#meteora-fc

[wecomrades]

✨ John “Bucky” Egan✨

“You know, if this whole thing ended, and there were only two pilots left up in the air, it would be me, and it would be you, Buck.”

I’m back! Haven’t posted any art in quite some time, but certain fellas managed to bring back the inspiration and I have time, so here’s the first ever portrait of Masters series!

I’m tagging my old taglist but I know it’s been so long and some of you might not even watch the show, so feel free to tell me if you want me to take you off the taglist! No bother at all! 💛

If you want to be on the taglist jusr shot me a message or a comment and I’ll add you!

@gutsandgloryhere @meteora-fc @blahblahblahclintnickiscanon @wexhappyxfew @guarnere-mp4 @not-john-watsons-blog @fromcrossroadstoking @we-always-hit-our-ass @alienoresimagines @iamateenageanarchist @i-dont-like-bullies @tvserie-s-world @rubinecorvus @inglourious-imagines @wereinadell @papersergeant-pencilsoldier @rogue-sunday @vanderlindeandco @armynoodleswithketchup @victoryrollsandredlips @ask-you-what-sir @holdingforgeneralhugs @msmercury84

[rebelwrites]

Hi! Glad to see you back! How about Jax Teller having a younger twin sister and what a day is like for them? If you don’t like that one how about Jax as a single dad to a daughter and how he takes care of her hem she is sick

She’s Teething

Jax Teller

As this is a flash fic this hasn’t been edited

As always reblogs and feedback is highly appreciated ❤️ if you want tagging in future parts let me know ❤️

Jax stared at the well stacked shelving units at the grocery store, right now he felt like he was drawing with no life ring to save him. His head was spinning as he bounced his seven month old daughter in his arms, he had tried everything to sooth her cries but nothing was working.

“Come on, babygirl,” he sighed, so close to admitting defeat, he had no clue what he was doing and he hadn’t admitted this to anyone but he was scared, ever since his girl walked out on him leaving him to raise their daughter on his own. “Please, stop crying,” he whispered, holding his hand on her head as he pressed a tender kiss against her skin.

He had no idea what medicine he needed, all he knew was his daughter was burning up and constantly screaming, nothing he did was soothing her.

“She’s teething,” a voice appeared from behind him.

“I’m sorry?” he questioned, spinning on the balls of his feet, cocking a brow at the old lady standing in the aisle.

“Your baby girl, she is teething,” the old woman said softly, pushing past Jax and grabbing, “try rubbing some of this on her gums,” she smiled, passing him a box that contained some sort of gel. Jax smiled gratefully at her, before taking the small box from her. “Also this, and also some of these.”

Jax just let the old woman toss stuff into his basket, he didn’t care how much it cost, all that mattered was that his babygirl wasn’t in any pain. He didn’t care as he tore open the box of teething biscuits, at the end of the day he was going to buy them anyway.

He watched intently as he daughter reached out grabbing the biscuit in her tiny hand, automatically pulling it to her mouth. At that moment Jax thought he had gone deaf as for the first time today she had finally stopped crying. He couldn’t help but let out a large sign of relief.

“Thank you, for everything,” he said softly, smiling at the old woman, “you have been a lifesaver.”

“You are more than welcome, son,” she hummed, resting her hand on his arm. “Your daughter is beautiful and don’t stress too much, you are doing amazing.”

Jax couldn’t find the words so he just smiled gratefully at her, as quick as she appeared she disappeared leaving Jax once again standing alone in the baby medicine aisle. Looking down at his daughter she was happily sucking away at the biscuit in her grasp, Jax didn’t care she was getting his Kutte covered in the food all that mattered was she was happy and content. Leaning down he pressed a kiss against the top of her head before heading to the check out.

@chibsytelford @bigcreatorwombatdreamer @pumpkin-spice-hate @talicat713 @band--psycho @little-diable @i-love-scott-mccall @fourthwallhateclub @withmyteeth @theysayitscrazy @rosieposie0624 @choochoo284 @meteora-fc @beeroses @princess76179 @darklydeliciousdesires @the-jer-bear @princess76179 @extraneousred @youflickedtooharddamnit @lmao-liz @babypink224221 @daddysgirl2857 @bravo-four-seal-team @garbinge @pedrohoe04 @littlekittymeow @zozebo

[inglourious-imagines]

practically begging for some george luz w/ enemies to lovers. everyone always writes amazing friends to lovers but there’s sm potential w e2l !!! love ur writing btw xx

Jokes on You (George Luz x Fem!Reader)

Requested by: anon

Summary: George Luz is a funny guy, there is absolutely no denying that. He likes making jokes, and he likes it even more when people laugh at them. So what happens when there comes a person who makes just as good jokes as George? Or maybe even better? Some enemies to lovers for y’all.

Taglist: @alienoresimagines @teenmagazines @meteora-fc @eugenesmorphine @band-of-brothers-cz @real-fans @not-john-watsons-blog @tealaquinn @ok-roemanov @mrseasycompany @punkgeekchic @wexhappyxfew @hellitwasyoufirstsergeant @rayofshanshine @mavysnavy @easynix @georgeluzwarmhugs @easy-company-tradition @immrsronaldspeirs @snafus-peckuh @curraheewestandalone @warrior-healer @justamadgirlinabox @happyveday @order-of-river-phoenix @whoahersheybars @nixoninc

Warnings: like two swear words, angst in the form of Bastogne

A/N: I so suck at endings.

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Cracking jokes and making people laugh is George’s thing and his only, that’s how it’s always been. He is the funny guy in the group, that’s how he likes to define himself, the funny one. But to define is to limit and George has made the mistake of limiting himself to clinging to one particular personality trait, humour.

And then Y/N came along; about four months into the boot camp Y/N got reassigned from Dog Company to Easy Company for reasons no one knew, except for Lewis Nixon perhaps. George did not start hating her per say right from the moment he met her, but ever since she beat him to the joke when watching his favourite movie he’s strongly despised her. From then on, the feelings only got stronger; she’s always making the whole Company laugh, some of the jokes even on his account which George does not like one bit, hell she even managed to make Blithe chuckle that one day after D-Day.

Y/N had no idea what she triggered by her naturally jokester nature until she had to face a very pissed off George after she blabbed some joke about some actress and then a very pissed off George is the only kind of George she has had the privilege of meeting. The woman has pondered greatly about what she could have possibly done to anger the man so, but nothing came to mind and she soon gave up. George continued and stubbornly continues to be rude to her so she should only repay his “kindness”.

After Carentan, the word of Operation Market Garden is in the air and the Allies are particularly optimistic. Easy is in the pub, celebrating its successes in the war, while some reinforcements are trying to mingle. Y/N is watching it all from behind, the old breed not wanting to socialize with the newbies at all and sometimes the situations can get truly hilarious.

Somehow, in a few minutes, she finds herself behind a table with Luz, Malarkey, Muck and other three reinforcements who are just drinking up George’s story about his valour in Normandy. Her lips itch upwards from now and then, George’s drunkenness making it all the more amusing. Y/N can tell the new guys are impressed and somewhat terrified as well and one of them puts a pin on it when he asks Luz, “And what rank are you?”

The table sits in silence for a moment, for absolutely no one expected such question, not even the other reinforcements, then Malarkey and Muck burst out laughing, almost tipping over their beers.

Y/N chuckles, reaches over, and pats the guy’s arm. “Oh c’mon, it is Private!”

That absolutely finishes off Don and Skip, Skip eventually falls off his chair, the reinforcements are now laughing too; the mood slightly more friendly and at ease than before. Not for everyone though.

George is red to his ears, as he frowns. “The joke wasn’t that good. And it’s not even true.”

Donald is hiccupping now but manages to answer, “A- a bit c- corny, yes, but f-fucking b-brilliant.”

***

At this point the Company is divided into two parts only, one part bets on the two of them killing each other and the other parts bets on them fucking; which it will be is truly in the stars for George and Y/N are face to face again, both of them red in the cheeks from all the anger, both of them shouting some incoherent insults, and as Penkala has put it, “See? Honestly I can really see both happening. They will either kill each other or fuck, there is absolutely nothing in between.”

But then Market Garden happens, an underestimated operation, that leaves behind too many dead than it should and when all of Easy is boarded on trucks, retreating, the company is two people short.

Bull Randleman and Y/N Y/L/N.

The officers discuss what can be done, and despite all of the men wanting to go and save the two of the best soldiers in the company, they know they can’t. And exactly that is making George Luz lose his mind. He can’t really understand why he is so restless, anxious, and downright terrified throughout the whole night; he tosses and turns, he is not able to bring himself to close his eyes.

But then in the morning he sees Y/N on the jeep next to Bull and suddenly he feels like he could fly and go to Berlin and kill Hitler, just so he could see the carefree smile on her face.

It clicks in him just then, and Malarkey pats his shoulder. “So, you’ve finally figured it out, huh?”

George turns to him, confused. “What?”

Malarkey laughs, shaking his head, and says, “Don’t play dumb with me, you idiot, I saw it just now.”

As much as George would like to answer his friend, he truly has no idea what he is talking about, and when that dawns on Donald, he offers George a sympathetic smile.

“Okay, let me put your thoughts to words, ‘cause you’re such an oblivious idiot that you probably wouldn’t figure it out by the time this motherfucking war is over,” Malarkey continues, “you don’t hate her, do you, not really.”

It is not even a question, more of a statement, and George really wants to protest, more than anything, because it is ridiculous, right?

***

The plan to be home by Christmas isn’t really working out for the Allies but the soldiers of Easy Company have already forgotten about those false hopes, they aren’t the ones to be bothered with when you freeze your ass off in a foxhole in the middle of a forest where the trees blow up every now and then and the place becomes a tornado.

Y/N shares a foxhole with Muck and Penkala, the trio trying to lighten up their gloomy moods with laughter. But even Y/N is running out of jokes now, so when doc Roe runs up to them, asking for scissors, she’s more than happy to go look for them with him too, the need to stretch her stiff and frozen body overpowering her whole self.

She’s just a couple of meters away from her foxhole when another German artillery attack comes and the whole forest becomes a hurricane of explosions, splinters, and blood. The soldier throws herself to the ground, crawling her way, slowly, back to her foxhole, Muck and Penkala shouting something at her she can’t hear, encouraging her to hurry up.

Dirt is everywhere, she barely can see, she covers her ears and head with her hands as another hit comes; she continues right after the explosion, crawling, crawling, crawling.

Muck and Penkala are still shouting at her, she is getting closer; Y/N can hear another artillery attack coming but this time she doesn’t stop proceeding, she knows she has to get into the foxhole soon, so she keeps on pushing.

The explosion comes. Everything goes white for a moment. The pressure wave makes her stop moving, and she is forced to close her eyes and cover her head with her hands.

She opens her eyes. There is nothing.

Seconds ago, there were two people, now there is nothing, nothing left, not a single trace that there have ever human beings stood.

Y/N can’t bring herself to move, she stares blankly into the space before her, her limbs are stiff. But then some arms grab her body, she can hear someone shouting at her.

3 seconds. That’s all it takes her to get back. She holds on to George’s arms as they run together to another foxhole, jumping right in. He immediately brings her into his body, she wraps her arms around his torso instinctively, holding onto him so tight, her head resting on his chest. George shields her body from everything outside and when the bombing finally stops, they don’t let go of each other for another few moments.

It isn’t until a few years after the war and they are married to each other, when they finally talk about what happened that day in the forest of Bois Jacques, not a day sooner. Ever since then, their relationship has been changed, both very much aware of it, neither of them brave enough to bring it up just yet.

It is in Haguenau, where they finally share a conversation. George finds her on her own, behind some building, hiding behind some sacks, looking at the river. He throws a Hershey bar into her lap and when she looks up in confusion, he offers her a warm tired smile.

“What did I do to deserve the affection of the one and only George Luz?” she tries to crack up a joke and chuckles, but it doesn’t quite reach her eyes. George knows Y/N is exhausted beyond words.

He sits down next to her, as he opens his mouth to say something, but he rethinks it in the last second and nothing comes out. They sit out there for a few minutes, sharing the silence and strangely enough, it feels nice. George finally does not feel the need to talk all the time, the need to prove himself funny or worthy of other people’s attention.

“Have you ever been to Rhode Island?” he suddenly blurts out, surprising himself and her at the choice of the question.

Y/N smiles, doesn’t ask why or what. “No, never.”

“Then come with me.”

This time she asks what.

“After the war I mean, come home after the war with me.”

“But- but, you-“ she stutters, her cheeks slightly red, “but you hate me.”

George chuckles at that and looks at her. She has bags under her eyes that are a bit bloodshot (she hasn’t slept much in the last few days), her hair is dirty from dirt and sweat, her face has several scratches and marks, his eyes finds the most visible one just below her left cheekbone (he recalls that day in Carentan when a piece of shrapnel hit her and the wound looked way worse then it actually was for she had blood all over her left side of face, freaking out silently has never been so hard – he hadn’t known at that time what will come). He has never seen anything to maddeningly and purely beautiful as her.

“I thought I did, a very long time ago,” he says, “but actually I never did. I don’t hate you. How could I?”

Y/N looks at him and through all the pain, horror, and grief, she feels peace. It surprises her.

And so she responds, “Okay.”

“Okay what?”

“Okay, I will come home with you. How could I not?”

[football-and-fanfics]

Sleepy Dialogue Prompts #5

Who: Mason Mount Prompt: "I need your smell to fall asleep." Requested by: anonymous Warnings: none

With Mason a footballer and your modelling career, you both had to go abroad often. It meant you spent nights alone in bed, without Mason sleeping beside you, more often than you would like.

Every night you spent apart, you always video-called Mason around bedtime. So, too, tonight. You were in Berlin for a photoshoot, while Mason was at your home in London.

"Hey, babe." Mason answered your videocall on the first ring. He already lay in bed, but he would never miss your bedtime call. "Hey." You were also in bed, but in your hotel room in Berlin. "How was your day?" Mason asked. "Good, but long," you answered. The day had indeed been long and tiring, but the photoshoot was successfully finished. "Yours?" "We won the match 2-0," Mason smiled, "boss gave us the day off tomorrow, so I'll be home when you get back." You were already looking forward to snuggling up comfortably in Mason's arms again. "Can't wait."

Mason turned onto his side in bed, switching the angle of his phone somewhat, and that was when you saw it. "Why is my hoodie in the bed?" You frowned at the screen. You easily recognized the candy cane pink hoodie you always wore around the house, but you were sure you had thrown it in the laundry basket before you left.

Mason turned almost as pink as your hoodie. "Because I put it there," he mumbled a little embarrassed. "Why?" You chuckled. "Because..." Mason took a few seconds before he continued, "because I need your smell to fall asleep. I know it's weird, and you can absolutely judge me for it, but it just makes sleeping easier when you're away."

You never wanted to be able to kiss and cuddle him more than right now after this confession. "I don't think that's weird at all," you smiled, "I think it's the cutest thing ever." "Really?" Mason chuckled in relief.

You briefly lay down your phone and disappeared from view. When you came back in front of the camera, you held up one of Mason's T-shirts. "I don't think it's weird, because I do the exact same thing," you smirked. Mason stared at his shirt in your hands for a few seconds, before a broad smile spread across his face. "And that is why you and I are made for each other."

Tags: @evie-pr, @auawdo, @meteora-fc, @stonesyyyy, @drizzyreese, @hbstre, @liverpoolfanfiction, @sternennebel2001, @mrswinksy, @themoon-shines Mason tags: @youkantebeserious, @laurasstufff1, @mmountswb, @n0n-sense PL / Chelsea tags: @ella33

Add me to the tags list General masterlist | Mason masterlist

[gabekidd]

Empty Rooms

A “Take My Hand, Wreck My Plans” fic

Pairing: Kyle Fletcher x OFC (with a bit of x Jay White) Word Count: 3,321 Warnings: Drinking, language, a lotta angst

Following a long, slow end to her relationship with Jay, Nellie finds herself single in London on her birthday. But she doesn't end the night alone.

TMHWMP Timeline | Masterlist

Read it on AO3

Tag squad: @aussiearrow @statdaddy @knifepervert @sldghmmr @rusevday @missbrownstone @meteora-fc @bec0m @thatgirlforever5 @rocca09

Sunday, September 19, 2021 London, England

The Undisputed British Women’s Championship felt heavier in Nellie’s hand leaving the ring than it had entering it. Of course, it wasn’t heavier—she was weaker, her lungs on fire and her muscles taxed after a grueling twenty-minute two-out-of-three-falls match. But as spent as she was, Nellie hadn’t felt this much pride in a while. Successfully defending her title for the fifth time since winning it in July was one hell of a birthday present.

“And still.”

Kyle Fletcher greeted her with a wide smile as she returned backstage. Aussie Open’s winner-take-all match against Destination Everywhere for both the PWA Tag Team Championship and RevPro Undisputed British Tag Team Championship was next.

“That was a hell of a match, Nell,” Mark complimented.

“Thanks,” she smiled and bumped each of their fists in turn. Nellie had known Kyle and Mark for almost as long as she’d been working RevPro, but for most of that time they’d been little more than acquaintances, not to mention one-time rivals—Aussie Open had won their first RevPro tag team championship by beating Suzuki-gun back when Nellie had been dating and managing Zack.

However, when Nellie had defeated Zoe Lucas to capture the vacant RevPro Undisputed British Women’s Championship for a second time—ironically, on July Fourth—she’d decided right then and there to be a fighting champion. And that meant working more dates for RevPro, which in turn meant seeing the Aussies more and having the chance to actually get to know them; and soon enough, Nellie, Kyle, and Mark had graduated from acquaintances to friends who texted and sent each other memes and made plans for when she’d been in England next.    

And she’d been there quite frequently lately.

“How many defenses is that now?” Mark asked.

Nellie hoisted the title up onto her shoulder. “Five… in three months.”

“Jesus,” he breathed.

“I think I’m in love,” Kyle added.

She grinned. “Win the RevPro tag titles and maybe we’ll talk,” she teased him—and not for the first time. That was something else that had developed between her and Kyle in recent weeks. But he’d started it.

“I’m gonna hold you to that,” he smirked.

“Will you?” Nellie parried; but then she noticed the knowing smirk on Mark’s face and became suddenly embarrassed. Trading cheeky DMs with Kyle was one thing. Flirting with him in front of people was quite another.

“Good luck!” she quickly said, and she turned and continued down the hall, her heart rate picking up again.

* * * *

An hour after her match, Nellie’s phone was still pinging with likes, comments, and retweets of the sweaty post-match photo she’d shared to her socials with a simple but intriguing caption: And still. Three months, five defenses. And I’m hunting more hardware.

It was that last line that had everyone speculating—and they’d find out what she meant soon enough. Recently, Nellie and Torrance had decided to bet on themselves and enter the upcoming Goddesses of Stardom Tag League as a team. It was a bold move, not only because they’d never tagged together before, but because they were in separate factions: Nellie in Queen’s Quest, Torrance in Cosmic Angels. But they’d both been looking to shake things up in their careers, and the tag league presented the perfect opportunity.

“We seriously need to come up with a team name,” Torrance said as she sat in the dressing room scrolling through her own social media feeds. “They’re announcing the entrants in two weeks, I think.”

“I know,” Nellie agreed, pausing to swipe mascara over her lashes. Of course they were going out; it was her birthday. “I’ve been trying to think of a play on our names, but all I’ve come up with is Team TKO and I don’t think that fits us.”

Torrance’s eyes turned pensive. “Cosmic Queens?” she finally said.

Nellie started to reject it—but she snapped her fingers. It had come to her just like that. “Cosmic Queendom.”

“Yessss, that’s it,” Torrance smiled. “Although it kinda sounds like we’re trying to join United Empire, too.”

Nellie stopped what she was doing. “Oh God, it does,” she realized. But Torrance shrugged.

“Fine with me,” she grinned. That time, Nellie decided to keep her comments to herself.

Initially, Torrance hadn’t planned on coming to London. But she’d made a spur-of-the-moment decision last week to book a last-minute flight—and it wasn’t just because she wanted to be there to support Nellie. She had other, more personal motivations; ones that involved Will Ospreay.

From Nellie’s perspective, Will had come completely out of left field. She knew that he and Torrance had gone on a few dates back in 2017—Nellie had even gone on the most awkward double date of her life with them and David Finlay—but up until about a month ago, Torrance had been involved with Robbie Eagles. Casually involved, admittedly, but involved nonetheless—and Nellie thought he was a much better match for Torrance than Will was.

But when it came down to it, Torrance seemed happy; and after everything she’d been through surrounding the contentious end of her and Ishimori’s relationship earlier that year, the last thing Nellie wanted to do was rain on her parade.

“Speaking of United Empire,” Torrance added. “Is Kyle gonna end up in more than just your DMs tonight?”

“Torr!” Nellie proclaimed; but she couldn’t help her grin. “Jesus.”

“I’m just saying; I’d support it one hundred percent. It’s your birthday and you deserve to get dicked down.”

Nellie flushed hot at Torrance’s frankness of speech; but it would be a bald-faced lie to say she hadn’t been considering doing exactly that with Kyle. He was the perfect candidate on paper for a night of no-strings-attached fun. They were friends but not close enough that it would complicate anything; she was less than two months out of a heartbreaking relationship, and he was only twenty-two—neither of them was looking for anything serious. And besides, Torrance was right: she did deserve to get dicked down.

“Well… maybe I will,” she smirked and her phone pinged again. But the notification sound was different that time; the one she’d set for text messages. She finished up her makeup and then reached for her phone—and nearly dropped it when saw the text was from Jay.

Happy birthday, Nell. And congrats on the win. Five defenses in three months is insane.

“What the fuck.”

“What?” Torrance asked, and Nellie realized she’d said that out loud.

“Jay just texted me happy birthday.”

“What?” Torrance was just as taken aback. “No.”

“Yes,” she confirmed, and she handed her phone over so Torrance could see it for herself. Her mouth dropped.

“Oh, what the fuck.”

“Now you see why I said it,” Nellie commented.

“Have you two even said two words to each other since you broke up?”

She shook her head. “No.” It worked Torrance up even more.

“And he just pops up to wish you happy birthday like nothing happened,” she said. “Honestly, I don’t even know why I’m surprised; it’s just like Jay to pull something like that.”

Now that she'd said it, Nellie wasn’t surprised, either; that was exactly how Jay had acted throughout the final three months of their relationship. After he’d won the NEVER Openweight Championship, Nellie had felt like he would put her on the backburner for days at a time until he’d suddenly remember they were together. That they needed to communicate, check-in with each other, be there for each other even while thousands of miles apart, especially while working through the uncertainty of their situation.

Except, they hadn’t worked through it. And months later, Nellie was still trying to work out why.

“You’re not thinking about texting him back, are you?” Torrance asked.

Knock! Knock-knock-knock! Knock-knock!

A rhythmic series of knocks on the dressing room door spared Nellie from having to answer, and then Will’s voice shouted through to them.

“Oi! Are you two ready?”

Torrance looked back at Nellie as she stood to answer the door. “Don’t text him back. You have better things to do tonight—like a six-foot-four Aussie.”

Nellie scoffed. But her fingers hovered over the keyboard as she looked back at the text, until she locked her phone and put it away.

* * * *

It was a challenge to find anywhere to get a drink after 11 p.m. on a Sunday in London, unless you knew where to look—and of course Will knew where to look. So, he called an Uber X and a black Range Rover arrived to take them away. On the ride, the conversation naturally turned to all their success that night and what shows they had booked next, at which point Nellie asked Kyle and Mark if they had any plans to wrestle in Japan soon, given that they were the newest members of United Empire. Kyle told her he hoped it would be sooner rather than later. And when Nellie grinned and said, “I hope so, too,” she really meant it.

But it was less than ten minutes before they reached their destination—and it really was the kind of place you needed to know about, tucked away on a side street in between much newer and taller buildings. On the outside, it looked like a typical English pub, a weathered brick-and-wood front adorned with an elegant hunter green sign hand-painted with gold lettering. But as soon as Nellie got out of the Range Rover she heard the pulse of dance music and saw the flash of strobe lights through the windows. It was unexpected, to say the least.

“Why does this seem like exactly the kind of place you’d know about?” Torrance said to Will.

“I’ll take that as a compliment,” he returned, and he took her hand and led them all inside.

The pub was cramped as it was, and it was packed wall-to-wall with people—at the bar, on the dancefloor, crowded around tables in the back. It was a dive for sure, and the atmosphere instantly transported Nellie back three years, to when nearly every trip to England had seen nights out with Riley to places just like this, and they would have drinks and Nellie would act coy even though she knew she’d fall into bed with him again.

And when Kyle put his hand on the small of her back, it felt like history might repeat itself with someone new.

“You want a drink?”

He’d leaned in to be heard above the music, and the ghost of his lips against her ear sent a pleasant tingle up Nellie’s spine. She nodded. “Yeah.”

She wasn’t sure if his hand found hers or the other way around, but their fingers intertwined, and he led her through the crowd to the bar. When they arrived, he guided her in front of him, his hand on her hip, her body tucked against his side.

“Shots?” he asked.

Nellie unintentionally leaned her head back against him as she laughed. “You would suggest shots.”

“Well, yeah!” Kyle returned. “It’s your birthday! I want you to enjoy it.” He squeezed her hip. It made more than just Nellie’s spine tingle that time.

He ordered a round of shots for the group, and they toasted to Nellie’s birthday and United Empire—“And Torr and Nell, consider this your unofficial initiation,” Will had said—and then they ordered more drinks and made their way to a booth in a less-crowded area on the second floor (Will's handiwork, of course). But Will didn’t stay long himself; Torrance pulled him away to the dancefloor, and once Mark realized he’d be third wheeling it, he disappeared, too, and Nellie and Kyle were left alone. They sat close, his arm resting behind her on the booth, their knees touching under the table. Nellie propped her chin up by her elbow and turned to look at him. He grinned.

“Do you know how fucking hot you are?”

Nellie couldn’t help it—she laughed. It was exactly the sort of compliment she’d expect from a twenty-two-year-old at a bar. But that didn’t make it any less flattering.

“I’m serious,” Kyle added, and he started ticking off her praises on his fingers. “You’re a bad-ass wrestler, you’re smart, you’re funny, and to top it all off you’re a fucking smokeshow. It’s not fair, actually.”

Nellie bit back a grin as she stirred her drink. “I’m also twenty-nine.”

Kyle’s brow furrowed. “And?” He was clearly confused as to why she’d mention that. “What does that matter?”

“Are you into older women?”

Their seven-year age difference was something that had been lurking in the back of Nellie’s mind from the day she and Kyle had started their flirtation. Not because it mattered—it didn’t, not if they were two consenting adults just getting their rocks off for a night—but just because it was there. Fact. And Nellie had never been with someone that much younger than her.

But it seemed to be a complete non-issue to Kyle. “Older women?” He laughed. “No—I’m into you. And I don’t think of you as an ‘older woman.’”

Nellie grinned again. “Oh, so you’re into me, huh?”

He nodded. “Yeah. I thought that was kind of obvious with all the flirting and compliments, but I can be more obvious if you need me to.”

“Oh, yeah? What’s more obvi…”

She trailed off as he pulled her into him and kissed her. And while Nellie had half-expected him to do it, she hadn’t at all expected her physical response to it. Kyle’s lips were soft, and so was the kiss, slow and sensual, one arm wrapped around her shoulders to draw her close, his other hand cradling the side of her face, his fingers reaching back into her hair. It was a purposeful kiss; attentive. Nellie hadn’t felt so coveted in months.

He broke away, nipping at her bottom lip just so. When Nellie opened her eyes, Kyle was smirking at her.

“Mommy? Sorry. Mom—”

She shoved him away. “Oh, fuck off.”

“I’m sorry, it was right there!” he laughed. “But is that a bit more obvious?”

Nellie smirked. “Obviously,” she returned. And then, like an intrusive thought, she remembered Jay’s text, still sitting left on read on her phone.

* * * *

Thanks. I’ve been trying to keep busy.

Nellie sent the text as they all walked out of the pub, when no one was paying attention. It was after 1 a.m., and alcohol had weakened her resolve. Between Kyle’s lips, his smile, the way he touched her, and the ghost of Jay still haunting the empty rooms in her heart, Nellie’s head was a mess.

“Nell! You coming?”

She looked up at the sound of Kyle’s voice and realized she’d fallen behind. She pushed her phone into her back pocket and hurried to catch up, looping her arm through his and falling in step next to him.

The guys had decided they wanted a late-night snack, and of course Will knew of a 24-hour bagel shop a short walk away. The guys went up to the counter to order while Nellie and Torrance stood against the wall, out of the way. It took all but a few seconds for Torrance to ask exactly what Nellie knew she would.

“So… will Kyle be giving you a birthday present?”

Of course Nellie had told Torrance that Kyle had kissed her back at the pub, and she was almost certain Torrance had gone and told Will. She stole a furtive glance at the guys out of the corner of her eye. She couldn’t hear what they were talking about, but by the way Will nudged Kyle and the grin on Kyle’s face, she had some idea.

“I don’t know.”

Torrance frowned when she heard that. “Why not?” she asked—and as if in answer, Nellie’s phone buzzed in her back pocket. She pulled it out without thinking about it—again: alcohol—and saw that Jay had responded.

Well it looks good on you.

Her head spun. Torrance noticed—and she already knew. She came around Nellie’s side and looked at her phone. Her lips parted in disappointment.

“You texted him back? Nell.”

“I know, but I don’t need a lecture about it right now, okay?” Nellie returned. She was tired, and a bit drunk, and a lot confused. And thankfully, Torrance was the kind of friend who could recognize that.

“Okay, but don’t reply to that one,” she urged.

“Everything alright over here?” Will walked over and handed a blondie wrapped in cellophane to Torrance. He nudged his chin at Nellie. “You look a million miles away, Nell.”

“Oh,” she quickly shook her head. “No, I’m fine. I think the night’s just catching up to me.”

“I’m sure Kyle could sort it out for you,” he commented, and her face burned. She barely had a moment to recover before Kyle and Mark joined them, bagel sandwiches in hand. Kyle took a big bite out of his and hummed in satisfaction.

“This hits the spot, for sure,” he said. He offered the bagel to Nellie. “Want a bite?”

She eyed it; it did look good. So, she grabbed Kyle’s hand and took a bite.

“Jeez, taking my food already!” he proclaimed.

“You offered!” Nellie returned through a mouth full of food. Kyle just grinned and winked at her.

“Well, shall we?” Will said then. “I’ll call the Uber.”

* * * *

When Kyle had leaned into Nellie’s ear in the backseat of the Uber and quietly asked if she wanted him to come back to her hotel room, she’d looked up at him and nodded yes. But she didn’t know if she’d hook up with him. She still didn’t know as they walked through the door, or as she changed into sweatpants and a t-shirt, or even as they cuddled up together on the bed, atop the covers. They didn’t turn on the TV or look at their phones; and even though Nellie still wasn’t sure, she did notice that the silence wasn’t awkward or uncomfortable. It didn’t feel like she’d made a mistake inviting Kyle back to her hotel room. It was nice just having his company.

“I want you to know I don’t expect anything to happen tonight,” he eventually said. “I know it hasn’t been that long since you and Jay broke up.”

Something ached deep inside Nellie’s chest. She did her best to ignore it. “How long do you think it’s been?”

It was a genuine question. She and Jay had kept their relationship out of the public eye even when they’d been at their happiest, and they’d handled their break-up just as privately. But there had been clues. Ones that Nellie assumed Kyle had picked up on.

“About a month, I guess?” he answered. “At least, that’s about how long ago I started to notice you sharing certain songs to your Instagram stories and posting thirst trap photos.”

A corner of Nellie’s mouth quirked up. “Oh, so you noticed the photos?”

“Of course I noticed the photos, are you joking? Those photos could make a blind man see again.”

She laughed out loud that time. “Well, I’m glad you noticed,” she said, and she saw him smirk out of the corner of her eye.

“Yeah?”

“Yeah,” she nodded, her voice small but genuine. “It feels like it’s been a while since I’ve been noticed like that.”

Kyle’s eyebrows arched. “Did Jay go blind?”

“It sort of feels that way,” she said, and she started to withdraw again, into those empty rooms.

But she pulled herself out and looked up at Kyle. “But it’s his loss.”

Kyle smiled at her, warm and wide, just like he had when she’d returned backstage from winning her match. Just like he had been all night. “It’s absolutely his loss,” he said, and Nellie pulled his lips against hers, getting lost in the feel of him.

[bss-babygirl]

[7:20 pm]- #6. “You're not going to lose me.”

Mustafa Ali x reader

Warning: Fluff, Friends to Lovers AU

Request for @baeusos

Tag List (as always let me know if you’d like to be added/removed): @1dluver13xx @wwesarahjaneroszko @c-lelo @heyits-liz @meteora-fc @mattjacksons @hisredheadedgoddess28 @queenofthearchitect @queenslayer1985 @officialbroski10-blog @darktammy @mcreigns-enthusiast @blondekel77 @barnesnreigns @cesarofangirl78 @lilred91 @beautybyfire @pleasantlyshamelesswizard @rebellious-desires @punkgoddess-98

In December of 2021, when you first met, if someone would have told you that you and Mustafa would be as close as you are; you would have laughed at them. But here you are a year and four months later, and he has become your best friend. He’s done so much for you in what little time you’ve had together between encouraging you throughout college, and even just being a good friend; there were definitely days if it hadn’t been for him, you wouldn’t have made it through.

Recently, within the last three months you have realized you started to develop feelings for him, which terrified you for multiple reasons. Reasons being: your job for one, working in the wrestling business is hard much less when dating within the company itself is frowned upon. You worried what the fans would think if word go out or that it was even rumored that you two were seeing each other, because the last thing you’d want to ruin where he is in his career. The four year age gap between you two was also another small factor. Now, age may not seem like a big deal to some, but it was to you considering you are short for your age. For all of these reasons, you tried so hard to swallow your feelings towards him.

However, one day all of that changed when one of your mutual friends that you both respect and admire pulled you aside, and told you a little secret—Mustafa may, or may not have feelings for you. That he thinks you are hot. Now, when they said that, it kind of started to play into your head that maybe they were joking around, and just pulling your leg; because you and the word hot rarely ever get used in the same sentence. Plus, you thought it was completely crazy that Mustafa could possibly feel the same way about you because he has always looked at you as a friend. Like he was the one that pushed you to go for your feelings with other guys, like your wingman of sorts. But nonetheless, something inside of you told you “just go for it, what’s the worst that could happen?”

With this YOLO Mindset you found Mustafa just sitting in catering. “Hey Y/N!” “Hey Mustafa, can I talk to you?” “Yeah, sure. Everything okay Y/N?” Mustafa looked genuinely concerned because of the tone in your voice. You nodded while walking with him, trying to find a more quiet, secluded place for you two to talk. Your nerves? Through the roof at this point. You started playing with your fingers which Mustafa knew was one of your nervous habits. “Y/N, you can tell me anything, you know that right?” “Yeah, I know. I just don’t want what I’m about to say to ruin our friendship.” Mustafa took your hands in his. “You can do this Y/N, just tell me what’s on your mind. You’re not going to lose me.” You took one more deep breath, “Truth is, I’ve liked you for a while now, but I was always afraid to say anything because I knew relationships within the company were frowned upon, and I didn’t want to make it harder on you in any way.” Mustafa started smiling, “God, you have no idea how bad I’ve wanted to hear you say that. I like you to Y/N.”

End

[licht-und-schatten]

OMG I LOVE SUCH POSTS, tysm @fentybucky for tagging me! ❤️🤗🦄👑

CURRENTLY WATCHING: nothing, zero, tv series drain me emotionally atm

SPICY/SWEET/SAVOURY: not a fan of spicy, would say savoury but i need a lot of sweet now because of my poor sick brain

CURRENT OBSESSION: everything leopard print🐆aaand the astrological theory I've been working on for 10 years, this year I discovered what I've been doing wrong and I'm so excited♊

RELATIONSHIP STATUS: single but not for loooong, i can see it cominggggg hehehe😁

LAST SONG I LISTENED TO: When it ends it starts again by ATB❤️🎶

I don't have enough moots to tag anyone but hey, how about @meteora-fc @thepeoplesbassist @moviesonlightsoff and @old-introvert 😁🌞💖

[soulsbetrayed]

//here's Meteora's FC. Though she'd only use this if she's disguised as a Halovian. Otherwise she looks more like this.

[band--psycho]

Taglist:

@xacatalepsyx @gloryekaterina @yn-ymn-yln @munsinner @darthwheezely @jamie-lee666 @megaprincesscakes @skyofficialxx @little-diable @aboukie @girl-next-door-writes @the-chaotic-cow @camilyb @justreadingficsdontmindme @malfoys-demigod @misshale21 @msmarvelknight @it-was-all-a-beautiful-dream @invisible-ninja @meteora-fc @howlingmadlady @daedreams @jazzyllemmon @realandloud @alexxavicry @onyourgoddamnleft @annajona @pappydaddy @book-dragon03

Fred Weasley x Reader - At Last

For the amazing @beeroses who requested this story for my 3.6k drabble challenge!

I hope you all enjoy this! 💛

Prompt - You kissed me last night / And you didn't stop me

“Just talk to him, Y/n/n,” Angelina urged as she pulled Y/n up the staircase towards the Gryffindor Common Room. 

“And say what, Angelina?” Y/n snapped back, trying and failing to fight against her friend's grip. 

“Y/n/n, you’ve liked Fred for as long as I’ve known you, and last night he kissed you, don’t you think that means something?” Angelina insisted, but her words only made Y/n sigh.

Y/n had had a crush on Fred Weasley since their first year at Hogwarts…and that’s why she was terrified to talk to him about last night. 

Gryffindor had won a Quidditch match against Slytherin; which meant that they were celebrating in typical Gryffindor style, with a party. 

And it was during the late hours of the party when most people were beginning to leave and go back to their dorm room, that Fred kissed Y/n. 

They’d both been drinking; that’s what gave Y/n the confidence to kiss him back like she did, with absolutely no hesitation.

But that’s also why she was scared; because all she could think about was that it was simply just a drunken kiss. 

A mistake. 

That’s why she didn’t want to talk to him.

“Fred, just the guy we were looking for,” Angelina beamed, letting go of Y/n's arm, watching as the ginger twins walked up the staircase.

“Am I just invisible?” George questioned, with a confused look on his face.

“Talk to him,” Angelina whispered in Y/n's ear before grabbing George’s arm,  pulling him away, despite his protests. 

“Y/n/n-” Fred began, but he didn’t get a chance to finish his sentence before Y/n's voice interrupted him.

“You kissed me last night,” she stated, a shaky breath leaving her lips as her y/e/c eyes met his. 

“I did,” Fred answered softly, walking up a few steps so that he was closer to Y/n, “And you didn’t stop me.”

“Was it…was it a mistake?” Y/n stuttered out, trying to ignore how her heartbeat quickened when she realized just how close they were to one another. 

Her question caught him off guard.

“A mistake?” He questioned, his eyes narrowing in confusion as hers moved to the ground.

“We’d been drinking…”

“Love, the only thing that was a mistake, was that I waited so long to do it,” Fred admitted , raising his hand to her face, his index finger tilting her head up, so that their eyes met once again.

“But don’t worry,” he whispered, brushing his thumb over her bottom lip, as he wrapped his other hand around her waist, “I won’t be making that mistake again.”

The last word of his sentence had barely left his lips before his eyes fluttered shut and he pressed his lips against hers, softly. 

Closing the distance between them completely. 

And just like the night before; Y/n didn’t hesitate in kissing him back. 

[r-truth]

the neck is the clavicle no????? collarbone crew knowwwws its the clavicle, right????

but the clavicle isnt. like the shoulders as well? @deathtriangles amy.............. bring your science degree to us <3

[wecomrades]

✨ Robert “Rosie” Rosenthal ✨

“We’re here to fight the monsters, Croz. Yeah. And, yeah– Yeah, that’s made us do some tough things… but-but we had to. There’s no other way. The things these people are capable of… No, they got it coming. Trust me. They got it coming.”

Hello again! Couldn’t help but drawing this beautiful soul, one of the best (if not the best) characters of Masters of the Air.

Kinda like this one, but the shadows on the reference photo were a bit odd so it wasn’t that easy doing the shades… especially the mouth/moustache area, as you can see it came out a little weird. But anyway, hope you like it! 💛

If you want to be on or off the taglist just shoot me a message or a comment!

@gutsandgloryhere @meteora-fc @blahblahblahclintnickiscanon @wexhappyxfew @guarnere-mp4 @not-john-watsons-blog @fromcrossroadstoking @we-always-hit-our-ass @alienoresimagines @iamateenageanarchist @i-dont-like-bullies @tvserie-s-world @rubinecorvus @inglourious-imagines @wereinadell @papersergeant-pencilsoldier @rogue-sunday @vanderlindeandco @armynoodleswithketchup @victoryrollsandredlips @ask-you-what-sir @holdingforgeneralhugs @msmercury84

[rebelwrites]

I’ve added the people who wanted to be tagged and I’ve merged my f1 and SOA TagList together, if you want adding or removing let me know ❤️

@withmyteeth @chibsytelford @stillbreathin @danzer8705 @keyweegirlie @celestialams @dragon-of-winterfell @ohthemisssery @a-distantdreamer @sgkophie @angywritesstuff @miamedyu @enchantedbytomandhenry @scribbuluswrites @dangerouspursepeachbear @buendiabebeta @pleasedontfollowinlost @ferrarifwendvale @theplobnrgone @charlesleclercje @sunf1owerrq @queenslife @panicforspec @inesramoss30 @justme2042 @liv67 @derpinathebrave @clcspeonies @pleasantducktimetravel @raaaaabzzz @mehrmonga @sbgal @fangirl-lb @pitconfirmbutton @oslokij @tall-tanned-tattoo @bigcreatorwombatdreamer @pumpkin-spice-hate @talicat713 @band--psycho @little-diable @i-love-scott-mccall @pascal-reyes @fourthwallhateclub @theysayitscrazy @rosieposie0624 @choochoo284 @meteora-fc @beeroses @darklydeliciousdesires @the-jer-bear @extraneousred

[inglourious-imagines]

Coming Back to You (Donald Malarkey x GN!Reader)

Summary: After Bastogne, Malarkey is more distant than ever, barely talking to you anymore. But we don’t give up on those we love, right?

Requested by: @love-studying58 (Your last Malarkey post I requested got me in the feels and I’m requesting a similar one cause Malark is my fav. )

Prompts: 85 – “He loves you, you know? He’s just afraid of admitting it.” (used as a setting, not as words being said) & 8 – “I said I’m fucking fine.”

Warnings: just some swear words

A/N: Finally wrote it, yayy! Hope it's alright.

Taglist: @alienoresimagines @teenmagazines @meteora-fc @eugenesmorphine @band-of-brothers-cz @real-fans @not-john-watsons-blog @tealaquinn @ok-roemanov @mrseasycompany @punkgeekchic @wexhappyxfew @hellitwasyoufirstsergeant @rayofshanshine @mavysnavy @easynix @georgeluzwarmhugs @easy-company-tradition @immrsronaldspeirs @snafus-peckuh @curraheewestandalone @warrior-healer @justamadgirlinabox @happyveday @order-of-river-phoenix @whoahersheybars

.

.

.

The internal debating whether not-knowing or knowing would be worse is slowly taking its toll on your mental state. Ever since your Company heard the news about the patrol and the rumours that Malarkey is the one to lead it, you’ve been anxious and terrified beyond words.

It is almost evening, and you’re sitting with other Easy Company soldiers in a basement of one of the buildings in Hagenau, slowly sipping on the liquid the army so casually likes to call coffee. But it’s hot, and it warms your cold shaky hands. Even breathing is hard now, anxiety spreading to every part of your body like an infection. You’re terrified and you’re not even supposed to be on the patrol. All because of your heart that clings maybe too hard onto a broken soldier with a green beanie.

Your eyes scan the room, trying to find him but he’s nowhere to be seen; part of you wants to get up, find him, tell him all the things you’ve been dying to say since Toccoa, the other part keeps you glued to the old wooden chair and it seems you are stuck at dead end, neither of the sides taking the initiative.

“Don’t you look like Webster when the Krauts shot him,” George laughs as he plops himself on the chair next to you. You know very well he’s just trying to cheer you up, knowing exactly what’s gotten you down, but to say you look like David when shot? That’s a bit far.

“Fuck you too, Luz,” you retort, but a smile tugs at your lips anyway.

George puts up his hands in a surrender-like manner, grinning like a kid. “Well, maybe not, but you do look terrible.”

This time you let out an amused chuckle. “You sure know how to compliment a person. Thank you.”

“Come on, now, Y/N, you know what I mean.” George says as his face slowly gets more serious but the soft smile of his never disappears. “Someone should go talk to him,” he continues, his voice gentle and somewhat soothing, and you, for a split of a second, let yourself believe that this is your older brother giving you relationship advice. That thought warms your heart more than the coffee ever could, and you pick up your gaze at George, offering him a sincere smile.

You don’t have to ask, for George already knows your next move.

“Walk up the stairs to the first floor, then the first door to your left.”

You pat his shoulder while getting up, leaving that cup of unfinished coffee on your chair. “Thanks, G, I might just let that earlier insult pass after all.”

---

You slowly walk up the stairs, with each step losing a bit of the sudden courage you felt before, but you don’t stop, you simply can’t. The doors are slightly opened, so when you peer in, you can see Malarkey quietly discussing something with Babe. You don’t want to disturb them, for both of them seem deep in thought, serious and so tired, so you slowly step back.

You don’t have to wait too long, in a few moments, Heffron is standing in the hall next to you. He gives you a sympathetic smile and without a word leaves you be. You don’t know it yet, but almost every soldier from the original Easy Company squad knew about your little crush that apparently is reciprocated, even though somewhat badly and without words so you have no idea. George will tell you, once you reach Germany, about all the secret bets concerning you and Malarkey, that even some of the officers are in on them. And you will laugh, rosy cheeked, and George will laugh too, saying how bad of a secret agent you would make.

Malarkey is looking out the window when you enter the room.

“Hi,” you say quietly to announce your present and take some steps towards him. “Are you okay?

“I’m fine,” he immediately answers without looking at you or even turning his head a bit.

You sigh, “You can talk to me, Don, if you’d li-“

“I said I’m fucking fine.”

That makes you stop in your tracks. Malarkey has never been harsh to you and even though it might be just fatigue and stress talking, his words hurt you. You reckon he wants to be left alone, to deal with whatever’s coming at him on his own, so with a heavy heart you turn your back to him.

But then he speaks again, this time his voice is soft and gentle. “Wait.”

You let out a sigh, knowing you would do anything he asks you to. So you turn to face him and the sight breaks your heart. He looks more exhausted than ever, the war aging him, making him look a lot older than he actually is.

“I’m sorry,” he whispers and without any warning, Malarkey crosses the distance between you two and brings you in for a desperate hug. You’re taken aback, the sudden show of emotions isn’t something you’re quite used to with Malarkey, so it takes you a few moments to truly comprehend the situation and wrap your arms around his torso.

“I’m sorry,” he whispers again, his voice so quiet you can barely hear the words. He’s clinging onto you like the drowning to a life vest, like his life depends on it and he’d break if he let you go.

You know he’s been hurting but it isn’t until now that you can physically feel his pain through his touch. Your eyes water but you forbid yourself to cry, focusing on Donald’s heartbeat to help you to remain calm.

“You don’t have to apologize,” you finally answer.

“Yes, yes, I do,” he’s quick to retort, his grip on you only tightens and it is slightly harder for you to breath now, but you don’t complain, how could you, when his touch is also the solution to all your problems.

“I finally realized something I should have realized long ago,” Malarkey continues but pauses right after. Then he’s suddenly pushing you away, gently, with the words: “I need to look at you when I say this.”

Your heart is in your throat by now. You try to calm yourself down but Malarkey grabs your hands and you’re dizzy again, but the good kind, the kind that makes you feel like you can do anything you want.

“I realized that if it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t have made it through this war. You’ve always been by my side, through Currahee, through the jump, through Bastogne and I know I haven’t appreciated you enough for it and for that I am truly sorry.”

His voice is stronger now as he gains more confidence in his words. Your cheeks are red as tomatoes, and you can feel yourself smiling like a little child.

“And if your feelings haven’t changed, I’d like to spend all the moments I have left proving to you, that you, Y/N, are the best thing that’s ever happened to me.”

Malarkey pauses for a second, his eyes fixated on you, a soft smile lightening up his face. “The truth is, my Y/N, I lov-“

“Don’t say it!” you interrupt him, surprising him and yourself. He looks at you confused and hurt that it almost breaks your heart again, but you know you have to say this.

“You can’t confess that to me, not yet, not before the patrol. I wouldn’t be able to let you go.”

His shoulders visibly relax a bit and the wrinkles leave his face.

“Come back to me,” you smile at him, “come back to me and then you can have all my moments, all of them will belong to you, they always have.”

And then, after such long years, Malarkey is finally smiling, no, grinning happily, and you see the three years younger man in him, just like when you met him in Toccoa, Georgia. His face lightens up and he’s hugging you again, saying, “Then I shall come back. I’ll come back.”

You’re laughing as he spins you around in his arms and suddenly it is very hard to contain all the joy, luck and love in your heart.

“I’ll always come back to you.”

[football-and-fanfics]

Fireworks - Mason Mount

Who: Mason Mount Prompt: Getting items thrown at them from the crowd. Notes with request: during an England game maybe :) Requested by: anonymous Warnings: implications of injury

When England played Germany, tensions were always running high. Not only on the pitch, but also in the stadium.

Today's match was no exception to that, and there was a lot of unrest in the stadium among the spectators. The stewards already had to remove several people from the stands who had gotten into a fight, and a few pieces of fireworks had gone off with thunderous bangs. The referee even had to temporarily halt the match when a smoke bomb was thrown onto the pitch, limiting the visibility.

"What a mess, huh?" Ben called over to Mason. Once again play was halted when another smoke bomb landed on Jordan's goal-line, enveloping their goalkeeper in smoke.

But before Mason could respond, he was hit by something bouncing off him, followed by an loud bang just centimeters next to him. Mason fled a few meters away, before dropping himself to the ground. He lay on his back, with his ears were ringing painfully, as he needed a moment to recover from the scare.

"Are you alright, mate?" Ben hurried over to Mason's side. Mason nodded wordlessly, but it didn't quite convince Ben. "Really?" He pressed on. "Don’t know about my ears, but otherwise I'm alright.” Mason winced, rubbing his ears. His heart nearly beat out of his chest with the sudden rush of adrenaline the scare had caused. He did his best to calm it down again and steady his breathing.

"What the hell was that?" Mason finally asked, slowly sitting up again. "Looks like somebody threw fireworks at you." Ben let his gaze glide all over Mason. "I don't see any physical injuries on you, luckily." "It bounced off of me before exploding," Mason nodded slowly, "I guess that was my luck." "Indeed," Ben agreed, "this could've been a lot worse."

Mason still massaged his ears. The ringing was slowly getting less, as was the adrenaline of the scare. England's medical team had come over by now and was checking him over, but he already knew there was nothing seriously wrong with him.

The medical team quickly reached the same conclusion, and Ben was allowed to pull Mason to his feet. "Bloody idiots," Ben grumbled in the direction of the stands where the fireworks had come from. "Absolutely," Mason grinned, already having that mischievous twinkle back in his eyes. "Because they should know it takes a lot more to take me out of a match."

Tags: @evie-pr, @auawdo, @meteora-fc, @stonesyyyy, @drizzyreese, @hbstre, @liverpoolfanfiction, @sternennebel2001, @mrswinksy, @themoon-shines Mason / Chelsea tags: @juliabrghs, @youkantebeserious, @laurasstufff1, @mmountswb, @n0n-sense PL tags: @ella33

Request an imagine | Add me to the tags list General masterlist | Mason Mount masterlist

[gabekidd]

Hit Me Like Bang (and Now I'm Never Looking Back), Part 2

A "Take My Hands, Wreck My Plans" fic

Pairings: David Finlay x OFC / past!Jay White x OFC Word Count: 11k Warnings: Language; alcohol use; radioactive levels of angst but also fluff; and a little smidge of smut so 18+

On the road to Dominion, Nellie's past and present converge to solidify the truth of what's been in front of her all along.

TMHWMP Timeline | Masterlist

Read it on AO3

A/N: Herein is the end of Nellie's story, and I am emotional :') Don't worry―there are more prequels forthcoming that will go more into her previous relationships and how she got here, but this is her happy ending.

One small note: there's quite a bit of flashback scenes in this chapter, and they're not in chronological order to each other, so pay attention to the dates. That said, this fic and Nellie truly are my baby, and thank you for coming on this two-plus-year journey with me. I hope you enjoy reading her story just as much as I've enjoyed creating it for you <3

tags: @aussiearrow @cowboyslariat @knifepervert @sldghmmr @cardblade @missbrownstone @meteora-fc @bec0m @thatgirlforever5 @rocca09 @aussiespam

Friday, April 14, 2023 Tokyo, Japan

It took about seven minutes bell-to-bell for Nellie to dispose of Mariah May in their title match at Korakuen Hall. She hadn’t even broken a sweat. But she’d anticipated short work. She’d already planned to make up for it in her backstage comments.

“Alright, I’ll make sure this is short and sweet just like that match,” she started as she stepped in front of the camera. “Do you see this title?” She held up the championship in her hand. “I have been the SWA World Champion since May fifth of last year. Twenty-twenty-two. That is three hundred and forty-five days, just twenty days short of an entire year. And no one here at World Wonder Ring Stardom seems to give a shit about it, or the verifiable fact that I am the only person in history to hold this title more than once!

“But here’s the thing: I know exactly why they don’t care. Because I’m a gaijin. Never mind that I’ve been dedicated to this company since twenty-eighteen; that I’ve lived in Japan for over three years, through a fucking pandemic; that I’ve learned the language. Apparently, none of that matters, because I’m still not from here. I’m still an outsider. And God forbid a gaijin become the face of Stardom, so what do they do? They hold me in place with this title that they clearly don’t give a shit about and allow me to defend it once a quarter. And Mariah May?” She scoffed. “Do you know how many times I’ve already beaten Mariah in title matches? Tonight makes three, and the other two were in her home country for the RevPro Undisputed British Women’s Championship. So please, someone enlighten me: if Mariah May couldn’t get it done against me in her home country, why the fuck did anyone think she stood a chance against me here, in Korakuen of all places? I might be from Philly, but Tokyo is my home. Stardom is my home. The Stardom dojo beat me down, built me back up, and turned me into the joshi I am today, and in return I made history. And I refuse to be held in place any longer.

“Saya Kamitani. You’ve made history, too. We have history. Because see, everyone associates you with Hayashishita-san and me with Torrance—but you and I were partners first. We were Goddess of Stardom champions together. We’re both champions now. And at All Star Grand Queendom, I want you in a winner takes all match for my SWA World Championship, and your Wonder of Stardom Championship. And it’ll be a gaijin from Philadelphia who puts an end to your history-making reign.”

And with that she walked off camera, the gauntlet thrown.

* * * *

Sunday, October 30, 2022 Tokyo, Japan

Nellie was in good spirits. She was fresh off defending her SWA World Championship against Mayu Iwatani in New York City. Halloween was tomorrow, and David had come over for a horror movie marathon. He’d brought takeout from her favorite sushi place and a six-pack of Sapporo. She intended to tell him how she felt. And she couldn’t have been more nervous.

“Is everything alright?” he casually asked. “It seems like something’s on your mind.”

She brought her feet up to sit cross-legged on the couch and pulled her soft checkered fleece blanket over her lap. Of course he could tell something was on her mind—it was David. He paid attention. He was perceptive; emotionally mature. It was one of the many, many things that drew her to him, something that set him apart from most guys she’d been involved with in the past. And now, after her few days away, she knew for certain.

“Yeah… I, um,” she started. “I just guess I realized something when I was in New York.”

“Yeah? What’s that?”

“Well,” she stalled, nervous. But there was no turning back now—and she didn’t want to. “I went out with a few people after the show, and… Kyle Fletcher kissed me. But all it did was make me realize that I have feelings for someone else.”

David wasn’t looking at her as she said it, queuing up the first movie on her TV. And Nellie quickly started to overthink, worried that maybe he’d focus on the fact that Kyle had kissed her and not what she was trying to tell him—

 But then the corner of his mouth quirked up. “Oh, yeah? Who’s the lucky guy?”

He glanced at her as he set down the remote. She pursed her lips at him. “Are you seriously gonna make me say it?”

“I kind of want you to, yeah.”

She bit back a grin. Her heart was pounding so hard in her chest that she worried he could hear it. “Well… I don’t know how he feels, so I’m kind of nervous to.”

“Well, let me clear things up for you, then…” David said, and he pulled her in and kissed her. Nellie melted into him. His lips were soft, his kiss slow and sweet, and the way he cradled her head in his hands felt natural, as if they’d done this a thousand times before. And she already knew she wanted to do it a thousand times more.

He pulled back from her lips but still held her close. “I’ve been wanting to do that for the last three months,” he said.

 She grinned. “You have?”

“Yeah. And since we’re talking about it… I wasn’t sure how you felt. Sometimes it seemed like you were still hung up on Jay.”

Nellie sighed and leaned back into the couch. Admittedly, he wasn’t entirely wrong.

“Honestly, at the start of the summer, I was still hung up on him. And I think it was because I never got any definite closure when we broke up, and so when he showed up out of nowhere at Dontaku it did feel like there was still something there between us. And he made it seem like there was, too, which didn’t help at all. But then you came back for the G1, and we reconnected, and genuinely—you’ve put in more effort over the last three months than Jay ever put into our entire relationship. And that really put things into perspective for me. But then it was complicated, too, because I know how close you and Jay used to be, and sometimes I worried that getting involved with you after him would look… I don’t know… messy? As stupid as that sounds.”

“No, I get it,” David nodded. “No matter how you and Jay left things, there was a point in time when you cared about him, so of course you wouldn’t want to throw salt in a wound. I mean, there was a point in time when I cared about him, too; he was my best friend. But it’s not like you and Jay just broke up, and he and I aren’t as close as we used to be, either.” He reached up and pushed her hair behind her ear; Nellie’s skin tingled at his touch. “Besides… technically I went out with you first, anyway.”

She mirrored his grin. He wasn’t wrong about that, either. David had gone out with her first, on an awkward date back in 2017, the first time Nellie had ever set foot in Japan. Back before she’d met Zack, or Riley, or Kyle, or ever gotten involved with Jay—David had been first. But she hadn’t seen it then.

“Not technically—you did,” she confirmed. “And lately I’ve wondered how different things would be if I’d given you a chance back then.”

“Nah,” he returned with a shake of his head. “I was a clown back then; I don’t blame you for not giving me a chance. Plus, I’ve come to believe that everything meaningful happens when it’s supposed to.” He smiled to himself. “I was actually planning on telling you how I felt tonight. But you beat me to it.”

Nellie’s smile widened. “Oh yeah?”

He nodded. “Yeah. So, I guess I owe Kyle Fletcher a beer for kissing you and helping you figure shit out.”

“Ha!” she laughed, and he wrapped his arm around her and pulled her close, and she snuggled into him, moving the blanket so that he was underneath it, too. It felt right—a perfect fit. And as David pressed play on the first movie, Nellie knew in her heart that this was when it was all supposed to fall into place, and not a moment sooner.

* * * *

“God, you are a sight for sore eyes.”

Nellie smiled at David through her phone screen. It was only a few days ago that he’d left, and he’d only be gone a few days more, working Capital Collision in Washington, D.C., and then Collision in Philadelphia before flying right back to Tokyo—to her. But Nellie already felt the ache of his absence.

“You have no idea how bad I wish you were here right now.” She settled back into her bed pillows, getting comfortable. “I have some pent-up energy that could really use working out.”

David grinned, crooked and handsome. It didn’t help her situation. “I know you do. I just watched your backstage comments.”

She waited, expecting him to say something more, wanting him to. After all, his opinion was the one that mattered most to her. “And?” she impatiently pressed.

“And it took everything in me not to share the video wherever I could,” he said. “I’m proud of you, babe. You already deserved that match; I don’t see how they can’t give it to you now.”

The ache in Nellie’s core deepened. But so did the warmth in her heart. “Thanks, babe. I’m hoping it’ll be official by tomorrow, but… we’ll see.”

“Do you have a match tomorrow?”

She laughed shortly to herself; the expression on her face said it all. “Yeah… a best two out of three falls eight-woman tag match. Me, Tam, Poi, and Mina against Donna del Mondo. It’s the main event.”

“Shit,” David commented before she’d even finished. “That’s gonna be charged.”

“Tell me about it,” she lowly returned. And then, “Thekla thinks I should take the opportunity to leave Cosmic Angels.”

“I was just about to say. It’s the perfect opportunity, isn’t it?”

She drew in a hesitant breath. “Potentially? Actually, if the Cosmic Angels-Club Venus shit finally hits the fan like I expect it to, it probably will be the perfect opportunity. I could just say they’re too dysfunctional and walk out. That’s exactly how I left Queen’s Quest.”

“Then I say do it,” David returned. “You’d be better served somewhere other than Cosmic Angels, I know you would. You know you would.”

“I do know I would,” she agreed. “I’m just… I don’t know. Worried about hurting people’s feelings even though I know I shouldn’t be.”

“Torrance will be fine,” David dismissed; it went without saying that she meant her. “She has Mariah and Mina.”

“No shit,” Nellie breathed. “They’re three peas in a pod these days. Which doesn’t really surprise me… Torr and Mariah are basically the same person in slightly different fonts.” David laughed at that. “Well, it’s true!” she doubled down.

“No, it is,” he nodded. “But I could always just say you’re Bullet Club, too. I’m sure that would get the point across to Tam.”

A grin spread over Nellie’s face. It felt inevitable that she would be Bullet Club, and sooner rather than later. But he’d reminded her. “Speaking of Bullet Club, are you gonna tell me who Riley’s replacement is yet?”

He smirked and shook his head. “No. That’s privileged information.”

Her eyebrows arched. “And I’m not privileged to it? I’m your girlfriend!”

“You’ll find out tomorrow,” he assured her. “Don’t worry—it’s someone you like. I can’t have anyone in Bullet Club who doesn’t get along with my girl.”

“Well, there’s some people you need to kick out, then,” she returned—just as she heard a knock-knock-knock on the front door of her apartment. She glanced toward the sound in confusion. David noticed.

“What?”

“Someone just knocked on my door.”

He looked confused then. “Isn’t it almost 10 p.m. there?” he asked. But Nellie was already pulling up the live feed from her video doorbell—and she saw a familiar figure.

“It’s Torr.” She sighed. Something told her she wasn’t just dropping by.

“I guess you should go, then,” David figured. Nellie’s brow furrowed.

“Probably. I’m sorry.”

“No, don’t apologize,” he gently said. “I should probably get going myself, and you two are overdue for a talk.”

“Yeah… because I don’t want to have it,” she muttered.

David smirked. “Go, babe. I’ll talk to you later.”

She pouted. “Okay. See you soon,” she returned—and before they disconnected, she almost said it. I love you. She knew she did. But she wanted the first time she told him to be in person.

She left her phone in her bedroom and padded down the hall to the front door. She unlocked and opened it just as Torrance was getting ready to knock again. She quickly put her hand down, almost as if she was surprised Nellie had answered.

“Hey.” Torrance took in her appearance—pajamas on, makeup off. Her brow furrowed. “You weren’t in bed, were you?”

“Well, technically,” Nellie returned. “But I was talking with David.”

Torrance’s frown deepened. “Oh. I’m sorry, I should have texted—”

“No, it’s fine,” Nellie dismissed, and she opened the door wider so she could come inside. Torrance hesitated for a beat before she crossed the threshold. It was odd. They both had keys to each other’s apartments; it used to be that Torrance would just let herself in without so much as a knock. But a lot had changed over the last three months.

“What’s up?” Nellie asked as she shut the door. She noticed that Torrance was dressed for a night out in a shiny pink miniskirt and white bustier tank top, her hair and makeup done to perfection. And again, Torrance hesitated.

“Um, well,” she started with a bit of a nervous laugh. “I actually came over here to ask if you wanted to come out with us, but—”

“Who’s ‘us’?”

Torrance bit her lip. “Me, Mariah, and Mina.”

Nellie couldn’t help her laugh. “You’re joking, right?”

Torrance’s expression turned stony. “No, actually, I’m not.”

“Torr,” Nellie breathed out. “Come on. I literally just beat Mariah in a title match and then talked shit about her, you really think either of us want to hang out with each other?”

“Well, Mariah’s willing to put that aside because she knows you’re my best friend,” Torrance returned. She looked down at her hands. “And I feel like we’ve barely seen each other since… well, since the Triangle Derby started.”

So, since Club Venus became a thing, Nellie wanted to say. But she figured it wouldn’t help. “Because we haven’t,” she regretfully returned. “But it’s not intentional. You’ve just been doing your thing with Mariah and Mina, and I’ve been doing mine with Tam and Poi. Or I was. And I know I sort of went off into my own little world when David came back, so…”

Torrance looked back up at her. “Yeah, so are you and him…?”

“Together? Officially?” Nellie finished. “Yeah, we are,” she confirmed, and the mood lightened a bit. Torrance smiled.

“Took long enough.”

Nellie breathed a laugh. “I know. But I think it happened right when it was supposed to.”

“No, I think so, too,” Torrance agreed. “He’s good for you, I can tell. You’ve carried yourself differently ever since he came back; more confident.”

“Thanks,” Nellie genuinely returned. She’d noticed that change in herself, too. David was good for her. He was good to her. And she wasn’t the only one who’d changed. “You’ve been more confident with Club Venus, too.”

Torrance looked down again, the corners of her mouth turned up, almost as if she was bashful to hear that Nellie had noticed. “Yeah, they’ve really helped me come into my own. Mina really pushes me. And I don’t know… it just feels like we’re all on equal footing.”

Nellie nodded in understanding. “Unlike when we were a tag team?”

Torrance frowned again. “I wasn’t trying to imply—”

“No, I get it,” Nellie assured her. And she did get it. After she and Torrance had won the 2021 Goddesses of Stardom Tag League, throughout their entire reign as Goddess of Stardom Champions, people had said that Nellie carried Torrance. That Nellie was the better wrestler, that Torrance would never be champion without her. So, it was no wonder Torrance felt more confident with Mariah and Mina. People weren’t comparing her to them; instead, they were acknowledging how much she’d improved. And as much as Nellie didn’t care for Club Venus, she still wanted the best for Torrance.

“And for what it’s worth, I never felt like I was carrying our team,” she told her. “I should have told you that back then. I’m sorry I didn’t.”

“No, I know you never felt that way,” Torrance returned, and nothing else needed to be said. She and Nellie understood each other. They always had.

“But… I guess I can’t persuade you to get dressed and come out with us?” she added.

Nellie shook her head. “Not a chance.”

Torrance nodded. “It was worth a shot.” She started for the door. “Well, sorry for interrupting your call with your man.” She stopped. “I didn’t interrupt… something, did I?”

Nellie let out a laugh. “No, it wasn’t one of those calls. He’ll be back Tuesday; I think I can manage ‘til then.”

“Tuesday?” Torrance noted. “Okay, I’ll be sure to steer clear of here that whole day.”

She let herself out, and Nellie told her to have a glass of water for every drink—she had to work tomorrow. And as Torrance waved goodbye and Nellie shut the door, she knew that neither of them were the same people anymore. They’d grown. Professionally, apart. But not in their hearts.

* * * *

Sunday, November 20, 2022 NJPW/Stardom Historic X-Over – Tokyo, Japan

If anyone was surprised at how well Cosmic Queendom and Aussie Open worked together in the ring, it wasn’t Nellie, Torrance, Kyle, or Mark. It felt like they’d been teaming together for years, and the deeper they got into the match against Los Ingobernables de Japon and Fukuoka Double Crazy, the more Nellie knew they were creating something special for fans of NJPW and Stardom alike. But it wasn’t all serious. Nellie couldn’t help but mess with Sanada and Naito a bit—a callback to her days in Suzuki-gun with Zack. In the end, it was Torrance who got the pin over Koguma after she and Nellie surprised Mark and Kyle by doing Coriolis. And when their arms were raised in victory, Nellie almost wished that she and Torrance had joined United Empire like they’d half-joked about a year ago.

Almost.

More members of United Empire greeted them as they returned backstage; Jeff Cobb, Great O-Khan, and Aaron Henare’s match against Kazuchika Okada, Toru Yano, and Great Muta was next. Mark and Kyle exchanged “Crowns Up” with all their teammates—and then Jeff looked expectantly at Nellie.

“Come on, you know you want to,” he tempted, wiggling his hands at her.

“Fine; but only for you,” she reluctantly gave in, and she made a crown with her hands and touched her fingers to his.

“I don’t know,” Jeff teased, his voice raising leadingly. “After seeing that Coriolis, I think there’s definitely a spot for Cosmic Queendom in the Empire.”

“Ha!” Torrance bluntly dismissed. Jeff pressed his mouth into a line.

“Okay, maybe just a spot for Nellie, then.”

“Yeah, how long have you two been planning that?” Mark asked, tactfully shifting the focus away from the ghost of Torrance and Will’s relationship. Thank God Will was elsewhere.

“Not long; we only just thought of trying it a few days ago,” Nellie said. “You’re not upset we did it?”

She looked hesitantly between Mark and Kyle, but they both quickly shook their heads. “Hell no, it was perfect,” Kyle assured, and Nellie smiled. They’d talked everything out that night he’d kissed her three weeks ago in New York City, and there wasn’t any awkwardness at all between them. They’d had a fling a year ago that just hadn’t panned out, and that was that. They were just friends. Easy.

“Well, thanks,” she said. “But Torr and I are kind of a package deal, so if she’s not in, I’m not, either. Sorry, Jeff.”

“A package deal?” O-Khan slyly asked. Torrance’s eyes widened.

“Not that kind of package deal!” she proclaimed. And then, more under her breath, “Not that anyone hasn’t asked me that before, but.”

Nellie whipped her head around at her. “Wait, what?”

“Yes, please share with the class,” Jeff eagerly added, propping his chin on his fist. But O-Khan’s entrance music started to play and inadvertently gave Torrance the perfect out from answering.

“Good luck!” she said, and the guys all groaned and booed after them as she and Nellie left. Nellie could tell by Torrance’s clipping pace that she was keyed up.

“You alright?”

“I need to get out of here and get a drink,” she returned. “How many more matches are there?”

“Um,” Nellie thought about it for a second. “Three, I think? But that reminds me—Gabe invited us out with the LA Dojo guys. I told him I wasn’t sure if you had anything in mind already and would let him know.” She shrugged. “I don’t know, it could be fun. Although that Clark guy seems like he might be trouble.”

“I don’t have anything in mind,” Torrance returned. “And honestly, I’m up for a bit of trouble.”

And that was how, later that night, they found themselves at a dive bar in Roppongi with Gabriel Kidd, Clark Connors, and Alex Coughlin. There had been more people with them at the outset, but one by one they’d dropped off bar after bar and called it a night. But not Nellie and Torrance. They were both familiar with Gabe from his time as a Young Lion, although they hadn’t seen him in a year-and-a-half. As for Clark and Alex, the girls barely knew either of them—but the guys seemed very keen on changing that.

“How the hell is it we haven’t hung out before tonight?” Clark asked Nellie, turning toward her as they sat together at the bar. “I know you were around when I was here in twenty-nineteen.”

“Probably because I was around, but I wasn’t living here yet,” she explained. “I moved here in twenty-twenty, right before everything shut down.”

“Yeah, Nell and I were in that same shitty boat,” Gabe said. “At least you weren’t stuck quarantined in fucking dojo housing.”

She snorted through her nose. “No, I was just stuck quarantined with my ex.”

“No shit!” Clark exclaimed. “Who’s that?”

“Jesus, Clark, mind your business!” Alex shot, his New York accent becoming even more pronounced. Torrance chuckled beside him.

“It’s fine,” Nellie dismissed with a wave of her hand. “It was Zack. Sabre Jr.,” she added, as if there was another pro wrestler named Zack living in Japan.

“Oh shit, you were with ZSJ, weren’t you?” Clark realized. “Actually, now that you mention it, I remember working a RevPro show with you, him, and Suzuki a few years back. Both of y’all were there too,” he said to Alex and Gabe.

They both nodded. “Yeah, bruv, I know exactly what show you’re talking about,” Gabe confirmed. “And clearly Nellie has a thing for Brits, so we should switch spots.”

Clark flipped him off. “You want another drink?” he asked Nellie.

“Nah, I’ll get it,” Gabe said, already flagging down the bartender.

“How about I get us all the next round?” Alex interjected. “You two are embarrassing yourselves.”

Clark and Gabe both let Alex know exactly what they thought of that, and Nellie took the opportunity to slide off her barstool. “Well, while you guys figure it out, I’m gonna run to the bathroom.”

“I’ll go with you,” Torrance said.

“It’s a one-stall bathroom,” Clark pointed out.

“Well, good thing I’m going just so we can talk about the three of you, then,” she sweetly returned, and Nellie laughed at the look on Clark’s face as they both walked away.

“Looks like you have your pick of Clark and Gabe tonight,” Torrance smirked once they were out of earshot. Nellie genially rolled her eyes.

“Come on… you know I’m not available.”

“Yeah, I know,” Torrance started—and Nellie could sense it coming.

“But?”

“But,” she went on. “As much as I want things to work out with you and David, you’ve already spent enough time waiting on guys, Nell. More than enough, more than you ever should have. I mean, speaking of Zack—he’s literally the only guy since I’ve known you who didn’t leave you in some sort of limbo.”

Nellie’s eyebrows arched. “Jesus, when you put it like that.” She tried the restroom door handle as they arrived, but it was occupied, and so they both leaned back against the wall on either side of the hall to wait.

“I’m just being honest,” Torrance returned.

“No, I know,” Nellie breathed; and, admittedly, Torrance did have a point.

David had left Japan less than a week after he and Nellie had finally told each other how they felt; and with no timetable for when he’d be back, they’d made the mutual decision not to put a label on anything. “That would make me no better than Jay, and I refuse to do that to you,” David had said. But it didn’t dishearten Nellie. Instead, it emboldened her. Because, to her, it confirmed that what she and David had wasn’t conditional. It was real.

“And I get what you’re saying, I do,” she told Torrance. “But it doesn’t feel like I’m in a limbo this time, Torr, and I can’t explain it other than to say I just have this deep-seated feeling in my soul that David and I have something real that’s worth waiting for. I mean, we’ve talked every single day since he left, and I sure as shit couldn’t say that about Jay when he was stuck in the States, and we were actually in a relationship.”

“I know,” Torrance nodded. “David’s a good guy, and I have a lot more faith in him than most, I do. But I’m just saying… I’ll still kick his ass if I have to.”

Nellie grinned. “I know you will. But I’m telling you you won’t.” The restroom door opened, and a woman smiled and bowed her head at them as she exited. “You go ahead,” Nellie offered Torrance.

“Okay, cool; turns out I do have to go,” she said, and she ducked inside and locked the door behind her as Nellie fished her phone out of her small crossbody bag. The clock widget on her home screen informed her it was after 10 a.m. on the East Coast of the U.S., but David was in Los Angeles filming an episode of NJPW Strong; ironically, he had an eight-man tag match against a team that included Jay and Riley. But she decided to text him, anyway. Even if he wasn’t up, he’d get back to her when he was.

She pulled up their text chain and smiled seeing their messages from just a few hours ago; he’d gotten up in the middle of the night to watch her and Torrance’s Historic X-Over match live. Torr and I are out with the LA Dojo guys, she wrote. I’m having fun, but it’s also just making me miss you.

She sent it off and switched over to Instagram, not expecting a reply. But then David’s name popped up on her screen.

Are you? They’re good guys, don’t let their antics fool you. And I miss you too, every day.

Butterflies. Meaningful ones.

They exchanged a few more texts before Torrance emerged from the bathroom, and Nellie told him she’d let him go to start his day. Okay, let me know when you make it back home, he wrote back. You know I’ll start to worry if I don’t hear from you.

I know, she returned, and she sent it off with a kissy face emoji. Because even though there wasn’t a label on her and David’s relationship, in every other way, every way that mattered, they were together.

* * * *

Sunday, April 23, 2023 Stardom All Star Grand Queendom – Yokohama, Japan

Doggedness and determination. That’s what Nellie was running on by the end of the winner takes all match against Saya Kamitani.

She’d been prepared, thoroughly. But as well as Nellie knew Saya, she wasn’t used to being opposite her, at least not one-on-one, and she realized early on that she couldn’t afford a single misstep. But the reverse was also true—and unlike Nellie, Saya had nothing to gain or prove. She’d surpassed the record set by Momo Watanabe for defenses of the Wonder of Stardom Championship, eclipsed Kairi by more than one hundred days to become the white belt’s second-longest reigning champion, her position as one of Stardom’s best and brightest secure. She had nothing to fight for outside maintaining the status quo.

But Nellie had everything to gain, everything to prove, everything to fight for. Despite being a long-tenured champion herself, despite being the older and more experienced wrestler of the two, she was decidedly the underdog. That was her motivation, her drive, her fire. And by the halfway point, there were more people cheering for Nellie in Saya’s hometown crowd than there had been at the opening bell. If she lost, at least she would have that.

But she won.

She knew she’d done it as soon as she hit her new finisher, a variation on a lifting reverse STO that she’d worked out with David and dubbed the Wit Hit. (“As in a cheesesteak wit onion, not as in like, a quick wit,” she’d explained. “Honestly, it works either way,” he’d smirked.) And when she hooked Saya’s leg and felt the referee count one, two, three, she knew she’d earned the crowd’s respect.

And she had Saya’s, too. All along.

As Nellie stood with tears in her eyes and the winner’s trophy in her hands, Saya fastened the Wonder of Stardom Championship around her waist. And after she raised her arm in victory, she pulled her into a hug and told her in Japanese, “You are always welcome in Queen’s Quest, Nellie-san.”

Nellie hadn’t expected it. It gave her even more to think about.

But she’d worry about that later. Right now, her priority was setting her intention as the new Wonder of Stardom Champion.

“What did I say?” she started as she stepped in front of the backstage camera; sweaty and worn, laden with gold. “I said I would end Saya Kamitani’s history-making reign, and that’s exactly what I did. And now a gaijin from Philadelphia is the 9th SWA World Champion and the 17th Wonder of Stardom Champion—and I intend to be a fighting champion.” She shook her head. “No more going five months without a defense. No more being placated and overlooked. Whoever wants a shot at either of my titles, just say the word. Kamitani-san had fifteen defenses of this championship? I want sixteen. Seventeen, eighteen, more. So whoever wants to try to take it from me, let Rossy know. He can’t ignore me now.”

She stopped to draw in a breath, collecting herself before she went on. “And now that I have proven just how un-ignorable I am, how much of an asset I am to this company, there’s another piece of business I need to address. For an entire week now people have been asking me nonstop backstage, online, stopping me out in the street—Who are you with, Nellie? Are you with Cosmic Angels or Club Venus? And frankly? The answer is neither.

“Tam and Poi, you welcomed me into Cosmic Angels without question. You gave me a place when I was suddenly without one, and I’ll never take that for granted. Torr and I won the Goddess titles with your backing, I won this SWA title for a history-making second time with your backing, the three of us nearly went the distance in the Triangle Derby. But despite all that success, we all knew I was something of a black sheep in your colorful, kawaii flock. It was like trying to fit a square peg in a round hole, and what happened? I wore myself down to try to fit.” She shook her head again. “Not anymore. My edge is back—and with all due respect, I’ve outgrown Cosmic Angels. And with no due respect, I’m sure as shit not joining Club Venus.”

She adjusted the SWA title on her shoulder. She was exhausted, and it was getting heavier by the minute. “But even though I know at the end of the day I can only really rely on me, myself, and I, I’m not really into the whole lone wolf thing, either. I recognize that there’s strength in numbers, and I’ll be taking my time to consider my next move. But for now, I’m gonna go put all this down because it’s fucking heavy, and then I’m gonna crack open a Sapporo and celebrate the sweet, sweet return of Two-Belt Nell.”

* * * *

Wednesday, May 3, 2023 Wrestling Dontaku – Fukuoka, Japan

The Stardom bus arrived at the Fukuoka International Center fifteen minutes before bell time. They’d had a show earlier that afternoon in Shimonoseki, and with Stardom running a pay-per-view in Fukuoka tomorrow, they’d loaded up and made the hour-and-a-half trip down for the NJPW show there that evening. And as soon as she could, Nellie shot off the bus like a bullet.

David had been back in Japan for two weeks, but Nellie had only gotten to spend a handful of hours with him. He’d arrived in Tokyo only to turn around and leave for the Road to Dontaku tour, and their schedules had kept them apart in separate corners of the country. And because of that, Nellie still hadn’t said those three little-big words.

They’d been on the tip of her tongue the day he’d come back. She’d felt them in the way he’d touched her, looked at her, in every breath during that abbreviated time they’d spent together before he had to leave to get on the bus. But she hadn’t wanted to say it only for him to be physically absent again. If she was going to tell him she loved him, she needed to feel it, live in it for longer than just a few hours.

And tonight, the timing was finally right.

She made a beeline for his dressing room, pausing impatiently when she ran into Aussie Open, and they both hugged her and congratulated her on winning the Wonder of Stardom Championship before she took off again. She knocked on the door when she arrived, and David called for her to come in. Her heart melted at the sight of his smile.

“Finally,” he breathed, and then his lips were on hers. Hungry, eager, heated, as if it had been two months instead of just two weeks.

But then Nellie had a thought. “Are you sharing this room with Kenta?” she quickly asked. She hadn’t noticed any other luggage around, but she hadn’t really looked, either.

David shook his head, a smirk on his lips. “Not tonight. We have this all to ourselves.”

That was all the information she needed. She pushed him down onto a seat and straddled his lap, and then they were the only two people in the entire arena again. David ignited her entire being in a way that no one ever had, mind, body, soul—heart. And before they lost themselves in each other, she needed to tell him.

She pulled back and looked down at him. His eyes were dark and hooded, full of desire. “What?” he softly asked.

“I love you.”

Nellie knew he felt the same, she knew he did—but there was still that anxious knot in her gut. Until a smile spread over David’s face.

“I was wondering when you’d finally say it.”

She let go of the breath she’d been holding. “Are you serious right—”

He silenced her with a kiss, and she melted into him like she always did. She loved him; he loved her. It was undeniable.

He pulled back, their lips still close, noses brushing. “I love you, too. I have since the fall.”

Butterflies exploded in Nellie’s stomach. “You have?”

“Mhm,” he nodded. “I spent that entire tour last year falling in love with you, and when I left Japan, it felt like I’d left part of myself behind. And then the night of Historic X-Over, when you called me after you got home from being out with the LA Dojo guys… I knew.”

Nellie’s smile lit up her entire face, her entire being. “I was drunk when I called you that night,” she remembered.

“Yeah, I know you were,” David grinned. “Which reminds me, I have to tell Clark he can’t take my girlfriend out and ply her with alcohol anymore.”

She laughed. “But it would just be a little Bullet Club bonding,” she innocently returned. It made him arch a brow.

“You saying you’re Bullet Club? Is that what I’m hearing?”

She shrugged. “I don’t know… that’s kind of up to you.”

He drew her closer on his lap. “It would be nice to have you out there with me when I win the title tonight…”

He trailed off and kissed her neck. She bit back a grin. “I don’t want to stir the pot just yet. I just won the Wonder of Stardom title; it probably wouldn’t be the best idea to ruffle any company feathers.”

David hummed against her skin. “Mm… yeah, you’re not ready. That’s not something someone in Bullet Club would say.”

Nellie playfully rolled her eyes. But he pulled her mouth against his again, and they let their bodies finish the conversation.

* * * *

Sunday, June 12, 2022 Osaka, Japan

For the longest time, this was all Nellie had wanted. To feel Jay again. To feel wanted by him again. And now that she’d finally gotten it, all she felt was uncertainty. Still.

She lay next to him in his hotel room, facing the other way, listening to him breathe. In and out, steady. Last night had been an intoxicating blur of adrenaline and emotion. She blamed Osaka, the romance of a different setting, the context of why they were there. Stardom and NJPW both had shows in the city; Jay had a match against Okada for the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship at Dominion that night. And last night, Nellie had felt like her body was a prize for Jay just as much as that title. Something for him to win, to take. Part of her regretted letting him have it. But another part of her still yearned to belong to him.

She felt him stir beside her, and then he wrapped his arm around her and pulled her back against his chest. She closed her eyes and folded into him.

“Mm,” he hummed. “I missed this.”

He pressed his lips against her neck, and Nellie let him. But she couldn’t keep from asking.

“Did you?”

“Of course,” he easily returned. Almost as if he’d expected her to question him, as if he’d had the answer at the ready that he knew she wanted to hear. But then his mouth was working down her body, his lips leaving a trail of goosebumps over her skin, until his head was between her legs and his tongue inside her. And she gave into him, writhing and arching her back, curling her fingers in his hair until she came undone. And all the while, she didn’t stop questioning.

He kissed his way back up to her lips, his naked body hovering over her. His cock pressed hard against her inner thigh. She wanted it. She hated that she did. But she wanted him.

“Let’s get in the shower,” he breathed. And she let him pull her from the bed and lead her into the shower where he had her again, her back pressed up against the wet tile, legs wrapped tight around his waist as her nails left tiny moon-shaped marks on his shoulders. Because even though Nellie knew it wouldn’t last, that Jay would just be gone again come tomorrow, she wanted to pretend he was hers for just a little while longer.

* * * *

Saturday, May 27, 2023 Stardom Flashing Champions – Tokyo, Japan

Two defenses in just over a month. Nellie had said she’d wanted to be a fighting champion, and her challengers had quickly formed a line.

Natsupoi had been first, eager and determined. Nellie bested her in a main event twenty-minute battle in Fukuoka the night after David won the NEVER Openweight Championship. Tonight, it was Unagi Sayaka, defeated in just over fifteen minutes. Nellie wasn’t surprised that her former teammates had been the first to step up. They wanted to defend the honor of Cosmic Angels in the wake of her departure, even if there wasn’t any bad blood. But their efforts had fallen short—and Nellie was still an island unto herself. She was biding her time, weighing her options between Donna del Mondo and Queen’s Quest. This time around, the ball was in her court; she wasn’t going to fumble it.

She returned to the locker room after making her backstage comments and automatically checked her phone. David was flying in tomorrow after being back in the States for the last three weeks and change, returning early to spend time with her before Dominion and the next Stardom tour. She smiled when she saw she had a text from him.

Two down, fourteen to go. Proud of you, babe. I can’t wait to see you tomorrow.

Tomorrow isn’t soon enough, she returned with a kissy face emoji.

But David wasn’t the only one who’d texted her. So had Clark.

Congrats, champ. We’re going out to celebrate, right?

Her brow furrowed. Who’s we? she sent back. She and Clark were friends, but he could get too friendly sometimes.

His response came quick. You, me, and your Stardom friends. The hot single ones.

She rolled her eyes, but her phone pinged again. He’d sent her the name of a bar in Roppongi; of course that was where he wanted to go. She pursed her lips as she wrote back.

My hot single friends might already have plans, she told him.

Alright but if Dave asks it was your idea for just the two of us to hang out, not mine, he returned.

Nellie breathed out. As irritated as she wanted to be, she had to give him that one. But she sent him an eye roll emoji and said, I’ll ask Torr and Thekla and let you know, and threw her phone in her bag to head to the shower.

* * * *

As it turned out, Nellie’s hot single friends did already have plans—to go to a different bar in Roppongi. But that worked just fine for Clark, and he told Nellie he’d meet them there. And honestly, she hoped he’d get there sooner rather than later, because the current company was a mixed bag, to say the least.

Thekla had come, along with Giulia and Mai Sakurai, the three of which were in a celebratory mood—they’d won the Artist of Stardom Championship from REStart that night. Torrance had also come; it was the first time she and Nellie had gone out together in months.

But she’d brought Club Venus with her.

“They’re really not that bad if you get to know them,” Thekla told Nellie over the music as they sat together in the booth; all the others were off dancing or getting drinks. It earned her a skeptical stare. “I know, I know,” she returned. “You’re Team Tam even if you’re not in Cosmic Angels anymore. But Torrance is your best friend, and Mariah is practically her clone. Her much taller British clone, but still.”

Nellie laughed, remembering how she’d told David almost the exact same thing. But then Thekla changed the subject.

“And speaking of you not being in Cosmic Angels anymore… when’re you gonna bite the bullet and join DDM?”

Nellie breathed out. She’d expected this to come up.

“It’s been over a month, Nell.”

“I’m aware,” she replied. “But Giulia doesn’t seem nearly as eager to have me in DDM as Utami does to have me back in Queen’s Quest.”

She sent Thekla a pointed look over her drink. Thekla’s eyebrows arched in understanding.

“Giulia is hard to read, I’ll give you that,” she admitted. “And I’ll be honest with you—you’d have to earn her trust because of how close you are with Tam. Which I mean, can you blame her? Tam shaved her head.”

“Okay, but she rocked that look, though,” Nellie pointed out.

Thekla grinned. “She did, but still. The good news is you’re already halfway there.”

“Am I?” she curiously asked.

“Yeah. Because Giulia trusts me and my judgment—and I want you in DDM, dammit.”

Nellie grinned. “And I appreciate that. And as soon as I make my decision, I’ll let you know.”

“Look who we found at the bar.”

They both looked up. Giulia and Mai had returned, and they had Clark with them.

“I wouldn’t expect you to find him anywhere else,” Nellie quipped.

He set a shot glass in front of her and Thekla each. “Here, I bought us all a round,” he said, and then, in a higher-pitched voice, “‘Oh, thank you, Clark, you’re so sweet and thoughtful and also incredibly handsome.’”

Thekla snorted. Nellie's expression was deadpan. “I already regret telling you where to meet us.”

“Scoot over,” he said with a nudge of her shoulder, and she and Thekla made room so he could sit down while Giulia and Mai did the same on the other side of the booth.

“What is this?” Nellie asked as she picked up the shot.

“Tequila,” Clark said. “I remember what you like.”

She ignored the comment and brought the liquor to her lips.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa!” he quickly stopped her. “We gotta toast!” He raised his glass and looked expectantly around the table. The girls all obliged. “To the success of Donna del Mondo,” he started, “and the restoration of fucking Bullet Club.”

A smirk pulled at Nellie’s lips, and they all toasted and kicked back the tequila, some grimacing more than others as it went down. “Okay, that one was for you, but we're getting whiskey next round,” Clark winced.

“What, can’t handle it?” Nellie teased. “I remember Gabe shooting tequila just fine.”

“A-heh-heh-heh,” he screwed up his face and mock-laughed in return. “But speaking of Gabe—I heard you’re gonna be at Dominion?”

Her brow furrowed in confusion; that segue didn’t make any sense. What did Gabe have to do with Dominion?

But before she could ask, Thekla interjected, “Wait, what? Isn’t Dominion the same day as our Korakuen show?”

Nellie nodded. “It is. But I told Rossy I want to be in Osaka to support David at ringside and that if he really wants to elevate Stardom’s global profile, he needs to start putting me and my two titles on NJPW TV.”

Thekla’s eyebrows arched. “And he agreed to that?”

“Mhm,” Nellie proudly returned. “I think he admired my nerve.”

“Hell yeah,” Clark grinned. “I cannot wait to see the look on ELP’s face when you walk out there with us.”

She gave him another curious look. Us? As far as she knew, Clark wasn’t booked to be at Dominion. “Okay, is there something—”

“What the fuck is this twat doing here?”

Nellie whipped her head around. She saw Torrance first, her face flushed from dancing. And then she saw Dan Moloney.

“I know you’re not talking about me,” Clark returned.

“Well, I don’t see any other twats sat at this table.”

Nellie shot a tense look at Torrance, asking with her face what the hell Dan was doing there. He and Clark had just tried to murder each other in their Best of the Super Juniors tournament match three days ago; the last thing she wanted to do tonight was pull apart another United Empire-Bullet Club fight.

Clark stood from the booth, and Nellie almost grabbed the back of his shirt—but then he greeted Dan like they were best mates.

“I didn’t know you’d be here tonight, man. You should’ve said something.”

“Yeah, well, kind of a last-minute thing. This one invited me,” Dan said with a thumb at Torrance.

Nellie, meanwhile, was at a complete loss. “I’m sorry—what?”

“I don’t know—men,” Thekla shrugged. “They beat the shit out of each other once and suddenly they’re best friends.”

Clark sat back down next to Nellie while Mai made room for Torrance and Dan on the other side of the booth, and Torrance and Nellie’s gaze connected again. Torrance tapped her phone; and no sooner had she than Nellie felt hers vibrate in the back pocket of her jeans. She pulled it out and read the text.

We may have hooked up. Surprise?

Nellie widened her eyes at her friend. She just shrugged.

Surprised and not surprised, she wrote back. I guess bro code doesn’t count for shit in UE.

She waited for Torrance to see the response. Her phone lit up—and she scoffed before quickly typing back.

Whatever, I don’t care. Will had already moved on to another warm body before my side of the bed was even cold.

Nellie read the text and gave her a look that said, “You’re not wrong,” before sending a written reply.

Maybe Dan isn’t even in UE anymore. Him and Clark acting all buddy-buddy right now is suspicious AF.

Torrance’s eyes went wide, and she typed quickly back. Don’t even joke. I’m so done fucking with Bullet Club boys.

Nellie just laughed; she’d thought the same after she and Jay had broken up. And yet, here she was, just days away from declaring herself Bullet Club, too—something that only she, David, and Clark knew.

As far as she knew, anyway.

* * * *

Friday, November 4, 2022 Osaka, Japan

Tomorrow would be David’s last show in Japan until he didn’t know when. It sucked—it really sucked. He and Nellie had only realized their mutual desire for something more than just friendship five days ago. But Nellie didn’t want to focus on their painfully poor timing. As it worked out, their schedules had synced up to give them a full day off together in Osaka, and they’d taken full advantage.

They started off with getting breakfast at an American-style diner, splitting chocolate banana pancakes and a bacon and cheese omelet because neither of them could decide which sounded better. Then they’d gone on the famous Osaka costumed go-kart sightseeing tour that Nellie had always wanted to try but never had the chance; she’d dressed up as Yoshi, David as Pikachu. Afterward, they’d stopped at one of the city’s numerous food stalls for deep-fried chicken and sticky-sweet rice balls before heading back to David’s hotel room, where they’d fallen asleep watching TV together on the bed. It felt so natural, so comfortable, so uncomplicated sleeping in David’s arms.

But when they awoke, it only made it that much more difficult not to think about how their time together was dwindling all too quickly.

“I don’t want to leave you at all,” David said as they still lay together, his arm around her, her head on his chest. “But I also feel like I need the time away for myself to reset; go back to the fucking drawing board. My G1 was shit; I really wanted that TV Title… I don’t know. I need to figure out what I need to do to stop just spinning my wheels.”

“Your G1 wasn’t shit,” Nellie gently returned. “Will won your block with what? Eight points? And you and everyone else but Juice finished with six. Most people finished with six this year. And if it helps at all, that TV Title is ugly as shit.”

David let out a laugh. “You’re right about that. And yeah, at least I did beat Juice. But it’s just one disappointment after another, you know?”

“I do know. You know I do. And I think you’re right. I don’t want you to leave, either. But even more than that, I don’t want you to get burned out from frustration.” She lifted her head to look at him. “So, take some time to do what you need to do, and then come back to me.”

He gave her a soft smile. “I know this probably feels like an uncomfortably familiar situation. But I promise, Nell—I’m not Jay.”

She shook her head. “I know you’re not,” she said, and she kissed him. She’d meant it to be just one, short and sweet, assuring; but neither of them wanted to stop at just one. David rolled her underneath him, and her hand unintentionally slipped under his shirt. Nellie wanted him; she wanted to cross that line. But she knew all too well that sleeping with him now would only make his absence hurt that much more—

And then her phone started ringing.

He pulled back. “Is someone calling you?”

She sighed. “Guarantee it’s Torrance.” Sure enough, when she retrieved her phone from the nightstand, Torrance’s name was displayed on the screen. David just laughed.

Nellie answered the call, and she and Torrance talked for a few minutes, figuring out what the plans were for the evening (“The Aussies and Jeff and Francesco want to get dinner with us, but I don’t want to be around Will,” Torrance explained). When she hung up, she looked back at David. The previous tension still hung in the air between them.

“It’s probably for the best she interrupted,” he softly said. “I don’t want to do that just to turn around and leave for I don’t know how long.”

Nellie sighed again. “I know. But you know you saying that only makes me want it more, right?”

He grinned. “Maybe that’s the point,” he teased, and he kissed her again. Once, tender and meaningful.

They got up from the bed, and David walked her to the door and told her to let him know when she made it back to her hotel—she wanted to shower and change before dinner—and Nellie made her way to the elevators. She looked down at her phone as one arrived with a ding; but when the doors slid open, a stone dropped into her stomach.

Jay.

He looked like he’d just arrived, luggage in tow, sunglasses on. He pushed them on top of his head and grinned. The cat who caught the canary.

“Well, fancy meeting you here.”  

He stepped out of the elevator, but his suitcase blocked her way and the doors slid closed. Not that Nellie could move, anyway. It felt like her legs had suddenly turned to lead.

“Is Stardom in this hotel?” he asked. “I thought your show was in Nara tomorrow?”

She tried not to think about why he knew that as she answered. “It is, and we’re not. I’m here with David.”

It was more gratifying than she expected to say that to Jay’s face. And even though his face didn’t give much away, she could see it in his eyes. Resentment. But then he turned them down and nodded.

“Are you? That’s kind of surprising.”

Nellie’s brow hardened. “What’s so surprising about it?”

He shook his head. “Nothing—well. It’s just that when you started hanging out with him during the G1… I thought you were doing it just to get back at me.”

Anger bubbled up in Nellie’s chest. Shock, disbelief, to the point that she felt ill. She looked him dead in the eye. “If you think I would use someone like that, then you really don’t know me at all.”

She hit the down button again.

“Nell, come on,” Jay breathed. “What else was I supposed to think? When I got back to Japan it seemed like you wanted to fix things between us, and then next thing I knew, you were out getting drinks with my old best friend.”

“I did want to fix things!” she burst. “Against my own better judgment, I did! And what happened? You fucked me one last time—here, in Osaka, to pump yourself up for your World Title match—and then you disappeared again.”

His eyebrows arched. “Are you joking? I had other bookings; that was two weeks before Forbidden Door.”

The elevator arrived, but Nellie didn’t get on. “Okay, but you didn’t talk to me! You didn’t show me anything, Jay—nothing changed! And you know what David did? He showed me that he gave a shit about me.”

The elevator doors started to close, and Nellie caught them with her arm and stepped inside. She looked back at Jay. The resentment in his eyes had given way to something else. Guilt.

“Nell… I don’t want to leave it like this.”

She shook her head. “Now’s not the time,” she told him, and the elevator doors slid closed, putting a pause on the one conversation that she knew, eventually, she’d no longer be able to avoid.

* * * *

Friday, June 2, 2023 Tokyo, Japan

“You remember the last time we were in Osaka together?”

David asked the question as they finished packing. The big weekend had finally arrived. They were taking the bullet train down to Osaka tomorrow for Dominion on Sunday, and Nellie was buzzing with excitement.

“Yeah, I was just thinking about that,” she said as she zipped up her suitcase and moved it with some effort from her bed to the floor. “It’s crazy to think how much has changed since then.”

Everything had changed. Seven months ago, she and David had been reluctantly pulled apart from one another, both frustrated and floundering in their careers, nothing but uncertainty on the horizon. And now, they were both champions; David the leader of Bullet Club, Nellie on the verge of making her membership known to the world. It felt like they had the whole world ahead of them. And they were doing it together.

“I know,” David returned. “I’d never wanted to board a plane less in my life than I did after that show.”

“Even more than this last time you left?”

“Oh, for sure,” he answered, no hesitation. “Because when I leave now, I know exactly when I’m coming back. It was the not knowing back then that really made it hard.”

Nellie didn’t reply as she climbed onto her bed and settled against the pillows, her thoughts turning inward. After Dominion, David didn’t have any bookings until the G1, over a month away. And they hadn’t really discussed that—if he would extend his stay to spend some extra time with her before heading back home to Florida, if he would come back early before the tournament, if he’d even given it any thought at all. It didn’t worry her, per se; they’d both been busy. But now it was right there in front of her.

“Which, actually, there’s something I wanted to talk to you about.”

She looked back at him, pulled from her thoughts. “What is it?” she asked.

He settled next to her on the bed, and the atmosphere suddenly felt different. Not tense. But important. Nellie felt her heart pick up a beat.

“I know we’ve been moving kind of fast since I came back in March,” David began. “But truthfully—and I think you feel the same—I don’t see the point in waiting if we both know what we want. And so… I’ve decided that I want to move here, to Tokyo. And if you want, I’d like us to get a new place together.”

If Nellie had been buzzing before, she was positively vibrating now. “Are you being serious?”

He nodded. “Of course. I fucking hate every time I have to get on a plane and leave you again. I hate it. And this last time I was gone, I realized… it’s not just my career that’s here now. My life is, too.”

He looked her in the eyes, full of love and trust, and her heart grew wings. “I would love to get a new place together.”

David smiled. “Yeah?”

“Yes, of course,” she said, and she kissed him. She couldn’t contain her excitement. “Babe! This is a big deal!”

“I know, but it’s what I want,” he reiterated. “And plus, this timing works out because I have a month-and-a-half off after Sunday, so that’ll give me a good amount of time to sort everything out and get my place in Florida packed up and shipped over here.”

“That’s a process,” she told him. “Trust me, I know from experience.”

“I know. But to be honest with you, I already started.”

Nellie smiled at him. “You did?”

He nodded. “Yeah. I had a feeling you’d say yes, so I figured I’d get a head start when I was home.”

“Oh, you had a feeling?”

“I did,” he grinned. “Come here.”

He pulled her into another kiss, and Nellie had never felt so much love, so much trust, so much understanding, so much faith that this was right. That everything she’d been through, that they’d been through, had purposefully brought them exactly to where they were now. And she couldn’t wait to find out what else they would build—together.

“I love you,” David said against her lips, and Nellie smiled.

“I love you, too.”

* * * *

Sunday, June 4, 2023 Dominion 6.4 in Osaka-jo Hall – Osaka, Japan

Nellie had thought she was the only surprise David had in store that night. Boy, had she thought wrong.

The first surprise came after the IWGP Junior Tag Title match. Catch 2/2 had staved off Intergalactic Jetsetters only for Clark to come strutting down to the ring—with a gold cap on one of his teeth and a too-orange spray tan, God bless him—and at first, Nellie hadn’t understood. No one had; he was outnumbered, what was he going to do? But everyone got their answer when Dan Moloney, who had been at ringside for the match, unexpectedly attacked Francesco and TJP, officially turning on United Empire and joining Bullet Club. And Torrance had texted Nellie almost as soon as it had happened.

Nellie I swear to God if you knew about this and didn’t tell me.

Dude I had NO idea I swear, I’m just as shocked as you are, she’d quickly sent back. But as Dan and Clark had walked back up the ramp, the sight of them together made a little too much sense.

“They’re gonna bring out the absolute worst in each other,” she’d noted. David had just laughed.

And then, the match after the next, there was another surprise.

After Bishamon had defeated House of Torture and United Empire to win both the IWGP Tag Team and Strong Openweight Tag Team championships, Alex Coughlin and Gabe Kidd had shown up in Bullet Club shirts and put the boots to them, declaring their intent and establishing their allegiance in one fell swoop. It explained why Clark had brought up Dominion after Nellie had mentioned Gabe last week. She had to admit—she was impressed.

But now it was her turn to be the surprise.

She’d never felt more confident than she did now in her BC Decade t-shirt, cropped to show off her figure; although, she wore her Wonder of Stardom Championship around her waist and her SWA World Championship diagonally across her chest, so she was mostly gold. David had explicitly told her to show off. “You’ve earned that,” he’d told her. “We run this fucking place.”

Excited butterflies teemed in her stomach as they all stood at the ready at the Gorilla curtain. David smirked down at her.

“Last chance to back out.”

She grinned and shook her head. “Not a chance,” she told him, and sealed it with a kiss.

His entrance music started. Clark and Dan went out first, followed by Gabe and Alex. They stood on either side of the stage, and then David went up the steps, followed closely by Nellie, Gedo behind her. She could hear the surprise of the crowd when they saw her, feel it course through her body, energizing her. It was a familiar feeling, but renewed. Different. Deeper.

They walked down to the ring, and while David’s focus was zeroed in on El Phantasmo, ELP was looking at Nellie. Except it wasn’t ELP; not right then. Right then, it was Riley.

“Seriously?” he said down to her. “You never once came out here with Jay.”

Nellie didn’t hesitate. “Jay never asked,” she returned, and David slid into the ring and attacked him.

Twenty-six minutes later, he was victorious. And Nellie hadn’t gotten involved; none of the other members of Bullet Club had. David didn’t need their help; he didn’t need them to interfere. This was a different Bullet Club than what it had been under Jay, a return to the original. And when they all joined David in the ring and raised up the Too Sweet above ELP, Nellie had never felt more like she belonged. Not in Cosmic Angels, not in Queen’s Quest, not even in Suzuki-gun. This was her home, beside David—and it just so happened to be in Bullet Club.