#literally she's an er resident | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

theyluvlyss · 9 months

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𝐦𝐲 𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝐡𝐞𝐧𝐫𝐲 𝐝𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐫 𝐫𝐞𝐪𝐮𝐞𝐬𝐭 !

and it's me getting to write henry being a simp🥴🥰. thank you for requesting, I honestly didn't think I'd get any for henry danger, so just this one has me allll /ᐠo⩊oマ !!! So ya, enjoy :).

𝐌𝐢𝐝𝐧𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐅𝐥𝐨𝐰��𝐫𝐬

《 ♡ 》 oneshot

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𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐭 :

being the girlfriend of swellview's resident sidekick could be tough sometimes. always covering for him, constantly worrying about his safety, forever missing him...

but, regardless, he always made sure to remind you that you are the most important thing in his life. even if he has to wake you out of a dead sleep to do it...

𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫 :

fem!girlfriend!reader x henry hart - she/her/hers pronouns! - knows henry's super-identity/works with captain man!

𝐓𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐦𝐞 :

during season four (and up) (vaguely) - it's mildly implied to be winter

𝐓𝐖/𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭 :

cursing (I think? I don't remember, but just in case lol) - yelling (in a jokey/lighthearted way tho) - henry being so boyfriend - a poison ivy knock-off gets featured in here cuz I thought it would be funny lmao - lmk if I missed anything /ᐠ~˕~マ.

ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ...𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐦𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭

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As you stocked shelves and marked down certain pricey items for the holiday's swift approach, you couldn't help but huff. Couldn't help but wonder why it was you had agreed to such a position. Hardly anyone even comes into Junk n' Stuff! Why did you have to play pretend employee for a vacant audience when you could be down in the Mancave with Charlotte and Schwoz, observing and maybe even solving crime and mysteries?

At this point, you might as well have taken real a job at a real shop or store.

But, then again... you were getting the bonus perks of higher pay, given as your boss was a literal superhero. And, because of the fact that the whole of Junk n' Stuff was a front, customers were rare. It was like being on break from three to ten, only ever selling to the occasional old person looking for a rare trinket, or a curious kid looking to resell something "vintage." Whatever the case, you were on your phone for most of the time, and were always happy to work alongside your best friend and your superhero boyfriend.

The third perk, you realized, even if you weren't exactly on the field beside him. You supposed it wasn't all bad. It's not like a lot of other girls had the guilty pleasure of saying the same.

"I work at a fake mom and pop shop that barely gets any customers, but it's okay because it's just a cover up for my boss who's actually Captain Man, and his sidekick, Kid Danger, is actually my boyfriend. My best friend Charlotte and I work to keep him safe every other day, and to top it all off, I get paid more than what my parents make in a week."

You shook your head, huffing to yourself in amusement. Not only was it a mouthful to say, but it sounded insane. Not that you'd ever actually say it to anyone but yourself in your head. But, speaking- er, thinking of...

You pulled your phone from your back pocket, taking your focus off of the box of probably stale snacks you were stacking near the front desk and onto Henry's already open contact. You scanned over your thread of texts between each other, your last message from earlier in the day still left on delivered. You didn't take this to heart, already aware of how busy his missions tended to get. And dangerous, too, hence why you had initially sent...

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my man😙❤️

───────────

Be careful out there today, k?

Ily💞✨️

Delivered

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And sure, after checking now, seeing you'd been left on delivered the whole time mildly stung. But you understood and didn't allow that to be the thing that slightly dampened your mood. Instead, you remained worried for your boyfriend, contemplating if you should send another text his way. Or maybe even call him. Just to see...

You fanned the idea away, setting your phone face down on the floor and continuing to do your "job." Anything to take your mind off of the peril Henry could be facing right now, and the last thing he needed was you distracting him. You wouldn't be needy. At least, not right now. But you'd continue to wonder what was happening, where he was, what dangers he was facing...

"Oh...! (Y/N)."

You turned at the sound of your name, smiling as Charlotte stepped out of the elevator.

"It's past ten, I thought you'd be home by now."

"Me too...!" You sighed, a dry chuckle leaving along with. "I guess I was just subconsciously hoping Ray and Henry would be back by now."

Charlotte gave her own chuckle and an understanding nod at your half-joking confession, moving closer until she was squatted beside and assisting you with the rest of your stocking.

"I wouldn't worry too much. They got this. They always do."

"I know, it's just-"

"-Besides, it's only Greenleaf. And you already know..."

You two shot each other a knowing glance, finishing her sentence at the same time together before laughing.

"...She always folds for Ray."

As you set up the last of the snacks, the two of you stood, cardboard box on your hip while Charlotte had scooped up your phone and handed it back to you.

"You're right, you're right." You admitted, tossing your head from side to side with a shrug. "Plus, I'm pretty sure her goals are relatively Mother Nature related. Can't say I blame her."

"Excatly." Charlotte agreed. "She rarely ever does any real harm, so trust me, Henry will text you back before you know it."

And with that, you two shared your final goodbyes for the evening, and your fret had subsided. Like you said, she was right, Greenleaf more of a particular "low level" classified supervillain, which meant an easy battle. If you'd even call it that. You predicted that right about now, Ray was doing his best to appeal to her charm and romance to subdue her, and though gross... it always seemed to work, so you didn't question it.

With that in mind, you finally decided to call in, clocking out for the evening and daydreaming on the walk home of a hearty dinner, a hot shower, and the warmth and cozy of your bed.

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In the comfort of your room with your nighttime routine accomplished, you remained settled in bed with your eyes glued to your phone. Maybe not the healthiest option, but TikTok was very compelling in the late evenings. Especially when you needed a good laugh or a new song/audio to discover and add to your playlist. You scrolled endlessly, allowing the time to tick by without worry or care because tomorrow (in an hour or two) would be a stress free Saturday.

The millionth swipe upwards of your thumb brought you to your next video, a boy and a girl close in age to yourself participating in a trend that had been circling around for a little bit. It was cute, the way they both adorned wide, cheesy smiles, and their pajamas matched with each other. Even while they performed a popular dance, sticking to routine, you could sense the chemistry they had with one another through the screen. All of it ending with the boy scooping her into his arms, littering kisses across her face that she giggled at over the music.

If anyone asked, you'd be a little embarrassed to admit that you had let the video replay several times before giving it a like and then scrolling away. But, you couldn't - no - wouldn't deny the achy feeling it left you with.

Suddenly, you were no longer laughing at everything you saw and/or heard. No longer wishing to be on the app itself any longer because the ache in your chest was growing too much to bear. Too much for you to ignore, thinking about that random couple and their adorable antics.

How much it reminded you of your own boyfriend; how much you really did miss Henry. It wasn't like you didn't see each other often, practically every day. But it didn't stop you from always wishing to be near him, that he was with you. Family, school, and being a superhero did take up quite a bit of his attention, not that you doubted you were the fourth thing on his list. Selfishly, you assumed the second, at least...

But anyhow, in an attempt to rid yourself of the ache and to refrain from pestering him, you migrated from TikTok to your gallery, scrolling around until you reached a large cluster of pictures and videos from days past.

First thing, you were met with a short thread of silly pictures, Henry striking poses and making faces he'd forbid from showing to anyone, and you immediately sent them to Charlotte and Jasper agreed, for the sake of his dignity. Or just some random action shots, the complete blur of his figure due to moving too fast, which you would keep because they were still funny, after all.

But eventually, you came across a video, it automatically playing as you watched in reminiscence of your time at the mall together. You were both fresh from a Bath & Body Works, your phone's point of view shaking and aimed as though it were snooping around in your bag before pulling away and revealing your hand being held by none other than Henry himself.

"What'd ya' get me?" You chirped as though you hadn't just shown the audience already. But, it was clear you wanted to hear it from him at the time, both past/video and present you giggling at the way Henry shot a smirk your way with eyes that read, "Really?"

"What I always get you." He answered simply, looking ahead as you two walked. "The world."

"Harhar." You could be heard giving an equally sarcastic laugh before adding, "Yes, but specifically this time."

"Boba and (signature/scent)."

Again, both past/video and present you shared another laugh, and you were sure of the fact that you were admiring him shamelessly with your eyes full of love at that moment, just as you were now as the video went on.

"How come?" You pressed with glee, Henry's head shifting back towards you as he spoke.

"'Cause I love you. 'Cause you deserve it. 'Cause it feels gooood."

He laughed along with you at the way he elongated his words at the end of his sentence, a quirk he picked up from who-knows-where that always had you playfully rolling your eyes. In real time, though, the video had ended there, and you were swift to find another one, craving more of that feeling... that mock-comfort of Henry being with you when he actually wasn't.

It was the best you could do, for now, so you'd continue, snuggling deeper into your blankets and pillows while his voice kept ringing out from your phone.

"You smell really good." Was his first comment, ironically per the last video, stated while you admired yourself in selfie mode before switching to the back camera.

He was already stalking closer towards your position on his bed, in his room, before flopping down right into your lap and looking up at you like a puppy.

"And I love your eyes."

"My eyes?" You questioned, as though you were surprised, or as if he should be talking about someone else's.

"Mhm." He nodded slowly. "Your beautiful eyes and those lips of yours. You're too perfect, y'might have to get that checked out or something."

Your laugh at his joking statement caused the camera to shake, and it made you realize that in the moment, you had missed the way he continued to behold you. To cherish the rest of your features and run his hand against your lower stomach as his face flushed with red at the sound of your giggles. Laughter he caused, which made him happy, you assumed, given the way he couldn't even fight his own smile.

You wished you hadn't missed it all at the time, but were glad you were seeing it now; all of his love that then went poured into one gesture before the video ended.

He brought your hand to his lips, kissing your knuckles with a gentleness you were still currently missing, the video ending, and the silence of your room setting in.

It didn't help the ache like you thought it would, possibly even making it worse. And because of that, you thought it wise to call it a night, giving your messages one more check before making the last minute choice to send another. A final one for the evening, because at least that would bring you peace of mind.

─────────────────────

my man😙❤️

───────────

Be careful out there today, k?

Ily💞✨️

Delivered

Goodnight

I love you sm<3

❤️✨️

Delivered

─────────────────────

───────── 《 .°•♡•°. 》 ──────────

"So, uhh... you ever try Olive Garden?"

The woman, hair fiery red and a fitted suit made from the vines and plants she created (which were now being chopped away at by police in light of her villainous attempts), shot the man, Captain Man, a look of confusion and disgust. If her wrists hadn't been bound by handcuffs, she'd send another vine after him just for his obliviousness.

"No. I would never in my life..."

She didn't even have to finish her sentence, the tone implying that she wouldn't be caught dead eating from a place that required slaughtering animals and ripping plants from the ground just to serve "fine" cuisine.

"Is Olive Garden not vegan?"

Greenleaf couldn't even fathom a rebuttal to such stupidity, that fact clearly written all over her face as she was hauled away by more policemen. Ray, of course, didn't exactly catch on but jumped at Henry's shout from behind.

"Dude...!" A pause, striking out a hand to further enforce his demand. "Stop flirting with the supervillain...!"

"I'm-! . . ." Ray couldn't even deny that he was doing such a thing (granted, Greenleaf is an attractive woman), but would take advantage of his older age anyhow, pointing an index finger towards his younger partner sternly.

"Mind your business! Unlike you, Kid Danger, I have had the pleasure of time, which has allotted me the grace of perfecting my wit, savvy, and charm, I'll have you know. So-"

He was interrupted by Henry's gloved palm resting against his face, serving as a method to stop him from strolling any closer while Henry casually scrolled through his phone, his tone all the same.

"Hang on, my girlfriend just texted me."

Ray scoffed, seconds away from letting Henry know that he shouldn't be distracted on the job. That is, until he continued to go on with a flat tone, underlying bits of hilarity under it in attempts to get under Ray's skin.

"Y'know, the thing you don't have? The girl I used my natural born wit, savvy, and charm on to win over?"

"I get it!!"

Henry looked up with a smile at Ray's exclamation, innocently nodding with a swift, "Yeah." before putting his attention back to his screen.

─────────────────────

my wife❤️

Be careful out there today, k?

Ily💞✨️

9:23p.m.

Goodnight

I love you sm<3

❤️✨️

11:37p.m.

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What had been giddiness at first morphed into a feeling of guilt, thoughts of your saddened face sinking deep into his brain the moment he realized he had missed your texts. That you had apparently even gone to bed without hearing so much as a word from him all evening.

And sure, he knew you'd probably excuse it the next day, simply telling him that it "was fine" and that you "understood." And while that might be the case, he couldn't help but give in to the thought that you'd much rather have gotten to hear from him tonight. At the very least.

Besides, it's not like he didn't miss you, too. He missed you a lot, actually. You constantly on the brain every single time he fought and/or solved any crime, because if there was one person he'd guarantee the safety of while being in Swellview, it was you. But, along with your safety, he also wanted to make things up to you. He wanted your happiness. And he knew he was one of the sole people who could provide that, therefore...

"Alright, I gotta' get outta' here."

"What?" Captain Man blinked rapidly, unexpecting of Henry's sudden announcement of departure. "No-! No, we have to clean up this mess. Look at all of these vines!"

"Yep, it's...quite the jungle." Henry admitted lacklusterly, nodding to himself before throwing a thumb over his shoulder and slowly backing away. "But, uh, it's Friday, and..."

"Exactly! Friday night, no school, which leaves you plenty of time to help me out. You're on clean-up duty tonight, bud!"

Henry, again, nodded along with Ray's words. He continued to take his giant steps away from the scene, talking fast and only thinking about you in the process, hence why his logic came out a little more than flawed...

"Right, except no, because last I checked, the saying goes, "Blow bubbles fight crime, feels good." Not, "Blow bubbles, fight crime, clean up a mess that's not mine." And, I gotta be honest, that would not feel very good. It would actually feel baaaad, which is exactly how you-know-who is probably feeling right about now..."

"Don't even say her name, kid."

A pause lingered in the air before Henry disobeyed direct instruction.

"I gotta go see (Y/N)."

And he was gone before the conversation could continue, Ray left on his own to help the police with deforesting the city's town hall. And, as much as it behooved him to do so, he couldn't help but admit to himself that if he was still Henry's age with a girl like you, he'd probably do the same.

He huffed, giving his sidekick the benefit of the doubt for tonight.

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Tossing and turning slowly as you woke, you hadn't yet processed what it was that had actually brought you from your slumber until you were fully sitting up in bed, finally able to recognize the sound as a gentle knock.

This then alarmed you, your head whipping around your surroundings in a flurry in an attempt to pinpoint the sound that had spiked up your heart rate in the dead of night. But, once you had managed to place the noise coming from your window, your fear settled into more of a light curiosity and confusion. It brought you from your bed, your feet now met with the cold air around you as you crept forward towards your window.

Steadily pulling back your curtains, your caution slowly turned into joy and surprise, a smile spreading across your face that matched the one on your boyfriend's own face behind the glass.

"Henry...!" You whisper-shouted, his name muffled as he watched you move to unlock your window. He was grateful that you were quick with this action, no longer having to mildly shiver outside while you pulled him through and onto your bedroom floor, admiring his figure in the dimness of your room.

"It's so late, what're you doing here?"

Your question escaped in the midst of a yawn, rubbing the sleep from your eyes while his own darted back to where the clock sat on your nightstand.

12:54a.m.

"I know, I'm sorry, (N/N). I didn't mean to wake you." He apologized, using a nickname that brought another smile to your face once the yawn had passed.

"I just...didn't want you to think I was ignoring you, y'know? I would've answered your texts sooner, I was just-"

"-I know." You cut in with a nod. "I understand, it's okay."

He laughed quietly to himself, all too correct about your compassion when it came to him that he sometimes felt he didn't fully deserve. Like now, keeping his hands hidden behind his back with something that'd hopefully make up for it all.

"It's not, though. I wanna be fair to you with my time. Want you to know that I care about you and that I'll be there for you, whether I'm Kid Danger or just Henry Hart."

"Woah, hey, you're not... just Henry Hart." You corrected, coming closer and placing a tired hand on his shoulder. It was only here that you realized he wore nothing but a white t-shirt, the rest of his super-apparel tied around his waist, red cargo pants and combat boots still intact. Pretty on point symbolism for the moment, if anyone asked you...

"You... are Henry Hart. You're my boyfriend with a lot on your plate, and I know that it's just not fair of me to expect all of your time, which is why I don't. But no matter what, I do love you for giving me whatever you can, so it's very much okay."

You didn't have to be able to see his face clearly to know he was probably just as red as he was in your videos from earlier, his bashful smile going hidden when he let his head drop for just a moment.

"I love you, too." A pause before he quickly debunked your reassurance with some of his own. "And it's not okay, which is why I got you these..."

And suddenly, you realized why he had kept his hands hidden behind him like some wise old man, revealing to you a bouquet of flowers of all kinds. An almost randomized assortment that'd be pretty hard to find in any flower shop. At any shop at all, given...

"Oh my gosh, they're so pretty! It's like, midnight, though, where did you get these?" You squealed quietly, doing your best not to wake up any family in the house while you took the flowers into your hands and admired them the best you could under the moon's light.

"Uhh..."

Henry really didn't know how to answer that, scratching the back of his neck in remembrance of his horrid sneak attempt through his neighbor's backyard.

"I stole 'em." Was what came out way too nonchalantly, leaving you to choke on air while your eyes widened.

"What...?! Henry-!"

"I'm kidding, I didn't steal-... Well... I mean, technically, yes, but not in the way that you're thinking."

"I don't know what I'm thinking...!" You burst through confused laughter. "My boyfriend just told me he stole flowers for me. From where?!"

His eyes shifted from you, to the side, and then back again, folding at the sight of your expecting face looking back up at him.

"My neighbor..." His voice strained quietly, and you could all but sigh and shake your head, letting your nose bury itself back into the makeshift bouquet of freshly stolen flowers.

"That old lady is gonna strangle you with her bare, wrinkly hands."

Henry snorted, sparing you his impulsive thought of the fact she'd have to know it was and catch him first, and instead, fake pain at your light slaps to his chest.

"You're supposed to be a superhero, not a midnight theif...!"

"Hey, c'mon..." He cooed, tugging you closer and smiling when you did begrudgingly move forward towards him.

"...You know I'd go rogue for you any time."

"Y'know, I'm starting to miss Kid Danger." You quipped with a smirk. "At least he'd know better than to pluck flowers from someone's garden."

"Mmm. Fair." He nodded before obnoxiously pushing his forehead up against yours. "But does he kiss you the same way I do?"

"Mmm-"

And before you could pretend to debate the matter, he had done just that, forever gentle with you as he placed his lips on yours and stole any thoughts, stability in your legs, and air in your lungs you had left.

Well, maybe not steal. You'd let him have that any time, the same way he'd bring you flowers at midnight to make up for any of his absences.

Just the thought had you breaking the kiss with another giggle, your turn to grow shy at the attention before you were finally able to fully heal the last little remnants of that ache in your chest.

"You should stay."

You threw it out as a casual suggestion even though you were practically screaming inside for him to say yes. And of course, you got your wish, because what wouldn't he do for you?

"I will."

𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐬𝐚𝐢𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝𝐧'𝐭 𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐚 𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐭, 𝐬𝐨𝐨𝐨🤭...

but seriously, I really hope you enjoyed, this was super fun and cute for me to write. got me wishing he was under my tree for xmas😔✋🏽.

also, I apologize for this taking as long as it did, there's reasons I have that will be later explained in a separate post/announcement, so ya :'D.

ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ...𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐦𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭

ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ...𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭

𝐫𝐞𝐪𝐮𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐛𝐲 :

@junknstufff

𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭 :

3,877

𝐭𝐚𝐠𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐬 :

none :(

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goldenempyrean · 5 months

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Spring Showers

〚 Notes - Hello! This was based off this: request! I was meant to post this yesterday I think but something came up. Hopefully this is enjoyable, honestly feels good to write again :) 〛

〚 Pairing - Natasha Romanoff x Reader 〛

〚 Summary - When you’re sick, your day goes from bad to worse. A small car breakdown later and you find yourself unexpectedly bumping into Natasha. 〛

〚 Wordcount - 2681 〛

〘 Check Out My Masterlist! 〙

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Waking up that fresh spring morning, you rolled over to snooze the alarm that had pulled you out of your slumber, hitting it lazily before letting gravity take control and send your arm flopping over the edge of the bed.

You groaned a little as it hit the edge of your bed, rubbing your elbow with an annoyed look as if somehow death-staring the metal frame would make up for it.

As you begrudgingly got out of bed, the chill of the early morning hit you, sending a shiver down your spine. You had to admit felt a bit off, today. Your head heavy and your throat scratchy but you ignored the signs of fatigue and finished getting dressed and ready for the day.

Nat was always one to be up and out early in the mornings. Running, training or sometimes even just reading, whatever it was, she was definitely up and ready for her day before sunrise. Early bird gets the worm? Well, the early widow gets her 90-minute workout in without being disturbed. She liked it that way.

Unfortunately, it meant you usually weren’t able to see her most days before heading out to work - the rare exception being when you were on a late shift and got a few extra hours at home before heading out.

You weren’t an Avenger like your girlfriend, instead you served the people of New York by working in the local hospital as the Chief Nurse in charge. It was a demanding job, but one you found incredibly rewarding.

The pouring rain grabbed back your wandering attention as you sat sleepily over your chosen bowl of cereal. You hadn’t really had an appetite but had forced a few bites down regardless before you lost interest. Checking your phone, you realised you needed to set off, so you grabbed your car keys and headed out the compound.

As you pulled into the hospital's parking lot, you mentally prepared yourself for the day ahead. You tried to clear your throat as you checked yourself over in the mirror, but it ended in you coughing raspily and sighing in defeat as you rubbed your throat. Maybe water would get rid of the soreness, you thought as you took a tentative sip from your bottle… nope, it still hurt. What a fun day this was going to be.

Whoever said being in charge was fun, was sorely mistaken. Throughout the morning, you found yourself raising your voice more often than usual to be heard over the cacophony of the emergency room. By midday, your voice had started to crack and strain, sending sharp pains down your throat with each word.

Eventually you resigned yourself to your office, sick (literally) of the mix of pitiful, disgusted and annoyed glances you were receiving from both residents and patients.

As you sat in your office, trying to soothe your aching throat and mustering the energy to tackle the mountain of paperwork on your desk, the hospital intercom made you jump as it crackled to life, urgently calling you to the ER.

You groaned but despite your muscle’s aching, your instincts kicked in, and you rushed out of your office towards the ER.

As you entered the chaotic room, your senses were assaulted by the echo of urgent voices and the sharp smell of antiseptic made your eyes water.

You had barely assessed the ongoing situation before a sudden sneeze erupted from you, surprising yourself with its volume. You’d quickly covered your mouth, but the damage was done. Several heads turned in your direction, eyebrows raised in concern.

Before you could even attempt to explain, your boss appeared, her expression a mix of concern and sternness. "What are you doing here, Y/N?" She asked, her tone indicating she already knew the answer.

You tried to muster a response, but your throat rebelled, emitting only a hoarse croak instead.

Your bosses' eyes softened slightly, an understanding look settling on her face. "You're ill," She stated matter-of-factly. "Go home, rest, and don't come back until you're fully recovered. We don’t need you starting an epidemic.”

Despite your protests, she ushered you out of the ER and back to your office to collect your belongings. She helped you collect your things, only stopping to hold a thermometer to your ear as she checked your temperature.

You thanked her hoarsely as she held open the door for you, “Seriously, I don’t want you back until 48 hours after that fever breaks.” She warned with a stern tone but the gentle pat on your back made it obvious she was just worried that’s all.

As you stepped out of the hospital, the chilly rain immediately soaked through your clothes, sending shivers down your spine. You dropped your keys twice as you fumbled to unlock your car, finally flopping down behind the wheel with an drained sigh - a sigh which your crackling lungs despised, reprimanding you in the form of a burning cough.

As you drove home, the rain beat relentlessly against the windshield, blurring the already dimly lit road ahead. Each cough sent a sharp pang through your chest, and your vision blurred with exhaustion. You tried to focus on driving safely, your mind drifting to the warmth of your bed and girlfriend waiting for you at home. Not long now…

But just as you approached a traffic light, your car sputtered, the engine emitting a series of ominous noises before finally giving out with a pathetic wheeze. Panic seized you as you coasted to the side of the road, hazard lights flashing weakly in the rain.

You tried to restart the engine, but it only responded with a feeble groan before falling silent again.

“Oh you piece of shit!” You slammed your hand on the wheel as the car’s engine light flickered an angry red, “Stupid, fucking-“ An awful cough broke off your curse, your grip on the wheel turning white as your lungs burned.

After you caught your breath, you leaned back in your seat, feeling utterly defeated. Each raindrop seemed to mock your predicament, drumming against the windshield like a cruel taunt. With a heavy heart and a pounding headache you pulled out your phone - fighting back exhausted tears as you saw the critical low battery warning flash up on the screen.

You didn’t know the number of any breakdown services or anyone that could really be of help. The most you were able to do was to text Tony to ask him to help you move your car tomorrow. He had always been quick to respond so you found your spirits lifting just an inch higher when he agreed. However, those spirits were surely crushed when you opened up the Uber app on your phone only for the screen to turn black, taunting you with the picture of an empty battery.

“For fucks sake!”

There was nothing more you could do. You’d just have to walk. Nobody was coming to save you. You were a grown girl. You can look after yourself. There was a grocery store just down this road, maybe 10 minutes or so. You’d be able to stop there, rest, maybe pick up a few supplies. There’d be a phone there too, you’d be able to call someone to pick you up.

As you trudged through the rain, each step heavier than the last, you had to practically drag yourself down the street as your congested lungs begged for air. It was hard for see through the constant rain; the whistling of the wind made your ears throb. The chill of your soaked clothes clung tightly to your skin, and the coughing fits continued to rack your exhausted body until finally you’d made it.

You didn’t wait any longer before heading inside. The bright fluoresce of the lights made your eyes sting a little but this was miles better compared to being outside getting battered by the rain.

With each stumbling step, you grabbed a basket make your way to find some medicine. You just wanted something to make you feel better, just anything that would put an end to your awful day.

Maybe you should get some actual groceries whilst you where did. It wouldn’t hurt to stock up the cupboards a little, you might as well consider you were here.

Little did you know your girlfriend was already one step ahead of you.

Natasha’s eyes widened a little as she strolled down the aisle, pushing along half a cart of groceries as she hummed. Y/N? What were you doing here? This was a pleasant surprise and she kept quiet as she snuck up to you.

“Hey bub.” Her warm voice murmured, and you felt familiar arms wrap around the front of your waist. Natasha’s head came to rest on your shoulder as she nosied at what you were looking at, “I thought we agreed that I’d be doing groceries this week.” She purred, kissing the side of your neck sweetly.

You shrugged through gritted teeth, your damp clothes crinkling uncomfortably, “I just needed something.”

“Hold on.” Her brow crinkled just a little, “I thought you had work?” She paused, her face shifting slightly as she realised just how soaked you were. This was not the kind of damp someone got just walking from the car to the entrance. You were drenched! “God, you’re soaked Y/N! Where on earth have you been? Did you walk here?!”

Your eyes cast to the floor. You’d forgotten that it was usually the day that the two of you had gone grocery shopping. Of course, it hadn’t even occurred to you that Nat might’ve been in the store.

“I may have got a little damp.” You sniffled thickly, trying to keep your tone neutral but the painful rasp in your voice instantly gave yourself away, “…and my car may or may not have broken down coming back from work.”

Natasha's concern deepened as she noticed your raspy voice. "Oh, sweetheart, you should have called me. I would've come to pick you up." Her voice softened, filled with genuine worry. Her grip tightened around you a little. “You're not just ‘damp’, you're practically drenched and- oh, what’s this?” Her eyes glanced down, noticing the theme of items in your own basket.

She had just about to ask you about them, but her question was answered when you ducked into your elbow with two forceful sounding sneezes barely seconds later.

“Double bless you!” Her tone shifted instantly to one of comfort, “Guess I don’t need to ask why your voice is so hoarse and you’re buying meds then, hm?” She cooed and you turned around with a pout, letting your head fall onto her shoulder as you wrapped your arms around her.

“You’re not feeling well.” It wasn’t a question, she just looked at you, looking deep into your weary eyes as she continued to hold you, “How long?”

You let out a small cough into her shoulder, “This morning. Got worse at work, got sent home which was beyond embarrassing.” Your croaking voice mumbled in defeat as Nat’s hand came to soothingly rub your back.

“I’m so tired and achy.” You continued, grumbling softly, finally feeling the weight of the day begin to let up as Nat continued to hold you in the moment, “My throat’s been so bad all day and I’ve had to constantly yell at people to do their jobs properly because apparently they’re all incompetent idiots that don’t know their elbows from their arse!”

Natasha couldn’t help but laugh a little at your choice of words but quickly shut up when you shot her a glare - of course the glare had been in no way intimidating with your sleepy eyes and runny nose, but she got the hint regardless.

“Sounds rough sunshine.” She murmured, sympathetically rubbing your back before the two of you began to walk towards another aisle, “Let me get those for you, oh and the car?” She asked, realising you hadn’t explained.

Nat took the basket from your hand and put it in her cart despite your objections, “It just decided to give up on me, right in the middle of driving home. I text Tony and he said he’d get it moved tomorrow but then my phone died before I could call an uber so I had to walk the way back.” You coughed harshly as you explained what had happened, rubbing your throat with a whine.

“That’s some awful luck sweetheart, I’m sorry. How about we get you a few things and just spend the rest of the day being warm and cosy?” Nat offered as a pulled a stuffed animal from the shelf, nuzzling it against your cheek before putting it into the cart.

Your face lightened up a little and you found yourself keeping a little closer to her as the pair of you continued through the store, “You wanna get some ice cream for that poor throat of yours sweet girl?” She asked, but of course she already what the answer would be.

As you nodded eagerly, Natasha smiled, glad to see a hint of brightness returning to your expression. She led you to the freezer section, picking out your favourite flavour without hesitation. "Here we go," she said, placing it gently in the cart beside you. "Oh, and we should get some tea as well, all we have is that herbal stuff Wanda likes but it’s kinda bitter, you’ll feel better with something sweeter. I think.”

She kept her hand softly holding your own you both headed over to find the tea - occasionally pausing as Nat picked up some of the general groceries you needed but it was hard to miss how she kept adding in small treats for you along the way, your favourite drink, snacks she even chose your favourite scent of laundry detergent.

Eventually your fever raging brain felt too fuzzy to keep paying attention, so you switched off, trusting her enough to let her lead you along without asking questions.

Her voice seemed to echo and your vision blur before a hand cupping your cheek brought you back to reality. “Hey, earth to Y/N.” Natasha repeated herself, “You dazed out for a second there sweetie. Did you hear what I said?”

“Uh, no, sorry.” You answered sheepishly, warm embarrassment creeping up into your cheeks.

But Nat only smiled at you, her warm gaze making you relax, “I asked what tea you’d like baby.”

You nodded and turned to look over the assortment of boxes. You weren’t much of a tea person, in fact you never really drank it at all unless you were sick and Nat was definitely more of a coffee girl, herself. As you looked over the selection, a sudden sneeze caught you off guard, you stumbled back a little and bumped into Nat which made your girlfriend shake her head fondly as you sniffled in surprise.

“Bless you again. Looks like we’ll need some more tissues," She deducted, kissing your cheek swiftly before jogging back to the previous aisle, quickly returning with a few extra boxes and added them to the cart.

"You poor thing," Nat said sympathetically, as she opened one of the boxes in the cart and handing you a tissue. "Here, blow your nose love.”

“Thanks.”

“Berry-Bliss?” She read the name of the tea you’d chosen, after you’d finished blowing nose. “Is that one the kind you want?”

You shrugged sluggishly, biting back a groan as your muscles ached, “I’ll give it a try.”

“Worth a try.” She agreed, taking the box from you, not missing the chance to kiss your forehead as she did so. “You’re really warm baby. How about we pay up and get you back home sweetheart? I know you’re exhausted.”

As she suggested heading home, you nodded gratefully, taking her hand and letting her lead you towards the check outs. It wouldn’t take long to pay and get home but when you did, you knew you were in for an evening of cuddling and love.

Who could ask for more?

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alessiathepirate · 1 year

Text

Resident Evil 4

CLUELESS: Leon S. Kennedy x fem!reader

Summary: Five times they were sure they weren't dating and one time they weren't. OR: Luis, Ashley, Ada and Krauser having enough of how oblivious and clueless they are about their feelings.

Notes: English isn't my first language. I apologize for any mistake I made while I wrote this short story.

Warnings: swearing, violence, my Spanish (if I used something in the wrong context please feel free to tell me so I can improve), Luis being the number one fanboy and Ashley being best girl

•••

Prince Charming and his señorita

"Tell me señorita, are you and Prince Charming a thing?"

She looked up at Luis with furrowed eyebrows, her face full of confusion. She examined his gestures and the way the muscles around his mouth moved, forming a small, knowing smirk.

"Why? You want to take me out on a date or something?" she asked, quickly falling for the assumption that all Luis wants is to know if she's single so he can continue his flirting, hoping the one liners will magically work.

But then again, she thought, he'd still do it without remorse.

So what does he really want with that question?

"I'd love to cariño, but not with a señorita who's already taken."

"I'm not. Do whatever you want with that information."

She turned away from him, continuing her search through the small villa in hopes of some extra ammunition. She opened a drawer, but found nothing other than some old photos.

"I don't believe you, cariño." Luis said, suddenly breaking the silence.

She slammed the drawer shut in frustration and looked at him, trying to keep her cool and not get annoyed at his antics. She took a deep breath to calm herself down.

She should've gotten used to his teasing by now, but it was impossible to do so. He always found something to talk about, question her about and annoy her about. And now that she was afraid her partner and the president's daughter got hurt in some way after they got seperated, Luis's teasing just crossed a line.

"Look, 'cariño', I don't know why you have to annoy me with literally everything all the time, but I'd appreciate it if you stopped." she pleaded slowly, hoping he'll just stop.

"Oh, there's nothing to feel ashamed of, mi vida. Love is a beautiful and natural thing." he continued on, as he leaned against the wall, looking at her with pure naught. "Besides, I'm sure our Yanqui feels the same way... Deep in love, you know, I'm sure it sounds familiar."

She turned away, this time to hide the slight blush that appeared on her face. Thinking about Leon like that made her stomach feel like it's doing acrobatics.

"No one looks at another person like that without being in love. And our Leon looks at you like tu eres todo su mundo."

She turned to look at him quickly, wanting to ask what he meant when he said that - and when Luis noticed her pink cheeks he just smirked.

"Aw, look at that blush! You for sure look you're not in love cariño."

"Shut up!"

"Really? You want me to? How will you let him know your feelings without my advice, ey?"

"Like I'd take your advice."

"I'm not saying you have to," Luis started to explain himself. "I'm just saying I'm your best option."

She just rolled her eyes shamelessly, but Luis didn't seem to care.

"Now- with a boy like our Leon, the best thing you can do in your situation is to make him j-"

She'll never know what he really wanted to say, because in the next second loud noises were coming from outside and both of them ran to the nearest window to figure out what was going on. The moment she realized Leon and Ashley were running towards their hideout as hoards of Spanish undead were chasing them and shouting at them, she ran towards the door, opening it without thinking twice.

"This way!" she shouted.

Ashley was the first to arrive and she gave her a short hug as she waited for Leon to get inside. When they were finally able to close the door behind themselves, she felt two strong arms quickly wrapping themselves around her shoulders and waist, and the next thing she knew she was hugging Leon like there was no tomorrow.

"Are you okay?"

"Of course I am."

"You sure?"

And even if in the next moment Luis was stuck between the wall and a very upset Leon Kennedy, he still sent a smirk her way, as if he'd say: "Sure, princesa, you two are just business partners with heart shaped eyes."

•••

The way they act around each other

"Can I ask you something?" Ashley asked as she was sitting on top of a barrel, dangling her feet as she watched Leon at the shooting range.

"Of course."

"This may sound a little weird, but- are you and Leon dating?"

She turned to look at Ashley as if she just grew another head - what in their situation was quite likely to happen.

"Excuse me?"

"Are you in a relationship with him?" Ashley asked again, examining the ways her expression changed as she waited for an answer.

"I understood what you meant the first time, it's just- what makes you think that?"

"The way you act around each other." Ashley started to explain as she looked back at Leon, who shot a cutout of a pirate in the head. "He always makes sure you're okay and you always check if he has any new bruises."

She leaned against the barrel Ashley was sitting on as she looked at the man they were talking about as well. She watched as his muscles tensed up a bit everytime he pulled the trigger, she watched as he bit his lip in concentration when the target was further away and she watched as his eyes followed the bullet's movement. She bit her lip as her heartbeat got quicker at both the sight and thought - the thought that every single person in Spain seems to think they are dating.

"I care about him."

"That's all?"

"That's all."

"He seems like a great guy."

"He is a great guy." she said, knowing she's saying the truth. Whoever Leon'll date in the future - that girl will for sure be a lucky girl.

She couldn't help but giggle as Leon turned towards them with a satisfied little smile, being proud of himself that he just beat his own highscore.

"Do you think you can beat me?"

"Oh, it's on!" she smirked, accepting the challenge.

She ran up to the shooting range, leaving a confused, but happy Ashley behind. She could literally feel her gaze on them and she could heard her thoughts saying: "They are really cute!" - she shook her head, getting those thoughts out of her head. She needs to focus if she wants to win.

"Handgun?"

"Handgun."

Leon smiled as he put his hand on her shoulder, giving it a gentle squeez, causing her to almost choke on her own saliva.

"Let's see what you can do."

As she rose her gun she could hear Ashley saying "Leon, can I ask you about something?". She missed the first shot when Ashley asked "Are you two dating?", because her heart skipped a beat and beacuse she had to force herself not to look at Leon's expression.

•••

She should keep her boyfriend on a leash

"You should keep your boyfriend on a leash." she immediatelly stopped what she was doing when she heard the very familiar voice of Ada Wong, the woman who was there the night her life became horrific. "He likes to get himself in trouble."

"He's not my boyfriend." she said her voice becoming higher from the annoyance. "And I'm sure he can make his own decisions."

"He clearly can't if you're still not together." she heard the noises of high heels meeting with the wooden floor from behind her and she was sure Ada was walking towards her.

"Where are they?"

" 'They?' " Ada asked and she hated how her voice was full of pride, meaning she knows more than she does. "They got separeted half an hour ago, so now Leon is looking for the both of you."

She turned around, looking at Ada's features hoping they'll give her an explanation to what's going on. But she couldn't read anything off of her face, it was stone cold with a bit of teasing naught.

"So what, you gave Leon a surprise visit as well?"

"No need to get jealous, he didn't give me the welcome I expected."

"What can you expect in a situation like ours?"

She didn't get an answer to her question.

"Leave the girl and get out of here as soon as you can. So maybe you two can finally go on a date." she almost shouted out in frustration, but stopped herself from doing so just in time. "But please, be brave enough to make the first move, because he won't."

For the first time since forever she became speechless and didn't even think about shooting Ada in the leg when she climbed out of the window.

•••

La misión

She almost punched Luis in the face when he touched her shoulder, scaring her and causing her well trained reflexes to react. She stopped just in time, missing his cheekbone by a thread.

"Jesus Christ!"

"Just Luis, mi amor."

"Do you want to die or something?" she asked, not knowing if she meant it as a threat or as a free life lesson.

"Not really, cariño." he answered as she let go of him and took a few steps backwards. "Now tell me, how is la misión going?"

"What mission? Ashley is fine with Leon-"

"I meant our mission, princesa, how are things going with Leon?"

"Oh my God, why do you hate me so much?" she whispered the poetic question as she hid her face in her palms.

"Any success with the confession yet?"

"Can we just stop talking about my love life?"

"Not really, cariño, since we only share this mission together. After that you're on your own."

She chose not to answer and decided to take a look at her surroundings. The other door was locked, she checked it just before Luis arrived, so she had to find another way around the castle if she wanted to reunite with Ashley and Leon. God, she really hoped they are okay, there are some strong enemies around here.

Five seconds. She left Luis unsupervised for five seconds while she walked up to a window deep in thoughts, and Luis has already gotten bored. And in his boredom he decided to give Leon a call.

"Luis, where are you?" she could hear Leon's slightly annoyed voice through the trasmitter.

"Sorry I, uh, I screwed up." he started in a quite serious tone, but then glanced at her and smiled. "Come to our rescue Prince Charming!"

"I'll show you charming!" she almost laughed at his anger. "Wait, what do you mean 'our'?"

Luis turned the transmitter towards her, so Leon could get a clear view of her standing in front of the window. She just furrowed her eyebrows, having enough of both Luis and the situation.

Leon looked both frustrated and confused as he looked at her. She sent a smile his way.

"I met up with your señorita, Sancho. We might as well continue our adventure together, sí?" he turned the machine away from her. "Meet us in the Ballroom and don't be late! Or I'll be the one asking her for a dance! Nos vemos!"

As she looked at the man acting like a child, the only thought she had was: "I should've punched him straight in the jaw."

•••

The rookie kept his girl scout around

"I see you kept your girlfriend around, rookie."

That was the last fucking straw. The last fucking person she wanted to hear that sentence from. If Leon doesn't grab her hand, she would've shot Krauser in the face - and it's not like she's stupid. She knows it wouldn't kill him, but she'd enjoy the feeling of looking at the damaged muscles on his face.

Luis should be the one teasing them. He should be the one walking with them, telling them every five seconds how cute they are and how beautiful amor is. Not that asshole...

She wanted to shout at him, scream at him in anger and sadness, but Leon's grip on her stopped her in that as well. She looked at his face, questioning why he's holding her back when Krauser killed Luis in cold blood for absolutely nothing...

"Don't let him get in your head..." was all he said, as he kept a firm hold on her and they started to walk among the ruins.

"Oh, you're worried about the girl, is that it?" Krauser asked as he played with the knife in his hands. "No, I don't think that's it. I think you're worried about another girl, am I right? You're worried about your girlfriend even though she went through the same training as you. But that's just like you. You always had poor judgment."

She saw how Leon's jaw tightened and it was her turn to keep a firm hold on him, not letting him fall apart.

"But if you think I'm gonna let you out of here alive... you're even more naive than I thought." she was pushed to Leon's other side, further away from Krauser. "You can't save her. You can't save anyone."

She could feel the tension in his body grow and in a last hopeful chance to calm him down she said: "Come on, Leon. 'Don't let him get in your head.' "

"Or do you think you can save the girl scout?" for a short second their gaze met and she wished she could spit at him from this distance. "We both know she wasn't the best in hand-to-hand combat."

"Give it up, Krauser!" Leon acted on his anger so suddenly, that her heartbeat quickened from the sudden fear. "Being a lackey for these maniacs won't bring your men back. And what the Hell for? Revenge on the goverment? You think they would want that?"

She could feel the cold running through her back, the feeling of close danger sharpened her senses. She kept her gaze on Krauser, not daring to blink, afraid that she'll miss the first attack.

"Revenge? You think I'm doing all this for revenge?"

"Isn't that what this is all about?"

She stopped listening to what Krauser was saying and rather focused on his body language. She saw how with every word he says out loud his shoulders become more tense. Some kind of slight anger was about to overtake him.

So what? Let it. She's always liked to fight him when he was pissed off, because then he made more mistakes.

"You know," she started. "you were always an asshole. At least you were a honored one in the past... now, you're simply just an asshole."

She felt Leon's body tense up at her words and she realized he's afraid Krauser will hurt her.

"Enough reminiscing!" this time he couldn't hide his frustration. "Move out and draw fire, soldier!"

She reacted quickly, pulling Leon behind a broken column long before Krauser started to fire. As she sat there, she pulled out her handgun and then put her knife in her shoe. Knowing their ex-major, she'll need that more, but it's better to use that as a surprise.

"Next time, try not to piss him off."

She turned to Leon with a half smile. "What? You think only you can do that, rookie?"

"Stop it!"

"Come on!" she teased with a small smirk. "I know you love it when that name is coming from me."

Leon couldn't hide how his mouth wanted to form a smile. "I let you call me that. Now let's go and kick his ass!"

"Oh, I feel honored!" she said as she got to her knees and shot her first bullet from behind the column.

•••

Fear makes your heart feel full

She felt like her heart stopped beating for a few moments when Leon fell to the ground and it didn't take more than half a second for her to join him on the floor. She landed on her knees as she pressed one of her hands to her chest tightly, still feeling the pain the machine caused as it removed the plaga. The fear that flooded her mind made her numb, her breathing became heavy as she looked up at Ashley and asked her to help her get him up in the medical chair, so they can get the plaga out of him as well.

And now as she sat next to him, holding his hand as she waited for him to wake up she felt like nothing else matters. She won't take a single fucking step without him.

"He'll be fine. I'm sure of it." Ashley said who has found a chair close to them.

"I know." she muttered and she had to swallow, because her mouth felt dry. "I know he will, I'm just- worried about him."

She examined his features, looked him up and down to make sure he's okay - and when she realized he seems calm and relaxed, she felt like she can breath again. Only moments ago he was in pain. She could see it on his face, the way the muscles around his eyes and nose moved... But not anymore. Now he seems to feel better. His cheeks aren't red and the black veins disappeared as well.

"Ashley?"

"Yes?"

"When- when you thought we were dating... You spoke about this, didn't you? How we take care of each other..." she felt her heartbeat quicken as she muttered the last few words.

"Yes, this is what I was talking about."

She looked at Leon again, feeling the pure need to hug him and keep him close so she could feel the heat radiating off of him and feel the way his body is moving with every small breath.

"I don't think I'd be able to feel like this about anyone else... Not even in a relationship."

She could see the soft smile on Ashley's face and for a moment she saw the both of them in a café back in the USA, talking and laughing about nothing at all.

"He's not just a friend, is he?"

"I don't know. Luis said he looks at me like 'tu eres todo su mundo'. Like 'you're his whole world'."

"I can see what he meant by that." for a moment the atmosphere became sad - Luis was still a new loss and a fresh wound, and with that a still present regret. She should've been more playful instead of being an asshole. "That's how you look at Leon everytime we're at the shooting range."

"He looks good at the shooting range." she said without thinking, feeling her cheeks become red soon after.

"You know, it's hard to find a normal guy these days. I'm happy you found each other."

"So you don't have a nice guy in a suit waiting for you at home?" she asked teasingly.

"No. Not really."

"Well I'm sure we can say that after this messed up adventure you won't need one. You'll look after yourself just fine and you'll have time to find that nice guy." she smiled at Ashley who felt more like a friend by now than the president's daughter.

In the next second Leon's hand moved in her hold and she almost fell off the chair. She stood up instead of staying there and she tightened her hold on him.

"Jesus Christ, Leon!" she spoke up, her voice full of both worry and happiness as she looked down at him. "You pull an act like that again and you'll burry me the next time you wake up."

He opened his eyes, the blue irises full of confusion as he looked up at her while he tried to get used to the light.

"The plaga..."

"We removed it." she said, not letting him finish his sentence. "There's no need to worry about that anymore."

She noticed that Ashley walked further away from them, giving them some privacy even if there wasn't another room to go to. Then her gaze was back on Leon again as she slowly let go of his hand.

"You removed it?"

"Yeah, we did." she smiled at him, feeling like her heart is full - full of so many emotions she doesn't know what to feel. "God, I was so worried about you."

"It's fine, I'm fine. Thanks to you."

They smiled at the other with one of those small, shy smiles what paints everyones cheeks pink.

"Can you stand up?"

"Sure, don't worry about that."

But he couldn't stand up. His legs gave up halfway and if she's not there he would've landed on the ground again.

"Careful. You have to take care of yourself." she scolded him as she helped him up, but didn't take a step away from him even when he was standing with a straight back. She craved the closeness more than anything.

"I'm not the priority here."

"Of course you are! To me you fucking are!" the frustration and worry spoke from her without regret and now that she said that out loud, her breathing became heavy.

"Good to know we feel the same about each other."

They didn't speak for a moment and she couldn't do so even if she tried to, because Leon's right hand gently touched her right cheek; his thumb brushing along the angry red cut she got from Krauser's knife.

"Does it still hurt?"

"It never did."

"Such a liar." Leon laughed as he let go of her face.

"But you love me like that."

"Damn right I do."

For a few seconds she forgot how to breath and her chest started to ache, ache from all the bottled up emotions and the realization that he said that out loud. He said that out loud. Her eyes started to sting - God, she's such a weak girl, just like Krauser said in the past; crying over the things she shouldn't cry over...

"You do? You-" she took a deep breath before she continued. "You love me?"

The silence set in again, neither of them daring to speak up. She noticed how Leon shied away from her gaze and how her own heartbeat became dangerously fast.

"Of course he does!" Ashley's voice came so suddenly that she flinched, getting closer to her partner, because she forgot Ashley was still in the room with them. "And if he doesn't take you out on a date when we get back home..."

No one said anything else about that. Leon just pressed a kiss to her forehead, almost giving her a heart attack whille he did so.

"Let's get out of here, yeah? So we can go out on a date..."

She didn't miss Ashley's quiet 'Finally' after they parted. She couldn't miss it even if she tried to.

As they got ready to leave, she noticed that her heart feels full. Full of love, love to give and accept. After all, love is a beautiful and natural thing and she for sure won't be afraid to look at Leon like he's her mundo entero. Not anymore.

#resident evil 4 remake #resident evil 4 #resident evil #resident evil x reader #leon s kennedy #leon kennedy #leon s kennedy x reader #leon kennedy x reader #leon s kennedy x fem!reader #leon kennedy x fem!reader #fluff #angst #hurt/comfort #ashley graham #luis serra #ada wong #jack krauser

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cozy-cinnamon-roll · 7 months

Text

We Interrupt This Broadcast...

(Another two-part-er! Stay tuned for part 2 very shortly!)

Fandom: Hazbin Hotel

Pairing: Ler!Rosie, Ler!OC, Lee!Alastor (strictly platonic)

Content/Trigger Warnings: tickling, very brief blood mention, medical themes (non-graphic & painless). One comically graphic description of cannibalism (first paragraph). Also, this is set right after Alastor gets his ass handed to him by Adam, so you can expect a lil angst sprinkled in there (don't worry, he gets better).

If there are any trigger warnings you'd like me to add in the future (and/or to this fic), PLEASE let me know! I am always happy to oblige. 💕

This is a ticklefic! If that's not your cup of tea, kindly move along.

Ok... I'm gonna be honest folks, I have no idea if this fic is even coherent. This ain't my Best Work™ - this is literally the coping mechanism I've been relying on to put myself to sleep every night this week because HOLY SHIT my life is stressful at the moment. 😅

But anyway, I've decided I'm just gonna go ahead and post it, because 1) the world needs more lee!alastor, and 2) I'm not here to do my Best Work™, I'm here to write cute self-indulgent little stories about Alastor getting tickled to bits by his platonic wife. I'm here to decompress my hypervigilant ass at the end of long days by imagining my favorite endearingly creepy characters get wrecked by my other favorite endearingly creepy characters.

In summary, I'm here to have a good time, and I certainly did with this fic. So I hope you do too!

Featuring my new oc! (Rosie and Al still take center stage though, don't worry lol)

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It's a little-known fact that cannibals make terrific doctors. When you spend every meal tearing the human body apart with your face, you end up with a pretty comprehensive intuition for demonic anatomy.

So Alastor supposed he should consider himself lucky to have Rosie and her loyal posse so close at hand after his battle with Adam.

He was certainly relieved when Rosie had stumbled upon him, barely conscious from blood loss on the floor of his wrecked radio tower - and especially a few hours later when, having been rushed back to Cannibal Town, he was whisked into a warm, familiar parlor and deposited on a comfy couch.

Within minutes Rosie had summoned a woman in a white coat who swooped in, produced a bottle of a strange, foul-smelling gel from her medicine bag, soaked a rag with it, and pressed it firmly against Alastor's wound. The searing pain evaporated almost on contact.

"What is that?" Alastor breathes, visibly relaxing against the arm of the couch he's propped against.

"Anesthetic." She begins preparing a needle and thread.

"Didn't know such a thing existed down here."

"Of course! We're demons, not barbarians," Rosie scoffs, watching from the sidelines.

Cannibals, as a rule, rarely last long enough to need a doctor, but Rosie is no ordinary cannibal. And Dr. Trudy Sawblade - a young surgical resident in life, and Rosie's personal physician in death - is the best of the best. While she hadn't quite completed her medical training before her untimely death, in Rosie's service she's gained more than enough experience to make up for her education cut short.

"That salve is derived from a distant cousin of the poison dart frog. Evidently most of the frogs are assholes, because hell has an downright enormous population of them." Trudy's voice is measured and matter-of-fact, with a soft lilt that is both soothing and vaguely unsettling. "Haven't been discovered on earth yet. Which is good, because one whiff of this would end a mortal life in a matter of seconds."

"Lucky you, you're already dead," Rosie chimes in cheerfully.

"Lucky me," Alastor murmurs, without conviction.

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

Truthfully, with the pain from his chest wound numbed, the weight of his recent defeat presses even more heavily on Alastor's heart. Someone - probably one of the cannibals who helped transport him from the rubble pile to Rosie's parlor - must have grabbed the broken microphone as they carried him out, because the fractured pieces are sitting on the side table at the other end of the couch. Under normal circumstances the awareness that someone had touched his staff without permission would spark a flash of rage from the Radio Demon, but now he can only stare dismally at what remains of his cane - aware that it's no longer capable of accomplishing much anyway.

It takes only a few minutes for Trudy to stitch Alastor back up and wrap his chest in a stretchy gauze. Meanwhile, Rosie quickly mends the worst of the tears in his clothes - if only to avoid having to watch her friend stare down the couch at his broken staff, with an uncharacteristic half-smile that damn near breaks her heart.

"Alright, sir, that should do it for now. It's a nasty gash, for sure, but the salve should keep it from getting infected."

"Thank you, my dear." He gives an appreciative nod to the surgeon, and Rosie too, as his fellow overlord hands him back his clothes.

"Can't have you going around with a big hole in your chest, can we?" Rosie steps back and scrutinizes her own patch job as he slowly dresses himself again. "It ain't perfect... especially for a classy fellow like you. But I'm sorry to report that I saw my tailor at a Sunday brunch just last week. Inconvenient, but I gotta admit, he made a wonderful casserole."

For the briefest of moments, this aside manages to tweak Alastor's smile into something vaguely genuine. "I'm sure he did."

"One more thing, Mr. Alastor, sir," Trudy jumps in as the radio demon pulls on his coat. "So sorry, I almost forgot. The angel also threw you against a wall, correct?"

At the recollection, Alastor's smile stiffens into something more closely resembling a grimace. His antlers rise between his ears. "Does it matter?"

"You may be at risk for internal injuries." If Trudy is at all fazed by inviting the most powerful overlord in hell's annoyance, it doesn't show. "I really ought to check, just to be safe."

Alastor looks away. As loathe as he is to even acknowledge his own fragility, he truly isn't sure of the extent of his own injuries - given that he's not used to receiving them in the first place. And he'd be damned (well, damned twice) if Adam had ruptured something vital, spelling the radio demon's second death a few hours after the fact.

He grits his teeth. "I suppose it wouldn't hurt."

"Lovely. If you could just lie back, sir..." As he obliges, she kneels beside the couch. "I'm just going to feel for any swelling..." Her hands hover over him-

"Er, wait." Alastor abruptly sits up.

"It's alright, I won't touch your wound!" Trudy soothes. "I'll just be feeling down here..." She gestures to his midsection (which elicits a sharp flinch).

"No, I-" He hesitates. "I'm... not sure this is necessary."

"Oh, Alastor, stop worryin'!" Rosie reassures him with a friendly pat on the shoulder. "Trudy is quite picky about her meals. She'd never go for venison."

"That's... not what..."

Alastor pauses, and evidently decides against trying to explain what he meant. He reluctantly lies back against the cushions again.

"I'm going to place my hands under your shirt, sir. If you feel any pain, please alert me."

"Very well."

As Trudy lifts his shirt, he looks like he is going to say something more - but whatever it is dies on his tongue the moment her hands make contact with his stomach. He brings one knee up sharply.

"Tender there, sir?"

"No! No, your hands are cold." His words have gone uncharacteristically stiff.

Trudy methodically probes one side of his belly, then the other (which in turn causes his other knee to pop up). This time when Trudy asks if he's in pain, he merely shakes his head.

The surgeon furrows her brow, concentrating. Human-animal hybrids like Alastor already take a bit of poking around just to get a sense for each unique configuration of organs. It doesn't help that the man is bracing for every touch...

"Are you sure this doesn't hurt, sir?" she murmurs tentatively. "You're very tense."

"Yes." The word comes out like a hiss. She glances at the radio demon's face. He's wearing his typical showman's smile, but his eyes are fixed on the ceiling with a weird, wide, unwavering stare.

Finally the surgeon sits back. "Well, I don't feel anything concerning. But to be honest, sir, I can't feel much of anything." She turns apologetically to her employer. "His stomach is all clenched up..."

But Rosie is simply standing there pressing a huge grin into her glove. She's known Alastor for decades. She can read his expressions like a magazine.

"Alastor, darling," Rosie drawls casually. "Are you ticklish?"

From the radio demon's reaction, you'd think she'd asked if he was an Exorcist. He scrambles to sit up. "No! Why would-"

"You're ticklish. That's..." She catches herself just before the word precious.

"...What?!" There's an edge of defensiveness to his voice that Rosie very rarely hears from him.

"Why are you embarrassed?"

"I'm not emb- That's not- what-" Oh, she's giving him that look. "I'm just- I wasn't-"

As he speaks, Alastor's voice suddenly goes thin. His gaze turns inward. "I'm stuttering. I don't stutter! I've never stuttered!" He clutches his coat closer around himself. "I am the RADIO DEMON, for heaven's sake, I don't sta-AHH! Haha-!"

Evidently a scribble to the ribs is a very effective way to interrupt a panicking demon. Rosie runs her fingers from his hip up his side to his arm and back a couple times for good measure.

The amount of startled laughter she is able to draw from just this surprise touch delights her - the poor man is so ridiculously sensitive that a five-second one-handed tickle leaves him fully breathless.

"Okay! Okay, okahay! Keheh- Rosie!"

"Sorry dear, couldn't resist." She holds her hands up, still beaming like a stadium light. "I'll stop torturing you."

Alastor clears his throat. "You're not torturing me, dearest." He straightens his bowtie, clearly attempting to salvage his dignity. "You know what I always say, laughter is a powerful sign of-"

He cuts off with a sharp inhale and defensive flinch as Rosie perches on the edge of the sofa beside Trudy. She grins.

"You're right. That's certainly your specialty, isn't it?"

Alastor forces a nervous chuckle. "Never fully dressed without a smile, you know."

"Well don't worry, darling. I understand." She pats his knee. "Just because you've got the scariest evil cackle in hell doesn't mean you appreciate having it tickled out of you."

Rosie had expected this assurance to put him at ease, but if anything, he seems more troubled.

"Why would I mind a little, ah..." Tickling. Tick-ling. He can't bring himself to articulate two syllables. Is this all he's left with without his staff? "...Er, a little bit of levity? Can't let things get too serious, can we?" With another quick cough, the radio demon finally manages to get his voice to fall back into his familiar breezy cadence. He turns to Trudy. "Now, are we... quite finished with that examination?"

"Nothing seems amiss, from what I can feel." Trudy takes a step back. "Which is not much, but I think I've already made you uncomfortable enough..."

"Nonsense! I'm perfectly at ease!" He lies back again and smooths his coat. "Please, finish your little checkup. I insist."

Trudy regards him curiously for a moment. "Right." Her hands hover over his belly again. "But if you want me to stop, sir, just say the word-"

"I assure you that w-won't be necessahary..."

Trudy watches him seize up before her fingers even make contact. This time she presses a little deeper into his belly, trying to feel around his defensiveness.

"You are punching holes in my couch," Rosie remarks dryly, watching the poor demon's claws bury themselves in the cushions.

"I kn... ohow, I'm just-" He squeezes his eyes shut as Trudy hits a particularly bad spot. And then another. And another... hell, his torso one big bad spot.

"What do you think, Trudy?"

The young doctor just shakes her head.

"Alastor. Darling. You have GOT to relax."

"I am!" Alastor's composure is dangling by the thinnest of threads.

"Maybe it would help," Trudy says, with infinite caution, "to just go ahead and laugh, sir."

A beat. And then Rosie bursts into laughter.

"Giving new meaning to the 'deer in the headlights' expression, my friend." She scoots closer. "I thought you just said you don't mind a little 'levity'..."

"I don't!"

"In that case. Carry on, Trudy - Auntie Rosie is gonna help our patient out a bit while you work."

Too late, Alastor realizes what his fellow overlord has in mind. "Wait, wait! Ros-"

A delicate set of nails find the region just under his ribs - and it's all downhill from there.

"Ah! Fuhuck!" Alastor chokes on a curse before he can catch himself. He twists sideways, collapses into muffled giggles, and briefly manages to pull himself together - just barely - with a few hyperventilated breaths. "Rosie, really! This isn't- please- ack! I can't-" There's that damn stutter again. He hadn't even stuttered when Adam slashed him.

And now, Great Alastor the Radio Demon, undone by some scribbles? And a medical exam?!

Meanwhile, Trudy can feel even less now than she could before, her patient's belly now quaking with silent, suppressed mirth. But she takes one look at Rosie's delighted expression... and continues probing anyway, curling a subtle little smirk of her own.

It seems Rosie has picked up on a slightly less tangible injury than anything Trudy can address. But fortunately, they've just stumbled upon a promising potential treatment.

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

Part 2 is already pretty much finished - my brain is just too mushy at this point to contend with Tumblr's shitty text interface any longer, and this feels like a good stopping point.

Lemme get a good night sleep and another dose of Prozac and I'll have the rest out shortly 😅

💜 - Cozy

#lee!alastor #ler!rosie #ticklish!alastor #oh deer he's ticklish #ticklefic #tickle content #hazbin hotel tickles #hazbin hotel tickling

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ofsappho · 1 year

Text

Summertime Sadness (part 2)

Simon "Ghost" Riley x reader

Second chance romance, heavy angst, hurt/very little comfort

Ten years ago: the first time you met Simon

Today: the first time Ghost meets you

Tags: mental illness, therapeutic boarding school, self harm, suicide attempt/suicidality, self harm, abuse, parental abandonment, much the same as last chapter. This fic is unedited because I don’t feel like editing it lol. If you see spelling/grammar issues, no you didn’t.

TEN YEARS AGO

Reader POV

It’s intake day.

Intake day happens once a week, always on Wednesday.

You don’t know why they pick Wednesday. It seems pretty arbitrary, doesn’t it?

On intake day, the nurses and counselors make all the current residents of the inpatient program line up to greet the newbies. You actually look forward to intake day. Everyone here is so boring and routine; your roommate never speaks unless spoken to and she always keeps her earbuds in. On intake day, the hope that someone nice will be admitted survives for the few hours of the intake itself.

It usually dies right after. There was one polite girl who smiled when you waved last week, but she was transferred to a different facility that night before you could learn her name.

You’ve been here for three weeks, so that’s three intake days.

You’re not sure why you’ve been here so long. It seems a little excessive; you’d think by now they’d realize your stuff isn’t so bad and maybe you could transition to outpatient appointments?

It’s a little dissociation and some minor depression. Not bad at all.

But your doctors agree, albeit gently, that you should stay for the full five month course.

The program isn’t so bad. The facility sits on a sprawling multi-acre property in the British countryside, where everything is beautiful and verdant and always chilly. It’s lovely. The tea is good. You’re getting used to how they take it here. It’s nothing like the sweet tea you drink back home.

You suppose that’s another reason why they won’t let you go home even though you’re okay; there isn’t a home to go back to. Your dad hasn’t looked you in the eye since Mom left. At least the orderlies here greet you in the morning.

(What Dad doesn’t know is that before she left, she told you she loved you and to wait for her. Soon, she’ll take you away from this place and you’ll never have to see your dad again.)

Before you head to the foyer, you check your hair in the mirror of your room’s suicide-proofed bathroom. A young teenage face stares back at you with cheeks flushed red from the sun. You trace your deep smile lines with the tip of your finger, then practice smiling. You would have feel better about moving to a therapeutic boarding school if you’d been greeted with a smile.

At first, you think the newest crop of poor souls will be uninteresting at best. Listless rich kids detoxing off Mommy’s coke, frightened preteens who’ve never been away from their parents for an extended period of time, and a few teenagers straight from an ER, IV bags and all.

And then you see him get off the bus last.

He’s tall, towering over everyone else. A lanky, almost skeletal build, with a bored, aloof expression on his face. He hides the Zippo lighter he was playing with in his sleeve before the nurses catch and confiscate it.

There’s something horrifically severe about him. He can’t be more than a couple of years older than you, but he carries himself like he’s a blade and the world is filled with monsters.

His eyes are large and dark, rich brown irises rimmed with pale blonde eyelashes. And they’re kind, even though he would probably hate having that pointed out.

You decide then and there that you’ll befriend him. He could use a friend; everyone here does. He’s beautiful in his sharpness and elegant in his abrasiveness. Maybe you can coax more of that hidden kindness out, show him that it’s worth more than his anger. You wouldn’t be able to stay away if you tried.

You both like playing with fire, though you prefer less literal ones.

TODAY

Ghost POV

Your smile fades swiftly as if it was never there to begin with.

There are two ghosts in this room. That’s what you are; a ghost of the girl he knew.

He watches and waits for you to shift uncomfortably and start blabbering to fill the silence like you used to. “Why’d you make them call me?” Ghost asks when it’s clear that you won’t.

As soon as you explain, he’s out of here. Ghost meant it when he said he never wanted to see you again.

You’re the last living reminder of the past he’s tried so hard to kill. The beeping sounds of your heart monitor spell out his mistakes in a grating, irritating rhythm.

Your answer disappoints his expectations. “I didn’t actually think you’d show.” Ghost doesn’t hear any wistfulness or longing in your voice, anything that would tell him that you’re clinging on to the boy you thought he was. Only a bone-dry and hollow statement of facts.

“What do you want?”

You ignore his question. At fifteen, you were good at that. At twenty-five, you’re better. “You got any cigarettes I could bum? You look like you still smoke them,” You say as you fiddle with your torn, bleeding nail beds with the classic anxiety of nicotine withdrawal.

He does that too when a mission stretches too long without a resupply and he finishes his cigarettes early to stave off hunger.

Ghost remembers fighting with you over the pack of smokes he smuggled into the program. He would hold it way above your head and laugh as you struggled to reach them. But you never gave up - they were bad for him, and you liked him too much to see him die of lung cancer.

He remembers the determination in your eyes and your unwavering faith that he could be saved.

“They’re bad for you,” Ghost echoes.

If you remember that moment, you don’t show it. “You know what else is fucking bad for you?” Your tone is so acerbic that it gives him whiplash.

He can’t resist taking a shot. “What, being a prick?” You just… bring out the worst in him. You make him feel as unhinged and unmoored as he was when you first met.

You roll your bloodshot eyes.

“I wasn’t going to call you out on that. I was going to say benzos and vodka. Also throwing yourself headfirst off a bridge.”

“Oh.”

What is he supposed to say to that?

“Why did you come?” You ask after a long moment of quiet interspersed by that fucking heart monitor.

Ghost grinds his teeth into each other as he reflects. He hates doing that; the inside of his skull is a bad place. “…I don’t know,” He admits. Coming here was a mistake; Ghost understands that now.

The foul taste on the back of his tongue is guilt. But why? You did this to yourself. You brought him here to play games and fuck him up, so why is he the one who feels… bad?

You sigh. “Simon-“

“Ghost. It’s Ghost now,” He cuts you off with more violence than necessary.

Your mouth settles into a tight, pained line. “Ghost. Go away.”

“But you called me here.”

That provokes a reaction.

Ghost sees it and immediately wishes it hadn’t.

You stare him straight in the eye, your dilated pupils peel back his mask and see the face underneath. Your skin is tinged gray and your bottom lip blooms red with blood from where you’ve bitten through it.

He wants back the child sobbing for his forgiveness on her knees, who looked at him like he hung the stars in the sky.

“And it was a mistake, and I should never have done it, and I just wanted the satisfaction of knowing you weren’t going to pick up the phone. That I was truly alone.”

So the memory of him is a knife you’re using on yourself. Fucking disturbing.

“Oh.”

You raise an eyebrow as you wave. “Bye.”

Right.

That’s it.

Though your dismissal rankles, Ghost does as you ordered and takes his leave of you.

His work phone vibrates a few times.

Only one person calls that it. “Captain,” Ghost greets.

Captain Price clears his throat on the other side of the line. “Lieutenant. When can we expect you back?”

‘Tomorrow’ is on the tip of Ghost’s tongue.

He’s never taken a day off in his career, which means he’s got at least a year or two in built up vacation time. “I’ll be gone for a while longer, sir. Not sure yet how long,” Ghost answers promptly.

It’s only for a few more days, a week at most. Long enough to make sure you won’t try to kill yourself again, long enough for the guilt freezing his blood and choking his lungs to fade.

“Alright, Lieutenant. Keep us posted.”

“Yes, sir.”

TAGGING: @devcica @igotmajordaddyissues @almightywdm @copiasratscheese @nerdyreaderpapi @schmelscorner

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serasfanfiction · 6 months

Text

Inspired by this Twitter thread.

Part 1 | Part 2

Lucifer had managed to keep his side of the deal, mostly by straight-up avoiding the hell out of Alastor. This sometimes resulted in him walking right back out of rooms he'd just walked into, exiting stage left upon Alastor arriving, and one memorable portalling out of a room when he turned around to discover the red head between him and the only exit to the room.

He was suspicious Alastor had done that last one on purpose, but Lucifer had no solid proof he could actually show, so he'd swallowed his measly dignity and all but literally fled. It had galled him to do it, but he'd done far more embarrassing things for his beloved Char-Char and this honestly didn't even rank.

This little game might have gone on indefinitely, if Charley had not called a Hotel-wide meeting. It sounded like she had come up with a new team building exercise and wished to try it out on the residents.

Lucifer had overheard talk about the exercises from Angel (something about being thrown off a building and trust falls?) while sitting at the bar shortly after moving into the hotel, but had never personally seen any himself. Curious, he'd come down to watch, even if he hadn't intended to participate.

He really should have known better. The moment Charlie spotted him, her eyes lit up with that smile he was so terribly a push over for. "Dad! Come join us!" She near skipped over, snagging his hand. "Pleeeeease? I've already made it up with you included! It'll be so much fun!"

"Uh..." Lucifer glanced behind her, eyes falling on Angel, who had snorted. Husk(er? Was it Husker? or Husk? He really needed to get their names down better) and Maggie (Vaggie?) appeared to be long suffering, but present. Nifty was her usual self.

And then there was Alastor. Alastor, who was watching him like a particularly interesting specimen he was just waiting to see what it would do. Like he was just waiting for their king to make a fool of himself or run away.

Well, fuck that! Yes, he could be socially awkward sometimes and he found large crowds of people overwhelming, but! He could do interactions! And it was supporting his daughter - that was always good, right?

Right.

He turned his own smile on Charlie. It was a little too big, but he really meant it. "Of course, sweetie. What are we doing?"

Charlie near squealed, permission given to tug her father over to the rest of the group. She plopped him down beside her girlfriend - noticeably leaving breathing distance between him and Alastor - before taking her place on the other side of Vaggie.

"So, for this exercise, we are going to need to draw names!" She pulled out some folded up pieces of paper, holding them up for everyone to see. She opened her mouth to continue, only to pause as if realizing something. She bit her lip as she looked to the papers to the group of them. Then her eyes fell on her father and Lucifer could all but see a light bulb go off over her head. "Dad! Could we borrow your hat! We can draw the names out of that!"

Lucifer huffed softly, bemused, but handed over the hat easily. A few eyebrows went up from the other members of the group, as if they were surprised he would so easily give up what was for all intents and purposes the Crown of Hell to be used for his daughter's whimsy.

Heh! Jokes on them, because this still didn't even count as the least dignified thing he'd ever done to entertain his kid (because she may be an adult now, but she was a baby once and he may have been absent throughout most of her life, but not even he had been absent during her baby/toddler years. Lilith would have killed him).

Charlie took it, throwing the names into the hat. Carrying on as if there hadn't been a disruption, she explained, "When the hat comes to you, you pull a name out." To demonstrate, she reached in and shuffled the papers. Pulling one out, she proceeded to hand the hat to her girlfriend, who also did the same. As they passed it on, she added, "Once everyone has a name, look who you have! That's who you're going to be saying something nice to!"

Angel, never one to miss an opportunity, leaned against the bar in such a way that every curve was accented. "Oh, I don't need a trust building exercise to find something nice to say about some of you's." His smile was just as suggestive, and while the line seemed to be thrown out to the group in general, no one missed the way he glanced at Husk.

Husk himself gave a slight roll of his eyes in response, but it didn't appear any more gruff then Angel's comment was overtly pushy. If Lucifer wasn't mistaken, he would have said both of their expressions looked fond.

Lucifer tracked the progress of the hat as it made its way around the room, coming to Niffty. Her grin widened and her little hands twitched. "Ooooo. This could use a little polishing." Her single eye peered up at Lucifer from across the room, as she near vibrated with glee. "You don't mind if I polish this do you?"

"Um--" Lucifer's own hands twitch with the sudden need to retrieve his hat and wait. Was she removing one of the strands of his hair caught in the hat and pocketing it??

"Nonesense, Niffty." Alastor's near drawl put an end to her manic episode with ease, his hand coming down to pat her head as if she were a mere child. She certainly smiled up at him as innocently as one as she snagged her paper and held the hat up for him. "I'm sure he keeps all of his possessions nice and clean."

Damn right, he did. So what if he cheated a bit and used magic to do so. The end result was all that mattered.

Alastor gave her one last pat on the head, before locking eyes with his king. Never breaking eye co tact, Alastor placed a single hand under the top of the hat, his smile smug and something close to victorious as he took possession of it, however briefly.

(The image rose in Lucifer's mind, sudden and unbidden, the whisper of a warning, of this sinner wearing the hat - the crown - as if he were born to it. His shadows dark around him, eyes and teeth alight with sinister power.)

Lucifer shuddered. He blinked hard to dispell the vision.

Alastor's smile was all teeth as he plucked out a name. Not even remotely pretending to be pious, he held the hat out to Lucifer. "Your hat, your Majesty."

Lucifier was almost loathe to take anything from the Alastor, his own hat or not. Narrowing his eyes, it was only his promise to Charlie that held his tongue for him (and judging from the little shit's expression, he knew it). Lucifier near puffed himself up, his own smile gracious and over-the-top as he snatched the hat, aggressively pulling the final slip of paper from the hat. He held the smile as he placed his crown back where it belonged, the motion finally chasing away the last of the unease from the vision.

Everyone had either already opened their paper or were in the process of doing so. Lucifier felt it was like being the first to blink - breaking eye contact - but his self confidence wasn't quite so low he couldn't let Alastor have this one. He looked down at his paper, opened it up, and then felt his stomach drop.

Sitting their in his daughter's handwriting, innocent and damning all the same, was the name:

Alastor.

Somewhere, his father was laughing at him, pettily and pitilessly. He could almost hear it all the way down there in Hell.

Lucifer balled the paper up into a fist, eye twitching. He could feel Alastor watching him intently, but he refused to give anything else away. Ignoring the sinner felt like pulling a tooth, but he did it anyway, focusing on Charlie.

"Great! Now that everyone has their name, we can start. I'll go first and the person I have will go next and so forth!" She held up her paper for them to read the name. The hotel's oldest guest's name stared back at them. She turned to him. "Angel, I just want to say how proud I am of you and your progress! We've even found fewer stashes lately!"

Angel leaned on the hand he had braced on the bar, his expression near screaming he thought Charlie was adorable in a way that Lucifer could almost see Charlie suddenly questioning if they were finding less stashes lately because Angel had actually been using less or if he was getting better at hiding them. Just as equally visibly, she shook her head to banish the thoughts as if she found them too mean to think before standing resolute by her statement.

Angel wasn't the only one looking at her like they thought she was just too adorable at that point.

His daughter really was too good for this place.

Still, Angel seemed to soak up the positive feedback, something a little more genuine to the playful smile he turned on the bartender. His little paper read, Husk.

Huh, so his name was Husk? But Lucifer thought he'd heard--

Eh, it was a mystery for another day.

Lucifer tuned back in to Angel saying, "You already know you're my favorite person. You always know just what I need after a long day of work."

As if feeling the awkward tension rising from the rest of the group (curiously, all Husk gave was a grunt, and a highly tolerant one at that), Angel shot a coy look over his shoulder at his audience. "All I meant was a good drink. What did you think I meant?"

Charlie clapped her hands together, shaking off whatever just happened there. "Ooookay! Husk! Why don't you go next?"

Husk didn't look thrilled to have been roped into all of this, but he also have the look of someone who had long ago learned it wasn't worth fighting it. He held up his note, which had Niffty's name on it. "Thanks for keeping the bug population down," he rumbled, just this side of sincere.

Niffty was pleased with it either way. She turned on Vaggie (Maggie?) without bothering to pull out her slip. "I really like your room. It has all the mother bugs in it. I thought they could hide from me, but I found them anyway." She cackled, a kitchen knife appearing in her hand seemingly out of nowhere.

"Thaaaanks..." Vaggie's eye twitched as she reached over and plucked the sharp object out of the maid's hand. It disappeared onto her person, likely wherever she hid her spear. Dangerous object temporarily no longer a danger, she held up her paper. Lucifer, it read.

The devil in question felt a small spike of anxiety. He knew what his reputation was like and how it was perceived in Hell and on Earth. He may have ignored it at the time, but he hadn't failed to hear what Adam had spat at him.

The Most Hated Being in All of Creation.

Vaggie, an angel herself, would have heard all the same spew of lies and truths. He didn't think she thought of him that way, but as Charlie's partner, her opinion actually mattered to him.

As if reading his thoughts (and who knew, maybe she could, he was aware of how expressive he was), her sharper edges softened a bit. "I, uh, I'm glad you're not as terrible as they said you are," she offered, looking away.

Lucifer blinked, refusing to admit there might be tears at the corners of his eyes.

He really, really needed to learn her name. Number one goal after this.

Charlie hugged Vaggie, singer her praises. Vaggie played it off that she wasn't moved by them, but one had to be blind not to see how she melted into her girlfriend's arms.

Caught up in the moment, Lucifer could almost forget that it was his turn. And that meant he'd have to say something - ugh - nice to a certain Hellian. He wanted to live in this nice little bubble for a moment.

Sadly, Charlie herself burst it, turning to her father expectantly.

Oh. Oh, how he really didn't want to do this. It didn't help that when he turned to Alastor, the Radio Demon already knew who he'd gotten.

One day. One day, Lucifer was going to wipe that grin off his face. He could be patient.

He could.

Alastor watched him, waiting to see what he'd come up with. Perhaps still waiting to see if he'd make a fool of himself.

Lucifer forced down the irritation, the anger. Felt his muscles loosen. It made it easier to call up his own brand of charm - the same charm that lured not just Lilith but Eve in as well. (Had lured Adam in as well, but, well, that never made it in the history books.) He looked Alastor up and down, eyes half lidded and smile all teeth.

"With a voice like your's, I can see why they let you be a Radio Host." Lucifer's smile edged a touch bit more towards a grin at the way Alastor's eyes widened ever so slightly in surprise. On a bit of a high from catching him off guard, the little king reached up for his hat, pulling it off with a flourish. He gave his head a slight shake, as a pair of dear ears - blond, like his hair - appeared on top of his head. A movement off to his left caused them to twitch towards the sound before moving back to face forward. "The ears are cute, too."

This was not the first time he had mimicked someone. He'd become a small, yellow version of Ozzie during performances at the House of Asmodeus. He'd fashioned himself white and red wings like Bee's on the occasional party of hers that he had attended.

The times he'd mimicked Lilith... well, he'd leave that one to the imagination.

Alastor?

Alastor didn't respond. At all. He might as well have been made of stone.

Alastor continued to not respond long enough that Lucier was genuinely worried he might have pushed too hard.

For a split second, between one blink to the next, the Radio Demon's eyes flickered with dials. Something unnerving flickered behind that gaze that set alarm bells off in even the King of Hell's brain.

Slowly, as if it were being drawn up by a puppeteers' string, a single one of Alastor's hands rose up. His eyes locked and his own ears - and how had he not known they were ears? - trained forward as all of his attention remained on the ears on Lucifer's head. Claws sharp enough to go straight through metal like tissue paper ran lightly down one of the blond ears.

Startled, Lucifer lost the concentration needed to hold their shape, ears disappearing.

Alastors' fingers withdrew and if Lucifer didn't know any better, he'd say that was disappointment on Alastor's face. "A shame," he said wistfully. "You look good with them."

Lucifier stared, heat rising to his cheeks and it took ever ounce of self control not to leap across the room.

Alastor, as if nothing had just happened, turned to Charlie. Lucifier didn't hear what he said (it made Charlie happy, whatever it was), something between heat and a chill running down his spine as he worked out what he'd seen.

He knew why it had never occurred to him Alastor was a deer. That look had been hunger. A wendigo's hunger, famished and bottomless.

And, maybe, just maybe, an altogether different type of hunger.

Oh, he was absolutely was never using those ears again.

Tbc

Part 3

#radioapple #alastor #lucifer morningstar #spoiler alert #he's going to be using the ears again #lmao #not sure where this is going from here #deer!lucifer inspired by appleparty #the reveal of the ears scene inspired by simphany da kat's animatic

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possibilistfanfiction · 9 months

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happy new year! maybe a prompt for sleep/nap bc i need one lol

bea 🧑🏻‍⚕️🐝❤️‍🩹 (4:27 am): If you’re done with your post-op and would like to stop by, I’m in the on-call room.

it’s so late it’s almost morning, and you really should be headed home because, technically, your shift is over and you’d been at the hospital for, like, too many hours to really want to keep track of at this point. but bea — beatrice choi, md, the resident in charge of you — is, like, so handsome, and kind, and an incredible teacher, with her perfect handwriting and her free gender-affirming clinic and all the languages she knows fluently. you think you’re a little in love with her, but who can blame you — you’re sleep-deprived and sometimes in awe of the skill and calm she has, even in just her third year.

Dr. Ava Silva (4:31 am): sweet yah omw :)

when you open the door, a little harried, you immediately still and quiet as much as you can. bea has the room darkened, the only light coming in from a sliver under the window curtain, blue and red from the ambulances and easy white-gold from the street lights in the hospital parking lot. you’ve spent so much of your life — way too much of your life — in dark rooms in hospitals in uncomfortable beds that, for years, you could barely even feel, so you should want to run away. you should want to leave as soon as your shift is over and go home to your cramped apartment with its rickety table you found on the side of the road and its lumpy couch and the chipped mug in the kitchen — it’s not much; you can’t afford more, but it’s yours.

but you’re starting to think in some way maybe beatrice is yours too. all of the tension in your shoulders from the day — from countless central lines and three boring laparoscopic surgeries and one fatal stabbing in the er, from sutures and journals and so much to learn — melts away when you see her fast asleep. bea is on her back, scrub top off, one arm over her head, the blanket pooled around her waist, her phone face down on the flat plane of her chest — scars you haven’t seen before there that make you smile, just a little, beautiful — like she’d fallen asleep texting you. based on the fact that it’s only — you check your watch — 4:35 am, you’re pretty sure she did.

camila keeps pestering you, and probably bea too, knowing her, to just talk to chief superion about your feelings so you can be on another resident’s service, so that there won’t be any issues and you can kiss bea if you want, but it’s, like, totally terrifying to imagine not only telling beatrice your feelings, let alone dr. superion, who puts up with your antics but just barely.

you could leave. you could sneak out the door right now back to your apartment. it feels like a cliff to jump off, or a knife’s edge — but maybe it’s not that. maybe it’s something warm and easy and not really a choice at all, to love the steadiest person you’ve ever met.

it’s easy to pull your running shoes off and discard your white coat and climb into the small space in the small bed next to her. she stirs a little, and so you say, ‘hey, i’m here.’ and she puts out her arm so you can lie down. it’s an invitation, albeit a sleepy one, so you make sure: ‘is this okay?’

she hums and nods. ‘hi ava.’

her voice is heavy with exhaustion; later you’ll come to find out that the hardest part of residency for beatrice — beyond literally everything else you personally find abhorrent and impossible — was just a lack of sleep.

‘hey bea,’ you say, close enough to count her freckles and take in the warmth of her skin. she curls into you when you scoot closer to her, and it’s cramped and these beds are horrible for your back but it’s still basically heaven. you feel such deep fondness for her, small and in the dark like this, so different from her ramrod straight posture and clever hands in the light.

she mumbles something incoherent and pulls you closer, and you fall asleep just like that. you’re awakened by the sound of her pager — a crime in your book, totally homophobic — just as the sun has risen. she’s disoriented, seemingly, as she wakes up painfully, and you kind of expect her to panic upon seeing you. but she smiles apologetically, a little nervous but apparently happy you’re there.

‘i don’t remember you coming in,’ bea says, searching for her scrub top until you hand it to her from where it was discarded over the side of the bed. she looks at you questioningly for one second, the tiniest bit of trepidation crossing her face, and so you just smile.

‘you were very asleep, mere minutes after texting me. kinda rude to knock out after inviting me, don’t you think?’

her little blush is worth everything as she checks her pager and slips into her clogs. ‘you’re lucky i even managed to get that text off.’

’the er was that bad?’

she groans. ‘worse than.’

you’re ready to just lay around for a few minutes before you go home, but then she pulls on her quarter zip and you think about the scrub cap she’d had on earlier, blue with little otters all over it, unexpectedly adorable, and you decide to get up anyway. ‘have time for me to grab you a coffee as i head out?’

‘i’m sorry i kept you here. that can’t have been comfortable.’

you have to physically hold back the urge to tell her about how good she smells, even smooshed near her armpit. you’re, like, the best at all things self-control though, obviously, and so you don’t. instead you just shrug and stand, thankful for the last round of jillian’s shots that seem to be helping your back. ‘well, if you weren’t so ripped.’

she rolls her eyes, but her blush remains. camila is right, you think, because all you want to do is kiss her right now. but you don’t, you’re good for once, and you get ready too, as quickly as you can, and then hold the door open for her. she blinks a few times at the light, rubs her eyes behind her glasses, but then smiles at you — just for you.

‘maybe, soon,’ she says, taking a brave little breath after you’d waited in easy silence at the coffee counter, ‘you might want to join me on a hike? i go most days off if i can.’

and, like, that’s a terrible idea for you maybe, but whatever, some of your most ambitious terrible ideas have earned you an md and a phd and this very cool person in front of you, offering. ‘i’d really love that,’ you say. ‘text me.’

she nods, definitely pushing the time it would take to answer a page — lilith is going to be pissed, a delightful detail — and then reaches out to squeeze your hand, just once.

‘have a good day, dr. choi.’

she smiles. ‘see you soon, dr. silva.’

#wn fic #avatrice fic #prompts #wn #avatrice #surgeons au #like i'm kind of obsessed w this again but it'll probably stay as little prompt fills #idk it's a good one #anyway lol #butch bea 🥺🫡

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thenightfolknetwork · 10 months

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Shortly after my 7th untimely demise, I came into a bit of money, and decided to spend it on a small 19th-century estate. It’s a gorgeous house, complete with turrets and everything. The turrets were, ah, fully collapsed when I first arrived, and the rest of the house wasn’t in much better shape, but I knew it was a fixer-upper and was confident I could handle it. And I was right! There were certainly some surprises along the way, but a few months ago, I was finally able to start moving in.

As often happens with these sorts of properties, there were some pre-existing tenants that weren’t listed on the contract. My bedroom has an enchanted mirror permanently bound to the wall, the stables house twin 11-year-old ghosts, the kitchen has a automatically-refilling bowl of perpetually fresh apples, and the library fireplace foretells visions of doom—not to mention Stain, the black cat (…I’m pretty sure she’s just a regular cat, but she’s still very much a figure of the property).

It’s. So. Much fun. I was worried I’d get lonely! But now, I can get ready for the day while having a lovely chat with the mirror, snag an apple from the kitchen, go read a book in the library and tell the fireplace that they’re looking particularly unnerving this afternoon, and then chop vegetables for dinner while supervising the kids’ potion-making—I usually don’t care for children, but these two are delightfully precocious, and it’s been a while since I’ve had apprentices. And Stain—she’s wrapped around my shoulders while I write this—she looks like she got hit by a car! She’s adorable.

We all have our spats, but the estate is big enough for us to have our own spaces, and we’re all doing our best to ~communicate~, as you like to say. It’s going swimmingly. Except.

Like most old properties, the house has collected a fair amount of dust over time. In this case, though, all those dust bunnies turned… sentient. Overall, they’re perfectly pleasant to the rest of us, but like to be left to their own devices and aren’t keen on doing what others want. I certainly won’t be judging them for it.

However, while the estate was left to fall into disrepair, the rifts that developed were—are—oh, how do I say this. Well. I probably shouldn’t beat around the bush. I’m having, er, dust bunny gang wars? In my house? And I am fed up with it! The mirror needs cleaning twice a day, the apples have to be washed before eating, Stain’s getting frankly concerning hairballs, and the twins—! Actually, they seem to be rather well-adjusted. I think they may be betting on the fights with the fireplace.

Anyway. As for me, in most of the house, the turf allotments are pretty stable. Not so for the room directly under my bedroom. Practically every other day in there’s a dust bath, and I just can’t sleep with all of the snapping and coordinated dancing and bloodcurdling screams going on.

I’d like to be able to finish moving in to my home. I was even hoping to set up my spinning wheel in that room, but I can’t expose all of those loose fibers to the dust. I am very literally losing sleep over this. What should I do?

Oh, reader. What a frustrating situation! I would like to commend you for your commitment to sharing your home with its previous occupants, and in your success at building a home together you can all enjoy. At least, most of the time.

I understand that the dust bunny population prefer to keep to themselves and enjoy their own autonomy. And I think you're right to respect that preference, to a degree. But their behaviour is now infringing unacceptably on the peace and comfort of your home's other residence. Enough is enough.

Your first step it to try and open lines of communication between yourself and the bunnies. A simple communication ritual should suffice. Set yourself up with a talking board and few candles, and see if you can encourage the bunnies to speak to you directly.

If you're thinking this sounds rather similar to methods used to contact the more antisocial members of the spirit community, you'd be correct. You are trying to speak to sentient dust, and statistically speaking, household dust is largely composed of dead skin cells. A little light necromancy should see you well on your way to negotiating a lasting peace.

As with any peace negotiation, there will be compromises. Before you start this process, think carefully about what you are and aren't willing to give up – and what it is, precisely, you're asking for.

Are you trying to claim the spare room as your own territory, or declaring it a no man's land? Do you intend to act as an intermediary between dust bunny factions, mediating for a broader peace, or are you simply trying to put limits on how these factions behave in the shared spaces of your home?

With clarity of purpose and a commitment to communication and compromise, I think you'll be able to find your way to a solution that works for everyone. If no solution is forthcoming, you might consider a small show of force to encourage co-operation. A new vacuum cleaner, featured in a prominent position in the contested territory, for example.

[For more creaturely advice, check out Monstrous Agonies on your podcast platform of choice, or visit monstrousproductions.org for more info]

#answered #the nightfolk network #monstrous agonies #this one was a lot of fun lmao #i love the idea of dust bunny gang warfare including musical numbers

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all-pacas · 1 month

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for a little prompt.. thirteen and chase meeting for the first time? or somehow talking about their insane jobs before chase is back on the team/knows thirteen well

i can't fill this request only because i'm literally already writing a fanfic about this but here. let's call it motivation to finish this story:

When Remy first meets Dr. Chase, she knows everything about him.

A few weeks after getting hired — for real, that is, laminated name badge and assigned parking spot and an hour of HR paperwork filled and filed — Remy is cornered in the lunchroom by Dr. Cameron.

“Thirteen, right?” Cameron says with a knowing sort of smile Remy can’t quite parse.

“Cameron, right?” Remy says instead of correcting her. She knows Cameron used to work with Dr. Foreman, used to be one of House’s fellows. Quit abruptly last spring. There has been no shortage of well-wishers and gawkers since House started hiring again. Either Cameron is one or the other, and it’s safer to presume ulterior motives.

“Figured we should get to know each other. I know we’ll be seeing a lot of one another in the future,” Cameron says, smiles. Why? Remy wonders: Cameron no longer works for House. She distrusts generosity, as a rule.

“Sure,” she says instead. “Wanna grab lunch?”

Dr. Cameron’s boyfriend meets them in line. If Remy knows Cameron vaguely, she doesn’t know Chase at all: he hasn’t spent any time loitering around Diagnostics, hasn’t had any friendly lunches with the new hires or Foreman: aside from betting on their firings, he’s stayed mostly out of the way. He’s in scrubs, scruffy and tired. “Hey,” he says to Cameron, elbowing into the line beside them.

“Hey,” she says. “You know Thirteen? Dr.…”

“Thirteen,” Remy says, flashing her badge.

Chase looks her over. From the hospital rumor mill, Remy knows that he was another of House’s firings. That House once assaulted him in the lobby, tried to and was forbidden from firing him years before. It’s said that House hates everyone, but Dr. Chase especially; that he’s an enemy of the OR in particular, and that was why Chase took refuge there.

He shrugs. “Nice to meet you.”

Remy’s also heard, from Amber — who got it from one of the ER nurses — that Chase stole House’s girlfriend. That he’d been fired for that offense. She doesn’t believe that one at all, but remembers it wryly as Chase drops a packet of cookies onto Cameron’s tray, and Cameron playfully slaps at his hand.

“I just spent two hours on a guy’s herniated bowel,” Chase complains. “I’m hungry.”

“You should get real food, not junk,” Cameron scolds, but she’s smiling and pays for them anyway.

“And you still have an appetite after that?” Remy asks, impressed: doctors aren’t generally squeamish, but surgeons truly are a cut above.

Chase glances at her. “So, ‘Thirteen,’ what is that? French?”

She grimaces. “Italian. Romance languages are so similar.”

He grins, seems to notice her for the first time. “Yeah, I’m always getting them confused.”

The three of them get a table. Chit-chat about college and residencies, exchanging resumes. Cameron is from Chicago, and Remy did her residency at RUSH, which gets them through most of the small talk. When Cameron is paged back to the ER, Chase leaves too. Remy finishes her lunch, and wonders if it would be good or bad to befriend House’s former employees, and doesn’t really speak to Chase again for a year.

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giggly-squiggily · 4 days

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I also think that Megumi is the resident interest listen to-er

Yuji rambling on about space, and the stars, and the solar system, anything about light and how reflection and refraction works, and all of the celebrity crushes he has, throwing a ball up and catching it as he lays on Megumi’s bed.

Nobara venting about stupid girl stuff. He listens intently as he softly brushes through her hair, putting a few small braids in it as he nods.

Maki spending lunch time with him, excitedly explaining how to use each tool she’s mastered.

Panda and him talking intensely about D&D stuff.

And I think Inumaki will listen to him talk about literally ANYTHING and this is why Megumi can understand him.

AHHHH! Wait I'm obsessed with this HELP!

Yuji laying on top of a half asleep Megumi, rambling on and on about the stars and horoscopes and celebrities and having those oddly deep conversations about their place in the solar system cause he's feeling extra philosophical this day. It's soothing and unexpected but so expected of him- Megumi sleeps better after chats like that.

Nobara venting to him about period cramps and shaving and how she hates the sizing in clothing stores while Megumi does her hair- he has no idea why underwire is such a sinful thing or why woman's pockets are made so shallow, but Nobara reminds him of his sister and it brings him such a sense of comfort.

Maki raving about her weapons and skills and the different types she loves and he's humming around his chopsticks nodding along with her glee thinking about how serious and at times somber she is and seeing her in such a happy state softens her edges and makes her ten times prettier in his eyes. At times he can't help but wonder how Nobara feels when she's like this. It's the same way he feels whenever Yuji is genuinely happy.

Oh God Panda and him being D&D fans I cannot! They have game nights and campaigns and their characters are best friends against the world- no one but Inumaki can keep up with their rambles but it's fun seeing them so happy.

MOOD! Megumi can tell Inumaki everything and our speech curse user is so good at listening and advice. Megumi could give him a whole monologue about his feelings regarding accidentally calling Gojo dad or the fact he's slowly developing a crush on his best friend whom he's pretty sure is straight or how he's not sure where he's going in life with his curse energy and whatnot- and Inumaki will pat his arm with a "Tuna mayo." and all his problems are resolved. Or at the very least- he doesn't feel nearly as stressed about it.

A little bonus cause YES!

Yuta and Megumi share stories about Gojo from time to time but really Megumi loves hearing Yuta's travel stories cause he has a small desire to do so himself one day and lives vicariously through him. I love to think they plan trips together down the road and Yuta takes him all over Japan in a "Fellow Gojo student road trip" sort of thing. he does it for all the first years but Megumi gets the first trip cause "Related to Gojo perks" lols

Ducky this gives me LIFE! Thank you so much for sharing the sillies with me! :D

#squiggily speaks #ask #duckymcdoorknob #Ducky let's GO!#Ducky :3 #friend :3 #jjk sillies #jjk talks #megumi fushiguro #I love him so much your honor

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hugsandnoregrets · 1 year

Text

honestly I’m a bit disappointed that the bear wrote such a generic love interest who exists just to be a love interest to try to fix the sad man. like, claires scenes are so heavily focused on slowmo close ups to her little side smile and the quippy cutesy remarks. she’s literally giving therapy advice about reclaiming cannoli and processing grief. every person who brings her up praises her as kind and beautiful and intelligent.

i understand that this may be the point - that carmy can’t even keep a relationship with the perfect woman because he can’t let himself be happy - but it just comes off as so hollow and she feels like a plot device and not a person. even pete who is unconditionally supportive to sugar is shown to be bumbling and awkward and annoying and makes people around him roll their eyes, he is seen as lame. but not claire, she’s beloved by all. she’s an ER resident but even that is used not to show her in a high stress job or give carmy something to realize some of his own problems aren’t life or death, it’s so she can be super duper extra understanding that he’s busy and will sometimes flake because she’s gets it, but we never see her experience any problems or even speak about them!! because everything is about carmy.

in a show with so many richly written characters it was just disappointing to me to see a woman who manages to be a very boring cool hot smart girl. on that note, i will say season 1 heavily romanticized mikey and season 2 shattered that illusion, so if she returns I expect that same treatment.

#personal #rant #the bear #carmy berzatto #carmy the bear #claire the bear

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bellysoupset · 10 months

Note

SOUP!!! i know you’re focusing on the thanksgiving stuff rn and slay yes go off but this is me begging you to torture wendy sometime soon <3333 i know you know i love her and i’m trying SO hard not to be annoying about requesting her too much but ,,,, the type of dopamine i get whenever i read one of *those* fics (wen as sickie) is truly unreal and i’ve been craving it sm lately (and i’ve already reread all your old ones *almost* too many times LMAO) 🤭 also PLS DONT TAKE THIS AS ME PRESSURING YOU OR EXPECTING THINGS FROM YOU‼️‼️‼️ THATS THE LAST THING I WANT‼️‼️ THANK YOU FOR EVERYTHING YOU DO‼️‼️‼️ im just putting this out there to gently suggest that you torture her whenever you have the time and energy to lolll <3

the trope can be literally anything you want but i’m really feeling a migraine fic 👀 like a bad one!!! but having her kind of hide it until she can’t anymore? and then vin maybe feeling all guilty about not noticing it sooner + him being all soft and adorable and worried? smiling and blushing just thinking about this ahhhh

thank u sm i love u

🦦

And 🧷 asked:

HI Just jumping on board the girly request train (To add this to your hoard for if you have the time/will). Consider, if you will: Wendy sick at work with Jonah as a not-so-great caretaker having to call Vince like "Come get your girl." (Wendy does deserve belly rubs and also just... hugs. Lots of them. And a gentle smooch on the forehead) (And you know I love bitchy Jonah and I can't think of a shittier caretaker /pos /aff /very affectionate /I love him okay?) -🧷

----

Jonah was in a bad mood. Which he knew wasn't saying much, because these days he was always in a bad mood, but whatever. He was in a shitty fucking mood.

Graduation was closer than ever, happening in a little less than two weeks. Meaning he had exactly 4 days to finish all the documentation and essays and double check his hours and also pick an outfit and send the bloody invitation to his mother and stepfather and his father, fuck, he had forgotten about-

"Switch with me," Wendy interrupted his stream of thoughts, entering the office area. Jonah let out a scoff, rolling his eyes.

"Absolutely not," he said, turning back to the paperwork he had been filling in. He had already done his hours in the ER, there was no way he was gonna do Wen's too.

"Please," Wendy said, although she didn't sound like she was asking, "switch with me, I'll take your hours tomorrow-"

"Nope," Jonah shook his head, not bothering to look up from where he was filing up the report of each patient he had had all day, "you're distracting me, Wendy."

"Jonah, I really can't do the ER right now-"

"No one likes the ER," Jonah shrugged, signing his name with a little too much force. He really wanted to go home. It was almost 10 PM and he still hadn't had dinner and although he didn't have classes tomorrow, he had so many things to hand in. Did he revise his residency application?

"Jon, please I..." Wendy whined and Jonah's head snapped up, pissed off.

"Wendy no," he glared at her, "I'm not switching, give up."

She pressed her hands to her face, before letting out a sigh and turning around, wordlessly leaving the office.

Jon's stomach sunk and he felt a pang to his chest, but he stood his ground. He had worked his hours today and he really needed to go home and Wendy was not going to puppy eye her way into getting him to do a double ER shift, not when he was this exhausted, even if it was just the remaining one hour and half.

He got back to the task at hand and by the time he glanced up again, it was time to get going. 11:30 PM, Leo would probably be asleep, Jonah thought sourly, locking all the documents inside of his designated drawer and getting up.

Claire was just getting in as Jonah walked to the doctor's staff to strip his white doctor coat and grab his bag as well as his scarf. She waved at him as he unlocked his locker, "hi, Jon."

"Hi Claire," he yawned, folding his coat.

"Uh..." Claire frowned as she unlocked her own locker. She shared with Wendy, but Wen's clothes were still inside, "that's odd, I didn't see her in the ER..."

Jonah felt a weird sense of unease wash over him. He draped the scarf around his neck, "here, take mine. Just let Todd know when he clocks in..." he said, "I'm gonna check if she's still clocked in."

Jonah hated the guy who had been doing the last round with Wendy. Chris wasn't just annoying as hell, he was also a careless idiot who messed up constantly. Jon had lost count the amount of times he had gone toe to toe with the guy.

"Chris," Jonah said, managing to get him alone just as he turned the hallways, Chris probably going to clock out too, "did you see Wendy?"

"No," Chris scoffed, glaring at him, "not since she bailed on me. If you find her, let her know that she's fucked. I made a complaint with our supervisor."

"What...?" Jonah frowned. Wendy didn't bail, Jon could count in one hand the amount of times she had taken time out of her clinic hours. She often covered for others. She would never just quit and up and leave.

"Yeah," Chris rolled his eyes, "said she was gonna get water and I haven't seen her since. I had to go through all of her fucking patients. Peters is gonna chew her up tomorrow."

"How long ago was that?" Jonah asked, feeling anxiety prickling all over him. This was widely out of characters.

"An hour ago? I don't know," Chris shrugged, before stepping around Jonah, "excuse me."

Jon didn't acknowledge him at all, already fishing his phone out of his pocket and pressing the 3, Wendy's speed dial digit. It rang and rang and no one picked up.

Her car was in the parking lot still, getting covered with snow. Shit.

"Wendy, it's me. Please pick up your phone, I'm worried," Jonah send her a voice message, before immediately trying to call again. If the car was still there, then she was still in the hospital.

The question was where? Their university hospital was a big place, since they were the reference not just for their town but for other five around them. It had four floors and was almost as large as a whole block.

"Shit, shit, shit," Jonah chanted, heading to the main nurse station near the ER. The head nurse from Wendy's shift probably had clocked out already, the new one wouldn't know where she was...

"Marjorie! Nurse Marjorie!" Jonah ran down the hall, catching her just as she was about to walk to walk out of the door to the parking lot. She paused, looking confused and spooked.

"Dr. Banks-"

"Hi," Jonah panted, catching up with her, "sorry, I didn't mean to startle you- Did you see Wendy?"

"Wendy?" she frowned and Jonah nodded.

"Dr. Marshall?"

Marjorie's frown twisted into a grimace, "oh yeah, downstairs," she nodded, "about twenty minutes ago? She was in a bad shape, poor thing."

"A bad shape?" Jonah's heart squeezed and he looked around as if he'd somehow spot Wendy in the crowd that was coming and going, "where was she exactly?"

"Well, I entered the ladies room and she wasn't looking so hot, but she said she'd go home, so..." Nurse Marjorie shrugged, "she's probably left by now."

"Which side?"

"West wing-"

"Thank you," Jonah shook her hand awkwardly, before turning around and running back towards the stairs. He just wished no supervisor saw him running around like that, he'd for sure get called out.

There were two bathrooms down in the west wing, where they got the x-rays exams done. One was gender neutral, then two gendered ones down the long hallway. Jonah made a silent prayer before entering the female bathroom.

It was empty.

Or rather, it seemed empty, but a small sob cued him to the fact that it wasn't so. Jonah power walked across the room, before knocking on the last stall, "Wendy? Wen, is that you?" please let it be her.

There was a small groan from inside, a voice he recognized and he spotted her white shoes peeking out, with the lilac details.

"Wendy, it's me," Jonah knocked again, "can you unlock the door, please?"

"Uhm..." she grumbled from inside and he heard the sound of fingers drumming on the door, as she clumsily attempted to unlock it. It took a minute before she managed to do so and then Jonah pushed it in, regretting it as Wendy let out a whine as the door hit her thigh.

He waited until she moved out of the way to push the door again and Jonah frowned. Wendy was sitting on the ground, one arm draped over the toilet, her head resting on her hand. The little he could see of her face, Jon could tell was extremely pale.

"Goddammit, Wendy..." he crouched down next to her, "Wen? Hey, look at me, sweetheart-"

"Hurss...hurts..." she slurred instead of answering him, her voice barely above a whisper. The toilet was empty, but Jonah could tell she had already thrown up at least once, if the wet spot in front of her baby green scrubs were anything to go by.

"What hurts, Wendy?" he leaned in, planting a hand on her shoulder. She was freezing, even though she was wearing a long sleeved shirt under the short sleeved hospital clothes.

"Head..." Wendy whimpered, curling up even more, sounding dangerously close to tears. She hugged her knees, pressing her forehead to them and rocked back and forth, "I don't feel well, Jon..."

"I know, Dee," Jonah whispered, moving even closer and ignoring the smell of vomit, so he could cup her chin and force her to lift her head, "let me see your eyes, Wendy."

They were filled with tears, squinting from the pain. The minute he raised her face, she flinched from the overhead white light, and gulped nervously, shoving his hand off her face.

"I'm... I'm gonna be sick..." she groaned, leaning over the toilet again. Jonah scrambled forward to grab her hair, immediately gagging as he felt one of the front pieces was already wet and sticky.

He buried his nose in his shoulder, gagging fruitlessly. There was nothing for him to puke and clearly, nothing for Wendy to bring up either, because after a little more retching, she let out a sob and resorted to resting her forehead to the porcelain, sobbing.

"No, darling, don't do that, this is disgusting..." Jonah cooed, sliding his hand between her forehead and the toilet and wrapping his other arm around her waist, pulling her up.

Although she was unstable as a newborn fawn, she didn't immediately collapse, clinging to his coat with all her force. Jonah pushed the stall door open, slowly guiding her to the sinks and Wendy slumped over the granite with her whole body, letting out a whine as he ran his hands under the tap to turn on the motion sensor and then ran his now wet, cold hands on her face, washing her mouth and chin, as well as the sick covered piece of hair.

"Shhh, you're okay, I got you," Jonah whispered, more for his benefit than hers, as Wendy's whole face scrunched up in pain, tears leaking from the corner of her eyes.

"I don't... I don't want you," she groaned and Jonah's stomach turned for a different reason, simple and plain guilt.

"I know, I'm gonna get you to Vin," he answered instead, "I'm really sorry, Wen, I didn't know you weren't feeling well..."

She let out another groan, ignoring his apology and Jonah bit his tongue to stop the string of words he wanted to say. He wanted to apologize again, he wanted to grill her about her symptoms, why she hadn't started off by saying she was sick previously when requesting he switched with her, why she hadn't told him...

She shuddered, hugging herself and Jonah stripped his coat, wrapping Wendy in it and closing the first button on the front. It was far too big for her, it reached the middle of Jon's thighs, but on Wendy the coat was brushing the floor.

Wordlessly she slumped forward, pressing her forehead to his chest and Jonah wrapped an arm around her, guiding her out of the bathroom.

As soon as they reached the ground level floor, she let out a loud whine. The place was much more crowded, so much more noisy, and Wendy let out a sob, pressing her face to his chest with even more force.

"Hurts..." She said, grabbing at the roots of her hair and pulling, to try and escape the pain inside her skull.

He left her planted on the couch in the waiting room, as he sped back to the staff quarters to retrieve her purse, as well as her other belongings. Wendy was rocking back and forth when he got back to her, much to the unnerving of the other patients, who kept glancing at her nervously as it looks like she was going to throw up.

"Okay, let's get you out of here," Jon whispered, wrapping his arms around her and guiding Wendy to the car. She shivered violently once they walked out of the hospital, the drastic temperature change hitting them both. Jon's teeth started to chatter and he forced Wendy to keep moving, pushing her inside her car.

"No, don't do that, Dee," Jonah whispered, holding her head as Wendy tried banging it against the window to stop the pain inside, "shhh, lie back down, lie down..." he lowered her seat a little bit, smoothing the hair out of her face.

Wendy let out a pitiful sniffle, curling up on herself, his coat serving as a blanket on top of her. She turned her head, away from his touch and Jonah's stomach sunk a little more.

He parked inside her building, in her designated spot and then scrolled through his contacts. Wendy seemed to be asleep and he didn't want to wake her up unneededly so.

"Hello?" Vince sounded half asleep and Jonah glanced quickly at the clock. It was almost midnight, no wonder, "Jon?"

"Hey," he whispered, "I have Wendy with me, can you unlock the door, please?"

"Wen... Why? What's wrong with her? Are you outside-" there was rustling around, "I don't see you outside."

Jonah rolled his eyes, "I'm downstairs in the parking lot, she-"

"Is she okay? Let me talk with her."

"She's asleep," Jonah started to say, but Wendy stirred and groaned, turning to blindly grab his phone.

"Is that Vin?" she whined, not bothering to open her eyes and, in Jonah's ear, Vince exclaimed.

"Wendy!"

Jonah let out a scoff, "just unlock the door," then hung up, turning to Wendy, "can you walk?"

"Yes," she said, sounding annoyed. She pushed the door open and stumbled out, bracing against the car and taking deep breaths, "my head is exploding."

"You sound better than before," Jonah said hopefully, circling the car to hold her arm, "c'mon, Dee."

"Uhm..." Wendy slumped against him, letting him guide her the rest of the way and Jonah chewed on the inside of his cheek, pressing the elevator button.

"I'm really sorry about before, Wendy. I had no idea you were sick, if I knew I'd have switched."

"It's fine," she said sourly, crossing her arms, "it's fine."

"Wanna say that one more time?" Jonah said, "doesn't sound fine."

"Shut up, Jonah," Wendy groaned, pressing her forehead to his bicep with all her force, "I don't have the energy for this, just shut up."

As soon as the elevator came to a stop, Vince was already there. In the middle of the hallway, wearing just sweatpants, socks and a huge orange hoodie that made Jonah cringe in distaste. His curls were a messy mane around his head and he had been clearly about to fall asleep.

"Hey, hey..." he crossed the hallway in two steps, cupping Wendy's face, "what's wrong, honey?"

She let out a groan, that quickly morphed into a whimper, "my head..."

"Migraine?" he guessed, glancing up worriedly to Jonah, who flinched as if he was somehow guilty for Wendy's migraine.

"Yes, she threw up earlier-"

"It's not as bad anymore," Wendy scoffed, glaring at his direction, before snuggling up with Vince, wrapping her arms around his middle, "I just wanna lie down."

"Thank you for bringing her home," Vince whispered, offering Jonah a big, relieved smile, which only made him feel ten times more guilty. Vin was unaware to his little conundrum, hugging Wendy to him and bringing her inside the house.

Jonah followed them in, planting Wendy's keys and her purse on the little living room table that was littered with books and notecards, where Vince clearly had been studying.

A minute later Vince emerged from the room, having tucked Wendy into bed, Jon's coat draped over his arm, "here. Thank you Jon..."

"Please don't say that," Jonah cringed, taking the coat back, "tell Wendy to call me when she feels better."

Vince frowned, confused, but he nodded, "yeah, of course. Are you calling a taxi?"

"Yes-"

"You can wait in here," Vince said hopefully, "or just crash the couch, it's no problem-"

"No," Jonah shook his head. He was feeling terrible, he really didn't want to stay and witness anymore of Wendy in pain, "no, I have to go home. Leo's probably having a heart attack, I should've been home two hours ago."

It was a little lie. Yes, Leo would be stressing if he was aware, but more probably he was simply asleep by now.

"Okay," Vince crossed the room and then pulled Jon into a hug, causing the man to let out a startled yelp.

"Let go of me."

"Thanks again, man."

"Yeah, let me go..." Jonah shoved him off, "and tell Wendy not to worry about tomorrow, I'll explain to her supervisor what happened."

"Thank you," Vince nodded, although he wasn't sure what he was nodding along with, "you're a great friend."

Jonah grimaced, "yeah, bye."

#well this WAS supposed to be about wendy lol #mywriting #wendy marshall #migraine #🦦 anon #🧷 anon

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mendessi · 2 years

Text

the moon and the stars

pairing: joel miller x fem!oc

summary: you're with the millers on the day of the outbreak and it tears you apart that you couldn't help save sarah

word count: 5.2k

warnings: canon typical violence, death, no smut in this one sorry, soft joel, dad joel, literal heartbreak, mentions of sex, she’s a nurse

author's note: i held off as long as i could but now im writing something ab joel miller what can i say? also i dont ever really write y/n, im more of an oc kind of gal but feel free to replace the oc name with your own if it makes you happy (:

minors DNI

"Is he awake?" Celeste asked as she peaked her head into the Miller residence.

"He's still sleeping. His alarm has been going off for like five minutes." Sarah replied. Celeste made her way to Sarah and kissed her cheek. "I'm gonna start breakfast. We're having pancakes."

"He doesn't like pancakes." She said pouring the coffee grounds into the coffee maker so it would be fresh when Joel came downstairs. She wasn't a coffee drinker but her boyfriend was.

"We do, though." Sarah smiled cheekily and she returned one back to her.

"I'll go get him up." Celeste said making her way up the stairs towards Joel's bedroom. She sighed at the fact that his alarm was indeed still going off. The man would sleep through an earthquake if he had the opportunity. Luckily for him they weren't much a threat in Austin, Texas.

Celeste had been seeing Joel for almost a year now since he came into the ER, needing stitches from an accident he had on a job sight. Joel couldn't stop flirting and the fact that Celeste refused to give in to him made him want her more. He only flirted because the thought of a needle going in and out of his skin made him want to squirm and the pretty face in front of him was a nice distraction. Her soft voice helped ease his nerves, Joel didn't typically go out and look for relationships prior to Celeste, more so for the sake of Sarah, but he couldn't help it. Celeste was stunning, "the most stunning to ever step foot in Austin" Joel would tell her. By the time she brought him his release forms, she couldn't help but agree to a date.

She moved to Austin to obtain her RN at the University of Texas from Seattle and ended up falling in love with the city so she decided to stay and get a job at the local hospital as a trauma nurse in the emergency room. Luckily she did or she would've never met Joel in the ER that day.

"Baby, wake up." She shut off the alarm and crawled into bed next to a shirtless Joel who lazily wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her into his chest. They lay like that for a moment, enjoying each other's presence before they had to get up for the day. He appreciated this as their morning routine, she’d stop by in the morning and they’d have breakfast together before work. His eyes slowly fluttered open and a sleepy smile perched on his lips as he looked at her.

"Mornin, beautiful." He said to her, brushing her hair from her face.

"Happy birthday." She leaned forward placing a soft kiss on his lips to which he moved closer to her, his hand trailing up and down her thigh. She ran her fingers through his hair once she pulled away.

"Gotta get up." He huffed, throwing the blankets off of himself. He pecked her lips three times and on the fourth one he didn't pull away, grateful that her kiss was how he was woken up on his birthday.

She crawled out of bed and leaned against the door while he grabbed his clothes for the day. Celeste watched him change with her arms crossed over her body, a small smile on her lips. Once he finished, she pulled the door open and the two of them made their way downstairs. Joel couldn't help giving her a love tap on her butt as she rounded the corner to which she glared at him.

"Scrubs." He shrugged, a playful smile tugging at his lips. It was no secret that Joel loved when Celeste was dressed for work, normally in blue or black scrubs that hugged her body just right.

They entered the kitchen to discover that Sarah was standing at the stove making scrambled eggs. Joel must've forgotten to grab a box at the most previous grocery trip.

"Where's the pancake mix?" Sarah asked.

"Oh, was I... I was. Sorry." Joel sighed walking towards the cabinet to get a mug.

"I was gonna make you birthday pancakes." She sighed adding under her breath, "I swear."

"You know, I don't really like pancakes." He said reaching for the coffee pot.

"I know you don't like them. It was for our benefit." Sarah said grabbing the orange juice from the fridge and pouring a glass for Joel. Celeste couldn't help but smile at Joel's reaction to Sarah holding the glass out to him. "Vitamin C."

Joel nodded and took a big sip from the glass and she did her best to not snicker at the face he made while drinking it.

"Give it." She said quietly, and he gladly slid the glass across the counter towards her. She picked it up and took a sip, shooting him a wink. He reached up and cupped her face, brushing his thumb across her cheek.

"Love you." He mouthed and even after hearing it a million times over the last six months since he first said it, it still made her blush.

She stood on her tippy toes and kissed him quickly before Sarah turned around and he reached for her hand once she pulled away. Celeste always tried to keep the PDA minimal around Sarah, despite Sarah exclaiming she didn't care if they kissed in front of her. Celeste was grateful that Sarah liked her, it was the one thing she was most afraid of when she found out that Joel had a daughter. Sarah loved Celeste and always begged the question when she'd move in or when they'd get married to which the couple never had a direct answer.

The trio sat around the table eating the eggs that Sarah had spent the morning cooking. She wasn't bad at cooking to say the least, but you could only make scrambled eggs so many different ways.

"So how old are you again?" Sarah asked.

"Thirty six." "Old." Joel and Celeste replied at the same time. Sarah giggled as Joel glared at Celeste.

"We can't all be hot, young nurses." Joel said.

"I'm twenty-six, I'm not that young." Celeste rolled her eyes.

"I'm twenty-six, I'm not that young." Joel mocked her very much not southern accent, something he loved to tease her about. Being from the Pacific Northwest was about as far from southern you could get.

"Gonna have to wear diapers soon." Sarah said to her dad, earning a burst of laughter from Celeste.

"Who says I don't already?" Joel fired back and then pulled something from his mouth, "Shell."

"Calcium." Sarah replied and then shoved the eggs in her mouth through her teeth.

"Lovely." Joel sighed while Celeste continued laughing.

"I gotta run." Celeste stood up from her chair and brought her dishes to the sink where she quickly rinsed them off.

"Is there enough for Uncle Tommy?" Joel asked.

"Well, there would've been."

"Bye, baby." Celeste leaned down and stole one last birthday kiss from Joel despite Sarah sitting in front of them.

"Be safe." Joel replied. He grabbed her hand as she was walking away and pulled her back towards him, wrapping his arm around her waist from where he sat in the chair. "Love you."

"Love you." She smiled and waved goodbye to Sarah as she passed Tommy on her way out. "Have a good day everyone."

"What?" Joel asked when he noticed Sarah staring at him with a smug smile after Celeste disappeared behind the garage door.

"It's just nice seeing you two." Sarah replied, standing to grab their plates off of the table. "She takes care of you and I like that."

"Takes care of me?" Joel asked.

"The coffee, the orange juice. I'm happy you have her." She said. "I'm just saying, when I'm off to college it's nice to know she'll be here taking care of you."

"College is a long ways away." Joel stood up and looked at his phone. "C'mon."

The day went by normally, as normally as it could in the ER. Austin was full of people who never knew when to quit drinking, especially this close to the city. Celeste's day was busy but was normal. The later in the day it got, the more hectic it got. Multiple people started coming in with symptoms like she had never seen before. It wasn't just a few, it was at least a dozen and by the time another hour had passed the number had tripled. She felt bad leaving but she had a co-worker coming in to cover the last half of her shift so she could spend the evening with Joel and Sarah.

"I'm just going to insert your IV, you'll feel a little prick but it'll be done fairly quickly." Celeste sat on a rolly stool next to a patient's bed, prepping his arm for the IV.

As soon as she inserted the needle into his arm, the man yelled and shot up from where he was laying in bed, his fist connecting with her jaw. The sudden outburst shocked her and caused her to fall backwards off of her chair. The man, in a matter of seconds, was on top of Celeste. The other nurses heard the commotion and quickly came to her aide, sedating the man who had attacked her out of nowhere.

"This has to be connected with what's going on in Indonesia." Belle said to her as they stood at the nurse's station. They both were flipping through patient charts, trying to connect dots.

"What's going on in Indonesia?" Celeste asked, holding the ice pack to her jaw.

"Some virus. Making people insane. Eating each other or something crazy. I don't know, it's probably all just fake news anyways." Belle sighed.

"Hey, sorry I'm late. I think my boyfriend is coming down with some type of cold or something." Jenny rushed behind the desk and put her things in her drawer. "You look like you had a rough day so I'm officially relieving you of your duty."

"Yeah, I should head out before I'm asked to stay longer anyways with all this chaos going on." Celeste pushed the stack of charts towards Jenny and grabbed her belongings from behind the desk.

"What do you got going on tonight, anyways?" Belle asked.

"Boyfriend's birthday." She replied.

"Oh, the scandal that will be. Have fun." Jenny winked and shoved Celeste towards the door.

By the time she reached the Miller residence the sun had already set. She used her spare key to open the door and let herself in. Sarah was sitting in the living room watching Lilo and Stitch: The Series on Disney Channel.

"Hey," Celeste sighed collapsing on the couch next to Sarah. "How was school?"

"What happened to your face?" She asked.

"A patient attacked me today. It's fine."

"Dad's gonna flip out when he sees. He made me go to the Adler's after school." She sighed. "But look." Sarah grabbed the box and showed Celeste the watch she had fixed for Joel.

"He's gonna love it." Celeste smiled, looking down at the ticking arms.

"You think so?" She asked.

"Duh. It's from you, that's an automatic win to anything I could've got him." She replied.

"What did you get him?" Sarah asked her.

"Nothing. He made me swear to no gifts 'or else'." Celeste said making Sarah laugh at her use of air quotes. Joel did make Celeste swear to no gifts but her gift was just going to be extremely hot and steamy birthday sex, but Sarah didn't need to know that.

"I really like you, Celeste. I think you're really good for my dad." Sarah said after a few minutes of silence.

"I really like you too, Sarah. And I really do love your dad." She replied, looking down at the girl next to her.

"I think I wouldn't mind you being my step-mom." She said.

"Well, maybe one day I will be." Celeste couldn't stop the smile that crept onto her face. She slung her arm around Sarah and the two bundled up under a blanket to finish watching Lilo and Stitch.

The clock was approaching ten when they heard Joel's keys jingle into the lock. He had swore to be home by nine at the latest but obviously that wasn't the case.

"You locked the door for once." Joel said as he joined them in the living room.

"Yeah." Sarah said. "It's ten."

Celeste stood up to greet Joel with a kiss and then sat back down on the other side of the couch.

"They gave us the wrong size for the headers- that doesn't mean anything to you, I'm sorry. What the hell happened to your face?" Joel tilted her face so he could see it better in the dim light.

"A patient hit me today, it's fine. Just a bruise." She moved his hand from her face and gave it a reassuring squeeze.

"Where's the cake?"

"Shit." He muttered under his breath.

"C'mon man."

Celeste's phone buzzed and she stood up to take the call in the kitchen.

"Hello?"

"Celeste, you have to get down here, it's fucking chaos-"

"What? It's Friday, everyone is heading into the city at this time to drink, it'd take me like an hour." She said. She could barely hear what Belle was saying over the noises in the background. She swore she heard screams at some point.

"No, no, no. We need all the hands we can get, the patients are- fuck- sir, back up please! Shit!"

"Belle? Belle? Hello? Fuck." The line went dead and she went back to the living room. "I gotta head back into work."

"What? No." Sarah pouted. "Stay please. We're gonna watch a movie."

"Yeah baby, stay. I don't want you on the roads at this time, people already been drinkin." Joel held his hand out and she couldn't help but take it and sit down next to him.

"Fine, but if they call again I'll have to go in."

"Deal."

Barely an hour into the movie, Joel found himself with the two girls he loved most in his life passed out asleep on him. An urge of protectiveness flooded him and he knew in that moment that Sarah and Celeste were his to love and protect no matter what. It was almost in that moment he decided he'd propose to Celeste before the year ended. The thought almost completed itself until his phone rang with Tommy's number flashing across the tiny screen. After a brief conversation with Tommy, Joel was extremely annoyed with the fact that once again he'd be bailing his little brother out of jail.

He tapped Celeste's leg gently until she woke up and kissed her head when she opened her eyes, "I gotta go bail Tommy out, can you stay with Sarah?"

"Of course." She knew not to ask questions when it came to Tommy in jail.

"I'm gonna bring her to her room, you head to bed, yeah?" He lifted Sarah into his arms and together they walked up the stairs. She crawled into bed, still wearing her scrubs from her shift and very easily fell back asleep. She wasn't even aware of the kiss that Joel had placed on her temple or the way that he quietly whispered he loved her before he left to go get Tommy.

She couldn't tell if she was woken up by the transformers blowing outside, the sound of helicopters and gunfire, or her phone buzzing incessantly. She crawled from bed and peeked into Sarah's room to find that she was still sleeping; with all of this noise it was hard to tell how. She rushed downstairs and searched the house for Joel who was nowhere to be found. She finally had the conscious to look at her phone, a breath of relief falling off her lips once she saw Joel's name.

"Joel? What's going on, is everything okay?" She asked, her hands starting to shake slightly. The noises around her were slowly starting to blur into white.

"Get Sarah, hide and lock all the fuckin doors. Now. We're comin to you. Grab my gun and sit still til we get you." Joel said.

"Joel-"

"Just fuckin do it, Celeste!"

Ringing picked up in her ears and she felt like she couldn't move until she heard barking outside. She walked towards the living room and her heart dropped when she saw the front door wide open.

"Sarah?" Celeste felt like throwing up, nothing in her gut felt right and she knew that something was off. She stepped outside and looked around, a helicopter flying overhead.

"Mrs. Adler?" Her head snapped at the sound of Sarah's voice coming from next door. She made her way next door and quietly went inside, walking on her tiptoes. She couldn't explain it, but nothing was right.

She could see the blood on the floor before Sarah slipped in it. She tried to keep the sound of her breathing minimal as she approached Sarah from behind and grabbed her wrist. Sarah jumped but luckily didn't vocalize that she had been startled. Celeste brought her finger to her lips signalling to be quiet, but they had already made too much noise.

They froze and turned to face the sight in the kitchen which was straight out of a horror movie. Nana looked up at them and slowly rose to her feet. If it came down to it, Celeste would knock the old lady out to protect Sarah, but neither were aware it'd take more than that to take her down. She was just an old lady, right? The poor thing couldn't even eat on her own, what's the worst she could do. Well, they were looking at the worst she could do. Mr. Adler and Mrs. Adler both sprawled out on the ground surrounded in blood seemed good enough to be categorized in "worst", but again... she was an old lady, no way she did all of this on her own. Nana let out an inhuman screech and started charging at the pair. Celeste yanked Sarah back and shoved her towards the door.

"Go, now!" The two ran out of the house, refusing to look back. Both of them stopped at the sight of headlights and Tommy's truck pulling up directly in front of them, the tires screeching to a stop.

"Get in the truck! Right now! Move." Joel got out as soon as the truck had stopped moving a heavy wrench in his hand. He pushed Sarah and Celeste towards the truck but everybody froze at the sound of Nana coming. She fell off the steps and right onto the ground and everyone thought for a moment that it was done and over with until she shot back up like nothing happened and began sprinting full speed at Joel and his family. He had no choice but to swing the wrench at the old lady. Celeste wrapped her arms around Sarah's shoulders, surely that must've been hard to watch for a girl her age.

Joel rushed to Sarah who was seemingly in shock, "You killed her."

"Baby, I'm sorry." He cupped her cheeks and then pulled her into a hug. "Baby, listen to me. It's not just the Adler's, but we're gonna be brave-"

Another transformer blue, cascading green light across their faces. Sarah and Celeste climbed into the backseat, Celeste wrapping her arm around Sarah. She did her best to shield her eyes as Tommy hit the Adlers who she was sure were dead. They were running at the truck as if nothing had happened.

Transformers were blowing left and right and Celeste couldn't focus on one thing in front of her. Joel was probably yelling at her for letting Sarah out of the house and she couldn't even process it. She hated herself for letting Sarah get into that position at the Adlers, she should've paid more attention.

"Baby," she heard Joel's voice and she snapped her head at him.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry." She attempted to say but it came out as a whisper.

"We're gonna be fine." She noticed then that his hand was reaching into the backseat to hold hers. She didn't remember him doing that or how long he'd been doing it, but it brought her comfort to know he was there for them.

"How do you know?" Sarah asked, her voice wavering. "How do you know we're not sick?"

"Tommy, let me out." Celeste said suddenly. "I-I-I work in the ER, I've probably been exposed to whatever this is, let me out. I can't get you sick, I won't."

"No, fuck no." Joel snapped. "You're not gettin out of this truck, damnit."

Celeste put her hand over her face, taking a deep breath to prevent herself from bursting into tears. Her anxiety hadn't been a problem in years, and it felt like all of it was rushing in on her at once. She didn't want to show signs of panic for Sarah.

"The Adlers would take Nana into the city. To the hospital for stuff." Sarah said.

"You're right. They would. That's probably why. But Celeste isn't sick. If she was going to get sick she would be by now. And she's not."

"Fuck." Celeste said under her breath. She couldn't help but think of Belle and Jenny, who both called her earlier begging her to come back into work. They were probably suffering there right now, overrun with this sickness, or they were probably dead. The ER staff was already a small team, who knew how they were holding up under the magnitude of this. Would it even have helped if Celeste went back in? Or would she just be another dead body? If it was like this on the outskirts she couldn't imagine what it was like in the city.

Celeste was ripped from her thoughts by Tommy and Joel arguing in the front street about where to go. Her vision focused on her surroundings which was a town street full of people running around with no sense of direction. She felt sick seeing some of them covered in blood, screaming and crying with no clue on what to do.

Tommy put the truck in reverse as they continued discussing different ways off of this street. They didn't care how, they just needed off. Sarah clutched her hand so tight it might've cut off the circulation.

"Celeste." Sarah said and she turned her head to what Sarah was looking at. "Dad?"

"Tommy, forward. Now." Celeste could feel her heart beating in her ears at the sight of the plane falling out of the sky. She held onto Sarah as the plane collided with ground sending a large explosion into the sky and down the street. Everything was black after that.

There was ringing in Celeste's ears as she came to. She could easily tell the truck had flipped by the way that she was sprawled across the ceiling of it. She jumped at the feeling of Joel's hands on her cheeks.

"You're okay. You're okay." He said pulling you by your arms to sit up to which she resisted the urge to scream in pain. She looked around noticing Sarah was standing outside the truck, barely holding her balance on one foot. With one glance she could tell she had either severely sprained it, or fractured it.

"My shoulder. It's dislocated, I can tell." She said as Joel pulled her from the truck. Eventually when all was settled she'd have to coach Joel into popping it back into place to which she'd have to fight him to agree on.

"I'm sorry, baby. I'm sorry." Joel pulled her into his body, hugging her tightly. This nightmare never seemed to end.

"Sarah, are you okay?" Celeste asked, putting her hands on her shoulders.

"It's my ankle."

"I'll take a look when we get somewhere safe, okay?" Celeste asked and pulled Sarah in for a hug as a sheriff car slammed into the truck they had all just been in.

"Head to the river! I'll find another way." Tommy yelled from the other side.

"You'll have to carry her." Celeste told Joel and he scooped her up into her arms.

"You keep your eyes on me, alright? Don't look anywhere else." Joel said and then turned to her. "Baby?"

"Yeah?" She replied.

"We're making it out of this." He told her and she nodded. "Say it. We're making it out of this."

"We're making it out of this." She repeated, though she wasn't sure how much she actually had meant it.

They took of running down the alley, the heat of the flames coming from everywhere making their skin wet with sweat. Celeste stayed close to Joel, following right behind him. They stopped when they came across multiple bodies down one alleyway being gnawed on by multiple infected people. This wasn't real. This couldn't be real. This was out of horror movies she watched as a kid, this shouldn't be real life.

Joel looked around and searched for another way when one of the infected realized they were there and shot up from the ground. He took off running and Celeste could see it was toward the door of a building. She ran in front of him to open it so he could get through with Sarah and then followed behind him, the footsteps of the infected growing closer.

They ran through an empty diner, the sounds of what was following them hot on their tails. Celeste could tell by Sarah's face that it was getting closer and closer but she refused to look back. That was the first rule in every horror movie. They ran through the kitchen and out the back door, ignoring the sounds of everything crashing behind them.

"Celeste!" Sarah screamed and she had the instinct to brace for impact, to prepare herself to fight this thing off of her but it never came. A gunshot rang through the air and they stopped dead in their tracks and turned to see the infected laying on the ground.

"It's okay, baby. We're safe." He said to Sarah.

Celeste wrapped her arm around Joel when a light was shined in their faces.

"Don't move." The soldier said.

"Our daughter's hurt. Her ankle." Joel said moving towards him. She almost didn't have time to process that he said "our".

"Stop right there!" He yelled.

"Easy now. We're not sick." Joel pleaded. Celeste stepped in front of him to which he wanted to object.

"I got two civilians by the river, one of em injured... Ankle."

Joel took another step towards him to which he pointed his gun at them. Celeste held her hands up in surrender.

"She's a kid, sir, please." She said.

"Hey! No one told you to move." The soldier said.

"Yes sir." Joel replied.

He lowered his gun for a moment and relief washed over Celeste. After this chaotic night, the military would take them somewhere safe until this all blew over. Sarah's ankle would be fine, her shoulder would be taken care of, and everything would be back to normal in a month or two.

Then the light hit their eyes again.

'We're not sick." Joel said shaking his head.

"Hey, put it down." Celeste said, taking a step back.

"Sir." Joel pleaded. "We are not sick!"

Joel dove for safety, Sarah rolling out of his arms and Celeste tumbled down the hill right next to them. With the adrenaline, Celeste couldn't even tell there was a bullet lodged in her arm, it took the feeling of blood trickling down her forearm for her to realize anything was wrong.

"Joel," She pushed herself off the ground and looked to Joel who had a gun pointed in his face. She thought for sure that this was it. This was how they die. All three of them, this far surviving everything the universe threw at them, just to die at the hands of the people who were supposed to protect them.

"Please don't." Joel whispered. Before he could pull the trigger, Tommy was behind him and put a bullet through his skull. For once, Celeste was thankful for murder.

She turned her head and noticed Sarah on the ground. "No," She said quietly. She crawled to her, immediately feeling like she was going to throw up at the sight. "I can fix this."

Celeste had seen plenty of gunshot wounds in the ER, this was Texas for Christ's sake. She knew how to remove bullets, and stitch them clean enough to leave minimal scarring. She had never lost a patient to a gunshot wound.

"Sarah?" Celeste looked down at her, doing her best to examine the wound in the low lighting. Celeste couldn't help but feel like throwing up because after getting a good look she knew there was no way she could fix this. She looked up at Tommy who had been a combat veteran. He knew as well as she did that Sarah was not going to survive this.

Joel was next to his daughter in a matter of seconds as her breathing picked up uncontrollably. "Move your hand, baby. Move your hand. Help me, Cel, help me."

She almost felt like she couldn't move, and she shook away all of the negative thoughts from her head. "I can fix it. Tommy, give me your flannel, I can stop-"

"Celeste-" Tommy said softly.

"Just fucking give it to me, Tommy!" Celeste yelled. He obliged and pulled his flannel off and tossed it to her.

"Sarah, you're gonna be fine, okay. I'm gonna fix this. I can- I can fix it." Celeste pressed the flannel into her wound to which she winced and let out a cry. "I'm sorry, baby. I'm sorry."

"I know it hurts, I know. I know. I know. I'm sorry." Joel went on as Sarah grabbed at him, panic coursing through her eyes.

"I can-" Celeste stopped when she finally saw the life fleeing Sarah's eyes. "Joel."

Joel held her body to his chest, rocking her back and forth until her final breath.

Celeste stood up and walked away from them, bending over to throw up whatever was left in her stomach. Sarah was gone. The world was gone. How were they to go on after this? The people they thought they could trust put a bullet in her arm and ended Sarah's life.

A kid.

She was just a kid.

She had a life ahead of her.

And Celeste couldn't save her.

It probably would eat at her for the rest of whatever life she'd live after this.

"You're hit." Tommy said to her. He handed her the flannel she had used to try and stop Sarah's bleeding. "Here."

He tied it around her arm and she winced in pain, the adrenaline quickly wearing off. Of course it had to be the arm with the dislocated shoulder.

"Cel," She turned at the sound of Joel's voice.

"I'm sorry, Joel." Celeste said to him, immediately breaking down into tears. Joel pulled her into a tight hug, tears streaming down his face. He held her as she sobbed uncontrollably. "I'm sorry."

"We need to move. Find somewhere safe for the night." Tommy said after the sound of an infected echoed around them.

Celeste felt empty as she watched Joel scoop up Sarah's body. She had one job in this world and it was to save those injured or sick. Everyone around them was sick and the one person who depended on her most died in her father's arms.

It was unlikely Celeste or Joel would recover from the trauma of Outbreak Day. Celeste would never forgive herself for failing to fix what was already unfixable. The power of the moon and the stars couldn't heal the hurt from either of them.

a/n: this was gonna have an alternate ending where joel basically is filled with rage at the fact that sarah died (as he should be) and then told celeste to leave them and then they'd be split up until 20 years later but i didnt and idk if ill even write another one but we'll see. good night

#joel miller #joel miller one shot #joel miller imagine #the last of us #tlou #the last of us fanfiction #joel miller fic #pedro pascal

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