#okay lemme go before i get too soggy

[tetzoro]

good morning and happy tuesday friendz ! i hope today is wonderful for you all !! sending you all my best wishes and good energy for the day ahead !!! (ㅅ´ ˘ `) ෆ

[soraisnotsleepy]

Enki Ankarian in... love?!?! (small drabble + headcanons) 🪱🪲

C/Ws: slight desc of sickly appearance AND NOT PROOF READ enjoy wonky yummy grammar because I do too

• I know, it's unbelievable that Enki, of all people, can fall in love!!! Despite his antisocial personality and hermit way of lifestyle, he is still capable of basic human emotions (yet he's bad at naming them or recognizing at all)

• For him to develop any kind of relationship, he must be bound to that person by circumstances (for e.g, being stuck in the dungeons of Fear and Hunger, like you're rn!!!). Since he's forced to spend time with you like this, he will unintentionally get used to your presence because, like, he has to. You were crucial to him, without your assistance dwelling deep into the dungeons would be a one way trip towards death itself

• Like this he bears with you. Thoughts of '"how are they" and "what are they thinking" will slowly creep into his rotten dark brain. You will soon find him more talkative and genuinely invested in whatever relates to you. He will ask more questions about you without you being the conversation's initiator

• Yet he will still try to keep distance between him and you. He's not used to any sort of affection or a relationship based on trust. Expect him to warm up to you and then distance himself again as soon as he realizes that he got too close

• Of course he'll start worrying about your well-being as well. Y'all need to go over to that dark mysterious corner? Enki will go first and keep you behind him. Nonono! You can't eat that rotten cabbage, eat this fresh carrot instead. Enki has eaten worse, this hopefully won't upset his stomach that much unlike yours. You're really tired and sleepy? Let's rest in this room with a bed. Take that bed instead, Enki's fine with leaning against the wall nearby

• Okay help I'm running out of ideas /srs,,,, BUT LEMME JUST THROW IN THIS:::

(y/n) barely could keep up with the dark priest. Their feet gave away, with each step their legs felt heavier and heavier. Yet they kept quiet. They couldn't afford to just rest here out of all places, too far away from the surface. In such a dark place filled with grotesque gore scent and soggy filthy ground. Despite all that, it couldn't keep their mind away from sleepiness and hunger.

*thud*

And (y/n) fell on the ground loud and hard. Enki immediately turned his head to his companion's direction and strictly asked:

"What's that all of a sudden?"

"Don't worry, I accidentally tripped," (y/n) answered as they desperately tried to get up.

It really looked pitiful. Their hands trembled and they barely could lift up their fragile frame. The priest huffed at their words (especially the "don't worry" part) and walked up to them to give them a lift.

"You're horrible at lying," Enki commented as (y/n) leaned against his shoulder.

They were completely pale, it was as if their body was deprived of blood. It didn't look like this before, well not that bad. Enki frowned his eyebrows.

"We're still not close to Ma'habre, don't you dare to die on me." and with those words you both walked around in search of a safe room.

The man's cold heart ached at his companion's sickly appearance. It was too much. He couldn't drag you to the ancient city in such a vulnerable state. You weren't just a meat shield like he thought at first, you were something more to him that he refused to say out loud in his head.

In this hell of a place, both dwellers were successful in finding a relatively safe place to rest. Enki placed (y/n) against the wall and proceeded to set up a bonfire. It was painfully cold, a single torch failed to keep anyone warm.

As the priest was trying to set up a fire, (y/n) finally found some strength to speak "We don't have to rest unless you need it... I can go on, it was nothing really,"

Enki sighed and said nothing. What he wanted to say he couldn't. Someone like him can't soften up. Someone like him can't succumb to 'lowly' human feelings and say words of comfort. Eventually the fire was set and he could rest alongside with you. Enki took his bag and found a piece of dried meat between books and various potions. Without a second thought, he offered it to (y/n):

"Eat,"

(y/n)'s eyes widened at this gesture. After five seconds of silence, they shook their head.

"But this is the last food we have. Let's at least split it-" (y/n) tried to reason with Enki, but he interrupted.

"No, just take it,"

Of course (y/n)'s stomach already felt like it was about to eat itself from inside out, yet they just couldn't bare with the thought of eating all it themselves.

"That's unreasonable," they tried to argue.

But Enki was unusually stubborn in this matter "I insist."

They were already at their brink of blacking out from starvation and exhaustion, so they agreed. And like this, (y/n) started eating while Enki flip through some ancient book of unknown origins to them. It felt so serene to be like this with him. Too serene, too cozy for the dungeons of Fear and Hunger. Too comfortable to the point that (y/n)'s eyes began to close by themselves. Enki noticed it (because he was occasionally throwing glances at you).

"Sleep, sleep. I'm not fatigued, I will keep an eye on our surroundings." The dark priest spoke as he continued to read his book.

(y/n) could swear that they saw his strict facial expression soften up a little bit. Or was it the lighting creating an illusion?

Thoughts of why Enki did what he did plagued (y/n). Was it purely to keep them alive so that it will secure him a somewhat safe travel to the ancient city? Or was it because he wasn't a cold hearted monster after all? With these thoughts, (y/n) finally closed their eyes and fell into a deep slumber. Their head landed on Enki's shoulder. The dark priest sighed and kept reading.

"And why do I even like you." He quietly mumbled to himself, not really meant for you to hear.

[leejungchans]

rich girl — l.mh

word count | 3.2k

pairing | lee minho (skz) x female reader

warning(s) / includes | food mentions, a lil swearing, reader has icky friends

genre | fluff, angst if you squint, high school au, ???-to-friends/implied lovers au, lino’s a bit of a tsundere

note | i imagined this whole thing as a kdrama scene while writing which is why it’s kinda cliche and dramatic at parts 😭 not proofread but i will when i wake up

summary | of all the places to run into you, lee minho never expected it to be at a convenience store.

a/n | happy new year everyone 💖 i’m so sorry i haven’t posted anything in a bit, had a bit of writer’s block which is why this took months to finish but i’m slowly getting back into the groove!! to everyone who requested in my 1k event, i promise i’ll get to every single one of them so dw!! i hope you enjoy!!

“Thanks for today,” Yang Jeongin murmurs shyly, bowing his head as Minho pockets the money. “I hope I didn’t take up too much of your time.”

Even now, Minho still remembers the look on his friends’ faces when he told them he wanted to try tutoring the younger kids at school. He doesn’t particularly enjoy it, but it’s not the worst way to earn some extra money.

“It’s fine,” he says with a casual shrug. “Lemme know how the test goes and text me anytime if you have more questions.” He doesn’t really mean the latter part—responding to texts outside his self-scheduled working hours is hardly appealing—but it feels customary to say.

Jeongin nods, his arms hanging at his sides as he walks Minho to the front door. “Okay, thanks again. Have a good rest of your night.”

If the older boy had noticed how tense he is, he doesn’t point it out. It’s no secret that Lee Minho has a reputation at school for being intimidating, and while he was surprisingly patient for the entirety of those two hours, Jeongin still finds it hard to shake off that feeling of being scrutinised when his sharp, cat-like eyes constantly feel like they’re probing right into his soul.

“You too. I’ll see you around,” Minho says, hardly bothered by the awkward energy of the empty apartment as he slips on his shoes. He wonders for a brief moment where Jeongin’s parents are, but doesn’t entertain the thought for long because he cares more about going home to his cats. Going to a private school comes with a hefty price tag, so he wouldn’t be surprised if Jeongin’s parents are still at work much like his own. 

The sun has long set by now, draping a blanket of dark indigo over the bustling streets as people rush to get home. Up ahead, Minho sees the glowing sign of a convenience store, and as though being reminded his stomach rumbles, a reminder that he hasn’t eaten since lunch.

He could go for some ramen, and this way he wouldn’t have to cook and do the dishes.

From the stocked shelves, he picks out his dinner—a bowl of Shin Ramyun, a tuna triangle kimbap and a bottle of green tea. Simple, yet so satisfying; his go-to no matter how many times Hyunjin teases him for getting the same thing time and time again.

Hyunjin makes fun of him, he lovingly threatens to shove tissue down his throat. Minho wouldn’t have it any other way.

A fond scoff falls from his lips as he waits for his ramen to cook. His eyes scan the store, flitting from the bored cashier picking at his nails to the girl sitting at the table just several feet away from him. It takes a few seconds for him to realise she’s wearing his school’s uniform, and another few to notice the polished shoes with the dainty gold buckles that look all too familiar.

It’s not just anyone from school—it’s you.

The realisation has him turning on his heel immediately. Surely, his back profile isn’t too recognisable? His heart skips a beat in his chest and only one thought consumes his mind as he hastily straightens his tie and redoes the first button on his shirt—what the hell are you of all people doing in a convenience store?

“You know, most people eat their noodles before they get soggy.”

Minho resists the urge to let a few colourful words slip. He doesn’t think your parents would appreciate learning that the student-guide assigned to their precious daughter was the one who taught her her first swear word.

Huh, that was a little mean. Distantly, Chan’s disapproving voice rings out from the back of his mind.

“Give her a chance, Minho. Just because she’s from a rich family doesn’t mean she’s a spoiled brat. I’ve talked to her a few times, she’s really nice.”

His feet move slowly as he turns to face you, finding your eyes still trained on him as you await his reaction, glossy lips curled up amusedly. He wants to flee, wants to curse the gods for making him run into you at such a time and place. But he’s already made the ramen, it’s too late to leave.

Reluctantly, he grabs his dinner and makes his way over to the table, making sure you’re separated by a seat as he plops himself down on the squeaky bar stool. You don’t seem bothered, the little grin still ever-present on your face before you turn back to your dinner.

Minho watches from the corner of his eyes as you pick up your half-eaten kimbap, dunking the corner into the spicy broth before taking a bite. Maybe he’s a little impressed, he didn’t expect you to know the only correct way to eat kimbap and ramen—at least, the only correct way in his eyes.

“Don’t seem so surprised,” you quip lightly without looking up, “rich people eat ramen too.”

His cheeks grow warm from being caught staring. “Just didn’t expect you to hang around somewhere like this.”

“Are you kidding? I love convenience store food. They didn’t have the stuff here when I was at boarding school, I had to order everything I wanted online.”

“Must’ve taken a long time to get them shipped to you,” he muses. It’s strange, he thought he couldn’t care less about what went on in the fancy boarding school you attended before transferring here, but it’s refreshing hearing you talk about mundane things like bulk-buying instant ramen as though a squirrel stashing food away for the winter.

“Oh, it felt like forever each time! I felt like I was going to die craving all the snacks I couldn’t get there.” For a second there you sounded just like Hyunjin during his dramatic moments, like that time when Minho refused to pay for his ice cream and he acted like he was left to fend for himself in the wilderness.

He finds it oddly endearing.

“That’s not the worst part,” you continue, “the worst part was dealing with thieves in the dorms. I can’t count how many packs of ramen I had stolen from me.”

“Oh, the tragedy!”

You roll your eyes at the exaggerated gasp he lets out, though the action hardly holds any genuine annoyance. “I can’t tell if you’re still being serious.”

A small grunt leaves Minho as he twists open the bottle cap of his bottled tea. “I mean, I’d be pretty pissed if people stole food from me.” The worst Jisung’s done to him is snagging a few gummy bears, and that already feels like a criminal offence in his book.

“I guess that’s the second thing we have in common.”

“What’s the first? Having good taste in convenience store dinner?”

“I knew you were smart, Lee.”

“Oh, fuck off,” he scoffs, yet his the corners of his lips can’t help but quirk up at the devious, teasing grin you flash him.

He’d rather do Hyunjin’s PE laundry for a month than admit it, but you’re kind of cute.

“What’re you doing in this area so late, anyways?”

You offer a smile in thanks as Minho holds the door open and gestures for you to go first. The two of you step out of the store, the frostiness of the winter night penetrating through the layers you’re wearing and settling deep into your bones.

“I was with Hyebin and the others.” He doesn’t miss the way your smile falters, the twinkle in your eyes dimming like a fallen star. He’s never liked the friend group you’ve found yourself in ever since you transferred over to the school. They’ve always given him the impression that they were more interested in your money and brains than anything. “They needed help with their homework.”

“Of course they did,” Minho scoffs.

“It’s fine, I don’t mind.”

“You need to be more careful with this stuff. The teachers aren’t as stupid as you think, just because you’re not the one doing the copying doesn’t mean you won’t get into trouble.”

“Gosh, what’s with the lecture? Why do you care who I hang out with?”

He freezes, pursing his lips together as he thinks of a counter. You’re right, why does he care? Perhaps your earlier conversation in the store changed his admittedly biased perception of you. Or perhaps despite everything he's ever thought about you, he thinks you still deserve better than Hyebin and her goons.

“W-Well, I was assigned to be your guide to the school,” Minho splutters, “sorry for taking my job seriously!” It’s a horrible excuse, so he’s not the slightest bit surprised when you don’t buy it at all.

“That’s funny, because you’ve made it pretty clear from the day we met that you couldn’t care less about a spoiled brat like me!” He hates that he still finds you cute even as you’re fuming and ranting at him. “Everyone at school is exactly like you, always making your own assumptions without even bothering to get to know me! Well, I’m telling you right now that I don’t need you to—”

“Watch out!”

Your foot gets caught on a raised ledge that you hadn’t noticed in your moment of frustration. You trip with a loud shriek, knees scraping painfully against the pavement as you break your fall with your hands. A burning sensation spreads across your face, and you’re utterly mortified that you just embarrassed yourself in front of someone the likes of Lee Minho while you were giving him a piece of your mind.

“Are you okay?” You feel his hand wrap around your arm as he helps you up, refusing to meet his eyes out of sheer embarrassment. “You need to watch where you’re going.”

You tug your arm out of Minho’s grasp with an aggravated huff. “I’m fine!” you snap, but the pained hiss that whistles through your clenched teeth says otherwise as you attempt to stand without his support. Your left ankle throbs with a sharp pain, causing you to lose balance and stumble.

“Seems like you’re not,” he observes without his usual snark as he reaches out to hold you steady again. This time, you don’t shake him off. “You should get that checked out soon, it’s probably a sprained ankle.”

“Great,” you mutter under your breath. Scraped knees and a sprained ankle? You dread the earful you know you’ll be getting from your overprotective parents. Thankfully, your family’s driver is only parked a few blocks away from where you are, so you shouldn’t have to hobble too far—

“—get on.”

“H-Huh?”

Minho rolls his eyes at your dumbfounded expression, his knees bent as he gestures to his back with a tilt of his head, signalling you to climb on. “You said your driver is waiting for you nearby, right?” You nod. “I’ll carry you there.”

“You better not tell your friends that I forced you to do this,” you mutter sulkily.

“Jesus, Y/N. I don’t stoop that low. I’m the one who offered, okay?” At your hesitation, the sharp angles of his face soften ever so slightly. “I swear. I’m not gonna stand here and watch you walk three blocks on a twisted ankle.”

The sincerity in his eyes has knots forming in your stomach out of guilt, embarrassed that you’ve been so harsh on him for his intentions when all he’s done was offer help. Murmuring a thank you, you gingerly wrap your arms around his neck as his arms hook around your thighs. With a soft grunt, he draws to his full height and begins heading down the street.

The proximity between the two of you floods your cheeks with warmth. You’re certain you harbour absolutely zero romantic feelings for Lee Minho, your less-than-enthusiastic guide to the school who cares more about the stray cats lingering outside the gates than ninety percent of the student population—at least, that’s what you tell yourself. You suppose he can be charming, especially when he smiles; it’s a sight you’re hardly privy to seeing, but sometimes you catch a glimpse of his toothy grin when he’s talking to Chan or play-wrestling with the tall kid who’s on the soccer team.

And you suppose he’s pretty charming now too, not an indication of annoyance towards your current predicament as he piggybacks you the rest of the way to your car. A faint jasmine scent greets your senses, and it takes all your willpower to resist leaning in closer. Ugh, of course his shampoo just so happens to be your favourite scent too.

“I’m sorry for snapping at you back there,” you say quietly after a while. “I was frustrated with people at school but took it out on you, which was really unfair of me.”

For a brief moment, Minho doesn’t respond, leading you to believe he’s still upset. It’s understandable, but it leaves you with a sinking pit in your stomach and you’ve never wanted the earth to swallow you whole so badly until now.

“It’s okay.” You perk up a little at his unexpected response. “I get it, really. I’m sorry too, for letting all those stereotypes and assumptions get the best of my judgement. I was a pretty shitty guide, huh?” he jokes with a soft chuckle.

A smile slowly appears on your face at his attempt at lightening the mood. “I’ve seen worse, and in a way you did kinda help me learn my way around campus.”

“By avoiding you like my life depended on it while you searched high and low for me?”

“Questionable execution, successful outcome.”

His head tilts back as he lets out a genuine laugh, the bright sound only increasing the palpitations of your heart. “That’s how I roll. Leaves an impression.”

He certainly has. Never would you have guessed that you’d be seeing this side of Lee Minho tonight, or ever, and you don’t doubt that you’ll be thinking about this moment for the next week even if he goes back to being all ‘bad-boy’ with you tomorrow. It feels like you’re witnessing something you’re not supposed to, and it’s exhilarating.

His gentle voice brings you out of your thoughts. “I was serious about Hyebin. They’re using you, both her and her friends,” he says, spitting the last word out like it’s venomous.

“I know.”

“You know?”

You hum sadly. “My family runs a conglomerate and I’ve attended more of their functions than I can count. I learnt very early on what it looks like when someone’s only being nice to you because they want something.”

Minho nods in understanding, yet your response only begs the next question. “Then why do you still hang out with them? What do they have that you don’t?”

“Nothing, but… who else do I have at school? Almost everyone else is either no different from them, or are too intimidated to approach me even when I’ve done everything I can to prove I’m anything but.”

Something about how you don’t bother hiding the defeat in your voice makes his heart twinge with sympathy. He knows you’re right—hell, he considers himself unbelievably lucky that he managed to find people he genuinely sees as his close friends in a sea of snobbish, self-centred students.

“Hang out with us. Really,” he adds when you fall eerily silent. “I know we’re probably the furthest thing away from the people you’re used to associating yourself with, and I guess we can be a little weird sometimes—” admittedly, maybe a lot weird—“but we’re good people, especially my friends.”

Minho stops himself upon realising he’s already begun rambling, but the quiet giggle that reaches his ears relaxes him a little.

“I like weird.” Despite currently looking ahead, he can still hear the smile in your voice. “Wouldn’t I make things awkward, though? I don’t wanna intrude on anything.”

“Are you kidding? Once you're friends with Chan, he’ll find a way to make you feel comfortable no matter what. Do you like anime, by any chance?”

“Actually, yeah. I do.”

He chuckles, “Then you’ll have no problem getting along with my other friends too.”

“And what about you?” you ask softly. “Are you okay with it?”

“I’m the one who offered, of course I am.”

You’re unsure if you can consider Lee Minho your friend yet—or rather, if he’d want that or not—but one thing’s for certain: his authenticity is both admirable and appreciated. You don’t question his kindness now because he wasn’t afraid to show his genuine indifference in your encounters prior to today.

“Thank you, Minho. I don’t know what else to say other than… thanks, really.”

Spying your family’s car just down the street, he turns to grin at you, eyes curved and smile reminiscent of the Cheshire Cat. “Feel free to also comment on how unfairly handsome and strong I am.”

You respond with a fond roll of your eyes. He’s not wrong, but you don’t need to tell him that either. “Very funny, but yes, thank you for this too. I’m sorry you had to carry me all the way here.”

Now it’s Minho’s turn to roll his eyes. “Stop apologising, Y/N, I wanted to. Hopefully your ankle isn’t too seriously sprained.”

“My parents are going to make such a big fuss if I need a cast.”

He snickers. “Don’t worry, I’ll be the first one to sign it.”

“Oh, fuck off,” you mumble sulkily, though it only makes him laugh harder. It’s beyond him how it’s possible for someone to sound this adorable even while swearing.

Carefully, he lets you down upon reaching the car, still holding you steady by your arms as the door slides open to reveal luxurious leather seats. He helps you into the backseat, offering a shy nod in greeting when your driver looks back to give you a questioning look.

“I’ll explain later,” you tell him before turning back to Minho, “let us give you a ride home.”

“Nah, it’s fine,” he reassures, tucking his hands into his pockets, “I live really close by.”

You narrow your eyes suspiciously. “You better not be lying to me.”

Dramatically, he places a hand over his heart. “I swear.”

“I’m gonna ask Chan first thing when I see him.”

“You do that,” he replies smoothly, “I’ll see you tomorrow, okay?”

Relenting, you nod and return the smile he gives you. “Okay, get home safe. Good night, Minho.”

“Good night.”

Your eyes never leave his as the door shuts between you two. You look back at Minho through the tinted windows, finding him still standing at the same spot as he watches your car take off down the road. Even as you make a left turn, causing him to disappear from your line of sight, you don’t turn back until your driver feigns a cough, a knowing twinkle in his eyes.

“That boy,” he begins, eyes briefly flickering to meet yours in the rear-view mirror, “is he your classmate, Miss L/N?”

You nod.

“You two looked close.” He must’ve seen the look on your face because he lets out a hearty laugh, one you’ve grown accustomed to over all his years of service to your family. “Don’t worry, miss. I won’t tell your parents,” he reassures, “I just wanted to say that he seems to like you a lot.”

“Huh, is that so?” is all you say, yet you can’t fight the smile that appears on your face the second no one’s looking.

༉‧₊˚✧ thank you so much for reading <3 please reblog if you enjoyed my writing, and any form of feedback is greatly appreciated ! support the creators and content you wish to continue seeing <3

[luvneymar]

(2/2) FOREVER AND ALWAYS — NEYMAR JR

SUMMARY: You and your best friend have been in-love with each other since forever, one day you both get drunk and you end up pregnant

PARING: teen!neymar x teen!reader

NOTE: I changed the ages so Davi could be younger & this was posted pretty late so if there’s any spelling errors or anything pls lemme know! 🫶

“You’re almost there baby-girl! Keep pushing.” Your mother sent words of encouragement as you squeezed the life out of her’s & Neymar’s hands, you were pushing out a baby with a head the size of the moon.

“I can’t! He can just stay in my uterus! It’s safer & it’s better for everyone!” You shook your head side to side curling your toes as you were in so much pain & discomfort you were sure you’d explode.

“Also I’m pretty sure I pooped on the midwife’s hand, so sorry.” You shouted out really fast before returning to screaming in pain & squeezing your boyfriend’s hand as hard as you could.

“It’s okay baby, you can do this. I believe in you!” Neymar sent encouraging words your way which just annoyed him, you didn’t have a huge head when you were a baby so this definitely had to be the genetics of none other than Neymar.

“You shut up! Just shut up! Who asked you to develop such a huge head? Now my vagina is going to rip into one huge whole because of you!” As you cursed him out you hadn’t even notice you had been slightly pushing the whole time which finally remove your large headed baby from your vagina.

You suddenly didn’t feel as much pain as you felt a few seconds ago which confused you until you felt pressure on your chest as you heard a crying baby lay on your chest. “Baby you did it.” Neymar whispered as he wiped the excess sweat off your forehead as you cradled your crying son.

“He’s so beautiful.” You cried out as you took in the fact that not only you survived the attack on your vagina but you were now a mother; to a huge headed baby. Neymar kissed you on the cheek as you both obsessed over your newborn son. “Alright mama, we’ve gotta clean him up. You did great.”

As your OB took your son out of the room to do whatever medical stuff they needed to do for him Neymar wrapped his hands around you pulling you in for a hug as you cried taking in what just happened.

—

That was 4 years ago, within those 4 years you became a well respected actress while Neymar continued to chase after his football career & had become a hotshot football player. You both had your ups & downs but you both had made it work.

You had just finished shooting the film “Avengers; Infinity War” & were preparing to attend the premiere, or at-least trying too. Davi kept throwing a tantrum about how he didn’t want to wear this, he was hungry, he was tired all the typical 4 year old problems.

Fortunately the help of your husband who your son practically worshipped you all managed to get dressed without too much of a hitch. “Davi baby are you ready to go?”

“Yes!” Your son smiled up at you as he offered you a soggy warm cracker he had been holding in his palm for the past few minutes. You took the cracker & tucked it into your purse before picking up your son. “Let’s go baby, your daddy is waiting in the car.”

Once you both arrived to where the car was parked & settled in the driver at the front had begun to drive you leaned into your husband giving him a kiss on the cheek. “Thanks for coming with me.”

“Don’t thank me baby, I always want to celebrate your success.” Neymar replied as he wrapped his arm around your shoulder pulling you in as he kissed your forehead, you smiled at his action as you leaned into his chest.

You closed your eyes as you listening to his heartbeat not aware that you fallen asleep in that exact position until your soon who was sitting beside you had nudged you in your side. “Mommy we’re here.” He whispered in your ear .

“Thank you for waking me up baby.” As you got up you wiped the crumbs that were decorated all across your sons face as well as checking your face for any smudges or marks. “Ney baby we’re ready.”

“Alright.” He answered as he opened the door revealing multiple cameras flashes & screaming people, you picked up your son from his armpit and mad your way out of the car shielding his eyes from the blinding lights.

As you all made your way down the red carpet and onto the photo booth area you were met with multiple reporters waiting to interview different actors & actresses about any topic they could conjure up.

As Neymar was pulled away by other reporters you made your way to the entrance of the building barely making it before being pulled away by a reporter with exceptionally bright teeth. “Hi there (Name)! I can see here you brought your son to the premiere!”

“Yes I did. He’s super excited to be here. He wants to meet Thor.” You answered smiling at your son who was completely oblivious to what was going on as he stared into the camera that was recording his mother.

“Thor?” The moment you mentioned Thor he begun to look around trying to find his favourite superhero thinking he was around him.

“Yes Thor honey.” You smiled at him pulling at his soft cheek as he continued to snack on his crackers getting crumbs on your dress, not that you minded of course.

“Such a cute child, (Name) you played the role of the Scarlet Witch correct?” The reporter smiled at Davi before turning to face you something weird hiding behind her smile.

“Yes I did. Is there a question in there?” You asked not paying any attention to the reporter as you son begun to fuss feeling overwhelmed by all the noises. “Yes, how did the casting for the role go?”

“Actually I didn’t go through a casting process, I was personally asked to play the role.” You answered turning to smile at the reporter quickly before turning back to your son feeding him more snacks to keep him calm.

“Really? So in your opinion—” Just as the reporter was going to say something Neymar had come out of nowhere interrupting them.

“My love, there you are.” Neymar kissed yours & Davi’s cheek as he wrapped his hand around your waist other hand used to wipe crumbs from his sons face.

“Neymar! Would you like to—!” The reporters face perks up seeing Neymar enter your interview. “I am so sorry but we have to get going, the premier is about to start & my son is getting cranky.”

“But I still—”

“Thank you so much for your time.” You thanked the reporter before walking away silently thanking God for Neymar’s timing, it wasn’t a secret that multiple people assumed you only had your success because your husband was a famous footballer.

You never felt the need to correct them simply because you have proven yourself side the beginning of your career & you still continue to by snagging large roles in movies like these ones.

“Thank you I knew she was going to ask the most foolish question on earth.” You kissed your husband on his cheek as you let your son down letting him walk his own. Neymar laughed at your statement before shuffling his son towards his seat in the dark building.

As you all say in your seats waiting for the movie to begin your co-worker; Christ Hemsworth shuffled past you trying to get to his seat which was right beside you. “Hey Chris!” You whisper shouted using Davi’s hand to wave.

“(Name)! Hey! You brought your family!” He whispered back as he exchanged in a manly fist bump with Neymar who sat right beside you, as you both exchanged pleasantries you were interrupted by your son who sat in your lap staring at your co-worker in awe.

“Are you Thor? The superhero?” He asked staring up at him with his big brown eyes as he gripped Chris’s suit jacket getting some crumbs on it. “Why yes I am little man!”

“Really?” Davi squealed out smiling brightly excited to meet his favourite superhero, you laughed at his reaction knowing all the times you had to rematch marvel movies because he wanted to see Thor.

“Really!” Chris replied, as soon as he did Davi begun to fuss trying to leave your lap wanting to spend time with his favourite superhero instead, you complied knowing it would allow you to spend more time with your husband who was snacking on his peanuts.

“Are you okay with this?” You asked him not sure if he felt used or as if you were dumping your child into him for a free night out. “Are you kidding? Me & him are gonna have a blast. Don’t worry about him.”

“Thanks Chris, I owe you one.” Hearing that reassured you as you heard your sons voice fade into the background you turned to your husband. “As for you mister.”

“Finally some attention from my wife, seems like everyone needs her attention.” He peeled his eyes from the screen and onto you placing his peanuts into your purse. “Not anymore, we are all alone.”

Hearing that was like music to his ears, you both loved your son but ever since he was born your guys hadn’t been as intimate as you could’ve been if you had waited to have him.

“Isn’t Davi beside you?” Neymar leaned over checking the seat beside you. “Nope, Chris took him down a row or two to be closer to the screen.” You explained as you pulled your husband in for a quick kiss.

“So do you wanna find a bathroom?” He asked preparing to get up as he loosened his tie looking around to see if anyone or cameras were on them. “No! We’re watching the movie!”

You slapped his shoulder laughing quietly as you realized that the movie had just begun, you both turned to face the screen as you intertwine fingers holding hands.

—

Once the lights turned on the movie had needed you stood up almost stumbling over as your leg had fell asleep, Neymar had shot up to catch you stopping you from falling onto the person in-front of you. “Careful.”

“Thanks baby.” You pulled him in holding his cheek as you kissed both of them before going to find your son Neymar not that far behind you. Once you arrived to Chris’s row you had noticed that he had fell asleep in his arms.

“When he fell asleep you should’ve brought him back to me, thank you so much Chris.” Neymar bent down to pick up Davi from Chris’s arms who stood up to stretch the moment his child duty as relived.“My pleasure, you guys have such a funny kid. Stay safe guys.”

Once Chris begun walking away you shook your son awake slightly as you walked right behind him going to the same exit. “You wanna say bye to Thor sweetie?”

“Bye bye!” Davi yelled out waving his hand back and forth at Chris as he turned around and waved goodbye smiling before pushing the exit door open holding it open for Neymar to take, as Neymar held the door open you conversed with your son. “Did you enjoy the movie?”

“Yes! Mommy can we watch it again at home?”

“Oh boy.” You sighed chuckling at what was about to go down once again.“It hasn’t come out on TV yet baby.” You replied shortly hoping it’d end his constant train of questioning.

“Aww…”

“But Mommy can act it out for us! Did you see Mommy on the screen?” Neymar interrupted igniting the fire of Davi’s obsession with Marvel, you wanted to twist his lips off knowing every time you watched the marble series as a family he’d fall asleep.

“Yeah, Mommy can you act it out for us?”

“I’ll see what I can do.” You said while laughing as you took Davi from Neymar to place him in his car seat, once he was secure in his seat you sat beside him with Neymar going to sit on the other side of the car.

Once you all were settled & the driver had begun to drive Davi was out like a light soon after leaving you and Neymar in comfortable silence.

“Did you like the movie?” You asked breaking the silence as you turned to him reaching your hand out for him to take, he took your hand & caressed you knuckles with his thumb.

“Of course I did, I’m so proud of you my love. You’ve come so far.” Neymar kissed the back of your hand as he rambled on about how proud of you he was, your heart melted at his praises as you smiled brightly unable to mask your happiness.

“Well I couldn’t have done it without you, thank you for always supporting me.” Neymar smiled back at you small blush on his face, he turned to face the window not letting go of your hand before continuing, “I love you.”

“I’m not on rewatching duty though, you have to do that.” You reminded turning to look out the window small smirk on your face that didn’t go unnoticed. “Whatever.” He replied letting go of your hand to grab your face kissing you all over before finishing with a quick kiss to your lips.

“I love you too, I guess.” You grumbled happily before pulling him by his chin for another quick kiss.

← prev [ neymarsluv! ]

[mamawasatesttube]

timkon w “here, let me carry you” xoxo

Reality comes rushing back in an overwhelming roar. Tim opens his eyes with a harsh gasp, hand flying to his side for a bo staff that isn't there; he tries to spring to his feet, adrenaline thrumming through his veins with the burn of sheer panic, and bites back a swear as his knees buckle and the world swims around him.

He has to get out of here, he has to warn Kon—

Strong hands catch his shoulders; dark hair and luminous cyan eyes swim into view. "Whoa! Hey, hey, relax, it's me!"

What?

Tim squeezes his eyes shut, willing the fog and vertigo out of his mind; he feels all... all... soggy, and disoriented, and wet, and exhausted, and... and awful, the panic roiling in his gut still churning to the point of nausea. He doesn't understand. The last thing he knew, he was in that warehouse, surrounded, realizing he'd fallen for a trap and they were going to use him to get to Kon, and...

"Kon?" he finally rasps, and immediately winces. His voice is raw, and his throat hurts like a bitch. Ugh, what even happened?

"Yeah, sunshine." Kon's arm wraps around his shoulders, his other hand tenderly cradling Tim's cheek. Tim blearily opens his eyes as the panic drains away; it's impossible to be so desperate and terrified when he knows Kon is here. "I got you. Easy, honey, just breathe. I got you."

"The aliens," Tim forces out, despite the pain, because Kon needs to know. "They want to get to Superman through you, they—I'm bait, you're not safe—"

"Shhhh." Kon's brows are furrowed, his jaw tight with worry; the edges of his lips tug downwards. Tim doesn't like seeing him so upset. "Don't worry. I know. I know. We took care of it. Everything's gonna be okay. They had you in stasis for a couple days."

Days. He vanished at that warehouse days ago? His poor Kon has to have been out of his mind with worry. Tim aches for him just at the thought, just for an instant, before the rest of Kon's words catch up to him and relief slams into him like a freight train.

They took care of it. Kon—Superman and everyone else too, but mostly Kon—isn't in danger. It's all okay..

It's okay.

"Oh," Tim breathes, dizzy from sheer relief; he's not even standing, but he sways again, slumping forward against Kon's chest. Kon smells of sunlight, his favorite aftershave, and a bit of ozone; Tim can feel his heart beating.

Kon's here. He's safe.

"Yeah. There you go." Kon's lips brush his forehead and linger, soft and warm against Tim's clammy skin. "Everything's okay, sunshine. You're safe now."

All the pain and exhaustion hits him tenfold as he starts to relax in Kon's arms; being held in a stasis pod clearly did very little for the injuries inflicted by the trap in the warehouse, and his whole body screams in protest. His head is killing him, and his eyelids are heavy, and his limbs are leaden.

"Here," Kon murmurs, his voice a bit distant even as he gathers Tim into his arms. Tim's head lolls against his shoulder. "Lemme carry you. Wanna go home?"

Tim can't quite muster up the energy to nod against him, but hopefully Kon gets the idea. He's really, really tired. And he's safe now, because Kon is here.

"...Tim? Tim—oh, shit."

Kon is here. So it's okay for him to close his eyes again, to sink down into the depths of his exhaustion. To give in and rest.

There's wind against his face now, he registers vaguely, and sunlight. That's nice. And Kon's arms, firm around him. "Okay," Kon murmurs. "You just—you just rest, baby. I'll get you taken care of. Promise."

As the darkness fully takes him, Tim almost laughs. That didn't need to be a promise; obviously Kon's gonna take care of him. That's the entire reason he's letting himself pass out to begin with.

Kon's here. He's safe.

He lets himself drift.

[jasontoddspussy]

An exempt from my newest Chatfic

Sharing this on Tumblr because I actually think it's funny, and because I'm considering making this into a mini-comic scene.

Chatnames:

Abel: Jason

Cain: Cass

Dickiebird: Dick

*Eggplant Emoji*: Stephanie

NotDamian: Damian

Queen: Barbara

Stoplight: Duke

Timber: Tim

Chat Room: Is that a bat? no. Is it a bird? Also no. We don’t know what that is.

Stoplight: what was that 

Cain: you should be asleep

Stoplight: well yeah i was asleep

Stoplight: ?? 

Stoplight: is someone crying?

Timber: It’s fine nothing’s wrong, Stephanie was just overreacting 

Stoplight: it doesnt sound like steph crying though

*Eggplant Emoji*: i thought a fucking demon was in the kitchen excuse me for freaking out 

*Eggplant Emoji*: what did you want me to do? conveniently drop onto the floor with spread legs saying ‘oh no step-monster i tripped and cannot get up pls help me’ huh tim? is that what you wanted? 

Timber: Uhm. 

*Eggplant Emoji*: no tim that’s not what you do in that scenario. no you find the first fucking thing you can find and you hurl that shit. do you understand

Timber : Yes? 

*Eggplant Emoji*: i dont believe you

Timber : But also, why is that your example? 

*Eggplant Emoji*: you know why.

Abel: lol

Dickiebird: but did it have to be my cereal

Stoplight: woah wait a minute

Stoplight: back up a bit. i feel like y’all may have glossed over something

Stoplight: what was that about a demon in the kitchen?

Timber: There was no demon. 

Timber: It was just Jason. 

Stoplight: ..okay that doesn’t really clarify anything? 

*Eggplant Emoji*: yeah well i didnt know that! how was i supposed to know his eyes glow in the dark like some analog horror creature?

Abel: rude

Dickiebird: :( my cereal 

*Eggplant Emoji*: dude you were sitting on the counter (alfred is going to murder you. was the rat not enough?) in pitch blackness eating a soggy bowl of cereal 

*Eggplant Emoji*: thats on u.

Dickiebird : its perfectly normal to eat cereal as an adult, its an easy meal and i was tired

*Eggplant Emoji*: uh-huh sure and next thing you'll say that you pour milk before the cereal too

Timber: What's wrong with that? That's clearly the superior way to eat cereal if you’ll eat it with milk. 

Stoplight: are we sure jasons the demon

Abel : don't drag me into this

*Eggplant Emoji*: tim. no.

Timber : Uh Tim, yes?

Timber: Soggy cereal is disgusting. If you pour milk on top of dry cereal it’ll all just get mushy and gross! If you pour milk first though you can strategically eat parts of it so it’ll retain the maximum capacity of crunch. 

Abel: it’s cereal.

Abel: only you would be overthinking, planning and ‘strategizing’ the best way to eat cereal. 

*Eggplant Emoji*: why are you surprised this is coming from the guy eating oats like its cereal 

Timber: ?? It is!! Oats with milk and cocoa powder on top is a valid meal? 

*Eggplant Emoji*: you dont even like oatmeal 

Timber: Oats are delicious. Oatmeal is gross. 

Abel: lemme guess. you hate tomatoes but like ketchup? 

Timber: Ew. no. 

Timber : I hate tomatoes and ketchup both, thanks.

Timber: I love tomato juice, though. 

Abel: bruh 

Stoplight: wait if dick was in the kitchen…

Stoplight: why didnt he react to jason/a demon breaking in to rob the fridge?

Timber : He probably recognised him?

Dickiebird : what if the demon had a family at home to feed. huh. what then?

NotDamian: Grayson likes to take stupid risks when he’s tired and hungry, especially when he’s both. I doubt he recognized the apparition as Todd and deemed the cereal worth it. this is backed up by the emotional outburst of brown taking his meal away.

Stoplight: ahh he’s the one crying 

Dickiebird: it was good cereal ok. 

-Cassandra and Jason's usernames are linked and sorta puns, in that Cain was Cass's last name (She goes by Wayne now) and that Jason was the first sibling to die.

And that's it! This is from the 2nd chapter of my newest chatfic "'Cus everytime we touch I get this feeling (That I want to kick your ass)" which can be found here on ao3.

There's no strict plotlines or anything. It's honestly just me having fun with these characters. It's not based on social media usage, because I don't have any other social media accounts aside from my tumblr (nor do i look at stuff from there) so it's just going to be fun scenarios and references to other fandom media by either inside jokes or very vague references lol.

I made this fic because I wanted to do something fun, so this is completely self indulgent.

Just fun tidbits on the batfam in this verse, which is probably more or less aligned with the WFA canon.

-It's an AU where Bruce is a good parent and went to therapy. He didn't revive the joker when Dick killed him.

- Jason wasn't revived as a Wayne and is usually referred to as a family friend in public. He has tattoos from the all-caste, which I believe he has canonically in one of the webcomics.

- Tim isn't UwU soft baby boy who needs help and someone to save him. He's unapologetically unhinged. So there's a lot of references to him knowing things or saying things he's not supposed to know. Let him be creepy, fanon, dammit.

- Damian has a snake, her name is Sting, because she'll sting you if you don't treat her well. She's of the species Bitis Rhinoceros and I love her.

- Tim and Barbara can and often will insert themselves in private conversations because they're nosy, bored or because they think whatever is being discussed could have important information. Jason can do this sometimes too, which he learned from Barbara. He mostly does it to mess with people.

- Duke's chatname is a reference to him being a robin once. I feel like his character is often either boiled down to him being either a tech-dude or moral support, but he was Robin canonically as well, just as Steph was, and he deserves acknowledgement, dammit.

- I'm not really a fan of romance, like, at all. There's very, very few ships/pairings where my mindset is "oh yeah they're in love" because usually it's just "they fuck nasty/they're obsessed with each other lose boundaries that way" - not saying that's a healthy relationship, but it's basically my sort of disclaimer that romance isn't going to be featured heavily if at all. However, Cass/Steph is in a relationship. It's not really mentioned so the reader can interpret it as romantic or queerplatonic, whatever they wanna I ain't a cop.

- Damian's chatname comes from Dick telling him not to put his real name online.

[lustrumlane]

Salt and Foam

Left with only the Emissaries’ promise of help, the group begins to murmur. Before any are too lost in their thoughts, there’s a flashing light through the windows: there’s no sound, and it’s too frequent to be lightning. Following the light leads the eye to the lighthouse’s flickering, fragile light, begging for attention. 

The Surveyor moves first, pulling her hood tight around her head.

“Stay here or follow fast, that’s a sign if I’ve ever seen one.”

She’s leaving fast, fastening her sleeves tighter as she swings the door open. The Curator looks around, but motions for you all to follow, intending to stay inside himself. Weighing his options, the Doctor follows the Surveyor, pulling his hair back into a tie as he exits for what little that will keep it from whipping around. 

Those that follow step into the hurricane, salt-kissed water overwhelming their senses, making it difficult to see what’s in front of you. The Doctor turns on his soft red lantern, offering a beacon forward as the group heads to the lighthouse.

One of the Seekers sees it first: another bottle in the sand, half buried like it, too, is trying to avoid the water’s wrath. Grabbing it, the group relocates to the Lighthouse to open it.

Another page sits within, slick with glossy wet film. The runes convey a different message this time.

Not getting better. Gone quiet, are you there? Can’t get the light on alone. They don’t all want this. Sending up messengers. Signs. You know how it goes. Don’t miss any. Foam and Sand. Shells and rocks. Know this isn’t the time. But. Told you to come with me, Captain. He’s going to get you killed. If he hasn’t already. Whatever. Good luck.

“Salt-signs? Why not, it’s better than nothing, I guess!”

The Surveyor snaps her fingers, calling attention towards her.

“I’m guessing that all makes zero sense, so lemme slice it up real simple: we’re looking for shapes formed in crystals and, if we’re lucky, little oozing crabs.”

She waves a finger around to denote the concept of a ‘symbol’, then pinches her other hand to indicate the diminutive size of a crab. The group looks doubly confused or amply curious.

“Okay fine, mini-lecture: Salt and Foam are Powers— so is Depth. Powers do things, don’t worry about it too hard. They do things and fight all the time, sounds like Depth wants to drown you all, Salt and Foam don’t, they’re sending pictures and thingies we’re gonna use in a ritual. I’ll get all the hard part ready! Good? Good!”

She claps her hands together and bounds out of the building, leaving the soggy page and bottle with the group. For now, the group follows, because there are people to catch up.

After returning to the House of Refulgence and explaining the above to those who stayed behind, the Curator crosses his arms.

“Are you… quite certain? So we need to run around… in that storm? For a… scavenger hunt?”

“Basically!”

The incredulity in the Curator’s voice is either lost on the Surveyor, or she’s barefacedly ignoring it. 

“Ah, I think… I think the House will be fine, it’s got powers of its own, you know! Well, not capital-P powers, but you know what I mean. We should all bunker down here, wait it out—”

“Love you Curator, I’m not doing that. Anyone willing spread out, start lookin’, we don’t want any to wash away.”

With that, the Surveyor shakes her wet hair off and heads back out, a whirlwind of energy in a crisis. The Curator looks worried, but turns to walk towards a porch, going to bring some things inside. 

You can search for the Powers' signs, or you can shore up the House.

[tonystarkissist]

“Didn’t know where else to go”/ Revenge - Villainous July

Part 11 of “Oh Sweet Child, The Things I’d Do for You...”

Summary:  Tony's out of his element. He’s ignorant to many things in relation to offering someone else comfort, but closure and vengeance is one thing he’s damn good at.

Rating: Teen (For language and Thematic Material)

Warning: Self-loathing and lack of care for life, mentions of abuse, and slightly graphic dialogue towards the end (maybe too graphic, but I got caught up in the moment; sue me).

Word Count: 4.5k

Previous Chapter ~ Masterlist ~ Read on Ao3 ~  Next Chapter

Peter’s there for days, maybe weeks, he couldn’t keep track at this point. He’s glad he had the foresight to warn Ned of his absence. His friend would definitely be the leading cause behind filing a missing persons report, because he knows Beck wouldn’t do it, content to mooch off of CPS as long as possible. And Peter really didn’t need anyone out looking for him. He didn’t even want to think about the turmoil and stress that would ensue. He didn’t want to deal with it. Ever.

He just wanted to lie here on this couch forever, stare at the fire crackling in the fireplace and watch the orange light bleed through the darkness of Mr. Stark’s home. It reminded him of that night he’d followed Mr. Stark here… he missed him. Still.

He wasn’t afraid to admit it anymore at all; not even ashamed. He missed him. And he felt so incredibly guilty for turning the man’s world entirely upside down. If Peter hadn’t acted so carelessly none of this would be happening. Tony wouldn’t be on the run, Beck wouldn’t have found out about Spider-Man, and Peter wouldn’t be slowly starving to death, lying here on Stark’s couch, the licks of flames dancing up from the fire cradling him in a hypnotic trance. 

There was food in the kitchen, he knew there was, but just the thought of food made him sick, and he knew if he did try to stand he wouldn’t have a chance at making it that far before passing out. 

He’d long since accepted the fact that he’d die at a young age due to his vigilante hobby, but he must admit he never expected it to happen this young, especially not since Mr. Stark started showing up every moment he needed him. He hadn’t failed him once… until now. Now that Peter needs him… he’s not here. He stares down at the shattered face of the watch he’s been clutching in his hand since he arrived. Mr. Stark wasn’t coming back, and that was something Peter would have to accept. How could he come back, with all these people looking for him? It’d be impossible and probably the stupidest decision the man could make. But of course Peter’s still clinging to that childish hope that he’d see him again. Preferably before he wastes away here on this very couch.

Though at this rate, it didn’t seem like that was likely to happen. He didn’t even feel the pangs of hunger anymore, and he could feel his body slowly shutting down. It felt almost like a relief to be ridded of that constant ache in his stomach.

He’s been living off of that one school lunch meal for a week, and Peter could feel the definition of his bones when he ran a shaky hand over his ribs, or along his shoulder and arms. It wasn’t healthy by any means, but what did he care? There would be no “long run” to worry about, just the next couple of days before he peacefully slipped off to sleep into a gentle void of nothingness. And if this is what those last couple of days felt like… then he had nothing left to worry about. 

He drifted off, muscles and body aching from lying in the same position he had been for days. He had nice dreams, most consisting of finally being with Aunt May again, and his parents. They were waiting for him when he arrived and he was so, so happy to see them, it brought tears to his eyes. He didn’t know why he hadn’t thought of doing this before. No one but Ned would’ve missed him… and Ned would get over it-- will get over it.

Something draws him out of his dream just before he falls too far, and at first he thought it was the usual convulsing of his stomach urging him to vomit up some bile, or perhaps the heat of a fever and a throbbing headache, but it was none of those. 

Instead, it was a soft, light pressure against the side of his face. A small, calloused pad of warmth slowly stroking along his cheek, beneath his eye. It made his nose tickle, and his nostrils flared in response to the touch. His ears slowly cue in, and he’s hit with a sudden cacophony of noise. From the light sound of traffic several blocks down, and the small crackling of the dimming fire in the fireplace, all the way to the soft words belonging to a voice all too familiar, yet entirely unidentifiable.

“Pete?” The voice cracks with anxious distress. “C’mon Pete, wake up.” 

Then there’s a gentle hand on his shoulder, and all feelings along his skin and limbs begin to return. He’s being shaken back and forth, head lolling from side to side, but his groggy mind confuses it with… he didn’t know what it was. He just knows that everything feels numb and sensitive all at the same time. 

The warm embrace against the side of his face disappears, and something scratchy and pokey is pressed gently against his lips, urging them to part. “C’mon Pete,” the voice begs again. 

His tongue felt heavy and thick, weighed down by congealed saliva, but the pressure broke past the barrier of his lips despite it. He still couldn’t force himself to open his eyes. 

The potent taste of salt hits his tongue and it sends a sudden shock through his whole system, like it finally realized it was in the waking world. The groggy convulsion alerts the voice of his slight awareness and now his body is manhandled into a sitting position. Even though his eyes are beginning to peek open he has no strength left in his limbs to try and fight the external force. He’s leant up against a warm cushion-y surface, a heavy weight settling over his shoulders as the culprit for the salt is pushed past his lips once more. 

He bites down slowly, crumbs falling off at the corners of his mouth and the voice from earlier is quick to praise him. 

“Good job, kiddo. C’mon, just a little more.” The taste sits heavy in his mouth and it slowly grows soggy atop his tongue, which urges him to swallow it. And, it seemed that the moment it slid down his throat, his body remembered all that it was missing and he was hit with a sharp pang in his abdomen, and he’s quick to take another bite. 

His head lolls to the side, the cracker pushed back against his mouth, and his forehead pressed against something warm, engulfing him with a strong whiff of aftershave and alcohol. And slowly he’s able to piece together the warm shape he’s pressed against: an arm around his shoulders, a solid body sitting beside him, and the sharp outline of a jaw propped atop his head. Meaning the warmth bringing life back to his frozen nose and face must be the neck and shoulder. 

His mind can only conjure one person to picture with him in this scenario. However unrealistic it was.

“ ‘ny?” Most of it’s a groan, but it must’ve been articulate enough for the voice to understand, and he’s instantly blanketed in more warmth and praise, pulled even closer to the warm body. 

“Yes! It’s me. It’s Tony, kid.” The jaw resting on his head moves slightly in a way he couldn’t fully discern, and it’s followed by a soft but strong protrusion pressing against the top of his head, warm air passing over his scalp in short spurts before the jaw returns to its place.

It makes Peter smile. He’s not entirely sure why yet, but the warmth that blooms across his chest enlivens him in a way he never thought he’d experience ever again. 

He eats more crackers, and he sips water through a straw regularly pressed to his lips as well. He doesn’t know how many he eats or how much he drinks, but soon enough the feelings begin to slowly bleed back, urging life back into his limbs and his brain. His stomach wasn’t very happy, but that didn’t come as a surprise to him

“You feeling better kiddo? That’s almost the whole pack.” A heavy hand is pressed to his face, then migrates up to pet his hair. “I don’t know what’s good to feed ya when you’re like this. You gotta help me out here.”

“Mm,” Peter groans. He knows it's unhelpful, but his belly felt stuffed and now all he could think about was how cold he was. The penthouse was warm and cozy, but it seemed ever since he arrived, Peter still couldn’t shake that chill that had settled in his bones. The thought alone made him shiver.

“Are you still thirsty?” The voice sounded nervous. “Yeah, you’re probably still thirsty. Lemme go get some more water.” The body begins to move away, which meant so was the warmth. 

A strong tremble travels along Peter’s body with nervous anticipation, the muscles in his fingers spasming to grip at the person desperately before they could leave him alone. 

“Hey, hey, what’s wrong?” A strong hand grabs his fingers, gripping them gently between their larger ones. “You with me? You okay?”

“Mm,” Peter replies unhelpfully once more. He may not be able to reason or ruminate just yet, but he does know that he’s cold. He grabs the fingers around his and holds on tight, searching out warmth once more by diving his head back towards the warm cushion-y barrier from before and rooting himself there.

“Okay, okay.” The arm around his shoulders moves to rub warmth into his other arm, encircling him completely in the embrace. “Why’d you do this to yourself, Pete?” The voice whispers, a palpable despair in their tone. “You scared me.”

“Mm,” Peter hummed, eyelids pulsing open and closed with a firm determination to remain awake. His vision was blurred with soft orange light and the hard blackness of shadows. A sight he’s come to find as quite familiar and ironically comforting.

He feels better this time when he is pulled to sleep. Not so much on the brink of death anymore, but he feels he’s still teetering precariously close to that cliff. Though despite the nonsense the thought made, he knew the voice and the warmth would hold on tightly, and they wouldn’t let him fall.

***

He wakes up, warm and comfy in a nice big bed. He rolls onto his side with a groan, stomach screaming with hunger, and he lifts a hand to rub his fingers over his burning eyes. His entire body felt like it’d been wrung through a trash compactor. And he didn’t know how he ended up in a bed… He opened his eyes and looked around the room, then cursed under his breath. He was in Tony’s bed. In all the time he’s stayed hidden away in this penthouse, he’d stayed on that damned couch. He didn’t know what had occured last night to result in him crawling his way into this room.

His muscles felt weak and very unsteady, but he forced himself out of bed anyway. He needed to get out of that room, he needed to get back to the couch. He struggled opening the door, and he clutched at the wall as he stumbled and tripped his way back towards the main room. It didn’t even occur to him to question the light bleeding down the hall via the opened curtains scattering around the place. This morning wasn’t making any sense anyway, it didn’t matter. 

He was a little more than halfway there when he collapsed, his left leg giving out first, tripping up his balance and toppling him to the wooden floor. He lands with a heavy bang, and he winces at the dull throb that resulted in his side.

“Peter?!” Loud footsteps follow the exclamation, and Peter’s entire body seizes with shock. 

Was that??

It was.

Tony appears from around the corner seconds later, crouching in front of him with bulging plastic bags draped from his arms, hands reaching out towards him to help him off the ground. 

“What in the world are you doing out of bed, kid? I told you to stay put.” And before Peter could even put up a protest, he was being lifted into the air and led back down the hall the way he came, back into Tony’s room. 

It was like he’d just returned from the dentist, cotton stuffed in his mouth, tongue paralyzed, and brain conjuring weird loop-de-loops because he was still high on the pain meds. Because Mr. Stark was here. Carrying him. 

If he wasn’t so startled and shocked by the man’s sudden appearance, he’d surely be mortified, but all he could do was stare dubiously at the side of his face as they walked. Then he was being lowered gently back into the bed, and as soon as Tony released him he dropped the bags from his arms and they hit the floor with muted thumps. Giving the man the freeness to meticulously tuck the sheets and cover back over Peter’s frailing body. 

Any semblance of flesh had withered off his bones, thanks to his recent lack of appetite. 

There was a harsh line molded between Tony’s brows as he messed anxiously with the sheets, and then turned his fixations towards the bags he’d just dropped. Peter didn’t speak a word during the entire ordeal, still unsure if this was just some weird dream or not. 

“I picked up some stuff from the convenient store down the block. This’ll do much better than those Saltines from last night.” He lifts up the bottle of red gatorade to show, cracks open the lid, then plops a little bendy straw into the opening. “I would’ve gotten the ones with the sippy cup caps, y’know,” he rambled, sitting down on the mattress beside him and holding the straw up to his lips with shaky fingers, “but this was all they had. I’m assuming your favorite color is red, but I got all the other colors too.” Just as Peter takes a tentative sip, Tony pulls it back looking as if he was in the midst of a panic. “Damn, I should’ve asked you what flavor you wanted. Do you want blue instead? I can get the blue one,” Tony bends down so quickly it almost gives Peter whiplash, hand and head disappearing beside the bed, the rustling of plastic bags sounding during the frantic search. Then Tony sits up to brandish the blue gatorade,offering it towards him instead. “Or I've got green… and the white one.”

They stare at each other for several moments, and Peter’s not entirely sure what Tony expects him to say, so he settles with something simple.

“I-I like red.”

The straw is back at his lips and Tony’s nodding a little too feverishly. “Yeah, yeah, see I knew that.”

Peter sips on the drink, Tony watches him, and that little worried crease between his eyebrows doesn’t go away.

When he’s finished, he pulls away from the straw and leans back against the pillow, finally feeling a bit refreshed. Just as Tony begins to insist he drink more, Peter asks his question. “What are you doin’ here?”

Tony scoffs at him, an offended frown coming over his face. “This is my house. I should be the one asking you that question.”

And really, that was a good point. Peter didn’t know why he was here either. He drops his gaze to stare at his lap. He didn’t mean to worry the man, or get in his way… he just wanted someplace warm to stay.

“‘M sorry.” He mumbled softly, a heaviness overcoming his eyes with the pressure building behind them. 

“Shit, kid, I didn’t mean-- I didn’t mean it like that.” Tony’s hot palm presses against the side of his neck, thumb dipping under his chin to force his gaze back up. “I’m just worried ‘bout you. I came home and found you on my couch, passed out and-and small as a twig, pale, and I didn’t know what to do.”

Peter leans into the touch without thought, absorbing the tender affection like he was starved for it. 

“I didn’t know where else to go,” Peter whispers, tears finally beginning to fall from his eyes. The thumb tucked beneath his chin quickly moves to soothe over his cheeks, brushing the fallen tears away. It forces a smile from Peter, a bittersweet, desperate smile, formed with quivering lips. 

Tony rips his hand away, suddenly and violently, like he’d only just realized what he was doing, stumbling away from the edge of the bed. He shook out the hand that’d been against Peter’s cheek like it had been infected with an abhorrent substance, and the man turned his back to Peter, other hand lifting to run through his hair while he cursed under his breath. 

He avoids Peter’s eyes when he does turn back around. He points towards the gatorade sitting on the bedside table and clears his throat before delivering his instructions. “Drink all of that. I’ll be back soon.” 

He shuffles from the room, grabbing one of the plastic bags on his way, and Peter can hear his distant mutterings under his breath as he leaves the room. It left an odd sense of emptiness in him, and he turned to look at the small bottle of red gatorade. 

He didn’t reach for it, opting to watch the door. Awaiting Tony’s return.

Tony reappeared after several minutes, looking much less perturbed than when he had left. He came bearing soup and he set it down beside the empty bottle. He kept his distance this time though. The worried line between his brows were gone, taking upon an unperturbed expresion… simply gesturing with his head towards the steaming bowl.

He pulls up a chair, and when Peter still hadn’t made a move for the soup and Tony remained under his unyielding stare. After several more moments, and Peter had yet to move, Tony reached over to place the bowl gently in his lap. It wasn’t full by any means, so Peter didn’t worry about it spilling. 

“Peter, you have to eat,” he nods down towards the bowl again. “And while you eat, I want you to tell me everything that happened while I was gone. Everything that got you to this point.” He waves his finger in a circular motion in gesture to his body, fixing Peter with a stern look, and Peter drops his head shyly.

“Can-can I eat first?”

“Sure.”

Peter eats as slow as possible under Tony’s watchful eye. Sadly, however, there was only a finite amount of soup and when Peter was finished, Tony was ready to talk, taking the bowl from his hands and putting it to the side. 

“Alright, kid, spill.” Tony had his serious frown on; the same one Peter remembered he wore during the couple lectures he gave in the past. “No skimping on details.”

Peter turns his gaze away from him, skin prickling with anxiety. “My foster dad found out I was Spider-Man… an-and he thought I was working for you. I just… it made him really angry and I just wanted to get away! So, I came to look for you, but you weren’t here and I thought you were never coming back…”

He’s bowing his head to hide his tears, meaning he didn’t realize Tony had gotten out of his chair until he was settling beside him on the bed, and Peter’s head snapped up to look at him when he felt the matress dip. The man sat right beside him, shoulder pressing up against his, and the worry line making a reappearance. 

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have left you like that.”

“I-I’m not your responsibility,” Peter argues, “you shouldn’t feel sorry. I’m the one that screwed everything up and ruined your life.” He felt the trembling in his lips begin once more and he turns his head to hide it. “Everything that’s happened… to you… to me. It’s all my fault.”

Strong fingers grab his chin and force his gaze back, and Tony’s glaring down at him. “No, none of this is your fault.”

“Are you stupid?!” Peter bites, cheeks heating up with both frustration and embarrassment. He shakes off Tony’s grip on his chin. “You told me to stay away from those weapons, but I didn’t listen! And then I end up getting into trouble, and you felt the need to come rescue me!” He grips his hair, pulling at the curls in frustration and turning back to his lap as he continues to ramble. “And-and it’s my fault that I left my suit on my floor before bed. So it’s my fault when Beck found them,” he turns his gaze back up to Tony, tears now flowing freely from his eyes, “and it’s my fault that I didn’t fight back. I’m Spider-Man… it’s-it’s, he should have no power over me and-and he only has it because I’m scared.”

Tony’s grip is softer this time when he grabs his chin. 

“Hey,” he soothes, lifting his other hand to wipe away the tears, “don’t you ever blame yourself for this. You’re a kid, I’m an adult, and it’s my job to keep you safe.” His gaze turns steely, and Peter feels his grip tighten slightly on his chin. “I just need to know one thing Peter… did he hurt you?”

The silence and the immediate influx of tears was apparently enough confirmation for the man, and he instantly releases Peter, a tight growl rumbling through his chest as he pushes himself off the bed. Peter sees the orange flareup appearing above the man’s collar, climbing up the veins of his neck. He knew well enough to know Tony’s intentions. 

“No,” he chokes, diving after the man. He grabs a strong fistful of his shirt before he could get too far, and Tony turns to look down at him, his blue eyes vivid as ever. “Please don’t…” 

“Peter,” Tony growls, a tight rumbling passing through him. “He’s not getting away with this. He’s not getting away with laying his hands on you.”

“Please…” Peter begged desperately. “Please don’t kill him… Please.” He’s crying in earnest now, and Tony takes pity.

He grabs Peter’s hand, gently prying it from his clothes to hold firmly in his palm. “Pete.”

“Please don’t leave,” Peter tries. 

He couldn’t stand the thought of being responsible for Beck’s death, because then the world’s point would be proven. Spider-Man was just as bad as Iron Man. Any notion of ‘hero’ was dead. 

He knows Tony will kill him. He can see it in his eyes. The rage.

“Please don’t leave me.”

“Peter…” Peter’s tempted to label the sound that emits from the man as a soft whine as Tony slowly sits himself back on the mattress, never releasing his hold of Peter’s hand. 

“Stay.” He tugs Tony closer. If he was close enough to hold onto, Peter could keep him from leaving. 

“Okay, okay,” Tony relents, scooting back up beside him. Peter doesn’t risk doing anything more than pressing his shoulder against him. The touch was enough to draw him comfort for the moment. Just enough to lull him back into a peaceful sleep.

***

Beck’s seething, fisting the red cloth in his hand. Peter was gone… and he was in deep shit. There was no way CPS wouldn’t investigate him after this. He stares at the undecorated Christmas Tree standing lifelessly in the corner as he downs another swig from his bottle. He grimaces. He didn’t usually go immediately for the hard liquor, but the week had been particularly difficult for him. After his Boss found out about Tony Stark being alive… it had been chaotic. And it never failed to construct a headache waiting just for him at the end of the day.

There were two sharp knocks at the door, and he flinched in surprise, eyes darting to the clock hung on the wall. 10:48. Who the hell was at his door so late at night?

Before he even had a chance to stand from his easy chair, his door blew in. 

He leaped from the chair, dropping everything in his hands during his frantic stumble. The bottle shattered on the floor, and the suit soaked up the spilt liquid. He shouted in surprise and stared at the man standing in his doorway. 

“S-Stark?”

The man in question steps past the threshold, onto the fallen door. His eyes glowed, his entire body illuminated like he was under the light of a strong fire. He doesn’t say anything, but Beck thinks he knows why he was here.

Beck slowly moves himself away from the room, backpedaling as quickly as possible, tripping over his own drunken steps. Stark moves closer. 

“Hey, Stark. What are- what are you doin’ here?”

“I think you know.” His voice was gravelly and strained, and Beck shuddered.

“I-I really don’t,” he lies. He crashes into the decorative table set up at the beginning of the hall. A potted plant and several books crashing to the floor. 

Stark steps closer, chin dipping to his chest which only highlights his sharp, shining glare, his head tilting only slightly to the side.

“I reeally think you do.”

Beck falls to the ground. 

And as Tony begins to gain on him, he starts his rambling. “Whatever that kid told you was a total lie, I swear. He makes up all kinds of stories! I’ve been nothing but hospitable--” Tony grabs him by the throat, lifting him clean off the ground with nothing more than his human arm. Then he squeezes, bringing their faces close as Beck chokes desperately around his hand. 

“It’s too late,” he whispers into his face, voice calm and soothing, “I remember you… how much trouble you were back in the day.” A dangerous grin flitted over Stark’s face. “Nothing you say will get you out of this. I’m going to make you feel every bit of pain my kid suffered at your hands. In fact, if it wasn’t for that kid, I’d slit you open and splash around like a child playing in a puddle, and string your guts around that tree like decorative garlands. You best be glad I’m a man of my word...”

***

When Peter blinks awake, his head is lying on the pillow, blankets pulled up around his shoulders and Tony sat beside him. Head thrown back against the headboard, mouth open, snoring, and a discarded tablet hanging loosely in his grip atop his lap. 

Peter smiles, snuggling further into the pillow and pulling the blankets tight around him. 

He didn’t think to pay any mind to the small splatter of red on the cuffs of his shirt.

Next Chapter

@multiverse-irondad-july​

[navegandoaciegas]

I love my baby to death

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Reader 

Warnings: fluff, friends to lovers, tiniest bit of angst but really tiny I promise, 3.5k words, set after Endgame

Summary:  “Say, hypothetically, there’s a 100 year old fossil who’s a bit confused most of the time but he’s got the spirit, right?, and he’s outside with a packed duffle bag, what would you do?”

You were supposed to enjoy a solo roadtrip after years of Avenging, but Bucky invites himself along and you can’t say no to his happy face.

A/N: I haven’t slept in a week because of nightmares and I just needed something to cheer me up, I guess. Reader took Steve’s side in CA:CW and spent two years with him as a nomad. You can choose to see her and Natasha as a platonic relationship or a romantic one, it’s up to you.

masterlist

Read the sequel to this here

“They’re just so fuckin’ gross I don’t understand how you can eat them.”

Bucky sends you his best death glare as he continues digging in his soggy cardboard In-N-Out fries.

“We could have literally stopped by Arby’s three miles west of here” you continue, “they have the best fries. We’re missing out, clearly.” you deadpan eyeing his food skeptically. 

“The curly ones? God no, they’re so spicy. I don’t know why you like your food to hurt but I don’t.”

“Okay, first of all they’re not spicy at all, I don’t know where you got that from. And second, they have a taste at least, unlike these.” You reiterate your point by swinging one the fries in his face. Bucky just grabs your hand and bites the fry, almost biting your fingers off too.

“Yeah, like that god-awful spicy chicken you forced on me the other day? No thank you, ma’am, I’ll stand by my own food choices.” 

You snort. “Not my fault your post-Depression ass can’t handle anything other than salt and black pepper. But sure, go ‘head and enjoy your sorry excuse of a meal, Buck.”

“People from your generation sure love complaining, huh? Back in my days you ate what your mama made you and never bitched about it, or else you went to bed hungry.” 

God, he’s such a grampa. You make a show of rolling your eyes and huffing in annoyance. He likes his senior citizen card a bit too much. He tries to stifle a laugh when he sees the look on your face and just shakes his head at you. 

California (and Bucky Barnes) has stolen your heart and you’ve loved this road trip so much you often wonder why it took you being snapped and facing the end of the world twice to retire from the avenging business. 

Fresno is interesting, to say the least. 

He wanted to stop by, saying something about wanting to see “an old pal from the war” ’s hometown for himself, and you’ve been dreaming about exploring Yosemite for as long as you can remember.

-

Online pictures of Yosemite National Park were stunning but the real thing is just breathtaking. 

You never thought camping would become your thing and you never imagined you’d enjoy stargazing so much. In five months you’ve discovered how big of a nerd Bucky really is and he’s been trying to teach you the names of all the stars and constellations. 

He sees Big Dipper, Orion, Ursa Major and Minor; you see pretty twinkling lights and the occasional shooting star. Nevertheless you sit through hours and hours of explanations, because when he speaks of the things he’s passionate about, Bucky is the most beautiful thing in the world.

“You know, the stars are one of the things I missed the most.” he says softy, furrowing his brows as he does when he remembers something from the past. “Stevie and I used to do that as kids sometimes. We’d sneak out of our houses and go on the roof of this abandoned building to watch the stars. Now there’s so much goddamn light everywhere, you can’t even see them anymore.”

Sometimes when you stop and think about it, really think, you can’t imagine how hard it must have been for them, having everything, even the night sky taken away from them. 

“Steve never told me.” 

“He probably missed the stars too.”

You eye him looking for clues on how he might feel, but you only see a sad smile on his face. “You miss him, don’t you?”

“Every damn day.” his voice cracks and you hold him closer.

“I know Buck, I miss him too. I miss him so much that sometimes I feel like my life has no direction without my Captain.” You’re barely holding back your own tears at this point, “But we’ve got Sam if we need orders, yes?” but you still try to make him smile. You’re always going to try for him.

Your attempt works and he snorts. Always bring Sam up to cheer Bucky.

“I hope he was happy, you know.” he says, “I hope he made the right choice and never regretted a thing. I hope that now he looks back and thinks he wouldn’t have had it any other way. His happiness is all I could ever ask for.”

You cling to each other that night and cry until the early morning. It feels good to let it all out, to let Steve go and look at the future. You’ve lost too much but tonight you only have hope.

-----

New York

Five months before

“Words on the street is you’re retiring your crusty old ass from the field.” 

Sam is leaning on the door of your hotel room with his arms folded and a pleased look on his face.

“Rumors travel fast in this post-apocalyptic word, I see.” you say as you continue stuffing a duffle bag with all the clothes you have left.

“How are you?” Sam asks, with his newly found Captain voice. You wonder if it’s something in that damn shield that gives them that stern commanding tone.

“Tryina analize me, Sammy? I’m not one of your guys at the VA.”

It’s not like you’re pissed at Sam, you love him with all your heart, you’re just angry at the world and Sam’s the one standing in your way right now.

You hear him sigh, “I know what you’re feeling right now, I understand why you would think that-” “Don’t” you interrupt him, “Don’t give me that speech, Fury did that for you already. I’m not running away from my problems.”

“I’m not saying that-” you really don’t want him to talk today, so you stop him again “No but you’re thinking it.”

“I know what it’s like.” he says raising his voice “To lose who you care the most in the world. We all lost someone important but you lost Natasha and I know, trust me I know what you feel right now, because it’s what I felt when I lost Riley.” 

You stop and swallow the tight lump in your throat.

Your eyes well up with tears as you turn to look at him. You’ve been so blinded by your own pain and anger you didn’t stop for a moment to think about others. “I’m sorry Sam, I shouldn’t have treated you like that.” you say sobbing.

Why did she have to leave you?

Stupid, stupid Natasha. Why did she have to sacrifice herself for the world?

Why her?

He hugs you tight and rocks you back and forth. “I understand why you’re leaving and I’m not here to stop you, I promise. Just keep in touch, yes? Text me everyday so I’m not tempted to track you down and fly wherever you are to see if you’re good.”

You smile for the first time in a long time.

“Don’t worry Sam, you’ll get tired of all the selfies I’ll send you, eventually.” 

“You know I’ll never get tired of this pretty face.” he says raising his eyebrows suggestively, making you laugh. “Good, that’s my girl. I missed this laugh so much.”

You stay in his arms a while longer until it’s time for you to leave.

“This is not the only reason I’m here.” he says and clears his throat, “Say, hypothetically, there’s a 100 year old fossil who’s a bit confused most of the time but he’s got the spirit, right?, and he’s outside with a packed duffle bag, what would you do?”

“What?” you manage to stammer out. “Bucky just... wants to...tag along?” 

You are now as confused as Bucky is most of the time.

Sam shrugs. “I guess? You know he’s weird like that.”

What he really means is he’s just like you, lost and confused and in desperate need to live a little, but he doesn’t say it out loud. There’s no need to.

“So, would you mind if he came too?”

You see Bucky standing outside, leaning on your SUV. He’s cut his hair short and he looks hotter than you would like to. He turns around and waves at you with a big smile on his face. Like Sam often says, you too like his energy.

“No, I wouldn’t mind at all.”

----

Denver, Colorado

It’s a long way from New York to Colorado and if you’re honest, you’ve loved every minute of it and you’re glad Bucky came along with you. He’s witty, laid back, snarky, smart and overall a fun guy for someone who was a prisoner to nazis for 70 years.

“Look all I’m saying is I think Edward is a fuckin’ creep. Would you like it if someone stood in your room and looked at you while you sleep?”

“But is that someone a hot vampire, Bucky?”

“It literally doesn’t even matter.”

“Stop saying literally Buck, you’re a 100 year old man, not a valley girl.”

-

“Are we there yet?”

“No.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes.”

“Lemme check a map.”

“Bucky it’s on the screen there, Google says we have 20 minutes left.”

“But can we trust this Google guy?”

-

“All I’m saying is if you made and enjoyed congealed salads you probably don’t deserve your right to vote for the future of this country.”

“I mean...fair enough?”

-

“Do we count blipped years or not?”

“At this point it, it barely makes a difference in my case, doll.”

“Honestly you’ve got a point, old man.”

-

“How are you so calm right now?”

“My standards are so low it’s practically impossible to piss me off.”

“But you aren’t even a little bothered?”

“Chill, it’s just a flat tire, it’s gonna take 10 minutes to fix.”

“Buck we talked about the things that are unacceptable. ‘Chill’ coming out of your mouth is one of those.”

It’s your second week in Denver already, and you’re having the time of your life. 

Bucky is spooning you like he usually does. You think back to the first time you’ve shared a bed and you almost giggle at the memory. 

“Uh, Buck?”

“Yes?”

“We might have a problem.”

He enters the room after you and his eyes widen when he sees it.

There’s a bed in the room.

A single bed.

You weren’t expecting much from this place that gives you ‘Bates Motel’ vibes, but you thought you’d have two beds, or at least a couch.

“I’ll just sleep on the floor, don’t worry about it.”

“What?” you shriek “Absolutely not, I’m not letting you suffer all night. We’re going to share.”

“But I-”

“No buts, you know how many times I slept with Steve? I’m used to you supersoldier men by now, I’m no longer affected by your kicks.”

He stays silent. “You and Steve used to…?”

Only then you realize you could have phrased it better.

“God no, I meant just, ya know, share bed.”

He smiles and nods. Why does he look relieved?

Now he clings to you every night, and most times he’s the little spoon because he likes to be held. You used to hate sleeping tangled with someone else until you woke up on top of Bucky, his hands caressing your back, and he told you he had the best night of sleep he’s had in decades.

There’s a lot of things you do just because they make him happy, actually.

But how could you not?

There’s no point in denying your feelings.

----

Salt Lake City, Utah

God, you love Utah.

You drive through immense stretches of red desert whilst Bucky blasts Nicki Minaj like his life depends on it; that’s how it always ends up when he rides shotgun.

He insisted on visiting Monument Valley despite it being out of your way, but you can never find it in yourself to refuse him anything, so you drove 9 hours straight from Denver to the southern border of Utah just so he could see a place that looks a lot like the ones in those Western cowboy movies from the 50s and 60s he loves so much.

“Yasha would have hated it here so much.” you say as you pull over the Airbnb you’ve rented for a couple of days in Salt Lake City.

He snorts, “Yeah, I bet she would have.”

You thought time would heal all wounds and that someday you might stop feeling the void in your life when you think of her, but now you know you’ll never stop hurting. She was such a big part of your life for so long that your heart will never stop aching for her. 

Sometimes you think how she never got to see you again after you were snapped. 

You wonder if she ever stopped missing you.

You know you’ll never not miss her.

-

You’ve driven for more than humanly possible in two days, but he’s a supersoldier and you’re really stubborn, and now you can’t wait to sleep in a nice bed for the first time in a long while. Usually you just make do with motels, but tonight you wanted to treat yourselves.

You enter the place and notice immediately the two queen size beds. 

You should be relieved, and if it was 4 months ago when you first shared a bed you would probably be, but now you’re so used to his warm body next to yours, his flesh arm over you and his face resting in the crook of your neck that you don’t know if you’ll ever be able to fall asleep without him.

“I’ll go shower first if you don’t mind.” you say as you mentally berate yourself for your thoughts. 

Your goal to not fall in love with Bucky Barnes flew out the window somewhere in the green fields of Western Iowa, but at this point you’re just treading a dangerous path and you know you’re going to get hurt.

There’s no way Bucky feels the same about you, right?

You get out the shower, put on a t-shirt you’ve stolen from Steve ages ago and get out of the bathroom, only to stop when you see Bucky on the bed you claimed as yours.

“Sorry, I hope you don’t mind but I feel better when I sleep with you.”

Maybe he does.

----

Nevada

Technically it takes roughly 43 hours to get from New York to Sacramento by car. It took you almost five months.

You’ve been covering Interstate 80, stopping and visiting towns, cities and parks along the way as you pleased, sleeping in seedy motels, your SUV or that fancy ass tent Bucky bought somewhere in Ohio. You’ve begged Bucky to drive from Salt Lake City straight to Sacramento, stopping only when it’s absolutely necessary; you’ll be visiting Nevada after California anyways, so for now you’re just enjoying the scenic drive, with the windows rolled down and the air messing up your hair.

“What’s that song called?” Bucky asks and raises the radio’s volume.

“That’s Dani California by Red Hot Chili Peppers.” you answer absentmindedly, distracted by the seemingly endless stretch of black asphalt and yellowish nothingness around it.

She’s lover, baby and a fighter

Shoulda seen it coming when I got a little brighter

Bucky sings along and smiles glancing your way.

“I like this.” he exclaims when the song ends “Can we listen to it again, please?”

You smile softly and play it again. If there’s one thing Bucky is capable of is listening to the same song on repeat multiple times until you’re so sick of it you don’t ever want to hear it again.

 Who knew the other side of you

Who knew what others died to prove

You never thought Bucky would be like this, or that you’d be privileged enought to see this side of him.

There’s a big smile on his face and the orange hues of the sky reflect in his clear eyes. He’s got one hand on the steering wheel and the vibranium one resting on the car’s door and he looks so different from the man haunted by his past and loneliness you met in Budapest all those years ago. He looks so carefree and relaxed now, so happy. 

You are proud of him.

California rest in peace

Simultaneous release

California show your teeth

She’s my priestess and I’m your priest

I love my baby to death

------

San Diego, California 

You’ve hiked the hills of southern Cali and gone parapending in Torrey Pines. You landed on a breathtaking beach with beautiful dark sand and soon found out, much to Bucky’s dismay and utter disgust, that it was a nudist beach.

He grumbled something about ‘hygiene’ and ‘decor’ and you just laughed at his flustered state.

“First time seeing a naked woman, old man?” you asked in between fits of laughter.

You didn’t notice the sea lion swimming next to you in La Jolla and not even Thanos’ creepy gang could have scared you as much when you turned around and looked him dead in the eyes. Bucky got his revenge filming you as you shot out the ocean with a shrill, covered in algae and terrified. 

You are loving the San Diego area so far. Minus the sea lions.

“Hey I- uh- do you mind if I take the car? I wanted to go do some shopping.” Bucky tells you.

He’s really embarrassed for some reason.

You shrug and mumble a ‘sure’ before going back to basking in the sun by the pool of the hotel you’re staying at.

“Okay, I-I guess I’ll g-go then, I’ll come pick you up at 5.30 for dinner.” he stutters out.

Weird, you think, but you don’t give it too much thought. Bucky is like that.

-

Dinner time rolls around and as promised Bucky comes pick you up on time.

You’re wearing a short green dress with white daisies printed on it and a pair of strappy white sandals. You look good and you know it; Bucky knows it too, judging from the glances he tries to sneak your way.

“So, uhm-” he clears his voice, “I know it’s going to sound weird but I promise it’s not. Can I- Can I blindfold you?”

Can he...what? You could split me in half and I’d be glad about it, you’d like to say.

“Kinky. You could at least buy me differ first, tho.” you settle for something safer instead.

He blushes three shades darker than his usual color and you take the black scarf he’s handing you, barely concealing a teasing smile.

He drives around for a while. When you get to your destination the first thing you hear is the waves beating on the shore and the smell of the ocean. He helps you get out and guides you somewhere.

“Wait here.” 

You hear him park the car in reverse, open the trunk and fiddle with something. He comes up behind you and removes the blindfold. You feel his hot breath on your neck and it sends tingles down your spine straight to your pu- “You can look now.”

When you open your eyes you are stunned for a moment. You turn around with a big smile that turns even bigger when you notice the blankets and the little picnic he’s assembled in the trunk.

“Buck, this is- I can’t believe you remembered.”

Somewhere in Colorado you mentioned how romantic you thought Sunset Cliffs were, and how much you wished you could do something like this. It was a fleeting moment, a thought uttered out loud absentmindedly over a couple of drinks in some bar. You were tipsy and you were running your mouth about all the things you’d want in a partner to some random girl who became your best friends for the night.

You realize you’re tearing up when his fingers grace your cheeks.

It feels nice to be cared about so much. It’s been too long since someone took such good care of you.

“I thought I’d do something special for you.” he says with an adorable blush.

“Thank you Bucky, I love this.” you hug him tightly and bury your face in his chest, inhaling his scent.

“Anything for my girl.”

“When did I become your girl, huh?” you ask teasingly.

“Probably when I invited myself on this trip.”

You both laugh at that.

You swallow hard when you see the look on his face. God, how did you miss the signs? You were always a better sniper than a spy, Yasha always told you.

Your heart is beating out of your chest in anticipation as he leans down slowly and your lips brush lightly. His hands are on your waist and yours on his broad shoulders. He kisses you timidly at first, and more passionately as he gains confidence. 

“I wanted to do this since Bucharest.” he confesses after your lips part.

“Took you long enough, Sarge.”

But it was worth the wait.

-

Tonight’s sunset will be burned in the back of your mind permanently. 

You kiss and laugh some more, and feed eachother seedless grapes because they’re the only ones you eat. He’s brought strawberries, white wine because you don’t drink red, hummus and pita and an assortment of cheese and crackers.

You kiss and talk, cuddle, laugh and kiss some more all night.

You’ve accepted long ago that you’ll never fill the gaping hole in your lives, but that night when you make love to eachother the void in your hearts that Steve and Natasha left behind doesn’t seem as encompassing as it usually is.

---

Thank you for reading! If you liked it, please reblog and comment, feedback is always appreciated 🥺🤲 might fuck around and write Bucky’s POV too.

[g0ttal0ve101]

Ocs as Wattpad comments 🤩🤩

Mia: *looks at the camera* This hoe.

-

Thomas: I’m gonna burn your house down again.

-

Riley: It’d be such a shame if I dropped this axe on your d-

-

Kai: BITCH I WILL TAKE YOUR ORGANS AND SELL THEM ON EBAY DON’T TEST ME HOE

-

Evelyn: So, this is the day you lose your life.

-

Violet: Ahem. GET YOUR CRUSTY ASHY SELF AWAY FROM MY GIRL YOU LIL SHIT-

-

Lulu: Lemme pull what my mom did real quick 👊

-

Riley: Bitch keep blushin’ before you end up in MY basement. 😐-😩

-

Thomas: I guess………..Alhoe come pick me up 🦽

-

Mia: Girl start running. 🧍‍♀️

-

Boy: .

Kai: WOW BEAUTIFUL WONDERFUL CHEFS KISS!!

-

Riley: Did she just make a whole ocean crying? 🤨

-

Mia: Oops killed my family time to faint 😍

-

Kai: Clearly gay.

-

Violet: Who the h e l l puts soy in their coffee-

-

Riley: Let’s stay with him forever.

Inner Riley: Let’s kill him.

-

Michelle: WHAT ARE YOU DOING WITH THAT AXE??

Lulu:

Lie.) Cleaning out the shed

Truth.) Planning your death

-

Riley: Bitch I can do 17 laps and that’s it

Riley: unless a serial killer was chasing me

Riley: Then I’d do no laps

-

Sam: D-Don’t mind them, they’re locked in my basement eating ranch.

-

Mia: Are you dumb?

Mia: Or just dumb.

-

Evelyn, watching her parents be poisoned: Choke on the wine, bitch. Oh, that was too harsh. Choke on the wine! 🤩

-

Thomas: I’m gonna act like this isn’t illegal and go on with my day.

-

Riley: I wanna kashoot myself.

-

Kai: Poor boy…he’s eating a soggy banana…😔…

-

Thomas: I put the fun in dysfunctional.

-

Sam: U-Uwah…

Riley: What a nerd. (And I mean that in the most affectionate way.)

-

Kai: Your face makes me cry tears of b l o o d .

-

Riley: Okay, okay, okay, hear me out. Kai rips out some dude’s vital organs.

Mia: Okay…

Riley: Puts it on a platter,

Mia: Alright…

Riley: And gives it to Lucian.

Mia: Girl I-😭-BON APPETITE IG

Riley: I should be a wedding planner tbh

Thomas: what the fuck is wrong with you 😭

-

Lulu: PSPSPSPSP SIR CAN I GIVE YOU HEAD PATS??

Kai: Of course! Be warned, I might bite you! :3

Lulu: That makes it better.

Kai: W-Wh-w h a t -

[multishipperlove]

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Critical Role (Web Series) Rating: General Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Caduceus Clay & Fjord Characters: Caduceus Clay, Fjord Additional Tags: Unrequited Crush, First Dates, Except Caduceus doesn't know it's a date, And also Fjord is a terrible cook, Food, Miscommunication, Canon Asexual Character, Canon Aromantic Character, Happy Ending Summary:

Fjord tries to impress Caduceus with a home cooked dinner on their first date, but quickly has to realise that more often then not, things do not go as planned. And as it turns out, almost setting his kitchen on fire is not the worst part of the evening. Or is it?

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Fjord checked his hair for the third time in the last twenty minutes, nervously bustling back and forth between his kitchen and the living room and somehow getting stuck in front of the mirror every single time. The table was set, most of the food was done, the breadsticks were still in the oven, there wasn't anything left for him to do, and yet he couldn't get himself to just sit down and wait. Caduceus would arrive any minute now, any minute, and his nerves were definitely getting the better of him.

His phone buzzed, but instead of the “almost there” he'd been hoping for his screen greeted him with a message from Beau, a simple “hey, you can do it” followed by a thumbs up emoji, and he couldn't help but roll his eyes a little as he put it back in his pocket. He needed more patience, Fjord told himself, not dignifying Beau's message with a response for now, and instead checking on the breadsticks again.

Not ready yet. Were they rising at all? He wasn't sure.

When the doorbell finally rang it was the only thing saving him from answering Beau after all, and in less than a second he'd cleared his apartment and was already ripping open the door, not quite able to hide the dorky grin on his face when he saw Caduceus in his usual relaxed attire. Gray pants stained from the cemetery, the long sleeves of his shirt still bearing the marks of being around fresh soil and moss and flowers all day, and the smell of the Savalier Woods seemingly following him everywhere. Perfect, in Fjord's eyes.

“Did you work overtime again?” he asked, offering to take Caduceus' jacket as he let the firbolg step inside and carefully hanging it up beside his own. “I thought Clarabelle was taking your shift today.” “Ah, you know how it is,” Caduceus hummed in answer. “Sometimes there is more work than expected, and I didn't want to leave her alone with all of it. But I'm here now, so that's nice.” Fjord chuckled softly, leading him through the living room and to the table. “It is. I got almost everything done, too, so you can just sit down and I'll join you in a second.”

“Oh, well, thank you. That's very nice,” Caduceus agreed again, and continued talking while Fjord disappeared into the kitchen once more. “You know, I'm still a bit surprised you offered to cook dinner, I know you don't do this a lot. I would have been happy to help, too.”

Blushing a dark green and rubbing his neck a little, glad that Caduceus couldn't see him at the moment, Fjord had to admit he was right. “Well, no, I don't. But I, uh... wanted to do this properly, you know?” He picked up the first two plates he'd prepared, noticing with a grimace that the food had gone cold by now. But maybe cold didn't have to mean inedible, so he took it out to the table anyway. “I stuck to the recipes, mostly, so we should be good.”

He put both plates down and settled in his chair across from Caduceus, cheeks still feeling warm, and the calm smile Cad was giving him didn't help the matter. After a moment he realised he was staring, and also that the candles on the table were still unlit, making the dim light in the room seem more awkward than the romantic vibe he had been trying to go for.

“Oh, shoot, lemme fix this real quick,” he muttered, fishing a lighter out of his pocket that had once probably belonged to either Yasha or Beau, he wasn't sure, and quickly remedied that. “There, that's better...”

“Oh, yes, much better. Now I can see what I'm eating,” Caduceus agreed, sounding amused. As he picked up his fork and was about to dig in though, Fjord could see a brief frown cross his face. He looked confused. “Actually, what are we eating? This doesn't... I'm not sure what this is.”

Fjord winced a little, feeling his ears grow hot in embarrassment. “It's, uh. It's some sweet potato appetizer thing, I... alright, yeah, the veggies might have gotten a bit mushy, but I'm sure it's still good, so-”

Before he could make it any worse Caduceus already nodded, his tone reassuring as he answered. “Of course, I'm sure it is! I was not trying to imply anything else, my apologies.”

“No, don't apologise, it was a fair question. It turned out a little gray, I suppose.” Already resisting the urge to retreat to the kitchen, maybe under the guise of checking on the breadsticks again, Fjord picked up his knife and fork as well and cut a piece off the... thing, on his plate. At least there was food to focus on.

But as they both tried the first bite he got the next unpleasant surprise. The texture was awful, the taste non-existent, and he could see Caduceus pausing for a second before actually swallowing it down.

“Well, maybe with some salt-”

Fjord waved him off, deciding he wasn't as brave and spitting it back into his napkin. “Nope, this is horrible, you can say it.”

“No salt then,” Caduceus agreed, somehow still looking amused while Fjord was starting to regret ever inviting him in the first place. “But you said this was an appetizer, right? We can just move on to the main dish, it's all good.”

“Right, right... sure, let me just put this away then,” Fjord sighed, still giving Caduceus a smile though as he took the plates back to the kitchen. Some optimism couldn't hurt, and so far Cad didn't seem to mind the chaos all that much. He was willing to take that as a good sign.

Disposing of the appetizer in the trash can with a sigh he then put together new plates, taking the vegan fish out of the covered pan (a little darker than intended), getting the rice out of it's pot (was it supposed to be that soggy?) and just forgoing the veggies completely because those had already been part of the appetizer. The lemon sauce was the only thing he had actually taste tested though, and he knew that one was okay. It was edible.

Coming back to Caduceus he placed it down with a little flourish, smiling again as it got a laugh out of his friend. “Here you go. Something salmon adjacent, with lemon butter sauce, bedded on wild rice. I hope it's better than the last try.”

“It can only go up from here,” Caduceus replied with a smile, and Fjord settled down again. And while he wasn't wrong, it didn't necessarily make the main dish taste any better.

What was true for the sauce could also be said for the dish in general. Edible, but not great. The dry salmon substitute seemed to be in a competition with the soggy rice about which texture was worse, and the sauce was unremarkable enough to count as the best part of it all. Still, they managed some bits of not-awkward conversation while they picked at their food, and Fjord was starting to feel hope again, when Caduceus suddenly stopped mid sentence and sniffed the air.

“Do you smell that?”

It took him a moment, but then he realised it too. Smoke.

“The breadsticks! Shit-” Jumping up from his chair Fjord hurried back into the kitchen, having to tug his shirt over his nose almost immediately as the air got thick and his eyes watered from the soot that had gathered in the small room. But he found his way to the oven and turned it off, glad to see that they weren't any flames at least. Caduceus, who'd been trailing after him, had enough sense to check in with him on that first before he pushed the little window in the kitchen wide open, making it easier again to breath.

Still kneeling in front of the oven Fjord grabbed for a dish towel and pulled the rack out, seeing the blackened, miserable remains of what had once been bread dough. With a long suffering sigh he rested his head against the open oven door. “Damn it. I'm so sorry, Cad. This is all going horribly wrong.”

At this point he should have offered to drive his friend home, or just let him leave, anything that put him out of the danger of Fjord's own cooking, but he was hoping against his better judgement that maybe Caduceus hadn't given up on him yet, especially as the firbolg waved his apology off.

“Don't be, mistakes happen all the time,” Cad assured him, somehow still smiling throughout this whole disaster. “But I'm starting to think you could really use some help in the kitchen.”

He almost sounded amused, and Fjord would have been offended had it been anyone else. But with their situation being what it was he just scoffed and shook his head a little. “I'd say so, yeah. But since there's no saving this, and I know the fish tastes like shit too, how about we just order some take out?” he offered. “I'll pay, of course, and you can choose whatever you want.”

Caduceus considered it for a moment, looking around the kitchen, but then shook his head to Fjord's surprise. “No, you already paid for all these ingredients, and there's no sense in wasting them, is there.”

“Well, no,” he started, “but you can't honestly tell me you want to eat-” And he gestured to everything around them. The burned charcoal sticks of bread, the soggy rice still in it's pot, the mushy veggies. “This.”

“No,” Caduceus agreed, pulling a face as well. “But I'm sure there are enough of the original ingredients left to do something else with it, and this time we'll do it together.” Looking over to Fjord he saw his sceptical expression, and just smiled. “You'll see, good food isn't all that difficult. You were trying to make bread there, right?”

“Yeah, trying being the key word here,” Fjord muttered, finally picking the blackened dough off the baking paper with a fork to dispose of it as well. “But alright Houdini, teach me how to cook. What do we need?”

Caduceus smile grew and he reached for the discarded apron hanging over the door, tying it behind his back with practised ease. The sight finally made Fjord's frown disappear as well, and his heart lightened a little with his friend's willingness to take the situation in stride. Maybe a cooking lesson wasn't such a bad first date either.

“Alright then,” Caduceus hummed, “first of all we need a mixing bowl. Do you have any leftover yeast?” Fjord checked his drawer but came up short, not that it seemed to matter though. “That's alright. How about butter milk and baking soda?”

“Baking soda's the stuff you put in cakes and cookies, right?” Fjord muttered, brows drawing together as he checked his little stash of baking ingredients. “Yeah, I have that. And buttermilk's in the fridge.”

Seeming very pleased with that Caduceus then asked for an egg, some flour, and a little bit of butter and sugar to complete the dough. As he put it all together he told Fjord exactly how the buttermilk and baking soda would interact to let the dough rise, and why, unlike yeasted dough, this one didn't have to to be set aside and rest. But all those things went over Fjord's head almost completely as he watched Caduceus' finger knead the dough in an almost mesmerising pattern.

He wasn't done after that, either. Fjord expected the lesson to be over as the bread went into the oven (and boy did it already look better than his poor attempt at breadsticks), but Caduceus just turned to him with a cheerful smile and briefly wiped his hands on one of the towels. “Time for the main dish then.”

“Wait, really?” Fjord asked. “I don't have anymore of the vegan fish, Cad, and the rest... I don't know, I don't really know of any other recipes we could use.”

“We already agreed that's what I'm here for, did we not,” Caduceus reminded him happily. “Get me whatever vegetables you have left please, and we'll see what we can do.”

With a slight shrug Fjord did as he'd asked, coming back from the fridge with some bell pepper, red beet, and a handful of mushrooms. “This is what I got. Do you think the rice can be saved?”

“Honest answer? No. But cooking new rice would take too long, so we'll use what we have even if it's going to make the texture a little weird,” Cad told him, looking surprisingly pleased with the assortment of vegetables he'd brought though. “I'll show you one of my family's favourites, wild fried rice. The improvised version, but the next time you come over I can show you how to do it properly.” Fjord blushed again, rubbing the back of his neck a little. “Oh, sure, I'd- I would really love that, Cad. Here, let me help with the prep.”

With the two of them working together, cutting everything up didn't take more than a few minutes, and afterwards Fjord was once more happy to stand by and listen as Caduceus took care of the actual cooking part. It didn't take long for the kitchen to take on a rather pleasant smell again, driving the last few remnants of smoke and misery out, and while Fjord finished his last few tasks he looked back to Caduceus with a smile.

“Hey, Cad? Really, thank you, this has already been a way better evening than I expected.”

“It's nice,” Caduceus agreed, sounding just as pleased. “Again, I'm not sure why you insisted on cooking all alone, but I'd be happy to teach you more things in the future.” Fjord chuckled. “Hey, I already told you. I wanted to do it properly, this being our first date and all. I just wanted you to have a nice evening without having to work for once.”

“Yes, yes, our- wait, our what now?”

Fjord stopped what he was doing and looked up, seeing that Caduceus had paused as well, that confused look on his face again. “Our first date,” he repeated, slowly. “I... I asked you if you wanted to go out with me, Cad, remember? I asked you out for dinner, and then suggested I cook instead. And you said yes... remember?” The confused look didn't go away, and Fjord wasn't sure if he wanted to laugh or cry.

“Oh.” Slowly though, understanding seemed to dawn on his friend, and the confusion made way for embarrassment. “Oh. No, I didn't- that’s not really- I’m sorry if I somehow lead you on?” he stammered, and Fjord wasn't sure if he had ever heard Caduceus stammer before.

“No! God, no, I'm just-” Great, now he was stammering too, and his face felt hot again, and surely this couldn't get any worse. “I just thought, you know, all the time at the temple, and at the diner, and... God, Cad, I'm so fucking stupid.” Fjord groaned softly, putting the spices he'd been getting ready aside and rubbing his face for a moment, trying to catch a clear thought. “I'm sorry, I shouldn't have assumed. Or made things more clear, or... or something. This is on me.”

“Hey now, don't,” Caduceus replied, his tone gentle again, and at least not sounding as embarrassed anymore. “Don't do that. This is just a little misunderstanding, right? But if you would prefer for me to leave now-”

“No, please, stay,” Fjord replied quickly, not even letting him finish that sentence. He finally turned to face him again, leaning against the counter a little. “There's no reason for you to leave. I mean, the bread's in the oven, we actually got some decent food now, so... no hurt feelings, right?”

Caduceus was still frowning, but before he could speak up Fjord stopped him. “Alright, hey, I might be... a little disappointed. I can admit that. But I'm a big boy, Cad, I can deal with it, I promise. And besides, your friendship means way more to me. We're still friends... right?”

Eyes softening a little Caduceus stepped forward, placing his hand over Fjord's. “Of course we are. I never wanted it to be anything else, and again, my deepest apology if-”

“No, come on, we need to stop apologizing at some point,” Fjord chuckled, lifting his other hand to give Caduceus a gentle pat on the shoulder before he pulled back a little, trying to discreetly wipe his eyes as he ran a hand down his face again. “Both of us. As you said, it was a misunderstanding. Maybe in a few weeks we can already think back to this and laugh about it.”

“Maybe. But it's alright if you need some time for that,” Caduceus assured him, and Fjord just sighed this time.

“Yeah, maybe I will,” he muttered, giving Caduceus another smile in an attempt to seem reassuring. “But for now, let's eat. I do want to try that family favourite recipe of yours.”

Humming softly in reply Caduceus picked up the spices he'd been mixing, adding them to the pan and stirring it all in before he lowered the heat. “According to my mother, you would be in luck,” he told him, his tone still gentle. “This is supposed to work quite well against all kinds of heartaches and disappointment.”

“Oh yeah?” Fjord asked, his smile turning a little more genuine. “Next time you really gotta show me how to do it properly then.”

“Next time,” Caduceus promised, which was really all Fjord had needed to hear. As long as they stayed friends, as long as there was a next time to get together, to cook, or watch stupid movies, or something, it would be okay. He could deal with the rest. And as they settled down to eat, with the still warm, home-made bread, and the fried rice that was every bit as good as Caduceus had promised him, Fjord was glad to see most of the awkwardness between them leave again.

If a good meal could really help with smoothing things over this easily, Fjord thought to himself, he needed to learn to be a better cook.

[millennial-star-gazer]

When A Celestial  Prey Dreams: Chapter: 2 (Nalu Week 2020)

When A Celestial Prey Dreams

Nalu week 2020 Prompts: Voice, Flirt, Charm & Smile (All implied)

Genres: Romance, Drama & New Adult Fanfiction

Pairing: Nalu/Endlu (Natsu x Lucy & E.n.d. Natsu x Lucy)

Rating: M for language, steamy and mature/adult sexual content (all consensual) in these and future chapters. Reader Discretion  is advised.(You've been warned!)

Summary: Such a carnal thrill of the hunt is too electrifying for words; especially when a fire demon sets his sights on a celestial maiden who's more-than-willing to be his prey. What seems to start off as a random dream for Lucy quickly escalates into far-more sizzling territory. New ficet which will eventually combined into upcoming chapters for TDDW along with other fics. First two chapters are entries for @nalu-week  2020. (Nalu/Endlu-centric and semi-au/canon divergent). 

__________________________________________

Chapter 2: A Major Reunion and The Most Lethal of Vows

A/N: Hey guys, here's chapter 2 aka my second entry for @nalu-week  2020. Special thanks again to @mannyegb for helping me edit and further develop this chapter!  Now on to the actual chapter-enjoy!

Note: Scroll past the Read More Button/Cut for designated links and actual story content.

Disclaimer: I don't own Fairytail which instead belongs to the one and only Hiro-sensei instead!

________________________________________

Read  More  of This Fic and  on other  Platforms 

Note: Copy and paste links into another browser tap if reading on desktop site

1. When A Celestial  Prey Dreams

A.  Tumblr

Previous (Chapter) (Click Here:) (or here: https://millennial-star-gazer.tumblr.com/post/621681896131379200/when-a-celestial-prey-dreams-chapter-1-nalu    

Chapter: 2 (Click Here:)   Next (Chapter) (Click Here:) (or here: https://millennial-star-gazer.tumblr.com/post/627371278930755584/when-a-celestial-prey-dreams-chapter3)

B. Fanfiction

I. Main Fanfiction (Click Here:) (or here: https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13623687/1/When-A-Celestial-Prey-Dreams-Nalu-Week-2020)

II. Secondary (Click Here:) ( or here: https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13143482/1/Millennial-Drabbles)

II. Other (Click Here:) ( or here: https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13246734/1/Millennial-OTP-Drabbles)

C. A03

I. Main A03 (Click Here:) (or here: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24802720/chapters/59984170)

II. Secondary (Click Here:) (or here: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18244343/chapters/43167767)

3. Master Post  Of All My Writing And  Profiles (Click Here:) (or here: https://millennial-star-gazer.tumblr.com/post/179665258923/master-fic-rec-post)

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Legend

Italics: Lucy's dream or song/literary quotes

Bold: First Person Thoughts Within The Dream

Bolded Italics: Telepathic dialogue or empathized words

Bolded Italics: (outside of main story): A/N

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"When you need me, I'll step out of the shadows and protect what's mine"

(Source: Unknown)

__________________________________________

Sometime later

__________________________________________

How long have I been running?

Lucy couldn't pinpoint just how much time passed when she reached a steady-moving creek just beyond the edge of the forest clearing. 20 minutes, 30, 40? Difficult to tell really. But hey, the brook was very much a welcome sight for her sore eyes either way.

Hmm…..I wonder...

A quick cursory scan across the surroundings confirmed that navigating through the shallow waters would be a Highly efficient trek across to get to the other side for Lucy.

And it'd shave a bunch more time off my trip than it would go all the way around. Not to mention, the opportunity for her to hopefully scope out the perfect spot for laying low. Like, say a cave or a grove beneath the cover of trees to set up camp with the much-welcomed cozy heat of a crackling fire.

It'd be nice to take a breather and regroup with my spirits. Figure out my next move. Maybe even get a quick bite and some shut-eye. Even better if it's in Natsu's arms and I can convince him to let us spend a few days together in the woods instead of being cooped up in that goddamn horrible fortress. Just us, plus Happy and my spirits when they pop by. Either way, all in all, it should be a nice retreat from all the chaos. God, I miss them all already. Okay, gonna cross.

All decided then, a proverbial hop, and skip to the stream it was.

A few minutes later

__________________________________________

A bit chilly and soggy but not the worst experience overall.   

Kind of impossible for the blonde not to notice the river water soaking into her boots though.

Definitely unfortunate though no biggie ... I'll just hang the boots by a fire to dry and wear shoes from one of my star dresses.

"Lucy-hey !"

Natsu's audible shout pierced through her thoughts.

Sounds like he found me ...

"Up here, Luce!" The voice hollered down a second time with an undeniable note of urgency. "Yeah, look up!"

Definitely Natsu then ...

Lucy's eyes flickered above to see the aloft fire demon in the air with unfurled wings.

"There ya' go. Wait. Why are you—" he began to question, brows knitting together in confusion. " Never mind. That's not important right now. How about you finish crossing and meet me on the other side?"

"Sure," Lucy complied, finding no actual reason to object. God knows she couldn't help but desperately need— no crave-to be inside her soulmate 's robust arms as if deprived of precious oxygen for too long. So much so that i had to be some kind of astounding miracle that her already fragile self- resolve didn't shatter sooner ."Meet you on the other side."

"Yep."

The celestial wizard watched Natsu sail over her head with relieved eyes before; making her way over to a grassy bank. Not long after, the demon lord's feet landed on solid ground just as she reached the river's edge.

Finally…

"Land ho, huh?". Natsy let loose a breath of tremendous relief. "Thank god you're all right. Honestly had me pretty worried there when I caught whiffs of your blood. Here- let me help you." An open hand to his mate who gladly accepted.

"Thanks," she breathed, a faint smile pulling at the corner of her lips. So warm ...   Mavis knows that it was impossible for the celestial wizard not to relish in the blissful warmth of the fire eater's touch. "and I accidentally ended up slicing my hand open when running earlier. Probably the reason why you could smell a bit of my blood too .

"Aw Shit... yeah," Natsu echoed, brow creasing in moderate concern." That does make a lot of sense actually. Can I take a look?"

"S-Sure..." Lucy willingly let her palm be turned over by Natsu's hand with the still-bleeding gash in plain sight.

"Oh crap— this is pretty bad". He sighed, dismaying the corner of his lips into a frown ."Not life-threatening but you're still gonna need stitches for sure". A thumb brushed over Lucy's wound; with such delicate care, that warmth flooded her veins.

"So sorry about your hand Luce. We'll get you fixed up in no time though."

"Okay... I don't doubt that ."

"Good to hear."

Still, there's something bothering me about Jackal and the others...

"Hey, Natsu?" Lucy spoke up, trying her most damnest to sound nonchalant—untroubled even. No need to panic prematurely after all. "I was wondering about Jackal, Rayan, and Tempest."

"Yeah, what about them?" Natsu's attentive hum along with the open light of his gaze in response to her question was an encouraging sign . "Now, where did I put that cloth? Be pretty useful for your hand right now. I'm still listening by the way. Please continue."

"Okay. So.. those three aren't searching for me too, are they?" Lucy couldn't mask the tremor in those words; not with the surge of terror shooting through her heart. "Really don't want either one of them coming after me..."

It'd be terrible...

"Those slimy bastards won't be getting anywhere near you, Lucy," E.n.d. declared, voice coming in eerily calm with a distinct edge that bordered on lethal. "Trust me. I'll make damn sure of that. His tone dropped to a thinly-veiled threat of menacing proportions that sent a chill down Lucy's spine." By smashing all their teeth by breaking and crushing every worthless bone in their bodies if they so much as lay a finger on ya' or even try. "

Jeez... Natsu really would go that far to keep me and everyone he loves safe, wouldn't he?

"Hell, why not broil their flesh to a blackened crisp too? Pretty sure I told em' as much and more before setting out to find you earlier."

"Okay…"

" Aw Damn.."

Just for Natsu's eyes to instantly soften at the unfettered panic that was written all over Lucy's face.

"Whoa easy there" The dragon slayer soothed, running the back of his hand down her cheek in a gentle caress. " It's gonna be alright, sweetheart. I'll protect you if it comes down to a fight. Just like I always have— promise. Plus, we got your spirits to back us up or get you out of here or create a distraction if we bump into those guys again. It'll be fine, okay ?"

"Okay," Lucy let out a breath, speeding heart rate now slowing down. Her fears were eased by Natsu's attentive care after all. "Okay. I feel a lot better. Thanks, Natsu."

"Yay— that's the spirit, Luce!" Natsu approved, flashing his mate a sunny grin that set her heart aflutter. "And anytime.  Now lemme' get your hand bandaged up for ya'."

"Alrighty."

__________________________________________

A/N: And that's Chapter 2 folks! Hope you enjoyed and stay tuned for more! Anyway, I don't really have to much to say other than my usual A/N spiel. You know by basically being sure to let me know what you think by leaving a comment/review, liking and reblogging! Please feel free to check my other entry and the rest of my writing. (Corresponding Links are above, in the navigation bar and bio if reading this on tumblr. Please also see my FF and A03 profiles!) All right, that's all for now folks! Thanks to everyone for the incredible show of support so far again ! Until next time-take care!

[daydreaming-jessi]

Lmao guess who’s dealing with an existential crisis so she decided to write more for the Beetlejuice cat au???? If you wanna see the previous posts then just go to the shoggoth au tag on me blog kk

So, now Charles and Delia go from having 0 cats in the house to suddenly having 5.

It’s worse than the sudden ghosts

Because! Charles is allergic to cats! Emily was allergic to dogs, it’s why they never had any pets in the house before.

But he can’t exactly say no he’s seen shoggoth bring Lydia down from sudden panic attacks in like ten minutes and the kittens just lessen the panic attacks altogether!

Delia points out that the house aura has never felt better than when the cats were there. He sighs a heavy dad sigh and resigns to like twenty years of constantly taking Benadryl. (Shoggoth has also declared him a perfect nap lap and he also seems to be doing so much better mentally with the cats around. He likes seeing the kittens trample over each other after string sue him)

Barb and Adam are ecstatic!! Barb just adores animals! She had all kinds growing up, like snakes, lizards, fish, dogs, rodents, ferrets, and especially cats!!

I personally think she may have grown up on a farm, thus was constantly around animals (and doing hard work making her ultra strong).

Adam is more into bugs and snakes, but he loved fostering cats whenever he and barb took in a batch of christmas kittens, and these guys are so! Smart! Shoggoth has figured out how to open the attic door to sunbathe in the windows in the afternoon and the kittens have learned how to fetch! For them! When they need something for their town model!!!! (They of course are specially made for the model)

They name one kitten Patchie because it’s just so splotchy with it’s black and white fur and looks like a mini version of his mom but like a printer ran out of ink while making him. Beej tells them they are the most basic people he’s ever known and he loves them

Delia loves the cats, shoggoth will supervise Delia’s morning yoga everyday, sometimes joining in her own kitty way, and the kittens jumble up everywhere in the kitchen and garden whenever she is working in there, But one kitten... one kitten!

Delia swears they have some strange competition going on! This kitten pops out of nowhere and scares the daylights out of her every time! It is exactly like Lydia! (Lyds, Beetlejuice, stop laughing, it’s true!)

Lydia grins deviously and names this lil tabby brown lad Azazel. Beej cackles in the background while Delia is a lil confused.

But there’s this other fluffy black kitten with the most gorgeous dark eyes, and it reminds her so much of Lydia as well, so she names that little baby Circe. Lydia and Beej secretly think this is the coolest thing ever. Charles just smiles fondly and is ever more grateful for this eccentric lady that has become a part of their lives. Adam and barb think Delia is a delight (lol)

But there’s one kitten. One lil tabby black girl that’s just... dumb.

Like, you never think cats can be dumb, they’re so graceful and elegant and just.... smart! But this one kitten...

Shoggoth seems to always be supervising this kitten and yet it still gets in trouble. She’s managed to lock herself in the guestroom closet twenty two times- make that twenty three. (Charles get the coat hanger, she’s done it again!)

This kitten doesn’t seem to be mentally lacking behind her brothers and sister, she just... doesn’t seem to think things through.

Whenever someone takes a bath she wants into the bathroom, and she’ll want to sit in their laps while they’re in the bath so she’ll jump in without realizing that the human is... in a bath. Of water. Many times a soggy black shadow will sprint down the stairs away from the bathroom while someone in there laughs.

Beej took it upon himself to name this kitten.

“Her name... is Beef.”

“... Beej that is the worst name I’ve ever heard.”

“No, no, my mother is the one that’s come up with the worst name ever and that’s calling your son Beetlejuice instead of Lawrence in front of everyone they know forever sealing his fate as beetlejuice.”

“.... Beej you okay?”

“I am never okay Lyds.”

Beef is a special kitten that Shoggoth seems to stretch herself thin trying to keep in check. The parents can relate when this cat comes into the living room at night looking haggard and crashing on the nearest soft surface to pass out for twelve hours away from her kids currently crowded on lydia’s bed.

Many of lydias photography now include dozens of pictures of the cats (and pics Beej had a hand in choreographering). The cats being goofy, the cats being majestic, shoggoth is a star in many creepy photos, being a cat that just screams bad luck with her one eye and crooked tail, there’s one of Delia about to be scared by azazel that always cracks lyds up

Lydia feels her aesthetic is complete when she goes out walking five cats on harnesses wearing full mourning clothes and her camera while electric green haired Beej follows wearing college sweatshirts and jogger handmedowns from Charles. What is this aesthetic? Hell if she knows.

If you can’t find Beej anywhere he’s most likely where the cats are. He loves to nap in the sun with shoggoth, he loves slinking around the shadows with azazel, he loves playing with patchie in the wood shavings of the maitlands model town carving, he loves drifting after beef as she gets in mischief. Sometimes he’ll be sitting down and suddenly the cats all climb on top of him and take a nap, and he’s just still and suddenly at peace and doesn’t need to do anything else. He just, really loves these cats.

It’s kind of scary for him, since they have a much shorter life span than breathers do, and he’s not entirely sure where animals go when they die. He’ll get really quiet sometimes thinking about death and how suddenly it can change his entire life when before it was basically all he knew. He feels much better when shoggoth begins grooming his crazy hair and Lydia shows him another breather thing or Delia asks him to go shopping with her, or the maitlands ask him questions about ghost things, or Charles shows Beej another cool house he’s selling.

Head cannons of Beetlejuice now lives with the deetz time

Everyone... tries to get used to beetlejuice. Delia makes the most surprising progress. Within two days she’s calling Beej Lawrence and both him and Lydia are helping her make breakfast in the morning before he helps her with her garden and dusting her crystal collection. She’s pretty much adopted him like she instantly adopted Lydia when Charles hired her.

Charles has some reservations. This guy tried to marry his daughter, chased him and Delia out of their house, getting him fired from his job, and tried to kill him several times. But then he sees what Delia sees.

And what did Delia see?

A kid. Just, a kid that was really badly abused by his mom. He has abandonment issues from losing his dad and basically learned that the only way to get people to be nice to is by manipulating them. People don’t love you, Lawrence, you’re a useless mess of a boy that’s good for nothing and has no friends. Love is not for people like you.

Charles joins the Beej protection squad lyds and Delia have formed pretty quickly after that.

It’s harder for Adam and barb. They both are still a little scared of Beej. They would be cool with him, but he harassed them a lot before. Lydia can’t blame them but she also knows that Beej struggles to understand personal boundaries and really does have a big crush on them. Lydia is helping Beej better understand personal space (she had a tough time with it too when she was younger) and he’s learning to not force himself on others quite so much.

Beej really does like the maitlands, they’re stable, really in love with each other, actually genuinely nice, they’re kind of the coolest couple of newlydeads he’s ever met. He... wants to be a part of that. But he’s not completely sure how to join that. His usual tactic of overtly sexual actions usually work all the time, but not here. They enjoy... genuine affection??? Who??? What??? What do you mean you like me for my personality my personality is depressed garbage?

Lydia is relieved. No more keeping secrets from her family. Her pseudo brother best friend is now summoned again, being on his best behavior and allowed to stay with them and is now also healing from his mom troubles, and she has five cats now. Nice. Dead mom would love this new family Lydia and Charles made themselves. They love it too.

Of course, this doesn’t mean Lydia and Beej haven’t given up their favorite pastime.

Whenever Delia and Charles are out, and the maitlands are busy up in the attic, the two share an evil grin, and start to call some numbers, ready to hear that beautiful sound once more.

Now with the added bonus of cat yowls and howls. That really freaks people out.

What? Just because he’s getting over trauma and is a part of a loving family doesn’t mean Beej is a better person now. It just means his mom isn’t holding him back anymore >:3

So... what happens when Juno comes back wanting revenge on her no good son?

Lemme know if y’all wanna hear anymore of this au or have ideas of your own I’m kinda on a beetlejuice kick rn lol

[kats-randomology]

Aftershocks

It had been a week since his escape from the House of Fortune. He'd since gotten himself a new yacht, and was currently enroute to Duckburg, seeing as Donald and the rest of the fam had flown the coop and left him here. He supposed he couldn't blame them, the whole hotel trap deal had gotten a tad...out of hand. But things had turned out alright, everyone was safe and not enslaved to a luck eating demon, all's well that ends well, right?

 .....at least, it should've been. 

 Despite the fact he was well away from Macaw and the hotel and Liu Hai....Gladstone still found himself on an edge of sorts. He'd be fixing some tea, or sunbathing, or just watching TV, when out nowhere he'd just be struck with an overwhelming feeling like he was being watched. Like a million eyes were on him from everywhere. It set his spine on ice and had him constantly looking over his shoulder and jumping at the slightest movement in the corner of his eye. There were times it got to be so much he'd just retreat to his bed and bury himself in blankets, attempting to hide from the invisible eyes, until either the feeling passed, or he eventually fell asleep; usually it was the latter. 

 It was a familiar feeling that had begun in the hotel, with Liu Hai's numerous constructs watching his every move, and even Liu Hai himself had occasionally popped into his room out of nowhere, or would make comments on his supposed to be secret escape attempts.

 "I have eyes everywhere, Mr. Gander..."

 He thought he'd left that paranoia behind when he left Macaw, but apparently, it had followed him, and that would've been enough to deal with.

 But then the dreams started. 

 The eyes he couldn't see suddenly became very visible; hundreds of glowing eyes surrounded him, watching his every move, staring into his very core. Taunting him, daring him to make a move. The only move he could make was to run, run fast, and try to get away from their prying gazes. But they followed, never blinking, never looking away, just staring, staring and laughing and piercing--

 Worse than the eyes was the large smoky form that would appear before him, its own eyes as large and imposing at itself. Grinning down at him with sharpened teeth and laughing as it engulfed him in its form, swirling around him at a blinding pace, so fast he couldn't make anything out, sucking the air from his lungs as chains and hands weighed him down, everything would go black and--

 He'd wake up in a cold sweat, gasping for air, and heart thumping so loud he could feel it in his head. It'd be hours before he could sleep again, if he even wanted to.

 Other times, he got more physical reminders of the past events. 

 Gladstone scowled at the small marks trailing along his neck and down his upper arm. They didn't hurt, really, but the memories they brought up--

 The teeth sinking into his skin, the hands keeping him immobile in their iron clad grip, the nauseated feeling that washed over him as he was drained to the dregs. The screams and cries for help no one ever responded to--

 He shook his head, attempting to dispel them as he hastily pulled his shirt on. No reason to dwell. He was Gladstone Gander, he didn't let little things bother him, right?

 But no amount of rubbing or scratching would quell the itchy tingling sensation that claimed his arm when he'd think back to those times. It drove him mad, it did.

 He wasn't sure how much more of this he could take.

 :

:

:

 Docking in Duckburg, Gladstone breathed in the familiar air with a sigh of relief. Being home was good, that would surely drive off all those unwanted emotions and bad dreams.

 Uncle Scrooge's mansion loomed over the city, and the sight gave him a slight twinge of guilt. The fam was probably still a little upset, even a week later; they probably wouldn't wanna see him just yet. Especially Donald....

 But....seeing him would be good for Gladstone after everything....

 Well he'd dealt with Donald's temper before. Once more wouldn't be a big deal, even be welcomed.

 :

:

:

 He'd gotten a less than thrilled greeting from Uncle Scrooge, but it wasn't nearly as enraged as he'd expected. If anything, he was passive, simply directed him to the pool where he found Donald's houseboat. He chuckled at the sight, and approached the door.

 He stood there for a moment, hesitant now that he was actually here. Donald was probably still mad, what with the challenge and him getting stuck there for all of five minutes. And the unintentional embarrassment he caused in their round through the casino.

 But...he really needed to see him. Needed the familiarity. Needed SOMETHING to help him feel normal again. Even if it was anger. 

 And so he knocked. 

 A minute passed before it finally opened to reveal a tired looking Donald. 

 "D-Meister--!"

 And the door was abruptly slammed in his face. 

 Well, he had wanted normality...

 He knocked again, lighter this time, and offered a grin instead as Donald begrudgingly pulled it open.

 "What?"

 "Hey, cous, how's it shaking up here in high society living?"

 "Peachy, thanks for dropping by, see ya--"

 "Wait, wait, wait--!"

 He quickly grabbed the door, keeping it open as he scrambled to find a way in.

 "Look I know you're not my biggest fan right now--"

 "I never was."

 "--but I just wanted to drop in and see how you're holding up!"

 "....so you picked the middle of the night?"

 "It's only....seven thirty, barely sunset hours right?"

 "That doesn't mean I wanna visit, especially with you; also what's with the turtle neck, it's like eighty degrees out."

 "Oh....y-you know me, always on the cutting edge of good looks. Now you gonna invite me in or should I grab a poolchair?"

 Donald only gave him a quirked brow this time, but to his surprise and delight, did finally step aside to let him through. Grinning lazily as he always did, he sauntered his way in, and made his way for the table as Donald shut the door behind them.

 Not much had changed since hed last seen the place. Small, homey, and a bit dated for his liking but otherwise charming. Very Donald, he thought. 

 "So, Spitfire, how are things? Uncle McGruff wasn't exactly chatty in the two minutes he actually acknowledged me."

 "Well we had an exciting unplanned visit to Ethiquack."

 "Oh? That sounds great; how's Selene, the lovely Moondrop?"

 "Dunno, got kinda distracted with not getting killed by Zeus or hugged to death by Storkules."

 "Oh yeah, Zeus...did not care for Zeus..."

 "Neither did anyone else, apparently, they all left."

 Gladstone snorted as he toyed with one of the placemats. Awkward silence followed, broken occasionally by him clearing his throat or making comments on random decor. Donald busied himself making tea, both knowing they'd need it to get through this visit. 

 Gladstone offered a small thanks as he set the mugs down, and sighed in content as he took a drink. 

 "Man, no one makes it better than you, Donnie Boy. Really did miss this."

 "What, they didn't have tea in a big shot, fancy hotel in China?"

 The mention nearly made him choke; he hadn't been expecting that to pop into the conversation so soon. He managed to hide his shock behind another feigned cough, and flashed a stiff grin.

 "Well...yeah but it's not the same, ya know? Homemade and all."

 ".....I think that was literally the most homemade tea you could have."

 "Ok look I'm trying to compliment your cooking, alright?"

 Donald merely rolled his eyes as he took a tentative sip. Gladstone idly twirled the mug, watching the dark brew for a moment before speaking up again. 

 "Look...about the whole accidentally trapping you thing..."

 "Forget it, everything worked out fine, didn't it?"

 "Well, I mean...yeah but not exactly how I wanted it to. No one was supposed to swap with me or bring the kids into the mix--"

 "Like they were going to stay home when I mentioned you calling and Scrooge wanted to take them on a trip to a golden cricket temple?"

 "....ok that's fair. But I really never intended for things to happen like they did; I figured your...complicated luck would either rub off on me or wreck the place to the point Toad would just kick is all out. Either way seemed like a good option."

 "Whatever, it's fine; one more battle scar to add to my collection."

 "Ahhh, a few minor burn marks, you'll still have your decent looks. Ladies eat that stuff up, don't they?"

 "That's not what I meant."

 He set the mug down, and pulled his shirt down as far as it would go.

 Gladstone gaped at the sight of several shallow bite marks in Donald's shoulder.

 "Wha--where'd those come from?!"

 "I'll give ya three guesses and they all smell like soggy mint leaves."

 "....wait did Toad...?! That slimy son of a--- okay that's it I'm dragging him back from wherever he went and ripping him a new one so help me--!"

 "Take it easy, Gladstone, they're not even that deep. He barely broke skin before he started freaking out about my terrible luck. But, that's not why I brought it up,"

 He fixed Gladstone with a pointed frown, and the latter withdrew somewhat as he subconsciously tugged at his collar.

 "So....why did you...?"

 "I want to know why you're really here."

 "What...are you talking about? I-I just wanted to visit."

 "Lemme see you arm."

 "What?"

 "Let me see."

 "Don it's fine--"

 "Gladstone."

 "Look I just wanted to drop in and say hi, not dwell on the past. It's no biggie--"

 He yelped as Donald abruptly snatched his arm and started tugging at his sleeves.

 "Hey cut it out! You're gonna stretch the material--!"

 "Let me see your dang arm--!"

 "No, it's fine!"

 "I WILL LOCK YOU IN THIS HOUSE IF YOU DON'T START TALKING, I SWEAR--!"

 "DONALD, SERIOUSLY STOP...!"

 Donald finally managed to snag his shirt collar, and jerked it down to reveal his neck and part of his shoulder. Like Donald, he too bore bite marks, but his were far deeper and older, scarred over with time. Gladstone froze for a moment, before abruptly lashing out with his foot and kicking the other away.

 "GET OFF...!"

 Donald backed off, riled up and ready to hurl an insult-- but stopped as he took in Gladstone's appearance. The bristled feathers, the defensive stance as he pressed a hand to the injured area, the distant, fearful look in his wide eyes.

 Like he'd been through this before.

 He seemed to snap out of it moments later, and quickly averted his eyes, instead scowling at the floor.

 "I'm leaving, I'll see you around."

 He brushed past, headed for the door at a brisk pace, intent on just leaving all this behind, this was a mistake, he shouldn't have come--

 Donald stepped in front of him, frowning but more concerned than angered. 

 "Gladstone, I don't want to argue with you right now."

 "Neither do I, D.D., really..."

 "Then tell me WHY you're here. Why'd you come to see me?"

 Gladstone didn't answer. His narrowed eyes were looking everywhere but Donald, who sighed and moved closer. He carefully placed a hand on his other, presumably uninjured shoulder, and only then did he finally meet his eyes. His were on the verge of breaking, letting all the pent up emotions spill out, but he forced them back. He couldn't let his emotions get the better of him, not with Don, HE was supposed to be the emotional one, Gladstone was always the one who maintained a calm demeanor no matter what. He didn't stress over things, didn't have worries, didn't let minor problems bother him--

 Donald tightened his grip, and lightly shook him back to the present. 

 "Gladdy, talk to me, please."

 He took a stuttered breath, and swallowed the feelings bubbling inside.

 "I just...wanted to see ya, see how things were going, how the kids are doing. You know, the usual."

 Donald's skepticism remained, and he directed Gladstone back to the sofa bench.  

 "Will you stop with the crud already and tell me what's going on?" he asked, sitting them down. Gladstone hesitated, biting at his lower lip, but Don's hand on his shoulder urged him to respond.

 "I.....needed to see you. Needed something I can handle...I can handle your temper tantrums, and Uncle Scrooge's nitpicking, and people loving and hating my luck. I can handle all that! I can't handle...whatever THIS is. The dreams, the paranoia-- I can't watch TV without feeling like I'M being watched, I haven't had a decent night's sleep in days and it's driving me crazy--!"

 He cut himself off with a sharp inhale; he glanced briefly at Donald, as if to gauge his reaction, before looking away again as a light blush formed.

 "S-so anyway, yeah, just...yeah..."

 "Why didn't you just say so?"

 Gladstone let out a shaky laugh, breath hitching at the end. 

 "Because I'm ME, I don't have worries or problems, right?! So what if I have a few bad dreams or get worked up over nothing being there even when it feels like there is! I've got it all, don't I?"

 Donald stared at him as he went on, before he sighed and shook his head, and lightly bumped him with his shoulder.

 "You dummy, being lucky doesn't change the fact you went through something horrible. You should already know that,"

 He said the latter half of the statement softly, being careful not to sound condescending.

 "If you were going through all that, you should've called me, or Grandma or Uncle Ludwig; you know we aren't gonna turn you away when you need us."

 "Well, you were closer and I just...I knew you were still gonna be mad, so I thought I'd let you cool off."

 "Well yeah I was mad, I don't like nearly getting cooked alive or eaten by a tiger when we could've avoided it all if you'd just said 'Hey, being held captive by a luck demon'."

 "I feel like you and everyone else missed the whole 'under surveillance 24/7 and I literally couldn't tell you without being caught' thing; I mean he even SAID he'd have found out, how did you not get that--?"

 "ANYWAY, the point is yes I was mad but that doesn't mean I'm gonna ignore you when you're upset. Your family, even if you're a pain in the neck half the time....okay a majority of the time. If you needed to talk, you know I'm always gonna listen."

 He could feel Gladstone shaking under his hand, and was still visibly fighting back everything wanting to burst out of him. He sighed, and forced Gladstone to meet his eye.

 "Gladstone, just talk; whatever you want to say just say it."

 Finally he let out trembling sound, some mix of a laugh and a sob, before letting his head drop onto the other's shoulder as it grew into what was most definitely a sob.

 "I was so scared, Don! I didn't know what to do, I'm not like you or Scrooge or.....I-I can't THINK my way out of problems like you guys! My luck always did it for me but it did the opposite there it just made things worse! Every time I got close to maybe getting out of there he'd turn it around on me and I'd be back to square one! He'd get so mad and he was scary when he was mad you don't even know; he'd have me gaming til I dropped or when I really ticked him off he'd get physical and drain me directly and I--!"

 He collapsed against Donald, who remained respectfully silent as he embraced him and rubbed his back.

 "I HATED those times, I hated it, it hurt so much! I tried fighting back but he'd just hold me tighter and I swear he was gonna break my arm once, I had bruises for a week! Sometimes he'd lock me up in some backroom for hours beforehand just to freak me out and I'd get so worked up by the time he came in I couldn't even think I'd just lose it and I don't...!

 "I'd yell and scream so loud, hoping someone would hear, anybody, and come help but no one...no one ever did..."

 He trailed off, heaving out another sob as his grip tightened. As if to keep himself grounded in the present, to remind himself...he wasn't there, he wasn't in that room.

 The next few minutes ticked by in near silence, save for the weeping and uneven gasps. Donald finally spoke, offering soft comforts, that everything was alright now and he's so sorry they left him there, and hugging him tighter, almost painfully so but neither cared. It didn't matter, nothing else did at the moment; their past quarrels, good luck, bad luck, it didn't matter. All that did was making sure Gladstone felt what he clearly hadn't in some time.

 Safe.

 :

:

:

 Huey, Dewey, and Louie approached the houseboat, curiously eyeing it.

 "Why are we out here again?" Louie grumbled.

 "Uncle Scrooge said Uncle Gladstone came out here to see Uncle Donald." Huey replied as they crossed the boardwalk.

 "Exactly, and I'd like to stay as far away from the ticking time bomb as possible..."

 "I mean it's been two hours and the boat hasn't sunk or blown up, sooo...good sign?" Dewey offered weakly, clearly unsure if he even wanted to go in.

 All three sighed, and continued forward; their curiosity was too great. Ever since Macaw, Uncle Donald had been vocal in his displeasure with their distant pseudo uncle. So there was sure to be some crazy antics going on inside...

 Walking with practiced steps to avoid the creaking planks, the triplets gathered beneath one of the windows, and stood on the very tips of their toes to peer inside, finding....

 Their uncles bundled up on the couch, passed out in a sleeping pile. 

 Well, it was certainly something none of them had expected. Pretty soon they quickly and quietly scrambled their way back to the mansion, leaving the sleeping cousins be.

 It was a rare moment of peace for them that no one had the heart to destroy.

[thefandomlesbian]

Hey idk if you still take prompts but could you maybe write smth like Person C: so how did we practice for you to ask out Person A? Person B: Hey, person A, can I take you out to eat on friday? Person C: and what did you ask Person B: Hey, person A, can I eat you out on friday? Person C: Person B: she said yes though... For foxxay ? You’re writing is amazing btw 💞

Read on AO3 for best experience!

A heavy book dropped onto the countertop in front of Misty where she ate her cold cereal. “We’ve got to talk,” Nan said. Misty blinked up at her, chewing and swallowing her Frosted Mini Wheats, and then she pushed the bowl away to look at the book Nan had given her. She studied the title: Gold Dust Woman: The Biography of Stevie Nicks by Stephen Davis. “You’ve got to talk to Cordelia, and you’ve got to do it now.”

Misty swallowed the lump of mushy cereal in her mouth. “Uh-uh, nice try. Stephen Davis got caught making up a bunch of nonsense in this book. He even got her birthday wrong. Stevie was born on May twenty-sixth.” She met Nan’s incredulous gaze. “Oh. Right. Cordelia.” She cleared her throat and pushed the book aside. “What’s wrong with Cordelia?”

“You’re in love with her.” Misty cringed at the frankness and loudness with which Nan said it, but her apprehension only caused Nan to smirk more. “And she’s in love with you, and you’re both afraid of each other! And I’m tired of listening to your brains rattle on about it! So somebody has got to do something, and I know Cordelia won’t, so it’s up to you.” Nan crossed her arms and raised a purposeful eyebrow at Misty, as if she expected everything to change on the spot. “You’ve got to do something. I can’t handle hearing the two of you think for another day. It’s stupid.”

Misty flinched. “Hey. Miss Cordelia is not stupid!” Nan gave her a pointed look, and after she reconsidered her words, Misty agreed, “Alright, I hear you. But I can’t just march up to her and ask her out. I mean, it’s not that simple--she’s the Supreme. And I don’t think she’s still over the whole thing where her husband tried to kill me.”

Drawing out the stool beside Misty, Nan hopped up into it. “Shouldn’t you be the one to get over it? You’re the one he almost killed.”

She shrugged. “I would’ve just come back, anyway.”

“Well, you’re right. She feels guilty about that.”

The corner of Misty’s lips twisted downward in distaste. She didn’t want Cordelia to feel guilty about anything, especially not Hank’s actions--Cordelia couldn’t have controlled him, and she couldn’t have known. “See, there’s that. And she’s the Supreme,” Misty repeated, in case Nan hadn’t caught it the first time. “She’s got way bigger things on her plate than me.”

“Yet you’re all she thinks about. All the time. All the time, Misty--I can’t sleep because she can’t sleep because she’s thinking about you. And it’s embarrassing to know the things she thinks about you when you’re my friend. I don’t want to think about you that way!”

Misty’s mouth dried up. “What does she think about me?” Nan arched an eyebrow. “Right, right, right, not the point.” She licked her lips. “What do you expect me to do about it?”

“You’ve got to ask her out.”

“Nope.”

“Yep.”

“No.”

“Yes.” As Misty tried to slide away from Nan, considering the conversation over, Nan grabbed a handful of her hair and dragged her back. “Wait! We can practice. I learned a new spell. Practice on me. Ask me to go out with you on Friday.” Misty blinked a few times as Nan’s body seemed to shiver and expand, growing taller and thinner, until she stared up at Cordelia in the flesh. “Ask me out.”

It was still Nan’s voice. Misty clutched the edge of the countertop with incredulous eyes. “Oh, bon dieu.” Her knuckles turned white. “You gotta knock that off. You’re too pretty for me to think right now.” She was right. It’s weird thinking about your friends like that. Nan crossed her arms and jutted out a hip with a strange look on her face--a look that would have been familiar on Nan but was entirely misplaced on Cordelia’s face. “Right. Um. Okay. Will you go out to eat with me on Friday?”

“Is that how you’re going to start the conversation? Just walk up to her and blurt it out?”

No, but I want this to be over right now. Nan snorted as she thought it, and Misty tried to clear her head before she accidentally thought something meaner. “No. Alright, lemme try again.” Maybe this is the best way. Cordelia’s a real person, not just a figment of my imagination with a pretty face. Putting Nan in Cordelia’s body made her more real. “Hey, Miss Cordelia, how are you?”

Nan laughed. “You’re closing your eyes!”

A hot blush crawled all over Misty’s face. “It’s easier if I don’t have to look at her while I do it! My tongue works better that way!”

Leaning against the counter top, Nan waited patiently for Misty to bring herself back down into reality. “So if you and Cordelia start dating, you’re just going to spend the whole relationship closing your eyes when you have to talk to her?”

“We’re not going to start dating!”

“You will if you do this right! Try again.”

Misty peeled her eyes open and stared right at Nan’s eyebrows. She couldn’t dip down lower; she couldn’t risk looking into Cordelia’s honey-hued eyes and getting lost inside of them. “Alright. Hey, Miss Cordelia, how are you?”

This time, the greeting won Nan’s approval. She smiled. It was almost Cordelia’s smile. “I’m fine, Misty. How are you? What’s on your mind?”

Whole face flaming, Misty swallowed hard. To her credit, Nan didn’t make her stop to correct the blushing problem. “I was just wondering if you’d go out to eat with me this Friday.”

She didn’t stammer at all to her own surprise. “Of course! I’d love to!” Misty ducked her head in embarrassment. “See, it’s not that hard, is it?”

Footsteps drummed on the stairs, and before Misty could answer, Nan whipped back into her own normal shape before Cordelia caught sight of her. She slid the book across the countertop toward Misty and nudged her pointedly before she walked away. She didn’t go far, just into the living room where she was still in earshot. “Good morning, Misty.” Misty blushed at the way Cordelia greeted her. Unfortunately, this gave her pause, and she hesitated. “Are you okay?”

“Um--yeah, yeah, of course.” Misty hopped up from the barstool. “Miss Cordelia, can I talk to you?” She threw out her cereal. It was soggy. She wasn’t hungry anymore, anyway.

Cordelia paused, her brows furrowing with concern. “Of course. What’s up?”

She cleared her throat. “I was just wondering… Um, I was thinking, maybe, would you like it if I eat you out on Friday?”

Cordelia ogled at her like she had grown a second head. From the living room, Nan laughed audibly. It took Misty a long moment of consideration to realize what she had said wrong, and she covered her face with her hands. “I’m so sorry--I didn’t mean--What I meant to mean, I mean what I said to mean, I mean what I meant to say, I meant to ask you if--Oh, God, I wish were dead.”

Placing a placating hand on Misty’s wrist, Cordelia bit her lower lip, chuckling. Misty looked into her sweet honey-hued eyes and fell into them. She swam around in Cordelia’s eyes like a lake, like an ocean, like she had nothing to fear and nothing to lose. “It’s okay. Yes. I’d like it very much.”

“Really?” Cordelia nodded, and Misty dipped down and kissed her, surprising both of them. “Mmf! Sorry, I didn’t mean to do that, either--” Cordelia bounced onto her tiptoes and kissed her again.

Behind them, Nan peeked around the corner. Misty shot her a thumbs up without breaking the kiss.

[kyaappucino]

Slow-Cooked Love

Pairing: Hakyeon/Taekwoon

Words: 1611

Rating: G

Summary: “You’re the one,” Hakyeon had whispered, reserving Leo’s slot. He was almost surprised when he was immediately taken to the confirmation screen. Surely, prettier hybrids would be already taken?

Notes: Written for the DyNamite Fic Fest. Credit goes to QueenSinnamon for one scene inspired by her thread.

The prompt was: write anything inspired by jonog’s Felidae art series. 

Hakyeon hummed as he wandered through the grocery aisle, pushing his cart toward the Hybrid Food section. There were different price points, but he decided to check the app that his school recommended for this assignment.

“Hmm…meat, vegetables, and occasionally, ice cream. Sounds like my grocery list.” The difference was, larger hybrids often ate larger portions. Hakyeon grimaced when he saw his cart was already half full. It would surely take a dent out of his weekly budget. At least, Hakyeon thinks, the school reimburses me for buying food for my assigned hybrid. Otherwise I’d just starve!

He was taking a course in contemporary dance, but even Hakyeon was not exempted from volunteer work. In recent years, the large-sized hybrid population had increased. The government put these larger hybrids in adoption centers, instead of leaving them free to roam about. Dragon-hybrids, lion-hybrids, and everything bigger than a bunny-hybrid was considered a serious threat, since all hybrids had a tendency to follow their animal instincts.

At least Changwon had special laws that allowed bigger hybrids to stay in shelters instead of roaming around. Maybe it wouldn’t be so bad. He had always liked larger animals, anyway. Hakyeon picked up a bag of lion food. His assigned hybrid was an albino lion.

“Excuse me,” One of the stock girls paused in creating an elaborate pyramid out of cans and looked at him. “Yes, how may I help you?” Hakyeon pointed to the lion food and asked, “Can albino lion hybrids eat this too?”

She looked at him strangely. “No, I’m sorry sir. Our store stocks the gold option for this food, for rarer hybrids. They have pretty sensitive stomachs…”

He took one look at the price tag and was very glad that the school would reimburse his expenses. “How do dragon-hybrid trainers make a living…?” He murmured, and the girl laughed. “I’ll be sure to ask my trainer, but with the food he buys me—he earns a lot.” Her arms, exposed, had gleaming emerald scales, and her tail had a satin ribbon on the end.

A few moments and much conversation later, Hakyeon walked out of the hybrid grocery with a lighter debit card and a hopeful heart. Online, Leo seemed like a good and docile hybrid. The photos depicted him as a regal-looking hybrid. “Male, tall, platinum-blonde. Original genes – albino lion.” The attached photos in the V.I.X.X. Care Center were very attractive. It almost looked like a photo-shoot, if Hakyeon was being honest.

There were pictures of Leo eating ramyun, slurping and chewing, getting soup all over his soft-looking sweater. Hakyeon even saw a photo of Leo seated in a large plush chair, as regal as the albino lion genes inside of him.

“You’re the one,” Hakyeon had whispered, reserving Leo’s slot. He was almost surprised when he was immediately taken to the confirmation screen. Surely, prettier hybrids would be already taken? “What am I thinking?” Hakyeon muttered to himself. Maybe the assignment had come in time. He needed a distraction, and perhaps taking care of a larger species of hybrid could fill the emptiness in his heart.

Their first meeting was awkward, to say the least. Hakyeon, groceries in hand, was led to a room with a one-way mirror. There, he could see Leo seated on a plush couch. “Are you ready?” The attending vet student asked him. Hakyeon was nervous, but nodded. “Ready as I’ll ever be.”

Leo was wearing ripped jeans and a dark sweater, the ends frayed with too much washing. It just made him look even more beautiful than ever, and Hakyeon felt a little underdressed in his turtleneck and jeans. The albino lion-hybrid stared into his eyes, and Hakyeon felt like Leo could see through to his very soul.

“Uhm…” the grocery bag crinkled as Hakyeon put it into his lap. Leo cocked his head to one side, curious. Hakyeon half-expected him to paw the bag. “Hey. I’m Hakyeon. I’ll be taking care of you for a while.”

“Oh.” The sound was so soft, but it charmed Hakyeon to the very core. “Thank you.”

He wanted to hear more, so Hakyeon would pass one item from his bag to Leo. When Hakyeon handed Leo some ice cream (specially formulated for albino hybrids), the other man pouted. “I don’t like this brand,” Leo said. “Why not?” Hakyeon asked, curious now. “The saleslady said that albino lions have a sensitive stomach…”

“That’s just so you keep buying their expensive stuff,” Leo said indignantly. “Did you buy any ramyun?”

“Uh, no. Sorry.” Hakyeon tipped the bag to show it was empty. “Maybe tomorrow?”

After that, the lion hybrid sat on the couch and nodded. “Okay. Tomorrow.”

And there they sat in silence, until Hakyeon’s allotted 45 minutes were up.

A few days into taking care of him and Hakyeon already wanted to quit.

This albino lion hybrid, it turned out, liked three main food groups: coffee, junk food, and sweets. Whenever Hakyeon brought Leo the ‘wrong’ food, the lion hybrid would snort and sleep on the couch. “Hey!” Hakyeon had said the first time. “That’s rude. Wake up!”

Leo would ignore him, and Hakyeon would sigh and play games on his phone. “How am I going to get to know you, if you won’t even talk?” He asked out loud, and Leo flicked his tail sleepily, as if that answered Hakyeon’s question.

“You haven’t even touched your burger…” Hakyeon checked the oily paper bag full of food. The fries were completely demolished, but the burger, with crunchy lettuce leaves and thick meat patties, lay untouched. “What’s wrong with you, Leo?”

The vet student refused to talk about it, too. “That’s his own secret. He wouldn’t even tell me, and I’ve been volunteering for two years.”

He learns to be observant.

Gradually, Hakyeon’s 45-minute visits get longer, and Leo slept less and less. There was minimal talking, but now it doesn’t bother him anymore. A sunny smile would be sent Hakyeon’s way if he gave Leo a can of iced coffee from the vending machine. Leo would listen to Hakyeon talk about his day, about his dance lessons, and even his problems with other subjects and school projects. How much of Leo’s world was kept inside the shelter? Hakyeon didn’t even know. He learns that Leo likes simple things, and prefers soft food.

The steaks and burgers Hakyeon buys for Leo remain untouched, even if the hybrid’s mouth was already watering. But he likes them—Leo would put the paper bag by his side, even when the burger was already getting cold. At one point, Hakyeon saw Leo tearing the meat into smaller pieces, and grimacing a little when he tried to chew. One time, Leo yawns, and Hakyeon sees his teeth neatly filed into rows. “…is this why you can’t eat meat?”

The lion hybrid looks down, cheeks pink. “….yeah. The last person who took care of me…he didn’t like my teeth. Said I might hurt him. It still hurts, a bit.”

“I hope I never see him,” Hakyeon says, crushing his soda can out of annoyance. “He sounds like a jerk.” “It’s okay,” Leo says, prying the soda can out of Hakyeon’s fingers. The lion hybrid’s fingers are warm against his own. “That was a long time ago.”

“Still!” Hakyeon said, whining. “He should’ve left your teeth alone…”

Leo chuckled. “Thanks for caring about me.”

It made Hakyeon’s heart flutter more than he would have liked.

After his daily visit to the hybrid center, Hakyeon returns home. There had to be something he could do to help Leo eat. He asks his sister for suggestions. “Slow-cooking the meat makes it tender. Maybe he can eat that?”

“How do I slow cook meat?”

“Lemme show you.”

Hakyeon’s sister shows him the recipe, and explains that the crockpot could even cook food while he was in class. He tries it and makes burritos, carefully wrapping the meat around soft pita bread. Everything nice and soft, for Leo.

When he visits the hybrid center that day, Leo’s head rises immediately, smelling freshly-cocked meat. “Here,” Hakyeon says gently, handing him a Tupperware container full of aluminum. “I made these for you.”

Leo looked at the container suspiciously. “It isn’t anything dangerous,” Hakyeon says, laughing. “my sister helped me, so it’s definitely edible. Here.” Hakyeon uses one fingernail to unwrap the foil from the burrito, and steam rises from within.

The pita bread had gotten a little soggy, but it was still good. Leo still didn’t look convinced. “I’ll prove it.” Hakyeon takes a bite of the burrito, and at this, Leo copies him. The meat was so soft, it melted in Hakyeon’s mouth. Buying the more expensive cut of meat was definitely worth it.

“I thought you…didn’t know how to cook.” Leo murmured, as he tried to bite into the burrito. There was no wince of pain, and Leo started to eat enthusiastically, his tail swishing back and forth in pleasure. “I still don’t, but...I just…wanted to make you something.”

Words are clumsy now, but Hakyeon manages to explain that he just wanted Leo to experience eating meat. “The beef is a bit expensive, but you’re…” the words catch in his throat. “…worth it.”

Before Hakyeon knows what’s happening, Leo leans his head on Hakyeon’s shoulder. “Thank you. For this.”

He doesn’t have the heart to tell Leo that he won’t be visiting forever. But he really wants to adopt him, too. “You’re welcome,” Hakyeon says gently. “Anytime.”

He could get a job in the fall. He’s willing to make it work.

He’d fallen in love even before Leo whispers, “I’m very thankful.”