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bungalowbear · 11 months

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Wolves of Tokyo: Savage Good Boy

Pairing: alpha!Fushiguro Toji x omega!f!reader

Summary: Pressured to choose a husband, you make a rebellious choice after a stranger comes to your rescue.

Warnings: abo dynamics, misogynistic themes, some violence, creepy alphas, love hotel, smut (fingering, p in v, knotting), biting, mutual bonding, mdni

Word Count: 8.5k

A/N: Here goes my first nosedive into abo. This is going to be a whole series with different jjk men and their readers. First up is Hana! But even though I’ve given her a name it’s more to make writing/reading easier the further along we get. I try to be as inclusive as I can therefore there are no physical descriptions, so anyone can read and hopefully picture themselves. Enjoy!

Series Masterlist / Playlist

There are many wolf clans in the city of Tokyo. But the Gojo, Kamo, and Zen’in families stand above all others. Power, wealth, and status are the pillars that have supported them for generations.

Your family is less prominent, just one rung below, though sought after for its long history of birthing powerful and gifted offspring. A blessing, your father says, the heavens bestowed upon your clan. But you’ve only ever regarded it as a curse.

Not only do you have the unfortunate luck of being born a woman, but also an omega. You’re even more unfortunate to have been born to your father, the head of your clan and the one forcing you into an arranged marriage.

“Do you know how many omegas would kill to be in your position?” he asks, voice tinged with frustration.

“Probably, like, a ton.”

You’re upside down on the sofa, legs hanging over the back and face looking out through the floor to ceiling windows of the living room. Your father’s penthouse offers an enviable view of the city. Among the patchwork constellations of lit windows of office buildings, you marvel at Tokyo Tower, turned upside down from your position, shining in all her glory.

“And yet you treat this with such contempt?”

Your father’s voice interrupts your city gazing. You hear his heavy footsteps echo against the hardwood floors as he comes to block your view. You refuse to raise your eyes to him, already familiar with the image of his crossed arms and rigid posture when he scolds you.

“Forgive me, father,” the words roll off your tongue dry and indifferent, “for not being so eager to sell myself off like some prized cattle.”

“You can’t keep pushing this meeting off,” he argues. “The other clans are getting restless. Soon they won’t be asking, but demanding.”

You roll your eyes and sit up so your feet are planted on the floor and your head is upright again. This time you turn your gaze up at your father, not cowering under his stern expression.

“You realize we don’t care about any of this, right? Satoru and I have been friends since we were children, and we both agree this is so archaic. Choso spends more time at that animal shelter than at home.” Your hands clutch the edges of the seat. A sour taste settles on your tongue. “And I’d claw my own eyes out before marrying Naoya. He’s the only one you’ve all successfully indoctrinated into this misogynistic bullshit.”

Pushing off the couch, you stride past your father and plant yourself beside the window. You pull your legs against your chest and rest your head on your knees. Your father’s footsteps come closer. His hand reaches toward your head and gives you a gentle pet, but you shake him off and scoot further away.

“What am I going to do with you?”

You can hear fondness creeping in his voice, but you won’t allow it to sway you.

“How about not forcing me to marry someone I don’t want to,” you quip.

Your father sighs.

“Our clan has kept itself alive and thriving for generations through marriage pacts. If we—”

“Maybe we don’t have to anymore,” you interrupt, looking at him with imploring eyes. “It’s a new time, father. Things are different now.”

“Not for us.”

He looks at you like you’re a child again. A sad smile that suggests you don’t understand anything about the way the world works. But you do know, and it’s not a world you want to live in anymore.

You and Satoru talk about the changes you want to make within the top clans. And you’re committed, you want to see it happen, but sometimes it seems impossible. At times you feel so small and so lonely. As a male alpha, Satoru doesn’t fully understand your fears, just like you don’t his. And you know he gets insecure like you do. The only difference is that he has someone to confide in, to support him unconditionally. You don’t. Which is why it’s so important for your husband to be someone of the same mind as you. Not someone who will keep you trapped underneath his thumb.

“If mother was here she’d be on my side.”

You huff, burying your head in your arms. You feel the warmth of your father next to you as he comes closer again. This time when he puts his arm around you, you don’t move away.

“If your mother was here she’d want you to make a smart decision.” He speaks with a sorrow you can’t fully comprehend. You lost a mother, but he lost a wife. A mate. “She’d want you to be protected and provided for. Each of the clans is offering that.”

“Wouldn’t she also want me to be happy?”

He chuckles. “You’re just like her.”

You lift your head. He stares at you with glassy eyes.

“Beautiful and wise,” he says. A loving smile curves his lips. “And stubborn.”

Your father’s expression turns somber. You already know what he sees in your face, in every feature that composes your physical identity. You see it every time you step in front of a mirror. A near identical copy of your mother. A living, breathing reminder that she once walked the earth, long enough to give you her likeness.

“I miss her,” you say, dropping your head onto his shoulder.

“So do I.”

You make sure your father is asleep before leaving the apartment. You close the door carefully behind you and take the elevator to the lobby. It’s nearly midnight, the usual time you step out, and your neighborhood is as you anticipate, quiet.

The walk to the train station is quick. You tap your fare card on the reader and head underground to catch the last local train to Shinjuku. You’ll most likely have to take a cab home, but you’ll figure that out later. Conversations with your father always leave you mentally drained and the only thing you can focus on right now is getting your hands on some yaki udon.

Once you arrive at your station, you exit up the stairs and onto the street. The diner isn’t far so you keep your head down and let your feet lead you along the familiar route.

It’s a bit crowded for a Thursday but you don’t mind. You can blend in better. Disappear among the mixed scents of the other designations that crowd the sidewalk. You mostly catch the sweetness of omegas in the air. They travel in groups and you assume they don’t have mates of their own. It’s rare for an alpha to allow their mate to be out this late. Thankfully, you don’t have that problem. Not yet, at least.

You’re not sure how long you can keep stalling your father. You understand he pressures you only because he’s pressured by the other clans, but you don’t understand why he doesn’t just stand up to them and refuse. You don’t know what he’s so afraid of. He’s already been through the worst time of his life.

The death of your mother was the lowest point not only for you and your father, but also the entire clan. Only with her absence were you able to realize the influential woman she was and what she meant to the other branches of the family. Their support through your grief and your father’s brief depression, their unwavering loyalty and devotion, their presence the purest form of unconditional love, was the foundation your mother built that gave the clan a foot to keep standing on.

You and your father had endured your mother’s death with the clan by your side. When the mourning period ended you promised yourself you would be a leader worthy of your family name in return for their support. You’d be as resilient as your father, and as influential as your mother.

But the only way you can achieve that is through the right opportunity. Clearly your father won’t be the one to make one happen for you, so you have to find it yourself.

A voice calling out stops you in your tracks. As your mind clears itself of your previous thoughts your ears listen for the voice again. You look over your shoulder at the opening of a dark alley and wait. After a few seconds you hear the same cry for help.

You backtrack a few steps and peer into the alley. Cautiously, you enter and follow the whimpering sounds and scared scent of an omega. There are several overhead light posts lining the walls, and it’s beneath one of those lights you see a woman cowering beneath two burly men with her hand pressed against her red cheek. She peers between the two with tears in her eyes and finds your gaze, relief pouring out of her as if you’re an angel come to her rescue.

“Hey!”

You shout, too fast for you to think about the consequences. But it gets their attention and gives the omega the opening needed to get away. One of the men tries to grab her but she quickly evades him and sprints away toward the other end of the alley.

“Big mistake, girl.”

They turn to you and you realize too late that they’re both alphas. Angry and irritated alphas. And you’re alone with them.

You try to make your own escape, but a harsh grip on your arm pulls you back. You’re shoved against the wall and the space is too narrow to put any distance between you and the increasingly overwhelming spicy tang of their combined scents that fill your nostrils.

“What do we have here?” The one that holds you in place has shaggy brown hair. He inhales deeply, closing his eyes with a salacious grin. “Another little omega to play with?”

In the brief moment his eyes are shut, you shift your feet so that your right foot is slightly behind your left. Using all the force you can muster, you thrust the palm of your right hand up and into his nose. He steps back with a shout, hands flying to his face as blood trickles out between his fingers. The other man steps around his friend and roughly pins your shoulders to the wall.

“A feisty one, eh?” His bald head shines beneath the light post as he leans in close. He takes a good whiff of you. “Doesn’t matter. I can smell how scared you really are. A little sour mixed in with all that sweetness. Just how I like it.”

His nose inches toward the sensitive gland on your neck and your body revolts. You’ve acted mostly on instinct so far, but you’re intentionally defiant as you gather a pool of saliva in your mouth and spit it all out onto his face.

“What the—” He jerks back, wiping away your attack with the back of his hand. An angry growl crawls out of his throat as he raises a hand to strike you. “You little bitch.”

You shut your eyes, waiting for the sting of his palm to sharply make contact with your cheek.

But it never comes.

Your eyes open and your brow furrows at the hand hovering in mid air above your face. When your gaze lowers you realize it’s because another hand has it locked in place.

You didn’t hear him, couldn’t even sense him approach, but this new person is no doubt another alpha. Your lips part in awe at the size of him. He’s massive, towering over you and the others. His broad frame is intimidating and his arms and chest are barely contained beneath the fibers of his plain black t-shirt.

The bald alpha tries to pull away but the grip he’s in is too strong. In a flash, your savior turns him around with a yank of his arm and sends a powerful kick to his backside. The smaller man goes flying forward onto his hands and knees. His friend with the still bleeding nose helps him up from the ground, and they both turn back to the giant of a man now standing between you and them.

“What the hell, man?” the bald one complains. “This has nothing to do with you.”

“Now it does.”

The deep timbre of your savior’s voice makes your knees shake. It suits his powerful presence and makes you thankful he’s on your side.

All three alphas seem to be locked in a staring contest. But while the two become visibly nervous the longer it goes on, their opponent’s cool expression doesn’t waver. He folds his arms and his muscles strain against the short sleeves of his shirt. The two others seem to come to a decision and start backing away. They spare you a quick glance, and your savior a scowl, before they turn and escape down the alley.

You watch from behind the alpha’s frame until the two round the corner and are finally out of sight. Letting out a sigh of relief, you step away from the wall. But it’s short lived when the remaining alpha turns his sharp gaze on you.

“Be more careful next time you decide to play hero, yeah?”

His shirt looks too small for him, and you wonder if it’s on purpose to show off his insanely fit body. You notice a hole in the left knee of his sweatpants that sit low on his hips and the white socks dusted brown with dirt slid into a pair of black slides. Your gaze snaps up to his face and zeroes in on the scar at the corner of his lip, then to the black strands of hair that fall in his face, shading a pair of emerald green eyes. You decide that despite his semi-homeless presentation he’s actually very attractive.

“Thanks,” you say. “I’ll keep it in mind.”

He looks down his nose at you, appraising you like you just did him. You wonder what he sees. You wonder if the smirk that pulls at the corner of his mouth is meant to unnerve you, entice you, or maybe both. And you wonder why, since you run on instinct so much, do you go against your designation’s expectations and make so much trouble for your father.

“You hungry?”

He tilts his head. “What?”

“I was heading to a diner,” you say. “Let me buy you something. It’s the least I can do.”

His eyes narrow for a second as he contemplates your offer. Though you already know what his answer will be.

“Sure.” He shoves his hands in his pockets. “Whatever.”

You smirk and motion for him to follow you. The noise from the street is a welcome reprieve from the dark and quiet alley, but being back on the sidewalk means navigating through the crowds again. You’re so used to walking alone, swiftly weaving through bodies, that you almost forget your new companion. You look over your shoulder to make sure you haven’t left him behind and your brows rise at the empty space behind you.

He is only about five or six steps behind, but his broad build and being several heads taller than nearly everyone on the street makes them steer clear and create a path for him to walk unimpeded. Your eyes meet and he grins. The way his scar stretches and his eyes narrow make him look dangerous, and like he’s certainly aware of his presence.

You hum, curious about who this man is, and turn your head forward to continue walking. Several blocks later and a right turn onto a narrow street, the diner finally comes into view. Kanji characters glow in red neon above the entrance.

“It doesn’t look like much,” you say when you’re standing in front of the dark wood sliding door. “But they’ve got the best curry you’ll ever eat.”

He doesn’t say anything as you slide the door open and wave him in first. You weren’t close enough before to notice, but when he ducks his head and passes in front of you into the diner you catch his scent. Cypress with an underlying hint of spicy cinnamon fills your senses and you have to shake your head to keep from focusing on it too long.

You enter after him and slide the door closed. He looks over the menu options on the ticket machine to the left of the door while you peer past him to the long counter. The sound of running water in the kitchen stops and a familiar face appears from behind the corner. When Momo’s brother sees you he says your name.

“Welcome.” He smiles at you warmly. Then his eyes cut to the large man beside you, who doesn’t take his focus off the food options, and tilts his head in silent inquiry. But you shake your head and he understands that now isn’t the time for questions. “Sit anywhere you’d like. Momo will—”

He pauses, looking around the diner with a frown for his sister. It’s a narrow room with a counter that spans almost the entire length of the space with room on each end to exit through the doors. The right wall is lined with tables that seat two and leaves a small aisle in between for passage along the length of the diner. The back door leads to the restroom, which is a separate room in the alley with easy street access, and where you’re certain his sister is.

You chuckle, knowing when Momo reappears she’ll be in for a scolding. Turning your attention to the machine, you feed it several notes and select your udon and toppings.

“Get as much as you want,” you say.

Your companion doesn’t hesitate to start pressing buttons, choosing a bowl of ramen and the large portion of curry. After he selects an order of gyoza and tempura the money slot blinks green and you slide in more notes. He looks at you with raised brows, probably not believing your initial offer, before he makes his final selections of yakitori and two beers. You add another yakitori and a beer for yourself before accepting your change and fishing out the tickets from the dispenser.

“Let’s take a seat.” You turn to the alpha beside you. “I’m sure—”

Suddenly the back door slides open and all eyes are on the flustered omega as she enters the diner. She straightens the apron around her waist before swiftly closing the door, but not fast enough that you don’t catch the blur of white hair dash behind her. When she looks up you can see the smudge of gloss around the corners of her mouth and you have to hold back your giggles.

Her mouth splits into a wide grin when she spots you and hurries around the counter toward you. With a tilt of your head in his direction, the alpha follows your lead down the aisle and toward a table along the wall.

“Hey, Momo,” you greet your friend. You lift your hand and use your knuckle to clear away the stray gloss on her skin. “How are you?”

“I’m good,” she answers, shyly averting her eyes. Her hands smooth down the front of her apron. “Really good.”

You raise your brows in amusement, lips parting to tease her, but Momo takes the tickets from you and tears them in half before scurrying off to the kitchen. You watch her go with a fond shake of your head.

“She’s cute.”

Your attention shifts to the alpha now seated at the table. He grins while making the observation. His gaze lingers on the entrance of the kitchen, where the low murmurs of Momo’s scolding reach your ears.

You take the seat across from him.

“Thank you,” you say, “for, uh, helping me back there.”

“You always pick fights with alphas?”

You think about your father and the clan heads, always aware of the power they hold. You’d learned about it all from Satoru growing up, your only confidant in this repeating generational cycle, and yet you refuse to give in. All your life you knew what awaited you and you took every chance to delay it. Ever since your mother’s death you wanted something more for yourself. You wanted a different future.

“Yeah.” You smile to yourself. “I guess I do.”

“Pretty stupid for an unmated omega.”

He scoffs. You roll your eyes.

“We’re not helpless, you know.”

“You got in a good hit, so maybe not helpless.” He chuckles, tilting his head down to narrow his eyes playfully. “Still a weak little thing though.”

“I literally made him bleed.”

The smirk he gives you makes him look less intimidating.

“You’re not like other omegas,” he says.

It’s not a question. Ever since you met him you’ve felt his calculating gaze on you. Not heavy or intense, but just there. A silent presence that maintains its patience, watching and studying and waiting for the right time to take action.

“Here you are.” Momo appears with your beers, placing them on the table with a steady hand. She looks from you to your companion. “Who’s your new friend?”

“I ran into some trouble,” you vaguely explain. “He was kind enough to get me out of it.”

She frowns. “Trouble?”

You wave off her concern. “It was barely anything.”

Momo turns to him, bowing her head in gratitude.

“Thank you for taking care of my friend. I’ll bring some dessert, on the house.”

“Momo, I can—”

You start to decline her offer, but the deep, rich voice of the man across from you cuts you off.

“I appreciate that, sweetheart.”

Momo perks up before flitting away with a promise of ice cream. You watch the alpha as he eyes Momo’s backside. You clear your throat.

“She’s spoken for. And your competition won’t fold as easily as those creeps in the alley.”

“Just lookin’,” he says, reaching for his first beer.

You take your own beer in your hands, bringing it up to your lips for a sip. You eye him over the rim, take in everything about him. His hair, his face, the bored expression he near constantly wears. The more you see, the more familiar he looks.

“So…what’s your name?” you ask.

“Why do you wanna know?” he counters.

“Isn’t it normal for me to want to know the name of my knight in shining armor?”

He laughs before taking a large gulp of his beer, slamming it down onto the table and wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. He tilts his head to look at you through half lidded eyes. You’re sure he’s trying to be seductive, and you have no doubt he can be, but after countless alphas from various clans trying to attract your attention you’ve built up a sort of immunity to pretty words and manipulative men.

He pouts when you show no sign of wavering.

“Doesn’t matter,” he huffs.

“I think it does,” you insist.

Like with the alphas in the alley, you’re caught in a staring contest with the man before you. But after a minute of you matching his impassive expression he smacks his teeth. He leans back and crosses his arms over his chest.

“What’s it to you anyway?”

You shrug. “You look like someone I know.”

“Oh, yeah?”

“Yeah,” you say. “You’ve got the same eyes.”

He hums.

“And the same hair,” you add.

He raises his brows. His green eyes light up in mock interest.

“Even got the same frown.”

“Wow,” he leans forward, propping an elbow on the table and resting his chin in his large palm, “the same frown.”

“He’s like a carbon copy of you. Almost like you could be father and son.”

At this, he straightens up. His expression hardens and he eyes the diner warily, as if he’s been unknowingly lured into some nefarious den.

“Who are you?” he asks.

“I asked you first.”

You wait for his answer, patient as you take another sip of beer. He clenches his jaw.

“Toji,” he finally answers.

“Family name?”

He hesitates. It seems any answer he has prepared for you won’t allow him to remain anonymous. But he could also give you a fake name, though something tells you he won’t.

“Fushiguro.”

He whispers the name, one you’re familiar with. You nod your head.

Before Fushiguro, he was Zen’in. Everyone knows the story of the alpha who deserted his clan after years of being ignored and put down by his family. An alpha who couldn’t shift into his wolf form was considered a blemish on the Zen’in name. But what Toji lacked as a shapeshifter he made up for in his human form. Physically stronger, faster, sharper than nearly any man or wolf, he made a name for himself as a hunter. You don’t know how you feel about him hunting other wolves, but from the stories you heard he was quite impressive.

“Okay,” Toji says, “so what’s your name?”

You tell him your full name, then add, “But my friends call me Hana.”

He scoffs. “So we’re friends?”

“We can be.”

“Why do your friends call you Hana?” he asks instead.

“Because they think they’re funny, dubbing me the blooming flower of my family.”

He chuckles, scratching at his chin. “So what’s the daughter of a clan leader doing sneaking around at night?”

“Needed to clear my head.” You trace a line down the side of your glass, breaking through the condensation. “I’m expected to choose a husband soon.”

“Right.” Toji nods. “Your family has the golden womb.”

You scrunch your nose at his wording. That’s all you are to any of them. A pawn. An object. You could just run away, you think. You’d ask Satoru to lend you some money until you get settled somewhere far away, then you’d live your life free of clan traditions. On your own terms.

But you know it’s nothing but a fantasy. Even if you ran they’d send someone to track you down and bring you back. Someone like Toji…

You lift your gaze to the alpha, and slowly an idea begins to form in your mind. You recall a thought you had: find your own opportunity.

“What do you think about marriage?”

“The first time wasn’t so bad.” Toji shrugs. “Second time was more for convenience.”

“You know,” you pause, gauging his expression, “they say third time’s the charm.”

His brows pinch together. He’s obviously puzzled.

You smile. “What do you say?”

“Marriage? To you?” He points a thumb over his shoulder. “Are you sure you didn’t hit your head back there?”

“Think about it. If we get married your family will have to bring you back into the fold. You’ll be bankrolled by them again and I’ll get to rub it in all the clan leaders’ faces that I found away around their ancient tradition.”

“What makes you think I want their money?” Toji frowns. “Or would even go back if they asked?”

“Well, word around the packs is that you’re a bit of a gambler, so whatever money you acquire on your own is yours to do with as you please,” you say, waving your hand dismissively. “And if you don’t want to go back to your family then you can live with me. I’ll take care of your food, housing, and other essentials.”

“And be, what? Your sugar baby?”

“Essentially.” You chuckle to yourself. “Also, I’m sure they’ll want a stake in decisions about our children. That’s going to be so much fun.”

“Eh?” Toji scowls. “Now we’re talking about children?”

“Obviously we’ll have to have at least one,” you say. Avoiding children is hard in your position, but becoming a mother is not entirely out of the question. Having a mother like yours, a part of you had always been eager for your turn. “And I’m curious to see how they’ll turn out. I’ve heard stories about you. With your strengths and my “golden womb” perhaps our child will turn out to be very powerful. God, I can just picture the looks on the faces of those old men.”

Toji smirks. “You’re a spiteful one aren’t you?”

“Since I’m an only child, my father will pass on his business to whoever I marry.” You’re talking to yourself now, your future laying itself out before your eyes. “And after he does you’ll tell him you aren’t interested in running the company, then you’ll announce that you’re turning it over to me. I know everything about that place. I’ll keep growing the company, make sure the clan continues to prosper, and start making changes from the inside. Of course you’ll be free to do your own thing.”

You pause, really looking at Toji now and see a glint in his eyes as he stares back at you. You can tell he’s considering your offer.

“What about divorce?” he asks.

“You’ll have to sign a prenup, so there’s really no benefit for you if we get divorced. My father will also make sure that I have full custody of any children we have. You’ll essentially be right back where you are now. Just older.”

He’s silent as he rests his cheek in his palm.

“I’ll make sure you won’t want for anything.” You express the same sentiment your father did to you. How strange, you think, an omega offering protection and security to an alpha. “And if you want to see Megumi, I can ask—”

“No.”

“No?”

“I’ll do it. I’ll marry you.” Toji pointedly avoids your gaze. “But we don’t have to involve the kid.”

Your heart clenches. You wonder if he’ll be this indifferent to your own children.

“Okay.” You extend your hand across the table. “It’s a deal.”

Toji’s hand is warm around yours as he takes it and gives it a firm shake. Momo comes back to your table with your small feast. You thank her and she’s off again. Toji already has chopsticks in hand, but before he can take the first bite you speak up.

“For my father to accept this betrothal we’ll have to show him we’re serious. That there’s no going back.”

Toji looks at you with ramen hanging in front of his open mouth. “How do we do that?”

You smirk.

“With a little bonding time.”

After your meal, you pay for a cab to take you and Toji to Love Hotel Hill in Shibuya. You’re dropped of at the entrance of the hotel, but before going inside you take hold of Toji’s elbow and turn him to face you.

“This is your last chance to back out,” you tell him. “If you walk through those doors with me there’s no going back.”

Toji’s head pushes back slightly. His brow furrows and he looks almost…offended. His lips part and he looks like he’s about to speak, but then his brows rise. His eyes scan your face and you wonder what he sees.

Does he see how hopeful you are? Does he realize that you’re both desperate for the same chance to change your lives?

“Don’t worry, omega.” He smirks, taking your hand that’s still touching his elbow. His thumb brushes over the inside of your wrist. A tingle zips through your arm. “I’m not going anywhere.”

Relief washes through you and you smile. You don’t think much of it as you wrap your arm through his, pulling you close to him as you walk through the automatic glass doors of the hotel.

The lobby is empty except for the reception desk where you know an attendant sits behind the opaque window. The rest of the space is finely decorated with warm overhead lighting, lush green plants, and a long leather couch placed against the far wall.

Your shoes tap softly against the tile as you and Toji step up to the board on the right wall lit up with pictures of available rooms to choose from. There are a few themed options, but you and Toji decide on a standard room for the night. So you choose a room on the top floor along with the “stay” option then go to the reception desk to pay. After you exchange notes for the key card a soft feminine voice bids you a pleasant stay.

After thanking the attendant you and Toji move to the elevator. He pushes the call button and you stand, your arm still around his, and wait. When the bell dings to signal the elevator’s arrival you prepare to step forward, but when the doors open a couple is already inside. The man removes his hands from the woman’s hips. He clears his throat and she giggles. You avert your eyes as you and Toji step aside for them to exit. When you’re inside and the elevator doors are closing you can hear the sounds of their infatuated exchange as they walk through the lobby and back out into the world.

You and Toji ride to the top floor in silence. The key card weighs heavy in your hand and you can’t help the racing of your heart as the numbers above the doors keep climbing. When the doors open you and Toji move at the same time to step into the hallway and toward your room.

Not only are you on the top floor but also in the north east corner. Although the walk to your room seems a mile long, it gives you the sense of greater privacy feeling so far away. There are no sounds from the other doors you pass that you can detect. Knowing Toji’s heightened senses, you wonder if he hears anything. You peek over at him but his face sits in the same flat expression.

When you arrive, you swipe the key card above the handle and enter the room. There’s a small area at the entrance where you both take off your socks and shoes. Toji is barefoot in less than a minute while you’re still bent at the waist working your shoes off.

Once you’re done and are upright again you stride further into the room. It’s not unlike any other pricey hotel you’ve stayed at with its marble counters and hardwood floors. The only difference would be that there’s only one window with the curtains pulled shut for privacy. You do, however, like the large circular bed in the middle of the room.

It’s on a raised section of the floor, and instead of hardwood the bed is surrounded by soft carpet. It’s sunken into the platform and dressed in white bedding. A round light fixture hovers directly above, like a spotlight on the main event.

It excites you. So you follow the feeling and waste no time getting everything prepared just the way you like it.

“Feel free to grab anything from the bar,” you say over your shoulder.

You hear the mini fridge open and close then the hiss of a bottle opening. You feel Toji’s eyes on you, watching as you flit around the room and grab towels from the bathroom along with extra blankets from the closet by the door. You toss them onto the bed and arrange them to your liking before jumping on top and rolling around your makeshift nest.

“What are you doing?” he asks, coming to stand at the edge of the bed. He takes a sip of his bottled beer.

“I want to make sure it smells like us before we get started.” You roll around a bit more. Spread your arms and legs out like you’re making a snow angel. “Come here.”

When he doesn’t move you crawl on your hands and knees and take hold of his arm. You try pulling him down to you but he doesn’t budge. Not a single inch. You try again, but are only met with Toji’s laughter.

“Told you already,” the smile he gives you is nothing short of mocking, “you’re a weak little thing.”

Your lips press together tightly, not appreciating the way he taunts you. So when your hand lets go of his arm and your fingers glide over to tease at the hem of his sweatpants you grin triumphantly when he jerks away.

“Oi!”

You giggle at the scowl Toji throws your way. He downs the rest of his beer and tosses the bottle onto the floor carelessly and it rolls away onto the hardwood. Your eyes follow him as he purposefully walks in an arc to get to the other side of the bed before plopping down onto it, landing on his back with a huff.

“You have to roll around so your scent gets everywhere,” you say.

“M’not a child.” He crosses his arms under his head, shutting his eyes. “Not gonna roll.”

“Fine.”

You surprise him for a second time by swiftly darting across the mattress and straddling his hips. His green eyes fly open and he looks at you like you’re absolutely insane. But you pay him no mind as you grab the edges of the blanket beneath him and fold each end over his front. You hold them closed tightly and sway him a little back and forth. You’re impressed with yourself that you can even manage that with how huge he is.

“Having fun?” Toji deadpans.

“A little,” you admit.

Next, you grab a towel from behind you and place it over his head, rubbing hair with it like you would if you were drying it after a shower. Toji says something but it’s unintelligible beneath the towel.

You pull it away from his face. “What was that?”

“Said it smells nice.”

“Really?” You give it a whiff. “What’s it smell like?”

“Like a plum. Tart with just the right amount of sweetness,” he says. His tongue swipes over his bottom lip. “Smells like you.”

“You’re not going soft on me now are—”

You gasp when Toji’s hand shoots out to take hold of your arm. He presses his nose to your wrist, inhaling deeply. The intimate action makes your lower belly erupt with butterflies.

As if sensing your reaction, Toji sits up. His face hovers just an inch away from you and he holds onto your hips to keep you from scooting backward. Your noses touch, lips just barely brushing. Lust swims in the pools of his green irises and you see your own eagerness reflected in them. You spend several long heated seconds exchanging warm breaths before you lean in, closing the gap and pressing your lips to his.

It starts out slowly, both of you acquainting yourselves with the taste and feel of each other, before it picks up. You’re not sure which one of you initiated it, but when the kiss turns needier and hungrier neither of you protest. You moan when his tongue passes through your lips, the wet muscle hunting for more of your taste.

The heat between you starts to rise and your mind tells you that you’re both wearing too many clothes. Your hands scramble to the hem of Toji’s shirt and start tugging until he raises his arms and you pull it over his head. Your lips are disconnected for a moment, but find each other again when his torso is bare.

Your hands wander the expanse of his sculpted chest, fingers pressing into firm muscle hidden beneath hot smooth flesh. Your touch ventures further down to his stomach where you explore every dip and crevice of abdominal muscle etched to perfection. You pull a gasp from the alpha beneath you when your fingers ghost over where the thin trail of hair on his lower stomach disappears into the waistband of his sweatpants.

Toji growls into your mouth before taking the bottom of your shirt and jerking it upward, impatient in his movements. You lift your arms and he rips it the rest of the way off you, leaving only your bra to cover your chest. The shirt is discarded before Toji attaches his mouth to yours again, but he doesn’t stay there. Hot lips start making their way lower, leaving a wet trail down your throat until his teeth are nipping and teasing at the gland on your neck. You gasp at the sensation and feel the vibrations of Toji’s laughter against your collarbone.

“Asshole,” you say, breathlessly.

He smiles against your skin, not bothering to argue, as his hands settle on your waist and give a firm squeeze. “Stand up.”

It’s not an alpha command, but you move as if it is. Your feet sink into the mattress and you hold onto Toji’s shoulders for balance. He undoes the button and pulls down your zipper, and in one motion he has your bottom half completely bare in front of him. His face presses into your hip as he helps you get each foot free.

Now you stand only in your bra, watching as he tugs down his sweatpants to reveal himself to you. He’s half hard but you can already tell he’s definitely the largest you’ve ever had. While he works his pants off you reach behind and undo your bra, letting it fall off your arms before you toss it onto the floor to land with the rest of your clothes.

Toji’s touch is on you again. Warm, calloused hands brush up and down your thighs before hooking at the back of your knees. He pulls you down so you’re once again straddling him. He kisses you, briefly but with more fervor, before he leans his head down and takes one of your nipples in his mouth.

You bring a hand to the back of his head, fingers threading through the strands as you keep him close. A whimper escapes you as the tip of his tongue expertly traces circles around your sensitive nub. Your lower body clenches when he moves to your other breast, lips firmly attaching themselves and giving a light tug.

Your free hand reaches down between your bodies to take hold of Toji’s cock. His base is nestled among a patch of dark curls, and the more your hand works up and down his length the more of him you feel. Mentally, and maybe physically, you’re drooling at his girth. And the thick vein running on the underside of his shaft makes you eager to have him inside you already, so you pump him earnestly until he’s fully erect. You keep at it until suddenly he swats your hand away.

“Toji? What—”

Your words catch in your throat when his hand suddenly dives in between your legs. Toji’s fingers run through your folds, humming in satisfaction with how soaking wet you already are. He only gives a single teasing prod at your entrance before he plunges two thick fingers inside you.

Gasping, your hands clutch onto his biceps. You pant as his long fingers reach deeper than you ever could on your own. He sets a fast pace from the start, making you choke on your own moans as he finger fucks you without mercy. His fingers curl to find that special spot inside you that has you sinking your nails into his skin. And when his palm presses down on your clit your heart literally skips a beat. Every precise movement of his fingers has the coil tightening in your belly, has you teetering on the edge.

“I’m almost—” You let out a whimper. “I’m close.”

“Yeah, you are.” Toji pushes his nose against your cheek, tongue licking at the curve of your jaw. “Can feel how tight you’re squeezing my fingers.”

You’re almost there. Just a little bit more and then you’ll—

The tension, the heat. It’s gone. The end you were so close to capturing is suddenly ripped away. You stare at the pair of fingers that should be inside you, but instead are shiny and glistening before your eyes.

“Toji.” You whine as your bottom lip juts out into a pout. “Why’d you do that? I was—”

But your protests are silenced when Toji shushes you. He lowers his slick covered hand and you watch as he strokes himself. You swallow as he delves back through your folds for more lubricant. Your hips twitch at the contact and your pussy clenches hungrily around nothing as it waits for Toji to finish preparing himself.

“Don’t worry, omega.” Toji’s voice is barely above a whisper. A soft promise just for you. “I’ll give you what you want.”

You raise your hips as Toji lines himself up with your entrance, pressing his tip against you before slowly entering. Your breathing comes in short spurts as you try to adjust to his size. Each inch burns but it soon gives way to pleasure when he bottoms out.

You’re both panting when you’re fully seated on top of him. Toji leans back on his hands, green eyes staring up at you.

“Take it,” he says. “Take what you need.”

You lean forward, holding his face in your palms, and kiss him. When you lift your hips, you whine into his mouth and bring yourself back down. You plant your hands on his shoulders and set your pace. You pull back as you bounce on his cock, feeling the familiar tightness once again.

“That’s it. Keep going.” One of Toji’s hands comes to rest at the base of your neck, a subtle guide to your actions that barely registers in the back of your currently one track driven mind. “Doing so good, omega.”

He’s called you that several times tonight, but you can’t help clench around him when he says it now. Full of pride and encouragement. A primal instinct in you is reacting to this man, this alpha, and you like it.

Suddenly, Toji pushes forward and pulls you to his chest, one arm around your waist while his other hand takes hold of your chin and points it upward. His mouth hovers over your exposed flesh, over the sensitive gland on the side of your neck. He doesn’t need you to tell him when, you can feel the way you’re coming together.

You slam down onto him once, twice, and then you cry out as the tight coil within finally snaps at the same time Toji sinks his teeth into you. Sharp canines pierce your mating gland, sending a shiver down your spine.

Blood trickles out of the wound and Toji laps away at the trail of crimson, leaving none behind. You wrap your arms around him. You want him closer, as close as you can be.

You feel dazed, like the world has shifted on its axis. Your head drops as a fog clouds your mind, struggling to conjure up any other thought besides Toji. But all you feel is the hot aftershocks of pleasure coursing through you as the familiar scent of cypress and cinnamon surrounds you.

The world shifts again and this time you land on something soft. You blink your eyes open, realizing you’re on your back now. Toji hovers above you. His broad shoulders take over your field of vision so all you see is him. His black hair hangs in sweaty strands down the sides of his face. Those emerald green of his eyes are locked onto you. It makes your heart flutter.

“Alpha.”

Toji’s expression softens when you call to him. Plead for him. He lowers his head to nose at the mark he’s just made. You flinch, still sensitive.

“Did so good for me, omega.” His praise makes you keen. You arch your back to touch your chest to his. “Now it’s my turn.”

He’s still hard inside you, not having found his release yet. He wraps your legs around his waist and starts moving. Like earlier, he doesn’t wait to set a quick pace. His hips pound into you as he chases his own pleasure.

Whimpers escape you as he bullies your sensitive pussy. He braces his forearms on either side of your head, caging you in. Instinctively, your arms wrap around his back, keeping him trapped inside your locked limbs.

“I’m gonna…fuck,” Toji hisses in your ear. “Wanna cum inside you.”

“It’s okay.” You hold onto him tighter. “M’on birth control.”

After your admission his thrusts turn erratic. You feel the swelling at the base of his cock grow larger and larger. He’s hot and heavy inside you. All around you. He’s overwhelming but you don’t want him to stop.

“Almost there,” Toji grunts.

“Please, Alpha.”

Toji moans, both from your plea and the way you tighten yourself around his cock. Your body wants him. Can’t get enough. You’re his and now it’s time to make him yours.

One last powerful thrust sends Toji over the edge. His knot swells inside of you, sealing you both together, as his hot seed paints your walls. He sighs, heavy and satisfied as he continues to gently rock into you.

The haze of your mind is beginning to clear. Your body slowly becomes heavier even as small shocks of pleasure continue to jolt through your system. You raise a trembling hand to the back of Toji’s head. Taking a fistful of his hair, you sharply yank his head to the side and bite down hard enough to pierce the gland on his neck.

Toji grunts. His body stiffens as he hides his face in the crook of your neck. You smooth a hand down his back as you lick away any remaining blood, and his body gradually relaxes until he’s pressing his full weight on top of you.

You huff, trying to shift to get a better chance at not suffocating. But when you pull away a little too quickly, you both hiss when there’s a harsh tug at where your connected.

“Sorry,” you apologize. Your hands are quick to soothe, helping Toji adjust his body so you’re both comfortable. “How do you feel?”

Toji still has his face hidden in your neck. He doesn’t say anything. He doesn’t have to.

Although the bonding isn’t as potent as it would be during your heat it doesn’t lessen the connection you’ve created with this man. You both cling to each other as you struggle to take it all in, anxious about how this decision is already changing you.

Instincts you’ve ignored until now are already clawing their way out of the deep pits of your subconscious. The urge to soothe, to nurture, to submit is nearly overpowering. It will completely consume you if you let it.

Toji’s large hand is splayed out across your rib cage, thumb caressing the curve of your breast. His mind races while his heart beats wildly as he clings to you. His actions aren’t lining up with who he’s been up to this point. He’s never been the type to attach himself to anyone or anything. Thankfully, you feel his building resolve to chip away at the unwanted bits of his new appetite as a bonded alpha.

You sigh, relieved you made the right choice, as you card your fingers through Toji’s hair until his breathing evens out and he’s fast asleep.

But you stay wide awake well into the early morning. How could you surrender to sleep with all your life’s new possibilities waiting for you to conceive of them?

I do not have a taglist. Please follow @bungalowbear-archive and turn on notifications.

Dividers by @rookthornesartistry.

#catalog #wolves of tokyo #fushiguro toji x reader #toji fushiguro x reader #toji smut #toji x reader #toji fushiguro smut #abo #alpha!toji

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jishyucks · 10 months

Text

True Love Gave to Me Masterlist

— A Holiday Series of Short Oneshots

Ah~ the holiday season—a season of giving, of joy and laughter, of overflowing love… Why not spread this festive warmth with 12 short stories set during this time of year?

‣ featuring: hyung line of nct dream x reader, 00line of stray kids x reader, & 02z of enhypen x reader

‣ genre: all very fluffy! and holiday-themed (some are cliche but who hates cliches), specifics and warnings will be listed under each fic!

one.

‣ pairing: mark lee x reader ‣ genre: fluff, implied friends-to-lovers, classmates au

Sure, it was disheartening seeing everyone receive a holiday candy gram but you, especially when you’re the one in charge of selling them at lunch. But don't worry, yours is on the way. He’s just… running a bit late.

Received!

two.

‣ pairing: hwang hyunjin x reader ‣ genre: fluff, implied friends-to-lovers, rich-kid!au

You’ve quickly established that no one at this damn charity gala cares about the event’s purpose. They were just there to party. And you wanted nothing else but to leave; alternatively, in which Hyunjin saves you from your misery to see the city’s Christmas lights.

Received!

three.

‣ pairing: park jay x reader ‣ genre: fluff, coworkers-to-something more?, subtly hurt/comfort

Your ability to empathize was a blessing and curse. When you see your boss sitting alone in his office on Christmas Day, you can’t help but invite him to your family party. And when he actually says yes, you’re kind of stuck regretting the offer simply because you’re not sure how this is going to turn out.

Received!

four.

‣ pairing: huang renjun x reader ‣ genre: fluff, academic rivals to (implied) lovers, forced proximity

You don’t hate many things, but you could proudly say that you hate snow and Huang Renjun. And now that the universe has decided that it was a great idea to have you snowed in with the smartass himself, you’ll gladly add the universe to that list.

Received!

five.

‣ pairing: han jisung x reader ‣ genre: fluff, implied f2l/coworkers-to-lovers

In all honesty, you had no idea why you decided to take up the job of gift wrapping at your local mall. There are moms constantly yelling at you, your fingers are covered in papercuts, and the hours are long. Luckily, your coworker, Jisung, is there to make it more bearable.

Received!

six.

‣ pairing: jake sim x reader ‣ genre: fluff, meet-cute, implied strangers to something more

After months of being apart from your family, you finally get to fly back home for the holidays. On the flight there, you’re placed next to a cute stranger who has taken it upon himself to talk to you. What happens when the roads from the airport are closed overnight and you’re stuck with said stranger? You’re just hoping he doesn’t have any plans of kidnapping you.

Received!

seven.

‣ pairing: lee jeno x reader ‣ genre: fluff, implied f2l/coworkers-to-lovers, secret admirer au, office!au

When gifts start appearing on your work desk on December 1st, you have no choice but to hunt down the man who’s been planting them. And with only 7 men on the floor, this shouldn’t be difficult… Right?

Received!

eight.

‣ pairing: felix lee x reader ‣ genre: fluff, implied f2l, hurt/comfort

Spending Christmas sick and in bed wasn’t Felix’s ideal way of spending the holiday. Being the best friend that you are, you decide to take care of him. Who would have thought that Felix was clingy when he had the flu?

Received!

nine.

‣ pairing: park sunghoon x reader ‣ genre: fluff, friends-to-lovers

After weeks of stalling, you finally let Sunghoon take you skating—and with how close you two are, you hope he mistakes the beating of your heart for the beat of the music.

Received!

ten.

‣ pairing: lee donghyuck x reader ‣ genre: fluff, established relationship

They weren’t lying when they said that the holiday season was the busiest time of year. With finals rolling around, gift shopping for your family, and keeping yourself in check, you barely have time to give your boyfriend the attention he wants. Donghyuck, however, has a way to work around this; alternatively, in which Donghyuck just wants one kiss and you think it’ll be funny not to give it to him

Received!

eleven.

‣ pairing: kim seungmin x reader ‣ genre: fluff, frenemies to lovers

After cursing the city and their poor excuse of cleaning the streets, you eventually swallow your pride and call your friends to help you free your car from the snow. And out of all the people that could have come, it really had to be Seungmin…

Received!

twelve.

‣ pairing: na jaemin x reader ‣ genre: fluff, f2l/co'workers'-to-lovers

You have two weaknesses—Gojo and men with kids… and you guess, Jaemin. That would make it three, but he falls under that second category; alternatively, in which you weren’t really planning on developing feelings for Na Jaemin but seeing him work with kids all the time at the local community centre is making it damn hard not to.

Received!

‣ an: another episode of me being ambitious cause I have so many other WIPS, so we'll see if I'll manage to do these on time (if not, Christmas lasts until Jan 6,,, soo) but don't worry I am motivated to actually complete this!—anyways, I love Christmas and the holiday season so much that I had to do this,,, and I didn’t rly do anything for when I reached 1k so why not? I'm aware it's 'true love sent to me' but this fits the theme more,,, PLEASE ENJOY AND HAPPY HOLIDAYS!!—things might change as I go!

!! if anyone is interested in joining a tag list, please let me know! just indicate if you'd like to be tagged on all of them or certain groups/members!

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urf1lterr · 2 years

Text

lovesick | pedro pascal [1]

"and on this night and in this light i think im falling, im falling for you."

next chapter: [2] series masterlist

summary: in which a 1975-obsessed film student accidentally falls in love with an older man she can't have.

pairing: actor!pedro x intern!reader

genre: acting world!au, big age-gap!, strangers to friends- maybe lovers?? au | angst, mature, awkward, love- eventually

word count: 7.4k

status: in progress

author's note: this was supposed to only be an introduction but i ended up with a chapter lol. im sorry if its lame, i wrote this half asleep and for fun. not edited btw

"So like...are we gonna keep staring at the door or do you mind if I open it and walk inside?"

Swiftly turning your neck, you glared at your friend who was patiently waiting for your reply- probably begging on the inside to go in by how badly cold it was outside on this tuesday, new york morning.

"Just go inside by yourself!" you rolled your eyes as she shook her head.

"Uh no, for one- I can't let you be out here alone, some man could just push you in a van and sell you to the black market," Jules declared. "then I would lose one birthday gift from you-"

"I will push you in the van myself if you keep talking," you groaned, her constant rambling within the hours making your nerves worsen.

Today was the day Jules, your best friend, and you began your internship on a film set. Actually, it was yesterday, but nobody really counts the short orientation and hours of reading rules and responsibilities a real productive work day, right?

If having the worst anxiety wasn't enough, you were blessed to have been given an amazing coping mechanism of meditation- in which would've been fine with if you didn't look like a complete idiot standing up with your eyes wide open breathing slowly.

But to be fair, this really was your first day on the job. You didn't know what to expect and your friend wasn't exactly a helping hand in these situations. As she was more confident and outgoing, there you were being an introverted, awkward female with amazing music taste- that is you ever felt comfortable to let people hear your music outside of your headphones.

"I don't get just why you have to pray while staring at the door as if you wanna stare into its soul, you look weird," Jules whined, placing her hand over her eyes. "We have to be at Finn's office in 10 minutes or else we're dead."

"Fine," you huff, grabbing your bag you had placed on the floor beforehand onto your shoulder. "Let's go."

Excitedly clapping her hands together, she swung the door open before dragging you down the hall of the room towards the elevators. The two of you had to meet at a studio on the other side of the city for this internship in which wouldn't be a problem if you enjoyed traffic and the crowds of people on the street- but you didn't.

Not only did you have to take the subway and a cab one hour before your schedule 8am start, you had to deal with the troubles of waking up your night owl roommate, Jules again, without slapping her silly by how strong her eyes stay shut.

After getting off the elevators and walking closer to his office, you recognized a couple of the other interns standing around his door looking either extremely nervous, tired- or both.

Suddenly, the door opened and Finn, the man who hired you, jumped out with a bright smile.

It's way too early to be this energetic.

"How is everyone doing on this lovely, working morning?" Finn smiled, making sure to make eye-contact with every single person in the hall before continuing on with his dialogue. "I'll take this silence as a way you all express your gratitude to be able to work on a live set."

With the ongoing silence still occurring, Finn continued with, "please follow me to the room next door, that's where we'll discuss minor details before heading towards the stages."

The minor details were simple, don't screw up.

There was also little insights on what we should be prepared for- taking care of the cast and errands as the day went on.

I suppose experience is what is needed for your future so it shouldn't be a surprise that you wouldn't be around a camera for too long. But it was mentioned that overtime you would accelerate your learning to harder tasks such as on-hands work, which you were terrified over but within time you would get over it.

You had to, this was a part of your dream job after all.

The group was informed more about the project we had to assist, some new show coming out called 'The Last of Us.' To be honest, you weren't familiar with it. Some of the guys in the group threw in their input that they played the game, but you didn't know it was also a combined franchise.

You weren't exactly a gamer or horror film person.

It hadn't even come to your mind that you would be interacting with real-life celebrities until you made near a stage and felt Jules grip your wrist hard and start tugging on it to get your attention as she tried to quiet her fan girl squeals.

Looking up, you saw a group of people walking through a set with papers in their hand, laughing and chatting with one another. Truth be told, you didn't recognize any of them. Maybe you should have done more research regarding this show you know nothing about- but you heard some successful directors had openings for extra help and immediately called your friend to join with.

"Is it bad that I don't recognize any of these people?" you whisper to Jules as she screeches in low volume, shocked that you would dare say that.

"You're joking right?!" she whispers with a high-pitched voice. "Everybody knows them! They are-"

"Is that him?" you heard a girl whisper from your group, Jules stopping her almost-started rant from it. "He really is daddy."

"What the fuck?" you heard one of the guy interns whisper in confusion, looking at her as if she was delusional as she waved her hand to him to not distract her from her view.

You weren't sure who she was talking about and you really didn't want to know. She probably had some silly crush on one of the actors which would just distract her from her job, it isn't worth it.

"Yo man, why is there a line of people looking like they are held at gunpoint?" one person laughed, pointing at your group as you tried to hold back your laughter.

You were assuming the people around you guys were majority of the cast as nobody else but the camera and makeup crew were present in the room. Surprisingly enough, even after seeing them closer you still couldn't figure out who any of these actors were.

Were you really that outdated in the films you watched?

"Way to introduce yourself, Gabriel," Finn replied, giving a pat on his back before turning back to the group. "These are the new interns because you know, you guys made the last ones quit."

"Uh no I didn't, that was all Nick!" you heard a small child gasp, pointing at an older looking man. He looked a little familiar but you couldn't wrap your head around it. "He made them pick up his food orders all the way across town everyday!"

The familiar-looking man had longer hair than most of the men around. "I would've done delivery if that was an option!" The man complained, making the girl scoff in return.

Hold on, you knew that voice. You grew up with that voice.

"Wait, I do know somebody, that's Ron Swanson" you gasped, completely forgetting how loud and clear you were in your surroundings by how fazed out you were to be a few feet away from a comedic legend.

You didn't know all eyes were on you until you felt Jules heavy weight of her shoulders hit yours as she hid her face in embarrassment from your last statement causing you to look up. Everybody tried holding back their giggles as Nick just smiled proudly.

Great, you just exposed how you didn't know them in front of them. Not mortifying at all.

"Funny and smart for knowing me, I like her already," you heard Nick proudly declare, turning to Finn with a firm nod. "You better not fire her."

Feeling your face getting hotter by the second, you wished you could just hide under a blanket and stay in there forever if it meant you never had to embarrass yourself like that again. This probably looked so disreputable on your part.

"And what might this oblivious, tomato be named?" you heard a man curiously question, getting your attention by his big framed glasses on his face.

Did he just call you a fruit?

"Be nice, you're intimidating them. It's like a new fish in a big pond," an older woman responded after, trying to bring some extra comfort into the room but it was too late- you were traumatized.

"Okay, okay," the man held up his hand in defense before turning to look at you straight in the eye. "What might this unaware, cherry tomato be named? That sounds cuter."

"Uh, y/n," you awkwardly stated, holding your hands together while terribly trying to defend yourself. "And it's totally not like I didn't recognize the rest of you!" you lie, pointing at a random person next to him before speaking up again, "you're in that one brilliant movie that was so good!"

The man sheepishly smiled at you before saying, "I am just one of the cameramen, but thank you. I do get told quite a bit that I look like Brad Pitt." And that was the moment you wanted to die inside.

That's it, you're never coming back here again. You've made a fool out of yourself.

"Stop talking," you heard your friend hiss before taking a step forward to help lessen the attention on you. "I am Jules. Not fashionable like the one from Euphoria, but still very friendly and fun."

The cast all waved at her from her radiating charm that could make anyone adore her. "Thank you, Jules who isn't from Euphoria, why don't everyone else introduce themselves."

After everyone had their time to shine, you were excused for a small break as rehearsal had yet to start. You weren't complaining, you would rather be out getting coffee on the other side of town if that meant you could avoid the actors and directors at all times.

Sitting on one of the break room's couches, you felt Jules jump next to you before hitting your shoulder rapidly. "I think that one girl intern hates you!"

Trying hard to remove her fast hands off you, you gave her a confused look. "Uh why? Was it because I embarrassed us?"

There couldn't be any other reason why she might dislike you, it's not like you knew her personally or had ever met her before the last few days.

"I mean Pedro did call you cute minutes after she called him 'daddy', what do you expect?" She giggled as you gave her a disgusted glance at the last term she used. Why would she call him that and feel comfortable saying it so freely? "She's in loveeee with him."

Pedro? So that was his name.

"First of all, he doesn't think I'm cute. The name 'cherry tomato' was cute rather than a hillbilly tomato," you defended, making her scrunch her face in confusion by your nonsense. "Second, there's no way a normal woman would be that upset over one small indirect comment not made in that way."

Jules rolled her eyes by how understanding you weren't being, it annoyed her even more how oblivious- like the man had said, you were being. "He called you a cherry tomato because it has an adorable ring to it for a cute person! Therefore, he finds you pretty- end of story."

"I am beginning to think you really are delusional."

"All I am saying is be careful," she whispers seriously. "She's young and I know a lot of people who obsess over him for his looks."

"Why? He's like in his 40s-"

"Daddy issues? Gray facial hair? I have no clue what people enjoy on their free time," Jules cut you off, shrugging while you snickered. Like you never heard that excuse before.

"Can we check out the set though? I'm feeling better and want to be out there to prove how unaffected I am from earlier- but I will be hiding behind your back."

"As always," she sang, following you out the door back to the main room.

Walking out, you were determined to stay focused and think before you said something silly- which was hard. Your whole life you've always been a little dumb when reading the environment, that's not gonna change within a few minutes.

Looking through the racks of costumes, tables filled with devices you had never seen before, and cameras that were bigger than yourself, one of the interns, Joon, came up to Jules and you to inform that it was time to actually 'work.'

"Damn, I kinda liked just walking around and doing nothing but stare at the lights. Now we have to get our hands dirty for minimum wage," Jules sighed as the two of you walked in front of one of the stages.

The stage was practically empty, only a few white walls installed and chairs scattered around.

After a few minutes of hearing one of the lead director's assistant discuss the plan of going over a few scenes, it came to your realization that this was only a rehearsal.

It made sense, this building wasn't necessarily a 'survival mode" vibe. Maybe a few indoor scenes would do the job, but it wouldn't be enough for the series.

"I want you to run along with Kendall to grab some snacks, go around the room and see what we're missing and restock!" Finn brightly smiled to Jules before turning to you. "Now, what should I do with you?"

Man, you wished you could replace Kendall right now because now you were alone

"She can help me with the makeup," a lady spoke up from a few feet away. She was a very tall, black-haired woman with a few facial piercings who looked like she was in her middle 20s. "We still need to practice to see how it'll look on the screen this week"

Finn looked at you and back at her before shrugging and nodding. "Works for me." He was already walking away before he turned back around, "but don't let her apply too much, I don't want them looking caked up in front of the camera." Lightly scoffing, you made your way to the girl as he walked away.

Standing there in discomfort, you waited for her to lead you in any type of direction to make this task go by quicker. Makeup was not your thing, or at least when it came to doing someone else's.

"I'm Violet, by the way," the girl smiled kindly at you as she handed you a black apron. "You must be y/n."

Taking the apron, you opened it to find in white writing 'TLOU Crew.' "How'd you know? Did me not knowing the cast spread that fast "

Giggling, she shook her head. "Yes and no," she grabbed one of her many make up bags and began looking through it. "Your name tag."

Looking down, you forgot they had written your name on the sticker during the short-lived meeting with Finn. Redness filled your face as you averted your eyes somewhere else, too embarrassed to make eye-contact.

"Anywho," Violet chuckled while putting one hand on her hip. "I thought maybe I could do my normal routine while you can just do the small stuff like brush their eyebrows or hair."

Squinting your eyes, you just gave her a confused look. "Brush their eyebrows? Work with their hair? Isn't the eyebrows fairly too easy for you to need the help and don't you guys have certified hairstylists?"

"Would you rather do more complicated things like taking their never-ending customized coffee orders?" She replied, making you immediately reject the idea. "I volunteered you to help me because I feel like working on harder tasks your first day would only be stressful."

How thoughtful of her.

"Plus, today's not a complicated schedule-," she added as she began lining her brushes around her small table. "-think of it as a practice run over a few lines, but for multiple scenes. We probably have like max 5 people I need to work on so no need for many artists."

There was another older lady in the other side of the table on her phone, probably another experienced makeup artist who knew the drill.

"Got it, today is a light day," you responded back, causing her to smile and hand you a hairbrush.

"See, you have the right mindset," she declared, nudging her head to the side. "And you better keep it because you have your first clients coming in."

Eyes widening, you swiftly twisted your body to see two young girls and Nick come in. Three people, that shouldn't be hard.

"You better make me look adorable," Nick pointed a finger at you as he sat down on a chair near you, causing you to let out a shy laugh as Violet motioned you to come closer.

"I'm going to prep his skin, go to Bella and Nico and ask them to do the same," she advised. "They usually do it themselves on these days to make the process faster."

Nodding you walked to the two young girls, not knowing which was who. The girls were chatting with each other before one with big curls noticed your presence before smiling brightly. "Skin routine, huh? Don't worry, we were about to begin."

Immediately, you noticed her beautiful accent that caused you to stare at her in shock.

"Looks like you frightened her," the other girl laughed, making you glance at her right after. They both had the strong accent.

"Sorry!" you blush, trying to avert your eyes away from them. "I just never heard a British accent- or at least one in person before."

The first girl giggled, waving her hand as a way to prove she didn't mind. "We get that all the time when we visit, it's okay- I never really hear your accent unless I am working on a new project."

"I don't have an accent- you have one," you declare, causing them to laugh harder.

"You seem really amazed by it, is it because you fantasize over Harry Potter or something?" the second girl jokingly questioned, making you chuckle.

"I wish, but I only watched one of his movies and never read the books," you sigh before continuing. "But one of my favorite bands are British so I just get a little loss for words whenever I hear one. It's such a beautiful tone- not to be weird or anything!"

"I agree, New Yorker's just sound so...angry," the first girl shivered. "Which band are you into? Maybe we know them"

"The 1975-"

"Aww, did you do your research on me to make up for earlier," you heard a voice boost through the area. Turning around, you noticed it was the man who called you a tomato, Pedro.

He gave you a cheeky smirk with a look in his eyes as if he knew torturing you will never get old- unless of course you started crying.

"No, you idiot-," the second girl rolled her eyes as he sent her a playful glare for the insult. "-she's talking about the band."

"Wait, you were born in 1975?" you lightly asked, your mind all scrambled in your heard trying to figure out how old he would be now. "that m-

"Yes, I am old!" Pedro fake cried, holding his heart with his hand. "You don't need to remind me that these wrinkles will never go away."

"Well if you had a prepped your skin throughout the years your skin would have been as smooth as a baby's butt like mine," you heard Nick comment from his chair, eyes closed as Violet just laughed in agreement while applying sunscreen on his face.

Pedro just rolled his eyes as the first girl began talking again. "By the way, I love the 1975! Never seen them live though, but they are definitely on my playlists."

You smiled, already feeling comfortable within the environment. Maybe being alone wasn't going to be that terrible.

"I heard he makes out with fans during his concerts," the second girl scrunched her nose in disgust. "Isn't he worried he would end up catching something."

"He probably gets check ups all the time, Bella," the first girl commented, or you suppose Nico since you now know which one was Bella.

"I would catch any disease if it meant I got to kiss Matty Healy for five seconds," you replied, causing the girls to stare at you in astonishment that you just said that so freely.

Maybe talking about your favorite band is slowly making you more confident?

You heard Violet let out a loud laugh as Nick disagreed, saying something about how young girls are too adventurous nowadays but it was true. Matt Healy was a very attractive man whose kiss could probably heal heartaches.

"Isn't he like in his 30s? Aren't you a little too young to be kissing an older man like him?" Violet questioned, making you shrug.

"Maybe I have a thing for older men."

"Wouldn't call a guy who constantly makes out with fans a man," Pedro snorted. "That's a boy."

Nick hummed in agreement as you suppressed a laugh. "How old are you anyway?"

Standing up straight you stared at him and he did the same back. "Guess."

"That never ends up good," Violet chuckled before examining you up and down. "But 18."

Shaking your head, you were young but not that young. At least your skin still made you look like a teenager, god bless.

"25," Bella answered in which you denied that as well.

"29" Nico tried but was wrong.

Nick sat up from his seat to really figure out your age before easily answering "32" and becoming shocked when you denied it. "Woah, are we at least going in the right direction?"

"Violet was headed there."

Pedro sat up in shock at your response. "You're a teenager?!"

"Would it be so wrong if I was?" you questioned. "I would love to live longer."

"She's 21," the other makeup artist who was long forgotten during this conversation casually spoke up, eyes lifting from her phone. The rest of us just stared at her as she did the same back, confused. "What? She fantasizes over an older man but is doing an internship- sounds like what every 21 year-old does."

Gasping, you held a hand over your mouth as everyone laughed at how accurate she was. She was indeed right, but you wouldn't necessarily call your crush on Matty Healy a fantasy- just a strong imagination of being his lifelong lover that would probably never happen because he doesn't know you exist.

"She's right, huh" Nico spoke up as she noticed you didn't fight back.

"Sadly."

After that whole fiasco trying to find out your real age, Violet began working on Pedro after she finished with Nick. Nico and Bella were almost done with their makeup with the other artist when Violet called you over.

Walking towards the chair, you noticed that she had already finished his base with an extremely natural look, not wanting to add too much or it wouldn't look realistic.

"Can you brush his brows and apply some powder on places that need it? I need to finish Bella off with a few final touches," Violet asked, in which you nodded as she pointed to the products needed to do so. "Don't worry if you mess up, it doesn't need to be perfect."

That didn't make you feel any better.

Standing awkwardly as she walks off, you searched around her overload of makeup table to grab the items she just pointed at.

You decided to do his eyebrows first which would be extremely weird because you've never done this before- or at least to a man.

Surprisingly, Pedro hadn't teased you at all since you arrived by his side to help. He actually just laid there silent and watched Violet direct you through her moves before she left.

Maybe he was cutting you a break for once.

You were proven wrong when you leaned forward and aimed your hand towards his face before he quickly tried biting your hand, causing you to squeal and drop the brush on his face, jumping back.

"Very unprofessional," he declared, picking up the brush that had fallen down from his face to his neck up before looking up at you. "Do you hit all of your clients?'

"You did that on purpose!" you glared, smacking his arm as he sent you a playful wink.

"And what are you gonna do about it? Tell on me?" he teased until you grabbed the brush from his hands and swiped it across his brows hard, causing him to hiss in pain. "God damn, woman!"

Laughing as he gripped his forehead area, he gave you a dirty look as you begin the process of patting his face, even hitting his face a little harder than usual in some spots to make sure you got your revenge.

Once done, you examined his face to make sure you were pleased with the results- in which you were.

"All done?' Violet asked, walking up beside you, checking out your work. "Nicely done, but why does he look grumpy?" she added, as he huffed. "and why is he holding his face?"

"Who knows?" you shrug as Pedro scoffs, watching you walk away as Violet calls out afterwards that you were free to go.

As you were walking back to find where the rest of the interns were, you turned your head to find Pedro's eyes still on yours. You gave him an evil smirk as he pointed his finger at you before swiping his thumb across his neck.

You giggled, about to respond back but you were interrupted when a hand tapped your shoulder. Turning around, you find that it was two of the interns, Joon and the girl who was supposedly in love with Pedro, her name tag claiming she was Kendall.

Was this the girl that Jules went did her errands with? Most likely.

"Are you done with the makeup? We need help arranging the equipment for what's gonna be used today," Joon softly smiled as Kendall just stared at you with no emotion.

Nodding, you followed after them as they walked towards the other side of the set. Soon, you had forgotten about the actor and your little battle as endless wires and heavy weights distracted you.

It wasn't till you physically couldn't bare holding the strong stands that the three of you were told you could take a lunch break. Pulling out your phone, you hadn't realized half the day had went by with all the work you were too engaged in.

"You wanna grab lunch with us? We were thinking about going to this small cafe down the street, the reviews look great," Joon asked as Kendall just sent you a small nod in agreement.

The three of you got along pretty well during the hours you spent together. You feel closer to Joon as he did talk the most, but Kendall did try to start little talks so it wouldn't be weird.

I mean we all kind had to get along in order for this job to work.

"I would but I should look for my friend-"

"I think she had her lunch already, I saw her walking by earlier eating a burrito," Kendall replied. Of course she ate already.

Going over the idea in your head a few times, you nodded. You were starving and you suppose its better to not be a loner right now. "Why not?"

As the three of you walked through the set, you didn't miss some of the glances you guys received as your footsteps were pretty loud. It looked like they were wrapping up on one of the scenes as the director was in deep focus on whatever he was lecturing to them on.

"I hope you guys like walking because I took a cab here," Joon chuckled, causing you to laugh.

"Don't worry, I did the same."

Putting on your big coat, you waited until Kendall was done tying the scarf around her neck before walking towards the exit. Close to the door, you halted when you heard someone call your name.

"Y/n!" you saw Bella jogging towards you making Joon and Kendall freeze their movements.

Shifting slowly, you gave her a curious look. "Yes?"

"We wanted to know if you wanted to have lunch with us?" she smiled before looking behind you to find the two others. "You guys can come too!"

Swinging your arms in front of you, you reject her offer as fast as she asked you. "Oh no, no- I'm all good," you decline, not wanting to feel like a bother. "You guys enjoy your own thing-"

"C'mon, how else are we gonna tease Pedro if you aren't there to get him riled up first?" she chuckled as you felt your face on fire.

"Maybe next time?" you kindly suggest, watching as she pouts but nods.

Lifting her right hand up, she sways it around. "Alright, but don't be surprised if Pedro haunts you because of this."

"Why would he?" you heard Kendall quickly question, making Bella tilt her head at her fast counter.

"Because he's the one who asked me to invite her-." Bella casually states before turning to you. "-which you declined so I hope he teases you all week for leaving Nico and I hanging."

Ignoring the first part of her last statement, you playfully nudge her before waving your goodbyes as she skips back to the rest of the cast. Beginning your walk to the cafe, the three of you had little talk about where you grew up, which schools you attended, and why you wanted to work for the film industry.

If it weren't for the freezing temperatures you would say you really enjoyed the walk, too bad you couldn't.

It wasn't until you were seated that Kendall decided to speak her mind on what she was really curious about:

You.

"So, I wonder why Pedro specifically asked you to join him for lunch and not the rest of us?" she randomly revealed as you were taking a sip of your coffee, almost choking on it once you heard her clearly. "Do I sense favoritism?"

Joon stifled a laugh, shaking his head at her last comment. "Doubt it, but I did wonder the same thing until I realized she did help with their makeup. That's intimate enough to make her at some level close to them."

You don't really know Kendall but she's been decent enough to be around until the cast comes to mind. Maybe she wants to be close to them? You're not sure, maybe Jules was right about her all along- who knows.

What you did know though was she was very quick to question and jump to conclusions.

"What did you even talk to them about?" Kendall eyed you, making you tense up a bit. She is very intimidating when she's curious.

"Nothing much-,' you shrug, messing with the napkin in front of you. "Mainly about the 1975 since the girls are British."

"You like the 1975?" Joon asked and you nodded. "I love them!"

Ears perking up after hearing this, you smiled hard. This new information just made Joon 10x better.

"I don't know who they are," Kendall intervened, trying to find some voice in the topic.

The rest of the hour was filled with Joon and you playing the 1975's albums to Kendall as she tried her best to hide her annoyance by shoving her food in her face.

She was definitely not a fan of talent.

Going back to work was a bit easier than before after finding comfort with a lot of the people around you. The three of you were still stuck doing the same job as you heard some of the other interns were either picking up props needed for a scene or being a personal assistant to Finn.

In fact, you hadn't seen many people as rehearsal was moved to another building on the lot. Another hour or two went by before Finn went up to Joon and you to cut you for the day.

"At least we don't have to stay late," Joon beamed, taking off the gloves he was wearing before folding them back into his little backpack. "I heard he's making some people stay till 6 for some heavy-lifting duties- thank god I wasn't chosen."

"Why? Because you aren't strong enough?" you laughed as he let out a small gasp in offense.

"To think we were becoming best friends," he pouted. "But I had a back injury over a year ago so they can't really make me lift anything more than 30 pounds."

Feeling bad for teasing him, you immediately tried taking back your horrible joke. "I didn't mean t-"

"It's cool, no need to beg for forgiveness," he smiled. "Just a little something I don't tell many people, it isn't a big deal majority of the time."

Throwing a weak- but sincere smile, you nod along. Sure it wasn't a big deal right now, but later it could get worse. You didn't want him to know you felt bad but you assumed he knew by the pity upon your face.

Waving your goodbyes, you texted Jules to figure out where she was. It was a strange feeling not seeing each other all day despite working in the same building, but you did live together so it wasn't like you were missing much.

Finding her fake laughing at some guy's joke, her eyes met yours once you appeared by the door of the break room. Immediately, she patted the young boy who didn't look a day over 18 on the back before skipping happily towards you.

"I take it you had a fun day?"

"The best," she grinned, flipping a piece of hair behind her back. "I finally know what an affogato is- it really isn't that amazing as it sounds though. Just a shot of espresso poured on top of a drink."

Laughing, both of you continued down the hall in hopes of quickly finding a cab to take you to the subway. With the timing of your release, you were sure there was going to be so much traffic out these doors that you weren't ready to deal with.

Swinging the exit door open, you didn't expect to find Joon waiting outside with his hands in his pockets, looking down the street praying for an available cab to drive by.

"That hard to catch a ride, huh" Jules sighed, pulling out her phone as Joon slumped, bummed out. "Uber it is."

Seconds later you felt the doors behind you open again but didn't bother to turn, Joon and you too focused on peeking at Jules' phone as she complained about why an app that was supposed to be used when in need always took forever to arrive.

Two people walked a few feet to the side of you three and that's when you could see from the corner of your eye their figures stopping. Moving your head, you caught a view of a man scanning his phone and another glancing at you. It was Pedro.

"And what are you doing out here in the cold, you look like a chihuahua shivering to death," he chuckled, taking steps towards you.

"Is that a compliment?" you questioned, tilting your head as he gave you a smug look, making you guess for yourself.

"Pretty sure he's means you look like a rodent," Jules dryly commented, swiping through her phone before groaning loudly. "Goddammit! The nearest driver is 25 minutes away, I don't want to be waiting that long for a ride that's probably gonna be my whole day's pay."

Realizing the situation you and your friends were in, Pedro lifts a hand trying to get attention. "You guys need a ride? I drove here and-"

"No thank-," you intervene.

"-yes, please," Jules cuts you off, sending you a small glare as you gave one back.

You were not going to ask someone you met just this morning for a ride home. It's too much.

Pedro laughed at the sight of you two yelling at each other through your minds. Telepathy really works when it comes to your friends. Joon just stood there, not really caring what decision we came to terms with. He figured since Jules and you stayed with him long enough he could join along with whatever you two did, so it was up to you guys to make the final move.

"Okay, don't kill each other," Pedro joked, making you move your eyes away from Jules back to him. "How about I drive you three home and you can help me with my makeup this week- so you won't feel like you're taking too much from me."

Squinting, you made a face. "But I already have to do that- it's part of my job."

"She agreed! Let's go," Pedro exclaimed, waving his right arm to you guys to follow him, ignoring you as you tried to debate as to why doing your job wasn't helpful enough.

As Jules kept trying to shut your mouth by placing her palms on it during the walk inside the parking garage, Joon kept looking back confused. "Wait, what about the man? Was he leaving with you?"

Taking a quick glance towards the direction Joon was looking at, Pedro shrugged before pulling out his car keys. "His wife is picking him up."

Joon slowly nodded, not completely convinced that was the case but he'd let it go this time.

Hearing a car beep, you saw a very nice black car's light flash quickly. Walking up closer, Pedro went to the passenger side and opened it while staring at you. "Get in, loser."

Awkwardly standing there, you shook your head and look towards the backseat. "Uh, no- I'm fine with sitting in the back. Maybe Joon can have it since he is the tallest one here."

Joon shook his head. "I'm happy with sitting in the back, ladies first."

Pedro agreed with his last comment, lifting his head to get in the car as you continued to reject his kindness. He already offered you a ride home, you weren't able to take the front seat.

You both continued to fight about the seat before Jules flapped her arms and jumped inside instead. "We are not going to argue for hours over a seat, I'll take it."

Lowering your shoulders, you smiled as Pedro sent you a displeased look. Heading towards the door, Joon opened the door for you, kindly sending you a warm smile. You returned one back and moved to the seat behind the drivers.

Joon followed after you and sat behind Jules as you could see Pedro speed walk around the car, quickly jumping in. He turned towards the back, glancing at the two of you. "Where to?"

"Jules," you called out. She pulled out her phone and showed it to him before saying, "this is it."

"City girls," he blurted out. "The rats on the streets must be a sight to see."

"Let me see?" Joon asked before her phone was shoved to his face. "Hey, I live three streets away from here. Nice."

"We're basically neighbors," you nudged him, making him do the same as Pedro and Jules just stared at the both of you.

"Anyway," Pedro let out a small laugh, "let's go before I change my mind."

Putting the car in reverse, drive, and zooming off, we were on our way. The ride was filled with Jules playing with the radio, Pedro nicely trying to get her fingers off his screen, and Joon calling out the different trees he'd seen out the window the entire time.

At one point Joon even handed you his phone and asked for your number in case either of you needed help with the internship or the cheesy joke of one of you needing sugar in the middle of night.

Once he was dropped off, it took less than ten minutes to arrive to your apartment building.

"You can just pull in right there," Jules declared, pointing at an open spot in front of our lobby doors.

Taking a quit scan, you objected. "No, that's for emergencies only. Just go around the block, we can walk."

Jules protested, pleading Pedro to not give in to your nonsense. "This is an emergency- I want to go home already!"

"It's a red line; therefore, no parking."

Pedro laughed as you raised your voice, determined to not let him get away with this. You were not about to pay for a ticket just because she couldn't walk a few feet...and then a few more to get home.

"Is she always this stubborn?" Pedro jested, earning a hard raise of the eyebrows from Jules.

"You should see her when we study. If you aren't there on time you're kicked out of the discord." Smacking her arm, she huffs and smacks you back.

"I need to be apart of this discord," Pedro stated, making you roll your eyes.

"It's for students only, grandpa," you replied, causing him to gasp.

"That's not how you should treat someone who gave you a ride across town, intern," he retorted and pulled up along the red crub, making Jules laugh as you sent him a dirty look.

So he's pulling that card.

Jules opened her side of the door, stepping out before grabbing her bag and leaning down against the window. "Welp, I am going inside before he personally fires me for befriending you. See you inside and thanks Mr. man who can still get me fired even though he's not my boss!"

Next thing you knew, she was opening the entrance doors and sliding right inside them. It was time for you to go as well.

You could see him grab his phone, unlocking it, and then placing it right in front of your face. "Give me your number."

Scoffing, you pushed his hand away. "Not even going to ask?"

"We both know you're too difficult to easily agree to a question like that," he countered, pushing it back towards you, not leaving until you accepted it.

Was it unprofessional to be giving the main lead of a new television series your personal number? Maybe a lot of people do it, you mean there are plenty of workers who end up friends with cast members all the time on sets.

You're sure these workers have given their numbers away on multiple occasions.

Handing him back his phone, he grinned. "Great, now I can directly reach you whenever I need coffee."

"Only during work hours," you replied, shaking your pointer finger at him. "I don't get paid overtime unless I am on the clock."

He chuckled, twisting his body to get a better view of you. "Yeah, yeah. We'll see about that."

With that, he jumped out of the car and opened your car door, allowing you to step outside and be met with the freezing temperatures once again.

How much you hate the cold when its windy.

"See you tomorrow, kid," he scanned over, waiting for you to comeback with some snarky remark for his pet name.

Stepping away from his car and meeting the sidewalk, you turned around towards him to find him leaning against his door now, watching you to make sure you make it inside safely.

"Same with you- thanks for the ride, grandpa," you smirked, making him suppress a laugh as you turned your back to him again, making your way to the entrance doors.

Two feet away, you stopped when you heard him chant out your name. Seeing him inside his car with his passenger window rolled down, he tried his hardest to move his head against it to see you. "By the way," he started, "you don't look like a rodent."

Feeling flustered by the random yet sweet compliment, you tried hiding your big smile by waving him off, trying to hide your face with your hands and sped walked inside.

You hoped he didn't see the tint on your cheeks.

Unfortunately, your hopes never come true.

#pedro pascal #pedro pascal x reader #pedro pascal imagine #pedro pascal x ofc #tlou fanfiction #joel tlou #pedro pascal fanfiction #pedro pascal angst #pedro pascal fluff #pedro pascal x y/n #joel miller #joel miller x reader

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falconearring · 11 months

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Hello Falcon, first off LOVE you're AU and designs, their so unique. I was just curious and I don't think anyone's ever asked this but.. What did everyone do before the Apocalypse? Aside from Scar which you already answered. :)

Hi hi! So happy to hear you're enjoying! I think here and there I've mentioned bits and pieces of some character's pre-apocalypse lives, but never all at once. Here's a comprehensive list of everybody's prior occupations, with some supplementary info for the characters that I've thought about the most.

Etho worked on an industrial farm. He was mainly tasked with planting and harvesting vegetables, and other miscellaneous labor tasks. When he wasn't working, he spent much of his time with Cleo and Bdubs. He's notorious for leaving his flip phone on the kitchen counter in his apartment when he goes out for the day, so it can be a bit difficult to get a hold of him. In general, he's pretty content with his life, and enjoys the routine his job offers.

Joel sort of just goes through the motions. He works a number of minimum wage jobs during his adult years, and doesn't really do much else. It isn't until the apocalypse, when he starts to meet new people and he realizes being lonely sucked. If you ask him, though, he's never felt lonely in his entire life-that would just be silly.

Grian spends his late childhood learning how to cook in a local restaurant. The owner and staff look after him best they can, but despite their hospitality, he resolves one day to grab as much cash as possible and head to a seaside town to start his early adult life. There he finds a small funeral home, and lands an apprenticeship only because they could really use the help and the owner themselves isn’t particularly concerned if they have to cut corners. It isn’t long before his inexperience starts to cause problems, and he takes off yet again when it comes to light the name he had been going by was stolen from an obituary a few cities over. He continues as he was, from place to place and name to name. It’s become somewhat routine for him to cheat every person he comes into contact with, in some way shape or form.

Scar, as we discussed in this post, has an extensive criminal history. Him and Grian somewhat deserve each other in that regard.

Cleo does a lot of crafting in their free time. I don't think I ever decided what she does for work, but on the side she does jewelry making, pottery, crotchet and a bit of sewing. She often sells some of what she makes, or gifts it to friends.

Bdubs does a trades program and is just starting out doing construction work. He takes up drawing as a hobby, mainly life drawing. His two best friends are his whole entire world, baby! He somewhat struggles with his independence, and usually wants to spend his time with Etho and Cleo.

Martyn is a hypnotherapist who specializes in past and future life progressions/regressions. He also claims to be a surgeon, but it's unclear what kind or when exactly he got a PhD.

Bigb was a racecar driver. Later in his career, he switched from cars to offroad motorcycle racing. He fell in love with modifying bikes and became a really knowledgeable mechanic.

Tango was a paramedic. Not much time for anything, but when he can he usually would meet up with some of his buddies to play board games.

Ren worked at the saw mill where Etho's friends are set up. At the time, he was living in a cabin in the woods not far from his work. He was somewhat of a hermit, and he has all sorts of woodsy knowledge and equipment at the ready.

Impulse has a bachelors of engineering and worked as an electrician for a few years. Loved his job, loved having to take out all his piercings most days a lot less. He's always been very close with his brother, Skizz, and they meet up often.

Skizz worked a 9-5 office job, and genuinely could not be any happier about it. He's the type of person to make extra time to exercise, or wake up early just to have some quiet time.

Pearl was an art student on exchange from Australia. She has a passion for installation pieces and painting. Some of her work is a bit strange.

Mumbo was a programmer. What did he program? I don't know. I'm sorry Mumbo fans. If it's any consolation he is so disoriented and so scared and so stressed.

Jimmy lived on a small farm with his family. It was all he knew growing up, and it was all he really knew going into adulthood.

Lizzie had a part time job at an aquarium in her town. She gave tours and sometimes did workshops with the kids where she did aquatic themed arts and crafts.

Scott.... I have a hard time imagining what he was up to before everything happened. Who can say for sure what he did in his spare time? (<- the guy who is writing the AU and can't think of an answer)

Hopefully this is helpful! Sorry some of it is more sparse than other parts. Take care, thank you for reading ^_^

#asks #falconearringzombieau

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blueiscoool · 30 days

Text

Very Rare Emperor Constantine Silver Ingots Saved From Illegal Sale

A man allegedly tried to illegally sell three rare Roman-era silver ingots that his great-grandmother reportedly found in her garden years ago.

Three "truly sensational" Roman-era silver ingots depicting Constantine the Great were nearly sold illegally on the internet, a new investigation finds.

An unnamed man alleged that his great-grandmother found the rare artifacts buried in the family's backyard in Transcarpathia (also known as Zakarpattia), a region in western Ukraine. Later, the man reportedly tried to sell one of the silver bars online, according to Public Uzhgorod, Ukraine's public broadcast station.

However, officials from the museum intervened by reporting the attempted illegal sale to local law enforcement. When officers searched the home, they discovered two additional ingots. Because the ingots have "special cultural value," Ukraine's Office of the Prosecutor General has taken over the case, according to a translated statement from the National Museum of the History of Ukraine in Kyiv.

Each of the metal blocks, which are almost entirely pure silver, weighs more than 12 ounces (342 grams) and contains a coin-shaped impression of Emperor Constantine the Great on each side, according to the statement. Constantine, who ruled from A.D. 306 to 337, is known for ushering Christianity into the Roman Empire and moving his capital to "New Rome," which later became Constantinople (modern-day Istanbul).

The ingots would have been used during the minting process to strike coins known as siliquae. The coins with Constantine's likeness would have been issued between A.D. 310 and 313 in Augusta Treverorum, a Roman city that today is Trier, Germany. At one time, the pieces would have been batched together with a thin, silver ribbon, which has since been lost, according to the statement.

"Three ingots fastened together were supposed to be a gift for a very high-ranking person," Maksym Levada, a curator at the museum, said in the statement. "The fact that they were found outside the Roman Empire on the territory of modern Ukraine makes them an invaluable source of our past."

Experts estimate the treasure's value at 3.5 million Ukrainian hryvnia, or about $84,800.

"But what makes them unique is not the cost, but the fact that only a few similar ingots have been found in Europe to date," Andriy Kostin, Ukraine's prosecutor general, said in the statement.

There are about 90 known Roman silver ingots in existence today, with only 11 containing mint stamp impressions, making the three ingots' recovery even rarer, according to the statement.

Kyrylo Myzgin, an archaeologist and faculty member at the University of Warsaw who initially examined the ingots, said in an email that the finding "can be considered truly sensational."

"It is excellent news that they ended up in a museum rather than on the black market for antiquities," Myzgin said. "Roman silver ingots with coin die imprints are incredibl\y rare and were virtually unknown outside the Roman Empire. It is likely that these ingots reached the territory of what is now western Ukraine as a result of interactions between the local population — possibly Germanic tribes or Dacians [people in what is now largely modern-day Romania] — and the Roman Empire in the early 4th century. However, the exact nature of these interactions has yet to be determined."

The ingots are now on display in the museum's "Salvated Treasures" exhibition, which contains a collection of rescued artifacts.

By Jennifer Nalewicki.

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iblameashley · 1 year

Text

Market Mingle and *Tea*lights.

Civilian | Male | Gay

2,593 words

Content: None really. Pure fluff.

Follow up to The Gift of Giving.

Simon 'Ghost' Riley | Male/GN Reader

!!!SFW!!!

You happen to run into Simon at the local market and take the opportunity to spend some time with him shopping. Who can resist a little mingling and maybe a spot of tea after?

(Tea-lights is a stupid play on Delights...)

(Special shout-out to @mysticalzombiecheesecake who asked to be tagged.)

(Thanks to @loneghostwolf for permission to use this image)

What better way to spend your day than outside and at the local market? It was a little later in the day than you expected, but sleeping in is also nice. You were lucky to have a remote job and generally didn't have to deal with office life. This afforded you a lot of leeway when it came to work-life balance, but nothing was better than actual time off to get out and do things for yourself.

The market itself was a great place. Vendors were always swapping out and there were a variety of trinkets, tools, clothing, food and more up for barter. The fact that it also bordered a nearby park helped for escaping the crowded stalls at a moments notice. You hiked your bags up on your shoulder.

What you didn't expect to find at the market was Simon. But there he was, three vendors down in his usual mask, a dark hoodie and jeans, and standing taller than most everyone else around him. He seemed fixated on something you couldn't make out from your position.

Wanting to be sure it was him, and you weren't suffering some visual hallucination, you pull out your phone and send a message

You: Hey Simon! How goes today? What are you up to?

You see him reach in his pocket and pull out his phone.

Simon: It goes. I'm out right now. Simon: Are you looking to meet up again?

You smile as you read his message. Putting your phone back in your pocket, you slowly make your way over to him. You step lightly and walk slowly, hiding behind people as you closed the distance. You were sure you were going to get the drop on him, when he turned around suddenly to face you; his fist pulled back to his side.

His eyes softened as he realized it was just you and he relaxed his fist.

“Hey.” He says in his flat, gravelly voice. “Shouldn't try and sneak up on me, could get hurt.”

“Nah,” You say, waving away his warning. “You'd never hurt me.” You smile.

He looks at you with a furrowed brow.

“Mind if I join you?” You ask. “No pressure.” You add, raising your hands up.

He nods.

“Sure. Just planned to wander, so might be here a while.” He says, returning his attention to the item that had caught his attention.

You crane your head and move around to get a better view of it. Its a multi-tool. It looks old and is rusted, likely not useful for actual use, but if he's focused on it, it means something to him. You take in his interrogation of the tool as he looks it over several times.

“Gonna buy it?” You ask softly.

“Dunno.” He shrugs.

'Always giving away so little.' You think before taking position up beside him. He gives you a side eye, but stays silent.

After a few more minutes of looking over the tool and other wares, he turns and starts to walk away. You pivot on the spot and start walking with him, keeping pace to his longer stride.

Simon briefly stops at a stall selling blankets and gives them a look over, running his hands over the soft fabric and examining the colourful patterns. He looks at you again and simply says, “Not as good as my throw.”

Your heart skips a beat and your soul astral projects around the city before crashing back into your body. Your breath hitches in your throat as you take in the fact that, in his own way, he just gave you a compliment. He liked your throw, and now compared it to every other one he came across. You had no way of hiding your pleased embarrassment as the red spread across your face, but you managed to get out a low, “I'm glad you like my gift.”

“Mmm." He replies without looking at you.

He moves on to the next stall, this one selling a variety of books that must be well out of print. You can smell the earthy, musky aroma of the old pages as you both step up to the stand. Your eyes dart over the selection of old material; the vendor offering a bit of everything from manuals to romance novels to kitschy sci-fi books.

It was only by happenstance that you looked up to see the glimmer in Simon's eye as he also took in the fascinating sight of the selection before him. He reached down and picked up a particularly damaged booklet. The words on the cover were worn mostly off from age, and the spine had clearly seen better days. But you were able to make out a faint image of a series of guns and what looked like the picture of a World War II uniform. You smile warmly, it's very in line with what he seemed interested in.

“You should get it.” You say as you finger the pile of sci-fi books. You grab a few and begin reading the back.

“You think?” Simon asks genuinely.

“Yeah.” You give him an enthusiastic nod. “Would go well with the collection you already have.”

“Hmm.” He ponders the possibility of the purchase.

You can't help but chuckle at some of the synopsis of the books you have and stack them in your arms. You are definitely getting these.

Simon still seems unsure of the booklet, so you reach over and take it gently from his hands and add it to your stack. “We'll take these.” You say as you turn to the elderly woman tending the stand.

She flashes you a crooked smile and quickly tallies the books total.

“That'll be five pound twenty-five.” She says with a hoarse voice. “Need a bag, love?” She inquires as you rummage through your wallet.

“No, thank you.” You smile, handing her the exact change.

You turn back to Simon who simply stares at you as you hand the booklet back to him. “That was unnecessary.” He grunts, though still taking the booklet from your hand.

“You're welcome.” You say, ignoring his comment. You shove the books into one of the bags tucked under your arm, and see that Simon is already heading off to the next table. Though his eyes are still very much on the booklet.

Simon stops in front of a stand selling cured meats and starts placing an order, clearly having been here before. You watch as his mood shifts; he's not quite pleasant, but he's much nicer to the man currently filling several wrappers with a variety of goods.

You stand there quietly as he the friendly man hands over the meats in a bag and Simon pays. You're interest is piqued by his selections, offering a small look into the man who keeps himself well guarded.

“Having a party?” You ask with a hint of cheekiness as he notices you staring.

“Maybe.” He grunts.

“Am I invited?” You say, pressing him.

“No.” He huffs, once again making off for his next destination.

*** + *** ++ *** + *** ++ *** + *** ++ *** + *** ++ *** + *** ++ *** + ***

After a few more stops, he makes his way to a shop that takes you by surprise; soaps and shampoos. You had to admit that he did always smell great, but he didn't seem the type to buy such things in front of people – friends – so carefree.

His eyes tactically scanned the offerings as if looking for something specific. You couldn't resist taking a look as well, picking up a bar of soap labelled 'Nomad.'

“Earthy and adventurous with a smoky note and hint of pine.” You say, reading the label. “Huh...” You take a sniff. “Smells nice!” You smile.

You set it back down and pick up another one; 'Midnight Forest.'

“Deep moss scent with cedarwood, and a touch of herbs.” Again you sniff it. You purse your lips, unconvinced.

Simon's attention is split between his search and your inquisitive exploration of the soap.

“Going to buy one?” He asks.

You shrug, picking up another one.

“Stealth.” You say.

Simon's eyes lock on the bar of soap.

“An invigorating mix of sandalwood, black peppercorn and a citrus zest.”

You see his hand twitching at his side, quickly realizing you found the one he was looking for, but he's too damn prideful to tell you. You smile, and enjoy the moment. You play with the bar of soap, examining it closely. “What do you think, Simon? Should I get this one?”

“Get what you want.” He says with annoyance. You can see he's grinding his teeth.

You look the soap over once more before deciding to put it down, instead you grab a bar of the 'Nomad,' and pay for it. Shoving it in the bag with your books.

“I'll wait for you over there.” You say, pointing to a quiet area where the market thins out.

You walk away before he can respond. As fun as it was to tease him, you decided to give him a little privacy to make his purchase. You understand its just soap to you, but to him its one more glimpse into his private life.

You look at your bag and books and chuckle at the realization you didn't get much of anything, despite the list you had in your head when you arrived. 'Oh well.' you think, you can always come back.

You see Simon make his way towards you with his usual steady, confident pace, he gives you a nod before stopping a few paces in front of you.

“Got everything I need.” He says with his gruff voice, pulling the bags up briefly to show you. “How about you?”

“No...” you admit, shaking your head, “but I can come back tomorrow, its getting late and I should be heading home.”

Simon nods, and jerks his head to the side, a silent signal that he will walk you to the other side of the market. You smile and nod back, once again walking by his side.

“It was good to see you here, Simon.” You say as you two weave through the crowd.

“Yeah.” He says. His voice is so low and soft you almost didn't hear him.

“Want to get together soon?” You inquire as you two reach your parting destination. “Its been a while.” You add.

“Yeah.” His voice still quiet and soft. “Soon.” He speaks up.

“Perfect, message me when you want me to come over. We can do a movie night or something.”

“Sounds good.” He says. He goes to walk away but stops. Simon examines the bags in his hand and then gazes back at you. He lets out a heavy breath. “You live close by, yeah?” He inquires.

You nod. “Yeah... maybe a ten minute walk?”

“Show me.” Simon commands. “Show me where you live.” His voice is low and gravelly.

“OK, wow... that was a bit threatening...” You say, jerking your head back in surprise. “Why do you want to go to my place?” You ask, furrowing your brow.

“You know where I live.” He says flatly. “You've seen my flat. I want to see yours.”

You consider his request as he stares you down. You know you both do and don't have a choice. If you told him no, he would probably respect it... but it risked bucking the relationship you two had. You take a deep breath. 'Fair is fair.' You think.

“Alright, Simon.” You agree. You motion in the direction of your flat with a wave of your hand before taking off, leaving him behind as he did to you earlier.

*** + *** ++ *** + *** ++ *** + *** ++ *** + *** ++ *** + *** ++ *** + ***

The walk to your flat was mostly uneventful. Simon spent a majority of it taking in the sights, sounds and people; likely never having been to this part of town before. Not a big surprise to you, he likely didn't venture far from his flat on the best of days.

“Not a bad place.” Simon mumbles as you both approach the small building.

It was a pretty basic building; ten units per level over four levels. Small balconies dotting across the exterior. A typical grey-black facade blended the building into the rest along the street. Small shrubs and flowers ran the perimeter of the buildings and filled the air with fragrant scents.

You usher him toward the entrance, typing in your code to enter the building. Simon follows strangely close behind you, but you try not to give it too much attention.

As you enter the flat, you gesture to the bag in his hand. “I'll put it in the fridge until you leave.”

He hands the bag over.

“Take a look around.” you say, giving him permission to roam freely.

Simon sets about your place in a tactical manner, following a path he created in his mind the moment he crossed the threshold of your doorway. He passed the kitchen with little interest and made his way to the living room, taking in the more lived-in feeling of the place. Pictures of your family are spread over the wall between paintings of forests and lakes, and children's art. Your TV stand and bookshelves are filled with reading material and figurines and trinkets. The room is overwhelming to him, the feeling of warmth and coziness curated causes his stomach to twist. He turns quickly and makes his was slowly but steadily towards the hallway.

He disappears from view and you let out a relieved sigh that you cleaned the flat. While he explores your bedroom and office, you put the kettle on and start making some tea. You grab some biscuits from the cupboard and plate them, setting them on the table.

You place two mugs on the counter as the kettle starts to whistle. The sounds seems to stir Simon's interest and he makes his way back to the kitchen. You stand there with a mug in hand, tea bag steeping.

“Thought you might stay for a cup?” You ask softly, handing him the hot mug.

He takes the mug from your hand, briefly touching your fingers.

“Have a seat.” You say, your heart jumping a bit at his touch.

You grab you own mug from the counter and take a seat across from Simon. You take a biscuit from the plate and dip it in your tea before taking a chomp out of it. You lean back in your chair and swallow the sweet treat.

“So whats the verdict?” You ask with a bit of playfulness. Its your flat, so you don't have to give a shit about rules one or two here -or any of them really - but especially those two. Your dynamic was changing and the rules were already bending, but being in your flat still gave you a bit more control. A bit more power.

“I can see several security concerns.” Simon replies flatly, moving his mask down to sip his tea. “But I suppose for a civilian, it will do.”

Was he joking?

You raise an eyebrow.

“Homey.” He adds, not looking at you.

“Well... you're welcome to visit any time.” You say.

He lets out a guttural growl.

You just look at him warmly, knowing you're assaulting him with a lot of stimulus. His mind must be working a mile a minute, so you let him think.

You take another drink of you tea. Sometimes just sitting in silence is enough.

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lost-decade · 5 months

Note

Dance AU + Criminal AU for any fic involving nico?

Thanks for asking! I enjoyed writing this a lot. Vague angsty past brocedes and a bit of Nico/Mick

There’s a painting in Nico’s office in Nice, above the desk so he doesn’t have to look at it very often; first thing in the morning and again in the evening when he leaves. A small reminder of where he began. A little needle of what might have been, and what didn’t come to pass. It keeps him honest, that memory.

It isn’t his own exact likeness, the painting, although people always assume it is and Nico lets them. A beautiful boy, eighteen, nineteen maybe, backstage at a theatre perhaps, en pointe, arms outstretched, angel wings folded on his back. In the corner of the painting there’s a mirror, the reflection of a demon’s face, flared in red, eyes glittering. It had been a gift from one of his father’s friends, the summer before he took up his place at Juilliard.

“You are the dancer,” Michael had said, grinning at him as Nico had stared, transfixed, at the image in the frame. “And who will be your demon?”

Nico had felt honoured, and unsettled, the way he always did when Michael gave him gifts. He wasn’t stupid, he knew the nature of his father’s business, of Michael’s, and wanted nothing to do with either.

Later he’d found out the painting was a long vanished Wyeth; but he’d already discovered his demon by then.

Or was Lewis the angel?

He’s stared at that painting for hours across the years and still never been able to make up his mind. Sometimes he thinks Michael only gave it to him as a punishment for turning him down, or because Keke broke their business ties, as if he thought Nico would be stupid enough to display it and get arrested or something.

He hadn’t displayed it, not for years. But it’s different now; there’s enough security staff in the building, cameras he can dial into on his phone. If Lewis or another one of his colleagues from Interpol were to somehow make it through to Nico’s office the Wyeth would already be in the vault by then, something legitimate in its place.

He checks his schedule. It’s been a quiet few months, a lull of the sort that he likes to engineer in between big scores. The buyer in Qatar he thought he’d found for the Brancusi had fallen through and now he’s stuck with a quite identifiable sizable brass cock in a warehouse in Amsterdam that he needs to figure out how to sell. He leans back in his leather Eames office chair, hands clasped as he considers his latest distraction.

It’s salt in the wound, always, returning to New York, to Juilliard. That’s partly why Nico does it. Scene of his dreams before they dissolved. No one in his life now knows why he walks with a cane, just that something happened once upon a time in New York and that when Keke’s prodigal son had returned to Europe all dreams of dancing had been abandoned, the fancy forced aside allowing Nico to take up his mantle in the family business.

He’s made it his own since then, even branching out. The forgery arm that he’d created has proved more lucrative than his dad’s old fashioned brand of thievery; easier to find someone who’s good at painting than it is to break a team of men into the Uffizi in the middle of the night. Still, sometimes he gets lucky with that. Sometimes there are boys who will do anything because they believe Nico might love them, that he even knows what love is, anymore.

The jet touches down, a car waiting to take him to the opening night of the New York City Ballet’s fall gala. It’s not really Nico’s type of ballet, this one tonight, he prefers the classics but the dancers are undoubtedly skilled. When he was young, having two men dance a pas-de-deux for an actual public performance was unheard of. There’s something about it that twists in his stomach, a memory that he allows only because he knows it makes him stronger.

Mick is part of the ensemble, talented enough, yet miles away from the skill of the leads, Nico can see it. He watches them again, the principal dancers, the hypnotic motion of their bodies, the love story played out in the fluidity of their limbs. He sees himself, who he was before. Himself…Lewis. The Lewis he thought he knew, not the Lewis who was his enemy.

His ankle throbs. A gunshot to the achilles does that to you, even so many years later.

“Can I ask you about this,” Mick says, later that evening when they’re splayed out naked atop the sheets, bodies damp with perspiration. Nico's hotel room of course, not Mick's student digs, no matter how nice they are now.

Fucking Mick is a delight heightened by just how much Nico knows Michael would hate it. Giving to the son what he had denied the father. Mick rubs his big toe over the scarred mess of Nico’s right heel. None of his other lovers has ever dared to ask that question. Nico admires the bravura. He turns onto his back, sliding a hand down Mick’s taut stomach. Oh to be so young. Nico is in shape, he eats healthily, goes to the gym four times a week, but still Mick’s twenty years feels like a lifetime away, both physically and mentally.

“My dance partner put a bullet in me,” Nico says, matter of factly. “He wasn’t who I thought he was.” They were learning each other, not the choreography. All along. Learning how to unravel, searching out any weak spots. Maimed but not caught, though. Nico has never seen the inside of a cell.

Mick winces, rolls over to look at him. “That’s rough.”

“Tell me about it. But I guess, in some ways we’re still dancing.” He pauses. “So there’s another reason I came to visit you, actually. Do you know the Whitney Museum? There’s something I’d like you to do for me.”

#brocedes #mick/nico #my fic #definitely channelling donna tartt with this one

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halloweenbitch2764 · 5 months

Note

Can you make an elliott x reader whose kind of like hachi from nana?💕(Look at her wiki if you dont know who she is💟)

So I don't know this character nor have I seen the show. Please be patient if this is OOC or doesn't seem right, I read the wiki and tried to make it the best I could.

!Spoilers!

Elliot With A Hachi-Like S/O

Moving to Stardew Valley was exactly the change you needed

Being confined to a Joja office and wearing the same dull clothes was wearing on your sanity

Pelican Town was so much brighter and livelier than your cramped apartment in Zuzu City

Everyone was friendly (save for Shane) and welcomed you warmly to the town

Meeting Elliot seemed like fate, or perhaps love at first sight

His outward appearance was breathtaking from his clothes to his hair

His personality seemed even better

He kissed your knuckle after introducing himself and your heart soared

So you started dedicating what time you could to getting to know the man

You even gave him gifts when you could

Soon enough it became like clockwork

You visited him every day around the same time

Soon enough, you were able to enter his cabin, and he explains how he's an author and how nobody in his hometown believed in him

You felt horrible for him and exclaimed that you believed in him and were there for him if he needed to vent

He seemed thankful for your words

The relationship between you two grew further

A note from Pierre was in your mailbox, claiming that he was selling a bouquet of flowers and how it was tradition to ask someone out with it

You'd be lying if you said you didn't have feelings for Elliot

You never failed to feel butterflies around him, a blush seeming to stain your face as well

You bought the bouquet and made your way to Elliots cabin

Hesitantly, you knocked on the door and held the flowers behind your back

"Hey darling, come in."

He held the door open for you and then shut it behind you two

"What can I help you with?" He asked sweetly

You took a deep breath and brought the bouquet from behind your back

Elliots eyes widened slightly and a blush dusted his cheeks

"Well, I wanted to ask you if you wanted to be official with me?"

After a moment he nodded and took the flowers from you gently

"Of course I would Y/N."

#stardew valley #stardew valley x reader #stardew valley elliott #stardew valley elliot x reader #sdv x reader #sdv #sdv elliott #sdv elliot x farmer #sdv elliot x reader

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m-jelly · 6 months

Text

The bunny's keeper - Chapter 5

@ladycheesington <3

Levi x fem! reader.

Modern AU, fluff, romance, falling in love, Levi has tattoos and piercings, bad boy Levi, protective Levi, smut, oral, outdoor sex, breeding kink, reader has implant.

In this chapter: You talk to a friend and manage to rally the journalists and reporters for Erwin and Levi. While you help Levi works hard on a gift for you. Levi takes you on a date where he asks you something important and after the two of you make love in the woods on Levi's bike

Massive thank you to @ladycheesington for helping me flesh this story out and helping with the side plot of Erwin and how the gang started <3

Part 6

You set up your little area and made sure you looked nice. You gave Levi a big grin as he kept glancing over at you. “Levi, you’re staring.”

He blushed a little. “Well, because you’re pretty.” He walked over to you. “Is my office okay for you to make these calls?”

You nodded. “Of course.”

He sat down next to you. “You’re amazing.”

“You’re more amazing.”

Levi wrapped his arms around you and squeezed you against him. “I love you.”

You rubbed Levi’s chest. “I love you too.” You kissed his temple. “Is everything okay?”

“I just…I’m possessive. This big-shot journalist you’re friends with will take one look at your pretty face and want to marry you.”

You hummed a laugh. “I’m with you, Levi. I won’t leave you for him, I promise.”

He kissed you over and over. “I want to make love to you.”

You cupped his face. “I will ride your hard cock on this sofa once I’ve finished with this video call.”

Levi felt his whole body tingle. “I can’t wait.”

You patted his thigh. “Have a good day, my love.”

“I’ll make you something.”

You hummed a laugh. “Okay, handsome.” You shuffled in your seat and smiled at the camera when the call came in. You tapped it and smiled. “Hello, Jacob.”

Jacob adjusted his glasses and smiled at you. He was a very tall and charming man, a well-looked-after stubble, his smile was big and friendly. He softly called your name. “Great to see you. I read your email and you have interested me. Why don’t we talk this through.”

You smiled brightly. “Thank you! So, the big man Francis Seymore. We’re here to talk about him.”

He hummed. “He’s dangerous.”

“I know and I have a plan to take him down.”

He sat back in his seat. “Do you now? It’s a dangerous thing you’re doing.”

You leaned closer. “I know, but the thing is. Recently, someone for the website I help with made a report on him and he wasn’t happy.”

“This supposed to convince me?”

“Let me finish, Jacob.” You giggled. “One person he noticed and can stop, but what if a whole fucking army of people do reports on him? Expose him for the lies and the abuse. One voice shouting up is putting a target on you, but if you have a whole group, you can stand against him. You want to attack him all at once. If he questions things, then throw my name in there I don’t mind.”

Jacob smiled at you. “This is a fantastic idea. I mean, this man brought in countless drugs in this city. He’s bleeding the common person dry and allowing crime to run rampant all the while he strokes the egos of the rich.” He shook his head. “The shit poor people are being put through and it’s this endless cycle too. They take his drugs, then borrow money from him to get more and to get money they are employed by him to sell more drugs to others.”

You clasped your hands together. “Yes, that’s how I feel about this.”

He tilted his head. “But I know your lover is in Erwin Smith’s gang. You want me to destroy one gang leader to put another in his place, I’m not sure about that.”

You shuffled closer. “Jacob. I know Erwin is a gang leader, but he means well. He has nothing to do with drugs or guns. His main income and purpose is to clean the streets of the bad. He also protects businesses at a small price and in return, he helps them as a business. He buys out businesses and saves people from ruin. He works with them and gives them some of the money. He also plans to build more shops and cafes to bring in money to areas that have had businesses leave.”

He hummed in thought. “Interesting. So, he’s trying to help people by going about it in a not-so-legal way a lot of the time.”

“Exactly. Plus, they have caught incredibly bad people. Sometimes the law can’t stop everyone and they are restricted, but Erwin captures these bad people and runaways. He can punish them and hurt them.”

“Does he work with police?”

You whined a bit. “Yes.”

He released a long sigh as he thought. “Sometimes you have to get dirty. Justice fails a lot of people. So, you want all of us to work together?”

“I want us all to do reports on Mr Seymore and release them all at the same time. There is safety in numbers. He’ll see all this information getting out about him, there will be no hiding. There is so much coming out that it’s impossible to hush every single person. We need to keep talking about him too.”

He laughed. “Fuck, that might work. So, what is Erwin doing?”

You shuffled. “Well, he is going to work with the mayor. He is also going to go to those housing complexes where there are a lot of poor, bad shops and terrible parks. He’ll help build them up, pour money into them and work with the community to improve it.”

“It’s a lot of money to do that. What does he want back?”

“A small donation from each person living there to help him build the place. He’ll get them jobs in new shops there too. Once they have a good income going, again it’ll be small donations to Erwin to keep the protection there and the upkeep.” You smiled. “Plus, he’ll own a lot of the shops and as an owner, he’ll earn income.”

Jacob nodded. “He’ll be putting a lot of trust in people. He means well. From what I’ve heard, the people he deals with adore him and he’s helped so many. Plus, he doesn’t hurt good people.” He clapped his hands together. “Okay! Sounds like a plan to me. I’m in.”

You gasped. “What!? Really?”

He smiled. “Of course!” He leaned forward and said your name. “People have wanted to take down Seymore for a while, but it’s been so hard. The reason is we’re not organised. People have been trying to play the hero and going at it alone. There is safety in numbers. It’s time for the people to take back their city.” He winked at you. “Leave it with me, okay? I’ll organise the reporter and journalist riot.”

You felt your cheeks burn. “Amazing! Thank you so much! So, if you need me for anything, please contact me.”

“I will. This is your idea and I want to keep you in the loop. I swear to you as your long-time friend, we will get this fucker.”

You welled up. “Thank you, Jacob.”

He blushed hard. “Please don’t cry, okay? I didn’t realise how much this meant to you. I’m dedicated to this, okay? I’m all in.”

“You’re the best.”

“You’re too sweet.” He tried to hide his blush. “I’ll get to work and rally the troops. You keep Erwin focused, okay? Good intentions only and he’ll go far.”

“Promise!” You waved to him as the call ended. “That’s amazing news.”

While you were busy with Jacob, Levi had set himself a little mission. The love he had for you was overflowing. There was only one thing on Levi’s mind, so he told his workers to take care of everything while he worked on a little project. He gathered some good metal and started changing the shape and manipulating it. He huffed a bit when he got the shape perfect, but it seemed too simple.

One of his workers approached him. “Hey, boss?”

Levi gazed at him. “Yeah?”

“How about choosing a nice stone and some patterns?”

Levi hummed. “I’d love to, but I don’t know how to get hold of stones.”

He smiled at Levi. “Got an idea. We’ll make something for you. You focus on nice patterns.”

Levi did as he suggested and made sure everything was delicate and intricate. He looked up when the man returned. “I hope you haven’t stolen anything.”

He shook his head. “Nah, boss. I made something for you. We’ve got a lot of heat in here and well I thought I’d make a tiny bit of glass with some colour.” He lifted a glass stone with pride. “Tiny, but pretty.”

Levi was in awe of it. “It’s perfect.”

“You think it can fit in what you’re making?”

Levi showed him. “I think it will.” The two worked together to set the glass in. “It looks perfect. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome boss, now you better ask her the important question. Yeah?”

Levi blushed. “I will. Thank you again for your help.”

“Here for you, boss.”

Levi bowed his head and hurried over to you just as you were coming out of his office. “Bunny. Did it all go okay?”

You nodded. “It went fantastic! He said yes! We have help.”

He wrapped his arms around you. “That’s fantastic. Thank you so much for getting the media on our side.”

You giggled. “I’m so happy. I didn’t think it’d go well, but it did.” You hugged Levi tightly. “I feel so emotional.”

“It’s understandable. You’ve been through a lot.” He lifted your head. “I’m so sorry I’m putting you through all this. I’m a dangerous man and I’ll be even more dangerous as time goes on.”

You gazed at Levi with a sparkle in your eyes. “I’m never leaving you. You and me, Levi. You are my forever. I adore you so much. I love you.”

“I love you forever and always.” He kissed you and hummed. “I know you wanted to do naughty things in my office, but I’m thinking about a date.”

You bounced up and down. “Really? Are you sure we can afford it?”

“We can.” He wrapped his hand around yours. “You ready to go?”

You trotted along behind him. “Now?”

He smiled back at you. “Yes, now.” He led you to his bike and put your helmet on you. “Hold on.”

You sat behind Levi and hugged him tightly. You squealed in delight as Levi raced through the city and made his way out of it to the woods. It was so peaceful and pretty. Cheap dates were what you and Levi did and it made you appreciate each other so much more. The two of you had secret spots all over the place where you could enjoy each other’s company and bodies.

Levi moved up a tight road and began to drive very slowly until he found the perfect spot. “What do you think?”

You pulled your helmet off and walked over to the river and pool. “It’s perfect.” You turned to him. “Do we have food? I didn’t pack anything.”

“I put things together, don’t worry.” He walked up to you and caressed your cheek. “Allow me to take care of you.”

You felt your cheeks burn. “I want to look after you though.”

He chuckled. “You do too much of that.” He smiled at your pout. “So cute.” He pinched your cheek and wiggled. “Little bunny.”

“Bunnies bite.”

“Do they now?”

You turned your head and bit his hand. “Mm.”

He purred a little. “I like it.” He reached over and lightly gripped your neck. “Look at me, bunny, I’m covered in tattoos and piercings. I like a little bit of pain.” He crashed his lips against yours and hummed in delight. “I have something for you.”

“You’ve said that before and it was your dick. Is it your dick?”

He lifted you and sat you on his bike. “I did put a bow on it.”

“It was very cute and fun.”

He smirked at you. “I thought so too. I loved it when you did the same thing for me with a bow over your boobs and a bow on your pelvis.”

“I should do that again.”

He cupped your face. “No need. I’ll do it again for you.” He kissed the end of your nose. “I have something for you and not the rude thing you were thinking.”

You nibbled your lip. “What is it?”

He put his hand in his pocket and then pulled out when he was making all day. “While you were being my amazing girlfriend, I was making something for you.”

You giggled. “What were you making?”

He released a long and shaky sigh. “I know I ain’t got much money. I know I ain’t got the smarts compared to people like Jacob or Erwin. I know I am this rough and tough guy who says shit and fuck too much.” He smiled a little. “I know what I’m not. I know what I’m lacking and I know I’m fucking lucky to have a woman like you in my life.”

You welled up. “Levi, you’re more amazing than you think. You’re my world.”

“You’re mine too. I love you more than words can describe. I will make a better life for us both and our children.” He held up what he made to reveal it was a delicate ring. He said your full name. “I have no money to offer. I have no riches or expensive home or car. I haven’t made a big name for myself. What I do have is love. You can have every drop of my love. Will you marry me?”

You nodded as you started shaking from pure excitement. “Yes, yes I will.”

He slipped the ring on your finger and let out a shaky sigh. “I made it the right size.”

You sniffed a bit. “I can’t believe you made this! Levi, this is incredible.” You leaned up and kissed him. “I love you so much, Levi.”

He tangled his fingers in your hair and kissed you with ferocious passion. “I love you too.”

You blushed a little. “Have you ever had sex on your bike before?”

He frowned. “No.”

You whined a little. “Do you want to?”

He turned you on his bike so you straddled it. “I would love to.” He pushed you back a bit while he pulled your hips closer. He smiled as you lay back a bit with your head by the handles. “This is a great idea. Hold on and be good. If you want me to stop, just say it.”

You mewled. “Levi.”

He slipped your panties off and shoved them into his pocket. He threw your legs over his shoulders and dove for you. He gripped your thigh tightly as his other hand pressed on your pelvis. He dragged his tongue up your delicious heat and made sure to flick your clit with his piercing. He closed his eyes and lost himself in the delight that was your clit and pussy. The heat and taste from you was addictive, no matter how much heat ate you he could never get enough. He hummed in happiness as you panted and moaned below him.

You tangled your fingers into Levi’s hair and tugged. You arched your back off the bike as you cried out in delight. You gulped hard as your pleasure increased and your coil tightened. Your legs shook hard as your body became overwhelmed with the pleasure that Levi was giving you. You could feel your body burning with pleasure.

You threw your head back. “Levi.” You moaned out loud as you felt the pleasurable pop inside you. “Mm.”

Levi dragged his tongue up and hummed. “You are so perfect.” He straddled his bike and slipped your legs over his thighs. “Now, if I remember correctly…”

You sat on his lap. “I wanted to ride you.”

He smiled at you. “Do you want to?”

You undid his trousers and pulled his thick hard erection out. You played with his piercings making him grunt and moan. “I love you.”

“I love you.”

You shifted and sank on him. Both of you let out long moans as he slowly filled every inch of you. You tapped your forehead against Levi’s and mewled in delight. “I can’t bounce, sorry.”

Levi smiled at you. “Just roll your hips, my darling bunny.”

You wrapped your arms around his neck and did as he suggested. The two of you locked eyes and panted as you rolled your hips against him. You tapped your forehead against Levi’s as you moved together. He pressed all the right places inside you. His tip kept kissing you as his piercings rubbed sensitive parts. A tingling went through every inch of you as pleasure spread with every beat of your heart. You clenched your walls around him and softly smiled at the man you would be marrying.

Levi tilted his head and smiled for a moment before kissing you. He ran his hands up your back and held you against him. He pumped his cock into you just a little causing your toes to clench tightly in delight. His pierced tongue moved against yours making you shiver in ecstasy. The way the piercing on his lip brushed against your lip made your heart race. Every inch of Levi Ackerman was incredible to you. The two of you were made for each other and nothing could get in your way.

He pushed his hand down to your bum and gripped. He moved you a little harder and faster on him. He wanted you to cum and to cum as hard as possible. You are his fiancée now and soon-to-be wife, so he had to spoil you as much as possible. He pulled from your lips and ran his tongue up your neck before softly biting the side of your neck and sucking a strong mark. A ring was not enough for your finger, he wanted to mark you in pretty lovebites.

You dragged your nails across Levi’s back as your coil tightened. “Mm!” Your body shook on top of Levi as you felt a pop and pleasure burn through you. “F-Fuck.” You gasped as your orgasm consumed you.

Levi held you close and panted as your walls massaged him. “Bunny.”

You mewled. “Grumpy.” You pouted a little. “No cum?”

He smirked. “Not yet.”

“Mm, then bend me over the motorbike.”

Levi lifted you and stood you up. He slipped off the bike and helped you bend over the bike, your feet couldn’t touch the floor so you held the handles and knew that you would be at Levi’s mercy. He stood behind you and ran his hand down your back as he moved his tip up and down your pussy lips. He pushed his tip into you and plunged deep until he had nothing left to give. He massaged your hips and began pumping himself in and out of you. He marvelled at your sweet moans that echoed in the beautiful woods.

You pushed up on the bike and leaned your head back as you moaned. You looked back over your shoulder at your lover and smiled at him. A little whimper from you was all Levi needed to hear to capture your lips in a passionate kiss. He pressed your body against the bike and kissed you with all the love and passion in his heart. He kissed along your cheek and then to your neck. He nipped and sucked the back of your neck causing you to shiver in delight. Your fingers gripped the bike tightly.

You purred. “Levi, harder.”

He gripped your hips and started pumping hard and fast into you. He wanted to see if all his love could be poured into you. He leaned over you and kissed your back. Everything about you was perfect and cute. Marrying you was a dream come true. Part of him couldn’t believe that he was in the middle of the woods with your hips up for him as he pounded his cock into you. He eyed your body and found himself looking down at how wet his cock was as it slid in and out of you. Hearing you mewl and shiver at every pop of his piercing was arousing.

You panted and moved your hips as best you could, but as soon as you moved your clit rubbed on the bite seat. You cried out as pleasure burned through you. You panted heavily as you felt every inch of Levi fill you, he was always so damn perfect. You turned your head a little and felt yourself drooling. Your eyes rolled back into your head as you felt your pleasure rushing towards you. With a harsh movement of your hips against the seat on your clit, your orgasm burned through you and consumed your body.

Levi stilled his hips as your orgasm rushed through you. “Bunny.”

You mewled. “Grumpy. Still no cum?”

He chuckled. “Not yet.” He dragged himself out of you. He shifted your body and sat you sideways on the bike facing him. “One last position.”

You wrapped your arms around his neck and linked your weak legs around him. “Mm, Levi.”

He pressed back into you and rolled his hips slowly. He smiled against your lips before kissing you. “I love positions like this the most, being close to you and kissing you.”

You nipped his lip. “I love these too. Kissing you is wonderful.” You tangled your fingers in his hair and tugged a little. “I love you.”

He bucked himself against you. “I love you too. I love you so much.” He grunted a little. “I don’t know if I can last much longer, my love. Your pussy and lips are too good.”

You cupped Levi’s face. “Cum inside me. Cum deep. Give me a lot.” You smiled at him. “Imagine we’re making a baby.”

Levi growled. “Yes!” He pumped harder and faster. “Fill you up with everything I have.”

You hugged him close to you, his lips against the crook of your neck. “My love, my darling, my Levi.”

He panted and grunted against your skin as you shivered in delight. “Mine, all mine.”

You kissed along his cheek to his lips. You cupped his face and gazed deep into Levi’s eyes to see it was full of love and your eyes were full of love for him. You moved one hand between your bodies and started playing with your clit. You shivered and purred at him as your walls massaged him over and over. Your eyes rolled back into your head as you felt your coil tighten up once again. You leaned your head back as Levi bit your neck and sucked your skin.

You screamed in euphoria as you felt your orgasm rush you. “F-Fuck.”

Levi bent you backwards a little, your hips raised as he bucked harder. He slammed his cock in deep. “A-ah! Mm.” He mewled in delight as his cum poured into you. He panted and hummed in delight. “I love you.” He softly called your name. “I love you.”

You smiled sweetly at Levi. “I love you too.” You nibbled your lip. “Mm, hot and a lot of it.”

He blushed a little at your words. “Your words fuelled me.”

You giggled. “They did, didn’t they?”

He dragged himself out of you and tucked himself away. “I’ll get your panties.” He pulled them out of his pocket and slowly dragged them up your legs. “Did I go too rough?”

“No, you are always wonderful.” You linked your arms around his neck. “I can’t believe I’m going to marry you.”

Levi smiled. “I can’t believe I am either.”

You ran your fingers over his lips and lightly played with his piercing. “So pretty.”

“You’re the pretty one.” He bit your thumb. “You’ve got me horny again.”

You giggled. “Sorry.”

He lifted you into the air. “Do you want to go for a paddle?”

“I’d love that!”

He carried you over to the pool of water and placed you on your feet. “You ready to get naked?”

You purred at him. “Does it involve having some fun sex?” You leaned closer and grazed your lips against Levi’s. “Pretending to make a baby.”

Levi gripped your hips and growled. “I love kinky breeding talk.” He pulled your top up and stared at you in a bra and skirt. “Having a baby with you would be incredible. Let’s get all the practice in making one.”

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giftcityproperty23 · 14 days

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love-marimo · 1 year

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The Theory of Everything (Alhaitham x Reader)

Sumeru city is as bustling as the pitter-patters of rain in its forests. Scholars, merchants, adventurers, thespians, performers and even commonfolk are in harmony with each other ー whether they seek refuge, or a deadline to follow through, or they simply want to entertain themselves and the passersby ー there seems to be a place reserved just for anyone and everybody else. Perhaps that is why it is called the city of wisdom ー it gathers people from all walks of life together to share their knowledge, woes and experiences through their own poem and song.

And you found it perfect. Sumeru is your home, and for sure even wanderers feel their hearts fill with the warmth of belongingness once they step foot in the city.

So when the skies' hue meet the melodies of the Dusk Birds, you gleefully make your way to the Akademiya, where a certain stoic scribe awaits, albeit deniably, for your presence.

Alhaitham heaves a long sigh. Another long day, he thinks to himself. He had just finished signing documents submitted by the scholars of all Darshans that were filed 1-4 days prior. On top of that, he had to attend a meeting with Spantamad researchers in their planned expedition in the deserts of Sumeru.

So, to say that he wants to relax at his home and continue reading one of the science fiction books you gifted him (he loves it very much, thank you)… is an understatement.

Since his working hours are coming to a close, he decided that he'll take a minute or two to relax before heading home. Leaning back on his chair, he rubbed circles on his temples and closed his eyes.

For a while, he seemed like a content cat, enjoying his solitude.

So when he heard your loud voice greeting the scholars who are on their way home, as if he practiced this a thousand times (he didn't, he genuinely just doesn't want you seeing him slipping up), he immediately grabbed his pen and a few papers to pretend that he's doing something productive.

Which he does ー he always does, and you always tell him that he doesn't seem to notice it.

"Is he still here?" You ask, and a faint voice replies to you just outside his office.

"Good! Take care on the way home." You replied before opening the door to his office.

Alhaitham doesn't know how to respond, you always surprise him and it's always at times when he would much rather be alone.

But can he blame you? You always end up bringing much better company than his own solace offers.

Again, he's too aloof to admit it to you, but he enjoys being with you. He wishes you seek him like this forever.

"Knock, knock~" You smile, voice suddenly as gentle as the breeze. As if you knew how to read the room, you quietly walked towards the chair in front of his desk.

"Hello." Alhaitham fixed the papers and placed them back where they came from.

"You were pretending to sign them just now, weren't you?" You leaned your chin on top of your hands.

Alhaitham lets out a breathy laugh, as if he surrenders to your receptive eyes.

You laugh with him as well, getting up to walk behind his chair.

"Close your eyes." You say, and he does so. You fish your pocket for the ointment you bought from a travelling merchant from Liyue.

He wishes you don't see the smile plastered on his face, lest he'll wish for the ground to eat him alive.

"This one is made from the extract of Silk Flowers, Glaze Lilies and Lotuses. I hope you don't mind the fragrance. This was from a merchant from Liyue. He said it's good for headaches. Too bad you didn't get to visit his stall. It was amazing, really. He even sells this beautiful reddish silk robe. I didn't buy it of course, I've been saving up for the new novel series of this author I've been hearing about for a while. Though I really wanted it…" You rambled, and he finds your soft voice pleasant. It was as if he was listening to a songbird sing him to sleep.

You massaged his temples with the ointment, and a comfortable silence befalls between the two of you.

"You know you could be doing other important things right now." He finally says.

You flick his forehead.

"Are you implying that I'm wasting my time when I'm with you?" You bite back.

"You do nothing whenever you come here."

"Well, what do you do when you come over to my place? Nothing, so do not talk me out of visiting you in the Akademiya. Besidesー"

"I commend your promptness. You come here just right after I am through with my working hours." Alhaitham holds back a laugh.

A pause.

"Besides, I am well liked by the scholars and sages here ー is what I was about to say… Unlike you." You smile, awaiting his response.

"…Can I see the ointment?" Alhaitham changes the subject, a silent acceptance of defeat. You laugh and hand it over to him.

Wrapping your hands around his nape, you rested your chin on his shoulder.

"Feel any better now?"

"I like its mild scent. Did you buy a perfume version of this?" He asked.

"I did. I'll wear it every time I come to Surasthana. I can finally smell like the flowers there." You chuckle, stroking his hair.

"We should go." Go home, is what he meant.

"Perfect! I was about to invite you to come to the Razan Garden." A misinterpretation, coming from your end.

"And stay there until you fall asleep on me? You seem to treat that place as your second bedroom." In truth, he really doesn't want to go. He is exhausted and he wants to finally be able to do nothing and fall asleep.

Yet here you are. The bluish glow of the flowers in bloom blend in with the color of the starry night sky.

"Ta-da! They're in full bloom. I tended to these flowers for months. What do you think?" You cheered.

"Impressive. Here, rub the ointment on your wrists. You told me you want to smell like flowers." Alhaitham returns the ointment to you and you smile.

You both take a seat on the bench to admire the city.

Alhaitham stares at your figure, engulfed by the tranquility of the sanctuary ー both the place and the being, which to him is you.

"Haitham, do you believe in gods?" You were staring at the stars.

"I do. I believe that gods and humans should be treated as equals. I do not see the point of bowing down to such deities… Offerings made for their honor… I believe it encourages pride and self-righteousness amongst the devotees themselves, whether they are aware of it or not." Alhaitham replies.

"What if they didn't exist?"

"Then we will inevitably create ones among us."

You pondered about his reply for a moment, and he admires the way you put your fingers on your chin. How adorable, he wishes to tell you.

"Why?" You face him and seated yourself in between his thighs, head resting on his chest.

"Humans are dogmatic creatures who seek order. Even if we evolve into a society who does not serve a ruler, we will still follow a set of laws, either implemented by us or the gods themselves." He replies, and when you fall deeper into your thoughts, he adds,

"We each define order in different ways, but in the end we will always seek the common ground. No matter how stubborn one is, they are bound to seek people who are similar to them, but of course this isn't always the case."

You gather your thoughts and Alhaitham kisses your cheek.

"I haven't thought of that before."

"I'm surprised. You've read too much philosophy and fiction. I thought you'd be into these things more than I am."

You brow twitches and you look up at him.

"Is that an insult?"

"I am only describing what I have observed."

You sigh at his reply, now it is your turn to accept defeat, and to that he chuckles.

"Do you know why I love to travel a lot?" Alhaitham hums in reply.

"I want to discover the edge of Teyvat. Even if in reality, it's the last place I'm going to step foot into. To know the stories and secrets of different nations… fuels a beautiful passion in my heart."

Alhaitham suddenly hugs you tight. Was it out of endearment? Fear of not seeing you again? Admiration? You didn't bother reading too much into it, for all you know it could be all those things all at once.

So you enjoyed his presence and held his arms in return.

"We are as old as the stars. The iron in our blood… the nitrogen in our DNA… do you find it bittersweet that what embodies our lives were once in the hearts of dying stars?"

Alhaitham ruffles your hair, satisfied with your rhetoric.

"And once we pass on for the next generation to take place, the cycle continues." He agrees.

The noise of the city echoes beneath you.

Beautiful. That is one word that Alhaitham would describe you and being around you.

You could talk and ponder about anything and you never get tired of asking him questions that even he doesn't have a definite answer to.

He enjoys it. He enjoys pondering about life with you.

"You sure love to think about the General Relativity and Quantum theory by relating the cosmos and human life." He describes.

"I don't think it's supposed to be that way. Quantum theory mostly deals with atoms and particles."

"I know. I was just trying to create metaphors."

"Well…aren't they scientific?" You attempted to pull a joke.

"That's very funny." He says sarcastically, and you laughed.

"Hey, Haitham."

"Yes?"

"If you believe in gods… do you believe in my beauty?" You sat on the railing and you wiggled your brows at him expectantly.

He sighs. He doesn't just believe in it, because it's the truth. And what else are you supposed to do with the truth?

Being with you feels like time speeds and slows down altogether. He always finds himself wishing for it to last, yet he also wants it to be over to save room for a new moment with you.

"Stop asking pointless questions." He reprimands.

"But, Haitham~ I want to know."

"You already know the answer to that."

"Eh, I want to hear it from you. I cannot have my own mind drown in my delusions."

Alhaitham laughs. "Well, that happens. You like to think about farfetched things."

"That's not funny!" You pout.

Alhaitham looks into your eyes and smiles at you.

"I believe in it."

Your eyes light up, gesturing for him to continue his answer.

"I believe in your beauty. The theory of everything is nothing compared to the moments I share with you." You may or may not sense it, but his heart was beating out of his chest. It's a wonder how he managed to say that without breaking character.

"Hehe, that's more like it." You smiled and peppered kisses on his face, to which he chuckled in reply.

He doesn't want to say it out loud, but you make him want to believe such a unification of the larger and the microscopic aspects of the world and the cosmos. You make him want to stop questioning everything.

He will give you the world and bend the laws of nature if you so wish. But you're too fickle-minded and frankly, he'd rather not do that too.

He loves you and himself enough to not do such ruthless things. He likes the comfort of his current life and where it's heading.

Especially because you're in it, so he'd prefer not to cause unnecessary disturbances to ruin your relationship.

The summer night's winds course through your bodies. You shiver slightly in his hold.

"We really need to go home now." He finally decides.

"Sure, I really just wanted you to see the flowers I worked so hard on maintaining." You say casually, yawning, as if you didn't have a deep conversation just a while ago.

Yes, you truly are fickle minded. Alhaitham smiles to himself.

ー Lolita

#lolita writes #finally wrote something to my muscle nerd fav #alhaitham x reader #alhaitham x you #alhaitham x y/n #alhaitham imagines #alhaitham fluff #alhaitham crack #alhaitham headcanons #alhaitham #alhaitham hcs #genshin impact #genshin impact imagines #genshin imagines #sumeru #sumeru city #ive written way too much fluff by now its sickeningly sweet #anyway i hope i made him in character #while also making him soft because why not ♡

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11cleyvaart · 5 months

Note

More gadget headcanons pre Gadget please?😘😘😘😘

Augustin was born into an immigrant family who left Europe before the second war when the feeling of unease came over. His parents were from just the border of Hungary and Austria.

They came to America and settled in Massachusetts. They had Augustin first, then had his sister, Leilah, just a few years after him. His parents named him from the Croatian variant of their own Ágoston, not wanting to get rid of their roots entirely in America. His sister was named from the Torah.

His father and mother ran a small shop in the town they settled in, selling goods. His father fished and sold his catches and his mother did sewing jobs and was a seamstress. They became successful in their own ways and soon became respected by the community.

Little Augustin would often follow his parents but when he got his sister, he would mostly spend time watching her at home. And once she got old enough, they often played together.

He was raised in a Hebrew household, yet they wouldn't outwardly show their Jewish roots to those in the city they settled in. He would often partake in the religion. Something he would continue as an adult but would begin to forget as he became Gadget, with only occasional moments of remembering something but not knowing where it came from.

He didn't have many friends growing up but didn't have any bullies. He was a pretty average child.

His family was able to afford toys and gifts for him and his sister for birthdays and celebrations.

He never tapped into his sexual life until much later in his young years, for most of the time he enjoyed just spending time with his family and sister. He had a more lean towards men, but never acted or knew anything about it.

He didn't become a police officer off the bat, he worked odd jobs until he stumbled upon a better opportunity to make money for his retired parents as an officer. His time with the Massachusetts department would be short as his parents had passed away from old age.

He and his sister moved, she wished to go to better places that were more built up and he couldn't let go of the last part of his family. So he followed. But they eventually broke apart when she married a man of the last name of Ruth, (who would turn out to be Dr. Claw himself and leader of MAD, which she would join and soon give up her only daughter of Penny Ruth)

He joined the police force in the Pittsburgh area (where the setting of the IG area is, just my HC due to the local and steel mills shown in the show) but also did after night school to better understand his job.

Once he was taken into the detective department, he became infatuated with Quimby. First due to his work ethics but then it turned into a sexual longing. Making him push himself to outshine the others in the department to gain the attention of Quimby.

It worked as Quimby began to have respect for the man, which brought more yearning into his life. And the drive of sexual desire pushed him to keep trying to show off to Quimby. He's a man driven by sexual needs once he found his first crush in his boss.

At the same time he was also given custody of Penny, her being five years old, she knew her uncle as her uncle. Yet he would often feel he was a father to her. Her parents often left her in his care and they gave the rights of her to him.

#11cleyvaart #inspector gadget #chief quimby #quimbget #quimby #Ask #headcanons #HC #Inspector gadget au #Inspector gadget 2077 #Probably not going to go over too well due to his religion

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arty-shadow-morningstar · 2 years

Text

Graveyard Siblings (12)

[Masterlist]

(Part 1) (Part 2) (Part 3) (Part 4) (Part 5) (Part 6) (Part 7) (Part 8) (Part 9) (Part 10) (Part 11) (Here) (Part 13: The END)

-----

Gabriel sat and stared at the white walls of the interrogation room as the French police investigated the murder of one Maria Todd-Wayne.

MT’s personal assistant, Tam Fox, had received a distress signal from her employer that she had on her since she was from Gotham and had experience various dangerous situation.

Tam went to see what the situation was only to find a bloodied Gabriel Agreste laughing over Maria’s corpse.

According to the Police, evidence and the cameras in the mansion (although the footage was a little finicky like something else was interfering with it.) had shown Gabriel panicking after accidentally pushing his assistant, Natalie Sancouer down the stairs where she had hit her head hard and fell unconscious.

Maria, who had scheduled a meeting with Gabriel to negotiate selling his company to her (which he remembered turning it down after she revealed who she was), walked in on the man while he was trying to move the body elsewhere. He attacked her, thinking she witnessed the fall and to silence her so she wouldn’t report him.

Natalie is currently in a hospital but doctors are baffled and unable to wake her up from her coma.

Although he no longer has a team of lawyers working for him, he managed to hire one of them with what little fortune he had left who had straight out told him that pleading guilty would be the best option.

He had killed Maria Todd-Wayne, MT, one of the world’s greatest and beloved designers since Edna Mode, and one of Bruce Wayne’s children. She also had a lot of celebrity friends like Luka Couffaine, Jagged Stone, Kagami Tsurgi, Felix Culpa and a few superheros like the Bat clan of Gotham, Wonder Woman, Superman.

All of them were calling for his head on a pike, none more so than the Wayne family who were using every resource at their disposal to drag the Gabriel name through mud and destroy whatever is left of what he had dedicated his entire life to built.

So even if by some totally impossible miracle he manages to get off his sentence (through bribery), there will be mobs out for his blood. Jail is the safest option.

—---

It was not the end of it. The entirety of Paris rear its head when the police uncovered evidence of his time moonlighting as Hawkmoth.

(When in reality, Tim and Barbara dug up many deleted files of his activity as Hawkmoth and left many tracks for the police to follow. There was a few planted physical evidence that Nooroo helped make it look as authentic as possible. Everything Gabriel had tried to cover up, the Bats made sure every dirty laundry of his was there for everyone to see. They are the night. They are vengeance and all that.)

Someone leaked the fake ‘journals’ Gabriel had apparently kept to keep track of akumas and their progress against the heroes. The last page had a paragraph where ‘Hawkmoth’ revealed Ladybug’s identity as Marinette Dupain-Cheng, one of Adrien’s classmates.

(No one ever managed to figure out who had leaked it. Meanwhile, a rich blonde who smiled at her phone before muttering to herself about how ridiculous and utterly ridiculous that she had no black dress that was appropriate for a funeral.)

Paris was horrified to find out that Gabriel had managed to turn Chat Noir against Ladybug and kill her and later, making her death to be a suicide and covering up her death by bribing some officers so the truth wouldn’t be revealed.

The city of Love mourned for their fallen heroine, who fought for them and was finally receiving the justice she deserved a few years too late. But better late than never.

There were memorials for Marinette Dupain-Cheng and lots of people visit her grave to leave flowers and gifts.

Nobody seemed to connect the dots on how similar the long dead Marinette Dupain-Cheng and the recently deceased Maria Todd looked.

Of course, this wouldn’t be a salt fic if Lila and everyone else get dragged along for fun. In HM’s journals, he mentioned getting the help of Lila Rossi (lots of emphasis on the name and many details so there is no doubt that he is talking about another Lila Rossi) for his plan to akumatise Miss Dupain-Cheng which many people now know was Ladybug.

Gina decides it was a good time to drop (a pre-approved) ‘Diary of Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Everyday Ladybug’ containing entries from Marinette’s diaries with a few things redacted for her privacy (plus Miraculous secrets). And all proceeds from the sales of the books going to the Marinette Foundation to help teens in need (set up with help from Wayne Enterprises).

People paled in fear at how close their heroine nearly succumbed to akumatisation many times as she was bullied and isolated.

The book showed how Ladybug was, under her mask, just human. A normal girl with dreams and a crush who wanted to do good for the world. A girl who was also severely bullied and isolated and received no help from the adult figures in her life and only had a few friends who tried their best to support her.

Lila and the akuma class were glared at and everyone whispered of every horrible thing each of them did.

The akuma class’s parents cried and yelled about how their kids turned out like this, and that they had taught them how to be better as they waved Marinette’s book in their hands.

Lila was last seen by everyone to be dragged out of the school by police officers and to be put on trial for aiding Hawkmoth as an accomplice.

Francoise Dupont was investigated and authorities were horrified at how deep the corruption was. Caline Bustier was fired without question and same with M. Damocles. The entire school was reformed and policies were implemented so nothing like what Ladybug had gone through would happen again.

The Dupain-Cheng bakery shut down and moved away from Paris after how many people tried to ask them insensitive questions about Marinette forcefully or vandalising the place for how they had mistreated Marinette.

The lawyer Gabriel had hired quit, regardless of how much Gabriel offered. Which was not very much to be honest. He had nothing now.

Gabriel was charged with a lot of things, his actions as Hawkmoth were at the top of the list and the murder of Maria Todd was second.

He was sentenced to serving a lifetime in a maximum security prison, somewhere cold and where he would have to do a lot of labour.

Natalie will never again wake up from the coma but she was also charged with being an accomplice.

Meanwhile, Emilie moved to London to be closer to her sister after hiding in the States with Adrien as she waited for Gabriel to meet his doom. (Gotham was considered but dropped in favour of the less gloomy Metropolis.)

Adrien gets some backlash for his actions as Chat Noir and his inaction as Adrien to stop Lila from bullying her. If he ever steps into Paris again, people threaten to hunt him down with pitchforks.

A few wanted Emilie to also get arrested but many were sympathetic towards her as she was mostly unaware of how she became cured and she later revealed that she was trying to get away from Gabriel once she found out that he was Hawkmoth.

Chloe did get some haters for her bullying but most of Paris forgave her due to her redemption arc and being friends with Marinette near the end of her life.

It helped that she also had the many charities and non-profit organisations she set up over the years with a few of them in honour of Marinette.

—---

Across the globe, the Waynes buried another family in the Manor plot.

Jason had insisted on holding off burying the body for a month in case she gets resurrected again and with magic you can never tell so the rest of them complied with his request.

After the one month period ended, they finally held the funeral that Maria had planned.

Jason for a long time stood in front of the grave, desperately hoping for his little sister to dig herself off like she did many years ago when they first met.

After hours had passed and nothing happened, he finally let go and mourned.

The following week, Gotham noticed Red Hood being more violent than usual and that none of the other Bats restrained him.

—---

Someplace far away, where it is nowhere and everywhere, where the laws of the universe were made and none of them apply, Marinette opened her eyes.

—----

In Tibet, Guardians tend to their business when an unsettling feeling enters everyone.

Days ago, the Order had come knocking in Gotham for the Miraculouses under Maria’s care. The Bats had handed them over without much resistance except Batman warning them that they would take them back if they were ever found used for evil.

Su-Han went to check on the Miracle Box.

Kwamis’ powers were usually unpredictable especially when they are emotional, with Tikki’s chosen recently deceased, she had retreated into a shell of herself as she grieved. Many other kwamis were in a similar state but Tikki was understandably hit the hardest.

As soon as he got within a few feet of the Box however, it opened and a huge beam of light came out. From within, nineteen balls of lights in different colours emerged and took on an almost humanoid shape with their respective animal characteristics.

The Kwamis were freed.

Soon after, other Boxes in the Temple and all over the world opened with all of the kwamis being freed. Most of them didn’t hesitate to vanish into their home realm where they were from.

Back in the temple, after other kwamis had vanished, only Tikki and Plagg had remained.

“Guardian.” Plagg said the title with mockery. The only Guardian who was ever worthy of that title was Marinette and she had earned it with her kindness. “I think you are wondering what the hell is happening.”

“I demand that you tell me what you are doing right this instant.”

For the first time in a while, Tikki finally spoke.

She told them about how Marinette before she died had managed to find out about the origins of the Miraculous and how Kwamis were not meant to be tied down to the physical plane for this long.

This was the other imbalance that the Universe brought her back to fix. She had performed the ritual using her blood and soul to slowly destroy the binds tying the kwamis to their Miraculous.

It also meant that Marinette gave up her chance at paradise or reincarnation to give the kwamis their freedom.

“Do not retaliate by attacking the Bats and their chosen city. They didn’t know nor took any part in it. Marinette made sure of that. There will be consequences if you touch them.”

With that, Tikki and Plagg left the mortal plane.

“Sugarcube, just to check. The ritual protection spell we set for Gotham is still in place, right? The one which we changed one of the conditions to as long as they set foot with no intent of harm.”

“Of course, Stinky Sock.”

“Cool, just checking. Because you conveniently left that part out.”

“I gave them a warning. It’s their wish if they choose to ignore it.”

“I think I am rubbing off on you.” Plagg cackled, just thinking about the chaos that would be unleashed if the Order tried to get to the Bats.

Tikki ignored him and instead went faster.

Plagg easily caught up to her, “Looks like someone is eager to see Pigtails again.” He tried to lighten up the tense atmosphere Tikki was giving off.

“It’s not that. I have a feeling that They have more plans for her.” Tikki replied worriedly.

“Pigtails can’t catch a break and such is the fate of the Marked. If it wasn’t for that ‘man’, ” Plagg spat the word out like it was a curse, “this would have never happened.”

“The ones with the Mark are bound to serve Them. Those are the rules. I can only hope that I can give her the peace she deserved with my testimony.”

“And mine too. It is partly my fault that she ended up this way. I should have done better.”

“Plagg, it’s not your fault. You know that.”

“If I had reined in my holder-”

“The blame lies on the man who chose our holders and the man who chose to abuse Nooroo for his selfish desire.”

—---

Marinette looked around her surroundings. Everything was dark but somehow she could still see.

And she sensed many presences surrounding her.

“Who are you?” She asked.

WE ARE THE ONES WHO GAVE YOU THE TASK OF RIGHTING THE WRONG.

The voice was disembodied like many voices speaking over each other and yet somewhat in harmony. It sounded like wind chimes and also the loudest roar of thunder. The voice did not speak nor was it heard. Instead it was like the words washed over her like an ocean wave.

“Okay. So what now?”

YOU WILL BE SENTENCE-

“Stop.” Two figures appeared in front of Marinette. Both of them shielded Marinette from the other presences. “We demand a re-trial.”

There was a slight familiarity from them. One was a tall woman who was all red, from her hair to her clothes to her skin. They were all a varying shade of red with black spots dotting her body. She also had translucent wings on her back which fluttered.

The other figure was of a man who was all black like the woman from his body to his clothes. Marinette could make out cat ears on the top of his head and a tail lazily poked out from his back. The only colour he had other than black was two neon green eyes that held a mischievous glint.

“Tikki? Plagg?” Marinette asked.

“Hiya, Pigtails.”

------

(Part 13: The END)

Note: This story is nearing its end. Thank you to everyone for being patient. I will try my best to give a satisfactory sent-off.

Taglist: @local-witch-of-mn, @ladyqnoirr, @lolieg, @istoleyourcookies, @pale-lady-dreamer, @ichigorose, @meow-now, @demonicbusiness, @unoriginalmess, @the-drokainian, @joejosyxd, @questionableboi

#graveyard siblings #ml x dc #maribat #platonic! jasonette #maribat class salt #Gabriel is trash #and he is going to bear the consequences for his actions #idk what the show is doing #i haven't watch but I heard bad things #Karma for him #Karma for Lila #Karma for Adrien #Basically everyone saying that Marinette deserves better

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