#over a smashed squished or pressed burger

[prettyboyrose1974]

Jon taffer seeing a smash burger

[firefly-in-darkness]

Colours of Love

Characters → Y/N & Dean Winchester, Other Supernatural characters

Summary → Until you meet your soulmate, everything will be black and white. But what happens when you see the colours of the rainbow but no soulmate in sight?

Word Count → 1.8k

Prompt  →  Soulmate AU + Stolen by Dashboard Confessional.

Warnings → Fluff.

Beta → the superstar that is @princessmisery666 // all mistakes are my own.

Dividers → @firefly-graphics.

A/N → This is for @justagirlinafandomworld Pick Two challenge - I’m so sorry it’s late, hope you enjoy it!

Fear wrapped itself around your chest as you tried to recall the previous night while also having to deal with the adjustment of seeing all these vibrant colours. 

The previously faded grey armchair was now an emerald masterpiece and you couldn’t help your fingers trailing across the velvety material, enjoying the switch between the shades. 

The gold embroidered cushions enveloped you in a squishing hug as you curled around and let your legs dangle over the armrest.

Jessica was sitting opposite, sharing the couch with Sam, her head resting in his lap whilst he snored softly, “Are you sure you don’t remember anything else?”

“I drank a lot last night.” You groaned, your eyes stung with the strain of looking at her newly colourful features and the floral curtains behind her. 

You looked away and around the pokey apartment; the photographs of your friends were now more alive than before and the bookcase full of varying shades and tones framing the many books and ornaments. 

Your head pounded against your skull and your mouth felt like there was a cotton ball stuffed in it. The graduating class had celebrated late into the night, to welcome in the start of summer before they went off into the big adult world. You remembered throwing back shot after shot. 

The thought of the clear burning liquid had your stomach bubbling with nausea and making you sit up, “I remember leaving you two lovebirds by the firepit, I was dancing-”

“-If you call that dancing.” Sam interrupted, his head still tilted back, and eyes closed.

You attempted to roll your eyes, but the muscle movement hurt your head more than it was worth, “-in Brady’s kitchen and then I remember nearly falling over but other than that. Nothing.”

Jessica offered you a reassuring smile, “You’ll find them one day.”

Once your head and body had cleared itself of the alcohol, you relished in periwinkle, fuchsia and evergreen. But weeks later, you still hadn’t found your soulmate, the one that had enabled you to see all these new and beautiful colours.

Eventually, after many conversations with Sam and Jessica, you decided to let fate play out. You’d already planned to travel the world and now you were able to see it in colour, you were even more excited

Well, for a few months of your solo adventure, until the colour began to fade into muted tones alongside your aching heart.

One Year Later…

It was the last chance for the Winchester’s to enjoy the summer. To soak in the sun and spend time with their loved ones before the chaos of Autumn took over their lives. 

Sam and Jess had rounded up all the usual gang for a barbecue to celebrate their engagement as well as Dean and Castiel’s new business venture; a bar in the next town over.

Across the garden, Sam had his arm around Jess while they welcomed guests as they wandered through the side gate. Ellen and Jo were the first to arrive, a selection of beers and chips in hand. Not long after, Bobby and Rufus brought in the burgers and more beer. 

Dean welcomed them all and then retreated to the other side as they all began to gush about Sam and Jess’s engagement. He hovered over the barbecue as the charcoal heated up, sipping on his beer, watching the excitement unfold across the lawn. 

Of course, he is over the moon for his brother; finding his soulmate, settling down in this beautiful white picket fence home and, now, getting married. He recalled how Sam’s name flashed on his mobile out of the blue, Sam’s words a little slurred and the raucousness of the college party in the background as he recounted how he needed his older brother’s advice on how to get the girl. 

Sam’s vision had changed the moment he caught sight of Jess across the lecture room, he spoke of how her blonde hair glowed, the way her pink plump lips grew into a huge smile then turned into a breathy chuckle once Sam realised he’d been caught staring at her.

Dean glanced back over to his family and friends, the strip of freshly mown grass was dull and the flowers he’d helped plant were no longer hosting vibrant petals. The feeling of jealousy and the worry that he was being left behind took over and he looked down at the grill. 

It all started years ago, it happened the night of Sam’s graduation party; the beautiful woman in the kitchen, dancing completely out of time to the music. Instead of going towards her and relishing in this newfound vision, Dean had decided to keep it to himself. He wasn’t ready for settling down, falling in love or even meeting his soulmate. 

Dean decided to rush past her and out of the house. His mission nearly failed as she collided into him and nearly fell over. He set her steady and without a second glance, left the party. Deep down, he knew he’d regret his actions, and that he’d end up in this position; watching his brother lead a life that he could only dream of. 

The dull colours were a constant reminder of what could have been. He turned his focus back to the grill, placing the burgers down and drowning out the sounds from across the garden. 

The moment the porch door swung open, you wrapped your arms around Jessica and nuzzled your face into her curly blonde locks. The travel tension dropping from your body, the soft gesture and the sepia tone of her face brought a warmth into your chest.

Jessica held your hands as you soaked in each other’s appearance “Y/N! Would ya look at yourself? Your video calls have not done you justice!”

“Says you!!” The pair of you grinned at one another before you glanced down at your right hand, pulling her left one up to expect the sparkling diamond, “The boy did good!”

"That he did.” Sam sauntered over and wrapped an arm around your shoulders, his locks fell across his face as he grinned down at you. “It’s about time I made an honest woman out of her. I’d crash and burn if it wasn’t for Jess.”

You rolled your eyes and slapped at his chest and turned back to Jessica, “Is he always this cheesy? I don’t remember him being this bad!”

“You’ve been away too long,” Sam chuckled and tugged you closer, pressing a kiss to the top of your head, “Nice to see you again Y/N. Let me take your bags; I’ll let Jess give you the tour.”

The lounge was homely with its large plush corner sofa and the floating shelves full of books, framed photographs and ornaments. Jessica guided you to the guest room and you relished in the normalcy, especially after years of owning nothing but a rucksack and a few days’ worth of clothes.

“Our bedroom is up the stairs and to the left, the room opposite is Sam’s office and then the bathroom on the right.” Jessica then rushed out the final words, “Dean’s room across the hall. He’s been staying whilst he sorts out the bar with Cas.”

“I’ll just freshen up and I’ll be straight out.” You smiled and shooed Jessica out of the bedroom. “Go and entertain your guests, I won’t be long!”

You wandered through the kitchen, a slight smirk on your lips as you twisted around to do a full rotation of the room; it was just how you imagined it would be. With the refrigerator adorned with magnets, gadgets neatly placed on the counters and the photographs dotted along the walls.

Without realising, you turned and walked straight into someone. Your face smashed into the soft cotton adorning someone’s chest. You gasped and stumbled backwards; the heat of embarrassment settled on your cheeks as you looked up at the wall of muscle you had collided with.

You found the bright green eyes of Dean Winchester looking like a deer in headlights. The golden flecks around his dilated pupils pulled your gaze across his features. His tanned skin and freckles splattered across his nose and cheeks had you follow the darker stubble along his jawline. His mouth was slack, and his pink fleshy tongue darted across his bottom lip.

A laughter echoed from outside, bringing you out of your trance. “I am so sorry!” 

You rushed past him and out into the garden with the want for the ground to swallow you whole. The only time you had met, well-spoken to, Dean, was during a phone call with Sam and then you had seen him when Sam had video called him. Of course, the webcam footage back at college was not the best but you had felt a warmth grow each time you walked past Sam’s room and could see Dean catching up with his younger brother.

A warm welcome by Bobby and Rufus was exactly what you needed to distract yourself from how the first time of meeting Dean Winchester had gone completely wrong. The offer of a beer and a patted spot on the blanket from Ellen had you grinning but not enough to stop your thoughts from wandering back to the man you collided with in the kitchen.

It had always been a surprise to you that it had taken this long to meet Dean, you’d met everyone else in Sam's circle except the closest member. You sipped on the beer, relished in the sunshine and the laughter around you as your thoughts drifted back to the way Dean looked, frozen in the spot just like you.

The pictures and videos did not do the man justice, and well, the last few years had done wonders and the way his bright green eyes sparkled in the frame of soft wrinkles.

Bright green eyes. You almost choked on your beer as you looked down to the ground. The navy and white striped blanket was no longer a dull tone, it was almost vibrant. Your heart raced as your hands glided along the soft fabric. 

Slowly, you glanced up at the raised flower beds to your left; luscious green leaves and dazzling pink petals facing upwards. You followed the flowers’ gaze; the cotton white clouds looked delicate against the contrasting blue sky. 

Your mouth dried and your skin shivered in anticipation as your eyes fell back down to the house, and the man standing on the decking in front of the French doors. 

His sparkling green eyes focused on you, and only you.

Everything Tag List: @reann-loves-sebstan / @aroyaldarknessblr / @thefridgeismybestie / @kitkatd7

Supernatural Tag List: @deanwanddamons

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*Bold - unable to tag

[hopelikethemoon]

Dinner With Friends (Javier x Reader) {MTMF}

Title: Dinner With Friends Rating: PG-13 Length: 3500 Warnings: Family Fluff and extremely mild angst.  Notes: You can find the Maybe Today, Maybe Forever Timeline here. And release order here. Set in January 1998. Shout to the one and only Tiernan for supplying the twist in this chapter.  Summary: Reader and Javier host the Murphys for dinner.

Taglist:  @grapemama​  @seawhisperer @huliabitch @pedropascalito @rogrsnbarnes @thewallpapergoesorido @twomoonstwosuns @gooddaykate @livasaurasrex @ham4arrow @hiscyarika @plexflexico @readsalot73 @hdlynn @lokiaddicted @randomness501 @fioccodineveautunnale  @roxypeanut @just-add-butter @snivellusim @amarvelousmandalorian @lukesrighthand @historynerd04 @mrsparknuts @synystersilenceinblacknwhite @behindmyeyes-insidemyhead @exrebelshocktrooper @awesomefandomsunited​ @ah-callie​ @swhiskeys​ @lady-tano​ @beskar-droids​ @space-floozy @cable-kenobi​ @longitud-de-onda​ @cool-ultra-nerd​ @himbopoes​ @findhimfives​ @pedrosdoll​ @seeking-a-great--perhaps​ @frietiemeloen​ @arrowswithwifi​ @random066​ @uncomicalhumour​ @heather-lynn​ @domino-oh-damn​ @cyarikaaa​ @ahopelessromanticwritersworld​ @im-still-a-pieceofgarbage @ksgeekgirl​  @yabby-girl @xqueenofthecraziesx @punkass-potato @coredrive @pascalesque @theduchessofkirkcaldy @queenquazar (if I forget to tag you, I’m sorry)

“Stevie!” You called out when she started barking loudly — Josie had ensnared her into a game with Olivia and Emily and her patience seemed to be wearing as thin as your own. 

“Did you really have to name her Stevie?”

Steve questioned, shaking his head slowly as he leaned against the kitchen counter and watched you press the button on the top of the lettuce spinner. 

“I love Stevie Nicks.”

He pointed at you, “And that is bullshit.”

You rolled your eyes. “You’re just jealous that Sofía isn’t Stevie.” 

Steve glared, “Well if it starts with ‘S’.” 

“I’m sorry, do you have an issue with our daughter being named for Javier’s late mother?” You questioned, folding your arms across your chest briefly, before you emptied out the tossed lettuce into a larger bowl. 

“Not when you put it that way.” Steve huffed, shaking his head as he took a swig of beer. “How are… things going?”

You glanced over your shoulder at him, “The drought was quenched almost five months ago. Thank God.” 

Steve blanched, “I don’t need to know about that.”

“You asked.”

He narrowed his eyes, “About how things are going.” He rubbed at the back of his neck. 

You laughed, shrugging your shoulders. “I’m doing better. There’s still difficult days, but I work through them.” You chewed on your bottom lip. “And Javier is good at helping me.”

“He’s always been more than willing to give you a hand.” Steve said with a slow shake of his head. “The two of you were inseparable.”

You felt a faint blush rise to your cheeks. “I know. And we still are.” You grabbed a handful of freshly washed radishes and started cutting them down into smaller pieces for the salad. “He’s still just as stubborn about everything.”

“Shit. Isn’t he?” Steve snorted, rocking his head to the side.”I don’t know how you put up with that grumpy son-of—“

“Mommy!” Josie called out from the threshold of the kitchen. “Mommmmmy.”

You sat the knife aside and turned back to look at her, hands on your hips. “What’s up?”

“I’m hungry.”

“Dinner is almost ready.” You assured her. “Why don’t you go check on daddy outside?”

“Okay mommy.” Josie beamed at you. “Does daddy have sissy?”

“Aunt Connie does, rugrat.” Steve told her, “She’s out in the backyard with your father.”

“Thank you.” She said politely before leaving through the back door, followed by Emily and Olivia. 

“She gets away with everything doesn’t she?”

“With Javier? Oh, yeah. I’m the strict parent. Always.” You shook your head with a laugh. You didn’t actually mind filling the role of the strict parent, mostly because Javier was a marshmallow of a father.

“I wouldn’t have guessed that.” He remarked as he took a drink of  his beer, “You’ve always been the fun one. Javier? I didn’t know that fun was in his vocabulary.”

You rolled your eyes, “For the record, he was actually very fun in Colombia.”

“Really?” Steve gave you a skeptical look. “I think that might be the rose colored glasses talking.” He gestured to you with the bottle. “You were the positive influence he needed.” 

“Yeah,” You agreed. “He would’ve worked himself to death, if I hadn’t been there.” You scooped up the radishes you’d cut, tossing them into the bowl of lettuce. “Can you get the croutons out of the oven?”

“Look how fancy you are. Making homemade croutons.” Steve teased as he grabbed an oven mitt and pulled the pan out of the oven. 

“Josie will only eat a salad if there’s croutons in it.” You explained to him. “Javier hates the store bought croutons.” You grabbed the carton of cherry tomatoes, flipping the plastic lid up so you could rinse them off under the sink. 

You glanced back towards the backdoor as it slid open, a parade of tiny humans reemerging, followed by Connie and Javier. 

“Hot food, coming through.” Javier warned, clicking his tongue against his teeth to get the girls to move faster. “Come on kiddos.” He shooed them out from under foot as he veered towards the kitchen counter and sat the two plates of grilled burgers down. “Ever try to keep three girls away from a grill?”

You pursed your lips thoughtfully as you turned to face him, tilting your head to the side. “I tried it once, which is why I sent them out to you.” You grinned at him.

“It’s fucking hard.” He chuckled before he leaned in and pressed a quick kiss to your lips. “Thanks for that.”

“You’re welcome.” You used the dish towel and swatted him in the ass with it. He caught you by the belt loop as you stepped past him, pulling you in for another kiss.

“Need any help?” Connie questioned as she cradled Sofía to her chest, looking between the two of you. 

You shook your head, “You brought the potato salad and you’ve kept her occupied so I could get everything else ready.” 

“Do you have ranch?” She questioned as she looked towards the bowl of salad, “It’s the only way we can get Olivia to even humor eating something green.” 

Javier nodded, “Josie likes it on broccoli.” He stepped around you and pulled open the fridge to grab the bottle of ranch, as well as the other salad dressing options. 

“How do you get her to eat raw broccoli?” Connie questioned. “It’s an uphill battle to get anything green into the girls.” 

“Josie likes food.”

You rolled your eyes, “Josie will eat anything Javier asks her to eat.” 

He shrugged, “It’s true.” 

“I wish Steve had that effect on the girls.” Connie laughed softly, “He can get them to eat plenty of candy.”

You snorted. “He loves his Werthers.” 

She widened her eyes dramatically, “I swear to God, every pocket is full of wrappers!” 

Javier clicked his tongue against his teeth, “Should’ve done the patch, rather than going cold turkey.” 

“That would make sense,” Connie made a face. “Oh well.” She bounced Sofía in her arms as she started to wake up, “Did you see California is set to ban smoking inside bars?”

“They’ll just ignore it,” You countered, grabbing a tray and putting the salad and the salad bowls on it. “But it’s progress.” 

The three of you headed into the dining room, where Steve had managed to corral the girls into their chairs. 

“I don’t want a burger, mommy.” Josie complained as Javier sat the plate of burgers down on the table. 

“You’re not eating a burger, babydoll. You’re having a soy one with me.” You promised her, pointing to the second plate that contained two burgers that were considerably thinner than the actual hamburgers. 

“I want chicken.” 

“Princesa, you’re eating what we made for you.” Javier warned her, sitting down beside her, across the table from you. 

“Do we have everything?” 

“French fries?” Olivia questioned.

“Your mother made potato salad,” Steve told her, pointing to the Tupperware tub. 

You sat down beside Connie, taking Sofía from her so you could get her settled into her highchair beside you. You used your fork to grab a potato out of the dish of potato salad, plopping it onto Sofía’s highchair tray. You smashed it up with the fork, “You wanna try a bit of potato?”

Sofía seemed skeptical. She reached down and squished the potato between her fingers. 

You tapped your finger against your lips, “You eat it, sunshine.” 

Sofía gurgled and threw herself back against her seat, smearing the potato all over her face.

“Close enough.” Javier chuckled, shaking his head as he slathered mayonnaise on a bun for Josie. 

“More!” She urged, hanging on his arm. 

“Josie.” You gave her a look across the table. 

Sofía kicked her feet against the highchair as she leaned over and tried to reach the tub of potato salad that was well outside of her reach. “You like that?” You questioned, grabbing another potato and putting it on her tray, smashing it up for her again. 

She dramatically hummed her delight. 

“Look at that, she’s not always a grumpy baby.” Steve remarked with a short laugh. “I worried she was a carbon copy of her father.” 

Javier glared at him, subtly flipping him off so Josie couldn’t catch him.

You worked on fixing your own burger, glancing around the table to make sure everyone had what they needed. You really hated playing host. An ideal situation was a box of pizza thrown in the center of the table for everyone to fend for themselves. But Steve and Connie were such gracious hosts, you felt like you had to do the same. 

Javier had lived on grilled cheese, whiskey, and cigarettes for the majority of his bachelor years. He wasn’t one to complain. He wasn’t actually half bad in the kitchen when he put a little effort into it. 

“How’s things at the hospital?” Javier questioned Connie in between bites of burger. 

Connie grabbed her napkin and wiped her mouth off before answering, “Good. I’m not working as many double shifts as I was there for a while. I’ve actually had days off that felt like days off. No catching up on sleep.” 

“With my transition out of the DEA, it’s been nice to have her around more.” Steve added. “Hun, did you tell her about that lady you’re working with?”

You arched a brow, looking at Connie expectantly. 

“Oh! I totally forgot,” She laughed, taking a sip of water before she continued. “We’ve got a new medical social worker working on the floor that looks so much like you. I did a double take the first time I saw her. Do you have a secret younger sister?”

“Nope.” You shook your head, reaching for your bottle of beer and taking a swig. “Is my doppelgänger nice at least?”

“An absolute sweetheart.” Connie said with a grin, taking another bite of her burger before adding, “She’s actually from Medellín.”

Javier dropped his fork, causing it to clamp against his plate. You shot him a curious look, a brow arching upwards. 

“Colombia?” He questioned, taking a drink of beer to keep from choking on the bite of burger he’d swallowed nearly whole. 

“Is there another one?”

Steve cleared his throat, “You hadn’t mentioned she was from Colombia.” He looked between you and Javier with a knowing look. 

“I believe she came here as a political refugee. I didn’t ask for specifics.” Connie shrugged, “Why?”

The look on Javier’s face made the lightbulb come on. Holy shit. 

You leaned an elbow against the table, turning towards Connie. “Her name wouldn’t happen to be Elena, would it?”

Connie’s brows shot upwards, “Yeah! Wait — do you know her?”

“Some of us better than others.” Steve muttered under his breath, much to Javier’s horror. 

“Yeah.” You nodded your head slowly, “She was great. I’m glad she’s gotten herself out of that situation.” You looked towards Javier then, smiling a little. “I guess that promise of safety had follow through.” 

Javier rubbed at the back of his neck awkwardly, “I had no idea she was in Miami.” 

“It’s fine, Javi.” You assured him, “It’s a small world.” You watched him as he nodded his head slowly, staring down at his plate of food. Of all the people that the two of you had known in Colombia ⁠— the sheer irony that Elena had made her way to Miami was… something else. 

“I feel like I’m missing something.” Connie remarked, looking between the three of you curiously. “What am I missing?”

“Not in front of the kids.” Steve stated with a shake of his head. 

“Daddy, you gotta eat your veggies.” Josie said sweetly, pushing the bowl of salad towards Javier. “Don’t you wanna be big and strong like me?”

“Of course I do, princesa.” He leaned over and pressed a kiss to the top of her head. 

“Javier, it’s fine.” You said firmly, shifting in your seat so you could brush your foot against his leg beneath the table. “Don’t get yourself bent out of shape over this.”

“I’m not getting ‘bent out of shape’.” He shot back, pressing his tongue to the inside of his cheek as he stared at you. “I just can’t believe… of all the cities.” 

“What am I missing?” Connie questioned, nudging you in the arm.

You sighed, chewing on the inside of your bottom lip. “Elena was one of Javi’s informants. When was that?” ‘89 to ‘92?”

“Yeah, I think so.” Steve agreed with you, pushing his potato salad around on his plate. 

Javier was so tense you could see the corded muscles of his throat as he stared straight ahead at you. 

“So she was an informant informant?” Connie questioned, brows furrowed as she looked towards you.

“Yeah.” You nodded, “And it’s not nearly as big of a deal as Javier is acting like it is.” 

Javier raked his fingers through his hair, sighing heavily as he sank back in his chair. He scratched at his lightly scruffy jaw, not quite meeting your gaze as he looked across the table at you. “It’s a big deal to me.” 

Connie looked between the two of you, “I really didn’t mean to start something.” 

“You didn’t.” You assured her, giving her shoulder a squeeze. “Hey Javi, did you leave the grill on?” 

He gritted his teeth together before he gave a stiff nod, scooting his chair back and getting up from the table. 

“Daddy, where are you going?” Josie asked with her mouth full of her burger.

“Daddy left the grill on.” Javier offered, meeting your gaze as you got up from the table. 

“Uh-oh!” Josie said with a sing-song voice, entirely oblivious to the situation. 

“We’ll hold the fort down,” Steve promised you as you followed Javier through the kitchen and out the backdoor into the yard. 

He walked a few paces ahead of you, before he stopped with his back to you. You considered staying rooted to the spot where you stood, but instead you moved towards him and curled your arms around his middle, resting your cheek against his back. “Javi,” You started, trying to keep your voice steady. “This is such a non-issue.” 

“For you.” He retorted, resting his hands over yours. “I feel like every time we take one step forward, something happens that sets us back. Every fucking time, baby.” 

“But it’s a non-issue,” You assured him, squeezing him a little tighter. “I liked Elena the handful of times we worked together. I’m thrilled that she’s thriving. Hell, I’m glad she’s here. Miami isn’t so bad.” 

Javier turned in your embrace, his hands settling at your hips. “I didn’t know she was here.” 

“I didn’t think you did.” You reached up and cupped his cheek, brushing your thumb over the rise of his cheekbone as you met his gaze. “Look, I know that’s a period of history you’re not particularly fond of, but… It doesn’t bother me. At all.” You tilted your head to the side, “I thought we were working past this.” You gestured between the two of you. “There’s no other shoe waiting to fall.”

His Adam’s bobbed as he looked down at you, “I just can’t fucking believe she’s in Miami.” He shook his head slowly. “Of all the goddamn places.”

“I think she had a cousin here.” You recalled, “Shit, that was a long time ago.”

Javier nodded his head in agreement, “Yeah.” He ran his hands over your hips slowly, “Last time I saw her was right after you told me…” 

“Did you tell her?” Your brows furrowed. 

“I did, yeah.” He recalled, “I mean she knew about you…”

“I know she did.” You reached you and played with the hair that sat against his forehead. “I thought you didn’t tell anyone.”

He shrugged a shoulder, “It slipped out. I figured it didn’t really matter that she knew. She was happy for us.”

You smiled fondly, “I think we should meet up with her.”

“What?”

“Catch up, see how she is…”

“Baby—“

“You don’t have to go if you don’t want to.” You raised your eyebrows. “Hell, she might not even want to see either of us.” You shrugged your shoulders. “I just think it’s too ironic that she’s working at the same hospital as Connie.” 

“I’m not going.”

“That’s fine, I’ll go then.” You rose up on your toes and pressed a kiss to his lips. “You need to stop worrying so much, Javi.” You brushed your nose against his as you raked your fingers through his hair at his temples. “I trust you.” 

Javier curled his arm around your waist, keeping you close to him. “What’d I do to deserve you, baby?” 

“Still trying to figure that one out.” You teased, kissing the tip of his nose. “Come on. Connie’s going to be stressing that she’s single-handedly destroyed our relationship if we don’t get back inside.”

“She was mortified.” He chuckled.

“Not nearly as much as you were.”

“I was praying for the earth to open up and swallow me whole.” 

You rolled your eyes. “You felt that way in the sex sho—”

Javier cut you off, covering your mouth with his hand. “Don’t.” He warned you. 

You poked him in the stomach and when he didn’t remove his hand, you swept your tongue over the palm of his hand. That worked. He quickly pulled his hand away, wiping his hand off on the front of his jeans.

“If you want to shut me up, you’re going to have to wait until we’re alone.” You told him, putting your hands on your hips, before walking backwards towards the back door. “But until then, we have guests to entertain.” 

“It’s just Steve and Connie.” Javier followed after you, his arms crossed across his chest. 

“Who are guests we’re entertaining.” You narrowed your eyes at him. “And you’re going to finish your food, otherwise Josie is going to believe she can skip dinner too.” 

“Fine.” He huffed quietly, shaking his head as he slid the sliding door shut behind him. “But we’re dropping this conversation. I don’t wanna talk about an informant in front of the girls.” 

You gave a mock salute, “Sure thing.” 

Javier caught you by the belt loop, pulling you towards him. “I mean it.”

“I’m not going to bring it up again.” You promised, curling your fingers around the back of his neck. “As much as I love torturing you I’m not cruel, Javier.” 

He leaned down and pressed a kiss to your forehead, “Thank you.” 

You smiled up at him, “No ‘thank yous’ needed, babe.” You took his hand into yours, interlacing your fingers as he headed back for the dining room. Steve and Connie had managed to keep the kids entertained in your absence. 

“She’s had about a full little potato.” Connie told you as she gestured to Sofía, “I think most of it got into her mouth.” 

“She gets really into her food.” You chuckled, releasing Javier’s hand as you both returned to your own seats. 

“Where’d you go daddy?” Josie asked, tilting her head to the side as she licked the dressing off a piece of radish, only to dip it into her salad bowl again. 

“Like I told you,” He reached over and smoothed his hand over the top of her head. “I left the grill on.” 

Connie gave you a wary look as you picked up your burger and took a bite. “So…”

“Everything’s fine.” You assured her, looking towards Steve then, “So have you heard any rumors in the DEA about the article?”

“Oh, I have.” He pressed his tongue to the inside of his cheek and shook his head. “I hope you don’t plan on looking for a job in the federal government.” 

You feigned offense, “If I ever did, you’d know I had been abducted by aliens.” It was still bizarre to consider that you had spent so much of your early adulthood working towards a role in the very institution you wanted to pull down. 

“Baby, you know I have a class of students that would love to see you teaching.” Javier pointed out, beaming with pride. “End of last semester, I had her come in and give a lecture for the department.” 

You rolled your eyes, “It was a fifteen-minute talk.”

“With a forty-minute question and answer section.” Javier insisted, his eyes meeting yours with an adoration that warmed your heart. 

“I would only disappoint them,” You licked a drop of mayonnaise off your thumb as you sat your soy burger back down. “They already think you’re a tyrant when it comes to papers and grading.” 

Steve laughed, “Isn’t that because you do most of the marking for him.”

“And I go easy on them.” You grinned. “My teachers didn’t take any corners with me and I worked my ass off to get here.” 

“I don’t know if I can picture you as a teacher,” Connie said, giving you a once over. “No, I can’t.”

“Thankfully,” Javier started with a teasing tone. “They’re college students and not children.”

“And what does that mean?” You questioned, looking in between the two of them. “I am a delight.” 

“You certainly lectured us a lot. Back in the day.” Steve joined in. 

“Was I wrong?” 

“Rarely.” He agreed. 

“Well, we can't all be Professor Peña, now can we?” You quipped, nudging Javier’s foot under the table. 

He scratched at his jaw, shaking his head. “No, we can’t.”

“But I’m always interested in dropping in to torment you and Monica.”

“Do the other students know that you’ve all but adopted her?” Steve questioned. 

You started to answer, but Olivia was quick to announce, “I’m adopted!” 

Josie turned towards Javier, “Am I adopted?” 

“No princesa, you weren’t adopted.” Javier assured her as she grabbed at his arm. 

“Was sissy adopted?”

“No. Remember your mommy grew her in her belly?” Javier reminded her, giving Connie a sympathetic smile, before his eyes flickered towards your face. “Out of the mouths of babes.” 

“Seriously.” You laughed as you shook your head, reaching for your beer. “To answer your question, no. They don’t know.”

“Trying to keep things unbiased.” Javier explained as he scooped Josie into his lap, much to her delight. “She actually earned herself a B- on a test this week she should’ve aced.”

“You didn’t tell me that.” You frowned. “Why?”

“Her attentions a little stretched right now.”

“Of course it is.” You rolled your eyes, “Oh to be young and in love.” 

“Old and in love isn’t too bad, is it?” He countered with a wink.

You grinned, “It’s pretty good too.” 

[nekokoaa]

Bakugo Katsuki x Reader: Domestic Life

Requested: Bakugo Katsuki

Theme: Domestic Life

Sections: Morning, Afternoon, Evening, Night.

My sister actually requested this for me to write. It was really fun! I hoped I captured Bakugo’s personality.

----------

Morning with Kacchan:

It’s 10 AM in the morning and your eyes fluttered open to the sound of Bakugo shifting his body closer to yours. He was sound asleep, a soft grunt leaving him as his arm around your waist tightened. You hummed softly into his embrace. A smile growing upon your face as you felt the heat from his body surround you. You felt safe and warm in his arms. Under the covers, your legs tangled up with his and your hand traced down his side, feeling his slender but muscular frame underneath your fingertips. You looked up at his face, gazing upon the peaceful and almost innocent expression. It amazed you how innocent Bakugo can look while in dreamland. Sometimes you can’t even recognize him without his furrowed brows and frown. You softly giggled to yourself and pressed your lips upon Bakugo’s before burying your face in his neck. Knowing that Bakugo is probably going to sleep until the afternoon, you knew you wanted to stay in his arms until then. But…

Your phone that was squished between you and Bakugo lit up and vibrated. You slightly pulled away from Bakugo to pick up your phone and looked at it. You let out a soft sigh as the words “Breaking News!” was on the screen. You knew it wouldn’t be long until a villain interrupted your peace but first thing in the morning?

“Duty calls.” You mumbled as you pulled away from your husband and got up. It didn’t take long for you to put on your hero suit. And before you rushed out to save the morning, you landed a kiss on Bakugo’s head. You could’ve sworn you heard him grumble something in response.

Afternoon with Kacchan:

In the afternoons, Bakugo is just filled with fire and energy. It’s the time when he’s most active and if he isn’t out there blowing up villains, then he’s probably at home blowing you up in ways you’ll like. But right now, Bakugo is lounging on his couch with a remote in his hand. He’s flipping through channels without giving the shows a chance to impress him. He always seemed to watch the same shows and if he watches anything new, it’s because you brought up his habit of watching the same old shows. You just walked into the living room with a plate of cheese and crackers until suddenly, a loud boom went off and smoke was coming from Bakugo’s hand.

“Kacchan! Not again!” You were startled from the sound and it made your plate fall to the wooden floor underneath you. Bakugo just sighed and he threw the melted and busted up remote on the ground. He just blew up the remote!

“There’s never anything on this damn TV.” He growled.

“Well, what do you expect when you only watch three shows out of the thousands?” You kneeled down to pick up your plate and the crackers. You were so looking forward to devouring this. You walked back to the kitchen to make yourself another plate but before that, you pulled out one of the drawers of the counters. It was a drawer filled with remotes. “You’re lucky I ordered a ton of remotes!” You yelled from the kitchen. Bakugo really needed to stop breaking these remotes. You took one and placed them on the counter before beginning to gather your cheese and crackers on a new plate. You soon joined Bakugo on the couch and he was sitting there with a grumpy expression on his face. As soon as you scooted closer to him, his arm instinctually went around your shoulders.

“This time, I’ll pick a show.” You said and it made Bakugo curse under his breath. “Since you broke the remote, as punishment, you have to sit through one of my crappy soap operas!”

Evening with Kacchan:

Bakugo always comes alive every time he’s in a fight. It was like the tamed lion finally rebelled and escaped his wretched cage. He wasn’t the typical heroic type of hero, he added his own charm to it.

“You want to lose both your arms, huh?! Keep struggling!” Bakugo yelled with a sadistic smirk on his lips. He was restraining a villain on the ground until the cops arrive. He held the villain’s arms tightly against his back with one hand and his knee. His other hand was hanging above the villain’s head as the sparks flew through his fingers. The villain grunted painfully, beads of sweat rolled down the sides of his face as the heat from Bakugo’s hand grew painfully close.

“Wait! Wait! Wait! A-Aren’t you worried about your little friend over there…?” Bakugo glanced at your direction. He saw you sitting on ground, holding the wound on your arm as blood slid down your skin. You were panting slightly and staring at the both of them. You couldn't believe you’ve gotten yourself injured. It wasn’t like you at all. It was right before Bakugo captured him. The villain can change his hands into knives and as he was attacking, he caught you off guard and sliced you right on the arm. The onlookers gasped when you dropped to the ground, holding your wound to stop the blood from running. You were about to get up to rejoin the fight but Bakugo had already restrain him.

With his question, the villain tried to direct Bakugo’s attention elsewhere. He tried to free himself by lifting his upper body off the ground but he instantly got slammed back against the pavement.

“Do you think I give a shit?” Bakugo grabbed the villain’s head and pulled it back. “I think what you should be worried about is whether I blow you to fucking pieces!”

“Maybe instead of giving you to the police, I’ll end you right now!” He began to rock the villain’s head side to side tauntingly. “You want that!? Huh!?” The villain began to plead for his life, apologizing to Bakugo as his eyes blurred with tears.

Who exactly is the villain here? You questioned as you watched the scene unfold. Luckily, the police came shortly after and took the villain away from Bakugo. The villain seemed very relieved at the fact that he was away from him. You stood up from the ground and sighed softly, finally glad that it’s over. Bakugo came by your side, you can tell he was a little agitated at what happened. More importantly upset at that fact that…

“We can’t even go out to get a burger because of these stupid villains…” He grumbled.

“We can get some burgers after we report to the agency.” You smiled softly.

“What? No. Fuck the agency.” He grabbed your hand and started to lead you towards the direction of home, ignoring any sort of protests you made.

Night with Kacchan:

Bakugo rushed you home after the incident that happened in town. He pulled you through the house and into the bedroom that the two of you shared. He guided you to the bed and then disappeared into the en-suite bathroom. You didn't understand why Bakugo was in such a hurry to get home. Especially since you needed to report to the agency on what happened. You sighed softly as you sat on the bed, running your fingers through your hair. You flinched as you now noticed the throbbing pain on your left arm.

“Oh yeah…” You mumbled as you looked at your wound, blood was still dripping from it and sliding down your arm. Bakugo left the bathroom and in his hands was a first aid kit. He sat beside you and began to treat your wound. You couldn’t help but chuckle at the intense glare he had when he dabbed the cotton ball soaked in disinfectant on your wound. The stinging pain it caused didn't compare to the joy you felt in your heart as you watched Bakugo struggle to treat you.

“What the hell is so funny?” You smiled as his glare was now reflected in your eyes. He rubbed cream on your wound and when he was done, he reached for the bandages in the box.

“I thought you didn’t give a shit?” You teased, poking his knee with your finger.

“Just shut up.” He began to wrap your arm in bandages as you heard him grumble under his breath. “Of course, I give a shit.” He tied off the bandage and started to pack away the first aid supplies in the box. He got up and returned it back to the bathroom. When he came back, he found you lying on your side, smiling softly at him as you watched him joined you.

With a grunt, he landed next to you. “I’m beat.”

“Yeah, it’s been a long day.” You shifted closer to him. The warmth radiating from Bakugo’s body almost cradled you to sleep. He was always so warm like he was your own personal heater. You closed your eyes and surrendered yourself to his heat.

“Oi, you sleeping?” You felt a hand on your hip shake you. You opened your eyes and saw red ones staring back at yours.

“Hm, I just nodded off for a bit.” You hummed softly as you stretched your arms over your head and fell onto your back.

“Good.” You felt the bed suddenly dipped around you and found Bakugo’s red eyes staring at you from above. A smirk was upon his face as he lowered himself closer to you, both of your lips centimeters away. “Cause I ain’t done treating you yet.”

You raised an eyebrow. Your own lips mirrored his smirk. You might as well succumbed to his “treating” even though you were feeling kind of tired. It was the least you can do since things really didn't go Bakugo’s way today. Your lips barely brushed his when you spoke. “Oh really?” You lifted your legs from under him and wrapped them around his waist. You brought a hand to caress his cheek and it only made the smirk on his face grow wider.

“Hell yeah…” With a lustful inhale of breath, Bakugo smashed his lips into yours.

[healthnotion]

How to Make the Perfect Diner-Style Smash Burger

It’s a perennial matter of debate: which makes for a better burger — griddling or grilling?

For almost my entire life, I felt sure the latter was the correct answer. There’s just something about a thick, juicy, flame-kissed burger fresh off the backyard grill. In contrast, the pan-fried burgers I grew up with at home were gray and mealy (a result, I realized later, of the meat having been frozen before cooking).

But then as an adult, I became a big fan of the burgers served up at Freddy’s Frozen Custard and Steakburgers — a restaurant chain. Thin, with craggy edges and a crispy textured crust, these griddle-fried burgers are just crazy delicious. It’s the same kind of burger you get at the Smashburger chain, and which have also been popular at Mom and Pop diners for decades. 

I wanted to figure out how to make this kind of “smashed” burger at home, so I did some research and started trying out some techniques. The result was a homemade pan-fried burger so tasty, I have to say there’s no real going back to the grilled kind. Which is especially good news in these cold months — burger season is all year round now.

If you want to start making your own perfect diner-style smash burgers at home, we’ve put together this easy-to-follow, step-by-step visual guide to the process:

What You Need

Making the perfect pan-fried/griddled burger isn’t rocket science, but an ideal result does require a few tools and ingredients:

Tools:

Cast-iron skillet. The thick, flat, evenly-heated surface provided by cast-iron makes for perfect burger cooking and browning. A thick, non-non-stick griddle will work too.

Heavy-duty spatula. You’re going to be smashing your burgers flat, and to do so, you need a heavy-duty spatula — something thick, wide, and made with stainless steel. A nice metal spatula will also help you flip the burgers while retaining the delicious brown crust which will form underneath. 

4 oz. ice cream scoop/disher. When you’re making a thin smash burger, you don’t want to pack the meat together too tightly by shaping them into patties with your hands. Instead, it’s best to keep the meat loose in a semi-ball shape, and then create the patty by smashing it down with your spatula. To create perfectly sized and shaped quarter-pounder patties, you’ll want to scoop the meat up with a 4 oz ice cream scooper or “disher” — a handle with a bowl at the end that’s got a retractable blade that cleanly releases the meat.

Ingredients:

80/20 or 85/15 ground beef. 80/20 is often recommended as the ideal meat/fat ratio for hamburgers. But grocery stores sometimes only have 85/15, and that’s what we get. Still seems good. Freshly ground is ideal if you want to go that extra step.

Oil

Salt

Sliced cheese. American cheese is classic — extra salty and melty. I used cheddar because we had some to use up.

Bun + whatever dressing and condiments you like on your burger

How to Make a Diner-Style Smash Burger

Step 1: Make sure you have all your supplies ready and at hand before you begin cooking; things will move quickly once the process begins.

Don’t take the burger meat out of the fridge until you’re ready to cook; you want it cold when it hits the pan for reasons explained below.

Step 2: Rub a cast iron skillet with a thin layer of oil and preheat it over medium-high heat for a few minutes. 

Step 3: Crank the heat of the skillet up to high and scoop up a disher full of ground beef.

If you don’t have a disher scoop, gently shape the meat into a golfball-sized ball with your hands; don’t smoosh and press. 

Step 4: Drop the scoop of beef onto the hot skillet.

Step 5: Smash down the meat with your spatula. Press very firmly, until the burger is about as thin as it’ll go.

If you don’t have a very heavy duty spatula and find you can’t generate enough flattening force, apply a second spatula to the first. I probably could have smashed them even thinner still, but juggling smashing and photography was difficult. 

Let’s pause here for an extended note: I realize this step may seem like sacrilege to burger aficionados, as you’re squeezing out some of the meat’s juices. But when you smash a burger right after it hits the skillet (this is the only time you’ll smash the burger during the cooking process), when the fat is still cold and solid, it won’t lose any more of its juices than a non-smashed burger. And unlike a grilled burger, which loses some juice to the flames below it, even when it isn’t squished, the pan-fried burger will continue to cook in its own grease, imparting moisture, adding a wonderful, extra meaty flavor, and creating a craggy, evenly-browned texture so tasty, that even if a griddled burger was slightly less juicy than the grilled variety, which I’m not convinced it is, this crust would make up for it.

Step 6: Salt the burgers.

Step 7: After 90 seconds to 2 minutes, flip the burgers, scraping under them to maintain the crust as you do so.

By the time you’ve dropped and smashed 4 burgers, the first will be about ready to be flipped.

Step 8: Place a slice of cheese on the burgers immediately after they’re flipped.

You want the cheese to be completely melted on your burgers, and that won’t happen unless you place the slices on right after your flip them.

Step 9: Fry for another minute or so and then remove from the pan. Place on a white roll and garnish as desired.

Since these burgers are thin, you can certainly create a double for yourself with two. Potato rolls are often recommended, but not personally my thing. Buttering and toasting the roll takes things up a notch, though we usually just warm them in the oven for a bit. Keep it simple with the garnishes/condiments. I personally just like special sauce and pickles. Make it your own.

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