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wordsofelie · 4 months ago

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Chapter 6

🔥Phoenix and Ashes

Suna Rintarou x f!reader

Summary: “It’s funny how nobody believed that we could make it work.” - “Well-maybe they were right.”

Meeting Suna Rintarou wasn’t part of your plan. Dating him, either. Getting your heart smashed into the palms of his hand, even less.

Content Warnings: Timeskip, Manga Spoilers, Cursing, Panick Attack, Hurt, Mention of 1 Original Character

Word count: 4.1k

Chapter 1 - Chapter 2 - Chapter 3 - Chapter 4 - Chapter 5 - Chapter 7 - Chapter 8 - Chapter 9

The first crack appears on a Friday night.

“You’re overthinking.”

You are sitting on Suna’s dorm bed. He just came out of the bathroom, his hair is still wet and the smell of his shampoo embalms the room. In any other situation, this would warm your heart and make you want to pull him into a tight embrace, breathing in his scent. But not right now. All you are focused on is his cold expression and detached look.

“I’m sorry,” you start apologising. “I guess I just hoped we would spend the whole weekend together.”

“We’re spending it together. I’ll be with you even if my friends are here.” You can sense the annoyance in his voice, after all, you have been arguing for the past twenty minutes but the conversation is still at the same point: you want to spend the evening with him alone; he had planned to introduce you to his friends in their favourite bar in Hiroshima. The issue here is that in the middle of the argument when he thought he had finally convinced you that his intentions were never against you, you asked him if he was bored with you. You saw the intensity in his eyes shift and since then you can’t find their softness back even after he decided to take a shower to cool his mind.

You know how Suna hates losing his time justifying himself, let alone when he doesn’t understand what he is accused of. The fear of bothering him now mixed with the guilt of pissing him off is strangling you.

“Do whatever you want to do. I’m going anyway.”

He puts his shirt on, back faced to you. You grab the sheets instinctively.

He is taller and broader than when you met him. You remember hiding in the library stacks, telling jokes and giggling at the thought of being caught. You remember watching him during practice, getting up to give him his bottle as soon as the whistle signalled the end of the game. He would thank you and smile. And above anything else, he would look at you, soft and green eyes drowning in yours. This seems like ages ago. When have you started being behind him instead of at his side? When have you faded into the background? Unnoticed. Soundless. You thought Suna had set a fire around him and promised to never let a flame touch you. It’s touching you now.

You look at your clenched fists. Your fingers are becoming ashes.

“I’m coming.”

Umi would scream at you, Osamu would tell you to stay.

He still loves me, you would tell them. Don’t worry.

You’re fast to join him by the door, he lets you go out first.

When you enter the bar, you’re overwhelmed by the crowd and the trembling of the floor. There are people everywhere, Suna tells you to follow him. It’s hard to hear him right, his voice is muffled by the music and the chatters. As you walk in, a wave of anxiety washes over you. This place seems so familiar to Suna, it makes you feel like an outsider stepping into someone else’s world.

“Isn’t it Rin’s girl?”

You don’t realise you’re surrounded by a group of boys until one of them calls out to you. You’re used to sporty and beefy boys (your years in Inarizaki taught you that most of the time, they’re no threat), but you’re still impressed by Suna’s teammates. Your stomach tightens. Maybe it’s because of the proximity mixed with the smell of sweat and alcohol. Or maybe you just don’t like those eight pairs of eyes staring at you.

“I’ll go get you something,” Suna whispers into your ear.

You don’t have the time to go with him, he’s already lost in the crowd.

“So Rin’s girl, what do you like the most about our short middle?” The same guy who was the first to talk, asks you.

You’re about to answer (because there is indeed a long list of things you like about him, it might take the whole night to enumerate them), but he cuts you short and gets closer to you.

“Is it because he likes to play it cold, girls love bad boys. Or is it his eyes? Man, I’ve never seen that shade of green, so I understand, you like the-”

“Kakeru, let her breath.”

You’re thankful for that dark-haired guy who puts his hand on his shoulder to stop him from invading your personal space. Kakeru pouts in response and takes two steps back, allowing you to regain some peace.

“Sorry, Kakeru can be quite chaotic.”

“It’s fine.” You look down. The floor looks like it’s sticking from all the spilt drinks.

“I’m Hori Kento by the way, setter. How was the train from Osaka?”

How unusual for a setter to be this calm, you think. Well, maybe the only model you have being Atsumu, you thought all setters were supposed to be loud and boisterous and fearless.

“It was okay. Thanks for asking.”

He gives a quiet smile that put you at ease, even if just a little.

"You must be pretty special if Rin brought you here," Hori says, his eyes kind.

You chuckle softly, trying to shake off the awkwardness. "I hope so. This place is nice."

"Yeah, we come here a lot after games. It's kind of our spot," the setter explains.

As you chat with Hori, you notice Suna laughing with a girl across the room. She is leaning close, her hand lightly touching his arm. Your stomach twist in knots as you try to focus on the conversation, but your attention keeps drifting back to Suna and the girl.

“Hana-chan is here!”

One of the players shouts making Suna and the girl turn to the group, her smile is bright and perfect. She lights up the place.

“Hana, this is Rin’s girlfriend," Hori says, gesturing towards you. She’s standing in front of you now. She’s looking even more beautiful up close. Another wave of panic comes, you’re trying to look for Rintarou, but he is nowhere to be found. Your fingers manage to grasp the necklace hanging from your neck — it was your second-year anniversary present from Rin. You hold on to it.

"Hi! It’s so nice to meet you," she says, her voice warm and friendly. "I hope the boys aren’t bothering you too much.”

“Huh? We did nothing wrong Hana-chan, I swear.” Kakeru says in defense, she laughs.

"Nice to meet you too," you reply, trying to keep your voice steady. Inside, your heart sinks.

You finally catch sight of Suna, discussing with someone. You hope your stare will make him notice you.

"So, how did you and Rin meet?" Hana asks, genuinely curious.

"We went to high school together,"

"Oh, really? He never told me that," Hana says, looking surprised. It becomes clear that Suna hasn’t mentioned much about you to her. You want to leave this room, hide somewhere. "That's so sweet! You must have a lot of memories together."

"Yeah, we do," you reply, your smile feeling more forced by the second. You’re praying for the conversation to end here. In your ears, you can feel the beatings of your heart, the rushing of your blood. Your vision becomes blurry. You try to concentrate on your breathing to calm you down.

“Your neck is red.” She frowns in concern.

“Is it? I’ll go to the bathroom to-“

“Rintarou.”

She calls him, he immediately turns to her.

Why is he looking at her? Look at me, look at me. You’re begging him in silence.

“Your girlfriend looks really tired. Maybe you should take her home."

Suna glances over you. "Yeah, you okay?" he asks, walking over.

"I’m fine. Don’t worry," you reply, trying to keep your voice light. Your breathing has found a normal pace now that the boy you love is at your side. You try to get closer to feel him. You need to feel him or you might collapse.

“It’s getting really red, what if you’re allergic to something?”

“Hana-chan always cares about others, huh. Good thing you’re our manager. ” Hori interferes but it sounds like a far noise to you in the middle of this chaos. Your mind is reeling. “But she’s right, you should be careful.”

"Let's get you home then," Suna says, putting his arm around your shoulders.

You only feel better once you’re outside. The ride home is quiet, Suna glancing at you occasionally. He only breaks the silence when you reach his dorm.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing.”

Suna looks at you, for a second you think he is trying to decipher whether or not you’re lying. You were never the kind to complain when something was wrong. But it was always easy with him. Tonight, it’s not. Some parts of you want him to ask for more, to listen to you, to tell you that everything is fine; because everything is fine. It has to be.

He changes into a clean tee-shirt and shorts, without saying a word. You’re standing in the middle of his room, waiting.

“I’m sorry I - I ruined the evening with your friends.”

“It’s fine, let’s go to bed now.”

“Rin…”

He slips into the sheets and opens his arms; your body moves towards the bed and lies down. He wraps an arm around your waist and pulls you closer to him.

His body is so warm. As always. You discovered that the first night he slept at your house, your father had asked you to prepare him a futon, but behind his back your mother winked at you, giving you the choice to do whatever you wanted.

It was December and the cold seemed relentless, seeping through the walls and into your very being.

Rin, with his usual nonchalance, had shrugged off the cold initially, but you could see the slight shiver in his movements. You, on the other hand, couldn't stop your teeth from chattering. He glanced over at you.

"Come here," he said, his voice low. Without waiting for a response, he pulled you closer, wrapping his arms around you tightly. You hesitated for a moment, feeling the heat radiating from his body, but soon melted into his embrace. His body temperature was surprisingly high, like he was a living furnace. The warmth spread through you almost instantly, driving away the biting chill of the night.

"Better?" he murmured, his breath warm against your ear. You nodded, nuzzling closer into the crook of his neck, where his scent was the strongest.

"Much better," you whispered back, feeling the tension ease out of your muscles.

Since then, you have loved when the temperatures dropped, because you knew you would find yourself instinctively curling up next to your boyfriend, seeking out his fiery heat.

In the summers, it was a different story. The heat made his embrace almost unbearable. You would wriggle and squirm, trying to escape his grip in the sweltering nights. But he would somehow always manage to pull you back, holding you close with a lazy grin.

"You're stuck with me," he would chuckle, his voice a sleepy rumble against the top of your head.

And, despite the heat, despite your protests, you would drift off in his arms.

Right now, you know he is not sleeping, and so are you.

You decide to try.

“You and Hana seem close…”

Is it a question? An accusation? You don’t even know. But it comes out of your mouth anyway. He heard you, you’re sure of it, yet he leaves you stranded.

After what feels like an eternity he finally asks, “is that why you wanted to go home?”

“No… but I’m sorry.”

You squeeze the hand that is resting on the curves of your hipbone. For a second, you muscles relax, and the brief release is enough for him to turn away, leaving you feeling utterly alone.

Your vision becomes blurry again, with tears this time.

You cry and think, it is the price to pay for loving him.

The second crack appears in April.

Today is the beginning of another spring.

You and Umi meet in front of Yokohama Stadium, you haven’t seen her in months due to her overloaded schedule. When she spots you, she starts running and waving at you.

“Oops, I’m late.” She scratches the back of her neck and grins.

“When are you not?”, you tease her.

Seeing her, healthier and brighter than ever, fills your heart with joy. She grabs your arm and leads you to the entrance.

“I was only late once for the entrance ceremony in high school, but that was because Atsumu had lost his tie and I helped him look for it. Not my fault.”

“And when we went to the school trip during our second year, huh?”

“Hmm…” She avoids your starring gaze, “Also Atsumu’s, we were having a conversation that morning and he-”

“He got on the wrong bus, so you had to walk the rest of the way.” You don’t let her finish her story, “I know the song, Umi.”

She sighs, “alright, alright. Whatever you think.”

You start laughing but don’t let her go away with it. As you remember more and more moments, Umi begs you to stop before finally admitting that you might (but just might) be right.

"Hey! I’m so glad you could make it," a soft voice says.

You turn to see who is speaking. And there she is. Hana, dressed in the same jumpsuit as Suna. You return her smile, though your eyes are already searching for your boyfriend among the players stepping off the bus.

“I-nice to see you. This is Umi, my best friend. She lives in Tokyo. Umi, this is Hana, the team manager.”

Hana greets her warmly, but you must give Umi a little nudge in the ribs for her to greet back.

“Hi.” She decides to say with a smile you can only describe as forced.

When you finally see Suna, your heart skips a beat. You make your way over, excusing yourself to Hana and Umi. You’re hoping for a brief moment to talk before the game. But as you approach, his gaze slides past you. He saw you, you know he did, so why didn’t he come to you? Or smile. Or at least wave.

You don’t feel Umi’s presence by your side until she speaks, “Oh my God, that girl is so annoying. She was like, blabla, ‘I’m so grateful for all the support the boys are receiving, thank you for coming to cheer for them.’ As if I care about them. Nothing against Suna, but I’m only here because I wanted to see you and Shirabu is too annoying these days, I needed to escape my apartment.”

You register the words and the way she tries to imitate Hana’s voice; however you don’t find the courage to respond.

“Are you okay?” She asks, perplexed when you don’t answer.

You nod, but the hurt lingers.

“Let’s go.” You break the silence absentmindedly.

You both head to the stands, though your excitement has dampened. As you’re about to sit down, you turn to Umi. “I’m going to the toilets. I’ll be right back.”

You don’t give her the time to stop you and rushes to the lockers room to wait for Suna. When he emerges, his expression is one of surprise.

“Oh hey,” he starts with a lazy voice, “I did not know you would come. It’s cool to see you.”

“Rin I- can we talk a little bit?”

“I can’t right now, the game is about to start,” he says curtly, trying to brush past you.

“Please.”

“Can’t it wait?”

“I just wanted to wish you good luck,” you explain, your voice barely above a whisper.

He glances down at you, a flicker of something—incomprehension? frustration?—crossing his eyes. “Is that it? You could have just texted me.”

Speechless, you let your gaze drop to the floor, where you notice a thin cotton bracelet around his right ankle. “What’s that?” you ask, pointing to it.

Suna sighs, clearly irritated. “It’s a present from Hana.”

A lump forms in your throat. “Of course it is,” you mutter, the words tasting bitter.

Before you can say anything more, he brushes you off. “I have to go.”

“Do you still love me?”

The question was eating you alive, it was becoming insufferable. So, the words leave your lips searching for something (a soft caress, a ‘I do’).

He clicks his tongue.

And a second later, the love of your life walks away. The corridors are empty.

When the game begins, you find your way back to the stands. The crowd roars with excitement, but you can barely focus on what is in front of you. Umi tries to engage you in conversation, but your mind is elsewhere.

The EJP Raijin wins against the VC Kanagawa in the quarterfinals of the V.League playoff matches. The final point is made through an impressive block by Suna, and his team erupts in joy, lifting him high in celebration. Umi applauds (probably not for Suna’s action but because the cheers are contagious), but you find yourself unable to do so.

“I’m so hungry, aren’t you hungry?” you’re taken aback by her question.

You quickly swallow the tears that have been stuck in your throat and force a smile. “Yeah, a little bit,” you lie.

“We should go back to my apartment,” Umi suggests and takes your hand to get up. “We can stop by your favourite sushi place in Shinjuku and get some takeaways. And then we can watch a movie, you pick. Or play some Mario kart.”

You glance one last time at Suna, he is high fiving his manager. Before you explode, you decide that Umi’s idea is not so bad.

Later that night, as you ride the subway in Tokyo (Umi fell asleep, her head on your shoulder), Rintarou sends you a text.

“where are you?” it reads.

“I left with Umi.”

“you could have texted me,” he replies, echoing his earlier words. You apologize, and after a few minutes, another message comes through.

“i don’t think you should come next weekend.” Then “i need some time to think”

The finality of his words hits you like a punch to the gut. At the same moment, you receive a text from Osamu with a picture of his twin eating onigiri (with rice all over the mouth). “Did Suna’s team win? Want to come with me to Atsumu’s game in Chiba next weekend? I guess you’ll be in Hiroshima but if I can convince you just know that I’ll make us some bento for the train :)”

Your fingers tremble but you text him back, “sure.”

It’s not like you have other options now.

You don’t read his next message because you’re interrupted by a whisper, “You deserve better.”

Umi’s eyes are still close, but you know she is awake.

You’re too tired to contradict her even though you think she is wrong. Maybe hope is blurring the lines, but Rin is the one who deserves better. And from now on, you will have to put extra efforts in your relationship to keep him. Because he is worth it all. Even if you are almost chosen by Suna, almost loved, you’ll keep on choosing him. Over and over again.

The third crack appears one morning.

The sky is beautiful and once again you’re on your way to Hiroshima.

You are not supposed to join him, but you do it anyway.

You take the first train of the day. Your carriage is quiet and almost empty. The sun rises before your eyes. It’s a tranquil scene. The sea calm and just woken, rays of sun sparkling on the water, the foam coming and going in waves. How wonderful this place must be, you think. It’s unfair that your mind can’t find peace. Only Rintarou lives in the depths between your thoughts, leaving no room for anything else. You bury your face in your hands. You want him. He means so much to you, maybe more than he should. Maybe more than your own life.

You make it to his dorm, the neighbourhood is the same as before sans all the agitation from the children playing and students chatting.

You take a moment before knocking. You don’t remember raising your fist to the door, nonetheless, your boyfriend appears in front of you like a mirage.

He stays silent for a second, opening and closing his lips a few times.

“What are you doing here?”

His eyes are barely open, he squints to adapt to the light or to adapt to your presence. Maybe both. His hair, shorter than before, falls out at the end, something uniquely Rin.

“I…I took the train and I came here and-”

He opens the door wide and abruptly; you startle to the sound of it hitting the wall.

Each step is heavy as you come inside with him.

When he speaks again, there’s anger in his voice, you find yourself missing how detached and lazy his tone usually is.

“I told you not to come this weekend.”

“I know, Rin.” You simply answer, with a broken voice. Your lips are shaking, and you don’t think you will be able to say more.

His look becomes sharper. He shakes his head. “Then why are you here?”

“I wanted to see you.” You whisper, you thought he did not hear you but when he grunts back, you immediately regret your words.

You take a step forward; your hands raise in urge to cup his face but his whole body becomes stiff, making you stop.

“You should leave.” His back is now faced to you but can imagine the features of his face (tense, strained).

You ignore him, “can we talk first, please.”

“I don’t want to.”

When you don’t answer, don’t move, he decides to finally turn again, his frustration evident. You’re getting on his nerves.

A glass falls on the floor. Probably caused by his sudden movement. It makes a sharp crash. The sound reverberates through the room. Without thinking, you get down to clean up the shards, your hands moving on autopilot. As you gather the broken pieces, a jagged edge slices your palm, but the pain doesn’t register immediately.

“I’ll take care of it. Go home.”

But you’re my home, your guts scream.

Your faces are close now, on the same level.

You open your month to beg him to let you stay, even a morning, even an hour. You would accept anything really. But instead, you’re paralysed by his green eyes raising to meet yours.

“We should stop this.”

This? You ask yourself. Is your relationship of over three years, all your first times, all your i love you, only “this” to him?

“Why - why can’t we stay together?”

Maybe you got it wrong, maybe you just don’t understand the situation and he will explain everything to you. This is all just in your head. The floor is not crumbling beneath your feet, the walls aren’t falling down. The world is not burning.

“We just can’t.”

“I don’t understand. What did I do wrong?” Am I not good enough? You want to add but you’re too afraid of the answer.

“Nothing.”

“Rin, please I know we can make it work, give us a chan-”

He gets up suddenly. “I fucking can’t, okay. That’s just the way it is.”

At this moment, you would have given everything that matters to you not to hear what came after.

You, who wished so many times for Suna to tell you more, talk more, instead of giving short responses.

You thought words couldn’t hurt like silence does. It does. Nothing killed you like those three words did.

“Get over it.”

You getting over him? Oh but Suna, dear, that would take a lifetime.

You almost lose your balance, your shoulder presses against the kitchen counter to find some support. You don’t know where the strength comes from but you manage to get on your feet. You quickly hide your injured hand behind your back.

His morning alarm rings, it’s shrill but at least it covers your sobs. He is about to turn it down when you escape the room and leave.

The cool wind hits you. There are cherry blossoms all around you; shades of pink in the air, petals falling silently. Tomorrow, they will still be there. And the day after. And the day after. Until, they are not.

Nothing lasts forever.

Nor cherry blossoms. Nor love.

You hate yourself for only realising it now.

It hurts, gosh, it hurts.

But the worst is that despite the bleeding cuts and the broken heart, you love Suna Rintarou all the same.

Author notes: a lot of crying, i am sorry 🫠 btw i’m taking advantage of this chapter to remind you guys that you all deserve to be treated with love and respect (being almost chosen & almost loved is NOT OKAY)

take care 🫶🏻

Elie

taglist: @wolffmaiden, @obibiwan, @teyvatsunsets

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inkwolvesandcoffee · 1 year ago

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TH Characters and Crochet

TH Masterlist

This concept was prompted by my new hobby and led to some very interesting (and, in my opinion, good) plot points. Henceforth, I might turn some of these wee ideas into full-fledged one-shots. For now, though, enjoy!

Tag List: @potter-solomons @buttercupsandboys @zablife @mollybegger-blog @liliac-dreamer @vir-tual @rose-like-the-phoenix @babaohhhriley @solomons-finest-rum @hoodeddreams13 @moral-terpitude @onlydeadcells @hecatemoon87 @wandawiccan60 @dreamlandcreations

Tommy Conlon

The art of crochet is an absolute mystery to him. Nevertheless, though he won’t admit it plainly since he’s been raised and trained to keep his emotions in check, he absolutely loves and adores the husky you made him.

It had been another fretful night, one that leaves you alone in the bed and him either wandering about the beach nearby or leads to a night of training at the boxing school. Either way, Tommy shut you out yet again, refusing to show you even a glimpse of the chaos he carries with him.

Later that day, the short night was followed by an equally as plagued nap. It's that he woke up before it was too late, but otherwise he'd have fallen off of the sofa and face planted into the soft carpet (which you had bought after the one time that actually did happen). Now, it’s his snuggle buddy and you’ve noticed it’s helped with the nightmares caused by his PTSD. So nowadays the silence when you come home after work is laced by soft snoring, an oddly comforting sound that stems from the most heartwarming sight.

Tommy, tightly holding on to his husky as he snuggles it. His ear phones are connected to his laptop, an ASMR video with rain sounds displayed on the screen.

Perfectly content.

At rest.

Alfie Solomons

You were already magical in his eyes, but the fact you can create stuff out of yarn makes you even more so. He still thinks your hooks look uncannily like embalming tools, but he adores the scarf you made him. He wears it whenever he can, loving the texture as well as your scent.

Alfie proudly promotes your stuff wherever he goes and helps you set up at markets. He’d like for you to do only markets in Margate and Camden so he can keep a close eye on you. However, should it be anywhere else, rest assured he’ll hang around the area and make sure you eat and drink properly. He’ll literally pop by a Prêt-A-Manger to buy lunch and deliver it to you or, as is more often the case, pull you away from your stall so you two can sit down in a coffee shop or restaurant together.

He loves it whenever you text him to provide him with photos of a new project you completed. Lastly, Alfie also always asks what you’re working on.

Forrest Bondurant

He’s actually the one who taught you how to crochet (and secretly adored how shyly you asked him to teach you). He’s a stern teacher, but a good one. Forrest is a man of many hidden talents (like baking, he makes a mean apple pie). Then again, so is his brother Howard, who is great at knitting. Jack, on the other hand, has skipped out on the creative gene though he’s been trying to teach himself how to sew.

Forrest and you do markets together. However, he mostly does the general set-up while you busy yourself with the customers. Because even though he’s very business savvy, the quiet force behind Little Moonshiners (specialized in the cutest handmade stuffies) is in fact a social disaster.

He does like talking to you, though.

(And has made you a custom wolf stuffie, which has become your all-time favourite)

Eddie Brock

Eddie and Venom alike love the stuffies you make, but V thinks his host sometimes takes his support of your hobby a bit too far. Recently, he’s asked you to teach him and ever since you’ve been trying to figure it out together. Eddie seems to finally have the basic stitches down while Venom is bordering on giving up. Not even reading the body language of his host makes him understand crochet. So he’s now your ultimate yarn spinner.

Eddie, on the other hand, has become a little competitive. Though he tries to be inconspicuous, you occasionally catch him glancing your way in an attempt to estimate whether your way of crocheting a certain project is more efficient and neater than his. To this extent, he proposes to try a new pattern together (and compare the results).

He does admit, without a second’s doubt, you’re the queen of plushies.

Eddie loves the journaling aspect of it too. He keeps a neat and very minimalist journal. Well, he tries to be minimalist and objective (as his work has taught him to be), but often finds himself writing about you, pondering your opinion on his works.

And Venom loves to tease him about said entries by mentioning them to you.

Farrier

He’s loath to admit it, but he can’t help but think of his Nan whenever he sees you crochet. The confession almost slipped out when you gave him a cream coloured crocheted turtleneck sweater for Christmas, the reason you puzzled him with taking measurements three months earlier. And it’s this turtleneck he wears quite often and takes with him whenever he’s sent abroad.

Because your scent lingers in it, mixed with his.

Because it’s a piece of home.

It’s you when you aren’t there.

And it’s the only thing that’ll prevent him from crying when he's so far from home it feels like his heart is torn apart at the seams.

Reggie Kray

Reggie loves to watch you work. He doesn’t need to understand it, finding perfect contentment in seeing you absolutely absorbed in your projects. He’s simply happy to plop you in his lap and rest his head on your shoulder, though that does little to help you focus on the pattern or the tutorial you’re watching.

He gives the best hand massages too! Whether you asked for one or not, Reggie will give you one regardless after you’ve put the hook down for the time being. Sometimes he even stops you after a certain period of time, knowing how your tight grip can cause your hand to cramp after carefully observing you for a while.

Although he does not say it whenever the topic comes up, he will blatantly admit when riled up enough that part of the reason he wants out of the gangster life is to permanently give you the peace and quiet that surrounds you whenever you crochet.

And stills his inner storm.

Also, have a wee treasure I accidentally found😉

#Alfie Solomons #Alfie Solomons imagine #Peaky Blinders #Peaky Blinders imagine #Venom #Eddie Brock #Tommy Conlon #Forrest Bondurant #Farrier #Reggie Kray

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makethatelevenrings · 2 years ago

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Angel By the Wing - NINE

Chapter Warnings: allusions to smut ;)

Series Masterlist

After the door shut behind you, Jake sat at his table for a solid three minutes as he tried to parse out what just happened. The skin of his forehead that your lips had touched burned with the lingering reminder of your presence.

You’re always so focused on being the best that you forget about the people around you. I can’t lose you, Jake. I can’t bury you.

The desperation in your voice…he never wanted to hear your voice crack like that ever again. Jake looked around his apartment and swallowed against the sharp, sudden dryness of his throat. Even when you weren’t there, he could see you in his space. The scent of your shampoo on his pillows. The extra toothbrush on the bathroom sink. Your favorite flavor of Oreos residing on the counter.

The air felt suffocating all of a sudden and he needed to get out. He needed to get back to work. How the hell was he supposed to fly like this? His mind was a fucking mess. Jake went through the motions robotically. Put the leftovers away, lock up his house, get in the car, arrive back on base.

Phoenix shot him a disgruntled look as he silently made his way to his chair at the front and sat. Silence didn’t typically follow Hangman, but today it seemed to cling to him. They knew the drill. Mav would say some shit at the front of the room about how they needed to improve and then they would sit their asses around the ready room until it was their turn to fly.

But when they all got up to move to the ready room, Jake did something that surprised the hell out of all of them.

“Rooster,” he coughed out. “Can I talk with you?”

The whole team paused at his request. Even Mav looked thrown, having had to split up their fight that morning. Maverick glanced at Rooster, but the younger man refused to look at him still. He straightened his shoulders, cleared his throat, and nodded.

“This’ll be good,” Bob whispered to Phoenix as they passed. Phoenix was glaring at Hangman in her signature “melt paint off the walls” style. He was really grateful that Sofia didn’t let her wife rip his balls off and embalm them as a warning to anyone who crossed her path.

The two men stood across from each other as the room emptied out. Rooster crossed his arms over his chest and shot him an unimpressed look. The door thudded behind Coyote as he left last and silence descended on the room.

“Well?” Rooster snapped. He bristled like a cat who had their fur pet the wrong way. Jake sucked in a deep breath and for just a brief second, he saw the man before him as though it was the first day they ever met in that training program all those years ago. Bradley Bradshaw with his easygoing grin and bright eyes.

So different from the rage that now lined every part of his body and clouded his stare.

“I’m sorry,” Hangman finally said.

Rooster’s frown slipped into something more like shock. Out of everything, the last thing he was expecting was an apology. “Where the fuck is this coming from? Did you get visited by the ghosts of douchebags past or something?”

“Not exactly.” Jake huffed out a laugh. “More like bartenders of vengeance past.”

Rooster’s face softened at the thought of you and Jake cleared his throat. “I know about you two, by the way.”

“I was under the impression that you didn’t give a shit.” He was back on the defensive, his lips pulled into a thin line and his eyes searching for Hangman to say something against you. But it never came. Not the poison-laced barb he was expecting or the snide remark. Instead, Hangman looked as though he deflated. The blond sagged back against the desk behind him and he shrugged.

“I don’t give a shit. She can sleep with who she wants, that’s our agreement.”

Rooster considered him carefully. “So she told you to come apologize?”

“No. She just made me realize some things.” Hangman paused and then collected himself. “I’m glad it’s you, y’know? If it had been Fanboy or Payback, I’d probably hit the fucking roof, but I know you. I know that you’ll take good care of her.”

“Why is this starting to sound like you’re giving up?”

Hangman shrugged. “You’re a good man, Bradshaw. You can give her the life she deserves and all that. You can give her more than a few orgasms and emotional unavailability.”

Your words flit across his mind once again. You can really be a selfish dick, Jake. He was. He was so selfish. He had been keeping you in his bed with the idea that one day, he could just let you go. But he can’t.

Knowing that Bradley fucking Bradshaw of all people had wormed a place into your life somehow eased the sting. Because Jake wasn’t the two story house with a white picket fence and a dog kind of guy. He was known as the fuck them and then dump them. The use them and lose them. Girls and guys worked out their frustration or whatever on his dick and then left before breakfast.

Bradshaw seemed like the perfect guy. The bring you breakfast in bed kind of guy. The toddler on the hip kind of guy. The guy who wasn’t screwed up in the head and doomed to fail every relationship he has by being a selfish dick.

And after that one drunken night he and Rooster shared all those years ago in the barracks, hands wrapped around cocks and sloppy kisses exchanged, Jake knew for a fact that he was a generous lover.

“You’re dumb as fuck,” Rooster declared. He opened his mouth to continue, but the door opening drew their attention away from their conversation. Harvard stood awkwardly in the doorway and he jerked his thumb over his shoulder.

“You two are up soon,” he explained. “Mav told me to come get you.”

“Thanks,” Rooster said. He waited until Hangman walked past him before he fell in step with the blond. “We’re not done with this, by the way.”

“I said I was sorry.”

“That’s not what I was talking about and you know it.”

Tag List: @mizzzpink @xoxabs88xox @dreaminglandsworld @khaylin27 @loveforaugust @phoenixssugarbaby @atarmychick007 @mak-32 @itsmytimetoodream

#abtw #hangster x reader #hangman x reader #jake seresin x reader #bradley bradshaw x reader #bradley bradshaw x reader x jake seresin #bradley bradshaw imagine #jake seresin imagine #rooster x reader

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goth-automaton · 5 months ago

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All if you'd want pretty please!

...

You really hate me, don't you? /joking

Okay, I'll try...

The basic idea of Haunted House AU was described here, so I won't elaborate on it (feel free to ask any questions, though!).

"Metal Gear Chaos: RE//connection" is an AU me and babe made some time ago. Basically, years after events of MGS4 supporters of Patriots created a new organization, dubbed Neo-Patriots, which prompted revival of Philanthropy, this time led by Snake and Otacon's daughters: Sunny and 4 years younger Emma. The AU follows various adventures of Philanthropy's members and adjacent characters, with whole character and story arcs.

"Story of a Phoenix" is an AU centred around daughter of Dabi and Hawks, Reimi Takami. The story starts at the reveal Dabi is pregnant and covers her life, through her childhood, her helping overthrow the hero system as a teen and later enrolment into a dance school in Berlin and career as a professional dancer. The AU later gets a bit derailed and shifts most of its focus towards Shigaraki's adopted daughter, Karina.

Roxene's native AU is, well, AU centred about my OC Roxene – a maid from Marluxia's past, who joins Org13 as a sorta housekeeper (castlekeeper?) and ends up becoming Org's emotional support animal. It later gets a bit complicated, as someone tries to get rid of her.

"Bur;al" is an AU, where Vexen, the main character, is a single mother of Zexion (14yo) and Xion (5yo). Following advice from his bff, Lexaeus, he moves from big city to a smaller one, where he gets hired as an embalmer at the local mortuary owned by forever absent Xemnas. The story is a mix of slice of life and horror, as shortly after his joining Vexen starts being haunted by... Something.

"unforget you" – during a mission in Realm of Darkness, Roxas and Xion get saved from a pissed off heartless by a mysterious entity. They later come back and befriend it. The entity, named by the two Xana, is pure Darkness with "a heart long dead and putrefied". Xana (they/them pronouns) doesn't know, who they actually are and what their past is. The story will focus on figuring that out, with only hint being Xana's seeming connection to a couple of Org's members.

Massive crossover AU (I think I'll call it "Automata: Mechanismus Mundi") – after events of KH3, Marluxia, Saïx (who's developed an alternate personality after recompletion, Isa), Vexen and Zexion have troubles with getting used to their new lives, especially with the fact they're expected to just let go of their experiences at Org and go back to who they were before it. At one point Vexen and Zexion are visited by Accord, who introduces herself as a Recorder – an android tasked with archiving events of various dimensions and timelines. It turns out some incarnation of Xehanort survived, discovered there are worlds beyond KH's multiverse and is now jumping through them, infesting them with heartless and causing tears in reality, which leads to people going missing. Accord demands someone to fix it. Zexion, Marluxia, Saïx/Isa and 2B, with Vexen as a mission control (he helps gather information about worlds the gang goes to) join her and travel through universes of various video games to defeat Xehanort and restore peace.

Unnamed ancient gods AU somehow sparked from this fic. Not long after Saïx's passing, Xemnas introduces new Number VII – Keizelex, the Violent Maiden. She comes from one of very few communities, that still practice Cult of the Ancients – once popular old religion centred on gods born with the whole universe, who were supposed to bring guidance to their followers and keep Laws of the Universe from being broken. The joining of Keizelex quickly destabilizes whole Org, as it becomes apparent that there is more to her, than it first seemed.

Circus KH AU – 16yo gymnast Xion, running away from her shitty stepmother, joins a circus owned by mysterious Xemnas and led by Xigbar. Features found family shenanigans, some suspicious shit going on behind the scenes, almost everyone having tragic backstories, Marluxia being pregnant and a polycule so complicated, I had to draw a diagram to somehow keep track of it:

Also, Roxene is there and yes, she's also everyone's emotional support animal.

KH x DMMD AU (made with help of @overheaven) – pretty self-explanatory. Marluxia, Larxene, Xigbar and Aoba are a group of Rhymers belonging to a Rib gang, tasked with fighting other gangs to keep influence over parts of Midorijima (in this AU, it is possible to play Rhyme as a group instead of single PvP). At the same time, Marluxia and Larxene are co-parenting Marluxia's 4yo daughter, Naminé, and Aoba is taking care of his twin brother, Sei, and Sei's daughter of similar age to Naminé, Xion. Also, there is some shady shit going on related to a disbandment of a very influential Rib gang, that happened years ago after someone set their homebase on fire, killing their leader.

"Complicated and Filthy" – Marluxia (17yo, 3rd grade of high school) is a boyfriend of Xigbar (19yo), both are certified life disasters. One day he has to move in with Xigbar due to his parents kicking him out of the house – he got pregnant with Xigbar's baby. Basically slice of life drama. Secondary characters include a group of delinquents Marluxia is a part of: 4th grader and leader Aqua, fellow 3rd graders Larxene, Saïx and Demyx, 2nd grader Kairi and 1st graders Roxas and Xion (who actually isn't very deliquentish, but one day she just started hanging out with them and no one had a heart to tell her to go away. Now she's sorta emotional support mascot).

Brand new AU inspired by "American Mary" involves a polycule made of archivist Vexen (who's currently expecting a baby), owner of a small tattoo shop Xaldin, sex worker Saïx and med student Marluxia – main character. Saïx is working for Xigbar, a kind owner of an underground brothel, who treats his workers (and people related to them) like a family. Marluxia sometimes does some body mods for Xigbar's workers, mainly piercings and ear sharpening, at the back of Xaldin's tattoo shop (which is kinda illegal, 'cause he doesn't have license, but he's good at it + none of his clients is going to snitch). One night Saïx accidentally discovers, that one of his regular clients is smuggling drugs, which leads to the guy cutting an X on his face him to scare him. Furious Marluxia enacts revenge by mutilating the guy. Professionally mutilating the guy – while he does end in the hospital, he survives. Story about what he did quickly spreads over whole underground and Marluxia is asked by Larxene – Xigbar's old friend – to work at her back-alley aesthetic medicine clinic as a plastic surgeon. Marluxia first refuses, but in the end gets convinced because money. And then shit happens, when it turns out, that the drug dealing ring involves some people from Marluxia's university. Also, Zexion is there as a surgery assistant in Larxene's clinic.

*leans in their chair* That's all for the AUs I mentioned in the post. Thoughts, questions?

#it's Apple!#mail time!#my AUs #long post #sorry if there are any mistakes but I'm not reading this rn #I need to eat something and go shower

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