with her eyes from Chanel to the open door. “Now, please get out of my office. I’m ready to go home to my amazing, faithful, sexy boyfriend.”

Chanel scoffed and rolled her eyes but did as she was told, rolling back to her desk and giving MJ the cold shoulder as she breezed past her office.

“I didn’t fucking do anything to her,” MJ whines into Grayson’s neck after relaying all of this to him. Her bravado and smugness towards Chanel had dropped almost as soon as she reached her car in the parking garage of her downtown office building. Her insecurities had crept into her brain to join her full-fledged migraine and made driving home in traffic an even bigger nightmare than usual. “She’s hated me since the day I started there, no matter how nice I’ve tried to be.”

“She’s jealous, baby,” Grayson murmurs at once, like it’s the most obvious answer in the world. “You’ve come in and been there half the time she has, done the same job way better than her, and got recognized for it. Nobody likes to be outshone.”

MJ sighs and squeezes him reflexively as she moves on to the other half of Chanel’s dislike for her. “And it’s like getting bullied by the head cheerleader in high school. She basically told me I was too fat for you and that I don’t work out enough to ‘keep up with your healthy lifestyle.’” She lets out a little mirthless huff of laughter. “I mean, usually she says it behind my back to Annie the Asshole from Accounting, so I guess I should be appreciative that she at least had the decency to say it in so many words to my face tonight.”

Grayson sits in silence for a moment, seething internally at the thought that some dumb bitch who doesn’t know him in the slightest could have the nerve to talk to and about his girlfriend like that. He reaches for his phone on the couch next to them. “First of all, you're not fat, and I’d love you just the same even if you were. Second, give me all her at’s. I’m blocking this girl on everything.”

God, could the man get any more perfect? MJ sits up some and cups his face, shaking her head with a small smile. “No, no, it’s okay, Bear. I don’t want to give her the satisfaction of knowing she got to me. If anything, I’d want you to post a thirst trap just so she can see what’s not her’s. What’s mine.”

“I think that could be arranged tonight,” he smirks, giving her a chaste kiss.

She attempts to smile back, but it turns into a grimace as her head gives a massive throb out of nowhere. “Shit,” she mumbles, pressing her fingertips against her temples. Grayson gives her a concerned look before she explains, “Headache.”

It takes all of three seconds for Grayson to secure one arm around her back and hook the other under her knees, standing and holding her bridal style. “Come on,” he says, like she really has a choice in the matter, and starts carrying her to their room. MJ wraps her arms around his neck and nuzzles her head into his shoulder with her eyes closed to block out the evening sun. “We’re taking a bath, then I’ll order dinner to eat in bed while we have a movie night.”

MJ nods gratefully. As usual, he knows exactly what she needs. “Ratatouille?”

Grayson chuckles at the hopeful tone in her voice. Ratatouille is one of MJ’s ‘sick’ movies; something quiet and nostalgic that offers that weird feeling of peace that you need when you just don’t feel good. “Of course, Ratatouille.”

He sits her on the counter once they reach the ensuite bathroom and pinches her chin gently between his thumb and forefinger, planting a warm, lingering kiss on her lips; not heated, but comforting. Just what she needs in that moment.

“Stay put,” he commands quietly. MJ agrees and starts to unbutton her blouse as she watches Grayson step into the closet, pulling out one of her favorite t-shirts of his and a pair of his boxers. He puts the folded items next to her on the counter and helps her untuck the shirt from her cigarette trousers, tossing it in the dry-cleaning pile before reaching into one of her drawers and retrieving her makeup wipes.

MJ sighs and closes her eyes as she lets him gently drag the fresh-smelling cloth against the skin of her face. They aren't part of her usual skincare regimen, but Grayson has been exposed to her routine long enough and is perceptive enough to know that they’re for late nights, or ones like tonight, when she just doesn't have the energy to do more.

It feels better than if she had been able to get herself to use face wash and toner and such, anyways. The coolness of it and pressure of his fingers feel wonderful against her eyes and cheeks, alleviating some of the pain there momentarily.

MJ flutters her eyes open when he’s done. “Thank you, Bear,” she sighs, which he replies to with a kiss before walking over to the soaking tub. She hops off the counter and unbuckles her belt and pants, then unhooks her bra and steps out of her underwear.

Her reflection in the mirror glares back at her, Grayson in the background fiddling with the knobs on the tub to get the temperature of the water just right. She watches his muscles ripple with the slightest movements, his abs outlined through the fabric of his t-shirt, and can’t help but focus back in on herself. There’s some extra squish around her upper thighs and arms that no amount of training would get rid of; a softness to her tummy that probably comes from her undying love of Oreos, which are her nighttime vice. When she compares the two of them in this intimate space, maybe Chanel was right…

“Stop that.”

MJ startles a little and looks up in the mirror from where she had unconsciously started pinching and picking at what were really the bits of healthy pudginess under her skin, to find Grayson standing directly behind her. The harshness in his tone makes her withdraw and blush some, embarrassed that he had caught her at such an insecure moment.

He wraps his arms around her middle, his open palms brushing against the skin of her belly. His touch both warms her insides and causes them to erupt in nervous tingles. For some reason, MJ has a hard time seeing the two of them like this, with her completely naked and him fully clothed. She isn't afraid, never with Grayson, but she feels incredibly vulnerable in a way she isn't used to with him.

Grayson presses a kiss to the back of her head and makes sure they have eye contact through the mirror before he continues. “I’ll be damned if I let some idiot girl who doesn't matter to either of us make you feel like you’re not enough, MJ. You’re perfect, you hear me? You’re perfect, and I wouldn't change one inch of you, inside or out. Please don’t pick yourself apart like that.”

His voice holds a mixture of conviction and sadness, and MJ bites her lip as she sinks her back into his chest, her arms folding around his at her waist. She brushes her palm across the crisp, dark hairs covering one of his forearms.

“I could work out a little harder, though,” she murmurs after a few seconds of silence. “And cut back on a few carbs.”

Grayson looks at her incredulously. She’s lean and athletic, but it’s impossible to have the juicy, natural perfection of her ass and those breasts without a little extra, which he actually adores; she’s the very definition of slim-thick, a beautiful personification of the word.

He isn’t sure what kills him more inside: to think he hasn’t made it abundantly clear to her that he loves every square inch of her body; or if girls, society, whoever it is, make her think that the hard work she puts into her physique isn’t enough simply because she has a body type that isn’t what Instagram or people like Chanel deem ‘perfect’.

Either way, he’s going to rectify things right this instant.

“First of all, MJ, I know exactly how hard you work out; I’m doing it every morning with you, five days a week at 6 AM, remember? I’m the last person to lie to anyone about how much effort they give in their fitness. I know how hard you push yourself.”

He spins her around and cups her cheeks in his big hands. His stomach withers and his heart hurts when he sees the faint glitter of tears illuminating her emerald green eyes, making him want to be extra sure his next words are heard loud and clear. “Second, if I ever see that family sized box of double-stuffed Oreos in the trash, not empty, I’ll have a meltdown wondering where the hell my girlfriend went. Please, MJ. Those girls at your work are miserable cunts who only want what they can’t have. Don’t bring that energy back here, on us. I love you, exactly as you are.”

MJ takes a moment and considers his words before relenting with a nod. He’s right. Chanel and Annie should be the last things she’s thinking about when she’s got the man of her dreams right in front of her, saying all the right things and bringing her back to reality with his sweet, supportive words.

“I’m sorry,” she sighs, leaning in for a tight hug from him. “I love you, too.”

“Don’t apologize,” Gray assures, rubbing her back soothingly. “Let’s have a nice, relaxing night now, okay?”

MJ nods, pulling away enough from his body to grasp the hem of his t-shirt. He wags his brows playfully as he lifts his arms so she can pull the garment over his head, and gives her a quick smile before ducking down to kiss her.

She seems to be feeling slightly better, and a weight lifts from his chest at the realization. “Don’t distract me,” he mumbles against her lips after they make out lazily for a few moments. “Or our bath will overflow.”

“Don’t be so perfect, then,” she says back with a smirk, giving his ass a little swat as he returns to the tub and drops a Lush bath bomb and a chunk of bubble bar into the water.

While he does that, MJ opens one of the medicine cabinets. She isn’t big on taking pills, but she relents today and pops an Excedrin as her head pounded again. Once she swallows it with a handful of water from the sink, she starts to pile her hair into a bun, but is stopped by Gray’s grip on her forearm.

Her eyes had zoned out on a random spot on the counter, but at the pressure of his hand she looks up in the mirror to see him as naked as she is. “Don’t be silly,” he chides lightly, a smile toying at the corners of his lips. “You’re getting the full treatment tonight, Peach. I’ve got your shampoo and conditioner ready to go over there.”

He pulls gently down on her arm, and her hair tumbles back down over her shoulders and back as she lets him tug her to the warm, foamy water.

Ten minutes later, the Excedrin has kicked in, soft music from their ‘chill’ playlist plays through Grayson’s phone on the edge of the tub, and his strong fingers are creating heavenly relief for her as they scrub at her scalp. She’s totally relaxed in front of him, letting his broad chest and shoulders cocoon her smaller frame as her eyes droop and she moans lightly.

“I’m sorry you had a bad day, sweetheart,” he whispers in her ear, making her shiver despite the steaming water they sit in. She snuggles closer to his warmth. “And I’m sorry you have to deal with those assholes every day.”

It takes a moment for her brain to form the words, but she hums contentedly in reply. “It’s okay. Don’t know what I’d do without you, though, Gray.”

It’s so true. She has never been the girl to be codependent on anyone, let alone the man she’s in a relationship with, but Gray has achieved that honor in a matter of a year and a half. Probably earlier, if she were being honest with herself, but her adult life before him was a blur. She’s forgotten what it was like to not have him by her side, and she doesn’t want to imagine a scenario in the future where he isn’t.

He finishes washing her hair, lulling her into an even deeper trance when he moves her dark, wet locks over one shoulder so he can massage her neck with deep presses of his thumbs into her tight muscles. His fingers are nimble and dexterous, strengthened by his renewed passion for rock climbing, and are perfect for loosening the tension under her skin.

“Mmm, fuck,” she moans, not meaning for it to come out quite so pornographic, but she feels nearly orgasmic in the relief his hands are bringing her. Speaking of… “You’re gonna get the best head tomorrow, I promise.”

Grayson chuckles, squeezing her shoulders now, too. MJ feels him twitch against her lower back, but he says in her ear, “I’m not doing this for you to return the favor. I just want to be the one to make you feel better. Because I love you, and you’re mine, and you deserve it.”

“I know you’re not,” MJ smiles. “That only makes me want to do it even more.”

He grins and moves his hands further down her back beneath the water, massaging his knuckles into the soft skin there as well before coasting up her sides. He cups her breasts as MJ sinks back against him, her breathing picking up the slightest bit as his hands work magic there, too.

“Is this okay?” he asks, his hot breath flowing straight into her ear and sending goosebumps flaring over her skin.

More than okay, she thinks. MJ nods, and gasps when his hands pinch her nipples gently between his ring and middle fingers, tugging slightly. She takes his large hand off her right breast and sinks it into the water, straight to her center, her legs already parting to welcome him.

“Just rub me,” she whispers, eyes closed as he doesn’t hesitate to obey. “Circles, like this.”

MJ guides his fingers over her clit for a moment to show him exactly what she wants, but this isn’t their first rodeo and Gray knows perfectly well what he’s doing. She lets him take over and simply lies back against him as he expertly brings her higher and higher, until she’s falling over the edge, twitching in his arms and moaning sweetly.

Grayson tilts her head back to kiss him, sighing into her mouth as she twists in his arms to straddle him. He’s completely hard now, and she takes him in her hand instinctively. Twenty minutes ago, sex was the last thing on her mind, but she feels so good and relaxed now that she doesn’t hesitate to line him up and sink down slowly on his dick.

She grins smugly when his eyes fly open and he lets out an embarrassingly loud moan, completely surprised by a warm wetness that is vastly different from that of the bathwater. When she had stroked him in her hand he thought she might jerk him off, but her pussy, still deliciously tight from her orgasm, isn’t what he’s prepared for as he becomes slowly encased in it.

It’s a good thing she doesn’t meant for it to last long, because he’s so overwhelmed and caught off-guard it only takes a couple of minutes max of her grinding up and down on him while she whispers hot, dirty things in his ear, for him to shoot deep inside her.

“Shit,” he huffs out with a little laugh as she raises herself up enough for him to slip out of her pussy. “Did you just give me the equivalent of a hand job with your vagina? I know that wasn’t for you.”

She giggles and sits back in his lap, shrugging as she nuzzles his nose with hers. “What can I say, I’m feeling lazy tonight and that seemed like the faster option. Are you complaining?”

Grayson shakes his head vehemently. “Of course not, but I didn't want you to do any work tonight.” His brows pinch a bit and his lips turn down into a pout. “Are you okay? How’s your head?”

MJ smiles softly and brushes his cheek with pruned fingertips. Even post-orgasm, he’s still concerned only about her. “Better, Gray-bear. Thank you.”

God, she loves him so much. She can’t resist wiping her hands on the towel and reaching behind him to grab his phone to capture him in that moment. His hair has gone curly in the humidity of the bathroom; the light from the window shines perfectly on his chiseled face, making his sex-eyes nearly pure green and illuminating his full lips that have curled into a small, crooked smile as he realizes her intention. She laughs when he takes it upon himself after a few serious snaps to play up to the camera, scooping up some of the bubbles and blowing them off his palm while giving her a joking, coquettish expression. Finally, she puts her back against his chest once again and they take a couple of goofy, up-angle shots, close-ups of their faces.

Photoshoot over, Grayson sighs and hugs her tight to him as he sucks kisses up and down the sides of her neck while she goes through the pictures. He’s making her head swim, but she manages to determine three of her favorites and doesn’t even bother editing them before adding a simple heart emoji in the caption and posting them to his Instagram once she earns his approval.

She turns around to put the phone back on the ledge before leaning in to plant her lips on his, slipping her tongue between them sensually. She could kiss this man forever, but eventually they start slowing down. MJ moves her kisses to his sharp jawline, trailing her mouth across and down until she gets to his neck freckle. She gives it a peck before pulling back, meeting his hooded gaze with warm eyes. It feels so good to just give each other these little bouts of physical affection with no real end goal. Just enjoying each other’s company, in their own space, caressed by the comforting warmth and scents of the bath.

Eventually, MJ peels herself away from him and stands up. Grayson stares up at her adoringly, admiring the way the water cascades over her body and rains down back into the tub. “C’mon, I’m hungry.”

She looks like a naiad with her long, dark hair covering her tits and dripping sensual trails of warm water down the dips and curves of her body. As if she doesn’t look delectable enough to him right now, her pussy is inadvertently right in his face, and his hand instantly reaches up to touch her. “Me too,” he growls, his fingertips tracing her lower lips and parting them so her clit is exposed. His mouth literally starts to water as he thinks about her earthy taste and her slippery arousal coating his tongue.

Just as he’s ducking in to swipe his tongue over her slit, MJ grips a handful of his hair and stops him, tilting his head back with that grip to make him look up at her questioningly. “Not now,” she says, taking her turn to scratch her nails along his scalp for a moment. “Still sensitive. And actually starving; I had to spend my entire lunch break fixing part of that report.”

Grayson nods understandingly and lifts the plug in the drain before standing up as well. “Then let’s get some Monty’s in you, hm?”

“That sounds amazing,” she agrees, her stomach growling right on cue.

They both chuckle and Grayson helps her step out of the tub before wrapping her up in a big, fluffy towel. He kisses her nose, then her lips, and retreats into the closet with his own towel to find fresh PJs for himself.

An hour later, they’re chowing down on some burgers and shoestring fries together in the fresh blankets of their bed while Ratatouille plays through the projector. And Chanel’s stupid username hasn’t popped up once in his likes or comments.

[the-pale-goddess]

The Talk - Ethan Ramsey x MC (Tiffany Addams)

And I’ve got nothing left to lose, besides you

I’ve already lost you once, what more could you do?

Warnings: a few curse words, a bottle of wine, just a mere mention of some adult themes? nothing filthy this time – what happened to me???

Author’s note: This fic is the second part of We’ll Talk About It Later two shot based on OH2, Ch 8+9 > the first part: Breaking The Habit (NS*FW)

It’s been an emotional rollercoaster, but... the talk™ is finally here. I’ve put so much work into this and I don’t think I’d ever be satisfied with the result so...I’m just posting the last version and never reading it again lol  

Taglist - none of the tags worked last time, so I’ll post the taglist separately in a reblog

_____

We'll talk about it later.

Tiffany's mind was racing at a speed she couldn't control. She stared out the window the whole ride from her apartment to Ethan's, stealing only occasional glances in his direction. They didn't talk much in the car and she was grateful he didn't push the small talk through. The young doctor was reluctant to burst the bubble prematurely and this soothing silence proved to be a source of cold comfort.

Everything seemed so volatile...She needed them to be real now more than ever. But the fear of another heartbreak was eating her alive. Sure, there's been an evident shift in his behavior. As the walls of his stern professionalism have been gradually crumbling down, the list of their unethical pursuits kept on growing – he let her back in, he confided in her, he was showing her affection, he kissed her twice, he comforted her, he fucked her brains out just a moment ago in his office...But he never said he changed his mind about the nature of their relationship. We'll talk about it later. And later was finally coming their way.

„So...Your friends weren't home?” Ethan was the one to break the silence and Tiffany's stomach jumped.

„Yeah, Sienna & Elijah are doing the night rounds. Jackie's probably out & about. I'm not sure about Aurora.” She tried to keep her thoughts in check by recognizing the neighborhood. They must've been just a few minutes away from his apartment.

„What about Lahela?” Tiffany cocked her brow and looked at him with arms folded across her chest.

„What about him?” Her giggle received a reproving side-eye.

„He's not living with you?” Ethan's hidden agenda behind this question was blatant and made Tiffany laugh even harder.

„No. He's just always around, you know, as a part of the gang. Just like...” Her voice suddenly cracked and she swallowed loud before finishing the sentence. „Kyra.”

Ethan's hand slipped on her knee, giving it a comforting squeeze as they were driving into the underground parking in his building. He parked in his spot and turned the engine off.

„Tiffany...” He took her hand in his, their fingers entwined tightly. They shifted in their seats to face one another. There was something different about his smile, something warmer than what she was used to. „Do you remember your first weeks at Edenbrook?”

„How could I ever forget?”

„I've made the beginning of your internship truly horrible, haven't I?” The roughness of his fingers far removed from the gentle touch of his thumb against her silken skin.

„Well...I wouldn't say it was that horrible. But I have to admit you were extremely demanding and harsh. Not to mention you had a real mean streak.”

„I was an asshole, Tiffany. Let's face it.” She dropped her jaw in surprise, but didn't oppose. „I played on your emotions and pushed you to your limits.”

„You wanted me to be the best doctor I could be, I...”

„You had the potential to be the best even without my supervision. Besides, my motives are not the case here.” He interrupted her with a shake of his head. „The point is...I pushed you hard. And you always pushed back. You have a habit of finding a way through all the mud and the dirt. Everything you've experienced only made you stronger and prepared you for the worst. You can do anything, Rookie.”

„Ethan...” She smiled at him with teary eyes and leaned closer.

„I suppose it's not much of a comfort when your friend is dying and you're more than aware of the grim prognosis...But we'll do whatever it takes to save Kyra. And you'll be the strongest support by her side.”

„Didn't we establish earlier that the idea is to stop me from crying, not make me all weepy again?” They shared a laugh while Tiffany tried to keep her tears at bay.

„We did. I just thought you needed a reminder of how powerful you are.” Without a warning, he captured her lips in a sweet, long kiss. Her heart was ready to jump out of her chest.

„I feel reminded. Your mission was a howling success, Doctor.” She muttered between a few quick pecks on the lips.

„Have you seriously considered a different outcome?” His scoff earned a roll of her eyes.

„Oh, boy...I suppose your ego will be joining us at the dinner?”

„My ego will cook the dinner. Quit complaining, let's go upstairs.” She gave him that look before they finally got out of the car. The you're fucking unbelievable look, the one that always gave him an unhealthy sense of pride. Truth be told, he was justifiably proud of himself this time – shutting Tiffany Addams up is quite an accomplishment.

***

„Jenner's in Providence again?” Tiffany asked while taking her heels off. A sigh of relief escaped her mouth when her bare feet touched the cold marble floor.

„Yes. My father's babysitting him.” With a simple hand gesture Ethan invited her to follow him further inside. He watched her walk by his side in a skintight jacket dress. He noticed the change in her clothing back in the car, but it was impossible to admire it in the dim glow of the streetlamps. He had to catch up.

„I miss this fella and his cute little paws.” She pouted with disappointment as they moved towards the kitchen.

„Don't worry, he'll be back next week.” Tiffany flushed under Ethan's intense gaze. The unspoken promise of whatever could happen next startled them both.

„Is that an invitation?” She leaned on the counter trying not to show how nervous she was. But Ethan looked right through her. He took a step forward, approaching her with a similar trepidation, and twirled a strand of her hair around his finger.

„It is. Mind that Jenner tends to extend his walks – you'll need a pair of comfortable shoes for that.”

„Noted. I'll be ready.” She nodded, cursing herself as a reminder to stay stane. But it was already too late, she was under his spell.

„I need a shower before we start demolishing my kitchen.” Ethan looked her up and down, his eyes were trailing over her curves while his thoughts tormented him with the vivid memory of the silky skin underneath her clothes. „Would you...like to join me?”

Tiffany hesitated with the answer. A part of her demanded immediate answers, the other urged her to throw herself into his arms. She bit her lip so hard she probably bruised it, if Ethan's teeth haven't already done that before.

„As tempting as it sounds...If I'd choose to shower with you we wouldn't be able to keep our hands off each other.” She returned the hungry look and smiled like a wicked witch. „And I came here for that talk you owe me.”

„You're right.” Tiffany could sense the heightened tension in Ethan's voice, no matter how much he tried to hide it. „First things first.”

„First things first.” She repeated after him. „Besides, I freshened up real quick in my apartment. I can actually play the assistant chef while you're showering.”

„Not a bad idea. We're having salmon with tomato sauce.” He moved across the kitchen to get the ingredients. „It's the kind of comfort food that doesn't require much time and energy.”

„I really like the sound of that. Just boss me around, Chef Ramsey.” Tiffany winked at him with a teasing smile, unintentionally testing his patience. He shook his head undefeated, the iconic smirk playing back on his face, his fragile composure still in place.

„You can start with squashing these tomatoes.” He put a bowl of ripe cherry tomatoes in front of her, soon joined by a bulb of fresh young garlic. „And then slice the garlic nice and thin. You'll find all the equipment you need in the drawers on your left.”

„Got it! Just don't take too long.” She waved at Ethan's back while checking the nearest drawer in search of a proper knife and a cutting board.

After gathering all the necessities, she washed the tomatoes and chopped them in halves. When she finished slicing the bulb of garlic into thin wedges, she instinctively moved to the liquor cabinet and started browsing through an impressive collection of expensive wines, allowing herself to pick their poison for tonight.

The search was interrupted by Ethan's footsteps. Tiffany strolled back to reality, experiencing another surge of undeclared anxiety. She glanced at him over her shoulder and the sight had her taken aback.

„Ethan Ramsey in a plain t-shirt and sweatpants? My, oh my...You took the sleepover joke way too seriously.” She hid behind a soft giggle, hoping it would relieve some of the tension.

„You don't think that I move around my house in a suit, do you?” The amused grimace on her face made him chuckle. „Please, don't answer that.”

„Sorry. I didn't mean to make fun of you. I just...” Her eyes scanned his body, admiring the way the tight white shirt fit over his defined chest. „Didn't really expect you to be serving this kind of look.”

„Well.” His hand flicked through his damp hair. „I intend to serve you dinner.”

„Then what are we waiting for?” Tiffany grinned at his response and Ethan shook his head with a slight discomfiture as he guided her back to the kitchen. She took one of the bottles and quickly followed him.

„Peregrine is an excellent choice.” Ethan pointed at the red Burgundy cradled in her arms. She fixed him with a meaningful look and put the bottle on the table, waiting for him to bring the corkscrew and two glasses.

„Yeah, I'm a big fan of high-class red wine.” He snorted with laughter while opening the bottle.

„You picked the one with the funniest name, am I right?” Tiffany bit her bottom lip and laughed along as she walked up behind him, sniffing at the fresh scent of his musky cologne mixed with the shower gel.

„What gave me away?” Her eyes were fixed on the burgundy liquor slowly filling the glass. In spite of the seemingly laid-back atmosphere, neither of them could shake the pervasive tension off.

„Let's just say I'm familiar with your drinking habits.” He offered her a full glass and a cheeky smile, and she readily accepted both, brushing his finger ever so slightly when she reached for her drink. Their eyes immediately locked.

„I can't even disagree with you on that. Would you like to propose a toast?”

They kept on staring at each other for a long while, the maddening silence wrapped around them, closing the distance between their bodies.

„To happy endings and new beginnings.” As soon as their glasses clinked, they dipped their lips into the wine, holding the gaze the whole time.

„We should...”

„By all means, yes. The cooking will take about 10 to 15 minutes, so you can make yourself comfortable in the living room.”

„No, I'm coming with you, Chef.” He raised his brows, a knowing smile lit his face up and he nodded in approval.

Tiffany sat on a bar stool in the kitchen, where she had a first-row view at Chef Ramsey in action. He put a drizzle of oil to a hot frying pan and fried the garlic until it was caramelized. Then, he added the tomatoes and cooked the sauce for a few minutes, trying not to distract his attention from the kitchen maneuvers. With a determined effort of will he maintained his focus, barely squinting at Tiffany, as she watched him hypnotized – studying his face and every move he accomplished with mathematical precision.

„You're strangely silent.” He stole a glance at his companion while seasoning the salmon.

„Shh. I'm watching a cooking show.” A dulcet laughter escaped Ethan's mouth and he found himself distracted for one split second when Tiffany sent him the most charming smile.

He put the fillets in another pan and cooked them until the fish was done. After he chopped and stirred fresh mint and dill through the sauce, he dished up the salmon fillets and served them with a generous spread of the sauce and a side of Greek salad.

The Chef Ramsey Special lived up to Tiffany's expectations and she eagerly praised Ethan's cooking skills during the dinner. They managed to forget about the whole purpose of the visit for the time being, chatting about everything and nothing in particular. As quickly as they finished the first glass of wine after the meal, the odd vexation sneaked up on them again.

„Shall we move somewhere comfortable?” Ethan's offer was greeted with a quiet acceptance. Tiffany strolled to the living room and curled up on the couch. Ethan refilled their glasses and joined her, keeping the safe distance between them. His emotions rapidly skipped from vaguely calm to a nervous wreck. He took a massive gulp of wine in order to gather his courage and looked over the room.

„So...”

„We're really doing this.” Tiffany crooned.

„I suppose we are...” He took a deep breath, thinking of a proper way to verbalize his thoughts.

„I had a really long talk with my dad after you've left the other night. It made me realize what a timorous fool I've been.” He downed his Pinot Noir, holding the glass with shaky fingers.

„That's one way to put it.” She took a sip of her wine, leaning on the big pillow.

„A delusional jackass. A blind asshole...” He continued, his voice was dripping with absolute contempt.

„I think I got the gist, Ethan.” She covered his hand with hers. A rueful smile spread across his face as his thumb brushed her skin.

„Tiffany, I can't even begin to apologize for all the hurt I've caused.” He muttered, deeply ashamed.

„You tore my heart apart. I won't lie about that. All these nights I've been wondering where did I go wrong. I've tried to explain to myself which part of me was so undeserving...” She trailed off, her gaze focused on her half-empty glass of wine. The anguish of rejection was stamped on Tiffany's mind. She felt a stabbing pain, much like an old wound just reopened in her chest. The depth of this feeling was so overwhelming, it made her sick and she found herself near to tears.

„Tiffany.” Ethan squeezed her hand tight, his expression dead serious. „It was never about you.”

„I've realized that soon enough. It was always about you, Ethan. And I really thought I could fix you.”

„But you did fix me.” Her eyes met his again, their gaze reflecting the overflowing wave of emotions that filled the room. „I'm sorry it took me so long to acknowledge all the effort and hope you've put into me. You've fought for me tirelessly even when I felt like giving up on myself.”

„I'd never give up on you, even if it was the right thing to do.” She smiled through fresh tears cascading down her cheeks. Ethan's thumb immediately came to the rescue, wiping them away with a gentle stroke and a reassuring smile.

„Does that mean you accept my apology?” Tiffany bobbed her head in answer and sniffled quietly. Ethan drew closer to her, sighing softly with relief when she allowed their knees to touch and leaned into him.

„It's very rare that I'm wrong...But I'm willing to admit when I am. And I was hopelessly wrong about pushing you away, Tiffany.”

She regarded his features thoughtfully without saying a word. Once he realized it's a subtle sign that she's waiting for him to elaborate on the subject, he pinched the bridge of his nose and pressed ahead with his discourse.

„I always considered love to be a load of bollocks. I never thought it was on the cards for me. Then I met you and I knew right from the start that you will turn my world upside down.” The words stuck in his throat for a second. Her fingers entwined with his, sending an encouraging shiver down his spine as he continued. „I was such an adamant coward, too scared to admit that I'm losing my heart to you. I fooled myself into thinking that running away will solve everything.”

„But it didn't solve anything, did it? The reset button didn't work.”

„I don't remember psychology major on your resume, Rookie.” The corners of his mouth formed a cheeky grin.

„I can't blame you, it was listed as a hobby.” She shrugged her shoulders with a triumphant smile. Ethan studied her face in silence for a moment, as if he was looking for the missing piece of the puzzle.

„That's right, it didn't.” He finally affirmed. „I've been living in denial, making excuses I didn't even believe myself. But it ends now. I'm coming clean. ”

Tiffany freezed, feeling panic-stricken all of a sudden. It was happening. She wrote the script down in her mind, rehearsed it about a thousand times and waited patiently until that very moment to watch it unfold. It was really happening. Deep in her heart she knew what he was going to say. He didn't have to actually say it. And yet, it was crucial that he did.

Ethan imagined he'd be composed. He prepared himself to remain calm. He had it all planned, calculated and revised. The world-beating diagnostician failed to add one variable to his equation, though – the presence of the woman he's in love with. The way her wet emerald eyes penetrated his every thought, or how quickly her unstable breathing caused his limbs to shake. But this was the moment. The ultimate make-or-break decision.

The air suddenly brimmed over with bullish expectations. They gazed into each other's eyes, anxiously anticipating what was about to happen. Ethan inhaled sharply before speaking up, trying not to let the overpowering variety of emotions affect the outcome of the talk.

„I want you. I want to...Be with you.” He reached for her hand again and placed a kiss on her palm, studying the thunderstuck expression on her face. „I want to make us work properly this time. If you would have me back I promise I won't let you down.”

Tiffany freezed up completely as she stared at him speechless for what felt like forever. Ethan held her hand tight, stamping one of his feet impatiently in the hope of an immediate response.

Nothing could possibly prepare her for this. His last words triggered something hidden in Tiffany's memory. Her mind flashed back to the first day of her internship, and that distant thought brought an arcane smile to her lips.

„You can see the future?” When she finally found her tongue, Ethan's jaw dropped on the floor. Those were his words. A quick recollection of their conversation during the very first day of Tiffany's internship splashed across his mind.

„I guess I deserved that.” He chuckled lightly and rubbed his chin. Tiffany's infectious giggle was short-lived as her expression turned into an unsolvable riddle. She looked him deep in the eye, still holding his other hand.

„I can't have you back, Ethan.”

Ethan stopped breathing for a second and his body broke out in cold sweat. He didn't understand. Everything was going according to the plan...Has he misjudged her intentions? Could they really be at cross purposes?

„I can't have you back...Because you've never actually left.” Tiffany closed the distance between them, lowering her voice to a soft whisper. „You're the blood in my veins.”

Time stopped the moment they exchanged looks, allowing the meaning of their confessions to wash over them. They marvelled at each other with a beam of happiness, never breaking the gaze.

„Don't let me down, Ethan.” His face lit up with the most radiant smile she's ever seen on him and it was the only answer she needed.

„I'm never making this mistake again. I've learned my lesson.” He grabbed her by the sides and with one swift movement placed her on top of his legs. His hand traveled all the way up to cup her cheek, while she hooked her arms around his neck and squeezed him in a crushing hug.

„I'll be the judge of that.” Tiffany gently bumped her nose against his and licked her lips. Before she could blink, Ethan's lips crashed into hers with tremendous ardour. The kiss tasted like dry red wine and the longed-for sweet victory. It was urgent and deep.

And it still wasn’t enough.

[drethanramslay]

Perfect (Happy Birthday Bree!!)

Pairing: Ethan x MC (Leah Garcia)

Word count: 1500 words

MASTERLIST

Warning: None, this is just a load of fluff 

Author’s note: Happy birthday @jamespotterthefirst​, the most talented and amazing writer🎂🎂 Hope you have a great day and keep rocking babe❤

I have taken part in @wackydrabbles so the prompt will be in bold 

Title inspiration: Perfect by Ed Sheeran 

Forgive me if i make any mistakes 🥺

"Happy birthday, doctor!" A cheerful nurse greeted as Ethan stood at the nurses' station, signing charts at a break-neck speed.

"Hrm." He answered absent-mindedly, not even bothering to look up from the file and continued to look down at it as of it were the most interesting case but the fact is that Ethan did not care to celebrate his birthday.

But if Leah were to hear that, she would have him by his balls.

And Ethan wasn't one to go against a woman with a mission. She had said that they would do something in the evening and Ethan was low key looking forward to it, which is quite the growth from a year ago.

According to Ethan, birthdays were irrational. He couldn't figure out the entire hype to celebrate the day which is just a marker that you are one year closer to death. Sure it's a pessimistic way to see it but Ethan never promised to have a positive outlook on life.

No wonder Leah calls me the human equivalent of a robot.

The thought just whispered into his head which had him halting what he was doing and a small smile made its way on his lips.

Just her very name has his face splitting into a wide grin. Her very presence has this flux of endorphins in his system that he feels as if his heart is going to burst or a blush would sear through his cheeks.

She was his Kryptonite. Yes, Leah had taught him that reference when they watched that Super-boy movie.

Coming back to his birthday, Leah had wished him in the morning itself which comprises of affectionate kisses with a side of old man jokes.

Or you could say it was the other way around.

She then proceeded to give him a hand-knitted scarf which she made along with this gold plated bar set which he had been eyeing for a couple of months but never had the chance to buy it.

"I hope you like it?" She had asked in a tiny voice, watching his every expression.

"Leah, you are the best gift I could ever have. You didn't have to go all the way out for me."

And it was true. Leah just wishing him was the only thing that mattered to him. Nothing could compare to it. Just like the shine of glitters can't compare to the radiance of the sun. But Leah just pressed her lips in a soft kiss and said that he deserved the best of everything.

I am so lucky to have a partner like her.

He shut the file and submitted the last chart to the nurse. He lifted his left wrist to check the time and he noticed that there was only an hour of work left before he could head back to their home.

With a sudden burst of motivation, he turned down the hallway to visit his next patient.

It would be an understatement to say that Leah was nervous.

The pressure of this entire evening being perfect weighed down on her like a pile of bricks. She paced in the living room, digging tracks from her walking back and forth so that she could work off the nervous energy settling into the pit of her stomach. The posh, classical music did nothing to calm her racing heart down.

Will he like it? The doubt filtered through her head which had her gulping and smoothening the little black dress which Ethan liked a lot.

Jenner whined, sensing her distress. She trotted towards the stressed intern and nuzzled against her leg, stopping Leah in her tracks.

"Hey, girl... Guess I'm just overthinking huh?" Leah ran her fingers through Jenner's silky ears and scratched behind her ears which earned her a happy bark.

The sound of the door unlocking had the duo looking up. Jenner cocked her head before running to greet her dad. His familiar baritone voice echoed through the hallway leading to the living room. Leah ran her eyes around the apartment, just running a final check to see if anything was out of sight.

She had lit candles all around the house and turned the lights down low, to set the relaxed ambience of the place.

But that wasn't the main event.

She had come home early so that she could cook an entire extravagant meal for him. From butter garlic shrimps and stir fry vegetables as appetizers to Pastelon which is Puerto Rican version of traditional Italian lasagna as the entrée. She had used her grandma's recipe which has been passed down for generations on her Father's side of the family. Last but not the least, she had baked him a coffee cake which was the only flavour he liked.

She had set the table out on the balcony because it was a wonderful weather and nothing beats a candlelit dinner under a starry night.

"Leah?" His voice called out and she turned to face him with an incandescent smile which beautifully complimented against the dancing shadows of the lit candles. She walked towards his open arms and embraced him.

Hugging Ethan was something she thoroughly enjoyed, The way this man was all hard and soft at the same time often blew her mind away. The way his arms would tighten around her waist and the way he would tuck her head under his chin was her personal heaven. His cologne mixed with his manly essence was intoxicating, which blanketed her senses, making her feel safe and at peace.

Placing a soft affectionate kiss on her forehead, they pulled back just enough to see each other's face.

"Hi."

"Hey yourself, E."

"So what is this surprise you have planned for me?"

Leah chuckled, her hands looping around his neck. Her fingers played with the short hairs on his nape as she looked at him adoringly. "Eager are we?"

"If it comes to you? Always." He pecked her lips.

"Good. Go get fresh and meet me at the balcony."

Ethan and Leah were having fun.

They had popped open the champagne bottle which Ethan had stored for a special occasion and poured copious amounts into the sparkly glasses. And the food was amazing.

The way Ethan devoured the food and gave compliments every now and then made Leah smile with pride.

"Sunshine, you have to feed me more Puerto Rican dishes because this is delicious," Ethan said as he sipped on his champagne.

"I am not as good as my dad. He can make so many more yummy dishes than me. He actually hosts a cookout Sunday for the boys working at his security firm. I have only been to a few but they are super fun."

"You have already met my dad so I think it is about time I have to meet yours."

A rosiness settled on her cheeks as she smiled back at him. "Of course. I know he will like you."

Giving a smile which has his eyes glimmering like the stars, they went back to their meal. After a while, with their stomachs full and plates wiped clean, Leah rose from her seat. Ethan shot her a questioning look but she just kissed his cheek.

"I baked a cake for you. Just getting it out so that we can cut it, old man."

Ethan groaned as Leah chuckled. "I am not that old, okay? I'm a millennial!"

"Whatever you say, gramps."

She went indoors to take the cake out of the fridge, where she had placed it after icing it. A sudden thunder resounded throughout the penthouse, which had her raising her eyebrow.

Rain? But the weather forecast said it won't...

She placed the cake on the counter and headed out only to find Ethan standing there, with his eyes closed and enjoying the raindrops washing his face. The water seeped through his black shirt, making it cling to the hard planes of his chest. A small smile played on his lips.

"Ethan? Come in, you will fall sick." She said as she stood at the threshold. To be honest, there was a reservation in her voice because it had been so long since she has seen him so peaceful.

"No, I will be fine. Come, join me." His eyes smoldered as they fell on Leah and it felt as if she was hypnotized by his brilliant blue eyes.

She walked towards him and instantly Ethan settled his hands on her waist. Placing her hands on his chest they just swayed to a rhythm of their own.

"Are we really dancing without music?" She whispered as she looked up at him.

"What can I say sunshine... you make me want to dance even when the music stops."

The cool raindrops fell on her flushed face while Ethan smiled down at her gently.

"I hope you liked your birthday, Ethan."

She wrapped her arms around him and placed her face on his chest, this heartbeat lulling her into her own safe haven.

"I won't forget this. Ever. This was by far the best so thank you, Leah. I love you so much."

"I love you too."

I would have attached pictures but a bitch is lazy 😔✊

Taglist: Tagging separately because that seems so effective

[drariellevalentine]

Medically Inevitable

Chapter 8- Glamorous Girls’ Night

Warnings:- Very mild cursing, alcohol

Characters:- Arielle Valentine, Sienna Trinh, Ethan Ramsey, Naveen Banerji, Alyssa Raines, Kyra Santana, Ines Delarosa, Jackie Varma, Arabelle Raines

Pairing:- Ethan Ramsey x Arielle Valentine

Arielle’s PoV:-

You wake up to Sienna's calls which by the time you go to pick up ends. Yawning you rub your eyes and reach for your phone. You unlock it to find seven missed calls and innumerable texts from Sienna.

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“OMG Si! I’m sooo sorry!! I didn’t see your texts at all! Please forgive me!!🥺🥺🥺”, you text back.

"..Fine. Only cause you're my bestie. Now I'm calling you, you're going to answer and tell me word for word of what happened yesterday night as punishment!" She texts you back almost immediately.

"Deal! Just give me a few minutes.", you reply. Getting up from the bed you reach for your bag to take out the things that you need. After brushing your teeth and then combing your hair you unlock your phone again. Going through the contact list you stop at Sienna's number and video call her. "Hi!" Sienna greets you excited.

"Hi," you say.

"You've got a lot to say Ari. But before that, everything is okay, right?" Her concerned voice asks.

"Yes, everything is fine," you smile at her concern.

"Good! Now I need all the details about the "work" you were doing that kept you so busy that you couldn't even reply to my texts or pick my call." You roll your eyes even though she can't see.

"The "work" I was doing was finding out what's wrong with my godfather. And I couldn't reply because I was sleeping."

"Ooh! "

"What "ooh!"?"

"Sleeping with your... " She doesn't finish the sentence but you don't need her to, you already know what she's saying.

"God Si! He's my boss!" She snickers.

"And I’m in his guest room, he's in his room!"

"I know Ari. I was just teasing you. You don't need to explain things to me."

"I know."

"But I need all the details though. What you talked about, even Dr. Banerji's symptoms and what diagnosis you guys made. Everything!" "Fine!" I start filling her with Naveen's condition and the diseases we ruled out.

"That's all?" She asks after I am done.

"Yeah...Why?"

"Medicine can't be the only thing you talked about..."

"Si," I try to warn her to stop teasing me.

"C'mon! There must be something!"

"Umm... his dog? He's so freaking cute! I almost tripped while watching him," you start saying. Well, correction, I tripped while watching him," you laugh.

"You tripped? And you are telling that to me now! Are you hurt?" Sienna switches to mother hen mode.

"Calm down Si! I sprained my ankle slightly but that's it."

"How badly did you injure yourself?

“I think I injured myself quite bad? I couldn't even walk properly, don’t worry it’s fine now! Dr. Ramsey had to carry me inside-" you abruptly stop realizing what you just said. You see Sienna's smirk growing wider.

"He did what?!" She asked surprised.

"Nothing."

"Arielle!"

"Sienna!"

"Ari!"

“Fine! He was just helping me okay?”

"Sureeee!" She says in a teasing voice, " I mean obviously bosses invite their interns to their home and then carries them inside like their bride!”

"Sienna!" I exclaim in a shocked voice and she laughs. You both talk for a little while and then wave goodbye. After ending your phone call with Si, you head out to the empty living room. “Hmm...he must be sleeping. Thank god, or else he would have heard everything!” You open the fridge and spot a bottle of almond milk. You pour yourself a glass and just try to relax, but can’t. Yesterday’s events keep running through your mind until you can’t take it anymore. You wash your glass and keep it aside when you spot a yoga mat tucked away in the corner. You go to your room and get dressed in the simple grey and black outfit, pulling your hair into a high ponytail. Wearing your AirPods, you play a playlist of tunes and head out to stretch. You start with slowly stretching our your entire sore body, making sure not to put much weight on your ankle. Starting with a few simple positions, you slowly work your way up to the harder ones. Pulling out your phone, you quickly set a timer and flex yourself into another position, just as the flash goes off. You quickly post it on Instagram.

Ethan’s PoV:-

You wake up to the alarm you set for 6:45, brushing and flossing your teeth. You pull on a dark grey v-neck and head out with a half-asleep where you see Arielle in a very twisted, complex position. Not knowing why, you find yourself mesmerised by the fluid way she moves her body from one position to the next. She arches her back and kicks her leg up, twisting her head to the side when she sees you leaning near the doorframe. Letting out a small yelp of surprise, she quickly brushes herself off, taking off her earphones and heads towards you. “Good morning! I didn’t see you there.” You can’t but help trail your eyes over her body, skin-tight leggings and all. She doesn’t seem to notice as she focuses her attention on Jenner.

“Hey, boy! Looks like somebody’s sleepy!” She looks up at you. “I hope you don’t mind, I grabbed a glass of almond milk from the fridge. You were sleeping and I didn’t want to disturb you.”, she says as she scoops him into her arms.

“That’s quite alright. You do know I have a treadmill here right? You can use it if you want, there’s also some other equipment here.” You lead her to an open but tucked away place where you’ve set up all your equipment.

“Join me.”, she says.

“I will.” You head to your room and pull on an outfit and find her using your old treadmill, talking to Jenner at the same time. You’ve never seen Jenner get along with someone this quickly.

“I don’t know why you bought a new one. This is perfectly fine.”, she says as she notices you enter.

“For your height, yes. The handlebars are quite short.”

“Hey! I can’t help it that I’m short! Plus, you’re 6’4”! That’s as tall as a basketball player!”, she says ridiculously. You laugh as you start running on the new treadmill beside her. In 30 minutes, both of you have worked up a good sweat and appetite.

“Okay, I’m done! I’m going to take a shower and then we’ll make something for breakfast.” She heads off to her room as you finish off yours and jump in the shower. After getting dressed and drying your hair until it’s damp, you head into the kitchen to find her climbing on top of the kitchen counter. She’s dressed in a very short hoodie and jeans...or leggings, you’re not quite sure.

“What are you doing?!”

She turns around as she shouts, “Don’t sneak up on a girl like that! I’m trying to grab that pan. Why do you keep everything up so high?!” Laughing, you grab the pan from the shelf with ease and hand to her as she gets down.

“You do know how to cook, right?” She gives you an incredulous look.

“I’m making banana French Toast. Is that okay? I mean you have all the ingredients.” Thank god she isn’t making pancakes.

“Okay, So what’s your recipe?” She gestures to a spread of ingredients. “I need two bowls, a fork and a electric whisk.” You pull out everything from the cabinets and hand it to her. “Okay, first we’ll start with the eggs.” She cracks a few into the bowl and whisks them vigorously until they turn pale yellow and frothy. “Now the sugar and butter.” You hand her the softened butter and sugar. Without measuring, she adds them into the eggs.

“No measuring?”, you ask.

“Naveen.”, she nonchalantly responds as she beats the mixture. You recall the times of when he would cook, never using any type of measurement.

“That man despises measuring cups.”

“Tell me about it! Him and my cousin have debates about it every single time they meet. My cousin’s a professional chef. Now, hand me those ripe bananas.” Handing them over, she quickly peels and mashes them together, adding a lot of vanilla extract. You raise an eyebrow.

“It tastes much better! Now the milk, just enough to thin out the batter.” You hand her the carton of milk. She incorporates it into the batter. Then picking up the bowl of eggs, butter and sugar, she carefully folds it into the banana.

“Okay, done! Now, hand me that pan.” She turns on the stove and adds just a touch of butter to the pan. “If you add too much butter, the bread will become too soft.” She takes a slice of bread and submerges it into the batter. Holding it for a few seconds, she places it onto the pan. Making about 5 pieces while you put away all the ingredients and brew coffee, she places two in one and three in another.

“Do you have chocolate or maple syrup?” You hand her both of them. She pours a little to yours while adding a lot to hers, bringing both the plates to the dining table, along with the coffee you brewed. Jenner starts sniffing the plates.

“No, no, no. Those aren’t for you, they have chocolate. Let’s go get you some food. Where you you keep the dog food?” You pull out Jenner’s food and set a bowl of food and water for him, then go sit down with Arielle.

She pushes the plate with 3 slices towards you. “Try it! It’s one of my special recipes.” You take a bite and you try not to show any emotion. Lord, that is good! “So...how is it?”

“It’s adequate.” She laughs as she takes a bite. Both of you start eating when suddenly her phone rings, Jenner starts barking.

She bends down, “It’s okay, boy. It’s just this.” She shows him her lit up phone. “Do you mind?”

“Not at all.”

Arielle’s PoV:-

You open your phone and see it’s Elijah. “Hey Elijah!”

“Where the hell were you, Ari! We were worried!”

“I’m so sorry! I’m at.. my friend’s house right now. I told Si though.”

“Yeah, I know. She tried calling you but you didn’t answer yesterday. Anyways, apparently you left your shift early yesterday? What happened?”

“Oh that. I wasn’t feeling well and Ines sent me home, I’m fine though now. I ended up twisting my ankle so I couldn’t drive home last night. I’ll be at the apartment in an hour.”

“K, see you.” You hang up and turn to Ethan where you find him finishing his plate. “Sorry about that. My roommates were wondering where I was. Sienna covered for me so I’m fine.”

“Why didn’t you tell me that you left your shift early?” You wince, completely forgetting what you told him.

“I didn’t exactly want to explain, plus I’m fine now.” He nods.

“How did you all get an apartment together, did you know each other before?” You recount the story of what happened as you finish off breakfast. After helping him with the dishes, you go to your room and pack all your stuff and head towards the door as Ethan follows.

“I had a nice time, although I wish we had met by Naveen introducing us. Probably would have saved me that first dressing down.” You notice a flash of regret in his eyes. “But I still don’t mind how we met.” You wave as you head down to your car, driving towards your apartment. You find Elijah, Sienna and Landry on the sofa, watching a movie. “Hey guys!” They turn to look at you.

“Where were you?”, Landry asks. You’re careful not to give away anything.

“My friend was visiting from Chicago, I went to see him.” You drop your stuff and sit near Sienna, as you watch the movie.

“So...what happened this morning?”, she smirks.

“Nothing! Now shut up!”, you say playfully, but quietly.

A few hours later, you, Sienna and Jackie are lounging on the sofa after lunch. “Guys, I’m bored and burnt out from studying. Let’s do something.”, Jackie says.

“But what? Elijah and Landry have gone to another baseball game for a guys’ night with some of the surgical interns.”, Si says. An idea strikes you.

“Guys, what if we have a girls’ night?! We could have a spa day! What do you say?!”

“That’s a great idea! But who do we invite?”, Si asks. You think.

“Let’s invite Kyra and Ines. I’ll go see if Phoebe’s in. And... I think Alyssa’s in town.”, you say.

“Who’s Alyssa?”, Jackie asks.

“My sister-in-law.”, you reply.

“OMG! Do you mean Alyssa Raines? The fashion icon of all time!?”, Si bursts. You nod.

“Yep! And I think she might bring Arabelle along too.”

Sienna shrieks, “This is going to be so much fun! Right Jackie?!” She rolls her eyes.

“Okay, So I have a bunch of products for whipping up masks and scrubs, so I’ll get them out and start organising after calling Alyssa. You two see if Kyra, Ines and Phoebe are up for it. It’s 3 right now so...tell them to come over at 5.” Both of them step outside the apartment to call Phoebe.

You go into your room and call Aly.

“Aunt Arielle! Hiiiii!”, she shouts. You can hear Aly shouting in the background to give the phone to her.

“Hi Belle. Can you do Zia a favour and give the phone to mommy please?”

“Okay!........Hey Ari!”

“Hey Aly, I was just wondering if you were in town. The girls and I were planning to do a spa day. Do you want to join?”

“I don’t know...I need someone to watch Belle”-

You cut her off. “You can bring Belle along. So, it starts at 5. Can you make it?”

“Umm...let me check.” You hear her talking to one of her assistants. “Yeah, I’ll be there. Do you want me to bring anything?”

You think. “Well...it would be nice if we all had matching robes. I’ll send you the address.”

“I should have something in the warehouse. I’ll see you at 5. Bye!” You hang up and turn around to find Si and Jackie entering.

“So, Phoebe is out of town but Kyra and Ines are coming.”, they say.

“Great! Aly’s coming with Belle and I asked her to bring us all matching robes. So that’s...6 ladies and Belle.” You quickly shoot Aly a text and turn to them.

“Okay, so we’ll need to set up an area, arrange everything and probably make some refreshments.”

“Ooh! I saw these really cute pizza bites on Insta yesterday! I’ll make those and lemonade...and then get out some snacks and make something sweet.”

“Si, that’s a lot. You sure you don’t need help?”

“Nope! I’ve got it!” She heads towards the kitchen, a bounce in her step.

“Okay, So we’ll set up in my room.” You start clearing up space in your huge room, layering blankets and pillows.

“Okay, so I’ll get out some towels, mirrors & bowls and you arrange them, Jackie.”

“She arranges them as she asks you, “You’ve done this before, you’re quite good.”

“I host most of the holidays and celebrations at home.” You open one of your cabinets, revealing boxes and shelfs full of beauty products.

“My god, Arielle! How much do you even have? No wonder your skin is so clear.”

You laugh. “There all my godfather’s secrets. His Indian heritage held so much information about natural skincare, and I’ve been interested since a very young age.” You pull everything out and arrange it on your bed.

“I mean I’m Indian too, but I don’t do any of this, but maybe I should. Wouldn’t hurt to have a little bit of natural beauty.”

“...that’s everything! Let’s go help Sienna.” You both head to the kitchen, a mouthwatering smell wafting from it. After an hour full of prepping, the doorbell rings. You open it and a tiny but strong force collides with your legs. You look up to see Aly standing there, behind her Ines and Kyra.

“Aunt Arielle! Hi!!!”, she adorably says making everything laugh. You scoop her up into your arms and give her a kiss on the cheek.

“Hey Aly!” She gives you a hug.

“Long time no see, Dr. Valentine.” You smile as you lead them inside. “Nice place.”, Aly says.

“Hey, Doc. You never told me you were famous, I mean the Alyssa Raines is your sister-in-law!” You all laugh.

“Well maybe I could have if you had stopped teasing me.”, you counter.

“Hey Arielle, are you feeling better now?”, Ines asks.

“I told you already that day itself, I’m fine. But thank you for asking!” You introduce everyone to everyone and lead them inside.

“Here Ari. I brought the robes you asked for.” Aly hands everyone the robes and everyone gets dressed.

You notice Jackie tense up when Belle walks near her. “She’s really sweet, Jackie. Just talk to her.”

“Hi! What’s your name?”, Belle asks.

“Jackie.”

“Ooh! That’s a really cool name.” You see Jackie’s eyes flash with surprise as she starts to warm up to her.

“So, why didn’t you get dressed like everyone else?”, Belle asks.

“Because I don’t like to wear them.”

“Aw! Why not! You would look really pretty! But you would look pretty in anything, like my mom and aunt.”, Belle responds. You see Jackie laugh as she leaves to go get changed. Soon everyone is changed and sitting on the makeshift area.

“Okay! Let’s get started! First, get into pairs.”, you say. Kyra picks you, as Aly and Jackie pair up. Sienna and Ines also pair up.

“I’ll help everyone with whatwever they need! Mommy has one, I forgot what they’re called.”, Belle says as you all laugh.

“They’re called an assistant, Belle.”

“As-ashis-...I’ll just help!”, Belle says as you all burst into laughter, again.

“She’s adorable Alyssa! How old is she?”, Ines asks.

“She turned 5 a few months ago. Although sometimes she can act like she’s much older, sometimes.”, Aly replies.

“Okay! We’ll start with hair, taking turns and later rinsing it off in the tub. Okay, so what kind of mask do you all want?”, you ask. After a short discussion, they each decide on a hair mask. You grab the bottle of your coconut hair mask for hydration for you & Kyra, a hibiscus one for hair fall for Si and Ines, and an almond and vitamin E for shine for Jackie and Aly. Everyone settles down and starts.

“You sure know a lot about this stuff.”, Kyra says as you massage the mask into her hair, placing a towel on her neck.

“It’s an interest of mine.”

“Well, if the doctor thing doesn’t work out, you can always turn into a spa worker. Although I’d have to find you a new nickname.”, she says.

“What nickname?”, you turn to see Jackie, Aly massaging her scalp.

“The female version of McDreamy!”, Kyra says. They all burst into giggles.

“Let’s play some music!”, Belle says.

“Great idea, Belle! Can you play some songs from my phone?” She unlocks your phone and plays the playlist you tell her to.

“Ines, there’s a speaker right beside you. Can you turn it on?” She turns it on and music starts blasting. Everyone starts singing but you keep quiet.

“Aunt Arielle, why aren’t you singing?”, Belle asks.

“That’s cause if she sings, we’ll all sounds like giraffes. No offence.”, Jackie says.

“Really, I’ve never heard you sing. If you can sing that well, then I’m making you sing one of Ariana’s songs.” She changes the song to “One Last Time” by Ariana Grande.

You start belting out the first few lines, as others start to join in. By the time you’re finished with the song, your voice is winded.”

“Damn girl, you’ve got pipes!”, Kyra says.

“Why, thank you.”, you say. All of you sing together as you finish up each other’s masks. “Is everyone done?” They all nod.

“Okay, now Jackie and Sienna, go to your bathtubs and fill them up with cold water. Then wash them with the shampoo and conditioner I’m giving you. Whoever did their mask first, wash your hair first.” You hand out all the respective soaps and towels to everyone, then lead Kyra to yours.

You plug the bathtub then turn on the water.

“Okay, So lean your head back after sitting on the stool.” She does as you say.

“So, I guess you’ve been doing this for a long time. I mean like taking care of your hair and skin.”

You nod. “I have. It’s something that my godfather taught me. My hair was always really long and thick, and I always loved taking care of it. Especially when I hit that teenage age, the tips he gave me are still so useful.”

“Oh! I remember when I hit mine, it was horrible. Braces, acne...”, she shudders.

You laugh, “Well look at you now. All done!”, you ring out her hair carefully and wrap it in a towel.

“Okay, now you sit down.” You sit down and flip your hair. She starts massaging and pouring water, cleansing your hair.

“Mmm...That feels good.”

“Your hair is so long! How do you even maintain it! I tried but my hair ended up looking like a bush by the time it got longer than my shoulders!”

“I’ve trained and took care of it from a very young age. My mother died when I was a baby, and my father always said that I always had my mother’s hair. I don’t know, it just feels right...like I’m making her proud when I do something for my hair or skin. I know that sounds silly.”

“It isn’t, it’s quite sweet. But it’s hard not having a mother.”

“It is. But luckily I was fortunate enough to have other amazing people in my life.” She wraps your head in a towel and you both head out to your room where you find the rest of the girls.

“All done?”, Si asks.

“Yep! Now it’s time for facials!” All of you spend hours pampering yourself, occasionally snacking and having a few flutes of champagne, giving Belle lemonade. By the time you’re all done with your facials, hair, nails... it’s around 8.

“Wait! I want to take a picture! Everyone pose!!” Everyone poses on your bed as Belle clicks a photo. You post it.

“I had so much fun! We should do this again sometime.”, Ines says. “Definitely! Next time, you’re all invited to my house.”, Aly says as Bella yawns. “Looks like someone’s sleepy.”

“Well I’m not! Does anyone have any plans for tonight?”, Jackie asks. Everyone shakes their head.

“Oh! What do you guys think of going out, to a club?!”, Kyra says. Everyone nods in agreement.

“I don’t know...I need someone to watch Belle..”, Aly says.

“I have the perfect person to watch Belle. Can you guys start cleaning this up?” You lead Aly outside.

“We’ll drop her later at Naveen’s.” You remember Ethan saying that he takes Naveen home to his apartment after his last shift.

“You two reconciled!? I’m so happy for you two! Finally, my favourite father-daughter duo is back together!” You laugh, careful not to spill anything about Naveen’s condition. “We did.” You enter your room. “Okay, that’s sorted out!”

“I didn’t bring anything to wear!”, Kyra exclaims.

“Neither did I!”, Ines agrees.

“Calm down! I’m right here and you people are worrying about club outfits! Hmm...what do guys say to a quick trip to one of Flair’s stores here? We’ll all pick out an outfit and I’ll get one of the stylists to do our makeup!”, Aly says as everyone cheers.

“Woo! Girls’ night, Girls’ night, Girls’ night!”, Sienna chants as everyone joins in.

“Okay! Let’s go!” After taking a cab to one of Flair’s branches, you all enter the huge ritzy store, Aly staying behind for a phone call.

“Arielle, what a pleasant surprise! Are you hear to model the new autumn lingerie collection?”, Sophie, Aly’s assistant and one of your friends.

“Not today, but I might come in later when I have time. So, my friends and I are hitting the town and we need the sexiest outfits! Aly’ll be here in a sec.”

“Awesome! I’ll go get everyone a stylist and you know about Flair’s collections so you tell the stylists for what line to look in.” She calls a bunch of stylists. You direct one for each person, “Okay, for Sienna, Ines and Kyra, the Sweet but Sexy line. Then for Jackie, Leather & Lace. For me...surprise me, Sophie. You know my style better than me.” Everyone heads off in different directions as Aly comes in with Belle.

“Let me guess, Ari wants you to pick her outfit?” All three of you laugh. “Okay, I’ll go find something. Belle, will you help me?”

“Ooh! Yeah, mommy! Aunt Arielle, wait for me, I want to pick your outfit too!” She skips off, Aly following her. “Okay, I might have just the thing for you.” Sophie leads me to a dressing room and tells me to wait there. You’re scrolling through your messages when your phone chimes with a new one from Naveen.

Sophie knocks and hands the dresses to you. You put them aside and reply. After texting, you quickly eye the dresses and try them on. After much deliberation, you pick two same dresses of different colours. “Ughh! I can’t decide!” Suddenly the door whips open, revealing Belle.

“I helped mommy pick out an outfit! Do you want any help?!”

You hold up the velvet dresses, one in baby pink and the other in wine red. “Which one is better, Amorina?”

“Uh...I like the red one cause you can wear matching red lipstick with it! You look really pwetty with red lipstick!”, she replies.

“Then, red it is! Can you wait outside for a minute?” She goes outside and you slip on the dress and half-coverage bra that Sophie gave you. Stepping outside, you ask her what she thinks.

“You look preeeeety!” You giggle.

“I’ll go do my makeup and then I’ll go drop you off. Guess who’s babysitting you?”, you ask. She shrugs.

“Grandpa Naveen is.” She cheers. “Now, do you want to help me in choosing some accessories?” She nods and runs off. “She has sooo much energy. I wish I had the energy of a 5 year old. My shifts would be much easier!”, you think as so run after her. You find Si and Ines standing there. “Hey!”

“You look beautiful!”, Ines exclaims. Si agrees.

“Thank you!” Just then Belle runs with something in her hand and hands it to you. It’s a gold, multi-layer body chain. “You really are your mother’s daughter! It’s beautiful!”

“Yay! Try it on, try it on!”, she exclaims. Si steps forward and helps you with the chain, securing it in place. You look in the mirror, it looks amazing.

“Ari, give me your phone!”, Si says.

“Why?”

“Cause you look really sexy right now and I’m not letting this photo op go to waste!” You laugh and give her your phone. She leads you to a plush white tufted bench and instructs you how to pose. “Okay, stay still and....Done!” She shows you the pic. “What do you think?”

“You took an amazing photo! I’ll post it.” You quickly post the sexy photo of yourself.

Just then Jackie and Aly saunter in, both wearing Leather & Lace. “I knew you two would get along!”, you say.

“Okay, Arielle. We’ll do your hair and makeup first so you can drop Belle off. By the time you come back, everyone will be ready.” They all usher into a chair as Si starts with your hair and Aly with makeup. They show you the mirror.

“Wow...I look...beautiful!”, you say surprised. Your hair has been let down in thick curls, parted to the side and sprayed with sparkly hairspray. Your makeup is simple but elegant, until the bright red lip.

“You’ve always been pretty.”, Aly says.

“Okay, I’ll go drop Belle off!”

“Wait! What about your shoes, earrings and jacket?...”, Si exclaims. She runs off, returning with matching gold tipped red velvet stilettos, gold hoop earrings and a bunch of rings and necklaces. Expertly placing them,she shoos you away.

“I’ll get a jacket later, come on Belle!” She runs up and holds your hand as you walk to the car. You place her in the backseat, fastening her seatbelt and you slip in the driver’s seat. “Can we leave, Belle?”

“Yeah! But I want music! Can you play something from Frozen, please?!” You nod, playing a Frozen playlist from your phone and connect to the car. Both of you sing the whole 15 minutes of driving. Pulling up, you lead her to the top floor. “Which door?”

“1204.” She runs up and knocks on the door, Frozen style. It takes you a while to catch up, because of those heels.

“...Do you want to build a snowman?!”

Ethan’s PoV:-

Hearing knocking and singing, you open the door to find an adorable 5 year old with a huge smile on her face. “You must be Belle. Who brought you here?”

“Aunt Arielle did! Where’s grandpa?!”, she asks.

“I’m right here! Come here and give me a hug!”, Naveen says. You smile as the girl runs into your mentor’s arms.

“Hey...sorry if this was last minute. I do know a lot of other babysitters but Naveen hasn’t seen her in a while.” You look up to see Arielle, wearing a wine red short dress, her hair let down in spiraling curls and her perfect lips painted red, leaving you trying to tear your eyes away.

“It’s fine. Come in, Naveen would want to see you.” She removes her heels and steps in.

“Sunshine, what a lovely surprise! You look beautiful!”

“Thank you. Belle picked out this dress.” She turns to Belle. “Now, be a good girl for Grandpa and Ethan, okay?”

“Mhm. I will! Byeee!” She kisses her on the cheek and turns to Naveen.

“Have fun, and please don’t exert yourself too much.” She gives him a hug and turns to you, slipping her heels on. “Thank you so much for looking after her. She doesn’t have any allergies or restrictions so there shouldn’t be any problem. She also loves dogs!”....She hesitates. “I’ll see you later.”, she heads to her car and drives away.

“Hi!! What’s your name?”

“My name is Ethan Ramsey.”

“Ohh! Aunt Arielle says your name a lot! She says that you’re very smart! Are you her boyfriend?!” You almost choke at that last bit.

“That wouldn’t be appropriate.”, you respond.

“Why not?!”, Belle asks.

“Because, I’m your aunt’s boss.”

“Ohhh! So you’re Aunt Arielle’s husband! She never told me though!” Your face is now beet red.

“Now what makes you think that, Belle?”, Naveen asks. You glare at him but he cuts you off.

“Well mommy says daddy’s name a lot. She also says that he’s very very smart. When they both first met, daddy was mommy’s boss. And now he’s mommy’s husband so that’s why I asked.”, she innocently says. “But I still don’t think they’re married!”, she says.

“Well Belle, what makes you think they’re not married?”, he asks.

“Naveen!” He gestures you to be quiet.

“Well, Aunt Arielle doesn’t have a ring like mommy and she doesn’t live with Uncle Ethan either. Also, Aunt Arielle would never have her wedding without me! She says I’m her favourite person in the world.”

“I think you’ve met your match, Ethan! Look how smart she is!”, Naveen says with a huge grin on his face.

You roll your eyes. “Are you hungry?”

“Nope! Let’s play! Will you play with me please!?” She gives you the same eyes Arielle gives you when she’s asking for something.

“Alright, do you like dogs?” Her face lights up, you can’t but help thinking about a certain intern. “Damnit Ramsey! Snap out of it!”

“You have a dog?!!! Can I see!?”, she shrieks. You lead her to your bedroom, where Jenner is lazily napping.

“Hey boy! Look who’s here. You have a new friend!” He perks up and goes near Belle, they suddenly run out of the room chasing each other and in the process, knocking down one of your lamps.

Naveen laughs. “Looks like you’ve got your hands full! Let’s see if one of the world’s best diagnosticians can handle a 5 year old for a night!”

You sigh, knowing this is going to be a long night.