#my dad died last week and the only things keeping my head above water are my spouse and this fucking game

[grindelworks]

“Immense loss can be metabolized only through active grieving. We must allow the grief to have its way… We must take care that this grief not be impeded…

I suggest…that you abandon any attempts to find “the answer”…Instead of striving for an answer, allow yourself to be undone…”

-Bill Plotkin

[99hook]

crossed hearts

synopsis: two strangers make a drunken promise in the heat of the moment

A/N: sorry for taking a million years to post a fic. i know y’all have been asking and i’ve been putting it off for weeks soooo i took a few whole business days to conjure this up for y’all and i hope you loveee it!! enjoy babes!!

18+ only

You were quite content as you sat on the edge of the pool, legs submerged beneath the cool water and your face towards the sun, soaking up the last bit of the end of summer heat.

You had your airpods in to drown out the loud chatter and occasional children screaming when their parents tossed them in the deep end. You couldn’t help but laugh when a little boy, who had been thrown in the pool at least ten times, kept running back over to where his parents were sitting just to beg his dad to throw him in again.

You were about to watch him get launched from the diving board for the umpteenth time, but that’s when something else just so happened to catch your attention.

You felt something hit your back and turned around to find a foam football that a group of guys had been tossing around a little ways away.

You grabbed the football before it rolled off the edge of the pool and looked up at the man who came jogging after it.

“Shit, sorry about that. My friend’s got bad aim.” He chuckled as he extended his hands. You tossed the ball back to him and glanced over at the other three guys exchanging not so discreet laughs as they watched on.

You pulled one airpod out of your ear and looked back up at him, offering a simple smile as you said, “It’s alright, just tell him he might not need to pursue a football career anytime soon.”

He dropped his head and laughed, and you took immediate notice of the dimples that decorated his cheeks when his smile widens. His eyes were hidden by a pair of shades but if you could see them, you’d imagine he’d have a couple crinkles by them when he laughs that hard.

He glanced over his shoulder and the boys who were waiting for him. Their laughter had died down and now they were standing around with confused looks on their faces, probably wondering why that man hadn’t returned yet.

“Well I guess it’s a good thing he’s a pro wrestler then.” He shrugs his shoulder as he looks back down at you, keeping that dimple fledged smile on his face. “We all are, actually.”

“Pro wrestler? That sounds like an exciting career.” You say as you take a sip from your margarita that was starting to go down a little too smooth. “I’d love to make a living beating people’s ass.”

He chuckled again, tossing the football between his hands as he started stepping side to side.

“I mean, yeah, it’s pretty cool. That’s why we’re here right now. Got a show tonight, and uh, yeah.” He says as he adverts his eyes down to your margarita you placed next to you.

You glanced back over at the group of guys now with all their arms crossed over their chests, talking amongst themselves as they impatiently waited their friend to get back.

“Well I think your friends are getting tired of waiting.” you point over to the guys, and he looks back over his shoulder at them. “So don’t let me keep you distracted.” you joked, watching as another dimple fledged smile formed on his face.

“Alright, well, i’ll see you, uh-?”

“Y/N. You?”

“Tyler” he grins as he takes a few steps back before he turns around and jogs back over to the other guys.

You turned back around and put the airpod back in your ear as you took the last few sips from your glass, only then realizing that it was empty, and obviously you needed to head over to the swim-up bar for another one.

You lowered yourself off the edge, feeling the coolness of the water against your heated skin, refreshingly so. You kept your glass above the surface as you made your way towards the bar, unknowingly being watched by that same boy until his friends called him out on it.

“Dude, you talked to her for like, five minutes.” Darius says as he catches the football Tyler tossed to his chest. “Should’ve just asked for her number instead of staring at her like a creep.”

“I’m not even looking at her.” Tyler lies as he barely catches the ball when his friend passes it back. “I was looking at the water. It’s hot, i’m bout to jump in.”

Action and Anthony exchanged looks before they started passing the ball between each other, excluding Tyler as he pulled his shirt and sunglasses off and tossed them down on the chair.

Darius looked back over, finding you just as you took your place with a full glass you started sipping on. You could practically feel eyes burning into you, but you did your best not to acknowledge that. It was making you feel a little nervous, but thankfully the liquor in your frosty drink was strong enough to mask that.

A couple seconds passed by before you heard an enormous splash and you got covered in the drops of water from the impact.

You watched to see who was resurfacing, and couldn’t say you were surprised to see that it was Tyler.

“Hey again.” you called out to him.

“Hey.” he grinned, finding his footing when he got to the shallow side and standing up, exposing Sculpted, sharp abs and a couple more tattoos.

You had to keep yourself from letting your eyes wander, but it was hard to do. He ran his hands through his hair, shaking his head slightly until he was satisfied with how the slick locks landed against his forehead. He then made his way towards you and lifted himself up to sit on the edge, leaving a little distance between you.

“Done throwing the ball?” you asked, feeling the need to take another sip from your glass as the nerves started to become a little too unavoidable.

You couldn’t help it, he was strikingly handsome and now that he didn’t have those shades covering his eyes, you got to see the rich, deep shade of them and, well, brown eyes have always been a weakness for you.

“I am.” he says as he sways one leg beneath the water. “It got hot, needed to cool down.”

“Yeah. That’s why I have this.” You tipped your glass before you took another sip, watching as an eased smirk slipped across his lips as he looked back at you.

“I might get something when I get back tonight. Probably not a margarita, but something with some alcohol in it.” he says before he looks down at the water.

“When are you getting back?” you asked, unsure why you did in the first place. It felt weird right after you said it but before you could cringe about it, he was already answering.

“Probably around midnight.” he says, “Maybe a little later, I never really know. Kind of wanted to go somewhere and see what this city is all about before I have to leave again.”

“Well what would you wanna do? I know this place pretty well. I can tell you if something’s worth it or not, so you don’t waste the little time you have.”

“I don’t know, maybe a club or something? But, then again, I might just come back here and chill for the night. I’m probably gonna be tired anyway.” He shrugs as he keeps his eyes from roaming over to you, out of sheer nervousness he was starting to feel simply because your attention was solely on him, and for some reason, it flustered him.

“Well if you do decide to go out, there’s a couple places not far from here that-“

“Yo, Tyler, we gotta head out man!” You were cut off by one of the guys calling out to him from a little ways away, and when you glanced over your shoulder, you saw the three of them approaching, all with weird smirks on their faces.

One of the guys stepped forward, flashing a bright smile down at you. “Hey, sorry about hitting you with the football earlier. And for the record, I’m not planning on joining the NFL anytime soon.”

You looked over at Tyler who was trying to keep the smirk off of his lips, but failing miserably. Then you looked back up at the guy, a little at a loss for words because you didn’t actually expect Tyler to tell him you said that.

“But for real, sorry about that.” He says with a wide grin. “I’m Action, also.” He extends his hand, expecting you to shake it, which wasn’t typically something people around your age, as you assumed he was, tended to do anymore.

You reached up and took his hand, and he gently shook it before another guy decided to introduce himself. The one who seemed to keep a weird grin plastered across his face.

“I’m Anthony.” He gave you a little wave. That only led you to expect the last man to follow the others up, so you glanced over at him, but he kept his eyes on Tyler.

“Darius.” He nodded, not taking his eyes off the man next to you.

“Nice to meet y’all.” You offered a smile, “I’m Y/N.”

“Yeah, we-“ but before Anthony could finish his sentence, he was interrupted by Darius nudging his ribs with his elbow. The two of them exchanged rather tense glances before you felt the energy between everyone suddenly shift into some weird, awkward tension.

“Uh- are you coming to the show tonight?” Anthony asked instead, glancing between you and Tyler.

“No, I actually didn’t know there was anything happening tonight. I didn’t know you were all pro wrestlers until he told me.” You point over at Tyler, who is finding it hard to sit there silently.

“Oh, so you don’t know who he is?” Anthony asks, looking a bit taken back. You looked over at Tyler and back up at his friend.

“You’ve never heard of Hook before?” He adds on, but that’s when Tyler looks over his shoulder and pipes up.

“She just said she didn’t know who we were.” He couldn’t help the aggravated tone, simply because he could see what his friends were doing and he didn’t care for it too much.

Darius placed his hand firmly on Anthony’s shoulder and gave it a squeeze, which was a silent gesture to tell him to stop talking.

That’s when Tyler looked back at you, and you caught his softened eyes for a split second before he sent you a small nod and lifted himself up out of the water completely.

“Nice meeting you, Y/N.” Anthony beams, offering you a wave, as well as the other two guys who nod toward you as they all group up and head towards the hotel.

“I’ll be there in a minute.” You heard Tyler say as he heads back over to where they were previously tossing the ball. He grabs his shirt and tosses it over his shoulder, then slides those shades back over his eyes and waits for the guys to fully disappear inside before he makes his way back over to you.

“Sorry about them.” He mutters as he sits back down next to you, submerging his legs back in the water.

“It’s alright, they seem nice.” You shrug as you start to sway your legs.

“Sometimes.” He smirks as he runs his hand back through his hair, flinging droplets of water across your cheek. “But uh, I don’t know if you’re gonna be here later or not-“

“Yeah, for the next two days.” You didn’t mean to answer that so abruptly, but the margaritas and this man’s unusual charm had to be to blame for that. You felt your cheeks heat up when he looked over at you, sliding his tongue over his lips once before he nods.

“Me too.”

“Maybe I’ll see you later then.” You shrugged, feeling that unavoidable feeling brewing in your stomach, similar to what people say they feel when they have butterflies, but until then, you’d never experienced that before.

“Yeah, maybe.” He smirks as he pulls his legs out the water and rises back to his feet.

“Have fun beating people’s asses.” You grin before you take the last sip of yet another margarita, and he simply smiles back before he drops his head and makes his way towards the doors, leaving you sitting on the edge of the pool wishing he was still right there next to you.

———

Somewhere in the midst of a few more margaritas and somehow managing to recognize your hotel room, you ended up taking a pretty long nap.

You woke up around one in the morning, quite literally starving to death. You grabbed the laminated menu sitting on the bedside table and scanned your options, until you realized that room service was no longer available after midnight.

Letting out a groan that sounded similar to your stomach growling, you got up from the comfort of the plush bedsheets and slipped on your shoes. Taking a glance in the mirror was a little unnecessary at the moment. You should’ve known you were going to look a hot mess after how hard you crashed.

You took a second to wipe the smudges of mascara below your eyes and comb your fingers through your disheveled hair before you headed out the door, towards the elevator.

Thankfully your intoxication wore off at least eighty percent, so you were no longer wobbly on your feet, but you were still feeling a little buzzed and blamed that on the reason why you it took you a whole minute to figure out which elevator button takes you down to the main lobby.

You managed to get there without stopping on any other floor first, so you felt like that was an accomplishment. Your eyes landed on the doors that led to the cafeteria and you could smell the mixes of different foods the second you stepped out the elevator.

“I wonder why they can’t just bring this up to my room. Why do I have to come all the way down here and get it myself just because it’s late?” You mumbled under your breath, even though you meant to keep that thought in your mind. Another thing to blame on the alcohol.

You approached the buffet bar and immediately gravitated towards the pizza station. Two slices were plated and passed to you by one of the women behind the counter who didn’t appear all that thrilled to be serving food at one in the morning, but you could understand that.

You were just about to take your plate back up to your room, but decided last minute that you wanted to go outside and sit by the pool instead. With nobody being around that late at night, it sounded like a peaceful way to spend the next hour or so.

You kicked back in one of the lounge chairs after you finished eating, staring up at the stars that blanketed the sky, like diamonds dazzling above you. You searched for the brightest one of them all, as you always do, because when you were younger your grandma always told you that star belongs to you.

You found it a little over to the left, glimmering around the illuminated band of the moon and felt yourself smile. Maybe it was just another thing to blame on the alcohol you still had bits of running through your veins, but you couldn’t help but to grin from ear to ear from the simplicity of stargazing.

It was quiet compared to the daytime hustle and bustle of the city and the peaceful atmosphere was nice. You could’ve sat out there for hours on end happily enjoying your own company, but the silence was rather short lived when you heard the rowdiness of the group of guys from earlier right outside the gate.

You looked over and found the four boys stumbling around, laughing and making jokes amongst each other as they walked towards the hotel doors.

Your eyes zeroed in on Tyler specifically, who had a hood over his head but you recognized him by the his wild hair shoved underneath it. You wondered if they ended up going out to a club after all, seeing as how they all seemed to be a little drunk themselves.

You couldn’t help but to let out a quiet laugh, hoping you wouldn’t be heard, when one of the guys, you think you remember by the name Darius, says something that was apparently so hilarious it causes Tyler’s laugh to echo all around.

You looked back over towards the jacuzzi you’d been thinking about getting into for the last thirty or so minutes once the boys disappeared inside. Eventually, your temptations got the better of you and you found yourself sitting on the edge with your legs submerged in the hot, rolling water.

You stared down at the bubbles forming from the jets and the multicolored lights casting a rainbow glow on the surface, a little entranced by the ever-changing variations, so much so that you didn’t even hear the footsteps behind you.

“Hey” You heard a deep voice softly speak, but it startled you nonetheless. You jumped slightly when you looked over to find Tyler grinning at you, amusement in his hazy eyes.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you like that.” He chuckles before he grabs a lounge chair and pulls it closer to you. He takes a seat and leans forward, resting his elbows on his knees and subconsciously twisting the ring wrapped around his finger.

“You’re fine.” You managed to chuckle back after the initial shock wore off. “Did you end up going to a club?” You decided to ask, but the answer seemed pretty obvious to you judging by the way he was giving himself away completely.

The hazy, low eyes and a relaxed, easy smirk to match. His cheeks were flushed with a rosy hue, he couldn’t keep his hands still. He’d definitely been drinking, but you were finding it funny how you didn’t even know this man and yet it was so obvious to tell the difference between him being sober and intoxicated.

“For a little while. Didn’t really care for it though.” He shrugs as he slides his ring up and down his finger. “What did you do tonight?” he asks, tilting his head slightly, as if he was genuinely interested.

You didn’t know why you were smiling all over again, but you were. It might’ve been the alcohol but you weren’t sure how many things you could truthfully blame on a couple too many margaritas you had hours ago.

“Well, I ended up going to my room and passing out for a couple hours, then I woke up, got some food and came out here to enjoy the peace and quiet.”

“Oh, am I disturbing your peace right now?” He half-smirks, exposing one dimple.

You felt your cheeks practically burning and the steam from the jacuzzi wasn’t making it any better. You shook your head and looked down at the ring he was now twirling around.

“I’m okay with it.” You shrugged easily, doing your best to not let it show that you were feeling a little nervous all over again. Just like previously when the two of you were sitting on the edge of the pool, you couldn’t help it. Something about him had the capability to make your stomach erupt with those butterfly feelings everyone always claims, and you weren’t sure if you really liked it or not, but at the moment, you couldn’t fight against it.

The ring he was fidgeting with stilled for a second before he looked down at the ground, clearly trying to hide that wide smile you would’ve rather been shown.

“What about you?” You asked as you leaned back on your palms, attempting to keep the steam from engulfing your already heated skin. He looked up then, his eyes a little droopy but you couldn’t help but to find it cute. “How’d the show go?”

He started sliding that ring on and off different fingers as he spoke. “Pretty good. I mean, my back is killing me but other than that, I think it went pretty good.” He chuckles.

“So you’re the one that got your ass beat?” you teased, watching as his lips spread in a wider smile that he quickly brought his fist up to cover.

“I mean, maybe a little, yeah.” He nods, his laugh once again echoing around you, and something about it just must have been contagious, because your couldn’t help but to laugh with him.

“Well, i’m sure you’ll get ‘em next time.” You say as you look back down at the changing lights glowing against the stones of the jacuzzi. It grew silent between the two of you for a couple seconds, but only until the liquid courage he was enduring kept him feeling bold enough to talk a little more.

“So why are you here?” He asks, remembering you telling him you would only be staying at the hotel for two days. You look over at him, and he feels the need to clarify the question that he feels may have came out wrong. “I mean like- you said you were only here for two days, so are you on vacation or-?”

“Yeah, I just wanted to get out of town, really. I was getting tired of the same old stuff. I had a few days off so I thought it would be fun to just go somewhere else and pretend like I live a luxurious life.” You joked, and felt your cheeks burning once more when you made him laugh again.

“I mean, this is a pretty luxurious hotel.” He shrugs as he leans up and stretches his arms out. “My room came stocked with all the alcohol you can drink.”

“Mine too, but the frozen margaritas are my kryptonite.” You say, wishing you had one you could be sipping on just to calm to rushing nerves coursing heavily through you.

“I noticed.” He smirks, holding your stare for a few seconds longer before you were the one to have to break it first.

Just then, his phone rang in his pocket, and he took a minute to retrieve it before he answered. You could hear the deep voice of one of the guys you met earlier but you couldn’t make out what was being said.

“Yeah, yeah. Alright. Uh, nah i’m just gonna chill out here for a while I think. Alright bro, bye.”

He slid the phone back in his pocket and you were trying a little too hard to hide the velvet tinge across your cheeks at the fact that he wasn’t planning on leaving anytime soon.

“Anthony.” He mutters as he shakes his head. “They’re tryna get me to come up and drink a bottle with them.”

“You don’t want to?” You asked, watching as he shrugged his shoulder and slightly shook his head.

“Nah, not really. Not up there, at least.” He then slips his arm through the strap of his backpack and pulls the bag around to his lap, unzipping it and pulling out a bottle with a grin.

“It’s not a frozen margarita, but if you want some you’re welcome to it.” He twists the cap off the bottle and takes a few sips before he extends it out to you.

You thought about it for a second, but not for very long before you grabbed it and held it out to see it better.

“Peach Crown?” You asked, “Never had it before.”

“It’s good.” he says as pulls his chair a tad bit closer.

“I’ll be the judge of that.” You say before you take your first sip, followed by a couple more when you realized how smooth it went down.

You passed the bottle back to him and noticed the expectant look on his face. It was as if he was waiting to say he told you so.

“okay. yeah, It’s pretty good.” You admit. You feel his fingers brush over yours for a fraction of a second as he grabs the bottle from your hand and you were unsure why that slight and simple touch sent shivers cascading down your spine.

“I’m not even a big fan of sweet drinks but I tried this at the club and had to get a bottle.” He says before he takes a couple more sips and passes it back.

You grabbed the bottle again and tasted a hint of mint when you took your next sip, but the whisky washed it away before it got the chance linger against your tongue.

You heard him rummaging around in his bag again, this time pulling out a cream colored box and a lighter with some bold print across the side of it. He pulls a Black n Mild out of the box and places the plastic mouthpiece between his lips before he sparks the lighter and cups his hand around the flame.

His brows furrow as he lights the end of the cigar and inhales his first draw, exhaling a cloud of thick, gray smoke that has a slightly sweet tinge when it lingers around you.

“Wanna hit this?” He asks as you pass him the bottle back, and you had to admit you were a little bit tempted, but you declined for the simple fact that nicotine used to have a vice grip on you in college and the last thing you wanted was to spark an old flame that you probably won’t be able to burn out a second time.

You watched as he took one more rather large gulp and placed the bottle down between the two of you, and took a couple more hits from the cigar, blowing O’s above his head that stretched out the higher they got, until they completely faded away.

“My dad used to always do that.” You admitted all too easily for some weird reason, immediately shutting down the second the words slipped from your lips, because you never talked about that man to anyone.

“Mine still does.” He says as he stares up and watches the rings eventually fade into the darkness. Then he caught what you said fully and looked down at you.

“Oh, wait” he says as he attempts to read the look on your face. “What happened? He stopped smoking or something?”

You shook your head but shrugged your shoulder afterwards. “No, i’m pretty sure he still does. I just don’t see him anymore. But I remember when I was younger we’d sit out on the porch and he’d always blow those smoke rings.” You managed to chuckle even though speaking about the man in general made you want to completely close down.

Tyler stared at you for a few seconds, tapping his finger against the end of the cigar to ash it as he processed what you just said, and quite frankly, he was unsure what to say back.

You were quick to push the entire topic to the back burner as you grabbed the bottle sitting an arm length away and brought it back to your lips, this time tasting the pungent tobacco mixed with the sweet liquor. You set the bottle back down, pushing it a little closer his way and glanced up at him when you heard him speak again.

“How come you don’t see him anymore?” he asked, his voice a little softer spoken than it previously was.

You look down at the bottle, feeling like you’d need a couple more sips before you can even think about having a conversation pertaining to that, but you resist the urge to grab it again.

“A lot of reasons.” You shrug your shoulder, keeping your eyes on the amber liquid. “Mainly him just not wanting anything to do with any of the kids he has.” You chuckle coldly, shaking your head. “But it’s fine, cause in all reality, it’s for the best. All he’s ever done is hurt me so i’ve pretty much accepted the fact that I just don’t need to allow him in my life.”

You felt the weird feeling of a heavy weight being lifted off of you, as if there was a constant pressure weighing down on you but you never noticed it until it miraculously vanished.

Tyler let your words resonate with him for a minute, and even though he was pretty drunk, he still managed to comprehend everything you said. He couldn’t deny that it sounded sad to him, and he could see that talking about it visibly brought a deep pain to the surface for you, and he didn’t want to bring you down by making you tell him about something that clearly hurt you.

Truthfully, he was just curious about you. He didn’t know why, but right from the start earlier that day when he had that first initial run in with you, something about you instantly intrigued him, and it was beyond the range of just your physical appearance, even though he couldn’t deny that he was immediately attracted to you the second he got a good look at you for the first time.

Still, there was something else about you that he felt compelled to dive deeper into. He thought about you a couple different times after he left the pool. Once before his match as he was getting his wrists taped up. Once after his match when he was scanning the sea of faces in the crowd. Twice at the club when he remembered you getting interrupted in the middle of telling him where some good places to go were. And once more when he and the guys made it back to the hotel and he couldn’t help but wonder if, by some unlikely chance, you’d be sitting where he left you hours prior.

“I’m sorry that things have to be that way, but I understand it. I’ve had to cut off people I care about for my own wellbeing too. It sucks to have to do that, but sometimes it’s the best thing you can do for yourself.”

You found yourself a little taken back that he wasn’t saying the things it seemed like everyone else ever did. How you should let the past go and give your dad another chance. Your father is always your father no matter what. Don’t hold a grudge forever, etc.

You simply nodded because you weren’t sure what else you could really say, but you could see that there was a mutual understanding and it made you a lot less regretful about opening up to someone you barely knew.

“What about your mom?” He asks, and really it was more of him blurting that out, but he couldn’t help it because genuinely, he was just curious about what made you, you.

“I love my mom.” You found yourself smiling without realizing it, and the way your eyes lit up brought a slight smile to his face, too.

“She’s honestly the strongest woman i’ve ever known. She went through a lot with my dad. Raised three kids all on her own and always made a way no matter how impossible it seemed. I admire her, honestly.”

You looked back up at the stars, finding yourself wondering what your mom might be up to, and making a mental note to call her in the morning.

“What about your parents?” You asked him after a moment. “What are they like?”

You looked back over at him, catching his soft gaze before he adverts his eyes to the rolling water you just pulled your legs out of.

“They’re my role models, honestly.” He grins as he keeps his sights set on the changing lights. “My mom is just, all around an amazing woman. My dad is probably the best friend i’ve ever had. Im really thankful to have the parents I got.”

He feels the slightest sting when he says that, knowing that you evidently didn’t have what he has, but when he looks back at you, all he sees is a soft smile gracing your lips.

“That’s amazing.” You softly spoke, and he simply nods back before he takes another draw from the black n mild.

“Do you have any siblings?” You decided to ask, thinking about your brother and sister that happened to come to mind.

“Nah, it’s just me, actually. I’ve always wanted some though. Always wanted a little brother cause I just thought it would be cool, but my parents never had another one.” He shrugs. “What about you?”

“I have a little sister, a little brother, and apparently a couple more siblings i’ve never met.” You chuckle as you shake your head. “But my brother and my sister are the ones I grew up with. I was always the oldest so, I don’t know, I guess that’s why I have such a strong bond with them. My dad has more kids with other women, but like I said, i’ve never met them. I’d like to, but I probably never will.”

Tyler nodded along as he listened, his eyes trained on the concrete underneath his feet.

“Wow” you shake your head, “That drink must have some truth serum in it or something. I never really talk about stuff like this.” You managed to laugh it off, but you were a little surprised at yourself for opening up to this man so effortlessly when it usually took you a minimum of a few years to tell anyone anything deeply personal about you.

“I don’t either.” You heard him say.

He then reached down and grabbed the bottle, holding it as he stood up and took a couple steps towards you. he sat down next to you, stretching out one of his legs and bending the other at the knee as he leaned back on one hand, and sipped the bottle with the other one.

His shoulder brushed yours and you couldn’t help but to feel those nerves wracking around inside all over again, but you tried to mask that with another gulp of that liquid poison when he handed it over to you.

By this point the two of you had finished half of that bottle and needless to say, you were feeling the effects more than you might’ve realized at first.

You looked over at him as you passed the bottle back, taking notice of his defined jaw that looked like it could slice through anything that comes in contact with it.

He was about to take another sip before he caught you staring, turning to face you with even droopier eyes and that same, relaxed half-smirk.

“What are you thinking about right now?” He caught you off guard when he asked you that, and truthfully you didn’t have very many thoughts running through your mind for once. You were too distracted by his features to really process anything else, but of course you weren’t about to tell him that.

He placed the cigar between his lips and squinted one eye when the smoke sifted near it, inhaling another smoke filled draw into his lungs before he turned his head away to exhale it all. Then he looked back at you, waiting for your answer with a slight gleam in his low eyes.

“I’m not really thinking about anything, surprisingly.” You tell him, catching the exact moment that his eyes linger to your lips and he involuntarily slides his tongue over his own. You felt a trillion little fires blazing beneath your cheeks, a bit of an excited feeling spouting through you, mixed with sudden and complete nervousness all at the same time.

This time, you couldn’t blame it on the liquor. You may be drunkenly consumed by the remnants of the margarita and the fresh course of the peach crown, but everything you were feeling so intensely had nothing to do with any of that. It was all him, and the way your heart skipped two beats when he looked into your eyes again, only solidified that.

“What are you thinking right now?” You asked him, voice a bit shaky but you hoped he didn’t notice.

He tilted his head to the side slightly before you heard the bottle being placed down next to him. His eyes flashed to your lips once again before they roamed back up to match your suddenly wanting gaze, and that’s when he turned his head and put the cigar out against the concrete, before he turned back to face you.

“I’d rather show you.” His voice was suddenly raspier and it could’ve been the harsh tobacco and the liquor, but something made you think it was a little more than just that.

You felt your heart on the verge of imploding in your chest, thumping rapidly against your rib cage, so much so that you could only hear the pulsations pounding in your ears.

But the second he leaned a little closer, and you met him halfway, your lips collided all too easily and suddenly, all of the rapid beatings from your racing pulse were instantly washed away.

You melted beneath his touch the second his lips landed on yours. His hand, calloused and edged, was somehow so gentle against your cheek as his thumb slowly stroked over your skin. The taste of the liquor you’d both been drinking, mixed with the tart tobacco and still just the faintest hint of mint, embedded in your tongue when your lips parted and allowed him in.

The slightest moan you didn’t realize you let out made him smile against you, and the second you felt his lips slipping away, you chased his kiss like you needed it to survive.

It was a game of push and pull, but the two of you couldn’t seem to let your lips detach for even a fraction of a second. It was all consuming, leaving you feeling lightheaded but you couldn’t bare to put a stop to it, until the both of you were completely out of breath and had no other choice but to break away for air.

You left his lips puffy and tinged red and he left yours kiss-bitten and only yearning for more. His thumb rubbed over your bottom lip once before his fingers tangled up in your hair and he pulled you right back in.

So lost in the heat of the moment, spinning out of control in one of the best ways possible, you ended up getting pulled on top of him, straddling his waist with your arms locked around the back of his neck.

He leaned back slightly, his palms roaming up your sides, around your back and down to your hips. You felt his fingertips sliding beneath the end of your shirt, and everywhere he touched simply struck a blaze beneath your skin.

He pulled back slightly, his lips barely grazing yours as he fluttered his eyes open and waited for you to do the same. You caught his gaze and the undeniable gleam dancing in his dark eyes, something that made you want to immediately pursue anything he might’ve had his mind set on.

“Tell me something nobody knows about you.” He mutters breathily, sliding his hands fully beneath your shirt to caress your sides.

You eyed him for a moment, biting down on your bottom lip without realizing it, maybe just trying to feel the friction he took away.

“Something nobody knows?” You asked, subconsciously twirling the ends of his hair between your fingers as you put some thought into it. He kept roaming his hands up and down your sides, your smoothed skin was a beautiful comparison to his tougher palms and one jagged fingernail that scraped against you.

“I’m scared of snakes.” You shrugged, but he only smirked and shook his head at you.

“Everyone is. Something deeper than that.”

You pulled back a tad bit, your eyes lingering down to his puffed lips that you were dying to get another taste of.

“I-“ you hesitated, and he could see it immediately.

“Tell me.” He gently urged, rubbing his thumbs back and to against your hips. You looked into his eyes, that intense, strong gaze unwavering when you caught it again.

Suddenly, for some strange reason, it was all too easy to admit something you’d never told anyone, and never planned to in your entire life.

“I have a scar on my thigh from my ex boyfriend pushing me down some stairs when I was in high school, and it’s pretty noticeable, but i’ve never told anyone where it came from because- I don’t know, honestly. I just, i’ve never told anyone what happened. I just said I fell.”

Once again, there was that strange feeling of an immense weight feeling like it had been lifted right off of your chest, and maybe all you needed to do was open up to people a little more instead of keeping a brick wall built around your heart, but up until Tyler, that was never possible for you.

His jaw throbbed twice before his eyes adverted down for a second, then back up. You could easily see the shift. The blackest of hues casted over them.

“Can I see it.” He whispered, and suddenly you felt like closing yourself off once again. He could tell that you were apprehensive, which was why he added, “Please?” as he rubbed small circles against your skin.

You took a moment before you leaned back a little, pulling your shorts up just a tad to expose the embedded scar you always carefully hid, traced high up against your skin.

He looked down, taking in the look of the faded yet deep indentation, clenching his teeth hard behind his lips.

“Needed nineteen stitches.” You mutter as you slide your finger over the jagged line. It still makes you cringe just to touch.

Tyler slides his hand out from underneath your shirt and brings it down to your thigh, his fingertip delicately tracing over that wound once before he looks back up into your eyes again, this time with a sharper stare that could slice right through you.

“He should’ve got his ass beat for that” His gravely voice suddenly feels like it has the power to physically shake you.

“He didn’t, but I did leave him.” You say back, watching as he nods and slides his hand back underneath your shirt, roaming it up to the middle of your back before he pulls you closer.

“Good.” He mutters before he leans in and locks his lips with yours, once again making you melt into him for the second time, and hopefully not the last.

You felt his fingertips graze underneath the thin strap of your bathing suit you’d yet to change out of, the moment suddenly escalating into something so breathtakingly intense.

His tongue explored every square inch of your mouth, leaving the taste of him lingering. That mix of heavy tobacco, peach and mint you knew you wouldn’t be forgetting anytime soon.

But just then, his phone rang in his pocket, and he stilled as soon as he heard it, debating whether he should let it go or at least see who it was calling.

His hand slipped away from your skin and you missed it there immensely, almost immediately. He dug around in his pocket and pulled the phone out, chasing your lips one last time before he completely detached to look down at who’s name might’ve been floating on his screen.

He sighed before he answered, holding the phone up to his ear, and this time, you were close enough to hear the conversation.

“Yeah?” He bit out with an annoyed tone, which only made a bashful grin play on your face. You leaned back a little and looked at him, taking the moment to really study his features, even if your vision was a little blurred and the lighting around the pool area was barely illuminating anything.

Your fingers absentmindedly twirled some loose ends of his hair as you watched his lips move when he spoke.

“Nah, I’m not. I’m out by the pool right now-“

Just then you heard the voice on the other end of the line say your name and something incomprehensible after that. Tyler rolled his eyes, his shoulders stiffening a little bit as he leaned back a bit and discreetly turned the volume down.

“Stop.” He cut in, his voice suddenly demanding. You felt his fingers grazing your skin with his freehand, and he didn’t realize he was doing it.

“I don’t know yet. Later.” He shrugs one shoulder as he speaks back into the phone, growing increasingly impatient by the passing second.

You could hear a couple laughs by various voices rumbling through the speaker, but that’s when Tyler hung up the phone and silenced it before he laid it down next to him.

You tilted your head to the side, your curiosity undoubtedly piqued and proceeded to ask him, “What was that about?”

He shook his head and placed his hand on your thigh firmly as he leaned up some. “Just my friends being aggravating, it’s nothin.” He says as he roams that hand a little higher.

You only nodded, your eyes glancing back down to those swollen lips you just couldn’t seem to get enough of. You leaned back into him and he met your kiss halfway once again, but it was short-lived when he pulled back, out of nowhere, his eyes filled with something you deemed unfamiliar and rather unreadable.

His lips parted but he didn’t speak for a moment, trying to find the right words. Truthfully, he was nervous to ask, because he didn’t know if he was about to ruin the moment or exemplify the passions of it, and the last thing he wanted to do was give you the wrong impression of him.

He inhaled a slow breath before he finally let the words out, feeling his hands start to get clammy against your skin.

“I know we just met, and this is all kind of going fast, but I’m okay with it… if you are?”

You felt the air get caught in your lungs, blinking twice as you realized what might be about to happen next.

His nervous antics caused his fingers to fidget a little and you felt that against your back. He desperately awaited your response as he stared solely into your eyes, showing nothing but pure urgency for you, and anxiousness mixed in with it.

You felt your heart beginning to hammer in your chest again, bringing back those violent pulsations to pound in your ears and at this point you were fairly certain he’d be able to hear it himself.

All you could do was attempt to calm yourself but there was hardly any use to that, and instead of giving him a straight forward answer like he was waiting for, all you did was pull yourself off of him, and he watched you intently as you stood up and slipped your shirt over your head, and your shorts down to your ankles before you stepped out of them.

He’d already seen you in that bathing suit but it was different this time. His eyes roamed down to admire every curve and crevice your body had to offer, shamelessly stopping to take in specific parts of you that he could pinpoint as his favorites immediately.

You kept your eyes on him as you took a step back and stepped down into the shallow, heated water, that you already knew wasn’t going to help your case when your skin already felt like it was set ablaze, and all due to his simplest touches.

He never took his eyes off of you as he followed your lead, standing up and pulling that hoodie, along with an undershirt over his head, exposing those sharp abs and a series of tattoos you wanted to know the meaning behind.

You lowered yourself until the water rested at your shoulders and waited for him to join you. He pulled his joggers down, already had swimming trunks on and you couldn’t help but to smirk when you noticed that.

“Did you have this all planned out?” You asked as you motion over the trunks that sat dangerously low around his hips.

“I planned to come out here.” He says as he takes a step down into the water. “Didn’t think i’d be lucky enough to see you again, though.” He says as he lowers himself down. The water stopped halfway up his chest, his skin fusing red from the heat, but neither of you minded it.

He reached back and picked up that bottle that was long forgotten by you, taking a few sips before he handed it over.

“Might as well finish what we started.” He shrugs, referring to the rest of the liquor filling only a quarter of that glass bottle.

You grabbed it from him and took two sips, and he found it a little fascinating how you never winced when the poison hit your throat.

When you passed it back to him, he placed it back down on the edge of the jacuzzi and brought his arm up to rest lazily behind you.

The liquor was the only reason why you weren’t a complete mess. Somehow you managed to steady your thundering heart and the knots in your stomach were only barely noticeable by that point, and all you felt were tingles skating through your whole body. Like an unspoken plea for his touch that your skin craved, but your lips didn’t speak.

You turned your head to look at him, and he was already staring back at you with a crooked smirk and that knee-weakening dimple embedded in his cheek. He had a bit of a deeper, rosier tinge casted over his skin, mixed with that glint in his eye that you couldn’t miss even if you tried to.

“I enjoy talking to you.” He says as his fingers play with the ends of your hair that falls over your shoulder. “You’re very enjoyable to talk to.” He adds, earning a chuckle to slip past your lips and his. It was obvious that the alcohol had sunk in judging by the goofy grin he had and the way his words were a bit slurred, but it was the same for you.

“You think you’d say that if you were sober right now?” You quirked a brow at him.

“I know I would.” He says with a reassuring nod. “Just cause i’m drinking doesn’t mean I don’t know what I’m talking about right now. I mean everything i’m saying to you. I don’t usually, like, open up to people I just met, believe it or not. But it’s… it’s just easy to do with you.”

You felt your lips sliding up into another smile, probably for the hundredth time that night.

“I feel the same way with you. I mean, I told you something i’ve never told anybody else before. So, if that doesn’t say something, I don’t really know what will.”

“Says a whole lot.” He smirks, his eyes involuntarily flickering down to your lips all over again, and you knew in that moment that you were done talking when you subconsciously leaned in towards each other.

His kiss might end up being your biggest weakness from that point on. You just knew that when you inevitably part ways, you were going to be craving the feeling he so effortlessly gave you.

He was trying not to worry about the fact that the time was so limited. All he wanted to was to savor every last second he gets to have with you. Everything else just simply wasn’t on his mind anymore.

You found yourself back on top of him, this time with very little clothing in between. Your hands roamed over his chest, fingertips trailing through the patches of hair that made a path from the middle of his chest, down his torso until it disappeared beneath his trunks.

A low groan reverberated through his throat when you slightly ground down against him, feeling the hard bulge beneath the thin fabric that he was ready to rip right off.

You felt his hand snake around from your lower back to your hip, before his fingers dipped underneath the band of your bathing suit bottoms, eliciting a gasp the second you felt the pad of his middle finger graze over your throbbing clit.

He leaned in more to lock his lips with yours again as he swirled that finger fluidly, reveling in the mix of breathy sighs and sweet, low moans that slipped past your lips and got trapped somewhere within him.

His tongue slid around yours, and that particular flavor made itself at home when it sunk into your tastebuds.

The circular motions of just that single finger had your entire body buzzing. Your nails dug down into his shoulders and you felt the thick band of muscle flex when he felt the sting, but he didn’t stop you, nor did he want to.

“You wanna go up to my room?” He mutters against your lips as he quickens the pace. You had to take a minute to collect yourself just enough to be able to respond to him, and that only happened when he slowed down those circular motions to give you a chance to speak properly.

You shook your head, and he pulled back to look at you with a bit of a confused look crossing his face.

“Don’t wanna go anywhere. I wanna do this right here.” You breathed out, and it was evident that he was a little taken back by that.

He eyed you for a second before he glanced over both of his shoulders. There was nobody around, most of the room lights were turned off that he could see by the windows, and granted the two of you had been out there for quite a while without anybody else intruding.

“That’s a little risky.” He says, but he smirks right after, and you could see the gleam sparking in his eyes when the thrill of possibly getting caught red handed took over him, too.

“I’m willing to take a risk tonight if you are.” You whisper back, sliding your tongue over your lips before you lean back into him, catching his kiss before he has a chance to speak.

His answer was given to you when you felt him pull the string of your bikini that was tied against your hip. The fabric melted off the right side of you before he reached down and pulled the other one, leaving you completely bare underneath the boiling water.

He kept his lips locked with yours, his tongue never getting tired of exploring each and every inch within your mouth as he lifted up just a little to pull his trunks down enough.

When there was no clothing keeping the two of you separated under the water, you felt a rush of nerves jolting through you. It suddenly became more than a heavy make out when your bodies collided.

You pulled back from his lips, inhaling the much needed oxygen that suddenly felt a little bit suffocating, and he kept his eyes trained intently on you as he stilled every single movement.

“We can slow down.” He whispers breathily, but you shake your head almost too abruptly.

“No, it’s not that. it’s just, I don’t want you to get the wrong impression of me either. I don’t, honestly, I don’t ever do this. I just want you to know that.”

“I already knew that.” He softly whispers back. “I could tell. And, you might not believe this, but I don’t ever do these types of things either.”

You didn’t believe him as much as he probably believed you, but you didn’t want to waste what little time you had questioning whether or not he was being completely honest with you.

“You didn’t give me a bad impression of you. Not at all. Why do you think I came back out here tonight?”

“Cause you wanted to sit by the pool, I thought?”

“The only reason I wanted to do that was because I was hoping i’d see you out here again.” He admits, making your heart skip at least three beats.

“I’m glad you did.” You beam before the temptations get the best of you all over again. You lean back into him, latching your lips with his for what felt like the millionth time, but you weren’t even close to getting tired of it.

That kiss certainly, and suddenly escalated into something so much more when he reached down and grabbed himself, positioning so that he could easily push up into you.

But before he did that, he made it a point to pull back one last time, catching your eyes when they fluttered open.

“Are you positive you wanna do this?” He asks, his voice has a whole new edge to it, exemplifying how serious he was about the simple question.

You nodded easily before you said, “positive”, and that’s when his eyes scanned yours, searching for the faintest hint of dishonesty, but he found none at all.

He nodded once before you felt his tip at your entrance, and you braced yourself for what was to come next.

He kept his dark eyes focused on you as he slowly angled his hips upwards, pushing himself in just a little at a time.

Your brows knitted together the moment you felt him stretching you out, and he could tell by the way your walls were clamping down around him, that it had probably been a while since you’ve done this with anybody else.

“Tell me if it’s too much.” He mutters, trying and failing to keep his voice steady and strong, because the immaculate feeling you were giving him was already sending him off to a euphoric planet.

You grasped his strong shoulders and lowered yourself down, pushing him in even more. The searing, stinging pain quickly faded away once you completely accepted every inch of him. He was certainly bigger than anyone else had been before him, and somehow he could already tell that, and he’d be lying right through his teeth if he said that didn’t stroke his ego a little bit.

He held his hips still until he felt you relax. He let you take the lead, simply because he didn’t want to be too overwhelming.

Once you starting rocking your hips, his eyes immediately rolled back. The way your tight walls clutched him could’ve very well became a new addiction that he wouldn’t know how to overcome anytime soon.

You bit down on your lower lip to attempt to keep your moans at a minimum as you swayed back and to, causing waves in the rolling water that splashed up to the surface over and over again.

He felt beads of sweat sliding down his temple, tasted some saltiness on his lips, too. He didn’t realize how worked up he really was until he was fighting with all his might not to grab your hips and mercilessly fuck into you.

He watched as you took all of him better than it seemed like you were going to at first. You somehow knew exactly what to do to feel him as deep as he could possibly go, hitting your sweet spot repeatedly, and he found himself completely adoring the fact that you were using his body to your advantage.

Your head tipped back the moment he thrusted his hips up, hitting a spot that you never knew you had, that made an immediate wave of warm tingles course through your veins.

He wrapped both arms around your lower back and pulled you flush against him, finding your lips and captivating them with his own.

He slowly angled his hips back and to, loving the sounds that slipped through your lips with each gentle thrust.

Your nails left half-moon indentations in his shoulders, and they’d probably end up being there for a couple days after.

You were beginning to feel your head spin out of control again, but all you did was embrace that wildly unstoppable feeling with everything you had, and all he did was enhance it each time you felt his tongue glide across your lips, and his breathy groans get lost within your mouth.

The passions were running deeper than either of you could’ve ever braced yourselves for. Your bodies were intuitively connected, moving in perfect rhythm, complete harmony.

You’d never felt more in tune with anyone else before in your life, and he’d never felt more encapsulated by anybody he’d ever been with before.

He started thrusting faster when he picked up on the signs you gave him. You could hardly keep your composure when you felt him repeatedly pounding into you, knocking against your sweet spot perfectly.

Your knees started to ache as they bared down into the step of the jacuzzi, your thighs burning from how far they were spread apart, but neither of those feelings mattered enough in that moment.

All you were focused on was what Tyler was doing to you. The riveting sensations that overpowered your buzzing body. The way his low, deep groans made you clench down around him. His arms wrapped tightly around your back as he rocked up into you.

You had to press your lips against his shoulder to muffle the unfaltering moans, and he held you tighter before he picked up the pace once more.

His lips placed a few loose kisses to your neck as he pushed himself in and out of you with a force that made waves arise in all different directions.

The sounds of the water splashing against the tile, breathy sighs, groans and muffled moans were all that the two of you could hear.

He felt you pulsate around him again, a couple high moans escaping from his shoulder and you couldn’t help it. Your eyes screwed shut as you clinged to him, drawing small traces of blood where your nails dug down, but he wouldn’t have minded it either way.

He heard his name slip past your lips before you even realized you said it, and he couldn’t help the feelings that gave him.

A mix of incomprehensible cries of pure pleasure lingered around you both and he wasn’t worried about the sounds any longer when he knew you were so close to that earth-shattering orgasm he was aiming to give you.

He kept his thrusts strong and steady even when he felt like his knees were becoming too weak. His brows furrowed in complete concentration as he kept trying to hold back until he felt you release around him.

He leaned back and turned his head to the side, waiting for you to look back at him, and when you did, you could see the dazed and blissed out look in his low, faded eyes.

His puffed lips were parted, some slick ends of his hair cling to the sides of his face, brows furrowed intently and he looked like the epitome perfection in your eyes for everything you ever knew it to be.

You couldn’t help but to catch his lips once more, completely allowing any and all the sounds that he pulled from you to get lost within him.

His arms tightened around you again, your chest flush with his and tongues at war for the umpteenth time that night, until he felt your body shudder and your mouth fall open, breaking that heated kiss the second you felt that high crash into you with a force that nearly made you tremble.

He leaned back to watch you, finding you somehow even more beautiful than he already thought you were. Your head tipped back as you welcomed that all consuming rush that found home in your veins and spread rapidly through every last inch of you.

His name once again flew past your lips and that’s when his hips stuttered, and one drawn out, low groan escaped his lips as his head tipped back and his and your releases mixed within you.

Your eyes rolled the moment you felt him fill you, the warmth engulfing you as it took over.

You peered your eyes open and saw the hazy blur of the stars above, though a couple of them probably weren’t actually there in the first place.

He picked his head back up and watched as you came down from that high he was quite proud about giving you. Both of your chests were heaving deeply, heavy breaths emitting past your lips and his, and the moment you locked eyes again, there was a brief pause in the quick rhythm of your racing heart.

His pupils were dilated, matching the moon above as he looked back at you, lips practically bruised by this point and cheeks far deeper than just a rosy hue.

He slid his tongue between his lips before he slowly pulled himself out of you, and you had to admit that you missed the feeling of him stretching you out immediately.

“I, uh-“ he stammers as he pulls his trunks back up, and you take that as your sign to reach behind him and grab the other half of your two-piece and assemble it back in place.

“I came in you.” He says as he eyes you worriedly. “I shouldn’t have, I mean, I should’ve pulled out. Right?”

What you didn’t know, was that it was the first time he’d done that before. Usually he wore a condom and then he didn’t have to pull out of whoever he happened to be with, but most times he would just let them swallow it. He never even thought about fucking someone else completely raw with the intentions to do what he just did.

“I’m on birth control.” You tell him as you tie the strings against your hips. “But yeah, I mean, what if I wasn’t, right?”

“But you are?” He asks to be sure, and you nod back. You could visibly see the relief that washes over his face, but he’s still perplexed over the fact that he didn’t even try to pull out of you. He didn’t know what came over him, or how he had gotten so caught up in the moment that he completely disregarded the rules he always strictly follows.

“Alright.” He says as he places his hands on your hips, rubbing his thumbs over your skin gently.

“Come here.” He mumbles before he wraps his arms around your back and pulls you into him, holding you tight against his chest as he takes a moment to endure everything that his heart was feeling and his mind was thinking.

You laid your cheek against his shoulder and held him back, feeling his steady heartbeat thump against your chest.

Even though the two of you had just done so much more, that simple embrace felt like it was on the higher scales of intimacy. You didn’t know what exactly you expected, but it wasn’t to be wrapped up in his arms.

You felt your heart fluttering, and a doomed feeling eased it’s way in. You knew right then and there that you were going to be thinking about this man for far too long after you both inevitably say your goodbyes, and it was going to hurt worse than hell.

Thats when those thoughts started seeping in for you, and unknowingly to you, for him too. He was wondering what he should try to do to stay in touch with you, or if that was even something you wanted from him. He was thinking about how he probably just fucked himself thoroughly, because he had completely gave into his temptations that all revolved around you.

He doesn’t regret a moment, but he’s already dreading what it’s about to be like when you both leave.

He didn’t know how to go about anything else. He didn’t come there expecting to meet someone he had an instantaneous connection with like nobody he’d ever met before. He couldn’t help that he just wanted to hold onto you for as long as he could in the short time he and you both had left at that hotel.

But all those worrisome thoughts suddenly vanished when you pulled yourself up and looked into his eyes. All he was focused on then, was you. And undoubtedly it would probably be that way from there on out.

“Tyler” you whispered his name in a different way. A way that made his stomach immediately drop. A way that sounded like regret to him.

“Yeah?” He swallowed thickly, doing his best not to let his rampant emotions get the better of him.

You shy away from his intense gaze and he wished you wouldn’t have done that. He dips his head to catch your eyes again and hopes you’ll hold it.

“What’s wrong?” He asks, his voice suddenly softer, a little shakier, even.

You were afraid to say what you were thinking, as was he. You knew things were happening so fast that it was almost impossible to process it all, but the only thing you knew for certain was that there was no solid ending in sight for what that night had mounted into.

“I just-“ You began, but you found it so hard to muster the words when he was staring at you with so much intensity, so much underlying emotion that he didn’t know how to hide.

“I don’t know what you expect out of this, or if you even expect anything at all… but I don’t know how well I can take it if we leave here and I just never hear from you again.” You admitted, only due to the liquid courage and little bouts of confidence from your previous moments shared together.

His lips parted but he didn’t speak. He realized then that everything he was feeling, was everything you were feeling, and it took him by surprise to say the very least.

“I’ve never been a one night stand type of girl.” You tell him, shrugging your shoulder. “And I don’t ever want to be that. I’m not asking for a relationship with you, or any kind of commitment, but just- I don’t know if I could handle it if you just ghosted me after all of this.”

He held onto every last word you said. He wasn’t completely sure what to say back, because he could tell that you were far better than he could ever dream of being when it comes to expressing your thoughts and your emotions, but he relied more on actions than anything else.

He slipped his ring off of his finger from behind your back and held it out for you. You glanced down at it, brows knitting in confusion before you looked back into his eyes.

“Can you hold onto this for me?” He asks, holding that silver ring between two fingers. “I’ll keep coming back for it, as long as you have it.”

You felt your lips slip up into and effortless smile that brought one to his face too. You took the ring and slid it down two different fingers, but it was too big for either of them, so you reached up and unclasped the necklace you always wore, one that your mom gifted to you years and years ago, and slid the chain through the ring before you clasped it back around your neck.

Tyler stared at it as it sat perfectly against your chest. It was almost like you accepting that ring was the solid reassurance he needed.

“I can’t promise you much. The life I live right now doesn’t really allow time for me to have relationships or, anything at all, really. But I promise that as long as you’re wearing my ring around your neck like that, I’ll keep coming back.”

You nodded, holding out your pinky finger to really seal the deal. He glanced down and let a boyish grin slip across his lips before he wrapped his own pinky around yours and shook it.

“Cross my heart.” he says, staring deep into your eyes to insure that you hear and believe him.

“And as long as you keep coming back, i’ll be wearing this ring around my neck. Cross mine.” You tell him before your pinkies unlock and your lips do instead.

———-

[lolita-lollipop]

Royal siren erasermic family? They like adopt you after you hatch from an egg bc they found you or something idk and take you back to the castle and make you their little princess or something cute and fluffy like that.

YANDERE SIREN ERASERMIC FAMILY X BABY PRINCESS READER

Shinso was just out and about, swimming through some forbidden areas he wasn’t supposed to be in, avoiding sharks, when he found an iridescent little ball under some rubble of a shipwreck, it made his gills tingle at the sweet aura that it emmited, he knew, that this creature, was something to protect. It was up until he saw something moving inside that he thought it was just some ancient treasure that would’ve died with this ship, he examined it closer, squinting his eyes, that’s when he realized, it was a Siren. A baby one at that, usually they hatched out of boring white eggs, the royal family’s were gold, but a shiny color changing white that combated the finest of jewels? Never, this little pip was special, he could feel it.

So he brought it back home, through his “balcony window”, debating wether or not he should tell his parents. As you know, he was somewhere where he was not supposed to be, and they would throw a fit. Then again, whatever this thing was, he couldn’t just keep it to himself, something was living inside it, and he wouldn’t know if something was wrong, so he has too. When he did, it came as a suprise that his parents weren’t mad, they jsut kindof stared at the orb, inhaling the addictive scent it gave off, the three huddled around it, aizawa carefully picking the Small thing up, it was only about the size of a pumpkin, extremely easy to pick up, yet he could still feel the heartbeat of a creature inside, it just had to be one of the sirenfolk , there isn’t any other explanation. He stared at it in confusion, noticing the small cracks staring to form.

Then a little hand popped through, and scared the shit out of all of them.

———

As it turned out, you were in fact a siren, a rare subtype of them, thought to have gone extinct long, long ago. The opal-looking scales that littered your arms and tail showed proof of it, this species were intensely more fragile, and weaker, that’s why they went extinct, as they couldn’t hear, and a small crabs pinch could cause major bone breaks, they were just too weak, yet so beautiful. That’s why they were coveted among the royal family. It only helped their growing obsession taht you were so cute.

It might’ve been an act of I’mpulse, but they just needed to have you as their own, of course, their word is law, so they could’ve just kept you, but they felt the need to make it official, they’d already had two pips, you’re just their third! It was simple, of course, you specific species could be born into sirenfolk families, it was just so rare that it had only happened once. You were just so cute, so fragile, just something so breakable, they just

H a d

To protect this tiny lil thing, it was instinctual to feel a protective pull over their little pups, and boy were they feeling that right now, you were special, not just any baby, but you were theirs. Their special little pup, nothing would ever lay a hand on you, ever. It had only be a few days, and word spreads through the underwater kingdom like a wave, from the servant maid who showed them how to take care of you, to the head maid, to a citizen, to the fisher, and eventually, by the end of the week, the whole kingdom was eagerly waiting to get a glimpse of their new princess.

And boy were they shocked to find out it was an opalite, the most rare of rare sirens in the world. Immediately after they had shown you to the world, sitting in a large clam as it was pulled by sharks, the citizens fell in love with you, maybe it was the fact that you were related to their beloved royals, maybe because the royal family would intensely glare at anyone who made negative comments, maybe it was the fact that a few of those people went missing, but who knows right?

You still hadn’t been able to open your eyes yet, and you won’t be able to hear them for a very long time, your hands were about the size of aizawas eye, and you looked closer to a fish than a human, as you hadn’t even developed your face yet, another plus to being the endangered species, note the sarcasm. And guess what? They found it so adorable, just their cute little baby, their little pup who can’t even protect themselves from the water around them. They just loved every part of your little body, from your tails, to your tiny little hands, to your shiny gills. It was all just so perfect- you were so perfect, and you were theirs, they were gonna protect you at all costs.

So of course they did, you were just so tiny right now, they knows practically anything could hurt you, so they opted to be around you all the time, only leaving to hunt for humans that would suffice for their tastes, drawling them in, determined because of that little smile of yours. You motivated them to do it, they were doing this for you. It have them all a sense of pride to have you feel safe with them, to rite them you. On their own terms.

Eri was constantly around you, being that she was a young one just like you, and you were her little sister! So she wanted to always be around while you made those echoing gurgling noises, or flapped your hands around in the water, she didn’t have responsibility in the kingdom yet, unless being cute is a job, so she can be with you jsut as much as she wants. Always sitting with you while you played with the floating pearls that they had arranged over your play area, watching you feel new things, holding you while you dozed off with adorable little bubbles, she always was with you.

Like now, she’s been with you all day, giving you little snacks, glaring at the guards at the door who always had their eyes on you… creeps. The sun was almost setting, and when you’re low down in the ocean it goes pitch black after a little while, and that’s when the jellyfish come out, tonight was one of the most special days out of the year in the northern oceans, the jellyfish festival, the one night a year when the rare white jellyfish would come out to say hi, leaving trails of shimmering sparkle behind them, painting the upper levels of the ocean a shiny silver. It just so happened that it occurred on your first birthday, a very small increment to sirens, as they live almost a billion years, but still a big accomplishment in their eyes. Look! Their little baby girl is turning one! How amazing!

“Do you see them hon? Look, they’re just starting to appear” Aizawa asked both you and eri calmly, swishing his hand through the salty water to pint at the new appearance of white and purple blobs, slowly flouncing their way overhead. Eri smiled up at it, her pointed teeth displayed in full view, her eyes shined at the view, not only of the huge jellyfish, but also at you, who was placed delicately in mics lap, sat up against his chest. Little bubbles escaped your mouth as you blew raspberries into the water, just making the family laugh.

“Mm-hmmm! Look! Look! How pretty! I wanna touch em! Can I touch em!” She yelled at her parents, excitedly pointing towards the jelly’s floating towards the surface, her hair floated behind her as she swished around, shinsho just chuckled, knowing that she eventually would try to touch them, and get zapped, again, like last year, and the year before, and the year before.

“No hon. Don’t do that to us again, you wanna wish your sister a happy birthday? She’s probably really exited!” Mic cheered, distracting his daughter from touching the jellyfish, yet again, meanwhile, you were happily bouncing up and down on his lap, enjoying the freedom of your arms, swishing them all over the place, grabbing the beads around your neck, jsut anything.

“But dad! Why not! It’s not like it’s hurt me or anything I’ll be fi-“ she begged, throwing her hands up in a small tempter tantrum, clearly forgetting her previous events of pain, and idiocy.

“No- nope no no, we aren’t doing this again, please honey, just please, remember last time, we had to clean up your wounds OUTSIDE-of water, you hate going to the surface remember? “

“Yeah but-“ she started speaking, but was soon cut off with a loud giggle, resonating through your lips, kindof rare for you, you hadn’t been very vocal outside of a few gurgles here and there, so it had each and every ones heads turning. That’s when they saw it, your beautiful eyes, shin sing in reflection to the jellyfish. Those beautiful little eyes of yours mesmerized all of them, a pitch black (for protection from the salt), with a shiny silver-like pupal, immediately after they opened, a burst of color filled your vision. You giggled and clapped your hands together with a small toothless smile, watching as the floaty creates went overhead, glittering with the light.

The absolutely gorgeous splash above was admired by the family form their own viewing post, the blues and whites combined to make a heavenly display. You could feel the cool sprinkles of light they emmited hitting your skin, smiling at the feeling, you splayed your hands out and flailed them against the water.

“Ohhhhhh- oh wow. Honey! Honey look! Her eyes opened! Look at taht! Aren’t you just so magical! Look at you, my little pup.” Mic smacked Aizawa over the chest multiple times, pointing at your clearly opened eyes, you just remained oblivious, staring up at all the new things around you, like.. everything! He turned you around to face him, letting you actually see his face for the first time, taking in the long yellow hair, the (also) black eyes, the ethereal face dotted with shiny yellow gills, him, you could see him!

“She’s developing smoothly, I’m glad. Awww, that’s pretty cute.” Aizawa replied to him, holding in his emotions, as soon as he met those new eyes of yours it’s like everything else disappeared, like the world itself didn’t exist, outside of him, and his fmaily. You took his breath away, or what you could call breath, so cute and innocent, such a small thing, that brings so much joy. Your little tail swished back and forth as you stared up at them happily, taking in the features of the people you’d learned to recognize by touch. Blowing raspberries out of your lips with a stream of bubbles.

“Awwwww! I’m gonna cry, she’s growing so fast! Soon she’ll be swimming in her own! In like 200 years! Too soon, way too soon. Comers baby- mm hmmm” mic spoke, knowing full well that even if he did cry, his tears would get sucked in by the ocean. He pulled you close, moving your head I’ve this shoulde is it would rest in the crook of his neck while he hugged you, eventually, the others joined in, eri practically flopping ontop (with careful regard for you of course).

They all stared at you, while you stared up at the “sky”, oblivious to their stares, to the ways they would growl at anyone who came close, to how they kept you from seeing anyone other than what they personally approve. After all, you are jsut their little pup, of course you wouldn’t notice! Their little pup… feels right to say that, it isn’t like you have any family waiting, they aren’t ever gonna come here.

And if they ever did?

Then, well, a few mermaids are going missing

———————————————————————————————————

Thanks for requesting, this was fun to write!

Have a great day today! Goodbye.

[lottiebagley]

Family Reunions- George Weasley

Three years imagining a life together Love your family more than we loved each other I said I’d keep in touch and I did But the more we keep in touch, the more I miss him

The second she enters her small flat she can feel her entire world shatter around her. Leaning her back against the door as she sinks to the ground, head dropping into her hands as she wipes furiously at her eyes, trying to push the tears back in.

Once a week she had attended dinner at the burrow, it was nice, good to see Molly and Arthur and whichever kids were around, of course George was never there, the date marked in his calendar in a red pen reminder to not go home that day. To sleep and eat at the flat.

The family had been heartbroken to hear that he had broken up with his girlfriend, after the war he had committed all his time to helping Fred. His twin needed every last bit of his attention, helping with his physical therapy and his dwindling mental state and so George's relationship had taken a back seat. She hadn't minded, in fact she had understood, she even committed herself to helping too.

But a year after George decided to call things off, Fred was better, he was walking and he was happier and he was working again. It was the perfect time for him to focus on his relationship, after all the girl had proven herself time and time again. But he couldn't bring himself to do it. Maybe it was that he felt like he needed a minute alone.

Maybe it was the feeling that she was so much better than him. Maybe it was his mother's constant talks of rings and weddings. He wasn't quite sure but all of a sudden he felt like he was suffocating.

He sat her down in his bedroom in the flat. Explained that she wasn't the one and it didn't feel right anymore. He had watched as she cried and had attempted to comfort her only for her to push him away, fleeing his flat leaving a baffled Fred on the living room sofa, television on in front of him, wondering why the girl who may as well be a sister just left the flat in floods of tears.

George still visions his mother's face when he closes his eyes, the look on her face when he told her he ended his relationship. He remembers her disappointment. He remembers his brothers shock. He remembers his dad's sad sigh. He remembers his sister's passionate rant about how he never deserved her anyway.

As the girl cries on her hallway floor she vows that she will stop. Stop seeing the Weasley's. Not because she doesn't love them with every fibre of her being but because she couldn't handle the heart break. Couldn't keep sitting at their dinner table without his hand on her knee. Couldn't keep sitting on the swing set without him laughing and pushing her. Couldn't keep helping Molly clean plates without him sat on the counter teasing her.

Tell your sister if she hears from her ex I can’t be the one that she calls And as much as I love talks with your dad I need him to leave me alone Cause I can’t find the words to express The way that I wish I was the one But friends don’t bring friends to family reunions

Her resolve to stop seeing the Weasley's was gone by the next morning.

She woke up to a missed call from Charlie and called back, chattering away about his upcoming trip home as she got ready.

She arrived at her job at the ministry and met up with Hermione for coffee, deciding that when she eventually cut her ties she would keep Hermione. The girl was like a younger sister, although so was Ginny, but she figured one last tie to the family, someone to hear their news from would do no harm.

Arthur knocked on her office door in his lunch break, bringing with him sandwiches made by Molly and asking her to eat with him and she didn't have the heart to say no, so instead they ate in her office and talked merrily about the infestation of singing sunglasses he was dealing with today.

As she left her office she received a phone call from Ginny, who ranted about how annoying Harry was being and how now she had graduated and was training she felt like she had no time to focus on her relationship.

It was after she assured the girl that her and Harry were meant to be as she walked through the Leaky Cauldron she knew what she had to do.

She got a flat above a bookshop on Diagon Alley simply to be near George and now everyday, walking past his store, felt like torture. She hadn't been in the store, she'd avoided it like the plague even when Fred asked her to come and hang out with him and George wasn't working. So as she walked into the atmospheric shop her heart felt like it was sinking in her chest.

"Hey sweetheart, you all okay?" Fred asks with a bright grin, he's leaning on his cane for support and eyeing the door.

She could cry looking at him. Not just because he looks identical to the man who fell out of love with her and she still pined desperately for. No. Today the tears she blinks back are practically grief, she knew that, realistically, she would see Fred around, but she wouldn't be able to call him a friend anymore.

"I uh- could I speak to George?" she questions, Fred smiles gently, noticing her pained tone.

"Yeah, of course, you can go on up," he assures. She nods shooting him a small smile, but pauses on the stairs.

"Hey Freddie,"

"Yeah,"

"I want you to know that I am really proud of you, of the shop and of how much better you are and I mean when I first met you who'd have thought you'd end up here. I just-well I love you and I am really proud," She blinks back tears as she speaks, almost wishing she would get a chance to say a goodbye to all the Weasley's.

Fred smiles gently, somewhere in him he can tell, tell that this is goodbye and he's about to loose a friend.

"I love you too sweetheart, just remember no matter what that I am always going to be here for you,"

They share eye contact for a moment, both knowing and not saying it. Fred understood, he can only imagine how hard it must be to still be a part of his family's lives after George. He knew the girl in front of him loved his twin brother more than anything, he knew that deep down George loved her just as much, and yet here Fred stands, a silent goodbye hanging in the air.

Phone calls Sweet notes All the little things I used to love Now they just remind me that I was never enough We said we’d keep in touch and I tried But the more we keep in touch, the less I move on in life

"Hey George," she speaks quietly, standing in the hallway of his flat as he stands staring at her shock.

It's been a month since he saw her and his heart leaps at the sight of her, at her standing there with a small smile and teary eyes and a pencil skirt and blazer and messy hair and she's just her. She is her and it's everything he's been missing. He wonders as he stares at her how he ever thought that she wasn't the one. That she wasn't perfect. That she wasn't made for him.

Her own eyes are wide, seeing him sparking something in her that she didn't even know existed. He's shirtless, a white towel wrapped around his hips and his hair damp from the shower he just clearly had. Her eyes scan his toned chest, his broad shoulders, the light sprinkles of freckles. His scent, his cinnamon body wash, is so strong that it practically invades her body and she could scream and cry and all she wants is to kiss him.

"Oh-shit-hi. Is everything alright?" He's worried to see her, had someone died? Was she okay? Merlin, he wanted her to be happy more than anything in the world.

"Hey," she speaks quietly, backing a way a little when he tries to move closer, not wanting to be close enough that she could reach out and touch him.

"You said that already," he teases gently, testing the waters.

"I'm sorry- I-" she cuts herself off, not sure how to say anything that she wants to

"Hey, it's okay. You're okay," he comforts her gently "Why don't you go sit down, I'll get dressed and come, just give me a minute," he offers, she nods her head slowly.

When he enters the living room it feels natural. Seeing her sat on his sofa waiting for him feels right. He thinks for a second about how it could all be different. How he could be in pyjamas and she could be in one of his shirts, how he would jump on her and laugh when she tells him he is squashing her, how he'd have held her as they watch a film and make-out and he'd cook for her and they'd drink wine and enjoy a blissful Friday evening, wrapped up in each other.  

"You're all dressed up. Going anywhere nice?" she questions, eyes scanning his white dress shirt and jeans.

"The Italian, the one in Camden town,"

"With the little dog and the red wine?" she questions, George lets out a laugh at the memory of the time he took her there, it was a month after the war, thinking back it was probably the last time he took her out. He got so busy with Fred and the shop and she'd not been a priority when he knew she should have been, she never seemed to mind though.

"That's the one,"

"So, it's a date," she smiles gently, heart splintering in her chest

"Uh, yeah. Yeah it is," he confirms, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly

"That's great, do I know her?"

"Angelina," He admits quietly. She nods, forcing a smile.

"That's great George, I'm really happy for you. I'm sorry to disturb you-"

"No!" he cuts her off a little too eagerly, a little too happy to see her. "No, you are fine being here. I want to help with whatever is happening," he assures her

"Right, well I won't keep you long," she nods awkwardly

"Hush, none of that nonsense, take all the time you need," he reassures her, sitting down next to her on the sofa but keeping a respectful distance apart.

"So-well- I know that this is-" she cuts herself off with a sigh "Sorry, this is just...awkward,"

"Hey, it's just me. You can say anything," He moves his hand to place it gently on her knee, his heart stops at the way she gently pulls her leg away.

"I need you to tell your family to stop talking to me,"

"What?" he snaps, suddenly quite offended. "My family have been nothing but kind to you and-"

"Christ! it's not like that!" she gasps, he sighs

"Then what?"

"I can't be a part of their lives anymore. I know it sounds so selfish and I wish it was different but- George- I love your family. I really do. I just- being around them hurts. It kills me. It makes me want to just drop dead because every time I talk to them I think of you. Being in your house I can feel you and- I- it hurts. It hurts too much," She admits it in a tired whisper, George feels his heart break at the thought of her heartbroken because of him.

"Okay. I'll talk to them," he speaks quietly, she nods and stands.

"Goodbye George,"

"I'll see you around?" he asks quietly, the thought of this being it makes his heart hurt. When his family were stealing seeing him all the time it wasn't as bad, he always knew what was happening in her life. This, this was final.

"Yeah. Yeah maybe,"

Tell your sister if she hears from her ex I can’t be the one that she calls And as much as I’ll miss talks with your dad I need him to leave me alone Cause I can’t find the words to express The way you don’t think I am the one And friends don’t bring friends to family reunions

For the next six months George hears nothing. Without his family seeing her he has no idea how she is, if she's okay, if she's happier now. He lays up at night thinking about her and wishing he could turn back time.

She hears scraps, staying in touch with Hermione, she knows about Ron in depth, hears bits and pieces about the rest of the family. Too awkward to ask if George is okay, if he's happier without her, if he's with Angelina now.

Bill receives a card when his little girl is born but she doesn't pick up the phone when he calls her. Fred gets a text message when he finishes his physical therapy but when he replies it's left on delivered. Ginny swears up and down that she saw her in the stands of her first professional quidditch game but can't prove it.

So, with dread filling her body and curses at her nephew flying in her mind she enters Weasley's Wizard Wheezes. She's hoping to go unseen by the twins, they had staff now and maybe they would never have to find out her annoyingly loveable nephew wanted a reusable swamp for his 12th birthday and absolutely nothing else would do.

"Hello, welcome to Weasley's Wizard- oh, hi," George's voice sounds anxious when he snaps his head up to see her standing like a deer in the headlights in the almost empty shop.

"Hey,"

"Is everything alright?" George wonders if the way his mind automatically jumps to something awful having happened because of the war or because he can't think of any other reason after everything he put her through that she would want to be anywhere near him.

"It's Max's birthday next week," she announces

"Yeah. 12, right?" George questions with a lopsided grin. He adored her nephew, the kid as giggly and energetic and just like him and Fred were as kids. He also loved the way she was around kids.

"Yeah," she confirms, surprised he remembers. "He, uh, started school,"

"Made Gryffindor I'm sure," George smiles, it's the first genuine smile he's let out in weeks

"Yeah. The first thing he said when he saw me at Christmas was that I just had to tell uncle George, didn't shut up about you once. I didn't have the heart to tell him we broke up so..." she trails off.

"He's a good kid,"

"He is. Professor McGonogall isn't quite so set on him,"

"Nah, she always loves the trouble makers," George smirks

"That's true," She smiles gently "Anyway, so he wants a portable swamp and nothing else instead for his birthday, so," she trails off once more, gesturing to herself.

"Well of course," George grins, pushing himself off the front desk that he had been resting on and striding across the shop floor to grab one. He grabs a basket, walking around the floor and plucking any product he thinks the kid might like, even a few unreleased things from the back room before returning to where she is standing at the front till with a small smile on her face.

"George-" she starts, he shushes her immediately.

"I'll gift wrap them for you," he announces, placing the full basket on the till

"You don't have to that," she protests but he laughs

"Actually, I kinda do. You are the worst at wrapping gifts," he teases making her smile.

"You got me there," she admits

"Yeah. So, how've you been," He begins scanning products through the till and wrapping them with ease

"Uh good. I got a promotion-"

"Wow! that's fantastic, and so well deserved,"

"How would you know?" She blushes as she speaks, not looking at the boy

"I do read the paper y'know? What is it now 100 war criminals you have single handedly found," he bolsters, she'd always wanted to be an auror but becoming so high up that she reported directly to the minister and had a big fancy office was only in her wildest dreams until now.

"What about you? How's things?" she questions

"They're good. Shop's going great and Fred's only getting better by the day. Little Victorie is so perfect and yeah life is, well, it's good," He can't bring himself to say that as much as everything is perfect he can't find it in him to be happy without her by his side.

"And Angelina?"

"We decided we were way better as friends. You dating?"

"I'm married to the job," she shrugs, not wanting to say she doubted she would ever fall in love again without him.

"I get that," he nods, placing the pile of wrapped up parcels into bags. He physically laughs when she grabs her purse and begins to gather money

"Sweetheart, you're not paying for any of this. I only rang it through the till because we have to stock management,"

"George, that is so kind but I can-"

"Yes you can, if it makes you feel better stick my name on a couple of the tags alright?"

"I will, I promise that I will," she nods, taking the bags from his hand "Thank you,"

"No bother. Give Max my best, yeah?" He smiles, she nods and he watches as she leaves the store, his heart that he hadn't even realised was practically beaming dulls back down when she goes.

Tell your mom to stop sending me recipes she finds on the internet And when your brother wins homecoming king

I won’t be there to witness it And when you find the words to express the way you don’t think I am the one And friends don’t bring friends to family reunions If we’re just friends don’t bring friends to family reunions

"You busy?" Hermione leans in the doorway of her office

"I can make a couple minutes, what's up? We had coffee three days ago," she reminds as the brunette steps into the office, closing the door behind her and settling in the seat across the desk.

"I know and I wanted to ask then but I couldn't bring myself to it because I feel so bad asking," Hermione explains, twisting the diamond ring on her finger anxiously.

"'Mione, you can ask me anything. You know that if it's physically possible I'll do it," she assures, putting the papers she had been reading down to give her friend undivided attention.

"You're one of my best friends," Hermione states

"And you're one of mine," The girl nods, eyebrows furrowed in concern

"And when somebody does something big in their life they want their best friends there,"

"Hermione what ever you need I'm there. 100%"

"Big things like getting married. I'm getting married, you know that, I mean to say Ron and I have picked a date and it's four months away and we are getting married at the burrow in a marquee by the lake. I know it's a lot to ask of you. I mean it's not just some ex, it's George, and I know how hard it's been for you without him and I hate myself for asking. And it's not just seeing him it's being there, I mean you fell in love with him there and it's not just him it's all of them and I understand if you say no, but, I want you there," Hermione rambles

"Of course," She speaks without thinking, never would she not attend her friends wedding "Hermione, I would love nothing more than to be there,"

"Really?" Hermione beams

"Merlin, 'Mione did you think for a second I wouldn't come, it's your wedding,"

Love them like they are my own But I don’t think I’ll ever move on If you don’t , If  you don't

It had been the most obvious thing in the world to say yes when Hermione asked, but now, standing in a stupid, but undeniably beautiful, pale blue bridesmaid dress she felt nervous. Hermione had insisted she had no obligation to see the Weasley's until the wedding day, she knew how her friends heart ached for not just George but the whole family, and wanted to make the whole thing as painless as possible.

But now, standing in the empty kitchen the morning of the wedding, the girl wondered how to breathe. She arrived by floo powder, already changed and ready like Hermione had instructed as she was getting ready with her muggle family.

She wasn't sure what she expected but it wasn't the empty, quiet room she was standing in.

She lets out a sigh, blinking back tears, the scent feeling like coming home.

"Sweetie, how are you?" She hadn't even realised Molly had entered the room from the back door until the familiar woman is pulling her into a hug.

"I'm okay, how are you?" she questions as Molly pulls away. If it were anyone else Molly would have rushed away, much too busy with preparations, but it wasn't. Molly loved the kids her children brought home in her life like her own, she missed the girl but understood that she needed space. One look at the tears in her eyes tells Molly that right now she needs to be here.

"I'm good. We are all good," Molly assures, gently guiding the girl to sit. "Now, tell me honestly, how are you?

"I'm just sorry," She admits, voice cracking and tears spilling onto her cheeks. "You must all hate me,"

"Sweetie, no one here hates you, not even for a second. We adore you," she assures, rubbing the girl's shoulder comfortingly

"All of you were always so welcoming and kind and then I just stop speaking to you all. I was so rude and I'm so sorry. Merlin, I didn't even tell you myself I made George do it,"

"None of that. You don't have to be sorry. We are the sorry ones. My son broke your heart and we were all wrapped up in loving you and wanting to be part of your life that we didn't stop to think how hard it would be for you. To be here and to talk to us. You needed to heal, no one is mad at you. We just miss you, and when or if you ever want to come back you will be welcomed with open arms," Molly assures her, grabbing a tissue to dab the girls cheeks dry.

"I missed you so much Molly," she sighs

"I missed you too dear, and I know George misses you,"

"I miss him. Every day I miss him,"

The moment is cut short when Charlie strides in through the front door "Thought I smelt trouble," He beams, wrapping his arms around the girl "Come help me with the daises, Hermione wants like a thousand and Perce is useless,"  He informs, an arm wrapped around her shoulder. She looks almost anxious and he rubs her shoulder gently "He's upstairs with Ron," he whispers gently

"You're welcome to go and speak to him if you'd rather," Molly informs, she wanted her son to be back with the girl more than anything.

"It's okay I'm happy to help,"

"Thank Merlin, I'd strangle Percy if you aren't there to stop me,"

Tell your sister if she hears from her ex I can’t be the one that she calls And as much as I’ll miss talks with your dad I need him to leave me alone Cause I can’t find words to express The way that I wish I was the one But friends don’t bring friends to family reunions

"I saw mum put you to work earlier," George's voice calls through the dark night air. She's sat in the tree house in the garden, the wedding a small distance away.

"I never mind," she shrugs as she watched him climb the ladder, he sits down next to her, legs dangling over the edge next to hers.

"Thought I'd find you here," He comments, he had built the tree house one summer when they couldn't get a minute alone. It was the first summer she spent there, between 4th and 5th year, she fell in love with him in that tree house.

"Just needed a minute," she sighs

"Yeah. It's beautiful but it's kind of a lot,"

"Weddings when you're depressingly single are often a lot," she shrugs, he chuckles at that.

"I have no clue how you are single," He comments, eyes trained on the starry sky above them

"Well, you dumped me so," she teases, a light laugh in her voice. He rolls his eyes, bumping his body to hers, for the first time since the breakup she doesn't move away from his touch. Not wanting to waste the opportunity but also not wanting to push her he settles for pressing his leg next to hers, her foot wraps around his leg holding him close to her without her even noticing, it's second nature, instinctive.

"I'm serious. You're so incredibly kind, and funny, and smart and good in bed," he adds the last one as a joke, laughing when she playfully swats his arm "and I mean, look at you right now, you're like a fucking goddess. You always are. How had no one swept you up?" He questions, and he means every word of it.

"Honestly?" she questions

"Always,"

"They've tried. I mean boys ask me out or try and get with me, but- I- well I never say yes, it's not fair to go on a date with someone when you're in love with someone else,"  She admits, she is staring straight ahead, not looking at him, so she misses the grin that brightens his face.

"That's why Angelina and I decided on friends," he admits, she hums in response not sure what to say. A comfortable silence falls over them, the sound of music from the party the only thing filling the air.

"You wanna dance?"he asks suddenly

"Sure," she agrees, he jumps down from the tree house, it's a little stupid but not unsafe and they've done it a thousand times before. She follows suit and his hands grab her waist to steady her when she stumbles a little in her heels.

He keeps his hands there, pulling her closer to him as hers wrap around his neck.

"Always thought you looked so good in blue," he admits as his thumb strokes her waist, the silky material soft under his grip. "Like a princess," he adds

"Always thought you looked so good in a suit," she grins, blushing a little as he twirls her around

"I miss you," he hums out, pulling her back closer this time, her head resting on his chest.

"I miss you," she returns.

"Y'know I never stopped loving you. Not even for a second. I regret it. More than anything," he's practically whispering and his heart stops when she stills in his arms.

"I can't do this," She whispers, tugging herself from his arms

"Darling-"

"No. George, I love you, more than anything. So I can't. It's your little brother's wedding and you are lonely and you are all mixed up and we haven't seen each other in so long and weddings, merlin weddings, they confuse everything and I can't. I can't do this one last night thing. I'm sorry,"

Before George can reply, can tell her that she's so far from right she's turned around and is speeding back towards the party.

Tell your mom to stop sending me recipes she finds on the internet And when your brother wins homecoming king I won’t be there to witness it And when you find the words to express That you don’t think I am the one And friends don’t bring friends to family reunions

She pulls her apartment door open a week after the wedding, surprised to see George Weasley a determined look in his eyes and soaking wet from the rain.

"George,"

"Hi. I need to talk to you," he doesn't seem nervous, he seems like there's a fire in his belly, a determination, a purpose, a need.

"Oh, sure. Come in," She moves aside, letting him in. "The living area is at the end of the hall. I'll go grab a towel," she directs.

He looks around the living area, it's open plan to the kitchen and it's cosy. Full of pictures and little trinkets, it is fundamentally her and his he feels more at home there despite having never been before than he does in his own flat.

She re-enters, throwing a fluffy baby pink towel at George before heading into the kitchen, grabbing an extra mug having been in the process of making tea when he arrived, and fixing them both a tea how they like it.

"So, you wanted to talk?" she prompts, sitting crosslegged on the couch, her fuzzy pjs and messy hair so domestic and beautiful he would marry her on the spot to get to see her like that every day.

"You said that you didn't want to do one last night, well, I don't either. It wasn't wedding goggles making me look at you different. I am in love with you. So, in love with you that being without you makes it hard to breathe and I want you back, not just for a night but for the rest of my life," He thinks he should be nervous but he's not. It's her. He could never be nervous with her.

"George, that makes no sense why would you-"

"Listen, I have never felt good enough for you. The whole time I've known you it was like you were so above me and I could never be on your level, no matter what happened you were always perfect. You were, and are, too good for me,"

"George, I have never been-" she starts but he cuts her off

"I had to help Fred. He is my twin brother, my best friend. He nearly died and I was terrified. He was nearly crushed to death and I realised I could loose him, I could loose anyone I loved. That included you, obviously, and that's how it started. I was scared to be with you because if I lost you I couldn't cope. I couldn't survive. So I started pushing you away. But you. Merlin, you're so good that it didn't matter. I pushed you away and I was wrong to do that but you didn't waver for a second. It was my responsibility to help Fred. To go to physical therapy with him. To hold him when he cried. To be there no matter. I would have done it no matter what. But you. You didn't have to do that. But you did. You didn't complain. You didn't walk away. You helped fix Fred even when I was being crappy to you," He rants

"George, I loved you and I still do. I would have done anything you asked me to, I still would. But I didn't help Fred because of you. I didn't do it for you. Not cause I was too good. I helped Fred because he's been my friend since I was 11. I helped Fred for Fred. Not for you," She explains, George sighs.

"I know. I just was in this state right? I was scared to loose you and you've always been too good for me and I just didn't know what to do. Then, Fred was getting better, and I felt empty. I wanted Fred happy and healthy of course but I'd become so used to spending all my time trying to fix things, trying to keep everyone afloat. It felt like everything stopped. Like no one needed me. I became obsessed with things I could. I couldn't fix you, I couldn't fix us, because nothing needed fixing. You were so perfect for me that I didn't need to fix it. That scared me. The more I thought about it the more I realised if I lost you, no one could fix me, I couldn't loose you but I wasn't good enough for you. It had to be me. My terms. My breakup. It was stupid, but that was I hadn't lost you I'd given you up and that was better," he explains, tears flooding her cheeks as she suddenly understands everything that's been happening for the past months.

"Georgie, you never needed to be scared. I'm not going anywhere, I promise,"

"I know. I'm sorry that I hurt you,"

"George, I love you,"

"I love you darling, more than anything," he smiles

"So another go?" she questions timidly

"If you'll have me," he nods, she grins. Hands shoving his shoulder's back to lay against the sofa, knees on either side of his waist. Her lips touch his for the first time in months and it's like they can breathe again.

They lay side by side in her bed that night, bare skin pressed to each other, holding each other as tightly as humanly possible.

"Can we stay here all day tomorrow? I just wanna lay with you," she speaks tiredly, her head on his chest

"Ron and Hermione get home from the honeymoon tomorrow," George informs, she moves her head to look at him "We have a dinner thing, looking at the wedding pictures too,"he continues

"That'll be nice. You aren't leaving my bed till the very last minute though," she decides

"You should come," he prompts, giving her a squeeze

"You really think your family won't mind?"

"Please, they love you. They'll just be glad to see we are back together,"

"We could be going as friends," She teases, he rolls his eyes

"Not to a family reunion we couldn't. Besides, I have every intention to hold your hand and kiss you the whole night so they'll probably catch on. Aside from Percy, bless him, he's socially inept,"

If we’re just friends don’t bring friends to family reunions If we’re just friends don’t bring friends to family reunions

**

Masterlist

[greenygreenland]

What I'd Do For You:

-imagine Roy as your adoptive father

-he'd be so flawed but he'd try his hardest

-I write for females because that's what I'm most comfortable with, but it's not too prominent (please don't be offended! It's only what I'm comfortable with!)

Summary: You're feeling down. Roy's here to help.

Today was nothing short of a bad day. It poured as soon as you stepped out of the house, and before you could grab your umbrella, you realised you were going to be late. Not long after, you ran straight into Ed and Al, who both ignored you in favour of chasing some guy down the street.

Whatever, you told yourself. Not like I needed a 'hi' from my best friends anyway.

Not long after, a car zoomed by and splashed muddy water at you. If it weren't for the rain, you'd be caked in the stuff. As you continued down the street, some guy thought it would be fun to mug you. Of course, when he found out you were a state alchemist, he made a run for it. But that didn't make you feel better, not when there were people staring at you like you were a nuisance.

What did you ever do to them anyway? Maybe it was just the fact today was a terrible Monday afternoon.

When you got to Roy's office, your clothes were sopping wet, your hair a matted mess, and your heart, very much hardened and cold. You softly closed the door behind you. There was no point in slamming it when you didn't have the energy to be angry in the first place.

"(Y/n)?" Roy stared at you incredulously. "What happened to you?" You pointed to the window.. The pouring rain and gray clouds were enough of an answer. "Everything happened, that's what." He raised a brow with a short sigh. "'Everything' is quite vague, don't you think?" He stood and made his way to a cabinet. From seemingly nowhere, he found a towel and threw it at you.

"Thanks Roy." You ran it through your hair and placed it on the couch to sit on. It was just as wet as your clothes, but it wasn't like anyone had a blow dryer on hand. Roy took a seat across from you on the opposing couch. "Care to tell me what happened today?"

You thought back to the Elric brothers, then the mugging and everything else you had to go through today. Roy listened intently. "Why did you leave the house so late?" he inquired. "You could have been here at eight o'clock sharp if you hadn't been up all night reading. Then you could have avoided that mugger, the rain, and everything in between." You huffed. "So what? Changing one thing wouldn’t change the day. And besides, it was a good book. What else was I supposed to do?"

"Put it down." Roy plainly offered. "Save that 'last page' for tomorrow, or better yet, sleep before three in the morning." You didn't like the way he was looking at you, as if he were deciding on whether he should be disappointed, frustrated, or annoyed with you. But bad habits died hard. It wasn't easy to break out of those cycles.

You leaned back into the couch. Defeat crossed your eyes, and that was when Roy realized how tired you looked. It wasn't because of your constant travels, or the fact that Edward and Alphonse ignored you completely (he'd give them a piece of his mind later on), but because you were burnt out.

And maybe feeling a bit down.

"You've been studying a lot." Roy stated. You didn't need him to point out the obvious. It was no secret you were doing your best to help the Elric brothers on their journey towards finding their bodies. "Have you found anything useful?" You shook your head with a tight frown. There was so much you needed to work out, so many variables that didn't add up, and so many frauds you needed to uncover.

"Whenever we're close," you mumbled, "our goal keeps getting farther away. Sometimes I feel so useless while Ed and Al go off on their own accord. I just...I don't know." Your shoulders slumped and Roy's heart began to ache. "It's so hard, and I'm really..." A sigh escaped your lips.

"Tired?" Roy finished. He knew that look well, the one where your eyes darkened with clouds and you looked like you wanted to scream when you couldn't. Long ago, he had the same look. Silently, he swore he'd never do it again. At least, not when you were around.

Seeing that same look on your face made him sick to the stomach. "Take a day off," he started. "The Lieutenant is here so don't worry. As for the Elric brothers, I don't think they'll need your help now. They’re fine as is if you ask me." Roy winced at his words. He didn't mean to make it sound like you were unwanted. In fact, he wouldn't do that even if he was paid.

"Maybe I'm not needed by them anymore.” you concluded. “They're busy anyway, so they won't miss me. It’s been weeks since we last talked actually. And besides, Ed’s really great at everything he does. Same with Al. They’re skilled, smart, everything I’m not." You smiled and it was a bit watery.

Roy's lips parted. No, no, no, that wasn't what he meant. The urge to punch himself in the face was overwhelming. Why was he so bad at wording things?

You stood and folded the wet towel. "I'll take the day off. I'm not sure what I'll do though."

"Wait--"

"If you need me, I'll be around the block somewhere." You looked like you were about to cry, and all Roy could do was watch. He wanted to say something, but what if he made it worse? Saying 'Don't cry!' wasn't exactly comforting, and by the looks of it, you weren't in the mood to talk anything through.

A forced smile made its way to your lips. "I'll be back later Roy."

And just like that, you were gone. The door closed shut with a small click, leaving Roy alone in the quiet office. He stared at the phone on his desk tensely. Hughes was good with people, and he knew how to talk to (Y/n) better than most. If Roy called then maybe...

No. Why should he have to rely on Maes? This was (Y/n). He could deal with his daughter just fine. "Teenagers." He found himself making his way to the phone "Why are they so hard to understand?” The familiar beeping sounded on the other end as he dialed the number.

“Hello, could you connect me to Maes Hughes?”

-----

The lone bench you took refuge on was lonely. But you were fine with that. Here, no one could see you through all the pouring rain and darkened clouds. As your tears mixed in with the cold droplets, you stared into the far off distance. The trees swayed in the occasional breeze and you shivered.

Maybe you should have brought a coat.

Suddenly, the rain stopped pounding against your head. Your dampened hair had rivers flowing down it, and the tears that quietly came to a stop left your cheeks with stains.

“So this is where you’ve been,” a voice calmly said. You didn’t need to look up to know who it was. Why, after an hour, did he come looking for you in the rain? It wasn’t like it mattered. Roy settled by your side, the umbrella hovering above. “Here,” he handed you your coat, “you’re shivering.”

You pushed the coat away with a shake of your head. “I don’t need it.” There was a crack in your voice you covered with a cough. If Roy noticed or not, he didn’t show it. Instead, he helped you put on the coat. “It would be inconvenient if you were sick,” he decided. “How are you supposed to help the Elrics with a cold?”

That didn’t matter. The Elrics were busy for all you cared, and it wasn’t like they needed you anyway. “I’m dead weight, dad.” The words made your eyes sting again. “They don’t-t-they don’t need me.”

“And why is that?” Roy’s gentle tone made the tears fall fast. “Because, dad, I’m useless. Edward’s so much better at everything. He--he’s always saving the day and figuring out all of this country’s problem’s. And...and when I try to help, I always mess it up.”

You thought back to earlier today, where you bumped into the boys spontaneously. They might’ve been busy, but they blatantly ignored you. And the fact that they hadn’t called all week made you worry. Had you done something wrong? No, maybe they didn’t care for you anymore because you were so useless.

“I...I don’t know what to do.” With the umbrella over your head, Roy saw every tear as clear as day. He watched your shoulders tense and your fists clench into tight fists. You were trying to stop crying, but the tears kept coming and coming like a river.

How useless of you.

“Come here.” You didn't want Roy to see your face. “Come here,” he repeated. You hesitantly scooted closer to him on the soaking bench. He held the umbrella in his left hand and pulled you close with his other. When was the last time he actually hugged you like this? He couldn’t remember, and that made him feel guilty.

Was it his fault that you thought so lowly of yourself? Maybe he should have been more adamant on showing how proud he was of your accomplishments. Becoming a State Alchemist at this age was more than a simple privilege. It was a precedent that no generation had ever seen in their lives.

“Why do you compare yourself to Fullmetal?” he inquired, rubbing your arm comfortingly. “He’s not you.”

“But he’s better than me and I can’t measure up to him.” Roy shook his head dismissively. For a moment, you wondered you disappointed him. “It doesn’t matter what Fullmetal is, (Y/n). He’s strong, I admit, but the most hot-headed kid I’ve ever met. Unlike him out, you never let emotions blind your choices. That’s something Fullmetal can’t do. As for strength, you don’t need that.”

He smiled a little and it was so warm. It wasn’t everyday you got to see this side of Roy. He was always caught up in paperwork, plans, and looking after what he worked so hard to accomplish. “You have enough wits to outsmart me. Remember that time Fullmetal challenged me to a match?”

You nodded. “I joined because I didn’t think he could handle it. Ed didn’t want my help, but I ended up coming along anyway.” A smug smirk made its way up Roy’s lips. “And who lasted the longest?”

“Me.”

“And why was that?”

"Because I read your attack patterns?" You uncertainly replied. Roy frowned. "Say it like you mean it."

"Because I read your attack patterns." you repeated. An approving look made its way up your dad's face. "Exactly. Fullmetal has wit, but you are a much more terrifying opponent." You sniffled with a huff. "I'm not--I'm not even close to your level."

"You don't have to be." Roy turned his gaze to the pouring rain, as if he were thinking about how useless his alchemy would be. "If you believed in yourself more, then you will advance farther than you've already come."

That wasn't true. How could you believe in yourself when you felt like an absolute failure? It didn't matter how many successes you've had in the past, because what if they were all flukes? Some day, your luck would run out. Then you'd let your dad down, along with Ed and Al and Hawkeye and Uncle Maes and everyone else you knew.

"You're not a failure, if that's what you're thinking." Roy blurted out. "I couldn't be more proud of how far you've come. The day I met you, I thought I'd fail you. Look where we are now." He laughed a little and it made you relax in his hold. "If you were a failure, you wouldn't have become a reowned State Alchemist. You wouldn't have survived in the most dire times either, and you wouldn't have made me so proud of you."

Your eyes widened. Had you heard him right? You had to be hearing things. Roy met your gaze and smiled warmly. "Yes, I'm proud of you. Why wouldn't I be?" For a moment, you remained still. The gears in your head churned like clockwork, dissecting and rewinding the words Roy had spoken. You tentatively wrapped your arms around Roy's middle.

Yes, I'm proud of you.

You buried your head into his shoulder.

Why wouldn't I be?

And then you cried. Today was nothing short of a bad day, but if you hadn't forgotten your umbrella, gotten ignored by the Elrics, nearly mugged, or showed up late, then you wouldn't have been able to hear those words and the silent I love you's.

IF YOU LIKE THIS, PLEASE REBLOG (IT HELPS ME OUT SOOOO MUCH AS A WRITER!)

[peachhcs]

Love Languages Pt. 2

Pairing: Luke Patterson x reader

Summary: Pt.2 to Luke asking you what Love Languages are

Warnings: talk of drinking and cheating but that’s it

Word Count: 1.6k

Here is part two that you all have been asking for! I deeply apologize for how long it took me to get this up, school is really kicking my butt. I have a bunch of people asking to be on my taglist and I’m currently in the works of making one so comment or reblog or something telling me you want to be on my taglist! Make sure you specifiy for my series or for small blurbs/oneshots like this or both! 

Thank you so much for the amazing feedback! I love the comments and y’all are so amazing! 

I’m not sure if this will have a part 3?? but let me know if you want one haha. I won’t be tagging anyone in this because my tags got lost in my notifications, so if you want to be tagged again, make sure you read above! :)

PART 1

* * *

You didn’t mean to avoid Luke, it just kind of happened. Junior Year was no joke and it felt like every night and every weekend you had piles of homework to get done, so you sort of drifted from going to Julie’s house everyday. She didn’t mind, she understood just as much and kept you updated on how the band was doing. However, you still felt guilty for avoiding the boys. You were worried that Luke would think he scared you away by touching you, but you were feeling the exact opposite. You wanted to explore more and find out more but here you were, in your room at 12am trying to finish this nagging essay that was due in 8 hours. 

You felt your eyelids growing heavy but you shook your head, trying to keep yourself awake. The 3 monster drinks on your nightstand said enough about how much you were trying to keep yourself awake. You had 2 paragraphs left but you knew you were at a losing battle with yourself. The way your eyes were just glazing over at this point and rereading the same sentence over and over was becoming a very evident indication that you needed sleep. Before you could even think about quitting for the night, there was a noise from the side of your room and a grunt. Your eyes quickly darted over to where the noise came from and there stood Luke with that magenta pull over that you really liked. 

“Luke?” His eyes quickly darted over to you, clearly surprised to still see you awake.

“Y/n..hey..” He started and you pushed your laptop away to give him your full attention. 

“What are you..doing here?..” You weren’t really sure why he was here and you felt a small bit of tension in the room from avoiding him for the past few weeks. 

“I uh..came to see you..” His voice was small and you pushed your eyebrows together in confusion. 

“At 12 in the morning?..” You knew ghosts didn’t really sleep but it was still a strange sight to see Luke in your bedroom this late at night. 

“Yup..” He trails off and pushes his glance down to the floor. You raised your eyebrow, knowing he wasn’t telling you the whole truth. You two were still best friends after all, so you could read him like an open book. 

“Luke, seriously. What are you doing here?” You ask trying to push an answer out of him. He finally meets your gaze again and you see his small expression on his face.

“Why have you been avoiding me?” 

You blinked a few times at his bluntness. This time you were the one to avoid his gaze. You picked at your fingernails slightly, knowing Luke was watching you and waiting for an answer. 

“I don't mean too.. School’s been tough and stuff.” You say cringing at how lame that sounded even though it was true. Luke stayed silent for a moment, trying to decide if you were lying to him or not. You avoided his eyes and kept your glance locked on the floor. 

“Did I do something wrong? Did I overstep by touching you? I didn’t mean to scare you or anything..” Luke trails off and you frown. You quickly shake your head to tell him no.

“No, no, no. You didn’t do anything wrong. I’ve just been really swamped with homework..” You grimace to yourself for coming back to your really lame excuse. You watch as Luke steps a little closer, testing the waters. When you don’t object to him moving closer, he takes a slow seat on your bed beside you. 

“You look tired..” He points out, gently reaching to touch your cheek. It warms both of your bodies as your skin makes contact. His hands were..warm..and comforting. You weren’t sure what you expected but it definitely wasn't this. Who knew ghosts were warm? 

“I told you I’ve been swamped with homework.” You chuckle and this time Luke chuckles along with you. He gently pulls his hand away and folds them into his lap. You stare down at your feet for a few moments trying to figure out what to say next. This felt like completely new territory the two of you were exploring and by the energy and growing tension in the room; this was a little bit scary. 

“Do you think you know..why we can..touch?” You ask hesitantly. Julie was filling you in here and there at school, but it wasn’t much and they didn’t seem to come up with anything as to why you had the “powers” too. 

“No..it’s still all confusing. We think Julie’s mom has something to do with us being connected to Julie but we don’t know about you.” Luke says, side eyeing you and you weren’t sure if that was a hint for you to talk about your past or not.  

You didn’t really open up about your past. No one had ever really asked so you never really talked. Julie knew a little bit, she knew that your mom and dad fought a lot and you didn’t like being at home that much, but that was about it. You didn’t talk about it further than that, so when you could feel Luke trying to dig into your past more, you shrugged. 

“My parents don’t talk much about stuff. I don’t know.” You say, keeping it short and simple. Luke frowns a little at your answer, but he knows not to push so he doesn’t. The two of you sit in more silence beside one another. You picked at your finger nails while Luke’s eyes travelled around your room. 

“I ran out on my mom. She didn’t believe in my dream and though dropping out of high school was the worst possible idea. We got into a fight and I ran out. That was the last time I saw her face to face. I died before I could make amends with her.” You glance at Luke, surprised at his openness. Even though you guys were best friends, talking about stuff like this was kind of off limits. The memory hurt too much so you never talked about at home, parent problems. 

“Wow..I’m sorry. That must have been hard on both of you.” You admit and Luke nods.

“It was, but Julie helped me make amends with them last year.” Luke smiles a little and you smile too. You knew his little story was a play to get you to start talking so you took in a little breath. 

“My dad cheated on my mom a few years ago with..a few other women. My mom keeps trying to make excuses for him to keep him around. They fight a lot because my dad doesn’t want to stay but my mom keeps pushing it. They’re both pretty heavy drinkers, too. It’s not a very good mix.” You explain. It felt weird to say it out loud, but it also felt nice to talk about it with someone.

“I’m really sorry, Y/n. I can’t imagine how difficult that is.” Luke empathizes but you only shrug. 

“It’s a good thing Julie let’s me come over so much. She’s been there for me for it all and I really love her for that.” You say, smiling at the thought of Julie’s friendship. You really couldn’t ask for a better best friend to get through it all. 

“Yeah, Julie’s really great. She does it all.” Luke laughs and you nod in agreement. More silence fills in between you two but it was comfortable silence. This time you lean your head on Luke’s shoulder and he pulls his arm around you to bring you closer. You could feel the tension slowly fading away. Sometimes all it took was one meaningful conversation to break the barrier. 

“Oh yeah, I saw these on my way over here and I thought you might like them.” Luke smiles and you watch as he digs into his pocket before pulling out a small bouquet of those pretty Aster flowers. You sit up a little, instantly recognizing them. They were your grandma’s favorite before she passed away when you were little. 

“Asters?” You ask and Luke glances at you a little surprised.

“Is that what they’re called? They’re really pretty.” Luke smiles and hands them to you. You smile, smelling them and instantly getting that fresh scent of your grandma’s house. 

“They are very pretty. Thank you.” You smile warmly and Luke smiles again. 

“Yeah, you’re welcome. They just reminded me of you.” Luke says and you chuckle. That was something your grandma had said to you a lot. 

“You should probably get going. It’s getting late and the boys are probably wondering where you are.” You chuckle, glancing at how much later it had gotten and you still had to wake up for school the next morning. 

“Yeah, you’re probably right. I’ll see you at Julie’s tomorrow?” Luke stands up and sends you a hopeful glance. You chuckle and nod a yes. 

“Yeah, see you there, Patterson.” Luke smiles at your response. You watch as he hesitates to leave for a moment and you’re about to question him when in one quick motion he plants a kiss on your cheek before poofing out. 

You sit there, a little stunned, before allowing a small blush to creep its way onto your cheeks. You got up to put your flowers in your little vase on your desk. It added a nice touch to your room. If Luke hadn’t come in to make you more alert, you would have missed it. On your desk by the vase was a small piece of paper with writing on it. Upon examining it further, it was one of the last notes your grandma had written to you before she passed away. You thought you had lost that somewhere in your numerous papers, but there it was, front and center on your desk. 

I will be with you, today, tomorrow, and forever. You just have to look for the signs - Grandma 

[remedialpotions]

Off The Train

Thanks to @mertronus for tagging me in the HPRomione Discord Popcorn game thingy! The prompt she gave me was: "I can finally see you."

I'm tagging @acnelli with the prompt: "You can't just keep pretending things are fine!"

***

”I can’t wait until you get off that train,” says Ron, his voice low and lazy with fatigue, “and I can finally see you.”

Hermione shifts in her bed so she’s lying on her side, mirror held out before her. This way, she can pretend - if she squints a bit, and ignores the crimson hangings of her four-poster bed - that he’s lying next to her, and not hundreds of miles away in London.

“What do you mean, ‘finally’?” Hermione, too, keeps her voice quiet. It won’t do, in her final days as Head Girl, to be waking her dormmates. “You’re looking at me right now.”

“Yeah, but it’s not the same. I can see you, but I can’t touch you, or...” The corner of Ron’s mouth twitches up into a crooked smile. “Or do anything else for that matter.”

“Right. Well,” she says, trying to infuse positivity into her voice, despite the weeks since the Easter holidays dragging into what felt like months and years, despite missing him so much that it’s like a heavy fog surrounding her. “It’s only a couple more days, right?”

“Can’t it be now?” Ron looks like he’s reclined in bed too now, his fiery hair stark against the deep navy of his sheets. “Just get to Hogsmeade, then you can Apparate-“

“You know full well that I cannot,” she replies briskly, even though it’s tempting, really tempting. “It’s-“

“-behavior unbecoming of a Head Girl,” Ron finishes her sentence. “I know. I just miss you, that’s all.”

“I miss you too.”

“I love you,” he adds after a moment’s silence, before his eyes widen with inspiration. “Oh, I’ve got it. What if I Apparate to Hogsmeade, and then walk to the castle - I bet Hagrid would let me through the gates-“

“It’s only two days, Ron.”

He sighs. “Fine.”

“And I love you too.”

He grinned. “Yeah, I know.”

•••

Pigwidgeon is the last owl to fly into the Great Hall, his little wings beating wildly to keep him aloft. With a scrap of parchment clutched in his tiny talons, he struggles over to the Gryffindor table before somersaulting down into Hermione’s lap.

Hermione’s heart sinks, and not just at the sight of the exhausted little bird currently burrowing into the crook of her elbow. Their two-way mirrors mean they don’t usually have to resort to writing letters. Not unless...

Hermione, the parchment reads when she unfolds it. Got called on an emergency mission. I’m not allowed to tell you where or why or even how long but I’m hoping it won’t take too long. I’m still going to be there at King’s Cross, because I’m dying to see you and I can’t wait until all this is over and we can just be together. Anyway, I love you and try not to worry too much. I promise to do my best not to die.

Ron

“Oh, good,” comes Ginny’s voice from beside her, and Hermione turns to see her peering intently at the parchment. “He’s promised not to die, that’s a relief-“

“He’ll be there,” interrupts Hermione, tucking the note in the pocket of her robes before Ginny can further infringe upon her privacy. “If he thinks it’ll only take a day, then I believe him.”

Ginny blinks. “I never said he wouldn’t be.” Plucking Pigwidgeon from Hermione’s lap, she offers him water from her goblet. “I’m sure he knows what he’s talking about.”

“It’s probably just a quick day trip,” Hermione rationalizes, eyes focused hard on Pigwidgeon as he drinks so she doesn’t have to see the sympathy she knows is etched on Ginny’s face, “and he just wanted me to know in case - well-”

“In case he dies?”

Ginny’s attempt at a joke falls flat.

“Well, just in case, you know, something were to - to happen,” Hermione stammers, “and anyway, it’s just good for me to know - I like to know what he’s up to - not in a controlling way or anything, just-”

“Of course,” Ginny interjects bracingly. “I’m sure he just wanted you to know, that’s all. I’m sure he’ll be there.”

Hermione picks up her mug of tea and holds it close to her face so the steam washes over her. She knows what they’re both thinking but are unwilling to say: that in the year Ron and Harry have been Aurors, neither has had a mission run shorter than a week.

•••

And so Hermione sits with Ginny and Luna on the train, watching the Scottish Highlands slowly transform into the low, tidy hills of the English countryside outside her window and hoping against hope that Ron will be there on Platform 9 and ¾. But she hasn’t heard from him since that first letter, and his mirror has gone dark. This doesn’t worry her - not for his safety, anyway - but it does make it difficult to share in Ginny’s gleeful anticipation as the train pulls into King’s Cross.

She busies herself with tending to Crookshanks, who is furious about his prolonged confinement in his basket, as Harry and Ginny embrace on the platform. It’s not that she’s upset, not really. Ron is doing what he needs to do, and she would never want him shirking his responsibilities just so he can kiss her on a train platform for the first time since April. She just wishes things could be different.

After Harry and Ginny depart for Grimmauld Place, she flags down a taxi and rides alone to her parents’ home. The family car is parked in front, which is unusual for a weekday, but when she goes inside, she finds her parents have been eagerly awaiting her arrival and can hardly let her set down her trunk before whisking her away to an upscale restaurant in South Kensington.

“So, tell us about school,” says Mum with an eager smile once they’re seated at their candlelit table. “How were your exams? I want to hear everything.”

“I will later,” Hermione replies, raising her brows and tipping her head pointedly in the direction of the waiter currently pouring red wine into their glasses.

“Oh, right, right, of course. Well, anyway, dear,” she begins as the waiter sets down menus and strides away, “your father and I have a little surprise for you.”

It’s foolish, she knows, but her mind leaps instantly to Ron. Maybe all of this business with his mission has been a ruse, and he’s here in London after all, and she’ll be able to come up with an excuse to spend the night at Grimmauld Place…

Until she notices that her parents are still talking, and there’s no tall, lanky, red-haired wizard to be seen in this high-end French restaurant, but there are three Eurostar boarding passes laid out across the tablecloth.

“Sorry,” says Hermione, shaking her head to clear away the daydream, “what’s going on?”

“We’re going to Paris!” announces Mum with delight. “We thought it would be so lovely to spend time together since you’ve been away for so long, and you’re about to start your new job - and I know you’ve always wanted to go there. We’ve got ten whole days, and everything’s booked, so all you’ve got to do is pack.”

“That - that’s - that’s brilliant,” Hermione musters, forcing her lips into some semblance of a smile. Her parents beam so brightly back that it’s almost difficult to look at them. “Erm, so when are we leaving?”

She crosses her fingers under the table, praying they’ll say August, or her birthday in September, or Christmas, anything but-

“This weekend!”

Of course.

•••

Paris is beautiful. It exceeds every single one of Hermione’s expectations. She and her parents consume copious amounts of bread, cheese and wine, they visit museums and cafes and old bookstores, they ascend to the top of the Eiffel Tower and take in the view. She thinks of Ron constantly as she walks the cobbled streets, as she crosses the Pont des Artes and sees the countless locks affixed to its railing. Before she left, she sent Harry an owl to tell him that she was leaving, so Ron would know where she was if he returned home before she did. As they can’t communicate when she’s staying in a Muggle hotel, she truly has no idea where he is, but she tells herself that he’s still on his mission. It feels better that way, imagining that even if she stayed in London, there would still be obstacles keeping them apart.

On their last day, she nearly empties out a patisserie buying eclairs and macarons for Ron, and then they board the Eurostar back to England. Nervous anticipation grips her stomach as the train barrels through the tunnel (idly, she wonders if Ron’s dad is aware of this train that travels underwater, and makes a mental note to tell him), because she has no idea what awaits her back in London. What if Ron’s still away? Or worse - what if something’s happened to him, and she’s been off enjoying a holiday while he’s been suffering?

The train can’t move quickly enough. Hermione can focus on nothing - not the paperback romance novel her mother has loaned her to read, not the Muggle newspaper that her father is engrossed in, not even the argument of the couple seated across the aisle from them. It’s only a two-hour trip, so why does it feel like it’s taking days?

She checks her mirror, but it’s still dark.

“You go ahead, sweetheart,” says Dad when the train finally rolls to a stop in St. Pancras station. “We’ll get the cases.”

Hermione looks up at the luggage rack over their heads, then at her parents. “Are you sure? I’ll bring mine-”

“We can manage. Go on ahead, get some fresh air.”

She doesn’t bother reminding them that train station air is hardly fresh, and instead heads down the aisle with just her purse and the box of pastries in tow. Truly, she’s not sure why her parents have sent her off the train without them; with the station as busy as it is, they’ll surely lose track of each other.

But then she sees him. Standing a head above the crowd, hands shoved into the pockets of his jeans, his bright blue eyes scan the throngs of travelers. At first, she doesn’t believe her eyes. Surely, she’s just become so desperate to see him that she’s actually begun hallucinating.

But as she draws closer, he doesn’t ripple into nothingness, he doesn’t fade away. He’s really, truly there, his red hair curling behind his ears, one knee jiggling with pent-up energy the way it always does when he’s particularly impatient. As he turns his head, still surveying the crowd, their eyes lock and the rest of the station recedes into the background. Finally, they’re within sight of each other after months of hushed mirror conversations and stolen moments borrowing Professor McGonagall’s Floo. Hermione picks up speed, nearly skipping across the concrete in her haste, and flings herself into his waiting arms.

She fits against him perfectly. The fabric of his faded t-shirt is soft against her cheek as she breathes him in, and for the first time in recent memory, words fail her completely.

The box of pastries thuds to the ground.

“Hi,” he mutters, lips brushing her skin and sending chills up her spine.

“How - how did you-”

“Harry told me where you’d gone.” He presses a kiss to her cheek, and then, at long last, their lips connect. “It’s not that hard to look up train schedules.”

As reluctant as she is to pull away from him, she leans back just enough to look up at him. Behind the freckles scattered across his face, his cheeks have gone pink. “You’re amazing,” she tells him, rising on tiptoe for another kiss, unconcerned with the passersby and the blast of nearby train whistles.

Ron lifts one shoulder in a casual shrug when they break apart. “Had to meet you on a train platform somehow.”

[tharros-auris-black-asimi]

Lay All Your Love on Me (Chapter 4)

Pairing: Soft!Dark!Lee Bodecker x Female Reader

Summary: After moving to Knockemstiff, Ohio with your troubled parents, you find solace in the local Seven-Eleven. There, you bump into the Alpha sheriff, Lee Bodecker.

And then you keep bumping into him. There’s just something about that chubby Alpha that keeps drawing you in. Now there’s something going on with the new preacher of the church that you attend. Everything’s a mess.

But you’re an unbonded Omega. Life can turn to shit anyway.

Chapter Warnings: ABO dynamics, dysfunctional families, mentions of cheating, age gap (Reader is nineteen while Lee is in his late twenties/early thirties), religious themes, scenting, explicit language. There is a physical fight in this chapter, as well as some mild slut-shaming words being used.

As the months flew by and the springtime slowly turned warmer, hotter, your mother had been pondering. Looking. Sitting in the car in front of the police’s office, as she had been for the past few hours now. Since her husband had been off doing his gambling again. It was nighttime.

The sheriff’s light was still on. She could see it still lit from where she was in the car.

Sometimes, your mother wondered, how she had allowed it to come to this.

She always thought about leaving. About skipping town with you and never coming back.

It would’ve been so easy. She should've done it sooner.

But she didn’t.

She couldn’t.

Divorce would’ve been okay for her. Betas had so much leeway with the laws, that no one would've batted an eyelash with a pair of Betas divorcing.

But if a Beta couple had an unbonded Omega?

Forget it.

She knew after the Civil Rights movement that Omegas were slowly getting more and more rights now. Especially in the workplace. Just a bit. Not enough to change everyone’s view of Omegas working in the workplace, however. But it was a start.

The car door opened. She let out a sigh. Her chest heavy. She closed the door behind her as she made sure to lock it, slipping her car keys into her purse. Clutching her purse tightly to her chest, she made her way into the police station.

Lee had been working.

He had been working all night.

He wasn’t able to have a date with you tonight. You had gotten the cold and had stayed home. Your mother had been taking care of you for the past couple of days. Lee had felt so empty without seeing you sitting in the chair across from his desk, smiling at him. Sipping at your slushie as you watched him work. He never felt so lonely. It was almost like his mood had soured.

A knock on the door made him pause his work. The chair squeaked as he got up to walk out of his office, to the front entrance.

What he saw made him pause.

Your mother stood on the other side, looking at him with the same exact look she had given him the same day he was there at church. Looking at him up and down, as if she was studying him. Like he was something to be studied. It didn’t make him uneasy. He had faced hell and back. His Alpha was not scared of this Beta. But Lee could smell your mother’s citrus scent. She had notes that smelled like you. Your familiar smell of chocolate chip cookies. It was a slightly sweeter undertone that made him feel safe. Made him feel at home. Warmed him from head to toe. It reminded him of home.

“Evenin’ ma’am.” Lee greeted your mother. Your mother gave him a nod.

“Sheriff Bodecker. Are ya the only one on duty?” She asked. Nodding came from Lee as he escorted her inside. He might’ve been an Alpha, had a position of power that was above you and your mother, but Lee Bodecker was still a gentleman. When the two of them had walked back to Lee’s office, he told her to make herself comfortable before he sat down behind his desk and looked at the last bits of paperwork that he had. The things he did to be where he was now.

“I need ta ask ya, Sheriff. What are your intentions with my pup?”

Lee looked up at your mother. Completely and utterly caught by surprise for the first time in his life.

“Ma’am?”

She only leaned closer. Looked at him straight into the eyes, like she was trying to pick him apart. Or rip him limb by limb. Whichever seemed palatable at the moment.

“You heard me, sir. What are your intentions with my pup?” She said again.

He blinked.

“Um…”

“Do you want her bite? Are you going to give her pups? A warm home? Are you going to take care of her and your pack?” she demanded him.

And she waited.

For a few seconds, she looked at him, her gaze seemingly burning into his soul like she was his Judge.

It was at that moment that Lee made up his mind.

Like it clicked.

The puzzle pieces going right into the place where they should be.

“Yes.”

Now it was just easy.

Flowing through him like drinking water on a cool day.

He knew exactly what he wanted.

His Alpha was in total agreement. For once, they were on the same page. Totally and completely.

No more fooling around.

He needed to get straight to the point and just do it.

“Yes, what?”

Your mother was just the slightest bit unconvinced. Because she needed to know. Right from the source. She needed to make sure that you would be okay. That you would be taken care of. That if she were to pass away suddenly, that you had a roof over your head, someone to support you, and a family that you would have with your future Alpha.

You needed to be secure.

“Yes. I want it. I want all of it. I want to be with her. I want my mark on her gland.”

And how badly he wanted it too.

He wanted to see it.

He wanted to see his mark on your gland. He wanted you to smell like him.

He wanted you to carry his pups.

Be his Omega.

His Bondmate.

His wife.

Everything and anything. All of it. The entire package.

“… I want her to have my pups too. My ring. My name. All of it.”

Your mother listened.

There might have been a part of her. A part of her that was preening because it had been exactly what she wanted to hear. Her hands put themselves on Lee’s desk. She continued to look at the dark-haired, much older Alpha and pondered.

“And you’re sure? You’re sure can take care of her, be the Bondmate, be the Alpha, be the father to her children, her pups? Be the one she needs?”

Lee leaned close. So close your mother could see the storminess in them.

“I’m not sure. I know I’m the one she needs. Are you going to doubt me anymore, ma’am? Any more questions?”

Your mother’s lips curled. Stretched into what looked to be the beginnings of a smile.

“No. No more questions, Sheriff Bodecker. Thank you. Have a good night. I’ll go and tell my daughter that you said hello.”

She stood up, beginning to head to the door.

“Wait.”

She was just about to turn the doorknob when the tone of his voice made her turn her head back.

“Tell her I love her too.”

Your mother smiled.

“I will.”

And then the door opened and closed.

A few weeks later… in Coal Creek, West Virginia…

It was sticky.

Hot.

Humid.

You felt like you could drink the air as if it were water.

Such weather you were not surprised with, nor not used to, due to living in Michigan before you had moved to Ohio.

So the sticky hot, humid air didn’t quite make you suffer as much.

Emma and your mother were out. They had gone into town to grab some supplies with Arvin.

There was going to be a new preacher that was going to fill in the position after the old one had retired. At least, that was what Lenora had told you. The two of you were back at the church graveyard. Visiting her mother, as she usually did. Or tried to. She had told you that she hadn’t grown up with her mother. That her dad was nonexistent. She had been a baby when her mother died, and when her father had basically vanished off of the face of the earth. But Lenora was convinced her dad was still out there. Somewhere.

You came for emotional support.

Because you didn’t know if you could be helpful for anything else, really.

Hand clutching, holding her Bible close to her chest, Lenora got up from her crouched position. She looked at her mother’s grave, a solemn look in her eyes.

“You know… I think he’s still out there. My daddy.”

You looked at her.

“That’s good, Lenora. Maybe… maybe one day you’ll find him. You’ll see him.” You assured her. Lenora didn’t smile though. She just gave you another solemn look and only gave you a short nod.

You hugged her. Gently rubbing your wrist against hers, softly enveloping her in your scent.

“It’s okay,” your whisper was gentle.

“It’s okay.”

“Did you get the stuff?” You asked Arvin later that day when the two of you finally had some alone time. The two of you were now outside, on the porch, while Arvin was standing up and you were sitting on the old rocking chair that Emma never truly wanted to donate, or give away. She loved that old thing. It held a special place in her heart. She had a point though, every morning you tried to get some sun, and you’d just come out there and sit on the chair. Just gazing out. Seeing the sun slowly rise.

Arvin looked at you.

“Yeah, we got the stuff. Some liver,” Arvin replied back to you. A thoughtful hum came from you.

“Liver, huh?”

He nodded.

“Yeah,” he said, “it was all we could really afford. We ain’t as rich as the other people who go ta church with us.”

That you understood. You could understand that.

“Your grandma’s a hell of a good cook though. Anything she makes, I’ll eat it.”

Arvin chuckled. You could smell the wafting smells of a bonfire. It made you feel warm and safe. Cozy.

But you could still feel her. Your Omega. She was slithering around, waiting on the sidelines.

Now. Your Omega didn’t mind Arvin.

Not at all.

But he wasn’t Lee. He did not smell like her Alpha. He did not smell like chocolate and bourbon. He smelled like a damn bonfire and it made her want to choke sometimes. It wasn’t that she hated him. She was very fond of the other Alpha. Arvin was only a year younger than you. Around your age. So it was okay.

“Even if it got burnt?” Arvin questioned you.

You let out a snort.

“Puh-lease. As if ya Auntie could burn anything. Hell, she could burn it and I would still eat it. Put enough salt n’ pepper on it, and I wouldn’t be able to tell the difference.”

Arvin laughed again.

Later that week...

You were pulling at the sleeves of the dress that you were currently wearing.

Itchy.

Your skin was itchy.

And it was still hot. And humid.

You hated this.

Your Omega was looming in you. Being depressed, as usual.

She missed her Alpha. Dearly.

Because as people were crowding into the church, she loomed. Watched as people walked around you.

Preston Teagardin was standing in front of the room.

Watching.

His blue eyes looking around.

Watching all of these people as Emma put her dish down on the table, before walking back to where you, Arvin, Lenora, and your mother were.

And then he saw you.

Standing there. In your black dress, looking around like this place was the last place where you’d rather be. Your kitten heels on. Your hair was tied up, due to the hot and humid weather.

And you were looking back.

A chill creeping up your spine as you looked into those blue eyes.

Your Omega stirred.

She was up and alert now.

Narrowing her eyes at him from where she was seated in her cage.

This Alpha.

She did not trust this Alpha.

A few days later…

The worst day in your life happened in the afternoon.

Your father had come home early. Your mother was still at one of her friend’s houses from down the block. Doing as housewives did. Catching up. Gossiping. Discussing their book club. Stuff like that.

When he stepped through the front door, nothing had been out of the ordinary. There were no noises coming from the house and he suspected that maybe, just maybe, you weren’t home.

And you weren’t. You had secretly gone out to go and get some air, go to the local library to catch up on the latest book that you were reading, and then later after you came home and got some time by yourself, you were going to go to the Seven-Eleven and meet up with Lee as you usually did. Your usual schedule.

So when he walked into the hallway and peered into your room, because your bedroom door was open, he saw something strange.

A leather jacket had been nestled into your nest. Your room smelled like you. Chocolate chip cookies. Sweet. Making your father remember the happier moments in your childhood.

But there was something lurking on the surface. If your father had been drunk, he might’ve not noticed it.

However, he was not drunk now. Now, he was fully and completely sober. Having been off of the alcohol for a few days. Three, at the least. It was a well-known and memorized routine that you knew by heart. Your father would drink, wait three days, and then drink again. Not like Lee, who was kept off of the damn beverage.

The slight smell of bourbon and chocolate was filling the air. Almost like it was possessing the space. Like it was sinking its way in.

His footsteps carried him into your room as he opened your bedroom door with a small creaking noise.

He came closer to your nest. In your space.

When you and your family had fully moved in, you had told your parents up and down, side to side, that they were not welcome in your room unless you allowed them in. Your room was your space. It was the only room in the house that you could have all to yourself. Needless to say, you were a bit territorial with your room. And who could blame you?

The familiar thought went through your father’s mind as he walked into your room, towards your bed. As he got closer, he realized what he was looking at.

A leather jacket had been nestled into your nest. When your father took a whiff, it was nearly rubbed out completely of its scent.

Chocolate and bourbon came up to his nose.

There was only one person he knew that smelled like that. Had that particular scent.

Sheriff Lee Bodecker.

You were messing around with the sheriff.

His eyes were narrowing. His scent, his woodsy scent became more pronounced, changing, shifting to someone more woodsy. He could almost imagine himself in the woods.

Your father would wait. He was patient.

When you got home from the library, it was too late.

As soon as you had come through the door, made sure you had even locked it behind you, a hand came, gripping your hair so tight you were sure it was going to be pulled from your scalp. You let out a shout. It had happened so quickly that your brain hadn’t even registered it.

Pulled. You were getting pulled somewhere into the house. Deeper into your family home. You were beginning to shout now. Shout and scream in protest. If it weren’t for the overwhelming, overbearing smell of a tantalizing woody forest, you would’ve never figured it was your father dragging you by your hair. Your feet kicked from underneath you. Not good enough to trip your father by his own two feet. He had been a doctor after all. He had been trained in situations like these. He worked in the damn ER, for fuck’s sake.

From the familiar clicking of your kitten heels on the floor, you managed to look down.

The kitchen. You were being yanked into the kitchen. Then you were shoved headfirst towards the wooden cabinets. Being shoved so hard that you nearly broke your nose due to the hard impact. There was a loud thud noise when your face smacked up against it. You must’ve heard a cracking noise.

Your nose was broken. It had begun to bleed. You were gasping, frantically gripping the countertops of the sink to keep you steady. A sharp kick to your back made you cry out in pain. Not that you weren’t in pain already. You could feel your Omega within you, screeching. Having begun the starting points of throwing a fit. Screaming at the audacity of your Beta father for treating you this way.

Your head had begun to ring. A white noise buzzing.

You had been so focused on getting your wits back, and your Omega was far too busy throwing her fit that the two of you had blocked out your father’s yelling.

“… and then I see this! Have you decided on being a fucking harlot now?”

You turned your head.

Your eyes had gone wide.

In your father’s grip, in your father’s hand, was Lee’s leather jacket. The one he wore so often. The one he had given to you because you had gotten cold one day. It had been a slightly chilly night and he had given it to you. You had protested the entire way home, saying that you would be fine. Even though you were visibly shivering. But Lee had shrugged it off of him, his jacket pouring pure Alpha pheromones, and had put it on you.

You had been so certain. So sure that you had put it away from sight.

But then you had remembered that you had put it in your nest.

Stupid. Stupid, stupid, stupid. You were so fucking stupid. How could you have done that? Put Lee’s jacket in your nest like a fool? Those types of behaviors, those types of things were for bonded pairs! Like your parents. Not like people such as Lee and you. You didn’t have his mark. He didn’t have yours. What the hell were you thinking, entertaining this charade?

As your father continued to shout at you, his words were slowly sinking in.

He was right.

Why had you been entertaining this goddamn charade? Why?

How could you let this go on?

You couldn’t do it.

You couldn’t keep doing this.

“… I raised you in this house-”

No, you didn’t, your Omega thought snidely. You’ve been sleeping with other women. What’s your excuse?

Was your father hearing himself?

“… after all the damn hard work I did, raising you-”

Please, your Omega was butting in again. If anything, I saw my mother more than you. All you did was work. I barely saw your ass.

Stupid Beta.

When your father had opened his mouth to speak again, your Omega lashed out.

Your foot came from your front. Shooting out and kicking him as hard as she could. Your Omega had been aiming for his groin, but apparently, she had reached just a bit higher. Good on her. She saw your father shout something as she kicked him again, sending him back a bit.

Yanking the cabinet door open. Your hand grabbed the first thing it could find a grip on.

A handle.

This felt familiar.

Oh.

Oh.

It was a skillet. When you managed to pull it out and whack it in your father’s face, you then realized, you had grabbed a cast-iron skillet. The one that your mother had used yesterday to make dinner. It was a little rusty. But it would do. Scrambling to get to your feet, your Omega snarled.

She was done.

Finished.

Her temper had sky rocked out of the roof.

She was done with a capital D.O.N.E. and this Beta, this lousy excuse of a Beta who had given you his sperm was going to pay for the words that he had spoken against your Alpha.

Another whacking noise had sent him back. The further he crawled back, yelling at you, the more she stepped forward.

How dare he.

When she raised the skillet down and rained blow after blow down on his body, she might’ve heard something crack. Or snap. She was sure she had gotten his shoulder. Maybe cracked one of his ribs. She knew his face was bleeding. Blood coming down from his nose.

How dare he talk bad about her Alpha?

How dare he?

“How fucking dare you!”

Pissed.

Oh, she was so fucking pissed off.

And it was around that time that she began to hear sirens. Shouts were filling the house and your Omega screeched, screamed, and shouted as someone was trying to pull her off.

“Get off of me!” You were howling. Clawing at someone’s shirt.

This was not your Alpha. A young Alpha deputy was pulling you away as you howled in dismay. Your Omega being pushed back again, kicking and screaming.

Alpha.

She needed her Alpha.

Taglist: @greeneyedblondie44, @bxnnywriting

[undercoveravenger]

A Pirate’s Life For Me

Creature Week 2020: Day Two

Pairing: Harry Hook x Siren!Male!Reader

Request: “Harry Hook rescued by a male!siren reader?” 

A/N: This is set in an AU where the villains were never trapped on the Isle, so Harry grew up on the Jolly Roger with his father.

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

Harry had been working on his father’s ship practically since he’d been born, but in all that time he had never seen the typically crystalline waters of Neverland become this rough. He’d seen the Jolly Roger weather storms before. He’d smelled the salty sea air grow thick with the scent of rain and watched as the dark wooden planks of the deck speckled with the falling droplets of water. He’d seen the sails billow and tear when the winds came ripping through more suddenly than the crew had been prepared for.

This was no normal storm though. The sails were being shredded up on the masts, the wind was thrashing the tail ends of the rigging around like whips and no one had been able to pull them in. Harry had abandoned his previous post almost immediately when he realized just how bad the storm was getting and did his best to help mitigate the damage.

He’d barely managed to reel in one of the flailing lengths of rope and get it tied down when he found himself slammed into by a wayward boom, the thick beam uncontrollable since the vicious winds had torn through the sail. The force knocked him from his feet and sent him plummeting over the ship’s railing and into the freezing water below.

Harry flailed, trying in vain to flounder his way to the surface but only succeeding in tiring himself out. The weight of his heavy leather coat and the sword and scabbard strapped to his hip dragged him further beneath the frigid waves as they soaked in water.

His movements had started to slow and his vision was going dark when he’d first seen it. A dark figure had flitted past him, barely discernible from the black depths around him. Then he’d felt the thickly-muscled tail brush against the back of one of his legs and, as his consciousness finally slipped away from him, Harry hoped that he would drown before the siren chose to do more than observe him.

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

When Harry had woken up and found himself lying on the sun-warmed sand of an unfamiliar beach, he had been sure that this must have been the afterlife. The burning ache of his ribs where he’d been struck by the beam during the storm when he tried to sit up had been enough to convince him that the events of the previous night had really happened.

He forced himself to sit up quickly, ignoring the pain from his bruised chest in favor of attempting to identify his surroundings. He was sure that this was not the main island of Neverland, but it also had a very different appearance than any of the smaller surrounding islands that he had been to. He supposed that the ship could have drifted during the storm, but he doubted that they’d made it into a previously uncharted archipelago. But then, how had he ended up here? 

The last thing Harry had known, he had been drowning and the ship had been far enough from land to have made washing up on some beach nearly impossible.

“Oh good,” came the sound of an unfamiliar voice. “You were out so long I was starting to wonder if I hadn’t gotten to you in time.”

Harry wheeled around at the sound of the stranger’s voice, eyes widening as he locked eyes with the most attractive guy he’d ever seen. The stranger was laying in the water on his stomach with his chin propped up on his hands, seemingly undisturbed by the freezing temperature of the water as waves crashed up over the bare skin of his back and shoulders. Harry forced himself not to linger on the stranger’s shirtlessness, instead shifting his attention to the damp waves of thick (h/c) hair falling over captivating (e/c) eyes and the alluring smile he was being offered.

Harry swallowed sharply, suddenly struggling to remember how speaking worked, “You? You were the one who saved me?”

The (h/c) nodded, shoulders straightening proudly, “Yeah, I was swimming nearby and saw you fall off your ship.” He ducked his head, looking almost abashed, “My sisters told me that it was what you deserved, but I didn’t agree so I dove after you.” 

“Your family wanted you to let me drown…?” Harry wasn’t exactly sure what sort of people would want to let someone drown, but he had the distinct impression that he probably wouldn’t like his savior’s family.

He shrugged, rolling over onto his back so he could look up at the sky, “Wouldn’t be the first time. It’s kind of what we do.” At the baffled look on Harry’s face, the (h/c) let out a huff. Harry watched as the stranger shifted his weight back onto his shoulders a little, using the new leverage to lift his legs out of the water.

Except it wasn’t legs that emerged from the frothing waves. No, instead, the (h/c) lifted a huge, gleaming caudal fin from its previous place hidden under the water, droplets and rivulets trailing down the length of the tail toward where it merged with his torso. 

At first glance, Harry had assumed he was just one of the merpeople that lingered in Mermaid Lagoon, but he quickly noticed the distinctive differences. Merpeople had beautiful, elegant tails that came in a rainbow of shades more appropriate to showing off than for use in hunting. Sirens on the other hand? They were made to kill and one good look at the (h/c)’s tail had Harry convinced that he knew what he was dealing with.

His scales shone a brilliant emerald color and the myriad of colors that made up the caudal fin nearly camouflaged the set of poisonous spines hiding along the length of the fin. Harry knew, even without seeing it, that a similar set could be found along the shorter fin that trailed up the back of the tail.

After all, sirens were deadly even without their captivating songs.

Harry scrambled back at the sight, pushing himself further up the beach in an effort to get away from the creature.

The (h/c) let out a disappointed huff, letting his tail drop back against the water with a loud slapping sound. He dropped his head back against the sand, but Harry knew he was still under observation. “You realize that if I were going to make a meal of you, I would have done it by now, right? I had the perfect opportunity before. Y’know, when you were drowning?” He sighed as Harry made no move to relax, eventually pushing himself further into the water and slipping off below the waves.

Harry knew that even with the siren out of sight, it still posed a massive threat. He wasn’t sure exactly how long it would take for the crew to find him, if they ever did, so his first priority needed to be securing himself a shelter. He wasn’t sure how large the island really was, but he decided that he would rather make his camp near the beach than in the thick jungle that loomed beyond the welcoming white sands. He’d just have to make sure to take some precautions to ensure that his silver-tongued visitor would not be visiting unexpectedly.

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

It took him several hours to set up a shelter that he deemed secure enough, and several more to find enough rocks to serve as a sort of barrier. He spent the rest of the day arranging the stones in rows three or four deep around the sea-facing edge of his camp, the most jagged edges facing the water. He knew that rocks alone would do little against a siren, but it made him feel better to think that if the creature wanted him dead enough to drag itself out of the water after him, it’d at least have to risk injuring itself.

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

When Harry awoke the next morning to find the siren lounging in the same spot as it had been yesterday glaring reproachfully at his meager stone barrier, he couldn’t help but feel a twinge of satisfaction.

The (h/c) turned to look at him as he emerged from his shelter, (e/c) eyes glinting oddly in the light. “What’s this for?”

“To keep you away from me,” Harry replied evenly, crossing his arms over his chest.

The siren rolled his eyes grumpily, dragging a claw-tipped finger along the edge of one of the rocks, “And here I was going to offer to take you back to the other humans once you were healed.”

Harry let out a bitter laugh, “And get back in the water with a siren? Not a chance.”

“Good luck meeting back up with your family then,” the siren retorted, pushing his wet hair out of his eyes. “There are not many boats that come this far. There are too many of us up here.”

Harry’s eyes widened; if the siren was telling the truth, then he really was on his own. There would be no chance of rescue if he was deep in siren territory. He swore at the realization, hands clenching into fists at his sides. “Why should I believe you?”

The (h/c) shrugged, pushing himself to sit up further to watch the waves come rolling in, “I have no reason to lie. Because of you, I have no family to go home to. No one to protect but myself.”

The brunet was confused. “Because of me? What did I do?”

“I saved you,” the (h/c) replied simply. “They saw that as a betrayal. Thought that I was putting a stranger above the wellbeing of the pod and decided to cast me out.” He smiled wryly, eyes fixed on the horizon, “I have no one but you now.”

The siren’s honesty had Harry feeling a little guilty about his earlier hostility. And the (h/c) had a point when he said that he could’ve just let him drown, but instead he’d tried to save him and he was offering to take him back to the ship as soon as he was better.

Harry took a deep breath as he made his way closer to the siren, kicking a few of the stones out of the way as he approached. The (h/c) looked stunned by his change in attitude, but he chose to remain silent even as the brunet sat down beside him. “My mom died when I was little,” he started slowly, azure eyes fixed far past the boy beside him. “She’d gone out on the ship with my dad and his crew and when they came back she was gone along with almost half of the crew.” The breath he took was shaky and Harry felt like he didn’t have nearly enough air in his lungs to continue, “My dad says it was sirens; they were lured off of the ship by their singing and drowned.”

The siren’s (e/c) eyes were wide as he looked back at Harry. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know.”

“You don’t need to be sorry,” Harry replied slowly, “I just wanted you to understand why it’s hard for me to trust you.”

“That makes sense,” his companion nodded, the end of his tail flicking and creating a mess of tiny waves that washed up over Harry’s feet and wet the ends of his pants. “You can call me (M/N), by the way.’

“The name’s Harry,” the brunet replied, watching the light dance off his new friend’s scales hypnotically. His lips quirked up as he realized that being trapped here with him until he had recovered may not be so bad after all.

[americangirlstar]

World By Us Quotes

I know when we make aesthetics/art pieces, we like to have little quotes from the books below it! Here’s some quotes for the WBU girls– if it’s not said by them specifically, I put who said it at the end in [brackets], and if it’s not from their main book, I made a note in italics at the beginning.

Makena Williams

As I sorted through the new items on the bed, I wondered what kind of statement I wanted to make. I was going to have fun figuring it out!

As I looked at the outfit now, I realized it still needed... something. I closed my eyes and focused on how I was feeling. I was nervous, but excited, too, like something I had been waiting for was finally about to begin.

I added three gold butterfly hair clips to my twists. Butterflies are a symbol of transformation, and I knew today would be full of big changes. When I tilted my head, the butterflies looked like they were taking off.

On my way to the gym, I passed the big mural again. We Walk Together. I smiled, knowing that I had just met two new friends to walk with.

I have four names: Makena means “happy one” in Swahili; Lilias was my dad’s mom, who died when he was a boy; Cook, for Mom’s family, and Williams. They all matter, and they make me who I am.

“Fashion can be a form of activism. And I wouldn’t be surprised if one day that was your purpose.” [said by her mother]

I want to live in a world where who you are inside matters more than what you look like outside.

I rolled over and pressed the pillow around my ears, but Mom’s question was like a song I couldn’t get out of my head. Couldn’t he see that they’re children? Couldn’t he see? No, Mom! I wanted to scream. That’s the problem. He couldn’t see that we’re real people, with real names and lives and feelings. All he could see was that we’re Black. I cried sad and mad tears, because none of it made any sense.

I’m so much more than what you see / Don’t guess- ASK about all the feels inside me / Get to know who I am for real / Then maybe this world can start to heal / See me, hear me, know me!

My name is Makena Williams. Something happened to me, and I am not okay.

I am a person. See me for who I am. Hear what I say. Get to know me before you make up something about me. Judge me by my words and actions, not my race. See me. Hear me. Know me.

Do you see us now? We’re girls. We’re your neighbors.

I ran my fingers across the letters. There was my idea, my first design, in real life. I was so proud.

My eyes went back to Auntie Bling’s word power. Maybe I could give other people the power to tell their own stories. What if kids could show and tell the world who they really are, how they really feel, in any style they chose?

I’m Makena. I’m proud that my family’s roots in Anacostia go back four generations. I came up with the words on my T-shirt because people weren’t seeing the real me. They were only seeing that I was Black– if they saw me at all. I love West African kente cloth because the colors and patterns tell stories. The green in this skirt signifies renewal. I like wearing butterflies because they remind me that though change can be difficult, it can lead to something beautiful. With my fashion, I am always making a statement.

When everyone had made their statements, we all gathered onstage for a bow. The audience was on its feet, clapping and cheering for us. All the other kids hopped off the stage and started mingling. I stood there, watching adults talking to kid and kids from different communities talking to each other. Seeing so many people come together was powerful.

I believe that when you take time to get to know people, you get to see who they truly are.

I was so proud of what we’d done that I couldn’t stop grinning. Just before I went to join my friends and family, I glimpsed my own reflection in the window. It looked as if the river was flowing right through me. Maybe it does, I thought, along with the strength of my ancestors, and the bravery of Black people before and the bravery of everyone in this room who works for change.

Evette Peeters

When we made the sign last year, I painted a monarch butterfly above the words. Monarchs fly thousands of miles. Their strength and endurance remind me of the people who were on the front lines during the pandemic.

The one good thing about not going anywhere was seeing the gardens change. I never knew it could be fun to watch plants grow, but it actually was.

The bridge was coming up. Pretty soon, we’d be crossing the Anacostia. I’d been crossing that river all my life on the way to Gran E’s house. Every time I saw it, the river looked different. Sometimes the waves were rough, but today they were calm. The sunlight made the pale green water sparkle.

Why did people think skin color defines who we are? It seemed so simple: humans come in different colors, just like flowers.

I put them on and hung my heart necklace on my jewelry tree. Next to it was a locket that had an umoja symbol on it. Umoja means “unity” in the Swahili language. Gran E had given me the locket for Kwanzaa last year, along with a card that said, “Promise always to see umoja: unity in the family, community, nation and race.”

Still, I couldn’t help wondering, Is this how a rift gets started? Something goes wrong between people, and before you know it, there’s a rift between them. Was that how it happened with my grandmothers? And the most important question of all: Could a rift between people be repaired?

The grass was trampled, but seeing the riverbank free of litter lifted my heart.

With a day of hard work, we had healed part of the river. If only it could be this easy for my grandmothers to heal the rift between them.

“A world– by us,” I announced, writing it on a piece of poster board. I looked up at my friends. Somehow when I was with them, anything seemed possible. “That’s what we’ll call it– and that’s what we’ll make it.”

What I’m trying to tell you is not to judge a whole person for one thing they said or did. People can change and learn from their mistakes.

Well, we are one family. So we should all act like it, right?

I know the world has many problems, just as there are many kinds of pollution in the river. But with the sunshine and the music and good friends beside me, I felt a wave of hope rise in my chest. As long as we can imagine a better world, we can make it happen. When people come together, we can do remarkable things. The river taught me that.

Maritza Ochoa

from Makena’s Story: Well, we don’t need to wait until we grow up to make a difference. We can start now, making the kind of world we want to live in. 

At school, the girls always play with the boys. The girls are tougher than you think.

Before she passed away, I received a beautiful journal from her in the mail. Inside, she had written inspirational quotes from famous women athletes and leaders. On a note enclosed with the journal, she had written that I should add more inspirational quotes to the journal, because keeping a positive attitude was important when life becomes hard. I had to admit, it was hard to be positive during that time.

I stared down at the salteñas, thinking of what my abuelo said. Prayers weren’t enough, but sometimes prayers are all you have. Was there something more I could do?

The title of the piece was Tu lucha es mi lucha, which means “your fight is my fight.”

Remember, we’re young. Nobody expects us to be leaders, so we must expect it from ourselves.

There was incredible history here, and yet... so much more history to be made.

“She needs me to be her friend,” I replied. And as soon as I said those words, I felt them in my heart.

In soccer, if we see something wrong, we call it out so it can be fixed. I see something wrong, and I want to help.

Tu luca es mi lucha. I will lead with my heart and find a way to help your family.

We don’t just want to talk about injustice. We want to do something about it.

It was as if Tia Mari knew that someday I’d need this quote. Maybe I’m more like her than I even imagined.

All of us are united in our love for soccer, but we are also united in another cause that we want to share with you. Soccer has taught me many things, but most important it has taught me to be a team player and to be vocal if I see something wrong. This past week, I saw something wrong and I want to bring it to everyone’s attention.

If you were here, I would tell you what an inspiration you are to me. I miss you, Tia. I know I’ll always miss you and that’s okay. It will be an extra part of me that will make me stronger and kinder.

[jademakean]

Clouded Sea

JJ Maybank x Routledge!Reader

Warnings: Death, Thalassophobia.

Not edited

･*:༅｡.

It had been a while since your brother’s disappearance. You don't recollect how you reacted to the newfound information, in the beginning, your overwhelmed mind blocking out the details. What you do remember is how you spent days in your room mourning until you snapped out of your trance.

Just because they didn't find the boat doesn't mean they aren't alive.

It's John B, he knows how to get out of difficult situations.

He's okay

Of course, your slight change in attitude received attention from unwanted locals, you seemed more eager to leave the house, you didn't cry anytime you came back to the Routledge house, there weren't dark circles under your eyes anymore and it wasn't too long before they understood what you began speculating.

Delusion ran in the family

The pogues were the ones to understood your situation the quickest. On the rare location, John Bs name was mentioned, you spoke of him as though he were still alive. Barely phased by the fact that your brother wasn't around anymore. They also noticed how you'd run off right home to check the mail after hanging out with them.

At that point they began to pity you, believing that you were in denial and becoming obsessed-which you were- they discussed it amongst themselves trying to finds ways to bring you back to reality.

JJ was a different story, he became more distant and quiet. Mostly hanging at his house with his god-awful father. Doing his best at ignoring you because you'd just remind him of his second greatest loss.

As time went on you got some clarity on your surroundings. JJ behavior mostly.

You weren't sure how to approach him at first, he must be having his own battles that didn't need to be brought up, maybe he'd shut you out even more if you tried to ask him how he felt. So you decided to be casual.

You remembered how you had asked him to teach you how to surf before John Bs disappearance. You never learned how  because of your fear of the ocean, and it had gotten worse due to this past event. 

Sweat began to gather on your forehead due to the blazing sun up above. You readjusted you loose shirt, hiding your plain bathing suit. You knocked on the metal door, nervously waiting for who you were looking for and as you were about to knock a second time, a very tired JJ appeared with squinted eyes as the light hit his face.

The air left your lungs momentarily. You hadn't seen his face in a long while but he was here now, in front of you.

You snapped put of it when he whispered your name "What are you doing here?"

Taking a deep inhale, you smiled charmingly. “I came over to get you. You promised me you'd teach me how to surf last year, remember?” It was your fault for holding the plans back for so long, the thought of swimming above water clouded with sand was terrifying to you.

You walked past him, grabbing the beach towel on the floor and some sunscreen. “Right now?”

You answered with a smile “Of course! Better sooner than later. I'm tired of holding our plans off, we should just get it done and over with.”

“That's not what I mean.”

You stopped rummaging through the towels. It was easy to tell my the sound of his voice that he was still struggling immensely, it was also laced with confusion on how you aren't in the state of mind he is now.

“There are barely any waves today. I checked and there aren't many people either, it might be because it's a Wednesday.” You changed the attention the topic was directed to smoothly

“Y/n..”

You interrupted him by grabbing his hand, leading him to where his surfboard was abandoned for these past weeks. “Lets go, the sun is about to set.”

As you previously mentioned moments before, the sea was still. The sun warmed up everything beneath it, almost making you excited to get in the chill water.

Once you reached the shore line JJ began making little mountain of sand beside you “What are you doing?”

“You have to practice on sand before trying the real thing." He sighed.

“Actually-” you caught his eyes “-I was thinking that maybe you could help me get more comfortable with being in the water? I feel like that's the overall most basic step, you know?” You laughed lightly trying to cover up the anxiety spiralling in your head.

And thats what happened for the next few days. You started off small, allowing the water to reach your knees then moved on to mid thigh, and that alone lasted about 20 minutes. However, you didn't mind. You were able to talk to JJ more, which was hard.

It seemed like there was something on his mind that was one fake smile away from being revealed.

You both began meeting by the beach at 4:P.M, you'd stay for a few hours before he'd start help u balance yourself on the pile of sand with his surfboard.

It was all going well. You were always a quick learner when you got excited over something. JJ on the other hand seemed to become slightly closed off, like the only thing set on his mind was to teach you surf and nothing more. Limeted physical contact, no unessesary comments, no jokes.

Oh, how much you missed jokes. You hadn't heard one from him since your brother's disappearance. Your hopes of peeping one from him was slowly dimming away.

"Alrighty! I think I'm ready to sit on the board, maybe go farther out this time. A two in one." You smiled. While pulling down your shorts you decided to keep your shirt on. You excitedly took JJ's hand before guiding him to shore.

The water was cold, as usual, but you didn't feel as hesitant to enter it like before. It was an improvement that you were glad to notice.

Since you had a later shift at work it was already 7:50 P.M and the sun was starting to set, making the sky was a beautiful mixture of gold and blue.

You snapped out of your trance once you felt JJ's hands on your waist.

You were suddenly flustered by his action, and even though he was just helping you get on the board, he hadn't been very physical with you those past days. His a action was simply unexpected.

"Thank you." You said sitting up straight.

There was complete silence between the both of you. The only sounds heard was the waves clashing together gracefully, peoples distant voices and seagulls flying over their heads. This was the normal routine between the two of you, no talking, just the patiently waiting for your fear to disintegrate into ashes until you're able to swim without a care in the world, just like all the Pogues.

You missed them, truly.

There weren't anymore meatups at the Chateau or watching them surfing from your spot in the sand, sunbathing while drinking fresh juice.

"Do ya want to make plans with the gang? We could eat dinner at the diner, and maybe sleepover my hous-"

"What is wrong with you."

JJ interrupted you with a harsh tone, causing your smile to falter. "What do you mean?" You asked, calmly adjusting your body so you could sit with both of your legs on one side of the board.

"You know exactly what I mean." He looked into your eyes this time. And it's now that you have no choice but to look at his face that you notice the dark undereyes, dry lips and messy hair.

He wasn't taking proper care of himself, he probably couldn't if he tried. It was obvious your brother's disappearance took a toll on him. "How do you do that?"

"Do what?" You asked, slightly afraid of his answer.

"How are you so okay with everything. I remember when you were locked in your room for weeks on end, and one day you just- came out. I didn't even see you and from what I heard it seemed impossible to be true. But then you just showed up at my door with no warning, with this big smile on your face and- I don't understand. He's your brother." His tone became more exasperated as he let out all the words that had been running through his mind.

"JJ, I'm not gonna stay sad all summer just because John be isn't here. I'm sure he wants me to do what makes me happy and keep taking care of myself. Plus, he's-"

"Stop talking about him as if he's alive!" JJ interrupted once again "He's dead, don't you understand? He's not coming back, or gonna send you some letter. He's dead."

His harsh tone made you feel as though he was purposely trying to hurt you. The worst part is that that's not the case. He's trying to make you see what he sees. "He's not dead."

There was a slight pause, he looked at you as if you were crazy.

"He's not. There's no body, so until I see one he's not dead. He's smart. He's got Sarah, they got away from the police and are probably in some island enjoying themselves."

"You've gotten comeplety insane! Do you hear yourself? You sound exactly like him when your dad disappeared, and you know damn well how that went."

His hurtful words ignited anxiety within your heart, making it feel heavy and sensitive. You were starting to feel too much and you didn't know how to stop it.

"I know he's alive! You'll see. He's gonna send some sort of signal, ofcourse we couldn't just show up out of nowhere when the police is looking for him. Since when does a disappearance automatically mean they died?"

JJ's eyes darkened, he was done with this game. He had to witness JJ obsess over his dad's disappearance only for him to be hit with utter disappointmen, he wasn't gonna allow the same to happen to you. "Face it. Your brother's dead, there's nothing you can do to change that."

His words hit you like a wave, his harshness making the agonizing emotion worse than ever thought possible.

It was so hard to keep hoping. It was exhausting.

"I don't wanna be alone"

Your words came out quiet and shaky. Once JJ looked back at you he took notice of the fact that your eyes were casted down, glossy and relaxed to the point where it seemed as though there was no emotion behind them.

The thought of not being able to hug your brother again- not having anymore long converstation about your future or simply seeing him from afar as he tried to outsurf JJ- was a thought that you refused to accept. However, you had begun douphting yourself and JJ finally saw through that crack.

His tense shoulders dropped, guilt sinking in knowing you were hiding the way you truly felt deep down.

"He's not dead, okay?"

JJ gazed at your expression swallowing the shame building up your throat before nodding his head. “You're right, he's not dead.”

He slowly approached you and got between your legs, wrapping his arms around you. “He's not dead.” You collapsed against him, resting your cheek against his collarbone.

Teardrops fell onto his golden skin, the feeling resulted in a shiver, running through his body as he hugged you tighter.

John Bs disappearance was harsh on everyone who truly knew him, and some learned how to hide it better than others. All that everyone slowly began understanding is that you were all one family and should watch out for each other.

“Do you wanna go grab a bite?”

You could almost laugh at his poor attempt to be casual, but you settled with a smile, pulling away from him while wiping your own tears with your arm.

JJ ran his thumb underneath your eye before kissing your forehead. “Come on, we can listen to Bob Marley on the way there if you want.” He snickered as he guided your surfboard towards the beachfront. You sighed, liking the feeling of the water moving underneath you as he pulled you to shore, observing the fish beneath you.

The sun had already set and all that was leftover of the sky was a pinkish-blue.

You could finally feel the sand beneath your feet. You watched as JJ walked off, grabbing his bag and shirt.

“Here.” He tossed over his top and your flip-flops as he slid in his. “Arent, you gonna be cold?” You asked knowing the shit that laid in your hands was the only one he had.

“What, would you prefer to walk around in your soaking wet shirt? Because I think that'd do more damage to your health than me going shirtless.” He teased with a raised brow.

You paused for a second allowing the realization that you are in fact soaking wet to sink in “Yeah you're right. Suffer.” Your approving sentence got a laugh from him.

You gaped at him. This was the first time you heard him laugh ever since go started talking to him again.

A smile made its way to your lips “Alright, I'm ready.” You stated after pulling a new shirt over your body. “My tapes are in the outside pocket.”

He pulled out the Bob Marley cassette from the bag before sharing an earbud with you. You accepted, untying your dry hair and finally setting it free.

The walk was peaceful, a comfortable silence falling over the both of you. The smell of pinewood from the trees was calming as you walked past the forestry area of the island.

You and JJ would always use this path after a beach day with the pogues. You would separate yourselves from the group so you could discuss about his job, home life, aspirations. Those were all things he never felt very safe discussing about with anyone but you. John B knew, but they didn't have the sort of relationship where they could switch to sensitive topics easily.

JJ liked how listened. You didn't look at him while he talked about such things, knowing he would feel intimidated by your gaze. The way your body slightly turned to him to show that you were paying attention. Most of all how you communicated with him first. When discussing about his father, you would ask if he needed a listener, a solution, or comfort.

Most of the time he would ask for you to simply allow him to rant, however, there were many times where he would ask for you to comfort him, just so he could receive the soothing sensation of embracing you tightly.

During every hug you shared, we're mere seconds of pure relief, relief that there was someone out there who knows about every aspect of his life and is yet to view him as weak.

“I’m really glad you got me put of the house. I hadn't surfed ever since he disappeared.”

It was as if the path you were on gave him the courage to speak with confidence. “And I'm sorry I was so harsh on you. I didn't mean to. I've just been feeling so much and I got so frustrated when you didn't seem as miserable as I am, I should've never been so insensitive.”

You knew he had a hard time apologizing to people, it made him feel vulnerable and he wants to have the upper hand in every situation. He likes being in control to compensate for the how much of it he lacks at home.

You looked over at him before smiling. “I love you too, JJ.” You ruffled his hair playfully before hugging his side as you walked.

JJ returned your smile, grateful for the fact that you resorted to a light-hearted response instead of a heavy one.

Time passed quickly and before you knew if you had arrived at the Chateau. JJ took a deep breath, his nerves increasing. He hadn't seen any of them, just as he hadn't seen you during those long weeks. How would they react seeing him there, let alone seeing the both of you together with smiles on your faces.

You squeezed his hand gently. An encouraging gesture to give him some strength.

You led him inside, the yellowish lights contrasted the night sky beautifully and as you both sat around the wooden table, you removed the earbud from your ear, which prompted him to follow your actions.

“JJ?” You heard Kie from behind you. Once you turned to face her she looked as though a miracle just occurred before her eyes.

Before your brain could acknowledge she dropped her notepad and hugged you both with the strength of an amazonian. “I missed you guys.” she mumbled into your hair.

As you were about to respond you felt more weight on you “We missed you guys.”

You giggled, now aware that it was Pope who was crushing you.

It had been so long since you had all shared such a heartfelt embrace, and you weren't going to let each other go for a while. You were all family. No matter how far you are or how long you don't speak to each other. This is what a true family was, and soon enough you were all going to be together again, as one.

“We missed you too.”

[maybe-itll-be-someday]

Teenage Dreams

The one where someone disrespects Emily and Jack remedies it by punching them in the face.

Read on AO3

Emily was a great Mom.

Despite the fact that they weren't related by blood, she was the only mom he truly ever know. He never really knew his actual Mom since she had died so long ago now. He had snippets of memories, barely threads now since it's been over a decade since she passed, and the stories that his Dad would tell him. About how they first met in the Pirates of Penzance play in high school, how she supported him through law school and the Academy, and how she loved strawberry ice cream and will always love him.

But Emily had always been around, on the sidelines of his soccer games and baseball tournaments, wiping his tears and kissing his bandages when he scraped his knee or slammed his finger in the car door. They had gotten married almost five years ago now and it was only in the last three that Jack had insisted on calling her Mom.

"You're the only Mom I have." He had said when she was stunned into silence as he tested the moniker on his lips on a Wednesday afternoon. He doesn't think he'd ever seen Emily cry so hard before.

The only thing Jack Hotchner didn't really like about his mom, is all the snide comments and half whispers among his friends whenever they came over. He was aware that Emily was beautiful, if the way his Dad always told her was any indication.

It was after school and Mom had come to pick him up after his first soccer practice, his friends quickly starting to elbow each other as his Mom made his way towards them, still dressed from work with her FBI badge hanging off the side of her blazer.

"Hi sweetie." Emily greets. She smiled brilliantly at all his friends, some of whom quickly averted their eyes at the sight of her.

"Hey Mom. These are my teammates." He says, introducing her to the gangly group of teenagers who were either outright staring or doing everything in their power to not make any eye contact.

"I just need to go grab my stuff from the locker room. I'll meet you at the car?" Emily nods, knowing that now that Jack was getting older he was starting to enter the phase where everything his parents did embarrassed him, even if it was just something as simple as picking him up from practice. If Emily were a betting woman, she would wager a large amount of money that Jack wanted her to park down the street so his friends never saw her.

If only she knew exactly why Jack was keeping his friends far away from her.

His friends immediately start whispering to themselves as Emily makes her way back towards the parking lot to wait for Jack.

"That's his mom?"

"Holy shit."

"That is a MILF if I've ever seen one." Jack is quick to shoot an angry glare at his teammate, who at the stern look in Jack's eye, had the decency to look embarrassed before they made their way into the locker room.

Jack could still hear the rumblings among his friends, catching the words sexy and red from the direction of the showers. He tries to block it out, but he can feel the tips of his ears go read as his teammates swapped remarks about their list of hottest Moms and somehow, his own makes it on the list.

He's still bright red when he hops into the car, Mom with a concerned look on her face.

"Are you alright, Jack? You're not catching a fever, are you?" She frowns, checking his temperature with the back of his hand as he swats her away.

"Mom, I'm fine. It's nothing." Emily tuts, Jack's tone toeing the boundary between upset and disrespectful.

"Jack, you know that as a profiler I can tell when you're lying to me, right?" She says, her eyebrow raised and Jack grumbles to himself. Emily smiles at the muttered words, but for her benefit, she asks him to speak up.

"Sorry, what did you say?"

"I said yes ma'am, I am well-aware."

"And you also know that I won't force you to talk about anything unless you want to talk about it?"

A small smile breaks on Jack's lips. Mom never did push him to talk about anything, always just letting him know that she was available when he eventually did want to. Her only condition was that he would talk to her eventually, no matter how long that took. It was one of Jack's favorite things about her, since she could really calm his Dad down when he had that vein bulging from his neck whenever information was withheld from him.

"I'm aware of that too."

"As long as you know." She says, before turning up the radio and singing in an off-tune pitch to the latest pop song on the radio, clearly unaware of the actual lyrics or which key the song is supposed to be in.

Okay, maybe there were two things he didn't like about her.

--

The next time someone makes a comment about his Mom, they make it to Jack's face.

Dennis Smith was one of those kids you'd consider an outcast in school. Always dressed in torn jeans and black, followed by thin cronies who were too afraid to stand-up to the kids who picked on them so they ended up hiding behind a larger bully. He had been taunting Elliot, Jack's lab partner, for the past three weeks. Elliot had run into class that day, his shirt torn and bag half-opened as he rushed to sit next to Jack.

"Dude, what happened?" Jack asked when he spotted the torn pocket and the hastily stuffed belongings in his backpack. Some of his books were wet and if Jack had to guess, they had roughed him up in the boy's bathroom.

"Dennis." Elliot just mumbles, pulling out his notebook and cursing when he realizes that they took his wallet.

No one was going to pick on his friends if he could do something about it.

At least, that's what his Dad taught him.

So when Chemistry ends, he stalks Dennis and finds him bent over a water fountain, his friends chatting away while leaning on the locker next to him. Jack reaches over and taps him on the shoulder, a bewildered expression on Dennis' face.

"What do you want, Hotchner?" He spit out, puffing his chest to make him seem bigger than he actually was. Dennis didn't like him, since he was one of the only ones who wasn't scared of the bully. Jack found it hard to be scared of him, considering the fact that both of his parents were in the FBI and dealt with much scarier things than insecure teenage boys with an anger issue.

Jack crosses his arms, Elliot hiding behind him as he stares Dennis down.

"What's your problem with Elliot?" He asks flatly, interested in getting to the bottom of this. The hallway slowly starts to flood with students exiting their classes and the commotion causes a small crowd to form. In the corner of his eye, Jack can see cellphones being pulled out and aimed right at them.

"My problem is that little pipsqueak told Ms. Gardner that I was cheating." The bully stares directly at Elliot, who cowers further behind Jack despite the fact that Jack was only a few inches taller than him.

"But you were cheating."

"Well, if he learned to mind his own business, then maybe we wouldn't pick on him so much." Jack sizes Dennis up - he notices the muddy state of his shoes and pants that dangle just above his ankles, clearly too short for him. He smells faintly of body odor and some form of energy drink and if Jack had to guess, no one was providing him parental supervision at home.

He was angry, and had no one to direct that anger towards except for a student who was just doing his due diligence.

"Look, Dennis. I get it - your parents don't spend enough time with you, they leave you alone a lot, and you're angry about it. Can't you find something better to do with your time? Like actually studying so you don't need to cheat?"

Dennis flushes bright red and Jack turns and motions for Elliot to follow him. Hopefully, that would be enough to stop them from bullying Elliot. It's only then that he hears what Dennis mutters under his breath.

"Not all of us have a hot ass stepmom to tend to our every need. If I had a stepmom like that-"

Jack's fist connects with his nose, his knuckles flashing in pain at the contact. He feels a white hot rage spark under his skin, directed at anyone who would think to badmouth his family. The crowd gasps as Dennis falls to the floor, clutching his nose and yelping in pain. Jack flexes his knuckles and winces at the dull ache that settled in his joints. He freezes when he hears a familiar voice call out his name.

"Jack Hotchner!" Jack's eyes close and hopes that it isn't who he thinks it is.

He plasters a smile on his face and turns around, hiding his swollen hand behind his back.

"Hi Principal Gibbons."

--

"You are grounded for at least three months." Aaron says, his knuckles white around the steering wheel. It was just his luck that his Dad would be the one to pick him up. Apparently, Mom was off on a case with the BAU and Jack had a feeling she would be more understanding of him breaking Dennis' nose after fifth period.

After all, she was the one who signed him up for self-defense classes.

"What were you thinking Jack? Breaking a kid's nose?" His Dad had been furious upon arriving at the Principal's office. To the normal outsider, he looked calm, but Jack knew the fury that lay underneath. Dad had an excellent poker face and he managed to keep his anger under wraps until they got back into the car.

"He was being a dick."

"Language." His Dad warns and Jack sighs, knowing that swearing probably wasn't going to save him from the thin ice he was already on.

"Look, he was bullying my friend Elliot and I stood up to him."

"So, instead of talking it out, you punched him." Aaron says in disbelief and Jack shakes his head in frustration.

"No, I told him that his parents weren't around and that he was angry, so instead of picking on Elliot, he should just study."

There's a beat of silence.

"You profiled him?" Aaron curses the pride that blooms at the realization, not wanting Jack to get off that easy. After all, he did get suspended for three days and had to visit the school counselor with Dennis upon his return for 'mediation'.

"I did. Then I walked away."

"Then why did you punch him?"

"Because he said something about Emily." Jack's arms cross, his gaze out the window and Aaron sighs. He had been ecstatic when Emily came to him with tears in her eyes because Jack wanted to start calling her Mom. It was a decision that Aaron always left entirely up to Jack, not wanting to force him into feeling like they were replacing Haley since they were getting married. She had always been perfectly fine at being called Emily, not wanting to infringe on Jack's view of Haley. Jack only reverted back to calling her 'Emily' when he wanted to distinguish Emily and Haley.

Aaron lets the silence sit for a minute, his anger deflating. "What did he say?" He eventually asks.

"That not everyone had a hot ass stepmom to tend to their every need."

A different flash of anger runs through Aaron, his grip around the steering wheel tightening a little bit and his knuckles flashing white.

"That's why I punched him. I don't want anyone to talk about Mom like that."

Aaron lets out a breath, the last of his anger dissipating with Jack's words. He had always taught Jack to stand-up for those who couldn't stand up for themselves and he did just that. He stood up for Elliot and he stood up for Emily as well, not tolerating any disrespect for the people he cared about.

"Hot ass stepmom?" Aaron asks, a curious eyebrow raised.

"Oh Dad, you have no idea."

--

Emily comes back home to the angry marks on Jack's hand settling into purple and yellow bruises.

"You did what?"

"He punched a kid at school. He'll be suspended until tomorrow." Emily crossed her arms, disappointment in her expression. "Did this kid attempt to hit you first?"

Jack shook his head, hung low from the stare his Mom was baring into him. Aaron chuckles, rescuing Jack from what he is sure is a tongue lashing with a gentle hand placed on her shoulder.

"He was actually defending a friend." Mom's stance softens ever so slightly and eventually, she uncrosses her arms and sighs.

"As long as it was for the right reasons. But I still don't condone the violence and you're grounded until next week." Jack nods, knowing that it was a lenient punishment considering he spent the last month grounded because he had snuck out to see a girl.

Later, when Jack is in bed, Aaron tells Emily the true reason why he had gotten in trouble. Her heart swells with pride and an absolute adoration for the boy she's watched grow up and felt honored that he would defend her from his peers.

"Hot ass stepmom, huh?" She teases as Aaron bristles. She loved that even after years together, he still got jealous. Many cops and detectives have been the end of the Hotchner glare when he caught them checking her out and somehow, it doesn't surprise her that a few harmless teenage crushes would cause his heckles to rise.

"Oh sweetheart." She coos, snaking her arms around his neck as his hands land on her hips. She doesn't miss the way his grip is just a little tighter and giggles as he grunts in acknowledgement.

"You don't need to worry about a bunch of teenage boys stealing me away."

"Who says I'm worried?"

Emily just laughs, smoothing the frown on his forehead.

"Whatever you say, sweetie."

--

Later that week, when Jack's friends come over before they head to the high school football game, Emily comes home from her run. Her hair is thrown up in a messy bun, her sweat slick on her skin and her running shorts hugging her behind tightly. Aaron walks into the living room to greet her to see two pairs of eyes glued to Emily's form as she walks into the kitchen to get some water.

He throws them a death glare and doesn't fight the smirk on his face when Emily presses a kiss to his lips in greeting.

--

[danurso]

I'm not sure if i'm going to keep writting

I'm the type of guy who likes to work in my stuff at my own lazy pace, which is why most of my stories take awhile to go out, but i loved to write them so i kelt working on them despite knowing how it's hard for me to keep a storyline going, but right now, i don't know if i can keep writting.

Recently i've lost my cat, which is something i know a lot of people go through, they lose their pets, suffer for a while and then move on, but my cat wasn't just a pet to me, he was my best friend and seemed to be smarter than a lot of the people that "care" about me.

On the last decade i saw family members die, my grandmother found out sye has cancer and my biological dad got covid, and yet, i couldn't bring myself to feel anything thanks to a tendency to build barriers to keep everyone out, the only ones i don't have barries with are my mother and my cat, which is why when i woke up a few days back with my mother crying saying he was dying i was devastated, i kneeled next to him watching him barelly being able to breathe and crying for i have no idea how long. Last time i felt like this was more than a decade ago when i lost my grandfather and my stepdad, my two father figues who raised me.

And of course, we have the irony as well, because my life is apoarently a very funny joke to someone. I've always dreamed of having a gaming PC when i was a kid and spend a lot of free time researching and planning how i would build my own when i had the chance, and a few weeks back i got that chance and bought everything i needed to build it. I was over the moon about it, could barelly sleep because of how excited i was, and then an hour after he dies, while i'm still crying and feeling worse than shit, the parts arrive for me to make my dream come true........are you fucking serious?

Not to mention the complete and utter slap on the face that my mother gave me, I don't blame her, she saw her usually cold son suffering like she hadn't seen in years, so she left and came back with a fucking new cat. I know she was panicked and just wanted me to feel better, but the moment i put my eyes on it my blood started to boil, i wanted to scream at her and ask what the fuck she was thinking, but since i'm not a braindead snowflake who thinks my feelings matter more than those of the poeple around me, i just took a deep breath and went to my room.

She brings the cat to me sometimes and gushes about how cute he is, but every time i look at it all i can feel is a slap on my face and a voice screaming on my head "HE'S FUCKING DEAD!!" My mom even told me the 'tragic' story of the cat, about how he's been on the adotpion home for a year now and nobody wanted him, how he went straight to my mom and how the lady said that "he was just waiting for her to come pick him up" which was nauseating for me to hear, she at the end said he was not the cat i lost but asked if i could love him as well, i've always been on a messed up emotional state, even more now than ever, but i've always been honest to her so i told her i wouldn't love it, She then started to cry and got angry at me, repeating his story and saying that now she would give it back to the adoption home, it once more pissed me off how she was angry because i didn't care about a new cat that she brought home a few hours after i lost the cat i saw being born and loved more than anything on this world. She was bluffing of course and the cat is still there, i don't get close to it but it seems to like my room so i usually keep it closed, and if it gets in i'll just gently pick him up and leave him on the corridor, i also usually give him food and water even thought i don't like him since again, i'm not a braindead snowflake, i might hate him but i'm not gonna watch him starve or treat him baddly, he's not at fault here so i treat him well while keeping the most distance i possibly can.

So yeah, i still feel like shit, i cry from time to time, i don't feel like getting up or eating, i have now a built PC but don't feel like playing on it, just got an heirloom on apex (because why the hell wouldn't i in this wonderful week?) And am not playing very much, and above all, i hadn't wrote a single word ever since i lost him, and i don't even know if i will keep on the writting.

Writting has been one of my biggest passions for years now, i've wrote enough stuff on private to fill almost three entire bibles, not counting the promots i post here, so i do want to keep writting, but every single day it gets harder to do anything i like, i haven't wrote a thing for any of my sotries and even for my OC's that i enjoy writting every now and then, so yeah, i wanna keep going but if you never see me posting again you already know why.

Sorry if this was a long post but i needed to get this off my chest, i feel like posts like these are stupid coming from me, but i at least wanted to clarify things in case i stop writting completely, i wanna try and keep going, once i get my head in place again i'll sit down and try to get some stories done, i love writting and i don't wanna stop, but in case i can't do it, i just want you guys to know you're all awesome, thank you for all the support and nice messages you left in my stories, they always make me smile when i'm feeling down. I hope i can make more stories you can enjoy in the future.

[votederpycausemufins]

Back at it again with scattered au. And since this is the caves and cliffs update, I really should look at those. :3

scattered au by @hermitcraftheadcanons and also tagging @helleborusangel beacuase they are good bean and this is my love language.

Xisuma waited until the last second to move out of the way, the warden’s fists slamming against the wall with the same force as a ravager, breaking into the wall. Though at this point, it wasn’t so much a wall as it was the end of a tunnel.

He had tried mining his way out on his own before, but deepslate was tougher than stone and that was already tough enough to break with your hands. Plus, chipping away at the rock with your bare hands wasn’t the quietest thing in the world. Xisuma wasn’t sure how many times he had died before he managed to break through two blocks.

But then he had barely dodged what would have been another kill while trying to break a third block, and the warden broke so much more of it. While it wasn’t the greatest plan, it was a plan nonetheless. Xisuma made sure to guide the monster’s attacks at the wall, hopefully in a more upward direction. Once he had any sort of opening, he would let himself get killed and then use his next few respawn to lead the warden as far as he could in the other direction.

The more that Xisuma walked the caves and dodged the warden, the better he got at it all. At this point, even in the dark, it was like he could see the cave. And he also seemed to be getting better reaction times, knowing when the warden was about to attack.

The admin kept looking at the information his helmet gave him. It was set up to double as a communicator, so along with the currently disabled admin functions, he could still see the chat, and most importantly, see his coordinates.

He raced past the Warden on his next respawn, going into the tunnel and climbing through it as fast as he could. He reached the end and hung onto the highest point he could of the cave, finding himself clinging to the wall. The warden reached him, ready to swing, and then Xisuma dropped. The monster punched into the place X had been a moment ago, causing more of the wall to break. Instead of there just being more deepslate,a stream of water fell from one of the new holes. Xisuma felt the cold water on his hands as it rushed past, and then he was killed by the Warden.

Xisuma didn’t care that he had died, he had gotten something better. And that was a way out. He rushed back to that part of the cave and got the warden’s attention before running the other way, letting it follow the echoing sound of his footsteps. It slowly got closer and closer to Xisuma, speeding up as it went. The admin barely cared when it finally did reach him and immediately kill him, sending him back to his spawn. He just found the warden and did it again.

X led it all the way to the other end of the cave, going until they were up near the wall. Then he let himself get killed. He started by moving carefully. He didn’t really have to rush right now. In fact, rushing would just be loud and alert the warden. So he slowly made his way through the caves, finally reaching his exit.

He didn’t care how much noise he made now, there was no way the warden could reach him in time. Xisuma waded into the water, the splashing noises it caused alerting nearby sculk. They started to send the message along to the warden, but he didn’t care. He started swimming up the water with all his might, ready to get to the other side of the wall and escape. Then he finally reached the air on the other side and took a deep breath.

He looked around, hoping he could see the area around him, hopefully from some lichen. While there was no lichen, Xisuma could still see enough to have his heart drop. He hadn’t escaped. This just led to another part of the same cave, except much closer to where the warden was now. Right now, the admin couldn’t see the past few respawns as anything but useless. He had essentially made no progress and was back to square one. Sure, he could try somewhere else, make sure that this time he was really going away from the cave, but right now, everything just felt like a waste.

Xisuma lay down in the pool of water, letting himself float there. Of course he would try later. He was the admin. If anyone was fixing what had happened to the world, it would probably be him since he was admin. But right now, he just wanted to rest. He had run so far, dodging the warden and leading it around. And now he had some chance to rest. A short break before he tries to escape once more. And he would escape, even if that ended up being days or weeks or even months. Everyone seemed to be in their own bad situations, so he needed to find some way to help and fix things.

.

.

Jevin feels the rumbling from below him again. He still isn’t sure what it is. It never has a death message to go along with it. All he knows is it’s below him. Well that, and the axolotls aren’t a fan of it. He pets one that swims by, hoping to calm it.

While he’s got some tools, the makeup of the cave has been difficult to get through. Clay and stone and plants all use their own tools, so going back and forth isn’t the best. Plus, while he found some wood, it’s still limited and he’s not sure how long it would last. So Jevin just has a stone pick and sword, only wanting to use them for emergencies. He used to also have a wooden pickaxe, but he used it up trying to escape the cave, it breaking being why he stopped trying.

Besides, due to the glowberries, he had both food, and enough light that no monsters were spawning. If Jevin really had to, he could stay down there. He'd prefer if he could leave, but it wasn’t currently a life or death situation like so many others.

He pats a yellow axolotl as it swims by, a green spot left behind in the shape of Jevin’s hand, making him sigh. He had started having trouble keeping his slime together, constantly leaving it behind on the things he touched. He’s pretty sure that it’s because he’s in a humid cave, which is making his slime looser, and spending so much time sitting in the ponds doesn’t help, but he hasn’t fallen apart or dissolved, so it’s not dangerous or anything.

And then there’s the fact he’s just had trouble getting out of the water. He’s recently had trouble swimming and his limbs feel heavy when he tries to climb out. Jevin would try to stay on land, but the place is filled with water, so it’s either stay stuck on one or two small blocks making a platform, or wade in the water. And he’s decided the water is the better option right now.

.

.

.

Doc kicked at a goat. He didn’t actually kick it, then it would probably attack back and throw him off the cliff. That had already happened to him more than once. He also didn’t want to stay in place, as apparently the goats preferred attacking him when he wasn’t moving too. So the best the hybrid could do was move around and glare at the animals.

He looked up at the clouds, still walking around. He had seen two different people fall from the mountain hidden above. Based on his communicator, those two were Grian and Grumbot. And then from some achievement messages, it looked like Jrumbot was up there too. Doc was half glad that the robots had come along to the next season, but wished they didn’t have to end up in this situation and instead came to a normal season.

Doc looked back down just in time to stop himself from walking off the edge. He looked behind himself quickly to make sure there weren’t any goats ready to attack him, and for the most part they were, save for two that were maybe a little too close for comfort. The hybrid stepped back to the middle of the mountain cliff he was on, hissing slightly in frustration. The only trees were lower down, so he couldn’t get wood. But then there was also coal and iron staring him in the face from the side of the mountain.

He was so close to being set and yet he was so far. There wasn’t even any water that he could reach with a jump. And he had already tried getting the goats to launch him, but it was always random which way he would be hit, and it never seemed to be towards the water enough for him to make it. At the very least he was far enough down that it was a bit chilly, but not cold enough to freeze him. Though it did seem to be getting colder the longer he was there. But that could just be because it was starting to get late again.

Doc was fine with night. Sure, monsters would spawn, but that meant the goats were more likely to attack them and not him. And if he made sure they didn’t fall off the edge, Doc could get whatever they dropped. He had managed to get lucky with a carrot from one zombie, which was stored in his pocket for an emergency. If he could somehow get lucky and till some ground, it would be a reliable source of food, but until then, rotten flesh would do.

.

.

Grum and Jrum did their best to keep their dad in the blankets of the bed. After that pillar thing had shown up, he seemed to get colder. Grum was pretty sure it was due to whatever ice was used to build it. It looked like regular blue ice, but since it had affected his dad, he wasn’t sure.

Jrum wanted to curl up in bed with his dad, but he still remembered the fact that metal would steal heat that there wasn’t spare of. He tried to hold up one of the pieces of steak to Grian’s mouth, hoping he would eat something, but the only reaction the avian had was to turn his head away and refuse it. Jrum tried to get him to eat a few more times before giving up, putting the food away.

Grum got up and walked over to the pillar. Their dad couldn’t do much from keeping himself alive, but he and his brother weren’t affected by the cold. Fall damage could kill them of course, but just standing on the mountain wouldn’t. So Grum grounded his feet in the snow, packing it down so he had a sturdier place to stand, and then he started punching at the ice. It was slow to break since the only tools he had were his hands, but it was slowly working.

Jrum noticed what was happening and joined his brother, standing on the opposite side of the pillar. With the two of them, the cracks in the ice formed faster, getting closer to fully breaking. Grum punched just a little faster when it looked like it was just moments away from breaking and then-

Purple light started to glow from the cracks and they reformed. Grum jumped back at that, surprised, but then moved forward again in anger. They had to get rid of it. Maybe just be faster this time. He started again, but this time Jrum wasn’t helping. “Come on, let’s try again.”

But Jrum didn’t listen, just ran back to their dad, making Grum stop to turn around. Gria had pulled himself out of bed and was coming over to the bots, wings dragging in the snow behind him. “Dad no! You need to stay in the blankets! You gotta stay warm!”

Grian ignored Jrum and instead went to Grum. The bot took a step back from the way his dad looked, his eyes a bright amethyst color even though he wasn’t using magic. “Dad? Are you okay?”

Grian tilted his head for a short moment with a chirp before he grabbed Grum. “Don’t break it. It’s very important.” And then he started to lift Grum up. The bot struggled and Jrum ran to Grian’s side to try and make him let go. He tried harder and harder as Grian slowly moved them closer to the edge, Grum still scared of heights after before. But nothing seemed to be working and Jrum was also panicking now.

As a last resort, Jrum stopped dealing with his dad and instead grabbed for Grum directly. At first he had no luck, but then he pulled as hard as he could. There was a crack and then Grum was free, falling on top of Jrum. The bots were both still looking in their dad’s direction and were still able to see him. The arm he had been holding Grum in was now broken and hanging at an awkward angle.

For a moment, Grian’s other hand started to glow with purple energy, moving to heal the broken bone. But before he could get far, Grum was back up and pushed him off the side of the mountain. The two bots stared, not sure if they wanted their dad to fly back up, or if they were glad he was gone, but eventually Grian hit the bottom of the mountain, not doing anything to keep himself alive.

The bots both got the message of their dad dying, so they looked back to the bed. The avian was back under the covers, but wasn’t getting back up, instead curled up for more warmth. Reluctantly, Jrum got up first and carefully walked over to Grian. He stopped in place when there was another glow of purple, but he saw something appear in the avian’s hands and the glow disappeared, meaning he just used magic to summon something new.

Jrum finally reached the bed and was glad that his dad didn’t react too violently. “D-Dad? Are you okay?” He asked, and then Grian looked at him, making the bot freeze again. His eyes were still the bright amethyst color they had been before, but they weren’t as mean looking.

“H-hey… it… no I kn-know it’s n-not okay… Y-You two shouldn’t…” Grian chattered out, wishing he could comfort the two bots. “I d-didn’t know th-that it was going to be h-here. I c-can’t get you out y-yet… I’m… one of you n-needs to get down… g-get help. B-both of you if you c-can. I-I’ll be f-fine on my own.”

“But dad, we can’t just leave you here. And we don’t know where anyone else is.” Jrum complained, but then Grum spoke up.

“Well… we actually do. Everything’s processed and… Doc’s down there somewhere.”

Grian shook his head. “N-no. Stay away from h-him too. Stay a-away from everyone t-to be safe. Just g-get to spawn.” The bots tried to say something, but he cut them off. “No buts. I’ll t-try to fix things, b-but it m-might just g-get worse.”

“Why would you need to fix it?” Grum asked, having gotten behind Jrum.

“B-because it’s my fault. I b-brought you h-here. A-and I d-didn’t even ask about wh-who it was. And now I-it’s just going to g-get worse fr-from here.”

“Dad, you didn’t know this was going to happen.” Grum said, though it looked like Grian didn’t believe him. “And we want to stay here and make sure you’re okay since you’re obviously not. I know you wouldn’t want to do what you just did normally.”

“B-but…”

“No, now you get no buts!” Jrum spoke up. “If only one of us can get down, then the other of us will stay with you, and it’s better if we stay together. So we’re both gonna stay up here!”

Grian tried to argue again, but the bots both made sure to keep him stuck in the bedsheets, even tying the blanket down in a few places. “Don’t worry dad. Jrum and I will make sure everything is fine. We’ll be here for whatever you need.”

Grian didn’t answer, just flopped back down onto the bed and curled up. He still wanted to argue, but he was also tired, and one of those was easier to fix than the other. So before long, Grian had fallen asleep, the bots staying nearby in case he needed something, but also using each other to pass the time.

And then suddenly Etho was there, making the two of them jump.

[buckysgoldenheart]

Unexpectedly Bitten

Vampire!Henry Cavill x Reader

Summary: Your ex gets into some trouble with Vampires, and his mistakes lead the bloodsuckers back to you. After seeing you, one vampire gets a little attached and he’s taking his time deciding what he plans to do with you, but whatever it is, you’re not afraid. In fact, you might just be a little attached to him too.

Warnings: cursing, smut, violence. (Count on spelling mistakes or repeating words too often. it’s very likely.)

Notes: Folks I did my very very best. I am so bad at chaptered fics, it’s insane. But I tried. As always,  Let me emphasize this: there is little rhyme or reason to the way this story is broken into parts.

This is a Vampire!Henry x Reader story where each chapter, while chronological, is a different conversation or event during the course of their evolving relationship.

p.s if anyone knows the maker of these gifs let me know and i will give credit.

Words: 1628

Part 4: Heartbeat

Henry had agreed to entertain you for the night, waiting a few hours before he left again to find bodies. You played cards, having nothing else to do, and chuckled when neither of you could figure out who was worse at the game. You’d shown him a new one; one your mother taught you that you never developed the skill for but thought Henry might find amusing. And he did, though he had a hard time understanding it. But you were just happy to have him around with a smile on his face rather than the more recent stressed out scowl.

“This game makes no sense,” Henry joked as he tossed his losing hand on the table.

“Not according to my mother, but she’s dead now, so unfortunately we won’t ever get private lessons.”

Henry’s smile dropped at your words and you instantly regretted them. “How did she die?”

“Um,” Your eyebrows pinched as you recalled the day you were left alone in a life where you already had little. “Bad deal with a witch.”

“A witch? Where did she even find one?”

“She heard the whispers and went where the rumors claimed,” You said, fiddling with the stacked deck. “My dad had died, and she thought a deal with a witch for his soul would be smarter than going to a demon.”

“I’m sorr—” Henry began, but paused the instant Chris barged into the dining room. His fingers tugged at his blond hair.

“What?” Henry asked just as a knock sounded at the front door.

“Elec.”

Henry’s shoulders tensed as he stood so fast the table nudged, and when you did the same, walking to him, you couldn’t help but notice how he slightly pushed you behind the wall of his body. “Now?”

“I saw him at the gate,” Chris looked from Henry to you and back, and answered the unspoken question hanging between them with a shake of his head. “There’s no time, Hen. He’ll smell her after the hours you’ve been in this room. Y/N,” He calmly said to you, “Keep your mouth shut, ok?”

You nodded, then jumped at the rumbling knock that had Chris heading out of the dining room to the front door a few yards away, you and Henry trailing behind. “It’ll be fine,” Henry said, but you weren’t sure if he was trying to reassure you or himself.

Chris opened the door with a deep breath and moved aside to allow a vampire, black-haired and red-eyed, to step into the entryway. He was built smaller than Henry or Chris, decorated in what appeared to be modernized attire from the 1800s, and had a confident smirk on his face that made your stomach turn. He opened his mouth to speak, but a quick scan of the room and a sniff halted him, and his blazing eyes connected with yours instantly as if you had some beacon above your head.

“Human,” The small vampire said, acknowledging your presence without shock or concern. Almost as if you were just an inanimate decoration in the corner of the room.

Henry moved a little more in front of you when he sensed you flinch from behind.

“And it’s still alive, how interesting.” Elec’s boney hand reached out. “Come here, pet.”

“Back off Elec, she’s Henry’s,” Chris said before Henry could let out a defensive growl.

“Why can’t we share the feast?” He said, never breaking his stare from your face. “I’ve come quite a long way, and we always used to share. It’s the least you could do for a member of the Lord’s court. Unless…” He grinned at Henry, long fangs poking out. “Unless you’ve become one of those vampires who fucks their food before they eat it.” He placed his scarlet glare on you again. “Though you are a pretty thing, aren’t you? I’d have you myself if you were like us.”

“She wouldn’t want you.” Henry snapped.

Elec rose an onyx eyebrow. “So, not only fucking his next meal, but very protective of it too.”

“What have you come for, Elec?” Chris asked, attempting to draw his attention away. “You haven’t visited alone in years.”

“Just thought I’d stop by, see some old friends, reminisce a bit…maybe share a delectable, little meal,” He wet his lips, “But since I am so blatantly unwelcome, I’ll share the bit of news I have for you and go.”

Henry ticked his jaw. “And that would be?”

“As the newly appointed hand of the Lord, I am here to inform you he will be here in seven days. Make your preparations. And be sure to eat her before he comes, or she will be taken as an offering,” He said, nudging his head in your direction.

Henry looked as if to protest, but before he could, Chris said, “Understood.”

“Good,” Elec spun on his heal, but stopped just before passing the threshold, turned his head to the side and said, “Be sure not to get attached to it, Hen. Think of the trouble it’d cause,” Then, “See you in a week, gentlemen.”

Elec stepped out into the night, blending in with the darkness as Chris shut the door.

“Do you think he’ll tell him?” Henry asked Chris, the grip on your arm you hadn’t noticed before now, tightening.

Chris rubbed the back of his neck. “I don’t know.”

------

“Henry…” You began, watching him stare into space. He’d dragged you into his room after Elec left as if the space between the dining room and the front door was now tainted with bad energy. “What he said--”

“Don’t worry about it. It doesn’t matter,” He replied without looking your way. “You won’t ever see him again.”

“You’re worried.”

“It’s fine, Lamb, ok? I promise.” He wasn’t trying to snap at you; you could tell by the way he winced when it was too late to take the words back, but he was distraught and couldn’t contain it.

You stood from the bed and made your way over, reaching for this hand. He flinched unexpectedly when you touched him, like he had been in his own little world and the bubble surrounding him popped when he felt your skin on his. He met your eyes. “Thank you,” You said, lightly squeezing his fingers. “For defending me.”

He’d been cryptic after the day Elec visited; not answering the questions that would help to fill the blank spaces in your mind. But you needed those answers, at least for your sanity.

The worry he failed to hide from you momentarily melted away. He raised his other hand to your face and cupped your jaw, rubbing his thumb along its edge. “I’m not going to let anything happen to you.”

‐----------------

You were too determined to find them that it distracted you from the book in your lap, and by the tenth time you’d reread the same sentence, you gave up. You stood, threw the book in the unoccupied chair with a little too much ferocity, then marched your way back to the spare room he was sleeping in while you stayed in his. You didn’t even think on it, didn’t consider what he could be doing, so when you shoved the door open without knocking, you immediately regretted it.

His hair was freshly damp, his body covered in little water droplets that traced the curves of his muscles as gravity pulled them down, with a towel barely held around his hips by one hand. He paused when he saw you and his lips parted in surprise, much like your own.

The flush of your cheeks matched the heat that now flowed through your veins at the sight of him. “Um…” You swallowed. “I—"

Henry sharply inhaled, but it was loud enough to shut you up and soak the room in silence, until he said “I can hear your heart beating,” His eyebrows briefly knitted together in a twitch of shock and confusion.

He wasted no time walking towards you, making you back up until you had nowhere to go. Bright, blue eyes never left yours, and when you were good and trapped, Henry dropped the towel without a care so he could place his hands on the wall either side of your body. You didn’t dare break his stare or try to run.

“It’s pumping awfully fast, Lamb,” He whispered with a twinge of awe.

“You’re…naked.”

“Mhmm.” He glanced at your lips and removed one hand from the wall so his fingers could graze along your cheek and jaw before settling at the curve of your neck. He didn’t seem to worry the way you did over his lack of clothes. It seemed to be the last thing he cared to waste a thought over, like it was the least important detail in what was happening between the two of you now.

“So that’s—” You swallowed. “I mean—"

“If you’re scared,” He moved closer, “Then don’t look down.”

“Of course I’m not scared of you.” You said so softly it was almost a whisper, suddenly unable to look away from the hypnotic way his lips moved when he spoke only to you.

“No. Just of parts of me.” He smirked.

“I’m not scared of any bit of you.” You tore your eyes away and met his own again. “But I need to know what’s happening. After everything, I still don’t know what you want.”

Delicately, he trailed his fingers up and down the length of your neck, stopping only to savor feel of your pulse. “Little Lamb, I thought…I thought if you knew what I wanted, you would run for the fucking hills, but,” He paused, slipping his hand under the neckline of your shirt to place his palm over your thumping heart. “Maybe you wouldn’t.”

---

Tags:  @agniavateira​ @tumblenewby @forthebrokenheartedthings​ @summersong69​ @starlite13​ @mstgsmy​ @purplelove75​ @defffcc​ @the-soot-sprite​ @kissthatlifeaway @atomicpaperhairdouniversity​ @aquariuslavenderhoney​ @harrysthiccthighss​ @the-problem-of-leisure​ @jimmypagesandbrianmayshair​ @readermia​ @angelofthorr​ @itmejado​ @caro-jean​ @raven-black102​ @itty-bitty-dancer​ @grungeisntmything​ @wolfiepirate​ @scuzmonkie @heartfullofl @wanderlustkitkat @maan24​ @furievonalexandria​ @posiemax​ @sweetybuzz25​ @iamthetwickster

[mersuperwholocked-lowlife]

For The Greater Good

Word Count: 1,484

Characters: Dean Winchester, Reader, Leviathans, Dick Roman, Sam Winchester (brief), Castiel (brief)

Pairings: Dean Winchester x Daughter!Reader

Warnings: angst

A/N: ehh, i thought why not make a part two for “Safe” so here u go

Masterlist

Your breath was shaky as you leaned against the wall, laying down. Your clothes were ripped, your face was covered in sweat, tears, and dirt. Your entire body aches from bruises and cuts. Your wrists were in pain, looking at the rope burns on them.

You were tired, but you refused to sleep, afraid of what would happen. 

You poked your head up, hearing a noise, the door was opening, as a light shone in your cell. You squinted your eyes, gasping softly.

“Come with me,” the man said. You could barely make out his face as you pushed yourself into the corner, trying to stay away from the man.

A leviathan, he called himself. Whatever that was.

“Get up and come with me,” he repeated. You could hear the anger in his voice.

“Please, just leave me alone,” your voice was barely above a whisper as tears fell from your eyes once more.

“Get up,” he stepped into the cell, looking down at you.

“I can’t…. please stop,” you shook your head, as you sobbed.

He began walking towards you as you screamed, begging him to go.

“Please, stop hurting me!” you screamed as you tried pushing him away.

He put his fingers in your hair, yanking you up as you cried out in pain.

“J-Just kill me. P-Please kill me,” you cried.

He gripped your arm tightly as he pulled you with him.

---

It’s been a while, maybe weeks, maybe months. You had no way of keeping track of time or keeping track of anything. You hadn’t been exposed to sunlight, leaving yourself to grow paler. 

The only person you could blame was yourself. If you hadn't trusted him. Why was he hurting you? Why did he do this to you? He’s supposed to be your dad, he’s supposed to keep you safe.

But instead, he hurts you. Why did you trust that he would want to come back to you after all these years? 

You could feel yourself fading away. Whether it was the pain from torture, the lack of sunlight and food, or dehydration. You could barely make out what was only a few feet in front of you, your vision blurry.

But nothing could make you forget that familiar voice as he walked into your cell, opening the door.

“Come with me,” he said.

“N-No more… please,” your body had nothing left to produce your tears as you laid against the wall. Even if you wanted to fight him off, you couldn't.

“Come on! There’s not a lot of time,” he walked into your cell as you let out a cry.

“Please stop hurting me…” you cried.

“I’m not gonna hurt you. (Y/N),” Dean ran next to you, putting his hand on your back.

“I-I can’t take anymore, p-please,” you cried.

“(Y/N), I’m not gonna hurt you. You have to listen to me right now. It’s me. It’s Dean,” he said softly as you closed your eyes, leaning against the wall.

“That man who took you, who was hurting you. That wasn't me. I swear I will explain everything. But you have to come with me right now, okay?” Dean gave you a worried look, his eyes red as he looked at your broken figure. 

What more did you have to lose.

“I can’t move,” you said softly.

“I got you,” he wrapped his arms around your legs and back, picking you up as he held you tightly.

You closed your eyes, barely having enough energy to hold onto Dean. You were so tired, finding it harder and harder to stay awake. You fell unconscious, your body going limp in Dean’s arms.

---

You opened your eyes, jumping up as you looked around, scared. You were in some motel room, and you felt fine. All your bruises and cuts were mysteriously healed.

“(Y/N),” you heard Dean say softly behind you.

You gasped softly, turning to him as you took a few steps backward, away from him.

“I-I'm not gonna hurt you,” he said softly.

You continued to keep your distance as you sniffled.

“That thing that hurt you, that wasn't me. It just looked like me and was trying to use you to get to me,” Dean explained.

“How?” you asked softly.

“That thing was called a leviathan. It’s evil and twisted. And it can look like anyone at any time,” you remembered back, hearing the man talk about leviathans.

“What are they?” you whispered.

“They’re monsters,” he said.

“So monsters are real,” you said, slightly in shock as you scoffed.

“I’m so sorry this happened to you, (Y/N),” he said, walking to you as you continued to stay away from him.

“I-If that thing didn't take me, y-you wouldn't be here right now,” you said softly.

“(Y/N),” Dean began.

“D-Did you even miss me? Or think about me? You just left me. You wouldn't even be here if it weren't for that l-leviathan,” you stuttered, your eyes watering.

“(Y/N), no. Look,” Dean tried to explain as you cut him off.

“I-I was alone. My mom died and all I wanted was you. And  made fun of me. Everyone picked on me because I thought you were going to c-come back and save me because you loved me. Everyone said you didn't want me,” warm tears fell from your face as you looked up at Dean shakily.

“I’m sorry, I should've come for you,” he said softly.

“Was I not enough for you?” you cried softly.

“No, God no, don’t think that. I swear I only did this to protect you. I wanted to keep your safe,” he said, his eyes red.

“Everyone around me dies, (Y/N). I didn't want the same fate for you. You have to believe me when I tell you that all I’ve ever wanted was to keep you safe,” he said.

“T-That's what he said,” you whispered.

“I’m not him, (Y/N). That day… I saw you. In that diner, I ran into you. I tried to find where you were staying, and by the time I did, you were already gone. He took you, and I’ve been trying to look for you. Whatever he said wasn't true, whatever he did, it wasn't me,” his voice broke.

You could feel your heart aching as you ran to Dean, wrapping your arms around him tightly.

“Please don't leave me again. “P-Please,” you cried.

He looked down at you, kissing your forehead as he held you tightly. 

“I-I won't,” you didn't notice as a tear fell from Dean’s cheek, as he looked up, looking at Castiel, nodding softly.

“It’s time,” you jumped slightly, hearing Castiel’s voice from behind you.

“What’s going on? Who are you?” you noticed Dean held you tighter.

“Baby girl, know that I’ll always love you, okay?” Dean said softly.

���What’s going on? Dad?” you tried to push him away from you.

“Now, Cas,” Dean said.

“What are you doing? You said you weren't gonna hurt me!” you screamed, as Castiel walked behind you.

He placed two fingers on your forehead as you cried before your body fell limp.

Dean held your body carefully, laying on to the bed.

“Are you sure you want to do this?” Sam asked.

Dean stayed silent, looking at your body.

“We can figure something out. She can stay with us,” Sam said.

“No. This life isn't for kids. It’s not safe for her. It's for the greater good,” Dean could feel his heart pounding as he spoke.

but it didn't make what he said any less true. He just wanted to keep you safe.

“I am sorry, Dean. She will be safe,” Castiel said, holding you as he disappeared.

---

You groaned, waking up in some abandoned alley. You sat up, rubbing your head as you attempted to recall the events of the past couple of days. But you couldn't. The last thing you remembered was leaving that diner.

“Angels are really dumb too,” you heard a man standing behind you as you jumped.

“Uhm, sorry?” you raised an eyebrow.

“I’m hungry. And you look delicious. But, wouldn't it hurt your daddy more if you were shot? He’d have to see your body,” the leviathan began.

Your face dropped, taking steps away from him.

“Whatever you’re about to do, don't. I don't have a dad,” you said, shaking your head.

“Dick Roman. Nice to meet you, (Y/N),” you could feel your veins grow colder as you looked at the man.

How did he know your name? How did he know you?

“Whatever you want, we can talk it out,” you said.

“Talk is for the weak,” he pulled a gun out of his pocket, aiming it at your chest as you put your hands up.

“Please don't do this. Whatever you want… please,” you begged, taking a shaky breath.

“Goodbye,” you closed your eyes as he cocked his gun.

Bang