#just go to a hospital. we'll set you free.

[mummer]

barry is very very transparently about the cognitive dissonance of living in a world where violence is outwardly, performatively despised and illegal but also the foundation of all of our societies and institutions. that's where the show really transcends itself. the whole world is built on blood but dont show that. sexual violence in hollywood well that's just business that's the contract you sign. only make art about your abuse if it's uplifting. don't worry, in the movies things are happy and redemption is possible! Don't look at the darkness closing in btw. dont kill people it's bad but also if you want to buy a gun here have three and the cops arent gonna do anything to protect people anyway. christianity is about peace! Until it's not and god killed people for righteous reasons so that's fine if it's people that are gonna burn in hell anyway :) if you kill a civilian in america you're a murderer but if you kill a civilian in afghanistan you're a hero!

[ladyshrike]

The Four Times You Say His Full Name

Am I any good at writing? Not really. It's all over the place in my opinion, but I had to get this thought out one way or another.

The four times you called him by his full name.

This first time you called him "Kenji" instead of a nickname, was back in LA. You were working a wedding up in Griffith Park, a beautiful little affair under the strawberry moon. It's all the witchy vibes you adore, a little wedding mixed with a baby shower, good vibes, blessings and tides. They'd offered you some food, which you wouldn't turn down as a known foodie, and that was when you got the call.

Ken had been riding home from the party in the hills and crashed his bike. He wasn't too far from Griffith, that had been the good part of taking this job, and he's been taken to Silver lake, a quick drive from the park. The couple is understanding, eventually becoming good friends with her later on, but that's a story for another time. She's racing through the streets, down the hills and to the hospital. They hadn't given you much information, just that he'd crashed and where he was. And when you get there, you ask the charge nurse for him, only to feel his arms throw themselves around your shoulders, a slightly pointed chin resting atop your head. You immediately smell the alcohol, and it's almost instant that a rage fills your chest.

"Babe! Baby! Sweetcakes~"

It takes everything, and you mean everything, not to implode then and there. You look at the nurse in front of you and take small controlled breaths.

"Is he free to go home?"

He was, having been checked over and kept under observation for two hours before they called her. According to her it's just some bad scrapes and bruises, no contusions or anything super bad, he had actually been wearing his helmet at least, just not his jacket. His bike is totaled, helmet cracked, it really is surprising that he didn't have a concussion at the very least, but through even your anger and worry, you're glad he's ok.

You drive him home, and the way there is silent. He'd sensed something was up the way you were being so cold with him, pushing his hand off your thigh, turning your head when he tried to kiss your lips, avoiding eye contact with you. And when you guys get to your shared home, and you help him in, is it the only time since the hospital that you look him in the eyes.

He sees it immediately. That rage that's practically sobering for him. The hurt. Disappointment.

It's not the only time he's ever done this, and he's not particularly tempted to tell you those two words he just knows would just set you off even if it were true.

"Mina, emergency vital check."

The floating AI robot scans him as she stands there for a moment, looking over him herself. The tension so palpable, if she chose to raise a hand at him in her frustration, she could very well slap him with it. But that wasn't her. She was the sweetest thing, practically a Disney princess, so the anger in her eyes is surprising, and new.

"He has two deep road rash injuries, and a large scrape down his side that isn't as bad as the other two. No fractures and no concussion. I suggest monitoring for any latent signs."

"Get him hooked up to a banana bag, then look up flights to Japan."

He shouldn't try to joke, or anything, but the soft scoff leaves his lips before he could stop it.

"Japan? We goin-"

"We, are not going anywhere. I'm going home to see my dad. Maybe we'll talk. Maybe we won't."

His small smile falls, a slight wince given when the IV is put in.

"Is something...is he ok?"

You shoot him a look because you know he's smart enough to understand what you were saying. You didn't want to say it, but you were done. With the empty promises, the lies, the hospital visits. You were done with it.

"Sabine-"

"Kenji, I'm done, ok? I've had it."

And there it is. He thought his parents splitting up was the worst pain, but seeing you stand at the doorway, teary eyed in anger and barely breathing steady, it shatters his heart because he can see it. You are done.

"I only ever asked you for two things. Two. And I am grateful you can at least follow one. I'll give you that, you have never cheated on me and I thank you for that. But if you constantly break this one? Constantly do this shit? How do I know that'll last?"

"H-hey, hold on-"

"No, I am done. I love you. I love your mom. You two are...the only people I consider myself close to here, but I cannot deal with this anymore. I can't deal with thinking one day I'm gonna get a call and have to identify your corpse instead of picking you up from an ER."

"It's just a couple scratches, I'm fine-"

He's done it now. He's said it.

"Forget it."

She grabs her wallet, and just her wallet. It's the only thing in her bag that she's bought herself as her bag had been a gift from him. She heads out and he tries to follow her, not able to get to her before she's speeding out of the driveway. She feels like a hypocrite, because while she isn't drunk, she is speeding like she's a NASCAR driver, and in a residential no less. She doesn't care to look at the time when she arrives at the airport, hoping to find at least one flight outbound to Japan soon. The car can stay in the parking structure for all she cares at this point, he would get a call to pick it up at the end of the month, if she decides not to come back. Her phone vibrates incessantly in her pocket for a bit, even as she's paying for the ticket she's managed to snag so last minute. Her passport is always in her wallet, so she doesn't particularly worry about how she'd get there without it. She turns her phone off, and soon enough, she's on the plane, watching LAX turn into a massive black splotch with dozens of tiny lights speckled across it in almost neat lines, as the plane departs. She's glad for the little privacy her seat offers her in first class. It's a long flight, the seats recline into a bed and everyone has their headphones on, so she isn't particularly worried that they'll hear her already quiet broken sobs.

By the end of the month, your mind is made up. You'd started accepting his calls sometime in the middle of his season. You know you shouldn't have been watching the games, it would only make the hurt worse, but it was better than ignoring him completely. And that wasn't really possible when you get notifications about him on all your social media, all which say he's in a slump and you are nowhere to be seen at his games. Everyday since you'd left, there had been a voicemail. Apologies, checking in messages, more apologies, declarations of love, and to your utmost surprise, a recording of his introduction at an AA meeting. That one particularly stuck with her. Everyday, roughly at 8 pm, a call and a voicemail with his introduction.

Maybe that was why you started taking his calls. Maybe that was why his game was getting better, back to what he usually is at. His averages get better and you, for the most part, find your anger having dissipated. By the end of the month, you're hesitantly standing in his living room as he tries to clean up the bit of clutter he had around. His shirt rides up a little and you see it. The slight scarring from the massive scrape down his side. Your lips quivers and he stops completely, dead in his tracks. He's startled by the sight of those huge wet tears that build in your eyes and his arms are around you instantly, tightly wound to prove he was ok. That he was still there. He was safe.

You cry again that night, held in his arms. He misses the game the next day. He has his thirty day chip to show you after all, and he doesn't want to leave your side to make up for lost time. He swears a promise not to do it ever again. Drink and ride he means. He isn't an alcoholic, and the AA meetings were necessary to get his license back, but he wanted her to see he regretted his decisions wholeheartedly.

The second time you said his full name was at your wedding. A year from the date he proposed to you, rather clichely you'd admit, at your monthly trip to Disneyland. The team had won a game, they were given a PR trip to Disneyland and she was an annual pass holder. She met them there, and during the cavalcade with them, he stepped off as they got to the castle, where she stood watching, and he popped the question, on one knee with a simple little ring she had spotted in a jewelry store. The team, having been in on it, cheering them on when she tearfully said yes.

Now she stands at the alter, in a gorgeous dress that fits her like a glove, his mother as her maid of Honor, and her dad as his best man because let's be honest, he thought of him as a son at this point, the way his mom thought of her as her own daughter in the time they'd all known each other, and the ceremony is relatively small, less than fifty guests, very intimate.

It's during her vows, her promises to him and vice versa that she says it. Beautifully charming smile on those lovely glossy lips of hers.

"I, Sabine Baji, take you, Kenji Sato, as my husband. Through sickness and in health, through the good times and the bad, till death do us part."

It's the sweet and short of her vows, tearfully said as her emotions run rampant. The rest of the night spent energetically celebrating.

The third time is a little more...non PG.

It's off season, he's been training here and there, enjoying some time off in their big house up in the hills. She's spending the weekend babysitting between gigs and she's been...quiet. Maybe it was the fact that she was around them so often. Maybe, it was the fact that her friends just had a little one she was watching currently, that clung to her so jealously when Kenji came around for a cuddle too. Maybe she was ovulating. The exact cause of this scenario was a blur to her really. She just recalled, well, he recalled and told her it was how it went down. Swears by it that she, as the family was driving away with the baby, fast asleep curled up in a hoodie it wouldn't let go or give back, that she looked up at him and said it.

"Kenji." It's the first time in a long time that she says his name, so he worries maybe he did something wrong again without noticing, but the look in your eyes in determined, is heated...pleading. "I want a baby."

The night didn't end for you two there. You both lost count somewhere after three, overstimulated and yet continuing like bunnies in heat. You blame the baby fever, and maybe the wine during lunch, but the venture is fruitful two months later, when four pink lines, two on each stick, and the word 'Pregnant' in bold on the digital test are laid before you two on the bathroom counter.

The same counter he would quickly have you laying against as he spread your thighs open wider, held you closer, got a little rougher with his thrusts, aiming to make the baby in you twins, according to him. Something not fruitful, unfortunately for him, but enjoyable at least.

And that takes us to the fourth and perhaps not final time you ever say his name.

Seven months later, you feel like a ship. The little peanut, you two so kindly nicknamed the baby while looking for a name, kicking around, shifting about, giving you some of the most ravenous cravings you'd ever had. Braxton Hicks, you came to be brutally informed of when waking in the middle of the night in a labor scare, had finally died off.

Or so you had thought.

When the first stab of pain shot through your side, you'd simply grimaced and sighed, shifting on the couch during the somewhat humid autumn day. You had decided to stay the Halloween weekend in, instead of going to a party while you felt like a boat. Kenji immediately notes the discomfort and tries to help.

"You want your little heart ice pack?"

You shake your head, yawning softly because yeah, it hurt, but you were too tired. You just wanted to go to sleep already.

"Ngh...no...just wanna go sleep already...come with me?"

How could he say no? He takes your hand when you ask for help getting up, and you both feel it. The sudden rush of water on your legs, his slippers. Your face is beet red and he's confused for all of two seconds before he's scrambling for the "go" bag. A Dodger duffle bag that the team's wives/significant others had decorated for them. He'd filled it with extra clothes for them, babies first outfits, washed in baby detergent, and a picture of his mom and her dad, both who couldn't be there today. You groan in annoyance because that was your favorite rug now covered in amniotic fluid, and now you would probably stain the carseats because you were not about to try and change your pants in active labor.

(Kenji had that covered, gingerly pulling your panties and pants off and helping you out new ones on, after cleaning you up with a damp towel after all. Kiss to your belly and all.)

You say it, however, sixteen hours into active labor. Minutes before midnight, almost Halloween day, like your baby wanted to share a birthday with you, which you would never mind as long as you get to hold her. It's when a particularly sharp labor pain hits that you yell it, gripping his hand so tightly you swear you hear his hand crack.

It's angry, and pained, and you swear, just after saying his full government name, that you would make him feel how this felt. No amount of epidural helped this pain, no amount of Lamaze Breathing or doulas helped prepare her or take this pain any better. She'd find a way for him to carry and birth the next one even if she'd have to become a mad scientist. She isn't good with pain already and this isn't helping.

"Kenji Sato! You are having the next one, got I-ngh!!!GOT IT?!"

He just about passed out when they announce you're crowning, because for some gods forsaken reason, he decides to look beyond the blue sheet. It's a horror he will never forget, and he swears he won't put you through another round of whatever your anatomy was doing to push yours and his little princess out of you.

And then she's there.

She's in your arms first, he's busy gathering his emotions as they cut the umbilical cord for him, and you need the first few minutes of skin to skin with her before she has to get cleaned up and given her first dose of vaccines. He holds her after, eyes bleary with tears as he does so so gingerly. He doesn't want to hurt her, doesn't want to accidentally harm her tiny little fragile body. She's a perfect amalgamation of you two. His eyes, a grayish blue, but the rest, he will happily and readily proudly admit, is all your looks. Tousled full head of soft pinky fuschia hair, eyebrows to match, rosy cheeks and little pouty lips. He swears, on everything he loves, she smiles when he is told to do skin to skin with her as well. When she curls into his warmth while you are cleaned up by the nurses. And when you two are able to take her home, when you are given the all clear and she passes her car seat test, and you three are finally back in your house, settling her down in her side sleeper by your bed, it's clear that the few times you use his full name can be bad, but most of them?

They're worth it.

[paddockletters]

we always come back to each other | charles leclerc

pairing: charles leclerc x reader summary: you thought you’d moved on, but when fate brings you and Charles back together during a race weekend, old feelings resurface. Can you break the cycle, or are some things too broken to fix? author's note as I always say... english is not my first language so sorry me if there are mistakes —feel free to tell me— and my requests are open!👀

The paddock was alive with its usual buzz—mechanics, journalists, fans, and the unmistakable scent of burning rubber in the air. As I walked through it, I couldn’t help but feel out of place. This used to be so familiar, second nature. Now, it felt foreign, like I was walking through a chapter of my life I wasn’t sure belonged to me anymore.

I hadn’t planned on coming back here. The breakup with Charles had been clean in some ways, at least on the surface. We had gone our separate ways, focused on our own lives, as if we hadn’t been each other's world for so long. But Monaco was a small city, and the world of Formula 1 even smaller.

I was here for work. That’s what I told myself. A quick interview with one of the drivers, a feature piece on the lifestyle surrounding the sport. I didn’t have to bump into him. I didn’t have to see him. At least, that’s what I kept repeating in my head.

But it felt inevitable.

The first memory hit me hard as I passed Ferrari’s garage. It was impossible to avoid. I could still remember the late nights standing beside him, just watching him talk to the team, his confidence radiating even after a hard race. The garage was always his sanctuary, but for a while, it had been mine too—until I realized there was no room for both of us.

“Y/N, hey!” A voice broke through my thoughts. I turned to see Carmen, George’s girlfriend, waving at me with a smile. She jogged over, her familiar energy cutting through the heavy emotions clouding my mind.

“Carmen,” I said, forcing a smile. We had bonded back when we were both still relatively new to the F1 scene, both trying to find our place in this chaotic world.

“It’s been ages,” she said, hugging me tightly. “What are you doing here? I didn’t think you’d be back after, you know…”

I winced. The breakup with Charles had been quiet, no major headlines, but the people in this circle knew. They always knew.

“I’m just here for work,” I replied, hoping she wouldn’t push further.

But Carmen had always been perceptive. She glanced over my shoulder, and I followed her gaze—straight to Charles, standing with his back to us, talking to Carlos Sainz and a few team members. My heart lurched in my chest. He looked so… unchanged. Like he had stepped straight out of my memories.

“You going to talk to him?” Carmen asked softly.

I shook my head quickly. “No, it’s… we’re not...”

Carmen gave me a knowing look, her lips curving into a sad smile. “I get it. But you know, we always find our way back to the people who matter, even if it’s painful.”

The flashbacks started coming harder as the day went on. Each familiar sight—a car being wheeled into the garage, a reporter setting up for an interview, the roar of engines—triggered memories I had tried so hard to bury.

One particular memory hit me like a punch in the gut.

We were in Charles’ apartment, lying in bed after a rare weekend off. The curtains fluttered gently in the breeze, and for a moment, it felt like the world outside didn’t exist. I remember tracing the outline of his jaw, feeling the soft stubble beneath my fingers.

"Do you think we'll always come back to each other?" I had asked him, my voice barely a whisper.

Charles had smiled, pulling me closer. "Always."

I had believed him. I believed that no matter what, we would always find a way back to each other, that nothing could break us apart.

But racing had. Racing had broken us apart piece by piece, and neither of us had known how to stop it.

Later that evening, after most of the media duties were done, I found myself lingering near the hospitality area. Carmen had long since left to find George, and I had promised myself I’d leave too. But instead, I sat down at a table with a glass of water, my mind still racing.

“Y/N?” A familiar voice cut through the noise.

The voice, soft yet achingly familiar. It was Charles, standing there with a hesitant look on his face. He seemed just as conflicted as I felt. His Ferrari gear clung to him, the red still as vibrant as I remembered, though the warmth in his eyes seemed a little dimmer.

For a moment, we just stared at each other. A wave of memories rushed through me—late nights in his Monaco apartment, his laughter echoing in my ear, the way he used to pull me close after a bad race. But those good memories were always followed by the bad. The fights, the cold silences, the feeling of being left behind while he sped off to the next track, the next race.

I didn’t know if I wanted to hug him or walk away. Instead, I forced a smile.

"Hey," I managed to say, my voice barely audible over the noise around us.

“Can I sit?” he asked, gesturing to the empty chair across from me.

I nodded, feeling a lump form in my throat. This was the moment I had been dreading, but also the one I couldn’t seem to avoid.

For a moment, neither of us spoke. It was strange, sitting there together after so much time apart. There were so many things I wanted to say, so many questions I wanted to ask, but the words felt stuck in my throat.

His name felt strange on my lips, like I had forgotten how to say it. But it didn’t stop the memories from crashing in. All the times I had called his name—after his wins, his losses, his moments of doubt. But now, it was like we were strangers.

"You look... good," Charles finally said, breaking the silence.

I forced a small smile. "So do you."

He chuckled softly, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “It’s been a while.”

I nodded. “Yeah, it has.”

“How… how have you been?” he asked, shifting his weight from one foot to the other. The confident driver the world saw wasn’t sitting here right now. This was just Charles, the man I had loved, who had broken my heart without even realizing it.

“I’ve been good,” I lied. I couldn’t bring myself to admit how lost I had been without him, how empty my life felt after we ended things. “Busy, you know. Work.”

“Yeah, same,” he said, rubbing the back of his neck. “It’s good to see you.”

I nodded, even though it hurt. Seeing him wasn’t good. It wasn’t easy. It was like reopening a wound that had barely begun to heal.

“I heard you’ve been doing some great things,” he added, his voice low. “I always knew you would.”

I swallowed hard, trying to keep it together. “Thanks.”

The tension between us was thick, almost suffocating.

“I never wanted things to end the way they did,” he said quietly, his voice heavy with regret. “I didn’t want to lose you.”

I swallowed hard, feeling a wave of emotions crash over me. “Then why did you let it happen?”

He looked down at his hands, the silence stretching between us. “I don’t know. I thought I could balance everything—racing, us. But I guess I couldn’t. And by the time I realized it, it was too late.”

A bitter laugh escaped my lips. “Yeah, it was.”

Charles’ eyes met mine, and for a moment, I saw the Charles I had fallen in love with—the one who had made me believe we could survive anything. But that Charles had been lost to the world of F1 long ago.

“We always come back to each other,” he said softly, repeating the words we had once whispered in the dark.

I shook my head, tears stinging my eyes. “Maybe we do, but it doesn’t mean we should.”

Charles looked like he wanted to argue, but he didn’t. Instead, he just sat there, staring at me like he was trying to memorize my face all over again.

“I don’t think I can keep coming back,” I whispered, my voice cracking.

Flashbacks of happier times haunted me as I walked away from him. The late nights spent watching movies in his apartment, the way he would wrap his arms around me after a tough race, whispering promises of forever. But those moments felt distant now, like memories from another life.

The silence stretched between us, heavy and awkward. But before I could come up with an excuse to leave, I heard another voice.

“Y/N? Is that you?”

I turned to see Pascale, Charles’ mother, approaching us with a smile. My heart twisted painfully at the sight of her. I hadn’t just lost Charles when we broke up; I’d lost his whole family. Pascale had always treated me like a daughter, inviting me to Sunday dinners and family events. Seeing her now reminded me of what I’d walked away from.

“Hi, Pascale,” I said, forcing another smile.

“It’s been so long,” she said, pulling me into a hug before I had a chance to protest. “How have you been?”

I caught Charles’ gaze over her shoulder and felt my throat tighten. “I’ve been okay. Just, you know, work keeps me busy.”

Pascale smiled warmly, but her eyes flicked between me and Charles, clearly picking up on the tension. “Well, it’s lovely to see you both. I always thought you made such a wonderful team.”

The words hit me like a punch to the gut. Once upon a time, we had been a team. But that was a lifetime ago.

“I should get going,” I said quickly, stepping back from her. “Lots of interviews to do.”

Charles’ face fell slightly, but he didn’t say anything. Pascale gave me a sympathetic smile, squeezing my hand. “It was so nice to see you, ma chérie.”

As I walked away, I could feel their eyes on me, but I didn’t turn back. I didn’t trust myself to. I needed to get out of there, to breathe.

I found myself sitting at dinner with some of the other drivers and their girlfriends. Carmen sat beside me, giving me a reassuring smile. Pierre and Kika were across the table, laughing together, completely in sync. Even Lando sat with his latest girlfriend, radiating joy.

I felt like an outsider.

Midway through dinner, Kika leaned over, her eyes full of sympathy. “You know, Y/N, Charles is still in love with you.”

I blinked, startled by her sudden comment. “I don’t think that’s enough anymore.”

She smiled sadly, nodding in understanding. “Maybe. But sometimes love doesn’t fix what’s already broken.”

Her words lingered in the back of my mind for the rest of the evening.

Later, at my hotel room I scrolled through my messages, landing on one from my best friend, Lisa. She had been there for me through every step of my break-up with Charles, listening to my late-night rants, offering advice I never took.

Me: I saw him.

It took her less than a minute to reply.

Lisa: Oh my God. How was it??

Me: Awkward. His mom was there too.

Lisa: Ouch. Did you talk to him?

Me: Yeah, but it was weird. I don’t know why it still hurts this much.

Lisa: Because you still love him.

I stared at her words, my heart sinking. Did I still love him? Part of me wanted to deny it, to say I had moved on. But the truth was, I hadn’t. I never really had.

Me: He hasn’t changed, has he?

Lisa: Not unless he learned how to balance his life with racing. You know that was always the problem.

I sighed, leaning back against the pillows. Charles had never learned how to make room for me in his world. I had always been second place to racing, and it had worn me down until there was nothing left.

Lisa: What are you going to do?

I stared at my phone, feeling the weight of the decision hanging over me. I knew I had to make a choice, one that would finally let me move on.

The next day, I walked through the paddock again, my mind swirling with everything Lisa had said. I wasn’t sure if I was ready to face Charles again, but I knew I couldn’t avoid him forever.

As I passed by the Ferrari garage, I saw him standing there, talking to his team. He looked so at ease in his element, so confident. I remembered all the times I had watched him race, my heart in my throat as I prayed for him to cross the finish line safely.

But now, watching him from a distance, I realized something. Charles had always been a part of me, but I could no longer let him be all of me. I had spent so long loving him, waiting for him, that I had lost sight of who I was outside of our relationship.

I turned away, walking toward the exit. For the first time in a long time, I felt like I was making the right choice.

Weeks later, I sat on my balcony, staring out at the sea. Life had moved on, as it always did, but there was still a part of me that clung to the past. I hadn’t spoken to Charles since that night. I hadn’t wanted to. We were always drawn back to each other, but this time, I needed to break the cycle.

Sitting there, watching the sunset, I realized something.

We had always come back to each other because we didn’t know how to let go. We had clung to the idea of what we could be, ignoring the reality of what we were. But now, I knew I had to let him go—for good.

I picked up my phone, scrolling through old photos of us. There were so many happy memories, so many moments that had made me believe we could make it work. But as I looked at them now, I realized that love alone wasn’t enough. We had loved each other fiercely, but we hadn’t known how to hold onto it.

With a deep breath, I deleted the photos. This time, I wasn’t coming back.

That’s how it ends—with me finally realizing that love wasn’t enough to save us. And as I sat there, the sea breeze tugging at my hair, I knew it was time to move forward. To find a new path, one that didn’t lead back to Charles.

Because sometimes, the bravest thing you can do is walk away.

[russellsppttemplates]

All the milestones (Lando Norris)

Fraser came earthside earlier than you expected

Note: english is not my first language. Believe it or not, I'm also a preemie (genetically and health wise, I am a catch, I know). Jokes aside as this is a serious topic, I was born at thirty three weeks because of some complications and it all turned out well, but I am aware of what it entailed from people telling me and it isn't something I've seen around here! Knowing that the diversity I write brings comfort to read and to ask this warms my heart up so much 🫶 I'm also basing this off of my mum's experience!

Thank you so much to everyone who likes and reblogs, your feedback is appreciated 🤍 and I'm taking requests so if you have any ideas or concepts you want to share, feel free to do so as I'll try to get to them the best I can!

my masterlist

Tw: mentions c-section and themes related to hospital stays and procedures, prematurity, pre-eclampsia

Tag list: @myloverjk-blog

"I'm really sorry I can't go with you, darling", Lando apoligised as he set the plate with lunch in front of you, "it's okay, it's just an ultrasound", you responded, "we're just going to check if everything is alright with you, right, little one?", you tapped your babybump softly. At thirty weeks pregnant, you were starting to feel the tiredness and aches like you had felt in your previous pregnancy, only now you had a toddler to look after as well, so you had been taking it easy. Fortunately, you were able to juggle work and family life in a way that allowed you to make the minimum compromise to both spheres of your life.

"Drink your water, baby", Lando reminded you, tapping the jug, "I'm going to pick up my dad from the airport and then we'll both get Tilly. Are you feeling like going out for dinner or should I get take out and we eat here?", he questioned, taking a bite of his food.

"I'd prefer to stay in", you stated, "are you feeling like anything special?", he asked back.

"Right now I can't think of anything", you offered, not really looking forward to eating the delicious food in front of you if you were really being honest. Still, you manage to eat the most of it.

"Have a good meeting, Lan, I love you", you said as you put your coat on, grabbing your bag with all your documents.

"Be safe, okay, baby?", he checked, kissing the top of your head and then kissing your baby bump, "and you too, buddy, keep yourself and mummy safe and sound, don't give her too much trouble", he said, helping you out of the door before you went on your separate ways, "I love you, gorgeous mummy!", he winked before he got inside his car.

Once you arrived at the hospital and checked yourself in, your midwife Amelia greeted you in the examination room, "how have you been feeling, Y/N?", she asked as she slipped the bad on your arm to get your blood pressure numbers, sending the urine sample to the lab.

"I've been feeling a little tired, especially compared to last time, which I can only put down to having Tilly, and she's a very calm child", you giggled, remaining quiet as the machine got your numbers.

"These look quite high, did you run up here?", she asked, "no, I got here earlier than I expected actually, I've been sitting on the waiting room for a bit", you scrunched your face.

"We'll just wait for your results and then we'll see if it's something we have to wordy about", she tranquilized, "let's see you baby boy, shall we?", she smiled as you lifted your shirt, letting her apply the cream and move the wand around.

"There's your son, Y/N", she smiled, "He's a bit quiet, but the heartbeat sounds good", she smiled, taking a few more pictures so you could bring them home for Lando and Matilda to see.

A knock on the door alerted you both as Amelia was taking your measurements, "I have the results for Y/N Y/L/N-Norris", your OB checked, seeing you in the room, "Hi, Y/N, I thought I'd only see you later", she said as she walked in. She pulled on a stool and sat on it, "your results are indicating that you might be in pre-eclampsia", she said as she showed the tablet's screen to Amelia, her stern expression confirming your suspicions on how serious the situation was, "your body is having trouble keeping up with everything, hence your high blood pressure and your urine results suggest your kidneys are working overtime as well", Dr. Martin said as you straightened up, hands coming to wrap around your baby bump protectively, "your baby is fine, so that's not a big worry, but we do think it would be best if we delivered him tonight", she advised.

"But he's too small", you argued.

"You're at thirty weeks, which isn't ideal, but the survival rate is very very high for babies born at this time, and we also have a team that is specialised in preemie care, so he will be in the best hands", she comforted, "we need to give you corticosteroids to make sure the baby's lungs are ready for when he comes earthside, we'll get you admitted and monitor you and the baby to make sure he's not struggling either. In a few days, depending on how this goes, we'll do a c-section. I know it's not ideal, but this is the best way to make sure you and baby boy stay safe".

Sighing, you nodded, "okay, whatever is best for both of us", you asserted, "I just need to call Lando - my father in-law is coming to stay for a bit and they're getting Matilda from school", you thought out loud.

"Absolutely, dear, everything is going to be just fine", Amelia conforted while Dr. Martin set you up to go to a room.

Lando helped Matilda up to her car seat, strapping her in as she spoke to his father, "and did you have a good day, princess?", Adam asked, "yes, we coloured lots and we saw a couple of butterflies when we were having our snack!", she smiled as Lando drove home.

The car system alerted them of a call from you, "hey, beautiful, I'm in the car with my father and Tilly - say hi to mummy, babygirl!", he encouraged, "Hi, mummy!", she cheered, "Hey Y/N", Adam greeted too.

"Hey, guys! Lando, can you give the phone to your dad, please?", you asked, "sure, love", he said as he disconnected the phone from the car, nodding his father to take the phone in the console.

"Hey, Y/N, is everything alright?", Adam asked over the phone, "Hey, Adam, I hope you travelled well! I'm not sure if Lando told you, but I had an appointment today, and it turns out I have to be admitted", you began, "I don't want to worry him, much less when he's driving, so as soon as you get home, can you tell him to call me back again, please? Baby Fraser might join us sooner than we expected", you mumbled, nerves obvious in your voice as Adam stayed with a neutral face.

"Absolutely, Y/N, I'll let him know", he said before hanging up.

"What was it? Is everything alright?", Lando asked, knowing there would be a reason as to why you didn't want to have everyone listening to the conversation.

Checking the rearview mirror to see Matilda playing with one of her books, Adam clarified Lando, "she is going to stay at the hospital for a little longer than she expected for some check ups, she didn't want Matilda to hear about it", he said. It wasn't too much of a lie, and he certainly didn't want to scare anyone and since Lando would be calling you anyway, it could wait for a bit, "she asked you to call her when you got home. Don't worry, I'll keep Matilda entertained", he smiled.

Once they arrived, Adam left his things in the guest bedroom and met Matilda in the kuchen, "grandpa will make you some snacks. What do you want, darling?", he asked as he urged Lando to go and make a call to you.

"Hi, baby", Lando said as you picked up, "dad said you wanted me to call you, is everything alright?", he asked as he stepped inside the bedroom, hanging his coat in the closet.

"Hi, my love", you sighed and sending Lando into alert, "when they did my check up, Amelia took my blood pressure and it was really high, and my urine sample didn't look great either. It turns out I'm in pre-eclampsia and they want to keep me for observation, and it's likely Fraser will join us in the next few days", you added, "I need you here -, and things for me", you let out.

"Are you okay? I'll start packing right away", he said as he put his phone on speaker, looking for pyjamas and toiletries.

"My blood pressure is high - so far there's no distress for the baby, and they want to keep him in for as long as they can", you explained, "I, I am fine staying here on my own, that's okay, but I really need you here for a bit", you asked, "of course, my love. I'm going to pack these up quick and I'll be there. I love you", he said before you said it back, putting his phone in his pocket and zipping the bag.

"Daddy, where are you going?", Matilda asked as she saw the bag, "princess, mummy is going to stay in the hospital for a bit so the doctors can make sure her and baby are okay, and daddy is going to take a few things for her", he announced, crouching down so he was at her level.

"Is mummy sick?", she pouted, "she's a little tired, so they're going to make sure she rests up as much as she can", he slipped out, "I'm going to be there for a little bit to giver her her pyjamas so she's comfy, and then I'll be right back, okay? Can you stay here with grandpa?", he asked.

"Okay, daddy", she said before walking away, "but wait!", she called from the hall.

"I'll get dinner started and tuck her in if it gets too late - she didn't want me to tell you until you were home", he apoligised, "I know, I know, thanks for being here, it was bloody good timing", Lando mused.

Matilda came back with one of her stuffed toys, a McLaren bear she loved, "this is for mummy, so she doesn't sleep alone", she smiled sweetly. Maybe her innocence was positive because it meant she was dealing with the situation quite well.

"I'll give it to mummy, baby girl, I bet she'll love it", he smiled, kissing her cheek and leaving to the garage so he could drive to the hospital.

When he arrived, Amelia walked up with him as she told you all there was to know, knocking on your room door before they stepped inside.

"Darling", he said, setting the bag down and sitting next to you on the bed, kissing your forehead protectively, "how are you?", he asked.

"Fine, although I don't think it has really sunk in", you mumbled, playing with his fingers, "how is Tilly?", you wondered.

"She gave you Mr. Brown", he said as he fished out the bear from the bag, "she said she wanted you to have it so you wouldn't be alone in here", he smiled.

After spending as much time as he could with you, he bid you goodbye and went home, finding his father washing up the dishes as Matilda got her pyjamas on for the night, "I have a tupperware for you in the fridge if you want something to eat".

"Thanks, I've got it from here though - c'mon, little miss, we're going to sleep!", Lando hoisted her up, holding her on his hip as they walked upstairs to the bedroom, "can I sleep in your bed, daddy?", Matilda spoke in a small voice, "I don't want you to be alone either", she admitted.

Smiling at her sweetness, he nodded, "of course you can, love. Mummy sent her goodnight wishes for you, and maybe we can visit her tomorrow, how does that sound?", he smiled, "yes, please, daddy!".

.

"I made these for you, mummy, so your room is nice and colourful!", Matilda smiled as Lando let you in for a cuddle, your little girl getting help from her grandfather at ripping the tape so she could display her drawings she brought you almost daily, only missing days where Landk hadn't been able to bring her to the hospital because of their schedules.

"That's beautiful, darling, thank you so much", you gushed before turning to Lando, "has she cried again?", you whispered. You had been in the hospital for five days now, and two nights ago Matilda started with what was a tantrum at first and then evolved to crying about the fact that you weren't home. Lando was able to talk it out with her, welcoming her and allowing her to talk about how she was feeling and how it was beyond the fact that her tights were itching her.

"No, yesterday she told me she couldn't wait for you to come home, and that you were taking longer than she liked", he snickered, "always little miss rushing when it comes to you", he kissed the side of your head. Even though she was a daddy's girl through and through, she never made you feel left out.

"Y/N", Dr. Martin called after she stepped inside the room, "Oh, Matilda, you're so grown up already! Time flies by", she said as she waved at your little girl while Adam pulled her to sit on his lap, whispering "That's mummy's doctor, she is going to check up on her so you have to keep quiet, okay?" into her ear.

"I was checking your results, and I think between tonight and tomorrow, we might have to deliver your baby boy", she stated, everyone in the room straightening up as Matilda tried to read the adults' faces.

"His lungs look really good in the ultrasound we did this morning - as you know those were our biggest concerns, so we'll come up to monitor you, okay?", she rubbed your shoulder comfortingly before excusing herself.

"Well, I think it's best if we get going, then", Adam said as he got up, coming up to kiss the top of your head and squeeze your hand in his.

"Mummy, I know you're going to do very well", she said, earning small giggles around the room, "when can I come and meet the baby?", she stepped up to give you a kiss.

"We will have to see how it all goes, princess, but when you can, you'll be the first to come, okay?", you smiled, brushing the curls out of her eyes and kissing her head.

"I'll drop these guys home, get the baby bag and then I'll be back", Lando said, kissing your lips and your baby bump, "you stay in there for just a little longer, okay buddy?".

By the time Lando got back to the hospital, you had already been given a few medications to prep you for the c-section, "Kelly and Max advised that I shopped for some smaller clothes, so I have those in there", he tapped the baby bag, "and how are you feeling?", he cupped your cheek.

"My blood pressure is really high, so they're thinking about putting me under, like, full body anesthesia", you bit your lip. Getting surgery was already a big thing, but being completely under was another.

"Oh, okay", Lando gulped, "they won't let me be in there then", he realised, "that's not how we wanted this to happen, but it's going to be okay, gorgeous. You're the strongest woman I know, you're going to be just fine", he smiled, "and our baby boy will come out screaming and he will be the strongest little one ever", he said, trying to convince you and himself of his words. He was scared too, but it wouldn't do you both any good to dwell on it too much.

Knocking on the door, one of the lovely interns and Amelia came to get you, "are we all ready? I'm afraid you already know this, Lando, but you won't, be able to be with us in the OR", she apoligised, "I'll wait right here, if that's okay", your husband suggested, kissing you one last time before they wheeled you off, "I love you, Y/N", he muttered against your lips.

While he waited, he looked at the drawings in the room with precise attention, finding one where Matilda drew the four of you, her brother in your arms and Lando holding her hand, names scribbled under each person in Adam's writing.

Less than an hour later, Amelia stepped into the room, Lando getting up from his spot on the chair immediately, "everything went well, they were weaning Y/N off of the anesthesia, she's going to the PACU until she wakes up and then back here", she smiled, "your little boy is in the neonatal unit, do you want to come and meet him?", she asked, Lando letting out a sigh of relief at her words, "I'll let you know when Y/N comes back to the room", she ensured, having been in the job long enough to know the dilemma of wanting to be in two places at the same time.

"Yes, let's go", he said as he straightened up his sweater, "can I hug you?", he allowed himself to feel emotional, Amelia's open arms offering him a little comfort, "they're both alright, Lando, you have such a beautiful family", she cooed.

Walking with him to the neonatal care unit, she helped him into one of the gowns as they greeted the other parents inside along with all of the staff, "this is your little boy", she said, offering him a sanitizer for his hands, "he can't eat on his own just yet, so that single tube on his nose is feeding him, the other one is giving him oxygen, and those stickers are to make sure his heart is doing okay - little milestones and little victories", she explained as Lando took him in.

Surely, he was much smaller than Matilda, but he could already spot some similarities, "Can I touch him?", he asked, weary of disturbing the perfectly architected environment inside the incubator, "yes, of course! Just be mindful of the wires and tubes", she encouraged, opening the little doors so Lando could touch your son.

"Hey, buddy", he spoke as he touched his tiny fingers, "you're already such a fighter, breathing so well without ventilation", he cooed. He looked up all the complications and when he didn't see a mechanical ventilator, he couldn't help but feel proud of the baby, "he is, we did all the tests and for now supplemental oxygen seems to be enough", Dr. Martin said softly, not wanting to spook them as she showed up, "everything went well with Y/N, she should make a full recovery once it heals", she rubbed his back.

"Thank you", he said, keeping the tears at bay as he looked back at Fraser, "you're so tiny they had to roll up your diaper, hm little love?", he spoke, "there are so many people who love you and they have so much of it to give you".

A little while later, Amelia told him they were taking you up to your room, so Lando said goodbye to Fraser, "I'm going to see mummy, Fraser, and I'm going to tell her how much of a higher you are, I love you", he cooed one last time, rubbing his arm before taking his hands away, closing the little doors and folding the gown for later.

Walking into the corridor to your room, Lando could spot you in the other end, smiling as you spotted him too, "nearly beat you in this race", you smiled at him as he gestured for them to wheel you into the room, "everything went as expected, Dr. Martin will be up shortly to speak to you two", one of the interns said.

"How are you feeling, gorgeous?", he said, brushing your hair away from your eyes and behind your ears, "I'm fine, the meds are helping with the pain, I'm sure", you giggled, "they gave me a good dose".

"That's nice, at least", he said, "I've texted everyone to let them know you were okay and everything went well", he added.

"Have you seen him yet?", you asked, "yes, I have", Lando beamed, "He's very tiny and he looks a little bit like Tilly already. And he's such a fighter, too! He only had those little pin-like tubes to help him breathe, they didn't need any incisions or anything. I would've taken a picture but I couldn't take my hands away from him", he admitted.

"Hopefully soon I can see him", you gulped, knowing it would off the books for a bit since you had abdominal surgery.

"All in due course, baby. I'm so happy you're both fine", he kissed your forehead.

.

"I just want to hold my baby!", you hiccuped, wiping the tears falling on your cheeks while Amelia conforted you, "just one more day, Y/N, maybe two at maximum to make sure you're healing well, too", she smiled apologetically.

A knock on the door alerted you as Lando and Matilda walked inside, making you wipe your cheeks quickly, "mummy!", she cheered softly, approaching you and climbing on the bed softly since she knew you were healing, "have you been crying, mummy?", she said, hugging your arm and resting her head there.

"Mummy is upset because I can't go and see Fraser today", you explained as Lando kissed the top of your head.

Amelia excused herself as you caught up with everything back home, "grandpa asked me to give you kisses", Matilda recalled as she kissed your cheeks, "his plane has landed alresdy", Lando added, "That's nice of him, thank you darling".

"We can go and meet Fraser, Tilly", Lando said as the window they allowed visitors in was coming to the half-time mark, "I'm going to give him loads of kisses from you mummy, don't worry about it!", your daughter said sweetly as she climbed off the bed, "I'm going to try and FaceTime, okay?", Lando confirmed, handing you your phone before they left for the neonatal unit.

"Matilda, darling, you have to put this on, okay?", one of the nurses gave her a mask, "she's in nursery and she might have caught some bug that isn't showing symptoms yet and it could be harmful for the babies", he checked with Lando as your husband nodded.

"It's like a costume, Tilly!", Lando tried to make it fun for her, adjusting the gown and then the mask around her face, "you can't go around touching things, okay princess?", he stated as she nodded, ready to meet her little brother.

Lando got himself gowned and led them to Fraser's incubator, "that is Fraser, baby", he cooed, typing on his phone inside the clear bag and FaceTiming you like he promised so you too could see the moment they met for the first time.

"He's so tiny", she gasped, standing on the stepping stool so she could see him properly, "I can't kiss him, can I?", she asked and Lando shook his head, watching you smile on the screen, "I'm going to blow him the kisses I have from mummy then", she said, her hand making the movements from her covered mouth to her brother, "I love you, Fraser, and mummy loves you too, she can't be getting because her tummy still hurts a little", she told him.

"This just makes you want to have another right away, doesn't it?", Lando croaked out as he wiped a tear from his eye, your wide eyes looking at him, "not anywhere in the near future - my body knows that much!", you giggled at the soft sight, "but it is incredibly cute, yes", you smiled as tears fell on your cheeks too.

"Look, mummy! He moved his hand, he's saying hello to you", Matilda smiled, "He's saying he wants to see you, too!".

.

You were finally able to stand up and sit in a wheelchair, so your other goal for the day was going to see your son.

Amelia was the first to say she would take you, helping you sit and getting you there, "That's your little boy right there", she pointed as you were filled with giddiness and excitement.

Wheeling you to face plastic bassinet, your hand went straight inside, "he doesn't need oxygen anymore?", you asked his doctor, noticing the single tube you recognised as a feeding tube, "no, not anymore", he said, "we ran some tests this morning and he's doing just fine on his own, strong set of lungs he has! He woke two of the other babies up yesterday", he smiled.

Chuckling, you touched his arm softly, his hands opening and closing, "do you want to hold him?", he asked, catching you by surprise. Until now, no one ever held him as to make sure the treatments being done were working as best as they could.

"Can I?", you asked, eyes hopeful, "me and the rest of the team think he's finally strong enough to move out of here actually", he added, "not enough to go home just yet, but he can be in your room. This way you can have him close to you and of anything happens or you need help, the staff in your floor know what to do. He just needs to be able to feed without a pump, so either breastfeeding or bottle feeding", he stated.

"Wow, okay, I wasn't expecting this, I was so happy that I got to see him", you teared up, bringing your arms to position so the doctor could place your baby in your arms, mindful of the feeding tube that was still in him, "hey, my love", you cooed, touching his cheeks, "I'm your mummy. I know you were rushed out of my tummy, and it was scary for both of us, but it's looking up now", you cried, Amelia wiping your cheeks as she smiled too.

"Do you mind if we take his tube out now? Might be a little better for this little guy to be in his mummy's chest", the doctor suggested, getting the supplies he needed and setting them in the tray.

"It's okay, little guy", he said as he pulled it out, baby Fraser crying at the discomfort you could only imagine as you rubbed his back, "it's okay, my love, mummy's here to make it better", you shushed him, kissing his head multiple times.

"There, all done!", the doctor said, "if you want, you can feed him here or in your room, where you feel best", he wondered, "could we go to the room, please? I have my supplies there, too", you asked.

You had been pumping milk out since it came in, and you were finally able to feed him straight from your nipple, "okay, little one, you can't get lazy on us now that mummy has you in her room", Amelia encouraged, tapping his cheek slightly as he began suckling on your nipple, "there we go!", she cheered, "I told you it would get better, didn't I?", she winked at you.

When Lando and Matilda came for their daily visit, they didn't expect to see you walking around the room, your back facing the door, "you're up, mummy, that's good!", your daughter said as you turned around, showing her brother on your chest, "oh", she gasped.

"He passed all his tests, and he's getting chubby too", you cooed, squishing his thigh softly as Lando took the sight in, Matilda holding onto you as you patted her head and held your son. Your family was complete.

"That's daddy, Fraser", you cooed, pointing at Lando as your baby boy looked around to the two new people in the room.

"Can I have a cuddle?", Lando whispered before you transferred Fraser to his arms, your little boy curling up against him just like he had been curled up to you.

"Does this mean you get to go home?", Matilda asked, hugging you properly as you sat down on the bed with her, "not for a few days still, they just need to make sure Fraser is alright", you informed, "then we can go home and the four of us are going to have loads of fun", you smiled.

.

"Tilly, can you help me here, please?", Lando called as her footsteps approached your bedroom, "can you get me that bedding from the drawer, please?", Lando asked as he held the mattres up, not wanting to miss the exact placement of the sheet, "thank you, baby, you're such a clever girl", he complimented, folding the corner in and letting the mattress fall back into place.

"When mummy comes home tonight, is Fraser coming with her?", she wondered, touching the next to me bassinet you kept in your room for the baby to sleep in the first few months, "yes, he is, he's finally good and big enough to come home, no more hospital visits", Lando sighed. The last couple of weeks were hard. Juggling things on his own made him even more appreciative of you and the efforts you made to make sure everything was smoothly running in the house, as well of your friends and family who suported your family in every way they could.

"That's going to be nice, the hospital smells funny", she scrunched up her nose, "and it's going to be like before but with baby Fraser?", she wondered.

"At first mummy will need our help in many things - she still has some recovery to do, but then it will be back to normal, yes", Lando offered, "and we'll have Fraser to go with us in our adventures".

"I can't wait to show him my soft blankets and my toys", she beamed, helping Lando with the bed and then getting ready to pick you up from the hospital.

"Thank you again for all of your work and dedication, we truly can't say it enough for all you've done for our family", Lando said to the team as they discharged you from the hospital, waving at Fraser in his carrier as he looked around.

By the time the four of you were back home, you ate dinner on the sofa, Matilda cuddled up to your side while Fraser slept in your chest, Lando holding the four of you in his embrace as much a she could, "we're finally all together", you smiled, "the Norris family is all together in one place we it should be", he said, kissing your lips softly, hand coming to rest on top of yours in Fraser's back as Matilda smiled up at you, "this is the best day ever", she murmured.

Post partum blurb

[pastafossa]

🌊TUNA-TOBER🌊 PROMPT CHALLENGE 2024 🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟

Hello friends! So last month I realized that one of the reasons I'm struggling to get my writing back up to my old speed is I am seriously out of practice since Dec/Jan when shit went down and I stopped writing for a while. After some thought, I decided I was gonna set up a little prompt challenge for myself, just a general, 'here's a prompt a day' thing for about a month. And I tossed this idea out onto my fave Daredevil discord server to see if anyone would want to join. And I'm happy to say there were takers, including some of my favorite writers in the fandom! So I've set up a delicious prompt challenge for all of us, and for anyone else who wants to take part.

For each day in October, there are three prompts: an 🌧️angst/whump prompt🌧️, a 🌻fluff prompt🌻, and a 🔥kink prompt🔥. Participants are free to choose which one of the prompts they want to write or make art of, or they can try to incorporate two, or even all three prompts into a single fic or art piece. They can write a short fic/make art every day, or just on whichever days they feel like (personally I'm going to shoot for one fic a day, but we'll see), or even incorporate those prompts into the chapters of longer fics. There are also four 'backup' prompt options for each category in case anyone hits a day or prompt where they aren't really feeling what's available on the chosen day. If any of these prompts inspire you, you can feel free to take on the Tuna-Tober challenge even if you're not in the server! This challenge is also not fandom-specific (although I have a feeling I'm mostly gonna write Charlie Cox characters, a surprise to precisely zero people, but again, we'll see).

Sometime this week, I'll be setting up a sideblog specifically for Tuna-Tober. That sideblog blog will reblog any Tuna-Tober fics/art or link to those fics that are posted on Ao3 so they'll all be easy to find. That blog will also have instructions for how to tag your Tuna-Tober fics and/or art pieces. If you'd like to be notified when that sideblog is up so you can follow it, let me know in the comments.

Without further ado: our Tuna-Tober prompts!

🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟

Day 1: Falling Asleep In A Hospital Room ⚜ Reading To Each Other ⚜ Somnophilia

Day 2: “Why? Why do you love me?” ⚜ Flower Crowns ⚜ Mutual Masturbation

Day 3: Broken ⚜ “I feel real when i’m with you.” ⚜ Role Reversal

Day 4: “This isn’t you.” ⚜ “Are you blushing?” ⚜ Sixty-Nine

Day 5: Self-Loathing ⚜ Watergun Fight ⚜ Begging

Day 6: "Shh, I've got you now. I'm here." ⚜ Love Bites ⚜ “Spread your legs for me.”

Day 7: Nightmare ⚜ Honest Apology ⚜ Nothing Underneath

Day 8: Shaking ⚜ “You can sleep here tonight.” ⚜ Overstimulation

Day 9: Anxiety ⚜ “You don’t need to do that.” “I want to.” ⚜ “Open your mouth.”

Day 10: "I'm not good enough." ⚜ A Hug That Lasts A Little Too Long ⚜ Strap-on/Pegging

Day 11: Tears ⚜ “I’d be lost without you.” ⚜ Breast Worship

Day 12: "I did it for you.” ⚜ “You remembered?” ⚜ Deep-Throating

Day 13: Loneliness ⚜ Playful Kiss ⚜ “Beg me for it.”

Day 14: "Please look at me." ⚜ Sleep Talking ⚜ Accidental Stimulation

Day 15: Hiding An Injury ⚜ “Are you jealous?” ⚜ Threesome

Day 16: Exhaustion ⚜ Accidental Kiss ⚜ Against A Window

Day 17: "I'm not leaving you." ⚜ Tickling ⚜ “Touch yourself for me.”

Day 18: Scars ⚜ Pillow Fort ⚜ “I’m so proud of you, you’re taking me so well.”

Day 19: Touch starved ⚜ “I’ll always be there for you.” ⚜ Gags

Day 20: "Who did this to you?" ⚜ There Was Only One Bed ⚜ “You were made for me, weren’t you?”

Day 21: Fainting/Collapsing ⚜ Flustered ⚜ “Was that an order?”

Day 22: "You haven't done anything wrong." ⚜ Breathless Kiss ⚜ Aphrodisiacs

Day 23: Father ⚜ “If you won’t take care of yourself, I will.” ⚜ Toys

Day 24: Drugged ⚜ Drunken Confession ⚜ “Shh, do you want them to hear us?”

Day 25: "What's Wrong?" ⚜ Playing With Their Hair ⚜ “Did I say you could do that?”

Day 26: "You're not fine." ⚜ “Shut up and kiss me.” ⚜ Under The Desk

Day 27: Near Death Experience ⚜ Overheard Confession ⚜ “Let me see what that pretty mouth can do.”

Day 28: Chronic Pain ⚜ Sharing An Umbrella ⚜ Hair Pulling

Day 29: "Talk to me, please." ⚜ Forehead Kiss ⚜ Restraints

Day 30: Healing ⚜ Road Trip ⚜ “Take it off. Slowly.”

Day 31: "Why wasn't I enough?" ⚜ Blanket Hog ⚜ Stockings/Thigh Highs

🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟

🌊Tuna-Tober🌊 Backup Prompts:

Bound/Chained ⚜ Moving In Together ⚜ Almost Getting Caught

"Take me instead." ⚜ “I’m in love with you, and that scares me.” ⚜ High Heels

Insomnia ⚜ Adopting A Pet ⚜ Scent Marking

"You're not alone." ⚜ Playing A Game Together ⚜ Ass Worship

🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟

[atimeofyourlife]

As soon as the team was asked for volunteers, Steve was the first to sign up. He usually hated working events, but this was different. This was the first event when they'd get to be themself. He'd been to pride only once before, getting dragged along with Robin the year before, and it had ended up being a world of discovery.

Sure, he couldn't be decked out in rainbows and flags, having to wear their EMT uniform. But their boss had approved pins and bracelets as long as it didn't interfere with the duty. So his uniform had their pronoun of the day pins (They/He), their updated name badge showing his choice of names (Steve/Evie), pins and bracelets of the trans, non-binary, genderfluid, and bi pride flags. And Robin had braided bi pride ribbons into his hair before he tied it back when getting ready. It was going to be a good day.

He was kept busy, like the rest of the first aid team. And being one of the highest trained on duty, one of two AEMTs and in training to become a paramedic, he was tending to deal with the worst injuries and illnesses, and having to triage for if anyone needed to be transferred to the hospital. Robin stopped by a few times, to check in, and to give them snacks. It helped break up the day as he wouldn't get a long break.

They'd had to spend some of the day hurrying around the site whenever the radio buzzed for first-aid assistance at various points around the site. He was making his way back to the first-aid tent after one call, when their eye was caught by the band on the second stage. In particular, the long-haired guitarist. Steve couldn't help watching them as he walked by, until he stumbled and nearly fell into someone. They shook their head, and dragged their eyes away to make his way back to the tent. He was there to do his job, not make eyes at a pretty guitarist. They tried to put it out of their mind, but he couldn't help looking out for the guitarist as the day passed. Not letting it get in the way of their job, but whenever they had a second free.

Late in the afternoon, they were alerted to a group of people making their way to the tent. Two guys supporting a third, with another guy ahead of them to clear the way. Steve pulled fresh gloves on and hurried down to help. As he reached the group, he realized that the guy being supported was the pretty guitarist. They tried to not think about it, needing to remain professional.

"What seems to be the problem?" Steve asked, swapping places with one of the guys supporting the guitarist.

"He nearly passed out on us." One of them responded.

"Right. Come on, we'll get you all checked out." Steve replied, guiding them into the tent.

"You can check me out anytime, sweetheart." The guitarist replied, leaving Steve fighting back a blush.

"Eddie, shut up." The guy in front snapped, before glancing at Steve. "Sorry about him."

"But he's pretty." The guitarist- Eddie- whined.

"Okay, just set him down here." Steve helped Eddie onto the bed at one end of the tent, before turning to the other guys. "Only one of you can stay in here with him because of the space, so if the other two can just wait outside?"

The other three guys looked between them, silently deciding that the shorter, curly haired guy would be the one to stay behind.

"Gare-bear, where they going?" Eddie asked.

"They're waiting outside for you, asshole."

Steve coughed a little to hide the laugh that threatened to burst out, the conversation reminding them too much of dealing with a drunk Robin, or worse, the kids while they were crossfaded for the first time.

"Okay, can I just pop this on your finger for a reading?" Steve asked, waiting for Eddie to hold his hand out so he could fix the pulse ox monitor. They then grabbed a clipboard and a blank paperwork sheet. "And while we wait for that, just a few questions. Can we start with your name?"

"Eddie Munson." The other guy, Gare? replied.

"You can take my last name, angel." Eddie said, which Steve ignored.

"Thank you, and the date of birth?"

The other guy reeled it off, as Steve wrote it down.

"And Gare, was it?"

"Gareth."

"Gareth, sorry. Can you tell me what, exactly, happened? The other guy said he nearly passed out?"

"Yeah. Uh, we were performing earlier. We're in a band. He was fine then. But in the last thirty minutes or so, he's been complaining about not feeling so good, and then he nearly passed out."

"Okay." Steve wrote down all the information, then copied down the numbers from the pulse ox. "I just need to get the rest of your vitals, okay, Eddie?"

"Anything you want. He's so beautiful, isn't he Gare?"

"Anything you say, Eds."

Steve set to taking the vitals, making sure everything was normal, but kept asking questions to get to the bottom of it.

"Any medical conditions?"

"No."

"Do you know if he's taken anything in the last twenty four hours? Any prescription meds, or over the counter, or any other substance?"

"Shhh. Gare, you can't tell him."

"Dude, I'm not a cop. I just need to know if it could be what you've taken, or so if you need any medication it won't react to it."

"He smokes, and we were smoking weed last night. But he smokes weed most weeks and has never reacted like this." Gareth explained.

"Uh-huh." Steve continued to make notes, both the answers to the questions and Eddie's vitals. "Any alcohol?"

"A couple of beers."

"When was the last time he ate?" Steve asked, frowning when they noticed that Eddie's blood sugar was on the low side.

"Wait, I think that was-" Gareth broke off for a moment. "Eddie, you certifiable moron."

"Not eaten much today?" Steve guessed.

"Not eaten at all today. He doesn't eat breakfast, ever, and he felt sick before we went on so he didn't eat lunch. And after he still didn't want anything."

"That pretty much explains everything. Plus drinking on an empty stomach is a recipe for disaster. I'll grab some water and something small so you'll feel less like passing out." Steve crossed the tent to find a bottle of water and the emergency snacks they kept, usually for diabetics.

"Here. Drink some water, and eat these. I know they're not the most exciting snacks, but you should feel better after." Steve handed it over to Eddie, a mini bag of fruit gummies, and a small pack of crackers.

Steve kept a check on Eddie as he ate the snacks. He seemed to be doing better, which put Steve's mind at ease. And kept trying to flirt, which left them fighting to remain professional.

"How are you feeling now, Eddie?" Steve asked after a few minutes, hoping that it wouldn't be too much longer before they could have a moment to freak out, preferably with Robin.

"Better. But you could make me feel incredible, big boy." Eddie said, a clear flirty tone in his voice.

"Not while I'm on duty," Steve replied slightly absently as he made a note on Eddie's sheet. Then, realizing what they'd said, fought to figure out how to backtrack without offending Eddie. "I mean, it's good that you're feeling better. I would recommend you try to get a balanced meal soon, something with carbs, protein, fibre, fats. That will help keep you feeling better, and keep you from feeling like you're going to pass out again. And it might be best if you stay off the alcohol for today."

"Does that mean- ow." Eddie started to ask something, but cut off. Steve looked up from the clipboard, and it was obvious that Gareth had elbowed Eddie to get him to shut up.

"This is your copy of the paperwork, it just has your vitals, and what's happened. If you still feel unwell later, and you need to come back here, or you seek medical attention somewhere else, you can show this, so whoever you see has some background for what has happened today." Steve explained, handing the sheet over to Eddie.

"Thanks," Eddie replied, starting to stand up.

"You're welcome, enjoy the rest of your day." Steve turned to start sanitising and packing away the equipment used, so the space would be tidy for the next person to need it. He could hear a brief, whispered conversation behind him, but ignored it. Until they felt a tap on their shoulder, and turned back to Eddie.

"For you," Eddie said, thrusting a small piece of paper into Steve's hands before leaving the tent with Gareth.

Steve unfolded it, and read the note. 'What about when you're off duty?' followed by a phone number. He blushed a little as he shoved it into his pocket. God, they needed to talk to Robin.

Later, once he was home, he finally had the chance. Not that she was much help.

"You're telling me you nearly fell over yourself because you were staring at this guy, kept looking out for him because you hoped to see him after, he shows up to the tent and is flirting with you, and gave you his number. And you haven't called him?"

"That is missing the point entirely? He wasn't well when he came to the tent, and it kinda feels like I was taking advantage of him to end up with his number after that. I should have given him to one of the others. I shouldn't have let him give me his number." Steve protested, feeling unsure if they had handled everything in the best way.

"You are the only person I have ever met who thinks that getting the number of someone you find attractive is somehow a bad thing. This is why you're still single."

Basically giving Steve my gender here. In this he's genderfluid and uses various combinations of They/He/She pronouns, depending on the day I was at pride today (well, yesterday as it's now after midnight here), and this idea came to me on the way home. Also, idk how first aid services at events work in the US, so this is vaguely based off what I know from what I've seen in the UK.

[pandora-writes-one-piece]

The Meet Cute - Ace's Story - Epilogue

Source for pic

Firestarter Epilogue

Word Count: 3196

Tags For The Whole Story: Fem!Reader, slight NSFW (It's mature, not explicit), slightly sugestive behaviour, flirting, jealousy, frenemies, sexual tension, miscommunication, unresolved tension, slight angst, slow-burn, romantic comedy vibes, alternate universe modern setting, swearing, drinking, fluff, feelings realisation, denial of feelings.

Special Warning: English is not my first language, I apologise for any possible spelling or grammar mistakes.

Summary: After moving away from the hustle and bustle of Grand Line City to help your father around the property following a horse-riding accident - and in the hopes of healing your broken heart after your asshole ex-fiancé cheated - you settle into the country calmness of the Calm Belt. You intended to have some alone time, to reflect and heal, but your childhood friend's older brother, Ace, seems to be there just to upset that fragile peace you're striving for. He's a flirt and a womaniser. But why does he also have to be so handsome and perfect? And how long can you resist his charms?

Notes: This is it everyone, the ending...! I loved writting and sharing this story with you, I hope you had fun reading it as well! Tell me all about it - in an ask, in a comment, in a message... go ahead! I love to read your opinions! In the meantime, be sure to check the new poll (for voting on the next story of the meet-cute series). Also, if you want to check out my 100 followers event, feel free to do it! Full disclosure, answers to requests may take a while! Thank you for reading this! I do hope you enjoyed it!❤️

Tag List: @rosidaze @beachaddict48 @armiliadawn

Masterlist for previous introductory chapters.

|Previous Chapter|

“Oh God! Oh my God!” Ace's cries of despair near your head make your heart throb. In fact, everything hurts: your chest, head, arms, legs… Groaning and gasping for air - why does it seem like you are drowning? Why does it feel like air is the sweetest thing in the world? - you try to ground yourself. 

You don't quite know where you are or how you got here. But Ace is with you, peppering kisses into your hair, crying happy tears and you know it must've been something bad. 

“Luffy!” Ace yells, popping his head outside of the… ambulance? “I'll ride with her. You can take my car. Oh, fuck. Shanks…”

“I'll go to him, Ace. We'll meet you at the hospital. Go.”

Hospital?

“Ace…” You manage to croak but your throat feels very dry and the pounding in your head is increasing exponentially. There's also a loud ringing in your ears and a brightness in your vision leaving you light-headed and dizzy. 

“I'm here love. I'm here.” Love? You try to smile but it's such an effort that all you can produce is a grunt. “You're probably confused, right?” Confused is an understatement. That's what you want to say. But you can't because it hurts. 

You feel the engine of the ambulance roar to life and hear the blaring of the sirens as you're rushed to the hospital.

“You were in a car crash. Probably because of the rain. Your car toppled and you hit your head and-...” He sighs and you understand that it was something bad because his eyes are puffy and red and he can't stop squeezing your hand and placing gentle kisses on it as the EMTs tend to a wound on your head. 

“Oh!” You gasp before he can continue. You remember! There was a cat in the road, you swerved to avoid hitting it. “Ace!” You try to move but you are strapped to the gurney to keep you stable. Ace's eyes widen at your desperation, trying to calm you down. “Ace, there was a kitten in the middle of the road! Call Luffy please! See if they can find it. Please! Oh God, please, I didn't want to hit him.”

He soothes you as he reaches for his phone, realising the state of panic you are in and knowing it's best to do what you ask when you're in this state. After a brief conversation, his eyes are back staring at yours. The EMTs have stopped fussing over your wounds, probably patching them up as well as they could before you got to the hospital.

“He’s going to look for the cat, don’t worry. Just focus on getting better, love, okay?”

Oh, love again! 

That’s right. There is something important that you have to share with Ace. Your brain feels fuzzy and filled with fog. It’s hard to think straight with the incessant pounding in your head.

Shutting your eyes tight and taking another deep breath - feeling pain spread from your chest with the effort - your unstrapped hand reaches for his face, cupping his cheek with all the strength you can muster.

“Ace.” His hand cups yours and he lays a soft kiss against your palm before setting it back against his face. “I don’t know if you heard, on the phone… I need you to know, I-...”

“I love you too.” He whispers, his face closing in on yours, foreheads touching - being careful to avoid the wound on your head.

A half-sob, half-chuckle leaves your lips, your chest wracking with the effort, making you wince from pain and Ace tries to soothe you with a gentle kiss on the lips. “It’s okay love, don’t speak now. We need to get you well.” He sighs as he lays another peck. “I thought I lost you. God… I…” His eyes shut and his lower lip trembles slightly.

From his reaction and the hurt in your chest, you get the sense that your heart might have stopped. He must have been so scared. 

“I’m not going anywhere, Ace.”

-*-

Ace reluctantly lets you go once you arrive at the hospital. He’s told that you will be assessed, observed and taken care of. He knows that it’ll probably be a while before he gets to see you again, since you have a lot of lacerations that need to be tended to, as well as monitoring, ultrasounds, X-rays, blood work…

But he isn’t going anywhere. 

And neither are you.

As he sits in the waiting room, trying to create a comfortable spot to spend the next hours in, Luffy and Shanks arrive, both looking worried and distraught, Shanks much worse than Luffy: dishevelled hair, worry lines across his forehead and eyes, trembling lips and his face paler than milk.

Ace instantly rises, facing him with a grimace. “Shanks…”

The older man lets out a low wail as he embraces Ace in a one-armed, crushing hug. “Thank you, Ace. Luffy said you were there, that you…” His voice falters into a ragged breath. “That you brought her back.”

Shanks wobbles on his legs and Ace grabs him, helping him sit on the nearest chair. 

“If I lost her, Ace… I… I…”

“I know, Shanks… I feel the same.” Ace sits down next to him, patting his shoulder, a sympathetic smile pressed to his lips. “But she’s going to be just fine. They’re patching her up now.” 

Ace keeps telling him that you are going to pull through, that you are strong, and he keeps nodding, as his only response. Looking up at his pupils, and noticing the rapidness of his breath, Ace turns to Luffy. “Luffy go get a nurse, I think Shanks is in shock.”

As Shanks is carried inside for monitoring and help, Ace slumps back down in his seat, Luffy imitating him on the chair next to him. 

“She will be fine, you know?” Luffy says, with a reassuring pat on Ace’s back. 

“Yeah… I know…” They sit in silence for a few moments before Ace speaks up again. “Loof, what about the cat? Did you find anything? She was feeling pretty guilty about hitting it.”

“Oh! I did! I left it with Franky at the station. The little guy was pretty scared, all wet and hungry. Franky said he’d take care of him.”

Ace chuckles and exhales a long sigh, his head falling back as he leans into the seat. “I’m glad. She’ll be happy to know that.”

“Get some rest, Ace. I’ll be here if there’s news.” Ace nods and closes his tired eyes.

-*-

After being treated and observed, the doctors inform you that you will have to remain a few days in the ICU because, as you suspected, your heart stopped for at least ten minutes, and they need to make sure the organ is working properly and that there are no cognitive impairments to your brain. 

They let you see Ace and your father and Luffy though, and you feel so happy to see their smiling faces. Shanks is holding back tears as hard as he can, but he does not let go of your hand for a second. Luffy jumps, ready to hug you enthusiastically before Ace pulls him back by the scruff of his shirt, reminding him that you are heavily injured and your friend settles for a fist bump.

Ace keeps staring at you like a lovesick man, and you can’t stop smiling at him.

You are feeling exhausted and in some pain so, after Luffy assures you he found the kitten and that they will take care of it until you are released from the hospital - making you cry happy tears - your visitors leave you alone so you can rest. 

Ace comes back, though, after begging the nurse for a few more minutes and, since he’s Ace and the nurse is a woman, she lets him in. You heard the conversation through the closed door so you greet him with a tired, cheeky smile.

“Flirting your way to see me again, are you?”

“Guilty as charged.” He laughs and pulls a chair to sit by your head, letting his hand rest near your cheek, which he keeps stroking lightly. “I need to be with you a while longer. If you’re up to it. I don’t mind if you fall asleep. I just need to be near you.” His voice drops to a whisper. “To hear you breathe.”

You feel your eyes warm up with unshed tears and slide your fingers through his locks, settling your hand on his cheek to cup it so he can look back into your eyes. “I’m so sorry that you had to go through that, Ace. I really am.”

“It’s not your fault, love.”

“I know… and maybe if I could take it back, I still wouldn’t. Because I needed to be with you, to let you know that I love you and that I’m all in. I don’t care about the girls from your past, they’re just that, past! I’m your present, and I’m all in, Ace. I am. I love you.” Your speech leaves you breathless and inhaling turns a bit painful, so you take a moment to breathe slowly, adjusting to the new pressure in your chest that the doctor said would remain there for a while. 

His smile lights up his freckles just the way you like it, and he reaches in to give you a sweet, mellow kiss, that melts your heart - and is cut short because of your need for air. 

“I love you too, Firestarter. And I’m all in too. You are the one for me.” He tucks your hair back and smiles cheekily. “I’ve known that since my nose went up your ass on those stairs.”

The heartfelt laugh that leaves your lips is both painful and exhilarating. 

-*-

The next two days are spent in the ICU, being constantly monitored and checked. Your visits are very limited and short, though there are two nurses Ace is familiar with who allow him to stay longer. He says it’s because they think it’s lovely the way he feels about you and that yours is a love story for the ages and should be eternalized in a book. You know it’s just because he’s hot and has a cheeky smile.

You take all the time with him, though.

And it’s still not enough. 

During those off-hours visits, he sneaks into your hospital bed, very carefully, and holds you in his arms, kissing you, murmuring sweet nothings into your hair and making promises of dates, dinners, trips you can take together after you’re well. It feels nice to make plans.

If you weren’t in such pain, you could almost say you were in bliss. 

After being released from the ICU, you are transferred to the general ward because your arm and forehead lacerations still need to be tended to, and your fractured ribs need attention. 

Ace keeps coming every day. And on the nights when the nurses covering the night shifts are his acquaintances and turn a blind eye to his presence, he even sleeps with you. He brings you small treats - Sanji bakes you some delicious lemon cookies and you get to eat two of them before Ace gobbles up the rest, leaving you in a laughing fit; He tells you all the hot gossip he hears in town - because, somehow, Ace always ends up knowing everything about everyone - and sometimes he just sits by you, a blissful smile on his lips as you indulge in each other’s company. 

Nami, Vivi, Robin and some other friends come to visit you as well, all hoping for your fast recovery. Shanks informs you that your car was completely trashed and that Kid declared a time of death on the thing. It will be missed. 

Luffy says he and the kitten are now best friends and that it has become the fire station’s mascot, so you’re pretty happy with that outcome. The kitten gets a home and the firemen get a distraction for all the downtime. Ace begrudgingly admits that ‘the thing’ is adorable, and you have to agree. 

Source

After almost a week in the general ward, you are deemed fit to be released from the hospital, being given a follow-up plan with appointments and exams to be taken. Ace listens very carefully to the plan you are supposed to follow, the pills you need to take and the exams that you can’t miss, and you have no doubt that he will make you follow it to a tee. 

You can’t help but feel a little sorry for the dismayed look on your boyfriend’s face when the doctor advises no sex for at least six to eight weeks. He starts to resign himself to the situation, knowing he will do anything for you, when the doctor says that less strenuous activities than intercourse might be explored, as long as they don’t tire you or put your body in uncomfortable or stressful positions. 

And now Ace looks like a kid who was just told Christmas morning is tomorrow and he gets to open his presents early. 

You’re pretty sure he’s already planning all the naughty things he can - and will - do to you, which leaves you giggling before you leave the doctor’s appointment.

-*-

The weeks go by slowly and sometimes boredom settles in. Your job hunt was, obviously, put on hold, and you can’t even help Shanks with the most basic of chores around the property. All you manage to do is some cooking, baking and, when Shanks isn’t looking, cleaning some cupboards and organising them. 

Ace helps your dad around the property whenever he’s free from fireman duty and you noticed, ever since you were in the hospital, that Shanks has warmed up to the idea of having Ace as your boyfriend.

You know it was because of what he did when you had the accident. Shanks believes he owes Ace your life. 

And in reality, he does.

Ace told you all about that day, after much coaxing on your part. You needed to know exactly what had happened and you knew he needed to share those moments so he could also move on. 

You can feel the desperation in his voice when he recounts all that happened and how useless he felt, how terrified he was when he thought he would lose you. It’s an emotional moment for both of you, but very healing.

And your relationship keeps growing, from a small bud to a beautiful flower. 

You’re quite nervous when you bring up the topic of moving in together, knowing he still struggles with living with his grandfather. It’s not that he doesn’t love him, you know that, but they do butt heads a lot. Still, given his past track record, you’re not sure if it’s a step he’s ready to take and it scares you. 

“Firestarter, it’s like you can read my mind.” He kisses your nose affectionately and pulls his phone from the back pocket of his shorts. “I’ve already marked down some favourites, take a look and see if you want to schedule a visit.”

How are you so lucky to have him?

-*-

“Good news, your heart is in perfect condition, your lacerations have healed - though there’s still some tenderness and bruising - and your ribs mended perfectly, as well. You are completely healed.”

You sigh and squeeze Ace’s hand, letting the doctor’s words sink in. It’s been a rough couple of months, but now, you are in perfect health. 

And you and Ace are in such a wonderful place in your relationship. You’ve never been this happy. Sometimes you wonder if it’s all a dream and you’re about to wake up, but you know it’s not because Ace makes sure to remind you every day that he’s very real. 

He makes you complete. He makes you happy. 

He’s the one.

“Thank you, doctor. I appreciate all your help, but I hope I don’t see you too soon.”

The doctor smiles at you and Ace before getting up to show you out of his office. “I don’t want to see you in this office at all! A quick hello at the store is fine with me.”

You all laugh as you say your goodbyes, your hand squeezing Ace’s in a tight grip as you lock eyes with him, a silly enamoured smile on both your faces. 

In the parking lot, you lean your back against his jeep, just like you did a few months back on your father’s property, happiness filling your entire being. You reach up and circle your arms around your boyfriend’s neck, pulling him down slightly, a sultry smile pressed on your lips. 

“So, we have that apartment visit scheduled, but it’s only in the afternoon… what should we do with our time? You did take the day off…”

Ace’s lips curve upward, his sun-kissed freckles moving mischievously as his hands settle upon your hips, digits digging into your plush skin, and he presses his body against yours. 

“Oh, what should we do, indeed… such a tough question.” His lips ghost over yours, sending a tingle down your spine, fire spreading its tendrils from your belly to your core, warmth filling you completely. “You have been deemed completely healed. I think we should celebrate.”

His lips turn and he presses them against your jaw, moving down to your neck as he licks softly.

A sigh escapes your parted lips. These months have been rough. There’s always been an intense attraction between the two of you and this time without sex has already taken its toll. Granted, after a few weeks you and Ace experimented with other sexual activities that didn’t involve penetration, as to not exert yourself. It had all been tremendously fun. But now that you have been cleared, you both need more. 

“How do you plan on celebrating, Ace?” Your fingers entwine in his dark locks, tugging slightly as he sucks on a particularly sensitive spot near your earlobe.

His chuckle vibrates against your skin, making you mewl softly at his touch. The touch that never ceases to amaze you because it always feels like it’s the first time, like something new and strong and so good!

“I have a few ideas. I think you’re going to like them.”

“Oh, I think I will…”

He pulls back, his eyes filled with intensity, pupils darkening with desire as they bore into yours. His hand parts with your hip for a moment only to cup your face tenderly. “I love you, Firestarter.”

Desire and love mingle, creating an intense emotion in your chest. It translates into a perfect warmth that spreads through your entire body, fills your heart and leaves your head spinning. 

God, this man is something else.

“I love you too, Ace.”

And if at first his lips press softly against yours, moulding perfectly and falling in tandem into a familiar dance you have grown accustomed to, soon they are demanding and begging for more, as his tongue teases yours, leaving you both panting. 

He’s right. You should both celebrate. Because a love like this doesn’t happen every day.

And yours is meant to last.

THE END

[earl-grey-teacake]

I love your baby!loscar au man

I need more of baby Logan with George and Alex, my 3 fav boys (other than Lance)

Thank you so much!!!���

I love writing about the 3 of them, it's always so fun for me. Lance has been growing on me so I need to go and watch videos and interviews of him so I can write about him in my AUs. 😂 The Secret Santa video where he got Fernando the captain hat made him rise exponentially in my rankings.

I wasn't sure what to write since I had so many head canons and fanfic ideas so I made a compilations of little scenes and moments! If you want any of them expanded or elaborated one, feel free to ask!!!

Logan is approximately 7 months old here.

Shots

"Does he really need the shot?" George held Logan tightly against his chest.

It was just him and Logan today since Alex was meeting with Williams. Logan seemed so happy and unaware in his arms and it pained George to know what was going to happen next. There was a reason Alex usually took Logan alone.

"Yes, I'm afraid so." The doctor smiled.

George paused for a moment. You can do this George. You put yourself in danger all the time for F1. You have it in you. You can do this.

"Okay."

The doctor smiled and wiped Logan's upper arm with an alcohol wipe before taking out the syringe.

"It'll be just a little poke."

George felt his hands get clammy as Logan remained blissfully unaware of what was going to happen to him. To the doctor, it must've been only a minute or so. To George, it felt like time was moving so insanely slow. He felt the way Logan stiffened in his arms and could see the way Logan's face scrunched up, wailing from the pain.

"There, all done." The doctor smiled and looked up. "Sir, are you crying?"

*******

Umbrella

Logan clung tightly to Alex's blue jacket. His little body was wrapped in a thick blanket and George walked next to them, carrying an umbrella over their heads.

"Are you warm Logie Bear?" Alex cooed.

Logan giggled before turning to George and trying to grab the umbrella. His attempts, however, were unsuccessful as his arms were a bit too short and his parents were actively working against him.

"Ah!" Logan turned to Alex and yelled.

"Aw, I know. You want the umbrella." Alex laughed. "You're too little though and we're both a bit too tall."

"Ah!" Logan turned to George in hopes that he would be a bit for sympathetic to his plight.

George only laughed though before kissing Logan on the head. "Maybe when you're a bit older, you can hold your own umbrella."

******

Accident

Logan didn't like the atmosphere in the garage today. Logan had fallen asleep when the race started and woke up two hours later to find everyone rushing around. He could see his dad's car was back in the garage but Alex wasn't anywhere to be seen. His dad always comes and picks him up the moment he comes back. if Logan is asleep, he brings Logan to the debrief or to the driver's room.

"It's okay. I know you're scared. Let's go wait in my office." James gave a thin smile and carried the baby carrier into his office. Setting it on a chair, James readjusted the blanket that was slipping off. "It's a bit cold here."

"UH! UH!" Logan was starting to get fussy. He wanted his dad. He wanted to go back to the hotel and play.

"I know. Your dad is just a bit delayed." James smiled before returning back to his phone, hastily shooting off texts.

Logan wanted to cry and wail because he wanted his dad. It had been so long since he saw his dad. Did his dad forget him here?

The door swung open revealing a frantic Mercedes driver with a bag slung over his shoulder. "I'm so sorry. I came here as fast as I could."

"It's okay, I didn't expect Alex to have to be flown to the hospital." 

George breathed a sigh of relief before turning to Logan and smiling. "Hey, Logie. How are you doing?" 

"Uhhhh!" Logan kicked his feet and held out his arms, tired of being in the carrier. 

George quickly undid the buckle and picked Logan up, hugging him tightly. "We'll go visit Dad right now, okay? He'll be so happy to see you."

"George, it'll be okay. Alex is strong, you know that."

"I know." Logan didn't know what was going on, but he didn't like it. Even his other dad hugged him tighter.

*****

No Dangerous Driving

People say having a kid changes you. When they were adopting Logan, everyone on the Mercedes teams told him that he would change, even the smallest habit that he didn't realize he had would change. To George, that was obvious. You have to make changes for your child. 

George hated being driven, he had to be the one driving. Even if Alex was a good driver, George simply was not made to be a passenger princess. Alex can complain and yell all he wants, but George simply gets there quicker.

However, when Logan came into the picture, the seating arrangements also changed. Logan was sat in the back, in his rear-facing car seat. Alex also moved to the back to be next to Logan and it was George, up front, all alone.

George saw it as a natural progression. Alex described it as overnight. George, who always drove quite fast and aggressively, had magically become the ideal driver on the road. Speed limits were observed, road signs were obeyed, and George was surprisingly forgiving to cars who merged without signaling. George had to be careful. He was driving his family around, it was his job to protect them no matter what.

*****

Albon Pets

"Have you seen Horsey?" Alex asked George. The cat usually stuck to his side but he hasn't seen him in 2 hours.

George looked up from his phone pausing to think for a moment, "No? In fact, I haven't seen any of them in the past 2 hours."

Alex looked concerned. The house was usually not this quiet. In fact, it was a miracle, Logan had been asleep for two hours without either of them having to go and console him.

"I'm going to go see where they are." Alex stood up and poked his head in the kitchen and dining room. Nothing.

"They aren't in the backyard or in the living room," George said, scanning around for any signs.

"Upstairs then?" Alex walked up the stairs and poked his head into the bedrooms and bathroom. "Nope, nothing here."

There was only one room left, Alex and George's room. Logan should be sleeping soundly in there but now Alex and George were concerned. Logan's interactions with animals were always supervised.

George gently opened the door, careful to avoid any loud noises that would wake Logan up. 

"Woof." The low woof spooked both go them. Otto looked a bit grumpy about being woken up from his nap.

The rest of the cats were strewn all over the bed and next to the crib, comfortably napping. Alex quickly stepped over the cats on the floor to check on Logan, his anxiety rising by the second before dropping at the sight of Logan peacefully sleeping. Horsey, never the biggest fan of the new addition, was comfortably napping on Logan's stomach.

*****

Uncle Charles

"Charles, are you sure you can do this? We can always leave him with Carlos and Lando."

"Of course I can. Do you think Carlos and Lando are better than me?" There it was. The competitive streak that earned Charles his place at Ferrari.

"If you're sure, then it'll be alright." Alex handed Logan and the baby bag over. 

"Bye, Logie Bear. I'll see you in two hours. Be good for Uncle Charles." Alex smiled before running off to his meeting.

Charles waved before turning his attention back to Logan. It's only been recently that Logan has become accustomed to being without his parents or the Williams staff. "Let's get you out of that hideous blue and into something Ferrari Red."

1 hour later

Toto received a text attached with a video of Logan all decked out in Ferrari merch. 

"I'm taking your star driver and your youngest fan❤️"

- Fred

****

Thank you so much for the ask!!!

If you want more of the little snippets or just want the full story of the snippet, feel free to ask!!! 🥰

[jammechanics]

And. We. Are. Back! Jam Mechanics returns for season 2 with our first guest prompter (Our longtime collaborator and artist, ⁠@deepblueink2d⁠!). In our first episode back we reveal the fate of Jam Mechanics Mansion (Castle?) and reflect on the ocean that separates our two co-hosts Jam Mechanics is a podcast hosted by Matt (@narcissistcookbook) and Bug (@bughuntermusic) where we are challenged to write a song demo from scratch every episode.

If you'd like downloadable files for this episode (and the demos we showed off), ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠you can go to our Bandcamp⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ or ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠website⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to pay-what-you-want to support us!

Our brand-new discord is here⁠⁠⁠

and follow us on Instagram, YouTube, etc! Please share the show (and our music) with friends!

-- SPOILERS FOR THIS EPISODE BELOW --

Challenge: Transatlanticism

BUG'S SONG Title: Agamemnon Lyrics: I am aboard the Agamemnon, we are laying down a line It's gonna cross the ocean floor, the greatest project of our time A telegraph from Newfoundland will reach the Irish Shores but by by the time this note arrives you will not love me anymore

I am aboard the Agamemnon, laying cables in the sea For the purpose of the president to parley with the queen As for me, I've got this letter that I'll send you in the morn but by the time this note arrives you will not love me anymore

You will not love me by the time you read this note You told me you would wait if I had to go I keep your photo in a locket to remind me of my home

but while aboard the Agamemnon I have so much time to dream of a world where I can reach you with no middle-man between And maybe when we're done I'll get my turn, as a reward but I never got that chance, now you don't love me anymore When I made it to Niagara, you didn't love me anymore

You will not love me by the time you read this note You told me you would wait if I had to go I think of you so often with no way to let you know

This is only the beginning, this simple cable in the sea Soon we'll have radios and satellites and waves we cannot see No one'll know the pain of loving one they cannot reach

I'd commandeer the Agamemnon and I'd sail it back to shore it's just a faster way to learn that you don't love me anymore so I'll keep laying this cable for the lovers not yet born so that they may never hear "No, I don't love you anymore"

MATT'S SONG Title: The Tollbooth Lyrics: When Britain's national health service was launched in 1948 it set sail in the wake of the second world war when the country's citizens the upper and lower classes both the rich and the desperately poor had served together, side by side and the ones who survived the horrors came home demanding to no surprise more

we did not fight, they said in our millions just for things to return to the way they were we didn't die they said in our hundreds of thousands just to save a country where the leading cause of death is poverty and perhaps for the first time in british history the aristocrats and the working class agreed on something largely that arming the nation and teaching them how to fight and die for what they believe in makes their demands somewhat more convincing

and so barely three years after the soldiers had come home on july 5th, 1948 the british health system was torn out by the follicles and rebuilt in a new vision that it would be free at point of service, that no one, NO ONE, would be turned away or trapped into debt by lack of personal means that it would be available to everyone who walked through the doors of a hospital or a GP's office and that the well off wouldn't be able to skip the queue this was radical beyond comprehension a truly universal healthcare system doctors across the nation barred their doors and hired personal security so sure were they that the empowered impoverished would storm their offices demanding medicine and aid only to find on that monday morning a polite queue of people in need who for the first time were able to receive the treatment they would have had since birth if they had been born into a wealthier family

the trouble is healthcare is one of those futureproof industries like plumber people are always going to need water and if you can fix their pipes you are, within reason, set for life and the hospital and the doctor's surgery are no exception people are always going to get sick they're always going to get injured at the very very least everyone has to be born and everyone has to die and you would be an idiot would you not if you had the opportunity and the presence of mind to not set up a tollbooth at the well-worn bridges that lead into and out of this life

i am being faceitious of course who thinks like this who is so calculating and cruel that they would look at the legions of dying and sick and feel not compassion but greed who would see not the faces of their own parents, friends and children but a sea of investment a captured market a well of bottomless profit

it would be inappropriate for me to delve too deep into the catacombs that are the American Healthcare System if you are listening from those shores, then you know better than i do how it feels to live in fear of a broken bone of a cough that won't go away of a necessary surgery or a birth in the family I have personally met people who were having to choose between treatment for a treatable disease and a slow death So as to have something to leave their loved ones in their will A meagre windfall, after all, is infinitely preferable over a cascade of debt Maybe, at best, you are simply aware of how lucky you are To not fear these things as many do The privilege of being able to treat mild maladies as the inconvenience they are rather than an existential threat

I bring this up only because The profit machine that is the american healthcare system Is hungry And needs to be fed There is no such thing as too much money There is no endgame in an investment portfolio Where you find the princess in the very last castle and the credits roll There isn't a kill screen where the arcade machine craps out and kicks you back to the beginning The score just keeps getting bigger and bigger, the numbers getting longer and longer, Separated by decimal points and letters and commas And when the numbers get so unwieldy that we run out of space, Eh, we'll just start printing the end of year reports in landscape The machine needs to eat And the painkillers and bloodied sheets of 333 million people could only satisfy it for so long Its eyes, inevitably, have turned east

And what do you think it sees? When you have broken your arm and are getting it cast at 3am When your parents start visibly ageing and wilting When your child gets a cough that won't go away Do you think it wants to help? Or do you think it wants to fucking eat them?

[wifeofnatasharomanoff]

We Did It <3

Series Masterlist

Warnings: fluff, pregant!reader for a few parts, nothing sad or whateverrr

Words: 1,000

Pairing: Natasha Romanoff x f!reader

Summary: flashback from “Say Yes To Me” where reader has their 2nd baby with Natasha <3

A/N: the amount of cute baby pictures i found on pinterest i want one sm @lovsalvatore knows how i feel

“Babe I'm home!” with the sound of your wife's voice, you walked into the living room with a sleeping Alex in your arms. “Welcome home darling!” her smile brightens when you enter the room. “I missed you Natty..” you kiss her cheek. “I missed you more.” she whispers, leaning down to kiss the sleeping boy's forehead.

She places gentle hands on your stomach, “How's our little one hm?” she asks as she lightly kisses your belly. “Yeah, she's really taking her time in there.” you groan, looking down at your baby bump. The due date was almost a week ago, but here you are, still waiting for your baby to pop out any day now. She sighs, “I know detka.. sooner or later she'll be here.” she reassures you, and kisses your neck softly.

“What do ya say? We put Alex to bed, and then go to bed too? Or we can watch a movie if you want?” you smile at her, “Okayy.. that seems fun.”

After the two of you put the child to sleep, you both go into your bedroom. “Ugh, I'm so tired..” you flop on the bed, lying down on your back. Natasha sat down next to you, pulling your head onto her lap. “Hi baby.” she smiles, looking down at you as she soothingly runs her fingers through your hair. “Hi.” you giggle, burying your face into her lap. “Hey! Don't be shy kotenok.” you peek up at her from her lap. “I'm not shy Tasha!” she smirks, “Yeah sure.”

A few minutes later the two of you lie, sound asleep, in bed. Your back against her chest, and her strong arms wrapped around your body. The light breeze from the fan, soft breathing in the quiet room. You slowly blink your eyes open in discomfort, “Nat?” you groan, rubbing your eyes as you awaken. She wakes up at your words, taking her arms off of you. “Yeah? What is it?” her voice raspy as she had just woken up.

“I think my water broke.” you whisper, causing her to jolt up off the pillows. “What?” you bring a finger to her lips, “Shh.. you're too loud Alex might wake up, it's 2 AM.” she gets out of bed, “Are you sure?” she asked. You nod your head, “Yeah.” she grabs the already made baby bag and her car keys.

“You need me to help you up detka?” she walks over to you, grasping your hands as she pulls you off of the bed. “I can get Alex–” you say, “No. Get in the car and wait for me, I'll bring Alex.” you huff, “Fine.” you waddle out of the bedroom and walk outside the house, Natasha unlocks the car. Hearing the car doors click open, you get into the passengers seat.

“What's taking them so long..” you whisper to yourself. “Oh fuck—” you clutch the car seat, letting out a scream when you feel a contraction coming. You hear the back doors of the car open and look up in the mirror to see Natasha setting down the still asleep boy. She closes the door and gets into the driver's seat. “Moya lyubov, are you okay?” you clench your jaw, giving her a tight smile and a nod.

She drives out of the driveway and made her way to the hospital, holding onto your hand with her free one. “How– how long until we get there?” you say, your voice strained and breathing labored as you tightly squeeze on her hand after each contraction passed by. “Soon, baby. We're almost there.” she attempts to calm you down, “You– shit– said that 30 minutes ago!” you whisper-yelled at her, trying not to wake up Alex.

“I know detka, please just- we'll be there in a bit.” you glare at her before getting interrupted by a gasp. “Oh my god—” another contraction. she pulls up to the hospital's parking lot and stops the car. “Come on babe, we're here.” she ushers you out of the vehicle, picks up the toddler, and runs into the hospital building.

As soon as Natasha checks you out in a room, the nurses quickly bring you to the delivery room. “Deep breaths Mrs. Romanoff, it'll all be over soon, don't worry.” you hear the midwife say to you while you went through labor pains, not that it helped you at all.

“Shh.. kotenok I'm right here, I'm with you.” she smiles at you, squeezing your hand slightly to comfort you. “Natasha..” you manage to say, overwhelmed with the pain. “She's dilated by 9 centimeters.” one of the nurses say. “Okay, Mrs. Romanoff, you're gonna need to start pushing alright?” the midwife said as she stood in front of the hospital bed.

“Yeah‐ got it..” you mumble out, breathlessly speaking. You take deep breaths as you clutch oh, so very tightly onto your wife's hand, as if you were about to completely rip it off of her arm. The pain just worsened over the time passes, “Oh my god! Why did I even decide to have a second baby—” you scream as you pushed with every ounce of energy you had left in you.

The sounds of a newborn crying cause your hold on your wife's hand to loosen, and the doctors place the baby in your arms. “Aww.. hey sweetie.” you whisper, gently touching her tiny, fragile face. A soft smile appears on your face as the baby calms down and stops her crying.

“You did it detka, you're okay. I love you so much..” the corners of your lips perk up in a strained smile, sweat glistening from your hairline.

“We did it Natty.. we did it.” your eyes were watery with tears of joy. “Remind me to not have another mini Romanoff till this one turns 3.” the redhead chuckles, pressing her forehead to yours. “I love you so much, Natasha.”

Natasha would've done anything to go back to this time. Where everything was perfectly fine. But she can't.

[kissorkill16]

He's Getting Better: A Hello Neighbor Fanfic

By JJ

Summary: A hospital visit.

Jay and Luanne Roth were guided by the head nurse down to Nicky's room.

"If you need anything, just press the button.", she said as she opened the door.

When the married couple walked in, they were so happy to see their son. He didn't even register that they were here, he didn't look up to see them, he just kept drawing.

"Narf.", said Jay, leaning down to his son's level. "Narf, it's us."

Finally, Nicky looked at his father, but he looked back down at his drawings. Jay sighed and gently took Nicky's hand. "C'mon, Narf. Aren't you happy to see us?", he asked.

"I begged my boss to let me take a day off just to see you.", said Luanne.

Nicky put his crayon down and looked back at his parents, making Luanne smile. She wanted to hug her son so badly, but she didn't think it was the right time.

"Can I see your drawings?", she asked.

Nicky took the pieces of paper scattered all around the floor and handed them to his mother.

Luanne looked at them, and her eyes began to fill with tears. They were all drawings of him and his parents, his friends, and one was just a picture of Trinity.

He must miss her so much.

Either way, these were all pictures of how his life used to be. This kind of made Luanne feel a little sad, but then she looked at another picture, and this one was of Mr. Peterson.

Why was Nicky drawing pictures of Mr. Peterson?

She set the pictures down.

"Narf, we miss you so much.", said Jay, "And I know that sending you here probably won't fix anything about you, but we just want the best for you. We can't help you, not because we don't want to, but because we're not able to."

"You've never acted like that before, and we just felt so scared of what you would do to yourself.", said Luanne.

Nicky still didn't answer, but he just nodded. "I love you both so much. Every time you left me alone, I felt like I had no one. I was scared, I wanted nothing more than to just die so the pain would stop. And -"

Finally, Luanne couldn't stop herself.

She grabbed Nicky by the arm and wrapped her arms tightly around him, burying her face in his hair so she could cry her heart out.

Jay soon joined in on the hug, wrapping his arms around his son and wife.

"God, I can't wait for you to get out of here!", Luanne said in between sobs.

Then Jay had an idea.

"Narf, how about we make a deal.", he said. "As soon as you get released from this place, we'll take you to the Golden Apple Amusement Park."

Nicky's eyes widened when he said that.

Golden Apple Amusement Park.

The same place Lucy died.

"We heard it was reopening.", said Luanne, "We want to take you there as soon as you get out of here. It's been a while since you've had some real fun, hasn't it?"

Nicky nodded.

He didn't know if he'd exactly call staying out until midnight doing whatever or spying on Mr. Peterson fun, but it's been a while since he's actually done something that made him feel like...a kid.

But he didn't want to end up dead, because Lucy died at that park, and that's what made it close down. He didn't want to end up like Lucy.

But he also wanted to feel free, just for once, he wanted to feel less captivated and stuck inside of a room. He missed the outside world, he missed the human touch.

So he nodded. "Okay."

Luanne smiled and kissed her son on his forehead. "We love you very much, Nicky."

Nicky smiled at his mother, "I love you too, Mom and Dad."

After they said their goodbyes, they left. Luanne cried the whole time, Jay stood by her and held her close.

Meanwhile, Nicky went back to coloring. This time, he drew a picture of himself at the Golden Apple Amusement Park.

"When I get out of here...", he said, "I'm going to have so much fun."

[j-jared]

hellouu sorry to bother just wanted to say thank you for sharing your unnamed pg kokichi with kiibo head au..... i'm going to think about it forever i'll pay you millions and billions to post more about it. i really enjoy how sick of this shit kokichi looks.

do you have anything else to share about it? i'd love to hear if you do but no pressure.. i was also wondering if you think they'd encounter their classmates at any point and what they'd be up to? i think it would be really interesting. i can't help thinking about kokichi placing kiibo somewhere safe temporarily to go do something important, and a classmate who doesn't know kiibo is just head now somehow stumbling upon him and their soul leaving their body for a second while kiibo is just. :>. like it's the most normal thing in the world. that is not that funny but i am entertained. so so sorry for the long stupid annoying ask. your post triggered an explosion in my head i think.? thank you

Kaito thought it was a ghost and proceeded to neglect to tell the others about it for two weeks.

---

But yes! Please, keep asking, I will have a lot more posts in the future as I flesh it out some more.

It's been many a babble I've been thinking about, so there's not a lot I have written down or really set in stone, but I can say this:

A lot of the others escaped the hospital attack with the Future Foundation. They work with them now. But not all of them!

The attack happened kinda early into recovery - and on top of that, the extraction from the program was not easy, so our human classmates are not... exactly free from health issues. This is called foreshadowing :D

The plan is for them all to get reunited, yes, but we'll just have to see how it goes.

Kokichi is done with it all. He could not give less of a shit. But, he supposes he could get Kiibo back to the others before dipping out.

on top of all that, no one has finished therapy - including me.

But yeah, I just found the idea really funny. A lot of postcanon aus take place separated from the Tragedy, and I love the setting of Ultra Despair Girls, so I figured I'd shove my favorite cast into it. This is my brainworm.

Now hopefully that allows me to GIVE IT A NAME.

[television-overload]

of our own making

(an X-Files fanfic)

Chapter 31/34 - home

[Read on AO3]

Their caseworker stops by in the morning to get their signatures on some paperwork and lays out the timeline for getting the adoption finalized in the coming months. For all intents and purposes, though, Madeline is theirs, and they're free to take her home. The birth mother's signature is there in black ink, signing over her parental rights to them. The sight of it brings tears to their eyes. 

They won't soon forget what that young woman has done for them.

After one last checkup with the doctor, they pack up the room and get ready to leave. Scully dresses Maddie in a bright blue flower-patterned shirt with matching bloomers, a headband, and socks to keep her feet warm.

Once she's snug in her baby carrier, they lay a fuzzy pink blanket over her legs to keep her cozy on the trek out to the car. Mulder proudly lifts the carrier with one arm, and with the other, he reaches for Scully’s hand. There may be three of them now, but he hasn't forgotten who he came in here with. 

Brenda walks out with them, and they bid farewell to the nurses that had looked after them during their stay. After this, they'll be on their own, just the three of them.

Before they reach the exit, Mulder stops suddenly, standing in the middle of the floor and looking down at Maddie. There’s something that has been bugging him, something left undone that just doesn't feel right. He whispers something to Scully, and then asks the caseworker a question.

He knows it wasn't a part of the agreed upon hospital plan, as set out by the birth mother, but can he really just walk out that door without thanking her? Without telling her how much this means to them?

“Is Krista still here?” he asks. “I know she said she'd prefer to keep to herself, but—”

“I believe she’s waiting to be discharged as we speak,” Brenda answers. “I can call and ask if she's open to a visit from you all, if you’d like.”

“Please,” Mulder says, and Scully nods in agreement.

Brenda steps away to make her call, returning a moment later with a smiling face.

“She said she’d be happy to see you,” she announces. “I can show you the way, if you're ready.”

Mulder bites his lip in thought.

“Give me a couple minutes,” he says, handing off the baby carrier to Scully. “I'll be right back.”

-.-.-

The room where Krista has been staying after delivery is in a different hallway than Mulder and Scully had been in. When he returns, bearing a nice bouquet of flowers and some chocolates from the gift shop, Brenda beams at them.

“This feels insufficient,” he says, shrugging self-consciously at his gifts.

The woman puts a comforting hand on his arm, shaking her head. “I'm sure she will appreciate it,” she assures him kindly.

She gives them one last glance to make sure they're ready, and then knocks on the door.

“You can come in,” a voice calls from inside. Without further ado, Brenda pushes the door open and pokes her head through the doorway.

“Got some visitors for you,” she says cheerily, before looking back at them and nodding for them to enter. 

Krista is seated on the edge of her bed, wearing comfortable leggings and a Georgetown sweatshirt. She looks well, if a little nervous.

“Hi,” she says, smiling a little shyly.

“Hi,” Mulder echoes, entering the room with Scully right beside him. “These are for you,” he says, holding out the flowers for her, which she accepts with a smile.

“Oh, thank you,” she says. “You guys didn't have to do that.”

“We're the ones who should be thanking you,” Scully says, tears pricking at her eyes. I can't tell you how happy you've made us. This– This is a debt we'll never be able to repay.”

Mulder nods in agreement, returning to Scully’s side and placing a steadying hand on her lower back.

“We're going to do everything we can to give her the best life possible. I promise,” he says. “I just… wanted you to know that.”

Krista nods, and it's remarkable how at peace she seems, given the circumstances. Mulder can’t imagine being in her position.

“Can I ask—” Scully starts, adjusting her hold on the carrier nervously. “I mean, if you don’t mind sharing, can I ask why you chose us?”

Krista breathes out a laugh, her eyes settling on the tile floor. “You wouldn’t believe me if I told you,” she says, amusement lacing her voice.

Mulder fights back a smile, glancing down at Scully with raised eyebrows.

“You might be surprised,” Scully says, turning her attention back to the woman who had given them a daughter.

Krista looks at them, her expression clear and honest and hopeful. She shrugs.

“She’s… meant to be yours,” she states simply, as if it were the most basic truth known to humankind. “I can’t explain it, but I just– I know you were meant to be her parents. I knew it from the moment I met you.”

Beside him, Scully sucks in a breath, and he feels his throat constrict with the swell of emotion.

“I had this feeling, when I found out I was pregnant, that someone else needed her. And… it was you.” She shakes her head, as if she can’t even understand it herself. “Do you believe in that kind of thing, Mr. Mulder? Dana?”

He looks down at the sleeping baby in the car seat, dressed in one of the first outfits they bought for her when they went out shopping.

“Yeah,” he says quietly, settling a hand on Scully’s shoulder. “Yeah, we do.”

Krista nods again and smiles, his words confirming what she had hoped.

They’re interrupted a moment later by a nurse stopping by with the last of the discharge paperwork, and they wait while Krista speaks with her. She’s probably anxious to get home. No one likes sleeping in a hospital several nights in a row.

When they’re alone again, Scully steps forward.

“Did you want to hold her?” she asks boldly, concealing a worried tremor in her voice. It’s the right thing to do, he knows, and he hopes someone would do the same for them if their positions were switched. But with the adoption still not finalized, there’s always that one seed of doubt that tells them she could still change her mind.

“We’ve already said our goodbyes,” Krista says with a bittersweet smile. “Besides, I don’t want to wake her.” Still, she does get up to peek down at her in her car seat, gently running a finger over the back of the baby’s tiny, bunched up hand. “What did you name her?”

Mulder clears his throat, blinking back the tears that have unexpectedly sprung up.

“Madeline,” he answers.

“Hm,” Krista laughs, her cheeks pulling back in amusement as she drinks in the sight of the baby she bore. “That was my grandmother’s name.”

If they needed any other sign that this was meant to be, that was it. It seems Krista feels the same way too.

“Well, I guess this is it,” she says, cupping the top of the baby’s head and softly smoothing over her wisps of dark hair with her thumb.

Scully brushes back an escaped tear from her eye. “Do you have a ride home?” she asks.

Krista stands and makes her way back to her bed, perching on the edge like she had been when they arrived.

“My best friend has been here with me, she’s driving me back,” she answers.

He’s relieved she has someone here with her. Scully had offered her support if she needed it, but Krista is a fiercely independent young woman, not unlike another person he knows. She’d chosen to keep things private, and they were respectful of that choice.

Still, it’s nice to get a moment with her before they part ways.

“If you ever need anything… Anything at all—” Mulder starts.

“You know where to reach us,” Scully finishes.

Krista inclines her head, a grateful smile passing over her lips.

“Thank you,” she says. “You guys will be wonderful parents, I can tell.”

-.-.-

The drive back to D.C. is one of the most stressful of his life. He white-knuckles the wheel like his life depends on it, resisting the urge to check the rear view mirror every few minutes to make sure Maddie is doing okay. Scully sits in the backseat with her just in case she's needed, and though Mulder misses his copilot, he's glad Maddie has someone keeping her company back there.

It's surreal, the walk up to their apartment. This is where their journey into parenthood will really begin. Late night feedings and diaper changes, cuddling on the couch; Eventually, she'll be making messes while eating squishy baby food in the kitchen and maybe even learning to crawl. All of it within these walls that he's thought of as home, in some capacity, for far longer than he's lived here.

His home is wherever Scully is. His home has been a thousand different motels across the United States. His home has been in the middle of the woods while being hunted by mothmen in Florida. His home had been hospital rooms, rental cars, run-down diners, and any number of airport seating areas over the years.

His home has been a dark and dusty basement, feathered with little knick knacks and article clippings that he thought would make him feel fulfilled. In reality, it wasn't until the day she walked in the door that the office ever felt like home. The difference was like night and day.

Now Scully opens the door to their apartment, and they're welcomed not by cheesy posters and doctored images of UFOs, but by a huge welcome home banner strung up on the wall on the far side of the room. Baskets of gifts, apparently from Maggie Scully's church group, sit by the fireplace, and a hand-knit baby blanket drapes across the back cushion of the sofa.

Scully’s eyes fill with tears as she takes in the sight. Mulder brings the baby carrier over to the kitchen table, setting it down so that he can let Madeline out. She stretches her back into an arch, squeezing her eyes shut in protest against being woken up from her nap. He smiles as he lifts her to his shoulder, holding her warm little body close and patting her gently in a comforting rhythm.

“Hey Scully, looks like someone loaded the fridge too,” he says, nodding toward a sticky note that he spies tacked to the refrigerator where it hadn't been before. Sure enough, it’s filled to the brim with ready-made meals for them. Those church ladies work fast. “Good to be home, huh?” he asks, just as Scully turns away from inspecting the freezer.

“I still have a hard time believing this is our life,” she says, finding her voice again. “Does it ever feel like a dream to you? Like you’re watching someone else’s life and not your own?”

He does know what she means. He’s felt it in little moments throughout their partnership, even from the beginning. He’ll never forget the way she’d shown him such loyalty, vowing that she’d only ever put herself on the line for him. He’d never known that level of trust and commitment before, yet she offered it so freely. It had stunned him into momentary silence, to hear it declared so plainly.

She’s his best friend. And—more than that—he is hers. That’s what had been truly unbelievable to him. He was never anyone’s first choice. Not until she came along. And now she has chosen him for something else, too. For a more lasting relationship. A decision that guarantees their lives will be intertwined for the foreseeable future.

He has to pinch himself to remind himself that it’s real. Evidently, she does too.

For once in their seven years together, they have found a truth that asks very little of them. It does not demand penance, or further suffering. Nor does it require some great sacrifice or heartbreak.

All this truth asks is that they let go. Surrender to it. Stop fighting. Stop running.

Because the truth they’ve found is love, and though it may have taken a while to come to terms with it, there’s no question in his mind that that’s what it is. All this time, everything had pointed him toward it, he’d only pushed it away. He has willfully ignored what was right in front of him, believing that it couldn’t possibly be the answer. He wasn’t worthy. She deserved more. There had to be something else, some other truth that would save him, that made all the suffering worth it.

But in the end, it was her. She is the truth that was sent to save him. This life they’ve begun together—that’s what he had been searching for all along. Not a replacement for the family he’d lost, but a chance to have one of his own. To build one quite literally from the ground up.

“This is our life, Scully,” he says to her, standing close to her in the middle of the kitchen. “I want to believe.”

~~~

Lovely tag list ♡: [if you would like to be added or removed, let me know!]

@today-in-fic @ao3feed-msr @agent-troi @angegova @baronessblixen @calimanc @captainsolocide @clo-thespin @cutemothman @danasculls @deathsbestgirl @edierone @enigmaticxbee @figureofdismay @frogsmulder @gillian-anderson-in-the-tardis @hippocampouts @invidiosa @monaiargancoconutsoy @msrafterdark @numinousmysteries @primrose19 @randomfoggytiger @skelavender @skylarksong @stephy-gold @teenie-xf @the-redhead-in-a-dress @vincentsleftear

[taylor-swift-bracket]

🎇Please reblog!🎇

Notable bridges

(Under the cut)

1989 (Taylor’s Version)

Out of the woods

Remember when you hit the brakes too soon?

Twenty stitches in the hospital room

When you started crying, baby, I did too

But when the sun came up, I was looking at you

Remember when we couldn't take the heat?

I walked out, I said, "I'm setting you free"

But the monsters turned out to be just trees

When the sun came up, you were looking at me

You were looking at me, oh

You were looking at me

(Are we out of the woods yet? Are we out of the woods yet?)

(Are we out of the woods yet? Are we out of the woods?)

I remember

(Are we in the clear yet? Are we in the clear yet?)

(Are we in the clear yet, in the clear yet? Good)

Oh, I remember

Wildest Dreams

You'll see me in hindsight

Tangled up with you all night

Burnin' it down

Someday, when you leave me

I bet these memories

Follow you around

You'll see me in hindsight

Tangled up with you all night

Burnin' (Burnin') it (It) down (Down)

Someday, when you leave me

I bet these memories

Follow (Follow) you (You) around

(Follow you around)

Is It Over Now?

And did you think I didn't see you?

There were flashin' lights

At least I had the decency

To keep my nights out of sight

Only rumors 'bout my hips and thighs

And my whispered sighs

Oh, Lord, I think about jumpin'

Off of very tall somethings

Just to see you come runnin'

And say the one thing I've been wanting, but no

Clean

Ten months sober, I must admit

Just because you're clean, don't mean you don't miss it

Ten months older, I won't give in

Now that I'm clean, I'm never gonna risk it

The drought was the very worst, ah-ah, ah-ah

When the flowers that we'd grown together died of thirst (Oh)

Wonderland

I reached for you, but you were gone

I knew I had to go back home

You searched the world for somethin' else

To make you feel like what we had

And in the end, in Wonderland, we both went mad

Oh

folklore

Illicit affairs

And you wanna scream

Don't call me "kid," don't call me "baby"

Look at this godforsaken mess that you made me

You showed me colors you know I can't see with anyone else

Don't call me "kid," don't call me "baby"

Look at this idiotic fool that you made me

You taught me a secret language I can't speak with anyone else

the last great american dynasty

They say she was seen on occasion

Pacing the rocks, staring out at the midnight sea

And in a feud with her neighbor

She stole his dog and dyed it key lime green

Fifty years is a long time

Holiday House sat quietly on that beach

Free of women with madness, their men and bad habits

And then it was bought by me

hoax

You know I left a part of me back in New York

You knew the hero died so what's the movie for?

You knew it still hurts underneath my scars

From when they pulled me apart

You knew the password so I let you in the door

You knew you won so what's the point of keeping score?

You knew it still hurts underneath my scars

From when they pulled me apart

But what you did was just as dark

(Ah, ah, ah)

Darling, this was just as hard

As when they pulled me apart

my tears ricochet

And I can go anywhere I want

Anywhere I want, just not home

And you can aim for my heart, go for blood

But you would still miss me in your bones

And I still talk to you (When I'm screaming at the sky)

And when you can't sleep at night (You hear my stolen lullabies)

august

Back when we were still changin' for the better

Wanting was enough

For me, it was enough

To live for the hope of it all

Cancel plans just in case you'd call

And say, "Meet me behind the mall"

So much for summer love and saying "us"

'Cause you weren't mine to lose

You weren't mine to lose, no

evermore

champagne problems

Your Midas touch on the Chevy door

November flush and your flannel cure

"This dorm was once a madhouse"

I made a joke, "Well, it's made for me"

How evergreen, our group of friends

Don't think we'll say that word again

And soon they'll have the nerve to deck the halls

That we once walked through

One for the money, two for the show

I never was ready so I watch you go

Sometimes you just don't know the answer

'Til someone's on their knees and asks you

"She would've made such a lovely bride

What a shame she's f*cked in the head," they said

But you'll find the real thing instead

She'll patch up your tapestry that I shred

ivy

So yeah, it's a fire

It's a violent blaze in the dark

And you started it

You started it

So yeah, it's a war

It's the fiercest fight of my life

And you started it

You started it

tolerate it

While you were out buildin' other worlds, where was I?

Where's that man who'd throw blankets over my barbed wire?

I made you my temple, my mural, my sky

Now I'm beggin' for footnotes in the story of your life

Drawin' hearts in the byline

Always takin' up too much space or time

You assume I'm fine, but what would you do if I

marjorie

The autumn chill that wakes me up

You loved the amber skies so much

Long limbs and frozen swims

You'd always go past where our feet could touch

And I complained the whole way there

The car ride back and up the stairs

I should've asked you questions

I should've asked you how to be

Asked you to write it down for me

Should've kept every grocery store receipt

'Cause every scrap of you would be taken from me

Watched as you signed your name Marjorie

All your closets of backlogged dreams

And how you left them all to me

Right where you left me

Did you ever hear about the girl who got frozen?

Time went on for everybody else, she won't know it

She's still twenty-three inside her fantasy

How it was supposed to be

Did you hear about the girl who lives in delusion?

Breakups happen every day, you don't have to lose it

She's still twenty-three inside her fantasy

And you're sitting in front of me

[punkshitposts]

genuine question, sorry if it's stupid or something

I'm all for ACAB truly, I mean that

but genuinely... if let's say someone I know goes missing or gets severely injured, what do I do instead of call the cops?

This ISN'T a stupid question at all actually this is a really common thing that comes up on both sides of the pro vs anti cop debate:

there's no good answer i can currently give you, and any answer i CAN give might not be accurate to where you live. AFAIK, in America, you can't call 911 and specifically request they don't send cops (I guess you can, but the operator doesn't have to abide by your request). In America, at least, our system just isn't set up to minimize cop interactions because cops ARE the center of the system. Telling you that you can absolutely in all circumstances get away with not interacting with cops would be irresponsible of me- you don't have to like it, I definitely don't, but until a better one is put in place we'll occasionally have to use the system to get what we want and need.

any potential 911 alternatives are generally situation specific and regional.

so, what can you do instead:

INJURY: assess. is this person already critical?

YES: you are likely going to have to bite the bullet to call 911, unless you live somewhere you can call the emergency direct to EMS.

NO: Can you move them? Can you or someone else transport them? Will they MAKE it to the hospital using these means of transportate? <- if all of these are YES, take them directly to the Emergency Room yourself and forgoe 911. If any are NO: you are likely going to need to call 911 and interact the cops that show up to save injured person.

MISSING PERSON: I don't think I can in good faith tell you that this would be a situation where you could avoid cops. It could both further any potential danger the missing individual is in, and i believe not filing a report could potentially get you yourself into trouble.

what you may be able to do instead: assess. Where SHOULD the person be? Is there any likely alternative places they could be at? can you or someone else check those places? What reason could they have to not be in the place they should be? Is this out-of-character? How long has it been since they were last seen? Do you believe they could be in danger?

Depending on the answers: First: Assuming that to classify someone as a "Missing Person", several people know their missing and not just you. if that's wrong... you should probably go tell other people. Second: I hate to say it. This is a bite-the-bullet and file a report. Third: Call applicable hotlines. Fourth: Organize search efforts. While official channels have now been used for all legal reasons, Do Not Rely On Them.

YOU ARE IN ACTIVE DANGER: Assess. Do you have the time or ability to call someone else to come help you?

YES: Make contact attempt with this person. With key words being "Active Danger", it is might probably be time to bite-the-bullet again after that. Self-Defense laws vary wildly regionally, even city-to-city, so know what yours are ahead of this. If you have to defend yourself and the offender is injured or killed, the 911 call will in most cases help you PROVE self defense.

NO: See above, minus first sentence. For clarity, I'm NOT using"Active Danger" as ye olde hostile interaction or generalized unsafe situations, but more on the lines of "active home invasion" or "person actively Trying to kill me dead right at this very second"

im not going to tell you that you should absolutely never call 911, that's incredibly irresponsible of me. im not going to tell you to let yourself or someone else die to avoid cops. in an ideal world, we would have a completely different system to use wherein "is it safer to call or to not call emergency services?" isn't a question anyone has to ask, but we don't live in that word right now. And, again and as always please feel free to add your own opinions, stances, takes, ect and to ask me to clarify things that don't make sense. This is an incredibly loaded topic that I make no claims to be an expert on, but I did answer you to the best of my current ability. I apologize for any and all clunky/awkward wordings and phrasings , and this post will probably get edited™ sometime in the future.

[redphlox]

Do you think it's possible that we may see the new Todoroki house in the end? I really hope so, although I have a small fear that Hori may have tossed that idea out.

That was one of the very few aspects of Endeavor's atonement arc I actually enjoyed. Him building a new home for them to live in without all the horrible memories from the old home. It would have been a place for them to heal and be a family together. It felt like it was foreshadowing the family being together and whole again. I always loved and look forward to seeing the new Todoroki home in the end, especially since it seemed like it heavily foreshadowed a healthy ending for the Todoroki family.

Although, with what we have currently in canon, I am a little afraid Horikoshi may have flip-flopped a little too much and forgot about the new Todoroki home.

As it stands now, Endeavor can't live alone in the old home because he's going to need a caretaker. Chapter 426 it looks like Rei is going to be his caretaker now. Touya will need to stay in the hospital due to his condition.

I do think it's still possible we'll see the new Todoroki family house in the end. After all, Endeavor had it built with the idea that the family could be together and heal apart from him, and he's still of this mindset. The house imagery has been a common motif throughout the story - look at Tenko and Toga's backstories. Tenko's home is destroyed, Toga's home is destroyed, and their families are gone because they either died and can't come back or don't want anything to do with their kid. But here sits this new, shiny, trauma-free house for the Todorokis who haven't abandoned their villain son Touya and WANT him in their lives despite the hell of it all. The new Todoroki house is there for a reason, narratively. As for Rei being a caretaker - there are many cultural elements at play regarding forgiveness, disability, and the duty of caring for a spouse. However, I personally, absolutely loathe the idea of Rei having to care for her abuser on multiple levels - morally, in terms of justice for abuse survivors, gender roles and stereotypes, and through a disability perspective. It's appalling that she lost ten years of being with her children, only to have to care for the person who took her away from them, especially since one of their children doesn't want to be near Endeavor. Also, not to mention the fact that the caretaker doesn't HAVE to be Rei. Expecting her to be his caretaker negates the guilt he feels about pushing her into a psychosis. "Hey, sorry about abusing you to the point that you threw scalding water on our son because he reminded you of me. Now you have to be my 24-hour helper and look at me all the time, though." It falls flat. He could hire someone. But above all else, if we're talking realistically, I disagree that Endeavor can't live alone and that he'd need a caregiver. My career is literally just this - rehabilitating people from injury and illness, etc. If Endeavor were my patient, I'd say he would be a great candidate for prosthetics and could learn different adaptations, techniques, and skills to become independent. He could even still be independent at wheelchair level, and would require less help than what other manga readers are imagining. There's even an example of this through Miruko, who also has two amputations, just like Endeavor, but now has prosthetics. And even if he needed help (which is completely fine - no one is morally obligated to become independent), he could hire someone to help. Lol. I want to type a much longer, more nuanced discussion about how BNHA frames disability, but that's for another post. This discussion is a lot more complex than what I just stated and I want to touch on many aspects, including how disability is portrayed in the general media and specifics in BNHA. Anyway… I went on a little tangent - but yes, I think the Todoroki house could come up again. I'm hopeful. Hori set these things up for a reason and I'm expecting he follows through. Endeavor and Dabi losing their arms also has set up to bring back a certain gag from the Stain arc.