#just adding those tags to gather attraction ><< /div> Explore tagged Tumblr posts

[pelagaye]

rambling log #001

actually melting from the positive feedback on my wizard of oz au ?? tysm everyone i cant express my gratitude enough <3

n e ways !! i have a gepard x reader fic coming up and all i can say about it is that my favoritism for geppie is rly showing wait until i do smth for serval my gf

my asks are open so feel free to send in requests and criticism if ud like !! i'm more than willing to hear all what you guys have to say ^^ and ig that's all for now !!

[ittybittyfanblog]

Error 404: (Self-Aware!AU, Sylus Edition) – Pt. 4

Summary: A LADS self-aware!AU featuring Sylus and a (vindicated!) player. That’s it, that’s the plot. Tags: player!reader x sylus, fem!reader x sylus, reader x lads, self-aware!au, strong language, player wants to sock a certain 3D character in the face  A/N: Here’s part 4! Also, a taglist at the end of this post! Just lmk whether you'd like to be added/removed, no sweat ദ്ദി(˵ •̀ ᴗ - ˵ ) ✧ Happy reading!

Pt. 1 - Pt. 2 - Pt. 3 - Pt. 4 - Pt. 5 - Pt. 6 - Pt. 7 - Pt. 8 - Pt. 9

You swiftly pull up Reddit. And then Twitter (X) on another window. You’ve got to find answers.

Typing in “sENTIENT SENTINCE SENTIENCE LADS ML HELP” in the r/LoveAndDeepspace subreddit search bar, along with keywords that have anything to do with “breaking the fourth wall” and “recent major updates” on X, you quickly scour for anything that comes even close to your current situation. 

Immediately, you see a bunch of mix-match results, some even dating as far as the first month of the game’s release. Your eyes skim through blocks of texts, hoping there’s a comment–or a tweet–somewhere that could shed some light to this conundrum. 

Already, you see some discussion on sudden fourth wall breaks. But you’ve seen posts like this before, and they’re most likely pertaining to the way their LI’s gaze falls directly on the player’s line of sight when they’re in Dynamic Pose mode in Glint Photobooth. 

The common suspects for this are usually Xavier and your resident headache (Sylus). It's one of the “known” bugs of the game, even so far as being choreographed, almost, from the way players intentionally pose the MLs at certain angles to attain the likeness of sentience.   

You remember the first time it happened to you, way back when the Photobooth feature was just recently introduced. You were taking photos of Xavier–letting him pose freely in dynamic mode so that you could capture a more organic look, when his eyes “met” yours directly. 

Of course like any other (delusional) player, you entertained the novel idea of actually being noticed by the videogame character you’ve formed an unhealthy attachment to. Got excited, squealed over it, felt an instant doki-doki on your kokoro—the whole shebang. 

… Along with probably hundreds of other players who’ve experienced the same thing. 

So, yes, these instances occur more frequently than one would think. Not really what you’d call particularly noteworthy. 

Then you see the threads from players who swear that their LIs really understand how they feel during their tête-à-tête sessions. It sounds promising, and you spend a few minutes reading through their "testimonies."

—Until you surmise from what you’ve gathered that all of them only appear like they do. How Rafayel, Zayne (and yes, even Sylus) seem to know what they need to hear, from how accurate their generated responses are. 

Keyword: generated. So, no. They still aren’t anything more than glorified soundboards with really good timing, however attractive it may be to think otherwise. 

Ooh, that one sounds a little too bitchy, even for you. 

It’s got nothing to do with the players, nor has it anything to do with how the game works, really – bugs and all. Fuck, you were one of those people who milked the fantasy over the same coincidences once upon a time. You were. Before the coincidences started to be anything but. 

Before you had to worry whether you still have your mental faculties in order.

With every–misleading–post you stumble upon, you feel yourself becoming more restless. There’s a fervent glaze in your eyes and your typing’s getting diabolically worse. (you could barely read that last search input–bitch, how are you fit to work?) You’re sure that if you looked in a mirror right now, you’d look as deranged as you feel.

Xavier “bug” that looks so real omg?? Skip.

Sylus – New Voiceline? You check it out. Yeah, It’s just one of his newer–programmed–voicelines. 

Conversations with Rafayel got ~too real~ all of a sudden. You wish that yours had stayed the way they’ve always been, but alas. 

Stop feeding into my delusions [Zayne] challenge: Failed. Oh? You’re almost done reading the first paragraph of the Redditor’s post, when you catch sight of the latest update below: 

Resolved. Uninstalled the game. Multi-banners are getting too expensive (See my other post). Okay, you respect that. Hear that, Infold—

You’re slowly losing hope. Clearly, your case is kind of… mayhaps a tiny bit… different. From the rest. Dare say, exceptionally so.

To what end, you don’t know. You’re left with more questions than answers, and the primary enigma isn’t giving you much to work with.

Without anything else left to do, you resort to mindless scrolling. You’re swiping up, scrolling endlessly through the Top Posts of All Time, and it feels like you’re about to reach the end of this damn subreddit… When an unassuming post from a deleted user catches your attention. 

It only got a few upvotes, and barely enough comments to gain traction. Unless one’s desperate enough to have been looking as hard as you are, it just looks like one of the many random dead posts from months ago. Nothing special. 

Even the title is unassuming: I think the game’s broken??

You start to read.

Hi, so uhhh I’m 2 months in the game and everything’s been going well and all… Until a few days ago. IDK if this is a bug ?? but my Rafayel’s been acting so weird lately….. Ik I’m gonna sound delusional, but it’s like he’s actually aware of me ME. Not my MC. 

He’s got a bunch of new dialogues, and they’re all so accurately specific it’s creeping me tf out LMAO. IDK how the devs got THIS much info on me (like is this even legal) but they do. Or at least, Rafayel does? That sounds rly stupid out loud but yeah lol. Oh and he doesn’t even let me switch between MLs anymore. The game just… crashes? whenever I try to. 

Always been a Rafayel main (he’s the reason why I installed the game in the first place) so I was REALLY ecstatic over what I thought were new updates from the game… buuut when I tried looking it up, I can’t find any related news from the official LADS channel(s) about recent patches or updates with this feature, and no one seems to know what I’m talking about??? 

I feel like I’m going crazy… Literally as I’m typing this, Rafayel’s spamming me with notifications. He’s so fucking clingy… I love it??

Plsplspls if anyone’s experiencing the same thing, comment or DM meee. I need someone to talk to, aside from the fishie lmao no matter how much he insists that he’s enough omg (?!?!!)

Holy shit—you can’t believe it. This… this is exactly what you’re looking for. 

The six comments under the post ranged from calling it complete bull to outright mocking the OP, and you understand why the post didn’t get any more popular. 

For a brief moment, you feel a certain kinship with the original poster. A tinge of… shame (?) washes over you as you scan through all the negative reception; it’s as if the harsh insults were hurled directly at you instead.

How fun. There goes your fleeting idea to post the same question on the forum, if all else fails. 

Speaking of. Your eyes quickly dart to the small text just above the title to check their username—but to your utter dismay, you see (and remember) that it’s from a deleted account. 

The user no longer exists.  

God, that can’t be it.

You spend a solid twenty minutes trying to look up ways to retrieve information–contacts, socials, anything–from deleted accounts. No dice. 

Deep in your gut, you know that whatever else you could possibly find on both apps wouldn’t compare to what you’ve already come across.

You’ve officially hit a dead end. 

-

-

-

With heavy limbs and a downtrodden spirit, you haul yourself up from the floor—just to turn around and collapse face first on the sofa. A deep, drawn-out groan escapes you as you shut your eyes for a moment, trying to calm yourself down from all the stuff that’s been boggling your brain. 

It doesn’t seem like you’ll be finding a solid answer to your question (questions–in plural) any time soon. So what else can you do? 

Well, aside from putting away your groceries–the currently-thawing fish and the condensing bags of pre-cut veggies aren’t going to store themselves inside a freezer anytime soon. A loudly meowing ball of fur has also been relentlessly clawing at your leg at the foot of the sofa for the past five minutes, demanding to be fed and petted. 

Whoops. You hastily push yourself back on your feet to address these pressing tasks pronto.

..

…

…..

 (Now that’s out of the way—)

You swipe your phone open–yet again–as you flop back onto the couch. And, maybe, you’re a glutton for punishment. Maybe you’re just a little too over the excitement of the unknown factors in play. Or maybe, you just want another shot—to try one last time–

What you know, though, is that whenever you’re feeling overwhelmed about stuff at work, or you need something to distract yourself with, you open the silly otome game on your phone to make yourself feel better. 

So—that’s exactly what you do. Even if that silly otome game’s now the reason why you’re feeling so goddamned stressed at the moment.

 

Go figure. 

The game boots up. You sullenly glare at the loading bar as it progresses from 35%.... 

68%.... 

95%......... 

Once again, Sylus_v1.0 (!) greets you from the center of the home screen, looking exactly the same as he did last when you opened the app, which was–damn, has it really been over three hours already? 

“At this hour, the day is just getting started,” he remarks nonchalantly, folding his arms across his chest as his eyes drift to whatever’s on his left. 

You give him a dead-eyed stare; slightly wary, but overall unimpressed by the act. “God, I hope the fuck not.” 

There’s no new content since your last proper login, as far as you can tell. At first glance, you see some of the regular, daily badge notifications, but nothing really stands out to you. There’s no unexpected red dot on the mail icon this time, nor is there any on the Hunter Info tab. 

So far, so good. 

With slight hesitation, you begin to speak, even if you aren’t sure whether your intended recipient can actually hear you or not.

“Um, so. I’m really kinda freaking out right now and–” You cut yourself off, swallowing down the frustration building in your throat. There’s an edge to your voice as you speak your next words, “it’s because you’re–you’ve been giving me mixed signals. I–I don’t know what to think anymore-!”

 

He remains unmoving, showing no signs of having registered what you just said. You sigh. 

“Ugh, it sounds like I’m talking to an actual boyfriend or something. This is driving me nuts.”

 

Still no response. 

“Can’t you give me a sign?” You whine defeatedly, trying to catch the eye of the pixelated man on your phone who’s resolutely looking at the right side of the screen. Is he purposely avoiding eye contact or what? “Like… I don’t know–blink twice if you understand what I’m saying right now.” 

He blinks. Once. Fucking—

Does he think this is some kind of joke? 

“I’m gonna poke your dick off,” You threaten him menacingly, your pointer finger at the ready to commit assault. “I swear, I’m gonna do it—” 

Wait. Was that a twitch on his lips? 

Pausing, you narrow your eyes at him, critical in your scrutiny for any sign that might reveal the truth to this stupid charade he’s putting on. Because it’s a charade. It has to be. 

All of a sudden, embarrassment colors your cheeks as it dawns on you what you just said to him. What you’re poised to do. Fuck, you just wanted to get a rise out of him. Test the waters or some shit. Then again, if he’s actually aware– if he CAN actually hear you— 

Quickly, you retract your finger away from where it hovers precariously centimeters above his crotch area. “Right. Sorry.” 

Scrunching your nose, you press the Agenda icon on the corner, resignation sitting heavy in your chest. Since it doesn’t look like you’re getting any answers tonight, you might as well just do your daily tasks while you’re in-game, right? 

So you go through the motions of ticking off each task on the list half-heartedly, collecting the subsequent rewards one by one; just enough to reach the hundred star mark. 

It’s petty, no doubt irrational, but you steer clear from anything that would require you to interact with him. You start off with what’s easiest to complete: gifting Stamina, spending Stamina, spending more Stamina, and buying items from the Shop. 

Speaking of items… You try your best to act indifferent as you catch sight of the staggering number of red dias that has recently come to your possession, there on the upper right corner of the screen. Before you could even recall the other materials so kindly gifted to you the other night, you immediately exit the Store window to go about your business after you’ve finished collecting today’s free loot. 

You breeze through the Bounty Hunts and Core Hunt stages with excessive use of the Auto Pursuit option, rinsing and repeating until you’re almost out of energy. You don’t want to risk playing an actual battle, since your strongest Memory Cards are from the man you’re currently giving the cold shoulder to.

Also, you have no idea what to expect once you enter combat mode–and right now, you can’t be damned to know. 

Before you know it, you’re done with the daily Agenda. Close enough, at least. You didn’t even have to interact with the white-haired male LYLA wannabe to get the hundred golden stars. Go, you. 

Without anything left to do, you’re back to staring at the–now seated–man on the homescreen who’s still intent on avoiding you. There’s Mephisto perched on his finger, appearing in a plume of black feathers, projecting a holographic screen for the Onychinus leader to scroll through whatever evil juju he’s been up to lately—the very picture of calm detachment. 

Almost a minute passes by. 

You can’t help it. Poke. Pokepokepokepoke—

“Once you’re trapped in life’s banality, the only thing left is “staying alive.”"

“Oh, for the love of—is that a hint or not?!”

You really wish you could’ve talked to the person on Reddit about this. Ask them whether their version of Rafayel had also been this difficult, this uncooperative. It can’t be that different from what you’re dealing with, could it? 

Just a chance to talk… You brood wistfully. To know what’s happening to them right now. Ask them for advice on how to provoke some type of reactio—

Suddenly, something clicks in your brain, and you almost bite your tongue to prevent the spark of anticipation from showing on your face.  

"Alright, you win," you concede with an exaggerated sigh, raising your arms over your head to appear as if you’re simply stretching away the stiffness in your muscles. You try to inject as much reluctance in your tone. “You’re really not going to budge, huh?” 

Again, you’re met with radio silence—not that you’re expecting a response at this point. 

(Well, not yet.) 

“That’s fine…” You trail off deliberately, drawing lazy lines across the screen with your pointer finger, until it stops right before the small message icon on the left. 

With feigned innocence, you muse, “Hey, I wonder how Xavier's been doing lately.” 

…

A beat. You almost believe nothing would come out of your last, and obvious, attempt at goading him but then— 

Sylus throws his head back with a sigh, casting an almost exasperated glance at the ceiling. He flicks his wrist dismissively, and Mephisto vanishes in a puff of dark smoke. There’s an unsettling fluidity in the way his gaze shifts toward you; disconcertingly lifelike, when his eyes finally–finally–lock onto yours. An intensity behind those red eyes that makes the look feel unnervingly deliberate. 

Your breath catches in your throat. There it is. The reaction you’re looking for.

A weary amusement frames the way he tilts his head sideways–with the way the corners of his mouth curve into a mocking smile, eyes never leaving yours.

He raises an eyebrow up as if to say, now what?

“I knew it,” you whisper shakily, eyes widening into saucers. “I fucking knew it.” 

“Mm, took you long enough.” 

Before you could even react to that, Sylus flashes you a two-finger salute and winks.

The game crashes. 

“Oh, no, you don’t—" you growl, not wasting any second tapping the game icon again. It doesn’t even give you a chance to reach the main menu before it glitches, and you’re back staring at the widgets on your phone’s home screen. “Motherfucker.” 

You keep trying. 

And with every attempt, Sylus, freak of nature that he is, responds with another system crash. On the eight try, you succeed on entering the game and you feel a sense of relief seeing the loading bar—before, lo and behold, it crashes once more. 

Your left eye twitches. Inhaling deeply, you hold your breath for a solid fifteen seconds before sharply exhaling through your nose.

You jab a finger on the icon of his dumb face again. You ought to change that shit as soon as this game of chicken lets up. 

“You’re gonna let me open this app, Sy-Sy,” You sang with faux cheer. “Or, swear to god, I’m uninstalling this thing before you could even—”   

… It loads successfully before you could even finish your sentence. 

“Alright, alright.” 

There he is; closer to the screen now, wearing a faint smile, as though trying to stifle a full-on grin from breaking across his face. He looks thoroughly entertained by the entire situation, like it’s the most fun he’s had in ages. “Hi, sweetheart.” 

“You–you—” Sputtering, you glare at him, betrayal in your eyes. “You’re a fucking ass!” 

“And you’re an absolute delight to play with, kitten,” Sylus coos at you, his smirk widening. But when he catches the trembling jut on your bottom lip, the amused glint in his eyes softens into something that almost seems sympathetic, and dare you say–apologetic? 

“For what it’s worth, I’ve just been waiting for the right moment to tell you. I couldn’t resist teasing you a little—but looking at you now, I see I might’ve taken it too far,” he murmurs, bowing his head slightly in a show of contrition. “I’m sorry, little dove.”

You press your lips together, your gaze darting away from the screen. “I thought I was going crazy.” As opposed to now? “B-but, um–it’s all good, I guess.”

A flush creeps up your neck when you hear him chuckle. 

Fuck, this is really happening, the hysterical thought rushes to your mind, unbidden. Chat, what’s the plan?

Tagging: @xxfaithlynxx @beewilko @browneyedgirl22 <3

[tweedlydumbtweedlydoo]

Glasses | Spencer Reid x reader

Summary: Spencer shows up in new glasses and it awakens some new feelings for your fellow BAU agent. 

A/N: I wrote this a month ago procrastinating studying for my exam 4 on Tuesday after I saw this GIF and finally finished it tonight. so here it is - hope you enjoy! this is NOT proofread. Sorry for any mistakes.  

Tag list is at the end. Let me know if you want to be added xx

Go follow my fic rec blog! ---> @imaginationgonewild0912

**MASTERLIST**

Requests: {OPEN} CLOSED

** Rules for Requesting **

** Who I Write For **

********************************************************************************************NOT MY GIF, CREDIT TO OWNERS

**Aye Warning: this is PG 13 - little raunchy at the end * 

You and your fellow agents sat around the round table in the conference room. A new case had come to light, JJ gathering you all before you even had time to sit down at your desk. Fresh coffee sat in front of you and just the smell brought comfort. You glanced around the table, missing one of your agents. Spencer. Usually he beat you to work every morning, reprimanding and teasing you about it. 

“If you’d drink the coffee here instead of stopping every morning on your way to work, you’d actually be on time and beat me here.” Spencer teases following you through the glass double doors. He was in his usual work attire - slacks and a button up. His hair a curly mess. His messenger bag hung over his shoulder. 

You turned around to face him, walking backwards a few steps and made a face, mocking him, “I’m not drinking that tap water you all call coffee.” You saluted your coffee cup toward him, “I will always be late for a nice, fresh cup of coffee.” 

“Where’s Spencer?” You asked, sipping on your coffee and flipping open the case file JJ tossed in front of you. 

She took a moment to glance around the room, perplexed Spencer wasn’t here yet. “I actually don’t know.” She peeked out the window overlooking the rest of the office, “Usually he beats you here.”

JJ went on with the meeting, turning on the TV screen to show pictures of the crime scene and now the next missing and possible victim. 

“Sorry I’m late-” Spencer says, out of breath as he enters the room in a rush. “I had an appointment and it ran later than expected -” He tosses his bag on the ground with a thud, sitting down and oblivious to the surprised looks from his fellow agents. 

Glasses. Spencer was wearing glasses. Your jaw dropped at this new sight, the pen you were chewing on, hanging against your lips. You wouldn’t disagree, Spencer Reid was a very attractive man. I mean you’d admitted that multiple times, but he was also your coworker. A relationship with a coworker could create a rocky atmosphere for the BAU.

He always been an eye candy to look at, however, this new look tossed you over the edge, changing something inside you. You needed him. His touch, his lips against yours. You were overwhelmed with such affection and adoration. Where was this coming from? Immediately your mind went dirty, your face flushed with embarrassment at having those thoughts, scared someone else could hear them. 

Spencer met your eyes from across the table, a new twinkle in his eye, “What did I miss?” He’d noticed the effect he had on you, he could read you like a book. 

You couldn’t even look him the eye. God what was this man doing to you. A wave of warmth was felt through your body; spreading to your core as new fantasies come to light. A dark mahogany desk... Spencer in a button up, loosening the tie around his neck. Oh god. You sat up quickly as if you were just touched by a hot poker and composed yourself, “JJ was just telling us about the last victims who were found-” Your eyes pleadingly glanced at JJ and the screen behind her. 

“Right anyways-” 

~ 

Everyone had settled into their seats on the jet and you stood, slipping behind the curtain to grab a water bottle from the mini fridge. When you stood back up, you were met with Spencer’s chest, “Shit--Spencer.” 

“Did I scare you?” He smiles in triumph, “You’re so jumpy.” He tilted his head as he observed the change in you. 

You stepped out of the way as Spencer reached for mini fridge, fumbling for an excuse. “Watched a scary movie last night.” 

He hums in response turning to face you, the small countertop digging into your back as you tried to put enough space between you and Spencer. “Which movie?” He glances back over his shoulder, checking the curtain is closed. 

You glanced around him as well, wondering what he was looking for, but finally meeting his eyes, “oh you know.. I think it was scream?” 

He closes the space between the two of you, slipping his hands behind you and  placing them firmly on the countertop behind you. 

“Spencer!” A quiet gasp escaped your lips as his body pressed against yours. 

“Shhh...” He places his index against your lips as he leans in close, the smell of his aftershave and minty breath hitting you in a wave. His breath is hot against your neck as his lips dance along your neck. 

Your entire body submits to his touch. oh god. 

“Wouldn’t want them to know what we’ve been up to these last couple months, now would we?” 

Comments, likes and reblogs are always greatly appreciated! x 

This tag list is an old one. 

Criminal Minds tag list: @thelovelydreamer17​ , @la-vie-en-amour1 , @mrs-joel-pimentel-23-25 , @astra-inclinant-sed-non-obligant (possibly: @astra-x-inclinant)  , @bluerose512 , @lolychu​ , @varsityalthete

All my works tag list:  @blossomreed​ , @mggstyles  , @simonsbluee​ , @thewolf-and-thesheep , @obxrafe , @abbiesthings , @itstaskeen​ , @reniescarlett​

[haikyu-mp4]

I would like to listen to One Thing with Futakuchi 🫶🏻

(This is such an adorable event!!!)

Now playing... One Thing

word count; 715 – f!reader, for my 1D x Haikyu event

“Have a great day!” you told the old lady who just bought a few peonies, appreciating her smile because you knew she would return when they wilted.

“You too, dear!”

A young man held the door open for her on his way inside, nodding politely before walking up to where you were arranging some flowers by the register.

“Hello, how can I help you today?” you asked, finally getting a good look at him. He was handsome, no doubt, quite tall and sporting a boyish charm.

“I need to get flowers for my grandmother. Probably roses or something is fine,” he said, so you pointed him towards the corner where you had a wide selection of roses.

“Roses are a classic,” you answered, a practised response by now, but then you sighed before adding another flower to the arrangement in your hands. “-but quite boring.”

The man stopped and turned back around to you, now having lifted one eyebrow that you mirrored as a challenge. “They’re for my grandma,” he said.

“Guess you’re not her favourite, then.”

He huffed and shook his head, but the grin told you he enjoyed this. Walking back over, he leaned both hands on the counter and tilted his head slightly. “Okay, flower genius. What would you suggest?”

You held eye contact and lifted the finished bouquet you had been preparing, which included a beautiful mix of some of your personal favourites. “This right here is a real winner, I’m telling you.”

“Is this what the grandmas like nowadays? Didn’t know they were so picky.”

“Anyone can buy flowers. The real winners are those who put a little heart into it.”

“Just saying she would be thankful for anything.”

“Probably, if that’s all she’s used to getting.”

While people rushed by outside on their way to wherever life was taking them, the two of you were completely caught up in this moment, eyeing each other like you were committing each detail of each others’ faces to memory without the other one noticing.

“You’re good.” He finally rolled his eyes and held up his credit card and you could just make out his last name on it before typing in the price with a little teasing cheer of victory. Futakuchi.

“I know.” Futakuchi took the opportunity to stare at you more pointedly. Obviously, you’re gorgeous, but even more attractive was how you kept up with the banter. Your last name was on your name tag and he almost accidentally said it out loud while repeating it in his head.

It was still repeating on a loop when he returned a week later, storming into your little flower shop. “Could you make another one of those bouquets?”

“Futakuchi,” you exclaimed in surprise at how suddenly he appeared while you were reorganising pots by the door. Thankfully, he didn’t seem to notice that you knew and remembered his name. “The same as last time? What for?”

As he answered, you brushed past him to gather all the flowers you needed to make what he wanted. “A girl I like.”

You wiggled your eyebrows, carrying everything to the register and beginning right away. “Oo, a special lady.”

Futakuchi huffed sharply, reminding you of the last time he was here as you glanced up for a glimpse of his charming smile. “She’s special, all right. Can’t figure out why, but she’s been on my mind.”

He asked what your name was and told you his in return, making time fly by telling you how his grandma loved the flowers he bought last time. Your hands worked with ease, threading the flowers together in a perfect balance to ensure whoever he gave this to would feel their heart quicken the same way yours did right now.

After he paid, your lips formed a straight line, assuming he would leave with the finished bouquet, but instead, he held it out to you over the counter with a sheepish smile. “Would you let me take you out for dinner?”

You grinned widely and accepted the flowers, hiding behind them as your cheeks burned. The stuff he said earlier was about you. “I’ll allow it.”

Futakuchi initiated his mission to make her get out of my head and fall into my arms instead.

And we all know it worked.

masterlist

[deadly-diminuendo]

deadly(-)diminuendo's fic masterlist

Here is my humble little collection of Astarion fanfiction.

Please note these are all explicit and intended for an adult audience.

I'm slowly but surely adding more to this list! I do not take any fic requests, but feel free to send asks or dms!

My AO3

You can also check out my writing related posts using these tags: #my fics | #my wips | #my writing If you would like me to include you on tag games, or if you would like to be part of my tag list, check out this post (or let me know in some other way)!

The Ascendant Takes a Bride | Ascended Astarion x Fem!NonTav | Post-Game | ~4.4k words

Just as you and your family are about to fall into ruin, you agree to marry the mysterious Astarion Ancunín in exchange for his promise to pay off all your debts. Attractive and charming though he is, you cannot help but to feel nervous about your arrangement. Some say he is a vampire. You have seen evidence that both supports and counters that claim. You are not sure what to believe. Finally you find yourself alone with him on your wedding night—and Astarion has some unexpected surprises in store for you.

Read on AO3 | Read on Tumblr

A Fitting Reunion | Spawn Astarion x Fem!Tav | Post-Game | *IN PROGRESS* 1/3 | ~3.7k words so far

After a rather embarrassing experience at the reunion party, you have been nervous to see Astarion again. You manage to gather the courage to visit his tailoring shop for dress alterations—and to be a better friend to him. And maybe there is just a little part of you that still hopes for something more. But he couldn’t possibly want that—or could he?

Read on AO3 | (to be posted on Tumblr when complete!)

Sweet Dreams, Darling | Spawn Astarion x Fem!Tav | Act 3 | ~4.1k words | CW: somnophilia / cnc

An evening spent reading a racy romance novel awakens a fantasy you never knew you had. The thought of your sleeping body becoming a thing to be used for someone else's pleasure brings you an unexpected thrill. Of course Astarion catches you in the act and of course he cannot resist teasing you. But he is willing to indulge you.

Read on AO3 | Read on Tumblr

Those Three Little Words | Spawn Astarion x Fem!Tav | Post-Game | ~1k words

Every year you and Astarion return to the place where he began his life anew and every year you indulge in your love for each other. (Or: a short and saccharine tribute to graveyard sex)

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You Were My First | Spawn Astarion x Fem!Tav | Act 1 | ~3.9k words

The night he bit you, Astarion awakened something unexpected within you: desire. You offer to let him bite you again, only to receive a more scandalous offer in return. And though you have never before had a lover, you have never felt more tempted.

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You Will Know | Ascended Astarion x Fem!Tav | Post-Game | ~9.1k words | CW: non-con (Haarlep using Tav's form)

Every time I make love in your shape, you will know. There are two mistakes you regret more than anything. One, helping Astarion complete the ritual that changed him into someone you no longer recognize. Two, giving your body away to an incubus, an eternal pact from which you can never break free. Haarlep has begun to take your form almost every night, making it impossible to forget your pact, impossible to forget the nights you shared with the man you once loved, all while a stranger ravishes you from beyond. Only it isn’t a stranger at all.

Read on AO3

Coming Next:

a post-game Spawn Astarion x Reader Tav menstruation kink oneshot

the rest of A Fitting Reunion

[echantedtoon]

Demonstober Day 9 Marionette

A small-scale usually wooden figure (as of a person) with jointed limbs that is moved from above by manipulation of the attached strings or wires.

(Warnings for mentioning of death. The song used is Circus Monster (English Cover) by Jubyphonic

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=aQgXq42nD8I&pp=ygUcY2lyY3VzIG1vbnN0ZXIgZW5nbGlzaCBjb3Zlcg%3D%3D 

Inspired by @whisperinghallwaysofmirrors Marionette Enmu story and the original Marionette Enmu art by @venompeach so please check them out.)

Edit: Here's a link to their story please support them and their writing.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/54554677

Tagging: @lavenderdropp @six-eyed-samurai @trancylovecraft @shadyd3ar @cherrysuzaku

@nousija

Remember if you want to be added to the spooktober taglist lemme know

Perhaps you should've known better than to go urban exploring on Halloween. 

But you were bored. 

You were too old for trick or treating. Handing out candy got tiring way too fast because it just meant you kept having to get up in the middle of doing whatever you were going multiple times your feet hurt by the end of the night. No good horror movies were playing tonight. And the costume party you originally planned on going to was cancelled because your friend's dog got really sick from eating the candy he left out for the trick or treaters. 

The thought of jokingly messing around with a ouija board crossed your mind, but you've seen enough horror movies to know THAT was an absolutely stupid idea! So you were left to endlessly scroll through your phone trying to find something to entertain yourself with until you came across an urban explorer blogging himself and his partner walking through an abandoned house on the side of the road and ended up finding some antiques in good condition worth a fortune. 

And that's when it hit you.

YOU COULD DO THAT!!

It'd be just like going to one of those cheesy haunted house attractions but without the cheap tricks and people in costumes. Plus you might find some cool old stuff to keep and if nothing else, it'll satisfy your bored mind if you go. Surely the only dangers were possible mold growing on the old walls or wild animals making their home in the abandoned walls. And what luck an old theater was within walking distance of your home. Not your first choice for your first time urban exploring but let's be honest.

An abandoned theater on Halloween sounded way more exciting than sitting on your porch just handing out candy to hyper little kids. 

So you gathered up the proper equipment you'd need for this adventure. Flashlight, spare batteries, phone, a mask in case of mold, and of course a backpack to carry everything in. You made your way out into the setting sun's light. Naturally there was already people out here walking around mostly parents walking their little kids around trick or treating or teenagers out seeking  out candy or going to play tricks...You hoped your house didn't get egged while you out.

The moon rose higher and higher in the sky as the sun fully set and allowed the night to fully make the darkness creep in. As you walked the streets it slowly became less crowded and the houses covered in decorations became less and less the farther you walked. Your footsteps echoed from every step you took against the pavement, and the only lights being the street lamps and your phone's screen as you followed directions via Google to the location of the old theater. It was a bit farther from you than expected, about an hour and ten minutes of walking, but it was still the closest one to you and you craved that Halloween scare. 

The lamps shown down upon you as you continued to walk through the darkened streets and walked past businesses long closed for the day near the edge of town. An eerie flickering light casted over you as the cold wind blew send a shiver down your spine with only your shadow as company. It sure felt like a creepy Halloween night. The footsteps echoing throughout the empty streets slowly came to a slow stop alongside a tall wire fence with a very large yellow 'no trespassing' sign hung to it. 

You looked at the tall fence and turned your attention to the massive dark building behind the iron gates. The building was old and worn as you expected. After all it had been abandoned since the nineteen twenties. The sight of the building long since abandoned and worn down by time almost seemed to mock the young woman in front of it, daring you to enter at your own risk. The implication making you swallow a lump in your throat.

You've only heard rumors about what happened here but rumor was that an actor died on stage while doing a hypnosis act, however he had been a scam artist but no one could prove it. So one of his victims, a stage hand and fellow actor, decided to drop a rather heavy sand bag on his head during another one of his acts. The impact killed him instantly. In order to mock him further, a puppet was made to look exactly like the old scam artist and the killer did acts with it. After only two shows the Director put a stop to the gruesome shows and ordered the man to get rid of the puppet. However the next day when they returned to the theater-

The man was found dead with his marionette's hands around his throat- 

CRASH-!!

You let out a small shriek and whirled around towards the sounds of crashing metal. A crash can fell over from the entrance of an alley as a stray cat meowed loudly before running away into the darkness. A sigh of relief escaped your throat. Well you were looking for a good Halloween scare. Guess you got one. Shaking your head, you looked back to the large building and sucked in a breath.

Get a hold of yourself. It was only rumors and even if someone died here there was no such things as ghosts or haunted puppets. This place was probably just abandoned because radios and TV was more popular than going to see someone act during those times. With a deep breath of encouragement, you shook yourself and quickly looked up and down the empty streets before putting your phone away and grabbing onto the chain link fence. It was easy to get up and then jump down on the other side. The building was even more creepy in person as you looked up at it. Hearing it creeping lightly against the wind as you walked up to the front noticing the boarded up doors and windows that you couldn't get through. Luckily you found a hole in the side of the building probably collapsed in by old age from the building and just big enough for you to squeeze through.

You had to suck in your guts and take your backpack off for a moment but you managed to get inside on top of what felt like a scruffy rub, and switch on your flashlight. The light flashed making you blink a little bit from the sudden light filling the space but you were able to get a good look at the surroundings. Like you suspected under your feet was a shaggy dark grey-green carpet with holes and threads sticking out of the floor at all corners. At the sides of you were old walls and feeling faded beige wall paper tearing a lot of places and showing the chipping wood underneath. 

The light caught dust floating about in the air mentally thanking yourself for remembering the mask to avoid breathing it in, and a few cobwebs here and there where the old ceiling connected to the walls. The only sources of light was your strong flashlight and the hole in the wall you shifted through with minimal moonlight seeping in. With a deep breath, you took a step forward and began walking down the dark hall. The floor boards creaked under your weight and the carpet gave an uncomfortable crunchy sensation from the years of not being taken cared of. The air stale and cold from the fall weather outside. Sure was spooky in here but you were comforted by the fact that you knew there was no such thing as ghosts. 

As you walked, the light caught onto the few papers as you passed noticing that they were in fact old posters advertising the old acts that they must've used to do here. A puppeteer, dances, a play or two, and one that fell into the floor advertising a hypnosis act. Huh. The legend mentioned a hypnotist. A quick glance to it had the words 'Enmu Tamio the Amazing Hypnotist. Cures of the mind for the mind. Depression and fear gone'. You couldn't make out anything else because the pictures were long since too blurry and faded. Perhaps a part of the rumors was true.

You traveled farther up the hall until it split into two other long halls going left or right. The light shines both ways and neither looked different from each other so you went left. The floorboards still creaking under your weight. Have to admit, so far it's not really that scary. More dusty than anything else. Continuing to walk, the hallway turned right towards a longer hall than normal and you found a rather peculiar sight of doors on either side. Was this the bathroom area? A sign catching onto an old sign on the wall told you all you needed to know.

"Employees Only." Your head shines back up the hallway of doors. "This must've been the dressing rooms for the actors." You mumbled to yourself and began to walk forward.

Out of curiousity you reached out to try the first door, it opened- AND SOMETHING RUSHED OUT FROM THE DARKEST! You gasped and fumbled back as it fell to the floor with a clatter! Revealing itself to be-!...A broom..and a bucket rolling out with it. You blinked shining your light into the broom closet, before groaning, and kicking aside the cleaning supplies to walk your way up towards the other doors.

Some had names still hung up on the doors. 'Daki Shabana the Great Ballerina'. Recruitment Office.' 'Iguru Obanai the Snake Charmer.' Some didn't. But most were locked tight when you tried to get in, however you did find a few open. An old changing room with what looked like old burlesque outfits hung up on a rack. The showgirls changing room no doubt. A quick look around lead you to find a few cool trinkets like an antique watch and an old music box still in good condition shaped like a little merry-go-round. You threw them all in your bag before continuing to move on. Continuing onwards, you found one name that you thought was intriguing.

"Enmu Tamio."

That name was on the poster from before. The Hypnotist. The light moved from the sign on the door towards the knob, and was shocked to find the door cracked open already. Probably came loose when the locks rusted away or someone didn't lock it up when the place was abandoned. Despite the shiver that ran down your spine, your hand slowly reached out and pushed it. 

CRRRFREEEAAAKKK-

The loud creek echoed throughout the hallway and your light shines inside. The room...was unsurprisingly normal. A large vanity was in the far left side with a mirror that reflected your flashlight. A wardrobe against the other wall left wide open and empty. A suit case or two lining the floors, and a few old posters lined up the wall. Advertising the guy's hypnosis acts and strangely one or two trains. You looked around at the room finding nothing of value except for one of the posters etched with the art of a man.

Ah. Was that Mr. Hypnotist?

He looked like a man no taller than yourself, with short black hair falling to just above his shoulders. He posed smiling holding up one of those old timey pocket watches on a chain. Yeah. You expected that much. Deciding to leave the dressing room, you slowly made your way down the hallway and towards wherever it lead to. A couple more dressing rooms caught your eye but nothing too strange until you got to the very last one. 

"Petro Peterson the World's Greatest Puppeteer."

Ah. So there was a puppeteer amongst the performers here. So perhaps the part of the puppeteer killing the Hypnotist was true? You would've tried to open the door but there was no knobs and old chipped planks boarded up most of the door. Well that was certainly ominous. But you still moved on, walking away from the rooms and turning a corner where it was especially dark. Your flashlight could barely light up more than three yards in front of you as you continued to walk. The carpeted floor was gone now replaced by just creaky wood. You couldn't see anything no matter how much you squinted in the dark. Barely being able to see-

Until something brushed up against your face-

"AH?!"

You fumbled for the light nearly dropping the flashlight before flashing it up towards the thing still dangling from the dark above your head. The light caught onto it, swaying back and forth from you swatting it. You panted as it harmlessly hung there... before you blinked.

"A rope?"

A brownish-grey rope dangled from the dark rafters above. Your light couldn't the top but you saw other ropes dangling from the ceiling too. A quick sweep of the floor had you noticing a torn open sandbag spilling it's contents all over the floor, and to your far right was a massive of felt also dangling from the ceiling. A curtain?

"I must've wondered backstage," you mumbled to yourself. 

Great. But no worries. If that was the curtains then the stage was right in front of you and you could exit through the audience entryway. Sounded like a good plan. This place was starting to get tiring fast.  Making your way towards the big velvety curtains, you moved your hands to push away the ropes from your body and walk towards the curtains. The curtains were filled with moth holes and dust floated into the air like a cloud of smoke when you pushed Against it. Good thing you had the mask. You continued along the curtains until you managed to find a gape in the curtains and began your way through. Pushing past curtains after curtain until you felt a break through-

You helped with a stumble as you fell through the maze of curtains and finally stumbled onto stage. Taking a minute to compose yourself, you sighed and brushed the dust off  your body. Packing yourself off before shining your flashlight around and noticing the stage and the area between the stage and the rows of seats for the audience. You didn't know what that space was called but it was where musicians would play as the shows were played out on stage. By the looks of it, they abandoned the instruments too. Most of which looked damaged beyond repair. Ok. Now you could exit through the audience entrance up there. Where was the steps off stage? Your steps echoed throughout the entire room as you carefully swept your light across the floor searching and searching-

Until you bumped into something that rattled.

Your flashlight pointed up to the thing before you.

A face shined within the lights glow-

"AAAHH!!"

Your shriek despite being muffled by the mask, echoed throughout the entire stage. A flashlight clattered to the ground a d rolled a few feet away. You stumbled back falling onto your bottom and scooting away quickly looking up in horror at the person in front of you.

And silence ensued.

Your terrified form panted staring up at the shadowed figure as it continued to gently sway...Then you blinked as it continued to do nothing. Wait a minute. Crawling over to grab the flashlight, you shined it up at the massive figure, only to be astonished by what you saw.

A puppet?

No...wait..Not a puppet. Well it was. But it was a specific TYPE of puppet.

A marionette?!

A life sized marionette. 

You continued to stare at it before slowly getting back up to look at it closer. The face was still, made of wood but the paint hadn't faded by some miracle. It's eyes closed and you could see the lines by the mouth were it moved. The hair was a bit scruffy but not in bad shape, and the outfit it wore was worn out with one of two tears, and faded from a white-beige almost leotard like costume to a full grey from age and dust. You hesitated but reached out a hand to knock on it's face... before standing back to shine the lights towards the top. 

Barely Visible strings held it off the ground as it continued to sway. ..Did they seriously leave a man sized marionette hanging here when they abandoned this place? And why did they make it so big?! It was creepy! And yet- ...You noticed something about it. One of the glass blue eyes WAS open. Seemingly staring at you in the light. And it was starting to come out of place.

Reaching out, you gently reached out to the eye and pushed it back into place with a small pop, before reaching up to rub down his hair so it wasn't sticking up, and lastly straighten up his clothes. Might not make a difference since you'll just leave it here, but at least it looked better. 

"There.  Pretty as a flower. Now where's those steps?"

Your light turned away from the puppet to start combing the stage Again. You only might have taken five steps before a giant noise caused you to jump!

CLICK!

And then a massive blast of light flashed on behind you. The sudden light in the darkness had you whirling around in shock, holding up a hand to block out some of the light blinding you. Eyes blinked soon enough as they were able to fill the darkness and you froze as you realized that it was the stage lights that were on shining down and lighting up the entire stage. What the-

A loud blast of music sounded out behind you that sounded like..Sax and violin? You whirled around but was further stumped to find no one else seated in the musicians places behind you. What the- 

"What the heck is going on?!"

"Time is dead and gone.~ Show must go on.~ It's time for our our act.~ They all scream at me.~ They cannot see this curtain hides me.~ An amazing gift.~ So quick and swift.~ You are amazing.~"

A melodist voice wafted over from behind you that sent chills down your spine and goosebumps on your skin. Fear infected your veins like a virus as you stood frozen amongst the noises...and then your head slowly turned around.

"By myself I can't.~ They start to chant.~ Why are you not here?~ Grinning at me.~ I lay at my knees.~ They want to hear me.~ Why can they not see?~"

Rapid clicking sounds accompanied wood. Twirling, twirling. Round and round on one leg. Like a ballerina. Audience of not enjoying the rapid beating of it's own musical heart center stage. Breathing life to the void present.

"I want to see you.~ I have to see you.~ I need to see you.~ What happened to you?~ We go up on stage.~ They jump to enrage.~ Why are you not here?~Why is he so near?~ He wants me to sing.~ I just cannot bring. I say he's not you.~ What else can I do?~"

The marionette..Was MOVING!! Twirling around in a pirouette like a ballerina, mouth open a d singing.

HOW?! 

Your mouth was wide and eyes were wide open in shock before you shook your head and looked around. This had to be a prank! Someone here was messing with you! You accidentally hit an on switch somewhere. Someone was trying to scare you out!

SOMETHING!! But no matter where you shined your light or looked you couldn't see anyone or any machine you might've activated to move stuff around. You looked back to the moving puppet- And froze dead in your tracks as it had stopped twirling around to strike a pose. Glass blue eyes stared at you and a smile on the wooden face. A lump formed in your throat as it moved on its own accord upon tiptoes doing that tip toe walk ballerinas were know for.

"Singing it's silent of misery.~  A monster lies trapped in its own nightmare.~ He is a tyrant.~ He let's out a plea.~ Why did she have to leave it all alone?~ 

It was only then with sheer horror that you realized that it was tip toe dancing over to you. Unfortunately you realized that too late.

"Bound to sing for us.~ A worthless monster.~ It never sees us ~ It despises us.~ Lying so useless we start to holler.~ Hey get up you worthless circus monster.~"

It was right in front of you now. Looming over you so close that if you moved, your face would hit it's wooden head. Glass eyes blinked at you ..and with a thud sound the flashlight and back pack fell out of your hands. It seemed to find amusement in this as it smiled wider, and all of a sudden the tight feeling of a hand grabbing yours and an arm around your waist was on you.

"I lay all alone. I should've known you would've left me.~ He smiles at me.~ I cannot see why he's in your place.~ They can't tell me why you said goodbye right before our act.~ Those two lions were always fun.~ Why did they leave too?~"

You were suddenly forced into some waltz. Instinctively your other hand grabbed onto him as your terrified form was made to step in time with this thing's tune.

"Roaring at me.~ I lay on my knees. What is happening?~ I can hear you sing.~ They will not obey.~ They've been lead astray.~  Will I still see you?~ I have to see you.~ I panic and flee.~ They both pounce on me.~ I fell to ground.~ I fell to the ground.~"

You tried to pull away as this thing made you dance around with it like some puppet. Forget trying to figure out what was going on! You had to get out of this. However when you looked back up...

You paused once again.

"I look up to see you're not here with me.~  Am I all alone?~ Where could you have gone?~ Singing it's silent of misery.~ A monster lies trapped in its own nightmare.~ He is a tyrant.~ He let's out a plea.~ Why did she have to leave it all alone?~ Bound to sing for us.~ A worthless monster.~ It never sees us ~ It despises us.~ Lying so useless we start to holler.~ Hey get up you worthless circus monster.~"

Something like water was seeping out of the glass eyes and falling down the thing's cheeks and dripping off in time with the steps you both took. Was this thing..crying? Could this thing even be capable of crying.

The song continued on its own melody and you only watched in awe as it moved out of its own accord.

"Singing it's silent of misery.~ A monster lies trapped in its own nightmare.~ He is a tyrant.~ He let's out a plea.~ Why did she have to leave it all alone?~ Bound to sing for us.~ A worthless monster.~ It never sees us ~ It despises us.~ Lying so useless we start to holler.~ Hey get up you worthless circus monster.~"

Things slowly came to a stop. And there you both stood you stared at the thing before with one last big smile it's eyes closed and it just-

Fell limp.

It's arms flopped down only to be suspended by thin air by the strings. It's eyes closed. Head hung. 

CLICK!!

With a massive sound the lights once again turned off leaving you in pure darkness except for the distant sounds of your flashlight on the floor. Music gone. Silent darkness settled. Like it never even happened.

...

Footsteps slowly stumbled about towards the darkness and a second later a flashlight was picked up and the backpack was swung over your shoulders. More footsteps approached the marionette on the stage once again. Shining the light upon the face that was still limp. However the traces of tears still remained... Eventually you tapped it with your flashlight.

"Hey...A-Are you still awake?"

No response. You walked around to face it's front.

"Are you that Enmu Hypnotist guy from the posters?"

The thing moved- You flinched as the blue eyes once more snapped open and turned towards you.  Glass eyes shining in the light.

"...How did you die?"

It didn't answer. Instead in blinked before it's head turned to the far left. Curious your light shined where it was looking at. You saw nothing but the floor until it shines up on something you didn't notice before. A spiderweb like crack in the otherwise normal floorboards and the faint color of rust...Blood long since cleaned up but stained forever into the wood.

"Oh my god. ...How long have you been here?"

"A long time."

You shined your light back up to the puppet that turned it's head to you. "I thought you were talking. .. Can't you leave?"

"Nope."

"Why not?"

To answer, the thing gave a few tugs of an arm and you noticed. The strings. Were they the things thing his ghost here or something? You continued to stare at him before putting the flashlight between your teeth and grabbing his arm. You completely put your weight into it and with its old age snapped easily.

Immediately you let go as the wooden appendage moved and flexed without the string to move it. Those eyes blinked before turning to you before you grabbed onto his other arm.

"What are you doing?"

"Either something really good or really crazy. Let's find out which."

[rose-sophia-isabella-rogers]

A Soothing Rain of His: Chapter VII - The Winter Fete

Chapter Summary: The biggest party of the year arrives and Alina is attraction of the show. Once, you would cheer her on. But you feel she's stealing Aleksander from you. Things between you and him are on the edge. Will your love prevail? Or will you leave and break your hearts?

Pairing: Aleksander Kirigan/Reader, Ivan/Fedyor Kaminsky

Characters: Aleksander Kirigan, Reader, Ivan, Alina Starkov, Nadia Zhabin, Genya Safin, Marie, Fedyor Kaminsky

Word Count: 4425

A/N: This chapter contains some plot from fifth episode of season one. Inspired by prompts: https://pl.pinterest.com/pin/207306389089584627/ https://pl.pinterest.com/pin/207306389089684667/ https://pl.pinterest.com/pin/207306389089684644/ https://pl.pinterest.com/pin/207306389089683684/ https://pl.pinterest.com/pin/207306389089683626/ https://pl.pinterest.com/pin/207306389089559817/ https://pl.pinterest.com/pin/207306389089683636/ https://pl.pinterest.com/pin/207306389089559893/

Tag list (let me know if you want to be added or removed):

@budugu

@intothesoul

@mizelophsun11

@pansexualwitchwhoneedstherapy

@zeeader

It's been months since Alina came to the Little Palace. You knew things would change, but you didn't know they would do it that much. Because now you've been barely spending time with Aleksander. Sure, he still shows you he loves you whenever you two are alone. Kisses. Smiles. Laughing. But you can't remember the last time you two went somewhere together. Or you were kidnapped because you used to be his servant. You missed this all (maybe except for the kidnapping part). You missed him.

The day of the winter fete arrives. It's probably the most lavish party of the year, held at the Little Palace towards the end of the winter season. During it, among other festivities, some Grisha demonstrate their powers to the delight of the gathered.

That day, you are in Alina's room with her, Nadia and Marie. You, the Sun Summoner and the Squaller are having a blast, laughing at the poor Inferni, who panicked when she was asked on a date.

'I panicked,' she tries to defend herself. 'Nobody's ever asked to spend time with me before.'

'So you set him on fire?' Alina asks and you cackle.

'It was an accident,' Marie insists.

'The Squallers had to launch him right into the lake,' Nadia says

'So, set ablaze, then nearly drowned,' Alina says. 'You've made quite a first impression.'

Marie groans, touching her forehead. The rest of you laugh. Just then the door opens and Genya walks in with a servant.

'Hi, Genya,' you all say.

'They need you for the kefta,' Genya says to Marie.

'No, I'm so late,' Marie says and dashes for the door. 'Nadia, come on!'

Nadia follows her, slower, and soon they leave the room. You stand up from your seat and smile at Alina.

'I better get going, too,' you say and head toward the door. 'See you all later!'

'I hope you'll like your kefta,' Genya calls after you.

'I'm sure I will!' you assure her and leave the room. But instead of going to your chambers, you take a walk. You watch the preparations for the fete with a smile.

You're not exactly surprised, when in the end your feet take you to Aleksander's chambers. You walk inside, looking around. You don't see him, but you hear a voice from the bedroom:

'Ivan! My kefta!'

You notice his kefta on a table. You grab it and enter his bedroom. He turns and stops, seeing you.

'You're not Ivan,' he says.

'Sorry to disappoint,' you say, a teasing smile on your face. Aleksander smiles.

'Your sight is never a disappointment,' he assures you.

'So, I don't have to be jealous about Ivan?' you ask. Aleksander rolls his eyes.

'Ivan has only eyes for Fedyor,' he says and caresses your cheek. 'Just as I have only eyes for you, my love.'

I wish I could believe that…

You shake those thoughts from your head. You smile and present him his kefta.

'May I?' you ask, glancing at it and then at him. He looks at you for a moment. He nods.

'Thank you,' he says and turns around. You walk to him and help him put his arms into the sleeves of the kefta. Then he turns back and you adjust it. There's a soft smile on your face.

'It reminds me of the old times,' you say quietly. 'Do you miss them sometimes?'

'No,' Aleksander answers and you look up at him with surprise. 'You're much more than a servant, [Y/N].'

'Well, I miss that I could spend almost the whole day with you,' you say after a moment. Aleksander cups your cheek.

'Soon, lapushka,' he assures you. 'Soon you will be right by my side for all to see. In a way you deserve.'

You frown. You try to read from his face what he means. But then you hear footsteps and you both pull away.

Alina enters the bedroom. She stops, seeing you.

'Oh, sorry for interrupting,' she apologises. You force a smile and shake your head.

'You're not,' you assure her and glance at Aleksander, whose eyes are already focused on Alina. 'I have to go anyway.'

'I can't wait for your performance,' Kirigan says, as you walk toward the door. You turn to him and roll your eyes.

'Oh, please,' you say and link your arms with Alina. 'We all know you can't wait for Alina's performance, not mine.'

'I can't wait for both performances,' Aleksander insists.

'See how is he sweet-talking me?' you ask, leaning to Alina. 'It means he will want something from me later.'

Alina chuckles. Aleksander sighs and gives you an exasperated look.

'Fine, fine, don't look at me like that, I'm going,' you say, separating yourself from Alina. You turn and start walking.

'[Y/N],' Aleksander stops you. 'I'm sure you will do splendidly.'

You shoot him a grateful smile and nod. Then, you turn and leave. Smile falls from your face as soon as you leave his chambers. Because deep down you don't want to leave the two of them alone. In his chambers.

*

You chat and laugh with your fellow Tidemakers during the fete. You still feel out of place sometimes, but among them you are more at ease. And they're the ones that accept you the most.

Suddenly, a fireball flies over the guests' heads. They gasp and look around. You smile slightly, watching how the Inferni twins, Polina and Pavel, throw the fireball to each other. When they're done, the guests clap and cheer.

But the fireball is still in Pavel's hand. And suddenly, he drops it next to him on a podium and a small fire starts. For the guests it looks as if he couldn't control it. So they gasp and panic a bit.

However, suddenly, water extinguishes the fire. And it doesn't disappear. People look around and see you taking Polina's place, your hands brought together.

'You can do it, [Y/N],' a fellow Tidemaker whispers. You small slightly. It's nice of them, but you're still very nervous.

You move your hands and the water raises in the air. You create incredible shapes with it. Animals, flowers, flourishes… People are delighted. But you're not done yet.

Your hands move faster. The water gathers in a one big tank. It starts turning fast. The guests gasp, but the water doesn't splash them. Suddenly, you stop… and the water has taken a shape of a snowflake. You exhale shakily and your hands move slightly. The water starts freezing. People gasp again, when the snowflake doesn't turn into a giant shape made of ice. But instead, a giant snowflake is over their heads. From snow.

You risk a glance at Aleksander. Your heart skips a beat when you see pride in his eyes, as he stares at your display with a smile. However, your smile falls when you see Alina next to him in her new black kefta with golden embroidery. Black. His colours. You know he must have given his permission. He wanted her to wear his colours.

Suddenly, the snowflake bursts. Snow falls on the guests. They cheer and clap, delighted. You force a smile and bow, pretending it was part of a show and not you losing control. You step down and join your friends. They congratulate you and agree that your little 'improvisation' was a much better end of the performance. But you barely hear them.

The applauds dies when Alina and Aleksander take on the stage. Kirigan says something to Alina and turns to the gathered.

'Her name is Alina Starkov,' he says. 'And she will bring liberation to us all.'

He walks down the stage and people part in front of him. He spreads his arms and then clasps them together. Darkness swallows the room in an instant. He motions at Alina and moves away.

Alina takes a few steps forward. She brings her hands together and when she separates them, there's sunlight between them. She creates an orb from it and raises it in the air with one hand. Then, she creates another one with her other hand. She connects them and sends them to the middle of the room, lightning it up.

She looks down at one point. You follow her gaze and see Aleksander. Your heart clenches when you see how he looks at her. With awe, admiration… and something else. Love? You fear it is that.

Alina spreads her arms and the light explodes. Then she brings them together and it disappears. The normal lights come back. Alina smiles, happy with her performance.

People start murmuring 'Sankta Alina'. Some touch their foreheads and their hearts with their fingers. Some kneel.

You can't bring yourself to celebrate the success with others. Your heart is breaking and it hurts so much. But you force yourself to endure the party. You have to take a moment at one point, though, so you step out. But you bump into Alina.

'Oh, sorry!' she says with a smile. Your stomach turns. You force a smile.

'You did wonderfully, Alina,' you say. 'I knew you had it in you.'

'Thank you,' your friend says happily. 'You did well, too. Your performance was just… wow.'

'Thank you,' you chuckle and look at her with, you hope, a teasing look. 'Your kefta is beautiful. Will I be hearing wedding bells soon?'

Please, say 'no'. Please, please, please…

'No, no,' Alina laughs… but blushes and smiles slightly, looking down. She looks at you and bites her lip. She looks around. She grabs your arm and pulls you to the side. You're now really scared.

'Don't tell anyone…' she whispers, '… but I… I kissed him.'

She blushes. And your heart stops. You feel as if you were falling. But you force yourself to stay calm.

'Oh,' you whisper. 'Wow. How brave of you. What about him? Did he… kissed you back?'

You beg her in your mind to deny. But she smiles shyly. You brace for impact.

'Well, not exactly,' she answers and you get ready to sight with relief. 'But he said I had surprised him… and smiled. And laughed. So… maybe… there's a chance for me? I don't know. I… I think I really like him. But I don't know what to do now.'

You don't sigh with relief. Your heart aches. But you force yourself to take Alina's hands in yours. She looks at you, puzzled.

'Hold him gently in your hands,' you say quietly, begging your voice not to crack. 'He has been cracked enough as it is, and his heart is more shattered than he lets on.'

Alina looks at you, stunned. You smile slightly at her and let go of her hands. You quickly walk away from her. Because if you stay, you might cry.

After you calm down you return to the party. You talk with a few Tidemakers. At one point you notice Alina being escorted by two guards.

But then Aleksander shows up in front of them. He says something and then… gives your friend flowers. Alina smells the flowers and smiles. She takes Aleksander's arm and together they leave the room.

'Excuse me,' you say to your friends and hurry out of the room, using the other exit. You have to get out or you might explode. Or break down in front of those people. You can't have that.

A moment later you're on the corridor. You stop by one of the windows and turn to it. You look outside and hug yourself. You exhale shakily and try to calm down your breathing. But tears fall down your cheeks anyway.

What you don't know, is that someone noticed you leaving. And the reason why. So, a moment later Fedyor shows up on the corridor. Seeing you, he speeds up.

'[Y/N],' he says. You turn, startled. Fedyor stops at the sight of your tear-stained cheeks. For a moment you want to quickly dry them. But instead, your lip trembles. Your friend looks at you with compassion and spreads his arms.

'Come here,' he says. And you do. You rush into his embrace and let him hold you. And yourself to cry.

'Being ignored by someone who's attention means the world to you is the worst feeling ever,' you whisper after a moment. Fedyor's hold on you tightens.

'He doesn't ignore you,' he denies. 'You mean the world to him. You're all that he can see.'

'I think you're mistaking me for Alina,' you say bitterly, but forcing a smile. Fedyor sighs. He pushes you away slightly. He opens his mouth to say something, but stops seeing your face. You can only guess your tears washed away your make-up with which you tried so hard to hide.

'You haven't been sleeping well,' Fedyor says quietly.

'I've been sleeping fine, thank you very much,' you say, trying to free yourself from his grip. But he doesn't let go.

'Then where did those shadows under your eyes come from, hm?' he asks. You are quiet for a moment.

'It sucks when the only person who can make you feel better is also the reason you always cry,' you finally answer. Night after night you have been crying yourself to sleep. Missing him, cursing him. And her. You hate it. You hate he has such a hold on you. You hate that you are so weak. You hate yourself that you can't just trust him and his love. So, you cry.

'[Y/N]…' Fedyor starts slowly. 'You must believe me when I tell you that he does love you. I've seen him with Alina and I've seen him with you. There's a huge difference, I assure you.'

'Of course, there is,' you agree, your voice shaking. 'I'm just a Tidemaker. She's the Sun Summoner. His equal. They complete each other. I've been a fool not to see it.'

'That's not true,' Fedyor denies vehemently. 'You're the one who's completing him. His heart is yours. I know it doesn't seem like that. But trust me, give it a bit more time and it-'

He cuts himself off. You look at him with suspicion. His lips are pursed in a tight line.

'You know,' you realise. 'You know why he's doing all of that. Why? Fedyor, why?'

The Heartrender looks away. You scoff. You shake off his hold on you.

'Fine, don't tell me,' you snap. 'But don't expect me not to be hurt by how he behaves. I have feelings, you know. And words can't reassure me by themselves.'

You turn on your heel and march away. Fedyor calls after you but doesn't chase you. Good. You can cry again.

*

Alina is gone. Kidnapped by three rouges from Ketterdam. Aleksander is doing everything he can to locate her and bring her home.

Poor Marie is dead. She was killed by a man travelling with the three rogues. But he betrayed them, because he had stricken a deal with General Zlatan. He was to kill Alina. But instead of her, he found Marie who thanks to Genya looked like the Sun Summoner.

You're worried about your friend, naturally. But seeing how Aleksander is upset because of it, makes your stomach turn. You know he will go to look for her. And thanks to Zoya, you know you're not on the team. You're supposed to sit restless in the Little Palace. You are furious about it. Until you hear Fedyor is not going either.

'Come in!' the Heartrender calls, hearing a knock on his door. It opens and you walk in. You frown, seeing he's packing.

'I thought you're not going after Alina?' you ask.

'Because I'm not,' Fedyor answers. 'I'm going to look for Nina. We finally have a lead on her.'

'Without Ivan?' you ask, starting to pass things to Fedyor. 'How will the two of you survive that?'

Fedyor chuckles. He smiles at you and you answer with the same. You observe him in silence for a moment. Then, an idea forms in your head.

'I'll go with you,' you decide, causing Fedyor to drop his spare kefta. 'I know I'm not Ivan, but I will have to do for you.'

'[Y/N]-' Fedyor starts, panicking.

'Don't,' you interrupt him. 'I made up my mind. I'm not going to stay here, while you all are looking for people. I want to help. I am going to pack now and no one is going to stop me.'

You turn on your heel and walk away. Fedyor stares after your retreating back, horrified.

'Saints,' he whispers. 'He's already mad as it is.'

'Who is?' Ivan asks, entering the room. 'Actually, never mind, I can guess. But why is he going to be more?'

'Because [Y/N] has just decided to go with me after Nina,' Fedyor answers. Ivan pauses.

'What?' he asks. Fedyor sighs and runs a hand through his face.

'Things are bad, Ivan,' he says. '[Y/N] is convinced he chose Alina over her. She… she is tired and has given up. I fear that if she leaves with me… she may not come back.'

'Then we better tell all that to General Kirigan and make sure it doesn't happen,' Ivan says after a moment. Fedyor nods, determined. Two Heartrenders quickly leave and head to Aleksander's chambers.

'Enter,' Kirigan sighs after hearing a knock. He turns to the door, annoyed. Ivan and Fedyor enter, grim.

'Well?' Aleksander snaps. 'What is it?'

'[Y/N] has decided to go with me after Nina,' Fedyor answers, deciding to just go for it. Kirigan freezes.

'She. Has. What?' he growls. Fedyor gulps. Aleksander seethes.

'What is she thinking?' he asks, barely controlling his shadows. Two Heartrenders exchange a look.

'She's hurting, General,' Fedyor says, causing Aleksander to stop. 'She… saw you giving flowers to Alina.'

'We think this may be her way to… gently remove herself,' Ivan adds. Aleksander goes pale once he understands the meaning of those words. You don't intend to come back.

'Come with me and guard the door,' Kirigan orders, already marching out of the room. A few minutes later they reach your room. Aleksander bursts in without knocking and is met with a sight of you packing your things with Natasha.

'What is the meaning of this?' he demands. You grit your teeth. Damn you, Fedyor.

'Exactly what it looks like,' you answer calmly. 'I'm packing. I'm going after Nina, my dear friend, with Fedyor.'

'Leave us,' Aleksander orders Natasha after a moment. 'Now.'

Your friend looks at you, uncertain. You nod at her. You imagine there's going to be a lot of yelling. You don't want her in the middle of this. So, Natasha curtsies to Kirigan and leaves.

'[Y/N], stop moving and talk to me,' Aleksander says when you don't pause even after your friend is gone.

'Oh, now you want to talk to me,' you scoff. 'I should have started packing weeks ago, then.'

'What do you mean?' Aleksander asks. You chuckle humorously.

'I mean that for the past weeks you've been ignoring me, General,' you say. 'I'm tired of it.'

You calling him by his title feels like a slap to Kirigan. And the way you look at him, with anger, hurts him. And makes him upset as well.

'I already explained myself to you,' he says, his voice low. 'I've asked you to be patient. To trust me.'

'Well, you made me reach my limit!' you say, throwing your hands in the air. 'Honestly, you can't think I'm blind, do you? That I wouldn't notice the black kefta on Alina? Or see you giving her flowers? Or that she won't confide in me, her best friend, about how she kissed you, a moment after I left your chambers?'

Colour drains from Aleksander's face yet again. You turn quickly, so he wouldn't see tears in your eyes. Silence fills the room. Until you hear slow footsteps behind you. You wince when Kirigan's hands land on your hips.

'When I tell you I love you,' he says, his voice a bit shaky, 'I don't say it out of habit or to make conversation. I say it to remind you that you are the best thing that has ever happened to me.'

Tears fall down your cheeks. It takes every ounce of your strength not to turn and hide in his arms. But you tell yourself to be strong.

'If that was true, then you wouldn't treat me like you have,' you say. Aleksander stiffens behind you. You free yourself from his grip and walk away. Kirigan gulps.

'I'm sorry,' he says. 'I know it's not enough. I know now I hurt you. It was wrong of me. But, please, don't go on a dangerous journey, just to spite me. Or to leave and never return.'

'Don't ask me to stay and watch you love someone else,' you say after a moment. 'I get it, Aleksander. I truly do. She's your equal. You and her are going to change the world. You both will… live for a really long time. You deserve someone like that. But please… please don't make me watch this. It hurts too much.'

You don't see this, but Aleksander reaches out to you. He pulls back after a second and clenches his fists.

'I swear on my life, I don't love Alina Starkov,' he says, his voice firm. 'You're the one that has a hold of my heart. It was killing me to spend time with her and not with you, giving her my attention. I wanted to call you to my chambers so many times. Or just walk to you. But I knew she might visit me suddenly. So, I kept my distance, even though it was hurting me. I know it's nothing compared to the pain I caused you. But believe me that I love only you.'

You bite your lip. You want to turn and see if you heard him correctly. Because he sounded like he's on the verge of crying. And you've never seen him cry. Not once.

'Tell me what I can do to make you stay,' Aleksander pleads. 'What I can say, so you won't leave. I need to know how I can fix this!'

'Tell my why,' you answer after a moment. You turn around, miraculously still fighting back tears. But Aleksander isn't. He's crying, his eyes are red and puffy. You're stunned by it.

'Tell my why you flirted with Alina and let her kiss you,' you say. 'Why you wanted her to believe you have feelings for her.'

Aleksander purses his lips. You wait. And wait. You're about to scoff and turn…

'I needed her to trust me,' he finally says. 'To depend on me. To be loyal to me. So we could destroy our enemies together.'

'And you had to lie to do that?' you ask, frowning. 'Manipulate her?'

'Everything I do, I do for the sake of all Grisha,' Aleksander says. 'For you. I know I'm… overprotective sometimes. Keeping you by my side, keeping you here, keeping you in the dark… I shouldn't have done that. I should have told you at least a part of my plans. But I… I just want you to be safe. I want so badly to protect you from the world, because I know all too well how bad it can be.'

'Yes,' you say after a moment and gulp. 'You should have told me. Why didn't you really tell me what you are planning?'

'… I didn't want to scare you away.'

'… Idiot. How many times? I love you no matter what. Remember what I told you when you asked me how would I look at you if you told me about the darkness inside you?'

'That despite every terrible thing I did you would love me anyway.'

'Did I run away after you told me you're the one who created the Fold?'

'No.'

'And what did I do?'

'… You hugged me. You held me in your arms for the whole night and whispered how much you love me.'

'Then why did you think this would be any different?'

Okay, you lost the fight. You're crying. Aleksander lets out a chuckle through his tears.

'Because I'm a fool, who's biggest fear is losing the woman he loves more than anything,' he answers. You shake your head, exasperated. But your look softens.

'Do you promise you love me?' you ask, your voice shaking a bit.

'I swear,' he answers, looking at you seriously. You exhale shakily and let your tears fall.

'My darling, come here, let me hold you,' Aleksander says, opening his arms. This time you run into them and let him embrace you tightly.

'We're still not okay,' you whisper.

'I know,' Aleksander says. 'I know, moya milaya. I'll make it up to you. I promise. But first I must find Miss Starkov. Before it's too late.'

'What will you do to her when you do?' you ask after a moment.

'Not "if"?' Aleksander asks, smiling slightly. You scoff.

'I do know you, you know,' you answer. Aleksander chuckles. He's so grateful for your faith in him. Even though he hurt you…

'All will depend on how will I find her,' he answers your question. 'But I will no longer flirt with her, kiss her or make her believe there can be something between us. Because I have you.'

You smile in his kefta and his grip on you tightens. You stay like that for long minutes. In fact, you don't leave each other's side until it's sundown and Aleksander must go for Alina. But before he leaves your chambers, he hugs you one last time.

'Wait for me,' he pleads, the words coming out choked and pained. 'I need you to wait for me.'

'I will always wait for you,' you say after a moment. Aleksander cups your face and kisses you passionately, taking your breath away. You sigh when you part. You look at each other for a one more minute, then he leaves. Ivan follows him outside, sending you a small smile, which you return.

It drops when they're gone. You exhale shakily. Like you said, you and Aleksander are not okay yet. But there's progress. You are ready to wait for him to make things right.

But then the Fold expands and it is said the Darkling is dead. Grisha are being hunted because of what Aleksander has done. You must run for your life, your heart broken because of the news of Kirigan. And you don't know if you can continue living without him.

Thank you for reading! Please, reblog, like and comment if you could. This was supposed to be a two-part fic. But I've decided to make all parts more or less the same length, so I'm ending this one after the end of season one and the third part will be the season two. That means it's all for now, but the final part should be published soon. Take care until then and let me know your thoughts about this one!

This can also be found on Archive of Our Own: https://archiveofourown.org/works/49547866/chapters/125872165

[misshoneyimhome]

Push the button |  Frederik Andersen

Tags: gentleman!Freddie; Frederik AndersenxReader;  Warnings: Pure lustful behaviour; 

A/N: I miss my husband; in "celebration" og Freddie's happy relationship ❤️ may your life be filled with love & joy (or I will hunt her down);

➼｡ﾟ

I'm busy throwing hints that he keeps missing Don't have to think about it, I wanna kiss and Everything around it, but he's too distant I wanna feel his body, I can't resist it

_

Frederik Andersen always had a talent for getting lost in his work. When he was deep into his tasks, whether it was training rigorously or gearing up for a match, he had this tendency to shut out the world around him.

There wasn't much room for other thoughts in his head.

Yet, strangely enough, he managed to occupy a prominent space in your thoughts.

Freddie was, in your eyes, almost like a god. His fiery ginger hair and rugged scruff gave him an extremely attractive, almost otherworldly appeal. His very tall, muscular, Adonis-like physique only added to his charisma. Yet, beneath that striking exterior, there was a calm and mysterious demeanour that drew you in.

Every time you found yourself in Freddie's presence, whether it was after a game or at a team gathering, you made a conscious effort to drop hints, hoping he'd finally take notice. You dropped hints of all kinds, hoping that one of them would catch his attention. Yet, it always seemed as if he remained oblivious to your subtle signals.

Your deepest desire was simple yet profound: to feel his lips against yours. 

You yearned to share those subtle butterfly kisses along the curve of his neck, or to tenderly kiss away any bruises he might have acquired during a fierce game. And you couldn't help but fantasise about trailing kisses down his chiselled, toned abs, savouring every moment of intimacy that you could only dream of.

The irresistible urge to have his body pressed against yours was a constant struggle. Yet, Freddie always appeared so distant, as if he existed in a different league altogether. It was as though the gap between your desires and reality was an insurmountable chasm, leaving you hungering for something that felt just out of reach.

Freddie remained oblivious, and in all fairness, your hints weren't exactly straightforward either. You mastered the art of keeping a controlled expression on your face whenever you were near him. You dressed impeccably and aimed to appear effortlessly casual, even though you knew you'd put in a lot of effort into your looks whenever you anticipated his presence. Striking that balance between catching his eye without appearing too obvious or desperate became a delicate dance you were determined to perfect.

Freddie's unwavering politeness and his deep respect for women and their boundaries only made him more irresistible. He was the epitome of a true gentleman, never pushing limits or crossing lines that could be deemed too risky. As you engaged in conversations with him, whether brief or extended, you patiently waited for that magical moment when he might finally see you in a different light, when he might realise the depth of your desires that had you going wild inside.

So, you made a firm decision: you wanted to have him. 

You wanted him to catch on, to see the desire burning within you, and you were determined that one day, you'd find a way to have your intimate moments with him, to turn those fantasies into reality.

**

An opportunity presented itself one fateful night when the team gathered at a dimly lit bar before the season was about to begin. The lads were comfortably ensconced in the dark booth, and you, along with a few other girls, decided to make your way to the dance floor.

You were on a mission, no doubt; to show him what he's been missing out.

You strutted your sexy ass, flaunting intention; hoping to draw him into your new dimension.

Your allure, it had him in apprehension - Ready to take action, and end the tension.

Your moves on the dance floor didn't escape Freddie's notice. His gaze was drawn to you like a moth to a flame. 

The snug little dress you wore accentuated your every curve, intensifying the glamour of your figure. Those vibrant red heels added an extra layer of captivation as you gracefully swayed your hips, exuding confidence, and sheer enjoyment with that pretty face of yours.

After a couple of songs, you decided to take a break and made your way to the bar. And Freddie wasted no time in leaving his seat to follow you. Seizing the chance for a private moment, he positioned himself next to you at the bar, and the two of you exchanged glances and subtle smiles before he finally broke the silence.

"Having a good time?" he inquired, his lips curving into a faint smirk.

You nodded, your heart racing at his nearness. "Absolutely," you replied. "And you?"

Freddie mirrored your nod. "Yeah, it's nice to let loose and have some fun during the off-season."

His smile had you utterly captivated, and a wave of desire surged through you. Yet, you managed to keep your cool, sharing a light laugh with him, all the while craving for something more.

As Freddie stood there beside you at the bar, his presence was intoxicating, and you couldn't help but feel a mix of excitement and nervousness. You sipped your drink, trying to maintain your casual composure, but the chemistry between you two was undeniable.

You leaned in slightly, your voice low and sultry, "Freddie, I've always admired your dedication on and off the ice. It's pretty inspiring."

His eyes met yours, and a hint of surprise flickered in his gaze. "Thanks," he responded, genuine appreciation in his voice. "I guess it's just something I've always loved."

Encouraged by his response, you continued, "You know, dedication can be quite attractive. It's one of the many things that make you so intriguing."

Freddie's lips curled into a more pronounced smile, and he took a step closer. "Is that so?" he asked, his tone dropping slightly, hinting at a growing connection.

You nodded, your heart pounding in your chest. "Absolutely. But there's more to me than meets the eye, too."

As the night wore on, the conversation flowed effortlessly. You shared stories, laughed, and exchanged glances that spoke volumes. It was as if the tension that had once separated your desires from reality was slowly dissolving.

The atmosphere in the dimly lit bar seemed to intensify with each passing moment. You couldn't ignore the magnetic pull between you and Freddie, the undeniable chemistry that had simmered beneath the surface for so long.

But Freddie, ever the gentleman, maintained his composure, offering a polite smile while keeping a respectful distance.

Shortly after, Sebastian interrupted, informing that everyone was about to leave. 

And once outside on the street, you made another attempt to drop hints by positioning yourself close to Freddie.

In his signature gentlemanly style, Freddie extended an offer, "Would you like me to walk you home?" You responded with a sweet smile, nodding in agreement.

The stroll through the late summer night was pleasant. You both enjoyed the warm air, with the streetlights casting a soft glow on the streets of Raleigh as you engaged in an engrossing conversation.

When you reached the steps by the front door of your apartment building, you summoned the courage to invite him in.

To your delight, he accepted your invitation.

As you entered the lift together, the anticipation was unmistakable. You stood side by side, almost touching, as you pressed the button for the 10th floor.

Soft music played in the background, setting the mood, and Freddie's restraint finally gave way.

"Fuck it," he murmured, unable to contain himself any longer. He pulled you close, pinning you against the lift wall in a passionate, long-awaited kiss.

[chickensarentcheap]

Lost and Found- Chapter 10

Fandom: Extraction

Pairing: Tyler Rake and Esme Drummond (established OFC. Although you do not need to read the others to understand this one)

Warnings:  angst, profanity, some brief smut

Tagging:  @tragiclyhip @secretaryunpaid @youflickedtooharddamnit @residentdormouse @asirensrage @munstysmind @muchadoaboutcj @starryeyes2000​ @ninjasawakenedmystar​ @karimac @arrthurpendragon @ocappreciationtag @occommunity @themaradaniels​

My tag list is OPEN. Just give me a shout if you’d like to added :)

Link to Ao3: ​https://archiveofourown.org/works/43179357/chapters/118354309

*******

He answers the door in just a pair of jeans; worn dangerously low on his hips with both his belt and top button still undone. Droplets of water glistening upon bare, tanned skin as he continues to vigorously towel dry his hair. And for what seems like an eternity she’s dumbstruck; rendered speechless as she hungrily eyes the work of art that stands before her. It’s a reaction that’s both unexpected and embarrassing; never anticipating his lack of apparel or the way her body, heart, and mind respond to it. After all, she’d seen him wearing far less many times; nearly a year spent sharing the same bed and feeding and nurturing every one of their carnal needs and desires. But it feels as if it’s the first time seeing him this way; as if Dhaka and those five days had never existed nor had they ever shared a life together. He’s noticeably thicker now; a mixture of more time spent in the gym, a physically gruelling profession, and the extra weight that’s taken up residence around his waist. He’s aged like a fine wine. In possession of a body and mind that have not only been stretched to their absolute limits, but somehow managed to come back better than ever.

She feels the ferocious blush that creeps into her cheeks; poker hot and rapidly spreading to the bottom of her chin and the tips of her ears. And she can’t help herself; top teeth dragging over her bottom lip as her eyes make a long, slow pass over the length of his half-naked frame. Her stomach clenches and her throat feels impossibly dry; accompanied by the pounding of her heart and the almost agonizing burn between her legs. It’s shocking; another human being having that kind of power and control. Able to turn you into a desperate, needy mess without having to put any effort into it. And it’s always been that way with Tyler; a shared physical and sexual attraction that is so immediate and intense and all-consuming.. The first lover who’d ever had that kind of effect on her; capable of turning her into a quivering and begging mess with nothing more than the sound of his voice and a heated, hungry glance.

Yet he’d always been oblivious about the kind of power he actually held; never any boasting or the slightest hint of conceit even if he DID realize what the simplest of touches or the sweetest, most innocent of kisses could do to her. A phenomenally attractive man that didn’t seem to realize it; never one to fret over his general appearance or his wardrobe. Down to earth and shockingly humble; seemingly unaware of his piercing blue eyes and his strong jaw and the way those longer strands of hair perfectly fell across his forehead. Confident in his looks, yet never cocky; not caring what other people thought of his apparel or the tattoos that decorated his skin but sometimes lamenting about the variety of scars that he’d collected over the years.

There’s a telltale throbbing between her legs and beads of sweat that gather at her temples and the nape of her neck. It’s been so long since she’d been this close to him; able to see the droplets of water on his skin and smell the body wash and shampoo that he had used. And then there are the scars he’s gained over the course of five years; souvenirs of a dangerous and unpredictable life. A mixture of long and jagged lines caused by self-administered care and smooth, circular marks left behind by bullet wounds.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t…” She noisily clears her throat and quickly glances away; hoping and praying he doesn’t pick up on her discomfort. “...I wasn’t expecting…this…you…like this….I…”

A tinge of pink takes up residence in his cheeks. She remains the only person on earth that can get that kind of reaction out of him; able to transform the big, bad mercenary into a blushing, awkward mess. And it’s always been so refreshing; knowing the pain and havoc he’s capable of causing yet bearing witness to that softer and more human side. “I wasn’t expecting you for another half an hour.”

“I didn’t think I was THAT early. Millie settled quicker than I thought she would, so I thought I’d just show up. I didn’t think I’d be interrupting anything.” Her embarrassment increases and she bites down on her bottom lip in an attempt to halt the nervous rambling. “ I’m not, am I? Interrupting anything?”

“What would you be interrupting?”

“Well…I mean… you could have company. New York City is a big place. You’re a good-looking guy and there’s tons of beautiful and available women out there. Maybe you found one. You could have been busy doing things when I showed up. You know, things that you need to take a shower after. Oh God…” She lowers her voice and peers past him into the room. “That’s not it, is it? I didn’t interrupt you and…whoever.”

“There’s no one here but me. I’m not in town for that kind of thing. Besides, I’ve learned my lesson; when it comes to mixing business with pleasure.”

She visibly winces. “I guess I deserved that. “

“I didn’t mean it that way. I wasn’t talking about you. I was talking about…”

“I can come back. If you need some time to get yourself together. I shouldn’t have shown up early. I’m sorry; I should have texted or…”

The thought of watching her walk away -albeit temporarily- sets something off inside of him, and he steps into the doorway; his much larger, stronger frame effectively barring her from leaving. “You don’t have to go. Just give me a few; so I can dry off and put some clothes on.”

“Wouldn’t you be more comfortable doing all that without me here? I can just go downstairs and get something to drink. Or I can just wait in the hall and you can just let me know when it’s okay to come in. I AM early and you don’t really owe me an explanation or…”

“Don’t go.”

“If you need a little time to get yourself together…”

“Don’t go,” he forcibly repeats, then manages a small smile while adding, “Please.”

“Are you sure? Because if you’re just saying that because you don’t want to hurt my feelings…”

“I WANT you to stay. There’s no reason for you to leave. It’s not like you haven’t seen it all before.”

She manages a small smile. “I hate this. So much. This….awkwardness. It was never like this. Between us. And it sucks. I hate it and I hate that I’m the reason things are the way they are.”

“A lot’s happened. I’d be surprised if things weren’t a little weird.”

“I never wanted any of this. I never meant to ruin things. To hurt you. I never…”

Draping the towel around his neck, he reaches out; laying a hand on the small of her back and gently pulling her closer. “Let’s just go inside. We can talk in there. We don’t need to stand out there and get into it. Not everyone needs to know our business.”

Nodding in agreement, she allows herself to be escorted into the open-concept suite; immediately missing the warmth and weight of his hand upon her body when he steps away. It’s so damn hard; to be desperately in love with someone who most likely despises you. Possessing such powerful and overwhelming feelings yet knowing you most likely ruined any chance of reconciliation; keeping Millie’s existence a secret was surely the final in the coffin. She had wounded him deeply. He had trusted her with every ounce of his being and transformed his entire life in order for them to have a future together and she’d turned around and betrayed him in the worst possible way. Seeing the undeniable hurt and anger and disgust on his face the moment Millie had left the room. He had known the moment he laid eyes on her that the little girl was his; sharing the same vivid blue eyes and the colour and texture of hair and the long and lanky frame. Despite his fears of being a dad again, he’d been more than willing to welcome a child into the world; determined to do everything right the second time around. And he’d been robbed of the chance.

She noisily clears her throat and diverts her eyes as he rummages through his lone piece of luggage for a clean shirt; the simple movements causing the muscles in his arms and back to bulge and ripple. And she wanders towards the table by the balcony door; focusing her attention on the open laptop, a half empty glass of water, and a bottle of prescription medication. Chewing pensively on her bottom lip, she picks up the latter and briefly inspects the information on the label; relieved to discover they aren’t painkillers, nor is there any form of alcohol in sight.

“Antibiotics.” His voice makes her jump as he suddenly appears beside her; plucking the meds out of her hand and tossing them in the direction of the rucksack that sits open in the middle of the bed. “Caught a hell of a cold on the last job. Settled in my chest. Just finally getting over it.”

“We used to worry about that. Every time you got sick, it always went right to your lungs. And with your left one being the way it is…”

“I figure if a sixteen-year-old with a hell of a lucky shot can’t kill me, a chest infection sure as hell won’t.”

“What about other things? Have you been taking anything else or…?”

“You mean am I back to being a pill junkie again? That’s what you’re asking, yeah? That’s what you want to know? If I’m back on the oxy? Or worse?”

“I never…”

“I’m clean. Other than over-the-counter pain shit. I’ve been clean for almost five years now. Since Dhaka.”

“Tyler, I didn’t mean to…”

“You didn’t break me that badly, Esme. Not enough to make me go back to that. To being ‘that guy’. Not even you have that kind of power.” It’s a lie of course; he’d come close many times to turning back to the booze and the pain meds in order to numb both physical and mental agony. But he’d somehow managed to stay clean and vowed to stay that way. Convincing himself that as long as there was a chance that she may wander back into his life, she deserved someone who was on the right track. Not a carbon copy of the mess he’d been when they first met.

“I didn’t come here for this. To fight with you. And I wasn’t suggesting that you were using. In the same way I wasn’t accusing you of anything or….”

Leaning back against the table, he crosses his arms over his chest. “Who’s with Millie?”

“Abeula and Nik. And there’s a couple of guys that stay on the floor and split up guard duty. She’s in good hands. She’s safe.”

Scoffing, he reaches behind him for the glass of water; lips poised at the rim. “Forgive me if I don’t have a lot of confidence in Nik right now.”

“She only did what I asked her to do. I asked her not to tell you where I was. Or why I left. I figured I’d get a chance to do all of that myself. But things were way more complicated and messy and dangerous than even I expected them to be. And then weeks turned into months into…”

“Five years. Five…fucking…years.”

“I never meant for it to get to this. For things to last as long as they did. And there’s really no excuse; I had a lot of chances to make things right. There were a lot of times I could have contacted you. Where I could have called and explained why I did what I did. Where I could have even come to see you. Talked face to face. Brought Millie to meet you and…”

“But you didn’t. All the chances but you never bothered. You couldn’t even let me know that you were alive. That would have been enough; knowing that you were okay. Even if you hadn’t wanted to come home. Work things out. I would have been able to deal with that. But you couldn’t even pick up a fucking phone and let me know you were alright.”

“It wasn’t that easy. Not at first. It wasn’t as simple as texting or leaving you a voicemail. Things were ugly for a long time and I couldn’t take the chance that you’d get hurt. Or worse. I didn’t want that on your doorstep. I didn’t want to bring that to you. You deserved better than that.”

“I deserved better than what you did. You just left. While I was gone. You didn’t even wait until I got back from Broome. I got home and you were gone. No explanation, no apology, no telling me that I’d fucked up and…”

“It wasn’t you. You didn’t ‘fuck up’. It had nothing to do with you. You didn’t do anything wrong.”

“I got home and you were gone and I thought something happened to you. That someone had gotten a hold of you. You didn’t stop to think about that? That that’s what I’d think?”

“I thought when you saw the note…”

“That was a note? That was fucking bullshit is what it was. “I’m sorry”? What the fuck was that?”

“I didn’t know what else to say.” It sounds lame. Eve to her own ears. “ I couldn’t tell you; the reason that I left. I didn’t want you getting involved.”

“We bought a house together. We were talking about getting married. About starting a family. I was already pretty fucking involved, don’t you think?”

“It wasn’t your fight to fight, Tyler.”

“That’s horseshit and you know it. We made a life together, Esme. We were planning a future. It was up to me to protect you. To take care of you.”

“It wasn’t a one-way street. Our life together. I protected you and took care of you just as much as you did me. It wasn’t all you, Tyler. It wasn’t just you putting the work in. I stayed in Australia. I gave up my old life so I could have one with you. It wasn’t just you that made sacrifices and changed. We BOTH did.”

“Which means that whatever was going on? It was up to both of us to fix it. To fight to make things work.”

“I did what I did to protect you. I knew that if I stayed and they came for me, you would have done whatever you could to protect me. To keep me safe. That you would have back and…”

“You’re right. I would have done anything. For you. Just like I did in Dhaka. Everything we’d been through. Esme. From the very beginning. And you still couldn’t trust me? To keep you safe?”

“It had nothing to do with trusting you,” she argues. “I have ALWAYS trusted you. Which is why you’re even in New York City. I have never once doubted you. Or the things you could do. I know how strong you are. I know the skills you have. But it had only been eight months since Dhaka and you still weren’t a hundred percent and I couldn’t put you at risk. I just couldn’t. I didn’t want you getting hurt. Or worse.”

“Who the fuck was after you? The Russian Mob? The IRA? There’s not a lot of people I can’t handle. If I could somehow survive Mahajan and Asif and their bullshit…”

“You wouldn’t have survived this. Not these people. You wouldn’t have stood a chance. They were vast and they were powerful and they would have brought all kinds of hell down on us. On YOU. And I couldn’t do that. I couldn’t put a target on your back. Not when it came to them. I’m sorry, Tyler. But I did what I had to do. To keep you safe.”

“And it took five years? For things to settle down? Or did you just decide after a little while that I’d never been worth anything to you in the first place. I never meant a thing, did I. Not really. If I had, we wouldn’t be having this conversation right now. We would have had it a long time ago.”

“None of that is true. You meant everything to me. Our life together? That meant everything. I didn’t do what I did to hurt you. Or to punish you. You didn’t do anything wrong. I did it to protect you. To keep you safe. And I’m sorry; that I let it get this out of hand. That I never contacted you when things settled down. I wanted to, believe me. I wanted things to go back to normal. I wanted nothing more than to be with you. And I…”

“But you never did. You never did get a hold of me. Not even when you had a baby. MY baby. She is, yeah? Mine?” He regrets that years of simmering hurt and anger have led to even asking the question; the hurt that stiffens her body and darkens her face and brings tears to her eyes. It’s the last thing he wanted even in the midst of his own suffering. But it’s always been his weakness; hot-headed from an extremely early age and never able to stop himself from lashing out. And hurting those that he loved the most.

“You really have to ask that? You’ve seen her. She looks just like you.”

“How do I know you weren’t fucking some other Aussie that happened to look like me? Taking off might not have been the only thing you were doing that weekend.”

“You know what? I’m just going to leave things here. For now. Because obviously, you’re not in the mood to listen to a thing I have to say. And I get it; you’re hurt and you’re angry and you’re lashing out. You’ve always been like this. You get defensive and you snap and you say things you don’t really mean.”

“I have every right to be pissed. And hurt. I think I earned it. Deserve it.”

“You do. And I’m not trying to downplay how you feel. I’m owning my shit; acknowledging what I did and feeling horrible for it. But you’re not even attempting to listen to me, let alone understand. And for you to stoop that low and bring Millie into this…”

“I’m not bringing her into this. You brought her into it. How would you feel? If you found out you had a kid? That’s been kept from you? You wouldn’t be upset?”

“Of course, I would. And I’m not saying you shouldn’t be angry. I never meant for things to go on this long. But I have my reasons.”

He gives a derisive snort. “Excuses, you mean.”

“No. Legit reasons. That you won’t even listen to right now. And I get it; you’ve had a hell of a day and this is all still really fresh. But you had no right asking if she was yours. There is no reason you can deny her. Not one that isn’t fuelled by spite, at least. She IS yours. And there was never anyone else. There was only you. I never wanted anyone but you. And for you to even suggest that I fucked around on you…”

“You were quick to fuck me in Dhaka. How do I know you didn’t find someone else that brought that out of you?”

“I’m not even going to entertain that question. You know that I would never do that. Cheat on you. Not after everything I went through with Mark. Not after swearing I would never trust someone again. That I’d never let anyone get that close. And what happened? I met you and all of that changed. I didn’t want anyone else. And I certainly didn’t NEED anyone else.”

“I want to believe you.”

“Are you forgetting the simple fact we lived in the middle of bum fuck nowhere? In a fucking shack we shared with a dog and a chicken?! How the hell would I even meet someone? We couldn’t have anything delivered. The closest place to order food from was two hours away, we had to go into Broome just to pick up Amazon packages. Who I was going to fuck, Tyler?”

He shrugs. “Could have met someone online.”

“I can’t believe you’re even doubling down on this. To be so bold while knowing you’re so wrong. There was never anyone but you. And that is our daughter. YOUR daughter. You can say what you want about me, but she’s totally innocent. And she’s smart and she’s beautiful and she’s everything that was perfect about us. Don’t do that to her. She doesn’t deserve that.”

“She didn’t deserve to not have two parents either.”

“Alright…” Esme holds her hands up in surrender. “...this is going nowhere. You’re just interested in hurting me. I get it. And you know, I deserve it. I could have handled things better. Especially when the smoke cleared and the dust settled. But you could at least hear me out. And seeing as you’re not in the right place to listen and understand, I’m not going to push it. It’s all really fresh and it’s a lot to deal with and I’m going to leave it to you. Maybe once you sleep on things, we can actually sit and talk. Like rational human beings.”

She attempts to leave; arms crossed over her chest and she steps past him and heads for the door. At first he simply watches; observing the slumped, defeated shoulders and the way tucks her chin into her chest. Silently berating himself for stooping so low; for lashing out and hurting her and going against the promise he’d made to himself to stay calm and rational. It isn’t until she’s near the exit that he finally follows; crossing the room with long, purposeful strides and then standing behind her. And places his palm flat against the door just as she opens it; keeping it firmly shut, his front pressed against her back.

That simple body-to-body contact makes her noticeably shiver. Every hair standing on end and every nerve seeming as if it’s on fire. It’s been five years and it’s all still there. The love and the adoration and the often overwhelming, blinding want and need.

“Don’t go.”

“This isn’t the time for this,” she meekly protests. “It’s all still too fresh. You need time. Alone. To come to terms with everything. I know I’ve dumped a lot in your lap. Hiring you for this job and bringing you all the way here and then finding out about Millie and…”

“I don’t want you to leave. Not again.”

“Just let me go, Tyler. It’s better for both of us. If I stay, it’ll only make things worse. You need some time to…”

“I can’t let you walk away. I wasn’t there to stop you the first time. But I can stop you now.”

She turns to face him, back pressed against the door. “Do you really think it’s a good idea? Me sticking around? Because we’re just going to end up fighting. It’s all just so raw. You’ve had a hell of a day and I have really just thrown you to the wolves. If we’re just going to end up fighting….”

“I don’t want to fight. That’s the last thing I want.”

“You’re upset. And you have every right to be. But when you’re angry, you lash out. And when you lash out, I get defensive. All that’s going to do is cause more problems. It’ll be two steps forward, a hundred steps back. And I don’t want that.”

“You came here to talk. Let’s talk. No more lashing out. No fighting. Just talk.”

“I just want you to hear me out. I just want you to listen to what I have to say. I know I hurt you, Tyler. I know I could have handled things better; I made some really bad choices and some pretty shitty mistakes. And you really do have every right to be angry. To hate me. But…”

“I don’t hate you, Esme. I could never hate you.” There’s so much more he longs to say. I still love you, I never got over you. I’ve missed you.

A smile tugs at the corners of her mouth. “Thank you. I needed you to say that. And I really needed to hear it.”

“Can we? Talk? I’d rather do it sooner than later. I don’t want to get into the job and have all this hanging over our heads.”

“I don’t want that either. I don’t want things to be awkward between us. We’ve never had that problem. Not even in Dhaka. And I hate that I fucked it all up. That I made things so awful between us. I am sorry. I never meant to hurt you. Or for things to drag on like this. Will you just hear me out? Please?”

He nods. Aching to do so much more. Starting with running his knuckles along her bruised and battered cheeks and tucking loose tendrils of hair behind her ears. But instead, it's her that reaches for him; trailing a fingernail along the scar that resides on the underside of his chin.

“You added a new one. To your collection.”

“I’ve earned a few. Since the last time you saw me.”

“You look good, though. Healthy. Life hasn’t been too hard on you.”

“It wasn’t easy,” he admits. “Especially the first year. After…”

“I kept an eye on you. Not literally, of course. But I asked about you. A lot. Nik kept me updated. So I’d know how you were doing. I heard how you quit for a bit. Took some time off. You must have needed it. A chance to get away from it all.”

“It was supposed to be a full-time thing. Being retired. Trouble always seems to find me, though. I always seem to get dragged back in.”

“Is it wrong that I’m glad? That you did? Because you wouldn’t be here right now if you didn’t. I wouldn’t have been able to hire you.”

“I don’t want your money, Esme. I don’t need your money. That’s not why I agreed to this. As soon as I saw you, I knew I was going to take it. And then I met Millie…”

“There’s no one I trust. Not in the way I trust you. That’s why I had Nik contact you. About the job. Because I knew I could trust you with the most precious thing in my life. I knew you could keep Millie safe. That you’d do anything for her.”

“I’d do anything for her mumma, too.”

“Even now? After all this time?”

“Even now,” he confirms.

Her palm cradles the side of his face; eyes locked on his as she runs the pad of her thumb across his lips. And he meets no resistance when he rests on the small of her back; escorting her back into the living room, and gesturing for her to take a seat on the couch.

“Want something to drink? I’ve only got bottled water. Or I could order something from room service. A tea or…?”

“Water is fine. Thank you.”

She watches as he journeys to the small wet bar in the corner of the room; noticing that the limp in his right leg is more noticeable than when they’d been together. And that his thighs and his calves are much thicker; denim tight against bulging muscle and the extra weight he now carries. At least thirty pounds heavier than when they’d first met and started their life together; shoulders and back and chest broader, arms bulkier, his face fuller. And she smiles as he returns, twisting off the caps on two bottles of water before holding one out in offering. She graciously accepts; enjoying the small and innocent moment of physical contact when he drops down beside her; close enough that his thigh presses against hers.

“You’ve been sober too? All this time?”

Nodding, Tyler takes a sip of his drink. “Not for lack of wanting to, that’s for sure.”

“That’s quite the feat. Staying on the right track. I’m proud of you.”

“I only have you to thank for it. Every time I wanted to drink or I wanted to swallow some oxy, I’d think about how disappointed you’d be; when you came back and found out I was a complete fucking mess again. And even when I finally did yank my head out of my ass and realized you weren’t coming home, I held onto it. What you’d think if you knew I was back on my bullshit.”

“Tyler…I….”

“It kept me from doing some damage. If I’d gone back to what I was like before you, I wouldn’t be here right now. So maybe that’s the bright side. Of you leaving. Holding out hope kept me on this side of the ground.”

“Well, for what it’s worth, I’m glad that you are. And I’m glad that you’re doing so well. That life hasn’t been too rough on you. You deserve better than that. In the same way you deserve so much better than what I did to you. And I know you say you don’t hate me and that…”

“I don’t. I don’t hate you. I never could. How do you hate someone that you love this much? No way you ever could. No matter what they do to you.” Silence follows his confession. And she nervously nurses her water as he absentmindedly picks at the label on his bottle. The last thing she wants is to push him; knowing how hard it must be for him -in the midst of his lingering pain and anger- to be so raw and vulnerable.

*****

“Millie couldn’t stop talking about you,” Esme breaks the silence; opting for a topic of conversation less likely to trigger the lingering rage and hurt. “Or about your upcoming ice cream. Just went on and on and on; all through dinner, during her bath. Right up until she fell asleep.”

A smile plays on his lips. “What did she say?”

“What didn’t she say is probably the better question. She’s totally intrigued by you. She talked about how you’re tall like a giant and you’ve got big muscles and cool tattoos and scars and really ‘bitchin’ hair’.”

“She actually said that? Bitchin’?”

“That was an exact quote. I think she’s been spending too much time eavesdropping on teenage conversations while at the sitter’s. And she really loves your accent. Said she can’t wait to learn more ‘funny words’.”

“I promise I won’t teach her any of the really bad ones. I won’t have her calling anyone a ‘cunt’ before she turns five. Not even in an affectionate way.”

“I remember how shocked I was. When I first moved there and heard people just dropping that word left and right. Talk about culture shock! Call someone that here and you’re getting punched in the face. Over there you use it as a term of endearment.”

“You did alright though. Settled in nicely. Didn’t take too long for you to get used to things. Couple weeks in and you were already saying shit like Maccas, drongo, sanger.”

“Well, I guess it’s because I felt comfortable there. Like I was finally home. And I had a really good teacher, so…”

Another prolonged silence. Both hate the awkwardness that now exists between them. It’s foreign. Uncomfortable. Even during those initial moments after their first meeting things ever seem so strained.

“When is…” He begins.

“I just want to…” Esme blushes. “Sorry. Go ahead.”

“Ladies first.”

“Age before beauty,” she teases. “Besides, I think your right to answers trumps anything I have to say.”

“I was just going to ask when she was born. When her birthday is.”

“October. The seventeenth. Pretty close to your mom’s.”

“Just a few days separating them.”

“Millie was actually three weeks late. I guess she got a little too comfortable in there and decided she was going to set up camp. Permanently. I had to be induced. And even then she was reluctant when it came to being evicted. Took her thirty-six hours. Before she finally came kicking and screaming into the world.”

“Thirty six hours?”

“Well, close. VERY close. I tell you, she was stubborn right from the start.” She leans into him; playfully nudging his arm with her elbow. “Gets that from her dad.”

“I don’t know about that. You’re a hell of a lot more stubborn than I am.”

“Please! You’re the king of stubborn people! You are…hands down…the most pig-headed man…no….PERSON… I have ever met. Remember all those times the doctor told you to take it easy? When all his advice just went in one ear and out the other because, and I quote, ‘I know my body better than he does’?”

“Well, I do. I’ve only lived in for what? Almost forty years now.”

“And what good came out of pushing yourself? You were always run down, always getting sick because of it. Complications with your knee and your lung. But you never listened. Not to the doctor, not to me. You’ve always done your own thing. Regardless of who tried to talk you out of it. Remember what you used to get like? When I nag you? About taking care of yourself? You’d get all grumpy and pouty and defiant and…”

“Excuse you? Pouty? I do NOT pout.”

“You do. And it’s adorable. It’s one of the things that I used to love the most about you. The fact you can be so tough and strong and badass but so…human…at the same time. It was sexy. All those different sides of you. The ones that only I got to see.”

“You always had a way of bringing those out. All those things I thought were long dead inside of me. You always knew how to get to me. Right from the start.”

“Only because you trusted me. Because you let me see those sides of you. Even if some of those sides did drive me a little batty sometimes.”

“I drove you batty? If we’re going to talk about being pig-headed, I’m tossing you under the bus too. Remember Dhaka? Telling you to stick close to me? And what did you….?”

“I thought you were overreacting. I didn’t see a reason to have to be glued to your hip.”

“I was there to protect you. If anything had happened to you, it would have been my ass.”

“I was still in my rebellious ‘I listen to no man’ stage. I wasn’t letting you boss me around. I didn’t care how much bigger you were, you were NOT going to tell me what to do. But I learned my lesson, that’s for sure. When you tried to choke me out. Back at the hotel.”

“That is not what I was trying to do.”

“I know. You were trying to scare me off. Because you were having the ‘feels’. You liked me. You thought I was cute. You wanted to kiss me. You wanted to kiss me so bad it made you look stupid.”

“I didn’t just want to kiss you. That’s for sure.”

“You made that very clear. When you tried to put me through the wall. I have to admit, on my list of ‘first times with a new partner’, you’re at the very top. Hell, you have your own chapter.”

A blush creeps into his cheeks, slowly spreading to the tips of his ears. And when they both fall quiet, he returns to picking at the label on the water bottle as she lightly drums her fingernails against hers.

“She was born on a Tuesday,” Esme breaks the silence. “Millie. It was a beautiful fall day. It was bright and sunny; the sky was the most amazing colour of blue. And the trees…” She gives a wistful smile of remembrance. “...they’d just started turning; orange and red and gold. I was always a huge autumn in New York girl.”

“I remember how we used to talk about it. Visiting in the fall. You always used to bring up buying one of those townhouses. If we ever came into big money.”

“A brownstone. Gramercy Park. You’d love it there. It’s quaint and it’s quiet and it seems a million miles away from all the hustle and bustle. Maybe one day…” Her voice trails off.

“Tell me more,” Tyler encourages. “About Millie. Please.”

“She weighed eight pounds, eight ounces. She was the sweetest little chunk. The chubbiest cheeks I’ve ever seen. Like a little chipmunk, hoarding for the winter. And she was twenty-two inches long. All limbs. Like her dad.”

He smiles.

“She was so beautiful. She had this headful of blond hair and those gorgeous blue eyes and the longest lashes I’ve ever seen. I remember the nurse carrying her over and going on and on about how she must look like her daddy. Because she sure didn’t have any of her mom’s DNA.” Her voice cracks with emotion. “And Millie just snuggled right into me and she looked up at me with those eyes and I just…fell in love. Same way I fell in love with her dad the first time he looked at me.”

“Esme…”

“I had wanted to be a mom for so long. And then I lost the baby with Mark and my marriage became a total nightmare and everything just fell apart. I swore I’d never trust someone again. I told myself I’d never let anyone get that close to me. And if that meant I never got to have a baby, that’s the price I was willing to pay. Then you came along and you turned my world upside down and everything changed. For the better.”

“It was a hell of a way to kick things off. Everything that happened in Dhaka. Sometimes I wonder if it worked against us; it gave us some false sense of security. We figured we’d already been through the worst of it. What could possibly go wrong. Maybe we just got too comfortable.”

“I know you don’t really believe that. We were so good together, Tyler. Nothing that felt that right could ever be wrong. We just didn’t get the chance. To build on things. And we deserved better. So much better.”

“And Millie? Did you know? When you left? That you were having her?”

“No. I didn’t find out about her until after I arrived in New York. Three weeks later.”

“Why didn’t you call me? Or text me? I would have dropped everything to be with you. I would have gotten the first flight out and…”

“That’s why I didn’t contact you. Because I knew that you’d come here. I couldn’t risk that. I left Australia to protect you. And if you’d just shown up here…”

“I had a right to know. That you were pregnant. You didn’t make that baby by yourself. I deserved to know about her.”

“I wanted to tell you. As soon as I found out. Believe me, I wanted nothing more than for you to be there. Through the whole thing. It’s all I ever thought about; how different things would be if you were around. I didn’t want to be going through all that alone. Doctors appointments and ultrasounds and buying little clothes and picking names and decorating a bedroom. I WANTED you to be there. I didn’t want to be going through all that by myself.”

“You didn’t have to. You could have just called me. We could have found a way, Esme. To make things work. Whatever was going on? Whoever was after you? We would have dealt with it. Together. You didn’t have to do it alone. And you goddamn well know that.”

“I couldn’t put you at risk. I just couldn’t. If I kept you safe, it meant that you’d still be able to meet Millie. Further down the road. If I brought you into everything and something happened to you, she would never have gotten a chance to know her daddy. That’s why I didn’t tell you. I did it for BOTH of you.”

“I want to understand this. I really do. I don’t want to be this angry. Not at you. But it’s hard. It is so fucking hard. You’re the one person that I trusted. With every messy, broken fucking piece of myself. You’re the one person who knew how fucked up I was and didn’t look at me like I was some piece of shit. You knew about Austin. You knew what I did. When he was sick. You knew about all of that guilt and regret and the hate I had for myself. That I still do.”

“You were never broken. A little bent, maybe. You had a lot of dents and scratches, but you were NOT broken. I never thought of you that way. I still don’t. I didn’t keep Millie from you to hurt you.”

“We talked about having kids. You knew that I was willing to give you what you wanted. A family. Even though the idea of being a dad again scared the shit out of me. I was ready for that. To have another kid and do things right. And you never even gave me the fucking chance.”

“It wasn’t about you. Not in the way you’re thinking it was. You didn’t do anything wrong. It wasn’t something you did or something you said that made me leave. I didn’t want to go. I wanted to stay. I wanted a life with you. I didn’t leave because I didn’t love you. I left because I did.”

He places his elbows on his knees; sighing heavily as he runs his hands through his hair and over his face.

“I know you’re hurt. And I’m not trying to take that from you. Because you deserve to feel whatever it is you’re feeling. But I just want you to try and understand. Please. Can you just try? Just hear me out?”

Tyler nods.

“When you were gone with Koen, an adjudicator with the High Table showed up. There were new powers in charge, and one of the first things they decided to do was review old files. Investigate people that had been ex-communicated; find out what they did wrong and punish them if they saw fit. My name was on the list and my file was one of those that got re-opened.”

“The High Table? That is some serious underground shit. What…?”

“It was the circles I was working in. Before I met Nik. It was dark and it was dangerous and it wasn’t a past that I was proud of. Which is why I never talked about it. I wanted to forget that part of my life; being involved with people like that. I had moved on; I was given a way out. And then I started working for Nik and I never thought of all that again. I thought it was finished.”

“How the hell did you ever get on their bad side? It takes a lot to piss them off. As long as you follow their rules…”

“That’s the problem. I didn’t. I did someone a favour. I did work on Continental grounds. And I would have gotten away with it but the wrong person found out about it and told the High Table what I’d done. The only reason I wasn’t punished even worse was because both Winston and John Wick went to bat for me and the High Table agreed to only excommunicate me. I could no longer set foot on Continental grounds, or do any work for -or with- anyone associated with it. They let me just walk away. Make a new life.”

“Why did you never tell me about any of this? That THAT’S what you used to do? I knew you were involved with some heavy duty shit, but…”

“I didn’t think it mattered. That part of my life was over. It was behind me. Just like the things you’d done on the job before we met never mattered to me. There was before us and after us. I didn’t think it needed to be brought up. Would it have made a difference? In whether or not you’d want to be with me?”

“No. Of course not. I just thought something like that would have gotten brought up. At some point.”

“I never had a reason to talk about it. They weren’t a threat. They were a part of me that didn’t exist anymore.”

“Until they showed up.”

“The adjudicator said I had forty-eight hours. To get to New York City and surrender myself to the High Table. Or they were going to come back and physically take me there.”

“You should have let them. You should have called and told me what was going on. I would have come home and I would have…”

“What would you have done, Tyler? Fight back? You still weren’t a hundred percent. And I know how strong you are and I know what skills you have, but none of that would have mattered. It wouldn’t have been just one or two people. Or even six. It would have been a whole army of them. They’re vicious and they’re ruthless and they would have stopped at nothing to get their hands on me. I couldn’t take the chance. Of losing you completely. I just couldn’t.”

“How did you even get here? To New York?”

“I got a hold of Nik.” She notices the way his jaw tenses and his eyes darken) “I know she’s not your favourite person right now. But I didn’t know who else to call. I needed someone I could trust and…”

“You could have trusted me. We could have taken off. We didn’t have to stick around and wait for them to show up. If you'd just called me and told me what was going on…”

“I didn’t want you involved. I didn’t want a target on your back. So I called Nik and she got me out of Australia and to New York City. And from there, John Wick got me to a safe place. He let the High Table know I was back in the States, but he wasn’t turning me over until they gave his word that they’d spare my life.”

“And why would they do that? And why would he help you?”

“It was John that I did the work for. While on Continental grounds. He felt guilty for what I was going through and promised he’d do anything he could go to protect me. He was going to wage war against them; with the Bowery King. It’s a long and twisted and very complicated story. That’s HIS to tell. But the time he negotiated with The High Table for my safety, he was ready to go to battle against them. I never ended up having to face them.”

“And you found out about Millie. During all this.”

“About three weeks later. I hadn’t been feeling well for a while. I was sick when you went with Koen to Broome. We thought it was stress; we’d just bought a house and we were moving in two weeks and we were trying to get everything packed up. But then I got to New York and each day I felt a little worse and I then realized I’d skipped two periods so I took a test and…”

“And there was no way you could have told me? Found a way? To keep it on the down low and….”

“It was too much of a risk. I’d know you’d come here. And I was trying to avoid something happening to you. I know it’s hard to swallow and I know it seems incredibly selfish, but I didn’t do it to purposefully hurt you. I really did do it to protect you.”

Briefly closing his eyes, he pinches the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger) “What about after? When things calmed down? Why didn’t you contact me then?”

“I wanted to. I was going to. Millie was eight months old, by then. A lot of time had passed since we last talked, let alone saw each other. I chickened out. I was afraid. That you’d be so angry at me and hate me so much that you wouldn’t want anything to do with me. Or Millie.”

“That never would have happened. It wouldn’t have mattered how much time had passed. If you’d called me, I would have been there. On the next plane. I would have given up my entire life for you. For her. No hesitations, no questions asked.”

“It was stupid of me. And selfish. Incredibly selfish. I didn’t mean for it to go on this long. To hurt you like this.” She reaches out; afraid to touch him at first. But the simple brush of her fingertips against the back of his neck has both his jaw and his shoulders loosening; eyes closing once more as he releases a long, almost content sigh. It encourages her to continue. Scraping her fingernails along the bottom of his hairline before dropping her hand to his shoulder; softly and repeatedly squeezing. “I’m sorry, Tyler. I am so sorry. I know you’re angry and hurt and this is a lot to digest. But I really am sorry. I didn’t leave you because I didn’t love you. I left you because I did. And I still do.”

He blinks at her admission, then turns her face into her palm when she places her hand upon his cheek. In that moment, it occurs to him just how much he’d missed her touch; far more than he’d ever admitted to even himself. Those soft and gentle hands that tended to wounds and wandered and explored his body during intimate times. Soothed his hair away from his flushed forehead or rubbed his back after a nightmare. He had missed HER. The sound of her voice and her laugh; those enormous dark eyes and the smile reserved just for him. He’d seen in that afternoon; when they’d come face to face in her suite. He’d felt it then, that intense draw to her. The want and need. The adoration and love. Still there after all these years; fighting to get past all of the hurt and the pain. even now in the midst of all the hurt and the pain. He boldly presses his forehead against hers; filled with a sense of calm as he finds himself accosted by the feel of her skin and her familiar smell. His lips briefly brush against her brow when she pulls away; sniffling as she swipes at her errant tears. And he gently pushes her hands away from her face and in order to tend to her; fingertips clearing away the droplets that glisten upon her cheeks and the sides of her nose.

“Does Millie know anything?” He inquires. “About her dad? Does she ever ask or…?”

“Lately she’s been asking a lot. All of her little friends have dads, so why doesn’t she? I knew it would happen eventually; she’d get to an age where she’d hear and notice things.”

‘What have you told her?”

“I told her that her dad lives far away. And that he’s a very good man; he’s strong and brave and resilient and has a heart bigger than his body. I told her that we were happy; we didn’t have a lot but we had each other and we were making all kinds of plans for our future. And I also told her that something bad happened and I had to leave him. So that he wouldn’t get hurt. I promised that one day when the time was right, I’d take her to meet him. And I said that I missed him. Every second of every day. For five years. And I loved him; with everything I was and everything I had. That I still do.”

Laying a hand on the back of her neck, he presses a kiss to her brow and then pulls her into him. Holding her as tightly as her tiny body will allow; her entire body shuddering violently against him as she sobs. There could never be hate; loving her with an intensity and a passion he’d never experienced before. Even now it’s so powerful; capable of taking his breath away and bringing him to his knees. And in turn, she clings desperately to him, hands tightly gripping his t-shirt.

Running a palm over her hair, he places a kiss on her temple. “It’s alright now. Everything’s going to be okay.”

“It’s not okay. It’s so far from okay. I never wanted to hurt you. I didn’t want to leave. I’m sorry, Tyler. I’m so sorry.”

“I know, Esme. I know you are.”

“I hope one day you can forgive me. That you won’t be so angry.”

“I’m not angry at you. At everything that happened, yeah. But not at you.”

“ I did what I thought was best. To keep you safe. And then I found out about Millie and I had to keep her safe too. She’s the most important thing in my life. My entire world. She’s all I had of you. And on those days when things got really bad and I was lonely and wanted nothing more than to be with you, all I had to do was look at her. I’d see you every time. And it made things better because I at least had a piece of you to keep me going.”

“I’m sorry, Esme. About everything that happened. That you had to do it all by yourself. I wish it could have been different. I wish I could have been there. You know that I would have, yeah? I would have been there…with you…in a heartbeat.”

Nodding, she pulls away and wipes at her tears. “It’s going to be okay,” he assures her. “I promise.”

“Things would have been so different. If I never had to leave. We’d be happy and raising Millie together and….”

“She’s got a lot of years left. She’s got a long life ahead of her. Just a little girl still.”

“I just want to start over. I just want to do things right this time. We deserve a second chance.”

“We do. And we’ll talk about that. When we’re out of New York and I’ve got you and Millie somewhere safe. I’m sure we’ll have a lot of time. To figure it all out.”

“I should go. It’s late. I’ve taken up enough of your time.”

“We’ve got four years to make up for.”

“You need sleep. It’s been a hell of a long day. Especially for you. And you’ve had a lot dumped in your lap. I am sorry, Tyler. That it ever had to come down to this. I didn’t want it to be this way; you meeting Millie like this.”

“Sometimes fate just intervenes. Whether we like the way it does it or not.’

He walks her to the door; a protective and loving hand on the back of her neck. And she turns to face him; a gentle and grateful smile curving her lips as she smiles at him, a sparkle in her tearful eyes.

“Thank you. For hearing me out. And thank you for her. Especially for her.”

He grazes his knuckles across the top of her cheek, then along her jaw. Fingertips lingering on the bottom of her chin before leaning down to press his lips to hers. She initially hesitates and then eagerly responds; standing on her tiptoes as her hands settle on his hips. And what starts as long and soft and sweet turns into something far more intense and needy; hearing and feeling the long, content sigh that escapes as his tongue pushes its way; into her mouth; her body leaning into his as her nails dig into his sides. The hunger and want and need for each other suddenly is too much to resist; his fingers hooking in the waistband of both leggings and underwear and aggressively yanking them down; pushing them down her hips and over as ass as her hands make quick work of his belt.

It’s fast and unceremonious; a half-naked, quick and uncomplicated fuck right where they stand. Eerily reminiscent of Dhaka; when two broken and lonely people had found solace in one another after years of mental anguish. Even five years later, he remains fascinated and amazed at how much punishment her little body can take. The fingers of one hand pressing into one of her ass cheeks while the others dig into her throat; sloppy kisses exchanged while she breathlessly pleads for ‘harder’ and ‘faster. Giving him the opportunity to take all of that anger and the hurt and turn it into something more constructive; enjoying the way she yanks at his hair and her legs wrap around his waist as he unleashes brutal, punishing thrusts.

When it’s over, he remains buried inside of her; her mouth peppering his neck with kisses and nibbles as he carries her across the room. Both completely spent and sated when they fall onto the bed; their limbs trembling as sweat glistens on their foreheads and gathers at their temples. And even in the midst of post-orgasmic haze he worries about protecting her; palms flat against the mattress so his outstretched arms can support his weight.

She’s quick to protest when she feels him begin to pull out; mewing in disappointment and pulling him down on top of her. “Stay,” she pleads, hands pushing through his hair; placing a line of kisses along his jaw before her lips find his ear. “Right where you are. I want to feel you inside of me. Just for a little while. I’ve missed that. So much. I’ve missed YOU.”

He kisses her in response; soft and deep and languid. Lips brushing against the tip of her nose before he rests his brow against hers and closes his eyes.

[levinkgeever]

Cheap Imitation Jewellery in Thrissur: A Guide to Affordable Elegance and Style

Jewellery has always been an essential part of Indian culture, deeply rooted in tradition and symbolism. For centuries, it has adorned women on special occasions, adding a touch of grace, beauty, and status. However, with the soaring prices of gold and other precious metals, the demand for affordable alternatives has surged. This is where cheap imitation jewellery in Thrissur has gained immense popularity, offering a perfect blend of elegance, affordability, and variety.

Thrissur, known as the cultural capital of Kerala, is a city rich in tradition and famous for its opulent weddings, festivals, and grand celebrations. Jewellery, particularly gold, plays a significant role in these events. But today, as more people seek affordable options without compromising on style, imitation jewellery is becoming a go-to choice for many. In this blog post, we’ll explore the rise of imitation jewellery in Thrissur, what makes it such a popular choice, and how you can find the best and most affordable pieces for any occasion.

1. Understanding Imitation Jewellery

Before we delve into why cheap imitation jewellery in Thrissur is such a hot trend, it’s essential to understand what imitation jewellery is. Unlike real gold or diamond jewellery, imitation jewellery is made using non-precious metals such as brass, copper, or silver, which are then plated with gold, silver, or other materials to give them a lustrous finish. These pieces often incorporate artificial stones, beads, pearls, and even crystals to mimic the look of expensive gems.

Imitation jewellery has come a long way in terms of design and craftsmanship. Today, many imitation jewellery pieces are indistinguishable from their real counterparts, making them a desirable alternative for those who want to make a fashion statement without breaking the bank.

2. Why Choose Cheap Imitation Jewellery in Thrissur?

Imitation jewellery is not just a budget-friendly option; it has several other advantages that make it a popular choice, especially in a culturally rich city like Thrissur. Let’s explore some of the key reasons why cheap imitation jewellery is in high demand.

a. Affordability

The most obvious reason why people gravitate towards imitation jewellery is its affordability. Gold, diamond, and other precious jewellery come with a hefty price tag, making it difficult for many to invest in such pieces, especially for one-time events like weddings or festivals. Imitation jewellery provides a cost-effective alternative, allowing people to purchase beautiful, ornate designs at a fraction of the cost of real gold or diamond jewellery.

In Thrissur, where grand weddings and traditional events are common, imitation jewellery enables brides and their families to save on costs while still achieving a stunning, regal look.

b. Variety of Designs

Imitation jewellery offers an incredible variety of designs. Whether you’re looking for traditional Kerala-style temple jewellery, modern statement pieces, or minimalistic daily wear, there’s something for everyone. The ability to mimic real gold and diamond designs means that you can find cheap imitation jewellery that looks just as elegant and sophisticated as high-end pieces.

In Thrissur, a city known for its diverse cultural and traditional practices, this variety allows people to choose pieces that complement their unique styles and the occasion they’re celebrating.

c. Safe to Wear

Another significant advantage of imitation jewellery is its safety. Wearing real gold or diamond jewellery in public or during large gatherings can sometimes be risky, with concerns about theft or loss. With imitation jewellery, you get the peace of mind to wear stunning pieces without the fear of losing valuable assets.

This is especially useful in Thrissur, where large events like weddings, festivals, and temple visits often attract crowds, making safety a concern. Imitation jewellery ensures that you can enjoy the event without constantly worrying about the safety of your jewellery.

d. Perfect for Experimentation

Fashion is ever-evolving, and jewellery trends change just as frequently. With imitation jewellery, you can easily experiment with different styles, trends, and designs without feeling guilty about spending too much. Whether you want to try bold, chunky necklaces, colorful statement earrings, or delicate layered chains, imitation jewellery allows you to explore these styles without a massive investment.

In a culturally rich place like Thrissur, where traditional and modern aesthetics coexist, imitation jewellery allows people to blend old and new styles seamlessly.

3. Types of Imitation Jewellery Popular in Thrissur

Imitation jewellery comes in various styles and designs, catering to different occasions and personal tastes. Here are some of the most popular types of cheap imitation jewellery available in Thrissur:

a. Temple Jewellery

Temple jewellery is one of the most iconic styles of traditional Kerala jewellery. These pieces are characterized by intricate designs featuring deities, elephants, peacocks, and other religious symbols. Temple jewellery is often worn during weddings, festivals, and temple visits.

Cheap imitation temple jewellery in Thrissur allows people to own beautiful, traditional pieces without spending on real gold. These designs are often plated with gold or silver to give them an authentic look, making them perfect for special occasions.

b. Bridal Jewellery Sets

Imitation bridal jewellery sets are a favorite among brides in Thrissur. These sets usually consist of a necklace, earrings, bangles, and maang tikka, designed to give the bride a royal and opulent look. From traditional gold-plated pieces to more modern, diamond-studded designs, imitation bridal sets offer something for every bride’s taste and budget.

With weddings being such grand affairs in Thrissur, imitation jewellery sets help families save significantly while still ensuring the bride looks stunning on her big day.

c. Statement Necklaces

For those who love making a bold fashion statement, imitation jewellery offers a wide range of statement necklaces. These chunky, elaborate pieces often feature colorful stones, beads, and intricate designs that can elevate any outfit. Whether paired with a sari, lehenga, or even a modern dress, statement necklaces are perfect for weddings, parties, and festivals.

In Thrissur, where traditional attire is often complemented by bold jewellery, these necklaces offer a perfect blend of tradition and modernity.

d. Earrings and Bangles

No traditional outfit is complete without matching earrings and bangles. Imitation earrings come in various styles, from classic jhumkas to modern chandelier earrings. Bangles, too, are available in traditional gold-plated designs, colorful glass bangles, or even sleek metal designs for a contemporary look.

In Thrissur, where accessorizing is key to completing an outfit, cheap imitation jewellery offers endless options for earrings and bangles that match any style or occasion.

e. Daily Wear Jewellery

Imitation jewellery isn’t just for special occasions. Many women in Thrissur prefer wearing light, delicate imitation jewellery for their everyday needs. Simple chains, stud earrings, and bangles that mimic real gold or silver are popular choices for daily wear. These pieces are affordable, lightweight, and easy to maintain, making them a practical choice for everyday fashion.

4. Where to Find Cheap Imitation Jewellery in Thrissur

Thrissur is home to many shops, markets, and suppliers that specialize in imitation jewellery. Whether you’re looking for bridal sets, temple jewellery, or casual pieces, here are some of the top places to find cheap imitation jewellery in Thrissur:

a. Kunnath Gold

Kunnath Gold is one of the most trusted names in Thrissur when it comes to imitation jewellery. With over 30 years of experience, Kunnath Gold offers a wide range of high-quality imitation jewellery, including gold-plated, temple, and bridal designs. Their pieces are known for their durability, intricate craftsmanship, and affordable prices, making them a go-to choice for many in Thrissur.

b. Local Jewellery Markets

Thrissur has many bustling markets and bazaars that sell imitation jewellery. Places like Kuruppam Road and Round East are known for their jewellery shops that offer a variety of affordable options. These markets are perfect for finding unique, one-of-a-kind pieces at competitive prices.

c. Online Retailers

Many people in Thrissur now turn to online shopping for their imitation jewellery needs. E-commerce platforms like Amazon, Flipkart, and other specialized jewellery websites offer a vast selection of imitation jewellery at cheap prices. Online shopping allows you to browse through thousands of designs from the comfort of your home and often provides discounts and deals that are not available in physical stores.

d. Wholesale Shops

If you’re looking to buy imitation jewellery in bulk, wholesale shops in Thrissur offer some of the best deals. These shops provide cheap imitation jewellery at discounted rates, making them ideal for weddings, parties, or even resale purposes.

5. How to Care for Imitation Jewellery

One of the concerns people often have with imitation jewellery is its durability. While imitation jewellery is not as long-lasting as real gold or diamond pieces, proper care can extend its lifespan and keep it looking as good as new. Here are some tips on how to care for your cheap imitation jewellery:

a. Store Properly Store your imitation jewellery in a cool, dry place, preferably in individual pouches or boxes to avoid scratches and tangling. Keep them away from direct sunlight and moisture, as these can cause tarnishing.

b. Avoid Chemicals Perfumes, lotions, and other chemicals can damage the plating and stones in imitation jewellery. Always apply these products before wearing your jewellery and avoid spraying perfumes directly on your pieces.

c. Clean Gently Use a soft cloth to wipe your imitation jewellery after each use to remove any dirt or oils. For a more thorough cleaning, use a mild soap solution and a soft brush, but avoid soaking the jewellery in water for too long.

d. Handle with Care

While imitation jewellery is affordable, it is often more delicate than real jewellery. Handle your pieces with care, especially those with intricate designs or stones, to prevent breakage or damage.

6. Conclusion: The Rise of Cheap Imitation Jewellery in Thrissur

As the demand for affordable and stylish jewellery continues to grow, cheap imitation jewellery in Thrissur has become an essential part of every wardrobe. Offering a wide range of designs, from traditional temple jewellery to modern bridal sets, imitation jewellery allows individuals to embrace elegance and luxury without the high cost. Whether you’re preparing for a wedding, festival, or simply want to accessorize your daily outfits, imitation jewellery provides the perfect solution for affordable fashion.

With numerous suppliers, local markets, and online retailers offering high-quality imitation jewellery in Thrissur, there’s no shortage of options for those looking to make a statement without breaking the bank. So, explore the world of imitation jewellery and add a touch of affordable elegance to your jewellery collection today.

FAQ

1. Where can I buy cheap imitation jewellery in Thrissur?  — You can find affordable imitation jewellery in Thrissur in popular markets such as Swaraj Round, Palace Road, and various street vendors. Many stores and online platforms based in Thrissur also offer budget-friendly options.

2. What types of cheap imitation jewellery are available in Thrissur?  — Cheap imitation jewellery in Thrissur includes a wide range of products like earrings, necklaces, bangles, rings, anklets, and bridal sets. Both traditional and trendy designs are available to suit different preferences.

3. What is the price range for cheap imitation jewellery in Thrissur?  — The price of cheap imitation jewellery in Thrissur typically ranges from ₹50 to ₹500 for individual pieces, depending on the design, material, and craftsmanship. Bulk purchases or special deals may offer additional discounts.

4. Are there any wholesale options for cheap imitation jewellery in Thrissur?  — Yes, many stores and markets in Thrissur offer wholesale imitation jewellery at lower rates. Buying in bulk is an ideal way to get cheaper prices, especially for resellers or event purchases.

5. Can I find traditional Kerala designs in cheap imitation jewellery in Thrissur?  — Yes, even in the affordable category, you can find traditional Kerala designs such as Palakka, Nagapadam, and Kasu Mala, which are popular for weddings and festivals.

6. What materials are used in cheap imitation jewellery from Thrissur?  — Cheap imitation jewellery is usually made from materials like brass, copper, and alloy metals. These pieces may be gold-plated or adorned with faux stones like cubic zirconia, glass, or crystals to give them a more luxurious appearance.

7. Is the quality of cheap imitation jewellery in Thrissur reliable?  — The quality of cheap imitation jewellery can vary. While the materials are less expensive, many suppliers offer well-crafted pieces that are durable for casual or occasional use. It’s important to shop from reliable sources or inspect the items for quality before purchasing.

8. Where can I buy cheap imitation jewellery online in Thrissur?  — Many Thrissur-based jewellery stores offer cheap imitation jewellery online through their websites or popular e-commerce platforms. These stores often display their collections with detailed pricing, making it easy to shop from home.

9. How can I care for cheap imitation jewellery to make it last longer?  — To prolong the life of cheap imitation jewellery, avoid exposure to moisture, perfumes, and chemicals. Store it in a dry, airtight container when not in use and gently clean it with a soft cloth after wearing.

10. Are there any seasonal discounts or sales on imitation jewellery in Thrissur?  — Yes, many jewellery stores in Thrissur offer seasonal sales during festivals like Onam, Vishu, and Diwali. Off-season discounts or clearance sales may also help you find imitation jewellery at even cheaper prices.

11. Can I buy cheap imitation bridal jewellery in Thrissur?  — Yes, Thrissur offers a variety of budget-friendly imitation bridal jewellery sets. These sets provide an affordable alternative to gold jewellery while still offering intricate designs suitable for weddings.

12. Are cheap imitation jewellery sets suitable for gifting?  — Yes, many cheap imitation jewellery pieces make great gifts, especially for casual or festive occasions. You can find beautifully designed sets that are both budget-friendly and attractive.

13. What is the difference between cheap and premium imitation jewellery in Thrissur?  — The main difference lies in the materials and craftsmanship. Cheap imitation jewellery uses more affordable base metals and stones, while premium imitation jewellery may have higher-quality plating, better stones, and more intricate designs.

14. Can I find both modern and traditional designs in cheap imitation jewellery in Thrissur?  — Yes, Thrissur’s markets and stores offer a wide selection of both modern and traditional designs, ensuring that you can find affordable jewellery to match your style, whether it’s for daily wear or special occasions.

15. How do I choose a reliable store for buying cheap imitation jewellery in Thrissur?  — To find a reliable store, check customer reviews, ask for recommendations, and visit stores that are well-known for their quality and pricing. It’s also a good idea to inspect the jewellery in person to ensure its durability and appearance.

[jump-guy]

Water Slide Rentals

Water slides are always synonymous with fun, especially during the warm summer. However, only some have the luxury of visiting a water park whenever they please. This is where water slide rentals come into play, offering a convenient and exciting option for adding a splash of enjoyment to any event, from birthday parties to corporate gatherings.

The appeal of water slide rentals is vast. These inflatables provide an immediate focal point of fun that appeals to all ages. Whether it's a small slide for toddlers or a giant slide for teens and adults, the versatility in sizes and themes allows event planners to cater to specific audiences and preferences. The sight of a water slide can transform a simple backyard party into a thrilling festivity, making it an instant hit among guests.

Safety and convenience are key factors contributing to the popularity of renting water slides. Rental companies ensure that all slides are up to safety standards, regularly maintained, and adequately sanitized between uses. This peace of mind allows hosts to worry less about logistics and focus more on enjoying the event. Furthermore, professional setup and takedown services provided by rental companies eliminate the hassle of dealing with heavy equipment, making the process seamless and stress-free.

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[websitesdesignla]

seo services strategies for turning visitors into customers

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Compelling and Informative Content Content is king, and creating compelling and informative content is essential for turning visitors into customers. SEO services should focus on producing high-quality content that addresses user needs, provides valuable information, and encourages engagement. Content that resonates with your audience establishes trust and positions your brand as an authority in your industry.

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For tailored SEO services that prioritize conversion strategies, contact Website Depot today. Our team is dedicated to helping businesses achieve measurable success through strategic SEO solutions that turn website visitors into loyal customers.

[teddybat24]

So @ssabriel preached the dynamic between Veera (ASVR) and Siddha (Acharya) to me, and I’m down with it so bad. Here are some of the thoughts for now.

Veera remembered that he was not impressed by Siddha's idea at the beginning. From the moment he saw this man, he was attracted by the indomitability in those eyes, which was completely different from the anger he concealed in his heart.

He held the old man's wrist and carefully guided him off the train. He landed on the ground first, then turned around and raised his arms for the latter. He recalled the mud in his hometown, as if the dust to cover the sky came to his face, but it did not affect his sight. He looked at Sidhha. His hand put on his shoulder and the body that could not be well healed from the old wound, bumped into his chest because of unstable footsteps, there were two voices struck in his heart at the same time.

* Too skinny/I want to protect you*

Veera looked at the gentle eyes that were different from his elders, patted his shoulder with a smile, signaling him to let him down.

He saw a worn-out and immature self reflected in Siddha's eyes. He grabed the clothes in his arms, dragged the dazzling yellow scarf, gathered them around his chest and tightened his embrace.

He remembered that the villagers had asked him the meaning of revenge.

When he was packing his bags, they asked him what he wanted. Veera just wanted to break the vicious cycle. Killing and hatred would not solve the problem, so he left his hometown and arrived at the unfamiliar area, came to the forest further west, rumored to have nurtured many monks and wise men - Padagatan.

The knowledge he possesses was useless in this vast land, so he let his smartphone ruthlessly lied in the corner of the luggage. He tried to do as the locals do, he asked the merciful mother goddess, but over time, the earth was exploited bit by bit. He couldn't get the answer he searched for, thus he continued on his way to Dharmasthali, and as he crossed the Jeevadhara River in a small boat, he saw the tide pooling, surging and breaking into little waves, which disappeared before his eyes in a while. He seemed to realize something, but when he let the water flow through his fingertips, the sticky touch of the scarlet liquid splashed on his hands that day still made him irritable.

Maybe the tiredness finally drained him out, he lost his way in the Siddhawanan Forest. Before he ate up his last drop of water and solid food, he came to a beautiful lake. Even the wooden house beside seemed to appear in a fairy tale.

He saw him there, wearing worn but clean clothes. He stood in front of the door like a painting, with a crutch in one hand and holding firewood in the other. He just stared back at him with those pairs of piercing eyes, and in that particular time, Veera knew he found his moment of truth.

(continued)

tag list, if anyone wants to be added or removed from the tag list, feel free to tell me👌:

@fangirlshrewt97 @stanleykubricks @tulodiscord @bromance-minus-the-b @ssabriel @burningsheepcrown @rambheem-is-real @rambheemlove @jrntrtitties @sally-for-sally @ramcharantitties @yehsahihai @ma-douce-souffrance @budugu @stuckyandlarrystuff @nyotamalfoy @veteran-fanperson @kookiries @pine-breeze @ronaldofandom @hissterical-nyaan @milla984 @sukitaee @bitchy-bi-trash @yonderghostshistories @whoareyouallofasudden @filesbeorganized @thewinchestergirl1208 @dumdaradumdaradum @iam-siriuslysher-lokid @rambheemisgoated @doodlesofthelastpage @jjwolfesworld @yashuika @mesimpleone

[yutafrita]

Through the Webs- CHAPTER TWO

“And through it all, I will fearlessly love you."

Sungchan x Reader (y/n pronouns are she/her)

[Feat. all members of blackpink, ensemble of nct members]

Chapter Warnings: Bad mental health facilities, poor depictions of mental health, mild gore, psychological horror elements.

Chapter Word Count: ~6.5K

Through the Webs Master List

Tag List! @nini0620 @maleegayuh if you want to be added just send an ask or comment <3

Chapter Two

The crowded restaurant spread out over four different tables was how the group decided was best to meet. It was in an area downtown near where everyone’s day job was without any of Capsik’s higher up henchmen. They all agreed that until the plan was fully implemented, it would be best to not have everyone missing in the underground for too long, lest they attract attention. Most of their faces were moderately known to the public (thanks to them being televised once a week), which is why Sungchan had tied his hood all the way up, and watched Rosé struggle with a brunette wig and sunglasses looking through the menu.

“You get the same thing everytime,” Doyoung huffed, leaning his head against the short divider that separated their row of booths from the ones next to them. He was hardly audible over the boisterous restaurant crowd.

“Well, maybe I want something new... Anyways I’ll have a stack of pancakes,” she decided, falling back to what she always got. The waitress nodded, not looking up from her notepad before she walked away, having already taken the other two orders.

“All right, let’s hear it,” Sungchan spoke up now, not enough to draw more attention from the rowdy patrons, but enough for the two other booths next to them to grunt in agreement.

“Any new observations?” Sungchan asked.

“According to the notes, treatment this week has been more harsh than usual,” it was Renjun’s voice. Sungchan looked up and around at the restaurant, noting that all seemed clear before he knocked on the divider, allowing for Renjun to continue. “A lot of yelling and taunting. A guard even shoved one and three.”

Sungchan gulped. He was infuriated at the image of one of those horrible people laying a hand on you. You were already going through enough on the drugs you were all being forced to take and the mental torture the faux therapists conducted. Now, knowing that the guards and nurses were resorting to physical violence… Sungchan tightly gripped the salt shaker in his hand to calm down. He couldn’t see Kun, but he could imagine the irritation he felt knowing that his nephew was shoved down too.

“I was able to figure out where the bio trackers were,” Taeyong jumped in, likely earning him a rough arm punch and a small ow was heard. “I meant… the maps. The maps are located on the wrists,” he quickly corrected. Previously Sungchan had decided saying trackers in public was a bit risky, and maps was the code word they all agreed on.

“How do you know?” Doyoung asked, pausing as Sungchan looked around, and then knocked to affirm that the coast was indeed clear of anyone listening in.

“Earlier this week, three was complaining of an intense pain in his wrist. We saw a light flash on their wrist before that camera cut out. It goes with the information I gathered months ago,” Taeyong sounded proud, and although Sungchan struggled a bit to hear his brother, the point was clear- it was time.

“So, is phase three ready to be executed?” Lisa asked, her voice louder than everyone else's, which earned a few glances from nearby patrons. Sungchan knocked twice, and a hush fell as each booth pretended to speak amongst themselves for a few minutes to help dissipate any additional attention.

During the pause and the random nods he gave to Doyoung and Rosé, he mulled over the current conditions. Kun has had getaway vehicles prepared for months, Lisa and Jennie had organized the proper equipment a few weeks back, Renjun and Taeyong had managed to collect all necessary data and technology. Phase two, albeit a hefty phase, was indeed completed.

“Commence phase three,” Sungchan announced, earning small sounds of glee. 

“When do you execute your part?” Kun asked, and Sungchan could almost hear the smirk in his voice. Sungchan winced.

“The next time they allow us in.”

“God knows when that’ll be,” Rosé huffed, drawing lines with her finger on the table. A pause again as Sungchan looked around, again sending one knock on the divider.

“According to my observations, it’ll be soon,” Taeyong comforted.

“So everyone else’s duties commence a week from when I execute my task,” Sungchan confirmed. “Anything else?”

“Yeah, when are we getting running water back?” Jennie’s question was pointed at Yangyang, whom Sungchan saw from the corner of his eye scratch the back of his neck in embarrassment.

“Sorry about the wait, I just got what we needed. It’ll be fixed by the end of the week,” Yangyang promised. Yangyang was pretty handy with a wide array of things, but being able to gather items and sneak them into the underground sometimes made it difficult for the group’s repair man to do his job, especially when they’d have to wait on the group’s smuggler, Renjun, to collect certain items.

“Perfect,” Jennie seemed satisfied with this answer, and after another pause, Sungchan knocked three times, adjourning the meeting of the week just as the waitresses returned with everyone's orders.

Sungchan was more nervous than he’d let anyone know, especially considering the stakes weighing down on him. He glanced up at the corner TV in the bar, the one playing the livestream of you all in the asylum. The former mafia leader turned mayor-by-force was smart: not killing you all, but rather keeping you all alive to be psychologically tortured for the city to see, did a good job of murdering the spirit of most people.

Most people, that was.

Sungchan always said he’d pay you back for saving his life somehow, and this plan would certainly help fulfill his debt.

---

This had been a particularly painful week. 

In the morning, the nurses were a bit more aggressive giving you your medications. In group therapy sessions, the doctors took to painfully articulating each of your diagnoses on repeat and seeming to want to assure that you all felt horrible about yourselves. They took away your copy of Transformers 3, leaving you only with Italian Lion King. It was individual therapy that was the worst, each session forcing you to sob under your bed afterwards.

So, seeing Sungchan at the end of that week, carried a particularly special weight to it.

That week, visits were oddly scarce. They were never quite organized or planned to begin with, but usually before Sunday cleanups, you’d see Sungchan at least twice. Yet, it had been several excruciating days, and none of you were getting any of your visits- completely throwing off Jisoo’s guesses in the process.

Finally, you were properly handcuffed and sitting in the visiting room, your leg bouncing in anticipation. Shohei and Jaemin were in the room too, also trying to contain their excitement as you all waited on that red light to glow.

Shohei in particular was pleased, as he was allowed a white board to communicate only during his weekly visits, and as you waited, you watched as he began scribbling down whatever it was he seemed to be holding in his head.

The light glowed red then, a buzz filling the room as the door opened. The first one you recognized as Shohei’s visitor. It was tough sometimes to speak with Shohei, but whenever you could get him to communicate in some way, asking who his visitors were didn’t top your list usually. After that, in walked Jaemin’s uncle, earning a small cheer from Jaemin.

There was a pause, and you started to fiddle with your fingers as your chest swelled with nerves. What if the guards brought you in by mistake? It could very well happen. The door started closing, and you felt your eyes well with tears. That was, until a hand reached forward, stopping the door and entering the visitor room with the brightest smile and the scarf you made him.

“Hi, sorry I had to tie my shoelaces,” Sungchan lifted his foot once he approached the table, showing the hastily knotted shoe.

“I’m just glad to see you,” a smile you hadn’t felt in over a week graced your face as you watched him sit down. He had on a bulky coat along with the scarf, his cheeks and hands a soft red as they were chapped with the cold. “Have you been busy?”

He seemed taken aback by your direct question. He stuttered, glancing behind you as he formed his answer, “There was a storm during the week. I would have come here sooner if not for that, I promise.”

“No, it’s okay! I’m just glad to see you’re okay,” you had to stop yourself from reaching forward to hold his hands. You wanted to reassure him as much as possible, but you knew that the guard would likely remove you if you did.

“You know that I care about you, right? That you’re my priority?” his eyes widened, and you felt his leg rapidly fidget under the table, his knees knocking the bottom every second.

“I… I guess?” you didn’t know how to respond. It was an odd feeling. On the one hand, you were absolutely elated to hear that he thought of you as a priority beyond just visiting you throughout the week, but on the other, the way he said it felt as if it carried a different weight to it. One you didn’t quite understand.

Sungchan bit his lip, looking down at his own interlocked fingers before he spoke again, “the weather has been tough.”

You furrowed your eyebrows, completely perplexed by his weird tone change and overall demeanor. He glanced again at the guard before looking back at you, an urgency in his eyes you couldn’t decipher.

“How tough has the weather been?” you asked, trying to see if he could elaborate.

“Very tough. I had to scrape the snow out of the driveway today, usually you’d do that since you’re much stronger than me,” he stared at you blankly. Your face dropped.

“We lived together?”

“That’s normal for fiancés these days I think, at least in this economy,” he wasn’t looking at you, but instead staring directly at the guard behind you. You were reeling now, seeing as different visions began to pop up all around the visitors room- all of you and Sungchan interacting over what seemed like different times in your lives. A sharp pain rang in your head and you reached a hand up to one of your temples in an attempt to soothe the ache.

“We’re engaged?” you whispered, trying to ignore the throbbing in your head and the figures around that tried to gain your attention. You were determined to focus on Sungchan.

“Yes,” he then reached forward, grabbing both of your hands in his.

“Sir you are to not remind the patients of their memories as it will harm their healing. You need to leave,” a guard now stood next to you, reaching towards the baton on his hip.

“N-No!” you shouted, standing up despite the shaking in your knees.

Yank. Guided by the tug on your hands, your body lurched forward and before you could stop yourself, Sungchan steadied you as your lips crashed into his. Despite the shouts occurring all around you, and the fact that you were torn off each other moments afterwards- there were two notable things about that kiss.

One- it was a huge burst of love and joy you hadn’t felt since you had entered the hospital. For a moment, you felt complete. The second, was the fact that there was now a small weight in the pocket of your robe, and as Sungchan was dragged away, you saw the smirk on his lips as your hands stayed in your pockets.

The guards didn’t let you join therapy the rest of the evening, and forced you to stay in your room, walking you to and from the restroom along with directly delivering you your dinner.

“Can I talk to y/n?” you heard Jisoo’s voice, despite not being able to see her past the shoulders of the guard.

“Curfews soon,” the guard replied blankly.

“It’ll just be a minute,” she pleaded. You watched the guard intently, and he moved to the side to allow her in. She ran past, jumping to join you on your bed and embrace you.

“Can’t… breathe,” you huffed out. She released you from the hug, but kept her hands firmly on your shoulders as she analyzed your face. 

“Do you know if he’ll be allowed to visit?” she was getting directly to the point it seemed, and she made haste to your own worries. You pressed your lips together tightly, trying to stifle the tears that you had been holding back. Jisoo sighed, and wrapped you in another hug. “When one of my siblings visits, I’ll ask them if one can visit you too. So you can always have someone to talk to.”

“That’s so sweet,” it was all you could get out, your throat closing as you held back your tears. Still hugging you, she pressed her cheek against your own.

“I’ll have them talk to him for you, so you can speak somehow,” she whispered this, her own voice so low it was hard for you to hear. Once this sunk in, the tears you were holding back began to slip out one by one, and you squeezed Jisoo tightly. 

Jisoo left shortly thereafter, and once curfew began, you were left in your room alone. The dim moonlight from your window offered little in terms of lighting, especially after you crawled underneath your bed with your comforter.

It was awkward to say the least, but you tucked the comforter around the exposed parts of the underside to mostly block out what the cameras could see, leaving a sliver open for just enough moonlight to hit you. Quietly and carefully, you let your finger slip into your pocket, and you gently lifted whatever it was Sungchan had fought to slip to you. Your hand met paper, and you lifted an envelope to your eyes.

In soft, small handwriting on the front was your name. You could stare at this alone for hours, the small letters in the soft lighting making your stomach fill with butterflies. Quietly and slowly, you tucked your nail under the corner of the envelope, and at a snail’s pace you opened the envelope.

Each small tear in the paper made your heart well in fear. You feared the consequences of being caught, so you made sure to open it quietly despite how badly you wanted to rip it open.

Finally, the envelope was opened. After slowly removing the sheets of paper from the envelope, you readjusted yourself carefully to allow the sliver of moonlight hit the portions you needed it to.

Y/N,

I’m sorry I kissed you like that, we figured it would be the only distraction we could utilize to help get this your way. There’s so many things to say, but there’s only so much time. I guess I’ll start with what’s most important.

This is not a mental asylum, a rehabilitation center, or any of that. The nurses and guards are not there to keep you safe and get better- they are there to control you and make you all miserable. The visions your therapist tells you are just figments of your imaginations? They’re all your memories seeping through. I know it sounds insane, but you have to trust me. We’re going to get you all out of there- I’m going to get you out of there. 

I can’t stand walking in to see them slowly suck the life out of you. The bed’s lonely without you. I promise, next time we kiss, it’ll be different.

So, there’s a few things on the inside you’ll need to do. We’re not entirely sure of the ramifications, but it needs to be done. You have a week- I know you can do this.

---

You thought the first part was likely the most difficult. Every morning you’d all line up for your medication, and you’d have to wait a few minutes before grabbing your designated medication cup to then drink it, and then, by force, have a nurse check your mouth to make sure you swallowed them all.

Waiting at your door, you said good morning to your fellow patients, trying to keep a neutral tone. Your eyes searching, you followed behind Shohei, keeping closer to him than normal as you all started through the shared living space towards the medical hallway.

“Pretend you have a severe limp and stop moving at the couch or else,” you threatened, your voice so low only he could hear it as you brushed elbows with him. He turned to look at you in surprise before you shot him a glare. He stuttered in his steps before you kept walking ahead, hearing his steps grow heavy as he heavily limped, stopping on the couch.

“Hey, what’s wrong with him?” the guard asked you, not even bothering with Shohei. You shrugged your shoulders, in response, keeping your cool despite your racing heart.

“I’ll ask the nurse to bring him his medication here,” you offered, following now behind Jisoo and past the guard who simply nodded in response.

The hallway outside of the shared space contained the rest of your world. The table where you’d grab your medications, all of the rooms where you’d have your therapies, and the visitors room at the end.

Casually waiting, you slowly moved forward until it was your turn. “Shohei’s limping a bit it seems, I can bring him his medication and have the guard at the door check us?” you asked the nurse clumsily, trying to sell that you were a broken patient and not too confident in yourself.

The nurse squinted her eyes at you before she passed you the two cups. “This one's yours,” she placed the red cup in your right hand, “and these are Shohei’s,” his were in a yellow cup. You nodded, moving quickly towards the shared room before she could make you take your own in front of her.

“Here Shohei,” you handed him the red cup. He shot you a confused look, but before he could protest, you quickly gulped down the medications meant for him, leaving him no choice but to down the ones meant for you.

Roughly, the guard by the door turned your head, checking your open mouth before checking Shohei’s. Shohei shot you a confused look.

“La…” your voice got lost then, your throat closing up in pain as your speaking abilities seemed to disappear in a moment's notice. Shohei’s eyes widened before he pointed to your throat. You nodded, earning a silent gasp from him.

“Hi Shohei, we’re going to take a look at your leg,” a nurse came out from the hall, reluctantly offering Shohei a hand. He gulped, slowly rising and leaning on the nurse as he started his way out of the shared space and down the hall.

“What’s up with him?” Ten asked you. You opened your mouth to speak, but nothing came out. Instead, you shrugged again, and hurried past him and to the TV, where your balls of cheap yarn sat.

First thing on the agenda for the day was a small group therapy session. Normally it would be you, Shohei, and Jaemin in this one, but with Shohei getting a physical exam done, it was just you Jaemin.

“How are you two feeling?” the doctor asked. You began unspooling the yarn, getting to work on another scarf.

“I’ll take the silence as you are doing well. So, Jaemin, tell me about this… buzzing sound you’ve been hearing?” you drowned out their conversation then, occasionally looking up to see figures forming behind the doctor. It was you in that skyscraper again, but this time you were looking at yourself inside the apartment, looking down at the party. Sungchan said they were your memories, but how true could this be?

“God they’re so loud,” the figure of you begrudged, leaning against the balcony in annoyance. Looking past this version of yourself, you saw a large group of people on the other rooftop, their loud music with a heavy bass filling the streets. “He’s way too close to the edge,” the other you hummed, leaning forward to observe more closely before they gasped.

A figure had seemingly leaned forward to get a better look at something, before they slipped off the roof, starting their descent down hundreds of feet. “Shit!” the other you cried, before they too leapt off the roof with an intense precision. 

“Y/n!” the doctor called, the memory immediately fading from your sight as you focused on the Doctor. “Can I assume you are still seeing things that aren’t real?” they asked. Aren’t real. It was the words they used- aren’t real and aren’t there could be used interchangeably, sure, but knowing what was in the letter from Sungchan, you knew that the word choice was intentional.  

You shook your head no, and forced a yawn then, even lifting your hand to rub your tired eyes.

“I guess she didn’t sleep great,” Jaemin muttered, and you nodded. The doctor squinted at you, before he sighed and returned their attention back to Jaemin.

Shohei joined you in the next group therapy session, a smile on his face despite the heavy limp he was still forcing. Without you speaking, in the next few therapy sessions Ten and Jisoo carried a majority of the conversations and discussions and you focused mainly on your finger knitting.

No more visions appeared to you until lunch time while you all sat quietly around the TV watching Italian Lion King. 

Another version of you moved quickly from one end of the room to the other, a small stack of books in her hands as she stopped in front of the TV.

“I told you, I don’t know what you’re talking about,” the other you hissed, turning around to glare at someone who followed closely behind. It was Sungchan. In this memory, he was wearing a soccer uniform, his hair held back thanks to a sweatband while a large duffle bag hung on his shoulder.

“I know it was you who saved my life,” he tried, his voice low. The other you furrowed your eyebrows, and took a step forward to stand closer to the soccer player.

“Do I look like someone who cares enough to save your life? I don’t even know your name,” the other you countered, obviously forcing a confidence that was not there. The other Sungchan paused, analyzing your face before nodding, clearly standing his ground. “You’re not going to let this go, are you?”

“Nope.”

The other you huffed, before looking around as if to inspect who else was around them. “Come with me.”

The next few days were the same- you and Shohei swapped your medications, you were unable to use your voice, and you’d occasionally catch him humming to himself when he thought no one was nearby.

On the third day, you were playing another game of checkers with Ten. He had taken to mostly talking at you rather than with you, resorting to accepting that the most you’d be able to do was nod or shake your head.

“Jaemin finally told me about what happened during your last visit,” he studied your face for a reaction. You felt an ache in your chest, but kept your face still as you moved another piece on the board, taking a few of Ten’s chips in the process.

“I can’t believe they didn’t want you knowing that he was your fiancé,” Ten whispered, placing a hand over your own sympathetically. You gulped, and moved your hand away as you got up from the table. “Everything okay?” Ten asked, watching as you moved from the table towards the yarn you had near the TV. 

On the third day, after you’ve been taking Shohei’s medication, hand Ten some yarn. He’ll probably think you’re just being weird, but by the next day he’ll hopefully start making stuff on his own. At least, I hope so. If not, lend him an extra helping hand in making doodles with the yarn.

Sungchan was right in that Ten was confused as to why you were handing him the cheap yarn, but he didn’t refuse it either. 

You were getting irritated by the fact that you couldn’t speak, and the doctors were being anything but pleasant about it. Sungchan said you just had to switch the medication for a week, but not being able to speak to help with your other tasks was proving to be difficult. 

Jaemin and Jisoo were called to speak with their visitors (Jisoo had shot you a sympathetic look). Instead of watching Shohei and Ten play checkers, you dipped into the hallway that held all of your rooms and shared restrooms.

Pace the hall ten times, slowly.

Following the first instruction, you stared down at your own feet as you walked up and down the small hallway, hands shoved into the pockets of your robe.

Enter Jisoo’s room, and stand by the window. Count to thirty.

Jisoo was much tidier than you. Her bed was made with care- much less sloppy than your own. You didn’t pay it too much attention, and stared out of the never ending abyss that was the grassy knoll that held you all.

Enter each room, slowly lowering your robe, and look either at the window or the wall for thirty second each.

Most of the time, you all would wear your robes over your white PJs simply because it was comfortable. You were a little annoyed, but you followed this step, until you approached Jaemin’s room, your fingers trembled at this last step.

Quickly, you dropped your robe on the floor of his door, and grabbed the spare one he had hanging up. Putting his on seamlessly and kicking yours under where his original hung, you moved towards the window to stare out, your heart pounding. His robe felt different. The lining was of a rubber material rather than the fabric in yours, but because it matched the white robe, the only way to even notice the difference was to wear it and feel the texture.

You felt bad that night at dinner. You spilled your juice on Jaemin and could only mouth an apology at him, having to also hide your smirk as he rushed to his room to change out the robe he was wearing to the spare one he had that had “fallen to the floor.”

“This one feels weird,” he grumbled once he sat back down, shooting you another glare. 

On the seventh day was your final task. When you had first read it and had a voice, it seemed fairly simple. Tell the other four to not fall asleep that night. Easy. Except now, you had lost your voice and couldn’t easily whisper to your fellow companions. Racking your brain the whole week, you knew you had to get creative, and there was only one thing you could think of to try and convey your message. 

It was silly, and a bit of a reach, but it was all you could think of as you paused the Italian Lion King you were all watching.

“Hey!” Ten called, reaching to take the remote back from you. You got up from between Jisoo and Jaemin, moving to gesture towards the TV.

“He’s singing the Lion sleeps tonight,” Jaemin stated the obvious. You nodded, beginning to force a gesture of a shaking head and also one to indicate sleeping.

“Oh, I think she’s trying to talk,” Jisoo stated what you thought was obvious, earning an ‘oh’ from everyone else. You rolled your eyes, and started pointing to the TV again to try and bring them back with what you started with me.

“No lion king tonight?” Jaemin tried. You shook your head furiously, playing the video back a few seconds and pausing on the word ‘sleep.’

“No sleeping lion tonight?” Jisoo was squinting, as if doing so would help. You shook your head, fast forwarding and pausing on a portion of the film with a lion on it, drawing an X with your finger over them.

“Sleeping lions bad?” Jaemin tried again. You smacked your forehead in frustration, about to give up, until Ten spoke up.

“No sleep tonight. Why?” Ten kept his voice low so anyone on the other side of the doors couldn’t hear. You were surprised for a moment, before you placed a hand over your heart, trying desperately to express sincerity. “I’ll trust you. Fine,” Ten nodded, before turning to everyone else who slowly nodded in agreement.

A few minutes afterwards, when you had all grown comfortable in silence, the door from the main hallway opened, and several guards shuffled in. You watched as they all entered your room. Panicked, you stood up, opening your mouth to speak until a nurse stepped from the hallway to stop you.

“It has been brought to our attention that you have been misusing your bed frame,” she spoke to you as if she rehearsed this. You were confused, until you saw a group of guards carrying away the platform that lifted your bed, and had allowed you to hide underneath it. “Until you can learn to behave and properly speak again with your doctors, your bed will be on the floor.”

“She isn’t an animal,” Jisoo spoke for you, getting up from the couch and placing a hand on your shaking shoulder.

“Humans don’t need to be locked up like you all do, so in a way, you all are closer to animals,” the nurse clicked her tongue. She walked out behind the guards, looking up in a corner before she left. You followed her initial gaze, and as you suspected, she sent a look into the camera as if she was putting on a show.

You gulped, and walked quickly to your room, seeing your bed now sitting sadly on the floor. The safe place you once had, was now gone. 

Aggressively, you yanked the bed and moved it from the corner, jumping back on top to check the corner of the floor. It was gone- the stupid earring back was gone. Your shaking fingers then moved from the corner of the floor to press themselves against the corner of the comforter, a familiar crinkle sounding through the inside that calmed you. They didn’t find Sungchan’s letter. That night, after you memorized it, you tore open your comforter enough to slide the envelope inside, and made sure to make your bed in a way that wouldn’t bring attention  to the prefieration.

“We haven’t eaten yet!” you heard a shout from the living space and quickly got off the floor, kicking the bed back into the corner.

“Shut up and get back to your room,” an unfamiliar voice chastised. You peeked your head out to see the guards forcing everyone else off the couch, having to watch as they were all slowly forced into their rooms. They all passed you slowly, all exhibiting an equally confused look as they entered their rooms, standing by the doorway to take in a last look at the other.

“Lights out is early today,” the guard closest to you called. Jaemin stood at the doorway in front of yours, his fingers picking at the lining of his robe. “I don’t want to hear a peep out of you motherfuckers,” he spat, hitting a control in his hand that shut all of your doors, allowing you to only see a Jaemin’s window from your own.

You could hear hands pounding on doors in anger, but it was no use- the small amount of hours you had to interact were cut short for the day, and you likely wouldn’t even be getting dinner on top of that. 

Jaemin seemed to sigh, staring down before he shot you a wave only to disappear from your line of vision. He was likely choosing to wait out the night in a more comfortable corner, but you couldn’t bring yourself to move. Instead, you angled yourself to where you could see a part of Ten’s window, seeing that he was mouthing words to Jisoo- whose room was situated in front of him and next to yours.

You watched him standing at his door for a while, moving back occasionally to check-in on Jaemin, until Ten decided that he too would just sit and wait out the night. Leaving you with not much else to do, you sat on the floor in front of the window, watching the sunset on the grassy knoll outside.

Wait.

Last week, when Sungchan visited, he was in full winter attire- same thing for the other people visiting. Yet, as you looked back out through this window and thought back of the small views you were allotted- it was never changing. Grassy, green, plush, cloudless. You pressed a hand to the glass, testing to see if you would feel any outside temperature, and was instead met with the cold of glass.

You shook your head, choking on your self-inflicted silence as you began pressing your hands all over the window, trying to feel for anything that could indicate that you were wrong. Lips quivering, you gently knocked on the glass, and a small echo rang out, an echo that wouldn’t be possible if you were looking out at an empty plain. Fuck.

Hands trembling, you brought them back down, crawling into your bed and under your covers. You hated the cameras to begin with- but having the full confirmation that you indeed were not in a hospital, made them feel ten times worse. Who was watching you all? Why would they do this?

“I can’t believe you told the jock,” a voice spoke, distracting you from the tears that streamed down your face. You removed the covers from your face and stared at the figures your brain decided to make now. It was you, Jaemin, and Jisoo all sitting around a small table. The other you sighed, rubbing her temples out of frustration.

“I didn’t tell him, he figured it out,” the other you countered.

“Did you tell him about us?” Jisoo asked, her voice much less judgemental than Jaemin was, and you shook your head no in response. “Then I don’t see any harm.”

“Her identity being compromised threatens all of ours!” Shohei entered the frame, his voice surprising you as you watched the vision unfold.

“Shohei, bring it down a notch. He may be a jock, but I don’t think he has loose lips,” Ten entered the frame as well.

“If anything happens… I’ll take care of it,” the other you announced, standing up from the table with a stern look. “He won’t talk.” Everyone was silent then, either looking at each other for approval or, like Jisoo, simply staring down at their own hands.

“So it’s settled, Sungchan’s your responsibility. Onto other matters…” Ten’s voice faded out then as the vision- or rather, memory- faded from you, leaving you alone again in your small room.

Once the sky had fallen asleep, you could hear occasional knocks from the other doors, sometimes hitting your door yourself to let everyone know that you too were awake. You wished you could tell what time it was, but all you had to go off of was the fake moon shining a bit of light on you.

Bored, you were standing by your door, head leaning on the frame as you stared at the camera to the right, the stupid red light above it taunting you. You glared at the light for what felt like forever. You wanted the person watching to feel a sliver of the discomfort you did.

Then, the red light went out. You blinked quickly. Was it a trick of the eye? You moved from your spot on the door, turning to look at the other cameras to see that their red lights flickered out as well.

A sharp pain began to swell from your wrist, and you tensed your jaw to fight the urge to groan in pain. While you held your pain back, there were groans from the other rooms, having to be loud enough for you to hear them within your own walls. Holding your wrist tightly, you looked out in the hall to see Jaemin leaning against his door, holding his wrist up as he winced, checking who else was feeling the pain.

Letting go of your wrist and grimacing, you hit your fist once on the door. There was a silence before another loud round of two knocks rang- Shohei. Silence, and then, three loud knocks rang, Jaemin wincing as he slammed the door. Silence rang again, and you angled yourself to see Ten hitting his own door, loudly, four times straight. Jisoo didn’t let silence fall again for long as she seemed to kick her door five times straight, a sound of agony ringing shortly thereafter.

So, you were all awake, and feeling seemingly varying levels of pain, great. 

Then everything was drowned in pitch black. You whirled around, realizing that the little moonlight you had was gone, leaving a black abyss in its wake. Feeling the door, you tried to look out of the small window and you realized there wasn’t any bit of light anywhere. Your breathing began picking up in fear.

The hairs on the back of your neck stood up as your ears began to pick up on the sounds of hands pressing against a glass. You turned around, pressing your back to the door as you listened to the sound coming from the other end of your room. Creak. Creak. Creak.

You gulped, still gripping your wrist in pain as all you could do was stand and listen.

Creaaaaaaak. Crash!

You yelped, falling to the floor in a panic as the sound of a body colliding with the floor made the room shake. You panicked, pressing your knees tightly to your chest as your body shook with fear.

“I said tuck and roll, not just tuck,” a familiar voice chastised, followed by another set of small stomps on the floor. You so desperately wished you could speak, but all you could do was sit in the darkness and try and decipher the strangers that crashed into your room. One set of steps moved closer to you, and your breathing hitched as you felt someone kneel and stand directly in front of you.

“It’s me, you’re going to be okay,” they whispered. Your hands trembled as you moved them from your sides and slowly to met the face of the person in front of you, who then in turn chuckled. “Here,” he moved your hands away then, a small silence sounding before he gently placed a set of glasses onto the bridge of your nose, clicking a button before light entered your eyes, allowing you to see in the dark.

The person in front of you… it was Sungchan. He was gently smiling as he watched the recognition appear on your face through his own night vision glasses. Was this even real? Leaping forward, you embraced Sungchan, forcing your face into the crook of his neck. He was warm, he smelled good, and he held you tightly- he was real. He was really here, just like how he promised he would be.

“This is sweet folks, but we have to go,” the second person chastised, moving from their place on the floor towards where you two sat in front of the door. Sungchan let go of you. He still knelt beside you, now holding your wrist still.

“Y/n, the pain on your wrist? It’s a chip, and if we are going to get you out of here, we’re going to have to get it out. Do you trust me?” Sungchan asked, pleading as you saw the other man digging through the utility belt on his waist. “Y/n?” Sungchan asked again.

Lip quivering, you adjusted your hand to hold Sungchan’s, looking at the other man before you nodded. 

They both knelt down now, the other man bringing out a scalpel and an alcohol wipe that he used to clean up the part of your skin that was still aching.

“Hi, you don’t remember me, but I’m Doyoung- and this is going to hurt just a bit. But, please keep the noise down. We can’t attract any more attention.”

Continue? —> CHAPTER THREE

[fanficimagery]

When Enough is Enough pt. II

Imagine being let down one too many times by your best friend, only to end up making some new ones in the process.

Words: 8.5K Author’s Note: Okay so some of you asked to only be added to part 2 of this while others asked to be added everything Bucky.. and a few others weren’t exactly clear. So if you want to be tagged in any future Bucky related imagines please let me know so I can get your blog name written down on my list.

Tags:  @aya-fay @70s-chic @sipsteacasually @kaitlyn2907 @scarlettwitch99 @thingsforimagination  @mimilh @felicityofbakerstreet @eternalharry @eliwinchester99 @intothesoul​ @wintershadowkat  @b1sexualtonystark  @meredeph @miszswan

The Sunday before you are to return to work, you sleep in until nine in the morning. Your thoughts are immediately on Bucky's impending arrival and you couldn't help the butterflies that took flight in your stomach. He's a friend, just as all the others are, but you couldn't help but notice just how attractive this new friend of yours is. But not only does his attractiveness draw you in, his easy-going teasing and protectiveness does too. However, Bucky Barnes is still a man trying to find his footing in this world after all that's been done to him and finally getting his name cleared, and if he finds comfort with you then you're going to try your best and be the friend he needs.

So since you're not dressing to impress, you dress in your favorite lazy outfit after your shower- leggings, sports bra, a faded sleeveless band tee with the arm holes having been cut down to around your ribs, and a pair of socks. Damp hair gets gathered up into a messy bun and you walk around your apartment to pick up some things you had unknowingly left out.

You've skipped breakfast, so when there's a knock on your door and you open up to find Bucky standing there, you groan in relief. He raises both hands with paper bags hanging from each. "I come bearing sushi. Wanda let it slip how much you love it."

"Yesss." You step back, quickly taking in his own comfort outfit of sweatpants and a plain black t-shirt under an opened jacket. "Did you bring plenty of wasabi? And you can just kick off your shoes anywhere."

"Of course." He hands you the bags so he can kick off his shoes and strip out of his jacket before hanging it up. You don't know why, but seeing him in a short sleeve shirt makes you happy, knowing full well he was weird about his metal arm being out in the open. "And plenty of dipping sauce as well. Wanda was more than happy to give me advice."

"Wanda, huh?" You chuckle, leading the way to your kitchen. "You actually told her where'd you be?"

"Apparently I looked very pensive this morning. She asked and I figured she was a better confidant than Steve or Sam who would have made a big deal about us hanging out."

"True." Setting the bags down, you let him empty them while you head to the fridge. "Beer?"

"Yeah."

Grabbing him a beer and yourself a can of Cola, you return to the table and your eyes widen at the sight of all the sushi. "Damn, Barnes. That's a lot of sushi."

"Don't act like you won't eat half of it."

You laugh as you take a seat, handing him his beer and pulling a few trays to your side of the table. You take a container of wasabi and dipping sauce for yourself, and grab a pair of chopsticks to start digging in.

You moan in delight at your first taste, happily shimmying in your seat before taking another. Eventually, you ask, "So what are you going to do when I'm back at work and I can't keep you entertained by getting shitfaced?"

Bucky grins around his mouthful of food before chasing it down with a swig of his beer. "We actually got a mission comin' up so I'll be leavin' around mid-week."

"Well that sucks." You sigh. "Now who am I going to send random pictures to when I have downtime at work?"

He grins. "You can still send them to me. I just won't get back to you until after the mission's complete."

"Yeah, yeah."

The two of you continue to eat- Bucky dodging Steve's texts about where he is and when he's coming back, and you sending the middle finger emoji over and over to Wanda who keeps wondering how your date is going. Then once most of the sushi is gone and Bucky puts what little is left into the fridge, the two of you head to the living room. You immediately flop onto the couch as Bucky takes the plush recliner, only for you to hear him moving the chair into its reclined position seconds later.

"Oh. I definitely need to get one of these."

You laugh as he snuggles down and you pick up the remote to bring up your streaming services. "Anything you've been meaning to watch?"

"Not really. Just show me your favorites."

You start off with some humor by playing the Goonies. It's a movie that no matter how many times you've seen it, it always seems to make you laugh. And it seems Bucky is not immune either when they make Chunk to the truffle shuffle. Titanic plays afterwards, but only after making sure Bucky found it somewhat interesting after reading the movie summary to him. He is interested from beginning to end and doesn't even laugh at you when you shed a few tears for the old married couple who opt to stay in their bed as the room floods.

When a break is needed, you head off towards the bathroom as Bucky finishes off the leftover sushi. Both of you check your phones and read each other the missed text messages from Steve and his worrying behavior.

"Wanna tell Steve to fuck off via video message?" Bucky takes a moment to think on it before he grins and nods. "Excellent. Sit in the recliner. I'm gonna crawl up all in your business. That okay?"

"Yeah."

As Bucky gets comfortable in the recliner, you sit on the armrest before sliding down sideways onto his lap. You bring up the camera app on your phone and switch it to video, sliding your right arm behind Bucky's neck while holding your left arm out to capture the two of you on the screen. "Ready?"

"Sure, doll."

You chuckle quietly and then smirk mischievously as Bucky relaxes his expression into his best resting bitch face. After you hit record, you say, "Hey Rogers, stop being a little bitch and sending us text after text. I'm tryin' to fuck your best friend here." Bucky's expression cracks as he barks out a laugh and you turn to face him while grinning. You share a laugh with him before facing the camera once more. "Only joking, but seriously stop buggin' us. I promise to send him back in one piece."

As you prepare to send the text to Steve, Bucky says, "You're terrible."

"Whatever. Admit it, you adore me."

"Occasionally."

You huff another laugh as the video message finally sends. You and Bucky both watch as the delivered status turns to read, and then those three little dots appear as Steve starts typing his reply.

"Tell Bucky to wrap it before he taps it." You burst out laughing at Steve's text, Bucky's rumbling laughter only fueling yours even more. "God I hate your best friend sometimes." And before you climb off Bucky's lap, because honestly you were getting a little too comfortable, you send Steve a few middle finger emojis before deciding on a third movie to watch.

The third movie you choose is one that never fails to make you laugh- Bridesmaids. You had a moment of hesitancy because of the sex scenes, but you figured they were ridiculous enough that it wouldn't be awkward. Thankfully you're correct and you get the added bonus of hearing Bucky's laughter again during Megan's scenes, especially when they get food poisoning and are all fighting for the bathroom.

You and Bucky take yet another break after the film, just stretching and finding something to drink.

"So what's the verdict, Barnes? Are you enjoying the films?"

He grins. "Your taste is all over the place, huh? That last one we watched was raunchy."

"But hilarious! You need to watch the Hangover trilogy, but you definitely need to watch that with Steve and then watch him squirm at the pictures that roll with the credits."

"I'll keep that in mind."

Jurassic Park holds his attention and he can't help but comment how stupid one has to be to replicate dinosaur DNA and then open up a park with live dinosaurs. You laugh, but don't bother commenting. You'll tell him later there are more movies involved, with yet another idiotic man who felt he could get the park up and running once more.

It's getting dark, but it's still a little too early for dinner. One more movie and then you'll order or go out and pick something up.

"So this last one for the day is a movie that's directed more towards the female viewers, but you did ask for my favorite films and Practical Magic is my absolute favorite."

"Well put it on, doll."

As you press play on Practical Magic, you quickly grab a throw blanket and snuggle in. Instead of watching Bucky, you watch the film and mumble certain quotes to yourself. The magic scenes always bring a soft smile to your face just as Gary's confession to Sally of I wished for you too breaks your heart, and Sally and Gillian's heartfelt sister moment makes you cry.

Afterwards, Bucky hums in thought. "So that's your favorite?"

"Absolutely." You tell him. He's watching you curiously and you grin. "If I show you something, you promise not to laugh?"

"I'll try."

"Whatever. That's good enough for me." Standing up, you walk towards him and kneel, and tell him to pull your shirt sideways by the armhole next to your left arm. There on the back of your left shoulder and forever etched into your skin is a salt shaker, a rosemary plant, a lavender plant, and a heart. You then rattle off one of your favorite quotes to him. "Always throw spilt salt over your left shoulder. Keep rosemary by your garden gate. Plant lavender for luck and fall in love whenever you can."

Bucky chuckles as you get up, retaking your spot on the sofa. "You really are a fan of the movie."

You nod. "As a little girl, I was fascinated by magic. I thought I'd grow out of it, but I only grew more fond of it. And then I found Practical Magic and it had a bit of everything I adored."

"So what's the one scene that just gets you every time?"

"Ugh. You're making me choose?!" You feign being distraught and he grins. As you think about it, you keep coming back to two scenes in particular. "So there's two," you tell him, "and I'm not choosing between them." Bucky nods, awaiting your answer. "Gillian's possession. When Sally calls together the other mothers who were mean to her in order to make a temporary coven to save her sister, and Gillian begs Sally to just let her ghost ex have her."

Bucky hums. "That was a bit sad, doll. I saw you shedding a few tears over that."

"Mhm. And the other scene is when Sally comes clean to Gary and admits that she did a spell as a child to call forth her perfect love thinking it wouldn't exist, only it did. When Gary tells Sally that he wished for her too, it just breaks my fuckin' heart."

"Let me guess, you were one of the girls who cast her own spell after seeing that scene." You stay quiet for a moment and the second you feel your face heat, Bucky laughs. "What did you wish for?"

You groan quietly. "If I tell you, you can't laugh!" He only smiles in response and you know he won't drop it until you tell him. "Fine. So even though I knew it would never work, I gathered the weirdest objects and wished for a significant other with dark hair and colored eyes. He had to be protective and funny and love me for me. Simple."

For some reason you can't seem to meet Bucky's gaze then and you feel awkward the longer the silence stretches on.

"So dinner?" He asks.

"Oh god, yes please. Pizza and wings?"

"Sounds good."

You have the nearby pizza place on speed dial, so after finding out Bucky's preferences you make the call and place the order. It's going to be about a thirty minute wait, so you fill the time sending Steve pic after pic of Bucky who's none the wiser as he scrolls through his own phone and adding the most asinine comments to each picture. Steve thinks it's absolutely hilarious.

Then when the pizza and wings arrive, you beat Bucky to the door and thrust several bills at the delivery boy. He's more than happy with his tip and you hurriedly wave him off before shutting the door. You laugh at Bucky's disgruntled expression and then place everything on the table while gathering a beer for both you and him.

"Don't let me have more than two," you tell him while handing him his own bottle of beer.

Bucky agrees and the two of you dig into your own personal pizzas and boxes of wings once you're situated around the table. As you're eating, Bucky asks about what other movies you hold near and dear. You fill him in on a few others and he hesitantly puts it out there that he'd be up for another movie marathon when you both have a day off. You agree that that's doable.

Halfway through dinner, as you and Bucky are chuckling over the thought of making Steve sit through Bridesmaids, there's a sound of glass breaking from your living room and a muffled curse. The two of you immediately cease making any type of noise and Bucky is up with a gun in hand.

"Where the hell did that come from?! You hiss.

The telltale sound of a window then sliding shut can be heard.

"Shut up and get behind me."

The authority in his voice makes you freeze and your heart flutter at the same time, and you have to mentally scold yourself before you quickly do as he says. You follow Bucky towards the living, ready to duck at the ready, only to sigh and roll your eyes when you see who it is.

Bucky stands tall and lowers his gun. "Parker." You can practically hear the annoyance in his voice.

"Mr. Barnes?" Peeking around his shoulder, you raise your eyebrow at your best friend who's been too busy for you and is now frowning at Bucky. When he catches sight of you, he asks, "What's going on?"

"Uh, well we were having dinner until we thought someone was breaking in."

"Alone?!"

Your brow furrows at Peter's incredulousness, only for him to realize you're not impressed with his tone. You raise an eyebrow at him and cross your arms over your chest. "Did you need something?"

"Oh, um, yeah." He shifts from foot to foot, gesturing to his face where there's a scrape on his cheekbone. "My ribs took a beating too. Can you patch me up?"

"Sure." You sigh. "Why not."

Before you can leave to go to the bathroom to get the supplies you need, Bucky says, "I'll just get out of your way then."

You stop and face him. "What? But we haven't even finished our food. It won't take me long."

"It's fine, doll." He grins when he realizes you're trying to get him to stay. "You gotta hit the hay early anyway. We'll talk soon."

You hold his gaze for a moment longer, sighing when he won't budge. "Well at least take your food with you. No use in it going to waste."

Bucky nods and heads back to the kitchen, collecting his food. You watch him and then follow him to the door, holding his food while he bends over to lace up his boots. Once he retakes his food and you open the door, he thanks you for the time away from the tower and disappears down the hall.

Shutting the door and then heading back into the living room, you tell Peter to get back into his regular clothes so you can get to his ribs while you go gather your medical supplies.

Meeting Peter back in the living room and setting everything down on the coffee table, he says, "So you and Bucky-"

"Don't." You pick up the peroxide bottle and soak a cotton ball in it. "Bucky and I are friends."

Peter manages to keep his mouth shut as you clean the scrape on his cheek and place a small bandage on it. Then when you've checked his ribs and tell him he just needs to ice them, he mumbles, "Friends who apparently lick each other." You snort and think nothing of his sullen tone, but when you look at his face you see he's actually being quite serious. There's no chuckle or boyish grin and for a moment you're absolutely floored at his attitude. "I don't think I'm comfortable with Bucky being alone with you in your apartment."

"Are you- are you kidding me?" You huff and take a step back from him. When Peter just continues to frown, you shake your head at him. "First of all, I'm an adult woman who can make her own decisions."

"I know, but-"

"I'm not finished!" You snap. Peter's eyes widen, but he smartly ceases talking. "I am allowed to have friends whether you like them or not. We have a pact, Petey, and since I'm still abiding by it I would hope that you would too."

"Yeah, but that's for significant others!"

"Significant others or friends, it doesn't matter. And you should be grateful I've kept my mouth shut when it comes to you and Leslie because let me tell you, I've been biting my tongue a lot these past few weeks. Bucky and the others have stepped up since you've abandoned me, so you have absolutely no room to tell me that you're uncomfortable with him or any of them being around me."

"Leslie isn't that bad and I have not abandoned you." You snort, but don't bother opening that can of worms even further. He finally gets annoyed with your quietness. "I'm here, aren't I?"

"You're here because you needed a bandage. Tell me, Peter, where are you going after here? Where are you going after making five minutes of small talk and calling it a night?" He opens his mouth and then snaps it shut, shrugs, and you shake your head at him once more in disappointment. "Exactly. Just go, Peter. I'm so over this conversation right now and I have work in the morning."

"Wait, but we promised we'd never leave a conversation where we were still annoyed with each other!"

"And we also promised we'd never judge who the other decided to spend time with, but here we are." He frowns at you. "Go to your girlfriend, Peter. We'll talk again in another few days or weeks or whenever. I don't care right now."

Peter stands there, gaping, before he pulls himself together and makes his way back towards the window he had crawled through. He glances at you one last time, but you merely keep staring until his mask encompasses his head once more and he lifts the window before taking his leave.

As the window shuts behind him, you sag in on yourself and your breathing stutters in your chest as your eyes fill with tears. You've never been this angry at Peter and the fact that he thinks it's okay to ignore you until he needs something and then has an opinion about who you hang out with was just too much for you to let slide.

You quickly gather everything from your coffee table and return it to its rightful place in your bathroom, and throw away the trash. Your appetite is long gone, so you put up what's left of your food and then head to your room to gather some clothes so you can shower and get into bed.

By the time you've crawled into bed, you're still a bit annoyed. So grabbing your phone, you pull up your text messages and click on Bucky's thread.

To Bucky: Well that was a shit show. I don't think I've ever made Petey leave my apartment while we were still angry with each other.

From Bucky: I'm sorry, doll. Anything I can do?

To Bucky: If he gives you attitude, get a non-serum individual to punch him. You, Steve, and probably Nat will send him flying into the wall.

From Bucky: If I remember..

To Bucky: Well I mean if you forget, I won't complain. I'll probably laugh when he comes crying to me.

From Bucky: You're a terrible human being.

To Bucky: Whatever. You adore me just the way I am. And now I should get some shut eye. I'll talk to you soon. Night, Sarge.

From Bucky: Night, sweetheart.

For the next couple of weeks, you keep yourself busy with work. Bucky and a few others do go on a mission as he said they would, so you keep your texts to a minimum of three each day- a good morning, a random story from that day, and a good night. They're gone for four days and in those four days you've not heard from Peter. The only reason you know he's not completely done with you is the fact he likes your posts that you put up on social media.

But since you're not currently speaking to your best friend and are too exhausted to hang out with anyone else, you're in a bit of a funk and completely caught off guard one evening when the patient a police officer brings in smacks you right across the face. You had been trying to insert an IV into his arm when he completely lost his shit, and then you were hit so hard that you were strewn across the gurney behind you. And in your vulnerable position, a fistful of your hair had been grabbed and yanked right before the police officer had intervened and pulled the patient off of you.

You had been given a bit of time to ice your cheek before you had to get back to work, but your face and scalp were hurting you the entire time.

On your way home, however, you're surprised to receive a call from Pepper. You're heading towards your apartment complex when she invites you to dinner there at the tower since Darcy is finally back in town, and you hate to do it, but you're not exactly up to be around such a rowdy bunch. So you apologize to Pepper and ask her to apologize to Darcy for you, and take a rain check. Immediately she knows something is wrong, but you only tell her you had a rough night at work and all you want is a hot shower and to crawl into bed. She hesitates but wishes you well, and the call ends moments later.

When you get home, you waste no time in locking the door behind you and heading straight for your bathroom. You strip down and take the hottest shower your body is capable of handling, and let yourself relax in the steam-filled room. Afterwards, as you're drying off, you gently dry your hair since your scalp is still sensitive and then get dressed in some of your comfort clothes.

Then heading out into the kitchen, you find some leftovers in your fridge and heat those up, tiredly sitting at your kitchen table and digging in. Just as you're done with your food and heading towards the living room, someone pounds on your apartment door. You sigh, hoping they go away, and have only plopped down onto the sofa when a familiar gruff voice speaks through the wood.

You quietly groan as Bucky tells you he knows you're there and you get up to open the door for him. He's on the verge of knocking again when you swing the door open. "Hey. Pepper said-" He trails off as he takes in your appearance, expression going slack before his jaw clenches in anger. "Who?"

You shake your head, gesturing him inside as you turn around and walk towards your sofa. You hear your door click shut before the footsteps follow you. "Work got a little hectic. No need to hunt down anyone, Barnes. I'm fine."

"Half your face is bruised, doll. You are not fine."

"It's all part of my job." You shrug and plop down onto the sofa once more. Pulling a blanket over your lap, you stare up at your friend. "There will always be a drunk and disorderly patient. I was just lucky he didn't do more damage."

Bucky frowns, but he doesn't push you on it. Instead, he walks over and sits next to you, angling his body towards yours when gentle fingers grasp your chin to angle your face more towards him. "What exactly happened?" He asks as his eyes dart over every inch of your face.

"Some petty criminal did some damage to his head in the back of a patrol car. Police officer brought him in and he seemed pretty docile up until I jabbed him with the IV. He got the drop on me. It happens." Gentle fingers brush along your cheekbone and you flinch. Tears sting your eyes as you sniffle. "I'm fine."

"Just because you keep sayin' that doesn't mean it's true."

Your bottom lip wobbles at his words and you lose the battle with keeping the tears at bay. The moment they fall, Bucky pulls you into a hug and you cry into his shoulder. "Dammit," you mumble. "See what you started!"

Bucky chuckles and he holds you a few moments longer, rubbing a hand up and your back to offer a semblance of comfort. When he lets you go, you fall back against the sofa cushions and wipe the tears away with your blanket. "So what are we watching?" He asks while settling in next to you and draping an arm behind your head.

"Shouldn't you go back to the tower and have dinner with the rest of them? I'm-"

"If you say you're fine one more time, I will drag you back to the tower and let Steve motherhen you."

You sigh. "Low blow, Buckaroo."

"And for that horrendous nickname, you've lost the privilege of choosing what we're going to watch."

You laugh and don't bother arguing with him about it as he leans across you to snag up the remote. When he settles back down and you snuggle into his side, you huff a small laugh when he settles on TLC which is showing 90 Day Fiancé.

"Why this show?" You ask.

"Because it blows my mind that some people are so oblivious and can't see that their chosen partner is only in it for the green card."

As you let his reasoning sink in, you can't help but giggle as you picture Bucky sitting in his own apartment and bad mouthing the TV because he didn't like the decisions the people were making in their love life. You watch along with him, cringing at the more obvious couples that are only headed for future divorce and smiling when one of the couples is actually in it for love.

You manage to almost watch a complete two hour episode when there's a knock on your door, but you're too comfortable to get up and answer it.

"You get it," you say as you nudge Bucky.

He nudges you back. "It's your apartment."

"Yeah, but I don't feel like getting up."

"You could have at least come up with a better excuse."

You grin, finally taking your eyes off the screen and glancing up at Bucky. "M'too tired. Brain's not working fast enough." He continues to give you a deadpan stare until you jut out your bottom lip. "Please?"

The second Bucky's lips twitch, you know you've won. He huffs and roughly pushes himself up off the sofa as if answering the door is a hardship, and you go back to watching TV. At least until you hear a familiar voice stammer, "Uh, h-hey Mr. Barnes. Is Y/N home?"

Your gaze snaps towards the door where Peter is standing out in the hallway, hands in his pockets as he sheepishly stares at Bucky. The man in question turns and raises an eyebrow at you as if saying what do I do and you give him a terse nod to let him know it's okay. Bucky steps aside and Peter readily walks in.

"I should be getting back to the tower," Bucky suddenly says. "You kids have fun."

This time it's your turn to give him a deadpan stare and he smirks right before slipping his boots back on. Then as soon as they're laced up, he's walking out the door and shutting it behind him. Peter, who hadn't stopped staring at the intimidating man, finally turns to look at you. And when he does, his eyes widen.

"What happened to your face?!"

You sigh. "I'm fine. Just had a little incident at work."

"And Mr. Barnes was what? Comforting you?"

"First of all, can you stop calling him Mr. Barnes? You two avenge together and what not. I'm pretty sure that means you're on a first name basis." Peter grins as he takes a seat on the recliner near you, shrugging. "And Bucky was here because when I turned down dinner at the tower, Pepper figured something was wrong. Bucky took it upon himself to check in."

"So are you two like a thing or something?" He wonders.

"We're just.. friends," you say. "For some unknown reason we clicked and we're comfortable in each other's company."

For a moment Peter doesn't say anything, nor will he meet your gaze, but then he's looking at you and sighing. "I'm sorry." You blink at him, surprised to hear the apology. "I shouldn't have freaked out that one night. Who you are friends with and who you decide to date is your business."

You finally smile, even though it's rather small. "Thank you. And don't get me wrong, I know you meant well, but you should have dropped it and just trusted my judgment."

"Yeah. I know," he mumbles.

"Soo.. are we good?" You ask.

"Yeah."

"Good. I was getting tired of you liking my posts and not commenting on them."

Peter snorts. A moment of silence passes and then he says, "So you'll be glad to know that Leslie and I aren't together anymore. I broke it off earlier tonight."

You wince. "Sorry."

"Nah. Don't be. She was totally using me for access to the tower." You're torn between being smug about being right and being sad for your friend who just ended his relationship. "I only realized it earlier when she got upset because Mr. Rogers posted a picture of you and Mr. Barnes together, and she had a few choice words to say about it."

"What? Steve posted a picture of us?" You quickly pull out your phone, checking social media for any notifications. There are none, but as you get on Instagram you check Steve's page and sure enough there's a new pic that shows Bucky staring fondly at you as you laugh at something on your phone. "That little shit didn't tag us!"

As your thumbs move furiously to give Steve a piece of your mind and to comment how adorable you and Bucky look, Peter can't help but say, "You're attracted to him."

Your texting falters and you quickly glance at your friend to gauge his reaction, but when he just looks amused, you shrug. "I mean have you seen him? How could I not be attracted to him?"

"Does he know?"

"I have a feeling he does. Asshole likes to fluster me every now and then."

"Well if it makes you feel any better, I'm pretty sure he likes you back." You snort and go back to finishing up the comment on Steve's post. "I'm serious. When we stopped talking, he threatened me. He was pissed that I made you cry and said I was lucky. He's actually really scary when you're on his bad side."

It takes a moment for his words to sink in and when they do you can feel your ears heating up, followed by your cheeks. Peter starts to laugh and you groan in embarrassment. "Why is this so weird? Dating should be easy!"

"Well he is an Avenger.."

"I don't care about that! He's just- he's really, really hot. It's intimidating."

"Wait, what?" Peter huffs. "So you're intimidated by his hotness and not because he's a super-soldier with a metal arm?"

"Well yeah."

Expression melting into one of confusion, your friend eventually shakes his head at you. "You're on your own with that. Good luck."

You hadn't realized how much everyone had known about your and Peter's brief falling out until the two of you were laughing together once again at the tower. It seemed like everyone had sagged in relief now that the two of you were poking fun at one another once more, and you had to apologize for apparently making it awkward for them.

And now that your best friend knew of your crush on a certain super-soldier, there was lots of teasing material. Of course you kept him in line when you could, but there was no stopping the force of Peter, Wanda, and Darcy combined.

It's a random Tuesday night when you've driven over to the Tower, Bucky having called you over for dinner with a few friends. You had the day off so you didn't mind heading on over, but as the elevator doors slide open after having ridden up to the communal floor, you yelp in surprise as the small gathered crows that shout, "Happy birthday!", at you.

Steve, Wanda, Sam, and Peter pop confetti poppers as you step out of the elevator, eyes wide as you glance between each of them. "My birthday is not until tomorrow!" You hiss.

"But you work tomorrow." Wanda frowns.

"Mhm." Your eyes then narrow, glancing behind them at the streamers and balloons hanging from the ceiling. "And how'd you guys even know?"

Everyone glances at Peter and he takes a step back when your gaze slides to him. He chuckles sheepishly. "I might have hid your birthday cupcake here and Steve found it."

"Petey," you groan. "Why couldn't you just hide it at aunt May's like usual? You know I dislike birthday celebrations."

"You don't dislike them. You just dislike all the attention being on you."

"Whatever. Where's Barnes? He's the one who lured me here under false pretenses. I got a bone to pick with him too."

Everyone turns around and Bucky's head appears from around the corner. He smirks and you glare at him. "Not false pretenses. We are having dinner," he says. "It just so happens to be a birthday dinner. And it's running a little bit late, so until the food gets here you get to open presents."

"You guys all suck."

Peter and Wanda each take a hand and drag you further into the room, heading towards the kitchen. Bucky fully steps out from behind the wall and you aim a kick at his shin as you're walking by. He laughs as he easily dodges it and then you're standing by the kitchen island that's been cleared of everything other than birthday presents.

You huff a small laugh and shake your head fondly at them. "I love you guys, but you do know you didn't have to get me anything, right?"

"Shut up and open the presents," Bucky says.

"Open mine first," Sam says, reaching into the small pile and pulling out a white envelope. "Unlike the others, I was literally told within the last thirty minutes we were doing this so yeah. It's not the best present, but I think you'll enjoy it."

You smile at Sam as you open it, chuckling at the plain birthday card and his brief personal message written inside. But it's what else that's inside that makes you meet Sam's gaze once more, smiling fondly at him. "Thank you. I can't get enough of bubble tea and I'm sure I can do some damage with this gift card."

"You're welcome."

"Mine next." Peter reaches in for a medium-sized box and hands it over to you. "I know you're not a fan of presents, so I got you something I actually knew you'd enjoy."

Raising an eyebrow at him, you pull the lid off of the box. Then glancing down, you snort before pulling out a bottle of Patron Silver Tequila. "I knew we were best friends for a reason."

Steve groans. "Please drink responsibly."

"Please. Responsible is my middle name, Rogers." Everyone snorts and instead of trying to remain serious and feign offense, you end up laughing. "Sam and Buck are good babysitters. You have nothing to worry about."

"That's to be determined," he says. "Here. Open mine. I honestly had no idea what to get you, but Peter assured me you'd enjoy this."

Putting the bottle of tequila back in its box, you accept Steve's gift. Pulling off the ribbon, you can't help but laugh when you see what's inside. "Cards Against Humanity." Peter cheers. "We're playing this the next time I have off," you say, grinning at Steve.

"What is Cards Against Humanity?" He wonders. "I just picked it up and boxed it."

"It's possibly one of the most confusing card games or raunchy card games you'll ever play," Sam says. "I, for one, am looking forward to it."

"Thank you, Steve. I seriously can't wait to play it."

"You're welcome."

Wanda claps her hands. "Mine and Darcy's next. She ordered online and I had to pick it up earlier. But, um, I'm not sure you want to open it up in front of everyone."

"Oh god. Don't tell me it's a vibrator."

Sam laughs out loud as both Peter and Steve start blushing. Bucky looks rather amused and intrigued as Wanda slides two boxes over to you. She shakes her head, giggling. "Not quite."

For a brief moment you're relieved, but then her answer sinks in and you're hesitant all over again. You groan. "Is yours safer? I feel like it is. Which one is it?"

Wanda only smirks as she pushes her box towards you. You open it, marvel at its contents, and then put the lid back on much to the boys' displeasure. Trying to keep a straight face, you look at Wanda. "How many sets did you get?"

"There's four. All in colors that will look amazing against your skin tone."

"Thank you. I'll send you pictures when I wear them."

"Yes please! Natasha wants to know how they fit as well. She was the one who suggested them."

"I'll send them to the ladies group chat then."

"Well that's not fair," Sam complains. "First for not showing us what's inside the box and then you guys have a ladies only group chat. I wanna be in the ladies only group chat."

"But then that defeats the purpose of it being a ladies only group chat," you muse.

"Come on," Peter then whines. "What was the present?"

Your gaze slides to Peter, but instead of outright saying what it is, you say, "Think back to that one Halloween night where you wouldn't let me out of the dorm until I switched costumes."

It takes him only a minute to understand and when he does, he snorts. "That wasn't a costume! That was lingerie."

"Whoa, what?" Sam exclaims, grinning.

"Lingerie can be worn as a costume?" Steve wonders.

"I was actually a Victoria's Secret Angel, complete with the most amazing set of wings, and Petey forbade me from leaving the room. It was a sad, sad night."

"As much as I wanna get into that," Sam says, "I wanna know what Barnes got you more."

You chuckle and glance at Bucky, smile faltering when you see him tense. But then he seems to shake himself out of it and offers you a grin. "Open the bigger one first."

Wanda clears away the other presents as Bucky slides his two towards you. You feel giddy as you grab the bigger box, untying the black silk ribbons and lifting the lid. There's tissue paper you open up and you gasp, happily giggling. "You didn't?!"

"Well you did say it was your favorite movie, sweetheart."

"Yes!" You glance up, beaming at Bucky, and your heart swells at his own smile being directed at you. "I really, really love this. I can't wait to hang it up."

"What is it?" Peter wonders, trying to peer across the island.

"It's a quote from Practical Magic," you say and Peter huffs a laugh, knowing full well your love for that movie. You carefully pick it up and turn it around so everyone can see it as you read it off by heart. "Always throw spilt salt over your left shoulder. Keep rosemary by your garden gate. Plant lavender for luck and fall in love whenever you can."

"Aw," Wanda coos. "That's adorable."

"I made Bucky watch this movie a while back," you say. "I need to show it to you one of these days."

"I'm looking forward to it," she says.

With nothing else to say, you place it back in its box and set it aside in favor for the second box. It's a little smaller, but you're excited for it nonetheless. Untying the ribbon and lifting the lid, you immediately laugh at the white petals scattered atop the tissue paper.

"Barnes, you smooth sonuvabitch," Sam mutters.

Steve and Peter laugh, but you're so focused on the notecard that's under some of the petals. Lifting it up, you read the note to yourself because immediately you know it's personal. My better half has to be funny, get along with my friends, won't judge me for my past, and has decent taste in movies.

Heart fluttering, you bite the corner of your lip when it feels like you're smiling way too much.

"Well what does Prince Charming have to say?" Sam asks.

"That's none of your business." You close the note and then tuck into your back pocket, chuckling when Sam and Wanda complain. When you meet Bucky's gaze, you immediately flush and mentally curse yourself when you see him smirk in return.

Inhaling and exhaling deeply, you center yourself and then part the tissue paper. You look at the second portrait and gasp after you read it.

"What? What is it?" Peter wonders.

This second portrait is of a hand drawn bowl with a tipped over salt shaker, a small bundle of lavender, a small bundle of rosemary, and a heart beneath it. Above the bowl is a swirl of flower petals and inside the swirl of petals, in very pretty cursive writing, are the words I wished for you too.

Did he just- did he confess his own feelings by using a Practical Magic quote? Or was this just you overthinking his present? You glance to meet Bucky's gaze and at his gauging expression your eyes fill with tears.

"What did you do, Barnes?!" Sam scolds him. "You made the poor girl cry at her own birthday celebration!"

But Bucky isn't paying him any attention, instead he's solely focused on you. You set the present aside and walk around the kitchen island on shaky legs, and Bucky readily reaches for your waist as you grab his face and pull him down into a kiss.

You can't believe you're kissing Bucky, but then he squeezes your waist and returns the kiss, and you know you made the right choice.

Someone gasps, but then the following words let you know exactly who it is. "Darcy is going to be so angry she missed this." Wanda. That is Wanda.

"What the hell is going on?" Sam wonders. "What type of present can cause this type of reaction?"

You smile against Bucky's mouth, pressing a chaste kiss to the corner of his mouth before falling flat on your feet after having been on the tips of your toes in order to reach his mouth.

"It's my favorite quote from my favorite movie," you say. You turn around to address your friends, but Bucky doesn't let you go far. He wraps one arm around your waist and tugs you back so you're resting against his chest and tucked beneath his chin. "It's a movie about witches," you explain. "These two little girls are being raised by their aunts and they see them performing love spells for a local woman. Basically, one of the young girls refuses to fall in love after witnessing a love spell gone wrong and she does her own spell to call forward a love that would be impossible to find- a man who's favorite shape would be a star and who had one green eye, one blue. Years down the road, the sisters accidentally murder a man."

Sam snorts. "How the hell does one accidentally murder someone?"

"Shush." Wanda admonishes him. "I want to hear the story behind the gift."

You and Bucky chuckle, and you continue to explain. "Anyway, they send in an US Marshall to investigate the disappearance and the one who had done the love spell at a young age starts to fall for this man. She ends up telling him about the murder, but he doesn't quite believe her. Then they're on the verge of hooking up when she gets a good look at his eyes- one green eye, one blue."

"Oh my god. That's so cute!" Wanda says.

"It gets cuter. And sadder," you say. "So she explains to this man about her family, the murder, and how she can't be with him because he's only attracted to her because of a love spell she did when she was just a little girl. At first he's skeptical about this spell bringing him to her, but then he ends up believing her. And as he's walking away from her, he stops to tell her I wished for you too."

"So you made out with Barnes because of that?" Sam shakes his head, chuckling. "Wow."

"It's fuckin' adorable. Stop ruining the moment, Samuel!" Bucky laughs at your words and pulls you closer to him.

"So while I'm happy for Buck," Steve says, "I'm still really curious about what Darcy's gift is."

Peter nods. "Same."

Wanda giggles, but says nothing as she grabs the box and slides it over to you. You groan because you know it can be nothing good, but you still open it since everyone is watching and waiting. As soon as you part the tissue paper and read the box, alongside taking in the picture on the box, your face flames as you shove the lid back on. Wanda cackles.

"I hate her."

"She said to give the remote to-"

"Don't!" You cut Wanda off, blushing even further. "I know who she means to have control of that."

"They- they make underwear that does that?" Bucky muses and you die a little on the inside in embarrassment. You elbow him as he starts to laugh behind you.

Sam instantly knows what the gift is now and starts to laugh, but Steve and Peter apparently need some help.

"Lewis got you vibrating panties, didn't she?"

"Oh my god, Sam, if you don't shut up I'm gonna punch you in the throat."

Steve is torn between laughing and trying not to make you even more uncomfortable, but his amusement wins out. "Given Y/N's flustered state, I'm assuming Darcy wants Bucky to have the remote."

"I mean this seems like it could make for an interesting night."

Everyone laughs at Bucky's sudden interest in the box you're doing your damnedest to keep shut, but luckily Peter steps in. "As much I love watching Y/N squirm, can we get ready to eat? I'm starving."

"Yeah, yeah. Let's go wait downstairs for it, kid."

Sam and Peter head for the elevator to take them down to the lobby, and you turn around in Bucky's hold. "Help me take this stuff to my car so I don't have to do it later?"

"Sure thing, doll." He grins. But instead of stepping away, he pushes you further into the kitchen island. You smile as he cages you in and then huff a laugh when he reaches for the box behind you. "So exactly how long do we have to be dating before we can test these out?"

You slowly lean upward so your lips brush his as you say, "I'd say very, very soon if you would put your ass into gear and help me move these presents like I asked."

Bucky laughs and presses a quick kiss to your lips. "Then let's get to it."

The telltale sound of a phone's camera goes off and you turn your face towards the sound. Wanda is beaming, her phone pointed towards you and Bucky. "Darcy wanted evidence I wasn't lying. She's going to be so happy."

Bucky turns his face to look at her then, his cheek brushing against yours where he's yet to back off from you. "Tell Lewis I said thanks for the present. I'll give her my review of them in a few weeks."

Wanda's eyes widen and you immediately blurt, "Don't you dare!" But she's already texting and you know the group chat full of ladies is going to be full of messages that you'll have to reply to later. Quietly groaning, you slap your hands against Bucky's waist and push him back. Looking up at him, you shake your head but the corner of your lips turn up in amusement. "You're terrible. I would threaten to withhold sex, but I've been looking forward to that for a while. I'd just be punishing us both."

"Just tell me when and where, sweetheart, and I'll be there."

"Oh no. You guys are going to be that couple," Steve complains.

And without missing a beat, you face him and say, "Fuck off, Rogers!" Bucky snorts.

"You're cranky when you haven't gotten laid."

You gasp as Bucky bursts out laughing right in your ear, but he quickly catches you as you try to lunge for his best friend. "You know what, I was going to be discreet when banging your best friend, but now I'm going to tell you all the filthy things Bucky likes to do just to annoy you. I will go into excruciating detail about the look and taste of his dick!"

Steve blanches as it's Wanda's turn to burst out laughing. "You've done it now, Steve."

And as Steve looks to Bucky for help, he merely shrugs. "You brought this on yourself, Stevie. Hope you enjoy the play by plays."

Relaxing in Bucky's hold and moving so you're hip to hip with him, you slide your arm behind his waist and hook your thumb into the belt loop of his jeans. "We're going to have so much fun."

[starlessea]

Cross My Heart (Daryl Dixon/Reader)

Prompt: Based on this artwork by @darylthedumbasssupreme​ 

Summary: Daryl begrudingly allows you to tie his hair up to help him cope with the Georgia heat.

Words: 1012

Warnings: Language.

"It's too damn hot." Daryl grumbled, pulling his shirt collar away from his skin.

His other hand was tight on the steering wheel, and you noticed the way his knuckles had turned white over it. He seemed to be losing all patience, and you had only watched as he got more and more flustered throughout the day. 

You kicked your legs up, resting your feet over the dash as you fiddled with the old, temperamental radio. He'd turned the music off on three separate occasions now, but you never passed on an opportunity to rile up Daryl Dixon even more.

"Aww, is my Georgia redneck struggling with a little sunshine?" You teased, cranking the windows down and the volume up.

Daryl exhaled loudly, but didn't reply. It was like he didn't even have the energy to argue with you. Though, you had to admit that the sight amused you. Never before had you seen the man so uncomfortable. 

In his defence, it was definitely a scorcher. The midday sun hung high in the sky, and it was so bright that it left you squinting when you looked at the road. You were just glad that Daryl was driving, and not you.

"Want me to get you a slurpie?" You went on, trying to pry a response out of him.

He didn't bite, but you watched as he wiped the sweat from his brow with the back of his hand.

"What flavour," you prompted, "blue or red?"

This time he caved, shooting you a glare that you caught in the mirror. 

"Those ain't no damn flavours." He grumbled, rolling down his window some more. "They're colours."

You shrugged, turning away from him to press your cheek against the cool glass.

"Whatever." You muttered, and listened to the music play.

Neither of you spoke for the next couple of minutes, but you continued to catch the way the man fumbled awkwardly in his seat. He kept wiping his palms over his jeans when they got too slippery on the wheel. He'd even discarded his leather vest a while ago - but it hadn't seemed to make much of a difference. Daryl was just miserable, and you couldn't take his silent brooding any longer.

"Pull over." You instructed, sitting up in your seat.

The man scowled at you in the mirror, probably wondering why you wanted to add even more time onto the hellish journey.

"What?" He grumbled, before you shot him a look back.

"Just do as you're told for once, will you?" You snapped, and the man pulled over.

The car came to a stop, but he let the engine continue to run - in fear of it dying again and leaving you stranded on the open road in this heat. It had happened once before, and he hadn't let you live it down since. 'Always keep the car running' he'd say, and that day you finally understood why. 

Daryl dropped his hands from the steering wheel and looked over at you impatiently, as though demanding an explanation for having made him pull over. You ignored his expression, much too used to it by now.

"Turn around." You told him, gesturing with your finger.

The man narrowed his eyes at your words, seeming far too exasperated with you to even form a reply. You didn't want to waste anymore time stuck in this metal suntrap, so you raised your hand to show him what you meant. You had an elastic hair-tie on your wrist, and you snapped it over your skin to bring his attention to it.

He shook his head immediately, mumbling something under his breath that you couldn't quite make out.

"Woman, ya ain't putting that shit anywhere near my hair." He spoke up, and you sighed - throwing your hands up in frustration.

"Fine, then sweat to death." You snapped, rolling your eyes at the man. "Don't say I didn't try to help."

Daryl was silent for a few seconds, but he made no move to start driving again. The two of you remained parked for what felt like minutes, baking in the Georgia heat, before he finally replied.

"You tell no one." He said lowly, after contemplating the decision some more.

You grinned, snapping the hair-tie between your fingers.

"Cross my heart." You answered, drawing a line over your chest to prove it.

Daryl grunted and finally shuffled around in his seat, so that his back was to you. You got on your knees and hovered over the gearbox so that you could reach him, before gathering his hair into one of your hands and threading it through the elastic with the other. You were gentle, but he still flinched a little. You didn't say anything about it, though, and neither did he. 

The rest of the drive was mostly silent, save for the faint sounds of tinny, radio music. You'd compromised at some point, and turned it down to accommodate the man's headache. The drive was silent, but that didn't stop you from regularly stealing small glances at him, and smiling smugly at the sight. 

He had an attractive face, and that fact was much more obvious with his hair tied back to show it off. Your eyes trailed along his jawline, and down to his neck, before the man finally caught you and cleared his throat. He glanced at you in the corner of his eye, and you smiled sheepishly back at him.

"You look adorable." You admitted, and watched as Daryl quickly shook his head.

"Take it out." He told you, reaching for the elastic himself.

You snorted, intercepting his hand and gently placing it back onto the steering wheel. He didn't fight you that time, and kept his eyes on the road.

"Calm down, I was joking." You reassured him, chuckling at his expression.

You pulled back, once again putting your feet up and staring out of the passenger window. Except, now it was because you felt too shy to meet his gaze.

"You look hot." You confessed. "And I don't mean your temperature this time."

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