#look here to have five years instantly added onto your life

[fullscoreshenanigans]

@goldiipond

Doodles

[buoyantsaturn]

no one ever makes it out of life alive (no one's got it figured out at 25) (1/1)

merry christmas @thelordofshrimp!! i was your secret santa in the @rrversesummerbang exchange! <;3 summary: He lowered his sunglasses. “DOA records? My son was signed to your label - put out an album, went on tour, ring any bells? He’s apparently a regular at the coffee shop I just stopped at, if the kid at the drive-thru can be trusted--” word count: 2,101

read on ao3 | read no love | read emi's bagel fic

Nico had too much going on to deal with the man who just walked onto the studio floor. He was too tall, and too shiny, and he was wearing sunglasses inside, so he was probably an asshole anyway, and he was already inside, so Nico couldn’t pretend that the floor was closed. 

“Can I help you?” Nico asked, stopping by the front desk on his way to the practice room where Lou and Will were hidden away. 

The man flashed him a too-bright smile. “Hi there. I’m looking for my son - maybe you’ve seen him.” 

Nico raised an eyebrow. “This isn’t a daycare. Maybe you have the wrong address.”

He lowered his sunglasses. “DOA records? My son was signed to your label - put out an album, went on tour, ring any bells? He’s apparently a regular at the coffee shop I just stopped at, if the kid at the drive-thru can be trusted--”

“What’s his name?” Nico cut in, before the man could ramble any more. 

“Will Solace,” he answered, and Nico’s eyes went wide. “So… Is he here? I was told he’d be here.” 

Nico hesitated. He’d royally fucked up his first meeting with Will’s mom, and now he was trying to out-asshole Will’s dad. Maybe this was why he’d never gotten far enough into a relationship to meet the parents. “He, uh-- This way.” 

He waved for the man - Will’s father - Apollo, he preferred to be called, if Nico remembered correctly - to follow him down the hall, guiding him into the practice room they’d reserved for the day. 

There hadn’t been any actual practice taking place all day - Will had been stuck in his own head, and spent most of the morning laying across the couch with his head in Lou’s lap. 

“Is he…” Apollo asked quietly when he noticed Will’s state, “...alright?”

“He’s just being a little overdramatic,” Nico replied.

Apollo hummed. “Of course. He gets that from me, you know.” 

Will must have heard them, or seen them approaching out of the corner of his eye, because he suddenly shot upright and scrubbed his hands over his face. “Dad? What are you doing here?” 

“I happened to be in the area,” Apollo answered, “and I thought it was time I congratulated you on your new success.” 

Nico knew instantly that it was the wrong thing to say - he watched his boyfriend’s expression crumble. Will curled forward, his face in his hands as he tried to disguise a sob as a laugh. “Great! At least you can say you had one last day with your son before he dies!”  

As Will tipped sideways, falling into Lou’s lap again, Apollo moved closer, sitting on the arm of the couch by Will’s feet. “I’m sure you’re fine, kiddo. What’s the prognosis? I can help with the medical bills, if it gets to be too much for you to handle, so just say the word, and--”

“He’s not dying,” Lou cut in. “It’s the twenty-seven curse.” 

Apollo scoffed. “But that’s years away! Why would you be worried about that already?” 

Nico frowned. “He’s almost twenty-six.” 

“Wait, really?” Apollo’s eyes went wide, and he tipped his sunglasses down again to show them. “You’re not twenty-three?” 

“That’s Austin,” Will grumbled. “I’m twenty-five, and I recently skyrocketed to fame, which means I’m right on track to die!”

Nico rolled his eyes - he’d heard it all a thousand times already that day. “Sure. Except you don’t do drugs, aside from smoking the occasional joint, and the most dangerous thing I’ve seen you do in the last year was cross the street without looking both ways first.” 

“On a one-way street,” Lou added, “when there were no cars. And the sign said to walk.”

“Great,” Will wailed, flopping onto his back and kicking one of his feet into his father’s lap. “I’m going to die young, and the life I led was boring.”  

“Will, baby,” Apollo said, pushing Will’s foot away and standing, “you’re not even headlining your own tours yet. You may be in the papers, but you’re not on the front page, if you know what I mean. You’re not famous yet.” He let out a disbelieving laugh. “Nobody’s going to care if you die.”

Nico’s jaw dropped, too stunned to come to Will’s defense. He could see in Lou’s eyes that she was seconds away from shouting what the fuck? but before either could react further, Will sat up, his mouth in a perfect O-shape as though he’d been struck with an epiphany. 

“You’re right,” he said, voice soft. He shot his father a smile. “Thanks, dad.” 

Apollo ruffled his hair. “Happy to help, kiddo. Now, what does a man have to do to get a tour of the studio?” 

Will jumped to his feet. “I’ve got you covered!” He pulled Apollo into a hug, then led him out of the room. 

As soon as they were gone, Nico and Lou shared a look. 

“Okay, for real,” Lou started, and Nico joined in to add, “What the fuck?”  

Will had spent about half of the day with his father before happily shipping him off to be somebody else’s problem, and only made it back home after Nico had locked himself away in the basement studio for the evening. 

Apparently, Will had had too much time to himself - or maybe too much time with his father - because Nico was woken the next morning by a hand shaking his shoulder and a too-peppy voice saying, “Baby, Nico, babe, wake up.” 

Nico let out a groan, letting himself slump over, glaring up at Will. 

Will beamed back. “I know what I’m going to do with my life!” 

“I hope it has something to do with the three-album contract we signed,” Nico grumbled.

“Yeah, duh,” Will said, a playful roll of his eyes. “Of course. But I also want to learn how to play the bass, and the piano, and maybe you can show me some basic stuff on the drums. And I want to go back to school, and I think I’m going to switch to a different gym that has a pool, ‘cause I’ve really missed diving, and--”

Nico pressed his hand over Will’s mouth, silencing him. “Stop talking,” he said, “until you’ve made more coffee. Because you clearly drank the whole pot.” 

“I haven’t had any coffee,” Will told him, his voice muffled. “I’m just really excited.” 

“No, no,” Nico said, shaking his head, and added a shh to the end. “Shut up until I’ve had coffee.” 

Will pulled Nico’s hand away. “I’ll start the pot.” He darted down, pecking at Nico’s lips, then flew off the bed and out of the room. 

Nico took his time rolling out of bed, waiting until the smell of fresh coffee coaxed him out of the room. As he stepped into the kitchen, he stretched his arms over his head, and Will grabbed one of his hands out of the air. Will gave him a twirl, then threw him away before dragging him back in, spinning Nico around until Will’s arm was wrapped around his waist from behind. And while Nico was dizzy and disoriented, Will dipped him backwards and guided him into a kiss. 

“Why do I put up with you?” Nico asked, his eyes narrowing.

Will grinned. “I could drop you, you know.” 

He pulled Nico back to his feet and gave him a gentle nudge toward the bar stools next to the island, where he sat and waited for the coffee to finish brewing. Once it was done, Will made him a cup, just how he liked it and in his favorite mug. 

Through the magic of coffee, Nico had one sip, and suddenly felt human again. “Hang on, why the fuck would you go back to school?” 

“Welcome to the conversation,” Will teased. “I’ve always planned on going back - I was never just going to be an EMT. But then The Voice happened, and I got a little sidetracked. I’ve always wanted more than just an associate’s degree, even if I’m not really going to do anything with it. It’d just be nice to know that I have a degree to fall back on, you know?” 

Nico frowned. “Why would you need something to fall back on?” 

“It’s not like I’m going to be a rockstar when I’m sixty,” Will pointed out.

“No, of course not, but I figured we’d be retired by then.” 

Will’s face lit up. “Oh, we? I didn't realize we were at the joint-401k stage of the relationship yet.” 

Nico rolled his eyes. “Right, I forgot that gay marriages dissolve when both parties are no longer hot, young, and fuckable.” 

Will leaned forward against the island, reaching out with one hand to tip Nico’s chin up, his thumb brushing against Nico’s bottom lip. “Baby, you are always going to be hot and fuckable to me.” 

Nico snorted, and knocked Will’s hand away. “Your proposal needs work,” he commented before drinking more of his coffee. “Do you have, like, a plan for school? How’s that going to work when we’re making another album, or going on another world tour? And how are you supposed to step inside a college with that face?” 

“Honey, they let blonds go to school now,” Will told him earnestly. “Elle Woods did a lot for our people.” 

Nico rolled his eyes, his head tipping back with the force. Then, he reached out for Will’s hand, giving in to the sudden desire for contact between them. “C’mon, walk me through it. What’s the plan?” 

Will flipped his palm up, allowing Nico to trace the lines in his skin with the tips of his fingers. “I’m thinking about applying to UCLA - they have a lot of options for online classes, which I plan to take as much as possible, so I can keep my schedule mostly flexible. But I’ll definitely have to take a few labs--”

“Labs?” Nico’s nose wrinkled. “Why would you have to take labs?” 

“Because there’s no college on the planet that would give you a bachelor’s in sciences without taking labs.” 

“Why would you be going for sciences?” Nico asked. “You’re a musician.”  

“Why would I go for music when I can learn anything I want to know from you?” Will countered. “I’m going to major in biochemistry, babe.” 

Nico tried not to look horrified, but the STEM fields had always seemed like a unique form of torture to him. To go into it willingly-- Nico might have to rethink his attachment to the man in front of him. “Why on earth would you do that?” 

Will grinned. “So I can sneak chemical compounds into all of our songs.” 

“No,” Nico said, realizing instantly that Will wasn’t taking his question seriously. “Try again.” 

“So I can prove without a shadow of a doubt that we have chemistry,” he said, scooping up Nico’s hand and pressing a kiss to his knuckles. 

Nico shoved his face away. “No. Next.” 

“Because I want to,” Will told him. “I’ve always wanted to, and I’m really excited about this. Baby,” he said, taking Nico’s hand again and cradling it between both of his own, “can I trust you to support my decision?” 

“Of course I’m going to support you,” Nico told him, and bit his tongue before he could add, emotionally and financially, apparently. “But…where is this coming from, all of a sudden? I mean, yesterday, you thought you were going to drop dead in a year and a half.” 

Will shrugged. “It’s just…what my dad said. Nobody cares enough about me for the twenty-seven curse to take me, you know? So why worry about it?” 

“So, you’re going to go back to school, and we’re going to put out another album, and probably do a few more tours, and then in two years, you’ll be so successful that you’ll be prime for the taking,” Nico summed up. “Did none of that cross your mind?” 

“Of course it did,” Will said, smiling brightly, “which is why I’m going to become wildly successful in three years, so I can beat the curse and still sneak onto the thirty-under-thirty list.” 

“Pretty sure that’s for, like, business owners,” Nico told him, “not just anybody who thinks they’re special.” 

He shrugged again. “Fine. Then how about you take over DOA so that you can be one of the thirty under thirty, and then we can be the ultimate power couple.” 

Nico raised an eyebrow. “And what are you doing to add to the power?” 

“I dunno,” Will said, “maybe I’ll get myself on the cover of a magazine, or something.” 

[kiteofdreams]

Alright, first off: this is the first thing I’ve written and posted in like 10 years. (Tbh, it’ll probably take that long again thanks to real life.) I even made this sideblog to post it bc I have severe anxiety about posting it for some reason - I’m not sure why, so we’re stepping outta my comfort zone here. If you can guess where this title came from, you get a high-five for the obscure reference. I hope you enjoy this Christmas Josh fic.

1.7k words. I tried my hand at fluff and there’s no real warnings, but talk of alcohol & being drunk is mentioned.

Christmas had always been your favorite time of year — the Christmas traditions with your family, the small get-togethers with your close friends, and the general happiness of all those around you.

You had started decorating late, but your life had been so crazy, you hadn't had time. So here you were on Christmas Eve, placing the finishing touches onto your Christmas tree. It was your first Christmas not being home with your family. Your plans were to sit by your fireplace, drink some hot chocolate, and watch a movie.

As you queued up your favorite Christmas movie, you reminisced on how you had gotten here. This past year hadn’t been easy; you found yourself in a new city, a new state, and a new job. Although you had moved away from home years prior, it never got any easier packing up your life and changing it completely. As you settled into a routine in your new life, things became easier. You fell in love with the city life. You met new people, socialized with your co-workers, and even went on a few dates. Of course, nothing ever came of the dates. Life had been too hectic for a relationship, too busy with work. And then there was Josh.

Josh was the shining light in your life. A great big ball of sunshine on the darkest days. It all started on a Friday night at a local bar while out with coworkers celebrating the completion of a two-month-long project.

While ordering drinks at the bar, a long-haired (and quite drunk) man turned around and spilled his drink all over you. He hadn’t even realized what happened as he headed over to the table of his friends. You brushed it off at first because it hadn't been the first time you had a drink spilled on you and it probably wouldn't be the last. The more you thought about what had happened, the more irritated you got. By the time you worked up the nerve to confront him, the man was gone. The following week, you saw him again at the same bar, but with a much shorter haircut. This time, you were prepared to tell him how rude he had been that night. As he approached the bar, you cleared your throat and spoke.

“Excuse me, you should probably pay more attention, you spilled your drink all over me last week and then walked away."

The man looked confused.

"Uh," he started, "I wasn't here last week."

Dumbfounded, you stared at him with blinking eyes.

"Yes, you were. Were you that drunk you don't even know where you were? I like the haircut though," you added with a smirk.

"Oh no," he laughed. You were a bit annoyed that he wasn't taking this seriously.

He pointed towards the table he came from, "that was my brother, Jake. We're twins. I'm Josh, sorry about him."

You looked over to see a table full of people, including the man who ran into you.

"Oh my god, I'm an idiot and apparently was drunker than I thought," you said while hiding your face in your hands. "This is so fucking embarrassing."

"How about this," Josh trailed off while laughing, "I buy you a drink and we can go yell at my brother."

The two of you hit it off instantly, becoming fast friends. Although you two were complete opposites, you fit together like a puzzle. Josh was an early bird, while you were a night owl. You wanted everything to be bright colors, while Josh preferred neutrals. He was a rockstar, you had a corporate 9-5 job. Somehow, you both flowed together like you had been friends for your whole life. And of course, your feelings turned into something more. How could they not? He was your balance, the shoulder to lean on, the voice of reason in your life. But, you'd never acted on your feelings, too afraid to lose him.

A knock on the door pulled you from your thoughts and back to the present. You jumped as you weren't expecting anyone, especially so late at night on Christmas Eve. Josh and his brothers went back home, your best friend was heading out of the country, and even the neighbor you were close to was heading out of the city. As you looked through the peephole, a wild head of curly hair appeared, followed by a toothy grin. You threw open the door with a surprised gasp.

“Josh! What are you doing? You’re not supposed to be here!”

He laughed as he walked past you with his hands full of bags.

“I couldn’t let you be alone on Christmas.”

Your heart melted right then. Josh headed off to your kitchen to drop off the bags before heading to your guest bedroom.

"I'm staying the night, by the way," he shouted from the bedroom. You let out a deep sigh before you rolled your eyes and followed his voice into the bedroom. "That way we can be together for Christmas morning."

Not that you minded Josh staying with you. He had stayed over more times than you could count — from him being too drunk to just not wanting to drive back home. Hell, he had a key to your house for emergencies. But something about it being Christmas Eve felt so domestic like you didn't have to pretend you didn't love him.

"What if I had plans? What if I had a gentleman caller visiting me later?"

You sat down on the edge of the bed and played with the edge of the comforter. Josh poked his head out of the attached bathroom with an eyebrow raised.

"First, do you?"

"Well, no. But I could've, you don--"

"Second, don't say gentleman caller, that's super fucking weird," Josh interrupted. "I know you're upset about not being home for Christmas. You shouldn't be alone."

"You should be with your family, Josh," you replied. "I was going to FaceTime with my family tomorrow, we had it all planned out. I'm okay with it."

Josh placed his hands on either side of your face and looked into your eyes. You took a deep breath and felt your heart start racing.

"It doesn't matter, I'm here with you now, so you're stuck spending Christmas with me."

He placed a kiss on your forehead before turning away towards the living room. You followed after him in a daze. It wasn't as if he hadn't kissed your forehead or cheek before, but it was always when he was past the point of tipsy. You pressed your hand to the spot where his lips were as if you could still feel them there. As you reached the kitchen, you saw Josh pulling various takeout containers from the bags.

"I ordered from Angelinos. I was surprised they were still open. I got your extra breadsticks and alfredo sauce, why are you staring at me like that?"

You shook your head as you whispered "sorry".

"What's going on in that head of yours? You've seemed out of it all night," Josh pushed the hair falling in front of your face behind your ear.

"I don't know," you sighed, willing yourself not to cry. "I guess I'm just missing my family more than I thought."

"Hey, come on. We're gonna have a great Christmas, just us two. You wanna get the drinks while I make you a plate?"

You nodded as you headed towards your fridge to grab a few beers and ciders. Taking the drinks into the living room, you placed them on the table before heading back to help Josh with the food. He shooed you out of the kitchen and followed you into your living room with your plates in hand. He sat the plates down and turned to head back to the bedroom.

"Where are you going now? I want to eat," you shouted to him.

"You can start eating," he yelled back. "I gotta grab something. Oh, get the movie going. I'll be right out."

You grabbed the remote to start the movie and sat down on the couch as you reached for your plate to eat. After a few bites, you opened a cider and took a drink as Josh sat down next to you. Two hours later, you had finished all the food and the movie was over. You stood up to clear the plates, but Josh stopped you.

"You relax, alright? I've got this," he said as he stood to gather the plates and headed towards the kitchen.

"Do you want a hot chocolate while I'm in here?" Josh said from the kitchen. "I can add the peppermint schnapps if you want!"

"Sure, can you make it with milk instead of water?"

"Of course, you want to pick another movie?"

"No," you replied. "I'll let you pick the next one. I probably won't make it through this one."

You sat in silence and scrolled through your phone as you waited for Josh to return. You heard his footsteps behind you and then felt a hand on your shoulder. You looked behind you as Josh placed a small box in your lap. He moved around to sit next to you.

"Open it," Josh said with a bright smile. You noticed he was wringing his hands together, a nervous habit of his. "It's an early present. I got you something else, but wanted you to open this tonight."

You untied the ribbon and slowly opened the box, "Josh, what is this? Is this mistletoe?"

Josh reached into the box to grab the plant and held it above his head.

"We're under the mistletoe. You know what that means, right?"

You stood there in shock with your mouth agape. There was no way he was saying what you thought he might be.

You stared at him and Josh laughed nervously as he continued, "please tell me I haven't been reading this wrong. If I have, I'll leave and we can forget about this whole thing. I don't think I am though. Can I kiss you?"

"Holy shit," you whispered. "Yes, please."

Josh reached around, placed a hand on the back of your neck, and pulled you close to him. Your eyes closed as he brought his lips to yours.

"Merry Christmas, sweetheart," he whispered before kissing you.

At that moment, it felt like time had stopped. Everything aligned to where it needed to be. It was like an electric shock.

Josh pulled back, but your eyes were still closed. As you opened them, Josh sat across from you grinning. You couldn't help but smile back.

"Kiss me again, Kiszka."

As Josh leaned in again, you thought, 'maybe this Christmas wouldn't be so bad.'

[dlea203]

5 years - Hannix AU

A/N: I already explained here how I'm planning to proceed with this chapter. In case anyone is interested... I listened excessively (and by excessively, I mean very excessively😅!) to Rhythm of my heart by Rod Stewart and Nur 1 Minute by Hecht (song in swiss german from one of the best swiss bands there is😍!) for the whole chapter but especially during writing the flashback scene. Since I suspect that I'm the only swiss german speaking here, I tried myself at translating and adapting it here😬😅. I DO NOT have any rights at the song and I'm not claiming to! The song belongs entirely to Hecht and their production company! I hope you enjoy🥰!

Taglist: @sweetwhispersofchaos

Warnings: almost drowning (losely based on a personal experience), angst, lots of fluff💗

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Chapter Five

The first hour at the beach passed by quickly. The Fitches called and apologized for being late, but apparently Shannon’s sister had spontaneously decided to visit San Diego and therefor they went out to meet her for lunch. They would join later though.           Natasha and Penny chatted the whole time, laughing at their husbands and daughters who kept chasing each other in the water and on land. Penny told her about the sailing trip she had taken with Maverick and Amelia and Natasha reported what had happened at dinner yesterday.

“I bet it was pure chaos”, Penny chuckled.

“Oh yeah, that it was”, Natasha answered and turned her gaze to the water, just in time to catch Jake dunking their former instructor under water.

Lynn and Amelia squealed in delight, jumping out of reach to evade the same destiny as Maverick. Jake chased them down, but Amelia was a fast swimmer and managed to get to the beach before he could reach her. Lynn wasn’t as lucky. He caught her ankle and yanked her back, holding her upside down just above the water.

“What are you gonna do now, princess, huh?”, he asked, smirking devilishly.

“Let me down, daddy!”, Lynn yelled, giggling and fighting against his hold on her, but she had no chance. 

“You sure you want me to let you down? You’re gonna get dunked”, he warned playfully, slowly lowering her.

“No! Stop!”, Lynn gasped, punching her little fists into the water.

“Hold your breath”, Jake instructed and dunked her, headfirst, under water.

Once she was under water, he let go of her ankle. In attempt to quickly resurface, Lynn kicked wildly, causing the water to churn and bury her beneath it. Wherever she looked, there was water, which burned in her eyes. The waves, even though they were small and gentle, added to keeping her underwater. She couldn’t reach the surface, no matter how hard she tried. Why did no one help her? Couldn’t they see that she was unable to help herself? Lynn started to panic. She cried out as loud as she could, swallowing a ton of water in the process. Her lungs protested heavily, turning her whole body into a shaking mess. A primal fear settled deep in her bones, fueled by her natural will to survive. Where was her dad? Would he let her die? Was he looking for her and couldn’t find her? Or couldn’t he reach her?         For Lynn it felt like an eternity when it was really “only” a few seconds until Jake managed to grab her around her hips and pull her to the surface. Lynn coughed and gasped for air; her cheeks tinted in a deep pink color. Jake’s playful mood was instantly gone, worry overtaking his features.

“Hey Princess, you okay?”

Lynn was still gasping and holding onto him as if her life depended on it. Her small fingers dug into his arm and her eyes were wide with shock. Jake brushed her wet blonde locks out of her face, holding her close to his chest. Ensuring that she was safe.

“Lynn are you okay?!”, he asked a bit louder, his voice full of worry and a tiny bit of fear.

He was still new at this parenting thing, but he could see that she was still fighting for breath. That she wasn’t alright yet. His heartrate picked up speed, making his heart pound against his ribcage. Has she been underwater for too long? Would she lose consciousness any moment? Has she been seriously injured?

Lynn nodded slowly, taking deep breaths, and rubbing the salty water out of her eyes.

“Yeah, I’m fine”, she finally answered, but her voice trembled slightly.

“You sure?”

Jake didn’t fully believe her. And he didn’t like the look in her eyes; not at all. She was still scared. His little girl was scared, and it was his fault. 

But Lynn nodded again and loosened the tight grip of her fingers a bit.

“I’m okay, daddy.”

Jake hugged her tight, burying her face in his neck, and soothingly stroking her back.

“I’m sorry, princess. I shouldn’t have dunked you like that. I didn’t want you to get hurt or scared. I’m so sorry”, he rambled, his heart still beating out of his chest.

“It’s fine daddy. I’m fine”, Lynn assured him, pulling back to look at him.

She smiled brightly, the rosy color already disappearing from her cheeks. She gently cupped his cheek.

“You didn’t hurt me, daddy. I’m okay. Just a little shaky”, she admitted, already giggling again.

Jake smiled back at her, but his expression was pained.

“I think we should take a little break. Yeah?”

Lynn nodded. Jake carried her back to the shore where he put her down to let her run off. He trailed behind and took some deep steadying breaths, attempting to calm his racing heart. That had almost gone wrong. He’d almost lost his daughter, one day after returning home. He watched her run straight at Natasha, flinging herself into her mother’s arms. 

Nat almost lost her because of me, he thought.

That thought did nothing to calm his heartbeat. And it caused a string of questions to form in his head. Which was unusual for him since he rarely ever questioned himself. A no-go at his job. But right now, these dangerous questions clouded his mind as he stood a few feet in front of the picnic blanket, staring blankly into nowhere.           Was he made for this? He hadn’t even been around his daughter for twenty-four hours and already came way too close to killing her. Would he ever be a good father? He’d already missed the first five years of her life and barely managed to keep her alive. He didn’t know what he was supposed to do should she feel sick or unwell. He didn’t know what she liked or hated. He didn’t know what kind of music she liked to listen to or what audiobooks she enjoyed. Who her friends were. At what place she enjoyed spending time. His heart sank.

He knew nothing about his daughter.

A good father knows his children. Every façade of their personality. He would hold them on their bad days, helping them through their struggles and pull all the tricks he knew to cheer them up. He would be there when they experience big achievements to cheer on them, his heart exploding from love and pride. He is their biggest fan, come hell or high water. He loves them with every fiber of his being. 

Jake sighed. He is Lynn’s biggest fan, that fact is undiscussable. He loves her more than life itself, also undiscussable. But he doesn’t know anything about his daughter. And only love is not nearly enough to make me a good father, he thought.

His face must have reflected the content of his inner monologue since he earned a concerned look from his wife when he walked up to them.

“All good?”, she asked while braiding Lynn’s hair.

Penny eyed him curiously while reaching into her bag to retrieve a bottle of water for Lynn. Jake swallowed hard and reached for his shirt first, yanking it on before grabbing his flip-flops.

“I – ehm… I’m gonna take a walk. Be right back”, he stuttered and marched off without waiting for an answer.

“Daddy? Where are you going?”, he heard Lynn call after him.

He didn’t stop, instead increasing his pace. He needed to get away or else his daughter would see him crying. He couldn’t let her see how much that incident in the water had shaken him up.

“Jake?”, he heard Natasha’s concerned voice from afar.

Still, he kept walking away from them.

*-*

“What just happened?”, Natasha asked, utterly confused, and mildly concerned.

“I don’t know”, Penny answered, watching Jake march down the shore with furrowed brows.

“Daddy!”, Lynn cried and attempted to run after him, but Natasha held her back.

“No baby, stay here. Stay with Penny, I’m gonna go look after Daddy”, she ordered and sat her daughter down next to Penny.

“Where is Jake going?”, Maverick asked, as Amelia and he returned from the water.

“I’m gonna look after him. Keep an eye on Lynn, please”, Natasha asked while putting her sundress back on and throwing her sunglasses onto her bag. 

After quickly stepping into her flip-flops, she jogged after her husband.

Lynn, the clever child she was, wanted to use the momentum to run after her parents, but Penny caught on quickly and grabbed her arm firmly, pulling her back onto the blanket.

“No, no, no young lady. You stay here”, she chuckled and put her arms around Lynn, hugging her tightly to her chest.

“But Mommy and Daddy–“

“Your parents are fine. Don’t worry, sweetheart.”

Lynn fought against Penny’s hold for all but one minute before giving up and engaging in a conversation with Amelia. Maverick and Penny exchanged a worried glance, silently communicating with their eyes. But soon enough, the girls dragged them right into their conversation.

*-*

He’d just gained back at least some control over his feelings when he heard her calling him again.

“Jake, wait!”

“I’m fine”, he shot back without turning around.

“No, you’re not. Don’t try to fool me”, she retorted and grabbed his arm.

“Let it go, Nat. It’s nothing.”

He yanked his arm out of her hold, trying hard not to let her see the tears glistening in his eyes. But he’d forgotten how stubborn his wife could be. She ran ahead of him and stopped him by putting her hands on his chest, clearly annoyed because of his behavior. But her next snappy retort died on her tongue the moment she saw his face.

“What’s wrong?”, she asked instead, her voice laced with worry.

“Nothing”, he tried to deflect again, but she saw right through it.

“Please Jake, talk to me. What’s wrong? Is it too much, being here with Maverick, Penny and Amelia? Did I do something? Or Lynn?”

“What? No!”

“What is it then?”

He averted his gaze, looking at the waves lapping at the shore. Anywhere but at her. He couldn’t tell her, or rather, he didn’t want to. He was afraid of her reaction, fearing she would slap him across his face for nearly taking away their daughter from her and tell him to stay the hell away from them. He couldn’t bear to lose them a second time. His heartbeat fastened underneath his rips and his breathing picked up speed too. Fear crept up his neck and sent his thoughts spinning inside his head. He shut his eyes tightly, curling his hands into fists at the side of his body. Was he having a panic attack? He didn’t know because he couldn’t think straight. He felt like he had a ton of weight on his shoulders, that was slowly crushing him. He knew he should tell her, but he couldn’t. His throat was tight and dry, making it impossible to speak.

Natasha watched his features change and knew that he was fighting something. A memory maybe? A flashback to his time over there? She didn’t know and she didn’t want to ask, fearing she would scare him away and make everything worse. So, she took his hand, squeezing it gently before bringing it up to her lips to kiss his knuckles. Grounding him; or at least an attempt to. Like in their early days as a couple, it worked wonders.

“She almost drowned.”

His voice was no more than a whisper. Hadn’t she been hyper focused on finding out what was wrong, she would have easily missed it.

“Lynn?”, she asked nonetheless, just to clarify.

He nodded barely visible.

“She’s okay”, Natasha answered simply, mostly to buy herself some time to sort out her thoughts.

Her heart did a somersault at his confession, nonetheless she stayed calm. Lynn was fine, hadn’t said a word when she came back to the picnic blanket. She had looked fine too, maybe a bit out of breath but no serious injuries. Nothing to worry about.

“No – it’s…”, he began, running his free hand through his hair, “I’m not even twenty-four hours around her and she almost dies! I can’t… I–“ 

“Jake, she is fine. Nothing happened because you were there. Everything is fine.”

“No, nothing is fine, Nat! I almost killed her! My own daughter!”

“Stop, please–“

“I’m supposed to protect her, not put her in danger! She’s supposed to feel safe with me! How is that possible if she almost dies on my watch?!”

“Hey, look at me”, she interrupted, cradling his cheek in her palm and turning his face to her.

He looked devastated, self-conscious and so much not like himself that it broke her heart.

“She’s fine. Lynn is fine. Nothing happened, okay?”

“I’m not made for this… I should… I’ll never be a good father. I missed out on too much and I have no idea what I’m doing. That’s a horrible environment for a child to grow up in. I can’t do this.”

Natasha shook her head, gently wiping away some of the tears that had escaped his eyes.

“All you’re saying is nonsense and you know that. You are a good father”, she insisted, searching his eyes.

He looked at her, cautiously putting his hands on her waist. He needed to hold onto something to ground himself. And as she had been for many years, she was his anchor. He surrendered himself to this feeling of comfort that he’d been missing for the past five years. She had never failed to make him feel at ease when he needed it the most. 

“Most importantly, she is safe with you. I know that and she knows it too. She trusts you blindly, Jake. Like I do.”

Her words helped settle his heartbeat. How she did it was a mystery to him and would most likely remain that. However, against his inner urge to be in control, he let her lead him. Away from his doubts and fears, back to himself.

“And she knows how much you love her, I made sure of that.”

Natasha smiled at him, still framing his face with her hands.

“I told her, from day one, how much her Daddy loves her. How badly he wanted to be her Daddy. How he wanted to wrap her up in his strong arms and never let go. How much he cried when she came into this world.”

They shared a laugh at the memory. Natasha was glad to see some of the tension leave his shoulders.

“She knows, Jake. She’s always known, and she promised me to never forget it. Besides…”

He raised his brows when she remained silent for a couple of seconds.

“Do you seriously think I knew what I was doing when we had her? And what exactly makes you think that I know what I’m doing now?”

He chuckled, pressing his forehead against hers.

“I’m still figuring out this parenting thing. And as I heard from our friends, that never stops. But I’m so glad that now I don’t have to do it alone after all”, she admitted, smiling widely and brushing her thumb over his cheek.

Jake pulled her into a tight hug, trying to express his gratitude and love on that way. His throat was still way too dry to speak. She buried her face in his neck, reveling in the feeling of home. Because that was what his arms felt like. Home.

*-*

They still took that walk Jake intended to. To calm themselves in the first place, but also to enjoy some time alone. The opportunities would be rare in the next few days, so they savored every chance they got to just be together again. Although that conversation from last night in the kitchen was still hanging in the air, they didn’t mind. Now wasn’t the time to talk about that. Jake promised to tell her when he was ready, and Natasha believed him. 

Strolling down the beach, hand in hand, they basked in the comfortable silence for a few moments before Jake spoke up.

“I remember why we fought so hard to stay here”, he remarked, staring at the horizon where the water seemed to sparkle, “The view’s still as beautiful.”

Natasha chuckled, tightening her grip on his hand just a little more.

“Long time ago”, she stated absentmindedly.

“Feels like forever and yesterday at the same time”, he agreed and stopped suddenly, positioning her in front of him.

His arms wrapped themselves around her waist from behind and his head settled on her right shoulder. She held onto his arms, leaning back into his chest and closed her eyes when he dropped a kiss on her cheek. They enjoyed their moment quietly, letting their eyes wander over the sea.

“Since then, we got married and became parents… Can you believe it?”, she asked, chuckling softly.

“Crazy… We were so young back then.”

“Well, I don’t know if one considers 29 young–“, she countered and yelped when he started tickling her sides.

“Are you calling us old, Misses Seresin?”

“Who said anything about me?”, she quipped and squealed when he turned her around and threw her over his shoulder.

“Let me down!”

“I’m gonna carry you like this for the rest of the day”, he threatened playfully and started walking back to their friends.

“No, Jake! Let me down!”

“Not a chance!”

“I’m serious! Let me down, right now!”

She pounded his back, not too hard, but with enough force to get her point across. Suddenly, she lost her balance and almost fell forward too far, so she instinctively grabbed the hem of his shirt for support. 

“Jake!”, she gasped.

He laughed devilishly and adjusted his grip on her hips and legs, pulling her further up. She forgot to let go of his shirt and pulled it up his back a bit. When she realized that, she froze. There were scars on his back, varying in length and healing status.    She saw them for the first time. Last night, during their passionate hours in bed, she hadn’t seen them because of the darkness. She hadn’t even felt them while roaming his back because she hadn’t been particularly focused or able to form coherent thoughts. But they were there. She resisted the urge to trace them with her fingers, not wanting to reveal to him that she’d found them. There must be a reason he hadn’t shown her yet or told her about them. Although she was more than willing to find out why he got them, she didn’t want to pressure him too much. He’d tell her, once he was ready.

Luckily, Jake didn’t seem to notice that she’d frozen above him or that she’d pulled up his shirt. Slowly, she let it fall down, covering his scars again.

“Maybe if you ask nicely”, he answered instead.

She could hear the smirk in his voice and rolled her eyes, nonetheless unable to fight the smile that crept on her lips. Truth be told, she was relieved, even if the scars worried her. He was back to himself, to the man she had fallen for and vowed to spend the rest of her life with.

“Please”, she conceded swallowing down her pride.

Slowly, he lowered her back down into the sand, before pulling her in for a kiss. She gasped against his lips before kissing him back, her hands gently weaving through his hair.

“I love you”, he whispered when they pulled apart for air.

“I love you”, she replied just as softly.

They kissed again, then intertwined their fingers and headed back to their friends.

*-*

“Everything alright?”, Penny checked, when they took a seat moments later.

Jake nodded and put on his sunglasses, before lying down with his hands behind his head. Natasha chose to keep her sundress on this time, stretched her legs out and copied his position, reaching for her sunglasses and pushing them onto her nose.

They barely had a minute before Lynn all but flung herself down on Jake’s chest and yelled at him to join her and Amelia for building a sandcastle.

Natasha expected him to ask for a minute of rest, but Jake nodded his head and let her drag him with her. Natasha shook her head, smiling.         

And he worried he wouldn’t be a good father, she thought.

Their daughter was spoiled rotten with the amount of attention she got from him. Natasha wondered whether it would be a problem when Monday rolled around, since Lynn had to attend kindergarten then and would definitely not be getting that much attention there.

“Penny for your thoughts?”, a voice interrupted her train of thoughts.

She glanced over, looking directly into the curious eyes of Maverick. Penny had left them on their own to take part in the sandcastle building process.

“Oh, umm… yeah, I was just thinking about what Jake and I talked about before”, she answered cautiously, trying to buy herself some time.

“Is he okay?”

Maverick nodded down into the direction of Jake, observing the scene.

“Yeah–“

“I mean, is he really okay?”

“What?”

She looked at Maverick, confused. Maverick sighed, lightly shaking his head.

“He’s doing a good job at playing it cool, but - after everything he's been through, I don't know… it's impossible to just put it away. I wonder if the long-term effects have already started or if he still has enough strength to suppress everything...”

She kept her gaze on Maverick, her heartrate picking up speed.

“Do you know what happened to him over there?”, she breathed out.

She was desperate to know, and she was willing to use every chance she got to gather some information. Maverick pressed his lips into a tight line.

“Has he told you anything yet?”

“No. He keeps brushing it off as a long story and that he doesn’t want to talk about it. And I respect that, but… I need to know. I want to help him, but I can’t do that, when I have no idea about what he went through. So, do you know something?”

“He should be the one telling you”, Maverick deflected, studying Jake from afar.

“Please”, Natasha pleaded, gently touching Maverick’s arm to get his attention.

“I… I can’t, Phoenix.”

“Please!”

She rarely begged like this, but Jake’s well-being was very close to her heart.

“No. I can’t betray his trust. He… He begged me not to tell anyone and I won’t break that promise. He’ll talk about it when he’s ready.”

Maverick smiled sadly at her, apologizing with his eyes. Natasha sighed in defeat. Then, a thought occurred to her. Questions that had been sitting in the back of her mind since this morning in the kitchen.

“How did you know he was alive? How are you involved in this?”

Maverick’s eyes widened and he clenched his jaw, remaining silent. Natasha looked him dead in the eyes, waiting, but her patience was fading fast.

“Phoenix–“

“No! With all due respect, sir, I have enough of everyone keeping me completely in the dark! So, answer my question.”

Maverick sighed, hiding his face in his hands for a moment. She was about to demand again when he exhaled loudly, hugging his knees, looking at the horizon.

“Fine”, he conceded, “it started with–“

“Phoenix!”, Payback called out, Shannon and the kids walking up behind him.

Natasha almost cursed her friend’s timing out loud, took a deep breath instead and swallowed down her frustration, before flashing her friends a smile and getting up to hug Shannon. Her expression changed immediately though when only Payback was in her eyesight. Upon seeing her face, Payback pursed his lips and raised his brows.

“Did we interrupt something?”

“It’s fine”, Natasha brushed off, trying her best to mask her disappointment, before bending down to press a loud kiss on the cheek of her goddaughter, Hailey.

“Hi sweetie”, she cooed and wrapped the girl up in her arms.

Hailey hugged her tight, a huge smile on her face. They had a special bond, practically from the day Hailey had been born. When Payback and Shannon had asked her to be Hailey’s godmother, Natasha had burst into tears; a rare thing to happen, at least before Jake’s accident. But becoming the godmother of the first-born dagger squad baby was such an honor, that even Natasha had teared up about. Hailey was an absolute sunshine and, much to Natasha’s delight, Lynn’s chosen role model.

“How are you?”, Natasha asked, putting Hailey down into the sand and brushing a hand through her curls.

“I’m very happy”, the ten-year-old answered, “because I got a good grade in mathematics last week!”

“Oh yeah? What did you get?”

“An A plus!”

Natasha high-fived her goddaughter with a proud smile on her face. Hailey was a genius in math, acing almost every exam at only ten years of age.

“She definitely inherited that from Reuben. I was terrible in math”, Shannon grinned, taking Hailey’s flip-flops and stashing them away.

“Hi auntie Phoenix”, Sam waved, before running straight over to Amelia, Penny, Jake and Lynn.

Natasha didn’t even have enough time to answer him before he was already out of earshot. Delilah fought against the death grip her father had on her arm to avoid the sunscreen he wanted to put on her face.

“Come on, Delilah. It’s for your own good. Believe me, you don’t want to get a sunburn”, Payback tried for what felt like the hundredth time.

“Here, let me help you”, Shannon laughed and crouched down onto the picnic blanket she’d laid out.

Hailey put on sunscreen by herself and only checked with Natasha to see if she had missed a spot, before running over to join the sandcastle building crew. Shannon and Reuben busied themselves with Delilah while Ally glanced longingly down the shore to the others. But she stayed right where she was, knowing that she wasn’t allowed to go near the water without her swim west on. Luckily, Natasha knew that and helped her put it on.

“There you go, now you can join them”, she smiled and cupped Ally’s cheek gently.

Ally smiled widely at her before taking off. Only a few instances later, Delilah was up and ready to join her twin sister, her laughter delighting the grown-ups who stayed in the shadow.

Natasha wished she could ask Maverick to take a walk with her to resume their conversation, but that was inappropriate. So, she sat down next to Shannon and started chatting with her to distract herself from what she’d learned today. But no matter how hard she tried to fight it, occasionally, her gaze would land on Jake and her mind asked all these unanswered questions again.

*-*

Thanksgiving, one year ago…

A gentle breeze blew across the patio, displacing the daytime heat that was still building up here in Texas, even in late November. Natasha stretched her nose into the air and inhaled the familiar scent of fresh hay and the rose bushes which were planted in front of the patio. It was a wonderful end to today, especially considering the date. Thanksgiving was, unsurprisingly so, her least favorite holiday of the year and had been causing downright discomfort for four years. She was certain she would never fully get back to liking the holiday, but under these circumstances, she would at least come to tolerate the celebration.

For the first time since Jake had died, Natasha and Lynn spent Thanksgiving in Texas with Nancy and Jeff Seresin. Although Jake had never been super close with his parents, they’d always had a friendly relationship, especially since Natasha and later Lynn had joined the family. Jake’s parents loved their granddaughter dearly and had been a part of her life since her birth. And they loved Natasha. Usually, mother and daughter-in-law are not expected to have a great relationship, and Jake was worried at the beginning that due to his own dispute with his parents, they would give Natasha an even harder time. But those worries were unnecessary. From the first meeting on, Jeff and Nancy had been very friendly and even kind to Natasha, welcoming her into the family with warm smiles.

*-*

“She’s a good soul and she makes you happy”, Nancy had said to her son when Natasha was out of earshot.

“Yeah, she does.”

“I think I’ve never seen you happier”, she smiled and patted his arm lovingly.

Jake smiled back. It was one of the nicest honest conversations he’d had with his mother since his sister’s death. Although the wounds of that story were still deep and caused a great distance between him and his parents, he felt that they were taking steps towards each other again. Whether that had something to do with a certain dark-haired woman who was currently being toured over the ranch by his father, he wasn’t 100% sure. But the odds were pretty good.

“I hope it works out with her.”

Jake took his mother’s hand and squeezed it gently.

“I really hope so too.”

He’d left his hometown with a black velvet box containing a very special ring, which he gave to Natasha not long after that first visit to Texas. The rest is history…

*-*

“She understands where he is”, Natasha stated absentmindedly.

She sat at the big wooden table, her arms crossed over her chest and her legs stretched out. Nancy sat next to her, with her hands folded in her lap and her legs crossed. The used dishes from dinner were still on the table, along with a half-empty wine bottle. 

They currently watched Jeff hold the rope of Lynn's horse, Sissi, and laugh with his granddaughter who was sitting on the wooden fence, patting the horse. With his other arm, he braced Lynn’s back to keep her from falling off the fence.

“She does?”, Nancy asked, not tearing her eyes away from the scene on the lawn of the ranch.

“On her first day of kindergarten back in September, the parents were allowed to stay for the first hour. Most children had both parents with them, even if they were already divorced or separated. Except Lynn, obviously. When it was time for me to leave for work, I wanted to say goodbye. Lynn was playing with that girl she had become friends with during the first five minutes, so I walked up to them and overheard their conversation. The girl asked her about her dad, where he was, why he wasn’t there and Lynn…”

Natasha had to take a deep breath to steady herself. She felt like she was transported back to the original moment. Reliving it in front of her mind’s eye, together with all the feelings.

“Lynn said… My daddy is with the angels, there where the ocean meets the sky. He watches over me and mommy… Then the girl asked if her mommy has brought home another daddy and if she misses her right one. And Lynn, my smart little daughter, answered casually… We miss him every day, but we don’t need anyone else. It’s just me and mommy.”

Nancy drew in a breath, still looking at her granddaughter, then her lips curled up into a small smile. Natasha shook her head slightly, feeling a few tears well up in her eyes.

“She is too clever for her age…“

“What?”, Nancy asked, turning her head around for the first time.

Natasha sighed, biting her bottom lip before continuing.

“She should be angry, hurt… I don’t know – absolutely furious with me! She should cry and scream at me!”

“Why?”

Nancy reached over and laid her hand on Natasha’s arm.

“Because she is four years old and doesn’t have a father!”, Natasha sobbed, barely keeping herself together.

Her mother-in-law gently stroked her arm, attempting to sooth her. Nancy had trouble understanding where this was suddenly coming from or why her daughter-in-law was seeing things that way.

“I can’t see what you’re trying to tell me, sweetheart”, Nancy calmly responded, still stroking Natasha’s arm, “because she has a father. She knows who her father is. He’s just not able to be here, be with her.”

“But that’s the point!”

“I’m sorry, I don’t get it.”

“Why did I have to fall for a fellow officer, of all people?”, Natasha sighed, wiping at her cheeks and gently shaking her head.

Even though Nancy knew that Natasha only sounded so defeated because she had an emotional moment, not because she truly meant those words, the fact, that she said them anyway, stung. More, than she first realized. Suddenly, Nancy feared that Natasha regretted her decision to choose Jake. But that was certainly not the case, right? They‘d been so in love… so excited when they learned that Lynn was on the way. They never once mentioned that it had been a bad decision to keep the child. Or to have married each other in the first place…

„I didn’t want that. I knew what I was signing up for when I joined the Navy. Hectic life, no real place to call home, most likely no long-term relationships… I was okay with that. I didn’t need anyone but myself and my family, which is always on my side. And then?”

She stopped and sighed again, rubbing her hands over her face. Nancy didn’t utter a single word, nervously chewing on the inside of her mouth. She was not sure whether she’d like where this was going.

“Then, Jake happens. He comes into my life with a capturing smile and irresistible charm and turns everything upside down… God, did he infuriate me! I thought we would just be at each other’s throats ‘til the end of our lives, but no… Oh, was I wrong about that.”

Another beat of silence followed.

“Instead, he becomes one of the best things that has ever happened to me. I never believed that those sappy romance novels have a point when they claim that you’re on cloud nine when you’re in love. Another thing I was wrong about. With Jake, I was floating. We had our problems, our disputes… which couple doesn’t? But not once did I think about leaving him! Not ever. At the end of the day, he was the one I wanted to call first when I succeeded in a new and difficult maneuver, when I saw a particularly beautiful sunset, when I won a sparring battle against one of my colleagues… he was the first and last thing I thought about every day. When he asked me to marry him, I was over the moon, as pathetic as that sounds. I wanted nothing more than to become his wife. Which was already risky for my heart.”

Natasha bit her lower lip, brushing her finger over the rings on her left hand. Even after four years, she still couldn’t take them off. Whenever she considered it, she felt like she was cheating on him.

“Suddenly, there was someone other than my family that could lose me. There was someone I could lose. I was able to accept that because the time I got to spend with him was more than worth the worries during a deployment. I strongly believe each one of us would have been able to cope if the other hadn’t come back from a mission. That’s a risk the job demands we take… But when I got pregnant, that was a different story. It wasn’t about just us anymore. We faced a responsibility, a huge one. There was now a little person… a tiny, helpless human that couldn’t live without us… that shouldn’t have to grow up without one of us.”

She watched her daughter laugh heartily and saw all the similarities Lynn shared with Jake. The joy featured on her face in the same way it used to on Jake’s. The laugh sounding from deep within her belly. The dimples on her cheeks. Natasha’s heart soared and ached equally.

“However, it was never up for discussion that we keep it. Best decision of our life. Nothing can compare to the feeling we had when we got to hold her for the first time. When her beautiful eyes opened for the first time and took in the world around her. All of these firsts that we witnessed together made the worries worth it. We still knew that it was possible that Lynn could lose one of us. But somehow, even with that mission coming right up, we convinced ourselves that it wouldn‘t happen to us. I guess that was silly“, she smiled sadly and took Nancy‘s hand to squeeze it gently.

“You were hopeful, that’s not silly”, Nancy pointed out, squeezing her hand back.

“Let’s agree on hopeful in a naïve way”, Natasha replied, shaking her head while watching Lynn and Jeff walk Sissi back to the stable.

“Anyway… I don’t even know where I was trying to go with this”, Natasha admitted, looking at her mother-in-law with wonder in her eyes.

Nancy laughed. It was clear where Jake and now Lynn got their laughter from.

“Originally, you started this with telling me that Lynn understands where Jake is”, she offered, smiling.

“Right, yeah”, Natasha chuckled, looking down at their interlocked fingers, “well, I don’t know… it felt like a gut punch hearing her say that. It reminded me that it’s my fault that she doesn’t have a dad–“

“For heaven’s sake, Natasha, it’s not your fault!”, Nancy interjected, exasperated.

She hated that Natasha kept saying that.

“It is”, Natasha insisted, meeting her gaze.

“No, it’s not. We can’t choose who we fall in love with, that’s the simple truth. It’s one of the few things that are decided over our heads. And to be honest, I’m not sure if that’s a bad thing.”

“That’s not what I meant. I’m not regretting Jake. Did you think I do?”

Her mouth formed into a little o-shape and she furrowed her brows. Nancy chose to stay silent, but that still gave her earlier thoughts away. 

“I’m not, I swear! I didn’t want you to think that. God, how could I regret him? He’s the father of my child! The love of my life! I treasure what we had – what life has given us. What we’ve built together. I wouldn’t exchange it for anything. Never. What I wanted to say is, I should have told him to stay at home. He would still be here had I done that.”

“You can't know that! If not on this mission, he might have died on the next one.”

“There wouldn’t have been a next one”, Natasha released shakily, covering her mouth with her right hand, averting her gaze for a moment.

“What? But… how?”

“With his next promotion, he would’ve been able to apply for a position as an instructor. We might have had to move, but the risk of him dying would have been reduced many times over.”

“But I thought he only gets promoted if he flies the mission in Afghanistan?”

“We thought so too, but Cyclone enlightened us shortly before Jake made his decision. He would have gotten his promotion, but a year or two later. He would have had to do one or two more longtime deployments, but those would have related to less danger.”

“Oh…”

“Yeah… see why it’s my fault? I should’ve insisted that he goes for the safer route. He was worried that we’d lose the house, but I would’ve even slept under a bridge if it meant that he was still alive and with me!”

“Oh honey, I’m so sorry”, Nancy said and reached over to brush away a few of Natasha’s tears, “it was a horrible decision Jake had to make. My boy was forced to choose between the safety of his family and his own... and you know what? Even if you’d asked him to play it safe and go for the longtime deployments, he would have still chosen to go for the mission. He wanted to be able to offer you a safe and stable life, in the house of your dreams filled to the brim with love. That was my son. And if it meant that he had to risk his life for it, he would’ve done it over and over again.”

Natasha pressed her lips together and nodded, watching Jeff and Lynn come back from the stable. Her mother-in-law was right. No matter how many times he would have been forced to make that decision, her husband would have given his life for the safety of his family every time.

*-*

“Mommy, come look how funny Grandma looks in this picture!”, Lynn yelled from the living room.

Natasha smiled while she finished drying the plate she was currently holding and put it onto the pile on the counter. Jeff, standing next to her and rinsing the last wine glass, chuckled and nodded into the direction of the living room.

“You better hurry before she comes to drag you over there”, he laughed.

“You sure? We’re not done yet”, Natasha checked.

“Don’t worry, there’s not much more to do anyway. I got it.”

She patted his arm, smiling at him thankfully, and left the kitchen to join the other two ladies. Nancy held a photo album in her lap and Lynn was squished into her side, gazing intently at the pictures presented to her. When Natasha walked up to them, Lynn lifted her head, a giant smirk on her face.

“Mommy, look”, she said and pointed at an old photograph sitting in the middle of the right page.

It was indeed a funny picture of Nancy. It had been taken on a beach day; the position of the sun made it almost too dark to see anything. Nancy wore a giant sunhat and made a funny face at the baby lying on the blanket in front of her. The baby’s laughter could almost be heard through the picture.

“Yeah, she looks funny. She’s making a grimace, like you do sometimes.”

“Do I look like that too when I make a funny face?”, Lynn asked, giggling.

“Mhmm”, Natasha nodded.

Lynn had to try it out immediately, sending her mother and grandmother into a fit of laughter. Once she recovered from it, Natasha shook her head and kissed her daughter’s hair, plopping down next to her on the couch. Lynn’s attention was already back on the picture.

“Who is the baby, Grandma?”, she asked, her finger tapping onto the picture.

“That’s Caroline”, Nancy answered, staring absentmindedly at the baby.

Her eyes turned glassy, and she skimmed the baby’s head with her fingers.

“Who is Caroline?”

Natasha sucked in a breath. Lynn gazed at her grandmother, intrigued by her answer. Nancy slowly turned her head towards her grandchild, smiling sadly.

“Caroline is my daughter. She’s your daddy’s sister.”

Natasha pressed her lips together, nervously observing the conversation from her spot next to Lynn. They’d never mentioned Jake’s sister to Lynn before. When she’d been pregnant, she and Jake had talked about the topic “Caroline”. They’d discussed how they wanted to approach it, when the right time was, who’ll be the one initiating the conversation and so on. They’d also talked to Nancy and Jeff about it, checking with them whether they were envisioning the “right” way. Ultimately, they decided to wait until Lynn would be a little older, until she’d be able to properly understand the story behind “Caroline”. But since Jake had died, that plan had been thrown out the window, like so many other plans they’d made…

“Daddy has a sister?”, Lynn asked incredulously, her eyes almost popping out of her head and her mouth slightly agape.

She looked like one of those comic characters and almost made her mother and grandmother laugh. They would’ve if the topic at hand weren’t such a serious one.

“Yeah”, Nancy answered simply.

“I didn’t know that. Where is she? Can we meet her sometime?”

Lynn whipped her head around and met Natasha’s eyes.

“Did you know daddy has a sister, mommy?”

“Yes, I know.”

“Can we meet her? I want to meet her!”

She started to bounce excitedly on the couch like she had a sugar rush.

“That’s not possible, Lynn”, Nancy interjected, gently grabbing Lynn’s hands.

“Why not? Does she live too far away?”

“She’s… Caroline’s not with us anymore, sweetheart.”

“But… I don’t understand… where is she?”

Nancy met Natasha’s gaze for a split-second, took a deep breath and looked back at Lynn. Natasha didn’t dare to breathe, her heart beating violently against her ribcage.

“Caroline is with the angels, just like your daddy.”

*-*

From that moment on, the evening had developed into a disaster. Lynn had stared at them, mouth agape and confusion written all over her face. When neither her mother nor her grandmother had made further comments, she’d started shaking her head, accusing the adults around her of lying to her. She’d looked from one face to the other, desperation taking over her features. Even Jeff hadn’t been able to calm her down. She’d thrown a tantrum, started screaming, and evaded the comfort offering hands, running out of the backdoor onto the lawn. Trying to escape the lying adults. Natasha had caught up to her midway to the stable, scooped her up and hugged her tight to her chest.

“It’s okay, baby. I’ve got you”, she’d whispered into her hair, stroking her daughter’s back.

Lynn had cried, holding on tight to her mother after she’d realized that she wouldn’t be able to escape any further.

“Why is everyone around me with the angels?! It’s unfair! I don’t want that!”

Natasha’s heart broke, tears glistening in her eyes. It was indeed unfair.

“I know, baby, I know it’s unfair…”

“Why does this always happen to me?!”

“I don’t know, sweetheart. I wish I knew”, Natasha answered, carrying her back to the house.

Lynn kept sobbing in her mother’s arms, barely looking at her grandparents who stood at the patio door. Nancy wanted to brush her hand over Lynn’s head, but the little girl jerked her head away. Natasha apologized with her eyes and kept walking towards the stairs.

Nancy and Jeff didn’t follow.

*-*

Upstairs, she headed straight for the guest room, silently changing Lynn into her pajamas. Their whole nighttime routine passed silently; the only sound was Lynn sniffling sometimes. She laid her down onto the bed, carefully and lovingly draping the sheets around her. Lynn gazed up at her, clutching her stuffed white sheep tightly against her chest. Natasha brushed a lock of her blonde hair out of her face, gently cupping her cheek.

“I know you’re hurt because you miss daddy, and that you won’t be able to meet his sister. But you can’t be angry at your grandparents, okay? You know, I couldn’t meet Caroline either. She’s been with the angels for a very long time, much longer than daddy.”

“Why is she with the angels?”

“I’ll explain that to you another time. It’s a very long story that I don’t want to tell you by myself. I’ll talk to grandma and grandpa about it and we’ll decide how and when to tell you, okay?”

“But I wanna know!”

“And you will, but not today. Somewhen in the future.”

“Tomorrow?”

Natasha sighed at her daughter’s stubbornness.

“I don’t know. Let’s leave it at that, okay?”

“You’re lying to me again!”, Lynn snapped, sitting up, anger flickering in her green eyes.

“I’m not lying, Lynn”, Natasha retorted, gently pushing her to lie down again, “I’m protecting you and doing what’s best for you. I promise we’ll tell you. Can you trust me on that?”

Lynn searched her eyes, apparently considering her mother’s offer. Eventually, she nodded slowly. Natasha smiled at her, kissing her on her cheek. She attempted to get up when Lynn spoke up again: “Mommy?”

“Yes?”

“I miss daddy”, Lynn confessed, on the verge of tears.

Natasha gasped and sank back onto the edge of the mattress, pulling her daughter into her arms.

“I know, sweetheart. I miss him too, so much”, she cooed, stroking the back of Lynn’s head.

Lynn rubbed at her eyes when they pulled apart a moment later and Natasha helped her brush her tears away. Her heart broke all over again and every breath she took hurt.

“I wish I could bring him back for you. I’d do anything to bring him back for you”, she whispered, bringing Lynn’s hand up to her lips and kissing it.

“Can’t the angels just give him back?”

She let out a little laugh at Lynn’s suggestion, gently shaking her head.

“I wish they could… but you know what? He’ll always be with us. In here”, she said and put her hand on Lynn’s chest, right over her heart.

Lynn looked down, furrowing her brows.

“He lives on, right here in our hearts. In yours, in mine, in your grandparents’… in uncle Rooster’s, uncle Coyote’s and all our other friends’. Wherever we go, he’s with us and watches over us from one of the clouds, where he sits right next to his sister. They keep us safe.”

“Are they our guardian angels?”

“Yes, they are.”

Lynn sniffed and thought for a moment, then a smile broke out across her face.

“I kinda like that”, she said, clutching her stuffed animal back against her chest.

Natasha smiled down at her and pressed another kiss to her cheek.

“Me too. Sweet dreams, baby.”

[bippot]

Sick Little Baby

Story Summary -> Poor Eddie didn't show up to school because he has a bit of a cough and Wayne needs his rest, so his best friend and her puppy are willing to come to his aid.

Tags -> Domestic Fluff, Sick Character, Cutesy, Friends to Lovers, Caretaking, Tooth-Rotting Fluff

Would you prefer to read this on AO3? Click here!

Skipping school was something that Eddie did often. Very often. All of Hellfire didn't bat an eyelid when he didn't show up at lunch. Maybe he was at a deal. Maybe he was still sleeping. Maybe he just didn't want to.

Yet, they knew with one hundred percent certainty that he'd never miss a Thursday. That's when their campaign was. They can't have a session without the DM! That's literally impossible.

Dustin, ever the sweetheart, decided to call the Munson household to check up on their buddy. Well, he had the idea to call. "You do it," he whined, looking up at Y/N and shoving the note with Eddie's number into her hands.

"You're just scared Wayne will answer."

"Yes, I am. He's so scary, and he knows you."

"Wayne is not scary."

"He is too!"

Y/N chuckled at the younger boy and pushed him out of the way, grabbing the phone as she teased, "Henderson, you are a complete pussy."

The boy huffed and crossed his arms as if daring her to keep teasing him. If she did keep teasing him, he'd tell Eddie about that time he caught her doodling the rocker in her notebook when Mike took four thousand years to decide how he was going to take one of his turns. He had leverage, and he wasn't afraid to use it. "Yeah, yeah. Call the damn number."

So, Y/N dialled the number. It rang five before someone picked up. "Munson residence," A gruff voice huffed out. Wayne. It had to be. Oops, had they woken him? Fuck, he probably worked the night before. He was probably so beat and exhausted from his job. It made her feel instantly bad for doing this.

"Hey Wayne, it's Y/N."

"Oh hey, youngster." Wayne's soft smile reached her ear. Honestly, she had no idea why Dustin was afraid of him. The man was very laid back and friendly, so far from the cold and distant demeanour of Eddie's parents. He was a bit rough around the edges, but Y/N knew that was from a long life of night shifts and stress. But he always seemed kind.

Sheepishly, she twirled the phone cord as she apologised, "Did I wake you? I'm sorry-"

Interrupting, Wayne clarified, "I was already awake, kiddo. Eddie's been coughing all morning long." From the background she'd been hearing sounds that she couldn't quite place, well, now she knew were the harsh tunes of Eddie's smokers cough. How delightful. "Yeah, that idiot boy has come down with a cold or some shit." She could just hear him rolling his eyes as he spoke, "He ain't sick enough to quit smoking though."

Despite her concern, she joked, "Yeah, Ed smokes like a chimney," and tried to ignore Dustin as he poked her in the ribs, urging her to whisper to him what was going on. "Do you need anything? I can always stop by the pharmacy on the way home and drop some things off."

There was a laugh on the line. "Be my alibi when I strangle him? He's been keeping me from my beauty sleep," he replied, a hint of bitterness in his voice that caused Y/N to snicker.

"I could always look after him if you want to get some sleep before your shift tonight? I don't mind, really." And she didn't. Taking care of Eddie would give her something to do. With Hellfire cancelled for the evening, what else could she spend her time doing? Homework? Fuck no. "My parents are on holiday and my house is frighteningly quiet. A coughing idiot could liven the place up a bit."

It was clear Wayne pondered her offer for a moment as the line was silent (except from the distant coughs of the sick loser that was huddled deep in his duvet in his room), until he finally responded, "I knew you were my favourite of Eddie's friends for a reason." A small smirk slipped onto his face as added, "Just don't kill him."

She grinned back, "I'll do my best. I'll pick him up after school."

"Okay. Thanks, kid. I owe you big time. Talk to ya later, alright?"

"Later, Wayne." After hanging up, she smiled and looked over at her friend. Dustin had the smuggest, the most knowing look on his face that she had ever seen. It made her roll her eyes and sigh, "Shut up," but there was no heat behind the words as they both laughed.

"Oh, Eddie. Let me take care of you, my sick little baby," he teased, doing an awful impression of Y/N. She playfully punched his arm and laughed, shaking her head in exasperation, but there was no denying how pink her cheeks had become.

"Shut it."

Humorously, Dustin turned his back to her and wrapped his arms around himself to mimic smooching as his voice got higher and he continued, "Mwah, mwah, one day I'm going to be Mrs. Munson, just you wait. Eddie! Yes, I will marry you! I will bear your fuzzy headed offspring! Mwah, I just love making out with you so much-'' He didn't hear any protests from her, so he turned back around and found that she'd already walked away, meaning that whoever had passed by the telephone had heard him say all that shit and maybe just assumed it was him doing some weird shit. One girl gave him a look. She didn't say anything, but he could tell she was thinking something homophobic. That's the eighties for you, baby.

Hellfire was postponed and Y/N left for Eddie's house the moment the bell rang (well, the drug store then Eddie's). Wayne saw her car park up and almost pushed Eddie out of the door with a "There she is, your Knight in shining...dungarees!" The older Munson looked as tired as she'd expected him to. His hair stuck up in every direction and he had dark circles under his bloodshot eyes. His clothes were rumpled and slightly dirty. He clearly hadn't taken a shower yet.

Eddie looked just as bad, if not worse. He wore a thick hoodie and sweatpants and a blanket hastily tied around his shoulders like a cape, and despite this, he still was shivering. In an attempt to make his hair look less like a dishevelled mop on his head, he'd tied it up in a haphazard bun that was mostly falling out. His nose was red and his expression was one of 'Yeah, I'm not having a great time right now.'

Rolling down her window, she taunted, "Wow, you look like hell."

"Thanks," he sarcastically muttered as he got into her car. There was a small smile tugging at his lips as he closed the door. "How would you like it if I said you looked like shit?"

"I said you looked like hell, not shit."

"Oh, so I don't look like shit?"

"No. You do."

Giving a grateful wave, Wayne went back inside the trailer, presumably to finally get that good shut eye that he needed. As soon as he left, she started the engine and drove to her house. "How are you feeling?" she asked, glancing at Eddie who still had the blanket wrapped tightly around his body.

He shrugged and leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees as he looked out the window. "Like crap, actually," he admitted groggily, turning towards her and letting her see the pout on his face. His pout was adorable and endearing, but she didn't think it was helping his condition in any way, shape or form. It made her giggle, which was probably a bad thing considering that he turned his glare on her, but honestly, it didn't bother her nearly as much as he thought it would. He was very cute at the moment and she couldn't take his grumpiness seriously.

When they arrived at her house, Eddie jumped out of her car like a little child and hobbled toward her front porch, clutching his blanket like a explorer desperately. clinging to warmth in the arctic tundra. The moment she opened the door, a puppy excitedly ran down the stairs to greet them. She crouched down and let the pup sniff her hand before she picked him up. "I missed you too, Chewie," she declared as the mini Briard happily licked her cheek. Y/N chuckled as she scratched behind his ear and held him against her chest as they made their way inside her abode.

Eddie immediately flopped down on her couch, wrapping his blanket more securely around his frame and burying his face in the throw pillow. He was completely silent, save for the occasional cough. "You okay?" She questioned, putting Chewie down gently on the couch. Eddie simply nodded, pulling the blanket tighter around himself. "You hungry? Thirsty? Got a headache?"

"Yes. Yes....and yes." He rubbed at his temples and glanced over at her curiously, gazing at her with those wide brown puppy dog eyes that she loved so much. Even without saying anything, she was sure he was trying to ask her a question with his eyes alone, and that question was clearly 'Please?'

Without hesitation, she moved to retrieve what he needed and urged Chewie to "Go cuddle up to Eds. He needs it, bud," and somehow it seemed that the dog understood what she said. Or maybe it was because Eddie had a blanket. She came back a few moments later carrying painkillers and a water bottle to find the pair sitting together with Eddie talking to the dog softly about nothing in particular. Y/N quietly sat down next to him and handed him the pill bottle and water. He eyed them with fake caution. "Cyanide?"

"Belladonna."

With a groan, he held his hands out to take the items from her hands and chugged them all in record speed, before handing the empty bottle back. Two out of the three things she'd offered had been provided. One was left. "Food please," he whined, pouting as he'd done in the car. She laughed and hurried to the kitchen to warm up some soup before bringing it to him. It wasn't anything special, but it was simple and quick and the smell alone was enough to have Eddie smiling like an idiot.

Once the bowl was safely within his grasp, she settled in next to him, propping her feet up on the coffee table. At first he seemed to look at her strangely, so she declared, "What? Do you want me to feed you too?" With a smug grin, she swiped the spoon from his hand and teased, "Here comes the aeroplane for the little baby boy." Now, she never would have expected him to open his mouth and let her feed him. And the happy face he'd pulled as she did it made her realise "You love being coddled, don't you?"

A small nod of his head told her everything she needed to know, although he didn't seem like he wanted to admit it. He looked at her quizzically and she merely gave a shrug before continuing to feed him. The silence between them was comfortable, filled only with the occasional slurping or coughing sound.

As she placed the spoon back in the empty bowl, she suddenly felt a tug at the side of her shirt. Looking down, she noticed that Chewie had snuck into their space and was laying down beside them, resting his chin on Eddie's knee. She smiled and stroked behind his ears affectionately.

"Thank you," Eddie eventually said, joining in and stroking the dog's fur. She nodded absentmindedly in acknowledgement before placing the bowl down on the coffee table and stretching out on the couch next to him. She was about to close her eyes when he spoke again. "For taking care of me. And Wayne, I guess."

"It's nothing. You're my best friend, Eddie, and you know I'd do anything for you," she replied, her voice low and sincere. He knew they were best friends, but there was something about hearing it that made him feel lighter somehow. She didn't say it often, but when she did, it meant more than any amount of words could possibly express.

To her, Eddie was family. Family that she was fiercely loyal and protective of. Family she loved unconditionally. The least she could do was care for him, even if he was annoying and stubborn, and a little childish at times. He was her best friend, and she loved him dearly.

Speaking of people she loved, it was now time for Chewie's dinner. "I know you're comfy, but do you want your food? Dinner time?" she asked the dog, her voice a little higher than usual. She watched as he wagged his tail in excitement, ready for his food. "Let's go then. Lead the way."

Chewie ran so fast to the kitchen. He was such a little guy! But he was fast and agile and, with the promise of food, his energy seemed limitless. He bounded across the kitchen floor, barking loudly as he made his way straight to his food bowl and impatiently waited for her to prepare his meal. Yeah, her dog and her best friend had quite a few similarities. And, she loved them both.

"Hey, hey buddy, slow down," she lightheartedly chastised as she saw how quickly her puppy tried to scoff down the food that she brought to him, practically inhaling it in seconds. "Jesus fucking christ. Breathe a little, babe."

Returning to the sofa, Y/N felt Eddie lean against her shoulder as soon as she sat beside him and sighed contently. They stayed like that for a while; Eddie snuggling closer and melting into the comfort of Y/N's presence. He felt safe around her, which was always a plus. Her hand came up to fix the mess of his hair, gently removing the elastic band that he'd used as a hair tie and untangling the messy strands. She could hear his quiet intake of breath before he closed his eyes and let her run her fingers through his hair, combing out the tangles and making it somewhat presentable.

It felt nice. So soothing, in fact, that he didn't want it to stop. Soon, his locks were tangle free - it took longer than it should've - and he let her plait it for him as Chewie returned, contently sitting on Y/N's lap as she worked. She finished in no time at all and took one of her hair bands from her wrist, twirling the hair into a bun and securing it with a tie.

"There we go. So pretty," she cooed in his direction, earning a satisfied hum and a smile from him. Now that was done,she suggested, "Do you want to watch a video?"

As a matter of fact, she already had in mind a movie that she knew he'd really like, but she didn't want to push him if his headache was too bad. He hesitated, looking at the television sceptically before finally nodding.

Repo Man, a beautifully weird movie about cars and extraterrestrials - two things Eddie was a fan of, and it was just lucky that her dad had rented it just before her parents went on holiday and left her to dogsit.

Y/N sprawled out, lying back against the cushions and wasn't surprised when Chewie decided to awkwardly slot himself in the gap between her shoulder and the back cushion, falling asleep almost instantly. However, she was a little taken aback when Eddie snuggled up to her, crawling on top of her and resting his head on her chest.

"Your boobs are comfy." he whispered and she rolled her eyes playfully, wrapping her arms around him and hugging him closely. He sighed and rested his cheek against her clothed upper breast, watching the film in peace.

After a few minutes, he realised just how much he liked being here, and he couldn't help himself. He lifted his head off her chest and turned towards her with a questioning gaze. She smiled warmly and raised a brow, waiting for whatever he may have to say. He took a deep breath before slowly speaking, "I'm sorry if you get sick too now."

She shook her head, her hand coming up to brush a stray strand of his hair away from his eye as she murmured, "It's okay, big guy. If I get sick, you'll have to take care of me." He smiled slightly, a soft chuckle slipping past his lips. "I promise I'll be half as whiny as you."

Now was definitely the wrong time. Definitely. But, he was feeling woozy and a little out of it so he replied, "Okay. You could be double as whiny and I would still love you."

His heart skipped a beat at his own words. Oh god, what had come over him? But, the smile and slight blush that lit up her face was worth it. And when she pressed a kiss to his forehead, saying, "I love you too," he knew he hadn't imagined the butterflies in his stomach. At first he'd mistaken them for general being ill symptoms, but no, this was different, this was pure bliss. Pure joy. This was love.

Settling back down, he gave her collarbone a light peck and continued watching the movie, the heat of her body radiating comfortably against his. It didn't take long until he was drifting off, completely oblivious to the world around him. He didn't notice the way the corners of her lips curled upwards as she glanced down at him, her eyes softening at the sight of his peaceful expression.

Chewie was the first of the two to wake up, and because Chewie was awake, that meant he decided to stand and walk across Eddie's back. Despite the fact that the puppy barely weighed anything, Eddie woke up to the soft pitter patter of paws across the back of his shoulders. As he opened his eyes, he found the dog standing over him with an expectant look on his face. He groaned, not wanting to move, but he had to since Y/N needed to get out from under him. He pushed his upper body up onto his elbows and shifted to get off of Y/N, not really noticing the smile on her face as she watched him struggle to lift himself out of grogginess.

Kissing his temple as a silent apology, Y/N carefully removed herself from the indent they had made in the couch and lifted her annoying little pup to the ground before he started yapping. He immediately began running around, chasing his favourite chew toy.

When she looked over at Eddie again, she saw that he was rubbing his eyes, clearly trying to keep them open, and he looked utterly adorable with his bleary eyes and rumpled clothes. There was a small dusting of red on his cheeks as he yawned and stretched his limbs lazily, the blanket slipping off of his shoulders. His shirt had ridden up slightly, exposing the skin of his bare stomach and she couldn't help but find herself staring for just a second longer.

Eddie caught her and raised a brow, smiling sheepishly as he asked, "What's up?" She shook herself from the trance that she'd been in and looked away, trying to hide her embarrassed expression.

"Nothing, nothing. Just, uh... nothing."

"You don't sound very convincing," he pointed out, reaching out and grabbing her hand. She was trying hard to ignore the blush that was creeping onto her face, though it seemed like she was failing miserably.

Maybe she should give up on resisting the blush, and let her face naturally turn red, instead of trying to fight it. "You look very cute right now," she admitted shyly as Eddie's thumb caressed her knuckles. He grinned widely, his dimples making their appearance as his eyes shone in excitement.

"You don't look so bad yourself," he commented casually, his gaze trailing over her form appreciatively, especially when she bent down to throw Chewie's toy for him, causing the dog to chase it even more enthusiastically than before.

Playing fetch with her dog was exactly what Eddie needed. Not only did he feel better after sleeping peacefully, but also, he felt happy. Happy and content. Still sick, but he wasn't so grumpy about it now. And the smile on his face was contagious as it reached Y/N's own lips, mirroring his. "So," she spoke softly after chucking the toy into the next room so they'd have some time to speak, "How are you feeling now? Do you want anything?"

"Well..." He began thoughtfully, scratching the back of his neck as he searched for the right words. "My head is still hurting, and my throat feels kinda dry, but I don't feel sick or dizzy anymore."

"Want a drink?" Chewie was back by then, tail thumping against the floor happily as he strutted past Y/N to drop the toy at Eddie's feet.

"Yeah, sure. Water sounds good."

A few moments later, she returned with a tall glass full of water and handed it to him, grinning as he accepted the offered glass gratefully. After taking a sip, he asked, "How did the Hellfire boys take it?"

"Like champs." She brushed some hair from his cheek and placed it behind his ear. "Mike was a bit pissed, but when is that boy ever happy? Gareth, Jeff and Nate were as gracious as ever. Lucas had basketball anyway."

"And Henderson?"

She let out a chuckle. "Dustin was too busy having a great time making fun of us. Well, mostly me, but you were the cause."

"Me?" he repeated incredulously, laughing at her absurd statement. How could he be the cause? "I wasn't even there!"

"You weren't. Yet, it was all your fault!" she exclaimed, smacking him lightly in the arm with an amused smile. "If you weren't so... you, I wouldn't get teased for liking whatever this is." She gestured to his whole being as if that explained everything, because in a way, it did.

Earlier they had said that they loved each other, yet that could've been misconstrued as platonic in some lights. That statement was a little harder to dispute. "You like me." He stated plainly, looking intently at her with those big brown eyes as he waited for her reply.

For a moment, she simply stared at him. Then, without hesitation, she leaned forward and kissed him, one hand finding its way to cup his face. When they pulled apart, both blushing brightly, Eddie chuckled and jeered, "Good job on getting rid of all my doubt."

"Don't mention it," she jovially responded, tracing her finger across his jaw. "I'm definitely going to get sick too now."

Y/N definitely was going to get sick. Swapping saliva? Yeah, school was a no go tomorrow.

"Oh, I can't wait to hear how high pitched and girly your sneezes are," he mumbled, nuzzling his nose into the crook of her neck. She shuddered slightly at the ticklish sensation, giggling quietly as he nipped playfully at her skin.

"Shut up," she retorted, pushing him away, but he just laughed and wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her flush against him as they snuggled together on the couch.

The level of comfort was through the roof.

"Can we just stay here forever?"

"As long as you want." She knew that what she said wasn't exactly true. Chewie would need to go up the garden soon. The sentiment was there.

Eddie squeezed her slightly, enjoying the closeness, as they lay there basking in each other's presence. Eventually, however, he felt himself begin to nod off once more, and it didn't take much persuading before he eventually fell asleep, cuddled tightly against Y/N, her scent enveloping him in an ethereal warmth that allowed him to drift off quickly.

"Achoo!" He woke up with a start and started tittering at the sound of her sneeze. She glared at him playfully, which caused him to laugh even more. "I hate you," she muttered as she buried his face back in her chest, wrapping her arms around him protectively.

"Nah, you love me."

Rolling her eyes, she replied teasingly, "Whatever helps you sleep at night." His response was muffled by her shirt, but she could still hear him say something along the lines of, 'You know you love it' with a dopey grin plastered on his face. There was no denying it. She couldn't even try.

*Click here for my Eddie Munson masterlist (including Billy Knight and Ralph Penbury), or here for the entire masterlist*

Wanna be added to a taglist? Either comment on this post or send me a message!

[queenshelby]

THE ARRANGEMENT – SEALING THE DEAL

Featuring: Tommy Shelby x Reader

Words: 3522

Warning: Sugar Daddy, Submission, Smut, BDSM

Notes: I will use this headline to write more smutty encounters between Tommy and the Reader. But they will get a bit heavier in the BDSM department. So if this is not your thing, don’t keep reading.

Requested: Yes

Tag List:

@lilymurphy03  @deefigs @theflamecrystal  @chrisevanshoeee  @desperate-and-broken  @weepingstudentfishhorse  @captivatedbycillianmurphy  @fookingshelby  @livinginfantaxy  @rosey1981  @atomicsoulcollecto  @peakyboyslover  @nerdy4itall  @elenavampire21  @hanster1998  @mariapaiva13  @fairypitou  @harry-is-my-sunflower  

………

The Proposal

Today marks the day you’ve been working for at the Garrison exactly one year. A job you found by sheer accident when you moved to Birmingham.

You had no money when you fled Northern Ireland and were in need of employment. Your parents were involved with the IRA and with a well-known surname like yours, it was difficult for you to find employment.

You always tried hard to disassociate yourself from your parents with whom you did not agree on political matters. They were terrorists and you stood elsewhere on the Irish question.

When you arrived in Birmingham, you were offered a job at the local whorehouse. You declined. The last thing you wanted was to lose your virginity to some filthy married patron who paid you as little as 2 shillings for your services.

When you saw a job advertised in the paper at the local pub, you applied. This is when you met Grace Shelby who hired you.

Grace was there by sheer accident herself, arranging the new fit-out for the pub. She was Thomas Shelby’s wife and no longer worked herself.

She was a kind hearted woman and had been in your shoes many years ago. No one other than Grace believed that you would last in a job like this. But here you were, still working behind the bar and serving alcohol to drunk men.

To your disappointment, Grace had passed away six months ago and your husband Tommy has never been the same since.

For the first four months following her death, he got himself and his family into lot of trouble. The majority of his family members were serving prison time for a robbery. But not Tommy. He was working on their release while continuing to build his family’s wealth.

Ever since their arrest, he attended the Garrison frequently, most often late at night after he had visited one of the up market brothels owned by him.

Of course, he didn’t tell you that, but it was obvious to you. It was his way of coping with life and to stay focused.

You talked a lot. He would often be the last patron at the Garrison and ask you to drink with him. You didn’t drink much, but would allow yourself a glass of whiskey on occasion.

Tonight, was one of these nights where Tommy and you were alone, just talking and drinking.

He walked into the Garrison at 11 o’clock, greeted you and ordered a whiskey.

‘You are early tonight Mr Shelby’ you said.

‘Well, Y/N, things have not been going my way today’ he responded.

‘Do you want to talk about it?’ you asked.

‘I rather not’ he responded.

‘Alright, no talking then’ you said with a smile.

‘Do you have a man in your life Y/N?’ he then asked all of a sudden. His question took you by surprise.

‘I do not. Never had. Why are you asking?’ you wondered.

‘No reason. Just curious why a woman like you works in a place like this’ he said bluntly.

‘It pays well, I get good tips. I had a job offer from one of the mistresses at one of your brothels. I declined. I rather serve 50 drunk men a night than fuck ten of them’ you laughed.

‘This seems like a reasonable choice’ Tommy chuckled.

‘So, you ever get bored of them? Knowing that sex is no more than a transaction to them and you are no more than a client must be frustrating’ you asked.

‘How much whiskey did you have to drink tonight Y/N, eh?’ Tommy asked sheepishly, being surprised by the directness of your question.

‘More than a little. It’s my birthday’ you laughed.

‘That’s what I thought. Happy Birthday Y/N’ Tommy said.

‘Thank you, Mr Shelby, but you didn’t answer my question’ you smirked.

‘The good thing about prostitutes is that they do exactly what you pay them to do. They fuck. They don’t expect feelings from you, just money. You are right, it is a simple transaction’ Tommy said.

‘Sounds boring and repetitive. Wouldn’t you rather have someone consistent? The same skilled woman every time, someone who gets to learn exactly how to please you, always around right at your disposal and with no strings attached?’ you asked.

‘I’ve read that, in France, rich businessmen and politicians keep themselves mistresses rather than going to brothels. It’s discrete and it’s safe. The men provide their mistresses with accommodation and visit them for sex whenever they please’ you added.

‘A mistress, eh?’ Where do you think I would find such a woman Y/N? Tommy joked.

‘Well Mr Shelby, I know of someone who would be very interested to come to some sort of arrangement’ you smirked.

‘You realise that I am about twice your age?’ Tommy asked sheepishly, knowing exactly that you were talking about yourself becoming his mistress.

‘I do and this makes it even more interesting’ you suggested.

‘You are quite young Y/N. How many men have you been with?’ Tommy asked

‘None’ you said, causing Tommy to choke on his whiskey.

‘No’ he said firmly. ‘I don’t do virgins Y/N. It’s not my thing’ Tommy added.

‘Think about it, I am like a clean canvas. You can teach me exactly how you want to be pleased’ you smirked.

‘You are clearly drunk Y/N. I shall drive you home’ Tommy said.

And so he did. After you closed up the pub, he drove you to your apartment which was located in one of the worst areas of Birmingham.

As he drove you home, you brought up your proposal again and Tommy appeared more open to consider it at this point. But not tonight, not with you having been influenced by alcohol.

You were an attractive woman, clean and easy to talk to. You worked in the Garrison for a year and he knew you would be discrete and he could trust you.

‘Come to my office tomorrow at noon if you decide that this is what you want and then we talk, eh’ Tommy said as he pulled up in front of your apartment.

You nodded before saying goodnight to him.

The Arrangement

The next day, you attended Tommy’s office as instructed.

‘Y/N, I am surprised to see you’ Tommy smirked as you walked inside his office.

‘You thought I wasn’t serious, didn’t you?’ you smirked as you sat down in front of his desk.

‘Let’s just say, you surprised me’ he said with a grin.

Tommy then went on to ask you what you expect from your arrangement if he was going ahead and agree with it.

You didn’t have many demands other than being looked after financially.

Tommy then advised you that you might change your mind if you know what his desires were.

Thomas Shelby was no ordinary man and he didn’t enjoy ordinary sex, which is one of the reasons he was getting bored with the prostitutes.

He was looking for what some might call a submissive. He enjoyed authority, even in the bedroom.

He wanted to be in charge, always.

With that in mind, you agreed. You were ready to be his and sealed the deal with a passionate kiss.

‘Alright, it’s a deal Y/N. But, to ensure that you understand, you belong to me. You are my property and you are not to fuck anyone else, understood?’ Tommy said as he pulled his lips away from yours, his hand holding onto your hair tightly.

‘Yes Mr Shelby’ you said, biting your lip.

‘You will be available when I need you to be available and you will submit. Is that understood?’ Tommy then said.

‘Yes Mr Shelby’ you answered before his lips met yours again in a hasty kiss.

‘Good. Now, since you are a virgin, the first time, I will take it easy on you’ Tommy said as he kissed your neck, taking in the sweet scent of your perfume.

‘Here are the keys to your apartment. 15 Watery Lane. I will visit you tonight at 8 o’clock and this is what I expect you to wear. Nothing else’ Tommy said as he handed you a small bag.

‘Before I come over, I want you to think of a safe word which you can use at any time’ he added, causing you to nod. He had explained the premise of a safe word to you earlier when you discussed what he would expect from you.

Sealing the Deal

Later that evening, after you settled into your new apartment, you were waiting for Tommy in nothing but the black lace panties he gave you.

He was right on time, letting himself into your apartment at 8 o’clock.

‘Do you like what you see Mr Shelby?’ you asked as he walked through the door.

‘I do, very much so’ Tommy said before he kissed you and ran his hands over your breasts and down to your stomach, making you moan.

He continued the gentle gestures for approximately five minutes, kissing you gently and exploring every inch of your body.

‘What have you decided on for a safe word Y/N?’ Tommy asked after he broke the last kiss.

‘Red’ you said.

‘Red. Very well.’ Tommy said before taking off his jacket, waistcoat and gun holster and placing them all onto one of the armchairs.

He then walked back over to you and gave you one more quick kiss.

‘Now be a good girl and get on your knees. And Y/N... eye contact. I want you looking at me’ Tommy said as he pulled your hair downward to bring you to kneel in front of him.

He kept his hand wrapped in your hair behind your head but clutched onto your skull tightly. You were about to be Tommy’s, in complete submission.

With his other hand he unzipped his pants and slowly pulled out his impressive length. You gasped. This is the first time you saw a man’s most intimate parts right in front of you.

‘Open your mouth’ Tommy instructed as you looked up into his blue eyes.

You obliged and Tommy pulled your head forward and forced your lips around the head of his erect cock.

Your hands shot up to his thighs to try to hold him back but he charged forward, making you take the first few inches of his length into your mouth.

You closed your eyes, trying instantly to focus and control your gag reflexes. There you thought that he was going to take it easy on you. If this was him taking it easy, what would he otherwise be like you wondered.

‘Look at me’ he instructed as he began to notice your eyes fall close.

Your lips were completely stretched around the girth of his shaft as he pushed his cock deeper into your mouth.

Your ravishing eyes opened and looked up at him, his face full of want and desire for you.

As you looked at him you started growing more comfortable as the minutes passed.

You relaxed your grip on his legs and began opening your throat a little for his intrusion.

You kept eye contact whenever you weren’t suppressing a gag reflex. Your mouth soon began to move with his rhythm while your tongue was stimulating him.  

After about five minutes Tommy released his hold on your hair and reached down to your breasts, playing with your already hard nipples. You moaned around his cook as he stimulated your breasts and the wetness began to grow in between your legs.

You bopped your head up and down his length, trying to take as much of it into your mouth as you could.

Your hands soon joined your mouth, and stimulated the end of his shaft which didn’t make into your mouth.

‘Is this what you wanted, Mr Shelby?’ you asked.

Tommy nodded politely in between moans, running his fingers through your hair again.

He pushed you down on his cock a few more times, making you take him deeper than before, while he looked down, admiring the view.

‘Good girl, that’s it, take it all in’ he groaned as he guided your head.

You struggled, finding it difficult to breath, but you obliged.

The sight of you taking him like this drove him crazy and, after several more strokes, he pulled your head back up and, without warning, re-entered your mouth with vigor and dominance.

You squirmed below him and your hands moved back to his upper thighs, attempting to press him back.

But Tommy had other ideas and swatted your hands away from his legs.

‘Cross your wrists behind your back Y/N’ Tommy ordered.

‘Tommy’ you pleaded.

‘I make the rules Y/N. You don't get to resist. If you want me to stop, use your safe word’ he said.

With reluctance, you placed your wrists behind your back. Some twisted part within yourself enjoyed this, him taking you like this. In your mind, you were nowhere near at your limits.

Just like this, Tommy took hold of your hair again and thrusted forward into your open mouth, deeper and deeper until he bottomed out in your throat.

You could no longer retain eye contact and he didn’t seem to care as he continued to thrust into your mouth a few more times until he decided to relent.

He soon released the grip on your hair and made you look up at him.

‘Come up, you’ve done well’ he said as he pulled you up towards him and pulled you in for a kiss.

His hands moved in between your legs.

‘So fucking wet eh’ he said as he ran his hand over your soaked panties.

‘Take them off’ he instructed and you didn’t resist and pulled them off in a haste.

‘Now Love, I think it’s time for us to sort out this little issue for yours, eh?’ Tommy said with a smirk.

‘Yes Mr Shelby’ you said nervously, knowing that he was about to take your virginity.

While you always thought about this moment to be romantic, you were at the point where you just wanted it to be over with. You were soaking for him and you wanted him to fuck you just the way he wanted. You wanted to be taken by him, right then and there, regardless of the pain.

‘Shall we go to the bedroom?’ you asked.

‘No Love, right here will do just fine’ Tommy said as he turned your ass on to the edge of the kitchen room table, and gently pushed your back down on to it.

His eyes gazed over your perfect body, taking in the view of your breasts and your soaking wet mound.

‘Open your legs’ he instructed just as he lowered himself in between them.

You weren’t sure what he was doing and watched him nervously as, all of a sudden, he dipped his tongue into your wet slit.

You squealed in surprise, but it was already too late to plead for him not to, his tongue was already murdering your senses.

He sucked and licked over your clit just as you could feel two fingers enter you.

You expected pain, but it was nothing but please when he began to slowly thrust them in and of you.

‘Oh god yes’ you moaned as Tommy worked his magic on you.

You weren’t sure why he was doing this. Wasn’t it all about his pleasure and his pleasure alone? But, when you looked at him, he seemed to be enjoying this. You squirmed helplessly beneath him.

As he circled his tongue over your clit over and over again and carefully pushed two of his fingers in and out of you, you could feel an unfamiliar sensation build up in your stomach.

Soon you we trembling to your own unbidden orgasm. You were already aroused beyond your own redemption.

The intensity or your climax was so all encompassing, that your muscles from your stomach to your knees, spasmed and contracted. Your legs slammed together trapping Tommy’s head in a wrestlers type grip, and his eyes bulged until you relaxed a little.

As your orgasm washed over you, you could feel Tommy grin against your mound.

‘I think you are ready to take my cock now Love’ he said after you came down from your high and he positioned himself in between your spread legs.

Within seconds, Tommy hooked his hands under your calves and lifted them to rest on his shoulders. Now he was ready, you were flat out on your new kitchen room table, and in no position to refuse him.

He held your knees apart. and maneuvered his cock to your bright wet slit. He rubbed it up and down a couple of times before commencing his intrusion.

‘Don’t worry Love, I will be gentle since it’s your first time’ Tommy said as he pressed forward slightly and pushed his cock into your small, warm, and unbelievably tight pussy.

Despite his best efforts, you moaned and screamed at the same time at the intrusion but there was nothing you could do, not now.

‘You can take it Love. I know you can. If you want me stop, use your safe word’ Tommy said as he pushed into you further.

You moaned loudly has his length invaded you and pushed past your barrier, causing you to let out another moan and scream until, finally, he was completely inside of you. Tommy had just about split you in two and you had never felt like this before, you were full and he could feel your body trying to get out of the way

Tommy let you adjust to his size and then began pulling on your hips, before thrusting into you gently.

‘God you are so fucking tight Y/N’ he moaned as, slowly, you began to relax completely.

After several gentle thrusts to, Tommy pressed your knees back together and then he pulled out and rammed it back in again.

You cried out once more, but this time not in pain but, instead, in pure pleasure. You felt him running up and down your love channel and it felt better than anything else you had experienced before. There had been no event in your life that could have prepared you for this.

‘Oh my god Tommy, please make me cum again’ you begged him.

Tommy grinned and didn’t care to correct you on your language.

He began to fuck you mercilessly and rode you past your pain into a world of pleasure.

The unassailable flush of desire and the insane delight of him being inside of you overcame everything you were, or ever had been. As he thrusted in and you over and over again, harder with each stroke, you got lost in the grip of irrepressible lust, a powerful inarticulate lust.

It wasn’t long until he fucked you just the way he wanted, hard and fast. You were ready for it and you took it, every single bit of it.

And, just like that, you could feel another even more intense orgasm wash over you.

‘Good girl, cum around my cock’ he moaned as he picked up his speed and pounded into you.

With one loud moan, your walls contracted and your quivered beneath him. You were a shaking mess and screamed his name as you rode out your orgasm.

Just as you came down from your high, he pulled out of you. He was not done with you yet.

Without letting you recover, he pushed you back onto your knees in front of him.

‘You know what to do’ he said just as he pushed his cock back into your mouth firmly while grabbing onto your hair.

This time, he held your head in place while he began thrusting his cock in and out of your mouth.

Your eyes shut again instantly and unintentionally in order to deal with the gag reflex.

‘Look at me’ he instructed and you obliged, opening your eyes and looking towards his face.

‘I'm going to cum in your mouth’ he said, causing you to nod.

‘I hope this was understood, but I expect you to swallow’ he added and, just like this, with several more thrusts, his warm cum spurted into the back of your throat.

You gagged again, trying hard to allow his warm seed to run down your throat as he thrusted into you until, finally, he came to a hold.

You licked the last of his cum from his hard cock, making sure to swallow every single drop.

‘You did well Y/N’ Tommy said with still laboured breathing.

‘Thank you, Mr Shelby’ you said as you stood up and had a drink from his glass of whiskey.

‘I will see you on Friday, same time’ Tommy said as he zipped up his pants and buckled up his belt.

‘Friday it is’ you grinned with excitement before he gave you a passionate kiss.

‘We will try something new then and I won’t be as gentle with you then’ he said.

‘I am looking forward to it’ you winked as you said goodbye to him.

[blu-joons]

When He Protects His Family In Front Of Paps ~ BTS Reaction

Jin:

His hand instantly pulled your daughter when he spotted the cameras waiting up the road for you to walk past, moving his other arm firmly around your waist and into his side.

“Just stay as close to me as you can,” he whispered into your ear, watching on as your hand moved to grab onto your daughter too to stop her running off.

“She’s going to be nosey,” you warned him, knowing that your daughter had a thing for the cameras after growing up around Jin’s crazy lifestyle.

His head nodded, moving her in between you both, “just don’t let her out of sight, it’s fine.”

You did as he said, as you walked past the cameras, Jin turned, shielding her with his body as best as you could. “Why aren’t we saying hello to them?” You daughter quizzed.

“Because they’re not the nice cameras,” Jin whispered across to her, “they take horrible pictures and make people not look very nice.”

“Oh,” she mused, staring past her father at the cameras, fascinated by them all, poking her tongue out at them all. “I bet I look horrible now.”

“Never change my little one.”

Yoongi:

Your body tensed up as you noticed the cameras before you, scooping your child up into your arms to keep him safe, turning to Yoongi for a clue as to what to do next.

“Ignore them,” he mused, “I’ve learnt how to handle this,” he added, noticing how the cameras quickly began to line up across the pavement, giving you no room.

“What do we do?” You frowned, trying to keep yourself calm as your son studied your face closely. “Can’t we cross the road somewhere?”

Yoongi’s head shook, standing up as tall. “I’m not one for violence, but this is an exception.”

You kept a few paces back from him as he used his shoulders to create a gap wide enough for the two of you to fit through and get out of harm. “That was cool,” your son chimed.

“See, your dad isn’t just a handsome face,” Yoongi joked, desperately trying to reassure you as well. “They run away as soon as you get tough.”

“I forgot how tough you were,” you teased, rolling your eyes as he flexed his arm back at you. “You’re like a real-life superman, aren’t you?”

“Of course, look at me!”

Hoseok:

As soon as you passed past the cameras, Hobi pulled you and your daughter into a store, kneeling down to check her over, holding his hand out for you to take a hold of.

“Are you both alright?” He quizzed, unable to steady his breath after the panic of pushing through the cameras that had hit him. “Did anyone hurt you?”

“I’m alright,” you hummed, staring down at your daughter too. “I think she’s just a little overwhelmed by all of the chaos, she’s not hurt though.”

Her head nodded in agreement with you, “there was a lot of people, just to see you daddy.”

He leaned forwards, pressing a kiss against her forehead. “I’m sorry that you had to go through that, I wish I could do a better job of making sure that those things didn’t happen.”

“You can’t change the media,” you hummed, taking a step back as he stood up with your daughter in his arms. “It’s just one of those things.”

“If anyone ever hurt the two of you though,” he whispered, flinching just at the thought. “I really don’t know what I’d do.”

“We’re both safe though, don’t panic.”

Namjoon:

The media was something that Namjoon had become accustomed too, however it was still something you, and your son especially found a very uncomfortable ordeal.

“Excuse me,” Namjoon spoke as you approached several cameras waiting outside of the local park where you’d taken your son. “We’d like to leave, please.”

“Can we get a picture?” One of them called out, stepping closer to your son who stared wide eyes at them all. “Stand close, and smile.”

Namjoon pushed the two of you behind him, “stalking us, you think you’ll get a photo that way?”

The cameramen continued to refuse to budge. “Look how excited your son at least, at least set a good example and show him how to smile for the cameras Namjoon.”

“I am setting him a good example, I’m showing him when not to entertain idiots,” he assured them all, taking another step closer.

“Joon,” you whispered anxiously, enough to finally cause Namjoon to use his weight and push past to clear some space for the two of you.”

“Just keep walking, it’s fine.”

Jimin:

Your daughter was handed to you in a hurry when Jimin spotted a camera hiding behind the tree just beside your car as you walked out of the dorm, ready for the day ahead of you.

“You really should get a proper job,” he teasingly called out, letting the man behind the camera know that Jimin had quickly managed to catch onto him.

“Five minutes of your time?” The guy then called out, trying to snap a picture of you and your son, only for Jimin to stand, blocking him.

His eyes rolled at the guy, “did your company not train you how to find a proper hiding spot.”

You couldn’t help but snigger at Jimin’s comments as you buckled your daughter into the car. “Why is daddy talking to that strange man?” She asked you as you did so.

“The man is doing a bad thing, and daddy is just putting him in his place,” you assured her, pressing a kiss against the top of her head.

“I’ll remember your face,” Jimin called out, spinning on his heels to head down to your car. “You’ll regret waiting out here for the three of us.”

“Jimin, let’s just go now.”

Taehyung:

The sudden arm that came around your side instantly made you panic. Looking across to Taehyung, his face gave away everything as to why he was suddenly so close to you.

“Don’t look around, and keep a hold of Y/N’s hand,” he warned you, checking for himself that your daughter was still gently tucked into your side.

“Where are they?” You asked, but Taehyung’s head only shook, careful not to draw too much attention to yourselves by pointing them out.

Your head nodded, understanding the signs. “Just don’t start saying things or causing drama.”

He scoffed at your remark, however true it actually was. “The two of you are my priority, let’s just keep moving and forget about what’s in front of us.”

“As long as you don’t worry,” you challenged, knowing how sensitive he became in these situations. “We’ll just stick together and walk on by.”

“You make it sound so easy,” he muttered, seething at the sight of the cameras with each step closer that the three of you took towards them all.”

“That’s because it really is.” 

Jungkook:

As soon as he caught sight of a camera, Jungkook’s hand grabbed onto you and your daughter, pulling you into the closest store that he could, to get you out of harm.

“Why have you brought us here?” You quizzed, looking around the store, “don’t you think this store is a little inappropriate for a four-year-old?”

“Oh,” he stuttered, looking around and realising where exactly he’d brought you. “Well, it’s this place, or a line up of cameras waiting outside.”

Your eyes rolled, “how do they always manage to find where we are? Can’t we live a bit of normal?”

Jungkook instantly took your comment as a dig at him. “I’m sorry,” was all he could say, holding onto your daughter to stop her from exploring the aisles of the store.

“No,” you frowned, taking a hold of his hand. “I didn’t mean it like that, I just mean, others are able to go out without cameras, so why can’t we?”

“Probably because we have her,” he admitted, nodding down to your daughter. “They always want a glimpse of her, that won’t change for a while.”

“Let’s just make sure we keep her safe.”

---

Masterlist

[sirensmojo]

"Big Bank!" - Hubby! Tommy Shelby x Reader

Warnings: Big Fluff, Old Money love story vibes.

Summary: Tommy decided to let his wife take care of his Gin. He comes to taste it for the first time after the Gin was met with great success.

A/N: We stand for a caring & trusting Thomas, sorry not sorry.

*Masterlist*

It was a windy day when Tommy entrusted you with his Gin distillery.

The sun was out, as your children were running around the garden, their giggling easing his mind. His head dropped backward on the garden chair as fingers of one of his hands were fidgeting with his cup or whiskey, as a cigarette was locked in between his lips.

Spring was early this year, much to your family’s pleasure. Spending time outside was something you loved to do, and knowing Tommy’s busy agenda, you made sure to make every family moment the best one.

No need to say time flew so fast, the days becoming months, becoming years.

Tommy and you was an evidence. From the day you bumped into each other in the London’s library his sister Ada used to work, you were inseparable. Thus you didn’t know each other for very long, but everything between you made this fact questionable.

You were acting as if you knew each other since children, a single look and you understood what the other thought. Not too many words were said, but not too many words were needed.

Although you weren’t Tommy’s first wife, you were “the perfect two”, making all the people you knew jealous and envious.

“My love,” you announced your presence when coming closer to the garden table as your husband was eyes closed. “I did some thinking.” You added, catching his attention.

Tommy straightened back his head and he was now facing you as you seated in front of him, glimpsing from afar of your three little boys.

“You know I don’t like your whiskey or any type of alcohol, truly.” You raised your brows, and he puffed on his cig, waiting for you to continue. “I want to make Shelby’s Gin.” You let out outright.

No need to turn around your wish, by the way he shifted position you already knew he was ready to hear anything, and you didn’t want to disturb him from his peace. You knew how he dearly appreciated those little moments in which he didn’t have to think about running a business or dealing with dirty gangsters and rude people.

“You want to do what?” He raised a brow not too sure he heard you well, but when he caught eyes of your lips curling at the corner of your mouth, he knew he had heard it well.

His family was his haven of peace and you would do anything to take off some weight off your Shelby’s shoulders. it was a regular task, a daily basis habit that you quickly took and that you’ll probably never lose.

“I already tried a mixture.” His deep voice accentuating your smile.

“It’s my turn now, you played enough with that, you need to focus on real business now. Put your mind elsewhere and let me fill my bottles.”

You couldn’t quite put your finger on what changed precisely, but you noticed a shifting in your husband’s expression along with the gleam animating his iris.

You thought it was worry.

You lost your father a few months ago due to lung disease and your mother died long ago when you were the age of your own children, and as an only child, you were now all alone without your parents.

Gracefully you had Tommy and the kids because if you hadn’t you didn’t know how you would’ve handled this loss.

As being a sensible cord, your husband didn’t bring it up, and he wasn’t the type of comforting people with words anyway, but he tried it his way, which means he bought you a ridiculous amount of new jewellery and books because he knew how much you liked to read and how you were a simp for big diamonds.

Incidentally, Tommy always found it funny how much time you spend with your nose in books while having a voracious appetite for jewellery. He would never miss an occasion to make fun of you when catching you reading as you had to wear glasses, and it was all funny and stuff till he too, had to wear glasses to read.

Now, in bed, you looked like two old people, instead, you were reading adventure and dramatic novels whereas he was stuck with political subjects.

“Okay.” He didn’t hesitate a single moment which made you smile.

“Okay?” you repeated, your smile growing as seconds passed. He straightened back, leaning over the table to you and his hands reached for yours.

You intertwined your fingers together with ease, sparkles spreading at the tips of each of it.

It was that way with every of his touches. He just had that power over you, which you were proud of as it was just love. It could never be anything else.

His deep blue eyes were anchored into your Y/C/E’s ones and you knew he was trying to bring you comfort. He knew what it felt like to lose people, and was ready to give you whatever if that meant to ease your pain.

You neared your faces and he ran his thumb over the end of your nose, down to your lips as cupping your cheek with his palm. Tommy’s head was slightly tilted to the side, his only purpose being to reach your soul with either his touch or his soul hidden behind his iris.

You leaned your head into his touch and closed your eyes for a second, enjoying that moment between the two of you as the breeze made its way to your neck under your mane.

Now, nearly five weeks later, all Birmingham was only speaking of the Shelby family as the people making “the good priced good gin” according to what you heard in the streets. From the fancy restaurant to the underground pubs, everyone in town had tasted of that oh so liked liquor.

Tommy first heard how good the gin was by his brother Arthur. He, who liked to get drunk all day long and all night long, was always keeping a bottle of it in his car or even on himself.

Then it was Ada, always offering him a drink of it whenever he would visit her.

(...)

It was 4 in the afternoon when Tommy walked through Charlie’s yard to join the Gin factory, when opening the door he was surprised to see you, seated at the old dusty desk filling paper and sipping on several cups.

Your husband frowned, “Y/N?”. He didn’t know if he should be worried or glad to see you working in such a place while drinking a lot knowing you’re not even a drinker in the first place.

You lifted your gaze to him and a huge smile instantly warmed up the atmosphere in the space, “Tommy!” You exclaimed as you got up. Being a bit dizzy you were strongly holding onto the table while getting up but you wanted to join him, and that’s when Tommy noticed your reddened cheek and little eyes.

“You’re drunk,” he stated, concerned. His expression shifted. He seemed a bit worried as he took one of your wrists to help you walk correctly.

You waved your free hand before you as to blow away his remark, “I was trying a new mixture for the Gin.” You informed him. You slid a hand into his rough one and stepped backwards, to the desk. “Here, choose one and tell me.” You proudly pointed to each of the cups. “This one on the left is spicy, the middle one a little too sweet for the Americans, this one to the right is the version that is out, and the last one is a bit strong. If the sadness hit too much.”

“The sadness?” Tommy asked while grabbing the third cup, being the gin that was already out. He was quite startled by how implicated his wife seemed to be, he didn’t actually think she would invest that much time and energy in this activity, but he was relieved she found a reason to get up every morning other than their beautiful family.

He knew how living a life without having or serving a purpose was meaningless and boring, even more, when being saddened by something you can’t control such as the death of a loved one.

The Shelby brother will sleep better now, knowing his other half found purpose somewhere, even if seeing her drunk was a sight he could never get used to…

At this moment, he felt the need to feel her skin under his touch before doing anything else, and that’s what he did, putting his hand at the end of her back, he pulled her closer, his thumb rubbing her skin over the fabric of her dress.

Tommy then drank from the cup and took his time judging the taste of it.

He opened his eyes and dropped the cup on the desk before turning to his wife, she was looking at him, impatience spreading all over her face. She seemed ready to hear Tommy’s opinion on her Gin... On their gin.

The blue-eyed man grabbed her face in his hands and pressed his forehead to Y/N’s. She closed her eyes a couple of seconds before opening them to a staring Tommy. He was fondling her cheeks with his thumbs before exhaling deeply, “I now understand why everyone’s talking about us, Shelbys, being fucking genius’, eh” He got distracted by her lips.

“This,” he pointed to the bottle standing at the corner of the table, and, once again, Tommy got distracted, he noticed words were present on the bottle down the name. “Distilled for the eradication of incurable sadness.” He read out loud.

A faint smile was found on his face before he agitated the bottle in his hand. He was proud.

He put down the bottle and directly sealed his lips to Y/N’s, the calling for love being too loud to resist.

That was exactly why it was her and no one else, she was always unpredictable and versatile. Who would have thought his bibliophile wife could be a real gem in the making of gin?

She put away, gasping for air before looking him in the eyes, “What? Did I never tell you the fact that my grandpa was making alcohol?” She teased his lips by speaking inches away from them, “I know one or two tricks. That’s why it’s selling well.” She concluded before pressing their lips together eagerly.

“This is a big bank, yea” He succeeded at saying in between two kisses.

[donutloverxo]

Yes captain

Note - this is part three of corrupting a good boy but it's mostly porn so can be read as a standalone as well. Sorry about all the jealousy stuff its just what the muse calls for sometimes. Comments/reblogs are really really appreciated🙏🙏 Dividers by @whimsicalrogers.

Summary - You ask Steve to keep it on while doing it 👀👀

Warnings - 18+ only explicit sexual content, uniform kink, captain kink, daddy kink, roleplaying, jealousy, insecure reader.

Pairing - CEO!Steve x reader

Word count - 4.5k

“Ooo,” you yelped, trying to run away from his firm grip across your hips.

It only made him hold onto you tighter, his nails digging into the flesh of your hips. “There’s no where to run, babygirl,” he chuckled at your misery, delivering another harsh slap to your naked bottom.

You shrieked in pain as your flesh burned in agonising, but delicious pleasure. As if you’d ever want to actually run. “I’m sorry, daddy.” Since you were allowed to call him daddy now, which seemed to always make him forgive you, but you added your princess voice just to be safe and not make it any harder on yourself.

“You should’ve thought of that before you decided to make fun of my team, but you had to be a dumb baby and run your mouth,” he scolded you, slapping you twice before slipping a hand between your legs, the squelching noises of him gathering your slick on his fingers made your ears burn.

You had gotten too bored of him watching the game and not paying attention to you so you might’ve said some mean things about his team, but the jokes on him since your diabolical plan seemed to have worked.

You had gotten too lost in slight tinge of pain in the roots of your hair, that he was pulling, and his fingers teasing your core, you yelped forward when he slapped your pussy, gasping as you throbbed for more of it.

“Honey,” Steve shook your arm causing you to jolt awake.

You had a habit of talking or mumbling nonsense in your sleep and since he was a light sleeper it usually woke him up. He found your incoherent rambles and the little faces you made in your sleep cute, they were particularly intense tonight for some reason, and while he loved you with all his heart he was not about to let you talk nonsense about the Yankees.

“What? Where?” you sat up, rubbing the soft sheen of sweat on your forehead with the back of your hand.

“You were talking in your sleep, sweetheart,” Steve said, rubbing his hand up and down your back, “Come here.” He circled a hand around your waist, pulling you down and back against his chest, kissing the back of your head, “What were you dreaming about, hm?”

“Um...” you blinked, “How much of it did you hear?”

“You think your so clever, don’t you,” he teased, pinching the side of your hip as you giggled.

“Yes, I’m very smart.”

You shut your eyes, ready to go back to dreamland and to your daddy, who was just a version of Steve who liked being called daddy. Which was something Steve would never be into. Not that you’d ever admit to having such a shameful kink.

But you felt Steve grind his excitement against your ass, “You wanna go back to sleep, or...?” he asked, biting the shell of your ear before snaking a hand up your cami to grope your breast.

“You woke me up with such debauch intention?!” you gasped in fake incredulity. Deciding to indulge him and that any time spent with normal real Steve was much better than being with dream daddy Steve.

***

You fixed his tie, tightening it just a bit around his neck. His golden hair was smoothed back, your eyes caught a glimpse of his rosy pink lips. So pouty and perfect. You could spend hours just looking at them, his smile was what truly made you fall for him. But you pulled away when he tried to steal a kiss from you.

“Gloss,” you argued, puckering your lips. Instantly feeling guilty as his pink ones pouted, giving you his sweet puppy eyes.

“Come on, doll, just one kiss? Don’t you wanna wish me luck?” He bent to capture your lips but you moved your head away at the last second, making him groan as his nose bumped against your cheek.

“I spent over two hours getting ready for this!” you huffed, smoothening a hand over your puffy tulle dress, finally having a chance to wear it out in public.

“Did you just smudge my blush?” Gasping, as you looked into the mirror, picking up your rouge and patting it on again.

You loved the dress Steve had gotten you for Christmas, it was so pretty and princess and you felt like Cinderella wearing it.

But it was too... girl-ish, Steve had insisted that you wear it. So he could show off his beautiful new wife.

Tonight though, you had to look like a woman.

A strong woman.

Who is not to be fucked around with. And not someone who is vulnerable and weak.

Because you knew she was going to be there.

“You always look gorgeous,” he mumbled, looking in the mirror and patting his hair to make sure it was in place.

You had convinced him to grow it out. Having more courage to express yourself since the Christmas gift mishap a couple of months ago.

Tucking a loose golden strange behind his ear, you wondered how someone as breathtakingly as beautiful as him could be yours.

But as beautiful as Steve was, he could also be naive. He wanted to see the best in people, which often didn’t let him see what was right in front of him.

How his ex Peggy had been trying to cause problems between you two from day one.

At first she had welcomed you with open arms, with a treacherous smile her red lips had told you that she wanted to be best friends with you. Taking you to the MET museum, of which she was a board member, asking your help in organising a couple of galas and the fundraisers. Shopping with you to make you more presentable to be a CEO’s wife

You were prepared to be wary of her. The fact that Steve was still good friends with his ex, who he had dated for more than five years, didn’t exactly sit well with you, you knew you’d face some troubles there, but then you met her and spent time with her you knew that you did had nothing to worry about.

That was until she, and Steve’s mother, had tried to get you to sign a pre-nup before you both got married.

While Sarah was always nice, you could always sense a tinge of hostility, your intuition told you how she preferred Peggy over you and would much rather have her as Steve’s wife.

With a heavy heart you had told Steve you couldn’t do it. That there was no point in getting married if you would end up divorced eventually. You were ready to cut your losses then, to pack your bags and go home, preparing for the worst. But he understood and said that he wouldn’t be marrying you if he didn’t trust you.

You were glad to have worked out everything, but decided to play nice with ‘Judas', whom you learned had infamously betrayed Jesus from a mass you attended with Steve and Sarah, and pretend that you didn’t know anything about her betrayal.

You shook your head, there was no point in letting her ruin your night, or dictate what you wore. The dress was what you liked and who you were, there was no reason for you to pretend to be like her. Steve liked you because you were nothing like her,

....probably.

You looked over to Steve, tugging his pants up and securing them, you had never once thought you’d be someone who’d have a thing for men in uniforms, they were simply doing their jobs, what the fuck was sexy about uniforms anyway, but that was until you saw your Steve in his...

He really could pull off any color, even something as boring as army green, his chest and built looked almost too broad. Numerous medals adorning his chest. He certainly looked the part of a soldier.

He kissed your temple when he caught you staring at him and you only hoped he couldn’t decipher what was going on in that horny brain of yours.

Steve rarely ever talked about his days in the army. If he did it was about the friends he made and the good times he shared with them. And how army whipped him in shape, made him the man he was.

He had been honorably discharged a couple of years ago, all his army friends only ever spoke highly of him--which wasn’t really surprising.

***

“Hello, darling,” she smiled to you in her classy British accent, kissing your cheek before hugging you, “How have you been? Haven’t seen you since new years!”

“I’m good and you look amazing.”

Which wasn’t a complete lie, she did look elegant in her uniform, a lot similar to Steve’s but her coat had flares at the end which gave it a more feminine feel than that of Steve’s.

“So do you,” she beamed, “Oh, you have a little something,” she gestured to the corner of your mouth before wiping some white frosting from your cupcake off with her thumb as you tried to keep your face from cringing.

So far the strong woman act wasn’t coming along so well...

“So...how is married life?”

Wouldn’t you like to know. “It’s very good. You know Steve, he’s just amazing. I���m lucky to have him.”

“Oh, I did heard about your little goof with your erotica from Natalie, and the gift slip up!” she laughed, hooking her arm around yours, she walked with you towards your husband. “And here I was thinking you are a good girl,” she winked.

“I... guess I’m not...”

“I must say though, unfortunately for you I don’t think Steve would like any of that. He’s always been so traditional,” she rolled her eyes, “He has an old soul.”

Yes, you knew that. You knew that he was traditional and an old soul. Of course You did, he was your husband. Why she felt the need to point out the obvious was beyond you. “Well, you know people can be unpredictable,” you countered.

“Yes, well you’re free to explore of course, I just didn’t want you to get your feelings hurt,” she put a hand over yours.

“Peggy,” Steve greeted her.

“Oh don’t mind us. We’re just gossiping about you,” she smirked.

“Really?” he looked over at you with a quizzical face, “All good things I hope.”

“I don’t have anything bad to say about you,” you said giving Peggy a side eye, “Can we dance? Please?”

It didn’t take a lot of convincing because he loved dancing. After a couple of dances it was time for him to give his speech.

Seeing your husband up on the stage, hearing everyone talk about his accomplishments made your heart swell in pride. You really couldn’t believe you were married to someone like him.

You suppose that you understood where Sarah was coming from. It would make sense for someone like Steve to fall for and marry a classy worldly lady like Peggy. There really wasn’t much you could offer him.

***

“Steve,” you huffed, trying to yank on the zipper for like the tenth time, while you loved the dress you needed to get out of it and breathe for a while.

“Yes, doll?” he called for you, entering your closet, smiling at your struggling form. “How can I help?”

“You can get me out of this thing!” you said, turning your back to him.

You were really feeling yourself tonight, you had gotten a facial and a manipedi, a blowout, spending hours on getting ready for battle. You thought you looked good and fierce. But then you took off your makeup and your extensions and were reminded of how Peggy was much more effortlessly beautiful than you. She had often been dubbed as a ‘natural beauty’.

“Y/N?”

“Hm?”

“Is something bothering you?” he asked as he unzipped you.

“No. Will you let me change now?” you turned around, to politely ask him to leave.

“You’ve changed in front of me before.”

“Yes, well I can’t right now.”

“Why not?” he frowned.

“Because...” You couldn’t stop your eyes from turning misty, “I’m ugly...”

“What? Who told you that?” His face instantly flushed with anger as he held onto your forearms, and when you didn’t push him away he pulled you in closer to his chest.

“No one needs to. I know it because I’m not blind,” you confessed, the cool metal of his medal digging into your cheek.

“Then maybe we need to get your eye sight checked. Because you’re the prettiest girl in this whole world. I’ll fight anyone who says otherwise.” He stroked your hair, placing a soft kiss on the top of your head.

“You’ll have to fight the whole world then.”

“If it comes to that then I will.”

You couldn’t help but smile at how protective he was. Propping your chin up on his chest you blinked at him. “Why didn’t you marry Peggy? She’s so much more beautiful.” Your heart was heavy with so many emotions, usually you wouldn’t give in and ask something so dangerous--a question you weren’t sure you wanted the answer to.

Judging by the frown on his face, you were afraid that you had upset him, but then it softened as his pale baby blues twinkled at you, “Why would you say that, doll? Peggy is beautiful, but I’ve never loved anyone the way I love you. I could never even dream of marrying anyone else.”

“I’m sorry,” you sighed. “I know I shouldn’t be comparing myself to others.”

“You really shouldn’t. They don’t measure up to you anyway,” he teased.

“It’s just...” you gulped, not being able to hold his gaze you played with the olive green buttons on his coat, “I heard at the party from Tony, that she will be working with you from now on. Do you think that’s a good idea?”

“You don’t trust me?” his voice cracked.

You whipped your head up, frantically shaking your head from side to side, “No no of course I do! I’m just saying it’s a risky game. To be around her so much... what if old feelings resurface?”

Your heart almost broke as he let go of you, putting some distance between you both, “You know all I ever ask for is that you trust me... and love me. I don’t think it’s a lot.”

You scoffed, “Yeah well, I don’t think me asking you not to work with your ex is a lot. No woman would be okay with her husband spending that much time with her ex.”

He pinched the bridge of his nose, “Why can’t I get through to you?”

“Maybe try speaking at a fourth grade level. Then I’ll understand. Since I don’t have a masters in literature from Sorbonne,” you rolled your eyes. Maybe he was intimidated by how smart Peggy is and decided to go for someone younger and dumber.

“I’ve never... been in love with Peggy or anyone but you really,” he told you, his broad shoulders hunching as he let out a sigh, “Not the way I’m in love with you. We were always more like friends than... lovers.”

“Is that better or worse?” you wondered out loud. Isn’t it important for husband and wife to be friends as well? Was that supposed to be a compliment?

“It’s much better. We would go months without seeing each other, and I didn’t miss her. Like I miss you when I’m at work. I can’t wait to get away and come home to you. Peggy is amazing, and I’ll always have a special place for her in my heart, but I would never even think about cheating on you.

But... I understand where you’re coming from. Maybe I would react the same way if you were to work with an ex. So I can just tell her that she’ll have to work with Nat, or someone else.”

“No,” you blurted.

Absolutely not.

Because A - You really did trust Steve not to stray. He wasn’t that type of man. And B - That would be admitting defeat. Admitting to her that you are afraid of her.

“I do trust you, Steve. I think... I just need to work on myself. If we don’t have trust then we don’t have anything right?”

“I trust you too, honey,” he kissed your forehead. “Just talk to me about this stuff okay? You can’t keep it bottled up.” You nodded as he worked on loosening his tie.

“Um... is that uncomfortable?” you asked, watching him pop open the first button of his shirt.

“The uniform? A little. It’s been a while since I put it on.”

“I’m surprised you didn’t wear it at our wedding.” You smiled. Maybe it was a good thing that he didn’t. While he looked so handsome in the black tux he had worn, the uniform would’ve made him irresistible. You would’ve spent the whole evening swooning over him.

“It didn’t feel right, I just wanted to be myself. Uh... doll,” he quirked a brow as he caught you staring at his crotch, “Hey,” he snapped his fingers, “My eyes are up here.”

“Yes, um, of course,” you whipped your head up as soon as you heard him, since you were too busy trying to make out the outline of his johnson, “And what beautiful eyes you have!”

“Tell me something. What is your obsession with this uniform?”

“I don’t know what you mean.” You decided to feign ignorance.

“Really? You’ve been staring at me all night. Do you not like it? Do you like it? Sometimes I think I don’t understand women at all.”

You probably would’ve appreciated his suit even more so if you hadn’t spent so much time festering in your jealousy. “I think... it’s... kinda hot,” you sighed dreamily as he blushed a crimson red. “You’re like this big strong Captain, and I’m like this small woman, like a damsel in distress type of thing.”

“Oh.” Was the only thing that he said. He never believed you would be into something like that, not from all the feminist rants you tend to go on.

“Oh god. You think I’m a weirdo, don’t you?” You put your hands over your face to hide it from him.

“No no, hey, don’t be like that,” he cooed, pulling your hands away so he could look at your pretty face, “I can be your... big, strong Captain. And you can be my damsel in distress.”

“Huh?”

“Yeah. So... how would it work? Do I save you from a burning building or something?”

“No, sweetie. You’re thinking of a fireman.”

“Oh, right,” he blushed, scratching the back of his neck, “We can do the fireman thing if you like. I can... be a fireman.”

“Steve, we don’t have to do anything.”

“I know. But I want to. Come on! Give me something to work with.”

“Okay,” you cleared your throat. “How about... you keep the suit on?”

“On for how long?” he tilted his head like a cute confused puppy, looking down at his suit, “Oh! You mean on while we’re...”

“Yes. And I could, I don’t know, thank you for serving my country.”

“Yeah. I mean medals and all are nice, but I want a special kind of thanks from you, doll.”

“Ooo,” you felt up his biceps through his coat and shirt, he really was strong. “Do you have anything specific in mind?” you asked, batting your lashes.

“Um... yes.... You get on your knees, miss... I mean ma’am, shit,” he cursed as he awkwardly stumbled over his words. “What do I call you? Are you my wife in this scenario?”

“You can just call me doll, captain. I’ll be whatever you want me to be,” you smiled, cheekily pressing your lips to his in a quick peck but he held onto your waist before you could pull away. Sliping his tongue inside your mouth.

“Alright then, doll. Show me how grateful you are,” he puffed his chest out, so he could appear a bit more dominant.

You only giggled, taking your dress off because there was no way you could kneel in so much tulle.

Standing before him in just a strapless bra and a nude thong, you were vulnerable, but not scared anymore. He was your captain, he’d never ridicule you.

“I’m already feeling appreciated,” he said as he ogled you.

You dropped down to your knees, unbuckling him with some help from him, “It’s so big,” you gasped when you looked at his length, pretending to be seeing it for the first time. Although, you were still always surprised with the sheer monstrosity of it.

“We’ll make it fit, doll. Don’t you worry your pretty little head about that,” he smiled, tapping on your mouth, “Open,” he commanded.

You’re a natural, captain. You took a deep breath before opening wide. You’d been having sex regularly for the past three months or so, he had gone down on you more times than you could count, you felt as if he could live between your legs if he could. But he had never once asked you to return the favor, you didn’t have it in you to be the first one to bring it up either.

Licking your lips, you tasted someone of the preejaculate leaking out of his tip before wrapping your mouth around his head, moaning at the salty taste and the essence of him.

“That’s... ugh,” he groaned, “That’s good. Keep going,” he spurred you on, a hand on the back of your head giving you the slightest bit of push.

You took as much of him as you could, stopping halfway through when he hit the back of your throat, you pumped the rest of his length with your palm, holding onto his thick thigh for support, you bobbed your head, increasing your pace when he started moaning loudly.

Rubbing your thighs together to relive some pressure, your throbbing core desperate for some attention and friction, you knew your panties were ruined.

You had read your fair share of cosmos, and the many sex tips they offered, you knew they’d come in handy someday. You swore you remembered reading something about balls... to suck them? Bite them?

You fondled his balls, feeling him tightening in your palm, you were ready to swallow all of you. That was the only proper way of saying thank you.

“Wait,” he growled, pulling you off of him.

You looked up at him, wiping your mouth with the back of your hand, “Did I do something wrong?”

“No, doll,” he heaved, “But I gotta come in your pussy.”

Your jaw dropped, to hear the golden boy using such filthy language. “Whatever you say, captain,” you rasped.

Gasping when he yanked you up, pulling you over his shoulder and carrying you to the bed before throwing you down on the mattress.

Although Steve had always been dominant in bed, it was somewhat lowkey and subtle, he was never rough with you, he treated you as if you were made of glass, right now he was treating you as if you were literally a ragdoll.

“Take off your panties,” he ordered you.

You followed quickly, desperate to have him inside you asap, rolling your thing down your thighs and then getting rid of your bra before he even had to ask. You looked at him through your lashes, waiting patiently for his next command.

He hesitated for a moment before saying, “Now touch yourself.” It had always been a wet dream of his to watch you, instruct you as you got yourself off. Since your intention was to please him... he might as well make most of it.

You blinked at him before nodding, “Yes, captain.”

Fondling your breast you pinched your nipple, pulling on it before hissing exaggeratedly, smirking when you saw his hand twitch to touch you.

“What do I do?” you looked up at him with big doe eyes.

He shook his head, circling a hand around your wrist he shoved two of your fingers inside your mouth, “Suck,” he told you. “You like having your mouth stuffed, don’t you?” he asked as you noisily suckled on his fingers.

You shamelessly nodded, hoping that you’d get more opportunities to suck his cock from now on, he pulled your fingers out, bringing them down between your legs, pushing them into your willing channel. His own thumb rubbing on your clit working you up even moreso.

You threw your head back as you felt your climax approaching. “So close... captain.”

But he pulled your hand away from your pussy, tutting at your disobedience, “I didn’t tell you you could come.” He shook your head, giving you a minute to catch your breath before pushing two of his, much larger fingers inside you, “Gotta get you ready, doll. Since you’re so small.”

“Oh! It’s too much...” you moaned, holding onto the bedding.

“How're you gonna take my dick then, doll,” you watched as he licked your slick off of his fingers, “You taste like heaven, honey.”

“Thank you, captain.”

He unbuttoned his coat, he would be much freer without it and fuck you properly like you deserved.

You rolled your eyes when he folded his coat setting down on the floor, when you were literally lying naked before him with your legs spread wide, waiting as his tie and pants followed, “Really?” you scoffed.

“Can’t have them getting dirty, doll.” He knelt on the bed, now only in his shirt, spreading your legs a bit further so he could make room for himself, nudging your intimate lips apart with his length before slowing sinking into you.

He stayed like that for a bit, inside your heat, it felt as if he would explode then and there but he had to savor the moment. To have such a pretty girl wrapped around him.

Hovering over you he placed his elbows on sides of your head so he wouldn’t put too much of his weight on you, and so he could look at your as he fucked you.

He moved his hips against yours, rocking slow and steady, “You like that, doll?”

“Yes,” you nodded as he pulled on your hair to bare your neck to him. Biting your neck to mark you as his, “Do it harder, please, captain.”

“Harder?” he spoke against your neck, pinning both your hands above your head as he started rigorously pounding into you. “That hard enough?”

You were too fucked out to give a coherent answer, or to do anything but nod pathetically and take whatever he gave you.

“Ima come...” you clenched around him as your orgasm washed over you, rendering you immobile and weightless.

He thrusted into you a couple of times before filling you up to the brim - just as he had promised.

“Thank you, doll. That was really nice,” he smiled, laying beside you and pulling you closer to him, he kissed your forehead.

“Thank you, captain. You sure know how to treat a lady right...”

“Maybe we can do this more often,” he suggested as you nodded in reply.

Tags will be in the reblog! Click the link in the bio to be join the taglist or shoot me an ask/dm.

Shout out to my friend lizzygal (you can find her on ao3) who gave me the idea of Steve folding his uniform. It was too hilarious to leave out! Thanks for reading.

Please note that my work is not to be reposted or published anywhere other than my Tumblr or AO3 account without my permission. Reblogs are most welcome though!

[band--psycho]

Harvey Specter x Reader-Not A Disaster After All

(Credit to the gif owner)

Other Character Masterlist

Today was the day. The day of my first date in almost three years, to say I was nervous was an understatement; not just because it was my first date in so long but also because the date was with the one of the most famous lawyers in the city, the one and only Harvey Specter. After several outfit changes I finally settled on wearing a black, spaghetti strap jumpsuit accompanied with matching black stiletto high heel ankle boots. I glanced at the clock on the other side of the room, feeling a mixture of emotions as the time grew ever closer. I hadn’t felt this nervous in a long time but likewise I hadn’t felt more excited to go on a date with someone, not since I dated Nathan, Y/d/n father. In all honesty, since he died I hadn’t really gone on many dates, if any really. I tried the dating apps a few years after his death but there just wasn’t anyone on there that I liked that way. Harvey was the first person I’d even liked since Nathan and although part of me felt guilty about it, I knew he’d want me to be happy and Harvey was a good guy, I felt safe with him. 

“So..whaddya think?” I asked in a sing-song voice as I turned the corner, revealing my outfit for my date tonight to my best friend, Emma.

“You look absolutely gorgeous babe!” she practically squealed, causing Y/d/n to pull her eyes away from the tv screen. 

“You ‘ook reawy pwetty, mummy,” Y/d/n beamed as she was waddled over to me, a wide smile on her face and a look of awe in her eyes.Thinking about it, this was probably one of the only times  she’s seen me all dressed up just like this, normally I’d just be wearing my ripped skinny jeans and a tshirt. 

“Thank you baby,” I whispered, bending down to pick her up. 

“Now, I need you to be good for Auntie Em whilst I’m out, okay?” I asked her, brushing away some of the stray locks of hair out of her face. 

“Otay,” Y/d/n agreed, placing a sloppy kiss on my cheek. I couldn’t help but chuckle at her actions as I placed her back on the floor, within seconds she’d waddled back over to the tv and was sat infront of it completely engrossed in her favourite show once again. 

“C’mon then you, you’ve got a date to go to,” Emma chuckled, lightly pushing me towards the door. 

“Okay, okay, I’m going,” I chuckled, putting my leather jacket on, taking a deep breath before I opened the door. 

“If there are any issues-” I began, quickly turning back to Emma just rolled her eyes and said, “I will call you, Y/n/n, now go otherwise you’re gonna be late.” So with that I left and got into the taxi, the closer I got to the restaurant the quicker I could feel my heart beating away in my chest. Part of me wanted nothing more than to ask the taxi driver to take me home, absolutely terrified that I was somehow going to mess this date up. But then I saw him. Mr Harvey Specter standing outside the restaurant patiently waiting for me. I took a deep breath as I opened the taxi door and made my way over to him. 

“Y/n/n,” Harvey greeted with the very same charismatic smile I first fell for. 

“Mr Specter,” I replied, feeling the heat rise in my cheeks as his eyes locked onto mine. 

“Call me Harvey,” he chuckled, lightly placing his hand on the lower part of my back, leading me into the restaurant. There was no turning back now. This date was happening...and it was either going to be the best night of my life or...or I was just never going to date again. 

~~~~~~~

I’d always heard about how charming Harvey Specter was but I never expected this. He was...he was amazing. I felt like I’d known him for years, the two of us were just swapping stories about our lives, our hobbies, just anything and everything..once we got talking it’s like we couldn’t stop. There was no awkward silence, or nerves about what to say, it was just natural. I hadn’t even realised how much time had passed until my phone rang; at first I was just going to ignore it but when I saw Emma's name flash up in the called ID I felt my heart stop, terrified that something was wrong with Y/d/n.  

“Sorry, I’ve got to answer this,” I apologised, rushing over to a quieter part of the restaurant to answer my phone. 

“Em, what’s happened? Is Y/d/n okay?” I asked, a worrying tone now lacing my voice. 

“Don’t panic, Y/n/n, but Y/d/n’s been sick, you don’t need to worry I can take care of-”

“I’m on my way home,” I interrupted before hanging up the call and quickly making my way back over to Harvey. 

“Harvey, I hate to do this but I’ve really got to go, it’s my daughter she’s not well,” I explained, grabbing my jacket from the chair. 

“I can uh...I can forward you the money if you send me your details,” I quickly added, not really having the time to work out exactly how much I was going to owe him for this dinner. 

“I’ve got it, don’t worry,” Harvey replied with a smile, handing over the money to a nearby waiter. I wanted to argue with him about it, but I couldn’t, not now. Right now all I wanted to do was go home and look after Y/d/n. I smiled politely at Harvey and rushed outside, attempting (and failing) to get a taxi. I sighed in frustration, running a hand through my hair, placing a hand on a nearby wall in an attempt to steady myself as I took my heels off accepting that I was going to have to walk (more like run) home. 

“Y/n/n? What’re you doing?” Harvey asked, his voice catching me off guard entirely. 

“I’ve gotta go home but apparently all the taxis wanna ignore me, so I’m gonna have to walk,” I explained in a harsher tone than I expected. 

“My cars gonna be here in five minutes, I’ll take you home,” 

“Harvey, that’s a really nice offer but-” I attempted to argue only to be interrupted by Harveys words, “But nothing, I’m not about to let you walk home this late at night, besides the quicker we get to Yd/n the better right?” He asked, raising an eyebrow as he held out his hand for me to take. I didn’t want to take advantage of him...but I couldn’t deny this offer, so I slipped my heels back on and took his hand, both of us waiting patiently for his car to arrive.  

~~~~~~~~

“Thank you so much for this Harvey, I really appreciate it,” I said, practically bolting out of the car before he could say anything back. I didn’t even know Harvey had followed me to the door until I saw the shocked expression on Emma's face when she answered the door. 

“Harvey-” 

“I wanna help,” He offered, a small and reassuring smile coming upon his lips. I nodded back, smiling at him before rushing into the house and heading to Y/d/ns bedroom. When I saw Y/d/n, I felt my heart ache, her usual rose tinted cheeks were pale and tears cascaded from her now bloodshot eyes. 

“Mummy,” She sniffled when she saw me, “I don’ feel good,”

“It’s okay baby, I’m here,” I cooed, stroking her hair soothingly as I sat next to her on the bed. 

~~~~~~

Ten minutes after I got back, Emma left, leaving me and Harvey to take care of Y/d/n. Harvey was amazing. There was no other word I could use to describe how great he was at looking after Y/d/n; all I did was stay in bed with her, stroking her hair and giving her all the cuddles I possibly could while Harvey did everything else, he would got her water and a little wet flannel to bring her slight fever down and then on top of that he read to her. Not once. Not twice. But at least five times as much as I hated to admit it, he was a lot better at doing the voices than I was and I could see Y/d/n was enjoying it and it was definitely helping to calm her down. I wasn’t sure how much time had passed but eventually Y/d/n fell asleep; I carefully moved my arms away from her and moved off the bed. 

Thank you, for everything you’ve done tonight,” I began, my voice barely above as a whisper to, as we quietly left the room, making our way back downstairs. 

“It was a pleasure,” Harvey reassured with a comforting smile on his face. A short silence filled the air as he grabbed his suit jacket and made his way to the door.

“I know tonight has been a disaster-,” I began only to be interrupted by Harveys chuckle.

“I got to spend the evening with you, I call that a success,” He said , wrapping his arms around my waist, a comforting smile on his face. I don’t know what came over me, but at that moment all I wanted to do was kiss him. So that's exactly what I did. I wrapped my arms around the back of his neck and closed the distance between our lips. Instantly, Harvey reciprocated my action, his hands slowly moving up my body to my face, caressing my cheeks as he deepened the kiss. 

“I’ll see you tomorrow,” He whispered against my lips, pecking them one last time before opening the door and making his way over to the car, just before he got in he winked at me, that charismatic smile coming onto his face again. Then he vanished off into the distance. Maybe tonight wasn’t a disaster after all...maybe it was the beginning of something really special.

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[beauvibaby]

In Colorado – N.MacKinnon

Summary: former childhood friends, turned enemies of sorts turned lovers eventually

Word count: 8.7K

You sighed in relief as you dropped the last box that needed to be unpacked, a random box full of things from your closet that you honestly didn’t go through, it was one of the last things you packed and you just shoved everything in there. The box got pushed to the side as you dropped into bed, covered in a layer of sweat from the late summer heat. You fanned yourself, telling yourself you’d unpack the last box in just a minute, needing a little break from it all.

You were starting over, a new branch of your life, away from home, from family and friends. You were terrified. But also extremely excited, Colorado, when you were asked to move with the family you nanny for, you were ecstatic, until the realization set in that Colorado was where he was.

The universe was scolding you, it was laughing in your face.

“So we have two big things to say, Y/N.” Darcy announced, clutching her husband, Trent’s hand. You gave them a nervous smile, “alright, what is it?” You spoke anxiously, smoothing over their youngest child’s hair as he sat on your lap, only a few months old, Lucas had his dad's vibrant green eyes. “We’re moving to Colorado!” Trent cheered, you knew he was offered a big promotion, but Darcy had made it sound like they weren’t going to be moving, so you were caught off guard. Instantly you thought of how you’d have to say goodbye to them and all of their beautiful kids. “Oh.” You gasped softly, subconsciously hugging Lucas a little tighter. “And we want you to move with us.” Darcy added, giggling when your eyes snapped wide open, “move? To Colorado? Like live with you?” You stuttered out. “Not live with us, we know you like your own time and we like to be adventurous with the kids on the weekend.” She started off, shifting in her seat, “we’d give you a raise, but we’d need you five days a week, I’m going to be going full time when we move.” She concluded, staying silent so you could process this information.

Lucas gurgled up at you, snapping you from your daze. “Yes, yes I’ll move with you.” You answered without skipping a beat, and you’ve always wanted to move away, and you didn’t have much left holding you here, so why not be adventurous and take the leap. “You can take time to think–“ Trent started but Darcy kicked his shin, knowing they’d be lost without you. You giggled at her actions, “I don’t need to think about it, I want to do this. I couldn’t leave the kids now anyways.” You added laughing under your breath. You’d been with them since their oldest was only one, at the time you were still in high school so you only baby sat for them on weekends and date nights, but as he got older and they decided to do homeschooling with him (and subsequently all of their children) they offered you a full time position straight out of high school.

Then when Caleb was six, they had Ryan, then they decided to try for one more, a girl, well instead of one they got two, twin little girls, Maya and Bailey who were already three years old. Lucas, he was a complete accident and most definitely their last as Darcy had her tubes tied after that.

You stepped out onto the screened patio, looking over the views, mountains in the far distance, kids playing in the streets below, your apartment facing a family neighborhood, the same neighborhood that the Logan’s lived in, aka the family you worked for, you were on the third floor, ever grateful for the building having an elevator. You took a deep breath in, holding it for a moment before letting it out.

Truthfully, what are the chances that you’d run into the one person you were trying to avoid from your past?

If only you knew how the universe was mocking you at your thoughts.

Everything was exciting when you were doing it for the first time after moving. First shower in your new apartment? Fantastic. First load of laundry? Not a hassle. First delivery? Well, deliveries are always exciting.

First grocery shopping trip? That one failed to be as exciting.

You entered the store with a large huff, freezing as you grabbed a cart and noticed all the MacKinnon jerseys around. Lovely. Just what you wanted. You quickly whipped your phone out, and checked their schedule to see that there was a game tonight, a home game. A groan fell from your mouth as you trudged into the store, forcing yourself not to think about him. You couldn’t, not yet, not today. It was too much to process.

So if you left with a little extra chocolate in your groceries that day, no one had to know.

“Oh come on!” You complained, your last trip of groceries and of course the bag had to rip in the elevator, your eggs landing face down and oozing out the sides of the container. The doors opened with a ding on your floor as you scrambled to pick up your mess. “Oh, I’ve been there.” A girls voice rang out, you glanced up and saw a girl around your age, maybe a little older, she squatted down to help you. “Are you my new neighbor?” She asked, tilting her head as she pulled a tissue out of her purse, wiping up the egg whites that had gotten on the floor. “Oh, yes,” you chuckled, “I’m Y/N.” You introduced yourself, “thank you, by the way.” You added quickly as she put the tissue on top of the smushed egg carton so you could throw it out. “No problem, I’m Tracy! I live on the right of you if you ever need anything!” She called as the doors began to shut once you switched places. You smiled at the encounter as you pushed open your front door, kicking it shut behind you so you could finally set these groceries down.

“Gross.” You grimaced, tossing the eggs out and rushing to wash your hands off, already feeling them grow sticky.

Your TV and Internet wouldn’t be set up until tomorrow morning, so you trudged to your room once you put everything away, staring at the box sitting in the corner. It was taunting you, maybe on some level you knew what was sitting in there, or maybe you felt if you unpacked it, that this would be really really official as your new home. You pushed your doubts aside and tore the tape off the top, smiling at the photo album on the top of the pile. You sat cross legged on the ground, taking the book out, not paying any attention to the hoodie it was resting on as you whipped it open. Your jaw dropping at the pages filled with random pictures of you and your friends from early high school. “Oh god.” You laughed to yourself, the pink glittery eyeshadow all over your eyelids, only drawing more attention to your unruly eyebrows.

You kept flipping through the pages, plenty of you with your girlfriends, and your family. On some level you had to know that you’d see him in the pictures soon, you knew the timeline of your friendship, and how you two grew so so so close during your junior year.

And there it is, you flipped the page and the two of you were beaming brightly at the camera, so much so that it felt like he was still staring into your eyes. You shoved the album away, watching it slide into the wall, you brushed it off. It’s fine. You reached into the box blindly and pulled out the folded material, the logo staring back at you made all the hurt come rushing back. Nathan’s Halifax Mooseheads sweater was staring back at you. The hoodie fell from your hands, landing by your feet as tears sprung to your eyes.

“With the first overall pick, the Colorado Avalanche select, from the Halifax Mooseheads, Nathan MacKinnon.” You shot off your living room couch, screaming at the top of your lungs, everyone saw it coming, but that didn’t make it any less thrilling.

You didn’t know that was the beginning of the end.

When Nate returned from the draft, he distanced himself, you didn’t know why. But it hurt so badly. All you wanted was to congratulate your best friend, he didn’t answer your calls, or your texts, so you got in your car and drove over to his house, knocking on the door. Just when you thought no one would answer, his mom came rushing to the door. “Oh, Y/N, sweetie!” She cheered, always thrilled to see you. “Hi Mrs. MacKinnon.” You smiled brightly, “I wanted to come over and congratulate Nate in person.” You told her, stepping into the house as she let you in. “Of course, he’s in his room.” She told you, rushing back to the kitchen where a timer was going off. You expertly made your way to his room, pushing the door open when he didn’t answer.

“Nate?” You asked, he sighed deeply before meeting your eyes. He knew what he was going to do, and it was extremely selfish. He had to make you want to stop seeing him, otherwise he was afraid he’d end up hurting you in the long run. “Congratulations.” You spoke softly, giving him a half smile, feeling dread rise in your chest at his silent reaction, barely a smile. You had listened to him rant in worry about leaving home when he got drafted, having seen it happen with some teammates. You shouldn’t have been surprised when he flipped this switch, but you never thought he could do it to you. “Nathan, why won’t you talk to me?” You cut right to the chase, stepping further into his room, he sat up on his bed, inching away from you. He shrugged, hooking his chin over the pillow he was hugging. “We should go out and celebrate—“ you began to speak, but he cut you off with a groan. “Y/N, I can’t do this. I have to focus, I have to get ready and, and, and a bunch of other stuff.” His repeating of the word was a nervous tell.

“Can’t do what? Have lunch with your best friend because she’s proud of you?” You retorted, becoming defensive as you figured out what he was trying to do. You should have walked away, leave it civil and on good terms, but you couldn’t. “I never said you were my best friend.” He grumbled, standing up, his back towards you as you held in a gasp. He couldn’t look at you, he would break, knowing that he was hurting you. You brushed off his words, it wasn’t true. “Ok, fine.” You muttered, tugging on your hair frustratedly. “Nate, you don’t have to do this. We can still text and talk on the phone and stuff, you don’t have to cut ties completely.” You tried to bargain, newsflash, it didn’t help. “It’s too much, you’re always around, it’s distracting. It’s messing up my game, my career is on the line now.” He snapped, the Nate that turned to face you wasn’t the Nate you knew. This was a shell of him, trying to push through his own fears. He knew what he said was a lie, the truth is he’s played better and better as you stuck by his side. It’s funny, really, how you two got close. He found you crying by the rink during lunch after your boyfriend dumped you in front of your whole class. Ever since then he’d been by your side, you two were as close as close can get. But he was ready to throw this all down the drain, so you could move on and find a friend who would be there for you, not someone who would be gone for nine months out of the year.

He was in love with you. And you with him. But neither of you knew the other's secret, which is why this was so hard for you to say.

“Tell me to leave, and I’ll leave, never talk to you again if that’s what you want, Nathan. But I know that’s not–“ again, he cut you off. “Leave, Y/N. Get out, I don’t want you here anymore.” He snapped, and those were the words that shattered both of your hearts. “I don’t want to see you again before I go.” He added, voice softer, and that only broke you further. You didn’t need to hear anymore, with tears rushing down your face, you ran out of his room, both his parents gasping as you ran out of the house. “Y/N?” His dad called, stepping out the front door, worried and frowning as you sped off in your car.

That was the last time you saw Nate, and the same gut wrenching feeling filled you as you thought about that day. You took the hoodie and shoved it into the back of your closet, not able to bring yourself to throw it away, but you couldn’t stand to look at it. You closed up the box, deciding to call it a day, afraid of what other memories you’d unearth.

***

“Good job, Maya.” You grinned as she showed you her work page. The twins were only a few months away from starting online school like their older brothers, and you knew they’d still need more help than the boys for a while, but it was going to make things a lot easier when they started. Maya giggled and went back to her page, Bailey was already done, the busy bee of the two who always wanted to be done asap. Ryan and Caleb were in the office finishing up, Caleb offering to help Ryan so you could focus on the girls. Lucas was asleep in the baby wrap, so at least you could get most of their stuff done without any major interruptions.

“Y/N!” Bailey shrieked from the living room, a sound of terror in her voice making you rush to your feet, “what’s wrong?” You ran into the room, the three year old holding her hand up like she was dying, “I got cut!” She sniffled, you held in a sigh, not wanting to make her feel bad, but you were relieved that it wasn’t anything more than that. “Oh, let me see.” You cooed walking over to her, gasping softly at the amount of blood on her hand. “Ew!” Maya screamed, grossed out by the sight of the blood. Lucas wiggled in the carrier, beginning to wake up from all the commotion. “Caleb! Can you bring me the first aid kit!” You shouted, hearing his muffled response as you hoisted Bailey up onto your hip, “it’s alright, Bails.” You assured her, setting her on the counter next to the sink, turning the water on warm. Caleb came down the steps with the kit in his hand, following the sound of Bailey crying to find you. “Thank you.” You sighed, taking it from him and popping it open, grabbing the antibiotic cream and bandaids.

Eventually, Bailey calmed down when you offered to take them out for ice cream, since they all became witness to the bloody mess she’d made on herself, which was another meltdown as you scolded her for trying to open an unpacked box in the living room without help.

When you stepped out of the ice cream shop and spotted the park across the street, you were relieved, a win win, they could get their sweets and burn their energy all at once. “Hands.” You announced, Lucas kicking wildly in the stroller, you pushed him with one hand and then grabbed Bailey’s cut hand lightly, Maya grabbed her other, then Ryan grabbed Maya’s and Caleb grabbed Ryan’s. Assuring that you all got across the street together safely. Once you were there you handed out everyone’s cups of ice cream and declared free range after they finished eating, as long as they stayed in your sight line.

A giggle fell from your lips as they scattered off one by one as they finished, but Caleb stayed behind. “What’s up?” You asked him, standing Lucas up on your lap as he got a burst of energy, “what do you know about hockey?” Caleb asked longingly, if it weren’t for the fact that you were holding the baby, you were certain you’d freeze at the question. “I actually know quite a bit about hockey.” You answered, shifting towards him. “Why do you sound sad, bud?” You asked gently, rubbing his back. “I want to try it, but mom and dad want me to take music lessons.” He mumbled. His parents' decision for music lessons wasn’t shocking, they weren’t sports people, they were very much arts and music people which is perfectly fine. But you knew they would be heartbroken if they found out Caleb wanted to try something and didn’t tell them. “I think you should talk to them, Caleb. You might be surprised with what they say.” You assured him, “and if you want to start learning more about it, I’ll teach you.” You added, nudging him with your shoulder, he gave you a shy smile. “Really?” He asked, his eyes wide, you nodded, debating on telling him this information, but you wanted to fuel his excitement.

“When I was your age I met a boy who ended up becoming a professional hockey player.” You added, watching Caleb gasp and spin to face you as he was about to go play with his siblings. “That’s so cool!” He shrieked, laughing when you flinched at his pitch increase. “Alright, go play, we can talk more after you talk to your parents.” You told him, smiling as he ran off, you could feel a sense of anxiety in your stomach, but you pushed it off. You could get back into hockey for Caleb if it would make him happy, and give him something to be passionate about.

***

Clearly, as you, Darcy and Trent lugged all the kids into the local ice rink for an introduction to hockey class, your conversation worked. “Oh, Y/N. I’m so nervous.” Darcy muttered as she held Lucas, they were here on their lunch hour, so you’d be taking the kids home after this. “They’re not going to do anything more than seeing if he can skate and shoot a puck.” You assured her, placing a hand on her shoulder, they were letting parents out on the ice but neither of them knew how to skate, which was nearly a disgrace being from Canada. “Did you want me to go out with him?” You offered to her and she gasped, “would you really?” She gave you a soft smile as Trent was negotiating with the twins on sitting still. “Of course!” You giggled, sliding your purse over to her, “watch my things?” You asked, already jumping to your feet, kind of eager to get back on the ice. You were never much of a hockey player, but you’d play simple games in the winter with friends, and Nate would always take you to the rink with him so you could skate around. She nodded as you rushed down the couple of steps, knocking on the glass by the teacher. He looked over, giving you a smile as he waved you on, “thanks.” You took the skates from him, quickly lacing them up. Caleb watched you skate over to him with ease, making his jaw drop, “woah.” He muttered as you stopped beside him. “Pay attention.” You chastised him lightly, placing your hands on his shoulders, he nodded eagerly, his helmet bouncing around on his head.

You smiled as the teacher skated to the middle of the rink where everyone was, “alright everyone, I know most of you have never played hockey before, but, we have some special visitors today.” He announced, as if you were a student yourself, you got giddy, not even thinking on the level that they were about to do. “Since we are a hockey city, with a professional team…” he trailed off, then it hit you, and your heart stopped. “From the Colorado Avalanche, we have Cale Makar, Erik Johnson and Nathan MacKinnon.” You began to see spots, furiously blinking them away as you took a shaky breath, vaguely recognizing that the players had skated onto the ice. You forced yourself to get it together, this was for Caleb, you could just avoid Nate, right? Surely he wouldn’t even recognize you after all these years.

You started teaching Caleb the basics on skating and staying upright as the teacher started coming around to everyone, the guys as well coming around. “There you go, a natural.” Cale commented coming over to you and Caleb, you gave him a smile as Caleb grinned. “Your moms a real good teacher huh?” Cale added, looking down at Caleb. “Oh, no I’m his nanny, mom and dad don’t know how to skate.” You corrected him, pointing to the stands where they were tangling the other four kids. Cale waved at them as they saw you pointing, “sorry about that.” He turned even redder as he skated away, you and Caleb shared a look, laughing at the very common occurrence. You gave Caleb some space as you could tell he was feeling overwhelmed with everyone around, you smiled proudly from the side of the rink as he was already making friends with another boy his age.

“Hi.” You smiled, introducing yourself to the teacher, who you had a sneaky suspicion you’d be seeing more of as Caleb was already falling in love with being on the ice. “Have you ever played?” Danny asked, his name you’d just learned, he wasn’t too much older than you. “Not seriously, I know people who have careers in it.” You answered, shifting your feet, “do you mind if I just take a lap around, it’s been ages since I’ve been on ice.” You admitted, Danny grinned, “go for it!” He cheered, clapping as you took off, the kids watched in awe, and the guys smirked, resting their hands on the tops of their sticks. Well, all except Nate, he went pale as a ghost, he could recognize the way you skate in a heartbeat, and he definitely did as you switched around and went backwards. He always told you that you could have been a figure skater if you wanted to, because you had the form and the grace, but you never believed him. You came to a stop next to Danny again and everyone clapped, making heat rush through you as they all stared at you. “Y/N, that was so cool!” Caleb squealed, sloppily skating over to you, hitting your legs with a thud, “thanks bud.” You laughed, patting his helmet, “let’s get you working on that alright.” You teased, he rolled his eyes as you guided him back to his friends so class could truly begin, they asked the parents and others to get off the ice. You skated away, wishing Caleb good luck as you did so, but a hand gently brushed your arm as you were about to step off the ice.

You glanced back and inhaled sharply, Nate was standing right there, looking at you with furrowed brows. “Y/N?” He whispered, shocked to see you here, after seven years. “You’re here? Why are you here–in Colorado?” He stumbled over his words, you pulled your arm from his light hold, “you have kids to teach.” You muttered, shutting the door in his face, he shook it off so he didn’t draw attention to himself, quickly going back to the kids who were excitedly waiting to try hitting a puck.

“He’s the one you told Caleb about isn’t he?” Darcy murmured, brushing her finger over your cheek where you didn’t feel the single tear resting. You gave her a solemn smile, only managing a nod, “I don’t want to talk about it.” You murmured, focusing on the ice ahead, specifically on Caleb as he got ready to hit a puck. You all held your breath as he swung the stick back and… WHAM he hit the puck, not into the net but still it went a fair distance. You and Darcy grinned at each other while Trent let out a loud cheer, undoubtedly embarrassing his son. Maya and Bailey clapped from their new seats beside you, the girls seeing your saddened expression and wanting to help. “Y/N, do you wanna watch Frozen when we get home?” Bailey asked, Ryan glanced over at that, a sigh falling from his lips. “How about we watch Toy Story instead?” You offered, knowing all the kids loved that option, Maya and Bailey shared a look. “We wanted to make you feel better.” Maya whispered, “Frozen is your favorite.” She added with a pout. Your heart melted at their thoughts, “don’t worry girls. But thank you.” You kissed the top of each of their heads, smiling as they tucked themselves under your arms to watch the rest of this little hockey class. Darcy and Trent shared a look, you guessed they’ll become hockey people now.

Caleb was holding Lucas for you as you loaded up his new practice gear and all of his siblings into the three row suv you had to drive, you didn’t pay any mind to commotion around you as lord of people were coming out to their cars, Darcy and Trent having to rush back to work as soon as they signed everything and told Caleb they were proud of him. “Y/N?” You heard the unfortunately familiar voice, you quickly turned, taking Lucas from his brother. “Go get in the car, bud. I’ll be there in a minute.” You told Caleb, he nodded, waving at Nate before going around to get in, you shut the trunk as you had the car running already. “What do you want, Nathan?” You snapped, trying not to look over him, he’s changed. A lot.

“Why are you in Colorado?” He asked instantly, giving you a once over, you’d changed a lot too. “I moved here with them, I’m their nanny.” You answered simply, not wanting to talk to him any longer than you had to. Just as you were about to go put the baby in the car, he spoke again, “I’m sorry.” His voice was soft, gentle, but that angered you more. “You’re sorry?” You hissed, giving him a sharp glare, “for what? Telling me I wasn’t your best friend and that you didn’t want to see me again?” You retorted, “you destroyed me, Nathan!” You snapped, he flinched at not only your tone, but your use of his full name. He wanted to beg you not to call him that, you always called him Nate, or some other pet name you’d come up with for him, but he didn’t have that right, not anymore. He thought if he stared at you long enough, you’d break, you always did, especially when it came to him. But not anymore, he quickly learned as you spoke again, “I’m leaving, now get out of the way.” You muttered, shaking your head at him as you opened the door and quickly buckled the baby in.

Nate walked solemnly over to his friends who had watched the encounter, “what’d you do to her man? Never called her back?” Erik joked, but dropped his smile when Nate glared at him. “I wish that’s all it was.” Nate sighed, brushing off their confused looks, “let’s go.” He added after he watched you back out and drive off with a smile on your face as you sang along to songs with the kids.

Later that day, Nate was with his girlfriend, they’ve only been together a short time, but he could tell this would be another failed relationship as his heart wasn’t in it. Jenny was focused on the movie they were watching in his living room, her smile wide as she laughed at something that was said. He wanted to enjoy her, he wanted to fall for her, she was a great woman, checked all his boxes and then some, but he just couldn’t. She glanced at him, and for a second, just a split second, he imagined it was you. And that made him look away quickly. Jenny paused the movie, sitting up on the edge of the couch, “Nate,” she started, and he held in a sigh at her using his shortened name. “You see her when you look at me, don’t you?” She asked, it was early on enough that she wasn’t heartbroken by this discovery, but still upset as she really had feelings for him. He opened and closed his mouth looking for the right words to say, it was true, but how was he supposed to say that? “It’s ok.” She whispered, standing to her feet. “You have to follow that.” She shrugged, Nate jumped to his feet, “Jenny I’m sorry, really I never meant to do this.” He pleaded with her, expecting her to be more angry. She gave him a watery smile, she kissed his cheek, and left with a simple, “the heart wants what it wants.”

***

It turned from days, to weeks, all the way up to two months since you’d seen Nathan in that parking lot. You were grateful that the time was passing, but at the same time, it would be a lie to say you hadn’t looked him up a time or two on Instagram. He didn’t post much at all, which you were grateful for in a way, worried that seeing him in current time would hurt you more.

Nathan was constantly debating on trying to follow your Instagram, selfishly, he wanted to see you, but he knew you’d simply deny his request. His teammates had noticed his mood shift, and they wanted to be worried, but it was the middle of the season, they wanted him to snap into focus like he always does. Though, they worried it wouldn’t happen.

Caleb was thriving on his small hockey team, playing as a left wing, and doing remarkably well, you were there at every game alongside his parents cheering him on, and he was so thankful that you encouraged him to try this. Ryan was in a particularly clingy phase, always wanting to be with you or next to you, you remember Caleb going through the same thing, you knew it would pass. The twins were in the opposite phase, wanting to do everything themselves, which was a nice relief for a while as they became more self-sufficient. Lucas was now seven months old and crawling everywhere, so it’s safe to say you were always busy.

Nate slammed his hand against his locker wall, furious with himself for missing such an easy goal, what could have been a game winning goal. Erik and Mikko shared a look, the toothless man making his way over to Nate. “I don’t know what’s going on, I don’t know if you want to talk about it, but you have to figure it out.” Erik started off, Nate only nodded, ashamed as he realized his team was suffering because of him. “Remember I told you about that girl, from high school?” Nate mumbled, sitting on the bench with a sigh, Erik followed and nodded. “She was the one at the hockey class.” He whispered, “and I never told you why we stopped talking…”

Erik was shocked, and a little disappointed in Nate’s actions, but he didn’t let him know that. He assured him that he’s grown since then, and he was merely a kid when he made those decisions.

***

It was Friday night, and you had Tracy over for dinner, the two of you growing close as you gossiped about celebrities and some of your off kilter neighbors in the building, you were both a little wine drunk as you giggled at her stories of ex boyfriends. “What about you? What’s your worst ex story?” She asked, wiggling her eyebrows at you. You closed your eyes in thought, but the last true ex you had was back in high school, another failed relationship as you denied your feelings for Nathan. “Did I tell you I know Nathan MacKinnon?” You asked her, all morals going out the window as you had to talk to someone about what has been happening. She choked on her sip of wine, a big Colorado hockey fan, “Nathan MacKinnon?!” She shrieked, “tell me.” She added calmly when you looked at her with a blank face, so she listened as you told her everything, her face going from sad to mad, to sympathetic.

“Oh honey.” She sighed, pulling you in for a hug, “he’s a dick.” She mumbled, making you burst into laughter.

***

Caleb’s birthday just came up, you were in shock that he was turning twelve, looking like such a little man already, you walked into the house like you always do, birthday gift in hand for him. You were surprised to be bombarded by him in a hug, “hey, Caleb.” You laughed, hugging him back, “happy birthday!” You cheered, handing him the bag, he mumbled a quick thank you as he dragged you into the house, “guess what mom and dad got me!” He gasped, jumping up and down as you rubbed your chin in thought, “hmm, I don’t know, what?” You responded, smiling as Ryan ran over to you and hugged your legs. You placed your hand on his back reassuringly as Caleb started talking. “They got me tickets to an Avs game! And they said I can bring whichever two people I want!” He shouted, showing you the tickets, you grinned at his enthusiasm. “That’s super cool!” You gasped, looking at the seats on the tickets, rink side. What it’s like to be rich, you held back a laugh at your thoughts. “Who are you going to take?” You asked the older boy, now being swarmed by his sisters who just woke up and ran downstairs to wish him a happy birthday.

“I want to take you and Ryan!” He said easily, and you froze, eyes shooting over to Darcy and Trent, firstly wanting to make sure they weren’t offended that he chose you over them, but they only smiled. They only cared for hockey if he was playing, so you turned to Ryan who was looking at his older brother in awe, shocked that he wanted to bring him. “I think that would be so fun, thank you bud.” You told him, ruffling his hair up just to make him roll his eyes at you. “What did Y/N get you?” Darcy asked him, subtly reminding him that he didn’t open your present yet, she knew what you got him and she’s been dying to see his reaction. He pulled the custom jersey out of the bag, gasping at his favorite colors and his name on a hockey jersey. “I love it!” He hugged you again, easing any nerves you had, so what if you were going to see Nathan play for the first time in years, if it made Caleb smile that’s all that mattered. Besides, he didn’t know that Nathan was the player you knew.

***

The weekend came faster than you anticipated, and you were swinging by to pick up Caleb and Ryan as you were dressed in an Avs shirt you’d bought to show support at the game, Darcy getting ones for the boys too. They got into the car, both of them talking non stop about how excited they were, and you had to admit that you were just as excited, it’s been too long since you’ve been to a hockey game.

Entering the arena was thrilling, as you walked hand in hand with Ryan, and Caleb right beside him, they were beaming as you followed the signs to your seats, making sure to get there during the warmups so they could have the full experience. You found your seats and let them step up to the glass, being sure to take pictures for Darcy as they stared out in awe. Seeing things through a child’s eyes was always heartwarming.

As the game progressed and all three of you got extremely into it, you were brought right back to your teenage self as Nathan got slammed to the boards, he hoped right back up, but that didn’t make you any less scared. It’s hard to watch. Maybe that hit was why you finally accepted his follow request from weeks ago, and boy would he be ecstatic when he saw that notification after the game. You took a selfie with the boys, posting it with a simple caption,

“I’m his favorite nanny so he brought me ❤️, go Avs!”

***

You and Tracy were laughing to yourselves in the corner of the cafe, sipping on your overpriced coffees and taking bites of muffins that could be better, the door chimed as more people walked in, you glanced up. You did a double take as you locked eyes with Nathan, because of course he’d show up here, Tracy followed your gaze and scowled at him, making him look away. You sighed, seeing him come this way despite the look she gave him. “Can we talk, please.” Nathan sighed, giving you a pleading look, “yeah.” You gave in, lightly nudging Tracy so she’d get up, she huffed, “hurt her and I hurt you, MacKinnon.” She snarled, making his eyes go wide as she trotted off like she hadn’t said anything. You stayed silent, waiting for him to make the first move, “I’m really sorry, I was a dumb kid, I never should have done the things I did.” He explained, his eyes soft as he looked over at you, his heart beating rapidly in his chest as you met his gaze, your eyes a little glossy.

“I shouldn’t have left.” You admitted, he instantly shook his head. “I told you to go, none of this is your fault.” He muttered in defeat, “ok.” You agreed, not wanting to dwell on it so much. “I still have your Mooseheads hoodie.” You whispered, cracking a small smile, he looked up from his hands. “You do?” He nearly snorted, thinking about how he thought he was finally going to kiss you that night, but that didn’t happen. “Yeah, I can’t lie, when I found it I got super mad and shoved it in the corner like a little kid.” You could feel your walls falling down as he looked at you in that way. He always had a certain way that he looked at you, like you were making the world go around. “That’s fair.” He shrugged, “is Caleb like the same Caleb you watched in high school?” Nate asked all of a sudden, not wanting the conversation to die off. You grinned, “you remember?” You gasped, sitting forward against the table. “Of course I remember.” He chuckled, thinking of how many times you’d tell him stories of something new that Caleb started doing. “His parents have been busy.” He muttered, making you laugh, a genuine laugh, and it made your heart grow two sizes. “I can’t complain.” You shrugged, earning a breathy laugh from Nate.

***

Nate asked you to come over later that day, and you were calm about it until you knocked on the door, suddenly thinking about the last time you went knocking on his door, you ended up heartbroken. It was two late to back out as he swung the door open, smile widening at the sight of you. “Hey.” He mumbled, inviting you in. “Hey.” You repeated, feeling your stomach clench as you stepped inside. “How have you been?” He asked, and you swear he muttered under his breath afterwards, “good, you know in the five hours I haven’t seen you.” You teased him lightly, walking further into the apartment, smiling at the minimal decor he had up but whatever was out had some type of meaning. “I ordered pizza.” He told you, following you around as you made yourself at home, “yum.” You giggled softly, giving him a smile, it was so easy to be around him, and that scared you more than anything.

You two began catching up slowly, as you waited for the pizza to arrive, and just when you felt yourself slipping back into how things used to be, you pulled away again. “Uhm, where’s the bathroom?” You asked once the pizza came, he glanced over at the tone in your voice, he told you where it was and watched as you rushed off. He was concerned, but wasn’t sure if he was reading it right, it has been years after all.

You gripped the edge of the counter, staring at yourself in the mirror, wondering what the hell you were even doing in his apartment. Your stomach was tight and your eyes were burning, and all you could hear was how he told you to leave all those years ago.

“I don’t want to see you here.”

“I don’t want to see you again.”

You took a shaky breath, splashing some water on your face, begging yourself to pull it together. You took one more deep breath before opening the door, running your clammy hands over your jeans as you walked back to the living room, where he was waiting with pizza and drinks. You froze, staring at him, Nate furrowed his eyebrows, taking in your appearance, eyes red and a little puffy and that nervous pout on your lips.

“I have to leave.” You blurted out, nearly slapping yourself afterwards, especially considering how your voice shook. Nate jumped to his feet, more concerned with how you said the words but then didn’t move, like your feet were anchored to the floor. “What’s wrong?” He asked carefully. He approached you slowly, still giving you some space, but getting close enough to really see you. “I just – I’m scared.” You admitted, and it felt like an elephant had just climbed off your chest at the omission. “Scared for what?” He asked, keeping his tone level and soft, unsure of what was happening. “Of you, not like of you, but of us being friends again.” You rambled sheepishly, looking away as tears pricked your eyes again. Nate whispered an “oh” as your words hit him, he thought of how much his actions hurt himself, but never of how badly he’d broken your trust. Something you were very particular about.

“Y/N, I’m sorry, I know I’ve said it before but I’ll keep saying it until you believe me.” He murmured, wanting to reach out and grab your hand but he wasn’t sure if that was ok, so for now he kept his hands to himself. “Nate,” you sighed, he internally smiled at you using his nickname again, “you hurt me so bad, you were the only person I could count on and then you did that. It took me months to get over that, and even then I was still scared to trust anyone.” You explained, you didn’t want him to feel bad, but you needed him to know the depths of this. He nodded, looking away as he rubbed a hand over his face as you let some tears fall, “if you cry, I’ll cry, and that won’t be fun for either of us.” He murmured. You cracked a small smile at that, “I have the power to make you cry? You shouldn’t have said that.” You joked lightly, stepping closer to him and hugging his waist, instantly he put his arms around your shoulders.

He was praying you couldn’t hear his heart trying to beat out of his chest.

You could, and yours was doing the same thing.

***

That became a shift in your rebuilding, you two started talking more, and hanging out on his off days if you weren’t watching the kids. He was even giving you pointers on how to help Caleb as you’d often talk to him about the kids. It was going great, you felt like a rejuvenated version of yourself, and his teammates could tell you two had sorted things out as Nate became himself again. Scoring goals and getting points, pushing them closer and closer to a playoff spot.

You and the kids all became avid Avs fans, watching whatever games you could, and today was a special day, as they had an afternoon game so you all huddled around in the living room. They’d begged and begged to change their routine to watch the game with you, so you gave in and had them nap a little earlier and made sure they finished all their schoolwork this morning. And boy, were they ready for this, they got snacks and filled their cups up with juice (a rare occurrence) and cuddled in on the couch, ready to watch this game. Surprisingly, despite how girly the twins are, they loved the rough and tough aspect of hockey, cheering like little men when they would watch the games. You snapped a picture that managed to have all the kids in view, Lucas on your lap, half asleep, Maya and Ryan curled into either side of you, and Bailey snuggled up with Caleb.

Darcy and Trent didn’t mind if you posted photos of them on your Instagram, especially since it was private, so you uploaded the picture, tagging Nate and saying “we’re rooting for you!” You knew he wouldn’t see it until after the game as they were already on ice for warm ups, but it was the thought that counts.

The first period went by with no score, and the second it hit intermission, all the kids were rushing to use the bathroom, you chuckled at their panic, assuring them that there was plenty of time to get settled back in. Lucas had fallen asleep during the relatively calm first period, so you brought him upstairs and placed him in his crib for his afternoon nap, smiling as he sighed in his sleep, tucking his legs underneath himself, already nine months old and growing insanely fast.

Everyone got back into their spots, now the boys were on either side of you and the girls each cuddled with one of them, watching the screen intently. You told them that you had grown up with Nate and they all gasped, being sure to pay extra close attention to him.

You quickly regretted that information as he got slammed into the boards and didn’t jump right back up. Bailey being the most sensitive out of the group, burst into tears, shuffling over to you. “Oh, honey.” You whispered, lifting her up onto your lap, “it’s alright.” You assured her, putting on your strong face as they escorted Nate off the ice, his arm looking like it was just hanging there, ouch. “He’s hurt!” She sobbed out, Maya began to sniffle at her sister's tears, Caleb looked sad, feeling like it was his fault they wanted to watch the game in the first place. Maya crawled over to you, hugging you and Bailey together. “Alright, I think that’s enough of the game for one day.” You sighed, the boys agreed, feeling protective over the twins. “Maya, Bails, why don’t we make cards for Nate, that will make him feel better.” Caleb offered, trying to ease their pain.

In that moment, you realized that he was really growing up, because he gave you a look that said, you don’t really have to give these to him. “I think he’d love that very much.” You told them when they looked up at you expectantly, the girls smiled at that, rushing off to get all their craft supplies, Ryan following as he wanted to make a card too. Caleb got up to follow them, participating to make them feel better. “Hey, Caleb.” You called, making him stop, he looked at you with raised eyebrows, “I am going to give these to him, so you better pull out all the stops,” you teased, before adding, “I’m proud of you, you’re a great big brother.” You tousled his hair, laughing when he groaned at your actions. “Thanks.” He mumbled giving you a quick hug, those were far and few between as he hit the stage of not showing affection, so that’s cherished the quick moment before the kids came out with all sorts of supplies.

“How ya feeling?” You texted Nate later that day, loading into your car for the weekend ahead, making sure you had everyone’s cards.

“Like my shoulder was separated.” Came his sarcastic reply.

“Well, I’m coming over, I’ve got something for you.”

He sent some question marks at that, impatiently waiting for you to show up at his apartment.

Once you did, you walked right in, knowing he’d have the door unlocked for you. You held a stack of brightly colored construction paper cards, giggling when he saw them in your hands and made a face. “The kids and I were watching the game, so the girls got really upset when you got hurt. Caleb said we should make you cards, so we did, even Lucas.” You explained, thinking of how you let him scribble blindly on the paper, giggling to himself every time you had to stop him from drawing on the table. Nate sat up on the couch as you sat beside him, looking over his wrapped up shoulder. “Really?” He asked, taking the papers from you, smiling as he began looking through them. The handwriting was sloppy in most of them, and he could tell which were the girls as they had glitter randomly glued to them. But yours was his favorite.

“Thanks, Y/N.” He whispered, giving you a one armed hug, you pecked his cheek, “of course.” You sighed, seeing the way his skin turned pink at your actions. “Scared me too.” You admitted, thinking of the way your heart clenched in your chest when he slammed down. “M’sorry.” He mumbled, kissing the top of your head.

***

That was a couple months ago, and now it was off season, you were dreading this, knowing he was going to be gone for a while to visit family. You two had grown closer than you were before, maybe it’s because you were older, you two were less shy about your feelings, straight up telling each other how you feel. That being said, nothing was official though, sure, you kissed, and went out, but it was never a clear “we’re dating” situation. So you tried to keep a level head as you sat on his bed, watching him pack for his trip home. “What’s wrong?” Nate asked, walking over to you, studying the furrowed look on your face. “I’m going to miss you.” You whispered, you had a couple weeks off during the summer, as they were going out of town for a nice vacation, but Nate wouldn’t be here when you got your time off. “I’m gonna miss you.” He assured you, grabbing your hand. “Why don’t you come up to visit when you get your time off?” He offered, surprising you, “really?” You gasped at him.

He chuckled heartily at your shock, “yeah, my parents have been dying to meet this girl I’ve been seeing.” He mumbled, grinning when you whipped around to face him, “you told them about me?” You asked, looking him over for any signs of this being a cruel joke. “Didn't tell them it was you, wanted to surprise them.” He laughed, “but they probably see it coming, you’ve always been my girl.” He shrugged, as if what he said wasn’t profound, he went to go back to packing but you grabbed his hand, tugging him back to the bed.

“I can’t get much done if–“ you cut him off with a slow kiss, sliding your hands into his hair as he sighed against your lips. “I’m your girl?” You asked when you pulled away, knocking him from his daze. “Of course you are, even when you weren’t, you were. It’s always been you.” He explained sheepishly, raising his eyebrows as you stared at him, “I love you, Nate.” You murmured, keeping your eyes locked on his. “I love you.” He repeated easily, “should’ve let me say it first though.” He added as pulled you in for another kiss.

Taglist: @boqvistsbabe @tortito @2manytabsopen @heybarzy @barzysreputation @yzas-stuff @iwantahockeyhimbo @frederikanderson @bb-nhlqueen7 @i-am-a-lost-girl16 @mikkothemoose @avsandflyboys @fallinallincurls @brandonbagel

[tarosin]

the great adventures of y/n ranboo, tommy tubbo and jack - just come home

this is an extra part to the great adventures series

summary: part three to the happier imagine (the great adventures of y/n and ranboo) this is where the group reunites

content warning: angst to fluff, small mention of creepy fan,swearing

please read what’s written in bold

this is an “alternative ending” around 16-18 years into the future this doesn’t mean this is actually how the series is going to end im writing it now and including it as part of series as their friendship is already established i can confirm y/n and the group are going to have a happy ending when the series eventually comes to an end this also does not mean the series is anywhere near the end i plan on continuing the series as vlogs come out, i feel the need to confirm this now love between y/n and the others (especially ranboo) in this imagine is completely platonic

so turns out moving house didn’t stop the creepy fan from contacting you neither did blocking every account they made as they began contacting your mods, your business email, they even started spamming ranboos dms, mods and business email and now you had the stress of Tommy trying to contact you. at this point neither you nor ranboo knew what to do, you were both convinced it was a troll trying to scare you both with jokes but the joke wasn’t funny. it never was, to say the least, it was horrifying. you stood with ranboo who was now changing the locks just to keep you safe, it was clear the fan didn’t know your new address as rather than sending you your address (as though you had suddenly forgotten where you lived) like last time it was just random messages trying to psych you both out. your phone buzzed again making ranboo jump you dreaded looking at the notification but you did it anyway

Tommy: y/n I’m serious please can we talk..tubbo and jack aren’t the same without you. I miss you

“anything important y/n?”

“no nothing to worry about”

“you’ve not been acting like yourself since the last stream are you sure you’re okay you know It's not your fault don’t blame yourself for whatever’s upsetting you I’m here for you I love you”

“I know boo I know, i love you too”

later that night you had to quickly end your stream despite to fact you had only been streaming 30 minutes as ranboo was arguing with someone the only reason you knew it was serious was because he was shouting back at the person, you had never heard him so angry and you’ve been friends with him for at least 16 years.

“okay chat that’s gonna be the stream for today…I forgot I have something to do I’m not going to raid anyone on here however tech is live on youtube for the first time in ages so I do recommend you go and check out what he’s doing good morning or good night I’ll see you soon”

as soon as you ended the stream you made your way to the room ranboo was in that's when you overheard tubbo arguing with ranboo

“oh good for you ranboo you're getting everything you want I mean you and y/n moved on easily the two of you bought a new house you both look happy and don't get me started on your career's taking off”

“goodbye tubbo”

ranboo left the call and opened the door

“oh boo”

you instantly pulled him into a hug, it was an extremely stressful time for the pair of you and you understood how painful it is arguing with someone who was once your best friend. every night the memory of Tommy blaming you for things that were out of your control and jack telling you to get out of the car haunted you however nothing compared to the way tubbo looked at you when you finally got home that night. he looked at you as though he never cared about the friendship the pair of you shared. of course, you never told ranboo about it keeping you up at night but he wasn’t stupid he knows you were still hurting even if it had been years since the fallouts happened

“why..why are they trying to get in contact again I was starting to feel like myself again”

“I don’t know…come lie with me on the couch for a while we can talk about anything you want”

the pair of you laid on the couch talking about what was going on and reasons why it was happening. ranboo decided he’d forgive the others if they contact him again however you were not as forgiving as they hurt you and your friend. eventually, his crying came to an end and he fell asleep holding onto you. you were falling asleep yourself until your phone buzzed.

Tommy: look y/n why don’t we all meet again, just come home

y/n: I am home I moved into a lovely house with ranboo and I sold the ‘home’ you’re talking about, now please stop contacting me tom I don’t want in my life anymore not only did you hurt me but you also hurt ranboo

Tommy: fine talk to tubbo

y/n: don’t add him...

*tubbo has been added to the group*

tubbo: hi y/n

y/n: you have 5 minutes to explain why you made ranboo cry.

tubbo: I don’t know what you mean

y/n: do you think you’re funny because oh boy do I have news for you.

Tommy: please just meet us one last time you can even bring ranboo

y/n: I was bringing ranboo anyway

tubbo: can I bring jack

Tommy: yes, see you where we always used to meet

y/n: ight see you Saturday

tubbo: see you Saturday I love you

y/n: please don’t say you love me tubbo. if you did we wouldn’t be in this situation.

you spent the rest of the night messing with ranboos hair you ended up accidentally waking him up however he pretended to be asleep before you could notice he was no longer asleep as he didn’t want this moment to end. however, you did occasionally hear him laugh quietly to himself

“Are you awake or am I hearing things”

he decided there was no point in lying as you were already questioning if he was awake and he was struggling to hold back his laughter so responded by tapping your waist signalling to you he was awake

“great..bad news we have to meet Tommy jack and tubbo on Saturday”

you watched as he quickly opened his eyes looking at you as though you had told him the best news ever

“heh?! actually? are you actually being serious right now”

“Unfortunately I am”

noticing you were unhappy about it he pulled you closer to him and spent the rest of the night explaining why it won’t be as bad as you’re expecting it to be and how it might actually be a good thing after all. a couple of hours later you fell asleep feeling a lot more comfortable with what was happening on Saturday ranboo fell asleep not long after, proud of his achievement. the days flew by, it was finally Saturday and you had mixed feelings about it, on one hand, you were somewhat excited about meeting them but on the other hand, you weren’t sure you were ready for them to enter your life again.

“I'm ill sorry ranboo you’ll have to go on your own”

“wowww real mature making me go all on my own…I thought we were best friends”

“I know you’re joking but I’d feel bad making you go alone give me five minutes and then I’ll be ready to go”

“here”

ranboo decided to throw one of his hoodies at you so you had something to wear that made you feel safe as he understood how overwhelming it’ll be to meet them again, five minutes later you got into the passenger's seat next to ranboo

“not feeling like driving hey”

“I will purposely drive around in circles to avoid meeting them”

“heh…are you okay are you actually okay seeing them, I don’t mind letting you stay home”

“I'm fine boo honestly now let’s go”

once you made it and began walking to meet them ranboo grabbed your hand. the only reason he ended up letting go was to talk to the others since Tommy pulled you into a tight hug not wanting to let you go the moment he saw the pair of you

“y/n I’m so sorry”

“I'm sorry too..”

Tommy spent a good few minutes frantically apologising to you for what happened and how he didn’t mean any of it. he was halfway through his speech about how he’s learned from his mistakes when tubbo spoke up.

“Tommy doesn’t keep y/n to yourself”

“sorry tubso”

you looked at tubbo not knowing what to say, it was evident that the pair of you were still hurt, he reached into his pocket grabbing a rock he found on the beach the other day

“here I found it the other day it reminded me of you”

“thank you I love it”

ranboo stood behind you wrapping an arm around you as he noticed you were starting to get upset. tubbo couldn’t believe how much you and ranboo had changed over the past years and it hurt him how close the pair of you had grown and the promise rings you and ranboo were currently wearing left him questioning whether that could have been him if he didn’t leave you both when it was clear you both needed him. jack spoke up next.

“hey, y/n..”

“nice to see you’re still bald manifold”

“Nice to see you haven’t changed. I’m sorry for what happened it hurt to see you go I was kind of hoping that you'd stay”

“oh jack it’s okay you were just trying to lighten up the situation I'm sorry I was so harsh”

a few months later the five of you were slowly but surely mending your friendship you all knew it would be difficult and take a long time to get back to how it was in the past but it would all be worth it

around a year since you met up again the five of you were closer than ever you were all streaming together again, constantly filming vlogs as a group. safe to say the wait was worth it, however, you and ranboo always wearing the promise rings you got for each still hurt tubbo

taglist

@milkydisaster @dumb-chaotic-bi-energy @uselesssapphickitten @l0ver0fj0y @etheriaaly @xx-smiley-xx @hawarun @kylobensgirl @cawcaw-pretty-thing @reverse-iak @renleicrashed @augustine-is-joy @c1loudee

[bwoahtastic]

Hi this scene has been living rent free in my head so now its yours too k thanks

“Papa…” Noah’s little voice caught Daniel’s attention as he made a post workout shake, and instantly he scooped the little one up in his arms, settling him on the kitchen counter beside him and handing him a strawberry to nibble on. “What’s up little pup?” Noah held the strawberry in his little hand a moment, thinking for a long moment and Daniel knew he wasn’t himself, especially when he looked up at him with a trembling lip and wide eyes shiny with tears. “Hey, hey,” Daniel soothed, taking Noah back in his arms and cuddling him close, noticing the little pup didn’t snuggle into him as he usually would if he was upset. “You wanna tell me what’s made you sad?” Daniel asked, running a hand through his hair.

“Meymey is having the tiny puppups soon,” Noah said sadly, bottom lip still wobbling away as she spoke. “And they’re your babies, and I don’t want you to not be my Papa anymore!” Daniel sighed deep and let Noah cry in his arms a moment before explaining. He was five, and was having a lot of emotions for someone of his size as Max’s pregnancy progressed and it wasn’t long until his and Daniel’s twins would be born. Sure, Sophie had come along two years ago and Noah was the perfect big brother, but this was different. Whilst Daniel considered Noah and Sophie his babies anyways, the truth is he wasn’t their biological father. Of course, he loved all four of them no differently and no matter what happened, but it was making Noah nervous as the days approached. “Noah honey, look at me,” Daniel asked gently, waiting until Noah met his eyes before continuing. “I promise you I will always be your Papa, okay? No matter what happens, whether Meymey and I have more babies or not, when you grow up and have a family of your own, you will always be my baby Noah and I will always be your Papa, okay? Sophie and you are my babies, just like the tiny puppups.” Noah nodded a little bit but kept pouting. “Do me and Sophie still get to live here? Grandpapa used to tell Meymey if I was naughty we’d have to go away so he could have a better baby.” Honestly, when Daniel met this Grandpapa he was planning to tear him limb from limb. “Of course not,” he promised Noah. “You and Sophie and Meymey and tiny puppups can live here forever and ever.” “Forever and ever,” Noah murmured back, finally nibbling on the strawberry slightly. Daniel placed him back on the counter to carry on cutting up fruits, handing Noah a few more strawberries and raspberries as he went and adding a few more to make Noah a little shake of his own. “Can I still call you Papa?” Noah asked after a long moment, lips now stained red by berry juice which had dripped onto his shirt too. “Do you want to still call me Papa?” “Yes! Because you are my Papa too, but you are Papa to tiny puppups more, right?” “No sweetie, I’m Papa to you all,” Daniel reassured him, mopping at his chin with a paper towel as Noah continued messily eating berries with a little grin. “How about I make you a little shake too, but with ice cream and berries?” “Please!” Noah smiled happily, eyes no longer sad but excited at the prospect of day time ice cream. “Okay little pup,” Daniel giggled, pressing a kiss to Noah’s head as he continued working. “But you promise me not to tell Meymey or Sophie, okay? Cause Meymey will want ice cream again.” “Promise!” Noah said sternly, trying to cross his little fingers over one another to make a promise signal to Daniel. “Love you little pup,” Daniel promised, fetching the ice cream from the freezer and smearing a little spot onto the end of Noah’s nose. “Oh its cold!” Noah squealed, and Daniel hadn’t heard such a sweet sound, finally setting him on the ground with his milkshake and a straw, wondering what he had ever done to deserve such a sweet family in his life.

[aetheternity]

I have a request

Levi's wife y/n and 4 or 5 year old son get kidnapped by kenny and the military police. They get taken to the crystal cave with eren and historia. So when levi comes to save them he is livid and is quickly taking down every mp in his way. Luckily both y/n and her son make it out safely with levi and his squad.

Levi, y/n, and their son have a soft moment and they all hug and give kisses 😚😚😚 and day squad teases them

(I added my own little spin to this where Y/N is playfully argumentative and sometimes wild with Levi. Hope that's ok! I also thought it would be cute if Levi and Y/N’s son was named after Levi’s late friend Farlen.)

"We have more than just Historia and Eren now." Levi grunted, facing Hange. "My son and Y/N were taken as well."

"We can't wait then. We'll leave as soon as possible."

Levi squeezed the paper Hange had given him earlier in his grasp as his squad whooped and hollered behind him. Kenny probably wouldn't kill them, they were insurance after all. Which was that much worse for Levi.

He already knew if he didn't manage to calm himself before they got to Kenny he would lash out recklessly. The one thing he'd told his wife and son to never allow themselves to do.

~~~~

"Oi." Levi stepped closer, concern etched onto his face. His eyebrows scrunched where he looked into his wife's eyes. "If you continue moping around our child's health will be at risk and yours. The doctor already told you that."

She turned, eyes narrowed and lips tight where they were pulled into a frown. "What else am I supposed to feel? The father of my baby is running around dodging death. Am I supposed to be happy Levi?"

Levi rolled his eyes, his hand already coming up to the bridge of his nose in expectation for the upcoming brawl of sorts. "I'll be alive for the birth of our son."

"Will you though?" She stepped closer, challenge rising in her tone and eyes.

"I'm not leaving you or the soon to be kid we've made. And you already know that." He fought back. "I'd sooner go back to the underground."

Her hands ran up to his collar tugging him closer. And he let her, let every bit of fury trapped beneath those stone cold eyes run over his spine like a flash of lightning all with the same neutral expression.

"I'm so serious you wouldn't even believe. If you don't come back one of these days and I have to raise this baby all on my own. I'm gonna bring you back to life just so I can kill you again. Do you hear me Levi Ackerman?"

Levi let out a little huff and a small smirk ran over his lips. She let him go and he straightened out his collar. "You get scarier everyday." He remarked "Way scarier than any damn titan."

He grabbed her wrist, pulling her down the mostly empty corridor. "You saw the doctor again today right? Tell me what happened."

"We've got a healthy Ackerman on our hands. He's grown bigger than he's supposed to be at this stage actually." She smiled softly as she placed a hand on her belly. "Probably cause he has your blood."

"Tch, moron. He's already his mother. Constantly kicking every time I touch your belly. He's gonna be a brat just like you."

"I hope he gets my height and not yours."

"For his sake your height instead of your mouth would be good."

"My mouth has gotten you through many long nights so I wouldn't complain if I were you."

Levi playfully rolled his eyes as Y/N's soft laugh filled the corridor. Her eyes shining brighter than they had her whole pregnancy. It was weird Levi had always heard about new parents being scared but he barely was.

When he'd found out he'd been more surprised than anything but he'd barely even had the time to over analyze the situation until that night. This unbelievably wild girl was the mother of his child. What more could he want.

Fear did dawn on him. Knowing he'd have something new in this world that needed his protection. Something so precious and small to protect. But another part of him knew that kid would be safer if he got his mother's fighting spirit.

"Hey, you better not be thinking about other girls." Y/N huffed as she poked at Levi's forehead.

Levi grabbed her finger. "Dumbass, no one else would be able to handle you if I left."

"Just sounds like you're making excuses so that you don't have to tell me, you adore me and could never find anyone else who brings you this much joy."

"No." That barely even scratched the surface..

~~~~

"Do you have a location on them?" Hange asked

"There're a whole bunch of military police and Kenny's squad is surrounding the entire area. But no sign of Kenny himself or any of the people who were taken." Sasha replied

Levi huffed, brain not wanting to retreat to the worst possible scenario. Besides the conversation currently developing in front of him there was a sort of quiet drifting in the atmosphere.

"We have a plan right?" Armin suddenly asked

And Hange nodded, "You're gonna need these." Her hands clasped around the cool metal of the signal flares.

"Signal flares??" Jean stared in disbelief

"Don't worry, we're getting out of here alive hostages and all." Hange stated before turning to Levi. "They're ok."

Levi blinked, slowly but surely uncurling his fists. He looked around to the others their faces a mix of concern and in certain cases glee. But they all had the same sentiment.

"Put the plan into motion." Levi stood

~~~~

It went surprisingly quickly. From the barrels they'd deployed to the signal flares being shot off. Sasha and Mikasa taking out the military police like no one's business but Levi could already feel his Ackerman rage growing.

Where the hell was Kenny? He thought.

His question was soon answered when a bullet flew past his cheek immediately drawing blood. The next bullet striking an ice pillar with a hard crack as he ducked for cover behind it.

Levi paused repositioning himself to jump and land behind one another of the thick pillars searching for the source of the bullets. "Where the hell are they?" He grunted voice raspy, thick and loud where he called to the only person that would be behind this.

Kenny's laugh was boisterous, heavy where it bounced between each pillar. The amount of sweat that had collected on Levi's palms had his weapon slippery in his grip and the vein in his forehead was close to popping.

"I think you have other things here you should be concerning yourself with."

In the blink of an eye Levi's head shot backwards, Jean's scream mixed with the heart shattering sound of Hange hitting one of the pillars caught his attention. A bullet releasing her blood as she slipped and rolled over against the ground like a discarded toy.

"Tch!"

"Levi! Oi you should be worried about me. After all. Your little family dies by my call!"

If Levi was boiling before his blood was erupting now. With incredible skill and speed he bounced his way around the pillars dodging each bullet as Kenny shot them out. His agility raised as he flipped over Kenny's form and behind him. In an instant Levi was tossing a bag full of flammable liquid in time to meet his next shot.

When the bag tore open Levi flew forward, through burning flames created by Kenny's gun tossing his blade. The motion caught Kenny off guard but he managed to dodge it, his hat flying off into a nearby pillar along with Levi's blade to hold it up there.

Levi's heart was hammering taking the advantage he'd managed to get he flew at Kenny with incredible speed slicing through his torso almost like it was butter. In the heat of adrenaline Levi watched as Kenny's body fell to the ground of the cool cavern.

He landed with a hard breath before retracting the odm gears hooks. He couldn't wait any longer. He couldn't stop himself from running forward no matter how stupid and dangerous it was.

He heard bits and pieces of speech behind him. "Follow Captain!" And "Wait, hold on!" But none of it stopped his feet.

He skidded in his pace as he heard soft calls of, "Dad! Dad!"

And he was immediately headed for it. A bit of relief flooding his chest as he heard the faint sounds of odm gear clanging behind him. His squad clearly keeping good pace.

When he arrived he instantly locked eyes with his five year old son and wife.

"Dad!" Farlen's voice echoed. He didn't look injured from what Levi could tell and neither did Y/N. Farlen's hair tosseled as if he'd merely been running outside.

"Where are Historia and Eren?!" Mikasa called as she ran up behind Levi.

"Guys!" Historia's voice boomed. She slunk forward barely supporting Eren's weight. His shirt gone and his face covered in blood.

Levi quickly ran to untie Y/N and Farlen immediately embracing Farlen when he jumped into his arms. If he were any other kid Levi would probably be questioning why he hadn't shit his pants and why his face was tearless. But he definitely wasn't any other five year old.

"Geez, you guys took forever." Y/N remarked, stretching her hands above her head. "I was about to wreck all these Military brats butts for you." She said with a smirk at Levi.

Levi huffed, rubbing his son's back. "Next time you can save yourself then." He remarked giving Farlen a soft head rub.

"Ugggh Mom.. Dad not now.." he sighed

"There won't be a next time!" Y/N fought back. "I'll never get caught up like that again."

"Tch, whatever."

"Are you challenging me Mr. Ackerman?"

"You're a brat, Ms. Ackerman."

"How about I show you how much of a brat I can really be?" She chuckled with a dark smile etching over her features. She pulled him closer, hugging his and Farlen's form with a firm hand on Levi's lower back.

"Don't start something you can't finish." Levi whispered back.

"Ewwwwww.." Farlen mock gagged between them.

Y/N just laughed loudly. "You'll understand when you have someone you love to hate, Farlen."

"Yeah.. I'm with Farlen. That's eww." Connie remarked with a shake of his head.

The others soon joined in with their own little laughs and teasing words. "I can't believe how soft Captain can be." And "They're such a cute family I hope I get that some day."

Levi repositioned Farlen on one arm ignoring all the chatter. Though his cheeks bloomed a rosy color that was extremely unmistakable "Historia, where's your father?"

"He escaped before you guys got here. He's headed toward the wall." She replied

"We've gotta hurry then."

(I'm so sick of people on the internet rn I swear🙄)

[embrassemoi]

𝐒𝐮𝐫𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐝 𝐛𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐌𝐨𝐨𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐬

Pairings: Sirius B, F!Reader, Remus L    Content: swearing, angst, no proofreading, filler? A/N: i hope your week has been great so far xx

【 Masterlist | Previous Chapter | ao3 】

Chapter 35 ✷ Picture’s Up

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James couldn't recall a time where he felt so drained.

He didn’t even think there was a word to encapsulate just how drained he really felt. Every day, there was a wariness that sunk and immersed itself so deeply within his bones that made it feel like he could hardly breathe.

Day by day, it felt like a part of his sanity was cracking.

Enervated, drowsy, exhausted, knackered, dead on his own two feet… he could go on.

Prefect duties were as dreadful as Remus had said they were and James regretted every time he ever made fun of him for it. It was miserable and karma never hit him harder. Monitoring detentions and rounds were tedious, the tests he had to grade were mind-numbingly boring; all forcing him to lose the little sleep he had.

And then there were the loads of Quidditch practices that once were fun, a way for him to exert his remarkable supply of energy, only became a bit of a nuisance with the overwhelming activities he was forced to juggle.

Working around Moony’s moon cycle...

And then there was the fucking Black family.

The mere mention of their names sent James into a spiral. He’d rather submerge himself into the Black lake and let the giant squid ink all over him than deal with them. But there he was.

He debated for a while, whether or not to tell Black about Regulus but refrained. He was far too stubborn to listen and could make matters worse.

James sighed, leaning into the couch in the common room, running his fingers through his hair.

“Potter.” The ring of Lily’s voice sounded through his ears. James turned around to look at her, feeling his heart accelerate.

“Evans,” he greeted.

“We have rounds in a bit. Don’t be late.”

James simply nodded, not having enough energy to put on a front.

And of course Lily noticed. She noticed his frazzled appearance and lack of energy. There was hardly any banter between them and Lily would’ve thought it was a miracle that his annoying self had vanished, replaced with timorous energy. But if anything, it was disquieting.

She bit the inside of her cheek, forcing out, “Hey, you alright?”

He gave a little audible sound in response. “Yeah. I’ll be there. I just need to make a few arrangements quickly. Meet you by the... Prefects’ bathroom?”

Lily considered him.

“... See you.”

James made his way out of the common room, slipping out the Marauder’s Map. He’d been tracking Regulus’ movements for the past few days now and the only person he went to was Y/N for any substantial amount of time.

He truly had no one else and it ruled out any potential bullying.

Walburga and Orion… Their treatment towards him shocked James. Golden boy Regulus, who would’ve thought?

But even with the Marauder’s Map, it was impossible to keep track of him. He never stayed in one spot long enough to catch, aside from the dungeons and Slytherin common room.

Everything regarding Regulus’ situation forced James to think strenuously. If he were to accidentally say too much of what Whiskers had told him, not only would Regulus close himself off to him, but to her too, leaving them with no clue of his well-being.

And it forced him to worry about Whiskers. She didn’t know what she's getting herself into… What if Walburga and Orion caught word of their friendship?

James shuddered, pushing away the thought. He didn’t want to think about what would happen to either of them.

He continued to watch Regulus’ name travel across the map before ascertaining he was close. He tapped on the map, muttering out ‘Mischief managed’ whilst bolting down the hallways. Each twist and turn exhilarated a nervous adrenaline thumping through his veins as he rehearsed a little speech inside his head.

Before Regulus had time to process what was happening, James had already yanked him back, disappearing into one of the secret passageways.

“What the — Potter?!” He squawked. Pushing him away, James saw the pure panic washed over his features through the shadows.

“I know we don’t have much time,” James rushed, “But hear me out.”

He made no attempt to move but looked around for other students.

“You’ll always have a home with me,” James said easily as if it was the most obvious answer. “With Bla — Sirius — living with me, you’re more than welcome to as well. I understand your situation and —”

“No,” Regulus leered, “I can’t.”

“You can’t or you won’t?” James challenged before easing up. “My family and I are more than willing to protect you, like how we’ve been doing for Sirius.”

And then it stayed silent for a while and he finally let himself take in his appearance.

“Regulus, what happened to you?”

Regulus’ head hung. “All I wanted was to have long hair.”

And then it clicked for James, but he was running out of things to say that were convincing and felt a familiar panic return.

“You miss him, right?” He tried. “I know he misses you. If maybe —”

But when Regulus’ mood suddenly changed, James knew instantly that he had miscalculated.

“Miss me?” Regulus laughed bitterly. “He doesn’t miss me and he has never considered me his brother. You, Lupin, Pettigrew — you’re his brothers.”

He could see the misty tears welding up in Regulus’ eyes and didn’t make a move to stop him when he stormed out from the passageway.

Once Regulus was free from James, he sprinted, blinking multiple times to prevent tears from seeping out. An ache burned inside his chest as he found himself diving into his bed, pulling the curtains shut.

Those unforgettable questions that plagued his mind for a year now played heavily in his mind, like his own personal film.

What made someone good or bad? What did he believe in? Was he strong enough to break from his mould or did he want to? And most importantly, what was he willing to do?

Blood purity…

Regulus closed his eyes. He wished life was a dress rehearsal and there were times to make mistakes and have do-overs without permanent repercussions. To get time to practice and refine life until he explored every avenue. Unfortunately, life had no room for anything but the final performance. Every stumble, every mishap or memory slip was presented to a live audience day by day.

Reopening his eyes, he had his answer.

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A few weeks went by and September was coming to a close. October came with beautiful colours and a chilly breeze.

It felt like every day, Y/N added another reason to be disgruntled and hateful onto her list. It had been a month since she’d last seen her mother and she refrained from sending any letters; waiting patiently to see if she would make the first move.

Nothing.

It was safe to say that it put her into a bad mood that morning.

The walk to Defence Against the Dark Arts with Lily was a quiet one and slightly uncomfortable. However, the uncomfortable bit was more on Lily’s end rather than Y/N who was too wrapped in her anger-induced thoughts.

These days, their lessons were almost exclusively in the Duelling room, filled with practical lessons. Especially today, she was beyond thankful for; eager to have an outlet.

But Professor Elway was unusually keen on inviting her to the Duelling sessions. She was almost as difficult as dodging Slughorn’s Slugclub invites. Luckily, Y/N liked Elway and duelling was electrifying. Even potion making, no matter how much she enjoyed it, was lengthy and mundane.

Mentioning their professor, she wasn’t there that morning when they arrived outside the Duelling room. The students lounged outside the door, taking out their books and wand while they waited.

Remus found himself drifting to her as they quietly chatted away.

“Like your sweater,” she said. In the background, she could hear Marlene and James yelling, “It’s a jumper!”

Remus smiled. “This old thing?” Pointing to the sweater that she knitted. They both giggled a bit; Remus leaned slightly against her, eyes lingering a beat.

“Sorry, I’m late!” Elway called out to them in a dreamy voice. “Everyone, follow me!”

Puzzled, the class looked at each other as they followed their professor away from the dungeons. While they walked, rude and unbearable, Peeves the Poltergeist floated upside down. Once he spotted Remus, he immediately drifted up to him, opening his mouth, no doubt about to hurl all sorts of names or songs at him.

Remus hardly looked at him, already taking out his wand and said lazily, “Waddiwasi!” at Peeves.

A wad of gum shot out from nowhere and landed directly on Peeves before he whirled back from Remus, spewing curses at him.

“Nice one! Ought to teach me that later!” “Almost feel bad for the bloke!” Both James and Peter said at the same time.

Elway had led them outside to a desolate area, free from a canopy of branches and leaves.

“Now, my pupils!” She sang. “You might be wondering, ‘what are we doing out here?’ Lucky for you, we’re going to be practicing a few spells and learning how to fight using other means during duels.”

Like most of the class, Emmeline was ​skeptical as she raised her hand. “I thought we weren’t supposed to use physical means during duels?”

“Precisely,” said Elway, walking back and forth in front of the class. “Couldn't have said it better myself. But you know who won’t give a damn?”

There was a long pause for effect.

“Your enemies.” She clapped her hands together. “Now, can anyone give us some ideas? How about… Miss L/N?”

Blinking a few times, she hesitated, not expecting to be called on. “Er — you can… take them from the legs?”

“Wonderful idea! I’m thrilled you said that! Does anyone else want to add on?”

Remus raised his hand, answering politely. “Using your arms — stretching them.”

Professor Elway nodded away happily. “Wonderful answer! Take five points! Like Remus said, stretching your arms out or boarding your shoulders, spacing out your legs can widen your defence range! Why don’t we try?”

She called Remus up first and Y/N could tell he was slightly nervous. He doubled down, making himself seem smaller by hunching over and made sure not to accidentally hurt their professor.

A couple of Hufflepuffs, Slytherins and then James, Marlene and Lily all tried; mimicking Elway as she let them knock her over.

“Most importantly,” Elway said, dusting off her robes free from leaves and dirt. She panted a bit, tired from being knocked down multiple times. “Never let the enemy strike first. You all did fantastically!

“Obviously, in any professional setting, you’ll be disqualified if you ever tried to physically attack your opponent. But you can still play dirty in a duel!

“The charm Obscuro has been helpful on several occasions. It blindfolds your opponent. Please repeat after me: Ob-SKOO-roh!”

“Obscuro!”

“Excellent!” Elway gave a little applause, filled with glee. “Another spell that I love is the Confundus charm. Y/N! May you please explain to us the purpose of the Confundus charm?”

“She’s calling on you an awful lot,” Lily muttered.

She nodded a bit. “It confuses your oppent. The varying degree depends on how much magic is put into the initial casting.”

“Perfect! Five points to Gryffindor. If you will tell me about Incendio.”

As she spoke, there was almost a switch that went off in Elway that made her incessantly happy that almost unnerved her.

“Beautiful! Now if you may, help demonstrate the spell?”

“I don’t want to hurt —”

“Trust me, you won’t.”

Then, Y/N felt a deep lurch of fear as everyone retreated against the trees, giving her a clear view of Professor Elway opposed to her, waiting to block her spell.

She took a deep breath in, pushing up the sleeves of her robes, she held her wand.

Professor Elway had a protective spell around her. “One, two, three — now!”

“Incendio!” Only meek sparks shot out of her wand. A few students snickered while her friends were seen trying to drown them out by clapping.

“That was amazing!” Peter called out.

“I wouldn’t be able to do that on the first go!” Marlene shouted.

“That was good! Try again! One, two, three — go!”

“Incendio!” Nothing noteworthy happened. It was embarrassing.

“It’s alright, try again!” Elway said, not letting her go yet. “Think about something that’s motivating!”

Y/N closed her eyes, inhaling deeply and pondered. What was motivating to her? Surely, the want to continue with magic after school was motivating. Or perhaps proving someone wrong?

Proving someone wrong…

She had a lot to prove to her mother.

Instead of her being motivated, a flicker of annoyance and anger flooded her instead. Sensing the change, Elway beamed, her wand held high.

“One —”

Her mother always prioritized everyone and everything above her —

“Two —”

Was never there when it mattered —

“Three —”

There was never much affection. The constant want to please, the low self-esteem made her feel worthless, unloveable, always wanting to run when she got too close — she caused it —

“Now!”

“Incendio!” She bellowed.

A loud crack rippled through the air and caused her to stumble back. A large blast of orange and red flames shot out from her wand. Scorching heat flooded out, causing all the students to jump back as Elway shot waves of water, extinguishing the flames at once. As angry as she had been, glee and pure enjoyment replaced that quickly.

Once the bell rang, the students gathered up their belongings, leaving for their next class. But Elway took a moment, calling out her name, asking that she stay back for a few moments.

James and Lily staggered behind, offering to wait as they talked quietly under one of the willow trees.

They were so civil these days…

“I would’ve offered you a cup of tea,” Elway spoke as she approached her. Her foot tapped against the ground, her eyes far-away, thinking thoughtfully with a sly smirk. “Has anyone told you that you would make for an excellent, excellent duellist?”

Her eyebrows raised and shook her head.

That only prompted her teacher to smirk, in a satisfied sort of way. “You’re exceptionally strong for someone with no experience.”

There was a smug tone to Elway’s voice and she couldn’t quite place what she was getting at.

“Did you know that any professional duellist would kill for your wand? Or even the slight edge you have against them with your talent?”

“Erm… no?” Y/N said. She wondered if Elway needed glasses because surely, she wasn’t referring to herself. “Professor… are you sure you’re talking to the right student?”

She laughed so hard that she had to clutch her stomach tightly. She ignored her question. “My dear, do you have any ideas of what you want to be when you’re older?”

“Not really.”

“I have a proposition for you,” she beamed, flicking her long blonde, almost silver hair out of the way. “Let me take you under my wing, make you into a proper duellist.”

Y/N blinked. She didn’t know what to say and stood there with her mouth gaped.

“Yes, you heard that correctly.” Professor Elway teased. “I’d love to mentor you.”

She sputtered, positively confused and flustered. “I’m not at the top of the class, I struggle with Charms, I’ve never had a huge interest in it — I don’t know the first thing about duelling!”

“That’s what I’m here for, no? And your skill is exceptional and I know a duellist when I see one. You’ve shown the last few lessons that you’re capable of casting very strong spells.

“And do you know what separates a duellist from the masses? Energy, emotions and power. What changed when I told you to think about something motivating? A powerful Duellist may only be out of sheer power and brunt force, but a well-rounded Duellist listens to every part of their body. Their wand, their heart, the emotions that cause them to fight.”

“But —”

Elway flicked her wrist, mildly interested in her excuses. “Anyway, off to your next lesson. Take some time to think about it,” she smiled, clearly not going to take no for an answer. “I’ll be waiting for when you finally agree.”

Both Lily and James took her arms, hooking it with theirs and walked to Potions. They were staring at her, lost for words at Professor Elway’s proposition.

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“Yes, Pettigrew.” McGonagall scolded rather harshly. “The essay is due on Monday.”

Peter averted his gaze, grumbling out a thank you before exiting her office. “Dunno why she’s so strict with me.”

“She wants the best for you,” James tried to encourage as they all headed back to their common room.

Y/N couldn’t care less as she thought about later that night. No matter how hard she tried, Slughorn wouldn’t take no for an answer and she was almost forced to make an appearance at the Slugclub.

Lily was so excited, running through their dorm as she got ready.

Marlene sulked a bit, folding her arms across her chest. She was quiet enough for Lily not to hear, but Y/N heard her clear as day. “That’s not fair. I want to be invited. I want to feel special too.”

“You’re more than special,” Dorcas cut in, rubbing a hand up and down her shoulder. “You’re a star, baby.”

Y/N ignored them, fiddling with a small tube of eyeliner, watching Lily excitedly going through her closest.

Luckily, not only would Lily be there, but Remus, most likely Regulus — however, she doubted they would be able to interact — and funnily enough, James was invited too.

Inside the actual party was decent, a lot better than she expected. There were still the uptight students who thought they were above others, or the Purebloods that judged her when she walked into the room, but it was bearable.

Y/N chuckled as she watched Remus throwback drink after drink, sneakily stealing a few alcoholic beverages meant for the adults. His movements were so discreet that nobody ever suspected him.

She covered her smile behind her glass.

“Hi. It’s been awhile.”

Y/N turned around, and there, Aldrich McLaggen stood wearing a little smile. He trimmed his blond hair to sweep nicely and his cheekbones hallowed out.

“It has. And congratulations, I heard you’re on the Quidditch team.”

“Yes! Chaser - taking over Bell’s position.”

“So… How are you?”

If it was even possible, Aldrich’s smile grew wide. “I’ll be a lot better if I saw your smile tonight?”

She didn’t smile; unimpressed and decided to sip on her drink.

“Yeah,” Aldrich began again, “Didn’t think that would work.”

“A pretty big miss.” She grumbled.

“But I’m getting to know how to impress you in the future.”

Y/N turned to side-eye him. “Hmm? How?”

“How about -” And out of nowhere, he reached behind her ear and pulled out a red rose, handing it to her. Much like a Muggle magician.

She felt a coy smile tug at her lips and forced it down, but failed. “Nice one.”

“Everyone! Please come down and sit!” Slughorn announced, calling to all the students.

He beamed, flashing his teeth. “Don’t hide away again. I’d love to see you again.”

She tilted her head at him, tilting her glass before making her way to find her spot at the table.

The girl beside her had frizzy light brown hair and large glasses that looked like they were from an animated children’s television program. She was draped in a colourful shawl.

“Hi, I’m Y/N.”

But the other young witch smiled brightly, although never quite meeting her eyes as she outstretched her hand. “Sybill Trelawney.”

She shook Sybill’s hand. “It’s nice to meet you.”

But then Y/N took a good look at her and realized, “We’re in the same charms class, right?”

Sybill nodded her head, fingers tapping rapidly on the table. “For two years now. I sit a row behind you. And by the way, you're very pretty.”

She was taken back, a genuine smile spreading over her lips. “Thank you, you look lovely too! I adore your glasses.”

A light blush spread across Sybill’s face, her hand brushing against her glasses. Her eyes peered up for a second before averting her gaze. Y/N couldn’t help but smile, already enjoying Sybill’s presence.

━━━━━━━━━༻☽༺━━━━━━━━━

【 Next Chapter 】

© gotkindabored 2021. Do not repost or modify

[youarejesting]

Sly like a...? Part 9

[Master list] [Sly Master List] Beta: n/a (at the moment) Rating: All Pairing: Hybrid!BTS x FailedHybrid!Reader Genre: Hybrid au, fluff, action, adventure, angst, drama, slice of life. Some marked chapters will contain mature/smut scenes, BUT they will not have plot in those scenes and are 100% skippable without losing your place in the story. Words: 1.5k

Summary: Human’s strive to be better, faster and stronger looking to animal DNA. Thus Hybrids are born. As the rise for designer and Pedigree Hybrids increase, so do the failed attempts. There is one species scientists are unsuccessful in creating, but, folklore says they have been here all along, hiding and blending in with the humans for many millennia. How clever they are.

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Tonight you had decided to ask Hoseok what he wanted to eat for dinner. A quick knock on his always-open door and a peek inside showed him sitting on his bed. With his arms wrapped around his legs and his chin resting on his knees he looked young. He was staring forlornly at the wall, perhaps you thought he was feeling a little homesick. The city was much different from what he was used to. 

“Hoseok, hey?” You sat beside him the scent of fresh pine on his warm-toned skin. Waving your hand within his line of sight in an effort to gain his attention. The deer blinked, giving you a bright smile and a cheery laugh. 

“Sorry, I was lost in thought?” He straightened out his legs. You patted the soft comforter in front of you. 

“Shuffle your butt over here,” you spoke softly. He continued to face the wall and shuffled over, you pulled him to lay back against you, “Are you feeling homesick honey?”

“Yeah, I guess I miss nature. It’s just, it’s so bare” he muttered looking around his room, a desk with a laptop, a bed, and bedside tables he sniffed wiping his eyes on his sleeve. “I miss it.”

“How about we get you some plants as many as you want, to fill the room, if you really want we can tear up the carpet and lay down grass instead,” Hoseok laughed as you described a tall plant by his desk flowers on his bedside tables and hanging pots from the ceiling. “You can call them, that’s why I got you this,”

He nodded taking the phone you held out to him, he dialed a number and placed it to his ear. “Hello?” 

“Hello my sister,” he said, relaxing as he heard the familiar voice. 

“Hobi!” She called through the phone, which seemed to cause a commotion on the other end of the phone as many voices could be heard, “what is it like in the city? Are they treating you nicely? Have you been eating?”

“It’s really nice and everyone is so fun and nice and we eat lots of food together,” he cheered. The family was talking happily and you grinned scratching Hoseok's head happily laughing with him. 

“We are going to decorate his room with plants,” you assured his family that he was being treated well, “oh! tonight is your choice for dinner so what would you like?”

“Unnie, Hobi likes Japchae and meat,” his sister giggled over the phone and you leaned around Hoseok and grinned. 

“What you think Hobi-ah? Sounds good?” You used their nickname teasingly but in hopes, he would feel more at home and at ease around you. 

“Mm, Hobi wants japchae!” He said cutely, making you laugh, you gently pushed his firm and warm body until he was sitting up enough to slip out from behind him. 

“Alright, you keep talking I will round up Jin and Yoongi and we will get to work cooking,” bidding your goodbyes to Hoseok’s family, you headed out to the kitchen. Yoongi was tying up his apron and Jin was playing video games with the youngest of the group. 

You decided against asking Jin as he seemed truly engrossed in playing his video games. Sorting out ingredients and finding a recipe Yoongi and yourself shuffled around the kitchen. There were moments where you reached over where he was cutting vegetables and your shoulders would brushed and just for a second you would hear a small purr. 

Jin lost to Jungkook and pouted, scuffing his slippers as he entered the kitchen, “Ya! The game likes Jungkook better!” He whined, with a grin on your face you pulled him into a hug. Arms wrapping around his tiny waist as you buried your face in the soft sweater he was wearing, it smelt sweet like figs and his ears twitched. 

“I am just happy you tried your best,” you praised him, as you felt the vibrating chittering in his chest almost like a purr but more like a rattle. He nuzzled your hair breathing in your scent. You got him to join in with the cooking. Your instructions interrupted by Taehyung who was complaining about being hungry.

Sliding between the two hybrids to get past, you got some ingredients from the fridge. You sat at the breakfast bar mixing the ingredients in a big metal bowl. Taehyung had been your neighbor for at least five years now and you knew his favorite foods. 

“Try this and tell me how it is?” you held a ball of rice out in a plastic gloved hand and he leaned in eating it. His eyes lighting up. He gave a deep mmh-mm of approval and his tail was smacking Jungkook in the thigh, the young boy looking at the offending appendage and swatted it away.

“Me too, noona” He smiled pointing to his mouth and you popped one of the Jumeokbap onto his tongue. He chewed it happily his cheeks puffed full, a purr filling the room loudly. You turned to Jin offering him a taste, he praised it with a thumbs up.

Carrying the bowl around to Yoongi you smiled, “You want to try one Yoongi?” He didn’t reply but leaned his head towards you eyes on the food mouth opened.

He let you put one in his mouth, and you pressed your ear to Yoongi’s shoulder, his purrs were definitely the quietest out of all the felines in the house, they were ones that vibrated deeply in his chest but didn’t make too much noise unless it was really quiet and you listened intently.

“I smell tuna!” Jimin grinned bounding over his long legs barely touched the ground and he smiled, “Me love, one for me”

You were trying to roll one but he had started rubbing his face on your jaw and neck impatiently, as he purred sweetly, “I am making it as fast as I can,” the words barely came out through your giggles his soft hair tickling your neck, his ears twitching at the sound.

“Here try this one,” he leaned in wrapping his mouth around the rice ball his eyes never leaving yours. “Is it good?”

“Mm very good” he hummed standing behind you his hands wrapped around your waist as you made one for Namjoon. He held out his hand and ate it, nodding before awkwardly shuffling around waiting for the food to finish. Hoseok exited his room smiling brightly, it seemed the conversation with his family had eased his loneliness.

Namjoon at dinner was a little scary all he could see was food and his deep purrs were so loud that it almost sounded like thunder rumbling outside. You brought up the question at dinner and watched them all choke on their food. 

“It is only natural, I am just wondering when and if you know your rut schedule so I can put it on the calendar and if you need any assistance during this time we can look for a suitable companion or items that can relief your needs.”

Jungkook was bright red and Jimin thought honestly, “I don’t need assistance but if when I am not in my room we could cuddle,”

“I also do not require assitance I will just be in my room,” Namjoon said with a small reassuring smile.

“I have never had a rut,” Jungkook said his cheeks never losing their rosey colour, “They gave us a hormone blocker every six months so we would behave, we just got really annoyed”

You nodded they all seemed to agree that they would be fine on their own in their room but you thought you would look into somethings as a fail safe. After your goodnights to each of the boys giving them a sweet kiss on their foreheads, you sat on Jungkook’s bed and told him more of the stories of the fox.

“In Korean legends, the Kumiho is often described as a terrifying and sad creature that strives to become a real human. It is said that a Kumiho can turn into a real human by eating 100 human livers or by marrying a human and living with them for 100 days without their true identity being discovered. There are many more theories on how they came to be but they…”

Once everyone was tucked in, you spent the night in the lounge. Searching the web for eligible companions and items that could assist the seven young men. You hoped they were all settling in nicely. A figure appeared in the hall, ringing his tail in his hands, you gave a soft smile, surprised as the figure came closer.

It wasn’t Jimin as you had first thought, it was Jungkook, you walked him back to bed and he whispered, “I am nervous what if I do something bad during my rut?”

“I know your true nature Jungkook, I know you don’t want to hurt any of the boys or even myself and when the rut passes well then you will be back to the old Koo we know and love.”

“Can you sleep in my room tonight?” He said and seeing your apprehension he added, “Just until I fall asleep?”

“Alright just until you fall asleep.” Not knowing how exhausted you were and how the bed was so soft and enticing. You had fallen asleep almost instantly, letting Jungkook pull you into his arms and nuzzle your shoulder.

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