#my emt brain thinks about shock a lot

[eiraeths]

jason’s revitalization needs to have more side effects. yeah sure, there’s the pit madness, but that’s mostly mental.

i’m talking physical side effects, something akin to compensatory shock or dysautonomia.

pallor and clammy skin, maybe even a little cold to the touch, nausea, narrowed pulse pressure, tachycardia, all things that would usually be a huge glaring warning sign that’s something’s wrong. have his pupils dilated or constricted at the wrong times, his hands with delayed and or diminished feeling because the blood doesn’t flow correctly. give him horrible temperature regulation.

lean into dysautonomia a little more and give him a hyperactive sympathetic nervous system. fight or flight that kicks in fast, the buzz of adrenaline always under his finger tips. syncope episodes when he doesn’t eat properly, but with his sympathetic nervous system in overdrive, he’s nauseous around food and eating more than a snack makes it so much worse, and him having to learn to balance on the tightrope that is his body.

cheating death should have a permanent price to remind you what you’ve done even if you never wanted to in the first place

[mauswrites]

Fear (Simon Riley x AFAB!GN!Reader)

A/N: I was recently reminded of my worst fear, that being cryptic pregnancy (No weight gain, no symptoms, no nothing. You don't know about the baby until it's on its way out) and can't stop thinking about it, so I decided to write a fic to get it out of my system. (sorry if this sucks, this is the first fic I've published in like almost a decade)

Genre: hurt/comfort

TW: Blood, mentions of childbirth, medical inaccuracies, possibly OOC Ghost, reader genuinely thinks they're dying

You couldn't sleep.

Not because of the thoughts racing in your mind but of the unbearable pain in your abdomen.

Occam's razor would tell you that it was just your period, but you've never experienced cramps like this before, like being torn in half.

With a huff, you shove the blanket off your body and get up, but as soon as your feet hit the floor, pain shoots up your spine, causing you to crumple to the floor, wailing out in agony. You clutch your stomach, forcing air in and out of your lungs.

Why am I wet? you thought.

The pain had distracted you until now, but you managed to reach for your bedside lamp to see blood running down your legs.

A lot of it, too.

As the fear settled in your bones, you hurry to get your phone and call for an ambulance.

"999, what's your emergency?"

"I don't know what's wrong, I'm in a lot of pain, I can't stop bleeding... I-I can't walk."

"Where are you now?"

You give the address to your flat and hang up when the dispatcher assures you that the ambulance isn't far.

Walking may seem impossible, but you manage to crawl to the front door to unlock it, sitting down in the hall, waiting.

Desperation clings to your heart, and you make one more call, this time to your ex-boyfriend, but it went straight to voicemail.

"Simon? Hey, it's me... I just wanted to say I'm sorry. For my attitude, the arguments, all of it."

The blood loss is getting to you, but you take a ragged breath and press on.

"I think I'm dying, an ambulance is on their way, but–"

The pain spikes suddenly, causing you to scream.

"In case I do, just know that I love you."

Hearing sirens from outside, you hang up and wait, dreading the black spots in your vision.

The ambulance ride is a blur, the EMT asking questions that your brain isn't processing, and you barely remember being put under at the hospital.

As your eyes flutter open hours later, sunlight leaks into the room through the blinds, and your stomach is sore, but you otherwise feel better.

A nurse is still in the room, typing away on the computer in your room.

"What happened?"

She seemed startled yet relieved at your voice, still groggy from sleep.

"This may come as a shock to you,"

Uh oh.

"But you experienced what's called a cryptic pregnancy and needed to undergo an emergency C-section. The bleeding was caused by a tear in your uterine lining, but you'll recover just fine."

Her diagnosis hit you like a brick to the face.

"So... I had a baby?"

"Yes, a little girl; a bit premature, but otherwise healthy."

You merely hum in acknowledgement as you look around the room, your eyes landing on the bassinet.

"Would you like to hold her?" the nurse asked.

"I... yes."

She smiles as she walks around the bed, picking up your daughter and passing her to you.

A lump forms in your throat as you lock eyes with the infant in your arms, hers a deep brown.

"Um... hello," you say, "it's nice to meet you."

As you fall silent, the nurse pipes up once again.

"I'll leave you two be for now. If you need anything, don't hesitate to call for someone."

You quickly thank her before she leaves, closing the door behind her, and you quickly turn your attention back to your daughter.

Your heart and mind were both racing as you admired her, even softly speaking to her every so often. For seconds or hours, you're not quite sure, but you only snapped out of your trance when the door opened.

You watch as Simon comes in and pulls up a chair next to your hospital bed, on the same side as the bassinet, all without a word.

"I'm guessing they wouldn't let you in looking like the Grim Reaper," you joked, taking note of the black surgical mask on his face, "How've you been?"

"I should be asking you," he said, "that voicemail scared the shit outta me."

"I've been..."

What do you even say?

"Honestly, not great; missed you like hell," you admit, casting your eyes back down to your baby and letting her tiny hand grip onto one of your fingers, "but I think I'll be okay."

"Cute little thing," he said, referring to your little girl.

"Thanks, I made it myself."

"Got a name yet?"

"Haven't exactly had much time to think of one," you reply, "got any ideas?"

"You told me you always liked the name Emilia."

"That's true. Seems it's settled then," you do your best to straighten up, "Simon, meet Emilia... Riley?"

"Riley," he confirmed, making you smile for the first time in a while.

"Do you want to hold her?"

He nodded, and you placed a kiss on her forehead before passing her over to him.

She already looked tiny in your arms, but compared to Simon's much bigger frame, she was damn near microscopic. He was practically holding her with just his hands, handling her delicately, like one wrong move would cause her to fall apart.

"What d'you say you come back home," he said, "We try again, be a family."

"Is that actually what you want? I don't want to be the parents that are only together for our child's sake."

"I mean it."

"That's good," you pause, fighting back tears, "Promise I won't be such a bitch this time 'round."

"You say that like I was a saint."

"Then we'll both be better, for each other and for her."

"Deal."

You silently admire the scene before you for a few minutes until the nurse from earlier returns.

She asked some questions about you and the baby, filled in some blanks on the birth certificate, and stepped out to bring you some ice water, leaving you to think about the past twelve hours.

"I'm honestly dreading going back to my flat." you thought aloud.

"Why?" Simon asked. He carefully placed Emilia back in the bassinet, giving you his full attention.

"There's blood everywhere."

"I'll take care of it; you just rest up and heal," he stood as he spoke, taking off his mask to kiss your temple, but before he had a chance to walk away, you placed a hand on his shoulder, urging him to stay.

"Promise you'll come back?"

"Promise."

As he left, the weight of the situation settled deep in your bones, but you found solace in knowing that you wouldn't have to face it alone, and that things would hopefully turn out better this time around.

[nburkhardt]

This is something that hasn’t left me since I read a fic from fucking glee years ago. It’s haunting me and goes away only to come back and swirl in my head so I’m just gonna write it out.

Saying this now, i remember a lot of season 4 but I’ve blocked out the Stancy parts hahaha so it’s not completely accurate to the show I don’t think. Also a quick heads up, I skip a lot of what happens in the show because it’s taking up too much brain power remembering those things lol (ps: if you see typos, no you don’t)

~

“I always pictured you, just, wanted to let you know before we head straight into danger”

Something inside of her wants to break and yet all she can do is nod at him and immediately head into that danger. Not wanting to look to closely at it right now, there’s more important things going on right now.

Takes her shotgun and decides she’s ending this once and for all.

It feels like an eternity passes before she finds herself in the hospital. One second she’s ruining her eardrums using the shotgun right next to her face, the next she’s following the emt’s light.

Surprisingly all of them has made it, she doesn’t know how but they have. It’s all she knows, couldn’t hear properly and too out of it to really follow anyone anyway.

“-eler, ms? Hello, Ms. Wheeler? Can you hear me?”

Nancy blinks hard and looks around to find a nurse standing next to her, “oh, sorry. What did you say?”

The nurse smiles softly at her before shaking her head, “I was asking if you wanted to call your parents now? Our generator finally kicked in and we’ve already asked your friends”

That makes her blink again, her ears still somewhat ringing, “yeah- yeah! I’ll, um, do that”

The call with her mom she barely hears, but she knows that they’re on their way. As she hangs up the phone she looks around and doesn’t see any of her friends, it makes her nervous.

“Hey, where are my friends?” She asks the same nurse and catches her surprised look, “did- you already told me didn’t you?”

The nod is enough but the nurse still says, “Yes, two of them got admitted, the other two are in there with them. They didn’t want to be separated so they’re in room 130, just over there”

She knocks once before opening it to find what she expected, Steve in one bed with Robin clinging to him and Eddie on the other with Dustin sitting next to him.

It shouldn’t be surprising but it is.

“Nance! Heyyyyyy, welcome to the party!”

Robin snorts, “don’t mind the Dingus Duo, the doctors gave them some strong medicine for the bites”

She shakes her head, smiling just a little at them. Steve’s mumbling about Robin ruining the party, Dustin’s laughing and Eddie has his eyes closed either falling asleep or already there. She takes a seat on the extra chair, opens her mouth but lost her words. The room is filled with beeping, Steve and Robin whispering and Eddie snoring.

It’s nice, this is nice.

A pleasant change from the chaos they went through just hours ago.

Seeing Jonathan is amazing, he pulls her close and presses a kiss to her forehead. Her arms are wrapped around him and she can’t stop the tears from falling even if it’s a happy moment.

Because it is, actually seeing him in person and not just hearing his voice.

He holds her close and it feels great, it does. But there’s Steve’s words echoing in her head. It makes her hide her face in hopes to cancel them out, she’s with her boyfriend. The boy she loves with all her heart, and yet, yet she’s thinking of the one she broke at sixteen.

Those words swirl, rattle and settles in her head as she helps fix the cabin up. They burn when Jonathan jokes about Steve being in charge, she huffs a laugh but disagrees.

She sees the confusion on Jonathan’s face. That doesn’t surprise her. Instead of continuing, they’re interrupted.

Seeing Joyce and all of the Byers reunite brightens the moment of confusion, seeing Hopper is a massive shock but a welcomed one.

Fixing the cabin is a process, but with the actual adults back, they decide to stop for the day and make their way home.

She watches as Mike clings to El and Will, watches as Joyce holds Hopper’s hand in a death grips. Sees Jonathan hovering and she’s on the outside.

There’s those words making her stay on the outside.

There’s static in her ears, her vision blurry, heart beating fast and she can’t figure out what happened. How did this happen? They were fine, Jonathan promised. She promised.

“I’m really sorry, Nance. I just can’t be in a relationship anymore, I love you. I do, but my family needs me and I, I need them more. You have to understand” he’s holding her close and she can feel his tears fall onto her, “I won’t ask you to wait, you deserve someone who’ll love and focus on you.”

All she can do is nod as tears go down her face.

They share one last kiss before separating for good. He hugs her close and she squeezes her eyes shut.

It’s several hours later, having spent most of the day in a haze. She’s sitting at her desk, trying to get her focus back, when those words from months ago start to swirl back in.

“I always pictured you, just, wanted to let you know before we head straight into danger”

“-just travel across the country, with my family”and “always dreamt this” filters in with it, she doesn’t know what she’s feeling, she shouldn’t be thinking about her first boyfriend like this.

Jonathan just broke up with her, not even a full twenty four hours yet.

But the words are swirling fast and she can feel her stomach flutter suddenly remembering that feeling those emotions Steve used to give her.

It was nice, even if sometimes she had to be away from him. He did treat her like she was his world and it felt like it. Nancy goes to sleep with a plan set in mind.

Tomorrow, she’ll go to Steve’s and hope he still wants that second chance.

Dressed in her best clothes, wearing pretty make-up, she makes her way to the Harrington house.

Seeing Eddie’s van parked outside doesn’t surprise her, not really, what does make her pause is when she walks by a bike and skateboard on the porch.

Seeing that makes her doubt the timing, Eddie there is alright he shouldn’t know the history between her and Steve. She also swears she heard him talking Steve about lost loves and second chances.

The bike can only be owned by Dustin and he definitely knows the history and Max well, since Spring Break, has been particularly living with Steve at this point. Stating a number of times that Steve is her brother, she might not know the story but she’ll be questioning.

But she’s here now and Steve’s words are on fire in her head.

So, she moves ahead determined. She knocks on the door and takes a few deep breaths to get her composure.

The door opens and it’s not Steve answering, it’s Dustin and she blinks. Losing that composure she just gained, it’s quick and she’s quick to get it back with an easy smile. “Hi Dustin, can I come in?”

He’s been hanging out with Eddie too much lately, since he is loose with his posture now and opens the door with an exaggerated smile and waving his arm as he opens the door more.

“Nancy?”

She looks around, sitting on the couch is Max who’s got an eyebrow raise and frown.

“Hi Max, I wanted to speak with Steve. What’re you doing here?”

Both of them shrug and Dustin moves to sit next to Max, “We have plans with Steve and Eddie, we got tired of waiting outside”

“So we broke in”

She rolls her eyes, moves to stand closer to the stairs, “Are they awake? Where is Eddie?”

The two share a look and she can’t figure out what it means, Dustin has a mischievous smile once he’s looking back towards her, “Upstairs”

A little suspicious at the look, but the words in her head has her pushing forward despite the alarm bells ringing that something is up.

Steve’s house has changed since the last time she was here, there’s more life within it and old family portraits are gone, photos of friends in their places instead. There’s a door with a sign saying ‘Dustin’s room’ on it, and she passes an open door that was originally Steve’s. It’s cleared out except for the desk and the plaid wallpaper.

The next room is opened just a bit, she itches closer and pushes the door to see more and her whole body freezes.

There on the bed is not only Steve but Eddie too. From where she’s standing, Eddie’s pressed up against Steve’s back and has an arm around him; keeping him close.

She tears her eyes away from them and immediately regrets it.

On the floor is a mix of Steve’s clothes and Eddie’s, that’s not it though. Sitting directly next to bed is ripped condom packaging and by the trash bin is a poor attempt at throwing away a used condom.

It brings her attention back to the bed, in the short glance away, Steve has moved in his sleep. Instead of facing away; he’s now facing Eddie and nearly on top of the other. She tenses up as Eddie tightens his arms around Steve, then she pulls the door shut before moving quickly down the stairs.

Without acknowledging the two on the couch she makes it to the door, just as she pulls it open the door she’s stopped.

“They’re asleep still? We could tell Steve you stopped by” she can just hear smugness coming from Dustin and Max sniggering.

Shaking her head, she refuses to look back at them, “no, no, it’s fine. Have uh, have a good day!”

“It doesn’t make sense! I, I thought- he” Nancy mumbles to herself, trying to collect her thoughts. She didn’t even bother moving yet, still sitting inside her car mumbling and trying to figure this out.

She could’ve sworn Steve was flirting with her, she knows she was a little during the fight. It felt natural and right. Even though it was wrong, very wrong. But- it was potentially the end of the world, they could’ve died! Everyone involved would understand her lapse of judgment.

Steve had told her, admitted his dream with her in it.

Him and Eddie? Steve likes boys? Since when? Was- was it a lie then? Was she being led on? Maybe even being used?

She’s so in her head, she doesn’t notice anyone walk up and only realizes when her whole body jolts at the knocking on her window. Shaking her head and reaching for her glove box, looking over her eyes widen at Steve standing there.

He’s wearing sweatpants with only a jacket over his bare chest, he looks worried, confused and most importantly; scared.

Taking a breath, she rolls her window down before looking at him, “Steve, hi.”

“Nancy, what are you doing here?”

Frowning, she looks away from him and startles at seeing Eddie standing there by the door also looking scared. Her eyes must be wide, because Steve clears his throat and she immediately looks back at him. “I- I”

Steve sighs, dropping his arms to run a hand over his face and hair, looking away from her, “Nancy, what you saw- you can’t tell anyone. Okay? Please. I don’t understand why you’re here right now and I really don’t want to know rig-” he shakes his head, “just, please don’t tell anyone”

She opens her mouth, but the words get caught. Steve’s look is haunted, even more afraid then a few months ago. Closing her mouth, taking another look at Eddie by the door before focusing her attention back on Steve.

“I won’t. I promise, Steve. I won’t tell anyone, just- maybe we can talk sometime? All of us?”

He clearly wasn’t expecting that, she can tell by his eyes and how he glances behind him, before looking at her again. “I’ll have to talk with Eddie first, but, uh yeah sure.”

Steve gives a weak smile at her that she tries to match, despite her racing thoughts. He steps away from the car and she starts it, nodding her head before driving away. She watches in her rear view mirror as Steve walks over to Eddie and only squeezes his arm before leading him inside.

Imagines that once inside, Steve pulls Eddie close and holds him tight.

Three Days Later

It wasn’t avoiding them, she really wasn’t. She had to collect her thoughts, really figure out what she absolutely wanted in life now.

Which, she still doesn’t know, at least relationship wise.

Thinking back on the last few years and how they’re finally no longer fighting for their lives and the world, she can go for her dream of becoming a journalist. Which is exactly what she realizes, two days into her thinking, that’s what she actually wants in life. Not a relationship with Steve. Not even a relationship with Jonathan at this point, she doesn’t need that right now.

By the third day, she realizes how selfish she was acting and how much she actually scared, maybe even hurt Steve and Eddie.

That’s what brings her back to Steve’s front door with an apology and some cookies. There’s no bikes or skateboards this time around, just Eddie’s van and it’s not first thing in the morning.

Knocking on the door is quick and as she wants gets her composure and tries to relax. It’s not long before the door opens, Steve standing on the other side and her mind flashes back to the night in 83. Shaking her head to get rid of it, smiling she raises her hands up with the plate.

“I bought cookies”

Steve smiles a little and let’s her in, “you didn’t have to, Robs and I had a baking spree last night”

“Yeah and it’s all delicious!” Eddie shouts out, from somewhere.

It does some a little like a bakery in here, she notices. Placing the plate on the table before looking at Steve, “no, my mom insisted I bring them.”

Steve just nods as he closes the door, “It’s fine, we love cookies and if we don’t finish them, Eddie’s friends and Robs is coming over later anyway”

He leads her towards the kitchen and she’s not surprised to find Eddie at the table with paints and figurines, “Elder Wheeler, good afternoon on this fine day”

A laugh bubbles out of her, as she takes a seat across from him and she watches Steve take the seat right next to Eddie. Eddie looks towards him and she gets to see a silent conversation pass between the two, it’s not like the ones she’d see between Steve and Robin or even the ones she’d have with Jonathan.

It ends a second later when Steve looks towards her with a tight smile, “Nancy, I’m sor-”

“No!” She’s a little loud but it makes his mouth snap shut and Eddie to widen his eyes, “sorry, but you don’t have to apologize to me. If anyone should, it’s me. I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you guys or to make you uncomfortable. I, I wasn’t thinking straight”

Eddie snorts, “couldn’t imagine how to do that”

It makes both her and Steve break into a smile, she’s quicker at sobering up though, sits straighter and clears her throat before settling her eyes on Steve, “I was being selfish, that’s why I came over the other day. Your words were in my head and I thought, maybe they were telling me that we could have a second chance. But I realized, I don’t want it anymore.”

Steve looks confused, “my words? Wha- my old dream? That thing?”

She nods, “yeah and I didn’t think things through, came here and found you both in bed and, scared you”

“You did” Eddie nods, dropping a hand to Steve’s, “When Dustin and Max mentioned you were in the house and looking for Steve, it really did scare us”

“I know, and I’m truly sorry for doing that to you both.” She looks away from them and sees how tightly Eddie has Steve’s hand in his, “You’re-”

“Relationship,” Steve interrupts her, “our relationship”

She nods, “it’s yours and I shouldn’t have even thought of you the way I was.”

They both nod and it’s quiet for a moment.

“Can, can I ask you?” She doesn’t know how to approach this, this isn’t something she does a lot. This is completely different from anything she’s done before, “You don’t have to tell me anything”

The couple share another long look before looking back at her, “I’m gay, I only like boys.”

“I like both. I especially like Eddie” Steve’s smile is bright and aimed completely at Eddie, “before you ask, we’ve been dating since we got out of the hospital.”

It surprises her, it’s been months.

“Yeah, I was surprised too. Thought Stevie boy was still high off the pain meds, turns out he was completely serious” Eddie laughs, “We haven’t told many people, gotta be careful with this”

She’s not surprised by that and nods, “I understand, I’m just a little confused- if you liked him and why give me hope? Why tell me that dream of yours”

“Nance, we were in the middle of a war,” Steve squeezes Eddie’s hand before letting go and reaching over to take her hand, “I wasn’t lying, I did dream of having a future with you. I thought we weren’t going to come out of it, didn’t think I’d have even a chance of growing up. That dream was from a little lonely boy who loved you with everything, I thought you should know that before something happened to us. But that wasn’t my only dream, and I know that’s not the kind of life you’d want, right?”

Her eyes are watering and nods, “You’re right, it was nice though”

It makes all of them laugh and Nancy feels like she knows him better, “I really am sorry, not just for scaring you. But for what I did back then”

“I’m sorry too”

There’s tears falling from both of them and she can see Eddie wiping away his own eyes.

A laugh bubbles up out of her, then Steve and lastly Eddie. It’s tears and laughter between them now.

~

Okay, look I’ll be completely serious right now. This wasn’t supposed to be this long, honestly. That’s why it ends the way it does, because it could go on even more. But I’d be repeating myself I think. Also, all of this just for the image of Nancy finding out about Steddie in like the most awkward way possible. (Without it being completely explicit 🤣)

Hope it reads okay, I had some help from the discord babes, @i-less-than-three-you & @strangersteddierthings! Love you both lovelies 💜

Information that isn’t in the fic: Robin and Wayne are the first ones to know about Steddie. Dustin, Max & the CC boys are the only other ones that know (besides Nancy) everyone else doesn’t. Also this takes place over a span of a few months. The very first part is directly after vecna (max isn’t hurt) and jumps to the “two days later” after that. But Jonathan and Nancy break up is about two months later.

TAGLIST! (If you want to be added, let me know!)

@spectrum-spectre @itsfreakingbats @mysticcrownshipper @artiststarme @thereindeerlady @justforthedead89 @ronniescontinuum @freyaforestafay @littlewildflowerkitten @estrellami-1 @gregre369 @zerokrox-blog @bookworm0690 @flustratedcas @carlprocastinator1000 @marvelmwah @solliesolesito @navnae @grimmfitzz

[caliboron]

Today marks 20 years since my grandma perished in a house fire. 20 years since my life completely, drastically changed in every way. 20 years since my mom became a severe alcoholic. 20 years since I heard my grandma’s voice and felt her touch for the last time ever, and I didn’t even know it. Her life was cut short. She was only 46 years old, she’d still be here with us today if this never happened. I’m so extremely grateful for the 6 years I got to be blessed with her in my life. She was an amazing person. She was tough as nails, headstrong, stubborn, sarcastic, kind, and always so loving to me and my sister and baby brother. I have very few precious memories of her, but I’ll list them here. She had two Siamese cats named Mariah and Blues, and two German shepherds named Chopper and Angel. Mariah and Blues perished with her in the fire. The dogs and my grandpa made it out. I remember once, Angel was sleeping and I kept petting her. My grandma said “Let her lie.” But I didn’t, and she bit me, and I cried, and my grandma said “I told you to let her lie…” but then she comforted me and took care of me. My grandma was an EMT, she saved lives. One time her leg got caught in a pot hole and it left her disabled. She had a lot of bruises on her knee, so one time when were were playing in her backyard, I sprayed her knee with a water gun and asked if I was helping her. She said yes, of course. I remember her giving me a can of peas (at my own request. I wanted this) and I ate them all straight from the can while she watched in shock. I remember dyeing eggs at her house for Easter. My grandma absolutely loved classic cars, and she loved going to car shows. She won so many trophies for her pink convertible. It was her baby. I went with her to a car show around Halloween and there was a costume contest for the kids. I dressed as Minnie Mouse and won first place. I was so happy. I got a special metal trophy that I cherished as one of my favorite memories with my grandma, but I lost the trophy in hurricane Sandy when they carelessly threw all of our belonging onto the street. There were so many other moments I had with her, but my brain has betrayed me over time and lost all of them. As much as I cherish these moments and the 6 years I got to have her, I’ve always had this pain of wondering how different, how much better my life could have been with her in it. She would have boosted my confidence. I would’ve gotten to know her so much better, gotten to love her so much deeper. My mom would be a completely different person. My childhood would’ve been so different. But my little sister would not have been born, because my mom was planning to get her tubes tied until my grandma died and she had to put it off, resulting in my sister’s existence. I can’t imagine what it’s like for her to have never even met my grandma. I try to keep her alive so badly, I talk about her all the time. I absolutely love when my mom tells me stories about her. They were so so close with each other. A lot like I am now with my mom. A bit co-dependent. My mom was around my age when she lost my grandma, I cannot begin to imagine what that was like. Grandma, I’ve missed you everyday since you were taken from us. I dream about you. In the dreams, you’re still here, and everything is cozy and warm. I long so desperately to hug you. To see your face and hear your voice, which I’ve almost forgotten how it sounds. You were meant to be with us. That fire was never supposed to happen. I was supposed to grow up with you and grandpa. I hope to god that there is a heaven, because the hope of seeing you again someday is what keeps me going in tough times. I love you so much, grandma. I’m thinking of you a lot, today.

[how-do-i-name-blogs-istg]

Reality - Chapter 2 - Virgil

1 2 3

TW: Minor character death CPR Mention of a largescale disaster with multiple casualties

It was only so long before a rescue was going to go south. By the time IR had arrived, Virgil's assessment of the muddy, sodden and half buried land landed the state of the mission in at least the southern part of Chile. But no. Now it was in Antarctica. That was when he’d found the first body. It was lying on the ground, writhing weakly, and despite all of the EMT training that Virgil had pushed himself through, the days and nights studying, the self assurance that yes, he could help people, it all came to a grinding halt. He froze.

“Virgil!”

“Virgil, come over here, we need you!”

“Virgil!”

The young man snapped out of his stupor. He could hear the mandibular breathing from meters away. He knew full well what that meant. It was a young woman, face covered in dirt and grime and he couldn’t see her legs. They were tangled up in a mass of concrete and girders and oh god he wanted to vomit-

“Hello, my name is Virgil Tracy from International Rescue and I’m here to help-” he murmured half under his breath, voice shaking. No response. He checked the trapezius. No response to that either. The breathing was bad, so bad, and he didn’t even need to check the pulse to know that it was probably flying all over the place. There was a defib in Thunderbird 2, that’d work-

“Dad!” Virgil screamed. “Get the defib!”

Hearing a scurrying of feet, Virgil assumed that that was his father leaving to do that. Shrugging his supply bag off of his shoulder, he grappled for the O2 mask. “I’m going to start CPR,” he said to no one in particular, before putting the mask in place.

At training, they’d always warned about how human chests did not bounce back from compressions. That it’d be a shock to the system. The old reliable Annes fell short on that account. God, Virgil wished he’d listened closer.

Despite being a part of International Rescue (and having been for the past year or so,) Virgil hadn’t had to do anything more than help support spinal injuries and treat crushes. Whilst yes, that was pretty serious, those people hadn’t quite been in the throes of death.��

So, at that first compression, when he felt the ribs break under his sweaty palms and the person could definitely feel that even though they didn’t respond, the 18 year old finally realised that he didn’t know what he was doing.

+++++++++++++++++++

Jeff Tracy had never seen his second eldest with that look in his eyes. One of abject defeat and hopelessness. Dropping the defib next to his son, he started wiring it up. Before long, it was doing the analysis of the heart rhythm.

“Virg, you need to step away from the body.”

No response. He was probably not thinking straight.

“Virgil Tracy.”

His son's eyes were still locked on the body, continuing compressions that were definitely taking a lot out of him. Putting a hand on his shoulder, he pulled him away. 

“I’m going to shock them.”

Virgil nodded meekly, seemingly having been snapped out of whatever brain he was in, and he sat back. The body writhed as electricity ran through it, and then it went still. 

“Shock delivered. Cease CPR.”

Virgil went completely still, his pupils dilating with shock, and it was at that moment that Jeff truly regretted effectively forcing his son into joining this organisation. 

[shadow-assassin-blix]

Never Thought This Would Happen

Soulmate AU: Combination of two different soulmate ideas. You can feel each other’s physical pains and if you write on your body, it will show up on your soulmate’s as well.

This is for the Ben Barnes Secret Santa fic exchange. @fific7​ I hope you enjoy this!  

Billy Russo x reader. Word count: 5137.

Warnings: Mentions of being hit by a car, some canon typical violence (neither incidents are overly detailed) and Billy talking about his past abuse. Lots of fluff, some angst, a dash of spice.

Happy Holidays! 

Soulmate. The concept always made Billy scoff. He didn’t believe in it despite the fact that whatever happened to your body, whether it was an injury, or a message written on their body you could feel/see it. He very often rolled his eyes when he would see a silly message on his arm. His soulmate greatly enjoyed drawing smiley faces or sending puns. He tended to ignore it. Hell. He didn’t even think about the potential pain he put her through when he joined the marines. Nor did he think about it when he, Frank, and Curtis created Anvil together and went on dangerous missions together.

He didn’t think about… until the day he met her in the hospital.

It was supposed to be an ordinary guard job. Protect the rich schmuck from retaliation as he campaigned to be New York’s Mayor. No one suspected that someone would be so angry about his political views, that they would try and take him out. Frank wound up getting shot trying to protect him. The three of them were at the hospital, as Frank was prepped for surgery to remove the bullets and the fragments.

Most of the day he had felt a tickling sensation on his arm, as his soulmate sent message after message to him. It was starting to annoy him. He and Curtis were waiting for a doctor to tell them about Frank’s progress, when Billy felt a sudden pain randomly throughout his body. The pain was overwhelming to the point where he had to sit down; Curtis trying to help by coaching him through breathing techniques.

As that occurred, the doors to the emergency room burst open as EMTs raced in pushing a gurney with a young woman on it.

Several doctors and nurses sprung into action, asking for the details about what happened.

“Car accident. Young lady was hit trying to walk across the street. Several bones are broken, and we suspect that she has some internal bleeding. Guy ran the red light going 80mph,” One of the EMT’s explained quickly.

Billy spotted as she was pushed past several doodles and words on her arms. Billy took off his suit jacket and rolled up sleeve; his mind hoping that he was wrong. That this was just a coincidence.

He saw the words “Hey! I’m in NY right now, and wow! Everything is amazing! Is it silly that I kinda hope you live in the area?” “Trying a slice of NY style pizza for the 1st time!” with a doodle of a pizza slice next to it. He looked between his arm and hers, and he realized… with growing concern… that they matched.

She was rolled back into surgery, and he stared at the doors with a blank face.

“Hey man? Talk to me. What’s going through that brain of yours? Did you know that girl?” Curtis questioned him, trying to figure out why Billy was so freaked out.

“I… I think that was my soulmate?” Billy breathed once it finally registered.

Curtis stared at him in mild shock, “I don’t know whether to feel bad for you or laugh. The forever bachelor’s soulmate has appeared.”

Billy honestly didn’t know how to feel either. His first thought was to avoid her at all costs. He focused his attention on Frank and making sure he stayed safe.

It wasn’t until several hours later that they were informed that Frank was resting comfortably in his own room. Surgery was a success.

The nurse informed them that only one visitor at a time could see him, so while Curtis stepped inside, Billy stayed out in the hall. While he waited, he noticed that in the room next to Frank’s, was his soulmate.

‘It’s…it’s not possible right? It’s… it’s just a coincidence?’ He thought as he stepped into her room, hesitantly.

He walked over to her, his eyes roving over the many bandages that covered her body.

He pulled out a pen, and drew a random swirl on his hand, his eyes staring intently at hers. A moment passed and a swirl appeared on her hand, identical to his.

“So, it really is you?” Billy sighed, unsure of how to feel.

Billy was adamant he would never meet his soulmate, and that if he did, he would ignore them. He wasn’t one to be tied down. However, he didn’t expect that this is how they would meet. This was the first time he ever truly felt pain from his soulmate, and it was eye-opening. It made him… feel a bit guilty… for his lack of care in avoiding getting harmed.

He walked back out into the hallway trying to figure out… Figure out what? His next move? Did… did he want to get to know her? He almost felt like he had to explain himself to her. Or… did he actually want to get to know her? His thoughts felt chaotic.

Maybe… maybe if he talked to Frank? Frank who had found a second in Karen, his first soulmate being Marie. Maybe… maybe he’d know what to do?

Curtis had stepped out of Frank’s room, and was going to call Karen, to let her know what happened, so Billy figured now would be best.

Billy took a seat next to his bed, and Frank sighed heavily.

“Sometimes… I really hate our job,” Frank joked slightly.

“But… we’re good at it, right?” Billy tossed back, with a slight smirk.

Frank shook his head, before staring at him seriously, “So… Curtis mentioned something strange. Your soulmate… is here?”

“…Yeah. She’s uhh. She’s next door in fact. I… I’m not sure what to do,” Billy admitted.

“Wasn’t your original plan something along the lines of ‘pretend they don’t exist?’ You were always so sure of that response,” Frank pointed out, with a slight frown.

“..Yeah.. However, it wasn’t until today that… I realized just how much that shit hurts, when you are able to feel their pain,” Billy began scratching at his chin before trying to dismiss, “I guess part of me feels a bit guilty for the constant shit I put my body through.”

“Well… the Marines was one thing… but you do realize that she probably also felt..” Frank jerked his head toward Billy’s shoulder.

Billy froze at that realization. He never thought about the possibility that she may have felt him being attacked by that bastard when he was a kid. He touched his shoulder, trying not to think too deeply about the memories.

“…What do you think I should do?” Billy asked quietly.

“I mean… I know what I would. Go next door and introduce myself. I also know that for all the confidence you have brother, you have never been one for commitment. Whether that’s due to you trying to protect yourself or if you really think you’d be happier being the forever bachelor, I don’t know. I do know that you owe her some explanation for the hell you’ve probably put her through. Not saying you have to immediately fall in love and date her but have a conversation with her and go from there,” Frank answered with a sigh.

“When did you get so wise?” Billy joked weakly.

“Marie. She always wanted the best for you, you know? Wanted you happy and be with someone who made you feel whole,” Frank said with a chuckle.

Billy shook his head thinking about Marie and her constant fretting. Billy moved to say something else, but he heard Karen’s voice freaking out in the hallway. Billy snorted standing up and making his way back out to the hallway as Karen rushed past.

A couple of hours passed, as Curtis and Billy made several phone calls trying to put out the fires that had occurred due to the shooting. Once everything had settled the two of them took a breath, sitting down.

Curtis was talking to him about something, but Billy didn’t hear him as he noticed a doctor and nurse walk into the room that held his soulmate. His focus was zeroed in on her.

A few minutes passed before the staff walked out, and Curtis had given up trying to get Billy’s attention.

Billy wasn’t sure how but suddenly he was standing in her doorway, about to step in. He pulled out the pen he had on him, gripping it tightly as he moved further in.

The woman, his soulmate, looked up at him, confused… and slightly worried.

“Hello? May I help you?” Her voice asked him cautiously.

Billy slowly lifted the pen and wrote ‘hello’ on his hand. The woman watched him curiously, before looking down at her own hand a moment later.

She gasped lightly as she looked between the two of them.

“Umm. Hey?” He started with a wince, feeling awkward.

She stared at him for a moment, before saying, “Bummer.”

It was Billy’s turn to be confused, “Excuse me?”

“Was hoping you’d be ugly. It would at least make up for the fact that you’ve ignored me and the bullshit pain I’ve gone through because of you. But nooo. You had to be drop dead gorgeous,” She grumbled slightly, shaking her head.

Billy stared at her blankly for a moment and after he processed what she said he weakly chuckled, “Think you’re the first person to ever be disappointed by me being handsome.”

“Oh! I’m not disappointed! Please don’t take what I said too seriously! I just… I mean… never thought that this is how we would meet y’know?” She said worriedly.

“Not gonna lie. I never thought this would happen either. Are you… are you okay?” He asked her, his eyes glancing at the many bandages.

“Yeah. I’m good for now. Can’t believe it took me getting hit by a car for my soulmate to actually write back to me,” She said with a teasing smile.

“Well, not gonna lie, besides the occasional random pains in my abdomen and papercuts, you’ve lived your life pretty cautiously. So, it was kind of flooring to feel all that pain and then… see you pass by while I was waiting to hear on my friend,” Billy noted, sighing. “He had gotten shot and was in surgery when you were rolled by me.”

“Oh wow. That’s quite the double whammy. Umm. By the way… what’s your name? Cause mentally I keep calling you Handsome and I don’t want to accidentally say it aloud when we’ve only just met,” The woman reminded him.

“Billy Russo. It’s a pleasure to meet you…” Billy began.

She told him her name before saying “You can call me London though. It’s a nickname that my friends gave me.”

“Why London?” Billy asked curiously.

“I lived in England for many years. It was practically home for me. However, as a photographer, I tend to travel as much as possible. Never been one to settle down in one location,” London explained to him. “My friends chose London cause that’s where a big portion of my first portfolios were set in.”

Billy opened his mouth to say something else when his phone rang. He sighed heavily, apologizing as he answered it.

“Russo,” He stated first, listening to the person talking. “What are you talking about? The job is done. We are not going to protect someone who refused to give us all the facts about the threats against him. He can find someone else to take bullets for him. I am not putting my team at risk again.”

He hung up with a growl of annoyance.

“Hm. That… that was oddly sexy,” London mumbled to herself.

Billy ran a hand down his face, feeling exhausted.

“Sorry. Umm. Work. So… are you here in New York for work or for fun?” Billy asked trying to seem casual.

“Both. I have a couple of weddings, and other jobs lined up, especially with journalists. Was supposed to meet a journalist to talk about some company called Anvil? I don’t know,” London said with a shrug.

Billy froze then chuckled.

“What?” London asked him, head tilted trying to figure him out.

“Well. It seems that… fate was going to bring you to me no matter what. I own Anvil. My best friends, Frank Castle and Curtis Hoyle, run it with me. I… I can’t believe this,” Billy shook his head in disbelief.

“Whoa. No way. You’re the CEO of the security agency? The former marine? And whoa wait… You’re best friends with the Punisher?” London couldn’t believe what she was hearing.

“Yes to all of the above,” Billy answered with pride.

“Marine. Hmm. Well. That explains a lot,” She said somewhat quietly.

Billy moved further into her room finally, asking silently if he could sit. At her nod, he does so.

“Uh. Yeah. Sorry about that… I guess I was. Well. Am pretty cavalier with my life. Most of what you felt was from me in the marines, and I apologize for not… taking your feelings into consideration. I’m sure… those pains were pretty alarming to you?” Billy apologized to her, feeling it was necessary.

“Yeah… it’s… quite the shocker to suddenly feel like I was shot and nothing to show for it. However, I will forgive you if…” She trailed off.

“If what?” Billy asked her, trying to appear annoyed.

“If… you give me a grand tour of NY. All of the best places to go. It doesn’t have to be… a romantic date or anything. I just want to get to know you, if you are down for that?” She proposed to him.

Billy looked at her for a moment. Really looked at her. Taking in her features, and her soft smile.

“I think I can handle that. Shall we exchange numbers? You can tell me when you’re released, and I can come get you if you’d like?” Billy offered.

Her smiled brightened and Billy found himself smiling back. A part of him was chastising himself, asking ‘why would you offer that? You don’t know this woman? Even if she is your soulmate? What happened to not wanting anything to do with her?’ However, a larger part of him desperately wanted to see her smile again.

They exchanged numbers, and he left her to rest alone. He stepped out into the hallway to see Curtis smirking at him.

“How did it go Prince Charming?” Curtis asked teasingly.

“Surprisingly well. So, let’s… let’s go get some grub… or a drink or two, yeah?” Billy suggested to him.

Curtis nodded his head and the two of them were off to their usual haunt; a local bar that served burgers and fries. The two of them after ordering, sat at the bar idly chatting. About 20 minutes had passed and Curtis started chuckling at him, out of the blue.

“What? What’s so funny?” Billy questioned him.

“Appears that soulmate of yours is occupying your mind. At least 3 women have tried flirting with you and you’ve yet to notice,” Curtis said once his laughter had calmed down.

Billy blinked, looking at him in mild confusion, “Huh?”

“You got it bad man. 20 minutes in and she already got you hooked,” Curtis said with a shake of his head.

Billy had no idea how to respond to that. He just continued drinking his beer, and further distracted himself when the food came out. It was true, he was thinking about London, but he didn’t want to admit that. He was going to take this one day at time, and just go from there.

A few days later, both Frank and London were being released from the hospital. Billy waited outside with Karen who kept staring at him confused. Most likely due to the fact that he held a small teddy bear.

London was rolled out first and Billy smiled smally at her walking over to meet her.

“Hey, how are you feeling?” He asked her as he and the nurse helped her stand up.

“I’m okay. Sore. But okay. Is that for me?” She asked him, looking at the teddy bear.

“Yes. Thought about flowers but wasn’t sure if you had any allergies. Figured the bear was the safer option,” Billy somewhat mumbled, sheepishly.

She quietly told him her favorite flower, and said, “The bear is very cute though, so thank you.”

Billy cleared his throat as he handed it to her, and then walked her over to his car. Billy was so preoccupied with her that he failed to notice Frank coming out and staring at him with a growing smirk.

Karen stood next to him, looking between him and Billy, questions littering her face.

“His soulmate. Guess Curtis was right, his attention really has become centered around her,” Frank spoke lowly, watching Billy take off in his car once he got her situated.

Karen snorted, trying not to laugh.

“Poor guy. Never seen him look so nervous, which didn’t make sense until now. Think he’s ever going to actually introduce her to us?” Karen asked as she and Frank moved to her car.

“Once the whole thing fully settles in his mind. I’m sure part of him still is trying to process this. Knowing him, he might come to a point where he distances himself from her for a time. When you’re used to being disappointed a lot, you tend to expect it,” Frank answered once they were in the car.

Back with Billy, they were halfway to her apartment that she was staying at.

“So… I know you said you were in New York for work… how long are you here for?” Billy questioned breaking the silence.

“I am booked out for the next year for various events. Trying to get rid of me already?” She lightly teased him.

“No. I was just.. wondering. You said the other day that you don’t like to be tied down to one place for too long,” Billy trailed off, not sure why the thought bothered him.

“Oh. I did say that didn’t I? I mean… I can find a reason or two to stay here already. However, we have a year to figure things out. We have time to decide… whatever we want this to be,” She offered, hesitantly moving to hold his hand, hers hovering over his.

Billy nodded not looking at her as he quietly grasped her hand and held it.

She bit her lip trying to hide her smile as she watched him. She could tell he was not used to this. Granted, it had been a while since she had been in a relationship herself, and her longest relationship didn’t last more than a couple of months. Between them finding their own soulmates, and others hating that she traveled for work, dating was difficult.

He took her home, and they discussed their plans for tomorrow. They discussed going to Central Park Zoo and taking a stroll around the park. She never got to try NY style pizza the other day, so they made a plan to go get a slice or 2 for lunch.

He made sure she was settled and comfortable, before leaving her.

The next day rolled around, and the two of them began their… date? At the zoo. She brought her camera with her, taking candids/snapshots of all the animals. Unbeknownst to him, she took a few shots of him while he wasn’t paying attention. He eventually caught on, playfully glaring at her.

“Alright my little shutterbug, shall we go get pizza?” Billy asked as they reached the end.

“‘My little shutterbug?’ Don’t think anyone’s ever called me that before. But yes. Let’s goooo,” She cheered.

The two of them ate, and Billy couldn’t help but think about how adorable she was while she listened intently to him explain the proper way to eat a slice of NY style pizza. Even moreso when she was eating and making a mess of herself.

Once they finished eating, they started the walk toward her apartment due to her feeling exhausted.

“Sorry. I feel like such an old lady, but everything is starting to feel sore again,” She explained with a wince.

“Don’t be. I understand. Do you need anything before I go?” Billy inquired, as she made her way inside and he stood in her doorway.

“I’m good. You… you can come in y’know?” She pointed out as she looked back at him.

Billy slowly took a step in, feeling very much not like himself. He was usually overly confident and self-assured and would have strutted in without any uncertainties.

He looked around her apartment and saw a lot of photography equipment, and photos scattered everywhere.

“So… would you like to… stay… and watch a movie or two?” She asked him after taking some medicine.

“Depends… Are you going to make me watch chick flicks?” Billy shot back with a raised eyebrow.

“I mean… while I do have some chick flicks, I have a great deal of other genres lots of action. Basically, every Disney movie possible,” She began listing, but stopped when she saw his nose twinge. “Do… do you not like Disney?”

“Never saw one to be honest. Just know they are kid’s shit,” Billy said with a shrug.

She gasped dramatically, “Never seen any of them? Oh. Ohhh we are fixing that. This is happening. I’m not sure what kind of childhood you had but you were deprived.”

Billy didn’t say anything in response to that, just watched her run over to a shelf full of brightly colored DVDS cases.

“We shall start from the beginning. Snow White doesn’t tend to be my favorite, but she is the first Disney movie. Well. Correction, she is the first Disney Princess Movie, the first cartoon is Steamboat Willie, but I digress. I will catch you up on them all. You show me all of New York, I show you all of Disney movie franchise. These will be our goals for the next year,” She rambled slightly, as she tugged him over to her couch, after popping the DVD in the player.

Billy sat next to her, pulling his phone out of his pocket and setting it down on coffee table. He shook his head as she curled up next to him, leaning against his arm slightly. As the movie began, he moved his arm to wrap around her shoulders, pulling her in closer. He can see her smile as she scooted closer to him, head moving to lie against his shoulder.

He watched the movie with her with vague interest, not quite understanding the plot. The movie ended and he turned to her with questions getting ready to pour from his mouth.

“Listen. I know. They… they don’t get much better. But the music is good and they’re pretty to look at, so we forgive the terrible plots,” She explained to him with a laugh.

And so began their weekly tradition of watching a Disney movie (or two depending on the mood), as part of their date nights. About 2 months had passed and after a long day of training and meetings, he was ready to just collapse into his bed. When he got to his apartment, London was waiting for him, with a bag full of Chinese takeout and a case of beer.

“You’re beautiful and wonderful, have I told ya that?” He murmured to her, leaning down to kiss her, before unlocking his door.

“Long day babe?” She asked him, as she watched him leave a trail of clothes and items on his way to his bedroom.

She heard him answer somewhat muffled, as she unpacked the food and grabbed some plates and utensils. When he stepped back out he wore a simple pair of sweats and nothing else. She gazed at his torso looking at each scar she could see. She shook her head and snapped out of it before he caught her.

The two of them made their plates, and quietly ate at his table. She was about halfway through when her eyes stopped on the scar that was on his left shoulder. She tried to think back to when she felt pain from that area, thinking it was from his time in the marines.

Billy noticed her staring and said quietly, “It was from when I was a kid. You keep asking me questions about my childhood and I know you’ve noticed that I don’t ever answer them. I was abandoned as a baby, went through the foster system. I was uh… about 10… maybe 11 when it happened. When a grown man calls you pretty, you know nothing good is going to come from it. I was able to fight back but he was able to break my arm and ripped my rotator cuff in 3 places.”

She felt her heart breaking, “I remember that. I remember crying and freaking out. My parents had no clue what to do, especially when physically there was nothing wrong. I was hoping it was something like… you were being like any normal boy and like skateboarding and a trick went wrong or something. Please tell me that bastard was arrested?’

“Yeah. One of the other boys that he uhh… he attacked spoke up about it. It’s one of those things I don’t like talking about a lot, but I figured you should know since… yeah,” His sentence trailed off and he stared blankly ahead of him.

London quietly stood up, moving over to him; she tapped his arm, motioning for him to lean back. He does as she asks, looking up at her curiously. She straddled his hips, as she took a seat in his lap. She bends her head down slightly, pressing small kisses to the scar that was on his shoulder.

Billy tensed for a moment before relaxing as he realized what she was doing. He gently lifted her head back up, gazing into her eyes before capturing her lips in a soft kiss.

She gasped against his lips, before returning the kiss, and deepening it with a soft moan. The two of them had kissed before but this felt…different. Their other kisses had been short and sweet. This… this was passion and intensity.

When they pulled away, trying to catch their breathes, Billy whispered to her, “Hold onto me.”

She wrapped her arms around his neck, as his hands grasped her thighs lifting her as he stood up. He carried her over to his bed, laying her down as he crawled on top of her.

They kissed again, tugging each other’s clothes off haphazardly. He pulled back, his eyes looking to see if there was any hesitation, any doubt. Upon finding none he kissed her again, his hands exploring her body.

They spent that night learning about each other’s bodies, looking over scars, finding spots that drove each other crazy. It was in the late hours of the night when the two of them were finally spent, curling around each other as they fell into a comfortable sleep.

So comfortable in fact that Billy slept through his alarm and didn’t hear his phone going off. He did, however, hear Frank burst into his apartment shouting his name.

Billy jerked awake, reaching for his knife that he kept under his pillow, brandishing it protectively in front of him and London. She woke up to the shouts, grabbing the covers, as she rubbed the sleep from her eyes.

“Frank. I gave you that key for EMERGENCIES. Is this an emergency?” Billy asked, anger seeping into his voice as he realize it wasn’t an intruder but his best friend.

“You’re 2 hours late for work. Won’t answer your phone or texts. Forgive me for worrying that something was wrong, ye who is a stickler for being on time,” Frank explained glancing at the woman in Billy’s bed.

“Well, as you can see I’m alive. Now, can you please… go out to the living room so we can get dressed? Pretty sure my girl would feel a bit more comfortable with something other than my bedsheets covering her,” Billy prompted him with a pointed look.

Frank raised an eyebrow at that and stepped back into the living room.

Billy returned the knife to its original place, before looking over at his soulmate.

“Sorry about that, you okay?” His voice was soft and full of concern.

“Honestly, confused as hell. But yes, I’m okay. Do all of your friends do that? Or is it really that abnormal for you to sleep in?” She asked him still not fully awake.

“Not really one for sleeping in, even if I was with a girl. Apparently, you exhausted me last night,” Billy teased her with a smirk.

“Me? You were the one who was insatiable sir,” She teased back, kissing him.

“No idea what you are talking about,” He muttered against her lips, his smirk growing.

They kissed for a few minutes, before getting out of bed. She groaned softly as she stood, feeling a bit sore in between her legs.

She could practically hear his smugness as she told him to shut it.

They dressed and stepped out of the bedroom, seeing Frank leaning against the island in the kitchen.

Introductions were made, as this was the first time Frank ever officially met her. Frank left soon after, telling Billy to be there for the 2pm meeting.

Billy waves him off, and once Billy was ready for the day, he gave London a lift home before going to work.

After that night, their relationship became much more intimate. Billy did eventually introduce her to all of his friends, and she did the same. It felt strange to be in a relationship. A good kind of strange. Especially when she would still write little dumb jokes on her arms for him to see after a meeting.

Several months passed and before he knew it a year was coming up. However, he had no anxiety about it, since she had already informed him that she wasn’t leaving, not unless he came with. As the end of her lease came up, he asked her a semi-important question.

“Do you want to move in with me? We could… get a bigger place together. Maybe find a place where you can create your own darkroom instead of having to-” His sentence was cutoff by her suddenly kissing him.

When she pulled away he asked, “I take it that’s a yes?”

She nodded her head enthusiastically, kissing him again.

If someone told him a year ago that he would one day be moving into a townhouse with his soulmate, he would say they were crazy. Completely out of their minds.

Here he was though, moving into a 3-bedroom townhouse, with a beautiful woman who made him genuinely laugh and felt loved.

‘Well. That’s one tough question down. Here’s to hoping she’ll say yes to the next big question I ask her.’

[tommyspeakycap]

New Beginnings

Pairing - Steve Rogers x reader

Word count - 2976

Summary - After the battle in Manhattan, a man who hates the idea of a doctor definitely needs one. A friend of Pepper Potts' lends a hand and consequently changes Steve's long-lived disposition for getting medical help.

a/n - set after the battle of New York in the avengers

Since Steve had woken up, or rather been woken up after he was found in the ice after 70 years, he had not once visited the doctor other than those at S.H.I.E.L.D when they had forced him to. For one, he didn’t ever get sick now and reason two would be that he just hates the concept. He spent a great deal of his time in doctors offices and speaking to specialists diagnosing him with all forms of new medical conditions from when he was in a child to before he was given the serum. It wasn’t somewhere he wanted to go now and those days weren’t exactly the ones he liked to remember even if he was the absolute picture of health now.

That didn’t so much apply however when he, Tony, Thor, Natasha, Bruce and Clint were finally able to stop after fighting for hours against unrelenting waves of aliens trying to take New York. They were all battered and bruised to some degree, some arguably more than others.

Steve looks around with a pounding heart. It never gets easier to think about the losses that are likely to mount up after a battle, the buildings that fell and the people who stood unable in the face of the large aliens with huge powerful guns. It only adds to the hurt that stems from seeing the city he loves reduced half to rubble with skyscrapers crumbled to the ground, flaming, flipped cars scattering the road and entire streets all but destroyed.

Before he does anything else, Steve wants to go down to the subway that he insisted the police put people in to ensure they all get out safely before he heads to meet up with the rest of the team back at Stark tower. There are more ambulances lining what’s left of the roads than he can even begin to count and he’s extremely glad they hadn’t destroyed any hospitals because they were going to need every bed that they had. He helped some people up out of the Subway with the officers and some people thanked him, some people gawked at him and some seemed too much in shock to even notice he was there. Steve stood just watching for longer than he would care to admit.

He supposes he would say he’s just taking everything in. It feels as though the world is quite the same as to when he lived in it at first. People still come together when they need to and there are still bad people who want to stand above the rest.

As his feet carry him back over crunching rubble in the direction of Stark tower to meet up with the rest, Steve can’t help but think about how he wishes his best friend could be with him for this battle. There wasn’t anyone Steve preferred to have on his side and he did tremendously miss his friend.

“No no no!” Steve hears yelling above the rest of the commotion,a noise which immediately diverts his train of thought. He turns his head to see if he can catch a glimpse of what was going on to see if there was anything he could do to help. “He has to go first, he’s got an ICH with a blown pupil. He won’t make it halfway to the hospital if he has to wait another twenty minutes!” Steve rounds the corner at a slow jog. He’s met with a woman with her hair tied back tightly out of her face, which was smeared with dirt and dust and it looked as though she had been climbing amongst the rubble to help recover the last of the people from that building. “Look ma’am, we have a kid in there.” The EMT tries to explain, but you just give him an incredulous look, “With a closed tib-fib fracture, he’ll live! This guy is bleeding into his brain, do you have one of those-” You lean closer to him, squinting your eyes and sweeping dust off of his badge, “Jack. Do you have a brain, Jack?” The EMT in front of you opens and closes his mouth like a fish out of water. “Yes ma’am.” He stutters. “Good,” you snip, “Then get the kid in a wheelchair for the next ambulance and bluelight this guy to the nearest hospital, now!”

The EMT scrambles to do as told and you push your hair back again with a heavy sigh as you walk away the second they get him in the stretcher and into the ambulance. Steve smiles slightly to himself. There’s nothing quite like a powerful woman in his eyes and no force like an angry one. He’d hate to be on that woman’s bad side and he knows now that he was wrong to think his help would be needed there. The super soldier simply walks away again with his shield held tightly in his hand. He bids a wordless respect to the woman who rolls up her sleeves again and cups her hands over her mouth, shouting out for anyone who might need help from her clearly medically experienced hands.

“Dear God, look at you lot!” Pepper exclaims as they walk in, immediately rushing to hug Tony tightly. “You all need to get checked over medically. Like now.” She says firmly, but each one shakes their heads. “The hospitals will be busy enough,” Bruce says, “I just saw a woman fighting for an ambulance. We’ll heal.” Steve agrees, folding his painful arms. “They’re right.” Tony nods. Pepper shakes her head, “I knew you’d say that, which is why Fury and I had a medical floor set up. There’s nurses there to patch you guys up and a doctor there if anybody needs one. All of you, go. Now.” Most want to protest, but opt not to at her stern words and instead follow the nurse who had come to greet them.

All but Steve.

“I’ll be fine.” He states, shaking his head and turning away. “Excuse me,” Pepper calls out to him, “Please, Steve. You really need to get seen.” She insists, but he keeps walking.

“(y/n), oh my god!” Pepper sighs heavily in relief, rushing towards you the second you walk out the revolving door that only had one glass panel left in it. “Thank God you're safe. This is one of them I was going to ask you to take a look at.” Once she releases you from the tight hug, she points after Steve who was still limping away towards the stairs. “Can’t get him to go to the med floor though.” She mutters to you beneath her breath. You shoot her a smile that says she needn't worry.

“Oi!” You call out, barely eliciting a turn of the head from the man in the blue suit. “Hey you!” You try again, you merely get him to stop walking. “Me?” He says, but still didn’t turn to look at you. He was trying to place where he had heard your voice, but his head was hurting too much to put a lot of thought into it. “Yeah, you. You better get America’s ass right back over here and march it right down to that med floor.”

Your tone makes him turn around immediately, his eyebrows slightly furrowed for a moment before he realised it hurt to do that too. He fought back a smile over those pink lips. “I thought I knew your voice.”

His response prompts your eyebrows to shoot up as you eyed him and then Pepper in confusion. “Have we met?” You ask, tilting your head slightly to the side. Steve shakes his head, “Oh no, sorry. I just saw you a while ago yelling at a paramedic over an ambulance about an ICH, whatever that means.” The blonde shrugs, offering you a slight smile. You chuckle at his words and shake your head. “Well then I’m sure you’ll do as I tell you. Save me doing anymore yelling today?”

Steve doesn’t have much more fight left in him for today and he would be lying if he said his body wasn’t aching. He could probably do with some pain killers and the cut on his arm would likely hurt a lot less, as well as be quicker to heal if he were to get it stitched up. He doesn’t say anything, but he does sigh and decides to follow you through the lobby and down a flight of stairs to the newly designated medical floor.

“Nice of you to join us, Cap!” Tony jests out, “And (y/n)!” He cheers. You only flip him off in response with a roll of your eyes as you lead the tall man behind you into one of the private rooms filled with medical supplies.

“Sit on the bed there.” You instruct, walking over to wash your hands, arms and face before you do anything else.

“I don’t think I need-”

“On the bed, Captain.”

“Okay. Sorry.”

You nod your head and turn to smile at him softly. Your smile is beautiful. It actually alleviates a little of his pain just to see it, and he truly is surprised by the softness and gentility of it in comparison to the attitude he had thus far witnessed from you in the short time he’s known you.

He groans and the medical bed creaks a little when he climbs on as you pull the latex gloves over your hands. He watches you very tentatively, attempting to eye the things that you gather from various boxes around the room and place onto the wheeled table. “Sorry for yelling at you earlier.”

Your softer voice makes him smile slightly again. “It’s alright,” Steve brushed off with a shrug, shifting himself so he could strip his suit off like you had told him to do just before you entered the room. He kind of awkwardly places the material of the suit over his boxers and the tops of his thighs. He doesn’t exactly want to sit basically naked in front of a woman he didn’t even really know. He still had a lot of his 1940’s mannerisms written into his behaviour. You turn back around to face him and don’t seem to take much notice of his huge, bare torso on the medical bed in front of you. Instead, your eyes scan his body for where to start on his injuries.

It seems as though you opt for cleaning his face first, which makes him feel slightly embarrassed to just sit and let you do it. You use a cloth and hot water for the dried blood, followed by an alcohol cloth that stings a surprising amount. You only place a steri strip over the gash on his forehead and then turn to the open cut on his shoulder. He knows that it’ll heal in less than 24 hours and he won’t have so much as a mark in its place. But it’ll heal a hell of a lot quicker if it’s closed and clean, so he allows you to begin working on it.

He hisses when you do, and you stop for a moment.

“Intracranial hemorrhage.” You say seemingly out of the blue. “What?” Steve asks, the pain in his arm dissipating. “Intracranial hemorrhage. ICH. What the guy you saw me fighting for the ambulance had. He got stuck under some rubble and it caused his brain to bleed. That increases the pressure in his head until you drill a hole to release it. Sometimes you have to take out a whole section of the skull and leave the head open until the swelling goes down around the brain. It’s super interesting.” Steve is entranced by your jabbering on, his eyes literally glued onto you as you work. Hands tentatively maneuvering a needle through his skin as gently as you can to pull the two separate sides back together.

You flick your eyes up to him to see the grin and his blue eyes shining in anticipation for your next words. “He was pretty bad considering the circumstances. A blown pupil- dilated pupil- is usually a huge warning sign that he needs treatment like, right away. He wasn’t responding to much physical stimuli, but you'd be amazed by the recovery that a lot of people with that type of injury can make within literally just a few days of the surgery. The brain is pretty cool.” You continue on. Steve doesn’t want you to ever stop talking. Your voice has apparently turned off all of the pain receptors in his body as he watches the focus pull your brows together ever so slightly and part your lips as you tie the knot at the end of his arm stitches, carefully wiping over it and placing a white gauze dressing over the wound. “Those should dissolve in your skin even if you are a super-healer or whatever.” You turn your attention next to a cut just above his kneecap.

“Sorry for the rambling, wild day. I’ll stitch that one up too then you should be good to get back to your superhero post-battle business.” Your tease makes him chuckle slightly as he watches you roll the wheeled table and your stool round to the other side of him to wipe down his knee before you start to stitch it. Steve had a tough day too, and he hadn’t yet learned how he would cope with those in modern day, but he had a hunch that listening to you might be the key. However, it comes across to him like your way was talking about things that weren’t as scary as the fact that aliens descended from the sky and destroyed half of New York City. “What about a closed TibFib then?” Steve asks softly with kindness swimming around in those sky blue eyes. “Tell me about that?”

After a further half hour finishing his stitching, cleaning him up properly and getting him some fresh clothes, you found yourself surprisingly sad to be leaving the company of the kind, attractive, super soldier you had newly become acquainted with. He seemed pretty solemn about it too, but you couldn’t tell if he was just exhausted from his day's worth of fighting. You had gotten to know each other through the short time you got to spend with him, and he was glad he had at first refused any form of medical treatment for if he hadn’t he probably wouldn’t have had you as his caregiver.

“Thank you for...all this.” He gestures to himself, referring to the stitches, his newly clean skin and clothes. “And for talking to me. It really means a lot.” Steve admits, his voice a little shy with the lightest dusting of pink flushing his cheeks. You smile without thought for the first time that day. “It’s a pleasure. Thank you for listening to me, and for not calling me a bossy bitch.” You breathe a chuckle of laughter as you turn your back to him to empty all the rubbish into the bin. So you don’t see the anger that passes through his eyes at the thought of someone ever calling you that, or the tilt of his head in irritation. You were so strong and a true powerhouse of a woman in his eyes. Clearly incredibly smart. He was pretty much smitten with you already.

“That would be incredibly rude.” Steve states firmly, “I just think you’re a very smart and a very beautiful woman. And you are incredible. Saved a lot of people today down in the rubble.”

You turn back around to see him, standing now much closer to you. “Says you, Mr Alien-slayer.” You grin back up at him. He isn’t the kind to go in for a kiss on the first date, never mind the first time ever meeting a woman, so he takes a gentle step back much to your disappointment. “I believe you called me America’s ass, earlier today.”  He corrects lightly and you turn your eyes to the ground as your face flushes red with a giggle of embarrassment as he laughs with you. “Sorry about that, Steve.”

That was actually the first time you had said his name and God he loved how it sounded leaving your pretty lips. “It’s okay. Kinda liked it, suits me don’t you think?” He turns side on and twists his back to look down at his ass dramatically and you throw your head back laughing. It’s such music to his ears and he’s yet to hear another sound since he woke that brings such a great amount of joy and warmth straight to his heart.

“Well,” you hum softly as you pull out a piece of paper and scrawl some writing down on it with a pen from your scrubs breast pocket, “If America’s ass ever finds himself in need of a stitch up or a chat, anything really, then this is where to find me.” You tuck the little bit of ripped paper into his large hand and gently peck his cheek before opening the door and walking off through the medical floor. He looked down at that little bit of paper, reading over some numbers and your name.

“(y/n),” he says softly to himself, subconsciously smiling at the way your name feels so beautiful on his lips. “What you got there, Cap?” Natasha asks as she leans herself on the doorframe of the room he stands frozen in. Steve looks up at her in surprise, “Uh, nothing much.” He diffuses, shrugging his shoulders as he takes one more glance down at the paper. “You sure?” She presses. “Yeah.” He assures. She turns to walk away just as realisation hits him. “Oh wait,” he calls after her, a shy smile on his lips.

“You know anywhere I could get a phone?”

[loverdrew]

Just A Little Longer | s.r

(not my gif)

Synopsis: A day out on the field doesn’t go as planned, and Y/N is thrown into am ambulance to Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital before anyone can help. 

A Grey’s Anatomy x Criminal Minds crossover.

Warnings: none (?)

There was a ringing in the air louder than the one you hear everyday. I felt my breathing hinder. My eyes can only open so wide, enough to see the light, but once by my side, could see only a dark substance quickly oozing out of my body. As I came to, I could tell it was getting harder and harder to breathe, a sharp pain with every inhale and exhale. Upon instinct, I checked my fingers for mobility, feeling that they could move slightly. At least this means I am not paralyzed in my upper body. There was no other noise for a few more minutes, just a slight rustling of trees and the dirt road beneath me. I don’t even remember the initial shot being taken, whether it was from me or him. All I remember is instantly falling to the floor once I arrived on the scene. I just laid in my own blood, the realization that no one may be coming for me.

“Y/N! Y/N! Wake up!” I could faintly hear from what felt like a mile away. My brain perked at the voice, definitively Morgan, but my body would not react. I tried with every might to move my limbs once again but alas, nothing. It was if my brain was screaming and sending pulses to my muscles but it just refused to move. I started to feel hands all over me, lifting me and placing me on what I could imagine was a gurney, as it moved. My sense of hearing coming in full force, beginning to hear people talking and shuffling. Hotch and Morgan were asking where I was being transported to and Emily and JJ consoling someone else who I could hear was practically sobbing. 

“They’re going to take care of her, c’mon let’s just go follow them now!” Emily yelled to everyone. But that distressed someone fought back.

“No! She’s not even moving! They’re intubating her! Emily she’s dying!” 

Spencer....? 

“Reid, you want to help her? Get out of here and go to the hospital.” Hotch firmly said, I could even tell he probably put his hands on Reid, as the sound of prominent footsteps were halted. And the next thing I heard was doors closing, and the sirens blaring.

Once we had arrived at the hospital, I heard a woman’s voice that sounded very strong, like she was in charge.

“What do we got?” She asked.

“GW to the left ribcage, she’s lost a lot of blood, almost 2 pints. We’ve been intubating her since we got to the scene but Bailey, it doesn’t look too good. Possible head contusion when she hit the floor as well.” The EMT stated.

“Alright I’ll page Shepard and Hunt immediately. Out of the way everybody! FBI agent coming through!” And my gurney started moving even faster, winding down a short hallway into a room where I could hear many doctors coming to look at my wounds. I felt absolutely helpless, not being able to communicate what hurts for me. What if they miss something? What if they can’t help me in time? The EMT said I lost a lot of blood, what if it’s too much to come back from?

“Hang 2 units of O neg now!” A man with a deep voice yelled out. I could feel big, callus hands turning me on my back, and the next thing I knew a needle was being shoved in my arm and a warm sensation filling my arm. 

“Owen she needs to go up to CT now or she’s not going to make it.” A woman with a softer voice spoke next to the man.

“Amelia she needs this wound patched first or she’ll bleed out and then she won’t even have a chance in CT.” He raised his voice at her, kind of like how Hotch can be sometimes.

“Let me see, I can patch quickly if everyone gives me space. Looks like the bullet left through the back as well.” This time it was another man with a softer voice than the first, and instantly felt his delicate hands holding onto my ribs, feeling a metal substance touching my skin. By my analysis, he’s most likely a plastics surgeon. Only a man in plastics has such delicate touch.

“Well hurry Jackson she’s got about 10 minutes before that brain contusion completely debilitates her and she’ll be in a coma.”

“Yea I got it.” He said nonchalant.

The sounds of beeping and shuffling were quickly interrupted by deep screams, of which belonged to the lanky pretty boy. My heart rate instantly got faster the second his voice entered the room.

“Sir, sir who are you?” The plastics guy asked urgently.

“I-I’m her, her uh- I’m just a friend, please let me be next to her.” He pleaded, rasp in his voice. I can tell he had been crying the whole ride over.

“Okay, sir you’re gonna have to wait with everybody else, she’s in a lot of distress and she’s lost a lot of blood. We’re doing everything we can for her.” Almost on cue, my heart monitor started spazzing. The loud beeping indicating I’m going into cardiac failure. 

“She’s in V-fib, get the defibrillator now!” The man with the lower voice yelled. I felt the clothing on my body being ripped open, a few buttons popping and flying off. The patches were on and in a few seconds, I felt the shock and I could feel it vibrate every vessel inside me. They cleared a second a time, my heart rate returning to normal.

“Okay Jackson you’re gonna have to finish her later she needs a head scan now.” The women voiced, and immediately I could feel the gurney being whisked and into an elevator, going up to the CT room.

Being in the big machine and hearing the slight “ZZZ” sound felt like the first time of peace since my brain fully woke up. For a few hours now I was being poked and prodded, not even getting a chance to hear my own thoughts. This was the only time I got to really savor whatever life I had left, to really hear and feel the people I love around me, and to prepare for what could happen. It felt inevitable to try and escape death, it was a part of my job. And the one regret I’d have is not being the real me with the person I loved most in this world. That tall, pretty, incredible genius was the love of my life for the past 3 years I’ve been with the BAU, and he was everything and more I could’ve ever dreamed of and better. I could physically feel my heart aching at the way his voice cracked yelling for me. I wished nothing more than to look him straight in the eye and hold his hands, telling him I’ll be okay. The way he stuttered when he said friend, so unsure. We had kissed just a few days ago, after a long day of work he came by my hotel room and finally expressed his feelings after so long. The fireworks we shared were something out of a book. The way his hands fit around my face, holding me so close and so softly as if I were glass and he was afraid to break it. We hadn’t talked about it since, but we figured we had more time. But now I realize time is never guaranteed. 

Within 30 minutes I was in a regular room, the plastics man working on sowing back up my wounds. “You, Ms.Y/N are one of the luckiest gunshot victims I’ve seen; no severe tears. Which means this just needs a quick stitch and you’ll be all set.” He said softly to me, I could feel a smile on his face as he spoke.

I heard another person walk into the room, footsteps almost so quiet. 

“H-How, how is she Dr.?” He was shaking.

“The CT showed some swelling but no internal bleeding. We’re going to keep her here overnight but I’m sorry, I don’t know if and when she’ll wake up. That’s all up to her.” The women sadly spoke, unsure of even her own diagnosis.

I heard Spencer start to cry again, a loud puff coming from deep in his chest.

“Dr. Reid, could you please sit with me.” The two of them stepped to sit in the 2 seats next to my bed.

“I know what it feels like to be in a field of study where, you know everything there is to know. And I also know what it feels like to be completely out of control in that field, when you know what to do, but you can’t even do it.” She sighed. “I am one of the best neurosurgeons in the country, I know almost everything...but yet I had a brother who died of a brain injury. I could’ve been there to help him but I couldn’t do a damn thing. I know what this feels like.” Reid started crying harder, his cries muffled by his own hands. He was trying so hard not to let the sounds leak from the room, but it did and it made my bones stand still.

“I had a mentor who was in a coma, and even though I’m in plastics”- (told y’all) -”there was still nothing I could do for him. We just had to wait. He was one of my greatest friends, one of the best people you’d ever meet, so loved. The love of his life died in front of his eyes and I think most of us knew he’d be going next, to be with her. Life was too painful without her. Do you love this girl right here?” Spencers respond came almost immediately.

“More than anybody or anything.”

“Then wait, just a little longer. If she loves you like you love her she’s going to fight to wake up and be alive.” Both of the doctors walked out, leaving me and my lover boy.

His veiny hands grabbed onto mine, rubbing softly at my knuckles.

“I’m gonna do what he said, just wait a little longer. But please Y/N, if you can hear me, come back to me.” He cried into my hand, the tears coating it.

As if the Gods granted it themselves, I moved my eyelids open. Very slowly, and it hurt to do so, but they opened. Spencer sensed movement, and his head instantly came up holding on tighter to my hand. A weak smile placed on my face as my tired eyes loving locked with his.

“Waiting for me?” 

[monsoonblooms12]

Bittersweet (Ethan Ramsey x f!MC)

Summary: OH Book 1 Chapter 4 written from Dolores Hudson's POV

A/N: I really wanted to do this because Dolores is such an amazing person and this chapter is one of my favourites in the entire OH series. This picks up from the office fire and ends at Dolores's death.

A/N 2: The flashback portions are indented

If you enjoyed the story, please like it, leave a comment or reblog. Your feedback keeps me going🤍

Characters: Dolores Hudson, Ethan Ramsey, f!MC (Pooja Sharma)

Pairing: Ethan Ramsey x Pooja Sharma (f!MC)

Word Count: around 2.8 K

Rating: General

Category: Fluff then Angst

Disclaimer: PB owns most of the characters and some of the dialogues. I only own my MC.

Triggers: Complications in pregnancy, Few Curse Words, Character Death

Prompts: @choicesaprilchallenge2021 Day 23: Classic/Classical

Other Works

Clickety-clack!

Dolores's fingers danced on the keyboards in a swift motion as she strived to complete this last email and get home and have a sleep that she missed yesterday due to late-night cravings.

Around her, a chaos of whispers spread as her colleagues engaged in mindless chitter-chatter of the last hour before the end of the office day.

A few nudges of Hey, Dolores! and its variants reached her, but she steered past them, focusing completely on her work.

Just one more line anndd,

Done!

She hit the send and the ping of the 'sent' notification calmed her overworked nerves.

Come on, Lil tadpole, let's file these papers, get ice cream and go home.

She fondly rubbed her belly. 26 weeks in and yet the fact that she was going to become Mamma Froggy was overwhelming and exciting.

She got the prints and in a hurry, nearly got a paper cut.

Careful there! She cajoled herself and started filing those messy sheets of her hard work of the day.

She was almost done just as-

Waaahhh!

The blazing sound, very much like a siren's, reached all of them, leading to the eruption of panicked commotion between all of them.

They had been run through the fire drill so many times that they didn't need to be told that it was a fire alarm.

Dolores left all her possessions, carrying only her bag with the stuffed froggy she had bought for her baby and tried to run.

But being pregnant doesn't make it very easy. Even more, if there was a fucking fire at the place.

People went haywire. Very few cared about the fact that she was carrying a baby, and they should have the minimum decency to help. Most would selfishly try to save themselves, not giving a damn about anyone.

Dolores tried to pave a way for reaching the elevator. It was nearly impossible for her to get down the stairwell in time to save herself from the hazardous situation. She could see that most of the people had already evacuated.

Why was the fire department not here yet?

The fire was ablaze, surroundings hot, and amidst all, Dolores walked slowly, worried only about her little tadpole and not herself.

She pressed the buttons of the elevator. Waited. But nothing budged.

Fuck it!

Smoke engulfed her and she felt suffocated. All through the light-headedness, she could faintly hear, the siren of the ambulance. She hoped someone would save her from this fiery hell.

But there was no one to help her. No one around. The building burnt and if she did not think of something quickly, she would burn with it as well.

Not viewing any other options, she screamed with as much strength she could garner. Once, Twice, Thrice.

The next actions happened quicker than the blink of an eye. She saw a handsome EMT rush towards her. Even though she was already in a blazing environment, she couldn't stop the he's hot reflex of her brain cells. He came to her and reassured her that he would be able to save her and her baby, picked her up, and slowly, yet swiftly, got out of there.

Just like a superhero.

She thought of telling this story of Super-Man coming to save him and his Mama to her baby and the thought made her giggle.

Her head was light, and she felt choked, but her mind would keep going to the little angel of her womb, worrying only for him.

The last she remembers was reaching the ambulance and coughing vigorously. She couldn't breathe normally. She tried and failed miserably. A slow sensation of blacking out and after that, everything blank.

After who knows how long, Dolores feels the glare of white lights around her giving her eyes a painful competition to open up. She squints, tiredness spreading through her body. From office work or the life-threatening experience? She does not know.

She slowly, very slowly, tries to sit up, her hand on her belly, tenderly stroking it, as if to let the child know that his Mamma would not let any harm come to him. Nurses check in on her, one of them replacing the oxygen mask with a nose tube, and she felt a bit more relaxed.

As she was taking in the surroundings, she realized,

Edenbrook!

Coming back here after so many years brought back many memories. The first time she came here. Oh, how panicked she was! She was getting jitters but that calm and brilliant doctor took care of her, not only inside the hospital but also outside it.

Dr Ethan Ramsey.

He still worked here, he had told her in his last email. I need to meet him! She thought.

When was the last time they had met? In that coffee shop last year, right? It had been long.

She traced the name she had thought for her tadpole over and over again on her belly as if to make him memorize it before coming here to her, and looked around.

There was a minimum difference between the room she had been kept in the first time and the one in which she was now, but the time gap made her feel everything was new.

All of a sudden the door swayed, letting in a young doctor and,

Ethan!

She was genuinely excited about seeing him. Of all the possibilities, she hadn't really considered the fact that he would be coming to treat her. He has important cases to take care of than petty smoke inhalation, right?

A frown appears on his forehead. "What did you get yourself into this time, Dolores?"

His stern tone is the tough layer of a walnut, which hid his soft corner, the concerned heart. She smiled at the realization.

She quickly filled him in with all the details. The fire. The hot superman. The baby. Everything.

She finds the young doctor's surprise about Ethan having friends amusing. The look of surprise she had on her face was priceless.

But when the doctor asked her,

"Was Dr Ramsey always so mean?" she guards her mouth using her hand, "And so handsome?"

It was Dolores's turn to be shocked. She knew just how much Ethan hated interns. He used to whine about how stupid they were all the time to her, online & offline. And here was this intern, having enough courage to ask her such a question in front of him.

Impressive!

"This man's definitely got grouchier than before, but even then he had an edge"

"And as for handsome, I think he has aged like a fine wine" Dolores winked and Ethan fumbled for words.

When he got his tone back, it was strict.

No matter what anyone else thought, Dolores knew the real Ethan. The one without his rough and tough exterior and mean demeanour.

And that Ethan, if he ever came out, would make everyone fall in love with him.

As the doctors mumbled between themselves, she looked around, searching for something.

Umm Hmm. She couldn't see it.

"Excuse me Doctor Sharma" Both of them turned to look at her. "I remember having my bad when the hunk brought me out. Did they bring it here?" She asks, anxiety on its borderline, ready to burst out.

She needed it. Very Much.

Dr Sharma looks around for a bit, carefully conscious eyes trained to spot abnormalities. Her eyes, soon enough, fall on the side table of the bed and she picks the purse up and hands it over to Dolores.

Another frantic search follows. She turns all the contents up and down, her happy demeanour replaced with a visible frown.

It's not here, she says, evidently panicked.

A sadness spreads on her face.

"I must have dropped it in the office" She is on the verge of crying.

Dr Sharma places a kind hand on her shoulder. What Happened? Her questioning eyes wordlessly ask.

Dolores sighs, "It probably sounds stupid but I saw this adorable little frog on my lunch break and had to get it for my little tadpole."

"My parents are gone and the father's not in the picture." She adoringly places a hand on her swollen belly, "I just want everything to be perfect for him."

Dr Sharma gives her shoulder a gentle push of reassurance, and adds, "It's not stupid Dolores, absolutely not. I feel like you're going to be a great mom."

Her words make Dolores smile despite the upsetting circumstances, "Thank You. I- I just wished I hadn't lost it."

She stays lost in the thoughts and daydreams of her little tadpole playing with his first gift, growing ever more upset with every passing second.

"I and Dr Ramsey will find it for you!" Dr Sharma's excited tone jolts her out of her thoughts.

She is surprised first and slowly a smile appears, "Really Ethan? You would do that for me?"

He hesitates.

"Erm- Yes, sure." He fumbles.

"Dr Sharma, let's get this urine sample to the lab first. I will meet you in the lot in ten minutes."

Relieved and Happy, Dolores exclaims, "I am 26 weeks pregnant, Ethan. Not gonna take 10 minutes to make me pee!"

And in 15 minutes, they take her urine sample away and bid adieu with a promise of bringing her token of love for her tadpole back.

She was extremely grateful for Dr Sharma. She doubted if Ethan had given in the first time if it had not been her taking initiative.

Wait a Minute.

Ethan Ramsey listened to an intern? That too, in the first time itself? The observation blew her mind.

She recounted the time he had called her to his home to give a dinner treat. Lovely memories of a different face of the man came to her mind like the waves reaching the shore, one after the other.

"Mmm... Ethan, this is delicious!" Dolores found herself falling deeply in love with this masterpiece of Georgian stuffed chicken.

"Thank You, but it wouldn't have got done without your help" Ethan was never the type to take credit. Boast, Huh? What's that?

That's what she liked the most about him. A fine, handsome man, talented without bounds, a successful doctor having shitloads of money and a chef. He was a complete package and yet seemed to be subtly unaware of it.

They chatted about everything from opera to music to their first meet. It was a jolly time.

That is, until, the conversation landed on romance.

"So, seeing anyone?"

"No, not currently." He blushes a bit.

"Imagine" Dolores leans back on her chair, stretching her legs, "if, I said if, you fell in love with," she pauses to look at his curious face, "an intern?"

"Impossible."

It came even before she had finished the word. Dolores was amused.

"Just imagine!"

"I don't want to waste time imagining something as implausible as that. Can we talk about something else please?"

And here he was today, listening to an intern, a different demeanour than usual. Not that it was love, yet, but there was something.

Was he impressed by her?

He talked differently, listened patiently to the young doctor. That Ethan Ramsey who would not stand with an intern for 5 minutes, listened to one?

Anyone who knew him would laugh off the fact and say it was a joke.

Dolores made sure that if it happens, the falling in love with an intern, she will not let Ethan see the end of it. Teasing him to annoyance, yes that's what she would do.

She turned on some soft classical music on her phone, spreading an instant calm and dozed off for a while...

She gets up with a start on the sound of the door opening. She rubs her eyes to get a better view of the people in front of her.

It was Ethan and Dr Sharma!

She looked at them and yes! there it was, her tadpole's froggy.

She was overjoyed.

"You got it!" Dolores breaks into a grin as the sterilized frog is given to her.

"Happy now?" Ethan asks, the faintest glimmer of happiness in his eyes.

"Yes, very, very, much! Thank you so much, Ethan."

She pulls Dr Sharma into a small hug, "You too Dr Sharma, thank you!"

"Of course, Dolores." The young woman's beautiful face gleams at her, "and you can call me Pooja."

After few minutes of chit chat, Pooja leaves to get Dolores's reports.

"Switch on the TV Ethan, it's boring to sit here and do nothing."

"You know you can do better things than watching stupid TV shows?"

"I am doing it because I want to. The least who can do is help me." She shrugs.

"Fine, fine."

After going on a roundabout tour of the various broadcasted shows, they settled to watch a comedy.

Soon Ethan's stoicism got lost in the wilds and he started laughing along with her.

All the while Dolores held the Froggy affectionately to her tummy, to her little tadpole, as if to show it to him and ask if he likes it.

Amidst all the laughs, the medical reports are completely forgotten until there's a soft knock on the door and Ethan looks at someone from the corner of his eye and go out to meet them.

Still, she remains blissfully unaware of her health conditions and basks in the moments of delight she gets alone with her tadpole.

Her eyes remain glued to the TV screen until the doctors come in and from the morbid faces they wore, she knew that the reports were anything but good.

She switches off the TV.

"What is it? Ethan?"

Pooja steps forward, "I want you not to worry, Dolores."

She feels a mild panic attack bursting inside her, "T-That's what people say when there is something to be worried about. Is my tadpole okay?"

Pooja sighs, "Have you heard of preeclampsia? It's a disease affecting one out of ten pregnant women. In most cases, it is manageable, if monitored properly. But in your case-"

She pauses. And Dolores knows that whatever's coming will not be hopeful.

"It's serious."

Dolores quickly asks, "How serious?"

Not too much. Not too much. Please, god, not too much. She crosses her fingers.

"The blood flow to the placenta is slowing. It could deprive your baby of vital nutrients and oxygen."

With his morbid mask matching his melancholy tone, Ethan says, "Your baby is at risk."

Shit.

"B-But I can still feel the baby kicking!" She urges them to come and feel for themselves.

"Dolores it just means the delivery needs to be done early."

"Impossible." Dolores remarks with a deadly determination. "It's too soon."

"Babies delivered at 26 weeks have a good chance of survival." Dr Sharma tries to convince her.

"A-A chance?"

She is not going to play a game of chances with her beloved tadpole, her little jewel.

They keep convincing her.

"Yes he'll have to spend some time in the N.I.C.U and there are chances of post-birth complications-"

"And some don't make it at all. Is my baby is in danger now?" She asks with a motherly force.

"No, not immediately. But-" Ethan is on his tracks to convince her again.

"Then my little tadpole is staying put."

"Dolores—"

"No, Ethan! Just...give me some time! As long as you can give me. Please" It is a request from her heart, and she is on the verge of tears.

"I give you tonight. To come back to your senses."

When they leave, Dolores cries, caressing her belly, her little tadpole in there. She cannot take a risk with his goddamn life, never ever.

Tears roll down her cheeks and she holds the stuffed frog even tighter to herself, praying to god for his magical abilities and to save her baby.

Please.

She fell asleep while crying. When she wakes up, she finds a few unknown nurses and doctors standing there.

She tries to speak but cannot form words. Her head feels light, just like it did in the office building. She could not sense anything, swallowing was trouble.

She makes random sounds and the people come rushing to her, just as her body breaks into violent convulsions.

"We need to take her to the surgery, QUICK!"

They call for a code blue and everything that happens following that is a haze to her.

They are rushing her to the surgery. Her body shakes vigorously, and she can feel that she doesn't have much time left.

She holds the doctor's hand who was rushing her to the O.R.

"N-nam-me him-m E-Ethan."

And with that, she slowly spirals down the realm of unconsciousness, the last thought to ever strike her mind was,

Little tadpole, mamma loves you. You will be okay. Mamma will always be there with you, for you.

And with that her breath leaves her body, the last tear dropping on the O.R. bed.

As Ethan Hudson sees the light of his new life, Dolores passes away into the darkness.

I love you little tadpole.

PS: Thank you so much for reading and I hope you have a great day ahead! Love, Manamee🤍.

Tags (Please let me know if you would like to be added or removed!): @bbrandy2002 @whimsicallywayward15 @ohramsey @natureblooms24 @nervoussaladsludgeopera @trrfanaddict @hopelessromanticmonie @ilikemenbutonlyethanramsey @lovablegranny @bellcat2010 @gkittylove99 @kingliam2019 @starrystarrytrouble @3riche @chetachisblog @zoehanji @withbeautyandrage @drariellevalentine @mvalentine @aestheticartsx @angela8754 @schnitzelbutterfingers @ao719 @choicesstan1 @neotericthemis @nikki-2406 @anotherbeingsworld @maurine07 @sophxwithers @twinkleallnight @choicesaddict5 @gardeningourmet @mysticaurathings @jessiembruno @stygianflood @aleynareads @mercury84choices @udishaman @jamespotterthefirst

@choicesficwriterscreations @openheartfanfics @choicesbookclub

[wannabemobwife]

Guns, Glamour and Goodfellas - Chapter 11

Chapter 11: Leave a Light On

Dad!Mob!Tom x Mom!Mob!Reader

-Pairings: Tom Holland x Reader, Rosie Holland x Henry Osterfield, Family!Rosie Holland x Family!Harry Holland (idk really how to do pairings because most characters have interactions with everyone)

-Warnings: Hospital scenes, sadness, blood, typos

-Words: 4.1K

-Key:

Y/M/N = your middle name

Y/L/N = your last name

Y/B/T = your blood type (if you don’t know you can pick a random one, there is O-/+, AB-/+, A+/-, and B-/+)

A/n: I have a too much fun writing the hospital scenes sorry. And before you at me for a second coma, it isn’t one. Some people just take longer to come out of general anesthesia.

Chapter 11: Leave a Light On

Words: 4K

“Oh my god, she still has a pulse” said one of EMTs in the copter.

“Tell the hospital to have as much Y/B/T on hand when we get there.”

“We got you, Mrs. Holland.”

Everything was a blur. You were taunted by your consciousness ebbing like the tide. One minute you were awake, the other not so much. Noises and smells seemed louder and stronger as your sight was stripped from you. A constant buzzing gave the hint of a helicopter, you were rescued. You wanted to give up at that moment. All your energy had dissipated over the hours of waiting. Giving up would make all the pain go away.

But at what cost? You wanted to see Parker’s and Rosie’s smiling face once more. You wanted to see Tom again. Tell him you loved him because you aren’t so sure he truly believed you the last time. You wanted all these things but it seemed you were meant for a different path.

One without pain, struggle and hurt. One that has only known of peace, bliss, and tranquility. One you ready to say goodbye to and the other hello.

Something beyond yourself was keeping in the position you were in. Struggling to bring oxygen to your lungs, bleeding out liter after liter from your side you were ready and needed to give up. Someone else wasn’t ready.

“Mrs. Holland can you hear me?” A doctor said, shining a light in your eyes to see if you were responsive.

“Mrs. Holland, we are going to take good care of you.”

“Oh, wow... she’s soaked entirely through her bandage. I need all the bags from the blood bank of Y/B/T you can find. She could die of exsanguination any moment.

“Tom,” you whispered.

“What was that? Did you hear that?” Asked the hospital staff, working above you. You reached up weakly, to pull your oxygen mask off for a second.

“Tell Tom I love him, please,” was all you could choke out before a terrifying but familiar sound filled the room. A monotone beep. You were coding.

“I need a crash cart in here. Charging to 200… clear,” called out the doctor. Your body jolted up with the force of 200 joules.

“Charging to 300… clear.”

“Charge to 400, CLEAR,” the doctor screamed.

“Charge to 450—.“

“Doctor we aren’t supposed to give that high of a shock,” informed one of the surgical interns.

“I don’t care, this woman needs to see her kids again… Clear,” The doctor said, delivering a final defibrillation. Your heart rate returned to normal, a steady pulse still weak but there.

“Doctor, she has a pneumothorax (collapsed lung) on her right lung,” said one of the medical personnel using the ultrasound. “Shit, we need to get her to the OR now. Let’s move. I’m not going to let her die on me.” The doctor explained.

A plane ride that was only supposed to be 2 hours and 15 minutes melded into what felt like days. No word from Harry or anyone had come about you and Tom. They all landed and took a car to the hospital. It was enough waiting by then, all they knew is that both of you were found. Neglecting to mention dead or alive.

“I’m here for Tom and Y/N Holland. They were airlifted in. Can we see them?” Nikki asked the person at the front desk.

“No hablo ingles, lo siento,” said the receptionist

“IS THERE ANYBODY HERE WHO SPEAKS ENGLISH?” Dom screamed. “Yes, I do. Did I hear you say you are here for Tom and Y/N Holland?” Asked a man clad in a white lab coat.

“Yes. He’s my son and she’s my daughter-in-law. These are their kids.” Nikki explained gesturing to Parker and Rosie.

“Well ma’am if you’ll follow me. I can tell you in private.” “No, whatever needs to be said, they can hear. They want to hear.” “Still follow me to a private waiting room please, your son is in there. Everyone can come,” the doctor concluded. “Alright then,” Nikki responded, following the doctor to a private waiting room.

“Harry.” Rosie said, seeing her favorite uncle.

“You made it, I’ve been waiting for you guys to hear an update.” Harry was so happy to see the rest of his family. “It’s bad, it was really bad,” Harry explained somberly. “Enough with the dilly dally, just tell me. Is my son dead?” Nikki couldn’t take the waiting anymore.

“They were both brought in barely conscious. Tom had lost some blood due to an open wound on his femur, he has a severe concussion, a few cracked ribs and a small knick on his kidney. He is currently in surgery, they are fixing his kidney. The most he will have is a few stitches but, we are very confident he’ll pull through,” explained the doctor.

“And my mom?” Rosie asked.

“Y/N is currently in surgery, she has protruding wound to the abdomen, a collapsed lung, broken ribs, and a severe concussion. She lost a lot of blood, almost dying of exsanguination. She is in surgery to treat her abdominal wound and her lung. Our biggest concern is sepsis, we are worried an infection caused by the elements will occur.”

“So she’ll be okay, right?” Parker questioned.

“She wasn’t conscious like Tom when they found her. In her case the amount of blood she lost might have stopped bringing oxygen to her brain. If she survives the surgery—“

“If?” Rosie gasped, starting to cry.

“Rosie, let him finish,” Parker snapped.

“If she survives, we don’t know when or if she will wake up. We can only hope for the best. I promise to come back with any further updates.”

“Thank you doctor,” said Nikki.

“I need some tea or coffee or a drink. Anyone else?” Sam said, Dom nodded in response.

“I’ll join you and dad,” Paddy said following Dom and Sam out of the room.

Parker was trying to keep everything inside. He actually appreciated the uncertainty of it all, the longer it went on the longer he didn’t have to hear a definitive answer, that you and Tom were dead.

Parker mainly tried to comfort Rosie but that position was filled once Haz and Henry got to the hospital. It was only 30 mins til another doctor approached them.

“Your son is out of surgery. He is resting in room 302, we are just waiting for him to come out of general anesthesia,” came in another doctor with news.

“Thank you. And my daughter-in-law?”

“She is still in surgery,” informed the doctor.

“Ok, thank you. I’m going to go check on Tom. Parker come with?” Nikki asked, she didn’t want to be alone seeing Tom lie in a hospital bed.

“Sure,” Parker said, following Nikki through the door.

“Harry, you’ll stay here with Rosie,” Nikki called out.

“How you doing, Roo?” Harry asked, moving towards Rosie’s side.

“My mom calls me that,” she said, unmoving towards Harry’s love.

Rosie was still like a statue. But her mind was very active, traveling from place to place. Just waiting for someone to update her on your condition.

“I know. She’ll pull through, Rosie.”

“How can you be so certain?”

“Cause I know your mom. For as long as I can remember she has always been the strongest person in the room.” Harry comforted her, draping an arm over her shoulders. “Your dad is convinced she is indestructible. Sure, she has gotten hurt in the past but she has always bounced back. Hasn’t she?” Harry encouraged.

“Yeah, she has,” Rosie sniffled, wiping her nose with her sweater’s sleeve.

“After everything she has survived, she is still here,” Harry asserted. “When she and your dad first were dating, they’d like to scare each other. Tom must’ve pulled something like 20 guns on her. It was really funny to watch,” Harry grinned.

“Tell me more stories please,” Rosie perked up at the anecdotes.

“Well there was that time when your mom told your dad about being pregnant with both you and Parker.”

“I already know that one.”

“Ok, let me think… oh. One time we pulled a prank on her. All of us, me, your dad, Sam, Paddy and Haz. She was supposed to speak at this benefit promoting something… I want to say a disease… maybe climate change… who cares,” Harry began. “But she is better at it now but she used to be so scared of public speaking. That night at the gala, she had a panic attack and Tom went to comfort her backstage, while the boys and I all went into her purse and switched out her speech for the joke one we made.”

“She went on stage and broke in to a laughing fit. All her nerves dissipated as she stood up there, cracking jokes from left and right. It was really funny because she was so scared she would read whatever was written on the cards. She did end up making a fool out of herself, but it was funny nonetheless. She was so mad at us, she avoided Tom for a week,” Harry finished, reminiscing of that night.

“Wow, that’s mean. Like really mean,” Rosie remarked as his story came to an end.

“No it wasn’t. It was funny, she’ll laugh about it now if you ask her.”

“Was she as mad as she has been lately?” Rosie inquired.

“What do you mean?”

“Mom and dad have been fighting a lot… I’m scared they won’t be able to work it out. I’ve never seem them like this,” Rosie cried, fighting back a fit of sobs.

“Roo, those two? Are you kidding me? They will work it out, they always have.”

“But that isn’t a guarantee.”

“Rosie, your mom and dad have been written in the stars since the beginning. Nothing will ever break them apart. And almost dying really brings people back together. I wouldn’t worry Rosie, they’ll be ok,” Harry consoled her.

Rosie really needed to hear that. Something to get her mind off all the death and sickness that surrounded her. She wasn’t ready to say goodbye. She needed you to hold her once more.

“Mrs. Holland, Y/N is out of surgery now. If you’ll follow me I can take you to her room,” a doctor said to Nikki as she was stroking Tom’s hair, waiting for him to wake up.

“Oh thank god, thank you. Parker do you want to come?” Nikki asked.

“No, I think I’ll stay here with dad. In case he wakes up. I’m not ready to see her like that anyway,” Parker mumbled, needing every excuse to not walk into your room.

Nikki just nodded in response. Nikki was there when Rosie was in her coma and she knew you liked to talk to her as if she was there, so she did the same.

“Hey, Y/N. I’m sorry this happened. The doctors have warned me that you might not wake up and I’m here to tell you that’s not an option. Your kids need you. Tom needs you…. He won’t be able to live without you. None of us will,” Nikki said, holding you hand. As soon as Rosie got word, she was already there. Standing in your doorway peering at your sunken body.

“Mom? It’s Rosie…. It’s your Roo,… why isn’t she waking up?” Rosie came barging in. She’d never seen you in a state like this.

“Mom? Mommy, please,” Rosie said, starting to shake you a bit.

“Rosie, come here,” Nikki said, pulling her into her arms. “She’ll be ok. All we have to do is wait.” Nikki concluded.

In Tom’s room, Parker was still there by his dad’s side. Everything had gotten massively screwed up. He was betraying his own dad and Tom didn’t even know.

“Parker?” Tom croaked out, slightly moving.

“Dad, I’m so glad you are okay,” Parker lunged to hug him.

“Me too, buddy,” Tom said, gritting his teeth to mask the pain.

“How’s mom?” Tom asked, praying you were still alive. It had been a rough night. Images of your half-dead body leaning against him for support plagued his memory.

“Umm… you should see for yourself.”

“What room is she in?” Tom asked, jumping out of bed.

“Dad, I don’t think it’s such a good idea you get up,” Parker exclaimed.

“Parker, don’t you dare stand in my way.”

“Mr. Holland, you’re awake — woah, you can’t get up. Your stitches could rip,” the nurse spoke with a thick Spanish accent.

“I don’t care. Let me see my wife,” Tom yelled.

“You may need to sedate him,” Parker said cheekily.

“Fuck that,” Tom cursed.

“You aren’t doing anything to me till I see her,” Tom asserted, the nurse just nodded in response and brought him a wheel chair.

Parker wheeled him through the hospital. He was about to face his fear as well as Tom. It both being the fact that you were dead and not longer living. They weren’t ready for that.

Tom came into your room and it was like a time machine. All those times he was walked into a room similar to this one with the white walls, white sheets, bright blinding lights and the machines that beep to no end. He was taken back to every time he had seen you lying in a hospital bed.

All the times he knew he hadn’t protected you. All the guilt and anguish came flooding back. Washing over him like a tsunami.

He walked in to see everyone gathered around you. Rosie was sitting on the left side of your bed, clutching your left hand and Henry was next to her keeping an arm around her shoulder. Tom didn’t care about them anymore, all that mattered was you.

“Dad, you’re awake!” Rosie cheered, as she saw Tom in the doorway.

“Yeah baby, I’m okay,” he said, holding Rosie close to his chest.

“I’m scared, dad. I’m scared she won’t wake up,” Rosie cried.

“I know. I am too.” Tom responded, his eyes still fixed to your lifeless figure.

“You know it was just a 5 weeks ago, you were lying a hospital bed just like mom. And she was holding on to your hand just like you are to her. And if you woke up from that, I can promise you she’ll wake up from this,” Tom encouraged.

“You really think so?” Rosie queried.

“I know so.… You know what your mom loves to tell me?”

“No. What?”

“Don’t make promises you can’t keep.”

“It sounds like her,” Rosie chucked to herself.

“Yeah, it does.” Tom did the same, he was the one keeping you here. He wasn’t ready to say goodbye. 17 years was nothing compared to lifetime he was destined to have with you. Nobody accounts for the times where something so drastic happens that it can change your entire timeline.

Nobody believes they will die tomorrow or get hit by a bus anywhere. People just live in day to day life thinking that they have a 100 years to go.

You’d think by now, he’d gotten used to seeing you in a hospital bed. Maybe grown accustomed to it. On the contrary, every time he’d see you like this he’d go weak at the knees and beg to switch places with you. To be the one lying there, on death’s door, not you

Every time he has made a promise, your life has been put on the line. You are constantly caught in the crossfires. Tom slowly remembered why he hated hospitals so much, especially when they were associated with you.

“We’ll give you two a minute,” Nikki said, motioning for everyone to clear the room so it was just Tom and you.

“Hey, darling. I told you we’d make it. We had two choices either we died together or we made it together.” Tom began, trying not to cry.

“Y/N, I’m standing here and I’m okay. So it’s only a matter of time before I see you again. We promised it would be us together. Don’t you dare go back on that promise from ages ago, I’m supposed to go before you. Ok? It’s supposed to me. You promised me.”

“This one that you have to keep. I know it might be nearly impossible to, love. But there is no but or if, there is only you waking up and seeing me. Seeing your husband who loves you more than life itself. Seeing our two beautiful kids. I know I haven’t been your favorite person lately, so don’t do it for me. Do it for them, Parker and Rosie. They need you, more than they know.”

“Alright princess, it's only a matter of time. I’ll see you soon.” Tom finished, pressing a kiss to your forehead. One of longing, he just wanted to see your smiling face again. He let himself go completely, breaking down the flood gates. Tears started coming and they didn’t stop, they couldn’t.

Haz peered through the open door, to see Tom crying over you, he immediately jumped into best mate mode and went to comfort Tom.

“Hey. It’s ok. You can let it out,” Harrison said, pulling Tom into his arms.

“I was so awful to her Haz. I let her think I cheated on her so she wouldn’t be mad about Rosie and Henry,” Tom cried out.

“Why? What did you do? You know what, that’s not important right now. The point is she will pull through.”

“She could be dying and the last moment I can only remember with her is our fight. I didn’t even get to say goodbye.”

“She’s not dying, Tom. Y/N has survived much more than this and promise you, you will say hello again.”

“Don’t make promises you can’t keep,” Tom said, taking a line from your vernacular.

“Come on, let’s get some coffee… Here, hop on. I’ll push you,” Haz said, grabbing Tom’s wheelchair

“For fucks sake, you aren’t pushing me. I’m not some sick, crippled patient.” Tom exclaimed.

“Well… you did just get out of surgery.”

“I don’t care. I’m not going to let my helicopter crashing be the reason I can’t walk and I am looked at with pity.”

“Alright Tom, I believe we were going to get some coffee.”

“I don’t want to leave her alone,” Tom whispered.

“Rosie will be in here in a moment,” Haz explained.

“Ok.. Roo, can you go sit with your mom while I get your dad some coffee?” Haz asked. Tom still didn’t want to leave you but he knew you would want him to eat something.

“Yes, I’ll keep her safe.”

“I know you will, baby… Hold it. Hey Henry, can I talk to you?” Tom said, holding Henry back from entering the room.

“Dad,” Rosie said, sternly.

“Don’t worry, sweetie,” Tom said pulling Henry to the side.

“I’m sorry Tom.. um I mean Mr. Holland but I love your daughter more than anything,” Henry stammered.

“I just wanted to say thank you for being there for her when.. you know,” Tom admitted.

“Of course, I love her very much. And if the time every comes where I plan on marrying her I will ask for hands in marriage,” Henry promised.

“Woah kid, slow down. This is permission to date. No talking or even thinking about marriage, you understand. Also wear a fucking condom.”

“Yes, sir. Understood… Thanks Tom.”

“You’re a good kid, Henry. She’s in good hands,” Tom grinned, Henry just smiled and returned to Rosie. Returning to his rightful place, in her arms.

“Haz, did you bring me a change of clothes. I need to get out of this fucking gown,” Tom chuckled.

“Are you sure that’s a good ide—“ Haz started but was soon cut off.

“Eh, eh,” Tom interrupted giving him a harsh glare.

“You are not weak, I get it. Yeah, they are in my bag,” Haz concluded.

Tom said, “Thank you,” in return.

The waiting was back and it was killing Tom once again. This time he wasn’t waiting for both your impending deaths, just yours. It was eating him from the inside out.

You didn’t have enough time together. It wasn’t enough. Tom desired more, he needed more. All your favorite moments of you played through his head. Like he was watching a movie of his life with you, his love story.

One specifically, the day he proposed to you. It was hard to top his happiness that day.

All the days leading up to it he was distant and flighty. It worried it you greatly. Was he planning to break up with you? You were consumed with never-ending negative thoughts about your relationship.

It had been a while since you and Tom had a date night. He’d blown you off a few times to plan out the perfect proposal, afraid he’d let the question just slip out somehow. However, that was unknown to you so all you thought was, he’s an ass.

Tom was in his office, planning out how he was going to do it. What he would wear, where he would propose, what would he say. What would you say? He was nervous wreck.

“Haz, I can’t have anyone come in here ok?” Tom ordered. He must’ve practiced it 7 times. Getting down on one knee and declaring his love for you behind closed doors.

“Understood, Tom,” Haz said, giving him a cheeky grin as he closed his door. Not even 10 mins later, you came barging in through the front door. In a fury because Tom hadn’t returned any of your calls.

“Where is he?” You asked Haz. “Y/N?” He said, confused as to why you were here. Well, you did live there.

“Where’s Tom? I have to talk to him,” you asserted. “Why am I asking you? Of course, he is in his study,” you replied to your own question.

“NO, you can’t go in there,” Haz said, following you to Tom’s office.

“And why not?”

“He’s in a meeting.”

“What meeting would he have a 10:30 at night… Unless?” Your heart sank at the possibility of Tom not alone in there.

“Unless what?”

“He has a woman in there doesn’t he?”

“Umm.”

“It’s fine. I’ll go. You won’t see me around anymore. He chose her over me,” you said, trying not to cry. But you weren’t going to put up a fight.

“Y/N it’s not like that,” Haz called after you, trying to stop you from walking away.

“Then what is it Haz?”

“I can’t tell you?… Just go in there and see for yourself.”

“I don’t want see them.”

“Just do it,” Haz ordered, you eventually agreed. Opening the door to a very well-dressed Tom down on one knee holding a blue velvet box in his hands.

“People always spoke of soulmates and I didn’t believe them. But then I found you. And I had never been so happy to be proven wrong. Y/N Y/M/N Y/L/N you make me want to be a better man. You are my inspiration for everything. I can’t ever imagine living without you. Will you marry me?” Tom said, oblivious to you standing right there.

“Yes,” you said without hesitation.

“No! No, no. You weren’t supposed to see that. Haz I told you to guard the door,” Tom yelled.

“Yes, Tommy. I’ll marry you”, you continued, hoping he’d hear you.

“God, it's ruined now. I’m so sorry. I had this huge plan take you to the London eye,” Tom apologized profusely, running his hands through the curls atop his head in frustration.

“Tom, you're not hearing me. I want to be your wife,” you exclaimed, you couldn’t contain your excitement.

“You do?” Tom surprised at your answer.

“Yes, that’s what I’ve been saying. YES!” You screamed. Tom immediately grabbed you twirling you in the air and kissed you with all the love and passion you deserved. He had been neglecting you so he wouldn’t spoil it.

He put the ring on your finger. It looked as though it was home. You were his and he was yours. Nothing could top that moment.

Thinking about you and the time spent together. It made it that much harder to say goodbye.

Tom was brought out of his trance as you stirred, starting to wake. All heads and eyes turned towards you.

“Y/N. Honey, it’s ok. You were in a helicopter crash. You’re ok. You’re ok. I’m so happy to see you,” Tom whispered, tucking the hair out of your face.

The moment you came to, your eyes widened and a look of panic adorned your face. You were completely lost. Unaware of all your surroundings. You managed to croak out three words. Not an “I love you,” not words of love, quite the opposite.

“Who are you?”

A/n: Alright, Y/N lived. As I promised, there are 17 chapter in this series, 6 more to go. I will start writing the sequel series once all these chapters have been posted, even though I have it already planned out in my head lol. New chapters every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.

Guns, Glamour and Goodfellas Masterlist

Taglist: @dummiesshort @thenoddingbunny-blog @adriannauni @bi-lmg @allthisfortommy

[peralta-guaranteed]

Ao3 prompt by strwbrystars : my first is to do another chapter focusing on jake protecting amy in a similar situation as the closet one in this chapter pre-relationship or established.

This turned surprisingly long...

(thanks to @dolston17​ for the mafioso names :D)

They’ve made all the wrong decisions right from the start, Amy thinks later, as she’s trying not to hyperventilate, with Jake’s breathing next to her not much slower than her own. 

Well, maybe not the very first decision. When the radio crackled on in Jake’s car, asking for an EMT and back up for two beat cops a block down from them, there really was no other option but to turn and drive down to join them. But once they did find them, every decision made after that came straight from the ‘What Not To Do’ part of her training manuals.

_+_

Officer Rogers was sitting on the ground with his back to a wall, his partner Carols squatting in front of him, and he was obviously injured. Amy noticed the trail of blood leading back into the building behind them as they ran up towards the beat cops.

“Two guys. Possibly gang-related. They were fighting over a drug delivery or sale, we’re not sure, and we tried to separate them and question them when the taller guy pulled out a knife and went for Rogers.” Carols informs them straight away while putting pressure on the large wound in his partner’s thigh. “In the fight the other one, probably Italian background, short and stout, managed to unclip my gun - he must’ve known how to work a holster - god, this so - unprofessional, I’m sorry -”

“S’all good.” Jake interrupts him, and Amy wants to interject that no, it’s obviously not good if a criminal manages to take a gun away from a uniformed officer, but the short relief washing over the young, newly instated beat cop at hearing a detective calm him stops her. “Any more info?”

“They ran deeper into this building. We’ve patrolled it before - this is the only exit, so they must still be holeing up inside. They probably thought I was going to follow them, but I carried Rogers out instead so we could radio-”

“Yes, that was absolutely the right decision.” Amy joins in to support him, and it works maybe half as good as Jake’s casual reaction had before. She squats down too, to inspect the wound that Carols is pressing his jacket onto. “The EMTs are on their way, and this doesn’t look like too deep a cut for any lasting damage, even if it hurts like hell, I’d guess. Good, quick reactions, from both of you.”

“Thank you, detective.” is the first thing Rogers says, but Amy barely hears him when she looks up at Jake. He’s staring straight into the building doors, and she definitely, absolutely doesn’t like the look on his face.

“Jake-” She says with both a questioning and warning tone to her voice.

“This is Mancini territory.” He says out of the blue, and she can see his deducting brain working. “If it’s drug-related, and the other guy looked Italian, must be… Chiellini.”

“Chiellini, like Mafia boss Chiellini?!” Carols asks with shock in his voice, and Rogers hisses as he lets the pressure on his wound go for a second. Amy can’t fault him for that moment of surprise.

Roberto Chiellini, one of the two guys Jake’s undercover sting with the Ianuccis hadn’t been able to pin to any crimes, had quickly worked to establish himself as the new family leader of some Brooklyn areas, focussing on heavy drug trafficking for easy profits. They’d had more and more cases and minor arrests coming across their desks lately that mentioned his name in hushed tones, but had still been unable to actually go after him for any of it. Amy knows it’s been costing Jake sleep, but she still hates to see the conclusion he seems to be coming to right now.

“Jake, even if it is, that goon is way to low-level to have any useful info-”

“Stealing a government-issued gun, and assaulting a police officer? We’d have some leverage-”

“We’ll have absolutely nothing if he decides to use that gun-”

Right at that moment, the sound of a gunshot rips through the air, as if she’d predicted it, and silence falls around them for barely a second before Jake unholsters his own gun and starts moving.

“I’m going in there.”

“Jake you are not- Jake- JAKE!”

_+_

She ran after him, of course. He was her partner - she had to be his backup. Backup that could hopefully talk him out of this entirely once she caught up, but still backup. Most of all, though, he was her partner - running gun-first into what was clearly unnecessary danger. She’d be an absolute fool not to go after him.

Even if it did go against the manual.

(She realised a lot of things she was willing to do for Jake went against any manual she’d ever read, but maybe it was too early in their relationship to admit that, even to herself.)

But she has no time to talk some sense into him, or scold him, or really say anything when she rounds the corner of the hallway he’d stopped behind with his gun up, freezing in point for the scenery before her - the ‘tall man’ Carols had described splayed on the floor, with about 70% of his brain blown all over the concrete behind him, the ‘stout Italian’ standing over him with Carol’s gun still smoking from the shot.

Jake’s hands in her periphery, holding his own gun straight up at him. Jake’s hands, shaking.

“Drop the gun, Riva.” 

Gianluigi Riva, Amy’s brain supplies even in her frozen state. The other one of the two men that walked free after the Ianucci wedding. The one that very definitely could’ve been arrested for various things after, if he hadn’t been so perfectly elusive.

The one Jake had a picture of stuck to his computer screen at work ever since he came back from that undercover mission.

“Jakey the Jew.” she hears through her freeze in the most hateful, spite-dripping voice she’s ever heard. “Or should that be Detective Peralta, I guess?”

“Drop. The gun. Riva.” Jake repeats through gritted teeth.

“Wouldn’t you love that.”

She thinks she sees Jake’s finger actually move for the trigger, but that is before Riva’s attention turns towards her , and suddenly all bets are off. And Riva’s gun is on her.

“That your little bitch, Jakey? The one you whined about?”

“I’m not playing this game. Drop your gun.”

“What a shame if she got caught in the crossfires on your mission, huh?”

“One last warning-”

“Get fucked, pig.”

And then, one strong, big hand against her shoulder, pushing her backwards with force before another gunshot sound.

Another hand, pulling her up, pulling her forward, running, dodging, running, slamming into a wall as they round corners, more gunshots behind them, and shouting, curses, screaming, rage-

They dodge around several more corners as the noises trail further and further behind them, Jake running at a speed she didn’t think he was capable of and pulling her along. There’s a barely visible door she notices before him, and uses her full body weight to drag him towards, opening and slamming it closed behind them so quickly she can only hope that even if Riva had followed them close enough, he didn’t see it.

And then complete silence falls over them in the dark room they find themselves in, safe for their ragged, exhausted breathing. Amy can feel her pulse pumping in her ears, even as Jake nexts to her drops against the wall and slides down, not fully hitting the ground with a  quiet ‘Fuck’.  

“What the hell, Jake?!” Is the first thing she manages to whisper-shout through the heaving, and maybe she should pick her words more carefully right now.

“Riva.”

“Yeah, I know, but-”

“Ianucci’s torture guy.”

And that certainly shuts up whatever angry rant has been bubbling up in Amy’s throat about following procedure and not running in eyes closed, head first like he always does.

She knows barely anything about Jake’s time undercover, safe for the ‘funny’ stories he’s been willing to share at Shaw’s. Even now, as his girlfriend, there seem to be walls around the subject - for obvious reasons, if she thinks about the many little scars and marks on his skin that her fingers keep trailing over. Some that make his breath hitch when she kisses them. Some that he pulls her hands away from almost on instinct.

“Fuck.” She simply echoes him, and he nods before pressing the back of his hand to his lips, trying to keep from being sick - whether from the unbelievable running they’ve just gone through that is still wrecking his body, or from memories that Riva dredged up, she’s not sure.

She turns to inspect the too dark room instead, trying to gather her bearings as best as she can before her brain can switch into panic mode completely. It’s not as small as other places she’s had to hide in, luckily, so her claustrophobia is yet to rear its ugly head, but it’s not exactly spacious either. She can’t make out much that could be of help, a few shelves that have seen better days, an empty barrel or two in the far corner. A lot of darkness. She can’t exactly retrace their steps through the building, but they must have ended up in a half-basement level, the only light coming from a small set of windows a few metres up the wall. 

“Okay.” She manages to level her voice to a normal whisper. “Carols and Rogers must have heard the shots. They definitely called in more back up. All we need to do is stay hidden and wait-”

“They don’t know it’s him. They won’t send much backup.”

“They know two detectives went into a building with an armed criminal and did not come out yet so yes, they will send heavy backup, Jake.”

His voice is still muffled through his hand near his mouth, strained but for something else.

“He was gonna shoot you.”

She doesn’t have much to say to that.

“Because of me.”

She has even less to say to that. Yes, is pretty much all she can think of. Yes, because you ran into a building without backup, without a vest on, without so much as a plan. Yes, because you didn’t think . But given the wavering of his voice, the way he’s still breathing like they’d only just stopped running, the way she could see his hands shake even in the darkness, she’s not going to say any of that, ever. There’s something else on her mind, anyway.

“He recognised me?” She asks as she sinks down to Jake’s level, squat-sitting against the wall. The one you whined about is stuck in her memory, but Jake only shakes his head before dropping it to stare at the ground.

“They- the guys- they kept pushing me to gossip and trash talk about the ‘pigs I left behind’.” He coughs as quietly as he can, and she tenses for a moment trying to listen to any sounds from outside of their room. “I tried with the others but- I just couldn’t say anything bad about you.”

Her hand finds its way into his hair, sweat-sticky on his forehead.

“They picked up on that and kept teasing me about it. Then they started finding hook-ups for me to ‘forget’. I think I got too drunk once and told them to fuck off, or something.”

She scratches over his scalp down to his ear, rubs a soothing circle into his cheek as best as she can.

“I know it was stupid and I put you in danger and we weren’t even- you were with Teddy and I-”

“Hey.” She drops her hand to his upper arm and squeezes for support, wants to say something calming before he spirals, but is met with a quiet hiss and - a wet patch on her hand, the feeling of ripped fabric and skin and blood.

“You were hit?!” She gasps before easing the pressure she was unwittingly putting on his wound.

“Grazed. It’s okay.”

“It’s not, it-it’s-” Her fingers are shaking as she pats around her suit to find something to wrap around his arm to stop the bleeding and comes up empty until she shrugs off her jacket. She won’t ever get the stain out of the light fabric, she thinks for a second as she bandages his arm as best as she can in the dark, but who cares?

Who the fuck cares when he got hit by a bullet that was aimed at her? When he pushed her out of harm's way instead of following protocol and shooting the attacker instead? He could’ve had Riva down and out for the count, he was in perfect position for it, and even gave him ample warning. But he might’ve had her on the ground as well if that’s the option he’d picked.

Something tells her that simply because of that, it was never even an option for him.

Their eyes meet, close enough in the dark to really see each other, and they’re swimming with emotions before Jake’s flinch shut as a distant “Jakeeey~" echoes through the halls they’ve just run through.

“We need to get out of here. We- you don’t know what he’s willing- if he finds us-” Jake is up, all of a sudden, the motion making her sway and almost topple over. He’s scanning the room just like she did earlier when she stands up next to him, and his eyes lock onto the barrels and windows.

“I can give you a leg up high enough to reach the window if we climb that barrel. You’ll fit through it, and get over to Rogers and Carols and see if the backup-”

“And you stay here?” She finally scolds him with a look. “With the man who wants you dead? The one you called ‘torture guy’?”

He’s quiet at that, but she can see on his face that the decision was clearly made in his mind.

“You got any better ideas?”

“Like I said, we wait until backup gets here.”

Almost as if to prove the faults in her argument, another “Jakey boy! Get out here and face me, bitch!” drifts in from outside - closer than it was before, and Jake throws her the most panicked ‘told you’ look she’s ever seen.

“We’re still two against one. He’s emptied half his magazine earlier. If we corner him right, we get the element of surprise in the room as well-” her mind continues to work as her eyes settle on the door- “hug the wall next to the door, and we can disarm him or get him down before he’s even barged in completely.”

Jake seems to want to protest, even as the logical part of his brain is clearly telling him she’s right and that this is the best way to go at it, so he ends up simply nodding before gripping his gun and leaning against the wall next to the door, Amy following him suit on the other side.

They’re staring at each other while the noises outside the room seem to creep ever closer. ‘Come out and plaaay~' almost makes her snort for its ridiculousness if it wasn’t so terrifying, thinking about the things Jake has probably seen this man ‘play’ with. 

She tries to calm her mind by focusing on him, instead. On his face in the hazy dark, the curls on his forehead she managed to jostle free earlier, the tense line of his neck, the glare of her beige suit jacket tied around his arm. The way he looks at her, even amidst the panic, amidst all the fear and worry stuck in the room with them.

He pushed her out of Riva’s aim. He dragged her close to him as he ran. He ignored his own injury, offering to lift her up to an escape he wouldn’t be able to make after her. It’s… it’s a lot. After barely two months of a relationship, it’s a lot to take in.

Except she knows - she knows deep down that he would’ve done all of this three months ago, too. Six months ago. Maybe years ago, even.

“We need to switch.” He whispers suddenly, pulling her out of her deep thoughts, and is already stepping over to her before she can ask. She feels his hand on her shoulder, nudging her back to where he’d been standing, and squeezing three times while doing so.

Sometimes she almost hates that squeeze. She knows what it means now, even though they haven’t said those three little words his squeezes represent yet, but in situations like these - it never forebodes anything good.

And she realises what it really means now, too, as she sees the hinges on the door on her side. The door that opens inwards. The door that will completely hide her behind it once it opens, and leave Jake alone in -

It opens before she can say anything, and then things happen way too quickly - there’s noise and shouting and she thinks she hears Jake’s “Down on the floor!” in between Riva’s angry screams and then there’s another gunshot. A single gunshot, and all she can see is the back of the door in front of her, frozen to the spot, unable to run around it and see if- see who-

“Fuck, Amy. Help me pin this fucker!” She hears the next moment and breathes out in relief. Her feet find themselves again as she runs over to where Jake is kneeling on Riva’s back, struggling to hold him down even with the gunshot wound in his thigh. He’s shouting obscenities, screaming and thrashing around, and Amy is so, so tempted to embed a bullet into his other thigh to get him quiet, but she joins Jake’s knees on his back instead, yanks his arms back in a way Jake couldn’t with his injury, and they click the handcuffs around him together at the very moment a team of heavily suited up officers rounds the corner.

_+_

  He’s sitting on an uncomfortable chair in a brightly lit, wide open room of the hospital, squeezing her hand that is holding onto him while his other arm is propped up on a table and getting stitched up.

The EMTs that were taking care of Rogers checked him, too, but the injury wasn’t bad enough to warrant a ride in their ambulance with him, so Amy took over the keys for his Mustang and drove him after briefing the backup team and handing over a still cussing Riva to be brought into Holding. She put in a whispered request to be the one questioning him - with Rosa as secondary - to Terry, who was part of the backup team, and only gave her a quick look and then a nod after Riva screamed something about how he ‘shoulda offed that snitch when he had a chance’, watching Jake several feet away from them twitch and turn towards the EMT handling his arm.

The young doctor stitching him up seems suitably impressed by both his badge and his injury, remarking something about ‘bravery’ and ‘sacrifice’ he would usually eat up with glee, but all he’s doing is smile at Amy while his fingers intertwine with hers, squeeze only once before his thumb rubs circles across her hand.

They’re left alone soon enough while the doctor gets his painkillers subscription, and Jake takes the chance to lift Amy’s hand up to his lips and kiss it.

“Jake…” she begins when their hands drop again, and she can tell he’s getting ready for a lecture. “You risked too much back there.”

“I know, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have gone in without backup, and made a lot of wrong decisions, and-”

“No.” She interrupts him, much to his surprise. “I mean, yes, obviously, and I’m glad you see that now, but that’s not what I meant.”

She sighs, deeply, and stares at their still interlocked hands.

“You risked too much for me.”

“Not possible.”

“Jake!” Her eyes dart up again, want to level him with an angry stare, but can’t help but soften when met with the absolute shine in his. “Jake, you got hit because you pushed me, you wanted to bail me out of the room to leave you with even less backup, and then you manoeuvred me into a dead corner to face a Mafioso on your own-”

“Yeah.”

“Why?!”

“Because it would’ve kept you safe.”

“That’s not how police work is supposed to-”

“Am I not supposed to keep my partner safe?”

“Not when it puts you in danger instead!”

“Hm.” He hums and looks at the bandaged up stitches on his arm. “Gotta rework the manual for that, then. Because frankly I don’t give a shit about me when it means helping you.”

“But I do.” She almost whispers, but he still looks back at her immediately, balks at the shimmer of tears in her eyes. “I give a shit about you. You think I want to see you shot on the ground? You think I want to run away from a building when I know you’re stuck in there? You think I want to stand behind a door and only hear you get- get-” She bites back a sob and fixes him with a dedicated stare instead, a look on her face that makes his heart clench and dance at the same time. “We’re a team, Jake. In the field and off it. You can’t- you can’t play the hero and leave me behind.”

Her mind jumps back to an empty parking lot, the cold wind rushing over her flushed cheeks as she watches him walk away with his little box of things in his arms, not even waiting for her answer. Maybe not even hoping for one.

He sighs and nods back in the present, squeezes her hand again, twice.

“I’m sorry.” He mumbles, and she squeezes back once. 

She knows they’ll probably be talking about this again in the future. She knows it’ll come up repeatedly until he learns. But she also knows, with a certainty that should maybe scare her after their short time together, why it’ll happen again in the future - because he’ll still be by her side no matter the situation. Because she’ll still be the one thing on his mind, no matter how panicked he is. Because they’ll go through it all together, as a team. As partners.

And deep down, she knows with an equal certainty that if the roles were reversed - she would probably rework the manual herself in her mind, to keep him safe. Would do anything and everything she could, no matter how many protocols it went against, to help him, save him, protect him, make him feel safe and secure. 

Right now, she’s glad all it takes for that is a little lean into his direction to kiss him before the doctor comes back, and squeeze his hand three times before letting go and holding onto his face instead to deepen the kiss.

[jazziwritesthings]

Lonely Call - Stiles Stilinski

I do not own teen wolf or any of it’s characters.

Inspired by Lonely Call by RaeLynn

Lyrics in bold

Pairing: Stiles x Reader

Word Count: 1,228

Warning: None??

**************

Just a Monday, thrift shop couch Bowl of Cheerios, it's getting dark out Clicking my remote to an episode Of Crazy Housewives And before you know I see your face on my screen That ringtone can only mean Your friends are gone You're all alone And you're thinkin' 'bout me

The past few weeks had been hard. You had just gotten Stiles back and now he’s rushing off to the other side of the country. Of course you were happy for him that he was finally going to be able to work at his dream job, but that didn’t stop the pain and heartbreak that came with him leaving. You were sitting on your couch in your apartment just watching TV when you heard it. The ringtone you had set specifically for him. You slowly turned your head towards the coffee table and saw a picture of the two of you kissing on the screen. It took everything in you to not pick up.

I used to be your "6 a.m Hey good morning Beautiful, how you been?" I used to be a "we just landed Miss you, you can't stand it See you this weekend"

You were a year older than Stiles so you went off to college while he started his senior year. You guys made it work, even if you were about a four hour plane ride away. Constantly texting and calling each other. You would almost always wake up to a good morning text or a picture of his sleepy face. He would come up to you a few weekends out of the term, when it wasn’t hectic for either of you. It was always a hard goodbye. A lot of the time you never knew if he would make it, or if he’d even be alive. That's why there was constant texting and calling. You needed to make sure he was okay and he needed to hear your voice in order to be okay.

It's been three weeks and two days And twelve hours, but who's counting Ten thousand tears, feels like a year Looking for some peace, and I found it 'Cause boy you said, "Let's take a break" In the front seat of your Jeep So if you got more to say Leave a message at the beep

It was about 3 months before he was taken by the ghost riders. You were visiting him on a long weekend you had. Everything seemed perfectly normal. You went out to dinner, enjoyed yourself and spent some quality time with him. After dinner as you sat in his jeep in front of your parents house you could feel the air had gotten stiff. “Stiles. Is everything alright?” He looked like he was having a war with himself in his mind. You tried again, this time grabbing his hand and intertwining your fingers, “Stiles? Babe?” Your touch seemed to bring him out of his head. Instead of bringing your hand up and kissing it like normal, he undid his fingers from yours and placed both hands firmly on the wheel, “Stiles?” You were freaking out, something wasn’t right. “We should take a break.” His words hit you like a ton of bricks, knocking the air out of your lungs.

The next few months felt like hell for you. You and Stiles had not only been dating but you had been friends since elementary school. So not only did you lose the love of your life, you lost your best friend. After about 2 months of trying to figure out a new normal you finally found some semblance of peace. You were doing great in your classes and you got a job at the cafe near your apartment that you loved. Everything felt normal for once, you were happy.

Then everyone forgot Stile Stilinski, including you.

Now I'm just a midnight number Familiar voice When you start to wonder if you made the wrong choice So let it ring, let it ring all night long 'Cause I ain't your lonely call I ain't your lonely call, call, oh

The day started like any other. Your alarm waking you up. Getting out of bed and showering. Going to class and then work. It was when you were sitting on your couch later in the evening when something changed. You couldn’t quite put your finger on it. Every fiber of your being was telling you to look at your phone. Picking it up you unlocked it and went right to your contacts, seeing a name that sounded so very familiar. Before you did any sort of thinking you pressed the call button. Hearing it ring made your heart feel like it was going to pound out of your chest. “Y/n?”

You heard your name and it’s like everything came back at once, making you drop your phone. Before you knew it you were sobbing. You could hear Stiles on the other end of the phone calling your name. You felt like you couldn’t breathe. Somehow you had forgotten your best friend, and the ex who broke your heart. He just kept calling your name. It had to be a good ten minutes before you had caught your breath enough to pick the phone back up. “Stiles?” You whispered into the phone, not completely trusting anything. “Y/n, thank god. Are you okay?” You sat there listening to his voice. “W-What happened?” There was a long pause on the other end before he finally spoke up, “ A lot actually. It’s too hard to explain over the phone. Are you off anytime soon?” Your brain felt like it was broken, “ I-I can’t remember.” You heard a bunch of different voices on the other end of the phone. Finally someone called your name again, this time you recognized the voice as Scott’s mom. “ Hey Ms.McCall.” She was talking to you and asking questions. The questions were all medical stuff. You had no idea what was going on and it felt like you were surrounded by a thick fog. You heard Melissa say, “ She’s in shock, call her an ambulance.”

I used to be your "6 a.m Hey good morning Beautiful, how you been?" I used to be a "we just landed Miss you, you can't stand it See you this weekend"

It felt like you had been at the hospital forever. In reality it had only been a little over twelve hours. You had no clue how you even managed to get here. The doctors all said it was shock, but they couldn’t determine a source. They said when the EMT’s found you, that you were sitting on the floor with your dead phone to your ear, with tears staining your cheeks.

When you finally got back to your apartment you flopped onto the couch and fell asleep. You were woken by some knocks on your door. You sighed and slowly got up off the couch and stretched, having slept so oddly on the couch. Walking to the door you threw your hair up into a ponytail. Getting to the door you looked through the peephole and saw him. You had never opened a door so fast in your life. As soon as it was open you were throwing your arms around his neck. He wrapped his arms around you and squeezed you back. “Hey Beautiful.”

[honeypirate]

Concussed

Pro hero Red Riot/Kirishima x Pro hero y/n.

Reader is a higher hero than Kirishima and the public likes her more. I didn’t specify her quirk but I’d say it was more power type.

(When I had a concussion before i couldn’t walk all day bc of being insanely dizzy and I talked a lot, said anything I wanted to say and didn’t think of it. So I went with that and exaggerated just a little with it)

I like to think he hair doesn’t harden with his quirk even tho I can realistically see how it would. It’s just my preference for this fic.

💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥

You were in his strong arms as he carried you to where the ambulances would be. He had his fair share of concussions, and so had you actually, but this time yours wasn’t too bad. he was concerned mainly because you weren’t acting like yourself, you were blunt and mischievous, he knew you were always talkative but it was never like this, so before he took you home he was going to have one of the EMTs look at you.

For the first time in your life you don’t even think about consequences you’re not thinking of tomorrow or when you’re all healed, you are doing and saying what comes to mind immediately. Which is why you currently had on his hero costume mask and your hands buried in his silky hair.

“How is his hair so soft?” He chuckled as you raked your fingers through his hair “oh shit did I say that out loud? My heads kind of fuzzy still.” You never stopped playing with his hair. “Since I’m saying everything out loud anyway, how come your quirk doesn’t work on your hair?” You wish you could feel the softness of his hair on your face “How can you be sure it doesn’t?” He laughs as he responds and you notice the pink on his cheeks “it doesn’t. I’ve noticed. I notice everything about you Kiri” your hands quickly go to his face and softly touch his deep red blushing cheeks, the action jostling you in his arms “Kiri I am so dizzy, I think I have a concussion. That guy hit my head so hard” you burry your head in his chest, the action causing his hero mask to fall down around you like a necklace. “Y/h/n, i know there isn’t anyone around and that you have a concussion, but please try and remember to call me Red, at least while we’re out, okay, sweetheart?” Your head shot up to look him in the eye, it felt like your brain was the last to follow, sloshing around in your head, “I’m so sorry! I didn’t even notice. I’m sorry. Red” you nodded as you said it even tho you wouldn’t remember.

You loved his name so you tried to say it as much as you could in normal life without it being weird. You lay your head back down on his chest and close your eyes, your hands on his neck drawing little designs on his skin with your fingers “hey don’t fall asleep on me. Not until we get you checked out and healed up” you laughed “and then after you’ll let me fall asleep on you? That would probably be the best sleep I’ve ever had” you sigh and with your ear against his chest you notice his heart beat quicken. “I love you my Kiri” you whisper into his chest before you fall asleep and he hardly caught it. His eyes widen and his breath hitches.

“Hey hey don’t fall asleep come on baby wake up!” He tries to wake you up but you’re too far gone, luckily he’s just made it to the ambulances. It was a small villain fight so there was only a few of them around on different streets. Fewer now that the fight has been over for a while.

One of the EMTs ran up to him “how is she hurt?” “She’s got a concussion but I think that’s it” “follow me” kirishima and the EMT take you to the ambulance and he lays you down on the bed “with my quirk” the EMT says “I can assess her injuries and if they are small I can heal them. The only consequence being she’ll be very tired and weak. You’ll have to help her home.” Kirishima nods “okay.” the EMT puts their hands on your head and closes their eyes, nararating what they sees with their quirk. “She’s got a nasty concussion and some fractured ribs. Should be easy to fix. I seeee.... no other problems.” When their hands fall from your hair your eyes open and you look around until you see him, his eyes full of worry when you sit up and look at him fully. “There you are. I was just dreaming of you.” He smiles as he looks into your tired eyes “she needs to get some rest now” the EMT says to Kiri and he nods. You go to stand and you wobble a little so Kiri picks you up into his arms once more.

“You don’t have to carry me I think I’ll be okay now” he just shushes you so you lay your head on his chest and draw shapes on his chest absentmindedly with one of your hands. “I want to help you out until you’re feeling yourself again so you’re coming to my house.” He says and you feel your cheeks blush “okay. Thank you Red Riot” you say quietly. Remembering how stupid you were when you had a concussion. You were so grateful to him for carrying you, even more grateful that it was in the middle of the night and no one was around to see. The one thing you didn’t need was this in the newspaper. (Just wait until you see next mornings headline because you’re already there)

When you got back to his place he sets you down gently in the living room. “Kiri, do you have like some sweats and a shirt I could borrow so I don’t have to stay in this?” You ask quietly and gesture down at your dirty suit. He blushes and nods “yes I do. Come with me and you can shower too if you want”

After a nice long hot shower, you put on a pair of black sweats and a faded gray UA High teeshirt. You were surrounded in his scent like it was hugging you in. You fold your hero suit and walk out of the bathroom to find him in the kitchen making some tea and a late night snack. You place your suit down on a kitchen chair

“There’s my girl” he says with a smile and your heart beat quickens. “Hey” you say shyly and he comes and pulls you into a hug “god you scared me. I thought you had like terrible brain damage or something. You were talking and acting crazy until I got you to the healer” you laugh awkwardly “was I really that crazy?” You ask worried about everything you said. Worried that your real honest thoughts about him he thinks are crazy. He pulls back and gazes down at you “no. Not really that crazy at all.” He smiles sweetly down at you holding your face in his hands. He takes a deep breath and then ends the moment, secretly because he was terrified your words were only because of the concussion and not the honest truth. “I made you some tea” You take the tea he hands you and he takes you into his room to lay in bed and watch a movie.

You sit cross legged and drink your tea as he sets up some new Christmas show on Netflix. Your tea is finished by the end of episode one and you’re hooked on this show. You lay on your side and hug one of his pillows to your chest. He lays on the other side of the bed, one arm behind his head and the other on his stomach. He isn’t really watching any of the show, he just watches you. Your smiling face when cute things happen, your eyes are bright and happy. He loves it. He’s extremely jealous of the pillow you’re using to hug. He wishes you were holding on to him that tight. He moves and is now sitting with his back against the headboard and hands in his lap.

“Y/n?” You pause the show and sit up, turning towards him “Kiri?” He smiles and tucks your hair behind your ear. “Do you remember what you said when you were concussed?” You swallow hard, remembering telling him you loved him, and whisper “yea” his hand hasn’t left your cheek, he’s softly rubbing your skin with his thumb “did you mean it?” He asks just as quiet.

Your mouth goes dry as you look into his eyes, your hands start to sweat and your heart races as you try to gauge what’s going to happen after you say yes. He’s either going to say he loves you back or he’s going to shut you down. Either way at least you’ll be able to move on.

You reach up and cover his hand with your own, before gently placing it in your lap and running your fingertips across his, you watch your fingers trace his callouses, afraid to meet his eyes. “Yes, Eijiro, I meant it” you whisper.

“Y/n. Please look at me” he whispers and takes your hands in his. You look up into his eyes with your brows furrowed. He smiles and reaches up to smooth out your forehead “always so easy for me to read” he scoots closer to you and kisses your forehead “don’t worry. Don’t be nervous. How could I not love you back?” His voice is warm and calm.

He smiles and strokes your cheek as you stare into his eyes shocked, he loves you back... relief flooded your body followed by excitement and butterflies. He watched it all in your eyes. A smile slowly spread across your face and you felt yourself blush. “You love me?” You say quietly and reach your hands up placing them in his cheeks “I love you y/n” he says with a smile and a shrug, like he was suddenly shy to be admitting it.

You throw yourself into his arms and laugh “I love you!” You say and he holds you in his arms laughing along with you. When you pull back he looks into your eyes, you can see the pure happiness and adoraration in his eyes. “My beautiful girl” he says softly and you blush. He leans forward kissing your nose, then both cheeks, then pressing his lips finally against yours. You melt against him and he holds you tight in his strong arms. When he pulls back you lay your hand on his cheek and sigh happily. “I can’t believe that Red Riot is in love with me. This is gonna boost you hero reputation exponentially!” You laugh at the look of shock on his face “get it? Because the community loves me? And I’m always in the news? And I’m a few points higher than you?” You keep explaining what’s obvious and poking his cheeks softly with a smile on your face that said you thought you were the funniest girl. He shakes his head and laughs with you.

He pulls you into his chest as he lays down on the bed “do you wanna finish this show?” He asks and you happy sigh as you cuddle closer into him, hugging him like you were the pillow. It warms his heart to finally get what he wanted. “Yes. But I might fall asleep. I love how warm you are” you respond and he laughs “that’s okay baby. You need rest. I’ll hold you as long as you want me to” you chuckle “forever?” You ask and he laughs “anything for you”

[whump-town]

The Narcissist

My tasteful whump approach of: what if Tobias Hankel had made good on his word and come to kill Aaron Hotchner?

No major warnings apply, whump, angst, and sweet, sweet fluff

Word Count: 5k

If Aaron Hotchner smoked, he’d be blowing through a pack of cigarettes right about now. Gideon had benched him. The older man had taken one look at him and pulled him aside. He’s a nervous wreck. The tremor in his hands visible as his voice had cracked, asking the team to just broadcast what they each thought were his worst characteristics. Gideon let him drive his point home-- Aaron is many things but a narcissist has never been one of them-- and put him in a place where there was only one right answer. Gideon had told him no one would blame him if he couldn’t do this.

“It’s okay if you can’t handle it.”

His stomach cramps at the thought of those words.

Narcissists.

Bully.

Drill Sergeant.

Sexist.

Weak.

Leaning with his weight on his left arm, pinned above his head, Hotch vomits against the side of the house. His knees shake and tears he can’t control the tears that roll down his cheek. He bites back a sob as he falls to one knee, nearly landing in the puddle at his feet. They’re right, he concludes, shaking so hard he’s not certain he’s going to be able to get back up. He’s nothing but a bully. Worthless. Weak.

“Aaron Hotchner?”

Hotch looks up to see a dark shadow approaching him. He sniffles, straightening as his heart pounds. His subconscious drawing up his shields. Something’s not right. “Who are--” he jerks back, blinking dumbly as his brain fails to comprehend what’s just happened. He’s looking up at the sky, flat on his back. A gunshot. He coughs and gags as the thick taste of copper coats his tongue. He’s been shot.

“I condemn you,” the deep voice rasps into the dark.

Hotch just blinks, ragged wheezes leaving his mouth. He’s looking down the barrel of a gun.

“2 Corinthians 5:10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad." The hammer draws back as the sound of the old front door being thrown open rips through the night. “Every sinner must pay--” the hammer strikes.

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

Derek finds Reid.

He’s sitting on the floor with his hands bound in front of him, just waiting for whatever torture comes next. When his eyes land on them, he lets out a broken sob. Drawing his feet to his chest, he shakes his head. “No,” he rasps, burying his head in his knees. “No. No. No!” He starts to rock, keeping his eyes squeezed shut and his body drawn tight.

“Spencer?” Gideon tries to crouch near him but Reid kicks out and pushes himself away.

“No,” he cries. His eyes meet Gideon’s bloodshot and red-rimmed. “No,” there are tears pouring down his eyes. “I killed him,” he rasps. “I killed him, didn’t I?” His tone shifts. His body… Spencer Reid isn’t their rookie. He’s not their kid. He’s a shell. Broken. His voice rasps and breaks as he pleads-- the truth. He needs the truth. “Gideon, you have to tell me. Did I kill him?”

Gideon shakes his head-- oh. “Derek!” his voice is a bark, a command. It’s a level of control and demand that Morgan hasn’t seen or heard of since Adrain Bale. It snaps Morgan’s attention to the man though. “Get Aaron and Garcia on the phone and get out of here. Hankel’s going to them.”

Morgan freezes in shock, processing exactly what that means. “He’s…” his eyes dart to Reid. The younger man’s eyes bouncing between Gideon and Morgan, trying so desperately to figure out the answer to his question. So Morgan doesn’t say it, he just nods and turns around shouting out for Emily. But, by God, he thinks it. He thinks it and it makes his stomach twist and his blood cold: Tobias Hankel is going to kill Hotch.

Garcia doesn’t answer his calls. 

Three calls. 

All to voicemail. 

Morgan drives through the yard, cutting time and not giving a damn. He pulls right up alongside the police cruiser and an ambulance. “Hey,” he shouts, throwing his door open and leaving it as he runs to the first cop he sees. He pulls out his badge. “My team,” he says. “We’re working a case here. Where are Agents Hotchner and Garcia?”

The cop looks him up and down, obviously displeased with being interrupted from his leaning and watching as everyone around them works. “I don’t know,” says with a shrug. “We got some guy waiting to get picked up by the coroner.”

Morgan curses in frustration. “This isn’t some joke to me, man.” He looks around, “is there anything else you can tell me?”

Before the cop can say anything further, Emily shouts Morgan’s. She’s jogging up through the grass, moving away from the crowd of EMTs, officers, and other jackets standing by the side of the house. Motioning for him to join her, he steps back towards the car. Following. 

“Hotch and Garcia are headed towards the hospital,” she shouts. “They’re not sure Hotch is gonna make it.”

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

Penelope Garcia stands completely alone. 

Around her, the emergency room buzzes with its flooded life. Such a stark, dark comparison to her friend. His still chest barred for anyone to see as doctors lean over him. The wound is still oozing blood. A dark vacuuming wound. Sucking. He’s as pale as death and silent. He’s not crying in pain. His dark eyes aren’t scanning every inch of space he can see. 

He’s still and silent. 

From here, she can see the wounds from Adrian Bale’s bomb. She’s only known him since that bomb. That day.

“This is Penelope Garcia with the Federal Bureau of Investigation,” she’s still new to the job. A greenie, the other agents playfully taunt. She doesn’t find it all that funny but this is better than federal prison. “How can I help you?” She’s got one hand holding the weight of her head, the other clicking her pen lazily against the desktop.

She’s not special here. She’s got nothing. She hates this job.

“Miss Garcia,” a weak voice greets. “I don’t know if you remember,” the caller coughs, wet and thick. That’s when she hears the wheezes. “I’m afraid I haven’t been a very good boss but it’s Agent Hotchner.”

She remembers. He’s who’s she’s supposed to be working with. That is before she got pulled to work at this desk all day doing nothing. She’s got about three more months of this garbage before she can be trusted with any of the real stuff. Before she can go work with the teams on the units-- mostly, to work with Hotch and his team. Of which, she still hasn’t met.

“I remember,” she says. She’s not sure what else she’s supposed to say.

He chuckles on the other end but it ends in an awful sounding cough. “Sorry,” he wheezes. “I’m afraid…” he takes a deep breath. “Have you seen the news?”

“No, sir.”

He hums. “Well,” he says, “we’ve gotten ourselves into a spot of trouble.”

From what she can tell, she feels that’s probably an understatement. Through his silence, the short pauses between his quick, shallow breathing, she can hear the commotion of a hospital. She can even hear his heart monitor. An undergrad degree in biology on a track to medical school doesn’t get you much in cyberspace as a hacker but she knows, from the sound of that monitor, somethings not okay.

“I was just wondering if you could do me a favor?”

His voice sounds so soft, nearly subdued almost as if he’s falling asleep, that she can’t say no. “Of course, sir.” She’s really only seen him a handful of times. The first time after he recruited her and several times in passing. Every time she can remember seeing him in the hall or in the parking lot he’d always offered a small, shy wave. Despite her frustrations with being placed on desk duty, she doesn’t hate him.

“I, ugh,” he clears his throat. His voice has softened. He’s certainly losing his battle with consciousness. “Haley,” he rasps her name. “My wife,” he clarifies. “I--I lost my phone and I just want to talk to her.” The hurt in his voice, the desperation breaks her heart. “...hit my head,” he slurs. “I...I--I hit my head and I can’t really… dialing the numbers is hard.”

The man just wants to talk to his wife. He just wants some comfort.

“Kind of silly,” he mumbles. “Could dial here but couldn’t remember the home one. The--ugh-- couldn’t remember the home line.”

She smiles and starts to do as he asks but then remembers the limited information she’s got right now. There’s no way she can access his file, let alone get to his personal information to find his wife’s number. “Sir,” she says, feeling tears start to pool in her eyes. She hates to do this because she wants to help him so badly. “I don’t have access to that information.”

They sit in silence for a long pause.

Hotch is struggling to hold on and thinking hurts but he’s sure there’s something she can do about that still… “Break a rule for me,” he says, tone playful. “I know you hate it down there. Hack my file.” He sniffles, the sound of sheets shifting blocking the line as he moves in discomfort. “Please, Penelope?”

Oh… how is she supposed to say no to that?

“You’d better have my back when they chew me out for this,” she says, setting into the task at hand. It’s pretty easy. Nothing like hacking the database months ago. She’s got half the work handed to her.

“Always,” he rasps.

She finds it easy enough. “Alright,” she says. “I’m dialing her right now.” They both sit in silence as the ringing fills the line. Two rings turn into three and she feels her heartbreaking for this poor man. The line clicks to an end and she smiles sadly at the sound of her much healthier boss’s voice greets the end call. Haley, she’s assuming, cuts in and ends the recording.

“I’m so sorry, sir.”

“ ‘s okay,” he slurs. “She’s… She’s pro’ly gonna call back ‘vently.”

Chewing at her lip nervously she offers, “I can stay. If you’d like. I’ll talk to you.”

He chuckles softly and she winces as it ends in more uncomfortable shifting and more of those terrible wheezes. “...don’t hafta.” He chokes on a breath and their conversation takes a pause as a nurse steps in. Her soft voice telling Hotch that he needs to rest and the doctor’s ordered some mild sedatives.

“Can’t,” he whispers to the nurse. “I’m talk’n to my friend Penelope.”

She smiles, blushing.

The nurse responds in kind that Garcia can stay but he still needs to get some rest.

“She’s right, sir.” She cuts in. “I’ll stay and talk to you until fall asleep, okay?”

She can hear the hiss of oxygen which is good because his breathing was really concerning her. When he comes back he sounds better but like he’s half-asleep. That’s probably for the best. “You’re supposed to be on my side,” he says.

“I am,” she responds. “You need some sleep though. For your head.”

He hums in agreeance. “Yeah,” he whispers. “I hit my head.”

“I know.”

She’d talked to him that day until the phone died, even though he only stayed awake three minutes after that. Leaving that day from the office, she’d seen what he’d meant about the news and the “spot of trouble” he’d gotten into. Six agents were dead. She’d cried, right there in the bullpen, for a man she hardly knew.

Since then, she’s really grown to love him. He’s her friend. She loves him.

“Baby girl?”

Garcia turns around and sees Morgan, Emily, and JJ. She stays where she is, tears falling down her face, and leans right into the hugs they pull her into. She needs all the comfort she can get. But the hugging only lasts for so long. There are questions they need to be answered and she’s the only one with the answers.

They give her time. Twenty minutes. Just enough time for Gideon and Reid to come to the hospital

“Okay,” Morgan holds his hands around Garcia’s. Keeping her hands cupped around the warm styrofoam surrounding the shitty hospital coffee Gideon had bought them all. It keeps her hands from shaking so hard. “Can you tell me what happened now?’

Garcia nods and sniffles. She glances up at him once, shying away from his kind gaze. “Hotch went outside,” she starts, “right after you guys left.” Forcing herself to take a steadying breath, she’s able to continue on. Trying very hard to keep her composer. She knows it’s important she tells someone. “I could hear him getting sick,” she whispers because it feels like something she shouldn’t be saying. “You know how he is,” she says, looking up at Morgan. “When he gets like that? So nervous and anxious that he just…”

Morgan nods. He’s seen Hotch work his nerves up like that many times. It’s hard to tell how many times Morgan’s tailed Hotch outside, standing to the side as the man fails to work through an anxiety attack. He’s gonna kill himself one of these days getting worked up like that. Won’t ever let anyone help him, either.

Garcia had wanted to help him tonight. She just… she couldn’t stand to see him like that. Shaking so hard and pale. He’d excused himself after about ten minutes of the two of them just sitting in silence, listening to the other’s going over the plan to get Reid.

“I couldn’t see him like that,” Garcia says softly. “I wanted to help,” her voice cracks and she starts to shake again. “When I--” her breath catches.

“Alright,” Morgan stops her. He rubs her thumbs over her hands. “Take your time. You don’t have to rush.”

Garcia nods and takes a moment, breathing in through her nose. “I’m okay,” she says with a tight smile. Morgan doesn’t believe it. She can tell. Squeezing his hand she repeats herself. “I mean it.” Besides, what comes next is the hard part.

Clearing her throat, she manages to continue. “I was coming outside when I heard the first gunshot,” her voice is already shaking again. “I don’t know-- I didn’t really know what to do? I mean, Hotch has a gun and I don’t so… but I didn’t want something to be wrong and leave him all by himself.” She sniffles a little, laughing sadly at the irony of her own words.

Morgan brushes the tear that falls down her cheek away.

“When I got out there…” she stops, just thinking about what she’d seen.

The porch only had one lightbulb which hung from a strand of wires just hardly holding on. Still, as she stepped out the low light had shown her all she needed to see. The dark silhouette of Hotch’s face and his long body on the ground. There was blood on his face and more pooling onto his white dress shirt. Spreading and falling down the sides of his chest. So much blood.

There was a second man. He’d started talking like he didn’t even see her.

“I condemn you.”

She’d been frozen, in both fear and confusion.

She hadn’t done anything until she saw him pulling the hammer back. Aiming to shoot Hotch again. “Hey,” she’d run at the man with everything she had. Not for a moment did she think about what would happen if the man turned the gun to her. What would have happened then? If he’d shot her?

There’d be two bodies in the morgue.

“Hotch isn’t dead.”

Garcia flinches and looks up at Morgan in confusion. “What,” she rasps, softly.

“You said--” he frowns in confusion. “You said there would be two bodies in the morgue but Hotch isn’t dead. He’s still in surgery.” He leaves out how grim things are looking. That losing Hotch will set off a domino effect. They’ll lose Reid and Gideon isn’t enough. They’ll lose the team. The only family some of them have ever had.

Oh. She nods. Right, no, she knew that. That’s easy for him to say though. He hadn’t placed his hands over the gaping hole in Hotch’s chest. He hadn’t looked Hotch in the eyes, watching as his life blurred out. She had. She’d felt her friend’s heart slowing. Heard his breathing catch, stop, and his eyes dim. She’d been there. She’d held his hand in the ambulance.

She was right there.

She… doesn’t think he’ll make it.

“Yeah,” she whispers thickly. This time she doesn’t let Morgan brush away her tears. She hadn’t told him the worst parts. That she’d hit Tobias Hankel until he stopped moving. She’d watched his blood splatter out around him and she’d caused that.

Then she’d gone to Hotch. Her knees are still soaked with his blood. The grass had just… it was like sitting in mud. Warm mud. His eyes had searched for her in his confusion, his mouth moving to form silent words. She’d held his hand the whole time. Never leaving his side until the E.R. He’d stopped breathing in the ambulance just as it had pulled into the lot.

The worst part is that he hadn’t panicked. While everyone else in the ambulance moved with newfound vigor, he’d finally relaxed. The stress lines in his face had smoothed over and his eyes had calmed of their rapid movement. Through the chaos, he’d just looked at her and as the doctor’s pulled him away he’d squeezed her hand. And she’s still trying to figure out if he’d meant he would be okay or if she would.

“We need to get you checked out,” Morgan says, running a hand over her arm.

She looks up and shakes her head, “no. I didn’t get hurt. I promise.”

He knows she’s not hurt. The blood all over her clothes may not be hers but he’s sat in blood before too. As reassuring as it is to know it doesn’t belong to you… it’s also insanely psychologically damaging to know it belongs to someone else. Let alone that someone else being someone you love.

“I know,” he soothes. “You’re shaking pretty bad and at the very least, a nurse can get us some warm water to get this blood off. Okay?”

For the first time, she looks at the blood staining her clothes. Looking down at her shaking her hands, she sees the blood caked under her nails and dried to her skin. It makes her sick. “Okay.”

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

“Haley’s here.”

Emily is the first person to frown in confusion. She’s been on the team for only a few shorts months. Her relationships with them are rocky but forming. Given how tightly Hotch holds to his personal information she’s not certain but… “Haley is…” she glances to Morgan and then to Gideon when the other man doesn’t respond.

Gideon nods his head solemnly.

Emily’s heart kicks a beat, so hard she has to shake her head to regroup. Just some four hours ago Hotch had commended her on her ability to compartmentalize everything she sees and here she is shirking away because her boss's wife is here. But it’s not about some power dynamic. “But,” she swallows thickly around the tightness in her throat, “we don’t have news for her.”

Morgan stands up from his chair, eyes on the floor and back to her as he shrugs, “she knows the drill.”

A cold film of sweat covers Emily’s skin at just the thought. She knows about things that have happened for this team before she was on it. She just… it’s kind of different when she has some surface-level understanding of who they are. Even if she thinks Hotch is a dick, she doesn’t hate him. He’s better than a lot of bosses she’s had and maybe-- well, don’t hold her to it, but maybe she feels bad about the name-calling thing. Emily watches silently, unable to hear the words being shared between them. She can still see, though. The way Morgan’s hands shake as he recounts the details. Haley just… takes it. She nods along, clinically removed. She’s strong, more than she should have to be.

Turning from Morgan, Haley steps closer into the waiting room. Looking around at the others, what’s left of them. “And the rest of you,” she asks. “The rest of you are okay?”

Gideon takes on the question. He squeezes her shoulder, “Reid and Garcia are in the E.R. They’re getting there…”

Haley nods and wraps her arms around herself. She takes a steadying breath. “He’s gonna-- He’s going to want to know,” she says and Emily feels intense empathy for this woman. “You know he’s going to want to know as soon as he wakes up if they're’ okay.”

If he wakes up.

Gideon nods, “I know.”

“Okay,” Haley whispers and she’s numb, Emily realizes, as Gideon guides her to a chair. She’s numb so she doesn’t break. “I would--” Haley grabs Gideon’s hand. “I would like to see Spencer and Penelope. To make sure they’re okay.”

Gideon nods, “I’m sure they’d like that.” And they will. While Hotch prefers to stay in the background and worry but there’s no secret Haley is too. They both have a strong love for the babies on the unit.

And now… they have nothing to do but wait.

“Haley?” Reid wakes up restrained. His thin arms held down to the bed with itchy velcro. While he isn’t familiar with this in a personal sense, he’s seen his mother laid out like this. He doesn’t even have to test the restraints, he knows he’s not going anywhere. More pressing than that… Haley Hotchner sitting at his bedside.

Haley perks up, smiling when she sees his dark eyes open in slivers. “Hey, sweetheart,” she greets. She stands and comes closer to the bed, taking his thin, cold hand in her own. “How are you feeling?” This man may not be of any blood relation to her or Aaron but she loves him. Her husband loves him. He’s family.

Reid turns his head away from her, tears falling down the corners of his eyes. “You hate me,” he whispers.

She knows only what she needs to. Of course, under the jurisdiction and because the case hasn’t officially “closed” she can’t know that Reid chose Hotch. That his words condemned Aaron to being shot tonight. She does know that Reid is unnecessarily blaming himself for the accident. Because, as they'll soon be able to explain, Tobias was going to hurt someone either way. Haley would agree.

“No,” she soothes. “Of course, I don’t hate you.”

Reid turns to her, eyes haunted and voice hoarse, “but I killed him.”

Haley can’t help the choked sound she makes. Vehemently, she wants to deny that but she doesn’t even know if her husband is alive right now. “You didn’t,” she reassures him because at the very least she knows that’s the truth. This job has already taken her husband’s life. There’s no point in placing the blame on anyone else. “If Aaron dies tonight,” just the thought makes her chest tight.

This isn’t what she’d imagined falling in love with Pirate #4 would look like. A widower in her thirties. Raising their son all alone.

She clears her voice, steadying herself and pushing away the thought. “If Aaron dies tonight, that will have no one’s fault. No one but the Unsubs.” She glances over her shoulder, to the crowd of people-- his team. Their family. She’s seen the guilty little glances they pass her. The hug Garcia had trapped her in… they think they could have stopped this. “This, what happened tonight, is no one’s fault. Not yours, not Aaron's.”

Leave it to her husband to form a team of guilt-ridden sweethearts. She really does love them.

“Do you understand me,” she asks, eyebrow raised.

There are nods and general mumbles but what really catches her attention is the soft, sad smile Garcia manages. “You sounded like him,” the tech analyst whispers. “He’s always so worried about us,” she brushes a tear from her eyes. “Sometimes, sometimes we forget to worry about him.”

But he never lets them.

He’s so under lock and key… preoccupied with an image he’s conjured of what leadership is supposed to look like that he forgets the humanity. The bleeding. The yelling. The life.

Until it’s too late.

A doctor comes to get them. He’s alive, if only marginally. If only just holding on.

His humanity is now visible to them all.

In the mess, there is only a light blanket draped over his thin hips. It leaves his chest bare, visible for them to look long at hard at. To force this memory into their minds. To remember that under those suits there is just a man. A man who is broken and who hurts.

And, in the end, it’s her by his side when he wakes up confused and in pain.

“Aaron,” she pushes his sweat-soaked hair out of his face. Even with his eyes on her, he twists, kicking out in pain. He tries to turn his head, pinched eyes sending tears down his face. If he could cry out, he would, but all he can do is choke around the tube in his throat.

It’s like this--

He wakes for a moment, a glimpse of consciousness, and pain. She’s right by his side. She holds his hand and reminds him that he’s okay. That the team is waiting just outside. Then he falls back into the drugs.

It goes on for three days. Hours and hours of his pained kicks and tears. Nothing she can do for him.

On the fourth day, they take the tube out.

The team visits.

He’s sitting up, not of his own violation. There are pillows all around, supporting his back and sides, and two placed around his head to keep his neck supported. He is leaning heavily to his right, curled into the side of his injured chest. Haley’s tucked his blanket up over his chest, doing her best to conceal the bruises up and down his pale skin. No matter how hard she tries, the chest tube nestled between his ribs makes it’s bloodied appearance.

And it’s the first thing they all notice when they come in.

Then him.

Slack against the pillows holding him and eyes out the window on the wall. Half-lidded as he falls asleep.

“Sir,” Garcia whispers. She’s at the front of the crowd and the only one strong enough to push through her shock to get to him. She wastes no time coming to him and pressing a kiss to his forehead. “It’s so good to see you,” she manages between tears.

He smiles when she hugs him. It’s gentle, she’s very aware of the layer upon layers of bandages currently holding him together. “Penelope,” he croaks, sleepy eyes moving down her colorfully addressed body and his smile broadening when he finds no scratches. No harm. His chest aches and he finds it impossible to push out any more words but he hopes she understands.

He can remember a flash of the ambulance ride here. He can’t remember how or why his body hurts so bad but he knows Garcia was there. The faintest feeling of her hand in his, her voice guiding him between glimpses of consciousness.

Garcia smiles kindly, reaching down to squeeze his hand. “I’m really glad to see you, sir.” Even as he is, hardly presently and held together by surgical stitches-- it beats how she’d left him. For the past few nights, she’s woken in a cold sweat hearing his gurgled breaths. The sound and sight of his chest cavity filling with his lungs.

Jason comes next because none of the others can find their courage. “I know you have a sentimental attachment to your ties,” Gideon says, smiling down at his old friend. “But you really do look decades younger without it.” Nearly, identical to the boy that David Rossi had told him about all those years ago. Eager to learn but not fully trusting of their motives.

Still a trouble maker though.

Shame swells in his stomach, another of his failings so broadly laid out in front of them. If David Rossi could see the two of them now, he’d skin them both. Jason had promised to look out for “the boy”, as Dave fondly called Aaron. But the boy has grown out of his shell…

Jason had kicked him out of it with Boston and he knows Aaron wasn’t ready for that.

He ducks his head and leaves Aaron’s side with a light pat of the younger man’s hand.

Derek guides Reid to Hotch, ignoring the genius’s weak protests.

Hotch’s light up, a spark of life in his body as he spots the kid. “Reid,” he rasps. He shifts his hand, dragging it out to touch Reid. To make sure he’s really here. “... okay?” he manages, breathing, taking the strain of so much movement and all his talking.

Reid nods and it takes all of his self-control not to flinch away from Hotch. His skin is freezing. Hotch is always so warm, even just to stand beside. It’s scary and the weight of his guilt pulls Reid down. “I’m--I’m--”

Hotch smiles weakly, a crooked little grin that meets the lazy mirth in his eyes. “Please,” he whispers. “... d’n’t lie t’ me.”

Reid sniffles, tears threatening to fall down his face. As he’s pulling himself into a lie, he’s surprised to find Hotch’s hand just barely raised off the bed. Beckoning him close. For a hug. He wants to stand stoic. For once in his life, to just be the bigger man but he takes one look at his friend at the man he’s lost sleep worrying over, the man who he trusted to save him from Tobias, and he…

He lets Hotch pull him in.

“You’ll be okay,” Hotch promises. Reid tucks his face into Hotch’s neck, wanting desperately to pull more comfort from this hug but it ends because it has to. Hotch holds his hand a second too long, the two of them just looking at each other. “Strong,” Hotch rasps and Reid nods his head.

If Hotch can believe it… Reid has to.

Derek almost doesn’t say anything at all. He can’t find his voice. A part of him wants to just make out unbothered and another part of him wants to gather his boss into his arms and just hug him. Make sure he’s really here. “Don’t scare me like that.” Derek decides on an in-between. He reaches out and playfully messes with Hotch’s hair, making his bed head even worse. “Next time,” Derek says, losing his gusto. He smiles fondly at his friend and reaches down to squeeze his hand. “Next time you pull a stunt like this, I’ll kick your ass. I don’t care who’s boss you are.”

It makes Hotch smile and it creates perfect timing for JJ to steal her own hug. She slips right in beside Derek, pressing a kiss to his temple. “I wouldn’t let him do that,” she promises.

He nods, “...you’d do it yourself.”

She smiles and agrees, “but only if you really deserved it.”

He doubts that.

Emily stands back and attempts to make her getaway unnoticed. She hadn’t wanted to come to the hospital. She isn’t a part of this family, not really, not yet. Garcia had dragged her here though, those sad puppy eyes and a pouty lip. So, Emily caved and she’s regretted that decision since. Especially, when she catches his eyes mid-break-away.

“...okay?” he asks, once again. That seems to be what his main focus is on. The one thing his exhausted brain can pick to identify in each of them.

She wants to scoff or be frustrated with his worry but she looks at his eyes and she realizes that it's a genuine question. He really wants to know. It’s… a strange olive branch to find in the midst of their heated hatred of one another but perhaps she has underestimated him. Maybe, she doesn’t understand him as well as she thinks she does. With a nod, she promises, “I’m okay.”

The ease that sinks into his shoulders is not what she’s expecting.

He struggles to say something else, a mumbled, suppressed something that catches Haley’s attention. She stands and gently runs her palm against his cheek. “Don’t worry about that sweetheart,” she whispers. “Your teams here now, okay? They’re okay.” She wipes his brow, running the side of her fingers along his cheekbone. Smiling when it makes his eyes creep shut, soothing him back down. “Get some rest.”

He nods his head and his eyes fall shut. He’s exhausted. All this talking is hard and he’s hardly managed to stay awake this long all week. “Mmm,” he forces his eyes back open. They move around the room, taking inventory of the crowd. “Okay,” he asks softly.

Haley smiles and keeps up her gentle soothing. “We’re okay.”

His eyes slip back shut. “Okay.”

[phleb0tomist]

Okay, so about a year ago, I was hospitalized for hyperglycemia after the EMTs in my ambulance eventually realized I wasn't having a panic attack and that my blood sugar of over 300 (normal is around 80-100) was maybe probably something to worry about, idk. I couldn't move--my blood was fermenting in my body and I couldn't open my hands, which were shriveling up. It was like the pins and needles in your arm/leg from falling asleep, except it was my whole body (mostly my hands) and super painful. It took hours of laying there with some kind of drip for me to feel better.

What had happened was I went a day without eating (eating is kinda hard for me bc I have no appetite a lot) and then shit hit the fan when I, super hungry and lethargic, ate like two or three bowls of sugar cereal the next morning. Yeah. I put my body into shock with fucking cinnamon toast crunch. Except it turns out I'm not even diabetic (type 1) even tho hypo/hyperglycemia is a diabetic thing. Even the fancy specialist doctor they brought in was basically like ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

So there's probably something wrong with me but no one knows what. Sometimes I'll wake up at like 3am breathing hard with my ears ringing and I have to stagger to the kitchen like I'm drunk to sip milk until it goes away. I just can't go very long without eating like a normal person.

Anyway, I guess I never considered I had trauma until I found this blog. Like I'll hear an ambulance far away and I'll keep thinking stuff like "it's coming for me" and I haven't eaten any kind of cereal with sugar since, which is the dumbest thing to have trauma over. My dad blames me 100% for this incident and made me pay half the $3,000 bill (ambulances suck). Sometimes he tries to joke with me about it. At least I'm not scared of needles anymore, lmao. There were so many during this whole thing.

Sorry for writing you a novel. I tried to keep this as short as possible, I just wanted to share/vent. It's just nice to know that there are other ppl who feel this way.

Hello <3 <3

that sounds so awful, like genuinely terrifying. I completely understand it affecting you a lot, I’d be surprised if it didn’t. I’m sorry it happened to u.

stuff like that is a big shock to the mind, not just the body. And from what I’ve seen and experienced, ur brain makes associations, so when they’re set off, it sends ur system into panic. maybe it could help to talk to a counsellor, but ik that’s not possible for everyone. That money thing with your dad sounds so frustrating too :(

I’m glad there’s some comfort in knowing ur not alone. medical trauma or scary health experiemces are really common, and they can affect people deeply. a lot of ppl here have been through the same thing, there’s a lot of solidarity and love around!!

Triggers aren’t dumb and it’s okay to share ur feelings! I just hope that the upset from this eases. good luck with absolutely everything <3

[velvetsehun]

Born to Die| OSH| 05

pairing: Oh Sehun x Reader genre: Mafia!Sehun rating: 18+ warnings: violence, gun use, mature language, smut (in future chapters), slow burn. words: 17.6k summary: a collusions of worlds is supposed to kill, but what if it can do something else?

A/N: Enjoy my loves, be sure to leave feedback - this is going to be a long one so get a snack and a drink ;)

TW// Warning this part contains some material that might be sensitive to readers as it depicts scenes of violence, readers discretion is advised.

Masterlist| Next

With eyes glazed over in interest, he watched from a small skylight – the figure of the policeman tending to you while you struggled to keep yourself upright in your chair, he was interested in what had just gone on in front of him. The flicker of blue and red light raiding up onto his curious face.

“Very interesting indeed…” His eyes flicked to where he’d seen the cars leave not too long ago, a gloved finger tapping his lip thoughtfully before his narrowed eyes flickered back down to the lady of the hour, “But, who are you dear…?” He’d never seen a life spared like that before.

There was a meaning behind that, meaning behind the last touch and whisper – he knew as well as anyone, lackies or dead weight didn’t get spared.

“Huh...” He tapped over the glass that looked down at you, his index finger pointed directly as you, your figure now slouched in the arms of the officer who was rushing out to the ambulance outside, a small smirk on crept onto his face, “Well, I’ll have to be seeing you soon, won't I?” He spoke to no one.

“Come on sweetheart, breathe with me, you’re okay now.”

You weren’t sure if you just lost a stream of consciousness after “officer Jeon” removed the bag from your head or if your soul finally left your body, but what you could remember was the feeling of warm hard reaching around you to cut your zip ties and the constant stream of reassurance burrowing in your ear.

“Hey…” You felt a light slap to your cheek, your groggy eyes fighting to stay awake as a small groan passed your lips, “Come on, I’m going to lift you up okay?” You grumbled in response, your head lulling forward to rest on his warm shoulder – he was a safety blanket for the moment.

“Is the ambulance outside?” Officer Jeon huffed out, “She needs oxygen quickly.”

“What’s the matter with her?” Someone asked, he got a chipped response.

“She’s gone into shock.” Officer Jeon snapped as you felt yourself being pulled up into his arms, your head spinning for a second – your eyes peaked open for a second to get a proper look at the officer.

“Huh…” You thought, “He’s kinda cute.” He had a youthful essence to his face, probably a little younger than yourself, but the way his jaw tensed made him look a bit older – sensing you looking at him, he glanced down at you with a slight smile.

“Don’t worry,” He spoke kindly, “You’re almost there.”

You could tell he takes his job seriously; he was tentative to you – not like Chanyeol was, he was more of a friendly touch, this officer spoke and acted like the perfect version of his job description, it was refreshing. Just as he said, you were almost there, before you knew it you were being placed to sit on the edge of an ambulance – your legs dangling out the back as an unknown woman make quick work of placing an oxygen mask over your dry mouth.

“Deep breath now, sweetheart” The female EMT spoke to you while fiddling with the oxygen tank, just as she did – it started to flow through the mask around your nose and mouth, the cold oxygen cooling your burning lungs.

Officer Jeon had no shame in watching you gasping into the mask, clearly enjoying the fresh air as your eyes flickered around the area you were in – a sense of unknowing seeping into your irises. You weren’t stupid, he was trying to work you out, you tried to play the part of someone who knew absolutely nothing, shivering into the foil blanket as it wrapped around you, Sehun’s previous words ringing very clearly in your ears.

“How do you know as once I get out that I won’t just go to the police?” You snapped, but you drew back when Sehun smiled.

“You’re dumb,” He began sounding nice before his voice dropped to a deadly tone, “But as you said, you enjoy living, you think about going to the police and I’ll make sure that seizes to be an option.” His tone was dark, so much so that your jaw dropped in astonishment, words dying on your throat.

Sehun mentioned that the police were on the way back when he was pressuring Gwan to give him an answer – but after threatening you to keep quiet on your end, you couldn’t believe for a second that he trusted you not to say anything, it was strange.

“You only have a few minutes, Gwan.” Sehun taunted him, “I’ve got some friends on the way who wouldn’t like how this could go down.”

“Friends…” You thought, your eyes flickering up to Officer Jeon, “He isn’t…Is he?” You narrowed your eyes slightly, still breathing deeply into the oxygen mask.

The area surrounding the warehouse was a mess, clearly as it was in the middle of nowhere – but the police were all over it like it was a crime scene, dogs and men barking orders filling the frost-bitten night. There was no sign that Sehun and his men were even here in the first place or Exodus as you should probably call them. The tire tracks from the car you were hauled out of were completely gone, the ground untouched – it was almost like you were the only one that was were here in the first place. It was spooky how quickly the men worked but you remembered that this was their job profession, even if it was their profession to nearly kill you three times in the space of a couple of days.

“Miss.” A voice snapped you out of your thought, eyes flickering up to Officer Jeon who was now joined with a slightly older man, “How are you feeling?” Sighing slightly, you removed the mask.

“I’ve been better.” You wheezed slightly, looking at the men, “But that’s not really what you want to ask me, huh?” Officer Jeon looked taken back.

“Any questioning will be done at the station, Miss,” Jeon smiled to cover the shock, “Merely just asking how you are.” You wanted to roll your eyes, but you kept a neutral face.

It was the moral question bouncing around your head that was wracking your brain more than this cop was; do you sell Sehun out? Is that even an option? Or is there someone waiting to kill you as soon as you open your mouth? It was a difficult situation, but you flicked your eyes back to the cop, to see if maybe you could suss him out instead.

“Please,” You smiled briefly, looking at the young cop, “Call me Y/N…” The cop smiled slightly, but the virtue in his eyes told you everything.

Placing the mask down, you took breaths of actual air – watching it crystallise into a hazy fog in the freezing atmosphere, you were warm now despite the bit of the night so with a sigh you looked at the officers again.

“Officer Jeon, I’d like to go to the station now if that’s alright…”

To some, a few pins on a map meant various locations in a city in which a person, and whoever they’re deciding to go, with could visit; but to Sehun the few pins merely told him where the Oh Family empire has sewn their roots around the city. It was a fickle thing really, but a small pin shoved into a tacky map showed some resemblance of his power, even if it was a picture of his crumbling power.

“How long are you going to stare at that thing?” Baekhyun sighed, tapping his fingers on the arm of the velour chair that he’d very much made a home in, Sehun’s office was weirdly comfortable for a man of that stature, “It’s still the same as when you put it up an hour ago” He hummed before he grunted, someone had clearly tried to shut him up again.

“I’m going to stare at it, Baekhyun,” Sehun began, his body lent casually against the back of the couch so he could look at the map in question, “Until one of my idiot brothers give me a reason to no longer stare at it.” Even if he wasn’t facing the brother he was talking to, he could feel his huffiness from where he was currently perched, it was just the two of them in the room.

“Well you’re in a delightful mood today,” Baekhyun scoffed back, “You worry too much, Sehun – sit down already.” That was enough to make Sehun gaze over his shoulder.

“And you worry too little,” Sehun retorted to the older man, “You forget the circumstances we’re in.” Baekhyun rolled his eyes.

“Like you’d let me forget,” He scoffed slightly, “You forget who spent the better part of all day yesterday running around the city for you.” He kicked his legs up on Sehun’s coffee table with a wince, his body was tired as it is.

“I call that doing your job,” Sehun hummed, turning around to stare at the man with a raised brow, his hands leaning on the back of the couch, “Or is the only thing you like doing is giving your witty comments?”

“So, you admit I’m witty?” Baekhyun smirked, much to Sehun’s dismay.

“Just get your feet off my coffee table,” His boss rolled his eyes, glancing at the map again before walking to his desk – Sehun, like the rest of his men, was tired, his body practically melting into his chair, stress had his arms around him.

Baekhyun didn’t make an attempt to move his feet, but he did glance at the map – his brows furrowed as he stared at their turf with interest, it was a lot larger than what Sehun’s father had originally acquired in his time, it was impressive what his son had managed to do in the few years he’d been boss but even now; Baekhyun could tell that the effects of owning an empire were taking a toll on his younger brother, and that had his stress melting off his face as he sighed.

“He’d be proud of you, you know?” Baekhyun spoke plainly, it wasn’t a snide remark for once, but it still has Sehun tensing – the younger man flicking his eyes to look at him. It was rare you got to see much happening in Sehun’s eyes, but Baekhyun had known him long enough to see the pain his irises carried.

“Very proud in fact” The older brother hummed, “Actually, we’re all proud of you…” Sehun sighed at that.

“He wouldn’t be proud of me,” Sehun had a slight edge to his voice as his eyes spaced out slightly.  

“What makes you think that?” Baekhyun questioned, folding his arms over his chest slightly, he didn’t want to press the young man, but he was curious.

“Because I’m not him,” Sehun tutted softly, “All this power and I can’t control what’s under my nose, my father had eyes everywhere – I seem to only have eyes when they chose to open.” Baekhyun sighed at that.

“Your father was also an incessantly greedy man,” Baekhyun cut in, biting his lip as his eyes flicked to his younger brother – he wasn’t his boss at that moment, “He had eyes everywhere because he was paranoid, he didn’t trust his syndicates as far as he could throw them, but regardless he always wanted more” Baekhyun didn’t give Sehun a chance to speak.

“Everything you have, you have it because you had the skills to get them and keep them,” Baekhyun took his feet off the table and sat straighter, “Your father? He lacked the communication; he was shoot first—" Baekhyun was cut off.

“Ask questions second.” Sehun finished.

“Exactly,” Baekhyun hummed, “Your father got most of his turf with war and blood, but you? You kept them around because you know how to speak to people” Baekhyun could see something flicker in Sehun’s eyes but he still kept quiet.

“So no, Sehun,” Baekhyun started with a deep sigh, “You’re nothing like your father, but be thankful you’re not, because otherwise? You’d face the same fate as him.”

It was quiet for a second before a small smile appeared on Sehun’s face, it wasn’t his usual smirk, it was an actual smile – something hard to find on the man’s face.

“Maybe I should promote you to motivational speaker,” Sehun chuckled, a humility to him that he reserved only for his brothers, “Motivation speaker and loudmouth.” Baekhyun laughed at that, a smile bleeding onto his face but he softened slightly before he continued to speak.

“As much as I hate to be the one to say it,” Baekhyun chuckled softly, “You’re too hard on yourself, it's ageing you.” He smirked, Sehun rolled his eyes.

“I am still perfectly young,” Sehun scoffed.

“Really?” Baekhyun teased, “You’re 26 and get I think I can see grey hairs from here?” Baekhyun joked, but Sehun looked at him before he glanced at the paperweight on his desk.

“You want another one to the face?” Sehun smirked at him, to which Baekhyun raised his hands in surrender, “Thought so...”

Although Sehun spent most of his time now with his underboss, Junmyeon, most of his childhood was spent with Baekhyun – the two families were thick as thieves for most of their lives, and the two had fond memories together. Baekhyun could still vaguely remember a tiny Sehun running around the gardens of the Byun estate while their mothers looked fondly at them – something that was very well in the past now, but it was memories like those that strengthened the bonds between them. Sehun was there most of his life, even in the moments he didn’t want to remember, he was there more than his biological brother was – so it made moments like this less awkward than it would if anyone else was to ask them. Sehun respected and loved all his brothers, he was their boss after all, but it was key bonds he knew that brought him comfort. Their world was a tricky one, and it was moments like Junmyeon and Minseok entering the room with a huff that reminded them off the task at hand.

“I’ll tell you something,” Minseok scoffed slightly, throwing himself down on the couch, “Some of these families are the epitome of egotism” He rolled his eyes.

Minseok was one of the few that was from a low family in the syndicate – they didn’t come from wealth or any stature, they were lackies in every sense of the word. Baekhyun could vaguely remember that his father owed one of their families a lot of money a long time ago.

“I see the meeting with the Lee’s on the westside went well?” Sehun hummed with a slight smirk.

“Well?” Minseok jeered, “Jaeyoon remains a bigot, refused to speak to me, it was from the immediate Oh family or silence.” Sehun chuckled slightly at that.

“I assume you got what I asked?” Sehun let a small puff of air that could register as a laugh pass from his lips, “Or do I need to send someone else.” Minseok was dramatically draped on the chair with his hand covering his eyes.

“It took about an hour of bargaining but Lee said none of the casinos have had any suspicious activity, all the chips are accounted for and there’s been no silver-haired man and his friend lurking around,” Minseok sighed.

“But…?” Sehun raised an eyebrow, sensing there was more to it.

“He and the 3 other families you’ve had me talk to are a bit suspicious,” Minseok looked at the man, “And I assume Jongdae was in the same boat as me” Sehun tapped at his desk looking at Junmyeon, taking in the information.

“I assume your little cop friends have been informed of tomorrow?” Sehun decided to continue.

“Commissioner Jung has been tipped off, yes,” Junmyeon told him, “A team and an ambulance will be dispatched to the scene as soon as we leave, but we have to be quick – otherwise we will be in trouble” He raised his eyebrows at his boss.

“You still haven’t told me exactly what it is you’re planning,” Jun tutted slightly, clearly a bit disgruntled being out of the loop.

“Don’t live for the thrill, Jun?” Sehun drawled while leaning back in his chair, he was met with a blank face, “Trust me, please.”

Sehun looked like he was about to spill the beans but Baekhyun felt a laugh bubble up in his throat as Kyungsoo slammed the door open like he always did, a mirror of annoyance passing over Junmyeon’s face as he did at the disturbance. 

“The girl’s story checks out,” Kyungsoo wasted no time, making himself known in the room – a rather tame looking Chanyeol trailing in behind him, “Footage from Oasis’ cameras were tampered with and wiped clean at the same time every couple weeks” The two sat down at one of the bigger couches in the room.

“I expected as much, looks like it’ll make tomorrow slightly easier” Sehun sighed, “You think it’s possible to find the footage?” Sehun quizzed slightly, much to Kyungsoo’s sigh.

“I mean, I could try but I’d need the physical hard drive” He tutted slightly, “It's fine and well to hack into the camera’s but if it’s been wiped I’d need the physical unit that held the footage” Sehun made a noise at that.

“And where is that hard drive?” He asked, looking at the two of them, but it was Chanyeol who spoke this time.

“Police storage,” Chanyeol rolled his eyes, “They wiped the bar completely clean, one of the guys checked it out yesterday” Sehun’s eyes fluttered closed for a second out of annoyance before he looked at Jun.

“So, they have whatever was leftover of our stock from the bar?” Sehun felt his coolness frying at the seams.

“Not exactly, no” Baekhyun cut in, looking a tad sheepish – the conversation turned to him as he continued, “I might have worked a little out of pocket...”

“Out of pocket?” Sehun’s brows raised.

“After Junmyeon and Chanyeol rummaged the bar for the girl's things, I might have had some of the men slip in and get the rest of the stock…” Baekhyun grinned slightly, clearly proud of himself, and for once Sehun felt a small weight off his chest – a laugh passing his lips.

“Normally I’d reprimand you, but it seems you used your head for once,” Sehun smirked, “But you didn’t think to tell anyone?” To which Baekhyun pointed at his fading black eye.

“Slipped my mind,” He chortled, everyone in the room laughed at that for a second before another silence washed over it.

“We still need the hard drive,” Sehun tutted softly, “It’s not exactly the main priority right now, but I’d love to see the full footage – and put a face to our faceless men.”

“Speak of which, where is—” Sehun was cut off which someone else coming in the room, “Jongin…” He continued looking at the man who was clothed rather plainly for once, but that was part of his job.

“Someone’s got a flair for the dramatics,” Minseok muffled a laugh, the rest of the men looking slightly amused, but their boss remained a bit more passive.

“Find out anything useful?” Baekhyun smirked softly.

Out of all the men – Jongin had the best job, he often got to go out and undercover as someone else for a few days to get information, whereas people like Baekhyun and Chanyeol dealt with a lot of the “heavy lifting” or the jobs that no one else had the stomach for. Everyone played their part in the group, but some of them still had better jobs than others – people like Jongin didn’t get their hands dirty in the same way that people like Baekhyun and Chanyeol did, and it was very rare that you’d see Minseok, Jun, Kyungsoo or Jongdae get their hands dirty.

“Well,” Jongin looked a bit stressed while he looked at his brothers, “I went back to the area surrounding the bar like you asked.” Sehun looked at him expectantly, Jongin had been gone for a night and day at this point – he expected something.

“And while I was in a café not too far from the bar I heard some people talking,” Jongin sat down on the arm of one of the couches, looking directly at his boss, “It was mostly buzzing around what happened the other night, but I also picked up on some college kids talking.”

“Does the club ‘Teardrop’ mean anything to you?” Jongin asked, to which Sehun looked a bit curious.

“Can’t say I know the owner, but it’s not one of ours” Sehun looked at Jongin curiously.

“Well, I tried to follow any leads I had in the area who might have been dealt anything by Byung-Chul, and that came up cold,” Jongin explained, as everyone looked at him confused as to where he was going, “But these kids were talking about a new party drug that was making the rounds at that club, what exactly were you sending to Oasis again?” Sehun raised an eyebrow thinking for a second.

“A strong strain of cocaine…” Sehun muttered slightly, the cogs turning in his head. “It was being held there until it could be sold off to some of our more prestige clients.”

“Well,” Jongin started, “It was the only lead I had, so I decided to go to Teardrop last night and check it out for myself.” He reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a clear baggy, a powdery substance clinging to the plastic.

Furrowing his eyebrows, Sehun held his hand out to Jongin – the latter standing to drop the baggy in his hands and Sehun wasted no time opening it once he had it. The familiar sweet floral scent wafted from the bag, it was stronger than it usually was; the main reason they were selling it, but the metallic smell that usually cut through wasn’t there, something was muffling the smell.

“Is this ours?” Sehun frowned, dropping the baggy on his desk.

“I picked that up in Teardrop last night,” Jongin said, “I managed to snag it off some girl, but everyone there was on it – there wasn’t a soul that was sober in the place.” Sehun passed the baggy to Junmyeon who had stood to investigate.

“It smells like ours but also not…” Junmyeon glared at the substance slightly, “Tampered?” He looked at Jongin.

“Possibly,” Jongin shrugged.

“But where did she get it?” Baekhyun asked, clearly confused, to which Jongin looked a bit annoyed.

“A silver-haired man…” He frowned, “I tried to get her to tell me anything about him, but she was barely coherent, everyone was gone.”

“Bartenders?” Sehun tilted his head, curious.

“Silent,” Jongin confirmed, “I asked around, no one could tell me anything, i searched the place for about an hour and nothing - he wasn’t there.”

“Security cameras?” Sehun clenched his jaw slightly.

“Nothing,” Jongin sighed, “It’s like he doesn’t exist…”

“He does exist,” Baekhyun hummed, “It’s just he’s keeping himself very well hidden…”

“More like hidden to the right people,��� Chanyeol scoffed, looking deeper in thought than the rest of them, something the Baekhyun raised his eyebrow at.

“Think any harder, Yeol and you’ll burst a blood vessel,” Baekhyun said, toying with the man – to which the man in question merely just rolled his eyes.

“I just think it’s a bit funny that’s all…” Chanyeol grumbled.

“You think what’s funny?” Junmyeon asked, slightly confused.

“The whole thing,” Chanyeol puffed out, “We have to random men able to just walk into a bar, convince our dealer to give them our supply and they distribute it under our noses in one of the few clubs we don’t own.” He gestured to the map, annoyed.

Looking at the map, Sehun got back off his chair to walk to it – twirling a red pin in his nimble fingers as he stared the piece of paper down, his brothers staring at him as he placed the contrasting pin in the centre of the city. There was a wave of silence as their boss collected his thoughts.

“Chanyeol’s right,” Sehun affirmed, “It’s very weird that they’ve managed to pull it off, and pull it off without anyone flagging any up – which makes me think that whoever they are, they aren’t working solely by themselves…” He hummed, tapping the new mark on the map.

“But who are they working with?” Junmyeon asked, “One of ours?”

“That’s the million dollar question” Sehun continued. “How much stock exactly did they take?”

“Jongdae said enough every month that it wouldn’t seem suspicious to whoever it was originally being dealt out too,” Minseok said to him, “It makes sense, we’d notice large quantities going missing, and from the looks of it, they’re using what they did take and thinning down to make it last longer, the girl did say that they stopped turning up.” Minseok looked like he was about to continue but the beeping of his phone cut him off,

“Speak of the devil, he’s just finished doing intake with Yixing at the docks…” Minseok hummed.

“Verdict?” Junmyeon asked, brows furrowed.

“Seems like since yesterday, a few things have gone missing…” Minseok frowned, “Dong-Yul says he doesn’t know anything about it but a few snipers are missing from a shipment that was checked this morning, that and a couple of handguns; along with a few silencers, no ammo though…” Sehun chuckled a bit darkly at that.

“That sounds like a threat if I’ve ever heard one,” Sehun smirked, but it lacked the humour to it, “Sounds like our friends are planning a little heist.” He clocked his head slightly, turning to his brothers.

“Or a take-out job,” Baekhyun hummed, “Silencers...Can’t say we use them unless we want to get someone in public, even at that...”

“It sounds like war to me,” Chanyeol frowned slightly, cutting him off.

“It certainly sounds like the beginning of one,” Baekhyun affirmed, Sehun merely kept smirking; it was a dark smirk that they didn’t see cross his face very often.

“Whatever it is,” Sehun started, crossing his arms over his chest; his suit pulling taught over his arms, “They’ve made the first step, the drugs I could write off, there’s plenty to go around – the firearms though from our stash? That’s fighting talk.” Sehun tutted like you would scold a child.

“Get Yixing and Jongdae back to the house,” Sehun panned to looked at Minseok, who nodded – tapping quickly on his phone.

“Jongin, get dressed – you’re going back to Teardrop tonight, take Baekhyun with you and scope out the place, I want eyes everywhere...” Baekhyun smirked at that, looking at Jongin with amusement. “And stay on task.” That one was aimed at the older brother.

“Our syndicates are getting suspicious,” Sehun tsk’ed softly, walking around the couches to look out his office window, “News spreads fast, and it's already spreading now, they won’t just believe in random stock takes any longer.” Sehun was in his full boss mode, something he’d seen his father do hundreds of times.

“What are we going to do about that?” Kyungsoo asked, frowning slightly as the brothers all looked at each other.

“In still some faith in our family,” Sehun spoke plainly like everyone was just supposed to understand.

“Faith…?” Junmyeon raised an eyebrow, which had Sehun chuckling slightly.

“It seems like no one else doing their job around here, so I suggest we hold a little party soon, have a few… meaningful conversations” Sehun drawled, “And if our little friends decide they want to come… Well, more the merrier.” Sehun could feel the eyes on his back but he had still yet to turn around.

“You want to make yourself the target?” Junmyeon sounded a bit shocked.

“No, you misunderstand me,” Sehun cut in, “I don’t intend to make myself the target, brother…” Looking over his shoulder with a smirk.

“I am already the target.”

Officer Jeon was very quick to accept your wishes of going back to the station, a fire burning in his eyes at the thought of getting information - it unnerved you slightly, but at this point, everything was unnerving you. Junmyeon promised that the police would be taken care of, you vividly remembered that, but you were still being pinned as one of the causes of the shoot-out at Oasis, so really? What could they take care of? It didn’t help that they shoved you into the back of a police cruiser as well, your tired eyes glaring at the back of Officer Jeon’s head, and the other man who you learned was the Commissioner Jung was driving the vehicle but what you found odd was his eyes kept meeting yours – an understanding in his eyes that meant no good to you. 

They were treating you as you suspected they would; like a suspect in a crime, but the only thing they hadn’t done was outwardly cuff you yet – but you guessed that had something to do with the fact they found you strapped to a rickety chair. Touching the marks on your wrist you felt seething hate for Sehun and the fact he left you like that, your lungs still feeling the burn of having your breath taken away by the plastic bag – it was a traumatic affair, but still, you couldn’t knock the fact that he apologised before he put you to harm’s way. Sehun didn’t strike you as a remorseful man, you might even go as far to say that sorry isn’t a word that left his mouth at all, but he still apologised – and that didn’t settle well with you. He did also shoot a loaded gun right next to your head after threatening to do that before, but still, his sorry sank your stomach to the oceans floor. Frankly, you were beyond exhausted, but you knew your night was far from over, especially with the police station quickly approaching – you’d only been here once when you were in university after having to pick up a friend who got too much on a night out, but aside from that, you were pretty clean slate. 

However, acidity was brewing in your stomach from the car stopping, but it was being cut with the intensity of the situation – the two officers up front were silent as the door next to you opened; a man you didn’t know reaching in and hoisting you out like a criminal. This was the second time tonight that you were being manhandled but like before, it was safer to keep completely quiet. The man was a bit rough with you to the point that you stumbled when you got out the car, Officer Jeon’s voice snapped slightly at that. 

“Have a bit of respect, Officer.” You could hear him behind you as the officer that was holding you kept walking – looking up at him, you could see the annoyance on the man’s face. 

It took you a second to realise that it was very early morning – probably about 3 am, the brief walk from the car to the inside of the station affirmed to you that everyone around you was hideously tired, the blue-clothed zombies staring at you with annoyed eyes.  You had still yet to speak to anyone, but you were taking you silence as a good thing – these men weren’t exactly the most trusting of you.

The foyer to the police station looked like it hadn’t been touched by the modernity of the world yet, the dark wood and contrasting white everything else were an assault on the eyes, so much so that you found yourself squinting from the fluro lights that hung above your head – the man dragging you had yet to introduce himself but you supposed he didn’t need to, you hopefully would never see him again, he or the bratty officer who you were shoved in front of you get your prints taken. She was a snide older woman, her face leathered with the stress of the job and the attitude to match, she had your own had pinching in annoyance at her seemingly nasally voice. 

“Left hand please.” She snapped slightly, readying the ink – and glaring at you when you didn’t move, “I said, left hand, please.” 

“No.” You furrowed your eyebrows, looking between her and the other officer, “I wasn’t officially arrested, nor have I had my rights read to me, you’re not getting my prints.” You snapped slightly, irate with the fact you’d been through hell tonight and now that? 

“Listen, kid,” The other officer snapped back at you, “Either you give her the prints willingly or I do it by force, the choice is yours.” There is was. The words; that phrase everyone kept repeating to you, the illusion of choice you kept being given.

“Don’t call me kid.” You hissed slightly feeling the heat rush to your face, “I have been kidnapped, I have been strapped to a chair and suffocated, and pulled around like a dog for days, either tell me why I need to get this done or let me go.” The vein in your eyelid was throbbing with the intensity of your facial expression. 

The awareness that you were acting like a child was minor in the back of your head, but your irritation overruled any form of adult self you had left – you were tired and fed up and at this point? It was all Oh Sehun’s fault, the bastard had put you in this predicament, him and Chanyeol and whoever else he ran with. 

The officer you had yelled at looked like he was about to retort when a hand rested on his arm, the familiar face of Officer Jeon coming into your peripheral, you didn’t break eye contact with the other officer, but Jeon spoke anyway. 

“I’ll deal with this…” Jeon nodded at the other man, before turning to smile at you – but his smile was met with a blank stare. “Miss…” He cleared his throat nervously. 

“Yes?” You were stony with the younger man, stony and far too tired to care at this point.

“Let’s take a few steps back huh?” He kept trying to smile at you, probably to try and ease your anger – but his face only built it up more. “We can talk about it; I’m not going to force you to do anything you don’t want to do.” 

“Tell me, Officer,” You gritted your teeth slightly, “Is it common practice to treat someone who hasn’t been arrest as a criminal?” He merely sighed at that. 

“Listen, your case is… A special one,” He said lightly, “You’ve been gone for nearly 4 days after being witness to a shooting, we have to take precautions...” You could feel any life leave your eyes at that. 

“Be honest with me officer,” You spoke with little to no emotion to it, “Do I seem dangerous to you?” You watched him frown at that. 

“Well,” He stuttered slightly, “No ma’am, you don’t.” you smiled tensely at that. 

“Then tell me again officer,” You said, “Why do I have to get this done?” You tilted your head at him. He sighed for a second before looking back at his superior, who looked slightly amused at the situation – Commissioner Jung didn’t seem like a man to beat around the bus. 

“If I may interject,” The older man said, glancing at you, “I believe the young lady is right,” Your eyebrows raised at that, glancing between the two men. Officer Jeon looked conflicted at that though. 

“This isn’t really necessary,” Jung leaned over and whispered to the younger officer, who at that looked a bit taken back.

“But–“ Jeon tried to reason with the older man, who for all that it was worth merely raised his hand to silence him.

Turning around to face you, Commissioner Jung had a smile on his leathery face – he was a much older man than officer Jeon, his age probably equivalent to his title, but for some reason, you couldn’t find it in yourself to trust this man. There was something in his dark eyes that unnerved you slightly, it had been like that since the car ride to the stations, whoever this man was, he wasn’t completely truthful, and you had a feeling that Sehun had something to do with it. 

His crinkled faced smiled at you, “Ma’am if you don’t mind, I’d like to take you to an interrogation room?” You merely nodded keeping eye contact with him. 

You had a feeling it was going to go like this, as Jeon had said – you had been gone for nearly 4 days and clearly, they knew you were in the hands of a gang if the news report at the rest stop a few days ago was anything to go by.  Interrogation, however, was not something you had prepared for – Junmyeon said they’d handle the police and Sehun said that if you told them anything, they’d off you quicker than you could blink, so what were you to do? Jung was the one who was walking you to the interrogation room, and honestly, you hoped to have gone in a cell for a few hours first, to think things over but they were wasting no time. It was freezing in the police station but as you were led deeper, it was like the temperature was purposefully getting lower – you swore you could see your breath in the air at one point. The hallways weren’t lit the best, but it was enough to set you in edge, especially when Jung pull up to a nondescript door. 

“After you, Ma’am,” He smiled at you as he opened the door, it was completely fake, but you nodded slightly anyway, walking into the room with a grimace. 

Having never been in a room like before, you somehow knew it was going to be like this; dimly lit with concrete brick walls painted in a dull two-tone white and murky green, it was a concrete haven. You shoes clicked slightly on the bare floors but the centrepiece of the room was the large steel table central to it all; it was a dark metal with equally dark metal seats, a loop that was intended to put handcuffs through and a tape player placed haphazardly off to the side. It was a table that was intended for 3 people to sit at but this time it was just you and commissioner Jung, the older man behind you nudging you to sit in the solo seat on the other side of the table. 

“Sit,” He suggested as he took a seat across from where you were intended to sit down, glancing at the obvious mirrored window that always rested off to the side of rooms like this – you sat down, shivering slightly at the coldness of the seat. “Water?” He asked, gesturing to the jug that looked like it had been sitting there for hours. 

“No, thank you…” Your voice was quiet as you tried to take in as much of the room as you could, the fluro light that hung above the table weirdly didn’t do much to light the room, but you guessed it was some sort of intimidation tactic. 

Commissioner Jung had a file in front of him that he was rifling through as you glanced around, your eyes every so often flicking to the giant double-sided mirror that was the only feature of the drab room. Much like when you met with Sehun in his lovely dining room, you were sitting on your hands, trying to make yourself as small as possible – a stark contrast to your attitude outside, but unlike the towering gang leader; you couldn’t banter with these people. It was almost deafening when Jung reached over to hit record on the tape player, an old-fashioned method but from then on out you knew your words needed to be careful – people were listening now.

“So,” Jung began, glancing at his papers before looking at you, “We’ll start easy… What’s the date today?” He spoke clearly, as you blinked slowly at him confused.

“October 17th…?” You frowned softly, trying to count the days since you’d been gone, he wrote something down at that. 

“Can you tell me how long you’ve been gone for?” He asked again, keeping a scary amount of eye contact with you. 

“Nearly 4 days,” You nodded, “I was taken on the 13th of October.” He hummed at that.

“Take, that’s right…” He hummed, “Okay, I’ll ask something else, Ma’am – how and why were you taken?” You tried not to let it show but you froze a bit at that. 

Sehun had warned you clearly to keep your mouth shut or else, where you expected to just lie for him and his men under police questioning? 

“I…” You stuttered slightly, “I don’t know why I was taken…” That much was the truth, although Sehun had given you an answer, you still weren’t quite sure why you were taken. 

“But,” You continued, “On the night of the 13th, there was an incident at the bar, men – I don’t know who came in…” You breathed deeply for a second, trying to pick parts out of that night that you’d be able to tell them. 

“They had guns,” You nodded, “I don’t know why they were there, it was sorta a blur after the first shot…” Commissioner Jung nodded, before picking up a piece of paper and placing down in front of you – it was a picture of a man you’d never seen before in your life. 

“The security tapes show you getting ambushed in the loading bay, is that correct?” Your eye’s narrowed at the man, how looked at you with a glint in his eyes that told you to agree.

“No, that’s no correct and you know it.”  You wanted to say. 

“Yes.” You lied, “I was getting another keg from the loading bay…” He cut you off. 

“When someone ambushed you?” He nodded, “I don’t know if you got a look at him, but is that him?” He reached and tapped the picture, your eyes glanced down at the page as a tension built in your neck. 

“I don’t know…” You swallowed, “I didn’t see their face, they covered my face and knocked me out...” Jung hummed again, writing something down. 

“Do you have any ties to any gang-related crime?” He asked, looking at you again, “Family? Friends? Colleagues?” He listed off professionally, a stark contrast to what he was saying. 

You imagined if someone put a thermometer on your body right now; they think you were unusually warm for such a cold room, the sweat in your palms enough to drown someone at this rate. 

“No,” This was the truth, “I don’t talk to my family but they’re a standard bunch, nothing shady… Same with my friends, they’re all normal people…” You nodded, sighing softly. 

“What about co-workers?” Jung pressed. 

“I wouldn’t know,” You licked your cracking lips, “I never spoke to Jaewoo or Mr Gwan outside of work unless I ran into them or I was called to cover a shift…”

“Was Mr Gwan there the night of the shooting at Oasis?” He leaned back in his chair slightly, you were hyper-aware of his movements at this point. 

“No,” Again, not a lie, “It was just me and Jaewoo, I was supposed to lock up for the night, but Mr Gwan isn’t around much…” You moved your hands to rest on the table, the cold metal cooling your flushed skin. 

“Okay,” He scribbled something down, “Now... Can you tell me about where you’ve been for the last 4 days?”

“Shit” You screamed in your head; this man had been lying for you but what were you supposed to say?

“Well…” You coughed, thoughts of Chanyeol, Baekhyun, Sehun, running away whizzing around your head as you looked at the table. 

“It’s okay,” Jung said with a nod, “Take your time.” Glancing up at him you sighed. 

“I’m not sure what happened…” You bit down on your lip, “I was knocked out for most of the first day and the rest… They kept me in the dark.” 

“They?” Jung pressed slightly, “There was more than one of them?”

“Yes,” You moved in your chair slightly, “I couldn’t see them, but I could sort of hear them, there was more than one.”

 “So, you never knew where you were for the 4 days you were there?” Jung asked, tapping his pen on the table. 

“I didn’t know at all,” You were a liar, an ugly liar, “I was kept in a dark room, every few hours someone one would food and water in and that was it…” 

“Right…” The man nodded, “And the warehouse, how did you end up there?” You sighed, cracking your knuckles. 

“Someone came into the room, forced me to stand up then covered my head with a cloth bag...” You grimaced slightly, “I was put in a car and before I knew it, I was there – strapped to a chair.”

“Did anything happen in the warehouse?” Jung raised an eyebrow.

“No,” you shook your head knowing to keep quiet, “I was just left there, facing the door – I heard movement behind me but that was it.” 

“So, they just left you there?” You nodded again at that.

“Yes, they bagged me again before they left…” You quieten down slightly, “I don’t know if they were trying to kill me…” Your voice cracked, that part was true – the plastic bag over your head was terrifying. 

“Did they hurt you at all besides that?” Jung pointed to your hands; you bit your tongue in your mouth at that. 

“No,” you looked at your bandages, “I fell outside work a few days ago into some glass, but they never hurt me when I was with them, they left me alone.” 

“Right…” Jung furrowed his eyebrows, “Only a few more questions left ma’am, then you’re free to go.” You sighed at that, your chest feeling funny. 

Looking at you, he slid another piece of paper in front of you; this time it was a blurry photo of two men, squinting your eyes you had to stifle a small gasp; among the pixels, you could make out Baekhyun’s face, it was an old picture because the hair was different but regardless, it was him. The other man in the photo had his back to the camera, but you could tell they were tall, probably Chanyeol; the two of them were always together it seemed, but the photo showed them in a dimly lit parking lot, the light causing the camera to lose any focus it had. 

“That photo, do those men look familiar?” You were leaning into the photo to get a better look, but you flicked your eyes up to the officer; there was that glint in his eyes again. 

“No,” You lied again, keeping eye contact with the officer, “I’ve never seen them before in my life.” 

“So, the name Exodus means nothing to you?” He pressed, raising an eyebrow; the look in his eyes was the same as Sehun’s. 

“You sly bastard…” Your mouth opened slightly as you spoke in your head. 

“Nothing at all,” You affirmed, “Is that part of the bible?” You questioned; the commissioner chuckled softly at that. 

“I think we have everything we need,” Jung nodded, “We’ll be in contact if we need you, the security tapes already show you had nothing to do with this.” It was hasty but you nodded with him.

Quickly taking the paper bag, Jung tucked them into a file along with his nose that he took during questioning; his weathered had reached to turn the recording off as the door to the room opened, Officer Jeon appearing in the doorway looking a bit more frazzled than you had seen him before. 

“Ma’am,” He coughed looking at the two of you with a soft smile, it was forced but you welcomed it for once. 

“Your boyfriend is here.”

Crunch.

Sehun’s body moved with the momentum of the punch as he internally winced at the feeling of his skin hitting bone, but he didn’t drawback at all – taking some sort of sick satisfaction at the vision of his newest captive’s head flinging back with a grunt. Byung-Chul was a mess, his face bloodied and raw, and the previous hit had just done a magnificent job at breaking his nose.

“I’ll ask again,” Sehun stood back to his full height, shaking off his hand; which in the short time they’ had been down there had gone from milky smooth skin to a blistering mess of red and torn skin, “Who are you working for?” Sehun inquired again, raising his brows when Byung-Chul spat his blood on the floor very close to Sehun’s shoes, it only landed the man another bunch, Sehun grunting with the force of his swing.

To some, Sehun was visually the vision of calm; even though his suit that he’d normally wear had been deconstructed to just a simple yet expensive white shirt and slacks with his hair, while slightly dishevelled, was still pretty much pushed back away from his face. He looked more fit to be at a party or an expensive restaurant than in his basement trying to information from a lowly gang member but here he was, looking at his latest captive with contempt. It took a quick a glance and a nod from Baekhyun, who was resting at the corner of the drab room, for Sehun to roll his eyes; his large hand reaching out to grasp the hair on Byung-Chul’s head.

“You know,” Sehun was right next to the man’s face, his fist tightening in his hair as the man whimpered slightly at the pull; Sehun wasn’t holding back with this captive, “The longer you stay silent the harder I’m going to hit you, do you want that?” Sehun looking down at the man with a mocking look; his dark brows raised like he was giving a choice.

“I’m waiting,” Sehun whispered darkly, yanking the man’s hair for good measure; but when he received silence, he flung his head forward away from him, the chair he was in shaking with the force.

Standing up to his full height again, Sehun paced around Byung-Chul; his hands clasped behind his back in thought, his face was stern with stress and slight anger, so that thought that he had slowly dissipated as he quickly swivelled back around, gearing his long leg back before the heel of his leather shoe dug itself into the gunshot wound on Byung-Chul’s leg in a very swift kick. This time Byung-Chul howled for the first time in hours, his yelp reverbing off the concrete walls and into everyone’s ears – from the corner of his eye, Sehun could see Chanyeol even flinch at the thought of getting a hard sole in a fresh gunshot wound. But how his men felt about the situation was redundant to him.

“Talk.” Sehun snapped at the man whose tears were disgustingly mixing with his blood after leaking from his puffed eyes, “I have all day, but do you?” Sehun taunted crouching down to be eye level with the man.

“Who are you working for,” Sehun reiterated, one of his hands sliding into his back pocket to grasp something, his long fingers grasping onto cool metal “I won’t ask you again.”

Byung-Chul in all his battered glory stared him down, “They’ll kill me.” He rasped.

“I’ll kill you,” Sehun reminded him, tutting slightly but surprised he said anything after 3 hours of beatings.

“They’ll kill me…” Byung-Chul grated out again, before leaning his face closer to his old boss locking what he could of his eyes to Sehun’s, “And then they’ll kill you.” He spat.

It took a second for the words to settle over Sehun but as soon as they did his hand was whipping out of his pocket and the knife he was holding was impaled into Byung-Chul’s leg – the force of the action causing it to slide all the way through his leg and into the wood of the chair on the other side. Byung-Chul’s eyes bulged for a second in shock before he screamed out, his head tipping back in agony, but it only caused his leg to pull on the metal that was now a part of it, the blood gushing from his leg and dripping onto the floor below; a puddle slowly building.

“Sit tight, Byung-Chul,” Sehun smirked at the man, patting the sobbing man on the back at his stool straight, “We’ll talk again soon.” He ended with before the taller man was walking out the room with all the grace of a king.

Baekhyun and Chanyeol who had been quietly observing the session the whole time filed out after him, their captive yelling out his pain to no one now. The heavy metal door slammed behind the three of them as they exited, the theatrics of the room washing off them much like Sehun was washing the blood off his hands in the small sink the kept in the basement.

“Well,” Baekhyun sniped, “That was woefully unfulfilling,” He scoffed planting himself on a table that was filled with various instruments they would often use for the people in the room they were just in.

Sehun was too busy looking the mixture of blood washing down the sink to bother to respond to Baekhyun’s comment; his jaw a bit tense at he watched the ivory sink turn a nasty shade of pink, luckily Chanyeol did the talking for him.

“Maybe,” Chanyeol was leaning against the stairs that led out the basement, “But it confirmed that whoever he’s working for is making Sehun the target.” Baekhyun hummed at that.

“But why?” Baekhyun pondered, “He’s keeping pretty tight-lipped for someone who ran a bar and just happened to smuggle and sell drugs in his spare time.” Sehun was shaking his hands off in the sink before he turned around.

“Money, probably, that or blackmail,” Sehun gravelled out, “Always the motives to keep quiet,” He leaned against the sink, uncaring if anything he was wearing got wet.

“So far, we have only him and your little bartender who knows what this new guy looks like,” Baekhyun was swinging his legs on the edge of the table like a child, an oxymoron to the conversation they were having, “No security tapes, no one else knows that he or his men look like.” Sehun sighed at that. “That…” Sehun trailed off, “Is something that I’m currently dealing with.” Chanyeol raised his eyebrow.

“How? You left the girl suffocating to death, I doubt she’ll want to help you now,” Chanyeol spat out, Baekhyun whistled lowly at that a small smirk on his face, “And that idiot in there won’t say anything, so where does that leave us?”

“Someone’s got an attitude today,” Baekhyun was back to his Cheshire cat ways, which had Sehun rolling his eyes at the two of them.

“Down boy,” Sehun drawled to Chanyeol, “The girl’s alive, you can rest easily” He rolled his eyes while looking at his watch.

“If I timed it right, she should be at the police station now,” He hummed, “But where she is, is no concern to you – I’ve got plans for the girl yet.”

“Didn’t you go out of your way to call her useless?” Chanyeol raised an eyebrow at him. “Why drag her into this?”

“Yes,” Sehun locked eyes with him, as Baekhyun sat with a shit-eating grin at the tension, “And at the time, she was useless.” He tweaked his eyebrow at him

“What changed,” Chanyeol challenged his boss.

“Baekhyun already said, she knows what this new guy looks like,” Sehun spoke plainly to him, not taking his challenge although he could see it clearly, “That’s useful to me now.”

“She’s not your pawn,” Chanyeol’s eyebrows furrowed.

“And she’s nothing to do with you either,” Sehun retorted back.

Although Chanyeol would never admit it to anyone in the room, the brief moments he spent with you touched him in a way he hadn’t felt in a while – it wasn’t romantic in the slightest, but he felt a sense of protection over you. It was stupid considering he hadn’t known you that long, but watching you talk and just be as you have sparked a sense of longing in him – a longing for normality and just a state of being where he didn’t have to worry about watching his boss pummel someone to pieces.

“Why do you care?” Sehun tilted his head at his brother.

All while this was happening Baekhyun was sat off to the side living up the drama unfolding in front of him – they never did give him the credit but Baekhyun was an observer, he may be a loudmouth but it was moments like this he could just sit and watch, take everything in for later use.

“I don’t,” Chanyeol lied.

“Really?” Sehun laughed slightly, but there wasn’t much to the laugh, “Your tone would say otherwise”

“I’m just curious how you’re using her, that’s all.” Chanyeol snapped back, his body tense, Sehun chuckled slightly at that standing up from the sink.

“Don’t worry yourself with my matters, Chanyeol,” Sehun hummed, “Do the jobs your given and leave the girl to me.”

Walking towards the stairs there was an air of a smirk still on Sehun’s face, the tired man making his way back up to civilisation so that he could sleep in peace but not before playfully clapping Chanyeol on the back, glancing at him over his shoulder as he ascended the wooden panels back into his home.

“Electric Kiss could use a new bartender, no?”

The confusion was clear as day on your face as Jeon uttered the words; Boyfriend, but you got up regardless with a nod, following the young man out as your brain wracked every possible person it could be. The police station was just the same as it was when had entered the room, only this time in the foyer was a tall blonde and one that you hadn’t seen in months.

He was still the same pixie-like man you’d known before, except with longer blonde hair and a grimace painted on his usually neutrally happy face.

“Jeonghan…” you breathed, with confusion written all over your face, even though you were quiet, that still managed to get his attention.

The stress physically melted off his face as you walked carefully to him with officer Jeon behind you, but when you were close enough he managed to catch you off guard to pull you to him, your body jumping in freight; the thud of you hitting his chest was all you and felt heard as he practically smothered you.

“Jesus,” He cried, pulling you close as you stood there frozen in time, just sort of smashed to his chest, “You’re alright,” He said before he pulled you back with his hands on your arms to get a proper look at you; his eyebrows pulling slightly at the state of you.

“You are alright?” He looked you in the eye much like a mother would if they were coddling but you merely nodded back to him, a bit too shocked to speak. 

It seemed like Jeonghan was going to do all the talking to you, as he brushed past you slightly to shake Officers Jeon’s hand; the man looking a bit confused but taking his hand anyway as the many thank you’s spilt from his lips. Jeonghan was always a worrier but you were confused to why the worrier that you thought had left your life was suddenly back here now. Officer Jeon looked a bit awkward as he distanced himself from the two of you, merely smiling politely at Jeonghan before turning to you with the same kindness he’d shown you all night.

“We’ll be in contact if we need anything else,” Officer Jeon looked at you before sending you a pleasant smile, the young man leaving you and you boyfriend in the foyer together.

“Come on, let’s get you home,” Jeonghan smiled at you, taking your arm gently to lead you out into the cold, you were still in a bit of shock at what was going on but as you felt the bite of the stinging air you suddenly snapped out of it.

“Jeonghan, why are you here?” You asked stopping completely on the pavement outside the police station, “How did you know I’d be here? Did he send you?” You accused clearly paranoid.

“Y/n, no one sent me…” He sighed softly, “Let’s just get to the car first, okay?” He tried to reason with you, but you shook your head.

“No, why are you here? You asked a bit incredulously staring him down, “Why did you tell them you were my boyfriend?”

“The station called me,” He raised his hands in defence trying to ease you a bit, “My number was still down as your emergency contact, from that hospital visit last year, they called me once they realised you were gone…you’ve been gone for four days.” His voice was gentle as always, speaking to you much like you would speak to a child how was throwing a tantrum.

Getting a proper look at him, your heart clenched slightly as you realised, he was still in his work clothes; his typical hospital uniform was a stark contrast to his skin tone, he’d gone out of his way to be here.

“All of your friends were calling me asking if I’d seen the news or heard from you and I see you’ve been involved in a shooting?” He furrowed his brows with stress, “Then I randomly get a call from the police saying that they’ve found you and that they’d like me to come down to the station to pick you up? It’s more of a question of what the hell have you been up to?” He snapped at you.

You looked at him and for a brief second you could feel your body deflate; your hands reaching up to wipe over your face as you physically felt the stress start to take over your body – Jeonghan didn’t have to come here and that was clear but your breath was still shaky as you tried to calm down a bit. The scratch of the bandages across your face as you dragged your hands down them didn’t phase you one bit as you looked at your companion with glossy eyes.

“I’m sorry, I just…” You stuttered softly, looking around; after 4 days of just mental mishandling, you found yourself finally breaking, your voice cracking slightly as you bubbled up.

Placing your hands over your eyes again you mentally ran through the list of people that you blamed for all of this; Sehun making his grand appearance top of the list and much to your distaste, you found yourself wishing that maybe you would have been better getting offed like Jaewoo had, the mental image of him laying there glaring at you with his lifeless eyes very much ingrained into your memory forever. In your despair, you could feel a hand tugging your arm gently, your body this time welcoming the warmth the hug brought; Jeonghan was shushing you softly as you let some tears leak from your eyes for the first time in a few days.

“It’s okay,” He hushed you softly, rubbing the back of your head tenderly as you weaved your arms around his waist, “You’re okay now…” Your shoulders were shaking not just of the cold anymore, but the overwhelming emotion that had been bubbling up within you the last couple days.

You weren’t sure when Jeonghan started leading you back to his car but before you knew it he was gently making you sit down in his passenger seat, before quickly jogging around to the driver’s side – his car was a lot warmer than the outside that you felt yourself melting into his seats, your eyes glaring at the interior that you hadn’t sat in for a long time. The door slamming didn’t have you looking at him but his sigh as he started the ignition did – his gentle voice melodically running through the vehicle.

“You don’t have to talk to me about it, but what happened…?” He probed you lightly, glancing at you as he turned on the car but didn’t put it into drive, he was met with your imminent silence however as you opted to look at his dashboard and the little trinkets that he kept there for memories sake.

“Silence, okay…” He sighed leaning back in his seat, running his hand through his long hair – his blonde hair now touching his chin, a far cry longer than the last time you’d seen him, “Look, about the boyfriend thing…” He began tapping his fingers against the steering wheel, a nervous habit of his.

“They just called me and asked if I was since I was your only emergency contact, I agreed because I know you don’t have an immediate family in the city…” He explained softly, as your eyes drifted from the little figure that usually danced in the sun to him, “I don’t want you to think that I’m trying anything, I swear...” You sighed softly.

“It’s okay, Jeonghan…” You mumbled, “I was just surprised that’s all, it’s been a while, no?” You tried to smile but you imagined that it looked a lot more pained than happy.

He only hummed with a smile as you put the car into drive, “It has been a while…”

Once upon a time, you’d feel a sense of love when he’d pick you up from random places; back when the two of you were pathetically naive and hoped that you’d last through it all because, in your heads, you’d know each other so long why couldn’t you last a lifetime? But now, you just felt a small ache in your chest looking at you, it was an ache that wasn’t at the forefront anymore, but it was still there like you assumed it would always be for someone that you used to love. Because as the police had guessed, Jeonghan was your boyfriend at one point – it something that had ended last year after trying too hard to make it work for many years, but he was there in your life at one point as a significant other. Looking at him driving you home, you wondered if he felt the same way that you did being in the car with him? The two of you didn’t end off badly but you also didn’t end off on the best foot, he as you had expected him to, had put his work before you – he was also a doctor in training so it was a given, but sometimes you could still feel the stick of hearing that someone you loved wasn’t whiling to put you before something.

It was a childish breakup on your part, one steeped in insecurity since at the time you weren’t sure what you were doing with your life – to be with someone so set on their goals was a lot to handle and while now you weren’t sure still, you had matured enough to know that people don’t always get put first, other things do matter. Jeonghan didn’t bother to try and press more questions out of you or force you to answer anything, he merely just drove back to your apartment in silence.

The police station wasn’t that far from your apartment building, but the drive felt never-ending as you kept your eyes on your ex-boyfriend; he looked nice in the early winter morning, nice and a lot more tired than you remembered, you felt bad that he had to come to pick you up – as much as you loved your other friends, you knew none of them would pick up the call from a random number. It was just dawning on you that since you’d been let go by Sehun, you didn’t have any of your possession; your phone, wallet etc were all in their possession and would you ever get those back? Sehun had made it very clear that he never wanted to see you again, you were nothing in the problem he was currently having. The jolting of the car pulled you back to reality as you realised that Jeonghan had parked at the back of the building where Baekhyun and Chanyeol found you – the car that you stole was nowhere to be found, even though you were still wearing the man’s jacket.

“Do you want me to walk you up?” Jeonghan asked softly, “You do have to if you don’t want too, I can call someone for you if you’d like?” He quickly added

“Jeonghan,” You said softly, smiling slightly, “It’s okay, you can walk me up...” You said gently, almost as you were soothing him.

“Are you sure?” He frowned softly taking the keys out the ignition, you chuckled faintly unbuckling your seat belt.

“Yes,” You said opening the door, “Now come on.”

It was cute to see him scurry out the car to catch up with you, but you were powerwalking to the building door; grunting softly as you shouldered it to open it.

“They still haven’t got that fixed?” You could hear the amused tone in his voice as you scoffed.

“No, I just like shouldering heavy doors for fun,” You rolled your eyes, holding the door for him to walk past you; you smiled faintly as you caught a whiff of his aftershave, the comforting smell he used was still there. “Does that mean the elevator is still out too?” He questioned looking at the metal contraption.

“No, that works” You sighed softly, walking to the piece of trash that most of the time actually didn’t work, “I just don’t trust it.” You confirmed pressing the up button, hearing the fowl ding that it screeched out.

The two of you stood there in silence side by side as you watch the numbers of the elevator countdown to the lobby floor, the peeling paint around the thing wasn’t the most appealing but it was expected considering you lived in an 8 story pile of shit.

“I thought you were going to move,” Your face physically hardened listening to him break the silence, remembering that you were going to move with him.

“Couldn’t afford it,” You gritted out slightly, “Especially can’t afford it now, my work did just get shot up.” Jeonghan winced slightly as you snapped.

“Sorry…” He mumbled as the elevator opened up, the pale-yellow light bouncing off the walls of the confined box, showing all the shitty graffiti and the deprecation of it.

You rolled your eyes as you stepped into the death box, your arms wrapping your stolen jacket tightly around you, reaching out you nudged the button for the 5th floor and listened to the monotonous lady in the speaker announce that the doors were now closing. Jeonghan was lent against the other side of the space, watching your forward-facing body with curiosity; he looked out of place in the elevator to hell, too clean and too put together to belong in something so decrepit.

“Where did you get the jacket?” He nodded to the jacket that was clearly 3 sizes too big for you, breaking the silence again.

“You wouldn’t believe me if I told you…” You mumbled, tapping your foot impatiently.

“Try me,” Jeonghan smiled softly as the doors opened, his thin frame bypassing you and out the metal jaws to the hallway.

Shaking your head, you followed him out, watching your breath dance in the cold air of the hallway – why you chose a building where all the halls were balcony’s you’ll never know but it made living here so much colder. Jeonghan and his long legs were already at your front door, looking at you with a fond smile as you trudged down the hallway.

“Do you have a way to get in?” He quizzed looking at the old piece of wood.  

“Yes,” You grumbled, reaching down to lift the slab of concrete next to your door; fingers plucking out your spare key like it was a treasure.

Jeonghan was just staring at you as the door opened, his lip drawn between his teeth like he wanted to stay something – you, however, were looking into your apartment, grimacing slightly at the last time you were here. It hadn’t looked like it had been touched, so the police hadn’t been here, but you wondered if anyone else had been? Sehun and his men had your keys after all. Walking in, you kicked off your shoes with a sigh – the ache in your legs from wearing your boots disappearing as your feet settled into some slippers. Jeonghan was just waiting by the door, however, leaned against the frame looking at you.

“I’m not too keen on leaving you on your own, honestly,” He said as you tossed your jacket off, the feeling of his eyes very present on the back of your head.

“If that’s your way of asking to stay you just have to say so,” You grumbled, looking over your shoulder at him, tweaking an eyebrow, “Just come inside, you’re letting a draft in” You sounded like a grandmother as you pattered your way away from him and into your small kitchen, your body stopping suddenly at the door at something on your counter.

“I’m just going to use your restroom,” You heard behind you as you grunted in response.“I’ll make us some tea, just make yourself comfortable,” You stuttered softly, trying not to give anything away but you were tentative as you took a step closer, sending a small smile over your shoulder for good measure.

The lights were off, but you could see a large cylindrical object sitting on the counter – something balanced on top of it. It didn’t look deadly, but you took slow steps towards it anyway, your fingers deftly reaching out to touch it and you jumped back slightly when you felt cold glass come into contact with your fingers.

“What the…” You mumbled confused as you walked back to the door to turn on the lights, your brows furrowing.

Sitting on your counter was your tip jar from the bar, but only this time it was stuffed to the brim with money, you were practically vibrating as you approached it again. You could see through the glass the various bills that filled it, a lot more than you have probably made while working there – and perched on top of it all was a cream envelope, your name very neatly written on the front. Sliding the card out of it, you gulped softly as you read the note, the writing on it practised and neat to the eye.

‘A small compensation for your troubles – KJM’

Your eyes bulged reading the note, your fingers flipping the card around to see if anything else was written – it was clear apart from the writing and a symbol on the back, the same one that Baekhyun had engraved onto the butt of this gun. The flushing of the toilet had you jumping back to life as you quickly scooped the jar up, eyes widening at how heavy it was before shoving it into a random cupboard just in time.

“Everything okay?” Jeonghan asked from the door, as you whirled around forcing a smile on your face.

“Yeah of course!” You yelped out of panic, “Just wondering where I put that tea that I like that’s all” You lied, leaning against the counter, Jeonghan only shook his head at you, walking into the kitchen.

“I’ll get the water; you find your tea.” He was already making his way to your kettle when you asked something else.

“Is the couch okay with you?”

Honestly, waking up the next again morning felt like a dream, being back in your own bed for the first time in days and getting to look at your dull ceiling while listening to your neighbour’s shower through the walls was the height of mundanity but it was your comfort and while these were very real things – looking around your room you were pulled back into a sense of reality. It was about 6 hours since you fell asleep and the sun was prevalent in the sky – it was the first time you saw proper sunlight in days, but it was also your first day not such in a shitty little room with a bunch of people keeping you captive, it was refreshing but also terrifying.

Jeonghan and yourself weren’t up long last night talking, the two of you merely having a cup of tea while he told you about his day – he wasn’t someone you’d expect to have in your apartment again and for a second you did feel a bit normal but as your parted ways and he took residence on your couch you were reminded that this wasn’t the life that you thought it was. Right now, you were broke and out of job – you had decided that you were going to touch the money that had been left for you, not knowing where it had come from and that killed you inside, but today was a new day, and it was a day that you knew you’d need to spend job hunting.

As expected, your body ached when you eventually sat up in bed, your hand reaching to your throat which felt tight and dry; your body had truly spent the last few days going through it, and Jeonghan let you know that when he decided that before you went to bed that he’d clean up the wounds that you’d gained from your forest stunt properly; his professional hands cleaning up your own. He didn’t touch Chanyeol’s handy work on your knees, but you could see the confusion at the bandages being done a lot better than the ones than you had done, but still, nothing was said – it was confusing with him already.

You were a mess when you finally got out of bed, your pyjamas scrunched from the semi-sleepless night you had and your head thumping with a migraine from an empty stomach; it had taken you about 2 hours to fall asleep, your mind too busy to suppress the thoughts of the last few days, and you were feeling it now, but sleeping again wasn’t an option, the clock on your wall telling you it was 1 PM. You felt sluggish moving around your room, picking up an old sweatshirt to pull on to cover yourself from your guest but when you did eventually open your bedroom door it was a bit of a waste.

“Jeonghan…” You furrowed your brows looking out into the living room before listening out for the shower.

Silence.

A part of you wanted to feel upset over the fact he’d just up and left you, and a part of you wanted to be a bit angry that he didn’t bother to leave a note; but the main part of you just felt the tingle that you were alone again, his neatly folded blanket and pillow resting gracefully on the edge of the couch. For felt like someone who had lost their love as you sat on the couch touching the blanket softly – even though a bit of time had passed since you broke up, being around him again was nice, Jeonghan could make you feel at ease. Before you could get caught up in your heartbreak, your stomach did the talking for you and you decided that it was probably best to eat something – the cold floor of your kitchen seeping through your socked feet as you set about making something to eat.

A cup of tea and a large omelette later, you sat down at your small dining table and looked at the junk mail that was piling on the other end of it; a few bills and student loans glaring you in the sea of beige envelopes, getting a job was something you were going to have to do quickly – your bank account wouldn’t sustain you longer, not that you had a debit or credit card to use considering you were walletless. You felt satisfied when you pushed your plate away from you, thoroughly stuffed with food and your cold fingers clinging to whatever heat your mug could provide for you that you almost didn’t consider getting up when the door killed your silence.  Three quick knocks pulled you from your comfort; glancing at the time you were a bit confused at who it could be, but you placed your mug down anyway; glancing at the counter you snagged a small knife just in case.

Tiptoeing to the door, you cursed slightly as you remembered that your door didn’t have a peephole, but you rested you hand on the doorknob anyway, taking a deep breath you readied yourself, the knife behind your back as you flung the door open, your face falling as you saw sight at who it was.

“You.” You seethed as the clunk of the knife dropping behind you sounded out, your eyes narrowing on the person on the other side of the door.

“Uh… Me?” Chanyeol was confused for a second at your response, but it was quickly wiped off his face with your fist lashed out; landing straight on his nose as his head ricocheted back with a yell sounding out his mouth in shock.

Truthfully, your grievances weren’t with Chanyeol at all; there were with his boss, but the difference was that he was here and Sehun was not.

“Fuck.” Chanyeol yelled holding his nose with a wince before looking at you, “What was that for.” He yelled at you, holding his nose in one hand and a bag in the other, the rustle of it prevalent as he gestured wildly.

You glared at him, looking around the hallway before grabbing the front of his shirt and pulling him inside the apartment – the door slamming behind him as you shoved the grown man into your place.

“What was that for?” You snapped, pushing him a bit, “You left me to die, you asshole.” His eyes widened slightly but you kept going.

“Pushing me around,” You pushed him again, “Telling me what to do,” Another push, you were pushing him further into the apartment in anger like a crazed woman.

“What the hell was all that,” You shoved him one last time in anger, your chest heaving with exertion as you tried to rip a hole in him with your eyes.

Chanyeol was shocked, to say the least, his eyes wide as plates as you took in your anger; you had been obviously very timid the last time he’d seen you, but it looked like this whole thing had caused you to truly snap.

“Okay, let’s calm down…” He tried to be diplomatic as he wiped the small trail of blood from his nose, you could throw a punch, “I’ll explain, just don’t push me again.” He grumbled placing the bag on a random chair.

Junmyeon was the diplomat of everyone, he did the talking; Chanyeol was often just the muscle that talked with his fists and guns, and if this was anyone else, they’d be floored for touching him. But obviously looking down at you, he could tell your anger was justified.

“Talk.” You demanded, jaw set; you reminded him a bit of Sehun at that moment, it wasn’t often that he got angry but when he did it was terrifying. Except, when you scolded him it felt like a sister or a friend, Sehun could probably take off his head.

“Okay, listen,” He raised his hands, “What happened in the warehouse, I did know that we were going to use you as bate like that, but!” He pointed his finger cutting you off as you looked like you were about to shout at him again.

“But I didn’t know they were going to do that to you!” He quickly continued, “I didn’t know about them planning to bag you like that, my orders were just to get you in the car quietly and take Byung-Chul out, I swear!” Chanyeol yelped as you launched a pillow at him.

“You’re still an asshole,” Your voice had quieted slightly but you still sounded pissed.

“If you want to be mad at anyone, be mad at Baekhyun and Sehun.” Chanyeol tried to reason with you, “I had no part in the planning, I promise” You pointed your finger at him looking like you wanted to saw more before it curled back into your fist, your mouth set into a thin line.

“Why are you here,” You touched your head softly, grimacing.

“I have a few gifts,” He said a bit softer, gesturing to the bag asking if he could reach into it; to which to nodded. Grabbing the dark plastic, he pulled out a box holding it out to you; your eyes registering it as a new phone as you gaped slightly.

“Why are you giving me this…” You frowned, it was the newest model and it recognised it as expensive instantly.

“Junmyeon,” Chanyeol shrugged like it was nothing, “Also Kyungsoo had to take apart your old one just in case anyone tried to track it.” He added as you politely took the box out his hand.

“I…Thank you,” You were still frowning but Chanyeol just reached into the bag, pulling out your wallet and shaking it at you, “Believe this is yours as well,” He tossed it to you, which you barely caught.

“I didn’t think I’d get any of this back,” Your eyes were a bit wide as you looked at the wallet still in perfect condition.

“You almost didn’t,” Chanyeol hummed at you, “Baekhyun was a bit salty you stole that money from him and almost took what you had, Junmyeon stopped him though don’t worry,” He frowned slightly at your shocked face.

“Also,” He reached into the bag, holding a document out to you, “Read this carefully,” He sighed.

“Why?” You questioned, looking at the fancy manila envelope – it was matt black with silver detailing’s, a tiny silver lightning bold embossed into the middle of it.

“Just read it and turn up to Electric Kiss tomorrow at 3 pm,” Chanyeol didn’t look happy at telling you that but you gaped at him.

“Electric kiss? That fancy club on the Upper-East side?” You looked like you were about to catch flies with your mouth, “Why do I have to turn up there.” Chanyeol scoffed softly.

“Another one of Junmyeon’s acts of kindness,” He lied to you, but you didn’t have to know that, “Your first shift is tomorrow, someone will let you in.”

“What,” You squeaked, your eyes wide as plates now, “Why is he doing this for me?”

“Let’s just say, Junmyeon likes to keep all his cards together,” Chanyeol’s lips pursed together in a look you couldn’t place, it was vague, but you nodded anyway.

“I…” You stuttered slightly before you got yourself together, “Thank you…” you nodded honestly, Chanyeol only shrugging in response.

“It’s no big deal,” Chanyeol smiled slightly before a small silence fell on the two of you, but Chanyeol didn’t look like he wanted that.

“How are you doing?” He asked honestly, brows pulling together slightly, “Considering everything?” you sighed.

“I am…” You struggled for words slightly, not sure how you really felt, “I’m alright, just everything is a bit much, I had to talk to the police and –,“ He cut you off.

“Don’t worry, I already know about that” Chanyeol smiled at you slightly, “I’m glad you’re okay, honestly,” He nodded looking sincere.

“I’m sorry about hitting you,” You winced, noticing his kept wiping blood from his nose and his eye was looking a bit red, “I just panicked that’s all,” He waved his hand.

“No no,” He started, “I get it, I would have done the same thing,” He chuckled.

“Next time just don’t swing your fist,” He explained, “You’ll never know who’s behind the door,” You laughed softly at that.

“Shame you weren’t Sehun or Baekhyun then huh?” You tried to joke but the sound of the lock turning had you furrowing your eyebrows.

Chanyeol sensing your confusing reached for something in the band of his jeans, his face turning slightly as he kept an eye on the door; his arm reached out like he was about to usher you behind him but you nearly dropped everything in your arms at the sight of the blonde from earlier walking through your door with a bag.

“Jeonghan, what are you doing here?!” You jumped, looking at him a bit shocked; Chanyeol glancing between the two of you with his brows stitched together.

Jeonghan was in different clothes than before and looked a bit more put together than last night, but his face was confused as yours as he glanced between you and Chanyeol; who still had his arm in front of you.

“I noticed last night your fridge looked a bit empty, so I ran home to get changed and get you some groceries before my shift…” He placed the bags by the door as he kept his eyes on you and Chanyeol, “Who’s this?” Jeonghan locked eyes with Chanyeol who looked like he was staring him down.

“Oh, this is Chan…” You were cut off by Chanyeol who glanced at you, straightening up.

“Someone that needs to go,” He answered for you, glancing at you before locking eyes with Jeonghan.

“Sorry, I can’t stay and meet your friend,” Chanyeol walked to the door, quickly brushing past Jeonghan before tossing over his shoulder, “Remember what I said,” He left you with that before he parted, not bothering to say goodbye.

Jeonghan, who had been following Chanyeol with eyes looked very concerned as he turned back to you, “He wasn’t bothering you was he?” To which you shook your head.

“No,” You told him honestly, looking at the now shut door with furrowed eyebrows.

“He’s my friend, he was just dropping by…”

In a perfect world, Sehun imagined that his men were perfectly well-mannered people who did as they were told and didn’t act like idiots – but sadly Sehun lived in a reality where his men where his brothers and most of them acted like complete fools who just happened to know how to do their job.

“She did WHAT,” Baekhyun howled with laugher as the 9 of them sat in the large parlour of the compound in the late afternoon, talking and trying to unwind a bit from the last few days; most of them had finally got some well-needed sleep as well.

“She hit me,” Chanyeol grumbled annoyed as he held an icepack to his nose, Sehun was watching his men play around with from his chair; a glass of whiskey glued to hand but even he smiled at that.

“Dude, she’s smaller than you,” Minseok snickered slightly into his drink, “How did she manage that.”

“She just opened the door and…” Chanyeol mimicked a punching motion as Baekhyun smirked wildly from beside Yixing, the latter laughing softly at his younger brothers; his posture much the same as Sehun’s.

“I’ve seen you take out two grown men and you get taken out by her?” Kyungsoo scoffed softly, an amused look on his face; something that all of them tended to reserve for Chanyeol, “Make it make sense?” He smiled.

“Did she at least take the gifts?” Junmyeon asked, sitting off to Sehun’s left with Jongdae, who as always decided to just listen to his brother bicker, Jun had opted to have a cup of coffee than something stronger.

“Yes,” Chanyeol grumbled, sinking into the couch he was on Jongin patting him on the back slightly with a smile, “She was a bit confused, but she at least knew where the bar was so…”

“Make’s our job easier,” Baekhyun chuckled downing his drink, “And you get to see her in that lovely bar uniform we have,” He raised his eyebrows suggestively at Chanyeol who rolled his eyes.

“Remind me why I left you in charge of Electric Kiss?” Sehun hummed softly to his brother who was surprisingly happy today.

“Because I throw an amazing party,” Baekhyun grinned, “You’re utilising my talents.” Sehun rolled his eyes at that.

“Talents,” He scoffed, placing his drink on his side table, “It doesn’t take a genius to throw a party,” He eased into his chair.

“You know what fun is?” Minseok jeered slightly but it had no ill intent to it, Baekhyun laughed at that.

“Please, he’s has a stick up there for years,” Baekhyun grinned, “Your little socialite not scratching your itch anymore?” Baekhyun had a look in his eyes, something Sehun nonverbally warned him to cut it out with a look, but alas the man kept going.

“Your little bartender will be working the VIP section, your favourite spot,” Baekhyun looked almost evil as he smirked, “Maybe you can talk to her like a man, I think you’d make a thrilling pair… That’s if Chanyeol doesn’t beat you too it.” His eyes filtered to the other man as he spoke.

Sehun had been putting up with Baekhyun’s teasing for hours now, while he made up scenarios about how things were going to go down, but he couldn’t be farther from the truth. He wouldn’t lie to himself and say that you weren’t attractive, it was something he noticed back in the bar when he first met you; you had the bite that intrigued him, but as everyone knew by now, Sehun’s life was being put on the line here by some mysterious new gang, thinking about being with anyone wasn’t something he was thinking about. But Baekhyun was determined to play some sort of matchmaker, even if both parties where not whiling – he knew he was trying to get on Sehun’s ego by using Chanyeol as a potential opponent, but the smaller man couldn’t be more wrong about how Sehun was feeling.

“Good luck,” Chanyeol cut in, “She’s got a boyfriend,” That didn’t phase Baekhyun, however.

“Interesting…” Sehun thought to himself, trying to imagine who your type of person would be, you seemed a bit too fiery to be with someone timid.

“Oh, how the plot thickens,” He sang slightly as Yixing nudged him with a smile to cut it out.

“Surely he must have been worried,” Yixing cut into the conversation, “Did he not question why you were there?” Yixing gave off the aura of being worried about Chanyeol but Sehun knew that he was thinking of whoever this was could potentially be a threat, vengeful boyfriends were the worse.

“He just returned from getting her groceries,” He rolled his eyes, while Baekhyun playfully cooed.

“Whoever he is,” Junmyeon hummed, “He better not get involved with what’s going on, you think she told him anything?” Sehun laughed softly at that.

“I think she knows fine well to keep quiet,” Sehun smirked softly, taking a sip of his drink; remembering his last warning in his dining room.

Truthfully, he hadn’t thought of you since he left you in that warehouse, but he did get questioned about what he whispered to you; he remembered his apology before he left you with a bag over your head, and for a second he wondered if he really did mean it, you hadn’t done anything to wrong him. Yes, you were just a bit difficult to handle, but you hadn’t done anything asides blow the window out his car, and that sure as hell wasn’t something you smothered someone with a bag over.

“His name’s Jeonghan or something,” Chanyeol sighed softly, as Baekhyun took in that information, a tiny smile building upon his face.

“Duly noted…”

Eventually, the time you had with Jeonghan was cut short, as he had to go to work for the next day or so – his attention being required elsewhere as your attention made the day turn into the night very quickly. Truthfully, even though you were confused at the opportunity given to you; you couldn’t help but be a bit giddy at the thought of your new job, Junmyeon knew some very powerful people if he managed to get you a job at the prestigious ‘Electric Kiss’ it was bar notorious for hosting the richest people in the city, and while it wasn’t a career you still saw it as an opportunity to use. You were that giddy that you turned up to the bar half an hour early, wearing your most appropriate skirt and top that you could muster – it wasn’t the designer stuff that people here wore but it was still nice.

‘Electric Kiss’ was a modern bar that had themes of vintage Europe running through it; from the black, white and silver colour scheme to the 1920s style French canopy’s that lined the outside, it had a very expensive feel to it. The document that Chanyeol gave you, had a small rundown of what you’d be doing, and you found out that things like uniform etc would be provided for you, it was just the case of having the confidence to knock on the front door. It took a second of deliberating but eventually, you bit the bullet and gave two swift knocks, only a second passing before the heavy black wood door opened to reveal a very pretty but very intimidating woman on the other side.

“You must be Y/N?” She questioned as you took her in, she was gorgeous; she had a gentle but also very strong face and an extremely pleasing voice to listen to.

“Yeah, that’s me…” You gulped slightly as the woman suddenly smiled her whole face lighting up, welcoming you instantly by opening the door; it was a stark contrast to neutral face that you smiled a bit.

“Welcome to Electric Kiss” She gestured behind her, her stance gesturing to the huge dance floor and bar that took up the bottom floor of the building, “I’m Joohyun, but you can call me Irene if you want” She stuck her hand out as soon as you walked in, your own taking it in a shake as you gaped at the dance floor before turning to her with a smile.

“Two names?” She smiled softly at that, tapping her name badge that was pinned to her nice uniform; a suit vest and skirt that fit the vibe of the bar.

“Yes, safety precaution” She chuckled melodically as you tilted your head, “Just so no one that comes in can find us outside of work,” You pulled an impressed face.

“Don’t worry, we’ll find you a name,” She winked, gesturing for you to follow after her, “Since you’re here early I’ll give you a small rundown of the bar, I hope you’re prepared for your first shift” She sang softly as you followed after her.

“Yes, of course,” You smiled eagerly, practically skipping after her, quickly sliding through the bar door she held open for you to get behind.

The actual bar itself was completely made of glass so that everyone could see all the bottles, the attention to detail blowing you away as each bottle had a light under it so the glass would light up and glow; a blacklight hung above them so they glowed in the dark light of the bar. Joohyun seemed completely in her element behind the bar as she quickly tapped on the fancy cash register; the screen lighting up with various tabs before she turned and grinned at you, her arm leaning against the back of the bar.

“Let’s run you through this, then we’ll get you dressed for your shift,” She honestly was one of the friendliest bar workers you’d ever met, as you nodded ecstatically at her, her gentle eyes loving your eagerness.  

Joohyun was a fantastic teacher as she breezed you through Electric kisses till system and taught you the ropes of their bar, obviously, you had experience from bars so you picked it up fairly quickly but she wasted no time in showing you the system and teaching you any speciality drinks that they made; carefully showing you how to make them and showing you the book you can check if you forget anything. She assured you that you’d never be alone on the bar for a while since the place can get really busy, they tended to have 2 or 3 girls at any time manning the place unless you were in VIP. She commented with a wink that you would be alone there but if you played your cards right, you’d get tips that would pay your rent for a month.

She overall was completely lovely to you, even when it came to putting on your uniform; she helped you make sure you were presentable and even touched up your makeup for you, making you were ready for the night, she was going to be your supervisor but she was going beyond what you’d expect, or maybe you just weren’t used to kindness like that?

You were left alone to put everything in your new locker when you sent a text to Jeonghan; who had softly demanded to know that you were okay and that the job was safe, he was impressed that you managed to get a new one so quickly but his worrying warmed your heart slightly. It had just sent when Joohyun yelled through the back in an amused tone that your first customer was here, your brain kicked into gear and a smile instantly painting itself on your face. However, you weren’t prepared for what was behind the velvet curtain that hid the back of the bar; the smile melting off your face slightly at the sight of your “first customer”.

“Hello,” Baekhyun twinkled his fingers at you in a greeting with a smirk, Joohyun rolling her eyes softly as she polished glasses off to the side of the bar, you felt a nerve in your neck twitch slightly as you approached him from behind the bar.

“Baekhyun,” You tensed out, the smile on your face clearly fake, “What a lovely surprise to see you here…” You trailed off, wanting nothing more than to give him the treatment that you gave Chanyeol yesterday.

“Now,” He tutted softly with a playful face, “Is that any way to act to your boss?” Your eyebrows shot to your hairline at that.

“Boss?” You stuttered softly, Joohyun cutting in with an eye roll.

“Hmm, surprising right?” She smirked, “Idiots can run clubs now? Who would have known?” Baekhyun side-eyed her at that as you felt anger build up in you. Chanyeol knew what he was offering you and he didn’t tell you?

“Enough of that you,” Baekhyun sassed her back, “Now, I’d like for my newest employee to get me a drink before we open.” You laughed dryly with a slight smirk.

“What would you like,” You rested your hands on the edge of the bar, looking at him while he took the liberty to look you up and down in your work outfit, whistling lowly with a smirk.

“I’ll take a shot of tequila,” He smirked at you, leaning closer to you, “The good stuff.” He eyebrows jumped suggestively, as you smiled at him, reaching under the bar to place a shot glass on it before turning around to grab the tequila.

It was a fancy crystal bottle that was on the top shelf but the heels that Joohyun had given you made it easier to reach, your body turning with the expensive bottle, and instantly reaching out to pour it. A devious smirk painted itself on your face once you poured it, Baekhyun’s hand reaching out to grab it but yours were quicker as you snatched it up; knocking it back as Joohyun laughed loudly at what she was watching. Baekhyun was shocked for a second as you dropped the empty glass back into his waiting hand, the warm burn running down your throat.

“Fuck, you’re mean,” Baekhyun breathed shocked before he smirked, “I want you on VIP tonight.” Joohyun whistling lowly with a laugh at that, as you smirked softly.

“Here 2 hours and she’s already stealing my gig,” Joohyun taunted with a laugh, but Baekhyun merely patted his hands on the bar as he stood up.

“You’re still my number one,” He winked playfully at Joohyun who rolled her eyes at him, “Make sure she’s prepped for the night, I’ll be in my office making a few phone calls” It was weird to see him in business mode but he still parted ways with a smirk and a “Bye ladies.”

Joohyun looked at you with a smirk as he left, “You know each other?”

You rolled your eyes at that, swiping the empty glass off the bar to get cleaned.

“Don’t start.”

When Joohyun said she’d take you up to VIP you didn’t expect for her to take you to a completely different floor of the bar; an upper-tier that looked down over general admissions through a massive glass wall that had a private bar just as big as the one down the stairs but stocked with more expensive alcohol that you almost gagged at the prices. You had come at just the right time; the bar was opening early tonight seeing as they were hosting a birthday party for some rich girl so by the time you were taken up more of the workers were filtering in. You had met a very nice girl called Sooyoung who went by the name of Joy, and by the bright smile on her face, the name fitted her well.

Joohyun, or Irene as you had to call her on shift, had informed you that you would be here up yourself for the night but she would come and check on you every so often; nothing was different up in VIP in terms of the bar except the stocking of drinks and that there was a wine cellar in the back for any customer that wanted a specific bottle with your hands being handed the keys to access everything, including the small staircase that you could use so that you didn’t have to walk through the bar. It seemed a lot chiller up here, the sound of the DJ setting up muffled slightly through the glass, but not in a way that meant you couldn’t hear the music.

The place was lined with expensive couches and chairs, with the odd pool table and regular table spackled around the place, but it wasn’t something you were going to pay attention too; VIP didn’t tend to get messy, and if it did there were people to clean it. You were busing yourself with cleaning glasses when you heard someone over the speaker system say that the bar was now open for business and everyone was to get to their assigned stations, you were set in that department but what you weren’t set on was having a customer so soon, the sound of the bar stool scrapping against the titled floor snapping you into work mode.

“I’ll take a whiskey please, top shelf,” A familiar voice echoed in your ears, one you’d heard it in every kind of light now; whispered, yelled, taunted. You practically spun as you whipped around, your eyes wide as day.

“Sehun…”