#oh but uh just a reminder that when it comes to interrogations you can ask pretty much anything kdklslsl

[linagram]

sometimes i kinda wanna rb ask games like i do for my other ocs, but then i remember that interrogations exist and they are. basically ask games.

[lovedrruunk]

'Girl next door જ⁀➴♡ Chapter 2

In which Joel plays Cupid in order to help a hopeless Ellie win over the cute girl next door.

Series Masterlist!

chapter 1! - chapter 3

"Coffees the way to a heart"

w.c; 1.6k

[silly awkward Ellie Williams x fem reader!]

She should've known not to trust Joel.

"Ellie, hey!"

There you stood behind the counter in your annoyingly cute barista uniform, welcoming her with that same bright smile you always seem to have on.

Earlier that morning, Joel had shuffled into the living room groggily, asking her to grab him his coffee from the new cafe in town—something about fancy brews and all that. Ellie, already dressed to go over to Dina's house and thinking this would only be a quick errand, agreed. But of course, being Joel, he had ulterior motives, so she couldn't help but feel unsurprised when she walked through the door and was met face to face with you.

Your eyes met the second the bell chimed, announcing her arrival. Walking towards you with a small wave she could feel her palms start to sweat.

"What brings you here?" you continued.

Ellie felt like she was being interrogated. She couldn't tell if it was the cute look on your face that made her nervous or the feeling of being in a new place like this. 'It's a cafe... I'm here for coffee duh ...Don't be a bitch, Ellie.'

"Just—coffee." She grinned slightly, failing to keep eye contact with you, hoping you wouldn't notice.

"For yourself?" you asked, raising a brow.

"Yeah." Ellie squeaked out, staring at you for a couple of seconds before continuing. "I, uh, developed a taste for the bitter stuff." She looked away, trying to seem cool, but her face seemed to drop the second she looked back at you. There you were, slightly leaning towards the counter, looking at her suspiciously, seeming entirely unconvinced.

"Sure you did," you said matter-of-factly, playing into her little lie. "What can I get you then?"

You'd say you knew yourself pretty well, but something that always seemed to puzzle you was just how much you knew about Ellie Williams. You knew about what she liked, what she disliked, and what you could say for certain was that Ellie disliked coffee. She had always had a sweet tooth that you vividly remembered, and you doubted that had changed.

Ellie scanned the menu, trying to pick something that sounded hardcore. "I'll take a… triple-shot espresso, extra dark."

"Coming right up!"

While Ellie stared at you as you prepared her coffee, she thought about why she felt the need to lie to you in the first place. A triple-shot extra dark coffee? Hell, she doesn't even know what that means. Maybe it was the way your eyes lit up when you saw her, or the way you leaned in a little closer while talking to her, but she just wanted to impress you in any way.

She glanced around the cafe, taking in the cozy atmosphere. It was a nice place, she had to admit. The smell of freshly ground coffee beans, the soft hum of conversation, you. She thought about how she wouldn't mind coming here more often... then was reminded of why she probably wouldn't.

"One triple-shot espresso, extra dark."

Ellie looked at you before staring at the cup. She comically gulped, making you chuckle. Grabbing it, she read the name written out in your handwriting.

"Elly?"

"Oh sorry, is that not how you spell it?"

"Ha ha, very funny." She rolled her eyes chuckling lightly before smiling back at you.

"Hey, so," you started as you went to put her cash in the register, "do you have any plans after this?"

Ellie froze for a second before stammering. "Uh, no, why?"

She physically had to force herself to stand still in that moment so she wouldn't start running laps around the cafe. She found herself so quick to lie to you again (which she did feel bad for!), but she was a firm believer in trusting her gut, and right now her gut wanted to spend some more time with you for whatever reason. Dina would understand. Besides, who would she be if she wasn't late?

"I have two of Joel's cupcakes in my lunchbox, and I'm taking my break soon. I wouldn't mind some company."

Ellie stood silently for a moment before nodding slowly.

"Yeah, okay. I'll just... go wait for you over there," she said, looking over to an empty table by the store front window.

"Sounds good! I'll be out in a minute." You smiled at her before walking away to talk to your coworker.

Ellie slowly made her way towards the table, sitting on the high chair. She was ecstatic. She had wished to hang out with you but never actually thought it would happen, at least not anytime soon. Now that she was actually here waiting for you, she realized she was a lot more nervous than she thought she would be. She replayed scenarios of how she would act, how she would talk, what she would say, but now that it was happening, her mind blanked.

She looked down at her hands, noticing the way they slightly shook. This is what she wanted, wasn't it? A chance to get closer to you. But not in a weird way. Because she's not weird. Was she? I mean, how could anyone blame her? You just had this presence that she couldn't explain no matter how hard she tried, and whatever it was, it made her want to impress you. She wanted to be cool, cool for you. To talk to you, to skip over to your house, to buy you pretty little things... y'know, like friends do... or whatever.

"Sorry if I took long."

Your voice snapped her out of her thoughts. Looking up, she saw you standing there with your lunchbox, smiling. She quickly took a sip of her coffee, trying to hide her nerves. The bitterness hit her like a truck and she barely managed to swallow it without making a face.

"No, not at all," she croaked, hoping you didn't notice her discomfort. "So, cupcakes, huh?"

You sat down across from her, opening the lunchbox to reveal two not-so-perfectly frosted cupcakes. "Yep! Joel's famous cupcakes."

Ellie nodded, taking another reluctant sip of her coffee. "You sure they're edible?"

You handed her a cupcake, and she took it, grateful for something to distract her from the awful taste in her mouth. Although it wasn't the best replacement, she deemed it good enough.

"Ha ha. Don't hate on Joel, okay? He tried his best! Plus, they're actually really good!"

Ellie looked back at you with a smile. You just couldn't help but defend that old fart, huh?

"Yeah, well, his best wasn't good enough," she said with a chuckle, looking back at her cupcake before taking a bite.

"Y'know, you could always wash it down with some of your coffee."

Ellie froze for a second, looking up at you before swallowing her bite.

"You're right." She smiled painfully.

Of course, you knew what you were doing. How couldn't you? She so obviously hated the coffee no matter how hard she tried to hide it. Teasing her about it would only be karma for her lying... and dissing Joel.

"It's good. Very... dark," Ellie insisted, making eye contact with you, taking another sip and trying not to grimace.

You chuckled, looking back at her, nodding your head. "Mhm. I bet."

"Fancy... brews."

"The fanciest."

"..."

Ellie blinked. Staring at you for a bit trying to read your expression, but you only smiled wider.

She quickly set the cup down, her cheeks flushing. "Okay, fine, you caught me. I hate this stuff."

You laughed, a light sound that made her insides twist in a good way. "I knew it. Ellie Williams doesn't like coffee. Who would've thought?"

"It tastes like liquid shit. I can't believe you actually work at a place like this."

You let out another laugh, the ice finally broken. Ellie felt a weight lift off her shoulders.

"Some things never change, I guess. Can't believe you lied, though. That's bad, Ellie. I made that coffee with love y'know? I feel extremely betrayed."

As you were busy rambling, she watched you take a bite of your cupcake, noticing the way your lips curled downwards for a split second.

"Holy shit... You hate those." Her eyes widened as she looked at you.

"What...?" You froze, looking back at her.

"You hate the cupcakes!" She was fully grinning now, pointing at you accusingly. "You're a fucking liar, you piece of shit!"

"Ellie, what the hell are you talking about!? Stop pointing at me!" you stuttered out, trying to defend yourself, smacking her finger away from you. "If I hated them so much, why would I pack some for lunch?"

"Probably to do what you're doing right now, give them away! Why else would you pack two?"

"..."

It was your turn to be silent now.

She scoffed, leaning back on her chair, looking at you still grinning widely. "Unbelievable..."

"Whatever. Unlike you, I had a reason to lie."

"Oh, c'mon, you and I both know Joel can't bake for shit. It’s no secret."

"Okay, fine," you conceded, laughing. "Maybe they're not the best, but it's the thought that counts, right?"

Ellie couldn't help but smile, thinking back to when Joel had told her the same exact thing. "Sure, let's go with that."

You both laughed again, the tension from earlier completely gone. It was casual, nice. She could totally get used to talking to you like this.

"So," you said, shifting the conversation, "tell me more about what you like to do. Besides lying about liking coffee."

Ellie chuckled, grateful for the change in topic. "Well, I play guitar, I have been for awhile now actually."

"Oh really? You should play for me sometime," you suggested, leaning forward with genuine interest.

"Yeah, maybe," She smiled looking away.

. . .

"He just gets a regular black coffee."

"What's he gonna say when he gets his coffee at 1pm?"

"I'll update you." She said with a small smile.

"I'd like that."

. . .

Thanks 4 reading u all! Notes r appreciated! :3

Authors note!! YALL SEE TRUMP GOT SHOT??? ellie wouldnt have missed... actually idk maybe she wouldve. ANYWAYS i actully DONT hate this as much as i did a week ago when i was working on it lolz! i think im just gonna make shorter cuter fics so i can post one every like 5 days yk!!! this was super fun SOOOOOOO SORRRRYYYYYYY ABT THE WAITTT GAHHHHH TOOK ME FOREVSSSSSSS i was SO busy and then SO lazy and then i also rlly hated everything i wrote but NOT ANYMOREEEE NEW ERA WOOO!!! TYSMMMM FOR THE PATIENCE I LOVE U GUYS UR SO FUNNY (๑>◡<๑)

also taglists r rlly confusing like am i doing it right... r yall getting tagged? (;° ロ°)

[TAGLIST YAY !!!! ヾ(＾ ∇ ＾).] @liasxeatt - @softlysunrays - @radioheadfan699 - @4ftergloww - @elliepoems - @sapphointhe21stcenturyposts - @cattjull- @elliescoolerwife @elliewilliamsrealgf - @ratdungeon - @nombreuxx - @localgirl56 - @givenoutlaw - @i-fucking-love-women-blog - @forgetdisturbance - @boobdrug - @ellieusedtampon - @marrycv - @cyberl33ch - @hysteriawillnotsuccumb (ILYY) - @ragd0ll-4 - @machetegirl109 - @3lliewilliamsluv3r - @tphmnv - @yumimak - @lesbian-useless - @criminallydownbad (ur so real) @robinphobia - @naoblack87 - @soupycloud

[ju1cyfru1t]

Hiii pooks! 😙 I love❤️ ur writhing sm

I’ve been having such a spider man phase after watching the new spider verse movie and I was wondering what would the turtles think when they figured out reader being NY’s Spider women or spider person like they haven’t told thier turtle bf about it and stuff (live for the drama😵‍💫)

Always love you and def feel free to ignore!

I LOVE THIS thank you pookie 🤭 hope u like it 🫶🏻🕸️ u didn’t specify so I’m gonna assume you meant the rise turtles!

Rise! Leo, Mikey, Donnie, Raph x Spider-Woman! S/O

ROTTMNT x Reader

fluff! :D, fem! reader, contains swearing, not proofread

Leo

- He may not be the brightest mutant, but he is observant

- Probably interrogated the info out of you

- -> “Y/N, where exactly were you last night?” “Oh, uh…I was with, um, April.” “That’s funny…considering April was with us!”

- It didn’t really shock him to find out you had a big secret, what did shock him is what that secret is

- He’s also a little hurt that you didn’t tell him. Don’t you trust him??? But that wasn’t his biggest concern

- “Wait, so like…spider woman as in like, big mama kind of spider woman?” NO-

- You would have to really explain it to him

- But let’s be real, he still wouldn’t understand so you’d have to show him by like climbing up the fucking wall or something

- But he really does think your powers are super sick

- Laughs when you try to explain your spidey senses -> “wait, you’re serious?”

- ^ calls them your “tingly thing”

- maybe you can web his fucking mouth shut

- LOVES your suit, thinks you look stunning and super awesome

- “You know, I always said that was your color Y/N!”

- Invites you to patrol with them! (then he doesn’t have to do as much)

- thinks you’re so hot when you fight (NOT IN A FREAKY WAY YOU FREAKS) and hypes you up

- freaks tf out if he ever gets a web on him, including if you were to swing with him to get out of harms way

- doesn’t ask for them, but he can’t deny he likes the iconic Spider-Man kisses

Mikey

- would just straight up ask if you’re hiding something. Dr.Delicate touch DOES NOT PLAY ‼️

- Of course this would be something you’re hesitant about, but he would remind you that you can confide in him

- Def was not expecting THIS.

- He is asking you a million questions all at once, and will sit nicely and listen as you explain with starry eyes (stop lookin at me with them big ole eyes)

- You’re #1 fan and biggest hype man

- Thinks you’re the coolest person ever fr

- Wants to swing around on your webs with you. Around NYC, in the lair, in Donnie’s lab, on missions, it doesn’t matter he WANTS it.

- THE ICONIC SPIDER-MAN KISSES ALL THE TIME ITS HIS FAVORITE WAY TO KISS YOU NOW

- weirdly interested in your webs 🕸️

- Compliments your suit anytime you wear it around him; thinks your mask is so so cute

- ^ in his free time he’ll sketch and color new suit designs to show you (also just drawings and paintings of you in your suit)

Donnie

- isn’t going to pry any secrets from you; but he does secretly wish you’d come to him on your own.

- so you can imagine his gratitude and relief when you finally tell him what’s up

- Doesn’t really say anything about it, but he doesn’t get why you didn’t just tell him sooner. I mean, you do know he’s a hero too, right?

- he’s fascinated, he’s never seen anything like your powers before. especially because you’re not a mutant.

- really just asks questions about how it all works. Your webs, how you stick to surfaces, your enhanced senses, the whole deal yk?

- He did NOT like big mama’s webs, and he doesn’t really like yours either I’m so sorry.

- ^if he needs them, would ask to use some like he did with Big Mama’s

- It’s not you I swear he just can’t do it

- you could like climb all over his lab ceiling and walls and scare the shit out of him tho

- ^ “Y/N get down this instant! WE TALKED ABOUT THIS-“

- admires your enhanced senses and intuition of danger

- is absolutely gonna make gear for you, as well as offering to make upgrades to your suit

- wouldn’t really directly say it, but he really likes the design of your suit. it just fits you so well. (he IS going to make a purple one for you)

- would scream if you ever just dropped down in front of him to kiss him spider man style

- ^ traumatized; it’s not his favorite thing but he doesn’t mind terribly

Raph

- might take him a while to notice if something is off about you. Leo or Mikey would probably have to directly point it out for him to realize fully

- Isn’t going to beat around the bush and just asks why you’re acting lowkey shady

- really shocked, might take him a second to process even if he doesn’t really know exactly what you mean at first

- honestly he understands why you keep it a secret, just a little saddened that you kept it from him

- He’s gonna need you to really explain your powers

- “…where do the webs come out of tho?”

- would deepen your bond and connection. you can really relate to each other carrying a deep burden and the pressure of responsibility.

- AMAZING DUO with his strength and your agility

- very good hype man

- takes you on most missions and patrols, thinks you’re a really valuable asset to the team

- also calls your spider senses your “tingly thing”

- it’s not that he doesn’t like your webs, something about them just make him nervous. Refuses to let you swing him on them unless he’s in immediate danger.

- does NOT let you crawl around the lair walls, he’s scared you’ll hurt yourself

- ^ “Y/N! You’re gonna hurt yourself, GET DOWN!”

- really thinks you look so pretty in your special suit, he just doesn’t know how to say without feeling like he sounds dumb. He would DIE if it was red.

- “ I really…er, like your costume.”

- very supportive! he gets the struggle of protecting the city, but is happy you get to do it beside each other. :D

- he likes the spidey kisses, they just really fluster him

——————————————————————————

y’all I’m sorry if there is any misinformation in this don’t flame me but I haven’t seen atsv yet

[webslingingslasher]

omg i need to see “mutual friends alerting the other about something they definitely deserve to know” and “anxiously waiting for them to come home so that they could give them a piece of their mind” please!! i love your angst it’s soul crushingly delicious 🫶

whew i got carried away, but this is a fave out the gate

It started as a dare, a shitty, drunken, jokeable dare. 

“I dare you….” Flash hiccups then burps in his hand, he chuckles and throws it at MJ who gags, “I dare you… Y/N…. to kiss Parker.” 

You made eye contact with Peter, it was a dumb dare, you were new to the group of friends, but even you could play into the game. You shrug like, ‘what’s the big deal?’ Peter acts the same, he’s not in highschool anymore, he wasn’t scared to kiss girls.  

“Okay, let’s go Peter.” You stand to wave him over to the closet, Flash stops you with a buzz sound. “Nope, right here where we can all see.” You look at him oddly, “that’s weird but okay.” 

You and Peter are friends, he’s cute sure but you weren’t hungry for his attention, you just thought he was kind and funny, and quiet, but somehow full of charm so when he spoke you made sure to listen. But it’s not like you had a crush on him or anything. 

Peter stood in front of you, you stepped closer and pulled his neck towards you. 

“Pucker up, parker.” 

And… holy shit. 

The kiss was like fireworks, a feeling like you’ve never had before. It made your entire body buzz like when you whack your funny bone against a doorframe. Neither of you could pull away, both experiencing what true blissfulness was made of, forgetting the dare you lost yourself into Peter. 

Until the group laughs, it makes you feel like this was a set up. 

“Not bad, Parker.” You’re breathless. 

“Not so bad yourself,” he is too. 

You shrug, “a dares a dare, right?” 

“Anything to please the peanut gallery,” Flash chugs his cup while Ned counts down. 

Something in both your eyes told each other it wouldn’t be the last time.

Safe to say, it was no one's question how you’ve found yourself in Peter Parker’s bed for the hundredth time. 

Friends with benefits sucks, give someone the girlfriend benefits, she’ll think she’s the girlfriend. It really, really hurt to find out you weren’t, no matter how aware you were the reality check hit you hard. 

“Uh, I don’t…. Look, you and Peter are hooking up right?” 

You could deny it, but that would be dumb. The friend group knows it, you both won’t confirm or deny, but when you hook up with someone who’s roommate is in the friend group, people are gonna know.  

“Something like that.” 

MJ sniffed, “but, you’re not serious right, like you’re not secretly dating or anything?” 

You don’t like that she’s asking questions, MJ was one of those ‘the less I know the better’ people, so her asking gave you an edge, there was a reason for the interrogation. 

You narrow your eyes, did Peter put her up to this? Does he want to know if you want more, or maybe he’s trying to see if you caught feelings. 

“Who’s asking, did Peter put you up to this?” 

MJ looks sad when you say that, a small frown pulls at the corner of her lip. “No, nothing like that. I just want to make sure you guys aren’t a thing.” 

Why was she acting so odd, this was an one eighty from her normal self. 

“What’s with the interrogation, trying to get a job with the FB-” 

“Peter’s hooking up with another girl.” 

MJ’s voice was rushed, like she had to say it right then or it would be taken to the grave. She gasps for air, like the admission choked her. Your ears ring, head feels hot and fuzzy, your chest clenches, you think you’re going to puke. 

MJ repeats your name, you can’t stop reciting her words. 

She snaps, you blink. “Oh.” 

It shouldn’t hurt like this. It was friendly, it was not supposed to be serious. But then the line between friends with benefits and dating started to blur more and more and suddenly you were only reminded you weren’t dating when you were around your friends. But there was trust, it was supposed to be about trust, and part of that was not hooking up with anyone else. The rules were if either one started to hook up with other people it would stop, but he broke the rules. 

You never took Peter Parker to be a rule breaker. 

“I’m sorry. I wasn’t sure if it was serious between you guys but when I saw him kiss her I-” 

You held up a hand, you didn’t want to hear the rest of it. It didn’t matter, he broke a promise, and so did you. No one was supposed to get hurt, and yet here you are ready to break down the second you’re able to get alone. 

“Fuck.” you whisper the words, nothing else comes to mind. You just wanted to disappear, everything was numb and you wanted to go back in time three months ago and just take a shot instead of participating in Flash’s dumb dare. 

“MJ, I’m sorry but I have to go, I think I have to break up with Peter.” 

Her shoulders slump, “do you want a hug? She’s not even a fan of physical affection but you look desperate to be comforted, you wave her off, you tell her if she touches you you’ll cry. She apologizes, she hates that she had to be the one to tell you. 

You tell her it’s fine. You say it enough to yourself you start to believe the lie, all you have to do is erase Peter from your place, then he can leave your mind. So, the moment you enter your own apartment, you pick up every piece of his and stow it in a box. 

Clothes, games, books, a toothbrush, a watch, even his spare phone charger. Nothing of his was to stay, to solidify the importance of this decision, to prove that you were serious you stripped your sheets and made a trip to the laundry room before sending a text to Peter. 

“Come pick up your shit.” 

He answered with a question mark, you didn’t even give him the satisfaction of seeing a read receipt. 

You felt ballsy, and you even had the fire in you for a minute. But the idea of seeing Peter any minute, and having to confront him, look in his baby brown eyes and pull the plug aches you. It hurt to know that if he had begged and asked for a do over there would be a large chunk of you that would dare say yes, anything to keep him. 

But he broke the rules. 

Without rules it’s only chaos and destruction, you didn’t need that with him. 

You imagine how you’ll do it. 

Throw the box at him, tell him it’s over and make him leave? No, you’ll have to see him again. 

Tell him he’s a lying piece of shit that broke your heart? No, you’ll have to see him again. 

Ask him why he’d do this with you knowing you’d catch feelings? No, you’ll have to see him again. 

Yell at him? Curse his name, tell him he’s a monster, that he broke the most important rule? No, you’ll have to see him again. 

Tell him you loved him, and you thought he did too?

No, you’ll have to see him again. 

It all ends the same, you’ll have to see him again knowing what you had and what he did. Or, you just leave the friend group, it would suck not having friends but you could make new ones, ones you didn’t sleep with no matter how cute, or how good kissing them feels, no matter if they promise they won’t hurt you like the others did. 

You washed down the imagery with a glass of wine, nothing felt right and you had no reason to be anxious. You pour another half glass, swig most down, then head to the building’s basement to put your sheets in the dryer. 

Nothing feels as right as Peter, you hate that he’s making you do this. 

You felt your stomach knot up when there was a knock on the door, you knew it was Peter. Your roommate was at her girlfriend’s and had a key, you only invited Peter over for the night, you wonder if it might be MJ but she would never show up unannounced. 

He knocks again, you finish the second glass of wine. 

Peter’s face lights up when you swing the door open, his eyebrows rise and so does his grin. 

“Hi, baby.” He’s cheerful, dressed in gray sweatpants and a hoodie, his white and blue Nikes poked out the bottoms. He looked adorable and you hated it, you were supposed to hate him, not hug him. 

You pointed at his box of things on the coffee table. 

“I packed your shit up.” 

Peter stepped through the door, looked at you then the box, then you, then the box. Finally, “why?” 

“So it’s easier to carry out, silly.” 

You wish your sheets were done, your hands need something to do, they’re starting to shake. 

Peter shakes his head like he’s trying to wash the response from his head, “why would I need to carry my stuff out?” 

This wasn’t a scenario you dreamed up, just being blunt. 

“Because I’m breaking up with you.” 

Peter’s face twitches, you raise a finger to continue. 

“Correction, I’m ending things. To break up we’d have to date, you just fucked me.” 

Talk about blindsided. Peter thinks he’s been shot, puts a hand on his chest and slumped in the chair next to the table with his things. He’s checking to see if his heart is still there, it feels like it dissipated the second the words left your lips. 

His head falls into his hand, he rubs at his jaw. 

“I…” He didn’t know where to go with that. 

I thought we had something? 

I thought this meant more than that? 

I thought I loved you, and you did too? 

Instead he sighs, he can’t make you change your mind. 

“Okay. Um, okay. Sure.” He slaps his thighs then rubs at them, he doesn’t want to leave, it will feel real. 

Finally he looks towards you, “why?” Peter’s voice cracked, he was distraught, if you weren’t so upset yourself you’d want to console him. 

You round the corner, you look at his things tucked in the box. Small things, but held memory. The first shirt you slipped on after he came to yours, the toothbrush you made space for on your counter, a comic book he had read you, his wristwatch. It was bulky and digital, you found it on your desk while he was in the shower, you strapped it on but it still loosely dangled, you ran into the bathroom to rip the curtain back, you remember shoving your arm in his face. 

“Look at me, I’m go go gadget.” 

You didn’t realize you had it in your hand until the watch face blinked at you, that’s when you noticed you were crying. 

You were supposed to be tough, he wasn’t supposed to see you cry. You were supposed to hold it together and show that you didn’t need him. 

But you weren’t tough, and you were crying, and the one person who could make the hurt go away was the same one that caused it. 

“You broke the rule,” your words wavered, you tried to say it strongly. 

Peter’s mind is racing, what rule, what rule, what rule? 

“MJ told me you hooked up with someone else.” 

Confusion fell over his face, if you didn’t trust MJ as much as you did you might question if she made the whole thing up. 

“No, I didn’t… I didn’t break the rule.” Peter’s head shakes slowly, he’s trying to piece together the information, he didn’t hook up with anyone else, he swears on it. 

You sniffle and wipe at a stray tear, Peter looks at you sad, you know he wants to hold you tight. 

“MJ said you were kissing someone else.” 

He’s still searching in his mind, you can tell. The new information races through his memory, he’s searching for a kiss, then it clicks, he knows what MJ’s talking about. 

“Oh!” He jumps up, he can save this. 

“I know what she’s talking about. Yes, MJ is not lying, I did kiss another girl.” 

Your face drops, it felt like a suckerpunch when he admitted it. Peter sees the hurt cross over your face, he reaches out for your arms but you shy away, he hates that you won't let him touch you. 

“Peter, I don’t… this meant something to me, something really big, and I thought it did for you too.” 

Peter doesn’t like how this is going, he can save this, he knows it. 

“It did! It does! Just, hear me out, please?” 

You don’t say anything but your glance at his face is taken for a go ahead. 

“It was at the Bjorn party, I went with MJ and I swear it all makes sense cause she was giving me the stink eye the whole ride home and I had no idea why. But there was this girl there and I swear to you on everything I just walked by and she grabbed me.” 

You scoff, “real believable, peter. Next you’re going to say you had no control over it and she threw herself on you?” 

Peter winced, “kinda, but not really. She was quick with it, I did pull back but she pulled me back in and I could just see she was… I don’t know, terrified. She looked absolutely petrified and I just knew she needed someone she could trust and I gave her a second to explain. Her ex-boyfriend was at the party and he’d been stalking her and she couldn’t find her friends and she said she was with her new boyfriend but she didn’t have one and he’d been following her around to prove she didn’t have a boyfriend,” 

He was just rambling and confusing you now, “where is this going, peter?” 

Peter sighed, this time when he reached for your hand you let him grab it. 

“She asked if I would kiss her to get her ex off her back, that’s it. MJ must’ve seen me at the right time, but I promise that was it.” 

You looked him up and down, he seemed sincere. 

“I didn’t even get her name, we didn’t make out either. It was just a peck that lasted like ten seconds, and I would’ve told you, I swear. If I had ever done anything with anyone at any point during this I would’ve told you, but I forgot about it. It was like a favor, and I just didn’t think about it like that.” 

“How did you kiss her?” 

Peter’s eyebrows turn in, “I just told-” 

“No, show me.” 

He looks surprised but he won’t ask questions, actually he will ask one. 

“Do you want me to replay the exact scene or just the kiss?” 

Your eyes sparkled, “if you’re offering a theatrical rendition I won’t say no.” 

He looks behind him and pulls you over to the wall, he spins you so your back is against the wall. 

“Okay, so I’m gonna walk past you and you need to pull me in by my shirt, got it?” 

You bite back a laugh and nod, he returns a grin and jogs backwards. He gets into character and clears his throat, then begins to walk by. You do as he says and reach out, you pull the pocket of his hoodie and tug him into you, on instinct his hand hits the back of the wall and he looks shocked, he pulls himself away. 

“Pull me back in, closer this time.” He spoke from the corner of his mouth, you follow instruction. His hips brush against yours, he tries to move away but you improv and hold him to you. “Now start rambling off about your creep ex boyfriend and you want me to kiss you.” 

If he wants damsel in distress you’ll give it to him. 

The back of your hand comes up to rest against your forehead as you swoon, “oh, mr handsome hero man, please help me, my ex boyfriend, you see, he’s been watching me and i’m all alone and scared and I need a big strong man to bravely kiss me so he’ll leave me alone, are you up to the task my knight in shining armor?” 

Peter nods along with your words, “that’s exactly how it happened.” 

“And being the man up to the task, I spun her like this,” he pulled at your hip so your right side was pushed against the wall, “so he could get a view, and I kissed her like this,” his hand came up to cup your jaw, but there was no softness. His thumb didn’t brush over your cheek like it normally did, he didn’t brush your hair back or look in your eyes and smile softly, like every moment before kissing you was just a lead up until he could. He just grabbed your face and pulled you in a little, mostly he was leaning to meet you, and placed his mouth against yours. 

No flow or movement, just a holding kiss against your top lip. At the last second he pulled and gave you a little movement, nothing more than a few seconds. At max, a ten second kiss. And it lacked everything Peter normally gave you, it was disappointing to say the least. Frustrating and pathetic at most. 

Peter could read on your face you absolutely hated that, he understands, it was a shit kiss. But it also wasn’t you he was kissing, so he gave nothing, and he’s showing you exactly how it happened. 

“I pulled away first, by the way. And-” 

“Peter, I’m gonna need you to kiss me for real, I need to wash that down with something good.” 

He hummed, “sure thing, honey.” It was a real kiss, a Peter kiss, the one where he pulls you in delicately, he looks over your face and smiles, his thumb wiped under your eye catching a fallen eyelash. He captures your bottom lip, and breathes into you, you follow his mouth with each movement. He won’t pull away first, he’s already on thin ice, he thinks that for the next week absolutely anything you want will be granted. 

When you broke off and his eyes opened you couldn’t help the blush that took over. There’s that love, you say to yourself. You need to hear the rest of the story. 

“You may now continue the tale my noble knight,” you bow to him. 

“It worked, when we turned around he was gone. She thanked me and then told me she hoped my girlfriend wouldn’t mind me helping her out.” 

You raised an eyebrow and crossed your arms over your chest, a hip cocked out. “Girlfriend?” 

Peter laughed, he held a hand over his chest. “I swear to god, she said the only way I would kiss her like that was because I had a girl, she said she could tell and that's why she could trust me. She said something about girl code and helping sisters out but I wasn’t a sister, so that part confused me.” 

At last you reached out to hug him, “your girlfriend isn’t mad and she’s glad you helped a sister in need. She also will put your things back where they were.” 

Peter’s arms wrap around you just as tight, “did you just become my girlfriend?” 

You nod against his chest, your cheek squished against his chest, “yeah,” you dragged out. 

Peter squeezed you, like he’s won a golden ticket he mumbles against the crown of your head, “sweet.” 

You shove him back in panic, an alarm bell in your head. 

“Oh shit! My sheets!” 

[dumplingsjinson]

Let me just uh, set some hard fucking boundaries with some of you people in regards to MY relationship.

Do not keep questioning my choices on MY relationship.

First of all, you're not in this relationship. Let me mess up and find out, if worse comes to worst. Let me fuck around and find out. I'm not going to blame you for not warning me, don't worry. Seriously. So stop questioning me.

Don't keep asking me, "Why don't you label things with him? I think it's bullshit that there are no labels. What's the POINT of this relationship if you're not labelled as such and such? You're just wasting your time. Stop that. It's weird. This doesn't seem right to me. Why call it exclusive if there's no labels?"

Let me fucking date how I want, damn. Let me be in a goddamn relationship how I want, without me needing to explain myself to you. You, who I don't even know. You, who's not even a mere acquaintance of mine. Even my friends aren't questioning me, so who are YOU to question me when you know virtually NOTHING about our relationship?

Why are YOU, as someone who doesn't know the full fucking picture, trying to enforce your rigid little rules onto ME? If you like labels and only commit strictly with someone once those labels are established, good for you! Do you!

But don't go on the internet, read the stuff someone shares (which doesn't paint the whole picture, mind you, because I'm not sharing my whole goddamn life biography on here) and then go running into their inbox and yell at them for their choices, or because their choices differs from yours. Don't do that because you don't KNOW them. Don't act like you know everything from the small details you've read. Yes, I share things on here, but only things I'm comfortable sharing. Surface level shit, basically.

What you think is normal isn't always someone else's normal. Please remember that.

The way some of you act in my inbox... It's embarrassing at best and disgustingly rude and kind of intrusive and also insulting at worst. And because you've got the anon feature on, you think you can just say anything. (That's a whole other rant I've been wanting to get off my chest. I've got a few drafts I've never posted that are from months ago lmfao).

Now, to tone down the aggressiveness for a fraction of as second, I get you care about me and it's probably coming from a good place, but I am TWENTY. THREE.

Let me remind you.

TWENTY THREE.

Not three.

Not thirteen.

TWENTY. FUCKING. THREE.

I can make my own decisions. I am a legal adult, probably moreso than some of you out here coming into my inbox and full on trying to start an interrogation with me like I did something wrong for wanting to do things MY way for MY relationship.

And SLIGHTING me for my choices is where I'm setting the hard boundary at.

DO NOT, and I repeat:

DO NOT...

...under any circumstances, come into my inbox and act like I'm a dumb fucking bitch. (I am a dumb fucking bitch, but I'm also a self aware dumb fucking bitch. There's a difference.)

I know what I'm doing, I know the consequences, I know what I'm in for. I'm not fucking stupid and naive. I'm not a 13 year old about to start her first relationship with her high school crush.

So stop treating me like a donkey, and stop questioning my choices. Remember, as harsh as this sounds, some of you need to hear this and REALISE this: You've got no place in my life to do that. Absolutely fucking none.

Learn to read the room and learn that there are lines that shouldn't be crossed.

OH, I need to add this here. Before some of you come into my inbox and ask me WHY I'm sharing shit if I'm not open to opinions on my choices... There's a difference between opinions and civil discussions, and crossing someone's boundaries and questioning their choices because you think YOUR way of doing things is the right way to do things.

Just because I share some stuff on here doesn't mean that warrants you an automatic pass to shit on my choices. Fuck that bullshit, because that's just shitty behaviour and you need to look inwards and realise you're doing a lot more harm than good by being a piece of shit to someone you essentially do not know.

Remember, if you won't say this shit to someone in real life while looking them in the eyes, then don't fucking say it on anon in some stranger's inbox. That's a dick move, and you're a prick if you do that. Fix yourself, for the sake of humanity.

That is all.

[cal-daisies-and-briars]

🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸

*wipes sweat off brow* 126 for Vampires!

----

By the time they make it to the apartment in Boyle Heights, it’s too late. The young man is dead.  It doesn’t take much from Hen and Chim to determine that. Police are on the scene moments later, because it’s pretty clear this is a crime. 

He was butchered. 

Wooden stakes lay scattered on the floor around the guy’s corpse. Some are splintered and broken off. There’s blood everywhere. So much of it, pooling out of various puncture wounds across the guy’s body. This is not the easiest way to kill a person. A person who Buck presumes must have been a vampire. No, this was targeted. Angry. Hateful. 

A reminder of the risk telling anyone about Eddie had posed. The more people who know, the more likely someone like this finds out. 

“Oh, looks like Buckley was here,” Andy, the new guy, jabs when they walk in on the body.

Bobby whirls on him before Buck has the chance. 

“Another word like that and I’ll end your career.” 

Andy doesn’t say a thing after that.

They leave soon after. There’s nothing for them to do. They came because he’d been alive when he called 9-1-1, frantic and asking for help. He hadn’t explained the nature of his wounds. It looks like he must have pulled the stakes from his body. If he’d left them in, they might have been able to save him. 

He texts Maddie to update her. She was the one who took the call. She’ll want to know how it ended. 

That’s so horrible.

Is Maddie’s reply. 

He said his name was Curtis. He was twenty-two. Just a kid really. 

Buck resists the urge to reply with see? See why I didn’t tell you? 

After texting Maddie, he sends Eddie a quick message. He has a missed call from him and wants to make sure everything is okay. 

He’s sitting in the back of the engine, beside Hen, who gives his arm a reassuring, gentle squeeze when she sees the tense, almost nauseated look on his face. From their angle, Buck can see that Bobby is also engrossed in his phone. There’s a wide-eyed, concerned look on his face. 

He turns around to look at Buck, face tight. Buck is about to ask him what the problem is when Eddie texts him back. 

May collapsed when we were out. She’s healed. She’s normal again. 

Buck thinks his ears genuinely start to ring. He looks back at Bobby, who just gives a little nod when he sees Buck’s expression. 

“Buck and I are going to run an errand in the battalion truck when we get back,” Bobby announces. “Hen, can you hold down the fort while we’re gone?”

Buck very subtly turns his phone screen for Hen to read. Hen’s eyes go big behind her glasses. 

“Uh, yes. Yes, of course, Cap.”

Buck thinks about the dead kid in the apartment. The brutality of his murder. Buck feels whiplash between two emotions; rage and heartache for this dead man, and immense relief for May. How strange that in the span of an hour, the day could go so wrong for one, and so well for another.

He has no idea how badly this thought will come back to bite him. 

🩸🩸🩸

Eddie is sitting with May and Athena at their kitchen table when Bobby and Buck come practically bursting through the front door. After Eddie gave Athena a rundown of what happened - with police interrogation levels of specificity - it’s mostly been quiet. Everyone needs to process. Especially May. 

It’s strange. Eddie finds himself in the weird position of envying her and worrying for her. She looks genuinely shell shocked. Struggling to adjust to the old-new way her senses work, just like it had been a struggle when they were first infected. Except, without the uncontrollable bloodlust and impulsivity. Thank god for that. Eddie doesn’t miss the confusion. Not at all. But what would he do to wake up without this? A lot. He thinks he’d do an awful lot to be rid of it.

May springs to her feet when Bobby enters the room, chest pain clearly improving. 

“It’s true?” Bobby asks. Buck lingers behind him in the kitchen entryway. 

May nods, teary-eyed. 

“I don’t know why. It just… It just happened.”

Bobby strides over to May and wraps her in a big hug. 

“I’m so glad you’re okay,” he says. “So, so glad."

Eddie gets the sentiment. Glad she’s cured. Glad collapsing hadn’t been something worse. Glad she made it out of that cafe without too many questions. There’s a lot to be glad for. Certainly, if it was Christopher in this position, Eddie would be too relieved for coherent thought. 

“Thank you,” May mutters, eyes watering, tucking her head into her shoulder.

They were always close before, Eddie thinks. May has always loved Bobby like a second father, with no reservations. But he thinks they seem closer now. That this horror has only woven them closer. He thinks he understands that too. He’s far too afraid to tell his own parents about this condition. If he could? If he had parents who’d protect him the way Athena and Bobby protect May? That would mean the world to Eddie. 

It doesn’t matter, though. He has Buck. He has Sophia. He has the 118 again. There are people who will protect Eddie, too. 

Buck walks around May and Bobby to where Eddie sits and puts a hand on his shoulder. 

“You good?” He asks quietly. 

Eddie nods. “It was a bit of a scramble to get her out of there quick enough that we beat the paramedics. Sorry if that was your call.”

He knows that’s not what Buck means by his question, but he’s not ready to get into any more complicated emotions right now. 

“It wasn’t,” Buck shakes his head. He scowls. Actually scowls. “We, uh… We came from a murder.”

“Oh?” Athena asks. 

“A hate crime,” Bobby says, pulling away from May, who takes her seat again. 

“Vampire?” May asks.

Buck nods. “Kid about your age in Boyle Heights. Staked.”

[whysamwhy123]

The wonderful @ayumidah gave me some words (but only one of them appears in any of my WIPs) but not in ask form, so I'm making this separate post with the snippets! There's quite a lot under here and most of it is...well. Y'know. 🙂🙂🙂

The word in question is ''Sleep''. (I considered adding all the uses of phone, but you said phone battery and that narrows it down to none and this post was long enough as it is soooooo)

1)

It almost stops him from noticing the bags around Hook’s eyes, like he hasn’t been sleeping well. Concern cuts through all the happiness. He doesn’t want to ruin the moment and turn this into an interrogation, but he’s already thinking of ways to politely ask if Hook’s okay.

Before he can say anything, Hook asks, ‘’How’s your little vacation going?’’

Orange wants to remind him it’s not much of a vacation, more of a work obligation, but he’s pretty sure the kid knows that. He’s just being a little shit, as per usual.

‘’Well, I had to watch Fulham play, so - not great.’’

2)

(This has a lot of instances of the word, but I went with this one. Disclaimer, Hook is high as a kite in this fic)

Orange decides to take a different approach. ‘’You know what would be really fun?’’

Hook legitimately gasps. ‘’What?!’’ he asks, looking up at him, wide-eyed.

‘’If we went to bed. Right now.’’

Hook giggles. ‘’We are in bed…’’ he slurs.

‘’Then let’s get some sleep, huh?’’

Hook grins. ‘’Don’t wanna.’’

3)

But it’s not like he’s the first wrestler to sleep with fans, right? The way some guys in the locker room talked about it, they made it seem like it was a rite of passage. Or just…a right that wrestlers had. We put our bodies on the line, every week, to entertain these people. So what’s the harm in this? And it’s not like Hook was hurting anybody. Unless they asked him to, of course.

But this time was different. This time, he has hurt someone. Someone he loves.

(Uh ohhhhh, did Hook do something baaaaaaad in this fic?? 🙂🙂🙂)

4)

Orange glares over at him. He desperately taxes his sleep-addled brain for some kind of retort. The best he can come up with is ‘’I’m gonna say the exact same thing to you when you turn forty.’’

Hook doesn’t miss a beat, his response is instantaneous. ‘’You’ll be fifty-five by then.’’

Orange’s entire being is overcome with the unrelenting terror that is the passage of time. He stares off into space, his brain effectively broken for several moments.

5)

Her words flashed in his mind again and his cock twitched with interest.

Daniel’s hand pulled away, lightning fast. ‘’Oh hell no. No, no, no, no way! I’m not - ‘’

He stared down at himself, at the tent he was starting to pitch. For the sake of his sanity, he told himself that it was because he was thinking about Julia. Not the specific act she mentioned, just Julia. How could he not get a little hard thinking about her?

He didn't get any sleep (or relief) that night.

(Oh...right. This fic 😬 Filling this away in the Probably-A-Good-Thing-I-Never-Finished-It camp)

[grizzlyofthesea]

Dedication and Potential

Now that I've gotten the backstory out of the way, maybe I can elaborate on truly forming those sibling bonds. It's "fun" writing instead of "work" writing, anyway. See this post for the meanings and general theme of the titles.

~

Regiomontanus. Born in 1436 in Königsberg, died in 1476 in Rome. He put together some of the very first trigonometric tables, constructed some astronomical tables, devised an astrological house system, and facilitated the development of Copernican heliocentrism. Though the wider public may not recognize him, he is at least significant enough to have been the namesake for a crater on the Moon.

He also happens to be the namesake for a newly-created sea turtle mutant.

Regiomontanus. Reggie. Gigi. Monty. Gio. Montana. Whatever you want to call them, they're a new acquaintance to and potential family member of another group of mutants. These ones are mutant turtles, however, instead of turtle mutants; there is a distinction. The youngest of this group, Michelangelo, readily accepts Gio as a new sibling. The others, though? They didn't show it at the time, but they're a bit apprehensive.

Donatello, the second-youngest, judges Gio with particular scrutiny. He prefers to take his time when making big decisions. Mikey's quick, almost impulsive acceptance of the new mutant does not sit well with the softshell. What if they aren't what they seem? he ponders. What if they're just trying to worm their way into our inner circle so they can hurt us?

This calls for an interrogation.

Mikey is giving Gio a tour of the brothers' home--their lair--when Donnie calls the latter to his laboratory. They gladly comply. Science in all forms had always fascinated them, including the various tools used by scientists. They're excited to see what the lab has in store...only to be immediately thrown into a chair and hooked up to something that resembles an EEG. EEGs. Ew. No. They had only developed epilepsy a few years ago, and consequently had only endured a few EEGs, but they still dreaded the experience every time.

"What are you doing...? What are you doing? Let me go! Get this thing off of me, please!!"

"Don't worry. You'll only be connected for a few minutes." Donnie knew that didn't sound reassuring in the slightest, but he was trying his best. "This is essentially a lie detector--one that's much more reliable than a polygraph. For my sake...for everyone's sake...I need to make sure we can trust you."

"You could have just asked! You didn't have to hook me up to this thing without telling me what the heck is going on!!!"

"...In retrospect, that would have worked. Probably better." He sighs softly. "I'm sorry. I've...never been good about this kind of thing."

Gio takes a deep breath, then exhales with resignation. "It's...it's fine. I get where you were coming from; don't want a possible criminal to get away that easily..."

"Exactly! You get it!"

Though still irritated, they couldn't help but smile a bit. Something about Donnie's enthusiasm reminded them of themself.

"Now," he interjected, "I'm going to ask some baseline questions, then give you an interrogation proper. If you pass, you're in. I'll accept you as one of us. Oh, I have another idea--after this, if you pass the interrogation... May I perform some other tests on you?"

"Uh... Why?"

"When people like you get mutated, they also tend to develop strange powers and abilities. I'd like to see if you have, and what they are."

"Ooh! In that case, heck yeah!"

"Great," he remarked with a smile. "Then let's begin."

As Donatello promised, the interrogation only lasted a few minutes--somewhere between ten and fifteen. Though the machine's similarity to an EEG made Gio nervous, they were able to remain relatively calm and provide truthful answers to the questions asked. Thus, they passed.

"Well, it appears as though our inner circle is secure. You're in. Welcome to the family."

"Thank you...!" Gio beamed with joy...and relief that they were finally disconnected from those accursed electrodes.

"On to the ability tests?"

"Sure!"

Donnie's first move is to construct a makeshift fish tank and fill it with water. After all, Gio is a sea turtle. He supposes that their abilities would likely be enhanced underwater. When the tank is full, Gio hops in. The water is surprisingly warm, pleasantly so. Perhaps Donnie understands the agony of diving into an ice-cold pool.

"First test: lung capacity. Submerge whenever you're ready, Gio."

"Got it!"

They inhale as deeply as possible, then close their eyes and fully submerge their body. Donnie presses a button on his wristband, serving as a stopwatch, as soon as they're fully underwater. When Gio reopens their eyes, they panic. Why is everything so bright? It's like the sun itself is in here!! They resurface to escape the illumination, panting with overstimulation.

"Gio? Gio!! What happened? Are you okay?!"

"I opened my eyes, and it was just too bright in there! I don't know why! It isn't usually that bright underwater...!"

Donnie's thick eyebrows furrow with thought. "Maybe that's one of your new abilities--sensitive underwater vision!"

They climb out of the tank, then curl up beside one of its walls. "That makes sense...but at the same time, with how bright it was, it might be more of a curse... Just one more thing to be super sensitive to..."

Donnie frowns with concern, then sits next to them. "Hey, it's okay. I get it. I'm sensitive to stuff, too."

"How so?"

"This might sound stupid, but...I literally can't handle seeded fruits. The seeds just feel so gross...!"

Gio smiles. "I'm like that with stuff like tomatoes and grapes. They're too squishy, too fleshy, too slimy."

"And how about sudden, loud noises? I just want to find the source of that noise and rip it to shreds!"

"Dude, same! ...Hey, uh... This might seem out of left field, but... You don't happen to have autism, do you?"

"...Maaaaaaaaaybe. Why do you ask?"

"Because I do, and you sound a lot like me. It seems like we have more in common than I thought," the sea turtle says with a smile.

Donnie beams back. "Yeah. You might be right. ...You know, I think I have an idea as to how we might get your vision under control."

"How?"

"Maybe I can make you a pair of goggles with light-filtering properties--kind of like sunglasses. How does that sound?"

"I think that could work. ...Thank you."

"Anything for my family."

"...So what would have happened if I failed that test, anyway?"

"Simple. Lasers to the face."

"Goooot it."

The turtles stand up, then exit the lab for a pizza break. The goggles can wait a little bit. Right now, it's time to bond in a less clinical environment.

[sadbean609]

Just the Way You Aren't : March – Acceptance (Part 2)

-

Hinata's POV

-

And thus the crew gets ready for the party...

-

Hinata's POV

-

Hinata weaved her way through the sea of people that already had drinks in their hands. She tried not to look at the familiar decorum that decorated the house. The pangs of the loneliness from her childhood did not go unnoticed by her, but she would suppress it. She had a mission to do, afterall. 

After dodging what felt like the third “accidental” touch of her bum, she finally made her way to the kitchen. Ino was standing there talking to Tenten. The sparkles on Ino’s dress reflected the light show that Tenten had set up. They both looked more prepared than Hinata felt, if Hinata’s hoodie and skirt combo was anything to go by. At least Tenten was in her similar get up, never one for dressing out of comfort. Hinata smiled slightly with a light reminder of their high school days. They sure have come a long way. 

“Hey guys,” Hinata spoke up from behind Ino.

“Hinata! You made it!” Tenten chirped, her volume a little louder than sobriety. 

“Are you tipsy?” Hinata asked with a tilt of her head. She wasn’t interrogating, just asking.

“Pff!” Tenten scoffed. “Nah! Just vibin’ currently!” Hinata immediately noticed the sway of her hips to the music and the steadily increasing volume of her voice, and begged to differ

“Tenten’s been stressing about this all day, so she started drinking early.”

Hinata nodded then looked around the room. “Where’s the rest of them?”

“Check your phone,” Tenten told her, nodding to Hinata’s hand. “Looks like your ruffian boyfriend was smoking outside.”

“Smoking what?” 

Tenten laughed. “That’s what I said! He says just cigs, but who knows.”

Ino laughed as well. “Tenten don’t be such a prude. He can smoke cigarettes. He’s his own man.” 

“I’m just saying, we’ve never had much luck with a man who smoked cigarettes. Remember Asuma Sensei?” 

Ino blushed, something she rarely did, and choked on her drink as she turned away from the girls. “You promised you wouldn’t bring him up again!” 

Tenten’s hands flew up in defense. “I’m just saying! As a former medical student I cannot condone such self-destructive behavior.”

“You were in med school for two years,” Ino deadpanned, recovering from her earlier embarrassment. 

“It’s long enough to know the risks. Hinata, you should talk to him.” 

Hinata wasn’t entirely paying attention to their conversation. She seemed more focused on the swarming sea of people. When she finally locked eyes with the ones she’d been looking for since she stepped in, she immediately turned away, back to the girls’ conversation. 

“He’s here,” she said quietly, changing the subject. 

“Yes, we’ve established that,” Tenten quipped. 

“No, he’s—here—here.”

“What other kind of here is the—oh hey there Genma! I see you’ve found Obito and Rin.” 

Genma shoved his hands in his pockets, not looking at either of the girls. His attention was elsewhere, much like Hinata’s was earlier. But now her focus was on the man in front of her.

“So, we doing this or what?” he said, still not looking at any of them. 

“We have to be discreet about it,” Tenten chastised. “We’ll be in contact with the groupchat. Team, keep your phones on you. GenHina, act like you love each other.” She shoved Genma at Hinata for effect. 

“GenHina?” Genma asked, his eyebrows pinching together in confusion, as he stumbled over the shorter girl. 

“It’s what I’m calling you guys. You’re a couple, now. So couple it up.” 

“Good luck!” Obito said with a grin and a salute. His hand found his girlfriend’s waist and guided her to wherever they were going.

Ino smiled at Hinata and walked off with Tenten, presumably to go find Sakura. 

Genma looked down at Hinata to see her pearl eyes staring up at him. She had pink dusting her cheeks, and her mouth was in a perfect pout. He glanced down to that pout, but immediately looked away. “So uh, I guess this is it.” 

“Yeah,” she said in a breathy tone. “I guess it is.”

“So uh, wanna go sit down?” 

“S-sure.” She followed him to the couch, and she couldn’t bear to keep her head up. Her head was down and on his clothes. She almost grabbed him to follow him, but thought that it might make him more uncomfortable. She didn’t want him to hate her.

“You look good by the way,” he said over his shoulder. “You know?”

“H-huh?” she stuttered. “Oh. Th-thank you.” 

“You don’t have to be worried, you know. I don’t bite.”

“Okay.” When they made it to the couch, he sat down. She didn’t know what to do so she just stood next to him. 

“What are you doing?” he asked, looking up at her.

“Um, standing here?”

“You don’t look like you’re following the mission.”

“Oh right. Um, so what should I do?”

“Hmm,” he thought for a moment. “I have an idea.” He pulled her down by her arm to fall on him and she came crashing down with a little eep! causing him to chuckle. “There. Now you’re sitting in my lap and it looks like I’m the most suave boyfriend ever.” 

“R-right,” she agreed, not looking at him so he couldn’t see how red her face was. Genma smirked. He wondered what else would make her flustered like this. Maybe he’d have fun after all.

-

-

-

All Hinata could think about at the moment was that her leg was falling asleep. Not that Genma had boney thighs—in fact, his thighs were pretty solid. But as solid as they were, hers were definitely not as muscular, and she could not feel her toes anymore. 

“Uh, G-Genma… san?” She just realized this was the first time she’s ever called his name. Did he want honorifics? Did he care? 

“Please, Genma-san is my father, call me Genma,” he replied with his ever-present smirk. 

She stared at him for a minute in response. 

“It’s a joke. But call me Genma.”

“Okay,” she nodded. “Genma.” She added, just to be sure she was doing it right. When he nodded in approval, she tried to continue speaking. “Is there a reason that girl over there has been glaring at us since we sat down?”

Genma looked over her shoulder to what she was referring to. “Probably,” he answered. 

When he added no further context, Hinata started fumbling with her hoodie strings. “D-do you know–um. Her?” she stuttered. 

“Are you nervous?” he asked instead, dodging the question. 

“I just–just, I just don’t want to make anyone m-mad..”

“Who’s mad?”

“H-her.” 

Genma looked over at the girl again, trying to remember exactly who she was. Nothing came to mind. “Why would you care about the opinion of someone you’ve never met?”

Hinata’s slight blush intensified, and she looked away. Her insecurity bubbled in her throat, and she could not answer. 

“Don’t worry about it, I doubt she’s the type to come over here.”

-

-

-

“Is that Kakashi?” Sakura asked while she squinted somewhere past Ino and Tenten.

“Why would he be here?” Tenten responded, deflecting. 

“I thought I saw Obito earlier, so maybe he invited him,” she wondered aloud. “Why would he even come?”

“Open invitation,” Ino reminded her. 

“Oh right,” she mumbled, not able to take her eyes off the man she could’ve sworn was Kakashi. That is, until he walked right in front of the couch where she saw tiny little Hinata on the lap of some guy. “Oh my god, is that Hinata?” She slapped Ino on the shoulder repeatedly until Ino pulled her arm away. 

“Ow, what?” Ino stood tip-toe to see over the sea of heads to what Sakura was talking about. “Looks like they’re hitting it off.”

“Since when does Hinata sit on people’s laps? I thought she was the purest soul to ever walk the earth.” 

“A little dramatic,” Ino commented. “She’s allowed to have fun.”

“I never said she couldn’t have fun.” She stood on her tiptoes to also get a better look. “But wait–isn’t that? That is, isn’t it?” 

“What?” Tenten asked, now also standing on her tiptoes. “Isn’t it what?”

“That’s fucking Genma, isn’t it?” Sakura grounded her heels but kept her eyes locked on them. “That doesn’t make any sense.” 

“Why wouldn’t it?” Tenten shared a panicked glance with Ino. 

“‘Cause he’s such a sleazeball, isn’t he? I thought he never settled down. Hinata is the type of girl who would want to settle down.” 

“And how would you know that?” 

“Kakashi told me,” she answered quietly. Sakura finally pulled her gaze away from them. “But it wouldn't be the first time he led me astray.” 

Ino and Tenten shared one more look, and Ino nodded, leaving Tenten to Sakura. “Say, why don’t we go play a drinking game?” 

Sakura gave a small smile. “It is our birthday after all.”

-

(Reaction image from Kiba to their group chat)

-

-

“Genma!” A loud voice boomed over the house music and the idle chit chat around them, causing Hinata to jump, and her heart rate to skyrocket.

Genma smirked. “Gai,” he acknowledged. 

“She is here! And you are here! Congratulations!” 

“Thanks man,” Genma smiled genuinely. The slight sparkle in his eye as he talked to his friend made Hinata feel more at ease and she sunk a little more into his lap, her nerves easing. 

“It is good that you are more comfortable with each other, especially given, you know—“

“Gai,” Genma cut him off. “Voice down, remember?”

“I am speaking in a very reasonable volume,” Gai argued. 

“Yes, for you. However…” Genma trailed off, but his look to the other party goers spoke for him. Hinata suddenly blushed under the attention, and her gaze fell back to the other girl. She tensed again. 

A small movement of Genma’s fingers distracted her, though. They rubbed lazily, almost absentmindedly, on the bare part of her thigh that was not covered. It was comforting to Hinata in a way that she couldn’t describe and that she would vehemently deny if anyone asked her. The tenseness released from her shoulders. 

“Apologies,” Gai said quickly, mostly to Hinata. She smiled forgivingly. He couldn’t help being so loud. It was simply in his nature. “I just want to sincerely offer my congratulations.” “We hear you loud and clear, Gai. Thank you.��� Genma did not take his eyes off his friend, but for some reason, Hinata felt closer to him. He may not be looking at her, but the way he was touching her, the way he smiled at his friend offering his sincere congratulations to them, made her feel like she was wanted. In a way she hadn’t felt before. The familiar feeling of anxiety pooled in her belly. Uh oh. Butterflies.

-

-

“It seems you are needed in the kitchen,” Gai said to Genma after locking his phone and putting it back in his pocket. 

“You sure?” Genma asked. 

“See it?” Gai motioned behind them, the kitchen not really visible from their spot on the couch. 

“Not really,” Genma answered, straining his neck above them. He scooted Hinata off his lap to stand and stretch. “You stay here, I’ll go see what’s going on.” 

Before Genma could leave, Gai stopped him with arm. “I think you better take the lady with you,” he said with a knowing look. Hinata and Genma shared a panicked look then they both sprung back to the kitchen to hear what sounded like the beginning of a shouting match. 

“Why the fuck are you here?!” came Sakura’s voice over the music. Hinata winced. 

“Sakura, chill, he–” someone started to say. 

“I don’t care! This is my birthday, and I don’t think it’s unreasonable to not want my ex boyfriend at my party!” Hinata rushed to Sakura’s side, to try and calm her down. “Who even brought you anyway?!” 

“I thought it was an open invitation,” Kakashi said, with an even tone. No emotion, just hard stares at Sakura.

“It was, but you have fucking common sense, don’t you?!” 

“I was the one that brought him here,” Obito interjected. “I thought enough time had passed since–”

“Well it hasn’t!” she interrupted again. “I don’t know where you get off forcing someone who obviously doesn’t want to be around anyone into public spaces where people are trying to party, but it’s a real mood killer!” Sakura ran a hand through her hair that was getting unruly with her outburst. “Stop trying to force me to date your friends, Obito! And leave my friends alone!” 

“Hey Sakura, what the hell–” Rin started to say, but Sakura interrupted her again.

“I don’t know why you didn’t stop him, Rin. And you,” she turned to face Genma, who was just standing off to the side when Hinata ran to her side. “Leave Hinata alone. She’s not some conquest for you to stake your claim in. She deserves better than some manwhore.”  Hinata stopped pulling on Sakura and stared. She whipped around to Genma who just stood, a little shell-shocked. She couldn’t help the hiccup that was threatening her throat, and took off. Better to look like a coward than to cry in front of all these people. Suddenly, the fact they were in her childhood home hit a little harder, and trying not to cry was getting more difficult by the second. Too many images of trying not to cry in that house, then everywhere she turned she saw a younger version of herself trying to appear as small as possible, as unnoticed as possible. She ran until she couldn’t see the house anymore, and there, on the side of the road, she bawled.

-

This installment is broken up into 3 parts

Masterpost | <- Prev | Next ->

[mi4012dilumwarakagoda]

The Script I Made for the Shutter Island Acting Assignment

(The Scene sets in a lighthouse with raging tides pushing against its rocky shoreline. The Storm was on its way, and inside the lighthouse, inside a room, sitting at a table was a middle-aged man, smiling at the three-armed guards watching him.) 

Teddy: Hola (Teddy continued smoking his cigar, waiting for the interrogation to start) 

(Meanwhile, down at the bottom first steps of the lighthouse, stood a man in uniform along with a doctor shivering in his coat) 

Ethan: You alright, doc? 

Dr. Cawley: Barely... I don’t know if I could survive this bloody stormy night... (His teeth chattering) And, oh goodness, here he comes. 

(Dr. Sheehan approached them, drenched in sea water) 

Dr. Sheehan: Detective, here it is. All the reports and charges following up on our dear patient- 

Ethan: Prisoner, Doc, not a patient. You don’t put your patients in chains, do yah? 

Dr. Sheehan: Well, with this one we had to consider it. And how is he, anyway? 

Dr. Cawley: Giving an uneasy vibe as always. Please do come, before you must carry my frosted corpse. 

(All three of them made their way up the stair and along the way,) 

Dr. Sheehan: Are you sure this is your man, Detective, if I may so inclined to ask? 

Ethan: A maniac comes into a home, beat up the family, then drown them in their own bath tub and then arrange them as if they are having a wonderful tea party. Then leaves without a trace. Does that sound familiar to you, doc? 

Dr. Cawley: Yes, but he’s been here for the last two years. He doesn’t leave his cell without anyone’s supervision, the guards here are vigilant and, on their toes when they’re around him, and that’s not all, the security on Shutter Island is one of the best in the entire world. There is no humanly possible way for him to escape. 

Ethan: I know, doc. My guess is a copycat, and this man in that room might know who it is. There must be some small chance that he might. There’s gotta... 

(They finally made it to the room, where the three guards greeted them. And in the middle of this room, sitting at a table, chained to the concrete floor was Teddy Daniels smoking his cigar with a menacing smile on his face. The detective came closer while the doctors remained their distance.) 

Ethan: So, uh, Mr. Daniels... 

Teddy: Oh, Teddy is just fine. Why don’t you grab a seat, while we can have this little chat? 

Ethan: Oh no, Mr- Teddy, I’ll do just fine standing.  

Teddy: Suit yourself... 

Ethan: Now, I understand that you had a- uh- tragic incident at your house, two years ago. Care to remind me all the details? 

(The two doctors looked uneasy and looked at each other. Teddy made his smile wider, showing his surprisingly white teeth shine in the light.) 

Teddy: Alright, I’ll enlighten you... So, one day after a day full of work, I come home, ready to embrace the love of my family. The moment I got in, I killed them, and made a fine art. I arranged them like dolls for the best tea party I’ve ever had but blood for tea and hearts for biscuits. (Teddy leaned forward) And you know the best part? They were quiet.  

(Ethan smiled back) 

Ethan: Yeah, yeah, and I can tell you had fun... What about the other murders? 

Teddy: A man is always born with a hunger, detective, a hunger for a certain thing. Those others just happen to be in my range. And I had a hunger for the pleasure of tearing one’s heart out again.  

Ethan: Yeah, and you satisfied that hunger or could you go for more? 

Teddy: I had enough of my share of it, but thank you. But let’s talk about what you’re really here for. 

Ethan: Alright, alright... I don’t know if you do, but you heard anything? 

Teddy: If this is about a peculiar serial killer, then yes. Although I would like to think of him as an artist, following his predecessor's footsteps. 

Ethan: Then you do know him... 

(Teddy took a long breath and gave a long sigh) 

Teddy: Let me tell you something, detective, the world is weak, soft, and yet the society is as cruel as God. They blame people like us but they never get the full picture or the full scope of the art we do. You should see the people I live here with: they’re like broken records, skipping endlessly until the very last second of their life. Who do you think reached out and scratched that record? 

Ethan: So, you’re blaming society. Come up with something original here, Teddy. The world is cruel: I get that- 

Teddy: Oh, you do understand, detective. No question about that. I knew the type of person you are, the moment you walked in. To people outside of this room, what I did deemed immoral. But for people like us, it’s art. Why do you think that the world thinks that serial killers are ‘cool’? Because we are the type of people who have broken out of our cowardly shells and show our true colors. We are not afraid anymore, detective, we are ready to face the terrors that the night will offer. 

Ethan: Wow, wonderful speech, Hermano. (Ethan started clapping his hands sarcastically, and stopped after a brief moment) But what does all this have to do with our copycat, Teddy? 

Teddy: Consider and take what I said as a lesson of free education, and- Oh god, forgive me, I do not know your name detective... 

Ethan: Ethan... Ethan Winters. 

Teddy: Ahh, Ethan Winters. Beautiful name. You know, my first-born son was also Ethan. 

Ethan: Hmm, touching- The same one you also killed, right?..  

Teddy: Did I offended you in anyway? Sorry, it’s just that I still remember those frightful eyes my son had,.. when I killed his sister. What a sight? (Teddy’s smile never did fade) Kids, am I right?  

(Ethan looked at the two doctors, still standing at a distance. Ethan nodded and the doctors quickly understood. Dr. Sheehan whispered something into one of the guards’ ears and the guard disappeared and after a moment, two nurses came with a plastic bag, tagged ‘Evidence #23’. The nurse gave the bag to the detective and left, while one of them stayed to witness the interrogation.) 

Ethan: You know what this is? (Ethan turned to Teddy) 

Teddy: I might have an idea. 

(Ethan reached into the bag slowly, keeping his eyes on Teddy. He removed a Saint-Gaudens Double Eagle coin and then put it on the table within Teddy’s reach. Teddy reached out and, in his palm, he analyzed it, curious and not smiling any longer. Then his eyes met Ethan’s, then resumed his smile.) 

Teddy: This is a Saint-Gaudens Double Eagle coin. They stopped making these in 1933. You definitely knew I gave one to my son. This isn’t the same coin though. My son’s had two large scratches across its surface. And this one here, it’s stained in blood. Did you know this is one of the rarest coins. I found my son’s one during my time in cold war on a dead man’s hanging corpse.  

Ethan: That peculiar copycat of yours, Teddy, left this on one of his victims’ eyes like the ancient Greeks did. I knew the message immediately, since I’ve read your files: You shoved yours into your own son’s eyes... He really does admire yah... And knows awful a lot of yah.  

Teddy: Yeah, he does. 

Ethan: So, do you know the bastard, or are you just wasting my time? 

(Teddy stared at the ceiling, thinking) 

Teddy: No, Mr. Winters, no. I am simply taking my time in knowing you. And I might say I am impressed. 

(Ethan looked confused for a while but continued ignoring what he just said) 

Teddy: Mr. Winter, what- I dare say- would you feel when you kill a certain person, with fear and terror in their eyes? 

Ethan: I am nothing like that- I am nothing like you. (Ethan was frustrated, offended) Even if I did anything like that, I would turn myself in- 

Teddy: But, would you though? Don’t you know the pleasure of taking one’s life? You and I are the same. Both of us are violent people. I was trained and send to war, while you’re trained and sent to hunt down maniacs haunting the streets at the night.  

Ethan: What do you mean? Huh? What do you mean by that?  

Teddy: People always pretend, they always do. But you can stop pretending, Mr. Winters.  

(Ethan was on edge. He turned to the others who were keeping their distance. Then he turned to Teddy once more.) 

Ethan: What? You saying I killed those people? 

Teddy: You don’t do well in hiding it... Out of everyone here, you are different. I can see it in you, Mr. Winters. It’s like staring at a mirror. 

(Ethan smiled) 

Ethan: I suppose it is, huh. 

(The two doctors signaled the guards, scared and on edge) 

Dr. Cawley: Get the back up now! 

Teddy: So tell me: How does it feel, Mr. Winters? How does it feel to take one’s life mercilessly?  

(Ethan gave a menacing smile) 

Ethan: It feels like hunting a delicate deer, but way more fun and bloodier. 

Teddy: It is, isn’t it? And I suspect that you’re gonna kill me. But I want you to know: It feels nice to meet a person who appreciates my artwork. 

Ethan: Nothing personal...Teddy. 

(The lights turned off, before the sound of slashing and blood splattering was heard from the room.) 

(Now few days later, in Dr. Cawley’s office, Dr Sheehan comes in with a file,) 

Dr. Sheehan: I have finally done the paper work, John. 

Dr. Cawley: Good, with Daniels dead, we can just give his old cell to our dear Mr. Winters.  

Dr. Sheehan: So, uh, listen to this, John: Ethan was assigned to a case, few months back. He was never the same after that. According to some ongoing investigations...he was accused of killing more than 1 100 people. They suspected that he found files on Teddy Daniels and considered followed his methods.  

Dr. Cawley: All good men fall, I guess. But why coming all the way here, only to end up imprisoned? 

Dr. Sheehan: Minds of such ill men are mysterious, John. Best not to question them. 

(Dr. Sheehan passes the file to Dr. Cawley, and then he stores it among the 1000 files he had in his tall file cabinet.) 

THE END 

[linagram]

[ 𝚈𝚘𝚜𝚑𝚒𝚘𝚔𝚊 𝙴𝚒𝚔𝚘'𝚜 𝚃𝟹 𝚅𝙳 ] 𝙵𝚞𝚗𝚎𝚛𝚊𝚕 𝙵𝚘𝚛 𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝙰𝚕𝚒𝚟𝚎

oh eiko... i'm really curious to see how her trial goes..

Warnings for Eiko's VD: toxic relationship dynamics, a brief mention of Eiko's murder method.

Warnings for Eiko's MV: none, other than the aforementioned toxic relationship themes and general themes of death.

(sounds of footsteps)

Miki: .. I'm sorry for having to use your memory machine.

Hinode: It's okay, don't even worry about it. I trust you with it.

Hinode: Considering how slow I am, I wouldn't be able to use it properly anyway, haha..

Miki: .. Why did Kei-san break it anyway? What was he trying to achieve?

Hinode: To be honest.. I don't know him that well, obviously, but I have this feeling, like..

Hinode: Miki-san, do you think Kei-san is the type of person to come up with something like that himself?

Miki: .. Maybe for his own amusement? I'm not sure..

Hinode: I see.. Maybe my theory really is correct then.

Miki: What do you mean?

Hinode: Remember how Eiji-san mentioned the prisoner who he's particularly close with?

Hinode: .. I'm starting to think he meant Reina-san.

Miki: ...

Hinode: Miki-san, do you think Reina-san could've-

Miki: Yes. Absolutely.

Hinode: Well that was quick..

Miki: She had already tried to break the music video machine, I can definitely see her trying to do something similar to the memory machine.

Miki: And since we can already expect something like that from her.. I can imagine her asking someone else to do it instead.

Miki: "I can also imagine Kei-san being really excited about it.."

Hinode: But why is she even trying to break those machines? What will she get from it?

Miki: I'm.. not sure. I don't think she's afraid of us finding out something about her..

Miki: .. Maybe..

Miki: She actually wants to put an end to this trial.

Miki: No, no, it's more like..

Miki: .. She wants to put an end to Milgram itself.

Hinode:  ...

Hinode: *laughs*

Hinode: She's insane. That's just not possible.

Hinode: I'm sure there have been other prisoners before her who had also tried to escape from here or just put an end to the whole system.

Hinode: What makes her think she's the special case?

Miki: ...

Miki: ".. The way Hinode-san is acting annoys me a little, but I can't deny that I also think her idea is stupid."

Miki: "It's like.. I can't help but think Milgram is the greatest thing that was ever created. Like Milgram is justice itself."

Miki: "It's like.. The longer I stay in Milgram.."

Miki:"The more I begin to worship it."

(the door opens)

Eiko: Ah, it's you two..

Eiko: Hehe, nice to see your pretty face again, Guard 003-kun~ 

Eiko: Or.. Uh.. I'm sorry, could you remind me your name, please?

Eiko: The whole memory machine thing has really messed up my memory, haha..

Hinode: It's Hinode. I'm also glad to see you again, Eiko-san.

Eiko: Oh my, you're so polite~ Haha, you're not like Eiji-kun at all..

Eiko: Speaking of him..  Where is he exactly?

Miki: He joined us during Kei-san's interrogation, so he probably should join us this time as well-

Eiko: *sighs* He always has Kei on his mind, huh.. I wish he could think more about me instead..

Hinode: Well, Kei-san is his brother, and you are.. 

Hinode: You know, just another prisoner.

Eiko: *laughs* Now, Hinode-kun, you couldn't be more wrong. 

Eiko: Me and Eiji-kun have this special connection, I'm sure he can feel it too.

Miki: .. I'm sorry, but can I ask you something, Yoshioka-san? This is not related to your crime, but..

Eiko: Of course, go ahead!

Miki: .. Why do you like Eiji-san so much?

Eiko: Oh, are you jealous?

Miki: I'm not. I have no feelings for him at all. 

Eiko: Oh, come on, Miki-chan, I know a jealous woman when I see one~

Miki: .. Maybe I like him, but not in a romantic way.

Miki: .. It's like you've never had a friend, Yoshioka-san.

Eiko: ...

Eiko: Maybe I haven't. I haven't dated anyone either before my victim, so..

Eiko: As you can see, I'm actually kinda lonely, haha..

Eiko: Anyway, about me liking Eiji-kun. You see..

Eiko: He's just special. Sure, he kinda has a case of really bad anger issues and he can be really violent for no reason at all, but that just makes him more cute.

Miki: "Cute?!"

Eiko: He is very hardworking, diligent, he wants to make this world a better place, he wants to punish everyone who's not perfect.. What else could you want from a man?

Eiko: Though I still think he has to find a hobby.. Maybe martial arts or something?

Miki: By "everyone who's not perfect" you mean.. Criminals, right?

Eiko: Yeah, I guess. Like, how could I not fall in love with him after how I was treated by my victim?

Miki: .. It's like you want him to fix you?

Eiko: Yeah, sort of.

Miki: .. You're really.. weird.

Eiko: Oh, come on, Miki-chan, we both know you want a man to do the same thing to you. 

Eiko: It's a shame you and that.. What was his name again? Anyway, that band guy and you could be such a cute couple if it weren't for, well, Milgram.

Eiko: Also, Eiji-kun, I know you can see or hear me from the cameras, so could you please show up already? Come on, don't be shy~

Miki: "There's no way he's showing up now."

(sound of a screen turning on)

Eiji: Just so you know, thanks to my older brother who I love very much, I can't actually see anything from most cameras anymore. 

Miki: "DID SHE JUST SUMMON HIM?!"

Eiko: Ah, about that..  Yeah, I've actually heard him leave his cell when the first interrogation started.

All guards: Huh?!

Eiji: Wait, but why didn't you-

Eiji: Why didn't you tell anyone?!

Eiko: I've stayed in my cell like a good girl.

Eiji: Why was his cell open anyway?! Why did you two just let him walk around like that?

Miki: H-he asked me to leave it open so that he can get medicine if he needs it..

Miki: W-wait-

Hinode: Him still trying to recover seems like an excuse he can use over and over.

Hinode: He pretended to feel sick so that he could break the memory machine too..

Eiji: .. You just can't do anything without me, can you?

Eiko: Then come back! We're all waiting for you~

(sounds of Eiji and Eiko talking)

Miki: "She.. really has a thing for guys behind the screen, doesn't she?"

Miki: "I really want to talk to Eiji-san about Kei-san's second trial verdict, but I don't know if I'll be able to.."

Hinode: Miki-san, Eiji-san, we don't have much time left, so how about we start the interrogation?

Miki: Right, right, sorry..

Eiko: So, have you guys managed to solve my murder yet?

Miki: It feels like we know everything about your murder, but also.. We still know so little.

Hinode: Your victim's name.. It was Takeru, right?

Eiko: ...

Eiko: .. Ah. I think I know what happened. It's because of the memory machine, isn't it? Did I accidentally say something I wasn't supposed to?

Miki:  .. Yes. Yes, we found out his name from you right after we used the memory machine.

Eiko: I see. Well.. I don't even want to know what I said. I was.. kinda obsessed with him, to be honest.

Eiko:  So, what is the last puzzle piece you need to solve this mystery?

Miki: We know your victim's name, we know about your relationship and what he did to you, but..

Miki: Still.. I just can't imagine you killing someone just because they were offline for so long.

Eiko: Haha.. Well, do you remember the question I asked you the last time you interrogated me?

Eiko: Do you remember your answer, Eiji-kun?

Eiji: .. "I would hope that they will die soon".

Eiko: Exactly.

Miki: D-did he try to kill you?!

Eiko: *laughs* No, no, he'd be too weak to do something like that.

Eiko: He.. He actually did the opposite.

Miki: Did the.. opposite?

Hinode:  So.. Takeru-san stopped showing up online and replying to your messages and it's been four months since his last message?

Eiko: Yep.

Hinode: .. You know what that reminds me of?

Hinode: When someone, usually teenagers, kinda pretend that something bad happened to them. They stop replying to messages, they stop showing up online, they stop being active, all because they want people to worry about them.

Hinode: They want people to go "Oh no, what could've happened to them? Are they still alive?", they want people to send them messages like "Hey, I just want to make sure you're okay", basically, they just want the attention.

Eiko: .. That's.. actually very accurate, Hinode-kun.

Eiko: Eiji-kun, looks like you got a rival just now~

Eiji: What is that supposed to mean?..

Hinode: Well, as someone who has a younger brother who, um.. is kinda addicted to attention..

Hinode: I know what I'm talking about. *laughs*

Miki: So, does that mean..

Miki: Takeru-san pretended to be dead?

Eiko: Yes.

Eiko: And he took his job seriously.

Eiko: He literally asked his friends to tell me I'm dead. And almost all of them agreed to it.

Eiko: I don't know, if you hate me so damn much, then just tell me?

Miki: But.. Why couldn't he do exactly that? Was he scared or something?

Hinode: Perhaps he thought Eiko-san wouldn't take it well.

Eiko: I hate to say it, but you're right. Takeru wasn't just a liar and a manipulator, he was a huge coward.

Eiko: When I visited him to take my revenge, I thought he was going to cry. He literally begged me not to kill him.

Eiko: And still, do you know what his last words were?

Eiko: .. He told me it wasn't even a big deal.

Eiko: Ironic, isn't it? He was okay with doing anything so that I don't kill him, but right when he realized it's too late, he just had to say what he was really thinking this whole time. 

Miki: ...

Miki:"This guy sucks."

Hinode: Now that I think about it, how exactly did you kill him?

Eiko: Oh, I dismembered him.

Miki: WHAT?!

Miki: Y-you-  H-how did you-

Eiko: I just had everything I needed in my cute bag. A lady must always be prepared~

Eiko: I know, I know, sounds scary, but like, he deserved it.

Eiko: I can see it, Miki-chan. I can see that you want to agree with me.

Miki: ...

Eiko: And what do you think, Eiji-kun? Do you still see me as a dirty criminal who deserves to be locked up?

Eiji: .. Obviously. 

Eiji: You didn't have to go and kill him. Especially like that.

Eiko: And he didn't have to fake his own death. 

Eiko: Come on, Eiji-kun, I'm sure you know the feeling of being betrayed by someone and not being exactly rational when it comes to revenge.

Eiji: ...

(bell rings, machinery sounds)

Eiko: Looks like it's time. I've told you everything, so I wonder what my last video will reveal.

Eiko: Also, Eiji-kun, please don't worry about anything, okay? You can come and talk to the prisoners in person.

Eiko: I will take good care of Shun, Kei and Yurika for you. Don't even worry about it, okay?

Miki: Ugh, could you shut up already?!

Eiko: Huh?..

Miki: This is like a.. What, like a third murder threat? Or a fourth one?.. I-I'm not keeping track, but this is literally the last trial!

Miki: After this trial, you all are going back to your cells and not leaving until we're done with your verdicts. 

Miki: I won't let any prisoners here die before the trial ends.

Eiko: .. Of course, Guard 002-san.

Eiko: "Before the trial ends", huh.. So you're okay with us dying after that-

Miki: Prisoner 006, Eiko, sing your sins!

42% ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓░░░░░░░░░░░░ 100%

[ Eiko's Trial 3 MV: Miss Grave Robber ]

The video starts with younger Eiko standing next to her house. A boy her age runs up to her and she gives him a smile. 

"Mommy, tell me, is this what love is?

My heart is beating faster, I feel so warm

Oh no, my face is all red 

That's probably what he's thinking"

He talks to her about something and starts to blush and she gets more interested in what he has to say, but before he can reveal why he came here, his eyes suddenly go empty. He looks up and then he drops dead. Eiko's expression quickly changes to a more emotionless one and we see her mother walking out of the house, holding a gun and laughing. We can see the boy's body lying on the ground and Eiko looking at it.

"Oh well, looks like my love story's over

There's no "they lived happily ever after" for me

I won't get one as long as you're alive

Mommy, tell me, is this what hatred is?"

The setting changes and it looks like a graveyard. It's raining. We see Eiko, wearing the same outfit she wore in her second MV (and the one that looks so much like something her mother wears) and holding an umbrella. She's standing next to a grave and looking at it, her face still doesn't show any emotions at all. We can see her turn around, drop her umbrella and pick up a shovel. She walks back to the grave and starts digging. 

"Everyone, we're having a funeral for the love that never was supposed to be born

For the love that was so stupid and so wrong

Maybe I can bring my other "love" back to life

Just so that I don't feel so cold and alone"

It turns out that Shun was buried there. 

Shun's condition doesn't look that good, his body was already in the process of rotting, he's missing an eye and he's clearly supposed to look like a zombie. He has a creepy smile on his face when he sees Eiko and he tries to reach out to her and she grabs him by the arm, not even looking him in the eyes. Now that Shun is "free", he follows Eiko around as she continues to walk and look at the graves.

"Here you are, I was looking for you

You've changed, but it's okay, I love you, half-decomposed isn't bad

We have one more lover to resurrect

And then we can all die happily"

She walks to another grave and notices a familiar name written on it. She starts digging again as Shun simply stands behind her, but if you look closer, you can see that he isn't exactly a fan of whatever Eiko is doing. 

We can finally see who was buried there. It was Kei.

"Here's the second one! Oh my, you look perfect

I will give you lots of love, you can definitely go more

Why do you look so scared? Come on, isn't this what you dreamed of?

Don't tell me you can't handle this pain, you're not a weakling, right?"

Kei's body looks much better than Shun's, Kei looks much more pale than usual, it's true, but he doesn't look that much like a corpse compared to Shun and while Shun is completely missing an eye, Kei's eye is simply closed. When Kei opens his mouth, we can also notice that he has rather sharp fangs. If Shun was happy that Eiko found him, when Kei sees her, he looks scared and he doesn't want to leave his grave, but both Eiko and Shun force him to do so. 

They continue to walk together and it's starting to look more and more like Eiko is looking for something. Or someone. Shun is clinging to her while holding Kei's hand. Kei looks tired and he doesn't want to be here at all.

"Our love is dead, oh no, let us sing our prayers

Your lies were the only thing that kept me alive

Except I don't see your name on our grave, oh no, don't just leave me like this

Let's get buried next to each other, rotting together doesn't sound so bad"

Rain gets more and more heavy. Eiko gets angry and she drops her shovel and pulls out a gun that looks exactly like the one her mother had in the beginning of the video and simply starts shooting everything that she sees, destroying the graves in the process. Shun gets scared and hides behind Kei.

"It's no good, no good at all

I will find you, dead or alive

Where are you, my love? You were supposed to be here

Are you already in Heaven? Or maybe, just maybe, you went to Hell?"

When there's nothing left of the graves and the whole graveyard looks like a mess, Eiko falls on the ground, looking tired and breathing heavily. We can't see what Shun and Kei are doing though. Eiko closes her eyes and when she opens them, she looks shocked and she quickly tries to get up. 

It's not Shun or Kei who are standing next to her.

It's Takeru. 

Takeru looks alive, he looks completely fine. But if you look at his face expression, you can see that he wants to get out of here and he doesn't want to do anything with Eiko.

Eiko doesn't care about it though and she starts to walk closer to him, looking like she's about to pull him in a hug. Takeru just keeps walking away, looking scared and not seeing what's behind him. 

"Come on, you still love me, right?

No, wait, you've always loved me, right?

You loved me, right? You loved me, right?

I WASN'T A NUISANCE TO YOU, RIGHT?"

Because of that, Takeru ends up falling right where either Shun or Kei was buried. He starts to panic and he tries to get out. He sees Eiko and tries to reach out to her in the same way Shun did. His face expression changes to a terrified one as he sees Shun and Kei standing next to Eiko. Shun is even smiling and waving at him. But Shun also has a shovel in his other hand. 

"Our love is dead, oh no, let us sing our prayers

Your lies were the only thing that kept me alive

You get your own special grave now, bye-bye!

You were rotten from the start, so what are you so afraid of?"

We can see Takeru getting buried alive from his POV. 

When Shun is done, he looks up at Eiko and smiles widely, but then his eyes become empty and he drops dead (but this time he's dead for sure) in the exact same way the boy in the beginning did. We can see that he was shot in the head.

"Rotten boys like you don't deserve a second chance

There is no afterlife for you

So please get out, I can't handle your imperfections

Please get out, actually, no, why don't you just die?"

Eiko turns around and looks directly at the viewer as the rain gets more and more heavy. We can't see Kei anywhere. The video ends.

[agent-octo]

-Scene-

-Flashback Sequence-

-Theo is standing at the front entrance of the lab, preparing to go out for a little bit. As Theo is about to walk outside however, Leo walks over to him-

"Oh, hey Leo. What's up?" -Theo

"...I've noticed you tend to go out on nightly walks to clear your head. May I join you?" -Leo

"Oh, sure. First I've seen you tag along with somebody like this outside of a mission or whatever." -Theo

"No, I just felt like coming with. I don't have anything to occupy myself with tonight, and everyone else is currently asleep at this hour." -Leo

"Heh, so you had no choice but to hang out with me instead of with your work, huh?" -Theo

"Do you want me to come with you or not?" -Leo

"You know I'm messing with ya! 'Cmon, night's short. Let's go." -Theo

-The two exit the building. Theo takes the lead while Leo stays only slightly behind him. After a few minutes of walking, Theo takes out what seems to be a box of cigarettes-

"I didn't know you smoked." -Leo

"Bubblegum cigs. Like, literal gum. I'm not stupid enough to smoke my life away like that." -Theo

"That would explain the box design." -Leo

"Yup. The gym itself ain't the best, but it's still fun to blow out the powdered sugar. Want one?" -Theo

"No thank you." -Leo

"Eh, suit yourself." -Theo

-The two continue to walk in silence for a while before Theo tries to talk to Leo-

"You know, I can tell something's been on your mind since you got home today." -Theo

"Oh yeah. Don't worry about it. It's not that important." -Leo

"Dude, you came out with me on one of my night walks. You don't do that normally. Whatever it is, it's important." -Theo

"..." -Leo

"Heh, look at me. Normally you are the one interrogating me. Guess nightfall tends to change things, huh?" -Theo

"..." -Leo

"Leo, I can tell you want to say something. 'Cmon, let's go sit down on that bench over there." -Theo

-The two walk over and sit down on the bench-

"Alright, out with it. What's on your mind pal?" -Theo

"...Theodore. I want to ask you something." -Leo

"Yeah?" -Theo

"...When... When was the last time you saw me genuinely smile? Not a smile of overconfidence or anything like that. But more one of relief or happiness?" -Leo

"Hm? What do you mean?" -Theo

"Just answer my question." -Leo

"Uh... I don't I've seen you smile like that... Ever. Why?" -Theo

"I thought so... I've always been able to keep my emotions in check, even in the most stressful of situations. But... That changed today." -Leo

"Oh really?" -Theo

"...Yes. I... Met someone today. And... They... Broke me. In the best way possible. You all can handle yourselves in the face of danger, and even if something were to happen to you all, patching you all up would be simple. And... You all have a big reason that drives you to keep going. But... Not this person. They don't really have a reason. They just want to help because they want to. And their innocent attitude towards everything just... scares me. I'm scared of the thought of such an innocent soul getting hurt... And becoming like me." -Leo

"...So, you want to protect them then?" -Theo

"...Yes. They remind me of myself when I was younger, alone in that scrapyard. I had nowhere to go, so I just helped where I could. But unlike me, they have a family. Parents, to be specific. And I would rather not let them go through what I had to go through." -Leo

-Leo takes a deep breath to calm himself down-

"...heh." -Theo

"What?" -Leo

"It's funny, normally you're so closed off all the time. I've had to try and read you like a book to get an inkling on what you're thinking or feeling. But here you are, venting about your issues like it's second nature. Just giving me a bit of whiplash here honestly." -Theo

-Theo stands up-

"So, you wanna protect this person, huh?" -Theo

"Yes?" -Leo

"Then how about you introduce me at some point? If they act as innocent as you say they do, then an extra hand couldn't hurt. Plus, I may not always act like it, but I can be pretty mature when I need to be." -Theo

"*Scoff* Sure you are." -Leo

"Hey, you never know. I could be just as responsible as you are." -Theo

"I'll believe it when I see it." -Leo

"Then keep your eyes open pal. Anyways, we gotta go. My favorite Cafe closes at midnight, and I wanna grab something before then." -Theo

-Leo stands up-

"That explains the decaf smell in your room." -Leo

"What can I say? Decaf tastes good!" -Theo

-The two start to walk again-

"Personally, I'm more of a tea person myself." -Leo

"I know. Every time I walk into your office, I get blasted with the smell of English Breakfast tea. Actually, the days you have peppermint tea are worse. It's like a tactical strike at my sinuses."

"What, do you not like peppermint?" -Leo

"I don't mind the smell of peppermint. I do mind when you pick the type of peppermint tea with the strongest scent." -Theo

"I highly doubt it's that bad." -Leo

"Oh it is. It really is. Seriously, going from the smell of an elevator to getting blasted with the smell of your peppermint tea is extremely jarring." -Theo

"Then would you like me to place peppermint air fresheners around the lab so you can get used to the smell?" -Leo

"Please don't." -Theo

"I'm only kidding." -Leo

-The two continue to walk throughout the trail, eventually reaching the nearby city. Handfuls of cars drive by while a few people shoot finger guns at Theo, with Theo responding back the same way-

"These people are your acquaintances I presume?" -Leo

"Ha, I almost forgot you talk like that in public. But yeah, basically. I like helping people on my way back from the Cafe, so I usually end up talking with others afterwards." -Theo

"Hm, and here I thought you'd be swarmed with fangirls, considering how you're treated during the day." -Leo

"That's the best part actually. All these people are usually asleep by now, leaving the more normal people outside. That's why I like night walks, I can go outside and just be myself. Well that, and the atmosphere of the city at night is pretty neat." -Theo

"So you favor the late hours of the night because of the calmer atmosphere, along with the fact you aren't constantly swarmed with fans?" -Leo

"Yep, that's basically it. The night is my chance to breathe and process everything." -Theo

"And I assume you have a reason for taking these night walks initially?" -Leo

"Kinda? I mean, I started doing these night walks a few years back. During my whole military service thing, I needed something to keep my head out of the clouds for the next day. So it just became a habit. The whole decaf and cafe thing started when I first came here though." -Theo

"What made you start drinking decaf in the first place?" -Leo

"Eh, I noticed the cafe during one of my walks, went 'fuck it', and tried it out. Not really any meaning behind it. What about you? Why'd you start drinking tea?" -Theo

"Back when I was living in the scrapyard, I was doing my usual rounds when I came across a perfectly intact box of tea bags." -Leo

"In a scrapyard?" -Theo

"Sometimes, random items tend to get thrown in as if it were a dump site. Nonetheless, I took the box with me, and proceeded to make the tea with the instructions on the box." -Leo

"I'm surprised you had a working kettle." -Theo

"You'd be quite surprised at the kinds of things disposed of in that scrapyard. I happened upon a few broken handguns one day actually." -Leo

"Wait, seriously?" -Theo

"Yes. I was actually able to repair a few. The others I just threw back. I didn't see a use for them at the moment." -Leo

"You didn't have some sort of shitty scrap sorting system?" -Theo

"No. My memory was impeccable, so I just threw them back thinking I could use the parts at a later date. I never ended up using them, but I still remember where I put them to this day." -Leo

"Where'd you chuck 'em?" -Theo

"On a pile of other scraps near the entrance of the scrapyard on the right hand side." -Leo

"Ooh, nice. Oh hey, we're here."

-The two stop walking and turn to face the small cafe before them before heading inside-

[englishstrawbie]

#kacytober: OCT01. dress

The gala is in full swing, its guests in high spirits as they sip champagne and place their bids on the silent auction. On any other night, the NCIS team would be enjoying themselves too, but their investigation into the death of a Navy SEAL has led them here. What has been promoted as a fundraiser is actually a smokescreen for a money laundering operation, an elaborate network of companies and not-for-profit organisations hiding the true beneficiary from public view.

The man in charge of this evening, Jonathan Foster, was quick to confess his part in it all when he was under Tennant’s interrogation, except he is merely a pawn in someone else’s game and has no idea who is pulling the strings. Now with a target on his back, the team have been sent undercover to make sure he is not the next victim, while hoping to draw the mastermind out of the shadows.

Foster is near the stage, entertaining a small group of people which includes Jesse and Kai. They look smart in their tuxedos. Lucy sticks to the other side of the room, moving slowly amongst the guests as she keeps an eye out for anyone looking suspicious.

“Anything?” Jane asks under her breath as they pass each other.

“Not yet,” Lucy says.

“Whistler?”

Kate had agreed to join them undercover, another set of eyes useful in such a big crowd. She had been caught up in another case but had promised to meet them there. Her last message had been a little over thirty minutes ago, letting Lucy know that she had left the FBI’s island headquarters.

“On her way,” Lucy says.

It is then that she sees her stepping into the room. Kate wears a deep blue dress, long and elegant to the floor, the tips of her pointed white shoes just peeking out under its hem. It has an off-shoulder neckline, teasing her collarbone that Lucy so loves to pepper with kisses. Her blonde hair is curled at the ends and swept back over her shoulder, exposing her neck that Lucy so loves to suck. Her eyes are a smoky copper colour, her lips a bright red that Lucy so loves pressed against her own.

She feels a shiver down her spine as she licks her lips instinctively. If she was a cartoon, she is pretty sure her jaw would have hit the floor by now. Her mouth hangs open and she feels an elbow in her ribs, prompting her to close it, pursing her lips together.  

“Uh, Agent Tara?”

“Hmm?”

“You’re staring.”

There is a hint of amusement in Jane’s voice.

Forgetting about the job in hand for a moment, Lucy makes her way across the room to where Kate stands, having just accepted a flute of champagne from a passing waiter. Kate spots her coming, her eyes unceremoniously sweeping her up and down as she approaches, appreciating the way the black cocktail dress she wears accentuates all the curves her hands love to explore.

“Hey, sorry I’m late, I got stuck in a meeting,” Kate says with a small roll of her eyes. “What did I miss?”

Her face is serious as she looks around the room, immediately going into work mode.

“You look amazing,” Lucy gushes, ignoring her question. “Like, really, really amazing.”

She might as well be drooling.

Kate’s lips twitch as she tries to conceal her smile. “Agent Tara, you’re at work,” she reminds her, although her eyes twinkle. “Let’s focus on catching the bad guys.”

Lucy twists her lips playfully and steps towards her. “Okay, but later? You and me are gonna have some fun with that dress.”

Kate lets the smile spread across her face. “Oh, you can count on it.”

kacytober prompts

[chaos-burst]

one way or another (i’m gonna get you)

Dorian has a problem.

That problem is currently drunk off his ass and trying to balance one of Opal’s daggers on the tip of his nose. Of course he’s failing miserably, hitting himself in the eye with the blunt end twice thus far and maybe Dorian shouldn’t chuckle about it, but Dariax just keeps trying as Opal and Fearne edge him on.

“If you’re not careful you’ll stab your own eye out”, Orym says. He’s still nursing the same beer he started drinking an hour ago, probably to stay sober enough to stop any shenanigans that go too far.

“Oh, don’t worry about that, buddy. That already happened to me, like, three times, and I just healed it back together. No big deal.”

Dorian can see that Orym is at a loss for words.

“Dorian, do you think I can do it?”, Dariax calls over to him where he’s sitting, holding his lute and enjoying the warm evening breeze.

“Sure, Dariax. I’ll write a song about you if you do”, he says with an amused smile. Dorian tries to keep his smile from widening as Dariax beams at him and tries even harder.

All his life Dorian has been taught to be proper and well behaved—maybe that is why he feels drawn towards—well. Towards the group. The group that Dariax is also a part of and that Dorian definitely doesn’t feel drawn towards more than any of the others.

He starts moving his fingers mindlessly over the strings of his lute as Dariax stumbles backwards, falls over Opal’s outstretched legs and lands in her lap with the dagger clattering to the ground in front of them.

Dorian thinks about Dariax sitting on his lap, then he almost chokes on his own spit because so far Dariax hasn’t done anything even remotely appealing or attractive. He’s had shit on his beard, piss on his hands, he’s dirty and loud and so obnoxious.

But when he told Dorian that he’s the handsome one and that he’s just good at talking to people and whether Dorian wants some tips from him—Dorian was tempted. For a split second, he was thinking about Dariax offering to teach him how to flirt.

Because Dorian might be aware that he’s handsome, but he has exactly zero idea about how to flirt with people.

“Hey, Dorian! Do I still get a song?”, Dariax shouts, still half sitting in Opal’s lap.

“Sure, buddy. I’ll write you a song.”

“Cool! It’s a promise!”, Dariax says, thumbs up, a big grin on his handsome face.

There, Dorian can admit it.

Dariax is handsome. They’re all handsome. It’s really no big deal. Not at all.

Dorian tries not to think about what his parents would say about Dariax, because it’s completely irrelevant. It’s not like his parents will meet his friends, and especially not Dariax. Maybe he should go to bed and hope that come the next morning his circling thoughts will have stopped.

“Are you working on the song?”

Dorian blinks and turns his head, only to come face to face with Dariax who managed to get up from Opal’s lap and is now sitting right next to him, leaning way into Dorian’s personal space.

Dariax smells like ten different kinds of alcohol, leather and thankfully no bodily fluids, which is definitely an improvement. Dorian wishes that the fact that he’s seen this man with shit on his beard would dissuade his heart from beating a little faster every time Dariax grins at him.

Sadly his heart doesn’t care.

Neither does his stomach, which is currently doing all kinds of complicated gymnastics since Dariax invaded Dorian’s personal space.

“No. I don’t think I can concentrate in here while all that is going on”, Dorian says and gestures towards Opal who is now teaching Fearne how to do body shots.

“Aw, man. Can you play something? Something...hm. Something cool.”

“All my songs are cool, thank you very much!”

Dariax laughs.

“Yeah, okay, you’re not wrong there. You have a really beautiful voice, buddy. No wonder that goliath lady fell in love with you after like, three minutes!”

Dorian feels something that reminds him a lot of the feeling he gets when he’s falling or misses a step on some stairs. His heart starts doing an offensive little tumble and he clears his throat a little too loud as he leans out of Dariax’ space and clutches his lute as if his life depends on it.

“I don’t think I would know what to do if someone actually fell in love with me”, Dorian says with an embarrassingly shrill laugh and a second after the words have left his mouth he regrets them already.

“Aw, buddy, I told you—I can totally teach you a few tricks, you know? Just show you how to get real popular with the ladies. Or gents. Or people in general”, Dariax says and winks at him.

Dorian wishes he could turn into thin air. His cheeks feel very hot.

“I—uh. I don’t think that’s necessary. It’s not like I really have the time—“

Dariax snorts and raises his eyebrows.

“Oh, come on, Dorian. We’re just hanging out, right? If you wanna get laid, we have plenty of time for that. You should just relax a little more. Okay, so. What’s your type?”

Dorian stares at Dariax for almost thirty seconds before he clears his throat again.

“Uh. I—don’t. Well. Adventurous. Maybe—uh. Maybe brunettes?”

“Adventurous brunettes? That’s pretty vague, buddy. Just saying. Wait a second!”

Dariax leans closer again and puts his hand on Dorian’s shoulder. Then he does a terrible shout-whisper into Dorian’s ear that shouldn’t give him goosebumps but, fuck, it definitely does.

“Are you into Orym?”

Dorian blinks and turns his head to stare at Dariax who looks as if he just found out an earth-shattering secret through some careful investigation.

“N—no! No, he’s not. I mean, Orym is—fine? I don’t, uh—what I meant to say is... I don’t really know what my type is”, he ends lamely.

Of course Dariax feels the need to put an arm around Dorian now.

“Don’t worry, buddy. We’ll get you laid in no time. You have a pretty face and voice and all that, pretty sure that’ll go easy peasy.”

“That’s really not—“

“Hey guys, what are you whispering about?”, Opal shouts.

“We’re trying to figure out what Dorian’s type is to get him laid!”, Dariax shouts back.

“No, that’s not—“

“Ohh! Interesting! You don’t have a type? Did you never have a relationship before? Wait—are you like, a virgin?”

Dorian abruptly gets up from his chair. He’s definitely not drunk enough for this.

“I’m going to bed”, he says and leaves the room in a hurry, ignoring the disappointed shouts of his new friends following him outside.

*

Dorian hopes that his friends have forgotten the whole thing about supposedly getting him laid and about how Dariax intends to teach him flirting. But unfortunately the universe decides to not do him this favor.

Suddenly, every remotely attractive person they pass invokes a whole litany of questions.

Opal, Fearne and Dariax want to know everything. Which height, body-type, eye color, temperament, and style of clothing does he like? Does he prefer any genders to others? On six different occasions, Dariax tries to wingman Dorian into asking random strangers on dates.

Dorian is so desperate that he considers just telling them that he actually has someone back home, just so they will leave him alone.

It wouldn’t be the first lie he told.

Dorian feels a pang of guilt for lying about his name to these people who keep fighting alongside him.

Orym, bless his soul, is the only person who doesn’t partake in these interrogations and at some point, after Opal had asked Dorian if he was more into “tits or asses” Orym had quietly stated that “he deserves his privacy, you guys”.

Dorian has no idea if he’s a “tits or asses” kinda guy.

But Dorian just can’t stop thinking about the way Dariax’ voice sounded when it lilted “Man, you have the prettiest fucking eyes I’ve ever seen” the last time they were drunk.

It seems weirdly typical and ridiculous that Dorian has to have his first crush on the most chaotic man he ever met.

Dorian wishes he could forget about those damn words, just like everything that happened in their first week.

“You know”, Orym says to him two nights after that cursed conversation as they’re making their way further south towards Byroden, “if you told them to stop in earnest, I think they would respect that.”

The landscape is a carpet of green, sloping hills, rolling fields that lie bare now that winter is closing in around them. The sky is blue and cloudless and as they talk their breath puffs up in front of their faces and vanishes shortly after.

Dorian looks at Orym and then pointedly turns his gaze at Opal and Dariax, who started making a list of their findings regarding Dorian’s type.

“You sure?”, he says with one eyebrow raised.

Orym looks at least as pained as Dorian feels right now.

“I see your point. But they’re not—you know. Not bad people, I guess. I don’t think they want to hurt you.”

“Well, they’re not hurting me, they’re annoying me to death!”

Orym pats him on the back in a way that is so pitiful, Dorian can hardly take it.

“I wouldn’t usually encourage lying, but maybe you could just make up a girlfriend. Or boyfriend. Or—“

“What if I just tell them that you’re my type”, Dorian interrupts and Orym blinks at him.

“Uh—“

“No offense, you’re not. Not that you’re not handsome or anything, I just. Well—“

“It’s fine”, Orym says with a snort and shakes his head with a disbelieving smile. “You don’t have to fuss about it. You’re also very handsome but not my type.”

Dorian tries not to be offended after the last kick to his ego in Gilmore’s shop and clears his throat.

“Okay, so. What about it? Will you be my—I don’t know. My fake boyfriend?”

“No.”

“Oh, come on, Orym, I’m desperate here!”

“I will not be swept up in all of that. I still think you should just try to talk to them.”

Dorian feels betrayed and huffs, but he doesn’t press the issue any further. It’s probably going to be fine, he thinks. That is, until Dariax walks up to him, grins up at him cheekily and bumps his elbow into Dorian’s side.

“So. Are you finally ready to admit it?”, Dariax asks.

There is a glint in his eyes that Dorian can’t quite read.

“Admit what?”, he asks, already dreading the answer.

“That you have the hots for Orym!”

Dorian stares down at Dariax, the man he, so, so very unfortunately has “the hots for” and sighs deeply.

“You caught me”, he says with a gravelly voice. “I have the hots for Orym.”

“I knew it!”, Dariax shouts, then catches himself and turns his voice into a whisper instead. “I fucking knew it!”

Dorian massages his temple.

Maybe becoming an adventurer was a terrible idea. Maybe he shouldn’t have come here. He could make a name for himself somewhere else. The Menagerie coast is supposed to be lovely all year around.

“Okay, don’t worry, buddy. I gotcha. I’ll keep your secret, won’t even tell the girls at all. And you know what, because we’re such great friends I have a special offer just for you”, Dariax says and leans in even closer to Dorian, who has to lean down significantly.

“And what offer is that?”, Dorian asks with a sigh, resigning himself to his fate. At least Orym knows that Dorian isn’t actually attracted to him, so, he thinks, this can’t possibly get any worse.

“I should totally be your fake boyfriend so you can make him jealous.”

Dorian stares at Dariax.

Dariax stares back with the proudest grin on his handsome face.

The universe is trying to punish him. For whatever reason, it must have decided to make Dorian the butt of a cosmic joke. That’s the only explanation for all of this.

“I don’t think that’s—“

“It’s perfect! Don’t worry, I have experience with this sort of stuff, just lemme handle this.”

Dariax winks at Dorian and then grabs his hand to intertwine their fingers.

“Hey guys”, he calls as he pulls Dorian along who follows helplessly, his heart stumbling in his chest as his consciousness zooms in on the feeling of Dariax’ hand in his, “guess what. I should’ve clocked it all along, but of course it makes perfect sense! Check it out!”

And as Orym, Opal and Fearne turn their heads, Dariax raises their intertwined fingers and beams at the others.

“Wait…”, Orym starts slowly, his brow furrowed in confusion, “what…?”

“Too late, Orym. He’s my boyfriend now”, Dariax says and Dorian wishes that the wind would just pick him up and carry him away.

*

Dorian has to say something.

He can’t, under any circumstances, keep this up.

He is sitting—and gods, his heart is beating so terribly fast—on Dariax’ lap.

Dariax had insisted on it and now his muscular arms are wound around Dorian’s waist as if this is the most normal thing in the world. For someone who doesn’t actually have to breathe to survive, Dorian feels a little bit like he’s suffocating from the staccato inside his rib cage.

They made camp close to a rock formation that, according to Fearne, looks like a pig with wings. The night smells of snow, but Dorian feels hot despite the cold.

He doesn’t know what to do.

He knows it even less when Dariax’ hand finds one of his and just casually starts rubbing circles into the back of his hand with a thumb. Dorian can feel Orym’s eyes on them and sadly that edges Dariax on even more because he thinks his plan is working.

“You know”, Dariax says and sounds way too casual about it, “I can’t believe how lucky I got. Pretty sure you’re the most beautiful person I’ve been with so far, Dorian.”

“I—uh”, Dorian says, then somehow forgets how to speak. His cheeks feel incredibly hot even though he doesn’t sit remotely close to the fire.

Orym cocks his head and suddenly his eyes turn a little too wide for Dorian’s tastes.

Dorian doesn’t want anyone to understand anything about this disaster.

“Well, I would certainly love a boyfriend who tells me nice things like that”, Opal sighs dreamily. “Or—you know. Maybe a girlfriend. Who knows. I certainly don’t.”

She laughs a little too shrilly but Dorian doesn’t have the mental capacity to think about it anymore because a tingling sensation is running through his body and crawling along the underside of his skin as Dariax’ fingers just keep on gently, way too gently, drawing nonsensical symbols and circles on Dorian’s hand.

“Well, I just know what’s good. I make a great boyfriend”, Dariax announces with a smug undertone to his voice. The sad thing is that Dorian can’t even disagree.

So far, Dariax has been nothing but—well. There is no other word for it. Gentle and accommodating. He also started flirting with Dorian and his flirting only ever got tasteless twice during the last twenty-four hours.

He has offered to carry stuff for Dorian, held his hand, given him way too many compliments for Dorian’s poor heart to handle, helped him climb over some rocks and purposefully took a hit for Dorian in combat earlier today while shouting “Not my boyfriend, you ash-hole!”.

If someone had told him that Dariax makes good boyfriend material, Dorian would have scoffed at them.

But now.

Well.

Now he’s in even deeper shit, because this doesn’t help his feelings at all. It does the exact opposite of helping.

Gods, Dorian wishes he could kiss him.

“Well, I am certainly—uh. Happy? For you two”, Orym says with a pointed look at Dorian. Dorian tries to tell Orym that this wasn’t his idea with his eyes alone, that this is the worst, that Dorian definitely needs saving, but he doesn’t think anything gets across because the moment that Orym says that and looks at Dorian, Dariax seems to decide that he can’t have Orym looking at Dorian like that.

Dorian makes an embarrassing screeching sound as he is dipped backwards on Dariax’ lap. There is a very handsome, dwarven face with glinting eyes right in front of his when he opens his eyes again.

“Just go along”, Dariax whispers and before Dorian can protest or even just try to catch up with what’s happening, there are dry, warm lips pressed against his mouth and Dariax is closing his eyes.

Dorian’s brain is blank for a few seconds, then it kicks into overdrive, much like his heart that seems eager to jump right out of his chest and into the campfire. Dorian can’t fault it, because he, too, would love to jump into the campfire, never to be seen again.

Dariax is holding him with one arm while his other hand is resting on Dorian’s cheeks where Dariax’ thumb starts rubbing circles again as he kisses Dorian.

Dorian wants to run away.

He wants to kiss back.

He wants this to be real.

Dariax doesn’t actually want to kiss him. He only does it because he’s pretending, there is nothing real about any of this, no matter how nice and exciting his warm lips feel against Dorian’s.

Dorian pushes him away, clambers up from his position, trying very hard not to fall as he stands up, and steps away from Dariax hastily.

“I—ah. I need to. Pee. Yes. Pee. I’ll be—uh. Later!”

And he walks as fast as he can without breaking into a run.

His lips are still burning after he stops walking without even seeing where he’s going. It’s dumb. All of this is so incredibly dumb.

Beautiful eyes, beautiful voice, beautiful person.

Dariax really has to stop saying these things.

It’s already enough that Dorian developed this stupid crush after such a short amount of time on the road. It’s stupid that it had to be Dariax of all people—couldn’t it have been someone reasonable? Like Orym?

Couldn’t it just have been no one? Or a nice, noble lady that he impressed with his songs and good looks?

No.

He’s standing in the middle of nowhere, his heart beating rapidly in his chest with no clue where he even is or what he’s doing. The trees around him are leafless and bare, stretching towards the dark sky like skeletal silhouettes. Dorian doesn't know what to do.

Dariax kissed him.

He had his first kiss with a complete and utter maniac of a person. His lips are still tingling and gods, he wants to kiss him again and again and again—

“Dorian! Doriaaan!”

Dorian turns around and wipes at his face that feels weirdly wet.

Gods, he hates everything and everyone right now.

Dariax comes to a halt in front of him, his breath coming quickly and holding his compass rose.

“Okay—wow. Your legs. Are so. Long. You’re so. Fucking fast”, Dariax huffs and puts his hands on his knees as he tries to catch his breath.

Dorian looks at him and can’t decide whether he wants to kick Dariax in the shin or just run away further.

“So, uh—sorry. I got a little carried away and I kinda—uh. It was brought to my attention that it wasn’t very cool of me to just kiss you without asking if that’s okay with you. So—uh. Really sorry about that, shoulda thought about that before I—uh. You know.”

Dariax scratches the back of his head as he looks down at Dorian’s left knee.

“It’s—well. Yeah, I suppose a little warning would have been nice. It’s—uh.”

Dorian stops and wipes at his face again and when he looks back up Dariax is studying him, his gaze intense and uncharacteristically serious.

“Wait—wait a second. Was that your first kiss?”

“No! I mean. Yes! Sort of! Maybe!”

Dariax gapes and Dorian wishes the earth could swallow him up whole.

“Oh fuck, buddy, man, that’s. I’m really sorry, I didn’t—damn. I really fucked that one up, huh?”

Dariax looks so earnestly mortified at what he’s done that Dorian can already feel how he’s forgiving him, how he finds it endearing, how his heart swells in his chest like the idiot that it is.

“It’s not such a big deal. Don’t worry about it. Just—uh. Maybe we should talk about all of this stuff before… you know.”

“Yeah, yeah, totally. I swear I’m usually not a creep or anything, it was just… you know. The heat of the moment, or something. So…”

Dariax is scratching the back of his head again and swallows before he shoots Dorian a lopsided grin.

“So. No kissing and stuff like that, huh? Just the hand-holding? Hey, maybe a hug or something?”

Dorian stares at him and he could swear that Dariax’ cheeks are a little redder than before, which, Dorian supposes, comes from his embarrassment about his earlier fuck-up.

As long as they’re doing this fake-boyfriend gig, Dorian could kiss Dariax whenever he wants. Because apparently Dariax doesn’t mind that one little bit. He might never get the chance again to kiss him if he says no now.

So Dorian does something incredibly stupid and impulsive and maybe it’s even a real ash-hole move. In this tiny moment in time he decides to be selfish.

“Kissing is fine. Uh—you know. You’re not that bad at it, I guess”, he says and laughs which sounds terribly false in his own ears but Dariax perks up and throws him a reckless grin that makes Dorian’s heart stumble in his chest.

“Ha! You just wait for it, I’ll kiss your brains out before you know it!”

*

Dorian might be addicted.

He knows that this is all a ruse based on a misunderstanding but gods, kissing Dariax is so good.

And Dariax somehow makes it seem as if he’s just as into it as Dorian is, because he keeps kissing him all the time. Of course, it never happens when they’re alone and only when Orym is in more or less close proximity but if Dorian isn’t careful he’ll start believing that they’re actually boyfriends sooner than later.

Dariax is so good at pretending.

He kisses Dorian as if he never wants to kiss anyone else. He holds Dorian’s face in his hands as if it’s something precious. He kisses Dorian breathless and at more than one point Dorian had to stop him because he was getting a little too into it and he’s afraid of overstepping any boundaries.

Dariax promised that he would kiss Dorian’s brains out and it’s absolutely working. On the seventh day on their journey south they get so caught up in making out that they don’t realize that the others have gone to find a camping place for the night.

“We should—uh. Probably follow them”, Dorian croaks and stares down at Dariax’ lips.

“Hmhm. Yeah. Probably a good idea”, Dariax mumbles. Then he kisses Dorian again.

Dorian gets lost in the sensation of tongues sliding against one another and the feeling of Dariax’ hand cupping his cheeks. Dorian slides his hands into Dariax’ hair and buries his fingers in there, something that provokes a sound from Dariax. A sound that gives Dorian goosebumps all over his arms.

He wants to hear it again. He wants to touch more. He wants, he wants, he wants—

Dariax pulls back, his eyes glassy, his breathing labored.

“I—uh. Ha. I got a little carried away. Sorry. What do you say about checking where the others went?”

“Sure. Yeah. Great idea. Let’s go.”

He steps away from Dariax and stuffs his hands into his pockets to keep Dariax from reaching for them. This is a complete and utter disaster.

Dorian knows that he should stop it.

He shouldn’t abuse Dariax’ trust like this and keep up his pretense when all that Dariax wants is to help Dorian make Orym jealous.

Which has, of course, not worked in the slightest, but Dariax insists that it’s just because Orym is such a rational and level-headed guy.

“We just need to wear him thin, you know.”

Dorian doesn’t know.

He feels like he doesn’t know anything anymore.

When they finally reach the campsite, Fearne has placed her head in Opal’s lap and seems to be napping as Opal carefully braids her long, green hair.

“You guys alright?”, Orym asks with his eyebrows raised. Dorian feels himself flush and clear his throat.

“More than alright”, Dariax answers and winks. The implication makes Dorian’s cheeks heat up even more.

He didn’t think that Orym’s eyebrows could climb even higher, but that’s exactly what happens as he regards the two of them.

“Dorian, can I talk to you for a second?”, Orym asks and gets up from the log he was sitting on. Dorian shoots Dariax a glance and he seems… off.

Dariax doesn’t return Dorian’s look, he just walks over to the fire, lets himself fall down next to Opal and asks, way too loudly to be necessary “So what’s for dinner?”.

But Dorian doesn’t have any time to think more about this, because Orym grabs his wrist and pulls him towards a group of trees, away from the campfire and away from Dariax whose eyes seem to bore themselves into the back of Dorian’s head as he follows Orym into the night.

“What are you doing?”

Dorian doesn’t have to ask what Orym means. He wrings his hands and stares at the ground.

“I—uh. I don’t really... I don’t really know?”

“So when you said adventurous and brunette, what you actually meant was short, stocky and a complete disaster?”

“I—um...”

Orym looks at him with raised eyebrows and despite the fact that Dorian is so much taller than him he suddenly feels very small.

“Well. Dariax kind of got it into his head that I’m into you. Which I’m not.”

“Yes, we established that.”

“Exactly. And. Well, he thought it would be a good idea to be fake boyfriends to make you jealous.”

Orym’s eyebrows rise even higher towards his hairline.

“But I’m not jealous. Because you and I are just friends.”

“I know, okay? It just kinda got out of hand?He’s so—I don’t know! I don’t know what to do!”

Orym sighs and rubs his temples.

“So. You’re actually into Dariax?”, he asks.

Dorian presses his lips together and takes a deep breath before he nods.

“And he doesn’t know. He thinks you’re into me?”

Dorian nods again.

“And now he’s waiting for me to get jealous and for us two to be boyfriends?”

Dorian shrugs helplessly.

“Isn’t that... I don’t know. It seems like lying to him.”

“What do you want me to do? Just tell him that I have the hots for him and then leave the country forever?”, Dorian hisses.

“Well, maybe he has the hots for you, too!”, Orym whispers back and Dorian can’t help but laugh. It sounds a little hysterical.

“Then why would he offer to help me to get with you?”

Orym stares at Dorian for a full thirty seconds. Then he sighs.

“I guess it’s a little hard to... fathom... what goes on in Dariax’ head.”

“That seems like an understatement.”

Orym scoffs and shakes his head with half a smile on his face.

“I can’t believe you actually fell for—that.”

“Hey!”

“Sorry. I guess to each their own.”

“So what’s your type then?”

“Uh—I don’t really have a type. I’m not into the whole relationship stuff. Or—uh. The sex stuff, for that matter.”

“Oh. Oh! I see. Well, that seems pretty convenient. Way less stressful than what I’m doing with my life.”

Orym smiles and shakes his head again.

“I’m not going to lie, when I’m watching you and Dariax or Opal and Fearne I am glad that I don’t have to deal with any of it”, Orym admits.

“Opal and Fearne? How do you mean?”, Dorian asks. His brain is still stuck on kissing Dariax without Orym even being in any close proximity. His whole brain capacity seems to be occupied by thinking about Dariax. It’s an absolute clusterfuck.

“Never mind. So, what do you intend to do? You can’t keep this up forever”, Orym says and pulls Dorian away from a trail of thoughts that was leading towards something explicit and utterly unbefitting of a talk with a good friend about feelings.

“I—uh. I’m still figuring it out. I’ll just. You know, I could just tell him that I’m not into you anymore and then he would probably stop”, Dorian says and ignores the uncomfortable tightness of his chest as he thinks about not being able to kiss Dariax anymore. Or hold his hand. Or being told that he’s beautiful.

He’s so fucked.

“I think you should just tell him, you know? We’re adventurers now, no one knows what might happen. If I learned anything from our Voice of the Tempest, it’s that you should do your best to live without any regrets, because time is a precious thing”, Orym says.

“A weird soup”, Dorian answers, his voice weak and his heart hurting. Orym snorts.

“Yes, sure. A weird, precious soup. Anyway. Think about it, okay?”

“Yeah. Yeah, okay.”

*

Something is up with Dariax.

Dorian has no idea what it is, but there is definitely something wrong.

He’s quieter than usual, which is disconcerting. He’s also, very definitely, holding onto Dorian’s hand way tighter than before.

“Hey, is everything alright?”, Dorian asks him quietly as they’re getting ready for the night. The sky overhead is dark and full of clouds and the moon is barely visible.

“Yeah, sure. Stellar”, Dariax says but he’s not looking at Dorian.

“You don’t look stellar”, Dorian insists and puts his hand on Dariax’ shoulder. Dariax’ eyes flicker down to his hand and then up to his face. Dariax opens his mouth to answer, but Dorian doesn’t hear anything because there is a searing pain on his back and he slumps forward and crumples onto his knees.

His vision goes blurry from the pain and he can feel that there is something coursing through his body. It hurts.

“Dorian? Dorian!”

Lying down seems like a great idea. What if he dies now and he didn’t even tell Dariax that he’s not into Orym? What if his adventure ends here already? He doesn’t want to sink into the weird soup that is time already. He wants…

“Take your hands off my boyfriend, you fuckers!”

“Hey! What’s going on?”

“Dorian, are you okay?”

He is definitely not okay and while he probably should have different priorities as he’s bleeding out in the grass, all he can think about is the fact that Dariax just called him his boyfriend.

“Dorian, are you okay?”, Dariax’ voice sounds muffled and far away.

“Heh. You’re really good at pretending”, he lulls as he’s turned onto his back to look up at Dariax’ face.

“What? Guys, I think he has a concussion or something!”

“Well, heal him!”

“I’m trying! Dorian, hey! Buddy, don’t pass out on me, okay?”

“Did you know that your eyes are really pretty?”, Dorian slurs and he wants to raise a hand to touch Dariax’ face that seems way too red all of a sudden, but he can’t move a muscle and as he feels Dariax’ warm healing magic flow into him, he passes out from the mind-numbing pain.

*

Dorian has never shared a bed with anyone. Neither in a platonic nor in a romantic or sexual way.

When he wakes up there is someone plastered to his side. The quiet snoring tells him that it must be Dariax.

“Are you okay, Dorian?”, Fearne’s soft voice reaches his ears and he turns his head to see her sit on his other side, her hand places closed to his shoulder as if to make sure that he’s within reach.

“Uh—ow. Yeah. What happened?”

Dorian tries to concentrate on his own body and on Fearne’s words, but he’s distracted by the feeling of Dariax sleeping so close to him. His arm is thrown over Dorian’s chest and his face is pressed into Dorian’s shoulder. Orym is nowhere to be seen.

“Those Nameless Ones seem to have a pretty far reach. They really want that spider crown.”

Dorian groans as he tries to move.

“They hit me with poison or something?”

“Yeah. Dariax fixed it. Then he insisted on carrying you back to the cart. Then he insisted to tuck you into bed. And then he just sort of flopped down next to you and stared at you really intensely until he passed out.”

Dorian tries to laugh but almost chokes on it as he imagines this short man trying to carry someone as tall as Dorian. His thoughts circle around the fact that Dariax cared for him, healed him, tucked him into bed.

“So. Ah—where are Orym and Opal?”, he asks to distract himself from the feeling of having Dariax pressed so close to him.

“They’re checking to see if we’ll be safe for the night. I just wanted to make sure that you were okay.”

“That’s very kind of you.”

Fearne smiles down at him and starts scratching Little Mister under the chin as she hums a melody that Dorian’s never heard before.

“Did you ever have a really dumb crush?”, he asks before he can stop himself. Fearne turns her head to look at him again and cocks her head.

“A crush that was dumb because it wasn’t mutual or a crush that was dumb because the person was dumb?”, she wants to know.

“Ah. Huh—I haven’t thought about it that way. I guess… how about we go with both?”

Fearne puts her index fingers to her lips and cocks her head from side to side as she thinks about it.

“Well, I don’t think crushes are dumb just because they aren’t mutual. And I also think that Opal is very intelligent in her own, special way.”

Dorian blinks.

“Wait. What?”

“Hm?”

“You have a crush on Opal?”

“Sure. I thought it was pretty obvious”, Fearne says and smiles dreamily.

“Uh—maybe. Now that you mention it, I think Orym clocked it.”

“She is just. You know. Very exciting and spontaneous and funny and creative and pretty.”

The way that Fearne just talks about her crush makes Dorian wonder why he isn’t able to just say it like this. That he likes Dariax because he’s funny and brave and adventurous and a complete idiot in a lovable kind of way.

“What do you like about Dariax?”, Fearne wants to know.

“Uh—well”, he laughs nervously and clears his throat. Dariax is still softly snoring into his shoulder. “I guess… I guess pretty much everything?”

“That’s so sweet! And that’s what he said too. You guys just fit so well”, Fearne says with an earnest smile.

“Wait. What?”

“Hm?”

“What did you just say?”

“I said that you guys fit really well.”

“No. No, I meant before that.”

“Uh—well, when I asked him what he liked most about you, he also said that he likes everything about you. I thought it was really sweet, you know? There was a whole list of things, but he stopped midway through it and said ‘So basically, everything’.”

There was a whole list of things.

A list.

 “So basically, everything.”

“Dorian? Are you really okay? You look a little flushed.”

“Hm? Oh—yeah. I’m fine. Perfect. Peachy. Never better.”

He laughs nervously and glances over at Dariax as his insides dissolve into small, hyperactive butterflies. Maybe it’s not what he thinks. Maybe Dariax meant that he likes everything about Dorian as a friend.

“If you’re sure you’re okay I think I’ll stretch my legs a little bit. This cart is pretty small”, Fearne says and scoots towards the exit of the cart. Little Mister follows behind her and a moment later Dorian is alone with a snoring Dariax, whose hand has somehow managed to sneak under Dorian’s shirt.

What is he supposed to do now?

Wake Dariax up? Confess his feelings?

His heart beats so quickly that Dorian is almost afraid that it might just leap out of his rib cage. In the end he’s not brave enough to wake Dariax up and instead intertwines their fingers and turns his head to look at Dariax who has definitely drooled onto his shirt.

He knows that he’s completely fucked because he thinks that this is endearing.

Dorian raises his arm and gently cards his hand through Dariax’ hair.

Dariax makes a small sound in his sleep, something that sounds like a content sigh, and the butterflies in Dorian’s stomach start dancing happily.

“D’you really think my eyes are pretty?”, Dariax mumbles a second later and Dorian pulls his hand away hastily as Dariax’ eyes open.

“Um—well. Yeah. They’re… they have a very nice color”, Dorian croaks. Dariax pulls his hand out from under Dorian’s shirt and starts rubbing at his eyes.

“You okay again?”

“Yeah. Thank you for saving me. And carrying me to the cart. And—uh. Tucking me in.”

Dariax’ cheeks redden as he coughs slightly before sitting up.

“Well, you know. It’s what boyfriends are for, right?”, Dariax says with half a laugh in his voice that doesn’t sound completely genuine.

Dorian swallows and bites his bottom lip as he tries to find the words. He’s usually not bad at talking, so why does this seem so endlessly hard?

“So—uh. I have something to confess”, he starts as his thoughts start spinning around in panicked circles. Dariax turns his head to look down at him.

“I know, I know”, he answers.

“Huh?”

“Well, I figured, you know. When Orym dragged you away I thought you guys probably had a talk?”

“We did, yeah”, Dorian says but he is endlessly confused about what that has to do with anything.

“See, I knew it. So you think it finally started working, huh? Told you, I’m really good at this kind of stuff.”

Dorian decides that he has to sit up for this. His head is spinning and his heart is racing and he is endlessly confused about what in the ever-loving hell is going on.

“Working? What are you talking about?”

“You know, the jealousy thing.”

Dorian stares at him.

Then it finally clicks.

“Dariax… I don’t want to be fake boyfriends anymore”, he says quietly before he can think of a better way to say it. Dariax’ expression twists and he looks away, his hand reaching for the back of his head to scratch at his scalp—a sign for nervousness, as Dorian knows by now.

“Yeah. Okay. I—uh. That’s—“

“I want to be your real boyfriend.”

Dariax blinks a few times. Then his face turns the deepest shade of red that Dorian has ever seen on him.

“You—what?”

“I don’t like Orym. I never have. Not like that. I—uh. I like you. And when—if—I kiss you again I don’t want it to be just pretend, I want to really kiss you. Because I—uh. I really like kissing you.”

Dariax is still staring at him, seemingly stunned. The hand at the back of his head has stopped moving and started to sink slowly back into Dariax’ lap.

“So…”, Dorian says and the nervous energy humming under his skin is almost unbearable, “can I? Can I… kiss you? For real?”

If Dariax doesn’t say anything soon Dorian might have to flee from the cart and actually leave the country. The suspense is torturous, his words hang heavy in the air between them. And then, faster than Dorian can react, Dariax lounges himself at Dorian and kisses him so passionately that Dorian can’t suppress the moan that escapes him.

Dariax pushes at him, shoves Dorian back down onto the bedroll, sinks one hand into Dorian’s long hair and cups his face with the other.

Dorian’s brain goes blank as he arches up against Dariax’ weight on top of him.

“So, is that a yes?”, he pants into the kiss.

“Yes. Yes, yes, yes”, Dariax rasps and kisses him again. “Gods, you’re so pretty. I thought I was going to go insane.”

Dorian makes a very embarrassing noise somewhere between a moan and a whimper. Maybe he likes those compliments more than a normal person would.

“So you like me?”

“Are you kidding me? So fucking much.”

Dariax is kissing his whole face now and Dorian wraps his arms around him. He feels light as a feather and the butterflies in his stomach have gone completely off the rails.

“Are you guys decent?”, Opal shouts from outside the cart.

“No! Go away! I want to make out with my boyfriend!”, Dariax shouts back and Dorian laughs.

“Don’t leave any icky spots though!”, Opal says.

“Oh, come on”, Dorian hears Orym protest.

“That’s what Prestidigitation is for, Opal! Read a book about magic!”, Dariax announces loudly and Dorian has no time to protest this obscene exchange because Dariax is kissing him again and Orym seems to be dragging Opal away from the cart.

“So do you know what that means?”, Dorian mumbles against Dariax’ lips.

“Hm?”

“I don’t need any flirting lessons from you after all.”

[qyllenhaal]

American Pie

Lee Bodecker x Reader

Word Count: 4.8k

Summary: The Summer heat gets to everyone, including Sheriff Lee Bodecker who is looking to stir up with his favorite girl.

Warnings: 18+ only!!! DubCon (!!!), Dark themes, age gap (reader is early 20s), infidelity, alcohol abuse, exhibitionism, unprotected sex, spanking.

A/N: I didn’t expect to finish this in one night, but I did! I may have missed a few things to include in the warnings but I believe I got all the major ones. Enjoy!

Hot weather makes people feel more rowdy, like they can do anything just because the temperature is rising and the sun is out for longer. When the number of troublemakers at the bar goes up, so does the number of visits from the police.

Someone was always anonymously calling the police because someone at Tecumseh Lounge was stirring up some shit. They rarely came and when they did they did nothing. The deputy they dispatched would just write down a few things in a notepad and leave. No one ever truly got in trouble and that's because the Sheriff is rumored to be "in'' with the owner.

The rumors are true but the nice ladies and gentlemen from the nicer parts of the county will never see it for themselves. Tecumseh is rough, and nasty. There were more vices here than just alcohol, and most of it was done under the table.

Y/n was crazy to take this job as a bartender at Tecumseh. She didn't know that a hidden prospective for the job was fucking the patrons. One of the other girls working here did it, and so did Sandy despite her brother being the sheriff. Y/n was not interested in the advances pressed on her by the men. They were either married or been fucking "ladies of the night" for years and probably have something. No one who frequented a place like Tecumseh wasn't someone Y/n wanted to go home with. Yet she let Sandy's brother talk to her in any kind of way.

For someone who was the sheriff, Lee Bodecker was here a lot and it wasn't because the drinks were good. Sometimes his sister served him while he interrogated her about her husband Carl. Y/n had seen Carl a few times and she found him to be sleazy. Poor Sandy was stuck working behind the bar while Carl flirted with a younger girl just a few feet away from her. But Sandy would also take some patrons out to the back and get fucked when her shift ended. It seems like an even deal, but the difference is Carl looks happy doing it and Sandy always comes back looking a mess, and not in a good way.

Y/n has been applying for a waitressing job closer to her house. She wants out of this place yet whenever she says Tecumseh is her current place of work, her application gets thrown out. Her aunt got her the job and she wished to god that woman never did. She should've gone and worked at someone's farm doing hard labor instead of accepting the offer to work. She was talked to like she was a whore and there was nothing to do about it because her boss did the same thing.

Friday night shifts are the hardest for her. The men drink harder because they don't work weekends. The influence of alcohol made them relentless when talking to Y/n. They made what they believed were compliments about her body and proclaimed how they wanted to fuck her. She just had to press a smile because the more they found her fuckable the more they tipped her. The low-cut top she wore was not coincidental. While she didn't fuck patrons for 20 dollars, she did put out for their attention.

Not even 30 minutes before her shift and a fight breaks out. She has to call the police because the fight between two men turned into a fight of three, four, and then five. No one looked interested in breaking up the fight, just watching with glib smiles and jovial laughs. This was the kind of entertainment they came for, but it was a pain to deal with as a barmaid.

Police sirens and the lights made some patrons, including two of the people involved in the fight, went running out through another exit. Their fears were pointless since it was rare for anyone to get arrested here.

"Alright break it up," Deputy Brooks' voice boomed.

Whenever an officer was called to come down to Tecumseh Lounge, it was only three policemen who showed up: Deputy Brooks, Deputy McConnell, and the sheriff. They must've worked out some kind of deal with her boss because they come in, don't do shit about the reason they were called for, and they never failed to ask for a drink before leaving. Tonight is no different; they just break up the fight and tell the men to leave but they never force perpetrators to leave.

The fight dissipated a few minutes after the deputies showed up and the patrons grumbled because the fun was over. The two deputies looked around the place to give off the appearance of holding authority then they made their way over to the bar.

"One of your coldest beers," Deputy Brooks didn't greet Y/n nor was he polite. He just demanded what he wanted.

"No free drinks." She tries to keep her tone of voice strong. She is not afraid of these two men who only feel powerful because they have a badge on them. Deputy McConnell was only a few years older than her and she remembers when he was a scrawny kid who got picked on even as a senior in high school.

"We just broke up a fight at your fine establishment. The least you can do is give us a beer," Brooks rebuttal.

There was no arguing so Y/n sighed and went to grab two beers for the men so they could just get out of her sight.

"I need two beers. Not just one," McConnell interjected. Y/n didn't like how they drank on the job, especially since they were going to be driving so late at night.

But Y/n obliges just to get them out of her face. She hates the smug look on Deputy Brooks face as he grabs his beer and walks out with the other deputy behind him.

The rest of the night is Jenny's problem because Y/n was clocking out immediately. She smelled like cigarettes and just wanted to wash the layer of sweat off of her body. All the money her boss accrues from shady dealings, he was too cheap to install an air conditioner. People get angry and agitated when it's so hot out. Even at night the air feels sticky and falls just to the low 80s.

She headed out the back to avoid the incoming patrons. She is fair game to some people now that she is single.

Out back she can hear three unmistakable voices. Deputy Brooks and McConnell were standing by their car that was parked right next to the nice, clean sheriff's car. Y/n is not in the mood to deal with the two dickheads and their boss sheriff dickhead, but she knows they are going to say something to her as she walks back.

"Well if it isn't my pretty, pretty Cherry."

Lee Bodecker's voice punctuated the night air, making even the humid atmosphere feel cold.

Y/n stops in her tracks, knowing that she cannot avoid this without causing trouble for herself.

"Don't call me that."

"You sure like the name last week when I had my head between those thighs. 'Lee...oh Lee!" He imitated her voice which made his deputies laugh. Lee has a beer in his hand, reminding Y/n that McConnell asked for two back at the bar. She should've known it was for Lee.

She was embarrassed by him talking about their time together in front of his subordinates. Lee is married and Y/n is turned off by men with gold bands on their ring finger who try to take her home after her shift ends. However they have fucked on multiple occasions, making him the only patron she has given into. He was mean, but authoritative. Y/n couldn't help herself and she sometimes let the sheriff rough her up in the back of his car.

"I'm only messing with you sweetheart. You don't gotta stand there lookin like you saw a ghost."

Y/n feels humiliated but Lee doesn't seem to care. Lee gets off on seeing her squirm, on seeing her be degraded. She's not a whore like the other woman who works here and his sister, but he fucks her like she is. He has something many of the men inside the dingy joint wanted. Y/n isn't easy, which rare for a female Tecumseh worker.

"I'm just wonderin if you seen my Sandy," he made an attempt to change the subject.

"She's your sister Lee."

The truth is Y/n hasn't seen Sandy in a week. She said something about her and Carl taking a trip but she didn't say for how long. Y/n is not too fond of Sandy to pry into her life. She feels bad for her though. She always comes into work with dingy hair and not to mention the amount of weight she has lost which makes her face look gaunt.

"You better address me as ‘sheriff’ girl. You have no manners. You weren't even going to say hello to the men who keep you safe."

Lee did nothing to make her feel safe. He made Y/n feel on edge when he was around but downright euphoric when she was in the throes of passing in the back of his car. He was just using her to get his rocks off and he only went after her because he wanted someone "fresh" for him. He doesn't respect her or care for her.

"Shouldn't you three be patrolling? Looking for crime?"

"Don't catch an attitude, Y/n. It's none of your business what we do. Besides, all the crime is in that building you just came out of."

"You guys never do shit. All you do sheriff is come and collect money from Leroy-"

"Watch your fucking mouth."

Y/n is not sure why she's still here trying to bump heads with him. She will never win, especially when he is the authority around here. No one challenged Lee because they were scared to death of him. He's a shady sheriff but he's feared.

"I'm leaving," Y/n sighed. She tried to walk away but Lee stood up from leaning on his car and grabbed her arm

"Uh-uh," he shook his head at her as the grip on her arm tightened. She looked up at him with fear in her arms and he felt his cock getting hard "You don't get to leave until I tell you too. I think you owe me for last week anyway, cherry."

"Please...just let me go," she tried to plead. She tried to plea to the man who she's been fucking, hoping that his attachment to her would make him be kinder to her.

"You need your ass to be put in place. I thought I did that a few weeks ago when I spanked your ass until you cried, but you're still as defiant as ever. You'll never fucking learn."

Lee dragged her back to his car and bent her over the hood. He placed her arms behind her back and cuffed her. He wasn't going to arrest her but making her believe he was sure was fun to him.

She can see both of the deputies watching her. Her face was planted against the top of his car as he held her down. Lee pulls her dress over her ass and she feels so exposed.

"Those panties look damp to me. What do y'all think?"

Y/n hears the deputies chattering lowly amongst themselves, probably afraid to say something obscene about the woman the sheriff is hooking up with.

"How many men seen you like this before? Who you let fuck you today?"

"No one sheriff."

"That's right. That pussy is mine."

His rough hand caresses her ass. He wants to spank her for talking back to him in front of the two younger officers. She was trying to embarrass him which called for a punishment.

"You better count 'em or I'll start over."

Y/n just groaned in anticipation of the first blow to her ass. She hates how Lee takes his time and she wishes he would just get it over with. Her heart is racing as Lee gets a firm grip on her hair.

"Bad little girls get their asses spanked. Don't think just because you're not peddling your cunt that you're not a whore," he threatened with anger.

Her panties were ripped off with rage and she was truly exposed. The warm, summer breeze ghosted across her cunt but it made her shiver. She can already feel the heaviness of her hand on her ass before it even comes down. The first smack was so loud that it pierced the dark night's air. Her cry was even louder.

"One," she says breathlessly. Her eyes close so she doesn't have to look at the two men staring at her with wide eyes and tents in their pants.

Lee believes pain is the best discipline for a girl like Y/n. He would never do this to his wife, but he also doesn't fuck his wife like he fucks Y/n. She was a tough thing to crack but she rides him into the night until his car is shaking and he's cumming into a condom.

"You can count louder than that, cherry."

He was mocking her only because they had an audience. The belittling and having her body exposed was humiliating. But that first slap of her ass sent all the blood in her body rushing to pussy.

Lee smacked her ass again and again and each time she pathetically sobbed out the number of hits her ass has received so far. Her skin felt hot and it wasn't because of the temperature. She wanted to cry so bad but she kept it. She has never cried in front of Lee and she isn't going to start now; no matter how painful his brutality is.

"Look how fucking wet she is from getting her ass whooped."

Y/n heard the shuffling of the deputies and there was not doubt they were looking at her glistening sex. She felt like she was dripping and she wanted to press her thighs together so bad to hide herself. That would only make things worse for her and the last thing she needs is a harsher punishment.

"Learned your lesson, cherry?"

She nods, her eyes still closed.

"Good girl."

The sound of Lee's belt coming undone makes her stick her ass higher into the air. She's been trained like a dog who wants a treat to behave this way. A sense of shame consumes her as she acts so shamelessly.

"My good little bitch," he coos. He pulls himself out and lines up the head with her wet slit. "I don't have a condom on me sweetheart. I finally get to feel that pussy of yours."

He was lying. He always kept a pack of condoms in the glove compartment of his patrol car because he couldn't bring them into his home. Plus having them in there would always leave him ready to fuck Y/n. He did not like the feeling of condoms but he can't knock her up when next year is an election year. Having a bastard child with a barmaid from Tecumseh would fuck everything up and send his efforts down the drain.

"Lee no! You have to use a condom."

"I don't have to do anything."

She's stupid to think he would listen to her. She is completely powerless and can only operate to his whims.

"Then please pull out...please," she whispers in defeat. The laugh he lets out tells her that she doesn't get a say in this at all.

Lee pushes on her back with one hand and the other is holding onto her hip. He finally sinks into her and he is in paradise.

"You expect me to pull out when your cunt is this warm and tight? No fucking chance darlin'"

He starts to fuck into her, each thrust earning him a pathetic moan. She feels so good wrapped around him and he vows to never wear condoms with her again. She's the tightest thing he's had in years and he has to go slowly to brace himself or else he is gonna cum. This position gave him so much access to her cunt and he pushed in as deep as he could. His bare head was kissing her cervix over and over again. His thighs slapped against her bare ass and the noise reverberated into the night.

The deputies just stood there; eyes wide with shock but lust filling their veins. They never took Lee as a cheater yet he fucked Y/n he knew her body so well.

Tears slip down her face, but they aren't from sadness or anger. She's overwhelmed by the pleasure Lee is giving her that she can almost forget that they have an audience.

Lee lifted her head off of the hood of the car. She could see them in the reflection. She looked a mess while Lee looked like he was in heaven in her bare cunt.

"You wanna tell them how you never had a man in your ass until I fucked you? Begged for it like a whore?"

His voice has some much grit in it and Y/n wondered where this new fire in him came from. Lee was rough with her but never has he pounded into her like she was just a toy. Most would be surprised to know that Lee can be a gentle lover that had a primal urge to be inside of Y/n. She wondered if he was like that with his wife, but according to him she was just a "wet blanket." Y/n does not know whether or not to believe him because it's not uncommon for men to disparage their wives to women they're having sex with on the side.

"Gonna cum Lee," she cried.

He felt her tighten around him and he was about to cum too. He was going to cum inside of her.

"Show 'em how you cum for me. Let 'em see that pretty face of yours."

Lee pounded into her until she was crying out. Her orgasm wrecked her body and the only thing on her mind was Lee and his cock. If she was asked to speak right now it would just be babble. He fucked her stupid and he's not going to stop until he spills inside of her.

A few more hard, rough thrusts and Y/n feels Lee spill inside of her. She sighs at the blissful sensation. His grip on her loosens, a symptom of the exhaustion that starts to set in. His cock begins to soften inside of her but the two of them are still panting from what they just did.

"Go on. Go home," he slaps her ass one last time just to tease her. His eyes are trained on the sight of his cum oozing out of her and he never wants to look at anything else. But he has a shift to get back to

Y/n reluctantly stands up, her dress falling over her ass to cover her up. She can feel his cum running down her thigh but she's too embarrassed to clean herself up in front of these mean. She accidentally catches Deputy McConnell's eyes before she scurries off to her car. She hears a laugh and then a few more joining in. She's sure Lee is bragging to them about her always being willing to fuck him. She just hopes he doesn't tell them everything they have done together.

-

Lee had been silent for more than a week now. No calls, no visits to the bar, and even his patrol car hadn't ridden down her street. Y/n felt insecure about his absence; like he thought she was an easy slut like the rest of the barmaids. He knows she isn't willing to fuck anybody, but she was not sure if he believed her when she said it.

The days moved so slowly as she watched the door hoping he would come in one late night. She even hoped for a fight but suddenly no one had the energy anymore for a melee.

Y/n was working a late shift tonight. She'd cover the bar from 12 until last call. It was her day off but she had to fill in for some girl at the last minute. If it had been the weekend she would've said no, but it's a Tuesday night which means it would be an easy night of minimal work.

Y/n was wiping down glasses not five minutes after she clocked in and she heard the shrill voice of her co-worker Sydney.

"I'm not dealing with him. Last time I tried to cut him off he threatened to arrest me! I don't know where Sandy is but she needs to be the one here to deal with her brother."

Y/n's ears perked up. She didn't notice Lee in the room when she walked in. The room was dim and it was not always easy to make out customers, especially if they were far away.

"What's going on?"

Y/n walked over to where Cindy's voice was coming from and she was talking to their boss Leroy.

"Sheriff is drunk off his ass and I'm supposed to deal with him. My shift ended five minutes ago and once I'm off the clock then anything that happens in this place is none of my concern!" She said with contempt.

"You work for me. You don't get to decide what you will and will not do at my bar!"

As much as Y/n wanted to avoid a tiff between her co-worker and boss, she wanted to talk to Lee even more.

"I'll take care of it."

Leroy didn't care either way. As long as he didn't have to deal with Lee who was pissed off at him about something. Lee often complained that her boss was a "useless fucker." Leroy walked away from the two and Cindy gave Y/n a small smile.

"Thank you."

"It's no problem. I'll see you tomorrow Cindy," Y/n called to the blonde who was already peeling out of the place. She doesn't think Cindy likes her all that much but she was at least courteous to Y/n.

The bar was dead enough for Y/n's other co-worker to cover while she went to deal with Lee.

He was at a table in one of the corners of the bar; slumped over in his chair and too intoxicated to speak in complete sentences. There was no way he could properly function or drive home. She had a choice to make whether to leave Lee like this or take him home. She had just gotten to work, but the night was nothing that her co-worker couldn't handle. If Leroy threw a fit and tried to fire her she could just get Lee to threaten him.

He was so heavy as he leaned on her to walk to her car. Y/n loathes this man yet she does so many caring things for him that it makes her stomach hurt. She gets nothing out of this exchange yet she continues to go back with him.

She placed him in the passenger seat of her car and he just mumbled to himself the entire ride to her apartment. She was thankful to be on the first floor because it would be a hazard to try to get Lee to walk up some stairs like this. She helped him sit on her raggedy couch. He looked like he was going to vomit.

"How many drinks did you have?" She began her interrogation on him, but she doubts she will get a coherent answer tonight.

"Just one."

As he spoke he reached into his pocket to show her the "one" bottle that he drank from tonight. A few candy wrappers fell out of his pocket when he pulled the bottle out. They were jolly ranchers wrappers which was the kind she bought to share with him.

"What happened? Why did you get so fucked up? I need to get you home Lee."

Y/n was in panic mode. There was no way she could take Lee home but she didn't know how to deal with him like this. He had been tipsy around her before, sure, but she has never seen him this drunk.

"No, no...don't wanna go back. Just let me sleep it off," he slurred. He haphazardly kicked his shoes off and pulled his jacket off so he could get comfortable on her couch. He's going to wake up with a sore back if he sleeps on that thing.

"You can't get drunk like this ever again. And you also can't stay the night here ever again. Your wife is going to find out one day

He just groaned and turned away from her on the couch. She just sighed in defeat. She will deal with him in the morning.

-

She feels the bed around 3 am. She could not sleep after leaving Lee in a state like that on her couch and she has been up ever since. Y/n was so tired but her body was not agreeing with sleep at the moment. Heavy arms wrapped around her as she held her breath.

"You smell so good, Florence. Just like roses."

"Lee, it's me." She waited for him to respond, afraid that he would get upset or angry with her for no good reason. Her ego was a little hurt after he mistook her for his wife.

"I'm just jokin' with you cherry." Even though he was suffering from a hangover, he still has the capacity to tease her.

Y/n turned around to face him but he had his eyes closed and a pleased smile on his face. She can't deny how handsome he looks, especially with his full cheeks.

"Why did you get that drunk last night?"

"I'm a grown man."

"You weren't acting like it last night. You were like a defiant child," her voice began to rise in volume and Lee winced.

"Don't yell, please. You can be mad at me all you want but please don't yell. I've got a headache that's going to last for days."

"It's what you deserve."

Lee finally opened his eyes just so he could see that pouty look on her face. Y/n called him a defiant child, but she was one to talk. She was always acting like a brat around him.

"You don't mean that girl. If you did, you would've left me at Tecumseh. You care about me."

"Lee-"

"Just admit it. You care."

"Lee, you are married."

"What does that have to do with anything?"

This was the uncomfortable conversation Y/n wanted to have. It was always shot down by Lee. He had no problem fucking her, but talking about where they stand or his cheating was always a problem.

"Cherry, I wish you'd just let things be as they are. Wish you would always be a good girl like you are in the back of my cruiser."

"I don't want to be your mistress Lee. If we keep doing this then we're going to get caught and your wife will leave you. Then what?"

"I'll move you in and put a ringer on your finger. Maybe give you a few kids too," he chuckled.

Y/n couldn't bring herself to find joy in his comments. She has some underlying feelings for him and he's right, she does care. But her conscience can't stop thinking about the fact that he has a wife. The only time she forgets is when his dick is inside of her.

"I'm a whore, remember?"

"Just because I fucked you like one in front of my deputies doesn't mean you are one," his hand rested on her hot cheek and he stroked it with his thumb, "you're my cherry girl. The only person I love being inside of. You act like you hate me but you're always wet for me; I bet you're wet right now. I love what we have and I don't want it to end."

She has no more to say to him. She just sighs and closes her eyes. Lee can practically see the wheels turning in her head. While he saw this as a very simple situation, she viewed it as more complex and always seemed to look for ways to make it complicated for the two to just enjoy it for what it is. Y/n is young and Lee is sure she is not ready to settle down yet. They're just having some fun. And if they do in fact get caught and his wife leaves him, then his cherry would make one hell of a wife.

[homosexuality-at-its-finest]

Thanks for answering my last ask about the requests! 🥰

If possible I'd like to request something: male reader is Steve Roger's adopted son (adopted after he came back from being frozen lmao) and the reader is secretly dating Peter Parker!

I don't know if it's too specific or too complicated, but I was imagining something like: reader is like an avenger too. He doesn't have powers but has fighting skills and is a very sneaky and swift fighter much like Black Widow. He fights occasionally but his father is always hesitant on letting him participate in highly dangerous missions, he's very protective of his son. That would all just be like background information just give the story some base, but the plot itself i was thinking was just about Steve discovering his son is dating Peter - and, with that, discovering reader is gay - and he gets protective, possibly interrogates Peter and stuff like that. Obviously very fluffy at the end with everyone happy but I guess you can just work on it how you think it's best! If it's too vague or too complex I can try to rewrite the request if you'd like ☺️

Maybe Steve discovers that during a mission! I think that would be interesting - if you like it of course!

Plot: Requested

Pairing: Steve Rogers & Son reader + Peter Parker x Male reader

Y/n: Your name

N/n: Nickname

H/c: Hair color

Warnings: Fighting, cursing, blood, protective dad TM Steve, character injury, coming out, supportive Steve, adopted reader, fluff, slight angst, kinda Steve’s POV

Word count: 1236

Being the son of Steve Rodger’s, aka Captain America had never been an easy feat. He had adopted Y/n after he got out of the ice, needing someone to have in the complete mystery the world was to him. He immediately loved the spunky boy, who was outspoken and reminded him of his younger self.

On many occasions’ Y/n came home with bruises littering his body, but a boyish smile adorned on his lips. The boy just seemed to find trouble without even trying, so Steve decided to teach his son how to fight. It was quite a surprise when Y/n was a complete natural, able to take his father down after a few weeks of training.

The teenage boy’s confidence only seemed to grow with training and fighting, and much to Steve’s displeasure his son ended up joining the avengers. It was one of the only times the father and son argued, going from screaming at each other to the silent treatment for days.

Steve had to admit, his son could kick some serious ass, even beating Clint during a spar, leaving the assassin on the mat groaning in pain and eventually tapping out. Then came in Peter parker, in all his geeky glory, immediately drawing his son’s attention. Steve was hesitant about the boy; he didn’t want Peter causing more trouble for Y/n in the long run.

The father couldn’t deny that his son seemed happier when Peter came into his life, spending most of his time with the young genius and his friends. It was like a moth to a flame, Y/n gravitated towards the boy in a way Steve couldn’t place a word to. If he didn’t know any better, he’d think his son was enamored with Parker. He promptly reminded himself that his son wasn’t gay (There was no issue if he was though) Steve just assumed his son would tell him if that was the case.

That belief was completely changed on a mission though, Y/n and Peter accompanied the team, taking down one of the last HYDRA bases that was left. He had to admit that the kids were holding up well, he could see his son flying around, adorned in all black, including the black mechanical wings on his back. Y/n had made those himself, claiming that they needed more air support than just Tony, Rhodey and Sam.

Every time Steve watched Y/n fly around he felt his heart jump out of his chest, he knew his son could handle himself, but damn it, it was a paternal instinct. “How are we looking up there?” Steve called over the comms, watching as the three flying beings fought off any air support, and diving down to help when needed.

“Well pops judging by the fact that we’re all heading towards the ground for support I’d day good.” Came his sons sarcastic reply, and Steve had to hold back a small smirk. Usually, he’d reprimand someone for talking like that, but Y/n was a special case.

“N/n could you head my way, kinda getting swamped over here.” Parker’s high pitched and young voice rang through the comms, and Steve watched as his beloved son took off once more. He could hear the two young superhero’s grunting and making banter back and forth over the comms as the fight continued.

What took the captain off guard was the sound of his son crying out in pain and the panicked sound of Peter calling out “Y/n!” It felt like someone had grabbed his heart and ripped it out of his chest as he heard Peter call “We have an agent down! Y/n’s down!” Never in Steve’s many years of life did he move as fast as he was right now. Anyone who got in his was down before they could even raise their weapon.

When he saw Peter cradling Y/n against his chest, fingers brushing through his son’s H/c hair, the panic only worsened. The mask Y/n wore was ripped off, lying on the ground beside him; and Steve could clearly see the blood leaking from his son’s side.

As the super soldier got closer, he could hear Peter rambling quietly. “It’s okay baby, I know it hurts.” The teenagers voice sounded so broken; it made his chest tighten even more. “Your dads coming and then we’ll get you to med bay, you’ll be good as new.” He reassured Y/n. Steve couldn’t even bring himself to care when Peter leaned down and pressed a kiss to Y/n’s lips, giving the other boy a tight smile.

From there everything felt like a blur, Steve carried Y/n to the jet and next thing he knew his son was in recovery, a tired smile on his face as Steve entered the room. “Hey pops.” Y/n’s voice sounded so tired and strained, it made Steve want to break down and cry.

“Hey kiddo, how’re you feeling?” He questioned, sitting in the chair beside his son’s bed, immediately holding his hand. “Like I got shot twice.” Y/n deadpanned, giving his father a cheeky grin. Steve huffed out a tired laugh, eyes running over his son’s bruised body. “Yeah, yeah that makes sense.” The soldier chuckled lightly, giving Y/n’s hand a squeeze. The two sat in comfortable silence for a few moments, the only sound in the room was the rhythmic beeps of the heart monitor. After a few moments of psyching himself up, Steve spoke.

“So, you and Parker huh?” He kept his voice light, eyebrows furrowed slightly. His son’s cheeks flushed, looking away from his father. “Oh, uh yeah.” He could hear the beeping increase slightly. “Why didn’t you tell me kiddo?” He questioned, feeling a bit hurt that his son had kept something so important from him.

“I didn’t know how you’d react, being from the 40’s and all...” Y/n trailed off, eyebrows furrowed a bit. Steve felt his stomach twist a bit. Y/n was scared he wouldn’t accept him being gay? “Oh sweetheart, I don’t care if you’re gay, I love you no matter what, you’re still my baby boy.”

The smile Y/n gave him put the sun to shame, making a smile spread across his own lips. “How long have you and Peter been together?” He questioned lightly, his thumb brushing over the teenagers’ knuckles. “6 months.” Y/n replied shyly, flush darkening under his father’s questioning. That continued for about an hour before Peter entered the room, and immediately the protective dad mode came out.

“So, Parker what are your intentions with my son?” Y/n let out an indignant sound, slapping his dads’ arm. Peter’s entire face flushed bright red, looking like a deer caught in headlights. “T-to make him happy, sir.” Came Peter’s shy reply, glancing over at his boyfriend for help.

“Pops, seriously? Leave him alone.” Y/n gave his father an annoyed look, making Steve shrink back slightly, his kid was slightly terrifying, okay? The father watched as the two boys interacted, watching them for a few moments, before excusing himself from the room. If he came back later and the two were curled up in bed together asleep, well he wasn’t going to say anything.