#my mom had a boxful of them in a kitchen drawer which she never had a chance to redeem

[2024skin]

Mom called me a shitty roommate today bc after months of her telling me to rent a uhaul (too young to do so) and then flaking out on me whenever I asked her if we could it on x day, I gave up on trying to get my bf's heavy TV and dresser and ordered a mountable tv, instead of buying more storage totes so that I could add to the ever increasing stack of totes in our guest bedroom

[woodelf68]

Anyone else remember when orange juice cartons used to be 64 oz. instead of only 52? :(

[acowardinmordor]

You Left Me, You Miss Me

Part One - Part Two - Part Three - Part Four

@mc-i-r is writing another version of this and tagged me and my brain woke up, so here ya go. This is almost all dialogue, and my new love for Mrs Buckley.

----

"Hey Steve-o! Get in here!" Robin yelled.

"Thought you were talking to your mom?" Steve shouted back.

"I am! That's why you have to come here! The cord won't reach!"

Steve hauled himself up from the corner of the kitchen where he was reorganizing things for the third time since they moved in last week. There was a pile of boxes they really needed to open in the hallway, and his mattress was still against the wall, but he kept going back to the kitchen, trying to make it work despite there being only one pull out drawer. One. They noticed before they signed the lease, but they both assumed they could make it work somehow if they just tried hard enough. But. Third time's the charm.

Flopping onto the thrifted couch next to his best friend, he leaned against her head, and greeted, "Hi Mrs Buckley, how are you?"

"Now why can't you answer the phone so politely, Robin? Who raised you to be so impolite?"

"Yeah, mom, I know you love Steve more than you love me, you tell me every time you talk to him, now can you say it again please?"

"Yes, well, like I was saying, I don't really know why they were all so upset about it, but I didn't want to overstep, so I didn't tell them anything. Not really. Only that you had moved and that you were fine. It's not like that's a secret. Then I noticed that they didn't know about that and so I didn't answer the rest of the questions, which really only made them more upset, but I think they were upset with me, not with the pair of you, so that's perfectly fine, none of them were nearly as vicious as Robin was when she was fifteen and decided she--"

"Mom!"

Steve giggled. Robin's rambling came from her mother, that was certain, and it was worse when they were on the phone. They fed on each other's talking. Like that snake thing.

"Right, yes. Well, Steve, like I told her, those boys, the ones you used to babysit for, they came around to ask if I knew where you were," Mrs Buckley finally said.

Robin grabbed his hand with the one not holding the phone, and pressed her forehead harder against his as they crowded the handset. Steve didn't think he'd reacted, but they didn't need anything as boring as a visible reaction to know each other.

"They said that they went into the video store and saw someone new at the desk, and when they heard that the two of you were no longer working there -- Apparently that manager of yours had some unpleasant words on the subject. You know I never liked him? The first time I stepped in there he asked me if I was still married? Not like that, of course, but it was still very strange. I didn't like it. And according to Robin he was always like that, wasn't he, Steven?"

"Yeah, he was pretty weird," Steve answered numbly.

"Well, that Keith fellow told them you were no longer employed there and that curly haired one demanded to know where you were employed. Since its not like he knew even if he would have told them, those boys went looking for themselves. I guess they went to your house first, Steven, and must have seen the for sale sign. I don't know what your parents are thinking, selling with the market like it is right now, but no one has ever made either of your parents listen to a single word of sense in their lives."

"Mom, the point?"

"Yes, sorry dear, like I told Robin, eventually it must have occurred to them that the two of you would be in the same place and thought to come by. Well. I say come by. First they called, and your father, you know how he is, simply said you were no longer in residence and hung up on them. He thinks he's so funny. Oh! Make sure you remember to call next Tuesday to congratulate him. It's his first day as the lead manager in the office. Oh no, wait, does it count as long distance for you? Never mind, I'll place the call so you don't have to worry about it."

"Mrs Buckley? You were saying something about Dustin?" He was proud that his voice was steady. They left Hawkins eleven days ago. They started packing two weeks before that. His parents put the house on the market around the same time. It wasn't until today that they noticed.

"Yes, that's the one. So Dustin didn't take your father's humor well, and he and his friends came by earlier this evening."

"Wait, evening?" Steve interrupted, "It was dark? They were biking around in the dark? In this weather?"

"Oh goodness no, that young man drove them. The one that was in the papers that the pair of you helped last year. He was much more polite than they were. Well, once I told them that you'd moved, they all started shouting over each other, I was sure that Ms Wickley was going to come over and scold them."

"I'm sorry, ma'am--"

"Oh you don't need to ma'am me Steven, I've told you that."

"Mom, he was just trying to be polite when he asked you to please get to the point, so can you, you know, try to get to the point some time tonight. You're paying for the call, but jeez."

"Oh yes. Well it occurred to me while they were all shouting that if they were your friends like they were saying, they would have known that you were moving. So when they managed to calm down enough I could hear a thing I said, I refused to tell them anything else. It's none of their business if you don't want it to be. And that Dustin boy said that you were his best friend, right in the same sentence he said he hadn't seen you in a month. But, I wasn't entirely sure if I was wrong about it, so I did promise I would ask you if you wanted me to pass on your information."

"Good job, mom, you finally got back to it. This is why I had you come over here, so you could hear that last part. I should have just asked you. Do you want my mom to give them our number or address or anything?" Robin had rolled her eyes over her mom's rambling, completely unaware she was just as terrible. But then she stared at him, concerned and outraged and protective and sad. God, he didn't know what he'd do without her.

"Did they ask?" Steve said.

"Ask? I don't think a single one of them knows how to ask anything. They certainly shouted a lot of demands. If you don't want me to tell them, I have no complaints about being the villain in this story. After everything you've done for my girl, being there for her before she even told me, and now making sure she's safe from any kind of trouble up there, you're such a perfect - what was the - beard? I think that's what I saw in that article in that magazine. Oh, no, the Zine, I ordered. But even without all that, I'll happily shut the door in their faces every day for a year if that's what you want done."

Steve's next breath stuttered, and that was all Robin needed to see.

"Hang on mom, I'm going to put the phone down, don't hang up, we'll be back." She sat the handset on the couch, then dragged a throw blanket over it to muffle their voices completely.

"You okay there or do I need to make a snap decision about which is going to be our household's vomit bowl?" He pushed her shoulder half-heartedly. "Okay, yeah, we both know it's gonna be the one with the cow on it. But you okay there, Stevie?"

"I'm fine."

"No you aren't."

"I'm fine."

She gasped, "You would lie to your soulmate? To her face?"

"I'm not! I'm fine! I just... I don't know, Robs."

Robin watched for a second as all of the muck of emotions bubbled inside him. Then she, as she always did, understood him.

"You want to say no. You want to tell her not to let them know where we are, but you're also freaking out because the brats come find you whenever It's back."

And because for a second, he desperately hoped that they missed him, or wanted to call so they could apologize for the last months. She didn't need to say that part. He half shrugged, sort of nodded, and bobbed his chin towards the throw blanket.

"You sure, Dingus?"

"Yeah."

"Is it gonna be Hopper or Joyce?" she faux wondered as she grabbed the phone from its prison. "Mom? Hi, back. Yeah, thank you. I'm gonna hand the phone to Steve now."

She didn't move away, but she didn't share the earpiece.

"Hi Mrs Buckley. I guess I -- could I ask a couple questions first?"

"Of course dear. What would you like to know?"

"Did any of them say anything weird or really specific?"

"Like what?"

"Like, about the mall, or last spring, or, bats, or uh, did they say anything about their dungeons and dragons game?"

"No. Why would they?"

Steve forced his shoulders to relax. El said it was done, but four years of it coming back meant he'd never fully trust that as true.

"No reason I guess."

"Well. That Munson boy did ask me about a radio right at the end. After the others stomped back to the driveway. He came back and he seemed - well he asked about a radio. And I said you certainly had a radio in your car, but I think he may have been talking about something else. Is that what you meant?"

"Okay, uh. Yeah. Thank you. I guess."

"So what would you like me to tell them next time I see one of them? If you'd like to take your time about it, you can. They were quite worked up about it, but it's a little ridiculous to act like they were owed something if they didn't even notice you two moving. You knocked over a stop sign with that rental truck."

Steve laughed. Couldn't help it. "I really can't wait, ma'am. They'll be back tomorrow morning to bother you." He gave Robin a look she immediately returned. Even without hearing the other half, she understood how true that was.

"Of course they won't, they have school," Mrs Buckley argued.

"Yeah, just means they'll be at your door even earlier."

"Well that's rude."

"Yeah, that's them. So, um. You can be rude back if you want. Don't, uh, you don't need to answer their questions. If you don't mind that they're not going to take it well."

Mrs Buckley laughed, loud and cackling for a moment, making the phone go staticky. "Oh dear, it would be my absolute pleasure to be rude right back to them. I'm much better at it. Anything else?"

"Yeah, you know Jim Hopper?" The resounding silence promised she was giving him the same judgemental look Robin was. "Sorry, that was dumb. But can you give him our number? Not to share with them, just so he has it. And, funny story about radios, but, the one that -- that that guy asked about is in your hall closet. Top shelf, next to the popcorn tin. Give Hopper that too?"

"Certainly, anything I should tell him, or should I ask to return the phone to my ridiculous child that you're generous enough to live with so I can say good night?"

For some reason, it made him think about the returns box at the store. A handle pulled open, the movie dropped inside, and nothing else needed. No one had to explain why they were giving back their copy of Breakfast Club. They had it for a while, hopefully they enjoyed it, and then when it was done, when they didn't need it anymore, or when it was overdue, when they kept it longer than they should have, costing them more money to keep around than it was worth, when they decided they were done with it, they didn't write a letter and explain why they--

"No. But, just. Tell him its for emergencies or something. Thank you, bye, or, goodnight ma'am, Mrs Buckley, uh, here's Robs. Bye."

He climbed off the couch as he shoved the phone at her, and headed for the window in his yet to be unpacked room. Rob would kill him in his sleep if he had a cigarette, but if he had any, he'd have taken the risk.

The glass was so cold it was painful against his forehead when he leaned into it, and he watched the little flurries of snow on the street kicked up by the wind. They didn't even notice for a few weeks. They'd quit Family Video a week before they left, and he knew the kids watched at least a few every weekend. They must have gone in, multiple times, and just, not noticed. Or not cared.

He wasn't sure which of those was worse.

He wasn't sure why it hurt when he made his peace with it weeks and weeks ago. It hadn't ached so vividly since the fall. Worst of all was the shock of concern for them, thinking they were out on their bikes in the dark and the snow. Then the relief that Eddie drove them. The feeling was huge enough to eclipse anything else until he knew they were safe.

Hadn't seen them in a month, barely seen them before that, and his first instinct was still to drop everything and grabs his keys. He was two hours away, and his brain was itchy to go drive by and check on them. They didn't need him to do that. They didn't want him to.

And based on how his stomach lurched when he heard that they didn't know he'd left, he didn't think it would do him any favors to go back. Hop and Joyce knew how to handle them if they started to do anything too risky, and the kids were practically glued to Eddie's side.

They weren't his to look after.

"Stop staring out the window like your lover is lost on the moors," Robin complained, wrapping him in a hug from behind.

"I have no idea what that means, Robs."

"Good, I'll explain it to you. Come on, lets go, we've got a kitchen to reorganize. I already started stuff for popcorn and hot chocolate. Lets gooooo, you're too heavy for me to carry, hup two."

Steve snorted and let her drag him away.

"I thought we were going to get my room set up, so I wouldn't have to share with you again?"

She gave him that look. That one that was fond and frustrated and sassy as shit. The one that said she wasn't going to let him get away with being dumb, but wasn't going to call him on it.

"It's a woman's prerogative to change her mind. You can share with me for a while longer. Now do the hot chocolate, and don't skimp on the whipped cream. We bought that can on sale and its going to go bad any second. Just use all of it. Directly into our mouths if we cant get it balance on the mug. Don't want to waste it, and we deserve it. I'm on popcorn duty, and then we're going to defeat this puzzle, Harrington. We outsmarted the Russians, we can outsmart the dishes!"

Shit. He sniffled as he followed her orders.

He was so damn grateful he still had her.

-----

Next>>

Still don't do tag lists. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[onwriting-hrarby]

Engraved — Writing workshop week I

I needed to get off my novel for a while, so this exercise helped me a lot in imagining other things! It is quite long, but I don't think I have ever uploaded any og fiction inn here...

This is part of the Writing workshop by @books and @bettsfic!

Engraved

The wife later swore under oath it had been an impetuous reaction—lights on her face and the moustache man holding a clickety pen in front of her—but the truth is that she had seen it from the first instant she had entered the kitchen.

Her legs felt stiff and wobbly, that day. They carried her body like a strange weight, even though the scale had shown her that she needed to eat more. All bones, all bones, her man had sighed while lunch, gnawing at his steak. She would later think that the effort in which she walked was telling her that she should have stayed quiet. To never enter the kitchen. Never lay her eyes next to the stove. Never begin cooking. Never saying to her husband that she would begin cooking. Never hearing him exclaim, Finally, for fuck’s sake. Never thinking she was not a worthy woman, never feeling so angry, so ready to burst up, so—never never. But she did carry herself to the room, and her eyes did focus next to the stove, where it had been years she hadn’t seen it, the cutting knife her mother had gifted her on her wedding day.

It came along with a lot of fine china. They had shoved them away in the living room, where they couldn’t be seen and wouldn’t get dirt on them. She had said to her husband, “What a pity, those are very expensive”. He had hummed, had kept on putting thin ceramic plates and golden-rimmed teacups into the wooden cabinets, and had barely thrown her a glance as she inwardly apologized for the ingratitude. When she found the knife in the box and took it in her hands, it weighed. She felt it into her fingers for some seconds. The steel was cold and polished. It reflected the orange light of the living room, the way the snow was pouring outside, and shone in a myriad of decisions not taken and secrets better kept. The wife faintly heard his husband say, That will come out handy. She had glanced at him, held the knife sturdier against her palm. 

“What do you mean?”

“It’s a fine blade”, he had answered. “It will cut meat just great.”

But the knife had been left unused for almost all of the marriage, stuffed into the utensils drawer just like any other knife. Upon inspection the day of the china, she had found her initials engraved: M. A. The lettering was beautiful, adorning one of the tangs of the handler. The M was curvy, the ends pointy in riveting ribbons, and the A had a full stomach, protruding to the interior part. Years later, the wife realized the knife hadn’t lost the scale, nor the sharpness of the blade, but the letters had mysteriously given up their fullness and were starting to fade onto the metal.

Nevertheless, the knife was there after so long, so she thought, I better use it. She couldn’t imagine why her husband must have taken it out of the drawer and left it next to the stove. He had long given up seeing her cut with it, although it was true that no knife she had tried quite cut the meat like he wanted to. Always too thin, or too thick, or it couldn’t get through the veins, maybe couldn’t tear into the grease well enough.

She took the filet for supper out of the fridge. It had defrosted well, but some icy tears were still stuck to it. She brushed them off with her hand and they melted on her fingers. She brought her fingers inside the mouth and sucked. It tasted like watery iron. She put the meat on the cutting board, grabbed the engraved knife made an incision in the middle. He would complain that they had the same amount of meat. But then again, she could say, Wasn’t I all bones? As she cut the meat, the knife boiled in her hand. Strange, she thought. She felt a rush of dizziness overcome her, and as she closed her eyes, she could hear her mom’s voice—no, a scream, so loud she had to brace herself onto the marble counter, the knife hanging from her fingers nimbly.

She recomposed herself. The cut was perfect, though. She thought, a momentary anaemia. She was old after all, too many memories and too many years on her back.

The pan sizzled with some oil. It splattered all over the knife she still had in her hand. I can’t let go, she realized. Maybe I don’t want to. Her mom had died in a painful scream, her father had confessed. She had looked at him through the plastic glass and saw his eyes full of grief and guilt, and swore to herself not to be consumed by rage. “Some things run in one’s blood”, her dad had chuckled, “even though you hate me so”.

On the pan, the meat smelled like burnt.

“Fuck, fuck, fuck it”. She swore some more and then swore to herself she could never swear again. Her husband didn’t like it, and wasn’t she such a proper lady?

 She left the knife next to the stove and took the pan off the fire, but the meat was far off saving. The wife sighed, felt the tears coming to her eyes. They wet the rim of her eyelashes. She patted her free hand against them. She breathed out, invoked patience. He could hear him say, It’s not raw enough. I want to see the blood, see? I want to see it, for fuck’s sake. If it’s not raw, then—It tastes like a shoe! Have you ever tasted a shoe?, and she would say, no, I’ve never, and he would put the filet away, or maybe smash it against the wall, and the dish would crack, yes, she could evoke it because it had happened before, and the husband would say, You’re such of no use, why did I marry someone that useless, yes, you, I’m taking about you.

She heard the steps approaching the kitchen. Light as ever, but threatening. She knew the sound because she had to train herself to listen to it all of her life. He appeared on the door frame, watching at her with his mouth open in surprise, the canines hanging pointily, the tongue layered with yellow saliva onto it. His spit reached her face as he screamed:

“What the hell have you done?!”

And because she had seen it in the first instant she had entered the kitchen, the knife rested on her hand, with a weight of something unconfessed and the pride of something long foreseeable.

[raineydays411]

My Father's daughter pt 3

Tony Stark x daughter!reader

Summary: Back at the Tower, Y/n has a talk with Pepper.

a/n: ohhh another part finished!! some new characters will be revealed next part and i’m so great full for @social-media-imagines-by-me fir helping me create them💕💕

You were furious.

You stormed into your room and slammed the door, finding satisfaction in the loud bang it produced. You then ripped through your drawers and closet, pulling on some work out clothes and some gloves. You then marched out of the room, slamming the door again, startling Sam and Bucky who happened to be passing by.

"Geez kid, slam it a little harder I don't think it fell off the hinges yet." Sam jokes, but you were in no joking mood so you swirled around with fire in your eyes.

"You okay doll?" Bucky softly asks, pushing a frightened Sam to the side. You sigh, knowing it's not fair to take out your anger on them.

"Sorry Sam, it's just...my biological mom is here and wants me to move in with her."

"Oh..." Bucky says, not good with things like this, " Do you want me to like...kill her or..."

"NO" You laugh, " It's just I haven't seen her in nine years and she has the audacity to come up here like it's nothing?!"

Your anger returns, " She thinks that just because she pushed me out of her vagina"

The two men cringe at the words

"That she can just claim me? That's not how it works!" You shout, " And, she brought her fucking husband. The man she left us for! Who does that?!"

Bucky looks at Sam, mentally asking him what they should do. Sam just rolls his eyes and turns back to you.

"Come on kid, it looks like you wanna punch something."

and with that he lead you to the training room where Steve was training with Peter.

"Come on queens, you gotta stay on your feet" Steve k=jokes as he, again, trips Peter.

"Mr. Rogers, do you think we should take a break?" Peter pants.

You stride pass them, not bothering to say hi. They look at Sam and Bucky for an explanation and just get a shake of the head.

"Hey Y/n that's my punching" Steve started to say when he saw you throw a hard punch to the bag, "Nevermind..."

You ignore the group behind you, opting to pummel the poor punching bag in front of you.

Your mind flashes back to your mother and her words.

"A girl needs her mother"

*punch*

"Oh petal I wanted to call"

*punch* *punch*

"Come to Gotham. Meet your siblings!"

*BANG*

You look down to see the punching bag flew off the hook and is spilling sand on the floor. You were confused, as you knew you weren't strong enough to do that, not even when you were angry.

"Wow, I guess Cap didn't secure that hook again."

You jump, not expecting someone to be there, as you heard Sam, Bucky, Steve, and Peter leave. You turn to see Pepper there looking at the bag in surprise. You sigh, stepping away from the mess and taking off your gloves. You make your way to the bench and take a swig of water.

"Did you need something Pep?" You ask, avoiding eye contact.

"Well, i was just wondering if my kid was okay. But given the fact that you punched that bag like it would restore your honor.."

You knew you shouldn't have showed her Avatar.

"I'm assuming your not." She finishes.

You give her a half smile, looking down at your hands.

"Y/n" She says, " Talk to me."

You finally speak, "Why now?"

Pepper frowns, understanding that small phrase, ' I don't know."

"She's not my mother." You state, " She...she might have been once but now?"

Pepper nods," I love you."

You smile, the words reassuring you, " I love you too Pep."

"Come on, your messing up your manicure." She says with a smile, standing and extending a hand towards you. You feel your demnor soften and your mood lighten. Pepper always managed to make you feel better.

"Yeah okay..thanks." You say, taking her hand and letting her pull you from the bench, " Are you hungry? Cause I am>"

"Y/n we just ate!"

"Like an hour ago"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Days went by and you hadn't heard a peep from Christine. It was like she went off to lick her wounds and just decided not to reach out again.

Which didn't bother you one bit.

But apparently the universe wanted to fuck with you because when you came home from a day out with Peter, there was your mother, Bruce Wayne, and all six million of her fucking kids sitting on the couch.

"What the fuck?" You say causing the attention to turn to you.

"Language" Peter says, You smile softly at him before then turning to glare at Tony.

"Don't look at me, it was your moth-uh Peppers idea." Tony stumbled, looking rather uncomfortable sharing a drink with the man that his...wife? girlfriend?... whatever she was left him for.

"Pep what?" You asking, softening your glare because you'd be damned if you disrespected her.

"I just think it'd be best if we clear the air and get everything out on the table." Pepper said in that tone she uses when she's dealing with difficult people or the press. You called it her CEO tone.

"Now, go take your bags upstairs and wash up. And I'll pretend that you aren't an hour late"

"It was Peter's idea..." You mumbled and walking to the stairs that lead to the bed rooms.

"It was not!" Peter shouts following you to the rooms to help with the bags.

Christine watched as her daughter walked out of the room, playfully arguing with Peter. It was as if she were a whole different person, carefree and playful. Totally different from when she was glaring and stiff when talking to her. It broke her heart hearing Tony refer to Pepper as her Mother rather than Christine. But what did she expect?

Damian scoffed catching her attention, "Mother I do not see why you've dragged us here, that girl didn't even acknowledge us."

"Damian, enough" Bruce said, not looking away from his awkward conversation with Tony.

"Gee if only I could do that with our kids." Tony mutters into his drink.

"Does Y/n argue often?" Bruce asks trying to engage in conversation.

Tony laughs before fondly speaking, " Sort of. She isn't the type to back down when she thinks something is right. There was this one time I caught her arguing with one of my business partners about his "condescending tone and misogynistic attitude"."

""And did she apologize after?"

"Hell no. She glared at me and told me apologizing just for his ego would be demeaning her experiences as a woman. Although to be fair he was an asshole."

Bruce chuckles, " She sounds like a well rounded young woman. How old was she then?"

"Ah about 10, it was funny seeing this little girl argue in a Justin Bieber shirt argue about the patriarchy with a full grown man."

Bruce and Tony shared a laugh, picturing the scene.

"You must be very proud of her." Bruce mentions after they quieted down. Tony let a small smile escape.

" I am. She's had a rough life, and I..." Tony trails off, " She means everything to me. Without her...I don't think I'd be the same person I am today."

And with that, Tony downed his drink and stood, " Want another?"

Bruce smiled and accepted, watching Tony leave. He can tell that the man was close to his daughter. A bond that formed due to a loss, they both grew from it and grew closer. He understood, thinking about his own children.

Pepper and Christine were having a somewhat similar conversation, although it was a little more tense.

"So...Pepper-"

"Virginia." Pepper said, cutting her off.

"Excuse me?"

"My name is Virginia. Pepper is a nickname my family calls me."

"Oh. Okay, Virginia, how long have you known Y/n and Tony?"

"Oh about nine or so years. I was promoted to assistant when I saw how much of a mess Tony was." Pepper said casually.

Dick and Jason tensed, overhearing the tense conversation between the two mothers. But before Dick could interrupt Jason sat him back down.

"I wanna see what happens."

Christine continued, " And when did you become a..more permanent around the house?"

"When I saw that Y/n the one taking care of Tony." Pepper said in a serious tone, "She was the one making sure he didn't choke on his vomit and eating cereal as his flings walked out the room. Then he got kidnapped...and y/n was alone. So I made sure she’d never be alone again.”

Christine heart sank. She knew about the whole kidnapping thing. Why she didn't step in, she doesn't know. It's just another thing she regrets to this day.

Before Pepper could continue, she heard two sets of footsteps and voices

"All I'm saying is, if he looks at me funny, I'm fighting him and that's that."

"Yeah maybe not the best impression on..." Peter cuts off when they reach the living room. Eyes again on the two of you.

"Let's get this over with." You muttered, saying bye to Peter and making way over to the couch to sit next to Pepper.

"Y/n!" Christine says happily, " I'm glad you're here. We brought you something!"

She pulls out a box and she carefully hands it over to you.

You look at it suspiciously before getting a nudge from Pepper.

"Thank you." You grit out. Earning a glare from Damian and Cassandra.

You open the box to see...cupcakes.

"They're the peanut butter strawberry cupcakes you used to like. Remember? I used to bring them when I came to see you." Christine says, trying to bring up good memories.

You frown and close the box, " I'm allergic to strawberries."

Lie.

Pepper casts a glance towards you, "They look lovely, let me take them into the kitchen, I'll check on dinner."

And with that she takes the box and leaves into the kitchen. Leaving you and Tony alone.

"So...Stark" Damian started fixing his gaze on you.

"Yes, Wayne?" You said, matching his energy.

"What exactly is it you want from my mother?" He asks, earning a groan from his older brothers.

"Well, I'd appreciate it if she left me alone." You say with a straight face.

Christine frowns but before she says something Damian speaks up again.

"Tt, all this drama for the likes of you? It's honestly disappointing" He drawls, trying to get under your skin.

"Damian!" Christine scolded.

"Well, I apologize for not meeting your standards. I'd try harder if I cared what a toddler thought of me."

Jason let out a surprised chuckle while the rest of the family looked on in shock. Tony just rolled his eyes.

"I do not understand why Mother insists on rekindling her relationship with you. You obviously weren't worth the effort the first time around." He spits, causing the rest of the family to gasp.

You however, just laugh, " When you figure it out, let me know. It's probably the same reason she puts up with you."

Damian glares, about to start in again when Jason cuts him off " Shut up Demon. She got you man."

"Tt"

"I'm Jason, and anyone who can out that brat in check is good in my book." He says sending you a smirk.

You smile back, " I'm friends with Loki and Wade Wilson, I'm hardly affected by anything anymore." Your dad rolls his eyes again, he’s not exactly enthusiastic about your choice in friends.

You like this one. Probably the one you're gonna be able to stand in this family.

"Don't hog her Jason!" Dick shouts pushing him away before turning to smile at you, " Hi! I'm-"

"Dick Grayson. I know, you spilled your champagne on my dress a few years ago at a New Years gala." You say, still a little bitter about it.

"Oh. heh, right, sorry about that. Again." He says sheepishly.

You turn to Cassandra, " You're Cassandra. You and your friend cornered me in the bathroom."

Cassandra scowls and looks away.

Then you turned to Tim, " And you need to learn how to secure your fire walls better."

Tim looked at you confused, "Um excuse me?"

You smirked, " Just a suggestion. I assume you don't want people to know about your...bats in the attic?"

The whole family froze.

You knew? There was no way.

"Kid, are you hacking again?" Tony said exasperatedly, " You promised you'd stop after the last time."

"Hey it's not my fault Shuri didn't think about changing her password." You say defensively, “ and it’s not like you were complaining when you had me hack into SHEILDS databases”

“What was that!?” Pepper shouts from the kitchen.

“Heheh, nothing dear.” Tony shouts back then in a hushed voice scolds you, “ I gave you fifty bucks to keep that a secret.”

“I didn’t say what you had me retrieve.” You said smugly leaning back in your chair.

Bruce didn’t know how to feel.

On one hand, this teen that objectively hates his family, knows their biggest secret. She can singlehandedly destroy their family and expose them. And she has the means to.

But on the other, she’s a perfect fit for their family. She gets along with Jason, doesn’t let Damian get under her skin, and from the looks of it can definitely take care of herself. Only thing is, again, she hates his wife and by association, his family.

“I’m sorry, hacking? You know that’s illegal right?” Tim asks, still in shock that you got past his security systems.

You turn to him and in a bored tone replied , “Yeah? and?”

Tim stuttered for a bit before going quiet with a blush. It was adorable really.

You had to hold back a laugh, it was fun getting this stuffy family all riled up. Especially when you can see the disapproval in Christines face.

“Tony, you let our daughter participate in illegal activities??” Christine asks with a raised brow.

The table goes silent at the tone of her voice. Knowing that when she uses it someone is really in trouble.

But you roll your eyes because how are you supposed to know what that tone means?

“I let my daughter express herself in a ...healthy way. She knows her limits.” Tony replies cooly, taking a drink and looking back into the kitchen wondering where Pepper went.

”Obviously not. Tony she has no regard for the laws at all! You think i didn’t see the headlines last year?!”

Ah yes, last year you had a slight scandal where you may have punched a pap for trying to get a picture up your skirt but who wouldn’t?!

“ And you let her hang around criminals and terrorists?!”

You scoff, “ Oh please everyone in the Avengers was a criminal or terrorist at least once.”

“Not helping kid.” Tony says, “Christine, you and your family have no right to come into my home and judge my family. I’ve been civil. Hell maybe a little too much. Mainly because if I wasn’t, my wife—err Fiancée, would kill me.”

You snicker, earning a few glares.

“Look the point is, don’t tell me how to raise my daughter. Especially because I was doing it all alone.” Tony finishes with a sigh.

The table goes silent. You were getting tired of all the tense silences today.

“ Look.” You turn to Christine, “ I get that you probably feel guilty or something because you ditched me. And I appreciate that or whatever.”

You were not good at this.

“ But I don’t wanna live with you.”

Christine looks down sadly, “ Y/n I just...I just want to get to know you again. You’re my baby.”

Before you could answer you heard a crash come from the kitchen and smoke fill the rooms.

“ Pepper?!” You cough, “ Dad what’s happening?!”

“ I don’t know. Stay here” He says summoning his suit.

“FRIDAY?!” You shout, but not hearing the AI.

The Wayne’s all looked at each other in panic. They didn’t bring their suits, thinking it was just a dinner.

You turn to them and shout “ Come with me, and stay low!”

You start to lead them to the stair case, knowing that the rooms were relatively safe.

“Come on!” you yell when they don’t follow you.

Christine stands from her seat and makes to follow you before being stopped by Damian.

“Mother we cannot..”

“Damian, I’ve had about enough of you. Let’s go.” She says sternly and follows you. The rest of the family following behind as Bruce nudges Damian.

“ Come on son.”

“Father we don’t know where she’s leading us.” Damian says stubbornly.

“There’s nothing we can do right now.” he coughs.

The sounds of punching and the blasts come from the kitchen.

“Let’s go.”

They finally join the rest of the family. You have them crouched in the hallway.

“ This is James’ room. Dad had it modified just incase he was ever triggered into the Winter Solider again. No ones getting through this door when it’s locked.”

You usher them in.

“Come on Y/n” Christine says reaching a hand out to you.

You smirk, “ What? and miss all the action?”

You close the door and lock it before leaving. Laughing at their surprised faces.

The room is silent.

“ She’s awesome!” Jason says with a laugh.

[erwinsvow]

𝐢 𝐜𝐚𝐧'𝐭 𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐩 𝐦𝐲𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐟

for the 𝐝𝐞𝐛𝐚𝐮𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐝 collab <3

summary: you've always been fond of your step-brother, jean, despite how much he tries to avoid spending time with you. he finally reaches his breaking point when he sees you talking to eren, though.

warnings: step-cest, slight manipulation (reader), possessive behavior, teasing + edging, fingering, oral sex (m receiving), degradation, rough sex, creampie, jean is a good boy and reader is a fiend

author's note: i hope everyone likes this!!! i'm thinking about creating a step-cest series, let me know who should be next! tagging the lovely @yeagerslut & sending a big thank you for creating this collab! <3

Jean can never really peel his eyes away from you, no matter how hard he tries. At first it was subtle glances, like staring at the exposed skin of your supple thighs from his place beside his mom, when she was first introducing you and your father to him.

His first thought, besides the fact that it’ll be nice to have a sibling in the house with him every once in a while, is that your dress is incredibly short. So short that he wonders how you’re allowed to leave the house in something like that. If it was up to him, he wouldn’t let you, that’s for sure.

He quickly remembers that it’s not up to him, and that it’s not his place to be worrying about the length of your hem. Jean tries to suppress the strange, sudden burning feeling in his chest when he thinks about you wearing something as short as that when he has his friends over. No, that won’t be allowed.

He’ll have to tell someone about it, at some point, because he can’t stand the unusual jealousy he feels stirring at the idea of one of his friends looking at you while you’re wearing that.

His thoughts are cut short when his mother tells you two to get acquainted, while your dad and her head to the kitchen to prepare dinner. Jean almost doesn’t want them to leave, doesn’t want to be left alone with you and those legs and that dress, but he doesn’t have any say in the matter.

Your first words to your new step-brother are carefully calculated. In fact, you've been deciding everything carefully. The way you did your hair, the dress you’ve chosen that’s much too short for a family dinner but it’s not like someone can stop you, even the pink lip gloss you reapplied in the car before entering the house. Everything has its purpose, its place, with one goal in mind: see how long it takes for Jean to crack.

“I’m so excited to finally have a big brother, Jean!” you let out in a cheerful, chirpy voice that doesn’t match your insidious thoughts at all. You close the bridge separating you two with a few steps, wrapping your arms around his neck and pulling him down into a hug.

It’s so sudden, so unforeseen that he stumbles a little, letting his tall figure be pulled by your efforts and arms wrapping around your waist for support. And before he knows it, the sweet smell of your perfume is invading all his senses and leaving him with nothing to think about except you.

He takes it all in, the lingering scent of shampoo in your hair, something fruity, he thinks off-hand, the feel of your soft skin on the back of his neck, your cheek against his, but especially the way your breasts feel against his chest.

He pulls away before you want him to, and you begrudgingly allow him to, recognizing what a challenge it’ll be. But you’re always up for a challenge.

The first few months pass by in the blink of an eye for you, and dragging on and on for him. Jean tries to avoid interactions with you since that first meeting, but it’s hard to when you’re living in the same house as him. Even harder when your bedroom is right next to his, his mother offering up his assistance to help you move boxes and get settled while she and her new husband go out to dinner.

It’s ridiculous, the way he flushes bright red when he opens boxes and suitcases filled with clothing he doesn’t want to look at, all short skirts and sun-dresses and delicate panties that he tries and fails not to stare at.

You keep your gaze away, knowing exactly which suitcase you had given him to unpack, while you organize books on the shelves of the room and sort knick-knacks.

“Won’t it be nice sharing a wall?” you comment, adjusting a frame on your nightstand and not meeting Jean’s eyes. “I think it’ll be fun to have you so close.”

Jean chokes on the water he was drinking, gasping for air and trying to process your words all at once, when you finally turn around and smile. A smile that he thinks should be illegal, given the way it’s innocence personified when you’re actually a little devil.

He leaves a little bit after that, calling out that he’s not hungry when you knock on his door for dinner, but you don’t miss the way he sounds breathless, or the panties missing from your drawers.

Every challenge gets easier, right?

It doesn’t take long for your behavior to get a little out of hand, especially when the two of you have so much alone time together. Your parents are gone all the time, frequenting dinner parties and double dates, and not coming back until late at night.

Jean tries his best to keep away. While he had once been the friend whose house was always available for sleepovers, movie nights, and the like, he was now keeping everyone away. Every time your parents’ car left the driveway, Jean followed suit, either hopping into Connie’s Jeep or walking the short distance to Sasha’s place and leaving you alone.

He was hoping no one would notice, but of course someone did, and of course that someone was Eren.

“We can’t do my place again,” Sasha says, absentmindedly reaching for the bag of chips which Connie yanks out of her reach. “My dad’s having people over.” A swat to the back of Connie’s head gets her back the snack quickly.

“How come we can’t do Jean’s place like usual?” Eren asks, reclining back in his seat and enjoying the panicked expression on Jean’s face. “There something wrong with that new sister of yours?” Jean chokes back a cough.

“No.”

“Does she always have friends over, or something?”

“No.”

“Then it’s settled,” Eren says, bringing his hands together. “Jean’s place it is.” Shit, Jean. Better come up with something quick.

“We- we can’t do my place!” he sputters out much too loudly, meeting the gaze of every person in the room.

“Any reason why, Jean-bo?” Eren asks.

“I- we- what if she’s not okay with having a bunch of loud-mouthed idiots sleeping over?” Shitty, but it’s the best he can think of when he’s so concerned with keeping everyone away from you.

If you behave like that with parents in the house, how are you gonna behave with his friends around? He doesn’t wanna take the chance to find out.

“How about you call and ask, dumb-ass?” Connie suggests, shoving his phone at him and waiting with a confused look. Jean lets out a defeated sigh, knowing how this phone call will go.

Your loud, chirpy “I’m perfectly fine with that, silly! I’ve been waiting to meet your friends..” can be heard through the phone and answers Eren’s question.

Jean searches for a reason, any reason really, to keep this sleepover from happening, but realizes that he’s failed miserably when all his friends appear, clad with pillows and overnight bags, on his front door. “So,” Eren begins, with a wolfish grin on his face that Jean wants to punch right off, “Where’s the sister? It’s only polite to say hi, right?”

As if you’d been waiting for the cue, you poke your head out from the living room, that very same innocent and sweet smile gracing your face.

“Hi,” you, stepping out to greet his friends in the foyer. “It’s so nice to meet you all.”

Jean immediately regrets the fact that he never had that conversation with you about the length of your dresses. It always sat in the back of his head somewhere, though it was incredibly easy to dismiss when you would come sit next to him on the couch, dress riding up frequently and exposing more skin that he somehow always found himself entranced by.

Today the dress of choice is yellow, and though it does, in fact, cover everything it needs to, it doesn’t leave much to the imagination either. Jean almost feels like a schoolboy again, blushing at exposed shoulders and thighs, but he can’t help it when you’re clinging right to his side as you greet his friends.

“I’m Eren-”

“Hi, I’m Connie-”

“Ignore these two, I’m Sasha-” All meet each other at once. You let out a laugh at your step-brother’s funny friends, glancing up to see his expression, but all you see are signs of anger. Your smile dims a little, but picks right back at up when you notice the way Eren looks at you, and the way Jean looks at Eren.

A plan is working itself into creation in your head before you can help it, deviousness taking a hold on you as you smile brightly in favor of Eren over Jean. Your step-brother’s been keeping his distance all this time, but you’re about ready to force his hand.

You don’t miss the way Jean’s jaw tightens, his hand clenching into a fist at his side as he guides the group to the living room. Your original plan changes quickly, following them into the space and taking your usual place on the couch as you scan the various video games laid out.

“Eren, will you sit with me?” you ask in a gentle tone, one that Jean is all too familiar with. “I don’t know this game, can I watch you play first?”

“Don’t you have work to do, or something?” Jean blurts out without thinking, his only thought centered around getting you out of the room and as far away as he can.

“What work? It’s summer,” you reply, watching your step-brother’s cheeks turn red.

You’re not helping matters for Jean, as he watches Eren sit where he usually does, teeth clenched so hard his jaw hurts. He doesn’t think he could get more angry, until he notices Eren’s hand move to your knee, squeezing quickly but lingering entirely too long. There must be steam coming out of Jean’s ears at this point, watching this interaction between you two.

“Yeah, Jean, she can stick around to watch. Anything for your little sister, right?” “I’m not that much younger than you guys, you know,” you reply with a laugh, adjusting your position on the sofa and purposefully lifting the skirt of your dress for a second before letting it settle. If someone were looking, which both Jean and Eren were, they’d catch a glimpse of black panties, and they both did.

Jean is seeing red now, standing up without realizing why, ready to yank Yeager away from you, when the doorbell rings again. It stops Jean in his tracks. “That must be Marco,” Sasha reminds, looking up from the games to glance at Jean with confusion. “Aren’t you gonna go get that?”

“Y-yeah. I’ll be right back.” Jean locks eyes with you as he leaves the room, and you dejectedly sigh, leaning away from Eren. It’s no fun to mess around with another guy if Jean’s not there to see.

He guides Marco into the living room, and you greet him with a quick smile before giving your full attention back to Eren.

The next few hours are fun for you, and unbearable for Jean. Every time he spared a glance to you, you were pouring over Eren, asking questions about the game and insisting on clarification, leaning in much too close and supporting yourself on his shoulder as he explained another trivial rule to you.

Jean didn’t like any of it, not the way you laughed sweetly and played with your hair while talking to Eren, not the way your legs were on display and Eren’s sleazy hands kept finding its way back to them, none of it. What he couldn’t stand, though, was how you didn’t shy away from his touch and found any and every way to keep it going.

He’s at his limit when you go to your bedroom after dinner to change into pajamas, knowing what to expect from your nightwear. If he’s lucky, you’ll pick a big t-shirt and shorts, but he’s seen first-hand the silky slips and cotton sets you prefer to sleep in.

Jean doesn’t think he can handle the look on Eren’s face if you come down the stairs wearing one of those, so he lets his anger do the thinking for a minute when the others are fighting over snacks and who gets the couch versus the floor.

Eren’s waiting near the bottom of the stairs, looking at something on his phone when Jean approaches and glances quickly to make sure you’re still in your room.

“You better knock it off, Yeager, I’m serious,” he says, trying to contain his anger and keep his voice down. His words come out in a low grumble that he barely recognizes, body stiff and trying his best to intimidate Eren. It doesn’t seem to be working. “Knock off what?” Eren questions nonchalantly, amused that his suspicions were proving to be correct. Looks like Jean had a little thing for his step-sister after all.

Jean’s eyes unwittingly flit to the top of the stairs again, before he forces his gaze back to Eren, but the quick gesture isn’t missed by his so-called friend.

“Oh, I see. You want me to stop being so buddy-buddy with your step-sister, huh? You better tell that to her first, you know. She’s been all over me since the minute I met her.”

The sly smirk playing on his lips only makes Jean want to cave his face in all the more.

“You better watch it, you son of a-” Eren clicks his tongue to interrupt Jean.

“Come on now, Jean, you can’t really expect me to stop. I mean, it’s not like she’s my sister, right?” Eren says, with a strange look in his eyes as though he was tempting Jean to blow his cover.

Eren walks away to rejoin everyone in the living room, leaving Jean seething by the stairs and you in your bedroom, pressed against the door and clinging onto every word.

All night you had known Jean was getting agitated by your constant flirting and touchiness with Eren, but he hadn’t been close to cracking, or so it seemed. The fact that he even confronted Eren had your heart pounding in your chest, wondering if tonight might finally be the chance you had been waiting for. You hear Jean’s heavy foot steps walk away, and you decide that it’s all or nothing, now.

You leave your room and close the door gently, dressed in a pink camisole and shorts that were sure to get Eren’s attention for long enough for Jean to finally crack.

Just as you began the descent down the stairs, you heard footsteps coming back and were greeted with Jean at the foot of the stairs.

The look in his eyes was something you hadn’t seen before, something entirely different from the reserved, hesitant Jean you had gotten so used to.

No, this Jean was someone else, a mix of want and desire and shame pooling in his pretty eyes, looking at you as though you were the prey he had finally cornered.

Before you know it, Jean is in your bedroom and your back is pressed against the door roughly as his lips stay on yours and refuse to pull away. His tongue is hot in your mouth, and his hands feel as though they’re burning your skin with the heat they are radiating, groping your ass and the soft skin of your back as he explores your body. All the things he’d wanted to do for these last few months, that he’d forced himself to repress, finally coming out.

You moan into Jean’s mouth at the sudden feel of his hands on your tits, grabbing blindly and pinching your nipple roughly and suddenly, causing the moan to turn into a loud squeal. Jean clasps his free hand over your mouth.

“Shh, now,” he begins, staring into your eyes and making your core heat up uncomfortably as you realize your little challenge was finally over. You feel the wetness between your legs growing, pussy throbbing just at seeing Jean be so dominant for once. “We don't want anyone to hear, do we?”

You shake your head quickly to answer his question, having completely forgotten about the multiple guests just a floor away. You expect Jean to pull away, to tell you that he’ll take care of you after they’re all gone, some other time, but he doesn’t.

He pulls his hand away and leads two fingers to your mouth, guiding them into your willing mouth, latching your lips around them and sucking while swirling your tongue, getting them wet as he wanted.

“You know how long I’ve wanted this? Huh? Since the day I met you, that’s how long. And you’re such a fucking tease all the time, you know how unbearable it's been?” Jean says in a deep voice, his eyes observing your mouth continuing its work. You moan around his fingers, wanting to speak but no words come out.

He pulls his fingers away and leads them straight to your throbbing pussy, running one up and down your slit teasingly as you hold back a loud moan.

“P-please, Jean, please do something, I- oh!” Jean shoves the two digits into your tight hole without any warning at all, causing your whole body to shake at the sudden fullness.

“This is what you wanted, isn’t it, you dirty slut? You wanted your big brother to get fed up and fuck you senseless, didn’t you? Say it,” he orders, fingers pumping in and out and his hand grazing your clit with every motion, causing you to moan as your body tenses. You can hardly process his words because of the pleasure you’re feeling, but his other hand finding your throat brings you back quickly.

“Say it. I won’t ask again.”

“Y-yes, Jean, I-I wanted big brother to fuck me, oh, yes-” You lose your thoughts again as his pace increases, making you squeal again before you clamp your mouth shut to make sure no one hears you. Your stomach is tensing and you know you’re so, so close, one more touch from Jean would have your orgasm washing over you like lightening spreading through your body, when he suddenly stops.

You gasp loudly at the sudden emptiness, feeling your orgasm dissipate as you buck up and clamp down against nothing at all. Jean’s fingers are in his mouth, tasting your wetness as you try to catch your breath and protest against the way he’s teasing you, but your pleas are met by deaf ears.

“Jean,” you moan desperately, clinging to his shoulders, “please, please, let me cum, please-”

“No. Filthy sluts that mess around with their big brother’s friends don’t get to cum,” he says gruffly, as you whine again and try to release yourself from his tight grip. It’s useless since he has you caged in, firm hands on your waist dragging you to the bed and throwing you on top of the soft covers.

“Please, I promise I’ll be a good girl,” you plead, using your sweetest voice and big. teary eyes to win Jean over, but it’s still useless.

“I said no,” he repeats, hovering over you and his hands finding their way to the bottom of your camisole. He pulls the skimpy top off of you quickly, revealing your tits. Your nipples harden at the sudden cool air, and Jean’s fingers find them once again, pinching and teasing as you moan into your pillow, desperately bucking your hips up for contact between your legs, to no avail. His hot mouth finds your nipple, flicking with his tongue as his hand plays with the other, before he pulls away quickly.

You whine again at the loss of stimulation, before you see Jean pulling down the band of his grey sweatpants and leaning back against the headboard.

“Prove to me that you deserve big brother’s cock,” he says, revealing his hard dick as it snaps against his stomach. “With your mouth. Now.”

You don’t need to be told twice. You reposition yourself, ass in the air and head at Jean’s crotch as you stare at his pretty, pink cock with wide eyes. You’d expected him to be big, but not like this, though you don’t have time to dwell on it as he grips it firmly and taps the angry, pink tip against your lips.

You hang your tongue out, spit collecting and falling all over his length before you finally take as much as you can into your mouth, sucking and swirling as your hands move up and down the rest that you can’t take.

“Just like that-” Jean begins before breaking into a loud moan. You pop him out of your mouth and keep stroking with your hands as you whisper for him to shush.

“What happened to being quiet, and everyone downstairs will hear, and-” You’re interrupted as Jean grips his cock and shoves it back into your mouth, gagging suddenly at the unexpected movement.

Jean stares at your obedient mouth, following his instructions without any sign of the brat he was so used to. As you cup his balls in your hand, he feels them tighten and knows he’s not gonna last much longer like this. He guides your head away from his cock, admiring the drool and spit on your face and the glassy eyes he’s longed to see.

“Jean, I wanna-”

“I don’t care what you want, sweetheart,” he says, a false sweetness in his voice that’s making you feel dizzy. “You’re gonna ride me now, you got that?”

Jean’s hands are firmly set on your hips, positioning you just as he wants as you hover above his leaking cock. You grind down quickly, desperate for friction on your throbbing clit, before Jean stops your motions with the tight grip he has on you. “Are you gonna make me repeat myself?” he questions, in a tone that makes you positive that you don't want to make him angry. You shake your head immediately, taking his dick in your hand and lining it up with your wet hole, before slowly sinking down.

“Oh, god-!” you let out, before clasping a hand over your mouth. You had never felt quite so full before, the stretching burn making heat course through your whole body, as you bottom out and clench hard. “Come on, baby, you know how long you’ve been begging for this? Don’t get shy on me now,” Jean says, and you regain your senses slowly. You start moving, up and down, just like he wants and speeding up as you feel your cunt gush against Jean.

You’re sure to be making a mess, but you can hardly care when your brain feels so cloudy and distracted at how good Jean feels inside you, and you start the grinding movement again. Jean entertains you for a minute, before grabbing your hips even tighter, nearly at a bruising grip now, and snapping his own hips to thrust into you.

You’re blabbering now, utterly senseless as Jean fucks you mercilessly. You know you’re being loud, but you just don’t care, not when Jean is hitting that one spot inside you that has you seeing stars before you know it, your hands on his shoulders and holding on for life.

“Are you close, baby? Are you gonna cum all over your brother’s big cock?” Jean teases, feeling you clench down harder and knowing he won’t be able to hold on much longer either. “Yes, yes, yes! Jean! Oh, Jean-” you finally feel the tight coil in your stomach snap, unaware of your own movements and surroundings as you focus on the pleasure Jean’s giving you. You yell out, cumming so intensely and shaking on top of Jean, twitching once more when you hear Jean groan and feel hot ropes of cum inside you.

Your throat feels dry and scratchy, heart pounding as you come down from your high. You feel Jean’s grip, much softer now, lead you off of his cock and lay you next to him on the bed. It’s a mess, and you don’t know how you’ll clean up with everyone downstairs and surely they’ve noticed you’re both still gone-but you still don’t care.

All you care about is the sound of Jean’s heart beat from your position on his chest, and the way his hands feel on your skin as he holds you close to his warm body.

“So,” he starts off quietly, “was it how you’ve been imagining it all this time?” You’re not looking at him, but you know he’s smiling.

“Mmh,” you hum contentedly, “even better.” You feel his body rumble with a laugh, and his hand reaches to cup your face and lean into you for a kiss. Just as your lips meet, you hear a sharp knock at the door.

“Might wanna hurry up, you two,” Eren calls out from the other side of the door. “The others are getting suspicious.”

[mouthfulloftoothpasterry]

Feeling like a family

Summary: Y/n visits Harry during his lunch break, letting him in on the relationship both her and Milo have with Xavier. Then they go to the zoo and have a little family day :) 

warning/ disclaimers: swearing, family issues. 

Things have been going amazing with Harry and Y/n. Ever since their date a couple weeks ago they have been seeing each other more and more. Harry has been coming into her bookshop while she’s working when he can. Just to surprise her and make her day a little better, sometimes he brings her lunch on the weekends and she visits him when he is spending hours after school hours grading art work and setting projects up for his students. 

It’s been new and exciting, and extremely fun. Not to mention the kissing has definitely been a plus. They went to have coffee with each other a couple days after their date, spending a good portion of the morning together. They have basically been inseparable since, Harry even invited Y/n and Milo over for dinner so they could all get to know each other better. Loralie was just excited to have guests that weren't family, and also to see a friend from school outside of school. She had a great time with Milo, they played together while Harry and Y/n cleaned up dinner together and snuck kisses in the kitchen. 

It's another Wednesday. Harry had Loralie and Milo's class now and he is letting them finger paint. It’s mainly been a calm class, he didn’t have to deal with much usually and if a kid did have a melt down the teacher and/or teachers assistant would deal with it instead of making Harry deal with it. “Looks great, Lora,” Harry says, kissing the top of Loralies head before scooting past her and walking over to his messy desk. He has papers, projects, markers, paints, all over his desk, even with all the time he spends after school he feels like he may never get it organized. 

“My mummy likes your daddy.” He hears, looking up to see Milo and Loralie talking. His cheeks turn crimson when he hears it, did they really give it away that easy? Their children now caught onto the fact that the two were dating? That was just embarrassing. “My daddy likes your mummy.” But that was more embarrassing. 

Harry ignores it (and the burning in his cheeks) and just hopes that the teacher will hush the class. He busies himself with cleaning his desk, trying to shove the papers into the drawers and file folders that they belong to but his mind is still distracted. He’s gonna have to tell Y/n that their kids know. The bell rings and he looks up from his desk. “Okay, you can leave your paintings where they are. I'll put them on the drying rack and you’ll get them tomorrow!” Harry sings, moving over to Loralie to kiss her cheeks and say a goodbye until he sees her at lunch time. “Bye daddy” she says, waving to him after kissing his cheek and joining her class. 

Harry laughs, letting out a sigh and putting the messy finger paintings on one of his many drying racks. It’s his lunch time now. He has to supervise lunch so he gets his break before everyone else. 

He wanders around his class room, doing random things and cleaning up his messes that he’s made from the two days of the week before him. He didn’t have plans for lunch, he would probably just have an extra big dinner. He’s happy to find Y/n cured his rumbling tummy when he sees her walking through his classroom. He smiles, chuckling at her big dramatic smile that was obvious teasing. “Hi, darling.” He says, leaning over his desk to press a kiss to her lips. 

She sits on the art table in front of his desk, setting two to-go boxes down. “Hi,” she says back, handing him one of the to-go boxes. “No sitting on the tables.” Harry teases while he reaches out to take the white Styrofoam box in his hands, quickly thanking her. “Suck it up.” She shrugs, her feet setting in the chair that was once tucked under the art table. “I just got you a sub and fries.” She says, plucking a chip from her box and taking a bite out of it. 

“Why Are you here? Not that I’m not happy to see you, of course.” He smiles, reaching over and giving her hand a squeeze. She shrugs, tapping her shoes down on the chair while she pulls her food into her lap. “I forgot to put Milo's' lunch box in his backpack so I had to drop it off.” She says, making Harry smile. So he thought she would have lunch with him? She’s adorable. “So how’s your week been, babe?” Harry sings, sitting back in his big office hair and relaxing into it while he eats. 

“Fine. Milo's dad visited.” What?! Since when did he come around? And since when was he “Milo's dad” and not “Xavier”? Harry knits his brows, gulping down his food before he responds, a little nervous. Harry and Milo are best buds, they have grown closer and he’s tried to pay him more attention when he sees him in class as well, he doesn’t want their friendship to be ruined now, even though what he is thinking is selfish. Milo deserves a good daddy. 

“Since when does he come around?” He asks, Y/n rolling her eyes at his tone. “He’s a photographer so he’s always traveling the world. I mean he pays child support, he’s not a shit dad. I just have my own issues with him.” She says, her tone heavy with annoyance. Harry was under the impression that he was a horrible dad and didn’t even try to care for Milo, but now he hears he pays child support and visits? 

“I just thought he didn’t care.” 

“Well… he’s trying. Like I said he’s traveling the world so he can’t always see him but he pays child support and he’s trying to come around more. He did come over and take some cute photos of Milo though.” Y/n smiles, remembering how her baby posed so well for the camera. He was shy at first but then they found a stray kitty out on a walk and he was more than willing to pose with it. 

Harry nods, taking a bite out of his sub. He finishes his bite and wipes his mouth with the brown paper napkins, “Is he gonna take Milo for the night or something like that?” Harry questions. Y/n is happy that Xavier is trying to see him more but she doesn’t think she would be able to be away for a night, especially when he doesn’t see Milo that much anyways. “I don’t think I would be comfortable enough to let Milo stay with him, for now at least. But he’s flying off and leaving Friday so I don’t have to worry.” Y/n confesses, taking a bite of her sub while she waits for Harry’s response. 

“Yeah, I understand that.” 

They eat together before Y/n deems it time for her to go. Giving him a hug and a kiss goodbye before she heads out and opens the book shop back up, letting Harry finish out his day. 

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

Harry and Y/n had made plans to take their little ones to the zoo. Y/n told Harry that Milo had been going on and on about lions so it was the perfect time for them to go. Harry has packed up Loralies stroller, putting snacks, his wallet, and her diaper bag in the bottom carrier. Luckily (but also unluckily) Milo is at the age where he does not want to be in a stroller, every time Y/n tries to put him in it while they are out he complains and tries to get out of it the whole time. 

Harry had picked them up, driving about an hour to the zoo. Milo and Loralie babbled to each other the whole ride which made their parents happy- meanwhile they were just humming to the radio and making small talk the whole ride. 

“Are you ready to see the lions?” Y/n coos to Milo, pulling him out of his car seat and setting him on the ground, holding his hand so he doesn’t run off in the car park. Harry pulls Loralie out, pulling out her stroller from the back, preparing to put her in it. “No! I walk today.” Loralie says with a bit of aggression in her voice. Harry hands with his hand up defensively, “okay, but you're gonna want it after walking in the heat for hours.” Harry takes her stroller despite her not wanting to be in it, she takes Harry's hand instead, walking next to Milo. 

Their first stop is the stingrays, getting the food from the people who work there then getting down in front of the large pond to pet their slimy skin. Milo and Loralie giggle the whole time, pulling their hands away as soon as they feel like slimy stingray and making dramatic gross faces that make their parents laugh. The kids definitely had fun feeding them and petting them but Harry and Y/n instantly shipped them off to the bathroom so they could wash their hands. 

Next is the walk through aquarium, “come on, it's this way.” Y/n says, cooing down at Milo and fast walking toward the cave shaped aquarium. When they walk inside it's lit up blue. They look all around them and they see lots of fish, big whales, all different things. “Woah!” Loralie exclaims, making Harry laugh, kissing her cheeks. All of a sudden Milo breaks out in loud giggles, pulling at the length of her mom jeans. “Mama, Look!” Milo giggles, pointing to a fish sticking to the aquarium glass, looking like it's making a silly face at everyone. Y/n laughs, squatting down and wrapping her arm around Milo, resting a hand on his belly. “Let's go see them” Y/n says, pulling him up on her hip and kissing over his cheeks. She takes him over to the silly fish while Harry lets Loralie look around, staring above her at the large fish swimming by until she stumbles back. Harry catches her, standing her back up and taking her over where Milo and Y/n are, showing her the fish that Milo was trying to touch through the glass. 

“He's so cute.” Harry compliments, laughing at how Milo's is so obsessed with the silly looking fish. Y/n turns to look at Harry, thanking him cockily- taking all the credits for his adorableness. Harry bumps his nose with hers in a butterfly kiss while their kids are looking straight ahead. He gives her a peck while the kids are still distracted then he turns back to the fish. “Okay, it's time to go look at the animals!” Harry cheer, pulling Loralie off of the ledge she was standing on. 

They walk through the entrance of all the animals, seeing some monkeys. Loralie and Milo start to imitate the monkeys, giggling at each other and the animals. They move onto koalas, waving at the cuddly animals before they get to see the lions- this is what Milo has been waiting for. “ROAR!” Milo yells, trying to climb on the wooden fence between the people and lions. Y/n giggles at him, pulling him off the fence and on her hip. “You’re a baby lion, aren’t you?” Y/n coos, kissing his forehead. Milo nods before she pulls him in her hands, extending him out. “Nants ingonyama bagithi Baba!” She sings, making the boy giggle, roaring again before she pulls him back in, kissing all over his face, making him squeal and push away. 

Meanwhile Loralie wants to pet the real baby lions. She’s got a frustrated face on since Harry didn’t let her climb over the fencing and pet the furry lions. Harry can’t help but laugh at her. They walk a bit more, walking for a while until they go to their next exhibit. 

It’s all calm until Milo starts screaming. He sees a bird wandering free, it was a large blue bird with huge feathers framing its head. Y/n knew that the peacock was harmless, they wouldn't let it wander free if it was, but Milo was gonna be scared of it regardless. “No, no!” He yells, backing away from the bird, trying to scold it for just walking around. Y/n laughs while Milo grips onto her leg, wagging his finger at the bird and yelling at it for scaring him. “It’s not gonna get you, bubba.” She laughs, pulling him into her hip while they get to the penguin house. 

They walk into the cold penguin house, their noses instantly crinkling from the smell. “Brrr” Loralie says, running her arms up and does while her teeth chatter. Harry laughs, tossing her little jacket over her shoulder to warm her up. “Look at the baby penguin.” Harry coos to Loralie, holding her up to the glass so she can wave at the little puffins. “Tiny!” She squeals, waving at the baby penguins. 

“Yeah,” Harry laughs at her. “They are tiny, Lora.” He agrees with her, giving the back of her head a kiss before settling her back down on the ground, letting her wander off a few feet away to look around at the penguins a bit more before they leave and look at the polar bears. 

After the polar bears, they head to the gift shop, Loralie gets a purple bucket hat with a blue monkey on it and a stuffed penguin she named “tiny”. Milo got a shirt of the name of the zoo and a matching stuffed penguin that he couldn’t choose a name for just yet. 

They head back to the car, Loralie’s legs are tired on the walk but she refuses to go in her stroller, instead Harry holds her while they take the long walk back, one arm holding Loralie up to his hip and the other latched with Y/n’s hand while her other hand holds Milo's. Once they get to the car Loralie and Milo get buckled up in their car seats, sure to fall asleep soon. 

Harry and Y/n get into the front seats, their hands instantly finding the others. “I had a nice day with you.” Harry smiles, his face only inches from hers. Y/n blushes, giving his hand a squeeze. “Yeah, I had a lot of fun.” She says, focusing on Harry’s thumb rubbing at the back of her hand. They hear little whispers and giggles, turning their heads back to their little ones. “Kiss, kiss, kiss!” They whisper- chant. Their parents' cheeks instantly burn, looking back to each other with big cheesy smiles on their faces. 

“Well?” Harry shrugs, leaning in and pressing his lips to her. She giggles on his lips, both of the kids in the back yelling. “Ew!” Loralie says. “Gross!” Milo agrees. 

The parents laugh, pressing one last peck to each other's lips before Harry starts up the car. They had a good day together. Harry got closer to Milo and Y/n got closer to Loralie. It kinda feels like they are becoming a little family.

Hii!! if you liked this please reblog and tell me what you thought of it!! please let me know if you would like to be on my tag list!! and please make sure you have read the first two parts :) 

tag list: @romionefp @iaalien @hopeyoustaythenight @evanjh

[captawesomesauce]

Thoughts at noon....

My Aunt died today, and it’s a complicated mix of feelings. 

The fact is, I hated her... she was just an awful, awful person. Her kids were not much better, but thats to be expected since their father was insane, abusive, and just as bad.

But they were not a part of my life for the most part, except... when she was. 

Mom would tell me Aunt Sandy was visiting and a noticeable change would happen. Mom would become neurotic, upset at the slightest thing, and just start spiraling into insane amounts of crazy. 

Aunt Sandy came first... always. She wasn’t coming to visit, she was coming to inspect, to criticize, and to be waited on hand and foot. What she said, went. 

Mom would push back a bit, but it was few and far between.

The moment she walked in the door, the criticisms started... the house was never clean enough, even if spotless. Things were in the “wrong place” even though it wasn’t her house and we liked them where they were (example: kitchen tools in different drawers than what Aunt Sandy decried they should be in). She criticized the way mom decorated, the way she laid things out (where the couch was compared to the TV), and the everything she could see and touch. 

It was so bad that one of the first things mom said today was that now she can get rid of all of the stuff she would store until Sandy would come to visit because she hated the stuff. Think about that for a second, mom had boxes and boxes of crap that she hid 90% of the year, but only busted it out because if it wasn’t prominently displayed and the house exactly the way Sandy wanted it, it would lead to a fight. So Mom would literally redo the house just to appease her. 

But it wasn’t limited to just mom, I was always the target of her ire. 

If I went to class from 8am until 3pm, and then had to work from 6pm until 6am, the fact that I was sleeping from 3 to 6 was IMPROPER! And she did everything she could to sabotage my sleep because it wasn’t normal sleep hours and I shouldn’t impose my schedule on them!

One of the biggest memories I have of her is the Texas fiasco. I drank bad water and ended up with complete digestive failure. It was so bad I had a special plane fly me back to California with ICU nurses and a doctor on board keeping me going. I had tubes EVERYwhere!!! I got back to LA and they thought it'd be lucky if I ever ate, drank, or pooped normally again. They were talking about putting in permanent feeding tubes and everything. It ... was.. BAD.

So they called my mom.... but you see, Aunt Sandy was visiting and she brow beat my mother into not coming to see me or even answering their calls or mine after the first one. I could hear her in the background of the first call tell mom "He's an adult, he shouldn't have to have his mommmy every time he has the sniffles!!!!" I wasn't even 19 yet, and this was after both of them had been told the severity of the issue. 

Do you think mom pushed back because her only son was very very ill and in the ICU? 

Nope... she just said "Get better" and then hung up. 

So yeah, it's complicated..... mom and her were close, but it was an abusive, toxic closeness. 

Mom is kind of stunned, but more because "Aunt Sandy was the healthy one" ... which is comparative since mom has 5 different cancers and Sandy only had diabetes and a handful of other things. 

We both said "I guess this means no more netflix" ... because that was the only good memory we have of Sandy... she let us use her netflix. 

Oh well.

[pookha]

No tengo las llaves

Chapter 2

Vee keeps up appearances for Camila, makes empanadas and has their first meeting? date? with Masha. They compare notes and discuss where they're going.

Originally, I just meant for this to have the one chapter, but I'm enjoying it and it will have more, probably 4 or 5. It will be updated whenever I can, but I work full-time, it may be a while. I will aim for weekly or fortnightly, but if it takes longer sometimes, I apologize in advance.

Thank everyone who read, left kudos and especially those who commented. I love you all. Let's spread the Owl House love.

Vee slid out of the top bunk and onto the floor. They went to Camila’s room and got her laptop. They logged in as Camila and found her password manager. They tried a couple of times to log into it, but couldn’t get the password correct and stopped before they got locked out. They dug around in Camila’s dresser drawers and eventually found a piece of paper at the very bottom of Camila’s jewelry box. Vee laughed and went back to the laptop.

They logged into the password manager with “C0sM1C_Fr0nt13r” and got access to Camila’s bank account. They looked over Camila’s desk for bills and made sure to pay them, noticing that most of them had already been set up for autopay. They used Zelle to transfer some money to Luz’s account, which Vee had a debit card for. Vee saw the brochure for the camp sticking out from the bill pile and touched it fondly.

“I never would have known how to do this without you,” they said and then shivered at the empty house.

They looked at the clock, sighed and shifted to Luz’s shape. They got Camila’s spare keyring and then got on their bike and rode to where they had left the car the night before. They loaded the bike in the trunk, shifted to Camila and drove to the clinic. They drove carefully, obeying the speed limit, using turn signals and the mirrors. They were happy that they’d insisted Camila teach them how to drive and that they picked up skills quickly.

When they got to the clinic they got everything ready for Camila’s suposed unexpected trip back to the Dominican Republic to visit her abuela. Everyone took it well, with Vee getting lots of sympathetic hugs from Camila’s staff. They hoped it wouldn’t be too long; Dr Simonson could help out, but not forever and they could call in Dr Jensen, but she had her own concierge service.

Vee left as soon as they could, stopped at the grocery store to pick up some fresh apples. They also picked up some soda and chips.

When they got back home… home… they thought of Camila’s house as home now. They knew that they’d never go back to the Demon Realm unless they had to. Hopefully, Belos would lose and they could open the portal whenever they wanted so Vee could get magic to eat. They couldn’t think about the alternative.

They switched back to their natural form and started working in the kitchen. Cooking and especially baking had become stress relief and they loved learning all the recipes that Camila had learned from her mom and her abuela. They put their phone on the dock and turned Spotify onto shuffle. They’d combined Camila’s and Luz’s and Masha’s playlists and the mix was…eclectic to say the least.

Kpop blared from Luz’s playlist as they laid out their ingredients in the order they’d need them, a thing they’d learned recently was called mise en place. If they managed to stay in the human realm, they thought they’d love to open a bakery: fresh doughnuts, savory and sweet empanadas, cakes and pies, brownies and cupcakes. They’d recently learned how to shape fondant and it was art …art was the only word that they thought applied.

Their phone buzzed on the dock with a text and they paused to look at it.

I have detention today (talking back to a teacher…again), so I won’t be there until around 5. My mom’s going to pick me up around 8ish. Should I bring something for dinner or snax?

Vee texted back quickly, not wanting to leave them on read.

I’m making something. You’re not vegetarian, right?

They saw the ‘…’ of Masha typing and then;

Nope. see you around 5

Vee went back to their baking. They made their fillings first and sat them aside before making their dough the traditional way with masa rather than white flour. They made the apple ones first and while they were cooling, they baked the chorizo filled ones. The smell of the nutmeg, cinnamon and apples tempted them enough that they had to eat one. It was still warm and gooey from the oven and Vee blew on it to keep it cool. Now that the baking was done, their mind raced as they ate. Thoughts of Camila and Luz and Luz’s friends ran circles and then Masha’s face filled them. They sighed, finished their empanada and started cleaning.

They had just loaded the dishwasher to run when the savory empanadas were done. Their sensitive nose let them know that they were perfect; they were improving rapidly.

After they had cooled for a few minutes, Vee broke one open to look at it, just look at it, but then ate it. It hadn’t cooled enough and they gasped around a burnt roof of their mouth; a fitting punishment for lying to themself they thought.

They sat down with Luz’s laptop and went back to Duolingo. They were getting through the Spanish lessons much more quickly than Camila had thought they would. Being a basilisk and changing shape gave them a lot of knowledge and language skills, but still learning the slang and idioms was challenging.

They lost themselves on the internet for a while and only looked up when a knock came at the door. They shifted back to their human Vee shape and got up.

“Ah, shoot, it’s already five,” they said as they opened the door.

Masha stood on the other side, covered against the damp chill by a long black coat, not quite a trench, but not just a windbreaker either.

“Going to let me in or just stare at me,” Masha asked.

Vee blushed, hating that they would blush no matter their form.

“Sorry,” they said and stood aside to let Masha in.

Masha entered, opened their jacket to let the heat of the house in as Vee closed the door. They both stood awkwardly for a moment before Masha broke the silence.

“I trust you, but there are some things I’ve got to ask first, okay?”

Vee nodded.

“You’re not planning to kill me and eat my skin?”

Vee blinked in surprise and put their hands to their face.

“What? No, I’m not a fairy. I don’t eat skin. I won’t hurt you.”

“Wait, fairies eat skin?” Masha asked.

“In the Boiling Isles they do,” Vee said.

Masha laughed.

“All right. Are you super old? This isn’t a Twilight thing where you’re like a hundred and I’m a teenager, right?”

Vee’s blush deepened.

“No, no, I’m…”

They thought for a moment.

“I—I think I’m about fifteen in human terms?” It sounded like a question.

“You’re not sure?” Masha asked.

Vee shook their head.

“Not one hundred percent. I feel about that old and I know that we mature about the same as witches and humans. I don’t know exactly when I was made, but I’m no older than eighteen and no younger than fourteen.”

“Wait, you said ‘made.’ What do you mean?”

Vee lowered their head.

“Can we talk about it in the living room?” they asked in a very small voice.

Masha nodded and followed Vee to the couch. They looked around curiously as Vee sat on the couch and patted the cushion next to them for Masha. Masha took off their jacket and draped it on the arm of the couch before sitting next to Vee. Vee’s hands were knotted together in their lap. Masha reached over and put their hand over Vee’s. Vee looked up and smiled.

“Basilisks had been extinct in the Boiling Isles for a long time, hunted by the witches because we eat magic. Belos brought us back using magic and alchemy or whatever to study how we drain magic so he could kill all the witches.”

Vee’s voice, which had been small, was now tiny.

“It’s not your fault,” Masha said, picking up on Vee’s guilt right away. They squeezed Vee’s hands. Vee released their own hands and gripped Masha’s tightly.

“I just learned recently that Belos was a human who came through a portal a long time ago and he was some kind of witch hunter. He killed his brother; Luz said something about it before Belos escaped back to the Demon Realm.”

Masha went very still.

“Is—was his name Philip?”

“I think that’s what Luz called him,” Vee said.

“Okay, tell me everything,” Masha said.

Vee told the whole story of the previous night, with flashbacks to how they came to the Human Realm and took over Luz’s identity.

“I—wow, that’s a lot,” Masha said finally. They reached up to brush nascent tears from the corners of Vee’s eyes.

“You weren’t at the hayride, so you don’t know the story from the human side.”

Vee shook their head.

Masha told them the story of the Wittebane brothers and Vee nodded. It fit what they knew and what had happened the night before.

“And Mrs Noceda followed Luz and her friends to the Demon Realm?”

“Mom—Camila did,” Vee said.

“You already think of her as Mom; I love it. That alone speaks well of you,” Masha said.

Masha’s stomach rumbled and there was silence for a second before they both laughed, tension released.

“I made food. Sorry I forgot!” Vee stood up suddenly and bustled to the kitchen. Masha paused just a moment before following them. Vee turned around and saw them following.

“Aw, I was gonna bring it to you, but this is better.” They waved their hand for Masha to sit at the table.

Vee grabbed a plate with a cloche on it and put it on the table.

“Those are the apple ones; just a moment and I’ll get the savory ones warm.”

They pulled a plate, opened the fridge and put six empanadas on a plate. They put them in the microwave for about 40 seconds while they pre-heated the oven.

“If you just microwave them to reheat them, they get soggy and if you just use the oven, the outside gets too crispy before the filling is hot, so I microwave them for a little bit and then crisp them in the oven to reheat.”

Masha nodded like they knew what Vee was talking about.

The microwave beeped, Vee opened it, put the empanadas on a baking sheet and put them in the oven.

“It’s not fully pre-heated, so it’s going to take a few more minutes,” they said. They set a timer for ten minutes.

Vee sat at the table across from Masha.

“I—I have a question and I hope it’s not rude,” Masha said.

“It’s okay,” Vee said.

“You said yesterday that you wanted to change your pronouns to they/them from she/her. Are you female, do you identify as non-binary…or?” Masha trailed off, embarrassed to be asking such a pointed question.

Vee smiled.

“It’s complicated. In my natural form, I’m non-binary; basilisks don’t really have male/female sex. We can be one or the other, or both or neither. I prefer to be female when I shift to other shapes, but I don’t have to be. From the few of us I knew, most of us had a gender and sex preference. They/them just feels better to me right now. Maybe I’ll go back to she/her at some point or she/they, but I don’t know right now. So much is in flux. I might have to go back to the Demon Realm to live, assuming they can even re-open the portal. If not, I’ll probably starve to death.”

“Sorry if it was rude, I wasn’t sure how gender and sex worked with basilisks.”

“It’s all right,” Vee said.

“I can tell you about me,” Masha said, their voice now choking a bit.

“If you want, but you don’t have to. Remember that I was at camp and I know your deadname and how you presented then,” Vee said.

Now Masha was crying. Vee slid their chair closer to Masha’s and put their arm around them.

“You don’t have to tell me anything you don’t want to.”

Masha leaned their head on Vee’s shoulder, which got soaked with tears.

“Sorry, I don’t cry much,” Masha said, lifting their head and wiping their eyes with their sleeve.

The timer beeped, causing them both to jump and then laugh.

Vee got up and went to the oven and got out the pan. The scent of chorizo filled the kitchen.

“Damn, that smells amazing,” Masha said.

Vee dished them up and got plates.

They pointed at the empanadas.

“The ones with the two fork pricks are spicy and the ones with the four fork pricks are very spicy. The ones on the other plate are apple, for dessert.”

Masha grabbed one each of the spicy and very spicy. They took a bite of the very spicy first, chewed it thoughtfully, stood suddenly and went to a cabinet.

“Glasses are in the one on the left. Get milk, not water, it will cut the spice better,” Vee said.

Masha got two glasses and the carton of milk from the fridge. They sat them on the table, filled their glass with milk and drank a big gulp of it.

“You—you weren’t kidding when you said very spicy,” Masha said.

“Too much?” Vee asked.

Masha nodded.

Vee took the spicy one off their plate and switched it with Masha’s very spicy.

“You don’t mind it has a bite out of it?” Masha asked, taking a bite of the spicy one. Their eyes went wide, but they managed to swallow it.

“Nah, we’re gonna be making out at some point, you said, so what’s a bite?”

Masha choked a bit on their milk and Vee laughed.

“I know you were saying that to just make your mom laugh some, but were you serious?” Vee asked, lowering their eyes again.

“I was mostly tweaking my mom, but also serious. I do like you Vee and maybe it will happen when we get to know each other better or maybe we’ll just be friends, but I really do want to find out. When it happens, it’ll happen, you know?”

Vee nodded.

They ate mostly in silence; Masha had to refill their milk twice more.

“Sorry it’s too spicy,” Vee said and Masha waved them off.

“I’ll get used to it,” Masha said.

They finished their empanadas and Vee piled the dishes in the sink. Masha picked up one of the apple empanadas and looked at it.

“What’s the glaze?” they asked, taking a nibble.

“Just powdered sugar and milk,” Vee said.

“They’re really good, both the apple and the chorizo.” Masha smiled.

“I remember when we first met at camp, you were so shy and didn’t really seem to know what was going on. Do basilisks all learn this fast?”

Vee nodded.

“Taking a shape gives us some basic knowledge and language skills, but it can be a bit of ‘hello fellow youth’ like that meme if you get what I mean.”

Masha laughed again; Vee was beginning to like making Masha laugh.

“I get you,” they said.

Vee turned around from the sink.

“Would you like to see my real shape?” they asked suddenly.

Masha put the apple empanada down and nodded.

Vee changed back to their natural shape. Masha’s eyes widened, then they smiled.

“You’re super cute,” they said.

Vee blushed.

“You can blush!” Masha laughed. They stood and moved to stand next to Vee.

“May I touch you?” Masha asked.

Vee nodded, grabbed Masha’s hand and put it on their neck.

“You’re warm,” Masha said.

“Where can I touch you safely?” Masha asked.

“Anywhere above here,” Vee said, indicating approximately where their waist would be in human form.

Masha slid their hand.

“You’re smooth; I was expecting scales like an alligator, but you’re more like a garter snake.”

“We’re not reptiles, but I understand,” Vee said. They put their hand over Masha’s and held it.

Masha’s gaze saw the ring on Vee’s tail. Vee noticed.

“That’s where I was chained before I escaped.”

“Can—can you remove it?” Masha asked.

“Maybe with magic, but it reminds me of what I was and what I’m becoming here.”

Masha got a sly look on their face.

“When you shift forms, does it stay with you like a piercing?”

“Yes,” Vee said, and then, “maybe one day I’ll show you.”

“Wait! What happened to your clothes?”

Vee laughed.

“Everyone always asks that. They’re a part of me.”

“Wait, you were naked the whole time?” Masha asked, reddening.

“No, I was wearing clothes, they’re just me. It’s complicated and…” Vee waved their hand, “existential?”

“Can you change your clothes at will?” Masha asked.

Vee nodded.

“I don’t want to waste too much magic, though. What I took off Belos will last me a long time, but who knows how long everyone will be gone.”

“Is that what you meant about starving? Without magic, you’ll die?” Masha slid their hands back up to Vee’s neck and put them around the back of it, embracing them.

“Yeah, human food reduces the amount of magic I need to just live, but I do need magic to change shapes and without it, I’ll eventually wither away, even with human food.”

“Well then, I hope they hurry up even more and they’re all safe,” Masha said.

A horn honked from outside.

They both looked up at the clock. It was already eight. Neither knew where the time had gone.

“Text me when we can see each other again,” Vee said and started to pull away.

Masha leaned in suddenly and kissed Vee’s cheek.

“I’ll text later when I get home,” Masha said.

Vee shifted back to their human shape in Masha’s arms, which made Masha’s eyes go wide again and then kissed them on the cheek, too.

After Vee closed the door behind Masha, they raised their hand to their cheek, which was still burning with Masha’s kiss. On the other side of the door, Masha was doing the same.

[rommahh]

I Carry It In My Heart

Word count: 4.7k

I thank everyone who read part one, it meant so much to me to see the love it got. Heres part two, please comment, like reblog, whatever I just wanna hear your thoughts! I also plan on making smaller blurbs of this universe with fratrry. I have plans for a graduation, wedding, babies, and other random blurbs of their lives. Much love, R.

Part One

Y/N’s drive home was quiet. She drove the whole six hours just listening to her thoughts. Thinking about the future of a relationship she had so much hope for. She wanted this relationship so much and seeing Harry before leaving campus reassured her that maybe just maybe, Harry wanted what she wanted too.

Six hours went by and Y/N finally arrived home. She lived on a very secluded farm with her mom, dad, grandparents, uncles/aunts, and cousins. Everyone lived along the property making the family tight knit. She was scared to reveal to her family that she wasn't with Harry anymore. He grew to be a very important part of the family. Everyone saw how beautiful Harry and Y/N’s relationship was. They could see how close they were and how they just shared a really unique connection with each other.

Getting out of her car, Y/N took a moment to stretch her legs before she was bombarded by her family. Hands were pulling her into hugs, kisses were being planted on her cheek- she never felt more loved in her life. She didn't realize she was crying until her mom held her face between her hands wiping the free flowing tears from the young girl's face. The family left the mother and daughter alone to reconnect.

“What is wrong with my baby?” Her mother cradled her face as she sobs.

“Mommy, we broke up. Me and Harry broke up and- and i'm exhausted from exams, and i'm so hungry!” Y/N’s hysterics caused her mom to chuckle. She helped grab Y/N’s belongings from the trunk and then led the girl into the house. As Y/N wiped the tears from her face she hiccuped trying to catch her breath.

With her bags in her room, Y/N sat at the kitchen table as her mom placed a bowl of chilli in front of her. Her mom sat beside her rubbing her back encouraging her to eat and regain some energy.

“Tell me what happened hon?”

“We got in a really bad fight after he kissed another girl. He basically said that I was overreacting. I tried to tell him that my reaction was merely based on how I feel about our future relationship. He laughed at me and said he wasn't thinking about the future of our relationship. Tha-” She choked up again “-that this wasn't a future he wanted.” Y/N sniffled into her food as her mom guided food into her mouth.

“It's ok hon. Let me tell you something, you and Harry will be fine. It may seem like this is the end but it's not. You will get through this because you guys were made for each other. From the way that you guys know each other's thoughts to the way that you both can read each other with no problem- you two were meant to be. Me and your pa went through our own issues but look at us now. We are solid. Baby, you two will be solid.” Y/N’s mom smoothed the hair on her daughter's head smiling at the young girl.

Y/N thought about her mothers words. Hearing her mom say those things about her relationship made her feel a little better. Her mother kissed her on the forehead and told her to get to bed and get some rest.

Y/N walked into her room and immediately her eyes were drawn to the gift Harry got her. She didn't remember bringing it in her room but there it sat in all of its glory. The gold wrapping paper on the box contrasted with the dark wood of her dresser. The envelope adorned with Harry's name written in cursive.

She was tempted to open the gift but at the same time she couldn't bring herself to even touch the gift. She kept thinking about the moment she shared with Harry in the parking lot. How he made time to see her before she left. How he found time to get her a gift and bring it to her. She grabbed the gift, shoving it into the top drawer of the dresser.

As Y/N lied in her bed that night, wrapped in a blanket Harry bought her, she couldn't run her mind off. She wanted to be with Harry but she was scared of his lack of commitment. She doesn't understand his sudden lack of commitment. She mentioned marrying him in the future and he freaked out on her. It hurt to know that in a quick second, he could change his mind.

Closing her eyes she went to sleep thinking about her brown haired, green eyed boy whose heart she carries with her at all times.

Y/N felt better to be back home on the farm. This semester had mentally drained her to the point where she felt like she had nothing within herself to give. She sat in the barn behind the house watching the chickens run around as she remembered the first time Harry visited the farm.

“No Harry, you just grab them from underneath. Like cup your hands and grab!” Y/N hollered to her boyfriend as he chased chickens around trying to grab them. He couldnt get his hands on a chicken but hearing his girlfriend laughing made it all worth it. Here he was dressed in overalls while chasing chickens.

“Bubs, I cant get one.” He pouted walking back over to Y/N.

“You don't have the talent I have.” She walked over to a resting chicken and grabbed it with ease. Tucking the chicken under her arm, she scratched the top of the chicken's head and walked over to where Harry was standing in shock.

“You are something else!” She set the chicken down, watching it run away. Harry grabbed her arm, twirling her around to face him. She placed her arms atop his shoulders, fingers playing with the small curls of his head. His arms wrapped around her waist squeezing her close to him.

It was a beautiful morning on the farm. Fall break on full blast and instead of Harry going back home, he just decided to come see where his girlfriend lives. They were sophomores now, entering almost a year of dating. This had been one the best almost years of their lives.

Harry placed a gentle kiss on her plush lips. She smiled, kissing him back.

“I love you Harry.” She said, staring at his eyes. His eyes opened wide. He stepped back from her and then started jumping up and down out of happiness. He threw her over his shoulder and started running through the blades of grass like the chickens he was trying to catch earlier. Setting her down on her feet she giggled at his antics.

“I cant believe you just said that. Im so fucking in love with you. So in love.” He said squishing her cheeks together, puckering her lips and smacking a wet kiss on her mouth.

“Ew Harry gross.” she giggled as he continued to place wet slobbery kisses over her face.

Y/N was so happy to bring Harry home. She wanted to show her family this new boy that had completely captivated her heart. He fit in with her family perfectly, making jokes, helping with dinner, playing with the little ones. He was family.

Walking into the house, she was greeted with the familiar smell of her grandma's famous peach crumble. She went into the kitchen sitting at one the stools watching her grandmother whip around the kitchen baking a slew of desserts.

“Hey lovebug, you go out and see your chickies?” Her grandmother asked, never losing focus of what she was doing.

“I did, they are all growing up so quick.” Y/N laid her head down on the table staring out of the window. Head fuzzy with anxiety and muddled thoughts.

“What happened to Harry?” Y/N’s head popped off of the table as she looked at her grandmother in confusion.

“How did you know something was up?”

“You're my grandbaby, I know everything about you. You've also been moping around my house so I knew something had happened.” She took a bowl down from the cabinets scooping a hot piece of peach crumble in the bowl and placed it in front of Y/N.

“Yeah, me and Harry split up. We just had a bad fight that put us in a weird place. He cheated on me.” She scooped crumble into her mouth trying to distract herself from her sadness.

“Oh love bug. I'm really sorry about that. Did you guys talk at all?” Placing a pie in the oven, her grandmother took a seat next to Y/N stealing a bite of crumble.

“He actually said goodbye to me before I came home. He gave me a Christmas gift too. I don't know, we didn't really say much. I miss him though. He was drunk when he cheated on me, which isn't an excuse but I think he was taken advantage of. I'm not mad about him cheating on me. I was mad at how he reacted to me. Like I was in the wrong for thinking about our relationship in the long run.”

“I understand. Can I be honest with you?” Crumble gone now, Y/N turned her body to face her grandmother. She shook her head to say yes. “You and Harry will be ok. It feels like the end right now but it isn't. It really isn't. I watched you two all of that one break and I saw a resilient couple who were going to go so far. This bump in the road can be fixed. Baby that boy looks at you like you are the whole universe.” You blushed at her words.

“What do I do then?”

“Well, I think you guys should enjoy this break. Take the time to reflect on what your relationship was and what it could be. Harrys going to go home and be surrounded by family as you are now, just let yourself enjoy that time. When he comes back for school, meet up again and talk. You both are adults- you know what to do.” You took in your grandmother's words. She always knew what to say.

“Why is it that you and mom always give me advice over food?” You laughed as she winked at you kissing you on the cheek.

“Food always makes people listen.”

When Wednesday finally arrived, Harry couldn't have been happier to go home. He had been on campus all alone and just feeling like shit. Maybe it was karma for how he treated Y/N. His heart felt hollow and even though he saw her before she left campus, he knew they still weren't ok. He wanted nothing more than to just be ok with his girl. The girl who makes him feel happiest on his darkest days. He doesn't understand how he would have ruined something so perfect.

At his gate at the airport, Harry sat staring at his phone waiting for something. He didn't know what he was waiting for. He didn't deserve anything, especially because of how bad he messed up. He didn't plan on seeing Y/N last friday before she left but he didn't want to go home without seeing her face. He also spent all night writing her a letter that laid down his thoughts. He also wanted to give her a gift. He bought it at the beginning of the semester back home. He knew it was perfect for her the second he saw it.

“Welcome to British Airways, we are now boarding all priority passengers.”

Harry stood up collecting his carry on and started walking to the line forming in front of the gate. He checked his phone again. Nothing.

As the line moved forward. He checked again. Nothing.

He scanned his ticket. Checked again. Nothing.

Situating himself in his seat on the airplane, Harry didn't even bother checking his phone knowing nothing was there. He clicked his seatbelt over his lap and opened the window beside him to look outside.

His phone buzzing pulled him out of his thoughts. His breath hitched, heart lurching. Pulling his phone out of his pocket he turned the screen on.

To: Harry, from: Bubs<3

Have a safe flight Harry

Harry's eyes welled with tears.

To: Bubs<3, from: Harry

Thank you, love. It means a lot.

To: Harry, from: Bubs<3

I miss you Harry

A few of those tears tipped over the edge now rolling down his face.

To: Bubs<3, from: Harry

I miss you so much baby

And that was it. But that was all Harry needed to feel something again.

Y/N didn't know what compelled her to text Harry. She knows her grandmother told her to take some time but she just wanted to reach out to him. She wanted him to know that she was still here. She was still thinking of him and still wanted this. Whatever ‘this’ was.

Christmas eve came quickly, Y/N’s house filled with family members, food, and little children running around wreaking havoc. Y/N was sitting in her room staring at the drawer where the gift from Harry hid. She was scared to open it. Pushing that fear to the side, she walked over the drawer opening it and grabbing the box and envelope. She put the gift in her purse before grabbing her keys. She couldn't open the gift here. She needed to go somewhere quiet.

She said a quick goodbye to her parents and left the house in a hurry. She found herself parked at a small store's parking lot a few miles away from her house. She kept the car on for the heat but turned off the christmas tunes she had playing low in the background.

She opened her purse to pull the envelope out. Carefully ripping the top of the envelope she pulled out a stack of items. In the envelope were four photos and a handwritten letter. She saved the letter for last.

The first photo was of Harry and Y/N sitting on a bean bag in the library. Harry had the camera outstretched above their heads, Y/N with her face buried in a text book. This was taken in their first year during their first exam week. They were not exclusive yet but their friends knew how close they were- there was no one coming between the two of them. Y/N had been so stressed that week so Harry invited her to the library to eat lunch and study together. He helped her through some science homework which helped dramatically on her exam.

The second image was of Harry and Y/N at their favorite restaurant off campus. It was taken during their sophomore year during their one year anniversary. It was the week before spring break and they had just finished a round of midterms. Harry surprised her with a trip to her favorite restaurant. The waiter offered to take the picture because of how adorable the couple looked. In the picture they were holding hands, smiling wide to the camera. Y/N eyes welled up at how happy they looked together.

The third pic was taken during an event on campus at the end of their freshman year. It was a piece and love festival where different clubs hosted fun activities in hopes of promoting unity on campus. In the picture, Harry and Y/N were holding up braided string bracelets with beads that said their partners name. They always wore those bracelets after that day. Y/N looked down at the slightly faded bracelet on her wrist. Harrys name on her wrist reminding her that he is always with her no matter what. Cheesy as it may be but the cheap string with plastic was something she would never part with.

The last picture was taken on Y/N’s farm. It was by the barn where Harry and Y/N were chasing chickens. It was taken from a high angle from afar. Harry had her on his shoulder and they were both visibly laughing. They had matching overalls with embroidery done by Y/N's aunt. On the back of the picture, Y/N could recognize Harry's handwriting as it said, “Your Grandma emailed me this picture when we got back to campus. She said that she couldn't help but take the picture when she saw how happy you looked.” Y/N laughed at his sloppy handwriting and her grandmother's words.

The last piece of the envelope was the letter. Y/N slowly unraveled the folded paper, smoothing out the crinkles. Taking a deep breath she began reading.

Y/N,

In my eyes, our future is filled with love. I see us buying a small house in your home town because I know you love home. I know you also said you may want to live in a city so if our plans were to change, I could see us living in a small apartment, decorated by you of course, with bookshelves that towered to the ceiling and many plush blankets littering the rooms. I see us working hard during the day and enjoying each other during the evening when we come home. I see bubble baths and fun new dinner recipes. I see me bringing you flowers to brighten your day from a long day of work. I see us travelling to all of the places you have pinned on your “for the future” pinterest board. I see us having a small wedding, my family, your family, some friends and that's it. I'd let you do whatever you like for the wedding because I want to see you happy.

I see little ones. Direct copies of you and me running around in the backyard as we try chasing them and tickling them. I see bedtime stories and fun days at the park. Picnics in the meadow and swimming in the lake. Catching chickens and rough housing with the goats. Pasta sauce around the mouth after a good meal. Frozen yogurt with all of the toppings. I see everything with you. There's not a moment where I don't see us together. I think about our graduation and where we will be after graduation.

I see a future with you and I was an ass to say otherwise. You are everything to me. I should be doing more for our relationship like I used to. I want to take you out on more dates and shower you in gifts because you deserve it. I love you so much. Please don't give up on me and all of the memories we've created. I want it all with you.

School has been hurting me pretty bad and I took it out on you. I cheated on you because I was too drunk to think properly. I hurt the only person whose opinion I hold higher than anyone else's. We built a beautiful relationship of trust and boundaries and I ruined it for no reason. I want to do better. Please let me show you that I can do better.

I found this poem that reminded me of you. I know you like poems and this poem speaks for me wholly.

i carry your heart with me (i carry it in

my heart) i am never without it (anywhere

i go you go, my dear; and whatever is done

by only me is your doing, my darling)

i fear

no fate (for you are my fate, my sweet) i want

no world (for beautiful you are my world, my true)

and it’s you are whatever a moon has always meant

and whatever a sun will always sing is you

here is the deepest secret nobody knows

(here is the root of the root and the bud of the bud

and the sky of the sky of a tree called life; which grows

higher than soul can hope or mind can hide)

and this is the wonder that's keeping the stars apart

i carry your heart (i carry it in my heart)

Have a lovely break and I hope to be able to see you after.

Love Harry.

His letter left the girl speechless. He said everything she wanted to hear. Looking at her phone she checked the time.

7:36 pm

Its about 12 am in london.

Without a second thought she opened Harry's facetime profile and pressed the call button.

Ring. Ring. Ri-

“Love? Are you alright? Did something happen?” Harry was quick to answer, looking half awake and flustered. Y/N broke down in tears immediately. “Y/N are you ok, baby?”

“Harry.” She wailed. It was embarrassing but all of the pent emotion she was holding in finally breached. She couldn't stop crying. Harry sat up from his laying down position in bed holding the phone closer to his face to inspect his girl.

“It's ok bubs, whatever it is, it's ok. I promise it's ok.” Harry tries consoling the girl. Her tears reduced to small sniffles.

“I read your letter Harry. It's beautiful. Absolutely beautiful. I want it all with you too. I've always wanted it with you. Since the day we met Harry.” He let out a watery laugh so overwhelmed with emotions. She wiped her face of tears looking back at the letter next to her.

“Y/N I love you so much. I do. I know I'm not that good at expressing my emotions but I do want a future with you. I'm hurting knowing I hurt the best thing that's ever happened to me.” His tears continued to flow freely.

“It's ok Harry. I'm not mad anymore. I'm not hurt either I promise. I think I was more upset that we were done. I don't want us to be done. I really don't.”

“I don't want us to be done either. I really want to marry you. Maybe not right now but in time I wanna get married.” He paused, wiping his face. “I wanna get married on your farm, maybe put the chickies in little tuxedos.” She giggled at his proposition.

“They would hate you even more if you did that.” They shared a laugh and then some silence. “I guess it's technically Christmas over there huh? Well Merry Christmas H.”

“It is christmas isn't it? Merry Christmas bubs. Did you open the box?” She grabbed the box next to her to show Harry shaking her head. She unwrapped the paper and revealed a box with a logo she wasn't familiar with.

“What's this?” He encouraged her to keep opening the gift. Lifting the top of the box she let out a loud gasp upon seeing a beautiful gold bracelet sitting on a satin pillow. She placed her phone on the phone stand on her dashboard so she could have both hands to look at the bracelet. The bracelet was gold and thin with a nameplate in the middle. Engraved on the nameplate was Harry's name.

“You went silent on me...Do you like it?” Y/N couldn't stop looking at the bracelet in her hand.

“Harry...It's gorgeous. It's so gorgeous.” She whispered. She slid the perfectly fit bracelet on her hand watching it fall in front of her handmade bracelet. The two bracelets adorned her wrist perfectly. “I love you so much H.”

“I love you too, I do. I can't wait to see you in person and talk.” He replies with his heart clenching in a good way, watching his girl smile happily at her gift.

“Om bubby, I'll let you go to sleep. I love you, spend time with your family and then come back to me as the same Harry I fell in love with.” He smiled, whispering goodnight and hanging up.

Going home that night, Y/N’s family watched her come back into the house walking lighter on her feet and looking happier than she did when she came home from school. She showed her bracelet off to her parents as her grandmother made her a plate of food. She smiled at everyone and talked the whole night. Her grandmother watched from afar feeling her heart fill with joy at her granddaughter's happiness.

As Christmas break went on Harry and Y/N continued to keep their relationship moving slowly. Only calling each other once a day and giving each the much needed space to heal with their respective family. Y/N facetimed him on christmas giving him a youtuber esq. Haul of all of her gifts while he laughed at her silliness. He did the same thing with half the enthusiasm.

As move in day approached, Y/N felt herself becoming worried about her relationship. She worried that when she saw Harry, their relationship would slowly deteriorate. Little did she know that she had no reason to be so afraid. Harry was on his flight back to school ready to hug and hold his girl. He was ready to reunite and be the couple they used to be. He was ready to be a better partner for his girl.

“Alright girly, looks like we got everything squished in your car. Are you sure you've got everything?” Y/N’s mom asked sarcastically. Y/N huffed shoving another bag in the passenger seat.

“Yup that should be it.”

“Ok, well you give me a hug and get going.” Y/N rushed into her mom's arms. Her mom kissed her on the forehead and left Y/N and her grandmother to talk on their own.

“Bye grandma, i'm going to miss you.” Her grandmother held her arms tight.

“You get back to campus and see that boy ok? You go and be in love. You too are old enough to know what you want and this relationship is something you obviously both want.”

Kissing her grandma goodbye, she got in her car and started her drive back to school.

It only took Y/N one trip from her car to her dorm to unload all of her belongings. She was able to snag one of the big trolleys to push her things inside. She watched as friends reunited, she even said hi to a few of her friends but her mind was set on one person. She grabbed her wallet and phone from her dorm and left quickly on a journey to get to Harry’s frat.

The air was cool but Y/N felt warm from how quickly she was booking it to Harry. Harry, just like Y/N, immediately left his room to see Y/N. Having not seen her in a month and some of exam week- he couldn't wait to see her. Harry saw Y/N’s familiar face walking down the sidewalk of his frat and he stopped in his tracks. She smiled her bright, beautiful smile before running over to where he stood. Her arms hooked around his neck as his arms adjusted around her waist. He stumbled a bit from the force of her hug but stood his ground nonetheless.

She held him tight, legs bound around his waist, a few stray tears falling from her eyes. He held her just as tightly, hands tightly holding her thighs and back.

“Hi bubby.” She said in his ear, face burrowed in his neck. He set her down and reached for her face.

‘Hi baby.” She blushed at his nickname. They looked into each other's eyes and time froze like it always did between them. Y/N broke theri moment by pulling his face to hers. They kissed like they hadnt kissed in years. To them the time they spent away from each other felt like years. Their lips fit together like puzzle pieces. Pulling apart, Harry stared down at his heart, tears begging to be free. He opened his mouth to say something and she stopped him.

“It's ok Harry. My baby, it's ok. We are ok.”

i fear

no fate (for you are my fate, my sweet) i want

no world (for beautiful you are my world, my true)

Taglist: marlananicole17

[ihni]

Candy baby

Exploring my headcanon that Billy likes salty licorice.

~~~

Steve opened the door to find a grinning Billy on his doorstep. Not smirking, not leering – no, a full-on grin, excitement and happiness written all over his face. A little stunned in the face of so much unfiltered joy radiating off of a usually much grumpier Billy, Steve found himself speechless until Billy raised an eyebrow and said; “You’re gonna let me in or what?”

Steve moved aside to let him pass, and not until then did he see the box under Billy’s arm. A cardboard box, covered in brown packing tape and shipping labels and foreign stamps, and with a red string tying the whole thing together, making it resemble a badly-wrapped present. Billy passed him and went into the kitchen without taking his shoes off. With a flourish, he placed the box on the kitchen table before turning, smiling, to Steve, as if waiting for him to ask about it.

And like. Steve couldn’t not ask. “What’cha got there, babe?”

Impossibly, Billy’s smile got even wider. “Candy.” Steve was just about to open his mouth to ask more when he clarified, “From Sweden.”

“What?” Steve said and walked closer, inspecting the box. “Did you rob the post office?” But no, it said right there on the box, clearly addressed to ‘William Hargrove’.

Billy still snorted. “No. It’s from my grandparents.”

That had Steve’s head shoot up and he stared at Billy with his mouth open. “You have grandparents?” When Billy gave him a flat look, he amended; “I mean, of course you have grandparents. I mean, you have grandparents in Sweden?” Billy had never mentioned any grandparents, and especially not any in Europe.

“Yeah,” Billy said while he turned to rifle through Steve’s kitchen drawers until he found a knife. “My grandparents on my mom’s side.” He continued without Steve having to urge him on, while he used the knife to cut through string and tape. “Mom was from Sweden, and when she was … about my age, actually, shit … she and grandma flew overseas to meet some distant relatives.” He struggled with the tape and the tip of his tongue was peeking out between his lips in concentration. “Grandma’s uncle emigrated to the States when he was young, and she hadn’t ever met his kids – her cousins – back then so … yeah. Anyway, grandma doesn’t know much English so mom went with her to translate and stuff. And then mom met a boy – not Neil, that was later – and she … well, she stayed. Or, she went back with grandma, but she returned to San Diego later, and even though it didn’t last with that guy, she stayed in the States. Met Neil, eventually, had me. You know.” He shrugged as he put the knife aside and opened the box, looking down in it as if he had struck gold.

Steve peeked inside as well – it was stock full of various packaged candy, none of which he recognized the names or looks of – before looking up at Billy. “You’ve never told me about that. About them.”

“I’ve only met them once,” Billy said, shrugging. “More than ten years ago, now.” A small smile appeared on his face. “Mom and Neil and I all went over there one summer, for a month. It was … it was great, actually.” Steve held his breath, as to not interrupt Billy in this memory, which obviously brought him joy. But he didn’t say anything else, opting instead to start picking things up from the parcel. “Anyway, grandpa doesn’t know any English and grandma only knows a little, and grandpa is too old to travel anyway so I’ve only met them that one time. But they write to me. We talk on the phone a couple of times a year. And they always send stuff for Christmas and birthdays.”

A thought occurred to Steve. He looked at Billy in betrayal. “Did I miss your birthday? You said your birthday was in September!”

That had Billy laughing. “It is, pretty boy, calm down. This is an Easter parcel. Eating way too much candy for Easter is a tradition back there, I’ve gotten these packages since I was a kid. And like, apparently grandpa was delighted to find that I liked licorice when we were there, so they’ve been sure to send me some every year.”

Steve’s brows furrowed. “Like, Red Vines?”

“Nah, real liqorice.” Billy fixed Steve with a look and licked his lips. “The black kind.”

“… that doesn’t sound good,” Steve said and made a face.

“Hey, don’t knock it ‘til you try it!” Billy said and resumed what he’d been doing – unpacking the box and putting all its contents of the table. At the bottom of the box was a card, with a picture of chicken on top of a bouquet of daffodils. The back of the card had a couple of lines of slightly scraggly old-person handwriting on it, which Billy read in silence while smiling softly. Steve let him, and said nothing when Billy carefully tucked the card into his back pocket.

“So,” Steve said instead. “You telling me I get to try some of this?”

Billy picked up a small bag and threw it at Steve, who fumbled to catch it. “Of course, sweetheart. After all, you’re the one who hasn’t had the real licorice experience yet.”

Inspecting the packaging in his hand, Steve frowned. The picture on the plastic bag was of a screaming monkey, and the name proclaimed it to be –

“… Djang-ell-wraal?”

“Djungelvrål,” Billy corrected with a snicker. Steve would never admit how that one word in a foreign language, spoken by his boyfriend, made his mouth dry.

“You, uh …” He licked his lips. ”You know Swedish?”

“A little. Mostly lies,” Billy laughed. “Like, ‘du är ful’.”

“What does that mean?”

“’You’re ugly’.”

It was Steve’s turn to level Billy with a look. “Gee, babe, thanks.”

Billy laughed again. “I said it was a lie! I was a kid when I learned, come on! I know like, ten curses, too.”

“Uh-huh, sure,” Steve said and pretended to look offended. “Just for that, I’m gonna keep this whole thing to myself.” He held the Djungelvrål out, but out of reach. Despite his words, though, he waited until Billy had nodded – eyes sparkling – before he opened the bag.

It was full of small, black candies covered in sugar, about the size of m&m’s. He poured a couple out in his hand and threw them into his mouth, as he would do with any other kind of candy, and –

“Oh my God!” he managed to splutter as he spat the Djungelvrål out again, into his hand. “Oh my god what is that??” Scraping his tongue with his finger didn’t help, he couldn’t get rid of the taste. That shit had not been sugar! “That’s so salty, what?!”

While he ran to the sink to rinse out his mouth with water and throw away the – frankly vile – candies, he listened to his boyfriend’s peals of laughter behind him. Billy laughed until he was gasping for breath.

“Stevie, your face! Phew! Oh man, that’s the best thing I’ve ever seen.”

Steve grimaced as he spit out more water and turned around, just in time for him to see Billy picking up the bag he had dropped and pour a couple of them straight into his mouth – and not make a face or anything! Just happily chewing it, looking content as ever.

“How can you eat those?!” Steve demanded and stalked up to him, snatching the bag out of his hand to check if it was the same kind that Steve had tried, or if Billy had switched them somehow. It was the same bag, the Djungelvrål. “They’re horrible!”

“They’re awesome!” Billy said, around a mouthful of black licorice candies, making Steve shudder.

“Is everything they sent as bad as that?” he said, peering – a bit more cautiously, this time – at the other things spread out on the table. Things with names like ‘Salt i sol’, ‘Käck’, ‘Lakrisal’, ‘Lakritssnöre’ and a truly appalling-looking bag of something called ‘Kloakslam’ which depicted what looked like a rat choking to death.

“Nah,” Billy answered and gestured to some other things on the table. “They sent me chocolate too. You’ll like those. You can leave the licorice to the professional.” He swallowed the candies in his mouth, and raised his eyebrows, licking his lips. “Me.”

“Yeah yeah,” Steve said and glared suspiciously at a strange kind of lollipop that Billy handed him. Once he’d removed the cover (‘Dumle’), it looked like something made out of chocolate – but the last one had looked like sugar and had tasted like salt, and Steve wasn’t going to be fooled again. Carefully, he stuck out his tongue and gave the thing a kitten lick.

Billy snorted at him. “It’s chocolate and caramel, you don’t have to worry.” He himself had just opened a small round container which said ‘Hockeypulver’ and stuck his finger in some kind of white powder that Steve sincerely hoped wasn’t some kind of drug.

He hadn’t had to worry about the lollipop. Turned out that it was chocolate, after all. And it was pretty good, too. No salt, and somehow chewy inside, when he tried to bite it.

“You like that, don’t you?” Billy asked knowingly.

“M-hmm,” Steve replied. “But I’m still gonna leave the rest of this –“ He gesticulated at the items on the table, “– for you. Wouldn’t wanna eat all your grandparents’ candy, after all.”

“Coward,” Billy said, but he didn’t look too upset.

“Hey, I’m being a thoughtful boyfriend, that’s all!”

That earned him a kiss on the cheek. “Thank you then, sweetheart.” He smiled mischievously and added, “But I guess that if you don’t want it, I’ll have to find someone else to subject to the wonders of salty licorice …” He wagged his eyebrows. “I’m thinking Henderson.”

And like. Steve knew that he should object – he should want to protect the kids from being subjected to bad things, and the Djungelvrål was definitely a bad thing. But also …

“Only if I can watch.”

Billy’s eyes glittered, and he bit his lip around a smile. “You know, there’s one thing that I know in Swedish that’s the truth, too.”

“Oh yeah? What's that?”

“Jag fucking älskar dig.” ~~~

(Read on AO3)

[august-bleeds-red]

Texas Heat

Alpha!Tommy x omega!Reader (AFAB). When you find yourself trapped within the Hewitt family’s web of murder, violence and pain, the last thing you expect to do is fall in love.

Part One / Part Two / Part Three

~

The Texas sun beats mercilessly down on the back of your neck, the air thick and slow as dark molasses. You tied your sweater around your waist, but even that was too much for your sweating skin, so now it just hangs limply from your fingers.

 You manage to hitch a lift from a family of three on a cross-state road trip – the parents were both betas, the little girl in the back unpresented. You tell them you’re heading back to college from visiting your family, that your car packed up some three miles back. You also tell them you’re a beta. Two truths and a lie.

 They pull into a small gas station in Travis County called Cele Community Centre to fill up, while you step inside the sore to ask to use the phone. A middle-aged woman with cats-eye spectacles stands behind the counter, a couple of leather-clad bikers sitting at a table littered with beer bottles.

 The phone’s busted, but when you explain about your car, she offers a different option. Her brother’s got a tow truck – he could go pick up your car and bring it back for repair. It’s too good an offer to refuse, so you wave goodbye to the beta family and take a seat in the diner. The woman – Luda May Hewitt, she introduces herself – gives you a soda on the house and asks you about yourself. You tell her about your parents, your brother in the army, your little sister about to graduate high school. By the time her brother arrives – a unkempt, bespectacled man she calls Monty – you feel as though you’ve been talking to a matronly aunt for the past hour. She’s kind, with good old-fashioned Southern values, and so when she asks if you’d like to join them for supper, you accept. Monty says your car needs a new valve or something, which he has back at the homestead, so you hop in the cab of his truck next to Luda May.

 The Hewitt family home is a large farmhouse, with sprawling fields surrounding and a dilapidated garage. Monty parks up in the front yard and disappears, presumably to find the missing piece for your car. You shoulder your bag and follow Luda May inside the house. It’s not particularly clean, but your mother raised you to be polite, so you accept some sweet tea and some homemade biscuits.

 Shortly, another man appears in the kitchen – this one younger and more well-presented than Monty - who introduces himself as Sheriff Hoyt. A rough, brutish scent of alpha pheromones follows him through the door, but you know by instinct its not from him.

 “Tommy,” he says, glancing over his shoulder at a hulking figure beyond the doorway. “Come say hello to our guest.”

 The person who steps into the room has to be the largest man you’ve never seen. Not only is he tall – at least six and a half feet – but he’s also broad; wide shoulders, muscular arms, and a chest like a barrel. Despite the suppressants you’ve been careful to keep concealed in your bag, your glands tingle pleasantly as his scent washes over you. Your nose recognises earth, leather and sweat, but your finer-tuned olfactory senses catch hints of sandalwood, charcoal, and the unmistakable metallic tang of blood. You contribute this to the butcher’s apron he’s wearing tied around his thick waist – the dark brown stains a clear indication of animal slaughter. While this doesn’t exactly strike you as comforting, you can’t deny his scent is . . . appealing.

 You focus on his face for just a moment, not wanting to stare. His dark hair is long and wavy, most of his face concealed beneath a crude leather mask, revealing only his eyes, forehead and a small glimpse of chapped lips. The space where his nose would be beneath the mask is strangely flat, leading you to suspect some kind of physical deformity. His shadowed eyes catch yours and you look away in embarrassment.

 “This here’s Thomas, my boy,” Luda May says. “Tommy, meet Y/N.”

 “Hey,” you rise to your feet and hold out a hand. Even at your full height, you barely come up to his chest. “Nice to meet you, Thomas.”

 He doesn’t speak or move to shake your hand, but his right-hand fingers flex at his side, so you can tell he wants to. Moreover, you can smell it on him. The pheromones he’s giving off betray his interest, and your face flushes at the thought that such an impressive alpha’s attention is directed at you. Eventually, you lower your hand and return to your seat, taking a sip of tea to hide your awkwardness.

 “So,” Hoyt says, sitting down opposite you and placing his hat on the table. “Y/N, what are you?”

 You know what he’s trying to say, even if the question comes across as a little rude.

 “I’m a beta, sir,” you say.

 “Seems the whole dang state’s beta these days,” he says, leaning back and accepting a glass of tea from Luda May. “Tommy’s pretty much the only alpha ‘round these parts, and as for omegas, forget it.”

 Praying that your suppressants are doing their job, you nod along with his words and try not to focus on Thomas, who’s still standing like a full-door draft excluder in the corridor. You wonder if his senses are strong enough to tell that you’re lying. Surely if they were, he’d say something, wouldn’t he? Such a big strong alpha like him, wouldn’t be able to help himself.

 Big strong alpha . . .

 The thought makes you shiver slightly, and you notice Thomas shift where he stands. Covering your neck as casually as you can with one hand, you pretend to be intently interested in what Hoyt is saying. As he’s illustrating the hardships of being the county’s only sheriff, Monty appears, wiping his hands on a dirty rag.

 “Well, hope you didn’t have nowhere to be anytime soon, ‘cause that tin can sure ain’t going without a new carburetor.”

 Your heart sinks – the car was a gift from your parents when you got into UT, and you’d taken good care of it since. How had it sustained so much damage without you realising?

 “D’you know where I can get a new one?”

 He blows his cheeks out. “Nowhere ‘round here. Next town, maybe; ‘bout twenty miles north.”

 You mentally count the small handful of notes folded in your wallet – your mom had given you $50 to get back to college, enough for fuel and food along the way, plus extra to stay in a motel. Certainly not enough for such a hefty repair.

 “Course,” Hoyt says, a strange smile playing at the corner of his lips, “Uncle Monty’d be more’n happy to drive through for one tomorrow, wouldn’t ya, Monty?”

 Monty nods slowly. “Be my pleasure.”

 A strange tension has fallen over the small room, setting the hairs on the back of your neck a-prickle. Hoyt’s eyes are burning into you with a fierce intensity, almost . . . hunger, Monty bearing a smile, too leery to be comforting. You’re wondering if you’ve made a mistake in coming here, when Thomas moves from the shadows, his scent passing over you. Your shoulders drop a little, his presence proving an inexplicable reassurance to you. You know it’s your hormones talking; with such an alpha nearby, you’re safe. It takes a nudge from the logical side of your brain to remind you that biology is not fact, and you could be very, very far from safe with these people.

 You clear your throat, mouth suddenly dry.

 “Well, that’s awful kind of you. Is there, um . . . a motel or something I could stay at tonight?”

 “Motel?” Luda May laughs. “Don’t be so silly, honey – you’ll stay here.”

 You turn to look at her, her warm, motherly gaze refilling some of the certainly draining from you. Maybe you’re just being paranoid. After all, you’re a young woman – an omega, no less – so it’s no wonder that Hoyt and Monty might act strangely around you, whether they realise it or not. As for Thomas, well . . .

 “I don’t want to be a bother, ma’am.”

 “Oh hush, you’re no bother at all, and call me Luda.” She takes an old apron from a hook on the wall and nods towards the door. “Tommy’ll show you to the spare room and then you can help me start dinner.”

 Thomas looks as surprised by the idea of being alone with you as you are, his gargantuan posture stiffening. His eyes flit from Luda May to you, unsure of what to do.  

 “Go on, boy, m’sure she don’t bite,” Hoyt chuckles.

 But does he? Your mind races as you lift your bag and follow Thomas from the kitchen. His heavy footsteps make the floorboards shake as he ascends the stairs, decidedly not looking anywhere in your direction. The room he takes you to is small, barely more than a box room, with a narrow cot bed, a chest of drawers, and a dirty sink built into the wall. The white ceramic has been long since hidden beneath a layer of brown grime, and the light from the window is filtered through what looks like years of dirt.

 You turn your head to thank Thomas, but the words die on your tongue when you see how close he is. His chest is heaving, and you suspect he’s . . . smelling you. Shit. You remember the mace your mom forced you to take with you, stowed safely away at the bottom of your pack. There’s no way you could get to it before he could grab you. He’s so big – his hands could easily encompass your entire head – you’re sure he could do irreparable damage without breaking so much as a sweat. His eyes – how had you not noticed how blue they are? – are fixed on you, all trace of shyness gone. You raise a hand – to do what, you’ve no idea – and stifle a shriek when he takes hold of your arm with surprising agility. Your blood stills as he lifts your wrist to his face, the air whistling through his nostrils beneath the mask as he breathes in your scent. He must know – there’s no way he can’t. He must either be the strongest alpha you’ve ever encountered, or on the brink of his rut, to detect your omega scent through your suppressants. Or both.

 Part of you wants to run, to scream for help, but you can’t; your legs won’t move.

 “Please . . .” you whisper, though you’re not entirely sure what you’re pleading for. Your eyes meet for one long, electrifying moment.

 “Tommy, get down here! We got trespassers!”

 Thomas drops your hand like it’s scalding hot, disappearing from the room and down the stairs after Hoyt’s harsh commands. You stand rooted to the spot, your heart beating a brand against your ribcage, and the bed creaks ominously beneath you as you drop down onto it. Fishing in your bag, you pull out the thin blister pack of pills, swallowing one dry. You have enough to get you safely back to Austin – you’ll just have to hope your stay here is a short one.

~

Comments are greatly appreciated because I’m a needy little trashbag.

[nalgenewhore]

margot

elide x lorcan + margot (new child), modern au, domestic fluff + meeting the children, word count: 2345

He parked behind her car and Lorcan slowly turned the engine off, but not the vehicle itself. He didn’t move to get out, only glanced at her quaint two-storey home. 

It suited her, the simple layout and lush garden taking over the front yard. There were seemingly rows and rows of box planters, growing various vegetables and fruit bushes. On the porch, there was a swing he could picture her sitting on, rocking back and forth with a book in hand. 

The lights were on and Lorcan looked up, seeing the light on behind the dormer window, too.

He exhaled slowly and rubbed his palms over his thighs, his hands shaking. 

He was meeting her daughter tonight and Lorcan didn’t think he’d ever been this nervous for anything in his life. 

They were supposed to have dinner at six. Lorcan looked at the clock, which told him that he was early – thirteen minutes, to be exact. He closed his eyes and tipped his head back against the headrest, trying to stay calm. He remembered being introduced to his mom’s girlfriend when he was young and how nervous he’d been then, scared that his mom would forget about him and his sisters like his father had when he met his now-wife. 

The ringing of his phone startled in the pure silence of his truck and he picked up before he knew who was calling. “‘llo?”

“So… are you planning on staying in your truck for the rest of the night? It’s lovely, but I don’t think Margot wants to eat there.” 

Lorcan chuckled raspily and looked to the side, seeing Elide standing behind the large window. She waved at him and he huffed another laugh. “I’m early, Lee. I was just… waiting.” 

His girlfriend hummed, “You’re scared, aren’t you?”

“Obviously,” he replied drily. “Wouldn’t you be?” 

Elide laughed lightly, “Probably. Just come up already, will you? She’s been looking forward to this all day. She changed her outfit three times and told her friends she was meeting you tonight.”

“Really? You aren’t just saying that to make me feel better?” 

“Of course not. Now,” Elide said, “stop being a little wuss and come in. I’m pretty sure she’s been watching you from her room.”

Lorcan’s eyes snapped up to the dormer and the curtain quickly fell shut. He grinned gently. “Ok. I’ll come up.” 

“Bon. Je t’adore.”

“I love you too,” he told her. They both hung up and Lorcan turned his car off. He climbed out, shoving his hands into his pockets. He’d asked if he should bring something for Margot, but Elide told him she’d probably think he was trying to bribe her. Lorcan had commented that she was just like her mother then and her pleased grin had warmed his heart. 

Lorcan walked up the stone pathway, his gait slow, but his steps long. He walked up the steps, of which there were only three, and knocked on the door, taking a step back as he waited for it to be opened. 

A moment or two later, Elide opened the door and smiled at him, “Salut, mon cher.” She stepped out and cupped his face, pressing a chaste kiss to his lips. Lorcan squeezed her waist once as she pulled away. “Come in.” She pushed the door open wider to let him in. 

Lorcan paused to take off his shoes and hang his jacket up. As he did, he eyed Elide, who was wearing a figure-hugging black cashmere sweater and a midi skirt – black with small red flowers. Her hair was in a simple twist and she wore the single ruby necklace he’d bought for her birthday in June, four months ago. 

Elide took his hand and walked him to the kitchen, gesturing him to a barstool. Lorcan sat down and tapped his finger against the butcher block island top. She noticed his fidgeting and hid her own nerves by checking the pot-au-feu for what seemed like the thousandth time. Margot was a… particular child. People often told her that her daughter was just like her. 

She turned back and poured them both glasses of wine. She took a sip of hers and walked around the island to the stairs. Before she left, she kissed him once more, longer and slower than the last. “Ça ira, oui?” Elide patted his cheek and walked to the stairs, her hips swinging side to side. 

His dark eyes watched the stairs. His heart pounded harder and harder against his chest. 

“Margot, viens ici, ma p’tite, s’il vous plaît."

From the second floor, Lorcan heard a little voice call back, “D’accord, maman!” A pair of footsteps ran across the ceiling and clambered down the staircase. 

Elide faced Lorcan and grinned, winking once. Behind her, a child appeared. She stopped and continued on slowly, her angular eyes on Lorcan. A pair of round glasses sat on the tip of her button nose and she pushed them up with a single finger. Her hair was dark, thick, and wavy like her mother’s, but cut into a short bob with bangs. “Hello.” 

“Hi,” Lorcan said, not sure whether he should stand or not. 

Before he could, the child marched across the floor and stood in front of him, staring wordlessly. She wore a pair of fern green corduroy overalls and a lavender cable knit sweater, matching the headband she wore. “Are you dating my mom?”

He raised his brows and nodded, “Yes, I am.”

Margot climbed onto the stool next to him and crossed her arms, looking at him suspiciously, “For how long?” 

“Mm… a year, almost.”

Her eyes were perceptive and probably too knowing for an eight-year old. “Hmm. Do you love my mom?” 

Lorcan chuckled and glanced up at Elide, who smiled supportively. She really is just like you. “Yes, I love her very much.” 

“...ok. That’s good.” She stuck her hand out, “I’m Margot.” 

His hand dwarfed hers as they shook hands, “It’s nice to meet you, Margot. I’m Lorcan.” 

Elide grinned fondly at the interaction and moved to the kitchen to pour Margot something to drink. She set a glass of water down in front of her daughter and leaned her elbows against the counter, resting her chin on her fist. 

“What do you do for your job?”

Lorcan put his glass down and clasped his hands, resting his elbow on the island. “I’m a doctor.”

Margot’s eyes widened, “Really?” Her brows shot up and she whispered, “Do you get to cut people up?” 

He chuckled, “Sometimes. I’m a trauma surgeon.”

Her brow furrowed in confusion and she cocked her head to the side, pushing her glasses up again, “What’s that?” 

“Well, when there are big accidents, we bring the injured people into the emergency room and I…” Lorcan looked at Elide, deciding on a less gruesome version of ‘I patch them up so they don’t die’, “figure out what’s wrong with them and then I fix them so they’re stable. After that we can send them to specialists.” 

“That sounds cool.” 

“Yeah? It’s kinda scary sometimes, but I like it.” 

“Mom tells them that scary things can be good, though,” Margot told him, nodding her chin. Lorcan smiled, delighted by her… precociousness. He’d never met a child who truly fit the term like Margot did. “Do you like to read books?”

He nodded, “I do, but I don’t get a lot of time to read.” Lorcan glanced at Elide, who was struggling to reach plates from up high. He stood up and went to her, resting his hand on her lower back as he hardly had to stretch his arm up to fetch them. Elide looked up at him and bit her lip, wanting to kiss him, but knowing that the extremely observant Margot was watching them. 

She settled for picking invisible lint off of the collar of his shirt. Lorcan’s eyes glittered with quiet joy and he pressed his lips together, looking back at Margot. Elide stepped away first and waved her hand to the bread sitting on the counter, untouched. “Um, le pain, est-ce que tu peux le cut it?”

He laughed quietly at her mixture of the common tongue and the Blackbeak dialect of Ironteeth. “Yeah, ‘course.” Lorcan washed his hands and dried them before picking up the bread. He put it on the island and glanced at Margot, pausing at her wide wide wide eyes. “Is… something wrong, Margot?” 

She had to tilt her head back to look him in the eye. Margot fixed her glasses, which were surely too large for her. “T’es très, très grand.” 

Lorcan frowned slightly, turning to Elide, who snorted and covered her mouth with her hand as she laughed. She waved her hand, “She- she said you were really, really tall.” 

He looked back at Margot, whose cheeks were furiously red. An amused grin stole across his face and he leaned across the island, whispering, “It’s ok, Margot. Your mom is just really small.” 

Margot giggled and her blush faded, but her eyes – monolid like her mother’s – sparkled with delight. 

Elide looked over at them suspiciously, popping her hand on her hip. “What’s going on over here? Conspiration and the like?” 

Lorcan gasped dramatically, gesturing between him and Margot, “Us? Conspiring? Against you? Please. We would never, would we, Margot?” He looked at her and winked before schooling his face into neutrality. 

Margot copied him perfectly and looked at her mother, blinking calmly. “Jamais, maman.” Elide just rolled her eyes and went back to what she was doing. 

“So, Margot, do you like to read?” Lorcan pulled the drawer open and took a serrated knife out for the bread. 

She nodded, “Yeah, I read a lot. I like it when it’s quiet.” 

“I like quiet too. Are you reading anything right now?”

“Yeah, my aunt Manon got me The Sisters Grimm and I like them a lot.” Margot reached over and took the heel of bread, making sure to keep her fingers away from the sharp knife. She picked at it and told him about the adventures of the sisters, long-lost descendants of the Brothers Grimm, whose books of so-called fairytales were actually history books. 

They set the table together and Margot made sure that the utensils were perfectly neat. She took her seat at the table and swung her legs out as Elide served them all bowls of the hearty stew and Lorcan carried their bowls to the table. He and Elide sat on the opposite side of Margot.

They ate together and Margot went back to questioning Lorcan. 

“Where are you from? My mom is from Perranth.” 

He swallowed his bite of food, “I’m from a small town in the Northern Isles.” 

“Where’s the Northern Isles? Is it in Wendlyn?”

Lorcan tilted his head to the side, “No, we’re not part of Wendlyn or Doranelle. We’re all the way up north.”

“Are you near the arctic land? I bet it’s cold there.” 

Subtly, under the table, Elide reached for his hand and slid her fingers through his. Lorcan ducked his head for a moment to hide his smile. “It can be pretty cold, but we’re still pretty far away.” 

Margot picked up her glass and had a sip of water, “My aunt Asterin told me that sometimes it’s dark all the time and sometimes it’s always sunny, but I don’t believe her since she likes to play tricks on people.”

Lorcan chuckled, “Well it is true.” Margot snapped her head up, gasping incredulously. He grinned. “In the winter, it’s dark all the time and in the summer, the sun’s always up.” 

“How do you sleep in the summer if it’s sunny always?”

“We have special curtains and blinds. You get used to it,” Lorcan told her. 

“Well I think it would be cool to have sun all the time.” Margot ate a bit more and tucked her feet behind the legs of her chair. “Do you have any pets?”

Lorcan nodded, “I do. I have a Husky and her name is Tallulah. D’you like dogs?”

“Sometimes, but I like cats better.” Margot glanced at Elide and addressed Lorcan once more, her tone cautious, “Can… can I meet your dog one day?”

“Yeah, if you want.”

The eight-year old beamed and Elide squeezed Lorcan’s hand. 

The rest of their meal went by quickly and Margot helped stack their dishes above the dishwasher. She waved her hand for Lorcan to follow and he did after shooting Elide a hopeful look. 

She likes me, right?

Her wide grin was answer enough and they dutifully followed Margot to the living room. She directed Lorcan to the velvet wingback chair and her mother to the couch. Elide sat in the corner closest to him as Margot selected a movie and took the seat next to Elide, her eyes on the TV screen. 

They watched The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian. Margot helpfully commented on the various fantastical creatures and beings, while telling them about her favourite character - Lucy, of course. 

Near the end, she started to nod off, falling asleep against Elide’s side. 

Elide lowered the volume, but didn’t dare turn the movie off, knowing that Margot would wake up the second it stopped playing. She held her hand out to Lorcan, who took it and kissed the back of it. 

Eventually, it ended and Elide carefully got up, gathering Margot up in her arms as well. The child’s head rested against her shoulder. Elide looked at Lorcan, whispering, “Wait here. I’ll be back soon.”

He nodded and stayed still, his heart almost cracking as Elide murmured something gentle to Margot. 

“Maman,” said a hoarse voice. Margot slowly lifted her head and pushed her glasses up to rub her eyes. She peered over Elide’s shoulder and waved shyly at Lorcan, who smiled back at her. “Maman, j’veux lui revoir.” 

“Ah, oui? Vas-y, dit-lui.”

Margot looked at Lorcan, whose heart started to thunder against his ribcage. “You can come over again.”

Lorcan grinned, “Really?”

She nodded shyly. “Yeah, if you want to.”

“I’d like that.”

<3<3<3

an: new baby, new baby, new baby !! 

translations: Bon. Je t'adore: Good. I love you (romantic) Salut, mon cher: Hello, my dear. Ça ira, oui: it will be fine, yes? Viens ici, ma petite, s'il vous plaît: Come here, little one, please D'accord, maman: Ok, mom Le pain, est-ce que tu peux: The bread, can you [cut it] T'es très, très grand: You are really, really tall Jamais, maman: Never, mom Maman, je veux lui revoir: Mom, I want to see him again Ah, oui? Vas-y, dit-lui: Oh, yeah? Go ahead, tell him

@mythicaitt​ @eyllweambassador​ @schmlip-scribble​ @the-regal-warrior​ @ladyverena​ @shyvioletcat​ @alifletcher2012​ @tswaney17​ @ourbooksuniverse​ @flora-and-fae​ @thesirenwashere​ @queenofxhearts​ @maastrash​ @mynewdreamwasyou​ @cursebreaker29​ @empress-ofbloodshed​ @b00kworm​ @hizqueen4life​ @silversprings98​ @amren-courtofdreams​ @jadeaffliction​ @superspiritfestival​ @sanakapoor​ @ireallyshouldsleeprn​ @spyofthenightcourt​ @thegoddessofyou​ @more-espresso-less-depresso-xx​ @claralady​ @neonhellas​ @darlinminds​ @readingismyonlyhobby​ @autophobiaxx​ @myshadowsingeraz​ @firestarsandseneschals​ @elriel4life​ @always-in-a-daydream​ @jlinez @ladywitchling​ @mariamuses​ @darklesmylove​ @adelzd-bookblr​ @rowaelinismyotp​ @sassyhobbits​ @swankii-art-teacher​ @januarystears​ @flamingveritas

[kaimelia]

Five Times Atticus Lincoln Knew He Was in Love

a/n: this fic was inspired by and is dedicated to the wonderful @teammorningglory ! you’re one of the best people I’ve met throughout my time writing fics, and I’m so endlessly grateful for all of your support!

"I feel like I'm on top of the world," Amelia grinned, pulling off her coat and tossing it over the back of his couch. "God, I love this feeling."

"You saved his life," Link muttered, walking up behind her. "You did an incredible job." She turned around to face him, the enthusiasm on her face still evident as she threw her arms around his neck, jumping up into him and laughing happily.

"We should celebrate." He raised his eyebrows at her, watching her face contort as she pulled away and glanced around his bare apartment.

"How are we celebrating?" Amelia simply grinned and grabbed the collar of his shirt, pulling it towards her until his face was close enough to hers for her to kiss him, which she did.

"Donuts." She let go of him and jumped away, running over to the counter and grabbing his car keys. "I'll be back; stay here." She ran out the door of his apartment, leaving Link standing there with a warm feeling in his chest and a huge grin spread across his lips.

Amelia returned later with a box of donuts in hand, dropping it on the counter and eagerly pulling one out, lightly tapping it against his and muttering, "Cheers!" before shoving the whole thing in her mouth, causing Link to laugh before doing the same.

"Cheers to what?" He muttered through a mouthful, covering his mouth with his hand as he chewed.

"Cheers to us, being incredible doctors, and to being together. Even if the one time we actually have a date, it gets interrupted."

"Interrupted by your genius," he added, grinning as her cheeks turned red and she glanced down at the floor below her, while Link was unable to take her eyes as he stared at her, utterly enamored by the woman standing in front of him.

-----------

She'd left him sitting alone in the plant room just a minute earlier, but his hands tightly braced the armrest of the chair, and he breathed heavily as he looked at the door that had just shut.

She'd told him she was pregnant, and he was terrified. And then, she opened up about her fears, and all of his didn't matter anymore because he was overwhelmed with a feeling of protection and love for her.

Which terrified him in a different way, thinking of that word and what it meant for a future they may or may not have.

He pushed himself off of the chair, his legs seemingly moving out themselves of the room and down the hall until he fell back into the seat across from his best friend, who stared at him as she waited for him to say something. He cleared his throat.

"I think I love her."

"That's big," Jo leaned back in her chair, crossing her arms over her chest and cocking her head to the side.

"I told her that no matter what she wants to do, I'm in, and then she left, so I don't know what's happening, but I think that I don't even care what happens with the baby because I just want to be with her."

"Yeah, I'd say you're in love. I've never seen you like this."

"I've never been like this," he muttered, slumping down in the seat. "I don't think I've ever felt this in my entire life."

"Not even with Bronwyn?"

"Not even close."

-----------

"Stay tonight, please?" Link sighed softly, not wanting to disappoint her and tell her he couldn't.

"I've got a morning shift; I need to go home and get some sleep," he spoke, glancing down at their intertwined hands, hers tugging him into the bedroom behind her.

"You can sleep here; I won't wake you up, I promise." She grinned toothily and stuck out her pinky. "It's the least you can do."

"The least I can do?"

"Well, you're the reason that all I want to do is cuddle, so I think that you should have to be the one to cuddle me." He smiled at the reference to her pregnancy, something he was still figuring out how to settle in his mind as it still felt so foreign and new, but still something that hit him with a wave of joy at each mention of it.

"Okay," he started softly, allowing her to tug him into the bedroom and close the door behind them. "But, no funny business. I really do need to get some sleep."

"None." Amelia walked over to her drawers, pulling off her cardigan and tossing it on the bed behind her, replacing her shirt with one Link recognized well.

"Is that my shirt? Why do you have that here?"

"Because I wanted it," she muttered, kicking off her pants and flopping back onto the bed. Link picked up the clothes from the floor and changed into another one of his shirts in her drawers. "Hey, you don't get to steal that," she protested, crossing her arms over her chest and pouting her lip out.

"I don't get to wear my own shirt?" She shook her head and rolled her eyes, holding her hands out. Link took them and joined her on the bed.

When they finally settled, with Amelia's back pressed tightly against his chest and their hands intertwined and resting together over her small stomach, he nuzzled his face in her neck, happily breathing in the smell of her perfume and dreaming of the future together he knew he wanted.

-----------

He glanced down at Amelia in his arms, her face pressed gently against his chest and her snores muffled by the fabric of his shirt.

It'd taken her hours to settle after spending far too long with her head over the toilet, with Link feeling utterly helpless as he held back her hair and muttered soft words in an attempt to comfort her, but knowing that there was nothing he could truly do.

She'd crawled into bed afterward, pulling the blankets up over her body, and instinctively curled into him, not saying a word as she squeezed her eyes shut and steadied her breathing. Link didn't make a noise but wrapped his arms around her tightly and pressed his lips against the top of her head, gently pulsing a kiss against her hair every time her body shuddered against his.

As he looked down at her, only illuminated by the sliver of moonlight creeping through his bedroom window, he couldn't help but feel a calming warmth inside of him, an instinct to pull her closer and hold her tighter.

He knew that in a few hours, she would wake, and the cycle would start all over again; her loss of appetite, any food she managed to eat coming back up hours later, the cramping in her stomach, her endless complaints about the pressure on her bladder and cursing him out for the hormones she felt throughout the day at every slight inconvenience.

But, in the moment, he thought she looked incredibly beautiful, and he felt his heart beat faster as she moved her head in her sleep, his lips sliding to her forehead and her face gently tipping up towards him.

She wouldn't let him say it if she was awake, but knowing that she was fast asleep and wouldn't wake up unless he dragged her out of bed for breakfast, he whispered softly, "I love you."

-----------

"What are you doing out here?" Link asked as he walked into the kitchen, glancing at the clock on the stove and raising his eyebrows at Amelia, who was sitting on the kitchen counter in the wee hours of the night when he was barely awake enough to notice she had slipped out of his embrace.

"I can't sleep," she muttered, glancing away from him. Link pouted his lip and reached out to take her hand, which she pulled away from him.

"What is it?"

"I don't think that I'm going to be a good mom," her chin quivered, and a hand subconsciously wrapped around her stomach. "I don't know if I can do it."

"I think that you're going to be an incredible mother," he whispered, reaching up to thumb away a column of tears from her face, bringing his thumb backward to brush her hair away from her cheek. She wrapped her legs around him, gently pulling him closer to her until he was pressed against the counter, his hands bracing a grip on either side of her legs and his face close to hers. "And, if you ever think otherwise, I will tell you every reason why." She nodded slowly, and her hand found his as their eyes stayed locked on each other. "You are one of the kindest people I know, and you are incredibly selfless. You care about this baby so much, who you haven't even met, and I think the fact that you're worried means that you're going to be an amazing parent. And you, Amelia Shepherd, are a freaking superhero, and superheroes can do anything."

He stared into her eyes, and it was as if he could see everything inside of her brain; the slight edge of a laugh at what he'd said and the emotion building up inside she didn't quite know how to vocalize. He laughed gently and brought a hand up to her cheek, and she rested her head against it. His lips turned upward into a small smile, and he stared at her in silence for a moment until his mouth formed the words he'd never spoken before.

"I'm in love with you."

[anothergolddustwoman]

Wonderful Christmastime

A/N: I wanted to do a follow up years down the line to I always knew so I came up with this and it turned into a little Christmas fic. Ok so it's definitely not great, but if I pick at it more I think I'd just end up deleting which I don't want to do. Gif not mine.

Summary: Five years after the wedding Burzek spends the Christmas weekend together just the four of them.

Words: 985

Warnings: Implied sex

5 years later

She hated coming home after the girls were in bed, but she had paperwork to finish if they wanted to spend the weekend together doing everything but work. Adam was able to do all of their Christmas Eve traditions with the girls, but Makayla couldn't sleep until Kim got home. She walked into the girls room quietly to not wake the youngest. Giving Mak a kiss on her forehead as she tucked her in telling her to go to sleep so that Santa could come.

“Nat made sure I set out some cookies for mom to eat too.” Adam tells her as she comes back into the living room.

“I’m sad I wasn't here to see you guys decorate the cookies.”

“Darlin’ it happens, but now we can spend all of Christmas weekend together, no distractions.” he tells her as he pulls her down on his lap and kisses her cheek. “Well maybe one distraction.” he says as he kisses down her neck.

“Later, we have to set out the presents from Santa and eat his cookies.” she tells him with a giggle. Getting up to get the girls presents from the closet. Adam followed closely behind to help. After setting out the presents and eating the cookies they stand looking at the tree Adams arms wrapped around her waist from behind.

“How’d I get so lucky to have you guys?” She says as they watch the snowfall in the window behind the tree.

“I’m the lucky one in this situation. I nearly lost you so many times, most of the time being my own fault. I can’t even imagine my life anymore with you, Makayla, or Natasha. I never want to.” He tells her with a kiss on her temple.

Turning around wrapping her arms around his neck she tells him “I think I’m ready for that distraction now.” with a laugh. He picks her up and carries her to the bedroom quietly so as to not wake the kids as they pass their room.

They are woken up at 6:30 to Natasha jumping on the bed declaring its Christmas and to wake up and open presents. Makayla wanders in after her, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. “I tried to tell her it was too early, we needed to wait another hour, but she wouldn’t listen sorry.” telling her parents.

“It’s alright Makayla, we can sleep in tomorrow.” Kim tells her.

“Yeah I’m always happy to be woken up by you bug.” Adam says to Natasha as he grabs her and gives her kisses. Kim motions for Makayla to come sit next her. She sits down and they all cuddle on the bed for a few minutes until Kim says.

“I guess we could open some presents.” The girls jump up in excitement and head to the living room.

Kim pulls out her phone just in time to get a picture of the girls as they see all their presents and stockings for the first time. A tradition Kim started with Makayla, then would make an ornament for next year with the picture. They get a few smaller gifts from Santa and the bigger more expensive gifts from Adam and Kim. Once all the gifts are open they begin to clean up all the wrapping paper and the girls start playing a game they just got. Adam takes the bag of wrapping paper out to the garage and then joins Kim in the kitchen.

“There is one more left to open.” He tells her, handing her a small box perfectly wrapped with a bow. A pair of brand new diamond earrings with screw-on backs so she doesn't lose them at work.

“They’re beautiful, Thank you.” She tells him with a kiss.

“I actually have another one for you too.” Handing him a box she pulled out of a drawer.

“Are these what I think they are?”

“They are. We never got to go on our honeymoon with Nat on the way, and then time just got away from us. That’s the paperwork I was finishing yesterday, our furlough. Jay just approved it.” she tells him with a smile.

“Two weeks, that’s a long time to leave the girls.”

“I know, but they’re ok with it. I already talked to them and got people to watch them. Nicole is staying here with them and Kevin is watching them on his days off.”

“Well then I guess we are finally going to Italy.” he says, giving her a kiss. “When do we leave?”

“End of April. I wanted everything to be finalized before I surprised you.”

“Can’t wait.” He says as Natasha comes barreling into the kitchen.

“Pancake time?” she asks while motioning for Adam to pick her up

“Yeah just getting everything out right now.” Kim tells her with a poke to her nose causing Nat to giggle uncontrollably once Adam starts to tickle her. “Mak what kind of pancakes do you want?” Kim asks as she takes down bowls and pancake mix.

“Blueberry.” Makayla says joining her mom and starting to mix the batter. Most of the batter made pancakes only a little bit ended up on everyone's face.

They all sat at the table together enjoying their breakfast. Adam adding more and more whipped cream to his pancakes as the girls laughed at him. When the tower was about to fall he swiped a small amount onto both Nat and Makayla’s noses.

“Adam now they’re going to be all sticky and we already had a food fight making the pancakes.” She scolds him.

“Sorry Hon” He says while he goes to get a wipe to clean up.

After they clean up breakfast and the mess they made in the kitchen. They all cuddle up on the couch and watch Christmas movies and play games for the rest of the weekend. Just the four of them, no interruptions.

[romewritingshop]

I’m a Dad

Fandom: Choices, Open Heart, AU

Relationship: Dr. Ethan Ramsey X F!MC (Name: Alyssa Brooks)

Warnings: Fluff, slight angst, mentions of birth complications, Alan is okay no need to panic 😅, anxieties of fatherhood, slight injury (nothing gruesome).

Rating: 12+ Word Count Total: 3209

AN: This is a birthday commission for @tsrookie who wanted a fic of dad!Ethan. I hope this is what you wanted and enjoy. The song that inspired this was Michele Morrone’s Dad (Accoustic Version):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2cDNO--sPgE

I wanted to portray the significance of Alan in Ethan and Alyssa’s lives. It was emotional writing this 🥺.

Rome’s Birthday Celebration Masterlist 2021

CHOICES MASTERLIST

Tagged: @eleanorbloom @juliafranquet @me-and-my-choices @drethanramslay @choicesficwriterscreations @queencarb @miss-smrxtiee @melaninnntae @they-callme-ami @openheartfanfics @mvalentine @starrystarrytrouble @drariellevalentine @nikki-2406 @caseyvalentineramsey @kiara-36 @choicesreal @sophxwithers @brightningstar @tsrookie @gryffindordaughterofathena @arnikki-2406 @mercury84choices ​@theinvisibledreamergirl @stygianflood @ethansramsey

A blissful silence settled in the room as Ethan tossed his house keys onto the kitchen countertop. Flicking the switches as the lights turned on in his house. A large suburban white painted house that he and Alyssa bought a few years ago. Ethan’s eyes wandered around the living room, taking in the quiet. Alyssa wasn’t home yet which gave Ethan the time to head to his study. Clambering up the stairs and going to the first door on his left, a spacious room with forest green walls. A metal case of shelves with wooden baskets filled with stationary, was diagonally placed in the corner to the door. Directly opposite the door was a mahogany table with a cushioned wheeled office chair.

To the left of the door, was a red and green small plastic table and bench. Crayons and pencils were scattered on the table and floor, there were sheets of coloured papers with indiscernible scribbles. The furrow in Ethan’s eyebrows relaxed as he slipped off his black cashmere jacket and hung it on a hook to the left of him. Crouching by the small kids table and glanced at the drawings, noting the curved shapes to be attempts at writing. Writing what exactly? He wasn’t too sure. 

Nathan and Savannah were the smartest kids he knew. Why wouldn’t they be though, since their parents were the acclaimed doctors of Bloom Edenbrook’s diagnostics team. Ethan put their drawings in a woven basket which had a label of ‘kids’, he held onto all the crayons and pencils and placed them in their respective labelled pots. Placing the pots in their woven basket and placing their basket on top of the shelf unit. Alyssa probably didn’t have time to tidy up their mess because they were spending the afternoon and evening with Alyssa’s friends.

Maybe now was a good time to get started on his project as he pulled out a basket and took out a few sheets of thick matte paper and an envelope. Bringing them over to his desk and seating himself, opening a drawer in his desk. He took out a few ink pens and placed the pens next to his paper, his eyes darted to the wooden picture frame of Alyssa and their three kids: Allison, Nathan and Savannah. He still couldn’t believe that he was theirs, and they were his. It was only yesterday, when he and Alyssa were in the reception, treating for a thoracotomy and now they had a house and kids.

Ethan knew what he had to do as soon as he brought his pen to the paper, the words flew right through him as he wrote. The memories of his kids flooding his brain with a warm familiar glow.

~~~~~~

“Out of the way!”

Ethan rushed down the stairs, shoving past nurses and doctors before slamming the corridor door open to the maternity ward. Sienna was hot on his heels as he growled and grimaced at people, his eyes went to the pager as a message from Naveen popped up. ‘4cm dilated’. Ethan was close as he weaved through a never ending maze of Edenbrook’s corridors. In the distance he spotted Naveen, his dad Alan, and his daughter Allison were looking into the window of one of the maternity rooms.

“Ethan! There you are!”

“Daddy!”

His crinkled grumpy face relaxed at the sight of Allison. Five years old with a knack for mischief and a carbon copy of himself. She had his eyes and ears but Alyssa’s nose, lips and hair. Alan was taking care of Allison while Ethan and his wife were working, however, Alyssa’s contraction pains strengthened and her constant lavatory needs indicated that she needed to be checked in. Naveen came up to stand beside Ethan; who took Allison into his arms.

“Naveen, how is she?”

“Well the contractions are hurting and I have a feeling the babies are coming now. Dr. Delarosa is in there with her. Are you ready Ethan?”

Ethan gave a nod as he turned to Allison, a calm gentle smile reserved for her.

“Time to get your new siblings. You okay to wait here with Uncle Naveen and Grandpa?”

“Yeah! Uncle Naveen is buying me chocolate!”

Ethan quirked a brow at his mentor, who in return stuck with a confident grin before Ethan placed Allison down. Naveen clasped his hand around her tiny hand and led her to the staff break room, whilst listening to her ramblings about her new siblings. Ethan took a deep breath as Alan stepped up to rest his hand on his shoulder.

“I’m proud of you, son.”

Ethan smiled and was about to step into the room, when something held him still. His buried nerves leaked through his wall as memories of Dolores seeped to his front. Alyssa was pregnant with twins, that alone carried several complications in terms of the positioning of the babies, possible post partum haemorrhage. On top of that she was one week late, twins born post due date carry risks to the mother and the babies.

A flash of baby Ethan in the NICU drained the warmth from his face and he felt like he was drowning. He couldn’t breathe as he pressed a hand against the door ledge, bowing his head as Alan stood beside him. Alan could tell Ethan was panicking. His shoulders shook as Alan gently probed.

“Ethan?”

“What if something happens?”

“Boston’s famous doctor is worried about a twin birth? Ethan, you’ve done this before. You know what to do.”

“It’s different. Alyssa is in there. She’s the patient. What if I can’t make the right decision?”

“Ethan Jonah Ramsey. You are a diagnostician. A famous one at that. You look at the possibilities before you make your decision. You have it in you son. Plus she’s a fighter. She won’t back down. But she needs you. Be brave and if you can’t be brave, be brave for her. She needs your support.”

His father’s words felt like a warm wash of life as he inhaled the air, exhaling his anxieties and giving a steady nod. Ethan smiled at his father before pushing open the door to step into the room, stepping into action to help make Alyssa’s labour as easy as possible.

~~~~~~

“Daddy! When is Twilight Sparkle coming?”

“In a bit. If you finish your lunch, then she’ll come.”

“Daddy! Will she bring a lot of presents for us?”

“An average amount, Nathan.”

Ethan pinched the bridge of his nose as he watched over the several little kids munching on their mini pizza slices and tater tots. It was the twins’ birthday today and the two of them invited their whole class to celebrate, the sun was shining as the kids sat on picnic blankets. The Ramseys’ had a spacious garden which could hold for nearly twenty five kids and several adults. Bryce, Jackie and Elijah were keeping an eye on the kids as Ethan slipped away to the kitchen where Alyssa was sat on a breakfast stool with her foot in Sienna’s lap. Aurora was beside them as she carefully tapped a finger against the swollen skin near her ankle. Jenner paced on his paws with nervous energy as he whined at his mom, Alyssa.

“Alyssa has sprained her ankle … Ethan.”

The friends still had a difficult time addressing Ethan by his first name but he paid no heed to it as Alyssa tried to come off the stool, trying to brush off the pain.

“It’s nothing, I’m sure I’ll be fine as long as I don’t walk on it.”

Ethan sighed rather exasperatedly as he folded his arms at his wife. That motion alone made Alyssa meekly smile and remain in her seat. Aurora handed her a cool pack for Alyssa to use for her sprain. She knew that she needed to rest her ankle but the twins would be so upset.

“Fine. But how are we going to solve the entertainment issue?”

At that moment the front door opened and closed as Alan strode in with a confident excited gait. He had a white cardboard box in his hands as he hummed and placed the box on the table, unveiling it to reveal a My Little Pony cake with ‘Happy 4th Birthday! Nathan and Savannah’. Alan’s brows sagged at the sight of his daughter-in-law.

“What happened?”

“I … fell.”

Ethan resorted to pinching the bridge of his nose before explaining the story. The children were showing off dance moves and there was a little girl who was showing off her gymnastics ability. Alyssa thought she could show off her talent by demonstrating a cartwheel, unfortunately her cartwheel was aimed the wrong way and Alyssa landed awkwardly in a bush with her legs askew. Alan smiled at Alyssa as he realised that there was an issue of entertainment since Alyssa was planning to dress up as the kids’ favourite character, Twilight Sparkle.

“I guess that means Alyssa can’t be Twilight Sparkle.”

Sienna gave a nod and spoke up.

“Aurora, Jackie and I would do it but I don’t think there’s enough time for any of us to learn everything about My Little Pony. The kids are gonna see right through us.”

“It’s a conundrum.”

Everyone took a moment to think before Alan’s eyes twinkled with an idea.

“I have an idea. Sienna, start watching some My Little Pony, I’ll stall the kids. ‘Lyssa, where did you keep your guitar?”

Alyssa’s eyes twinkled as she informed Alan of the guitar, to which Aurora ran up to search for it. It seemed everyone knew what to do, everyone except for Ethan, who placed his hands on his hips, turning to his father.

“Would you mind clueing me into your plan?”

“A little singing will have the kids distracted while Aurora, Alyssa and Sienna get ready. The kids will love it!”

At that moment, Bryce popped his head through the glass garden doors, there’s a slight line of sweat near the crown of his neck as he nervously glances back.

“The kids are going rabid if Twilight Sparkle doesn’t come in the next five minutes.”

Aurora rushed back down and handed Alan a brown varnished acoustic guitar, a gift from Alyssa’s patient Remy. Alan hung the strap over his shoulder and strutted outside to where all the kids shrieked and yelled.

“Okay kids! Who’s gonna sing the My Little Pony theme song?”

Ethan went out and noticed all the kids sitting at their picnic blankets, bopping and singing while Alan strummed the tune of the My Little Pony theme song. Ethan and Rafael took the time to begin cleaning up the rubbish whilst Bryce, Elijah and Jackie kept an eye out for Sienna, Aurora and Alyssa. All the kids and the twins were enraptured, even Jenner was happily panting to the music. Alan was going through a list of songs going from the My Little Pony Theme Song, to the lime and coconut song and to  the rhinestone cowboy.Not long after, Alan got a thumbs up from Bryce and Jackie to which Alan smiled and announced.

“Now children! There is someone who’d like to wish two special children a Happy Birthday!”

Nathan and Savannah jumped up with excited shrieks as Alan strummed the music of the theme song and out came Twilight Sparkle. It was Sienna donning a purple sparkly dress, wings protruding from the back and a dark wig flowing off her shoulders. Her unicorn headband was fixed into the wig and her purple make-up shone in the sun as Sienna skipped towards the kids, tossing bounds of glitter.

Aurora and Jackie were helping Alyssa settle on a deck chair as the twins hugged and cried at the fact that Twilight Sparkle had come to their party. Ethan and Alyssa sent a thankful smile as Alan returned their smile, everyone’s faces warming at the twin’s excitement.

~~~~~~

Ethan used the back of his hand to wipe off the sweat on his brow as he pushed the front door of his apartment open. Baby Allison happily chewed on her yellow teether while bouncing in the baby sling, strapped across Ethan’s chest. Alyssa was working at the hospital after spending four months at home and it was Ethan’s turn to stay home with Allison. He was glad he opted for a loose linen shirt and khaki trousers as the Boston heat was slowly racking up. Ethan had gone out to buy some ingredients for their dinner: stir fried tofu and broccoli. 

Alyssa would need some good comfort food after going back to work and he knew that Chinese would delight her. He unclipped one arm strap, pressing a palm to hold up Allison before unclipping the other to carry his daughter to her high chair in the kitchen. Allison was teething so he handed her a teething ring to help Allison improve motor skills. His daughter smiled and babbled at the sight of her dad as Ethan pressed a kiss onto his daughter’s forehead.

Allison was a daddy’s girl since she would whine and cry with Alyssa, but when it came to Ethan, Allison babbled and laughed. Alyssa was sure that she would say ‘Dada’. Ethan grinned as Jenner padded into the kitchen, bringing himself up to stand on his hind legs beside Allison. The dog was protective and loving to Allison as she tried to swat at Jenner’s nose.

“Jenner, keep an eye on her.”

Jenner barked as Ethan began taking out utensils and the shopping to get started. Draining the water from the tofu and breaking up the broccoli into florets. Every so often, his eyes would wander to his little girl on the high chair. Ethan still couldn’t believe the fact that he was a father. A living breathing child was in his care, one he made with the woman he loved as his eyes glistened at the memories of her birth. Despite expecting for children to not be in the cards for him, life had a way of telling him that it was always the case.

As Ethan stared longingly at his daughter, Jenner could smell something faintly burning; turning his head to hear a loud crackle and pop. Jenner barked furiously which had Ethan snap out and realise the onions and garlic had burnt in the wok, the broccoli was charred beyond recognition as Ethan turned off the induction hob. The loud barks caused Allison to startle and little beads of tears streamed down her face.

His heart lurched as he immediately stalked to his daughter to take her in his arms and get her to settle down. It was the first time in a long time that Ethan burnt dinner as he exhaled at the time on his wrist watch. Alyssa would be home in an hour and it was too late to restart. He didn’t have enough ingredients and he couldn’t whip up something else in time for Alyssa to sink her teeth into.

At that moment his phone rang as Ethan reached into his pocket to rest the phone between his ear and shoulder, while bouncing a teary Allison in his lap.

“Ethan Ramsey.”

“Ethan.” The corner of Ethan’s lips curled upwards at the recognition of his father’s voice. “I’m just about ten minutes away from your home. Alyssa invited me to have dinner, do you need anything?”

Ethan glanced at the mess behind him, a low exhale left his lips.

“Can you please pick up some Chinese on your way here?”

It wasn’t long when Alan arrived with several bags of Chinese take out from Xing-Fu’s Restaurant. Ethan took the bags from Alan and set up the dining table while Alan took the time to talk and play with his granddaughter, Jenner wagged his tail rapidly as he watched Alan and Allison. Not long after the kitchen was clear and the dinner table was set, Alyssa had entered the apartment with a smile on her face.

She took a moment to freshen up before joining the Ramseys at the dinner table. Her eyes sparkled at the array of side dishes as she pecked Ethan’s cheek before digging rather ravenously into the food. All the tension from the day melted under the spicy heat of duck and the softness of lotus buns. Ethan and Alan share a knowing smile as they too get stuck into their meal, Allison smiles and babbles in her high chair next to Alyssa. Glad to have her mother with her.

~~~~~~

The memories faded as Ethan lifted his pen from the letter, a soft nostalgic smile brushed on his face as he pushed the frame of his glasses up the bridge of his nose. A faint sound of the front door opened as excited chirps and barking fluttered into his study. The kids, Jenner and Alyssa were home as Ethan smiles at the incoming thunder steps, spinning his office chair to the direction of the door. The twins come tumbling in and launch themselves into Ethan’s arms, not giving a chance for Ethan to pay attention to their chatter. Jenner is sitting at the entrance of the door, while Allison stands behind him with her hand scratching the top of his fur. 

“Nathan, Savannah! I cannot understand your rambling.”

“Yeah, they had a lot of pastries. Aunt Sienna made a lot of cakes and biscuits.”

Ethan shook his head with a teasing grin at the twins. The two of them hid their mouths as Nathan denied.

“No we didn’t. Ally did!”

“Liar, I saw you two take two slices of the chocolate fudge cake.”

“No! You’re dreaming Ally.”

Ethan raised an eyebrow at his troublesome twins but pressed long kisses into their hair. Savannah leaned over his shoulder and noticed the pen and paper before pressing her two palms on Ethan’s face, forcing him to look directly at her as she asked.

“Are you drawing without us?”

Ethan shook his head as he explained.

“I’m making a gift for grandpa.”

“Are you gonna give it to him tomorrow?”

Before he could answer, Alyssa appeared at the door with her hands on her hips, dressed in a green cotton dress and brown knee high boots. Her mom voice was coming through as she moved her eyes between the troublesome twins.

“Nathan and Savannah. Time for bed. We’ve got to wake up early tomorrow if you want to spend the whole day with Grandpa.”

“Do we have to?”

Ethan stood up and held on to the twins as he smartly urged.

“Come on if you get dressed for bed, you can stay up late tomorrow.”

The twins gasped as they scrambled off Ethan’s arms and rushed to their bedroom to get into their pyjamas. A small smile curled up on Alyssa’s lips as she turned to the eldest Ramsey child.

“You too, Ally!”

“But Mom!”

“Come on.”

Ethan steps up to the doorway and sweetly kisses his wife as she cupped his cheek.

“You coming?”

“Just finishing up.”

Alyssa gave a nod and led her daughter away to her bedroom, Jenner obediently bounding behind them. Ethan returned to his desk to read over the last words he wrote.

Look at me now. I’m a dad.

Thank you for making me the man I am today.

Love,

Dr. Ethan J. Ramsey