#relaxed engagement photo shoot

[6okuto]

WEDDING MOMENTS

gn!reader | kuroo, bokuto, akaashi, hinata, atsumu, osamu, ushijima

hello everyone i'm back 🫶 these are more reception moments than wedding but y'know. give me a break man...

KUROO leans in and whispers in your ear as you dance, “is it bad i want to go home and just lie in bed with you now?” “why are you whispering as if someone can hear you?” you snicker back. tetsurou shoots you a cheeky smile. “so it looks like i’m saying something romantic.” you hit his shoulder, and he only laughs before pulling you into a tight hug. you wait for him to let go before replying. “idiot. but no, it isn’t. my back and feet hurt.” he hums, and you can feel his fingers tapping your back. “do you think it’s possible for newly weds to sneak out of their own wedding reception?”

BOKUTO is walking down the aisle again as everyone disperses to talk or get ready for the reception. you walk up to him, curiosity piqued as he bends down. “what are you doing?” “huh?” he drops a few petals that he was clutching. “crap—hi, baby. i’m just, uh, picking up some of the flowers to take with us. i saw someone do it online, and i thought we could press them or put them somewhere,” he explains softly, as if a little embarrassed. your heart flutters at the thought, and you smile before reaching down yourself. “we better get some flowers, then. and a ziploc bag or something.”

AKAASHI relaxes and rests his head against yours while you watch your guests mingling and dancing. you reach for his hand and intertwine fingers. “you okay?” he nods in response and presses a chaste kiss to your jaw. “yeah, i can finally calm down and not worry about something terrible happening.” “mm, something terrible could still happen.” “love of my life, can you please give your husband a break?” keiji blows air against your skin, eliciting a laugh from you. his tone is light, and you can feel him smiling even while you apologize.

HINATA takes one of the polaroid cameras that you got for the guests. you watch as he poses and takes a picture of himself before handing it to you. “do you want me to take a selfie?” he nods with a grin. “yeah! and also sign it so i can put it in my wallet, or maybe the back of my phone?” his sentence ends as a question to himself. you get your phone so you can check your appearance before mimicking your now husband’s pose. “sho, i swear if mine is bad i want a redo,” you say. he sputters as he looks at his forming photo. “well that’s good because i definitely screwed mine up. i’m like half in the frame.”

ATSUMU’s knee bounces as the video of your relationship the both of you got done nears its end. you shoot him a look, but he doesn’t seem to notice, gaze fixed on the scene. that’s when you hear a familiar voice, but unfamiliar clip start to play. “it’s, fuck, what day is it? november 13, and i’m pretty sure i need t’look for an engagement ring,” your now husband says into the camera. you gape, shock evident across your face. atsumu’s voice is soft as he says your name. “i love you, really. and if you’re seeing this then i didn’t fuck this up, and you decided to marry me, and i’m probably ‘bout to have a heart attack,” he nervously laughs. you turn to atsumu next to you, whose face is flushed red. “don’t look at me, the video isn’t done yet.”

OSAMU keeps holding your hand, and if he isn’t holding it he’s probably thinking of doing so. you don’t mind, finding comfort in the way he rubs the back of it. you’re sitting together when he silently reaches for it again. “i’m pretty sure you’ve held my hand more today than this entire week.” osamu rolls his eyes but smiles. you stare as he gently takes hold of your ring and fidgets with it. “sorry, can’t stop thinkin’ about how we’re actually married now.” you stare at each other, and he rests his chin in his palm. with his other hand, he brings yours up to press gentle kisses against the ring and your skin. “just another excuse to stay close t’you.”

USHIJIMA looks over when you poke his shoulder, and quickly realizes you’re trying to feed him some cake. “say ahh,” you sing song. it’s a half-joke, and you don’t fully expect him to accept, but he leans forward and opens his mouth, hand underneath the fork to catch any crumbs. despite his serious expression and stature, you can't help but think he looks cute. “i know we picked this flavour, but does it taste good?” you ask. wakatoshi nods. “it was a good choice.” he gets a forkful for who you assume is himself. but instead he lifts it toward you. “do you want to try now?”

@devilgirlcrybabiey @lordbugs @smiithys @xfangirl-trashx @passionateuchiha @scaramouchesfootstool @fifteenshadesofpinkk @lotus-sukimono @chloee0x0 @kenmaslov3r @bakugosgrenade @semifilms @sakusasdirtyragdoll @dai-tsukki-desu @Thathoneybee3 @momoewn @aintgeluh @dazaisfavgf @simpforerenn @crystal-lilac @vhenis @omiigad @kur0-kawa @semispilledcoffee @ksyhmm @idontlikeyourjob @sparrowb3nscloset @awkwardaardvarkforever @rory-cakes @prblmtic @dimslover @kuroaka @vampyrkookie @sunaslay @the-midnightskies @h0n3ysgh0st @lackey-laufeyson @bontensbabygirl @dira333 @Kamukayakmonyet @danyisapingu @isentsworld @lilithlunas @anime-ships-gay @todorokiskitten @kellesvt @scill-a @curiouslilbeast @fiona782 @cvhenia @mitskiologist

[formulawolff]

xi. larger than life - t.w.

pairing: female driver!reader x toto wolff

word count: 3.6k

warnings: cursing, banter, teasing, flirting, mentions of sex, a teeny bit of angst, THIS IS PROBABLY THE MOST DOWN BAD TOTO HAS EVER BEEN, lewis being a little shit, alcohol use, marijuana use, yadayadayada

prev. | next.

“hey, there’s someone here to meet you. i think you’ll shit your pants once you see him.”

alex stands beside you, beaming as you wave goodbye to ben. it was early friday morning, around nine-thirty in the morning. since it was a more relaxed day, with the practice session the only obligation in your schedule, you had your parents stationed at the lounge area.

they were seated with lily, who was very eager to spend some time with them. after all, since alex was busy, she had no one to talk to. so, you figured it would be nice if they all had one another for company. 

however, tomorrow was qualifying, where it would determine your place on the grid. 

which, to you, that lap tomorrow was everything. 

the defining moment of the weekend. 

“who?” you raise a brow, “who could it–”

as you glance over your shoulder, your heart skips a beat as you see james engaged in deep conversation with him, the team principal chuckling, pointing to you. the visitor is dressed in a cream suit, a white button-up underneath, jet-black sunglasses resting on the bridge of his nose. swallowing the lump in your throat, you stroll towards him, running an absentminded hair through your hand. 

“good morning!”

the words are almost a squeak, and you internally kick yourself. 

the visitor’s lips curl upward, flashing a pearly white grin, “¡buenos dias! ¡bienvenida a miami!” 

standing before you was none other than pitbull, mr. worldwide, mr. three-oh-five. rather than shaking your hand, he opens his arms, pulling you in for a warm embrace. you were probably sweating from the nerves and the humidity, but you didn’t care. 

while you had met celebrities in your brief time as a formula one driver, most of them were european. so, you weren’t really quite familiar with their fame or starpower through football, rugby, television, and well, business. there were so many wealthy moguls who came through the paddock at the races, james and alex recognizing them in an instant. 

on the other hand, you felt awkward, as you usually had no idea who that person was or what exactly they did. 

so, to finally meet someone you were familiar with and recognized, in your home country, was a moment to cherish. 

and well, you were a little starstruck. 

“i’m going to admit, i don’t know much about formula one,” the singer shrugs, “but i figured i would come through and say hello.”

“well i’m honored,” a giggle bubbles up in your throat, “have you met with any of the other teams?”

“not yet,” he shakes his head, shooting you a wink, “this is my first stop. mostly because there is a very beautiful woman who drives for this team. do you know her, by chance?”

your eyes widen as you realize he’s referring to you. heat rushes into your cheeks, your palms clamming up, “oh my gosh – um, –”

“my apologies señorita,” he places a tender hand on your shoulder, “i know you have much bigger things to worry about. i wish you the best of luck today! make miami proud!” 

“i will,” relief ripples as he leans in, pecking your cheek before waving goodbye, strolling away from the entrance of the paddock, security team in tow. 

“jesus christ,” alex’s voice sounds from behind you, “he would fuck anyone, wouldn’t he?”

“stop it,” you hiss, swiveling on your heel, “he was just being nice.”

“yeah, yeah,” alex scoffs, rolling his eyes, “anyways, i noticed the other day you posted another set of photos on instagram. one of them had that mystery man in it. who is he? why hasn’t he come to the paddock yet?”

“because he’s been busy,” that wasn’t a lie by any means. the team principal was quite busy this morning, merely a few paddocks over, “i will see if he come to the next race. i doubt it, though.”

“what does he do again?” alex inquires, sitting on top of some equipment, “i think you told me but i forgot.”

“he’s in management,” well, that was half the truth, “he manages a sports team.”

“what team?” 

“the new soccer team in st. louis,” firing back, you shrink a little under alex’s intense gaze, his lips pursed, brows furrowed, “since it’s only their second year, he’s been busy with promotional stuff. events, traveling, you know.”

“right,” alex sucks in a breath, “also, i know it wasn’t anything serious, but i was a little nervous when you posted those photos of the mercedes campus. i know there have been some rumors, but i would hope that you would talk to me if you were ever thinking about leaving williams–”

“oh, she’s never leaving us!” james’ voice chips in, the team principal coming up from behind you, “she’s stuck with us till 2026!”

at the sureness in james’ tone, your heart sinks. 

fuck, this was getting complicated. 

as you stood with james and alex, the topic shifting to the newest modifications on the cars, your heart thumped, pounding against your rib-cage. inside your mind, it was a tumultuous, chaotic mess. 

your heart yearned to be with toto, yet you were so comfortable with williams. you were happy here, really. you had an amazing relationship with james, alex was like an older brother, and you couldn’t be any more grateful for the support your team had given you. since the beginning, they had made it very clear that they were one hundred percent confident in your capabilities, often reassuring you that were a talented driver with a very successful future ahead. 

how could you just abandon williams like that? leaving them high and dry like that? with no warning either? 

you could only picture the disappointment, the confusion, and the bitterness that would plague james’ features as you inform him of your decision. 

god, that thought alone was enough to tear your heart into two. 

sure, there were rumors. since that post with the mercedes headquarters, fans were buzzing with suspicions that there were contract talks. that you were going to announce your departure from williams any day now. that you were going to join toto wolff at mercedes. 

since it was friday, there were only a couple of days before toto would ask about your decision. in that time frame, you needed to speak with james regarding the subject, fill alex in, focus on the practice sessions, make the most out of your qualifying lap, spend time with your parents, and most of all, focus on driving. 

with less than forty-eight hours until then, time was of the essence. 

and fuck, were you running out of that precious time. 

a few paddocks over, a team principal raises an arm, waving to fans as they shout, a driver on his left, the other on his right. 

“are you going to see her tonight?” 

lewis’ question is innocent as they enter the garage, members of the pit crew swarming and flurrying about. they chirp greetings as the three gather around the cars, examining them. 

toto exhales, inspecting the right wing, “you two are worse than the wags. i have never met people more invested in someone’s love life the way you two are.”

“well now that the cat’s out of the bag,” george crouches by a tire, “we get to pester you about it.”

the casualness of the conversation as the entire team was in earshot sent the team principal spiraling, his jaw clenching as bono approached them clipboard in hand, “you two also need to learn the importance of time and place.”

“we’ll just talk more about it later then,” toto curses as he notices lewis bearing a smug smirk, “after the practice session, we’re going to do a deep dive addressing your feelings–”

“good morning,” bono clears his throat, “did i walk into something important?”

“no, not at all,” toto shoots lewis an icy glare as george bites on his lip, stifling a chuckle, “let’s get to business. how are the cars?”

as peter began his report, toto couldn’t help but let his mind wander. 

besides, it was not like he could focus these days anyway. 

the team principal absolutely despised the hectic schedules of the race weekend. how he was constantly rotating between briefings, meetings with the engineers and mechanics, promotional events, sponsorship talks, and well, managing the two juveniles otherwise known as lewis hamilton and george russell.

then, there was the reason why they were all here. the race itself. 

now, he had another pressing matter weighing on his mind. 

three people were aware of his developing relationship with a certain williams driver. while he knew that two of the three would protect his secret, he was extremely cautious about the third. after all, the girl was only nineteen years old. she was young and impressionable. lewis’ little stunt with the cash proved that the girl was easily influenced. 

however, as much as he wanted to fire the girl, he knew that he couldn’t. 

at least, not during race weekend. that would be downright cruel. 

monday would probably be a different story. 

yet, if he fired her, would she just blackmail him? would she threaten to release the information involving him and his golden girl?

just the thought of her leaking that information to the press was panic-inducing enough. 

he could offer her a hefty sum to stay quiet. but he couldn’t do that either. down the road, she could end up exposing him for paying hush money. 

being romantically involved with a woman thirty years younger than him and offering his former assistant hush money to keep quiet on the matter? 

that would send his entire world crashing down, bursting into flames in the process.

he would lose everything. 

for the time-being, toto would just have to hold onto shreds of hope that his assistant would remain silent on the matter. maybe if he didn’t mention it, she wouldn’t either. 

he would be okay with that.

on the other hand, his drivers were adamant that they wouldn’t say anything, swearing up and down that if preserving this little secret was this important to him, then they would abide by his wishes. at first, george was hurt that he was excluded from the conversation. he was angry that out of anyone toto could have chosen, he chose her. 

yet, as toto recalled every little detail of his relationship with the williams driver, george’s bitterness dissolved, transitioning to some sort of understanding. toto thought he kept things brief as he explained his feelings, but the three were cooped up in his office for nearly three hours discussing the matter. 

besides, it wasn’t like he chose the williams driver.

it just sort of happened. 

now, here he was, pacing back and forth in the paddock, aching for even a glimpse of her. the rift between the two was driving him utterly insane, the team principal resisting the urge to take an impromptu visit, popping in for just a moment. just hearing the sound of her voice would be enough.  

yet, he knew he couldn’t. it would raise too many eyebrows. it would stir up too much gossip. 

“look at him,” lewis elbows george, “looking quite pitiful once again.”

“i feel bad for him,” george exhales, “i can’t be away from carmen for too long before going absolutely mad. i can’t imagine how he feels.”

“being so close to someone yet so far?” 

“exactly,” george nods, “do you think he’s in love? he wouldn’t say it directly, but whenever he was talking about her, i could just tell. i saw the way his eyes lit up, the way he was giggling like a schoolgirl, and the way he couldn’t help but fight a smile. and not just any old smile.”

“oh he’s totally in love,” lewis remarks, “do you hear how he talks about her? he speaks with this softness. it’s cute, really. it makes me want to throw up but it’s cute.”

“do you think he’ll tell her?”

as the driver shifts his attention back to the team principal, he tuts, “not now, but soon.”

“how soon?” george presses, “because he looks quite pathetic over there, like a little lovesick puppy.” 

“i’m willing to bet by the time we’re in monaco, he won’t be able to hold it in any longer.”

˖⁺‧₊˚♡˚₊‧⁺˖✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧˖⁺‧₊˚♡˚₊‧⁺˖✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧˖⁺‧₊˚♡˚₊‧⁺˖✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧˖⁺‧₊˚♡˚₊‧⁺˖

“i feel the need, the need for speed!”

letting out a shaky breath, your fingers grip the steering wheel, so tightly you were sure your knuckles were white underneath the fabric of your gloves. 

this was it. 

the miami grand prix. 

as you sail through the track, surprisingly, you feel nothing but peace, james’ voice over the radio barely audible. you felt like you were enduring an out-of-body experience the way your mind raced yet your body remained still, acting on pure instinct. your foot on the gas, tapping on the brakes every so often. 

this was lap fifty-six out of fifty-seven. 

the final stretch. 

you were almost there. so close now. so close you could taste it. 

behind you was lando norris of mclaren, max verstappen closing in quickly. charles leclerc tails max, desperate for the thrill of a podium. 

the anticipation was growing as you near the finish line, the checkered flag waving in the distance. 

was this a dream? were you really here?

squeezing your eyes shut, you blink, in a desperate attempt to distinguish reality from fantasy. yet, there’s a moment of silence as you make out the stands in your field of vision, as if everyone was holding their breath at once. 

then, it all comes bursting in your ears. the roar of the crowd. the thundering of the engines. the booming of fireworks. it was almost deafening as your car slows, foot easing on the brakes.  

“and she’s done it again! we just witnessed a moment in history!”

oh god. 

you did it. 

you won. 

euphoria fills you to the brim as you scramble out of the car, climbing on top of it. pumping your fists in the air, tears flood your visor, blurring anything and everything all around. members of the williams team come sprinting towards the car, hollering and shouting. adrenaline courses through your veins, a tingling sensation buzzing from your fingers to your toes. 

cameras flash as you raise your index fingers, members of the team following in suit. 

you were one-of-one. 

and by god, were you going to show the world that you were just that. 

the world was going to know your name, whether they watched formula one or not. your name was going to be broadcasted all over sports channels for weeks to come. your name was going to printed on merchandise, jerseys, on everything and anything related to williams racing. 

you made history today as the first american driver to win the miami grand prix. not only that, but you were the first american female driver to win two grand prixes consecutively. 

and god, did that taste so sweet on your tongue. 

jumping down, you’re greeted by james’ arms, the team principal rattling your helmet. 

“great fucking job! great fucking job! you are fucking insane!”

ripping off your helmet, you catch your breath, taking in the moment. this felt larger than life. like a dream come true. 

this was one of the best days of your life. 

if not, the best day of your life. 

and god, were you going to savor every moment of it. 

each and every second. 

the hours following the race were a blur. although you typically shied away from the press, you lost count of the number of journalists who approached you, answering each one of their questions with genuine, thoughtful answers. fans of all ages snapped photos with you, congratulating you with nothing but sincerity in their words. you signed some jerseys, some caps, and one woman even asked you to sign across her chest.

how could you refuse a photo worthy moment like that? 

your parents were immensely proud, tears streaming down their cheeks as they wrapped their arms around you. although you wanted to spend the rest of the evening with them, they urged you to go out and celebrate. there was always time tomorrow, as they were flying out early in the morning tuesday.

so, when the boys offered to take you out to a few clubs across miami, you accepted it. 

now, the bass pounded as you sway back and forth, screaming along with lando, oscar, carlos, charles, and alex as the music plays. lily tagged along, hovering alex, giggling as you chug another drink, the taste of alcohol lingering on your tongue.

“how does it feel to be a winner-winner?”

“pretty fucking good,” a few drops trickle down your chin, and you quickly wipe them away, “do you think i could win the next one?”

“ummm, let me think,” lily brings a hand to her chin, pausing momentarily, “yes!”

“you’re absolutely unfuckingbelievable,” lando nods enthusiastically, “you will probably win the world championship if we don’t up the pace!””

all of you were extremely tipsy, cheeks burning from the buzz of the alcohol and packed space. lewis and george came too, but they kept their distance, remaining at the bar while the rest of you were on the dance floor. 

not only were you tipsy, but someone had offered you a few puffs of a joint while you were in line outside of the club. actually, they offered you the entire joint because the second they saw you, they immediately recognized you.

at that point, you had already pregamed at the hotel with the boys beforehand. so, how could you refuse a few hits of a joint? that would have been downright rude. 

across the dance floor, lewis hamilton sits, perched at the bar, drink in hand. 

it’s not like he came along to purposefully watch the williams driver. he just wanted to ensure that you would make it back to your motorhome by the end of the night. 

cause god knew how fucked up the others were. they weren’t in any state to help you get home, safe and sound. fuck, none of you were in any coherent state to even call an uber. 

plus, god only knew if you would run into anyone from the press or media. and who knows what you would possibly say if you were asked about a certain team principal. 

“should i call toto?” george leans over, his voice slightly raised, “she looks gone.”

“hmmm,” lewis hums, his eyes following your every move as you stumble a couple of steps, “i don’t think a call would hurt.”

“now?” 

“now,” lewis’ jaw clenches as he sets his drink on the bar, “call toto and get my card, would you? i’m going to wrangle our newfound friend.”

“should we have toto come get her or what should we do?”

rising to his feet, lewis surveys the crowd. it was packed beyond belief, inches between bodies as they moved to the rhythm. toto meeting them here would be far too risky. too many eyes and ears. 

“call him and tell him that we’re going to help get her to the motorhome. or we can take her directly to his hotel room. i imagine she would prefer to sleep in her own bed. you know what? just have him meet us at her motorhome.”

“will do,” george nods, “i’m going to step outside to make the call. meet me out there once you find her?” 

“sounds like a plan,” lewis suppresses a groan as the lights in the club are dimmed, more so than they previously were. everyone blended together, forming one giant mass. 

this was going to be fun. 

in his hotel room, toto wolff lays in bed, laptop resting on his nightstand. although he was oh so happy for you and your accomplishments today, there was this aching feeling gnawing away at him, nearly consuming him whole. 

out his window, the lights of miami glitter, casting a soft glow over the city. the view from his room was oh so beautiful, especially at this time of night. however, it wasn’t nearly as stunning as you were. 

fuck, he missed you. 

more than anything. 

he longed to hold you against his chest. he yearned to pepper your forehead with kisses. he wanted you, desperately. 

actually, he needed you. 

but he wouldn’t admit that. 

suddenly, his phone buzzes, startling him slightly. plucking it off the mattress, the screen is illuminated with a photo of george. 

hmph. that’s odd. 

tapping on the green icon, the team principal brings the phone to his ear, “hallo?”

in the background, he hears a voice. not any old voice. your voice, barely audible, but enough that he knows it's yours. 

“hey it’s george. she’s absolutely obliterated right now. we’re going to call for an uber, and bring her to her place. can you meet us there? i think she really needs you.”

“is she okay?” almost instantly, he sits up, “how long will you be?”

“are you calling toto?” his heart flutters as she giggles, the sound oh so angelic, “oh my gosh! is he on the phone right now? can i talk to him? pleaseee george? can i? please?”

“put her on the phone, george,” toto brings a hand to his temple, momentarily embarrassed at the desperation dripping in his tone, “please.”

there’s a shuffling noise as the phone is transferred, her voice, so delicate and sweet, pours into his ear. 

“can you come over? i miss you so much. please, daddy. come over.” 

“oh shit,” toto squeezes his eyes shut as he hears lewis’ chuckle in the background, “i’m not letting that one go.”

“i’ll be on my way soon, schatzi. do you need anything? it sounds like you need some water and some rest.”

“ummm yeah,” god, she was going to be the death of him, “i do need one thing.”

“and that is?” he’s on his feet now, shoving clothes into an overnight bag, “what do you need, schatzi?”

“your dick.” 

˖⁺‧₊˚♡˚₊‧⁺˖✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧˖⁺‧₊˚♡˚₊‧⁺˖✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧˖⁺‧₊˚♡˚₊‧⁺˖✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧˖⁺‧₊˚♡˚₊‧⁺˖

taglist: @younxii @toldyouitwasamelodrama @kravitzwhore @persona1lies @pucksandpower @k3ira13 @prettiest-at-the-party @martwll @annewithaneofthegreengable @zoeyjadetice2010  @sinners-98-world @laura-naruto-fan1998 @nebarious @joalslibrary @swifth0lic @statuewoman @strangegirl974 @thatgirlthatreadswattpad @m-1234 @whoisss @msbyjackal

as always, if you would like to be added, or forgot to be added, please let me know! thank you for all of the support on this series! i love y'all so much! <3

[christinarowie332]

stupid horny fucks .

chris sturniolo x reader (smut)

warnings: accidental dick pic lmao . smut ovs ? quick fuck . possible angst if u squint . possible series . not proof read

in which : chris accidentally sends his bestfriend a none PG photo …….. resulting in tears of tension being released…. but was it a mistake?

ps : don’t send unsolicited nudes , it’s weird as fuck . this is heavily fiction . don’t be a weirdo .

————

the room was a calm environment, me , nick, matt and chris all sat in dim lighting from the tv , my legs sprawled over nicks lap on the couch as we all relax in our shared space. this was a normal night for us all , a movie in the background, snacks and drinks arrayed out as we all engage in absent minded easy conversations. chris was quieter tonight. i notice as i allways do , subconsciously focussed on him , it’s hard not to be when your surrounded by things that remind you of him , and of course himself . i’ve always felt wierd with chris . it’s not all the time . 70% of the time he’s just an annoying, loud , funny , sweet friend . same with nick and matt . but that 30% , that’s something even chris himself couldn’t get out of me . god he’s attractive. the way his legs are spread , his sweatpants pressing against his dick , the shadow of his bulge basically begging to be touched. his fluffy hair , swept against his features , the loose curls lightly lay on his forehead. his sharp facial features being illuminated by his phone screen as he looks down to it , his pink lips puckered as he concentrates. god everything about him just makes my skin crawl , goosebumps literally growing on the skin of my arms at the thoughts that run through my head. the way his veiny hands would look around my neck. the low tank top he’s wearing , and how his sleek collarbones would feel on my lips . fuck .

i cross my legs on nicks lap , squeezing them together to relieve the growing tension between them . nicks head turns towards me , his confused expression catching my attention. “you good?” he asks , shifting himself on the sofa , his voice making matt and chris glance over at us .

“i’m fine , just getting comfortable” i send him a reassuring smile after speaking , all three of the brothers attention going back to the tv or phones . thank god . i try to distract myself from my thoughts (chris), pulling my phone from beneath my body on the cushioned seat . i open snapchat and start scrolling through my recent snaps , random guys , my friends , team snapchat (wow i have no life) . i start snapping them back , ceilings , selfies . chris . i open his snap and it’s just a normal photo of him , sexy as fuck ,but just a normal face snap , i send him one back and carry on with the rest of them .

after a while , i’m watching a instagram reel and get a chat notification from chris . i look up at him with furrowed eyebrows. “chris i’m literally in the same room as you why are u snapping me ?” i ask , waving my hand around with my phone in its grasp . he doesn’t look at me as he responds, his thumb still lazily scrolling on his phone. i roll my eyes beofre opening the chat . said eyes basically fall out of my head when i open it . i audibly gasp and my head shoots towards chris , making literally everyone look at me .

“sorry.” i replies to their stares , i watch all three of their attentions go back to their original places , before chris’s head snaps towards me , his eyes wide and jaw muscles clenched . the photo he sent me , was probably the last thing i ever thought i would see . his dick . in all it’s glory , veins decorated up the shaft , towards his tip , pre cum dripping down the side . it was fucking huge . i look down at my now vibrating phone in my hand , chris frantically texting me .

chris | I DIDNDTTT MENBA TO SEND THET

: DONT FUCKIJG SAY ANYTHING.

: Y/N

: OLESSE

: THAT WAS NOT MEANT FOR YOU

: bro i’m so sorry

: please just forget u saw that

: nah im actually sorry

it takes me a few seconds to contain myself . before i decide to text him back .

me | chris bro it’s literally fine .

chris | i’m so sorry

: i’m acc so sorry

me | chris .

: i said it’s fine .

chris | are u sure ? i’m so fucking sorry .

me | why are u sorry ???? that’s a nice ass dick .

why the fuck would i say that . chris’s bitmoji stops typing . and just stays still for a while before i see a new message.

chris | my room . five mins .

me | i’m going now . follow me idfc

i immediately get up from my seat , throwing to phone to the sofa and twlling the boys i’m going to bed . i make it to chris’s room in seconds , leaving the door open and waiting for him there . it’s a minute until i watch him speed into the room and slam the door behind him , walking towards me and grabbing my neck to slam his lips onto mine .

the kiss is fast and needy , clothes being torn off as our lips collide and tongues explore each others mouths . he leads me to the bed in just his boxers , and unclips my bra before dropping me onto his mattress . he watches the recoil from the springs in his bed make my tits bounce , a small smirk playing on his lips beofre climbing on top of me and attaching his mouth onto my neck .

he pries out small wimpers as he bites and sucks on my skin , leaving bruises up to my ear and over my chest , my hips thrusting forwards to reach his bulge , aiming for any friction as the tingling between my thighs intensifies .

“are you sure ?” he breathes into my neck , it’s like all i’ve been relying on is pure instinct, his words barley make it into my head and i’m drunk in his touch . “yes fuck , just hurry up and fuck me” i reply, lurching my hands to his face and bringing him up from my chest, reattaching our lips . his fingers make his way to my clothed pussy , his middle finger drawing circles over my swollen clit . his muscles contort as he moves , curved shadows against his pale skin . the veins running up his forearm from his slender fingers .perfectly smooth and sharp at the same time . “so needy……” he says moving his fingers upwards before putting them under my underwear, running his cold finger between my folds . “and so fucking wet” he continues, making his way to my clit with his fingers , making me lift into his touch and moaning at the sensation. he continues his movements placing his knee forward towards my heat , slowly prying my legs open so he has better access , slowly increasing the speed making me a whimpering mess underneath him .

he pulls his fingers away and swiftly takes off his boxers , pumping his dick a couple of times before placing the tip at my entrance and running it through my folds . “are u one hundred perfect sure?” he asks , i nod frantically, readjusting my self underneath him making myself comfortable. “words baby , you know i would love to fuck you sensless but right now i need your words”

“YES CHRIS JUST FUCK ME”. i raise my voice , i see his eyes flicker and an eyebrow raise before he slams into me , a smirk growing on his face as he watches me sink into the bed , all confidence gone as he pounds into me. “JESUS FUCK , fuck” i allmost scream as he thrusts into me, my hands slapping his back , nails digging into his back at the feeling .

his hair flops against his forehead at each thrust , groans and heavy breathing falling from his lips. his hands hold his up as he towers over me , silencing my own cries of pleasure with his mouth on mine still sloppily placing kisses on my lips before moving down my neck. “your doing so well , i’m so close baby i’ve wanted this for so- fuck” he breathes out as he keeps thrusting , each minute pulling energy and sweat from our body’s as we both edge closer to our release . my hands hold his shoulders pulling myself into him to deepen his reach into me , feeling his ruthless abuse of my g spot , not allowing any thoughts to come from my brain . quite literally fucking me senseless .

“FUCK , chris i’m so close , CHRIS don’t stop please” i plead to him , making his speed pick up . “me too mama me too , come baby please” he says as his finger moves towards my clit , the circles matching his thrusts as he eggs my release on . i feel his dick twitch inside of me , at this i feel myself completely release around him , loud moans being silence as his hand rests on my throat as he kisses me through my orgasm . moments later i feel him also topple over the edge fulling out and feeling warm strings of cum coat my stomach and chest .

he flops down next to , his chest heaving and loose curls wet slightly around his neck with sweat .

“what the fuck just happened” i say looking over to him

he just stares at the ceiling .

what the fuck just happened .

————

i’m so drunk rn this is such a mess .

————

taglist :

@mangosrar @soursturniolo @biimpanicking @kvtie444 @kenzieiskoolaid @cabincorematt @urmyslxt @chrisenthusiast @mattsd0ll @iheart2021chris @recklesssturniolo @lovingsturniolo @loveesiren @paper-crab @daddyslilchickenfingers @strniohoeee @ermdontmindthisaccount @sturnphilia @bluesturniolo333 @lea0518 @chrisolivia4l @its-jennarose @kitaysworld @liz-stxr @rac00ns-are-c00l4 @mattslolita

———

side note : i love u all sm , like acc . sorry for the delay in the fics but i hate posting shit that’s half assed or rushed , and i like to make sure that my shits realistic to the boys . you know ? hope y’all still love me LMAO !!!

-🍼

[tip-top-cloud-surfer]

Never Have I Ever (Part 4) - Hangman

Pairing: Hangman / Civilian Contractor! Reader (Callsign: Dove)

Length: 3.9k

This work, all my works, and my entire blog are 18+ Only

Warnings: Female Reader with a Callsign and Family, but no Physical Description or Name; Not Necessarily Healthy Decisions/Coping Mechanisms; Slow Burn; Coworkers to Friends to Lovers; Oblivious Idiots; Excessive Pining; Jealousy; Adult Situations

Summary: Phoenix takes Dove out for a girls' day. Jake proceeds to lose his shit.

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3

Master List

“You’re not doing anything with Dove today?” Coyote asked Jake as they jogged their normal route. 

“No, she said that Phoenix was taking her out.” 

“What’re they doing?” 

“I don’t know. Dove didn’t say,” Jake stated, shrugging his shoulders. 

~~~~~

# 44 - Gotten a Pedicure

“So, what are we doing next?” Dove asked Phoenix.

They sat side by side at a nail salon, getting a pedicure together. And Dove, even though salons usually gave her anxiety, was enjoying herself. It helped to have Phoenix with her. 

“I thought we’d start small and work our way up,” Phoenix replied, turning to Dove. 

“Like what?”

“We’ll just have a girls day. Do stuff that you wouldn’t do if Hangman was with you,” Phoenix stated, causing Dove to nod. “Maybe stuff that you’ve wanted to do for a while, but just never got around to doing.” 

“I can think of a few things.” 

~~~~~

# 45 - Bought Fishnet Stockings

“I don’t know what I’ll wear these with,” Dove admitted as she picked out a pair of fishnet stockings from the rack. “But I’ve always wanted a pair.” 

“And that’s why we’re doing this,” Phoenix stated, steering Dove towards the cashier. 

~~~~~

# 46 - Gone Wedding Dress Shopping 

“Nat, I feel bad,” Dove whispered to Phoenix as they looked through the racks of dresses. “There’s actual brides here.” 

“So what? Just pick some dresses. You’re not hurting anyone.”

As Dove continued to browse through the dresses, a consultant approached them. She greeted them kindly and Dove tried to not sweat when she was confronted with the fact that she was not engaged and she was here with a fake engagement ring and a made up fiance. 

“So, you’re the bride to be?” the consultant asked Dove, who smiled sheepishly.

“Yes, I am.” 

“When’s your wedding?”

“Next summer,” Dove stated noncommittally. 

“Oh, so you have time. Tell me what you’re looking for.” 

Dove listed off some details that she had considered for her actual wedding dress. With those details in mind, the consultant led Dove and Phoenix around the store, picking out some dresses and asking Dove about her fake wedding. Phoenix was calm beside her but Dove was not similarly relaxed. 

“So, tell me about your groom,” the consultant stated, causing Dove to sweat some more. “Do you have any pictures of the two of you?” 

“Uh, yeah, of course, I do,” Dove laughed nervously. 

Shooting Phoenix a look, Dove pulled out her phone. The photo of her and Jake from when they were stuck up on the ferris wheel together the night before popped up first and Dove showed it to the consultant to get it over with. 

“Oh, you two are adorable together.” 

“Thank you.” 

“What’s his name?”

“Jake,” Dove answered honestly. Because it was Jake in the photo.

“And how’d you two meet?” 

“We work together.” 

“And how long have you been together for?” 

“Eight months,” Dove lied easily. 

Dove had been at her position at NAS North Island for eight months. It had been eight months since she had been assigned to the Dagger Squad. 

“I know it seems rushed, but—” Dove started to over-explain. 

“—When you know, you know,” the consultant assured Dove, smiling kindly. She lifted up the wedding dresses that they had already picked out. “I’ll go put these in a dressing room. Come back after you’ve done your last look through.” 

“Thank you.” 

The consultant walked away, leaving Dove and Phoenix alone for a moment. Dove could feel Phoenix’s gaze on her, but didn’t meet her stare. 

“Freudian slip?” Phoenix suggested to Dove. 

“Shut up.” 

~~~~~

# 47 - Gone into a Lingerie Store

“I already hate this and we’re only in the parking lot,” Dove sighed, staring up at the store.

“Why?”

“Because the women who work in these stores are the most judgmental, aggressive, and condescending salespeople on the planet,” Dove huffed, turning to Phoenix with an annoyed expression. “Why do you think I stay away from these places?”

“If they act that way, we’re going to tell them to mind their business. Now, come on.” 

Dove sighed, but got out of the car anyway. She followed Phoenix into the store and was relieved to find that it was not overrun with judgy salespeople. Then again it was midday on a weekday and there appeared to only be two salespeople in the entire store. 

“You’ll be fine,” Phoenix repeated, before dragging Dove deeper into the store.

~~~~~

Jake sat around with the other Daggers—minus Phoenix—for a lazy afternoon, floating around ideas for that night. Jake, bored with the conversation already, pulled out his phone and looked at Dove’s list for any updates. 

Pedicure . . . fishnets . . . wedding dress . . . lingerie?

Quickly setting his phone back down, Jake turned back to the conversation, trying and failing at looking casual. And to not let his mind wander too far. 

~~~~~

# 48 - Bought Lingerie

“Buy for yourself, not for anyone else. Buy something that makes you feel good.” 

“I’m just looking for something that I can actually get into at this point,” Dove replied, grimacing as she picked up another set. “I mean, what is the point of all of these ribbons? I feel like I’m going to trip and slam my head into the wall trying to get into this thing.” 

“Just find something that works for you. Don’t worry about all of this extra crap.”

Dove looked through what felt like half a store’s worth of options before she settled on a simpler set. Nothing too crazy, but the lace pattern was appealing and it was surprisingly soft. And the look of the bra alone made her feel confident about herself. 

If only she had something or someone to wear it for.

~~~~~

# 49  - Gone to an Adult Shop

“Come on, it’s no big deal,” Phoenix stated, pulling Dove into the store. “You already bought lingerie. This is just another step in that process.” 

Dove winced when she saw some of the items that were up on the wall. She turned back to Phoenix, practically clutching her metaphorical pearls.

“Where the hell is that supposed to go?” Dove glanced down at her pelvis before turning back to Phoenix with a slightly terrified expression. “I don’t have space for that! No one has space for that. Where the hell are your organs supposed to go?” 

“We’re not going for anything crazy,” Phoenix stated reassuringly. “Just trying to introduce you to some stuff to, uh, help you out a little.” 

~~~~~

# 50 - Bought an Adult Toy

“This one has plenty of different settings, so you can play around with it and see what works for you and what doesn’t,” the attendant explained, causing Dove to nod. “Everyone is different, so there’s no shame in finding what works for you.” 

“Thank you.” 

“See that wasn’t so bad,” Phoenix stated, walking with Dove after she picked up a box.  

“No, it actually wasn’t.” 

Dove was about to turn for the register when she caught sight of some handcuffs. The dainty, fluffy pink fur didn’t spark any interest in her. But when she found a more industrial pair, Dove couldn’t help but pick up a pair to inspect. She completely missed the look on Phoenix’s face at her choice. 

“Well, I guess it’s on sale,” Dove reasoned to herself. 

After a few more moments of quiet deliberation, Dove shrugged her shoulders and walked towards the counter with the handcuffs in hand. Phoenix stood there for a moment, still shocked at Dove’s choice. 

“It’s always the quiet ones.” 

After Dove paid for her items, they made their way back out to the car. Looking down at what she had already purchased that day, Dove quietly had a discussion with herself before turning back to Phoenix. 

“I have an idea. For what to do next.” 

“Of course. What is it?”

~~~~~

# 51 - Gotten a Tattoo

Phoenix pulled her phone out as Dove laid on her side, talking casually with the tattoo artist. When she saw that Jake was calling her, Phoenix excused herself from Dove’s side. Walking out to the parking lot, Phoenix answered the call.

“Yes?” 

“What the hell are you doing, Trace!?” 

“Start over, Bagman,” Phoenix warned him. 

“You’re making her get a tattoo?” Jake rephrased, though the tension was clear in his tone.

“I didn’t make her get a tattoo. This was her idea.” 

“You think that I believe you?” 

“I don’t care what you believe. It’s the truth. She said that she’s floated the idea of getting one for a while and she decided to finally do it.” 

“And you let her?” 

“She is an adult. She can make her own choices about her own body. And no one has the right to tell her that she can’t,” Phoenix warned him. “Including you, Bagman.” 

“What if she regrets it?” 

“She can get it lasered off. And we all know that Dove doesn’t do anything without going through the consequences a thousand times.” Glancing back at the tattoo parlor, Phoenix added, “And when she tells you about it—and this goes for all of you idiots—you’re going to tell her that it’s great. Got it?” 

Dove stepped out into the light as Phoenix wrapped up her phone call. Phoenix spotted her and hung up the phone without so much as a goodbye.

“How do you feel?” 

“It stings,” Dove admitted honestly, pulling her shorts down a little to show Phoenix the bandage, “but I feel . . . I don’t know how to describe it. Just . . . free.” 

“You are,” Phoenix stated, smiling proudly. “You’re in charge of your life. No one else.” 

“Yeah, I am,” Dove agreed, nodding with a wide smile. 

~~~~~

# 52 - Sang Karaoke in Front of Strangers

“And girls! They wanna have fu-un! Oh, girls just wanna have—that’s all the really wa-ah-an-ah-an-ah-ant! Some fu-uh-uh-uh-un! When the working day is done, oh girls, they wanna have fun!” 

Phoenix and Dove shared a laugh as the song finished up. The bar where they were standing was pretty much empty, but the one bartender on duty clapped for them. Dove laughed and waved to them as she hopped off the small stage.

~~~~~

# 53 - Sunbathed Topless

“I need to get softer beach towels,” Dove commented, causing Phoenix to pick her head up and look over at her. 

“Are you planning on doing this more often?” 

The two of them were out in Penny’s backyard to sunbathe in the afternoon. Dove shrugged her shoulders as she laid on her stomach, calm and relaxed. 

“Maybe. If I find safe spots to do it.” 

~~~~~

# 54 - Dyed Your Hair

Putting a trash bag over Dove’s torso just in case, Phoenix started lightly spraying the dye onto her hair. Dove closed her eyes and just let Phoenix work, and missed Phoenix’s concerned look as she finished up the spray. 

“Alright, how does that look? I think I’ll open the window.” 

Dove stood up from the tub and walked over to the mirror to stare at her new reflection and instantly grimaced. The red hair color was fairly bright. It wasn’t quite a fire engine red, nor was it orange, it was some other odd reddish color that Dove was going to immediately wash out of her hair. 

“Well, that’s off the list. Forever.” 

~~~~~

# 55 - Drank Pickle Juice

“Do you normally do this?” Dove asked Phoenix, sitting at her kitchen table with an old towel wrapped around her freshly washed hair. 

The spray on hair dye had come out easily, but she was going to have to scrub her shower later. Phoenix placed a glass in front of her and Dove picked it up to inspect it. Taking a small sip, Dove wrinkled her nose and slowly set it back down. 

“I think I’ve had enough of the food challenges,” Dove admitted, slowly opening her eyes. 

“You’ll have to tell everyone else that. They want to go to a new bar tonight,” Phoenix stated, showing Dove her texts with Bob. 

“A cowboy bar?” Dove read, looking up at Phoenix. “They finally let Jake have his way?” 

“Apparently.” 

~~~~~

# 56 - Ridden a Mechanical Bull

Jake and Coyote walked into the cowboy bar together and started their search for the other Daggers, who had all apparently arrived before them. 

“Found ‘em,” Coyote stated, nudging Jake in the side. 

Jake turned his head and recognized the woman climbing up on the back of the mechanical bull. And even if he didn’t, the fact that Phoenix, Bob, and Rooster were standing around the area and cheering her on would have cleared it up.

Dove focused on the task at hand, locking her legs around the bull and prepared to move her body in time with the bull. Jake and Javy made their way over to the area as the mechanical bull started to move. 

“Yeah, Dove!” Phoenix cheered for her.

“She can really move her hips well,” Rooster commented, staring down Jake as he spoke. “Don’t you agree, Hangman?” 

Jake glared straight into Bradley’s soul before turning back to Dove. She managed to hold on for longer than anyone expected, but with a quiet giggle, Dove dropped onto the mat. Rolling onto her knees, Dove crawled to get off the mat. 

Jake offered her a hand and she took it without hesitation. Hopping down from the mat, she moved to pull her boots on again as Bob climbed up onto the mat to go next. Dove stood up slowly, offering him a smile that seemed to make time slow around them.

“Long time no see,” Dove stated teasingly. “Did you miss me?” 

“Well, my day was a lot less entertaining without you in it,” Jake commented, causing Dove to raise an eyebrow. 

“What’s that supposed to mean?” 

“You make life . . . interesting,” Jake replied, missing the side eye that Coyote and Rooster shared behind him. 

“Interesting?” Dove repeated, causing Jake to wince. Laughing, she nudged him again. “I’m just teasing, Jake. Lighten up. Relax. Have a drink.” 

She walked past him, practically serene, and over to where Phoenix was standing, cheering on Bob, who was still hanging on. Coyote wrapped an arm around Jake’s shoulder and Jake promptly ignored his shit-eating grin.

“You know, of all the words you could have used to describe her, you chose ‘interesting’?” 

“Shut up, Javy.” 

“To think I took advice from you. No wonder I don’t have a girlfriend.” 

~~~~~

# 57 - Given a Fake Name

Dove stood at the bar with Phoenix, waiting to order another drink. The other Daggers were waiting at their table, which they could see from the bar. Folding her arms on the bar, Dove glanced to her right as a man took the spot next to her.

“Have you been waiting a while?” he asked, causing Dove and Phoenix to turn to him. 

“Yeah, but they’re clearly understaffed, so we don’t mind,” Dove returned politely. 

“Have you been here before?” the man continued. 

“No, it was recommended by one of our friends,” Dove explained calmly. She shared a look with Phoenix, who subtly shrugged her shoulders. 

“And what do you think about it so far?” 

“The mechanical bull is a unique touch.”  

“Have you been on it yet?” the man asked, leaning on the bar with a smile. 

“Yeah, earlier.” 

“How’d you do?” 

“I think they said nine seconds.” 

“That’s amazing for your first time up on one.” 

“Thank you.” 

“I’m Jared,” he introduced, offering his hand for her to shake. 

Dove quickly came up with a fake name and introduced herself back to him. Shaking his hand in return, she turned back to the bartender. She and Phoenix shared a side glance before Jared asked her another question. 

~~~~~

# 58 - Been Bought a Drink

Jake glared at the back of Jared’s head, watching the interaction between Dove and the stranger intently. It was a bar and Jared was a random man who walked up to Dove and Phoenix. Jake had every right to be concerned, he reasoned to himself. 

“I’m going up there,” Jake stated gruffly.

“Did he do something?” Payback asked, turning around to look at the bar. 

“He’s loitering.” 

“It looks like they’re just talking. Dove doesn’t even look anxious.” 

“No, he’s bad news,” Jake insisted. 

“Because he’s doing something wrong or because he’s flirting with Dove?” Coyote questioned, turning to his best friend. “Would you react the same way if he was showing more of an interest in Phoenix?” 

“I’m going up there,” Jake insisted, ignoring Javy’s question. 

Meanwhile, at the bar, Dove and Jared had finally waved over the bartender. Dove ordered her drink, but before she could hand over her card, Jared offered to put it on his tab. And even though Dove insisted that she could pay for her own drinks, Jared insisted. 

“My treat. And besides, it’s your first time here. I have to make sure that you have a good time, so you’ll come back again.” 

“Thank you,” Dove replied quietly, quickly moving into unfamiliar territory. 

While they waited for their drinks to be made, Jared continued to ask Dove perfectly normal surface level questions. Dove was analytical by nature and Jared didn’t seem to ask her anything that was a blatant red flag. But she was still cautious. The bartender handed over their drinks before Dove turned back to Jared. 

“Thank you for the drink, but we really should get back to our friends,” Dove stated politely, offering Jared a small smile. 

“Before you go,” Jared stated, causing Dove to pause, “do you think that I could get your number? Or maybe, at least, a dance?”

“Um,” Dove began, trying to find the right words. 

“She has a boyfriend,” Phoenix interjected, causing Jared’s face to fall. 

“Oh.” 

“Sorry, I was trying to tell you before you bought the drink,” Dove replied, half-lying, half-telling the truth. She did tell him that she wanted to pay for her own drink. 

“Do you guys need help?” Jake asked, appearing from the crowd. 

Phoenix rolled her eyes at the subtle territorial display—or not so subtle, depending on who you asked—that Jake put on. Jared, quickly assessing the fact that Jake was built enough to kick his ass if he really wanted to—and Jake looked like he wanted to—slipped away, leaving Dove and Phoenix at the bar with Jake. 

“Are you alright?” Jake asked Dove, who nodded in return.

“Yeah, he seemed harmless. We’re fine.” 

“You’re sure?” 

“I’m fine, Jake.” 

“I’ll take a tequila shot,” Phoenix told the bartender, who nodded and moved to pour one for her. 

~~~~~

# 59 - Danced with Someone at a Bar

“I love this song!” Phoenix yelled, getting to her feet. 

The Dagger Squad had settled around their table, enjoying their drinks and catching up, but Phoenix was itching to move. Phoenix reached over and grabbed Bob’s arm, practically pulling him straight out of his seat. 

“Let’s go dance!”

Jake watched Phoenix drag Bob off her before turning to look at Dove, who was already staring back at him. Turning so that his whole body was facing her, Jake leaned in closer to her so that he didn’t need to scream over the music.

“Do you want to dance too?” 

“Do you want me to make your night more interesting?” Dove quipped back, though she looked unsure of herself. “You know that I have two left feet, Jake.” 

“I’ll lead.” 

“If I fall on my face—” 

“—I won’t let you fall,” Jake promised, causing Dove to pause as her cheeks warmed.

“Alright.” 

Jake and Dove left the Dagger table and walked out onto the crowded dance floor. Dove reached out and kept a tight hold on Jake’s hand, worried about losing him in the swarm. Jake managed to find a space for them before turning back to Dove. She released his hand and smiled anxiously.

“Just follow me,” Jake called over the music. 

Dove nodded and just sort of swayed to the music. The crowd shifted around them and pushed them closer together. Jake put his hands on Dove’s waist to keep her steady on her feet. And Dove, either subconsciously or consciously leaned against him too, letting Jake wrap an arm around her. 

They swayed together to the music as Jake reached for Dove’s hand. Twirling her around gently, Jake wasn’t aware that he was giving her the most genuinely joyful smile and that his eyes never once deviated from her. 

From the way that her nose crinkled as she laughed to the soft look in her eye as she turned back around, he was entirely and completely captivated by her. 

Dove spun around again and laughed as she leaned against Jake, still a bit clumsy. Jake wrapped an arm around her waist, not just to steady her this time. But to unabashedly keep her close to him. And Dove didn’t push away from him.

From across the room, Coyote, Rooster, and Payback sat together, all quietly watching the interaction between Jake and Dove. Coyote appeared tired, not from the night or the alcohol. But from watching Hangman and Dove continue to tiptoe around each other. 

“Have we tried just pushing their heads together yet?” Payback asked, taking a sip of his beer.

“I’m really considering it,” Coyote replied, shaking his head.

“I can flirt with Dove some more,” Rooster offered, causing Payback and Coyote to turn to him. 

“I’m honestly worried he’ll rip your head off at this point,” Coyote stated, turning to Rooster. “He turns almost feral.” 

“I know. But I’m really enjoying pissing him off.”

~~~~~

# 60 - Shown Someone Else Your Tattoo

Standing outside the bar beside Jake’s truck, Dove turned around. She had to unbutton her jean shorts to do it, but she pulled the waistband of her shorts and her underwear down a little to show Jake her tattoo. She had placed a protective clear patch over it for her shower and just decided to wear it to the bar as well. 

“It’s not very large, but I’ve wanted it for a while,” she explained, causing Jake to nod. 

“What made you pick that one?” 

“I was always drawing stars when I was anxious when I was in college,” Dove admitted, glancing back at her tattoo. “And this was just a group of them.”  

“It looks good,” Jake complimented Dove, causing her to smile. 

“Thank you. I’m really glad that I got it, actually.” 

“It suits you.” 

Pulling her shorts up and buttoning them once again, Dove turned around to face Jake. She leaned back against his truck, folding her hands behind her back.

“Are you excited for the team trip?” 

“I guess.” 

“You’re the one who voted for the lake house,” Dove reminded him.

“I just didn’t want to go to Vegas.” Shifting his weight on his feet, Jake met Dove’s gaze once again. “But I was thinking . . .” 

“Yeah?” Dove asked softly.

“Did you want to leave maybe two days before everyone else? There’s a few more things I think that we can knock off the list if we do.” 

“Just the two of us?” 

“I mean . . . yeah.” 

“I’m just teasing you, Jake,” Dove mused, pushing off of his truck. “Just tell me when I need to be ready to leave, and I’ll be ready.” Offering him a soft smile and letting her touch on his arm linger, Dove added, “Goodnight, Jake.” 

“Night, Dove.” 

Jake turned and watched Dove walk over to her car. He stood there until Dove got into her car and drove home, trying to keep his mind focused. But that was becoming more and more difficult around Dove these days.

[wonjns]

caught you. – s.jy

pairing. sim jaeyun x male reader

genre. smut

summary. jake would’ve never believed it if someone told him his cute, innocent boyfriend was actually a horny mess who just needed to be fucked - that is, he wouldn’t believe it until he saw it himself.

includes. bottom!malereader, virgin!reader, corruption kink, blowjob (reader rec.), degradation

WC. 2.1k

°A/N. . . requested by anon ✓ “Hey~ So I was thinking to request a Enhypen Jake smut where y/n was a virgin but Jake found him humping his pillow after he came home stressed . And maybe if u can add some dirty talking, humiliating👀” || so happy to finally be posting this bc the male reader content has been so dry lately 😵‍💫 NOT PROOFREAD!

you had found yourself in quite the predicament this evening, regretting all of your decisions after telling your boyfriend you didn't need to accompany him to his recent music video shooting.

despite how excited jake was to share the world of entertainment with you and let you know you were free to join him on his schedules, you often felt like a burden. so, today you reassured your ray of sunshine that you would be fine at home, giving yourself a day to just lounge around and catch up on your favorite series.

but god was it boring, and damn were you horny.

your relationship with jake had been pretty innocent thus far, both of you radiating wholesome energy and hardly going further than innocent kisses and cuddling. but as time went on, you found it increasingly harder to control yourself around him.

maybe it was the styling or the overall confidence of this new era, but something about jake just had you constantly engaging in an inner war to not pounce across the table every time your boyfriend licked sauce from his lips at dinner or groaned after tasting good food.

yet, you were just too nervous to bring up your desires to jake. you were a virgin, and jake knew that, so he never wanted to make you feel uncomfortable or pressured into taking things a step further. in his mind, you would come to him when you were ready.

you, on the other hand, were petrified at the idea that your inexperience would humiliate you.

you knew it was irrational, but you thought your lack of knowledge would actually run your boyfriend off to find someone who could satisfy him. countless times you've caught his massive bulge printing through his sweats, and regardless of your desire to just take him whole and swallow him for everything that he's got, you had no idea how.

thus, causing all of your filthy wants and thoughts to be restrained in your mind in the deep hours of the night, your hand shoved down your boxers.

today was no different; your alleged relaxing day at home went to shit as soon as your phone dinged with photo jake sent to you on set. you couldn't believe all it took was one selfie of his smirk being covered by a lip bite to cling to one of his pillows (doused in the scent of his cologne and shampoo).

you changed into one of jake's oversized hoodies and stripped yourself of your shorts off until you were left in your boxers, throwing your leg over the pillow as you admired the selfie. however, before you knew it you had succumbed to even watching his fancams.

it was so pitiful, but the relief your clothed erection felt from the pressure of jake's firm pillow sent your mind reeling. the rocking of your hips only sped up the more you watched him roll his eyes or grab his crotch during concert clips -- and your mind wandered to how he was probably doing those exact things for the camera right now.

after losing track of time, you were growing impatient at how unsatisfying the pillow was becoming compared to how your boyfriend's strong hands would feel. your mild whimpers were quickly turning to muffled sounds of frustration, discarding your phone to ground your hips into the pillow harder. you squeezed your eyes shut in chase of at least some relief.

but it seems you had gotten too caught up in trying to find your climax, because you were frozen in your tracks after hearing a throat being cleared at the door.

a sudden wave of embarrassment washed over you as you turned your head to see none other than jake at the door, eyebrows raised in shock.

"b-babe," you muttered, scrambling off of his pillow as your cheeks burned red. "you-... you....."

you couldn't even begin to form a sentence or excuse, skin feeling on fire from the way he was looking at you. jake couldn't believe his eyes, the image of his sweet and innocent boyfriend grinding on his pillow like a bitch in heat.

"y/n..." he uttered just above a whisper, "what exactly is going on here?"

he was in shock, but he had been turned on in seconds. you think your eyes are playing tricks on you the way you see a slight smirk growing on his face.

"i just.... i.... how long have you been here?" you fumble, sitting up and sliding your phone under the blankets.

jake ignores your question, cocking his head to the side as he approaches the bed. you feel too humiliated to move as he kneels, his head at the same level as the pillow you had trapped between your thighs.

"keep going."

you furrowed your brows in disbelief at what you heard.

"wha-"

"i said keep going." jake cut in, eyes now dark and hooded as he stares lasers into your skin. "if you missed me so much to start humping my shit, i wanna watch it happen."

you had never once heard jake's voice in this tone, and you were too intimidated to respond. his whole aura took on a dominance unfamiliar to you, but you'd be lying if you said it didn't make your boner return in full force.

slowly moving, you took his pillow between your legs once more and curled deeper into his hoodie, unable to make eye contact as you started rutting your hips.

"look at me while you do." jake ordered, not a single waiver in his voice as he spoke.

your eyes widened in worry, silently refusing to look up.

"y/n, be a good boy and look at me."

the pet name caused your dick to twitch, and a soft moan escaped your lips when you remade contact with the idol's dark, lust filled orbs.

you could feel the heat of the room intensifying as you sped up your hips, jake looking down to your pelvis and taking in the show. you whimpered when he sensually licked his bottom lip with the same tongue you'd been fantasizing over for weeks. you felt so shameful, but were getting turned on rapidly as the seconds went by.

"j-jake, please." you whispered, causing his eyes to shoot back up to you.

"what is it, babe?" he responded, a devilishly teasing tone to his words. "what do you want?"

"touch me... please touch me."

your weak plea made his bulge solidify tighter in his pants, making him bite his lip just as he did in the photo while his eyes sized you up and down.

he was trying his best to hide how aroused he was, because he really wanted to watch you cum like this first, but the glint in your begging eyes caused him to lose all motive. your little bulge was just so cute to him, he wanted to be the reason you reached your high first.

"oh, baby..." he groaned, his hands lunging at you to grab the back of your neck.

jake surged forwards, connecting his ridiculously soft gummy lips with yours. he swallowed you whole in an opened mouth kiss, not even waiting a second to slip his thick tongue into your mouth and taste your desperacy.

you moaned loudly, hips stilling as the satisfying feeling of jake studying the grooves of your cavern overtook you. your hands gripped for his hair, pulling him even closer to kiss him back with a sloppy passion.

he pulled away for just a moment to look into your hooded eyes, nipping at your bottom lip just to hear you whine again. he caught you in another heated kiss while simultaneously shoving the pillow out of the way so he could mount the bed.

minutes later you were pressed deeper into the mattress by the older male without breaking the kiss once, your hands gripping any and everything they could feel. jake reached down to feel your hardened cock through your boxer, causing you to break the kiss in a groan.

"how bad do you want me to make you come, baby?" he teased, dipping down to nibble along your collarbone.

you wanted it so bad you couldn't even put it into words, babbling nonsense at him and throwing your head back as his large palm stroked you over your clothes.

"use your words, y/n. you were needy enough to try to fuck a pillow but now that i'm here you cant even speak." jake taunted, a deep blush returning to your cheeks.

you were so embarrassed by the whole scenario, but the way jake was treating you had your mind hazed in desire. the way your body shook in pleasure from his hands alone did all the talking for you, but he needed to hear it from you.

"s-s'badly, jake. please, i need you."

"oh, you need me?" jake taunted, slowly slipping your boxers off. "if only you had told me earlier, prince, i could have been given you what you needed. but you just had to be a needy little whore all by your lonesome."

he licked his lips hungrily once more seeing your erected cock practically begging for more attention. he pushed the hoodie you wore higher up your chest, trailing wet kisses down your stomach until he finally reached your core, flattening his tongue on your pulsing shaft.

you groaned noisily before biting your lip, tangling your hands in jake's curls and pulling. it was his turn to send a moaning vibration through you, your legs threatening to close around his head.

it seemed jake could sense it, because his strong grip went from his hips to your bare thighs, holding them apart and he licked up and down your sensitive cock.

"fuck, so good, jake" you breathed out, legs trembling at the sensation of his warm tongue teasing your length.

your boyfriend offered a hum in response before enclosing those plump lips around your member, sucking experimentally. you would've screamed if the feeling didn't completely throw you in a blissful haze right off the bat, your mouth flying open in a silent moan.

it was obvious that jake could tell how much you liked it, him sucking harder before wrapping his tongue around your cock as he continued. this only went on for no more than a minute before you were announcing you were about to come - which turned out to be a mistake as the idol ceased all his actions, releasing your length from those heaven sent lips.

this made you squirm desperately, tears prickling at your eyes.

"n-no! why'd you stop?" you whined to your boyfriend, who only smirked in response before kissing your tip.

"i'm just so disappointed you didn't tell me how bad you wanted this, babe." jake responded with a mocking tone, leaving butterfly kisses around the area you needed him most. "maybe i'm just not good enough for you..."

an army of no's fled from your lips, shaking your head as you gripped onto jakes broad shoulders.

"jake, please, you're the only one who can make me feel this way. please keep going. i promise i'll be good for you." you babbled, bucking your hips up towards his face.

this made jake chuckle darkly.

"well, if you promise."

and with that, he returned to his ministrations on your cock, sucking powerfully and bobbing his head along your length while holding your waist down. he brought a hand up to fondle your balls while drool started sliding down your member and onto the mattress, sending you into cloud nine.

it wasn't until he moaned deeply around your cock after getting a taste of your precum that you finally reached your climax, releasing your love liquids into his mouth while your whole body went limp.

the feeling was like nothing you had ever imagined, jake's eager tongue cleaning up the mess from your skin feeling much better than the tissues you'd sneak into your room.

you thanked the shaggy haired male as your eyes started fluttering closed, his thumbs rubbing gentle circles into your thighs nearly lulling you to sleep.

however a firm smack to one of your thighs jolted you back awake, looking down at jake in confusion.

"ah ah, baby. i think it's your turn to take care of me now, don't you think?" he piped up.

you followed his line of sight trailing south to the raging boner still standing tall in his pants, causing your mouth to water.

"theres a lot i have to teach you, baby boy."

now was finally your time, and you couldn't have been any happier that today of all days was when jake sim finally caught you.

© 𝐟𝐥𝐰𝐫𝐛𝐨𝐢 — all rights reserved

[yandereworlds]

they're all so cute ;0;

do you have any fun facts about dantae you want to share?

Actually, yes! Here's some Dantae Headcanons!

𖦹 Dantae is 100% a dog person. He owns two great Dane’s! One is named Marco and the other Leon.

𖦹 Dantae definitely prefers a s/o that’s shorter than him for many reasons, mostly because he likes being able to lift up his s/o whenever he feels like it and because they pose less of a threat and won’t be nearly as difficult to subdue when times call for it. I won’t say he’s entirely against dating a taller s/o, but he’ll definitely be more apprehensive

𖦹 Dantae adheres to an exceedingly strict diet, making a conscious effort to minimize carb intake. He's seemingly one of those individuals dedicated to going to the gym, exercising at least twice daily, and meticulously upholding a balanced diet. Should you find yourself in a relationship with Dantae, he'll undoubtedly encourage you to embrace his dietary choices, despite knowing your aversion to it, in one way or another. Whenever you complain to him, he’d likely say something along the lines of, “I just want to help you keep that perfect figure, Cariño. Don’t be so angry..”

𖦹 Regrettably, Dantae's persuasive nature doesn't end with his diet preferences. He would also try to motivate you to join him in morning exercises, though he won't be as overly insistent. His approach would involve incorporating you into his routines, such as doing push-ups with you sitting on his back or engaging in sit-ups while showering you with affectionate kisses every time he comes back up.

𖦹 Dantae values a significant other who possesses excellent culinary skills. After all, they say the quickest way to a man's heart is through his stomach, and that rings true for Dantae. Naturally, he would anticipate his partner to prepare meals for him throughout the day and keep the table full. These acts of service will genuinely make Dantae appreciate his significant other, especially when they are done without him having to ask for them.

𖦹 When Dantae isn't occupied with his work as a bounty hunter, he likely spends his leisure time at shooting ranges. He constantly strives to enhance his weapon-handling skills, though he usually prefers that his significant other isn’t present. However, with sufficient encouragement, he might occasionally bring them along, strictly as an observer and never to participate. The idea of his partner handling a gun or any weapon unsettles him; he firmly believes it isn't their place, and he intends to maintain that boundary, regardless if they are actually good at it or not.

𖦹 Adding onto what I mentioned earlier, acts of service form the foundation of Dantae's love language. Verbal expressions of affection aren't his forte; instead, he lets his actions speak volumes. Following a taxing evening of work, he might return home and tenderly massage his significant other's shoulders and feet, or take the initiative to handle some household chores if they are feeling exhausted. He might even draw a soothing bath for the two of you, embracing the opportunity to share a moment of relaxation and intimacy.

𖦹 Dantae is an avid horror enthusiast. He finds immense joy in watching scary movies with his significant other, relishing not only the thrill of the films, but also the comforting presence of having you clinging onto him. It reinforces his sense of being your primary protector, and there's nothing he enjoys more than that reassuring feeling.

𖦹 Probably takes photos of his s/o while they are sleeping and definitely has a folder compiled purely of all the photos he's taken of you over time.

𖦹 Dantae has a tendency to discreetly plant bugs or tracking devices on most of his darling's belongings. It's not that he doesn’t trust you, but rather he finds comfort in knowing your whereabouts at all times. Even though he could easily ask, that alone doesn't suffice for him. He's unlikely to reveal this behavior, and in the event that his darling discovers one of these bugs and confronts him, he won't try to hide it. Instead, he may openly admit to doing so, taking pride in the belief that he's merely looking out for your well-being.

𖦹 Dantae has difficulty accepting criticism, regardless of whether it is intended for his own betterment or not. Any form of correction or being told he's mistaken about something tends to trigger his anger swiftly. In such situations, he may become easily irritated or even display aggression, depending on the circumstances.

𖦹 Dantae is heavily family-oriented, he often puts them above everything else and prioritizes them. Dantae truly believes that there's really nothing else like family and if it came down to it, he would do just about anything for his family.

𖦹 Dantae adheres to a highly disciplined sleeping routine. He typically retires to bed between 9 to 8 PM, and as an early riser, he wakes up around 5 AM. Every morning, while his significant other enjoys a bit more rest, he engages in various activities such as exercising, tending to yard work, or handling tasks like fetching the mail. This structured morning routine allows him to make the most of each day and take care of necessary chores before his partner wakes up.

𖦹 Dantae's major pet peeve revolves around the silent treatment or being ignored, as he finds such behavior disrespectful. When faced with this treatment, he doesn't hesitate to become hostile in response. However, when it comes to his significant other, he may exhibit a bit more tolerance and patience, though even that has its limits, like most things in his life.

𖦹 Will always be the big spoon, it is non negotiable.

Hope this gave you a little more of an idea of the type of person Dantae is! Enjoy!

𖦹 Join our Discord server to get early access to art, polls, headcanons and more! 𖦹

[jadewolf22]

Hiiiii!! Could I request a Lady Jane and Wife Reader, with some domestic fluff (at least, as domestic as Lady Jane can get if you know what I mean). Maybe something like they've been apart for a really long time hunting bounties and manage to meet up for their anniversary or sm?

Happy Anniversary

Sub!Lady Jane x Dom!Fem!Reader

Warnings: Guns, mentions of extreme violence, mentions of scars, mentions of kidnapping/hunting children, smut, oral (J recieving), thigh riding (r recieving), fingering (J receiving), strap-on (J receiving), orgasm denial, ect… 

Summary: You give your lady a special gift for your first wedding anniversary.

A/n: Hi anon!! Thank you so much for the request! This is my first time ever writing for Lady Jane, so I hope I did her justice. I wasn’t sure if you wanted to include smut, but a married couple who hasn’t seen each other in a while probably wouldn’t be able to keep their hands off of each other…Word Count: 3,012

You couldn’t stop the sign that escaped your lips as you entered the threshold of your home, dropping your duffle bag and the bag of groceries you’d bought on the floor as you removed your jacket. The quaint little farmhouse that had been your childhood home was quiet, secluded by miles of dead fields and thick woodlands. You ran your fingertips over the bench along the wall, pleased to see that not too much dust had collected since your last stay. Work kept you away for weeks, sometimes months at a time and there was no one to stay and clean the place while you were gone. 

Moving away from the threshold and into the living room you smiled softly, taking a moment to walk around and glance at the multitude of pictures decorating the space. Most of the ones on the walls and bookcases were from your younger years; birthdays, vacations with your parents, school activities and accomplishments, holidays and such. But it was the ones above the hearth that you loved the most. Jane, your lady and beloved partner, wasn’t one for taking many photos so there were only a few on the mantle, and you cherished each one like they were diamonds; Your first date at the shooting range, one of her birthdays at the bar, your first Valentine's Day hunting in the woods, a few engagement photos taken while you were working a job together, and one of your wedding here one the farm placed at the centre of them all. It was your first anniversary today, exactly one year of pure happiness for the two of you despite the gruesome reality of your jobs as bounty hunters. 

The sound of tires against gravel drew you from your thoughts. You were sure you knew who it was but, just in case, you gripped the glock tusked into the waistband of your jeans as you moved to the window, peering out through the curtains. The sight of a gold car parking beside yours allowed you to relax, letting go of the weapon as you rushed back outside. You’d barely given Jane time to close her door before you were on her, strong, toned arms grabbing her by the waist and lifting her off the ground as you embraced the love of your life. A light chuckle left her lips, demanding that you set her down before she hugged you in return. 

“I missed you, my love.” you said breathily—lifting Jane off the ground was no easy feat, despite how strong you were—kissing her gently.

“And I, you.” she returned, cracking the smallest smile.

You couldn’t have stopped the large grin that spread across your face even if you wanted to, insisting that you take her things before escorting her into the house. Jane found it quite adorable how you insisted on pampering her with even the smallest tasks, such as carrying her luggage—granted, it was only two duffle bags, one filled with her guns and extra magazines. Once inside you added your own bag to the load and headed upstairs, setting the bags down on your bed before you pulled her to you and kissed her again, this one a little deeper than the last. 

“Happy anniversary, Jane.” you breathed.

“Is it our anniversary already?” she teased lightly, kissing your cheek, “My, does the time fly.”

“Indeed it does.” you agreed, moving away and beginning to unpack your bag. 

Jane did the same, the two of you unpacking in a comfortable silence. You’d missed her terribly, her presence alone helping to soothe the ache that had built up after a month apart. When you were both unpacked and her guns properly cleaned and stored away the two of you headed back downstairs, putting away the groceries and preparing dinner as you talked about your most recent jobs. Yours had been easy; a couple of greens that had escaped the compound two months back, but Jane’s had been far more difficult. She’d gotten stuck with a group of yellows who’d disappeared nearly a year ago and, apparently, they had put up quite a fight. You hated it when she took the more dangerous jobs, always afraid that one day, one of them might kill her. But you knew that Jane could hold her own and, the more dangerous the job, the better the pay. A part of you felt sorry for the kids the two of you hunted, but you knew the world was safer without them. Children with supernatural powers were a recipe for disaster.

When the food was ready the two of you sat down to eat, easily falling back into the domestic pattern you’d adopted. It was easy to push the exhaustion and anxiety of your jobs when you were like this, content and at peace in your little corner of the world. 

The meal was delicious, Jane's cooking far better than your own, and much more satisfying than the protein bars and canned food you lived off of while working. When you’d both finished, you took care of the dishes while Jane showered—despite how much you’d begged her to wait so you could join her. Once the dishes were done it was your turn to head upstairs, showering quickly and trading your dirty jeans and t-shirt for leggings and a tank top. Stepping out of the bathroom you found Jane stretched out on her side of the bed, damp brown hair cascading over her shoulders and a book in hand. You couldn’t help but chuckle at the sight of big-bad Lady Jane looking so utterly adorable and domestic in grey sweats and a baggy red t-shirt. 

She looked up from the book before you could hide your smile, muttering, “What?” as she set it aside.

“Nothing,” you shrugged, moving towards your side of the bed, “I’m just glad you’re home. You know how worried I get when you take jobs involving yellows.” 

Jane rolled her eyes at your protectiveness, mumbling, “At least they’re not reds or oranges.” sitting up as you fished through the drawer of your nightstand, producing a black box and smiling as you sat down, presenting it to her.

“Happy anniversary, my lady.”

She rolled her eyes again at the nickname, taking the box from you and opening it with a small gasp. Nestled inside was a golden glock, the handle engraved with little vines that made both of your initials. 

“It’s beautiful, y/n.” she whispered, looking up at you, “Where did you even—?”

“I have a friend who specialises in engraving guns.” you explained, trying to suppress just how happy her reaction made you, “I  swung by his place on my way back home… Is it safe to assume you like it?”

“I love it.” you knew she did, but hearing Jane say it aloud made you ten times happier, “My turn.”

She reached over to her nightstand, plucking a little red box off of it that you had, somehow, failed to notice earlier. A cheshire-like grin adorned her face as she handed the box to you, making you that much more excited to see what was inside. Nearly tearing off the lid, your eyes fell on the silver bracelet lying against the black velvet lining of the box. At first glance, it looked like a simple band but, upon picking it up, you noticed her name engraved on the inside. Smirking, you had her help you but the bracelet on, noticing just how snuggly it fit your wrist. You laughed, realising that her name would be temporarily branded onto your skin if you wore it for long enough—and you had no intention of ever taking it off. 

“It’s perfect.” you said softly, “Thank you.”

You leaned forward and kissed her again, smiling against her lips when her hand crept up your neck to thread itself in your hair. A groan escaped you when you felt her tug at your hair, making you kiss her that much harder as you grabbed her hips and pulled her across the bed to you, manoeuvring the both of you until you were straddling her waist in the middle of the bed without breaking the kiss. Jane whimpered a little as you manhandled her, her hands moving to the hem of your tank top and pulling it up your torso. You broke the kiss just long enough for her to pull the item over your head before your lips were attacking hers again, your leggings quickly following your shirt. Sliding your hands under her shirt, you gripped the waistband of her sweatpants, removing them and her underwear in one fluid motion. Her t-shirt was torn down the middle and haphazardly tossed somewhere in the room. 

You paused for a moment and sat up, marvelling at the beauty beneath you. God, she was a masterpiece. Ivory skin that seemed to glow in the dim evening light, pale freckles splattered across her chest and shoulders, icy blue eyes dark with want, thick, deep brown hair that seemed nearly black against the white sheets underneath her, and a perfectly toned body with small, perky breasts that were practically begging for attention. You growled, your lips and teeth abusing her neck and shoulders, leaving bite-marks and bruises for her to find for days after you were done with her while your hands palmed her breasts. Jane panted and squirmed beneath you, nails tearing down your back as he hand nestled itself in your hair again, tugging harshly and scratching at your scalp. 

“Please, y/n—God! I need you!” she whined, bucking her hips up towards you in search of some kind of friction.

“Miss me so much you’re needy already, hmm?” you teased, your mouth replacing one of your hands as you nipped harshly at her breast, causing Jane to release a low, near pornographic moan.

She opened her mouth to argue but, at that moment you plunged two fingers deep into her cunt and whatever she was about to say was replaced with a loud, broken moan. A steady string of “Ah, ah, ah”s fell from her lips as your digits pounded into her, your mouth moving to her other breast as your hand settled on her throat, squeezing gently. 

“Mh—feel so good, baby.” you muttered against her skin, slipping in a third finger when the first two began to move within her too easily. 

“Mph, please y/n, harder!” she cried as she felt her cunt streatch deliciously around your fingers, her nails digging painfully into your back and scalp as your digits slammed into her walls, “Yes! God, yes— Just like that—Ah!”

You tightened your grip on her throat a bit as you sat up, groaning at the sight of her cunt taking your fingers so deep that your wedding ring disappeared when you were fully inside of her, the titanium band coming out glistening with her arousal. Her cunt clenched around her fingers, her thighs tightening around your hand as she neared her climax but, just before she could fall over the edge, you pulled away. Jane went to complain, but the way your hand squeezed her throat in warning made her go silent. You licked your fingers clean, groaning at the taste of her on your skin. 

“Relax, baby. You’ll get what you want.” you assured, reaching into the drawer of your nightstand and retrieving your harness and favourite strap, “You’ve just gotta be patient.”

Jane bit her lip as she watched you attach the strap to your body. The black, 8-inch was not the largest she’d taken from you, but it was most certainly the thickest. She released a sound between a whine and a groan as you teased her with the tip, nearly screaming when you began to force it into her, your hand coming back to her throat. The silicone cock stretched her cunt to the point where Jane felt as if she was being split in two and she loved it, her body tightening as a searing heat spread through her as you buried the strap up to the hilt inside her, beads of sweat making Jane’s skin glisten. Once she gave you the go-ahead you set a harsh, ruthless pace, hard, deep strokes filling her cunt so well it was a wonder she didn’t cum right then. Your grunts and Jane’s screams filled the room and it was moments like this that you were especially grateful your house was in the middle of nowhere. No one but yourselves and the animals could hear you.

“Miss you so much, my lady,” you grunted as you thrust into her, one hand still on her throat, the other harshly gripping her hip, “Missed having your pretty little cunt stretched out around my cock—Fuck, baby, I missed you—!”

“M-missed you, t-too!” Jane stampered, her hands moving to your hips to help guide your thrusts, “Missed your touch—! M-missed you in me—Shit, y/n, please make me cum!! Wanna cum so bad—!”

“I know, baby. Just hold on a bit longer. You’re doing so well for me—” you praised as her hands moved from her hips, one grasping at the bedsheet, the other wrapping around your wrist. The black diamond on her wedding ring glinted in the light as her body jolted with each of your thrusts.

“Mmmh—Fuck, y/n! Please—please, keep going! ‘M so close—Shit, y/n! I-I’m—I’m gonna cum— pleasepleaseplease!”

“Just hold on a bit longer, baby.” you said, slowing down your movements just a bit and making Jane practically cry, “Just a bit more, my lady. You’re almost there.”

You removed your hand from her hip, sliding it down between her legs to rub gentle circles over her clit. Her whole body contracted with the added pleasure, shaking in desperate need of release.

“Y/N—!!”

“It’s okay, baby. I’ve got you. Cum for me.”

“F-f-f-FUCK—!” Jane finished with a loud scream, legs tightening around your hips, back arching off the bed. Stars exploded behind her eyes and, for a moment, she couldn’t see. Her body felt as if she were floating as she relaxed back into the mattress, brain fuzzy and her mouth numb, her throat already burning from screaming so much. You slowed down as she rode out her high, stopping completely and taking a moment to admire just how ethereal she looked like this, skin flushed and slick with sweat, her head thrown back in euphoria, eyes scrunched tight and jaw slack. Slowly so as not to jostle or startle her, you reached out and cupped her face, gently stroking your thumb against her cheek.

“You did such a good job, baby.” you praised, releasing her throat as her eyes opened, unfocused and her pupils blown out, “Come on back to me, my lady. That’s it. I’m gonna pull out now, okay?”

Jane mumbled out a hoarse, “okay” and you slowly pulled out of her, the strap coated in her release. You removed the toy from your body and threw it on top of your clothes to be cleaned later, bending over and placing gentle licks and kisses over her bruising neck as you moved to position yourself on her thigh. 

“My turn.” you husked, lowering yourself onto her thigh, “You just lay back and relax, baby.”

Jane sighed when she felt your slick core against her skin, whimpering a little as you began to rock yourself against her. Watching her unravel beneath you had made you so pent up that it didn’t take you long until you were nearing an orgasm, your breath laboured and thighs shaking.

“Mm, you feel so good against me,” you groaned in her ear, leaning forward and changing her head with your arm, practically laying on top of her as you rutted against her thigh, “So perfect. And all mine.” 

Jane whined, nodding frantically, heavy arms reaching up to wrap around your shoulders. WIth a final snap of your hips, you came, smearing your slick across her skin and you moaned against her shoulder. Sighing, you sat up and kissed her, your fingers dancing over her stomach. 

“Think you can take one more, my lady?” you asked gently, your tone making it clear that she had the choice of saying no, “I promise I’ll be gentle.”

Jane nodded and you smiled, kissing her again as you slid down her body, levelling your face with her soaked cunt. You licked a broad stripe up her slit, placing a gentle kiss to her clit, making Jane shudder. Smiling, you licked at her folds, slowly forcing your tongue deeper inside of her, your nose brushing against her bundle of nerves. Jane whimpered above you, hands threading into your hair to keep you in place. Still recovering from her past orgasm, it didn’t take you long to bring her to the edge again.

“P-please, y/n—” Jane muttered, tears slipping down her cheeks from the overwhelming pleasure, “uh-ah! I’m-I’m gonna—!”

“Go ahead, baby.” you whispered, plunging your tongue deep inside her. 

Jane came again with a shuddering moan, her release flooding your mouth and spilling down your chin. You lapped away at her release, cleaning her cunt with your tongue before moving up to kiss her again, sliding your tongue into her mouth so that she could taste herself on you. 

Pulling away, you climbed off of her, grabbed the strap, and padded off to the bathroom, cleaning yourself and the toy before returning with a warm washcloth, gently cleaning her thighs and burning folds. Taking the cloth and both of your clothes you set them in the hamper, handing her the water bottle on your nightstand as you set off all the lights except for your lamp. Once she’d drunk enough you helped her beneath the covers and crawled into bed beside her, covering her body with your own.

“Happy anniversary, Jane.” you muttered, kissing the back of her head. 

Jane hummed, releasing a large sigh before exhaustion overtook her and fell asleep. You smiled down at your wife, reaching behind you to shut off the lamp, welcoming the darkness as your eyes fluttered closed.

[orangepeetals]

THE GREAT WAR ꒰ᐢ. .ᐢ꒱₊˚⊹ (pt3

(playlist for a star series)

PEETA MELLARK X F.READER

pt1 / pt2 / next part

Summary: Peeta and Katniss must get married now to calm Snow or so they think.

a/n: i speak Spanish so the story was originally written in Spanish and then I translated it into English, plz don’t be rude if there is a mistake !! 😞

The engagement was made public, they made sure that each person in Panem knew about the wedding, they gave all the world’s attention to the show, the capitol made everything about the lovers of the 12th district, again.

Every thing that happened, every protest, every uprising, every arrest, they covered everything with the great ceremony of Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark.

Even with all the public attention they had, Peeta and you took advantage of every second they were hidden to continue loving each other as always, it was not just physical contact, you were really spending quality time, they took care of your flower garden in the victor’s village, as if it were about taking care of their love, they cooked together and every time they laughed together it was as if there was nothing else, it was almost like before, when they could, they escaped to some meadow where they could not see them, today was one of those days. The sound of the river was relaxing, this was accompanied by Peeta’s heartbeat, it was an orchestra for your ears, you were lying on his chest while the colors of the sunset were scattered throughout the sky, the breeze caressed your face, you smiled at the delicious sensation, Peeta left a kiss on your head and you felt that you could die there in his arms, you got up a little to be able to observe him but without separating much from his body.

“What are you thinking, loverboy?” You said while you let out a little laugh, you saw how he rolled his eyes by the nickname and bit your arm gently in a playful way before speaking. “I was thinking of us, I would like all this to end soon, I want to be with you y/n, I want us to have a family, I want to escape forever to a place where they can never find us, I don’t want the capitol to continue to own our lives, we should have escaped after your games.” He paused as he watched you with the most beautiful eyes that exist, stroked the back of your hand and left a little kiss in that place. “You don’t know how happy I feel every time I have to see wedding preparations, try on outfits and photo shoots but all that happiness goes to hell when I remember that it’s not you I’m marrying.”

Some tears fell down your cheeks at his words, it sounded so sad and lost, you wanted to protect him at all costs, why should something so beautiful feel pain? You didn’t have the words to answer him, you took his face in your hands and started a slow but intense kiss, you needed him to feel everything you were feeling, his hands caressed your waist, squeezing gently as they intensified the kiss, it was as if both were desperate to feel the other but it was still delicate and intimate. “Now it will not help us to escape, Peeta, they were going to find us no matter where we went, I have faith that all this will end at some point, I think that now Snow must be at peace with them getting married, he will not stop but at least he will calm the waters a little, while you and I will continue as we are, you know that you are mine and that’s what matters to me” Your words sounded soft, it was a great consolation for the blond, you laid back on his chest and dedicated yourself to giving him a lot of caresses, you knew that he was uneasy, all They were.

They had reasons to be…

——————

You decided to be alone for a while since Peeta had to keep seeing other things, your house felt alone and a little cold without his presence, you lay on the couch and turned on the TV, you didn’t usually watch TV because you really preferred to avoid things related to games or the capitol, not seeing that screen helped you get away from reality a little, that night you wished more than ever not to have turned on the damn screen, You saw Snow’s unpleasant face.

“The tributes will be chosen from those who have won before”

Your stomach turned. You appreciated oxygen too much at that time, because in a matter of seconds you felt your chest tight and as panic took over every part of you, you were so afraid, this feeling did not compare to any other fear before, not even when your name was chosen for the hunger games or when you heard Effie Trinket say the name of the person you love most in this life, now it was worse, there were chances that you would enter the quarter quell and you knew that if you were chosen, Peeta would enter at all costs, he would give your life for You without even hesitation. You needed to do something but you couldn’t think, you were on the floor while you cried and screamed in pain, the panic had paralyzed each of your senses, you lost track of time.

—————

You were walking towards Haymitch’s house, you had hit your head so many times that your forehead was bleeding and you were a total mess, you were pale, your hair tangled from pulling it so much, you looked horrible, the blows had left you stunned but you appreciated it, it was just what you needed, not to think. The door of the house was open, you entered without asking and saw him drinking as usual.

“It seems that someone didn’t like the news... your forehead is bleeding” Haymitch’s drunken words resonated in your head, you just let out a laugh, it was obvious that you knew you were bleeding.

“I need you to offer yourself as a tribute if they choose Peeta, it is obvious that Katniss will come out as a tribute, They want her to fight, Snow hates her and wants to see her dead, so I will offer myself, instead for Snow, Peeta is not a threat” Your voice sounded lost but you had no doubts about everything you said, you were sorry to lose Haymitch but nothing mattered if Peeta was safe, even your life did not matter.

“Wow... not even a ‘please’, sweetheart.” He laughed and drank more of his glass, you ignored his words and waited for some useful answer. “Peeta came half an hour ago to beg me to save you while you were trying to commit suicide even without knowing if you can get in there or not, Katniss kept asking me to help them, it seems that today is my day to be the most sought-after man in Panem but I will do it, because you deserve it and because I need to give a little emotion to my life” His words were firm, apparently he had already made the decision a lot before you asked him for something.

“Thank you, Haymitch, seriously, I’m very afraid” You hugged him and sobbed him, you felt your head burn from the blows you had given yourself and for having cried for a long time.

“You need to see Peeta, that he help you heal that wound before you pass out again or something like that” His words reminded you of that time you fainted from anxiety when Peeta was chosen in the reaping. You nodded in response to his words and went out in the direction of your boy’s house. As soon as you saw it, your heart broke into a thousand parts, he looked so sad and worried, he ran to meet you when it noticed all the blood on your face. “y/n, are you okay? Hey, honey, what happened?” His voice sounded as if he wanted to cry again, you regretted being so unconscious as to be able to respond, you simply let yourself fall into his arms, Peeta carried you to the house and took care of you with all the love in the world, he bathed you and took care of your wounds, you loved that it to be like that, actions like these made you fall in love with him every day, you slept entangled in his body, you didn’t want to leave him, you needed to be as close to him as possible.

————————

Peace was ephemeral, now you were walking towards the stage, escorted with peacekeepers, you knew what you were going to, so you walked with your forehead up, strutting that you were going to die and that you were not afraid of that.

Lie.

You knew that at all costs you were going to enter that arena again, being elected or voluntary, you had spoken to Katniss, you begged her not to offer herself in case your name came out, she refused but you managed to convince her, although this time you did not trust her word, it was sure that she had made some promise with Peeta but it certainly did not worry you, you knew that it was Katniss who they wanted to kill.

Effie’s voice this time was not celebratoous, it sounded more like a sad attempt to make things more lively but it wasn’t going to turn out, everyone knew it was unfair for them to come back, especially for Katniss and Peeta who had just gone through this.

“Katniss Everdeen” Effie’s voice exclaimed, you felt Peeta’s gaze on you and in a matter of seconds you had offered and you were already ahead, there was no turning back. Although there was a certain possibility that Peeta would not be elected, you didn’t want to risk it, you needed to know that it would be fine.

“Haymitch Abernathy” You let out a sob when you heard the name, you knew what was coming, Haymitch watched you with sadness, how much pain. Peeta offered himself as a tribute automatically.

You and Peeta gave each other a handshake as a greeting for being the tributes for the quarter quell, you hated that the odds were not in your favor, again. You were going straight to death, you could never hurt Peeta. The next thing was you on the train, back to the capitol.

[jahayla-parker]

📱 - i loved the freddy x sister oneee so what if it's 100% freddy x sister and just their playful banter back and forth🥰

Hope you like it

Sassing Siblings : Freddy Carter x Sister!Reader SMAU

Desc: Freddy and his sister engage in playful sibling banter on their social media platforms

Warnings: middle finger emoji, bantering, ‘bullying’

Notes: I know the Freddy photo is YSL not Prada but I switched it for the fic.

liked by carolinemford, yourusername, amitasuman_ and 874,256 others

freddycarter1: thank you Paris ❤️

view all 134,354 comments

yourusername: awe they captured you in your natural element; confused 😌

freddycarter1: 🙄 hilarious

kittheyounger: 😂👌🏿

carolinemford: ❤️

amitasuman_: what are you thinking about here?

yourusername: his wonderful sister of course 😉

freddycarter1: that would explain the confusion you referenced 😌

liked by carolinemford, prada, amitasuman_ and 568,138 others

yourusername: Brought to you by Prada 😘

view all 246,189 comments

carolinemford: y/n, you’re stunning 🤩

yourusername: tysm 🥰

amitasuman_: sporting Prada?! Congrats❤️

calahan.skogman: woah, congratulations y/n!

freddycarter1: put more clothes on 🙈

yourusername: 🖕 you’re just upset Prada chose me over you 😌

freddycarter1: no, I’m upset seeing my sister half naked on my instagram 🙄

carolinemford: Freddy relax, it’s tastefully done

yourusername: thank you Caroline 🤗 yet another person who chose me over you Freddy 😝

freddycarter1: 🙄🙄🙄 I suppose your face does look pretty

amitasuman_: such a Kaz-like compliment 😂

liked by carolinemford, yourusername, kittheyounger, and 532,167 others

amitasuman_: First film roll with the finest angels one could wish for

#sixofcrows

Have a lot to learn 😊

view all 325,781 comments

kittheyounger: Beautiful work x

sujaya_dasgupta: Beautiful

yourusername: one tip, for the first photo it would help to choose a better subject to shoot 😉 otherwise, these are incredible ❤️

freddycarter1: quit slagging off y/n 💁‍♂️

liked by prada, yourusername, carolinemford, and 754,256 others

freddycarter1: @/Prada

view all 634,246 comments

yourusername: copycat 🙄

freddycarter1: “first the worst, second the best” 😌

yourusername: beg your pardon? 😳

carolinemford: Freddy, rein it in 🤦‍♀️

archierenaux3: 🤤

prada: family of models ❤️

liked by freddycarter1, yourusername, amitasuman_, and 734,286 others

carolinemford: thank you IGH ❣️

view all 534,178 comments

yourusername: Caroline! You look stunning as always 😍

carolinemford: thank you love! ❤️ so glad to get you can you my little sister now 💍

yourusername: I’m glad you settled 😘

freddycarter1: this was a cute interaction… at first 🙄

yourusername: not sure what you’re referring to Freddy 🤷‍♀️😇

amitasuman_: lovely couple!

yourusername: @/freddycarter1 why do you look like a cardboard cutout of yourself? 🧐

freddycarter1: 😂 I didn’t see that one coming 👏

yourusername: I can’t get over how awkward you look here 💀 I know Caroline is stunning, but get it together you creep 😂

freddycarter1: 🙄 says the girl stalking her sister-in-law’s photo to comment again 💁‍♂️

liked by carolinemford, freddycarter1, daniellegalligan_, and 865,257 others

yourusername: Sneak peak 👑 w/ @/tchalamet coming to AppleTV soon 💙

view all 754,296 comments

tchalamet: love having you as a co-star 🥰

freddycarter1: @/tchalamet you’re in this too 🤯 I guess I’ll actually watch it then

yourusername: geeee, thanks 🙄 you’re such a great brother

freddycarter1: why thank you, I try 🥰😌

daniellegalligan_: y/n as a princess? Yessss!!! 💙

liked by freddycarter1, yourusername, kittheyounger, and 874,256 others

jacktwolfe: had a ton of fun at the S&B convention in Paris with my crow family ❤️

view all 134,354 comments

freddycarter1: ❤️

yourusername: aweee Jack, you’re so precious!

freddycarter1: I’m in this too 💁‍♂️

yourusername: 🤷‍♀️

jacktwolfe: hehe, thank you y/n ❤️

yourusername: of course, you’re the best brother ever 🥰

freddycarter1: ruuude, with a capital r

yourusername: you didn’t even use a capital R 🤦‍♀️😂

amitasuman_: love this!

liked by carolinemford, freddycarter1, kittheyounger, and 684,257 others

yourusername: ☕️

view all 536,268 comments

freddycarter1: you could’ve called me to keep you company after being stood up 💁‍♂️

yourusername: I wasn’t stood up 🙄

freddycarter1: riiight, sorry sis

yourusername: who do you think took the photo Freddy?

freddycarter1: you, duh. I believe you could manage that y/n ❤️

yourusername: not everyone goes around talking ‘candids’ of themselves Freddy, that’s just you ❤️

daniellegalligan_: I took the photo Freddy, leave your beautiful sister alone 🤺

amitasuman_: love this ❤️

carolinemford: radiant ❣️

liked by carolinemford, freddycarter1, tchalamet, and 874,256 others

yourusername: 👸💙

view all 634,354 comments

tchalamet: 🙇‍♂️

carolinemford: new favorite Cinderella ❣️

freddycarter1: fitting role 😌❤️

yourusername: oh?👀

freddycarter1: you’ve always acted like a princess, about time you get paid for it 😉

yourusername: 😂 bite me

daniellegalligan_: so hyyyppeed! 💙💙💙

Freddy Carter Navigation

My Main Masterlist Navigation (All My Works)

Tag: @b3kk3r-by-br3kk3r @ell0ra-br3kk3r @missdreamofendless @alex-kazbrekkersimp @nikfigueiredo

[mariacallous]

In the early morning of Jan. 11, a 21-year-old man was fatally shot in the West Bank settlement of Maale Adumim, just across the Green Line from Jerusalem. It was revealed that one of the suspects had recently acquired his gun license, thanks to National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir’s newly relaxed firearms policy.

The fear and tension across Israel since the massacre by Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023, mixed with the troubling turn internal security policies have taken, have created an atmosphere of armed paranoia—and led to the spread of armed militias with little training and an aggressive mindset.

Oct. 7 shattered the sense of personal security across the country, and many Israelis have started to organize their own ad hoc security arrangements in both villages and kibbutzim. This response includes a significant surge in applications for gun licenses, with more than 270,000 Israelis applying between Oct. 7 and Dec. 25. Police officials report a remarkable growth in civilian rapid response teams, which have expanded from 70 units to 900, incorporating more than 10,000 volunteers.

The widespread increase in firearms possession is not solely a spontaneous reaction from a worried populace but rather the result of pro-gun policies championed by the hard right, which have intensified under Ben-Gvir’s influence in the past year. This policy shift toward greater gun accessibility and ownership is a calculated move aligned with the hard right’s agenda, rather than just a direct response to public concern.

Ben-Gvir has advocated for increased private gun ownership, significantly relaxing the country’s traditionally stringent gun control laws and easing the rules of engagement for police officers. Last August, Ben-Gvir publicly commended an Israeli settler for fatally shooting a Palestinian teenager during a clash near the West Bank town of Burqa. After Oct. 7, Ben-Gvir called for a national campaign to give weapons to Israelis. His former cover photo on X, formerly Twitter, said in Hebrew, “Israel is arming!”

“People have lost their sense of security and felt that having a gun would bring it back. Ben-Gvir exploited this to advance his agenda,” said Wisal Raed, the coordinator of a project to combat violence and crime in Arab society at Sikkuy-Aufoq, a Jewish and Arab nonprofit organization.

“We need to go back to 20 years ago, to the Second Intifada,” said Eitay Mack, a human rights lawyer who writes about Israel’s gun industry. “In response to the Intifada, Israel saw a proliferation of security guards in public spaces, from cafes to malls to train stations, with tens of thousands of them armed. Fast-forward to the ‘knife intifada’ [a period of increased Israeli-Palestinian violence starting in October 2015, characterized by numerous stabbing attacks by Palestinians against Israelis] and the late 2010s, when then-Internal Security Minister Gilad Erdan passed a law lowering the bar for who can get a gun. Then, in the last elections in November 2022, Ben-Gvir ran on relaxing these laws even more. For the hard right, weapons aren’t a pragmatic necessity but an ideological belief.”

Ben-Gvir’s agenda was clear long before Oct. 7. After he took office in late 2022, he ordered the police to abolish the practice of requiring citizens involved in an attack to hand over their personal weapons for extended examination and investigation. During the protests that swept Israel in 2023, Ben-Gvir worked to oust Tel Aviv District Commander Ami Eshed, whom he saw as siding with anti-government protesters. Meanwhile, Israel saw its deadliest year on record among Arabs, with 244 killings attributed to crime and protection issues—six times the number among Jews—and a mere 10 percent solve rate, less than half the solve rate for cases involving Jews.

“Ben-Gvir has deliberately weakened the police to establish a ‘national guard.’ The privatization of law enforcement leaves citizens with no choice but to protect themselves,” Mack said.

For Ben-Gvir and his allies in the gun lobby, Oct. 7 was an opportunity. The new regulations initiated by Ben-Gvir have significantly reduced the criteria for obtaining firearms. Among other measures, they allow volunteers in rescue organizations (such as Israel’s national medical emergency, disaster, ambulance, and blood service) to obtain gun licenses; lower the certification threshold from “Rifleman 07” (a soldier who’s skilled in combatant training and advanced weaponry) to “Rifleman 02” (a noncombat soldier who has gone through basic training); and permit, from the age of 27, even those who have not served in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and reside in eligible settlements (those near the Gaza border, including Ofakim, Netivot, and Sderot) to acquire a handgun license. Licensing regulations have been loosened, and in-person interviews are no longer required.

Members of kibbutzim and moshavim can now obtain handgun licenses through their agricultural associations. This move, alongside the establishment of hundreds of rapid response teams equipped with rifles, has created a sense of an “arming nation.”

In a Jewish Power party meeting last October, Ben-Gvir doubled down on his gun policies, saying, “The war’s onset confirmed our belief: Having a weapon in every location can save lives.”

But guns aren’t for everyone. The licenses of several members of the anti-Netanyahu group “Brothers in Arms” were taken away for “conspicuous reasons,” with members saying they were targeted for their anti-government stance.

Ben-Gvir also put out a directive permitting police to use live fire against those blocking roads, thereby hindering the movement of IDF personnel and access to settlements. Critics of this directive argued that it was meant to target anti-government protesters and Arab communities. When Arab members of Israel’s parliament, or Knesset, planned a protest to call for a cease-fire, they were detained by the police.

The new militias—and their weapons—are visible on the streets, to public alarm. Tel Aviv council member Tzipi Brand sent a letter to Mayor Ron Huldai protesting the actions of rapid response units that arbitrarily stop Arab residents, causing terror among the population. One of these units includes “The Shadow,” a rap artist with extreme-right views and a notoriously violent following.

Crime is also up. In early 2024, a woman was sexually assaulted at gunpoint allegedly by a man who had obtained his weapon after Ben-Gvir loosened regulations.

Guns have also not proved effective even in stopping terrorism. On Nov. 30, 2023, a shooting attack at the entrance to Jerusalem resulted in the deaths of four Israelis, including a tragic case of mistaken identity. Yuval Doron Castleman, a 38-year-old lawyer from Jerusalem’s outskirts, was among those killed. Castleman, who was at the scene, used his weapon to engage the attackers. However, in a distressing turn of events, he was mistakenly shot by Aviad Frija, a reservist soldier.

When the soldiers arrived, Castleman knelt down, discarded his weapon, and identified himself as Israeli, yet Frija, who is linked to the Hilltop Youth—a group of young extremist settlers—fatally shot him. Frija served in the “Sfar Hamidbar” (“Desert Frontier”) unit, a military group formed to integrate Hilltop Youth members into army service in the West Bank. This unit has faced scrutiny and is under investigation for alleged torture of Palestinians and violence against leftist activists.

Frija was initially placed under house arrest but was released in early January amid a controversial investigation. Although the police initially stated that an autopsy was unnecessary, Castleman’s body was later exhumed when the Military Police disagreed and determined it was needed. The subsequent examination revealed bullets from an M16, the same make of Frija’s gun.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, already condemned by many Israelis for the security failures leading up to Oct. 7 and the subsequent handling of the war, has faced additional criticism for his perceived dismissive reaction to Castleman’s death. Responding to a question about the accidental killing, Netanyahu remarked, “That’s life.”

Following the shooting, the IDF clarified that its engagement rules prohibit shooting at suspects with raised hands. They announced the “preliminary arrest” of Frija, who later said he acted in self-defense.

“Reservists didn’t used to take guns off the base,” Mack said. “It’s a result of the chaotic environment coupled with right-wing policies. Rapid response units are supposed to be linked to the police. They are supposed to train them. But with so many units and so many weapons, the police can’t oversee all [of] them.”

With so many guns and groups of citizens organizing, there’s a concern that some of these guns are falling into the hands of fringe right elements: Rafi Kedoshim, a member of the Likud party who has a history of incarceration and is alleged to be the head of a crime family, runs a rapid response biker unit. Moshe Ben Zikri, associated with the Jewish Power party and known for his right-wing activism, also leads a rapid response team. Ben Zikri, who has been arrested for protesting LGBTQ Pride events and interfaith marriages, heads a unit that the mayor of Harish says has become uncontrollable and refuses to cooperate with municipal authorities. Another group, the Barel Unit, was established by Jewish Power MK Almog Cohen to bring “security back to the Negev.”

For Arabs in Israel, the civilian arms race is particularly terrifying because the incitement against them is coming from the top, whether from Netanyahu, who in 2015 claimed “droves of Arabs” were heading to the polls to oust him, or Ben-Gvir, a Kahanist who was convicted of racist incitement, or Cohen, who made animal noises at Arab MKs during a parliamentary session last year.

Arab-Jewish relations in Israel have always been fragile, but since Oct. 7, they have reached a critical point. Many Arabs perceive increasing hostility from higher authorities, as shown in the recent arrests of Arabs over social media posts and likes. These incidents contribute to a growing sense of unease among everyday Arabs, who feel threatened in a public sphere brimming with firearms. “It feels like all these weapons are aimed at me,” said Raed, the Sikkuy-Aufoq coordinator.

Scrutiny over Ben-Gvir’s policies has been mounting. In late November, the Israeli daily Haaretz reported that the Ministry of National Security had improperly appointed staff to approve gun licenses. In response to the high demand, Ben-Gvir had called for an increase in the number of clerks in the Firearm Licensing Department to process these licenses.

The responsibilities of these clerks include assessing the physical and mental fitness of applicants and verifying their training. But it turned out that training was inadequately short, lasting only one day instead of the usual month, and was done from within the ministry. Following these revelations, Yisrael Avisar, the head of Firearm Licensing Department, resigned.

Ben-Gvir also came under scrutiny from the White House when pictures of him distributing assault rifles to civilians at a political event were circulated online. In response, the White House delayed a shipment of thousands of U.S.-made rifles, worried that they would fall into the hands of settlers.

In early 2023, MK Mickey Levy of the Yesh Atid party petitioned Israel’s High Court against a law expanding Ben-Gvir’s powers over the civilian police. Following the Haaretz revelations, Levy and MK Gilad Kariv of the Labor Party also called on Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara to consider a criminal investigation regarding the issuance of licenses in the Ministry of National Security.

The widespread availability of guns raises the alarming prospect of political violence, including by the police, which has intensified over the past year due to the movement against judicial reforms and the war. Recently, right-wing protesters have been targeting the families of hostages, accusing them of undermining Netanyahu’s government. The day after the war ends will not mean an end to violence in Israel.

[monaisme]

Sicktember #23

#23- Under a Spell

Peter wasn’t going to complain. Nope. He was going to be the bigger person and accept the fact that he was technically a “Junior Avenger,” and that IF he was even going to be called out for a mission, nine and a half times out of ten, he was going to be tasked with civilian evacuation and securing the perimeter.

It was all good.

Yup.

No complaints here.

At all.

Peter sat on the edge of the now empty office building, feet swinging in boredom as he watched the battle between yet another wizard from some other dimension in the multiverse, Doctor Strange, and the rest of the team going on a dozen blocks away. 

“Hey, Karen,” Peter figured it was time to check in again. “Any movement on the perimeter? No crazy reporters trying to sneak in for a photo op, or dogs getting away from their owner or anything like that?”

“Nothing is showing on any of the CCTV footage, Peter, though I’m not entirely sure that Mr. Stark intended for you to be using me to hack into the city security feeds like this.” Karen replied.

“Relax, Karen. I wouldn’t be surprised if Mr. Stark does the same thing, and if nothing else, Mr. Stark will appreciate my working smarter... not harder, right? Besides,” Peter’s spider senses flared, but he knew it needed to play it cool. “This way, I’m freed up if something else pops up that requires an extra set of hands!”

Peter jumped off the roof edge and away from the mystery threat just before a purple beam blasted away the brick he’d been sitting on barely a moment before. “Uh, Mister—shoot! I mean, Iron Man!” Peter called out as he swung out of the way of each subsequent blast, “I thought you guys said there was only one wizard?!”

“Yeah! Because there was only one!?” Iron Man replied even as Peter could hear his repulsor beams firing off in the background. “Are you telling me there’s another one of these guys?”

Peter zigged down an alleyway, then zagged back around the building, hoping the tighter corners would slow up whoever was behind him and switch up their positions. “Yup! And he’s pissed! I’m just trying to—” Peter swung around the third corner and caught a glimpse of purple cape fluttering as it entered the alley. The plan had worked! “Gotcha!”

“Gotcha!? Spider-Man! Do not engage with this guy! We don’t know who he is! I’m sending—” Iron Man paused, then, “Falcon and Widow are en route, kid! For the love of all—”

Whatever else Tony was going to say, it was lost in a haze of determination. Peter had committed to the plan. He was gonna catch this mystery player and finally show the rest of the Avengers that he could do the big things. He was ready. There was no way it could go wrong, right?

Peter practically careened around the corner, expecting to see the back of whoever this person was, but—

Peter stopped short, entirely against his will, suspended in the air and frozen still.

“Finally,” Peter’s eyes widened, as he glanced around trying to see who was speaking, yet unable to turn his head. He heard footsteps beneath him as his attacker stepped into his limited view. The wand caught Peter’s attention before noting the dour looking young man wielding it. He was dressed as stereotypically as one could be for a formal, wizard-like type; robes, cape, funny hat and all. “You’re here.”

Peter’s brow furrowed. He tried, but couldn’t move any of his larger muscle groups, so at least he could talk—though the intermittent crackling of his comm in his ear told him let him know that no one could hear him. He was on his own. It was time to hope... and stall. “Of course I’m here.” Peter replied, indignant. “You tried to blast me from behind! Do you think I’m just gonna walk it off? What the heck, dude? So not cool!” Peter struggled against his invisible restraints.

Peter’s captor snarled, “There’s no point in fighting the bindings. They will only release you at my bidding—or my death. You see, my master has taught me well, and I will finally prove that to him by bring him a...trophy, if you will.” The disgust on his face as he spit out his words only angered Peter more, knowing that he couldn’t act on it.

So de-escalation it was, “Buddy, look. If you’re trying to impress your boss, I get it. AND I’ve got a million different ways to do that that don’t include poor sportsmanship and invisible rope. C’mon, man!” Peter huffed. “I know a great coffee shop around the corner! Seriously, bring him a great macchiato and show up five minutes early, and you’re in!”

The man was not amused, “You mock my intent?!” The wand sparked and the wizard opened his mouth to speak.

“No!” Peter cried out, continuing to strain against the bindings, just in case he was wrong. “I get it! Trust me on that! Why do you think I’m here!?” Peter was getting worked up, so he took a couple of deep breaths before he continued, “My boss doesn’t think I can do anything either. Seriously. I’m fairly certain that I’m a full on embarrassment to him, but honestly, you just keep working hard, you know? He’ll see you eventually. It doesn’t mean you have to resort to something this.”

“I thought you were acting as a sentinel?” The young man, probably not much older than Peter, now that he could get a better look at him, seemed confused.

Well, if that hadn’t made the job Peter hated most sound so much cooler than Peter had originally considered it. Peter sighed. “I’m pretty sure I was just put there to not cause trouble and stay out of the way—and still, you managed to sneak up on me.”

The wizard immediately took offense at Peter’s interpretation of events, “There was no sneaking! I’ve worked quite hard to perfect transporting via time ripple. You, sir,” again, another look of absolute disdain, “should not have had any warning at all! How did you manage to escape my spell?”

“That was an actual spell?!” Peter gaped. While he had assumed, to receive actual confirmation was pretty astounding. The sound of Falcon’s wings came from the distance. It was time to keep him distracted. “Holy crap!” Peter started laying it on thick, “So you really are, like, a sorcerer’s apprentice!?”

The young man scoffed, “Apprentice!? You insult me. I am meant to be so much more than an apprentice. My master simply has yet to see my potential.”

“You’re preachin’ to the choir there, my friend,” Peter sympathized, trying to keep the guy’s attention away from Sam now that he’d come fully into view, “and speaking of friends...”

Redwing had set off from his base on Falcon’s chest plate silently and hovered behind the wizard as Falcon aimed both his gauntlets at him and called out, “Lower your weapon, Gandalf, and no one gets hurt.”

The wizard froze, then smiled slow... and devious. “Clever work, sentinel. Providing distraction while you wait for aid. I am impressed. Too bad it will do you no good.”

In a flash, Peter was released from his invisible prison and dropping gracelessly to the ground as the wizard’s focus turned to Falcon. His wand sparked purple and Peter knew that whatever was going to come out of that wand was something Sam could not handle.

“TAM GALAGHOSHAM KURUT!” The incantation left his mouth as he pointed his wand and tried to dodge the other superhero’s anticipated fire—

And with no thought, Spider-Man was back in play. With a thwip of his webshooters, the man’s wand was re-directed and casting wide.

Falcon acted immediately, firing both gauntlets and taking the wizard down. Red Wing had released a net of filament upon the prone boy, then circled above, now prepared to provide more lethal aid, if required.

And Peter assessed the scene while Sam nudged the wizard with his boot.

“Is he dead?” Peter had to ask. After all, he’d said...

“Nah, just stunned. I’m guessing this guy’s a newbie compared to the other one, ‘cause that sure as hell wouldn’t have worked on him.”

Peter felt restless.

Something was still wrong.

A small gasp came from somewhere above, not that Same could have heard it. Peter paled as he realized, “Shit.” 

“Spider-Man?” Falcon questioned, “Is everything—”

“Get medical to the roof!” Peter called out as he shot a web and pulled himself up to the roof of the building they’d been set beside. “Nat needs help!”

Peter couldn’t hear if Sam had responded and honestly didn’t care, as long as he was doing it. He only knew that he needed to get to Nat... and fast. He’d messed up. It was his fault that she’d gotten hit—his stupid plan, and if anything happened to her, Peter would never- ever forgive himself.

He found her within seconds, kneeling on the ground with her hands scratching at her throat as she tried and failed to breathe.

“NAT!” Peter called out to her, pulling his mask off as he ran to her. “What’s wrong?! Are you choking? It looks like you’re choking!”

Nat’s eyes widened with fear as she nodded a frantic ‘yes.’

“Okay!” Peter was trying desperately to not freak out. “I can deal with choking,” he said more to himself than Nat. “I’ve got this.” Never had Peter been more grateful for Sam and his insistence that they all take a truncated field medic course. He moved into position behind her. “I’ve got you, Nat. You’re going to be okay.” Why was he sounding so winded? It didn’t matter. “Okay, quick thrusts,” he whispered, not that it mattered. Nat was starting to flag. “One.” Nothing happened. “Okay, two...” Peter paused to swallow back the nausea, knowing he’d hesitated as he felt Nat’s ribs crack beneath his fists. “Sorry! Sorry! We’ve got this, Nat, promise—three!”

Peter could feel the air moving out of Nat’s lungs as he watched a glowing purple sphere eject itself from Nat’s body and hover in front of them, almost like it was making a decision. Peter eyed it warily.

This was not good.

Before Peter could decide what to do next, one of Doctor Strange’s sling ring portals flared open and he and Iron Man stepped out. “STAY BACK!” Doctor Strange ordered them all and, with a grace the dick of a Harry Potter knock-off down on the street could only wish to reproduce, conjured up his mystical mandalas, then bolts flew from his hands, and the purple sphere was gone.   

“Peter!” The Iron Man mask flipped up and Mr. Stark’s worried face appeared before him. “Are you okay? Are you hurt?”

Peter pushed him away. “No, it’s Nat! I—she’s—” Peter didn’t know how to explain. “Just take care of her! I’m fine!” He needed to pull it together. “She was choking on the ball and I—” He wanted to say that he’d broken her ribs and that it was his fault that she’d been choking in the first place but all he could get out was, “Heimlich.”

Doctor Strange was already with Nat, now lying in a sort of modified recovery position while he examined her. He had to know what Peter had done to her.

Her breathing sounded so bad.

“I’m going to transport her to your med bay, Tony, then I’ll pop back to deal with this other one. Alright?”

Mr. Stark nodded in agreement. “Sounds like a plan,” then put a comforting arm around Peter. “I’ll get things ready for you here.”

In a flash, the two had disappeared from the rooftop and Peter was left alone with his mentor, and his colossal mess. He’d let someone get the jump on him, he’d gotten captured, and then when he’d finally gotten free because of one actual Avenger, he’d manage to get another Avenger blasted with a spell and she almost died.

Maybe the wizard guy knew a trick to make him disappear...

How was this his life?

/-/-/

It was hours later and they had yet to call Peter in to debrief.

Maybe they were plotting how to fire him?

To be fair, Peter had holed himself up in a recliner in the corner of Nat’s room in the med bay—but only after checking to make sure Nat would be okay with it. No one would expect her to feel a hundred percent safe with him around. After all, he had broken two of her ribs and cracked two others for good measure, not that she blamed him... or so she said.

“I can hear you being stupid from all the way over here,” she croaked out.

Oh, yeah. How had he forgotten about the damage to her throat from the ball?

“I’m not being stupid.” Peter pouted.

“Yes, you are, and if you think I’m blaming you for the actions of an obviously disturbed young man, then you are mistaken. So stop being an idiot.”

“But you’re hurt!”

“I’m on the good drugs, Peter.”

“They made you throw up!”

“Those obviously weren’t the good drugs. Relax.” Her head lolled to face him. “I’m fine now.”

“But I broke your ribs...”

“And if you hadn’t, I’d be dead.” Nat looked him dead in the eyes and asked him, “Would you rather I was dead? Because those were the only options you had available to you, Spider baby.”

Peter harrumphed, his cheeks pinking in embarrassment. “Of course not. Now who’s being stupid?”

Nat smiled softly at the boy, then turned toward the sound of footsteps coming down the hallway. Even on the good drugs she was incredibly perceptive. “Someone’s here.”

“Knock knock,” Mr. Stark rapped against the door frame before entering her room. “Hey, Nat, I thought I’d stop by to check in to see how you’re doing and to ask if you’d seen Pete, but I can see that he’s here and if you’re making him blush like that, you’re apparently fine and I’ve managed to find his newest hiding spot!  So two birds, one stone—yay!”

Peter tried to shrink further back into the corner.

Mr. Stark couldn’t hide his concern at Peter’s reaction. “Pete?” He stepped closer to the kid. “What’s going on? Are you okay? I’ve been looking for you all afternoon.” He kept a little distance, for Peter’s sake, “I wanted to, uh, talk to you about this afternoon... and that Oscar guy.”  

Peter couldn’t help but ask, “Who’s Oscar?”

“You know... your wizard? Oscar.”

Peter couldn’t help but crook a half smile. “Oh, um, okay. He didn’t exactly introduce himself so...”

“Well,” Mr. Stark waved his response away, “it doesn’t matter anyhow. Strange is taking care of him and his boss right now, so once they have their little chat with all the other wizardy bigwigs, we won’t need to worry about them anymore.”

Peter looked guiltily over to Nat in her bed, “Oh, good. I’m glad...”

Now, Tony Stark was not known for his emotional intelligence on the best of days, but he was trying. And while he could accept that Pete was bummed about Nat being hurt, guilt was a completely unacceptable response after all he’d done today. “Hang on. Kid.” He pointed an accusing finger at Peter, “Are you seriously blaming yourself for what happened?”

The floor was suddenly the most interesting thing in the room for Peter.

Mr. Stark was not having it. “Whoa back there. First off, you were doing exactly what you were supposed to be doing and managed to detect him and report back to us before he could cause who knows what kind of mayhem. We’d have dealt with his boss, sent him back and called it done before even knowing he was here—not that he was even supposed to be here anyways!”

“We know that.” Peter replied, confused at the odd wording.

“No, he really wasn’t supposed to be here,” Tony laughed. “Apparently Oscar has some issues with authority in a big way, and had been relegated to rat spleen duty, or whatever it is they do as punishment back in his home universe. He decided to go against his psycho boss’s wishes and snuck through the portal without getting caught by anybody—until you.

“What?!”

“Oh, yeah.” Tony continued the story. “And I guess Oscar sneaking through a portal with him is a huge deal—all sorts of rules and regulations around portal travel, it would seem.  And, boy-oh-boy, Evil Boss Man was NOT happy when he and Oscar were reunited before transport.”

Peter shrugged, recalling Oscar’s words as he’d stalled. “Yeah. That jives with things.”

“Right?” Mr. Stark got quiet for a few seconds and then, “But—I mean, if you really think about it though, it maybe his boss just wanted him to be safe while he was out doing his evil world domination thing?—Like he wanted Oscar to maybe have some more experience under his belt before jumping into the deep end of the pool?”

Peter shrugged again and thought for a moment. “Maybe? I don’t know—wouldn’t Oscar have already had to prove himself to be there in the first place?”

“Maybe Oscar’s boss cared and wanted to keep him safe?”

Peter gasped as his heart dropped. Had Mr. Stark—? But the comm was— “Oh, no.”

“Peter?”

“Please, Mr. Stark. Tell me you didn’t hear what we were talking about?”

Tony squirmed at Peter’s discomfort. “I could... but I’d be lying.”

“Oh, no.”

“So did I, if that makes you feel any better,” Nat piped in from her bed.

Peter closed his eyes and banged his head against the wall.

“I wouldn’t advise doing that, Mr. Parker.” Doctor Strange entered the room. “A self-inflicted concussion would hamper your appreciation of the fact that you are the hero of the hour.”

Peter stopped immediately and his eyes popped opened, “What?” Peter asked in confusion. “I don’t understand?”

But Mr. Stark jumped in. “Forget about the ‘what’ for a minute! You literally just left! How can you be back already?”

Doctor Strange simply smirked, “Master of the Mystic Arts and Keeper of the Eye of Aggamoto, Tony. Keep up.”  

Mr. Stark glared. “Fine, be that way. Now, what are you talking about? We already know that Peter saved Nat.” He gestured toward the assassin on the bed. “Duh.”

Doctor Strange shook his head and turned his attention to Peter. “I am talking about the fact that you, Spider-Man-slash-Peter Parker, just unintentionally saved half of the planet, and I personally thank you.”

Peter looked between Doctor Strange and Mr. Stark. “Huh?”

“Well, Peter,” Doctor Strange explained, “It would seem that the spell Oscar had intended to cast on Sam was one he’d only found a few days ago, in a book full of the darkest of magyks—and one that his master had thought was hidden well enough to keep out of the hands of over eager apprentices. The spell itself had originally been created as a spell of war, made to wipe out an opposing village’s warriors, but its maker had realized it was too powerful to control and had hidden it away. Oscar was at the beginning of his studies, and had chosen to bypass some of the ‘less exciting’ aspects of his craft.”

Tony picked up what Dr. Strange had said, “’Was?’ Am I correct in assuming he’s no longer an apprentice?”

Doctor Strange nodded. “Even megalomaniacs intent on world domination need a population to crush. Oscar would have left him with something infinitely less enticing. I’m not sure that Oscar is even breathing.”

 “But he just wanted his boss to notice him!” Peter blurted out. His mind raced. Did he have another death on his hands? His breathing sped up.

“Peter, listen to me.” Doctor Strange moved to stand directly in front of the boy, hoping to cut off what looked like the start of a panic attack. “If that spell had been allowed to hit Sam, that sphere would have choked the life out of him, left his body, and continued on hunting down man after man, killing them all until there was literally none alive.”

“But—”

“But” Doctor Strange continued, “because our dear Widow here is NOT a man, the spell was confused and couldn’t complete its purpose until—”

Peter flashed back to that moment with the sphere as it seemed to be waiting... figuring something out. Not that it mattered, “It still would have killed her, I know it!”

Doctor Strange stepped closer to Peter, his tone softening. “It would have, but with no male anchor after that first death, it would have died with her. It hitting her at least gave you chance to save her... and me a chance to get there and deal with the sphere.”

Peter blanched and looked over to Nat, alive and breathing in the med bay bed. “I’d have done the Heimlich for Sam, though. I could have—”

“No, Peter. If it had caught hold in Sam, it would have physically anchored itself. There’d have been nothing you could have done for him... or any of us.”

Peter was glad he was sitting. “Oh.”

Doctor Strange put a comforting hand on the shaken boy’s shoulder, “Yeah. Oh.”

Peter sat with that for a moment, thankful that none of the others felt the need to say anything.

Soon enough, Doctor Strange excused himself to oversee the destruction of what was an impressive yet fully evil-imbued archive, leaving Peter alone with Nat and Mr. Stark.

“Well, it would seem that all of this was worth it in the end after all, wasn’t it, Peter?” Nat offered.

Peter thought on that for a minute. “I don’t even know what to say?” Peter looked lost.

“Maybe don’t say anything? It’s okay if you have to take the time to process the bigger stuff.” Mr. Stark offered. “I know the rest of us do from time to time.”

“I’m just...” Peter’s words trailed off into nothing.

“In awe of how amazing you are? Shocked that Strange can be an actual human being? Ready for a nap?”

Peter thought seriously about those options. “No?”

“How’s about being ready to hear an apology from your boss for not taking your strengths into account when we plan our missions?”

Peter stared up at Mr. Stark and blinked.

“But sometimes, we really will need you to do civilian evac and securing the perimeter!” Mr. Stark added hastily. “That really is a thing we do.”

Peter smiled a shaky smile, twisting his hands together nervously. “I know that, and that’ll still be cool... but...”

Mr. Stark put his own supporting hand on Peter’s shoulder, “But what?”

Peter looked over a Nat, then back at Mr. Stark before mustering up the nerve—

“What would you say if we called it being a Sentinel?”

[blakeswritingimagines]

Halloween party

Iron Man: Well, for one thing, he knows you are likely to dress up in something that's a lot more revealing than what you're used to. He might also notice you're more flirtatious than usual because of the setting and the mood of the night. It's a good opportunity to let loose, have some fun, and enjoy each other's company in a relaxed environment. If he's lucky, he might even end up with your costume on the floor.

Spider-Man: Well, it’s usually a blast. There are tons of spooky decorations and people in scary costumes. You'll go together, so you always get to enjoy each other’s company. There are usually lots of sugary snacks like candy and cake, so it’s pretty awesome. If you’re really into it, you both can even dress up too. You can have all sorts of costumes to choose from, like classic Halloween ones or even nerdy costumes like other superheroes. That would be pretty epic.

Hulk: Going to a Halloween party with you is always a ton of fun. The two of you spend most of your free time together and share many interests, so it's no surprise that you'll enjoy dressing together for the holiday. When you arrive at the party, you always try to coordinate your costumes, whether that means you're dressed as fictional characters. As the night goes on, you spend time eating snacks, hanging out with the other guests, and enjoying the music and decorations. Whenever one of you gets tired or wants a break, you head outside to get some fresh air and chat privately.

Captain America: Going to a Halloween party with you, depending on the atmosphere and the crowd, can be an exciting, exhilarating experience. There's always the opportunity to create a unique, fun, and memorable ensemble. From the atmosphere of the event, you could have a spooky, terrifying, and mysterious night, or even a cozy, lighthearted occasion. Regardless of the tone of the event, there is always the potential for you to dance, play silly games, eat snacks, and spend quality time together, dressed as your favorite characters or in unique outfits of your own design.

Winter Soldier: That depends on the partners, love. It can be fun in a crowded house, with lots of booze and snacks, and your significant other, getting a drink or trying to find a quiet spot, just to sneak a kiss or have some fun. It can be exciting and romantic though he prefers a quiet night with you even if it means handing out candy with you instead.

Black Panther: Going to a Halloween party with you is always a fun experience. He usually arrives dressed up in matching costumes with you, ready to make a statement and turn some heads. You both spent the evening together, enjoying the spooky ambiance, the music, and the delicious snacks. He takes fun pictures together and explores the event, laughing and having fun together. He might even get you to compete in a costume photo shoot, trying to outdo one another with your creative and imaginative choices. It's an enjoyable time, seeing you be your silly, fun-loving self and engaging with him in a world of playful mischief.

Doctor Strange: Going to a Halloween party with the person he loves is like having the whole world to himself. It's a special moment of connection and intimacy where you can express yourself without judgment and celebrate with each other. Whether you dress up together or go in matching costumes, the night provides an opportunity for playful banter and flirting. As the night progresses, you can dance together, laugh together, and truly enjoy the moment. Nothing can top the feeling of being together and having fun on a night dedicated to all things spooky.

Thor: Going to a Halloween party with you is always exciting and fun. You'll start off by getting dressed up in your costumes, picking out perfect outfits that will make all the guests look twice. Once you're ready to go, you head to the party and enjoy a night full of dancing, drinking, and talking with friends. We always look forward to the different activities that the event organizers set up. If it's a costume party, then the night usually ends with lots of fun and laughter, as everyone enjoys some playful banter.

Ant-Man: It would depend on what costumes you and he pick. You could end up having a lot of fun, being silly, and laughing at your funny costume choices, or you could be embarrassed if you picked something too crazy. It could be a night to remember, if you and he picked something romantic, or it could be a night of horror if you decide to dress up as scary characters. Either way, the important thing is that you're having fun together and enjoying the Halloween festivities.

[argendivas]

Tips for portrait photography

Essential Tips for Capturing Stunning Portrait Photography

Portrait photography is an art that requires a balance of technical skills and a keen eye for capturing the essence of your subject. Whether you’re a seasoned photographer or a beginner, understanding the nuances of light, composition, and interaction with your subject can elevate your portraits to new heights. Here are some essential tips to help you capture stunning portraits.

1. Master the Lighting

Lighting is the cornerstone of great portrait photography. The way you light your subject can dramatically influence the mood and impact of the photo.

Front Lighting: Lighting your subject from the front is a technique that inspires clarity and confidence. It evenly illuminates the face, reducing shadows and blemishes, which results in a clean and bright portrait. This type of lighting is perfect for headshots and professional portraits where you want to convey a sense of approachability and sincerity.

Side Lighting: For a more dramatic and character-filled portrait, light your subject from the side. Side lighting creates depth and texture, highlighting the contours of the face and adding a sense of mystery or intensity to the image. This technique is excellent for artistic portraits where you want to capture the emotional depth of your subject.

2. Choose the Right Background

The background of your portrait can either complement your subject or distract from them. Always aim for a background that enhances the overall composition without drawing attention away from the subject. Simple, uncluttered backgrounds work best. You can also use shallow depth of field (achieved by using a wide aperture) to blur the background and keep the focus on your subject.

3. Focus on the Eyes

The eyes are the windows to the soul, and in portrait photography, they are crucial. Ensure the eyes are in sharp focus, as they are typically the first thing viewers notice. Catchlights (reflections of light in the eyes) can add a sparkle and bring your portrait to life. Positioning your light source to create catchlights will make your subject’s eyes more engaging.

4. Experiment with Angles and Composition

Don’t be afraid to experiment with different angles and compositions. Shooting from a slightly higher angle can make your subject’s eyes appear larger and more expressive, while a lower angle can add a sense of power and dominance. Use the rule of thirds to place your subject off-center for a more dynamic and interesting composition.

5. Communicate and Build Rapport

Great portraits capture the personality and essence of your subject, which requires a level of comfort and trust between the photographer and the subject. Spend time getting to know your subject, make them feel at ease, and guide them through different poses and expressions. Genuine emotions and relaxed poses will result in more natural and compelling portraits.

6. Use Reflectors and Diffusers

Reflectors and diffusers are essential tools for controlling light in portrait photography. Reflectors can bounce light back onto your subject to fill in shadows, while diffusers can soften harsh light. These tools are especially useful for outdoor shoots where the lighting conditions can be unpredictable.

7. Post-Processing

Post-processing is the final step to enhance your portraits. Use editing software to adjust exposure, contrast, and color balance. Retouching can help remove blemishes and imperfections, but remember to keep it subtle to maintain a natural look. Enhancing the eyes, sharpening details, and adjusting the overall tone can make your portraits stand out.

By mastering these tips, you can create portraits that not only capture the physical appearance of your subjects but also convey their inner character and emotions. Whether you’re shooting in a studio or on location, the key is to experiment, communicate, and always be mindful of how light and composition can transform your portraits.

[jules-has-notes]

2017 VoicePlay fall activities — go, go, go ’til you ho-ho-ho

The last few months of the year are usually a busy time for singers, and this year was no exception for VoicePlay. Once they had wrapped up their summer projects, they rolled right on.

.

And they're off

The boys leaped into autumn by heading north once more for shows in NYC and Reading, PA.

They also threw their hats in the ring for a Hostess snack cake giveaway. (They didn't win, but that's okay. Some of the fans always made sure to keep them well supplied with sugar anyway.)

.

Back home, it was time to start rehearsing for their third and final year of residency at Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party. They also needed to prep for their upcoming trip to the west coast, and film their next music video. Eli did manage to sneak in a bro brunch with their old friend, Jeremy James, though.

.

A little West Coast swing

For the third weekend in October, the guys embarked on a fast-paced trip to Los Angeles. They crammed a concert and three video shoots into just three days.

They kicked things off with a Saturday night show in Palos Verdes (and teased the locals a bit by calling it by the translated name "Green Sticks").

.

On Sunday, they packed in two music video shoots. They started with one of their two Christmas tunes for the year and new collaborator Shoshana Bean. Then they hopped over to reunite with Kurt Hugo Schneider for a little Broadway music.

.

Monday was time to get silly and messy with the pocket.watch ladies and some Taylor Swift.

.

Keep it going

When they flew home, the boys were met by Rachel Potter once again for their second Christmas song of the year.

.

Merry Hallowee-mas

All the preparation the guys had been doing for the upcoming holiday season didn't mean that they would ever neglect spooky season. After a few days of rest, sound guy Paul Kaleka and J.None kicked off the weekend by winning Indaba Music's Spooky Jams contest with a song called "Ghosts and Goblins".

VoicePlay released their video for "What's This?" from The Nightmare Before Christmas on the day before Halloween, and used it as a segue into their new holiday EP, "Warm Up", which they announced at the beginning of November.

The tracks are a combination of revamped tunes from the previous year with J.None's vocals added into the mix, this year's three new offerings, and one more new song that received a video during the following holiday season.

Note that J.None is credited as a member of the group, not a featured guest.

.

One more spin

Just over a week after they'd gotten home, the boys headed out of town again for a student workshop and a concert at Western Illinois University.

.

Off to the races

One week after that, it was time to kick off their MVMCP schedule in the Magic Kingdom.

With sixteen shows per week for the rest of the year, it would be reasonable to think that job would be their sole focus. However, persuing a career in the performing arts isn't usually a path for sensible folks. There were still plenty of other engagements to keep them busy. For the second night of the residency, VoicePlay handed the reins to their backup guys and scooted up to Ohio.

.

But wait, there's more

The reason for their visit to Dayton was headlining the Kettering National A Cappella Festival. The trip there didn't go nearly as smoothly as they would've liked.

Once they actually reached their destination, though, the concert went off without a hitch, and the audience had a grand time.

.

The next weekend, they took a drive down to Avon Park for a show at South Florida State College. Because it was close to home, Kathy and Geoff decided to bring little William along for the first time.

Uncle Earl always seems to end up holding the babies in group photos. 😁

.

Having the week of Thanksgiving free from their Disney World duties didn't mean that they just kicked back and relaxed. First they hopped on the middle leg of a Disney Magic cruise for a three-day jaunt to The Bahamas and back.

Then on the evening of Thanksgiving itself, they gathered up Erik Winger and scooted down to the southeast coast to perform at the annual tree lighting ceremony for the Boca Raton Resort & Club.

.

On another day off from MVMCP in early December, the PattyCake guys teamed up with their friends at Entertainment Central to film a very beachy Christmas romp for their Atlantic City Boys group in Cocoa Beach. The final "Santa Claus Is Coming to Town" / "Here Comes Santa Claus" mashup video was originally posted to Michael Evans's channel a week later, then reposted to the group's channel a year and a half after that.

.

That weekend, Winger joined VoicePlay for a two-show day at Mariner Church in Sping Hill, FL.

important preparations — ear plugs and power naps

.

When Rockapella came to town on their holiday tour near the end of the month, Layne and Cyndi took little Doris to see some of their pals.

.

J.None spent both the weekend before his birthday and New Year's Eve rocking out at local shows with Paradigm Party Band.

.

That's all, folks

With the year coming to an end, the VoicePlay guys finally took the chance to relax, spend time with loved ones, and prepare for the coming months. But those are tales for another post.

[northernolddragon]

Why are there so few Witcher posts lately? Or have you completely moved to Bg3? I love your works, don't think so~

Hello. Thank you for your kind words, anonymous. And for the questions, respectively.

Rather, I'm just a nomad for 'Baldur's gate 3' and 'The Witcher 3'. A scientist who hasn't yet learned everything in BG3, but in TW3 everything is more familiar, but at the same time I love it no less, as a place where you relax and unwind. I have not finished anywhere and will not finish anywhere (the paths of my laptop are inscrutable, and that is his will). BG3 was overwhelming, and for good reason, otherwise I wouldn't have gotten into this game. I can't get a helping hand, until I thoroughly enjoy the play area. The characters become loved, the situations are funny and attractive, and the gameplay becomes familiar and understandable. I rarely get carried away to my head. I even got my wife into it, although she categorically refused this game initially. xd Now we have our favorite pairings. The bloodyweave left no chance (+ Raphael/Haarlep).

My muse is damn capricious, harmful and extremely grumpy - she has her own plans and her own aspirations. I don't control, where I shoot content. Sometimes, I can play TW3 without any desire to take photos. This also applies to BG3. Sometimes, it is useful to go on vacation so as not to burn out in the desire to do something worthy, but this worthy thing categorically refuses to happen. But I don’t tend to burden myself with wasting energy, and besides, I'm always optimistic about my little hobby - I do it the way I do it and the way I see how I want to do it. I just like to engage in this type of activity, without jumping over my head, without trying to prove something to anyone. Do what you like and be happy.

Answering your question in such a long form, I will say that the love for the atmosphere, characters and world of 'The Witcher' will never fade in my soul. But I also fell in love with 'Baldur's Gate'. With its unique characters and incredible storyline, that opens up differently every time in its diversity. This needs to be played. You need to feel it. This must be completed to the end.

I've done enough content on 'The Witcher' and can reduce my activity for a while. In addition, lately I have been exhibiting the work of other authors more than creating my own content. xd Therefore, my blog is a kind of diary on the gaming zone, on several pairings that I love. And a photo-album, where something periodically appears. Yes, perhaps, such a diary of a gamer and a virtual photographer. And I understand, that most are accustomed to content from the expensive 'The Witcher', but I already explained somewhere in the question that my personal blog will look the way it's convenient for me, as it's what I want. With all due respect, I will not please the audience, if my inspiration refuses to do something familiar and stable. Although I am grateful for the attention of those, who follow me and my humble work. I appreciate it.

I hope, I answered your question. But if not, well, I'm glad, what shared my thoughts.

[skyler10fic]

To Have and to Hold: Ch. 3 Taste of Success

By Skyler10

Read on Ao3

---------------

Daisy had a slow week at work and was able to launch a simple wedding website by the following weekend. One page included their story, ending with their coincidentally mutual Christmas proposal. She uploaded photos of the two of them at various stages of their relationship and one of their rings. Daisy remembered with a start that they hadn’t taken engagement photos. Oh well, that shoot could come later even if they just had a friend take a few on a nice day. On the location page, she added a few photos of the chapel she had taken on their visit and typed its address. The registry page would have to stay blank for the moment. Eventually, she’d make a digital RSVP option as well, but before they could decide on and send invitations, they needed to decide on a caterer to know if there was a meal option—and whether they wanted a meal at all or just hors d’oeuvres. 

There were still so many decisions to make. Late one night as she stressed about their long to-do list, Carol reminded her that not every conversation they had at the end of the day had to be wedding choices and researching their options. They needed to also just relax together and talk about other things. Carol had said it gently, trying to avoid a fight, but Daisy surprised her by being relieved at the reminder. They had time. Not much for some things, but enough to still live their lives outside of planning and decision-making.  

They decided to keep the wedding itself small, and the wedding party even smaller. Carol’s lifelong best friend, Maria, would be her bridesmaid with her young daughter, Monica, as flower girl. Daisy’s bridesmaid would be Jemma, with her husband, Fitz, on piano and Elena on violin playing, “She Keeps Me Warm” by Mary Lambert.

“But just the two instruments,” Daisy clarified. “No karaoke track cheese, please.” Which Fitz teased her relentlessly about, especially saying that he was going to program a drum kit. Daisy reminded him she had earned her black belt before graduating high school, and that put an end to the teasing… for a while. 

The question of who would walk them down the aisle came up during a video call with Daisy’s parents, during which Phil offered both arms if they wanted to walk down together, but Carol reassured him that her Aunt Wendy would do it. Melinda would walk down first, escorting her parents to their seats, then Wendy and Carol, and then Phil and Daisy. 

Elena’s husband, Mack, was ordained as a minister in their small, progressive church, so he volunteered to officiate. And Elena would help their adorable toddler son, Alfie Jr., in his ringbearer duties. 

That left the people they would need to hire, including catering for the reception, a bakery for the cake, and a photographer. 

—----------

The second Saturday in March, they had a cake tasting at a small but renowned bakery across town. Daisy shoved her laptop into her bag as Carol pulled the car into the bakery’s parking lot.

“Okay, we only have one shot if this is the one we go with, so we have to each pick our top three possibilities, not just what sounds good today,” Daisy said like she was a coach at timeout. 

They got out of the car and walked up to the bakery, but before they went inside, Carol pulled Daisy to the side of the door.

“Hey, let’s enjoy this okay?” She took Daisy’s hand. “It’s a cake tasting! Possibly the most fun part of wedding planning. Just breathe with me, okay?”

Daisy took in deep breaths, as instructed. “Right. You’re right. It’s just cake.” She turned and saw a sample wedding cake in the window with two grooms. “Oh thank god.” 

Carol noticed too. “Is that what you were really stressed about?” 

“Well!” Daisy shrugged. “It’s been in the news for years with the courts and stuff, I just, I don’t know, didn’t want to get yelled at when they realize I’m not your bridesmaid or something.” 

Carol squeezed Daisy’s hand. “I promise. I made sure every bakery I called knew this wedding cake is going to have two little brides on it and they were fine.” She gestured to the two-groom cake on display. “Can we go try sample bites of cake now?” 

“Yes, please,” Daisy said in a bashful voice. Carol opened the door and they went in, determined to enjoy the moment. 

And they did, for the most part. A few of the flavors were not to their taste.

“Hm.” Daisy scrunched her nose. “Not that one, sorry.”

Carol’s eyes widened as she put a different flavor in her mouth. “Ooo! This one.” She pointed with her fork and then had a different idea. “Here.” She put a bite on her fork and lifted it to feed it to Daisy. Daisy helped guide Carol’s hand so they didn’t make a mess. 

“Oh! Wow. Yes.” Daisy reacted once she’d had a moment to taste it. “That might be the one?” 

Carol gave her an “I told you so” look. “I think I could eat that every day and not get tired of it.”   

The baker, a middle-aged man with twinkling dark eyes, returned just in time to see their impressed reaction. He clapped his hands once and inquired, “How are we doing over here, ladies? Have we found a winner?” 

Carol and Daisy exchanged glances and both said, “Yes” at once. 

“What is this one?” Daisy asked. 

“Ah, that flavor is called Happy Ever After. It’s a vanilla with a hint of raspberry and almond and my secret ingredient.” 

Carol took this as a challenge. She leaned her elbows on the counter and narrowed her eyes. “Hmm, butter?”  

The baker laughed and winked. “That’s no secret. Plenty of real butter here. And our traditional recipe buttercream, also with a special ingredient, of course.” 

Carol couldn’t tell whether there really was a secret to the buttercream or if he was just teasing her, so she just nodded. “Ah. Of course.”

“Now.” The baker plopped a heavy photo album on the counter. “Let’s talk design.” 

None of the designs were exactly what Daisy had been picturing so she showed him some photos on her laptop, and he flipped to a different section. In 20 minutes, they had exactly what they wanted all planned out. The baker took notes on each part, from flavor to decoration to a topper. As it turned out, the little brides cake topper would be metaphorical, as they decided on a cascade of flowers wrapping from the top down around the sides of the three small tiers and to the base. 

“And what are your colors?” the baker asked, writing and sketching on his notes. When they hesitated, he looked up. 

Daisy blurted out, “Lavender, silver, navy, and gold.” She looked to Carol for approval. 

“Yeah!” Carol blinked in awe at how easy that was. “That was the palette I picked, though. Are you sure?”  

The baker turned his sketch around so they could imagine the colors on it. 

“I’m sure.” Daisy placed her hand on Carol’s on the counter to assure her it really was what she wanted too. “It’s us.” 

“Excellent,” the baker hummed, more to his notes than to them, lost in his artistic visions. 

And so that was two decisions down, with a million more to go. 

As Daisy and Carol left the bakery, Daisy’s phone rang. 

“Hey, is this Daisy Coulson?” a young woman’s voice asked. 

“That’s me,” Daisy answered as she got in the car and closed the door. “How can I help you?” 

Carol waited to start the car until Daisy could tell her what was happening. Daisy noticed and put the call on speaker.  

“This is Nadia, from Delights Catering. I know this is super last minute, and I told you before that we didn’t have any tasting spots open today, but, um, we’ve had an opening.” 

Daisy picked up on her stress. “Rough day?” 

Nadia admitted, “Not as rough for me as for the couple whose whole wedding party got the flu last night and just now called to cancel. But their order of nearly everything on the menu is almost done, and it might as well be used. We’ll have everything ready if you can be here in the next half hour. And bring family or your wedding party if you want. We’re prepped for 100 over here. And I’ve only got five other couples left on my list to call.” 

Daisy raised her eyebrows in silent question to Carol who nodded enthusiastically. It was past lunchtime and they were getting hungry. Those little cake samples hadn’t been filling. 

“Sure thing, Nadia. We’ll be right over.” Daisy programmed the address of the convention center the catering company operated out of into Carol’s phone and used her own to send a group text to the wedding party, at least their friends in town. Phil and Melinda were too far away, but she sent them a separate text updating them on the cake and colors decision and telling them they were headed over to the caterer. 

Melinda sent back a thumbs up, a sunglasses smiley face, and a cake emoji. Phil sent a gif that said Great Work! and said to let them know how the menu tasting went. 

Carol neared the exit and realized they hadn’t ever decided on what time of day the wedding would be exactly, which would determine what food they decided on from Delights Catering’s menu. 

“We have the venue all day,” Carol reasoned, “so it would be up to us.” 

“What if…” Daisy hesitated to say it, as unromantic as it was. “What if we see what Nadia has on the menu and pricing, and that determines the timing?” 

“Okay, besides food though, when are you picturing this? Evening ceremony with dinner and a reception where we dance into the night? Or more like early afternoon so we can see the park around the chapel with an outdoor reception? I could go either way.” 

“Before I answer that, here’s another factor.” Daisy paused to point to the side street Carol needed to turn down. “Do we want to leave for our honeymoon that night or spend our wedding night at home and then leave the next day? And also, where are we going?” 

“Or, we could stay downtown in a fancy hotel honeymoon suite, so we wouldn’t be far from the airport, and then leave the next day. To wherever.” 

“Yes! Oh. I like that.” Daisy added “find honeymoon suite and destination” to her to-do list. 

Nadia’s cooking and her team’s friendly service didn’t make the decision easy. The basic dinner menu, especially for a small wedding with their approximate guest list number, was definitively in their budget, and the hors d’oeuvres were also delicious. 

“Okay, this lemon pepper chicken, though,” Daisy said to the table, but mostly Carol. 

“And this pasta is amazing.” Carol picked up the menu to see what it was called. “Pasta Barbara.” 

A blonde woman at the table observed them with an amused smile. 

Daisy noticed and caught her eye. “Is it that obvious we are new to this?” 

“No, no,” the woman assured. “It’s just a new menu item inspired by an idea I had. I’m Barbara. Or, well, everyone calls me Bobbi.” 

Carol and Daisy introduced themselves as well. 

The man next to Bobbi spoke up with an English accent. “And you can call me Hunter.”

Carol finished her pasta and put down her fork. “Are you two getting married soon?” 

Bobbi and Hunter laughed. Bobbi explained, “We’ve been married.”

“And divorced,” Hunter added. 

“And married again,” Bobbi concluded. “Now we do the wedding thing professionally. We’re photographers, and I got in the decorating and floral business so I could have more input on the backgrounds and settings for the photos. The photos are what hold your memories of your day for generations to come, so I take it pretty seriously.” 

“And I carry all the equipment.” Hunter smirked. 

Bobbi rolled her eyes. “And he shoots the video. We’re a team. And are you two here to plan a wedding or just friends of Nadia’s called in to help with leftovers?”

Carol slipped an arm loosely around Daisy’s shoulder as Daisy replied, “Planning our wedding. But it’s coming up pretty quick, so we have a lot of decisions to make.” 

Carol looked to Daisy and then back at Bobbi. “We’re actually looking for everything you said you did. We’ve got this great wedding chapel through the parks department on a pond, so it’s a great setting, but the chapel itself is bare bones plain inside.” 

“And the reception hall is just a big empty room, basically,” Daisy explained.

“So,” Bobbi jumped in. “You need a photographer who could do outdoor shots in the park and indoor, and you need a decorator and florist who could handle a small wedding on a budget?” 

Hunter relaxed back in his chair, looking even cockier as Bobbi read their situation exactly. Daisy could tell that though he hid it behind bravado, he was smitten with his wife and partner. 

“Yeah, that’s it exactly.” Daisy blinked in surprise at fate landing them at this table with the very people they needed to meet. “You can do all that?” 

Hunter raised his glass to her. “That’s our specialty.” 

“Well, I contract out with florists, but I’d handle all the details.” Bobbi searched in her purse and pulled something small out. “Here’s our card.” 

She handed over a business card with their logo, website, phone, and email address. 

“Take a look, rates are all online, and we can work something out,” Hunter said.

“Thank you,” Carol replied. “This is a huge help.” 

Bobbi shrugged. “It’s why we’re here. Nadia helps us and we help her. The wedding business can be pretty cutthroat, all about the right connections, so we formed our little alliance with those we like to work with. She gets the job done right every time, and we get better photos when everyone is fed and happy.” 

Daisy hadn’t considered this, but it was smart. Bobbi’s dedication to her craft to the point that she’d expanded into other areas, formed networks, and knew something about people impressed Daisy before she’d even seen a single photo. And Daisy suspected, if Bobbi had chosen Hunter not only as her husband but business partner, he must be good at his part as well to earn that smug look on his face as he glanced around the room searching for more couples to introduce themselves to. 

Nadia made her way over to their table. “How are we doing, Daisy and Carol? I see you’ve met my friends, Bobbi and Hunter?”

“They were just telling us about their business,” Carol informed her. “Also, I have to tell you, I love this pasta.” 

“And the chicken,” Daisy reminded her. “We have to have the chicken.” 

Nadia got out her notepad. “Okay, so that’s a dinner menu then, we’ve decided?” 

Bobbi spoke up. “Definitely do dinner. Hors d’oeuvres are great, but—no offense, Nadia—it’s easy for people to get skipped over or miss out on their favorites, or they feel like they are chasing plates around if you have wandering waiters.” 

Hunter added, “And if you do a buffet, people wonder why not just do the real food.”

Nadia said, “It’s up to you two, though, and time of day I know was still a question.” 

Daisy and Carol decided together silently, and Carol said aloud, “Dinner, for sure.” 

Nadia wrote down their picks from the menu and promised to follow up on Monday more formally. She called to one of her assistants, who brought them to-go bags of leftovers to take home. It was far too much food for the two of them, so they texted Jemma and Fitz to come over for dinner that night. 

—-------- 

After dinner that night, the four friends moved to the living room and settled in front of the TV after dinner. Daisy sat on the couch near the end table with her laptop and started it up. 

“Mmm wow,” Jemma groaned, “that pasta was so good but now I’m so full.” Fitz patted her hand as he settled in next to her on the couch. 

“Right?” Carol agreed as she set up the TV so Daisy could cast her laptop screen to it. Carol plopped into their Papasan chair and set a pillow on her lap so she could write their impressions of Bobbi and Hunter’s skills on her tablet.

“Ready!” Daisy said, navigating to Bobbi and Hunter’s website. She clicked on their wedding portfolio first and opened just one slideshow of many demonstrating their talents. “Ooo, I like that one.” 

Carol took note of the poses and ideas they oohed and ahhed over, as well as ones she or Daisy didn’t like or Jemma and Fitz warned against from experience just a year before. 

Daisy clicked on more slideshows—some with more creative shots and some more cliche—and they continued until they got to one with outdoor photos, including some at sunset, with two brides. 

“Ohhh,” Daisy exhaled as she paused on one. The sunbeams highlighting the couple’s silhouette were perfect. The couple touched foreheads, with one’s fingers entwined and loosely resting on the back of the other’s neck, and the other’s hands at her bride’s waist.

“Gorgeous,” Jemma said softly. 

Daisy looked over to Carol with hope shining in her eyes. They had to have one like this. 

“Already got it,” Carol confirmed. She squinted in thought. “Sun sets around 8 in June, so if we want it as a wedding shot, we would have to time it right.” 

Jemma reasoned, “Or, remember, we did wedding photos in advance. We didn’t want to have to worry about it the day of, and I didn’t mind if he saw me in the dress ahead of time.”

“I said it was bad luck.” Fitz shrugged. 

Daisy made a pshh sound. “The rain was a sign of good luck. Plus you’re both British, aren’t rainy wedding days sort of the standard where you’re from?” 

“Yes, but see, we live here now,” Fitz pointed out.

Jemma took his hand. “Rain the day of is all the more reason I’m glad we did them in advance.” 

Carol was still distracted by the photo on the TV. If she had a shot of Daisy and her like that, she’d have a print done for their bedroom. She could already picture where to put it on their wall. 

“Moving on,” Daisy announced. “Yes, we’ll try to get some shots with Bobbi and Hunter scheduled in advance.” She added that to her to-do list, which seemed to grow every time she took something off of it. 

Jemma pointed to the screen. “So it sounds like you’re decided then. You’ve got a photographer. And all the other things, yeah?”

Daisy worried her lip. It was a multipoint commitment—and not a cheap one. She caught Carol’s hopeful, subtle nod from across the room. They were doing this. 

“Yeah,” Daisy confirmed as she clicked through to the florals and decorations pages. She had to admit, Bobbi was good. “We’re doing this.” 

Jemma elbowed Fitz, who let out a little “ow!” of surprise. 

“Tell them,” she insisted. 

“Oh, alright,” Fitz sighed. “My cousin Deke is a deejay who does wedding receptions. If you’re looking for someone.” 

Jemma jumped in. “He was the one who deejayed ours, as you might remember, but he’s very popular. He’s probably done 100 since he started a few years ago.” 

Fitz added with a tone of derision, “He wants it to be his full-time job, and he dropped out of NYU to ‘build his business.’” He did air quotes around the last part. 

“Very successfully!” Jemma defended. “Fitz is just jealous. Deke sold his virtual reality simulator to a video game company so he doesn’t really need the work, but Fitz thinks he’s wasting his potential.” 

Fitz rubbed at his neck. “He’s also very … perky.”

Jemma translated, “He’s American and a bit enthusiastic, even for over here. But exactly who you’d want in a deejay.”

Daisy and Carol exchanged amused glances. Carol spoke up, “Sure, send us his contact info and we’ll get in touch.” 

Having a baker, a caterer, a menu, and leads on a photographer/decorator and now a deejay was a lot for a full day, but it also helped them feel like it was really happening. Their wedding was not just a dream but a real event they were hiring vendors for and making decisions about—decisions that would become their lifelong memories.