#like come on you know Jeremy isn’t gonna be able to take his eyes off him

[maladaptivedaydreamerlala]

So since tgr comes out TOMORROW I just have to say that everytime I was reading tsc or someone in the fandom mentioned the ceramic pottery class this was all I could imagine.

I know what your up to Nora

[doopy-n-loopy]

How would yandere mercs react to us trying to escape late at night?

Well not well that's for sure!

Yan!Mercenaries (TF2) × Reader hcs/ imagines

// Yandere themes, violence, fear play, yandere shit

Defense

Demo

You got out of Demo's bed, you had given him more alcohol than usual to keep him asleep. You looked over the heavily snoring figure beside you. The scot had his mouth wide open and a bottle of beer cluched in his palm. You leaned in and blew on his eye to make sure he was asleep, and there was no physical response from him. You then quickly slipped on your clothes and pulled out the small bag you've been hiding behind the nightstand, it was filled with money and other essentials like pepper spray, sunglasses, and a cloak.

You walked out of the room, taking one last look at the scot before tiptoing out of the house, avoiding scattered empty alcohol containers on the ground.

Just as you were about to leave, you heard a voice from behind you

"y/n? What are ye doing?"

He was drunk of course, but when wasn't he? It was like he was sober in his own way. Sober enough to recognize that guilty look on your face. His expression twisted into an angry snarl and he grabbed you by the wrist, dragging you down the stairs into the basement

"you'll stay here till you know how to listen"

He said trying to conceal his anger, but failing to do so

He could also just have a breakdown depending on the type of night it was and guilt you into staying

He will be a lot more strict on you

Heavy

You were looking to escape in the night but heavy lives in an eternal blizzard basically so... That's not a great idea

But lets say you've been preparing for awhile and got everything set up, a snow mobile, warm clothes, and a torch

But the moment you get to the shed, you find that your snow mobile is broken

Heavy then appears out of a corner of darkness with an upset expression

It's silent for a moment, until he speaks

"After all Heavy has done for you? Why?"

You felt guilt building up into your throat as you tried to search for an excuse. Unable to find one. He isn't a very restricting yandere, in fact, he's much tamer than most, he's given you basically all he has and to do this is like a slap in the face.

"Heavy will forgive you, if you just come back" he said while smiling

You were then gently pushed back out into the cold in the direction of his house, where you'd be staying once more

If he was in a bad mood, he'd be a little more rough

He also will place more restrictions on you but it's not like you'd notice considering it's not much

Engineer

You were about to leave in your car at night, when you tried turning it on, it wouldn't start. Engie then walks in front of your car and waves at you for you to come out, which after hesitating, you comply.

He walks over to you and hugs you, which confuses you. He tells you it's alright and that you don't have to go

"I'm sorry but, I want to leave" you stutter out

He panics internally and grips your shoulder, looking you in your eye

"do you know what could happen to you out there? Rapists! Murderers! The world ain't sugar n' honey, darlin"

"but-" you respond, suddenly cut off by him

"but you're safe here with me. I'll always protect you"

He hugs you once again, sucked into that warm embrace, you calm down and walk back with him

You were restricted from certain things from then on

Offense

Scout

You got into a fight with him earlier and in the middle of the night, you decided it was time to leave.

You packed a bag of clothes, some water, money, and other essentials

As you got your keys, you were met with a sleepy eyed scout who had bedhead

"Y/N....? The hell are ya doin?"

It takes a second for scout to process what's going on. You're grabbing your keys, you're fully dressed, and you had a suitcase with you

"Jeremy. I'm leaving*

You said sternly. You could see in his eyes that his heart shattered into a million pieces

"Wai- what no! No no no no! Please y/n you gotta stay please!"

He begged, grabbing onto your coat as you began to walk out. Tears formed on his face but you ignored it

"I can't put up with this anymore"

You said, voice cracking from the pain in your heart. Scout was sobbing now, he kneeled in front of you to stop you

"I'm so sorry I'm so sorry! I'll change I swear I'll become better! You want to go to eat out more? I got the money! I'll treat you nicely!"

You didn't believe a word he said, but with the way he was talking, it had to be true.

"Please I love you so much and it would kill me to lose you... Literally... You're my world to me, baby"

You bit your quivering lip as you looked down at him like he was a sad puppy. You sniffled and dropped your bags, huffing in defeat

".. I'm sorry. I'm just tired"

Scout was overjoyed to hear this. That night he clung to you

Scout didn't really become more strict, but he did become more loving to avoid that again.

Pyro

This one is scary, scarier than support classes even

You were almost out the door when they spotted you. They gave you an inquisitive look. You both shared a minute of uncomfortable silence before you bolted out the door. Pyro was unprepared for this, giving you some time to create distance between you two.

But Pyro was quick to get ready and they were out the door in no time with their flamethrower, ready to burn down acres of forests in order to catch you

You could hear pyro approaching, knowing that once you reach your car at the end of the base, you'll be safe and free.

While you were running, it seemed like their footsteps had been fading ever since they've gotten louder. Until you couldn't hear it anymore. You didn't pay any mind to this since your objective was just getting ti your car

When you arrived at the boarders of their territory when you stopped in your tracks

Pyro was leaning over their axe by the car, looking smug as ever. You looked towards your car and gasped.

Pyro had shredded the tires and broke open every window so you couldn't escape. You stood there as pyro approached you and swept you up in their arms, snuggling their mask into your neck the entire way home while you couldn't help but softly sob

Soldier

Soldier would lose his shit

He's already super strict, forces you to get up at 5 am every morning and run laps like you're in the military, makes you eat either MRE packets or home cooked food and you better hope it's an MRE pack because he cannot cook

So when he sees you at your car late at night, he screams at the top of his lungs enough to scare you into shock

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING, MAGGOT? GET BACK HERE THIS INSTANT!"

I could see this going one of two ways, either complying or he has to chase you down (which he will)

If he has to chase you down, he won't be happy about it, and become even more strict than before (which I don't think is possible but it's soldier)

Support

Sniper

You... What?

How did you even get the idea that you could escape?

You live in his fucking van, you won't have a car other than his van

But lets say you saw the chance for escape, and tried to take it. You either got shut down the moment you got out of bed or you were lucky enough to get far away from the van

"get your bloody ass back to bed" is something he'd say if he shut you down the moment you stood up

But this man is a sniper, he can scope you out easily, and he won't hesitate to use a tranq on you

After that, you're back in the chains

Spy

Scary

Did you really think you could?

He knew you were gonna escape before you even escaped

He'd make very subtle remarks about it and remind you of what he could do

"Do you remember about the undercover mission in Spain back when I was working for the government that I told you about? When I was able to find the traitor using three clues. Even after all his records were erased"

Subtle shit like that to remind you who's in control

But lets say you didn't take the hint, and you decided to try and escape anyways

He'd catch you in the living room trying to escape, and send you back to bed

Or, you'd get lucky and be able to run away, meaning he'd be on a job

Trust me, he will find you within 48 hours, 24 if you aren't moving that much

He's very manipulative so he'd try to make you feel bad about it.

Much more strict afterwards

Medic

I have a feeling he'd already knowz but not to the extent that spy does

He notices your behavior, and how you're starting to become a bit more.. energetic?

Anyways, like spy, he'll warn you subtly

"You seem to always find yourself injured in any way. And like they say, a medic can track an injured person like a gps system, ja?"

If you decide to escape, he'll have some fun with you definitely. He'll late you run far enough to think that you're finally free, before he catches you and brings you back. He's sadistic.

He'll laugh at your face and degrade and humiliate you, making you regret ever trying

After that, he's much more strict, and demanding from you

Bonus cause I wanted to: Pauling

Pauling like spy, can track people very easily

I wouldn't even be surprised if she convinced medic to help put a tracker in you

Well, she'd be at work checking your location every hour. And the moment she finds out that you're not in the house but at a motel, she's pissed.

She has to quickly finish up work before taking her time to go catch you, and trust me, if Pauling takes time off work for something it's important

Once she finds you, she tells you to come out, trying to keep it civil. When you don't, she ends up busting through the door and taking you herself.

On the way home, she complains about how you worried her and made her miss some work like a parent going to pick up their sick kid from school

She eventually cools off after she gets you home, but she is definitely more strict

Gify was acting up so I couldn't download any more gifs 😭

Anyways feel free to request again!

[thetriggeredhappy]

can I request papa spy singing some song in french while cooking, and then in the future scout is also singing the same song while cooking? :)

been a minute since i got this request but who’s keeping track hahaha,,,,,,

(no warnings)

-

Jeremy yawned at his place at the table, still half-asleep, not entirely woken up yet. His chin sat on his arms, which sat folded down against the tabletop, and he watched, groggy, as his dad poked at the frying pan. “Can I have eggs too?” he asked, sentence somewhat mangled by a second, wide yawn halfway through it. “Please?”

Papa glanced at him, then at the carton of eggs a few feet away from him. “Alright,” he agreed, and looked over again. “How many would you like?”

“Um.” He considered the question, started to doze, blinked back awake again. “Three.”

“Three?” Papa repeated, raising his eyebrows. “Do you think you can eat three?”

“Yeah, I’m hungry,” he murmured.

“If you’re sure,” Papa shrugged, and poked at the egg in the pan a little more.

He stared, bleary-eyed, at the ingredients on the counter for a little while. Butter, pepper, salt. Green… something. Herbs? Something like that.

Papa hummed quietly to himself, leaning over and plucking up his cup of tea and taking a drink of it before returning to his task, rifling almost absentmindedly through the spices. He always moved with some kind of ease when he cooked, less stiff in his movements, less robotic, broken up by moments of slight hesitance as he shook out a bit of pepper into the pan.

“Il était un petit navire, il était un petit navire,” Papa sang under his breath, just barely louder than the sound of the eggs cooking in the pan, and it took Jeremy a few moments to realize it was in French, and he wasn’t just sleepy. “Qui n’avait ja-ja-jamais navigué, qui n’avait ja-ja-jamais navigué...”

He’d heard the song hummed before, but he’d heard it so many times it was just... syllables. He recognized ‘boat’, and ‘sail’, but that was about it. As Papa hummed and cooked, slowly his sleepy mind pondered the words, eyes tracking the shadows of birds across the slats of morning light peeking into the room, minutes passing slowly.

“Oh! Sainte Vierge ma patronne, oh Sainte Vierge ma patronne,” he sang, flipping eggs out onto one of the little plates and starting to do away with the shells he still had lying around, “Cria le pau-pau-pauvre infortuné, cria le pau-pau-pauvre infortuné—”

“Qu'est-ce que, ‘infortuné?” he mumbled, and Papa looked up.

“Hm?”

“What does that mean?” he repeated, voice still quiet.

“Ah, ‘infortuné’, it means ‘unlucky’,” Papa replied, arranging the eggs between the two plates.

“Who’s unlucky?”

“The boy in the song,” Papa said, handing him his plate and a fork. “Because the ship he sailed on had very bad luck too. Everyone aboard was very hungry, and...”

He was too busy cutting off a piece of egg to process the pause, and when he looked up, Papa seemed to be considering something quite hard.

“...It, er... it was the boy’s job to get them more food, even though he was very young, so it was very difficult,” he said carefully.

“Oh,” Jeremy said, and took a bite of his eggs, and considered that. “That sounds hard.”

“...Oui, indeed it was,” Papa said, and sat to eat as well. He ate much more slowly than Jeremy did, chiding him occasionally to slow down.

“I can’t eat more,” he finally said, pushing his plate away. Papa scoffed, moving the plate closer to his own.

“Two eggs would have been plenty, you see? What did I tell you?” he chided. “I suppose I am eating more eggs than usual today then.”

“How does the song end?” Jeremy asked, and it took Papa a moment to understand what he was asking.

“Oh, the song. Well, the boy asks for help, and little fish start jumping from the sea onto the deck, and then the sailors all are able to eat,” he replied.

“Maybe the boy is lucky, then,” Jeremy mused.

“I would certainly say he was very lucky, yes,” Papa said, and did not elaborate.

-

“Ohé, ohé! Matelot, matelot navigue sur les flots,” Scout sang under his breath, pouring some dried chives from the tin into his palm and tossing them into the pan with the scrambling eggs. “Ohé, ohé, matelot, matelot navigue sur les flots...”

“On your right,” Spy said at his elbow, and he stepped just aside as his dad put the salt and pepper shakers back onto the counter next to the stove where he’d borrowed them from. “There you are.”

“Thanks,” Scout replied, plucking up the pepper. “You want some, by the way?”

“Perhaps. I’m not particularly hungry. And knowing you, the six remaining eggs won’t get you through to lunch as it is,” Spy teased, and Scout kicked a leg out to thunk against his leg as he passed, making him snicker.

“Yeah, yeah, whatever. I’m a growin’ boy,” he joked, and it made Spy scoff as he sat back down at the table, returning to his newspaper as Scout returned to his song. “Ohé, ohé, matelot, matelot navigue sur les flots. L’un voulait qu’on le mît à frire, L’un voulait qu’on le—”

A pause in the kitchen as Scout went silent and still. After a few moments, Spy looked up from his newspaper, taking note of Scout’s wide eyes. He hummed a noise of question, curious.

Scout’s head whipped around. “Holy fucking shit they were gonna eat the kid in the song weren’t they?” he demanded.

Spy began snickering, hand rising too late to cover his smile. Scout cried out in dismay.

“Oh my god! What the fuck!” he gasped. “The sailors were gonna totally eat the kid! Why the fuck did you let me sing that for all these years! That’s so fucked up!”

“The boy is alright in the end, isn’t he?” Spy pointed out, still amused. “It isn’t my fault you never paid attention to the words.”

“Pops, that is so fucked up,” Scout accused, glaring back down at the cooking again. “Wait, how come you always sung that when you cooked? Oh my god.”

“Thematically appropriate,” Spy shrugged, smirking.

“DAD!”

[leossmoonn]

See You Again

masterlist 

pairing - stefan salvatore x fem!reader

type - fluff, angst

note / request -  “okay a stefan fic where the reader was dating stefan and instead of elena kai puts y/n into a coma, and then stefan and y/n share their last dance and all, and she tells him to live his life to the fullest, and its all so angsty and cute at the same time” ok so i dont really remember exactly how kai putting elena in a coma went down cuz i haven't watched tvd in a while so just bear with me lol

summary - you and stefan have one last dance before you go into a coma

warnings / includes - mild language, kissing, fighting, ugly crying lol

————

*gif isn’t mine*

“Dammit!” Stefan exclaimed, throwing a vase at the wall. 

More tears streamed down your face in hot droplets as you saw Stefan unravel in front of you. 

“I’m so sorry, Stefan,” you cried, taking your sleeve and wiping the snot that was running down your nose. 

Stefan turned to you, tears shining in his eyes. He looked at you with guilt, walking over and pulling you into his arms. 

“It’s not your fault, sweetheart. It’s Kai’s,” Stefan apologised. 

You wrapped your arms around his middle, squeezing him so hard. You cried into his shirt, savouring how hugging him felt as you knew it would be one of the last times. 

“W-Why would he do this?” You sobbed. “Because he’s evil and hates us all. God I just… I just wish you didn’t fall victim to him. Why couldn’t Matt be the one?” Stefan asked. 

You let out a breathy laugh. “That’s not nice, Stef.”

“It’d be better than the love of my life being ripped away form me,” he chuckled sadly. 

You buried your face into his chest, taking a deep breath of his scent. 

“Aw, so sweet,” Kai taunted. 

Stefan pulled away from you immediately, standing in front of you for protection.

“Get out of here, Kai,” Stefan warned. “Or what? I’m not gonna undo the spell,” Kai grinned. 

“If you don’t get out of here, I’m going to kill you,” Stefan threatened, red enveloping his green irises. 

“Oh, I’m so scared. You know, I’m not the only one that’s a vampire, Stefan,” Kai smirked, fangs of his own coming out of his gums. 

“Well, I’m a stronger vampire than you Kai,” Stefan muttered, running towards Kai. 

“And I’m a heretic,” Kai said simply, putting up his hand and making Stefan fly across the room. 

“Stefan!” You shrieked, running over to him. Kai flung you to the other side of the room, a good 20 feet away form Stefan. You groaned as the back of your head hit the shelf of bookcases. 

Kai stalked over to you, using magic to pick you up and dangle you in the air. Stefan got up, recovering quickly from hitting the wall. 

“Don’t you dare touch her!” Stefan demanded. 

“So cute how you think you can stop me,” Kai grinned at Stefan. 

He used his other hand to hold Stefan back. You watched as Stefan struggled against Kai’s magic, but it was no use. Kai turned his head back to you, smiling at you maliciously. Your eyes grew wide as Kai made his vampire face, pulling you closer to him with his magic. You struggled, trying to break his spell, but you knew it was no use. This was how you were going to die. Being sucked dry by a sociopathic heretic. 

“Can’t wait to taste your blood,” Kai muttered. 

“No you don’t!” Damon exclaimed, taking a stake and plunging it into Kai’s heart. 

Kai gasped and you and Stefan were let go immediately. Before you could drop to the ground, Stefan sped over to you, catching you in his arms. You wrapped your arms around him in relief, watching Kai turn pale and veins appearing all over him. He fell back onto the floor, his lifeless eyes staring at the ceiling. You looked at Damon, a grateful smile on your face. 

“Thank you so much, Damon,” you said. 

“No problem. I wasn’t about to let my brother and my best friend get killed by some psycho. It’s bad enough you’re gonna be in a coma for the next 60 years,” Damon smiled at you. 

You laughed, getting down from Stefan’s arms. You hugged Damon tightly.

“I’m gonna miss you, D,” you said into Damon’s shoulder. 

“I’m gonna miss you, too, Y/n/n. But hey, I’m gonna be well and alive for when you wake up. And so is Stefan,” Damon reassured you. 

You pulled away and nodded, giving him a sad, small smile. 

“Hey, before you go, we have a surprise for you,” Damon said. 

You furrowed your brows, “What surprise?”

“You’ll see,” Stefan said. You turned to him, “Tell me.”

“Nope. C’mon, we don’t got a lot of time,” Damon said. 

You nodded and Stefan took your hand. You three walked out of the Salvatore house. You gasped in surprise and shock as you were met by all your friends. They were all holding flowers, candles all around them, looking at you with sad, but hopeful smiles.

“What’s all this?” You asked. 

“One last chance to say goodbye,” Stefan explained. 

“Did you plan this?” You looked to your boyfriend. 

“You bet,” he nodded. 

“Oh, I love this so much,” you sighed happily. 

“We’re going to miss you so much, Y/n,” Caroline said, her voice cracking at the thought of being without her best friend for 60 years. 

Tears welled up in your eyes as everyone else started crying. 

“I’m going to miss you guys so much, too,” you breathed out. 

They all hugged you tightly as you cried. You wrapped around your arms around them, trying to hug every single one of them. You pulled away, coming face to face with Matt, Jeremy, and Tyler.  

“Good luck out there, guys. I’m so honoured to have known you and grow up with you. Maybe we’ll meet aga-” you started, but you were interrupted. 

“Woah, woah woah, you’ll still see us when you wake up,” Tyler cut you off. 

“Yeah, right,” you scoffed. “No, really. Bonnie put a preservation spell on us,” Jeremy explained. 

Your eyes widened and you looked to Bonnie. “Really?!” Bonnie shrugged sheepishly. “It’s the least I could do. It’s my fault you're going into this coma.”

You shook your head and put your hands on her shoulders, looking into her eyes sternly. “Bonnie Bennett, don’t you dare blame yourself. This is all Kai’s fault. I don’t want you to feel bad about this for one moment, okay? Please promise me that.”

Tears rolled down Bonnie’s face and she nodded furiously, pulling you into one last hug. 

“Good,” you whispered, shutting your eyes tightly while you hugged her. 

“We’ll document every single day for you,” Elena promised. 

You pulled away from Bonnie, giving Elena a laugh. “You guys don’t have to do that.”

“Oh, please. If we didn’t, then the first thing you would do when you wake up is complain about how we didn’t document,” Damon remarked. 

You rolled your eyes, “Yeah, yeah.”

“We have one last surprise for you. Well… I do,” Bonnie said. 

You nodded and watched her as she held the rose in front of her, using her magic to hold it up in the air. You let out a choked laugh as she was doing the  spell she did when she first showed you she that was a witch six years ago. 

The petals detached from the stem. You looked up as you watched them swirl around you. Bonnie then set them gently on the top of your head, putting the petals together and making them into a flower crown. 

“Now you’ll always have something to remember me by after I die,” Bonnie smiled. 

You laughed, “Oh, Bon, thank you so much. Thank you all. I-I can’t thank you enough.”

“Well, you’re our friend, Y/n. We love you,” Caroline said. 

Your lips came down into a pout as you knew it was time to say goodbye for the last time. 

“All right, let’s let the love birds have their final last moments,” Damon said. 

“What?” You cocked up a brow.

“Well, we know how much you love Stefan. We thought it would be nice if you and him were able to the spend the last moments of your life together,” Elena explained. 

“Oh, you guys,” you cried. 

“You love us, we know. Go and have fun with Stefan. We’ll see you really soon, okay?” Matt assured. 

You nodded, giving them all a watery smile. You watched with a shattered heart as they all walked away, disappearing into the night. Stefan appeared in front of you, holding his hand out. 

“May I have this last dance, m’lady?” Stefan asked. 

You giggled and nodded, slipping your hand into his. “Why, of course, kind sir.” 

Stefan smiled as he wrapped his arms around your waist, pulling you close to him. Music then started playing. It was your and Stefan’s song, “City of Angles” by The Miracles. You smiled genuinely at the music, swaying in the entry way of Stefan’s house. You tried to think of anything else but you going into a coma. You tried to think of this moment as a date idea Stefan thought up. You tried to think of this moment as the moment before Stefan would propose to you, but nothing worked. Your smile faltered as your mind thought deeply into the idea of you being away from Stefan and your friends for 60 years. 

Stefan noticed your brows furrow as you tried not to cry. He smiled sweetly, unwrapping one arm from your waist and moving his hand up to your cheek, cupping your jaw. His thumb wiped away the tears that were rolling down your cheeks.  

“It’s going to be all okay,” Stefan assured you. 

“No, it’s not,” you put your head down. 

“Look at me, Y/n,” Stefan said softly. He waited patiently as you lifted your head up slowly. You looked into his eyes with fear and sadness. His face mirrored your emotions, but he decided to say uplifting words. 

“60 years is nothing. You’re going to be asleep and I… I’m going to be desiccated. It’ll be like accidentally passing out because your math homework is so boring, and waking up five minutes later only for it to be the next day.” You smiled at his comparison. You shook your head, though, knowing that it wasn’t going to be the same. 

“Bonnie’s going to be dead, Stefan. Who knows, maybe Elena, Damon, and Caroline will be killed. O-Or what if Bonnie dies early and her preservation spell wears off of Tyler, Matt, and Jeremy and they’ll all be old when I come back? What if… What i-if you d-die?” Your voice broke at the thought of you waking up to absolutely no one.

Stefan put his other hand on the side of your face, bringing your face up to look him in the eyes. You stared at him, breathing heavily from getting yourself worked up. 

“I’m not going to die. Neither are Elena, Caroline, and Damon. Tyler, Jeremy, Matt will be just fine. We’ll make sure Bonnie lives her life to the fullest, too. We’ll make sure she doesn’t blame herself for this, because you’re right, it isn’t her fault,” Stefan promised. 

You nodded, “Promise me something else.”

“What is it?” Stefan nodded eagerly. “Don’t desiccate,” you demanded. 

“I’m not living 60 years in pain and sadness. I want to wake up when you wake up,” he argued. 

You shook your head, licking your chapped lips. “No, you are going to live. You’re going to document all your days for me. Wether it’s in a journal or on a video camera. You’re going to wake up everyday, go and hang out with our friends, travel around the world, maybe find a-a new love,” you shrugged, listing all the possibilities. 

“I’m not going to fall in love with anyone else,” he shook his head.

You chuckled, “I…I know. But please, just promise you won’t desiccate. For me?”

Stefan sighed and nodded. “All right. I’ll stay alive.”

You smiled happily, pulling him closer. Stefan’s hands moved back down to your waist as you put your head on his shoulder. You two swayed hips as another song played. You let out a sob as you knew it would be midnight soon. 

“I don’t want to leave you,” you said hoarsely.

Stefan exhaled sadly, holding you tighter. “I know, baby. I don’t want you to leave either, but we have no choice.”

You lifted your head up, pressing a slow, painful, and passionate kiss to Stefan’s lips. You furrowed your brows as you kissed him hard, savouring every last bit of the feeling of his lips on yours, his scent, how his arms held you close to him, how in love you were with him. Your fingers entangled themselves into his hair as Stefan’s hands held the small of your back. 

Stefan pulled you back, tears rolling down his face. “I love you.”

“I love you,” you nodded. Tears cascaded down your fast in clumps, running down your chin and down to your neck. Mucus gathered at the bottom of your nose, your brows knitted together as you let out quiet, strangled sobs. 

“You look beautiful. You know that?” Stefan grinned. 

You sniffled, “No, I don’t.”

“No, you. You’re the most beautiful girl I have ever seen. You’re the most beautiful girl I will ever see.”

“Oh, Stef. You’re making it so hard to go,” your bottom lip pouted out and started to quiver. 

“Just trying to milk the last seconds that we have together,” he chuckled sadly. 

You gave him one last smile, pressing your lips to his one last time. You kissed him tenderly, gripping the base of his neck. Your tears mixed with his as your cheeks rubbed together gently. Stefan’s hands rubbed your back soothingly. He  pulled away from the kiss, setting his forehead against yours. 

“I’ll see you again, sweetheart.”

————

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@123cxcv​ @lilsalvawhore​ @kaitieskidmore1​

[cupidhaos]

just how much i love you

pairing: hong jisoo x gn reader

word count: 3.2k

genre: fluff, slice of life, established relationship, non idol au

summary: you recall each time you realized just how much joshua loved you and decide to return the favor

warnings: mentions of illness

song rec: better | jeremy passion

a/n: YOOO im a day late i meant to post this yesterday for shuas bday but then it completely slipped my mind and i forgot that time was a thing and i was like CRAP so then i was like u know what ill post it tmrw bc i mean its technically still his bday and hes a from america so it still counts anyways enjoy this tooth rotting fluff 

you already knew that joshua meant the world to you - yet there are just some certain moments that come to mind when you think back on it.

one of the first moments that you thought of was when he was playing the guitar.

“whatcha writing down there?” you ask curiously as you leaned over joshua’s shoulder, trying to take a peek at whatever he was scribbling down on his journal. as you rest your chin on his shoulder, you wrap another arm around his neck. a silent chuckle leaves joshua’s lips as he slowly closes the book - pushing it off to the side “nothing that you need to know of just yet”

pouting, a whine leaves your lips as you shake his shoulders back and forth “aw c’mon shuaaa - you’ve been sitting here all day playing your guitar and you won’t even let me know what you’re doing”

he moves to the side a little so that he was able to get a good look of your face. setting his guitar down on the table in front of him, he motions for you to sit down with him. once he realizes you won’t budge as long as that pout on your lips was there, he stands up to wrap an arm around your waist - pulling you over the couch as you loudly yelped in surprise.

joshua places you onto his lap as he sits back down. securely wrapping his arms around your waist as he looks up at you with large, apologetic eyes “i’m sorry - were you getting lonely without me?” he teases.

all you could do was scoff in response which joshua just laughs at. its quiet for a second before he speaks up again “i can’t let you see it just yet. it’s a surprise”

“can i at least have a hint?”

he smiles at your question, reaching over to grab his guitar that he left on the table. he places it on your lap, leading your hands to hold onto it with his own. you were glad he wasn’t able to see the blush that covers your cheeks as he guided your hands to the guitar chords.

leaning over your shoulder to look at your hands, you can feel his hot breath graze your neck, which causes goosebumps to spread through your body “place your finger right here on this chord, and just strum lightly - exactly like that”

after teaching you a couple more chords, he pulls his hands away from yours, causing a wave of disappointment to wash over you. turning to look up at him, you give him a curious look “what was that for?”

he just shrugs as he moves himself towards the end of the couch, a sly smile on his face the entire times. opening up his notebook, he starts skimming through the pages “just chords for the song that i’m writing”

“song?”

“mhm - for you”

your face immediately turns red at his response “what?! you’re writing me a song?! why!”

he gives you a look of genuine confusion “do i need any other reason asides from the fact that i love you? anyways - it’s not ready yet so you’re just gonna have to wait” was all he said before getting up and leaving.

“wait! you can’t just say that and leave!” you call out after him as he laughs.

“i just did!”

that was the first time you had realized just how much joshua loved you.

“y/n… whats that in your jacket?”

you freeze from where you stood in the tiny apartment that the two of you shared. it was raining outside, and you were drenched from head to toe. joshua gives you a questionable look as he crosses his arms, cocking up one of his eyebrows.

you slowly look up as you clutch your jacket to your chest, a dumb look on your face “my jacket? theres nothing in it other than me, myself and i” you reply back. his eyes squint towards you as you try your best to avoid his gaze “you sure?”

as you open your mouth to respond, you were cut off with a bark coming from inside of your jacket. moments later, a small puppy pops up from your jacket - wiggling its way out of your arms and jumping onto the floor. a sheepish look covers your face as you lean down to pick up the puppy “okay maybe i was lying”

joshua doesn’t even look shock at the news, only a tired sigh coming from his lips “i thought you were going to get groceries”

you kick your shoes off and you hold the puppy closer to your chest “i know i said that but! look at him shua! isn’t he so cute!” you ask him as you walk towards your boyfriend. he looks down towards you and the dog in your arms as he chuckles “you know that you can’t just pick up stray dogs and bring them home right?”

your shoulders slump at his reply, a pout forming on your lips “i mean i know that… but he was all alone in the rain and he looked so sad… i couldn’t just leave him there!”

he nods in understanding, wrapping his arms around your waist to pull you closer “i know you had good intentions - but have you ever considered that our little friend has an owner already?”

turning towards the side, you pull the dog in closer “well they just left him outside all alone in the rain they’re obviously not a good owner” you say under your breath.

joshua points towards the dogs neck “isn’t that a collar? have you checked if they belonged to someone?”

“no… but!”

“we can’t just steal someone else’s dog - they may be upset right now”

a sigh leavings your lips as you lean forward to rest your head on your boyfriend’s shoulder “i know… but he’s just so cute!”

“i know he is, but he isn’t our dog. how about this - after we return him lets go to the shelter and see if we can get our own?”

you gasp loudly as you quickly turn to look up at him, eyes wide and filled with hope “really! do you mean it!”

joshua nods, a soft smile on his face “of course - but we still have to return him first okay?”

you nod your head quickly, noticing the fond smile that joshua aims towards you “what? what is it?”

all he does is shake his head, brushing off the question “nothing, you just look really cute right now” is what he tells you - quickly causing your face to heat up. he places a hand on your forehead as he leans in close, causing your breath to hitch.

“you feel warm - lets go change your clothes before we go back out. we wouldn’t want you getting sick do we?” he tells you as he pulls you on your head, dragging you towards your bedroom. you just nod shyly in response to his question as he laughs quietly at your reaction.

that was the second time you had realized just how much joshua loved you.

“joshua stay back! i don’t want you to catch -” you suddenly stop your sentence as you felt a sneeze coming up. quickly burying your face into your elbow, you let out a loud sneeze. joshua shakes his head at you as he pushes you back down onto the bed “shh, just let me take care of you”

feeling weak, you’re unable to even fight back “you’re always taking care of me though - it’s my fault that i got sick in  the first place…”

joshua nods his head in agreement despite the offended scoff that leaves your lips “it is in fact your fault. i told you to dress warmly and bring an umbrella, and what did you do?”

“i didn’t dress warmly…”

“what else?”

“or bring an umbrella when it rained…”

he hums in acknowledgment as you places a wet towel on your forehead “i would say i told you so, but i think that you’ve learned your lesson”

a small frown appears on your face as joshua continued to scold you. you open your mouth to say something, but felt a pang in your head, causing a look of discomfort to now show on your face. a flash of worry appears on joshua’s features as you groan in pain “take it easy okay? don’t push yourself” he tells you as he hands you some medicine.

you place in the medicine in your mouth as you reach for the water, joshua’s already one step ahead of you. he brings the water up to your lips before you can even protest, helping you drink. once he pulls the cup away, you frown immediately “you don’t need to take care of me - you’ll get sick too”

he just shrugs at your comment though as he places the cup back down “i’m your boyfriend - why wouldn’t i take care of you?”

you’re about to retort back before he cuts you off with a quick kiss on the lips. you gasp loudly as you look at him in horror “joshua!”

joshua just laughs at your reaction “you can pay me back when i get sick by taking care of me. besides - if i wasn’t here to take care of you who would be?”

you’re unable to think of a response as joshua wraps his arms around you to pull you in for a hug “don’t worry y/n - i’ll always be there to take care of you” he reassures, causing your shoulders to relax.

a week later, joshua catches your cold.

“i told you that this would happen.” you scold him as you bring a spoon of soup up to his lips. he just smiles cheekily at you as he sits warm in bed “i told you you’ll be paying me back. but you don’t need to take care of me either - i was just joking really”

a light laugh leaves your lips at his comment. you place the bowl down and turn to look at him, grabbing his face with your hands “and like you said - i’ll always be there to take care of you too”

his face turned from surprised to one filled with adoration quickly as he gives you a toothy smile “then we’ll be taking care of eachother until we’re old and wrinkly”

that was the third time you had realized just how much joshua loved you.

“did you make these cookies yourself y/n?” seungcheol asks as him and jeonghan take a bit out of the cookies that you just baked. you nod your head excitedly as you await for their responses “i did! what do you think?”

before anyone could say anything, jeonghan opens his mouth to spit out the cookie “what did you even put in this? poison?”

you frown at his comment as you turn to look at seungcheol “they can’t be that bad!” you retort, but the look of disgust on seungcheol’s face tells you otherwise. he places the bitten cookie back down as he looks at you with wariness “why is it… so salty…”

“what are you even talking -” you start off as you grab a cookie from the cooling rack, but you stop yourself once you take a bite - a bitter taste of salt filling up your mouth. you quickly spit it back out as you now understand what your friends meant “why is it so salty!”

jeonghan shakes his head at you as he picks up one of the cookies to inspect it “maybe you put in the wrong ingredient when you were making it?” this comment makes you gasp as you come to realize your mistake.

“i think i mixed up the salt and the sugar!”

both of your friends give you looks of pity as you drop your head into your hands “this is horrible how am i supposed to give them to joshua now! i spent the last three hours for nothing!” you groan. seungcheol claps his hands together as he thinks of an idea “i know! lets throw them away before he gets home! then he’ll never know of your failure!”

raising your head from your hands, you give seungcheol a deadly glare which causes him to freeze in his chair “was it necessary to say it like that”

before any other ideas are thrown, the sound of the front door opening is heard - causing the three of you to panic.

“i’m home!” a familiar voice calls out, and before any of you were able to even touch the cookies - joshua has already entered the kitchen “oh! seungcheol! jeonghan! what are you two doing here?”

“well you see, y/n here wanted us to try her oh so amazing and delicious cookies that she’s worked so hard on” jeonghan explains, a devilish look in his eyes. seungcheol sighs once he realizes what jeonghan was planning and joshua just looks surprised.

he turns to you with a curious look on his face, glancing back down at the cookies on the cooling rack “you made cookies y/n?” he questions and all you can do was nod sadly “i was planning on surprising you with them when you came home but -”

“y/n spent hours working on these wonderful cookies just for you shua - why don’t you try some?” jeonghan presses on to which joshua nods. you glare at jeonghan who just gives you mischievous look back. as joshua reaches over and grabs a cookie, panic settles inside of you,

“look you really don’t have to -”

“these are great!”

you pause from where you stood and jeonghan and seungcheol both have the same confused look on their faces as you. joshua gives you a genuine smile as he takes another bite out of the cookie in his hand.

“they’re - wait what did you say?”

he nods as he continues to eat it - no sign of hesitation or lie on his face “you did great on them baby! thank you for the cookies” he tells you, leaning over to place a kiss on your forehead. you just stand there confused as he ultimately finishes up the cookie before grabbing another one.

jeonghan and seungcheol share a look with each other before turning back to joshua.

“you really think they’re good?” seungcheol asks warily which joshua nods in response to “of course i do - anything that y/n makes from scratch is good”

you felt your heart flutter at his response as you just stare up at him with wide eyes. jeonghan stares at joshua intently as he watches him eat another cookie “don’t you think theres anything off about it? maybe it tastes a little - salty?”

joshua pauses from eating the cookie and you hold your breath as you wait for his response. he just shakes his head though as he continues to eat the rest of the cookie “hm, its a little bit salty - but i still like it anyways”

as he finishes off the salt cookie, he excuses himself and tells you that hes going to go change first and be right back. you nod in response and the three of you wait until he finally leaves the kitchen. once you realize hes out of range, all three of you turn towards the cooling rack - each shoving a piece of cookie in your mouths.

as if on cue, you all spit the cookie back out. seungcheol grabs a napkin and tries to wipe the taste out of his mouth “either joshua’s a really good liar and was trying to get back at hannie - or theres something off about his tastebuds.”

jeonghan nods in agreement as he throws away the leftover cookie that he had onto a paper towel “i have no idea how he was able to eat three of those biohazards without even flinching”.

“its literally a salt cookie what is wrong with him” seungcheol questions as he grabs a glass of water for him and jeonghan. as jeonghan reaches to take the glass of water from seungcheol’s hand, he shakes his head. 

“theres no way he actually found that edible - he must’ve just lied so he wouldn’t hurt y/n’s feelings”

you just stare at the cookies in shock as you realized that joshua ate your cookies no matter how gross and salty it tasted - just because you made them. a soft smile slowly appears on your face as you recall watching him eat the cookies you made - going as far as complimenting and thanking you for them.

that was the fourth time you had realized just how much joshua loved you.

“guys shh!” someone says as joshua enters into his apartment that he shared with you. his eyebrows furrow together in confusion as he takes off his shoes and his coat.

“y/n? you there?” he calls out as he realizes just how dark the apartment was. he waits for you to answer and immediately fills up with worry once he doesn’t hear your reply. he’s about to take his phone out to call you, but is stopped once the lights suddenly turn on.

he covers his eyes as he tries to adjust to the brightness as loud pops suddenly filled his ears. moving his hands from his eyes, he is then met face to face with you holding a birthday cake along with the rest of his friends. confetti falls onto him as more party poppers were released.

“happy birthday joshua!”

his eyes widen in shock once he realizes what was going on. a wide smile covers his face as he looks behind you to see his friends holding confetti poppers as well as a large banner saying ‘happy birthday shua!’ on it. looking around, he realizes the rest of the apartment was decorated as well. he then looks at the cake you were holding in your hands.

“did you do this all for me?” joshua asks you in disbelief. you nod your head as you smile back at him “of course i did! why wouldn’t i?”

joshua just shakes his head though, the smile never leaving his face “i totally forgot it was even my birthday today”

his friends just laugh at his reply as one of them points towards you “you should thank y/n! they were the one to plan all of this!” he looks back at you as you turn your head away from him sheepishly “did you really plan all of this for me?”

you nod your head shyly as you feel his gaze now on you “i mean… yeah… it’s really not that big of deal…”

somehow, the smile on his joshua’s face grew ten times bigger. he leans down and gives you kiss on the top of your head “thank you y/n, it truly means the world to me”

shaking your head though, you look at him with a soft smile on your face “i just wanted to show you just how much i loved you since you do it to me all the time” you reply back, causing joshua to laugh in response.

“you don’t have to do anything - i already know how much you love me.”

m.list

[femmeharringrove]

so niki has two dads. so what?

if you say anything about it, she'll kick you. and if principal kane wants to meet with her fathers, then so be it.

that only happens twice - first with steve, who walks in with sunglasses high on his face, a cup of coffee in hand, and a stance that makes the shorter man in front of him admittedly uncomfortable. niki is almost gleeful as she watches her dad stare blankly at the principal, then tug his glasses down to eye him more critically. not a word is spoken, there isn't a sound outside of the gentle swishing caused by niki's feet kicking back and forth. when the silence is broken, it's by steve, voice bored and uncaring.

"what's the problem, mister kane?" principal kane looks a little intimidated by the man in front of him - as he should be, niki knows.

"uh - well, uh, you see, nikita got in another fight again with a student, and -"

his words come to a halt when steve's hand comes up to stop them, the other hand perched comfortably on his hip. his head turns to face his daughter, and while his face is deadly serious she sees the sparkle in his eye and knows she's in no trouble here.

"nikita," he drawls, "did you get into a fight today?"

"yeah," she replies, without an ounce of remorse.

"do you want to tell me why?" he pushes, and she does, so she tells him.

"joey carter said that nobody wants to be my friend because i have two dads and that's wrong." joey is full of shit, as uncle dustin likes to say. she has plenty of friends, and all her friends love her papa and her dad. because steve always makes them the best snacks and takes them on all sorts of trips and takes the time to get to know the kids. and billy lets them do his makeup and carries them around the house while they squeal in delight. their parents might have been unsure at first, but steve and billy have made friends with most of niki's friends' parents. but the carters are gross people and their son is no exception as far as the eight-year-old is concerned.

"thank you," steve hums, before turning back to principal kane. the hand he'd held up to stop his talking lowers again and he places it on his other hip. "principal kane, where is joey?"

"why, he's in class," the ruddy man replies. steve's eyebrow arches in the way it does when papa says something dumb, or when niki tries hiding something from him.

"and why is that?" he presses. "are we just allowing students to verbally harass other students now?" principal kane gulps.

"well, you know how children are -"

"i do," steve cuts in sharply. "i'm raising one. do you know how long it took me to teach her not to say fuck because it's not a nice word?" nikita stifles a giggle at the offended look that crosses her principal's face. "picked it up from her aunt," steve continues. "kids just soak these things up, you know." steve pauses to sip on his coffee, hand raising to stop the man from speaking, and then he continues. "joey's parents are bigots, i know that very well, and i'm not surprised joey's picked up on it. but if nikita here said fuck in class, you'd reprimand her for foul language, yes?" he peers through his sunglasses while principal kane nods vigorously.

"of course we would." steve nods his approval.

"i take comfort in that." the glasses come off after that, and steve leans forward to meet the shorter man's gaze. "now, if one of your students says hateful comments towards another, would you do the same thing, mister kane?" niki grins at the way her principal shifts uncomfortably.

"I - I suppose, yes," he stammers.

"you suppose," steve repeats, mean and critical. "well, in that case, if you suppose, i suggest you get to calling the carters. nikita and i are going to leave you to it." principal kane tries speaking up, but steve's already got his sunglasses back on and he holds his hand out to the smaller brunette in the room. "let's go, honey. say goodbye to principal kane." nikita hops off the chair and waves a cheery goodbye before happily walking out with her hand in her dad's.

later that night, he's reading her a story and she snuggles against his side, enjoying the gentle brush of his fingers through her curly hair, and she can't help herself.

"hey, dad?" steve stops reading, sets the book down to look down at her.

"yes, baby?" and now nikita huffs, because she doesn't know what she wants to ask. they've talked about this before, both about gender and sex, and sexuality. she knows some people think something's wrong with her dads, but she doesn't hear it often. it shakes her a little when she does.

"why are people so mean?" she settles on. steve's face falters a little.

because there's no easy answer to that, is there? he and billy have been raising her for eight years, they've been together for five of those years and have only been open about it for three. they've been talking about getting married, about having one more kid together, about moving and settling somewhere new, but he knows no matter where they go or what they do there are always going to be instances like this, people like the carters and this kane asshole. and as much as he aches to protect his baby from that, he can't.

so he and billy have taught her the importance of kindness and understanding and respect. and at just eight, she has such an understanding of those concepts. she's absolutely brilliant, and beautiful, and more precious than steve will ever be able to put into words. he studies the face that peers up at him, brushes her bangs from her face, and holds her close so he can rest his chin on her head with a sigh.

"well, kita, sometimes people are scared," he tries. "remember when papa gave you seaweed that one time we went to california?" he doesn't have to be looking to know her entire face scrunches up in disgust.

"yeah, but that was gross," she points out, making the same face steve makes when he eats something he doesn't like, trying to get the taste off her tongue. steve laughs softly.

"to you and me, yeah, but not to papa. he grew up out there so he was already used to it, but for you and me it's scary. green stuff from the sea? icky, right?" nikita nods against his chest. "well, some people haven't seen gay people before, not like papa and i and our kid living like other families. and that's new and scary. and sometimes, when people get scared, they act a certain way." steve tries thinking for another example. "like when papa brought that beetle inside and scared me, remember that?"

nikita will never forget the way her dad scrambled over the couch trying to escape the bug. she'd laughed until the beetle took flight because that really was scary. the pair had screamed around the house and steve had absolutely refused all of billy's apologies the rest of the night, huffing and pouting while nikita giggled at the sight.

"you hit him," she recalls. it hadn't been hard, just a couple of swats on the shoulder while scolding the blonde man. steve nods.

"yeah, which was mean," he agrees. "but sometimes, people get mean when they're scared. obviously, something like having two dads or liking another guy or gal isn't the same as bringing in a beetle, it's much bigger than that. and when people get mean about the bigger things, it's more than just a little hit on the shoulder."

she gets that too, as much as she doesn't like it.

nikita sighs and wraps her little arms tight around steve's waist.

"i don't want people to be mean to you," she decides, and steve knows she loves him, of course he knows, but it warms his heart to hear a reminder of it.

"i know," he sighs. "but we can't make other people be kind. we can only be kind ourselves, yeah?" the girl nods and smiles up at her father.

"you're the most kindest" she announces, and then niki rests her head against his chest again. he doesn't start reading right away, but his voice sounds a little wobbly to her when he does.

the second time principal kane has to meet with one of her dads, it's over a father's day event in class and professor kane specifically requests billy instead of steve. he shows up a little greasy from work, looks from the principal to a mother and her son, to his teary-eyed little girl, and knows there's about to be trouble.

nikita doesn't know if it's hurt tears or angry tears, but misses hartwell's words sting and she can't get them out of her head. her son jeremy's words had hurt even more, and so a now ten-year-old nikita had punched him right in the face.

"something has to be done, mister hargrove," the principal says. amy hartwell scoffs.

"something indeed. we'll be pressing charges, that's what will be done." billy fixes her with a glare.

"you're gonna press charges against a kid?" he questions incredulously. "i know my girl, she doesn't do that unless he messed up big time."

"my son would never do any -" the woman begins, but nikita has no time for this. she doesn't want to sit here and listen to them act like jeremy is innocent.

"he said i can't bring my dad to school because i don't have one!" she snaps, and billy almost snaps too.

"well, it's true!" jeremy shoots back from the safety of his mother's side. "tell her, mom." now amy looks usure, and principal kane shifts uncomfortably as billy's cold glare flashes to the woman.

"yeah, tell her," he repeats, low and threatening. "better yet, tell me." amy shifts her weight and steps back.

"well, everyone in town knows her mother got pregnant in some indianapolis bar," she has the audacity to say. "the girl's never met her real father." nikita opens her mouth ready to protest and hurl insults, but billy speaks first.

"nikita doesn't have a mother," he growls. "her father gave birth to her, and i raised her. we're her dads, and she can have either of us at this little party, got it?"

"it's not healthy to feed her lies like that," amy argues, "you're poisoning her mind, it's dangerous -"

"- no," niki's dad cuts in. "what's dangerous is saying all of that within three feet of me. what's fucking dangerous is teaching your kid how to be as fucking disgusting as you."

"mister hargrove!" principal kane cuts in sharply. "i will not have you threatening misses hartwell like that!" billy turns on the man with an aggression nikita has never seen from her pa, a wild gleam in his glare and his lips set in a snarl. the principal shrinks back.

"what a time to grow a spine," he bites. "you've let her walk all over my boyfriend and i, i'll say whatever the hell i want." principal kane looks a little scared, backs down pretty quickly. but billy is on a roll. "i know how this works. you think steve and i don't know what assholes like you say behind our backs? huh? well, we do. and it's fucking ridiculous. steve has more balls than you-" an accusatory finger gets thrown in principal kane's face - "and more class than anyone in this stupid hick town is capable of. and you know what? i get it, we can't stop you from being ignorant dicks. but what i can do, and what i will do, is step in when someone brings this shit to my little girl. do you get that?" billy's yelling stops and both adults look at him wide-eyed with shock. jeremy looks scared, and niki thinks he should be. with a decisive nod, billy ends the conversation, he scoops niki up after that and she can feel him shaking as she hides in the safety of the crook of his neck. "you wanna sue us? sue us. we'll return the goddamn favor, trust me." and he stomps out to his car and just stands out there for a little while, clinging to nikita until she stops sniffling.

they don't really talk on the way home, and when they both enter the house steve looks a little confused.

"aren't you both supposed to be places?" he asks, but the little tease in his expression fades into worry as he gets a better look at them. billy leans in and kisses niki's forehead chaste and soft.

"go get changed," he mutters, which she knows is actually code for when he doesn't want her listening to their conversation. she obliges and disappears up the stairs she's known her whole life, right up to her room where she gets more comfortable clothes. she hears steve yell, "she what?" at some point, but mostly the pair are quiet. when nikita does tiptoe down the stairs eventually, they're in the kitchen, her papa's face buried against her dad's neck while they whisper to each other. it looks like billy's shaking again, but she can't tell.

steve catches her after a minute and kisses the top of billy's head before calling her over and holding her tight. "i'm sorry you had to deal with that stuff today," he offers, mumbled partially into her her hair. she remembers the things he said about mean people and clutches onto him a little tighter.

that night, aunt max and uncle dustin come by for dinner and take her out for ice cream, and when she comes home steve gives her a bubble bath with extra bubbles. she doesn't love letting him bathe her all the time, but sometimes it's fun, especially when he does extra bubbles. he finishes and dries her off and takes his time with her hair, and before long she's just about ready for bed.

her parents work her through the nightly routine, and they tuck her in to bed together like they do every night one of them isn't working late. but after steve plants his pattern of kisses on her face and leaves, billy stays. he sits on the edge of her bed and looks a little unsure, which is strange because as far as niki knows, he always knows what to do.

"honey," he starts. "you know what they said today isn't true, right?" nikita nods easily.

"yeah. dad's my dad and you're my pops." nikita knows, to some degree, how she came to be. she knows steve didn't have her with billy like that. but never once has she ever had to doubt her family, and no one's dared do it to her face. not before today.

"okay, good." billy nods, reaching a hand out and rubbing her shoulder. "people like misses hartwell and her kid, they don't - they don't get it. and i'm so sorry that you had to hear it, and that you had to hear me yell like that."

"and say all those words dad tells you not to?" she adds quietly. billy breathes out a laugh.

"and hear me say all those words dad tells me not to say," he agrees. it gets a laugh out of nikita, much to billy's relief, and he leans forward to hold her by both her shoulders now. "i'm serious, babycakes. i don't care what people like that say. you're my baby, you hear me? always mine."

"always yours," she echoes, leaning forward and throwing her arms around him in a hug. billy plants as many kisses as he can manage on her head and face, before laying her back down and adjusting her covers.

"i love you, green bean," he tells her, and she murmurs in kind before watching him move to the door. he pauses when he gets there, then turns to her sheepishly.

"hey, about the bad words," he hums. "i won't say anything about it to dad if you won't. deal?" nikita makes a thoughtful face.

"can i have ice cream and a kitten?" he snorts at that.

"you have several kittens, baby. but ice cream is doable."

and when amy hartwell knocks on the door the next afternoon talking about billy's offensive language, he only gets a claim of innocence from his boyfriend and a confused look from his daughter who doesn't recall a single bad word from the meeting. steve looks back at the woman and misses the grin nikita shares with billy as she chomps on a bite of ice cream.

[bohemianrequiem]

Here’s my Codeswapped gift for @nemesisadraste ! I had so much fun writing for Sam and expanding upon her relationship with Odd and the other Lyoko Warriors. I hope you have just as much fun reading it!

Prompt - Sam becomes a Lyoko Warrior

If you had told Sam earlier today that her evening would be taking a turn for the unexpected, she wouldn’t have doubted it-

Things were always that way when Odd was around and that was how she liked it. The unpredictability of their dates as a simple plan for dinner would turn into an hours long romp through the market district of town, both of them perusing clothes neither one could afford, was just another part of the fun of their relationship. Funnily enough, she had come to begin expecting these little pleasant surprises the more time they spent together. However, there was another trend that Sam was beginning to develop over the last few weeks.

First, Odd’s phone would ring and would with his nonchalant greeting of “What’s up,”followed by the name of one of his various friends from Kadic. Usually Jeremy or Ulrich, sometimes Yumi, and very rarely a strange girl named Aelita would be on the other end. After a moment, Odd’s brow would furrow, his jaw would set, and an uncharacteristic seriousness would envelop his entire person. “For real? Yeah, I’ve got it. On my way.” He would then flip his cell shut and turn his gaze towards Sam, his features slowly softening to the goofy boy she’d come to care so much for.

“Sam, I know what you’re gonna say-“ He placed his hands up in mock surrender, a worried chuckle already slipping past his lips before he could even finish his sentence.

“Let me guess, you’ve gotta go?” Sam sighed, more out of habit than any actual disappointment. Like she’d said, this was becoming a frequent portion of their date nights. At least this time they’d actually got to enjoy a movie together and make it halfway through dinner. Her burger half eaten and now being laid down on a plastic red tray, she shrugged. “Do what you gotta do, man. Text me when you get back to the dorms for the night?”

Odd blinked once, then twice. “A-Are you sure?” Obviously surprised at her lack of frustration at his need to preemptively end their date. Sam just waved her hand in dismissal, as if pushing the worry out of existence.

“Yeah, Dude. I know Kadic’s got you guys doing hella group projects this semester. Go help your friends.” At least, that was the excuse Odd had used before. She might have believed it the first time or two, even if schoolwork wasn’t usually that high up on Odd’s list of priorities, but something about his behavior recently had clued her into the fact that this was about something much bigger than school. “So, go on. I’ll be fine making it back to my place.”

Odd took his bottom lip between his front teeth, a habit that Sam had long since stopped trying to break him of, then nodded. “Thanks, Sam. You’re the best.” He gave a quick, chaste kiss on the cheek, then dashed off down the sidewalk. “I’ll text you later, okay?!” He called out over his shoulder as he rounded the first corner.

Another thing Sam had come to accept about Odd was that he was a terrible liar. Case in point, he had literally just ran off in the opposite direction of his school. After a couples minutes of anxious internal debate, she began to follow.

~~~

When Sam arrived at the old factory on the outskirts of the river that cut through town, she had initially worried that she’d lost Odd’s trail and accidentally followed someone else’s. After all, what would Odd be doing at some old place like this?

However, maybe this place wasn’t quite as abandoned as she thought. Despite the paint having chipped off the walls decades ago and piles of scrap iron cropping up throughout the interior, the floor looked relatively clear of dust and other small debris. Somebody, or maybe a groups of somebodies, had obviously been coming through here quite frequently to keep the dust and other objects from settling. That and the ropes hanging from the ceiling, one of which was still gently swaying from side to side as if it had just been handled, clued her into things not being quite what they appeared.

Deciding not to trust the rickety old elevator, which likely didn’t even run anymore, Sam followed one such dust-free path from the main floor of the factory down to another area full of old machines. They looked like the ones used in car factories to put heavy pieces of metal on the chassis of vehicles together, but had obviously been in a state of disuse just as long as much of the factory.

From this room, a winding trail that many times lead Sam to various dead-ends finally culminated in her opening a door into a spacious computer room, complete with some type of projection emanating from the center of the room. A few steps in and she could hear the frantic clicking and clacking of a keyboard across the room. Hidden by the sizable monitor in front of his face, a young boy spoke little.

“Okay, Odd. You should be able to see the construct now.....Yes, I know it’s huge, but you need to get inside of it and regroup with Yumi and Ulrich. I’ve lost contact with them for exactly-“ He checked his watch. “Ten minutes now. And communication with Aelita is spotty, at best. It’s up to you to....to uh....” His eyes lifted from his watch’s face to see Sam standing just a handful of steps into the room.

“Yo,” She put her hand in the area in a tentative wave. “Jeremy, right? I’m gonna go out on a limb here and say this isn’t your social studies project, is it?”

Sam swore she could see a vein in Jeremy’s forehead pulse as he slowly sat backwards and readjusted a microphone attached to his earpiece. “Odd? Were you aware that your girlfriend is here at the factory?”

“Hey! I’m right here!” Was he seriously just going to ignore her and act like they weren’t even in the same room together? “Is that really Odd on the other end? Let me talk to him.” She took a number of determined steps towards Jeremy, the boy defensively putting his hands up around his earpiece.

“No, no, I don’t think she’s infected, but she does look awfully upset. What’d you do to her this time, Romeo?” He stood up and put his hands out placatingly. “Samantha, please-“

“It’s Sam,” She interrupted as her march came to a standstill in front of Jeremy, placing her hands on her hips and impatiently tapping her foot. “Never Samantha.”

“Sam. Right.” He nervously adjusted his glasses. “I know this is gonna be difficult to understand, but you can’t talk to Odd right now. He’s on a very important mission right now. Odd’s still here at the factory with us, at least technically, but you’re not going to be able to see him until he’s finished.”

A mission? Was this some kind of code or was this dude seriously losing his marbles? “What do you mean he’s here but he’s not? Why can’t Odd just tell me all this himself, without all the lying and hiding?”

“He’s not hiding, Sam, he’s doing something extremely important. Come look.” Jeremy motioned her over to the computer monitor behind him. As she took in the many blinking lights and constantly changing lines of code, Jeremy sat down and relaxed. “See? He’s right here, located outside of this massive structure the geography of which I’ve been mapping for days now. The only problem is that I can’t quite figure out what’s inside of it. That’s where Odd and the others come in.”

“The others? You mean Yumi, Ulrich, and Canada girl, right?” Sam shook her head. “Wait, wait, so you expect me to believe that Odd’s inside there? Inside the computer?”

Jeremy nodded. “Exactly.”

Sam had come to accept a lot of things about Odd: from his personality, to his hobbies, but this went beyond all of that completely. Just as she was about to voice her disbelief again, a frantic beeping came from the computer. She watched over Jeremy’s shoulder as he began typing with near reckless abandon and spoke into his microphone again.

“Odd, bad news. You’ve got hostile hornets inbound. Four of them by the looks of it.” Four red dots appeared on screen, worryingly close to a blue dot indicating Odd’s location. The hornets zipped around the screen, surrounding Odd and barraging him attacks that Sam couldn’t see. From the way Jeremy’s face contorted with worry, though, she didn’t need to see the attack to know things were bad.

“This isn’t good. The hornets shouldn’t be able to move that fast. It’s like being inside the construct has super charged them or something.” A dull beep sounded and Jeremy tsked. “Odd, you’ve just lost fifteen life points. Be careful!” Sam could barely hear her boyfriend’s voice over the other end and desperately wished she could reach out and answer.

“What happens when he hits zero?” She asked, the quietness of her voice surprising her in the moment.

“What?” Jeremy was busy typing away on the keyboard as he tried to discover the source of the hornets’ sudden power-up.

“I asked you what happens when Odd hits zero life points. You said he already lost fifteen, so what happens to him when he hits zero?”

Jeremy pursed his lips. “He’ll be devirtualized. Right now, he’s inside the computer program, but if he loses all of his life points when he’ll be ousted and return to being here in the factory with us.” He added under his breath with added frustration. “At least, that’s what’s supposed to happen....”

“And what does that mean?” Sam was beginning to lose her patience with Jeremy’s infuriating tendency to under-explain what was going on.

“It means, well, that they aren’t coming back like they’re supposed to.” He leaned back and breathed out a deep sigh. “Yumi and Ulrich have already lost all of their life points, and yet haven’t devirtualized. I can only guess as to why, but their shared code must be stuck in some kind of feedback loop within the simulation. To put it simply...” He looked up to her. “I can’t get them out.”

Sam nearly slammed her hand down on the computer keyboard, but fearing damaging Odd, settled for simply unleashing a verbal tirade onto Jeremy. “And you just sent Odd in there to deal with it by himself? I thought you guys were supposed to be his friends!”

“Of course we are!” Jeremy shouted back. “Odd knows the risk, so do Yumi and Ulrich. He’s not alone though, he has Aelita inside Lyoko to help him and he has me out here to provide support. Ever since we’ve met, we’ve all always had each other’s backs and that’s not going to stop now.”

“Then...” Sam’s gaze turned from Jeremy and settled on the computer screen. Her anger slowly ebbing away and revealing the worry underneath. “What are we going to do now? What can we do to help Odd and the others?”

Jeremy bent over the keyboard. She could practically hear the gears turning inside of his mind - there was a reason his friends all called him Einstein - until he snapped his fingers. “If we could temporarily overload the construct with some bad data, then that should be enough to slow down the hornets and put Odd at a greater advantage.” A flurry of keystrokes filled the air. “But, ah, it’s no use. I have no dominion inside the construction, no access to any towers, and I can’t directly send anything to Aelita in order to sabotage the hornets. If we went that route, I would have had to given the bad data to Odd right as he was being virtualized. But it’s too late now-“

“So give it to me.” Sam cut in. “If you can’t give it to anyone else to make the enemies easier to destroy, then upload the data with me and I can take it to Odd and Aelita.”

“It’s not that simple, Sam.” Jeremy was about to launch into a deep explanation of the danger of a first timer launching themselves into an already precarious situation, before Sam put her hands on the arms of his chair and gently swiveled it around to face her.

“You said you care about Odd, well so do I. I don’t care about what might happen to me, I just want to chance to help.” Her voice was quiet, but sincere. A bit of insincerity slipped in with her next words. “ ‘Sides, I wasn’t asking, Pointdexter. Now put me in before I start keyboard smashing this thing.”

Jeremy thought for a long moment, then another, before slowly nodding. He could see why Odd was so crazy about this girl. “Fine. Head downstairs to the transporters and I’ll guide you from over the speakers. I can’t follow, but I can get you where you need to go from here.”

~~~

It was like a rush of electricity moving up her spine, before spreading throughout her entire body. The next thing she knew, Sam was staggering to the ground and could barely catch herself before falling face first. In her ear, Jeremy’s voice spoke.

“A little rougher than the usual, but not bad for your first time. I kind of had to rush your Lyoko avatar, but it should suffice for the time being. Most of it was procedurally generated anyways so-“

“Dude, c’mon, mission at hand before we start talking technical?” Sam shook her head as if clearing out his voice.

“Right, right, of course. You should be able to see the construct before you, it’s geometry is marginally different from the surrounding sector.” True to his word, her dark eyes scanned upwards and eyed the pale stone fortress before her. It’s coloring clashes drastically with the surrounding fog and light lavender rock of the Mountain Sector.

“The entrance is wide open. Isn’t this usually the part of the game where you have to defeat some kind of gatekeeper or something to get further into the dungeon?” Sam remarked as she swiftly passed into the threshold of the construct fortress.

“This isn’t a game, Sam. This is a matter of whether or not XANA can gain a new foothold within the Lyoko program, thus giving him greater power in the real world.” Jeremy pauses for a moment. “And, uh, Yumi and Ulrich already took care of the krabs guarding the entrance earlier....so there’s that.”

“I knew there had to be a gatekeeper!” Sam yelled triumphantly as she trekked further in. Hard, angular edges formed from what looked like polished stone walls guided her deeper and deeper into the otherworldly building. “So, speaking of mobs, what kind of weapons do I have?”

Jeremy audibly pressed a few buttons on his end and Sam could hear the sound of metal clinking together on her belt. “Like I was saying, I didn’t have much time to code anything too fancy. These digital shurikins should help if you encounter any ranged enemies and this-“ A weight suddenly appeared on her back. “-Is a copy of one of Ulrich’s katanas. I’d suppose you know how to use these?”

“Of course.” Sam chirped. “Sharp end towards the bad guys, then throw and stab, right?” On the other end, Jeremy groaned uncertainly. “Kidding, kidding. I think I can make these work. Now, what about this thing?” She motioned towards the metal gauntlet that encased her right forearm.

“In addition to being armor, it acts the as the containment module for the bad data I need you to inject. Once you engage the enemy, all you have to do is get within striking distance with the gauntlet and then-“

“Uh, Jeremy? I think the enemy’s already here.” After turning a particularly sharp corner, the narrow hallway Sam had been traveling down opened up into a room with high ceilings and expansive flooring. Towards the center, Odd pushed a very weary looking Aelita out of the way of a hornet’s well placed laser blast.

“Get behind me, Princess, these bozos are stronger than they look!” He fire a quick barrage of laser arrows towards the trio hornets, but their impressive speed allowed them to easily dodge each blast.

“No, Odd! Here!” Aelita kneeled down and bowed her head. Within a moment, a rock-like structure the same color as the rocks from the Mountain Sector appeared overhead. It shielded them from the hornet’s blasts, but shuddered with each and everything strike.

Within Sam’s ear, Jeremy voice came to life. “Aelita can’t maintain that barrier forever. And once it breaks, they’ll be totally defenseless. It’s up to you now.” Taking a deep breath to calm her nerves, Sam removed one of the shurikins from her belt. As the hornets were completely focused on breaking Aelita’s barrier, they all but ignored Sam as she quietly slipped closer towards the enemy.

Angling her shot towards the wall, Sam let one of her bladed weapons fly. The shurikin gained speed as it bounced off the wall and hit it’s mark on the broad side of one of the hornets. The virtual insect fell to the ground, dazed from the sudden damage it had taken.

“Now! Sam!” Jeremy leaned forward in his seat, eyes glued to the screen.

“Already on it, Pointdexter!” She ran forward and, with a small leap, descended upon the hornet. “Slow!” Out of the wrist of her gauntlet popped two bladed prongs, that soon became buried deep into the hornet’s body. It shuddered for a moment as it’s virtual body was pumped full of problematic data manufactured by Jeremy. Sam pulled the prongs out of the hornet’s body and threw up a hand to cover her face as the creature exploded.

Above her, the other hornets shuddered and jerked midflight before falling to the ground. “You’ve done it! The hornets are down for the count, and the rest of the construct’s data steam has been disrupted too.” A few keystrokes pass. “And Ulrich and Yumi are being devirtualized now!”

“So, now what? Do we keep going further in or...?”

“No way. Everyone’s life points are way too low, not to mention you and I are going to have some explaining to do to the others.” Sam nodded her head as Jeremy’s voice left her ear. Before she could ask anymore questions, Odd practically slammed into her. He wrapped his arms around her waist and picked Sam straight up into the air.

“Sam! You were so cool! You were like ‘pew’, ‘shing’, ‘stab’, ‘jab’, and then you-“ Sam groaned out-loud.

“Dude, cool it! You’re gonna strangle me to death after I literally just saved your life! Put me down!” Odd loosened his near death grip around his girlfriend and slowly lowered her to the ground. He gave a sheepish laugh. Beside him, Aelita giggled at his bashfulness in front of Sam.

“Right, sorry. For real, how did you get here? Did Einstein call you or something?”

“Not exactly. I, kinda-sorta, followed you here from our date. Then when I saw you guys needed help, I had Jeremy virtualize me.” Sam looked Odd up and down for a moment. “Why...Why are you a cat boy?”

Aelita put a hand over her mouth to stop from laughing, but failed to contain her amusement as tiny snickers slipped past. “Yeah, Odd. What is with the cat get-up?”

Odd’s cheeks flushed with color. “W-Well, it’s kind of a long story. I sorta showed up here like this the first time and since then I’ve just learned to roll with it. But what about you? You look awesome!” His eyes ran over the black jumpsuit with satisfying white lines going down the lengths of her covered arms and legs, accented by an indigo crop top overlaying the outfit.

“Jeremy told me he was using Yumi and Aelita’s outfits as a basis for mine, but most of it was generated automatically when I first got here, I guess.” Sam looked at Aelita and her gaze was instantly drawn to her point eyes and face markings. “I guess between you two, I’m kinda the odd one out. No cats ears, no elf ears, just plain ol’ human ones.”

“Hey, you guys.” Jeremy spoke to all of them through his computer’s microphone. “As much as I’d love to continue this conversation on fashion, we really should get you three back home. Ulrich and Yumi are already here, so I’ll start the devirtualization process. You first, Aelita.”

As Aelita began to disappear into unraveling strands of code, Odd put a hand on the back of his neck. “Sam, I’m sorry you had to find out this way about what I’m always doing with my friends. I wanted to tell you, and I didn’t like lying to you, but trying to explain all this to you always just seemed so...impossible.”

“Odd, if you had told me about all of this, I probably would have thought your brains had finally melted out of your ears from playing so many video games. I’m not angry or anything, more like amazed really. I almost still can’t believe anything like this even exists. I’m glad you’re safe though. Aelita and the others too, of course.” She kicks the ground with her shoe. “So, uh, does this mean I’m like part of the team now or what?”

Odd shrugged his shoulders. “If you want to be. I’m sure the others would agree that you’ve already more than proven yourself, but there’s still a lot we would need to talk about first. What Lyoko is, what we’re fighting, where Aelita really comes from...”

“I knew she wasn’t from Canada!” Sam yelled, before laughter overtook both her and Odd.

“It was the best we could come up with on such short notice. You’re telling me people from Canada don’t naturally have pink hair?”

“Uh, I’m pretty sure nobody from anywhere is a natural pink, dork.” Sam flicks his nose with her index finger as the devirtualization process begins to take her. “I’ll see you back topside, alright?”

Odd nodded. “Yeah, see you back in the factory, dork-kisser.”

[peaceoutofthepieces]

Sink Or Swim

tag list: @cleocc @feeling-kinda-so-so @hopelessromanticvirgo @dreamy-slytherin @adora8 @lockerfivethreefive @painfully-oblivious @poeticinemaa @jjustonemorething @saraben00 @wedarkacademia @coolguyssyndrome @hischbabe @suckerforsobbe @tayspots @starmansander @theah0lt @zoenneforever @invisibleme @chibibanane

~^~

Sunday, 13:43

Song: Jeremy Zucker, Chelsea Cutler - better off

Jens reads over the text message again as he sits on the bench and waits. He rubs his spare hand over his knee, trying to ease the itch under his skin.

Jana: can we meet up? I really need to talk to you

Despite how much he doesn’t want to have this conversation, he knows it’s necessary. That’s why it had only taken him a few minutes to say yes. He isn’t sure why he’s psyching himself out so much. He supposes he and Jana just don’t have the best history with serious conversations, and he has no idea what to expect from this one.

He’s sitting on a bench at the edge of the park, waiting. Jana is only a few minutes late, but it’s prolonging his anxiety and leaving his foot tapping against the pavement. He wishes he’d denied the offer, saying he had other plans.

Only, he did have other plans.

His eyes widen as the realisation hits and he checks his phone again.

He had other plans, that he was supposed to attend to over half an hour ago. He curses under his breath as he navigates to his messages, and surely enough there are a few from Lucas. Saying that he’s there, waiting, asking where Jens is, asking if he’s okay, asking if he was coming or not. The chat with Jana had been open the whole time, and Jens hadn’t even gotten the notifications. He curses under his breath and quickly tries to think of a reply, heart speeding away and hands shaking.

I’m so fucking sorry Luc, Jana asked to meet up and I completely forgot

I won’t be able to make it

He stares, and waits, and the message remains delivered and unseen. The last message from Lucas was only about five minutes ago, and Jens realises he’s probably given up and gone home. He drags a hand over his face and he grips the phone tightly, barely preventing himself from tossing it into the street. He’s in disbelief at himself, more than any anger, disappointed and upset and frustrated and he feels so stupid.

Lucas, Lucas, how could he forget Lucas?

He knows how. It’s because he’d been distracted all morning, listening to his father rant about and insult his boss (who is at least a decade younger), complaining that he ‘can’t believe anyone would raise their son to be such a ‘pansy’. It’s because his father had turned to him and expected him to agree, waving his hands about as if to say ‘you know exactly what I mean’, and Jens had wanted to tell him that no, in fact, he didn’t.

It’s because he’s begun to understand the ache in his chest in these particular moments and why exactly it’s there.

It’s also because Jana had texted him, then, asking to meet, and despite how painful the conversation is likely to be, Jens had wanted nothing more than to see her and feel some sense of normal and comfort.

It’s because he might have forgotten Lucas on purpose.

Jana finds him like that, hunched over in a panic, still staring at his phone, startling as she sets a hand on his shoulder.

“Hey,” she appeases. “You okay?”

Jens quickly pockets his phone and lets out a slow breath, nodding. “Yeah, sorry. Was starting to think you’d ditched me, is all.”

Jana smiles, and it isn’t tense, and it eases Jens’s worries a little. “It was tempting,” she admits.

They regard each other for a moment, and even though it’s been two years, Jens almost feels like he’s been portaled back. He can recall them in this same scenario, too many times before, and it certainly doesn’t begin to make him feel better.

But Jana sits down next to him, and bumps his shoulder, and smiles. “Don’t look so scared. I’m not going to try to kiss you again.”

Jens huffs and tries to hide some of his relief. “Well you have to admit it’s a legitimate concern.”

Jana bumps him again, rolling her eyes. She’s avoiding his gaze now, looking out in front of her and making it impossible for Jens to guess where this is going to go.

“Hey,” Jens prods gently. “You can talk to me, huh?”

She offers him a small smile. “I really wasn’t planning on kissing you. I know we’ve talked before about if we still had feelings and agreed we wouldn’t go back there. And that still isn’t my intention.” She takes a long breath. “But I do have something to tell you.”

Jens clasps his hands together in his lap, pressing in and out on his knuckles. “Okay.”

“Do you remember, in the summer, when I said I was supposed to be moving to New York?”

No.

Jens nods slowly.

“Well, they’ve only just sorted out mom’s transfer. I’m leaving in a week.”

Jens’s heart falls into his stomach and he can only look at her. He’d thought, when it was first brought up, that he’d made his peace with the idea. But then school had restarted, and Jana was still there to join them, and all worries of the matter had disappeared. Now it feels like a bomb being dropped all over again, while Jens feels unstable enough as it is.

“Jens?” Jana places a gentle hand on his arm.

Jens rubs his hands over his jeans. “What about school?”

“I have already made plans to transfer there. I was going to study online with them from the beginning of the year, but I worked it out so that I could spend it here.”

“So you knew it was still happening.”

“Yeah.” Jana’s voice is soft. “I’m really sorry, Jens. I know I should have told you earlier.”

She should have, but Jens understands why she hasn’t. He wouldn’t have liked having to break the news to her, if it was the other way around.

“No, I get it. I should be the one making sure you’re okay. It’s a lot. Does anyone else know yet?”

“I’ve told the girls. But only a couple of weeks ago. I told Amber not to tell Aaron, because I wanted to make sure I could tell you myself.”

Jens nods. “Does Robbe know?”

“No. I wouldn’t ask him to keep that from you. I think he’s been through enough of that.”

She hasn’t moved her hand from his arm. Jens looks down at it and wonders why he doesn’t feel more, even though he already feels too much. His feelings and his thoughts are all a mess, but that no longer seems unusual.

“Why did you kiss me then? Was it like...a goodbye?”

Jana shrugs, and her smile returns, though a little rueful. “A bit, I guess. I was thinking about having to tell you, and I knew I was going to miss you and I wanted to spend that little bit of time just being us again. Then I felt like I needed to make sure it was really done. That we couldn’t go back there, and I wasn’t making a big mistake leaving and letting that go.”

“And you were a bit tipsy.”

Jana rolls here eyes, but laughs. “A bit.”

“But now? You don’t feel like you’re making any mistakes?”

“Of course I’m going to miss you all. I would stay if it was just my choice. I just didn’t want to leave behind any what-ifs.”

Jens nods. He understands, beyond the fuzz occupying his head. He knows what she means, and he’s now glad of it, too. He probably would’ve wondered, as well. He thinks the idea of what they could have been will always lie between them, but it would have been much worse if they’d let the idea linger with Jana leaving. He understands, because after that kiss, he no longer wonders over his feelings for Jana, either.

“This kind of sucks,” he says. “I’m gonna miss you.”

She smiles softly. “I know. But we’ll still stay in contact, yeah? And I will visit.”

“As long as you don’t forget about me.”

She scoffs. “You’re more likely to forget about me, with all your new friends.”

Jens would love to respond to the teasing with a smart comeback, but instead there’s a sharp pain in his chest with the realisation his phone hasn’t buzzed. “Yeah, well, they might not be around for long either.”

“What?” Jana’s brow furrows. “Lucas? What’s happened?”

“I was supposed to meet him at one and I completely forgot. I sent him a message to apologise and he hasn’t messaged me back.” He feels almost ridiculous admitting it. He feels ridiculously upset that he thinks he can see a pattern.

Jana’s expression turns sympathetic. “Fuck, was that my fault? I’m sure he’ll understand when you tell him that. You can be quite good at apologies when you want to be.”

Jens snorts. “You mean when I apologise.”

“It’s always worth it,” she informs him. “Really, why were you so bummed about this, huh? Lucas isn’t going anywhere.”

“What? Like you, you mean?” Jens mumbles. Then he closes his eyes. “Sorry. I know it isn’t your fault.”

“No, but you’re allowed to be upset.” Jana squeezes his arm. When Jens doesn’t answer, she takes a moment to examine him. Then she’s asking, “You really like him, don’t you?”

Jens whips his head around to stare at her. “What?”

“Lucas. He’s only been here a couple of weeks, but you get along really well, right? He’s already like one of your best friends.”

Oh.

Of course that’s what she meant, he reminds himself. There’s no way for her to know. There’s no way for anyone to know.

For a few seconds, Jens considers telling her. It would only take three words.

I like him.

Instead he says, “Yeah. He is. It’s just that...Robbe’s super busy now. He always had other things going on before, but then he usually came to me to get away from them. Now he doesn’t need to. Aaron is always with Amber or talking about Amber. Moyo is working or dancing or whatever it is he does. Lucas...Lucas feels most like my friend.”

Jens is ready to backtrack, say ‘no, that was weird’, but Jana is already nodding and the smile on her face is a little too soft. A little too understanding. “I can see that. And when he’s that important to you, you’re not just going to let him slip away because of one dumbass mistake. That’s not you.”

It feels good, to think she’s right, even if he doesn’t entirely believe it. Jana has always seemed to know him better than himself, however—at least, when she wasn’t doubting him all the time. Her having this little bit of faith in him, it does help. He decides he can probably trust her a little bit.

“Lucas isn’t you, though,” Jens reminds her. “He’s important, but he doesn’t cancel you out. I am going to miss you.”

She smiles, and it’s a little sad, and she gives his arm another squeeze. “Me too.”

“It’s still nice. Just being with you. I’m going to miss that.”

“Just not like that anymore,” she shrugs, her gaze soft.

Jens wraps his arm around her shoulders and leans back against the bench, hugging her to his chest. She winds her arms around his stomach and rests her head on his shoulder and Jens presses a kiss to the top of her head. “No,” he agrees. “Not like that anymore.”

[satoruvt]

the color of you - blue (6)

ITS HERE. I HOPE I DID WELL. PLEASE LET ME KNOW WHAT YOU THOUGHT AKDSHKFJSDH

pairing → keigo takami x reader

word count → 3213

summary → you’re not really dating, so you can’t really be in love with him... right?

song inspo → hell of flying by jeremy zucker, cassette by demian, a lil of bugbear by chloe moriondo

this chapter → y/n comes to conclusions, keigo’s a dork, tension, a fight, crying.

part one | part two | part three | part four | part five | part six | part seven

So it’s been… strange.

Or rather, it hasn’t been strange at all, which makes everything even more strange, somehow. You feel like things should be so much different, but they’re not. You reached a wild conclusion that threw you for a fucking loop, made you sit in your kitchen at Angel Cakes and contemplate what the hell you were going to do about anything that would ever occur to you from here on out. Sometimes you almost ask Keigo how things haven’t changed at all, since you’ve decided that you like him, but then you have to stop yourself from saying anything because, oh, right, you haven’t told him.

You don’t plan to, either.

It’d just mess everything up, wouldn’t it? To say “hey, I know we’ve been fake dating for like two and a half months now but I’m kind of liking the idea of really dating you”? Kinda fucked. Not to mention, from a professional stance, what if it ruins your guys’ chemistry when you’re being watched by the entire world? If someone finds out that the whole thing is fake - regardless of your feelings - it means Keigo’s public image and your entire life at the bakery. Everything would go to shit, and after it’s burned down, you doubt you’d even have Keigo.

So you’re not telling him. You’re in love with one of your closest friends, who you are also fake dating, who is also the Number Two hero in the country, and you’re not telling him how you feel. Yes. Okay.

You’ve had a lot of time to reflect about your own feelings, because after Keigo left to fight that villain the other day (and after you managed to get off the ground and clean up) you were sure it was a heat-of-the-moment thing. Yeah, he looked pretty, and there was something dreamy and domestic about laughing and throwing baking ingredients at each other, so maybe your heart just got confused. 

But you’d called him to ask if he was okay (instead of a usual text) and he’d picked up the phone and laughed and your heart had not done that before. Not with Keigo, not on the phone, and not like that. And usually his pet names amused you, but he’d called you “sweetheart” over the phone and his voice was tired and drawled a bit. It made you dizzy. You said goodbye pretty soon after that.

You’re barely walking up the stairs of your apartment complex when your phone buzzes in your pocket. Butterflies (and moths, a few) erupt in your stomach when you read the name, and then immediately die when you read the text itself.

keigo baby 🐦

Do u want to have a playdate with me 👉👈 I could come over if ur mom says its okay

Why him? You think to yourself, swallowing the vomit in your throat and fishing your keys out of your bag to unlock your door. You text back when you get inside, throwing your belongings on the nearest surface.

y/n

don’t ever talk to me again

keigo baby 🐦

Is that a yes??

y/n

….fine, but if u ever use those emojis again i’ll break up with u. legally 

keigo baby 🐦

baby no!!!!

You throw your phone down onto your sofa before flopping over it, letting yourself sink into the cushions for a moment. It takes no more than ten minutes for Keigo to be at your door, letting himself in without so much as a knock. You know that it’s technically your doing, since you didn’t lock it when you came in, but you still whine at him about it, and he mocks you jokingly.

It seems he either senses your tiredness or didn’t have anything in mind to do anyways, because all Keigo does is lift your legs up from where they’re sprawled out on the couch and sits down in their place, letting them flop back onto his lap. He adjusts so his wings aren’t smashed against the back of the couch (or, at least, not as much). You move your feet off of his lap.

You’ve come to really appreciate days like this, where you simply bask in his company and he does yours. As much as Keigo is nonchalant about his lifestyle, you know it’s exhausting for him to do what he does every single day, and then to have to talk to people (fans, reporters, anyone). He doesn’t need to say anything for you to know. And, well, if you can give him a moment of comfort -

God, no, stop thinking like that. You can’t afford to think like that right now. 

The two of you talk, occasionally sharing posts from social media and laughing at dumb little cat videos (there was one that was five whole minutes of one of the guys from that k-pop band being compared to cat pictures and it’s the most wholesome thing you’ve ever seen to date). Before you know it, it’s been a few hours, the sun just fully covered by the distant mountains. The sky cools down in purple and blue hues, dressing up for the night to come. You and Keigo are laughing over old vines, and in your mind you think that it really couldn’t be that bad for this to be every night instead of just… some nights.

At the end of the compilation Keigo groans out a lingering laugh, stretching his legs out as best he can without hitting your coffee table. You stand up, feeling the need to move around as well, and walk towards your kitchen for a drink. Keigo stands after you but doesn’t move, letting his wings flex and stretch from being contained for so long. You get a glass of water, lift it to your lips just as Keigo lifts his arms above his head and holy fucking shit, his stomach -

Tummy! the tiny voice in your head squeals, but the hornier one screams at the top of its lungs ABS and honestly you don’t know what the fuck to do and neither does your body so you choke on your water. Keigo startles, eyes wide, and with a mumbled “holy shit” makes his way over to you as you cough and sputter over your sink.

It takes a minute, but you eventually come back, eyes watery and face red for multiple reasons. You take a deep breath and Keigo rubs your back, eyeing you, which only makes the entire situation worse.

“Jesus, are you okay?” He asks, and you nod, but you can’t look at him.

“Yeah, uh,” you clear your throat, blinking a few times. “Just… went down the wrong pipe, I guess.”

Fuck.

-

You barely recover from seeing a sliver of Keigo’s stomach, and the memory haunts you for days. You attempt at willing it out of your brain, try to tell yourself that you just didn’t see it at all, but your heart is strong as hell and refuses to let your head forget it. You think about it multiple times a day. You think about it for at least twenty minutes each time. You think about it until Keigo texts you a little less than a week after it happened.

Your phone buzzes on the counter in the kitchen and you finish up your bread dough, putting it into a bowl gently and setting a timer to let it prove. Once your hands are effectively clean, you open the message, letting yourself scoff.

keigo baby 🐦

Just finished a photoshoot, could really use a donut right now :/

Attached to his message is a picture of himself, and honestly, he looks really fucking good. It takes pretty much everything in you not to collapse and die. God.

You look up a picture of a donut on Google - they sold out today, and you are not going to make one just for Keigo - and send it to him. For my hardworking fake boyfriend, you send with it. Mostly to emphasize fake for both of you. Yourself especially.

keigo baby 🐦

Fake??? :( sweetheart, u hurt me

Your mind stops working when you read his text, so you leave him on read.

-

The next time you see Keigo in person is when you’re contemplating whether or not you should keep… hanging out with him.

The contract only has a little over a month left, so it’s not as if it’d be that hard to deal with… besides, it’d be easier on the both of you when this whole thing inevitably ends. You don’t see yourself being able to be around him without thinking about kissing him over and over. Not now, at least. You hope it changes. You hope it’s a weird phase or something. 

Keigo texts you and invites - demands - you over (his excuse is that with the hero conference coming up soon many of the smaller heroes are taking care of villains and giving him more time off) and honestly, if you’re really gonna try to stop talking to him as much, this could be your goodbye or whatever. Also, he mentioned wine, and you need to get drunk. Like, “give me an entire bottle so I can cope with the idea of falling for you because I know that you don’t feel the same and I am simply trying to ride out the rest of this “relationship” so I don’t ruin our dynamic and chemistry while we’re being watched by literally the entire world” drunk.

Yeah. It’s been a rough few weeks.

Every time you go to Keigo’s apartment it reminds you of just how broke you are, but you suppose the apartment itself is fitting. It’s definitely modern, but it holds the clutter of Keigo’s personality - blankets strung everywhere, LED lights, a poster of Endeavor hung up in his closet (but you’re sworn to secrecy about that, you pinky promised). When you knock on his door he doesn’t answer, and it’s a good minute and a half before you get a text that says “it’s open, come in” and you sigh, because again, why him?

He’s sitting on the couch, and when he sees you he smiles like he didn’t just refuse to open the door because he’s too lazy. “Well, if it isn’t the love of my life,” he says, and for a second you can fool yourself into believing it’s genuine.

“I’m just here for the wine, dude,” you tease, and he mocks offense at your words.

“Ouch. Mid-relationship rejection.”

Nonetheless, Keigo gets the wine himself (selective little shit) and two glasses, pours each of you one. It isn’t long before you’ve had at least three glasses but no more than five, and you’re maybe, perhaps, a little drunk. 

Keigo is, too, so you’re not really alone, but he’s talking about something Endeavor did like he’s the greatest hero in the world. It makes you smile, just a bit, but then again, you’re usually sentimental when you’re drunk, so maybe it’s just that. Or maybe it’s because you like him. It doesn’t really matter now.

“Hey, Kei,” you murmur when he’s done with his story. He hums, takes another sip out of his glass. “What happens when this is over?”

You look at your feet, scrunching up your toes inside your socks so you have something to look at. Then your eyes move up more, to the top of his coffee table, and then finally they land on him, and he looks gorgeous. He always does.

Keigo blinks once, twice, then shrugs, goes back to his wine. “Dunno. I hope we’re still friends, though,” he says.

“Friends? You want to be friends?”

You’re drunk. You should go to sleep, or go home, or something. Talking is not something you should be doing.

“What?” Keigo asks, but more like he didn’t hear you rather than he didn’t understand, so you take your chance, even through your hazed mind.

“Nothing,” you say, swirling the wine in your glass. “Forget about it.”

And it seems like he does, because when you wake up on his couch the next morning with a killer headache and he stumbles out of his room with a groan he doesn’t mention anything about it even when he talks about everything else.

-

Keigo texts you a few days later, a picture of him posing with another wine bottle. 

keigo baby 🐦

round 2??

The picture is cute. He’s smiling, all lips and curves and blonde hair and tan skin. He’s dressed in sweats, you can see, but he still looks like a model. It makes your heart sink and fly at the same time.

y/n

can’t, sorry. have to stay late at angel cakes. i’ll see u at the hero conference tho

He doesn’t text you for a while after that.

-

The conference comes quick, and before you know it you’re in another hotel suite, getting makeup done. It doesn’t take as much dressing up - your dress is shorter this time, less formal, your makeup less extravagant. You don’t feel nervous, not like last time, but you don’t necessarily feel comfortable either. Your makeup artist is different this time.

It takes a considerably less amount of time for you to get ready, and you stare at yourself in the mirror before it’s time to go. Your dress is beautiful - blue, royal, deep and light at the same time and gorgeous. Simple, too, nothing too out there. When you step out of the hotel room you notice Keigo’s still in his hero costume, but you suppose he has to be. You don’t match with him like you did last time.

There’s no banter, no teasing, no compliments. The ride to the venue is quiet. Keigo sends you a look at one point - a “tell me what’s wrong” look - but you only shrug, offer him the best smile you can, which apparently isn’t convincing, because he frowns when he sees it. You wish he wouldn’t frown so much.

The conference is short, but maybe you’re just distracted. An usher walks you to your seat at a VIP table and it seems like you sit down and then it ends. You clap for Keigo, smile like you’re endlessly proud of him - and you are, even if it doesn’t show that well tonight - and watch him make a scene becuase that’s what he does. He winks at you at one point during the night, while he’s talking into the microphone, and you know it’s for the publicity. The conference ends significantly earlier than the awards show, however, so you don’t have to stay in the suite for the night. 

The ride back to the suite seems shorter than the ride to the venue and it takes you maybe twenty minutes to wipe the makeup off of your face and take off your dress. You walk across the hall to Keigo’s room, knock on the door. He answers.

“Okay, I’m gonna head out, I’m feelin’ kinda tired,” you tell him with a small smile. “Just wanted to say bye.”

“Let me walk you home,” he says instead, and your brain yells at you no!

“No, it’s fine, Kei -”

“Please. I want to.”

He’s never said that before, and a part of you knows you wouldn’t be able to say no to him even if he hadn’t, so you nod and let him follow you out of the hotel and to your apartment. The walk is silent and it makes you feel uneasy but you can’t really do anything about it, not with what you’re trying to do, so nothing happens until you reach your apartment.

You know where this is going, even if you don’t want to, so you take a deep breath, hold the door open for him so Keigo can come inside. He looks at you weirdly for a moment but then enters your apartment, standing in the junction of your entryway and living room like he’s uncomfortable. You let him, then walk to the kitchen for something to drink.

“What’s wrong with you?” You ask, eyeing him suspiciously.

Keigo scoffs. “Shouldn’t that be my line?”

You know he noticed - it’s impossible not to, but you didn’t think… you didn’t think he’d call you out on it. Your pause is evident, but you pretend like it didn’t happen at all. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” you say.

“Yeah? Wanna rethink that, sweetheart?”

The almost-malice in his tone when he says your usual pet name startles you, and when you look up at Keigo it seems like it startled him, too, doe-eyed and looking at you. You shake your head, walking out of the kitchen and into the living room behind him to throw your things down, try to pass the message to him that this is not good. “You’re wrong,” you say.

“I’m not - I’m not wrong, Y/N,” he says, turning around to look at you. “Every time I see you it seems like you’re pushing me away, like you’re not here, and I don’t know if I did something, but I -” he pauses, runs a gloved hand over his face and you want to tell him that it’s not his fault, but that would lead to you telling him everything, and you can’t. “I miss you.”

His voice is broken. When you speak again, your voice sounds like his, but somehow worse. Smaller. “You’re wrong,” you insist. You know he’s not.

“I’m not,” he pushes back. “I’d like to think that in the months we’ve been -”

He stops himself, and you take your opportunity. “That we’ve been what? Dating? We’re not dating, Keigo, we both signed a fucking contract to benefit your public image! This is nothing!”

You have no idea what you’re doing. It’s not nothing. It will never be nothing.

“You think this is nothing?”

“Look me in the eye and tell me that you know for sure we’ll still be friends when this is over.”

He can’t, and he won’t. You’re trying really hard not to cry, but it hurts to fight with him like this, and it hurts that you think you’re falling in love with him, and it hurts that if you tell him it’ll ruin everything and it hurts, so a few tears slip out anyways.

“Y/N,” Keigo says, and his voice is so soft. You want to melt into him, but you shy away when he reaches for you. “Please just tell me -”

“I can’t do this anymore,” you choke out. “I can’t - I’m - I’m calling it. I’ll send my lawyer if you need anything but I just…”

You can’t even look at him. Has he always been so far away?

“Get out, Keigo.”

It sounds so cold, so unfamiliar, coming from your mouth and you half expect another person to have said it entirely. This isn’t you, this isn’t how you and Keigo act, this isn’t… this isn’t it. There’s a pause, like he’s waiting for something, but then you hear him sigh - practically feel him deflate, and then he walks out of your apartment, door shutting quietly behind him.

It’s so quiet when he’s gone.

You take a deep breath, walk back to your bedroom, curl into yourself on the bed, and cry in the blue light of the sky left behind by the sun.

[faustrinus]

Between Snowflakes and Christmas Music

Wolfstar 

THIS IS PART ONE! Soon I’ll be posting part two :) After weeks and weeks of being followed around the castle since October started, Minerva finally had enough. James and Sirius were as insistent as a child who couldn’t get the toy they wanted could be. Hot on her heels, they were always ready with a whole speech on why they should organize The Christmas Party at Hogwarts. At first, she didn’t mind that much, but when they began to fill her chair at the Great Hall with tons of Howlers and boxes full of Christmas decorations, she couldn’t ignore it anymore. It was too much. “That shall be enough,” She said, one hand massaging her head already hurting, “Don’t you have any more important things to do, or are you too busy being up to no good to care about your homework?” “It’s kind of our thing, professor,” James said jokingly, his elbow playfully hitting Sirius’s side, an internal joke making both of them smirk, “But I promise you, it would be the best party that has ever been! We have everything planned, we even have people who would like to help us with the organization.” “And who would that be?” Sirius adjusted his messy tie before starting to speak, “Lily Evans, Remus Lupin, Peter Pettigrew, Marlene McKinnon, Dorcas Meadowes. Also, lots of younger Gryffindor are eager to participate in helping to decorate the castle.” “Have you spoken to any members of the other houses to ask them if they want to participate?” She asked, dismissing with her hand the curious students that were trying to spy on the conversation behind the hallway, ”This can’t be an only Gryffindor activity.” “Hufflepuff is on board with it, and so is Ravenclaw. We haven’t been able to talk with Slytherin because…” James faked a cough, “The Quidditch match is nearby, and we aren’t in the best terms. It has been hard getting near them.” “Okay, that's alright,” She sighed, “I will speak to professor Slughorn and then you will be on your way. Any help is needed, you can come and ask me. Just, don’t follow me around the castle anymore, Mr Potter. You too, Mr Black. Now, may you go back to your common room?” “Yes, professor!” James nodded excitedly, “C’mon Pads, we have a lot of stuff to do!” “Thank you, Professor McGonagall!” Sirius shouted while being dragged by James, “You won’t regret this!” “I hope I won’t.” She mumbled, getting back to her workday. …… “You want me to talk to a Slytherin?” Sirius huffed, his voice mixing with the excited Gryffindor students that were running from one side to the other. Since the party news surfaced among the first years, everyone was slowly finding out about the big event. Sirius was nervous, even if he had been one of the firsts students supporting James and his crazy idea. He could see how everyone was expecting the party to be the greatest thing in Hogwarts, and even if they did promise that... he wasn’t sure if they could meet the expectation that was growing bigger and bigger. On top of everything, the fact he hadn’t seen Remus in quite a while was making him feel uneasy. The lycanthrope was probably busy teaching some kids he promised professor McGonagall he was gonna help, but spending hours and hours on it felt like an exaggeration, to Sirius, at least. Not having Remus around was like losing the calm after the storm, the butterflies in the stomach turned into anxious insects that just wanted to get out and find that missing piece of them. “Mh, that’s what I said,” James repeated, his head tilted to the side, “If I try to get near them I might be killed, but you, we both know that- careful with that box, Jeremy, it has to make it to the Great Hall!” James shouted to a third-year carrying a heavy box, the short boy just nodded and smiled nervously, James smiled back, “we both know that your brother won’t let anything happen to you.” “That isn’t exactly what happened last time, Prongs,” James rolled his eyes at Sirius’s answer, “Regulus and I haven’t talked in months. And every time he sees me in the castle he turns around and ignores me.  He doesn’t want to talk to me.” “That’s what you think.” “I don’t see anything that reflects the contrary.” James scoffed, “Pads! It’s alright, trust me. Maybe you haven’t seen it, but Regulus is always staring at you when you’re not looking and-” “Pads? Prongs? What is this party thingy everyone is talking about?” Maybe the butterflies did manage to escape and reach Remus, because he was right next to James, staring both at him and Sirius with a confused gaze. The older Black had to quickly catch his breath and act totally relaxed as if he hadn’t been wishing for Remus to appear during the conversation to rescue him. “Moony!” James got excited every time he had to explain the party and how McGonagall trusted him enough to carry it out, “Do you have your head on the moon?” he was the only one that laughed at the joke, “Sirius and I are going to organize the biggest party that has ever been in this old and rusty castle!” “And McGonagall was okay with it?” “Yes.” “Seems unlikely.” “You know I’m one of her favourite students..” “Sure, whatever you say,” Remus turned to talk to Sirius, “Do you need any help with that?” He asked, referring to the box that was resting at Sirius’s feet. Sirius's mind stopped working before he could create a sentence that made sense, “What? I mean…” he looked at the box, ”Yeah, that would be great. Awesome. We need to take them to the Great Hall.” “Okay”  Remus smiled subtly and Sirius felt his heart flutter at the sight. “You guys do that, I have to…” James scratched his chin, thinking, “Invite Evans to go with me to the party. See you later.” And with that James was gone in the crowd of students of Gryffindor. “Do I need to go with someone?” Asked Remus, his hands already reaching for the box. “Not necessarily. James kind of created that to have an excuse to bother Evans a little, you know. But you can go alone,” Sirius glanced nervously, grabbing another box, “but of course, if you want to go with someone. You also can.” Remus nodded and they started walking side to side, their arms softly touching. Sirius thanked Merlin that sometimes Remus was as oblivious as James was and couldn’t notice the fact that his cheeks were as red as a tomato, because if he did he probably would ask what was the reason, and Sirius wasn’t ready to tell him you know what I have been in love with you for the last two years and I just want to grab your face and smash my lips with your lips, right? No, it was unthinkable. The only place where that would happen would be Sirius wildest dreams… If he got lucky enough to dream about it. “Sirius, can I ask you something?” Sirius tried really hard to not get his hopes up. “What were you and James talking about? you seemed tense. Like at any moment you would hit him with one of the boxes.” The wave of disappointment that came after the question wasn't extremely shocking since Sirius knew he was feeding himself with illusions, but it sure did hurt.  “Well, he can be a little...too much. I guess his whole excitement about the party passed as stress to me and I couldn't hide it.” “Really?” Remus was aching an eyebrow, his steps getting slower to match Sirius's. Something both positive and negative about him was that he had a weird ability to tell when his friends were lying. And every single time he would find out in a matter of seconds. Clearly, he was suspecting, “Don't do that, Sirius.” “Do what?” “Lie to me.” A few students that were walking back to their common room stared at them, their mouths mumbling something Sirius was too nervous to try to decipher. He felt like he was being cornered by Remus' amazing abilities to read people's lies. “Fine, I'm sorry,” He tried to laugh it off, but it didn't work the way he expected it to do, “I kind of forgot you can do that.” “It's not a superpower, it's just that you guys are fucking transparent with your emotions,” They were getting near the Great Hall, and with every old portrait they passed the voices of hundreds of students became louder and louder, “Now, tell me.” Sirius sighed and played with one of the rings adorning his fingers, even after running away from his house, he wasn't able to take off the big silver ring with a “B” on it. Maybe it was because he and his brother shared the same one. Regulus. Sirius didn't know what was going on with him, but he was sure it was nothing good. Had he forgotten about all the things they had gotten through together? Sirius understood, clearly, his brother was pissed off because he left without saying anything, but enough to just… ignore his complete existence? even when angry, Sirius was never mean to Regulus. And even at this moment where their bond was almost broken, he still cared so much for the younger Black. And maybe it was the least important thing- but it was almost Christmas, the time of the year where everyone was supposed to come together and receive meaningful gifts while eating delicious food. “You're not going to stop until I tell you, right?” “You know me well.” Sirius blushed, the ring finally resting on his thumb again, “Is about Regulus. James wants me to talk with him, just to coordinate some stuff about the party. He said it was because I am one of the only Gryffindors that wouldn't get killed at first sight if I got closer to Slytherins. But I don't know… I don't think I'm ready.” “I think you should do it,” Remus looked forward, mumbling an apology when he almost tripped with a Ravenclaw student, “You still care for you brother, and if he does the same for you- and I'm sure he does, he will listen to whatever you want to say. It's time for you two to talk about things.” “What if he hates me?” “I don't think anyone can hate you, Sirius.” Sirius felt himself choke up a little bit thanks to the little smile Remus gave him, but he coughed to hide it, quickly gaining his voice back, “Is Regulus we are talking about. But I guess… I can try.” “And If anything happens I know you would like black roses in your grave.” Sirius forgot his recent embarrassment, rolling his eyes, “Thanks.” They kept walking, shoulders touching with every step they took. Saying things were a lot easier than doing them, especially when it comes to fixing your relationship with your younger brother. Sirius could feel how the silence got a little bit tense, so he asked the first thing that came to his mind. “And are you inviting someone to the party?” “I think I will invite Dorcas. She seems down lately, I don't know. Wanna cheer her up a little.” Sirius nodded and tried to play it cool, again. Getting his hopes so high up and then getting disappointed so many times in the same conversation should be illegal. What was he waiting for, anyway? For Remus to finally realize he reciprocates Sirius's feelings and to have a romantic confession that ends up in them kissing in the middle of the hallway? “Hey, everything's okay?” The sudden question startled him, his thoughts disappearing in a cloud made of disappointment. Remus was looking at him with the typical look of I can read something is going through your mind and it was making Sirius uncomfortable. “Yup. Sorry. Just thinking if I should go with someone too.” “You didn't have anyone in mind before?” Remus sounded… different. Sirius noticed the change in the tone, but he couldn't pinpoint what was the emotion behind it. “No, not at all. I just thought about going alone.” “A lot of girls would die to go with you… some guys too.” Sirius's head snapped to the side, both surprised and panicked expression making Remus laugh. “Oh, C'mon. You're telling me you have never noticed how a lot of people are trying to get your attention?” “Guys too?” “Yup. You're quite the heartbreaker.” “I…” Sirius started, but he cut himself off when his eyes caught a glimpse of who was sitting at the Great Hall. Regulus was at the Slytherin table, his right hand mindlessly throwing an apple into the air and then catching it. He was almost alone, only accompanied by two Slytherins that were talking between each other, not paying a lot of attention to Regulus' presence. “You should go and try to talk to him.” “Now?” “Is your best chance,” Remus smiled reassuringly, “If anything happens, I'll be right here, don't worry.” Sirius nodded and started walking, the knowledge of Remus having his back making him blush even more than he was already. Get your thoughts together, dumbass he mumbled to himself, the sense of panic slowly starting to sink until it was almost gone. With every step that he took, the thousands of scenarios that his brain was creating seemed more and more unlikely. No matter what, Regulus wouldn't be able to kill him or inflict any pain in him, not knowing how it felt, all thanks to Walburga. The worst thing that could happen would be that he got up without any intention to talk with Sirius. And he could try again, he always could. With that mindset, he finally made it to the table, the two Slytherins that were talking between each other stopped, their eyes questioning what a Gryffindor was doing near their table and why that Gryffindor was no one else than Sirius Black. “Regulus.” He looked up, and for one moment, for one second, Sirius swore he saw the same look his brother used to do when he was trying to ask for help without being able to say it out loud. Nevertheless, the emotion quickly left Regulus eyes, making them similar to Walburga's, cold, yet somehow haunting. He didn't say anything, which made Sirius back up a little, quickly reaching to play with his ring, “We need to talk.” Regulus fixed his eyes on Sirius's ring, just to look down and start playing with his own, just like his brother did, a gesture they seemed to share “Okay.” The answer caught Sirius unprepared, the air he was trying to suppress finally leaving his mouth in a big relieved sigh. The easiest part was done, now he had to proceed with the second part of the plan. “Where?” Asked Regulus, getting up from his seat. “Maybe I can walk you to the Slytherin common room?” And Sirius cursed himself mentally when the first idea that came to his mind was said out loud, it could be unpleasant for him, but he continued anyway, he wanted Regulus to feel comfortable, “You are on a break, right?” “Yes. Let's go.” As they started to gradually gain speed in their walk, Sirius looked back, finding Remus staring at him with a shy smile. He smiled back, signing with his hands that he was going to be back in a few minutes. Remus nodded and started to take the Christmas decorations out of the box, his hands carefully leaving them in the Gryffindor table. Sirius knew that under Remus control, nothing bad would happen to those dancing Santa figures. Regulus was quiet- he had always been, but at that moment, it was making Sirius uneasy. He just needed a signal, something to tell him that it was okay to start talking. “What did you want to talk about?” Maybe Regulus knew him better than he thought. “I need you to talk with your house Prefect.” “Is it for the Christmas party?” “Yes, tell him to talk with James Potter.” “Okay,” and with that, Regulus was ready to enter the Slytherin room and eliminate any chance Sirius had to talk with him. “Wait!” and he grabbed his brother's arm, consternation dominating his expression when he noticed how weak and thin his arm felt, even more than usual. He pushed his concern aside, deciding that it was better not to ask at the moment, “There's something else.” “What is it, Black?” That hurt. But at the same time, it meant that under Regulus's eyes, Sirius was still part of the family. Which was a positive thing, somehow. “How's everything at home?” Regulus raised his eyebrows, an exasperated expression taking over his features, “Really?” “What?” Sirius asked, grabbing Regulus again when he tried to leave, “Listen… I'm sorry. I'm sorry for running away and not telling you beforehand. I… I was scared, just grabbed my things and left, didn't even plan it seriously before. That one night it just got too much.” Regulus nodded silently, leaning on the nearest wall, arms crossed. Sirius took this as a sign to keep going, so he did. The pressure on his shoulders was finally disappearing as he spoke. “And I should have told you- you're my brother. I acted selfishly, and at one point I thought I had made the right decision because… it seemed like you agreed with all the horrendous shit Walburga and Orion said. I really thought you belonged there.” “Belonging does not equal wanting to be there,” spoke Regulus, gaining a surprised look from his brother, “I can play the role I'm supposed to play, but I don't want to. I did what I had to resist a little longer in that hell. But, you, I-” and when his voice became a little shaky, Sirius gulped, “I thought you abandoned me.” “Reg.” “After you left, they have become even more distant. Not that I care, but- sometimes I feel they are waiting for me to get up one day during dinner just to throw me an unforgivable curse for no reason. Now, no one is watching them, no one is making sure I stay alive. Is not safe for me to leave, but is not safe for me to stay either.” “Stay at Hogwarts.” “What?” Regulus's voice was full of confusion caused by the sudden response of his brother. “Stay at Hogwarts as long as you can, for every holiday if it's necessary. Every day you can spend here, you take it. We can figure something out, we can talk with the professors.” “Is not that simple, you know they got a lot of power around here.” “It doesn't matter, I promise you I'll take you out of that house.” “You don't have to.” “I owe you that.” Regulus snorted, maybe to try and hide the fact that his eyes were becoming teary, “Okay. That's alright.” “I know we have never been, you know, really emotional,” Sirius extended his arms slowly, his eyes full of tears, “but c'mon, one hug? Doesn't have to be that long. ” Regulus didn't even think twice before hugging his brother, his arms squeezing Sirius. Was at this moment that the older of the two brothers remembered that Regulus was a little bit younger than him, and sometimes he was extremely mature for his age, and for other instances (like that one) he was still the quiet kid and thoughtful kid Sirius cared for. 

[justauthoring]

No Reason To (39/50)

Prompt: “And I guess… when it comes down to it, I trust you.”

A/N: This chapter is a bit shorter and for fair warning, chapters from this point on most likely will be! Especially compared to season five. There will be one to two episodes per chapter! OH! And from this point we are on the last TWELVE CHAPTERS!

Send me a little comment in the ask section or leave it below on what you thought of this chapter. As usual, I hope you all enjoyed!

AGAIN, remember if you’d like me to continue this series, just leave a little comment or an ask letting me know. I will NOT continue the series if no one wants me to.

Please don’t plagiarize my work!

Pairing: Stiles x McCall!Reader

Based off of: Teen Wolf 06x01

“Okay, so, you think you’re good for tomorrow?”

The boy sat across from you flickers his gaze up at you at the sound of your voice. Almost instantly, a bright smile crosses his lips as he sends you a confident nod. “Totally,” he assures, slowly shutting his textbook. “And I wouldn’t be without you. So, thank you.”

With a soft smile, you follow the younger boys lead, shoving your books into your bag. “Of course, Jeremy. That’s what i’m here for. To help you.”

“No, I mean,” he begins, voice sharp in an attempt to stop you. He catches you just as you push yourself to your feet, reaching across the table to set his hand over your own stretched one. Your eyes flicker from his hand back up to his eyes, gaze questioning as he eases, cheeks warming faintly. “I just mean, we went way past our hour all because you wanted to make sure I was ready for the test tomorrow. So... thank you.”

“Oh,” you mumble, biting your lower lip, not oblivious to the way the boy still has his hand on yours. “Of course,” you repeat, smiling warmly. “You’re a smart boy anyway, i’m sure you would’ve been able to get it on your own. Though,” and a smirk falls on your lips then, a twinkle shining in your eyes. “The effort does help.”

He lets out a light chuckle, finally pulling his hand back and mimicking you as you move around the table, heading out of the library. You gaze at him from the corner of your eye, watching as he runs a hand through his hair, brushing it back and out of his face. The soft warm glow to his cheek is still there, and as your brows furrow in puzzlement, you’re sure his cheeks get even warmer.

“I’m only able to focus with you.”

Laughing lightly, not really sure how to respond to what you’re sure is not just a friendly statement, you pull the strap of your bag up on your shoulder, swallowing thickly. Your eyes flicker around quickly, relief flooding you when you realize you’re nearing the exit doors. “Good to hear,” you comment lightly, nodding slowly. “And I’m sure you’ll ace the test tomorrow, but..,” you begin, pushing open the doors and pulling your keys out of your bag. “It’s been a long day, so I think i’m gonna head home.”

“Oh,” Jeremy mumbles, and you’re not oblivious to the way his shoulders fall. “I was thinking maybe we could grab a bite to eat or...”

Lips parting, your chest tightens, eyes widening as you scramble for a response. By the disheartened look in the boys face, you can tell he won’t give up that easily on convincing you to hang out; even if only for a little. And saying you’re tired probably isn’t enough of an excuse anymore. But you are tired and you do want to go home; and above all, this boy was freshman. 

And maybe, just maybe, your heart was still set on someone else.

Still, you did have to give the boy credit; he had guts.

“I, uh,” you stammer, licking your lips, “I should--”

Thanking the Gods on whoever decided to call you at that exact moment, you send an apologetic glance Jeremy’s way before reaching for your phone from your bag. Your eyes narrow slightly in confusion when you read Stiles’ caller ID, ignoring the way your heart races -- even if just slightly -- at his name, swiping yes to answer.

“Stiles?”

“Hey, Y/N!” Stiles calls, almost sounding breathless. “Good news! They need us!”

“Uh,” you hum, brows furrowing as you glance around, “who needs us?”

“Beacon Hills,” he explains, as if that’s suppose to make any sense. 

Stiles takes your silence as it doesn’t.

“My dad called me. There’s a kid who can’t seem to remember his parents. Like, at all. Where they are, what they look like... Scott’s going to see if he can find out anything from the kid.”

Pursing your lips, you nod even though you know Stiles can’t see you. “I’ll be there in a minute. I’m at the school anyway.”

There’s a pause, then; “you’re not at home?”

“No,” you frown, “I’ve been tutoring, remember? Tonight I had a session with Jeremy.”

“Jeremy... Jeremy. Oh, the freshman!” He pauses, again. “I thought you were finished tutoring him.”

“What? No, I... It doesn’t matter. I’ll meet you there.”

You hang up before Stiles can argue any further.

Turning to Jeremy, you smile softly over at him. “Sorry, that was--”

“Stiles,” he interrupts gently, nodding as he shoves his hands into his front pockets. Your eyes narrow at the deep set frown that curls onto his lips. “You’re boyfriend, right?”

You blink in surprise; “he’s not...-- anyways, um, I have to go. My brother and... Stiles need my help with something.” Shaking your head, you begin to shuffle backwards, pointing behind you in the direction of your car as you send a wave Jeremy’s way. “Text me tomorrow letting me know how the test goes. I’ll see you next week!”

“Yeah,” the boy mumbles under his breath, watching as you leave. “Next week.”

-

“Here. You can hold my hand.”

The young boy glances up at you, obviously terrified. However, as you hold your palm up towards him, a gentle smile on your lips, he seems to ease; even if just a little. And he doesn’t refuse your hand either, his smaller hand slipping into your own and squeezing tightly.

Meeting your brothers eyes, you nod.

Scott braces the boy by sending him one last questioning glance, to which the boy nods in agreement. And your eyes flicker to the back of his neck, watching as Scott inches his claws closer and closer until finally, with a sharp jab, slips them into the boys neck. He instantly tenses, his fingers digging into the skin of your hand but you don’t dare respond or pull back.

You can’t imagine how terrified this poor boy must be.

And for a while, Scott’s silent. Even through his lids you can see his eyes turning every which way in response to what he’s seeing through the boys memory. But it only lasts for a couple of minutes before he’s pulling back with a gasp, springing to his feet and stumbling as Noah and Stiles rush to help him steady. You keep close to the boy, eyes scanning across him to make sure he’s okay as his grip finally eases.

“What’d you see?” Stiles asks, eyes flickering from Scott to Alex.

Turning to Scott, you wait for his answer.

“I saw a guy on a horse.”

Stiles blinks; “horse?”

“He had a gun,” Scott breathes, panicked eyes meeting Stiles’.

“Okay,” Noah begins, “a guy with a gun. That sounds like my department, not yours.”

“Wait,” you call, shaking your head, “what about his parents? What happened to them?”

“I don’t know,” Scott shakes his head, brows furrowing, trying to remember what he’d seen. “That’s all I remember. But... I got this feeling.”

“What kind of feeling?”

Scott winces. “They’re coming back.”

Flinching lightly at the boy’s sudden voice, your wide eyes fall on him. You watch, baffled, as his head slowly rises, meeting your gaze before flickering to the others. 

“They’re coming for me.”

-

“I don’t think they’re dead.”

Handing Malia her clothes, you frown at Lydia’s words in bafflement.

“They’re dead,” Malia argues, shaking her head adamantly as she takes the clothes from your hands gratefully. “Probably torn apart,” she continues, “the only thing I don’t get is why there’s no blood.”

“They’re not dead,” Lydia repeats, confident in her words. “If they were dead, I’d sense it.”

“If they were alive, I’d smell it.”

“Yeah,” Scott nods, “i’m not getting anything either.”

“Scott, what’re you talking about?” Stiles questions, baffled. “You were in his head for four minutes. I timed it.”

“Well, it’s not an exact science,” Scott explains. “And he’s a kid. Maybe he’s too freaked out to remember.”

“He was scared,” you nod, meeting your brothers eyes before glancing at the rest. “Like, terrified. I could see it in his eyes,” pausing briefly, you shudder at the thought. “Whatever he saw...”

“Okay,” Malia says slowly, letting out a huff; “why does it matter if they’re dead? Dead is dead.”

“Okay, if it’s just a robbery, we can’t help them,” Stiles sighs, “and if it’s something supernatural, my dad can’t help them.”

“It sounds like you want it to be supernatural.”

“He does,” you say simply, nodding at Lydia.

Stiles pauses, meeting your eyes with a frown. “It’s been like, three months since something’s happened.”

“Yeah,” Lydia huffs, ,”and once a week you drag me out of bed like I’m some sort of supernatural metal detector.”

“Okay,” Stiles calls in defense of himself. “It is way more often than that.” Shaking your head, you cross your arms over your chest. “You-You can’t tell me that you think this is just some series of impossible coincidences?”

“What i’s saying is maybe that wouldn’t be so bad.”

With that, Lydia turns, walking off. You can’t help but smile, biting your lip in an attempt to hide it, as Malia sends a look Stiles’ way, flipping her hair over her shoulder in agreement of Lydia and following after her.

Stiles rushes after them, but only makes it two steps, not really saying anything. He turns to you and Scott in hope you’ll agree. You don’t.

Neither does Scott if the shrug he gives Stiles is anything to go by.

“I mean, Stiles,” you mumble, shaking your head at him. “Would it really be that bad?”

He just scoffs at the both of you, storming past and slipping into the drivers seat of the Alex’s parents car. Slamming the car door shut behind him, he slumps against the seat, staring at the broken windshield.

With a brief glance to Scott, you both make your way over to Stiles.

“You’re staring at a broken windshield.”

“There’s something wrong with it.”

“Yeah,” you nod, “it’s broken.”

Stiles’ eyes fall shut.

“And,” Scott adds, leaning towards Stiles, “it wasn’t a magic bullet. It was a regular bullet. That blew out a regular windshield.” Then, turning over his shoulder, he points to another car; “just like that one, and that one, and...”

Brows furrowing, your eyes fall on Scott as he slows.

“...That one.”

Stiles seems to understand his meaning, eyes flickering across the broken windshield of the car he’s in before picking up a shard of glance.

Your eyes widen in realization.

“Magic bullet.”

Shoulders dropping, you frown; “can’t it just ever not be something supernatural?”

-

“Y/N!”

Blinking at Stiles, you slowly lower your books onto the table where everyone else is sat, eyes flickering from Malia, to Lydia to your brother, before back to Stiles. “Stiles.” You call back lightly, shaking your head in confused and mocked excitement.

“They,” he glowers down at the rest, “don’t want to come with me but I know you won’t fail me.” You blink. “So, would you like to come with me to an abandoned house?”

“Uh, um... why would I want to go with you to an abandoned house?”

“The missing parents!” He exclaims, explaining it all. You slump slightly at the mention, face easing with understanding but unable to stop the way your shoulders fall in response. “Come on!” He calls in response to your reaction, “missing parents, suspicious guy on horseback, magic bullet. Wanna come with?”

Glancing down at the other three, you bite back your smile, taking a seat at the table. “As much as that sounds like absolute fun,” you tease, “I can’t.”

Stiles’ face instantly falls. “Why not?”

“I’ve got tutoring.”

“You’ve always got tutoring,” he groans, frowning at you.

“Yeah, well...” You don’t really have any other response then that.

“No, Stiles is right though,” Scott pipes up, pulling your eyes on him as he leans towards you. However he pauses in regret at the way Stiles perks, shaking his head; “meaning the tutoring,” he turns to you. “You’re always tutoring people. You wake up early and go home late just to keep up with it all.”

“And,” Malia adds, frowning, “you barely have time for us anymore.”

You jerk your head back at that; “what do you mean? I always hang out with you guys.”

“Uh, no, you don’t,” Lydia smirks, pointing her finger at you. “It’s practically a miracle you’re even here now.”

“Won’t even come to an abandoned house with me,” Stiles grumbles.

You choose to ignore him. “It’s not that bad.” 

They all send you a look.

Letting out a heavy sigh, you give up trying to convince them otherwise, slumping against the table, arms sprawled out in front of yourself. “It’s just this one kid, Jeremy?” They nod in recognition. “He’s a freshman and he’s always extending our sessions way past the set time. And I can’t say no because he always looks so... desperate. It just takes a lot out of me, I guess.”

“Just tell him that,” Scott reminds, shaking his head at you in confusion.

Letting your head fall in your hand, you sigh. “I can’t.”

Malia frowns; “why not?”

“Because the boys got a crush on her,” Stiles huffs, causing everyone to blink over at him in surprise. Lips parting at their reaction, he shrugs: “what? I’m not wrong. He’s like in love with Y/N.”

Lips parting, you try to fight the blush that threatens to grow; “he is not! He’s just... sweet.”

Stiles rolls his eyes; “sure.”

“How would you even know?” You call back in defense of yourself, sending Stiles a quirked brow. 

It’s Stiles’ turn to be stumbling for a response. “I... I may or may have not checked in on a few of your tutoring sessions.”

Your eyes bulge; “what? Stiles, that’s weird!”

Stiles doesn’t waste time arguing back. “I’m just making sure nothing bad is happening!”

“He’s just a freshman!”

“Doesn’t mean he isn’t dangerous!”

All the while, the both of you seem to forget the audience watching the both of you.

“Stiles--”

“Hey, can I get a candid?”

You blink at the sound of Lori.

“Uh, no--” Stiles tries to argue, but Scott cuts him off.

“Yeah, sure.”

Rolling your eyes at Stiles, you laugh as Scott pulls him forward, making room for him to sit next. You stand up in response, falling to your brothers other side and leaning on the table to make it into the shot.

“Okay, fine,” Stiles huffs, “if you can explain to me why this,” he pulls something from his back pocket. “Is blue. I’ll let it go.” 

You glance over Scott’s shoulder, brows furrowing at the blue stained glass. It was strange--

“Everyone, smile!”

Blinking, you raise your eyes to the camera, pushing back your thoughts briefly. You teasingly raise your two fingers behind Scott’s head, lips curling upwards brightly and eyes twinkling with delight as you pose for the picture.

-

Y/N...

“Not again.”

“Sorry?”

Blinking at the sound of Emma’s voice, pulled from your own heavy thoughts, you shake your head, smiling softly -- forced. “What?”

She blinks, puzzled; “you said ‘not again’. Is everything okay?”

“Yeah, yeah,” you mumble, moving to stand up. “Yeah, of--”

Y/N...

“Of course. Yeah, woah, um,” glancing around, you gesture towards the windows in the library. “Look at that. It’s dark. Can we, uh... can we wrap up this session for today?”

Emma follows your lead, slowly standing. It’s obvious she’s confused, her brows furrowing and a deep frowning marring her lips. But she doesn’t argue, instead, she simply nods her head, slow and hesitant. “Uh, yeah, of course. Is... Is everything alright, Y/N?”

“Yeah, totally,” you dismiss, hastily shoving your books into your bag. “I’ll see you next week.”

Help...

She calls after you but you don’t answer. You hastily turn, making your way out of the library and into the parking lot. You’re thankful no ones around when you make it out, setting a hand against your chest and trying to calm your racing heart. Why? Why now?

After all this time?

Help me...

“Theo,” you groan, his name leaving your lips in a hiss. It didn’t make sense. Since that first day, so long ago now, Theo hasn’t tried to contact you. Not once. 

You still didn’t even know how he had...

But why would he now? Why specifically now?

“Get out of my head,” you huff, pressing the palms of your hands against your ears. “Get out, Theo. Get out.”

There’s a moment, just a brief one, of silence. Then,

Not Theo...

Chest tightening, you pause. Not Theo? Who else could it be? Who else... It didn’t make sense. Not one bit of it. The logic behind how Theo had reached you, through your head, still didn’t make sense. However, this was different. This, somehow, wasn’t Theo and someone else. But who else would? Who else would be able to?

Who needed help?

It’s then, almost like a slap across the face, you realize that this feels different but yet, familiar.. It’s a sensation you’ve felt before, just slightly different. Stronger, even. This.... This sense inside of you bubbles within the middle of your chest like a fire waiting to burst. There’s something pounding in your head, screaming at you to listen.

But who else would need your help?

Remember...

“Stiles...”

You’re not sure why it’s his name that leaves your lips. However, as it does, it just makes sense. It just fits.

You can’t explain how or why, and the voice doesn’t even sound like Stiles but... you realize why this feeling is familiar. Why this sense of panic that overwhelms you suddenly makes so much sense; it was your instinct. The instinct you’ve ignored time and time again and because of that, things have gone wrong. Terribly so. 

Starting from Void Stiles to Theo... 

It was your instinct, yourself... somehow, warning you. Warning you of what’s to come.

Something was wrong with Stiles.

You move to grab your phone, move to call Stiles knowing him and Scott had gone to that house after school and you hope to reach at least one of them. But as you do, you seem to register the flickering lights from afar; out of the corner of your eye. You turn your head, shuffling in the direction, eyes squinting as you try to make sense of what you’re seeing.

Your lips curve into a deep frown when you realize it’s police cars.

You’re not sure why you hadn’t noticed them before.

Shoving your phone back into your pocket, you pick up the speed in your step, racing round the school, to the other side and towards the police cars and ambulances. Your lips part, trying to understand what’s happening or to find a familiar face; maybe the sheriff and ask him what’s going on.

But, before you can, you run into another.

“Y/N!”

Blinking, you stumble back, finding your footing thanks to the hands that hold tight onto you, holding you steadily. You pull your head back, a bout of brief relief flooding you at the sight of your brother. “Scott,” you breathe, chest tightening as that voice, that faint, light voice in the back of your head reminds you; something’s wrong.

Stiles is in danger.

“Thank God. I was looking for you.”

“Me too,” Scott nods, panic clear in his gaze. “Have you seen Liam or Hayden?”

“Liam and Hayden?” You question, baffled, shaking your head. “No. But, Scott, there’s something wrong--”

“Yeah, Liam and Hayden are in danger. They’re next.”

Lips parting, you huff; “next for what?”

“The Ghost Riders. They’re next.” He explains in a rush, words leaving his lips quick and frantic. “Alex’s parents were taken and then Alex just was. They take you and erase all memory of you. From everyone. Everything about you seizes to exist.”

Your heart plummets.

If that was true, then...

“Scott, Liam and Hayden aren’t the ones in danger,” you swallow thickly, heart pounding madly against your chest. “It’s Stiles. He’s next. I can’t explain how I know, but I just do, okay? We need to find him--”

“Stiles?” Scott questions, brows furrowed.

“Yes,” you huff, frantically moving to step past Scott, moving to pull him with you. “You just have to trust me. We have to find Stiles before--”

Scott’s hand wraps around your arm, surprising you as he pulls you back, halting your movements. Blinking down at his hand before meeting his gaze, your lips part to speak but he beats you to punch. And the words he says absolutely breaks your heart. “Whose Stiles?”

It’s already started...

“Stiles,” you emphasis, “your... your best friend? The boy you’ve known since you were four?”

Lips parting, the look in Scott’s eyes tells you he has absolutely no idea who you’re talking about.

Eyes watering with distress, you take a step back, pulling your arm from Scott’s grasp. “You don’t remember?”

“Y/N,” he calls, voice firm, reaching out for you. “Who are you talking about?”

“Oh, God,” you breathe, voice shaky. “It’s already started...”

“What’s already started? Y/N, whose Stiles?”

You ignore Scott. Ignore the worried and confused look in his eyes as he glances back at you. You meet his gaze one final time before turning, running off and past him before he can even attempt to stop you. He calls after you, but you don’t bother to listen, your feet racing beneath you, eyes frantically searching every which way for even just a glimpse of Stiles.

You need to find him. You need to. Before this gets worst; before... before you maybe forget him too.

You... don’t want to forget him. 

Not before telling him...

“Okay, okay, Y/N. Just breathe. Breathe.” Slowing your step, you glance around the open courtyard of the school, nodding to yourself in encouragement. “He has to be here. He has to be. Where would he--”

The sound of doors opening interrupts you, catching your attention.

You’re not sure if you’ve ever been as relieved as you are in that moment to see Stiles.

His eyes catch yours and he hesitates, terror flooding his gaze. But the second you call out his name in distress, voice cracking and you’re racing towards him he knows that you remember him. 

“Y/N!” He calls, hands falling on your arms as you reach him. “You know me. You remember me. Oh my God, you remember me!”

“Of course I remember you,” you breathe, hands falling on his arms too, gripping onto him tightly, afraid of him disappearing on you. “How could I not? But Stiles, Scott--”

“I know, I know,” he cuts in, glancing around before focusing in on you. Meeting his eyes, you pant, chest rising and falling frantically as you step closer to him, refusing to let go.

The two of you are silent, unsure, but then, the distant sound of wind picks up in your ears.

Glancing around, your brows furrow when you don’t see anything.

However, Stiles’ grip tightens on you, and he leans closer. “Hey, do you see him?” He asks, pointing past your shoulders. You follow the direction, lips parting and eyes narrowing when there’s nothing there.

“See what?”

“The guy on the horse.”

You blink. “Stiles,” you call slowly, turning to him. “Does that mean...--?”

“No, I know, I know,” he cuts in, shaking his head at you before he can continue. Cupping your cheeks, he leans in close, keeping his eyes trained on your own and trying to remain calm. The words he speaks he says with certainty, without an ounce of doubt in his mind. “Okay, they’re coming for me. Which means you have to get away from me right now, okay?”

He shakes you, voice firm as he tries to convince you. But you won’t listen. Of course you won’t listen. There’s nothing, nothing in the world that could convince you to leave Stiles right now and right there; not even if you’re life was in danger because of it.

Shaking your head, you grip firmly onto his arms; “no, no,” you argue, voice soft at first. With each word you say, your voice spikes higher and higher, panic bleeding into rational thought. “No, i’m not leaving you, Stiles. I won’t.”

And he pauses at that. Part of him must of known there was no way you’d leave, but you’re sure a part of him, a rather large part of him, hoped you would. You watch as his eyes flicker from your own to past you, where you assume he sees the man on the horse, the Ghost Rider, before back to you. It’s then he comes to a decision, shifting his grip to your hand and gripping onto it firmly as he tugs gently. “All right, come on. Come on!”

You follow without fault. You’re sure it’s a situation of the blind leading the blind because of the way Stiles is glancing over his shoulder every few seconds, you assume that the Ghost Rider is directly behind the both of you.

“This way. This way, come on!”

You make a sharp turn, but only make it a few steps before Stiles is calling out in panic, desperately pulling you back. Eyes wide, you shake your head.

“Okay,” Stiles gasps, turning the opposite direction, “this way. Keep going!”

Again the two of you only make it few steps before Stiles comes to an abrupt halt.

Using your free hand to brush back strands of wild loose hair that had fallen into your eyes, you glance around frantically, eyes squinting in the hopes you’ll something, one of them; but you don’t. You never do. “Where are they?”

And Stiles takes a moment to reply, and when he does, your heart falls at his words.

“They’re everywhere.”

He paces on his feet, hand gripping onto yours tightly but you barely feel it. You’re too scared; and not for yourself.

“Come on, come on, come on,” Stiles calls, pulling you back. Your head turns over your shoulder in response, blinking at the sight of his jeep and understanding his meaning. You gain more controlling over your own footing, quickening your pace.

“Okay, Y/N, don’t look at them, okay? Don’t even try to!” Stiles warns, slipping his hand from your own to make his way to the drivers seat. You try to hold onto it for a moment longer, terrified it’ll be the last time you’ll feel his touch, before you shuffle, moving towards the passenger’s side. “Don’t try to do anything. Don’t try to use your powers. They’ll take you, too. Just do not look at them.”

You quickly climb into the passengers seat, eyes instantly falling on Stiles’ own. “But maybe.... maybe I can help-- my powers, maybe--”

“No, no, you can’t. You can’t.” His words are muffled but clear. You don’t try to argue anymore as your eyes fall to his hands, watching as he tries to put his keys frantically in the ignition. But his hands are too shaky and far too jittery so it takes him a few tries before he even gets the key properly in. And then, when he does, he stops, doesn’t turn the key -- doesn’t do anything.

He just stills.

You watch him for a moment, staring at the keys, before you whimper; “what are you doing?” And then, turning your head towards him, you plead with him; “we need to go!”

Stiles doesn’t say anything. Not at first.

He pulls his key out of the ignition, “there’s no time.”

Meeting his eyes, your lips part; “Stiles--”

“Y/N,” he calls, leaning towards you, grabbing onto your arms and pulling you close. Then his hands slide lower, never letting go of you. “I’m going to be erased, okay?” You can’t say anything, your head shakes and your lips part, but you’re stunned silent. “Just like Alex. You’re gonna forget me.”

“No,” you cry, the word just spilling from your lips. “No, I... I won’t. I couldn’t forget you, Stiles.”

“Y/N... you will.” 

And you blink at that, heart breaking at the fact that he’s right.

“Just... try to find some way to remember me, okay?” His hand slips into your own again, threading his fingers through your own, gripping onto you tightly, firmly. “Remember... that it’s always been you... Remember that it’s never been anyone but you, from the first minute I saw you...”

Swallowing thickly, you let the words sink in, never tearing your gaze away from Stiles. These are the words you’ve been wanting to hear for months, wanting to know if you’re feelings for Stiles were one sided. If you were still the one he loved.... and now that you are hearing them, he’s about to be taken away from you.

“Remember that you saved my life.”

Lips parting, you whisper; “you saved me life too...” And then you shake your head, small, stiffly, and you feel your eyes water. “Countless times...”

He’s silent for a moment, gazing back at you, as if taking it all in for the last time. And then,

“Just remember... Remember that I never stopped loving you and...” He blinks, eyes never wavering from your own. “I never will.”

There’s an echo of silence, and then, he’s being ripped from you. 

You watch as he’s pulled out of the car, and even as you try to hold onto him, you can’t. His hand is pulled from your own and yours is left wandering there, flinching when the car door is slammed shut behind him. There’s a flash and then there’s just... nothing.

It feels like the image of him is... disappearing.

“Remember,” you mumble, softly, inaudible except to yourself. Eyes flickering lower, to your hand, your brows furrow. “Remember... you have to.... remember...”

Remember... what?

-

Pushing open the doors to the school, you find you’re slow in your step.

Your eyes wander across the crowd of students, feeling your chest tighten for some reason as you do. Things feel wrong, but you can’t explain why. It feels like a blank spot in your mind when you try to search for the reason why. And as you glance around, catching sight of Hayden, Liam, Mason and Corey, they smile and wave at you like nothing is wrong.

And everything else seems normal.

But it’s like this instinct, this sense... 

“Y/N?”

Blinking, your head turns, meeting a familiar pair of blue eyes.

“Everything okay?”

At your silence he takes a step towards you, curling his arm around your waist and pulling you flush against him. A soft smile curls onto his lips as he does, pressing a kiss to the side of your head, and blinking back down at you in curiosity and mild concern.

“Yeah,” you say softly, a whisper. Then, you blink, shaking your head, smiling softly up at him. “Morning, Isaac.”

His grin brightens, turns goofy as he squeezes your hip gently. “Mornin’,” and then, his smile falters, even if only a little. His brows quirk, furrow, and he tilts his head. “You sure you’re okay? You look a little distant in the eyes.”

“I--”

“Hey guys.”

Blinking over at Malia and Lydia, you find yourself slow to respond to their greeting smiles. Which, of course, instantly catches their attention.

“Everything okay, Y/N?” Malia asks softly, her brows quirking in concern.

“That’s what i’ve been trying to figure out,” Isaac calls, frowning down at you.

“She won’t tell you either?”

Turning your head, it’s your turn to frown as Scott walks up to the four of you, eyes already trained on you. For some reason, it felt... well, it felt like someone else was supposed to be with him...

But it’s just him.

“Won’t tell any of us by the looks of it,” Lydia calls, pursing her lips at you.

“Guys, it’s nothing...” You mumble, falling into Isaac’s side, letting your head fall against his shoulder. “It’s just... I don’t know... I woke up this morning and something felt wrong...”

Isaac’s brows furrow; “wrong?”

“I don’t know,” you shrug, “just like a sense...”

Just then the school bell rings. You blink at it, eyes flickering to the students that bussle around to get to class.

Glancing back at your friends, they seem to eager to go as well.

“But i’m fine,” you assure, plastering a soft smile to your lips. “I promise.”

“Well,” Scott says slowly, obviously still worried. “Just let us know if it get’s worst, okay? Your instincts are usually right.”

“We’re all here for you,” Malia adds, sending you a warm smile.

Nodding, you wave at them as they all go their respective ways. And for a moment, you forget Isaac is still there, gaze falling to your feet.

The feeling just won’t go away.

Slipping his arm from your waist and instead slipping his hand into your own, Isaac squeezes it gently, pulling your eyes on him. And, as your eyes flicker up to his own, you can’t help but have this feeling that it’s supposed to be someone else holding your hand. And not him.

And that there’s supposed to be a different pair of eyes gazing back down at you like he is.

But that wouldn’t make sense.

Isaac has been your boyfriend practically all through high school, so... who else would it be?

“Ready?” He calls gently, pulling you from your thoughts. 

Blinking, you pause; “for what?”

“Class?” He mumbles, gesturing around you at the now practically empty hallway.

“Oh, yeah, of course.” Shaking your head, you smile apologetically up at him. “Sorry, i’m just tired. Haven’t been sleeping much lately.”

Pulling you gently along, Isaac smirks teasingly; “it’s all that tutoring you’ve been doing. You’re pushing yourself too far.”

“Yeah, well,” flushing lightly, you just smile up at Isaac. “It’s extra credits. And the two i’m tutoring are very sweet.”

“Yeah, especially one.”

You don’t miss the tone behind Isaac’s words. And you push back the feeling that this conversation almost seems familiar, like you’ve heard it before. That sounded absolutely ridiculous. Maybe it just sounded similar because Isaac’s had an issue with you tutoring this kid for a while -- yeah, that must be it.

Rolling your eyes, you just laugh; “Jeremy’s nice, Isaac. There’s no reason to be jealous.”

Isaac’s eyes widen in disbelief; “he totally has a crush on you!”

“He does not!”

“Yes,” he emphasizes, “he does.”

Shaking your head, you decide not to argue, already knowing that this is something Isaac has been convinced of for a while.

“Well, it doesn’t matter if he does or doesn’t,” you smile gently, leaning against Isaac to press a quick, teasing kiss against his cheek. “You’re the only one for me.”

And he eases at that; “of course,” he grins, “who else?”

Someone else...

No.

Chuckling at his words, you pull back from him, ignoring his attempt for a proper kiss. “I’ve got to get to class, Isaac. I’m already late.”

“Which is why one last kiss won’t matter!”

Slipping your hand from his own, you shake your head; “i’ll see you later, Isaac.”

He just sighs, but doesn’t argue, letting you slip into class. You offer one last wave, before moving to your seat and settling down, taking out your books and everything else you’ll need. However, just as you move to set your bag down, something causes you to freeze;

And not just something but a... voice.

Remember...

“Remember,” you whisper, to yourself mainly, shaking your head. “Remember what?”

-

Part 40?

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[thebrotherssalvatore321]

Keeping Secrets Ch. 8

Keeping Secrets Masterlist

Pairing: Damonxoc, Tylerxoc, Elijahxoc, Klausxoc endgame. Warnings: Mental and physical abuse.

The next morning Katie dragged herself from bed and to school. She had to keep reminding herself that Damon was just a guy and she couldn’t put her life on hold because of him. Damon was leaving and the changes he had made to her life were staying. So why should she beat herself up about it? As soon as the final bell rang Katie’s phone started vibrating in her pocket. When she saw the name The Hotter Salvatore Brother on the screen she almost didn’t answer it, but as always she went against her better judgment and did. “I thought you already told me goodbye.” She answered.

“I know what I said, but I’m not going anywhere for now. There’s another vampire in town.” He informed her. “I need you to help me find it.”

“Why me?” she asked as she headed to her car and spotted Elena and Stefan talking. He was probably telling her the same thing Damon was telling Katie, but without asking for help.

“Because,” he said then made an aggravated sound, “Meet me at your house and I’ll explain everything, okay?”

“Yeah sure.” She sighed and closed her car door.

TVDTVDTVD

“So how do you know there’s another vampire in town?” Katie asked as Damon opened her car door and she stepped out onto the cement driveway.

“Because Sheriff Forbes came by this morning and said they found another body drained of blood. Despite what Stefan thinks, I didn’t do it.” He said as he shut her car door and they headed for the house.

“So how am I supposed to help you find it?” she asked as she unlocked her front door and they walked inside.

“With this.” He said as he pulled a pocket watch out of his back pocket.

“A pocket watch?” she asked as she watched him open the gold circle watch and flip it around.

“It’s a compass that points to vampires.” He said as he pressed the button on the link where a chain could be put and the pointer started spinning until it pointed at Damon and clicked into place. When he moved behind her it started spinning again until it found him and clicked into place again. “See simple.”

“So because you would interfere with the vamp signal I have to be the one to use this and figure out where the vampire you’re looking for is?” she asked piecing things together.

‘Yep.” He answered. “And it’s daylight so nine judges out of ten suggests that the vampire is somewhere inside and not able to hurt you if you’re in the daylight so…” he said as he walked around her and flopped down on her couch, propping his feet up on the table. “Get to lookin’.”

“Okay one, I’m not even sure I want to help you after you ditched me at the church. I had to walk home just so you know. Two, what do I get out of this? And three get your dirty feet off the coffee table.”

“What do you want to get out of this?” he asked as he took his feet down off the table.

Katie thought about it for a second. “Make me an offer I can’t refuse.” She challenged.

“Hmm, I know sex isn’t going to work…” he said as he stood up and started pacing around her in a circle. “Or is it?”

“It isn’t.” she confirmed. He hummed and started walking around her looking her up and down as he thought about what he could offer her. “Seriously, you can’t think of one thing you can give me in return for helping you?”

“Uninterrupted time with me at my place.” He offered and she made a motion for him to sweeten the deal. “And I’m sorry for leaving you alone at the church.” She made the hand motion again. “Dinner and a movie?” he asked not knowing what else he could throw in to make the deal better.

“Bump me back up to girlfriend status and we have a deal.” She said as she stuck her hand out and raised a challenging eyebrow.

He took her hand and shook it twice before he pulled her into him and wrapped his arms around her as he kissed her. “Deal. Now get to it before you lose the light.” He let go of her and she rolled her eyes.

After two and a half hours of driving around and watching the compass it finally clicked into place and she followed it to an abandoned warehouse. So she closed it and called Damon. “I found it. I’m sending you the address now.”

“I’m on my way.” He told her and she could hear wind over the phone.

“Are you…whooshing, all the way here?” she asked before he appeared outside her car.

“Yep.” He answered with a smile then they both hung up the phone.

“I don’t think I’ll ever get used to that.” She said as she opened her door and hopped out, shutting it behind her.

“Have I thanked you for this?” he asked as he grabbed her hips and pulled her into him.

“No, but you’re welcome.” She said with a sigh. “Can I go to career night now?” she asked as she placed her hands on his chest and gave him a light push.

“What are you planning on doing with your future?” he asked curiously. “You work so hard to be at the top of your class…it must be something good like a doctor or…a dentist.” He asked with a sarcastic eye roll.

“I’ll let you know after I go to career night.” She told him and he finally let go of her hips.

“Okay, go. Have fun.” He told her as he opened her door for her and shut it behind her.

She’d been at the career fair for a few hours and was looking at the booth handing out pamphlets on law degrees when she got a call from Damon. “It’s Logan Fell.”

“What?” Katie asked as she headed outside where it was quieter.

“Logan Fell is the vampire and he’s there, at career night.” Damon told her. “I’m on my way, but until I get there stay away from him.” He warned. “Find Elena and Stefan…stay with them.”

“Okay.” she told him and he hung up. Katie was leaning in the corner of the building taking a few calming breaths when she saw Mayor Lockwood pushing Jeremy and Tyler out the door she had come through, completely overlooking her.

Katie stood back watching Mayor Lockwood talking to the boys. Mr. Saltzman, the new history teacher walked out, not missing her like the Mayor did and walked over to them as the Mayor shoved Tyler. “Whoa. What’s goin’ on out here?” Mr. Saltzman asked.

“I can answer that question.” Katie spoke up as she walked over to stand next to her teacher who gave her a questioning look. “He’s bullying them.” She answered then looked at the Mayor. “Just like he and my grandpa used to do to me every time they got drunk together. They called it preparing me for the real world. Isn’t that right Mayor Lockwood?” Katie asked as she crossed her arms over her chest.

“What?” Tyler asked looking past his father to Katie who let her eyes slip to the concrete.

“Okay I think we all need to go back inside.” Mr. Saltzman spoke up, placing a hand on Katie’s back to usher her back inside.

“Na, we’re good here. You two go back inside.” The mayor said turning back to the boys.

“I don’t want to go back inside.” Mr. Saltzman spoke up taking a step closer to the mayor. “What I want is your answer to my question.” He pointed at the mayor.

“Who do you think you’re talking to?” the mayor asked, walking a little closer to Mr. Saltzman. “Do I look like a student?”

“No, you look like a full-grown alpha-male douchebag.” Mr. Saltzman replied

“Yeah…I’m gonna move…somewhere out of striking distance.” Katie drawled as she moved to stand next to Tyler anticipating a fist fight between the two men.

“You don’t talk to me like that.” The mayor said walking even closer to the teacher. “I could have you job like this.” He snapped his fingers.

Mr. Saltzman laughed. “You do that. Then it’ll be me and you out here in this parking lot working things out.” He broadened his stance and crossed his arms over his chest. “You cool with that?”

“You just mark yourself.” The Mayor threatened.

“Yeah, ok” Mr. Saltzman whispered.

The mayor glared at Tyler before they walked off together. When they were gone Katie started to walk off, but Mr. Saltzman grabbed her jacket sleeve as she passed him stopping her. She looked across her shoulder at him to see him looking at Jeremy. “Are you okay?” Jeremy nodded and walked off leaving her alone with her teacher who let go of her leather jacket sleeve and turned to her. “Was any of that true or were you just stoking the flames?” he asked, crossing his arms over his chest.

Katie sighed and walked over the lean against the railing where Tyler and Jeremy had been standing. “It was all true.” She admitted as she crossed her arms over her chest uncomfortably. “I thought Tyler should know that he’s not the only one who’s been…bullied, by his father.”

“And what you said about your grandfather…” he prompted.

“He used to, but��he stopped thanks to a close friend of mine.” She answered with a small smile. “Thanks for the concern though.” Katie said as she pushed herself off of the rails and headed for the door.

“Any time.” He told her with a small, close lipped smile and a nod as he opened the door and jerked his head to inside.

She found Elena in the hallway. “Hey, where’s Stefan?” she asked Elena with a frown. “And have you seen Logan Fell?”

“What do you know about Logan?” Elena asked, looking confused.

“I know that he’s a you-know-what and that he was here.” Katie answered, earning a questioning look. “Damon called me, wanted me to stay safe.” she said with a shrug as if it were no big deal.

“Last we heard he was giving Caroline a ride home. Stefan went after him.” She told her with a shrug. “Stefan told me to stay here, you probably should too.” She told her as they looked around at all the people in the hallway. “So you’re talking to Damon again?”

“He called. I answered.” Katie said with a shrug.

“I swear you’re like a fish on a hook and he just keeps reeling you in.” Elena sighed, moving to lean against a locker.

“And that’s different from you and Stefan how?” Katie asked Elena who just stared at her. “I need some air.”

She was sitting on a picnic table outside the school, not caring if Logan Fell found her when Tyler walked over and sat down next to her. “Is it true?” he asked and Katie looked across her shoulder at him. “What you said about my dad.”

Katie started picking at her cuticles as she nodded. “Yeah, it’s true.” She looked back down at her hands.

“Why didn’t you ever say anything?” he asked leaning forward to put his elbows on his knees.

“Probably the same reasons you haven’t said anything to anyone.” She answered quietly. “And because I didn’t know he did it to you too.” She answered leaning forward, mimicking his position. “I thought it was just some sick game he and my grandpa played when they got drunk.”

“So your grandpa-?” he asked looking over at her and how she was picking at her nails.

“Yeah.” She answered with a nod, not letting him finish the sentence.

“That sucks.” He said not knowing what else to say and things fell awkwardly silent.

“You came here with your dad right?” Katie asked, looking around to see that the Mayor’s car was nowhere in sight. Tyler hummed a yes as he looked around too. “Do you need a ride home?”

“I was gonna ask Matt for a ride, but it looks like he’s already left.” He said with a sigh.

“Then it’s settled. You’re riding with me.” She slid off of the table and looked at him to see him giving her an ‘are you serious’ look. “Do you have any other way of getting home tonight?” she asked and he shook his head no. “Then come on.” She told him as she jerked her head toward her car.

He hesitantly followed her to her car and climbed inside. “You know I don’t think we’ve had a conversation this long since…” he trailed off when he remembered the last time they had really talked.

“Since eighth grade?” she asked with a smirk at the memory.

“Yeah.” He laughed a little.

“You know up until about three weeks ago Elena still believed that you were my first kiss?” she asked with a smile over at him before she turned her eyes back to the road.

“Yeah, no one I know really believed that we made out.” He admitted as he shifted in his seat.

“I’m going to pretend not to be offended by that.” She said as she pointed her finger at him.

“No offense but you aren’t exactly the make out in the closet with a guy type.” He replied honestly, getting no response from her. “Who was your first kiss?” he asked being nosy just to try to get a reaction from her.

“Yeah I’m not answering that question unless you do.” She said with a shake of her head.

“Vicki Donovan.” He answered without missing a beat.

“Damn, I was banking on the fact that you wouldn’t answer.” She sighed as she turned onto his street.

“Come on, I answered now it’s your turn.” He said challengingly.

“This is what I get for bringing up the past.” She sighed as she pulled into his driveway. “Oh look we’re here you can get out now.” She prompted overly cheerfully as she pulled the car to a stop.

“Nice try but I’m not getting out until you answer the question.” he said with a playful smirk.

“Then we’re gonna be here all night.” She told him stubbornly.

“You have had a first kiss haven't you?” He asked when she still didn't answer. "Because if you haven't I'll gladly change that."

"Is that your douchey jock way of hitting on me?" She asked with a stunned smile and reddening cheeks.

"Maybe. Is it working?" He asked cockily.

"A few months ago I probably would've said yes, but I’m seeing someone." She answered feeling kind of sorry for turning him down. "And to be completely honest I'm kind of surprised you just hit on me."

"Why are you so surprised?" He asked with a smile.

"Well because you're...you." she answered getting a 'what are you talking about?' look from him "You're the hot football player that all the girls want." She said being her usual, blatantly honest self.

"And you're you. The hot, geeky, cheerleader that all the guys want, but are too intimidated to approach." He said as if his statement was as obvious as hers. "What's your point?"

"I’m...um...what?" Katie asked, completely stunned by what he had said.

But he didn't get the chance to answer because someone knocked on the passenger side window and he rolled it down revealing his mom. "Hi, Mrs. Lockwood." Katie greeted.

Mrs. Lockwood just ignored her and smiled at her son. "Tyler, sweetie, don’t you think it's time you come inside?" She asked her tone sticky sweet.

"Yes ma'am." He mumbled as he looked at Katie and rolled his eyes as he took off his seat belt then got out of the car. She smiled at his reaction to his bitch of a mother.

"I see you found more trash to drag up to the house.” Mrs. Lockwood’s words floated in through the still rolled down window.

Katie's nostrils flailed as she put her car in drive and left the driveway as calmly as she could. No matter how bad she wanted to do a burnout on the pretty white concrete driveway she didn't do it for fear of Tyler getting in trouble.

She was almost home when she got a text from Damon asking her to meet him at the boarding house. On her way she looked down and reached for her phone in the passenger seat. When she looked back up at the road she saw a car swerve to miss someone standing in the road. But the car still hit the person then started flipping across the road.

Katie slammed on her breaks, stopping a few feet from the car. Only thinking about the people involved in the accident, Katie put her car in park and hopped out. The overturned car was closer to her than the person who got hit so she ran to the driver to see that it was Elena. “Elena? Are you okay?” Katie asked, but Elena pointed behind Katie to the person she had hit. “Oh, shit.” Katie whispered when she saw that the person was popping their broken limbs back into place and standing up.

“Run.” Elena croaked, but Katie didn’t have the chance to even think before the vampire whooshed over and sank its teeth into Katie’s neck. She screamed right before her world faded to pitch black.

TVDTVDTVD

Music pulled Katie from her slumber and as she opened her eyes she realized she was in Damon’s car. “Damon?” Katie asked. An ache in her neck made her reach up to message it only for her hand to land on a bandage. “Did you bite me?”

“No.” he answered with a glance over at her as she sat up and adjusted herself in the seat. “But whoever did is a lucky man.”

“What?” Katie asked, confused she looked around, her eyes landing on Elena in the back seat. “What happened?”

“Elena wrecked her car. You drove up on the accident on the way to see me. A vampire fed on you. He would’ve killed you if I hadn’t come by and stopped him.” He explained.

“Wait, I’m confused. If you were at the boarding house how did you find us?” Katie asked, placing her hand on her neck, feeling the oval wound beneath the bandage.

“I was on my way to the boarding house. I was supposed to meet up with Logan at the old Fell church, but Sheriff Forbes called and said that someone killed him.” He explained and looked across his shoulder at her to see her looking at him with furrowed brows. “Before you ask I was meeting with Logan because he said that there’s another way to open the tomb. I was going to kill him after I got the information I needed from him.”

“Okay I still have questions.” She said turning sideways in the seat to look at him without hurting her neck. “One, where are we going? Two, is Caroline okay? Three do you really believe that there’s another way to get into that tomb? And four, is Elena okay?” she asked looking back at her friend.

“Caroline is fine, she just has a minor concussion. Stefan brought her to her house after we found Logan. Elena is okay, just a little beaten up.” He answered then looked over his shoulder at her asleep in the back seat. “To answer your other two questions I don’t know if there really is another way to open that tomb, but that’s what we’re going to figure out. I know a witch named Bree. She told me how to open the tomb with the crystal. She’ll know if there’s another way.” He answered looking back at the road.

“And where is Bree?” Katie asked looking around at the empty fields that they were driving past.

“Georgia, just outside Atlanta.” He answered causing Katie’s brows to shoot up. “Don’t get your panties in a twist.”

“Are you freaking kidding me? I’m missing school right now. I have a math test today for Christ sake and a history test tomorrow.” Katie started freaking out, the reality of the situation sinking in.

Damon rolled his eyes. “If I promise to compel your teachers to let you make up the tests, will you relax and enjoy yourself?” he asked.

Katie thought about it as she watched the fields pass by. “Fine.” She sighed and uncrossed her arms from her chest. “But this doesn’t count as uninterrupted time with you since Elena’s here.” She said pointing at him, reminding him about the deal they had made. Damon smiled and placed his hand on the back of her neck, caressing the side of it with his thumb.

“I should probably warn you about Bree though.” Damon said, making Katie give him a questioning look. “She’s an ex-girlfriend of mine. So don’t be mad if she kisses me as soon as she sees me.”

“You’re so cocky.” Katie brushed him off.

A few minutes later, Elena woke up and sat up. “Where are we?” She asked as she looked around. Her eyes landed on Katie then Damon.

“We’re in Georgia.” Katie answered, turning further to look at the confused Elena.

“No, seriously where are we?” Elena asked.

“Seriously. We’re in Georgia.” Damon answered looking back at her in the rear view mirror. “How are you feeling?”

“My car…there was a man…I hit a man…but then he got up and…who was that?” Elena asked leaning forward to look at Damon.

“That’s what we would like to know.” Damon replied not looking at her, but at the road.

“Where’s my phone?” she asked, feeling of her pockets. “Okay we really need to go back. nobody knows where I am. Pullover.” She told Damon who just ignored her. “I mean it Damon, pull over.” He ignored her again. “Stop the car.”

“Ugh, you were so much more fun when you were asleep.” He scoffed and pulled the car off to the side.

Katie listened as Elena argued with Damon about going back home. “I’m not going to Georgia.” Elena argued as Katie got out of the car.

“Well, you’re in Georgia. Without your magic little necklace I might add.” Damon pointed out as Katie walked around him to look at Elena’s neck. “I could very easily make you…agreeable.”

“Damon.” Katie spoke up in a warning tone as she gave him a pointed look. “Why did you take off your necklace?” Katie asked knowing that something big must’ve happened for Elena to take off the only protection she had from vampires.

“Because she found out that she looks exactly like Katherine. A little fact that Stefan forgot to tell her.” Damon answered Katie then looked at Elena. “Am I right?”

“Um, I’m sorry, what?” Katie asked, blinking up at Damon, but he didn’t get a chance to answer her before Elena’s phone started ringing in his pocket.

“That’s my phone.” Elena stated glaring at Damon.

He pulled out of his pocket and looked at the screen. “It’s your boyfriend.” He held the phone out to Elena and she shook her head no so he answered it. “Elena’s phone.” He answered and they could hear the murmurs of Stefan on the other end. “Elena? Yeah she’s right here and yes she’s…fine.” Damon held the phone out to Elena. “He wants to talk to you.” Elena shook her head no. “Yeah…I don’t think she really wants to talk to you right now.” They could hear Stefan talking on the other end before Damon interrupted him with. “You have a good day. Bye now.” Then hung up and handed Elena back her phone.

“No one knows where we are, can we please just go back?” Elena asked Damon.

“We’re almost there.” Damon argued.

“Where is there?” Elena sighed.

“A little place just outside Atlanta.” Damon answered as he walked over to Katie and wrapped his arm around her waist.

“Why aren’t you fighting harder to go home?” Elena asked Katie.

“Because Damon promised to compel the teachers to let me make up the tests that I’m missing and honestly a time out from all the bull crap going on back home sounds fun, something you used to be a lot more of.” Katie said.

“Come on, take a time out with us for five minutes?” he asked with a smile and raised brows.

Elena sighed. “Fine, as long as you promise not to do that mind control thing on me.”

“Yes.” He sighed. “Now get in the car.” He jerked his head to the car then they all climbed inside.

“So where’s my car?” Elena asked from where she sat in the middle of the back seat.

“I pulled it off to the side of the road. I don’t think anyone will bother it.” Damon answered, drumming his fingers on the steering wheel to the beat of the music.

“What about that man in the road?” Elena asked, still not playing along with Damon’s plan to get away and relax for one day.

“Oh, you mean the asshole vampire who bit me?” Katie asked sarcastically.

“So he was a-?”

“Yeah.” Damon answered.

“You didn’t know him?” Elena asked.

“If I’ve never met him I wouldn’t know him.” Damon answered uninterestedly. “I mean it’s not like we all hang out together at the vamp bar and grill.”

Damon rounded a corner in the street and parked outside of Bree’s bar. “You brought us to a bar?” Elena asked before Damon and Katie got out and Katie leaned the seat forward for Elena to get out. “Damon, We’re not old enough. They’re not going to let us in.”

“Elena?” Katie said, getting her friends attention. “We’re with Damon. We could probably get away with murder if we wanted to. I don’t think getting into a bar is going to be a problem.”

“Yeah, that’s what I’m afraid of.” Elena mumbled, earning an eye roll from her friend.

When they walked into the bar the first thing Katie's eyes landed on was a beautiful, tall, dark complected bartender with dark curly hair. “No. No it can't be.” She said as she walked to the side of the bar that the three of them walked over to. “Damon?” She asked as she hopped over the bar and stood in front of Damon. “My honey pie.” She grabbed his face and started making out with him.

Elena looked at them, taken aback at the sight, then turned her eyes on Katie who didn't look surprised, just annoyed. “Are you okay with this?”

“Nope, but I was warned.” Katie answered then wiped the annoyed look off of her face as the two finally pulled apart.

Damon stepped over and wrapped his arm around Katie's waist. Katie made herself smile at Bree. “Bree, this is my girlfriend Katie and her friend Elena.” Damon introduced them then they sat down at the bar.

Bree set down a row of clear shot glasses then started pouring clear liquor in them as she said, “Listen up everybody! Here's to the man that broke my heart, crushed my soul, destroyed my life and ruined any and all chances of happiness.” She sat a shot down in front of Katie then Damon then Elena and said, “Drink up.” While she took her shot Damon took his and Elena's. Damon reached for Katie's, but found the glass missing and looked up from the bar to see her head tilted back downing the liquid.

She set the glass on the bar and made a face at the burn of the liquor then let her eyes travel to Damon to see him giving her a questioning look along with Elena. "What?"

"So how'd he rope you in?" Bree asked as she poured them more shots.

"He jumped onto my roof and talked me into letting him into my bedroom." Katie answered, not looking at Damon but at the bartender. “How did you meet Damon?”

“College.” Bree answered with a smile.

“You went to College?” Elena asked, surprised.

“I’ve been on a college campus, yes.” Damon answered then took his shot.

“About twenty years ago I met this beautiful man, and I fell in love. And then he told me about his little secret, made me love him more. Because you see, I had a little secret of my own that I was dying to share with somebody.” Bree explained.

“She’s a witch.” Damon whispered to Elena since she was asleep for that part of Katie and Damon’s conversation.

“Changed my world.” Bree said looking down at Damon.

“I rocked your world.” Damon said with a lazy look at Bree as she slid his hand over Katie’s knee.

“He is good in the sack, isn’t he?” Bree asked Katie who immediately blushed.

“I wouldn’t know yet.” She replied with a scratch at the back of her neck.

“Yet?” Damon asked looking over at her with big eyes.

“Yeah what happened to all that ‘Caroline’s over him and I want to get under him’ and ‘you only live once’ stuff you were talking about before the founders party?” Elena asked with a laugh as she quoted Katie.

“Yeah and what happened to girl talk staying with the girls?” Katie asked leaning forward to look past Damon to Elena where she sat on the other side of him smiling.

Damon leaned over and kissed Katie’s neck then whispered in her ear, “Were you planning on having sex with me that night?” he kissed her neck again and pulled back to look her in the eyes. She hummed a positive answer then let her eyes fall to the shot that Bree sat down in front of her, assuming she could use it. “Damn you Stefan.” Damon cursed as he hit the bar and turned to Elena. “I hate your boyfriend.”

Katie grabbed the shot and tossed it back before slamming the glass down on the bar. “What time is it?” Katie asked no one in particular as she pulled out her phone and looked at the clock. “Oh look it’s five o’clock. Bree can I have a beer please?” she asked as she hopped down off of the tall barstool. “If the night keeps going on like this I fully intend on getting smashed.” She took the cold dark bottle from Bree and moved to a nearby table.

Elena’s phone started ringing so she went outside to take it. Damon and Bree followed Katie to the table and sat down. “So are all your ex girlfriends so...colorful?” Katie asked as Damon sat down next to her and took her beer from her hand.

He took a drink then gave it back. “No, some were actually kind of boring.”

“Like me?” She asked with a raised brow.

“You're not boring.” He argued as he looked into her eyes. “You're...” he didn't finish his sentence because Bree sat down beside him.

“So what can I do for you?” Bree asked as she kicked her feet up on the table.

Damon looked from her to Katie. “Will you give us a minute?”

“Yeah. I'll go check on Elena.” She said as she got up and handed her beer to Damon.

As Katie neared Elena she heard her hang up with Jenna. “So is Jenna pissed you didn't come home last night?” Katie asked as she rounded Damon's car to stand next to Elena.

“Yeah, but she's Jenna so it's not like there are going to be any real consequences.” She sighed. “So are you and Damon back together?” She asked with a glance back at the bar.

“It's kind of hard to not be with him.” Katie sighed as she crossed her arms over her chest and leaned against the car.

“It's not hard, Katie, all you have to do is say no.” Elena argued as she too leaned on the car.

“I don’t want to say no. I know you don’t like him and you don’t trust him, but I do. He makes me happy, Elena.” She said as she pushed herself off of the car and moved to stand in front of her friend. “You know how you were so sad after you lost your parents then Stefan came along and made you feel alive again?” Katie asked and Elena nodded. “That's what Damon does for me. So can you please just be happy that I am happy for once?”

“I'm sorry. I didn't stop to think about it like that.” Elena said and had opened her mouth to say something else, but her phone started ringing, stopping her. “I'm here.” Elena answered and Katie could hear Stefan's voice on the other end. “You lied.” Elena's words were harsh. “So you didn't lie?” Elena stared pacing as she spoke to him. “How am I connected to Katherine, Stefan?” Katie had been wondering the same thing since learning that Elena looked like Katherine. “And I'm supposed to believe that?” Elena listened to Stefan for a total of two seconds before she hung up the phone.

Damon walked over and pulled Katie into his side. “You girls okay?”

“Mmhmm.” Katie hummed answering for both of them.

“You hungry?” Damon asked looking down at Katie.

“Starving.” Katie answered with a small smile.

“Then come on.” He jerked his head for them to follow them so they did.

They ordered three burgers and fries then sat down at a table. “So let's just say that I'm a descendant from Katherine. Does that make me part vampire?” Elena asked as their food was sat down in front of them.

“Vampires can't procreate.” Damon answered as he popped a fry into his mouth. “But we love to try.” Katie and Elena both rolled their eyes. “No, if you were related it would mean that Katherine had a child before she was turned.”

Katie took the top bun off her burger and picked off the onions while Elena did the same with her pickles. “Did Stefan think he could use me to replace her?” Elena asked.

“It’s kind of creepy if you ask me.” Damon said then noticed the girls removing their toppings. “Come on, you don’t like pickles? What's wrong with you?” Damon asked Elena as he took her pickles that she set aside.

“How can you even eat if technically you're supposed to be...?” Elena asked, not wanting to say the word dead.

“Dead?” Damon asked as he took the onions off of Katie's plate. “It’s not such a bad word. As long as I keep a healthy diet of blood in my system my body functions pretty normally.” Damon explained then tossed a fry into his mouth and smiled.

His eyes watched Katie as she picked up her burger and took a bite. Bree walked over and switched out Katie and Damon's empty bottles for fresh ones. “I'll have one too.” Elena spoke up earning a look from Damon and Katie.

“What?” Katie asked with a smart ass smile. “Is the stick in the mud finally loosening up?”

“Time out remember? For five minutes. Yeah well that five minutes is going to need a beer.” Elena said as Bree walked over with a beer and set it down in front of her.

Damon stuck his bottle out over the table and the girls clanked them all together. “You never told me what you wanted to go to college for.” Damon said with a look at Katie then took a sip of his beer.

“I'm undecided.” Katie answered.

“You don’t want to go to med school anymore?” Elena asked with a frown.

“I think we both know I've been shooting too high with that one.” Katie replied earning a frown from both Elena and Damon.

“What are you talking about? You're at the top of our class.” Elena pointed out.

“Yeah and I'm fighting tooth and nail just to stay there. I have to try ten times as hard as everyone else.” Katie pointed out then took a big drink of her beer. “Change of subject please.” Katie suggested then took another bite of her burger.

The conversation went back to Elena and Katherine then when everyone was done with their dinner Elena suggested they do some shots so they moved back to the bar, a girl on each of Damon's sides. "Let's see who can drink the fastest." Bree prompted as she sat the shots down in front of them then counted to three. Katie tossed back the shot and slammed the glass into the bar in a flash.

"Looks like someone has a hidden talent." Damon said as he wrapped his arm around her and pulled her into his lap.

"I have more hidden talents than that." She smiled and pressed her alcohol slicked lips to his.

"Break it up you two." Elena said, pulling them out of their kiss as another round of shots were poured and sat down in front of them. Katie once again threw it back before Damon and Elena could. "Are you seriously kicking my butt right now?" Elena asked with a laugh and raised brows.

"Yes, Elena, you're not always the best at everything." Katie popped off as another shot was poured. Bree counted to three then Katie purposely took her time with the shot, letting Elena win.

Elena did a little celebratory dance then sat her shot glass one the bar. "Are you okay?" Damon whispered in Katie's ear.

"Yeah I'm fine. I just forget how much of an attention whore she is when she drinks." Katie answered then when Bree put another shot down in front of them Katie picked it up. "Watch." Bree counted to three and Katie let Elena win again.

"Yeah!" Elena yelled as she threw her hands in the air and spun around. "Ha! I knew I could beat you." Elena said with a smile. "We're tied, you wanna break it?"

"After this one I'm done." Katie replied as Bree poured some shots then counted to three. Katie tossed it back at lightning speed. "Would you look at that, I win." Katie smiled a bitchy smile at Elena then turned her eyes to Damon. "What's my prize?" Damon pressed his lips to hers. He had started kissing her neck when she pulled back and asked. "Where are the bathrooms?"

Damon pointed to them then she slid off his lap. As she circled around the corner that led to the bathrooms a hand went over her mouth and jerked her to the side as she was whooshed away. When she regained her ability to process thought after being brought outside at high speed she found herself being held from behind on top of a large tank of some kind. "Are you afraid of heights?" A voice asked before the vampire circled around her revealing his face to her. "Good then you will stay right here."

"I'll stay here." She repeated then the vampire sped away. She was almost down the ladder when she spotted Damon and Elena walking around the building looking for her. She was going to call out to him but then the vampire came out of nowhere and started beating Damon with a metal baseball bat. "No!" Katie screamed as she tried to run to Damon but the vampire turned its reddened, vein framed eyes on her and she stopped in her tracks.

Katie stood still, not saying a word while Elena walked over to her, talking him down as she did. Apparently he was Lexi's boyfriend and he wanted Damon dead for killing her. after the vampire threw Damon then sped away Katie’s feet and mouth finally unfroze and she sprinted to Damon. “Oh my god, are you okay?” Katie asked, looking down at Damon and pushing his hair out of his face before she looked up at Elena who was kneeled down on the other side of him. “Thank you.”

They helped him stand up, not caring that he smelled of gasoline, then walked with him to his car. “You two stay out here. I’m going to go back inside for a minute.”

“I’m coming with you.” Katie spoke up as she took a step closer to him.

“I don’t think that’s such a good idea.” He countered, placing a calming hand on the side of her neck.

“Damon, let me.” He took his hand off of her neck and held it. “Please.”

“Fine, come on.” He placed his hand on the small of her back as they headed inside, but he grabbed her hand, stopping her just outside the door. “Why are you insisting on coming in here with me?”

“Because I know what you’re about to do and if I’m going to be with you…I need to see it.” she said as she gave his hand a squeeze.

He swallowed hard and gave her a nod before he grabbed the doorknob and pulled the door open. When Bree turned around she looked shocked to see them alive. “We were just leaving. I wanted to say goodbye.” He told her with a hint of sarcasm in his voice.

“Good to see you again, Damon.” Bree replied.

“No kiss?” Damon asked, still holding Katie’s hand.

“I’m full of vervain. I put it in everything I drink.” Bree answered looking both pissed and scared.

“And you’re telling me this why?” Damon asked not looking at Katie as he pulled her into his side.

“Lexi was my friend. How could you?” Bree turned to walk away but Damon let go of Katie and sped around the bar, cutting Bree off. “The tomb can be opened.”

Damon looked her up and down for a second then scoffed, “You’re lying!”

Bree jumped back, more scared than mad now. “Emily’s grimoire, her spell book.” Bree said backing away as Damon closed in on her. “If you know how she closed the tomb the reversal process will be in her book. You can open that tomb.”

“And where is this book?” Damon asked and Bree stumbled back and started stuttering. “You have no idea.”

“I’m telling you the truth.” Bree argued shakily.

“And I believe you.” Damon reached up and cupped bree’s face in his hand. “My dear, sweet Bree. That’s why I’m almost sorry.” Before Katie could even blink Damon shoved his hand into Bree’s chest cavity and yanked out her heart. But Katie was looking at his hand. Instead she looked at his eyes, that seemed so apologetic yet he still killed the woman because she had tried to have him killed.

Katie watched as Damon washed the blood from his hands. “Could you kill me just as easily?” she asked as he used a towel to dry his hands.

“If you did something to piss me off, yeah.” He answered as he grabbed his jacket off of the back of one of the barstools.

“You once told me that you wanted me to be your moral compass. If I tell you something you don’t want to hear, are you just going to rip my heart out and not even think twice about it?” she asked, turning in the stool to look at him.

He walked over to her and cupped her face in his hands. “I would never do that to you, okay?” he asked as he looked into her eyes.

“How can I be sure?” she asked.

As he looked into her green eyes he didn’t see judgment or hatred, just genuine worry for her safety. He’s pressed his forehead to hers. “Because I have feelings for you, Katie.”

She sighed and let her eyes slip shut before he pressed his lips to hers. “Okay.” She whispered, “I believe you.”

“Come on.” He jerked his head to the door and she hopped down off of the bar and walked outside with him.

They had been driving for thirty minutes when Elena fell asleep in the back seat. “Why did you bring her with us?” Katie asked with a glance back at Elena.

“I knew it would piss off Stefan.” He answered. “Why are you jealous that I took both of you?”

“A little, but at the same time if you hadn’t drug her along you would be dead right now.” She said.

“You don’t know that.” He countered.

“Yes I do. I wouldn’t have been able to talk him down the way she did. Hell I couldn’t even have guessed that he was Lexi’s boyfriend.” She said reminding herself to keep her voice down so she didn’t wake up Elena. “Do you want to know why I decided that I couldn’t be a doctor? Because I don’t do well under stress.”

“You need to stop being so hard on yourself.” Damon said with a glance over at her. “You can’t blame yourself every time something bad happens to me.”

“I can if I don’t do a damn thing to even attempt to help.” She argued.

“You attempting to help me will only put you in harms way. I actually prefer if you stay back and keep yourself safe.” Damon argued back then reached over and placed his hand on her knee. “Don’t be jealous of Elena.”

“Even though she looked exactly like the person that I’ve been trying to help you rescue from desiccation?” she asked as she grabbed his hand and threaded her fingers through it. “The supposed love of your life?”

“Yes. Unlike my brother I’m not trying to replace Katherine with her look alike.” He answered with a smirk. He watched as Katie yawned and he noticed her eyelids growing heavy. “Get some sleep, I’ll wake you when we’re home.” She nodded and got comfortable in her seat. Ten minutes later her soft relaxing snores filled the car.

[soldierallen]

Grief.

Summary: y/n’s grieving the lost of her mom and knowing her best friend watched her mother die, she was going through a lot until he came back.

Warnings ⛔️: DEATH, a lot of grief, pain, anger, hurt, anxiety, BLOOD, wounds, Afterlife. If you can’t deal with grief or death please do not read this! you’re reading at your own risk of being sad or feelings of anxiety

Friend!Bucky x Reader

Evil!Steve x Reader

Based off this quote

“and it wasn’t until i looked around and saw everyone with someone that i realized i never had anyone”

and you were good to me by Jeremy Zucker, Chelsea Cutler

I look around this room, at all these people... grieving for my mother at the wake we buried her earlier it was an attack that the avengers should’ve stopped it was suppose to end she got in a line of fire I watched her die in the middle of the street she worked for shield for years the avengers were suppose to prevent this. She sat next to her brother and her father greeting the guests as they gave their condolences, and she seen Steve Rogers walk in, her rage filling her whole body she kissed her teenage brother’s forehead he just lost his mother she felt so sorry for him

“Get out” she walked up to him quietly to not make a scene “y/n I knew your mother” he said “you could’ve fucking stopped it and I don’t want you here Steve leave!” she said in a whisper “just know that I love you like a sister and I wish this would’ve never happened okay” she walked away and steve felt defeated leaving she hugged her brother very tightly “why don’t you go to bed I’ll take care of everything” “I don’t wanna leave you alone” he said she let go of him hugging her again “I’m really sorry” she said crying a little “me and dad we’ll be okay, I wanna see you some days though maybe stay the night if it’s okay with you”

“I think she’ll budge” a very familiar voice was heard, she turned around “bucky” her breath skipping to see how was there she hugged him so tightly “hey buttercup” he smiled smelling her hair and engulfing himself in her “you’re back?” she said he shook his head yes “I heard what happened, I wasn’t gonna stay in wakanda while you two were grieving” he pulled her brother into a hug “hey buddy” he squeezed the younger boy almost as tall as him just a few inches shorter than bucky, time passed as bucky stood by her as she walked people out and he smiled at her every once & awhile or touched her hand to tell her he was there for her, and when the day came to an end her father sent her brother to bed and her father went to bed as well, She and Bucky cleaned the house in silence with a few words here and there

���buttercup” her eyes perked up as she cleaned the last of the dishes and he wiped the tables down “let’s go somewhere” he put the towel on the handle of oven just like her mother did, she shook her head at the moment “where?” “a place where you can scream” she laughed for the first time in a week “you think I need to scream” she asked and he nodded yes “I know you want to scream I’m watching it on your face” he laughed leaning on the counter she finished washing the dishes and held onto him “you know buck I’m glad you’re here...” shook his head like “I know” he hugged her tight kissing her hair, he put his leather jacket on and grabbed her hand they walked out

“I wonder what it like to be loved” she saw a man and women holding hands at night passing by a car with two men one kissing the other as they stopped at a red light

“but I love you?” he says she shakes her head no, he gives her a confused look “not like that, you love nat.. you’ve always loved nat” he understood what she meant “I looked around a room today filled with people who were married, engaged, who had someone they loved next to them I never had anyone like that buck I feel like I never will and it kills me” she said swallowing the ball in her throat she fixed her long boots trying to stop her from crying

“You will find someone who loves you, I promise” he said putting his hand on her thigh squeezing it for a second “I wonder if anyone’s ever looked at me and said I love her I wish I could be with her” , it was like a sign from her mom she heard a song on the radio and both her and Bucky looked at each other... “you did this you put it on!” She yelled at bucky “I didn’t look change the station” and she did...bucky didn’t do it it was an actual sign from her mother.. her mother loved Stevie Wonder the song isn’t she lovely played so loudly in the car she felt like crying “she always thought you were wonderful buttercup” he smiled rubbing her cheek. Tears fell from her eyes his sympathetic look as he kissed the back of her hand “come on sing, she would’ve wanted this” and finally rage filled her again knowing she didn’t have to die if it wasn’t for the avengers, if they fucking did their job she stopped talking looking out the window as the song played it was already twilight “we’re in mountain territory” he said, “mount marcy?” she was a bit suspicious..

they walked up, “okay do it” he said “like right now”

“yeah” he put his sunglasses on rubbing his hands together, he screamed so loudly it echoed it literally took everything in him not to cry, and she joined in with him crying.. she broke down falling down and he held onto her as she broke, the grief the guilt everything finally hitting her at once the crying felt like it wouldn’t stop. “It’s okay buttercup” she was hiccuping at point tears streaming down her face she couldn’t stop she was so tired. “I hate him I fucking hate him” she cried out “he watched her, Steve watched the light go out of her eyes and knew it was over and he walked away HE LEFT ME ALONE WITH HER” she cried into his arms a few tears falling from his eyes “I’ll never talk to him again.” Her mouth becoming so dry her face was red bloodshot eyes and drippy nose it wasn’t just she’s dead it was that Steve left, he didn’t even try to help her he just got up and left.

“I don’t think I can go-go on, knowing the things Steve did to me-me... my family it’s like I saw something in his eyes that changed-changed he-he had a switch that was turned-d off... he wasn’t human” he cradled her in his arms, listening to her word vomit everything she’s had in her head for the past week.

“It’s okay, we’re gonna figure it out.” He kissed her head. after another hour of silence they sat on the mountain top crying with each other and they got in the car it was comfortable silence but it was silent... “your place or home?” “home” he nodded taking her back, he got out the car and opening her car door she hugged him “thank you for tonight, go back to her and love her until your heart gives out bucky” he smiled “I love you too.” She walked up to her door walking in, she did love bucky but never like that. when she walked into the home a single light was on someone sitting on the couch

“dad?” “not even close” ... “steve” she was taken aback “why are you here” “she got in my way” she couldn’t believe the words she was hearing “excuse me?” her anger radiating off of her “you and your family always get in my way” he was angry “Steve whatever this is we can fix this” she started to get scared.. “you killed your mother, because you came with her you aren’t suppose to come with her you were suppose to come alone” she was getting waves of anxiety she felt sick “Steve, please don’t do this”

“it was suppose to be you” he grabbed her swiftly by the throat her breathing wavering as he choked her “Steve” she breathed out gasping for air “you always get in the way and make me look like the bad guy, well it’s over for you” there was a knocking at the door “it’s Bucky” she said gasping “answer the fucking door and make him go away” he let her go she fell to the floor not being able to breathe, “it’s Bucky? You left your sweater in the car” she tried getting up she looked at Steve with a devilish look “you even think about alerting him I’ll fucking kill you” what did she have to lose at this point she thought...her brother her father.

“hey” she smiled rubbing her neck “you okay?” He asked she nodded he handed her the sweater “I’ll call you tomorrow okay?” “yeah, uh and James can you do me favor close the lid for the trash the possums keep getting in” she laughed, he gave her a look, he knew something was wrong. “Yeah I’ll do it now, see you y/n” he said her name instead of buttercup he knew and he gave her a signal. she closed the door and just as she closed the door she pushed back up against the wall “open your eyes I wanna watch the light go out just like your mother” “Steve what happened to you” she choked as her body was shoved up against the wall “wouldn’t you like to know? Ha” he laughed devilishly “this isn’t you” she cried “it’s me don’t worry” and at that moment she felt herself passing out she blacked out when she heard a lot noise break the door alerting her brother and father she woke up a little watching Bucky and Steve start fighting each other “go” she screamed at her father and her brother to leave the house “go now” Bucky’s mouth was bleeding and Steve picked up y/n off the floor “Stevie this isn’t you” bucky screamed

“It’s always been me, I’ve always been a monster” and just then he stabs her in the stomach “fuck” Bucky’s whole body goes into shock watching Steve stab her he grabs him and punches him until he knocks out “help is on the way” he took off his flannel putting pressure on the big wound he left the knife sticking out he didn’t remove it of course “I called Tony and he’s calling the police we’ll be okay come on, stay awake” he yelled holding her body “you were so good to me, you’ve always been so good to me” she coughed “all these years I wanted someone to love me for there to be someone in a room who truly loved me and it was you, all this time” she touched his face and he leaned into “you’re okay you’re gonna make it through this don’t say shit like that to me” Tony bursted in the door with shield swat and an ambulance “TONY SHE HAS TO GET TO A HOSPITAL NOW FLY HER THERE” “bucky” “PLEASE TONY” Tony nodded his head carrying her “hey buttercup let’s get you out of here” she smiled at him “hi tony” tears escaped her eyes he walked out the house and flew up into the air taking her to the nearest hospital, “doctor cho it’s y/n” as they got to the front doors she nodded as they got her on a gurney sending her in the back he called shield swat “what the fuck happened” he said “mr Rogers killed Martha Nelson and tried to kill y/n tonight” he said, he rubbed his face in annoyance “why how when?”

“Hey y/n ” he smiled at her “bucky...where am I” she asked “ICU” “this doesn’t seem right” “I knew you were gonna question it” he laughed “what?” “you’re dead y/n” he got up “so am dead? you’re dead too?” She started to worry “Bucky’s fine, he doesn’t even know you’re dead yet, do you wanna stay” the man who looked like Bucky but wasn’t Bucky sat down on a chair “I..I can’t go back I need to know if my families okay” “that won’t be necessary” he crossed his legs “what?” “you’re brother dies in” he looks at his watch “12 hours? And you’re father dies of a heart attack in...3 days” her eyes open wide “what” she was panicked and in shock “if you let yourself go right now, that’s the outcome. If you go back your brother lives and so does your father” she couldn’t let them die not because of her, I have to go home even tho I’m grieving I can’t lose them too. “Wake me up get me out of here” she said her eyes opened Bucky on her left side and her father and brother on the right.. “you’re all okay?” She said as the first words of her waking up they nodded their heads crying all hugging her “I can’t believe you died and you’re asking everyone if their okay?, you’re not allowed to die” Her brother said crying “I’m not going anywhere bud, I am not.” She cried holding onto him.

She never felt loved in a relationship but she surely was loved by bucky her brother and her father, that’s all she needed.

[the-daily-multi-fandom-post]

Hi :) Could you write enzo (tvd) x reader please? His girlfriend lost her humanity after someone she loved was killed, and enzo try everything he can for her to get it back (and succeeds)

Yes! Here it is!! ❤️🖤❤️

Request still open.

⚠️⚠️Warnings ⚠️⚠️ torcher, death, loss of humanity, sad, angst. Angsty with a happy ending?

Fandom: The vampire diaries

Pairing: Enzo x reader

Posted: (7-10-20) 1:05 am

Y/n’s world crushed when her brother was killed by Damon Salvatore. Damon was being an asshole and decided he was going to kill some random person, just because Elena didn’t want to be with him. He drained Y/ns brother dry of blood. What was worse was he knew it was Y/ns brother. He knew that Y/n was a friend of Elenas. That maybe if he killed her brother it would make Elena feel upset. But that wasn’t the case.

Y/n walked into her house that she shared with her slightly younger brother. -he was only about a year or two younger than her.

“Jackson!” She called, sitting her bag on the sofa as she walked through the living room to the kitchen to grab a blood bag. - her brother knew she was a vampire.

“Jack?” Y/n asked as she noticed a puddle of blood on the hardwood floor in the kitchen.

“Oh my god.” Y/ns voice broke as she fell down beside her brother. Her arms wrapped around him as tears went down her face.

He was the last member of her family. All her other family either didn’t talk to them or was dead.

“Please, don’t leave me.” She cried as she held onto him.

She already knew was dead so she didn’t even try to give him any of her blood.

“Please!” She sobbed into her brothers chest. She could see the two puncture wounds on his neck. She knew who did this, which made her sick to her stomach.

“Don’t leave me. Your the only thing I have left.” She cried for hours until she couldn’t no more. Her phone rang, but she never answered it. She couldn’t pull herself away from her brothers cold dead body.

A couple hours later she heard knocking at the door, but didn’t answer it. Whoever was knocking on the door let themselves in.

“Y/n, love. You never answered my calls. What’s goin- Oh my god. What happen?” Enzo asked as he bent down to H/n holding her brother.

“He killed him.” She cried holding onto her baby brother as if it would bring him back.

“He knew if he hurt me he would hurt Elena. But he went to far, Enzo.” She cried as she held on her brother tighter. Afraid to let go.

“Damon did this?” Enzo asked as he looked down at his girlfriend of 3 years.

She nodded as she wiped her teary eye.

“I’m going to make him pay.” He whispered looking at Y/n. She shook her head as she looked down at her brother. He noticed her take a deep breath then close her eyes.

“Y/n, Love.” He started slowly as he noticed what she was doing.

Grabbing her shoulders he shook her.

“Don’t, y/n. Cutting it off isn’t going to help not won’t bring him back.”

Y/n smirked as she opened her eyes back open. Her once bright y/e/c eyes were dark no emotion left in them.

“No, but it will make it easier for me to kill Damon.” With that she fled out the house to find Damon.

Enzo cursed as he grabbed his phone ringing Damon as fast as he could.

“Mate, you fucked up.”

“How did I fuck up? I feel good. I just had a fresh bite, and I’m feeling free as hell.” Damon slurred.

“Are you drunk, mate?” Enzo questioned as he started towards his car to go to the Salvatore house before his love.

“Just a little bit. (Knock knock). Hey look someone’s at the door. Probably my next meal. I’ll call you in a few minutes.”

“Damon, don’t.” Too late Damon hung you.

“Y/n, what can I do for you?” Damon asked allowing what he thought was his friend. But right now she wasn’t not a friend. She saw red. She was going to murder the oldest Salvatore is she could.

“You killed him. You killed my brother. So,” she starred at the man with a murderous glare.

“Oh, we’re talking about him. Yeah, didn’t really mean to. I mean, i just snapped and had myself a taste. Didn’t really know he died.” He chuckled looking at Y/n.

She growled as her y/e/c eyes turned red Veins appearing below her eyes.

“Look, we can talk this out can’t we. I mean, you saved him didn’t you.” Damon noticed the lack of humanity in her eyes and started to get nervous.

“I’m gonna kill you. But first a little bit of torcher.” Vamp running over to him she snapped his neck.

He thumped down to the floor “dead”.

Y/n grabbed him and pulled him to her car. Putting his body in the trunk and driving to her parents lake house in a different county.

Damon groaned as he slowly woke up. He tried to move his hands, but couldn’t his hands were chained down to the metal chair. He looked at his arm and noticed a IV going into his arm. He figured the IV was full of Vervain because he was burning from the inside out.

“Awe, look who’s awake. I thought you’d never wake up.” Y/n smirked as she walked over to Damon with a wooden stake in her hand.

“Your not gonna stake me.” Damon spoke confidently.

“Oh really, well..” she stabbed him quite literally in his back. Make him scream out in pain.

“Oh, I’m sorry. I think I just back stabbed you.” She giggled.

“Bitch.”

“I prefer murdeous psycho bitch. Actually, because that’s what I’m about to do. Become a murderous Psyco bitch.”

She pulled the stake from his back twisting it making it hurt worse than what it needed.

“Look at what I stole from Jeremy. You see I know how to use a gun. Always have, my family. Well, my late family. Which is dead, by the way.” Y/n held the pistol with wooden bullets pointed it at Damon’s knee.

“I don’t think you need to walk for a while.” She said shooting him twice in both knees. He was hissed and yelped in pain.

“Now, the torcher is just beginning.” She whispered as she bent down put her face in his.

“How does vervain feel going through veins?” Y/n asked as she sat in a chair in front of the oldest Salvatore.

“I stings, you asshole.”

“Well, I don’t think stinging is good enough.” She laughed.

Walking over to a bucket with a bunch of vervain in it. She put on gloves she grabbed the vervain and walked back over to Damon.

“Open up.” She smirked. Shoving the vervain in his mouth.

“Ahhh!” Damon screamed in agony.

“This is just the beginning, Damon. Nobody is going to find us. Ever. Nobody knows where we are. And I ditched both of our phones. So they won’t be able to track us. Plus I have sage burning. So not even the most power witch will be able to find us.” She rambled with a smirk on her face.

This went on for days. Y/n would torcher him, drain his blood, replacing the blood with vervain, shoot him with the wooden bullets. Making sure not to puncture his heart. But to keep the torcher going as long as she could. That is until someone came knocking on the door.

“Company I wonder who that could be. Doesn’t matter.” Y/n said grabbing the stake and stabbing Damon in his ribs.

“Get up and walk.” She demanded after she unchained the man.

He was pale and weak. Barely able to walk. But did as he was told.

She dragged him by the chains and pulled him up the stairs to the front door where she seen Stefan, Enzo, Caroline, Bonnie and Elena standing.

“Oh, joy more people.” She sarcastically spoke looking at her friends and boyfriend.

“Oh my god.” Bonnie gasped looking at a bloody and weak Damon.

“What, oh this?” She giggled wickedly.

“This is nothing. You should see my brother. Spoiler alert, he’s dead.” Y/n laughed with no emotion.

Everyone in front of her noticed the lack of emotion.

“You can’t come in. I’m afraid. You see I had a special witch bitch friend of mine do a spell where nobody can come in here until Damon’s dead or until I decide they can. So, Bonnie. Elena, You can’t even come in here if you tried. And the rest of you well. You see your all vampire so I ain’t worried ‘bout. But how bout you enjoy the front stage view of me killing Damon.”

“Y/n, you don’t have to do this.” Stefan started looking at his brother and then to his friend.

“No, I do have to do this. He killed the last of my family. Do you understand how it feels to have all your family killed in front of you?!” Y/n yelled as she looked at the younger Salvatore her eyes starting to become glassy as some emotions started slowly coming back to her.

“Yes, I do.” Elena said breaking into the conversation.

“You have no part in this. It’s your fucking fought that my brothers dead. If you would’ve just said the goddamn truth about loving them both of them. My brother would be alive. I would have my humanity. But you know I like being without my humanity. I mean do you know how good it feels to bite into someone and not worry about draining them?!” Y/n bellowed as she made her way in front of the group.

“Y/n, love. Please let’s talk about this.” Enzo spoke softly looking at his broken girlfriend in tears.

“Please, let me be there for you. You don’t need to do this. It’ll hurt him worse if you let him live. He will have live with the guilt knowing her killed the last of your family.” Enzo tried to get her to not kill Damon.

Yes, everyone there was mad at Damon. But they weren’t going to murder him.

“No!” She bellowed holding her head as more feelings started breaking through the barrier.

“Just stop! Make it stop!!” She sobbed holding her head as all the things she has done in the pass three days come back to her.

“Come in.” She whispered to the four people in front of her.

“If you don’t get him, I swear to any god out there I will kill him.” Y/ns eyes flashed black and red.

“Just think about your family. Know they are in a better place. They wouldn’t want you like this.”

She felt Enzos arms go around her as Stefan and Caroline but their arms around Damon and taking him away.

“I’m so sorry.” Y/n cried as she felt all her humanity come back to her. Hitting her like a  title wave.

“It’s okay, love. It’s gonna be okay.” He kissed her forehead as he held her in her arms.

And it was okay. Y/n took her time to try to get back to normal. Luckily she wasn’t alone. Enzo was there the whole time for her. Anything she needed he was there for her. He loved her too much to just let her go.

[hyperion-moonbabe-art3mis]

Caught In Between 21. Torn Heart

Summary: Athena Dumont has finally found a place to call home after many years of foster homes and traveling. She had finally tamed her supernatural side and just wanted to live a normal teenage life. She quickly discovers that there is nothing normal about her hometown, Mystic Falls and gets sucked right back into the supernatural world.

Post Date: 10.05.20

Word count: 3.6k

Based off: 03x21 “Before Sunset”

Masterlist

CIB Masterlist

After a night of not much sleep, I quickly got up to help Caroline clean up after the dance. I make my way into the cafeteria where Rebekah is, with Caroline not too far behind me.

“Where’s Matt?” Caroline asks.

“He bailed. Got called into work at the last minute,” Rebekah responds while putting trash in a bin.

“Are you kidding me? So it’s just us three?” Caroline asks.

“Yes, and you two are late. Clean-up committee started at 8:00,” Rebekah responds annoyed.

“It’s like 8:02,” I say looking at my phone.

“Exactly. I managed to turn up on time and I didn’t even get to attend the dance that I organized,” Rebekah says before dumping the trash in a bigger bin.

“I’m sorry about your mom. I mean, I know you, like, hated her and everything, but still. I’m sorry,” Caroline says.

“Sorry about your teacher. He seemed like a nice guy,” Rebekah says.

“Yeh, he was,” I respond.

“I’m going to get started on the gym,” Rebekah says before walking out. Not a moment later Caroline and I hear a slam against some lockers in the hallway as Rebekah screams. The two of us didn’t hesitate to rush out to the hall. We see a very much “alive” Alaric ready to stab Rebekah with a white oak stake. Caroline and I shove Alaric off of her and against the lockers.

Rebekah quickly shoves the stake into Alaric’s chest. But he just pulls it right out of his chest. The three of us speed away before we could watch what happens next. I run to the side of the school where the stoners hang out. The next thing I know my neck is snapped.

I wake up and find myself in Alaric’s classroom, in a chair with pencils in my hands, pinning them to the desk. Alaric doesn’t hesitate one moment once I woke up to put a vervain and wolfsbane soaked cloth around my mouth. He then makes a call, to whom I’m sure is someone he’d think would save me.

“Whoever this is, it’s not funny,” I hear Elena’s voice over the phone.

“Who else would it be?” Alaric questions back.

“Ric?” She questions back.

“Listen closely. I’m at the school. I have Athena. And if you want to keep her alive, I need you to get into your car and come down here right away. If you tell anyone where you are going, I will kill her,” Alaric threatens before hanging up.

A few minutes later Elena arrives in Alaric’s classroom, “Athena! Let her go, Alaric,” She demands.

“Free her yourself,” Alaric gestures to me.

Elena slowly makes her way to me and stays as far as she could from Alaric. She starts to pull the pencil out of my right hand before Alaric quickly shoves it back in. Leading me to let out an excruciating scream.

“You said that you would let her go!” Elena yells at Alaric.

“How many times do I have to tell you, Elena? Stop trusting vampires!” Alaric yells at Elena.

~ Elena’s House ~ 

Klaus is stalking the outside of Elena’s house as Stefan, Damon, Bonnie, and Jeremy were stuck inside. He walks over to a neighboring house and contemplates his next move. Once he figures it out he makes his way back to Elena’s house. Throwing a soccer ball through the front door, blowing it open. The next thing he threw was a fence post at Damon, who ducked below it.

“Missed me!” Damon yells at Klaus. Damon breaks off the fence post and throws it back at Klaus, but he dodged it as well. Klaus then separates his last post and throws it at Damon.

“Missed me again!” Damon yells again. As the craziness ensues Stefan receives a call from Alaric. Klaus comes back with a newspaper on fire and a gas tank on his other hand.

“Put it out,” Stefan says making his way to the door.

“Come outside and make me,” Klaus says before Stefan steps out of the doorway.

“Elena’s not here. Alaric has her and Athena. He’s going to kill them both unless you turn yourself over to him,” Stefan states. After a few moments of thought, Klaus tosses the newspaper and gas tank.

“Now I know you’re not asking me to walk into a certain death,” Klaus says.

“I really wish we could,” Stefan chuckles. “But unfortunately, if Alaric kills you, there’s a one and four chance that we die, too,” Stefan states.

“I’ll take those odds,” Damon says strutting out of the house carrying a fence post.

“And a hundred percent chance that Tyler and Athena die,” Stefan states looking to his brother.

“I’m good with that, too,” Damon says clearly having no regard for Athena anymore. 

“Why don’t we just figure out a way to put Alaric down, hmm?” Stefan suggests.

“Ok. How about Damon sneaks in and distracts Alaric while Stefan grabs Elena and carries her to safety,” Klaus suggests.

“Oh, that’s a great idea. What’s to stop me from being killed instantly?” Damons asks.

“Nothing,” Klaus responds nonchalantly.

“Athena’s in there. Don’t you have a thing for her, or did she just reject your supposed undying love for her too many times?” Damon asks annoyed.

“This isn’t really, uh, helping too much,” Stefan says trying to calm them down.

“I might have an idea,” Bonnie says coming up to the doorway. “My mom used a desiccation spell on Mikael that immobilized him for over 15 years. If I can get it, I might be able to use it on Alaric,” Bonnie suggests.

“If and might. Your words inspire such confidence,” Klaus says.

“I’ll get it. But even with the spell, we’ll need a lot of vampire muscle to take him down. Including yours,” Bonnie says staring at Klaus.

“Just so we’re clear. The sun sets in about 8 hours. We don’t succeed before then, Elena will be dead, I’ll be gone, and the rest of you will be left to fend for yourselves,” Klaus threatens. 

“And what about Athena. You’d just leave her here to die? I thought you loved her so much you’d do anything. At least that’s how she explained it,” Damon asks.

“I know she’s smart and strong enough to get out of there by herself,” Klaus says confidently.

~Athena’s POV ~

“No, don’t, please don’t,” I plead as Alaric refreshes the cloth with more vervain and wolfsbane.

“Alaric stop!” Elena demands getting up from her desk beside me.

“Sit down,” Alaric snaps back and pushes Elena back into the seat. “This keeps the vervain and wolfsbane in her system. It’s like inhaling razor blades with every breath,” Alaric explains as he ties the cloth around my face once more. It burns worse than anything I had ever felt in my life. I couldn’t help but let out a screech as I felt the solution enter my body.

“Why are you doing this?” Elena questions Alaric.

“To make it easier on you when you put her out of her misery,” Alaric says coldly.

“What? No!” Elena protests back.

“Isn’t this what you wanted, Elena? For me to teach you how to kill a vampire? Well, here’s a vampire, better yet a hybrid, Elena,” Alaric says pointing the stake to me then back to Elena. “Kill her,” 

“This isn’t what I want,” Elena responds.

“Of course it is. All those hours you spent training, getting stronger...you could be a hunter, Elena. But you’ve never actually staked a vampire through the heart,” Alaric says holding the stake out to Elena.

“Why are you doing this?” Elena asks once more.

“Because you need me. Because you’re an 18-year-old girl without parents or guidance or any sense of right and wrong anymore,” Alaric states.

“Look at you. How is this right?” Elena asks gesturing at me.

“She’s a murderer. She is an abomination. Something that should never have existed. See, Elena your parents led the council. It was their life’s mission to keep this town safe. They weren’t dead six months before you undid it all,” Alaric says.

“You don’t know anything about them,” Elena responds.

“Why, am I wrong? Do you actually think...that they’d be proud of you?” Alaric asks before bending down to see eye to eye with her. “If you don’t side with the humans...you’re just as bad as them. Now kill her. Or I’ll do it for you and I’ll make it hurt,” Alaric demands once more and quickly drags Elena in front of me. He forces the stake into her hand. 

Elena gets ready to stake me but instead turns towards Alaric and shoves the stake at him, but he stops her. “I thought I taught you better than that,” Alaric states.

“You did,” Elena says before smashing the glass of vervain and wolfsbane into his face. Elena works quickly to pull the pencils out of my hand and untie the cloth. “Get help!” Elena says as she helps me get up. 

I run out of the classroom and quickly speed away into the hall. I turn around hoping that Elena was close behind. I was then grabbed by someone, covering my mouth and pulling me back. 

“Shhhh...It’s ok. It’s ok,” I hear a familiar voice whisper into my ear. “It’s me. It’s ok. You’re safe,” Klaus says moving his hand away from my mouth. He looks over from where I came from, “We’ll save Elena. You go straight home, you stay inside, do you understand?” He asks. “Do you understand me?” He questions once more turning me to face him. 

I nod my head, “Thank you,” I whisper back as I notice the worried look on his face. Klaus kisses my forehead before he rushes away.

I quickly make my way out of the school and instead of the Salvatore house but my own. Knowing that Alaric doesn’t know where it is, or at least I think so. I hadn’t been back since the day I arrived in Mystic Falls but this time it’s a redesigned and fully furnished home. I forgot all the nice things I got for my house, but it also didn’t feel right to be here. Maybe that’s why I didn’t come back, why I’ve been staying at the Salvatores. 

Luckily before I could sink even further into my thoughts I get a call from Bonnie, “What’s up?” I asked picking up the phone.

“Klaus has Elena. He’s gonna kill her. We’re gonna use the plan that we had for Alaric on Klaus. But we need you as a distraction. Can you do it?” Bonnie explains.

“I’ll do what I can to protect the people I care about. Where do I need to be?” I ask.

“He should be at his mansion. Stefan and Damon will meet you there,” Bonnie responds.

“Alright, I’ll get there as fast as I can,” I respond before hanging up.

I meet Stefan and Damon outside of the mansion. Damon hands me a small bottle of blood, “What’s this for?” I ask confused.

“It’s Bonnie’s blood. Binds us to her so she can do her witchy stuff. She wanted me to give you some in case. You need to make a physical connection to Klaus, a major artery, or something. So she can bring him down,” Damon explains.

“And what is this witchy stuff she plans to do? She didn’t tell me much except to be the distraction,” I respond.

“She plans to desiccate him. Like her mother did to Mikael,” Stefan explains. 

“We’ll be the ones to take him down, but Bonnie wanted to have you as a backup,” Damon says gesturing to his brother.

“Alright, well I should get in there before anything worse happens,” I say to the brothers and head off. 

I make my way into Klaus’ mansion and follow the voices of him and Tyler, “Good-bye Tyler,” I hear Klaus say as I get closer.

“Klaus, don’t!” I say from behind him. I watch as I notice Tyler ready to fight but I shake my head no, hoping he understood I had this under control.

“Athena,” Klaus says letting Tyler go. “I thought I told you to stay home,” Klaus turns towards me. 

“I--I did. But as I waited at home, I came to a realization. I don’t want to be here anymore. I--I want to travel the world...with you,” I move closer to Klaus. “I want to get away from all of this,” I gesture to the situation were in. “I want it to just be us again,” I say only a few inches away from his face, pressing my hand on his chest. 

“I want to be with you forever,” I press my lips against his before he could respond. I feel him pull me into his grasp. For a moment it felt like it was only us in the room, but I remembered what I had to do. It was hard to muster the strength to fight the sire bond, but before either of us pulled away I plunged my fingers into his chest.

Klaus pulled away screaming as Damon, Stefan and, Tyler came to hold him back. I feel as his heart starts to slow down. As we continue to hold Klaus back and I feel his heartbeat slow, he looks up at me with a somber look in his face as he realizes he can’t win. I return the look and mouth “I’m sorry,” to him as I feel a tear fall down my face. 

Soon enough the desiccation engulfs him. Tyler helps Klaus’ body down to the ground as I stare at him, hoping I did what was right. Not just for my friends, but for myself.

“We should get her home before the sun sets. You too Athena,” Stefan says.

I head to the car and get in with the Salvatore brothers and Elena. They drive us to Elena’s house. I get out with them and walk towards Elena’s house. “Heh, you three are really going to walk me all the way to the door, aren’t you?” Elena questions.

“You lost a lot of blood today,” Stefan states.

“Yeah, I know, but I told you, I’m fine. I just--I have a little headache,” Elena explains.

“Yeah, but the sun’s about to go down. And Ric’s going to be able to terrorize the streets any minute,” Damon explains.

“Yeah, but he can’t hurt me. It’s you three we should be worrying about,” Elena states.

“He won’t be able to find us,” Stefan says as we make it to Elena’s door. 

“I’ll call you when we get back. Athena, you should probably stay here with Elena, might be best,” Stefan says.

“I’ll be fine on my own. If anything I can go to my house, Alaric doesn’t know where it is,” I explain. “But I’ll stay here for a little, if that’s alright with you Elena,” I say knowing it’ll probably make them feel better.

“Fine, just be safe,” Stefan responds.

“I’m gonna umm… head upstairs and clean up,” I say looking at my hand covered in Klaus’ blood.

As I head into the house, I hear some rustling in the kitchen. As I walk in I find the whole gang setting up a small feast. Not too soon after Elena walks in just as confused as I am.

“What are you guys doing here?” She asks. 

“Welcome to our victory party!” Caroline yells.

“What victory?” I ask.

“We failed. Alaric’s still out there,” Elena points out.

“We know. But we’ve been trying to get rid of Klaus forever and Caroline convinced us to enjoy it-- for a night,” Bonnie explains.

“Got to be honest--I’m a little pissed none of you let me take down original brother number two,” Matt says all pippy.

“Yeah, he would have taken you right down to the hospital, bro,” Tyler responds.

“Please, I’m more stealth than that. I’m like a ninja,” Matt says.

After hearing that, I just felt a rush of emotions roll over me. I quickly head upstairs, feeling overwhelmed, “What’s up with her?” I hear Jeremy say as I head upstairs.

“I’ll go talk to her. Just be a bit more delicate with how you say things,” Elena says. “She was the one to take him down,” Elena whispers, even though I still heard it. 

I make my way into her bathroom to clean my hand up, I take a deep breath as I feel a tear fall down my face. I keep reassuring myself that I did the right thing, that I had to do it to keep everyone safe. 

“Hey. You alright?” I hear Elena’s soft voice behind me.

“Uhh...yeah. I just wanted to clean my hand,” I say not turning around, trying to keep my voice from wavering.

“Something’s bothering you. I can tell,” Elena says from the doorway.

“No, I’m fine,” I deflect.

 “I know you’ve been through a lot in your life and I’m sure this was hard for you. And your strength and will is something I really admire. You’re one of the strongest people I know,” Elena says. “You know it’s ok to be vulnerable sometimes,” Elena says after a few moments of silence. 

“It’s just--I can’t keep fighting myself like this. By doing what I did, I felt like I almost lost a part of myself. I don’t want to feel this way anymore,” I say keeping my back turned to her.

“I know and I’m sure we’ll find a way,” Elena responds.

“I already know there’s a way,” I respond turning to Elena. “Tyler broke his sire bond. I’m sure he can help break mine,” I say.

“And you think that’ll work?” Elena asks.

“I don’t know but I want to find out if what I fe--feel for him is the sire bond...or me,” I say. 

“We’ll figure this out I know it. But for tonight. See this little victory as a night you don’t need to fight with yourself, ok?” Elena says.

“I’ll try,” I give her a slight smile.

We head back down into the kitchen and Caroline hands us some shots. “Here, you two need this,” Caroline says. Elena and I look at her confused.

“I heard. And you know that sooner or later, you’re going to have to choose right?” Caroline asks Elena.

“I know,” Elena responds.

“And you,” Caroline turns towards me. “I’m sure you’re hurting right now. Whether it’s the sire bond or not. You probably need this more than anyone right now,” Caroline says rubbing her hand on my arm.

“Hey. Give me your hand,” Tyler says walking up to us. He pours some salt on our hands.

“Thank you for standing up to Klaus like that. Both of you,” Elena shifts her gaze between Tyler and me.

“Let��s just say it’s been a long time coming,” Tyler says as I nod in agreement.

“Way too long,” Caroline says pulling Tyler into a side hug. “All right, Let’s drink,” She says to the rest of the group.

“I do not condone this by the way,” Elena says turning to her little brother.

“You survived Klaus. All right, make an exception. You can go back to being responsible tomorrow,” Jeremy rebuttals.

“Ok,” Elena says.

“Hang on. Do you guys hear that?” Tyler asks as we all look around confused and worried. “That is the sound of a Klaus-free life,” Tyler finally says as we all laugh. Yet my own was a bit forced. 

“To a Klaus-free life,” I say a raise my shot. Clearly getting some surprise expressions from a few people. “And to all of you, my family,” I add.

“Cheers!” The group says as we clink glasses and take our shots.

We spend a couple more hours hanging out and celebrating a quiet night. “Hey Tyler, can I talk to you a bit?” I ask coming up to him.

“Uh yeah,” He says as I lead him away from the group into the hall.

“So you broke your sire bond with Klaus right?” I ask as he nods in response. “Do you think you can help me break mine?” I ask.

“Yeh. Anything to get a hybrid away from his control,” Tyler responds.

“Thanks,” I say.

“Are you alright?” Tyler asks clearly picking up on my mood.

“Yeh. I just--I want to make sure whatever I feel is because of the sire bond. I’m done fighting myself,” I respond.

“We’ll get through this, together. I’ll help any way I can,” He says.

“Thanks,” I respond before we both head back into the kitchen.

After a couple more minutes of hanging out everyone starts to head home. “You’re more than welcome to stay the night here,” Elena says to me.

“Oh, It’s ok. I’d hate to intrude for the night,” I repsond.

“It’s fine. I’m sure youd rather be here than alone in your house or the Salvatore’s,” Elena says.

“They’ll be home in a bit. I’ll be fine,” I respond.

“Come on, Athena just take the offer. We haven’t had a girls night in a while,” Elena begs.

“Fine,” I say and give a slight smile. We head up to her room as she helps prepare a place to sleep.

“I’m gonna go check on Jeremy. I’ll be back in a bit. Get some rest,” Elena says.

“Thanks,” I respond as she leaves the room.

I lay my head down and close my eyes. I try for a few minutes to sleep, but I can’t. Not after tonight. I get up and leave the room to get some water. As I leave Elena’s room I look to my left to find Elena laying on the floor with her nose bleeding into the spilled paint.

I rush over to her, shaking her hoping she’d wake up, “Jeremy!” I yell realizing it’s not working.

“What happened?” He asks coming into the room.

“I--I don’t know. I just came out of her room and found her like this,” I explain.

“Alright, let’s just get her to the hospital,” Jeremy says picking up his sister. 

A/N: Will Klaus forgive Athena for what she did? I hope you all enjoyed this part! Thanks for reading. 

🏷: @tristanacarry​ | @commentaryfanfic​ | @april-14-blog​ |  @simonsbluee​ | @awkwardspontaneity​ | @keiko0​

[living-dead-parker]

Day 2: Charity Event - P.P (12DOC)

Summary: The big Stark Charity Event is here. Along with it comes big confessions of love, more annoying and entitled men, a new unlikely friend, and more background on when the reader and MJ dated? Also, Morgan is a lil badass in the making.

Warnings: Fluff, so much fluff. Cussing, plenty of it. Entitled rich men, because why not? Creepy skeevy dudes, we’re trying to make this realistic y’all. BAMF Stark reader, a bit of violence, but it’s not graphic nor bad.

Word Count: 4.5k

A/N: I know this is late, but I did have a gap in my scheduling for this, so I replaced it for this last update. I’ve been busy, but I should be more present now. Also, this gif is not mine! 

Series Masterlist | Main Masterlist 

"So, run through the schedule?" Tony asks you. Pepper is too busy on the phone at the moment.

"Soundcheck the stage at 4:00 PM. Doors open at 5:00. Start the event at 6:00," you say as you pull your phone out, already having memorized that far into the night. "Commencement speeches from Pep, Dad, and myself until 6:30. 6:45, a message from the Avengers, live music from 7:00 to 8:00 while everyone grabs food and drinks from the buffet and bar,"  you read off. "Then from 8:00 to 9:00, we have the choice dances. 9:00 t0 9:30 we have the auction. 9:30 to 10:30 we have the socializing hour to allow everyone to talk and do as they please. 10:30 we have the final big tree auction and the closing speeches. Everyone leaves at 11:00. Shut down at midnight."

Everyone takes an audibly deep breath at the same time. Then, in sync, you all let it out. It's gonna be a long day. It's barely 9 AM, but there's still so much to do ahead of time. So, with that, you all run around like headless chickens getting shit done. It's not till 2 PM that you're all done. So that means, it's time to start getting ready. Like always, you had to help Morgan get herself ready. However, now that she's older, she sort of knows how to do most of it. So, you throw her in the shower and let her hang out for a while as she gets herself clean. In the meantime, you and Peter begin getting all your stuff ready.

It's 3:30 when you jump out of the shower and rush to put something- anything- on. You throw on a face mask and let it sit for a few minutes before taking it off. Then four o'clock comes around and you run to the venue to do soundcheck and test the mics. You're only there for ten minutes, testing the mics and the speakers, greeting the live musicians, and checking in with the staff. However, you make a run back to the tower and up to your room to really start getting ready. When you get back, you see Peter has laid out all your stuff. Your makeup, your hair stuff, your dress is still in the bag but that's fine.

"Thank you, babe!" you exclaim as you take a seat at your vanity and start on your hair. You manage to straighten out your hair, you do a toned-down, subtle, red and green look. Then, you put on a long, dark green, velvet dress with long sleeves. You throw on a white coat with faux fur. By the time you're all done, it's 5:40.

"How do I look?" you ask Peter, turning to look at him and smiling. He's in a black suit with a green tie. His hair is slick back except for the two unruly strands that always fall to his face. His face is clear and he looks so good. Then, you two look at yourselves in the mirror, standing proud and tall together. "We look really good," you tell him. You both take some pictures together before deciding to go to the venue already. You wait in the backstage area with Pepper and your dad. Peter and Morgan went to go sit at your table. Then finally, the time came and all three of you came out.

"Good evening!" you three say excitedly into your mics. Pepper is the first to step up and do her speech, followed by Tony. Then after fifteen minutes, it's your turn. You greet the crowd, earning cheers from everybody. It's obvious you're the most liked Stark. Then it's Pepper. But most of it has to do with the fact that you did no wrong to anyone in the room, besides the Wesley's who happen to be here again this year. Besides that, everyone thinks you're the cool young Stark kid who is taking the business in a fresh direction. "It's been my dream as a kid to make a name for myself. Yeah, I have the Stark name to thank and there's no denying that. But, I wanted something of my own. Something I made, so having made my Charity event was a huge deal for me. Combining it with Pepper's event was a no brainer. It was easily the best decision I've made," you explain before diving into the thank you's.

Then you sit down next to Peter as a video the Avengers made begins to play. It shows home footage of the Avengers helping people out and saying thank you to all the donors. It ends in time and Pepper announces that the buffet and bar are open and to enjoy the first live band of the night. You go wait in the line of the buffet so you can grab some food while Peter goes to grab his friends and bring them with you. In the short amount of time you're alone, a very familiar set of faces stroll up next to you. You almost visibly roll your eyes.

"Y/N Stark!" Jeremy Wesely exclaims as he holds an arm out. With a fake smile, you take his hand and shake it. "Ah, you've grown so much in the past year!"

"Mr. Wesley," you speak out loud, pulling your hand back. "Adam," you acknowledge, taking his extended hand and shaking it. However, he has another idea when he pulls your hand close to his lips and presses a kiss to them. The action takes the woman next to him by surprise. She seems older than him. Not by much, but she seems older.

"Y/N, this is my girlfriend of six months, Anette," Adam states, revealing a beautiful redhead with a gorgeous white dress. Her green eyes stand out. "Anette, this is Y/N Stark, the 20-year-old taking the business world by storm," he states. Your brows furrow confusedly, finding his wording so weird. Who just says that totally unwarranted or without needing to? Nonetheless, you hold your hand out to the woman and her hand loosely and without any care shakes your hand. She doesn't like you for some reason.

"It's so nice to meet you, Anette," you tell her, being genuine nonetheless. "I love your gown, it's so gorgeous and festive," you tell her. Adam steps in and his father does too, pushing Anette to the back.

"So, Y/N, Wesley Inc. has an offer that Stark Industries just cannot turn down," Jeremy states. "It's a moneymaker for sure!"

"That's great, Mr. Wesley-"

"Call me Jeremy, otherwise it feels way too formal!" he states. Adam chuckles, keeping his eyes glued to you. It's kind of weird, he was already 20 when you were 17, he'd been crushing on you since then. It's gross and weird. "But seriously, we think it'd be interesting if Stark Industries used our massive textile portion to create your clothing line!"

"Clothing line?" you ask, not sure what he means. "Do you mean our line of protective gear?" you ask.

"The cool neon jackets and the stylish coats," he states.

"Yeah, that's not a fashion line, Jeremy. It's protective gear for extreme weather and for people who work or live in extreme conditions. The thought is nice, but we have a group of people who work hard to ethically source and produce these items as much as possible. Plus, we've already moved ahead with our partnership with Princess Shuri of Wakanda on adding Vibranium to improve the gear. It'd be a loss to us at this point, but I'm sure we can collaborate on other ventures," you explain. Halfway through that explanation, Peter, MJ, Ned, Harley, and Morgan show up behind you.

"Well, maybe we can set up a meeting to discuss," Adam cuts in, trying to be subtle as he glares at Peter. "There are so many ideas, it'd be criminal not to collaborate."

You chuckle rather fakely as Jeremy and Adam burst out into deep belly laughs. "Oh, haha, the only thing criminal here is your tax evasion," you say through fake laughter, but it goes unnoticed by the two men. Adam stands straight and looks at you. "Well, it was a pleasure to speak with you again, Y/N," he states as he reaches for your hand and kisses it again. "Yeah, real pleasure speaking to you again. Have fun and enjoy yourselves," you state before turning around to face your friends.

"Have they left?" you ask them as you grab Peter's arm and wrap it around your shoulders. Peter chuckles, pressing his lips to your temple. MJ nods, laughing a little. "God, they are so annoying!" you explain. "He thinks he can talk to me like nothing and convince me to be with his predatory son after he attempted to threaten me last year. Ugh, Adam Wesley is the epitome of entitled frat brat who likes to prey on younger girls."

"He sure looks like it," Harley states, looking over at the two men at the bar. "Isn't he the one who invited you to the frat party when you were 15 and tried kissing you the whole time and you called me all angry because he was mad you punched him?"

Through a giggle, you nod. You remember that night so vividly. You didn't feel like you were in any danger, and this was before you'd met Peter. You had always been able to take care of yourself and you really showed Adam that night. Since then, you'd pretended not to know him.

"Adam Wesley, is the least of my problems tonight, alright? I'm here to have fun with you guys," you state as you pick up Morgan and hold her on your hips. "And to collect money for charity. So let's get some food and eat."

After another ten minutes, you finally grab some food. At one point, Pepper snuck you a drink or two to help loosen you up a bit and make you feel more comfortable. It worked, as you felt more fluid and not as stiff by the end of your second drink. You even took a shot and called it a night on the drinking. It was just enough to get you to stop being on edge and stressed. However, eventually, nine rolls around. Pepper jumps on stage and announces the choice dances.

As per usual, your line was pretty long. The longest. Longer than Tony's. You won this year. But as you look at the line, did you really win? It's full of old men, teenage boys, and the occasional girl who you're sort of friends with. Are you really winning? It's kind of weird, in retrospect, but you ignore it because you can take on anyone in that line if you have to and it's all in the name of charity. So, Adam steps forward, being the first in line. Looking over, you see his girlfriend, Anette, first in line to dance with your dad. That makes you cringe.

"Y/N, fun dancing with you again," he states rather smugly, handing you some money for the dance.

"Sure is, Adam," you state, rather fakely. You put the money in your bra.

"So, how are things with that boy of yours?"

"Why do you constantly feel the need to disrespect my fiance?" you ask. Your eyes widen at the slip and you're so glad your head is on Adam's shoulder and he can't see your face. "Every time we see each other, you're always saying something. about him. I'm not leaving him for you."

"Fiance?" he asks. He pulls away slightly, still dancing with you. He grabs your hand and doesn't see a ring. So he grabs the other one and sees the small gold band with a small diamond on it. "Oh sweetie, that's merely a promise ring. Unless itis the engagement ring, which if it is, I can do so much better. I can buy you a whole rock with smaller rocks sprouting from it, babe."

"Don't call me babe," you nearly growl. Adam's eyes widen. "Plus, is it any of your business how I wear my ring? The size of the ring doesn't matter anyway, it's the thought that matters. Peter loves me and he bought the ring with that love in mind. He may not be some rich tall guy, but he's my best friend and he loves me for me. Not just for my looks. He loves me for my imperfections and my flaws. He's sweet and he's caring and he understands me in ways you wouldn't even begin to understand. Plus, he's not a creep. Try as you might, but Peter is my soul mate. He's the love of my life and that's that. So if you're gonna keep talking about him, we're really gonna have a problem-"

"You're so cute when you get angry-"

"Don't make me fucking punch you again," you tell him sternly. You lean in closer to him, bringing your lips close to his ear. "I will make your life hell if you keep attacking my Peter. I will make you eat the shit you talk, I will make you worship the very air I let your breath because you'll miss it, I will make it rain hellfire over your for the rest of your life if you keep talking your shit," you tell him, adding emphasis to every threat. The song nears its end and you press a kiss to your hand and slap him with that hand. "You're so cute when you're angry, but your song's up, Adam. Merry Christmas, doll."

He walks away and is quickly replaced by Peter. You giggle as he hands you two dollars. He giggles when you put the money in your bra. "So, how's my girl doing after dancing with the devil himself?"

"Oh after that dance," you speak as you pull away enough to look at him. "He probably thinks I'm the devil," you finish. Peter laughs, pressing a kiss to your jaw. "But on a more serious note, I may or may not have told him you're my fiance. A Freudian slip of sorts, but just expect that to get out soon," you say. Then you press a kiss to his cheek before sending him off so you can give an actual donor a dance. You didn't even get to see his reaction.

The dances go on for some time before they're over. Pepper announces the auction portion and you see an easel being placed on the stage. Then there are ten covered paintings in total being placed on tables on the stage. There is also one of the trees, the smaller of the two, and a pair of custom made gloves of yours you wore when fighting and taking down a Hydra base. Your dad realizes the creeps in the industry and he plans on capitalizing off of it for charity. Obviously so long as you're okay with it to some degree. You don't care, because you can take any of these men down if you really wanted to.

In the distance, you hear someone exclaim a curse word, but you think none of it. That is until Morgan is running up to you right as you're about to get on stage to help Pepper and Tony auction off some items. She tugs on your dress, catching your attention and trying to climb you.

"I heard the creepy Adam guy talk about you and how you were being mean because he was being annoying," she states. You giggle as you hold your little sister close to you. "So I kicked his leg because no one is mean to my big sister but me," she continues. Your eyes widen and you interject loudly with a call of her name. "And he looked mad, so you gotta hide me."

"Thank you, Morgan," you tell her sincerely as you try not to burst into tears of laughter. You set her down and kneel in front of her, grabbing her shoulder. "But you don't have to kick people for me. That's not very nice," you tell her. "I appreciate the thought, and that's really badass of you, but you don't have to fight everybody who says something bad about us, but I'll teach you those battles later okay?" you ask her. She nods, looking down at her hands. "Look, M, he's not gonna hurt you. I promise he will not hurt you. He's too scared of me to do that. Plus, I think you showed him how you can take care of yourself. Now go with Peter and the others for now, okay?" you ask.

Morgan hugs you before running off to where Peter and all your friends are sat, talking amongst themselves. A big smile tugs at your lips when you see Morgan tap Peter's shoulder and Peter's expression turns into such a big smile. The slip earlier feels like it shouldn't be a slip. The sight makes you feel warm inside as Morgan climbs onto Peter's lap and snuggles into him while Peter holds Morgan close.

With that, you walk onstage and greet everyone. Then you stand by the painting that sits covered on the easel, center stage. There's a screen the projects it bigger into the room. "This first painting," you state as you uncover it, revealing a painting of a scenic Winter Wonderlandesque scene. "By local artist, and one of my dear friends, Michelle Jones titled Mid-Western Winter Wonderland begins at 100 dollars," you state. Someone yells 1,000. You repeat and the numbers get higher and higher. "20,000 going once...going twice...sold to bidder number 52!"

The painting gets carted off and set aside to be labeled for the bidder. Your dad takes over, revealing a picture you'd taken of a very busy and Christmasy New York City. The bidding started at 100 and two men kept drawing it out. Adam and some guy you barely recognize named Scott. Tony grows tired, but goes on and lets them fight it out. Then Scott calls out, "200,000 dollars," nearly 4 times as much as what Adam previously called out. Adam screams, "300,000!"

Scott stays quiet and your dad finally calls it an end and sells it to Adam. The auction continues with selling four more of MJ's paintings, two fo Steve's, and two more of yours. The Scott guy took home the other two, which personally, you felt were better than the first picture. Oddly enough, the Scott guy also took your gloves too. The Christmas tree was sold off for a hefty 900,000. It makes you really hopeful about the outcome of the other one.

Now that the auctions are over, it's time for the socializing hour. In an attempt to get to Peter, you run into the Scott guy. He's a tall and lean man, almost like Steve but less bulky. Black hair, sharp green eyes, well-groomed facial hair. He's a gorgeous man, but not your type. Not your Peter.

"Y/N Stark," he calls out, a smirk on his lips. Nope. Definitely not. You and Tony are the only ones who can approach people and smirk at them. He holds his hand out and you courteously take it, shaking it firmly. "I'm Scott Stephens, soon to be CEO of Albright Enterprise. It's so nice to finally get to meet you," he states as he gets a good look in.

"It's nice to meet you too," you state softly. "Surprised my father hasn't kicked you or any of Hammer's men out," you joke, earning a laugh from the man. Hammer Industries and Albright Enterprise are your Stark Industries' rivals. Thought the truth is, SI is hard to dethrone as number one at this point. Well, unless Shuri decided to get into the field, but instead, she's offered her allegiance as a third party entity to help SI rather than totally capitalize on it. How nice of her.

"Well, it's all for charity, right?" he asks, to which you nod. "I wanted to hand you these," he says as he pulls out the gloves he'd bought for nearly a million dollars. "It was creepy to see all those men bidding so high to get your gloves and I know any of them, especially Adam Wesley would have kept them. I find that wrong and creepy, so I want you to keep them."

Your eyes widen, a genuine and dumbfounded smile taking over your features. You grab the gloves, "Thank you, that means a lot," you tell him softly. He shrugs, and you pick up on the first wave of nervousness. He's getting shy and the big cocky guy facade begins to fall bit by bit.

"Look, I know that to others it can seem I might have ulterior motives talking to you, and I'm sure you thought so too," he states, shrugging his shoulders. "The tabloids love stating I have this huge crush on you, and while you are beautiful, that's not it. I've been watching this share of power between your father, Ms. Potts, and yourself for the past four years like everyone else, and although I am like two years older than you, you're someone I look up to. You handle this life with grace and honestly, I'm terrified to be CEO of the company. I'm so scared, but I see you in world stages and conferences and you hold your head so high, despite being a woman in this field and you don't take shit from anyone. It's a sight for sore eyes and I'm in love with it. Basically, I see how lonely being a CEO can be and I see how you have it all and you give it all too, and I hate the idea of having to compete with others. I was thinking, maybe we can be actual friends. Not just for pictures, but actually get to hang out and talk to each other and be in each other's lives. I just think you're amazing and I know you have a boyfriend, and I respect that a-"

"Hey," you cut off his rambling at this point. You giggle, resting a hand on his arm to calm him down a bit. His face is red and he's not as composed as he was before. He takes a deep breath and chuckles. "I get it, It's tough. I read up on you and saw that you stopped pursuing art just for this and I get it. But you shouldn't have to quit your dreams for this. You can indulge in both, I promise. Plus, I'll be more than glad to be your friend and help you navigate this whole business thing. Admittedly, I'm still learning things too, so I'll be happy to share this journey with you. We can definitely squash all this fake beef because honestly, I think it's stupid too. I should get back to my friends, but you can join us if you'd like," you offer.

"Maybe later?"

"It was nice meeting you Scott," you tell him before walking away. You're left utterly surprised but totally happy. You just hope he's as real as he came off because, in this industry, nothing is off-limits. When you arrive at your table, everyone greets you and they notice the gloves in your hands. "I was just talking to the bidder who won these and he gave them back because he thought it was creepy, to begin with. He turned out to be the soon to be CEO of Albright and we really hit it off as friends. He was so nice and not creepy."

You notice Peter's face, slowly forming into one of confliction. "And he wasn't flirting with me nor was he interested in me in that way, so it was a breath of fresh air," you add, giggling as you press a kiss to Peter's cheek. "Plus, totally not my type."

"And what is your type?" MJ asks, teasing Peter by sticking her tongue out at him. You giggle, looking between her and Peter. Remembering that at some point, you dated her. "Apparently," you being. "People with brown curls, brown eyes, and soft skin," you say. The two look at each other, bursting into laughter. "You do have a type, huh?" MJ asks.

"Oh shut it, we only dated for like two months. Anyways, he was nice and wants to be friends because and I get him. So, expect some guy to come around a bit more often. Platonically!"

The final tree eventually gets sold for a million dollars and then everyone left. Now it's midnight and the only people left in the hall are Peter, a sleeping Morgan, Harley, Tony, Pepper, and yourself. Tony walks up to you and hugs you, holding you so close to him. "You did amazing tonight sweetie," Tony states. "Plus, I hear tensions between SI and Albright might be coming to an end in the near future?"

"I think people just like me better," you tell him. He pinches your arm playfully, causing you to giggle. "But in all seriousness, Scott is a great guy and I really do see myself in him. But I know to take it with a grain of salt too, dad."

"I trust you and your judgment," Tony tells you. "I just want you to be careful in this world. By the way, I totally feel like I've been pimping you out tonight especially with the glove thing, so apologize for that. It felt wrong," he states. You smile at him, pressing a kiss to his cheek.

"Thanks, father. I appreciate that."

He bids you a good night and walks over to Pepper, pulling her into his arms. You walk over to Peter and Harley, seeing Harley carrying a very tired Morgan. Tony walks over and takes Morgan with him and with that, you all exit the hall.

"So, fiance?" Peter asks you as the two of you walk through the snowy pavement. "A slip?"

"Freudian, if you will," you joke. Peter wraps an arm around you, smiling when you wrap an arm around him. "But I mean, that's what the promise was for, right? That at some point, we will be engaged because we do see ourselves getting to that point. I can't deny that I have strong feelings for you, Pete. I know that we don't need each other. Realistically, we don't. We want each other, and I think that's more romantic than needing each other. Needing implies we have no choice, but we do. We chose each other and we continue to choose each other despite the fact that we don't have to. You're it for me, you're all I want."

Peter stays silent, but at the moment, he doesn't need to speak. Just the way he pulls you in tighter, the way he holds you close. The way he rests his head on yours. It all speaks for him. So, the two of you walk in silence and he carries you to your bedroom, where he sits you on the cabinet in the closet and undresses you again, helping you into your pajamas as you grow more tired. He changes into his and carries you into bed and the two of you doze off with dreams of kissing under the mistletoe and dancing to the nutcracker or some Christmasy shit. Holding each other close and indulging in each other's warmth.

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