#oh sweet sweet soph | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

quintinh43 · 9 months ago

Text

Stressed Spelled Backward Is Desserts | Quinn Hughes

Summary: Quinn comes home to his girlfriend stress baking.

Pairings: Quinn Hughes x fem!reader

Warnings: Food, Flirting, Fluff, use of terms like baby, honey, love.

Notes: Hi guys!! Holy moly, I did not expect my last post to have so many interactions!! I'm glad yall liked it. Anyways, here's another one! If there's anything else yall think should go in warnings, please let me know! Also, I'm thinking of making a part 2 to this one, so if yall are interested, please let me know! I hope yall enjoyyy. Love Soph.

---

Usually, the sound of the apartment door opening would be enough to draw your attention away from what you were doing and greet Quinn with a kiss at the door. Although with the music in the background, the consistent buzz of the stand mixer and the kitchen fan going, you didn't register it.

The first thing Quinn noticed was the smell. It smelt like sweet heaven. Cookies, maybe..? The second thing he noticed was all the different noises. The kitchen fan, the music, a weird buzzing, and what sounded like you mixing something in a metal bowl.

Quinn toed off his shoes, hung up his keys, and peaked into the kitchen cautiously. You were indeed mixing something in a metal bowl. That's when Quinn noticed the absolute massive amount of cookies spread out on the kitchen island. There must've been at least five different kinds.

He turned off the music, and as soon as he did, you whipped around and crashed into his chest, not expecting him to be so close. He grabbed your arms to stop you from stumbling backward.

"Hi," he smiles fondly, pecking you on the forehead.

"Hello," you grin, bumping your head against his chest in greeting.

"Whats all this?" He asks as you wriggle out of his arms to go back to mixing what Quinn assumes is icing or filling of some kind.

"I was stressed," you shrug, as if that explained it.

Quinn looks at you with a raised brow. He sits on the bar stool, shrugging off his suit jacket, loosening his tie and undoing the top few buttons of his shirt "That doesn't explain why it looks like a bakery threw up in our kitchen." He says, plucking a cookie off the plate.

He bites into it and resists the urge to moan out loud. It was still warm from the oven, and the chocolate was warm and melty. On the second bite, he actually moaned out loud because holy shit, there was caramel in the middle.

"You like it?" You giggle

"Mhmm," Quinn mumbles around a mouthful of cookie. You watch him lick chocolate off his thumb, and he gives you a wink that has you blushing.

"You still never answered my question, Love," Quinn says, eyes roaming to the next cookie he wanted to try.

"You've never heard of stress baking?" You ask, holding out a spoon of what looks like raspberry mush for him to try. He leans over the counter and lets you feed him. He smacks his lips together, making a sour face, and you laugh.

"Never in my life, but I think I like the concept." He says, snatching what looks like a white macadamia nut cookie off a cooling rack. "But still, what are we gonna do with all of these? There's no way we can eat this much cookies between the two of us. There must be at least five dozen!"

"Probably closer to eight dozen," you say sheepishly. As if on cue, the oven timer beeps. You don the oven mitts and pull another tray of cookies out of the oven.

Quinns eyes widen, "That's like...ninety-six cookies"

"One hundred and four actually"

"What? No? Eight by twelve -"

"Thirteen," you interrupt

"Love, a dozen is twelve." Quinn says, watching as you mix the raspberry lemon jam thing into cookie, another batch of cookie dough.

"A bakers dozen is thirteen." Quinn's eyes go wide.

"Damn. I don't know if I should be concerned about what's causing you so much stress or if I should start stressing you out once in a while for the sake of some dessert." He jokes.

"Oh honey, you don't have to stress me out, to bake for you. I will bake you whatever you want whenever you want. All you gotta do is ask." You pause in thought for a moment "and maybe fuck me" you add with a mischievous grin.

Quinn grins leaning over the counter "baby i'll fuck you whenever you want, wherever you want, however you want, all you gotta do is ask."

You roll your eyes at him, unable to keep the smile off your face. "You wanna lick the spoon?" You ask, holding the jam spoon out to him.

"I wanna lick you," he grins, closing his lips over the spoon. A blush instantly rises to your cheeks, and you flick the end of the spoon that hangs out of his mouth. He groans as it clangs against his teeth, dropping it onto the counter as you laugh at him.

"Go change and come help me," you say, leaning over the counter to kiss him. He kisses you back happily "yes chef" he murmers against your lips.

He kisses you one more time before disappearing into the bedroom to change. He comes back out dressed in a black henly and grey sweats, with the sleeves pushed up to his elbows.

If you hadn't just made over one hundred cookies, you'd be having Quinn as your snack because holy shit did he look fine. Damn you were lucky to have him.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" Quinn asks a little self conscious, as he dons the apron you hand him.

"I'm just thinking about how I'm so lucky to have you." You smile, standing on your tip toes to press a kiss to his lips. He wraps an arm around you, not letting you pull away. He tastes like raspberry.

"I love you Y/n" he murmers against your lips with a grin.

"I love you too," you say, bumping your hip against his, "come on, these cookies aren't gonna shape themselves"

"So bossy." he chuckles, getting to work beside you. He stands close enough so that your hips and arms are brushing against each other as you work.

After a few hours, a flour fight, a couple dozen more cookies, a thorough scrubbing of the kitchen and a shower, you and Quinn lay on the couch with a half eaten plate of cookies infront of you.

"Y/n love, what are we gonna do with a hundred cookies?"

You sigh. That was a problem you'd been trying to solve for the past while. You couldn't very well throw them out. "Could we give them to the team?"

Quinn taps his chin in thought, "I don't want them to know how good of a baker my girl is, or they might try to steal you from me"

"Don't worry, they couldn't take me from you if they tried." You smile, pressing a kiss to chin,"but seriously, can we give them to the team?"

Quinn sighs dramatically. "Yes, I suppose we can. They are gonna have to do extra laps for them, though"

"Yay!" You jump up from the couch, dragging Quinn with you, to help box up all the cookies for him to take to practice later. After boxing up all the cookies and helping Quinn take them to his car, you kiss him goodbye and reluctantly go back to your studying.

As soon as you open your laptop, you sigh, remembering why you decided to bake a hundred cookies instead of work on this stupid shit. You text Quinn to have a good practice, and with that, you get back to work.

---

Wc: 1.2k

#qh43 #quinn hughes #vancover canucks #stress baking #nhl imagine #nhl x reader #nhl x y/n #nhl x you #quinn hughes x y/n #quinn hughes x reader #captain quinn #baked goods #love soph

573 notes · View notes

sweetbans29 · 7 months ago

Text

That's Mine - CC

Pairing: Caitlin Clark x Reader

Summary: You get jealous and don’t like when people take what’s yours (based off of THIS request)

Warnings: jealous reader, suggestive

Word Count: 2.6k

Sweetbans Masterlist

AN: Let me know what you guys think!

You and Caitlin had been dating for about 6 months now. The two of you met when you were helping your roommate take photos of the team. She was one of the student photographers who would photograph different sports teams on campus. She was in charge of women's volleyball, women's basketball, and track and field. It seemed like a lot but she juggled it well.

You got roped into helping her out for one of the media days for the women's basketball team. It was a Friday morning and you had no excuse to get out of it.

You joined your roommate, Sophie, at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. You were in charge of carrying around gear and getting whatever lens she needed ready. It was honestly pretty simple.

You helped her set up the space before any of the team got there. When you were done, you went to grab coffee for the two of you. On your walk back you bumped into a few of the girls from the team.

You started talking with them as you all walked to where the media day was being held. A few of them had classes with you, and the others got introduced. They were all super chill.

When you returned, you handed Soph her coffee and got to work. You gathered all the props that they had and handed them to the girls whenever they went to switch up a shot.

One of the girls came up to you to introduce herself.

"Hey, I just wanted to say thank you for helping out today. Sophie mentioned you would be helping out today. I'm Caitlin." She says as she extends her hand to shake yours.

"Hi, I know who you are," you say with a little smile and laugh. "You are truly incredible on the court."

She smiles and you swear you see a slight blush creep into her cheeks.

"Thanks." She says. "Well, I better get back, thanks again for helping out."

You thought it was sweet that Caitlin came over to introduce herself. She didn't need an introduction as she was well-known throughout campus as one of our star athletes. But it was nice to know that she now knows who you are.

The rest of the media day goes smoothly. Everyone looks amazing and the photos are the best media day photos you have seen your roommate take - and she has taken quite a few.

At the end of the shoot, you help her clean up when Caitlin comes over again.

"Hey," you say as you start folding up one of the lights.

"Hi," she says and just stands there.

You don't think much of it and continue to tear down. She is playing with her fingertips and seems like she wants to say something.

"How did we look today?" She ends up asking, not getting to her real reason for coming over. You stopped what you were doing to continue the conversation with her.

"The team looked absolutely amazing." You say. "I think one of my favorite shots was of you actually." When you say it, noticing a blush that creeps up into her cheeks.

"Oh ya? Which one?" She asks, trying to regain her confidence.

"The one where you were midair for the dunk." You say with a little smile.

"Oh that one was fire, I think it is one of my favorites as well," she says. It is now or never. She takes a deep breath and mumbles, "Would you maybe want to grab coffee or something sometime?"

At first, you stare at her - your brain trying to process what she is asking. There is no way she is asking you out right now, she has to mean it as friends.

“I would love that,” you say with a sweet smile. You try not to think anything of it but it is hard when a gorgeous all-start basketball star is asking to hang out. The two of you exchange phone numbers and go your separate ways.

Over the next 8 months, the two of you really get to know each other. The two of you became friends and started dating shortly after.

That leads you today. The two of you are with a few girls from the team. It is one of her teammate's birthdays and they wanted to go out to a nice dinner and then to their favorite ice cream spot.

Everyone dressed up nice to go out to dinner.

When you walk into where Caitlin is getting ready - she takes your breath away.

You walk up behind where she is sitting and place your hands on her shoulders, rubbing her arms.

"You look stunning." You say as you look at her through the mirror. She looks at you through the mirror with a smile. She is putting on some light makeup, not that she needs it, that compliments her well.

"You don't look too bad yourself," she says checking you out.

You lean over and kiss the top of her head.

"Are you ready to go?" You ask as you sit on her bed.

"Yep, just finishing up," she says. "Can you come help me put this necklace on?"

You get up and help her. It is a necklace you got her for her birthday. It was a diamond circle that fell beautifully on her chest.

Once the necklace is on, she turns round to face you. She takes in your appearance and takes a deep breath. You don't know how she does it but it brings butterflies to your stomach without even trying. You crumble beneath her gaze.

She leans down and places the lightest kiss on your lips. You lean into her wanting more. She gives in and lets you take the lead. When things get a little too heavy, you break away from her. Your breathing is uneven and your eyes are still closed.

"If we don't go now, we won't make it out the door," you say taking a few steps back from her.

She just gives you a look, knowing you are right.

The two of you head out and meet up with the other girls.

The night is nice, you are all enjoying dinner and each other's company. Following dinner you all head to THE ice cream spot. When you all arrive, there is a line around the corner. The is nothing new and you all head to the back of the line.

As you are waiting in line and talking to one of Caitlin's teammates, something catches your eye.

You glance over at Caitlin who is in conversation with the girl in front of her. At first, you think nothing of it as it didn't seem like anything out of the ordinary. You brush it off and get back to your conversation.

After about 10 minutes, you notice Caitlin is still talking to the same girl only this time, the girl's hand comes up to touch Caitlin's arm. Caitlin just laughs at something the girl says, making no effort to remove her hand.

You know it is harmless, but part of you was hoping your girlfriend would politely step back or remove the girl's hand from her body.

You try to shake the rising sense of jealousy that is building within you but it doesn't subside. Even though you are still in the conversation with Caitlin's friends, your ears and mind are trained on Caitlin and the girl.

After another five minutes, you hear the girl talking about how amazing Caitlin is on the court and how she has been following your girlfriend this past season, making sure she was at every game.

Caitlin being Caitlin, was very kind and to anyone else would look like she was flirting back. Deep down - you know she never would, but the insecurity that the jealousy brought, had you raving to get your girlfriend out of that situation. You wanted to stake your claim.

Your final straw was when the girl asked for a photo with Caitlin, which she happily agreed to. When the girl pulled out her phone, she leaned into Caitlin, putting her head in the crease of her neck, and tilted her head in. She was posing as if Caitlin was hers.

You had enough and excused yourself from your current conversation. You make your way over so you are standing right behind Caitlin.

You have a slight advantage since Caitlin is taller than you, so you could sneak up behind her without the other girl knowing. And when you do, you ever so lightly trail your fingers from her lower back all the way up to just below her neck. You see the hair on her neck stand straight up as her speech becomes uneven.

The dress she is wearing makes this all so easy. There is a large open slit that goes from her lower back up to her neck, right where your fingers just trailed and tied at the top. Your fingers begin to play with the strings as your other hand comes and plays with the bottom of the slit, hands teasing her waist.

You can feel every muscle in her body tense and you know that isn't the only part of her that is affected. You go on your tippy toes, just close enough for her, and only her, to hear what you say.

"Looks like I need to show you who you belong to tonight," you whisper in her ear. Caitlin's mouth goes dry as she politely excuses herself from the fan she was just talking to.

As she turns back to the group and you all approach the front of the line, she tries to grab your hand - wanting to make any sort of contact with you to ease the tension that builds inside her. You notice her hand coming to meet yours and move it - keeping up a playful conversation with the girls. The lowest of whines comes from your girl as she is becoming visually flustered and frustrated.

You knew exactly what to do to get her going, and once she was going, there was no turning her off.

The thing about your relationship with Caitlin is that when you two are intimate, it is usually sweet or based off of a mutual need for one another. And if there was any dominance, Caitlin would always be the one to take the lead. It has never been the other way around, until tonight.

You can see hands begin to fiddle with themselves and then come to the bottom of her dress, straightening it out and smoothing it over. She is doing everything in her power to keep it cool.

As the group enters the ice cream shop, you let her go first, placing your hand on her lower back, and guiding her in. She slows her movements, hoping to lean into your touch more yet nothing more than your fingers grace her body. She is itching for your touch.

She can barely focus as she is trying to decide what flavor to get. You are standing right next to her, your perfume overwhelming her. She wants to bring her arm around you and pull you into her body but is nervous about what repercussions that would have later that night. Your choosing to be the dominant one is new and the excitement that comes with that alone is enough for her to excuse the two of you to take you home to find out more.

When it is your turn to choose a flavor, you look over to Caitlin to let her go first.

"Ummm, can I please get....umm," she says, not knowing what to choose.

"She'll have a single scoop of your cherry vanilla," You say, not acknowledging Caitlin's look wondering why you weren't getting any.

"Can we also get a pint of that to go please," you ask the man who's taking your order, he gives a light nod and gets your order all set.

He hands it all over to you as you pay for it. You hand Caitlin her scoop and the paper bag holding the pint while mumbling something along the lines of 'tasting something sweeter tonight'.

Caitlin tries to engage in the conversation as everyone is sitting at a table that is too small for your group but can't focus on anything other than you. How your knee hits hers and your hand occasionally comes to her thigh when you laugh at something one of the girls says.

She leans over to you and quietly says, "Can we please go home?"

Her need for you continues to grow with each touch.

"I don't think I am ready yet," you say, finally looking into her eyes. Even the simple action of eye contact has her fighting back a squirm.

"Please," she whispers in your ear, practically begging.

You see how her thighs are pressing together and her hands can't keep still. You take a second to contemplate her request and cave. To be quite honest, seeing her in such a needy state has you riled up as well.

You stand and Caitlin immediately follows suit.

"We are going to head out, Caitlin doesn't feel too good," you say which isn't completely wrong. Everyone says their goodbyes and you say happy birthday to her teammate and begin the journey back. Everything was within walking distance of her apartment which made it an easy trip back.

Easy in the sense of the distance. Borderline unbearable to Caitlin as you still wouldn't hold her hand. She followed you like a lost puppy.

When you got back to her place, you didn't say a thing to her as you put the ice cream in the freezer and began looking through your phone. She expected you to have her pinned against the door the second you walked in the place, showing her who she belonged to just like you said you were going to.

She didn't know what to do when you didn't immediately jump her.

"Ummm," she doesn't know what to say but knows she wants you.

You look up from your phone and just stare at her. There are your eyes again, unraveling her without a single touch. Her heart rate going a mile a minute. You walk over to her and look her up and down.

"What do you want baby?" You ask low and slow, your hand coming to brush her own.

The control Caitlin wants to take is taking every ounce of willpower she has to subdue.

"Touch me," she says and your eyebrow raises. "Please, touch me."

Your hand comes to hold hers now, and her eyes flutter close. Her breath picks up and becomes uneven. She takes in the feeling of your skin on hers, even if it is just her hand. You then bring your other hand up to where the pads of your fingertips are skimming her neck, tracing her ear. Her neck tilts and she lets out the sweetest moan.

"Go get on the bed," you say as you grab one of the strings of her dress and pull it undone.

She immediately does what you say. You take your time in the kitchen, wanting her to sweat a little.

"If I find any evidence that you have touched yourself, that's it." You yell to her. You hear her groan in response.

You make your way to the freezer and grab the ice cream and a spoon. Once the freezer closes, you make your way to your girl in the bedroom.

AN: I hope this did the prompt justice. Please let me know what you think! And as always, thank you for the love and support 🤍

#caitlin clark #caitlin clark x reader #caitlin clark imagine #caitlin clark masterlist #iowa wbb

341 notes · View notes

miumura · 1 year ago

Text

💭 — RICKY AS YOUR BOYFRIEND !

SOPH — tysm for the two anons that requested this! sorry for the delay, i was trying to do a bunch of reqs at once but got carried away due to some school work </3 (yes i have summer hw im suffering). hope you enjoy these though!

GENRE — fluff, angst if you squint | WARNINGS — lower case intended, 2nd pov, and that’s it?

— he seems the type to play it cool in a relationship but is actually a MESS. like what should he do? should he be flirting with you? should you guys be doing anything? besides that cool face, this mind is racking ideas of what he should do and what’s best for the relationship. anything for you!!

— i don’t think ricky could ever get mad at you. like maybe jokingly mad or being frustrated but that’s all. i don’t think he really likes conflict and tries fixing it. thing is, he may give silent treatment just so he could talk to myself on how to solve an argument between you two.

— now, ricky may forget a lot of things, but he never forgets anything about you! anyone can ask something about you, and he’s like a walking google about you. ik he whips his head if he hears your name come out of any of the member’s mouth. they can call him a simp for all he cares — he knows it’s true anyways.

— “you know ricky, you don’t know a lot of stuff of me compared to your partner.” “gyuvin yeah, cause you’re not yn.” “i get that but come on, how could you forget my favorite food?” “oh sorry, i forgot.” “ricky i’ll beat you up—” “yn!!!”

— he would get excited over little gifts you give him. he’s used to being the gift giver, so seeing you get him something just seems ten time more valuable than those luxury brands. probably shows it off to the others. “bet you don’t have this,” LMFAO hes so silly

— the type to send pics of himself or sweet msgs to you when he misses you. and he js plays it off with “i bet you miss me so here you go.” in reality, he just misses you and just wants to hear sweet things from you :( <3

— boy he LOVES strawberries. so he probably buys you strawberry items so that you can be reminded of him. let’s say his obsession can get out of hand, but who doesn’t love cute strawberry items???

— i feel like he would prefer a more private relationship?? but that doesn’t work out since he acts SOOO different around you. so when he announces that you two are dating, the others aren’t surprised whatsoever.

— pretty clueless so would ask you for help because it’s “you two getting along” he says. he would find any excuse to be with you at all times and just wouldn’t mind acting a little clueless.

— if there’s any language barriers, i feel like he’d try his best to communicate with you as best as he can. sure, he wants to give up at some times, but he remembers you, the main cause of his motivation. so he’d study really hard for you :)

— ricky isn’t always as open with his thoughts as he think he is. sometimes, he may isolate himself, just because there’s a lot on his mind. so that’s when you step in! give him comfort and offer to listen bc that’s all what he needs!

— secretly likes physical touch but won’t flat out admit it. he wouldn’t pretend he hates it either, he just lets it happen. secretly smiles when you suddenly become clingy around him. he likes you initiating it first because he doesn’t want to be annoying or a bother to you when he needs affection </3

— the longer you’re in a relationship with him, the more comfortable he is with you. and that’s a good thing! but he still gets flustered over small acts you do for him.

— partner privilege is probably a thing.

— would love showing you off :’) he’s just really glad yours is and sometimes can’t believe it himself. which is why he may just catch himself be quiet and admire you <3

💭 — in bloom already has two wins 🙏 so proud of them <3

ZB1 PERM TAGLIST — @dwcljh @ilovewonyo @jiawji @tzyuki @kpoprhia @flamiricky @misoxhappy @lluvjjun @zzzhoonie

741 notes · View notes

sweater-daddiesdumbdork · 9 months ago

Text

Life Is Short So Make It Sweet

Chapter Twenty-Six: Busted

Summary- 5.3k. Curtis Everett x Plus!Sized Reader. Everyone is getting together for a dart tournament at Paulie's when everything is derailed before the night even starts.

Warnings- Unwanted attention from drunken men, vicious comments and name calling, fighting, police not taking the situation seriously, talk about Curtis's past and his mental health.

A/N- Thank you so much! Everyone who takes the time to like, share, comment, leave me messages and asks. Especially those who just feel seen in this storyline. You all have all my gratitude and appreciation. (let's be honest, I totally tear up and get all emotional) You all honestly are part of the reason I continue writing and sharing. Special shout out to @what-is-your-plan-today for editing. Dividers made by the talented @firefly-graphics

A/N 2- Is there an award for terrible titles? Cause I should have that trophey.

Chapter Twenty-Five / Masterlist

You, Claude and Yona drove together after getting done at the school for the week, heading straight for Paulie's. The three of you were getting ready in Yona’s car, laughing amongst yourselves as makeup was applied in the car's vanity mirrors and someone played lookout while the other changed in the backseat. While you were doing the finishing last touches on your outfit, Claude was filling you and Yona in about having her first official weekend with Sophia present. You were finishing up your lipstick while in the backseat Yona helped Claude do her hair. “How are you feeling about this weekend?”

“I’m excited. I have a bunch of games and stuff to do with her. I just… want her to like me being around when she's with her dad?” Claude fretted a bit, glancing out the window while Yona calmly braided her long hair in an intricate pattern.

“You don’t have much to worry about. Sophia likes just about everyone. Ella and Grey are pretty good co-parents.” You assured her. “What are you doing this weekend Yona?”

The woman whipped a couple of ties in Claude’s hair, patting on the braids to make sure none of them were loose. “Tomorrow I’m taking Edgar to do some indoor rock climbing.” She grinned in excitement. “He claims he isn't scared of heights and it's something I love doing, so we will see.”

“Okay, that sounds pretty cool and Yona, are you like a professional stylist?!” Claude was leaning between the seats to look in the rear view mirror at the tight curls of braids Yona made in her hair, her head tilting left and right to check them out. “I would have paid a small fortune for this at a salon.”

Yona shrugged as if it was no big deal. “I used to do my friend's hair all the time at home. What about you?”

“Oh, I think tomorrow we are gonna have a game night with Tanya, Timmy, Ella and I think Grey was coming around too with you and Soph?” You asked Claude and she gave a nod confirming it. “Okay, I’m ready to get inside. Are you guys?” Another glance out the window made you catch sight of Curtis’s truck in its usual place as well as quite a few other regulars and out-of-state plates, meaning it was going to be a busy night.

Which you didn’t mind, that meant Curtis would spend some of the time helping Paulie at the bar making great tips and giving you a chance to shamelessly check him out while he was working. It always made some fun flirting and usually sneaking off together much to Paulie's dismay. Claiming his place of business was reputable.

“I'm ready,” Claude said as she pushed the door open and the three of you piled out of the car to make your way to the front door, where a group of men were just stepping out and headed back to the cars that had out-of-state plates on them. None of you paid any attention to passing the loud boisterous group till one reached out to grasp your arm, stopping you in your tracks with surprise.

“Where you running off to sweetheart?” He flashed a grin that was supposed to be flirtatious but came off more leering than anything. It made your heart tighten, reminding you so much of Jake’s grin that he flashed whenever he had you cornered. Your eyes widened in alarm as you pulled your arm from the stranger's grasp.

“No thank you, not interested.” You said to brush him off, going to sidestep around him to re-join Claude and Yona who just noticed that you were no longer with them. You weren’t allowed to leave though, he stepped back in front of you, blocking your way.

“Come on, I’m just trying to be nice. You could at least give me a smile.” His gaze fell down your body. You felt sick at his gaze, taking in your figure as if he was contemplating how easy you might be. From the gleam in his eyes, he wasn’t thinking you would pass him up.

“Let me go.” You said calmly, good at hiding the flutter of unease building.

“Y/N… You all good?” Claude re-joined you, glaring at the man in your path as she hooked her arm through yours, making you both a joint team.

He sneered at the two of you, his circle of friends coming to enclose the space further cutting you and Claude now off from the door. There were a few cold snickers and the heavy smell of alcohol coming off of them.

“Yeah, let's get inside, I’m sure Grey and Curtis are expecting us.” You went to lead Claude through an opening between the strangers but that too was cut off. Over their shoulder, you saw Yona take a few steps as if to join you but then dart inside. You were sure she was going for some help.

In the few seconds all this took place, you felt helpless. It would take too long to grab the pepper spray from the keychain in your jeans pocket and Claude was gearing up to swing a punch, you felt her practically vibrating with anger next to you. “What the fuck is wrong with you guys? Fucking dickheads, MOVE.” She snapped, pushing against one's chest to back them up a step.

He was bigger though, an unmoveable force who she bounced off.

The original prick barked out as he waved a hand towards you. “That’s the problem with the girls around here, ungrateful bitches.” He stepped in closer to you, brushing against you momentarily to make you stumble back, his hands once more catching you to pull you aggressively in while you yelled with alarm, slapping at him while losing contact with Claude. “You should be thanking me for being willing to fuck someone like you.”

You could have sworn you felt bile roll up your stomach while his liquored breath soured the air you were breathing, panic starting to set in.

“Let her the fuck go.” Claude yanked at you once more into her hold and you lifted your arm, throwing a punch at the drunk stranger. Your aim fell wildly off its mark but it was enough for Claude to pull you out of his reach and then a sharp roar came up behind them. You only saw a flash of Curtis’s dark face, enraged before he struck. His fist landed firmly against the back of someone's head, pitching them against one of their drunk friends.

“Get your fucking hands off those girls.” His voice was deep with anger, while he shoved his way between you and them, his fist landing in someone's gut, making them keel over and throw up the liquor. Grey came up to block you and Claude, sending you out of the mayhem while Edgar barrelled out of the bar to help Curtis. Yona followed out right behind him to get you guys inside.

“Someone has to help them.” You rushed, ready to go right back out but Grey caught you to pull you back into the bar. Paulie was coming out with a bat in his hands muttering to himself as he went to go outside and from the distance, police sirens could be heard. “Curtis and Edgar are outnumbered, Grey.” You said in a panic and he shook his head at letting you go back outside. Claude and Yona went around the back of the bar to search for a first aid kit.

“Trust me, it won’t last long. Curtis and Edgar are fine.” Grey assured you, catching you from slipping around him. “This isn’t either of their first fights. Just stay, okay? Curtis would ring my neck if I let you back out there. ” He let you go and moved to slip back outside.

“Fuck, fuck fuck.” You swore, waiting all of ten seconds to burst out of the door following Grey. Several cop's cars were flashing lights and scattered around the parking lot. Officers were dragging both Curtis and Edgar into the back of one of the cars. “Hey!” You dashed down the steps to yet again be blocked by another man.

A sober cop this time. You glared up at him while pointing to the car you just saw Curtis and Edgar piled into. “Miss, go back inside.”

“Why the hell are you arresting them!?” Your voice raised in question. “They saved me and my friend from being harassed and assaulted.”

“By who?” The officer stepped aside to show the majority of the men from before bloodied and being helped up.

“Them obviously.” You snapped. “That one blocked me from going to the bar and the rest joined in him taunting us. Fuck, he even grabbed me.”

“Okay Miss, we can take you down to the station if you want to put in a formal statement against them.”

“You still didn’t answer why you arrested Curtis and Edgar. Why not those men?”

You could see the flash of irritation at you, another officer coming up to join him. “Miss, please calm down.”

“Don’t you dare tell me to calm down.” Your arms folded defensively against your chest as you kept pushing for an answer. “Why?”

“Because Everett and Bell assaulted those men and…” He waved his hands at Paulie’s “Intoxicated.”

“That is utter fucking bullshit.” You spat out and they narrowed their eyes at you. “Claude and I were attacked first and they haven’t been here long enough to be intoxicated. The guys who grabbed me, they’re the ones that are intoxicated!”

“That’s not your call to make Miss… What is your name?”

“Y/N.” You snapped out. “When can they be picked up then?” You were raging now at the utter unfairness of what was going on. The men who harassed you were being treated by a few EMTs for what looked like bloody, possibly broken noses. They had all miraculously sobered up enough to put on a decent act. “Yes, I will be putting in a report on them.” You were shaking while you leaned enough to look around the cops. “THOSE ASSHOLES HARRASSED ME.” You flipped them the bird while behind you Paulie came up, bat still in hand.

“She’s right, I just kicked them out for trying to start a fight.”

“Yes, we are being told it was more like the other way around. That Edgar and Curtis were trying to start something inside with them and they left.”

Paulie snorted in disgust while you rolled your eyes at them. “Bullshit, Curtis, and Edgar weren’t doing anything but hanging out at the dartboards waiting on the girls for a game. It’s a tournament night here. This lot took up the slot next to them and started in on them looking for a fight. Kicked 'em out, we all look out for each other here. It was my mistake not checking outside to see who was in the parking lot.” Paulie gave you an apologetic look. “I’m sorry Y/N, if I just followed them out, and made sure they left...”

You put a hand on your friend's arm, smiling at him to assure him you weren’t upset. “Don’t, you had no idea they would mess with us too.”

“Well, we will look into it, if you got cameras set up or anything.” One officer offered a way to a solution, the other looked like he wanted to be doing anything other than dealing with you and Paulie.

“Yeah, I have some covering the front door, it should see everything that happened out here.” He motioned to go inside, the officer following him. That left you with the one who seemed to not give a shit.

“So, I just have to go to the station to get Curtis and Edgar?”

“We will still be keeping them overnight.”

You wanted to continue about how ridiculous it was, but it was clear that was the most you were going to get. Turning away, you went back into the bar to grab your stuff. “They are not letting Curtis or Edgar out tonight.” You informed the group, Yona immediately grabbed her jacket to slip back on.

“I can drive us over.” She informed. “They were arrested?”

“Yeah, supposedly for being publicly intoxicated. And possibly assault.” Claude handed you your purse you had ditched earlier.

“Do you want me and Grey to go?” She questioned worriedly while Grey went to dig out his car keys.

“No, Grey you probably shouldn’t go if you have had anything to drink or else they will find some bullshit to charge you with.” You sighed in aggravation.

He hesitated before pulling you aside. “Listen, I don’t know what Curtis has told you, but they might give you a bit of a hard time.”

“Why?” You frowned while listening.

“It isn’t the first time he has been arrested for fighting and it’s been quite a while but they don't let shit go.”

“Of course.” You pinched the space between your forehead and nose. “Okay, thanks. I will drop you guys a message later about what's going on.” You waved at Grey, Claude, and Paulie on your way out with Yona.

That little dark thought lodged in your brain, wondering if Curtis was hiding his previous arrest from you all along, or was it something he simply never thought to bring up?

Edgar paced back and forth in the cell while Curtis leaned back against the wall, one leg stretched out ahead of him and the other folded closer to him, bouncing now and then with anxious energy. They hated this, both of them but all they could do was wait it out. The likelihood they would be let go tonight was slim. Not with his previous track record.

His eyes were closed as he pictured the look on your face as you looked up at that asshole blocking your way on purpose. You looked calm at that moment, but he could see how wide your eyes were, shining way too brightly with alarm. He had been intent on just approaching and standing the guy down, already knowing he would back down the second he saw him.

But then the bastard had stepped into your space, purposely making you stumble back in an attempt to keep yourself out of his reach, laid a hand on you and that’s when Curtis was ready to rip the man’s head off.

Curtis did manage to lay the man flat out with the promise that if he ever laid a hand on you or any woman again, Curtis was going to rip him apart. That was when the cops showed up. Familiar faces from years ago dragging him off and slapping cuffs on him.

‘Bout time we brought you in again.’

He ground his teeth in aggravation at the memories it dragged up, his eyes slitting to open, watching Edgar pace back and forth muttering about asshole cops. Curtis worried about how you were dealing, were you okay? He knew Claude, Grey, Yona, and Paulie would make sure you were fine, but he just kept picturing your face. Hearing you afterward calling his name as the door slammed on him.

You looked pissed at that moment and he couldn’t help smiling at that.

“What are you grinning at?” Edgar stopped pacing and slouched on the bench next to him, still a ball of nervous energy.

“Just thinking about Y/N giving those officers hell.”

Edgar laughed then, leaning back much like Curtis was. “I saw out the back window, she was mad. Not like it do us any good, but she looked like she was ready to deck him.”

“Yeah, she did.” Curtis barked a laugh. “I don’t think I have ever seen her mad like that before.”

“When do you think they will let us out?”

“They won’t, not till morning at least. Public intoxication and all that.”

“Bullshit charge, we hadn’t even finished a beer yet,” Edgar muttered in outrage, glancing around the empty cell. “I hate this.”

“So do I.” Curtis pushed up to stretch himself out, the bench a hard unrelenting place. He would much rather be in his bed with you, soft, and warm in his arms. “Probably those bastards will just get a slap on their hand and let go too.”

“Fuck I hope not.”

It was hours later when they were finally let go, served with papers for fines they needed to pay. Charges were dropped against them for assault, much to Curtis’surprise. You and Yona were sitting out in the lobby, both of you huddled in the uncomfortable seats, heads leaning against one another in what must have been an unrestful sleep. Edgar was gentle when he touched Yona, his hand brushing along the side of her face, whispering her name. Curtis squatted in front of your seat, letting his hands slide over yours till your eyes slipped open and you gave him a sleepy smile, sliding forward to hug around his neck.

“Hey, I didn’t think they were ever going to let you out.” You muttered into the crook of his neck

He squeezed you back assuringly, rubbing at your back. “They like to drag ass over this stuff. You ready to go home?”

“Please.” You pulled back to let him go and Curtis held you against him a second longer before letting you ease off the seat, pulling himself back up to a stand. In the parking lot, you said goodbye to Edgar and Yona, who were quick to promise to call later to reschedule the missed triple date at the bar but you could tell they just wanted to head home. Neither had gotten a lot of sleep that night. Curtis was relieved to see his truck already there.

“Grey?”

“Yeah, he said he had a spare to your house and grabbed your extra keys.” You dug them from your purse to hand over to Curtis.

Getting in, the drive back to the house was quiet. But not the typical comfortable kind that happened between you two, more like you had something on your mind and it was worrying you, causing unspoken tension. “Did you stay there all night Honey?”

“Hmm?” You turned back towards him just as he was pulling into the driveway, next to your car. “Oh yeah, Yona was set on staying till she at least saw Edgar, and good luck getting me to leave after what happened. Every time we asked to see either of you, they had an excuse not to let us talk to you.” You paused as if collecting your thoughts. “They seemed to not like you. At all.”

“Mmhh, yeah,” Curtis said, he wasn’t ready to elaborate and you let it die there for now. Instead, you both made your way into the house, yawning loudly as you looked at the time.

“Good morning, about the time I typically wake up.” You chuckle and Curtis rubbed at his face, making himself go cross-eyed a bit.

“How about today we nap in bed instead, take a real lazy day?”

“I could really go for that.” You shrugged out of your jacket and hung it up, offering to take his.

“Deal, you wanna go get comfy upstairs and I will be up with some snacks?” Curtis offered.

“I can make you something if you want?” You hesitated at the foot of the stairs, thinking out loud. “I have those veggies diced up and you got eggs, I saw them in there yesterday. I could make us western omelets.”

Curtis shook his head, directing you back towards the stairs. “Nope, I got it. Go shower if you want and get comfy… wear that tee of mine I love so much?”

You went up a few steps, twisting to face him while still inching up the steps, grinning. “That and what else?”

“Absolutely fucking nothing.” He gave a feral grin, even as tired as he was and you laughed while finishing going up the stairs. Curtis heard the house's old pipes groan, signaling you started your shower. It gave him plenty of time to get some of the quick easy snacks he had in the house. Grabbing some of Sophia’s granola bars, a bag of your favorite goldfish, his stash of Oreo cookies, and some other randoms he found in the pantry. Then he was sure to make you a cup of your favorite tea with generous dollops of honey to sweeten it to your liking. He took a quick sip, making sure it was how you liked it.

Curtis finally made it upstairs where his bed never looked so good. Especially with a few of your clothes littered on it from where you undressed to shower. Dropping the snacks at the foot of the bed, he heard you turn the water off, steam flowing from out of the shower. Yanking off his shirt and pants, he walked into the bathroom in his boxers, preparing the tub for himself while you stood at the mirror doing a few last-minute things.

“There’s a cup of tea on your nightstand Honey.” He brushed a kiss to your still bare shoulder, the towel firmly wrapped around you while you rubbed some of your lotion on your face and down your neck.

“Thanks Curtis, water should be plenty hot. I was quick.” You smiled at him in the mirror while he shed the last of his clothes and slipped in behind the curtain.

You finished what you were doing, sure to clean the sink off while listening to the water splash around Curtis, now and then the curtain would move with his movements. You retreated from the bathroom before he finished, crawling up on the bed and letting yourself lean back into the pillows.

There was a lot to take in over the past several hours. Something you hadn’t let yourself ponder on till now when it was all said and done. You hated the doubt that crept in, the way Curtis had gone after all those men without any hesitation or fear, then Grey making mention that Curtis had been in trouble before. It wasn’t that you thought of Curtis as being violent, not towards you in the least and you had only heard him lose his temper with Edgar at Halloween. But Jake was always such a nice guy until he wasn’t and you never would have guessed that from him. You knew him your whole life, your father and his were partners in their consultation firm.

But then one day it started and you always allowed it to continue while lying to yourself to be okay with it. As much as you loved Curtis, more than you ever felt for Jake, you couldn’t be that way with someone again.

Curtis came back out, this time dressed in his plaid pajama bottoms and a faded old tee, ready to crawl into bed next to you. You took an appreciative sip of the tea that he made, letting the warm liquid calm you down a bit more while Curtis slipped into the bed next to you, making a grab for the snacks he had brought up and deposited them on the nightstand, grabbing a couple of oreo cookies and flipping one into his mouth.

“Thank you for coming to get me at the station Honey.” He finally said, breaking the silence in the room while offering you his other cookie.

You took it, nibbling on it a second before setting everything in your hands aside. “As I said, after seeing the way those officers were acting, I wasn’t about to leave you there.”

“They dropped the charges surprisingly,” Curtis admitted while leaning back against the pillows, his hand coming up to your back and tracing patterns in it while he started to relax for the first time. “I wasn’t expecting that.”

You let yourself sink into the feeling of his fingers on you, making your body slowly loosen from his touch, you were soon easing back and curling up next to him, your hand sliding against his chest while he wrapped an arm around you, pulling you into his side. “They had to drop them after Yona and I went down to fill out our reports against that group, Claude will be going in later today, she told me to do the same thing. Between us and Paulie pulling up his security videos, they weren't able to make anything solid stick. Keeping you overnight was just a way to hold you and Edgar for a while longer." You frowned with frustration.

Curtis tilted forward to press an affectionate kiss to your forehead, scooping you in closer to him.

"It should have never fucking happened. You, Yona, and Claude should be able to walk across a parking lot at any time."

You felt the tip of his fingers lift your chin so you looked up at him, the sheer concern in his expression, the way his eyes were a wide blue boring into you, you yet again felt foolish over your concern that this man would in any way hurt you. “Curtis…” You twisted to your hip to face him, letting there be a bit of space between you so you could comfortably look at him to talk. "Yes, I was scared at the moment, but I knew you were close.”

“Mmmh, They will probably just get a slap on the wrist and nothing further than that.” He practically growled and you let your hand raise to smooth the worried lines in his forehead.

“Unfortunately that is probably gonna be the case. I hope that they learned a lesson in what the word ‘No’ means though. You and Edgar left them quite a few reminders” You let your hand drop once his forehead smoothed out. “But Grey said that you were familiar with the cops picking you up?” You hesitated, not wanting to bring up his past like this, but you had to know.

Curtis nodded a bit to confirm. “I can’t say the local Duluth precinct and I are on the best of terms. Of course, this was many years ago, but bar fights weren’t an uncommon thing for me.

You stayed quiet, intent on letting him continue with whatever he wanted to share. “As a young man… I was angry? Lost and unsure of myself, my grandparents did an amazing job being my parents. But I was still mad at the world for having never gotten to have that time with my mom and dad, I never got to see Tyler grow into the man he should have been. I had so many what-ifs built in me. Lillian and Wilford tried to help me, but you know when you are young you miss what is right in front of you.”

“So all this anger, it turned into fighting?”

“It did, I would get into it with other people. Looking for it I guess would be the best way to put it. It was the only thing that made me feel good.” He glanced at you worriedly but you kept your features neutral. “I don’t know if I’m explaining it right, I was an angry young man. I’m glad you didn’t know me then.”

“Hey, we all have our shit, right?” You said with a gentle smile. “Keep going, what happened?”

“I hit rock bottom. Had to spend some time at a minimum security prison. Not long, but it was several months. My Gram came to visit me several times, and my grandfather did a couple of times. But it was easy to see how disappointed he was. I hated it, I was ashamed of how low I went with it. The judge released me and I went to Nam for a more permanent job.” His fingers flowed up and down your arm, making pleasured sensations settle in you, retaining that connection even while you two were separated a bit to face each other. “Sent me to training and I started from the bottom up. Grandpa was retired by then so I worked up to his position.”

“You must have wanted the change to work that hard Curtis.” You wiggled a bit closer. “Did all those feelings, the anger… they stop?”

“Um, I channeled them in a new way. Grey and I were friends during this time, he was always trying to get me to go with him to his uncle's gym, just beyond the school called Big Jon Boxing.

When I got out, I finally took him up on the offer. Big Jon taught me some boxing, tossed me in the ring to punch and kick out all those feelings.”

You half pushed up, leaning on an elbow. “You’re just sharing with me that you can box?”

Curtis laughed, shrugging a shoulder. “Yeah, pretty good at it too, not to brag.”

“Do you still go?” You eased down again, now back in his side, curling a leg through his.

“I haven’t in a while, not since last summer. Grey was telling me Big Jon was asking when I’m coming back.”

“So since you met me?” You huffed out, making Curtis chuckle again.

“Well, I also have some equipment down in the cellar for when I couldn’t go. But yeah… I haven’t felt the need to.”

You smiled a bit to yourself, it was hard not to feel a bit of pride that Curtis didn’t need such an outlet. Your hand slipped under his tee, tracing your fingertips on his belly, sinking into your thoughts. “Would you go back?”

“Of course, it is like another home, much like Paulie’s is. I just… haven’t. Actually, in light of what happened, would you like to go?”

“Me? To a gym?” You wrinkled your nose, the idea of it making you wildly self-conscious. Gym’s always felt like a nightmare, all those fit people and then there is you. You tried, in the past. You went to Jake’s gym using his membership. Always when he was at work, not that he ever said anything, but you could tell that he was embarrassed to see you struggling with the equipment.

“Yes you Honey. We can teach you some self-defense moves in case you ever feel unsafe or have to be alone.” His hand was assuring on your side, all while his belly flexed under your fingertips. You felt him grasp at the back of your thighs, easing you over him till you were straddling him, leaning against his chest till you pushed up to a sit, using your knees folded under you to keep from leaning too heavily against him. Underneath you he looked perfectly relaxed and content, waiting on you to sort through your doubts and fears about going to the gym. “You could knock Edgar out next time he pisses you off.” He smirked at you and you couldn’t help the little amused smile you gave at your friend's expense.

“So tempting, but…”

“But what Honey.” His hands slipped up the bare part of your thighs to grasp gently on your hips and ease you to relax against him. “Tell me.”

“It’s the gym, full of beautiful fit people.”

“Nah, this is a cool gym. It’s for everyone.” Curtis said. His hands flexed against your hips, making him smirk a bit up at you. “I could buy you all those hot leggings too. All the leggings.” His eyes glinted up at you wickedly, making you feel heat flush your face and down your chest, your heart race in excitement and apprehension.

“I have leggings already Curtis, you don’t have to buy me more.”

“I know and you are always fucking hot in them.” He slipped a hand up your back to lightly grasp the back of your neck, pulling you in close for his mouth to find yours, drawing you into a heated kiss as he set out to prove just what he felt when seeing you in those leggings. Being tired completely forgotten when he flipped you to your back and hovered over you, chaining kisses down your neck and working your shirt up while you did the same with his to toss it away for the rest of the day.

#life is short so make it sweet #curtis and honey #curtis x plus sized reader #curtis and plus sized reader #curtis everett and plus sized reader #curtis everett and reader #curtis everett and you #curtis everett x reader #curtis everett x you #curtis everett au #curtis everett fanfiction #chris evans characters #amber writes #sweater writes #tw police #tw fighting #tw drunk #tw harrassment

98 notes · View notes

aflame4goinghome · 1 year ago

Text

Part Of The Band

j.t.k x f.reader

part two

part one

a/n: here's our much-anticipated part two! things are really starting to heat up... but now what? enjoy :)

word count: 5.8k

warnings: swearing, flirting, kissing, strong sexual language, shameless nicknames lol, some fluff- Jake is very sweet, some pining i guess? SMUT, minors DNI: oral sex (f. receiving), fingering, choking, groping, slight dom/sub action, begging, sir kink (of course), unprotected p in v sex (wrap it before you tap it!!), slight biting if you squint

You wake up to the loud blaring of your alarm clock in your ear and a pounding headache. You sit up in bed and press the off button on the clock, looking over to see the time: 10:00. It’s not even that early, but your hangover says otherwise. “Fuck. Why did I ever agree to stay out and drink so late…” you say to yourself, shaking your head and holding your hands over your eyes. You stay like that for a few minutes before begrudgingly getting out of bed and dragging your feet to the bathroom to get ready.

You shut the bathroom door and then look at yourself in the mirror. You didn’t have the energy to take your makeup off the night before, your mascara is smudged and your eyes are puffy. You take a quick shower, wash your face thoroughly, brush your teeth, and then pull your hair back into a low ponytail. You open your bathroom cabinet to pull out a bottle of Tylenol, take two of them, and then head out back into your room to get dressed. You dread the thought of having to get dressed for class today, so you throw on some sweats and a band tee then head out into the living area.

You enter your small kitchen to find Sophie hunched over the dining table, in a very similar state. “Morning, Soph,” you say with a half-smile, to which she looks up at you with utter regret and just groans in response. You can’t help but laugh, “Pleasant as always this morning, huh?”

She rolls her eyes and says, “Y/N, we are never going out on a school night ever again. I’ve never been this hungover in all my life,” she throws her head back and groans again. “It was your idea, remember?” you say, reminding her. “Whatever. Go to class so that I can wallow in self-pity in peace, please,” she says. You chuckle to yourself, grab a granola bar and a Celsius, then pick up your backpack and head out the door for the day.

─────── ･｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───────

You finish your exam just in time then breathe a long sigh of relief. You feel pretty okay about it and hope that all of your studying paid off. You decide that you need more caffeine to get through the rest of the day. You head over to your campus coffee shop and wait in the unfortunately long line, scrolling on your phone while you wait.

You open up Instagram and, against your better judgment, type in Jake’s name. You hit the follow button and scroll on his page for a minute, admiring the layout and aesthetic of it all. It felt very… him. You decide to shoot him a text to see how his morning has been going.

You: morning :)

Sir Jacob ⚔️: Good morning… sleep well?

You: as well as i could, i guess lol. i’ll definitely not be drinking that much during the school week again for a while, that’s for sure

Sir Jacob ⚔️: Ah yes, you had class today. You said you had an exam, right? How did that go?

You: oh, it was alright. i think i passed, i’m just glad to have it over with. now i can just look forward to tonight ;)

Sir Jacob ⚔️: Well, I’m glad that you did well. And I’m even more glad to know that you’re looking forward to seeing me…

You: hmm, are you looking forward to seeing me?

Sir Jacob ⚔️: Oh, I’m looking forward to more than just seeing you, sweetheart. Your beautiful face will be my good luck charm tonight. Who knows, perhaps you could even get rewarded.

You: i’ll hold you to that…

Sir Jacob ⚔️: That’s a promise, baby. I’ve already coordinated your ride to pick you up at 6. Our guys will take you both up to the front when you arrive… though I might like it if you could come back to see me before we go on.

You: i think i’d like that too. i’m sure Sophie can hold our spot on her own for a little while

Sir Jacob ⚔️: Good, that can be arranged… I’ll see you then, beautiful.

You: see you then ;)

You catch yourself smiling at your phone as you end your conversation with Jake and near the front of the line. You can hardly believe that this was actually real and that you were being brought backstage tonight. You grab your coffee and head home to rest a bit before you have to get ready for the show.

─────── ･｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───────

After sitting on the couch with Sophie for a while watching tv, you two decide it’s time to get ready to go. You look through your closet to find something cute to wear and come across your favorite skirt- it’s black, pleated, and a bit short. You decided to pair it with the Greta Van Fleet shirt that you bought at the merch table last night, which you think Jake will particularly like. You step into the bathroom to do your makeup and then loosely curl your hair to give it some volume.

You meet Sophie out in your living room, throw on a pair of black Converse, and then the two of you head downstairs to wait for your ride. It arrived right at 6, just like Jake had promised. A black car pulls up in front of your apartment building and you both get in. You expected an Uber, but it appears that Jake went a step above and hired a car service for you, which feels so insane to you. You’ve never been exposed to this level of fame before.

The car arrives at the Greek and you and Sophie walk up to the venue. There are security personnel waiting there for you, and they take you both up to the barricade. They’d managed to keep a small space in the front open for you, just like Jake had said he would. They help Sophie get situated in the pit and then take you backstage to the dressing rooms.

Security brings you to one of the dressing rooms and opens the door for you, and you’re greeted first by Josh’s face smiling back at you right by the door. He’s wearing his jumpsuit already, adorned with a beautiful silky robe over top of it. “Y/N! Hello! It is so fantastic to see you again, I’m so glad you could make it again tonight. You look absolutely radiant,” he says, taking both of your hands in his and squeezing lightly. You smile at his enthusiasm, “Josh, hi, thank you… I’m happy to be here too.”

Your eyes look beyond Josh and find Jake sitting on a loveseat in the back corner of the room. He’s already dressed as well, and he looks so good that it’s sickening. His hair is still brushed and neat since he hasn’t performed yet, lying wavy over his shoulders. He has a closed-lip smile on his face that’s almost devious-looking.

You make your way over to him and you watch as his eyes travel down to your bare legs, then back up to your face. “Hi,” you say, with a shy smile across your face as you sit down next to him. “Hi,” he replies, snaking his hand around your waist, “You look gorgeous this evening, sweetheart. Absolutely breathtaking.” His other hand raises up to your face, brushing a piece of hair behind your ear. You blush at the compliment and lean into his touch as he keeps his hand there, holding your cheek.

“I’m so glad that you’re here. You’ll be my muse for the night, I plan to put on quite the show…” he says, looking into your eyes. You smile up at him as he speaks again. “Here, I want you to have something,” he says, taking his hands away from your body. You mourn the loss of his touch momentarily as you watch him remove a bracelet from his right wrist. It’s a white sailor knot bracelet, seemingly old considering the visible wear and tear.

He places it in your hand and says, “I want you to wear this tonight. To help you remember how much I want you here, and for me to see you in the crowd and know that you’re here for me… and only me.” Your jaw drops slightly, in shock at Jake’s romantic gesture. You smile at him and slide the bracelet onto your wrist, “Thank you, Jake. This is so sweet… You know I’ll be thinking of you the whole time.” He leans into you and whispers in your ear, “Oh, I know you will. I’ll make sure of it.” You let out a sharp breath, feeling absolutely overtaken by him, then manage to quickly compose yourself before you melt for him entirely right there on that couch.

“I should get back to my spot… have to make sure that I’m front and center for a certain handsome rockstar…” you say, standing up and straightening out your skirt. Jake stands up with you to walk you out of the room, placing his hand on the small of your back. Once you reach the door, Jake gets close to you and whispers, “See you after the show, gorgeous,” sending shivers down your spine.

Before you can react, security guides you back to your spot in the pit. Sophie looks at you with a cheeky look, but you just brush it off and get ready for the opener’s set. This is going to be a long night…

─────── ･｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───────

The openers have finished their sets and you’re all anxiously awaiting for the band to come out. The same intro plays as last night with the film videos, and then suddenly, you hear a string of beautiful chords coming from the organ as a bright spotlight points down upon Sam. Danny approaches from behind to sit at his set and then… out walks Jake. His stride is confident and relaxed as though he belongs there, which he so obviously does. He waves to the crowd quickly before he turns around to adjust the settings on the amp behind him. He then walks up to the front of the stage and locks eyes with you, blowing a kiss straight to you. You smile at him, blushing, as he strikes a few chords on his guitar to add to the suspense of the start of the song.

They amp it up a bit, Danny begins pounding on the drums, and then Josh walks out, greeting the crowd with a wide smile. The guys lead into the start of the song and Josh begins to dance around and feel the music. He looks over and sees you, reaching out both of his hands and then bringing them to his heart. You’ve only known him for a day, but you absolutely adore Josh. His kind heart radiates the brightest energy you’ve ever seen and it’s impossible to not be happy right alongside him, he just draws you in.

Your eyes travel back to Jake as he settles into the rhythm of the song. You can just tell how much fun he has up there, playing the song with a smile on his face and moving with the music. You can’t help but admire him, it’s so clear that he’s living his dream. It’s quite wholesome, but this wholesome moment doesn’t last long.

As the band heads into the next song, the energy begins to change. Every time he looks over at you, his eyes seem much darker. He’s playing his riffs with ease and going crazy for the crowd, though you wonder if it might be just for you. When it’s time for his solo, he steps closer to the front of the stage. His eyes meet yours as his hands glide up and down the frets with ease and you watch as he slightly lifts his hips into the guitar.

Oh, he’s putting on a show now, you think. This must be what he meant earlier about making sure that you think of only him during the show. It was certainly working- you couldn’t take your eyes off of him. More specifically, you watch his hands as they move on the strings and his face as it contorts while he plays; in pain or pleasure, you couldn’t be sure. Either way, you start to feel extremely aroused, your eyes glued to him.

Jake puts on this same show for the rest of the set, including the encore. He would occasionally turn his attention to the rest of the crowd and go to the other side of the stage to play to them, but he’d always come right back to his spot in front of you, with his eyes burning through you with lust. You start to imagine what Jake has in store for you tonight, and just the thought of it has you feeling anxious with desire.

─────── ･｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───────

The band exits the stage and it’s time for you to head backstage to find Jake. “I’m gonna go call my Uber,” Sophie says, turning toward you, “Be careful, don’t do anything I wouldn’t do, and text me when you’re on your way home, okay?” You smile at her and say, “Soph, there’s not much you wouldn’t do. I’ll see you in the morning.” Security goes to help you out of the pit to take you backstage as you hear Sophie yell back to you, “Have fun! Don’t get pregnant!” You roll your eyes and shake your head, she sure does love to embarrass you.

The security guards take you back to the same room as earlier and knock on the door. You’re greeted by Josh once again, who has already changed into more casual clothing. “Hello, darling!” he says, smiling from ear to ear, pulling you into a hug. You can tell he’s a hugger with how tight his grasp is, as he rubs his hand slightly on your back.

“Jake’s just taking a quick shower to cool down, I was just about to head to the hotel myself. Did you enjoy the show?” he asks. You smiled back at him, “I enjoyed it very much, you were incredible. I expected nothing less, you’re a natural Josh.” His cheeks turn a bit pink at the compliment as he brushes it off, scoffing. “Please, no more, or else my ego is going to get inflated.” You burst into laughter together and then you hear the water in the bathroom turn off.

“I’d better go, my ride is waiting for me. But you two have a good night,” Josh says, smirking slightly. “I hope to see you again soon, Y/N.” He places his hand on your shoulder and rubs it as a goodbye and then heads out the door, closing it behind him. You decide to take a seat on the loveseat in the dressing room, where you had been sitting a few hours earlier, and scroll on your phone for a moment while you wait.

You raise your head as you hear the door open and see Jake walk out of the bathroom. He had gotten half-dressed in the bathroom, wearing the same old tattered jeans from last night. His hair was still wet- long and dripping onto his bare chest. You can’t help but stare as he walks over to you with a smug smile on his face.

“I thought that you might be here waiting for me,” he says, leaning over you and placing his hand on your cheek, “I’m glad I was right.” He brings his mouth down to yours, encompassing it in a ravenous kiss. It’s hurried and desperate; you know that he’s been waiting all night for this. He lays you down on the loveseat as he hovers over you, taking total control. He places his right knee on the couch next to you as he plants the other between your legs to steady himself then holds your waist with his left hand. His right hand has moved from your cheek to rest lightly on the back of your neck, pulling you into him.

The kiss is so deep that you pull back a bit to catch your breath. “Do you know what you’ve been doing to me all night, looking like that?” Jake says, looking down at you with his long, wet hair framing your face. His left hand leaves your waist and travels under your skirt down to your thigh, gripping it tightly. “That skirt has been making me crazy, baby… Seeing how sexy your legs look. You didn’t leave much to the imagination, huh? Did you wear that just for me?” he asks, his eyes dark and filled with lust.

You hardly feel like you can answer him, your body almost numb from desire, your mind filled with thoughts of him and only him. You manage to nod, looking up at him, begging for him to continue. He shakes his head at you and brings his hand back up to cup your face. “No, sweetheart. Use your words. Did you wear that tiny little skirt for me?” You whimper slightly at his dominance and the feeling of his hands on you. “Yes Jake, yes, I wore it for you. I knew that you would like it,” you answer hastily, desperate to feel his mouth on yours once more.

“That’s what I thought. Pretty little thing wanted to look good just for me, hm?” he says, his mouth just inches from yours. You lean up to try and catch his lips when he pulls away from you. “I shouldn’t let it go to waste then, should I?” he says, placing his hands on your hips and pulling you up, then flipping you over to lean over the armrest. “Is this okay?” Jake whispers with his lips on the shell of your ear, keeping his hands planted on your hips. “Yes,” you answer, almost whining. You couldn’t hide your arousal now even if you tried, your body is calling out to him.

He leans back to kneel on the couch behind you and flips your skirt up to reveal more of you to himself. He sucks in a quick breath and groans to himself as his hands explore you, tracing along the shape of your ass and then taking a handful in his right hand. He brings his other hand to slide a finger under your black lace underwear, snapping it against your skin and making you wince in pleasure. He then slides it to the side, revealing your already dripping wet folds. He brings his hand up to run his fingers through them, collecting the pool of wetness that’s sitting between your legs. You whine quietly at his touch, entirely at his mercy.

Jake leans back over you, still running his fingers over your sensitive core, and whispers into your ear in a deep, raspy voice. “Is this what you wanted, baby? Did you want me to take care of this pretty pussy just like I do with my guitar on stage? Is that it?” You whine again, louder this time as he starts to circle your clit lightly. “Yes,” you breathe out. “Yes, what?” he says, putting more pressure right where you need it most, peppering light kisses on your neck. You let out a quiet moan and throw your head back, “Yes, sir, this is what I wanted, please.” He kisses your neck once more, sinking his teeth in a bit, causing you to whine again.

He then leans back and removes his hand from you, placing both of his hands on your ass, spreading your cheeks wide, and letting out a harsh groan. “Fuck, sweetheart, you look so delicious. I need to have a taste,” he says. “Please, please,” you mutter out, begging. He stops holding himself back, leaning down and finally attaching his mouth to you. You gasp as his lips encompass your folds, his tongue teasing your entrance repeatedly. You grip the arm of the couch harshly, holding on for dear life as he licks at you relentlessly.

His fingers find your clit and press tight circles into it as his mouth continues to explore your needy pussy. You struggle to hold back your moans as he gets you closer and closer to the edge. He can tell you’re getting close from your noises and detaches his mouth from you. His arm pulls you up against him and he’s now using both his hands on you to get you to your release. His left hand is still pressing into your clit as he inserts his middle finger into you. You lean back against him and moan loudly as his finger takes a relentless place inside of you and he inserts a second finger. “That’s it, baby, are you gonna come for me? You gonna come all over my fingers?” Jake says with his lips against your neck, sucking marks into it as he grinds his hard dick against you. “Yes, yes, yes,” you say, struggling to get any words out at all. He rubs your clit faster and keeps a steady pace of pounding his finger inside of you, making you come undone for him.

Your orgasm is so harsh, hitting you like a massive wave, taking you over. You can’t control the sounds coming out of you as you moan his name and several expletives as you come down from your high. He slows his fingers inside you, but still moves them, helping you through it. It’s nothing like you’ve ever experienced before. You’d expected him to be good considering how skilled he was at guitar. You fantasized a lot about it as you watched his fingers move along the frets, but this was even better than you’d imagined.

Jake removes his hands from you and places a soft kiss on your cheek. You watch as he pops his fingers into his mouth, sucking them clean, and groaning slightly. Then he pulls your panties back to their place and fixes your skirt. You step off of the couch and turn to face him, kissing his lips softly. You feel him smile against your lips and let out a quiet moan, taking your cheek in his hand. He leans his forehead against yours and asks, “You coming back to my room with me?”

“Yeah, I’d like that,” you answer, smiling at him. He steps back from you to grab the rest of his clothes and finish getting dressed. You watch him grab a black button-down shirt, very similar to the blue one you saw him in yesterday, then he slips into the same brown Chelsea boots. He looks into the mirror and brushes his fingers through his hair slightly, still wet from his shower and a bit messy after your steamy exchange. He slides on his dark sunglasses, despite it being dark out, then reaches his hand out to you. “Alright, ready to go?” You take his hand and you walk out, hand-in-hand, to the back entrance where your ride is waiting for you.

─────── ･｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───────

The car pulls up to their hotel, Jake gets out of the car and then goes to the other side to open your door for you. You blush as he takes your hand, helps you out of the car, and holds your hand in his as he walks you inside. You could cut the sexual tension with a knife as you both enter the elevator and take it up to his floor. He keeps his hand on your lower back as he walks you to his room and opens the door, letting you enter first, following behind you, and closing the door.

You watch him turn the lock and then turn around and walk toward you. He snakes his arms around your waist and pulls you close. You lean up to kiss him and he groans into your mouth, backing you up until the back of your legs hit the bed. He then lays you down on the bed and leans over you, deepening the kiss. His one hand is grasping at your ass while the other moves up to your neck. You reach down to grasp at his bulge, still hard and throbbing since he went down on you back at the venue. He groans into your mouth and thrusts lightly into your hand, needing more. You pull down the zipper and reach into his boxers to take him in your hand, but it’s clear that he’s feeling impatient because he leans back to completely undress.

Jake unbuttons the remaining three buttons on his shirt and tosses it on the floor, then pulls down his jeans and removes his briefs. You take this time to truly admire him, with nothing covering him. You’re mesmerized by his defined v-line and the way his necklace lays on his bare chest, then you finally look down to see his hard dick, starting to feel slightly nervous. It’s larger than you’d expected for his height, and girthier too, so much so that you worry about it fitting. He leans back over you and slowly pulls your skirt and panties down as you lift your shirt over your head to match him. He kisses you ferociously as his hands find your breasts, still covered by your lacy bra. He kneads them in his hands for a moment before reaching behind you unhooking it with one hand and throwing it to the side of the bed.

He detaches his lips from you and leans back for a moment to look at you, completely bare in front of him. “Fuck, baby… you look absolutely delectable…” he says, leaning back in to kiss you and teasing his tongue into your mouth, which you welcome willingly. Your tongues are swirling around each other as he brings one of his hands down to grab your breast and his finger pinches your nipple teasingly. You moan into his mouth and he smirks, bringing his mouth down to suck it into his mouth. He then moves his hand to your wet and needy core, bringing his fingers through your folds before inserting his pointer finger inside. You’re writhing in his touch, whining, and slightly overstimulated by all of the different feelings pulsing through you.

“Jake please, I need you,” you whine, needing more than just his fingers now. “What, sweetheart? Tell me what you want,” he says, looking down from above you with fire in his eyes. “I need to fuck me, please, I need it so bad,” you plead with him, taking his dick in your hand. He groans into your mouth and teases you more, “Yeah? You want me to fuck you, baby?” “Yes, yes sir, please, please,” you beg, unable to wait anymore. He moans again, hearing you call him that making him throb in your hand.

“Honey, I’m gonna fuck you so good that all you’ll be able to say is my name…” he says, taking himself in hand and pumping it a few times, forehead pressed against yours. He lines himself up with you, his other hand gripping the back of your neck, and presses in just the tip. You whine at the feeling before he takes it back out and then slides back in, gripping his hand tight on your hip and he pushes all the way to the hilt. He lets out a deep groan from the feeling of being all the way inside you, his eyes glued to where your bodies meet as he moves his hips to take himself out and then slam back in again.

His lips crash into yours then, licking into your mouth recklessly as he sets a steady pace. Your fingernails are digging into his back as you moan into his mouth at every thrust, in absolute euphoria. His hand moves from the back of your neck to the front, grasping just tight enough that it wouldn’t restrict your airflow. He removes his lips from yours and looks down at you, his hair framing your face and his eyes boring into yours. His necklaces dangle into your face at every thrust, the cold metal smacking your face to keep you in reality. His other hand reaches down to lift one of your legs higher and he’s now fucking into you at a new angle, so much deeper. You let out a loud moan at the feeling and you feel yourself clench around him, which makes him go faster.

“That feel good, baby?” Jake asks you in a deep whisper and moves his hand from your leg to your stomach, pressing down. “Do you feel me right there? You feel me so deep?” You can tell he likes to talk, and you like it too. His words are getting you closer and closer to the edge as you feel his tip brush past your g-spot over and over again. You nod ferociously and spill out a string of yeses, unable to form much of a sentence. His hand on your stomach moves down to your sensitive clit and starts pressing hard circles into it. “I feel you clenching around me baby, I know you’re so close. Be a good girl and come on my cock,” he says, his eyes locked right on yours, watching as your face contorts with pleasure. It’s not long before you’re reaching your second orgasm, this one even harder than the first as Jake pounds into you incessantly.

As you come down, he puts your leg down and leans down to kiss you passionately, moaning into your mouth. You can tell that he’s close too, though he’s held it together well. You place your hand tightly at the back of his neck, gripping some of the hair there and deepening the kiss. A few more deep thrusts and he pulls his mouth away from yours and pulls out of you, pumping himself as he finishes on your stomach. His forehead falls onto yours as he breathes in your presence for a moment before placing a light kiss on your forehead and walking to the bathroom to get a towel to clean you up.

He returns from the bathroom with a wet washcloth, sits down on the edge of the bed, and helps clean you up. The aftercare is honestly quite sweet, which was to be expected. Despite his tough exterior in bed, Jake is a gentleman first and foremost. He finishes wiping you off and you both take a quick shower to clean more thoroughly and cool off. Even the shower is sensual, he washes you off slowly and delicately, and then you both dry off and get back into bed.

Jake turns the lamp off and then lays down and turns to face you. He reaches his hand over and brushes a piece of hair out of your face and caresses your cheek lightly. You take his hand in yours and kiss the top of it, smiling up at him. You still feel a bit unsure that any of this is even real. But nonetheless, you scooch closer to him and lay your head on his chest, close your eyes, and drift off to sleep as he brushes his fingers through your hair.

─────── ･｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───────

Your eyes flutter open and you see the light of the morning peeking through the blinds. You turn over to see Jake still fast asleep, mouth wide open and snoring slightly. You smile to yourself, it all seems quite innocent. You go to grab your phone from the nightstand and check the time: 9:17 a.m. Okay, that’s not too bad. You wanted to be back at your apartment before noon to catch Sophie after her class was over, so the timing seemed good.

You brush some pieces of hair out of Jake’s face and smile down at him, rubbing your thumb on his temple. His eyes open slowly, a little out of it. “Mmm… morning, sweetheart,” he mutters, his voice deep and groggy. “Good morning… I have to go soon, I think…” you reply, which causes him to jolt awake a bit more, sitting up. “Oh…” he says, his face showing signs of disappointment, “Okay, yeah. I can get a car to take you back to your place.” He grabs his phone and sends a text to who you assume is his manager, then he turns back to you.

“Hey,” he says, placing his hand on your cheek. “I’ve had a really great few days with you, Y/N. I won’t forget it, ever. I hope you won’t either…” You look up at him and frown, you hate this goodbye more than anything. “Of course I won’t forget it, Jake. I don’t think I could ever forget you,” you say as he pulls you in for a soft kiss. He keeps his forehead on yours, trying to memorize this moment before it’s gone forever. “Keep my number, okay? If you ever need anything, or if you’re ever in Nashville… you can call me. I’ll answer. I promise,” he tells you, pulling back and rubbing his thumb on your cheek before getting up to get dressed for the day. You nod, staying in the comfortable silence and doing the same.

You both get ready and Jake walks you downstairs to the front of the hotel where the car is waiting for you. He gives you one more kiss goodbye on the cheek and opens the door for you, sending you off. What a whirlwind, you think to yourself as the car takes you back to your apartment.

After answering the much-expected 20 questions from Sophie about your adventurous night with a famous rockstar, you retire to your bedroom. You get changed into something more comfortable and then look down at your wrist, realizing that you’re still wearing his bracelet. You sincerely doubt that you’ll ever be able to give it back to him, so it can be a sweet keepsake. You take it off and place it on your vanity with the rest of your jewelry, and then go to sit in your bed.

You think back to the events of last night and part of you truly doesn’t believe it actually happened, especially to you. Well, you only live once, you suppose. It isn’t like anything like this would ever happen to you again in your lifetime. You’re likely never going to see him again and one day this is all going to be a distant memory. Right?

─────── ･｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───────

i hope you all enjoyed the second chapter of POTB!! comment or message me if you want to be added to the taglist!

the next chapter will involve a small time jump to the present day, so buckle up my loves!! see you soon! <3

part three

taglist:

@writingcold @josh-iamyour-mama @ohgodthefeeling-gvf @sinarainbows @gvfmelbourne @jaketsguitar @swiftiepanda21 @itsafullmoon @thetroublegetssoloud71 @vanfleeter @gretasfallingsky @dem0litiondan @dixonbrainrot

#greta van fleet #jakegvf #jake kiszka x reader #greta van fleet fic #part of the band #potb #jake kiszka #jake kiszka fic #jake kiszka x you #gvf #starcatcher #Spotify #greta van fleet smut #greta van smut #jake kiszka smut #jake kiszka gvf

159 notes · View notes

turcott3 · 10 months ago

Text

mine all mine

florian xhekaj x fem! reader

warnings: light cursing and pure, straight up FLUFF

masterlist

you laid on the couch of the xhekaj house, hanging out with your boyfriend’s siblings, arber included.

“you mother fucker.” his older sister yells smacking arber on the arm for knocking her off the track as they raced head to head on mariokart, you trailing behind in 6th place.

“whatever it takes to win dom.” he laughs and continues eventually winning the race.

“how are you good when you never even play?” sophia asks after she finishes in 8th.

“i’m just cool i guess.” he shrugs setting the controller down. the bond you’d grown with florian’s sibling was extremely strong. they welcomed you with open arms the moment you stepped in their door for the first time. you looked at the time, seeing that florian would be home soon after a long practice.

“one more round? parents are at work until late.” arber asks.

“yeah let’s do it.” you reply, hoping to maybe do better this time, which you did, finishing in 3rd. once your final race was over you hear the lock on the front door turn and florian walks in the door.

“soph, dom you guys wanna go to dinner?” arber asks.

“yeah sure. what about flo and y/n?” dom replies.

“well he just came back so i just assumed he wouldn’t wanna go.”

“which you would be correct.” florian laughs returning from setting his bag down in his room and plopping down on the couch close to you.

“damn why?” sophia asks.

“long practice, i just wanna be at home.” he says putting his feet up on the coffee table.

“we’ll get you guys take out?”

“perfect, just call us when you need our order.” you smile leaning back in the corner of the couch, putting your feet up toward florian. his siblings putting on their shoes and walking closer to the door before he gets up to lock the door behind them.

“see you kids later. and flo use-“ arber starts.

“goodbye.” florian says pushing them out the door and shutting it quickly, face flushed red with embarrassment.

“awe, are you embarrassed?” you giggle as he walks back over to the couch.

“no i’m not.” he says, clearly lying out of his ass, and with his hands he separates your legs, laying between them with his head placed gently on your stomach.

“oh baby.” you coo, your hand running lightly through his dirty blonde hair, massaging his scalp.

“missed you.” he mumbles.

“you were only gone a few hours honey.” you giggle and you were met with silence as the boy placed his arms under your back, hugging onto you firmly. he always put on a tough guy front in front of his friends and his family but when the two of you were alone he loved to be babied more than anything in the world.

“i love it when it’s just me and you.” he says, moving his head to look up at you.

“why?” you say brushing hair out of his face.

“because.”

“flo that’s not a reason.” you laugh.

“i just love you, that’s all.” he says softly looking at you with his loving blue eyes.

“i love you too baby.” you smile. he pushes himself up with his arms to press a sweet kiss to your lips before repositioning himself and placing his head on your chest, wrapping his arms back around you. your ran your fingernails up and down his back soothingly, enjoying the moments of quietness with no one around.

“i never want them to come back. i could die happy right here.” he says softly, enjoying the back scratch.

“well once you play with the habs you can get your own place.” you say planting an unknown seed in his mind.

“what about our own place? like you come live with me.” he suggests.

“we’ll have to see but i’m sure we can work that out.” you smile at the idea of it. living alone with florian was, what you considered and fantasy, but the fact that it could happen brought you enough peace.

“i can talk to your parents.” he says resting his chin on your sternum.

“baby let’s not worry about it just yet okay? it’ll all work out.” you smile.

“you’re right. the idea just makes me so excited for my future with you.” he says causing your heart to flutter. you had never met a sweeter boy in your life.

“i’m excited too. everyday is exciting with you.” you say locking eyes with the boy.

“my family loves you, you know? mom is always asking about you when you’re not here.”

“does she really?”

“yes, i’d say almost half the times i ask you to come over is her telling me to ask you.” he laughs.

“well she’s awesome so that makes me happy.”

“good, because you make me the happiest and they see it and in return love you like family.”

“boy you better stop before i start crying.” you giggle as he presses a light kiss to your neck before laying his head back down.

“have you thought about what food you want before they call us?” you ask interrupting the silence that took over.

“to be honest no. just order something and i’ll get the same thing.” he says.

“okay easy enough.”you giggle as your hand finds its way back into his soft locks.

#florian xhekaj #florian xhekaj x reader #fluff #arber xhekaj #florian xhekaj imagine #turcs’ talk #i love him

137 notes · View notes

ladylooch · 4 months ago

Text

Best Thing I’ll Ever Do - Lio x Savannah (Part 3)

A/N: This chapter really encompasses a lot of what you all wanted to see with Lio and Sav in this part! I am really loving the way Lio is showing up for Savannah in these parts. I just... the way he has grown, both for her and himself... it's beautiful! Courageous! Aspirational! We love you, Lee 🥰

Word Count: 4.7k

Trigger Warnings: infertility, mentions of blood, pregnancy/birth

Part 1 | Part 2| Part 4 |

Inside a bright room atop a Manhattan skyscraper, Savannah delicately arranges the ‘Oh Baby!’ sign hanging down the gorgeous, flower wall filled with roses. The wall is fake flowers, but looks so real, Savannah didn’t believe they were fake until she ran her fingers over them. The flowers are dotted with the theme of the day which is delicate little butterflies, just like the baby they are celebrating today.

Baby Girl Wood #2 is due in 6 short weeks. Or long depending on which one of her parents you’re talking to.

“My ankles are already swelling up.” Lucie complains from where she is sitting at the bar, sipping on a strawberry lemonade. She extends her legs out in front of her, baby pink skirt hitting just below her knees. She evaluates each ankle while sipping consistently from her straw. “Oh! She loves sugar.” Lucie chuckles, rubbing over her rounded belly where the baby presumably moves.

Savannah glances over, throwing a sweet smile as Lexi pats her daughter’s shoulder comfortingly. Behind them, Mack, the hostess of the baby shower, is adjusting the little gift bags on the table by the door, making sure they are all aligned and in place.

“Soph did too. Would practically punch through my skin when I had lemonade.”

“I can’t relate. Lio was always fighting people in my belly, I swear.” Emma adds in her two cents. Savannah smirks, turning to call towards her.

“So his punching people started young?”

“Ha!” Emma points at her future daughter-in-law. “Yes. I’m sorry.” She cringes. “I tried. Too much of his dad in him.” Emma pauses, looking over Savannah’s work. “Wow, that looks so real. I am in love with the butterfly touch. That was a great idea!” Emma walks over, inspecting it up close as Savannah steps back to be in line with her.

“Thank you! I am satisfied.” Savannah confirms, crossing her arms over her chest while continuing to look with critical eyes.

“Perfect.” Emma murmurs, then wraps an arm around Savannah’s upper back. “How are you?” Savannah turns, meeting Emma’s eyes. She can tell Lio and his mother spoke this morning. How much of her recent struggles Lio shared with her, Savannah isn’t sure. But nothing has been easy since Connor and Lucie told them they were expecting a baby.

The heartache and immutable circumstances Savannah thought she had come to terms with no longer felt resolved. It was easy to say this was all okay, but being thrust into a pregnancy journey with someone they are so close with has changed everything. Some days, it takes everything for Savannah to get out of bed. The mere act of existing weighs on her. Lio has been so patient and understanding. Savannah isn’t sure how she is going to get out of this funk. It’s never gripped her this hard before. But she has also never loved anyone as much as she loves Lio, or planned a life with someone to this extent.

Every step closer they take towards forever- the wedding, the honeymoon, discussing if they are going to move- it all seems like a magnifier on this gaping hole Savanna has eating through the ventricles of her heart. She loathes herself for reverting back into old habits- retreating within, staying out of the house longer to avoid Lio, and the negative self-talk when she sees mothers with their children. It’s all so immature. She should be past this by now.

In an act of asserting willpower and taking back control, Savannah offered to help Mack plan the baby shower. Emma had been helping, but stepped aside when Savannah offered her time and creative mind. Getting immersed in the world of Pinterest and all the different options for showers had been surprisingly therapeutic as long as Savannah ignored the reason for the party.

This morning, when she woke up and Lio mentioned it sounded like Connor and Lucie settled in on a name for their baby, everything shattered inside Savannah again. She hit the wood floor, collapsing under the crushing weight of knowing she will never have this moment. She will never be able to understand what it's like to have people celebrate her pregnancy. Though she has faced this thought before today, it reopens the wound every moment she remembers.

“I’m good.” Savannah assures Emma, leaning in to hug her soon to be mother in law. Emma squeezes her back hard, fully like a mama does, and it takes several calming breaths before Savannah is sure she won’t cry from the sweetness. She cannot wait to officially join the Meier family. She is hitting the jackpot with Lio’s family.

Not long after the flower wall is completed, guests begin to arrive. The list consists of mostly family, a few of Lucie’s college friends, and the Rangers WAGS. They all arrive together as a group, descending into the room like gorgeous runway models. Savannah smiles when they see her, offering a wave. The group grabs various drinks, then comes over to where Savannah is standing by the table of quick shower games.

“Hi Savannah!” One of them, Whitney, exclaims. The two women hug, then she is introduced to the other three women: Gianna, Crystal, and Kyra. Whitney and Savannah know each other from a few mutual friends, Lucie included.

“Nice to meet you.”

“Savannah is engaged to Lucie’s cousin, Lio. He plays for the Devils.” Whitney fills in for the group.

“Oh! I know!” Kyra giggles. “ I love your content on TikTok.”

“Oh god. Thanks!” Savannah starts to blush. While she loves creating content, she feels a little awkward when she sees someone in the wild who has seen her stuff. It feels like the other person knows so much about her and she knows nothing about them. Like a one-sided relationship Savannah never knew she entered into.

“Congratulations on your engagement!” Gianna notes Savannah’s ring. “It was recent?”

“Thank you! Yes, not long ago.” Savannah switches her glass to the other hand so she can extend her fingers out to show off her huge, square cut engagement ring. “It’ll do.” The girls laugh.

“So, when is the wedding?”

“Next summer, we are planning on July.”

“Here?” Whitney asks.

“Yes! We finally decided on getting married here in the U.S. We were going back and forth on different places in Europe, but with the unknowns of the hockey season, it felt safer to plan for here. You know cause the cup.”

“One day our lives won’t revolve around a silver cup.” Whitney jokes.

“Keep dreaming. They never stop talking about it, girls. Even after they win it.” Lexi says as she walks past towards Mack by the windows. The girls laugh at the former captain’s wife.

“Well soak it up! It won’t be long before everyone transitions into baby discussions. Unless you already have them?” Crystal comments.

“Oh no, we don’t and won’t have any.” Savannah clears the air. The silence that falls over the wives is awkward immediately. Savannah chews on her bottom lip for a moment, then takes a sip of her mimosa.

“That’s nice. Kids are… so much work.” Gianna says assuringly. “You’ll be able to travel and do so much more without them.”

“Yeah.” Savannah nods, swallowing hard. All these things she gets to do that she would trade in a heartbeat for a baby. “That will be nice.” She smiles weakly.

“And you’ll actually get to sleep at night. No late night feedings or changes or just the non-stop screaming. Unlike this girl.” Crystal murmurs, grabbing at Lucie’s forearm as she walks up to the group.

“What about me?”

“We were just telling Savannah that not having kids is the right choice.” Lucie’s face drops in utter horror. She looks over at Savannah so apologetically.

“Some things aren’t a choice.” Lucie snaps, glaring at her shower guest.

“It’s okay, Luc.” Savannah interjects immediately. The group of girls fall into confused silence. “I actually can’t have kids. I would if I could.” Savannah nods as she speaks, waving her hands awkwardly as she explains.

“Oh my god, I am so sorry.” Crystal closes her eyes and shakes her head immediately. “I should not have assumed.”

“Probably not.” Lucie mumbles, clearly annoyed.

“It’s okay. Seriously, I’m fine.” Savannah plays it off to the group.

But after that, the party isn’t the same. Even after Lucie walks Savannah to a private corner to check in on her.

“This is your party. Stop worrying about me! I am fine. I’m having a great time and I am hating how much of this is feeling like it’s about me. It’s about you and this perfect butterfly who is joining us soon.”

“Sav, I love you and I know you’re struggling, even if Lio keeps trying to shield your pain from the world.” Lucie sighs. “You know you can talk to me?”

“Yes.” Savannah nods. But they both know why she won’t. Lucie is currently pushing it’s little feet out of her ribs.

At the end of the shower, Connor and Stella Wood pop in as the guests are starting to disperse. Stella bolts in, attaching to Mack’s waist immediately.

“I saw Uncle Davey!” She announces.

“You did!? Did you keep him in line?”

“Um, well he tried to eat my pancakes, so I stabbed him with the fork.”

“Oh…” Mack hides her hand to laugh. “How did that go?”

“Not good. I had to go to timeout.”

“They shouldn’t be giving us another baby.” Lucie jokes.

“Who is this they?” Mack asks her sister. “Y’all know what you did.”

“And I enjoyed it. Ready for more of it this weekend.” She grins at her husband who chuckles.

“Plenty of it.” He says into her hair. “You ready? I got the car packed, bags are in there. Got Stella’s here for her adventure.” He holds up her purple duffle bag. Lucie and Connor are heading to the coast for a baby moon while Lio and Savannah take Stella for the next few days.

“Where is my pillow!?” She shrieks, running away from Mack to her dad.

“In here. I put it on top.” He assures her.

“Okay. Where is Uncle Lee?”

“He is at home waiting for us.” Savannah assures her.

“Let’s go then.”

“Stella. Patience.” Connor snips a bit at her, clearly annoyed with her attitude. Him and Lucie share a look. His wife chuckles, then wraps an around around his waist.

“Okay, Stell, we are going to go. You’re in the best of hands this weekend, so please be kind and respectful and listen to the adults, okay?”

“Okay. I love you!” She bounces up on her tip toes, puckering her small lips for a smooch from both her parents.

“I love you.” Lucie responds.

“Love you, bug. Be good. We will see you on Tuesday.”

“Yeah.” Stella nods, then swallows hard. She grips Savannah’s hand tightly which makes Sav’s heart beat stronger in her chest. Stella and her are in a great place now. It was touch and go in the beginning but the little girl has begun to cling to her just like she does to Lio. It’s the ultimate sign of love from a five year old.

Lucie and Connor pass around hugs and appreciation to the remaining family members, then walk hand in hand to the elevator to begin their long awaited baby moon. Savannah looks down at Stella’s hand still resting in hers.

“Should we go see what Uncle Lee is up to?” Savannah asks.

Stella grins up at her, ready to rush across town to see her favorite person in the world.

- - -

(Lio)

The sound of the quiet crowd clapping at the Yankees game filters to Lio’s ears as he lightly dozes on his couch. Savannah is on her way back to their apartment with Stella and he is taking the last few moments of quiet to his full advantage. He pops one eye open when the crowd cheers exceedingly loud. A double. Nice. He scratches at an itch on his nose, then crosses his arms over his chest, wiggling deeper into the couch cushions.

A faint whine is heard from the hallway. It grows increasingly louder until he recognizes Stella’s sobs. Lio bolts up, rushing over to the door to open it. His eyebrows raise in surprise when he sees his fiancé on the other side of the door. Stella is propped on her hip as Savannah is loaded down with various different bags.

“Whoa.” He says as he takes note of the tears streaking the makeup off her cheeks. “What is going on?”

“Help me.” Savannah snaps.

“Okay.” He reaches for Stella, taking her into his chest. The little girl presses her wet cheek into his shoulder, hot puffs of hair hitting his neck with each cry.

“Ow.” She whines to him. “Ow!” She yells harder when he doesn’t react.

“Okay, Stella is hurt. Are you hurt?” He asks Savannah.

“No. Just.. she skinned her knees.”

“Okay.” Lio grabs the bags from her left hand, ushering her into the apartment completely. “What happened?”

“I don’t know what to do with children! That’s what happened!” She throws the remaining bags in her hands to the couch, then rushes from the room. Lio stares at her in confusion. The bedroom door shuts hard and loud, making both Stella and Lio jump.

“Uncle Lee, she’s mad at me! I said I was sorry!”

“Let’s look at you.” Lio says, putting her on the counter. He looks down at her knees, seeing both of them have been skinned down a bit. The left one has dots of blood in it while the other one has red dribbling down her calf. Stella looks down at them with him.

“Look at it.”

“Yeah. That’s not fun. But I think you’ll live.” He assures her. He scoops her back up, carrying her to the bathroom where he can work on cleaning them up. He sets her on the closed toilet, then kneels down at her knees. He wets a washcloth, carefully dabbing at them with the warm cloth.

“No, no, no, no!” Stella says, pushing his hands.

“Stell, I have to clean it. Those streets are nasty.” Lio sighs, trying to reason with her.

“I want daddy to do it!” She says, bouncing anxiously and kicking her feet.

“How about I do this and we pick out a really cool BandAid from the Disney pack Auntie got you?” He suggests. Stella contemplates. “I bet Mulan is in there.” Stella grins.

“Yessss!” She holds her legs out for him, allowing him to clean them off.

“How did this happen?” He asks her, careful of her sensitive skin. He works the soft cloth over her scrapes, pressing through even as he hates her little whimpers.

“Um, well…” She trails off, looking towards the sky. Lio knows a guilty Stella when he sees one.

“You didn’t listen?”

“Yeah.” She sighs, like such circumstances were beyond her control.

“We talked about this.”

“Well, I wanted to go into the M&M store! My mama was supposed to take me this week and she didn’t because of my stupid baby sister that makes her feel icky and then Auntie Sav said we could go in after the shower! But, but, then she walked by and I wanted to go back and she said no.”

“And you did what?” Stella pauses, mashing her little lips together nervously. She doesn’t want to say. “Stella.”

“I ran away.”

“Stella Wood.” Lio gets stern, dropping the washcloth down to his side. “That is not okay.”

“I-”

“No. You need to listen. To your parents, to me, and to your auntie, especially when you’re out in public. She promised your mama and daddy that she would take care of you. She can’t do that if you aren’t behaving or using your listening ears.” A nasty scowl drops Stella’s eyebrows and lower lip. “You hear me?” His blue eyes pin her in place. She nods reluctantly. “When we are done here, you’re going to apologize to Auntie Sav.”

“But she said I could go and then didn’t take me! That’s not fair!”

“You are 4 years old-”

“-I’m almost five!-”

“Okay, you’re proving my point more. You are almost five years old and I know you understand the rules. You do not get to disobey adult decisions. You had no idea what was happening. Maybe she was trying to protect you from something. Maybe she wasn’t feeling well. Maybe she had a better idea planned for you here at home. But it shouldn’t matter. You need to listen and be respectful of your caretakers.” Stella drops her gaze. Lio looks down at her brown curls, sighing heavily. “Stell, do you understand?”

“Yes.”

“Good. Now pick out your bandaids.” He encourages her, holding open the box for her. She picks an Olaf and an Elsa bandaid because there were in fact ZERO Mulan bandaids, which she was sure to point out. Then Lio got her situated on the couch with a movie and an apple juice box before he headed down to Savannah.

“Hey.” He calls as he walks in. She is on her side, curled up on top of their comforter. Her head rests on her arm with the opposite hand palm up under her cheek.

“Hi.”

“I talked to Stell.”

“I overreacted.” Savannah sighs.

“She shouldn't have run off.”

“Yeah. But I did tell her we could go into the M & M store and I was... struggling, so when we got there, I couldn’t stand another second of being out in public. That’s not her fault. Should she have run off? No, but it was an all around fail by me.”

“What’s wrong? Was.. did something happen at the party?”

“You mean did all the Rangers girls look at me like what’s wrong with her when I said we didn’t have kids and weren't going to?” Lio’s eyebrows furrow together angrily.

“What the fuck?”

“It wasn’t intentional, and no it wasn’t all of them, but it felt like it at that moment. Then I just wanted to leave and there was so much of the party left. I kept having to pretend everything was fine and your mom was being so sweet, but also kept coming up and checking in on me and it was all too much.” Lio encourages her to roll onto her back so he can look down in her face. She stares blankly back at him, almost unfeeling and disassociated from the moment. He runs his hand up her thigh to rest on her stomach. Savannah weaves their fingers together there. “Is she okay? I didn’t really get a good look but it looked like minor scrapes.”

“She’ll live. She’s got cool bandaids and apple juice.” Savannah tries for a small smile. She plays with his fingers while he looks her over more.

“Guess Mother Nature knew I would be a shit mom and made it so I couldn’t be.”

“Don’t say that.” Lio responds quietly. “I’m not okay with you talking about yourself like that. I don’t like it. You had an off day, babe. That’s it.”

Savannah doesn’t respond, but she tilts the corners of her mouth up at him in agreement. The worry in Lio’s gut continues to grow. He hasn’t seen her like this in a long time, not since Lucie first said she was pregnant. As the days grow closer to Lucie’s upcoming birth, he gets more and more uneasy. Now, with a sassy and defiant Stella in the house, he isn’t sure this is the best fit for his fiance's mental health. He loves Stella. He was really looking forward to this time together, but he needs to support his other girl too.

“Go back to Stell. I’ll be okay.” She whispers.

Lio doesn’t want to go, but Stella unattended in the living room isn’t a long-term solution. He gives her a kiss, cradling her head in his hands before heading back into the living room. Stella is in the same place he left her, juice box tossed onto the other couch cushion, mouth agape as she watches the scene unfold.

“I’ll be right back.” He assures her with a gently pat on the head,

Lio sighs as he steps onto the balcony. He leans on the railing for a minute, taking a breather from the chaos he just came out of. He contemplates what he should do next.

When he has collected himself, he pulls his phone out to make the call.

“You called me not Lucie.” Mack answers the phone.

“Ah.. yeah I meant to call you.” Lio responds.

“... Oh. I figured it was the wrong button or something.”

“No. I need a favor.” Lio says, shooting straight with her immediately. This is how they are.

“Kay.”

“I need you to take over watching Stella.”

Loud silence comes over the phone line.

“David and I had plans that did not involve children.” A hint of annoyance is in her voice. He supposes he doesn’t blame her. He has bailed on commitments in the past. No one has been slower on accepting the changed version of Lio than Mackenzie Hischier. She’s not a forget and forgive kinda girl. He respects that about her.

“Yeah, I’m sorry about that, but Sav isn’t okay. I need to focus on her right now.”

“Okay. I’ll send David to come get her. She loves his truck.”

Lio smiles at the way Mack doesn’t press further and the annoyance has dropped completely. Lucie would be all “mama” with him and ask a million questions, already on her way over trying to fix everything. Not Mack. As long as you give her enough information to make a decision, she takes over with whatever is needed.

“Thank you.” Lio murmurs, closing his eyes in relief. “Sorry to ruin your plans.”

“No problem.” Mack pauses. “Are… you okay?”

“Ahm, yeah.” Lio clears his throat. “Yeah.” He repeats more firmly.

“Okay. David should be back from his run soon. I’ll send him over after his shower. Are you calling Lucie or am I?”

“I’ll call her. Thank you.”

“Yep. Bye.” Mack clicks off first. Lio chuckles. Now to break the news to Stella.

Stella takes it well, especially when she hears about Uncle Davey coming to pick her up, but Lucie on the other hand is as concerned as he knew she would be.

“What’s wrong with Sav? Should we come home?”

“No. I’m taking care of everything, but your daughter has this idea that I should entertain her at all times. I can’t do that and do what I need to for Sav.” Lio speaks to the phone while packing up Stella’s suitcase that was already strewn all about their guest room.

“Fair.” Lucie agrees then blows out a heavy sigh. “She just loves you.”

“I know. And I love her. But she has other people here who will take care of her.”

“Mack won’t do the bedtime routine though.” Lucie grumbles.

“I guess I should tell you I don’t either.”

“Lio!” Lucie yells.

“Lu, what you do at your house is your business, but that is too many steps for me. She gets into pajamas, brushes her teeth and by the time I'm shutting the book she is out. That’s it.”

“How is Lio Meier of all people better at bedtime than me?”

“Because you have always made things complicated.” Lio says, flipping the suitcase shut again and zipping it up. “Like this conversation.”

“Wow.” Lucie snips. “Okay, well sounds like you all have it figured out. I’ll check in with Mack tonight.”

“Alright. Have a good rest of your trip.” Lio places the small suitcase on its wheels, shoving it towards the door.

“Lee?” Lucie pauses.

“Yeah.”

“I asked Sav if it was okay for her to help with the shower, and for you to watch Stell. I hope I didn’t overstep somehow. I would never want something I did to hurt her.”

“No, Luc, you didn’t do anything wrong. She wanted to help with these things. But she is struggling more than I think she even realizes.”

“Okay.” Lucie responds. Her voice drips with sadness, clearly concerned for her friend. “I feel really bad.”

“It’s okay. You can’t fix this.”

“Neither can you.” She reminds him. He juts his lower jaw out in disagreement.

That’s her opinion. He is still gonna try like hell to.

- - -

Winnie Wood came into the world in a chaotic c-section on a rainy, September morning. Stella had arrived at Lio and Savannah’s the previous night when Lucie’s contractions started picking up. Despite being put to bed in the guest room, Stella ended up in bed with the adults and none of them slept well after that. Lio has no idea how Connor and Lucie can stand to sleep with her and her flailing limbs on a regular basis.

Next to him, Savannah rests her temple on the steel of the elevator. They ride up to their place the same way they rode in the car home from the hospital: silent. Stella has been dropped with all her grandparents for dinner tonight and will be back at their apartment later tonight, then home tomorrow to sleep in her own bed with a new baby sister.

Lio glances over at Savannah as the elevator pauses on their floor.

“Babe?” He calls to her when she doesn’t move to get out. She startles, clearly lost in another world.

“Oh sorry.” She sniffs, then walks out past him. He reaches for her shoulder from behind, wanting to pull her back into him to comfort her. Instead, she shrugs his touch off. That hurts.

He sighs as silently as he can, then waits next to her as she unlocks the door. She walks in, heading immediately towards their bedroom. She abruptly stops before going in, a loud suffering sob coming from her lips.

“Lio, I’m not okay.” Savannah hiccups from the doorway. Lio rushes forward quickly to hold her.

“I know, baby. It’s okay that you’re not.” He grabs her hand, gently encouraging her fully into his chest. She weakly grips his hand back, blinking her tears down her cheeks.

“Oh fuck I’m so sad.” She wails, curling over at the waist. “I’m never gonna have that. I’m never going to know what it feels like to hold my baby in my arms.” She starts to cry so hard that no noise comes out of her. Lio wraps an arm around her waist, holding her up until he can guide her safely to the floor. The bed is less than ten feet away but he knows they won’t make it. He sits down next to her, then encourages her to crawl into his lap. Savannah shoves her face into his shirt, smearing black mascara all over the light blue fabric.

“She already has a baby. Why can’t it be me?” Savannah sobs into Lio’s shoulder.

“Baby it could be you.” Lio murmurs, feeling brave even as she falls apart in his hands.. “There are so many avenues we haven’t tried. We could try surrogacy. Or IVF.” Savannah pulls away, looking at him like he has grown three heads.

“Lee, you don’t want kids.” Her sadness pierces through the room.

“I want whatever you want.” A look of deep sympathy softens over his face.

“No.” Savannah pushes away from his chest, clearly withdrawing from him again. “I’m not doing kids that way. I’m not forcing you into IVF or surrogacy because I want this and you don’t. I’m not going back on our deal. It’s not in our cards.” Her teeth are gritted shut. She wipes her tears away, trying to get her shit back together.

“Babe, I’ll do it for-”

“Please stop.” Savannah whispers, then purses her lips together to stop the sob in her throat. Her eyes close, steady tears flowing down from her closed eyelids. Lio feels his heart crack open again in his chest. For her. For himself. For them and the things they’ll never get to experience together. He would do anything to give this to his wife. He would give up everything they have to give her a baby. But she won’t even let him try.

Heaviness fills the room between them. While she continues to turn inwards, struggling, Lio holds her tighter, gathering up all of her pieces and keeping them together until she can do it again herself.