#pretend it’s some kind of occasion and make something really nice

[ryuichirou]

HiHi! Just found your blog recently! Very fun to read all the headcanon stuff!

If you could, could you do one where the Twisted boys comfort their S.O. when they're emotionally burnt out? Would be nice to read about.

Thanks! <3

Hi! I���m sorry, I am a magician that took your “recently” and turned it into an “a while ago” because god it’s been so long..!! I am so so sorry!

Still, I am happy you enjoyed my hcs, and I hope you are still around to at least read this very belated reply.

It was fun writing something fluffy for a change. It really did feel nice. The next list is probably going to be cursed to balance it out lol

Riddle – I think he is not very good at recognising things like emotional burnout or any other kind of “unhappiness” because his own feelings had always been neglected. In result, he doesn’t really know how to deal with his lover feeling burnt out… but he’ll probably read a lot of books about it and do his best do act according to all the information he’s gathered! He’d be very clumsy about it too, but I feel like even just the effort to make the other person feel better would cheer them up, at least it would definitely cheer Trey up.

Ace – he is a sensible douche. He is secretly kind of supportive while saying shit like “oh snap out of it already, what’s wrong with you lately?” and rolling his eyes at the same time. He isn’t the most gracious one, but he still cares a lot, so he’d do little nice gestures for his partner when he’s feeling down. He would mostly try to distract him by bringing him somewhere to do something fun or relax; Ace is a little worse at giving his partner some space though. But he means well, really.

Deuce – he defaults to “let’s just ride a bike and scream at the ocean”, nothing to really add there, to be honest lol But it’s very effective! The first time he took Ace for a bike ride, Ace got so surprised by how unexpectedly cool Deuce looked that he completely forgot about his worries. Didn’t really need to yell at the ocean. In fact, he refused to do it because that felt too cringe. I also must add, despite being oblivious, Deuce is more sensitive to his partner’s emotional state than Ace.

Trey – we all know his love language by now – it’s baked goods lol He is the type to stealthily slip through the door, leave a tray with a piece of pie and a cup of tea next to his loved one, and leave him alone until he feels better. It’s not like Trey can’t provide any active emotional support, it’s just not his style, and he feels kind of awkward doing the whole hugging and comforting thing. He is a good listener though! But still, whenever he feels like Riddle (for example) isn’t feeling well, you know damn well he’s going to get the best strawberries to bake him something nice. Maybe he’ll even spend some extra money for that, just to make it feel more special.

Cater – he has a meme folder for occasions just like this one lol but honestly, I’m not sure if Cater is very good at supporting someone who is emotionally burnt out. He can certainly relate to it though. And it’s easier for him if his partner requires some chatting about insignificant and non-important things, he is very good at providing those.

Leona – I don’t think he’s ever had a situation in which he would have to worry about something like that… but if he feels Ruggie is feeling blue or being seriously out of it, he’d ask him to do something for him lol Which sounds bad, but he would pick a task that is surprisingly chill, as if he is intentionally giving Ruggie an opportunity to take a breather and relax, maybe even do something pleasant. Is that him being nice? If he is asked about it, he’d either say that he is an extremely caring person and should be appreciated for that (sarcasm), or pretend that he doesn’t understand what Ruggie is talking about.

Ruggie – he does whatever he feels is more valuable: brings some food, maybe does something for a person, leaves them to rest. If it’s Leona though, he knows that he doesn’t really require any more food, rest, or services, he gets plenty of it already. So he might actually drag him to take a bath or something lol He catches moments when Leona is feeling down due to his physical state very well. He is very physical-world-oriented in general, not a huge pep talk giver.

Jack – he has a regimen for when he himself is feeling down, so he’ll put a person through it too: he’d make him run for like two hours at first, and he’d show him very cool and pretty scenery. Kind of similar to what Deuce does, but with physical exercise + without any bikes lol The idea is that you distract your mind by keeping your body busy, and then by the time you’re done, you’re feeling accomplished and exhausted at the same time, but also you get to stare at something beautiful… He is a romantic lol

Azul – I’m actually writing him last chronologically because, unexpectedly, it’s very difficult for me to think about him in this context. He isn’t heartless, especially when it comes to someone that he loves a lot, but I feel like he isn’t very good at genuine emotional support. It’s easy for him to go through the list of things one should do in such a situation, to say stuff like “you know that I am always here for you to cry on my shoulder!”, but such words sound so fake from Azul even when he means it lol So if he really really cares about the person, he’d try to create some sense of comfort for them, I guess. To indulge them in something that they wouldn’t normally indulge in, or that Azul himself doesn’t usually want them to indulge in. With Idia, it’s going to be a huge variety of snacks, a fancy variation of his shitty chemical foods (with all the chemicals intact, just plated in a very nice way, thanks Tweels), and also some time off that Azul took from his busy schedule to play games with him all night. With Jamil, it’s trickier because they aren’t as emotionally close…

Jade – another believer in nature healing emotional wounds, he is very likely to bring his partner to the mountains to spend a couple of nights under the stars and with bears roaming nearby. Maybe he just wants his partner to start worrying for his life instead… when you worry for your life, you don’t have time to be emotionally drained! But if hiking isn’t an option for some unfathomable reason, he doesn’t mind just being extra sweet and butler-like for some time, literally taking care of his partner. He’d act so sickly-sweet that they would have no choice but to start feeling better! Just to make him stop!

Floyd – he doesn’t like it when someone who usually brings him fun suddenly becomes all apathetic and sad, so he’ll start poking the person, both literally and figuratively. Maybe he’ll poke enough for them to get angry, and then he’ll be very satisfied with himself. “Goldfishie is acting like himself again~” or something like that. He does have moments when he almost feels like a caring boyfriend, when he hugs his lover tightly and tells him to cheer up in a very cute tone. But if he feels like he’s getting nowhere, he’ll get frustrated and leave until he feels like coming back to poke his partner again. Maybe it’s his turn to be apathetic and irritable lol

Kalim – he’ll instantly feel that something is off, and will do his absolute darnest to help! And unfortunately that usually means that he’ll get overwhelming. His train of thought is usually to feed, to cheer up with dance and music, to throw a party with a parade. One of those things is bound to make his lover feel better, right? If it’s Jamil though, he might also try to take some of Jamil’s responsibilities to give him some time to relax. And he might even not create more work for Jamil by doing so! He also could give Jamil a vacation and give him like a week to travel by himself and relax, but he won’t get this idea himself – someone needs to tell him. Oh, and to talk about feelings. This isn’t where Kalim’s mind naturally goes to, but he is good at it.

Jamil – isn’t he the one who needs support more..!! just kidding; I think he would try to think rationally. At first he’d check if his partner isn’t getting sick since that could be a reason for him feeling blue, then he’ll probably try to create a quiet place for him to rest. If he loves the person, he might even make him a playlist of some good music. It honestly depends on who it is, but I feel like Jamil is very careful and attentive and knows exactly what his partner needs, especially if he loves him. With Kalim though, it’s complicated, I feel like Jamil would get genuinely surprised and almost scared if he Kalim was feeling emotionally exhausted…

Vil – it also depends on a person, I guess. Firstly, if it’s someone who he has some power over as a housewarden (i.e. Rook), he’d give him some time to rest, even if it’s just a day. Then, his plan is surprisingly similar to what Jack would do lol Something active at first, something beautiful and indulgent. He might do yoga or meditation, but if it’s Rook for example, they already do it every day, so he could go for something more active. Like an impromptu game of hide-and-seek?? Or something like that. And after they’ll watch his loved one’s favourite movie (or the one Vil thinks he would enjoy) while Vil gives him massages and does something with his partner’s face and hair to make him feel even better. Oh, he’d also light some scented candles to make his loved one feel like the time has stopped for the two of them. And if there is something that bothers his loved one, Vil is absolutely here to talk about it and to provide not only emotional support, but also a feeling of clarity when it’s needed. Honestly? It’s such a fucking treat, the lucky guy should feel extremely honored lol

Rook – now this is someone who looooves talking about feelings lol But he is also someone who adapts the most to his partner’s needs! Because he is scarily attentive, he knows everything about people’s preferences and things that they usually crave, so he would arrive with food for one person, make a playlist for some other person, give a lot of hugs to the third person, and maybe even leave some other person alone for some time to give them space! With Vil, for example, he would mirror his own ways a little bit: some yoga, some beauty rituals and self-care, and then a marathon of his favourite old-ass obscure-ass movies that only the two of them watched. But no matter what he does, it always ends with a heart-to-heart. Rook just has to make a person talk about their feelings…

Epel – honestly, he is a delightful cutie. He tries very hard to make his loved one feel better, and his methods are usually pretty simple; he just remembers what his mom and meemaw used to do when he was feeling blue. So, something nice to eat, something soft to cuddle! He was thinking a plushie or a pillow, but his partner might end up cuddling him instead lol That would surely make one’s emotional battery charge quickly! But also, despite his cuteness, I can also picture him as someone who would want to break things when he is upset, so maybe he’d try to organise that as well…

Idia – he is not super equipped to handle situations like these, but he is very sensitive when it comes to recognising them. For example, he’ll instantly know  the difference between “Azul is irritable because he’s just being Azul” and “Azul is irritable because he is exhausted but can’t stop and take it easy”. And with Azul, he might actually tell him that he needs to chill before he explodes or hurts himself. But usually his go-to is to offer a distraction (a game, something to read, something to watch) and just fuck off until the person initiates the dialogue. Idia doesn’t really mind talking about something that bothers his loved one, but he extremely rarely addresses it first, he prefers to let them start venting themselves.

Ortho – he calculated the best route to take based on all the info he found on the internet! Which is a good and a bad thing because, on the one hand, he’ll present everything a person might need, it’s like textbook emotional support. But on the other hand, online articles usually talk about the importance of eliminating the source of stress, and we know how literal Ortho could get with such suggestions… the source of stress is better watch out!! Jokes aside, what’s good about Ortho is that he is learning and he is very careful: if he sees his loved one reacting well to a certain thing, he’ll do more of this thing, and then he’ll basically teach himself to be the best emotional support buddy. He is like that with Idia already, he brings him the best snacks to munch!

Lilia – he is a big believer in changing scenery when you’re feeling exhausted, emotionally burnt out or overwhelmed. So if it’s possible to take his loved one somewhere, he would gladly do that. But also, these days he is very into “shake the sadness off!” approach, so he kind of pushes his lover to do something fun, maybe even something crazy or dangerous. Of course, he’s also a very good person to talk to, and unlike some other people, he initiates the dialogue first when he feels like his sad boy starts to feel a bit better, like he’s up to have a chat. Honestly, he would put them through such a ride that starts on a very crazy note and ends on a surprisingly delightful and romantic one.

Silver – he is a very sensitive boy and he notices those things quickly. But he probably thinks that he isn’t much of a help, so sometimes he just sits nearby, feeing kind of useless. But the thing is, Silver is surrounded by emotional support critters at all times, so with him just sitting nearby, one’s worry would go away so fast… when his lover says that he really cheered him up, Silver always looks confused, but happy nonetheless. Silver also probably suggests his loved one to tell him about what troubles him, but he doesn’t talk much himself, just listens. With Sebek this might not work though, so he’d cheer him up by inviting him to train or whatnot. This seems to be their love language lol

Sebek – does Sebek even believe in emotional burnout? I feel like he is someone who gets angry at first because this isn’t the behaviour he expects and knows how to handle. But at the same time, Sebek is also sensible enough to know when something is off (e.g. Silver’s dorm vignette), but his ways of emotional support are kind of indirect. So, he’s either trying to boost morale with his energetic speeches, or tries to support the person physically (by either training if it’s Silver, or making sure the person isn’t sick). If it’s Malleus who is feeling blue, Sebek’s going to be obnoxious and express his support by angrily barking at everyone who dares to go near Malleus until he starts feeling better. Is it a good way to support Malleus? Not really, but he’s trying…

Malleus – it’s probably something that Malleus never really had to go through; other people’s emotional state had never been his responsibility. The worst thing that could happen before was Lilia getting mad or upset, but emotional burnout? That’s something new. But not something that is entirely unknown to Malleus because his own emotional state could be unstable and volatile, and he gets overwhelmed sometimes too. He probably won’t be able to recognise this in another person (especially if it’s Lilia for whom this state is very unusual), and might get frustrated at first. But when he figures out that this is what he himself feels sometimes, he’ll teleport somewhere with his loved one and fly with him somewhere to enjoy solitude and calmness…

[fated-normal-767]

Kronos probably has a really oversized house . I think his ideal living space is actually pretty small and cozy and one could even say cramped . But that would look pathetic so he buys a bigger house than he really wants . Than he needs for just one person . And it feels more empty everytime he enters . He’d probably takes lates nights a lot, he wouldn’t admit it’s to avoid that place .

Also : he’s a hoarder maybe ?

Ohhh 100% I think his house is mainly empty except for maybe 1 or 2 rooms he just fills with items ranging from really sentimental to just he doesn’t want to throw it out. Just makes the rest of it seem more empty

[luveline]

hi jadey! if you are up for it, do you think you could write reader unexpectedly doing smth nice for coworker!james, maybe she’s being kind of shy and trying not to make it a big deal while he’s trying v hard to not be all giggly heart eyes kiss kiss at her LOL thank you in advance and ilysm <3

tysm ilysm <3 fem

“Hey, killer.”

You sidestep past James bag into the nook of your desk. “Killer?” you ask, quick to drop your bag onto your chair and unbutton your coat.

“Beth told me you killed a spider in the break room. That’s not cool.”

“It was looking at me funny.” You shed your coat. “Where’s Remus?”

“Coffee.”

James doesn’t give you half as much attention as you’d wanted, turning back to his computer with an impassive expression. You swallow a cough and grab your bag, desk chair creaking as you sit. There’s a memo from Remus already tacked to your desk that asks you nicely to send him a long list of files, each written in careful print, and then a second that says good morning.

You smile at it and set them aside.

Though James doesn’t like you much, and you’re not totally sold on him, you’re starting to feel like you’re part of a team. It’s a hearty feeling to belong somewhere, to know you’re valuable, even if you’re only punching numbers in and swapping spreadsheets. So you’d seen the green tube boxes in the shops and you’d decided on a whim to get them. Perhaps it would inspire some sweetness from James. If he stops putting your mug in the freezer, you’ll be happy.

“I got you something.”

James tilts his head to the side but doesn’t look up. “Huh?”

The office lights aren’t as complimentary to his brown skin as the sun where it’s rising outside of your window. It warms his face and neck, and lightens the dark mop of his hair, his flyaways like silver scrapings.

You take one of the boxes from your bag and place it on the edge of his desk. You’ll give the second to Remus when he comes back.

“It’s one of your Smiskis,” you say, “but they’re exercise ones. I know you lift weights, there’s one with dumbbells. I want the hula hoop one.”

“Where did you get this?” he asks, looking at you with clear surprise. His thick brows rise. His smile is unmissable.

“They were three for two at Sainsbury’s. I got one for me and one for Remus, as well.”

James curls a lovely hand around the box. You pretend not to watch, quickly diverting your gaze to your bag to grab a Smiski for yourself. You can’t look up, can’t explain why on earth you thought it would be a good idea, really. You saw them and you thought of him and you’re entitled to lie about the two for three thing, it’s none of his business how much money you spend.

You dig your nail into the lid and rip it open.

“You look awfully smiley, Jamie,” Remus greets, approaching from your side to round the desks and place down his big mug of coffee. You chance a glance at the both of them and catch a half second of James’ ridiculous smile. “What made you so happy so early in the morning?”

“Nothing. Uh, just killer over here brought us some presents.” James tips the bag from inside of his box onto the desk mat.

“Really?” Remus asks.

You offer him his box over your monitors.

“Thank you,” he says. “What’s the occasion?”

“It’s nothing,” you say with a hurried shake of the head, looking down at your own mystery Smiski. They’re nondescript little people who glow with a green UV sheen, and you hadn’t seen the appeal to begin with, but each morning you make sure to fix James’ if he’s toppled over. He never tells you off for it. “I just want one for myself, that’s all.”

You open them in tandem. Your figurine is sitting with its legs out in a v-shape and arms stretching down to its toes. Remus’ is slightly smaller perched on a yoga ball. James, apparently having all the luck in the world, unveils a Smiski struggling to lift a dumbbell from the ground.

“I love him,” you say with a pleased laugh.

“He’s brilliant,” Remus says.

“Thank you so much.”

Your smile gets caught on your mouth. James’ tone isn’t strange but unfamiliar —he speaks without a hint of irony. His grin is full of an emotion you don’t recognise. Too happy. Too friendly.

“You’re welcome,” you say.

They’re both kind enough to ignore your mild breathlessness. “No, seriously, thank you, she’s so cool. I didn’t know we could get these ones yet over here.” James puts his weightlifting Smiski in pride of place atop his outgoings. “Sirius is going to be jealous. I'm sending him a photo.”

You feel Remus’ eyes on you. He stares until you look at him, eyebrows wriggling. “Thank you for my toy,” he says.

“They’re not toys, lovely Moony, they’re figurines,” James says, leaning down and angling his phone. He snaps a few photos from different positions. He can’t seem to stop smiling. “Aw, look at her. She’s sick as hell. She’s gonna get so swole.”

You wrinkle your nose and sweep your rubbish into the wastebasket. Swole isn’t the word you’d use. Ever. But if it makes him happy…

“This is the best thing that’s happened to me all week,” James mumbles to himself, before clearing his throat extra thoroughly. “This doesn’t change the fact that you killed that poor spider, you know. What was it doing to you?”

“I crushed her by accident opening a cupboard door.”

“Likely story.”

[cannibalisation]

i literally loved the tattoo artist!sirius fic you wrote it was literally pure gold!!

if you take requests could i request a James Potter x reader where reader works at the record store and he is a regular— some romance after a while of the two exchanging small talk :3 thought that would be cute!

ill just put 🐙anon whenever i make a request

i. flirt

james potter/gn!reader

thank you so much for your request! and i’m glad you enjoyed my sirius fic. i might write a second part if it is asked for ♥️ (1.3k)

caution. flirty (cringy) james, reader is nervously whipped(?), bastard cat, uncreative title, so many music references, i’ve never written for james before as he is to me the most challenging marauder to write for, i hope that i haven’t butchered his character.

i’m new to the marauders fandom and have limited knowledge, sorry for any character inaccuracies.

THREE hours and twenty-five minutes have passed since you first clocked in.

For roughly two of the three hours, you spent stacking shelves with cassette tapes and lining racks with ageing vinyls. It wasn’t a challenging job; you’d prefer it to anything else, but that doesn’t make the work any less tedious.

You’re more than grateful that the manager of Blackbird Records is not a cruel one. He allows any type of music to your liking, and fortunately he hasn’t insisted on a Christmas carol mandate until late November.

Glenn Frey’s smooth croon of lyric sounds out in the store, and you hum along to the words. It’s mostly empty inside; a handful of customers are dotted around, shuffling through the record bins. A young girl with messy copper-coloured pigtails lurks near one of the clearance bins at the end of an aisle; you pretend to not notice as she pockets a lone cassette tape with a sly grin—she has good taste after all.

Angus, the fat ginger cat of the store, sits to your left. He is a favourite among customers, and his picture even rests beneath the “Employee of the Month” plaque. He is lazy, though; he doesn’t even give you a piece of his mind when you attempt to push his sleepy form off the till during busy hours. He likes lying in the sun, so you are kind enough not to bother him right now.

The entrance doorbell chimes, and somehow, without even looking up, you know who just walked through.

James, though he insists you call him Jamie, has been a regular at Blackbird for quite some time now. And for the last few months, he has been trying to convince you to at least go on one date with him.

He’s nice about it, which you’re grateful for; he isn’t pushy or demanding; it’s really just casual flirting. Every time he comes up to the register to purchase his chosen items, he manages to throw in a cheesy pick-up line. On each occasion he does so, you either grimace in embarrassment or your face happens to heat up.

Sometimes he comes into the store with his mates; they laugh at him when the amorous quips clearly don’t woo you.

James clicks his finger in your direction and winks as he struts past you. He looks nice today, in dark denim jeans and a red polo jersey, much too big for his frame.

With a subtle glance, you watch as he flicks through the LPs that sit inside a storage bin. His supple fingers are adorned with silver and gold rings; you can’t help but admire the flex of the veins in his hands as he skims over the albums.

You retreat your gaze quickly as he turns his head in your direction, how humiliating it would be if he had caught you essentially checking him out. From what you knew about him, which was a limited amount of knowledge, as the only time you see him is during your midday shifts, James was a playful type.

Once you had thought that you’d recognised one of his friends sitting at the same table as you during your psychology class, but he wasn’t exactly discernible. He was quiet and kept his head down for most of the class, but that tweed grey and navy sweater he had on (something you think your grandfather would wear) was too familiar.

James moves on to the listening station now, where the staff picks are located. He turns one of the record player dials and shifts a pair of battered headphones atop his mess of curls. You busy yourself with caressing Angus’ patchy fur as James nods his head along to the running track.

The one-eyed cat observes you with an astute gaze, like he knows exactly what you are thinking. You stare back at him, matching his gaze with equal telling��furrowing your brows to intimidate him. Obviously that does not work, and the beast just looks at you as if you were a fool (he’s right).

The sound of someone clearing their throat breaks you out of the staring contest shared with the cat, and you plaster on your customer service facade with grace.

James stands in front of you now, bronze skin gleaming in the sunlight. God, there was truly no reason to disagree with the fact that he was a cut above the rest. His eyes, chestnut in theory but hazel in the sun, eyed you with a playful look.

You stutter out a quick “Hello” and ask, “Did you find everything alright today?” As he places an album onto the counter. The Clash’s Sandinista!—your staff pick. He had listened to your pick of the week and is purchasing it.

He laughs with a small nod and reaches into the back pocket of his jeans, eyes not leaving yours as he does so. You smile politely in return and move to scan his item; your hands are shaking.

Under his gaze, you can’t help but grow self-conscious. He has pretty eyes; there's no denying that, but they are especially heavy on your form today, and you don’t know why. Was the Beatles shirt a no-go for today? You work at a record store; musician-based articles of clothing are practically compulsory.

Despite that, you choose to ignore any building thoughts in your mind and read him the price owed. He complies with a more-than-friendly smile and hands you the exact number of bills. In an amicable—or rather teasing—manner, you bid him farewell.

For a brief moment you think he looks almost dejected, that once again you have rejected his kind-hearted attitude. That idea is quickly erased as James puffs out his chest and clears his throat once more.

“Hey—Do you live on Abbey Road? Because you got me crossing the street just to be near you!”

Oh god.

You see James again on one of your closing shifts. He saddles himself up beside the wall as you finish stacking a shelf with CD albums. His arm rests right in front of your face, and you try not to urge forwards.

“Can I help you?”

“Sure can. You, me, local pub. My mates are in a band and are performing there on Friday, think you’ll like them.” He states, voice like honey. It’s true, you probably would enjoy watching a local band perform, but you doubt you’d even be able to be calm in such a situation. Hours, if anything, spent in an enclosed, stuffy area with James? Your heart would burst right out of your chest.

As he awaits your answer, James grabs onto each CD you place down and flips it around on the shelf. You say nothing as you repeat the action; neither does he. You doubt you’ve ever met someone so annoying, yet beautiful at the same time.

“Come on—I’m dying over here.” He gasps dramatically, dragging his fist across his chest as he jokingly heaves out a final breath before sliding down to the floor. You can’t help but laugh as he does so, removing yourself from the task at hand to peer at him with a small smile. You can already feel the judgmental gaze of Angus before you even speak.

“Fine, fine! I finish at half five on Friday; now will you get up off the floor? It’s grimy.” He quickly does so at that declaration and looks with hopeful eyes. James places his hands on your shoulders and grips them lightly; it leaves you breathless. “Seriously? You’re being honest this time?”.

With a laugh, you grab a hold of his hands from where they rest on your shoulders. “Yes, will you pick me up?”

“Obviously, here, half five.” He lilted before turning away and skipping over to the front door, “You won’t regret this, I promise!”

You hope that you won’t.

authors note. my first request, thank you again and i hope it was to your liking 🫶🏻 please feel free to request anything else! this is my fandom/character list and I’ll practically write anything so long as it inspires me to do so.

[bomber-grl]

Call Me Penelope cause You’re My Odysseus

Pairing(s): Leo Valdez x Gn!Reader (No specific Godly Parent

Word Count:4411

-

Leo… Leo.

Your thoughts wandered again as you patrolled the deck, the cool sea air nipping at your face. You’d told Percy to take a break—he’d been on edge lately, and you weren’t exactly complaining. Honestly, the more space you had between yourself and Leo Valdez, the better. Your face heated up every time he came anywhere near you.

You found yourself staring at the churning waves, hypnotized by the relentless cycle of them crashing over each other. Lost in thought, you didn’t even notice the steps behind you until—

"Hey!"

You jumped, spinning around in surprise. Of course, standing there, looking ridiculously charming despite the late hour, was none other than Leo Valdez, master of bad timing and probably worse pick-up lines.

Leo’s face mirrored your shock for a moment, but then, just like that, he slid into his usual smirk. The one that was half nervous, half confident—basically, classic Leo. He scratched the back of his head. "What are you doing out here?" he asked, voice a little higher than usual. "Didn’t think I’d find anyone else stupid enough to be up this late."

You couldn't help but laugh. "What are you doing up? I wasn’t aware they let you off the ship’s leash."

Leo blinked, the surprise lingering. "Oh, you know. Just fixing some stuff down in the engine room. Festus was acting all weird, and I had to check on the ship's defenses because apparently, nothing is stopping this whole quest from blowing the Argo ll up every five minutes. But, you know, minor stuff." He gave you a one-shoulder shrug that was probably meant to be cool, but just made him look like he’d forgotten how to stand.

You shook your head, grinning. “Still can’t believe you made the ship. Seriously, that’s pretty impressive.”

Leo blinked at you. Once. Twice. His mouth opened like he was going to say something, but then he just closed it again, visibly thrown by your sincerity. You could practically see his brain buffering. He shuffled a little, his hand rubbing the back of his neck in that endearing way he did when he was flustered. Finally, he stammered out, "I mean, I didn’t do it alone but Uh, thanks. That's... really nice of you to say."

And yeah, maybe you kind of like throwing him off balance. There was something oddly satisfying about making the charming, ever-flirty Leo Valdez pause for just a moment.

The thing about Leo? He was a flirt. A big flirt. He could try to charm anyone with a few slick words and a wink, but you learned pretty quickly that Leo’s confidence was just a shiny coat of paint over a ton of... well, feelings—and maybe some issues with his self-esteem.

You’d figured that out one day when you found yourself near him, as he was busily patching up something that had gotten busted in the last battle (because, naturally, everything on the Argo II was always getting busted). Of course, he spotted you and immediately called you over. Because why wouldn’t he?

And that’s how it went: You’d talk for a bit. But then Leo would try to flirt. Sometimes it was an awful pick-up line—so awful it actually made you laugh. And sometimes, he’d lean on something like he was trying to be extra suave and... miss. Then fall. Always a good time.

And on the rare occasions where he didn’t totally embarrass himself? He’d wait for your reaction, face half hopeful, half insecure.

Most of the time, you’d play it cool and pretend to be bashful—making him think he’d won. Other times, though, you’d flirt back. It started as a joke, really. He was always burning up, so one time you decided to play along, and the result? Well, he caught fire. Literally. You weren’t exaggerating. He was on fire, and you had to grab a fire extinguisher before the whole deck turned into an inferno.

“Leo,” you said, raising an eyebrow. “You know, if you keep setting yourself on fire every time I talk to you, I’m going to start charging for these rescue missions.”

He flashed you that crooked grin of his, his cheeks turning a shade of red you hadn’t known a person could turn. "I'm pretty sure I'd pay anything to get you to keep talking to me."

And there it was again, that flirtation. But beneath it? Was there something else? Something you couldn’t quite put your finger on yet? You didn’t know. But damn, Leo had a way of making you want to find out.

-

After one of the many, many exhausting days aboard the Argo II, you had one singular goal in mind: get to your cabin, collapse into your bed, and pray that nothing—nothing—would interrupt your much-needed sleep. It was a rare occasion when you could actually get some peace, and you were determined to make the most of it.

But of course, life had other plans.

As you walked down the hall, a distant murmur of voices caught your attention. You froze. Was this the part where you ignored it and moved on? Definitely. Were you actually going to do that? Absolutely not.

You crept closer, your footsteps barely audible. You could’ve sworn you were moving like a ninja—or at least what you imagined a ninja would look like if they had absolutely no stealth whatsoever. Anyway, it was too late to back out now.

You stopped at a corner, inching closer to the source of the voices. Your heart was pounding in your chest—not from the adrenaline, but from the fact that you had, once again, found yourself doing something questionable for the sake of curiosity.

You strained your ears and waited. And then—there it was. The voices of Leo and Jason, clearly in the middle of some deep conversation. You caught snippets of their exchange.

“...what about you and [your name]?” Jason’s voice floated through the air.

You froze, your eyes widening. You hadn’t been expecting that. At all.

Your heart did a little leap as you leaned in closer. “What about me and Leo?” you thought, trying to make sense of it.

Leo’s voice answered—there was a momentary pause before his usual confidence took over. “I like them. Like, actually like them,” he said, his tone laced with that trademark Leo half-cocky, half-nervous vibe.

You blinked. Your brain might’ve stopped working for a solid second. Did Leo just say—?

Before you could fully process the implications of what you’d overheard, you heard their conversation fade into something less distinct, a murmur of words lost in the distance. You were left standing there, a bit dazed, your face heating up. Your heart, too, was doing that thing where it sped up in an uncomfortable, almost violent way. The idea of you and Leo?

No. No way.

Your thoughts were abruptly interrupted by a fake, overly dramatic clearing of a throat behind you. You spun around faster than you had ever moved in your life, nearly bumping into the person who had caught you mid-espionage.

And of course, it was none other than Piper.

Piper. Cool, composed, and way too clever for her own good. The girl who always seemed to be two steps ahead of you. And judging by the smirk she was giving you right now, she had definitely been aware of your little eavesdropping escapade.

She just shook her head, looking at you with that amused grin you’d come to recognize. “Really? Eavesdropping now? That’s a new one for you.”

You opened your mouth to say something—anything—but nothing came out. Instead, you just gave her a sheepish look and shrugged, pretending like you were totally innocent in all of this.

Piper’s smirk softened into a smile. “Come on,” she said, tilting her head as she beckoned you to follow. “Let’s go. Before you get caught.”

You followed her down the hall, your mind still spinning. Leo? Actually liking you? You couldn’t even. This was... a lot to process. And now that you were trying to piece it together, your thoughts were as tangled as the ropes on the ship after a storm.

But Piper—bless her—seemed to sense your mental chaos. She didn’t bring it up again, instead chatting with you casually, like nothing had happened. She was way too good at pretending she hadn’t just caught you doing something totally questionable.

Still, as you walked behind her, you couldn’t help but glance back toward the hallway, where Leo and Jason’s conversation was probably still happening. You could almost feel your face flush again just thinking about it.

Piper glanced at you from the corner of her eye and raised an eyebrow. “You okay back there?” she asked, clearly amused by your dazed expression.

You nodded. “Yeah, totally fine. Nothing weird going on here. Nope. Not at all.”

She laughed softly, clearly not buying it. “Uh-huh. Sure. Whatever you say.”

And as you followed her down the hall, you couldn't help but wonder just how much Leo Valdez was going to mess with your head in the days to come. And just how much Piper knew about all of it.

-

The battle unfolded in the blink of an eye. One moment, you, Piper, and Leo were aboard the Argo II, navigating the skies with the hum of the engines beneath your feet. The next, a blast of icy power ripped through the air, and Khione and her goons attacked, freezing everything in their wake. Piper’s charmspeak wasn’t enough to prevent Leo from being thrown violently into the sky, his form disappearing into the distance with an eerie speed.

It was as if time had frozen, leaving you suspended in disbelief. It all happened so fast—too fast. It wasn’t until Piper’s desperate scream rang through the air, her voice cracked with fear, that the weight of what had just occurred hit you. “Leo!” she cried, reaching out as if she could pull him back through the chaos. But Leo was already gone.

The days following his disappearance felt like an endless blur. The crew did their best to carry on, but without Leo’s infectious energy, the Argo II felt eerily quiet. A hollow ache gnawed at you—frustration, fear, and confusion all bubbling together. You couldn’t help but wonder where Leo was, if he was even alive. Had he been lost to the winds of fate?

A week later, there was a commotion—shouted voices, the clattering of metal, the unmistakable sound of Festus’ familiar mechanical whirring. It was Leo. He had returned.

Leo, with his wild grin and grease-streaked face, stood beside Festus, both of them already hard at work in the engine room as if nothing had happened. You watched, your heart in your throat, torn between relief and a growing sense of frustration. You wanted to run to him, to yell at him, to ask him a hundred questions, but there was something in his demeanor that made you hesitate. The old Leo was back, but this version felt... distant.

You hadn’t realized how much you missed him until now. Sure, you had a little crush on him, but that wasn’t all of it. Leo had been your first real friend in what felt like centuries, the first person you’d connected with on a level that went beyond the surface. The way he could make you laugh even when everything seemed hopeless—that was something you never thought you’d find again.

But lately, Leo had been avoiding you. He’d slip away whenever you came near, his eyes darting to the floor or the nearest exit. It stung. And today? You had had enough of it.

You found him underdeck, his back turned as he tinkered with the ship’s machinery. Without a second thought, you shoved him hard against the wall. The impact rattled the room, and Leo's surprised gasp was the only sound that followed.

His eyes widened in shock, his usual cocky grin replaced by an expression of flustered bewilderment. You could practically hear the gears turning in his head, trying to process what just happened. But you were done waiting.

“Why have you been avoiding me?” you demanded, your voice unexpectedly cracking on the last word. It took everything in you not to shrink back from the vulnerability that slipped through, but you stood your ground, staring him down.

Leo blinked, clearly startled. The tough guy facade faltered for a moment, and you could almost see the invisible weight on his shoulders. He sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. “I’m sure you’ve heard from the others, but I ended up on Ogygia when I got blasted out of here.”

Ogygia. The name echoed in your mind. The island of Calypso, the witch who had nursed Percy back to health years ago when you and Annabeth and apparently the rest of camp thought him to be dead. You’d heard the stories, but hearing Leo mention it made the hairs on your neck stand up. A sense of suspicion crept in.

“Yeah, and what about it?” you asked, trying to keep your voice steady, though your heart was racing.

Leo’s eyes narrowed, clearly frustrated that you weren’t already “in the know.” He threw his hands up in exasperation, though his tone was far less confident than usual. “Well... I met Calypso.” He spoke slowly, almost as if testing the waters, waiting for your reaction.

Your eyebrows quirked. “Uh-huh…” You crossed your arms, a half-amused, half-worried look on your face, but you could tell Leo was about to say more.

He exhaled sharply, dragging the words out like they were heavier than lead. “And I may have promised to come back and rescue her... on the River Styx.”

You froze. For a moment, time itself seemed to stop. “You what?!”

The words came out of your mouth before you could stop them, and your anger flared in a way you hadn't expected. Your heart pounded in your chest, the frustration that had been building for days erupting in an instant. “How could you be so stupid, Leo?!" you snapped, desperate for him to understand the gravity of what he’d just said. "You can't be serious!”

Leo seemed startled by the harsh words, but he braced himself, like he’d been expecting them all along. “She needed my help! She’s been stuck on that island for centuries!” His voice was a little defensive, but there was an underlying note of... concern? You exhaled slowly, letting the tension drain from your shoulders. It was clear Leo just felt a sort of kinship with her, the way he always did with anyone who needed saving.

Despite your growing coolness, Leo still felt the need to add, “I don’t... like her, though.”

Your gaze snapped back to him, and for a moment, it was like nothing had changed between the two of you. You found yourself struggling to hide a grin. “And why are you telling me this?” You tried, but amusement was creeping into your voice.

Leo rubbed the back of his neck, his usual nervous gesture. “Well, I just didn’t want you to think I—y’know—had some... thing for her.”

Of course. Only Leo would accidentally dig a hole for himself in the middle of a serious conversation.

You couldn’t help but laugh. “And why would I think that?”

He blinked, his blush spreading to his ears. If you hadn’t been in the middle of this conversation, you were pretty sure his face would’ve caught fire.

You grinned, shaking your head as you reached out to sling your arm around his shoulders. “C’mon, let’s go eat. I’m starving, and you’ve got enough ‘I’m a walking disaster’ moments for one day.”

Leo groaned, but the way his eyes twinkled told you he was secretly relieved. Just another day in the life of Leo Valdez.

-

You met Reyna. She, Nico, and Coach Hedge had taken the task of getting the Athena Parthenos to Camp Jupiter a while ago. They were all heroes in their own right, but the last thing you wanted to do was sit around and wait. Finally, after what felt like an eternity of uncertainty and battles, you made it back to Camp Half-Blood. But of course, peace would never last.

Not here. Not with the war that was brewing on the horizon.

In fact, peace didn't even stand a chance. It didn't last more than a few moments after you stepped foot back on the camp’s familiar soil. The battle found you again, just like it always did. You were carried from one fight to the next, running on adrenaline and the relentless desire to protect your friends. Monsters fell before you, and the injured campers you helped were a reminder of what was at stake. But even as you fought, you couldn't shake the feeling that something worse was coming.

Then, you heard it.

A loud bang, a crackle in the sky that sets your teeth on edge. You looked up instinctively, already knowing in the pit of your stomach what was going on. Gaea was being fought, her chaos spilling out over the world. Some of your closest friends were out there, battling the earth goddess herself.

But this—this was different.

The air felt colder, the ground seemed to tremble underfoot. Something had shifted. Your stomach twisted into a knot. Something was wrong, deeper than any battle or monster or war you’d fought before.

And before you could even make sense of it, your attention was yanked away. A shout pierced the chaos—someone calling for help, a camper in trouble.

You didn’t hesitate.

There would be no backing down now. You couldn’t give up, not when you’ve already made it this far.

-

Your gut had been right. The battle raged on, but the worst news hit you like a tidal wave. Leo was gone.

It wasn’t just the usual chaos of battle. This was different. Leo. The guy who could fix anything, who joked through every crisis, who had always been one step ahead of the rest of you. But now? Now he was gone. And the words hit you like a punch to the stomach.

You should’ve known. You should’ve realized that something was off. Leo had been acting strangely lately, slipping into moods you’d never seen him in before. Those long silences. The way he kept pushing people away like he was trying to make himself disappear before the inevitable. And now it all made sense in a way that felt like ice down your spine.

Was this it? Was this what he’d been planning all along?

You couldn’t bring yourself to believe it at first. Leo—a martyr? The thought felt wrong in every possible way. Leo wasn’t the kind to give up, to throw himself away for a cause, no matter how noble. He always had a plan. He always had a way out. But now, as the reality settled in, you couldn’t help but wonder. Was this his plan all along? To go out in a blaze of glory? To save everyone at the cost of himself?

It was impossible to reconcile the Leo you knew with the Leo who might have done this, who might’ve sacrificed himself for the greater good.

But as the news spread and the camp was left to mourn, a heavy, bitter ache formed in your chest. You thought of all the times he’d smiled and cracked jokes, of all the times you’d fought side-by-side, laughing and shouting together. And now... Now there was nothing.

It felt like the world was missing a spark. A spark you knew as Leo.

You pushed the grief aside for the moment—it wasn't time to break down. Not yet. But the thought lingered, gnawing at you. Was this really his choice? And if it was... would you ever be able to forgive him for leaving you behind?

-

Two months had passed.

Each day bled into the next like a long, gray smear, and the world had become nothing but the aching void of Leo Valdez’s absence. The loss was a cold weight in the pit of your stomach, a stone that no amount of time could make lighter. Time, it seemed, only deepened the wound.

Camp Half-Blood had continued, as it always did. The camp was used to death. Demigods were used to death and grief, everyone had to learn to carry their burdens or they’d drown. They had learned to march on, even after losing their closest friends. But you? You couldn’t do it. Not this time.

Leo had been different. He had been your Leo, your spark of light in a world that had so often seemed too dark. And now he was gone. And nothing could fill the hole he left behind.

Amidst your grief you had heard of Apollo's appearance at camp. From what you could gather, he had been punished for Octavian's actions and made human. Even more funnily enough, he was a servant to some hot-headed girl.

But you didn’t care. You couldn’t care about Apollo’s strange fate or his odd little master. The only thing that consumed you was Leo. The only thing that mattered was that Leo was gone, and you were left behind in the ruins of it.

Days turned to weeks, and then weeks into two long, endless months. You stayed in your cabin mostly, not wanting to face the world outside. You couldn't bring yourself to do anything but wallow in the grief. The other campers had tried to help, of course. Some had dropped by to check in on you. A few even brought food, but you couldn’t eat. You didn’t want to eat.

And then one morning, when the sun was barely peeking over the horizon, you finally decided—today, you would leave the cabin.

You stood up slowly, the ache in your chest never leaving. You had gone days without food, but something in you told you it was time to stop. Time to start existing again, at least for a while.

You stepped outside, the crisp air hitting your skin. The camp seemed as alive as ever, filled with the sounds of training, laughter, and chatter. But to you, it all felt distant. The faces of your friends, Percy, Annabeth, Chiron, they all seemed to move through a fog. They had all moved on, in their own ways. But you couldn’t.

And you didn’t care about the camp’s new gossip, either. It wasn’t important. It wasn’t Leo.

But then, as you made your way towards the mess hall, you overheard a conversation, sharp and full of whispers. “Leo’s back. He’s really back.”

Your heart skipped. Your breath caught. Leo?

You hurried towards the Big House, ignoring the pull of your doubt. When you arrived, there was a crowd of campers, gathered in a long line stretching out in front of the door. And, in the center of it all, there he was.

Leo.

You blinked, and for a moment, it felt like your heart might stop. Was this real? Was this... really happening?

He looked the same, but different. His usual cocky grin was there, though he seemed a little subdued, almost unsure. His hair was a mess as always, and his shirt had the usual grease stains from his latest invention. But there was something new about him—something that made your chest tighten.

The line shifted a bit, and it was like everything fell away. The campers were giving you space, stepping aside. You moved forward, not even thinking, just needing to be close to him, needing to see him, to know that this wasn’t a dream.

"Leo?" you whispered, barely able to get the word out.

His eyes locked onto yours, and for a moment, he looked stunned, like he couldn't believe his own eyes. Then, in a move that was so typically Leo, he shot up from the bench where he had been sitting, his arms wide open.

“[Your name]” he exclaimed, and before you could even think to react, he wrapped you in a hug. “You won’t believe what’s happened, but—”

You slapped him.

It wasn’t a gentle tap, either. It was a full-on smack, the kind you only give to the person who hurt you most.

Some campers nearby snickered. But you didn’t care. You had to do it. You had to make him feel how angry and hurt you had been all this time. How he had left, without a word, without a goodbye.

Leo froze, his expression turning to one of surprise, then to embarrassment. “Ow! What the—” He rubbed his cheek, eyes wide. “Okay, okay, I deserved it”

You stepped back, your breath shaky, but now that you’d slapped him, something else took over. Something that drowned out all the hurt, the anger, the loss. You threw your arms around him again, pulling him close, holding him tighter this time.

“Don’t you ever leave me like that again, Leo,” you said, your voice breaking. “Do you hear me? I thought... I thought I lost you. You can’t just... just disappear.”

Leo chuckled softly, his voice low and full of warmth, despite the seriousness in your words. “I mean... I didn’t mean to disappear. You know how I am—always making things explode and running off to save the day.” He pulled back slightly, looking at you with that trademark mischievous grin. “But I’m here now. So... does this mean we’re together now? Like... officially?”

You stared at him, blinking in disbelief at his question. For a moment, you almost wanted to laugh—except all the emotions bubbling inside of you weren’t exactly funny.

"Yes," you said, pulling him in and kissing him fiercely, because you couldn’t hold back anymore. Because you needed him. Because you needed him to know you still loved him, even after everything. Even after all the pain.

When you pulled away, Leo was grinning, his usual cocky smile back in full force, despite the tears you both had been holding back. "So... does that mean you're not going to slap me again?"

You could’ve slapped him again. You really could’ve. But instead, you just smiled, shaking your head, and murmured, “No. But I’m never letting you go again.”

And this time, you meant it.

[gremlinmodetweeker]

Hey there! I really enjoy your posts about our resistant big boy König. I was wondering if you could create some hcs for the reader pampering him and taking care of him. Like maybe he has a stomach ache, so the reader gives him an abdominal massage or something if you’re comfortable with writing something like that. <3

Okay so first, I'm so sorry for being late. I got super busy this week. I've gone on three 6 hour long drives in the past four days. Three!!! I've been travelling north and my lord I'm bouncing all over the place. But, you're not here for me whinging about driving, we're here for the 'RESIDENT BIG BOY'.

I'm taking notes on that one, btw. That one's too good not to use. Resident Big Boy is now the best way to describe him. But yes, I am more than glad to go over some headcannons! König is a very silly man when he gets a bit under the weather, so let's go over why below the cut.

To put it bluntly, König is a big suck. He really is. He's emotionally mature enough to know that he's overreacting, but he's trained to deal with the worst, not mild inconveniences. For him, having a full fever is easier than dealing with a small problem. The worst part of it all is that it's usually self inflicted.

König doesn't really get colds. He also doesn't really get hurt badly (unless he's come back from a mission, but that's another post entirely). He's careful, neat and considerate with his actions. That said, he has these moments where you really have to question how he's still alive.

You see, König has this little saying that he learned from his family. It's his catchphrase, at this point. Horangi groans whenever he hears it. Stilleto puts her head in her hands. Hutch's eyes glaze over as he looks far off into the distance and shakes his head, quietly muttering, "It's not right, man. It's not right." With all these reactions, you might be wondering what exactly is König's favourite catchphrase?

"It's not an expiry date, it's a best by date."

König has had food poisoning many times.

So when König goes on a whole rant about how 'it's not that moldy, just eat around it', the whole company knows to just wait. Almost like clockwork, the only thing König will be eating for the next 24 hours are his words.

When he's sick, he'll go home and he'll make it your problem. His stomach will be cramping, he'll be spewing vomit like a sprinkler, and he'll be stuck in the bathroom for hours at a time. When he crawls out, you'll be there for him.

You'll have to change his bedding religiously for him. He's sweating up a storm over here. Each time you do, he'll thank you profusely and then collapse into bed.

You'll have to change his bucket. He has a designated vomit bucket (he's gotten food poisoning enough to have one marked and ready for the occasion). He'll always thank you and hold your hand. Thankfully, the military forces him to keep short hair so you don't have to hold that back, but he does really appreciate you rubbing his back. Honestly, who doesn't? It's the least you can do for someone turning their stomach inside out.

With his cramps, he'll pretend he's fine but at this point, you probably know better than to believe him when he says it doesn't hurt that much. Instead, get him a nice supply of heat packs for the worst cramps. However, he much prefers you holding him or rubbing his stomach. It's much more comfortable. He's so happy to have someone care for him like this. He might not be able to give back while he's sick, but he won't forget your kindness to him. He'll pay it back three-fold soon enough.

Every time you make him a light soup, every time you carefully feed him a plain salad or some cut fruit, he's delighted. He knows it might be coming back up in less than an hour, but he's grateful for anything you provide him. As long as it's edible, he'll eat it. (Just please remember to stay away from foods that are hard to digest, like protein, dairy and carbs. Maybe some plain toast with his soup is alright, but it's a good idea to give sick people simple food. Just a pro tip.)

He will curl up to you and use you as a blanket when he gets cold. He will soak up your heat like he's in the ice age. He can't get enough of your gentle touches or soft words. He clings to them as he clings to you, a suffocating embrace.

When you are too hot, he'll begrudgingly roll away and kick off all his blankets and sheets. That's a good sign that maybe you can step away and do some household chores for him. The house doesn't clean itself, after all. When he can appreciate your hard work properly, he'll gladly kiss you and hold you close. However for now, he'll just curl up and lay perpendicular to you and lay his head on your abdomen when you get back. He may not be able to kiss you right now, but he'll gladly curl up on the mattress with you.

Sometimes, he might need help walking to and from the bathroom, and that's always an ordeal. Unless you're strong enough, he'll just have you both toppling over in a heap of sickness and sweat. It'll be miserable. Instead, he'll have to force himself to stand a bit so he won't have you losing your balance. When he collapses back in the bed, he'll huff and puff and grumble about the bathroom being too far, but he'll live. Maybe take the time to run your hands through his hair and scratch his scalp. He'd like that quite a bit.

Anyways, I hope these are some decent headcannons! I am most certainly comfortable writing things like this, and you've inspired a post about König getting fully sick, and how to deal with that! I also might make one about him dealing with minor injuries, like stubbing a toe or spraining a muscle while training. I imagine this guy is an amazing survivalist, but his civilian survival skills are akin to that of a lemming.

[its-time-to-write]

What about Jaime liking someone who works at/owns a flower shop so he keeps making excuses to come in and get flowers? Richmond is real confused about why he’s giving away so many bouquets all of the sudden

(Ps I love love love your work! I’ve got it so I get an alert whenever you post because of how much I love it!)

this one turned out SO CUTE I hope you like it!

wishing on every one

You know you’re fucked as soon as he walks through the door of your shop. 

Then he tells you he’s looking for flowers for his mum who’s visiting him for the first time, and you know you’re extra fucked. 

He’s absolutely gorgeous, especially in the soft light streaming through your flower shop windows, framed by the vibrant hues of the plants lining the shelves.

Then he says, “I’m Jamie,” peers at your name tag, and tells you that you have a lovely name. You’re blushing the entire time you lead him around the shop, answering each one of his questions as best you can without stuttering. He cracks jokes, picks out a nice bunch, and leaves you one flower for yourself on his way out. 

And then, the next week, he comes back. 

Jamie Tartt, AFC Richmond’s star footballer, comes back to your shop and flirts with you again. 

Of course you know who he his, you knew the moment he stepped through the door. You live in Richmond after all, and you agree with the great Dani Rojas that here, football is life. It’s just hard to believe that your favorite footballer is back in your tiny little store and maybe sort of kinda definitely flirting with you.

You don’t let it get to your head (much). It’s Jamie Tartt, you’ve seen him on Lust Conquers All. To him, flirting is like breathing. You also don’t tell anyone, although you feel like you’re bursting inside. Your flat mate notes that you’re smiling more and that you always seem to be humming, and could you please maybe be careful when you’re skipping around because she just mopped the floor and doesn’t want you to slip. 

But Jamie Tartt keeps coming back; first once a week, then twice, then about every other day. He follows you around as you help him choose flowers for all kinds of occasions, and then he’a gone again, leaving you to wonder which time will be the last. 

—

At Nelson Road, things are in chaos. 

Ok, maybe chaos is too strong a word. Things are… out of the ordinary. 

Well, but things have been out of the ordinary ever since Ted Lasso showed up. 

Things are… weird. Yeah, that’s a good word. They’re weird. And “they,” refers to Jamie. 

It starts off simple enough. It's Sam’s birthday, so Jamie shows up with some flowers. He heard Sam say they were his favorites, so it makes sense that he’d bring them. No one notices anything. 

The next week, he’s brought some for Ms. Welton. 

“It’s for all the shit you do that we don’t know about,” he explains. “Didn’t want you to think we didn’t notice.”

Rebecca doesn’t comment on the double negative, just smiles and says, “Thank you, Jamie,” as Keeley sits forward on the couch in a slight state of shock. The Jamie she was with had never done something like that for her romantically, and here he is doing it platonically. Holy shit, he really has changed. 

Rebecca also doesn’t take the flowers to mean something they don’t. She knows that the team looks to her with the same respect they would afford an older sister or even a mother (although she is not old enough). Strangely, she doesn’t mind. It makes her feel loved in a way she’s unused to, and the flowers from Jamie hang upside down on her wall so they can be immortalized. 

Barely a week after that, he’s gotten some for Keeley. “It’s to make up for the ones I never got you,” he tells her. They’re all bright pink with fluffy petals. Keeley wraps her arms around Jamie with a squeal of delight. Roy grunts angrily, so Jamie pulls out a bunch of dark red and black flowers. “Didn’t leave you out, grandad,” he grins as Roy pretends to hate the bouquet. But even he isn’t cold-hearted enough to hate flowers.

Suddenly, people are getting flowers every other day. It’s become Jamie’s thing. Ted gets some sunflowers when he seems like he’s missing home a little extra. Will gets a bunch of sweet-smelling flowers that Jamie doesn’t know the name of, but he knows that purple one’s lavender because he remembers how you told him it reminded you of growing up. Dani gets a bundle of tulips and it almost makes him pass out from excitement, but luckily Isaac is there to catch him. 

Dani is firmly seated on the bench in the locker room and Jan Maas has removed all tulips except one, and now Isaac has the chance to turn to Jamie and ask the question that’s on everyone’s mind. 

“What gives, bruv?”

Those three words make Jamie turn bright red, but he shrugs it off with a laugh. 

“What, can’t get me best mates flowers?”

“It is a little better than the PS5s,” Richard says. There’s a chorus of agreement, much to the surprise of Coach Beard. 

Jamie thinks he’s in the clear and his face isn’t red anymore but then Dani says, “Jamie Tartt, why did you decide to give us flowers and not some other expensive gaming device?” and Jamie knows he’s completely and utterly fucked. He did not think this far. He has no excuse, no lie, so what comes out of his mouth is, “The flower shop girl’s fit,” and then the locker room completely descends into chaos. 

The boys are firing questions at Jamie faster than he can even understand them, and Ted’s just laughing at the pure pandemonium. He remembers similar moments when coaching other football teams, American ones, and the good feeling that comes along with “boys being boys,” in the way the phrase was originally intended. 

All pertinent information is successfully extracted from Jamie before the team heads home, except your name and which flower shop it is. Colin says that’s the most important bit, but Jamie refuses to tell them more than the fact that your laugh makes the sun shine brighter. Isaac nods thoughtfully and Roy shakes his head, but it’s with a fondness he reserves only for his team. 

It could be any shop, really. There are conversations across the parking lot of the best way to figure out which one it is and Jamie’s getting nervous when he hears Ted’s voice call his name.

He turns, and Ted hurries over to where Jamie’s car is parked. 

He carefully places a hand on Jamie’s shoulder (softly, unlike the crushing grip of his father) and looks Jamie straight in the eye. 

“Jamie, life’s too short to beat around the bush. You like her. I think it would be best if you rose to the occasion and just asked her out. I be-leaf in you, son. You just gotta get clover it and do what you gotta do.”

Jamie doesn’t pick on the flower puns until about the third one. He’s laughing a little bit and Ted is too, all while regarding Jamie with a soft look that Jamie always wished his father would give him. Ted pulls Jamie in for a hug and says, “In all seriousness man, we’re rooting for you.” 

Jamie gives him a look, which makes Ted hold up his hands in defense. “Alright, alright, I’m done,” he says. “For now.” Then he winks and headed to meet Coach Beard. 

—

It’s the middle of the afternoon when the bell on your door jingles, and you look up from the register hoping to see Jamie. 

Instead, you see a middle-aged man with a mustache smiling at you. 

He says, “Howdy,” in a way that is so very American, that you can’t help but break into a wide smile. 

“Hi!” you reply, “How can I help you?”

“My name’s Ted Lasso,” he says walking toward you. “I coach football here in Richmond.”

You’re still grinning. “I know who you are, Coach Lasso. I’m a big Richmond supporter. Have been since I was a kid.”

“Just Ted is fine,” says Just Ted. “I usually don’t like to introduce myself along with my job title because it makes me seem all uppity, but I thought it might make more sense if I did.”

You scrunch your nose in confusion so Ted says, “You were expecting to see Jamie today, is that right?”

You nod. Shit. Shit, shit, shit. Jamie’s coach is in your flower shop and he knows that you like him and he’s probably going to tell you you can never see Jamie again because that’s the only logical reason he’s here, right? Maybe Jamie’s been skipping practice to be here with you and that all has to end now because football is life and you of all people should know that. Shit. 

Ted must be able to see the panic on your face because he shakes his head and says, “Don’t worry darlin’, it ain’t anything bad. I’m only here to let you know that boy’s got it down bad for you.”

Wait, what?

“Oh,” you reply. 

“Yeah, oh,” Ted chuckles. “Why’d you think he was here all the time?”

“I- I don’t know,” you say. “He flirts with everyone. I’m nothing extra special.”

Ted shakes his head again. “There’s where you’re wrong. You’re somethin’ extra special. Did you know I found you based on the way Jamie talked about you alone? He didn’t even give your name, but I’ve been in here once or twice myself and I must say, he was right when he said the sun shines a little brighter when you smile. I figured it had to be you the moment he said that.”

You’re smiling again. Jamie said that about you? To his coach?

Ted’s talking again. “Listen,” he says, a little more serious, “Jamie’s like a son to me. And sometimes dads need to give their sons a little push so they can get rid of their training wheels and just go for it, you know what I mean?” 

You’re at a loss but Ted just grins. “I got here exactly three minutes before the boys take a break for lunch, which means that Jamie should be in here-” the bell at the door jingles “-right about now.”

“Coach?” Jamie asks, looking very adorable and very confused. “What’re you doing here?”

Ted shrugs. “Sometimes dads gotta take things into their own hands. Give you a little extra boost, as it were. Figured you’d be in here forever before you got the guts to make a move and by then Nelson Road would be completely overrun by flowers. Not that that’s a bad thing,” he says with a glance to you. “Anyway. I’ll be on my merry little way. Beard’s saving me a seat at our favorite lunch spot.”

Ted waves a two finger goodbye and pats Jamie on the shoulder as he heads out the door, bell ringing behind him. 

“So,” you say, making your way around the counter over to Jamie. 

“So…” he replies, looking down at you. 

You take his hand. “Heard from a reliable source that you have a crush on me.”

Jamie grins. “Ain’t a crush babe, I’m a grown lad.  Think it’s somethin’ a little more real.”

“Uh huh,” you say, smiling back at him. “Well it just so happens that I also have a crush on you as well as a thirty-minute lunch break that starts right about now…”

[rafeshoeeee]

Business partners

You and Rafe have never really gotten along, you were both extremely stubborn and your similar personalities tend to clash from time to time. Your relationship has slightly improved over the years, finally learning to tolerate each other, but the two of you still squabbled like children, bickering at each other over the smallest of things.

When the two of you found out your fathers had arranged for you and Rafe to go to a business party as a couple, hell broke loose. But after lots of disagreeing, you both realized that neither of your fathers would change their minds, especially when it comes to business.

Your father had already picked you out a dress for the occasion, because apparently all your dresses are too inappropriate. You were expecting something really ugly and an awful bright color, but it was actually surprisingly nice. A long, black strapless dress, the top was almost corset like, but very elegant, nothing too over the top, perfect for the occasion.

Rafe's father, Ward, had suggested that the two of you should share a hotel room. Despite only being in there for a few hours before the event started and for somewhere to sleep afterwards, Ward thought it would be a good bonding opportunity and your father agreed with his idea.

The taxi had finally dropped you off at the hotel after the hour and half drive it took to get there, you and Rafe both becoming agitated from being in each other's presence for so long. 

Rafe signed into the hotel and got the room key from the receptionist. You left him to figure out where your room was, but it didn't take him very long.

You assumed there would be two single beds but your jaw dropped when you saw one king sized bed. "why the fuck is there only one bed" you protested, slumping onto the lounge chair next to you.

"our dads clearly wanted us to practice acting like a couple" he chuckled, clearly finding this whole thing amusing.

you scoffed, his immaturity not taking you by surprise, "it's not funny Rafe" you ran a hand through your hair out of agitation.

He rolled his eyes before throwing himself onto the bed, "relax, it's called a joke. I was trying to lighten your mood."

You scoffed again, looking at his cocky smirk, annoying you even more by how he was enjoying winding you up, "stop pretending that your excited for tonight, you're dreading it equally as much as i am. And don't even try and deny it"

His smirk grew bigger, sensing how annoyed you were getting, "seeing you all dressed up will make up for it" he flirtily commented.

You just screwed your face up in annoyance and walked towards the bathroom, "i'm showering, don't come in"

"i don't know if i'll be able to help myself" he teased, the smirk on his face still remaining the same.

You spun your head around at his comment, looking straight at him with a 'don't you dare' expression on your face, and he held his hands up in surrender. You lightly laughed at his action before entering the bathroom and shutting it behind you.

You turned on the shower and let it heat up whilst you underdressed, appreciating the quiet time and being away from Rafe for a while.

As you stepped into the shower, the warm water hit you, drowning you in your thoughts. Maybe Rafe wasn't so bad, he was a very attractive young man but his temper and snarky little comments he constantly made was off putting. But he also made flirty comments here and there and it scrambled your brain. Most of the time you were walking on eggshells around him, never knowing what would cause him to lash out, but sometimes he was kind and gentle. You two shared the same humor, some times bouncing off each other's comments and laughing at things most people wouldn't even consider funny, but one of you always takes it too far, leading to yet another argument.

You scrubbed at your skin with the sponge, washing away any dirt that had clung onto you. The scrubs were rough, your thoughts about Rafe making you frustrated, annoyed that he had made this effect on you. The flirty little comments he made towards you were engraved in your mind, you always remembered every comment he made about you, good or bad, but the flirty ones always stuck with you. The way they easily rolled off his tongue and the smirk that was always on his face whenever a flirty comment was made, was an image you could never unsee.

God. What were you thinking? This is Rafe Cameron you're talking about, a spoilt, hot headed, rich boy who always wanted his own way and threw a tantrum whenever he didn't.

You turned off the shower and stepped out, the cold air hitting you, causing goosebumps to appear. You wrapped the towel around your small frame whilst you took your dress out of the bag, holding it up against you and looking at yourself in the mirror. You thought about how to style your hair and what sort of makeup would complement the dress.

You brushed that thought to the back of your mind and slipped the dress on, it took quite a lot of adjusting and making it sit comfortably but you thought you looked great. It hugged your curves perfectly and gave your boobs a slight push up, making them more noticeable.

You had taken everything in with you beforehand so you were prepared. You started by styling your hair with a curling iron, the curls weren't too tight as you wanted more of a natural looking wave. You didn't want to go too overboard with your makeup, you decided on a winged eyeliner and a red lip, wanting to look professional and classy so you fit in perfectly.

Just as you were perfecting your eyeliner, you head a light knock on the door, "can i come in?" Rafe asked gently. It took you by surprise that he didn't just barge in, never usually having any shame.

"sure" you replied, continuing on your eyeliner. You assumed Rafe had just come in to get something but he stood right beside you with a huge pout on his face. His tie was draped around his neck but undone, he looked extremely frustrated with himself.

You looked up and furrowed your eyebrows at him, "what's the pout for?" you asked before mimicking his babyish pout.

He rolled his eyes, clearly not in the mood for joking around, he let out a huge sigh and rubbed his forehead with his hand, "can you just, do my tie for me?" avoiding eye contact with you, clearly embarrassed about asking.

You lightly laughed before placing your eyeliner down, "you seriously can't do one?" you couldn't tell if he was being serious or not, his poker face had always been extremely hard to read.

He let out a loud sigh, "do you really think i'd come in here and bother you if i did?" he was trying to keep his cool, but not doing a very good job at keeping it together.

You raised your eyebrows and slightly rolled your eyes, not surprised one bit by his reaction. You tucked a loose strand of your now curled hair behind your ear, "well i can't reach" his height compared to yours was the first thing most people would notice when you two are together, you standing at 5'3 whilst he's at 6'4.

Before anything else could be said, Rafe's hand gripped your waist, lifting you up and he gently placed you on the bathroom counter, now in perfect eye-line of him. His beautiful blue eyes pierced into you, waiting for you to start. You quickly glanced at him before maintaining your focus on his tie, gently folding the ends over each other.

The silence was loud, you could almost hear a pin drop. It was different, compared to what the two of you are usually like, which is bickering and arguing, and now you're in perfect silence, it was peaceful almost.

You didn't like the silence though, it felt unnatural between the two of you. You patted his shoulder, letting him know you were finished.

He admired your work in the mirror, "cheers" he ran a hand through his hair before tucking his shirt into his trousers.

You had to admit, he looked good, his suit looked great on him and the navy blue trousers were perfect for him.

"I still can't believe you actually can't do one. How the hell did you manage at school?" you questioned, curious to what he did.

"my dad always bought me a clip on one" he stated.

you rolled your eyes, "of course he did" you picked up your red lipstick and carefully coated it on, being careful not to go over the natural shape of your lip.

"we need to go by the way" Rafe reminded you.

you messed about with your hair in the mirror one last time and put your lipstick back in your makeup bag, "yeah, yeah i'm ready" you told him, slipping on your black high heels and quickly spraying even more perfume on.

Rafe reached out his arm and you grabbed onto his bicep as he lead you out the room. As you were walking to the event, It didn't feel weird or uncomfortable being this close to Rafe and you surprisingly didn't mind clinging onto his arm at all.

You didn't want to admit it but you were actually quite nervous, you weren't an expert at business talk and your mind usually went blank whenever you were asked about the topic. You hesitated to ask Rafe but he was your only option, "um, Rafe" your voice was small and soft, but he heard you just fine.

He hummed, letting you know he heard you and allowing you to continue, "can you just, remind me what i need to say when somebody asks me about business" you felt extremely stupid, going to a whole party where everyone knew what they were talking about apart from you.

"just stand there and look pretty, i'll do the talking, you have nothing to worry about" he reassured you, a smile spreading on your face.

He looked towards you in awe, a smile creeping onto his face when he saw you smiling to yourself. He thought you looked absolutely incredible and he knew he was going to enjoy showing off 'his girl' to everyone there. He's always found you attractive but he never knew how to express it, he just hid behind teasing you and throwing flirtatious compliments here and there at you. He somewhat enjoyed getting a rise out of you, he liked the challenge that you offered, he was used to girls swooning at his feet but you were different. You were unlike any other girl, you had self respect which most didn't, you carried yourself so confidently and didn't put up with anyone's shit. Not even Rafe's. He loved how you always had something to say about whatever the case was, always defending yourself whenever necessary.

The party was only in the main building of the hotel the two of you were staying at, but the place was huge. There was a huge staircase leading to the party, you could hear the chatter of the people below you and the soft band music playing.

You looked towards Rafe and let out a huge sigh you didn't know you were holding in as you began walking down the stairs. When the people came into view, they all looked very posh, some were quite old and some were around yours and Rafe's age.

You spotted the bar and you were eager to get over there "can we please get a drink? I'm going to need one to get through tonight" you asked him, no matter what his answer was you were going to get one either way. A vodka coke would fill your craving and take away the stress you were feeling.

"one drink y/n, i can't have you drinking too much and messing this up" he told you, his voice stern and very serious sounding.

"Me?" you laughed, "your the one with a raging anger problem, sooo," you teased, slightly laughing to yourself. You looked up at Rafe and to your surprise he was actually laughing at your comment.

You two had reached the bar and you were patiently waiting for the bartender to serve you. You looked at the people who were sat around the bar, sipping on their glasses of what you assumed was champagne or Prosecco.

"what can i get for you guys?" the bartender asked, capturing your attention immediately.

Your mood instantly lightened, you could almost taste the vodka coke on the tip of your tongue, "please can i have a-"

Before you could even finish your sentence Rafe butted in, "two champagnes would be great"

The bartender nodded before collecting the glasses and going to fill them.

"what the hell" your voice raised slightly, frustrated at how Rafe literally spoke for you and didn't let you order yourself.

"what?" he asked, screwing his face up, wondering what you were so annoyed about.

you brushed your hair out of your face and lightly smiled at the bartender who had handed you guys your champagne, before speaking up, "i wanted a vodka coke, and i don't even like champagne" you pouted, still grabbing the glass a chugging down the pathetic amount of liquid they gave, hoping to feel some kind of buzz.

Rafe chuckled, watching you in amusement. You turned your head towards him and looked at him extremely unimpressed, "what's so funny?" you asked, looking at him as if there were daggers in your eyes.

"who's the one pouting now?" he teased, finishing off his champagne, looking at you and awaiting for your reaction.

You laughed, pushing him slightly, "oh shut up" you teased back, Rafe was looking at you with a sparkle in his eye, admiring your beautiful smile.

He led you around, stopping to talk to people you both knew, he did most of the talking about business just like he said he would. You just stood there, impressed by how much he knew about the topic, looking at him in admiration.

"someone's done there research" you nudged him lightly, trying to crack a joke.

He looked down at you and smirked, "well someone had to know what they were talking about"

You pouted at him a lightly shook your head, trying to hide the smile that you couldn't keep from crawling onto your face.

You both took a seat at your assigned table of two, getting ready to listen to the important people make their speeches. Rafe had told you the names of them but you didn't remember, not really very interested in the matter. You were just here to support your father's business, in hope to impress him. Although you didn't have to say much, you had actually learnt quite a lot from Rafe talking to everyone about both your father's business and how they share one together.

You found yourself admiring him every so often, not just how passionate he spoke of the topic but his beauty. You had really seen him in a different light after spending a long period of time with him. Despite knowing him for years the time you usually spent around each other was very short.

The waiters and waitresses handed out the appetizers which were disgusting. You and Rafe did try everything but neither of you particularly enjoyed any of them.

The speech people had already begun and the room was silent listening to them. You rested your chin in your hand, not understanding why everyone found what he was talking about so interesting.

"ma'am" you heard beside you, he captured your attention and you whipped your head quickly to look at him. It was a waiter handing out cocktails on tray, you turned the other way to see if Rafe had noticed. He had strictly told you one drink but he was so engaged in the man talking you grabbed the cocktail off the tray and mouthed a thank you to the man and he nodded in response.

You quickly put the straw to your lips and drank the beverage, the alcohol was prominent and took you by surprise. It had a lovely fruity taste and had the perfect amount of alcohol.

The sound of you slurping at the liquid captured Rafe's attention, he took the glass out of your hand and placed it on the table.

"where did you get that?" he whisper yelled, looking you straight in the face before his eyes traveled elsewhere. Straight to your cleavage, he licked his lips before looking at your face again.

You saw that he had gotten himself another drink but he wasn't as much of a lightweight compared to you. It didn't take much for you to be drunk and Rafe knew that.

"a waiter offered me it, he could clearly see i was in need of one" you flicked your hair off your shoulder and tucked it behind your ears so it was out of your face.

Rafe could sense your tipsiness and didn't fancy you making a fool of yourself in-front of all these people, "right let's go" he said, about to pull himself up from his chair.

You placed a gentle hand on top of his and your nails scratched at his skin gently, "'no no, i can see how much you want to listen, it's fine"

He looked at you with worried eyes, "i'm fine i promise" you reassured him, he nodded and took his attention back to the men speaking.

You never removed your hand from on top of his, still gently scratching at his skin, fiddling with his gold ring on his middle finger.

The waiter had come around again, this time with shots, you didn't want to annoy Rafe but you just couldn't fight the temptation. You quickly picked one up and downed it before placing it back on the tray and smiling at the waiter.

The alcohol was cursing through your veins, you craved the man next to you. You shuffled your chair towards him and whispered in his ear, "please can we go"

He looked towards you and watched as you placed a delicate hand on his broad shoulder, he nodded and grabbed your hand before leading you up the stairs and towards your room.

"did i tell you how hot you look tonight?" you asked him, the alcohol giving you more confidence and no self control. The grip on his arm tightening.

He looked at you and raised his eyebrows, not responding to your comment due to your drunken manner. He thought exactly the same about you, he just didn't know how to tell you.

You had reached your room and Rafe unlocked it with the key, he turned the light on before shutting the door behind you.

You felt a bit defeated by him not responding but you didn't care and just wanted to go to sleep. But Rafe grabbed you and pinned you against the door, "did i tell you how much i want to kiss you?" he asked, a huge smirk on his face.

You grabbed his face and connected your lips together.

Maybe you and Rafe got on better than you thought after all.

haven't edited sorry if it's bad xoxo

[hannahssimblr]

After eight, in the inner city, I hold the door for Astrid. We step inside the restaurant and heat hits our faces in a waft, warming our frozen skin. Astrid slips her gloves off, folds her hat and unzips her coat with ease as I struggle, suddenly far too hot in my hat, the zip of my coat slipping between gloved fingers. I’ve pulled it inside out by the time the cloakroom attendant takes it out of my hands. I have walked snow onto the carpet behind me, while Astrid, miraculously, has not. 

“They’re all here already,” she says. “We’re the last.”

“Yes, like always.” 

It’s a table for six, and there our friends sit in conversation, their menus already on the table. 

“Oh, Astrid! Jude!” Elias gets up from his seat at the head of the table to hug us. His smile, big and white, and his face flushed from the heat. 

“We’re late,” Astrid points out. She speaks apologetically, but doesn’t actually apologise. “But we have your gift.”

“Oh!” He takes the gift bag from her and kisses both her cheeks. “This is so nice, my God, Astrid.”

I bought it, actually; the scarf made with some kind of silk mohair something-or-other, but Astrid picked it out, so really it’s she that deserves the credit. He’ll think she wrote the card too, even though she didn’t. I’m the one with the nicer handwriting.

“‘Dear Elias, on your twenty-first birthday,’” he reads as we join him at the table. “‘Here’s hoping for a year as fabulous as you are. I hope I know you forever, and we can party together at ninety-one too. You won’t need the scarf in Bali, but we hope it keeps you warm when you touch back down in Berlin next month. With love, Astrid and Jude.’ Oh,” he holds it to his chest. “You two are so sweet.”

“You are not supposed to say happy birthday unless it is a person’s actual birthday,” says Leon, swirling his wine around and pretending he can smell notes of bergamot, or whatever the server said was in it. He takes a sip, then sends the bottle back to the kitchen. 

“Oh, okay, sorry,” I say. “We should have posted the card to Indonesia. That was really stupid of us, you’re right.”

His nostrils flare while Jonas, next to him, peruses a menu.

“Wow,” he comments, “Forty seven euro for the monkfish. It seems expensive.”

“Well, it’s an occasion,” Leon says, as the server returns with a second, hopefully more acceptable, bottle of wine. “We all agreed to eat at a nice restaurant.”

I raise my eyebrows, “Oh? What occasion is it?”

“Elias’ birthday, of course, what are you-” he breaks off to mutter to the server, who then circles the table to fill our glasses. 

“I thought we just agreed not to mention the birthday until the actual birthday, which is not today, right? What date is it, again?”

Dalia sighs from her end of the table. “Jude, oh lord.”

Leon rolls his eyes. “You are being immature.” 

What’s actually immature is a twenty-six-year-old man making an unnecessary enemy of someone who still has the word ‘teen’ at the end of their age, but Dalia is already kicking me beneath the table before I can open my mouth to point this out.

“I would love to see Bali,” Astrid sighs. “When it’s so cold like this, I feel I can’t stand it. I just want to be somewhere nice and warm.”

Elias smiles. “Well, maybe for your twenty-first birthday, your boyfriend will take you there.”

“Well, we’ve just booked tickets to Amalfi, actually,” I say. “We’re going in April.”

“Oh, I love Italy.”

“Me too,” Astrid clutches his hand in hers, a gesture of excitement in their shared love of, whatever, gelato or something. They converse about places they’ve been, and what they’ve seen, using the correct, Italian pronunciation, which is fine, because that’s how they’re supposed to be pronounced, and Astrid is fluent in Italian, but sometimes when I’m privy to conversations like this, I think of Jen, and the way she’d laugh if she ever overheard them. 

Whenever a natural gap opens up in their conversation, I consider adding in my own anecdote about the time I went to Rome on a school trip when I was sixteen, and the school was cheap, so they made us do the whole journey by bus, which was so boring that Fitzy and I started squeezing dollops of toothpaste into people’s hair as they slept and posing alongside them with our two fingers up. Our punishment took the form of the teachers revoking our passes to St Peters Basilica, so while the others were in there, taking zoomed in photos of Michelangelo’s tiny penis, we spent two hours roaming the streets in search of a Dominos Pizza, which we did eventually find. Mine slipped out of its box and onto the pavement before I had even taken a bite, and we posed for photos with our two fingers up next to that, too.  

But I know that if I tell the story, and Elias won’t react the way I want him to, but gasp, and look very sad as though it’s a tragedy, and then later, Astrid will ask me why I decided to share the story in the first place, because it was kind of awkward. When Elias asks me if I’ve been to Italy before, I simply smile, and I say no. 

“You will adore it, then. Will you hire a car?”

“I suppose we will, right? Makes sense.”

Astrid nods. 

“Well, then, if you’re staying in Amalfi, you might as well drive to Sorrento. Leon and I once stayed in this incredible hotel with a sea view. I can find out what it is called.”

“Oh, please.” Her thumb strokes the back of my hand. “We could add one or two more nights to our trip, do you think?”

I smile. “Yeah, of course we can.”

He tells her about a restaurant that does gnocchi in such a way that is notably different from other gnocchis in the region, and they continue, even as the food arrives. Tiny portions. I forgot the name of what I ordered. 

Across the table, Leon and Jonas listen as Dalia talks animatedly. 

“Right, and then, the woman, whose name is Martha, by the way, turns to me, and she says-”

She is halfway through a story that needs more context than what I have. I open my phone. 

Jen, just thinking about our school tour to Rome lmao.  Oh my God - the one where the teachers caught Ashling Duggan hiding you under her bed in the hostel? Hahahahaha yes!  I still tell people about that trip, like, it’s always my go-to story with new people.  Same, we’re just at dinner now, talking about Italy. I was just remembering all the stupid things that happened.  And didn’t Cian Hayes shit himself or something??? I’m always foggy on that specific detail. Yeah, and he turned his underpants inside out because he was too lazy to get out of bed. 

Omg sick. What do your friends think of the story?

My thumb hovers over the keyboard. 

Yeah, they laughed.  Show them that compilation of photos of you and Fitzy with all your sleeping toothpaste victims.   Oh, God, I don’t have those anymore. I think I left all my photos in Dublin.  What a waste! I’ll go dig them out someday, and take them with when I come to Berlin.  Okay! Come soon, please. I miss you. 

I miss you too, Judie. It’s honestly so weird that you have a whole new girlfriend I haven’t even met.   I know. It’s weird for me too, but you’ll love her. She’s amazing.  I bet. She’s beautiful. Understatement.  I don’t know how you keep pulling it off.  Well, I’d be stupid if I didn't go out with her, wouldn’t I? Yeah, probably. Lucky you aren’t stupid, then. 

Beginning // Prev // Next

[imahinatjon]

Arlecchino X Male Reader X Columbina

Mundane Events

Sfw.

This one was actually a request (on a different site), and I'm so disappointed with how it turned out. But the ending was nice ig.

The request:

"I have a unique request. Could you do Arlecchino X Male Reader X Columbina.Where in this scenario, us the make Reader is the Tsaritsa's son and we have a nice relationship with Arlecchino and and Columbina (Basically a full and wholesome one)"

Occasions like this were always a bore. Full of... some important people you weren't really all that interested in. BUT, as she son of the Tsaritsa, you were basically required to be there, listening to talks of buisness matters.

You hardly focused on them. Rather your focus was elsewhere. Specifically, on a certain dark haired woman who graciously smiled as she pretended to listened to whatever was being said to her. She was the apple of your eye, well, one of then anyway.

To put everything into layman's terms, you were in a relationship. With Columbina AND Arlecchino.

Not information you would readily share with just anyone, private matters are private at the end of the day.

Columbina - the wonderful, beautiful, woman with the voice of an angel - the dark haired woman you were currently admiring from afar was a sweetheart. Everyone always said how strange and Unsettling she was. Not even child would dare face her in a fight because something wasn't right.

You of course, had no idea what they were on about. Sure she was a little oblivious and naive sometimes, Blissfully Ignorant. But she was sweet. Kind and adorable in every sense of the way. She always took good care of you - checking in to ensure you were okay, baking you sweet treats whenever she had a free moment. She was usually quiet, but always beamed up at you whenever she spoke, and you appreciated her enthusiasm, returning it tenfold as you looked at her just as fondly.

Arlecchino was a slightly different story. Everyone had something different to say about her. As for what you had to say? She was the most incredibly, determined and generous person you'd ever met. She wasn't the most expressive of people, but she always made sure to verbally express how she felt to you and Columbina. She always kept an eye our for you, and even at times offered to take on some of the work you had to do (which wasn't much in the first place so you always declined)

At the moment she was no where to be found, but you were sure she'd turn up somewhere.

Like right behind you!

"Excuse me, I'd like to borrow his majesty for a while" a familiar voice said, holding onto your arm to pull you away from the bore of buisness. She'd already pulled you away before anyone could protest, heading towards a balcony vacant of people.

"It seemed like you were getting bored" she said, opening the door for you to step out.

"I was bored over half an hour ago, but thanks"

You two stood in a silence for a few minutes, quietly observing the stars in the night sky. Silence like this was comfortable with her, relaxing. It felt as though all previous tension and worries were just being melted away by her presence, despite thr fridged cold outside.

The silence lasted only a short while though, because the doors were soon open again, and a pair of arms wrapped around you from behind.

"Found you"

Turning around in her hold, you looked down at columbina, resting your arms casually over her shoulders.

"It's so cold. What are you two doing out here" she asked. Tilting her head to, 'look' up at the both of you.

"There was too much noise inside"

"Hm. And too much buisness talk. I know it's important, but... I'd rather be spending my time with other people"

Columbia let go of you to put a finger on her chin in thought.

"Hmmm... why don't we go somewhere else then?"

"What?" You asked, though you shouldn't have been surprised by the suggestion.

"Would it even be okay for us to just...leave?" Arlecchino

"Come on, most of the other Harbingers have already dipped anyway"

That's why you ended up in the library, far from the noise, just the three of you to enjoy eachothers company, sat together on a chair in the library, Leaning against Arlecchino as she read out The Heart of clear Springs.

~~~~~~~

Tsaritsa: where did you run off to again?

You: just went to the library...

Tsaritsa: with those two Harbingers again? You really need to stop running out on these events.

You: I know but-

Tsaritsa: oh well. At least you were safe

💜❤️💜❤️💜❤️💜❤️💜❤️💜❤️💜❤️💜❤️💜

I am actually planning to write another Columbina X Reader X Arlecchino. It's going to be different from this, was thinking 'date night' kind of thing, a special day spent relaxing... in a modern AU.

masterlist :3

[misc-obeyme]

Hi 😁 i really loved your Obey Me post about an MC who crochets, and I was wondering if you could you could do something similar with a seamstress MC (preferably femMC but gn is fine too if thats what you are more comfortable with), but where the boys come to MC all the time for wardrobe fixes like stitching/patching up holes or alterations or to commition entire outfits and MC secretly adds little bits embroidery that are unique to each brother like a peacock feather for Lucifer, cats for Satan, or crows for Mammon, etc.

If you are unable to do this, that is totally fine, and I completely understand. I hope you are doing well and remember to stay hydrated 💓

Hello there!

I'm so sorry this took me so long to get to! What can I say, I got sidetracked. And even though requests are currently closed, this was a cute idea and I wanted to write it. I was surprised how well that headcanon post about crocheting did! I'm glad you enjoyed it!

I have far less knowledge about sewing than crocheting, so this is just kind of my general understanding of such things. I did have fem!MC in mind, but it's a little hard to tell since I'm still using the you/yours.

Thanks for the request!

the brothers react to fem!MC who is a seamstress

Warnings: none!

Lucifer

Due to a slight obsession with socks, this is probably the item Lucifer brings to you most often. He cares a lot about his clothes in general, though. So you can be sure he'll be bringing you anything that needs attention. A button that's falling off, holey socks, loose threads, he's bringing it all to you.

If you add some embroidery to something, he will notice immediately. MC, didn't he only ask you to sew up the hole in these socks? Why is there a peacock feather there now? If you're going to make him something so beautiful, please put it on something that will be seen. His socks are unworthy.

Absolutely commissions you to make him a fancy suit. He might say he wants it cut a certain way and that he wants it in a specific color scheme, but if he knows you can do embroidery, he will leave that part up to you. Feel free to embellish it for him. He wants to see what you think will look good on him.

Lucifer will only wear those clothes on special occasions. He knows he looks amazing in the outfits you make for him. He'll still want something he can wear every day, too. Just something small. Maybe you add a little flourish to his usual tie or to the collar of the shirt he wears under his RAD uniform. Whenever he thinks of you, he touches it without realizing.

Mammon

Mammon is quite conscious about his clothes and how he treats them. He likes nice things and he doesn't want to mess them up by being careless. However, if he has a problem with a hole or a button, you can be sure he'll be bringing it to you. He knows you'll fix everything so it looks good as new.

He might not notice hidden embroidery at first. He'll wear that jacket you fixed for him multiple times before he spots the little embroidered crow on the inside where the hole used to be. When he does see it, he's so overcome by it, he blushes instantly. He'll be too embarrassed to tell you how much he likes it.

He will commission you to make things or embellish things that he's got to wear for upcoming modeling gigs. If he's at all in charge of what he wears, he will want you to make it. He knows ya got great style, MC! And he knows how good your skills are… might even take this opportunity to let you know he appreciates the embroidery you do.

You can really fluster him if you make something matching for the two of you. He's going to pretend that he's not into it, but he totally is. Even if you just make your outfits correspond, he's going to be thrilled. He won't be able to keep himself from touching your clothes all the time, just to remind himself that you're real.

Leviathan

He can probably fix all his own clothes, but he brings them to you anyway. Why would he do it himself when he can have a hole fixed by you? He'll find any reason to bring you something - a zipper that's starting to come undone, pants that are just a little too long, pretty much anything he can find.

He will notice any additional embroidery pretty quickly. Is this a little Ruri-chan, MC?! Oh boy now he wants to learn your ways. Teach him how to embroider, please, he's got to employ this on all of his cosplay from here on out. Whether he really does or not is questionable, but he is so happy to spend time learning from you.

Since Levi makes his own cosplay, he is going to ask you for help as soon as he knows you can sew. He has so many ideas and now he runs them all by you first. Asks for your help in picking out fabrics and threads. Will bring anything especially tricky to you, hoping you'll help him out with it.

If you make a special clothing item just for him, he'll wear it all the time. He thought about maybe only wearing it for special occasions, but it turns out he can't wait to have it on. He loves the way you made it perfectly for him. How can he not wear it constantly?

Satan

He probably cares less about his clothes than some of the other brothers do, but he also doesn't want to look disheveled. He cares about being neat and tidy. So if he's having a problem with holes or buttons or needing alterations, you are the one he goes to. He knows you will do an excellent job and he trusts you with his clothes.

Depending on where you leave your hidden embroidery, he might not notice it at first. The second he finds a little embroidered cat on one of the items he left with you, though, he's going to lose his mind. Not only is that cat the cutest thing he's ever seen, but you made it. Blushes like crazy before composing himself so he can tell you how much he loves it.

Yes, of course he would be thrilled if you made some clothes for him, MC, but have you considered making little cat clothes? Think of the adorable embroidery you could do on a little kitty sweater. You can bring them to cats at cafes or just make them for the strays that hang out in the House of Lamentation garden.

If you do make him an outfit, he will save it for special occasions. Deliberately wears it if he's going on a date with you because he likes the way you blush when you see him in it. He will take care of those clothes better than he cares for anything else.

Asmodeus

He might already know how to mend his own clothes, but he probably doesn't especially enjoy doing it. So if you're willing to, he will happily bring you anything and everything that may have even a slight issue. Probably brings you things that you maybe wouldn't get from the others - like a sequin that's out of place or some beading that's coming loose.

Maybe you decide to leave a little scorpion or a trail of hearts embroidered on some of his clothes. He will notice instantly. He'll probably notice the second you hand them over. And then he's gushing about it because wow MC, you're so talented! This is so cute and he loves it!

Definitely commissions you for full on outfits. Brings you design sketches of exactly what he's looking for. He knows you'll make something perfect for him. He loves to model the finished products for you, too. He'll put on a whole matching make up look just for you to see how it goes with what you made.

Asmo will commission you the most, so you can be sure he'll be wearing something you made on any given day. He's also likely to request that you decorate some things for him with your embroidery. This means there's always something in his outfit that was either made by you or decorated by you. Just knowing it makes him so happy.

Beelzebub

He probably has a lot of problems with ripping clothes considering how active he is, but he never bothered to fix them before. Always just got new stuff. But now that you're here, he brings it all to you. Every item you've ever mended for him becomes something extra special to him. Thank you for always fixing things for him, MC.

He might not notice right away if you've embroidered something special for him, but he will certainly find it soon enough. You might think you're taking a risk by embroidering cheeseburgers on his clothes, but Beel won't try to eat them. He loves them so much and probably just looks at them whenever he's feeling extra hungry. Just to get him through until he can eat again.

He probably won't ask you directly for a full outfit, but you make him one anyway. Something fancy for a special occasion and he'll only wear it sometimes. He loves it of course, but he's very protective of anything you make or give to him. So he keeps it safe most of the time.

You might end up mending his Fangol uniforms the most. Likely they get holes and tears all the time, so you will have a steady stream of work to do in this area. Other demons on the team begin to notice when one day they see Beel completely trash a uniform only for him to come back the next day with it looking good as new. You might get roped into being the official team seamstress if you're not careful.

Belphegor

He doesn't have too many issues with clothing mishaps, just the usual wear and tear that happens when you wear stuff a lot. But you might find him bringing you things like pillow cases and blankets, too. Especially the cow print pillow since he always seems to take it around everywhere. There's no way it doesn't get a little beat up after a while.

He won't notice any embroidery on his clothes right away, but if you add a little something to one of his pillows, he'll see it immediately. A little cow on the cow print? A little sheep on one of his other pillow cases? He's going to love it so much, but he's just going to mention it casually so as not to give away how much it means to him. He likes the embroidery you added to his pillows, MC.

Belphie likely won't ask you for an outfit, either, but he'll secretly want one. So if you make him one for something special, it will mean a lot to him. He will ask you for pajamas, though. He probably has all kinds of fabrics he wants you to use, too. He just wants to be comfy and you have the skills.

Never wears pajamas made by anyone else ever again. Once you start making them for him, it's all over. He gets spoiled and refuses anything different. He doesn't need new ones too often though since you can mend the ones you've already made. Make yourself some matching ones for when the two of you nap together and you'll have one happy cozy demon on your hands.

the crochet headcanons

masterlist | Thank you for reading!

[lucy90712]

Gavi- Fluff alphabet

A = Attractive (What do they find attractive about their partner?)

Gavi loves every part of you but physically the thing he finds the most attractive about you is your eyes. He loves to stare into your eyes he's just finds them so mesmerising he could spend hours lost in them if you would let him. You don't see it but he sees the way your eyes sparkle when you are happy and even more so when you are laughing and he just loves it, especially when he's the one making your eyes sparkle it makes him feel good about himself. The only thing he doesn't like about them is how they break his heart when you are sad as they give away how you feel before you are even saying anything. He does everything he can to keep you happy so that he doesn't have to see the sadness in your eyes.

When it comes to personality traits Gavi was instantly attracted to how kind you were. When you first met one of the first things he saw you do was hold open a door for someone who was carrying a load of things and then offer to help them. Since that day you have always done things like that and Gavi loves it he can't stand people that he thinks are rude so knowing that you are so kind and genuine had him falling extra hard. The fact that you do these things when no one is around to watch is what helps him know that you are genuinely kind and not just doing it to impress people and he likes that in a person.

B = Baby (Do they want a family? Why/Why not?)

He definitely wants a family but way in the future. Family is important to him so he knows he wants one of his own and he wouldn't want it to be with anyone other than you. Having kids is something the two of you had talked about but never in much detail as it is quite clear that it will be a good few years before you even really seriously consider having them. That being said he has thought about it quite a lot because he likes to think about what the future will be like for the two of you. He would like to have at least two kids and preferably they would be somewhat close in age because he likes the bond he has with his sister and wants that for his family too. Those thoughts are all things for the future but when that day comes he is incredibly excited to start a family with you.

C = Cuddle (How do they like to cuddle?)

Gavi just loves to cuddle in general when he's with you he always has an arm around you so when he has free time with you it is usually spent cuddling. Most of the time he likes to be big spoon because he likes being able to hold you and know that you are safe as he is quite protective but sometimes he likes to be held. After a hard day of training or a bad match he likes to come back to you and just be in your arms which usually involves him laying on your chest as you play with his hair. It's safe to say that cuddling is one of Gavi's favourite pastimes although if you said that to any of his friends he would kill you because he likes to pretend that he's not a complete softy.

D = Dreams (How do they picture their future with their S/O?)

He thinks about the future a lot despite being young he likes to think about what his life will be like in a few years time. From early on it was clear to him that you were the one so whenever he thinks about the future you always feature in some shape or form. He always imagines getting married to you and living in a nice house in Barcelona which you will share with pets and however many kids you have. Of course he has thought about if he were to move clubs what life would be like but wherever he ends up as long as it's with you he doesn't really mind.

E = Emotions (How do they express their emotions around you?)

On the pitch he has a very short fuse and loses his temper quickly but he isn't really the same off the pitch. On the odd occasion he will get mad like any normal person but he never lashes out at you like he does on the pitch and he almost never raises his voice around you either. Surprisingly he is quite good at expressing his emotions with you but that's because he believes a successful relationship is built on communication so whatever he is feeling he always tells you so that later it doesn't become an issue. Most of the time he's pretty easy going and usually at the end of the day he's smiling but sometimes he has a bad day but you always make him feel better. He is also pretty good when it comes to your emotions he will allow you to vent to him about whatever and if you end up crying he will comfort you.

F = Feelings (When did they know they're in love?)

It didn't take long for Gavi to know that he was in love with you because he'd never felt so strongly for anyone and he didn't think he would ever feel like that for anyone else. Although he fell for you over the course of a few months there was one particular moment when he realised just how deeply in love he was. It was a day when you hadn't really done anything you had met him after training and just spent the rest of the day laying on the sofa but when it got dark you suggested going outside to look at the night sky. You had done that together before but that night when you were pointing to the stars and getting really excited to see a planet in the distance Gavi realised he never wanted to experience little moments like this with anyone else. He knew that he could never love someone else as much as he loved you in that moment.

G = Gratitude (How grateful are they in general? Are they aware of what their S/O does for them?)

He is very grateful to have you in his life because he knows that he would be so lost without you. All the little things you do he notices like when you go over to his place and organise a few things that are out of place or when he goes over to yours and you make sure that he has all of his training stuff ready for when he leaves in the morning. He also really appreciates everything else you do for him whether that be listen to him vent about a bad day without complaining or drive him to training despite hating the amount of people there is waiting for the players. If he thanked you for everything you did for him that would be all he says everyday but he still tells you many times throughout the day how much he appreciates you and that only increases on days like Valentine's Day or your anniversary. Gavi is very grateful and he wants you to know it.

H = Honesty (Do they have secrets they hide from their S/O?)

Gavi thinks communication is really important so he doesn't like to keep secrets from you. He is also really bad at keeping things from you there are many times he's nearly given away surprises because he's so used to telling you everything. It doesn't help that you can read him like a book so whenever he's trying to keep a secret to surprise you you always know something is up with him even if you don't know what. As much as he hates not telling you everything there are some things which Gavi will never tell you but he does it to protect you. He is honest but also protective so the things he keeps from you are things that would hurt you if you found out. No one could get him to tell you the things he has seen written or said about you because he doesn't want you to have to deal with that.

I = Injury (How would they react if you got hurt?)

Gavi is no stranger to getting injured himself and it doesn't really bother him anymore but as soon as you get hurt he goes into protective mode. It could be the tiniest injury like a small cut on your finger and he will be constantly checking that you are alright even though after you put a bandage on you are completely fine. Any bigger injury like a sprain or a broken bone you can barely get him to leave your side. He will bring you food and do other things for you even if you are more than capable of doing them yourself. When he's around you will recover much quicker because he knows all the tricks to help recovery and he will make you do physio until you are all better.

J = Jealousy (Do they get jealous? How do they deal with it)

He gets very jealous but not because he doesn't trust you because he doesn't trust other guys. The amount of times you go out together and guys will flirt with you while he is right there drives him insane. Gavi isn't great at dealing with his jealousy whenever he gets jealous he gets extra clingy and has to have an arm around you to show people that you are his. On a few occasions his jealousy has got him into arguments with other guys who thinks it's ok to flirt with you even after you tell them to leave you alone but he never regrets it because he won't just stand around and see someone that isn't him give you that much attention. Over time he gets a bit better with his jealousy but only because you always reassure him that you don't want any other guy and because you let him have an arm around your waist when you go out which shows other guys that you are taken.

K = Kiss (How do they kiss you? How do they like to be kissed?)

Gavi is obsessed with neck kisses he loves to give them and receive them. It's his favourite place to kiss you if you spend the night together he will kiss your neck when you wake up and he will randomly kiss your neck throughout the day. As much as he loves to kiss your neck is makes him melt when you do it to him whenever you kiss him he will have a smile on his face for the rest of the day. Usually kisses from Gavi are full of passion because that's just how he is especially when he kisses your lips he puts all of his love into the kiss every time. The only time Gavi will kiss you softly is when he's tired like late at night or very early in the morning but you love those soft kisses as they usually come along with a string of compliments from Gavi.

L = Love (Who says 'I love you' first?)

You say it first but only because he's too worried about scaring you off to say it first. It takes a while for you to say it because you are just as worried as him about saying it too soon and ruining things but eventually you get the courage to say it. You only say it because Pedri managed to convince you that Gavi was in love with you but just too scared to admit it which he did because he was sick of hearing Gavi worry about losing you. Instead of saying it in a special moment like you planned you ended up blurting it out randomly in the middle of a conversation which took Gavi by surprise but he still said it back quickly. Hearing you say it makes him feel so much more confident in your relationship and from that day in he is always saying how much he loves you.

M = Memory (What's their favorite memory together?)

His favourite memory is from the first time you went away just the two of you. During the off-season he had a few days where he didn't have anything to do so the two of you decided to go to Portugal for a few days. His favourite memory comes from the first day of the trip when you went to the beach together. You had been sitting in the sun for a while before both going into the water and you were trying to get in slowly as the water was cold but Gavi had other ideas and started to splash you. You took it for a while before getting him back and starting a water fight between the two of you which Gavi won in the end. The reason that's his favourite memory is because he can still clearly remember the way your face went from shock to laughing to a devious smile before you got him back. For some reason he just loved that moment and it always stays in his mind.

N = Nickel (Do they spoil? Do they buy the person they love everything?)

He does like to buy you things but he doesn't go overboard. On special occasions he will go all out and get you all sorts of presents but other than that if he buys you anything it is usually flowers to show his appreciation. Gavi likes to make days like your birthday special so he doesn't like to give you things year round because then when he picks out gifts for you they don't seem as meaningful. Of course he would love to get you anything you could possibly want but he holds back so when you get gifts from him they always have meaning behind them or are things you have wanted but would never buy for yourself. He isn't against spending money on you as he once got you a new car as yours was falling apart but he doesn't do it all the time as believe it or not he is quite sensible with money.

O = On Cloud Nine (What are they like when they're in love? Is it obvious to others? How do they express their feelings?)

When Gavi is really in love it is very obvious to everyone around him. Sometimes Pedri gets sick of him when he just constantly talking about you and all the little things you have done or said the day before. No one can get Gavi to stop talking about you so they just get used to tuning him out when he starts to bring you up as they know they will be there for a long time. His teammates always know when the two of you had an argument as until you make up Gavi will be sulking and just not be himself he even plays worse if you are in the middle of an argument. He is always at his happiest when he's just talked to you or been with you in person which the people around him think is sweet but they do tease him about it.

P = Pet names (What pet names do they use?)

Gavi has about a million nicknames for you but his favourites are mi amor and carino but he will still call you babe on the odd occasion.

Q = Questions (What are the questions they're always asking?)

He is always asking how your day has been or just how you are. He also often ask where you want to go out to dinner or what you want to do when you time together although he usually ends up making those decisions as you are too indecisive.

R = Rainy Day (What do they like to do on a rainy day?)

On a rainy day he likes to just curl up on the sofa with the tv on. Usually you will move from laying in bed to laying on the sofa and Gavi will put a movie on which you don’t really pay too much attention to as you both end up just talking about nothing. Neither of you move very far and only really get up to go to the bathroom or get food which includes ordering dinner as neither of you want to cook. The day ends with you falling asleep on Gavi's chest while he is playing fifa with his friends so he stops playing and carries you up to bed where you go back to cuddling until he falls asleep too.

S = Sad (How do they cheer themselves/S/O up?)

He cheers himself up by seeing you. Whenever he's having a bad day or is upset by something he will go and see you so that you can hold him and distract him by talking about something else. Nothing cheers him up like you do so even if he can't see you in person he has to FaceTime with you so that he can see your face and talk to you. If you are having a hard time he will do anything to make you feel better whether that is just letting you cry to let out your feelings or doing whatever you want to. Quite often to cheer you up he will take you out on a date because then he can spoil you to make you feel better again. He is very good at cheering you up because he just makes you laugh until you forget about whatever was upsetting you before.

T = Talking (What do they like to talk about?)

He will talk about anything but most of the time the conversation revolves around football in some way or another. He is always talking about training or a game but he is so passionate about it that you never mind and could listen to him all day. He does have the ability to talk about other things on occasion and usually that is whatever you are interested in whether it be work or a hobby he will ask you questions about it and talk about it with you.

U = Understanding (How well do they know their partner?)

He knows you better than anyone else does over your relationship he has paid attention to every little thing you say so whenever anyone asks him something about you even something like what you were wearing on your first date he can tell them. Any little thing about you he picks up on to the point that he has learnt what any of your little actions mean so if you are anxious he can always pick up on it and so will do whatever he needs to to help you.

V = Value (How important is the relationship to them? What is it worth in comparison to other things in their life?)

Your relationship is very important to him he always says that you are the best thing to ever happen to him so it's safe to say he values you a lot. Football of course is important to him but you are definitely with more to him than that because even without football he'd be happy as long as he has you. Many things are important to Gavi like his friends and family but if he had to pick one thing to be his top priority it would be you because he spends most of his time with you and can't picture his life without you.  

W = Wedding (When, where, and how do they propose?)

It would be a good few years into your relationship because you are young when you first get together but he always knows that one day he would propose. He would plan the moment out for ages he would make sure that everything would be perfect before the day because he knows he will be really nervous despite knowing you would say yes. He actually proposes on your 4 year anniversary he sets up a day filled with activities which ends with a walk on the beach. While walking he just randomly stops and because he has hold of your hand it makes you stop and turn around. When you turn around he is down on one knee with a ring box in his hand as he recites a little speech he spent weeks preparing. It was an emotional moment but of course you said yes which made Gavi a whole lot calmer.

X = XOXO (How affectionate are they? In public/in private)

Gavi is quite an affectionate person so as long as there isn’t too many people around he will have an arm around your waist and give you the occasional kiss. When out in public he will hold your hand and that’s usually as far as he will go because he knows that someone will film his every move so if he does anymore it will end up all over social media. If you are somewhere where there are loads of guys around trying to flirt with you he will have an arm obviously around your waist but he only does that on occasion. When with friends he doesn’t care as much about hiding how affectionate he is he will do whatever he wants which is usually cuddle with you and gives you loads of kisses which he does get teased for but he really doesn’t care.

Y = Yearning (How well do they cope when they're separated from their S/O?)

He hates to be away from you but he can cope for a few days as long as he can FaceTime you every night. When he has to be away for longer than a few days or is in a time zone that is so different from the one that you are in that he doesn’t get to talk to you he is a nightmare to be around. He just mopes around all day everyday until he goes back home and can finally see you again. When he’s not home he insists on you texting him throughout the day telling him whatever you are doing and sending pictures so he can see your face while he does whatever he has to be doing. Gavi will always much prefer to be with you whether that be at home or somewhere else but he knows that can’t always happen so he tries not to complain to you too much as he doesn’t want you to feel bad he just moans to his friends instead.

Z = Zeal (Are they willing to go to great lengths for the relationship?)

Gavi would do pretty much anything for your relationship. He’s not afraid to make any sacrifices necessary to keep your relationship healthy because to him they aren’t sacrifices they are just things he has to do as part of life. You could list Gavi a million things and there would be very few things that he wouldn’t do if they meant keeping your relationship. Even without telling anyone it’s clear that he would go to great lengths for your relationship which usually means people don’t try and push him as they know he will take the leap if he has to.

[rainynightmoonlight]

Hi :) since you said requests might take longer feel free to take your time with this!!

Can you write something with Childe with a teen!brother!reader (obviously platonic) who’s more on the ‘rebel’ side? ‘Rebel’ as in he always tries to pull dangerous stuff and never really seem to care about the scars or how much trouble he gets in?

I usually see platonic stuff of Childe with a more shy reader, so I think this could be a nice twist :D thank you!!!!

Rowdy and Rebelious | Platonic Childe headcannons x Rebel Teen brother reader

Characters: Childe

Summary: As much as a rebel you are, your brother will forever worry about you

Warnings: Just pure fluff

ʚ⁺˖↪ You were the more of the rebelious child in your family, and your mother would constantly worry about you. Your older siblings would also worry but became easily annoyed with your shenanigans. Your younger siblings thought of you sort of like a superhero!

ʚ⁺˖↪ The one you would mess with the most though is your older brother Tartaglia, or better known as Childe. The time you went with Teucer to find him was surely something to say the least. He was glad that Teucer came with someone sort of capable of protecting him, but also worried about your safety.

ʚ⁺˖↪ You sometimes visit him on his travels on your own, and you always greet him with a bruise or some sort of injury. It scares him so much, and looks like he's about to murder someone.

ʚ⁺˖↪ Scolds you so much when he is bandaging you up or putting ice on a bruise. If it's a more serious injury, then he will make you stay in one place, so you can heal.

ʚ⁺˖↪ When exploring with you, he literally has to hold you back. Like, he has to hold you down with a hug, so you don't fight some random people. You're just flailing in his arms. He uses this as an excuse to say you're not ready for exploring.

"If you manage to get out, then I'll let you explore with me."

ʚ⁺˖↪ This is now a challenge to you and you try so many times. You fail though, and it leaves Childe smugly laughing while saying 'I told you so' or something along those lines.

ʚ⁺˖↪ Tries to set rules with you, like don't get into a serious battle without him there, don't steal his weapon, and don't pick fights with the fatui. But you, being rebellious, you do not listen. In fact, you do all three at the same time… On multiple occasions.

ʚ⁺˖↪ He had to bail you out of almost dying a few times during those times. He just picks you up, sets you off to the side and finishes your fight.

ʚ⁺˖↪ When he does catch you being a chaotic little gremlin, Childe will just watch until he knows you can't handle it. Once he sees you either losing or getting really fucked up, he steps in and gets you out in a second.

ʚ⁺˖↪ It's another competition you two have. It's to see how fast Childe needs to get involved and how long you last before he needs to get involved.

ʚ⁺˖↪ It's a tie right now, with 77 on both sides. It's kind of astonishing to be honest. And you both make sure to keep track of the score, with slight alterations to the score.

"Last time I checked, little bro, I had 78."

"No, you dumbass, I had 78!"

ʚ⁺˖↪ You both insult each other so much, it's kind of funny. The insults get worse and make less sense as time goes on.

ʚ⁺˖↪ Childe also likes to fake being hurt by your insults. You call him out on his bullshit, though, especially when he does it in front of people that he knows.

ʚ⁺˖↪ Does a full dramatic pose and pretends to faint. You just catch him and roll your eyes as you just throw insult after insult at him.

"Oh, you wound me, my dearest brother!"

"Oh come on, I know you're just being stupid"

ʚ⁺˖↪ You do care about Childe though, like immensely. That's sort of why you're so rebellious. You're trying to prove to him that he doesn't need to worry about you and that you're capable of being able to care for yourself and him.

ʚ⁺˖↪ If Childe does get wounded in a battle, then you take over until the threat is gone. You rush over to his side and bandage him up. You both sort of tease each other about it, but you do it more so because you're anxious.

ʚ⁺˖↪ Childe does and has learned self-control, just so you can see that you don't have to fight all the time or be intimidating. He genuinely tries to be a good role model to you, and he tries to teach you as best he can.

ʚ⁺˖↪ You just call him stupid, though, but you understand what he's trying to do. You appreciate him for that, and sometimes you get Childe a gift of some sort to show your gratitude.

ʚ⁺˖↪ If you two are playing games, the both of you are cheating. And once one of you realize the other is cheating, it becomes a rough housing play fight.

"You cheated! Now you have to pay!"

"You cheated too! Why do I have to pay if you're not going to, you hypocrite!"

ʚ⁺˖↪ When you leave after traveling to visit him, he gives you an hour-long lecture on what not to do and what to do. He also demands that you write him as soon as you can. Of course, you don't do any of these things, except you do write him a letter.

ʚ⁺˖↪ You're just the rebellious gremlin of the family and occasionally give Childe many near heart attack moments with how often you feel the urge to be violent and take on Celestia

Do not repost or translate without my explicit permission! Reblogs are welcome!

[i9messi]

Happily ever after — Christian Pulisic

You and Christian babysit your friend’s children and that makes you have to pretend to be a princess and a prince.

Word count — 906

christian's masterlist

You were sleeping peacefully when you felt kisses on your face, your boyfriend Christian was trying to wake you up. When you opened your eyes, you saw that he was looking at you with a silly face that reflected his love for you. His eyes shone differently when he looked at you.

"Good morning, sleeping beauty."

"Mmhh, good morning, babe."

Your boyfriend got out of bed, not before leaving a quick kiss on your lips. While you had been sleeping, he had done the daily shopping and also made breakfast. When you approached the kitchen, you felt the rich aroma of food and you brought the cup of coffee to your mouth. You saw Christian's back move back and forth in the kitchen, until he finished breakfast and left it in front of you. Not only did he wake you up with kisses and food, he also gave you a bouquet of flowers, your favorite flowers.

You loved those gestures in him, because no matter what day it was or what occasion, he always liked to show gestures for you.

"You got me flowers?"

You smiled at him.

"Seeing you happy is all that matters."

You were so in love with your caring boyfriend. You shared a long breakfast, both talked about what had happened the day before and he talked about his training and the games to come. Only got interrupted when your phone rang and you saw that your best friend texted you. You had promised her that you would take care of her children, because she urgently needed someone to do it while she had some problems to solve. You didn’t mind, the two children were kind and nice, you liked to spend time with them.

You told that to Christian and he offered to go with you. He was good with young children and he adored your best friend's kids. You prepared and drove to the house, where you arrived and your friend welcomed you with open arms in search of a hug. She left you the instructions of what you had to do and said goodbye, while you approached the kids. Both of them ran to hug you happily, while Christian smiled and watched the scene. Something stirred in the American’s heart every time he saw you interacting with kids.

Your friend’s children approached Christian and he grabbed the little girl in his arms as she hugged him and looked at him with dreamy eyes. Your friend’s daughter was innocently in love with Christian and you could totally understand her. Your boyfriend was charming and gorgeous.

After the hugs, the girl started doing your hair, a braid the princesses were supposed to have, while Christian played football with the boy. Your heart grew bigger and bigger when you saw him interact with children. Christian and the boy came back after playing for a while and your best friend's daughter had a wonderful idea. You waited for her to come back and she handed a fake sword to Christian, while she gave you a princess crown.

"You are the princess and Christian is the prince."

"Really?" You smiled at your boyfriend. Christian didn’t know what he was getting into when he agreed to come, the kids could be very imaginative.

"But you need to fight with the dragon to get the princess out of the tower!" the kid yelled, explaining the rest of the story.

You stood aside, while Christian pretended to fight an imaginary dragon. The two children watched the scene with their eyes wide open, happy and imaginative. Once he supposedly defeated the threat, he approached you and stood face to face. You couldn’t shake that silly smile out of your face, you loved him so much you could hear your own heart beating.

"Hi, babe." you said to him, once you were face to face.

"Now you have to make a declaration of love!" the girl shouted, giving instructions.

Christian cleared his throat and thought about it for a few moments.

"Sweet princess, I have saved you from a dragon and I have won. Could you give me in return your love? I will fight every day to be worthy of you, darling."

You knew that it was all acting but his words were, in fact, real. He was honest with his feelings for you.

You smiled at his statement, "As you wish, Prince Christian."

"This is the moment when you have to kiss." This time, the girl whispered and the two of you looked at her with doubt.

Christian returned his gaze at you again, trying to understand what he was supposed to do. "I’m not kissing you on the lips in front of children."

You smiled at him, his cheeks were red.

"A quick kiss on the cheek, then. You should kiss me, that would make them happy."

And so he did. Your boyfriend kissed you on the cheek and when you were done, he looked at the children. The two of them were celebrating that the prince and the princess lived happily ever after. You laughed, a couple of seconds later they were distracted talking about a videogame or something that you didn't understand. You hug Christian.

"I love you, my captain America."

"Now is prince Christian, in fact." he joked.

When you were returning home, he looked you in the eye and held your hand.

"I never want to stop making memories with you, princess."

[khaosrealms]

A CAPTAIN’S OFFER. / john price x reader —- after a hard day’s work, sometimes the only choice you have is to follow your coworkers to a local cigar bar.

a/n: this was something i had stewing in my old docs page that i never finished or released so, with the release of modern warfare 3– please enjoy! i thought you all might deserve some captain loving 🧡 perhaps some sade will accent the experience of this for you all.

“You might just be the first and only person to ever reject a cigar in a cigar lounge, you know that?”

You could play the fool and pretend this wasn’t your ploy, but you’d known the second he’d made the first approach that you had been made.

He’d caught your eye two months back when you first visited the lounge with a pair of coworkers. Cigarettes weren’t your choice of oral remedy but it was for your acquaintances and so— you’d budged. It was a nice-looking place, low light and the alcohol was fine but not cheap. It seemed like it’d be a one-and-done type deal. The kind where you’d talk about the night in off-hand reflections with your acquaintances about how work had been going. “It was really nice”, you’d say, and they would say “That’s great!” in proper response. Rinse and repeat ad nauseam.

You felt ill-fit here. Talking between the smoke and droplets of alcohol that would occasionally spray in your direction from their lips. Retreat seemed inevitable. All the air tasted of under your tongue was burnt ash and chemicals.

Maybe you’d drifted to him almost out of reflex. To something actually alive and breathing sitting there at the bar.

He’d been wearing a beanie then. Black t-shirt and rustic pants. Partially, you’d say he seemed almost— plain. Purposefully. No watch, no rings. Quiet voice, rich and smooth, that type that seemed to dip into the background. An accent, out of state, out of country. Transparent. But it was the scent of him that hooked you. Aromatic, like a dozen spices all pushing out from his lungs, springing out from the cigar smoke that left his lips. Warm earth and rich cacao. You weren’t the type to stare but you could admit that there were occasions. A necessity, perhaps. He’d been with a companion, a woman of fair hair, and you couldn’t help but feel that it made you hesitant.

He was gone by the time you’d left the bathroom to wash your hands.

The convincing took a bundle of confidence and a cupful of energy you hardly had left after your shifts but your coworkers were allowing. Three times you had gone, once without sight and twice with glimpses, and everytime he’d share the company of the same woman. Older than him, but you knew better than to assume, so you hesitated once more. Peeks. Moments. Taking an empty cup to the bartender to make their job easy for the sake of taking one last look. And he’d give. The slightest bit. Enough to let you know, but not enough to allow. You’d asked, once, when he’d left in silence, who he was out with out of curiosity and slight inebriation, and the only answer you’d received was a chuckle and five words.

“Funny. He’d said you’d ask.” Motherfucker.

The bar was empty when you’d arrived, stagnant, bustling elsewhere, but the hustle of the lounge never traveled even close to the bartender. It felt planned, but you knew it was a mentality— you wanted it to be empty. So you ignored the few passersby, the occasional patrons who’d come by requesting a drink, the scent of expensive cologne and cheap product. You’d thumbed through the pages of the drink menu for the good half hour. Sampled a wine, finished a cocktail, sipped through an two thirds of an old fashioned. It almost felt discouraging. Almost, if you weren’t so certain today would be different.

You’d been nursing the last sips of your drink when a hand wandered in from the corner of your eye. And when you lifted a hand to motion against accepting the offering, the face that held it was smiling. Almost betting your response. The scent of his tobacco held between his fingers almost as rich and warm as the smell of it soaked into the fabric of his sleeve.

“You might just be the first and only person to ever reject a cigar in a cigar lounge, you know that?” You’d come to expect the type of anger that came with rejection. The men who’d frequent the cigar bar and scoff at being told no. But not him, no. He’d seemed almost pleased. “Never had a taste for them, that’s all.”

He took response as a sign of approval. Sliding into the seat beside you without the need for hesitation, filling the open gap in there with ease. He’d foregone the hat this time and it’d done wonders at softening his features— but failed to make him any less as catching as he’d been from the moment you’d seen him across that bar two months prior. You’d never realized how blue his eyes were, but here, up close, they were dilated enough to skim the touch of dusk. They smiled with him as he spoke; slight wrinkles that tugged at the ends of his eyes and at the corners of his mouth. Late thirties, maybe forties. Sitting beside him, you can only pretend the rush of blood to your cheeks was from your drinks alone.

“Perhaps—” There’s a heft to him as he adjusts in his chair and sets his untouched cigar on the bar counter between you both. Musculature that shows momentarily in the hint of skin you get from his wrist as his sleeve lifts. Gazing down for a moment at him and his offering. “No one’s ever taken the time to help you acquire it.” A taste. “If you’re willing.” There’s no curtailing the smile that sticks to his words. It’s no question; it’s a request, one he knows you’d be willing to accept. One that he’s hoping you will.

“Do the honors.” You abandon your last sips of scotch in favor of partaking in his poison. Pushing the glass towards the end of the counter; canting your seat in his direction. He follows in your movements. With his eyes, with his hips. Inclining himself towards your presence as he trimmed the end off the cigar. Catching it in the palm of his hand and setting it down out of sight.

“Here.” He’s so very precise, you’ve noticed. A measured slowness as he raises the cigar up to your nose; allowing you to breathe in the scent of the tobacco. “Smell.” Hypnotizing. With his words and his voice. When you inhale, the dry scent of maple and black pepper greets you. Teasing an aroma of dark cacao in the back of your throat. You do not miss the look of satisfaction that settles in his eyes as he leans back to light the cigar. Illuminating his features with warm, golden light. When the first puffs of his smoke clears and all that’s left is his form, legs wide and arm rested, it almost seems to be his own words left unspoken. Come, he says. Don’t hesitate now. So you resist— and lean forward, just enough to force him to lean as well. Turning the smoldering cigar towards your lips.

“Don’t inhale.” He rumbles, the vibrations of his voice following to the tips of his fingertips as you breathe in. The taste of molasses and dark chocolate laying itself over the expanse of your tongue. “Out.” You obey without hesitation, and the smell of almond stays in your nose as you exhale; blowing rolling smoke out onto the top of his strong hand. You resist the urge to cough, but it teases at your throat and in noticing, the man can’t help but chuckle. All but a stranger nowadays to that pain.

“Taste enough to catch your interest?” He can try and feign innocence. Maybe all he could mean would be of the cigars and the bar the two of you sat within, but you can still taste the sweetness on your saliva as you breathe in once more. The sensation of him; there at the back of your throat. You catch the corner of his lip tug when you lean back as well. See the blue in his eyes turn navy when the side of your shoe rests against his calf.

“I might have to savor it with something else to keep it down...” A good bourbon, maybe a fine scotch. Or maybe, a name— your long pause leaving him the room to fill it. “John.” So simple. It almost seems as elusive as the rest of him. “John.” And so simple, you know it’ll roll off your tongue just fine for hours. “What do you think?” After two months, it’d be a miracle if he’d get you to stop. But, guessing from the look in his eye, he looks hopeful you won’t. “A bottle should be enough, I’d say.”

[orionsstory]

that kind of devotion | anarcia (8)

warnings for fire and general distress/threats in this chapter! as always you can check out the chapter on ao3 as well! I'd like to apologize in advance poor anetra goes through it

-

"Where are we going again?"

"Some bar my girlfriend and her friends are at." Aura called back, her eyes glued to the directions on her phone.

"Right. What's the occasion again?"

"Uhm...I think a promotion or something."

Anetra chuckled as they paused on the corner of the street, Aura looking intently at the two directions before them. She hesitated for a moment before leading them left.

"Are you sure you don't want me to do it?"

Aura waved her off. "No, no, it's okay- I got it. We're not gonna get lost like last time."

They did in fact get lost. Just like last time.

Anetra ended up taking the phone from Aura and correctly guiding them in the right direction. It may have taken an extra thirty minutes, but they finally arrived. Aura led them inside the club, weaving through the groups of people until her eyes lit up as she spotted a group. Her girlfriend practically lit up when she spotted the two, tossing herself into Aura's arms.

Anetra had to admit, they were cute. Aura had been going on and on about Robin for the past few weeks, so it was nice to put a face to a name. Her thoughts were interrupted when Aura introduced her to the others, elbowing the other girl at her comment. Was her resting bitch face really that bad?

She drew her attention to the other girls. She didn't recognize the one with curly blonde hair, but the other two seemed familiar. She couldn't place her finger on where until the club lights flashed, illuminating the girl with the straight blonde hair.

Marcia.

She felt panic flair up in her chest before she calmed herself down, panicking would only attract more attention to herself- maybe Marcia didn't even recognize her.

Marcia looked as if she was about to speak to say something to Anetra, but before that Aura pulled her away to grab drinks for the group. Aura, her saving grace. Temporarily, but that was better than nothing. They got to the bar, Aura repeated the drink orders to the bartender before turning her attention back to Anetra. They talked for a moment before her phone started to ring, she told Aura she'd be right back before heading out back to answer the call.

"Hello?" She answered, leaning back on the brick wall.

"Lotus, it's an emergency." Detective Barnes' voice echoed over the phone. "There's a fire at a store on 12th, it's believed to be linked to the perp."

"I'm on my way."

Anetra had to pretend to be calm as she made her way back inside, telling Aura there was an emergency and she had to leave. She rushed through the club, making her way to an empty alleyway before she jetted off to her apartment to change.

-

Now in her hero costume, she whipped through the air faster than she had ever flown before. The pit in her stomach only grew as she got closer, she began to see the smoke wafting up from the buildings. She quickly touched down onto the street- the fire was burning bright, engulfing almost the whole building. This was like nothing she had ever seen.

"Well, Lotus, it's nice to finally meet you in person." A voice giggled from above. Anetra lifted her head to see a figure standing in the sky. She had big, curly blonde hair and a red and black suit, a long cape flowing behind her. She could make out a red devil mask covering her eyes.

"You!" She spat out, readying herself to kick off before a noise interrupted her.

A weak call for help came from the burning building. Anetra's eyes widened at the realization.

"Make your choice, Lotus."

But Anetra didn't even hear the end of her sentence, already kicking out the glass in the window and making her way into the inferno.

The building was hot, even for her. Because of her fire powers, her body temperature was higher than regular people's, allowing her to better deal with high temperatures. But she could feel herself starting to sweat, which meant the person stuck here must be burning up.

"Where are you?" She called out as she began to search the premises, quickly clearing out all the rooms on the first floor. She heard a bump from upstairs, rushing up the burning stairs. She spotted a figure curled up in the corner of the room, hurriedly making her way over.

It was an old man, Anetra could tell he was still breathing but he was definitely in a fragile state. She kicked out the closest window, clearing the glass around the frame before picking up the old man. She cleared the window, careful not to cut the man with the glass before touching down on the other side of the street, gently laying him down on the ground.

She heard sirens approaching in the distance, looking up towards the sky- the woman was gone, Anetra cursed beneath her breath as she turned her attention back to the old man. She had some small bandages stored on her, getting to work on patching up his smaller cuts. He was starting to come back to consciousness, so Anetra helped him sit up as the ambulance rounded the corner.

"Are you okay, sir?"

"Y-yes ma'am, thank you."

Anetra helped the medics load the man into the ambulance, filling them in on the situation before they headed to the hospital. The fire department had extinguished the building by that point and was currently looking around inside for any evidence. She spotted Detective Barnes waving her over.

"Nice job, Lotus."

She sighed, running her hand through her hair. "I don't know. She got away."

Anetra felt a pang of guilt as she looked back at the charred building. Maybe if she had been quick enough, she could've caught up with the perp. Oh well- there was no use dwelling on it now. She and Barnes briefed each other on their accounts, Anetra describing the villain to him and Barnes explaining he believed the call came from her. That puzzled Anetra, why would she call in her own crime?

"Why would she do that? Did she...want to be caught?"

Barnes shook his head, "I don't think so. I think it might be an ego thing."

"Like she's taunting us?"

"Exactly that. She called from a burner phone, we found the smashed remains a few feet away from the building."

Anetra sighed, "She's smart, I'll give her that."

Another officer approached sheepishly, handing a note to Anetra. She groaned, already knowing what it was. The other officer beckoned Barnes to follow him, leaving Anetra alone. That was certainly odd, but whatever. She didn't think this one would be much different from the others.

She unfolded the paper, her eyes scanning over the words. She froze, a lump forming in her throat. That couldn't be right. She re-read the letter again and again, her heartbeat increasing each time.

There, in pretty cursive handwriting, was Anetra's full name and address.

-

She spent the next three hours patrolling, her mind racing and in full panic mode. Had her files been breached? It wasn't impossible, she knew it'd happened before, but who would risk their job over such a low-ranking hero? The more likely scenario in her mind was that she had been sloppy, that this villain had been keeping track of her moves and used it to find out where she lived. She cursed herself for being so careless.

Her phone ringing jolted her out of her trance, Sasha's photo lighting up her screen.

"Hello?" She croaked out. God, she hadn't realized how tired she was.

"Stop patrolling and go to bed. You sound awful."

She sighed, touching down on top of a building. She stumbled a bit as she sat, her body exhausted. She knew Sasha was right, her body was screaming for her to rest, but she couldn't.

"I can't, Sash."

"What happened?"

Anetra took a deep breath before spitting everything out- the fire, actually seeing the villain, and the note. She felt chills run up her body as she recounted it to Sasha, her voice tired and weak. Sasha, as patient as ever, listened to her rambling that she was certain didn't make sense. She couldn't stop kicking herself for not only putting herself but also Sasha in the path of danger.

"Neech, baby. Listen to me. I'm okay and so are you. She might have the address, but there's no way she's getting into that building. It's one of the most secure in the city. So please, go home and get some rest. I'll be back in three days, okay?"

"But-"

"No buts. She hasn't even tried to fight you, she knows you're stronger than her. You'd beat her ass in an instant. There's no way she's coming close to the building."

Anetra took a shaky breath. "Yeah. Yeah...you're right."

"Of course I am. I love you, Neech. We'll be okay. I'll get extra security if that'll reassure you."

"It would. Thank you, Sash. I love you too."

Sasha stayed on the phone with her as she made her way back to the apartment, her eyes scanning the area for the blonde villain. She was on high alert, only letting her guard down once she had searched every corner of the apartment for a bug or wiretap. Once she was sure, she passed out, clinging onto Mr. Quack.

She had that dream again. That nightmare. Sasha's screams and Marcia's blood-stained body. She woke with a start, finding it nearly impossible to get the image out of her mind. It took her a while to drift back off again, but her sleep remained restless. She tossed and turned, still feeling exhausted when she woke up.

She tried to focus on things she enjoyed, she took a walk in the park and watched the ducks, and she went to the gym to work some of the stress off, but none of it seemed to help. She found it hard to find joy in any of the activities, instead, she was constantly watching her back. Her mind was an anxious swirl of dark thoughts and dread, she could feel herself becoming overwhelmed by the emotions.

-

It only worsened the day after, the ring of her cell phone interrupting the first decent sleep she had been able to have. She groggily sat up, her eyes narrowing on the unknown number. She reasoned it might be a client, so she sighed as she clicked the answer button.

"Hello?"

"Anetra, how are you?"

That voice. It was her- the villain. She bolted to attention, already texting Barnes about the situation. If they could track the call, they may be able to find her and capture her.

"Who are you?"

"Right to business, hm? People have no manners these days." She hears the girl cackle over the phone, "You don't need to know who I am. Not yet."

"What do you want?"

"Just wanted to talk. Figured you were probably quite stressed after last night." Anetra scowled as the girl giggled.

"You could have killed that man, you know."

"Please, I figured you'd save him. But if you didn't...well, I wouldn't have been too upset."

"You're disgusting."

"Careful there. You may have been able to save this one, but you may not be so lucky in the future."

"Is that a threat?"

"Perhaps...maybe you should keep an eye on that blonde girl...what's her name again?"

Anetra felt her blood run cold and a pit building up in her stomach. She stayed silent as she listened to the woman on the other line humming.

"Oh, that's right- Marcia."

Anetra felt her fear turn into rage, her fists clenched around the bed sheets.

"Leave her alone." She spat.

"Strikes a nerve, does it? Good to know..."

"Fuck with me all you want, but leave her out of this. She doesn't know anything."

"Are you sure about that? Well, I have to run anyway. Nice try, but I know you sent your little police officers after me. Ta-ta, Anetra."

The phone clicked off, leaving Anetra there with her thoughts. If she wasn't stressed out before, she was now. The idea that some villain might be stalking Marcia, that she might hurt her, scared Anetra to no end. She tossed her phone aside, staring up at the ceiling in an attempt to calm herself down.

-

Sasha came home two days later and immediately noticed something was wrong.

"Have you been eating?"

Anetra avoided her gaze as Sasha dropped her bags down beside the couch. She had tried to fix her appearance so as not to worry her, but it was obvious that hadn't worked. Ever since the call from that morning, Anetra had spent most of her free time patrolling. She hadn't exactly been taking care of herself, but she didn't think Sasha would have picked up on it that easily.

"Neech...what happened?"

Anetra took a shaky breath, "I got another call...she...she brought up Marcia."

Sasha took a seat beside her, rubbing her back soothingly. "Oh, baby...so you've been working yourself to death, hm?"

Anetra nodded, practically collapsing into Sasha's arms.

"I'm so mad at myself. She doesn't deserve this. Fuck, how could I be so careless?"

"It's not like this is a common occurrence. This is pretty unheard of, even for more famous heroes." Sasha comforted her, rubbing circles into her back. "Have you told Marcia?"

It hadn't even crossed her mind. She felt guilty about it, of course, but she was also worried. She was worried that Marcia wouldn't trust her anymore. She wouldn't blame her- she didn't deserve to be stalked because Anetra liked her. It's why she hadn't talked to her in three days.

"Is that a no?"

Anetra nodded, groaning. "I haven't talked to her since...all that happened. I'm scared, Sasha."

"I understand, but you need to tell her."

"I know...I'm just...scared she'll hate me."

"Neech, she's not going to hate you. But still, for her safety, you need to tell her. Ignoring her won't make her safer."

"Fuck...you're right. God, how am I going to tell her?"

"You should be honest. You'd do anything to keep her safe, right?"

"Of course."

"Then tell her that too. She trusts you a lot, I promise it'll go better than you think."

Anetra nods, sniffling. She opens up her phone, her screen filled with missed texts and calls from Marcia. She opens up the text thread, her eyes landing on the last message sent that morning.

Marcia🎀 is everything okay? you haven't answered me in a while...

She felt a pang of guilt as she read the message. Her fingers hovered over the keyboard before she typed out a response.

I'm sorry. Can I talk to you tonight?

Marcia🎀 of course.

Anetra felt a slight sense of relief flow through her. She just hoped Marcia would understand.

-

She spent the rest of the day with Sasha who helped snap her out of her funk. She was grateful, she felt less anxious than she had the past few days. She still felt a bit shaky, but it was an improvement nonetheless.

As their meeting time drew closer, Anetra began to rehearse what she would say to Marcia. She ran through all of the scenarios that might happen, preparing herself for all of them. Finally, it came time to leave. She nervously suited up, taking a deep breath in to try and calm herself.

She flew a bit slower than she usually did, her nerves spiking as she grew closer. Eventually, she reached Marcia's apartment. She hesitated for a moment, glancing around before gently knocking three times on Marcia's window. She heard some pacing in the room before the pink curtain drew back, Marcia now in front of her. She gently pushed the window open, looking up at her.

"Hi."

"Come in."

Anetra's heart stung at the words, so dull compared to Marcia's usual cheer. She gently swung herself into the room, closing the window behind her. Marcia was sat on the bed, looking at her expectantly. She hesitated, sitting on the windowsill.

"You can sit on the bed, you know."

Anetra shakily got up, taking a seat a few feet away from Marcia. Marcia frowned when she sat down before looking back up toward her. Anetra opened her mouth to speak, feeling her words catching in her mouth.

"I-"

She grimaced as she felt her throat go dry, unable to speak. Marcia noticed, speaking up instead.

"Did I do something wrong?"

"What? No, no, of course not."

Marcia's words took Anetra by surprise, she looked up towards the girl. She felt a pang of guilt go through her as she looked at Marcia's face, a mix of hurt and confusion.

"Then what is it, Lotus? You've been ignoring me for three days..."

"It's not your fault...it's...it's..."

She tried to spit out what she had rehearsed. But in that moment, all the words she had put so much thought into had disappeared. She felt tears prick the corners of her eyes. She tried to steady her breathing as Marcia put a concerned hand on her shoulder. She then burst into tears.

That wasn't what she had planned.

She felt Marcia envelop her in a hug, Anetra burying her head in the blonde's neck as she sobbed. The stress had broken her. She felt embarrassed, she was supposed to be a hero- she wasn't supposed to cry. She was supposed to smile and put on a brave face, to beat the villain. But she couldn't.

"Lotus...talk to me, what's going on?" Marcia held her gently, as if she might break. Anetra gently raised her head, Marcia wiping away a stray tear making its way down her left cheek.

"I-I got a call from that villain..." she choked out, her voice hoarse.

"The one from that big case?" Marcia handed her a bottle of water. Anetra nodded, taking the water with shaky hands.

"Y-yeah...she called me and...well...she threatened you." She finally said, her gaze avoiding Marcia.

"Threatened me how?" Marcia's voice was softer than she expected, she had expected her to be angry with her.

"She...she just insinuated that I might not be able to save you. That she might...hurt you."

"What? How'd she even call you in the first place?"

"She left a note with my name and address. I'm assuming she found my phone number too."

"Lotus..." Marcia spoke softly, running a hand through Anetra's hair.

"I'm so sorry. I'm so fucking sorry. You shouldn't be dealing with any of this."

She sighed, "I wish you would have told me sooner instead of ignoring me."

"I thought if I ignored you...I thought she might leave you alone. I'm sorry, I just...haven't been thinking straight lately."

"I'm not angry," Marcia guided Anetra's head to look up at her, "I know you're worried about me. But just...talk to me about it, okay?"

Anetra nodded, "I will. And I'll do everything I can to protect you. I promise. I'm not going to let her hurt you."

"I know you won't."

"Just...stay extra vigilant until this whole thing blows over, please? You should be with someone at all times, especially at night." Anetra worried, taking Marcia's hands into her own and squeezing them.

"I will. I know you'll catch her." Marcia moved one of her hands up to cup Anetra's face, giving her a soft smile before kissing her cheek.

Anetra softly smiled, feeling herself relax for the first time in days. She leaned into Marcia's touch, allowing herself to feel safe. She was grateful Marcia believed in her, she just hoped she was right.