#revolving like a cup in a microwave

[grimalkinmessor]

My brain is playing a mash-up of Everybody Loves Somebody by Dean Martin and I Don't Want To Set The World On Fire by The Ink Spots but the catch is that this mash-up DOESN'T FUCKING EXIST so I'm stuck with it looping in my head forever help

[guppygiggles]

Tickletober Prompt Day 5: "Favorite Tickle Setting."

What: October-themed tickle fluff!

Word count: ~2.4k

Universe: Sea & Sky AU

Who: Avery and Casper

Description: I am not really capable of drawing settings/backgrounds, so I decided to write a little fic for this prompt instead. It takes place in my favorite setting... Avery's lighthouse, of course! Casper introduces Avery and Finn to the concept of Halloween and gives Avery a much-needed tickling. This tickling is foot-centric, which normally isn't my thing, but I was in the mood for it today. Enjoy!

My fingers curled around the silky locks of Finn’s hair as his head rested in my lap, the glow of the television illuminating the three of us as we watched Hokus Pokus in Avery’s tiny living room.

With their first Halloween approaching, I figured it would be appropriate to introduce the pair to the holiday with one of my favorite movies, and both seemed to enjoy it; Finnegan babbled away with questions and giggled at the silly parts, while Avery grew quietly sentimental at the flickers of tenderness between Dani and her brother. As the scene with the bullies in the cages played and Max cheekily stole his shoes back, I was expecting a flurry of tittering from Finn – when I didn’t hear anything, I looked down. His head was heavy on my thigh, and his ribcage rose and fell with a predictable rhythm. 

“Hehe, had it been you in that cage, I believe I would’ve done a bit more than just steal my shoes back,” Avery joked – quietly, thankfully – as he turned his head toward me. 

I raised my eyebrows questioningly and motioned my head toward Finn. 

“Hurry back… I’m not done with you,” I quipped, yielding raised eyebrows and a shy grin from the cloud man as we parted ways. I took the short flight of stairs up to the kitchen as Avery took Finn down to his bed. 

A soft chuckle was Avery’s response, followed by a nod of confirmation. He gently lifted Finn’s legs just enough to slip out from under them. “I’ll take him,” he whispered, looping one arm under Finn’s knees and the other behind his neck, scooping up the sleeping merman and cradling him against his chest. “Why don’t you make us some tea, and I’ll be back in a minute?” His hushed voice was like a low roll of thunder. Finnegan cuddled closer, his ears fluttering in his sleep.

I stood, pressing my lips against the crown of Finn’s head – his wavy mess of hair smelled like driftwood. Then reaching up, I cupped the lowest curve of Avery’s head and rubbed gently with my thumb. 

Part of me wished Avery’s kettle was a fast electric one, but it had been hard enough to convince him to get a microwave; he disdained plastic. ‘If it can be made from anything else, it should be,’ he’d said, but after I’d burned enough meals using his conventional oven, he’d finally made a concession. I used it to check the time – just past ten. I watched steam begin to drift out of the kettle’s spout. My mind wandered back to the movie, and what Avery had said about it. My socked toes curled. I pursed my lips together. What a helpless position… suspended in a cage, feet dangling, shoes off… 

Living in a lighthouse had taken some getting used to, particularly concerning the stairs. Prior to moving in with Avery I expected to climb stairs once or twice a day; down to my car, and back up to my second-floor apartment. Now, my life revolved around stairs; up from the bedroom, down from the kitchen, up to the balcony, down to the front door. At least it was good for my legs. The change had been subtle, but since moving into the lighthouse, I noticed that I could push harder and coast farther when riding my skateboard. I wondered if Avery noticed. I wondered if he could feel the muscles of my legs when he massaged them with his big, soft doctor’s hands…

I shook my head. Tea. I was supposed to be making tea.

The kettle’s squealing whistle going from suggestion to demand snapped me back to reality, and I quickly took it off the burner. I poured a bit of water into Avery’s strawberry themed teapot, swirled it around, poured it out, then filled the pot and added the cinnamon tea Avery had been favoring lately. I turned toward the kitchen table.

The teapot plummeted toward the floor. How many times had I warned him not to sneak up on me?! I gasped as I braced for an assault of shattered glass and boiling water, but instead of a crash, I heard Avery’s relieved chuckle. His hands steamed as he set the teapot on the table. 

“Whew, close one. Are you alright?”

“Avery!” I cried in a mix of exasperation and relief. 

“Sorry, sorry!” He winced, hands out. “I didn’t mean to startle you, dewdrop. I was about to say something, but you turned before I had a chance.” 

“You’re lucky you’re fast! Are your hands okay?” I asked, my voice heavy with concern as I reached forward to touch his palms. They were as cool and soft as ever. 

He laughed humorlessly. “It would take a lot more heat than that to burn someone like me. I’m just glad you’re alright… You could’ve really gotten hurt if I wasn’t quick enough. I’m so sorry,” he said, his brow creased with regret. 

My flare of adrenaline cooled, and I smiled softly, cupping his face again. “It’s alright. I’m alright. Did Finn wake up at all?” 

“Heh, no… Ticklefish was out like a light.”

I took two teacups from the cabinet. “It sucks that he fell asleep before we got to the zombie part. He would’ve loved that. I guess we can watch the rest of it tomorrow.” 

I was about to pour the tea when Avery stopped me, his fingers resting on my forearm. 

“Would you like to drink this on the balcony? It’s clear tonight.”

+++

Growing up in the desert had made me accustomed to seasons that rarely felt like themselves, so I never failed to appreciate an October that actually felt like October; crisp, cool, and bursting with color as the leaves began to change. As I leaned back in the cushioned patio chair and stared out at the lights along the coast, cinnamon tea in-hand, I imagined what my first Halloween with Avery and Finn would be like; carving pumpkins, baking cookies, decorating and inviting friends over for a costume party, maybe. We’d never thrown a party in the lighthouse before, but I was sure Finn would love it – he loved spending time with our friends. We’d made so many since moving in together… More than I ever thought I’d have, given my reclusive nature. I shifted toward Avery, curling my legs up in the chair. 

“Do you want to have a Halloween party?” I asked.

“Here, in the lighthouse? It might get a little crowded. Who would we invite?” He sipped his tea, legs crossed elegantly as his eyes remained trained on the twinkling city lights.

“Hmm… Sunny and Dr. Lockhart, for sure… Maybe Sparky, Bori, and Niko? You know how much Arte and Tilly love dressing up, hehe… There are a handful of others I can think of, too. Do you think that would be too many people?”

“Well, we might be able to make it work, however… I think another venue would be more comfortable. Parties can get overwhelming for some – our guests should have space to step away, if needed.” 

I was quiet for a moment, thinking. We could always suggest it to one of our friends, but I didn’t like the idea of imposing… or making them feel the need to prepare and tidy up, afterwards. 

“Oooh! What about at the park? We could set up a projector and a screen and have a movie night there!” 

Avery giggled. “I think that’s a splendid idea. I’ve never been to a party, this should be fun! I’ll help with whatever you need, just say the word.”

“Well, actually… there is something I need.” I set my teacup down on the patio table. “I need it right now, though.” 

He turned toward me, his eyes inquisitive in the dim light. “What’s that?” 

I angled my chair toward him.

“Ahh- R-right now?” 

“I need those pretty cloud feet in my lap, please.”

I watched those inquisitive eyes widen, accompanying a blue flush I could just barely see in the dark. He jolted slightly, nearly spilling his tea. 

“Yes, right now.” I patted my lap, grinning. “I’m not gonna be able to get you later, since Finny is asleep… and you're not the least bit quiet, are you? I bet you thought I didn’t even notice your cheeky comment, earlier… you should know better by now.”

Avery set his teacup down and angled his chair in my direction… slowly shuffling his socked feet out of his slippers. 

“You know, when I said that… I was envisioning you in this position,” he playfully complained, lifting his legs and placing his feet on my thighs. 

I snickered. “I know what you were envisioning… but that doesn’t mean I’m going to simply give it to you… at least, not without making you earn it, fluffy.” 

Avery squirmed in his seat, a warbled grin already forming on his lips. I pinched the tip of his right sock, slowly pulling it off – his delicate toes twitched in the chilly night air. The elemental’s feet were big, pillowy, and softer than sin; like the rest of him, they were a tickler’s dream. I placed a fingertip on his blue-tinged heel and stroked lazily up his silky arch, all the way to his toes. 

He stifled a giggle, his hips twisting in his chair as he struggled to stay still. It had been a few days since I’d tickled him seriously, and the desensitization was apparent in his reactions; his movements were a hot spark landing on parched kindling, and I was immediately engulfed in a fire of ler rage. 

I tugged on his left sock, watching the fabric drag across his marble skin. Even this seemed to tickle him, because although I couldn’t hear any more laughter, he couldn’t keep still. 

“Ohohoo nooo… what’s thisssss? What’s wrong, Dr. Nimbus…? I can hear you giggling, what’s so funny…?”

“C-Casper… c-come on…” He whimpered, lowering his face into his hands.

“Look at these big, pretty feet of yours…” And they were – they were gorgeous. As I stared at his soles, I hardly knew where to start. He flexed his cornflower toes gently, and I was happy to take the suggestion. “Tell me… is the illustrious Dr. Nimbus ticklish on his pretty feet…?” I began pinching and wiggling his right toes, rolling their tips gently between my thumb and forefinger. 

“GG-EEhehe!” He tried to hide it, but his giggling was completely helpless. Despite the squirming of his body, though… he actually did manage to keep his feet still!

“Awwww, does someone have ticklish toes…? Does it tickle when I do this to you, sweetheart? I already know you’re blushing like crazy under those hands, so there’s no sense in hiding it from me…” 

Starting at his heels again, I applied just the tips of my fingers, scribbling right up into the curves of his delicate arches. No more shy titters, now; Avery really laughed. 

“EEEAhaHAHAhahahaa!” His toes went crazy, curling and wiggling and flexing as I tickled his soles, but his feet did not budge, even as he laughed into his hands. 

A fluster so strong I nearly whimpered stirred in my belly; God, he was cute. I could tickle him all night on that balcony, surrounded by nothing but the ocean’s waves and his gleeful laughter.

“Tickle, tickle, tickle~! Gosh, you’re so flushed not even your hands can hide all of it! Come on, won’t you put them down so I can see that smile of yours?” My fingers continued to gently scratch his arches, working up to the sensitive balls of his feet.

“P-PLehehehease C-ahahahahasper!” 

“Please Casper what?” I giggled, leaning down to kiss his toes – first the left set, then the right. This made his laughter squeaky and embarrassed, causing him to squirm harder.

“Come on, thunderhead… put your hands down, before I have to really tickle you… coooooochie coochie coooo~ I’m gonna tickle these feet alllllll night, Avie…”

In a huff, Avery finally put his hands down, revealing a face that was almost completely blue. As I crawled my fingertips up his soles and nestled them into the silky ridges beneath his toes, he threw his head back, laughing uproariously into the night sky as his shoulders relaxed, giving in to the sensation.

“EEEEHEHHEHE PLEHEHEHEASE~!”

“There we go! Ohhhh, look at you! Awww, look who’s laughing so hard from a little tickling on his feet! Tickle, tickle! Laugh for me, handsome…” 

And he did; deep, thunderclap-like belly laughs boomed out from the elemental as I let my fingers dance all over his squishy, delightfully sensitive feet. His skin began to glow in the dark that surrounded us, and I could see white sparks of light beginning to fizzle and pop around the border of his head like a freshly-lit sparkler… a private fireworks show, just for me. 

I drew this out for a good while, teasing, tickling, and playing with his feet until I could tell he was starting to get tired, his laugh taking on a slightly hoarse quality as a single tear slid down his flushed cheek. I slowed to a stop, my hands forming gently around his feet and massaging them soothingly. 

“Are you alright, ticklish?” I asked tenderly, gently kneading my thumbs along his arches. He groaned softly as he caught his breath. 

“Oooh… whew… yes, hehehe… goodness, you really got me… ahhh, that felt really nice – it’s been a few days since I laughed so hard.” 

He smiled at me, then – the big, giddy smile of someone who’d just been tickled to hysteria. My heart melted, and I had to fight the swell of emotion gathering in my throat; to say I adored him was an understatement. As I finished rubbing his feet, I put his socks back on them and let him return them to his slippers. 

“Avery, for once… you look more tired than I feel.”

“Hehe, you wore me out! It’s a lot of work producing all that electricity, you know,” he giggled, standing. “It’s starting to get cold, and late… I think I need a soft, warm… ticklish human to share my bed with. Know anyone who might be up to the task?” 

I stood, too, wrapping my arms around Avery’s waist. As he returned my embrace, I felt his soft fingertips gently tickle down my back, making me giggle against his lips as I kissed him. 

“I have a few ideas… but if you make me wake the fish up, you’d better be prepared for round two.” 

[tokyo-chainsaw-dragon2]

Paz: Which one of you was going to tell me that tea tastes different if u put it in hot water?

Otacon: Y-you were putting it in cold water??????

Venom Snake: Paz, answer the question, Paz.

Paz: yeah??? I thought for like. 5 years that people just put in hot water 2 speed up the tea-ification process didn't realize there was an actual reason. You think I have the patience to boil water, wtf????

Kazuhira: You don't have the patiance to microwave water for 3 minutes?

Revolver Ocelot: Why are you putting it in the microwave to boil it?

Kazuhira: Do you think I have the patience to boil water on the stove.

Revolver Ocelot: It takes less than a minute.

Kazuhira: Dude, is your stovetop powered by the fucking sun?

Revolver Ocelot: How long does it take you to boil a cup of water on the stove?

Kazuhira: Like seven minutes. Just stick the mug on top of the stove on medium heat n it boils in like two minutes...less than that is use a saucepan...

Revolver Ocelot: *on the verge of tears* You're putting the whole mug on the stove???? On medium heat??? Ur stove is enchanted.

Venom Snake: Every person in this room is a fucking lunatic.

Skull Face: DO NONE OF YOU OWN A FUCKING KETTLE?

[kendrene]

oooOOOOOOH how's about avatrice with "You’re so warm.” ?? :)

The paper is thin under the pads of her fingers. 

Ava smooths it flat against the surface of the table, holding it there. Presses hard enough she can feel the ridges of the old wood through it, where age and neglect chipped the paint job away. Her thumb catches against a deep groove. Some past accident. The table meeting a knife. 

She pushes down harder. Her fingers, her hand, all the way to her elbow it’s just one big ache. She aches all over today. Then again, she hurts all over most days. Her free hand scrambles past a stack of unused paper for the pencil she’d let go to shake off a cramp. It skidded far across that sea of white and Ava is forced to stretch, bow over the table in order to grasp it. The motion tilts her halfway out the chair, which rolls back; Ava shifts her hips forward and sets herself back to her task. 

The book she's copying words from is the one Bea had gotten for her second-hand the first and last time they were here. The apartment is the same too, down to leaking pipe beneath the sink Beatrice still hasn't figured out how to fix.

It's Ava who's different. And everything else that has changed.

In the textbook, rows upon rows of German words and phrases march alongside their Portuguese counterparts. It had taken several tries for Beatrice to find it, days of scouring flea markets in the small towns nearby. Sometimes alone, most often with Hans. 

“It’ll be easier to learn if you build up from your native language.” She explained after Ava had pointed out an English to German book would have worked just as fine. It had been. Easy.

Except now it’s hard.

Today’s lesson is about the items used in the kitchen. Der Wasserkocher, Ava writes diligently, eyes flicking to the battered red tea kettle sitting on the stove. Der Ofen, she adds on a whim. Even though it isn’t in the book, she knows the German word for stove.

She’s about to write down the word for dishwashing detergent, which is long winded and sputtery both in letter count and in sound, when another cramp hits.

This is the worst one so far. It starts at her fingers, trailing up from her hand to the hinge of her wrist in increasingly powerful waves. Ava’s entire arm seizes. She watches her hand contract like it isn’t her own. Clench, release, tighten, release. The final shock has the pencil tear a hole through the last, half-written word, then snap against her palm.

Ava sucks in a breath at the sting. A sharp fragment of wood scores in her skin. She wills her hand to relax so she can take a look at the damage, but it’s an impossible ask, as though her internal wiring has been cut. Ava thinks about her fingers uncurling, face fixed in a frown. Thinks about it so hard she makes herself dizzy. Her hand stays exactly the same, and droplets vivid red, more viscous than ink, patter down on the page.

The rest starts while she watches the droplets expand. Ava knows, logically, that she’s not bleeding that much. Wherever she looks, though, she sees red. Red kettle, red microwave, old red radio on top of the fridge. 

Ava closes her eyes, or maybe it’s her vision that crawls dark at the edges. There is a shift, a tilt to her axis, and the next thing she is aware of is her cheek, bruised, pressing against linoleum warmed by the sun. 

“Ava?” Beatrice calls, voice uncertain, from what could be the opposite side of the world. “Ava I heard a noise. Are you —?” Ava blinks hard. Next to her, one of the chair’s rear wheels revolves slowly. “Ava?” Beatrice again. Closer. “Do you need me to — oh.” 

Strong hands cup beneath her armpits. Lifting, pushing, pulling away. Ava’s world spins with the faltering speed of a merry-go-round that’s finally come to a stop, and she finds herself propped against something that is, at once, solid and soft.

“Hey.” Beatrice’s lips are pressed to the shell of her ear, mouth half slanted in the hair behind it. “Ava, I think that you’re having a panic attack. I’m going to put my arms around you now. I don’t want you falling again. Is that okay?” 

Ava just nods. 

She feels as battered and old as this house, where some things are broken and others don’t work like they should. Her body isn’t even her own anymore; she’s along for the ride, but doesn’t control it. Walking and running — something as stupid as writing. She can’t seem to be able to consistently do any of it anymore. 

“Hey, hey, hey.” Beatrice’s arms wind around her middle and she’s rocking the two of them gently, back and forth, in time with the sobs Ava hadn’t even realized are shaking her shoulders. “It’s alright.” One of Beatrice’s hand worms its way under her shirt, to the spot where the Halo sits heavy and idle and so very cold. “Just breathe with me. Do you think you can do that?”

Beatrice takes a deep breath, lets it out slowly. “Like so. Now we do it together okay? On my count. One. Two —”

On three Ava opens her mouth. The first breath is torturous, like pulling in air through a straw. It doesn’t help that her nose is runny and clogged, and that the hand she lifts up to wipe it only makes it as far as her chest.  

“Here.” Beatrice’s fingers guide hers around a handkerchief she must have had in her pocket, then help Ava bring it to her nose. The fabric is the kind of soft that comes with a lot of washing and the pattern — Ava thinks it was once a herd of stylized galloping horses — is pretty much gone. She blows her nose, and the next breath she takes comes a bit easier.

“Better?” 

“I think so.” Her voice still feels off, as if she’s speaking a language she doesn’t quite know. Ava fights down another sob. “I don’t know.”

“Okay.” Beatrice scoots them backwards so that they’re further away from the table and fully sit in the sun. Ava watches her legs trail along; she’s starting to regain a measure of feeling, and with it comes the pain from her fall. It will be a while until they can move, longer until she can heave herself up on the wheelchair on her own. If she’s lucky, tomorrow will be a good day and she’ll be able to walk. If she’s lucky.

Lately, she’s not been very lucky at all.

“Have you heard of the 3-3-3 rule?” Beatrice asks, breath a warm wash against the side of Ava’s throat. Her hands have never stopped moving. One splays over the Halo, steady and grounding. The other covers Ava’s nerveless fingers, thumb tracing the network of veins at her wrist, that look bluish-black in the sun. 

“I know the 5 seconds one.”

Beatrice snorts. It tickles.

“That’ll do. Can you tell me three foods that you like then, Ava?”

Ava frowns. She’s starting to come back to herself, and with her mind clearing up and the fear wearing away it’s easy to see what Beatrice is doing.

“I know what you’re doing.”

“Then humor me, please?” The hand at her back pauses, and a hum rises from under Ava’s skin in response. It’s nothing. It’s nothing. The Halo has barely kept her alive as it is. Ava tries not to get her hopes up. She did at the start, after she came back through the Arc, and it was a big disappointment. 

She can’t afford to get hurt that way, not again. She wouldn’t survive. 

“Ugh, fine.” Afternoon sunlight, buttery smooth, streams in through the window, coating the entire world gold. “Mint chocolate chip ice cream.” 

“You have horrible taste, but go on.”

“Tacos al pastor.” 

“Okay, I can get behind those.” The hand on her back travels lower, following the ridges, the dips of her spine, and Ava feels it again. The tiniest hum, a buzzing. It’s almost a sigh. “What’s the third food?” 

“You.” 

The hand falls away. Beatrice’s arms around Ava tighten. Chin hooked over Ava’s shoulder , she rests her head there for a beat, face naturally tilting into the space between collarbone and jaw like a comet unable to resist a planet’s orbit.

“Ava.” A flash of heat spreads across Ava’s back, and she can’t tell whether it comes from the Halo or if Beatrice is blushing.

“What?”

“I just —” Bea smiles against her shoulder, plants a kiss there. “I’m not very nutritious, calories wise.”

“True.” Ava twists around in Bea’s arms, makes herself comfortable there. Given a choice, she’ll stay like this for the rest of the day. “But you’re tasty.” 

Beatrice clears her throat. “We should get you off the floor.” She suggests, deflecting. Her gaze cuts away to the floor, and she swallows. Ava will never tire of it, of how even the slightest flirting will have Beatrice in knots. Of how she’ll swallow, cheeks suffused red, pulse racing, near visible, under the cut of her jaw.

“Wait.” Ava digs in, hand gripping the front of Bea’s light pullover. She sways forward and in, and her lips brush on purpose right at Bea’s throat. Her heart pounds so fast Ava can taste it. Or maybe it’s her own. “Can we stay here a while longer? You’re so warm.”

Beatrice pulls back to look at her, mouth quirking into a bigger smile.

“We can stay here a while.”

//

“Die Schwester” Lilith has picked up Ava’s textbook after dinner and is making her way through some words, mangling them all. 

“Your German is terrible.”

“My German is perfect, thank you very much. It’s simply accented.”

“Whatever. Give me my book back.” Ava braces one elbow against the wheelchair’s armrest and stretches up, the other arm fully extended. Lilith puts the book down, just out of reach. 

“I’m so gonna run you over.”

Lilith scoffs. “And how do you plan to do that?” 

“We’re in the Alps. I’m going to wait until you’re on an incline, then let gravity do the rest.”

“Sure.”

Lilith phases. Reappears behind Ava a second later to help her closer to the table where Camila and Mary are setting the pizza they ordered for dinner on plates. 

“Why are you learning family vocabulary anyway? You and Bea are pretty fluent already.” 

“I’m not.” Ignoring the plates, Ava grabs for the box of pizzawitheverythingonit nobody else has the stomach to touch. The first bite is delicious but hot. Ava juggles the food in her mouth, speaking around it. “I have the best family ever already.”

Everything’s changed. 

Nothing is ever the same.

Ava will not walk today and she may not walk tomorrow. But as the sky fades to black and they crowd on the old couch, fighting over whose turn it is to pick a movie, Ava thinks change is alright. 

[shemarmooresfedora]

Rebuilding Family

Summary: Y/N and Spencer were college sweethearts at Cal-Tech but once Spencer got accepted to the FBI Academy, he ended things deciding it was not fair to make Y/N wait for him. When they meet again years later, he discovers something unexpected.

Pairing: Spencer Reid x Fem!Reader

A/N: THIS IS THE MOMENT YOU ALL HAVE BEEN WAITING FOR. PURE FLUFF AHEAD!!!

Masterlist

Chapter 24

The doorbell rang Friday night as you were popping popcorn in the microwave for family movie night.

“I’ll get it,” you called out, walking to the front door.

You opened it to see Penelope standing there. She immediately grabbed your hand and started tugging.

“You’re coming with me, soon-to-be Mrs. Reid,” she tried to drag you out of the house.

“Spencer! Code pink! Code pink!” you yelled.

You heard Spencer dashing towards the front door.

“You’re not taking her anywhere,” Spencer wrapped his arm around your waist.

“It’s bad luck for the bride and groom to see each other the day of the wedding,” Penelope stomped her high heel in protest.

“Yes, we knew you would say that so we bought these,” you and Spencer held up sleep masks, “Me and Spence will put these on before we go to bed. I’ll set my alarm 15 minutes before his so I will be up and out of the room, headed to Rossi’s before he even sees me. No bad luck and I still get to sleep with my fiancé, everyone’s happy!”

“I should have known you guys would find a loophole. You even had a whole code name,” Penelope huffed.

“I’m sorry, Pen,” you laughed, “I will see you in the morning.”

You gave her a big hug before she returned to her car.

“A brilliant idea if I do say so myself, Dr. Reid,” you grinned.

He leaned down to kiss you as Jo shouted “you’re missing Nemo.”

-

Beep. Beep. Beep.

You fumbled to swipe your phone alarm off without actually being able to see it.

Once you got it off, you felt Spencer’s arms tighten around you.

“Keep that blindfold on, mister,” you demanded.

“Don’t go,” he mumbled.

“Do you not want us to get married today?” you teased.

You felt Spencer’s arms slowly retract from around you after giving you one final squeeze.

“Yeah, that’s what I thought,” you giggled.

“Bye, love you,” he tried to kiss you but ended up kissing your nose.

You put your hand flat on his face to find his lips and then guided yourself to them.

“I can not wait to marry you,” you whispered after pulling away.

“10 hours,” he whispered back and you could feel his smile as you went in for another kiss.

You slowly got out of bed and crawled towards the door to avoid hitting anything. However, you slammed your head right into the door.

“Ouch!” you rubbed the top of your head.

Spencer sat up in bed, still with his blindfold on, “Love, are you okay?”

“Yep, I found the door,” you laughed, “I will see you at the aisle.”

“I can not wait to be reduced to a blubbering, crying mess in front of my closest friends and family,” Spencer smiled.

You felt around for the door knob and opened it, taking off your blindfold once you were out of the room. You picked up your bag that you had set outside your door with all of your skincare and makeup before heading out the door to Rossi’s.

By the time you had gotten there, the driveway was full of trucks and vans dropping off decorations and setting up the canopy and tables.

The second you rang the doorbell, you were pulled inside by JJ and Emily who were already in their dresses.

“You both look gorgeous!” you exclaimed as they dragged you up the stairs.

“Here’s a muffin,” JJ said as she sat you down.

Emily was already assessing your hair and combing it out.

“Penelope told us what you did last night,” Emily smiled, “I think it was extremely adorable.”

JJ nodded in agreement as she pulled the makeup products out of your bag.

“I would just feel weird if I was away from him for a night now since we are so used to being right next to each other. Speaking of Pen, where is she?” you asked.

“She needed to make sure they put the lattice trellis in the right place so the sun would set directly behind it,” JJ informed you.

You and Spencer would be getting married in front of a lattice trellis covered in vines and an assortment of flowers right at sunset.

“What would I do without her and you guys?” you laughed.

-

Spencer groggily answered the door to see Derek standing there, holding both of their tuxes.

“Ready to get married, Pretty Boy?” he grinned.

“Yes,” Spencer rubbed his eyes to wipe away the tiredness, “Let me wake Jo up.”

Spencer walked back up the stairs and opened Jo’s door, sitting at the edge of her bed.

“Time to get up, Princess,” he whispered, “You get to wear your new dress today.”

Jo’s eyes shot open and she got out from underneath the covers, revealing she was already in fact in her dress.

“You got up already?” Spencer laughed, picking her up.

“I tricked you, Daddy,” she giggled.

“Yes, you did,” Spencer smiled, “There’s someone here to see you.”

“Uncle Derek!” Jo exclaimed.

“Jo!” Derek shouted, accepting the little girl into his arms, “Well, don’t you look nice. Auntie Penelope was telling me how excited she is to do your hair later.”

Jo nodded enthusiastically.

“You get ready,” Derek pushed the tux into Spencer’s arms, “I’ll get Jo breakfast.”

-

You stood at the back of the line in front of the glass double doors leading out to Rossi’s backyard.

As the violins and piano began to softly play, you heard Penelope say, “Jo, go see your Dad.”

The doors opened to let Jo out, holding her basket of white rose petals.

You sneakily watched from a nearby window as Jo took her job very seriously, throwing a handful of petals every other step and then taking a seat in the front row next to Henry and Will.

JJ, Emily, and Penelope all proceeded down the aisle one by one, standing on the opposite side of Derek and Rossi who were standing next to Spencer.

You ran back from the window to in front of the doors, grabbing your bouquet from the table. You had decided to walk down the aisle alone. Your parents were in the audience here to support you but you were your own woman, you didn’t need to be “given away” to Spencer.

The doors opened for the final time and you stepped out. Spencer turned to face you and you could see the tears already glistening in his eyes.

You smiled and mouthed ‘I love you’ as you walked down the aisle and he mouthed ‘I love you too’ as the tears quickly began to form in your eyes as well.

You took your spot in front of Spencer and Jo waved to you both which elicited a small chuckle from the crowd.

“Hi, baby,” you waved back.

You don’t even think Spencer noticed because his eyes were laser-focused on you.

“Shall we begin?” Hotch asked and you both nodded.

“I would like to thank everyone for being here to help Y/N and Spencer celebrate this special day in which they attest to their love for one another. Spencer, would you like to read your vows first?”

Spencer nodded, “I have never admitted this to her until now but the first time I spoke to Y/N is because I offered her a sweatshirt. I actually brought that sweatshirt to the library with me that day, hoping the pretty girl who was always shivering would finally have a reason to acknowledge me. That was the single best decision of my life. Unfortunately, a little over a year later, I made the single worst decision of my life by letting you go,” Spencer started to get choked up, “I honestly think my ‘genius’ title should be taken away for that alone. Somehow, I was graced with the opportunity to come back into your life even though I didn’t deserve it. And your life now revolved around one particular little girl that I grew to love more than I thought was ever possible. So, I just wanted to say scientists learn from their mistakes so while I can’t promise I won’t make any more in the future, I can tell you for sure that I will never let go again.”

“Oh wow,” you sniffled, taking a kleenex and your little journal from Penelope, “How am I supposed to top that?”

“I really don’t care what you have to say, you marrying me is more than enough,” he whispered.

“Oh my god, you’re still coming up with better vows than me on the spot,” you whispered back.

“Much like Spencer, I also wrote about our first encounters in college. Spencer and I quickly formed an unspoken agreement that we would always meet at the same table in the library. One night, when he was taking the time to repeatedly explain to me a calculus concept I just wasn’t getting even though I knew he had a paper due tonight, I thought to myself ‘this one is too good to let get away’. So at our next meeting, I ordered takeout from his favorite restaurant and set up a little dinner for us. It was all worth it when I saw him walk in with his textbooks only to be soon lost for words when I asked him if he would go on a date with me. I never really dated anyone in the time we were apart, I just had this feeling that our story was far from over and I’m so so glad that feeling was right. I promise I will never stop loving you, no matter what, because I don’t think I could even if I tried” you stated.

“Spencer, with this ring, do you take Y/N to love and to hold, to cherish and respect her in sickness and in health, in sorrow and in joy, from this day forward?” Hotch asked.

“I do,” Spencer smiled as you slipped the band on to his ring finger.

“Y/N, with this ring, do you take Spencer to love and to hold, to cherish and respect him in sickness and in health, in sorrow and in joy, from this day forward?” Hotch repeated.

“Absolutely I do.”

Spencer slipped the ring on your finger.

“By the power vested in me by the state of Virginia, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may now kiss the bride,” Hotch smiled.

Spencer cupped your cheeks, pulling you as close as he could and kissing you deeply. Everyone cheered as you both interlocked your hands and headed down the aisle.

As soon as you were inside, Spencer pulled you in for a more passionate, sloppy kiss.

“I didn’t want an audience for that,” he grinned, pulling you back in.

“Bleh,” you heard Derek say, who had Penelope on his arm, “Do you guys need to go home already?”

“No, we can wait a few more hours,” you giggled but Spencer whined.

JJ and Will had offered to take Jo for the night so you and Spencer had the house to yourself. You had opted for just spending one night away from Jo rather than a long honeymoon. You were going to take a family vacation all together instead.

A few minutes later, you heard Penelope and Derek announce on the microphone, “Now introducing for the first time ever, Dr. and Mrs. Reid!”

You exited the glass doors once again, holding you and Spencer's interlocked hands up in the air as everyone cheered under the big white canopy with fairy lights.

“Please clear the dance floor for their first dance together as husband and wife,” Penelope smiled.

Bloom by The Paper Kites faded in as Spencer’s arms wrapped around your waist. You rested your head against his chest and wrapped your hands around the back of his neck.

You felt him rubbing small circles on your side with his thumb as he planted a kiss on the top of your head.

“I love you so much, my husband,” you whispered.

“I love you more, my wife,” he smiled.

You swayed gently back and forth until the music faded out. Spencer leaned down and kissed you as you stopped swaying. You completely forgot you were in front of an audience until you pulled away from Spencer and the crowd erupted into a cheer.

You looked into the audience to see Diana twirling Jo around in a circle. Luckily, an aid was able to bring her on such short notice.

After everyone had enjoyed the banquet, Hotch and Emily took the microphone this time.

“Time for the cutting of the cake!” they cheered.

You and Spencer both stood from the main table to go get the first pieces. You both held the knife together, cutting out two pieces.

You grabbed the plate that your slice was on and gently shoved it into Spencer’s nose, laughing as he pulled the plate away, his face covered in white frosting.

“You think that’s funny?” he grinned, grabbing his piece and pressing it into your face.

You continued your giggling fit as he cut another piece.

“Princess, come here!” he called out.

Jo ran up, eager to get a first taste of the cake and you and Spencer pressed another piece right into her face.

Jo stuck her tongue out and licked some off her face, “It tastes good,” she smiled as you and Spencer continued to laugh.

[whore4teamcap]

Partners Against Crime

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Gender Neutral Reader

Summary: After your boyfriend takes a promotion, you’re assigned a new partner. How will you both deal with the separation and potential of someone getting in the way? 

Warnings: This fanfiction does revolve around law enforcement but I will not include any controversies. 

Word Count: 2.4k

A/N: Thank you @stucky-my-ship for requesting this! I’m so excited to turn this into a series. Hope you enjoy <3 Thank you so much to those who read! Feedback and interactions are heavily appreciated. Also! Please reach out if you would like to be tagged in future parts and my other projects.

Part 1

You flickered your eyes open as a blaring noise came from beside you. No matter how many years of experience you had with this job, you swore you would never get used to this schedule. Even when you were starting out as a beat cop everything seemed easier. It was probably just the adrenaline from coming straight out of the academy but then your life changed. You were promoted from beat and finally landed your goal job as a detective. You dreamed of being a detective ever since you were little. You smiled softly at the memory of you sneaking downstairs to watch tv behind your parents backs. Often finding yourself glued to crime shows; they fueled your desires to take down criminals.

You throw your arm toward the side table and shut off the alarm. Then you proceed to roll over and frown at the empty bed space beside you. Your boyfriend, James Barnes, well you called him Bucky, just got promoted to Sergeant. He was officially in charge of the precinct you both worked at. Which was both a blessing and a curse. You were so proud of Bucky, he finally got the promotion he has been working his ass off for and the new job came with a lot of good things for him.

But, you couldn't hide the fact that it was gonna severely weigh on you. You and Buck had been partners since you first got promoted to detective. You both really clicked from that day forward. It was gonna take a lot to get used to not having him by your side. In this line of work you need a person you can trust one thousand percent. At the end of the day this person is in charge of your life and you're in charge of theirs. Bucky was the definition of what a partner meant to you. Which is why it was no shock that three years later you both shared an apartment and ended up falling in love. However you just knew the promotion would put a damper on that as well. You had to keep your affair hidden from the precinct and trusted very few people. When you moved in with Bucky, you weren't even allowed to update your address so every now and then you'd make your way over to your old place to pick up mail. Luckily, you hit it off with your old landlord and he helps with anything and everything you need. Although you were certain he did it to eventually get a legal favor. But you didn't mind. It bought you time with the man you love.

Being that the precinct didn't know about you and Bucky, you couldn't stop yourself from worrying about the future. He was no longer your equal. He was your boss and you were terrified of the thought of someone finding out about your relationship. It could get both of you fired or moved to different precincts. Which was the better of the two, but it would be hard to work without each other. You strongly believed what made you best at your job was having him beside you. Or at least in the same work place. This mindset also made you question if your relationship would ever progress more than it was. Of course you wanted to eventually marry Bucky but how would that work with your jobs? There were so many obstacles the two of you faced and it made you even more stressed for your first day without him.

While groaning, you rub your face. Then you gain the strength to pull yourself from the half empty bed. You make your way to the bathroom and turn on the water. Giving it time to heat up while you go grab a towel and pick out clothes for your day. After showering and getting ready, you stepped out of your shared room. The apartment is small and cozy. New York was an expensive city to live in but you both made it work. When you were looking for apartments, you didn't care where you ended up just as long as we were with each other. Being that the apartment was tiny, you could see straight into the kitchen from the hallway. Your eyes fell straight on a note besides the partially full coffee pot. You smile to yourself and walk over. You lift it off the counter and begin to read,

Good morning Doll

I hope you slept well. I left early this morning to get a head start on everything at the station. I made us coffee. I hope it's still good by the time you wake up.

Yours,

Bucky

P.S. Please grab our usual at the deli before you come in

You let out a brief chuckle at the final sentence written on the piece of paper. You grab a travel mug from the cabinet and place it in front of you. Then you proceed to grab the pot and pour it into the cup. After adding creamer and sugar, you bring the cup to your lips and take a small sip. The coffee was good but on the colder side. Therefore you pop it in the microwave while you quickly grab your belongings. When you hear the beep, you remove it and put the lid on. Carrying everything with you out of the door.

While driving to work, you swing by the deli up the road from your apartment building. You park on the busy New York street and quickly get out of your car and run inside. The bell above the door dings and Frank and Linda look up from behind the counter. You shoot them a large smile and they quickly return. The deli was owned by this sweet older couple since the early 70s. They were so kind to you and really cared for their regulars. So much so, they memorized Bucky and your order. Sometimes even having it ready before you arrive in the mornings.

"Good morning (y/n)! Where's Bucky?" Frank asks, his welcoming smile fading into a light frown. He walks toward the edge of the counter to meet you.

"Good morning! He went in early. First day of the new promotion. I'm still gonna bring him breakfast though," you explained while Linda grabbed a brown paper bag from the far counter and brought it toward you.

"Oh! Please tell him we wish him well, would you? We remember like it was yesterday when you both started coming in here. You've come a very long way and were so proud of you both," Linda said kindly. Her words turn your cheeks a dark shade of pink.

You could remember that day like it was yesterday as well. Bucky brought you here on your first day of the job and you've been coming to Frank's since.

-

"Why don't we stop and get food before we start our case? I know this amazing deli a few blocks away from the station," Detective Barnes suggests and you nod.

His gaze stays on you while you both get into his car. You slide into the passenger seat then proceed to put your seat belt on. You watch him do the same then start the car.

"So how long have you been a detective?" you ask softly, fiddling with your notebook and pen in your lap.

"Bout' 5 years or so. Rogers, the guy you met back at the precinct, he was my partner. We go way back," He replies while he pulls out of his parking spot. Beginning to make his way up the block.

You watched the busy street and took everything in with new eyes. You lived in New York your whole life but the city was still new to you. Your gaze shifts to your partner and you blushed lightly. His dark hair, calming smile and kind personality seemed to draw you in. But you pushed those thoughts away. This was professional and you knew that. However you found yourself incredibly lucky to be partnered with someone who already gave you such a welcoming homely feeling.

"Whatcha thinking about, (y/l/n)?" he asks. Shifting his attention from the road to you. His eyes connected with yours and suddenly all of your first day jitters went away.

His eye snapped back to the road and he began puling to a stop. Veering off to the right side of the road into an empty parking spot. Once his eyes snapped away, you took a deep breath and looked away as well.

"Just trying to get a good read on my partner. Making sure he's not dirty or part of something that'll get me killed," you say jokingly. You let out a laugh at your own stupid explanation and Barnes' attention quickly turned back to you. The corners of his mouth instantly went up and he shot you a toothy grin.

"Don't worry. If you're with me long enough. I'd let you in on my dirty cop side. No need to fear for your life," He joked back. Holding up his hands as if he were surrendering.

"All about the money in the end, isn't it Barnes?" You asked, continuing this forming inside joke.

"Oh definitely."

You both get out of the vehicle and you notice a big sign above the small deli. The name reading FRANK'S. You both walk inside and you smile as you're greeted by a seemingly older couple. You have been to countless deli's in New York State but this one gave you a great feeling. You didn't have family in the city. So it amazed you how quickly strangers could become such a crucial piece in your life.

-

She hands the order to you and you begin to pull out your wallet. Frank instantly puts his hand up and smiles, "Please it's on the house today. Also don't forget your coffee! Feel free to grab one for Bucky too."

"Thank you so much," was all you managed to reply with. Their utter kindness always brought so much love to your heart.

You notice you forgot the mugs so you walk out of the shop toward your car. You unlock it and pull on the passenger side door. You put the food in your car. Then lean over and grab your nearly empty travel mug from home and the spare from your car. You bring them inside so you can quickly fill them up before making a b line to work.

When you arrive, you walked into the precinct with your hands full. Doing your best to carefully get to your desk. You notice Bucky making himself at home in his new office and you can't help but feel an overwhelming amount of happiness for your boyfriend. He looks so excited and you were so incredibly proud of him. You set your coffee down then pull out your breakfast sandwich placing it on your desk. You grab the brown bag and Bucky's coffee wasting no time before you walk into his office. The man instantly looks up from his papers with a smile.

"Good morning beautiful. Is that for me?" He asks softly, keeping his voice low enough so no one hears.

"Good morning Sergeant Barnes," you say with a small smirk growing on your lips. You move closer to the desk and set everything down. "Linda and Frank gave us our food for free today. They wanted to congratulate you on the promotion. They're very proud of you."

"That's very kind of them. I needed this. Thanks for picking up the food. Rogers told me to come in early and I'm kinda glad I did because he was able to give me the full run down. Hopefully everything goes smoothly from here on out. Although it was weird coming in alone. I hope that won't become a regular thing. Despite the headache, I love our chaotic mornings," Bucky explains followed by a small chuckle. Your mind instantly recalls how usually your mornings consisted of you both fighting for space to get ready. Except you also both secretly adored the morning due to the fact Bucky loves to wake you up with light kisses.

"I agree. I really hope it's not regular. I already lost my partner, the last thing I want to lose is alone time with my boyfriend," you sigh then force a slight laugh. You didn't mean for it to come off in an upsetting way, but you realized it did when the room fell silent.

"Is my new partner coming in today?" You ask curiously, unable to find anything but awkwardness after your statement. You pay close attention to his face and notice a sour look appear. Maybe he wasn't taking it as well as you thought.

"Yeah. He should be in soon," Bucky replies and you nod. You walk out of his office and make your way to your own desk.

You unwrap your sandwich and use one hand to eat and the other to flip through your files. Taking in all of the new information for the case you are starting. You quickly finish your food then you take a large sip of your coffee. You haven't been given any information on your new partner so you wanted to make sure you knew as much as you could about your mutual assignment. Just in case you were stuck with someone inexperienced.

After about a half hour of being lost in thought while analyzing your papers, Bucky's strong voice fills the room. You look up and catch his gaze. He motions for you to come toward him; you get up from your chair and follow behind him into his office. Inside you see a man sitting in one of the two chairs across from Bucky's. He had on black dress pants, a light blue button up shirt and a black blazer. The outfit complimented his body quite well. Your focus moves up to his face, noticing his piercing blue eyes and his slightly long blonde hair. You hear a fake cough come from Bucky and instantly look at him.

"Detective (y/l/n), this is your new partner. You guys will be working the Reagan case together."

The man stands up from his chair and eyes you up and down. He finally extends his hand to you and you shake it.

"Hi, I'm Detective John Walker."

[someonewhowannadielol]

My name is 01001010 01001011 (Alien!Jungkook! x Human!Reader)

Summary: “So you’re a human?” The alien that looked and acted like a human asked. The only difference between him and you was that he had two upside down triangles starting from his jaw going down under his shirt. Also, he was huge. “I’m talking 8 foot tall” huge.

Warning: Daddy kink, Dirty talk, size kink, cunt slapping, Jungkook being rlly big, fingering, nipple sucking (?), Dom/sub themes, and Jungkook being a curious alien.

Genre: Fluff, Smut

Word Count: 6.3k

Pairing: Jungkook x Reader

COVID-19 vs Human kind. Human kind was pretty much fucked. In front of your eyes, the world population went from a staggering 8 billion people to an exponentially low 1 million. Within two years. It was in October 2020, when scientist realized that instead of working on a vaccine, they needed to discover a place where those free from this deadly disease could live. Safely and peacefully.

Then, the people of Jubal, stepped in, and it was pure chaos. You still remember the day, 14thof December 2020. Everywhere; social media platforms, billboards, NASA’s speech, everything revolved around the message they sent us. They wanted to help us. Surprisingly, we knew nothing about them, but they knew everything about us. From our appearance to our food, cultures, languages, and what not. It low key creeped you out, not going to lie.

Nonetheless, we began building the transport link through their help and finally, one year later (pretty much the brink of our extinction), we were on our way to a new life.

Honestly, you had imagined them to look like- or well, to not look like how they looked. You’d expected Pokémons, or weird looking octopus, or even insects. But they looked just like you, expect they were way bigger in size.

After half a month or so, you had started to get used to the atmosphere. Almost similar to Earth, there were two sides to this planet, a much hotter plane, where the temperature never went below 104 Fahrenheit. You remember going there when you first arrived here, and oh god, you hated it. The temperature was too high for you; they didn’t know what ice cream was (how can they not know! You thought they knew everything, yet they’re unaware about one of the most popular desserts on Earth), you absolutely hated sweating and no amount of air conditioning could stop it, and the beach just looked out of place. The sand wasn’t the usual pale brown shade, instead it was just the color of the ocean itself – it adapted to the shade of the flowing water into a green-blue hue. Weird. Also, there was one sun in the morning, and three in the evening, gradually coming as the hours passed by.  

You had also noticed that all of them ate food at the same temperature. Nothing was cold like ice, or hot like a fresh pizza. The concept was new to them, and when you asked for the water to be cold at the first restaurant you went to – the waiter just looked lost. The poor soul, he was told to make the humans feel at home, so when he realized he couldn’t do what you asked to, you just felt really bad. Still, it was funny that a seven-foot tall man was scared of you being uncomfortable. It was cute, honestly.

Also, almost similar to Earth, the two places had different types of Jubals living there. The sunny side had more tan skinned people, with bright, blond hair and bright eyes. Whereas, the cold plane Jubals had fairer skin, darker hair and doe eyes. The one similarity being – they were huge as fuck. The average height was around seven foot for men, and around six foot for females. So, standing at a 5 foot 2 inches (almost three inches I swear!), you felt tiny (and intimidated sometimes, but you weren’t going to admit that.

After finalizing that you definitely didn’t want to live in the hotter part of the planet, you moved to Corellia, it was cold there but not in the way you expected it to be. In the morning, it was perfectly fine, the cold breeze was nothing short of comfortable, but as the evening came, it started to get cold to the point where you couldn’t bear to go outside after 6 PM. Sometimes, you think you might have underestimated the cold here at night, because the two beautiful moons brought such intense cold that you wouldn’t dare go out at night. They gifted you a cozy one bed apartment with a really good heating system, which you appreciated. Also, you had never been so glad that you brought the microwave from Earth, without it, you didn’t know what you would do.

Ever since you moved, you had pretty much been lonely, because of the lack of contact with humans. Most of them preferred to live in the hotter state, wanting to get tanned - and to fuck the surfer Jubal hotties. You still remember parting with your sister and her ranting about this Jubal she met who was so “dreamy” and “good at surfing”.

As usual, you were just trying to get used to the food here, thankfully, they had a smaller section of “human,” food that mostly consisted of cup noodles, vegetables, chicken and chocolates. Getting groceries was intimidating at first (honestly, it kind of still is), because everyone and everything was so large, and everyone just kept staring at you. You still haven’t interacted with a Jubal on your own, it’s not like you were scared – you were – but also you didn’t really know how to go up to one. Until now, the only two Jubals you’ve met were the grocery store cashier and the landlord. Sigh.

You were so happy when you saw the new addition of real, organic milk in the grocery aisle! Thank god you got a break from that horrid almond milk. It was just water pretending to be milk honestly, and whenever you poured it in your cereal, it felt like drowning them in water, yuck. But, as much as you could try, you just would not reach the goddamn shelf. Why did these Jubals have to be so tall! Why couldn’t they just make this aisle according to human size!

You heard someone shuffle behind, but paid no heed until you heard laughter burst and immediately looked back to see one of them laughing so hard, his body shook.

“You- you’re so tiny!” He barely managed to get that sentence out of him, since he couldn’t stop his outburst.  

Of course, you were offended.

“I’m actually not! You all are way too big!” You didn’t really know how to respond, because this was just so sudden.

“Hm, I don’t think so, you’re smaller than average earthlings. But it’s okay, because it’s adorable,” so, you were really surprised when you felt him behind you, reach up to the milk shelf and grab a container of it. Of course, being the dumb idiot you were, you suddenly turned around and had to face him again. You hadn’t noticed his physical features before, but now that you did. Holy shit.

He was tall (I know, it’s obvious by now), and had such, clear, fair skin. Two upside down triangles were on each side of his jaw and went down, disappearing under his coat. He looked at you with such doe, curious eyes, almost as if he was entertained by your mere presence.

“Here you go,” he handed you the container of milk – while still being really close (not that you minded it). Despite the irritatingly bright fluorescent store lighting, his hair shined, and looked so soft.

And after that, he just followed you around the store, and you honestly didn’t really know what to do.

“You know, I’ve been trying to find a human since a month now, but I’ve heard most of them moved to the Southern part. You should’ve done that too, because Corellia is too cold for you. You’re a little slow,”

And you’re a little piece of shit.

“But now I found you. You’re really adorable, the books didn’t tell me that. Ever since humankind moved here, I’ve been really studying Earth. Did you guys really had pink leaved trees? And forests? It must be so cool for so many trees to be in one place. I also really want to meet a lion,”

“You can’t just meet a lion,” you chuckled, he was weird, but somehow, it wasn’t awkward around him. He radiated this warm energy that you hadn’t seen in the Jubal people around you, and it was comforting, made you want to stay by his side – even if it meant answering his dumb questions.

“I can, you can’t. It would eat you, because you’re bite sized for it,” he continued to comment on your petite stature, and the worst part is that you couldn’t even defend yourself, especially when he kept towering over you.

“Hey! Stop making fun of me,” you tried to push him but the basket was too heavy for you, so you ended up just… awkwardly not being able to do it. Suddenly his – huge – hand swoops in and carries the heavy grocery basket as if it was nothing.

“You should’ve told me it was too heavy for you,” he sounded almost as if he was scolding you, and coo-ing at you at the same time. His eyebrows bunched up in frustration as he mumbled something along the lines of ‘how can I protect you if you won’t tell me what you need,’ but you couldn’t really make out what he said.

You were just pulled out of your thoughts when you heard him put something in your basket. Something that the Jubals ate, not humans.

Should I ask him to leave? No, that’s way too rude. Then, should I ask him why he’s following me?

“This is delicious, you should try it,” He spoke while continuing to look around the store, and put random items in your basket. There was a variation of their fruits (this one had a gradient of yellow and orange, with huge spikes coming out from the top), cans with God-knows-what inside (the one he put in your basket had cherry colored pentagons on it, and a juice bottle that contained neon green juice. You were not looking forward to drinking that.

“I don’t even know how to make all of this. What if I can’t eat it?” You were scared of most of these food items, you got sick easily, and didn’t know how to cope if you fell sick here. Without the medicines, you’d probably die.

“I’ll cook it for you if you want to,” He looked at you and smiled, “I know humans are fragile, so don’t worry, I made sure to get the ones which would be safe for you,” he said, while petting your hair, and smiling. You instantly fell in love with it, it wasn’t like the way he laughed at you earlier, but somehow, it was far more beautiful. His eyes crunched up into half-moons, cheeks being bunched up, he almost looked like the small bunny you had as a pet when you were younger. So. Cute.

“But I don’t even know your name, why would you do this for me?” You really were curious, why was a Jubal so interested in humans? So far, most of them have just maintained a distance from you.

“Because I want to keep you,” he looked at you, and the duality of his presence made you shiver. The small bunny smile morphed into a more serious face, his already dark brown eyes, turned into a slightly darker shade, giving you the chills.

“You can’t keep me,” you didn’t know how to fight this argument, you almost wanted to laugh and act as if you thought it was a joke, but you weren’t an idiot – and nor was he.

“I know, I can’t find the Earth word for it, I want to be with you, is what I mean,” he mumbled as he tried to find something in the cereal aisle.

The grocery trip was actually not as weird as you’d expect it to be. While you both didn’t know anything about each other, not even names (not that Jubals had actual names, they just talked through their minds?)

And as soon as you reached the cashier, before you could even take out your money, he nod, and paid the bill.

“Hey! I can pay for myself, you don’t have to do this!”  

Honestly, you didn’t really know what to say after he said, “I’m paying, now be a good baby and stand still,” where did he even learn to speak like that?

It was starting to get cold now, and after you exited the heated mall, it was visible that you shivered every time the cold brushed up against your figure. You should’ve worn the third sweater, sigh.

“So you’re really a human?” He said, as he carried your groceries and followed you, on your way to the apartment.

“Yeah, I’m Y/N,”

“How can you be a Y/N? You just said you were a human,” He asked, really confused. Were you pranking him? He learnt in (one of his many books about humans) that humans liked to prank each other for entertainment. He found the idea amusing, but right now he couldn’t decide whether you were pranking or joking.

He didn’t understand the difference between pranking and joking, either.

“I-  What? No, I mean I am a human, but my name is Y/N,” you were definitely amused at his seriousness, yet you couldn’t help but be intimidated by his tall figure. Also, you felt bad that he was holding all the groceries, so you decided to grab one of the bags from him.

“Y/N!” He stopped dead in his tracks after your fingers brushed against his, “I just remembered you can’t bear the cold after 6pm, so you have to wear many clothes to protect yourself. You’re already so cold,” he felt your hand, and his was so warm and felt right, intertwined in your hand. His hand was so huge, that it enveloped yours easily, and you could really notice the size difference now. 

He quickly transferred all the grocery bags into his left hand, and continued to give you his coat, and held your hand again, and it felt… nice. The fact that he smelled so good, helped too, you couldn’t exactly put your finger on it, but it was really comforting. 

You were quite used to the stares you got on the streets from other Jubals, and always thought that they would go away, but it’s been two weeks, yet they still continue to look at you up and down, so you finally asked him. You still didn’t know his name, and didn’t know whether you should ask him or not, was it insulting?

“Why does everyone keep staring at me?”

“Because you’re so cute,”

What. It was almost like you forgot how to breathe. How could he say that all of a sudden, out of the blue? Also, you actually could not breathe, because while he had long legs that lasted for days, you had much smaller legs and it was starting to get hard to keep up.

“Hey! Could you walk-” you took in a breath, wow, your stamina was really, uh, shitty, “could you walk a little slow?”

He looked back at you, and tilted his head almost as to ask ‘why?’, but understood quickly. Then, he flashed one of his cute smiles, again, the smile that did things to your heart that you hadn’t felt before.

“Do you want me to carry you?” He also had read previously that humans can get really tired, and sometimes not even have the strength to move on. Especially females, they were more fragile, and he could physically see that too, because you were just so small. The average height was supposed to be 5’4 or even 5’6 for human females around your age, but you seemed smaller than that. But you also didn’t seem to be a child because those under the age 18 were always with their parents right? He had almost started to doubt those textbooks he bought on humans.

“No, I can walk myself,” You tried to defend yourself, and started to mentally curse as to why you asked him to slow down.

You finally reached your apartment door. Honestly, you had thought that he would stop following you after you reached the apartment building… but he just continued to bring the groceries in.

Should you invite him in? Did you even clean your living space? You probably had your underwear lying all over the place, since now you lived alone and had no fear of someone else coming in your private space.

“Can I come in?”

Well, you didn’t want to say no to him, he’s been really nice so far, and you had to admit, picking up groceries was really hard to do, and you weren’t exactly physically active enough to carry all those bags that he easily carried in one hand.

He then walked himself to the door after putting the groceries in the kitchen. What really surprised you was how he looked back at you, not how he looked before. Before, he looked with warmth, and now. Now, he almost towered at you, reminding how much power he really has over you. He looked at your lips, and then back at your eyes and tilted his head.

“W-well, it was really nice to meet you,” you said trying to break the tension and to distract yourself from the obviously gorgeous man.

“I hope to see your cute face again soon,” he smiled one of his bunny smiles again, and kissed you on the cheek before disappearing under the stairs.

You curled yourself up in your blanket, and tried to sleep, but that Jubal kept intruding your thoughts. 

Would you get to see him again?

The next time you saw the cute Jubal from the grocery store was next week Saturday. On Earth, entertainment was in the form of movies, arcades and concerts. Similarly, here too, people had a theatre – instead of a movie on a projector, it was shown in 3D form, almost like a live performance, expect there were holographic figures.

You looked around, and by now you had taken into account that Jubal people weren’t afraid to show off their skin – even though it was crazy cold here, their bigger bodies could compensate by giving them more body heat. Unfortunately, your smaller stature couldn’t provide you with the same amount of heat and you always had to bundle up in three or even four layers to keep yourself from freezing or catching a cold.

You were watching a really heated up scene, and it was getting kind of… uncomfortable. While others were simply watching casually, as if it was nothing out of the ordinary, you kept shuffling in your seat – so it was a pleasant surprise when you felt someone cover your eyes from behind you.

“Wha-” instinctively, you looked behind, and it was the same boy (or man?), from the grocery store.

“Hey,” again, you waved at him, almost as a form of habit, and he looked at you as if you did something quite weird. Without any questions, he tried to imitate you, but he was really stiff so you couldn’t help but let you a laugh.

“I know I didn’t introduce myself much better last time, but we don’t really have names. Still, I decided to get one for myself, because once I get a human, she should be able to call me something,”

Did he… did he mean that you were his human?

“Well, what did you settle for?”

“My name is 01001010 01001011. I thought it was really similar to the ones that humans have. Do you like it?” He asked with a proud grin, as his face lit up.

You tried to keep your laughter in, you really did but you when it did come out, you felt like wanting to die. His face crumpled up almost as if he was ashamed of his name as he increased the distance between the two of you.

Nice one, Y/N, you made the only person who cared enough for you sad.

“Hey, look, it’s a nice name, it’s just not very human-like,” you explained to him.

“It’s the binary code for a human name,”

Because of the constant conversation you both were immersed in, the Jubals beside you were starting to get annoyed – and while they didn’t say anything, probably because they didn’t want you to feel bad (you still did, for trying to ruin their experience for this live-movie thing), you decided to head out with him.

As you both walked in one of the main parks situated in the middle of Corellia state, he settled on a spot in the corner of the massive area.

“Would you like to give me a name?” he looked at your face with such intensity, that you couldn’t help but feel insecure and want to cover your face.

“Well, what did those binary numbers represent?” you really did want to help his get a name, after all, he was your first friend here.

“I want to be called JK, but my friends told me it was a ridiculous human name, because no one was named JK before. So I settled for its binary number. They approved of that,” his eyes shone of much when he talked about it, his long lashes were uprightly curved and you couldn’t help but swoon.

You fiddled with your sweater as you gave him suggestions, but none seemed to suit him.

“Jake? No,” you were starting to get frustrated at this, “Hm, maybe Jacob?” you shook your head again, unsatisfied.

He just simply continued to laugh at you being so serious, occasionally playing with hair and pressing a finger to your soft cheeks. When he commented on you being soft, you couldn’t help but blush (and when he compared you to one their red fruits, you couldn’t help but blush harder (you denied it, obviously)).

“Jungkook!” you remember reading that word in one of the books you had in high school literature.

“Jungkook? Do you like it, baby?” He played with your cheeks with happiness, he was happy that you were no longer frustrated or angry. Finally satisfied and happy. Of course, you blushed at the word of endearment, but didn’t tell him to not say it.

Oh. Well, after that, he just continued to ask you about humans, and more specifically about you. You were amused by most of his questions,

“What is sarcasm?”

“Why do you like pizza so much, when it’s detrimental for your health? You shouldn’t eat it, I’ll make good food for you,”

“How do you make stereotypes?”

“Why do people get cosmetic surgery?”

And each one of them seemed normal for a Jubal to ask until,

“Why do humans like cuddling?”  

At this point, you were quite tired, but still thought it would rude to ask him out, because he seemed really curious, every question coming right after you answer the last one.

“I guess, we just like to be touchy and close,” you said and you tried to suppress a yawn, but it just slipped.

“What was that? Was that a sigh? Or a yawn? Are you tired? That was so cute, do it again,”

“Just a little tired,” you said as you rested you head on his shoulder without realizing to do so. It was also getting really cold; the second moon had started to show up.

You both got up, and the walk back home was really pleasant. He kept cracking jokes and dancing on the pavement. You tried to imitate his dance, but your flow wasn’t as steady as his. How could someone dance so good like this, yet not be able to wave correctly? Your fingers intertwined again, and you leaned more into his body this time. You could barely reach his mid chest, that’s how tall he was. But somehow, you didn’t mind it because you both fit so perfectly – as if two parts of one puzzle.

As you reached the door of your apartment door again, you felt Deja-vu. He looked at your face, studying it carefully and looking back at your eyes, however instead of just looking at your lips this time, he leaned closer and looked back at you – almost as if asking for permission to kiss you. You nodded, and wow.

As his lips drew closer to yours, you could feel him cupping your face with both hands, one of them gradually descending to the back of your head as it found its place in your hair. They were incredibly soft, and almost overpowered you, because you didn’t expect this. As he slid his tongue and slowed himself, you found yourself wanting more, leaning towards him.

Before realizing that you needed to breathe, you started to choke, as he pulled himself back, and chuckled before saying, “Baby girl, take it slow, I’m all yours.”

“Want more,” is all you can say before leaning towards him, wanting to kiss him again. But unlucky for you, he just moved back before laughing again, and this time you pouted and slightly punched his chest.

“Now, you’re just being a brat, baby, you’ll get what I’ll give you, understand?” You could feel his breath fanning your face, and his eyes were no longer twinkling like they did, but instead were full of lust and an animalistic hunger.

‘’Jungkook, please,” you had never really been serious with boys in your high school, and so, this was the first time you had actually felt something down there. It was almost like someone – or Jungkook – lit a fire in your core, and you couldn’t help but just want more.

Fumbling hands opened the door to the apartment and you both tumbled in, messily but both of you didn’t care as you headed to your bedroom. On the way, he messily kissed your neck that made your knees buckle in a way that even walking was difficult.

He tossed you gently on your bed, that was way too big for the apartment, and ran his fingers through your hair, to you neck, and to your chest. He attacked your neck again, and started to form a pattern with his tongue as he pressed harder on some areas and trailed lighter on others.

You couldn’t help but let a whine escape your mouth when he left your neck unattended to take off your sweaters and cardigans till you were only in your undergarments and a see-through white dress.

“Fuck, baby girl, you’re so beautiful,” he said as he attacked your lips again, this time being harsher with his movements, as his tongue slipped in your mouth, doing wonders to his body.

“J-Jungkook, please,” you felt so much, so sudden, and even in this cold, the heat was too much for you – the heat inside you wanted to escape, but you didn’t know how to ask him.

“Yes, baby? Tell me what you want,” his amused voice made it obvious as to what you wanted, but still he continued to tease you, torment you, put you on the edge, “Tell daddy what you want,”

You took in a gasp as he unbuckled your bra strap from behind, free-ing your breasts, and the very next second, tore your fragile dress.

“Hm, tell me baby girl,” he asked you once again, as he took in one of you nipples in his mouth, his tongue encircling your bud, as one of his hands pinched the other one.

“Jungkook I-” you gasped as you felt a slap on your clit, it wasn’t that harsh because he was being careful, and you were still in your panties – but it just turned you on more.

“Baby, you have to call me Daddy, do you understand?” he said as his free wrist kept putting pressure on the top of you panties, making you want to rip them off, so you could finally feel him where you wanted to.

“Yes,” you said, and whined after he took off his mouth from your nipple to look at you, and after a second you understood what you had to say, “Yes Daddy, I understand,”

“Such a good girl for me, so pretty,” he said as he kissed your cheek, and you just couldn’t stop blushing. He was so harsh, yet so gentle at the same time – and it made your head spin.

“Now, be a good baby, and tell Daddy what you want him to do to you,” he said as he neared your ear, “does baby want daddy to wreck her pussy?”

You couldn’t help but shiver before speaking, “I want Daddy to make me feel good,”

His fingers slowly trailed your body, making you moan and buckle your body up towards him. You looked at him, his ears tinged red, and his eyes were darker than before, he almost looked like a fallen angel. He chuckled, looking at you seem so helpless, so fragile.

You were so soft, so ethereal, like an angel from the sky and he was there to taint you, to make you his.

He teased you by playing with the band of your underwear, he put two fingers in your mouth and you instantly slicked them with your saliva, making obscene noises that blended in with your moans. Then he trailed those two fingers right above your covered clit, and you couldn’t help but buckle up again, wanting those two fingers inside of you.

“Be patient, princess,” and it felt like an eternity as he circled his tongue in your belly button and it so, so, so slowly trailed down and down, and he finally took off your panties with his teeth.

“So wet, baby, you’re making a mess,” he commented as he rubbed you with one finger, and using the other one to encircle your hole. He pushed it a little inside, easily as your slick helped him, before looking back at you to see if you were comfortable, and when he got the green light, he continued to push it entirely in, “Such a good baby for me, think you can handle Daddy’s cock?”

You nodded in exasperation, his finger was long and hit all the right spots, but you needed more. He added another finger, while rubbing your clit with more pressure and making circle patterns with his tongue below your belly button. You were so near, so so near, you just needed that one push off the edge.

“Well, you’re going to have to work for Daddy’s cock, baby, think you can take this monster?” He took out his finger with a pop, as soon as he felt you clench down on his finger.

“Daddy, f-fuck me, please,” you moaned, missing his touch. He looked just as a mess as you were, panting and taking off his shirt. You continued to admire his body, he didn’t look buff like gym rats, but instead he had a lean, slightly muscular body.

He continued to tease you by biting his lip and taking off his boxers extremely slowly. You whimpered when his cock was free against his stomach, and it was bigger than any you’ve been before while watching porn. It was even bigger than the dildo your friend bought as a joke for your birthday present, and you had started to doubt if he would fit inside of you.

“Suck Daddy if you want to cum, princess,” he groaned as he pumped himself a couple of times before you put your mouth on his head.

Not having any experience before, you didn’t really know how to start, but you gave little kitten licks at his head, and then took it in your heated mouth. He didn’t taste how you had imagined, instead it was more like a salted caramel toffee you had, it was delicious and you wanted more. You continued to take more, and more of him and suddenly gagged because you couldn’t take anymore – only to realize you had only taken half his dick in your mouth.

“Can’t handle more? I guess you’re too small for Daddy’s big cock, huh?”

The thought of his not fucking you was almost terrifying at this point and you continued to let your throat loose and tale more of him, until you felt his cock twitch, which made you moan. Tears spilled out as he fucked your throat, fast and hard. 

“Such a good, pretty baby for daddy, taking my cock so good, princess,” he groaned before pushing in it a couple of times and taking it out.

“Such a naughty baby, making Daddy almost cum,” he kissed you again, tasting his own cum, before dipping down again, “you need to be punished, huh?”

“Daddy, please t-touch me,” you whined, grabbing his hand and putting it in between your thighs, and surprisingly he slapped your inner thigh.

“Being such a bratty baby now, I guess I do need to punish you, you don’t deserve Daddy’s fingers,” he said trailing again lightly all over body, but stopping as soon as he neared where you needed him the most, “touch yourself,”

You were dumbfounded, but when you saw his serious look, you shyly dipped your finger into your heat, and circled them around, but even after two fingers, it just wasn’t enough. You wanted more, you needed more.

“Daddy, please, I c-can’t, I need you,” you cried out while rubbing yourself between your legs, filled with your slick.

“Such a needy princess, always demanded Daddy,” he tsked before adding two fingers inside you, and as you gasped, “but Daddy adores you, so he’ll help his pretty little baby,”

You moaned, not holding back, as he pumped those fingers, and let his tongue work magic on your clit. He continuously pumped his fingers back and forth, while torturing your bud and the heat inside of you kept growing and before you realized it, “Jungkook, I’m going to cum!”

“Cum on my fingers, baby, go on,” his movements became more faster and you trembled under gaze, and unconsciously arched your back before letting yourself loose. It felt like heaven.

Even after this, you had been surprised to see that he didn’t stop and the stimulation was too much for you, as you tried to get away from him, but he held you in place, his wrist holding your pelvic in place.

Despite your whimpering and moans, he took his mouth to your perked up nipple again, and scissored his fingers, to prepare you for his cock. Then, he looked at you, cupped you face and kissed you again, this time more soft, as if you were a china doll, going to break at any given moment.

After letting his dick sit on your bud, he slowly let the head of his cock find your entrance and pushed it slightly. You let out a cry, he was too big for you, but he shushed you and pressed against your lips again before letting it enter little by little. You quickly grab his upper arm and clench it, the pain and pleasure were starting to combine again and you nodded, letting him know that it was okay to continue.

The raw emotion in his eyes was enough to let you go on, and when you were finally full, you looked down only to find you could only take half of him, he was just too big for you.

“Baby, fuck, you’re too tiny, can’t even take all of me,” he groaned before moving slowly, and then finally setting a pace that was safe, but unsatisfactory for you.

“J-Jungkook, f-fas-ter please,” you whined as he started becoming harsher, and his finger started abusing your bud again, and you couldn’t help but realize you were close again. This time, it felt more intense, more powerful.

He was so big, that you could feel him everywhere, it almost felt like he was ripping you apart, but the pleasure was almost overwhelming and the way his cock filled you up made you insatiable – you just wanted more, and more. You could feel your walls being pushed everything he buckled inside you, but he just did it so right.

“Baby, you’re so cute, gonna cum for Daddy?” he kissed your nipple and trailed up to your lips before diving a tongue into your moaning mouth. You nodded, and felt your second release come near.

“J-Jungkook, you feel so good,” you moaned as your walls clenched around his cock, and finally you gushed out, and trembled as you rode your orgasm. Simultaneously, he too, slammed his hips a couple times before cumming deep into you. As he took himself out, cum poured out of you, and he chuckled before taking it and spreading it over your face. Globs of cum covered your red cheeks and entered your mouth.

“You look so pretty with my cum on you face, keep it there until tomorrow morning,” he kissed your nose and coo-ed when you squirmed in embarrassment.

You could feel tugging and pulling when you felt someone wake you up and instinctively, you said, “Just five more minutes.”

“But you said that the last time,” Jungkook looked at you, his breathe fanning your face.

Too close, too close, too close. You looked at other way and tried to close your eyes.

“You’re so cute, like a small puppy,” he coo-ed at you, making your stomach feel things you’ve never felt before.

“I- I’m not like a puppy!” You tried to fight back in your sleep, but couldn’t help the blush forming on your cheeks and ears.

You could feel the dried up cum on your face, and wanted to wash it off, but feeling too sore to move.

“Can’t move, princess? Was Daddy’s cock too much for you, last night?” he coo-ed at you, mumbling about how cute you were, and how he wanted to baby you and make you his.

“I’m too sore, Kookie,” you whined into the pillow and were taken by surprise when he lifted you and carried you to the tub.

“It’s okay, I’ll take care of my little human baby girl,” he said as he laid you in the lukewarm water and washed your body softly.

CLICK HERE FOR PART TWO

You were starting to feel more at home, even more than when you were at Earth.

A/N: That’s a wrap! Hope you like it. Go to master link for more!

[myelocin]

dinner for two | kenma k.

synopsis: kenma’s never really been the type to be impatient.

genre: fluff, domestic fluff. old uncles at 7/11 hitting the coffee machine while kenma watches lmao | wc: 600+

a/n: @keisukesbaji kenams lov u. i lov u.

commissions | ko-fi

kenma’s got forever in his hands when he’s standing in aisle 3 of the checkout lane, just two in front of him till it’s his turn. 

he supposes that he’s always been patient. 

tonight, you just wanted ramen with a side of dimsum for dinner. it’s 2am, he just finished a stream, and everything within a thirty minute drive was closed for the day, so 7/11 microwaveable meals and instant noodles it was. 

in the basket, there’s dinner for two. 

two packs of ramen, frozen dumplings, and the three packs of mochi icecream left in the freezer he just added in his cart, last minute for dessert. 

hands in his pockets, the basket hanging from the crook of his arm, and the little clock above the counter ticking to 2:21. he yawns; a little past sleepy. 

there’s something nice about being ordinary like this. the teenagers in he family mart down the street recognizes him by now, but the old uncles running this family owned 7/11 seemed to not give a shit other than trying to bang the side of their coffee machine to get it to work. 

with a smile, he watches. 

you’re at home, probably waiting by the couch for him to return, or scrolling through the comments of the stream he just ended a few hours ago. though a part of him’s fatigued, the little rest he’s granted himself with now has him feeling like he can still keep going for years more. 

then he thinks about how it really is nice to relate 2ams with something more than just the thought of coming home alone. truth is, nothing much has changed ever since you. 

you love him, as he loves you. you stay on your side of the bed, while stays on his. your toothbrush is beside his in the sink, while his wide end comb and bottle of cologne is kept on your vanity in the bedroom. he dries the dishes you wash, and is in charge charge of laundry night during mondays while you take the duty on saturdays. 

people always say he’s got the world watching him, but kenma’s only ever shrugged his shoulders because really, he feels like it’s him who watches the world. 

like counting the items in his basket, and smiling, because the kind of mochi that’s there just so happens to be your favorite. chuckling at the uncle who’s given up on the “blasted coffee machine,” and instead is pouring the powder into the styrofoam cup and mixing it by hand because it’s more “organic” that way.

for him, the world is two blocks away, in a little apartment on the seventh floor. cold tiles, dim lights, and a sort of quiet in the room that never feels lonely. 

he thinks to himself that while there’s always been an ongoing theme in his life revolving around the fact that he often had to wait for his turn, the fact that he was patient was why he never seemed to mind. he liked to delight in the sights he could only see during the stops, and liked waiting for his turn. 

two packets of ramen, some dumplings, mochi ice cream, and a continuous gratitude for the wait. happiness bursts, and love settles, because even if you’re two blocks away, as soon as he gets to his turn--right after this auntie checks out in front of him--it’s just two blocks home. 

and the way that that’s a constant is what makes it love. 

“sorry for the wait,” the uncle bows, his smile somewhere between sheepish and apologetic as he gestures to the coffee machine. “you find everything okay?”

“it’s alright,” kenma nods, staying in the moment because it’s finally his turn. “i don’t mind.”

and because uncles usually have a tendency to pry a little, the one scanning the contents of his basket crinkles his eyes, the smile on his face knowing. “this looks like dinner for two,” he comments, wagging his brows. “for the mrs?”

“hopefully,” kenma laughs. 

he thinks of the ring stashed under the pile of clothes in a suitcase under the bed. 

[gravelyhumerus]

Criminal Minds College AU - Chapter 2

Fandom: Criminal Minds

Title: “I may just take your breath away”

Relationship: Jemily

Summary:

Jennifer Jareau is having boyfriend troubles. Emily Prentiss tries to help and offers her cookies. 

Slow-burn Jemily college AU where they live across the hall and despite all odds, the universe pushes them together. AKA they’re silly gay babies who pine after each other for months.

Read it on AO3

Tumblr:  One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Seven, Eight, Nine, Ten, Eleven, Twelve, Thirteen, Fourteen, Fifteen, Sixteen, (bonus scene), Seventeen, Eighteen, Nineteen, Twenty, Epilogue

Jennifer Jareau tossed her phone down onto her bed and grit her teeth.

“What do you mean I can’t come visit?” He had texted her, “I’m your boyfriend.”

JJ huffed.  She couldn’t deal with this right now, it was too much. Classes were kicking her ass, and she barely had enough time to breathe let alone entertain her long-distance boyfriend.

She glanced at her whiteboard calendar, noting how the next week was absolutely covered in deadlines, tests and games all written in different colours in her small, neat handwriting.

She had this essay to do tonight, a midterm to study for tomorrow, close to two-hundred pages of readings and a dozen other commitments. On top of that she had promised her friend that they would apply to work in student government next week and she had some applications to fill out for that.

He didn’t seem to understand that she was balancing her increasingly challenging full course load, playing varsity soccer and trying to maintain her friendships with people who were actually still in the same city as her.

Finding herself working up to a panic, JJ realized she needed to calm down or she was going to have a full-blown anxiety attack and that was the last thing she needed.  

She was alone in her dorm room, feeling particularly alone without Penelope Garcia’s cheery presence on the other side of the room to keep her company. Penelope was currently at the library, working on some sort of group coding project and JJ didn’t expect her home until much later.

She rubbed her eyes and took a deep breath through her nose, held it in, and then let it out through her mouth.

She reached under her blankets and retrieved her stuffed animal, a bunny she had named Fluffy when she was little, and clutched it to her chest, falling back into her bed. While she debated bringing him to college, JJ hadn’t slept a single night without the toy by her side, and she wasn’t about to start any time soon. She still remembers the time Rosaline helped her sew a shirt for him to wear. After her sister died, JJ found herself clinging onto Fluffy as much as she did when she was a kid.

She stared at her ceiling and her rows of fairy lights twinkled back to her. To her left, a photo of her and William LaMontagne Jr. smiled mockingly at her. He had his arm thrown casually across her shoulder, and she was leaning into his chest. It was from prom. Her hair was in long curls and a deep navy dress made her feel like a princess. Will matched her pocket square. He was looking at her with utter adoration while she smiled into the camera.

Things were so much simpler in high school when she had one goal, one focus: getting out. Last year was a rush of excitement, with everything feeling new and exciting that she blamed all her relationship problems on being overwhelmed with the transition. She promised Will, back when she was home this past summer, that things would be different this year, that they would have more time for each other.

What she meant was that she would make more time for him.

So far, she had not held up her side of the bargain. It was already October and she had not come home once, despite how she had promised to visit whenever she had a spare weekend. He was right to complain that he was always the one to call her, and not the other way around.

Now Will was coming to visit her, and despite her placating words, she really wished he didn’t. She couldn’t handle it.

She bit her lip. Why couldn’t she just be happy with her nice boyfriend who springs surprise visits on her? She understood why he was upset with her. He already bought his ticket and JJ did say that she wanted him to visit.

But now that it was happening she felt overwhelmed with the prospect.

She had noticed the weight lifting off her shoulders this fall, as she spent more and more time away from home. Away from him.

Which was so, deeply, incredibly selfish of her. They were nearing two years. Two perfectly nice years together. He always dealt with all of her baggage with such grace, her family loved him, and they had all these mutual friends who were talking about how JJ and Will were definitely going to get married.

Here, at college, JJ was just JJ. She wasn’t JJ and Will or JJ with the dead sister. He tethered her back to her life, her town. What she was desperately trying to get away from.

A hot, angry tear fell out of her eye and dripped down her cheek. She sat up.

Pulling a zip up sweater over her current outfit of sweat pants and a sports bra, JJ decided that tea would make her feel better. She tugged her long, blonde hair up in a high ponytail, wiping the last of the wetness of her face with her sleeve. She put her lanyard with the key around her neck, not really caring how she looked.

She needed to get back to her essay as soon as possible. She had wasted too much time on her fight already. Tea would help. Tea would get her brain working again and calm her down.

Whenever she couldn’t sleep, or she was up late studying for a test, her mom would always knock on her door, softly, and smile as she brought in a large cup.  When she sent JJ off to college, it was with a bright pink tin full of assorted tea bags and a new mug with a rabbit on it. Holding onto it made JJ smile.

Walking down the hall in her socked feet, with her tea, mug and packets of sugar in her arms, JJ made her way to the communal kitchen. JJ found that she was quite angry with herself for not listening to her mom and buying a kettle so she didn’t have to leave her room for hot water.

She made a mental note to order one online.

In the meantime, she passed through the common area and walked into the kitchen, which smelled amazing.

The air was filled with the warm scent of freshly baked cookies. It surrounded her like a hug, reminding her of baking with her grandmother when she was little.

She looked around the tiny kitchen, which was on the smaller side, populated with a round table, a couple of fridges, a microwave, the oven and stove top and the old kettle, which was the target of JJ’s visit.

JJ opened the oven and peered in, peeking at the beautiful cookies which looked about halfway done. Not quite golden brown yet, but definitely melting into shape.

She wondered who would be baking cookies at—she checked her watch—eleven at night on a Tuesday, but I guess it was college and anything goes here.

Seeming to answer JJ’s question, the kitchen door opened, revealing her neighbour Emily, who was wearing a baggy black shirt that was for a band that JJ had never heard before and colourful, cat patterned, PJ pants. She seemed startled to find JJ gazing down into the oven.  

“Admiring my handiwork?” Emily said, and JJ pulled back from looking longingly at the oven.

“It’s a bit late for baking, isn’t it?” JJ blurted out, then immediately kicking herself, worrying that she may come off as rude.

Emily took her comments in stride, laughing and sitting down at the table. JJ turned and began to fill the kettle with water from the sink, flustered at her own accidental hostility.  

She hadn’t seen Emily for a while, since that house party last weekend, despite their dorm room doors facing one another.

The other girl was a bit of an enigma to JJ. They travelled in similar circles, at least the ones that didn’t revolve around soccer. But, by some twist of fate, they had only really talked beyond pleasantries for the first time outside of that bathroom.

“No,” Emily retorted, “Midnight is the perfect time. I usually have the kitchen to myself.”

“Oh sorry,” JJ said, feeling bad for interrupting and kicking herself for being so bold, “I just need the kettle, then I’ll be out of your hair.”

“I don’t mind a visitor,” Emily said, “I just meant that this floor is always so busy and loud during the day. It’s peaceful at night.”

Emily was right. Their floor, while not that bad of a party floor, had really thin walls and people were typically more than aware of each other’s business. JJ found that with some people, she either had overheard enough of their conversations or had been told most of their business by her very nosey roommate, Penelope.

But Emily seemed to keep to herself, mostly. Her room was decorated with band posters, a few photographs that JJ had always been a bit too far away to examine in much detail, and a fun tapestry hung over the head of her bed. She knew she often heard loud music from her room, long past quiet hours, but never too loud that it was annoying. She mostly saw her hang out in Derek Morgan’s room, and wondered if the two were dating. Their relationship looked a lot healthier than JJ had with Will, at least, whatever they were.

JJ clutched her tea cup as the kettle heated up, leaning against the counter. JJ bit at her lip as she realized she had left her phone upstairs, mid-fight with Will. The sinking feeling that was overwhelming her upstairs was beginning to settle back into her stomach after the momentary distraction.

“What’s wrong?” Emily asked.

JJ didn’t realize that her expressions were that easily legible.

“I had a fight with my boyfriend,” JJ admits, surprising herself with sharing the information.

Typically she likes to lean into the put together perception that people have of her. JJ liked to keep the messy details to herself.

But, even in the cold glow of the fluorescent flights, there was something warm and friendly about Emily, despite her edgy aesthetic, that drew JJ in. Maybe it was the smell of cookies surrounding them that made her relax.

“Oh!” Emily says, “I’m sorry. What’d he do?”

“ He didn’t do anything. He’s wonderful,” JJ explained, “Uh- He’s too wonderful. He booked a surprise visit for next weekend but I have a midterm that Monday.”

“Ah shit,” Emily commiserated.

“There are a couple people who he knows in town so he wouldn’t be bored or anything, I just worry that I wouldn’t be able to focus on school if he was here.”

Emily nodded.

“I just wish he checked first.”

He did that a lot. He made decisions for her, all in the hopes of making her happy or making her life easier, and often at the expense of her plans or feelings. She just wished he had spoken to her beforehand this time.

The kettle boiled.

“Do you want any tea?” JJ asked Emily, secretly hoping she would be offered a cookie in exchange. “It’s uh-” she checked the label “-sleepy time.”

Emily smiled and nodded.

“I think there’s some spare mugs here,” JJ said, retrieving one from the drying rack.

JJ filled the two mugs, letting the hot water mix with the fragrant tea, watching the water turn a warm and rich brown. The slightly minty blend of chamomile and various other fruity teas competed with the cookies for JJ’s senses.  

“That smells amazing,” Emily commented. “What kind of tea is it again?”

“You’ve never had sleepytime tea?” JJ giggled. “I feel like my mom made me and my sister drink it any time we had bad dreams or were up past our bedtimes.”

“I didn’t know you have a sister,” Emily said, trying a sip of her tea.

“Yeah,” JJ said, sipping her warm drink and bracing herself for the other girl’s reaction. “I did.”

“Oh,” Emily said, stunned. “Oh gosh I’m so sorry.”

Emily’s phone went off, her alarm for the cookies blaring through the tiny speakers, interrupting the pity before it started. Emily smiled at JJ softly before waking over to the tiny oven and lifted the baking sheet out, using a bunched up dishcloth as an impromptu oven mitt.

“So why cookies?” JJ asked, changing the subject. “Is there a bake sale or something?”

“No reason,” Emily replied, “They’re better than the cookies from the café. Sometimes you just gotta do things that make you happy.”

JJ nodded.

“Anyways it lets me de-stress. An hour out of my room when all I have to do is make sure I don’t burn cookies.”

“That is important,” JJ said, “I would rather not have to stand out in the rain in the middle of the night because someone burnt some cookies down here.”

“I would never,” Emily said, “Scouts honour. If I set off the fire alarm, I’d do it with something better, something more interesting, like actual arson.”

JJ choked on her tea, giggling at the other girl.

Emily was funny. And nice. She never got the chance to thank her for helping out at the party last week, getting her teammate Kennedy some water and keeping JJ company in the hallway.

Emily grinned, scooping the cookies off the tray and onto a small plate. She returned to the table they were sitting at and placed it in the middle of the table, tilting it towards JJ, offering her one.

“For me?” JJ asked.

“It’s the barter system,” Emily said, “tea for cookies. We’re making our own economy here on floor two.”

“That makes sense,” JJ said through a mouthful of cookie. They were delicious, gooey and chocolatey and oh soo warm.

“Good?” Emily asked.

“Very good.”

“So,” Emily said, “What are you going to do about your boyfriend thing?”

“I have no idea,” JJ admitted, “I don’t think long distance is working.”

Emily nodded, and JJ could feel her eyes watching her, waiting for JJ to say something.

“He was my high school sweetheart, you know? I didn’t want to do what all the other people going away to college and just break up because we were far away. I thought we could do it.”

She sighed.

“Sometimes,” Emily said softly, “People just grow apart. There’s nothing wrong with that.”

JJ looked into her cup of tea. Maybe she and Will were just growing apart. Maybe that’s what it was. He was at the police academy and seemed to have endless free time. He was always calling her, checking in, his focus was entirely on her and JJ felt so torn. She wasn’t just busy, she felt like she was missing out on her new life here every time she spent the evening on FaceTime with him.

She sighed, it was too late to be thinking about this too much, she still had work to do, she still had to get some semblance of a night’s sleep before her practise the next day.

“What really matters,” Emily continued, “Is if you enjoy spending time with him.”

JJ looked away.

“I mean,” Emily said, “Isn’t that the point of dating someone?”

Her heart thudded with the feelings that tied themselves into knots in her stomach. Did she even want him to come? Did she even miss him?

The answer was clear to her, but she wasn’t sure if she was ready to admit it.

“Thank you for the cookies,” JJ said with a smile.

She stood up and collected her things.

“I should probably go back to my fight with him.”

Emily opened and then closed her mouth, visibly confused.

“I am currently mid-fight,” JJ explained. “I left my phone in my room. I just needed a break.”

She paused and sighed.

“I also have an essay due tomorrow morning that I have to finish.”

“That's a lot,” Emily said frowning in sympathy, “Another cookie for the road?”

JJ accepted the gift and left Emily with her cookies, hoping that she didn’t bother the girl too much with her relationship drama. Emily waved at her as she left.

She went back to her room and found her phone buzzing with missed calls from her boyfriend. Gone was the peace and calm that surrounded her in the kitchen as she ate cookies with her new friend Emily. JJ fell back into a pit of frustration as soon as she picked up her phone.

Her thumb hovered above the call button, as she instinctively went to call him back. She hesitated, and instead, she turned off her phone.

Placing it on her night stand, JJ opened up her laptop and began to edit her essay.

[grimalkinmessor]

Everyone SHUT UP and think about Mello singing Your Stupid Face to Near with me

[ficsnroses]

First Argument - John Wick x Reader

First time writing Wick! I had a ball :) This was requested by a lovely anon who wanted a first fight with John. I hope it meets your expectations! 

Word Count : 2997

Requested : Yes

Warnings : Angst, lots of fluff, swearing.

Summary : John and reader have the first major argument of their relationship.

        With your head in your hands, and damp tears cascading down your cheeks, you wept to yourself in the late hours of the night. In choked desolation, you had glanced over at the time piece on the bedside table of the bedroom John and you shared.

        In this bedroom, John and you had spent countless nights together, smitten. Every quiet laugh shared in the dark, every action of passion displayed exclusively for each other, tangled in limbs, every cuddle at the end of a long day. On the same bed you sat alone tonight, you had nursed John back to health when his fragile frame couldn’t bare the weight of his own body anymore. In this same room, you would kiss each and every scar that peppered his skin. For the world, he was a merciless, famed assassin. But for you, he was the most caring, loving man you had the pleasure of knowing and calling yours. You felt for John, you really did. The world saw him as this monster, constantly reminding him of all the murder that lied on his finger tips. You tried your best to tell him otherwise. You knew he wasn’t proud of what he was, but to you, he was so much more. That’s all you wanted, to show him how much more he really was.

        Being in a relationship with John Wick emitted a sort of…ominous feeling at times. Sometimes, you felt uncertain. John was a man of few words, and those words were even more scarce when his work was involved. When he first told you of what exactly he does, who he is, what the dire circumstances of life have shaped him into, you were scared. Not of John, you could never be scared of him, no matter what the situation. You loved him too much, and he loved you too much to ever inflict any pain or danger your way. You were scared of what could happen to him, the thought of him not coming home to you one dreadful night constantly lured over your head, glooming and making the worst of outcomes brew in your mind.

        But John assured you he would make no mistake. He was the best at what he did, constantly triumphing over all who came his way. He knew you worry, he always tried to keep your fears at bay. You being restless, meant he was restless; that’s what love means.

       Before you came along, claiming a spot in John’s life, he didn’t care much about making it out alive. He did what he did, baring the scars and daggers thrown his way impassively. But all that changed when he gave you his heart. He felt you saved him in a way, gave him something to live for, someone to live for.

       But the uncertain events of tonight left you both feeling overwhelmed. John and you had a very understanding relationship, filled with respect for each other. You hardly ever fought, surely you had disagreements here and there, as all couples do. Normally they were harmless, usually revolving around the lines of an unwashed dish in the sink, or a dirty towel left on the floor. But tonight, tonight was different. It was your first major outburst. You were both angry, you had taken jabs at each other. It was very unlike you and John, but things had been laid out on the table tonight, and they pierced into every vein in your heart, emitting an appalling presence.

           As far as you remembered, you had fell asleep while talking to John the previous night. You lay in bed next to each other, his arm wrapped securely around your waist as he hugged you from behind. With your back pressed to his chest, you had rest your hand on his arm that draped over you, soothingly running your thumb over the rough skin. In part because you wanted to help him relax, but also because you wanted to keep yourself awake. John had been scare lately, his work keeping him out of home, and evenings like this had become your main form of communication and bonding time. You tried so hard to stay awake to spend as many moments as possible with him, but eventually, sleep had consumed you. But you weren’t too upset, John would be home the next day, and you would be able to spend some much needed time together.

           When you woke up in the morning however, the weight of John’s body was no where to be found beside you, leaving the spot cold and vacant. Propping yourself up on the bed with your elbows, your sleep drowned, groggy eyes scanned the room for him.

           “John? Babe?” you called, your voice raspy.

           John was no where to be found.

           Pouring yourself a freshly pressed cup of coffee, you tapped your phone, letting out a deep yawn, in efforts to reach John’s cell. He never picked up.

           You felt your heart sink for sure, you had been looking forward to having him to yourself today, and you really thought he reciprocated the feeling. Into the prolonged hours of the day, you still had no idea where John was. Chances were, he had been called for a job, and you understood that. You knew there would be times he had to leave suddenly, but you were okay with it. You were willing to compromise that to be with him. But it wasn’t like him to leave without telling you, it made you worry.

           Around 10pm, the jingle of the lock rose you out of your seat at the kitchen counter. You had been restlessly playing with your fingernails, praying that John was okay and would be home soon. You had prepared dinner and left John a plate in the microwave, pushing your own down with one, maybe two glasses of wine. All alone.

           Tip toeing to the hallway up front, you saw John in his suit and tie, taking off his shoes and belt. He didn’t have any apparent new bruises or cuts on his face, allowing you to sigh of relief.

           “Hey..” you breathed, folding your hands in front of yourself and slightly leaning against the wall. “Where were you? I tried calling and everything.”

           “Got a call early morning, had some stuff to take care of.” John replied, his deep voice low, not making much of the situation. He was in the process of taking off his suit coat and hanging in on the stairs.

           “Oh..okay.” you shrugged, suddenly feeling uneasy. John was being a bit...cold? “Foods in the microwave.” You said quietly, trying to study his face for a reaction.

           “Thanks, hun.” He said casually, padding into the kitchen, a very slight, almost unidentifiable limp in his walk.

           He hadn’t even kissed you yet, forget about kiss, he hadn’t even touched you yet. It hurt a little, you waited for him all day because today was meant for the two of you, and he disappeared for the entirety of it, and came back giving you almost no explanation of his whereabouts.

           You trailed along behind him, silently praying he would turn around and engulf you in a hug sooner than later. That’s what couples do, right? Maybe you were being too needy and craving attention. But maybe you had the right to feel this way, John had kinda left you hanging in the dark there.

           “I thought we were supposed to spend some time together today?” you questioned lightly, leaning against the kitchen island counter, eyes on John as he washed his hands.

           “It was out of the blue, I had to take the call, babe.” John sighed, his back still facing you.

           “Yeah I get that, but you could have at least let me know you were leaving? I was kinda worried..” you replied, fidgeting with your nails again, keeping yourself calm.

           “I didn’t get the chance, sorry.” John turned now, drying his hands on the kitchen towel. He hadn’t looked your way once.

           You chuckled lightly, nodding your head in disagreement. “You couldn’t nudge me awake to say you’re leaving so I wouldn’t just be hanging around wondering where the fuck you were all day? Or I don’t know, maybe shoot me a text, write a fucking note, anything, Johnathan!” you said, your voice a little louder than intended. You hadn’t meant to pick a fight, but the bubbling of emotions inside you had threatened to spill, crashing down eventually.

           “Y/N please, I don’t wanna start an argument. I told you, I didn’t get the chance. My intentions weren’t to hurt you.” John was still calm as well, but you could see there was slight annoyance forming in his eyes as well.

           You swallowed to rid the lump that was forming in your throat. Looking down at the floor, you sighed lightly. In that moment, it was as if your mind was racing too fast to process. You finally blurted out, without thinking twice.

           “I don’t deserve this, John. All I ask is for you to fucking talk to me.”

           John immediately tensed, his large hands sprawled on the counter as his arms leaned over it. He took a deep breath, and exhaled. You could tell he wanted to say something, but was holding back.

           “I’m doing this for us, Y/N. You don’t need to know every little detail. You knew exactly what you were signing up for when we went into this” He said through almost gritted teeth, gesturing between you two.

           Your jaw dropped, slightly taken back. John had never been this…aggressive with you, if that’s what you would call it. Maybe stern was a better word.

           “Really, John? Because as far as I remember, I didn’t know you were a fucking assassin going into this.” You spat out. You immediately regretted it, even though you both knew what John was, saying it out loud almost made it more real. Gave it more power over you both.

           “What are you trying to say, Y/N.” John questioned, although it was more of a statement, his arms now at his side, staring you right in the eyes. He had an empty look on his face, but you could see a tinge of sadness in his eyes. This discussion had been starting to hurt the both of you.

           You sighed and looked down, trying to look for the right words. You felt tears brimming at your eyes, but you held yourself composed. Looking up at him, in the eyes, you spoke.

           “I’ve made a lot of changes for us, John. And I’m trying my best.” Your voice threatened to break.

           “Well I’m trying my best as well, Y/N. I don’t know what else to say.” John said, now walking past you, out of the kitchen. He loosened his tie as he started up the stairs, into your shared bedroom. You heard the shower turn on a little later, as you were leaning against the staircase ledge, trying to think of where exactly you had gone wrong tonight.

           Walking into the bedroom a few minutes later, you saw John was out of the shower, drying his wet hair. Once again, he didn’t acknowledge you walking in. That stung. Again.

           Sighing, and feeling the gaping hole in your heart grow wider now, you trekked towards your side of the bed, grasping your pillow. Perhaps, you would take the couch tonight.

           “What are you doing?” John questioned as he saw the pillow in your hand, droplets of water still clasped at the ends of his long, black locks. He realized you didn’t want to sleep together tonight. The argument had done more damage than he intended, but it was already done.

           Looking down, and then off into the distance briefly, he grabbed his pillow, tucking it securely under his arm, and walked out of the room. He would rather have himself take the couch over you, a gentleman would never make his lady spend the night on the couch, no matter how angry he was.

         That was over an hour ago, and here you were. All alone, on the edge of your bed, sobbing. Part of you regretted everything, you really didn’t mean to come off so harsh, but you missed him. You felt you deserved some explanation.

           “What am I doing wrong?” you questioned yourself, staring up at the ceiling with your tear stained cheeks. Bringing your gaze down, you spotted John’s medication on the nightstand. Whenever John would come back from work, he usually took some sort of meds to help with pain and to relax his muscles. The bottle hadn’t moved since the last time you saw it, alerting you that he hadn’t taken his dose yet.

           You contemplated for a second, debating. Finally, you wiped your cheeks with the sleeves of your sweater and took a deep, almost meditation like breath in. You knew John, he wouldn’t come back into the room tonight for his meds. He wouldn’t want to disturb you or your space, especially since you had made the first move of sleeping in separate rooms tonight.

           Grabbing the pills in a swift moment, you rose and headed out the bedroom. Tip toeing town the stairs, you could see John’s figure sprawled across the couch, his long legs dangling off the much smaller piece of furniture. You suddenly felt horrible.

           His eyes were closed, and he had his forearm resting across his forehead, in attempts to keep light out.  You made yourself known by grabbing a bottle of water out of the fridge for him. He tilted his head up, and saw you standing by the hallway door with two of the meds in the palm of your hand, and a bottle of water in the other.

           You locked eyes for a moment, before you finally started walking towards him. He immediately sat up, shuffling over so you could sit beside him. With a nod of the head, you extended your hand his way, offering the pills. He took them into his mouth as you cracked the bottle lid for him.

           Both staring at the floor, you sat in silence, both unsure of what to say. Clearly, you both had forgotten your anger and cooled off.

           John was the first to speak. “You wanna talk about it?” he asked lightly, resting his hand on your thigh.

           “I don’t know.” You said in almost a whisper, unsure.

           John tapped your arm to get you to make eye contact. He then titled his head down towards the couch, lightly tugging at your arm. You smiled lightly at him.

           John positioned himself to lay down on his back on the couch, and gently pulled you down by the arm to lay on top of him. With your chest pressed flush against his, you made yourself comfortable, resting your head on his pecs. He wrapped his arms around your waist, stroking his hand up and down your back.

           You closed your eyes to enjoy the moment. Maybe this was all you wanted all along, to just be with him, to feel him close. In that moment, there was nothing in the world for you besides John, you rest on top of him, feeling nothing but him holding you tight and close.

           Pressing a few light kisses into your hair while still stroking your back, John broke the comfortable silence. “I’m really sorry, baby. I should have tried to reach out to you, I know. I’m sorry I was being distant tonight, I wasn’t in the best mood and I guess I kinda channeled it onto you by accident. I don’t know, I guess I’m still trying to figure out how to deal with my shit. I never intended to hurt you, sweetheart.” He spoke, quietly into the silent room.

           He grabbed your hand in his, and pressed his lips to it, holding it tight. “You’re right, baby. You don’t deserve this.” He sighed.

           “John, I’m sorry. I said some stuff I didn’t mean tonight as well, but I didn’t mean it. I know you’re trying baby, and I appreciate it. I totally overreacted. Gosh I’m so fucking stupid sometimes…I really hurt you with…you know…the assassin thing.” You avoided eye contact, completely embarrassed, your heart aching. You know that hurt him, and it killed you that you were the cause of it. If anything, your goal in life had been to lessen his hurt and pain. You felt tears prick at your eyes again. “I’m so sorry, John.” you whispered, burying your face in his chest.

           “Hey hey, Y/N, honey, look at me.” You looked up at him to make eye contact, and he held your face between his warm hands. “We both said some stuff tonight we didn’t mean to. I know you didn’t mean it, baby. It didn’t hurt me, I’m okay. I know you don’t really think that stuff.” He wiped a tear away from your cheek with his thumb.

           “I really didn’t John. I love you so much.” You scratched his beard gently with your fingers, pressing a few kisses to his shoulders and chest.

           “I love you, Y/N. I promise, never again will this happen.” He said, referring to the events of the day.

           “I promise; I’ll never freak out again like I did today. I know you don’t need that on top of everything you’re already dealing with. But babe, please, don’t keep me in the dark.” You said, making eye contact, wrapping your arms around his neck. “I wanna be there for you and help you, I need you to share things with me. That’s what we do for each other, right? We help each other.” You spoke quietly.

           “I don’t want you to worry, love.” He pulled you closer, pressing your head to his chest again. “I can take care of it on my own.” He argued.

           “No, John. You can’t. Us against the world, right? That’s what we promised.” You played with his fingers, cheek still pressed against his chest. You pressed a few kisses to his hand.

           You both laid in silence for a few moments, before the deep rumble of his chest signaled dialogue.

           “I’ve been trying to get out...for you. For us, so we can have a normal future. I want to give you a normal life. That’s what this morning was about.”

           You were taken back, but felt tears of joy. Lifting your head to look at him, you cupped his cheek. “Baby…really?” you smiled wide, letting out a few giggles.

           “Yeah. Its gonna be tough, but I promise, I’m going to make it happen.” He leaned into your touch.

           You both stayed there, wrapped in each others embrace, sulking in the moment. It seemed like that was all you needed after all, to just be together. “Once I’m out, everything’s going to be perfect. We’re going to live a perfect life together.” He cooed into your ear, as he stroked your hair soothingly.

           “How about we go back to bed, huh?” you smiled up at him, leaning your chin on his chest, running your thumb over his bottom lip.

           He smiled in response, and nodded his head, entwining your hands once again.

~~~

Taglist Posted Separately (Ask to be added or removed!) :

[frangipanidownunder]

Would you consider a prompt? I have been home from a unexpected and long hospital stay for just a couple of days. The news is all good, but I am tired and it's freezing and gray and rainy here. I am amazed at the level of loving support from my husband and I feel so loved. So I am thinking of Scully, home from the hospital after Tithonus or Redux II or FTF and wondering how that "coming home" goes for her - and Mulder of course. Fic is Medicine Anon

And prompt 39 from the cliché list for @edierone ‘Having a bad day and the other noticing’. Thank you to @chekcough for your excellent betaing.

Living Better: fic

There’s a newness about everything. A sheen of hope. The sun is bright, the sky open, the world seems wider. The furniture in her apartment gleams, her plants are healthier, lush. Her mother must have been in, cleaning and tidying as though hygiene and order could turn around the march of the cancer invading her daughter’s body. 

Scully is grateful. She is. Whatever quiet miracle took place over the last few days, she’s been given a second chance and this homecoming, however unremarkable (I’ll be fine, mom), is a new start. 

Before. After. 

Still, everything feels Herculean. Where there should be wings of freedom, she’s weighted down by invisible cargo. There’s a roiling mass of ingratitude inside her. A fist of anger or shame or bitterness. During her fight against the disease, her mind had accepted her fate and now it’s like her spirit is pissed that she’s having to live again. There’s a nagging voice in her head. You should be doing more, Dana. You should be out there living. Life rushed by once before, don’t let it disappear into the rearview mirror again.

She should be free. Free to feel. She knows she should feel more. People have revealed themselves, their true selves, to her these past months. And Mulder. There’s Mulder. A hero who went in to battle. Who won. And now? Happily ever after is a load too heavy to bear.

With late afternoon shadows playing over the floor of her living room, she’s sitting on her couch, knees tucked under her seat, robe pulled around her frame, still bony and paper-skinned, prone to the cold. Aromatic steam wafts from her cup. Peppermint tea helps with the lingering nausea. There’s a romantic comedy playing in the background and she’s trying to read the novel that Tara presented to her with a ‘I’m sure you’ll love it because I did and we’re related…’ smile. It’s not really her thing, but she has time, once a luxury, to read, to rest, to do nothing. 

After a while, the words blur together and the movie’s credit rolls. Her stomach is empty and she knows she should eat. Her mother insisted on leaving cooked meals in the freezer but she has little appetite and her sense of smell has all but disappeared anyway. Where is the joy of food when it’s been reduced to just a necessary fuel? 

As the plastic tub of pasta revolves on the plate in time with the drone of the microwave, she remembers the slop from her night in prison, and gags. Not just at the memory of the soggy grey mess of that stew, but at her resolve to be strong for Mulder, to protect him. She fears that resolve has disappeared, along with the cancer. Back then, when he walked into the senate hearing and smiled at her, she’d felt something more than relief. She could admit that now. At her bedside one night recently, he’d collapsed in tears, clinging to her hand like a child. She’d kept her eyes closed for fear of humiliating him further. He was hanging on to life by the same spidery thread she was. 

And now they have to move on with life as though nothing has happened.

She throws the dinner in the garbage bin.

Sleep evades her again that night, nightmares swirling around her mind, shadowy figures clawing at her as she tries to run, her feet mired in a squelching, sucking bog. The flash of a bullet. Mulder’s temple exploding. His hot blood splattering over her face.

She shoots up, the beating of her own pulse too loud in the predawn stillness.

Something outside of her control demands to hear his gravelled voice. Calling his number is an impulse. He answers, fear edging his voice. She remembers telling him she’s okay, but the rest of the conversation is lost to the void of her memory. A symptom she hopes is only temporary. Now, Scully pads from her bedroom, drawing her forefinger and thumb along the edges of her cheekbones. Hollow. She rests her hand over her stomach, concave. The points of her hips jutting out. Gaps and sharp edges everywhere.

There’s a hazy film of dawn across the kitchen. As she waits for the tea kettle to boil, she’s lost in the mist frosting the window, the ragged edges of it blooming out before receding to nothingness. Just a dot on the glass. She presses the pad of her finger to it and breathes, leaving a trace of herself on the pane. A sharp rap at the door makes her startle, her elbow knocking over the vase her mother gave her when she bought this place. She meant to put it back in the cupboard. She meant to keep it safe.

Mulder’s inside before she can move to find the dustpan, weapon in his hand, yelling her name. If she had the energy, she’d laugh. Instead, she sinks to her knees, feels the gritty shards of porcelain digging into her skin. Her sigh is ragged, the exhalation physically painful.

“Are you okay?” he says, kneeling next to her. She can sense his hand hovering over her shoulders and she wills him to lower it, to feel the warmth of his touch. Instead, he starts to pick up the broken vase.

She heaves herself up and takes a bag from the tidy under the sink to dispose of the pieces. As Mulder places the larger pieces carefully inside, he looks down at her but by now she’s unable to meet his gaze. His scrutiny will crack her open just like the vase and if she falls apart, she’ll never be put back together.

“You’re bleeding,” he says, without alarm, but he takes the bag and leaves it in the sink before bracing her shoulders, turning her into him and leading her to the couch. “Sit.”

It’s strangely comforting to be ordered about by him. She obeys, exhausted. It’s then that she sees the pearls of blood dotting her legs, collecting in the longer threads of her robe. A sharp diamond of porcelain is sticking out from the skin of her knee. 

“Where do you keep your Bandaids?” Mulder’s voice floats over her as she watches the blood ribbon down her shin. She’s no longer shocked by its crimson brightness, having seen it leach from her body so often. But for Mulder, she realises, it’s a cruel reminder of past months.

“In the bathroom,” she says, nodding in the direction. She tries to say ‘thank you’ as he walks away, but the words dry in her throat.

Mulder returns with a first aid kit, unwraps the scissors from their plastic shield and removes the offending shard. She watches his lips form a silent ‘sorry’ as he dabs antiseptic lotion on her, but the sting is refreshing. She can feel it. He holds a cotton pad against her knee and she looks at his strong fingers across her skin. She sees her unshaven legs, her blue veins, her crumpled socks.

“I’m such a mess.”

No response. He dabs at her knee, lifting the pad to see if the bleeding has stopped. He disappears to the kitchen and returns with a glass of water.

“Sorry about the vase,” he says, sinking into the seat next to her.

“It was a gift from my mother. She’ll probably buy two more. She’s…just so grateful, you know?”

He nods. “I am, too,” he says softly. “Very much so.”

Tears burn the corners of her eyes and she presses a finger under her nose to stop the flow but it’s impossible. He lets her weep until she’s wrung dry. Exhaustion leaves her body trembling. He finds a blanket, God knows from where, and covers her.

“You need to give yourself time, Scully. You’ve been through…”

“Don’t say ‘an ordeal’,” she says wearily. She’s heard it from her mother, brother, Father McCue, doctors, nurses. She survived. Life shouldn’t be a trial.

“I was going to say ‘a lot’. It’s not just the cancer, Scully. Your work with me…the abduction, your sister. It all adds up. This disease…how close it came to…” He stops, taking a shallow breath and rubbing at his stubbled chin. “In a funny way it made me reassess everything. That sounds selfish…it’s not what I mean. I…guess that you…not being here would change... everything. You mean more to me that you know, than even I knew.” He looks at her, eyes wet, and laughs in surprise at his own admission. 

“Mulder…”

“It’s true! It took your death sentence to stop me suffocating up my own ass.”

A giggle wells up in her throat, along with more tears. Her chest hurts. And she’s not sure if it’s pain or a coming back to life of sorts. His face lights up. 

“What I’m trying to say is that this is a second chance. For you, for us, for the work…if you still want it.” His voice lowers and he presses a hand over her arm. “Scully, your health is the most important thing to me. And you need to take some time, as much time as you need.”

The silence of the night is heavy in her head. There were times in the hospital where the midnight hours would stretch elastically until she felt she were forever walking towards an elusive dawn. Time really was a construct. The hours on the clock held no meaning, yet they marked her life in increments – for treatments, for food, for visits. 

“I do want to come back,” she says, finally. “I thought I would already be back. Recovery has been…more difficult than I expected.”

He chuckles. “Why does that not surprise me?” He taps her elbow with two fingers. “You are the strongest person I know but you’re also the worst at cutting yourself some slack.” His forehead crinkles, his voice barely above a whisper. “You have nothing to prove that you haven’t already, Scully. Especially not to me.”

“Mom keeps coming by and she’s so cheery and happy and it’s hard, you know? That sounds so selfish, but I keep thinking that I have a duty, some kind of moral obligation to live a better life now that I’ve…survived. It’s like the pressure of life has doubled, tripled, and I can’t even make myself dinner.” Her nails dig into her palms. How can she make him understand? She’s alive. She should be grateful, not bitching about her mom. She shrugs off the blanket, runs her hands down her frame. “I can’t even decide what clothes to wear so I just wear this. I brush my hair, put my earrings in, look at my make-up and all I think is ‘why?’. What’s the point? I’ve already beaten this disease. Isn’t that enough?” He pulls her into a hug and presses his lips to the top of her head. “Shouldn’t it be enough?”

His breath ruffles her hair. His chest moves up and down as he breathes and she listens to the solid, steady beat of his heart.

Releasing her, he takes both hands into his, holding them gently, bringing them to his mouth to press a soft kiss against her knuckles. There’s such reverence in his action. A kind of benediction for them both. “I think...I think you’ve put yourself under this pressure, Dana. Nobody, least of all your mother, expects you to leap back into work or life straightaway. I...I don’t want that. We all want you strong and healthy. And your mother, she knows you. Knows you’ll cut her off, give her a hand wave and an ‘I’m fine’.” He smiles. Gets her smiling too. “How many of those have you given out over the last few months, hey, Miss Scully?” He bounces their clasped hands between them. “I’ve heard more ‘I’m fines’ than I’ve seen aliens.”

She laughs at that. Mulder and his ridiculous puns are like the sun finally rising after an eternity in the dark. 

He pulls the blanket over her lap and his, squashes a cushion behind his head, points the remote control at the television. “There’s a movie on that I know you’re going to love.”

Leaning against him as he chuckles at the scene playing on the screen, she looks around. There’s a newness about everything. A sheen of hope and the itch of wings forming on her back.

[tiny-personal-university-thing]

🌿Spring Cleaning🌻

For those of you feeling particularly inspired by the impending spring

Begin by pumping up the jams, or turning on your TV. For me personally, it’s much easier to clean when I have some background noise. 

Open shades/blinds/window curtains to let some natural light in (if you are doing this during the day) 

Lay out any products/appliances you will be using during this process. Gather up some trash bags as well. You’re going to need lots of paper towels, cleaning rags, and/or disinfecting wipes. 

The best place to start is de-cluttering. Figure out what you still need or want (it’s okay to be sentimental).

Your closet/storage places is a good start. Any clothes you don’t wear anymore can be sold or donated. Places like Goodwill are open all the time! Clothes that are beyond repair can be thrown out. 

Also! Donation places like Goodwill are always in desperate need of hangers! So if you have an excess of hangers - feel free to include those in your donation.

Starting with de-cluttering will help you feel less overwhelmed when you move on to actually cleaning your space. It’s easier to clean when you have way less to clean. 

Any surface you clean today - clean it like you want your security deposit back. Clean it like the Queen or the Pope is coming into town and staying with you. Clean it like your mother is visiting. 

I’d move onto the fridge/pantry next. Toss out expired foods. Wipe down the shelves in your fridge. 

Move on to picking up any trash you may have in each room. Take the trash out to the proper receptacle immediately. 

If you are a plate/bowl/cup hoarder like myself, move those into the kitchen for washing. 

Wash dishes and such after all trash is gone and dishes have been brought to the sink. 

Wash your bed sheets/pillow cases

Make your bed.

Start wiping off all surfaces (desk tops, kitchen counter tops, shelves, mirrors, windows, ledges, pictures, blinds, posters, etc.) Get all of that neglected dust out of here. 

Wipe down your cabinets and appliances. Get all of the food stains out of the microwave. Place the revolving plate in your microwave into the dishwasher and give it a good rinse (or hand wash it if you prefer)

Vacuum, sweep and mop floors. 

Scrub toilets and bathtub/showers. 

Throw out any old cosmetics. You can look on the back to see how long before these items expire! There will be an emblem that indicates how many months a product is good for. 

Start a load of laundry after your bed sheets get done. Dry and fold the laundry. Repeat as necessary. 

Bring any rugs you may have outside and shake them out. I always like to hit items like rugs or window curtains with a fabric freshener. 

Use this dedicated cleaning time to bring some of your indoor plants outside for a bit. 

For the love of GOD please wipe your ceiling fan blades down those things can get NASTY. 

Go along your base-boards (the molding at the bottom of your walls) with a wet towel/rag. Dust likes to hide there. 

Today is a good day to bathe pets, if applicable. 

Finish up by lighting candles or spraying some air freshener. 

I would suggest taking a nice shower or bath afterwards to wash any chemicals, dirt, or sweat off. 

[psychosistr]

Don’t Cost a Thing- Part 3

Summary: Domino is stuck at F.O.W.L. HQ all day for meetings. Which wouldn’t be so bad if he someone hadn’t swiped his lunch... Well, at least Steelbeak’s there to keep him company.

Notes: References to death and murder in this one, but it’s just an every day conversation as far as these two are concerned.

-First Part-

For Dominic, the next day at work held one of the events that he dreaded all year long:

Review day.

Normally, the work he did, with or without his partner, revolved around covert operations, deadly assignments, espionage, toppling governments- the exciting stuff that was normally blown out of proportion in spy movies for the sake of funding the special effects industry.

Today, unfortunately, was not one of those days.

Review day was a generally loathed mark on the calendar of every F.O.W.L. operative from the eggmen to the chief officers (he seriously believed that even high command themselves hated the day). While most days the agents would be free to go about their day to day lives until called in for a mission, review day required all agents to stick around the designated F.O.W.L. headquarters for their district while high command called different agents in and out of the meeting room to review their previous missions of the year and possible new ones that may be on the horizon. What made the day even more loathsome and tooth-grindingly boring was the fact that it was an all-day affair and no one was allowed to leave until it was over. Which usually took at least eight to ten hours…minimum.

As an experienced agent who’d sat through his fair share of review days, Dominic had come prepared for the tedium the day would entail. He’d brought plenty of reading material ranging from his favorite books to whatever magazines he had lying around, his own thermos to refill with coffee from the break room when he had trouble staying awake, and a large pre-packaged meal for when he was eventually given a long enough break between meetings and planning sessions to actually eat.

Luckily for him, now happened to be such a time and he was starving after sitting through six straight hours in the meeting room.

When he opened the door to the special agents’ designated break room (having a break room separate from the eggmen masses was the first thing he’d been grateful for after officially becoming a higher-ranking agent), he was relieved to see that the room was nearly empty. The relief died slightly, however, when he realized that the ‘nearly’ part was because his partner was also in the breakroom.

Steelbeak was apparently on his own break, currently leaning against the counter that housed both the microwave and the coffeepot. He hadn’t reacted to Domino’s entrance yet, apparently lost in his own thoughts while waiting for the seconds on the microwave count down. The rooster seemed to be doing that a lot lately- getting lost in his own thoughts when no one else was around to call him out on it.

Dominic would have been happy to leave the chief officer to his thoughts, but, unfortunately, he would have to get by him to reach the fridge where he’d left his own food…and with the way Steelbeak was leaning with his back to the counter, his legs and torso were blocking the quickest path to his destination. He could’ve just vaulted over the nearby table and tumbled onto the couch to avoid talking to him, but that was honestly more work than he was in the mood for just to save himself three steps.

So, resigned to his fate, Dominic set his small suitcase (which he was just using to carry around his books and magazines in a more orderly fashion) on the table then walked up to Steelbeak and cleared his throat once. “Ahem.”

“?!” The simple sound was enough to jolt the taller bird from his thoughts and make him look down at Dominic. “Oh, it’s just you..” Apparently guessing what the loon wanted, Steelbeak stood up straighter and took a step back so his hip was against the counter instead of his lower back, giving his partner plenty of room to walk past without bumping into him.

“No need to sound so disappointed about it.” Dominic commented on his way to the refrigerator. He opened his thermos and left it on the counter beside him to refill on his way back to the table before opening the fridge.

“Hey, I’ve been stuck sitting at a table being bored out of my skull for almost seven hours and could use some company that’s actually entertaining for a change- sue me.” Steelbeak finished his comeback right as the coffee finished brewing and took the filled pot off of the machinery to fill his own thermos (he’d been through enough of these days to come prepared as well, it seemed). “You can’t tell me you ain’t bored of this shtick, too- even you can’t be THAT uptight.”

Dominic rolled his eyes and spared the fowl a side-eyed look of annoyance before he began searching the cold shelves for his meal. “Of course I’m bored. Anyone who says they actually enjoy this sort of thing is either an office worker or an undercover S.H.U.S.H. agent..either of which deserve to be shot on sight.”

The taller bird gave that distinctive clipped nasally-laugh of his while filling up his thermos with the piping hot coffee. “Whattaya know? You DO have a sense of humor in there.”

“Who said I was joking?” Dominic asked with a tone full of sarcasm, hiding the smile on his beak thanks to the fridge door beside him. Hearing the sound of more coffee being poured, Dominic peeked back out and saw Steelbeak filling his thermos for him. That was…surprisingly thoughtful of the selfish bird. “…Thanks.”

“Eh, I was doin’ it anyway.” Steelbeak said casually while putting the pot back for whoever wanted the next cup. He then grabbed a handful of the various packets of sugars and creams from their cardboard containers along the back of the counter and, without even asking, he set aside the exact type and number of packets that Dominic would have grabbed himself.

“You know how I take my coffee..?” The loon asked with a quirked brow, feeling…well, impressed, honestly. Being able to sneak into his apartment and leave him a high-dollar present was one thing- a very flashy, unwelcomed thing that felt entirely superficial- but to know something small like how he took his coffee seemed somehow much more personal.

Shrugging as he grabbed a coffee stirrer and began mixing in his own cream and sugar, Steelbeak’s tone remained casual. “Little trick I picked up after workin’ with my first partner.”

“Really?” That was certainly news to Dominic- the two never really talked about their previous partners.

The information was available in their files, and he’d briefly skimmed over Steelbeak’s before being assigned to him, but the other agent wasn’t very forthcoming with information unless he felt it necessary. Not to say that HE was any better himself, but he was pretty sure Steelbeak already knew about what happened with his previous partner and why he was moved to his current sector. Admittedly, he was grateful that Steelbeak never attempted to pry into his past or dig up old wounds, even when the two of them had a disagreement on something, and he’d attempted to show the same level of professional courtesy.

Still, it was interesting to hear Steelbeak bring up one of his previous partners so casually-

“Yeah, I poisoned his.” He replied just as casually as if they were discussing the weather. Which, to a F.O.W.L. agent, was actually a pretty common thing to discuss, but, still, WOW, that came out of NOWHERE.

“That doesn’t exactly inspire confidence…” Dominic muttered while briefly eyeing the coffee sitting in his thermos.

Steelbeak rolled his eyes and blew on his own coffee “He was a mole for S.H.U.S.H.” He paused to take a sip before continuing. “The geezer was a senior agent that was supposed t’ be showin’ me the ropes- used to make me do the rookie stuff like fetchin’ the coffee and puttin’ away his paperwork. Thing is, he didn’t count on me overhearin’ a VERY interestin’ conversation between him and his handler in S.H.U.S.H.” A smirk briefly turned up the corners of his mouth around the metallic beak, the deadly steel catching the light and giving him a more menacing look that fit his next words perfectly. “He also didn’t count on me puttin’ arsenic in his coffee instead of almond milk…his mistake.”

Dominic nodded, a brief scowl turning down the corners of his own beak. He knew all about the damage an infiltrator from S.H.U.S.H. could cause… “He got what he deserved, then.”

Steelbeak gave a short chuckle and set his thermos aside when the microwave finally finished. “Exactly. So, long as you don’t go turn-coat on me, you ain’t got nothin’ t’ worry about.” He spared Domino a look with a cocked brown while pulling a large container of food out of the microwave. “You lookin’ t’ help fight global warmin’ there, Deedee?”

“Hm? Oh..” A slight chill along his feet made the rooster’s words sink in and Dominic realized he’d been standing there with the refrigerator door open the whole time. “No, that would be pretty pointless since half of the world doesn’t even believe in it yet.” After searching the shelves for a moment and, begrudgingly, moving a few containers and bags around to make sure he wasn’t missing anything, a frustrated expression replaced his previously confused look. “Has anyone else been in here today?”

Steelbeak popped the lid off of his meal’s container while thinking the question over. “Ammonia and Ample were leavin’ when I got here…well, Ammonia was leavin’- Ample was gettin’ dragged along and complainin’ about not gettin’ t’ eat yet.”

“Was she holding anything when she left?” Dominic pinched the bridge of his beak in frustration and closed his eyes, already anticipating the answer and dreading its validation.

“White box with a red lid.” Steelbeak looked at the loon’s frustrated expression and smirked a little. “I’m guessin’ that was yours?”

“It’s HERS now.” Dominic corrected while finally slamming the refrigerator door closed. Even if he was hungry, if something had been in Ample’s hands, he did NOT want it back. Ever. “Guess I’m getting takeout..” He said under his breath, taking the opportunity to properly prepare his own coffee now before attempting to walk out.

He was barely three steps from the door when Steelbeak’s voice stopped him. “I would NOT recommend that today.”

“And why would that be?” It was hard for Dominic to keep the aggravation at his increasingly aggravating situation out of his voice as he turned back to look at his partner for an explanation.

“Megavolt and Darkwing Do-gooder had a fight at the city’s traffic control hub.” Steelbeak provided the explanation, calm even with the loon’s glaring red eyes pointed at him. “Lights all over the city are fried and traffic’s backed up for miles. So, ‘less you know any good places within walkin’ distance or can find a place that delivers to evil secret agencies, forget about it.”

“Great.” Dominic scowled and took a seat at the table. “Guess I’m drinking my lunch today…” He opened his suitcase and pulled out the book he’d been reading earlier, ignoring the shuffling sounds of whatever Steelbeak was doing at the counter. He was just finding the line he’d left off on when the other bird took a seat at the table and, to his surprise, slid something over to him. “…?” Dominic moved his book enough to see a paper plate piled high with a rather sizable helping of steaming-hot roasted vegetables and potatoes as well as half of what must have at one point been a sixteen ounce, inch and a half thick New York strip steak topped with sautéed mushrooms- there was even a napkin set off to the side with some cutlery. Looking over to his partner, Dominic saw that Steelbeak had a plate that practically mirrored his own and was already eating his share of vegetables. “I didn’t ask for this.” Dominic said while trying to slide the plate back towards the fowl.

Steelbeak nudged it back over to him with the blunt end of his knife. “Eat it. I packed way too much, anyway.” He paused to take a drink from his thermos. “Besides, if F.O.W.L. high command decides t’ send us on a mission tonight, I don’t need you passin’ out from low blood sugar or somethin’.”

“I’ve gone days without food before- I think I can survive a few hours.” Dominic countered, refusing to look at the plate in front of him and instead fixing the other bird with a mildly offended glare.

Steelbeak shrugged, once again not even remotely bothered by the harsh look sent his way. “Hey, do what ya want, I don’t care- it was just gonna go in the garbage, either way.”

Dominic glared quietly at the larger bird for a few more seconds, but gave up when he realized it really had no effect on the incorrigible fowl. He still tried to ignore the food in front of him, but catching a brief waft of the tantalizing aroma made his stomach growl.

Darn it, that did smell REALLY good…

…

……

…Well, if it was just going to be thrown out, anyway……

Snapping his book closed, Dominic set it aside and reluctantly pulled the plate closer. He cut the food into smaller bites than what Steelbeak himself was shoving into his mouth and began to eat. To his surprise, the food tasted absolutely incredible, despite going through the microwave. Everything was perfectly seasoned, none of the vegetables or potatoes had gotten too soft, and even the steak retained a healthy amount of tenderness and was still fairly pink in the middle, suggesting that it must have been extremely rare before to retain so much juice after being reheated like that.

“This is pretty good.” Dominic conceded after the first few bites, looking across the table at his partner. “Where did you get this?”

“Oh, y’know, just a little hole-in-the-wall joint called ‘my kitchen’.” The taller man replied with that smug grin of his.

“What?” That actually surprised Dominic, making him blink twice in an attempt to dispel the disbelief he felt at the idea of the other agent actually COOKING something. “You can cook?”

“Hey, what’s with the look?” Steelbeak’s smug grin changed to an overly-dramatic affronted expression. “You think a body THIS good-lookin’ comes from eatin’ take-out and TV dinners every night?” He flexed one arm to help illustrate his point.

“I suppose not..” Dominic glanced to the flexed arm before meeting his partner’s gaze again. “You just don’t strike me as the type to cook your own meals. I would’ve assumed you had someone else cook for you; either that or you had some five-star restaurant delivering to you directly- you could definitely afford both options.”

Steelbeak shrugged and sliced up the last few bites of his steak into more manageable pieces. “I could, but I don’t. I don’t mind cookin’ for myself, so why bother payin’ someone else t’ do it unless I’m just NOT in the mood? And if I ordered food from some fancy joint all the time, I’d get bored of it eventually, even if it was better than Hamburger Hippo.”

“Hmh, that makes sense.” The loon conceded with a nod after taking a bite of the steak as well. “For what it’s worth..” He began after he’d finished his bite and before he started on another. “You could probably give quite a few of those ‘fancy joints’ a run for their money.”

Steelbeak gave that distinctive chuckle of his and looked at Dominic with an expression somewhere between a smirk and a smile. “Are my ears playin’ tricks on me, or did I actually just hear a gen-u-i-ne compliment come out of that big beak?”

Dominic rolled his eyes, but it was hard not to smile at least a little bit as well. “Don’t let it go to your head.”

“Too late for that.” The other agent chuckled again. A comfortable silence settled between the pair as they ate, the two going several minutes without saying anything else before Steelbeak opened his beak again. “Y’know…you could pop over for dinner sometime…guarantee I won’t charge as much as some of those swankier places uptown.”

Dominic almost said no on reflex. He wasn’t normally a fan of going to other people’s homes for dinner. Disorganized spaces were not something he was fond of, and neither was the small talk that seemed inevitable when visiting someone’s home. Combine that with the much more lax health standards in most home-kitchens compared to professional restaurants and you had three major reasons for him NOT to go.

What stopped him, however, was looking back up at his partner’s face.

The normally over-confident and arrogant rooster was keeping his eyes on his plate rather than meeting Dominic’s gaze. He wasn’t giving him one of those usual smirks or that trying-too-hard-to-be-cool look like when he gave his unwarranted gifts. On top of it all, he’d been chewing the same bite of food well past the time it should’ve been finished- a classic stalling tactic when one wanted to avoid saying what they’d mentally dubbed “the wrong thing”. This was different behavior then what he was used to with the cocky fowl.

But, all things considered, Dominic found that he preferred this genuine and sincere version of the bird far more than the façade he’d been wearing for the past six weeks every time he tried giving him a gift. Besides, it’s not like Steelbeak’s home was more than a few feet away from his own- if he felt uncomfortable, he could always just LEAVE.

“Sure.” He finally answered after resolving his internal conflict on the matter. “But no finger foods.”

Steelbeak swallowed the long-finished lump of food and the corner of his mouth lifted in a slight smile that Dominic caught before the chief officer schooled his face into its usual smug smirk. “Fine, no chili dogs or cheese fries.”

They both shared a brief laugh over the idea of Dominic so much as touching such messy excuses for cuisine, the loon’s laugh much quieter compared to the large rooster’s but no less real.

After that, they went back and forth between different conversational topics and comfortable silences in equal periods. This was much better than the tension that had existed between them since the beginning of their partnership, and it was something Dominic preferred hands-down to the shift they’d gone through over the past few weeks.

He wasn’t a fool, he knew what the change in their dynamic was about and what had caused it. He knew the reason why Steelbeak kept trying to shower him with things that he’d never asked for, and he knew that it was related to why the other bird had asked him over for dinner.

Despite what Steelbeak himself might think, Dominic wasn’t completely against the idea or the notion behind the presents, it was merely the method he’d employed in trying to garner the loon’s favor that he disapproved of. Gifts were fine with him- his previous partner had given him plenty over the course of their relationship that he still held onto. The big difference, though, was the thought that was put into them: What his last partner lacked in over-the-top expensive taste, he made up for by showing how well he knew the bird, often getting him things that he knew Dominic would enjoy such as a book from a series he liked (even though half the time he got him one he’d already read), and it would always make him smile because it showed just how much the other man cared. Steelbeak’s gifts, on the other hand, while classy and definitely venturing into the territory of things that Dominic hadn’t thought to buy for himself, felt more like they were purchased simply for the sake of showing off and looking flashy- they could’ve been bought for anyone, not exclusively him.

Steelbeak’s behavior today, however, was a step in the right direction. Little things such as showing how well he’d come to know Dominic and making an effort to approach him in a more sincere and less over-the-top way were preferable to the materialistic method of essentially trying to buy his attention.

If the rooster continued acting like THIS, maybe Dominic could actually give him a chance.

<-Previous Part Next Part->

End Notes: Some heart-warming interaction between our main characters before things get crazy next chapter. This was the calm before the storm- you have been warned.

[stopforamoment]

PART TWO Weirdly Ridiculous (2 of 10)

MASTERLIST

Book: The Royal Romance (After Book Three) Pairing: Bastien Lykel x OFC Rinda Parks

Word Count: 1,864

Rating: M for Language

Author’s Note: Obligatory disclaimer that Pixelberry Studios owns the TRR characters and my pocketbook with those darn diamond scenes. OFC with all of her quirks is all mine. My apologies if Tumblr or I do something stupid when I try to post this. The keep reading link shows up on my laptop but not my phone. Ugh.

Series Nine: The Transition

Series summary: This takes place in the beginning of October when the transition to Drake Walker as the security officer is now complete. It’s Bastien’s last day at Valtoria Primary School and the community gets together to say thank you and goodbye to Bastien. This series focuses on Rinda’s place in her community and her feelings about the future. It also focuses on the transition she’s making from widow, teacher, and mother to someone who wants something more with Bastien.

Chapter summary: This takes place after “Broken Promise” when Bastien spends the night on Rinda’s couch because he doesn’t want to leave her alone when she’s upset.

PART TWO Weirdly Ridiculous (2 of 10)

Even though Rinda’s house was chaotic, there was one place that was always closed off from everyone. Rinda’s bedroom. That was her sanctuary, the place where she would unwind by herself after a long day. The place where she could sit in her bed and cry while she held the pictures of her grandma and Jameson. The place where her sheets smelled like lavender or eucalyptus because she needed some kind of scent to snuggle into during the nights when she would hold her pillow and silently cry herself to sleep because she missed Jameson so much. Laura and Alicia slept in her bed several times when they stayed late because they needed to talk or have a girls’ night. They would all pile into that bed, laughing and giggling like they were young kids at a childhood sleepover. They were allowed into her sanctuary. Bastien slept in her bed once, too. But just for a few hours. He was so tired after driving her and Henry home after a long weekend at the palace, and she knew he needed to sleep before he could drive home. When she crawled into her bed that night it was so calming and yet so heartbreaking to have his scent in her bed. It wasn’t that she felt Jameson’s memory was violated. It was because she realized how much she missed the masculine scent of someone in her bed. Someone she could snuggle close to and who would hold her. Bastien also spent the night on her couch once, after a crazy night of drinking with the security team. But normally Bastien would just spend the night at Mr. Ariti’s house if he stayed late, so it never happened again. Rinda wasn’t sure if she felt relief that he didn’t spend the night anymore . . . or something else.

. . . . . Rinda woke up in the middle of the night and realized she fell asleep in Bastien’s lap. He was asleep, his arm around her and his neck at an obviously uncomfortable angle as it rested on the back of the couch. She knew she needed to wake him up so he could sleep properly—she frequently got tension neck and head aches, and her neck hurt just looking at him. But she needed a few minutes to be selfish. To enjoy the feel of him next to her, his hand on her back. Then she mentally shook her head as she realized her body position. One hand was under her pillow and the other was casually draped over Bastien’s thigh, and they were both very close to . . . She was guilty of being “handsy” when she fell asleep on Jameson like that. Not that Jameson minded. But this was Bastien, and she needed to get up and move away. She moved slowly, afraid that she’d startle him. She assumed that he was a light sleeper because of his career, and she hoped he would be able to fall back to sleep after he shifted on the couch. Rinda went to microwave a rice sock for him. She wasn’t sure if he preferred cold or heat when his neck hurt, but it would be easier to fall back asleep with warmth. Bastien was vaguely aware of Rinda moving him, softly telling him it was her, he was on her couch, he was safe. He felt something warm under his neck as Rinda gently rested his head on a pillow. Lavender. So soothing. She took his shoes off and covered him with a blanket. He briefly felt her hands in his hair, gently massaging his scalp. Too briefly. Then a soft kiss on his head and her soothing voice whispering something in German. A word sounded like “Tiger.” He felt safe and comfortable, and he quickly fell back to sleep as Rinda crept back to her bed to sleep for the rest of the night. . . . . . Rinda’s alarm went off way too early that morning. There was a neighborhood get-together that evening, and Rinda needed to prepare a few things that morning. She also needed to pick up Laura before work. But first, coffee. Lots of coffee. Bastien woke up to the smell of coffee and the sound of a U2 song playing. Rinda was singing along “It’s a beautiful day . . . don’t let it get away.” She saw that she woke up Bastien. “I’m so sorry! It’s just a thing with me. This is my favorite song and I have to listen to it at least once every day when I need a pick me up. Just add it to my list of quirks. Coffee?” Bastien nodded. She knew he usually took his coffee black, but sometimes for the first cup of the day he treated himself with one cream and one sugar. She added the ingredients and brought the cup over to him. She gazed at him, trying to assess the pain in his neck and injured leg as he stretched himself awake. It wasn’t looking good. “Hey, Bastien. Once you’re moving do you want me to show you a couple yoga poses to help you stretch? I know that couch isn’t comfortable. Just slide yourself onto the floor when you’re ready. Don’t even bother standing up yet.” He was still waking up, so she went back to prepping some of the food for that night. Rinda kept looking over, and eventually he was able to sit on the floor. Bastien started to laugh. “What is it?” “Nothing. Everything. You in banana pajamas with your troll doll hair, and we’re about to do yoga. It’s just not what I would have expected the first time we met.” Rinda shook her head, covering her face with her hands. “Yeah, I totally get what you mean. I have to admit I panicked when you caught Laura and me laughing and then I found out you were Head of Security for the Royal Guard. I honestly thought I’d be shit canned and sent back to Wisconsin before everything even got started. But we all ended up doing pretty great, didn’t we?” “Yes, Tria. We all did. We did.” Rinda was the first one to break eye contact, smiling as she looked away. And then she focused on figuring out yoga poses by asking Bastien where his pain was and what types of exercising and stretching he normally did. She showed him some basic stretches like The Sphinx, Thread the Needle, and a Revolved Low Lunge Pose. When she saw him struggle she asked for permission to touch him to help him, and she spoke quietly as she announced when she was about to touch his back, his legs, his hips. Her touch was gentle as she waited for his body to relax into the poses. They were almost done. “Bastien, we trust each other and we’re comfortable with each other, right?” He gave her a strange look but nodded. “Okay, this one might be embarrassing. That’s why I asked. It’s called ‘The Happy Baby,’ but um . . . I’m just going to shift away from you to show you, and I’m probably going to be completely immature and start giggling.” Rinda helped Bastien into the Happy Baby pose and she asked if she could help him move his hands to his ankles. He shouldn’t arch his neck off the floor, so he shouldn’t grab his feet yet. There. Perfect. When Bastien finally got into the correct position he looked like a very serious and very awkward upside-down turtle. Rinda laughed. “Tiger, just relax. I promise it gets easier.” Bastien was supposed to be looking up and doing his own thing, so she joined him in the yoga pose. But Rinda did yoga every day because of her tension headaches, and she was more flexible than Bastien. He looked over at her. “Shit, I didn’t know the human body could do that.” Rinda looked over in embarrassment. “Hey, you’re supposed to be relaxing and minding your own business. Eyes on the ceiling, jackass.” They were both looking at the ceiling, laughing too much for the pose to even be effective. Just then a very tired Henry wandered into the living room. He rubbed the sleep out of his eyes, stared at Rinda and Bastien for a minute, and then shrugged. “Good morning Mr. Lykel. Morning mom.” Then he went back into his room. Rinda looked over at Bastien and started laughing even harder. “How messed up is my household if he doesn’t even bat an eye to wake up and see us doing crazy yoga poses in the living room?” Then Rinda moved out of the yoga pose and got quiet, a serious look on her face. Bastien rolled over to face her, both of them still lying on the floor. “What is it, Tria?” She shrugged. “I always wondered what it would be like if I ever had someone spend the night and how I would handle discussing that with Henry. I guess it would be best to talk to him ahead of time so he wouldn’t be freaked out waking up and seeing a guy was here, and I would hope that he would already know the person, that I would never have a complete stranger in my house with my son. I know right now with us is completely different, but in my scenarios I never even remotely thought it would be something like having Henry walk in on me doing yoga with someone.” Bastien looked at her, deciding whether or not he should say anything, but Rinda started smirking, and then laughing. “My life is just too weirdly ridiculous sometimes.” Just then there was a knock at the door. It was Drake. “As if this morning couldn’t get any stranger, hey?” She got up to open the door and invite him in just as Henry came out fully dressed. “Hi Uncle Drake! Mom, what’s for breakfast?” “Cereal. Fruit. Peanut butter toast. Or you can make yourself a scrambled egg. Pretty much the same answer I give you every school morning.” She grinned at Drake. “Unless you have some leftover balut?” “Heh. That was pretty awful, Parks. I don’t blame you for leaving the table. Nice hair, by the way.” Rinda rolled her eyes as he handed her an oversized water pitcher. “Mr. Ariti told me to give this to you and I’m supposed to tell you that he’s is going to start the food at noon, and you don’t have to worry about anything. And he’s reminding the neighbors that the street is going to be closed off at 4:30. What the hell do you have planned for tonight, anyways?” Drake nodded when he saw Bastien, as if it were the most normal thing in the world that he would be sitting on Rinda’s living room floor in the morning. Rinda laughed. “I got a permit to close off our block this evening so the kids can play in the street. I figure if kids are going to ping pong from house to house at least we won’t have to worry about cars.”

[edream93]

What’s the ending of London fog nightcaps?

Hi anon!

This is a prompt from the “No Excuse Writing Meme”

So I haven’t really decided on an ending for London Fog Nightcaps yet but here’s the first thing that came to mind. I mean, to a certain extent, we all know the very basic of what’s going to happen. I like to put my characters through angst only if there’s a happy ending (though I’m not sure if I even know how to write fluff so…whoops). Fair warning, this is totally unedited and any characters that are mentioned here that haven’t been mentioned in the story already may or may not appear. I’m honestly writing this story as I go.

Uma took a moment to trace Harry’s jawbone lightly with her finger before pulling away from his sleeping grasp. She took a moment to look down at him, letting out an amused huff at the slight drool running down his cheek. 

Geez, he was even pretty in his sleep, she thought.

She eventually headed to the small kitchen of her apartment, hands moving on their own to fill up a tea kettle as she was lost in her thoughts and as she waited for the water to boil, she noticed that the numbness that always seem to sit heavy on her chest was gone. 

Maybe it would come back. Maybe it wouldn’t but Uma promised herself to enjoy feeling, to enjoy this lightness for as long as she could. 

The blinking light of her phone caught her attention and she pressed the voicemail button on it before cradling it with her shoulder as she moved the kettle, hearing it on the cusp of whistling. 

“Message 1. Sent yesterday at 6:35pm: Hey Umie! My best friend and future sister-in-law! Don’t deny it!” CJ’s recording said just as Uma rolled her eyes. “Can you take over my shift Friday night? I finally asked that Freddie girl out and I need to have that time getting ready. PLEASE AND THANK YOU! And tell Harry no glove, no love!!! BYE!!!”

Uma sighed, sending CJ a text back despite the early hour agreeing to cover her shift if CJ agreed to cover Uma’s Sunday shift. Harry had promised to take her sailing that day. 

“Message 1 Deleted. Message 2. Sent yesterday at 8:47pm: Hey Uma. It’s me. Mel. Er- Melody. Your cousin.” Uma snorted softly, pulling a mug down from the cupboard. “I just wanted to see how you were doing. Uh…You know…after dinner the other day…I’m sorry for-” Uma paused listening as the other girl let out a huge breath of air. “I’m just sorry. It shouldn’t have happened like that and I would totally understand if you never wanted to talk to any of us again but…I was being honest when I said I do hope I can get to know you better…but, it’s up to you. I’ll understand either way. Um..well…goodnight.”

Uma closed her eyes briefly, taking a deep breath before pressing a button on her phone.

“Message saved. Next new message sent today at 12:43am.” Uma glanced at the clock on her microwave seeing that it was currently two hours since the message was sent. 

“Darling,” a familiar brogue greeted her thick with sleep. “I love you and I’m gonna tell you that when you wake up but…I just had to tell you it now because it’s true and I hope you know that and if not, I will work my arse off to make sure you do because you deserve to be loved with just as much fierceness and passion as you love others. So…yeah, that’s all I wanted to say. I love you, Uma.”

She blinked, and it took her a moment to realize she was crying, took another moment to realize that a familiar pair of arms were wrapped around her waist, warm body against her back, the familiar brogue that she had come to love that had just declared love for her was now doing so, pressing soft kisses against her neck.

Uma spun around to face Harry and before he could even comment on the tears in her eyes she had pressed her lips against his, all open lips and bumping noses and eager touches that eventually led to her sitting on her counter, Harry standing between her legs as their kisses turned slow but passionate. 

Her fingers of one hand entwined themselves in the soft curls of his hair tugging gently until he stopped kissing her, his forehead against hers. They took a moment, eyes closed to breathe in together, catching their breath. The thumbs of Harry’s hands drawing soothing circles that sent electricity down her spine on the slight bit of skin that appeared between her shorts and where her shirt had risen slightly while Uma’s other hand made gentle strokes up and down his side that caused him to tremble lightly at her touch. 

“I take it you heard my message,” Harry stated softly, voice still husky from sleep.

Uma nodded, licking her lips, aware of the way his blue eyes drifted down towards them, desire evident. “Careful,” she murmured, giving in briefly and leaning forward a bit to teasingly suck on his already swollen bottom lip. “Keep saying things like that and I may just fall in love with ya.”

Harry, as kiss drunk as he was, grinned before leaning forward but stopping when there’s was only a breath of space between their lips. 

“Is this what you ordered?” he asked cheekily.

“No,” Uma said before tugging him forward to end the space between them. “This is better,” she murmured against his lips, the cup of earl grey she been fixing forgotten temporarily. 

So…there you have it. A possible ending for London Fog Nightcaps. Gotta admit, the make-out just happened but yeah, let me know what you think because I surprisingly haven’t had that many kissing scenes despite the fact that most of my fics revolves around a ship so…let me know. 

Anyway, hope you enjoyed and I hope that however I choose to end the actual story you enjoy as well.

Feel free to send me something from this ask prompt.