#oh and COMPLETING MY CONTRACT AND GETTING THE KEYS TO MY NEW APARTMENT

[0zzysaurus]

Less than 20 days before Paradise State of Mind comes out why is August literally gonna be the craziest birthday month of my life

[k00sblogger]

Summary: When you score a job as a maid after being fired, you're surprised to find out exactly what your new job consists of.

Warning: Unprotected sex, dirty talk, oral sex, overstimulation, pwp.

Pairing: boss!jimin x fem!reader

A/n: no part 2, sorry pookies

★━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━★

"Y/n.." janae whispers, softly rubbing your back in an attempt to console you as you sob into your hands.

Today sucked, no better way to put it. You'd been working as a bartender for a long time now, the perfect job to make some cash while you complete culinary school.

Amongst the students in your class you were the only one not working as a server in some upscale restaurant, but you liked it despite what your peers said. The busy atmosphere, having to be quick with the drinks, it was all enjoyable to you.

All good things come to a end clearly. You'd never had the greatest relationship with your manager, but you wouldn't have expected him to fire you for showing up late once.

For fucks sake you were the perfect employee and the moment you slip up he fires you, it just didn't feel right. Nonetheless, you were too upset and wore down to look into deeper into it.

At least not tonight.

"Why don't you come work with me?" janae's soft voice rips you out of your troubled thoughts. The proposition can't help but make you laugh.

"As a maid? No thanks." you didn't mean to be rude, and in no way were you hating on what she did for work. You just didn't think the job was for you- you barely liked cleaning your own apartment so why the hell would you clean someone else's?

"Do you want a job or not?" she says, blunter than ever. The realization makes you groan and sit up in your bed. You didn't have forever to look for a job, so maybe her offer is what you need.

"Fine." you utter, making a mental note to go on a intense job hunt so you can quit this maid shit as soon as possible.

Janae smiles and begins grabbing her belongings, slipping her jacket over her arms and slinging her purse over her shoulder. "Well, i gotta get goin but i'll make a few calls and let you know about it."

You nod, giving her a soft smile to let her know your thankful that she's willing to go out of her way to do this for you.

She sees herself out after that- and you flop back down on your bed, getting comfortable under the satin sheets. You close your eyes feeling anxious, not really knowing what you've gotten yourself into.

You didn't have time to worry though, you needed a job and thankfully- you might just have one already.

______________________________________________________

THE NEXT DAY:

"So good news!" janae announces, swinging your door open and prancing in. You crawl out of bed with a scowl, rubbing at your tired eyes.

"Remind me why i gave you a house key again." you mutter, and she laughs at the comment as she flings some papers onto your nightstand. "So look, my boss referred me to a friend of his.." she says, getting straight to the point.

The announcement makes you raise your eyebrows, setting your hands on your hips as you listen to her. "They live near each other and he says the guys been looking for a maid."

You sigh, you weren't fond of the whole maid idea anyway but now the only option is working for a guy neither of you know?

"So now i'll be alone, perfect." you respond rather sarcastically.

Janae takes a seat on the bed, tapping the papers she threw down. "Look i know it's not what you wanted but why not give it a try? Taehyung wouldn't recommend one of my friends to just anybody."

She sounds so assuring you suppose that you might as well give it a shot. "What's that?" you ask, glancing at the papers under her hand.

"Oh! A copy of his contract." she says, eagerly handing it over to you. You take it from her hands, scanning over it without actually reading. "He wants an interview with you asap, he's looking to hire someone on the spot."

Holy shit, that was.. perfect.

"Don't forget it to read that beforehand- i gotta go!" she says, standing to her feet and rushing out of the house without another word.

You don't bat in eye at it, assuming she's running late for work as always. Punctuality was definitely not her strong point, but clearly it's not too big of a deal for her boss.

You set the papers down again, beginning to get ready with a huge smile on your face.

Maybe things weren't so bad.

....two days later

*knock knock knock* You stand at the tall door of the mystery man's mansion, hair combed to perfection and clothes ironed to perfection.

You had janae send you his contact and you'd messaged him about a interview time but that was about it- so you didn't really know who exactly you were meeting.

You look up with hopeful eyes as the door opens, and your shocked to see someone who looks to be.. your age? You weren't sure why you expected it to be some old prick.. guess you judged a bit too quick.

"Hi- I'm y/n." you say with confidence, extending your pretty hand for a handshake. He takes it with a smile, giving a firm shake before he steps to the side to allow you into his home.

"Names Mr. Park- but you could call me jimin." he says, and you nod- glad that you can finally see who you'll be working for.

"I perfer mr. park" you say with a smile, it just seems more professional. He nods and walks you over to his offices, pulling out your chair so you can take a seat.

"So, i heard you lost your job?" holy fuck, you were gonna kill janae. She didn't have to tell her boss the extent of everything.

"Yeah..uh- yeah.." your voice trails off and the silence is intense and awkward to say the least, terrible way for him to start the damn interview.

"No worries." he says, chuckling as he takes a seat in the chair across from mine. "You don't have to talk about it if you don't want." his voice is soft and warm, easing the tension in an instant.

You thank him, and from then on the conversation just flows. He asks you about your interests, availability, your specialties, and after he's finished you feel that it went pretty well.

"So have you went over the contract?" ...of course you didn't. You were at fault for this, janae had given it to you two days ago and you suppose you just forgot about it.

Obviously, there's no way you were telling him that after the interview had gone perfectly fine. You were almost sure that you'd got the job.

"Of course- i just.. i left my copy at home." Lie. You hadn't read any bit of that contract, it was just so long- you didn't feel like it.

"It's all good, i have a copy you can sign." he digs through a drawer behind his desk, searching for a moment before placing the paper in front of you along with a pen.

"Thank you, sir." you mutter, signing the paper immediately. You still couldn't be bothered to look at it- especially not after you told him you read it all.

"Alright." he says, a smile on his face as he takes the paper from your hands and places it into a file folder. "The jobs all yours, glad to have you."

He extends his hand this time, and you shake it with pleasure. "Great, ehm- when's my first day?"

"Tomorrow, 8AM sharp." well you damn sure weren't expecting so soon, but you weren't doing much else so it was no problem.

"Perfect, see you then." he sees you out to your car, assuring you get into the car and drive off safe before he walks back into his house.

Nothing like your old boss you think, but you like it.

______________________________________________________

THE FOLLOWING DAY:

You groan as you finally lift from the floor, throwing the wet towel to the side as you take a short break. You'd arrived at eight am just as he asked, and it was 12 now.

You wondered how he expected you to clean this whole place on your own, after all it was no where near small. You'd been here for hours already and hadn't even finished the bottom floor.

If he wanted this done in a timely manner he definitely was gonna have to get some more help around here.

Luckily, he wouldn't be home today. You could clean on your first day in complete and utter silen-

The door creaks open before you can even finish your thought, and there he is in all his glory. You mean that literallt by the way, he's adorned in different types of jewelry and a nice suit that was probably from a luxury brand you'd never even heard of.

"Y/n." he says, greeting you quietly as he sets down the bag in his hand near the front door. So much for cleaning up the clutter there.

"Hi-" is all you say, giving him a soft smile as you continue wiping down the counters. You couldn't let his presence here distract you, this was already taking you a long time being alone.

"Everything going okay?" he asks, waltzing into the kitchen like he owns the place. (He does)

"Yeah, i haven't gotten to the upstairs yet but i will soon-" you say, biting the inside of you cheek anxiously. Hopefully he didn't think you were moving too slow, this was hard work for one person.

"It's all good." he mutters, grabbing a coffee cup out of the cupboard next to you. You divert your attention back to cleaning, this time focusing on the stove

The crumbs left in the little crevices make you roll your eyes. No wonder this guy needed a maid, he clearly couldn't clean to save his damn life.

You walk around him to open the cabinet under the sink, bending down carefully aware of the skirt you put on. It wasn't the best thing to wear to clean but you were in a rush this morning.

"You're not in dress code." you hear his deep voice behind you, and stand up to turn and face him. His eyebrows are raised and both of his hands are resting on the freshly cleaned countertop.

"Dress code?" you question with an awkward laugh, but your smile disappears when you see he's not finding anything funny. In fact, he's staring at you blankly, without a word.

"Um, we didn't speak about a dress code." you say, and you know you're right. You remember the conversation very well, and he never mentioned anything about what you should wear.

You just assumed you could wear what you pleased.

"It was on the contract." he says, crossing his arms as he stares at you. You curse yourself for lying, why didn't you just tell him you didn't read his contract??

Whatever whatever, this is your time to come clean.

"Oh yes- i..i just forgot!"

he doesn't reply.

"I'm sorry."

he still doesn't say anything.

"Do you want me to go?"

he's making you feel stupid.

"Mr.park?"

He finally lets out a sigh and moves closer to you, scanning over your outfit. "Bend over."

You weren't sure you heard him right. "What?" you say, not sure of what he's asking if you. And so he repeats himself- "Bend over, y/n."

You turn around and try to look over your shoulder, convinced there's something on your back maybe. "Is there something there?" you ask, innocent as ever.

"No, i wanna fuck you." he says it casually, as if he was asking you to get him a cup of coffe. Your eyes widen, practically buldging out of your head in shock. How fucking inappropriate could he be?

"Are you insane?" you rebuttal, looking at him as if he was crazy. Shit he was in your opinion, it's your first day and he's already coming onto you like some man whore.

He begins to laugh at you, making your face scrunch up into an annoyed glare. What the fuck was so funny? Who the hell laughs after being rejected?

"You didn't read my contract." he announces, and now you're confused. You didn't read it, obviously- but how would he know that?

"I did it just-" he raises his hand, cutting you off without having to speak. "You didn't, because if you did you wouldn't be so fucking shocked right now."

He walks away from you afterward, and you stand in the kitchen dumbfounded as you watch him go into his office and come back out in a matter of minutes.

He returns with a file folder in hand, the same folder he stuffed the contract you signed into. The same contract that you payed no attention to and sure as hell didn't read.

He flings it onto the counter, the same way you did when janae first handed it to you. You desperately wished you would've just read it as soon as she handed it to you.

"Read it." he demands, it wasn't a question. You oblige him, moving closer and beginning to read the very first page. It's not long before you come across the dress code.

•must wear the uniform provided

•must look presentable daily

"The uniform was left on the couch." he mentions, and you nod in embarrassment.

He gestures for you to continue reading, and you do so. Nothing seems to weird, that is until you reach the end of the rules and requirements portion.

•must be willing to engage in sexual activities with exmployer at any time they're on the clock.

"The fuck is this?" you say, immediately looking at him in concern. "This isn't what i signed up for." you protest.

"It is, though." he says, in a much calmer tone then yours. This was nothing to him, he's probably had loads of girls in the past do this for him. Whatever this even was.

"So you just wanna have sex with me." you say, throwing the papers back down to the counter as you pinch the bridge of your nose in frustration.

"No, you're still here to clean." he says, grabbing the papers and placing it back into the folder. "But- i want to have sex with you as well."

His straight forwardness makes you squirm, something about being so open about the matter was weird for you. "I can't do this." you mutter, this wasn't what you needed.

"You tricked me."

You wanted a real job, not this.

"Look, im not gonna force you to do this." he announces, picking the folder up and shaking it in front of your face. "If you want, i'll rip this contract up and you can leave now."

You stay silent, listening to him speak as you think about your options here.

"But, i also know you need the money. I won't make you stay here, but if you do it'll be by my rules." he's stern with his words, and you know he means it.

"There's no point of you being here if you don't meet my requirements, y/n."

You understand him very well, but you don't know what to do. You didn't know if you wanted to stay, or if you wanted to go home and continue looking for a job with no hope.

Which was right? You didn't know.

He grunts as he adjusts his suit, fixing the tie around his neck. "Do you want to be here, or not?"

You think for a while, not wanting to answer too quickly. You need to be sure about this, and you keep telling yourself if this isn't what you want, then you need to go home.

But somehow, you still find yourself muttering a quiet. "I want to be here."

"Are you sure?" he asks you, and this is your chance to say you're not- but you don't. "I'm sure."

You were sure.

He nods and licks his lips. "Keep cleaning."

You take a deep breath & do as your told, grabbing the windex and spraying the huge mirror. He's making you anxious with the way he's watching you, and you wished he'd leave again.

You're tearing off a paper towel when he moves closer behind you, now close enough that his back is touching yours.

"Sir-" he shushes you, rubbing up and down the part of your thighs that he can see. "You agreed didn't you? I wanna start right away." he mutters it into your ear, and it makes your heart pound.

This was a bit early wasn't it? Can't he just give it a couple days first? You're new here for fucks sake.

"While i'm cleaning?" you ask, and it almost comes out as a whimper. It was shameful how it only took him rubbing your leg to get you all squeamish around him.

"Just pretend i'm not here.." he whispers, slipping his fingers under the hem of your dress to pull it down. He lets them fall to your ankles, and you struggle to keep wiping the mirror as he takes in the sight of your underwear.

You chose a matching set today, not on purpose- you just wanted to feel nice. The choice payed off nevertheless.

"I can't.." you whimper out, titling your head down and away from the mirror. "You can" he contrasts, sticking his hand into the purple thong you were wearing.

"Tell me how your days been." he mumbles it ever so casually, acting as if your clit isn't at the mercy of his fingertips at this very moment.

He was toying with you, flicking the bundle of nerves ever so slightly and placing little kisses on your neck.

"I-It's been good." you force yourself to whimper out a response, your body liking this treatment though your mind is telling you that you should've already grabbed your belongings and left as soon as you found out what this job consisted of.

"More, what'd you do?" he asks, and you can hear the jingling of his belt as he fumbled to get it off.

He moves hastily, soon rubbing his bare cock against your folds. "I..I prepared your dinner, it's in the fridge." you respond, hand refusing to move to continue wiping the glass.

"That's good, what'd you make me?" a gasp falls from your lips as he forces his way into your tight hole. He takes a sharp inhale too, the feeling of you wrapped around him a bit more than he himself could handle.

"Please.." jesus you don't even know what your begging for, all you can think about right now is the way he feels inside of you.

"Please what?" he counters, gripping your shoulder as tight as he could to fuck you back onto his dick. "Got me so hard, knew exactly what i wanted to do to you when you showed up in my office."

Something about that made you smile. Talking during sex wasn't something you were particularly used to but you damn sure liked it.

His dick slides in and out of you with ease, slipping out every so often due to how wet he's got you. It's not long before he's fucking into you without much care in the world.

He knew you were enjoying it though, feeling how you clamped down on him even tighter the rougher he got with you.

His hand pulls at your hair, wrapping it around his hand and tugging it as if it was some leash. "Such a pretty pussy, all mine now-"

You try your best to hear him over your little whimpers and moans, only growing louder when he moves his hand under you to play with your clit again.

His fingers are wet, and your almost sure he spit on them before playing with you. "Sir-" you rasp out, growing warm with the way his chest was pressed to your back.

"Hm?" is he all he manages to get out, too concentrated on your lower half. His eyes never left your ass, obsessed with the way it jiggled each time he thrusted into you.

He slaps it once just for his own pleaure.

And then a few more times when he hears you moan at the first.

"G-Gonna cum!" you're sweating now, still trying your best to fuck yourself against him to finally get yourself to the orgasm you've been waiting for.

He lets you do the work for just a moment, watching your pretty body work itself on him. "Just like that- cum for me.." his voice trails off on its own, and he bites his lip hard in a attempt to not let out a groan.

When you feel his hand reach around to press down on your lower stomach, you explode. You're left squirming under him all over again, squeezing his cock tight enough to make him pull out before he can cum inside of you.

He gets himself off after that. Staring at your used cunt as he jerks himself off to release. The spurts of his cum land all over your lower back, and you don't stand up properly until he's all finished.

"Wait, shit- bend over again." he says, and you comply without question.

He onto his knees behind you, bringing his hands up to take a nice handful of your ass cheeks. He licks his lips before he licks off anything left behind.

Clean up what you mess up right?

He lets out a loud grunt, repeatedly licking over your clit even when there's nothing left.

"Stop- fuck! stop!" you cry out, not ready for him to give you another, at least not yet. You reach your hand behind you in a attempt to push him away but you fail miserably, getting nothing but a harsh smack to your ass.

He only stops when you begin to thrash, and pulls away before you get too overstimulated.

"Turn around." he mutters, pulling up his pants as you breathlessly turns to face him. As soon as you get the slightest glimpse of his face, he brings his lips straight to yours.

His lips are softer than you expected, and the way he kisses is much different than the way he fucks. You lick your lips when he pulls away, giving him a shy smile like he wasn't inside of you less than five minutes ago.

"Thanks?" you mutter, not sure what to say. What do you say after getting fucked by a guy you'd only just met? Its strictly business you suppose, but still.

"No need for thanks." he says, kissing your cheek like a boyfriend would his girlfriend.

"I'll have a check for you by tomorrow yeah? Finish up just the downstairs and you're good to go for today."

Was that it? He just fucks you and sees himself out just like that? You weren't sure what you expected, but it damn sure wasn't that.

...

That same night your on the phone with janae, twiddling your fingers as she rants about her day- but you're too busy thinking about your own.

Should you tell her?

"Ah fuck stop touching that!- sorry y'know how my nephew is." she laughs. "How was your first day at work by the way?"

Holy fuck, the long awaited question. "It was good.. really good." you say, deciding then and there you should probably keep the details to yourself.

"I figured so, i had a late shift and my boss told me mr.park seemed to be in a good mood today." you smile to yourself at the comment, and find yourself wondering if it was because of you.

"Oh really?" you ask, trying to make yourself sound surprised.

"Mhm- and speaking of that.. i have good news!" her voice suddenly amps up and you raise your eyebrows though she can't see you. "Oh yeah? What's that?"

"Well, y'know how i mentioned my boss was moving away?"

you nod.

"So, he did me a couple favors and he said mr. park would be happy to have me! We'd be doing the same job!"

your smile drops instantly, what the fuck.

"Twins!! Aren't you happy?" she asks you, excited as ever.

"I've gotta go janae."

(requested by @parkjiminspersonalhoe )

[garlic-in-the-land-of-vampires]

Okay so I gave in and watched the current Bored arc

And then I wrote a thing about Rowan finding "Alan"

Not-quite but kinda spoilers for latest episode?

Rowan sighed as he unlocked his apartment door. He had just gotten back from Alan’s place, where once again he had waited for hours in the dark and eerily empty apartment. No one had come by. He knew Alan was avoiding him–and by extension the massive paycut that was coming his way–but he just couldn’t figure out how.

As he tossed his keys onto the table he heard something coming from upstairs.

It sounded like a voice

It sounded like Alan’s voice.

Rowan ran, taking the steps two at a time. At the top of the stairs he stopped.

“... Rowan? Is that you?”

It was coming from his bedroom closet.

Rowan threw open the door and there, curled up into the corner, was a very naked Alan.

:What are you doing here?” Rowan asked, temporarily forgetting to be angry.

“Well, sometimes, when you need to talk to your coworkers, it’s okay to sneak into their home to wait for them.”

Rowan nodded. That made perfect sense. “But what are you doing in my closet?”

“I was embarrassed that I was naked.”

“Right, and… why are you naked?”

“I got mugged. They stole my uniform. I’m very weak so I was mugged pretty easily.”

Rowan nodded again. That also made sense, given how Alan had only won their fight (or won one round, really, he left before it was really over) by cheating and distracting Rowan by destroying company property. “Alright but, that’s coming out of your paycheck.”

“That’s fair. Rowan, could you help me up? I think I’m stuck.”

Rowan reached into the closet and gingerly helped Alan out. He then guided Alan to his bed and helped him sit down.

Any other time, having a naked Alan on his bed woud have been too distracting to Rowan to even hold a conversation, but he hadn’t completely forgotten his anger. “What the hell Alan? I know I embaressed you by kicking your ass in front of everyone, but you’ve sulked so long that Adam didn’t even think you were coming back!”

“I didn’t mean for it to go on this long! And I’m sorry I scared Adam.”

“Oh, you’re sorry, ahuh, sorry for how you made ADAM feel?”

“Yeah well, you knew I was coming back, didn’t you? I always come back. No matter what happens. It’s been nearly ten years… sometimes I storm off, but I always come back.”

It was true, and hearing it felt like vindication. “Yeah, well, uh… “ It was getting hard to maintain the righteous anger. “You’re still getting a massive paycut.”

“That’s fair.”

“And working closing shift, weekends, and all holidays until… forever.”

“Okay.”

“And… and you’re signing a new contract. Where you’re never allowed to quit, or even pretend to quit, ever again.”

“Right.” Alan gave him one of his small smiles, the ones that were always half sad, and Rowan hated the way those smiles made his insides feel. “You know… I am sorry. I was coming to tell you that, when I got mugged.”

“Psssh… yeah, well…” Rowan shrugged. It wasn’t like he cared… but it was nice to hear.

“I have these anger issues, I’m working on them. It’s just when I don’t understand your jokes sometimes I just lash out. You didn’t deserve that at all though.”

Rowan squirmed a bit. As much as he had been looking forward to Alan groveling, he was suddenly wishing they were past this part. “Get dressed, you’re coming with me to open the store. This isn’t your shift! It’s going to be…unpaid training.” Rowan stood, went over to his closet, and pulled out a red shirt, throwing it to Alan.

Alan just dumbly watched it smack into his chest. Idiot.

“Rowan is this my shirt? The one I lost and you docked my check for?”

Rowan froze. It had been Alan’s shirt. He’d left it to dry after washing a coffee spill out of it. When Rowan had grabbed it from the washroom it was still damp, but it also still smelled like Alan.

“Yes… that was to teach you a lesson! About being more careful with company property!”

Alan nodded. Then he struggled so stupidly with putting it on that Rowan had to help him.

When that was done Alan looked at him, and for a moment Rowan was lost in his gaze. “Rowan… can I… maybe wait a few days, before going back? Maybe I can stay here, just for a bit. I’m still embarrassed by how I left. I don’t know if I’m ready for anyone else to see me like this.”

Rowan thought about it. It was temping, to keep Alan like a secret. Oh, he’d tell everyone Alan was back, but not where to find him. He’d come home every shift to have Alan waiting there for him…

But no, he needed the others to see, to know he was right. Alan was wrong, he was sorry, and above all he came back. “Nope, you’ve had enough time off. Time to get back to work!”

Alan accepted this, because he was getting better at understanding that Rowan knew best. Rowan even helped him to the car, and made sure he was safely buckled. Then he got around over to his side, got in and buckled himself.

“Oh and Rowan?”

“Hmm?” Rowan asked, adjusting his mirrors.

“I watched The Phantom Menace again. You were right, it was really good! The best actually!”

Rowan looked over at Alan and couldn’t help but smile. “Yeah? And who was your favorite character?”

“Jar Jar! He was just hilarious!.”

Rowan smiled as he pulled out onto the road. Everything was going to be fine. Alan was back, they were finally on the same page, and everything was as it should be.

[impish-crow]

[Translation] DIG-ROCK Christmas Short Story - with HOUND ROAR

"Mituru. Where are you right now?"

Before receiving a response from my younger brother, cheerful voices jumped into my ears.

(Perhaps he's out drinking with someone.)

I have no intention of lecturing. After all, my brother is already an adult. Moreover, it's Christmas Eve today. It's natural for him to go out and have a drink with someone in the evening. Yet,

(Mitsuru, drinking…?) The image from his underage days still lingers.

I know. Mitsuru is already an adult. It’s different from the time when he was looking forward to Christmas cake once a year.

(Even though I used to be afraid and avoided him for years.)

There are still some unresolved issues between us. However,

(What if he's alone?)

As soon as I relaxed a bit, I found myself putting on the older brother act. But then suddenly, it became embarrassingly awkward.

"No, it's not something urgent. But, contact Mom soon. She's been worried. ...Well then."

I unilaterally hung up after rushing him. I put my smartphone on the table as if throwing it.

(Well, it's fine. If he's not lonely, that's good.)

Thinking that, I smiled wryly.

(I'm the one who's alone.)

After realising "EGOIST," Hauro's schedule had a noticeable gap. While Kasuga seemed to be running around here and there, when asked, he would only say, "I'll let you know when it gets a bit more specific," and I didn't know the details. Meanwhile, contracted work surged in a year-end rush, and as I diligently handled it, all the year-end work was neatly completed.

(It's been a while since I've been idle like this.)

I've been hectically working as if urged on.

(Despite not having a musical talent,) the voice inside me that whispers such thoughts is frightening. I'm afraid that if I come to my senses, I won't be able to do anything, and I wanted to forget. If I accumulate small praises, my mind will be distracted—.

"……A phone call?"

The name "Endo Shoma" is jumping on the trembling screen of the smartphone on the desk.

"Oh, Hello, Toya. Do you have Magane’s key In your place?"

"The key? His house key?"

I've already gotten used to sudden calls that start before I can bring up the topic.

"Hey, idiot, cut it out!"

"What's your problem! I'm just calling because you can't ask Toya about that, you moron. Be grateful, idiot."

"Who the hell asked you, you damn yankee!"

"Oh, wait, Kouno! Give it back!"

After a while, a calm and composed voice from Hibiki said, "Shion can't find the key of his house."

"I called Sogo earlier to check inside the car, but it wasn't there. Maybe when we stopped by Toya's house during practice in the afternoon."

"I'll look for it. If I can't find it, I'll also contact the studio."

"Thanks. Also, can I come over later today?"

"I'm coming too! I'm coming!"

"Cut it out, idiot!"

"Why?"

"Because it's a nuisance, obviously!"

“Ugh, but Toya might have the key house. And it’s cold standing in the hallway of the apartment building. I don’t want to.”

“I don’t mind if you come over.”

“Toya said it’s okay.”

“I’m sorry, really sorry...”

“I’ll be there in about twenty minutes. See you later.”

The phone was hung up on me.

(Those guys.)

I couldn’t help but burst out laughing.

“What are they doing? They’re such idiots.”

Of all times, they had to lose the key on Christmas Eve.

And they just barge into my house without even asking if I’m free.

On top of that, my room is a mess because of the end-of-year rush, and I only have twenty minutes left.

(This Christmas)

There’s nothing funny about it. But once I started laughing, I couldn’t stop, and tears started streaming down my face.

(When Christmas is over, a new year will come.)

I still don’t know anything about the future. But I’m not worried or scared. I’m not afraid of the passage of time.

“Jeez. Oh well.”

I chuckled at my own words and reached for my phone.

I don’t know anything, but I’m sure next year will be the same――that’s what I thought as I made the call.

“Hello, Sogo. Want to come over to my place now?”`

[ayuki-ikuya]

Dorms and Archons

Twisted Wonderland x Genshin Impact

Part 2 of 2

Part 1

Dendro Archon

The Recluse Scholar

𝓚𝓪𝓵𝓲𝓶 𝓐𝓵-𝓐𝓼𝓲𝓶

Kalim was excited to have a new friend! Oh the parties they'd have! The fun! The food!

When he met you, you were... distant. Did he do something wrong? Did he upset you?

He really did try to find out what he did wrong, and often sent you invitations (Malleus eyeing the invitations) you some of the parties he makes, but you don't show up nor reply, making him sadden.

Jamil low key face palming

During a normal sunny day at school, he and Jamil headed to the library to grab some books, and during the process, he found you, tucked in a corner with mountains, upon mountains of books around you, and you? You were reading.

"Ah? S/o??"

"HEEEEK!!!!"

he startled you so badly that plants from outside grew. which of course caused a commotion.

Kalim apologised for startling you, but he asked a question about your attendance, your reply was to fiddle with your sleeves before answering with a small voice that you were afraid of people despite being a deity.

Kalim immedietly thought of Idia, but he crossed the line of no return, but Kalim smiled warmly, held your hand, making you choke, and said a more softer voice that he'd throw a smaller party, just the three of them. (Don't tell me you forgot Jamil, HE MAKES THE DANG FOOD)

You accepted.

Several parties later, you two were unsurprisingly in love with each other that the students of NRC were rolling their eyes at the moments the two shared. COULD YOU TWO DATE ALREADY!?!?

When you two started dating, Kalim made a celebration, but kept you in a more secluded section, that way you could be apart of it, but not near a large crowd of people. And you were thankful for it.

As a couple, Kalim practically adores you. And he's super affectionate too! Jalim is glad to have someone more tameable and it also makes it easier to locate Kalim if he ever goes off by himself.

𝓙𝓪𝓶𝓲𝓵 𝓥𝓲𝓹𝓮𝓻

He thought nothing of you at first.

Until you had full scores on everything.

He had requested you to help with Scarabia's studying, in offer of full meals, which you complied with due to living in a run down dorm and doesn't have a lot of money to support themselves with.

However, the study group went wrong due to the amount of people.

Jamil then figured that you didn't work too well with large numbers of people, and he found that you were slightly dependent on him when it comes to speaking.

He ended up planning smaller groups, working on those who had the worst grades then up.

And thanks to you, their dorm gradually got better.

Jamil spent time with you whenever he was free from following Kalim, and he was fairly fond of you.

You were soft, very soft, but highly reliable in terms of knowledge. So he'd often vent to you which is surprising.

But your presence and advice helped him grow better.

Jamil fell for you when he found you smiling at a Scarabia student showing you their improved grade, you looked like a warm hearted maternal parent, and his heart skipped at the sight.

When you two began dating, it was a bit rocky due to Jamil's family duty to serve the Al-Asim family. But Kalim was very kind to allow Jamil more free time, in exchange that he brings you over for more study parties!

You figured since Kalim wasn't fond of studying and more for partying, that you'd make a study party which improved Kalim's grade by ten folds. Jalim practically wept tears that the seven sent him this angel.

Geo Archon

The Consultant

𝓐𝔃𝓾𝓵 𝓐𝓼𝓱𝓮𝓷𝓰𝓻𝓸𝓽𝓽𝓸

Azul was greedy for the power you possibly possess. and your money.

Azul underestimated you since he witnessed your lack of brains in terms of money. You forget about having your wallet on you, and whenever someone offers to pay for you, you attempt to buy everything without a single thought.

This was going to be an easy contract, Azul thought. They're an idiot, Azul thought. They can't complete this contract, Azul thought.

"I've completed my end of the contract. Now you must do yours."

"Huh? Nani?"

Azul was stupefied by this, he whipped his head towards the Leech twins, both begrudgingly nodding their heads in confirmation at the archon completing their conditions of the contract.

Azul had tried to change the details of the contract, you of course allowed it the first time.

But when you returned with the conditions once again completed, Azul tried to add more.

However, you weren't having it.

You stood up and leaned down to Azul, towering over him. A sudden pressure weighed the three mercreatures, it was heavy and foreboding. Your eyes glowed a gold with the amber ombre in your hair glowing gold as well.

"I was lenient to allow you the first time. Either fulfill your end of the deal or break the contract. But if you break the contract, you will suffer the wrath of the rock."

Azul was terrified.

When Azul fell for you, he questioned himself. How in the seven did he fall for a person like YOU!? He will never remember how, but all he knows is that he's in waaay to deep.

When you two became a couple, you were far more charasmatic and charming than before, it was like it was turned up a notch. Or two. or more...

The contract loving couple have been making more money than ever thanks to the Geo Archon, the avatar of contracts. It's either fill the conditions or suffer the wrath of the rock. Or just, don't make a contract. Simple.

But then we got the one brain cell trio doing their dumb sh**.

𝓙𝓪𝓭𝓮 𝓛𝓮𝓮𝓬𝓱

Oya?

What an intriguing being.

Jade was the first to be interested in you. But he couldn't exactly find you that well since you practically mixed with the crowd a little too well than he'd like. [Bro, Zhongli and Venti has statues of themselves around Liyue and Mondstaft, AND NO ONE MANAGES TO THINK "hmmm.. You know, he looks like one that statue there.. Wait a minute-" LIKE, SRSLY!!! Venti is more obvious, I can understand Zhongli since he wears more funeral consultant clothing, but he still somehow blends in with the crowd. Unlike a Lil wind spirit.]

But when the moment came where you made a contract, Jade was more than happy to hinder you, only for you to complete the conditions before he could figure out your plan.

"... What?"

["OSMANTHUS WI-"]

After that fiasco with you giving a very large heavy warning, Jade was by your side whenever he wasn't with Floyd, questioning your knowledge, in which you were more than happy enough to comply.

Jade fell for you when you showed how competent you were unlike the other miserable guppies in school. Sure you had a few problems, but nothing with a little Jade there and everything is perfect. He also favored your knowledge, specially about fungi.

When you two became a couple, it was.. Strange to say, a air headed but scary consultant with a sadistically calm eelman? That's ringing bells for everyone.

𝓕𝓵𝓸𝔂𝓭𝓮 𝓛𝓮𝓮𝓬𝓱

Floyd had zero, zip, non, 100% no interest in you. Why? You looks, sound and seem boring. And he stand corrected.

it was later when you completed the conditions, which, not gonna lie, spooked Floyd.

"Hah?"

Later, he began to go after you like he did with Goldfish (Riddle), and when he tried to squeeze you, he found himself squeezing a shield instead.

He found himself utterly thrilled and had did several attempts at you, which failed.

His interest in you and your abilities heightened.

Then your relationship bloomed.

It was hard to say if it was romantic or platonic, but either way, Floyd was perfectly happy. Happy to have a partner who continues to show things or tell him things about their world.

As long as Floyd kept out of trouble and/or content, Jade and Azul didn't say question their relationship.

Pyro Archon

The Warlord

𝓛𝓮𝓸𝓷𝓪 𝓚𝓲𝓷𝓰𝓼𝓬𝓱𝓸𝓵𝓪𝓻

Who are you? What are you? Why are you here? What are you doing? Get out.

Leona didn't care for you, not one single bit. Until you messed with his sleep schedule due to your chaoticness.

Whenever your around, you just bring trouble with you. And he doesn't like it one bit.

And when you bring trouble, you bring noise.

Which officially ruins his nap times.

However, Leona praises and respects your prowess in battle. You always gave it your all, which he liked. You weren't holding back, which allowed him to gauge how powerful you were as a deity with or without your element.

As it turns out, you're stronger than what you make yourself out to be, but what catches Leona's attention the most, was how calculating you were. It was as if you were analyzing him

To be honest, he felt violated.

At most times, you're energetic, but when your quiet or serious, it's either pack your sh** and leave or get out of their way.

Because when your either if those, you will either send someone to the nurse with severe casualties or some of the schools property will be destroyed. And of course, there is a justified reason for this.

Other than to make Crowley very upset of course.

Leona fell for you with your strength. He loves a woman who can lead and he could just relax. Unless it comes to some other type of leadership, like in the bedroom, then that will change. ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

These two are dangerous as a couple when Leona's awake and active. And when Leona's on the move, expect a gremlin to be tailing after him, and be sure to clear out of their way. Mercy didn't in their vocabulary.

𝓡𝓾𝓰𝓰𝓲𝓮 𝓑𝓾𝓬𝓬𝓱𝓲

Huh? Do I know you? No? Goodbye.

Ruggie, quite literally, didn't give a rats ass about you.

To him, you were like any other beast man, rowdy and rough, other than your form that is.

But thankfully, you knew how to take care of yourself. Less work for Ruggie. I guess.

Not only that you knew how to cook. That was a god sent gift to Ruggie. Sadly though, you only know how to make mostly meat dishes. If it contains vegetables, expect the veggies to be over seasoned.

Leona was scared when he saw you in the kitchen, only to calm down seeing you being calm and not rowdy.

Ruggie fell for your cooking. He is literally the term "To get to a mans heart, you go through their stomach". although you should work on cooking vegetables better for a more healthier lifestyle.

𝓙𝓪𝓬𝓴 𝓗𝓸𝔀𝓵

Strong? Strong.

You two are 100% besties.

You two are glued to the hip whenever you guys are free or share classes.

You both like to exercise and spar, so you two mostly go for each other.

To say the least, Jack mostly saw you as a sibling. Sorry, no romance.

Jack often scolds you for not eating more vegetables.

Which makes you pout and huff.

Cute lil tyke - Leona

Hydro Archon

The Judge

𝓡𝓲𝓭𝓭𝓵𝓮 𝓡𝓸𝓼𝓮𝓱𝓮𝓪𝓻𝓽𝓼

Nice, another rule setter like me. We're gonna be great friends.

"Explain why two cubes of sugar should be in a lemon tea? It's blasphemy."

I see you have chosen violence 😌

Riddle at first liked you, until you learned about the rules of the Queen of Hearts, did he start to hate you.

"BE QUIET OR IT'S OFF WITH YOUR HEAD!"

He loathed you.

He thought that since your a judge, you'd understand the rules, much like him. But no, you judged the rules as well, evaluating if they are fair or not.

Whenever you call out on the rules that appeared ridiculously stupid to have (like the two sugar cubes in lemon tea. That's bs to you.)

After the overblot, you were more nicer when he changed.

He stand corrected.

But he didn't mind it, he low key enjoyed arguing with you, without him screaming at you of course.

You two as a couple sends fear in everyone. A judge and a tyrant? That's a deadly combo.

𝓣𝓻𝓮𝔂 𝓒𝓵𝓸𝓿𝓮𝓻

Trey had taken a liking to you, seeing how similar you are to Riddle.

He enjoyed answering your questions about rules, but if there were rules he can't remember, he'd look at them with you to not only answer your question, but to commit them to memory in case.

What he's scared of is when you give trials regarding about incidents. Riddle would present his case then the 'innocent' or innocent would present theirs.

If the person is guilty, you ensure punishment, because like Riddle, you detest rule breakers unless in reason. You didn't mind them bending the rules as long as it doesn't break.

Trey is envious of your abilities, but you reassure him the his Doodle Suit is superior if you can use it against others magic.

You often praised him as well.

You admitted to thinking about a scenario of if Trey was born in Tevyat, he'd receive a hydro vision.

He flushed in response, secretly happy to have caught your attention.

You two as a couple puts everyone, minus Riddle because it's you, at ease.

𝓒𝓪𝓽𝓮𝓻 𝓓𝓲𝓪𝓶𝓸𝓷𝓭

#ohmyseveniminlove #calltheambulance #loveatfirstsight #goddescendingfromheaven #pinchme #PLSNOTICEMEANDLOVEME #foryoupage

He practically fell for you.

To him, you were perfect.

"You have flaws? I only see perfection!"

He's a smooth talker, albeit feminine due to having a lot of sisters, but smooth nonetheless.

He's a simp for you, willing to use his unique magic to do anything and everything for you.

Literally fell at first sight of you.

As a couple, Cater often takes couple photos with you, at first you were content with the pictures, but at this point they kinda peeved her when he takes pictures on every occasion.

"Smiiiile~"

"Cater, I love you, but please, stop."

"If you give me a kiss I might~"

𝓓𝓮𝓾𝓬𝓮 𝓢𝓹𝓪𝓭𝓮

You're his role model.

Literally the Geno to your Saitama.

He carries a notebook with him to take notes on you since he strives to be like you. A model being.

Even if he looks smart, he still has a split braincell between Ace and Grim.

Don't hold it against him if he's trying to know almost EVERYTHING about you.

More platonic than romantic.

𝓐𝓬𝓮 𝓣𝓻𝓪𝓹𝓹𝓸𝓵𝓪

Complete opposites.

And completely disliked each other.

You rubbed him the wrong way, maybe it was because you were more justified than him, better at things than he was.

He didn't know what, it was just you being better than him. He understands he's not smart, because he foes dumb sh** with the other two.

But whenever you have to deal with their messes on their own, he feels irritated.

He often tries to get after you as well.

"Oh wow, such a god you are. Pathetic."

*cue angry archon noises with an 8 feet tall wave behind them, ready to flood Ace's ass.*

Yeah, your relationship is very... Rocky and slightly concerning.

Here's part 2! I'm happy that you read this! I will have a link to the first part after connecting the links to certain parts. Feel free to request or refer to the main master list pinned on my blog if you wish to see other choices to make! Happy reading!

[honeypirate]

Going Home

Jet-Black Hero: Tsukuyomi / Tokoyami Fumikage x Fem!Reader - Pro Hero AU (in their 20s)

Tokoyami had it bad. He had it so bad he had to bribe dark shadow to keep his mouth shut about it when you would call him. Sure he’s older than he was in high school and has more control over his quirk partner- he could force him to keep his mouth shut, but it feels wrong to force him to do anything when he’s a friend

You met Tokoyami in high school, becoming instant friends and bonding over darkness and crime shows. You even went as scully and mulder one Halloween together. But then you moved to a different country before senior year and he hasn’t been able to physically see you since.

You kept in contact religiously. He was your best friend and you told him you’d die if he doesn’t remain that way. You talk every day whenever you have free time and FaceTime every Monday and Wednesday alternating evenings and mornings for each other whenever hero work allows.

You have a separate conversation going on Snapchat, Instagram, and texts that you both stay on top of. Your Snapchat streak said 1174 and you’d be damned if it ever broke before you got to see him again. And yes, somewhere along the lines, you fell for him, but you’d never tell him. You’d never ruin your friendship like that.

“Remember to pick her up at noon” Dark Shadow said into his mind and he rolled his eyes, like he would ever forget the date and time his best friend would be in his life again. The second his agency was confirmed he extended a contract toward you, a popular new hero who was looking for an agency. A six month contract with abilities to extend should it feel like a good fit.

“Seriously? Not just because I’m your friend? You honest to god think our quirks would work well if I’m your side kick? On the bracelet?” He nods into the phone camera and then looks down at the purple adjustable bracelet you had gotten for him on your last arcade adventure before you moved, a matching black one on your wrist.

“I swear on the bracelet” he said, heart skipping. Yes he knew your quirks would work well together that was true. But he also knew that he was dying to see to again and when you said you only needed a good enough opportunity to move back, he saw a perfect opportunity that fate had handed you both.

Your black bracelet was faded to grey over the years of never taking it off but your heart beat raced in your chest. “Okay” you say with a smile and warm cheeks “I’ll have my agent look over the contract and I’ll give it a serious thought career wise.” Your eyes sparkled and he hoped your agent liked the proposal. His heart racing as you smiled at him like that. God he loved your smile.

“I like it. It would be good for your hero image if you had hero work in other countries as well. Young hero going back home. We can make a good story out of it how you were home sick. It’s also good that it’s with your best friend.” You checked out after she said she liked it. You were going home. You were going home.

You called Tokoyami right away and he answered on almost the last ring. “I’m sorry I just needed to talk to you” you said and took a deep breath as he work up “no it’s fine. It’s always fine when it’s you” his voice was tired and thick and you could only imagine how it would be in person.

“I have some news” you said with a smile and he perked up, sitting up in bed and against his headboard as he looked out his window at the night sky “what is it?” He asks, trying not to feel too excited as the phone presses hard against his ear.

“Guess” you said with a teasing tone and he knew immediately

“Really?” He asks, not being able to hide the excitement in his tone as his empty fist shoots up in celebration

“She said she liked it. It’ll be good for my image” you said with a grin, holding the phone in the crook of your neck as you play with the bracelet you’ve never taken off.

“When?” He asks eagerly

“You should know when Fumi, you made the contract” you joke and he chuckles

“no I know when your first day will be but when are you coming here?” He needs to know how much longer. How much more time will be spent away from you

“A week”

he laughs once out of shock and joy “a week?” He asks and you laugh, joy lacing every part of your voice

“my agent got me a flight and an apartment. The building I asked for already had one open and it was easy peasy. It’ll be furnished for me so I’ll be there next Wednesday at noon. Then I’ll have three weeks there before I start work. With you”

He couldn’t believe it. It went so fast he feels like his heart is spasming. Eight years away from you and only one week to go. “I’ll pick you up text me your itinerary”

“Okay” you say with a laugh and then smirk as you say “you’re not gonna ask where I’m gonna be living?”

“Where?”

“#407” you say and it takes him a moment but he gets there

“You mean six doors down?” He asks and you laugh

“Yeah I hope you don’t mind. I just thought it would be fun” you feel nervous like he’s not gonna like it, your palms sweat

“That’s amazing I’m so happy” he says and you grin “really? You don’t mind I’m living in your building?”

“Why would I mind? The best person in my life is going to be my neighbor. I can’t wait”

You hear his alarm go off and gasp “I’m sorry Fumi I didn’t mean to ruin your sleep”

He laughs “you didn’t. Trust me. But I do have to go to work. To get things set for you to be here.”

“Okay. I’ll text you. Be safe today Fumi”

—

His hands feel sweaty as he stands at the gates. Jesus. Was this even a good idea? Fuck he was so nervous. Your plan had landed he was just waiting for the doors to open. When the fight attendants opened the door he felt dark shadow getting nervous as well.

But then he saw you, a hat on your head and sunglasses on to try and stay inconspicuous in American airports but since you were here now you took them off and ran your hand through your hair before scanning the room.

Fuck you were so beautiful his mouth was dry. You were so cute in pictures and face time but it had nothing on you in person. You were an angel. This was a bad idea he was too in love to do this.

Your eyes meet his and you smile wide, your hat and glasses in one hand and a water bottle in the other as you start making your way to each other. You started off walking and weaving around the slow walkers but once you had space you couldn’t stop increasing your speed before you were running for him, your water bottle clanging to the ground as you dropped everything and threw off your backpack to slam into his strong arms, laughing as tears fall into his neck as you bury your face into him.

“Hey Fumi” you whispered and held you tighter. You smelled amazing. Like fresh air and rosemary. He couldn’t get enough. He held you tight to his chest and realized you felt smaller in his arms but then he realized when you left he was 5’5 and tiny. He’s grown a lot since then and even though you have changed too, he’s still a much larger man than he was before.

He dwarfed you. You never thought it was even possible. He held you completely and you never wanted him to let go. “Fumikage” you say as you pull back, making sure he keeps his arms around your waist. You reach up and run your hand down his long feathers down the back of his head “you’re much larger in person holy crap. and your feathers are so beautiful!!! Fumi!!. I forgot the beautiful shades in the darkness of the black. How are you still single Fumi you must be dripping with fans” You joked but your heart hurt saying it. You wanted to hear him say he wasn’t dating. That he has feelings for you.

He looks down at you and feels pride swell in his heart as you praise him, controlling the urge to fluff out his feathers when you call them beautiful.

“No one wants to date a fan” he says shutting down your investigative prodding at his love life, but then says “You’re one to talk you’ve changed so much but I didn’t even know it was possible to be this gorgeous. Don’t think I didn’t read about America’s most eligible bachelorette.”

Your cheeks flush with heat and you hide your face in his neck “oh hush Fumi. Always flustering me. Like you haven’t FaceTimed me every week. And that article was a joke” he sighs softly and you can see emotions swirling in his eyes.

“It’s different in person” he says and you sigh as you gaze up at him with a smile “it certainly is”

Once dark shadow decided to ruin the moment you remembered you were still in the airport. Fumi carried your big suitcase like it wasn’t a hundred pounds and before you could object dark shadow had your backpack across his back. Dark Shadow just laughed when you stuck your tongue out at him. “we’ve really missed you” he said when he handed you your water, your glasses and hat already on his body

—

You fall back into an easy rhythm with Fumikage, teasing and playing while talking in his car back to the apartment. After laughing so hard and catching your breath, you look over at his profile and your heart skips. The sun is hitting his feathers, his black button up shirt that was unbuttoned at the neck pulled at his biceps as his right hand rests against the shifter and his left hand was on the steering wheel. God you didn’t know if this was a good idea. You thought you were going back to your childhood home but being with Fumikage nothing has felt more like home than this.

“The boxes you sent over should be here in the next few days. If you need anything or don’t have something you can always come over, I have a spare key for emergencies” he’s going over a few things that it seems like he’s really thought about before you came. He was prepared and it warmed your heart. You smiled up at him as the elevator dinged for the fourth floor and he looked down at you eyes widening as he catches you staring. you smile and reach out, taking a gentle hold on his free hand near you and give it a soft squeeze. “Thank you Fumi. You think of everything. I’ve really missed that”

He doesn’t let go of your hand until he has to unlock his front door, you’d be staying the night with him and your agent was meeting you in the morning with the keys for your place.

his fingers tingle to grab for your hand again but he doesnt

“You can have my room, I’ll take the couch in my office. It’s a pull out.” You smile from your place standing on the landing just inside the door, watching as he disappears with your luggage down a hallway then comes back walking a little slower and playing with his hands like he does when he’s nervous.

The edge of the landing went down a couple steps and he stopped at the bottom edge “feel free make yourself at your home” he says with a nervous chuckle and you grin, running and jumping off the landing into his arms and burying your face in his shoulder.

“Oh Fumi eight years was too long” you whispered into him and he holds you up effortlessly, his beak brushing your shoulder and he curves into you, desperate to hold you after so long “way too long” he agreed.

———

The weeks seemed to fly by, you were settled into your apartment and you just got done with your first official week at the office.

“So, Tsukuyomi, Sir” you say with a smirk and lean against his open office door “how was my first day boss?”

He crosses his arms over his wide chest and gave you his best Boss look, making your heart flutter and causing your cheeks to heat up. you chuckled and tried not to show how flustered you were when you walked farther into his office. He stood from his desk and gave you a nod with a soft chuckle “you did well. I think you’re going to love it here. Let me take you to dinner tonight to celebrate”

——

He showed up at your door at seven and your breath catches in your throat when you see him. Black straight jeans with a black button up tucked in with a red tie and black boots. He looked divine. Like a god of the underdark. His hands were fixing his tie and you stepped forward, not missing the squeak of his own breath catching in his throat at the sight of you, and fixed his tie for him.

You had on a red dress and a black jean jacket that has rolled sleeves and pair of black booties that look like you could kick someone’s ass in them. His brain immediately short wired and all he can think is how well you look together. How right. How good. Fuck this was going to be harder than he thought to just be your friend but he didn’t want to you to think he was a sleaze or make you quit his agency.

Your hands fix his tie and then rest against his chest, when you see his flustered eyes and nervous body language you chuckle and lean up, kissing his beak gently, then wiping the lipstick with your thumb “you look really handsome Fumi” you say softly and he feels a whimper catch in his throat.

your eyes turn from him up to Dark Shadow who had on a matching tie “is it too much?” He asks and you laugh “you look good in it but I do think you pull off natural look best” he nods and salutes you “message received” before taking it off and tossing it into your apartment behind you.

When you look back to Fumi he’s glaring at Dark Shadow like he was a bad child and you chuckled before boldly taking his hand, hoping you read the signs right and that he did feel the same.

“Are you ready?” You ask and he nods, his fingers tighten around your hand as he relaxes, giving you a soft squeeze before placing your hand on his bicep and holding you close as he cleared his throat “I got a reservation at this new restaurant downtown” he says as you enter the elevator and you smile up at him “anywhere with you is perfect”

Dinner went by incredibly quick, you sat in a back booth, talking and laughing the whole night. It was a new restaurant that catered to people with any kinds of quirks and had surprisingly good tofu and fish. (I mean who’s gonna get the chicken on date with a bird?)

By the end of the meal he’s grabbed your hand over the table and is running his fingers against yours softly. “Thank you for tonight Fumi, I really feel like being here was the right choice. I would have came no matter what my agent said” his eyes widened a little

“Really?” He asks and you laugh with a grin “of course! You’re special to me and I just needed a good reason to come back home” your expression was so soft he felt those three words crawl up his tongue.

His eyes look serious for a moment as he looks at the way your hands look together “y/n I need to tell you something” he says and gets extra serious

“What is it?” You ask, trying to keep your voice neutral even tho you know your face screams ‘I’m worried now’

He meets your eye for a few long seconds before he shakes his head. He couldn’t. He couldn’t ruin this close friendship when he wasnt positive his feelings would be returned. “Never mind. It’s not that important. What do you say about dessert?”

He was leaning on the table on his elbows, close enough to reach out and touch over the tiny table, and so you did. You reach up and ran your fingers lightly over the edges of his feathers with a soft smile. “Of course Fumi. But how about we go to the cookie place by the park you always talk about. I know you like it and it’s a perfect night for a walk.” He swallows hard and nods “that’s a perfect idea” he says as he signals for the waiter to pay.

You hold his hand all the way to the cookie place, talking easily and joking around, but you keep hoping for the perfect moment to confess. You had a feeling that’s what he was going to do at the restaurant, it changed your heart and convinced you to take the leap, almost positive he felt the same.

You sit on a bench in the park, one with perfect view of the city skyline, eating your cookies and dark shadow is teasing you about the time you kept stealing Tokoyami’s poptarts from the dorm kitchen. Your cheeks are hot and you’ve turned yourself towards Tokoyami, your left hand on your cheek and your face hidden in his shoulder as you laughed together, your right hand rested on his kid thigh. It felt so easy. So absolutely right.

You drop your hand from your cheek and look up at Tokoyami with a soft smile, heart racing at the emotion you find in his eyes.

“I’m sorry for stealing your poptarts” you say and his throat catches again at the way your eyes seem to shine with love for him he almost feels it’s too much but he wants to dive deeper, to drown in the love he finds.

He chuckles and cups your cheek “I never cared. I had the hugest crush on you then”

Your heart skips and your cheek heats even more under his touch “and now?” You ask, voice barely above a whisper

“Now I’m so in love I don’t know if it’s even quantifiable” he says with a hint of exasperation as he leans down and presses his forehead to yours.

Your eyes flutter closed as your heart thrums against your ribs, his confession echoing in your head as fireworks explode in your heart. You press a kiss on his beak and your heart skips when you hear a gasp catch in his throat

“I’m in love with you too, Fumi” you say and he pulls you into a hug, nuzzling his beak into your neck, wanting to get close to you to show you how much he loves you the best he can since he can’t properly kiss you.

He nips softly at your neck skin and you giggle so sweetly he feels light headed. You pull back and kiss his cheek before looking into his eyes. He cups your cheek again “that’s what I wanted to say back at the restaurant”

You chuckle and smile, taking his hand you press gentle kisses against his palm, trailing a few down to his wrist before saying with a smirk “I know”

[disgruntledspacedad]

The Rules of Engagement (1/5)

part one of the The Better Love Series 

pairing: Javier Peña x fem reader

summary: (slow-burn, sexual tension, angst, a little bit of h/c in later chapters) He’s a DEA agent. You work for Centra Spike. Peña’s not your boss, exactly, but you’ve been fwb long enough that certain people are starting to think of you as An Item, and that just won’t do. 

words: 6.3k 

warnings: 18+ - drugs, violence, language, alcohol, eventual smut. 

a/n: at the end. @tiffdawg​, I finally did it.

part one | part two | part three | part four | part five

MASTERLIST

Your alarm buzzes, and you roll over groggily. 

0615.

Goddamn. You flop a pillow over your head, blocking out the early morning sun, and wonder if three hours of sleep is any better than no sleep at all. 

Somehow, you kind of doubt it. 

The alarm blares again, a failsafe you’d been wise enough to set up after round two had led you to the shower. You gather your still-damp hair, wincing at how gross that feels, and elbow Peña in the shoulder. 

“Morning, sunshine!” You toss your soggy pillow onto his face. 

He grunts pathetically, cracks an eye just enough to send you a sliver of resentment, and lifts a middle finger vaguely in your direction. 

You’re completely unsympathetic. “Not my fault this time, Peña.” 

He curses you in Spanish as you flick on the lights on your way to the kitchen. Coffee is your first order of business. 

You’re not sure exactly when Agent Peña became a fixture in your apartment.  Oh, you can nail down the general timeline pretty well - a night out with the Search Bloc boys had ended with Peña coming to your place, and things had unfolded naturally from there. The sex was good. Very good. You’ve always had a high drive, and Peña is a man who can deliver. You’re pretty creative, and he’s fairly open minded, and neither of you seem to care to make things complicated with Labels and Conversations. Somewhere down the line, wild nights out evolved into even wilder nights in, and then, before you knew it, you’d let Peña borrow your spare key when he’d left his wallet on your coffee table. 

That had been at least two months ago. The sex is still good, and Peña is still leaving his shit everywhere, so neither of you bothered to say anything about it. 

It works. That’s all that matters.

You’ve just sat down with your drink in your hands as the doorbell buzzes. “What the fuck?” You glance at the kitchen clock. It’s not even 0630.

The doorbell buzzes again. 

You eyeball the gun that Peña has left lying on the kitchen counter. Nobody should be looking for you this early in the morning. 

“Hey!” Somebody is knocking now, and shouting, and ugh, you recognize that voice. You leave the gun where it is - somewhat reluctantly - and slam open the door with a ferocity that sends Steve Murphy stumbling into your kitchen. 

“Good morning,” you say serenely. 

“Good morning to you, too, Ears,” Murphy grimaces up at you. 

“That’s not my name,” you remind him for the thousandth time. Not that it will make any difference. Ever since you’d made the mistake of introducing yourself as Centra Spike’s new liaison by saying, “I’ll be your ears,” the Search Bloc boys had leapt at the opportunity to tease. You’re pretty sure most of them don’t realize that you have any other name. 

Somehow, it irks you more coming from Murphy. 

“What are you doing here?” you ask as politely as your temper allows. Murphy has never been your favorite person, and your caffeine definitely hasn’t kicked in yet.

Murphy rights himself, fixing you with a glare that doesn’t threaten in the slightest. “I’m looking for Javi,” he says. He has the audacity to glance around your tiny living space, as if he’d come with a search warrant.

You fold your arms across your chest, suddenly aware of your too-thin nightshirt, and lift a brow in Murphy’s direction. “And what makes you think he’d be here?”

Murphy pins you with an ‘I see right through your bullshit’ expression. “Call it a hunch.” 

Right on cue, footsteps clatter down the kitchen stairs. Murphy smirks. You don’t bother to hide a sigh. 

Fuck. 

“What are you doing here?” Peña echoes you unconsciously. You try not to cringe at the smug glance Murphy throws your way.

 Instead, you turn to glare at Javi, and oh god. 

His shirt is buttoned all wrong, hanging lopsided and displaying half his chest, if he’d just given up at the top. 

Subtle.

Murphy apparently doesn’t have the stones to address it, because he waves a manilla folder in front of Peña’s face. “Special delivery,” he says, dropping the file on your coffee table with a smack. 

Peña dives for it, brow furrowed. Whatever he sees must be good, because he snaps his head up to stare at Murphy. “Where did you get these?” he asks, thumbing through the pages.

“My contact in Medellín.” Steve rests his hands on his belt ever so casually, as if daring Peña to question him. 

Peña does. “Since when do you have a contact in Medellín?” 

You wonder the same. Partners are usually aware of each other’s informants, unless it’s that kind of contact. Isn’t Murphy married?

“Not important.” Murphy shuts him down quickly. 

“Verdugo,” Peña breathes.

You shoot a questioning glance at Murphy.  In the three months you’ve been in Colombia, your Spanish is rapidly improving, but Murphy has been here longer, and some things are still beyond you. “Butcher,” he translates with a grimace. “Or executioner. One of Escobar’s top sicarios.”

You wrinkle your nose. “Lovely.”

Peña glances up, surprised to hear you speak, as if he’d forgotten that he’s standing in your living room.

Murphy doesn’t acknowledge you. “He’s in Medellín, Javi.” He stretches, then makes for your front door. “I’m gonna turn in for a bit. Late night.” 

Peña grunts, settling on your sofa with the file as Murphy sees himself out. 

You sidle up behind him, curious.  He knows you’re there - your hair is falling over his shoulder and you’re doing nothing to stifle your breathing, but Peña’s only acknowledgement of your presence is to shift his body ever so slightly to the left, unspokenly granting you access to the file.

You bite your lip, pleased and a little unnerved at the implication. You suppose that Peña wouldn’t be Peña unless he’s breaking the rules. He certainly has a reputation for it.

It hits a little differently, though, knowing that he’s committing a felony just to satisfy your curiosity. And on your fucking sofa, too.

You shake the butterflies away. Peña is flipping through a series of grainy photos, each showcasing the same guy. Somebody, Murphy probably, has circled his face in red ink, and there are further notes in the margins, written hastily. Landmarks, you guess. Peña is reading too fast for you to decipher much, but you spot a map of what you assume is Medellín in the shuffle. It is similarly annotated with scrawling red ink.

Peña flips through the file once, and then again, slower. 

You brace yourself on on your forearms, glancing at the clock. You aren’t expected at the embassy until eight - you can afford to be patient. 

Whatever this is, it’s big.

Deciding you’ve gleaned all you can from the file, you turn your attention to Peña. He’s leaned forward on your sofa, arms on thighs, lost in thought. Every muscle is tensed, as if he could spring up at any moment, his gaze is narrowed, his brow furrowed in a way that tempts you to lick it. 

The thought startles you. You aren’t a goddamn animal.

Are you? Your mind drifts to Murphy, smirking with his arms folded in your kitchen like he could see through your nightshirt, right into your fucking brain. 

A stone sinks in your chest. Landing this position with Centra Spike had been your first big break in a lifetime of frustrations. You’d joined the army fresh out of school, angling to be an analyst with the special forces. The good ol’ U. S. of A. had gladly foot the bill for your education in exchange for you signing your life away, and you’d chugged through a mind-numbingly boring double major of mathematics and computer science, all on the sage advice of your recruiter. 

The reality of active duty was a kick in the fucking teeth. The brass had taken one look at you - a wide-eyed, idealistic woman with a big hair and bigger goals - and promptly slapped you with a desk job. You’d spent three more years rotting away in a forgotten back corner of an office building in Kuwait, filing reports and delivering messages. Occasionally, they’d throw you a bone and hand you a code to rewrite. Your commanding officer got all the credit, and you were just a glorified secretary.

By the time your contract was up, you’d been sidelined, interrupted, passed-over, underestimated, scoffed, and just flat-out ignored enough to be thoroughly fed up with military life. The glass ceiling in the U.S. Army is raised just high enough to suffocate its victims slowly, and you were sick sick of being stifled. 

Being recruited by the CIA for analyst work in the hunt for Pablo Escobar had been pure, dumb luck. Right now, you might just be a liaison, but this is your shot. Your last one, probably, and you’re not willing to give it up just to get laid.

Not even for the best lay of your life.

Peña slaps the file shut with gentle smack, startling you from your thoughts. He reaches for his boots, moving with a single-minded determination that you’d find sexy if it weren’t so damned inconvenient.

“Peña.”

He doesn’t react, just gathers his badge and keys from the end table as if you aren’t even there.

“Peña.” You say it louder this time.

“Hmm?” 

“Javi!” You call his name without even realizing it, and it works. His head snaps up, eyes wide, staring at you as if he’s just now seen you for the first time.

You have his undivided attention now. 

“Yeah?” He blinks, all wide brown eyes, and fuck it all, you can feel yourself flushing under his gaze. 

You swallow hard, push past the strange flutter in your chest. “We’re getting too predicable.” 

His brow furrows. “Come again?”

You decide to take the high road, but you can’t stop your lips twitching at the obvious joke that he’s left himself open for. He’s quick to follow your though process, though - his eyes sparkle with laugher, daring you to call him on his blunder. 

Shit.

You press on. “This,” you start, grimacing. He’s still looking at you, and his expression is warm. Flirtatious. “What we’re doing…” Goddamn, your face is aflame. “I mean, we’re not exactly subtle.”

He draws back, expression shuttering instantly. “Don’t worry about Murphy,” he says firmly. “He’ll keep his mouth shut.”

The ‘if he knows what’s good for him’ is clearly implied.

“It’s not just Murphy,” you press. You can’t exactly put into words what it is that you're trying to make Peña understand, you just know it's important that he does.

“What are you suggesting?” He’s standing now, still holding the file against his chest, as if to defend himself with it. 

You shake your head. “I think,” you say slowly, trying hard not to catch his eye, “that we need to cool it.”

Silence. You can feel his raised eyebrow.

You step forward. You’re focusing hard on finding the right words without revealing too much, but your hands are desperate for something to do. “We need to stop fucking around.”

There, you said it.

“Oh?” There’s something amused in his tone, but you shrug it off, still refusing to look at him.

“Yeah,” you answer hotly. “Isn’t this fraternization? Shouldn’t we be worried about our careers, or some shit? We both have a lot to lose here.” You glance up, emboldened by your speech. “Do you want to catch Escobar or not?”

He’s looking down at you, not taking you the least bit seriously, expression damn near indulgent. 

Indignation sets a fire in your chest.

“You think you can just quit me, cold turkey,” he asks in a voice as smooth as silk.

Goddammit, he’s mocking you.

“Absolutely.” You look him firmly in the eye, former awkwardness forgotten, more determined than you’ve ever been. 

He huffs directly in your face. “You won’t last a week, Ears.” He cups your cheek in his hand, skimming your jawline with his thumb. “I know you, remember.”

Oh, the bastard. “You think you can go longer?” You counter, stepping into his chest. You’re pissed now. Peña is a well-known man whore, and you know, know, that you are exactly his type.

He laughs now, openly and genuinely amused. “Longer than you,” he says, glancing down at where your hands are absently fiddling with the buttons of his shirt. 

Oh, fuck. 

“I’m fixing you, you absolute asshole,” you hiss, beyond grateful that you’ve yet to undo his last cockeyed button. “Unless you want to show up at the office all freshly fucked and lopsided.” You hold up the hem of his shirt, clearly displaying his mismatched edges.

“Oh.” At least he has the grace to look abashed. 

“Yeah,” you swallow dryly, suddenly aware of how close he his, smelling of coffee and cigarettes, sex and the scent of your own bedsheets. 

Goddamn, you want him already. 

You push it all away, patting him condescendingly on the chest. Two can play this game. “Just looking out for your career, Agent Peña.”

He sighs somewhat theatrically, but you can see the conflict warring in him. 

“Well, then, Ears,” he says after a long moment. He rebuttons his shirt properly this time, fingers working quickly. “Guess I’ll see you around.” 

You meet his gaze evenly. “Guess so.”

The door shuts behind him, and you sink to the sofa. It’s still warm from where he’d been sitting.

Oh fuck, what have you done?

♠

You’re not watching, you’re not, but you can’t help but notice when Peña comes swaggering into the office at ten am, wearing those sunglasses and those fucking too-tight, dark wash jeans, chugging a cup of coffee like he knows that his exposed neck is a weapon. 

You make eye contact through the glass, just for a moment, and he winks at you.

You smirk back, a plan forming in your mind.

This means war. 

♠

You retaliate by letting your hair curl wild over your shoulders and squeezing yourself into a leather skirt that is just barely work appropriate. The Search Bloc boys bombard you with whistles and winks and catcalls all day. 

It’s worth it, though, to see Agent Peña’s eyes go wide and blinking, to watch him swallow so hard. 

“Fucking tease,” Murphy hisses as you glide past his desk. 

You flip him off in response. 

♠

Your apartment feels strangely empty. 

It’s Saturday afternoon. Search Bloc is investigating a tip in Medellín, and Centra Spike doesn’t need you in today. You briefly consider going out, but that would involve changing out of your sweats, and besides, aside from the Search Bloc guys, you really don’t have many friends in Colombia. 

You sit down on your sofa, drawing the coffee table toward you, and deal yourself a hand of solitaire. The cards had belonged to your dad before he passed them down to you, and they are comfortable in your hand, worn soft with age. There’s a trick to shuffling a deck this old, and something comfortable in the practice. 

The hand you deal is a losing hand. 

Frustrated, you stomp down the stairs to the little pharmacy below your flat. “Hola, Emilio!” you wave to the older man working the counter. Emilio doesn’t speak much English, and your Spanish is improving slower than you’d like, but you mostly manage to communicate just fine. 

You make your way to the little display of liquor bottles and ponder it for a minute. There’s nothing remotely recognizable on the shelves, but you’re not exactly committed to buying anything, anyway. 

There’s nothing more pathetic than drinking alone. 

 A presence at your shoulder makes you jump. It’s just Emilio. He smiles at you, and reaches for a bottle of clear liquor whose packaging reminds you a little too much of antiseptic hand spray for comfort. He presses it into your hands. “Guaro.”

“This is what I need, then?” you ask him. “Este? It’s good?”

“Guaro.” He’s nodding and grinning, rattling something in rapid-fire Spanish that you’re far too slow to translate. The enthusiasm behind it is hard to miss, though.

“He says it’s good and strong. Respect it, and it will respect you.” Emilo’s daughter winks up at you. She’s bent over, stocking shelves, and you’d missed her, distracted as you’d been by your conversation with Emilio.

You smile gratefully. Ana must be home from university this weekend. You’ve only met once or twice, but she’s kind, and doesn’t mind translating for you. You think you might have been friends, if she was around more.

“Gracias,” you tell her, and mean it. “Aguardiente,” you sound out slowly, frowning down at the bottle. “Sugar water?”

“Something like that.” Ana rises, leaving the box of chicharrones on the floor. “You’ll find that most of the locals just call it guaro. It’s a staple in Colombia. Hard to find anywhere else, and even transporting it between cities is dangerous.” She rolls her eyes and shrugs, as if to say, ‘what’s new?’ 

“But it’s just liquor, right?” 

“Yeah, I think so. Alcohol, sugar, anise…” She shrugs, and laughs. “Simple, but there’s something magic about it. You don’t want to go too hard with this. Sit down and have a small glass with a lime. Slower is better.” 

You frown. Anise. It jogs something in your memory, some long-forgotten fact…

“Trust me.” Ana is at your elbow now, pinning you with an earnest stare. “It hits hard, and fast. Papa wasn’t lying.”

You laugh. “Is that the college experience speaking?”

“Oh, yes. Seguro.” 

Ana follows you as you take the bottle of guaro to the register. “And how are your classes going?” you ask as Emilio rings you up. 

Ana grimaces, shaking her head as she cuts her gaze to Emilio. “It’s good to have a little break,” she admits. 

You sympathize with that. You hadn’t cared too much for the tedium of higher education either. Emilio hands you a little paper bag, and you wave goodbye to him with a smile. “I’ll have to catch you when you’ve got a free weekend,” you tell Ana as you head toward the stairs that lead to your flat. You hold up the liquor suggestively. “You can teach me all about how to respect this guaro.”

Ana laughs. “What are you doing this evening? We close up at eight.”

Your face breaks into a grin. It’s hard making friends in Colombia just with the language barrier alone, never mind that your work with Centra Spike forces you to keep so many secrets. Without Peña around, life here is lonely. But Ana seems innocent enough, and it’s just a drink. “Perfect! I’ll be here.”

You walk up the steps feeling much lighter than when you descended them.

♠

Ana doesn’t stay long. She looks around your apartment, carefully assessing, then nodding as if satisfied. 

You let it go.

She teaches you to tap the bottom of the bottle to expel the liquor, almost as if you’re pouring ketchup from a glass container. Looking at the contents, they don’t seem particularly viscous. When you ask her why this is necessary, Ana shrugs.  “It’s a mystery,” she tells you, and you write it off as one of the eccentricities of Colombian culture, paying rapt attention as Ana begins explaining one of only three acceptable ways to serve the guaro.  

♠

“I’ve got something for you,” you announce brightly, slapping both hands firmly on Javier Peña’s desk and leaning in just a hair too close to be strictly professional. 

“Oh?” His face breaks into a slow smirk, and he tilts back in his swivel chair, stretching just enough to give you a good view of those too-tight jeans as he hooks his fingers behind his head. “And what’s that?”

Smug fucking bastard knows exactly what he’s doing. You cool your jets and wink at him, teasing a manilla file for him to see. “We thought you might like this.”

“We?”

“Okay, fine, Jacoby caught some chatter, but I vetted it,” you press on, refusing to let him derail you. This is huge. “It’s Verdugo.”

Peña glances up at you, suddenly intense. “You sure?”

“Well, it’s not him personally,” you admit. “At least, not his voice. But,” You slam the transcript down on his desk. “We caught an entire conversation verifying his presence at a safehouse in Medellín.” You pause for full dramatic effect before going in for the kill. “A specific safehouse in Medellín.”

Javi reverts to Agent Peña instantly, all flirting forgotten as he leans forward on his elbows. “Show me.”

You bend over, noticing absently that your hair is once again falling into his face as you tap your finger over the address. Peña settles in to read the full report as you watch, his eyes darting back and forth over the pages at a rate that is truly impressive. When he glances back up at you, the ferocity of his gaze is startling. 

“They’re getting ready to make a move.” There’s something like a spark of hope in his eyes, tiny, but growing stronger as he processes the information you’ve given him.

“Yeah,” you say, throat suddenly dry. He’s looking at you with earnest gratitude, and it tugs at something deep in your chest.

“This is big,” he breathes, and just like that, he’s on his feet, gathering the file, punching a number into his desktop telephone. 

“This is Peña,” he says as the call connects. “We’ve got something.”

♠

It’s dark when you finally get home. Claudia Messina, head of DEA operations in Colombia, had cornered you in her office for hours, going over and over the information you’d vetted. You brain is absolutely fried, the victory of the discovery stifled by having to defend your work again and again. 

You just need a drink. 

“About time!” a voice startles you as you turn to shut the door behind you. You jump, barely suppressing a shriek, and whirl around. 

Goddamn Javier Peña with his goddamned spare key.

He’s smirking at you from your sofa, cigarette dangling from his fingers. Any other day, you’d have noticed his presence instantly just from the smell. 

“What the fuck?” Your voice is more of a whine than you’d like, but dammit, you’re tired, and dammit, he’s gotten one over on you. 

He knows it, too, the smug bastard. “Expecting somebody else?” he asks, sauntering toward you with a devastating smile that manages to be both possessive and suggestive all at once. 

“No,” you answer somewhat grumpily. “I wasn’t expecting anybody.”

Given your sulky attitude, you’re surprised to see that his smile brightens a bit. You frown at him, still confused as to why the fuck he is here, and he bustles into the kitchen, clinking around, pouring you a drink. 

You sigh and relax onto the sofa. At least you’ll have that.

He comes back, a tumbler of clear liquor in each hand. Ah, so he’s found your guaro. You suspect that he’s helped himself to at least one measure already. He hands you a glass, and you take it gratefully, sniffing at the contents. 

He’s drinking it neat, apparently.

“So!” he says, settling beside you on the sofa, close enough that your thighs touch. He pins you with an intense stare. You raise a brow in response, intrigued and a little confused. 

He smiles. “Your tip from this morning was a gold mine, Ears.” He eases back, propping his feet on your coffee table in a way that you should probably reprimand him for. He sips, sighs, leans in to bump your shoulder playfully, then settles with his hands at his waist, long fingers fiddling with the glass he’s cradling. “Martinez wants us to go for Verdugo tomorrow,” he tells you, suddenly serious. “Based on your information.” 

“Really?” You can hardly believe it. Most of what you do is verify things that others have found, or carry files from Centra Spike to Search Bloc. Same old, same old. Even though you’ve trained for this for years, you’ve never been integral in interpreting and locating a conversation before, especially not for a target as high level as Verdugo. 

Javi twists to smile up at you, a real smile. “Really,” he says, pointing a finger in your direction. He watches you fight back a grin. “Go on, be smug. This is big.”

“Wow,” you mouth, somewhat awed that you’ve contributed anything, let alone this, to the hunt for Pablo Escobar. 

The reaction isn’t lost on Javi. He sits up, wraps his arms around your shoulders and squeezes gently. “Pretty much. You gave us enough information that we feel confident about initiating a sting in Medellín.” He reaches up with both hands, catching your face at the edge of your jaw and drawing you close. “We couldn’t have done it without you, Ears.”

Ears. Yours are burning at the heat of his touch. You’re acutely aware of his palms cupping your cheeks. His eyes are dark, too dark, and open, looking at you as if you’ve single handled handed Escobar to the DEA on a golden platter. 

You suppress a shudder, leaning in to him as he pulls you in for a hug. Christ, his body feels so good as it cradles yours, arms snaking around your back, stubble gritting awkwardly into your cheek, the scent of smoke and liquor clouding you -

You wonder, abruptly, how much he’s had to drink.

“Peña,” you say swiftly, pulling away from him to stand. The way he’s looking at you right now, giddy and awestruck and openly hungry, well, it’s not going to last. You know it won’t. It can’t. 

His face falls, as if he’s confused at your sudden rejection. 

You shake your head. Peña is just drunk. You guys aren’t like this. You don’t hug and share and hold each other. It was only ever sex, and it’s not even that anymore. 

You’re overwhelmed, suddenly and without warning, at how desperately you want him. 

Not just the sex, though honestly, you have missed that. No, what you want is - 

You shove that thought down, locking it away so deeply that it will never see the light of day. 

You cannot have feelings for Javier Peña. 

“Ears?” he questions, tilting his head just so, managing to look more sober than he has all evening. 

“I just need another drink,” you say as you sidestep him, making your way to the kitchen. You watch him from the corner of your eyes as his gaze follows you. He seems to take your deference at face value - he’s lighter than you’ve seen him in weeks, excited, almost chipper, if you can believe it. The meeting with Martinez must have gone very well. You snort, contrasting his meeting to yours with Messina. The dissonance is enough to wonder, offhandedly, if some not-so-subtle sexism is at play. 

You shake off that thought. It’s not helpful, just depressing, especially here in Colombia. Instead, you turn to look at Javi. 

He’s still flopped on your sofa, his original drink in his hand, hunched over the stack of playing cards that you’d left out last night. 

Your dad had taught you to play solitaire from a young age. There’s a variation for two players, a game which one will inevitably win, but the real challenge is for the single player, in which triumph relies equally on skill and luck. Last night, after Ana had left, you’d played a long, brutal game, ultimately finding yourself blocked, helpless to do anything but shuffle the deck over, and over, and over again. 

Losing two games in a row is just shameful, and you’d left the cards on the table, eager to look at them again with fresh eyes. 

Javi eyeballs the game with a furrowed brow. You’d managed to make it quite far. Had the cards fallen in any different order, you’d have won easily. Carefully, Javi flicks over one card from the stack, frowns, then another. This one is a red queen, and he plays it eagerly, shuffling the black jack to its new position and opening up another space. 

“Hey!” you protest. He glances up at you, bemused, and you shove a newly made drink into his hand as you settle beside him. 

“You missed that move,” he explains, pointing exaggeratedly with the pinky finger that holds the tumbler. 

You roll your eyes. “I play draw three,” you correct him. You reshuffle the cards to their original places, this time drawing three from the deck: a five of spades on top, Javi’s red queen in the middle, and the ace of spades below both. The top card, the five of spades, has no place to be played, so you flip all three cards into the discard pile and draw three more from the deck. 

Javi frowns. “Seems like you’re making it a lot harder than it has to be.”

You sigh. Men. “Single draw solitaire is for kids,” you counter with a vicious smile. “Just for them to learn to play the game. Real players draw three.”

He huffs, “Oh, really?” he’s smirking up at you, eyes sparkling in amusement. “Are you the kind of woman who likes a challenge, Ears?”

He’s just dying to prove you wrong. 

“I’m the kind of woman who refuses to cut corners just so I can win a dumb card game.” you inform him sagely.  

“Hmmm,” he says, staring contemplatively at the cards. You let him shuffle through the deck twice, each time verifying what you already know - the game, played as it is, is unbeatable. 

‘Seems a little silly to me,’  he teases, bopping you on the nose. “Letting your ego get in the way of winning.”

Of course Javier Peña would see it that way. You kick back, letting your feet settle at the edge of the coffee table. “Go on then,” you tell him, siping at your drink. “Swoop in and save my game with your kiddie version, you fucking hero.”

He laughs overtly at that, eyes sparkling, and something clenches hard in your chest. You don’t think you’ve ever seen him so open, laughing and flirting and playing stupid games after a long day at work. 

It’s nice.

You settle in to watch him work his magic. He’s making plays at an alarming rate - it seems like no time at all before the deck is empty. 

You glance at the clock, biting back a sigh. Less than five minutes. 

He’s smirking up at you, all mussed and smug, eyes alight with warmth, and suddenly, something swoops dangerously in your belly.

That hair, those eyes, his laugh. Warm skin in the dim glow of the lamplight, his body sprawled over your sofa, just begging to be teased. 

You wonder again why he’s here. You’ve made it clear that there’s no more sex, so…

Oh, god. 

Glancing back down at him, tousled hair and crooked smile, ridiculous mustache, plopped indelicately on your sofa, you suddenly realize. 

Javier Peña had sought you out for your company. For no other reason than that he’d had a good day, and wanted to share it with you. 

And oh, oh god.

You’re still so caught up in the sex and your fucking feelings that you can’t divorce that from your friendship, which is obviously important to him. He’s not out celebrating with Murphy - he’s here, in your apartment, with no expectation other than to kick your ass by cheating at children’s card games. 

The realization takes the breath from your lungs. 

You’re the problem here. Just like with the fucking card game, you’re the one making it complicated. 

Javi needs a friend. 

Javi needs a friend, and he’d sought you out so that you can just chill together, and all you can think as he shuffles those damned cards is how the callouses of his fingers would catch deliciously against your clit as he dips them inside you. 

And, and…

You cut off that dark thought. You are not going there.

Jesus Christ, what kind of friend are you?

“Well, this calls for a celebration,” you say. It’s a beat too late and obviously hollow, but Javi doesn’t seem to notice, and you’ve managed to keep the tremor out of your voice, so that’s a win. You rise, making for the kitchen, desperate to do something with your hands. You find yourself pouring Javi yet another drink - is this his third? Or fourth? You aren’t sure - and making yourself a second, much lighter version. 

The last thing you want is to do something stupid.

Javi meets you at the kitchen bar, and you slide the tumbler across to him. He eyeballs it speculatively, raising it and tilting it to view the contents in the dim kitchen light. 

“Goddamn, Ears.” He snorts. “Are you trying to poison me?” 

The denial falls from your tongue as he tilts back his glass from earlier, his second, - or third? - the one that you’d made. He swallows, pushing the empty glass back into you hand, and stands, catching himself on the edge of the table as if he’d moved too fast.

“Alright?” you ask.

He takes a deep breath, then straightens, slowly letting go of the countertop. “Fine,” he says, cocking a brow at you. “But what is that stuff?”

You laugh. “Emilio, you know, from downstairs, he found it for me. Says it’s a Colombian staple, and I can’t leave without having a bottle at least once.”

Javi blinks one too many times, then giggles. Despite your best effort, you snort at the sound. "Well then,” he raises his full tumblr to your half full one, and they clink awkwardly. “To local rotgut and poor life choices,” he toasts, as solemnly as he as able.

“Salud!” you counter, managing to sound a just a hair more sober. Javi is swaying as he stands, and suddenly, you’re concerned. “When did you last eat?”

He glances at you, tilting his head as if your question makes no goddamn sense, and you sigh heavily. Idiot man.

“Okay, hold off on that one,” you warn him - he looks as if he’s about to toss it back, too. “Let me at least make you some eggs first.”

“Eggs?” 

You’re already bustling around your tiny kitchen, pulling a pan from below the stove. “Yeah, moron,” you tell him, unable to stop the grin that catches your lips. “Eggs and salsa. Best food for staving off a hangover that I’ve found so far.”

Javi throws back the rest of his drink anyway, then comes to press his body to your side. “Is that a fact?”

“It’s a fucking science,” you counter, unable to resist slamming your hips into his to nudge him out of the way as you reach into the fridge for the butter. 

He wraps his arms around your shoulders, sinking his face into the crook of your neck. “How can I be of assistance?” he purrs into your ear, and suddenly, it’s very, very hard to concentrate on cooking. 

“Sit. Down.” You hiss, slapping his butt with a dishtowel. He yowls more than strictly necessary, the drama queen; you’re an excellent towel-popper, but it shouldn’t hurt that much. 

Still, you rub his ass in compensation, matching his lecherous grin when he fixes it on you. “Have a seat,” you tell him again, kicking a barstool vaguely in his direction. “And watch the magic.”

♠

Javi cleans his plate enthusiastically. “So what’s the secret?” he asks, mouth full, still staring up at you like your shitty scrambled eggs are the best meal he’s ever eaten.

You snort. “No secret, Peña.” You hold up your stick of butter, much lighter than it’d been before, and toss it back into the fridge. “You literally just watched me cook them.”

He grins loopily.

You shake your head, biting back your own smile. How could a man as competent and independent as Javier Peña forget to do something as basic as eat? 

Well, it hardly matters. Even with the food you’ve made, he’s going to have a massive hangover in the morning. Ana had cautioned you several times to go easy on the guaro, and you trust her judgement. Emilio’s shit, in particular, is cheap, potent, and deadly. 

Well, he’ll pay for it tomorrow. You shake you head, watching him bumble around the kitchen and drop his dirty plate in the sink. Javi stands at your side, warm and solid as you draw just enough water to let the dishes soak. 

He reaches for your dish soap, and you stop him with a hand on his arm. Javi glances down at you, still a little drunkenly, but his eyes are warm, his lips parted just slightly, and you pull away from him as if burned.

“I’ll get them in the morning,” you manage hoarsely.

He shrugs, brushes your shoulder with his hand as he bumbles away, and you take a moment to lean against the sink and calm your racing heart. 

God, what is with you lately?

Javi has already crashed on your sofa, shoes kicked off, legs sprawled, grinning lazily in your direction. 

You manage not to oogle at him, but it’s a near thing.

Instead, you flop down on his opposite side, allowing your legs to tangle in the middle.

He makes a big show of yawning, tilting his wrist up to glance at his watch. You crane your neck to look at the kitchen clock. It’s only 10:33, but you’re both feeling a little lit - Javi more than you, thankfully - and you both have a big day tomorrow. 

You sigh, reaching down to collect the empty glasses and discarded playing cards, slipping Javi’s keys in your back pocket while he’s not looking.

He scoffs.

Oh. You whirl, realizing he’d been watching you all along. 

“So, am I staying over, Ears?” He grins up at you, a little tired, but still in an excellent mood. 

“You are definitely staying over, Peña,” you tell him firmly, trying not to laugh at the wounded puppy expression on his face as he reacts to your tone. His eyes have gone so wide, pout so pathetic that you can’t help but grin, even as you toss a throw pillow haphazardly over his lap. 

That seems to get a rise out of him. He sits up, frowning at the pillow. “I’m on the sofa?” he whines. 

“Yup!’ you say happily, enjoying the power dynamic for what it is. Putting Javier Peña in your bed tonight would lead straight to…

Well, you’re both drunk, and even if you weren’t, you’re not willing to give up on your bet. Not with the nasty realization that you’d had tonight, for sure. 

Javi must follow your thoughts, because he sobers instantly. “Okay,” he says softly, settling back down and cramming the pillow beneath his shoulder.

You’re kind enough to tuck him in, which really just consists of dragging your comforter from you bed and draping it over his ass and shoulders. His boots are lying haphazardly on the floor - you decide to leave them for him to trip over in the morning - and you don’t bother to cover his feet, knowing that he sleeps with his socks outside of the blanket, the weirdo.

Just as you turn away, a single brown eye catches your gaze. He’d been watching you again.

The thought sends a tremor down your spine. “Need anything else?” you ask clinically, trying to ignore the urge to either kiss him, or scream. 

He huffs contentedly, rocking against the cushions like an animal sinking into a burrow. His eyes drift closed, and you can’t help but just notice how dark his lashes are against his cheek. “Can’t think of anything,” he murmurs, and you breathe a sigh of relief. 

“Okay. Good night,” you tell him, squeezing his shoulder as you pass by to turn out the lights.

“Night, babe.”

You choke. Well, maybe he won’t remember. 

Fat chance. He’s drunk, but he’s not wasted. You decide to raise him, because any other response from you will be awkward, forever.

“Good night, honey,” you answer sweetly as you flick off the light. 

In the darkness, you hear him snort.

♠

author’s notes/confessions: 

I have never written Javier Peña. I have never written in second person. I have never written decent smut. I speak no Spanish. Advice and criticisms, if delivered kindly, are very welcome. 

Yeah, I realize that I wrote Javi a little lighter/goofier here than he’s probably typically depicted. Hang tight, guys. He’s not taking this seriously yet, but he will be. Just wait. 

Guaro/Aguardiente a legit Colombian liquor, and I tried to depict it as accurately as possible for never having tried it. The anise thought that reader has is a reference to absinthe, which is a trip if you’ve ever managed to acquire the real deal (something that’s kind of difficult if you live in the States, unfortunately). Also, I’m unsure if you can just walk into a pharmacy and buy liquor in Colombia, but hey, just go with it. 

This started as a conversation with Tiff and turned into... well, this. I am so, so sorry. Expect about 20k and three chapters. Probably. 

Not beta’d. you get what you get, my friends. 

At the risk of sounding pathetic, your feedback absolutely inspires me to write faster. I don’t make the rules, guys. I just write.

This installment is (mostly) complete, but I’d love to hear what you like and what you don’t, and what you want to see next. My inbox is open. I welcome messages. I want to make friends.  

Love you guys big, and happy holidays to those of you who are celebrating!

[pansexualseaanimals]

10. To the Future

((Hi there! Remember me? Sorry that it’s been ages, but I finally, FINALLY completed the final chapter of Look Alive, Sunshine! This is IT, folks! Hopefully some of the things you’ve been waiting for will be concluded/satisfied in this chapter. If not... I’m terribly sorry, but there are going to be at least 2 more books, so don’t fret! Okay, I don’t wanna hold you up for too long, Goddess knows you’ve been waiting long enough already. Sorry for that again. Enjoy!))

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Look Alive, Sunshine

[ 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | Chapter 10 ]

10. To the Future

Caasi sighed, yawned, and turned over, in that order. The electronic numbers staring at her, told her that it was four in the morning.

  "Where are you?"

  As if in answer, she heard the sounds of the apartment door opening, her girlfriend's worn-down sneakers clomping loudly against the faux-wood floor, the door closing, deadbolt turning, keys being tossed unceremoniously onto the coffee table, and more loud clomping.

"BABY!" Penny shouted far too loudly for four am as she ran into her girlfriend's bedroom. 

"Ow. Too loud. Too early. You know I hate being called that. And did I mention, ow?"

"Guess who just signed a HUGE contract?"

"What part of 'ow' do you not understand? Wait, contract?" Caasi sat upright and reluctantly threw off her blankets. "This sounds like a big deal. I thought we were discussing things that are a big deal."

"I know... I'm sorry... But babe, I'm set! My manager's brother's friend told her producer friend about my upcoming movie, and since I'm getting accolades for the role, and apparently I'm on everyone's 'hot list' - imagine! Me! On a 'hot list'! People want me! Badly! But my manager-”

"You don't have to keep calling Grace 'your manager', we've had coffee with her five times, I've met her kids, for kelp's sake. I think it's safe to say we know each other."

"Right, so... Grace didn't let me settle, she worked out something really great. I'm guaranteed five new films! They want me in this new Sci-Fi adventure series based on a book, and a standalone project that's still in the planning phases. Plus, if the standalone gets any sequels, tie-ins, anything, my role is pretty much locked. I'm... I'm..."

"Set," Caasi nodded. "Do you have to move for any of this?"

"No, that's the beautiful part! It's all being filmed in Inkopolis and the surrounding area! Some of it is even gonna be on-location!"

"Fantastic. Then I don't care." And with that, she reclaimed her covers and curled into a ball.

"You don't care?"

"'I don't care', not as in I'm not interested, of course I'm always going to support you. 'I don't care' as in, if you don't have to move, then I won't be mad at you for making a huge decision like that without even talking to me."

"Oh, babe...!"

"Don't 'babe' me!"

"How can I make it up to you?"

"Like I said, I really don't care."

"It sounds like you care."

"Just get under here," she sighed, pulling the Inkling onto the bed and enveloping her with the blankets before giving her "kisses" with her feelers. 

"Hold on, hold on," Penny said, sitting back up and pushing off the blankets before unbuttoning and taking off her overshirt, throwing it across the room and leaving her softer, lighter undershirt on. 

"Don't just throw your clothes around the place, you neanderthal," Caasi griped. 

"Neanderthal, eh?" Penny laughed, grabbing onto her girlfriend and shaking her back and forth. "OOGA CHAKA, OOGA, OOGA! OOGA CHAKA, OOGA OOGA!"

"I can't stop this feeling," Caasi sang, "deep inside of me. Girl, you just don't realize what you do to me." Penny wrapped her arms around her and carried on the verse.

"When you hold me in your arms, so tight, you let me know everything's alright. IIII-I-I-I-I'm hooked on a feeling. I'm high on believing, that you're in love with me~"

\/\/\/\/\/

"Thanks for helping me move, Queenie."

"Are you kidding?" Carina laughed as she helped Pyxis carry bags out of their old apartment. "I got out of a family barbecue because of this. If anything, I owe you."

"Sure, sure," Pyxis laughed.

"Is this the last of it?"

"Yep, these wall scrolls are all that's left," they said, picking up a cardboard box with their free hand and jostling it under their arm. 

"Wall scrolls you never hung up? You sure haven't made much use of this space, honeybunch."

"I don't know, I guess I always had a feeling I'd be moving out sooner or later. Guess I was right."

"Please promise me you won't live like that at your new place."

"Live like what? I live fine."

"Yeah, but you've gotta live in the now! Appreciate what you've got, while you've got it! Eat dessert before dinner sometimes, y'know?"

"I'll try," they chuckled as they stepped outside, setting their things down to lock the door behind them. "Well, I guess this is the last time I'll be at this old place. I'll meet you at the car, I've just gotta give the keys back-"

"What is going on here?"

The young adults' smiles both faltered as they turned to see Pyxis' mother stomping up the stairs.

"Mom..."

"So the rumors are true. High and mighty Pyxis is moving out. Without even telling her own mother!"

"Mom, I-"

"Do I have to guess what brought on yet another bizarre moment of spontaneity? Are you gonna move again in another year? Well, why don't we all just throw our homes away and live on the road like some wild animals!" 

"Miss Arcturo," Carina began, taking a step forward, "as entertaining as that sounds, I don't-"

"Shut it!" The older Octoling turned on Carina at once. "You shut it right now, I don't want to hear a word from you, you hussy!"

"Hey, I moved up from abomination to hussy," the young Octoling smiled. "I love it!"

"Get out of my sight!"

"I'll be in the car," Carina said, giving Pyxis a pat on the back before picking up the box they had set on the floor. "Yell if you need me."

"Mom, if you'd just-"

"Put your things away. You're not going anywhere." This sudden presumption lit a small flame within Pyxis. 

"Yes, I am. I'm twenty years old. My life is my own, and I decide where and how to live it."

"Where do you think you're going?"

"I'm moving to Inkopolis. I got a new job there, working for a friend of mine." All the color drained from their mother's face. 

"Are you out of your mind? They will kill you!"

"Mom, those scary stories aren't true. You know this by now. If they were, I wouldn't have come back the first time."

"I will not argue with you over this, young lady. Put the box away! Put it all away! I forbid you to throw your life away-"

"You forbid it?"

"Pyxis, listen to me-"

"No, you listen! I have followed your every order for as long as I remember, trying to make you proud of me! I wanted to have a happy relationship with you, but I've never been a person to you. I've tried over and over to tell myself that you love me, but you really just want to keep me in a box!"

"That is not true!"

"You don't want me! You never wanted the real me! You've hidden behind your denial and your orders and expected me to be what you wanted, but you never saw me for who I grew up into, who I really am! I'm non-binary, mom, did you know that? I'm genderfluid. Sometimes I feel like a woman, sometimes like a man, and sometimes somewhere in the middle."

"Stop it! You are spouting nonsense! You're too young to know what you're saying!"

"I'm also pansexual. You probably didn't realize when I was helplessly in love with Carina, did you? Or did your denial protect you from being uncomfortable that time, too?"

"Quit it, quit it, quit it! You need to talk to the minister. I'll call him right away-" She grabbed Pyxis' wrist, but they yanked it away and ran down the stairs, into the pouring rain. "Pyxis! Get back here this instant, young lady! Pyxis, stop!" When ordering didn't work, she resorted to pleading, chasing after her child. "Pyxis, wait. Pyxis, please! We can work this out! Honey, come back! Wait! We're family... We're family! Well..." She was completely at a loss. "You... You'll visit me, won't you?" 

Pyxis paused beside Carina's car, and stared back at their mother, as tears poured down their face. 

"I don't know, Mom..." They shook their head and brushed a soaked tentacle out of their face. "I don't know." They turned back around and got in the car as fast as they could. Their mother could only stare as the blue coupe drove away.

\/\/\/\/\/

"Hand."

"Wha-? Oh, of course." Ankyr turned toward his best friend and extended his hand, and Pyxis clung to it with both of theirs. "You've been crying."

"I, uh... Unfortunate run-in with my mom while I was moving all my stuff. Luckily, Carina had her car." They resumed their pace, and Ankyr matched it, continuing the walk through Great White Park for the day's "festivities". They both had umbrellas to block the rain that hadn't ceased since dawn, but Pyxis had closed theirs in favor of standing under Ankyr's blue one with umbrella designs.

"You moved this morning? Why didn't you ask me for help?"

"I, uh... I was in a hurry. To avoid just that kind of incident."

"What did she say? What did you say?"

"I don't know... Everything, I guess. I yelled a lot of things I've been dying to say to her. Just... not like that."

"I think I get it," he nodded, performing an awkward maneuver to put his hand over their shoulder while still allowing  their hold on it. "How'd  the unpacking go?"

"Haven't really started," they laughed. "Do you want to-?"

"I'd love to."

"Thanks, Pretty Harmless."

"Always. Hey, we found the gang." 

The usual suspects were seated under a large pavilion, taking shelter from the rain. The Runaways were chatting with the Sharks, along with Shera and Hans, while Feel Good Inc hung out with Eighty 8s, who they'd bonded with over the past week. Carina napped with her head resting on her girlfriend's lap. Rocky and Caurel were sharing a very large plate of nachos, while Moises and Ecto barraged each other with tortilla chips.

"Do they have to do that at least once a month, or something?" Pyxis asked, gesturing to the Jellyfish and his best friend. "I swear, this has to be the fifth time..."

"They're the typical squabbling siblings," Ankyr shrugged. "They were like that when we got 'em." This got a laugh out of Pyxis, while somewhere in the pavilion Thresher's voice could be heard screaming "YES! SIBLINGS!" The crowd turned as one to give them a look, and the young Inkling gave a weak laugh before running into the rain.

"Where are they going?" Ecto asked with a raised eyebrow.

"They'll be back," Tiger sighed, and Bonnet and Zebra nodded their confirmation.

"It's, uh, still raining," Thresher announced sheepishly, coming back under the pavilion only to disappear into the crowd, trying very hard to avoid Ecto's gaze. 

"You're pretty popular these days, hon," Moises said as he wiped chips and queso off of his translucent skin and shiny new clothes - apparently, he had lost this match.

"What do you mean?" Ecto asked.

"Ai ai ai," he shook his head, but said nothing else. Caurel turned her attention to Ecto, blushing orange. 

"Ghoul... Are you really this oblivious, or do you just try to pretend until people take a hint?"

"What do you mean?" the Tinkerer asked. Caurel shook her head and silently went back to her nachos, while her brother held onto her hand.

"So, you guys feeling better?" Pyxis asked Rocky and Caurel, now that the spectacle was over. "On speaking terms, at least?"

"Sometimes we just have to beat the ink out of each other," Rocky shrugged. "Let's not make a big deal of it."

"What were you fighting about, anyway?"

"What did I JUST say?"

"I'll tell you some other time, dear," Caurel said before stuffing her face with more chips than she probably should have. When she finally got it all down, she tapped a small cardboard box with her shoe. "By the way, check the box." Pyxis gasped. 

"They came in?"

"Right on time, too. Looks like the rain has stopped. And guess who's up next?"

“I’m gonna change right now!”

“Get a room,” Rocky yelled, and for once Caurel didn’t smack him.

“Yes, probably a good idea not to change in front of everyone, dear.”

“I didn’t mean, like, RIGHT now.”

\/\/\/\/\/

"Well, I guess this was inevitable."

"I guess so."

"Who'd have thought we'd both end up in the bottom bracket so early?"

"I know, right! It's not fair!"

"Noodle..."

"Yeah, Taurus?"

"It's been great getting to know you. I feel like we've truly become friends over the past week and some change."

"Aww..." Noodle clasped the Octoling's hand in hers. "I feel the same way!"

 Taurus removed her left hand and grasped Noodle's tightly with her right in a firm, unmoving handshake, her soft smile shifting to a determined leer.

"But all of that gets thrown out of the window on the battlefield." Noodle cackled when she heard this.

"I couldn't agree more, Taurus!"

"Expect no quarter!"

"Expect no mercy!" 

"Eighty 8s are not getting eliminated!"

"Neither are we!" 

"We'll see about that!"

"Guys, get to your spawn pools already," Corvis sighed. 

"So dramatic," laughed Moby, who was still the acting fourth for Feel Good Inc. Instead of his usual Aerospray, today he was equipped with a Jet Squelcher. Feel Good Inc assembled at the blue spawn point, and Eighty 8s at the lime green. This would be the third match of the ninth day - which covered the fourth and fifth rounds of the bottom bracket. When the signal fired, both teams sprang into action immediately. 

Noodle and Russell rushed straight ahead while Stuart and Moby inked the base. Moby then went ahead to ink whatever their two teammates missed along the center path, while Stu took the right-hand pathway. 

Great White Park's two spawn points rested on elevated platforms, and each platform extended to form a path to one side, curving around one whole edge of the stage. The end of each pathway had a boost pad to launch the players onto a small platform with yet another boost pad. If they timed their jumps correctly, the boost pads could send the players flying over the tall, un-inkable hedges that surrounded the center of the battlefield. The only other way to reach said center was between the sets of hedges, where one would find themselves immediately taken over by the force of conveyor belts. 

Of course, it was possible to ink the belts and slowly swim across - which was what Noodle and Russell were doing - but most battlers preferred to take the boost pads. Which was why Moby stuck around in their lower section, his Jet Squelcher aimed at anyone jumping across. He already had a Splash Wall set up just about where anyone would land if they made it to Feel Good's side, and waited patiently... 

Unfortunately for him, Vega had seen through the plan, and twirled counter-clockwise through the air, barely avoiding landing under the Wall. They took one second to aim, getting hit by one shot from the Squelcher, before blasting Moby with their Inkzooka special. Their opponent splatted, they spent their remaining blasts covering the turf in that section before moving on to the center. 

Locked in by the conveyor belts, at the very center of the stage was a huge double-helix slide. One end let out to one side of the stage, and the other let out to the opposition. An ink gusher shot players up through a grate at the top, where they could ink a switch to change what color ink ran down the slides. Noodle and Russell had already flipped this switch to blue, and it was Vega's mission to switch it to lime green - but not until their teammates were at the proper positions on their map. 

'Must be off my game today,' Moby thought to himself as he shook his head, fresh out of the spawn pool, and made his way back down. 'The way their team is set up, the way I've seen them battle, I was expecting Sandro to be the first one to jump over, followed by Corvis... Then they'd try to ink our side, while Taurus charged the slide, and Vega hung back on standby. Then again... they've been watching us battle, too...' 

He glanced around, but couldn't see Vega. Regardless, he set to work cleaning the enemy's ink from their side. What he did see, was all three of his teammates riding the gusher up to the slide. Hadn't they just gone...? They must have been splatted and respawned before him. 

"Guys, change it up," he shouted, not sure if they heard. Not a second later, he was caught from behind by a shot from Vega's Luna Blaster.  

'Well... That's.. slightly disheartening.'

Vega rode the ink geyser up to the top and splatted all three of Moby's teammates with two shots, before hitting the switch and riding the slide to their home base side. Mere seconds later, their teammates reached the top, and rode the opposite slide, over to the opposing team's turf. They busied themselves with covering their opponents' turf with blue ink yet again, before Feel Good Inc dropped down and rained down terror, managing to avoid being splatted and take back control. 

"They'll just get us again if we use the slide," Stuart pointed out as the four re-inked their side of the battlefield and destroyed any Squid Beakons Taurus and Sandro had left there. 

"Yep, this stage can be pretty limiting," Noodle sighed.

"I've got an idea," Moby said. "Follow me. Rus, stay here, out of sight, and prepare your Special. I'll give a signal when I need you to use it. Send your Bomb Rush through the conveyor belts."

"Will do," Russell nodded. 

"I don't know what you're thinkin'," Noodle shrugged as she followed Moby. "But I trust ya."

"Your special is the Inkstrike, yeah?" Moby asked as he led them through. "Let's fill our gauges and do a double." 

Swimming across the conveyor belts was slow going, but they fared well enough, not interrupted by the other team. Remaining in the center, they inked as much turf on the opposing side as they could, using the hedges as cover. Soon enough, they could hear a Burst Bomb Rush going off behind them. 

"Whoops," Stuart said. "Looks like he had to use it on that end instead."

"It's alright," Moby shook his head. "This actually works out fine." He glanced at his map. Russell's Special had wiped out three out of four of Eighty 8s, who had used the side passage all at once for some reason. Doubtless, they had had a plan, but it didn't work out. Their fourth member had to still be somewhere on the other side... but they weren't inking turf. 

"They're hiding," Russell said, coming up behind them. "Gonna get the drop on us."

"Nah," Noodle shook her head. "Stu, let's do 'shake n' bake'."

"Got it," he nodded. "Special's charged." 

Noodle rolled a Splat Bomb out of their hiding place, toward the left. When it exploded a bit of the ink spray landed on Corvis, who had been hiding in her green ink, waiting to ambush her opponents while her teammates respawned. Noodle glanced at her map one more time before swimming over and popping out of the ink close to the Octoling, who aimed her Bamboozler... right before she was splatted by Stuart's Kraken special. 

"Hahaa, works every time," Noodle laughed, running farther to the left and spraying more ink. "Alright, I'll be over here blocking off access to the side area with my bombs. Moby, put up a Splash Wall between the hedges. Let's box 'em in!"

"Aye!" the team responded. Once Stuart came out of his Kraken form, he set up a few Squid Beakons on the enemy side and joined in the inking process. Noodle and Moby set off a double Inkstrike at their base, wiping out anyone who didn't stay within the spawn point's protection. Eighty 8s fought their hardest to break free, but didn't make it out in time. The victory went to Feel Good Inc. 

"We lost..." Taurus dropped to her knees, her weapon forgotten on the ground, and stared up at the sky as tears flooded her face. "We lost. It's over... Guys, I'm so sorry. I let you down."

The other three members of Eighty 8s rushed over to their leader. Vega made it over first, running, falling, then sliding over in the ink to wrap their arms around her. 

"No... You didn't let anyone down. We all fought together, and together we lost a magnificent battle. Be proud of that. I know I am."

"I think that's the most I've ever heard you speak in one sitting," said Sandro, who came over second. 

"This is a tender moment," Vega pointed out, as if it weren't obvious.

"Yeah, yeah..." Sandro shrugged and threw his arms around both of them. Corvis came in last and joined the group hug without saying anything, pressing her tear-stained cheeks against Taurus' own. Taurus couldn't find any more words to say; she sobbed and let out a low, mourning wail. It was at this time that Noodle and her gang made their way over and added four more members to the group hug.

"Taurus, I'm so sorry," Noodle sobbed. "I wish I could do something."

"You didn't take it easy on us," Vega spoke up yet again. "That's the best thing you could've done for us. No joke. We wanted a real game with you. We wanted to face you honestly, and that's what you gave us. We thank you."

When Taurus could finally speak again, she grasped Noodle tightly and pulled her closer. 

"Okay... Back to being friends."

"I like us better that way," Noodle laughed. 

"So do I," announced Pyxis as they approached the hug puddle, with Ankyr in tow. "But good Overseer, was that a magnificent game. Oh, how do you like the new threads?" They twirled around, showing off a pink and white tee with a black long-sleeved undershirt. The tee had Eighty 8s' name on the front, with the numeral 8 taking up most of the space. 

"Designed by Caurel and Moises," Ankyr said. "We had to pay them for such short notice, but it was worth it."

"Hope you can get your money back," Sandro said, getting an elbow in the ribs from Corvis. 

"You're all winners in my eyes," Pyxis insisted, pulling each of them up to their feet one at a time. Taurus squeezed Pyxis and Ankyr in a tight hug. 

"Our very first fans... Thanks for being there."

"It's what we're good at," Ankyr said with a shrug. Pyxis let out a loud laugh at this. 

"Alright, come on, I'm taking all of you out for lunch."

"Whoa now, easy," Ankyr joked. "You did just move into a new place. Sure your wallet can handle it?"

"In this economy? I'm loaded."

\/\/\/\/\/

"So, Rescue Girls rocked this round, too," Penny said as she returned to the audience section of the park with a tray full of food. "Here, love, get your sandwiches." 

"My eternal gratitude," Caasi said, scooping food off the tray. Other members of the group grabbed their own food, leaving Penny's solitary jumbo nachos.

"Yup," Rocky nodded. "They're not getting eliminated anytime soon."

"Keep rubbing it in, why don't ya?" Thresher groaned. 

"You guys may have been eliminated, but you're still winners in our book," Rocky said. 

"Yeah, I mean, who says a tournament can really decide who's best, anyway?" Penny asked. 

"That's kind of what they're for," Bonnet pointed out.

"Yeah, but can they really do that for Turf War?" Ecto asked. "I mean, there are so many variables to a single battle. Even if we were just to take into consideration that there are eight players - eight individual minds - there are more possibilities than I could count on which way each one will go at any given moment, how much turf they'll ink at any given moment, how they'll attack or distract or whatever they do, how they'll react to dangerous situations... And that's not even taking their weapon types, subs, and specials into consideration. Or the stage and how well each of those eight people performs on each stage."

"We're losing you, hon," Caurel said. "Reel it back in."

"I'm just saying, Turf War is a complex game."

"Complex?" Sandro scoffed from where he was sitting with the other members of Eighty 8s. "Shoot ink, swim in ink, shoot more ink." 

"Okay, on the surface it doesn't look that deep, but it really is. There are so many factors that wins and losses can never be contributed solely to any one player. It's the best team sport you could ask for. Anything can happen."

"That's why I love it so much," Caurel nodded. "Well, that, and splatting people is cathartic."

"It really is," Rocky sighed. "So, where are we going for lunch?"

"What do you mean?" Rory asked. "We just ate. And the matches aren't done." 

"Today, we have the fourth and fifth bottom rounds," Ecto confirmed. "Next the winners of the previous round will battle each other. We've got the Dragoons versus Big Blue, Feel Good Inc versus Soldiers of OZ, Mushroom Queendom versus Dear Prudence, and Fancy Tea Party versus Rescue Girls."

"Having to battle twice in one day," Noodle sighed. "Can't a gal relax?"

"We do way more than two a day under regular circumstances," Rus reminded her. 

"Yeah, but it's Summer! I'd usually be sleeping right now!"

"She has a good point," Rocky nodded. "We could all be sleeping right now. Let's kick Ziggy in the shins for thinking up this tournament."

"You're having fun and you know it," Caurel said, smacking him on the arm.

"Yeah..." He grinned. "I am. I mean, we haven't lost a single match yet." The members of Feel Good Inc, Eighty 8s, and the Sharks all turned to glare at him. 

"STOP RUBBING IT IN!"

\/\/\/\/\/

"I'm so close, I know it! I feel like the answer is just staring me in the face!"

Knock-knock-knock.

"Uuuugh!" Ecto threw her pencil down and groaned. "Come in."

"Bad time?" Caurel asked, opening the door that connected to the house via stairs.

"I was doomed regardless," the young inventor sighed, burying her face in piles of paper.

"I refuse to believe that," Caurel said, setting down her duffel bag and holding out a cup of coffee. "I got you a treat."

"Ooh, thanks, Kobra! Hey, wasn't the memorial thing today?"

"Yeah, but we cut it short because no one wanted to deal with rain. There will be others. Rocky's in Ranked already, and Penny went back home, so I figured I'd come encourage you."

"Aw, thanks!"

"So, what's the masterpiece today?"

"This disaster," Ecto said, gesturing to her desk before gulping down hot coffee.

"You're making a short-range weapon?" Caurel asked, picking up one of the loose leaf pages, which had sketches of gauntlets. "Like, really close-range? Is that possible?"

"Kobra..."

"Oh! I forgot." She dropped the paper with an apologetic bow. "No touching without permission. My bad."

"I'm so close... I know I can make this work."

"Do they stamp the ink, or...?"

"I'm working on a device that releases a large amount of ink in one quick burst."

"That... doesn't travel very far?"

"Yeah, but the pro is that it deals an insane amount of damage, more than any other weapon type. But... none of the math adds up the way I want it to. At this rate, I won't be able to make it do its thing without knocking back the wielder."

"Nothing is impossible for you, Ecto," Caurel shook her head. "You'll get it eventually, I just know it."

"Thanks, Kobra."

"Why don't you take a break? Have you gotten any fresh air lately?"

"Um..." Ecto checked her wrist. "It's been about four hours, so I guess I could use some sunshine."

"He's not here, sorry," Caurel joked, ushering a hearty laugh from the tinkerer.

"It's okay, I've got the best cheering section already," she shrugged, rising from her seat. 

"Thanks for that, Ecto," Caurel said with a wide grin as she picked up her bag. The two opened the horizontal cellar door and stepped outside into the sunlight, Ecto sipping lovingly at her coffee.

"So, what's in the bag?"

"Well... It's a present." She slowly unzipped the duffle bag and gently pulled out an outfit wrapped in a plastic coating for protection. It was a sport coat and slacks that looked very familiar to the young inventor. 

"Is this... That design you showed me?"

"Yep," Caurel nodded emphatically. "What do you think?"

"I love it," she said, admiring the gear designs sewn in that shone silver when the sunlight hit them at the right angle. "It's even better than the picture... This is for me?"

"It was always for you," the bespectacled Inkling smiled, pink ink rushing to her cheeks. "Do you want it?"

"Of course I want it," she laughed. "Are you kidding? It looks so great! You must have worked so hard... Matter of fact, I think I'll close shop early today just so I can clean up and try this on."

"You're sweet, Ecto."

"Nah," she chuckled, closing the cellar and running across the lawn to the front door, with Caurel following close behind. "Hey Dads," she announced as she opened the front door, "I'm gonna jump in the shower real quick. Caurel will entertain you."

"Welcome back, Caurel," one of Ecto's dads greeted from the living room, where he was hard at work folding a mountain of clothes. "I feel like I haven't seen you in forever!"

"I know, Pop," Caurel giggled. "I missed you for those long few minutes, too."

"But not moi?" 

"I missed you, too, Dad," the bespectacled Inkling said, zooming into the kitchen to wave at another adult, who was pouring hot chicken broth into a pot full of other ingredients. "What can I say? You're both my favorite."

"You warm my heart, Coral Reef," he said with a smile. "As always. Hey, are you staying for dinner? In case you couldn't tell, I'm making my one-of-a-kind-"

"-World-famous chicken lime risotto?" Caurel finished. "I wouldn't miss it for the world."

"She could tell just by the smell," the turquoise-tentacled man cheered in a sing-song voice. "Magnificent. You and your brother have the best noses. Speaking of which, where is my apprentice chef?"

"Ranked Battles," Caurel said, hopping up on the kitchen counter. 

"Should've known," he smiled knowingly. 

"I remember when there was no Ranked," Pop stated loudly from the living room.

"Oh Great Zapfish, here we go," his husband said as if he wasn't going to enjoy the oncoming ramble, unable to stifle a wide grin.

"We only had one mode of battle, and it was TOUGH! None of those fancy Abilities, no, no, if you wanted things done, you had to do 'em the hard way! And if someone didn't show up, tough break! Either fight with a three-person team or go home. I remember the time I had a full team against one person - but do you know who that one person just HAD to be?"

"Master Aqua," Dad said under his breath, chuckling. 

"Master Aqua," Pop said in a booming voice, as if the very name demanded respect. "She was younger than most battlers, but do you know why they called her Master? Because she dominated every battle anyone ever remembered her being a part of. And that was when battling well wasn't guaranteed. Our ink tanks weren't such high quality as they've got now, and sometimes our Specials didn't even work! Ah, harder times, those."

"You sound like an old grandpa in there," Dad called, stirring the concoction on the stove. 

"Old? Come here, you!" Pop dropped the plaid long-sleeve he had been folding and ran into the kitchen to scoop his husband into a bear hug. 

"You guys are so adorable," Caurel sighed. 

"Yeah, so adorable it's gross," Ecto said with a grin as she returned to the living room, freshly clean and wearing the clothes Caurel had made for her, boots and all. 

"Oh my gods," Pop said as the three stepped out of the kitchen to get a better look. "That looks so good on you! Caurel, you designed this?"

"She did," Ecto grinned. "She's a genius."

"I try," Caurel said, blushing. 

"Ohh, my baby girl looks so gorgeous," Dad said, stepping closer to give his daughter a tight hug. 

"Careful, Dad, don't wrinkle it," Ecto said, smoothing out the black fabric of the jacket.

"Hey, now," the adult Inkling said, patting her on the back before returning to his risotto. "Thank you, Caurel, it's wonderful."

"Yeah," Ecto nodded. "Thanks. I don't think I've ever looked this good."

"Whatever," Caurel laughed. 

"No, but seriously. I don't know how to repay you. You worked so hard... When did you have the time, with the tournament still going on?"

"You don't have to get me anything," Caurel shook her head. "Just... Just promise me you'll wear it to the Spring Festival next year?"

"You've got a deal," Ecto smiled. "Okay, let me change out of this before it gets dirty."

"O... Okay," Caurel said, dejected, as Ecto headed back to her room.

"That went right over her head, didn't it?" Dad asked from the kitchen.

"Yep," Caurel nodded, sighing. 

"Don't take it personal, dear," Pop said. "You've just gotta smack her in the face with it instead of dropping hints."

"Chin up, Coral Reef," Dad said. "You've still got half a year to think of something."

"I'm... I'm getting tired of this."

"What do you mean?" Pop asked. Caurel simply hugged him, not wanting to talk anymore.

\/\/\/\/\/

"This is it... Calm... Stay calm... Be one with the stage... One with the ink... One with the Zapper..." 

Pyxis glanced down at the orange weapon in their left hand. running the fingers of their right along its barrel.

"Help me make some sweet art, my good friend."

Day ten of the tournament had come. The first of four battles was the Fabulous Killjoys against Tropical Mermaids. Pyxis' moment had come. They had already asked Ankyr to watch them, only them, for this battle, and it was too late to back down now. Their mind was overtaken with many feelings. Today, they planned to unleash all of those feelings in a torrent of ink and guts. Their love for Turf War... And their newly flourishing feelings for a certain Inkling.

'Don't think too much about him... His smile... His words...That smile...’ They shook their head, administering a gentle slap to their right cheek. 'Stop that... Breathe... Calm... I'm calm..."

"You ready, my pet?" It was Penny. Pyxis nodded, venturing into the spawn pool. They glanced toward the crowd, and sure enough, Ankyr was right there in front. Their cheeks went orange, but they shook their head again, gave a thumbs up, and sank slowly into the pool. 

'Calm... Calm."

The announcement came, and the teams rose up from their spawn points, waiting...

KAPOW!

Pyxis threw a Sprinkler, forward and to the right, before turning to the left and waving their N-Zap '89 in wide arcs, letting out a spray of ink. They ducked into octopus form, pushed themself forward a bit, and jumped off of the starting platform, reverting and inking more turf on the way down. They sprayed in a circle around themself while their teammates covered the rest of the base - all but Rocky, who was already rolling toward the center - then moved up the ramp to their right, spraying as they went.

They knew Urchin Underpass like the back of their hand by now, and had three different basic opening strategies. Their favorite was tackling the right-hand passageway the ramp led up to, throwing a Sprinkler into the center via the enclosed "doorway" at the end, and turning back around to cover the lower level, fence and all - or at least, whatever was left. Penny had taken her Slosher to the area, but had left several intentional gaps as she hastily made her way toward the center area; these were all filled now by Pyxis' main weapon. They then dove into the thick of things from that very same enclosed "doorway", splatting Athena, the roller main, on the way down before aiming their Inkstrike at the center and throwing another Sprinkler, this time onto the opposing team's side. All of this within the first twenty seconds. 

They doubled back around to cover anything that had been missed on their side, while the rest of their team pressed onward to the other end. Once the incline area on their side was covered, they tossed a Sprinkler over the central gap to spray on the Mermaids' incline area, before taking the left-hand ramp down to the lowest level. A Sprinkler had been set here, which they quickly disposed of, along with two Ink Mines - one of which almost got them, but they managed to set off the other with their N-Zap. They noticed the opposition's charger user, Nietzsche, firing a few rounds to cover what their previous Sprinkler had done, so instead of charging in blindly, they threw another and finished off the gap, letting loose an Inkstrike in her general direction.

"Thanks for holding the center, dear," Caurel squeaked as she and Rocky swam past. 

"There wasn't anything to hold," Pyxis laughed as they followed the two up the incline to their opponents' side of the stage. "You guys must've been holding them up ahead."

"Yep, and they should be coming, right about..." 

SPLOOSH! The firing of an Inkzooka announced the arrival of Athena, the Carbon Roller user. Pyxis swam back into the gap when they also noticed Martha, the squad's leader, swimming full-speed in Kraken mode. She managed to splat Caurel with a spinning leap, before reverting to human form and spraying in a wide arc with her Aerospray PG - just before being splatted by Rocky. 

Pyxis swam up the alleyway ramp and through the fence there, rising to cover blue with orange. The Rapid Blaster wielder, Sonata, followed them, but they could hear her coming a mile away. They set a sprinkler and dove into the ink, swimming around the corner before zooming right back and popping up to splat her. At this point, the Mermaids had regained control of the center, so Pyxis threw another Sprinkler, launched their Inkstrike as soon as it became available, and dove into the ink hurricane to splat two of the others - Martha was taken out by Penny's Slosher - before pressing on to the opponents' side. Rocky came with them, while Penny and Caurel doubled back to clean up their base area.

The Octoling leaped through the fence and sprayed a wide arc of ink at the bottom level before swimming up the opposite incline to throw a Sprinkler back toward the center, while Rocky rolled right up the ramps with his Carbon Roller Deco. They swam back to meet him at the enemy base, but before they could rendezvous, Rocky was splatted by Burst Bombs from Martha and Athena. They swam back the other way as fast as they could, pursued by all four of the Tropical Mermaids. 

They took the incline instead of the fenced way, dropped down to the center, and swam for one of the two ramps on either side of the central valley. Just before they would have been done in by Nietzsche's Kelp Splatterscope, they swam up the ramp, reverted to human form, and spun around in midair, spraying orange ink everywhere. Hearing Burst Bombs being hurled their way, they backflipped away as soon as they had landed, getting caught with the spray but not the full impact. They fired their N-Zap in midair, aiming as best they could, and took out Athena and Sonata. They then reverted to Octo form right before hitting the ink, and quickly swam to safety.

"Good job, bro," Rocky said as he passed them on his way to the center. Caurel and Penny Super Jumped to Pyxis and followed Rocky in, and their Octoling friend did the same once they caught their breath. In a few moments, it was over, and the Killjoys were once again victorious, with Pyxis leading the pack at more than a thousand points of turf inked on their own.

Friends and fans jumped down into the valley to congratulate the Killjoys - and console the Mermaids. Ankyr stared up at Pyxis, who was letting out deep breaths and returning their breathing to normal on the upper area. 

"All that..." He had a look of mystified amazement in his eyes, and not the usual warm smile. "That was all for me?"

Pyxis didn't know what they would say in response; they didn't know what they should say or do. Tired, aching, adrenaline rushing, they just did what they wanted: they jumped down, threw their arms around Ankyr, N-Zap '89 still in their left hand, and kissed him. The entire surrounding crowd cheered, and Ankyr's eyes popped wide open. When they finally released him and took their lips from his, they apologized. 

"I'm sorry... I'll try to warn you next time, I promise."

"Next time?"

"Do you... want there to be a next time?"

"Very much," he laughed, before clearing his throat. "Um... I mean..."

"Good. Because I want to kiss you, Ankyr... I want to... do a lot of things to you."

"TO me?"

"With you," they corrected, blushing. "I... I thought I'd sworn off this kind of thing, but I guess I want you to be my boyfriend or something. If you're looking for the job..."

"Pyxis..." Ankyr took their hands in his, his face visibly glowing. "I'd love to. But... I can't."

"You... can't?"

"Yes, you can," Caurel said, stepping out of the crowd to grab Ankyr by the arm. "Say yes, Ankyr."

"Caurel..."

"You can. It's okay. The past is the past. This is your present. Embrace it."

"Caurel..." Ankyr let go of Pyxis to hug Caurel tight, shedding tears on her shoulders. "I'm always gonna be there for you."

"I know, Sunshine. Now say yes."

Ankyr let her go and wiped his eyes, turning to face Pyxis again. 

"Pyxis... Yes. Yes," he couldn't help but giggle as he took their hands again. "I want... I wanna..."

"I WANNA KNOW WHAT LOVE IS," Penny and Caasi sang at the top of their lungs, making the two blush. "I WANT YOU TO SHOW ME. I WANNA FEEL WHAT LOVE IS. I KNOW YOU CAN SHOW ME!"

"Boooooo," Rocky yelled. "Get a life! And you two, get a room!" His sister elbowed him in the side as usual, and the crew laughed.

"Wanna run off into the sunset?" Ankyr asked. Pyxis grinned.

"Boy, do I ever."

They started running, and the crowd cleared out room for them.

"It's still morning," Rocky yelled after them. 

"Nobody cares!"

\/\/\/\/\/

"Hey Mom, you mind if we have another sleepover?"

"I didn't get enough of my wonderful young adults the last time, so yes please," Umi said, smiling at Ankyr and Pyxis, who had come by ahead of time. She set her mug down and rose to her feet, leading them inside the house. "Let's go prepare the place. How many? The usual bunch, or are other squads coming again?"

"We've got the Killjoys, Feel Good, Runaways, Eighty 8s, Sharks, and... My friends across the water wanted to come, but only Shera can make it."

"Oh that's fine, I love Shera!"

"Carina might be able to come later." Umi turned around and made a face at the mention of the Octoling woman. 

"...I'll allow it." 

"I swear she'll be on her best behavior," Pyxis laughed. 

"Mom, before we get started," Ankyr said, as they walked down the hall, "I have an announcement. Or..." He blushed violet. "We have one. Um..." Umi's jaw dropped, and she glanced between the two.

"No way! Are you... Are you about to say, what I think you're about to say?" She turned her attention to Pyxis. "Is he about to say-?" They nodded. Umi covered her mouth with her palms. 

"Mom... Pyxis and I are... well... dating."

"Hold that thought," Umi said, turning the doorknob to the spare room and opening the door, a sparkle in her eyes. "Be just a sec." She slammed the door behind her, but the two could hear her jumping around and shouting. "Yes! YES! Yesyesyesyesyesyesyes, YEEES!" 

A moment later, she came out of the spare room with blankets under both arms, clearing her throat, and saw the two young adults' faces both blushing bright orange. 

"Mom," Ankyr started slowly, "we... don't have sound-proof walls." Umi let out a "hmph" and lifted her head up at this, marching to the living room with her dignity intact and setting down the blankets.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"So... I'm guessing you're happy about it?"

"Are you KIDDING?" She rounded on him, running toward the two to throw her arms around them both. "I'm JUBILANT. I'm on cloud nine! Why, I..." She grabbed hold of Pyxis and stared into their smiling eyes. "I could NEVER in a million years find such a wonderful, kind, clever, amazing person for my young man as this person right here!"

"Umi," Pyxis laughed, still blushing, "I think you might be a little biased."

"Are you kiddin'? I'm COMPLETELY biased! I'm one hundred percent biased! All aboard the Pyxis hype train! Ohh gods I think I need decaf."  This earned her more laughs. She took each of their hands and clasped them together. "Oh, but you two... You'll be very happy! I know you'll both be good for each other, I mean you already are! And you'll take good care of my special guy." Pyxis nodded. "And Ankyr, you'll take good care of my dear, dear, friend." 

"Of course!"

"Oh... You two..." She squeezed them both tight again. "This is the best present I could ask for! And it's not even my birthday!" 

"I guess this means we're not allowed to sleep next to each other in the cushion pile anymore?" Pyxis asked, pulling out more mattresses and blankets.

"What, are you kidding? I let Penny and Caasi, why wouldn't I let you two? Besides, just remember... This is my house, I am the mother, and I. Hear. Everything."

"We're... not at that stage," Ankyr said, blush intensifying. "I don't even think we know what stage we're on."

"It's true, if there's one thing I didn't prepare you for, it was this."

"He's doing fine," Pyxis assured her. 

"Fine at what?" Ankyr asked. They shrugged. 

"Don't ask me, I'm just as lost as you are."

\/\/\/\/\/

"This is... the first time I've ever been in your room, isn't it?"

"Yep," Ankyr said, gently kicking a shoebox with the Tentatek logo underneath his bed. "I'm... very private when it comes to my room. I don't like anyone being in it, usually. But I needed to bring you here for this."

"Right, you said there needed to be a talk."

"Yeah... He opened his closet and pulled out an old blue notebook - the entire front cover completely covered in ink drawings and scribbles. He sat down on the floor, and Pyxis did the same, waiting for him to begin. "The thing is... If we're gonna be together... I need you to know about this."

"Your journal?"

"No. This is my... 'Caurel notebook'. I've written lots of things about her, like favorite foods and recipes, favorite songs, and all kinds of things that cheer her up, et cetera."

"You love her," Pyxis said, piecing together the notebook with what Caurel had said at the Underpass. "Or, loved. Romantically."

"No," Ankyr shook his head. "That's the problem."

"I don't follow."

"How does Caurel seem to you, hon? What kind of person do you see her as?"

"Selfless," they answered without giving it much thought. "Willing to do anything for her friends."

"True. But she doesn't commit enough time and care to herself. But everyone has their own personal wants and needs, dreams and fears. Caurel is just a person like everyone else."

"Of course."

"She just doesn't tell any of it to anyone. Except me. Because... I'm..." He shook his head. "Guilty."

"Of what?"

"Caurel loved me for years. It took her so long to confess, but she didn't even get to do that the way she planned. It just came out one day... in an awkward way. Our classmates laughed at her. Rocky... silenced them, Rocky-style. It was brutal. But I just sat there, staring at her, then went back to my schoolwork because I didn't know what to say. I didn't feel the same way. I love Caurel. But as a friend, as a surrogate sister. I just couldn't love her 'like that'. And... I don't know if I can ever forgive myself."

"But that's not your fault!" Pyxis took his hand. "You don't have to keep yourself down for something like that. Feelings are feelings. You can't help if it you don't feel the same." 

"That's basically what she said," he scoffed. "When we finally talked about it, I mean. But that didn't keep me from feeling this... heavy guilt. I wanted to do what I could for her, be there for her. She tried to shut herself off from the world, but I got in between the walls she put up. Yes, Caurel acts selflessly. Because she loves everyone so much. Her friends and family mean more to her than anything, and she won't do anything to harm us. But... she needs someone to look after her. Someone she'll let in."

"Hence the notebook."

"Yes. I'm... the Caurel Backup Squad or whatever. And... if we're going to be... a couple... Then I need you to be part of that too."

"I'll do it," they nodded.

"You agreed to that way too fast."

"For Caurel? I'll do it. A person who's given me so much... Not just things, but words of wisdom, words of kindness, love and understanding when I need it... How can I help?"

"Get to know this book," he said, handing her the secret notebook. "And help her when she needs it. She has tells... Like when she rubs her right ear or changes her tone just so..."

"Or randomly assaults her brother." This got a laugh out of him. 

"She definitely needs affection when that happens. Oh, her favorite place to be kissed is her cheek, just in case you're comfortable with that."

"I can kiss a friend on the cheek," they nodded. "I can also do forehead or top of the head."

"Those are nice," Ankyr smiled.

"Oh, really?" Pyxis made a wide grin and rose up to their knees to plant a kiss on his forehead, making him laugh more. He wrapped his arms around them and let out a content sigh.

"Thank you so much for helping me with this. And... thanks for liking me."

"I do. I like you a lot... much to my chagrin. Or whatever."

"Why chagrin?"

"Eh... I'll spill my guts about that later. Right now I just wanna kiss you more."

"Hit me with your best shot," he chuckled. 

"Fire away..."

\/\/\/\/\/

"This is nice."

"Mhmm," Ankyr nodded, his forehead brushing against Pyxis' cheek. The two were lying together in the midst of their friends in his living room, their arms wrapped around each other. Holding each other was a very new experience, and one they didn't want to end, so they figured they'd just each let one arm go numb. 

"This is the cutest thing ever," Penny squeaked from her part of the cushion pile, squeezed between Caasi and Caurel as usual. 

"How does it feel to no longer be repressed?" Rocky asked in a flat tone, which made Pyxis let out a loud laugh. 

"It feels great," they said, pulling Ankyr a bit closer.

"Two down, one to go."

"Whatever that means," Caurel yawned.

"You're still doing the tournament tomorrow, right?"

"Yeah yeah yeah," Pyxis said as they absentmindedly played with Ankyr's hair. 

"Take it easy, Jet-Star," Moises laughed. "They're trying to enjoy their BOOOOOYYYFRIEEEND!" This resulted in a multitude of "OOOOoooOOOOOH"s from the other Killjoys, making Ankyr blush and Pyxis sigh.

"How long are they gonna keep doing that?"

"Probably a few days," Ankyr shrugged. "Rocky and Moises though, probably at least two weeks."

"Great," they said dryly, though their smile had returned. "Wanna go sit on the swing and make out?"

"BOY, do I ever!" This got more laughter from the gang as the two got up and walked outside. Their plains were derailed a bit however, as Umi was sitting on the porch swing, drinking coffee as usual. 

"Sorry, my lovebirds," She grinned. "I was here first."

"Nah, this is just as good," Pyxis shook their head, taking one side of the swing while Ankyr took the other, sandwiching his mother in. 

"Pyxis really loves you, Mom," he laughed. 

"The feeling's mutual," Umi said, planting a kiss atop the Octoling's head before doing the same to her son. 

"Umi's just... so... great. I don't have the words."

"All I ask is that you all grow up to be even better," the adult Inkling smiled. "It won't be hard, I promise."

"Yeah, right!"

\/\/\/\/\/

"Oh hey, Mom, I thought you were up!"

"Everyone left already?"

"Yep," Ankyr laughed, gesturing to the empty, immaculate living room. "Tournament and all. But they still remembered to clean up."

"Why didn't you go with them, dear?" Umi asked, from where she was making a fresh pot of coffee in the kitchen. 

"I'll meet up with them later. I wanted to ask you a favor, Mom."

"Anything for such a gorgeous young man," she smiled, turning around. He held a small brown box that was usually in the bathroom. "You... You want me to cut your hair..."

"I know this is probably..." Ankyr shook his head. "It's time, I think."

"Ankyr... Why did...?" She trailed off, taking the box in her hands. 

"I'm listening, Mom."

"Why did you wait until now?"

"I..." He turned around and walked slowly to the living room, and she followed. "I didn't want to make you sad. I wanted to leave something... of that girl that never existed. Something besides that old photo."

"Photo?" 

He nodded and approached one of the tables, setting down the box to pick up a framed photograph of him as a very small child, with very long tentacles. "You wanted... to hang on to it, just a little bit, right?" He suddenly frowned at the wounded look on his mother's face as she realized what he meant. 

"Oh, no..." She ran to her son and squeezed him tight, cracking the glass frame in the process. "No, no, no, my baby, no. I'm so sorry I let you think that!" 

"I... I don't understand..." Even though he was confused - or possibly the confusion was one cause - he felt tears rolling down his face. Umi pulled him toward the sofa and sat down with him, taking the photograph in her hands, pulling it from the frame and discarding the broken shell. 

"This picture... This was taken on the day... Do you remember when we went to this park? With the huge dinosaurs?"

"Yeah, I wouldn't get down from the Stegosaurus," he laughed. "It's just a few pictures and scenes in my mind now, but I remember."

"It was after we went to the doctor, and I got you ice cream. You were very sad. Do you remember?"

"I..."

"It was the day he left."

"Was it...? Was that the same day?" She nodded. "I guess I forgot."

"Yes. You were very sad. You had been sad for so long, and then he... I remember thinking that what was left of your heart must have broken that day. But you still had to go to the doctor. Ankyr, I... It took everything I had not to break down in front of you in that hospital."

"It's okay to cry, Mom," Ankyr said, wiping tears from his mother's face. 

"I know that, dear. But you were so tiny, and so miserable. I had to smile for you. I had to let you be the only one to cry. At least for that one day." She grasped his hand in hers. "Oh, honey, I was afraid you'd never smile again. But after the doctor, we got ice cream, and went to the park... And then I saw it. That beautiful smile. For the first time in days." She held up the photo. "It wasn't me who snapped this, it was Tia. She was the one who was with us. She was the one who kept me strong. But in that moment, after she took that photo, I finally broke down crying."

"I remember," he nodded. "I ran to you. I kept asking what was wrong. But you just hugged me. Mom... I had no idea!" She embraced him again, rubbing his back.

"There are just some things..."

"Some things kids can't understand, even if you explain it to them."

"No, son," she shook her head, letting him go. "Not because you're kids. Just because you haven't experienced it the same way."

"I guess."

"I kept this photo," she said, taking it in both hands, "not to hold on to something that was never there. I kept it because that was the moment the world stopped crashing down around me. It was the moment I finally thought, 'everything's gonna be okay'. It's been hard... There's no doubt of that. And I know I've screwed up too many things to count. And I could never give you everything you deserve... But we made it. Without him, without... all the people who refused to love you as you are. Somehow or another, I... I raised you. I raised a beautiful, intelligent, kind, wonderful son. This photo, this..." She let it fall to the floor, and held her son's face in her hands. "There is no little girl in that photo, baby. There's a little boy. There is only my little boy!"

"Mom!" Ankyr threw his arms around his mother, sobbing, and she rubbed his back again. 

"I've promised you this... many times in your life. But here it is again. I will always be your mother. Life tossed me around, kicked me when I was down... toughened me up for that one reason. So I can be your strength when the world's falling down around you. If you're ever in trouble, you come lay your head on my shoulder. No matter what. Mama's right here. I'm not leaving. And I will always, always love you."

"I love you, too."

"So," she said, smiling, as she let him go and wiped away tears - his, and her own. "What's the fresh new look the young adults are into these days?" "I don't know about all that, but... There is a certain look I'd like..."

\/\/\/\/\/

"Look who finally showed up," Rocky said as Ankyr entered the Yellow Submarine. "Where've you-wait WHAT?" 

Rocky jumped up and ran to his best friend, who looked like a whole new person. He was so used to seeing Ankyr with long tentacles tied up in the back, but if the other Inkling were to cut his hair, he never imagined it like this. All of the tentacles were neatly cut to just above the shoulder in the back, and parted to the right in front, eventually curving upward to a small rounded point.

"H... Hey, guys," Ankyr said, a faint tinge of blue on his cheeks. "What do you think?"

"'A' plus plus," Caurel shouted. 

"Ten outta ten," Caasi cheered. 

"I like it," Rocky shrugged, going back to his food as Pyxis rose to meet their boyfriend. 

"I love it," they said, beaming, unable to keep from playing with his hair. "You look so fine."

"Thanks," he said, blush intensifying as they wrapped their arms around him and pressed their lips against his. 

"Oh..." Pyxis pulled back. "Sorry, I keep forgetting to say something beforehand."

"It's okay," he shook his head, smiling, before returning the kiss.

"I'M EATING HERE!" Rocky yelled from the booth.

"Whatever," Pyxis laughed, pulling Ankyr to the booth by the hand. "You're just mad that we lost."

"You guys lost?" Ankyr asked, wide-eyed. 

"I mean, against the Runaways, did we stand much of a chance?" 

"Hey, we are just as good as them," Rocky shouted. 

"Shut up and eat your pasta," Caurel sighed. Rocky stuffed spaghetti into his mouth, but made angry eating noises.

"Who all played?" Ankyr asked as his own plate of pasta arrived in front of him without even having to order. "Oh... Thanks, Jude!" 

"No big," the waiter winked before moving fluidly across the restaurant to his next table.

"Tandy and Ty," Pyxis began. "And Jubilee and Bruiser. Against me, Jet-Star, Caurel, and Penny."

"Ecto was gonna play," Penny said, finally looking up from where she and Caasi had been daydreaming in each other's arms. "But she was busy, so I jumped in."

"Ghoul, you've been showing up to battle less and less for a while now," Rocky said. "I'm concerned. Is there a health issue?"

"No, I've just been busy with a lot of new ideas," Ecto shook her head, putting the notepad away and grabbing a butterknife. She opened a few packets of butter to spread on a breadstick as she spoke. "And I keep getting more all the time. Some of us are trying to build our futures, y'know."

"Oh yeah, by the way, I'm set," Penny said, eyes lighting up. "I signed a new five-and-some-change-film contract that's gonna have me working for like, at least the next decade."

"That's a long time," Moises said. "Kids are gonna grow up as those movies come out."

"Wow, I never thought of it that way..."

“We’ll have our business built by then,” Caurel said, to which Moises nodded. “You can put some of our clothes in your movies!”

“I’ll ask,” Penny laughed, definitely excited by the idea.

"Time passes so fast," Pyxis said. "When you really think about it..."

"It's the last year of high school," Caurel said slowly. Ankyr, Ecto, and Moises lowered their heads. "Sorry, guys."

"Not this again," Rocky sighed. "Why do you guys always have to be downers? Why can't we just enjoy the present while it lasts?"

"Because it's not going to last very long," Ecto said. Everyone stared at her - except for Rocky, who tried to stare her down. "Let's face it, the future's coming right at us at a merciless speed. And we can't fight it. We can't stop it."

"It's bulletproof," Moises nodded.

"I don't want things to change," Rocky said, his eyes filling with tears. "I want us to battle every day and eat at the Submarine and crash at each other's houses like we always have."

"But Rocky," Pyxis said, shaking their head, "you've already changed. You don't jump right to the lobby after school anymore. You go to the beach and clean up the trash. You've done it so much that we got Bluefin Depot back. You've changed. You care about something other than Turf War." Rocky had no answer to this, and moved his chair to look away from the table.

"We can still play Turf War," Ankyr said. "Tandy and Ty do it - and they've been in college for two years. We'll find the time, because it's something we care about."

"Two things we care about," Moises said. "Turf War... and spending time with each other."

"Couldn't have said it better myself," Caasi nodded.

"So, that settles it," Penny said. "Things are going to change. And we're going to change with them. Together." 

"Okay," Rocky said, turning back to his squad. "That doesn't sound too bad, after all."

"To the future, then," Caurel said. "With a hollow-point smile."

"TO THE FUTURE!"

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

[ 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | Chapter 10 ]

((I want to give a super special Thank You to anyone who’s read this entire thing, all ten chapters of what has become possibly my favorite work. These young adults have been such a big part of my life and my mental real estate for the past few years. I honestly intended to wrap this up like two years ago, but eh, life happens. Seriously though, if you’ve grown to love these characters as you read this story, then I’m so so happy, and I’ve successfully done my job. 

Well... PART of my job. There are other books to come, after all.

Yes, I know, there are still LOTS of unanswered questions and unresolved plot threads, but trust me, we will get to a lot of them soon, and the rest... eventually. If there’s something you’re burning to know, feel free to ask me! I can at least tell you when it’ll be answered in the story! 

Book 2 will cover the rest of Ankyr, Rocky, Caurel, and Ecto’s school year, and the time directly after - Spring vacation and maybe the start of university for a bunch of our young adults, though I am saving most (if not all) of the university stuff for book 3. Or, planning to. We’ll see how it goes. IF you read through this whole thing, then you know there aren’t many actual matches. This is because I’m bad at writing action scenes (though writing this series has definitely forced me to get better at it), and it takes me forever to do so. So you can expect about the same amount, or maybe even less, in the second book. That being said, I really hope you enjoyed the final battle scene I put in here, Pyxis’ “work of art and message to Ankyr”. I put everything I had into making it stand out and be the best battle in this book. So if you enjoyed it, I am doubly grateful.

...And I think I’m done blathering for now. Get outta here, you party animals! 

Catch you on the flip side!

[thran-duils]

Lost in Zero Gravity (P.23)

Title: Lost In Zero Gravity (Part Twenty Three) Summary:  Fem!Reader x Mob Boss!Tony Stark x Mob Boss!Steve Rogers.  Reader is a call girl who runs high end parties. She catches the attention of Tony Stark who invites her back to his room with his friend. She might have performed too well because she becomes their new favorite play toy and they don’t like to share. Words: 2,693 Warnings (for the fic in entirety): Smut, prostitution, infidelity, angst, domestic violence, stalking, possessive behavior, drug use

Part Twenty Two || Part Twenty Four || Masterpost (mobile) || Fanfic masterpost

“What do you want me to say? What do you want me to do?”

Steve shrugged, “You don’t have to say or do anything yet.”

“’Yet’,” Cecile scoffed, digging her fingernails into the wood of the kitchen table. Steve sat to her right, facing her.

The car ride home had been silent, the tension stifling. As soon as she had walked through the door, she had gone upstairs and left Steve in the foyer of the house. He had called Y/N then.

“Are you still in agreement?” he asked.

“Yes. But—”

“Then I’ll get an appointment set up for you so you can check to see how far along you are. Have Tony reach out to me if you insist on him collecting the contract from me instead of yourself,” Steve cut her off. He paused for a moment before he said softer, “I really wish you would reconsider what you are asking me to do. It doesn’t have to end like that.”

“No. It doesn’t. But it’s going to,” Y/N said, only a slight waver in her voice. “I’ll speak to Tony. Goodbye, Steve.”

She hung up on him.

“Yes. Yet. I’ll give you time to think.”

Cecile was quiet for a few moments before she asked, “You really wouldn’t give me anything substantial if that is what I decided?”

Steve narrowed his eyes and said, “I told you I would give you some.”

“But nothing more?”

“Why the fuck would I?” Steve snapped, giving her an incredulous look. “Having me fund your life away from me? That’s a fucking ridiculous and heartless thing to even suggest.”

“So what are we going to do then, Steve? Cause you’ve made it crystal clear you are not going to claim the child as your own. Does blood really matter that much to you?”

Steve chewed on his cheeks, glowering down at her. “In this instance, yes, yes it does. All I’m gonna see when I look at that child is you loving someone else.”

“We could try again, Steve. After—” Cecile tried to say but he interjected.

“I might have a solution. But it involves adoption for your baby.”

That caught her completely off guard, her mouth falling open before she asked appalled, “Adoption?”

“Mhm,” Steve confirmed, unbothered by her reaction.

“What plan?” Cecile demanded, crossing her arms sternly.

“I’m not ready to talk about it.”

“You might as well lay it all out for me, Steve, so I can make an informed decision.” Steve snorted at her phrasing, and she snapped, “I am serious.”

Steve studied her for an uncomfortable amount of time before he said, “You would give your child up for adoption and mine would take its place.”

“Yours?” Cecile asked confused. Steve stared at her silently, waiting, and realization washed over her, her arms relaxing every so slightly. She looked kicked, shaking her head. Her hurt turned to anger in the blink of an eye though. “Oh, so your infidelity can live underneath the roof but mine can’t?”

Steve’s hand slammed on the table, and she jumped at the sudden movement. Leaning forward he sneered, “It’s not the same. I don’t love her like you love him. And if it is my child, it’s because I knew you were unfaithful, and I went to great lengths to get it.” Cecile’s face screwed up in confusion and Steve ignored her, “And if this other plan doesn’t work out, well, then we are still going to talk about adoption because I am not going to raise a child that isn’t mine. As I’ve made crystal clear, as you said.”

“You won’t even give it a chance?” Cecile asked furious. “What if you grew to love them? They won’t ever have to see him. All they would know would be you as their father. I swear that.”

“Right back at you. She wouldn’t be in the picture.” Cecile’s mouth formed a thin line and Steve cocked an eyebrow. “Hmm, doesn’t sound so appealing to try when the table is turned?”

“If you make me give them up... what? Do you think I’ll just sleep with you again? Try again? That will be right out the window. I will resent you forever, Steve.”

“Go ahead.”

“You can’t keep me trapped here because of money.”

“I’m not,” Steve laughed humorlessly. “You’re doing that yourself because it seems to be what you really care about. If you didn’t, you would have no problem telling me you want a divorce right now and walking away. But you’re not. And you’re showing me your true colors plainly.”

“So, you would be fine living in a loveless marriage?”

“I’m already doing that. It’s very one sided. You played well. On vacation I mean. I felt happy there, lying in bed with you for long mornings. Cuddling you... it felt good. But apparently, it was all an act.”

“It wasn’t. I’m just appalled at you right now and you’re showing your true colors. All you care about is control! You don’t love me, Steve! You want to own me! For me to be miserable!”

Steve was out of the chair in a second, it flying back with the ferocity of his movement. He towered over Cecile, and she cowered under his prowess. Sneering, he told her, “If I could dig out whatever feelings I have for you and be rid of them, I would do it in a second. I’m sick of being desperate for you to reciprocate my affection and knowing it will never happen. I want to be free of you. But since it seems I can’t do that, then yeah, you’re right. I want you to suffer with me.”

Cecile began to shake her head, but Steve did not give her a chance to speak before he turned on his heel and stormed out of the room.

<><><>

Tony was awake when you walked back inside, catching you off guard. He was looking at you expectantly, suspicious probably that you had closed the door and spoken outside.

“It’s not his,” you told him evenly, walking towards the fridge.

Opening the door, you grabbed out the water pitcher and poured yourself a glass. Tony was quiet behind you as you took a long drink. You felt a little numb as it sunk in that you were going to have to go through with this. But it had to be this way, it was how you were going to get out of owing Steve. That phone call was a blessing; that is how you had to look at it.

“What was it like?” you asked Tony, turning around.

“What was what like?”

“Pregnancy for your wife.”

“Tiresome. Endless cravings and mood swings,” Tony responded surly, sitting on the edge of the couch. He leveled you with a stare and said seriously, “You know I could just pay him, right? What he owes. And then you would not have to worry about any of this.”

“I’ve already told him I would do it; he’s already working to set up an appointment. And I don’t think he’ll take too kindly if I back out. Especially now that he found out that his wife isn’t carrying his kid.”

Tony shook his head, “I wish you hadn’t called him and put that idea in his head at all. You could’ve… never mind. I know I asked you what you wanted and I meant it.” He sighed, running his hand through his hair.

“He wants you to contact him about the document.”

“Right,” Tony muttered, standing up from the couch. He straightened out his clothes and said, “I… I do need to go home. It’s Forest’s birthday in a couple days and I should be around for that.”

Your stomach clenched at that. He had not left you alone for multiple days since Steve had whisked you away from the apartment.

“You’ll be alright?”

Despite what you felt, you nodded, trying to reassure him. He nodded in acknowledgement and walked over, giving you a quick kiss on the forehead. He would barely meet your eyes.

“I’ll check in.”

You opened your mouth to say something, but he was quick to turn around and search for his keys. He was in a rush to leave now.

“Tony…” He hesitated, keys in hand, looking back over at you. You sighed, “Nothing. Sorry.”

When the door closed behind him, you stared at it. He was upset about the whole ordeal, that was clear. You had a suspicion he wanted to just be rid of Steve entirely but now he would be around for almost another year.

<><><>

Tony pressed the call button on his Bluetooth and settled back into the seat as he drove.

“Funny how you’ll call when she asks you to but not answer me when I’ve tried multiple times,” Steve answered dryly.

Ignoring his clear jab, Tony said, “Y/N said you are working on a document I need to get perused.”

“It’s already done.”

“You are always good about being prepared. Leave it on my desk.”

“You got it. I’ll do it in the morning,” Steve returned just as shortly before hanging up on him.

Tony rolled his eyes, “Fucking prick.”

<><><>

Tony’s hand was at your back as he held the door open for you and you walked past him into the doctor’s office. Steve was waiting in the lobby and you tensed seeing him in person. His eyes fell on you and his lips upturned ever so slightly before he noticed Tony over your shoulder and his smile faltered. He recovered quickly though, standing up to greet you. You stopped a few paces from him, and he gestured for you to sit. You took his seat, keeping an eye on him. But his attention was on Tony.

“A word?” he asked.

Tony shot you a quick look before he nodded, turning and Steve followed. When they were around the corner, Steve let out a small laugh.

“Couldn’t let her come alone?” Steve asked, amusement in his eyes.

“I’m not an idiot, Steve,” Tony said stiffly.

“So, are you gonna be a third wheel every checkup if it happens to be mine?”

“You’re damn right.”

“You’re really going to let this break up the team.”

“I am letting –,” Tony started to snap in disbelief before he shook his head. “No, I’m not doing this here.” He made to walk around Steve, but Steve stepped into his path and Tony’s mouth set into a thin line.

“You’re right. She’s pregnant and sensitive. Zen and all in her environment. Are you doing that? I just can’t be sure because I am not around.”

“She’s perfectly fine.”

Steve ran his eyes over Tony before asking point blank, “Were you looking at her as a replacement from the get-go?”

“Pardon?”

“You heard me. Was this how you wanted it to end up? You and her, living in a place together? And you know you are quite sneaky. You never drive there. At least I haven’t seen it yet. Is there a landing pad? For the suit I mean? Or do you just land outside on the sidewalk?”

Snorting, Tony told him, “Shouldn’t be surprised you’ve been stalking — or asked someone else to. I anticipated that. That’s the thing about us smart guys. We always cover our asses.” He stepped closer to Steve and said in a dangerous tone, “You’re gonna leave her alone after this, Steve.”

Steve smirked, a cruel glint in his eye. “Heard you loud and clear. We can both get what we want.”

Tony did not trust him farther than he could throw him.

<><><>

“It’s legit. I had one of my lawyers look it over,” Tony explained to you, sitting down at the table beside you as you worked on a coloring page. You were finding it really helped calm your nerves to focus on them.

“So, I just sign it?”

“Essentially,” Tony said, straightening out his suit jacket. “I had them take a copy of it to keep on file for me. And I’ll ask Steve for a copy of the final signatures.” His eyes narrowed slightly, looking at you. You stared back, waiting for him to ask whatever it was that was on the tip of his tongue. “You really want to go through with it?”

“Yes. Why are you so against it?” you asked, not accusatively, but curiously.

“He’s been a loose cannon. It makes me nervous,” Tony answered honestly, sighing a little. “And it’s not like him and I are ones who typically follow the law. This document may mean nothing, it may just be a smoke screen. I mean, there is nothing in here about him leaving you alone even when he pays you out. It’s mainly just that you are giving up your parental rights once the baby is born and he becomes legal parent.”

“I don’t think he’ll want anything to do with me after he has the baby,” you told Tony. “That’s what he wants.”

Tony muttered, “I wouldn’t be so sure.”

You reached out and grasped his hand, catching his eyes. “Seriously. If he really cared about me, he wouldn’t have done anything that he did. It’ll be fine.”

Tony sucked his teeth, like he wanted to say something else but he just nodded.

<><><>

The first appointment had shown you were six weeks along. Which meant New Years Eve. That still left the door open for Steve to be the father. The next three weeks were nerve wracking; you found yourself pacing more often than not, lost in thought. Elisha had come over a handful of times to distract you – you had not told her you were pregnant, you did not want to have that conversation with her.

Now, you found yourself back in the doctor’s office. You had come back to the room to Dr. Varma with Steve. You had been hesitant, but the procedure would not take long.

“And Mr. Rogers, I’ll contact you. Ten days,” Dr. Varma told him, finishing up.

You opened your mouth and Steve cut you off, seeing you about to protest. “Dr. Varma already has my contact information. We have rapport.” You eyed him curiously. Was this… no. You pushed the thought of your head. That was preposterous. Steve would not take you to the same doctor his wife was going to. Sticking out his hand, Steve shook Dr. Varma’s hand and stood up. He turned, helping you get up and you tensed beneath his touch. If he noticed, he did not show it. “Until next time.”

<><><>

Thankfully, you had not had any morning sickness, a real blessing considering you had been terrified of it. You did not like vomiting. And it looked good that you would not get it considering you were approaching the eleventh week. You were finding yourself tired though. A lot.

Sipping on a smoothie, you flipped through Hulu, just as your phone rang.

You sat up and placed your smoothie on the coffee table, reaching for your phone. Your hand hovered above it for a second, seeing it was Steve. Hand shaking now, you picked up the phone, gulping.

“Hello?”

“Your follow up appointment for a checkup is next month on the 14th. It’s a Tuesday.”

“So…”

“I wouldn’t have made a follow up appointment if it wasn’t mine, Y/N.”

“Right,” you said, your throat dry.

“So. I’ll send you over your meal plan. Like we discussed with Dr. Varma, the nutritionist he recommended already made up a mock one for me.” He was really serious about being involved clearly. You said nothing. “I would appreciate it if you would honor what I want and I would like you to buy your groceries around what is recommended.”

“Okay.”

Steve gave a humorless chuckle, “I would much rather be around to make sure that that is happening, but I know that that is out of the question.” He hesitated for a moment, as if he was waiting for you to rebuke it. When you did not, he exhaled sharply. “Be sure to pass that date on to Tony since he’s insisting to tag along every time.”

“I will.”

~~~

Forever tags: @coconutqueen21 @undecidedsworld

Fic tags: @icant-hangout-imdrumming @oceaniamaddness @multifandom-superlover @imsonick @holl2712 @here4thefanfics @agustdowney @fanofalltheficsx @buttercandy16 @last-saturday-night @woohoney

[marshmallow-phd]

Book of the Dead

Genre: The Mummy AU

Pairing: Junmyeon x Reader

Summary: After traveling to the fabled city of Hamunaptra, you read from the Book of the Dead and accidentally resurrect an ancient mummy with extraordinary powers and quest for revenge. The only thing to do now is try and convince your less-than-traditional guide to help you save the world. 

Part 1 I Part 2

**

“I just said a few sentences!”

“What did you do that for!”

“Well, I didn’t know that that would happen!”

You stared at the aggravating, self-absorbed, cocky Korean soldier and wondered why on earth you had decided to negotiate for this man’s life. 

Alright, you did know why. You needed him to show you to Hamunuptra - the fabled City of the Dead. 

Too many times you had stood in front of the museum curator with pages and pages of references and evidence that the place existed and just needed a small team of archeologists in order to track it down. He’d shot you down every time. And each time he took the liberty of reminding you that while your father was an exceptional explorer who had many successes under his belt, you were a woman whose life had been spent between the shelves, cataloging. Your adventures consisted of the fictional kind, devouring any novel you could when you weren’t archiving the latest crate of artifacts and texts. 

Then your cousin showed up. Your normally useless, hare-brained, erratic, drunkard cousin showed up at your apartment with a “fun new artifact” he found on his latest trip. And suddenly your luck had completely turned around. 

Or so you thought. 

Now you were standing in the middle of Hamunaptra, feet sinking into the unstable sand, with an empty sarcophagus and everyone blaming you because you did what you did best - read.

It was only a book. Albeit, a very heavy, possibly-made-of-painted-solid-gold book that was written in the dead language of ancient Egypt, but still. What harm had ever come from reading a book?

Kim Junmyeon stared at you as if you were the one who had risen from the dead. You were still stunned at how different he looked from when you had first met him in that smelly prison, minutes away from being hanged. His hair had been long and stringy, clumps of dirt clinging to the dark brown strands that brushed his shoulders. Now it was shorter, cut above his ears and gelled back in the current style that almost made him look like a gentleman. The several days’ stubble was long gone to reveal smooth skin and a sharp jawline. He was actually very handsome - when he was cleaned up. 

Stupid, you hissed at yourself. Now was not the time for this. Because right now there seemed to be a reanimated mummy running around here. And by the looks of Barney’s husk of a body lying deep within the temple underground, it was hungry. 

As it should be, given the three thousand years it spent locked up under piles of sand. 

“Really, you should have been more careful!” your cousin, Baekhyun, scolded. 

You scoffed. “You’re one to talk. You were the one who snatched the key off of Mr. Kim here at one of your seedy bars and then proceeded to lie to me and say that you found it on a dig in Thebes which in turn brought us here!”

Baekhyun opened and closed his mouth as he searched for a possible retort. 

“I think this is more your fault,” Kim Junmyeon’s own cousin and traveling partner, Oh Sehun, said. “You told us to go down a level and dig under the statue, which in turn,” he mocked your tone almost precisely, “caused the mummy to be able to get out of his sarcophagus. If we had dug somewhere else entirely, then he’d still be trapped under the statue of Anubis.”

“Despite the fact that it was two layers deep, nothing would have been able to hold a victim of the Hom-Dai.”

“Would have given poor Barney a chance,” Kim Junmyeon muttered under his breath. You shot him a glare that he hardly noticed. 

“I say that we get out of here and to the safety of the city before the mummy finds us.” Oh Sehun swallowed thickly. “Or worse. The beetles find us.” The supposedly brave soldier who had two pistols hanging under each arm was more terrified of the flesh eating bugs than he was the living mummy that was bringing about the ten plagues of Egypt. You’d already lived through the locust infestation, but that was always the most minor of the plagues. In your opinion. 

“We told you to leave,” Ardeth said in that low, monotone voice that made him seem centuries old. You had only known him for a few hours, but you already feared and respected him. Despite the fact that he had attacked your campsite the night before. “Now you have condemned the whole world to the very monster that we have spent three thousand years keeping hidden.”

Kim Junmyeon finally tore his face away from yours. ��I told you. I shot him. He went down.”

“Mortal weapons are useless against this creature. None can kill him.” Stepping up, he stood toe to toe with the soldier who led you here. “A gun is nothing more than a fly to him. He will never eat. He will never sleep. And he will never stop. Not until this world is only sand.”

Though still not completely backing down, Kim Junmyeon took hold of your arm. “Come on. We’re going back to Cairo.”

**

The camel ride back to the city was long, tiring, and a bit painful, if you were honest. The inside of your thighs were sore from keeping you up right on the animal’s back for hours on end under the blazing heat. You were used to the comfortable back seat of a car, even if the roads here tended to be on the bumpier side. Kim Junmyeon stayed at your side the entire time, up until you were back in your hotel room. All your things were still in there. That was nice, even if it was to be expected. The desk clerk had sworn he would keep the room reserved for you until you made it back. And now that you had, you were on to the next fight. 

“We’re not going anywhere!” 

Kim Junmyeon pretended not to hear you as he started emptying the dresser drawers of your clothes and stuffing them in your suitcases lying open on the bed.

“Excuse me! I said we’re not going anywhere!” As soon as he stepped away again, you slammed the suitcase shut. A stray white cat that you didn’t have the heart to remove from your room took advantage of the newly available space and laid down on the surface of the luggage. Unbothered by the argument taking place in its presences, it purred as it curled into a ball and closed its eyes. 

“You keep using the word ‘we’ and I’m not sure why,” he said. “I believe you were the one who woke him up in the first place.”

“Yes, I get it!” you shouted. “Everyone can blame me because I read the damn book, but that is why we need to stop him.”

He closed the empty drawer and turned back around to face you. “And how exactly do you plan on doing that? You heard Ardeth. No mortal weapon can kill this guy.”

“That’s why we’re going to find some immortal ones.”

He pulled a pair of rounded glasses from his pocket, wiped the lenses with his shirt, and stuck them on the bridge of his nose. “There goes that ‘we’ business again.”

You huffed, trying not to focus on the newest version of the soldier now being presented in front of you. “Yes, we. Because this curse will continue to get worse until the whole world is destroyed.”

“And that’s my problem?”

“It is everybody’s problem! You live here, too!”

Kim Junmyeon stepped up until he was mere inches away. “Listen. I appreciate you saving my life and all, but when I agreed to this idiotic mission my objective was to show you the way and then bring you back here. I have done that. End of job. End of story. Contract terminated.”

You tried not to show how his last few words affected you. Though you had been a little intoxicated two nights ago, you still very much remembered how sweet he had been, how he had listened to you go on and on about your parents and how much you wanted to be a famous adventurer like your father. And how you almost kissed him. And how he was going to kiss you back. Stupidly, you had thought that there was something growing between you. Apparently, you had been wrong. 

“Is that all I am to you?” you whispered. “A contract?”

Kim Junmyeon blew out haughtily from his nose. His Adam’s Apple bobbed as he swallowed. He opened his mouth and then closed it. You waited in hopes that he would contradict you. That he would say, no that was not all you were to him. And it really seemed like he would be saying something along those lines. But other words came out instead. 

“Look. You can either come with me or you can try and stay here and save the world. So. What’s it going to be?”

You didn’t even hesitate. “I’m staying.”

“Fine.” He headed for the door. 

“Fine,” you bit back, following him. 

“Fine,” he threw at you again as he barely glanced over his shoulder.

“Fine!”

“Fine!” 

He got the last word in before slamming the door to your room shut. 

You huffed as you crossed your arms. Yet, as angry as you were, you still hoped that he would come back. That he wouldn’t let you take this on alone. But the footsteps on the other faded away and you were alone.

Looking around your room, you didn’t think there was much you could do. So, you did what you were best at. You grabbed all the books you thought could help you and got to reading. 

While sitting in the wicker chair in the corner, you skipped around the books and pages, clinging on to any small word that you thought could lead you to a possible solution. There wasn’t much to be found, unfortunately. Most works spoke of how to perform the Hom-Dai and how it should never be performed due to the curse that awaits should the victim ever be awakened. You already knew that. You needed specifics on what to do after the victim came back. 

“(Y/n)!”

Kim Junmyeon came bursting back into your room. You slammed the book in your hands closed, feeling very high and mighty indeed.

“Ah. Mr. Kim. Have you changed your mind?”

“Doesn’t matter now, he’s here!”

“What!”

He didn’t clarify as he hoisted you up out of the chair and pulled you out of the room, and into the hall. Through the windows, you watched in horror as fire fell from the heavens. The balls of flame engulfed anything it touched when it landed, whether it be plant or human life. Turning a corner, Kim Junmyeon ran into a room you knew was occupied by another one of the Americans that you had ran into on your way to Hamunaptra. You gasped. 

In the chair, now nothing more than dried, husky skin and hollow bones was… oh, dear you couldn’t remember his name. You hadn’t bothered to learn them. You and Baekhyun had simply referred to them as the “Bloody Americans”. You were feeling a bit awful about that at the moment. 

But you didn’t have much time to dwell on that. Standing in front of the fireplace was a new version of the mummy. His skin was starting to come together, though patches were still missing, allowing you to see the gray bone and lack of organs underneath. Kim Junmyeon pulled out both of his guns as the mummy stalked forward. 

“We are in deep trouble,” he murmured before opening fire. The loud pops banged on your poor eardrums. You stumbled back a few steps to try and soften their blows. It didn’t work. 

The bullets passed through the mummy as if they didn’t exist at all. Even when Oh Sehun and the other Americans came running into the room and firing off their own guns, the mummy still kept going. He shoved Kim Junmyeon back into the others as if he were nothing more than old wrappings. Then he turned on you. 

Completely unarmed, you stumbled back until you were betrayed by the bookshelf behind you. There was nowhere to run. Instead of sucking out your liver, however, he spoke. 

“You were the one who saved me from the afterlife.” His words were haunting, echoing as if he was speaking in a cavern. And the language he spoke… ancient Egyptian. You weren’t sure why you expected to speak anything else. Coming in closer, he lowered his voice. “I thank you.” 

He leaned in his head, those very human eyes lowering to your lips. You turned your head away to try and avoid the kiss, confused as to why he was trying to seduce you. 

Sharp, unpleasing notes from the piano pierced through the air. The mummy turned and gasped when he saw the white cat from your room walking across the keys. In a whirl of sand, he fled from the room. 

“Oh, thank god,” you said with a heavy breath.

“No kidding,” Kim Junmyeon groaned as he sat up. 

You ran to his side, fearful that he might have been injured. “Are you alright, Mr. Kim?”

“Yes,” he huffed. With a very odd expression, he added, “And I told you to call me Junmyeon.”

To be honest, after your fight, you didn’t think you would be allowed to anymore. A strange silence settled between you. He was trying to say something with his gaze, but you couldn’t interpret it. So, instead, you helped him to his feet. “Come on. I know who we need to talk to about all of this.”

It took a while to get back to the museum that had employed you for the past year or so. Every street was full of panicking people. Flames no longer fell from the heavens, but little fires still raged on homes and carts. The Americans had declared that they were coming along, so your group was slower in moving. Although you didn’t really want the mummy bait to be anywhere near you, Junmyeon and Sehun decided that it would be better to keep an eye on them and - hopefully - keep them out of the mummy’s grasp. 

“Dr. Bey!” You ran into the museum’s main storage room, happy when you saw the curator. But then you skidded to a stop at the sight that he wasn’t alone. 

Ardeth was talking with him in hushed tones that stopped the second you appeared. Both men turned towards you, the curator wearing a very readable expression. It was one that stunk of “I told you so”. The others were only a few steps behind. As soon they, too, saw the unexpected visitor, Junmyeon, Sehun, and the Americans pulled out their guns while Baekhyun simply squeaked in surprise. 

“Gentlemen,” Dr. Bey greeted as if this were any old meeting on a Tuesday. 

“What is he doing here?” Junmyeon demanded. Even with the black tattoos etched under Ardeth’s eyes, you could tell that he was tired, dark circles from lack of sleep bruising his skin. 

Dr. Bey raised an eyebrow. “Are you sure you want to know? Or perhaps you would prefer to just shoot us?”

“Either sounds good.” Junmyeon cocked back the hammer of one of his guns for emphasis. 

“Stop it,” you hissed. “Bullets won’t do any good here. Besides, you might damage some of the artifacts.”

Junmyeon failed to suppress a laugh over your concern. Despite the present danger, you still didn’t want to see the carriages or sacred jars damaged because someone got trigger happy. So, Junmyeon holstered his guns and the others soon followed suit. “All right. I’ll give a little faith.”

Dr. Bey motioned for the group to follow him in deeper. “We’re part of a secret society-”

“Aren’t they all?” Baekhyun muttered. Both you and Dr. Bey shot him glares that made him snap his mouth shut. 

“For over three thousand years, we have guarded the City of the Dead. Once we reach manhood, we swear an oath to do anything and everything in our power to stop the high priest Imhotep from rising from the grave.”

“And now we have failed. Thanks to you.” Ardeth gave you a particularly pointed look. 

By now, you were getting very irritated with the constant finger pointing. What was done was done. You were not going to show him any cowardice. “And that justifies the murder of innocent people?” 

“Hm. To stop this creature?” Dr. Bey pretended to think for a moment. “Yes.”

Junmyeon, untroubled by that, raised his hand from the golden seat of a dead royal that he had taken over. “I have a question. Why doesn’t he seem to like cats?”

“Cats are the guardians of the underworld. He will fear them until he reaches full regeneration.”

“Then there will be nothing that he fears.” Worry was very much apparent in the soldier’s voice.

“And you know how he gets regenerated?” one of the Americans asked rhetorically. 

The other one finished. “By tracking those of us down who opened the chest and sucking us dry like a nomad in the desert, that’s how!”

It was completely pointless to go over the things that were already known. Now was the time to try and piece the unused parts together. Two particular moments were sticking out in your head. 

“Back in Hamunaptra, the priest - Imhotep - he called me Ack-Su-Namun. And then just now at the hotel, he….” You cringed at the memory, thankful that you didn’t have to feel the decomposed skin against your own. “He tried to kiss me.”

“It’s because of Anck-Su-Namun and his love for her that he was cursed,” Dr. Bey explained, exchanging a look with Ardeth. “Even after all this time….”

“He’s still in love with her?” Sehun finished with a scoff. 

You appreciated the backstory, however - “As romantic as that is, what does that have to do with me?”

“Perhaps he will try to raise her from the dead once again?” Ardeth guessed. 

“Yes,” Dr. Bey agreed solemnly. “And it would seem that he has already chosen his human sacrifice.”

All eyes in the room turned to you. Wonderful. 

Not only were you the one who read from the book and raised him, but you would also be responsible for the return of his beloved, who was the reason he was cursed in the first place. Absolutely beautiful. 

Baekhuyn came up behind you and patted your shoulder. “That is some rotten luck, dear cousin.”

“Actually, this could work in our favor,” Dr. Bey countered. “It could give us time that we desperately need to kill the creature.”

“We’ll need every second, I think,” Sehun said. He pointed towards the ceiling. “I think he’s getting stronger.”

Through the large window high up on the wall, the sun was in clear view. You all watched in horror as the moon moved too quickly across the sky and blocked the light from reaching Earth. 

“I’m guessing this is the plague of darkness?” Baekhyun said ominously. You nodded slowly. 

“Let’s go,” Junmyeon said softly beside you, his hand coming up protectively behind your back. “We’ve got to get back to the hotel and come up with a plan.”

**

“I’m just saying, it seems very stupid to comdem someone to a curse when the result of that would be for them to come back a supernatural creature who is practically unkillable.”

“The ancient Egyptians believed in balance,” you explained to Baekhyun for the hundredth time in your life. “To curse someone so badly in both this life and the next, there has to be a consequence to balance out the scales. If not, then the whole world could still fall apart, in even worse ways!”

“All of this is kind of pointless now, isn’t it?” Sehun sighed from the small table in the antechamber to your room. His feet were up on the polished surface as he leaned back in his seat. A look of irritation was etched on his face as he stared at your cousin. “What’s done is done. Right now, we need to focus on our next step.”

“Well, I know you two,” you pointed to the Americans, “opened the chest. As well as Barney. Was there anyone else?”

“The Egyptologist that was with us,” the shaggier one answered. “Professor Chamberlain. He has a temporary residence a few blocks over.”

“What about my best friend Beni?” Junmyeon asked. You nearly snorted. You knew the two of them were anything but friends.

“No. He ran out before we took the lid off. Ended up saving his own skin.”

“Sounds like Beni,” Junmyeon said dryly. “Okay. We’re going to go get the Professor. You four,” he pointed to all the men, “come with me. You, stay here.”

Oh, no you weren’t. “Excuse me! I am just as capable as any of them are. I will not- What do you think you’re doing!”

Junmyeon marched over to you, picked you up, and carried you over his shoulder until you were in your room. Then he dropped you on the floor, closed the door, and locked it tight. “This door doesn’t open.”

You didn’t know who he said it to, who he left in charge of watching you like an infant. It didn’t matter. You pounded your fist against the solid wood door. “Baekhyun! Junmyeon! Let me out! Baekhyun, you coward! Help me out here!”

“Sorry, cousin!” Baekhyun yelled on the other side of the door. “But… he’s got a gun.”

“Smart choice,” you heard Junmyeon say. Oh, you were going to kill him. Which “him” was yet to be decided. Perhaps both would be most satisfactory. 

Well, now you were stuck here. 

Crossing your arms, you sat on the edge of the bed and contemplated your choices. Not that you had many. 

A yawn forced its way out. You were tired. Over the past few days, you had hardly been able to get any real sleep. And, well, now seemed to be a time. So, you changed into your nightgown and slipped under the covers. The mattress was soft, like a cloud. The pillows were stuffed into freshly cleaned cotton cases. It was barely a few minutes before you drifted off…

And then abruptly woke up to something moving against your mouth. It started out soft but quickly turned ashen and tough. Your eyes flew open and you screamed, the sound muffled by the kiss of Imhotep!

You tried to shove him off, but he didn’t budge. Your touch meant nothing to him as he continued the unwanted kiss. 

The door to your room burst open, finally taking his attention and allowing your scream to be heard at full volume. Imhotep’s face was half rotten away, his lips completely gone, the cheeks held together by thin strips of jerky-like skin. You scrambled out of reach, to try and get as far away as the tiny room would allow. The movement caused you to fall out of the bed and land hard on the wood floor.

Standing up, Imhotep said something in ancient Egyptian, but your jumbled, still half-asleep brain couldn’t translate it. 

“Oh, really?” Junmyeon mocked. “Here’s my answer.” He held up the poor cat who had saved you earlier, the animal hissing threateningly at the mummy. Just like last time, Imhotep fled in a tornado of sand out the window, terrified of the innocent creature. 

“Are you alright?” Junmyeon asked as he let the cat fall from his hands. The cat landed gracefully on its feet and walked over to the bed with more dignity than you’d ever seen a human radiate. 

“Yeah, I’m good,” Baekhyun answered. After a glare from Junmyeon, he cleared his throat. “Oh. You weren’t- that’s fine. Go… check on her.” Junmyeon did just that. 

Kneeling in front of you, he pushed away a few stray hairs that had fallen in your face. Warm, soft brown eyes searched for any sign of harm. The tips of his fingers brushed against your cheek, setting the skin on fire. Or perhaps that was just the blood rushing up to your face in slight embarrassment. This man made you… nervous in a way. He could be dastardly at times, but… also very sweet. 

Clearing your throat, you pushed yourself up to your feet. “I’m fine. A little disgusted, but I’m fine.”

A smirk and knowing gleam flashed on Junmyeon’s face as he rose. “I’m sure mine was better.”

He was referring to the lip-smash he desperately pulled before he was to be dragged to the hangman’s noose. Not exactly the best first impression. 

You snorted. “No. I wouldn’t say that.” His jaw went slack. Sehun and Baekhyun snickered behind him. “Did you find the professor?” you asked in order to change the subject. 

“Yeah. He stayed out in the sun for a little long by the time we found him.”

“What are you-” Oh. Oh. That was why Imhotep was so far along in his regeneration. He’d found another victim to suck dry. 

“And he has the Book of the Dead,” Sehun added. “According to Beni, that’s what he’s going to use to raise Anacsunmum.”

“Anck-Su-Namun,” you corrected. 

“Yeah, her.”

You rolled your eyes. Why did you even bother?

You started pacing the room, trying to figure out what would be the best next move. You couldn’t keep playing hide and seek with the cat for all eternity. There needed to be a way to end this. Before he read from the book and raised-

The book… 

The book! 

You whirled back to the others. “I have an idea!”

“Care to share?”

“The Black book has always been rumored among scholars to be able to bring people back from the dead. Something I had always thought was nonsense,” you added to yourself. “But since that part is true, that means other rumors must be as well. Such as the Gold Book being able to send a soul back to the afterlife.”

“A balance.” Baekhyun looked awfully proud of himself. At least something finally stuck. 

“Exactly. Now all we have to do is find out where it's hidden.”

Junmyeon frowned. “But I thought it was supposed to be hidden with Anubis?”

“Exactly,” you agreed. “It comes from a translation of an ancient text. A stone that’s at the museum here, actually. It also says where the Black book was supposed to be hidden. I think they got their translations mixed up. So, where the scholars who originally translated it said that the golden Book of Amun-Ra was in the statue of Anubis, it's actually wherever they said the black Book of the Dead was supposed to be.”

“And where is that?”

You swallowed. “I don’t remember. We’ll have to go to the museum so I can read it again.”

Letting out a heavy sigh, Junmyeon checked the barrels of his guns, reloaded the revolvers with bullets from his belt. “Then I guess we’re headed back to the museum. Hopefully we don’t run into Ugly Face before we get to the rock.”

“I’m sure we’ll be fine,” you said with the utmost confidence. 

Sehun, who did not share that sentiment, looked up towards the ceiling. “Oh joy. Another book hunt.”

[misc-headcanons]

12 Days of XXX-mas Collab Day 4: Popsicle (Hawks/F!Reader)

❄ Link to the Collab Masterpost (warning: dark content in some/most of these fics!)

❄ Word Count: 1947

❄ Contains: Smut, deepthroating

When Hawks entered the apartment he shared with ____, he expected to see her watching videos on her phone while splayed out on the couch. As it turns out, he was somewhat right; she was on the couch, sitting in a kneeling position and concentrating intently. A popsicle was in her mouth, and there were a few scattered wrappers and sugar-stained wooden sticks in one of her hands as she tried to focus on the subject at hand--or rather, in-mouth. 

Hawks raised an eyebrow and smirked,  about to ask what she was doing. When he saw her slowly bobbing her head back and forth, trying her best to take as much of the popsicle in her mouth as possible without gagging, he simply blinked in surprise. Now he really wanted to know what the hell she had been doing while he was gone.

He watched her silently for a few seconds, waiting to see if she'd noticed that she was no longer alone or if she was too lost in thought to hear him open the door. A small trickle of bright-colored juice melted off at her lips and trickled down her chin, and she took this as a cue to move the popsicle even deeper down her throat. Hawks's eyes widened as she managed to swallow the entire thing, with the colored end of it barely peeking out from between her lips. He'd gotten blowjobs from ____ before, and while he always enjoyed himself (as evidenced by her very sore scalp and more than one noise complaint from her neighbors afterwards), she'd never been able to take his entire length like that. Granted, he was a bit more of a mouthful than your average popsicle, but...still, he'd never felt what it was like to fully sheathe himself inside of her throat like that.

____, still oblivious to Hawks's presence, slowly pulled the popsicle out of her mouth and licked the juice that had fallen down her chin before smiling proudly and taking a triumphant chomp out of what was left of her now mostly-melted snack. "Okay," she exhaled, licking her lips and setting the popsicle stick next to the others on the nearby coffee table. "Now I just have to wait for Keigo to get home and I can show off my new skills, hehe." 

Hawks crossed his arms and grinned. Were all these popsicles just for her to practice deepthroating on? "New skill, eh?"

____ automatically jumped in her seat, falling back against the couch when she turned to see Hawks by the front door. "Holy-shit-what-the--Oh!" She felt her face heat up and she gave her boyfriend a sheepish grin, embarrassed that she'd been caught. "Jeez, you're gonna give me a heart attack one of these days, Kei."

Kei shrugged. "I know CPR, so it's no biggie," he replied playfully, walking to kiss her cheek and plop onto the couch next to her. "But you already know how good I am at mouth-to-mouth, right babe?"

____ rolled her eyes and lightly smacked his shoulder, and when Hawks put an arm around her before pulling her in to nuzzle her neck, she giggled. "Awww, someone's extra affectionate today," she teased. He ran his hands up and down her sides while she leaned further against him. "Something get you 'riled up' at work?"

"Not at work," Hawks replied with a smile against her skin as he squeezed one of her breasts and heard her moan softly. "I'm just eager to see what new skill ya wanted to show off for me."

____ smiled and turned around to face him, crawling up to settle in his lap while she played with his soft blond hair and subtly grind against him. "Welllll," she drawled, "I've never really trained my gag reflex before, but I've always wanted to try deepthroating. So I figured I could learn how by trying out popsicles! That way even if I have trouble at first, the ice would make me more numb and still make it easier." She proudly put her hands on her hips. "Am I a genius or what?"

Hawks snorted at just how triumphant she looked and nodded, running his hands over her thighs and squeezing the curve of her ass as he rocked slightly against her. "Damn right you are," he replied playfully. "You're like the Sun Tzu of sucking cock."

____ laughed and bent down to give him one more heated kiss before shimmying off of his lap to kneel in front of him, unzipping his pants. "Let's see how much you'll be joking around once I put my skills to the test," she said smugly, her voice lower and more husky as she licked her lips eagerly. "I bet I can make you cum so hard, your wings'll start shaking from how good I feel around your cock."

Hawks bit his lip, relishing in her dirty talk while she pulled his pants and boxers down his thighs. His cock sprang out once it was freed, and the sight of its head glistening with a bit of precum made ____'s mouth water. She smiled mischievously at him, gently grasping his shaft with one hand and lapping at the head with the tip of her tongue. Hawks groaned softly and ran his hands through her hair; he loved it whenever she teased him like this, giving his cock plenty of attention and praise while intentionally drawing it all out. Sometimes it felt more like torture than simple teasing with how much she kissed and gently caressed his length with her tongue, waiting until the last possible moment to give him some reprieve and finally take his entire length into her mouth.

____'s mouth was still cold from the popsicles, and as she enveloped more and more of Hawks's dick she saw him shiver from the temperature difference. Wanting to warm him up a bit, she built up a bit of saliva on her tongue and hollowed out her cheeks as she swallowed up more and more of his length; the slow fade from a slight chill around her lips to a pleasurable wet warmth made Hawks moan again, and his grip on her hair tightened a bit. 

Her light sighs and whimpers sent soft vibrations through his entire cock, and he moved in his seat on the couch to get a better grip on the back of her head with both hands. "You--ah, fuck--ready to take all of me, baby?" He brushed a strand of hair behind her ear and gently rubbed her cheek as she looked up at him eagerly. She let out a muffled "uh-huh" that sent another shiver up Hawks's spine; she was so cute when she was like this, submissive and oh-so eager to please him with that pretty mouth .

He held the back of her head and immediately shoved his cock further and further into her mouth, burying himself all the way inside of her with one swift stroke of his hips. She let out a sharp inhale through her nose as she felt the tip graze the back of her throat, and when she tried to swallow as best as she could, the two of them groaned in unison. 

Her tight, wet walls squeezed and contracted around his cock like a vice, and the moment he felt her try to swallow he lost his sense of control completely. He moved her head back and forth as he thrust into her mouth over and over, sighing with pleasure every time the tip of his cock hit that velvety sweet spot in the back of her throat. Her moans were barely able to come out of her mouth as he shoved her further and further against him until her nose was buried against the scruff of blond hair around his navel. Tears pricked at the corner of her eyes, not from pain or fear, but a simple instinctive response from her body at this sudden unfamiliar intrusion; even with some training and ice to numb her throat, her gag reflex was still unused to receiving this kind of attention.

Hawks didn't slow down his pace, but he did quickly move his hands to grab hers and place them against his hips. He positioned her head again, and a thin sheen of sweat was starting to form on his forehead and his reddened cheeks. "T-tap me twice if it's too much," he stammered, bucking his hips as he felt the aching feeling of pleasure and pressure growing closer and closer to its peak. "God, you're so good at taking my cock…Using that slutty little mouth to make me feel so fucking good…" 

His balls smacked against ____'s chin over and over as he went faster, and his wings started to flutter a bit behind him as his voice became more and more strained. He felt her fingernails dig into the curve of his ass, but even as she struggled to breathe through her nose and fight back the welled-up tears in her eyes, she stubbornly refused to tap out. He looked down at her with half-lidded eyes and tapped the back of her head with his thumb to get her attention. When she looked up at him with those shining, adoring eyes, the corners of his lips turned up into a satisfied smile as he let out a small birdlike coo from the back of his throat. "You--f-fuck, you're tight...Heh, you like being told how good you are at taking my dick? You want me to cum all the way down your throat, baby?"

____ did her best to try and nod, squeezing his ass once again. He knew just how much she loved being praised during sex, and seeing her try to tell him "yes" as best as she could with his cock ravaging her mouth pushed him over the edge. His wings unfurled and stretched out behind him, stiffening as he came and sheathed himself inside of her as far as possible with a sharp cry. The shallow air from her nose fanned against his public hair, and a thin milky-white stream of semen and saliva trickled from her lips and down one of his balls. ____ felt his thick cum slide down her throat, completely eliminating any trace of the cold from earlier as she was enveloped by a feeling of warmth.

When the ringing in his ears died down, along with the throbbing sensation of his cock inside of her, he sank back against the couch and let his arms fall limply to his sides. His wings slowly relaxed and folded back, and he stared up at the ceiling with a content, lazy smile on his face as he panted. The sound of ____  as she swallowed the last vestiges of his cum and taking gulps of air now that she was able to breathe freely again pulled him back to reality, and he did his best to lean over and help her up onto the couch again. She immediately curled up against him, still breathing heavily as she rested her head in the crook of his neck and placed one of her palms on his chest. The two of them lay there for a minute or so, silently enjoying the hazy comfort that came after a fun-yet-intense bout of sex.

____ was the first to speak up, tilting her head to look up at him. "So…" She smirked and playfully traced shapes into his skin with her fingers. "Should we add popsicles to the grocery list from now on?"

Hawks let out a breathy chuckle and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her closer against him before kissing her temple. "Definitely."

[pinkpetalwaterimagine]

A Christmas nightmare

A/N : Hi everyone ! here a new imagine. (english isn’t my first language, feel free to point out mistakes ❤️❤️) anyway enjoy Bonne lecture 🌈❤️

word count : 2.3K 

Summary : Charlie’s mom hates YN, she blames you of Charlie being away (angst) 

Christmas, what a beautiful time of the year. Everything about Christmas was so beautiful and it just radiates happiness from everywhere. The Christmas lights hanging around the trees outside, the thousands lights illuminating the streets. It was so enjoyable, you loved being cooped up in your apartment in a big sweatshirt most of the time belonging to your boyfriend, reading with a hot cocoa cup. 

Even if all of this was beautiful and everything, you had to focus on your work. You loved Christmas but you knew that if you wanted to enjoy your vacations you had to finish everything. Needless to say you were a little bit stressed but you could always count on Charlie to cheer you up. He was always trying his best to put a smile on your face. He would bring you cup of coffee or whatever beverages you fancied. When he wasn’t around he would sent you some goofy pictures of what he was doing. You loved all of his cute intentions he was always the one to take in your feelings and you were trying to do the same for him. Your relationship with Charlie was all about giving and being happy the two of you. 

After being with him for more than three years it was natural that you will be going celebrating Christmas with his family and you just couldn’t wait. You had met his family a couple of times because the two of you were so far away from them but you still knew them a little bit. This Christmas was going to be perfect, or so you thought. 

« Come on babe ! We need to go if you want to be in time at your parent’s house. » you yelled towards the stairs leading to your room where Charlie was getting ready. You were wanting for him to be done and oh boy does he take some time to get ready. You were loading the trunk of your car with your luggages when Charlie finally showed up. 

« I know, I know, I was a bit long in the shower. But I love you. » he said, obviously trying to coax you. 

« Get in the car pretty boy » you said laughing, and you swear you saw his cheeks turn into a crimson color. You pinched his cheeks before going behind the wheel and driving for another three hours. 

The ride was filled with laughter and singing. The two of you had always been comfortable around the other. Even at the beginning of your relationship you knew that you could trust Charlie with your life. It was a feeling you had never felt before, a feeling of complete trust, you knew that you could tell him everything and he would still be there for you. He had this soft glimpse in his eyes that makes you want to tell him your secrets and just cuddle him. And he knew that he had this power over you and sometimes he used it against you and you could never resist. This boy, this man is everything you had dreamed for. The man that you could brought home to your parents without feeling stressed because you knew that they would like him. Who could not ? He was almost perfect. He still had his quirks but still he was yours and you weren’t ready to let him go. 

Even if you had already met a part of his family you still wanted this dinner to go smoothly. You knew that Charlie’s family was everything to him. He loved them so much and was ready to drop everything if they needed him. He was the pride of his family, going off to LA, and Landing a big contract with Netflix and still being such a sweet and humble man. It was one of the many reasons that made you fall more in love with him.  

Four hours later, after being stuck in traffic jam you finally reached your destination : the family home of the Gillespie. He smiled at you, a wide and happy smile that you not so often saw. He was happy to be home. 

You had just the time to stop the car and the man child next to you was already out, running towards the door of his childhood home. It was warming your heart seeing him that way. You knew he missed being home. 

You chuckled and took the key out of the ignition before taking the suitcase you brought, containing the numerous gifts and clothes you needed for the weekend. 

You finally reached the threshold, almost falling several times due to the ice on the road. Charlie was already engulfed in his mother’s arms, laughing and talking. 

You had already met his siblings several times. More than you had met his parents and they really liked you and always included you in the family gatherings and everything. They all huge you asking how you were and everyone was making small talk in the hallway. You finally have access to Mrs Gillespie and went in for a hug like you always did with her. You felt her tense around you and you asked yourself why. Had you done something wrong in the three minutes you’ve been here ? Only Charlie’s mother was acting weird towards you. Everyone seemed cool and nice like they always had been. You decided to let it slide and move from the hallway to the dining table. 

The Gillespie household was never a calm one, every time you visited it was filled with laughter and talking. Overall, it was always a fun experience, the fire was cracking inside the chimney and everyone had tinted cheeks due to the heat and had a cup of tea or any hot beverage. You always enjoyed coming in here. 

« Before we begin our Christmas dinner I have a little something for everyone ! » Charlie’s mother said with a wide smile. She passed around her children and gifted them cute Christmas sweaters. She even gave one to the girlfriends of Charlie’s brothers. You were the only left out, everyone put their sweaters on and you seemed to stuck out so much. You felt like you weren’t a part of the family, which granted you weren’t legally but after three years of dating Charlie you thought that they considered you a part of their family. Apparently you were wrong. What hurt the most was that no-one noticed that you didn’t receive a sweatshirt. You felt excluded of their gathering, and even Charlie didn’t noticed that you were a bit taken aback. « Those sweatshirts are just amazing ! Don’t you agree babe ? » He asked you and you thought that he had nerve telling you this. However you didn’t let this show in your demeanor : « you are beautiful bae, as always » you answered quietly with a forced smile. 

Even the girlfriends that they had never met until now had one ! During dinner you couldn’t get this thought out of your mind. You were quiet during dinner, talking when asked to but never really engaging. Charlie was speaking enough for the both of you. 

When everyone was done, you got up, helping clearing out the table and loading the dishwasher. As you were doing back and forth from the dining room and the kitchen you overheard a conversation between Charlie’s mother and himself. 

« You can tell me when you want to come ! It’s been such a long time since we saw you ! I’m sure that it is because of your girlfriend ! She doesn’t want you to come here and see us ?! This is it ?! » she asked sounding angry. 

You couldn’t believe she thought like this, you never forbade anything to Charlie or anyone for that matter. You waited for Charlie’s answer, you knew he would defend you and speak the truth. 

« Mom, that’s not true, I’m just busy. » he said calmly but she went back at it again « Like I would believe this ». He said nothing and you felt your heart broke a little more. You never thought that this Christmas would turn that way. You waited for a minute before entering the kitchen with the dirty plates. It was only you and Charlie’s mother. You felt uneasy standing next to her knowing her true feelings about you. 

« Listen Y/N, I know that my son says that he is busy but I know you are the one preventing him from coming home. I think that you are with him just for his fame and money and I won’t have that under my roof or nowhere ! » she was saying all of this calmly and quietly and you didn’t know how to answer to that. You didn’t realized she was feeling that way and perceived you like that. 

« But, it’s not me ! The both of us are working hard and I’m not with him for his money ! Do you realize what you are saying ?! » you were growing mad and you won’t let this woman walk over you. The times being bullied by anyone were done. « You are just a gold digger and I know it’s a dark and complicated world out there but please let my son out of your life. » she was playing the sympathy card but that wasn’t going to cut it with you. 

« You are crazy ! There’s no other explanation » you said a bit louder. 

« What? » the voice came from behind you and before even turning around you knew it came from Charlie. You sighed before facing whatever was awaiting for you. 

« I can’t believe you would say such a thing to my mother. She welcomed you with open arms in our house and now you are insulting her ? » he said angrily. You had never saw him like that, he was always this free spirited man that was always the cool one. But seeing him so angry almost repulsed by you was the worst. You had been together for three years and you felt your relationship crumbled under your fingertips because of three words. 

« Charlie please, let me explain » he cut you mid-sentence « I don’t care, I think you should go. » you were frozen in place. He asked you to leave, in the middle of the night, during almost a snowstorm without anywhere to go. 

« That’s why you never see your family. Goodbye. » he was so cold and his words were like ice swords going through your heart. Tears began falling on your cheeks. Being this humiliated you decided to not cause a bigger scene you quickly took your coat and suitcase running towards the door. As you passed the dining room you heard the laughter of the family around the Christmas tree. Once in the safety of your car you thought about the catastrophe that just happened. You could never forget those cold eyes from either of them. His mother had a small smile but Charlie’s face was stern, his eyebrows were furrowed and his eyes oh so loving before were replacing by something you never saw, towards you or anyone. Hatred, disgust. You couldn’t believe that was the last memory you will have with him, This messy breakup. It was obviously a break up. You knew that he wouldn’t come crawling back to you, he wasn’t the type and after what he said you could never look at him again. 

Driving always had this therapeutic virtue of emptying your head. You were concentrating on the road and that was all on your mind. After two hours of driving in circle with snow covering the road, you stopped in a hotel. You couldn’t stand the look of pity from the steward and from everyone. You climbed to your room before crying and bawling your eyes out into the pillow. You don’t think that the two of you will be able to get through this. After excessive crying you finally fall asleep of pure exhaustion. 

Packing your bags was hard. You were at Charlie’s apartment. It was for the two of you but you decided it was better to leave before he came back. You weren’t ready to confront him, see him, talk to him. The memories kept coming at you like hurtful punches. The several picture of you hanging around the place, being happy, smiling and laughing. Your eyes were waterfalls. You decided to keep only one thing from him, it was a picture of the two of you on your first date. You had your head on his shoulders smiling, looking towards the camera while Charlie was looking at you with the biggest smile he could have. 

Your closet was always filled to the brim, and as you were clearing out your part one of Charlie fancy jacket fell on the ground. You put it back on the rack but you noticed something fell with the jacket. It was a black velvety small box. It couldn’t be a lot of things and your mind jumped to conclusion. Did he wanted to marry you ? Had he purchased the ring ? You opened the box and saw the most gorgeous ring, it was simple just a small diamond but you didn’t like thing too big or shiny. You couldn’t breathe. He was planning on marrying you ! You never talked much about this but of course you would have said yes. Leaving this place knowing that he was ready for a life commitment was the worst. You questioned your relationship on every aspect. What went wrong ? One morning he was ready to marry you and in just three hours he was ready to throw you out of his home. 

Your car was filled with suitcases and your belongings. It was also filled with sadness and misery. You left a note and the key as well as the black box you found, on the counter in the kitchen : « I guess we weren’t that good for each other. I was willing to give you an explanation but you didn’t care. I guess it means it’s the end for us. I was hoping that we wouldn’t end, ever. And apparently you wished for the same thing before all of this. Goodbye, Y/N ». You signed with your own name and not some silly nickname he always gave you. You didn’t make a small heart like you used to do. Nothing you would do would be like before. 

Your car was leaving the complex the both of you used to live in when on the other side of the road you recognized Owen’s car. Charlie was on the passenger seat. You tried to not look at them as if you didn’t saw them they wouldn’t saw you. This gate could not open any slower ! Finally you were able to drive down the road. 

« Wasn’t it Y/N in the car ? » Owen asked. 

[itsjustmyfantasyroom]

Cave man part 2

I really enjoyed writing his short series. Love me a soft cute Rafi.

Part 1

Warnings: smut

Enjoy x

Rafael 7pm: Have a great night mi Amor. I miss you x

You were in the cab on the way to a hotel in Midtown to meet Kat for dinner. She had booked a table for a date, but they flaked on her last minute so she asked you to go with her instead. It was the first time since you had got back from Iowa at the start of the summer that you actually had a weekend off, with nothing big coming in. Since you had been back you and Rafael had started a long distance relationship. You both found it interesting never having been in one. There was a lot of texts, a lot of phone calls, a lot video calls both G and R rated. As much as you missed him and he missed you, the phone sex video calls spiced things up a lot and made you want each other more still not having being intimate.

It was coming to the end of summer, the nights were starting to get colder and Rafael was starting to make plans to come back to the city. Looking into apartments and applying for jobs at different firms. The cab pulled up at the hotel, you paid and stepped out. The cold air hit you and you instantly regretted not bringing a jacket. As you stood on the curb, you pulled down your tight short emerald green capped sleeves dress and lifting a leg up slightly to wipe a white mark that was on your black velvet heels.

You walked quickly to get out of the cold of the night walking into the bright lobby. You made your way to the lifts hitting the 3rd floor button that had the name of the restaurant next to it. The doors opened and you walked out into a dimly lit area. Black carpet, white walls, massive chandlers with gold detailing all over the place. You felt your phone vibrate and you pulled it out to see a message from Kat,

Kat 7.10pm: Sorry Partner, I can’t make it tonight something came up, I’ll make it up to you x

You were about to write back when you smelt a scent you knew and you looked up from your phone looking around the room in front of you. You jumped when you heard a voice coming from behind you,

“Could I buy you dinner instead?”

You spun on your heels and almost dropped your phone and clutch

“Rafi” you jumped on him wrapping your arms around his neck, your lips landing on his. Your lip gloss getting all over his lips “What are you doing here?”

“I’ll explain over dinner mi Amor. I missed you” He lent over and kissed you again.

The waiter had poured some table water, champagne and took your dinner orders. Rafael reached over and grabbed your hand taking it in his, you rubbed your thumb over his long fingers.

“Where has my cave man gone? How long are you here for? Where are you staying? You can come and stay with me” you smiled over at Rafael who winked at you. Rafael was clean shaven again much to your disappointment.

“Well mi Amor, I have news. I’ am sorry I didn’t tell you anything I wanted to surprise you” he paused and you nodded “You know I have been applying for jobs here and I got an offer that I took, but I shaved for contract signing this morning. Liv gave me Kat’s number a couple of weeks ago when I found out about the job and we worked tonight out together” a big smile came to your face and he continued “I got the keys to my new apartment today, it’s a block from your place.” Your eyes filled with tears “Mi Amor, are they happy tears?” he squeezed your hand.

“So- you’re here to stay? You’re coming home?” you blinked your eye lids to get rid of the tears.

“Yes mi Amor, I ‘am here to stay. I’am home.”

After an amazing dinner and a couple glasses of champagne, you and Rafael were standing shoulder to shoulder holding hands in the lift of his new apartment building. You had his jacket on and he was carrying your heels. They hurt your feet after you had a short dance to “Stand by Me” the string quartet played in the restaurant. The lift dinged at the 10th floor and Rafael stepped out pulling you along with him.

As he got the 4th door on the left he stop letting go of your hand, wrapping his arm around your waist kissing you deeply. Your tongues massaging each other’s, tasting the strawberries you had for dessert. You both pulled away after a little bit, Rafael looking down at you with a smirk. He pulled away completely reaching into his pocket pulling out something in his closed fist,

“This is yours” he turned his palm over opening his fist to a sliver key on a white circle key chain with ‘I left my heart in NY’ on it “Open the door” Rafael pecked your cheek.

You put the key in the lock, unlocked it and opened the door to a beautiful open plan living area with hard wood floors and white walls, a big sliding windows that lead to a small balcony. As you walked into the apartment taking in everything you smiled over at Rafael and he winked at you pulling you down the hall way to a bigger size bathroom with double sink and shower,

“This will be my office” he nodded towards the smaller room across from the bathroom “And this” he pulled you towards the door at the end of the hall “Will our room”

You let go of his hand and walked into the big room to see a white picnic blanket with big blue European pillows leaning up against the back wall. To your right hand side a roof to floor window, the lights of the city shinning in and to the left was a medium size walk in robe.

“This is perfect Rafi, but this is your room not mine” you walked over to him grabbing his hand.

“No mi Amor, it’s our room. I spoke to your realtor they are happy to sublet your place till the end of your lease. I just have to make the call and new tenants can move in next week. Only if you agree of course” He smile and pulled you towards the set up on the floor. Rafael sat down leaning against the pillows on the wall and patted the space next to him. You sat down bending your legs up under yourself. Rafael put an arm around your shoulders and put his other hand on your knee.  “What do you think?” Rafael asked just above a whisper.

“All my stuff? You don’t think it’s too soon?” You looked up to meet his gaze.

“Part of my contract is a storage unit, we can store stuff in there and mi Amor, when you know you know- and I know” The hand that was resting on your knee, Rafael moved it to rest on your cheek, closing the gap, his lips on yours for a deep needy kiss.

You moved your hand to rest on Rafael shoulder pulling him into you. Mid kiss, your tongues in each other’s mouths, you threw a leg over to straddle Rafael’s lap, hiking up your dress that was now bunched above your hips. Rafael pulled away from the kiss and adjusted himself so he was sitting flush with the wall and the floor,

“I have been waiting for this for so long Rafi” you grinded down on him and watched Rafael’s face as he moaned bucking his hips up. You could feel how hard he was brushing up against your clothed core.

“Mi Amor- I- I” You looked at Rafael and his cheeks went red while he ran his hands up your legs

“I love you too” you cut him off.

Your lips meet Rafael’s, for a rough and intense kiss again. Without breaking the kiss you reach down between you both undoing his belt buckle, button and zipper. Your hand sliding into his boxers pulling out his long thick cock. You whimpered into his mouth finally having it in your hand rather than seeing it over a screen. You could feel the pre-come running down it just by you touching it.

You broke the kiss looking deep into Rafael’s eyes as you reached down to your panties moving them to the side. You lifted yourself up slightly, holding Rafael’s length as you lined yourself to him. Rafael put his hands on your hips and helped guide you down onto him till he bottomed out and you were fully sitting on him. Both your jaws slack, you rested your forehead to his, both giving yourselves a minutes. Heavy breathing filled the room. You had gotten onto birth control as soon as you came back from Iowa so that you were ready for Rafael when he finally arrived home.

Slowly you started to move your hips. Rafael moved both hands to rest on your shoulder blades pulling you into him, his arms under your underarms, nuzzling into your neck. You wrapped one arm around his shoulders and the other threaded into his hair. Years of pent up frustration was finally being lifted for the both of you and it felt amazing.  You started to bounce up and down and Rafael thrusted up into you. The feeling of him stretching you and thrusting up into you turned you on even more, your wet making Rafael’s pants and boxers wet.

“Say it” you moaned out, your coil winding tighter and tighter, both of you moving faster chasing your release.

“I love you Y/N” Rafael grunted into your neck.

You threw your head back, your whole body felt like it was burning.

“Rafi- I” you chocked out as your whole body started shaking, your vision went blurry, pleasure washing over you. Rafael thrusted up into you one last time saying something you could barely understand in Spanish and you were brought back down to reality when you felt his seed slowly seeping out of you.

You lifted up off of him sitting down leaning onto the wall, you both sat there sweaty and breathing heavy. You lent over grabbing Rafael’s hand intertwining your fingers with his, resting your head on his shoulder.

“I’ll move in with you Rafi, on one condition” You kissed the back of his hand.

“Oh yeah” he chuckled raising an eye brow at you.  

“I need my cave man back”

Rafael laughed leaning over to cup your cheek “I think mi Amor that can be arranged”

Tags: @dianilaws​ @scarletsoldierrr​ @lv7867​ @detective-giggles​ @the-baby-bookworm​ @beccabarba​ @thatesqcrush​ @permanentlydizzy​

[talas-starlight]

Killing me softly - Sokka x reader

SUMMARY: Having only heard good things about Sokka, you always wanted to see how great he is for yourself. When you finally get the opportunity, you struggle to find him as funny as everyone said.  

This is based off the song killing me softly by the fugees which you can listen to: here! or there is a version by zhavia: here!

I strongly suggest you listen to the song because I think the whole vibe you get from it will get you in the mindset for this (and hopefully distract you from how poorly this was executed AHAH)

WORD COUNT: 2.6k

WARNINGS: angsty vibes. tried to have a hopeful ending but idk if it worked lol. poor writing skills.

A/N: ahA I really couldn’t get this idea out of my head so here we are! most certainly did not do this concept/ song fic justice to the way I imagined it but lol this shit low key hurted my feelings but also tried to turn it around? Idk I think this is okay?

KEY: words in-between dividers = lyrics MY MASTERLIST: here!

I heard he sang a good song, I heard he had a style And so I came to see him, to listen for a while And there he was, this young boy, a stranger to my eyes

You knew nothing and everything about him all at the same time. Hakoda allowed you to join them as they recruited people across the nations to prepare for invasion day. In doing so, you unknowingly signed a non-verbal contract to hear all the stories and jokes about his son, Sokka. Of course, he spoke highly of his daughter, but there was an unrelenting sense of pride and joy that came with hearing about him.

“You’ll really enjoy speaking with him y/n. He can take any dull or sad moment and turn it into something that will make you laugh beyond your years. He’s been through so much, but he’s become the warrior I knew he was always destined to be.”

It was impossible not to want to meet him. You wanted to hear the stories in the flesh as he became the light in the darkness of this war.

Yet when he finally boarded the ship with his friends after Ba Sing Se, that’s all he became, a story. As a mechanic and strategist, your time was booked to the brim, building upon the plans Sokka created himself. Somehow, you managed to have interactions with Katara and Toph, even Momo, but being in the same room as Sokka? Impossible. You weren’t avoiding him by any means, and neither was he, it just seemed that even when confined to the space of a ship your duties dragged both of you into different directions…. Until now.

Finally having time to relax as you finished reviewing a draft for one segment of the invasion, you made your way mess hall in a desperate search to consume any food you could get your hands on. Walking in, Toph perked up at feeling your presence when entering the room. Considering you were always busy when working on something and she was not too chatty, you got along well with minimal conversations and comfortable silence.

You grab a bowl, filling it to the brim with fresh soup and sat at their table across from her. Feeling content as you feel the soups warm and wholesome scent fill your senses, you glance around to see who else is sitting at the table. Eyes zeroing in on Sokka’s frame at the other end of the table, your breath instantly hitches. Suddenly your face feels as warm as your soup, and you want to kick yourself for letting yourself be so affected just by your incredibly short glance at him. Shifting your focus back to your soup you make the painfully obvious decision to focus all of your attention towards it, only listening to their interactions around you. You reminded yourself that you didn’t truly know him, only what everyone else has told you. You knew better than to let yourself become a total fool for the Watertribe boy without having any proper interactions with him. Hence, you’d be lying if you said you weren’t at the edge of your seat in anticipation to see Sokka joke around and tell stories with your friends. After all, that is what you were told about from the moment you met his father.

Strumming my pain with his fingers (one time, one time) Singing my life with his words (two times, two times) Killing me softly with his song Killing me softly with his song Telling my whole life with his words Killing me softly with his song

The excitement quickly dissipated when he began to dive into this evenings’ jokes and anecdotes.

“Guys! You wouldn’t believe it!! I was exploring the ship after training today, and I found all of these Fire Nation scrolls about their art and folktales in one of the rooms, and let me tell you, it’s a load of shit!”

As everyone laughed, you momentarily stopped breathing. Your entire being began to fold into itself, terrified at the prospect of him taking all of the things you favoured about your childhood and rip them to pieces.

Katara attempted to see the light in his statement. “Come on Sokka it can’t be that bad! I mean even the Watertribe has some questionable stories, I remember even the one Gran Gran told was a bit-“

“No, Katara! This is by far soooo much suckier than those stories. Okay, so there’s this one about dragons right? What happens is that there’s this Dragon Emperor who becomes bound to a mortal’s body by a Dark Water Spirit. So obviously! I was expecting this super cool battle or revenge plot, but in the end, they turned it into this lame love story where the Dragon Emperor falls in love with a mortal who turns out to be the Dragon Empress!”

“Aw I think that’s sweet! I mean surely there would have been a battle with the Dark Water Spirit so it wouldn’t have been a total loss?”

“Ugh, Katara! You don’t get it! It's just… sooooo oogie! They shouldn’t have done that. It should have been a story about battle, and warriors! I mean come on, that’s all the Fire Nation is good for right? Destruction and battle. So why did they have to ruin that story like that with all of that lovey stuff?! It just seems like nothing good can ever come out of the Fire Nation.”

Taking another mouthful of the soup, you kept your face downward as everyone laughed at Sokka’s exclamation of hatred for the nation you grew up in. No one knew where you grew up there except Hakoda, and you liked it that way. In complete fairness to you, it wasn’t your entire identity since your mother was from the Earth Kingdom, and you only spent the first seven years of your life there. But that didn’t mean it hurt any less when he tore apart the only things you dearly loved as a child.

Toph sensing your discomfort as you didn’t join in their amusement, she swiftly diverted the conversation into a new direction. While you were grateful, the thought of being in his presence any longer made you want to cry. It clearly didn’t work either as he continued to joke around about the food and other small things he picked up about the nation throughout their journey. Silently finishing up, you didn’t say a word or even give a half-hearted smile as they all laughed. Placing your bowl in the sink, you headed straight to your room.

The actions made everyone at the table confused, yet no one spoke out about it. Afterall, no one really knew you personally, nor did they understand what caused you to cut your interaction with them so short. Sokka himself became particularly curious. Afterall just like you, he heard many great things about you from his father, admiring your kindness and work ethic from afar. So, to say he wasn’t hurt that you chose not to stay longer or even crack a genuine smile, would be a lie.

Making it to your room, you took out any piece of paper or a scroll you used for your plans and began to pour out your pain onto to pages until you passed out from exhaustion. Not caring what contents were on the other side, you allowed yourself to be unfiltered.

You knew Sokka didn’t mean any harm; everyone laughed. He became the light you oh so desired to witness for yourself. Deep down, you knew you would have laughed too if it weren’t for the fact that he took the few happy memories you had with your father and set it on fire. A fire that produced the light you wished to see… but it seemed it wasn’t in the right way you hoped for.

I felt all flushed with fever, embarrassed by the crowd I felt he'd found my letters and read each one out loud I prayed that he would finish, but he just kept right on

You sighed as you finally finished fixing the pipes in the lower decks of the ship, once again tired and done with today’s work, you went to the mess hall for a late dinner.

“Hey Hakoda, I finished the plumbing problem so no one on the second floor should have any troubles now.”

“Thanks, y/n! You really are such a valuable person in this team. You’re always making sure everything is up and running.”

“Of course! What would you do without me? After all, let’s not forget how I spend my free time with your invasion plans.” You joked.

Turning your back to him to scoop some food onto your plate, he spoke up from behind you. “Oh right! That reminds me, I mentioned your ideas to Sokka earlier, and he seemed to really like them! But Sokka being Sokka, he got so excited over them and asked so many questions I didn’t even know how to respond. Anyway, I just wanted to let you know he’s probably at your desk analysing all of your scrolls right now. That kid never seems to be able to contain his excitement.”

“Yeah, that’s oka-“abruptly, you dropped your plate as your brain processed the information. If he was looking at your plans, then that meant……

Not even giving the Watertribe chief another glace or end to your response, you ran. Taking the fastest route to your room, everything in your mind and your surroundings became blurred, and you became hyper-focused on the fact that Sokka probably found what you wrote about him. Desperately trying not to cry as you bumped into people in the hallways, you couldn’t think of anything worse to happen in this very moment. The very idea of him knowing how you felt about him as well as how his words affected you made you want to scream. Maybe if you got there in time, he wouldn’t have read enough to understand your feelings fully. But when you bust through your door, it was too late. Sokka stood near your desk, with all the scrolls you ever wrote on scattered around the room. Some lay on your bed, the floor, across the desk, and even one in his hands.

“M- my dad said that you had a lot of perfect ideas for the invasion. B- but I- I found… I never thought…” His eyes never met yours as he continued to read the current scroll in his hands.

You slowly approached him, not caring as you walked over every word you wrote on the floor. “Sokka…” You silently begged him to stop reading, unsure of its contents.

He kept reading clearly in shock at the words before him, “why didn’t you s-say something?”

You sighed, somewhat unsure of how to approach the situation. “It’s not my place –“

He threw the scroll to the ground, finally looking up at you with bloodshot eyes as tears streamed down his face. “WHAT DO YOU MEAN IT’S NOT YOUR PLACE Y/N! It is your place! You had… no, you HAVE every right to say something! You sat there that night as I picked away at every single thing you ever loved, and you didn’t say a thing! Why would you let me do that to you!” Sobs wracked his body, falling to his knees in front of you. Torn apart on the inside about how much he hurt you. He never wanted this to happen, not just because of his small crush on you- that didn’t matter at this very moment. The very idea that he hurt someone who was so kind and selfless as a person, ruined him.

Beginning to feel immensely guilty for his current state, you knelt down to his level. Placing your hands to his wrists, you gently moved his hands away from his face. “Sokka… hey, Sokka look at me…”

As he looked at you, you struggled to keep your composure as tears began to fill your own eyes.

“It’s okay. What you said hurt, I don’t need to explain that for you to know it. Even though it felt like a small dig into who I am as a person and what I grew up to love, it’s true. What the Fire Nation did, what they are doing is awful, but I can’t speak up to defend them. I am in many ways apart of them. I grew up there, I celebrated their holidays, cooked and ate their food, and read their folktales. As much as I hate what the words ‘Fire Nation’ symbolises to the rest of the world, to you, it’s a part of who I am. No one can take that away from me, not even myself. Despite how much it hurt me, I can’t get mad at you or anyone because your feelings, and everything you said, is valid.” Moving his arms out of your grasp, he wrapped himself around you, holding you close to his chest.

“I’m so sorry. I’m sorry. I’m sorry. You didn’t deserve to hear that, you’re amazing y/n. You deserve to be treated with the kindness and love you give to everyone on this ship. I’m sorry. I was wrong. I’m going to be better, I promise. I promise.” Overcome with emotion, the tears you tried so hard to hold back burst at his words.

Strumming my pain with his fingers (one time, one time) Singing my life with his words (two times, two times) Killing me softly with his song Killing me softly with his song Telling my whole life with his words Killing me softly with his song

Neither you nor Sokka bothered to move from your intertwined embrace on the floor of your room. You were both a sobbing, crying mess. The pain from both of you suffocated the air around you as you cling onto one another for forgiveness.

Forgiveness for being from the very place that caused him so much pain.

Forgiveness for being unable to embrace so much of who you are.

The pain was unrelenting as he weaved his fingers through your hair, shifting so your noses’ and foreheads against one another as he whispered words begging for forgiveness. Wishing, praying, to the Spirits he could take it all away. Sokka’s heart burns from the raging pain that has awoken inside of him. He doesn’t stop running his fingers through your hair almost as if he can stroke away the broken pieces inside of you, looking for new ones underneath so he can start again. Because despite his resentment for where you came from, he knows that to him, you are like a divine angel. You both have your own complex and conflicting backgrounds of life, but he has a desperate desire to care for you in a way he will never be able to explain.

You wanted to lie to him. Say it didn’t hurt, say you could forget. You could do it easily, but you wouldn’t. Knowing you both suffered enough, you didn’t want to do something that could potentially cause each other more pain. This was enough. As you both continued to cry, holding one another with his hands still in your hair, you leant back slightly, bringing a shaky, tender hand to his cheek.

Looking up into his eyes, it’s awfully evident how much pain swims in his beautiful shades of blue. Yet, there seems to be an unspoken understanding as you see a small glimmer behind all the tears. The light you have been yearning for. He sees it in your eyes too. Neither of you can change or take back what’s already been said, but in this very moment there’s hope. You know you can move forward and heal together.

“We’re going to be okay.”

A/N: hi friends!! I hope you liked this one 😊

TO THE TAGLIST: hi all! i was a bit torn on what to do here because i wasn’t sure if you all only wanted to be tagged in my zuko series or my other works as well?? so im so sorry if you didn’t want to be tagged in this so please just let me know if you’d only like to be on the list for the series, zuko, sokka or other characters in general :)

TAGLIST: @slythergirlimagines​​ @mangoberry43​​ @eridanuswave​​ @whiskeywinter89​​​ @kaylove12​​ @simplyfandomish​​ @khaleesi-of-assassins​ @callums-keith​ @ilovespideyyy​ @calciumcow​ @blackhood5sos​ @nnon-it-up​

[hrh-selene-r]

Beyond Words (4/?)

The Big Sweep

Eight years have come and gone, and it seems that everyone has moved on; Hannah has a new life with a Baby upstate, and even Ray found a bit of happiness in his life, but where does that leave Adam? Still in the same apartment with the same problems. Now, feeling adrift in the stagnation he finds himself in, Adam will try to break old habits and  see if he can grow-up. Something easier said than done, that is until he meets you.

This is a bit of a post series/retcon picking up from where Adam’s story left off in Season 6 episode 8 titled “What will we do this time about Adam?”

Adam Sackler x Reader

4.5K Words

Warning: Angst, break up, Depression, cursing.

It’s been a week of secret apartment hunting and script reading for any new possible project, but his efforts finally bear fruit. ‘Fucking Ray. Thank god he came through’ Adam thought as he was one the line of his favorite deli just a few blocks away from his apartment. He shifts anxiously as he rehearses in his mind what he wants to say to Jessa when the moment comes.

It’s been a week of secret apartment hunting and script reading for any new possible project, but his efforts finally bear fruit. ‘Fucking Ray. Thank god he came through’ Adam thought as he was one the line of his favorite deli just a few blocks away from his apartment. He shifts anxiously as he rehearses in his mind what he wants to say to Jessa when the moment comes.

‘Jesus. Fuck’ He fixes his hair fidgeting (well dreading, really) the confrontation to come. Her clinginess hasn’t stopped in the least, wanting to go out together, stay in together, have sex in their old haunts; she’s even been texting him more frequently. It’s not that he didn’t like the attention (or the sex), but Jessa’s always been aloof, and independent. If anything, Adam is the clingy one; things used to be so easy before but this change in dynamic was a bit jarring to him, to say the least.

‘She’s just making things harder’

He was a thousand miles away when he finally sat down, and in true Adam fashion, he doesn’t eat, so much as he scarfs down his meal; six eggs (four of them just the whites), and two slices of turkey bacon. It’s while drinking what’s left of his coffee that his phone alerts him of a new incoming text. Fishing it out of his pocket and saw that he had three texts; two from Luke, letting him know that he got the callback for the Jim Anderson play with the details of where it’s going to be, the other asking if he had finished reading another script that he’d sent him.

‘Yesssssss!!’ He cheered on the inside, holding in his urge to scream it out loud. Finally! At least some things were looking up.

The other text was from Jessa, making fun about one of her classmates, with a rather mean spirited snarky remark.

He scoffs a bit after reading it, her smarmy wit coming through her words. It's moments like these that remind him of their friendship, and their shared chemistry. The thought only served to churn his stomach, bringing to the forefront of his mind what he’ll tell her.

‘ “Look Jessa, I’ve been doing some introspection lately, and I’ve come to the conclusion that we’re better as friends and that I need some time apart” Too formal? No….Shit! “Jessa let’s be real, you would’ve left me in a few months anyway, so I’m doing us both a favor” ..’

“Motherfuck!” He hissed under his breath.

He looked at the time in his phone and got up. He has to get going, not wanting to be late to meet his building manager.

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

The building itself wasn’t too far, it was still in Brooklyn, not like he could afford anything more upscale, and even then, rents in the boroughs were outrageous; gentrification saw to that. But for all the artisanal ice cream boutiques and organic green tea, there’s a charm in Brooklyn that has captured his heart; for now, this was home. This place has seen his loves and loses and has seen him at his worst and at his best.

Adam walks up to the front steps where a woman is sitting on the stoop, seemingly waiting; looking at her phone as she does so. She looks up and sees him in the eye, causing him to look away awkwardly to avoid her thinking he was a creep or something, but her gaze was more curious than anything.

She tilts her head sideways to get a better look at him. “Adam?”

‘Do I know her? Oh fuck, have I fucked her?’ he thinks, his mid going through the roster of girls to see if he knew her from somewhere. “Yeah?” he asked cautiously after his mind came up blank. He doesn’t know her....at least he thinks he doesn’t know her.

“I’m Jaime. I’m the building manager? My dad probably told you about me when he showed you the apartment.” She explains, hopefully jogging his memory, as she gets up to face him.

“You’re Jaime?” He asks, taking a good look at her. Her hair is long and dark up, reaching up to her waist; her body, clothed in oversized jeans and a black tank top, is skinny but not too skinny as to make her look malnourished, her complexion is dark, coupled with deep brown eyes, a wide nose full glossy lips and a beauty mark above her left eyebrow.

“Yeah, were you expecting anyone else?” she smirked haughtily at him, making him to quickly reply out an answer to avoid any embarrassment.

“No! I just thought that I’d be meeting your dad.” he corrects himself and holds out his hand to shake her hand in greeting. She responded in kind, extending her hand to shake his. Her hand was adorned by wide silver rings in her fingers, her nails were decorated with an orange nail polish that was mostly chipped away.

“He got held up, asked me to do it. Legally I can, as the building manager. So, you ready to sign?”

“Uh, Yeah.” he answers her as she gestures for him to follow her, leading him up the stairs to what will be his new apartment.

Climbing three flights of stairs, standing in front of a door marked ‘3A’, Jaime places the key in the lock and opens the door before gesturing for him to go in.

The apartment itself was big, or big for New York standards, at least, It was a one bedroom apartment, complete with a separate living room, the bathroom was down the hallway, and with a small kitchen right next to what could be converted to a small dining room. It suited him. The apartment was eerily reminiscent of the one he lives in now, the most remarkable difference is that the kitchen has a separate countertop for a bar, not to mention that the living room was roomier, with a tall window providing the space with a good amount of natural light.

It was thankfully in his budget, and that’s what mattered to him the most, nevermind the fact that he basically found an affordable apartment with this much space; which to be clear, is nothing short of impossible.

The pair start to walk into the empty living room space. “You’re lucky you were able to snag this place. We haven’t gotten the word out yet, or anything about this place. So you got the exclusive first look.” Jaimie mentions as she walks to the kitchen counter, grabbing the papers and the pen.

Not knowing how to respond to her and him having his own special brand of social skills , Adam just answers with a simple “Yeah.”

“If anything you’re lucky you know Ray, being on the city council makes you meet a lot of people in the community; and stick-in-the-mud Ray knows a lot of people.” She smiles at him.

“Yeah well we’ve been friends for a while, now.” He replies to her with a polite smile back.

“Yeah. Anyway, this is the contract.” Jaime changes the direction of the conversation to the issue at hand, sliding the contract file in his direction with a pen in her hand.

“Sign here, and here….I need initials here.” She directed him as he started to sign the papers, trying to keep up with her quick directions.

Once it was finished, she handed him a stack of papers. “Okay, so this is your copy of the lease, and these are your keys. Heads up.” She dangled the keys before throwing them in his direction for him to catch, moving towards the exit to leave to the privacy of his new place. Stopping at the door, Jaimie looks back to face him as he turns around to face her.

“So you already know my name. Rent’s due on the first. If you need anything, my apartment’s on the first floor; apartment ‘1B’. If you need me but I’m not in, just slip a note under my door. ‘Kay? Any questions?”

“Uh, nope.”

“Then it’s a pleasure to meet you Adam Sackler. Welcome to the building.” With that she gave him a small smirk and waved goodbye, shutting the door behind her on her way out; leaving him alone with his thoughts in his new apartment.

It’s official now, he can’t put it off anymore. He’s following the advice Ray gave him; hell, even Josh said it. Here, in the emptiness of his new space, in the bright white light of day, he finally sees what he’s been avoiding for so long.

He loved her, he cared for her, but was he ever in love with her?

He was just as quick to get back to her as soon as he realized that things with Hannah wouldn't work out. He quickly left Jessa once he found out that Hannah was pregnant and….’I don’t know.’ ‘Maybe I’m with her ‘cause it’s easy...I’m so fucked up!’ Adam furiously scrubbed his face with both hands, breathing deeply and exhaling through his nostrils.

Alone, in the middle of the empty apartment, bathed in the light from the windows, he knew. It was just like that time; he knew what he had to do.

It was time to rip the band-aid off.

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

Later in the day, after doing a few errands he had to do for the new place, Adam was standing outside of his (old?) apartment building. Looking at the window of the apartment, he takes a deep breath, gathering his bravery to face the situation.

He makes the journey up the stairs, and opens the door. The apartment is empty, judging by the hour, Jessa’s probably still in class. Taking advantage of the circumstances, he starts packing up his things; his mind making a list of the things to take with him .

‘My clothes, books. It's a good thing I don’t have a lot of stuff. I can buy food, and I already got a bed taken care of. I’m gonna have to come back for my work out stuff, my weights and the bench at least.’

Little by little Adam starts to take his favorite things, taking his time to consider what to leave behind. A practice he’s by now well-used to.

The front doors opens and in walks Jessa, her hair in a bun, wearing a loose red tee shirt with denim blue high waisted jeans, the bags in her hand suggest she bought something.

“Hey you in?!” Her voice rings through the small apartment, reaching Adam’s ears, causing him to freeze, inwardly flinching in anticipation of what’s to come. ‘Time to face the fucking music. *sigh*’ He moves out of the bedroom and into the kitchen to find her putting things away on the fridge.

“Heeeeeey.”

“I brought some groceries since the fridge was empty.” she told him casually, her head buried inside the refrigerator as she took things from the bag and placed them inside.

“You have a good day?” His stance is awkward, his hands behind his back as he debated on how to best start the conversation; break it to her while hoping to god that she takes it well.

“Not bad, Nancy is a fucking cunt, but that’s just her. Either way…” Jessa approaches him, pulling him for a kiss, smiling as she does so “She’s just irritates me, so...how was your day?” Her hands run through the familiar course of his chest sweetly. A small shrug moved his shoulders nonchalantly as he looked at her. Was this really it? “It was okay, I did a few errands.”

Hearing this her brow furrowed a bit, looking into his eyes as he stared at her. “You did errands, what errands? Didn’t you have an audition?”

“Yeah, look can we talk?” He asks as he nervously fidgets, gesturing for them to sit down on the couch. If there’s something that can be said about Adam is that he’s as subtle as a hammer.

Sitting on the coffee table in front of her, he nervously passes a hand through his hair, trying to find a way to get what he needed to say out. Jessa looked at him curiously, waiting for him to talk but finding herself growing impatient as the seconds passed.

“So, what did you want to talk about?” She urges calmly.

Adam’s forehead wrinkled in concentration, both of his hands pressed against his face as his fingers covered his eyes. “This isn’t something that I wanna have to tell you. I know this isn’t fair to you, especially after the whole thing with Hannah.”

“I’ve been doing some introspection, or whatever, and um...I’ve been going to meetings…”

“You’ve been going to meetings?” She interrupted, concern etched on her her face as her brows lifted before furrowing in thought.

“Yeah.”

“Well. Have you been drinking?”

“No!” He answered urgently. “I just…” Adam’s lips tense into an outstretched line for a brief moment while he finds a way to verbalize his thoughts.

“I’ve been going to meetings and taking time to think….And…” A few seconds pass. “Fuck” he whispered under his breath in a sigh. “And I’ve come to the conclusion that I; that WE..need time apart.” His eyes searched hers for any indication of understanding or sympathy, but they found nothing. Her gaze was blank as she was deep in thought as he spoke. “ Look, this has nothing to do with Hannah. Whatever she and I had. It’s over, it’s finished.” His baritone voice is soft and calm as he tries to sound as serious as possible. In his mind he is an adult trying to have a serious conversation with his partner. Gone is the lovable boyish demeanor he usually carried; replaced with a grim faced man as he leans over to look at her. His elbows rest on his knees and clasps his hands together, giving away his anxiety.

“I never told you how sorry I am for that...and I hurt you. It’s just that, I don’t know if it was filming the movie or if it was just life in fuckin’ general, but I was reminded of what Hannah and I had. I felt it, so I felt that there was too much history there to not try and set things right. To help her, and be there for her.” The sound of his voice reverberated through the small apartment as he looked at the floor. “ But we’re too different now and want different things. And...Now I feel like I need some space to figure shit out alone. Not just for me, because I really do care about you, Jessa.”

Jessa looks at the ground in silence, not wanting to look at him in the eyes and see her worst nightmare.

“I’m gonna be moving out, take the time to focus on my life. You can stay here, keep most of the stuff. I’ll still pay for your classes. I meant what I said.”

Jessa nods slowly, pursing her lips while processing his words.

“Okay...if that’s how you feel.” Her tone is a bit above a whisper, feigning understanding in her short words. She shrugs her shoulders and crosses her legs on the couch with a nonchalant expression. Like everything else, nothing fazes her.

Adam scoffs at her response, unable to believe how she can be so calm while he was essentially breaking up with her. No, he saw what this was. “ Oh, come the fuck on Jessa, this is just like last time. Do you seriously not give a fuck? I know you feel something. Get angry; hit me, throw something at me. For fuck’s sake, it isn’t good to bottle everything in...Just tell me how you feel.”

A deep sigh went through her nose, her eyes showed that something was beneath the surface as she shakes her head slightly and looks at him. “What do you want me to say? You haven’t done anything wrong. You’re communicating; and if this is how you feel, then there’s no point in fighting against it.”

‘Un-fucking-believable.’ Adam moves his left hand towards his cheek, lightly scratching at the hairs in his stubble. “That doesn’t mean that you’re not feeling anything; that your feelings aren’t valid.” He lets out a breath of frustration as he realizes that she put up her walls to him and she won’t budge. ‘The hitting and screaming would’ve been better.’ “Fine.”

Keeping with her attitude, Jessa clicks her tongue and leans back lazily before asking the dreaded question. “So when do you move out.”

“I was thinking about leaving today.”

“Oh...so you have a place to stay?”

“Yeah, I’m good. My stuff’s mostly packed, and I’ll come back for the rest later...But I wanna make sure you’re okay.”

“Adam, stop worrying! You’ve done nothing wrong. If you feel you have to do this; you gotta do what you gotta do.” A sardonic smile graces her face. She makes everything sound so simple; black and white.

He gently grabs her tattooed wrist in his large hand and looks deeply into her green eyes, trying to find a way to get through to her, to really talk to her.

“Hey..I still care about you. okay?” He told her gently, almost as if she were a child.

“Yeah.” Her response was short and curt.

Her walls remain up; impenetrable in their might as she refuses to show him, to show the world an ounce of vulnerability. A defense mechanism that took years in perfecting. An aloof facade she shows the world.

Jessa moves to get up, leaving him alone. Adam’s well aware that this was just a front, Jessa hasn’t changed,. He couldn’t tell how bad it was, but he’s doing this for her too. He knew it’d be worse if he stayed.

No other words were said as she sat crossed legged in their bed, smoking a cigarette while he finished packing. In the back of her mind she wonders if this is what being in a relationship is really like; being off and on, having that person come in and out of your life….It’s what her father did. ‘No’ She knows that’s not true. She’s seen people get married, have families and be happy. And besides, Adam’s not remotely like her father, he’s not like the previous men in her life. He’s different.

She moves to the kitchen, pouring herself a glass or orange juice, pretending that nothing is wrong, desperately trying to ignore his presence. She found it unbearable to watch as he left her for a second time. This time she’s more aware of her feelings for him, and she dreads what will become of them, of her while watching Adam go in and out of the apartment; getting his things downstairs.

He tried to be as quick as possible; throwing this mindlessly into garbage bags, making sure he took only what was important to him.

The hardest part about breaking up is trying to leave and stay on good terms. And he’s attempting to do just that. He figured that if he could do it with Hannah, maybe it was possible with Jessa.

Adam reached into his pocket and fished out his keys, he placed them on the counter beside the sink.

“You take care of yourself, okay?” He said awkwardly, looking at her one last time. His mouth is etched in a pout and his eyes are sullen at her lack of reply, but he still waits a few seconds for her, almost as if he’s waiting for the other shoe to drop. She didn’t say anything, she didn’t even look at him as he made his way out of the apartment.

Closing the door behind him, Adam takes a moment to just stand there, his mouth still set in a pout, his brows furrowed as he feels the weight of what’s happened.

Both lovers stand on either side of the closed door, each hoping that the other would take a step forward to open the door; to go back to the other, but neither one does. Adam stays there, feeling the guilt over what he’s done slowly spread; lamenting not just the loss of his lover, but the loss of his best friend.

‘It had to be done. There’s no point in staying anymore.’

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

Inside of the apartment, Jessa just stood there, staring at the door; willing him to come back to her. Her face morphs from boredom to one of pure heartbreak. Her eyes start to water as her breathing changes to an erratic pace.

In the cold emptiness surrounding her, she couldn’t pretend anymore. Her mask vanishes, revealing the abandoned girl underneath, watching as her friend walked out of their home and her life.

This time she can’t pretend that it doesn’t hurt; can’t deny the devastation she feels as her world blurs. She places the palm of her hands over her eyes as the tears overflow.

‘He’s done this before, and he came back; he’ll do it again.’ She reasons in her desperation, clinging to the idea that Adam will be back, that this is just a pattern. Because the alternative would be to accept that he left her for good.

‘Fucking Hannah!’ As she cries her thoughts become more chaotic. ‘Don’t go. Don’t do this to me.’ Her inner voice cries as she slides slowly towards the floor, bringing her knees towards her chest.

‘This is just how he is.’ She reasoned, still expecting him to come back, her mind repeating his last words over and over. He did say he cared about her, he still loved her; but as she continued to reason his return, a small part of her feared she was just clinging to an empty promise, that she was stupidly holding on to hope...and that he really did leave her.

The silence inside the apartment is maddening, the space is cold; isolated from the world filled only with her small cries.

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

He should be used to moving, considering how often he did in the past eight years, but no, it was always a bitch. And the worst part about it? Doing it because of a break up. To say that it was awkward was an understatement, but he needed to end things well off with Jessa. God knows he’s ran into people from his past before enough times to know better. New York may be populated by millions of people, but it can turn into a very small place, when Karma feels like it. It’d be worse if he didn’t do it this way, he’s sure of it.

After getting the last of his things upstairs, he starts unpacking bit by bit. He doesn’t have a refrigerator yet, or a bed for that matter; those come in tomorrow, but Adam has been through worse, and one day without furniture hardly phases him. That being said sleeping on the floor isn’t something he’s looking forward to. Plus, this is what friends are for isn’t it? ...to crash on their couch when needed?

Adam takes his phone out, scrolling through the few contacts saved in it. He could ask Ray; it wouldn’t be the first time he’d stay at his place, especially after a breakup. He could also ask Josh, he had offered his couch to let him crash before; maybe the offer’s still on the table.

‘Screw it.’

He hits on Josh’s contact and places the device next to his ear, waiting for a response on the other side of the line.

“Hey.” Josh’s deep voice sounds through the phone’s speaker.

“ Heeeey...listen, I got a favor to ask, if it’s not too much trouble, or whatever.” Adam started nervously, scratching his head as he talked.

“Yeah, man. Shoot.”

“I broke up with Jessa.” He blurted out. “I moved out.”

There was a slight silence on the line before Josh responded. “Well, shit. Do you need a place to stay? Until you find something?”

“I already got a place. I just need a place to crash until I can get the bed and fridge brought in here.”

“ Well you’re in luck, then. I’m actually on my way back from work. I gotta stop to pick up a few things and then I’m headed home.” Josh explained in his easy-going tone; like nothing bothers him at the moment. “ I’ll let Vanessa know; she’s coming over tonight.”

Adam hesitated “ I don’t wanna shit on your plans.”

“ Oh, fuck off. You’re not. Dude, trust me, Ness loves you. She’d be pissed if I didn’t help out. My sofa es su casa.”

Even though Josh can’t see him, Adam smiles at his friend’s words; his teeth peeking out from his lips and the corners of his eyes wrinkle as he does so. “ Yeah, okay. Just let me know when you’re at home. Text me or whatever.”

“You got it. Tonight we’re eating homemade Mexican food.”

“Yeah, Thanks.”

“Alright, see ya.”

With that, Adam hung up, comforted in the knowledge that he’ll be able to sleep in a comfortable, and most importantly cushioned, tonight. At least now he had a place to call his, and by pure stroke of luck, the apartment’s rent wasn’t as high as it could be. He’ll furnish it, little by little. He lives in New York, so someone’s bound to not want a couch somewhere. That leaves the matter of his kitchen. He’d have to buy glasses, plates and food, to at least have the very basics.

‘A bookshelf in the living room. I’ll put my bench in the bedroom...clothes go in the closet, I gotta get a chest or something with drawers..’

He turns to pick up the trash bags storing his clothes, taking them through the small hallway towards his bedroom closet. He’d have to do laundry before the end of the week, he reminded himself as he realized that he was in such a rush to pack everything that he didn’t think that some of his shirts in the bag used to be strewn across the floor of the apartment and stank of sweat.

He spent the next few hours doing what he can, organizing his clothes between what’s clean and what was to be laundered, he took his time to make sure everything was arranged to his liking; a far cry from how he was living 8 years ago. Back when he was an aimless mess living in an apartment cluttered with tools and random pieces of reclaimed wood; when he would rather fuck around with no strings attached than be emotionally vulnerable with someone.

To Adam, it seemed like a lifetime ago. Gone was the aloof fuckboy with an awkward haircut and no direction. Now in his place stands a more empathetic and responsible man.

His thoughts were interrupted as he heard his phone come to life, sounding an alert to let him know he had just received a text and prompting him to look for it. Reaching for his back pocket, he fishes out his phone to see a message from Josh came in saying ‘Just got in.’ on the lit up screen. He’d finish unpacking later; now he was hungry, and Mexican seemed like just the thing…

——————————————————

Hey guys, I’m baaaaack!!!! :D

2020 has been a hell of a year, but I still wanted to end it on a good note. So here we have a short but sweet chapter where Adam wants to leave Jessa to focus on himself, but he knows how fragile and lonely she can be and tries to do it gently....Does it work? We'll have to find out. Safe to say, Jessa will be a reoccurring guest star on this show, so we’ll see how Adam handles this and how he manages to move on. So, leave a comment and let me know what y’all think.

Mucho Love and and a happy New year!!😊

Xoxo Selene R

Tag list for some friends (let me know if you’d like to be added) 

@kowalskibro-adamdriverblog @tsarinastorm @alexdaleks @thrivingamidstchaos @klauscarolove @misskitred @ah-callie @sarcasticbitch @jynz-andtonic @oh-adam @commanderbensolo @kylos-wren @adamsnackler @patersonn-kylo @adamsnacc-kler @ellelaconiwrites @that-only-exists-in-my-mind @ktellmeastory @fallinallinmendes @noocturnalchild

[youllneverknowrac]

Oscar Diaz- Baby Boy

For @mrs-spookyd1az

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You waddle over to Oscar as he cooked on the grill, smacking his butt playfully with a laugh. He sets the clamps down and turns around, a grin forming on his face when he sees that it’s you. He instantly reaches out for you and pulls you in for a deep kiss, his hands resting on your large belly which held your baby boy who was soon to be born in the next few weeks. Your life now was completely different than what you would have imagined it two years ago. Oscar having left the Santos, leaving Cesar and him to fall out completely and him take over the gang. He had a real job now with legal income so you guys could actually afford to move to a nicer area with a huge backyard, which was currently filled with the few friends and the family that you guys actually associated with. However Oscar’s tattoos always being a reminder of the past along with his hard attitude that jumped out from time to time. You were proud of how far he has come, everything in your life going almost perfect. The only thing stopping that was your guy’s nonexistent relationship with his little brother.

“Making us a plate daddy?” You ask him when you pull away,”We’re really hungry.”

“Right on it mami.” He chuckles,”Now go sit down. I don’t want your feet to swell up again.” He instructs as he turns back around to make you a plate filled with a little bit of everything.

“Yes sir.” You tease before heading back to the table under the tree and taking your seat in the shade. Sitting by yourself until a familiar face joins you.

“Jasmine?” You ask with a small smile,”You actually came.” You say to the once little girl that you use to think was weird until she became apart of Cesars friend group a few years ago. Of course him not being friends with anyone any more you figured none of them would show up so you were really happy to see her.

“Hey Y/N! You look amazing.” She says and reaches down to give you a quick hug, which you return.

“Thanks! So do you.” You compliment.

“I just wanted to stop by and drop off a gift. I can’t stay for long. I have plans with Ruby and his mom but I wanted to come. Even if only for a few minutes because Cesar gave me something.” She tells you with a sad smile.

“Cesar? Really?” You ask with surprised eyes.

“Yeah, he came by my house and left this. Just asked if I could give it to you. He didn’t even let me reply before taking off.” She says and hands you a little blue box,” oh and this.” She adds, pulling out a small folded piece of paper.

You grow sad as you open it up and look at his hand writing,”For my niece or nephew, Uncle Cesar.” You read aloud. Jasmine reaching for your hand and giving it a comforting squeeze. You take in a deep breath and open the small box, tears welling in your eyes as you pull out the traditional tiny gold bracelet that was common for Hispanic baby’s. You and Oscar had planned on getting it made but couldn’t actually splurge on one since you had so many bills to pay now,”Thank you for bringing this by. I’ve missed you and everybody. I know things are different but you don’t have to be a stranger with me. None of you guys do.” You say and stand up to give her a proper hug.

“I know. It’s just been crazy with how much things are so different now.” She reply’s,”I’ll text you. Promise. I really have to go now though. I can’t be late.”

“Okay. It was good to see you Jasmine. Tell Ruby I said hi.”

“I will. Bye Y/N.” She says and hurry’s out the side gate as you sit back down and play with box.

“Sorry I took so long mamas. I got caught up talking.” Oscar says as he places a plate down in front of you,”Hey, what’s that?” He asks curiously.

“It’s a gift...from your brother.” You tell him and hand him both items. Oscar snatching both items quickly and looking over them,”Jasmine dropped it off.”

“So he can give us a flashy gift but he can’t stop by?” Oscar says angrily as he pulls out the seat next to you and takes a seat, that attitude that you mentioned earlier on full display as his eyebrows furrow.

“We don’t stop by and see him Oscar. At least he thought about us.” You say and use the table to help yourself stand up,”Don’t get upset, not today. We’re celebrating our baby. Your son, remember.” You tell him and sit down sideways in his lap so your able to face him,”Just be happy that he thought of us, this is proving that their is hope for us all to be a family again.” You say and press your fingers to his forehead to smooth out his face,”Calm down, Spooky is starting to make an appearance.” You say quietly, not wanting anybody to hear you call him that anymore.

He sighs and closes his eyes, his face softening,”You’re right. Let’s just enjoy our party. I’m going to go put this inside.” He says and pats your side, signaling for you to get up. You let him walk inside and take a few minutes to himself before he rejoins you. The two of you being called over to open the pile of gifts that had formed through out the day. You take his hand and go sit down in the two lawn chairs, the both of you being handed gift after gift to open for your baby boy. The rest of the baby shower went wonderful, now all that was left to do was wait until your son wanted to make his grand appearance into this crazy world.

~

It’s the middle of the night, a few days before you are due to deliver. You’ve been having contractions but not close enough to be able to be admitted to the hospital. You’re sound asleep when your stomach begins to hurts, the lower half of you body soaked from your water breaking. You gasp and turn the lamp on before shaking Oscar awake,”Baby. Baby wake up, my water broke.” You urge, shoving his side harder.

“Hm what?” He says sitting up and taking a few seconds to gather his thoughts before everything in his head clicks,”Oh shit.” He exclaims and jumps up quickly. He gets himself dressed before helping you up to your feet.

“I want to change first. I’m not going in this stupid gown.” You tell him seriously as you hold your stomach. Surprised that you weren’t scared and actually pretty calm,”Help me to the bathroom please. I want to wipe myself down. You might have to do that though, I can’t really lean down anymore.” You say, your stomach being on the larger side, your last ultrasound confirming that you would be pushing a almost nine pound baby out of you.

“How are you not freaking out right now?!” Oscars asks frantically.

“Not sure, I probably will once everything seems a bit more real.” You say and hold onto him as you walk into the bathroom. He helps you get undressed before grabbing a towel to dry you off.

“What do you want to wear?” He asks rushing around the room as you stare at yourself in the mirror,admiring your belly.

“Just get me a shirt and some leggings.” You shout out before quickly brushing your teeth and throwing your hair up. He comes back in and hands you the clothes before grabbing his truck keys and bags that you had pre-packed to load it up, thankful that the car seat was already installed and ready to go. You carefully manage to get yourself dressed, making sure you have your phone before going outside, Oscar nearly throwing you into the passenger seat as he helps you up.

As Oscar drives like a maniac to the hospital you use this time to text the most important people in your guys life. Only wanting a few people at the hospital to visit so you don’t get overwhelmed.

“Babe slow down.” You say,gripping the arm rest as a contraction hits,”Ow fuck,okay don’t slow down just be careful.” Oscar doesn’t respond as he keeps his eyes focused on the road.

When he reaches the entrance of the hospital he runs inside as you unbuckle yourself and open your door, your feet dangling as they hang. He comes back with a nurse who was pushing a wheel chair and helps you into it,”I’ll meet you inside.” Oscar tells you before hopping back into the truck to find a parking spot. Your wheeled inside and get admitted fairly quickly, Oscar joining your side in no time. In a few hours all this hassle being worth it when you finally get to hold your baby.

~

“Hi. I’m your daddy, that’s right, daddy...oh bless you.” You hear Oscar whisper softly as you stir awake. The bright room making you squeeze your eyes shut.

“I want to hold him again.” You say as you use the control on the bed to put you in a sitting position.

“You hear mommy? She’s awake now. Let’s go see her.” He says and joins you on the bed as you scoot over to make room for them.

You smile and carefully take the chunky baby from him, leaning over to kiss Oscar briefly,”He really does look like you. Oscar Junior is a fitting name.”You inform you,”It’s not fair though, I’m the one who carried him for nine months.

“He has your little toes.” Oscar says with a chuckle.

“Seriously?” You laugh,”his toes are small cause he’s small.”

Oscar grins and wraps his arm around you, staring at the two greatest accomplishments in his life,”Thank you for making me a daddy, baby.” Oscar says into your ear lovingly.

“Thank you for making me a mommy.”

“So are you still down to have four more of my baby’s?” Oscar asks, referring to a conversation that happened many moons ago.

“Definitely.” You nod with a giggle, no doubt in your mind that you would be in this same position in the next year or two with a new bundle of joy, and you would be absolutely okay with that