#my family has sat around a table multiple times and complained that actually

[notbecauseofvictories]

more than anything in this world I love wandering through museums and taking pictures of things to research later. like oh, interesting concept, what if I spent an hour reading about that when I am in my pajamas in bed and it can really blow my mind.

[jaysng]

when your daughter is mad at him | pjs

pairing: pilot!husband!jay x female!reader

genre: fluff, comedy

synopsis: your daughter misses jay, but as a pilot his schedule requires him to be in places but at home. So she sulks and sulks..

“Come on, say hi to appa” you coo at your 3 year old daughter who refused to talk to her dad, “yeorum-ah i miss you so much, i promise to come back to you and give you all the cuddles and all the kisses. Let’s not be mad at each other hmm?” Hearing your husbands voice trying to convince your daughter to finally open her mouth and respond. A smile appeared on your face, reflecting your amusement. 

But she was your daughter, maybe jay’s genes did not even try to fight at this. Your husband, a pilot was once again gone for his work. A grueling week with multiple destinations was for sure hectic. “He said the same thing last time” your daughter mumbles, pushing the phone back to voice barely audible because of her pout.

You gently try to console her. “I know it’s hard, sweetie,” you say softly. “Appa has to be away for work, but he loves you very much.”

Mumbling again, “But it’s not the same when he’s not here. I miss him mmh…..” she complains shifting again on your lap. you sigh, understanding the pain in your daughter’s voice. 

You know too well the sacrifices involved and the strain it places on your family. “I miss him too,”you admit, talking to her as you gently rub yeorum’s back. “But we’re so proud of him, and he’s working hard to provide for us. It’s just for a little while longer. So can you talk to him?” Jay watches through his phone as your daughter finally sits still on your lap, “That’s my girl, appa apologizes for making my little princess this sad.”

“I wish you could be here right now” yeorum says as she overdramatically lets out an exhale, Jay gives a reassuring smile. “Me too. But I am thinking of us every moment. And when i get back, we’ll have all the time we want together.”

With her lips curved up to a smile, your daughter looks convinced now “Will you do anything i want when your back here?” She asks as your husband raises his eyebrow and chuckles softly, trying to predict the little one’s answer “Yes honey, tell me anything you want or want to do. Now, what does my baby want?” 

“You’ll play princess-princess with me!”

jay thinks, about the time when yeorum watched her first ever disney princess film, where her eyes first caught the glammed up looks and the pretty dresses, she wanted to recreate it on her dad. Well, she actually wanted to do it on you but then she claimed, ‘eomma s’already a princess’ 

Jay sat on the floor of the living room, smiling as yeorum carefully applies makeup to his face. She’s holding a small brush with great concentration, her tongue poking out in focus as she sweeps bright eyeshadow across his eyelids.

“close your eyes, appa!” she says with a giggle. He obliges, chuckling softly. She hums a little tune while she works, drawing thick lines around his eyes and then reaching for the lipstick. 

“You look just like a princess!” She says passing the mini pink hand mirror to her now pretty appa.

Just as he’s about to comment on his new look, his phone buzzes on the table. He picks it up and his expression shifts from amused to concerned. “Oh, man. I’ll be there in 10 minutes don’t worry”

Yeorum looks up at him with wide eyes, her signature disappointed pout evident on her face. “Appa, you have to see how pretty you look first!” she insists, holding up a small handheld mirror.

He glances at his reflection and stifles a laugh. “Wow, I look… amazing, baby.” But there’s no time to fully appreciate her artistry. He rushes to the bathroom to wash it off, only to find that the eyeliner and lipstick won’t budge. His heart sinks as he scrubs harder, but the marks remain stubbornly in place. Walking past the washroom, a distressed jay catching your attention. You walk over keeping a hand on his shoulder as he flinches, “Oh my god.. is it not coming off?” You say slowly getting worried and tensed yourself. 

“Yeorum-ah” you call out, trying to keep your voice calm, “what did you use to do appa’s makeup?”

She proudly holds up a set of colorful markers. “These! They were in your drawer!”He groans inwardly as he realizes she’s used permanent markers. His meeting is in ten minutes, and there’s no way to get it off in time. Double fuck.

“Shit. What do we do jay?” You say, trying to rub the eyeliner of his face. With no other option, he throws on a hat and large sunglasses, hoping they’ll hide most of it. As he heads out the door, kissing you and yeorum goodbye. She waves cheerfully. “Good luck appa! You look so fancy!”

He forces a smile, knowing this is going to be an interesting day at work.

You could say, to this day you’re grateful that she didn’t glam you up. 

It finally lift yeorum’s mood up after jay promised her he would once again, play the game with her. Now deep asleep in her room, your and your husband’s laugther echoes as you reminisced about that day. This time you’ll make sure to hide all the permanent markers from the drawer. 

As your giggles go quiet, suddenly feeling shy as jay looks at you through the screen with those lovestruck eyes. “Hi” you say, voice sweet and soft. “Hi” jay says as he brings the phone closer to his face, eyes shifting between you and the camera every then and now.

“You look beautiful, did i tell you that yet?” He adds, As the words left his lips, you felt a warm blush creeping up your cheeks. Your smile widened, almost uncontrollably, and you glanced down, biting your lower lip to suppress the giggle bubbling up inside of you.

He caught the change in your demeanor and chuckled, his voice low and full of affection. “What? Did I say something wrong?” he teased, leaning a little closer to the camera, his eyes twinkling with mischief.

“yeah i heard that a couple of times today” He grinned, unable to contain his own laughter now, the sound of it mixing with yours in a harmonious, joyous melody. You both knew that the words you shared were simple, but it was the way he said it, the way you looked at each other, that made you feel like teenagers in love.

You tilt your head “It’s hard convincing her you know..” you start, “when i feel the same, lonely without you.” you start to smile a little as jay raises his eyebrows and smiles back at you “I know, no wonder where she got this trait from.” he jokes as red tint appears on your cheeks, “But i know, i love you and i miss you every single moment honey.” He says, bringing his camera close to his lips as he kisses it. 

Back in the cockpit, jay adjusts his headset and catches a glimpse of his family photo pinned near his control panel. He takes a deep breath, a mix of longing and determination in his eyes. He knows his absence is hard on them, but he holds onto the thought of their reunion, using it as motivation to get through the flight.

all do not copy or repost — @/jaysng

[lovekz]

told you

syn-> rindou’s friends don’t believe him when he says he’s got a girl. and she’s fucking crazy

warnings : reader is possessive (not too bad), rindou gets no play, alcohol mention, reader drinks, crack

-

“wanna go out tonight?” shion asks, laying across the couch.

rindou was typing away on his phone, legs propped up on the coffee table.

every saturday, shion would come over and spend a night at the haitani’s, seeing as he was best friends with the younger one.

he was always welcomed, as long as he brought his own clothes.

which rarely happened anyway.

“depends. where?” rindou asked, not taking his eyes off his phone.

shion shrugged, before leaning back and thinking.

rindou didn’t rush him, and decided to continue what he was doing on his phone.

after five minutes of hearing loud videos from shion’s phone, he sat up immediately.

rindou looked at him with a raised brow, not understanding why he was so excited.

but the minute he took a look at his best friend’s phone, he understood why.

shion was showing him some club called angels that opened up a few months ago.

“think i’ll pass on that.” rindou chuckles, before leaning on the arm rest with a yawn.

“what? why?! all the hotties will be there, and drinks- and your best friend! why wouldn’t you wanna go?” shion complained, throwing his hands up.

rindou rolled his eyes immediately at shions little tantrum.

it happened a lot over the years, so it wasn’t like it was new to rindou.

besides, he’s got a valid reason as to why he doesn’t want to go.

“izana said he’s having a party at his tonight. besides, i have a girlfriend. i’m loyal.” rindou explains shortly, looking at shion from the corner of his eye.

shion grows silent, watching rindou with an unreadable expression.

the front door opens, and ran walks in with izana and kakucho following in tow.

ran immediately looks around suspiciously, knowing his home too be too quiet for shion madarame to be here.

his eyes finally landed on the two, slightly confused as to why they were sitting in silence.

until shion burst into loud, obnoxious laughter.

he laughed so hard his face had begun to turn red.

“you? have a girlfriend?! ha!” shion yelled loudly in his face, tossing his head back with howl.

izana immediately catches on to shion's outburst, and breaks into laughter right beside the boy.

kakucho tries to hide his laugh behind a cough, but anyone could recognize it fighting his throat.

ran joins in as well, putting a hand on rindou’s shoulder as he holds his stomach.

“no way! you haven’t kissed anyone since second grade!” ran teased, laughing loudly in his ear.

rindou was getting irritated, looking at everyone in the room mocking him. his so-called 'family' making him feel small.

was it really that hard to believe he got a girlfriend?

“why not tell us where she's from, rin? an a.i app?” izana snickered, making shion laugh louder.

now he felt embarrassed, although he knew you were real.

he’d met you around campus, and even had multiple class with you.

but for some reason, everyone around him didn’t think that you were an actual person.

rindou stood up from the couch, stuffing his phone in his pocket and shoving ran off him harshly.

“I’m going out.” he says, shoving izana out the way out of anger.

izana doesn’t react to it, just watches rindou as he puts his shoes on.

“be safe rinnie. tell your girl I’m having a party tonight and she’s invited.” izana giggles, watching rindou slam the door immediately.

if that was the case, rindou would prove them wrong by tonight.

-

“babe can you get my shoes?!” you yelled from upstairs in your room, fixing your dress.

you stood in your mirror, fixing your top and spinning in different angles a few times, making sure you liked the outfit.

it was the fifth outfit you put on, and you didn’t wanna be any more late than you were.

rindou came up stairs with your shoes, placing them before you and helping you into them.

“you’re sweet rinnie, but you didn’t have to.” you smiled, letting him help you out regardless.

rindou nods, before buckling them and standing up straight.

“do you like it? think i should change again?” you question, spinning in a circle to show off the outfit.

“mm-mm, don't change. love it.” rindou mutters, pulling you closer by the hips and kissing your lips softly.

you knew he was genuine, not just because he didn't want to wait another ten minutes downstairs.

you smile into the kiss, wrapping your arms around his neck and pulling him closer to you.

he maneuvers you over to the bed and towers over you, beginning to tug on your shirt.

you immediately press a hand to his chest and push him lightly, smiling up at him sweetly.

“let’s save this for later. we got a party to go to honey.” you whisper, hooking your pink acrylic onto his chain.

he stares down at your own, his name engraved in it with a heart.

you got it custom made for his birthday, along with his name on your thigh.

rindou would never get over it.

-

when you make it to the party, you immediately leave rindou’s side to go hang with your own friends before meeting his.

he let you know not to get too drunk, but you didn’t have to listen.

so you only handed him your bag that had your emergency slippers and your purse and made your way to the kitchen.

once you left, shion immediately draped his arm around his shoulder and walked him to izana with a cheeky grin.

they were all sitting around in the living room, talking about god knows what.

when they don’t see rindou with a plus one he claimed he'd bring, they burst into loud laughter.

“rin! what happened to your plus one?!” izana asked immediately, tossing his head back and laughing.

rindou rolls his eyes and takes a seat on the loveseat, holding your things in his lap.

his brother notices the extra items, and laughs even harder.

“oh my god you went and bought those? that’s why you weren’t home?!” ran cackled, bringing attention to the items.

rindou puts his middle finger up, rolling his eyes.

“I have a girlfriend. she’s with her friends.” rindou sighs, slouching in the seat a little more.

izana snorts, muttering something about her also being with her other boyfriend.

the group laughs at that.

they make fun of him some more, until the topic of the girlfriend rindou 'doesn't have' grows a bit stale.

shion changes the topic sooner or later, finally in the mood to talk to any female around.

“aren’t they bad?” shion brings to attention, gesturing to the two girls that were standing by the speaker.

rindou shrugs, not paying attention and being loyal to you.

shion groans and snatches rindou’s phone out of his head and looking at him.

“come on! let’s get you a real girl and not a ai. not imaginary either.” shion jokes, before standing from his seat.

knowing shion, he would say some shit that probably wasn't true, or worse.

get everyone's attention.

once that thought runs through his head, rindou grabs his arm and shakes his head, trying to get him to sit back down.

“don’t do it shion. my girl is seriously fucking crazy and i wanna have a good night.” rindou practically begs, looking at his best friend.

ran kisses his teeth and looks at the blond boy, before waving him off.

“go introduce him to one of them. he’s so picky.” ran scoffs in annoyance, looking at his younger brother.

ran seemed to be growing annoyed with his brother's supposed lie.

rindou doesn’t get to object, because by time he tries to, shion is already running over to them.

he talks to them for a while, and the girl in the white mini dress that barely covers the top of her breasts looks over to him.

she sends a wave and a wink, to which rindou just jerks his head up in a small, lame greeting.

he doesn’t show any interest, just looks back down at his phone.

eventually, he feels weight next to him and a head leaning over his shoulder to look at his phone.

at first he believes it’s shion, fresh off rejection and in pain silently.

until he sees a shiny white nail tap on his phone.

he knew yours were baby pink with both your little zodiacs on it with a heart, of course.

rindou had paid to get it done after he broke your other set last week.

“his videos are hilarious. i love watching him.” the girl fake giggles lightly, smiling big at rindou.

it was the girl that had winked at him earlier, now sitting next to him closer than ever.

it wasn't like he'd recognized her from anywhere other than here, or even cared to figure out her name to tell her fuck off.

he was only worried about you.

his eyes immediately began to scan the room for you, but you couldn’t be found anywhere.

shit.

“yeah i bet you do.” rindou says shortly, still sounding completely unamused and uninterested.

shion and the other girl was sitting across from them, while ran, kakucho, and izana returned with drinks.

ran hands his brother a cup, probably the same thing he had.

so he takes a little sip of the orange looking liquid and hums at the fruity flavor.

the girl grins and sits up, looking into the cup.

“that looks good. can I try some?” she says sultry, and he knows she’s pushing boundaries.

rindou still can’t find you anywhere in the room to help him out.

before rindou can politely reject her though, she snatched the cup out his hand and drinks from the exact spot he drank from.

she left her lipstick stain on it, smiling at rindou as she licked her lips.

“mm, I was right.” she whispers, wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling him in.

before her lips could try to connect with his, rindou feels her arms forcefully ripped from his neck and his face pushed back.

before long, the entire bottle of taylor port and pink whitney was dumped on her.

“why the fuck are you touching my man?” you asked, giving her the ugliest look ever.

the party seems to pause, music turned down and the entire friend group looking at rindou.

the girl doesn’t get the chance to reply, because she’s receiving punches faster than she can think about it.

she’s throwing her hands in the air and trying to defend herself, making rindou stand up immediately.

your coat was long gone, and your breasts were beginning to spill out your tube top.

rindou grabs you up off her, but then you shove him off and start fighting her friend.

“oh shit!” izana curses loudly, only because his drink was spilling all over the place during the maneuver.

now you’re fighting both of the girls at once, winning even though you were obviously drunk.

rindou groans and lifts you into the air, before shoving the other girls off you by their face.

“i’m not the one, ask about me bitch!” one of them yell out to you from in shion's arms, making you laugh.

“don’t gotta, you’re pussy and butt!” you yelled back, throwing your middle finger up.

rindou takes you up to izana’s bedroom in silence and sits you on the bed with a light frown.

you cross your arms with an angry pout, seeing yourself in the mirror across the room.

your hair was a mess and the tops of your areolas were showing.

rindou fixes your shirt and sighs, not sure of what to say.

“baby you think I won that?” you question with a smile, still a bit tipsy as you stand.

he holds you by the waist to steady you and looks into your eyes.

it was almost as if you didn't just get into a fight with two girls you didn't know over rindou.

not like he didn't expect it though, since it has happened at least twice before when you started dating him.

“didn’t have to do all that mama. was gonna stop her.” rindou says, rubbing your thigh in soft circles.

your skirt was hiked up during the fight, showing off your red thong.

you shrug, wrapping your arms around his neck and smiling big.

“gotta make sure they know you’re mine. I didn’t get this jewelry and tat for nothing.” you whisper, rubbing his cheek.

the door opens and rindou shields you from the view, looking behind him to see who it was.

it was izana and the rest of the friend group, still a bit in shock after the altercation downstairs.

rindou rolls his eyes, before turning back to you and fixing your skirt.

“who’s that? is it your friends? the one's you want me to meet?” you ask, peeking over his shoulder to see.

rindou nods, before deeming you decent enough and letting you go.

you wave sweetly, fixing your hair. “hi! sorry you had to see all that.” you giggle, having a seat on the bed once more.

izana nods, waving you off and sitting on the corner seat. he won't lie and say he didn't enjoy watching it.

“you’re.. his girlfriend?” ran asked in a unsure tone, looking you up and down.

you cross your legs and raise your eyebrow, nodding at him.

“there a problem with that or something?” you ask, immediately feeling offended by the question.

everyone shakes their head, recalling how you handled those two girls down there.

rindou stands up and sighs tiredly, before handing you your purse and your slides.

“gonna go get your sweats out the car. we’re leaving.” rindou informs, kissing the corner of your mouth.

you nod, smiling at him and waving a bit.

“oh! can you see if you see my coat? and my nail? damn, mira’s gonna kill me!” you cursed, looking down at your hands with a pout.

rindou nods, knowing he was just going to end up paying for another set on sunday.

when he closes the door behind him, all eyes are on you.

it stays silent for a bit, before izana speaks up first.

“so how much is he paying you?” izana asks, still in disbelief that you were his girlfriend.

and you were just as crazy as he said you were.

your outfit : <3 rindou's outfit : <3

[eggtartz]

hi!! may i please request the toman founders (together) celebrating the reader's birthday?

a/n : sorry for the delay anon my health has been declining recently :( this might be a little short because my eyes are burning but anyway thank you for requesting and enjoy 🫶🏻

masterlist

: manga ending spoilers, a bit of angst, mentions of neglect but overall a lot of fluff

"y/n? hey y/n wake up.." you felt your body was shake as you awaken from your nap. it's at least noon and you had a meeting at dawn so you decided to take a quick nap at the shrine. you saw baji looking down at you as well as haru.

"it's getting warmer y/n you should nap inside" haru said while helping you to get up. "oh it does feel a bit warm.." you mumbled.

"c'mon sleepyhead" baji lifted your limp body on his back and you dozed off again. you didn't had much sleep last night due to your insomnia so you tend to lack energy and sleep at random times. "okay there you go, we'll wake you up when the meeting starts okay?"

"mmh thankyou baji san"

"okay we need to do the plan like right now, she's knocked out" kazutora said hurriedly while tapping his fingers on the table. "mitsuya has the division members been informed about our plan?" draken asked the purple haired boy. "yeah, they're on standby. they've been very excited actually" mitsuya said. the toman founders thought it would be nice to have a small birthday party for you. it does happen once a year so the members saw no harm in it, besides the other division members seem content with their decision and is on board with the plan.

"okay so this evening we'll take the cake out then kazutora and baji would bring the cake at the meeting and lights out then we sing the song for her. pretty simple right?"

"but kenchin why can't i bring the cake?!"

"because you're the president mikey, you need to start the meeting"

"oh wait you're right" mikey snickered while stuffing his face with dorayaki while the others had ice cream. they hoped nothing would go wrong, nothing would right?

the evening came rather quickly as you stretched your body and twisted your body in multiple directions to crack them. rubbing your eyes, you went to the shrine and saw pahchin and pehyan there. "oh good morning pah, peh."

"good morning y/n chan! did you have a good sleep?"

"yes i did, feels so fresh too. say is the meeting long because my stomach is growling" you held your belly.

"i don't think so" pahchin said then walked away with peh when some members called the two. you sat down on someone's motorcycle and lifted your leg. "hey y/n chan want some candy?"

"yeah sure"

"here y/n chan you look thirsty"

"oh thankyou"

"y/n chan you like chocolates right? here!"

"that's so nice of you!" now, don't get you wrong everyone in toman was so nice they felt like family. however this atmosphere felt off and everyone was acting a little bit too nice. you hopped off the motorcycle to ask what's up with everyone when mikey and the division captains pulled up and made their entrance.

"president!" everyone bowed, as you too. after settling down, mikey was standing in front with takemichi and draken behind him. "now! we have gathered here today to uh hear me talk about my day yes! so my day was really shitty so i wanted to drop out from school! how about that?"

you were confused, mikey always has been complaining about school in meetings but never in big meetings like these. these kind of meetings usually means he's announcing toman is going to fight another gang or something. this was the last thing you expected. you glanced at your surroundings to share a confused look with someone only for them to avoid your eye contact.

huh, strange.

"where the hell is keisuke? my story doesn't make sense anymore!" mikey whispered to draken, gestured takemichi to take over instead. "u-uh yes i say uh we all drop out from school? but that would be risky for our on future right so.." takemichi prolonged his tone and nervously looked around.

"damn it, kazutora where are you?!" haru yelled in a whisper at the phone he was clutching while kisaki fumbled with his uniform. "patience haruchiyo, we're just a bit late"

"a bit?! the guys over here are telling fairy tales so she won't notice! hurry up"

"we're almost there haru, just wait there with kisaki!" baji yelled from the other side when the phone went dead. kisaki kept extending his neck to look for baji's motorcycle but after five minutes, he finally saw the two of them. "shit be careful with the cake, where's the light?"

"it's here in my pocket, now kisaki go turn off the lights"

"we all ready right? okay so three, two, one!" the lights that was centered at the shrine went completely off making you shriek in surprise. you accidentally hugged the arms of the person beside you but let his arm go instantly. "oh sorry"

"no worried y/n chan, you can hold on them if you're scared" he teased and you landed a slap on his arm. suddenly there was spotlight and it was directed at you, the sudden light made your eyes blind so you squinted a few times to adjust your vision. then,

"happy birthday to you.."

"happy birthday to you"

"happy birthday dear y/n"

"happy birthday to you!" you heard the members sang while approaching you with a white cake which was written 'happy birthday y/n!'. mitsuya was holding the cake as well as the founders who stood behind him who wore birthday hats too. when the singing ended mitsuya was standing in front of you and smiling so sweetly.

"make a wish y/n chan" your captain said. you did a little wish and blew out the candles which resulted in a ear deafening celebration from the members.

"yay cake!"

"that's for her mikey"

"but i wanna eat it.."

"you just had cupcake this morning" you stood there and watched every member blossomed a smile and congratulated you. you didn't even remember it was your birthday, your family has been neglecting your mere presence for a long time so you've grew up not remembering such an event like your birthday. hakkai was the one who noticed your birthday was near and suggested to mitsuya for them to have a small celebration.

never have you thought that they actually cared so much about you, going to the lengths of calling huge meetings so everyone could be there. you lowered your head to hide your sobs but mitsuya catched them. "it's okay y/n, we're here for you. so just leave it to us yes?" he assured you sweetly while lending you a piece of cake on a paper plate.

the toman members had a nice day that dawn, the celebration ended up late at night but you were so happy. more than happy. and you couldn't be more grateful.

[ashboy-3]

Tucker Saving the Day

Written for Dannymay 2023 Day 22 Prompt: Cryptid Au Fandom: Danny Phantom Characters: Danny, Tucker, College OCs Words: 1,115 Summary: Danny has been in college for a full semester and Tucker is getting tired of having to wipe his college server of all the weird gostly things he's been doing

Danny has been in college for a whole semester now and he has to say that it’s better than he thought it could be. He misses his friends, family, and surprisingly all of Amity Park, but he’s learned how to deal with it.

Amity Park being his home and lair he has to go back at least once a month to keep his core happy, two months if he’s really pushing it.

It’s a long flight for him going to and from the west to the east coast once a month but as long as no one sees him he’s fine and he always has his ectoplasm-filled shakes to keep him going.

“Danny dude did you see the latest cryptid video yet?” Parker, his roommate, asked as they sat down for lunch.

“You know I don’t follow the cryptid feed,” Danny shrugged eating a fry.

“People are trying to figure out who the cryptid is though and they haven’t crossed you out yet!” Parker exclaimed a smile on his face as Danny’s eyes went wide.

“How are they crossing people out?” Danny asked, watching the video of him last night flying back onto campus. Someone must have videoed him but his ghost half messed with the cameras making him free from any immediate attention.

“They just look out for anyone who’s been weird. Asking for evidence to clear people or to keep people. They compiled a list of everyone using class list that others have given them,” Parker shrugged.

“Okay so why have I not been crossed out yet?” Danny asked, a look that Parker hasn’t seen often on his face.

“Dude you’ve been seen in multiple classes drinking a glowing green liquid. You’ve been spotted drinking over three energy drinks with over two cups of coffee in the same day but not only that but it was that same amount three days in a row and you were just fine. I’ve seen you stay up for eight full days for finals last semester and was still fully functional,” Parker explained.

“Doesn’t explain why I’m on the list! Their nothing weird about that!” Danny shot back.

“Danny. You are one of the weirdest people I know,” James said, walking up to the table, joining in the conversation, Laura following behind him.

“Okay that’s just not fair. I feel like your all gaining up on me,” Danny grumbled crossing his arms.

“Relax none of us have actually sent any info about you to the thread. It was all people who have just noticed you. We know you don’t like to much attention and wouldn’t betray your trust like that,” Laura promised him, putting a hand on his shoulder to comfort him.

“Thanks guys really.” Danny smiled as he ate his food.

“So are you coming out with us tonight?” Parker asked, a smirk on his face as he stole half of Danny’s cookie.

“Dude you have your own!” Danny complained trying to steal it back, but gave up eventually. “No. I have a few things to complete that are due tomorrow, but I’ll be free in let’s say three days?” Danny thought looking up trying to remember if he was planning anything.

“You sure you have nothing planned?” James asked, knowing Danny’s tendency to cancel at the last minute.

“You know me can never promise anything,” Danny shrugged, just as he felt the familiar pull of time stopping around him, a sigh escaping his mouth. “Actually I have a feeling I’ll be busy,” Danny was quick to change his mind.

“Oh great did something important come up again already? Your phone didn’t even go off!” James groaned.

“It’s nothing big,” Danny promised as he got out his phone and saw a small sticky note on it, ‘meeting in three days C.W.’

“C.W.? You don’t know anyone with those letters do you?” Laura asked, reading the note.

“Just someone from my hometown. I have to go home as often as I do to help out around there,” Danny shrugged as he texted Sam and Tucker. The two aren’t able to go home as much as Danny, but they yell at him anytime he leaves them out of the loop.

“Where are you from again?” Laura asked.

“Just some small town in Illinois. Nowhere important,” Danny shrugged lightly.

“And that is why you are considered a cryptid possibility. You keep too much to yourself,” Parker groaned.

“I’ll think about taking you there one day. Things are just still too hectic between me and my family.”

“Doesn’t mean you can’t at least give us a name,” James glared playfully.

“Maybe in the future,” Danny told them, finishing his lunch and heading to his next class, getting on a quick call with Tucker.

“Dude I need you to fix the cryptid thread again,” Danny was quiet as he talked.

“Again? Dude I fixed it for you twice already. How many people are thinking it’s you?”

“Not sure. My friends over here just pointed out to me a lot of weird things that I do. I swear it’s like high school all over again,” Danny rolled his eyes as he could hear Tucker typing rapidly on hs computer.

“I can do a basic purge but if you want a hardcore purge I’d recommend Technus. He’ll be happy just to have some access to technology and you know how to keep him in check,” Tucker suggested.

“And risk him going to the internet?” Danny debated.

“You know he doesn’t give a shit about that anymore. As long as you stay king he’ll be happy. Still amazed how the rouges did a complete 180,” Tucker kept talking.

“Yeah a 180 for you and Sam. Once they reazlied I haven’t been a ghost that long they almost killed Clockwork for wanting to make me king. The amount of times I’m still called a child or baby ghost is ridiculous,” Danny rolled his eyes. “Also I’m not king yet. It was ruled by the council I have to become older in ghost years and finish getting my education. I’m still considered a prince.”

“I’ll still say it’s king as long as you got that ring on. Do I have to search and delete any info on that as well?” Tucker asked.

“I’m more worried about the GIW finding out where I am,” Danny admitted.

“The meeting is in three days. Give Technus access to the thread he’ll delete everything needed,” Tucker promised as the two said their good byes.

“Man being ghost is hard,” Danny grumbled, walking into his next class and slumping in his desk. Maybe one day he’ll tell his new friends, but it isn’t worth the possible backlash right now.

[hiding-in-my-blanket-fort]

.

Just doing a brain dump to get it off my mind. And to make sure I talk about it, rather than bottling it up.

Since I'm reading a stack of toxic family self help books, I've been re-evaluating the way I perceive myself, my self belief system, etc. I was an anxious, shy, introverted kid. I also suspect neurodivergence plays a big role as well.

So, I had trouble socializing. I was often thrown into a big group of kids with my loud, extroverted, boisterous brother and obviously people flocked to him. He was also the Golden Child so my mother told me to be more like him "because people liked him." The implication was loud and clear that they didn't like me.

She gave me conflicting messages that messed with my head. On one hand, she said, "When you're quiet, people think you're a bitch." (Gee! Thanks!)

On the other hand, whenever I expressed frustration at my lack of friends or social belonging, she said, "What do you have to complain about? Everyone loves you!"

That just made me confused. Did people actually like me? Was I not giving myself enough credit? What was I not seeing here?

But looking back, I realize that I was right. I did not have social belonging or acceptance of any kind.

I had one long term friend. She moved away and we were pen pals for 10 years. But she loved to drop little hints and comments to put me down, i.e. when she repeatedly brought up how she was having literary analysis chats with her college friends about Twilight. "You wouldn't understand. This is what you talk about in college." I went to college a year or two later.

One time, she described our friendship as Frodo and Sam. Which would have been an honor if she'd just stopped there. But she described herself as Frodo because she was "the hero of the friendship, going on adventures". Meanwhile, she dubbed me as Sam, "the sidekick who stays home and bakes pies, being domestic" (I have multiple severe food intolerances so I have to cook a lot of my own food, but she didn't know how to cook, like it was beneath her because she was An Academic Scholar).

It was kinda...gut wrenching tbh. Sam fucking carried Frodo up that mountain. But she did not describe me that way.

My other "friends" never showed interest in what I was interested in. They pushed their interests all the time, but when I shared what I was excited about, I was met with bored expressions or dismissive comments. I read their favorite books and watched their favorite movies, but they didn't give a damn about my favorite anything.

And I'm not saying I did it expecting reciprocity. But there has to be a balance. I talked myself out of expecting any return interest. I was supposed to just pour myself into them, again and again, because it was "selfish" to expect anyone to be interested in me.

And then I wondered why I felt so empty. If you're spending all the time on them, and they can't be bothered with you in return, something isn't right.

In group settings, it's almost physically painful and I struggle to just stay afloat. There's too much happening, I'm overwhelmed by all the social cues flying around, I never know when I can talk, and it's taking so much energy that it's killing me but I can't even meet the bare minimum.

I have a vivid memory of sitting in a group and interjecting a comment about art. The loudest asshole guy in the group who had been commandeering the whole chat said, "Well, there goes the INTERESTING conversation we were having!" And it hurt so fucking much because it takes a lot for me to speak up, especially when it comes to something I care about.

I was even rescued from a group once. It was a teen outing and everyone was really rowdy and loud, practically climbing all over my brother. I sat at the far end of the table feeling invisible. One of the chaperones tapped me on the shoulder and suggested we visit the art gallery next door, saying that she knew what it was like to be stuck in a situation like that.

It was very kind of her to do that, but it's also just...fucking sad.

A few years ago, I thought I was making friends with two girls I worked with. But they both had big friend groups already. And I swear they could smell my lack of friends on me or something. It was so casual for them to have group chats, order food for each other, plan a movie outing, swap phone numbers. They didn't have to think about it because it was natural and well practiced to them.

I've never done that. It's foreign to me.

I worked with one "friend" to celebrate the other "friend's" birthday. We made a poster, cards, balloons, gifts, etc in the middle of Covid. She didn't say anything to me, but she profusely thanked the other friend. It really felt...deflating. Around me, she acted like nothing happened.

I drew a portrait of a friend's 14yo dog who had passed away (it wasn't a shitty drawing either, I've exhibited art in Yellowstone and Cape Cod). I kept asking her if it showed up, again and again. She said no, it hadn't arrived. THREE MONTHS LATER, I practically begged her to go look at the post office. She picked it up, said, "Thanks!" and we never spoke again.

All of these instances have caused me pain I wasn't allowed to feel or admit to. If I did, my mother said I couldn't complain. "At least people are talking to you! You should be grateful!"

No. That's not how it works.

I am sharing part of myself here. I am expressing appreciation for a friend by making them meaningful gifts, showing interest in their lives, and it is not reciprocated.

That is fucking damaging.

I'm coming to the realization just how big of an impact these instances have had on my self belief. I really struggle to think of myself as a person worthy of...anything. I can't fathom someone showing interest in me in any way because...of this. Because this is my history.

It doesn't have to be my future. I can learn to cultivate better friendships. I can learn that walking away is better than forcing a relationship that is going to cut me down and think less of myself.

But first, I need to recognize that I've had a shitty history and I need to accept that it wasn't fair.

I also need to learn - somehow - that just because people in my past didn't give a shit about me doesn't make me a boring person. Just because they couldn't value me doesn't mean I'm not valuable.

It's hard to type that. And I can't really get myself to believe it yet. But I'll work on it.

[stillebesat]

Be My Dad

Sanders Sides: Janus, Logan  A Vague AU Writing Prompt: @wildhorsewolf​ asked: Guess I'm a parent now with Janus being the dad and Logan being the kid Blurb: Janus has no interest in being a parental figure to a kid, but trying to convince the universe of that is another thing entirely.  Fic Type: Familial Soulmate!AU Overall Fic Warnings: Mentions of Scars  Taglist in Reblog.

To most souls, a food court was a necessary evil. Loud. Lots of people. But plenty of food options all together in one place. Perfect for those who liked a variety of choices or those who had picky eaters in tow.

It was a place to meet up with friends, family, or business associates. A place where one could sit back and observe society at work. To see people at their best...and most definitely at their worst. 

There was something soothing about the chaos that Janus enjoyed...as a spectator. He could never imagine being right in the middle of it.

Not unless he was doing what he was doing right now. Trying to hide in plain sight in the middle of a crowd.

After all. He was thirty now. Single. Childless.

Obviously a menace to society in a universe that seemed obsessed with everyone being part of a ‘family.’ 

A Universe that had decreed that all adults who remained childless by the age of thirty, would then be subjected to being bombarded with children in need of a proper parent figure to bond with in their lives.

He exhaled, absently brushing against the raised scar on his cheek, barely looking up as a child burst out wailing nearby.

He’d checked earlier. That particular wailer hadn’t had the golden sparks. It meant he was safe. 

For now.

He ran a hand through his hair, flipping another page in his notebook before he continued scrawling on the page. Maybe Virgil had actually been onto something when he said he was vanishing into the wilderness of Europe for the rest of his life. 

Sure, Janus had laughed six months ago when his best friend had turned thirty and begun complaining about all the kids coming out of the woodwork to ask him to be their Dad.

It’d seemed impossible at the time. To have children want to come up to Mr. Shadows Incarnate and expect Virgil to put them to bed and tell a bedtime story.

Now though, he understood why Vee had become more reluctant to leave his house as the year had worn on. Because the mini spawns really had come out of nowhere once his own thirtieth birthday hit. 

And it was awful. 

Wherever he went, it was inevitable that some child would approach him, shimmering golden sparks floating around them indicating that they were looking for a Parent Bond. 

It was also as inevitable that he would scare them away just as quickly. 

After all, his halfmoon scar and creepy yellow eyes had caused plenty of kids to scream and run with a single look years before his thirtieth birthday. 

No, at least Virgil had a bit of that shy emo charm that made him more approachable, even if the merest appearance of anyone under four feet had his best friend going pale as a corpse and ducking out before the kid could take more than two steps towards him.

Privately he was certain Virgil would find a kid perfect for him before the year was out, despite his best friend’s attempt to avoid the inevitable.

He knew Virge would make a good dad. Compassionate. Protective. His best friend had a dozen other traits that would benefit him when the right child flared with him. 

Unlike Janus.

Who could make a grown man cry with less than four words and a glower.  

No. He couldn’t imagine having any child coming to him in the middle of the night expecting comfort. 

He knew he was intimidating.

He knew he could be scary.

It wouldn’t be fair to subject a child to that on a daily basis.

Honestly, it felt like a slap to the face that no matter how much he achieved, how many degrees he got, or businesses he owned, or careers he pursued, or money he made…

The universe felt that one couldn’t be complete unless said person also had a screaming, slobbering, dirty child in tow.

Janus ran a hand through his hair, again brushing the crescent scar on his cheek as he looked up long enough to watch a cluster of mothers with their dozen and a half children in strollers rush by, seeking salvation at the nearest set of golden arches with at least four of the kids already screaming for their happy meal toy. 

Even if he did make a connection with any kid brave enough to approach him...Janus could never imagine trying to coerce a screaming brat into eating their chicken nuggets all by himself. Could never stand to walk around with food, slobber or worse, vomit stains on his best suits like a badge of honor. Could never be patient enough to listen to the long and rambling and pointless stories he’d heard multiple parents suffer through while observing them here in the food court.

No. There was no way Janus would allow the universe a say in how he ran these next five years of his life.

He had goals.

Life plans.

And he didn’t need some interfering Being with an obviously unhealthy parent complex ruining that.

The scrapping of a chair being pulled back broke through the gentle hum the noise the chaos of the food court had receded to, causing Janus to look up from his paper in time to see a boy, wearing a faded black long sleeved shirt with matching glasses and thankfully older than the screaming toddler throwing french fries six tables over, plop down in the seat across from him.

A child. With golden sparks shimmering in the air around him. 

Oh goodie.

Janus barely stopped himself from rolling his eyes. And here he’d thought that the fact that he’d caused a pair of twin girls, a baby, three boys, six preteens, and four other children under the age of five to scream in terror and/or burst into tears before the lunch rush had even started would have been enough for the universe to call it quits for the day on attempting a Parent Bond.

“I have a prospersition for you.” The boy said, making eye contact. Janus blinked, pen pausing mid stroke as he raised an eyebrow to the child. Prosper...prosper? Oh. “A prop-osition?” He asked, careful to pronounce the word correctly. 

The boy nodded once, pushing his glasses back up his nose. “Prop-osition” he repeated, saying it properly this time. “Will you listen to it? Please?” 

Oh, now there was a please? The kid hadn’t even said hello. Janus exhaled, running a hand through his hair, again fingering the raised scar on his cheek, eyes darting about without much hope for any sign of a frantic adult looking for their wayward offspring as he sat back, tapping his pen on the table. “I’m busy.”  

The boy’s eyes flashed. “No you’re not.”

Janus scoffed, gesturing to his papers. “I assure you that I a--”

“Are doing what you do every Friday. You’re not busy. You just sit here. All day. Reading. Writing.”  

Observant. Janus frowned, again glancing around for a guardian figure. He didn’t think children thought much beyond eating, sleeping, and playing with their peers. “That is considered being busy by most people, I don’t have time to tal--”  

The boy shifted to his knees, the golden sparks dancing around him as he carefully placed eight quarters on the table before pushing the pile over to him. “For your time.” He said, looking up to meet Jansus’s eyes once more.

Clever. Not quite the amount he usually took for a consultation, but he doubted a child could come up with that much cash. Still. It was the first time one of these golden sparked spawns of the devil decided to pay him instead of screaming bloody murder. 

Janus exhaled, laying down his pen, sitting up as he clasped his fingers together, resting his chin on them. “I’m listening.” Though he doubted anything good would come from this proposition. He could already predict the direction this would go.

The boy relaxed, though he stayed half kneeling on his chair. “I need you,” his mouth twisted slightly, grey eyes glittering. “to pretend to be my Father.” 

Father? Ha. Called it. “No.”

Golden sparks flared as the boy lifted his chin. “You didn’t even ask ‘Why.’”

He smirked, ignoring the sinking feeling in his stomach as he pushed the coins back. “I don’t need to.” It was obvious why the kid wanted to play pretend. After all, the sparks surrounding him were only visible to those like Janus. Single. Between the age of thirty and thirty-five. Childless. If the kid needed a fake dad...well this wasn’t his first rodeo with the concept. “You either need protection from some bullies, which--” He gestured to himself. “You think I look scary enough to intimidate them.” Though not scary enough to keep the kid from bugging him in the first place. “Or else you have lied to your friends about who your Dad is or what he does and so--”

“You’re wrong.”   

Janus cut off, tilting his head. “Am I?” He was certain he wasn’t. 

“You are.” The boy kept eye contact, grey blue eyes hard as stone. 

It would be an intimidating gaze once he grew older, Janus was sure. “Enlighten me.”

The boy pushed the coins back across the table. “The Aquarium is having a Father/Son day today. I want to go.” 

Not what he meant by enlighten, but he’d humor the kid. “So?”

The boy rolled his eyes, shifting to his knees so he could better rest his arms on the table. “I can’t exactly partisiis--partissee--par--” 

“Participate?”

He nodded. “I can’t exactly participate if I go by myself, dummy.”

Dummy? Who just helped the kid pronounce ‘participate?’ 

Janus shoved the quarters back to the boy before picking up his pen, tapping it against the table. He could see the kid’s problem though. It made sense why the aquarium wouldn’t want to let hordes of little demon spawn run around tapping on the glass, licking the floors, and breaking things unsupervised. “I’m not spending fifty dollars to play your Dad, kid, just so you can look at some fish.” 

A pet store would work just as well and wouldn’t cost a dime. If he was willing to go along with this.

Which he wasn’t.

He didn’t even like fish. Not since that stupid childhood fishing accident that had given him the lovely scar on his face in the first place.

No way would he willingly go along with some brat to a place filled to the brim with the creatures.

Despite how brilliant of a scheme it was. One Janus would have used himself though under different circumstances. 

Though he supposed, if he felt like admitting it, which he didn’t, but he still---it….hurt in a way, that the kid, even having the sparks, just wanted to use him to get in to see some boring fish instead of trying out a real Trial with him to see if they had any sort of parental bond. 

It was a stupid feeling. 

He should be used to being used. 

The boy adjusted his frames, barely blinking as he shoved the quarters back across the table, staring Janus down. “Adults get in for only ten dollars today. Kids get in free. If.” He emphasized the word. “Their Father brings them.” He shifted in his seat, pulling out a twenty and slid it across the table. “For your ticket.” He said simply, eyes flashing. “I’m only asking for your time. I don’t want to go on a Trial with you. I don’t need or want a Dad. I just need an adult with the time on his hands to pretend to be one and let me esplore the place for two measlely hours.”

Double ouch. At least some kids attempted to do an actual Trial Run with him to see if their sparks would Flare before being so blunt in telling him he wouldn’t be their Dad. 

Janus frowned, already shaking his head. “Kid, I don’t--” 

The boy pulled out another twenty, placing it on the table. “Two hours.” He said simply.  

“You don’t even know me--” Sure, he knew the boy knew he was in the Trial stage of life since the stupid floating sparks thing, even if he couldn’t see his own, went both ways. But that didn’t mean that he should just shove--

The boy placed a third twenty on the table. 

Janus exhaled, running a hand through his hair, again fingering his scar as he glared at the child. “You’re seriously bribing me? Where did you even get that much cash?” Hopefully it wasn’t stolen, but he’d applaud the boy for being so prolific in his thievery. 

“Not important.” The boy stated, pulling out a fourth twenty without breaking eye contact. 

Why was he being so persistent?! Any other child would have run away by now. 

“Why me?” He demanded, leaning forward, sneering in a way he knew made his eyes look even more creepy. “Why not bribe some other--”

The boy hesitated, a fifth twenty already in his fingers as his steely gazed wavered. “If I tell you why, will you go with me to the Aquarium?” 

That was hardly a fair exchange. The answer could be super simple and he’d be stuck with the kid for two hours. “I’m going to stick with my ‘I’m scary theory,’” Janus said instead, gesturing to his face. That was the usual reason kids gave in most circumstances. 

The boy frowned, lifting his chin. “I can be scary enough on my own without your help.” He said shoving the sleeve of his shirt up, revealing an angry red corded scar that wrapped around his arm from wrist to shoulder. “We match, kinda. Your scar looks similar. Makes it easier to pretend that you’re my Dad. That we were in the same accident.” He pushed the pile of money towards him. “And if anyone suspects you aren’t my birth father, then the sparks will show them that we’re on a Trial and that our scars mean we’re meant to be.” 

Meant to be. 

It took a lot of effort to not touch the crescent mark on his cheek. To ignore the fluttering in his chest at those words.

They’re just pretty little lies. 

Sure, there were ongoing theories that families all shared a similar trait that marked them. Whether that was having a mole on the same part of their stomach, sharing a taste in mustard, having an allergy to hay, hair having the same cowlick, or having similar looking scars--Janus kept his hands firmly on the table as he pulled his eyes back up to meet the kids. 

It was hearsay though. Nothing had ever been proven. Not when the sparks flaring between parent and child was a far more accurate indicator that they were meant to be a family. 

No, he highly doubted anyone would Flare with him during this five year tortrue period. Not even this kid despite the sparks dancing between them. 

Janus took a steadying breath. It was fine. He didn’t need a family. Not even a pretend one for two hours. He was better off alone now that Virgil had harred off to who knew where. “How long do I have to wait before you run out of twenties and give up?” He said, keeping his voice cool. “Because I’m not taking your bribe, kid, regardless of the amount. You’d be better off hiring a nanny or something.” 

Though he was curious just how much the boy thought it would take to convince him to go along with this farce. 

The kid made a face. “I don’t want to be coddled the entire time.” He snapped, the fifth twenty vanishing as he shoved his sleeve down. “All anyone ever does is treat me like I’m breakable since--” he gestured to his arm, the scars once more hidden. “And I’m sick of it. You look like you’d happily let me fall off a bridge if I wasn’t careful and I just...I just--” He shook his head. “I need to not be cared about for a bit.” 

Let him fall off a bridge? Ouch. Janus focused on relaxing his clenched hands, one finger at a time. “So you have a death wish? I’m not gonna be complacent to--”

The boy growled, slamming his hands on the table, steel grey eyes hardening even as they shimmered with unshed tears. “No. I just want to look at the fish.” He hissed. “I want to esplore. Learn. SEE. Without having a grown-up hovering over me like I’m freaking china. All you would have to do is stay near enough to keep any other metaling adults away. That’s all I want. For two hours. To be treated like a normal kid.” His hand clenched as he took a breath, bottom lip trembling. “I thought you of all people would understand that.” He whispered, eyes flickering to the scar and back.

It took a lot of effort to not touch his face. To maintain eye contact. 

Sure.

He understood. 

Janus had wasted years chasing that particular dream throughout high school and well into his first couple of years at college. 

It had all been for nothing. 

People judged the book by the cover. Few ever took the time to look deeper. 

And it sucked that Janus was being forced to reckon with the fact that if he didn’t go with this kid and pretend to be his Dad, he’d be like every other adult unwilling to give the boy a chance to be ‘normal.’  

…Great. Just. Great.  

He’d just been guilted into spending two hours looking at the fish. 

Janus broke eye contact, cursing under his breath as he shoved his papers into his book bag and stood, grabbing his jacket and hat off the chair. 

Maybe he should follow Virgil’s lead and disappear into the wilderness for the next four and a half years if the kids were going to start pulling this type of act on him. 

“You got a name, kid?” He asked, fishing out a single twenty from the stack before shoving the pile back at the boy. Enough for the ticket. That’s it. 

The boy caught his breath, eyes going wide. “You mean--”

How could eyes hard as steel one second go so soft like freshly fallen ash the next?

You know what. He didn’t want to know. If the kid knew how to do puppy dog eyes, then he knew how. That was that, but after today Janus would not be falling for them again.

“Name.” He repeated, impatiently gesturing for the boy to follow him as he tugged his hat down over his eyes. “Else I’ll make one up and I guarantee you will not like it.” 

The boy was by his side in a flash, golden sparks swirling. “Logan.” He said, adjusting his glasses with a small smile. “My name is Logan.”

[ahockeywrites]

Is that a drawing of me?

You sighed. Your professor set you an assignment to draw something that makes you smile. His suggestions included a pet, a sport or a loved one. Naturally, the first thing that came to your head was your boyfriend, the resident pest of Calgary, Matthew Tkachuk. The only problem you had, is that drawing faces was your weakness when it came to your artwork. It wasn’t that you couldn’t draw faces, if it was a life or death situation, yes, you could draw a face. However, when compared to your nature drawings, they were second best.

“So, are we gonna get a drawing of Mr Hockey hotshot this time?” your friend Anna asked. You looked at her with a look only she could read. Realistically, the answer should have easily been yes, but your worry of making him look bad was heightening your anxiety.

“It’s an idea, but you know how I was in our portraits module. How can I do the man I love justice when I can barely draw someone with straight hair,” you said as you slumped into the chair in the small coffee shop. “His curls will be the death of me.” Taking a small sip of your coffee, you noticed a text from the devil himself.

Matty: Hey baby, just wanted to let you know I’m back from practice now! Let me know what you want to do for dinner :) x

You: Urm… I’m good for anything? Something quick bc I’ve got college work to do x

Anna could tell that you were talking to Matt, solely by the way that your face lit up whenever you two spoke. “But, who or what else would you draw?  I mean, I’m planning on doing my family by the lake back home, if that helps?” Anna offered. You knew she was just trying to help, but you had to draw Matthew. You had skirted around it before but you had decided.

“I’m gonna draw him, but hopefully not too well,” you said, “I can’t inflate his ego any more. I think Brady and Taryn would want words with me.” The two of you giggled, knowing that anything that made him look too good in his eyes would just make his head grow 20 sizes.

“Yes my love!!” Anna exclaimed, “shall we stop by the art store before art history?”

“I think I’m gonna need to,” you explained, “I need some new canvases and a lot of red pencils if he’s gonna be in Calgary gear.”

The two of you left the coffee shop for the nearby warehouse full of art supplies. It was just off campus and offered a generous student discount to almost anyone. You wandered down by the canvases, trying to figure out which size would be right for your latest piece. Too small and the picture would look cramped, too large and the image could look out of proportion. Eventually, you settled on a relatively large one and by this time had picked up some very Calgary appropriate red and black pencils. You also spotted a scrapbook that looked perfect to start filling with photos of you and Matthew.

Scrapbooking was something you had always wanted to get into, but it never came up in your studies and you always thought that you should practice line art or painting. But with your second anniversary coming up, it was something you could do in your downtime to relax but also create something beautiful. All you had to do was get a few rolls of washi tape and some photo corners. Everything else, if you had forgotten it, could easily be ordered later.

2 hours and $150 later, you exited the store with Anna and headed to your final lecture of the day. Now, just because you enjoyed both art and history did not mean that you enjoyed the combination of the two. Especially when the professor decided that it would be fun to set a 2000 word essay on the Renaissance period. “I cannot wait for this day to be over,” Anna spoke aimlessly.

“Honestly, same, hopefully Matt has got some food ready for when I’m back,” you hoped, no, prayed to someone above that he had actually made something and hadn’t burnt down your apartment. “I’m gonna head off now, but text me updates of your portrait?” you asked Anna. She nodded and you started your short walk from campus to the apartment.

15 minutes later, you arrived home and tumbled through the door. The smell of something baked filled your nostrils. “Matty baby?” you called out, hoping he would hear you and give you a hand with all the supplies you had bought.

“Y/N!” he called, coming to the hallway. “Need a hand?” he asked, but the two of you knew it was rhetorical. You let out a small giggle and gave him two of the bags you had filled to the brim with scrapbooking items. Now, you could have hidden them from him, but it was likely that he wouldn’t even know what they were so you were safe. The two of you moved in sync to the office of the apartment which very quickly had become your own personal studio with an easel and multiple chests of drawers with the most random supplies in them.

“Just pop them down anywhere, I have a drawing I want to start tonight along with an essay,” you complained.

“Don’t you worry, I have wine and lasagne,” Matthew sang. You audibly groaned at the sound of food, all you wanted was a warm meal and to relax. At least you’d be able to get one of them tonight.

You two sat down at the island that graced the kitchen of the apartment. Matthew had set the table and even put a few candles out, “I thought you could do with an hour or so of doing nothing,” he spoke as he went to grab your hand. He rubbed soft circles over your knuckles as you picked up your wine glass with your other hand.

As you took your first bite of the lasagne, you sent your boyfriend a wink. Lasagne was one of the few things he could cook and not mess up and he knew that. “I am so glad that I have a small amount of time before I start my drawing tonight,” you explained.

“What are you drawing?” Matt asked as he lifted his wine glass to his lips.

“That is something I would rather not share just now, but you’ll find out later,” you winked. You were never particularly secretive when it came to your artwork so he was slightly confused but he went along with it. Maybe, he thought, it was going to be a gift for someone and you didn’t want him to spoil the surprise.

The two of you continued to chat over dinner, talking about practice and how boring your lectures were. The boy sitting across from you never failed to make you laugh and you knew that you couldn’t draw anyone else other than him. As he was talking, you allowed yourself to take in his features and you tried to think of the best way to draw them. “If you’re done staring, I’m gonna sort the dishes out,” Matt laughed. You hadn’t even realised you were looking so intently at him. “I know I’m beautiful,” he got out before you tried to tackle him to the ground, however, your strength was nothing compared to his.

“I think this means it’s time for me to go and get started with my assignment,” you giggled from underneath him. “Come grab me if I’m still working and should be asleep, yeah?” you asked. He nodded and let you head to the office.

Once seated in the office, you pulled out your laptop and google searched Matt’s name, hoping some good images of him came up. Or at least, some that you could try to emulate. You found one of him smiling and celebrating a goal and thought that would be perfect. It also meant that the majority of his curls were underneath a helmet so wouldn’t have to worry.

Grabbing the canvas you had specifically bought for this, you placed it on the easel. You began to sketch out the rough shape of a skater in the foreground. Then, you moved onto the face. You thought if you did the face early on, you could fix any mistakes with it once the rest of the image was done. Starting with the eyes, then the nose and mouth, this wasn’t going as badly as you thought it might have gone. But then, the dreaded curls were staring at you from underneath the helmet. Sighing, you knew that if you didn’t start them now, they would never be done and a bald Matthew was something you never wanted to see.

A knock on the office door startled you, “baby, it’s almost midnight. You have an 8am lecture tomorrow and don’t want you to be late,” Matt said in a soft voice.

“Yeah, just gimme a few minutes,” you replied. By this time you had moved onto the logo on his shirt and if anyone saw, it would be incredibly obvious who you were drawing. Curly hair, Calgary Flames player, number 19, with an A on his chest. You were so engrossed in the drawing, you hadn’t noticed Matthew open the door and walk to be behind you.

“Is that a drawing of me?” he asked. You jumped out of your skin and he had to put his hand on your shoulder to stable you. You meekly nodded and looked up to him. “It’s amazing,” he said as he took in the drawing. Suddenly, he put two and two together, “this is why you wouldn’t tell me what you were doing, eh?”

“Maybe,” you said softly, trying to hide yourself in his chest. “Didn’t want to inflate your ego anymore.”

“Baby, if every drawing you do of me is this good,” he said as he pressed his forehead to yours, “my family better make an entire room back in St. Louis for my ego.” You slowly pressed your lips to his as a sign of appreciation.

“I take it you like it then?”

“Like is the wrong word, I love it. I also can’t wait to send a picture of this to the family group chat to get their thoughts,” he laughed.

“Well, as long as your mom doesn’t want me to do another one, I think I’ll be okay,” you said as you kissed him again.

[thedevildomdaily]

Demonic Possessions Ch 9: Love Advice & Interior Design

Note: Here’s the Master List for the full story. I recommend reading my stuff on my actual Blog if you enjoy OM! official music! Thank you so much for the support. Please let me hear from you in the comment section. I wanna talk OM!

I decided to make this chapter with more light banter and fun interactions and give the nephilim brothers some attention.

Warnings: Swearing, NSFW implied, light stuff this time ********************************

A couple weeks had passed. Construction on the attic was nearly complete. Lucifer and Azriel had negotiated a schedule in which the nephilim brothers would work on the attic bedroom for their sister. This helped avoid chaotic mornings, at least where the nephilim were concerned.

The overall mood of The House of Lamentation had shifted from the unease of having a new occupant amongst the Brothers and Lilly, to an odd sense of which the brothers had never experienced before. A shift in their dynamic as a family twisted due to a certain blossoming relationship.

Leviathan had become more outgoing and less reluctant in participating in events. He was more welcoming of everyone hanging around his room as well and his mood was less-likely to sour thanks to Lena. His brothers were happy for him, but it was an unusual experience for them as well. It was hard to ever find the two of them apart from each other.

“Thank you for doing my nails Asmo!” Lena chimed, “Your skills are amazing!”

Asmo grinned with brimming confidence, “Of course they are Leee-na. I’m an absolute master with nail art.”

“He’s also the best hair stylist.” Lilly chimed.

Asmodeus’s room had transformed into a spa for the two female residents and himself. The human was laying on his bed with a face mask and cucumbers over her eyes as her toe nails dried. Her hair was in a towel and she was completely relaxed as she sipped on her mimosa.

The nephilim had a peel on her face as she sat in a lavish chair while the demon painted a cute black cat on her accent nail. She too had her fill of mimosas as they relaxed from a week of cramming for a chapter test in alchemy. The math involved was exhausting, but she’d probably do well enough.

“Your brother is almost as bad as my old man when it comes to studying. I’m doing my best to be civil about it, but it’s getting on my nerves…”

Asmo gave a dramatic sigh, “If you think he’s bad now, wait until midterms. It’s a boot camp nightmare.” He then exchanged looks with Lilly as she peeked at them from her cucumber. He was underselling Lucifer’s regime.

“You know….” Asmo began with a sly voice, “I’m surprised Levi isn’t in here to get his nails painted…” Lena knew he was just baiting her at the mention of his brother. He wanted to open a dialogue to gossip about their relationship.

Shrugging, “I offered an invitation but Levi’s nails are still great from the last time you painted them. He’s also really engaged in a super hard game. The last time I saw him, Beel and Belphie were watching him battle a boss. It was getting intense in there…” It was also extremely cute, she thought.

“I’m just saying, given the fact that he’s the Avatar of Envy, I figured Levi to be a little more possessive and be following you around a lot more.” his younger brother admitted.

“Not gonna lie…” Lilly added, “I kinda anticipated that myself.” The brothers were all very possessive and it was easy to picture any one of them being like that. Well, Lucifer excluded. He was too damn cocky to believe anyone would stray from him ever.

Lena thought about it for a moment, ‘Well, I took your collective advice and talked directly with him when we went on that first date. I laid it all out for him: I’m not being held down to any single relationship. And in a kinder manner, that I basically don’t want to deal with jealousy. I’ve given up on monogamy….” he chuckled for a moment, “He actually compared me to you Asmo, and then asked if I wanted to start a reverse harem...and ya know what, I kinda like that idea haha!”

The other two blinked for a moment and joined in the laughter. “Pffft, that’s definitely a Levi-type of conclusion…” Lilly chuckled. She peeled the cucumbers off and ate them as she sat up. “It looks like you guys reached an amicable agreement then?”

The nephilim looked upward, clearly thinking about it for a moment. “We have. He agreed to an open relationship and to not be overly clingy with me. It’s beneficial to the both of u-”

“BOTH!?” Asmodeus interrupted, “Please explain!!?! Has my big, nerdy brother been hiding some secret affairs over these past few centuries?!” Why would it benefit the both of them, when only one of them has even been in multiple relationships?

“Oh, it’s quite simple really,” Lena chuckled, “His 2D waifus. I won’t ever complain about them or come between him and his fandom and I can have relationships with others as well. Besides, we’re immortal beings...forever is a realistic timeframe for us...why cling to each until we both become miserable? Monogamy hasn’t ever worked for any immortals I know...what about you?” Of course she was asking Asmo as he finished her last nail.

The demon shook his head as he released her hand and got his DDD ready to take pictures of his work for the gram. “Not that I’ve ever paid attention to it, I really can’t think of anyone...even angels drift apart and take loooooong breaks.”

“Well that’s a bit depressing….” Lilly mumbled.

“Oh, Lilly dear...don’t get depressed about it. It’s the beauty of humanity. You guys are far more capable of having a one, true love...not that you have to stick to it. It’s a valid option though.” She didn’t mean to depress the human. In her very long life, Lena had been in 100+ year relationships with various long-lived beings and it never seemed to work out. She was now trying this open relationship thing so that she didn’t feel tied-down or tired. She didn’t want anyone she was with to feel that way either.

“It’s all good. I was teasing for the most part.” Lilly smiled, “There’s only so many ways a person can spice things up and keep their relationship fresh; I’m sure an immortal couple could really struggle after a few centuries. It’s that case in my favorite vampire novel series anyways…”

Asmo didn’t comment on the matter. He couldn’t relate since he was loved by all and could charm anyone he wanted. He never for a moment considered a relationship because he could never love anyone more than himself.

“So, since you’ve found a way for things to work, have you guys……?” He smirked at the nephilim.

“ASMO!” Lily shouted. He merely chuckled.

“It’s none of your business…” Lena responded.

“That would be a solid ‘No’ then.” He quibbed. Lilly exchanged a look with him and nodded.

“Y’all are both horrible! It’s hard given he’s so reclusive and nervous. But also very cute….NO! I’m not talking with you guys about this, especially you Asmo. I’m not giving you any ammo to blackmail Levi…” She paused for a moment and contemplated, “I know he’s shy. But I also….”

“Also what?” Lilly blinked.

“I don’t know how to approach him. I’ve never been with a demon. Are you guys...very different for other beings?”

“Oh, you wanna see? Hmmmm?” Asmo teased. Or was he?

“Stop it!” Lilly smacked his shoulder lightly.

“Lena. You’re gonna have to make the first moves on Levi. Good news is there won’t be much effort you’d have to put into seducing him. It’s just finding the opportune moment when you’re feeling it.”

The girls both stared at Asmodeus for a moment.

“What? Is there something on my gorgeous face?” He immediately felt his pale, rosey cheeks.

“No, you’re just being surprisingly perceptive and giving profound advice on the matter.” Lilly said, “Lena should definitely wait until she feels right before taking the move. Like you said girl, you’ve got eternity. Take your time. Levi is a great guy and I know he’d never pressure you...”

Lena smiled and looked-up while thinking about him. “Yeah, he’s great. Special. I have so much fun with him. It’s nice to have someone interested in the same nerdy stuff as I am and not being picked-on about it 24/7.” Her last relationship went down like that. “When he blushes simply by me taking his hand, or how shocked he gets when I sneak behind him and wrap my arms around his waist...oooh... He’s too cute!!!!”

The nephilim squealed and shut her eyes hard thinking about her Levi-kun and the other two just laughed at her. Her responses to his cuteness just didn’t match her aesthetic at all and they found it hilarious to watch.

"Oh.." Lilly chimed in again, "They're 'normal' I guess."

Lena and Asmo blinked at the human for a moment.

"You asked if they were, ya know, compatible. I've had the horror of accidentally entering the men's bath when we went on a trip to a demonic hotspring before...I wanted to shove hot pokers in my eyes..." Lilly cringed.

"Oh, that's right! Lilly got to see me in all of my glory...jealous?" Asmo grinned.

The trio laughed and picked on each other all afternoon.

****************************

“Okay, we need a few more pieces of paneling. I want some nice filigree border work.” Azriel said to himself out loud as he took a step back to look at the progress made on his sister’s room.

Zak stood in the doorway, hands in his pockets, as he watched his brother pace across the room. “Hey bro. It’s looking good. You really outdid yourself this time.” His siblings were super artsy, creative types. He couldn’t keep up with them on that. Instead, the middle sibling put any creativity into vehicle design and engineering. “Let’s take a break and go to Hell’s Kitchen for lunch. Then when we get back, you can spot anything else we need to do….”

“You do have a point. Let’s eat and come back with a new perspective…”

**************************

The nephilim brothers went for lunch, meeting up with Beelzabub and Belphegor. The twins were in the back corner, where the owner often put them so they weren’t a distraction for the other customers.

Belphegor had his arms folded on the table, propping his head up as he watched Beel chow down on ten burgers.

“Hey guys, can we join you?” Zak asked when he approached the demons.

“Sh--rr” Beel nodded as he wadded another large bite of food. Zak could have sworn the demon’s jaw had unhinged to take such a huge bite.

Azriel took a seat next to Beel. The two of them were the same height, though Azriel was much thinner, with more of a swimmer’s body then a body-builder’s. Zak sat by a groggy Belphie. They too, were the same height but different build. Zak liked to work out when he wasn’t working on a new engine.

“You guys about to finish remodeling?” Belphie asked with a yawn at the end, “I’m curious what you’ve done to my old...space.” Was it a bedroom or a prison? He didn’t know quite how to label the attic Lucifer kept him in.

Azri gave a pleasant smile, “Yes. It’s all coming along smoothly. Lena will be thrilled with it. It’s a touch of old european with her beloved gothic asethetic. She might not like the light-colored flooring, but it makes the space look bigger…” he went off into deep thought for a moment. Then, he saw some green in the corner of his eye and smiled, “excuse me for a moment…”

“Sorry, I swear Azri has ADHD or something...don’t mind him. ‘Creative Genius’ at work 24/7” Zak chuckled and looked at the menu.

“S’okay.” Belphie nodded and closed his eyes for a moment. “Sounds like you’ve had a lot of things to do. It’s nice putting in that effort for your little sibling.”

The twins and Zaksalamel chatted and ate their lunch, nearly forgetting that the elder nephilim had even came to Hell’s Kitchen. When he finally returned, there was an empty plate left at his spot.

“You shouldn’t have ordered and left when sitting by Beel…” Belphegor responded after seeing the shocked expression on Azri’s face. “Your food didn’t stand a chance...and apparently the napkin…”

“S-sorry….” Beel scratched the back of his head.

After a moment of silence, Azriel sighed, “it’s okay. That one was definitely on me….”

Zak noticed his brother’s cheeks get a little rosy. His mind was elsewhere clearly. What was he up to. “Hey, Devildom to Azriel...where’d you disappear to?”

“Oh, forgive my rudeness..again.” He suddenly returned to the conversation. “I just happened to see someone I know and asked for their opinion about the flooring choice…”

“Mmmh-hmmm…” Zak’s eyes narrowed at his brother, knowing there was something else to it. Azriel’s voice tone was suspicious. He’d leave it alone for now.

“So, anyways, I made the right decision, and I think we will be finished with everything in 2 days.” Azri clapped his hands together, chipper with the apparent results of the consultation he’d just had. “Beel, if you’d like to make it up to me for eating my highly-anticipated lunch, could you help carry furniture upstairs? You must be very careful…Lena is going to flip out when she sees it!”

As the four of them returned to the House of Lamentation together, Beel and Belphie walked some space behind the nephilim.

“They sure seem to care a lot about their sister to spend so much time on this room. I don’t think it was that bad..” Belphegor said quietly.

‘True. But, we’d do the same thing for our sister too. And that means Lilly as well…” Beelzebub nodded.

Agreeing, Belphegor let out a small sigh. He wasn’t sure about his own opinion of Lena so far. They didn’t start off on the best of terms. No, he’d admit that he behaved like a brat that day. But he never had the opportunity to get to know her or to apologize for his overreaction. Maybe he’d help with the furniture too?

[moonflower-31]

Tender Kisses - Spencer Reid x Reader

Requested? No

Pairing: Spencer Reid x Reader

Warnings: None

Summary: The reader and Spencer had a great date planned. And you just cannot wait. That is, until you come down with the flu a couple days before. Que Spencer being the best boyfriend ever.

♡♡Also! I do requests! Any kind at all. Though right now I'm a little rusty at smut so... yeah. Send me an ask if you have an idea you wanna see me write♤♤

~~~~

Today was supposed to be great. You know, a date with the best boyfriend in the world and probably the best food. You see, you and your boyfriend, Spencer, were supposed to go on a date to the nearby fall festival. It was in your hometown and you hadn’t gone in years. So you wanted to go with him. Make it even more special for you. But no. Some asshole decided to sneeze on you and give you the damn flu. 

You rubbed your puffy eyes as soon as you finished sneezing. You sniffled pitifully and groaned. You shivered from your fever. The doctor had said you had a rarer strand but it was still treatable. But the thing was, it was gonna take about a week or more. So you were down for the count for a week or two. And you hadn’t seen Spencer for a week because of the previous case. Now you wouldn’t see him for even longer. 

You clutched at the blanket around you, shivering again. You couldn’t go out with Spencer today. If you got him sick, he’d never forgive you. Him and his germs. You also didn’t want him to get sick anyway. He had a job to do. He didn’t have the time for sick days. You, unfortunately, did. So here you were. 

You grabbed your phone from your nightstand and checked to see if Spencer had texted you. He sure had. 

Spence -Hey, are we still up for that ‘fall festival’ of yours? I thought you were going to be here ten minutes ago.  

You felt your heart ache with longing for you not to be sick. As if you could will the sickness away so you could spend the day with him. But no. Mother nature decided you were gonna have a weekend inside. 

(Y/N) -Hey, Sorry. Something came up. I can’t make it. I promise I’ll make it up to you. 

You sighed and set the phone down on your nightstand once again. You didn’t tell him you were sick. You loved him, more than anything. But with how you were feeling, you didn’t feel like being babied or told the statistics of the flu you’d searched up on your own in an attempt to maybe hope you had a strand that went away quickly. 

Just as you began to try and relax into your blanket cocoon, your phone buzzed on the nightstand. 

Spence -Is something wrong? I can come over. 

Curse him and his kindness. 

(Y/N) -Kinda. But don’t come over. I’ll be okay. You’ve got work. 

You felt a cough coming and pulled your phone away from your face. You then let out a long series of throat-rawing coughs. You rubbed your throat in pain, finding your phone had buzzed twice since you began coughing. 

Spence -If something is wrong I want to come over. 

Spence -I’m off today by the way. 

You rolled your eyes. He was so stubborn. Guess that just proved how devoted he was. 

(Y/N) -You don’t wanna come over, trust me. Trust me on this. 

You finally just set your phone on vibrate and laid down in your blankets, shivering like it was the coldest night of the year. You smiled to yourself as you imagined Spencer’s most-likely response to that thought: 

“Actually, the coldest night of the year is the shortest day of the 365 day pattern. It’s called the winter solstice and it’s been used in a multitude of religions as a passage of time or a surge in spiritual presence.”  

You snickered and shook your head slowly. You for sure missed him and his statistics, no matter how sick you were. You groaned in your uncomfortable state and rolled over to ignore whatever buzzing might continue to come from your phone. You loved him, sure. But he was stubborn. 

An hour or so later you heard a soft knock at your bedroom door. You groggily opened your eyes and saw in all his glory: Spencer Reid, with his arms crossed and a playful look on his face. 

“So this is why you didn’t want me over?” He asked, teasing you as he got down onto your eye level. 

“Nghhh… What do you think? I’m sick,” You sniffled, holding back a cough. “I’m germ-y,” You croak. “And I don’t wanna get you sick. You can’t afford sick days.” You remind him. He chuckles playfully and reaches over, pushing a strand of hair behind your ear. 

“I don’t care if you’re sick. You’re my girlfriend. If anyone has germs I want to be around, it’s you.” He teases, kissing your nose. You immediately turn your head to your elbow and sneeze, immediately rubbing your tired eyes. 

“What happened to my boyfriend and what did you do to him?” You asked softly. He laughed softly back, caressing your cheek. 

“He’s right here. And he’s going to take care of you, whether you like it or not.” He insists, giving you a playful look. You groan and shove him gently away, cuddling deeper into your blanket cocoon. 

“This is exactly what I knew you’d do. You’d take care of me instead of having a fun day out with Morgan or JJ.” You complain. “I don’t want you sick. All it took was one sneeze from a guy who didn’t even know he had it to get me sick.” You reason. “Imagine what a thousand sneezes from me will do to you?” You ask him, almost testing his germaphobia. 

Instead of the reasonable response of ‘Oh you’re right, I should probably go and leave you alone so I don’t get sick’ plus whatever statistic he found appropriate, he instead pressed a kiss to your lips. “Then I’ll take a thousand sneezes. Besides, Morgan is out with Garcia. JJ’s with her family. I-If I’m honest I’d like to be with mine.” He insists, making you blush heavily. 

“Spence…” You whine. 

“Don’t ‘Spence’ me. I’ll be right back. I’ll make you something to eat.” He promises before he stands up, kissing your head before he turns to head to your kitchen. You shook your head and smiled to yourself. 

He returned shortly after with a bowl of warm soup. He set it on your nightstand and pulled out a container of cough syrup and the bottle of medication I had left on the table after returning from the pharmacy. “You need to treat that cough along with your fever. These pills won’t do you much good if you don’t take them. Especially on an empty stomach.” He insists, pouring the exact amount of cough syrup into the measuring cup/lid. He lifted it up to your lips and indicated for you to open. You rolled your eyes again at his way of treating you like a child. However, you still opened up to let him pour the medicine into your mouth. 

It was extremely nasty. Which is why you preferred to just tough it out. Guess this is what you got for dating a guy so infatuated with statistics and facts. He knew what was best for you; even if you didn’t want it. You coughed and groaned at the taste, making him chuckle softly. You peeked open an eye and glared at him. He shook his head and sat on the bed beside you. “You still have these too. Ibuprofen, or acetaminophen is great at lowering fevers. So I added a few.” He explains as he puts a few pills in your hand. You groan at the brightly colored fever reducing pill in your hand along with the tylenol. You hated this part. You gave Spencer your best puppy dog-eyed look and slightly pouted your lower lip. Sure, you looked like a child. But you didn’t care. 

Spencer laughed at the look you gave him, picking up the cup of water he had managed to bring it as well. “You aren’t getting out of this, (Y/N/N).” He says heartily. You pouted fully, closing the pills into a fist and crossing your arms like a child in time-out for drawing on the walls. Spencer grinned at this, pressing a kiss under your ear. “Stop pouting or I’ll kiss that lip for you.” He teases, nipping at your ear playfully. You felt a small shiver run down your spine as you groaned. Why must he do that when you were sick? 

You huffed and took in a puff of air. You grabbed the glass of water, taking a swig before you put the pills in your mouth. You swallowed uncomfortably, almost coughing afterwards. You put the cup back into Spencer’s hand with a grumpy look. He smiled at you amused, an eyebrow raised the entire time. “There, happy?” 

Spencer grinned wider and wrapped an arm around you, pulling you closer as he whispered “Very.” 

You groan and try to shove him away. He instead just pulls you closer and presses multiple kisses to your cheek. “Stoppp…” You whine, a smile pulling at the corners of your lips. He smirked and pulled your head to lay against his chest. 

“No.” He persists, running a few fingers through your hair. You sigh, enjoying the tenderness of his fingers gently massaging your head through your hair. He hummed softly a tune you could only recognize as Bethoven’s Symphony number 9. Before you met Spencer, you wouldn’t have been able to differentiate one of Bethoven’s works from another other than a name you might’ve seen on youtube. Now you could tell just by the tone and rhythm. 

You closed your eyes and hummed along with him, forgetting a few parts that he helped you with. Thank god for his eidetic memory. Even in small moments, it helps. He kisses your head as he finishes with the tune, rubbing your shoulder through the blanket that hadn’t fallen from your left shoulder. Otherwise, you had no covering since the blanket had fallen and Spencer was warm. You whine softly as he moves, upsetting your comfy position. 

“You need to eat, you know.” he points out, having grabbed the bowl of soup he had brought in earlier. You didn’t feel like eating. Although your stomach growled in protest to that thought. You just didn’t feel up to it. But you ignored the feeling and turned enough for Spencer to spoon feed you. You never said you were a complete stubborn woman. 

Spencer smiled again as you let him lift the spoon to your lips. From the way he looked at you, you could tell it was his plan the whole time to spoon feed you. You swallowed the soup he helped you eat, humming at the warmth. You still didn't like being babied, but this felt nice. For some reason. 

"Why couldn't you just feed me while we were cuddling? That was comfy." You whined. He shook his head and chuckled, kissing your cheek instead as a response. 

You huffed when he didn't respond, taking a moment to take the new spoonful he had gathered in the metal spoon. "Spence…" you whined, only getting another playful chuckle in response. 

"You're only decreasing the probability that I give into what you want by begging." He informed. You pout again and let a small smile place itself on your lips. He grinned and kissed you gently. 

"Is my probability up now?" You ask, laughing a bit. He chuckled again, getting you another spoonful of soup. 

"Definitely." He says sarcastically. 

"No fair. And all I wanted was cuddles." 

"No you want to get out of eating." He rephrases your statement. You, knowing he was right, just took the spoon from him and shoved it in your mouth in protest. He let out a cackle of laughter, turning your head towards his face to press kisses on your cheeks. 

"You're too cute for your own good." He says with a sigh. You giggle in response and take out the spoon. Spencer takes this opportunity and grabs the spoon back from you faster than you could realize he was going for it. 

"Spencer!" You gasp in mock disbelief. He grinned again. You were surprised his face didn't hurt yet from smiling so much. You loved his smile, especially this cheeky one. But you didn't want him to know that right now. You were fake mad at him. For stealing a spoon. 

"What? I saw the chance and figured my probability of getting it back was more than 75%. So, naturally, I took it." He teases, poking your nose. You huffed and took the bowl from him gently and lifted it to your lips, sipping most of it. 

"There. No more soup." You huffed. But in the mix of your insistence to be stubborn, and your sick brain, you played right into his hands. He had wanted you to eat more, and you had. 

"Good. Now you can come here and cuddle with me." He says in a happy and teasing tone. You glare at him annoyedly and playfully. 

"Now you'll cuddle with me? Seriously?" You ask. He nods, pulling you close by your hand. 

"Cuddling, in it's more specific term has actually been proven to release oxytocin, which can help when you're sick to keep your symptoms from getting worse. They also have been proven to help with lessening pain with the distraction." He explains, petting your hair to help relax you. You hummed happily as he began to rattle off facts on cuddling. Anything that comes out of his mouth was something you wanted to hear. You just loved hearing his voice. Maybe there was some truth in the whole cuddling as a distraction concept. 

"Oh yeah?" You said semi-groggily. He smiled, kissing your forehead before speaking up again. 

"Yes, actually. It's proven to lessen stress and lower high blood pressures. The oxytocin released acts like pain blockers. It can help stop pain signals as well." He explains as he helped you to once again lay your head on his chest. 

"Sounds nice…" you reply tiredly. He smiled and adjusted you and him to lay near the head of the bed. 

"You know… it also helps with sleep. Lessening the presence of nightmares." He adds, knowing you were close to falling asleep. 

You mumbled a few words before they turned into incoherent mumbles. You curled up against his chest and clutched at his shirt. He couldn't help but admire how peaceful you looked. He didn't like seeing you upset in any form. Especially the one where you're sick. But he was glad to have been here for this one. 

He pet your hair gently again as he continued to hum. You were beautiful. Inside and out. And he was the lucky one to be able to see it all as much as he wanted. Especially this form of beauty: you curled up peacefully in his arms away from all the evil he faced every day. Though he couldn't keep it that way forever, although he would damn well try, he was going to protect you and hold you as close as your physical bodies would let you. And love you, more than the human brain was capable of comprehending. 

[echo-three-one]

Whatever It Takes : RELOADED

More safe house shenanigans as the gang looks for leads.

Table of Contents

Previous Chapter : My Damsel in Distress

Delayed Flight 

John 'Soap' MacTavish

Task Force 141 - Disbanded

Safehouse 110197, Brazil

Soap haven't slept like this for quite a long time. He almost felt guilty that he's peacefully sleeping all while the world was in chaos. 

Slowly got up after noticing that Alex and Ghost were still asleep beside him, they looked like they just slept and he didn't bother waking them up for breakfast. Another scan of the room indicated that everyone else is downstairs. 

John quickly tiptoed across the room and swung the door open. On the other side of the door was France who looked focused while carrying two mugs of coffee.

"Oh! You're up!" she said in surprise as her coffee mugs wobbled. John's quick reflex immediately caught her hands and held them tight until it stabilized.

"I'm sorry I surprised you. Are you okay?" he asked worriedly, a smirk escaped his face as he noticed a faint blush from the female's cheek.

"Yeah. I brought you coffee since the hot water was almost out and you were still asleep." she stammered, not making eye contact to him. Soap looked curious, where was the woman that confidently rejected him yesterday? 

"Aww. So you are concerned!" he mused, holding her hands tight, drawing the steaming coffee mug close to him.

"Not really. I just thought that you're the last one to drink some so the kettle would finally be empty. Don't get your hopes too high, MacTavish." she gently shoved him the mug and carefully stormed off. There she was, back on her guard.

"Well, thanks for the concern." He greeted as he stepped down the stairs while sipping his coffee and met with everyone in the living room.

"Aren't we supposed to do recon for Samantha?" He asked, addressing the leaders who were casually reading a newspaper.

"Negative." Jack said, not looking at the Scottish soldier.

"We still have fuel from Nikolai's plane but we can't waste in on suspicion alone. We have to get solid intel." Price added.

"So we're like chilling here. Doing nothing." He said.

"Not exactly nothing. Ghost might have a lead anytime soon. For now, why don't you run some errands. Maxine needs some things for us here." Price replied, eyes still focused on the paper.

"John?" Maxine peeked from the kitchen and both Price and Soap turned to her.

"I meant Price." she dismissed, making Soap turn away from embarrassment.

"Can I come with them instead of making a list?" she asked, Soap could see Roach behind her eyeing on the interaction. 

"Sure. You've got three bodyguards with you. Just make sure you're always with at least one of them." he muttered. Beside him, Jack stood up and placed the paper on the table. 

"All-righty then, I'll lead you to the town just this once. Next time out, you'll be on your own. It's quite a long walk. And you lad, dress less suspicious." he pointed to Soap's camo pants. Soap actually felt scared at Alex's former CO. His very being still intimidated the Scot.

"I'll be back in a minute." he mumbled and dashed upstairs while France walked by Maxine to the door.

~

"I know Price told us to wear civilian clothing but for some reason you still have the ability to stand out and raise suspicion." France announced as the small team of four exited the safe house en route to the nearby town.

"Is it the hair?" Soap quickly placed one of Price's bucket hats and flashed a grin at the two ladies behind him. "Happy now?" he asked.

"Aside from the fact that you're wearing a t-shirt too small for your size? Yep. When did you last buy clothes for yourself?" France replied sarcastically and asked. Maxine giggled as she walked beside her sister, something she started to accept and try to recall.

"You're just finding an excuse to look at me." He muttered as he dashed to catch up with Jack, who was peacefully enjoying the walk.

"I'm amazed as to how you two act like you're not soldiers right now. How do you do it?" Jack chuckled as he rolled his eyes to Soap's direction, trying not to laugh at the Scot. If he was being honest, the hat did him a worse job. It made his head look small and unproportional to his bulky build. He turned back to France and Maxine who were silently signaling him to keep quiet.

The road was quite long and Soap finally found a small puddle of water to look at how he looked. No wonder they were giggling. He looked like a teddy bear who had a small head.

He then shyly took off his hat and glanced back at the puddle. Maybe it was time for him to buy larger clothes.

"Yeah. Guess someone has to help me pick some clothes as well." he muttered, while France paced beside him and gave him an assuring smile.

"I could always help, John." she said cheerfully and their eyes met. John slowly felt the sincerity on her smile, his heart sped and he found himself inching his face closer to her.

"The town's almost there!" Alex yelled from the distance as the two broke their gazes toward each other and quickly caught up with the two.

Awkward silence. They walked together behind Jack and Maxine who were now discussing what Jack's interests were back in the day. Not that it mattered to John, as all his mind was thinking was this pretty lady walking beside him. He wanted to graze his hand against hers, just to feel her smooth touch, he wondered if she'd let him hold her.

But he insisted, France was more of a slow but steady kind of person. She pointed it out to him multiple times and if he really wanted them to work, he had to do it the old-fashioned way. Sure the kiss was sudden, but what they had back at the Gulag was something worth waiting for and kissing her anytime now would never feel the same as the first.

Jack and Maxine quickly split off toward the market while the two of them remained by the center of the plaza. John scratched his head as he stuttered to ask her where to go.

"So… um… where to?" He asked.

"Looks like they got some cool jackets over there! You think you look good on those?" She asked excitedly.

"What do you think?" He asked shyly.

"Hmmmm.. Maybe… I'm not quite sure." She replied. John expected the classic you'd-look-better-without-any joke but she's not that kind of girl, and he's digging it.

When they say time flies by when you're having fun, John resonated with the quote. They spent most of the time laughing over clothes whose designs didn't make much sense and ended up buying most of them. Despite all the things going on around the world, John felt normal when he's with her, something he hasn't felt in quite a while. He'd even imagined that they're actually boyfriend and girlfriend whenever people around look at them. He was happy. He could get used to this.

~

It was about lunch time when they returned to the Safe house, and the scenery inside was the most unexpected thing ever.

Price was sleeping by the couch, his whole head was covered by a newspaper which had "End' times" written as the headline. Ghost and Roach were fighting over a piece of broccoli on the table while Alex sat by the stairs, wearing a shirt with a huge whale printed on it, playing with a lighter, flicking it open then closing it back as he stared at the flames.

"So that's where Smokey went." Soap muttered.

"Smokey?" France asked.

"My lighter." Soap replied confidently.

"Really?" 

"Yep." he said, popping the 'P' as he unloaded most of the supplies to the kitchen.

"What happened here?" Jack asked, taking off his jacket, completely regretting wearing it in a tropical country.

"Roach ate my broccoli!" Ghost complained.

"Ghost ate my pie!" Roach complained back as Jack sighed and placed a palm on his face.

"We had pie?" Soap asked, his eyes beamed at the table, only to be disappointed that there was none.

"Technically it's a tart and it's supposed to be for Maxine." Ghost smiled shyly eyeing at Maxine.

"Well, it didn't have her name on it so I assumed…" Ghost replied.

"You don't have to assume! You should've asked!" he yelled.

Soap was amazed at the spectrum of the team, which ranged from very righteous and courageous warriors to actual toddlers. It made him happy that he joined this little group he could call family.

~

Another day had passed and they still had no leads. But Ghost looked like he was onto something as Soap found him with Price as they discussed matters that sounded serious. He just hoped it was a lead. He's starting to worry about Alex who was constantly moping around. With nothing to work on, all he could focus on was Samantha.

"Guess you liked playing with that lighter so much." Soap leaned by the door, looking concerned at his comrade.

"Hey man. How was the market." Alex asked, his tone was nonchalant, almost lifeless.

"Well, it was busy. Jack led us there because you were asleep all morning…"

"Yeah. I couldn't go there. We shared so many memories in that town. I just can't handle it at the moment." He frowned and tossed him the lighter which Soap caught immediately.

"Thanks for this. And if you ever need someone to talk to… We're here for you, pal." Soap said awkwardly. The term pal was very American and he thought it'd be appropriate.

"Thanks, pal." Alex chuckled and stood up. 

"Let's go get dinner." Alex added, his eyes were fueled with determination. And Soap was happy that he's taking small steps to recover.

Next Chapter : Lurking in the Shadows

Notification Squad my Beloved

@beemybee @smokeywhalee @enderio @samatedeansbroccoli @ricinbach @whimsywispsblog

[juji-han]

Mr. Hong

pairing | Joshua Hong x f!reader ft. mention of other Seventeen members

word count | 3.9k

genres | pride and prejudice au, fluff

summary | Knowing Mr. Hong was something you don’t think you could ever forget

warnings | crude language, but only a few times

"Mr. Hong!” 

“Mr. Hong!”

Having the misfortune of chasing after a twenty-four year old man was... well, unfortunate. He was stuck up, listening to only the voices he called his friends, and never waiting for anyone. Trying to control the man was the work of a mother and that’s what you were absolutely not. 

“Friend, the woman is calling, an ear in her direction wouldn’t hurt now would it?” Jeonghan called. You let out a small noise of agreement to his friend, your pride strong. Although you didn’t think you needed the help, you definitely did. 

“I cannot lend an ear friend, it’s simply impossible!” Joshua teased. He was moving around the common room, pacing with the intent of looking for something, without a care for you trying to grab his attention. 

“Please, Mr. Hong,” You pleaded, finally getting close enough to grab his shoulders and spin him around. “You’ve got to attend the ball with me, I’ve already told my mother we’re going!”

Upon hearing your full plead, his face morphs into an expression you cannot read. His eyes locked onto yours and his lips pursed with a new expression of wonder. 

“Why didn’t you tell me earlier? Honestly Ms. Y/N you’ve got to learn to speak up if you’re gonna be a resident around here.” He grins. He grabs your arms that were tightly gripped onto his body and connects hands. He lets out a giggle and looks around to his friends.

“Were you boys aware of the woman’s pleads? And I have the misfortune of calling you men partners.” 

Joshua walks away, his posture straight with years of practice in it. His two friends who’ve you only begun to unravel along with him follow behind, leaving an exhausted you behind in the common area wondering what the hell just happened. 

Exhaling air you didn’t even know you were holding, it dawned on you that Mr. Hong, a man who was eccentric and unfiltered in his words was going to meet your parents. 

Arriving at the ball was nerve-racking to say the least. You’re hands were sweaty, rubbing on the ribbon around your dress multiple times. Even to your parents you looked concerned, brows furrowed and eyes skittering around the foyer in hopes to find the 5′10 man that always wore a smile.

“Ms. Y/N,” You turned around quickly, meeting eyes with Mr. Hong. “Mrs. Mr., fine evening if I do say so myself. Your daughter invited me and oh-” 

Joshua’s hand shot out, eyes flicking back and forth between your mother and father, having forgotten to introduce himself first.

“Joshua Hong. That is my name, if-if you were wondering. Although if you weren’t I’ll take the burden of intruding your thoughts with such a name. Unless you’d want the burden, which would be odd but-” 

“Please Mr. Hong, I am truly honored you have decided to accompany my daughter. I thought she would never have a male who would take her without being embarrassed of her rude and blunt behavior!” Your mother raved. She fanned her face as she went on, completing her speech of your ‘wild child’ nature. 

Your face blushed redder than a local soldier uniform. "Mother! Isn’t burdening Mr. Hong about my personality more of a distaste than just announcing your comfort?”

You turned to Joshua grabbing his arm, linking you two together and pulling him into the main ballroom. 

“Do you dance Mr. Hong? Or should I have invited your friend, Mr. Chwe his name was?” You asked. He looked down at you and gave a small laugh. 

“You were running around me, calling my name for five minutes in hopes I’d say yes. Now here you are asking for my friend, perhaps your mother was right, maybe you are unkept.” Joshua spoke as he whisked you around so you were in front of him. 

“So you admit you kept me waiting in anticipation for your answer?” You pressed. Shrugging his shoulders and giving a smirk, you concluded your answer. 

“Come on,” He grabbed your hand. You had wondered if you were finally going to dance, but instead he led you out of the ballroom, going toward the balcony. “I’ve got to share information with you that is of most importance, and I have the plague of impatience my dear.”

Excusing many people that you and Joshua had bumped into, you two finally made your way to the balcony, empty with no decorations, a complete opposite to the inside. To whose mansion it was unknown, but the swan lake in front of your eyes was beautiful. You’d have to thank them one day.

Lost in your thoughts, you almost didn’t notice the way Joshua grabbed your hand, turning your head to his direction.

“You look quite beautiful tonight.” He spoke in a low voice. Although the balcony was empty of others and the great wooden doors were closed behind you, he spoke in a low tone.

“Is that all you had to rush to tell me Mr. Hong? Your ‘plague of impatience’ seems to have worn off.” You teased. “If you want such a compliment back, I’ll give it in return. You do also look of quite importance tonight.”

He clicks his tongue and gives a chuckle. Still looking at you, he reaches for the ribbon on your dress. Looking at it with a longing you couldn’t understand, he lets it fall out of his hand, the fabric falling into place slowly. 

“Where are your guest Mr. Hong? A man like you seems too lonely to travel around alone, am I wrong?”

Joshua’s eyes widen for a split second before they squint, a smile reaching his dark eyes, “I accompanied you tonight did I not?”

“You did.”

“So I am not lonely tonight. I even sneaked out and escaped my two guests you seem so keen on mentioning today.” He revealed. Your face held shock for a moment before hitting him on the shoulder giving a laugh.

“Mr. Hong, if they find out you’ve actually agreed to come here with me tonight, they might think me of a vile woman! A vile woman who has kidnapped a man of your rank to come down to the less fortunate! For a public ball!” You cried. 

“Nonsense Ms. Y/N. They would share my honor of having going to a ball with a beautiful woman. Besides, that’s not the importance I had to share. There was more, but I’m afraid I’m shy and not so open to sharing my true feelings,” He spoke.

“Is it bad?” You asked. In the two months of knowing Mr. Hong, he hasn’t shared any information that has made you worried for him personally. He was always positive, making sure to spread hope. 

“No. Well, perhaps if this goes wrong, I’d then have to assume the position of it being bad, however-” He got cut off, the wooden doors behind you two opening with eagerness. 

“Mr. Hong! Honestly, you are a grown man, just notify us when you are leaving! Is it necessary to make us have a chase?” Jeonghan scolded, Vernon walking next to him, stepping onto the balcony.

You bowed to the two men, acknowledging them and giving a polite smile. Joshua’s friends eyes widened before bowing back and switching back over to their run-away.

“We have to go.” Mr. Chwe spoke shortly, his face wearing a happy look. He took Joshua by the arm and walked him towards the doors. Whispering in his ear, Joshua nodded before facing you.

“I apologize Ms. Y/N, but this really does require my utmost attention. Not that you don’t also, but-” He was cut off once again with a tug on his arm by Jeonghan.

“My apologies.” He muttered. The three men left quickly, leaving you confused.

He’d tell you what was concerning him, now and before right? Or would he sweep it under the rug in hopes you’d let the situation go, your mind pondered.

Gasping, your face heated up in anger, “that bastard! Mother is gonna think I’ve driven him off.”

Two days ago, you got left by Mr. Hong and berated by your mother for running off a man of his handsomeness. Your mother who was so excited for you having bought a man that had potential to be your husband was still going on, complaining on how a woman of your beauty could chase a man off so quickly.

You sat at the table, eating slowly and ‘politely’ in hopes she didn’t point out another thing you did wrong.

“Dear, I’m sure she didn’t mean to. I saw the gentleman get pulled away by two other men.” Your father stuck up for you while reading the newspaper.

“Oh! Don’t you makes excuses for her,” she turned to you, sweat starting to run down her forehead after ranting and pacing. “You are trying to give me a heart attack! Truly Y/N if you want me to have one, I feel it coming on!”

You stood from your chair, walking towards her and seating her yourself.

“Mama, I’m not looking for a suitor anyway. I’m convinced I cannot give what a man needs right now for company and no man is able to do the same for me.” You spoke quickly, not giving her the chance to cut you off.

“Now if you’d excuse me, I’ll be under the tree. Call me if you’re having that heart attack, yeah?” You smiled, walking away and grabbing a book. You swore you heard your mother gasp and complain once again unto your poor father’s ears.

The weather was warm outside, but not warm enough to make you regret coming out. Sitting under the great big tree near the lake, you cracked open your book, tasking yourself with finishing another chapter.

“And your mother swears you are of wildness.” You heard a familiar voice talk. Jumping slightly, you closed your book and looked up, glad the tree covered the sun for you.

In front of you stood Mr. Hong, suit perfectly fitted and posture straight, smiling down at you.

“She only swears that so a man might think I can be tamed. Always for the man, never for the bride.” You frowned. Joshua sat himself next to you, a hand behind his back hiding something.

You pointed your head towards him, “What is that? Surely it must be the reason you left me to the wolf I call my mother those some nights ago.”

Joshua sighed, a tired smile on his face. He brought the envelope from behind his back and passed it to you. Looking at the wax stamp of his initials and family arms, you looked back up at him.

“What is this?” 

“Open it when I leave my dear. I’m much too shy to say it to your face. I had built up courage at the ball but I’m afraid its run out now.” He stood up, dusting his pants and gave a quick bow, walking away at a near running pace.

Raising an eyebrow and cracking a smile you examined the envelope. Breaking the seal, you found a letter. 

Ms. Y/N, it was took upon me that I must inform you that I am leaving soon. My close friend has gotten married! He stressed his importance for me to come, but I’m afraid it is in another town. You stood up, walking towards your house as you read on. As I’ve wrote before, I must go, as it is of importance. Before handing you this letter, I made a point to myself to tell you that this letter be read when I am gone. I have begun to realize, my feelings towards you are much more of a friend. And you are a capable woman, my, so very capable. So here it is, enough of my word rambling. Ms. Y/N. I love you. 

Sitting down on your bed, you read the last three words over and over again. You placed the letter down, sighing and drying your hands on your brown dress. Picking up the coffee stained paper back up again, you continued. 

I’m sorry this is so abrupt, but I am honored to be in love with a woman of your independence. And maybe the only reason I’m telling you this now is because I’ll be too far for you to catch me. Besides, you know me, I’m moving to fast for anyone to catch up, a quick fox you always said. So, by the time you read this, I’ll be on a carriage on the way to leave. I’m delighted to say you won’t catch me this time, just this once my dear. I am unsure of the length of my stay, but don’t forget me? It’d be unfortunate to forget a face like mine, will it not? 

Your friend and lovesick gentleman, Mr. Hong

Folding the letter and putting it under your pillow, you laid down. Staring at the dirty tinted white ceiling you shut your eyes, exhausted. You’d doubt you get any sleep tonight, not after the sudden confession as well as the settling emptiness for your now gone friend. 

“Damn you, Mr. Hong.”

A month had passed. You helped your mother and father with their daily chores and even went into town. And who knew there were so many outgoing people in the town, waiting for someone like you to befriend. 

“I’m glad you finally agreed to come with me. Isn’t being in your house all the time... boring?” Mingyu pressed. After meeting Mingyu, you found your life was short of boring, like when your previous relation was still around. 

“Please Mr. Kim, you act as if I am void of all fun. A girl of my nature practically created it you know.” You teased, putting your sheer ribbon around your face and faking awe. Mingyu gave a chuckle while lightly hitting your shoulder. You giggled and rested your head on his shoulder, giving a sigh.

“Mr. Kim, how much longer is the ride? In which direction do we travel?” You asked. You felt his shoulders square before he lightly moved your head off his side. Reaching into his jacket in a pocket, he pulled out a invitation, passing it to you. 

“A friend of mine, who was recently married, invited us to meet his new wife.” 

“Us?” You flipped the letter, looking for anything else, but found only the beautiful penmanship with a gold border. 

“Me, my dear, and a guest of my choosing. Don’t you know how to read?” He scolded. 

Passing the letter back to Mingyu, you rolled your eyes. Feeling more attached to the scenery, you suddenly saw a great building. A mansion, great and big with size with green on all sides. 

“How much longer was that?” Mingyu grabbed your cheek and pinched it. You slapped his hand away, giving a sharp look before you felt the carriage stop.

Mr. Kim helping you out the carriage, you two walked to the front doors, giving a few hard knocks.

The anticipation was killing, and just when you brought your hand up to give another knock the doors opened quickly.

There stood a tall man, round glasses hanging a bit low but still well enough to see fine. He gave you a quick glance, eyes landing on the even taller man next to you, a smile breaking across his face. 

“Mr. Kim,” the man pulled him in for a tight hug, eyes closing in joy. “I thought you’d never get here! You must come in, my wife is ecstatic to meet you!”

Bowing to the man, whose name you still haven’t been told, he returns it. Mingyu, watching the interaction, clears his throat. 

“Ms. Y/N, meet my close friend, Mr. Jeon. Mr. Jeon, Ms. Y/N.” He introduced you two. You gave a polite smile and he once again returned the favor. Grabbing you and Mingyu’s arms he pulled you two the common area. 

“Love? the guest are here!” Mr. Jeon called. Entering the room, you were stunned. The room was wide, holding a white piano to your left, and a woman was playing. The windows were big, and the curtains were these wine red, still with the only movement coming from someone passing it. In the middle were two sofas, one of which holding three men. 

Locking eyes with the man in the middle, you two stared at each other. Giving a polite bow, you changed directions, meeting gaze with the woman playing the piano.

“Mr. Kim, Mrs. Kim, It is a pleasure to meet you both.” She talked, her voice holding grace. 

Your face heated up, shaking your head at the misname. 

“Mrs. Kim?” You heard Mr. Hong ask.

“Ms. Y/N, is fine. I’m not yet courted properly.” You spoke out. Mrs. Jeon gave an understanding nod, still looking between you and Mingyu as if she was unconvinced. Holding her hand out to the couch, you and Mingyu sat down.

Holding your head down, and looking anywhere besides Joshua, you still felt his look on you. 

“Ms. Y/N, a word?” You heard him call. Looking up at him with a surprised look, you nodded after a moment of hesitation. 

Joshua linked your arm with his walking you out of the common area into the hallway. It seemed he knew the house very well, and walked you up the stairs. Reaching another room, he pushed you inside and closed the door behind him. Not yet turning around, you stared at his back, giving out a heavy sigh. 

You hit his back and heard him laugh. 

“What is so funny, Mr. Hong?” You continued to hit his back before he grabbed your hands in his big ones. “You left me! You told me you fancied me and then you left me, you crazy bastard!”

Joshua grabbed your pounding hands and gave a great laugh. You stared at him with an expression he could sum up to horror and started laughing even more. 

“Ms. Y/N, what are you even doing here?” He let go of your hands moving behind you. You turned around not letting him out of your sight and took in the room. 

It was a bedroom. A great mattress in the middle, with deep red coverings and white thin veils around the frame. 

“This was an invitation only was it not? Certainly you don’t think I followed you here?” You accused, a scoff leaving your lips. 

“You’re mistaken then. You have insulted me, I’m injured with your lack of careful accusation.” He holds his hand over his chest in feign hurt.

“Indeed Mr. Hong, perhaps I am not careful enough. But it doesn’t matter because you have still have explaining to do. Explain to me why you kiss and ran.” 

Joshua took a step towards you, eyes flickering between your eyes and mouth. He took your hand in his, bringing it up to his mouth, laying a kiss on your knuckles. 

Removing your hand from his grasp, your mouth agape, you gripped your dress. 

“I’m sorry.” He apologized. “Please forgive me, my dear. I’ve seem to forgotten you are not like me. A coward.”

Hiding your smile behind your hand, you let out a giggle, “You are a coward aren’t you?”

Giggling with you, he stepped even closer, you smile slowly leaving.

The door suddenly opened again leaving you two taking a quick step back from each other. Heads turning toward the door, you saw Mrs. Jeon peaking in.

“Am I impeding upon your conversation?” She asked, eyes covered by her hand. 

Separating yourself even further from Joshua, you walked towards her, “No. Worry not Mrs. Jeon.” 

She took you by your elbow, walking out the room. Looking behind you for Joshua, he was close behind giving a reassuring nod. 

Pulling you closer, Mrs. Jeon whispered, “Are you interested, perhaps me and my husband can be of some assistance in getting you two alone.”

Blushing, you both muffled your laughs, making Joshua raise his eyebrow. 

Finally reaching the dining room, you guys got seated. Joshua across from, Mingyu next to you. Mrs. Jeon and Mr. Jeon sat at the head of the tables and Mr. Chwe and Yoon were nowhere to be found.

“Where are my other two guests?” Joshua inquired. 

Mrs. Jeon held a slight smile, but quickly removed it off her face before anyone noticed. 

“They said they weren’t feeling of good health.” Mr. Jeon answered. 

Nodding to himself, the table started to eat. The table was silent, everyone doing their own thing, occasional clattering of plates from the maids. 

Sitting in the common room once again, the air was easy. Mrs. Jeon played the piano while you swirled your wine. As the piece she played ended, she yawned, standing up slowly.

“Shall we head off to bed?” She asked the room. Looking at Mingyu, you tilted your head in confusion. The rest of the party all nodded, minding you no business. 

“Ms. Y/N, you can have the room next to Mr. Hong’s.” Nodding and settling in, the night slowly became morning. 

Reading a book under a tree, you barely heard the ducks on the lake, nor did you hear the footsteps of the man who confessed and ran a month ago. 

“What are you doing dear?” 

Closing your book, you looked up Joshua. Staring long, you shook your head, focusing once again. 

“Um- reading,” standing up quickly, you stood tall before him. “Shall we continue our conversation? From yesterday?”

Joshua bit his lip, before nodding, avoiding eye contact and pulling you to sit down again. 

You two didn’t speak for a few moments. Just staring out at the lake, you felt your hand intertwine with his. 

“I must really apologize once again. What I did, dumping these emotions on you, so suddenly and then running away was a poor choice of mine. Reckless, and a poor trait of mine has always been moving too fast. But-But if you’d take me as yours-” Joshua trailed on.

“Mr. Hong.”

“I can make you happy. I can give you a library of your own, hell I will build it of my own hands-”

“Mr. Hong.” You called louder. Joshua still rambled barely taking a breathe of air between each word.

You reached over for Joshua’s face, pressing your lips against him in hopes he stopped talking. A noise of surprise escaped his mouth, the words stopped flowing and kissing you back. He places his hands over yours pressing his face into yours harder. Pulling away, you opened your eyes and found Joshua mouth open, and eyes closed.  

“Mr. Hong, I accept your offer.” You smiled.  

His eyes shot open, and he wore a bright smile, grabbing you by the waist and spinning you around. Giggling you held on to him as he laughed with a child’s happiness.

“Come on, we must tell the others of our engagement.” Joshua tugged you towards the mansion, barely giving you time to react, too excited. 

Pulling you into the common room, he held you close, grinning brightly. 

“I have important information to share with you all. It is of my excitement to announce the engagement of me and Ms. Y/N.” Joshua announced. 

Staring with wide eyes, Mingyu and Mr. and Mrs. Jeon all stood up quickly, like if the news was the most unbelievable. The group of three suddenly stood up and congratulated you both, cheering.

Mrs. Jeon pulled you to the side, “How was the alone time? Getting his guest to leave was the hardest task.”

You gave her an incredulous look before giggling and covering your mouth. Calling for her maids, Mrs. Jeon handed you a glass of wine.

“A celebration!”

Reading in front of the fireplace, legs pulled up to your chest, you felt Joshua place a kiss on your forehead. Glancing at him, you gave a small smile.

“Mr. Hong.” You acknowledged. He nudged your shoulder with a goofy smile.

“Mrs. Hong.” 

A/N : I feel as if this was rushed towards the end, but tbh i got writers block at the worst time and said fuck it and pushed through lol. any feedback is appreciated pls and thank u!! oh im nervous ha

[theydontknowaboutusimagines]

This Christmas - A Harry Styles Series (Part 12)

Two life long friends. Secretly in love. Home for the holidays. Will they risk everything by telling the other how they feel? Or will they spend another year loving from afar?

Read these first    

Prologue   Part 1    Part 2   Part 3    Part 4   Part 5  Part 6 Part 7   Part 8   Part 9   Part 10    Part 11 

Waking up the next morning alone in your childhood bedroom was a little disappointing. It was a strange feeling not waking up with the warmth of Harry by your side. The fact that it had only been a couple of days meant you were in for a rude awakening once you went back to your flat in London. Speaking of which, neither you or Harry has brought up what would happen next, but it looks like you’ll have your trip to discuss it.

After washing your face and brushing your teeth, the realization it was Christmas morning and the aroma of your mother’s traditional Christmas morning breakfast taking over the house quickly brought your spirits up. Once you were done, you went straight downstairs, still wearing your Christmas pajamas, and your mouth watered at the sight of food on the table.

“Happy Christmas!” you smiled, hugging your mother.

“Happy Christmas, honey,” she smiled. “Everything is almost done.”

“Awesome, need any help?” You asked.

“Want to grab plates and then get your father?” She asked.

“Sure thing,” you smiled.

You went over to the cabinet taking out enough plates for everyone and placing them on the table. You decided on going ahead and getting everyone drinks as well before going in search of your father, who was in his office getting the present for your mother. It was something he always did. He had to wait to put it out last minute because if she knew he had purchased something for her, she would make him take it back.

“I really think she’s going to like this one this year,” he smiled, holding the box in his hands.

“You say that every year and while she does usually like them, she still complains,” you laughed.

“True, but she only stays mad at me for a couple of hours and then she lets herself enjoy the gift,” he shrugged.

“Traditions, right?” You smiled.

“Gotta love ‘em,” he said.

After stuffing your face with all Christmas breakfast, it was time to open up presents. You all took turns opening your gifts. Thank yous, gasps, laughs, and a few tears were shed with each opened present. At the end of it all, there was nothing but wrapping paper and empty bags and boxes scattered around.

“How is that we have grown children and there’s still a mess on our floor on Christmas morning?” Your mother laughed.

“Because everyone’s a kid at Christmas,” you smiled.

Next up on the family traditions was watching another Christmas movie before getting ready to head over to Anne’s. This time you picked How the Grinch Stole Christmas. You helped your mother clean up the mess while you watched the movie and spent the rest of it cuddled up on the couch, drinking yet another cup of hot chocolate.

When the movie was over, you went up to your room to get ready. You always wanted to look nice on Christmas, spending extra time on your hair and makeup and wearing a nice outfit. However, this Christmas you wanted to look extra special. Luckily, you packed a new deep shade of green dress that fit you perfectly. It wasn’t too tight, but it still flattered your figure, which you loved.

You paired it with red heels and a deep, red lip. To add in a little extra festiveness,  you put on your Christmas tree earrings. They were definitely a little much, but you loved them. When you met your parents downstairs, they both smiled at you.

“What?” You blushed.

“You look absolutely beautiful,” he smiled.

“Thank you,” you smiled.

“Okay, ready to go to the in-laws?” Your mother smirked.

“What?” You laughed.

“Well, now that you and Harry are dating, we’re all officially family, right?” She smirked.

“We’re only dating, Mum, not getting married,” you laughed.

“Not yet,” she winked.

You shook your head with a laugh before following them out the door.

**

Harry woke up yet again to a pillow being thrown in his face.

“Go away, Gem!” He mumbled, throwing a pillow towards the direction of his sister.

“Harry Edward Styles it is Christmas morning and it’s time for you to get your ass up,” Anne scolded.

“Mum?” He snapped up, instantly regretting the sudden movement.

“Yep. You have five minutes to be downstairs,” she smirked.

“Sorry!” He called out after her.

Harry groaned laying back in bed trying to wake himself up. He had gotten back only three hours before and he was slightly regretting his decision on sneaking out of the house. But who was he kidding, it was well worth it. Any time spent with you was worth more than lack of sleep.

Finally sliding off the bed, he goes into the bathroom to brush his teeth and wipe his face. Looking into the mirror, he noticed a few remnants from the previous nights. Your lipstick stained his lips and various places across his chest and neck. He smirked, remembering the details of each one as he took a washcloth to try and get the red smear off. He would have loved to keep them there for the time being, but he didn’t need to advertise his whereabouts only a few hours ago.

When he made it to the living room, piles of presents were separated based on the three of them. This was always their thing. All the presents under the tree would be piled together based on who they were for and then they would each take turns opening a present. It would have been easier to just let one person go and open all their presents, but it made the magic of opening presents last a little longer.

“Happy Christmas,” Gemma smiled, hugging him.

“Happy Christmas, Gem,” he smiled, hugging her back.

“MY babies!” Anne smiled, wrapping her arms around both of them and pressing kisses to their cheeks.

And that was something she has done every single year and probably will continue to do when both of her children are well into their fifties.

“I can’t believe it’s Christmas,” Gemma said, sitting down on the floor next to her pile of presents.

“I know. The fact that another year’s over, too,” Anne said.

“Okay, John Lennon,” Harry joked.

“Smart ass!” Anne laughed, throwing a pillow at him.

“For fuck’s sake, I’m taking all the pillows in this bloody house and hiding them forever,” He laughed.

“Hey, we don’t get to do this very often, so we have to make it a good one,” Gemma shrugged.

“And what’s that? Bug the piss out of me?” He asked.

“Exactly,” she smirked.

He rolled his eyes, getting himself some coffee, before sitting back down near his own pile of presents. He enjoyed getting presents, but he enjoyed giving them the most. He loved being able to buy his family things they wouldn’t be able to purchase for themselves. He was happy he was in a position to help his mother and sister whenever they needed it. Of course, being who they are, they didn’t need it quite so much, but it was there when they did.

After presents that included multiple gag gifts causing them to laugh uncontrollably, they all sat around eating breakfast and talking about different Christmas memories. Next, everyone went up to their rooms to get ready for everyone to come over. Of course he was the first one back downstairs, so he started getting things ready to cook while he waited for his Gemma and his mother to get back down.

Anne came down first and the two of them got going on the cooking. Harry’s job was to slice and dice everything, while Anne did the rest of it.

“So,” Anne said. “Are you and Y/N official?”

“Um… yeah, we are,” he smiled.

“And you’re happy?” She asked.

“The happiest I’ve been in a long time,” he smiled.

“I know,” she smiled. “I can tell.”

“I don’t even know why I’m asking this because I’m pretty sure I already know the answer, but are you happy about this?” He asked, throwing chopped veggies in a bowl.

“Honey, all I’ve ever wanted for you is to be happy and to live a life that you want,” she said. “I’ve always thought you and Y/N would be each other’s person, but I knew I couldn’t be the one to tell you that. You two had to figure it out on your own and sometimes the only way to find your way to who you’re meant to be with… you have to be with other people.”

“So, you’re saying it was probably  a good thing for me and Y/N to just now get together?” He asked.

“I do,” she nodded. “Think about it Harry, when all of this… when you were in One Direction you were still so young and traveling around the world the majority of the time. You weren’t ready to have a serious girlfriend and had you and Y/N tried back then, it really could have fucked up any chance you two might have had. And then what? You two would have missed out on a life together.”

“Wow, I guess I didn’t think of it like that,” he said.

“Which is why I’m happy you two are trying not to focus on the past,” she said. “I know it’s easier said than done, but everything has its way of working out. It may not be when we want it, but it’ll come when we’re ready for it.”

Harry smiled, wrapping his arms around her, “I love you.”

“I love you, too,” she smiled. “And next time you want to sneak out and in the house in the middle of the night, please just use the front door like a normal person.”

“Uh… you know about that?” He winced.

“You’re needy son, I’m surprised it took you that long to sneak over to Y/N’s place,” she joked.

“I really don’t understand why everyone keeps saying that like it’s a bad thing!” He laughed.

**

When you arrived at Anne's house, you suddenly felt a little nervous. You weren’t sure why, but wondered if it was because this would be the first public outing for you and Harry. And it wasn’t even public, just close friends and family. You hated to know what it would feel like when you actually did accompany him in public, which is something else you would have to discuss.

Before your father could even knock, Harry had opened the door with a huge smile on his face.

“Happy Christmas!” He cheered.

“Oh boy, someone’s already had a few glasses of wine,” your mother jokes.

“I’ve not!” Harry laughed.

“Well we’re bloody in for it when you do,” she laughed, kissing his cheek. “But Happy Christmas to you, too.”

You giggled when Harry looked at you, “I don’t know if I should be offended or not,” he said.

“If you have to ask, you already have your answer,” you said.

He smiled, slipping his arm around your waist, “You look beautiful…. And those earrings… are lovely.”

“Smooth,” you laughed. “This is my Christmas earrings. I’ve worn them every year for like four years.”

“That doesn’t exactly shock me,” he said.

“I might have to get you a pair,” you smirked. “We could match.”

“I’d love to, but sadly I don’t have any piercings,” he sighed, dramatically.

“Oh, we can change that with a sewing needle and a trip to the bathroom,” you said. “It’s not stopped you before.”

“You heard about that?” He winced.

“Of course, I heard about it. You act like I’ve been living under a rock for the past six years,” you rolled your eyes.

“Sorry, sorry,” he put his hands up in defense.

“Anyway, how was Christmas this morning with your family?” you asked.

“Entertaining,” he laughed, handing you a drink. “Yours?”

“Traditional,” you joked. “And also very entertaining.”

“Maybe one day we’ll have our own entertaining tradition filled Christmas morning,” he winked.

“Can’t wait,” you smiled.

**

The rest of the day is filled with games, food, laughter, and drinks. You were having the best time and it felt even more special having Harry at your side. Eventually, Anne brought out Christmas Home videos and you all laughed at the memories. But there was one you had forgotten all about. It was of you and Harry probably about five or six. You two were cuddled up together, holding hands, and watching a Christmas movie.

“Who is your best friend in the whole world?” Anne smiled, pointing the camera at Harry.

“Y/N!” He smiled.

“And Y/N who is your best friend in the whole world?” She asked.

“Harry!” You smiled.

Both of you wrapped your arms around each other in a great big hug.

“That’s when I knew,” Anne smiled.

“Knew what?” Harry asked.

“That one day she would be officially a part of this family,” she smiled. “And on that day, I would give her this.”

Anne held out a wrapped box, the one Harry was supposed to have given you the other night. You looked at her confused before ripping off the paper and opening it up. Inside was a stocking with your name on it. The same exact stocking and font that match Anne, Gemma and Harry’s stocking hanging on the mantle.

“You always wanted one,” she smiled. “And now you have it.”

You smiled, tears forming in your eyes, as you wrapped her up in a big hug. “Thank you,” you whispered. “I love it.”

“You’re welcome, sweetheart,” she smiled.

**

As the night died down a bit, you and Harry headed outside to the backyard.

“Christmas day is such a bittersweet feeling,” you sighed.

“How come?” He asked.

“Because once it’s here… it’s over and soon after the magic of Christmas… the feeling of Christmas is gone until next year,” you sighed.

“Well, at least we’ll have each other,” he smiled. “And we’ll know it may have been the magic of Christmas that brought us together.”

“Okay, how many Hallmark movies have you been watching?” You laughed.

“It’s true,” he laughed.

“Yeah, it is,” you smiled, wrapping your arms around him. “Whatever the reason, I’m glad we’re finally here, together.”

“Me too,” he smiled, holding you close.

And to make the moment even more romantic, it started to snow.

“Oh wait! I forgot, one more present,” he said.

“Harry, seriously, I’ve had enough,” you giggled.

“I think you’ll like it,” he said, handing you a box.

Inside the box was mistletoe, causing you to laugh.

“What’s more romantic than this… kissing under the mistletoe while it’s snowing on Christmas Night,” he smiled. “Merry Christmas, baby.”

“Merry Christmas,” you replied with a smile before pressing your lips against his.

And that is how This Christmas quickly became your favorite.

**

THE END! I hope you all enjoyed this series and look out for the companion series coming soon! :)

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Ficlet for your reading pleasure

Look at me posting a prompt (that really wasn’t a direct prompt but lets not focus on that) in the first time in a while! I’m proud of me!

Hope you enjoy!

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"Where is this place again?" Felix asked as he made what felt like his one-hundredth right turn. They were going in circles, not that Felix was going to admit that. All the streets just looked too similar, and Felix wasn't familiar enough with Nashville to have any idea where he was going.

"It's off Church," Kyle answered as he sat forward in the backseat of Felix's jeep so Felix could see him in his rearview mirror. He and pretty much nothing else. He kept fucking talking about Church Street like Felix knew where the fuck that was. If it was Burlington, Felix could have drawn a map of Church Street from god-damned memory, but he really knew next to fucking nothing about Nashville. He had told Kyle multiple times, but he still just kept talking about fucking Church Street. Kyle held his arm out in the space between the driver and front passenger seat and gestured at the darkened street in front of them as he added, "I think you go two more blocks and then take a left."

"It's three blocks, and you need to take a right if we want to find parking," Dean declared from the passenger's seat as he looked up from his phone. The fact that it had taken this long for Dean to chime in was surprising. Dean had actually pitched a fit when Felix had said he would be the one driving that night. Since Leonard thought Felix was studying at Kyle's and had no idea Dean was home from college yet, and he definitely didn't know they were going to a gay bar, it made the most sense. Also, Felix would never say it to Dean because he loved his car so much, but the old Honda was just filled with the weirdest mix of unpleasant smells, and even after the engine was rebuilt, it still made strange fucking noises like it was ready to fucking die. Felix appreciated Dean's car, especially when it was the only car they had access to, but now Felix had his jeep. His jeep was an old piece of shit, too, but it just wasn't quite as old or quite as shitty as Dean's POS.

From the corner of his eye, Felix saw Dean slip his phone into the pocket of his jeans before bringing his full attention to the road. "And I won't point out how much easier this would have been if you had just let me drive," he commented.

It was dark, but the streetlights lit up the inside of the cab, and Felix could see the little satisfied smirk playing on Dean's lips. He thought he had won something which should have been annoying, but it was just kind of cute. Dean had really been away for too long.

They came to a stop at a streetlight, and Felix took advantage of the moment. He turned to look at his boyfriend. He was all blond hair and warm skin as always. "Dean," he said his name sweetly but also with a warning, "Unless you've figured out how to suck your own dick, you should probably stop fucking talking."

"I retract my previous statement," Dean stated seriously. Of course, it was Dean, and he was just as bold as he always was, so he reached out and brought a hand to rest on Felix's thigh. It wasn't so high, but it was high enough to up Felix's heartbeat a little. "Your driving and understanding of the city of Nashville is amazing, and I really can't complain," he stated with a bright smile.

"You two are so cute," Kyle faked cooed from the backseat before adding (mockingly), "I think I'm going to puke."

Eventually, they found the bar, found a place to park, and then made their way to the bar. It might have just been because Felix was comparing it to Burlington but getting into the place was beyond easy.

Once inside, they found a pretty thin crowd, but Felix didn't expect much more for the time of year. They had managed to hit that sweet spot where most of the younger people that came to the club were probably already tangled up in family holiday stuff, but most of the college kids hadn't returned home yet.

They were just a few feet into the place when they all collectively decided to stop and look around. To be honest, it was pretty much what Felix expected for a gay bar on the outskirts of Nashville, so it was pretty much par for the course, but other people clearly felt differently.

"This isn't….what I had been expecting," Kyle admitted sounding more disappointed with each word.

"What were you expecting?" Felix questioned. He sounded annoyed, which was because absolutely was, and yeah, he knew that made him an asshole, but this had been Kyle's idea. Not only had it been Kyle's idea, but Kyle had asked Dean after Felix had said no. He didn't go as far as to ask Dean behind Felix's back at least and asked Dean about it right in front of Felix. Much to Felix's surprise, his boyfriend that had also expressed a dislike of bars, immediately said yes. Felix was fucking shit at telling Dean no, so he was fucking stuck going, and both he and Kyle knew it. So Felix didn't care if the place was a little on the dingy side. He didn't care that the lighting managed to be both too bright and too dark at the same time. Felix didn't even care that the music playing overhead sounded more like static than anything else. He expected Kyle to be his typically overly excited self. "Pride flags and a rainbow-colored bar?"

"I was expecting to get ID'd at the door," Dean admitted. His voice was carefully neutral, and one look Felix found his expression matched his tone, but his eyes were scanning the room critically. Felix knew Dean well enough to know that this place was dive bar enough to bring up some daddy issues, not that Dean would say anything or suggest they leave. No, Dean would suffer silently.

"This is supposed to be an under 21 bar," Kyle informed quickly and matter-of-factly. Felix was half surprised Kyle didn't start reading the place's description from the website from memory. Felix was sure he could have because Kyle had been internet stalked the place for a while. Apparently, the website painted a different picture than what reality had to provide, and the shock was clear on Kyle's face. "And I don't know what I was expecting really," Kyle offered, and to his credit, he was obviously trying to hide his disappointment, and he mostly succeeded with his neutral tone. It was his face that gave him away. "I at least expected half the people here to be around our age."

"Yeah," Felix agreed with an unnecessary look around the place. "For a bar that is supposed to include people under 21, a lot of the people here look to be over forty," he pointed out. Really, it would have been impossible not to notice even if the place was hopping, but since it was moderately busy at the moment, so it stood out. Felix saw more guys that looked like they might hang out with his dad instead of kids around his age. He guessed divorced middle-aged men embracing the gayness they had been suppressing for years needed to get out too, but it was weird that they were choosing an under-21 bar when Nashville has several more traditional gay bars.

For the briefest of moments, Felix had a little bit of hope that the difference between Kyle's expectations and reality would be enough to make Kyle want to leave. They could get pizza or something. That hope died almost the moment it was born. It was almost like someone snapped their fingers, and Kyle got over his disappointment and shifted back to being excited, even if it was a bit more tempered now.

Kyle turned to him with a fucking smile on his face and asked, "Do we find a table?"

"I guess," Felix conceded with a sigh. He wasn't surprised, but he was disappointed that he wasn't going to get to escape. "Dean?" he questioned and got no reply. "Dean!?"

He looked to Dean just in time to see him looking up from his phone with a confused and bewildered expression. "Sorry, what?"

"We are going to find a table if you can look away from your phone," Felix informed with mostly fake annoyance.

"Yeah, sorry I was trying to translate this text message from Nico," Dean explained, which made sense even before he added, "For a guy that speaks several languages he can't spell in any of them" He shifted his phone so he was holding it in one hand and moved to put it in his back pocket before commenting, "But we should definitely find a table."

Felix would have fucking sworn he felt every ounce of positive drain from Kyle, so it wasn't a fucking surprise that when Felix looked at the guy, he looked tense, and his expression was carefully stony. "So Will is bringing the boyfriend?" he asked in a painfully neutral tone.

"Oh no," Felix exclaimed. He wasn't buying Kyle's attempts at neutrally, mainly because they were shitty attempts. If anyone could understand having an inconvenient, inappropriate crush, Felix liked Kyle too much to watch him continue to do this to himself. Felix had grown to think of Will in a somewhat positive way which was a journey, but he still didn't think of him as much in the way of dating material. Still, that wasn't why he was so bothered by the fact that Kyle couldn't let that crush go. It was never going to fucking happen, which was why it bothered Felix. Will was the most unavailable person on the fucking planet. He and Nico were practically fucking married, for fuck sake. Even if that wasn't the case, Will came with a load of baggage in the way of demigod shit. Kyle, of course, didn't know about that, but Felix fucking did, and he didn't think Kyle needed or would want any of that fucking drama. Fuck had Felix been trying to get Kyle to see the fucking light and shift his interest to someone more appropriate, even if at times it felt like he was banging his head against a wall. Felix didn't have any fucking desire to once again go through all that shit with Kyle, so he just shook his head insistently as he stated, "We're not doing that tonight."

"What!?!" Kyle questioned, but he sounded too outraged for Felix to believe for one second that he didn't know exactly what Felix was talking about, "I asked a question."

"No, you're starting to pine over a self-absorbed ass," Felix summarized indigently. In truth, Felix knew now that Will was pretty far from self-absorbed. Still, he did come with abandonment issues from like a dozen siblings dying in battles and a need for attention that came from having a fuck ton of siblings because Apollo is a fucking whore of a god. Calling Will self-absorbed was just easier, and maybe it was a little be of a reflex still. "Have some self-respect and standards."

Kyle huffed and rolled his eyes dramatically. "A smart, funny, attractive, blond, soccer play," Kyle declared with a heavily sarcastic tone. "No way you could get that attraction," he made a show of looking pointed toward Felix before turning and smiling toward Dean, "Oh, hi Dean! I forgot you were right there."

"That is totally different, and I resent the comparison," Felix growled as he pointed his finger aggressively toward Kyle, "There are plenty of age-appropriate guys around here. We will find you a better one that is available." So plenty might have been a bit of an exaggeration, but the point remained valid. "Now, let's go find a fucking table, so I can see if this bartender won't look too hard at my fake ID."

Surprisingly, the argument or discussion or whatever ended there, at least for the moment. They made their way through the bar's crowd with ease and found a large table that wasn't so far away from the bar that getting drinks would be annoying but not so close that they had to be worried about being overheard by the bartender. They still had the leering older men wondering the place to deal with, but Felix got a general impression that there was no escaping that.

There was some discussion about not wanting to lose their table even though Felix thought the likelihood of that was slim. Kyle suggested waiting until Will arrived (and made no mention of Nico) so there would be someone to watch their table. Felix wasn't exactly sure what Kyle was thinking with that one, but in the end, it didn't matter because Dean reminded him that he didn't have a fake ID so he could stay at the table while Felix bought his drink. Dean suggesting Felix buy anything was a surprise but not a bad one.

"How don't you have a fake ID?" Kyle ended up asking Dean with bewilderment, "You're in college."

Felix had asked the same question the first time Dean mentioned he didn't have a fake ID, although Felix's shock had been he had been in high school without one. The general feel of the question was the same, though. Of course, when Felix had first brought it up, he and Dean weren't dating yet, so he didn't know the details of Dean's home life. Now that he had that knowledge, it all made sense, but at the time, it seemed absurd.

Dean's response to Kyle was almost identical to the reaction Felix had gotten almost two years earlier. He shrugged casually as he replied, "I've never needed one."

Kyle sputtered for a second before reiterating, "But you're in college."

Dean's only reply was to shrug again. Dean wasn't going to explain that he always had unfettered access to alcohol if he wanted it, so something like a fake ID didn't make sense to him. He certainly wasn't going to waste his money on one.

"All the people he hangs out with are older," Felix interjected so they could move on. He patted Dean on the shoulder, ignoring the fact that he had to get up on his toes a little to do it so and gave him a sarcastic smile, "Don't worry, I've got you covered, College Boy."

Dean smirked back at him as he replied dryly, "My hero."

One playful eye roll, and then Felix was off to the bar with Kyle in tow. Considering the place wasn't that crowded, the bar itself was pretty busy. Felix blamed all the old dudes for that. Whatever the reason, he and Kyle ended up standing at the bar waiting for the bartender to notice their existence for a while.

As they waited, Felix pulled on his wallet and dug through the variety of cards and other random shit he had shoved in there to find his fake ID slide behind a stack of used gift cards. It wasn't the most obvious spot to keep it, but it wasn't exactly well hidden either. He was surprised his dad hadn't found it by now. After Leonard had found out about Dean, he had search everything Felix own on more than one occasion.

"Won't the out-of-state ID draw more attention?" Kyle asked as he leaned over Felix's shoulder.

"Don't know," Felix admitted with a shrug as he looked down at the fake Vermont license, "But I guess we'll see." Honestly, if anything was going to be a problem, according to the ID, Felix was almost twenty-six years old. Hopefully, the bartender wasn't too good at mental math because there was no way Felix looked that old.

Felix actually got a little worried when the bartender finally made his way toward them because the guy looked annoyed, but then it became clear that some middle-aged dude was trying to hit on the guy from the other end of the bar. As soon as he was away from that, he cheered right up, took their drink orders, barely looked at their ID's and started on their drinks.

Felix had ordered two beers for himself and Dean while Kyle had ordered some mixed drink, so Felix was handed his beers first and headed back to the table while Kyle remained behind. When he got back to the table, he found that Will and Nico had arrived, and they had apparently brought a third.

"Hey, Cecil," Felix greeted as he deposited one beer in front of Dean before taking a seat. "Wasn't expecting to see you."

Felix liked Cecil, at least for the little he actually interacted with the guy when he was at camp. He was glad he was there if for no other reason then it made it so it wouldn't be two couples and Kyle the whole night. Still, the guy hanging out at a gay bar seemed at least slightly risky if he was still trying to keep quiet about actually being gay thing, not that Felix was going to mention that.

Cecil shrugged, and he might have even had something to say, but Dean interrupted him by tapping Felix's shoulder and catching his attention before Cecil got a chance. "Where's Kyle?" he asked as he looked over Felix's head as if he was still looking.

"Waiting for his drink."

"And you left him!?!" Will questioned with absolute shock.

That was the type of reaction that had made Felix not like Will at first. Okay, it was one of the many things that had made Felix not like Will at first. The guy could just be so dramatic and over the fucking top about small shit. And yeah, Felix now sort of got why but that didn't make it any less annoying at the moment.

"He's a big fucking boy," Felix assured dismissively, "He can take care of himself."

Felix picked up his beer and took a long sip before turning back to Cecil, "What brings you to boring as fuck Tennessee."

"Hey!" Dean protested.

Felix didn't bother to turn to look at Dean, but he did reach out and patted his cheek dismissively. "I love you, but I hate this boring as fuck state, accept it."

Cecil chuckled at their interaction. Felix guessed, even though that was pretty much par for the course for them. "Will and Nico invited me to Thanksgiving," he explained.

"Cool," Felix replied with a nod even though he wasn't sure about that. Camp Half-Blood had pretty good food, and Felix would imagine that they put out an impressive spread for the holidays. Maybe it was depressing to hang out when many campers were away for the school year to spend with their families. Everyone needed a change of scenery every once and a while. At least he wouldn't be missing out on some damn good food because Dean's aunt was a fucking incredible cook.

A surprisingly loud buzzing sound began coming from his pocket, and Felix pulled out his phone, half-convinced it would be a message from his dad saying he had to go home because that would be a very fucking Leonard thing to do. Luckily, it was just a text message from Kyle, even though Felix couldn't think of why Kyle would have to text him when they were literally in the same fucking place.

OMG, come to the bar, NOW!

Felix had no fucking clue what that was about, but he didn't see how he got out of it, so he guessed he was going to have to go back to the bar. "Um, alright," he declared with a heavy sigh as he shoved his phone back into his pocket. "I'll be right back," he informed before hopping off his seat.

He only had to walk about halfway back to the bar to find Kyle standing with his drink in hand, half-hidden behind a wall craning his neck as he stared in the direction of their table. Felix had to admit that wasn't what he had been expecting, and he had no fucking idea what it meant.

"Alright, you got a drink, so now I'm confused," He admitted as he pointed to the drink in Kyle's hand, "Why did I have to come over here?"

Kyle looked at Felix for maybe a second before glancing first at his drink, and then he was back to trying to see their table through the crowd. "Who's the mysterious handsome with Will?" he asked instead of acknowledging Felix's question at all.

Felix looked back toward their table with confusion. He seriously didn't know who the fuck Kyle was talking about. "You've met Nico before," he reminded because that was the only thing that made sense even though it only barely did.

Kyle turned and glared at Felix like he was an absolute idiot. "You are such a fucking ass," he responded with more contempt than Felix had ever heard from Kyle before. "I have zero interest in Will's punk rock underwear model boyfriend, thank you very much."

Every once in and while, Kyle would insist that he wasn't bothered by the fact that Will was dating someone and that he was totally over his crush, and then there were moments like this where it was painfully apparent that neither of those things was true. Felix felt bad for Kyle and was impressed that he managed to make "underwear model" sound like an insult.

Kyle didn't want Felix's sympathy, and he wouldn't appreciate him pointing out that Will and Nico were a great couple either. So Felix just rolled his eyes as he commented sarcastically, "And you're not bitter at all."

Kyle just ignored him and huffed, "The cute guy with the curls."

"Who?" Felix questioned before looking back toward the table again. There was only one person there with curls, but Kyle couldn't have been talking about him, right? "Cecil?"

"That's even a cute name!" Kyle cooed.

What the fuck was happening? Felix thought to himself.

"No, it fucking isn't," Felix replied with absolute bewilderment. Felix liked Cecil but considering the guy wasn't a ninety-year-old man. His name didn't fit him at all. And since when did anyone comment on another person's name being cute?

Kyle glared at him again, which was really starting to feel like a weird turnaround in their friendship. "Who is he?" Kyle questioned. He didn't wait for Felix to answer. Instead, Kyle turned, so he looked back at the table again as he continued to ask questions. "Is he single? Is he gay?" Kyle's eyes lit up, and he turned to look at Felix again, "Please tell me he's gay!"

Of all the things Felix had expected to happen that night, he could honestly say Kyle finding a new crush, at first sight, wasn't one of them. He didn't know how he felt about it either. He was all for Kyle moving on from the idea of Will because that was never going to happen, and Kyle was a cool enough guy and deserved to be happy, but another fucking demigod, really? That was not something Kyle wanted to get dragged into. The guy was fucking attracted to trouble, and he didn't even fucking know it. The worse thing about it, Felix knew exactly why Kyle shouldn't get his hopes up, but he couldn't say shit about it.

"Oh my god," Felix groaned and rolled his eyes, "You are fucking hopeless." Hopefully, Kyle would take that statement to mean that Cecil was straight and would just let it go. "Come on, I'll introduce you," he stated and waved for him to follow.

They walked back to the table. At some point, Kyle ended up a few steps behind him like he was fucking hiding or something, which was especially dumb because Kyle was the same height as Dean, so he was at least a head taller than Felix.

"Hey, what did we miss?" Felix questioned as he went right back to his seat next to Dean. That, of course, was the moment he realized that the only empty chair left was between himself and Cecil. That was inconvenient but not nearly as annoying as Kyle sharply poking him in the back the moment Felix had sat down. The point was taken, so Felix gestured to Kyle to do the whole introduction thing. "Oh yeah, this is Kyle," Felix then gestured around the table without much enthusiasm as he continued, "You've met Nico and know Will, and that's Will's friend Cecil."

"Hey," Kyle greeted with a bit of wave and a smile. Of course, he seemed to look at Will and Cecil and completely ignored Nico's very existence. Baby steps, Felix guessed.

There were waves and a few greetings. Nico might have seemed a little less enthused, which was kind of funny. Felix remembered hearing some vague story about Nico putting a skeleton in some guy's bed because he showed an interest in Will. Maybe that was what Kyle needed.

"Again, sorry we took so long," Will offered, apparently unaware of Nico's subtle disapproval of Kyle's presence. "We had kind of a hard time finding a place to park."

"They were arguing about Will's driving and kept driving past parking spots," Cecil informed with a smirk.

It was an amusing thought. Felix had never really seen the two bicker before. Usually, they were too busy being all over each other to do things like that. Felix didn't get to enjoy his amusement long because Kyle had to chime in. "These two did that too!" he exclaimed with far too much excitement as he pointed at Dean and Felix. The pointing especially seemed unnecessary, considering it was obvious who he was talking about.

Nico smirked slightly in a way Felix guessed was sort of mysterious. He didn't see it personally, but that didn't really matter. "That doesn't surprise me," he commented knowingly.

"We don't bicker…like….at all," Felix defended, and it was the truth. He and Dean could easily break into lively debates over absolutely meaningless shit, and Felix was pretty sure most of the time they both dug down on their side to drag it out, but that wasn't bickering. Hell, at times, that was practically fucking foreplay. Felix couldn't see how it could be mistaken for actual fighting.

"Oh, I know," Nico admitted, "It's just in my limited experience Dean's driving is…interesting."

"Bad," Will interjected, "Dean's driving is bad."

"You didn't complain when I drove you to school every day," Dean commented even though he didn't have the heat behind his words for them to have any real impact.

Nico seemed to ignore Dean and Will's little exchange and focused his attention on Felix as he continued, "And you have a tendency to be….vocal."

Felix really didn't know how to take that. If it were anyone else, he would have probably taken offense, but with Nico, he just couldn't. Nico wasn't the type to sling insults, or at least that Felix was aware. So he was at a complete loss, and if it had been a year earlier, Felix would have covered his bewilderment with some comment that would have come out way more hostile than he meant it to be, but Felix was really fucking trying to be better than that. Instead, he tried to make a joke out of it by turning to Dean with a fake look of outrage and questioning, "Did your cousin just call me a screamer?"

"I don't think so," Dean replied, although he didn't sound as certain as he probably should have, "But I could see how it could sound that way."

"Well, are you?" Kyle questioned with a laugh in his voice and a smirk on his face before Felix could even think of something else to say.

Felix wasn't overly loud in bed. Of that, Felix was sure. Actually, Dean was louder, at least when he bottomed, and even then, Felix wouldn't call Dean a screamer. There was no way Felix was explaining any of that to Kyle, and Kyle knew it. That was probably why he asked, to get a bit of a rise out of him.

Felix responded with a glare that, in reality, didn't have as much heat behind it as it would have it was anyone else that asked.

Dean missed the memo about not answering questions about their sex life because he gave it a moment's thought before answering, "Not normally."

Felix actually wouldn't have cared if he could have been classified as a screamer. All that would mean was he was vocal while enjoying sex. Sex was amazing, so why shouldn't he be vocal about it? Also, he knew he loved it when Dean got loud during sex because it usually meant he was losing his damn mind from the fucking pleasure, and that was sexy as fuck. That didn't stop him from giving Dean a 'What the hell man?' look. If nothing else, it gave Felix something to tease Dean about later, which was always fun.

Nico chuckled, and it was hard to tell if it was from amusement or nerves. It could have been both. "I just meant you don't seem to be shy about giving your opinion," he offered.

It was really fucking hard to take anything Nico said as offensive, but Felix was pretty sure if anyone else said that to him, he would have been bothered. "I guess," he muttered in reluctant agreement.

"Yeah, that's very true," Dean agreed, maybe a little more enthusiastically than was really warranted, at least in Felix's opinion, "Also, irrelevant because I wasn't the one driving."

"Oh," Nico exclaimed with obvious surprise, "I retract my previous statement then. What were you arguing about then?"

"Parking," Felix answered.

Kyle hissed like he had something to say about that, but Felix shot him a look because he really didn't need Kyle offering his opinion on the matter. That was enough for Kyle to think better of it. "Well, parking was definitely part of it."

Dean was smart enough to remain silent on the topic, and Kyle already seemed to be distracted by making eyes at Cecil (and Cecil seemed more into that than Felix would have liked). Felix guessed it was better than Kyle just spending the night openly ogling Will, so he let it go for the moment being.

Nico was quick to offer a change of topic. "Is someone going to come to take our order?" he asked as he looked around expectant.

Considering what Nico looked like and what he did for a living, Felix imagined he usually didn't even have to order a drink at a bar. People probably just brought him drinks in hopes that he would acknowledge their existence. Nico did seem like a down-to-earth guy, so Felix figured he wouldn't expect something like that, but he was probably just used to that sort of thing.

"This isn't Gladiators," Will reminded, "I think we have to go to the bar."

Not entirely surprising, Nico looked confused by the idea, which confirmed what Felix had suspected. He was a smart guy, so Felix was pretty sure he would figure it out. Besides, there was still a chance someone would present him with a drink in the hopes of getting a chance to bang an underwear model before he ever made it to the bar.

"The bartender barely looks at your ID, so it isn't a big deal," Kyle assured.

Good for him, Felix thought. He could tell Kyle was trying to be nice even though he disliked Nico at least a little for the simple fact that Will and Nico were dating.

"Perfect," Cecil declared as he pulled a wallet out of his pocket and dropped it on the table before moving to another pocket and producing another wallet. Cecil made at least half a dozen wallets from various places on his person appear in a matter of thirty seconds. "Let's see what I have to work with."

Cecil started flipping through the wallets in front of them in a way that made it very clear that he had some experience with that sort of thing. That reminded Felix that Cecil was the child of Hermes, and Hermes is the god of thieves. He wasn't sure if he should be horrified or amused by what he was seeing.

The look on Kyle's face was definitely tipping it more into the amusing category. He was clearly fluctuating between absolute shock and confusion, and his expressions were so extremely exaggerated it reminded Felix of a cartoon.

To Kyle's credit, he didn't stay silent, but that wasn't surprising. Kyle usually didn't have a problem speaking his mind. "Um…." Kyle hummed and then pointed toward the pile of wallets on the table, "Are all of those your wallets?"

Kyle continued to flip through the wallets, pulling out IDs and credit cards as he did. "Well, I mean, they are in my possession now," he offered. Pausing briefly after tossing one of the IDs aside, and looked up just a little in Kyle's direction. Felix thought he saw the smallest of flirtatious smiles spread across Cecil's face directed toward Kyle, but that couldn't have the case. "And you know what they say about that," he offered.

So stolen. That was pretty much what Felix had figured. Even if he didn't know Cecil was the demigod child of the god of thieves, it was more than evident. Will apparently wasn't so quick on the uptake because he sounded genuinely outraged when he shouted disapprovingly, "Cecil!"

"You know I can pay for everything, right?" Nico offered without clearly as much shock and outrage in his voice.

"That isn't the point," Cecil returned as he tossed the last of the wallets aside. He looked up and seemed to talk more to Will than anyone else even though he had a captive audience in Kyle from its looks. "It's about the challenge, and the guys around here are not much of a challenge."

"It's a gay bar," Felix reminded as he tried to contain a laugh, "Most guys are expecting a little fucking groping." That wasn't true for Felix, at least not in the sense of a stranger. Now Dean was another fucking story, and hopefully, that was how the night would end. But there were plenty of guys in the bar, and Felix had his money on the vast majority looking to hook up.

Next to him, Felix heard Dean laugh. "He isn't wrong," he admitted.

Cecil just shrugged unapologetically, "That doesn't mean they shouldn't mind their wallets."

Felix was fucking flashing forward to when Will and Nico had kids because the look of disappointment and disapproval on Will's face reminded Felix of disapproving parent. "That isn't a valid excuse for pickpocketing strangers," Will reprimanded.

"Don't worry, no one noticed," Cecil assured like that was the problem, the getting caught part and not the actual pickpocketing part. Felix almost laughed at Cecil's bravado. The thing was, Felix's dad thought he was studying at Kyle's, and if he found out Felix was really at a gay bar with Dean, Felix would be grounded for a fucking eternity. So if Cecil got caught pickpocketing people, that could present some problems. Cecil clearly didn't see the issue as he smiled brightly. "I'm very good," he stated with confidence.

Will's brain had apparently broke at some point because his only response was to stare at Cecil slack-jawed. Felix would think since Will and Cecil had been friends for a while, Will wouldn't have been so surprised. He got the feeling this was pretty standard for Cecil. Nico at least didn't seem overly surprised or worried about it. If anything, he seemed sort of amused by the whole thing, but it could be hard to tell with Nico.

"I'm going to get a drink," Nico declared as he hopped down from his chair. He looked between Will and Cecil briefly before asking, "Do you both just want a beer?"

"Sure," Cecil replied as he started to tuck away the various wallets he had collected into his pockets, "Thanks, Nico."

"Um, I guess," Will muttered uncertainly. Felix was pretty sure Will was just still too distracted by Cecil's kleptomania because it was seriously out of his character for him not to jump up to follow Nico around immediately.

You would think that Will simply refraining from following Nico around like a lovesick puppy would have been enough for Kyle but not. At least some part of his horny teenage brain viewed Nico as competition or at the very least as something close to an advisory which was just incredibly stupid, to say the least. Kyle decided that was the moment to get what seemed like it was meant as a dig. "Do you even have a fake ID?" Kyle asked Nico with almost a disgusting amount of doubt.

"No," Nico replied, "But I don't foresee that being a problem."

No one in their right fucking mind would look at Nico and believe he was twenty-one; of that, Felix was fucking sure. That didn't mean he didn't think Nico was probably right about his lack of an ID not being a problem. Not only was Nico good-looking, which seemed to go a pretty far way, but he also had a 'Don't fuck with me or else' vibe that was pretty fucking hard to argue with. Felix would bet the bartender wouldn't even bother to ask Nico for an ID.

Kyle at least had the common sense not to push the topic further, which satisfied Nico greatly if the glint in his eye and the slight grin that spread across his face was any indication. It wasn't an over-the-top expression by any means because it was fucking Nico. Felix was pretty sure the guy didn't know how to do over the top, or at least that kind of over the top. Even subtle, it was noticeable enough  

It probably didn't help that after giving Kyle a few seconds of his victory face, Will decided to jump into the conversation in full lovesick puppy mode. Felix got that Will was oblivious to Kyle's lingering crush on him even though he had been told on multiple occasions, but how he missed the little exchange between Kyle and Nico, Felix didn't fucking understand. He had most definitely missed it never the less.

"Do you want me to come with you?" Will asked Nico.

"I'm sure I can handle it on my own," Nico replied with a shrug, "But if you want to, I could use the extra pair of hands."

That was all Will needed to hear. He hopped out of his chair like a tiger from Winnie the Pooh or some shit. "Be right back," he declared quickly before trotting after Nico as he headed toward the bar.

They watched the two walk-offs for a few seconds before they were lost to the crowd. "Oh, codependence," Felix commented dryly in hopes of cutting off any of Kyle's potential pouting. "I'm so glad that isn't a family trait because I'm pretty sure I would murder you," he added with a humorless smile directed at Dean.

Felix wasn't actually all that worried about that sort of thing. He and Dean were pretty independent, so neither would take on the relationship's lost puppy role. Sure, between texting and phone calls, they probably talked for hours most days, and Dean had been trying to talk Felix into applying to Berkeley so they could be at the same school, but that was just….different.

Next to him, Felix heard Kyle snicker at that comment. He was fucking loud about it, so Felix wouldn't have been surprised if half the fucking bar heard. Felix couldn't help but turn to look at him, and the amused fucking grin on his face was just even more fucking confusion.

What the fuck did I miss?

Felix probably should have just let it go but hated feeling like everyone knew something he didn't. "What?" he asked as he stared at Kyle critically.

"Nothing," Kyle assured, but he sounded far too amused to be even remotely believed. Before Felix could push any further, Kyle had already turned his attention to Cecil and changed the subject. "Um, so Cecil, what brings you to Tennessee?" Kyle asked with a smile. He was clearly trying to be friendly, but it was over the top, so Felix found it awkward. It was also pretty out of character for Kyle. It was an interesting development, to say the least.

"Oh, Will invited me to Thanksgiving," Cecil answered with a bit of a shrug, "And Nico insisted. Saying no to Nico seems kind of …."

"Dangerous?" Felix offered without even thinking about it. Nico was actually really nice, but he was also scary as fuck. Felix wouldn't want to tell him no either.

Dean was less than a second behind with an equally valid suggestion, "Terrifying?"

"Yeah," Cecil agreed with a laugh, "Pretty much."

"So, you had no choice," Felix summed up. He paused to sip at his beer before adding, "Only legitimate reason to come to Tennessee."

"Hey!" Dean immediately protested, "I honestly don't know how to take that."

Felix looked at Dean to find him staring back, looking genuinely outraged. Maybe that should have made Felix feel at least a little guilty because of that, but honestly, he found it a little funny. He didn't actually laugh, but it was a close call. "You should be fine with it," he retorted. "I can hate the state I met you in and still love you," Felix explained matter-of-factly before taking another sip of his beer.

Dean's reaction was precisely what Felix had hoped for. He grinned from ear to ear. "You love me? Really?" Dean leaned over and made a real fucking show of kissing Felix on the cheek, "Because I definitely love you."

It wasn't like Felix wasn't used to Dean being affectionate. He wasn't used to Dean being so openly affectionate in such a large crowd, but around friends was normal enough. He still blushed at it, which officially killed any chance he had to even try to play it cool. That didn't mean he wasn't going to try, but it did mean he knew going in it wouldn't work.

"God, you've had like two sips of beer," Felix grumbled under his breath even as his cheeks continued to burn, "You can't be like this already."

"So," Cecil point at them while looking at Kyle, "They are just as bad as Will and Nico?"

"Um," Kyle hummed, still being a bit awkward about the whole thing, "I'm more used to these two, but yeah, they're pretty cutesy."

Felix swallowed down the urge to argue that by taking a large sip of his drink. Dean got kind of cutesy when he had a few drinks in him, but otherwise, they weren't like that at all. Besides the few affectionate gestures, they acted just like they did when they were just friends. He even got Kyle to admit that he claimed that didn't mean they weren't cutesy a few times. It wasn't worth arguing about, Felix was sure, so once he swallowed his drink, he went to change the topic. "Alright, Cee," Felix declared, "Why did Will drag to this great state for the great food holiday?" The state of Tennessee might have sucked by Will's mom was a fucking fantastic cook. In Felix's opinion, her cooking rivaled the food at Camp Half-Blood, so at least Cecil was in for a treat.

"Sympathy, I guess," Cecil replied with a shrug, "He's making a bigger deal over the breakup than either me or Lou are."

Felix opened his mouth to say without even thinking about the fact that he would be outing Cecil. Luckily Dean saved him from accidentally spilling the beans before Felix got a chance. "You guys broke up?" Dean questioned with great disappointment in his voice, "Sorry to hear that."

"It's cool," Cecil assured a little awkwardly before adding, "We are better friends."

Felix guessed that was one way to put it, considering that Cecil was gay. He guessed Cecil had finally worked up the nerve to end his fake relationship but not enough to tell people he was gay. Felix wasn't judging, but he figured pretending to be upset about a breakup would get old fucking fast.

"That's a positive attitude to have," Kyle chimed in, and suddenly the awkward energy he had just a few moments before was gone, and Kyle seemed way too excited to hear about Cecil's break.

Felix liked Kyle, but the boy was beyond fucking obvious. How anyone thought he was straight, Felix would never fucking understand. He also had horrible taste in guys. First, he spends years drooling over Will, and now he was getting hot and bothered over Cecil. Sure, Cecil was an improvement but still.

Cecil sort of smiled at Kyle, and it struck Felix that this might be a problem. Luckily Nico and Will decided that was the moment to reappear, drinks in hand, and they interrupted the whole thing before either Kyle or Cecil could attempt any awkward flirting that Felix would have to stop.

"We are back," Nico declared as he placed his drink on the table before pushing himself up into his chair.

"And we have drinks," Will declared from half a step behind Nico, holding up the two beers he was carrying as proof. He placed one beer in front of his seat before placing the other squarely in front of Cecil. "There was actually a guy about to send you a drink," Will told Cecil as he took his seat. He waved his hand in what Felix was sure was met to be a reassuring gesture as he added, "Don't worry, I told him you were straight."

Felix had to physically bite his tongue to stop himself from calling Will a cock block which made him wonder if this was going to be a problem. They were in a fucking gay bar, and Cecil wasn't a horrible-looking guy. If Will was going to keep help his friend out by explaining Cecil was straight, Felix didn't know if he would be able to take it. He was going to slip up and say something he shouldn't and outing Cecil like a fucking asshole.

Maybe he just had a lot of practice because he had to lie about all the demigod stuff, but Cecil did an impressive job of hiding any disappointment or frustration he might have been feeling. "Thanks," he replied. He wasn't exactly enthusiastic, but he didn't sound annoyed either.

"Um…..," Kyle hummed, which matched the confused look he was wearing quite well. His one finger in the air to signal he had a question was a bit much but to each their own.

"Lou is short for Lou Ellen," Dean offered quickly.

Kyle, unlike Cecil, did not school his emotions at all. The guy visibly deflated as he tried to cover (poorly) by saying, "Oh, that's an interesting name."

Felix had to admit that he did feel a little bad. Kyle was a cool enough guy, and he really shouldn't have to wait until college to date. But, at the same time, it really was for the best. Kyle did not need all that crazy demigod shit in his life. It was better for him just to think Cecil was straight than for Felix to have to play interference all night.

[winchesterwords]

“You and I” John Winchester x F!Reader

Summary:  Set before the boys raid the vampire nest to get the colt, John visits you to get insight on which vamps have it. Owning a bar, you are a highway of information for the supernatural and an “old friend” of johns. How will he react around you while his sons meet you for the first time?

Word Count: 3753

Warning: Swearing, Alcohol, lil steamy moment

Song I Wrote To: “You and I” by Lady Gaga

Note: This is a bit canon divergence but I liked the concept. I’ve mentioned before that I don’t write smut, but I hope this lil steamy moment was okay. I don’t see enough John fics on here or ao3 so I wanted to do something. I wish we would have gotten more of his character. Tho i think that’s just cause I love JDM so much. 

-------

In the dark of a lone American road, a 67’ Impala rolled along the rain-slicked street. 

“You have that look on your face again,” Dean Winchester said, looking over at his brother. Sam turned to him, confused. 

“What look?” he asked. 

“The look that says you want to either punch Dad or punch him twice,” Dean said with a knowing glance. 

“I just don’t get why he won’t tell us where we’re going,” Sam said with a deep sigh as he stared at the taillights of their father’s truck ahead of them. “He just has to make everything so damn mysterious.” Dean laughed as his thumbs drummed on the steering wheel. 

“You’re just realizing that now, Sammy? Dad has always been like this, but he knows what he’s doing. Always does.” 

“I’m not so sure about that,” Sam grumbled and Dean rolled his eyes. In their search for the colt, they had gotten word that the break-in was perpetrated by a nest of vampires. The problem was, they weren’t sure where to start when it came to the bloodsuckers. Then, John had mentioned he knew someone who could give them a hand. That was all he said before jumping in his truck and telling his boys to follow him. Sam and Dean had done what they were told and revved the Impala’s engine, but now, Sam was getting restless. 

----

John Winchester drove with an eagerness.

He knew where he was going.  He had the route memorized no matter which direction he was coming from. You were the kind of woman that he couldn’t forget even if he tried. There was something about the way you didn’t take any bullshit when it came to anyone. Then there was the fact that you handled a sawed-off shotgun as well as any hunter he had ever met. John always liked keeping you to himself, his own personal getaway when things were getting a bit too dark for his tastes. 

However, unfortunately, this visit would not be a social one. He needed your help and he was running out of options to find the colt. If anyone knew where to find a vamp nest with a desire for a mystical gun, it would be you.

John hit the gas and sped down the road, keeping Sam and Dean in his rearview mirror. He was actually nervous for once. There was so much of his life that he kept private from his sons. Dean knew a bit more than Sam, but they didn’t know about you. They didn’t know about how you had saved his life twice or that you had asked him to stay with you on multiple occasions, but he couldn’t. You always understood that he had a mission to complete. Not just for Mary, but for his boys as well and you respected that even when all you wanted was a bit more time with the man, just as he did with you. 

Turning off the highway, John rolled into a town that seemed like coming home. Dean followed him through the winding streets as John drove straight for your bar. You had owned “The Iron Outpost” since before you had met the eldest Winchester. The entire building was lined with pure iron to keep unwanted spirits at bay. Not to mention the devil’s traps at both entrances and holy water you added to all the drinks.

You were pretty lenient with most supernaturals such as wolves, witches, even the odd vampire on occasion, but demons was where you drew the line. They never got past the door and if they tried, they would be met by you or your business partner, Dawn, who was also a hunter. The two of you had become an information highway for everything going on in the supernatural world and that was why the Winchesters were now at your doorstep. 

Parking in front of the Outpost, John got out of his truck just as his sons pulled in. Sam still looked annoyed as he got out of the Impala, but Dean just looked confused. “Alright, Dad,” Dean said, “what’s going on? Who is this secret contact of yours.”

“Never said she was a secret, Dean,” John said, “I just said you had never met her.” 

“She?” Sam asked. 

“She’s a hunter,” John said, nodding towards the front door. “Sort of.” 

Sam and Dean exchanged a look before following John into the bar. It was pretty crowded for a Tuesday night. The low hum of conversation rolled throughout the room as drinks were poured and food was served. Dean immediately spotted the odd charms that hung around the main entrance, as well as the warding symbols carved into the door frame.

There were two levels in the place and people milled about on both floors, smiling and drinking their fill. It was a typical place to find hunters and Dean immediately loved it. Sam was still a bit skeptical but remained optimistic that this place would offer answers. 

John searched the floor for you, but could only spot Dawn as she worked behind the bar, smiling at patrons. Moving further into the bar, John kept his eyes peeled for you. “Is she meeting us here?” Sam asked. 

“She owns the bar,” John said, turning to his youngest. “She should be around here somewhere…”

“Closer than you think, Winchester,” a voice came from above and John visibly relaxed as your voice reached him. Looking up at the balcony on the second floor, he finally spotted you. Grinning, you turned and jogged down the stairs. John’s eyes followed you as you approached him and the boys. 

“(Y/N),” he greeted with a smile. 

“Heya, Handsome,” you said as you walked up to him. “I’ve missed you,” you whispered as you leaned up and kissed him on the cheek. John smiled down at you, taking in your face as if he was trying to memorize it. “And I see you’ve brought guests,” you said, peering over his shoulder. Though, it didn’t take long for the pieces to fit together in your mind. “Or should I say, family.”

“(Y/N),” John said, “these are my boys, Sam and Dean,” he introduced, gesturing to each of his sons. You shook both of their hands, smiling. 

“Wow, John, you never mentioned how tall they were,” you said, looking at Sam with amusement in your eyes. The youngest Winchester chewed on the inside of his lip, awkwardly. Turning back to John, you sat into a single hip, crossing your arms. “What are you doin’ back in my neck of the woods?” you asked. 

“Need your help on something, (Y/N),” he said and you recognized his tone of voice immediately. This wasn’t going to be one of your more...entertaining visits. 

“What’s wrong?” you asked, giving him your full attention. 

“We may need a bit more privacy for this conversation,” he said, glancing around and you instantly understood. 

“That kind of ‘something’, huh?” John nodded, “Alright, boys. Why don’t you grab a seat and I’ll start closin’ up early. I’ll send Dawn over with a bottle,” you said. John reached out and squeezed your arm. 

“Thanks,” he said. You sent him a wink and then disappeared to start clearing out customers. John led his sons over to the table he always sat at when he came to visit. Shrugging out of his coat, he leaned back and watched as you spoke to Dawn across the bar, gesturing to the three men in the corner. 

“Dad?” Dean said, gaining John’s attention. “How exactly do you know her?” John sighed, running a hand over his face.

“I met her a few years ago,” John began, “I was on a hunt not too far from here. Some large-scale haunting and I hadn’t realized there was more than one ghost. These were nasty spirits. Salt slowed them down, but every time I turned around, three more would show up. I was being cornered by at least four of them and I was out of rounds when (Y/N) showed up and showered them in salt,” John chuckled slightly at the memory. “Woman was like Rambo with a salt grenade and then she hauled my ass out of there.” 

“So you got your ass handed to you by a chick?” Dean asked, amused. John shrugged. 

“Twice actually,” he continued. “She came with me to salt and burn the bones when a vamp came out of nowhere. Freshly turned one too. I’ve never seen anyone move that fast with a machete.”

“But I thought you said she wasn’t a hunter,” Sam said. 

“I said she was sort of a hunter,” John corrected. “(Y/N) hunts when she can. Mostly local things to keep her town safe, but she has other...talents. (Y/N) is connected in the world of the supernatural. She always knows what is going on within the monster world.”

“What? Like having Wolfman on speed dial?” Dean asked and Sam kicked him under the table. Dean threw a glare at his little brother, annoyed. 

“Kind of,” John said, “it’s complicated.” Dean pursed his lips but didn’t press the issue as Dawn arrived with a bottle of bourbon and four glasses. She dropped them on the table. “Thanks, Dawn,” John said. Dawn grinned at him. 

“Good to see you, John,” she said. “Things have been a bit boring around here since you left.” 

“You know me, D, gotta keep moving,” he said and she rolled her eyes. 

“Right,” she said with a knowing look. “Alright, you guys have a good night, I’m heading out.” Dawn nodded to the boys and then gripped John’s shoulder as she headed for the back, ready to have an early night. Dean poured the drinks and handed them out, pouring an extra one for you as you finished up sending people home. 

John sipped from his glass as he watched as you dragged a very drunk psychic from the bar. “It helps me see better!” the woman complained, trying to stay on her feet. 

“Then go buy a bottle at the liquor store, Shay,” you said, hauling her to the door. “I got shit to do!”

“You are going to have a hard life, (Y/N),” Shay said, pointing her finger at your face. Then, the psychic fell over, trying to reach the door. 

“Bet you didn’t see that coming,” you quipped as she stumbled out the door. With a final dismissal of the staff, the Outpost was finally quiet. After locking up, you joined the Winchesters, gratefully accepting the drink John handed you. “Alright, fill me in.”

“Wait,” Sam said before John could begin, “how do we know we can trust her?” Dean rolled his eyes and John narrowed his at his youngest. You, however, had expected this. 

“Something tells me you have questions, Sam Winchester,” you said, downing the bourbon. “Ask away.”

“How do you get your information about the supernaturals?” Sam asked. You reached for the bottle again and poured yourself another drink as you spoke. 

“I have my sources,” you explained. “Not all ‘monsters’ are bad, boys. There are wolves that eat cow hearts from the butcher and vamps that drink blood-bags instead of people. If you know which ones are the less horrible ones, you can make deals with them. Offer them protection from other hunters in exchange for information. I don’t deal in demons though,” you assured them. “However, I do know how to summon one if the situation is that dire. Which it rarely is in these parts. Psychics and witches are also easy to find and very easy to bribe once you get to know them.”

“So you run a black market for information?” Dean asked. 

“That’s one way to put it, sure,” you said with a shrug. “I find that monsters are more willing to speak to you than other hunters. I offer them a deal and they usually take it.”

“What deal?” asked Sam. 

“If they prove to me that they don’t kill people and offer good information, I keep them protected and keep their secret.” 

“And if they break the deal?” 

“Then I kill them,” you said simply. 

“Just like that?” asked Dean. 

“Just like that, Dean,” you said. “Satisfied?” Dean hesitated before nodding. You looked at Sam and he did the same. 

“She’s good, boys,” John said and you smiled at him, gripping his shoulder. 

“So,” you began, “tell me what you need.” John turned fully towards you and you could see that he was exhausted. You weren’t sure when the last time he slept was. Then again, you hadn’t seen the man for months. A hundred different things could have happened since then. 

“We’re looking for the colt,” John said and your brows shot up. 

“As in Samuel Colt?” you asked.

“You know it?” he asked. 

“I do, but nobody knows where it is.”

“We did,” Dean interjected. “Another hunter, Daniel Elkins, had it, but it was stolen.” 

“By vamps, (Y/N),” John said. 

“What would vampires want with a gun like that?” you asked, confused. Everyone that knew about the supernatural was aware of the gun. It was legendary, but most people thought it was just a fable, a myth to tell monsters so they would be scared. You never imagined that someone you knew would be after it.

“We don’t know,” John said, “but we need it.” You sighed, placing your drink down. 

“I can ask some of my contacts, but I can’t make any promises. And as soon as I do, people, monsters, spirits, you name it, they’re all gonna know the Winchesters are after it.”

“We’re out of options, (Y/N),” he said. 

“I’ll do my best,” you said. 

“Aren’t you gonna ask why we need it?” Dean asked. 

“Not my business,” you said. “When you’re in the business in making deals and keeping secrets, you tend to learn to not ask questions. Excuse me,” you said as you got up and headed for your office upstairs. The three men watched after you. 

As soon as the door to your office shut, John turned to his sons. “Really? Did you have to interview her like a suspect?” He didn’t wait for them to answer as he got up and followed after you. 

“How well do you think they actually know each other?” Sam asked, watching after his father. 

“You don’t think…?” said Dean and then he cringed. “Not an image I needed, Sammy. Not at all.”

-------

Slipping into your office, John shut the door softly behind him. 

“Your boys are a lot like you,” you said from your desk as you texted away on your cell phone. John walked around the room as he looked at all the memorabilia you had from various hunts and adventures. Some he had even joined you on. When his eyes fell on the leather couch in the corner, he couldn’t keep the smirk off his face. 

“Sam is like me,” John eventually said, “but Dean is more like his mother.” John turned and walked back to you as you set your phone down and walked around to lean against the desk. John met you there. You reached out and ran your hands up his chest and then over his shoulders. 

“You look tired,” you said softly, looking into his hazel eyes that stared back at you through thick lashes.

“So do you,” he pointed out. You shrugged. 

“It can be hard in my line of work. Never know when someone is going to need me up at three in the morning.” John nodded as his hands slid around your waist under your shirt, his large hands gripping you tighter. His thumbs rubbed along your skin. “I was hoping you’d visit soon,” you said quietly. 

“I’m sorry it took me so long,” he said, stepping closer between your legs. 

“I heard you mention the haunting we first worked,” you said as your hands crept up his neck and into his hair. 

“It was a tough one,” John said. “I should have done my research and of course, listened to the local bartender who told me the history of the place.”

“Yeah, probably would have helped,” you said with a grin. 

“You know,” John said, leaning forward to trail his lips along your jaw ever so slightly. “I never did thank you for saving me that night.” Your eyes fluttered closed as he nipped at your ear, your hands tightening in his hair.

“I remember you did,” you breathed out. 

“Oh?” John asked, innocently. Pulling back, he looked down at you with lustful eyes. “Would you mind reminding me?” With a hard tug, your lips met his and he grabbed your hips, placing you on the desk. 

John kissed you hard as he tried to make up for all the time lost between the two of you. You gripped him tightly, letting him take control. His hands moved from your waist to your hips and then your thighs as he took charge of your body. 

Sliding your hands from his hair to his waist, you ran them up his stomach beneath his shirt, feeling his hard chest beneath your fingers. John pressed in closer, gripping the back of your neck to tilt your head back for better access. When he parted your lips, a small groan echoed from your throat which only made him more eager.

There was nothing better than kissing John Winchester. He was the only man to ever make you feel like this and the second he walked out of your bar, you craved him until he returned. 

Your nails raked down his back as he let go of your lips and moved to your jaw and then down to your throat. Leaning back on the desk, you let him mark you, feeling electricity flow through your veins. You gasped as he bit down just above your collarbone. Keeping one hand on your neck, he used the other to grip your thigh. Your leg came up and between his legs. John pressed his body against yours harder at the movement. 

You were flush against him, feeling his body fit perfectly against your own. He dragged his teeth along your throat, eliciting another moan from your mouth. “You’re gonna cause trouble if you keep doing that,” he whispered against your skin. “Not that I’m complaining,” he said as he lay you back on the desk, running his hands along your body as he leaned over you. 

“Don’t be a tease,” you warned as he grinned, wrapping your leg around his waist. 

“Wouldn’t dream of it,” he said with a smirk as he trailed a finger across your chest.

 “John,” you breathed out as he moved back to your lips, swallowing your whispers. 

Just as his hand began to move towards the waistband of your jeans, your phone rang. 

“Fuck,” you groaned as he paused. Detangling yourself from his body, you slid off the desk and grabbed your phone. John stood back, trying to control his breathing as he smoothed down his shirt. You fussed with your own clothes as you picked up the call. 

John didn’t listen as you spoke to whatever contact you had reached out to. Instead, he tried to come down from the high he had just experienced in that small moment with you. He had almost forgotten what it had felt like to have you in his arms, to feel you respond to his touch. His heart jumped in anticipation at the thought of having the opportunity again, he knew it was unlikely. They still had a job to do. 

“You’re in luck,” you said, grabbing his attention as you pocketed your phone. John turned to you. You wiped at your mouth with the back of your hand and smoothed your hair. “I have the location.”

-----

Once the two of you had made sure you didn’t look like horny teenagers, you rejoined Sam and Dean. 

“I got it,” John said, raising a piece of paper in his hand. Your vampire contact, a nomad who you had crossed paths with occasionally had heard about two humans who had been taken by a nest. A nest that was gloating about getting the jump on some guy named Elkins.

“Just like that?” Dean asked. 

“I told you,” John said, “she’s good.” Sam still looked skeptical, but Dean seemed to be alright with how things turned out. 

“Do you guys need anything else?” you asked, trying not to let the sadness on your face show. You knew he had to leave now and you weren’t sure when you would see him again.

“We’re good,” John said softly and you nodded, crossing your arms. 

“Well, don’t any of you be a stranger, okay?” you said. “And for god’s sake be careful so I don’t have to hunt you down cause you got turned.” 

“We’ll do our best,” John said with a longing look that Dean caught immediately. 

“We’ll meet you outside, Dad,” Dean said as he grabbed his brother’s jacket. “It was nice meeting you, (Y/N),” he said and you nodded back to the both of them. As soon as the door closed behind them, you grabbed John’s arm. 

“You’re going after it, aren’t you?” you asked. “The demon. That’s what the colt’s for.” John grimaced and you sighed. He had told you about the yellow-eyed demon the second time he had come to see you. To most people, a conversation like that would seem like bad pillow talk, but it was normal for the two of you. 

“You know I have to,” he said, reaching for you. His hand came up to hold the side of your face. 

“I know,” you said. “He’s not gonna know what hit him when John Winchester shows up with Samuel Colt’s gun on his hip,” you said as you pulled him closer, your hand resting on the place his gun normally sat. You pulled his lips to yours and you kissed him fiercely. He melted into the kiss and you felt as if this was finally goodbye. You didn’t know why, but something about the way you held each other spoke volumes. 

Pulling back, you looked right in his eyes and tried to memorize those beautiful hazel irises. “(Y/N), you are...it’s been you for so long,” he whispered and you fought back tears. You kissed him once more, letting your lips linger for just a few seconds before letting go again. 

“Go get the bastard,” you said. John smiled at you. 

“Yes, Ma’am.” 

[steves-on-a-plane]

Volunteer

for @thefanficfaerie​‘s OTP Challenge (2020)        Words: 1264 Pairing: Steve Rogers x Reader        Prompt: Winter Wonderland: Day 10 - Volunteer Summary: Steve & Reader arrive at the compound to help the rest of the team with the Avengers’ annual toy drive. 

“Well, look who finally decided to show up after all the work is done!” Tony commented as you and Steve joined him in the main conference room of the Compound.

“Charity work is never done, Tony.” Steve disagreed.

“We stopped to get more wrapping paper. Bruce texted me that you were running low.” You excitedly showed Tony the five rolls of wrapping paper you’d bought on your way over. Tony inspected each design before noticing a problem.

“Did they not have any Iron Man wrapping paper?” He frowned.

“Oh no, they did, but I assumed you had provided plenty of that.” You assured him. “Try not to have too much fun without me.” You told Steve. You kissed him on the cheek before leaving him alone with Tony to finish decorating the conference room.

Just down the hall in another room Bruce, Thor and Sam were wrapping presents. They each greeted you with smiles as you passed out the spare rolls of wrapping paper. Once the supplies were divvied up, you made room for yourself on the floor and got to work.

“I can’t believe he’s not here yet.” You heard Clint complain as he and Nat entered the room.

“Santa guy still missing?” Sam asked. He glanced down at his watch. “He’s cutting it awful close.”

“What kind of a low life skips out on playing Santa at a charity event?” Nat wondered aloud.

“The kind that only accepts their very large service fee in full and upfront apparently.” Bruce sighed. “Anyone know what the backup plan is if this guy doesn’t show?”

“I got a Santa suit in the trunk of my car.” Sam offered. “I play Santa for the family every year back home. I’ll go get it. Plus, then I can see how Barnes and Rhodey are making out with the reindeer.”

“Reindeer?” You repeated.

“Stark rented out a petting zoo for the kids.” Clint explained. “Rhodey and Bucky were in charge of setting the whole thing up out back. Why don’t you go with Wilson and take a look? Romanoff and I can help with the wrapping.”

“C’mon, [Y/N], I have a feeling those two need all the help they can get.” You followed Sam through the halls of the compound to the back lawn.

Once outside you could see, and smell, the multiple pens that had been set up. There was a pen of Alpacas, each one wearing a knit sweater. Across from them was a small gathering of rabbits. The rabbits varied from angora rabbits with long fur to English lops with long floppy ears. Another pen housed a herd of goats and a fifth had two donkeys who happily munched from a hay bale. Twinkling Christmas lights had been strung above everything to create a soft warm glow.

“Wilson, give us a hand!” Bucky shouted from three yards away. He and Rhodey were standing together by a supply shed next two a seventh pen full of caribou.

“Sorry man, I gotta do a thing.” Sam shrugged before heading to the parking lot.

“I can help.” You offered joining Rhodey and Bucky at the shed.

“We have to put one of these,” Rhodey gestured to freestanding hand sanitizer pump, “and one of these,“ He pointed to a gumball machine type of device that was full of feed. “Inside of every pen and a extra sanitizing station on the outside of every pen.”

“Ok, no problem.” You told them. You picked up one of the feed machines and began carrying it away.

“No problem, she says.” Bucky laughed as he followed behind you with a hand sanitizer station. You entered the reindeer enclosure since it was the closest to you. As you carried the machine inside the rattle of the feed alerted the deer, within seconds they all started approaching you. You paid them no mind and set the machine in the center of the pen. “How did you do that?” he demanded, following you out of the pen.

“I just carried a machine, Buck.” You laughed. “Same as you.”

“Yeah, except when he tried that earlier with the goats, three of them ganged up on him and knocked him to the ground.” Rhodey laughed.

“Wait till I tell Steve you got beat up by goats. He’ll be sad he missed it. Actually, I’m kind of sad I missed that.” You laughed. “I was going to do the rabbits next. You think you can handle that Buck?”

“Ha, ha.” Bucky rolled his eyes. “We get it you’re like a Disney Princess or whatever.”

“Alright, team, how’s it looking out here?” Tony asked. He and Steve had now arrived on the back lawn. “Event starts in ten minutes. The kids’ll be here soon.”

“We’re just about done.” Rhodey updated him as he climbed out of the Alpaca pen.

“Great, everybody suit up and let’s get the show on the road!” Tony clapped his hands before going back inside. After making sure everything at the petting zoo was set up, Rhodey and Bucky followed after him.

“Guess I better go get changed too.” Steve told you. “Oh wait!” He unzipped his winter jacket to reveal the top half of his Cap suit.

“But you left your shield and cowl in the car.” You reminded him.

“You’re right. I’d be lost without you.” He winked before jogging over to the car.

Back inside, Steve and Tony had completely transformed the conference room into a winter wonderland. Instead of a single large table that had been present when you arrived, there were now three smaller two person tables, each with a red or green tablecloth over it. A large Christmas tree that had been set up and decorated prior, had been moved to the front of the room. Piled under the tree were the hundreds of donated presents that the others had been wrapping for the past two days. A red carpet ran up the center of the room, leading to a large plush red armchair.

Sam sat in the red armchair, looking very fitting in his role as Santa Claus. His infectious smile shone through even the fake beard and false reading glasses. The rest of the team milled around the room dressed in their uniforms eagerly waiting for their young visitors.

“Nice engagement ring, [Y/N].” Tony whispered to you. “Thought we wouldn’t notice, but I did.”

“Todays is about the kids, Tony.” You whispered back. “I didn’t want to take away the attention.”

“We’ll have a party later then.” Tony commented. “But for what it’s worth, I know he’s crazy about you and I can’t think of two people more perfect for each other.”

You didn’t have a chance to thank him, because in that instant the door to the conference room opened and about a dozen children entered the room, each one of them absolutely ecstatic to be there. You weren’t sure if the kids were more excited to see the Avengers or Santa. Each child had a chance to tell Santa Sam what they wanted for Christmas before selecting a present from under the tree. Once each of the twelve kids had had their turn, they were ushered outside to the petting zoo and a new group of kids entered.

This continued until all two hundred and fifty kids had been able to meet Santa and the Avengers. After their time with Santa, the rest of the team and the petting zoo was over the children and their caregivers were loaded back into their various vans and buses and the 2020 Avengers’ Toy Drive was officially complete.