#packs nine percent

[ceilidho]

sundog

prompt: Simon comes across a girl when she's recently been evicted and takes her back to his place, despite her reservations (nsfw, 8.5k) [based on this old post] [on ao3 here]

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The circumstances of your life change so abruptly that you lose sight of it for a moment. 

Then, you’re out on the streets with the clothes on your back and a suitcase packed so full that a sweater sleeve sticks out where the zippers meet. The locks to your apartment have already been changed. You know because you tried them anyway, desperately hoping that the eviction notice taped to your door might have been misplaced.

Evidently not. The keys don’t work. You contemplate chucking them on the walk out, but instead you keep them close like a talisman of protection, though it’s failed to live up to its purpose so far. 

You’ve got it under control for a day. If by ‘under control’, you mean experiencing a full body panic attack in the locker room of the twenty-four hour gym down the street from your old apartment. The staff gives you uncomfortable looks when you come in on the verge of tears with your suitcase rolling behind you, but they let you in because your membership is up to date. If you can count on anything in life, it’s consumerism. 

That doesn’t last long though, mainly because a locker and a wood bench won’t cut it in the long term. You sleep in the back of the local library until a stern-faced, if pitying, librarian threatens to call the cops on you. Pity isn’t sympathy, evidently. 

Gym management threatens to cut the lock on the locker you’ve been using as temporary storage space. Matter of fact, they say, you can’t be using the locker room as your quasi apartment between the hours of nine P.M. and seven A.M. just because everything else in the city is closed. Go home, they say. 

What home, you don’t say, before packing up your things and heading out on your way. 

If there’s one thing you can count on, it’s capitalism. 

You didn’t think this kind of thing could happen to someone like you. Someone like you being an ordinary person. Homelessness always felt like a far away concept. But the world is cruel and life is brutal. What you didn’t realize before was that, at any moment in time, you’ve been closer to poverty than wealth, and here you are now, sitting in the park with your suitcase between your legs, the sun rapidly setting behind you, your phone at ten percent battery, and nowhere to go because your family is, frankly, nonexistent, and your friends, for lack of a better word, have almost entirely washed their hands of you.

Sorry, they’d say, the frown emoji expressing something like pity at a distance. We don’t have a couch to spare. 

I can sleep on the floor, you’d texted back. They’d gotten cagey after that. People like to be wanted only to a certain extent.

You can feel the panic rise up in you, too big to contain. It comes out in the form of blubbering tears and snot running from your nose. Big, hiccuping sobs. It’s not pretty. Passersby avert their eyes for the most part, save for the ones that eye you with something bordering on perverse delight and that’s what finally makes you get up and speed walk away, lest they feel compelled to approach you. 

But even in the tailwinds of summer, it gets cold outside at night. Worst of all, as the evening grows dark, the streets empty out until you can’t help but feel like a beacon with your little rolling suitcase. It clatters against the sidewalk as you try to hoof it down the street, looking for any shop still open to loiter in. Most close after nine though. You’ve googled homeless shelters, but the sheer anxiety keeps you floundering around up and down the streets instead.

It feels beyond helpless. You’re in a state like you’ve never been before, crying under a streetlamp because you needed a moment just to get your bearings. 

What you know now is that this world is a house of false bottoms. You thought the circumstances of your life could never change. You were never well to do, but you were doing well. The sight of the unhoused sitting with their backs to the brick and mortar stores on your walk home or congregated in a park in the middle of the city with their tents and shopping carts used to fill you with immeasurable pity, maybe even a quiet moment’s reflection; now, you see them as kin. 

Easy, isn’t it? To slip between states. To go from solid to liquid to gaseous. Easier than you ever could have expected. 

When it starts to rain, you almost close your eyes in relief. Anyone could’ve predicted this. 

You almost don’t respond to him at first, keeping your eyes trained on the sidewalk to avoid any bumps. Also, it never pays to look up at a man barking at you, especially not when he’s barking something like, Girl or Bird, turn around. 

Then he says it again, closer this time, and you’re forced to look up, if only to see who’s approaching you. Your suspicion melts away to distrust at the sight of the man stalking towards you. Distrust with a touch of trepidation—maybe outright alarm. Surely no man his size wearing a balaclava tucked into a hoodie straining around his arms would have innocent designs on you. 

He’s one of the bigger men you’ve ever come across. You look across the street to see if there’s a bar missing its bouncer, but all the shop fronts are dark like the ones on your side. 

You don’t bolt at the sight of him, but it’s a near thing. He appears from nowhere, and yet there’s nowhere for him to hide. Not with the size and breadth of him damn near taking up the whole sidewalk. His demeanour and stride evoke such a sense of authority that at first you mistake him for a plainclothes man, and wouldn’t that be just the icing on the shit cake of a week you’ve been experiencing. But something about him says otherwise. 

“Plan on catchin’ your death out here?” he asks, and you shiver. Not from the cold, but from the sound of his voice. 

You’re not used to talking to strangers. A month ago, you would’ve ignored the man lambasting you for being out in the rain; maybe crossed the street and hailed a cab instead. You don’t have those kinds of options anymore. The only thing left in your repertoire is to shout back. 

“I’ve got mace!” you yell out, your voice a hoarse rattle carved out from hours spent crying. 

“That’ll do ya fuck all out here,” he says, a touch condescendingly. “You lost or somethin’?”

“I’m not lost,” you sniff, rubbing the snot away from your nose with the end of your sleeve.

“Then get home instead of roamin’ the streets. You’re askin’ to get snatched up, bird.”

The threat of that has been lingering in your head these past few days, even stretching back to the very first moment that you noticed the sign on your door, but now it has its intended effect. You shake. 

“I can’t,” you whisper.

“Bloody hell,” he sighs. “Why the fuck not? Need someone to call you a cab?”

“I got evicted. I don’t have a home,” you say, and sniffle when your nose leaks again. Saying it outloud brings tears to your eyes again, a pressure building behind your orbital sockets and down to the tip of your nose. 

You must look like the saddest thing in the world standing there in the rain under the dim light of the streetlamp, the pole looped with graffiti and old gum. When the man berating you for being out in it takes a step forward, coming into the light, you can finally make out the bored depths of his eyes. A deep brown. Entirely unimpressed with the picture in front of him, maybe even a bit peeved. 

Your socks are wet and your shoes squelch when you take a step back. You pull the sheer sweater tighter around your frame, but it does nothing to protect you from the damp, frigid air. 

“You been out here long?” he asks, taking another step closer. Not tentatively either. His gaze sweeps over you proprietarily, taking stock; his arrogance comes as an afterthought. He’s not rubbing it in your face that he can do whatever he likes—he just does. 

You wheel your suitcase around in front of you to put something between the two of you. “…Just today. The gym kicked me out.”

You sound petulant, words chewed between your lips and teeth; begrudgingly admitting to the various pitfalls of your existence. All the bad luck. It’s shameful to admit to losing complete control of your life. 

“Haven’t ya got any family, girl? Friends? What’re they letting a girl like you stay out on the streets for?”

You could be sick on the pavement. “…That’s none of your business.”

His eyes go flat at that, unimpressed. “You always this nasty to people tryin’ to help?”

And you’re not. That’s the part that grates the most. You’re all soft underbelly; no bark, no bite. It’s inconceivable that this could’ve happened to you—inconceivable because your head is filled with false promises and mythologies. The myth of exceptionalism. This happens to other people. Not good girls that go to college and get their degrees and find a stable job. 

They’ve pulled the rug out from under you so fast that you haven’t even toppled over yet. That’s how quick it all happened. 

“What help are you?” The bite comes out of nowhere, fueled by bitter humiliation and resentment for the predicament you’ve found yourself in. “Are you gonna put me up in a hotel?”

“Think I’m made of money, bird?” he asks rhetorically. 

“You’ve probably got more than I have.” 

Now you’re weepy again at the thought. Down to your last hundred dollars and you’re in between jobs at the moment. It might’ve been easier to haul yourself out of poverty if applying for jobs didn’t require a mailing address. That’ll be your first priority once you find a place to live. But conversely, how are you meant to find housing with no proof of income? Landlords laugh in your face before slamming the door shut. The conversations are circular, but they always come to a grinding halt; that’s the only thing you’ve learned to expect. 

The worst part of this whole conversation is that it doesn’t follow any of the scripts you’ve previously memorized. When have you ever had to deal with a man interrogating you about your place of residence? It makes no sense. 

It’s inconceivable to imagine that this is happening to you, but it is. Life comes at you hard, with a razor’s edge. Sharp enough to cut, to lacerate. 

“You need a place to stay,” he states bluntly. 

“It’s fine. I’ll—I’ll find something.” 

“You could come home with me.” He says it so bluntly that for a moment all you can do is blink. Surely you misheard him. Surely a man of his size and breadth, dark mask obscuring his face, wouldn’t be daft enough to ask a woman he found on the street to come home with him.

The offer, as well-intentioned as you hope it is, puts you on edge. “No, that’s…that’s alright. I don’t want to…put you out. I was going to look up nearby shelters.”

“Shelters’ll all be full this time of night,” he says. “Never been on the streets?”

You clenched your teeth, nerves starting to get the better of you. 

“I can go to a church,” you say, voice terse now, frayed with nerves. 

He snorts. “Haven’t been to one in a long time, but pretty sure those close too, pet. It’s late.”

You sway on your feet, the suitcase at your side the only thing keeping your knees from buckling. Dead ends everywhere you turn. You’ve always thought of yourself as resourceful; that if push came to shove, you’d figure your way out of any sticky situation. That smacks of arrogance now. All your suppositions are dissolving right in front of you, your own self-image along with it. 

A heavy foot stepping into a puddle brings you back to focus. The masked man is closer now, within arm’s reach. Your heart jumps into your throat. He towers over you, monolith man; big as a sequoia, or other deadland creatures that vanish out of sight when you catch a shadow out of the corner of your eye and whirl around to look it dead on. 

“I can’t go home with a stranger.”

You know you’re not supposed to put your faith in strange men. Bad things happen to girls that go around trusting any man that offers up their help. 

The fist in your chest loosens infinitesimally when the man reaches up to pull the mask off his head. He’s every inch the brute you imagined in your head—blunt chin and crooked nose, a nasty scar running up his lip. There are scars all over his face, in fact—bisecting his left eyebrow and down his cheek. The blond hair on his head is slightly grown out, like he’s used to keeping it neat and tight but it’s been awhile since his head has seen a razor. His beard grows in a bit patchy, the burnish gold of a five o’clock shadow.

You frown. “Is that supposed to make me trust you?”

“Well, now we’re not strangers, are we?”

“That doesn’t—that doesn’t change anything! I still don’t know you.”

He shrugs. Takes a step back. “Suit yourself then. No skin off my ass.”

Your stomach roils, anxiety coming back with a vengeance. You hadn’t noticed it recede since the man started talking to you, but you notice its return. When he makes a move to turn back around, you lurch forward, your hand extending out and fisting in the side of his shirt. He pauses, then looks down at you. 

“…Where else am I supposed to go?” you whisper.

He tilts his head. “Could sleep on a bench in the park.”

You glare at him through tear-soaked eyes. “That’s not funny.”

“Wasn’t meant to be. You’re shit out of other options at this time of night.”

“So, what? Now it’s-it’s my fault or something?”  

His eyes don’t exactly soften, but they lose their hard edge. 

“I’m not gonna ask twice,” he says. Not cautioning you, just stating a fact. “You coming or not?”

Disaster seems like a given at this point. At least you could pick your poison. 

Words are beyond you though, so you just bite your lip and nod, eyes downcast now. 

What else is there for you to do but follow him after that? You trail along after him like a sad, wet cat left out in the rain. 

He finds her wandering the streets with her pretty little suitcase rolling over every bump and crack in the sidewalk and there’s no fighting the urge to drag her home. 

She doesn’t look like a runaway. Just a poor thing down on her luck. Her cheeks practically glisten with her tears when she looks up at him with her big, pathetic eyes, and it makes his cock plump up against his thigh. 

That’s not what this is about though. Simon presses his hand against his dick to rub out some of the ache while she flutters around the bedroom and reminds himself of that again. He didn’t take her home to maul her like a dog. He dragged her back to his flat because she looked wounded and scared out of her wits. 

He can be good every now and then. 

“Sit down, will ya?” he grunts, tugging her down onto the couch when she flits across the room to grab more of her shit out of her suitcase, glancing down at him apprehensively on her way by. She yelps when he sends her sprawling onto the couch. 

His flat isn’t much. A one-bedroom above a laundromat; eggshell walls and torn up baseboards because he hasn’t gotten around to fixing the place up. It’s better than sleeping on the streets though, he knows that much. 

Simon’s no stranger to that; if being in the military taught him anything, it was how to survive regardless of circumstances. In the weeks after his medical discharge—his knees beyond busted, basically bone on bone, and even these days, though he works more to have something to do than to earn a living, they still scream at him when he puts too much weight on them—he wandered aimlessly for a bit, crashing on Gaz’s couch for a bit and sleeping on benches for a spell after that before finding his footing again. 

Simon ignores the way that she yaps at him though, used to tuning people out. He flicks on the television and flips to a show that looks vaguely entertaining before getting up and ambling over to the kitchen. 

“D-do you want me to help?” she asks from the kitchen, tripping over her words in her haste to get them out. 

She reeks of the need to please. Desperate; cloying, sickly sweet like flowering dracaena. It clings to her like a perfume, silk-wrapped and packaged just for him. It could give a man like him indecent thoughts. His thoughts already tend towards the impure. 

He must eye her like a ravenous animal because she flinches suddenly under his gaze, eyes flicking away nervously before meeting his again. Good girl, Simon wants to say. Eyes on me. 

“Sit down,” he barks instead, and relishes in the way she sits back down with her hands tucked under her thighs. 

She’s really a pretty little thing. A shame that he found her out wandering in the rain, out where any man with worse intentions could have stumbled across her. The thought alone could drive him to violence. Again he stares at the back of her head and the slope of her shoulders, evaluating. His bloodlust dulls to a simmer. It pounds in his ears like a dull drum, but at least now he can hear again. 

Anyone else could have found her first, but they didn’t. He did. That tempers the homicidal impulse thrumming in his blood. She’s in his flat now, freshly showered and skin still damp. When she looks over her shoulder, it’s him she sees. 

Poor bird with her clipped wings. She’s not in danger of flying off anytime soon. The thought placates him. Tucked away in his cage, he doesn’t have to rend anyone limb from limb.

It’s been years since he traded in his fatigues for a hi vis jumpsuit, but some days he misses it so acutely that his hands shake and his vision fades in and out. This is one of those days. He toys with the idea of reaching out to Price in the morning to learn more about her, but then discards the idea. Better if it comes straight from her.

Besides, he doesn’t like asking for favours anyway.

“Name’s Simon, by the way,” he grunts, nostrils flaring when he sees her flinch at the sound of his voice. “Riley.”

“Oh,” is all she says. He waits a beat.

“Gonna give me your name, bird?”

She does, voice squeaky like it’s said under duress. That pisses him off more. 

He's not much of a cook, but he can whip up something quick, so he tosses one of his frozen meals into the microwave and sits her in front of the TV while she shivers and shakes on the couch.

They eat in silence, the TV on in the background. It’s the only noise besides the soft sound of her chewing. Simon can tell she’s gone hungry in recent days by the voracious way she eats, unable to keep herself from shovelling the food into her mouth. She seems almost embarrassed by it after swallowing her last bite, looking over at him from the corner of her eye like a guilty dog. He ignores it, keeping his eyes on the TV instead.

He can tell she wants to say something. A shit childhood and two decades in the military have left him with the ability to sniff out tension, and it comes off her in waves. After putting her plate on the coffee table, she sits back against the couch and squeezes her fists over her lap. Gnaws her lip and casts furtive glances in his direction. When the tears build up on her waterline, his cock twitches. 

“What?” he barks after the umpteenth sniffle, twisting to face her. 

“I—um—I just wanted to say thank you,” she whispers, her head still tilted downward, trying to make herself small enough to go unnoticed. 

Simon stares down at her, unblinking. He half wishes she’d cry a little more, just a few tears to soothe the beast in his chest. It’s better for her that her eyes remain dry. He doesn’t think he could hold himself back if one slipped down her cheek right now. He’d have to grab her by the nape of her neck and twist her over the side of the couch, shove down both their drawers and feed his cock into the warm, wet slot between her legs. Pummel her little cunt until his spend leaks out in thick, viscous globs, until her thighs shake so violently that only his hands on her shoulders and his shaft shoved deep in her pussy keeps her upright. 

He can almost smell it from between her legs, throbbing with gratefulness. He stares down unabashedly at the spot between her legs. Let her say something about it. 

“Don’t mention it,” he says instead, tilting his head when her tongue peeks out to wet her lips. “‘Was nothing.”

“No, it was really nice of you,” she insists, speaking more forcefully after gathering up some of her courage. “What if I…—you took a stranger into your house.”

That gets the blood pumping. “Gonna gut me while I sleep, pet?”

It’s half deranged that his cock chubs up in his jeans at the thought of his little bird with a knife in her hands, hands dripping with wet, dark blood. He shifts, readjusting himself so the metal teeth of his zipper don’t bite into his dick. 

She frowns. Endearing. “I wouldn’t do that.”

“Not really good at looking after yourself, are you?”

“I am—it’s just…” tears build up on her waterline again, “it was one thing after another. I couldn’t get it all together.”

Pity isn’t an emotion he’s accustomed to feeling. Simon’s not even sure if that’s what he’s feeling now. It’s more like the bastard child of pity. 

He lets her off to bed with a warning not to fuck with anything in his room. She skitters off quickly after that. Her cute little ass follows her into the room until she shuts the door behind her, hiding it from view. He huffs. Being good never gets him anywhere.

He lets her run away though because he can’t tarnish everything he touches. Some things deserve to stay polished. 

Instead, he brushes his teeth and washes the last of the dishes before turning in as well, getting a clean sheet out of the linen closet to drape over himself. The couch isn’t nearly long enough for him to stretch out on, not like the king sized bed in his room; there’s already a spring poking him right in the middle of his back.

Sleep won’t come easy tonight. 

Simon wakes up on the couch with a kink in his neck. He lays there for several minutes gritting his teeth until the worst of it passes. When he sits up, his back cracks and pops, joints loosening only reluctantly. His age is getting away from him again; the wear and tear on his body finally starting to catch up. There’s only so much abuse he can put himself through. 

The morning races on outside his front door and he has work to get to, but his body orients towards the closed door of his bedroom almost without his say. It creaks as it swings open. 

In the slowly dimming haze of sleep, he must have subconsciously thought he dreamt the night before because seeing the girl from yesterday curled up in his bed halts him in his tracks. Her suitcase is open on the floor beside the bed. She must have changed into her pyjamas after slinking away last night because he doesn’t recognize the little cotton shorts hugging the swell of her ass and the shirt riding up over her belly button. 

Despite the perfunctory morning jerk he gave himself just ten minutes prior, his cock twitches in his work pants, gaze locked on the underside of her ass, the flesh peeking out from beneath her sleep shorts. 

The hunger ebbs out of a deep, cavernous hole in him. A heavy, oppressive heat; lust so gnarled and twisted that he hardly recognizes it. He can see it play out in his mind—crawling over the bird’s prone form and turning her over onto her belly, his knees on either side of her legs, cloaking her. Tugging down the zipper of his pants and wrenching those slutty shorts down to mid-thigh before burying his shaft in her hole. Little bird that followed him home, sleeping in his bed. She should thank him for his help with a wet hole. 

Simon takes a step into the room and then stops. He won’t—can’t—

His teeth grind together from how hard he clenches his jaw. 

He stands in the doorway and watches her sleep in his bed for longer than he should. Only when he feels something ugly well up in his chest does he finally bark out her name, snorting softly when she jumps and nearly falls right off the side of the bed. 

“Get up,” Simon grunts. “And make yourself something to eat. I’ve gotta head out.”

He walks away before the befuddled look on her face makes him crack a smile. 

She tiptoes out a few minutes later, still in her PJs. Her wary glances tick him off. For the effort it’s taken him to keep his hands to himself, he deserves more than her shifty looks, scoring him like he split her little peach open in her sleep.  

Breakfast is an uncomfortable affair. It’s partly his fault, but he doesn’t apologize for it. They eat in tense silence until it’s time for him to head to work. 

“Don't think about leaving—any of my shit gets nicked and it's your ass.”

He leaves her with that warning, slamming the door behind him.

Your heart goes quiet at the dawning of your new life. 

Adjusting to your new reality takes a bit of effort. The first few days with Simon feel tenuous at best. You worry constantly about doing something wrong and finding yourself back out on the streets. You’re thankful to the point of pandering, apologizing for any sudden move or sound that you make. You can tell it annoys him. 

The real work is recontextualizing your perception of yourself. The world feels strange now that you’re outside of it; alien somehow. You used to think of yourself as somehow inextricably woven into the fabric of society. The thought of losing everything never even occurred to you. It never even presented itself as a possibility. You worried about homelessness the way people worry about quicksand—in some nebulous way touching on the real without being absorbed by it. 

And now you are cut from another cloth altogether; abruptly, without any warning. You used to feel like one with the rest of the world, a kind of kinship based less on parentage or ancestry and more on inner nature. Weren’t you the same as any of them? But now the drapery has been pulled down and you know—you are not the same. 

Your future used to shimmer under the surface like a bioluminescent fish, but now it’s just a ghost.

He tells you to stay put when he goes to work so you do, spending the days puttering around the apartment, watching TV, and cleaning. There’s not much else to do. It’s almost a relief, to be honest. You’ve spent so much time without a place to call home that the second someone offered you one, the outside world became anathema in your head. You couldn’t step foot out of the front door even if you wanted to. 

Tears well up at the smallest thing. You blubber over not being able to work the coffee machine in the kitchen. When the sound goes out on the TV, you cry so hard that it leaves you woozy. You’re lachrymose, downtrodden. Soul a startling verdigris; your waterlines might as well be white with encrustations of salt. 

He must notice the dark cloud following you from room to room, but he doesn’t bring it up. You’d find it tactful, but you know him a bit better than that. 

Then Simon brings home a cat after his shift one day and you don’t know what to say to that.

Thank you doesn’t seem to suffice. I love it doesn’t cut it close. The truth of the matter is that words only ever approximate the feeling; they can get close enough to give you a glimmer of what’s stashed inside, but you can’t pry them all the way open. So you take the off-white cat from him when he practically tosses the poor thing into your arms, and stare up at him wide-eyed, eyes already watering for reasons once again unbeknownst to you. 

“Thank you for taking him home,” you say, already on the verge of tears.

He stares down at you, unblinking. You’re learning to read into his silences though. 

“Don’t expect me to take care of it,” he says instead of accepting your thanks. “If you can’t handle it, it’s going back outside.” 

You hold the cat tight to your chest, staring up at him with horror until the little beast nearly scratches your eye out in an effort to squirm out of your arms. 

At first, you’re not sure what to make of it. It can’t be a peace offering because, apart from the rare occasions where you manage to get on his nerves (not wholly impossible, but you’re learning how to stay on his good side for the most part), you and Simon get along pretty well. You coexist, at least. He cooks, you clean. 

It’s likely a distraction, you finally realize, something to keep you from moping around the apartment all the time, listless and directionless. Despite the fact that you’re no longer in any immediate danger now that you have a roof over your head, misery still clings to you like a second skin. The relative safety of Simon’s flat has actually only given you a chance to really properly mourn the loss of your former life. 

Training the cat to wear a harness without tipping over (the little drama king) and taking him on his first walk outside (just a little turn around the block, though you half jump out of your skin whenever you cross paths with another person) gives you enough of a sense of purpose to propel you through the next week. 

You can tell that Simon thinks the cat is more trouble than it’s worth, especially when it decides to fixate on the one person in the flat that doesn’t pay it a lick of attention, but still it makes your heart melt to see it curled up by his side when you watch TV together at the end of the night. 

“Is this normal for you?” you ask, hands folded in your lap.

His gaze doesn’t move from the television screen. “Is what normal?”

“Taking in strays.”

He snorts, then takes a second to answer. “No.”

You wonder if he intends to sound as caustic as he comes across. The truth is self-evident though. Words only mask the real, and the real in this case is that Simon Riley is a man that feeds and takes home strays. He can grumble about it all he wants. It’s a bit demeaning to think of yourself that way, but once again, the truth is what it is. 

You study him from the corner of your eye until bedtime rolls around again. He’s become the most interesting thing in the world to you, through every fault of his own.

If he didn’t want you to fixate on him, he wouldn’t have left you home alone with nothing else to do. 

“Bird!” Simon roars from the other room. “The cat’s pissed on the floor again.”

You spring out of bed before Simon has a chance to toss it out onto the balcony. 

It feels temporary up until the first time you use Simon’s address on a job application. It stands out stark on your phone screen, black on glowing white. You’ve always preferred it to dark mode, though that preference has fluctuated in recent weeks as you’ve spent more and more time on your phone. 

This is the first time staring at the screen without blinking for a prolonged period of time that hasn’t left you with a throbbing migraine. 

He tells you to stop bothering him with stupid shit when you ask him if it’s alright to use his address. That answers that. Guilt lingers on the periphery of your mind the first time that you do, but then the application is submitted. An innocuous grey box that redefines your whole world in a way that [Thanks for applying!] doesn’t seem to encapsulate. 

Your old friends come next. They come back one by one, guilty, furtive looks aplenty. You Facetime the one who wouldn’t let you sleep on her couch while sitting on Simon’s bed. When she asks you about your living situation, all you tell her is that you found a roommate. It doesn’t feel right to give her more information than that. What has she done to deserve your honesty? 

You manage pleasantries and a half decent conversation, but truth again lingers at the back of your mind. The unspoken reality that this person—someone you trusted—could’ve been there for you in your time of need but chose to look the other way instead. Like taking you in would’ve been some big, terrible thing. 

The body forgets everything except what hurts it. The body remembers nothing except what helps it survive. 

Gratefulness lodges into your heart like an arrow shot from a castle’s ramparts intent on your demise. You could pull it out from the other side and succumb to blood loss, or you could push forward, lay siege to the man hidden inside its walls. 

And you do. You want to show him every grateful inch of you. Even when it only results in more upset. Simon comes home to the smoke alarm blaring and a small fire in the microwave before he bans you from the kitchen altogether. You only cry for an hour in the bedroom with the door shut before he drags you out to takeout on the table in the living room. It’s an improvement. 

“I’m sorry,” you sniffle into your veggie burger, on the verge of tears again when you glance into the kitchen to see most of the mess still there. 

“It’s fine.”

“I just want to—I wanted to make it up to you…for taking me in.”

“You don’t owe me shit,” he says brusquely, dismissing you. His tone tells you to drop it, but that seems as likely as you growing wings and flying away. 

“Yes, I do. You let me stay here when I didn’t have anywhere else to go.”

“If you want to make it up to me, take care of the cat and stop leaving your shit all over the bathroom. Found your knickers on the floor after you showered yesterday.”

Your face goes hot at that. You have nothing else to say. 

Your attraction is a banal consequence of living under the same roof as him. There are only so many times he can come up behind you while you’re making your morning cup of coffee and swipe your mug before taking a sip from over your shoulder, barricading you against the counter. Acutely aware of the size of him with the way he’s pressed up against you. 

You lose your train of thought whenever Simon wanders into a room. He lumbers in like a beast, steel-toed boots covered in mud and dust, ignoring the way you scold him for walking around the apartment in his shoes. Just cocks an eyebrow and stares down at you knowingly, like he can see right through you, knows that you’re only squawking and flitting around to hide the way your thighs rub together. 

“It’s my fuckin’ flat,” he says instead of pointing out that your pussy’s wet because she knows there’s a man in the house that could take care of her proper. You know it too. 

“I live here too, you know,” you huff. “I can’t wash the floors every time you come home.”

“Thought I was doing you a favour letting you live here.”

His words would fill you with righteous indignation, but they don’t because his actions don’t line up. You study him like a moth under glass, enthralled by the parts of him that used to frighten you. 

It’s more than that though. He’s wedged himself into the hurt place in your heart, holding it up like Atlas. 

You really do think that there’s something so special about him that you’ll never be able to articulate. Simon is everything you didn’t know you desperately wanted. The longer you live with him, the harder it is to deny how much you need him. 

You will show your gratitude though. Every tender, aching morsel of it. 

The little peach she grinds on his thigh is wet and ripe. Simon doesn’t tell her that he doesn’t need her gratitude; if he wanted it, he would’ve taken it already. But he doesn’t shove her out of his lap either. It’s not his problem if she thinks it’s necessary or not.

Maybe it’s not solely for his benefit, he concedes when she winds both arms around his neck and pushes her supple tits into his chest, climbing over his lap until her pussy is pressed right up against the cock fattening up in his jeans. She whimpers like she’s in pain. 

Must not come a lot; he knows she at least hasn’t in recent days. Simon’s always been a light sleeper—he’s sure he would’ve heard any desperate attempts to get herself off in his bed, the springs creaking under her weight, her hushed, bitten off moans leaking out from under the doorframe. The thought riles him up more than he thought it would. 

Still, Simon doesn’t lift a hand to help the poor bird in his lap as she grinds down on his length. His arms stay stretched across the back of the couch, hips canted just enough to give her a perch and nothing more. 

She gasps every word into his ear, voice all pitched and breathy. “Ah, ah, ah—thank you, thank you, I…—can I please have it? Please, please let me, Simon, pleasepleaseplease—”

It feels like everything they’ve been through so far has been leading to this. He’d smelt it coming like blood in the water. 

All week, his bird has been sitting on her hands and trying not to give herself away. Cloaked in a nervous, frenetic energy. Anticipatory. She’d doe-eyed him the night before and begged him to sleep in the bed with her instead of wrecking his back on the couch, but he’d ignored her in favour of watching Argentina decimate Croatia in the semi-finals. It must have not sat right with her though because she’d been broody from the moment he left for work until he got home, steering him into the kitchen and practically hand feeding him before coaxing him into the living room to watch a movie while she cuddled up beside him.

That hadn’t lasted long. 

“What’s gotten into you, pet?” Simon asks, hardly dissuading her when she presses petal soft lips to his jaw and nuzzles, breathing heavily. His heart swells. Desperate little slut. 

“Took care of me,” she mumbles, almost slurring her words. “Always taking care of me, Simon.”

There’s no denying how hard it makes him to think about being her protector. The littlest things make her smile. Even the bloody cat had her trailing after him for a week straight after the fact, eternally underfoot. Always trying to curry favour. Eager to please. 

Her worship leaves him unbalanced. Unstable even. A train careening off its track, the massive weight of catastrophe right behind it. The sense that life will never be the same after this. His surface level indifference is underscored by steeled self-control. He keeps his arms on the couch because he knows the second he puts them on her, it’s over. There’ll be no holding him back anymore, no possibility of him ever letting her go back out into the real world. Lock jawed, teeth sunk into her tender underbelly. 

“Told you, you don’t owe me nothing,” Simon murmurs, curling his hands under her ass. 

“Then—then…—I don’t know, pretend it’s just for me.” It’s a joke because they both know it’s not just for her. When her eyes sparkle with amusement, his cock throbs.

He lets her ruck the shirt over his head and struggle with his belt until she manages to unbuckle it like he has no say in the matter. She’s far less considerate with her own clothes, shucking them off and nearly ripping her knickers in the process, which almost prompts him to take her by the wrists and slow her down. He likes the lace and frills. 

It’s a fight to fit his cock into her hole, as slick as she is. Coin slot tight; he almost breaks and tells her to take it easy when she reaches behind her to line his shaft up with her entrance and sits down, just barely stretching around the mushroomed head of his dick before wincing, tears springing into her eyes. 

Simon does break when she tries to sink down another inch, thighs shaking violently. “Right, get off—you ain’t ready for this.”

“I am!” she insists, face screwed up in a scowl and a bead of sweat dripping down her temple. “Just—I can do it, Simon—”

“No, you can’t. You’re rushing and hurting yourself—”

“Wait, okay, wait, I can…just give me a minute, okay?” she begs, and he doesn’t tell her that he’d give her all the time in the world. Stay on this couch until the flesh fell off his bones. He’s waited so long; what’s a little longer? 

Besides, the sight of her stretching herself out with her fingers is reward enough. She whines into his shoulder and shudders when she has to force another finger in before she’s ready. Too eager. It could give a man a complex. His blood is already scorching him from the inside out, too hot for his veins.  

He considers helping her out, but watching her writhe and struggle in his lap is far more enjoyable. 

He stopped paying attention awhile back, too focused on cupping her tits and running his tongue around the budded areola, sucking her pert nipple into his mouth, but she couldn’t have gotten to more than three fingers before running out of patience and lining him up again. This time, she sinks a bit deeper on the first stroke, still choking on her breath but forcing herself to take a bit more. 

“You’re alright—you’re alright,” Simon murmurs, stroking a hand up and down her back while she impales herself on his length. She’s still too tight to take him comfortably, sweats and shakes over him. He pinches her nipple to distract her from the pain and smiles when she yelps. 

She melts all over him, slick drenching his shaft and lap, her tongue lapping at the sweaty skin of his neck. Honeysuckle fragrant; the sweetest thing he’s ever known. Silken, tight. Fits like a glove around him. 

He could lose himself in her. Piston into her until the thought of where he begins and where he ends dissolves into the tight warmth between her legs.

His bird is a greedy girl. She uses him like a toy to get herself off, bouncing in his lap and mewling into his ear everytime his cockhead nudges against her cervix. Too big to fit all the way in. 

“You do this a lot, pet? Fuck every man that lends you a hand?” he pants, taunting her.

“No!” she snarls in his ear, feisty and sharp-toothed. Her nails dig into his back, scoring white lines into his skin. The shiver that wracks him is so violent that his arms tighten around her waist reflexively, making her gasp. 

It doesn’t matter whether she does this often or not; the only thing that matters is that he’s the only man that gets to fuck her from here on out. Still, winding her up is half the fun. 

“Perfect girl,” Simon chuckles, breathless. “Made for me. Got m’self a pet right off the street.”

And he did, didn’t he? Went wandering out into the night and came home with a bird fluttering her wet little wings. 

His conscience is clean. He could’ve tied her down, kept her right where he wanted her (in his bed, his flat, the yawning cavity of his chest—) but his self-control remains unparalleled. Tough as nails. Strong as steel. And now look at what he has as a reward for his patience—a fever-hot cunt around his cock and delicate fingernails scratching the base of his skull. 

A pretty bird that’s made his chest a cage. 

The world goes vertical, horizontal. Fluid; sliding away from him. Something crashes in the background, so far off in the distance that he can hardly make out the sound. 

He opens his eyes to find the ceiling staring back down at him, and then her face, hovering over him on the carpeted floor, her hands kneading the muscle of his chest. Her brows are drawn tight now, pinched. She stares down at him, past him, gaze like a transparent veil. 

“Gi’me…gi’me…” she pants, barely able to pull herself off his cock. 

He has to dig his fingers into her ass and pull her off, ignoring the way she whines and begs him to fill her back up. Ignores it because he knows what’s best for her; knows how to take care of what he owns. 

When he bucks up into her, she chokes, fingers nearly yanking his chest hair out. 

“Fuckin’ hell, that’s pretty,” he breathes. Snaps his hips up into hers again, relishing in the way she squeezes tight around him, almost to the point of pain. 

His pleasure always comes jagged though. Whether the ache of his joints or nails tearing up the skin of his back and chest. Vicious and messy—how he likes it. She gives him everything he could want and more. The hand dug into his chest right above his heart could pierce right through the flesh and tear it out.

He pulls her all the way off his cock just for the pleasure of hearing her beg him again, then pulls her up his chest and eats her out until the beast in his belly calms down. 

He yields to her whining only after a good few minutes. Soft bastard. Drags her back down until her soaked hole mouths at the head of his cock and he thrusts back up inside. Home. It’s his now, whether she likes it or not. Simon guesses he’s lucky that she wants it too; if he had to convince her, he would, but her desperation is just another gift for him to savour. 

“Squeeze me good, bird. Say thank you—” thank you for taking me home, thank you for keeping me– almost spills off his tongue, but he reigns it in. She knows what to be thankful for. 

“Nngh, Simon,” she sings, fucking herself on his cock. The sweetest sound he’s ever heard. 

Simon’s never felt bigger than under his sweet bird. Thighs spread so wide around him that he knows she’ll ache in the morning. Brutish hands groping her thighs and waist and tits, rough against the softness of her skin. Stuffed full of a big cock, not even to the root; she bites right through her bottom lip when Simon pets at the thin skin stretched around his cock, her gaze wounded, overwhelmed. 

Nearly blacks out at the thought of cramming a finger up there too. Only faint concern for her well-being tamps down the urge. 

“Come on, fuck—that good, pet?”

“R-right there, oh god, ohgodohgod—”

He lets her ride him until she comes, until he comes, until his spend is blistering hot in her cunt, drooling down the length of his cock, frothy white with her cream and his come. 

It’s a sight to look at. Gets him right in the chest. Nothing like times of yore; this is something with meaning, with feeling. When he lifts her off, his seed trickles out of her soft hole in white globs and makes his chest ache. It doesn’t matter whether it takes root or not. All that he needs is already here. 

Beautiful and rare as a sundog; haloed by light. All this time, he dared not think this could be it. 

He thinks he’ll love her with the same ferocity Icarus had on his descent.

She shivers when he traces his fingers up her spine. “N’more. M’tired.”

“Wasn’t gonna, pet.”

The bedroom then. She twitches in his arms when Simon carries her to bed and pats his chest approvingly when he slides in beside her. 

He could’ve told her that it’d end up this way. He smiles indulgently when she shifts and splays over his chest, her nose nudging his nipple. Already fast asleep. 

In the morning, you sit across from him, half a grapefruit in a bowl in front of you and a mug of coffee, black. 

“I think I want to go back to school,” you say, apropos of nothing. The spoon clinks against the inside of the bowl. 

“Yeah?” he says, only half-listening. 

“I can always get a part time job on the days when I don’t have class. I never liked my old job anyway.”

“Do whatever you want,” Simon grunts. “Not my problem.”

Under the table, your cat’s tail curls around your ankle while he waits for you to sneak him the scraps. 

You smile.

[sacharinee]

hi m!!! what do you think about bf!pete getting his wisdom teeth out? and the reader taking care of him?? hed be so funny lmao xxD

-🧸

pairing: bf!peter parker x reader w/c: 750 a/n: hi anon!! thnk u for requesting i had sm fun writing this! :)

you’re sat at the dentist's office, cooped up in those uncomfortable chairs while you anxiously waited for your boyfriend’s surgery to finish.  

when peter ranted and moaned nonstop over his constant toothache, may decided enough was enough, and took it upon herself to set an appointment for her nephew. he wasn’t too keen on the idea. peter wasn’t afraid of anything ninety-nine percent of the time. dentists, however, wasn’t one of them. 

“can’t you stay here with me?” 

“stay? baby, no they’re gonna be drilling in your teeth.”

“but i-”

“and it’s gonna be bloody and nasty and i don’t wanna have to see all that.”

you turn towards him, only to come face to face with the boy’s horrified look, his eyes are wide and skin pale, mouth open in shock. you cringe at your response.

“but,” you stand, “you’re gonna do amazing, you’re gonna sit here and let the dentist do his magic.” you smile and lean down to plant a sweet kiss on his forehead.

“y/n/n, wait but-” you drop his hand on the way out, “bye, love you baby! be good!”

“y/n!”

two hours later swing by when a woman in navy scrubs comes to get you, announcing that peter is out of surgery. 

you knew that he would be high out of his mind on laughing gas, you just didn’t think it would be this bad. 

when you enter, the dentist is off to the side, looking over charts, packing a care bag for his patient.

peter’s head lulls towards your touch on his shoulder and slowly blinks at your presence. 

“hi baby, how you feeling?” you give him a beaming smile.

your boyfriend does his best to muster the same grin, but the amount of gauze in his mouth makes his rosy cheeks puff out, drool dripping down the corner of his mouth.

peter takes a moment to stare at you, “woaahh” he languidly slurs his words, “you’re so pretty.” 

you giggle at the comment when the boy gasps in horror, “wait, wait, i have a girlfriend, and she’s-” he looks up at you worriedly and slaps his forehead, “i’m in trouble.”

you can’t help but let out a laugh, he’s so dopey. 

your fingers touch the bottom of his chin gently and lift his head, “i’m your girlfriend, silly.” 

a loud gasp escapes peter as his face turns ecstatic, “get out!” you giggle at his reaction, the dentist glances over at you two and offers an admiring smile.

“so do we have sex?”

the awkward silence in the room kills you. 

your face blushes, as you shake your head and clear your throat, “peter, no.”

“no?!” he sighs in disappointment, “aw man.” your boyfriend pouts at the floor, “what have i been doing with my life.”

“oh my god, pete,” when the dentist turns away, you whisper and offer him a shrug, “sometimes we do.”

the delight on his face returns and his eyes go wide, “really?!”

the boy seriously has no filter.

as you’re packing his things, peter pauses and pokes his cheeks, “wait y/n,” he pauses, “my face kinda feels weird.”

you look around and hand him a mirror from the counter, “oh my god…” peter gingerly touches his face as you kneel down at him, “what’s wrong, baby?”

“my face… it’s so fat!” he’s got tears in his eyes and whining with a jutted bottom lip, “y/n,” sniffle. “will-” sniffle. “will you still love me if my face is so fat?” 

you roll your eyes and smile at his antics, “of course, i would.”

he seems pleased with your answer because he’s back to smiling. you go back to packing his things. “hey, mr dentist,” he woozily slurs, the gauze is practically spilling out his mouth, “d’you know i’m spider-man?”

you mentally facepalm at his obliviousness and mutter, “jesus christ.”

you turn to the older man who’s chuckling at his mental state and shrug, “he also thinks he’s luke skywalker from star wars.”

“but i am!-” “okay bug boy, lets go.”

“where we going?”

“home, sweetie.”

he gasps eagerly and raises his eyebrows at you, “to have sex?”

“oh my god.”

soon after the dentist explains and hands you everything he needs to recover, you guide peter to the car. 

he’s extremely dramatic. 

he’s got his hands around your shoulders, dragging himself on the floor, acting like he can’t walk - which he definitely can.

“peter, i know you can walk. c’mon help me out,” you beg.

“no, i can’t" he moans, "carry me,” he demands.

“what? no,”

“why not?”

“because you’re too heavy.”

and he’s crying all over again, “i knew it! you hate me 'cause you think my face is too fat!”

[babyleostuff]

౨ৎ voicemails jeon wonwoo leaves you while he’s on tour - fluff (with a pinch of angst), established relationship, gn!reader (pet names used: baby, sweetheart)

...one: i’m sure you’re going to be angry i didn’t wake you up like you asked me to, but i couldn’t. you know i never can. we landed safely so don’t worry and i’ll face time you tonight

...two: you didn’t answer my calls today baby. is everything okay? i know that these first few days apart are harsh, but please let me know you’re fine

...three: have a nice day tomorrow. remember to eat breakfast, lunch and dinner. i need you to be healthy, sweetheart

...four: i saw its raining a lot back home. remember to stay safe, okay?

...five: the photo my dad sent me of you and seollie is adorable. but why does she look so happy in your arms, she’s never like that with me

...six: i’m a hundred percent sure i packed my black knitted sweater. do you maybe know what happens to it you sweater stealer?

...seven: did you sleep well tonight? i don’t know if you’ve noticed but i left you that blanket you always steal from me when you’re over at mine. i know you sleep better with it

...eight: i’m so excited, you have no idea. i found this computer game with coups yesterday and we played it to like 4am, and we got maybe like an hour of sleep before we had to wake up, but it was so worth it. we’re going to play it again today

...nine: do you want me to send you the photos i took today? no pressure, i just thought you might want to see them. but if you don’t it’s okay. but they turned out pretty nice! anyway, let me know

...ten: this is so crazy but i had so much energy at the concert last night. i didn’t even need to sit down during aju nice. i wish you were here to see it

taglist (if you want to be added, check my masterlist): @jeonghansshitester @soul-is-a-strange-kid @weird-bookworm @sea-moon-star @hanniehaee @wonwooz1 @byprettymar @edgaralienpoe @staranghae @itza-meee @eightlightstar @immabecreepin @whatsgyud @hyneyedfiz @honestlydopetree @vicehectic @dkswife @uniq-tastic @marisblogg @aaniag @daegutowns @carlesscat-thinklogic23 @embrace-themagic @ohmyhuenings @nidda13 @hrts4hanniehae @k-drama-adict @isabellah29 @f4iryjjosh @bangantokchy @mrswonwooo @bangtancultsposts @lllucere @athanasiasakura @chillseo @onlyyjeonghan @haecien @caramyisabitchforsvtandbts @hannahhbahng @valgracia @ohmygodwhyareallusernamestaken @mirxzii @hhusbuds @wonranghaeee @rosiesauriostuff @gyuguys @aaasia111 @tomodachiii @veryfabday @lilmochiandsuga @asasilentreader @mrsnervous @bewoyewo @sharonxdevi

[luveline]

Love love love your writing Jade, I must have reread everything a dozen times!

For a dad!character request, what would you think of Single father Remus signing up to chaperone a school event or field trip? Maybe he meets the newest teacher, who happens to be his exact idea of the perfect person for him…

(Lots of love<3)

“Don’t get– forget your coat, dad.” 

Remus grabs his coat from the passenger seat with a self-deprecating sigh. “I’m s’posed to remember things for you, Lia.” 

Cordelia smiles up at him, her shiny coat and boots already taking on rain. “Okay, so ‘member my lunch, then.” 

Remus turns back to the passenger seat to grab her packed lunch from the footwell. “Thank you.” 

Remus is the kind of parent who writes a list every week, budgeting to the penny and laying out uniforms the night before, but he’s off-kilter today. “I wish your teacher could’ve given me some warning.” 

“She’s new, dad. You have to be nice for new people, ‘cos they don’t know– she’s not used to it.” 

Remus locks the car door, already cold to the bone and wishing they could’ve called off sick. He offers Cordelia her lunchbox (which isn’t a box at all, but a padded fabric zip up pouch in fashion with the rest of the girls her age), and tugs on his jacket. It’s not his, it belonged to Sirius a few years ago, but it got left in his wardrobe somehow and he’s been wearing it since. 

“Okay, lovely girl, what’s the rules for today?” he asks, taking her hand. 

“To be good.” 

“Yeah, and what next?” 

“To stay with my buddy.” 

“Yes, and what’s the last one?” 

She beams at him and waves their joined hands. “To have fun!” 

Remus doesn’t think he’ll be having much of it. He isn’t on the PTA, he had no idea parents even went on these trips, but they’re short-staffed at Cordelia’s school lately and now the year two teacher is off sick, and the phone call was a shock. He didn’t have the wherewithal to say no. 

Cordelia’s class are waiting outside of the school gates near a big red and green bus. Remus is the only parent. Why is he the only parent? There are around thirty kids and only two teachers, the newest of which stands at the front, your hands behind your back and a massive smile on your lips despite the bad weather. 

You’re very pretty, Remus has already thought before, and you dress sweetly, happy colours and cute skirts and pants with flowers and hearts and stars. You’re reaching up into the sky as you say, “So they have lots of energy to grow big and tall like us!”

Most of the kids are listening aptly, though pods of them chatter or fight. 

You see Remus quickly and dodge around the children to meet him. “Mr. Lupin! Hello, hi Lia. I have a packet for you.” 

He smiles awkwardly. “Right.” What’s a packet? He looks down at Cordelia but she’s straining against his hand, desperate to go and talk to her friends. “You can go, lovely. I’ll be right here.” 

“Can I sit with you on the bus?” she asks.

He’d definitely prefer it. “Whatever you want to do. Want me to have your lunchbox?” 

“No, that’s okay!” She leans up for a kiss. Remus suddenly wonders if he’s any good at being a parent, knowing you’re watching, but he leans down for a kiss and gives her a quick pat on the back. “Love you.” 

“Love you.” He clears his throat and stands up. “The packet?” 

You’re looking at him funny. 

“What?” he asks. 

“Nothing, nothing,” you stay, still smiling. He’s ninety nine percent sure you aren’t making fun. 

You load the children onto the bus and have him stand at the front with you, squished together in the aisle. “This is Lia’s dad, Mr. Lupin. Can everyone say hi?” He’s sure he’s beet red. “He’s our chaperone today. You listen to him just like you’d listen to me or Mrs. Davies. If Mr. Lupin tells you to stop talking, to stop running, anything at all, you listen. But today is about having fun and seeing all the flowers and bugs, so let’s have lots of fun!” You touch his elbow gently. He smiles. 

Lia forgets that she wanted to sit with Remus by that time, and you end up hip to hip in the front row. The children are immensely loud, and Mrs. Davies has to constantly ask them to be quiet, but it’s not as though Remus would notice; when he woke up that morning he had no idea he’d be doing this, his schoolyard crush for you feels as though it’s written over his forehead, and he’s more nervous than he’s felt in years. 

Remus is cool. He’s the cool friend, the quiet, collected one, who doesn’t stutter nor falter, but he finds it harder to be that way with you when you’ve seen him pick Cordelia up from the yard and kiss every inch of her face and tell her in baby talk that he missed her so so much. 

“I got you something.” 

Cool, Remus says to himself. I’m cool. 

You unveil an informational packet and a small purple box. “That’s just the stuff I told you on the phone this morning,” you say, “and some emergency stuff you can read before we get there. God forbid something happen, but if it does, you aren’t liable. I, however, will get in lots of trouble.” You offer the box. Even your hands are cute.

It’s a rough day. The kids are rowdy, the weather is wet. Lia’s friend Kory keeps stepping in puddles and Lia herself won’t leave Remus alone. She wants to eat lunch in his lap and half gets her way, the two of them holding hands, Remus a big head surrounded by little girls. 

“What’s that?” she asks in a whisper. 

“This?” He knocks the purple box with his knuckle. “This was from Miss L/N.” He opens the plastic lid to show her the treasure inside, a caramel donut with chocolate shavings. It looks expensive and delicious. “Should we share?” he whispers back. 

“Yes, please.” 

Remus breaks it in half, and Lia breaks her half into half again to share with Kory. He feels eyes on his face and looks up to find you watching him with a soft look, but you promptly flatten it and look down. You pick at your lunch, and choke when someone asks you if you’re alright.

Oh, he thinks, giving Lia’s back a quick rub. Chaperoning really isn’t so bad.

[us-the-voices-and-more-voices-2]

Jason with his time in the league of assassins

Talia walks into the small modest room where Jason is livening in while he gets back on his feet, having a bunch of brain functions recovered takes a while to get used to. he's been doing physical therapy and occupational therapy for the last couple months, his dexterity isn't exactly back yet.

Talia: Jason? what are you doing?

Jason: well there's this thing I always wanted to try called stop motion animation, and well you got some lego's for Dami but he's a bit too small for them so.. I took them and have been animating. I was bored in-between everything, you don't have any good books I haven't already read.

Talia: well that is an acceptable pass time, what are you making?

Jason: oh it's a weird comedy spoof for kids about batman and the joker being nemesis's, I wanted to make it for Dami since well he doesn't know much about him or the other ones and he's only 3 and well it doesn't seem like much but the time I'm done he'll be 5 and be able to enjoy it. i don't know talia I'm bored and want to make something for him.

Talia: very well, if you so wish. I can get some people in to help you make it if you wish.

Jason: really?

Talia: yes, I can. it does sound like a nice gift.

Jason: oh thank you!

Many months of therapy complete, he starts to retrain and regain all the fighting skills he lost and learn some new ones. in the meanwhile, Jason and 3 other people have been making a complete feature film for Damian who's just turned 4, they were about halfway done and it was looking good.

Talia: so how's it coming along?

Jason: it's been hard and hurts like a bitch, but I'm getting better at flips!

Talia: no. not that, I mean the movie?

Jason: oh it's halfway done! me and the one man and 2 women are doing great we reshot the opening, and we are more than 68% done! so it will be ready by Dami's birthday.

Talia: he will enjoy it I believe.

Jason: of course he would, it's his first ever kids movie!

Talia: why yes it is!

many many many more months pass and it becomes Dami's 5th birthday and Jason and his crew had wrapped up, the voice acting was done mostly by himself, and the crew but he asked some of the league for other voices. eventually after scoring and mixing they met the deadline. they set up the league theatre and put the movie on.

lego batman: [voice over] Black. All important movies start with a black screen... And music... Edgy, scary music that would make a parent or studio executive nervous... And logos... Really long and dramatic logos... Warner Bros. Why not "Warner Brothers"? I don't know... Hmm... Not sure what LOA does, but that logo is macho. I dig it... Okay. Get yourself ready for some... reading. "If you want to make the world a better place, take a look at yourself and make a change. Hooo." No. I said that. Batman is very wise. I also have huge pecs and a nine-pack. Yeah, I've got an extra ab. Now, let's start the movie.

Dami: momma? what's the movie about?

talia: your father

lego Alfred Pennyworth: Were you looking at the old family pictures again?

lego Batman: At the what? The old family... Oh, yes! I see what you mean. Look at that! The old gang. Yeah. No, I wasn't.

lego Alfred Pennyworth: I see. Sir, if you don't mind my saying, I'm a little concerned. I've seen you go through similar phases in 2001 and 2006 and 2008 and 2005 and 1997 and 1995 and 1992 and 1989 and that weird one in 1999. Do you want to talk about how you're feeling right now?

lego Batman: I don't talks about feelings, Alfred. I don't have any, I've never seen one. I'm a night-stalking, crime-fighting vigilante, and a heavy metal rapping machine. I don't feel anything emotionally, except for rage. 24/7, 365, at a million percent. And if you think that there's something behind that, then you're crazy. Good night, Alfred.

lego Alfred Pennyworth: Sir, it's morning..

Talia: *laughs*

Dami: *chuckles*

Jason: *smiles with accomplishment*

lego Batman: [Batman's song] Who never skips leg day?

Chorus: Batman!

lego Batman: Who always pays their taxes?

lego Batman, Chorus: Not Batman!

Talia: *wails with laughter*

Dami: what are taxes?

Jason: you'll know when you get older don't worry about it

The lego Joker: Are you seriously saying there is nothing, nothing special about our relationship?

lego Batman: Whoa. Let me tell you something, J-bird. Batman doesn't do 'ships.

The lego Joker: [Confused] What?

lego Batman: As in "relationships." There is no "us." Batman and Joker are not a thing. I don't need you. I don't need anyone. You mean nothing to me. No one does.

Talia: that is your father's arch-nemesis the joker

Dami: oh okay

Jason: please kill him for me

dami: okay Jason, i will avagange, e-venge, avenge your honour!

Jason: you have no idea what that means to me buddy *wipes away a tear*

Lego Robin: My name's Richard Grayson, but all the kids at the orphanage call me Dick.

Lego Batman: Well, children can be cruel.

Jason: when I first heard dick's name I unironically thought everyone was just calling him a dickhead so much that the name dick stuck, but nope turns out it's short for Richard. he even changed his name to dick, I personally would never. but he pulls it off flawlessly. *chuckles*

talia: I did not know mr Grayson preferred to be called Dick.

Dami: who's dick then?

Jason: oh he's your older brother.

Lego Robin: What? [Sees Batcave]

Lego Robin: It's the Batcave! Ohmygosh ohmygosh ohmygosh ohmygosh ohmygooo-! [Bumps into Batman]

Lego Robin: Batman, woah!

Lego Batman: You're darn right, woah!

Lego Robin: Wait, does Batman live in Bruce Wayne's basement?

Lego Batman: No, Bruce Wayne lives in Batman's attic.

Talia: *DIES OF LAUGHTER* oh Jason this is amazing.

Jason: I wish to impress!

Lego Robin: Hey, I was thinking. If I'm gonna be a superhero, and go on awesome superhero missions like this one, can we use code names? Mine can be Robin.

Lego Batman: I'm sorry, say that again?

Lego Robin: Robin.

Lego Batman: As in the small, Midwestern frail bird?

Lego Robin: Yeah, and I already have a catch phrase. Tweet, tweet, on the street.

Lego Batman: Hard pass.

Lego Robin: And a song. [singing]

Lego Robin: Fly, Robin, fly.

Lego Batman: Harder pass.

dami: *laughs so hard he coughs*

talia: habbibi careful, don't laugh so hard you will hurt yourself

Jason: honestly yeah you can hurt yourself badly.

LegoRobin: Wow! Look, it's the Bat-Sub!

Lego Batman: Wait, don't touch that!

Lego Robin: Over there! It's the Bat-Space Shuttle!

Lego Batman: Please keep your hands off that.

Lego Robin: Look, it's the Bat-Zeppelin!

Lego Batman: Don't touch that, either!

Lego Robin: It's the Bat-Train!

Lego Batman: No!

Lego Robin: It's the Bat-Kayak!

Lego Batman: No!

Lego Robin: It's the Bat-Dune Buggy!

Lego Batman: No!

Lego Robin: It's the Bat... Shark Repellent?

Lego Batman: [pause] Uh, actually, you can touch that. It's completely useless.

Talia: shark repelent is actually a quite useful invention why is bruce beloved not recognising it's full potential?

Jason: keep watching

Dami: does father have all those things?

Jason: sure does!

Lego Batman: We are gonna steal the Phantom Zone projector from Superman.

Lego Robin: [frowns] Steal?

Lego Batman: Yeah. We have to right a wrong. And sometimes, in order to right a wrong, you have to do a wrong-right. Gandhi said that.

Lego Robin: Are we sure Gandhi said that?

Lego Batman: I'm paraphrasing.

Talia: *laughs*

Dami: *laughs so hard he starts coughing AGAIN*

Jason: ghandi so said that btw.

lego Jim Gordon: [sees Robin for the first time] Who is that?

lego Robin: Hi, police man!

lego Jim Gordon: Is that your son?

Lego Robin: Yes, I am!

Lego Batman: [laughs nervously] Is that my son? No, that's just weird.

Lego Jim Gordon: It's weirder if it's not your son.

Jason: this interaction is based off an actual interaction between jimmy and Dick.

[batman and robin arrive at the fortress of solitude]

lego Batman: Hey, kid!

lego Robin: Yes, sir?

lego Batman: You're super nimble, right?

lego Robin: I sure am!

lego Batman: And small?

lego Robin: Very.

lego Batman: And quiet?

lego Robin: [whispering] When I desire to be.

lego Batman: And 110% expendable?

lego Robin: I don't know what that means, but okay!

Jason: bruce really did not know how to deal with a 11 year old child hellbent on murdering a mob boss, so he kept bringing him along on incredibly dangerous missions, it was always fine in the end but this sort of situation happened once.

Talia: really?

Jason: the expendable part was from a wayne tech family event, and they crushed it. but dick had to sacrifice himself to help bruce win, it was so funny. I was there.

Lego Batman: White. All important movies end with a white screen.

Talia, jason, the other 70 league of assassin members and Damien break out into applause for the movie.

Jason: THANK YOU ALL, but special thanks to Gerald, and lily and Rin!!!! I WOULD HAVE NEVNER FINISHED IT WITHOUT YOU THANK YOUUUUUUU

the audience bursts into a large uproar of applause.

Prev | current | Next

[echantedtoon]

A Lovers' Circle (Poly Haishira x Reader) Ch15 Setting Hearts A Blaze

(There'll be a small time skip as things will be repetitive until we cut over to the Rengoku household.Plus a funny meme I made for fun.)

Taglist: @shadyd3ar @jcrml

@tengensangel @miniverse-zen @mysteri0uz @jjamsbangtan

@the-unknown-fandom

@lavenderdropp @mimisweetz. @purplesoulsapphire

@kksmush @denkpanda18 @whomisi @lessthanimperfect @silver-rin

@rotting-alone @namis-noodlebox

@k1ttyluverz @akiramente

@rascalraccoon @ravenclawkae1

@gilded-sunrays @crescent-blades

@yukari1k

Remember if you want to be added to the taglist lemme know

The sounds of traffic and wheels on the road was all that filled the early morning air as you stifled a yawn threatening to leak out of your mouth. It was rather early but you promised to drive your Aunt to the airport the day after Halloween. You hadn't gotten much sleep the night prior staying late at the party and spending a lot of time removing glittery make up on your skin. On top of that you were going to be a little late for work because of said trip you had to take.

"Thank you so much for dropping me off, Hun. These late night readings are killing my posture," your aunt said stretching out an arm. "Now I know why women my age get grey hairs! HAHA!"

You rolled your eyes at her joke before slowly coming to a stop at a stop sign. A giant suitcase was behind her in the passenger seat and you were ninety nine percent sure it was mostly packed up with fliers and other business promotional things. Not something you thought would be taken to a wedding but then again you  were talking about your aunt here. Nothing she did ever made sense.

"It's not a problem. And I did promise I would." Turning on your turn signal, you turned left going on down the road where you could make out the airport just a little bit aways. "When are you coming back?"

She waved a hand. "Two or three days from now. I'll call a taxi when I get back don't worry. I just appreciate you being nice enough to take me." She then smiled at you before reaching out to ruffle your hair like a kid. "You're a good kid. Now I can see why that big teddy bear likes you so much!"

"Not while I'm driving," you waved her hand off but smiled. "But I guess so. I feel so lucky to have him after everything that happened. It was like life finally decided to stop making me it's punching bag ....At least when it comes to dating."

The older woman smiled more. "He's a good one. I predicted a happy healthy like for you two."

"You mean when you read his palm without asking him first?"

She shrugged. "He didn't mind and everything I saw was predicable anyhoo- You still haven't let me read yours."

"Because I don't believe in those things no offense. Besides the last time you read my palm, you said I would 'be so beautiful many men and women will fall for me'." You rolled your eyes again putting on your turn signal again before slowly turning into the air port's parking lot. "And that was five years ago get it still hasn't happened."

"Give it time! My foresights always come true sooner or later." She smiled despite you sighing in response. "WHELP! Looks like I've got a date with the skies! See you in a few days!" She had just grabbed onto the car and was about to open it and step out-

"Wait!" In question she turned back around with a raised brow at you as you started patting down your clothes and frantically digging around in your pockets until you eventually pulled out something. Well a lot of somethings. "I need your help with something."

"Oh?" What she thought was a deck of cards, was actually..a deck of cards but not the playing card variety. It seemed to be a stack of business cards that was held up to her.

"There's someone who's loosing business really badly. He runs a dojo somewhere around here and I feel like I want to help him. I know you're pretty good at networking and know everyone there is..Do you think you can help?"

The softer eyes of the older woman eyed you in interest before glancing at the business cards. Taking them with a hum and eyeing the words inked onto their flimsy cardboard bodies... Before she smiled. 

"I think I can do something with these. I'm surprised you want to help a stranger so badly."

You shrugged. "I don't know why I want to...it just feels like the right thing to do. Plus he's one of Gyomei's friends. It might be good to try and get along with them."

Your aunt hummed again and you flinched as she suddenly grabbed your hand. Looking at the palm very closely and her brows rising in some kind of realization. "Interesting."

"What is?"

"Oh, nothing.~" She giggled dropping your hand and waving you off. "Don't worry about a thing honey. Just leave everything to me. By the end of this month, everyone is gonna flock to ya!"

Your face turned to confusion. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Oh you'll find out soon enough. Oh. Look at the time! I better go before I miss my flight. You better get going before you're late too."

You hadn't the foggiest idea of what your eccentric aunt was talking about but shrugged it off as her being eccentric again. With he out of your car, you just made the long drive back home and to the college where you were unsurprisingly late and trudged yourself into the daycare tired and sore. Hopefully the children behaved especially good today so you wouldn't have to worry about anything else other than being scolded by your boss. 

"You look sleepy, Ms. Y/n," one little girl pointed out as soon as you slowly walked into the large playroom trying to tie your apron in the back.

....Yeah. Today might be a very long day for you. 

Unluckily the comment made by the little girl, whom you gently shooed to go listen to a story someone else was reading to other kids, was not missed by your boyfriend who looked up from where he was wiping glitter glue off a toy someone dropped on top of the arts and crafts table. You couldn't help the tired sigh that escaped you as Gyomei was quick to walk on over and you felt his form practically loom over you as his head tilted.

"You're tired." It wasn't a question, it was a statement that you winced at. 

"A little bit."

"I thought I asked you to stay home if you didn't get enough sleep."

You waved him off despite the fact that he obviously couldn't see you. "I'm not gonna pass out. I'm just a little bit tired, and I have things to do today."

"Such as?"

Working? Getting today's notes from Giyuu, the project you have with him, and you promised to bake a few things for everyone.  Not to mention grocery shopping, bills, cleaning up your house-

You jumped as a large hand suddenly tilted your head back up towards the staring white eyes. "None of that." He spoke as if he could literally read your mind. "After work I want you to go right home and rest. I'll inform Shinobu and Tomioka you won't be able to make the appointment today."

"W-What? But I promised them I'd do it with them not to mention that I also-"

A warmth presses against your head making you instantly turn red and a few little kids gagged and closed their eyes at the sight. One pointed at you both with a disgusted face.

"Ew, Mr. Mei! That's cooties!," she accused him to which he chuckled at her and smiled 

"Perhaps so. But I meant what I said." You were wide awake now as he patted the top of your head. "Go home and rest. If you don't I'll just take your keys and carry you home myself."

"Yo-Yo-You're bluffing!"

He hummed. "Am I?"

You decided against wanting to see if he'd actually do that and quickly scurried away when one of the younger toddlers cried out in frustration at his building blocks falling over again and again. His chubby little hands and waddle walk keeping knocking over the blocks he did stack up again and again. You'd have to console him and played with the little guy to make sure he was having a good time. 

Things weren't really too much different for the rest of the day. You did your job and helped to start clean up and check out the kids as their parents started arriving. However you didn't see Sanemi turn up. It wasn't even Kanae. Or Giyuu or Shinobu or even Mitsuri whom you were pretty good friends with by now. Instead you were treated to the sight of a tall and visibly muscular man whom walked in through the doorway. Orange hair framing his brightly smiling face and just as fiery eyes blinking around until they settled on you.

With a beaming smile he walked right up to you and you blinked as he stood before you. "HELLO, Y/N!!"

You winced at the high volume but still smiled. "Hi, Kyojuro." You greeted the positive man. "What are you doing here?"

"I've been sent to fetch Koto!," he proclaimed hands on his hips, "Sanemi's running late with his tutoring classes so he asked me to come get Koto for him!"

You blinked. "Really? I don't remember Sanemi telling me this and it's policy to call ahead of time for alternate pick ups."

His head tilted like an owl. "Really? He told the front desk lady this morning."

Oh right. You weren't here that morning. You held up a hand. "Let me go ask real quick. No offense. It's just part of the job."

"NO OFFENSE TAKEN!!"

You still chuckled despite yourself and left for just a few minutes. Confirmed with a coworker who was there that morning. And then returned a moment later with Koto on your hip and his daycare bag Sanemi always dropped off with him slung over your shoulder. The toddler was fiddling with a little car but let out a happy gasp upon seeing the red haired man.

"Ren-Ren!," he cheered throwing up his hands excitedly, "Hi!"

"Hello, Koto!" He greeted holding out his arms to the toddler. "Did you have a fun day?"

Koto was happily accepted into his arms with a nod. "Uh huh! Miss Toji reads us Beauty n da beast."

"Ooh. A fun story."

"Where's Nemi?"

"He's late, but I'm gonna take you to the park while we wait."

"YAY!!"

You chuckled at the adorable sight of him holding  up the bag. "Here. You'll be needing this. How's Mrs. Shinazugawa by the way?"

"Thank you!" The bag was taken away from you before he again tilted his head in question. Like he seemed to be studying you for a second. "She is doing better. Still a little stressed about paying back everything, but eventually she will and everything will go back to normal for everyone involved. However I believe that you had a hand in her soon to be relief."

You blinked at him. "Oh. You mean the money." He nodded and you hummed. "Well like I told everyone else, he just needed it more than me."

"A thousand dollars and free food for an entire year are a hard thing to give up for most people..and yet you have it all away to a at the time complete stranger."

You winced. "That's not totally true. I-..I didn't really think about giving it to him at first. Really I didn't think of anyone else but myself at first but-.."

"But?," he asked raising a brow in question as you sighed.

"I dunno. I didn't really have a mom growing up so-"...You looked down fingers drumming on the countertop. "So I guess seeing him trying so hard to help his mom made me feel really sorry for him. Maybe it's something I'd wanna do too if my mom was around y'know..Uh.." You stopped when you saw him intently staring at you Koto mindlessly toying with his toy. "Uh. S-Sorry. Didn't mean to ramble on."

"Please. Do not apologize for the honesty. It's rare for someone to have an honest heart and even rather for them to admit things we may not be proud up." His smile got even wider if that was possible. "I can now see why you were able to make such great friends with everyone. You're a good person!"

Despite yourself a small pink appeared on your face, hand waving at him. "Shucks. Stop it. You're embarrassing me. Oh. That reminds me. How's your dad doing? Anything change?"

He shook his head. "Not yet but a few of Senjuro's classmates have shown interest in the dojo! We just have to remain optimistic and keep working at it!"

Ah. So your aunt hadn't worked her magic yet. Makes sense. It hasn't even been a whole day yet...Eh. you really shouldn't expect results to just happen like that. It was as unrealistic as her predicting that men and women would fall for you like some badly written fantasy story.

You nodded. "We gotta look on the bright side of things for sure! Anyways it was nice to see you again, Kyojuro. I hope to see you again sometime."

"INDEED! And thank you again for those delicious cookies! Everyone loved them!"

"Cookies?"

"Not for you I'm afraid!" In one movement the energetic man turned on his heel towards the door. "Now come! The swing sets and slides await us!"

"Yay! Swings!"

You couldn't help but laugh at the goofy man as he left with the giggling child. He certainly was a bright fellow. Everything would be ok. You were sure of that. Even if your efforts did nothing, surely the Rengoku's would be able to get by well.

Days passed by. 

The October fall being kissed goodbye slowly as the leaves still fell and gave way to that weird time of the months of November where the cool of fall was merging with the soon to be cold of winter and snow. Jackets, scarfs, and mittens were already being seen on so many walking around. 

It was on one of these days that a slow miracle was creeping up to its unsuspecting gift-y. Not quite a Christmas miracle but it'll do in a pinch for what was to be taken place that evening. A hot bowl of soup and a little bit of rice was always a quick and nice meal for a cold night like this. The kind of meal that'd help to cheer him up and reminded him just how much he loved his wife's cooking when the tray was placed in front of him and a warm kiss was pressed to his lips for a second.

Smiles were always his favorite part of her. Couldn't get enough of it as she smiled at him. "Here. I made some miso soup today. It ought to help you warm up after all the work you did."

Hard work? If you can call cleaning a barely used dojo and moping around all day hard work. He would've laughed at himself if he hadn't felt so frustrated with himself right now. Instead he kept quiet and pulled the bowl closer to him muttering a barely audible thanks. Her smile slowly gave way to a sad frown before she sighed and turned away. Slowly allowing herself to start preparing her own meal and a second tray for her youngest boy. She'd take him a meal as he was busy studying for a few exams before the Christmas break. 

The scooping of hot soup sloshing around in the pot was only paused when the distant sounds of a familiar beeping noise cascaded through the air. Catching her attention and only making her husband grunt again.

"Are you going to answer that?"

She didn't answer him. Letting the ladle spoon plop back down into the soul with a watery noise and quickly making her way towards the den where no doubt the home phone was ringing out for someone to answer it. It was not too long before the cold plastic was picked up from the receiver and help up to her ear. 

"Yes?"...Red eyes blinked. "Oh? I wasn't expecting a call from you. Is everything alright?" Her head turned around back towards the man still lazily picking at his soul with a spoon and not eating it. "Yes....Alright then."

Pitiful eyes didn't look up from the sloshing liquid of the soup even as footsteps approached back softly or even when he saw a pair of legs stop at his side out of the corner of his eyes. But he did blink as something was held out to his face. Took him two seconds to realize that it was a phone, and it took him one more second to look back up to his wife in question.

"Dear, it's Mr. Ubuyashiki."

A blink. "Who?"

"He's the chairman of Senjuro's school." The phone was nudged closer to him. "He wants to talk to you."

What? He grunted looking annoyed. "So? What does he want? If Senjuro's done something then-"

"Dear, please just speak to him."

There was a small three second pause before with an annoyed look the phone was taken from her and reluctantly held up to his ear. "Yes?"

"Ah! A different voice!" The voice of the phone was a man's. Clearly one he's never heard before. "Am I to assume that this is the husband of my wonderful calligraphy teacher?"

"What do you want?" He wasn't in the mood for the cheery bull that this voice seemed to have.

"Straight to the point then I see! Then I won't beat around the bush." The voice chuckled but gained a more professional feeling with it. "I heard that you are quite a coach!"

...Another blink. "What?"

"Recently I attended a little celebration of a good friend's son. Your name happened to be on a little business card handed out to me and I was reminded of your son. Polite young man he is."

"What is the point to this? Either spit it out or I'll hang up!" He REALLY was not in the mood to be talking to a man that liked to make random small chit chat even with the stern frown his wife was giving him.

"Of course," the man remained polite and patient despite his annoyance. "It reminded me of the petition Senjuro presented to me a little bit ago to start a kendo club. Usually I wouldn't mind clubs but one of our biggest school sponsors thought it would be a great idea to have an official kendo league added to our school. Frankly I couldn't agree more."

Huh. So his youngest finally did something worthwhile huh?...Guess that was good for him but-

"What does that have to do with me?"

"Well naturally if we're to add kendo to our track and other sports teams we'll be in need of a coach to teach said sport." He completely froze at his words. "But unfortunately we have none."

The world seemed to slow down as the silence continued to stare off at nothing. His throat suddenly felt dry as he swallowed thickly in order to not let his neck to become a desert. "What..are you getting at?"

"Mr. Shinjuro I've heard quite a good deal about you from your wife and others. I'd love to hire you as one of our new sports coaches starting next semester! And have you coach our new established kendo team if that's an option for you."

CLINK. CLI-CLINK.

Ruka blinked as the spoon dropped from her husband's hand and clattered to the table flinging small droplets of miso soup around the oak wood surface. Her brow rose higher at the wide eyed stare he seemed to have. Like he just saw a ghost.

"Honey? Are you ok?"

[vintagelasvegas]

Frank Sinatra's debut at the Sands, October 1953. The partnership between Sinatra and the Sands would last 14 years. Attorney Harry Claiborne pushed Sinatra's request to buy a two percent interest in the casino to the Tax Commission.

“Federal authorities long assumed that Sinatra was merely holding his ownership shares in the Sands — which eventually grew to nine percent, making him the largest single owner after Freedman, Entratter, and casino manager Carl Cohen — for a mob investor, possibly Doc Stacher, Frank Costello, Gerardo Catena of Newark, New Jersey, or Meyer Lansky—perhaps even some combination of them all. Still, Sinatra was proud to be an owner of the Sands, and grew to consider the hotel’s success a sign of his own prowess as a businessman, even though he had little to do with casino operations. Dean Martin, who bought ten shares in '61, was the only other entertainer afforded this privilege.”

David G. Schwartz. At the Sands: The Casino That Shaped Classic Las Vegas, Brought the Rat Pack Together, and Went Out With a Bang.

Photo: Kodachrome, auctioned by Choctkeys in 2017.

[steviewashere]

Sugar Lips

Rating: Teen and Up CW: None Apply! Tags: Post-Canon, Post-Season 4, Pre-Steve Harrington/Eddie Munson, Steve Harrington Has an Oral Fixation, Suckers as Both a Plot Point and a Character, Eddie Munson Loves Steve Harrington's Mouth, Spit Kink, (I'm Like 99% Sure That's Half of What This Is), Eddie Munson is a Cringe Fail, Eddie Munson is Good at Flirting (Sort of), First Kiss, Innuendos, Steve Harrington is a Tease, Neurodivergent Eddie Munson (Implied), Neurodivergent Steve Harrington (Implied)

🍭—————🍭

Steve has this little thing he does and Eddie isn’t sure he realizes what it is. Or that he’s doing it. Or that it’s driving him absolutely insane.

Now, Eddie’s no stranger to fidgeting. That is definitely something he engages in as constantly as possible. He often shifts the guitar pick on his necklace. And he absentmindedly picks the threads on his jeans or he’ll plunge his finger back and forth in the button holes of his vest. Sometimes, he’ll use his index finger to trace the zipper teeth on the sleeves of his leather jacket. He’s just a texture guy, likes being able to feel things constantly. Shift them around. Give his fingers something to do in a moment of much needed distraction.

It’s just how his brain works. And he’s ninety-nine percent sure that Steve’s brain works similarly.

He puts things in his mouth. Yup. That’s what Steve does. That’s his thing. Sometimes it’s just his fingers. Nibbling away at his fingernails or tearing at hangnails, which can’t ever feel good. If he gets sauce on his fingers, he licks it off instead of using a napkin. (That one in particular has made Eddie flee to the bathroom several times. Can you blame a guy?)

The thing that’s going to kill Eddie, though, is this stupid cotton candy flavored Dum-Dum sucker Steve packed with his lunch. He’d come in to find a movie for him and Wayne to watch later that night, wanted to invite Steve over and that’s when he saw it. The sucker.

It began normally. “Hey, Stevie!” He had greeted. The door chimed above him. And Steve gave him a half-hearted wave from behind the counter. He was sitting on a metal stool, back towards the door, face down at the counter, sketching out things on the inventory list. A wobbling stack of—what appeared to be—horror tapes beside him. Fresh from delivery, most likely. Eddie paid no mind. Waltzed towards the westerns, standing idle in front of the movies momentarily as his eyes took in the sheer amount of Chuck Norris films, and found one he hoped Wayne hadn’t seen before. (Which, now that he thinks about it, is highly unlikely. He wouldn’t be surprised if Wayne went to him one day to say he was gay for Chuck Norris. He’s like an absent husband at the Munson’s.)

He rang the little service bell to get Steve’s help checking out. And nearly buckled at the knees. Steve’s lips were spit slick and lightly stained pink. It popped from out of his mouth, his lips a perfect ‘O’ shape. And his tongue was also a delicious bright pink. Eddie was so distracted by the whole display, he didn’t even realize that Steve was actually speaking. That his spit was more interesting than whatever bullshit Family Video regime he was mumbling.

“Huh?” Eddie dumbly said while blinking back to existence.

Steve chuckled. “I asked if that was all you needed today, Eds.”

I could think of something else, Eddie thought, still staring at Steve’s mouth. He shook his head, curls whipping about, hopefully covering the embarrassing flush on his cheeks. “No—I—This—Wayne wanted to kiss—I mean watch—“ Eddie stopped himself with a heaving sigh. “Yeah, this is all I need.”

He swallowed down the rest of what he wanted to say. Tried to cover for himself. But he was weak in the knees once more. The sucker went back into Steve’s mouth, lolling over his teeth, clinking. His tongue was probably doing gymnastics trying to savor the flavor of that stupid thing. Probably suckling around it. Mouth pooling with spit. Eddie forced himself to lean against the counter, palms spread and flat against the surface, head dipped down so that he couldn’t see his demise anymore. But that still didn’t stop his mind from wandering. Thinking about what Steve’s mouth probably tastes like, sugar sweet and oddly fruity. Didn’t stop the sudden flashes of make out sessions they could be having, hiding behind the ‘Adults Only’ curtain, pinned up against—

“Dude!” Steve suddenly shouted. And Eddie found his eyes back on Steve’s face, dipping low to his lips. That sucker was still in his mouth. And he was right, there’s so much spit. He wishes that was his tongue in—“Eddie, are you alright, man? Why do you keep looking at me like that?” He sounded nervous. Even a little…embarrassed.

Fuck, that’s not how he wants Steve to feel around him. He scolds himself mentally, again. Stop being a perv, he tells himself. But his musings are futile.

He sighed once more. “I’m fine,” he muttered, “tired, that’s all.” Gave his best smile, but completely shattered once more when Steve pulled the lollipop out of his mouth. A thin string of saliva connecting it to his lips. His tongue darting out to break it. He couldn’t stop staring. Couldn’t stop himself from yearning. Couldn’t help the way he leaned further over the counter, completely in Steve’s warm orbit, nearly nose to nose.

Steve nervously giggled, but he didn’t step away. In fact, he licked his lips, darted his eyes, and for some odd reason…his cheeks grew bright pink. “I—Eds, you’re really—“

“Why are you so pretty?” Bursted from Eddie. He groaned. “It’s really not fair. And you’re single? What the fuck is wrong with people?”

“Eddie, what are you—“

“You fucking lick a stupid sucker and now I’m losing my mind. What the hell,” Eddie murmured. “Like I just wanna—“ He quickly looked over his shoulder, the parking lot desolate through the windows, the aisles completely clean, and turned his gaze back at Steve. His hands jumped up from on the counter, grabbed the lapels of Steve’s stupidly cute pink polo, and pulled him in. “I’m gonna kiss you,” he whispered, “and you can kill me later for it.”

As Steve began to nod, Eddie surged forward. It wasn’t a pretty kiss. And it wasn’t a neat one, either. Steve’s lips were moist, sticky with sugar, and stupidly soft. He slipped his tongue out, licking between his lips, tasting cotton candy. And was slightly shocked when Steve let him in. Letting him taste inside his mouth. Trace his teeth, connect their spit, share that sucker.

When he pulled back, popping off of Steve’s bottom lip, he immediately dropped his hands. Horrible realization dawned on him. His eyes widened. Mouth dropping open. Cheeks flushing. “Fuck,” he spat. “I’m sorry, I don’t—That was—You’re my friend, I shouldn’t have done that.”

But as their eyes met, he let himself relax slightly. Steve’s eyes were wide, but glistening. Something soft about them. He was smiling, teeth, spit, pink stains and all. “I have been waiting months for you to do that,” he said simply.

“What,” Eddie could only muster, his voice distant with disbelief.

“I have been waiting months for you to do that,” Steve repeated. “You’re not a very subtle looker. But that was—Jesus Christ, I could like taste your yearning.” Eddie began to crumple. This was a bad idea, he briefly thought. Though Steve whispered, flirtatiously and in awe, “That was so fucking hot.”

Eddie hummed. He relaxed completely. Placing his hands back on the lapels of Steve’s shirt. Thumbs rubbing in circles over the fabric. It was scratchy under his fingertips, it felt good. He sighed through his nose. Smirked something teasing. “I was going to invite you over tonight for that movie,” Eddie began, voice low and husky. “But maybe we could leave Wayne to it and…I’ve got some room in my van. Go out to the quarry. Show me what else your mouth can do.”

For how much of a ladies man Steve Harrington supposedly is, he’s too easy to fluster. Going warm and bright red under Eddie’s gaze. Melting positively into the slight hold Eddie still has on him. “Okay,” he murmured, “What time?”

“As soon as your shift is over, come to mine. Bring yourself, this cute little polo, and your pretty mouth. I’ve got plans with you, sugar.”

Kissing Steve Harrington’s sucker sweet mouth is probably Eddie’s new favorite way of fidgeting. And he finds, much much later, that it fulfills needs for the both of them.

🍭—————🍭

[ashlingiswriting]

do i know you? chapter ten

[ chapter ten — 5.5k words ] [ masterlist ] [ prev chapters: one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine ] you don't open the letter. richie jerimovich x reader, past mikey berzatto x reader, slow burn

handcuffs, bus, metal detector, strip search. three pairs of socks, toothbrush, toothpaste. everything stolen by your cellmate as soon as you arrive, except what you’re wearing. entire jail segregated to hell. you claimed by the italians, who were expecting you. instructions are simple: stick to the bottom bunk, keep your mouth shut, and you’ll make it. this is jail, not prison.

nothing and no one can touch you when you’re like this, sunk deep inside yourself. your throat is still hoarse from shouting last night, but that’s incidental, not important. nothing is important.

you don’t want to be here, so you’re not. 

you’re standing on the corner with half a pack in your jacket pocket, and he’s not there—you can’t see him right now, not even in your head—but he’s on his way. the winter sinks cold so deep into you that your forehead starts to hurt. if you stand here much longer, you’re going to get a runny nose. you’re itching for a cigarette. you don’t want to smoke without him. 

a lot of people want your attention.

julie, you’ve got mail. who’s this, your man? is he trying to get you back? put a price on it, maybe you can finally get us something from commissary. 

julie, the feds are not playing around. it looks like there’s charges related to human trafficking coming down the pipeline, and they’re trying to tie you to it. i’m doing my best with your defense, but if you don’t want to cooperate, i can’t guarantee—do you hear me? 

julie, when she comes through, we’re gonna take her back here. if you see a guard coming, just keep your mouth shut and kick the dryer, okay?

a lot of people want your attention, but nobody gets it. you can survive this, put one foot in front of the other, only as long as you can stand partly sheltered by the angle of your apartment building, and listen to the wind rushing past. waiting and safe, as long as he never arrives.

the snitch gets carried out on a stretcher.

the lawyer leaves unsatisfied.

you don’t open the letter.

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.

it’s much worse at night. but still, sometimes, you can sleep.

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lunch here has a queasy familiarity. it feels like barracks or school. you sit at a long table and corresponding bench with the italians, wondering if all this sodium is gonna worsen your perpetual low-grade headache, squeezing peanut butter from its plastic packet directly into your mouth, not bothering with the bread. 

behind you, you pick out the word doctor in somebody else’s conversation. thinking that it might have something to do with you, you turn and glance over your shoulder, just in time to catch a woman saying, too loudly, no i’m fine. you think her words sound a bit slurred. you’re fifty percent sure her name is aja. 

you’re sweating, says her friend, a woman with box braids whose name you’ve never learned.  she sounds exasperated. did you take something? when she gets no answer, her voice gains a note of urgency. hey. did you take something?

aja, leaning hunched forward on the table, mumbles no.

relieved, her friend says, then just eat your lunch.

i don’t...aja blinks. goes to lift one baby carrot to her mouth, looks at it, then stops. is car warning, she explains.

in the back of your brain, something stirs.

by now, you’ve been noticed by the other women at that table, and they’re staring daggers back. they’re almost all black women, just like all the women at yours are almost all white—and your stare is violating rules more important than the law. 

beside you, your cellmate janine has caught on too. she smacks your arm a little harder than she needs to, annoyed that she has to reiterate a fundamental lesson. mind your business. but you can still hear aja muttering out a slow explanation of increasingly jumbled words, and that’s all you care to hear.

it’s like there was a heavy weighted blanket keeping you down and separate from life, and that’s suddenly lifted. you can see and hear. there are words floating to the surface, and next steps, and you’re on the move, standing up. 

every woman sitting at aja’s table is up on their feet in five seconds flat, except for aja and her friend, though the friend gives you a look that could cut glass. you can hear everyone from your table getting up behind you, too. 

what’s your problem? says one of the women standing opposite.

i’m a doctor. you’re not even looking at her, but when she says, sure you are, there’s enough menace in it to stop you in your tracks. then janine has an iron grip on your arm, trying to drag you away. it’s too late. when you said you’re a doctor, you believed it, and with that the world has come into focus with perfect clarity. the rest doesn’t matter.

is she diabetic? you say.

janine hisses in your ear stupid fucking bitch fast and low and you can see a flicker of movement to your right, another woman from your side coming for you, so you wrestle free from janine and dart a few steps forward. as quick and smooth as if you’d planned it, a woman from aja’s side steps behind you, between you and your own table. she’s taller than you by about six inches. she says, yeah, she’s diabetic. 

permission enough. you sit down on the other side of aja. up close, she’s sweating and wearing a concerned expression, like she’s forgotten where she left her phone. you can hear the guards shouting, getting closer. you ignore them.

don’t touch her, the friend snaps.

who’s gonna take her pulse, then? keeping a careful eye on the friend, you reach for aja’s arm. nobody stops you. aja herself looks at you with vague suspicion in her golden brown eyes, but she’s not all there enough to resist. once you get your fingers on her wrist and find her pulse, you don’t bother counting it for a full thirty seconds, that’s how fast her heartbeat is going. 

at this point, the outside world has gotten too loud, too insistent, and you can feel the moment about to break. 

she needs sugar now, you say to the friend. or she’ll end up in a coma.

got it, she says, and then the guards are on you. with shouts and shoves, they break up the gathering, end lunch ten minutes early. with a yank of your shirt, you’re returned to your group. 

what the fuck is wrong with you, janine hisses, but you barely hear her. you’re still thinking on your patient, trying to get a look. you think you see the friend reaching for somebody else’s tray—to get a packet of strawberry jam, maybe—but you can’t be sure.

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it makes no sense. your head throbs. if janine’s threats are even half true, you’re in for more trouble than you know how to handle, and you didn’t know how to handle your troubles before. but somehow, once you’re in the laundry room, it happens. 

you realize that you like it all. the strong smell of detergent, the sun coming in golden through the high windows built too thin for jumpers, the way you have to lean forward and really push against the weight of hundreds of t-shirts in the hamper trolley. even the finicky machine quitting mid-cycle only amuses you, because you know the trick to starting it up again: thump it in the right spot a couple times, hear it rumble back to work. it’s not until one of the guards passes by you that you hear, the fuck are you smiling about? and you realize you were smiling at all. you stop at once.

the thing is: you fucking did it. at dinner, you’ll see aja sitting at that same table, eating and talking clearly. she’ll be fine. you did that. you never thought you’d get this again, but it seems not everything is over. there is still a little life in you, enough to save hers.

not everything is over, and for once you can think about the letter tucked into your bra without it burning you. 

you don’t imagine it contains forgiveness—hope isn’t the same as delusion—but there could still be something in it that you would want to keep. richie could never respect your decision to leave. loyalty is what he’s cared about most, the one value he’s managed to cling onto by the skin of his teeth. but he might at least understand. 

times past, he has understood you far better than you expected, and strangely enough, you’ve understood him too. he might understand you now. stranger things have happened.

you won’t read the letter, of course. but you’ll keep that possibility with you, the one thing you have left to hold.

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hey doc, come here. look at this. 

janine is calling to you from across the laundry room, beckoning you towards the back corner where the security cameras don’t quite reach. you hesitate. you’re not stupid. that’s exactly the spot they once made you stand guard, and given how publicly you ignored all orders today, you wouldn’t be surprised if it was janine’s turn to stand watch and your turn to take the beating. it’s been a while since you’ve done that. you’re probably rusty. ah, fuck it.

you leave the bin of stained shirts where it is and walk over, rounding the corner to find two women waiting for you. one you recognize immediately as an enforcer, blonde and tall and glaring ferociously at you. the other, slight and silver-haired, is the leader. 

do you know why you’re here? she says. calm, even pleasant, like a schoolteacher. 

i have a guess, you say.

so the leader explains. she takes her time with it, uses so many words, but the long and short of it is: you have been living an easy life. they have been taking care of you, and you’ve repaid them with nothing but trouble. angie—the massive woman leaning on the far wall, the enforcer—burned herself today in the kitchen, on purpose, badly enough that she got sent to the infirmary. sure enough, there’s a bandage around the enforcer’s left forearm. aja was supposed to also be in the infirmary, unconscious.

why angie and aja would need to be in the infirmary together, with aja unconscious, is obvious. the leader doesn’t need to explain that part. 

interfering is a crime. interfering in someone else’s murder is a crime whose punishment you can’t afford.

i didn’t know, you say. on hearing your thin voice, you realize your mistake. times like these, you’re supposed to keep your mouth shut. matter of fact, almost always, you’re supposed to keep your mouth shut. 

i’ve been told you have a letter on you, the leader says. let me see it.

you say nothing. she motions to the enforcer.

in your second tremendously stupid choice of the day, you fight back. you duck one punch only to get your ears rung by another, square in the left eye. after that, she deals with you easily, with the advantages of height, weight, reach, and the knowledge that this might be her one chance to get you back. she hates you and she fights like it, like she might just kill you and call it an accident. it’s all you can do to keep quiet, not yell for help. 

in under a minute, she’s back to the leader with your letter in her hand, snatched from your bra. the sound of your own heavy breathing is so unsteady, it’s almost as bad as crying. your eye has already begun to swell up. 

we have a problem, the leader says. if you can’t follow the most basic instructions, how can we trust you? and if we can’t trust you, what can we do? 

in the silence, you realize: they have everything now.

you need to prove that we can trust you. you have no idea how you could possibly do that, and then she adds, tell me about what you did for linda.

this time, you think it through before you open your mouth. 

you know what she’s asking about, of course. it’s the only thing you’ve ever done for your boss’s wife directly, and you were told to keep it secret, too. an iud for her daughter-in-law, along with a fake fertility treatment. what a woman would do to convince the people closest to her that she wants children, when she doesn’t. you know what those men are like.

i don’t know what you’re talking about, you finally say. if you have a problem with linda, go settle it with her. 

the enforcer starts forward, but the leader stops her. i’ll give you the night to think about it, she says, as undisturbed as ever. but first, i want you to tell me the list of things we could do if you turn out to not be trustworthy. i need to make sure that you know.

you need to get these women away from you so badly now that it’s almost easy to talk. 

you could kill me. you say that first because you doubt they’d bother with that much effort. or make my life miserable. you could keep that letter. you could talk to your boss and work it so i get stuck in here for a ten-year stretch. 

and other than that?

i don’t know.

we could make it so you never work as a doctor again.

does she know?

her pale green eyes give nothing away, and the longer you stare at her, desperately trying to pierce her pitiless calm, the more you feel you’re only exposing yourself. eventually, you give up. it doesn’t matter if she knows. the carusos know. if they expose you, the best years of your life, spent in hard work and little else, they’ll be gone. the worst years of your life, spent in restless loneliness and little else, they’ll be gone too. if that bomb drops, there’s no point to any of it. a decade of your life, best and worst, all for nothing. every second of every day. everyone you pushed away. 

i’m in jail, you manage to say. i don’t think i’ll get work as a doctor ever again.

i’m just the messenger, the leader says. see you tomorrow.

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that night, you wait for janine to snore, then you bury your face in the pillow and discover that you’re wound too tight to even cry. the pillow smells like old socks. you turn over and stare up at the bunk bed above you instead. 

it’s not a choice, it’s just pure dread. in this place, you have nobody else. if the italians drop you, you’ll be as easily extinguished as the slugs that little boys like to sprinkle with salt, but it’ll take much longer, however long they make your sentence. your lawyer said the feds were trying to pin human trafficking on you. maybe they’ll succeed. it’s life or hell, that’s the point. life or hell isn’t a choice.

you will tell them what they want to know. they will pass it back up the chain to old caruso, who in turn will figure out that alessandra has been fooling him all along with that combination of iud and fake fertility treatment. wronged the family, in his eyes. maybe, given the raid that came not long after, it will be considered a sign that she knew the end was coming and helped it along.

maybe she did snitch. you don’t know. does the truth matter? this man looked at his own wounded son and said, he should be dead. not helping death along was his idea of fatherhood. but he had considered it, you know. this is the man you’re going to deliver your patient to, the man who has you by the throat.

when you first learned about the hippocratic oath, you found it romantic in the only way you could bear: do no harm. not be kind or even do good, not change the world or save the day, and certainly nothing as lushly irrational as love. something possible and real. a solid foundation. first, do no harm. 

alessandra might never know that you’re the one who gave her up.

that’s your patient, you remember a veteran surgeon saying to another resident. you can’t exactly remember what made him say it, some disrespect, but the viciousness of his voice left an impression on you. the unspoken seemed obvious. they’re the patient, you’re the doctor. they let you cut them wide open and put your hands inside them, so you better be prepared to show some fucking respect. surgeons always have a reputation for ego, so maybe it had nothing to do with treating the patient well, maybe it was a pure ego thing. but it felt, and still feels, like a personal claim. you violate your own patient and you might as well be a leafless tree, an unloving father.

you think over the leader’s words, trying to find yourself some loophole. relive each word as best you can while sniffing back snot because you have no tissues. but all you find is that the letter is gone now too, and with that, you tighten your jaw and refuse to let yourself start crying, because this time if you lose it, you’ll be lost.

the laundry room sunlight feels like it fell on your face years ago. that hope is gone. richie would not understand you abandoning your patient, and you wouldn’t want him to. you don’t even want him living in the same country as this fucking place. 

why didn’t you open that letter when you had the chance? if it’s not understanding, it’s probably rage, and you want that.  you would willingly read in excruciating detail just how fucked up it is that you caused his best friend’s death and then wormed your way so deep into his life that you could see him up close fighting the grief like a fish against the hook. you’d take that. if he tells you to go fuck yourself, fair enough. as long as it’s his words. that letter is the last of him, and you want it. 

that letter is the last of him because once you give up alessandra, there’s no coming back. once you give up alessandra, you’re not just a legal liability, not just a burden, but a genuine honest to god piece of shit twice over. you were a piece of shit already, but this?

you only realize you had hope now that you’re losing it. you only know you want to be a doctor once your license is on the line; you only know you were going to go back to him now that the door is receding many more years into the distance. there’s some life left in you, yeah. that’s not a good thing.

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when you get up out of bed the next morning to meet your fate, your left eye has swollen up so badly you can barely see out of it. you face the morning, the sudden harsh overheads turning on, with half vision and a desperate, helpless longing to be numb. the numbness doesn’t return, though the leader does. 

she sits next to you at breakfast. there’s no enforcer this time. apparently you’re not enough of a threat.

well? she says.

you should’ve cried last night; maybe then you wouldn’t feel such an intense urge to cry now. stupid. you say nothing. you want to pick at the lumps of rubbery scrambled egg on your tray, but you only stare at them.

this is your chance. she doesn’t say it like a threat. she says it like a friend. you sure you have nothing to tell me?

it’s happening, you can feel it happening, but you can barely process. she thinks your silence is a no. she thinks she’s being denied. and you know you need to tell her what she wants to hear, but the guilt of it is so heavy that your mouth stays closed. you’re terrified of her. of yourself. you know what will happen once you crack and open your mouth and let your patient down: your life will be over. and you have no idea of exactly what will happen if you don’t open your mouth, but your imagination can fill in those blanks a thousand different ways. 

you’re just fucking scared in all directions, and what it amounts to is this: you keep your mouth shut.

after what feels like hours, the leader speaks.

okay, she says. i’ll pass it on. 

she gets up from the table. around you, women are eating and joking and squabbling as usual. it doesn’t feel like you made a decision. it doesn’t feel like the end of anything. it just feels like you’re waiting for the next punch to land.

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days go by and you’re still tensed, waiting for that punch. nothing seems to change, but it’s cold comfort. and there’s no comfort in the moral victory, either—discovering that you have a single principle left doesn’t make you feel any better when all your energy goes into keeping your guard up. every dull hour, every dull meal could be taken away from you at any moment. the afternoon light in the laundry room is still beautiful. somebody should try to hurt you, and soon. if they don’t, you’re just going to lose it.

and then there she is. the enforcer, sitting on your bed, when you come back from the laundry room smelling of bleach from the white shirts. the burn on her arm is still bandaged. in full light, she looks even bigger. dirty blonde hair swept back in a ponytail, grey eyes hateful. 

when she takes out that blue envelope, your chest tightens. you can tell that she enjoys the look on her face, but it doesn’t last long. it’s strange. she tosses the letter with a dismissive gesture, and it lands on the floor between you.

congratulations. she still hates you, that much is clear—but she’s no longer enjoying herself, and that’s vital. that’s a good sign.

yeah? you say.

jack says you pass. 

she shoves past you hard on her way out. it’s all you can do not to snatch up the letter from the ground, to try and look as though you have some kind of control. 

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> dear julie, 

> i don’t know if you remember me, but you dated my best friend mikey a while ago. when i found out you got arrested, i talked to tina about it. she said you helped him till the day he died, and you’re the one who got us narcan.

> that sounds about right to me. i heard negative things about you once, but i never believed them. some things only come around once in a while, like a leap year. (which doesn’t have 365 days, it has 366.) one of those rare things is a friend who’s there when you need them. you have to recognize them when you see them. i think i recognize you now.

> this is just me saying that we haven’t forgotten you. tina says hi, and i’ll come visit, if you’ve got the time to spare. i’m guessing you’re pretty bored in there, and i can honk my horn and take a pie to the face as well as the next guy. 

> yours,

> richie

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.

.

yeah, that’s him. 

you know it’s him on the first reread, because you can see all the tightness falling away as he writes, from the cramped propriety and false casualness in the first sentences to the dear clown stupidity of the last. you know it’s him on the second reread, because he’s lying in his own way, trying to fit in with what you wanted, pretending he’s just the friend of your ex, not admitting to knowing you. you’re crying. you’ve waited a long time to cry. that’s incidental. 

it’s only on the fifth reread that you snag on the part about the leap year. it’s the weirdest part, the parentheses. long after you have the letter half-memorized and tucked away in your bra, after dinner and lights out, you’re thinking on it. you fall asleep to the question and wake up the next morning with the answer. 

i’d bet my life that there was a sig p365 in his hand when they found him.

some things only come around once in a while, like a leap year. (which doesn’t have 365 days, it has 366.)

what if it wasn’t you?

no, you’ve been inside for less than two months and you’re already detaching from reality. that’s probably what’s happening here. but you can practically feel the warmth coming off the page, and that’s all that matters. 

your nose is practically fountaining snot, and without kleenex, you just wipe it on your sleeve and read the letter again.

it’s only hours later that you stop obsessing over the letter for long enough to truly realize what has happened. you’re going to be okay. 

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.

.

the days pass quiet now. your swelled eye heals up slowly, until one morning you have full vision again. just as before, all you do is sleep, eat, work, and keep to yourself. nothing has changed. 

nothing has changed on the surface.

.

.

.

you think about alessandra all the time, because of course you do. 

just because old caruso couldn’t get you to flip on her doesn’t mean she’s safe, and yet you think about her the way you think about aja, the way you think about a gap-toothed surgery patient from way back in your residency sometimes. the thing that made you text your bosses begging for news about the carbon monoxide poisoning patients. that’s still in you. 

you know you can’t actually save anyone in a way that lasts—any and all work can be undone in an car-crash instant, and sometimes is—but still. one of your patients has to make it, or else what’s the point?

eventually you stop seeing aja around, but you don’t hear any talk about her getting killed, so you figure: that’s the one. that’s the one you got to save. it makes no sense, you know, but you have this feeling that if you get to save anyone, you only get to save one. so you try to prepare for the news that alessandra is gone. 

but when the news comes of a death in that family, it’s not the one you expected.

you stare at your lawyer, shocked. wait, so old caruso is dead?

suicide, she says matter of factly. hung himself in his cell. 

the fuck? so do we think that… you trail off, mindful of the cameras, even if they’re technically supposed to be turned off for lawyer consultations. you believe he’s dead, but you don’t believe for a second that he actually killed himself. 

your lawyer shrugs. who knows. all that matters is that apparently there’s an informer of some sort that’s turned over a bunch of shit—cellphone records, emails—and they’re willing to give an affidavit that you were threatened. there’s a couple pretty graphic and specific examples. for example, allegedly, after the first surgery you performed in the easystop basement, the oldest of caruso’s sons put his hand in the semi-coagulated blood and—

he’s dead now, you feel obligated to say. it’s whatever. you remember it well, though you wish you didn’t.

she’s admirably noncommittal, your lawyer. it would be nice if it wasn’t so annoying. which one is dead now?

most of them, i guess. the father’s dead, the oldest son is dead, and the youngest son will probably never be the same despite your best efforts. considering those numbers, it’s nothing short of a miracle that jack, the middle son, has apparently decided to spare you. you kept your mouth shut on behalf of his wife, but right now there’s such a tangle of complications and so few actual facts available to you that you can’t begin to guess what’s truly happening behind the scenes. you can only be grateful that you haven’t been hurt worse. 

your lawyer is considering you with shrewd eyes. after a second, she says, if i can get you a plea deal, will you take it? 

i can’t testify, you say automatically.

i know. i think i can get a deal without testimony included.

wait, really? 

she gives you a look, as if to say, catch up, dummy.

how many years? you say.

months, possibly. we’ll see.

you hardly know what to say to that. cool, you say, feebly.

you’ve kept your mouth shut, so they’re taking it easy on you, that’s the bottom line. it feels like a copout to escape the worst punishments on the basis that you were coerced, even if that’s true, because you feel like you probably deserve worse. but fuck, you’ll take mercy from anywhere right now, right and wrong and dignity be damned.

i’ll let you know. your lawyer gets up to go, but just as you’re about to call for the guard, she stops short. oh, one last thing. your landlady finally agreed that you don’t need to pay her rent for the past two months.

lovely.

she threw out all of your belongings that the cops didn’t take.

can’t say i’m surprised. it still hurts, but it’s a hurt dwarfed by the immense relief of an imminent plea deal. i’d sue, but we both know my retainer’s gonna run out too soon for that.

she did forward your mail to me, though. 

my mail? what is it, a dollar fifty off a personal pan pizza?

one postcard from your mom and her boyfriend and his family. one interview request for a doctoral residency program in indiana. 

you don’t know which of those is weirder. the residency applications you mostly did in a period of loneliness and boredom. they were an exercise in desperation daydreaming, not meant to touch real life, and you never even imagined a person reading the papers you submitted. getting a response, a good response, is as strange as a character stepping off a page. and your mom having a boyfriend is no surprise, but a boyfriend with a family? the world’s ended, yeah, but is the world ending?

can you forward those to me? you say.

they’re already in the mail. you should get them within the next two weeks.

when your lawyer leaves, you’re still sitting there. the guard has to call your name twice before you get up.

what a fucking week.

.

.

.

if you’re gonna get out in months, then…

.

.

.

you earn seventy-two cents per day working in the laundry. the first time you go to the commissary, you buy a stamp, an envelope, and a blank card. then you smuggle detergent out of the laundry room so you can bribe janine into letting you borrow her pen.

you have richie’s letter memorized, but you read it again anyway. then you stare at the blank white space of the card. 

what is there to say? well, fucking everything, but there isn’t much you can say with the inevitable prison guard reading it all too. that cuts you off from saying most things, and then dignity wants you to shut up about the rest. sorry i thought my life was over and tore you to pieces about it. turns out my life isn’t over, can we be friends again?

thing is, if you write him a letter, he’ll write back, even if it’s to tell you to fuck off. and honestly at this point, you’d give up a lot more than dignity for that. so here fucking goes.

> dear richie,

> thank you for writing. i’m not good company right now and i can’t really write letters, but maybe we can get coffee sometime when i’m out?

> yours,

> julie

the yours gives you away, but you have so little else to offer. and besides, he started it.

it’s disciplined. that’s what you’re trying to tell yourself. it’s disciplined and concise and it gets across exactly as much as he needs to know and jesus fucking christ that short note looks absolutely pitiful in the comparatively vast white space of the card. 

so you make an addition.

> p.s. tear the bottom off for eva.

as best as you can, you draw the horses from memory. arched necks, white and dark patches on their coats, as close to the style of the girl who loved horses as you can. and then one girl with a superhero’s mask and a cape, holding up an apple so the tallest horse can eat it. you don’t draw well, but you don’t have the pen long enough to try a do-over. there’s a small chance you’ll make her smile, and that’s all you want. 

lick envelope, peel stamp, and send.

[ next chapter pending ] [ masterlist ]

.

.

.

a huge thank you to all readers.

taglist: @garbinge, @narcolini, @drabbles-mc, @beingalive1, @eternallyvenus, @cerial-junkie, @jackierose902109, @shinebright2000, @scorpiolystoned, @fancyvoidtragedy, @justficsandstuff, @fromirkwood, @gills-lounge, @lostfleurs, @spicydonut25— if anyone wants to be added to or removed from the taglist, let me know!

[last-starry-sky]

kinktober day 2 - oral fixation

ghost x gn!military!reader

[MDNI - NSFW - MIND THE WARNINGS: 1k, vague descriptions of anxiety and self-destructive behaviors, oral fixation (obviously), no actual sex but it's suggestive as hell, lmao.]

tag list (lmk if you'd like to be added!): @slut-lmao, @mishaglass

This is his fault. Mostly.  

Your nervous ticks were entirely innocent, absolutely unintentional. Never intended to annoy, let alone provoke anyone. But old (bad) habits die hard, and once your anxiety takes hold you find yourself falling back on them. If anything, they only harmed you in the end. Your stubby nails, picked skin, and raw lips were evidence enough of that. 

You find yourself chewing on your nails in the middle of the meeting. It’s nothing high stakes, at least not right now. Not that you’ve been told. If you’d learned anything in this job it’s that anything can go wrong at any time. Even when you’re overprepared. Even when your superiors are sure. Old mistakes can come back to haunt you at the worst times. The worst part is that, nine times out of ten, nothing happens. Everything is fine. But that other ten percent? It has you up late, sleeplessly rummaging through data for the hundredth time, trying to prepare for the unpreparable.

You’d just finished gnawing through your thumbnail when Price called for a break. Most of the crowd, the several teams and special teams gathered for this specific mission, filter out. They chatter about grabbing a snack, some water, of stretching their legs. The Scot on your team: Soap, you believe Price had called him, roped an arm around another teammate in a blue baseball cap, asking to bum a smoke. The other man scoffs, mumbling something unheard as he digs in his breast pocket for his pack. They amble out of the room, Price not far behind. He peels off in the opposite direction to the other two, phone pressed to his ear, grumbling low responses that disappear in the thud of boots down the hall. 

That leaves you alone. Finally. You let out a sigh of relief. You’d been surrounded by people for the better part of a week and it had done nothing to soothe your fraying nerves already strained with anxiety. You went into data analysis for a reason. You didn’t mind people, but computers made for better coworkers. You ran your finger over the destroyed edge of your thumbnail. Can’t keep doing this to yourself, you think with a scowl. You looked over the others on the same hand before reaching for the pen slotted in your notebook. 

Perfect. 

You slid the cap of the pen along your bottom lip. The cool plastic was more soothing than your thumb. You slid it back and forth absently, stimulating whatever strange part of your brain needed it, while you flipped open your notebook. Your eyes quickly darting around the page and a half of scrawled notes you’d managed to take in the dark during the presentation. Not that the dim lighting now was any better. Your eyes were almost zoned out, on the edge of absorbing into your notes, the little square of table you’d claimed for yourself your whole world, pen in your mouth long forgotten.

If he hadn’t moved, you’d never have caught him. The sight of him alone at first gave you a fright. You flinched, biting down on the cap as your hand pulled the rest of the pen out of your mouth. You’d thought you were alone. Shame didn’t even have time to flush your face, because, as you took in the hulking brute of a man sat in the chair across the room, he stood up. You asked yourself how you could be so stupid to not notice someone that big, (and tall, good lord was he tall) let alone one dressed so conspicuously. Yes, his gear was mostly black, but a skull mask? Your brain must be especially fried to-

“‘ear me?” he asked gruffly, using the time you’d wasted in your head to cross the room. You swallowed, the cap falling from your lips in the process. You looked up at him, finding his shadowed brown eyes, ringed in black with stark blonde eyelashes. They peered out from behind the bleached, skeletal white of his mask. They were nice eyes, quite pretty with rare flecks of broken amber that caught the light. 

“No,” you answered guiltily. 

He huffed, gloved fingers reaching and taking the pen from your hand. It looked ridiculously small in his thick fingers. They’re decorated in skeleton print as well, you notice. He made the clear plastic tube look as delicate as spun sugar, flipping it easily between deft fingers. Good with his hands, you think. The motion distracts you, you don’t see his other hand until it’s on you. The second time he’s caught you out so far. 

The spinning suddenly stops as he grips your jaw, petting his own thumb across your sensitive lips. It doesn’t take much persuasion or strength on his part to open your mouth, letting him graze the pad of his gloved finger across your teeth. Your tongue darts out, tasting the worn, rough plastic.

The pen, laced between his knuckles, snaps. Your eyes dart up to his, wanting and frightened. He tossed the shattered remains of the pen to the floor, hand coming back up to adjust himself. He watches as your teeth leave permanent scrapes in the plastic pads the whole while, saliva absorbing into the fabric until it drips down his palm.

“Asked if you’re doin’ that shit on purpose,” he grumbled, pulling his thumb from the bite of your molars to stroke his middle and pointer fingers across your tongue. You close your eyes and moan as your lips close around the oversized digits, shuddering in your cold plastic chair. He doesn’t stop to motion of his hand, sawing in and out past your spit-slicked lips. It’s lovely how blank your mind becomes. Absolutely nothing in there except the motion of your teeth and tongue against the hard, dull material of his glove. He laughs at you when you reach up, laying your hand on his wrist. 

“Figured,” he huffs, stroking himself through his pants. “Newbies always get the shakes. Happens,” He grabs your jaw again, forcing your blissed-out gaze on him. Your cheeks pinch as he slowly draws his fingers from your mouth, lips still sucked close. He groans when they pop free. He inspects his glove and the slick shine you’ve left on it. “Could blow off some steam m’self,” he says, a groan following a squeeze of his thick cock through his pants leaving no doubt of his intention before he sauntered away.

[suzukiblu]

So . . . so it’s okay, if he has that kind of stuff too. And no one can tell him it’s not, or that he’s not–that he isn’t–

... gender vibes. idk. it just feels. dysphoria and euphoria.

Oh yeah, I FULLY leaned into the gender euphoria for "packs up and gets pupped", haha. I've just seen so many omegaverse fics involving characters assuming they were a certain gender and then being upset by finding out they were a different one, and while that CAN be a thing I'm into, it was also like ninety-nine percent of the time them being upset about being omegas (and yet mysteriously NEVER in a trans way or a way that could be solved by anything except getting a big sexy alpha to knot them, for sooooome reason . . .), so like . . . nope! Not this time, genre!! This time we get to be the thing we want and we get to FEEL BETTER ABOUT OURSELVES!!

Like, for a given value of "better", but still, hah.

KON DESERVES VALIDATION, OKAY?? ALL THE VALIDATION FOR SAD DEMI-ALIEN/TECHNICALLY-MORE-A-TEST-TUBE-BABY-THAN-A-CLONE BOY.

[cacoetheswriting]

pearl: october 1985

pairing: eddie munson x fem!reader word count: 2.3k summary: rebuilding your friendship with eddie was easy. trying to remain just friends is hard, but how do you tell him that?

content warnings: best friends to lovers, slow burn, mutual pining, suggestive & mature themes, adult language, use of pet names, idiots in love, emotional hurt / comfort, self-doubt / insecurities, reader has nightmares - if i missed anything, pls let me know!

pearl masterlist

“Anything you need, you just call me, okay?” You say to the young girl, “No matter the time of day, no matter where you are or if you think you’ll be interrupting me, just call.”

“Thanks.” Eleven mutters and does her best to offer you a smile.

“You and I, we gotta stick together, El.” You pull her in for a short lived hug. “Only we know what this feels like and we gotta support each other.”

“I’ll call you. I promise,” she assures before walking over to say goodbye to her friends.

By the time the Byers’ house is empty, boxes and bags packed into the car, everyone is crying. There’s some more hugs and you watch them drive off, holding onto Nancy. Once the car is out of sight, Steve asks you both to come over, hang out with him and Robin for a bit. It’s a request you politely decline. Going through a rollercoaster of emotions this afternoon, there was only one place you truly wanted to be.

Things between Eddie and you were pretty much back to normal. Ever since the incident at Starcourt Mall, you two were inseparable. Everywhere you went, there the metalhead followed — as if he was afraid something would happen if you were apart.

Eddie only ever left you alone to sleep, but even then it was only a couple of nights a week. Convincing him to stay with you wasn’t hard, convincing him to share a bed with you was even easier, and having Eddie by your side most nights helped you not only fall asleep but also stay asleep.

The horrible dreams you had earlier this year of the Demodogs, as described to you by the kids, were nothing compared to the nightmares you had been having ever since the events from the start of July. Witnessing the horrors of the Upside Down first hand… no one could have prepared you for that. And now, almost every single night, you woke up panting or actually screaming.

The first time you had a nightmare around Eddie, you borderline gave him a heart attack. The poor boy jumped out of bed, ready to tackle whatever intruder he perceived had broken into your bedroom. What he found instead was you, sitting hunched over in your bed with tears streaming down your face.

To this day, you hadn't told the metalhead what actually happened the night of the 4th of July. You decided along with the rest of the group that it was better he didn’t know the truth. Not only was this your way of protecting him, you figured even if you did try to explain, Eddie probably wouldn’t believe you. 

So you lied and said you’d been having nightmares ever since your dad died and he was kind enough not to press on the matter further.

Life with Eddie was easy, it always had been. Aside from your persistent nightmares, you quickly slipped back into your best friend dynamic and the remainder of the summer was uneventful. Only your feelings for him grew stronger. Past the platonic mark you were hovering over when you left for college; when you first kissed him.

You didn’t know how to tell him or if you should say anything in the first place. After all, you just got your friendship back to what it used to be and you sure as hell weren’t going to be the one to jeopardise that. He had the letters. He read them. There was nothing more to it.

But Eddie Munson never made anything easy for you. With his lingering touches, heartwarming stares. If you didn’t know any better, you’d think he still loved you too.

And you say “still” because, even though the metalhead never admitted it out loud, you’re ninety-nine percent sure he once did — if the kiss you shared was any indication, however contrived it may have been, under the circumstances. 

“Say your goodbyes?” Eddie asks when you appear in his room. He’s sitting on his bed, legs spread out in front of him and a copy of Lord of the Rings in his hands. He sets the book to the side when you plop next to him, head instantly attaching itself to his shoulder like a magnet.

“Yeah,” you exhale, “I hate goodbyes.”

“Me too,” he mutters as he intertwines his fingers with yours. “But this time it’s for the best, you know? The girl needs to get away for a while. Honestly, I didn’t even know Hopper had a kid and then for him to just die in that fire, leaving her all alone—”

Eddie bites his tongue and glances down at you. “Let’s talk about something else,” he offers and you meet his gaze.

“Like what?”

He licks his lips, pondering the question for a moment. You can’t help but to avert your gaze to where his tongue pressed against his pretty mouth. A certain warm feeling settles in your core as you wonder what it would be like to kiss him.

“How about I read to you?”

You raise an eyebrow, but the metalhead doesn’t wait for your protest — not like he would’ve gotten one anyway. He reaches for the novel he previously set aside and opens to the desired page. He clears his throat while you settle your head back on his shoulder, patiently waiting for him to start.

“Beautiful she is, sir! Lovely! Sometimes like a great tree in flower, sometimes like a white daffadowndilly, small and slender like.” Eddie enunciates, the tone of his voice completely intoxicating.

“Hard as di’monds, soft as moonlight. Warm as sunlight, cold as frost in the stars. Proud and far-off as a snow-mountain, and as merry as any lass I ever saw with daisies in her hair in springtime…”

Every word that spills from his lips is like honey and you’re completely hooked.

“It strikes me that folk takes their peril with them into Lorien, and finds it there because they’ve brought it. But perhaps you could call her perilous, because she’s so strong in herself.”

Eddie pauses. You can sense him shift in his position ever so slightly to look at you, so you look up to meet his doe eyes, a smile creeping up on your features.

“Why did you stop? Keep going.”

He licks his lips although doesn’t say what’s on his mind. Instead, he continues with the book like you ask. “You, you could dash yourself to pieces on her, like a ship on a rock; or drownd yourself, like a hobbit in a river.”

And as he reads, you start to zone out. You can feel yourself drift away. The soothing sound of his voice is putting you to sleep, but just as your eyes are about to close, you hear something.

“But neither rock nor river would be to blame—”

You press your index finger to Eddie’s mouth, getting him to stop. He’s clearly puzzled, quickly taking it in his hand, moving it to the side, only so slightly since the sensation of your skin against his lips makes his heart skip a beat. But he doesn’t dwell on the feeling, afraid to ruin things when they’ve just gotten good, instead shooting you a quizzical look.

“Thought you wanted me to keep going, princess.”

You ignore him. “Can you hear that?”

Eddie’s silent for a split second. Then he says, “Oh, that’s just Wayne. He must have the radio on.”

“Yeah, obviously. I’m talking about the song that’s playing.”

The two of you shift your attention to the door separating Eddie’s bedroom from the remainder of the trailer, though still holding onto one another in some way. The physical touch making up for time lost, you tell yourself, but the reason is clearly much different.

Now that you’re both completely quiet, the unmistakable voice of Janis Joplin seeps in through the small crack. ‘From the Kentucky coal mine to the California sun. There Bobby shared the secrets of my soul.’

You look back at each other almost in an instant and Eddie chuckles, your own giggle follows shortly after. Lighthearted and pure. The situation isn’t necessarily funny, but in this moment, you are both so happy to simply be around each other, the laughter engulfs you whole. And as you’re laughing, you’re inclining even closer to one another.

Then the laughter dies down.

Eddie’s cupping your cheek while your fingers wrap around his wrist, holding him in place. His nose slides down the side of yours and his lips are inches away as they part. Yet it’s not until his hot breath sends a shiver down your spine that you realise what’s about to happen, and more importantly, how much you want it. You’re practically aching with anticipation.

Eddie’s got this look in his eyes, dark and needy. His pupils dilate the longer he stares and it makes you think he wants you too, desperately. You inhale softly, mind racing ‘cause this is a line that you only crossed once back in November and ever since then, you’ve been dancing around the topic, unspoken, untouched. Crossing it again had many possible outcomes — all equally terrifying and exhilarating.

His gaze drops to your lips and your heart flutters in your chest.

“Can I kiss you?”

It’s a whisper, but you hear it as loud as screaming. The question rattles through every fibre of your being and you nod, once, twice. Slow and steady, as you open your mouth to give him a verbal answer.

But before you get a chance, there’s a knock on Eddie’s bedroom door and he drops his hand from your face instantly before pulling away. He clears his throat and suddenly you’re hyper-aware of your surroundings ‘cause he slides off the bed completely avoiding eye contact, completely avoiding the question he’s just asked.

“Yeah?” Eddie calls out, getting up on his feet.

Wayne bops his head in, not fully opening the door. He glances between the two of you, a knowing smirk circling his moustache-covered lips, before his eyes settle on his nephew.

“Headin’ out for a little while. Need anythin’?”

Eddie says no, answering for the two of you. Wayne nods his head and following a swift goodbye, telling you both to be good, he disappears just as fast as he made his appearance. Door closing with a gentle thud.

An awkward silence settles in the air once you are alone with the metalhead again. 

Eddie scratches the back of his neck, gaze settling on the hem of your skirt, where the material ends and your bare leg starts. He swallows his breath, Adam’s apple bobbing. You watch your best friend attentively, afraid of being the first one that speaks. Afraid of asking what’s on his mind, if he wants to continue what you both started before you were unexpectedly interrupted.

That’s not to say the metalhead also wasn’t spinning out, ‘cause he most definitely was. His quiet demeanour was specifically to cover up the fact that he didn’t know what to say now that the moment was gone. 'Cause it was gone... right?

Can I kiss you?, his earlier question rattles inside his brain. Eddie thinks you would’ve said yes, after all, you were nodding. But if he asked again now, would you still want to do it? Would you let him kiss you?

Jesus, why was he so bad at this.

“Uhm,” he sighs, leaning against the edge of his desk. “I-I… Fuck, princess, I-I don’t want to do anything to ruin what we just got back.”

He finally looks up to meet your gaze. “I really, really don’t.”

“I don’t either, Eds.” You say to him and hope he can detect the honesty in your voice, knees now pressed to your chest, arms wrapped tightly around them. “We lost a lot of time.”

“That we did,” he agrees.

“I feel guilty about it.”

“Me too.”

He stares at you, brown-eyes full of sorrow. Your heart aches at the sad, puppy-dog face he’s sporting. All you want is to reach for him, but you’re frozen in place. Glued to the bed, holding your own limbs. And it’s moments like these that make you want to take back everything that’s happened this last year. The kiss, the fight, the months of not speaking. Take back the things that have now become topics you haven’t really talked about. Topics that you both brushed over, then brushed under the carpet.

You know it’s bad to hold shit in, but avoidance has been a third-party in your friendship with Eddie pretty much from day one.

“So, what do you wanna do, princess?” Eddie asks, hopeful.

“We can just take it day by day, I guess. I mean, I know how I feel about you,” you answer honestly, “I also know that it’s a scary world out there and I’d rather have you as just a friend than nothing at all.”

A smile breaks through the brunette’s features. He stumbles forward, settling back on the bed next to you with a small bounce. He reaches for your hand, forcing his fingers between your knuckles and squeezing gently. You tilt your head and he matches your movements, pretty eyes meeting yours.

“I know how I feel about you too, princess.”

pearl masterlist

& tagging some cool people that expressed interest in this lil series: @cactusangie , @spenciesprincess , @capitanostella , @ashlynnkennedy , @ms1oftheboys

[cricketnationrise]

for the 500 followers fest

23:54

the brownstone

henry

melt by kehlani

are y'all tired of me being like "wow this song is a banger i can't believe i haven't listened to it before" ??? no?

wow this song is a banger i can't believe i haven't listened to it before!

anyway please enjoy possibly the sappiest, softest thing i've ever written

read the rest of the ficlets here

❤️🤍💙❤️🤍💙

11:54pm, the brownstone

Henry tries to enter quietly, on the off-chance that Alex is already asleep—doesn’t want David’s habitual greeting to pull Alex out of mutually much-needed slumber. The muffled strains of Alex’s elle woods my beloved playlist coming down the hall let him know he needn’t have bothered. So he lets his keys clang in the bowl, lets David jump on him with rattling tags, lets his voice carry more than he usually would at almost midnight as he greets his dog.

Henry loves the shelter, loves meeting all the kids, and giving them a space free from unreasonable and unrealistic and unsafe expectations, but even Pez would be running on fumes alone after hour sixteen of an eight hour shift. Unfortunately for Henry, housing emergencies are rarely so obliging as to occur in a respectable nine-to-five window. But Starr is safe now, settled into a room, and even tentatively bonding with her roommate, so Henry can be home.

He makes his way to the second floor den that Alex prefers to study in, huffing out a soft laugh when he hears heavy books closing and the abrupt change of playlists to soft boy hours (gender neutral). He slides open the pocket door and leans against the frame and can’t help the soft smile that takes over his face. At least sixty percent of his tension seems to vanish at the sight of Alex turning towards him, face lighting up with love.

“Weren’t you supposed to stop studying at nine tonight?”

“Well, I was going to stop, but then a certain someone texted to say they didn’t know when they were going to be home and so I had to take drastic measures,” Alex says, finishing packing away his things for class tomorrow.

“David has been spending an inordinate amount of time out on the town,” Henry teases, moving into the room properly, drawn like a magnet toward his boyfriend.

Alex chuckles. “He used to be such a fine, upstanding gentleman, too. Such a shame his behavior’s gone to the dogs.”

“Seems he’s had a bad influence, hanging around with you so often,” Henry says. He steps into Alex’s space and Alex’s arms come up without hesitation. “Hello, love.”

Alex kisses him softly, sweetly. “Glad you’re home, H.” He pulls Henry down onto the couch and Henry wastes no time laying on top of him and curling up on Alex’s chest. He smells like coffee and a hint of cinnamon and the rest of the tension Henry’s been carrying around fades away as Alex strokes along his back. 

Right here, surrounded by Alex on all sides, is Henry’s favorite place in the world. Right here, the public can’t get to him. Right here, he doesn’t have to be a prince, or even a youth shelter director. 

Right here, he can just be Henry.

People always think that Alex never stops talking, but that’s categorically untrue. He talks a lot, certainly, but only when he knows Henry is ready to hear it. The reality is that Alex cares so much and so deeply for Henry, that he’s learned to read Henry’s varied and ever-shifting moods with the smallest cues. Henry’s never been more grateful for Alex’s personalized superpower than tonight, when all he wants to do is rest here with Alex, listening to smooth voices over acoustic guitar and Alex’s heartbeat thudding in time with his own.

Henry sinks into the moment, letting his eyes fall shut in utter contentment. He cherishes every moment he gets with Alex; the novelty of just getting to be with him hasn’t even begun to wear off. Every brush of their fingers sends a spark down his spine. Every time Alex kisses the back of his neck before hip-checking him out of the way in the kitchen is thrilling. Every time he and Alex stroll through Brooklyn with David, hands entwined or around waists or even once in each other’s back pockets, Henry’s hit with a surge of pride. 

But he loves these moments the best—the ones where he can’t tell where he stops and Alex begins. The moments, during or outside of sex, where being this close isn’t close enough for Henry. He wants to invent new ways to be close to someone, just to do them with Alex; wants to be able to crawl inside of Alex and set his watch to the beat of Alex’s heart. Henry wants to share not only his space with Alex, but his breath, his very soul—wants to knit them together so tightly that nothing and no one can unravel the threads connecting their hearts.

Luckily, unbelievingly for Henry—Alex wants the same things.

[winter-dayz]

The Ring

Pairing: Han Jisung x Reader (ft. Kim Seungmin) Ghost AU; Possession AU Genre: Fluff Words: 1451 Warnings: suggestive content; strong language

Masterlist | Fictober Masterpost

Taglist:  @soobin-chois

“Don’t tell me you’re actually gonna buy something from here. This place is low-key creeping me out, Jisung.” Seungmin eyed the slightly-older boy with judgment. They’d been exploring one of their tour cities and had come across an antique shop. It was littered with dolls and other children’s toys—all of which Seungmin felt like were staring him down. There was also vintage furniture and electronics. The cameras did sort of pique Seungmin’s interest, but he already had a really nice modern camera. Besides, this store was really starting to freak him out.

Why did all the dolls have to be so scary?

“Just let me look through some of the jewelry… These rings are cool, and they’re so high-quality.” Jisung reasoned, never able to say no to a new piece of jewelry.

“Yeah, ‘cause you totally need another ring to add to your collection. You definitely don’t have over a hundred rings that you’ve never even worn because you always wear the same ones.” Regardless, Seungmin left to let Jisung pick out rings, deciding to go further into the store to escape the many glass eyes.

Jisung was trying to narrow down his choices between three rings when he suddenly spotted one that he hadn’t seen before. He put the other three back and walked over to the cashier’s glass desk.

“Um… Excuse me?” He called for the attention of the owner and then pointed towards the ring. “How much for that ring?” The old lady walked over, peered into the glass, and then looked up to Jisung with a wary look. She eyed him for a moment, almost as though considering something.

“It’s about five dollars, but are you sure about that one? It’s quite old…” But Jisung thought it looked nice, and he had a good feeling about that one. It really stuck out to him.

“Yes ma’am, thank you.” He insisted, pulling his wallet out to pay. When she began to package it, he told her he was fine wearing it out.

🎃

Despite Seungmin’s claims—which were not entirely baseless, Jisung did have a shit-ton of rings back home he never wears—Jisung wore his new addition almost daily. So much so that he started growing a weird attachment to it in some of the other’s eyes.

He cleaned it often, even polished it sometimes. Though, he never took it to performances in fear of it getting stolen or lost; instead, when he wasn’t wearing it, it had a special home on his nightstand.

One morning he woke up, reached out to put his ring on, and came up empty handed. He did a double-take when he didn’t feel his new favorite ring anywhere near its usual spot. He looked all around his nightstand, underneath his bed, and tore his blankets off in case he accidentally fell asleep wearing it.

Nothing. He could not find it anywhere. As he re-made his bed, he tried to remember if there was anywhere else he may have left it. He checked the bathroom sink, just to be sure, but he was ninety-nine percent sure he had put it on his nightstand, just like he did every night.

Then he took to checking his roommates' fingers. None of them were wearing it, so he asked if any of them took it without asking first.

And then he began to panic. He wondered if he had carelessly taken it to a performance or shoot and left it behind. When he went back to his room to try and think more, there it sat right where he always put it. The things all around it were still a mess from his hasteful search earlier, but it sat perfect and pretty in its proper position. Strange.

🎃

Jisung elected not to take it on tour with him. After somehow misplacing it, he didn’t want to risk actually losing it in travels. He packed some of his other rings to accompany him to Japan instead and left his favorite ring to wait for him on his nightstand as usual.

What he didn’t expect to return to, was a woman sitting comfortably in the middle of his bed as though she lived there. He wasn’t sure how exactly she got in either since he locks his room every time they leave, but he sure as hell wasn’t going to stick around to ask her.

Instead, he rushed to get Chan, explaining that somehow a sasaeng must have gotten in and was currently sitting in his room. When they returned with a manager that lived in the building, the woman was gone. The only thing that was different was his favorite ring sitting in the center of his bed rather than the nightstand.

🎃

The other members were still convinced it had been a sasaeng, and she must’ve snuck out somehow. When Jisung brought up the fact that nothing was missing and the only thing that had moved was his ring, they claimed she was likely planning on taking it since Stays knew it was his favorite. He was commonly seen wearing it in selfies and livestreams, so it wouldn’t be that far fetched of an explanation.

Jisung was not convinced. He wasn’t unaware of his quick attachment to the ring. And he knows that he never forgets to put it on his nightstand at night. The newest incident was just the cherry on top.

But what kind of ghost possesses a ring? A house, sure. A mirror, believable. A doll, seen thousands of times. But a ring? Jisung needed to know why, and why it… she chose him.

🎃

He didn’t have to wait long. The next night he woke from a rather peaceful sleep to the sounds of shuffling around his room. When he peeked his eyes open, the same woman was rifling through his drawers.

“Um… hello?” He whispered out, scared to disturb the quiet atmosphere of his room and not wanting to wake his other members. “Are– Do you live inside my ring?” He asked, but he got his answer when he noticed his ring was once again missing from its place.

“Well, technically it’s my ring, but you bought it so… yes.” She responded, putting the clothes she was holding back in the drawer and closing it.

“What are you looking for?” He decided to ask first, too nervous to ask the other questions on his mind yet. She shrugged and moved closer to his half-sitting, half-lying figure. “Why are you in the ring?” He tried asking next.

“Like I said… It's my ring.” He thought she was going to stop there but then her features softened, and she spoke up again. “It was my fiancé’s ring… but he passed away before we could marry. We believed in reincarnation, and I wanted to see him in his next life, so here I am.” Jisung felt his heart break at the story, though not yet outweighing the anxiety of having a supernatural being in his room.

“So… why me? You’re the reason I noticed the ring in that shop I assume… and the reason I’m so attached.” The woman smiled slightly, but shook her head.

“I can’t make you do anything. It’s all on your own volition. Jisung, is it?” She waited for confirmation, and when he nodded, she continued. “Jisung, do you recognize me at all?” He studied her features for a moment.

“You were in my room the other day when we all got back from Japan.” He said, not knowing any other answer to give. She snorted a bit, before it settled into a smirk.

“I’ve manifested this form more than just that time. But do you recognize me?” She asked again; and again, Jisung analyzed her, trying to pick up on any familiarities. Eventually, he shook his head, and it seemed like the woman’s face fell slightly. He wanted to ask her about it, but decided he might not be ready for whatever answer she gave.

“So, can you feel and see when you’re inside the ring too, or only in this form?” He decided to ask instead. The woman seemed to consider his question. Her face lit up in amusement, and Jisung assumed she was remembering something.

“The short answer is yes, I can sort of feel things when I’m inside the ring.”

“And the long answer?” Curious, he couldn’t help but ask. Her lips twitched with a humored smirk.

“The long answer… Maybe don’t masturbate with the ring on, Ji.” His face flushed with embarrassment and he moved to hide underneath his covers. “Trust me, you have nothing to be embarrassed about that for.” She teased and he felt like his entire body lit on fire all at once.

[painsandconfusion]

Kristen

Whumping the Whumpers - Part Thirty-nine

(tw: domestic abuse, gaslighting) [Previous | Masterpost | Next]

Two years ago…

Anna tripped, cussing, over the curb as she hopped up the sidewalk, almost dropping the boxes of heaven-scented food as she went. She recovered quickly, clutching the fiery warmth of redemption to her chest as she skipped up to the storefront door, manufacturing a bright and charming smile over her teeth as she pulled the door open. 

“Krissy~!” she beamed, all bubbles and bright loveliness as her eyes landed on her fianceé cutting stems to size.

Focusing. Analyzing her response. 

Kristen blinked up in confusion for a moment, then flickered a bewildered but melting smile in return as her eyes skimmed over Anna. “..Annie? Aren’t you working right now?”

Anna shook her head, hopping up to the work counter and setting the food down. Unpackaging it. “Nope, lunch break. You got me forrrr-” she stole a glance at her watch, “Eight minutes.”

Kristen bubbled a confused and brilliant laugh - one that would make a girl’s heart melt at any decibel. And did. “You..spent ninety percent of your lunch break in transit across the city?”

“I spent ninety percent of my lunch break getting to see you, that’s what I did~” Anna sealed the compliment with a kiss, pressed and nuzzled in close against Kristen’s cheek, careful to not disturb the makeup-hidden bruise there.

Kristen melted into it, tilting down so Anna could kiss her properly. “..thank you.”

Anna pressed another soft kiss to her lips. “I missed you. So bad, all day. I missed you.”

Kristen melted further at the words, finally turning to face Anna to wrap her in a soft, warm embrace. “..I missed you too. I’m… I’m sorry about before.”

Anna shook her head, thumb brushing up and down Kristen’s scalp. “..don’t wanna worry about it anymore. It’s done and it’s okay. I love you. That’s all that matters.”

Kristen’s breath shifted tenser - Anna didn’t worry. She knew that was just Kristen trying not to cry. Touched. Moved. Feeling safe in Anna’s arms.

As she should. Anna was the safest place in the world for her.

Pulling back with a small sniff and a wipe of her eyes, Anna turned to the food, opening up Kristen’s lo mein and her own orange chicken. “Okay, maybe closer to five minutes.”

Kristen’s laugh lit up the room. It even seemed to pull the wilting flowers into bloom again in the packed and lush flower shop. “Alright - I’ll race you, then~” Playfully, she snatched her lo mein and fumbled to tear open the packaged utensils - chopsticks for her, plastic fork for Anna.

Anna squeaked in her hurry, pulling her own box open. “You’re on!”

It was a rushed, but perfect lunch with a stunning and perfect girl. Her girl. Her wonderful, bubbling, gorgeous girl.

Anna swore that she’d never hurt Kristen again.

[Previous | Masterpost | Next]

Bonus picrews for the heck of it:

Kristen and Anna, respectively <3

.

(tags: @prisonerwhump @whumpawink @wormwriting @distinctlywhumpthing @whump-cafe @jo-doe-seeking-inspo @azayta @batfacedliar-yetagain @there-will-always-be-blood @siren-of-agony @whumpworld @deltaxxk @whumpasaurus101 @pickywhumpreader @whumpberry-cookie @morning-star-whump @nailevislev @throwawaywhumper @the-mourning-star @d-cs @pigeonwhumps @suspicious-whumping-egg @snakebites-and-ink @whumpedydump @orphans-parent @whumplr-reader @rainbowsandwhumperflies @starfields08000 @sunnyesunny @crystallizedme @lumpofsand @taterswhump)

As always, lmk if you want to be added to the tag list!

[sofasoap]

Lastochka AU : Strange taxi driver

Pairing : Nikolai x F!Reader ( OC/Mini MacTavish)

Summary: New city, new life, new job. What else can go wrong on the first day? AU to my Lastochka series

WARNING: Mature Theme. Crack Fic. I repeat. Crack fic. don't take it so seriously. Swearing, alcohol use, dangerous driving ( drive carefully people).

A/N : The idea stemmed from this post talking about Lyft driver and thank you to @nrdmssgs for nudging me to write a crack fic about it.

masterlist

What a luck.

Or lack of. 

You must have forgotten to pack it and bring it with you when you moved. First, your luggage showed up a week late. Second, your new landlord totally forgot you were arriving. Leaving you standing in the cold and rain for hours. Third, you forgot to adjust your watch and clock to the local time (“who uses old-fashion clock now?!” your brother laughed at you once.) and you had the phone on charge far away from your bedside, alarm ringtone set on minimum volume. So now, you are running late, VERY LATE, for your first day at your new job. 

Definitely not how you imagine how you start your new life in a new place. And the rideshare you called for, is nowhere to be seen. App keep on glitching out. You couldn’t even see what number plate your supposed ride share car is. All you know is a black car. That's it. Fucken absolutely great. You thought. You are probably going to get fired even before you started at this rate. A black coloured sedan suddenly pulled up in front of you.  Without checking the details you quickly piled into the car, assuming it's your driver.. 

“Oh Thank heaven you are here. I am starting to get worried because my app keeps on shutting down on me.” 

“.. Where to?” The driver turned around and asked with a distinctive accented and amused tone. 

Your hand stopped half way clicking in your seatbelt. “Don’t you have it on your....” you mumbled, What kind of odd question is that? Shooting your head back up with alert after a split second, you dart your eyes to all windows, there are no stickers or any sign of this car being a rideshare or a taxi. 

“You are not my rideshare.” Chill ran down the spine with the realisation. For all you know you could have just hopped into a serial killer's car. Oh heaven. Should have stopped listening to those true crime podcasts before you go to sleep. IF you manage to live until tonight. Or survive the next hour. 

“I am not.” he chuckled. Flashing a smile before turning back to face the road and pulling out from the kerb, you cursed yourself not jumping out of the car when you had the chance as you heard the distinctive click of car door locking. 

“But don’t worry. I have extra time in my hand anyway, Lastochka, I will take you anywhere you want. So,” He purred.  “Where to?”

You gulped and gave out your work address. There's no turning back. “ I am running late for work.. My first day at my new job as well. At this rate I am going to get fired before I get there or I am going to have a big warning and bad impression with my new boss....”  You rambled on. Why are you even telling him this? 

“Don’t worry, I am from Russia.” He reassured you with a cocky confidence.

You scrunch your nose with confusion, what is that even supposed to…?

Even before you can finish that thought in your brain, you felt the car surged forward, G-force pushing you right back into the seat. Letting out an undignifying scream as your hands search for anything you can grab onto for dear life.

“Relax, Lastochka, I never had anyone die under my watch.” he laughed. Taking a sharp turn before weaving in and out of the traffic. “Although I had someone falling out from the helicopter after we got shot at with a rocket launcher.” he nodded his head as he recounted the story. “Don’t worry. Happy ending. We all survived. Thanks to my brilliant skills.” 

You are now ninety-nine percent sure you have hopped into some sort of mobster or mafia’s car.

Whole life starts flashing in front of you as you mumble incoherent goodbyes to no one in particular. Ma and Pa. Your annoying but doting brother Johnny. His teammates who treat you like their own. The dog you used to see walking by your house every morning …the rows of pot plants you have on your window sills. Who’s gonna water them after I go?? 

The car comes to an abrupt stop while the brain is trying to decide the flower arrangement of your imaginary funeral in your head. 

“I did say I will get you here on time and still alive, right?” The baritone voice breaks you out of your daze. You are still alive. Thank heaven. 

With your hand over your chest, trying to soothe the thumping heart, you look at the clock on your phone. Damn. he is right, five minutes to spare. 

Then you heard the sound of his mobile phone shrilling and car door unlocking. “You better get going, it seems I am going to be late for my own business. Time to pick up the package.” He winked as you half stumbled out with your messenger bag dragging on the floor. “It was a pleasure to have such a beautiful little bird in my car. Maybe we will see each other again someday?” Giving you one last wave, he sped off into the distance.

Hell no. Once is enough. 

“So you just jumped into a stranger's car and let them take you to work?” Gaz half gasped and laughed as you buried your face in the pint of beer he passed onto you. “You know you could have just rang or message one of us to get you out of deep shit.” 

“I know it’s stupid. Don’t remind me. I was so overwhelmed with panic I didn’t think of it at the time.” you huffed. “You should be surprised I am still in one piece right now and telling you the story.”

“What stupid thing you've been doing again, Mini?” you felt a hand ruffling and messing with your hair as you jumped at the contact. 

“Hello to you too Johnny.” Ignoring his question, you elbowed him lightly before turning around and giving him a hug. “Where’s Simon and Price?”

“Simon is outside havin’ a smoke.” pointing towards the bar serving area with his thumb, “Captain is over there waiting for his drinks and catching up with one of our old friend.” 

Downing the rest of your beer, you stood up from your stool, “I should go and say hi to him. You boys want another drink?”.

Half skipping towards the bar after taking the order from the two, you were in a better mood after seeing your brother and friends, determined to put all the misfortunes and strange events from this morning behind you. 

There you see Price, sitting at the bar, waiting for the bartender making up his drink for him and his friend who he is currently having a quiet conversation with. He spotted you over their shoulder and gave you a quick wave. 

Odd. you thought to yourself. Why does the back side of this … old friend of Price look awfully familiar?

You stopped dead on your track when the person turned around and flashing you with the familiar smirk.

“Hello again, Lastochka.” 

Fucken. Steaming. Jesus. 

Tag list: @homicidal-slvt @nrdmssgs @siilvan @roosterr @preciouslittlecreature @floral-force @jynxmirage @cumikering @gamergirlbonestaskforce141riot

@glitterypirateduck @whydoilikewhump