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missdynamighttt · 3 months ago

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feining for frat boy katsuki…

it was hot. loud. half the girls were already screaming over shirtless frat boys grinding against windshields. your friend dragged you out with a “come on, it’s for charity!” and now you’re standing in the corner with a lukewarm lemonade and zero expectations.

you didn’t even want to come to this stupid fraternity fundraiser.

your roommate dragged you out with the promise of half-naked frat boys, but all you’ve seen so far are drenched freshmen trying to flex their way into a hernia.

but then you see him.

he’s got his back turned at first—lean muscle, golden skin, red swim trunks slung way too low on his hips. sunlight catches the water dripping down his back like it’s staged. and when he turns around?

game over. he’s gorgeous.

sharp jaw, wild blonde hair flattened from water, a cocky little smirk on his face as he wrings a sponge out over his head, totally aware of the stares.

and he sees you. right away. ruby eyes locked with yours and gives the most arrogant little up-nod like, yeah. you’re next.

you try to act unaffected. fail immediately.

he saunters over, sudsy bucket in one hand, water dripping down his abs like it’s a fucking calvin klein ad. stops right in front of you, eyeing your car, then you, then your car again. “you the one drivin’ this piece of shit?”

you blink. “excuse me?!”

he shrugs but you can see a little grin tugging on the corner of his mouth, smug and unbothered. “relax. i’ll make it look brand new.”

he puts the bucket down, saunters over, and damn—he’s even hotter up close. tall. muscles for days. and that little scar on his cheek? unfair.

then, leaning closer, voice low: “the name's katsuki bakugo. what’s yours, sweet girl?”

you tell him. maybe a little breathless.

he repeats it once—slow, like he’s trying it out on his tongue. “hm. yeah. i like that.”

and then he goes to work. but not just on the car.

katsuki bakugo washes that car like he’s auditioning for the dirtiest boy band you’ve ever seen. dropping the sponge just to bend over in front of you, ass on full display. making eye contact when he slides his hand over the hood like he’s caressing it. watering himself down with a hose and shaking his hair out like he’s in a shampoo commercial from hell.

by the time he’s done, your car is sparkling. and so are you—flushed, flustered.

he tosses the sponge into the bucket, wipes his mouth with the back of his hand, and smirks. “lemme know if you need a private wash sometime.”

and then he walks away, with you watching the water dripping down the curve of his spine, no better than a teenage boy ogling the back of a girl's bikini. you swear you black out for a second too.

it’s only a few hours after the car wash before he slides in your dms, smooth but dirty. you’re in your room, still reeling from whatever the hell that was, when your phone buzzes.

king.explosionmurder has sent you a message.

(yeah. that’s his actual handle. because of course it is.) then, you open it.

king.explosionmurder:

can't stop thinking about the girl with the shittiest car and the cutest fuckin’ face.

you stare. then another message pops up.

king.explosionmurder:

u free tonight?

or maybe you're too busy being adorable somewhere else?

your heart does a thing. you type out a reply—something just barely cocky enough to match him:

you:

depends

you always this forward?

king.explosionmurder:

only for girls with shitty taste in cars

so, only you

let me buy you a drink, sweet girl?

you:

fine

you can buy me a drink, frat boy

but for the record?

my taste in cars is not that shitty

king.explosionmurder:

whatever you say beautiful

8 pm, sunset bar down 5th ave

don't be late

katsuki shows up five minutes early, in a black tee that clings to his chest and jeans that should be illegal. hair still messy from his post-car-wash shower. when you walk in, his eyes track you like you’re the only person in the room.

“tch. thought you were gonna flake.”

you roll your eyes. “you’d cry if i did.”

his mouth twitches. “like a damn baby.”

then the date just... hits different. it wasn't what you expected. sure, it’s packed with college students and frat bros, but in the back corner booth? with him?

it’s quiet. comfortable. almost… intimate.

he’s not much of a talker, but with you? he tries. you ask about his major—he’s an aspiring pro-hero, of course—and he asks about yours, grumbling when you light up talking about it, because ��fuck, that smile’s gonna kill me.”

and even though he’d die before saying it out loud, the minute you take a sip of your drink and laugh at something dumb he says? he’s gone. head over heels.

he walks you back to your dorm with his hand on the small of your back, even though it’s barely a ten-minute walk. says “text me when you’re in” even though he literally watched you unlock your door. stands there, gruff and gorgeous, waiting.

“gonna invite me?” he asks, tone teasing.

you shake your head, grinning. “not on the first date, i'm not.”

he groans dramatically. “damn. fuckin’ killin’ me here.”

you grin. “goodnight, frat boy.”

but he doesn’t move right away.

just stands there under the warm porch light, one hand stuffed in his pocket, the other rubbing the back of his neck like he’s trying to work off the ache of not touching you again. his shirt clings to him in the summer heat, his jaw sharp in the glow, but it’s his eyes that freeze you in place.

not hard. not sharp. not the glare he usually levels at the world.

but soft. heavy. like you’ve stolen the breath from his lungs and he doesn’t even want it back.

he looks at you like you hung the damn moon.

he takes one small step closer, close enough that you can feel the heat coming off his chest, close enough that if either of you moved just an inch, you’d be kissing.

“goodnight, sweet girl,” he says, voice low and rough, like gravel laced with honey.

it hits you somewhere deep. like he’s branding the words into you.

and then—he actually smiles. a real one. lopsided, shy, the kind of smile you’d never expect from someone who threatens to body slam people over couch cushions.

then he turns and walks away, hands shoved deep in his pockets, head down, like if he looks back even once, he’ll do something stupid like run back and kiss you senseless.

you close the door behind you, heart thudding so hard you swear your roommate can hear it.

you’re screwed. so screwed.

because things after that? they move fast.

to everyone else, he was the guy who'd scream if you left dishes in the sink, throw a beer can at you if you sat on his side of the couch, and threaten to body slam you if you so much as breathe near him.

but the entire frat house knew that their loud, grumpy, terrifyingly efficient frat dad—had a soft spot the size of a planet. and that soft spot? was for you.

you’re the only person allowed in his room during his grumpy post-practice naps. the only one who can touch his hair without him flinching. he’d grumble when you flick his forehead when he was being dramatic but he'd let you.

he might curse under his breath, but when you’d slide onto his lap during movie night, he'd wrap an arm around you like it was instinct. like protecting you came as naturally as breathing.

he had snacks stocked in the mini fridge (not for him, you liked them). he hands you your favorite snack and grumbles, “was on sale. don’t get used to it,” even though it’s never on sale but he bought six of them anyway.

and when finals week hits? he’s a damn soldier for you.

caffeine runs. your favorite takeout. quiet growls at anyone who tries to talk to you in the library. he reads your flashcards like they’re enemy coordinates and quizzing you becomes his personal mission.

but the best part? the tiny, quiet moments in between.

like when he’s losing at mario kart and you’d sit in his lap while he played, steal his fries, kiss his cheek mid-rant just to shut him up.

or when you were too tired to walk back to your place, you just curl up in his bed. not only does he let you, he tucks the blanket around you and kisses your forehead so soft it makes your chest ache.

and somehow, all of that was like magic.

sure, he might’ve acted like the world’s most chaotic, aggressive frat president, but when it came to you? he was all bark, all bite… and all heart.

‎‧₊˚✧[ it's me, kia ! ]✧˚₊‧ ｡ﾟ•┈꒰ა ♡ ໒꒱┈• ｡ﾟ ‎‧₊˚✧[ more of katsuki ! ]✧˚₊‧

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boobav · 8 months ago

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!season 1

Viktor is, you've clearly observed, insecure of himself.

Quite valiantly, due to some looming social norm or personal feeling, he tries to hide it. But in moments like these, such an act becomes impossible. Try as he might, desperately at times, when he's pressed against you in the warm water, your fingers over his skin, your fingers in his hair, his failure is palpable.

"Are you okay?" You murmur into the nape of his neck, his back against your chest. The water threatens with gentle churns to spill over the bathtub.

He turns his head to press a kiss against your wrist.

"More than," he says, voice quiet but firm, "I just feel, sometimes," and he hums, as though forming an adequate description of his emotions were the hardest task on the planet. Viktor, your genius scientist, hesitant not to innovate, to change the world with his research, no. He's hesitant only to make sure he says the right thing to you.

"Like I'm too good for you?" You ask, catching his eye. By the gentle look you know that's what he means. He faces away again, nods in a vaguely ashamed way.

How, you've always wondered, can you truly change someone's perspective? When words don't seem to persuade, when actions bring only fleeting relief, what can you do?

"It's irrational, I know, some... flaw of the mind. You don't need to keep reassuring my senselessness." He leans into your touch, takes your free hand into his, soap suds bubbling between your fingers.

"Sometimes you talk about yourself like you're a machine, you know." You muse. He gives a half-hearted laugh.

"Not a well functioning one."

Are words or actions worth more in this game of convincing? Does he feel it deeper when you press your lips into his hair, or when you mumble compliments and honeysuckle words into his ear? He shivers either way.

It's a long game, you know. It's taken months to even reach this stage, where the self-deprication is a rarity, not the norm. Maybe it'll take his whole life before he can accept every part of himself like you can, before he can truly see himself through your eyes, gleaming and gem-speckled as they are.

You free your hand from his, reach up instead to knead shampoo into his thick hair. He responds with a sigh and sinks somehow further against you, the water falling slowly to a more lukewarm temperature. You're not sure how long the two of you have been in here, talking quietly about very little, exchanging words that'll disappear forever with the water. But you really can't find it in you to care.

There's work to be done, errands to run. Errands that should've been run a week ago. This ceremony, this meditation makes all of it null. For where else would you want to be? Where else exists besides here, this room, this moment, static in the cooling water with the embodiment of perfection.

When you tell it to him, as you so often do, when you tell him that he's perfect, he can't believe you. The first time you ever said it, peering into his eyes as if they held some secret treasure within, he thought you were joking. He'd laughed, more out of obligation than actual humour, but your expression remained still. Sincere. To say he was moved would be a wildly inadequate explanation. What he felt in his chest that night was something otherworldly, something without a name. He's come now to associate it simply with yours.

You run water through his hair, rinse out the shampoo as he lies pliant in your hands. He insists you use your soaps in his hair, some floral-scented collection you've used for who knows how long, because the smell reminds him of you.

There's no point in overthinking it, you suppose. No point in trying to map out and organise moods, emotions. No point in trying to turn a gentle human experience into something clinical, something without humanity.

That swirling, omnipresent yet transient concept of humanity. You simply must cradle it within your own. You press your lips into his wet hair, whisper words made of ginger and lavender into his ear. Because at the end of the day, you're human. You're in love. And sometimes, that's all that matters.

#arcane #arcane x reader #viktor arcane #viktor x reader

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hyacinth-in-a-haze · 13 days ago

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Morning routine- Yandere kidnapper! x fem reader!

This is incredibly Yan nanami coded, and I refuse to apologise

@snail-day you understand the vision

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

There is starting to be a routine to these days now.

He likes to let you sleep in most mornings, preferring to get up himself to do the chores and get breakfast ready for the both of you. Today he has chosen to make you a treat and go for pancakes, allowing them to come to room temperature on the kitchen table while he gets you up.

Your routine begins with the unlocking of your hand cuff while he peppers your face with kisses. Even though by now you've mostly settled into your role as his sweet little lady, he cannot be too secure. (Especially after the incident with you trying to break open the child safety locks in the bathroom cabinet) he always without fail will check for any bruises or sores to kiss better as you lay limply in his arms. You used to be much more of a wriggler he remembers but he supposes you probably still have some of the sedative in your system. No worries, he can simply carry you to the bathroom. Sitting you down onto the little shower stool he installed after your last accident caused you to hobble round the home for a few couple months. He decided the stool was a good precaution to avoid any further accidents between you two.

He unbuttons your sleep shirt easily before turning the water on, making sure it's just perfect before he cleans you off from the night before. Taking extra care when his fingers graze your inner thighs to only wash off the memories of last night with a tenderness he didn't show you then. Tilting your hair back to rinse shampoos and conditioner- a small fortune spent on what goes into your routine. Once you're clean it continues, he wraps you warmly and sits you down to your ten step skincare routine. Always setting a two minute timer exactly for him to brush your teeth. You're still so lethargic for this, opening your mouth without resistance. Before you'd end up spitting out blood by the end of it, but now he can be much more gentle.

Again he carries you to the bedroom, drying your hair before he picks out a new outfit for the day. Your wardrobe consists mainly of sundresses, not because he prefers how you look in them. But because they are just far more accessible for the both of you, easier to slip on and off. He helps you up again, you can walk now but he just wants to be safe when it comes to you, taking your arm to carefully lead you to the table.

By now your pancakes and hot chocolate are lukewarm as he cuts them into bite sized pieces. Gently feeding you as he calls out sweet little praises, dabbing at the syrup that falls down your chin with a delicate sigh. Your eyes don't react much to this anymore, each swallow is wary as if you wonder which bite will contain the sedative that keeps you frozen on the sofa while he is at work. But if you refuse to eat he is not above forcing nutrition into you by any means necessary. For all the gentleness that he performs now, it has cost you every sharp tooth and nail you fought with.

Once the plate is clear he gives you the little cup of your vitamins and pills. He tries to make sure your diet is well rounded but unfortunately it is hard to keep your vitamin d levels up from within the flat. Perhaps one day the two of you will have a garden with a tall fence around. Then maybe you could go outside for a bit each day, maybe without supervision. But for now you'll only feel the sun on your face through an open window. The pills have changed since you first were brought to your new home, originally it was only sedatives and birth control. One to keep you complacent and the other because a baby right then would have not helped you to settle down. Now the sedition is at a much lower dose, carefully weaning you from it to avoid any long term effects, and the birth control has swapped places with the prenatal vitamins, just in case any happy accidents occur. On some days they change, after your last accident he withheld any pain relief for a week to make sure you learned the lesson properly. He wouldn't want to have to teach you again.

He takes the cup up to your lips waiting for you to swallow them, you open your mouth when finished to prove no pill was stashed away. Your obedience is rewarded again with another flurry of kisses, trailing down your neck to the collarbone. He only stops once his alarm goes off, reminding him to leave for work in ten minutes, grumbling as he fixes his tie and loads the dishwasher.

He takes you to the living room finally, placing you down on your side of the sofa, a blanket draped over your shoulders and a second left over your legs. He reminds you that there is a snack plate and a lunch box ready for you in the fridge for when you get peckish. There are different hobbies to occupy you within arms reach, all of them domestic and soft just as he wants you to be. Embroidery, knitting, reading. The remote is available but he has most things on child lock so there isn't a point. He places a sippy cup of water down on the table as though that's nothing out of the ordinary before he crouches in front of you expectantly.

You lean forward and graze your chapped lips against his forehead. He brightens up and returns the kiss to you with all the passion you lacked.

“Goodbye my heart, I'll call you once I'm on break.”

He reluctantly makes his way to leave, making sure to not slam the door on his exit. Leaving you to collapse into the nest of pillows and wait.

He didn't even leave your cane to help you get around.

#fem reader #male yandere #yandere #yandere imagines #yandere oc #yandere x reader #yandere drabble #yandere nanami #yandere jjk #Yandere kidnapper #morning/evening routine

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bradleysass · 16 days ago

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wash - @into-the-jeggyverse - wc: 557

Regulus hated a lot of things.

He hated being sweaty, loud roommates, mismatched socks, lukewarm tea, and how James Potter never put the forks back in the right slot in the drawer.

But he loved James’ hoodie.

The grey one. Faded. Frayed along the cuffs. The one James always threw on after football practice, when his hair was still damp with sweat and grass stuck to his shins. The hoodie that practically steamed with heat after a match and carried the particular scent of musk, deodorant, and something inexplicably, irrevocably James.

It was disgusting.

Regulus adored it.

He stood in their shared flat, hair still wet from his post-shower rinse, bare feet padding across the cold wood floor as he opened the closet for the third time. Then the hamper. Then the basket next to the dryer. Nothing. Nothing but freshly laundered clothes and that annoying citrus-scented detergent James insisted on using like a functional adult.

Regulus tugged the towel tighter around his waist and turned to the living room.

"Jamie," he called, with more bite than necessary, "where is it?"

James, who was lounging on the couch with his phone, legs flopped wide open in a perfect invitation to be hated, looked up with his brows arched. “Where’s what?”

“My hoodie.”

James blinked. “You mean… my hoodie?”

Regulus narrowed his eyes. “Don't get smart with me, Potter. The grey one. The post-practice one. It’s missing.”

James squinted, confused for a second, then suddenly looked guilty.

“Oh. That one. Yeah, I threw it in the wash this morning. It was gross. Practically walked into the laundry basket itself.”

“You what?” Regulus’s voice hit a register only dogs should hear.

James frowned, trying not to laugh. “What, it was disgusting. Reeked of pitch and boy.”

“Exactly!” Regulus huffed, stomping over to the laundry nook. He opened the dryer. Sure enough, it was there—warm and soft and clean-smelling and wrong.

He buried his face in the hoodie and inhaled. All he got was linen and lemons.

“You ruined it,” he said, muffled against the fabric. “It’s sterile.”

James stared at him like he’d grown two heads. “Reg, it was filthy. You hate dirty things. You have rules about cups touching bathroom counters.”

“Yes, well,” Regulus said, straightening and throwing the hoodie dramatically over his shoulder, “that was my exception.”

“To my hoodie?”

Regulus glared. “It smelled like you. You, post-match. You, sweaty and smug and warm and alive. You, before you go and ruin it with shampoo.”

James blinked. “Wait. You liked it all sweaty?”

Regulus turned pink instantly and looked away. “Don’t make it weird.”

“I’m not,” James said, voice dipping just a little softer, a little amused, a little fond. “I’m just— surprised. You used to wrinkle your nose when I hugged you after practice.”

“I was performing,” Regulus muttered.

James grinned. He got off the couch, walked over, and gently plucked the hoodie from Regulus’ shoulder. “Want me to sweat in it again?”

“...Please.”

There was a pause.

James leaned in, brushing their noses together in a move so casual, so intimate, Regulus nearly short-circuited.

“Next time,” James whispered, “just ask me to stay in it longer.”

Regulus barely managed to hold onto his dignity. “Next time, don’t wash away the best parts of you.”

James kissed the corner of his mouth and smiled. “Noted.”

#marauders #jeggyverse microfic #jegulus #sunchaser #starseeker #james potter #regulus black #microfic

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pitlanepeach · 1 month ago

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The Long Way Home I Chapter One

Oscar Piastri x Harper Grace (OFC)

Summary — When Harper, a kind girl with a guarded heart, meets rising karting star Oscar Piastri at their English boarding school, sparks fly.

It only takes one silly moment of teenaged love for their lives to change forever.

Warnings — Teenage love, growing up together, falling in love, teen pregnancy, no explicit scenes when the characters are underaged (obviously??), strong language, manipulative parents, past death of a parent, dyscalculia, hardly any angst, slice-of-life basically!

Notes — Eek, welcome to the chaos! This one is going to be a whirlwind of emotions. Send me all of your thoughts on the fic and of course what you think of our new OFC, Harper!

Wattpad Link | Series Masterlist

Harper had never meant to like it here.

The East dorms smelled like cheap PVA glue and the radiators hissed like they were always pissed-off, and the girls who lived in the room two doors down were always either screaming at eachother or crying; sometimes both.

The shower water was always lukewarm, the food was worse, and the uniform blazer made her shoulders itch.

Still, she stayed on for term after term. Because slowly — it'd become a safe haven. Better than being at home.

And that, she'd long ago decided, was its own twisted kind of victory.

She sat curled on the window ledge, bony knees pulled to her chest, one cheek pressed against the cold glass. Down below, the grassy stretch was all muddy edges and stone paths. There were a few boys dragging suitcases across it with frowns and hunched shoulders — like they'd rather be anywhere else.

"New intake," said Jane, her roommate, from behind a cloud of dry shampoo and Juicy Couture perfume.

Harper didn't turn around. She just scrunched up her nose and gave the boys another curious kind of look. "Bit late for January, innit?"

"A few brats who've just come back from spending the winter in the Alps. And some kid from Australia — sports scholarship. Karting prodigy or whatever. They've already decided he's going to be the next Hamilton."

Harper snorted. "Because nothing says motorsport champion like dragging your arse to this hellhole."

Jane laughed and rolled her eyes. "You're such a debbie-downer."

Harper didn't answer. She just stared at the last boy stepping out of a black car — tallish, quiet-looking, a duffle slung over one shoulder. He didn't glance up at the windows or anything like that.

Smart.

Most people stared at the building like it was Hogwarts, and were met with heckles for their trouble.

But not him.

Something in her stomach — something small and sudden, like a hiccup of curiosity.

She ignored it.

She moved out of the window and picked up her biology folder. "Come on, Janie. If we're late again, Mr Jones might spank you in the cleaning cupboard."

Jane shrieked. "Shut up, Harper! I told you already — that was just a stupid rumour!"

—

That night, Harper couldn't sleep.

She never slept well in winter. The wind scraped at the windows like it was trying to get in, and the heating clicked off at midnight like clockwork. Their bedroom was pitch black, quiet except for Jane’s breathing and the occasional fox scream from outside.

She slid her notebook out from under her pillow — soft cover, edges frayed, ink smudges all along the bottom corner where her hand dragged. The majority of the pages were full of doodles and fragments: half-written poems, to-do lists, thoughts that she would never say out loud.

Things I Am: • Hard Work • Sarcastic • Ungrateful

Things I Am Not: • Dumb • Ugly • My mother

She paused, pen hovering.

Then, she flipped the page and started sketching instead; a silly half-formed thing. A boy with a duffle bag and a face you could never forget.

⸻

The next morning, they crossed paths.

It wasn't dramatic. Just two kids reaching for the same packet of Weetabix in the dining hall, and then awkwardly backing off. He nodded. She didn't.

"You take it," he said, accent all weird and sunny like it hadn't registered the grey skies yet.

She shrugged and took the box without saying thank you.

Harper didn't do small talk before 9am. Or at all, really.

She wasn't mean. Or snobby. Or any of the other things that people liked to label her as.

She just didn't have the patience required to be the kind of girl with all soft edges.

⸻

Later, in English Literature, he was there again.

Mr. Callahan gestured toward the front of the room. Smiled with his sweetcorn coloured teeth. Gestured with his wrinkled, age-spotted hands. "Mr. Piastri, care to introduce yourself to your new classmates?"

There it was. The ritual humiliation. Worse than being the new kid — being the new kid asked to introduce yourself.

Harper didn't look up, didn't want to make it worse for him by adding another set of eyes. She just stared at the blank margin of her workbook, pen poised like she might be taking notes. She wasn't.

"I'm Oscar Piastri," he said. Accent clipped and his words a bit slanted — probably because he was embarrassed. "I'm from Melbourne. In Australia. I like maths. I, uh, moved to England to work on my career."

The class rippled with whispers. A few people snorted derivatively. Someone in the back muttered something about "wannabe Mark Webber," and a boy near the window pretended to rev a car engine.

Harper bit her lip.

I like maths.

Brave thing to say in front of Mr. Callahan, a man who had once declared long division "the enemy of poetic soul."

Still, it was honest. Or maybe just literal. Boys like him — boys who were not British — usually were.

Moved to England to work on my career.

Not many people her age had a single clue what they wanted to do with their lives — let alone any of them actually have the guts to travel halfway across the world and actually do something worthwhile for the sake of their futures.

She imagined what it might've looked like for him — saying goodbye to his mum at an airport gate, suitcase heavier than his bones, chasing speed across countries when most kids their age couldn't catch a bus on time.

Harper's pen shook. Just for a second.

Mr. Callahan cleared his throat. "Thank you, Mr. Piastri. Seat behind Harper, second row."

She felt, more than saw, the shift as he passed her. Quiet footsteps. A soft cough. And then the sensation of being watched — not in a creepy way, just... watched.

For the rest of the lesson, Harper didn't turn around. But she caught herself pressing harder into the page than usual, the letters carved into the page instead of written.

He smelled good.

Like soap and something else that she couldn't put her finger on.

It was a nice change from the boys who usually just stank of B.O and cheap beer.

—

That night, curled into a ball on her side in bed, she added something new to her notebook.

People to pay attention to: • Oscar Piastri

—

The next morning, the Weetabix basket was empty.

Harper stood in front of the cereal shelf, arms crossed and expression soured. Rows of sad Cornflakes and soggy-looking bran flakes mocked her.

Someone had left a single Shreddies square on the counter like a bad joke.

She didn't say anything. Didn't need to. Her pout said it for her — the subtle downturn of her mouth, the slight tightening around her eyes, the way her shoulder rose just a touch as she turned to walk away, resigned to jam on toast or something equally as boring.

"Hey."

She turned around.

Oscar Piastri was stood a few feet away, breakfast tray in hand, holding a fresh, unopened box of Weetabix. He offered it toward her without a word, just a faint shrug, like no big deal.

Harper blinked. "What, you just... found it?"

"Got it just now," he said, quiet and a bit sheepish. "Last one. Figured you might want it."

Harper stared at him for a second too long. Not in a swoony way; she'd never admit to that, but in a what-kind-of-person-actually-thinks-that-far-ahead kind of way.

"You were thinking about me?" She asked dryly, reaching for the box. Her tone was classic Harper: half-defensive, half-a-test.

Oscar didn't flinch. "Nah. Just noticed you looked kinda gutted yesterday when there was almost none left."

She stared at him.

Noticed.

Most people only noticed Harper when she said something sharp or raised her voice. Not when she was quiet. Not when her disappointment stayed on the inside of her mouth.

"Thanks," she mumbled, trying not to sound like it hurt to say. Then, a little louder, with a tilt of her head. "You're nice."

He smiled; barely. "Yeah. People say that a lot."

They stood in the middle of the cafeteria; two awkward kids who weren't quite sure what to do next. Harper shifted her tray from one hand to the other.

"You sitting with anyone?"

Oscar glanced around. "Nah."

"Cool. You can sit with me, but don't talk for the first ten minutes. It's a no-chat zone until I've eaten my cereal and drank my juice."

He nodded sagely, like she'd given him an important instruction and not a ridiculous one. "Understood."

They walked side by side toward the back table where Harper usually sat, their footsteps quiet, their trays clinking with spoons and silence.

And Harper didn't say it aloud, obviously. But that morning, for some weird and unnamable reason, her Weetabix tasted better than usual.

—

Three weeks later, breakfast had quietly become a thing.

Neither of them ever said it out loud, least of all Harper, but it was a foregone conclusion.

Oscar always got there early and saved her at least one box of Weetabix. She gave him half of her toast when the dining hall ran out of the nice raspberry jam. They sat at a table toward the back windows, never exactly chatting, but never not aware of each-other.

He'd wait for her before eating every single morning — even if she was running late. She'd roll her eyes like he was somehow annoying for doing it. Then she'd sit down next to him and they'd divvy out their trays like it was the most normal thing in the world.

This morning, she dropped her tray beside him and flopped into her usual seat with a tired mumble of 'Morning'.

He held out the box wordlessly.

She took it and gave his bed head an amused glance. "Nice hair," she said, poking the corner of the cereal box with her thumbnail.

Oscar shrugged, chewing on a bite of toast. "Grew it myself."

"Fuck off." She said. "Were all the pancakes gone?"

He swallowed. "Probably. You're later than usual."

She made a face. "Yeah. Sorry. I got stuck queuing for the bloody shower block. Jacqueline, you know her? The blonde one with the red lipstick? Yeah. She was hogging the third stall all morning, and everyone knows that the third stall is the only one that has warm water in the mornings."

He scratched at the back of his neck. "Boys showers are disgusting so I just... avoid them at all costs. Middle of the night is safest, right after the cleaners have been."

She hummed. "I peeked my head in there once. Wanted to see if you guys had more room than us — you know, sexism and all that. All I managed to actually see was three inches of disappointment and enough steam to know for a fact that you get way more hot water than us."

He gave her that awkward half-smile he did sometimes, like he wasn't totally sure if he was joking or being serious.

They ate in silence for a bit after that. Harper mashed her weetabix into her milk and then set it aside for a second to thicken up.

Oscar tilted his head toward her notebook, which was sat open on the table beside her tray.

"Is that the code for that website you're building?"

Harper tensed — just slightly. "You can read upside down now?"

He blinked. "Sorry. Didn't mean to be nosy."

She stared at him, then exhaled. "Sorry. Got defensive. It's still early. But — yeah. It is."

He peered over at it again. "It all looks... really complicated."

"It's not." She shrugged.

"You say that like it doesn't look like the Matrix just threw up in your notebook."

She cracked a reluctant smile — God, he was so dry. So unfunny. "It's just logic, Osc."

Oscar squinted at the page. "But that's, like... maths."

"No," she said sharply. Then, after a beat, she softened and said. "Well — yeah. But no."

He frowned at her.

"I suck at maths," she added, quieter this time. "You know that already. It's why I'm in a lower bracket than you even though we're the same age. And it's not like... normal bad either. It's 'wired differently' bad."

Oscar's brow creased.

She sighed. "It's called dyscalculia. It's like dyslexia, but with numbers. Different for everyone, but I can't read clocks properly. I count on my fingers, even if it's just like seven plus two. I fail every single timed test they set. I swap digits in equations and don't even realise I've done it." She took a breath and gave her weetabix a poke with her spoon. "I used to think I was just stupid. Teachers thought I wasn't trying. My mum used to just call me lazy, which, in hindsight, is hilarious. Because I haven't been relaxed since I was eight."

Oscar's lips tugged up slightly — a bit wry.

"But coding," she continued, "that makes sense to me. It's all structure. No weird fractions or mental math traps. Just... clear instructions and consistent answers."

She expected him to nod absently, like he'd stopped listening a while ago. Or change the subject. Or say something vaguely patronising.

But Oscar just said, "That's kind of cool."

She narrowed her eyes at him. "That I'm a functionally useless human being?"

"Well, no, you're not." He argued flatly. "But I meant that I think it's cool that your brain works differently and you still taught it to do that." He waved at her notebook.

Harper blinked. For a second, she forgot to be sarcastic. "You're so weird," she muttered, but there was no venom in it.

"Thanks," he said, smiling into his spoon like he didn't know what else to do with his mouth.

She looked back at her code. Then at him.

He was chewing on his toast and staring at his phone. He had the latest iPhone. It had a blue case.

His t-shirt was creased and his hair was still an absolute mess.

And still, she couldn't stop looking at him.

—

It was a Saturday, grey and windy, and Harper was buried under a school-issued fleece blanket in the common room, laptop on her knees, headphones on.

She wasn't working on anything important — just cleaning up a chatbot code, fiddling with syntax like it was a loose tooth. Her headphones were playing some lo-fi thing she didn't even like. She just needed the white noise to help her focus.

Across the room, the door creaked open. She didn't look up until someone said, "You'll get square eyes."

Oscar.

She paused her music and pushed her headphones off, raising an eyebrow at him. "Yeah? Fucking ace. I'll go on Britains Got Talent and become a niche celebrity."

He grinned sheepishly, his cheeks going a bit red, and then nodded behind him. "Didn't come alone."

Behind Oscar stood a man in a zipped-up jacket, casual slacks, and sneakers that were too clean to belong to a teenager. Same posture as Oscar. Same gentle eyes.

"This is my dad," Oscar said. "Chris."

Chris stepped forward and offered a hand to shake, like Harper was a grown-up and not a fourteen-year-old-girl who'd spent the last two nights using toothpaste on her forehead acne to try and get rid of it. "You must be Harper. Oscar's told me about you."

"Oh. Right. Cool," she said. Then she stumbled to her feet, abandoned her laptop and her headphones and the fleece, and hastily shook his hand before it become awkward. "I'm Harper."

Chris laughed, warm and unbothered. "I know. Oscar told me you've been helping him with his English work."

Oscar made a noise of protest. "Dad, come on."

"I'm yeah," Harper said. "He's awful at it. Can't string together a sentence to save his life." She gave Oscar a teasing glance.

Chris turned to his son. "One failed class and you're risking your scholarship. Don't let that happen."

Oscar stared at him. "I won't fail any of my classes." He said, without missing a beat.

She bit her lip and looked between them — the way Oscar didn't shrink even a little bit around his dad. The way he could be quiet and awkward and it was fine. Safe.

"Anyway," Chris continued, "just wanted to say hi before I head home. I fly out tomorrow."

Harper blinked. "Back to Australia?"

"Yeah. Stuck around to help Oscar settle in. Make sure his gear arrived in one piece, check out the karting circuits, learn how to pronounce Hertfordshire without offending the locals."

Oscar rolled his eyes. "He's still saying 'Hurt-Fard-Sheyre'"

Chris laughed. "Don't let the Brits fool you, son. They put vowels in weird places on purpose."

Harper smiled before she could stop herself.

Chris checked his watch. "Right. I'm going to have a word with the headmaster about Oscar's travel plans, but it was really nice meeting you, Harper."

"Yeah. You too." She said.

Oscar sat down next to her, picking at the corner of the couch cushion.

"Your dad's cool," she said, and meant it.

"Yeah," he replied, but his voice was smaller now. "He is."

"You okay?"

Oscar hesitated. Then nodded, but not very convincingly. "Just weird. Makes the whole staying here on my own thing feel more... real. Now that he's leaving too."

Harper looked at him carefully. "You can call him whenever, though, right?"

He snorted. "Yeah. And about seven backup methods. He's the type to send a courier pigeon if I don't answer a text within ten minutes."

She wanted to say 'you're lucky'. But that would make it sound like she was bitter. And she wasn't. Not exactly. So she just said, "That's... nice."

They sat in silence for a beat.

Then Oscar added, a bit shyly, "He liked you."

Harper shot him a look. "I was terrible. I don't know how to socialise with adults who don't expect me to be, like, all stuck-up and perfect."

"Right." Oscar said, a bit awkwardly. "I mean, he just — I think he's glad I've made a friend, you know?"

Harper's chest clenched. She didn't know what to say to that — so she didn't. She nudged his knee with hers instead. "You're not bad," she said.

Oscar smiled at her.

And then Harper opened her laptop again, and when Oscar picked up her legs to drape them over his legs so he could sit back on the sofa, she didn't even blink.

—

The chill of the late Hertfordshire night nipped at Harper's cheeks as she and Jane sprinted across the empty quad, sneakers barely squeaking against the dew-slick paving stones. Their hushed giggles echoed in the dark. Jane, always the instigator, had convinced her to sneak out—"Just for five minutes! I swear!"—to the locked astroturf behind the science block.

They slipped through a gap in the fence, flashlights off, relying on moonlight and adrenaline. Harper dropped to the ground, fingers brushing the fake grass. "Feels like we're on another planet," she whispered. Jane flopped down beside her, smirking. "The planet of the incredibly bored."

Ten minutes later, just as Harper dared to close her eyes and breathe in the strange peace, floodlights blazed to life like a stadium mid-match. "Run!" Jane hissed.

They didn't get far.

Now, Harper sat in the back of a golf cart, arms crossed, heart racing, as one of the groundskeepers muttered something about "ridiculous girls" and "Headmaster's office come morning." Jane had managed to charm her way into walking.

Across the dormitory court, high up in the boys' wing, a window cracked open.

Oscar, hoodie drawn up, leaned on the sill. He squinted into the brightness—and there she was. Harper. Eyes wide, lip curled in protest, being hauled across the lawn like a criminal. The surreal procession made him chuckle despite himself.

She looked furious. Or maybe mortified.

Their eyes met, briefly.

Oscar raised an eyebrow.

Harper, red-faced, stuck her tongue out at him.

—

Harper sat on the edge of her narrow dorm bed, fingers frozen around her phone. The headmaster had promised one call home "just to inform," but of course her mother had demanded a personal conversation. She always did. Control disguised as concern.

The line clicked.

"Harper Grace," her mother's voice hissed like steam through a cracked teapot. "I knew leaving you at that school was a mistake. God forbid I get one term without a phone call from some smug administrator telling me my daughter is playing fugitive on school property!"

Harper clenched her jaw. "It wasn't like that."

"No? Then do explain it to me. You snuck out. You trespassed. You embarrassed yourself and—by extension—me. Again."

Harper swallowed the ache in her throat. "It was just the astroturf. Jane—"

"Oh. Jane. Of course. I knew that girl was trouble the minute I saw her on your Instagram. She's got you playing shadow to someone else's mess — just like you always do. No spine. No judgment."

There was a pause. Harper didn't speak. That was the trap—engage, and her mother won.

"You're wasting every opportunity I've broken my back to give you," her mother continued, voice tightening. "You are not some ordinary girl, Harper. Do you think your tuition fee grows on trees? Do you think I work hard every single day so you could roll around on fake grass like a delinquent?"

Harper stared at the ceiling, eyes hot. "No, Mum."

"Exactly. So you'll fix this. You'll write an apology letter to the headmaster. You'll stay away from that Jane girl. And you'll remember who you are. Because I will not have my daughter become another pathetic little scandal. Do I make myself clear?"

A long silence stretched between them.

"Yes," Harper said softly. "You're clear."

"Good," her mother snapped, already moving on. "Now go and do something useful, will you? Preferable something that won't ruin your life and discredit our family name."

The call ended.

Harper sat frozen, the low hum of the disconnected line ringing louder than the yelling ever had. She didn't cry. She hadn't because of her mum in years. But her chest felt splintered all the same—like something small and important had cracked.

From the hallway, she heard Jane's laugh—unapologetic, alive. For a moment, Harper wished she could step into her skin and exist in the peace for just one beautiful day.

Then she put her phone face down and stared out the window, toward the corner of the West building, where Oscar's light was still on.

—

Saturday breakfast at Haileybury was always quieter than weekdays—no teachers barking about uniforms, no ridiculous assemblies looming. Just a murmur of voices, the clink of spoons on bowls, and the comforting scent of burnt toast and cheap blackcurrant cordial.

Harper found Oscar already at their usual corner table, grey school hoodie half-zipped, one hand absently twirling a spoon through a rapidly dissolving Weetabix. She slid in across from him without asking.

He looked up. "Hello, criminal."

She rolled her eyes. "Very funny."

"Did they handcuff you?"

"I was in a golf cart. Not a police car."

"Same thing."

She tried to suppress a smile, then gave up and let it bloom. "Shut up."

Oscar nudged a plate of toast toward her without looking. She took a slice. Their fingers brushed but neither of them blinked.

The conversation, such as it was, drifted between silence and occasional muttered words. Harper hated explaining herself, and Oscar never asked too many questions. She liked that. He was content to just exist, solid and easy.

She reached for the plate of butter and jam packets; he slid it toward her before she could ask. A beat later, her socked foot bumped his under the table, and when she didn't move it, neither did he.

Oscar leaned his elbow on the table, close enough that their arms almost touched. His pinky brushed hers once, twice. Stayed.

"You're quiet," he said, not looking at her. "Did you get in actual trouble?"

Harper shrugged, chewing toast like it was a strategy. "No. Just a warning. I'm just... tired."

"Yeah." A pause. Then, "Your mum?"

She hesitated—long enough that Oscar glanced at her. She didn't meet his eyes, but her hand drifted over the table between them, her fingers brushing the cuff of his sleeve. Light, thoughtless. He didn't pull away.

"Yeah," she said quietly. "She was... her usual self."

He didn't say sorry. Didn't offer advice. Instead, his hand turned slightly under hers, letting their fingers rest together for a moment—awkward, warm, electric.

Harper blinked. Neither of them looked down.

Somewhere across the room, Jane shouted something about hashbrowns. Plates clattered. The world moved on.

But at their table, it seemed to pause. Just for a brief moment.

—

It wasn't a date.

That's what Harper told herself when Oscar muttered, barely above a mumble, "If you're not doing anything tomorrow... I've got a session. Karting. Local place. You could come, if you want."

She hadn't answered right away—just nodded and said, "Sure," like it wasn't the most exciting offer she'd received in months.

Now she stood behind a sagging wire fence at Rye House Kart Raceway, the tang of petrol thick in the air, her hands jammed into her coat pockets. The morning was all grey light and loud engines, but something about it felt oddly calm. Like a different frequency from school life. Like she'd somehow stepped into Oscar's world and it'd welcomed her with open arms.

He was already out there when she arrived—helmeted, gloved, tucked low into the kart like it'd been built around him. She might not know the first thing about apexes or tires, but she could tell that he was fast. Efficient. Focused.

The kart didn't fight him; it moved with him.

One of the mechanics, a guy with oil-stained hands and a thick Northern accent, noticed her hovering. "You Harper?"

She blinked. "Yeah?"

"Well, shit. He told us you might show up today. Nice to meet you. Kid doesn't stop talking about you."

Harper flushed. "Oh."

The man grinned and pointed toward the pit lane. "You can stand closer. He won't mind. Nobody will say anything — I'll make sure of it."

So she did.

She leaned against the low rail as Oscar pulled in, lifting his visor with one hand. His hair was plastered to his forehead, cheeks flushed red from the cold and the adrenaline.

"You came," he said when he saw her, his eyes slightly wide.

"You invited me." She said with a shrug.

"Didn't think you would actually come." He admitted.

She raised an eyebrow. "Do I seem that unreliable?"

He gave her a sarcastic once over. "A little bit."

She nudged him with her shoulder. He nudged back—more of a lean, really, casual and warm, his helmet tucked under his arm.

He glanced down at her hand, fiddling with the cuff of her coat. "You wanna sit in it?"

She froze. "What?"

"The kart. You'll fit. You're smaller than me. Won't make you drive it. You can just... sit. See what it's like."

Her heart kicked up—something small but definite. "Okay."

He guided her by the wrist, gently, like he didn't even realise he was doing it. The kart was lower than she expected, more cramped. When she settled in, Oscar crouched beside it, adjusting a loose strap around her shoulder like it mattered; even though she wasn't even moving.

"Suits you," he said, voice cracking. His cheeks flamed red as he cleared his throat.

She looked up at him, her knees scrunched and her spine stiff against the plastic shell of the seat. "I feel like I'm going to get a foot cramp."

Oscar snorted. "Yeah. You get used to that." He crouched beside her, the team-branded grease-stained hoodie pulled over his head, a smudge of oil near his temple he hadn't noticed—or didn't care to. He leaned on the side of the kart like it was his second skin, completely at home here.

Harper squinted up at him. "You don't look like you've ever had a cramp in your life."

"Permanent state of cramp, actually," he said. "But the adrenaline outweighs the pain."

She rolled her eyes and laughed. The sound seemed to catch the attention of the crew around them.

One of the younger mechanics, a guy maybe nineteen with bleached tips and a cheeky grin, sauntered over. "So this the infamous Harper, yeah?"

Oscar looked vaguely alarmed. "Don't call her that."

The guy stuck out his hand. "I'm Cal. Oscar's part-time therapist-slash-punching bag. You hungry? We usually get a delivery of sausage rolls around eleven."

She blinked. "I mean... yeah. I wouldn't say no to a sausage roll."

That was all it took.

Within half an hour, Harper had been half-dragged, half-adopted into the garage crew's rhythm. Someone threw her a hoodie—two sizes too big, slightly smelling of petrol.

Someone else tossed her a bottle of orange Lucozade. They didn't ask who she was or where she came from. No grilling. No polite smiles that felt like there razors hidden underneath.

They just let her be.

Oscar didn't hover. He just looked over now and then between runs on the track—when she laughed at Cal's bad imitation of an Aussie accent, when she actually tried the sausage roll and grumbled in bliss at the greasy goodness, when she leaned back against a stack of tires, hoodie sleeves rolled over her fingers like she belonged there.

He caught her eye once across the pit, and her smile was quieter. Less amused, more... settled.

After the second session, she walked the track with him, boots crunching on gravel, their shoulders brushing once, twice, until finally she just left hers pressed against his.

"You l like them," he said, not a question.

"They're..." She trailed off. Words felt clumsy again. "They're nice. Kind. Easy."

Oscar glanced at her sideways. "Not like the people you normally meet, then?"

She shook her head. "My mum would have a full meltdown if she saw this place. She's big on etiquette and thinks that men belong in office buildings."

He let out a bark of laughter. "What does that mean?"

Harper smiled, but it was the sad kind. "It means I grew up learning how to be a cold-hearted bitch instead of... a good person."

Oscar didn't say anything for a while. Just walked next to her, silent. Then, in a voice barely above the hum of tires cooling nearby, "I think you're a good person."

She blinked hard at the ground, heart tight in her chest.

And then she reached out, without thinking, and hooked her pinky through his.

He didn't look at her.

He didn't let go, either.

—

By the third weekend — no one blinked when Harper appeared trackside.

She knew where the best shade was. Knew which toolbox to sit on without getting yelled at. She'd learned to nod like she understood when Cal rattled off tire compound jargon, and even managed to not flinch when someone dropped a torque wrench three feet from her head.

Oscar never really invited her anymore; she just showed up. Like clockwork. Like she belonged.

And the weird part? She kind of felt like she did.

Today, the garage buzzed louder than usual. Something was off; not in a bad way, just... more charged.

Harper felt it before Oscar even pulled back into the garage from the track. A couple of the guys were cleaning things that didn't need cleaning. Cal was actually wearing a clean team polo. And it'd been ironed.

Harper raised an amused eyebrow. "Who died?"

"No one died, mate," Cal said. "It's who's coming."

Before she could even ask, a black SUV pulled up just beyond the gravel lot. Out stepped a tall, broad-shouldered man in dark jeans and aviators.

Oscar appeared seconds later, clambering out of the kart and instinctively holding out his hands for Harper to unstrap his gloves.

She did so without thinking, keeping her eyes on the guest of honour. "That's..." Harper frowned. "Is that Mark Webber?"

Oscar nodded. "Yeah. He's my manager. Mentor. Basically part-time third parent." He shrugged. "No big deal. Hey." He said to Mark as he approached.

Mark clapped Oscar on the shoulder, firm and familiar. "Hey, kid." Then his gaze drifted to Harper. "And this is?" His Aussie accent was smoother than expected.

Harper stood quickly, brushing dirt from her jeans. "I'm Harper. I, uh—I go to school with Oscar. I just, kind of... hang around here. Sometimes. Sir."

"Yeah. She's really good at it," Oscar teased, smirking.

Mark offered her his hand. "Well, it's nice to meet you, Harper."

She laughed, nervous but charmed. "Yeah. You too."

Later, after a test stint that had the crew whispering about sector times and potential upgrades, Oscar was called over to one of the race officials' tents. When he came back, his expression was unreadable.

Harper swung her legs over the tire stack she'd claimed and watched him approach.

"What did they say?" She asked.

He didn't tell her anything right away. Just stood there, squinting against the sun. "They offered me a spot in WSK. Full calendar."

Her mouth parted slightly. "Oscar... that's—oh my god."

He nodded. "Yeah." He exhaled.

There was a long pause. People moved around them, laughing, working, shouting. But in the middle of it, everything else blurred.

"You're gonna take it, right?" She asked, trying to sound excited, not scared.

He didn't answer at first. Just looked at her for a long time. Like he was memorizing her.

"I think I have to," he laughed dryly.

She nodded, heart thudding too hard. "Yeah. You do."

Oscar took a step closer. Close enough that she could see the flecks of black in his eyes. "You'll still come to watch me practice, yeah?"

"If I'm allowed." She bit her lip.

"You're always allowed." He said; like he was daring anyone to say something different.

She smiled. And without thinking, she reached up and fixed the strap of his race suit, the way she'd seen him do a hundred times.

It wasn't a kiss. It wasn't even a hug.

But when their fingers touched, briefly and completely, it felt like something.

NEXT CHAPTER

740 notes · View notes

luvergirl-535 · 1 month ago

Note

hiiii i was wondering if you could write a quick blurb of really loved up pazzi, i know you’ve written some stuff kinda similar but i was thinking

it could be just a snapshot of a few hours of them cuddling, making out, falling asleep, back rubs and kind of just a peaceful nighttime kinda thing.

stay a little

pairing - paige bueckers x azzi fudd

word count - 1.5k

c/w - tooth-rotting fluff i fear

a/n - do i have work at 7am? yes. did i also stay up until midnight to post this? also yes. i have no regrets 😔

they don’t mean to waste the whole night in bed. really, they don’t.

the plan was dinner, then a movie, maybe a walk. but paige gets home from the gym sore and slouchy, slightly cranky probably because of the fact azzi declined to work out with her. she heads straight for azzi’s room, finding her already curled up in bed wearing only one of paige’s sweaters, scrolling aimlessly.

paige leans against the doorframe, unnoticed. “i thought we had a date night.”

azzi doesn’t startle, doesn’t even look up from her phone. “with the way you stormed out earlier i figured date night was canceled.” she looks up then, raises an eyebrow. “was i wrong?”

“i wasn’t really mad,” paige says. “just cranky.”

“i know.” azzi shrugs a shoulder. “but, like.”

“what if i said i still wanted to go out?”

“i’d say i already took my pants off for the day.”

paige can’t help but smile a little, and she gives azzi approximately zero time to brace herself before she’s launching herself into bed, landing on top of her girlfriend ungracefully.

“ow!” azzi huffs as the air’s knocked out of her. “i can’t breathe, paige.”

“you sayin’ i’m big?” paige asks, muffled in azzi’s sweater.

“i’m saying you’ve been lifting,” azzi chokes out, pushing against paige’s shoulders, but her girlfriend doesn’t move, “and you’re heavy.”

paige takes that in, then lifts her head with a smug smile. “thank you.”

azzi relaxes slightly, rolling her eyes, but before paige can lay back down she scrunches her nose. “you smell like sweat.”

“you love it.”

“in certain scenarios,” azzi corrects. “but you gotta wash it off before we go to bed, for real.”

paige puts at her. “but i’m tired.”

ten minutes later they’re both in the bathroom.

paige groans dramatically the whole time she’s taking off her sports bra. azzi just leans against the counter, arms crossed and smirking, until paige finishes wrestling it off and holds it up like a trophy.

“you’ve had that thing since, like, 11th grade.”

“you don’t know what bras i was wearing in the 11th grade.”

“paige, we were totally hooking up by then.”

paige looks at her, then the bra, then indignantly back at her. “we were not. you were, like, a sophomore.”

azzi is only slightly offended by the fact paige doesn’t remember their relationship timeline. “did you have too many other hoes back then to remember me?”

paige scrambles to defend herself with that one.

❀❀❀

the water’s hot and paige feels like she’s melting. it’s probably, like, 100 degrees. at least. she groans. “bro, why do you take lava showers.”

azzi stands behind her under the spray, massaging shampoo into her hair absentmindedly. “i had to sit through your lukewarm shower last time.“

“it was not lukewarm,” paige says. “it was nice. this is painful.”

“you have to get used to it.”

“we’ve been showering together since the 11th grade, dawg. i don’t think i’ma get used to it.”

azzi smiles and slaps her shoulder. “so you admit it!”

paige’s eyebrows furrow, and she’s glad she isn’t facing azzi when she involuntarily pouts. “fuck you.”

❀❀❀

“why you tryna dry out my hair?” azzi asks, eyeing the bottle of shampoo warily.

paige carefully sets it back down. “chill. i thought today was wash day.”

“yesterday was wash day, paige,” azzi says with a sigh, because really, how hard is it to remember her hair wash schedule? “every other thursday. remember?”

“yeah, but yesterday when we went to bed i asked if you did it and you said you’d ’do it tomorrow’.”

azzi stares at her. chews the inside of her cheek. she’d been ready to wash her hair, but paige had come home a little earlier than expected and then they’d turned on the tv and then they not-so-subtly flirted until the tv was long forgotten, exchanged for hungry mouths and eager hands, and by the time they’d finished—

“fine,” azzi says, turning around with a dramatic little huff.

“what,” paige asks, grinning. “you sayin’ i’m right?”

“i never said that,” azzi mumbles before looking at her over her shoulder. “you have to help me with the whole thing now.”

paige looks far too smug to care. “uh-huh. turn your head, mama.”

❀❀❀

azzi sits on the edge of the bed in a t-shirt and boxers, head tilted slightly back as she air-dries, eyes half-lidded and calm. after some slight begging, she convinced ice to french braid her hair, and her edges are already frizzing. paige walks into the bedroom holding azzi’s pink scarf and bonnet like she’s on a mission.

“found ‘em,” she says proudly.

“wow,” azzi says. “where were they?”

the truth is, she’d known exactly where they were. of course she did. she didn’t just go around losing her scarf and bonnet. but paige had loudly played fortnite the entire time ice was doing her hair and then continued to be very hyper when they got back to azzi’s room, and she’d just needed some peace and quiet.

“in the cabinet under the sink, by ice and kk’s hair stuff,” paige says, wandering over to the bed and shuffling onto it.

“i should’ve thought of that,” azzi murmurs, scooting up to give paige room.

paige stretches her legs out, caging azzi between them as she shifts so her front is flush against azzi’s back. “yep.”

paige gathers azzi’s braids, then smooths the front of azzi’s hair gently. she starts tying the scarf around her edges, fingers practiced, and if azzi looked at her she knows she’d find her tongue sticking out in concentration. azzi hums when paige’s thumbs brush along her temples, her whole body relaxing under the touch.

“not too tight?” paige asks.

“mm-mm,” she hums. “it’s perfect.”

paige cranes around to kiss her cheek, then secures the bonnet over everything to hopefully keep it in place through azzi’s tossing and turning.

“there,” she says, “you’re all bedtime certified now.”

azzi giggles. “do you wanna be bedtime certified?” she asks, lifting a leg onto the bed so she can twist around and half-face her girlfriend.

“baby, i been certified. i got my degree in tucking you in.”

azzi laughs, and paige leans over to peck her on the lips before facing her away again. azzi wants to complain at the loss of kissing access, but then paige is wrapping her arms around her stomach, burying her face into her neck, holding her close. they smell like coconut oil and lavender and they could stay like this forever, azzi thinks.

❀❀❀

by the time they finally lay down, it’s late, and neither of them are mad that they missed date night.

“i love you,” paige mutters. she’s sprawled across azzi’s chest now, half-asleep and deadweight, but azzi doesn’t mind. if anything, she pulls her in closer.

“uh-huh,” azzi says, real quiet. “you’re just saying that because your laying on my tits.”

“i love you more than i love your tits,” paige says, and she says it so earnestly that azzi almost laughs. instead, she just combs a hand through her hair, using her other to scroll through netflix.

“i know you do, honey,” she says, smiling to herself. “i love you, too.”

❀❀❀

they kiss slow, lazy—like they’ve got all the time in the world and not a single reason to rush. azzi shifts onto her side and tugs paige in by the jaw, fingers warm and deliberate. paige goes easy, melting right into her, one arm looped around azzi’s waist like she’s afraid she’ll float away.

their mouths meet soft at first, then again, then again, until it’s a series of gentle, unhurried kisses. azzi nips at paige’s bottom lip, not enough to hurt, just enough to make her smile. paige hums and tilts her chin up asking for more. it’s not desperate, not leading anywhere—it’s the way they’ve always liked to kiss, when they have time for it.

paige’s hand moves under azzi’s shirt, holding the warm skin at her hip like it belongs to her. and maybe it does. azzi pulls back a little to catch her breath and runs her thumb across paige’s cheekbone, eyes soft, lips swollen.

“what?” paige asks, whispering it.

“nothing,” azzi says. “you’re just pretty.”

“shut up,” paige groans, immediately burying her face in azzi’s neck to hide her blush. “you’re annoying.”

but azzi just laughs—quiet and smug and so in love—and cups the back of her head like she never wants to let go.

“one of these days you’ll learn to take my compliments,” she murmurs.

“doubtful.”

❀❀❀

when they finally settle—blankets pulled up, limbs all over the place—paige runs a hand down azzi’s side, then loops her arm around her waist like she’s claiming something.

“don’t leave in the morning, ‘kay?” she mumbles.

“okay, baby,” azzi says, already half-asleep. “i won’t.”

and paige believes her. with the way azzi tucks her into her chest, breathes with her, holds her like she’s something worth keeping—how could she not?

#pazzi #azzi fudd #paige bueckers #pazzi fics #uconn wbb #wcbb #wbb #dallas wings #blurb #randommm #lilah’s works

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syoddeye · 3 months ago

Text

Bookworm. Ghost x Reader. cw: cyberstalking, abrupt ending a/n: to borrow a phrase from early, a brain hairball.

Simon hates being idle.

It leaves him feeling off, a knife left out in the rain. Rusting creeping along the edges, the weight uneven when you finally take it back in hand. Twice the effort to get it in killing shape again. That’s what leave does to him. Makes his skin crawl with the need to move, to do something. And this bloody physio appointment won’t scratch that itch.

His shoulder’s still not quite right. Stiff in the mornings and aching when the weather turns. Makes it impossible to train without spending forty-five to an hour on the floor, sweating and cursing. He’s been putting off the appointments, avoiding them outright. Gritting his teeth through it, but Price caught wind of it. Told him if he skipped another one, he’d drag Simon there himself.

So, here he is.

The café’s nothing special. Small, tucked away on a street where the foot traffic’s mostly locals. The kind of place you’d miss if you weren’t looking. He likes that about it. Quiet. Nobody’s looking at him twice with his cap pulled low.

He’s been here long enough for his coffee to go lukewarm, sitting near the window where the glass fogs from the chill outside. He watches people come and go, eyes drifting over faces without really focusing.

He should have arranged a bird to pass the week with. Would’ve been easier than sitting here or his miserable flat, waiting out the dead time between appointments. Someone warm and agreeable, eager to make use of him. Let him press the ache from his bones in a way that physio never will. Too late for that now. All he’s got is a bitter, room temp coffee and a stiff shoulder.

It’s almost a mercy, then, cosmic correction, for the universe to drop a little puzzle in his lap.

You sit down at the table next to him, barely sparing him a glance. You’re juggling too much—bag over your shoulder, laptop under one arm, and a mug clutched in hand. You drop everything down with more force than necessary, letting out a quiet sigh. Frustrated.

He steals a look while you set up.

You’re pretty. Ink smudges on your fingers, a tiny dot near your temple where you must’ve rubbed it without thinking. Something floral drifts off you—shampoo, maybe. Or perfume. Light and girlish. And the way your jeans hug your thighs. Hard not to look at.

He can’t help himself. Pure instinct, cataloging details and slotting them together.

Laptop stickers. A small cluster of them, nothing flashy. One’s a crest for a university. Another’s from a fabric store. A couple related to books.

Jumper. Grey, oversized. Worn. The same logo as the sticker, but with the department embroidered over your chest.

Notebook and book. Neat handwriting, margins filled with cramped notes, and arrows pointing to even more ideas. Dozens of colorful tabs stick out from the novel’s pages.

Dozens of messages. Simon stares at your phone on the edge of the table, catching the preview of the latest. Something about a meeting with your advisor and a graduate dissertation.

Your laptop opens to a wall of text. Hundreds of lines.

Student.

Easy to piece together.

You’re chewing on the inside of your cheek as you type, bottom lip caught between your teeth. Worrying it. Something stirs in his chest at the peek of your tongue.

No ring.

He scans your hands. No marks where one might’ve been.

Single. Unmarried, at least.

No tattoos. No visible scars. Nails painted, but barely. The polish is chipped, wearing away at the edges. You don’t bother keeping up with it. Too broke? Too busy?

Another vibration. A second message lights up your phone. This time, he sees more of it: Shift swap. Someone asking if you can cover tonight.

Works, then.

He swipes his thumb over his phone, scrolling absently, pretending, but his mind sticks fast. The facts are lining up, falling into place.

Grad student. Literature, most likely. Working on a dissertation. Works at least part-time to make ends meet. You keep squinting at your screen and notes. Maybe you need glasses or contacts.

Simon’s eyes drop to your jumper again.

Department of English and Creative Writing.

His mind is already filling in the gaps. The stickers on your laptop. The books. How you’re typing. Focused, wholly absorbed, with no awareness of the world around you. Lost in your own head, a few steps removed from reality.

Little bookworm.

He already knows your school and department. The name of your advisor who’s texted you. From there, it’s easy.

He tilts his phone away, though no one is paying attention to him. Especially not you. A quick search brings up the department’s website, a list of faculty, graduate students, and recent publications. He scrolls until—

A university blog post with a photo. Blurry, the lighting awful, but it’s you. The shape of your mouth, your face. Hands frozen in a fidget. Your name, attached to a paper. Has a nice ring to it.

Simon should stop here. You seem like a nice girl with a normal future and it’d be a shame to get in the way of that. But he doesn’t.

If anything, this is a good lesson for you to learn. To not be so permissive with your information and belongings. You shouldn’t leave your life so open, with easy-to-follow breadcrumbs. Who knows what might end up at your door, hungry for more?

Besides, if he didn’t do it, someone else would.

Your name leads to a personal website, then to social media, where your life is laid out in squares. Windows into the future. Bookstores, classes, afternoon tea. Friends. Flatmates. A black cat, curled up in a patch of sunlight on a lumpy sofa.

He taps through them, one by one, mapping out your world, mentally marking places, people. Figuring out precisely where he’ll slot in.

The reminder for his appointment pops up, buzzing in his hand. His thumb hovers for a moment longer, then he takes a screenshot—a photo of you on holiday, lying on your belly on a beach, looking up at the camera with a soft, easy smile. A book rests open on the towel in front of you, forgotten for the moment. A generous glimpse of the tits you’re currently hiding from him. Thighs pressed together, arse dusted in sand.

His jaw flexes as he breathes out through his nose, staring hard at you from the corner of his eye.

He wants to haul you into his lap and wipe the ink from your skin with a spit-slicked thumb. Pop the button on your fly, slip his hand down, and make you explain whatever the fuck it is you study while his fingers sink into you.

Instead, he pockets his phone and stands.

Flexes his thighs, eyes drifting out the window to keep himself in check.

He’s quietly pleased when he shuffles out on the side closest to you. You shift automatically, tucking your legs, making space without thinking, without looking up.

So. You notice some things. You still won’t see him coming.

Simon’s reluctant to leave now. Not with his new itch, the burgeoning curiosity for the bookworm walking the same streets as him. But he leaves, knowing he’s gathered enough for now. Enough to find you again, to keep that little thread of connection alive. Maybe the rest of the week won’t be so dull, after all.

His shoulder twinges as he rolls it again, but the discomfort doesn’t register as bad. He’ll sort it now.

He just needs it useful enough for a bit of lifting later.

#ghost x reader #another stressed + frazzled workaholic reader? i'm not projecting #anyway. vibes only as usual.

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planetherk · 3 months ago

Text

ENDLESS

two is always better than one, right?

jeong yunho x reader x song mingi

tw: poly relationship, smut, implied age gap between reader and the boys, unprotected sex (please be careful!!), this is written in third person, non idol au

wc: 3k

There’s something oddly domestic about the way she wakes up most mornings now—wrapped between two warm bodies, her cheek pressed to one bare chest while someone else’s hand is tangled in her hair.

Mingi’s deep voice is the first thing she hears, groggy and low. “You’re squishing her again, Yuyu.”

“I am not,” Yunho mumbles, his arm tightening instinctively around her waist.

She doesn’t open her eyes yet, just lets herself smile, because this is the way it always is. Her being the smallest, the youngest, somehow makes her the natural center of gravity in their trio—both literally and emotionally.

It started off simple. They were best friends. Friends who met in their early twenties through a mutual roommate situation that turned into a ride-or-die friendship. Movie nights turned into sleepovers. Sleepovers turned into her falling asleep on Mingi’s lap while Yunho played with her hair. Somewhere in between all the half-laughed jokes about being a “throuple,” things got blurry.

Because now, Yunho calls her “baby” in front of strangers without thinking twice. Mingi pulls her into his lap whenever she’s tired, and presses lazy kisses to her shoulder if she’s wearing an oversized tank top. They both call her "princess" and "sweetheart" and once, when she had a bad day, Mingi muttered a quiet “mine” while spooning her that left her too stunned to breathe for a full minute.

But nobody talks about it. Not really.

They flirt, they touch, they share everything from hot ramen to bedsheets—and yet there’s never been a conversation. Not one. And maybe that’s why she stays quiet, too. Because what if it breaks the magic?

She finally opens her eyes, blinking up into the golden light filtering through the apartment blinds. Yunho is lying on his side, facing her, still half-asleep but already watching her. Mingi’s on her other side, shirtless, sprawled like he owns the entire bed. One of his legs is tangled with hers under the blanket, his hand draped over her thigh.

“Morning, angel,” Yunho says softly, brushing hair off her face.

She hums. “Morning.”

“You hungry?” Mingi mutters, voice raspy from sleep, and leans forward to press a kiss to her temple. “We could order that dumb pancake stack you like.”

She smiles into the crook of Yunho’s arm. “The one with the strawberries?”

“Duh,” Mingi grins, finally cracking an eye open. “You’re our spoiled girl, remember?”

Yunho nods, nuzzling into her shoulder. “She gets whatever she wants.”

And just like that, the ache in her chest blooms again. That aching, aching question: What are we?

But she doesn’t ask. Not today.

Instead, she lets herself melt into their touch. Mingi starts scrolling through food delivery apps, lazily resting his hand on her bare knee like it's second nature. Yunho rubs soft circles into her back, humming some tune she doesn't recognize. The bed smells like their shared shampoo, warm skin, and something she can’t name.

It’s not quite a relationship. But it’s not just friendship either.

The pancakes arrived almost an hour later, lukewarm and dripping in chocolate. But none of them really cared. They were still in bed—barely clothed, limbs overlapping in that easy way they always seemed to find themselves in. She sat cross-legged in the middle of the bed, wearing nothing but one of Yunho’s oversized black t-shirts and a pair of Mingi’s boxers she’d stolen from the laundry pile. Her hair was a mess of waves and sleep, cheeks still pink from all the cuddling and lazy touches.

Yunho sat behind her, his knees bracketing her hips, arms wrapped around her waist as he fed her bites with a fork. “Open,” he said softly, voice teasing against the shell of her ear.

She laughed, turning her face slightly toward him. “I have hands, you know.”

“I like feeding you,” he murmured, fingers brushing her bottom lip a little too slow, too soft, like he was testing her reaction.

Mingi, sitting in front of her with the takeout box in his lap, smirked. “It’s true. He’s obsessed. Probably dreams about it.”

Yunho grinned against her hair. “Only when she makes that little sound after the strawberries.”

She went still for a second, eyes flicking between the two of them. Then she rolled her eyes, cheeks burning. “You two are impossible.”

“You love it,” Mingi said, reaching forward to tuck her hair behind her ear. His knuckles grazed her jaw in the process. “You looove when we spoil you, pretty girl.”

That nickname hit low in her stomach. She didn’t respond—just looked down at the sticky takeout box, pretending she didn’t feel the slow, smoldering heat creeping beneath her skin.

The room was quiet for a moment too long.

Yunho’s fingers were now tracing lazy circles on her thighs, slipping lower each time the loop completed. Mingi watched her like he was reading her—eyes sharp, knowing, like he could see all the questions she never asked.

“You’re quiet,” Yunho murmured near her neck, lips barely brushing her skin.

“I’m just…” she swallowed, shifting slightly in his lap. “Thinking.”

“What about?” Mingi tilted his head, gaze flickering down to her lips before settling back on her eyes.

“I dunno. Us.”

Another pause. This one felt heavier.

Yunho’s hand stilled. Mingi’s smile faltered, just for a second.

But then Yunho kissed the spot just behind her ear, slow and warm, and said, “We don’t need a label to keep doing this, angel.”

“Unless you want one,” Mingi added, voice dropping half an octave. “Because we’d give it to you. You know that, right?”

Her breath hitched. “I—no, I mean… I like this. I just don’t always know what this is.”

“Us taking care of you,” Yunho said simply.

“You being ours,” Mingi added, licking a bit of chocolate off his thumb, eyes locked on her.

The way he said ours made her thighs squeeze together instinctively. And Yunho noticed. Of course he did.

His voice was practically a purr now, right by her ear. “Do you like when we call you that?”

She turned, only enough to glance at him over her shoulder. “Call me what?”

“Ours,” Mingi said again, voice like honey and heat.

The silence stretched again—tension thick and humming in the small room.

She swallowed hard. “Yeah… I like it.”

Yunho’s arms tightened around her. Mingi’s eyes darkened, just a little.

“Good,” Yunho murmured. “Because you are.”

ღ⋆ღ⋆ღ⋆ღ⋆ღ

That night, it happened again. They were watching a movie—something dumb and loud—and she was sandwiched between them on the couch, like always. Her legs were draped over Mingi’s lap, Yunho’s arm thrown casually over her shoulders, hand resting dangerously close to her chest. It wasn’t weird. This was normal. But tonight, something was… different.

Maybe it was the wine. Maybe it was the way Mingi’s hand had been slowly running up and down her calf for the past half hour. Maybe it was the way Yunho’s fingers had started playing with the hem of her shirt, brushing the soft skin of her waist in lazy, absent-minded strokes. Whatever it was, she was buzzing.

She shifted slightly, trying to get comfortable—but Yunho’s hand slid a little lower, settling warm and firm against her ribs. Mingi's fingers curled around her ankle, then higher, grazing her knee. No one said a word.

Her breath caught in her throat when Yunho leaned down and murmured, “You’re tense, baby. You okay?”

His voice was all silk and sleep and care—but the way he said baby made her squirm.

Mingi noticed. She knew because his hand moved higher.

He chuckled, low. “She likes when we talk to her like that.”

“I know,” Yunho whispered back, brushing a strand of hair from her neck and pressing a kiss there. “She gets so quiet when she does.”

“Am I not allowed to be quiet?” she asked, voice shaky.

“No,” Mingi said, eyes burning into hers. “Not when you’re thinking things and not telling us.”

She blinked, lips parting. “Like what?”

“Like how badly you want us to touch you right now.”

Silence.

Then Yunho’s lips grazed her ear. “Are we wrong?”

She couldn’t speak. She didn’t need to.

Mingi leaned forward, cupping her cheek gently. “We can stop anytime, baby. Just say the word.”

But she didn’t. Her breath came shallow, her body tense but humming, curled between them like something sacred.

Mingi was still holding her ankle, fingers slowly sliding up to her thigh—his touch featherlight but certain, like he was memorizing her. Yunho’s lips hadn’t left her neck, each kiss growing slower, deeper, warmer. He nuzzled just behind her ear and whispered, “Still okay?”

She nodded, voice lost to the heat blooming low in her belly. But Yunho pulled back slightly, one hand coming up to cradle her jaw. “We need to hear you say it, angel.”

Her lips parted. “I’m okay. I… I want this.”

Mingi leaned in then, mouth brushing her knee as he looked up at her, eyes dark and hungry but still soft. “You sure, pretty girl?”

She met his gaze, something sparking behind her lashes. “I want you. Both of you.”

That was all it took.

Yunho leaned forward, kissing her full on the mouth—slow, firm, no hesitation. His lips were soft but demanding, tilting her head gently with his hand. She moaned into it, and he swallowed the sound like it belonged to him. Mingi shifted closer, running his hand up her other thigh now, kneading gently. His lips found the space under her jaw as Yunho kissed her, and the sensation made her whole body tremble. They were touching her like she was something they’d waited for. Something they weren’t going to rush. Something they deserved to take their time with.

“Let us take care of you,” Yunho murmured against her lips.

Mingi’s hand dipped under the waistband of his own boxers she was wearing—his fingers brushing her pussy, slow and deliberate. Her back arched instinctively, a gasp escaping her lips.

“Oh,” she breathed.

Yunho smiled, pulling back just enough to press kisses along her cheek, her jaw, down her throat. “You’re already so wet, baby.”

Mingi slipped two fingers along her folds, barely dipping in, just teasing. “Fucking soaked.”

Her face flushed crimson, but she couldn’t bring herself to feel shy. Not with the way they were looking at her. Like she was the sun they revolved around. Yunho slipped a hand under her shirt, palming her breast through the thin fabric of her lacy bra. “Can I take this off?”

She nodded breathlessly, and he tugged the shirt over her head, slow and reverent. Her hair tumbled down around her shoulders, and she flushed under their gaze.

“God,” Mingi muttered, eyes roaming over her like he was starved. “You’re so beautiful.”

Yunho unclasped her bra, letting it fall from her shoulders, her nipples hardening from the cold air and then his kisses were everywhere, her collarbone, her chest, her stomach. Mingi moved to her side, brushing her hair from her face before tilting her chin up to kiss her too. It was overwhelming. Perfect. Their mouths and hands exploring her like worship. Mingi’s fingers finally slid inside her, slow but deep, while Yunho sucked gently at one of her nipples, tongue flicking just right.

Her breath hitched, body arching between them.

“You’re doing so well, angel,” Yunho whispered, eyes locked on hers. “So perfect for us.”

Mingi curled his fingers inside her, and she let out a soft moan, grabbing at his wrist. “More, please…”

“Oh, we’ll give you more,” Mingi promised, voice thick and low. “We’re just getting started baby.”

They took turns touching her, teasing her, their mouths moving down her body in tandem—Yunho kissing her neck, leaving marks she would have to cover later, Mingi licking slow stripes along her inner thighs, their touches never overlapping but always in sync.

It felt like a dream. It felt like everything.

When Mingi finally replaced his fingers with his mouth, she cried out softly, one hand in his hair, the other gripping Yunho’s arm. Yunho held her close, kissing her temple, murmuring sweet praises while Mingi worked his tongue slow and deep over her sweet pussy, like he had nowhere else to be. “You taste so sweet baby. So sweet. ”

She came undone like that—shuddering between them, clinging, gasping and moaning their names like prayer.

But they didn’t stop there.

Yunho stood, pulling his shirt off slowly, eyes locked on hers the entire time. His chest was broad, golden in the dim light, muscles taut with restraint. “You want more, baby?” she nodded, eyes wide, dazed with pleasure. “Please…”

They lifted her gently—Yunho scooping her up bridal-style, both of them kissing her softly as they carried her to the bedroom.

Yunho laid her gently on the cool sheets like she was something precious—his hands never leaving her skin. He kissed her again, softer this time, slower, while Mingi knelt beside her on the bed and ran his palm along her stomach, up to cup her breast.

“Still with us, angel?” Yunho murmured against her lips.

She nodded, voice a breathy whisper. “Yeah… please don’t stop.”

Yunho leaned back to take in the sight of her—lips swollen, skin flushed, eyes half-lidded and trusting. His gaze darkened as he tugged off the rest of his clothes, revealing his toned, golden body in full. Her breath caught at the sight of him. Mingi was behind her again, one arm curled under her shoulders as he pressed hot kisses along her neck, dragging his tongue lightly across her pulse point. She whimpered softly, her body instinctively pressing back into him.

“Want you both,” she murmured, “please—”

Yunho knelt between her legs and kissed slowly up the inside of her thigh, his fingers teasing along the sensitive skin where Mingi’s mouth had just been. “We’re right here, baby. Gonna make you feel so good.”

He lined himself up with her slowly, watching her eyes, waiting for the smallest hesitation. But she opened for him like a flower, hand reaching for his wrist to tug him closer. Mingi whispered something into her neck—words like “beautiful,” and “you’re doing so well for us”—and Yunho pressed forward, sliding into her in one long, slow motion.

The moan that escaped her was sinful.

He moved slow at first, drawing out every inch, every gasp. Her hands clutched at his back, her legs wrapped around his waist. Yunho kissed her like he couldn't get enough of the taste of her moans. His rhythm built gradually, patient but deep—rolling his hips just right, pounding in her with a toe-curling force, filling her completely.

Mingi watched, eyes dark and heavy-lidded, his hand brushing her hair from her sweaty forehead. Then he kissed her—soft but filthy, tongue slipping into her mouth like he already knew the rhythm of her breath. His hands traveled down to his painfully hard cock, the sight of his best friend fucking the girl he had the biggest crush on was the biggest turn on. She was theirs, and only theirs. And now they were proving it.

“I love watching you like this,” he whispered, lips brushing hers. “So fucking pretty.”

“More,” she gasped, arching her back between them. “I want—”

Yunho slowed down and looked at Mingi. No words passed, but something shifted—an understanding, a shared current between them.

Mingi leaned in, biting her ear gently. “You want both of us, princess?” His voice was thick with need. “Think you can take it?”

Her pussy clenched around Yunho’s cock at the thought, breath quickening.

Yunho stilled inside her, lowering his mouth to her ear. “We’ll be gentle. You trust us?”

She nodded without hesitation. “I trust you. I want it.”

They took their time preparing her, every touch laced with care. Mingi kissed down her spine while Yunho held her close, whispering reassurances as they coaxed her body open. By the time Mingi pressed against her, his fingers gripping her hips while Yunho kissed her breathless, she was already trembling. The stretch was intense—overwhelming—but she melted into it, gasping as Mingi slid in slowly behind her, his chest pressed to her back.

“Good girl,” Yunho whispered, stroking her hair, hips rocking into her in tandem. “You’re taking us so well.” Mingi’s breath was hot against her shoulder. “You feel like heaven.”

They moved slowly, in sync—deep, filling thrusts that made her toes curl and her head fall back onto Mingi’s shoulder. She was completely surrounded, completely theirs. Their hands were everywhere—trailing down her body, gripping her thighs, holding her steady. She felt full, both of her holes welcoming the boys. Her boys.

Yunho kissed her lips as she moaned, Mingi bit her neck and soothed it with his tongue. The sounds in the room were pure sin—skin against skin, breathy gasps, the occasional curse whispered against her cheek. And when she came again, it was like falling—her body clenching around them, the world dissolving into white-hot pleasure. She cried out their names, hips trembling, overwhelmed.

They didn’t last long after that. Yunho spilled inside her with a low groan, hips stuttering as he buried his face in her neck. Mingi followed moments later, moaning into her shoulder, arms wrapped tight around her waist as he collapsed against her back.

The three of them lay there in a tangled mess—panting, sweaty, warm. No one said anything for a long time.

Eventually, Yunho pulled her into his chest, brushing sweat-soaked hair from her face. “You okay, baby?”

She nodded sleepily, dazed and glowing. “That was… everything.”

Mingi chuckled softly, pulling the blanket over them all. “You’re everything.”

Yunho kissed her forehead, voice rough but gentle. “You’re ours.”

They would be the death of each other.

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lukewarmblogs · 1 year ago

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#bestshampoo #shampoo #lukewarm

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gloomwitchwrites · 4 months ago

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Hi there! Absolutely love your work, you write 141 so well. I was wondering about putting in a request. Something along the lines of doing self care with the guys- massages, face masks, bubble bath, manicure, pedicure, etc., anything to destress after work. However you want to write it, either the reader is pampering them (I’d want to spoil those 4 so bad), they are pampering reader, or they are just indulging in self care together, I leave it all in your capable, creative hands. After the week I’ve had at work I could go for some self care (reading your fics has been helping me 😊). Take care!

Oh my gosh. This is so cute. I love this. Yes, anon. Absolutely.

Written w/ gn!reader

MDNI for brief suggestive themes

When Price comes home after a long day, the two of you like to spend time in the bath together. The moment the text from John comes in on your phone to tell you he’s heading home, you’re turning on the faucet and running the hot water. Once full, you drop in an aromatic bath bomb and placing towels in the warmer. John loves reclining with you in his arm while the two of you soak. He likes to decompress like this, talking about his day and yours, enjoying the feel of you in his arms. It isn’t until the water turns lukewarm that the two of you get out. With warm towels, the two of you dry each other off, and then massage his sore muscles with lotion. Afterwards it’s cuddles in bed.

Soap always watches you indulge in self-care days but never thinks to participate until you offer to pamper him after work one day. He shrugs, not thinking much of it. You start by having him shower and then putting on a fluffy bathrobe afterward. Next is a facemask while you massage his muscles with a hydrating lotion. Johnny is perfectly content, literal puddy in your hands as you work out those knots. He moans when you manage to undo one in his shoulder. The facemask comes off, and while you want to keep pampering your man, Johnny has other plans. He wants to snuggle, and get those kisses in for a bit.

A self-care day with Gaz happens every Sunday as long as he’s home. It’s not an afternoon snooze or a few hours in the evening. It’s a full day affair. It’s morning coffee and tea in bed before cooking breakfast together and then followed by a shared shower for a bit of intimacy. After that it’s taking turns massaging each other, working lotion or oil into each other’s skin. Kyle likes to spend a bit of time grooming himself, and he insists on doing your grooming too (and that includes shaving.) Reading books or lounging around in your bathrobes in the afternoon might happen, or it might be prepping lots of snacks to settle in for a movie marathon. Either way, it always ends with the two of you disconnecting from the world and enjoying each other’s company.

Self-care and Ghost don’t exist. When Simon is trying to decompress after work, he takes a nap and then immediately orders takeaway upon waking. It’s you introducing him to self-care that changes his perspective. Even though he sighs when you drag him by the arm to the bathroom, Simon goes with you after you promise him lots of kisses and touching. It’s a shower first, the two of you scrubbing each other down, and shampooing each other’s hair. Simon steals kisses between rinses. After emerging, its oversized towels, and Simon stealing even more kisses as you try to towel off. You try to convince him to do a facemask or to trim his toenails, and while he might take some clippers, Simon is collapsing into bed, happy to watch you take care of yourself, dropping little sultry comments just to fluster you.

CoD Headcanons / AUs / Quick Writes Masterlist

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hazelira · 5 months ago

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bath bubbles

The front door clicked shut, and the familiar sound of Sunghoon’s voice filled the quiet apartment.

"I'm home," he called softly, careful not to startle the little bundle of joy that had recently taken over your world.

"In here," you replied from the kitchen, where you had already started filling the sink with warm water for your baby boy’s bath.

Sunghoon stepped into the room, his eyes immediately softening at the sight of you cradling your five-month-old son, babbling contentedly in your arms. His tiny fists waved excitedly as soon as he saw his dad.

"Hey, little guy," Sunghoon murmured, stepping closer to gently kiss your forehead before rubbing a finger over the baby's chubby cheek. "Did you miss me?"

Your son released a delighted coo in response, his big eyes shining at Sunghoon.

"You ready to help with bath time?" you asked with a small smile, overseeing your husband roll up his sleeves.

"Of course," he grinned. "It's my favourite part of the day."

Together, you settled your little one into his baby bath support seat in the sink. He kicked his legs excitedly, his tiny toes wiggling as he felt the warm water surrounding him. Sunghoon supported his neck and head with one steady hand while his other gently held his son's tiny body.

You dipped your hand into the water and carefully wiped his plump little face, your fingertips trailing softly over his round cheeks. The cool sensation of the water against his warm skin made him shiver slightly, his face scrunching up in the cutest way.

Sunghoon chuckled. "Aww, buddy. That was a big shiver."

You giggled, pressing a soft kiss to your son’s forehead before reaching for the baby shampoo. You poured a tiny amount into your palm and worked a gentle lather before massaging it into his soft baby hair. He blinked at you, watching with wide-eyed fascination as you worked the bubbles through his fine strands.

"He’s so intrigued by everything," Sunghoon mused, a soft smile gracing his lips.

"He likes watching the bubbles," you whispered, amused. Sure enough, your little one cooed at the sight of the foamy lather as you moved on to washing his tiny body. His hands reached out, attempting to grasp the soapy water, but all he managed to do was create more bubbles.

As you rinse the soap away with lukewarm water, your baby lets out a confused little whimper, his lips parting as if he is about to protest.

"Oh, you liked those bubbles, huh?" Sunghoon chuckled, rocking him gently.

"It's okay, baby," you cooed softly, kissing his damp head. "We'll have more bubbles tomorrow."

Once bath time was over, you reached for the fluffy baby towel resting on the counter. Sunghoon carefully lifted your little one from the bath, wrapping him snugly in the soft fabric before carrying him to the nursery.

He laid your baby on the changing table, his movements practiced and careful. You handed him a fresh diaper and onesie while he worked on drying those tiny limbs with utmost gentleness.

"You're so good at this," you murmured, watching as he applied a small amount of baby lotion, rubbing it into those soft baby rolls with delicate hands.

Sunghoon glanced at you with a smile. "Well, I have a great wife."

You blushed slightly as you reached for the baby brush, combing through his damp hair in soft, soothing strokes. Your baby yawned, his tiny mouth forming a perfect little ‘o’ as his eyes drooped sleepily.

Sunghoon scooped him up into his arms, pressing a kiss to his baby-soft forehead. "All fresh and clean," he whispered.

Your little one let out a content sigh, snuggling into Sunghoon’s chest as sleep quickly overtook him.

You exchanged a look with Sunghoon, your heart swelling at the sight. Moments like these—simple, quiet, and full of love—were what you cherished most.

"I love you," you whispered, gently kissing Sunghoon’s cheek.

"I love you more," he replied softly, rocking your son as he drifted off completely.

And in that warm, peaceful moment, you knew there was nowhere else you'd rather be.

Sunghoon swayed gently, his arms cradling your now-sleeping baby boy, whose tiny fingers had found their way to gripping the fabric of his dad’s shirt. You smiled at the sight—Sunghoon looked so at peace, his expression soft and full of love as he stared down at your son.

“Do you want me to put him down?” you whispered, brushing a few strands of damp hair from your baby’s forehead.

Sunghoon hesitated, his hold instinctively tightening for a moment. “Mmm… maybe just a little longer,” he murmured, his voice barely above a breath.

You let out a soft giggle. “You say that every time.”

“I know,” he admitted, flashing you a sheepish smile. “But he’s so small, and warm, and…” He trailed off, looking down at your baby’s peaceful expression. “I still can’t believe he’s ours.”

Your heart swelled at his words. Stepping closer, you rested your head against Sunghoon’s shoulder, wrapping your arms around his waist. He leaned into your touch, kissing the top of your head.

“You’re such a good dad,” you whispered against his shoulder.

Sunghoon let out a soft chuckle. “You think so?”

“I know so,” you reassured him, lifting your head to meet his gaze. “The way you hold him, the way you talk to him, the way you look at him… He already knows how loved he is.”

Sunghoon exhaled softly, his eyes shining with emotion. “I just want to be the best for him. For both of you.”

“You already are.” You cupped his cheek, rubbing your thumb against his smooth skin before pressing a chaste kiss to his lips. He sighed into the kiss, his free hand gently resting against your back as he deepened it slightly, savouring the moment's warmth.

A tiny whimper broke the quiet, and you both froze.

Sunghoon quickly pulled back, eyes wide as he glanced down at your son, who had stirred slightly but was still sound asleep. You both chuckled, relieved that your moment of affection hadn’t woken him.

“Guess we should put him down now,” Sunghoon whispered.

You nodded, stepping back as Sunghoon carefully lowered your baby into his crib. He adjusted the blanket over his slight frame, brushing his knuckles softly against his chubby cheek.

“Sleep well, little guy,” he murmured.

You both lingered momentarily, watching your son breathe softly, his lips slightly parted in sleep. Then, hand in hand, you quietly left the nursery, closing the door just enough to let a sliver of warm light peek through.

As soon as you reached your shared bedroom, Sunghoon turned to you with a grin, stretching his arms above his head. “I think I deserve a reward for being such a great dad,” he teased.

“Oh?” You raised an eyebrow, amused. “And what kind of reward are you thinking?”

Without hesitation, he wrapped his arms around you, pulling you into his chest. “A cuddle session,” he said, his voice dipping playfully. “Just you and me.”

You giggled, melting into his embrace. “You are just as needy as the baby, huh?”

Sunghoon hummed, pressing a kiss to your temple. “Maybe,” he admitted, guiding you towards the bed. “But I don’t hear you complaining.”

You sighed, settling into his warmth as you lay down, his arms securing you against him. “Never,” you whispered.

And as Sunghoon pressed one last lingering kiss to your forehead, you let yourself relax, safe in the warmth of his love—just like your baby was in his crib.

my perm taglist<3 <- request here

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pathologicalreid · 1 year ago

Note

heyyy!!! I just wanted to say I really love your work and this is my first time sending a request so sorry if it’s not very specific 😭💕

If you’re still doing requests, I was wondering if you could do a fem reader x Spencer Reid where it’s similar to your cryptic pregnancy one, except Spencer is at home with her when she’s in labour without realising, and she’s just in a lot of pain and it all of a sudden gets worse and she’s just in the bathroom shouting for Spencer, he comes in and eventually works out what’s going on, readers sort of in denial? Maybe the ambulance doesn’t get there in time so Spencer has to help her give birth? Lots of fluff and hurt/comfort :)

Also completely fine if your not comfortable doing it, but again really love your work and hope you have a great day 💕 :)

three's a family | S.R.

who? spencer reid x fem!reader category: fluff content warnings: cryptic pregnancy, traumatic birth, precipitous labor, hospitals, medical inaccuracy (its just me and google against the world), takes place after 9x7 "gatekeeper", surgery, near death experiences, periods, home birth word count: 3.16k a/n: anon i'll be so honest with u i wasn't sure if i was gonna write this but then i learned what precipitous labor was and i was like "i would not wish this on my worst enemy... i'm going to force it on y/n" BUT please keep in mind that there is a .000012 probability of this happening to you (i did the math) this is the wildest thing ive written to date i think

“I’m going to try a bath,” you murmured over to Spencer, wincing as you dragged yourself out of bed, walking at a turtle’s pace to the bathroom, hoping the warm water would soothe the cramps away.

Your period came and went as it pleased; it was just your luck that it decided to give you debilitating cramps on your one day off. Padding on the tile floor behind you, Spencer leaned against the doorframe to the bathroom, “I could run to the store and get a new heating pad.”

Sticking your hand under the tap to check the temperature, you plugged the drain once you found it to be satisfactory. You shook your head, “No, it’s fine.” Your original heating pad must’ve gotten lost somewhere in the depths of your storage closet, but you didn’t have the patience to look for it. You could manage just fine without it.

“Will you let me know if you need anything?” He asked, leaning forward to press a comforting kiss to your forehead.

Nodding, you hooked your thumbs in the waistband of your pajama pants and pulled them down, watching as Spencer pointedly flicked the bathroom fan on – something you often forgot to do.

You lasted about thirty minutes in the bath, not only was the water beginning to grow lukewarm, but if anything, your cramps were getting worse while submerged in the water. Grunting, you reached over and tugged the plug from the drain, watching as the water drained, you managed to pull yourself to a squat before you felt stuck.

Aunt Flo really had it out for you this month.

Burying your face in your hands you accepted defeat and called out for Spencer, reaching up and trying to stand again, but only succeeding in knocking over several shampoo bottles. “Spence!” You tried again, white-knuckling the edge of the bathtub as you bowed your head. A creeping feeling that this wasn’t your period was beginning to rise.

You listened as your husband made his way up the stairs, turning the corner into your room, and opening the door to the ensuite. Moving quickly, Spencer dropped to a crouch in front of you, cupping your pained face in his hands, “I don’t think this is your period, angel.”

Clamping your lips together to prevent yourself from crying out, you simply nodded in response. How awful was it that you were going to die, naked, in your bathtub?

Spencer wiped tears away from under your eyes – you hadn’t even realized you started crying. “What does it feel like, darling? What else could it be?” He asked, voice urgent but gentle as he tried to stop you from panicking.

As you shook your head, you couldn’t focus on anything else besides your breathing as another pain rose up through you. “It’s like a cramp, but with more pressure,” you said, depending on the bathtub and Spencer to keep you upright as your legs shook beneath you. “Like something’s pushing on me, kind of like I have to shit.”

Reaching behind him, Spencer dug through one of the drawers in the bathroom vanity before retrieving the handheld mirror that you used when you cut his hair. Before you could ask what he was doing, he placed the mirror at the bottom of the tub, just beneath you. “I think you’re in labor,” he announced, breaking the news to you.

“There’s no– fuck,” your voice broke off as you dropped your head onto Spencer’s shoulder, breathing through what was apparently a contraction. “I’m not pregnant,” you insisted as your symptoms started to make sense. You had been in labor all morning.

Nodding to himself, Spencer quickly kissed your cheek before standing up and making sure you were stable before stepping to the side.

You frowned as you looked up at him, “Where are you going?”

He didn’t go far, opening the linen closet and piling towels into his arms, “I’m getting towels to put in the tub beneath you, and then I’m going to call an ambulance.”

“You want me to give birth in our bathtub?” You asked, furrowing your brows quizzically before letting out a low whine as another contraction hit.

Stopping what he was doing, Spencer dropped down to you, running the flat of his palm up and down your back as he gently reminded you to breathe. “Did you want to change positions?”

Immediately, you shook your head. You already had an insurmountable task ahead of you and you saw no reason to add to that task by trying to move. “This is fine. Squatting is good, right?”

Nodding assuredly, Spencer smoothed your hair away from your face, “Gravity can help the baby descend the birth canal, and some people even say that the position can increase the pelvic diameter.”

While you were currently less concerned with the diameter of your pelvis and more concerned with feeling like your body was being split open, you continued going through the motions as he called for an ambulance, trying to explain the situation to the dispatcher.

“Have you been timing your contractions?” Spencer asked, tilting his head at you curiously as the dispatcher spoke on the phone.

Releasing a groan, you gripped the ledge of the tub, “I didn’t know they were contractions!”

Relaying that information over the phone, Spencer dropped to his knees in front of you, “Okay, I’ll do it. I’ll take care of it.” He continued to reassure you, taking one look at your desperate expression before ending the call with the dispatcher.

He understood that you were vulnerable right now, and you didn’t want that broadcasted to a stranger on the phone. If you weren’t so preoccupied with remembering to breathe, you’d be more grateful. After a contraction ebbed away, Spencer stood up.

“I have to go unlock the door for the paramedics,” he told you, keeping a wary eye on you. “I’ll be right back,” he comforted you as he took one last look at you before tearing out of the bathroom.

In record speed, he returned to the bathroom as promised, “It’s bad,” you cried, the pressure on your pelvis becoming insufferable.

Crouching in front of you, Spencer studied your face before he spoke carefully, “I have to check your cervix.”

Despite his carefully chosen words, your lips still parted in shock, “You have to what?”

“I’ll use my hand to measure how dilated you are, and then… we’ll go from there,” he told you, nodding almost imperceptibly. At this point, you weren’t sure who he was trying to reassure – you or him. “Do you trust me?”

“Yes,” you answered instantly, “indefinitely.”

You bit down on your lip as you let Spencer check you, understanding entirely why people choose to get epidurals – this was horribly uncomfortable. “On the next contraction, you need to push, okay?”

For just a moment, your breathing faltered as your scared eyes met his, “Spence, wait,” you pleaded.

Smoothing your hair back, your husband did everything he could to comfort you, “What is it, love?” He asked, his voice soft.

“I’m scared,” you confessed, voice cracking ever so slightly as tears flooded your lash line.

He leaned forward to gently kiss your lips before pulling away to press his forehead to yours, "I've got you. You're going to be fine. You're both going to be fine."

You could see his carotid pounding, and somehow the fact that he was secretly as scared as you was more comforting than the words that came from his mouth. As you pushed, you focused on everything that Spencer was saying instead of the pain. Don’t push for more than eight seconds. Remember to breathe. Your body will know what to do. I love you. I love you. I love you.

By the time Spencer was saying something about the head, your hearing had gone muffled. “You’re doing so well, baby,” you made out his voice and nodded dazedly. “You’re wonderful. I’m so proud of you – just a little more,” he cajoled.

Taking a moment to breathe, your ears and eyes focused as shaky breaths filled your lungs.

“I’m sorry I can’t be more helpful,” he murmured, dropping a kiss on your bare shoulder as he comforted you, continuing to keep you upright.

You shook your head, sniffling as your eyes screwed shut, “You’re perfect. Don’t stop. Keep talking,” you begged, needing something to focus on other than the pain.

“There’s about a point zero four percent chance of you getting pregnant and not finding out until you’re in labor,” he told you, hoping that the information would help you wrap your head around what was happening to you. “One to three in one hundred people have a precipitous labor,” he continued to speak as you pushed, and you wondered what the odds of you squeezing his hand so hard that you did damage were.

Against your better judgment, you looked down to check your progress, “Holy fuck,” you said breathlessly. You weren’t entirely clueless, you knew that once you got past the shoulders the remaining pushes would be easier. You also found yourself grateful that Spencer knew what he was doing – this was, after all, the second baby he had delivered.

You bore down, determined to get the baby out while Spencer untangled your hands, bringing his own down to catch the baby. Out of breath, you panted heavily as you started to feel lightheaded. “Done,” Spencer said quickly, “it’s done. I have him.”

Carefully, Spencer held the baby along the length of his forearm, rubbing the tiny newborn’s back. “Come on, come on, come on,” he muttered under his breath, and it dawned on you that the baby wasn’t crying.

At the realization, your legs finally gave out from beneath you, watching with wide eyes as Spencer tried to clear your son’s lungs. White hot tears streamed down your face as you whispered, “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry.” You took a gasping breath as you silently pleaded for a cry, “I didn’t know,” you sobbed, guilt building a pit in your stomach.

With bleary eyes, you looked on as the baby finally spluttered and let out a wail. “There you go,” Spencer cooed softly, his own voice stiff with emotion as he cradled the baby and handed him off to you.

You were still sobbing as you held the baby to your chest, “I’m so sorry,” you continued to babble, watching as Spencer briefly disappeared into the bedroom before returning with a blanket and wrapping it around the both of you. While holding the baby, your vision started to blur around the edges.

Watching you intently, Spencer cupped your face in his hands, “I love you.”

Nodding, your face crumpled before you responded, “I love you too.”

When the paramedics announced themselves, Spencer called out for them, not wanting to leave your side. The two of you focused your attention on the wriggling baby in your arms.

He was premature – too little to stay with you in the recovery room. The NICU doctor had estimated that he was born at approximately 32 weeks, meaning he’d likely need to spend a few weeks in intensive care. “I want to see him,” you said insistently, looking over as Spencer as he fussed over you.

“You just had abdominal surgery,” Spencer responded simply, as if that was meant to clarify everything for you. He continued fluffing your pillow, which wasn’t entirely productive considering you were lying on the pillow.

As it turned out, you had experienced what was called a precipitous birth, or a rapid birth. It tended to be dangerous, and the fact that you did it in your bathtub only heightened that danger. You reached your arm out for Spencer, “c’mere,” you muttered, trying to get him to stop fretting. “Did you listen to anything that the doctor just said?”

Spencer nodded in understanding, “Lots of rest, no physical exertion, IV medication for now-“

“Did you hear the part where he said I was going to be okay?” You asked, raising your eyebrows at him curiously, you watched as he took your hand in his and sat on the edge of your bed. “I’m going to be fine,” your voice was determined, you had a few small incisions on your abdomen from the surgery to repair a tear in your uterus. “Thank you for looking after me,” you whispered.

Your husband gently smoothed your hair back from your face, “I should’ve noticed it sooner.”

Using all of your strength, you squeezed his hand comfortingly, “You were incredible,” you assured him. “If it weren’t for you, neither of us would’ve made it.”

He shook his head, “Don’t say that.”

Raising your eyebrows, you cocked your head to the side, “It’s true. I couldn’t have done it on my own, I’m so, so thankful for you, my love.”

You had passed out in the ambulance as a direct result of blood loss, so you were brought to a trauma bay as soon as you made it to the hospital. Once they were in the ER, the baby was taken to the NICU, leaving Spencer with a lot of decisions to make.

When you woke up in the recovery room, the first thing you did was ask about the baby.

Spencer, of course, had been up to see him. The nurses claimed he seemed like a fighter, and Spencer knew the survival odds of a 32-weeker, so he turned his attention to you. Every other option had already failed, so the next option was a laparoscopy. Your husband admitted that while it seemed extreme, the very last choice was a hysterectomy, and he didn’t want to make that decision.

Furrowing your brows, “When can I see the baby?” You asked, not entirely sure how to refer to the infant just yet. It wasn’t until then that you realized you needed to name him at some point – your son.

“Once your blood pressure goes up,” Spencer told you with an authoritative tone. “You lost a lot of blood in the ambulance, but the blood transfusions will bring your blood pressure back up.”

Tilting your head to the side, you glared at your husband, “And is this rule from a doctor with a medical degree or a doctor whose name is on my marriage certificate?”

In response, Spencer shrugged, sitting in the beige armchair at the side of your bed, “That’s a secret I’ll never tell.”

You rolled your eyes dismissively, “Will you go see him?”

He leaned over the edge of your bed, taking your hand in his. “I can, will you be alright on your own?”

Nodding almost imperceptibly, you squeezed his hand affectionately, “I just don’t want him to be alone.” You whispered as tears pricked your eyes, you took your free hand and waved at your face, “god, what’s wrong with me?”

“A sudden drop of estrogen and progesterone immediately following birth causes mood swings. Nothing is wrong with you, your body is acting naturally,” Spencer explained patiently, dropping a gentle kiss on your lips.

You sighed before melting back into your pillows, “At least something about this feels natural,” you responded. Your brain felt like a spinning top, while your body felt like you were being weighed down by an elephant in a commercial for COPD medication.

The fact that the NICU nurse informed you that your son had a ninety-five percent chance of living a completely normal life did nothing to calm your nerves. He’d have to stay in the NICU for a few weeks and you tried to convince yourself that the extra time to prepare for him to come home would be good for you, but the idea of leaving him alone at the hospital – save for a small army of doctors and nurses – put a pit of dread in your chest.

Spencer had the forethought to warn you about the tubes and wires that he was hooked up to, ranging from oxygen to a feeding tube. “He’s been undergoing red light therapy to be treated for jaundice, but you can hold him for a while if you want to,” the nurse told you, leading the both of you through the NICU as Spencer steered your wheelchair through the hospital.

Your breathing hitched when you finally saw him, this tiny stowaway that had been growing inside of you for the last several months, and he was just so little. While you were still in your own room, you had convinced yourself that you’d hold him, but now you weren’t so convinced.

According to the sign in his room, he weighed three pounds and ten ounces and was sixteen inches long. He was sound asleep in an incubator, a small hat on top of his head, “Spence,” you breathed.

Behind you, your husband placed a comforting hand on your shoulder, “I know.”

“Did you want to hold him?” The nurse asked you gently, looking over at one of the machines that he was hooked up to.

Genuinely, you didn’t know. “Is… is that okay?” You asked, wiping your sweaty palms on the blanket draped across your legs.

The nurse gave you a knowing look, “Even better than okay, it’ll be good for him to have that kind of contact from both of his parents.”

Frowning, you watched as it took two nurses to break him out of his acrylic prison before they carefully placed him on your chest, making sure you were okay before they stepped back. Your movements were stiff at first, you had never held a baby this small before, but you eventually remembered to breathe and gently cooed at the baby in your arms.

Spencer crouched down next to you and started to ask the nurse a bunch of questions that he had likely been holding in for hours, but you just kept your eyes on the sleeping baby. He was too small to open his eyes, but everyone assured you that he’d get there.

The nurse stepped out to give you some privacy, leaving the door open just in case you needed something, “This doesn’t seem quite as difficult while I’m holding him.” You knew there was a steep learning curve ahead, but with a newborn on your chest, the pit in your heart dissipated.

“That’s called oxytocin,” Spencer said, sitting in a chair, eyes fixated on the infant in your arms.

Humming, you skimmed the pad of your thumb across your son’s tiny back, “He looks like you,” you observed quietly, they had the same nose.

Your husband smiled softly, “You can’t possibly tell which parent he takes after yet,” he informed you.

“And yet, I know he looks like you,” you insisted softly, and Spencer didn’t push back. “You look like your daddy,” you whispered to the baby, “he was the first one to hold you, you know?” You looked over at Spencer, “he’s been my superhero for four years, and now he gets to be yours too.”

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certaimromance · 17 days ago

Text

𝜗𝜚 The Home Next Door.

Spencer Reid x Neighbor!reader

series mastelist | main masterlist

Summary: Just when you and Spencer are finally ready to take the next step and move in together, the question of whether it should be in your apartment or his comes up.

Words: 1,4k.

Warnings & Tags: this works as a standalone one-shot, but also is an extra to a series. fluff. established relationship. painter!reader who was a cat. english isn't my first language (sorry for my mistakes, be kind please).

Note: Finally our parents have a simple problem and not something horrible, cheers 🥂!

It started somewhere between the last bite of pancake and the second cup of coffee.

The apartment was steeped in the kind of hush that only Sunday mornings could bring: a silence that wasn’t empty but full. Full of warmth. Full of quiet breath and the faint murmur of jazz curling from the record player, soft saxophone notes drifting lazily through the room like smoke. The golden glow of morning filtered through gauzy curtains, lighting the hardwood floor in warm puddles, softening every line and edge.

You were curled against Spencer on the couch, the oversized blanket slipping down your shoulders, the smell of him—clean cotton, worn paper, and just a trace of your honeyed vanilla and soft lavender shampoo—settling around you. Your legs were entangled in his, bare ankles brushing, your toes hooked beneath the cuff of his pajama pants. Mittens was perched like royalty on the armrest beside him, one paw flopped dramatically over the edge, tail flicking every so often with theatrical boredom, though her purring betrayed her.

A nearly empty plate balanced on the coffee table, sticky with the last smear of syrup and a fork resting lazily on its side. Your half-finished coffee had gone lukewarm. A sketchbook lay open across your lap, your fingers idly tracing charcoal lines into vague shapes, the beginnings of a profile you weren’t committed to. Not yet. Maybe not at all.

Spencer’s gaze was steady on you, soft and lingering, the way he always looked at you when he thought you weren’t paying attention. One hand rested lightly on your knee, thumb stroking slow, absent circles like he was anchoring himself to the feeling of your skin beneath his fingers. You felt him shift beside you, subtle, the quiet kind of movement that always meant something was coming.

He nudged your leg with his knee, just once.

“I’ve been thinking,” he said.

You didn’t look up at first, still distracted by a curl you couldn’t quite get right on the page. “That’s always a little dangerous.”

He gave a low laugh, and you felt it more than heard it, the quiet vibration where your body pressed into his. His hand moved, sliding from your knee to your thigh, fingertips grazing the hem of your sleep shorts.

“No,” he said. “I mean it. Something real.”

That made you pause.

You looked up, brows lifting as your gaze met his. His eyes were wide and warm, serious in that soft, thoughtful way only he could be. Not anxious. Not rushed. Just…steady.

“Okay,” you said, adjusting the sketchbook so it rested flat on your lap. “Go on.”

He hesitated, just a heartbeat, but then, with a breath, he said, “I think we should live together. Officially.”

Your pencil stilled. You blinked at him.

“Live together?” you repeated, as if maybe the words needed a second to settle in your chest.

He nodded. “I mean…we already kind of do, don’t we?” His voice was calm but earnest. “Your toothbrush lives in my bathroom. Your earrings are scattered across my nightstand. My socks have somehow migrated into your drawers—especially the Einstein ones, which I know you steal—and your shampoo has taken over half my shower. We haven’t slept in our own beds in a week. Sometimes we forget whose apartment we’re even in.”

You stared at him, your heart doing that soft, fluttery thing it hadn’t done in years until him. A slow smile bloomed across your face, warm and startled and a little breathless.

“So,” you murmured, “you want us to live together.”

“I do,” he said, without hesitation. “I want to come home and know you’re going to be there. I want to fall asleep next to you without wondering which apartment we’re in or if I remembered to bring my charger. I want all the mornings to feel like this one.”

You bit your lip, trying, and failing, not to grin. “That was oddly romantic for someone who once said sentimentality disrupts logic.”

Spencer smiled, tilting his head. “Turns out, I can be both.”

You pretended to think a moment, but your heart was already tumbling forward like a stone down a hill. “Okay, then. You can move in with me.”

He blinked. Once. Twice. “Wait. Me move into your place?”

You shrugged, casual but grinning. “Obviously. I’ve got the better lighting, the bigger windows, and Mittens has already claimed the sunniest spot for herself. It’s practically destiny.”

He sat up a little straighter, mock offense blooming on his face. “But my place has more shelf space. For books. And yours has that one creaky radiator that makes ghost noises at night.”

“Charming ghost noises,” you corrected. “Adds ambiance.”

He raised an eyebrow. “Your kitchen has one drawer that only opens if you kick the cabinet below it.”

“And yet I’ve made you pancakes there every weekend for the last month,” you countered sweetly.

Yes, somewhere amid all the quiet perfection of the last month—the slow mornings, the soft kisses on the couch, the shared silences away from his work—you had somehow managed to do the impossible: make the best pancakes in the world, at least according to him. And Spencer Reid did not give out that kind of praise lightly.

He narrowed his eyes. “That’s emotional manipulation.”

“It’s cinnamon and love,” you replied, poking his chest with your pencil.

“You don’t even have a hallway closet.”

“I have a shoe rack.”

“A wobbly one.”

“You’re wobbly,” you said, laughing now.

He laughed too, his eyes crinkling, the corners of his mouth turning up in that boyish, dimpled way that made your stomach flutter like it was the first time. He reached over and pulled the sketchbook gently from your lap, setting it aside so he could wrap his arms around your waist.

“So we’re really doing this?” He asked, his voice quieter now, softer, like he was trying to ask with every part of himself.

You nodded, eyes soft. “Yeah. We are.”

Spencer looked down at your intertwined legs, then at the half-finished sketch on the side, then back at you. “Then I guess we’ll just have to fight about which apartment we live in.”

“Oh, we will,” you promised.

The playful argument slowly dissolved into soft laughter, your bodies still tangled together on the couch, the morning light spilling through the windows like a warm blessing. The last dregs of coffee sat forgotten on the table. Mittens had stretched herself along the back of the couch, watching the two of you with a kind of lazy approval, as if she’d been rooting for this the whole time.

You were curled against Spencer’s side, your head tucked beneath his chin, his arm wrapped around your waist like it had always belonged there. The rhythm of his breathing was steady and calming, and you could feel the familiar flutter of his heart beneath your palm.

Then, softly, you tilted your head and looked up at him. “Okay,” you murmured, voice playful but sincere, “how about this…We don’t make any big decisions today.”

He turned his gaze toward you, lashes heavy, his expression open.

“No moving in. No swapping apartments. For now, we just stay next door,” you continued. “I like this. You, me, right here. I like knowing your books are stacked across the hall and my laundry ends up in your dryer. I like to hear you knocking on my door at midnight because you know I forgot what you said about mixing colors in clothes and ruining my white blouses, and I like coming over at sunrise because I missed your bed.”

Spencer’s eyes softened even more, the corners of his mouth curving with something that looked dangerously close to adoration.

“So we stay like this?” he asked, just to be sure.

“For now,” you said with a smile, brushing your nose lightly against his. “It’s not about rushing. It’s about…going on our own pace.”

He nodded once, thoughtful. Then, almost absently, he added, “Maybe someday we could buy a house.”

You blinked, a quiet beat of silence stretching between you. Then you let out a soft laugh, amused and caught a little off guard. “A house?” you repeated, teasing. “You’re joking.”

Spencer smiled but didn’t say anything.

He didn’t correct you. Didn’t argue. He just let your laughter fill the room like music and leaned back against the cushions, eyes drifting toward the ceiling as if trying to picture something that hadn’t been built yet.

Because in his mind, he was already there.

He was imagining soft wood floors and tall bookshelves, a studio with wide windows for you, and a quiet study for him. A hallway where Mittens could leave trails of fur and a little garden where he might try, and fail, to grow herbs. A place where he wouldn’t have to knock on your door at midnight because you’d both be home already.

He said nothing. Just held you closer, his hand moving slowly up and down your arm like he was memorizing the feeling of now.

And you didn’t ask again. You just nestled into his chest, your heartbeat settling into the quiet certainty of his.

Neither of you said the word “someday” again.

But both of you were thinking it.

And that was more than enough.

Extra note: Really, my love for this story is infinite, and I have a lot of ideas in mind for extras. I hope you guys still want to read them, xoxo <3 (if you want to read something special about them, you can tell me).

Tag list ❤︎ ︎: @burningwitchprincess @withloverosse @fairiesofearth @pleasantwitchgarden @ximensitaa @lover-of-books-and-tea @cherryblossomfairyy @cherrygublersworld @i-need-to-be-put-down @dibidee @23moonjellies @lolnothx06 @nnab

Send me an ask or comment here if you would like to be added or removed!

#criminal minds #criminal minds fanfiction #criminal minds x reader #spencer reid x reader #spencer reid #spencer reid x fem!reader #spencer reid imagine #spencer reid x you #spencer reid x neighbor!reader #spencer reid x fanfiction #spencer reid fluff #matthew gray gubler

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orellazalonia · 1 month ago

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Prank Wars

Summary: You and Bucky Barnes start as chaotic, bickering frenemies locked in a prank war filled with glitter bombs, insults, and grudging teamwork. What begins as rivalry evolves into a sharp-edged romance, complete with teasing, team gossip, and quiet moments that prove even the most combative hearts can find their match. (Bucky Barnes x Avenger!reader)

Word Count: 3.5k+

A/N: Wanted to write something with a sort of friendly rivalry type vibe. I think it turned out to be a fun read. So, Happy reading!!!

Main Masterlist

You weren’t sure how it started. Maybe it was the time you’d called Bucky a “grumpy vintage action figure” during sparring, or maybe it was when he’d scoffed at your taste in music loud enough for the entire compound to hear. Either way, it was clear from day one: you and Bucky Barnes didn’t get along… but also couldn’t seem to stay away from each other.

You were a field agent with a smart mouth, a tendency to disobey orders, and a deep love for chaos. Bucky was a stickler for rules (at least the ones he liked), a human grimace with vibranium arms and trauma to spare, and somehow you kept ending up on the same teams. That first year at the Tower had been nothing but sarcastic quips, mutual eye rolls, and explosive chemistry that was definitely not romantic. At all. Probably.

Still, he never missed a mission with you. He’d grumble, complain, and occasionally fake gag when assigned to your squad, but he always showed up, and you always had each other’s backs. That didn’t mean peace. Oh, no. It meant war. Pranks, to be specific.

It began with the coffee incident. You’d woken up earlier than usual and decided to be kind for once. So, you brewed Bucky’s preferred dark roast before heading to the gym. But when you returned, your favorite mug (“World’s Okayest Agent”) was full of lukewarm decaf. A tiny sticky note on the handle read: Thanks for the bean water. I upgraded it. -B.

You were fuming. You didn’t say anything. You simply retaliated.

The next morning, Bucky found his boots filled with glitter. Not just glitter, iridescent, microfine, impossible-to-wash-out glitter that puffed into the air with each step like a magical dust trail from hell. You heard him curse halfway across the compound and smiled, eating your breakfast yogurt.

From there, it escalated. Your shampoo was swapped with syrup. His knife belt mysteriously vanished and reappeared glued to the ceiling. Your favorite hoodie went missing and was later found on Alpine who now refused to give it back. You switched his phone settings to speak and only read in French. He hacked your earpiece during a mission so it played 90s boyband music every time you tried to speak. Natasha bet twenty bucks on who would snap first. Clint started recording everything for “training purposes” (a.k.a. blackmail).

Still, you and Bucky kept a strict code: no permanent damage, nothing during missions, and no involving civilians. The rest was fair game.

There was an unspoken tension that came with it though. The kind of energy that lingered in the way you stood just a little too close during briefings, or the way Bucky always made sure you had your favorite protein bar stashed in the quinjet after tough missions. You could argue like enemies, scheme like tricksters, and still be the first ones to bandage each other’s wounds in silence.

And maybe that’s why, one night, when your newest plan involved rewiring his door sensors to trigger a confetti cannon… you hesitated.

You stood there, crouched in the hallway, wires in hand with your face lit by the soft glow of your tablet screen. Something was off. A quiet hum in the air. Your instincts itched. You weren’t alone.

“Don’t move,” came a voice behind you, calm, smug, and too close.

You sighed. “That’s what you said last time, and then I ended up zip-tied to a barstool with Steve giving me a lecture about boundaries.”

Bucky stepped into your peripheral vision, arms crossed. “Because you tried to saran-wrap my motorcycle.”

“It was a creative deterrent.”

He leaned down. “And this is… what? Revenge? Retaliation? Or are you just obsessed with me?”

You tilted your head, smirking. “What can I say? I love a fixer-upper.”

His eyes narrowed, but there was a flicker of amusement. He reached past you slowly and disconnected a wire before you could stop him. The door made a sad little beep as the trap disarmed. You stared at him, defeated.

“I was going to use that for the hallway next week,” You muttered.

He leaned in even closer, his voice lower. “Try harder.”

And just like that, he walked off. You were still crouched in the hallway, flushed, stunned, and already plotting.

The war wasn’t over. It was just getting good.

During your next mission, you weren’t sure what set off the alarm in your head. It wasn’t anything loud or dramatic, just a moment. A brief flicker of tension in the air during an otherwise routine mission.

You and Bucky were assigned to a low-level extraction. Some simple, easy to navigate warehouse but you were both grumbling the whole time, because being sent on “babysitting detail”, as you’d called it, meant no time for new pranks. He’d called you “bored and dangerous,” and you’d called him “paranoid and constipated,” because that’s what you two did. Banter was the language. Biting, sarcastic, familiar.

But then, something shifted.

You’d split up to secure the area. You were in the northwest wing, scanning crates for the target intel when your comm crackled, static. No voice, just dead silence.

“Barnes?” You tried, tapping your earpiece. “Buck, come in.”

No answer.

That was fine. Annoying, but fine. He’d probably gone off comm on purpose to mess with you even if that went against the “rules”. You rolled your eyes, muttered something unspeakable, and kept moving. But then, the overhead lights flickered, and a strange smell reached your nose, smoke. Not fire. Something burning.

You pulled your weapon and turned the corner just in time to see two unknowns in black body armor dragging a third figure toward the loading dock. Bucky. His arms limp. One eye half-open, dazed. Blood at his temple.

You didn’t think. You moved.

It wasn’t flashy, wasn’t graceful. It was fast, brutal, and angry. You’d never felt this kind of burn before. Like someone had tried to mess with your territory. You fired two rounds, took a pipe to the ribs, wrestled one attacker to the ground, and jabbed a shock baton straight into the other’s side.

By the time you got to Bucky, he was already regaining consciousness, his voice a ragged growl.

“’M fine,” He muttered, trying to sit up.

“You look like hell,” You snapped, crouching beside him. “What happened?”

He blinked at you, blood still dripping down his cheek. “Trap. One of them said your name.”

That made you freeze.

“What?”

“They weren’t after me,” He said, grimacing. “They were using me to draw you out.”

Your mouth went dry. The adrenaline started wearing off, and something unfamiliar twisted in your gut.

They weren’t random mercs. They were targeting you.

You didn’t know what you were more pissed about, the fact that they almost got away with it, or that Bucky had taken a hit meant for you.

Back at the Tower, you didn’t speak to him for a full hour. Not because you were mad at him but because you didn’t know what to do with the feeling that had sunk under your skin like lead.

You sat by his med bay cot with your arms folded, pretending to be annoyed when really, your leg wouldn’t stop bouncing.

“You’re awfully quiet,” Bucky murmured, glancing at you from the bed.

You scowled. “You’re lucky I didn’t punch you. Running off like that without backup.”

“I had backup. You found me.”

“Not the point.”

He gave you a long look. “You okay?”

You didn’t answer right away. Instead, you reached into your jacket pocket and wordlessly handed him a folded sheet of paper.

He frowned and unfolded it. A crude drawing of a scoreboard. At the bottom, you’d scribbled:

Injured in the line of duty (for dumb reasons): You – 7 Me – 5 Bonus point for catching me off guard. Bastard.

For the first time that day, he actually smiled. Not his usual smirk, but something a little softer, quieter.

“Does this mean the prank war’s on hold?” He asked.

You leaned back in your chair, arms crossed again. “Not a chance.”

And then, after a beat:

“…But maybe we cool it with the glitter bombs for a week.”

And so it did. The prank war didn’t end after the warehouse incident. It just… slowed. Morphed into something quieter. The jokes were still there like dry comments and sarcastic smiles but the glitter bombs were replaced by things like Bucky bringing you an ice pack before you asked. You, in turn, dropped by the training room with his favorite protein shake the day after his stitches came out.

And of course, everyone noticed.

Natasha cornered you in the gym a week later, twirling a throwing knife with deliberate laziness as you wiped sweat from your brow.

“So,” She said, nonchalant. “You and Barnes done setting the Tower on fire yet?”

You blinked. “Excuse me?”

She arched an eyebrow. “I mean the tension. The bickering. The very specific brand of foreplay that involves booby-trapping his bedroom door.”

You tossed the towel over your shoulder and rolled your eyes. “It’s not foreplay. It’s war.”

Nat gave you a slow, knowing smirk. “Sure. That’s why you look like someone kicked your puppy every time he gets hurt now.”

You didn’t respond because she wasn’t wrong.

It wasn’t that you liked Bucky Barnes. He was infuriating, overly serious, deeply confusing, and didn’t know how to share snacks. But he was also reliable, frustratingly observant, and lately, the look he gave you when you smiled, like you were the only one in the room, made your brain short-circuit.

You thought about it again later that night when Steve roped the two of you into a debrief on a rooftop overlooking the city. The mission had been a success, barely. You’d both walked away with bruises, dust in your hair, and a couple of near-death moments. Typical.

Steve cleared his throat when neither of you said anything.

“So, I just wanted to say… the teamwork is improving. Kind of.”

Bucky grunted. You didn’t look up from your seat on the low concrete ledge.

“But,” Steve added, crossing his arms, “I’d also like to point out that the Tower can’t afford another prank incident involving electrical rewiring, sparklers, and… what was it last time? A taxidermy raccoon?”

You smiled faintly. “He started it.”

“She painted my arm pink,” Bucky said flatly, leaning beside you.

“It was fuchsia,” You corrected. “Tasteful fuchsia.”

Steve exhaled like a parent trying very hard not to ground both his kids.

“…Just- figure it out, okay?” He said, before leaving the rooftop with a muttered “I miss the days when people just punched each other.”

You sat in silence for a while, watching the city lights flicker in the distance.

“You okay?” Bucky asked after a beat.

You nodded, then tilted your head toward him. “You?”

He shrugged. “Tired. Still sore.”

You leaned back on your palms, glancing up at the stars. “Nat thinks we’re flirting.”

He scoffed. “Is that what this is?”

“God, I hope not. I’d hate to be attracted to someone who uses the phrase ‘back in my day.’”

He glanced sideways, something sharp flickering into something soft in his eyes. “You’d miss me.”

You looked at him. Really looked.

“…Yeah,” You admitted, barely above a whisper. “Maybe so.”

There was a pause. Just long enough to shift the air. Then, he bumped your shoulder with his.

“Don’t tell Clint. He’ll never shut up about it.”

You smirked, your voice quieter this time. “Don’t worry. This never happened.”

Things changed during your next mission together. It wasn’t supposed to be a high-stakes adventure. A simple recovery op in a half-abandoned research facility on the outskirts of Prague. The intel said light security and no hostiles. Which of course meant it immediately went sideways.

You were cornered behind a crumbling wall with Bucky beside you, bullets chewing up stone, and the mission blown to hell. Your heart thundered in your chest, breathing ragged, but your mind was laser-focused until you caught a glance at Bucky’s face.

Blood streamed down from his temple. Again. The same spot as last time. You hated how that made your stomach twist.

“I told you to watch your six,” You snapped, crouching low to reload.

“I did!” He snapped back.

You shoved a fresh mag into your weapon and glared at him. “You are a human disaster.”

“And you’re a walking magnet for trouble.”

“Funny, coming from the guy with five knives hidden in his boot and a death wish.”

Another round of gunfire rang out closer this time. You both ducked instinctively, his body shielding yours without a word as he pulled you into a room to hide. You froze, just for a second, with his shoulder brushing yours and the warm pressure of his hand steadying you behind your ribs.

Your eyes met. The world blurred around the edges.

Something cracked.

The space between you wasn’t wide, wasn’t safe. It had been pulled tighter and tighter through months of snark, bruises, bullet wounds, glitter bombs, and unspoken care. And now it felt like the only logical conclusion was combustion.

“This is insane,” You muttered, your voice barely audible over the chaos.

“Yeah,” He agreed, still close to you. “We’re gonna die, aren’t we?”

You looked at him, seeing the blood at his temple, the sharp lines of frustration, the flicker of something else entirely under his words. You saw everything that had gone unspoken.

Maybe it was the adrenaline. Or the fear. Or maybe you were just done pretending. But whatever the reason, you surged forward.

The kiss wasn’t soft. It was frantic and rough and tasted like dirt, smoke, and months of unresolved tension. You grabbed the front of his suit; he pulled you closer like he’d been waiting for this since your first argument over coffee. The world was still burning around you, but for a second, it didn’t matter.

When you pulled back, breathless and stunned, he stared at you like he’d been hit by something harder than any punch he’d ever taken.

“That was…” He started.

“Shut up,” You said. “Don’t ruin it.”

He blinked, then huffed a laugh, the real kind. Warm and sharp and barely hidden behind years of practiced scowling. “Took you long enough.”

You raised an eyebrow. “Excuse me? I kissed you.”

He smirked. “Right. That’s why my knees went weak.”

You rolled your eyes, cheeks flushed despite the danger. “We still have to get out of here alive.”

Bucky’s smile softened just enough to make your chest ache. “Then let’s finish this. Fast. So I can do that again properly.”

You reloaded, nodded, and moved out together, side by side, like always.

Only now, everything had changed.

The Tower was quiet when you got back. Mission was technically successful with the intel secured, the bodies left behind, and the bruises already starting to bloom beneath your jacket. You showered, changed, limped a little too dramatically down the hall, and did the most responsible thing you could think of: you avoided Bucky Barnes.

You didn’t mean to. But after the kiss, your entire nervous system had gone haywire. You weren’t used to him being real with that warm, rough voice in your ear when he said he wanted to do it again. It’d been easier when he was just a rival, a nuisance, a sarcasm-laced headache wrapped in leather and trauma.

Now he was something else. Someone who kissed you like you were gravity itself.

So you hid.

He gave you a full twelve hours.

You were in the common room the next morning, pretending to read a mission report, but mostly just sipping lukewarm coffee and staring into the distance like a haunted Victorian widow. Until the door opened.

You didn’t need to look up. The energy shifted immediately. You felt him walk in, heard his boots heavy, and presence heavier. You took another slow sip of your coffee.

“You’re sulking,” He said from across the room.

“I’m not.”

“You’re avoiding me.”

“I avoid a lot of things,” You replied. “Dentists. Feelings. You’re not special.”

He stepped closer, the weight of him familiar now in a way that made your skin feel too tight. “So the kiss didn’t happen?”

You closed the file and set it aside, keeping your tone carefully casual. “Adrenaline makes people do weird things.”

“Right,” He said, voice dry. “So next time we’re in a life-or-death situation, I should expect you to confess your love to Steve or kiss a vending machine.”

You looked up sharply. “I don’t love anyone.”

He tilted his head. “Didn’t say you did.”

You hated him a little in that moment, not really, not at all but enough to scowl and mutter, “Why are you even here?”

“Because I don’t want that to be something we pretend didn’t happen.”

Your breath caught. He sat across from you, elbows on his knees, expression unusually open. Honest in a way that made your stomach twist.

“You’re a pain in my ass,” He began. “You drive me crazy. You’re reckless and loud and allergic to sitting still. But I’ve never met anyone who makes me laugh the way you do. Or who I’d trust to watch my back in a fight. Or who’d glue my knife belt to the ceiling and still patch me up afterward.”

Your mouth opened, but nothing came out.

He leaned forward, gentler now. “I meant it. When I said I wanted to kiss you again.”

You stared at him. Then down at your coffee, then back at him.

“…This doesn’t mean I’m gonna stop putting glitter in your boots,” You said finally.

He smirked. “Wouldn’t expect you to.”

You hesitated. Then sighed and leaned across the table, grabbing his shirt collar and tugging him into a kiss, softer this time. Slower. No adrenaline, no smoke. Just you and him, in the quiet.

When you pulled back, you grinned faintly. “You really are kind of obsessed with me.”

He exhaled a laugh. “Yeah. I really am.”

BONUS:

By the end of the week, everyone knew.

You thought you were being subtle. A few quiet looks, the occasional shoulder bump in the hallway, a shared smirk during mission briefings. But Avengers Tower was a den of spies, assassins, super-soldiers, and gossip. You had no chance.

The first to say something out loud was Clint.

You walked into the kitchen one morning, bleary-eyed and in desperate need of caffeine, only to find Clint already there, sipping from his mug. He glanced up, looked from you to Bucky trailing in behind you with his usual scowl and morning hair, and just grinned.

“Oh,” He said, like a man who had just confirmed a winning bet. “You two finally stopped fake-hating each other?”

You reached past him for a mug, unbothered. “We still hate each other. Just with tongue now.”

Clint snorted so hard he spilled his coffee. “Jesus.”

Bucky, behind you, didn’t say a word, just patted Clint on the back as he passed, expression entirely neutral. Clint looked personally betrayed.

Later that day, Natasha cornered you in the elevator.

She didn’t say anything at first. Just leaned back against the mirrored wall, arms crossed, and gaze sharp. You kept your eyes on the floor numbers.

Finally, she said, “I had fifty bucks on you being the one to kiss him first.”

You blinked. “There were bets?”

She raised an eyebrow. “Please. There were charts. Steve ran the bracket.”

“…Steve?!”

Speaking of Steve, he found you both in the training room a few days later, sparring in what could only be described as borderline flirt-fighting. You’d just knocked Bucky on his ass (with some help from gravity and a well-timed insult), and were grinning down at him when Steve cleared his throat.

Bucky didn’t move. “Don’t say it.”

“I’m not saying anything,” Steve said, holding up his hands. “I’m just impressed. You made it a whole six months before punching each other turned into making out.”

You rolled your eyes. “You’re the one who made us partners.”

He looked at you both, sweaty, bruised, smiling like idiots, then sighed. “You’re each other’s problem now. Don’t drag me into it.”

Sam was the worst. Every time you walked into a room, he’d do the voice.

“Well well well, if it isn’t the Tower’s resident enemies-to-lovers plotline.”

One time, you and Bucky entered the kitchen holding hands. Sam immediately stood and slow-clapped.

Bucky just turned around and walked back out.

Tony? He didn’t even blink. Just tossed you a keycard to one of the private Tower suites and said, “Soundproofed. You’re welcome. And for the love of all that’s holy, don’t ruin the common couch.”

And Bruce…

Bruce looked up from his tablet one afternoon and said casually, “So when’s the wedding?”

You choked on your water while Bucky left the room.

Eventually, you stopped pretending.

You still bickered like cats in a sack. You still pranked each other with glitter bombs, hair dye in shampoo bottles, or emotionally incriminating Spotify playlists over the Tower speakers. But now there were quiet moments too. An arm around your waist on late nights. Soft smiles when one of you thought the other wasn’t looking. Kisses stolen between missions, sometimes bloody, sometimes breathless.

The whole team may have seen it coming before either of you did. But in the end, no one could deny it:

You and Bucky were still frenemies.

Just… now with benefits, bruises, and a whole lot more trouble for anyone who got between you.

#bucky barnes x reader #bucky barnes #bucky x reader #marvel x reader #bucky barnes fic #marvel fic #bucky x you #rivals to lovers #avengers!reader #avenger!reader

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