#shes so incredibly sexy though LISA PLEASE

[dykespence]

The way Carla showed up absolutely smitten down bad horrendous in the gayest of outfits she could find just be called a friend ohhh the PAIN

[mermaidsirennikita]

Any books with pathetic man? I love pathetic men

I also love pathetic men!

Historical:

A Lady for a Duke by Alexis Hall. Now! Gracewood has good reasons for being pathetic, but he is... not in great shape when Viola meets (technically reunites but he doesn't know ssh) him. He's like, a PTSD-ridden, depressed war veteran who's def killing the pain with alcohol. And of course, he's also super pathetic over Viola. This book has a trans heroine, and he and Viola were besties before she faked her death in the Battle of Waterloo. He initially doesn't recognize her; but when he does, it's because he recognizes her FRECKLES. Tell me that isn't both romantic and incredibly "DUDE. GET UP. GET UP MAN."

Daring and the Duke by Sarah MacLean. Ewan is basically attempting to make up for some PRETTY abhorrent behavior, and he's flopping!

Dreaming of You by Lisa Kleypas. I personally find Derek Craven very pathetic. Like, he's competent, but he's an emotional wreck. Again I say "you've had me like a drawn dog" is one of the most vivid descriptions of a boner in romance history. If someone said that to me I would marry him immediately.

Seduce Me at Sunrise by Lisa Kleypas. Oh Kev. Oh Merripen. You self-loathing mess of a man. Honestly, one of the best moments in this book is when Kev requests a sex worker right after Win comes home, and Win has decided to visit him and DOES NOT KNOW THIS, and she's wearing a hood so she shows up like "hello!" and he thinks she's that sex worker and bends her over the table, only to realize it's Win and do like a six foot jump backwards. LOSER BEHAVIOR.

Shadowheart by Laura Kinsale. Obligatory "first sex scene is noncon" warning but dude Allegreto is like... SO dramatic. Like, he's a very effective assassin and all that. But he's also like "I hate myself please beat the shit out of me during" and she... acquiesces.

The Bride Goes Rogue by Joanna Shupe. Preston Clarke does some truly pathetic groveling, and I personally love a hero who's like... pathetic AFTER we see what kind of competence he's capable of? Like, she destroys him.

Contemporary(ish):

Preferential Treatment by Heather Guerre. Not because the hero is a sub, but because he's a pathetic individual who enjoys being pathetic lol. There's a chess scene in this book that is..... so good.

All of heroes of Kings of Italy by Mila Finelli are pathetic, especially the first three. But special shoutout to Enzo D'Agostino (Mafia Madman) for being like *SIGH. SIGH. SIGH.* when Gia's not around... to the point that in a bonus scene you get his internal monologue where he's like SHE'S A SICKNESS. I LOVE HER SO MUCH and his brothers are like "he has a goldfish brain when she's not around, just let him go find her".

Aaaand Alessio Ricci in Mafia Target because he is the world's greatest sniper and he's sent in to kill this mob boss and then he sees the mob boss's son and is like "THAT. Is the hottest man I've EVER. Seen" and ruins the shot. Literally was too distracted by the hot man to do his job. (Also: Giulio being sickeningly hot saved his father's life and it is hilarious.)

New Camelot by Sierra Simone. Ash is not pathetic lol. Embry, my beautiful baby man, is DEEPLY PATHETIC and he knows it, and he hates it, and he loves it, and I LOVE HIM. Embry constantly being [belabored sigh] "you're probably wondering how I got here" in his POV chapters is one of my favorite things lmao.

Auden Guest from the Thornchapel series by Sierra Simone also deserves a callout, because though he is quite a dominant figure in a lot of ways, the amount of INSANE. SHIT. This man does and is like "is this being a good boyfriend? :)" .... deeply pathetic and desperate. (OOOOOH THERE'S A "LET'S DO A MOCK HUMAN SACRIFICE BUT SEXY" MOMENT IN THIS SERIES WHERE HE'S THE SACRIFICE. OH IT'S GOOD.)

The Master by Kresley Cole. Russian mafia book, the hero is a powerful billionaire and literally ends up staring at her through a window in the rain texting her like "WELL I HOPE YOU DO WELL ON YOUR TEST :("

Heated Rivalry by Rachel Reid. Shane and Ilya are both very pathetic over each other, even though they're super amazing athletes, even though Shane is like, a perfect player, even though Ilya is so charismatic and well-liked. I think Ilya even has a line where he calls himself pathetic because he's so in love that he's become a loser. Shane is like... very.......................... into being MANAGED lol................... and his internalized monologue is always like "here I go again, being an idiot".

Paranormal:

Dreams of a Dark Warrior by Kresley Cole. This is, uh, definitely a dark book, but so good. The hero is introduced in a previous book, and you're like omg he's so dangerous, he's so competent. Then you get in his head and it's like a) he's super depressed b) he's incredibly traumatized c) he's basically being controlled by this organization via a crippling addiction d) he's so dead to the world that he doesn't even have hookups UNTIL HE MEETS HEEEER. Super enemies to lovers. He hates what she is (or does he?). There's a really delicious moment where she's like "you can touch me" but he doesn't want her to see his bare hands because he has super bad scars from the Trauma Thing... So he has her like, naked on a countertop, blindfolded with his tie, so he can touch her without her seeing his scars. AMAZING. I'm a Declan Chase apologist. Also??? Later in the book he's trying to get Regin back and takes advice from a) Thad, a seventeen-year-old boy who calls him "DC" (DC!!!!) and b) Lothaire, who at this point hasn't slept with anyone in like 3,000 years and is, it must be said, canonically CRAZY. Declan can't talk to girls.

Lothaire by Kresley Cole. I recommend Lothaire a lot but that's because it's everything. I don't know that I've ever read a scene as vividly pathetic as Lothaire being presented with the opportunity to sleep with his only supernatural equal (superior probably lol) at that time in the series, the stunningly gorgeous Nix, leaning in, being unable to kiss her, and like punching the wall and going "SHE'S RUINED ME!!!!!" He can't sleep without Ellie, he can't think without her, he can't even think of other women, he spends his evenings inhaling her pillow lmao. Also, on another level, he's deeply into puzzles, which isn't pathetic inherently but is when you realize he's like, one of the most feared characters in this universe and is actually like. That guy. Also, there's a scene where Ellie is tanning in a bikini and he traces (like, teleporting?) back to his apartment in order to grab a pair of sunglasses to see her better from the shadows. And then offers her crucial information in exchange for her moving the top a little each time to show him more skin. LOSER.

Moonglow by Kristen Callihan. Begins with our Victorian werewolf rake man having a... dysfunction... with a woman, after which he meets the heroine, who he's besotted with. At one point they're at a tavern and someone begins singing a song about his rumored performance issues and she's like *eyebrow raise*.

A Demon's Guide to Wooing a Witch by Sarah Hawley. The hero is a demon who was the villain of the previous book, and he now has amnesia and begins the book getting his ass kicked by another demon, only for our heroine to run in and reluctantly save him. He does that thing where he's very powerful but also basically a baby, which is MY DEAL.

Fantasy:

The Winter King by C.L. Wilson. Wynter is extremely powerful, but also an extremely sad loser man who makes elaborate ice sculptures of his ENTIRE DEAD FAMILY in order to like, have them around still lmao. When the heroine finds out she's like "this is so sad and sexy of you".

[auspiciousotter]

M6 IRL

Asra:

Sort of the spiritual traveler type. He’s always exploring some new place and finding new ways to connect with the world and discover parts of himself that were hidden. Without fail, he can find work and housing wherever he goes. It’s his natural charm that endears himself to people, though he prefers to camp out in solitude when he can. Interacting with others can be tedious. Sometimes he posts to his travel blog, but he isn’t beholden to it so it’s usually whenever it strikes his whimsy.

Faust doesn’t travel as much with him IRL because the logistics of traveling with a snake can be prohibiting, plus the places he goes to aren’t always safe to have her out and about in. When he’s back home with you, he tries to take her everywhere with him to make up for it. As much as he loves you, he values the time he travels alone, but he also adores taking you to places he’s been before and showing you all his favorite sights.

Asra has the wildest wardrobe of the main six. It’s somewhere between new-age hippy and 90’s Lisa Frank artwork. Mostly shops at thrift shops or from local sellers when he travels abroad.

Nadia:

Got a degree in business to appease her family, but doubled in engineering for fun. After college she wanted to separate from her family and ended up joining a large business, working her way to the position of Chief Operating Officer of Lucio’s company (though really she is the CEO in all but name). Her biggest goal is to make the company more inclusive with support groups for minorities, more accessibility features, and mandatory sensitivity training.

She married Lucio right out of college despite not caring about him all that much. He was part of her rebellion from her family. It turned sour pretty quick, both of them moving to opposite ends of the house and only interacting at work. It took years to divorce him simply because it was a lot of work and she wasn’t looking into other romantic interests so there was little point. Until she met you and suddenly the idea of being with someone for love became desirable. Whether you returned her affections or not (and she’s so grateful you did), it made her realize that life would be better if she was no longer tied to Lucio.

Nadia is the most professionally dressed, but still manages to be incredibly sexy. She rocks a pantsuit like nobody’s business. Everything is designer and tailored for a perfect fit.

Julian:

Not a doctor, but he is a Paramedic. He’d tried to go into the medical program, but went through a rough mental breakdown and had to drop out. He later joined the EMT program because he still wanted to help save lives. Eventually he worked his way into becoming a Paramedic and now he’s trying again to get into Med School.

On his days off he keeps busy working at the local theater, either as an actor or as a mentor to their summer program for kids. During off seasons, he’ll also pick up a shift or two working at the local bar. He just can’t seem to relax, but that also means his body gets very little rest between the long shifts he works as a Paramedic. Meeting you changed that though. Instead of spending his free time itching for something to do, he is more than happy to just laze about cuddling you (and possibly fall asleep in your arms. Please get him to do this. He needs sleep).

Like any good former Emo, Julian has returned to his roots, wearing a mostly black wardrobe with dark accenting colors, except it’s all more tasteful now. It’s less depressed hot topic teen and more Byronic vampire lord.

Muriel:

Runs an urban ranch with a focus on both sustainability and rehabilitation. Rescues a lot of larger livestock from being put down due to injuries or defects and either brings them back to health then passes them off to another farm, or keeps them himself if it’s a severe case. He also gets a lot of chickens every spring when families think they would make cute gifts then don’t actually want to care for them.

The ranch started as a part time hobby after he retired from wrestling. It had been fun to use strength to entertain people, but fans were getting blood thirsty and wanted more brutal fights. It was too much for him, so he left and started up the farm while trying to find a new career. You helped him set up a social media account and vlog of the ranch, which took off almost immediately. He swears they just love to see the animals, but you know it’s because he will sometimes work shirtless. With all the new support, the farm was able to grow into a full operation and get to the point where it could finance itself (though it still receives donations daily).

Muriel chooses function over fashion. It’s not that he doesn’t own nice things, just that they have to be good working clothes first and foremost. Lots of jeans and flannels (when he wears a shirt).

Portia:

She got her start in event planning for Nadia and Lucio’s company, but always had dreams of opening up her own business instead. After years of saving up money, and getting financial advice from Nadia, Portia was finally able to open a combination cat café and bookstore. It’s the only place in town where you can walk out with a new adventure and traveling buddy. Most of the cats are up for adoption, except a few regulars including her own Siamese Pepi that she brings to work with her.

In her spare time, Portia likes to garden and go on hikes. She just loves being surrounded by nature. She’s also always ready for an adventure, be it a scavenger hunt date in town with you, or a several day white water rafting trip, complete with beach camping, bonfires and spooooky stories. There’s rarely a dull day for you two as even a cozy day at home can turn fun quickly. She’s a master at making blanket forts.

Portia has mastered balancing being both sexy and low key a garden witch. Likes to wear layers and bright colors, but it never comes off as gaudy. Her wardrobe can range from super professional (a left over from her days as event planner) to ready for the renaissance faire.

Lucio:

Lucio lived his whole life off mommy and daddy money. He got a degree in business, and expected to be handed the company when he graduated, but was told he’d have to start from the ground up. Instead he used his charm to worm his way into a top position at a highly desirable company, and eventually inherited the role of CEO when the former one retired. He’s not particularly business smart, but he wasn’t afraid to be cut throat and could schmooze like no one’s business.

When Nadia eventually filed for divorce, there was a fight over all of their assets, and upon his lawyer’s advice he enrolled in therapy. At first he only went for appearances, but then the therapist managed to open him up, show him all his trauma and insecurities. He started to go regularly after that and made a commitment to be a better person. After he met you he was thankful that he kept up with therapy because now he can be the person you deserve. He still spoils the hell out of you though because he’s got money so why not spend it.

Lucio wears only big name designer clothes, even if the taste is…questionable. He likes to show off wearing pristine whites and lots of gold jewelry. Doesn’t care about people’s views on masculinity and won’t leave the house without a heel or winged eyeliner.

[for-fucks-sake-h]

At My Weakest - two

rated: m, mature | word count: 4.2k | story page  

“I wanna taste you again. Like a secret or a sin.”

  - Matthew Perryman Jones 

When Gianna stirred awake, she wasn’t surprised to find Harry laying beside her. What she was surprised about though was the absolute softness of his face. 

The lines of his cheekbone and jaw were still sharp, but his skin was completely smooth. The usual indent between his brows was nonexistent, and his hair was a beautiful curly mess. She found herself reaching out to smooth some stray curls back behind his ear, her fingertips just barely brushing his soft skin. 

He didn’t disappoint once he got her in his bed. Turns out his smug, cocky demeanor could be backed up, and backed up well. He wasn’t short on foreplay, he didn’t rush into it. If anything, he drew out the string of anticipation so ridiculously thin it snapped; until they were all hands and mouths and moans and pleasure. 

It was good. It was fun. It was a much needed distraction.

But it looked different in the daylight. 

What was passionate gasps and needy hands in the dimmed moonlight, was just a sloppy rebound fuck with a friend in the early morning daylight. 

Gianna was careful to slip out of bed, nakedly grabbing her borrowed sweater from the floor before tiptoeing to his bathroom. And when she returned, she was met with green eyes and tousled hair. 

“Thought you left.” His voice was even deeper than usual, the early morning rasp doing nothing to quell Gianna’s increasingly warming skin. “Didn’t think you were a hit and run kinda person.” 

Gianna breathed a soft laugh as she made her way over to him in just her sweater.

“No, but I should probably get my ass on the couch before your sister wakes up.” 

“Y’know she sleeps like the dead.” He watched her as he fiddled with the corner of his duvet, eyes tracing the curve of her hip where the sweater ended against her caramel skin. “Could give you one more before you go.”  

The lightness of his eyes looked iridescent in the morning light, especially in comparison to the blown out brown of Gianna’s staring back at him.  

He sat up just then, the dark emerald sheet slipping down his chest to rest casually across his bare hips. He was a sight with his unruly hair falling over his collar bones and his toned chest and stomach on full display. 

“In fact,” he started as he scooted down the bed until he was right in front of her, his feet meeting the ground as he pulled her closer between his thighs, “was thinking we could do this whenever you want.” 

Gianna’s hands found his bare shoulders, his skin still incredibly warm from sleep and as soft as it looked. 

“Is this my sweater?” Harry asked suddenly as he looked down to where he played with the knitted fabric at her hips, his hands slowly splaying out on Gianna’s bare thighs.  

“Gemma gave it to me last night,” she responded softly.  

“Hm. Anyway… could be a perfect fit for both of us,” Harry murmured, his head tilted up towards Gianna’s, his lips inches from hers. The innuendo was embedded in his tone and the look on his face, and even more blatantly obvious when the most subtle indent of a dimple teased its way onto his cheek.  

It would be too easy for Gianna to take him up on the offer, crawl back into bed with him and let him bring her over the edge as many times as he wanted; as many times as she wanted. But for as sexy and generous as he’d been, she knew it wasn’t the best idea and something she shouldn’t get used to.  

Gianna sighed with a gentle squeeze to his shoulder blade. “H…” 

“G,” Harry rebutted in a playful tone. 

“Probably not a good idea.”  

“I beg to differ. Think it’s a great idea. My best idea yet.”  

“Last night was fun,” Gianna offered gently. “I just don’t think we should make a habit out of it. I have a lot going on and I don’t want to drag you—”

“—Hey, say no more.”  

If Harry’s ego was bruised from the rejection, he didn’t show it.  

Instead, he pushed himself up from the bed as she took a step back, the sheet knowingly falling away from his body as he stood before her at his full height. They were nearly chest to chest, and it took everything inside Gianna to ignore the way her nipples pebbled beneath the soft fabric of her sweater.  

“The offer’s available if you ever want it.”  His lips curled around every word, only making his offer even more overwhelmingly enticing.   

He didn’t wait for a response. Instead, his chest brushed against her arm as he carelessly moved around her to head to the bathroom, completely naked, every inch of his body on display.  

If he felt Gianna’s eyes on him, he didn’t show it.   

A fresh steam of her reworn silk skirt and sheer button down blouse later, and the party was in full swing, guests arriving one after another to her parents home.  

Gianna was lucky to have arrived when she did, the distraction of guests doing her every favor to hold off the inevitable questions from her family. A quick comment that Steve was held up at work was as far into it as she could get before her mother was whisked away by one thing or another. Gianna wasn’t so worried about the lie as she was her delivery of said lie. 

The end of her relationship was the last thing she felt like discussing at her fathers 50th birthday celebration.  

The one thing she didn’t anticipate was the possibility of Steve showing up.  

She saw him as soon as he walked through the front door, his polo shirt and perfectly styled hair immediately catching her eye.  His eyes scanned the room in search of her, and it felt like her heart could literally drop out of her ass.  

Gianna excused herself from her fathers colleagues before making her way toward him, her blood boiling as her heart pounded in her chest.  

“What are you doing here?” She whispered harshly as she pulled him aside, eyes ablaze as she looked at him.  

“You haven’t been answering your phone.”  His response was so casual for someone who blew up their life together without a second thought.  

“Yeah you lost that privilege yesterday, Steve.”  

“Gianna, please. Let’s just talk about this.”  

“You need to leave.”  

“Gianna—”

“Y’alright?”  Gianna turned to look up at the sound of the intruder's voice, her eyes meeting Harry’s expressionless face immediately.  

Gianna was quick to reel in her emotions as well, instead smiling and greeting Harry and Gemma and their parents.  

“Hi guys! Yeah, yeah, all good. Steve was just leaving,” Gianna continued to smile despite the confused look on Harry and Gemma’s parents faces. “He’s gotta work.” 

Steve huffed. “You’re being ridiculous.”  

“Let’s go find Lisa!” Gemma suggested to her parents with a gentle guide on both of their backs.   

“Oh, she’s in the kitchen.” Gianna pointed in the direction of her mother and released a sigh when they headed that way.  

Gianna turned back to Steve the moment they were out of earshot. “You’re a real asshole, you know that?”  

Steve opened his mouth to reply, but Harry was quick to interject. “Think she told you to go.”  

Gianna watched the anger wash over Steve’s face as he turned to Harry.

“Shouldn’t take me telling you for you to listen,” Harry added with a disapproving shake of his head.

That confidence Harry exuded? Yeah, it came in handy in a wide array of situations.  

“Don’t make me kick you out of here,” Gianna told Steve. “I don’t want to cause a scene and embarrass my mum but I will if I have to.”  

Harry took the most subtle step closer. He really only sort of shifted his weight towards Gianna more, barely enough to even notice, but judging by Steve’s disgruntled face, he noticed.  

Gianna noticed too.  

“We’re going to talk about this later.”  Just the sound of Steve’s voice made Gianna’s heart plummet. It wasn’t supposed to be like this, but it was. 

She watched him turn around with an exasperated huff, a withheld breath escaping her when he disappeared through the front door.  

“Y’okay?”  

Gianna momentarily forgot Harry was still standing beside her.  “Yeah,” she nodded. “Gonna go hide for a bit and collect myself.”  

She didn’t wait for his response before she disappeared upstairs with tears welling in her eyes.  

Who did Steve think he was?  Just showing up at her parents home as if nothing happened? Something did happen. A lot of shit happened.  Many words were exchanged and the way Gianna left their home and didn’t look back said even more then her frustrated, broken words.  

Gianna didn’t know how long she hid in her childhood bathroom, but apparently it was long enough for someone to come looking for her when she heard the softest tap on the door.  

She wasn’t crying, that was a plus. So she braced herself for her mother to be undoubtedly on the other side of the door, but opened it slowly to find none other than Harry leaned up against the doorframe, his face closer than she would have expected.  

His chin was pointed down towards his chest, leaving him to look up at her through his lashes with his eyebrows raised high and the lines across his forehead even more prominent.  

“Just checking on you. Y’don’t have to come out yet if you don’t wanna.”  

Gianna leaned against the wall so that she was standing parallel to him, her body lining up perfectly with his, both of their arms crossed over their chests, the door to the bathroom propped open just enough for them to see each other.  

“Is my mum looking for me?”  

He pursed his lips with regret. “I did hear her say your name a little bit ago.”  

Gianna released a deep sigh as she let her eyes fall closed. “I can’t believe he just showed up here.”  

“Do you know what he wanted?”  

Gianna scoffed. “No clue, probably to torture me some more. As if yesterday wasn’t enough.”  

“He’s got some nerve,” Harry shook his head in disbelief. 

Gianna exhaled again. “I don’t even wanna be here and now I gotta go put a show on for everyone and pretend like everything’s fine.” 

Harry gave her a small, understanding smile. “Want me to go fall down the stairs as a distraction?” 

The tiniest shiver rolled down his spine when she smiled with a shake of her head. 

“I’ll just dive head first. They’ll be so distracted with my broken collar bone that you can sneak out the back,” he added with a completely straight face, intently fighting the twitch at the corner of his mouth. 

Gianna laughed softly as she pushed her elbow against his. “What if you mess up your face? I’ll never forgive myself.” 

“Oh yeah, you’re right. Never mind scratch that idea,” Harry replied quickly, the smile forming across his face regardless of his efforts. 

Gianna’s face softened after a moment, and Harry couldn’t be positive, but he was pretty sure her body moved a half an inch closer to his. 

“Thanks for stepping in with him,” she said sincerely, her big brown eyes steady on his. 

Harry swallowed discreetly, licking his lips in a force of habit. “Anytime,” he murmured, his eyes flicking across her face. 

“You didn’t have to,” Gianna replied mindlessly, her eyes falling across his face. 

“Know I didn’t.” Harry’s voice was soft, because as much as he didn’t want to admit it, he felt like his skin was on fire. 

She was so close. Her perfume invaded his senses the same way it did on the roof, it had seeped into his sheets and lingered on his skin that morning. It was all he could focus on, subconsciously pulling him closer to her. 

Although, maybe not totally subconscious at all. He knew he wanted her. He knew that after one night with her, that he wanted her again, as many times as she’d give herself to him.   

He could tell she wanted to kiss him. Fuck, he was willing her to just do it. It was like every fiber of his being was screaming for her to just connect their mouths, get lost in each other again. But he could tell she was having some sort of internal battle that held her back. 

“What are you thinking?” he asked softly, eyes peering into hers. 

She blinked back at him, the soft furrow of her brows somehow making her more attractive. He watched her mouth open and close, trying to find the words. 

“Tell me,” he murmured. 

He could feel her breath just barely brushing his lips as his eyes pulled down to the curve of her Cupid’s bow first, then the curve of her chest, before traveling the same path back again, ready to dive back into the deep brown of her eyes. 

They were cast down, the curl of her lashes on display instead, and at first Harry assumed in shame or disinterest. But they burned against his own mouth, as she took account of every curve of his lips. 

“G...” he tried once more, hoping that the movement of his lips spurred her on. 

She was about to say something, Harry could see it on every inch of her face, but then there were footsteps entering the room and the sound of her name being called that Gianna snapped back, pulling away from him so quickly that it felt like the wind had been knocked out of him. 

“Oh there you are,” Gemma said, relieved. “Your mum's going to go searching for you any minute, wanted to find you first.”

“Yeah, same,” Harry nodded as he tried to casually run a hand through the top of his hair and gently tuck a stray piece behind his ear. Only it didn’t feel casual at all, the only thing he felt was fidgety. “I’ll go distract her,” he added as he pushed his hands into the pockets of his black jeans and turned to leave. 

The truth was, he felt like he couldn’t breath and he wasn’t even quite sure why. Gianna was hard to read, she was really good at bottling things up which left him completely unsure where he stood. She told him she wasn’t interested, and he understood why. Things could get complicated and that was the last thing she needed in her life at the moment. But then she looked at him like that, and her eyes - reluctant but burning into his skin - said something completely different. 

He wasn’t going to push her, though.  She needed a friend and that was what he was going to be to her.  So he went to Lisa’s side and talked her ear off about a recent show he had watched on Discovery, and watched with a small smirk as Gianna’s mum pretended to be interested.  

Luckily, the rest of the party went on as normal. And even more so, Gianna and Harry didn’t have a moment alone together until the goodbyes. There was the slightest bit of hesitancy when they went to leave a kiss on each other's cheeks, something they and their families always did when parting ways.  

It was a blip of a moment really, but it was enough to have chills running across Gianna’s skin just from the barely there scruff of Harry’s cheek brushing hers. He gave a small, but reassuring smile when he pulled away, a soft squeeze of her arm just before he followed Gemma out the door. 

It was insane, but she couldn’t stop thinking about him the rest of the night. While she helped her parents clean up, while they talked her ear off about their upcoming travel plans, while she finally peeled herself away from them at nearly midnight, while she drove back to Gemma and Harry’s place, while she tiptoed inside and locked up behind her. 

“Hey,” Gemma called from where she was curled up on the couch in front of the tv. “Rest of the night go okay?” 

“Oh, yeah. The usual really.” Gianna sighed as she slipped her studded heels off, her limbs feeling heavy from the long day. 

“I’ll be out of your bedroom in a mo, this is almost over,” Gemma said half heartedly, eyes still trained on the tv. 

Gianna didn’t bother with a response, but instead wandered down the hallway to Gemma’s room to steal some clothes. She couldn’t help but glance at Harry’s bedroom door, the light peeking through the bottom like a temptation. 

She wondered what he was doing in there as she changed, if he heard her come in, if he could sense her in the proximity somehow.  Her fingertips prickled with curiosity and her mind tiptoed along the ledge of “what if” and “maybe” and “why not”.  

He offered.  All she had to do was accept.  

When she stepped out of Gemma’s room with an oversized white tee shirt and minty fresh teeth, she immediately noticed that Harry’s light was no longer illuminating the edges of his door, the room seemingly pitch black.  

Maybe that was a sign from the universe or something.  Maybe, she thought, she should just quit while she’s ahead.  

Her makeshift bed was all ready for her in the living room, Gemma having neatly arranged blankets and pillows on the couch where she was previously sitting.  That was one thing about both of the Style’s siblings, they never made you feel unwelcome. 

“Alright love, let me know if you need anything,” Gemma spoke as she placed her empty tea cup in the sink.  

“Thanks, Gems. Seriously. Don’t know what I’d do without you.”  

Gemma smiled warmly as she walked over, wrapping Gianna in a quick hug before heading for the hallway.  

“Oh,” she turned around quickly, “Harry spoke to Steve after we left.”  

Gianna’s heart stopped, bracing herself for whatever transpired between them.  “How bad was it?”  

“Eh,” Gemma shrugged, chuckling lightly as she continued. “Harry yelled a lot, but he’ll be gone for a few hours tomorrow morning so you can go get your stuff. We’ll go with you to help.”  

Gianna released a heavy sigh, overwhelmed with her friend's generosity. “You guys don’t have to do that.”  

“Too bad because we are,” Gemma quickly replied. “Harry told Steve he was coming with you anyway, just in case he decides to try anything like what went on today. Plus, the more hands means the faster you can get out of there.”  

Gianna gave her a pouty smile.  

“Don’t look at me like that,” Gemma laughed. “You would do the same for me.” 

“I would,” she agreed.  

“Besides, Harry’s the one that made it happen. He just told me the plan before he went to bed.”  Gemma smoothed down the baby hairs sticking up at the front of Gianna’s hairline, a small, sympathetic smile on her face. “I love you, get some sleep.”  

Gianna didn’t know what she did to deserve a friend like Gemma, but she was grateful every single day for whatever cosmic blip happened in the universe to force them together. 

“Love you,” Gianna murmured as she watched Gemma head for her room, finding herself standing completely still as she watched her bedroom door close softly at the end of the hall.  

And then she was left in silence with nothing but her thoughts. Which if anyone could hear inside her brain, they’d know they were anything but silent.  

She went to plop down on the couch, letting out a long, deep sigh as she sunk into the cushions.  

Harry didn’t need to put his neck out like that, but he did. His exact reasoning, Gianna wasn’t sure. But he appeared beside her at that party like it was second nature. He took it upon himself to find a way for her to safely get her things from her former home, and she was grateful. He was a good friend. She knew that already, but it was even more prominent now.  

She thought starting something with Harry would be harder on her than not. She thought she didn’t need the added stress.  But he never showed any indication that he would make anything stressful for her. If anything, the only thing he showed was the opposite.  

A distraction, an escape, a good time.   

That was all she needed right now.  And in a way, that was exactly what Harry was offering.  

So she pulled herself up from the couch with purpose, and padded down the hall to the door on the right with her heart beating wildly in her chest.  Her fingers brushed along the grain of wood, a last chance effort to back away with none the wiser.  

But she didn’t want to.  As ridiculous as it seemed, Harry made her feel something that she desperately needed at the moment.  

So she jumped.  

It was the softest tap, her knuckle meeting the wood so lightly she was positive he wouldn’t even hear it.  Her breath was shaky as she did it again, this time the tiniest bit harder, more sure.  

There was no sign of movement behind the door.  She waited with baited breath, tapping her knuckles a third time, squeezing her eyes closed, begging for Gemma not to hear.  

But nothing.  No sound, no movement, no Harry.  

Maybe he had snuck out at some point, while she was changing perhaps.  Or maybe he had decided she was right after all, that this - she - was too complicated for him right now.  

She drew one last small pattern on the door, her temple pressed against the framing before she dropped her hand and pulled away.  

And then in a moment of pure heart stopping relief, the door swung open and a large hand wrapped around her forearm, tugging her inside the dark room so quickly she felt lightheaded.  

Her back was pressed up against the wall beside the door as Harry eased it closed quietly.  Gianna caught her breath, her chest rising and falling sharply as she took him in.  He was in nothing but boxer briefs sitting low on his hips, his hair pulled up in a bun, his skin reflecting against the light of the muted tv in the corner of his room.  His bed was unmade, the spot he was previously occupying obvious, what with blankets thrown to the one corner and pillows propped up against the center of the headboard.  

Harry was looking at her expectantly when she turned her face back to him, but he didn’t say anything, eyes simply scanning the features of Gianna’s face.  

“How’d you know it was me?” Gianna murmured softly. 

“I didn’t.”  His tone was neutral, but his eyes were blazing, even in the darkness.  

She couldn’t pull her eyes from him, and all she could think about was taking the half a step needed to be pressed against his soft skin. 

“Hoped it was,” Harry added after a beat of silence, his eyes falling to her mouth. “Didn’t know, but hoped.” 

The words barely made their way from his lips before Gianna was taking the small step to connect their mouths.  And it was as if  Harry was waiting for it, because his hand immediately cupped her jaw as he took his own step, her back pressing against the wall once more.  

His lips were warm, and they tasted familiar this time. That thought surprised Gianna somehow - this wasn’t the first time, and although it was new, it was comforting in a way she wouldn’t be able to explain if she tried.  

He kissed her with his entire body, every inch of him pressed tightly against her, pinning her to the wall.  His tongue teased her bottom lip, and without second thought, she met him with her own, sparks shooting across her skin in the form of goosebumps and anticipation.  

The soft groan that escaped his throat as he pulled her even closer lit her on fire, his fingers digging harder into the soft curves of her hips.  

“Fuck, I want you,” Harry sighed breathlessly, his lips trailing across Gianna’s jaw and down her neck.  

She scratched her nails down his back, his body only pressing against hers more in response. “Want you too,” she whispered, like it was a confession, as if her actions hadn’t already exposed her.  

His lips burned against her throat, sucking deliberate kisses to her sensitive skin as his hands smoothed up and down her sides, gripping here, pulling there. She could feel him, hard and needy against her pelvis, and it made her stomach twist with desire. 

“This has to stay between us,” Gianna spoke gently up to the ceiling. “No one can know.”  

“Good,” Harry stamped a kiss to her jaw, pulling her face to his by the back of her neck, his lips brushing hers with his words. “Can be our secret.”  

And it was, he made sure of it.  No one would know what went on between them under the darkness of the night, hidden behind the walls of his room, disguised behind their eyes in the daylight.  

It would just be theirs, whatever it was, for as long as Harry could help it.  

But that’s the thing about secrets… they always find a way out.  

a/n: *nervous laughter* Heyyy guysss lol so! There we have it! It’s happening, it’s fine, everything’s fine. The biggest thanks to the best babes @andwhenshesays​ @oh-honey-styles​ @harrytheehottie​ @real-work-of-art​ @haute-romance-quotidienne​ @all-things-fic​ for the comments and laughs and support and encouragement - you guys are the real ones. I hope everyone enjoyed this one! Much more to come *more nervous laughter* lol thank you for reading! I hope you’ve had a great friday! xxx 

next | masterlist | ask

[equinoxum]

CURAXU RATES GENSHIN LADIES

welcome to part two where i turn my attention to the women of genshin also reminder that I haven’t played since Xiao’s first banner so. have mercy.

rating of genshin men HERE

Aloy: i know NOOOOOOOOTHING about her. she’s cute tho.

Amber: petition for the community to stop shitting on Amber. i can’t play her because i’m bad at bow characters but she is so dear to me.

Barbara: has saved my ass more times than i can count. love her. 

Beidou: sexy pirate lady goddamn. carries my party. i think she could benchpress me and that’s incredibly hot you don’t even understand. she is what i want to be. i would kiss her.

Diona: funny little cat girl... beloved. also cannot play her because bow character but i would kiss her little head if she would permit it.

Eula: i have no idea what is happening over here and i am too scared to ask. pretty eyes though.

Fischl: can we get a no fear shakespeare edition just for what comes out of your mouth. i love you but what the FUCK are you saying to me. 

Ganyu: beloved... stunning... beautiful... absolute cutie. deserves the world and all the qixing flowers she wants.

Hu Tao: i like your funny shenanigans graveyard girl. calling Zhongli “peepaw” gets her like several bonus points its so fucking funny

Jean: i pulled her randomly at one point and went HOLY SHIT. someone please get this woman a nap and a pay raise.

Kamisato Ayaka: pretty ladyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy. yeah. 

Keqing: first thing she did with her vision was try to break it. icon. i think that’s so funny. god gives you superpowers and you go “fuck you, actually.”

Klee: MY BELOVED... ABSOLUTE TANK. i think she should be given more bombs, actually. let her invent nuclear warfare, she’ll use it on the fish.

Kujou Sara: bird. i know nothing about her i’m sorry.

La Signora: bitch (affectionate) rest in piece girl 

Lisa: once was told that she calls herself your big sister in other translations and that lives in my head rent free. the death flags tho. girl. uh oh.

Mona: a PREPARED QUEEN. took one look at Scaramouche and went “absolutely not”. i like her hat. every Mona cosplay I’ve seen was stunning.

Ningguang: should be a five star i swear to god. literally my favorite catalyst user. the only geo user i can manage. if i put more obstacles on the battlefield i’m going to die. also she’s sexy as shit.

Noelle: promote her you fucking cowards. she deserves it. she could ALSO benchpress me.

Paimon: wish they didn’t change Paimon’s voice. they are dear to me. i like their funny little words.

Qiqi: i’m going to kiss you on your little head and give you the best day ever.

Raiden Shogun: i think if i looked at her wrong she would take me out back and shoot me. tiddy sword tho. she should’ve been a sword user. 

Rosaria: i swear to god they said she was a fucking vampire at one point. what happened to that. i have the same energy about my religion as she does ngl.

Sangonomiya Kokomi: PRETTY DESIGN... i know very little about her but i think she could probably kill me?

Sayu: baby... nap time.

Shenhe: SEXY..... LOVE the homicidal rage. best auntie probably.

Sucrose: tell me about your cool science experiments miss... you are very sweet and cute.

Xiangling: the original pyro polearm. the original polearm. the bestest <3 

Xinyan: YEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH i think she and Itto would be besties. i want her to play music for me. 

Yae Miko: sexy. stunning. if she teased me i think i would explode.

Yanfei: cutie.... legally blonde energy. fuck it up girl.

Yoimiya: who are you. cute design.

Yun Jin: also know nothing about her. pretty tho.

[i-am-bitterly-jittery]

Simply Meant To Be (pt 1)

An expansion on this soulmate blurb (no Virgil in this one though)

[part 2]

Rating: teen

Word Count: 2130

Pairings: Roceit, Intrulogical

Warnings: minor swearing

~~~START~~~

Roman is a romantic, that’s just a fact. He loves love. Any day he gets to watch two soulmates meet each other is automatically a good day. The second best day of his life was getting to watch Remus meet their soulmate when they were sixteen. The best day of his life is reserved for when he meets his own soulmate. 

It hasn’t happened yet, but it will. One day. 

For now, Roman is content with being colorblind (well not content, but he’s learned to not let it bother him too much). Remus and Logan are actually a huge help with that. Logan has even gone as far as to make a list of all of Roman’s clothing and includes a chart of what pieces do and do not go together based on Remus’ (admittedly professional) opinions, and Remus actually went through and labeled all of Roman’s makeup with what color it is and what kind of look it should go with. 

Anyone who vaguely knew the twins might think that Remus would use this opportunity to mess with Roman, but Remus knows how much Roman hates being colorblind; they would never lie to Roman about colors — about other things? Sure, but not colors. 

Remus and Logan met when Logan moved to their school from Georgia. One day Remus had claimed that there was a trail of color — they would later learn that it was navy blue, Logan’s soon-to-be favorite color — leading from the parking lot, to the main office, to the east wing. They’d chosen to skip first period in order to follow it, having never seen the trail before, and Roman, being unwilling to miss the opportunity to watch his brother meet their soulmate, followed him. Remus had walked right into a physics classroom, and straight for a boy with short curls and thick glasses that Roman had never seen before and declared him their soulmate. 

Roman got detention for skipping first period, Remus got a pass on account of meeting their soulmate. 

Most people met their soulmates before they turned twenty-five, after all, how difficult can it be when all you have to do is find the trail of color they leave behind them everywhere they go and follow it?

Well, as Roman has learned in his thirty-five years of being alive, it can be pretty freaking difficult. 

As children, Roman and Remus had wandered their town far and wide looking for colorful trails, and even after they met Logan, Remus continued to go with Roman as he searched, even if they couldn’t see Roman’s soulmate’s trail themself. As soon as Roman graduated from high school, he took the customary gap year that most everybody who hadn’t met their soulmates yet takes to search for their soulmates. 

He never caught a glimpse of anything. 

“What if I missed them somehow? What if I saw their trail and just didn’t realize it?” Roman whines one day at his usual Saturday brunch — because they’re adults goddammit — with Remus and Logan. 

“You wouldn’t have missed them, Ro bro,” Remus assures him as they do every time Roman starts lamenting about having not met his soulmate yet. “Colors are so unmistakable that there’s no way you’ll miss them.”

“And even if you are genetically colorblind — which is unlikely considering Remus is not,” Logan continues before Roman has a chance to respond. “I have read multiple papers that state that soultrails will still make themselves distinct. There are multiple accounts of the trails emitting light, absorbing light, or even emitting sound. All of that is, of course, on top of the translucent cloud that follows your soulmate’s every move. I find it improbable that you, of all people, would not have noticed a soultrail.”

“Yeah, I know you guys are right,” Roman sighs. “I just want to meet them! I’ve travelled all over the place looking for them, where are they?”

Remus says nothing, which Roman is grateful for because Remus has a habit of saying dark jokes in an attempt to lighten the mood, and Roman really doesn’t need to hear them suggest that his soulmate died in a car crash or something right now. Besides, the question is rhetorical. If Remus could see Roman’s soulmate’s trail, then he’s sure they would have spent the last nineteen years looking for them too. 

“Sorry, I guess I brought the mood down,” Roman apologizes. “How are you guys?”

Remus opens their mouth.  

“The PG version, please!” Roman rushes to say before Remus can mentally scar him. Again. 

Remus closes their mouth again. 

Logan rolls his eyes fondly and proceeds to get Roman up to date on all the high school gossip. 

“- and of course the middle school’s robotics instructor left suddenly to follow her soulmate to England, so I have taken over as their advisor until a suitable replacement can be hired.”

“How is that?” Roman asks, cringing at the thought of having to deal with middle schoolers. Kids in general kind of freak him out, but middle schoolers especially. 

“It has been fine, they are not as adept as my high school students, but of course for many of them this is their introduction to such things, so I’m trying to be patient and supportive.”

Roman snorts at that. He’s sure Logan is a good teacher, but his brother-in-law can be a bit short tempered, and has a habit of talking down to people who don’t understand what he’s trying to tell them. 

“Don’t laugh at him!” Remus jumps in to defend their soulmate. “Logan’s great with kids, it’s adults he has a problem with.”

“They are much too old to be as ignorant as they are,” Logan defends himself resolutely. 

“Of course they are, Sugar Butt.” Logan cringes slightly at the pet name, which is really all Remus is ever looking for with their pet names. 

“Anyway,” Logan says, somewhat forcefully. “There is one student who seems to know what he is doing, but he doubts himself at every turn. I have tried telling him that he is doing everything correctly, but he is… reluctant to trust himself.”

“Maybe as the year goes on he’ll gain confidence,” Remus suggests. Logan hums in acknowledgment, and Roman takes that as the end of talking about Logan’s students. “Oh! Ro bro! Did you hear the theater got a new makeup artist?”

“Finally!” Roman groans, thinking back on their last makeup artist. “I swear Lisa was trying to poke my eyes out every time she did my eyeliner!”

“Oh she probably was,” Remus comments offhandedly. “I told her — back when she first started with the theater — that you thought that makeup artisting was a waste of time.”

“WHAT!?” Roman screeches, gaining the attention of the staff and other patrons. 

“Roman,” Logan warns, growing uncomfortable under the curious stares. 

“How could you do that to me?” Roman hisses at a much quieter volume. “I never said that! She hated me for five years because of you!”

Remus shrugs, slurping the end of their drink through their straw loudly. 

“You better not make the new artist hate me!”

“I would never!” Remus gasps, clutching their heart dramatically. 

Roman glares. 

“Cross my heart!” Remus insists with a much too innocent expression. 

“I hate you.”

Remus just gasps again before dissolving into uncontrollable giggles. 

 ~~~

There isn’t rehearsal on Sunday, so Roman doesn’t have to go in to work. Unfortunately, he is saddled by the knowledge that Remus — as the theater’s costume designer — does have to go in today, and therefore has a whole day to lie to the new makeup artist about him. 

Come Monday, all Roman can do is hope that Remus hasn’t done irreparable damage. 

“Calm down,” Remus orders when they come to pick Roman up. “They weren’t even in yesterday; I haven’t met them yet.”

“I’m not letting you ruin my relationship with the makeup artist again,” Roman pouts. 

“Just try and stop me!” Remus cackles. 

Once they reach the theater, Roman practically jumps from the car before Remus has even parked. 

“REAL MATURE!” Remus yells after him as he sprints for the theater door. 

“THIS ONE IS GOING TO LIKE ME!” Roman yells back. 

“NOT IF I MEET THEM FIRST!”

Roman skids to a stop as soon as he reaches the lobby. Not expecting their twin to just be standing there, Remus slams into his back, throwing them both to the ground. 

“The fuck, Ro Bro?” Remus demands as they flop off their brother and onto their back. 

“I-I see it,” Roman whispers, voice filled with wonder. 

“See what?” Remus demands. “The lobby? You’ve seen the lobby bef-oh!”

The awestruck look on Roman’s face finally clicks, and Remus bounces excitedly. 

“You see it? Like it it?” Remus scrambles to their feet, dragging Roman up with them. “Where? Which way does it go?”

“It looks like how the sun feels,” Roman says instead of answering. “All light and warm and good.”

“Roman Kingsley you tell me which way your soulmate went this instant!” Remus demands loudly. This is important dammit!

“It goes from there,” Roman points to the side door that’s usually used by staff that take the bus to work. “To there,” the door leading backstage. 

“Excellent!” Remus cheers dragging Roman forward. “Time for your date with destiny!”

Remus throws the backstage door open dramatically, but Roman groans as he realizes that his soulmate’s trail is going in literally every direction, making it impossible to know which way they went last. 

“Well?” Remus asks expectantly. 

“Either my soulmate is familiarizing themself to the theater, or they knew I’d be here and are trying to spite me,” Roman answers somewhat dejectedly. “I can’t tell which trail is freshest.”

“Well shit.” Remus scans each entry as though Roman’s soulmate will just happen to wander in (plausible, considering they’ve trailed all over the theater). 

“Hey guys!” A voice calls from by the dressing rooms. The brothers turn to find Thomas, the owner of the theater and their boss. 

“Thomas!” Remus cries gleefully. “My absolute favoritest person in the world behind my incredibly sexy soulmate!”

“Okay, so you want something,” Thomas answers with an amused grin. Remus always piles on the compliments when they want something.

“Who’s new today?” Roman asks, more to the point. 

“Like, in the theater?” Thomas asks. “Just Janus, the new makeup artist. Why?” Thomas’s eyes widen as if he’s just had a realization. “You’re not going to prank him or something, are you? He’s very talented, I can’t have you scaring him away already!”

“Roman’s soulmate is the new makeup artist? Lame,” Remus pouts. “How am I supposed to trick him into hating Roman?”

“Soulmate?”

“My soulmate is in the building, Thomas!” Roman declares, striking a dashing pose before deflating a little. “Except his trail leads all over the place, I don’t know where he went!”

“Oh… well,” Thomas looks to each direction Janus could have gone, but he clearly doesn’t know which way Janus would have gone. “He said he wanted to get a lay of the land before everyone got here…”

“I got this!” Remus pipes up suddenly before cupping their hands around their mouth like a megaphone and screaming at the top of their lungs. “JANUS!”

“What?” A faint, far-off voice calls back, followed but the sound of hurried footsteps. “Thomas?”

“Dressing rooms!” Thomas calls back. 

Footsteps thunder down the stairs, and all too soon a man appears on them. 

The first time you lay eyes on your soulmate, you begin to see the world in color. Everyone’s experience is different: Remus said that as soon as he laid eyes on Logan, the world exploded violently into vibrant shades. Logan said that colors appeared one at time, quickly, but slow enough for him to notice. Roman’s mom said that her soulmate’s trail swelled to fill the space before things slowly began to take on their proper color, and his mama said that it was almost like everything had always had color, she just hadn’t bothered to notice before. 

For Roman, the man before him is painted in vibrant shades while the background remains in grayscale, but as soon as the man makes eye contact, his colors begin to slowly bleed throughout the space. 

The man’s eyes widen as he stares, slack-jawed at Roman — no doubt mirroring Roman’s own expression. 

“I’m Roman,” Roman says quickly, before Remus can forever ruin his first meeting with his soulmate by making a dick joke or something. 

The man smiles and Roman immediately decides that his favorite color is whatever this guy’s eyes are — they’re hazel, but Roman will later change his favorite color to red after realizing how stunning and bold the color is when it isn’t just another shade of gray. 

“Janus.”

~~~TO BE CONTINUED~~~

General Taglist:

@royalty-of-all-things-snuggly

@pixelated-pineapple

[royallyprincesslilly]

Title: Love, Maybe? {45}

Chris Evans X Reader OFC Vixen Giovanni

Warning: None 😊

Word Count: 2.8K

Summary: After a night of drunkenness you wake up next to warm, hot as hell body, a migraine and no memory of the night before. When you come to realize that the hot body belongs to none other than Hollywood’s golden boy Chris Evans you freak out. As events unfold you become even more panicked to find out you got married in your drunken haze. What else is there to do but get it annulled, right? Before walking away, you share one more night of molten kisses and passion. Three years later you are still living with the repercussions of your brash decisions, but the surprises don’t stop there. The past has a way of coming back and have you questioning is this fate that you’ve been running from, hell could it have been love, maybe?

NOTE: **Italic texts is an inner Vixen thought. Bold Italic texts is an inner Chris thought. 

**Loosley Edited/Proofread**

**Interactive**

Thank you guys for reading!!!! If you enjoyed this please LIKE, COMMENT, REBLOG. 😊❤❤️

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Chapter 45:  Full Circle 

The flashing of the cameras was everywhere and even from inside the limo you could hear the shouting of the paps. It was finally the night you’d worked your ass off for the last few months. Finally, the night to show off your vision, time for you to reap the rewards. You took several breathes trying to calm your nerves in prep for when the car stopped, and you had to step out into the sea of fame. You were nervous.

 The last few days you’d had the good fortune to get away for a few days. You, Chris and Ella went to Napa and enjoyed some quiet time away from prying eyes and were able to connect as a family. It was like no time passed at all you fell into sync like it was a normal occurrence. Ella was overjoyed and happily hung all over Chris. From when the sun rose she was glued to his side. You didn’t mind, it was cute to watch, and you couldn’t help but feel grateful. Once she was snuggly tucked into bed he was yours and he used the time to worship every single inch of your body with precision. Though the two of you easily physically connected it was clear that the two of you would need time to seamlessly fit emotionally. You had no doubt that you’d get there eventually because you knew what you felt for him was real, though it still scared you.

 By the time the three of you got back down to LA, most of your nerves were gone and you felt closer to him than you had in a while. When you and Chris broke the news to your family about the divorce being off and an engagement in the works they were over the moon, especially your mother. She must have shouted “thank you sweet baby Jesus” at least ten times. She even confessed to Chris that she was running out of hope that you’d ever get married. He only laughed.

Chris’ family seemed ecstatic when you sat with him for a FaceTime call to clue them in and bring them up to speed. His mother, Lisa could not stop smiling and it almost made you cry to see how they all genuinely looked happy. It was unexpected considering how meeting them had gone.  

 A soft tap to the glass of the limo brought your attention back to the event. The door opened and one of the ushers helped you out onto the carpet. As soon as you stepped out the cameras flashed blinding you. It took you several moments to adjust and develop a strategy. You slowly walked down the carpet and smiled at the cameras and posed for them to get their shots. They shout your name left and right, it was difficult to look everywhere at once.

 When you made it further down the carpet the interviews began.

 “Vixen, this is your night. How do you feel?”

 “Amazing. I am so excited to be here. Everyone has worked so hard to get to tonight and I can’t wait for everyone to experience it.”

 “This is your second restaurant. What would you say is the aesthetic for this one?”

 “Ethereal, elegant, comfortable. I really wanted to give diners an experience not just with the food but with the décor and ambiance as well. So this is a whole bring experience and I hope everyone has a good time--an engaging time.”

 “I see you have quite a beautiful ring on a particular finger, anything to say about it?”

 You looked down to your ring finger at the classic, but expensive engagement ring you wore. Your smile could not be hidden.

 “Um, well no. nothing to say about it. Thank you.”

 You walked away and continued going down the line of eager reports and paps and answered their questions that was about the restaurant and the night, anything else you graciously evaded. After a few interviews, Kassius joined you for pictures and a few words where he praised your professionalism, eye for detail, skill and grace during the entire project.

 After forty minutes your cheeks hurt, and you were more than ready to get things moving. The restaurant was full and loud. You smiled at diners as you passed and thanked people for coming out and posed for pictures. When you made it toward the back you saw your family and Chris and Ella in the middle of them. He wore a sleek wine-colored tux with a bow tie that matched Ella’s white dress with wine colored details. When they saw you, they clapped as you approached. When you got to them you each gave you hugs and congratulated you.

“Mama Yayyyy!” you smiled and kissed Ella all across her face. Chris leaned to you and kissed your cheek.

 “I am so proud of you.” You smiled and gazed in his deep blue eyes relishing the flutter of the butterflies in your belly.

 “All right, family, I have to get to work. Enjoy dinner.” You smiled and walked off to the kitchen where your staff waited. Once you stepped inside they got quiet.

 “Thank you everyone for your efforts that lead to tonight. Thank you for your faith in me and this vision I had, and I appreciate you taking a chance with me on this journey. May it be a fun, fulfilling and lucrative adventure. Are we ready to have fun?”

 They clapped and whooped giving you even more confidence then you changed and got to work crafting the dishes that you’d painstakingly put together over the last few months. You were so grateful that everything ran smoothly, there were no accidents, nothing burned, nothing that went wrong. You tried not to think about the reception of the dishes that were sent out, tried not to think of what they were saying in the dining area and tried to remain present in the kitchen and give every dish your all.

 Thankfully no one sent anything back, and every pass around the kitchen you made, everyone looked to be completely competent in what they were doing. By the time the kitchen service ended, and you were down to the last few plates of dessert you felt comfortable enough to leave it in the hands of your talented sous chef. You changed again and walked back out to the dining area. You slowly walked around and shook the hands of those who wanted to pay compliments to the chef. You made your rounds and chatted with each of them and thanked them for dining there.

 Everyone you spoke with expressed how much they loved the food and the experience the restaurant provided. The praise you received made you embarrassed, but you also felt appreciative for your accomplishment. When you made the turn to another reporter you were caught off guard when Ella tackled into your legs. Bending down you scooped her up and kissed her.

 “Hi princess, how are you?”

 “Good.”

 “How was the food?”

 “Yummy.” You smiled and looked back to the reporter.

 “A family affair tonight huh.”

 “Yes, I have every member of my family here, it’s a beautiful thing.”

 “I would definitely call tonight a success. I had the opportunity to taste some incredible things tonight. What was your inspiration?”

 “Good food, hearty food, rich foods, I love mixing and matching ingredients to create a whole new thing. I drew inspiration from many different regions, even the islands. I wanted to give the taste buds an experience and I really hope I accomplished that.

 “Da-da!”

 You looked back and saw Chris approaching. As he walked he drew the attention of everyone around. It was sexy and spoke of his aura. Your bottom teeth sank into your bottom lip. Your eyes drifted to the gold wedding band he wore, and you smiled wider. When he stood just behind you, you felt his arm around your waist. once he was there they continued snapping your pictures. Ella hugged you tightly looking back at Chris who gave her silly faces which she loved.

 "What do you think of tonight, Chris?"

“I think this is amazing. I was prepared for quite the experience and I was not disappointed. One thing with this beautiful human she does not disappoint.” You smiled and tried to keep a demure look on your face. you couldn’t lie it felt so good to hear him talk about you like this. It was a first.

 "How do you think it turned out?"

 “I think it turned out great. She did a wonderful job with everything in here and the food--,” he began giving a chefs kiss with his fingers. “The food was to die for.”

 “Yummy food,” Ella reiterated. You smiled and kissed her again.

 "Rumor is you're married. Any comment?" Chris locked eyes with you then smiled a full smile, one that you mirrored before you pinched your lips.

 “Tonight is about her and what an amazing accomplishment this is for her and all she's worked for in her career. This place is incredible, and the food was outstanding. So, the only thing I'll say is we’re happily married.”

 "Does that mean Chris Evans is finally in love, maybe?" Another smile spread across his face before he pulled you closer, holding you against his chest.

 “No maybe about it.” Again, your eyes met, and everyone faded away.

   -Chris-

 Life is funny. The one thing you swear you don’t want and the thing you run from can turn out to be the one thing you actually need. If anyone would have asked him three years ago if he’d be happily married three years later to the woman of his dreams a woman he loved more than the world with a beautiful daughter he would have said they were nuts. Thinking about what a difference three years made it really showed that nothing is impossible and even though we think we know what’s best fate usually has other plans.

 He softly brushed Ella’s hair from her forehead and watched her for a few more minutes. Her bedroom here was different than the one in Boston but she’d picked out everything and loved playing interior designer. He hoped she’d grow to love it as she loved her room in San Francisco. Placing a soft kiss on her temple he walked out and switched on her night light. As he walked through his home he turned off lights and double checked the alarm was armed and his entire world was safe.

 As he walked out back to the view that sold him he saw your back turned. You’d always loved this view. Once he was got to you he slinked behind you and wrapped his arms around you. your moan was low and breathy.

 “She's fast asleep.” He placed a tender kiss on your neck and trailed it down to your exposed shoulder.

 “It was a long night,” you responded burying deeper into his arms. He’d never get over how good it felt to hold you like this. He’d lost hope he ever would. Squeezing you in his embrace he dropped a few more kisses on your skin.

 The silence between the two of you stretched, but it wasn’t an uncomfortable silence, it was a silence that brought peace, one that made him feel content for the first time in years.

 “Chris,” you began.

 “Mmm.”

 You took a deep breath and he knew you were preparing to speak. He felt slight anxiety over what you were going to say.

 “I’m sorry,” you whispered. He almost didn’t hear you.

 “For what?”

 “Everything, for not telling you about Ella when I found out I was pregnant, for the last six months. How I treated you, all the back and forth, all the pain I caused you. The things I said to you last month. My god, I never meant to hurt you.”

 He turned your face to him and kissed you gently. As soon as his lips met yours, he could feel the goosebumps break out on your skin. When his pulled back, he nuzzled your nose then kissed it. All of this felt natural to him. “It’s okay,” he whispered.

 “It’s not Chris, I was—horrible,” you added.

 “Okay, yes you hurt me—a lot. I don’t think anyone has hurt me the way you have. That alone spoke to me saying that you matter to me when no other before you had. That pain showed me what mattered to me. My career is great and everything but Vixen you and Ella mean so much more to me. So yeah the pain sucked, I’ve never had my heart broken until you.”

 It was full honesty, his truth. You looked down and to look away but he wouldn’t let you. He wasn’t having it. “I’m not angry with you Vixen, I’m just glad we have this third try.”

 “Me too,” you whispered.

 “Now, we just have to work on those flight instincts.” You smiled just as he did. “Don’t run away from me again sweetheart.” The expression on your face made his heart skip a beat. That was a first, he thought. The name felt natural, it felt like it was meant just for you. Again, he kissed you sweetly but passionately.

 “I'm proud of you Vix. You have no idea. Everything tonight was amazing, you really set the bar high for future restaurants.”

 “Thank you.”

 “So, what’s next for the woman who has broken the glass ceiling that enclosed her? What does the love of my life have on the agenda next?” He nuzzled his bearded cheek against yours smiling when you shivered.

 “Well, the cooking show, then another restaurant, maybe a line of pots, cutlery, food products, to begin.”

 “Wow. Sounds like a busy few years.”

 “From your lips to God’s ears,” you added.

 “When do you plan on having these five remaining kids?” You snorted and laughed loudly. It echoed over the backyard and into the night air around you.

 “You may be nearing old age, but I am still in my prime.” His laughter was loud, and it boomed in the backyard.

 “Plus, I never said I couldn’t do all of this while being barefoot and pregnant.”

 He smiled thinking of you that way. He couldn’t wait to see it. Tightening his hold around you, he moaned.

 “There is one thing I want first,” he breached.

 “You sure want a lot don’t you Mr. Evans.”

 “Damn right I do Mrs. Evans.”

 “Okay, shoot your shot.” He kissed your ear, then your jaw down to your neck and then your shoulder. Each kiss he placed elicited a moan from you that got sultrier and sultrier.

 “A wedding.” You looked back to him and searched his eyes.

 “I want to get married again, for real this time.” Slowly you smiled.

 “Really?” He nodded his head completely sure about what he wanted. He’d never wanted anything more. The idea of seeing you walk down the aisle to him made his throat tighten from the emotion bubbling within him.

 “Yes, and I know the perfect date,” he informed with a smirk. “August 15th, the first day that started it all, the day fate smiled on us.” Just as the words came out, you crushed your lips to his and expertly kissed him lacing your fingers at the back of his head. He was the first to moan but once he did you followed suit.  

 “I love you,” he mumbled against your lips not wanting to stop the kiss to speak.

 “Show me,” you whispered in the same fashion.

 He didn’t need to be told twice. He stood then bent to scoop you into his arms and kissed you tenderly--passionately and allowed the intensity to build. It didn’t take long, it never did. As he carried you through the house up the stairs to the bedroom he pressed you on the door and pulled a guttural moan from you.

 “Do you still see them?” Knowing just what you were asking he looked around for the ghosts of your love, ghosts that still remained, but were now something else.

 “I think I'll always see them, only difference now is they don't haunt me.” You smiled before you kissed him again. When he laid you on his bed he lost himself in your soulful eyes. He’d always loved your eyes. They were the first things he missed.

 “You're irresistible, so fucking perfect!” They were the words he said to you three years ago, words he’d uttered truthfully, as he was filled with earthshattering desire for you. The desire he felt now superseded that of the past. What he felt for you now could only be summed up with the word soulmate.  

 “I'm never going to get you out of my system. I'll never be over you, Vixen. You're my forever home." Your arms and legs wrapped around him and he finally knew what it meant for someone to be your home. You were his, you’d always been and would always be his home.

                                                         The End

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Closing Note: Thank you, EVERYONE, for all your support with this fic. Thank you for reading, sharing, commenting, reblogging, sending asks about it. I LOVE ALL OF YOU SO MUCH for it!❤❤

I appreciate each and every one of you!!!❤❤

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[asotin]

what're your thoughts on castlevania (the netflix show, not the game, ive never played the game) what do you like, what don't you like? make it as long as you want. i don't care if i have to scroll for 5 minutes. go feral (personally trevor is extremely hot and i would like to date sypha. i'm not really into alucard's whole sickly victorian child aesthetic, yknow?)

oh god this is way too long, but you did say to make it as long as i want, and i have a lot of thoughts that i need to inflict on the world

i played two castlevania games, both from the nintendo gameboy era, so please don’t get mad at me, gamers

details below the cut, but since i’ll be talking about season three, i need to preface this with content warnings for mentions of: graphic violence, rape and sexual violence, racism, and the holocaust

before i get into it, i usually don’t go for alucard-type characters either, but knowing that he was redesigned to be bishounen sexy specifically because the boring, middle aged man look he originally had in the games wasn’t appealing makes me enjoy him. and he’s fun with trevor and sypha

do like:

the voice acting

it’s all good. i can’t think of any characters whose voices were awkward or fit poorly. they don't make sypha’s va use the standard flat affect or false high voice women tend to be assigned, trevor sounds suitably worn out but not monotone, and alucard sounds exhausted but in a sexy way

and the spanish dub is killer, arguably superior

the animation & design

it isn’t full-on artsy, but it’s definitely got a distinctive style that’s easy to look at. the color use and effects are gorgeous. it’s a story set in the medieval era, and the mixture of desaturated and oversaturated elements works so well with that

dracula’s castle and the belmont bunker aren't revolutionary in design, but they didn't need to be. they're suitably creepy and empty, and i enjoyed them

the monsters were unique enough to have obvious different types, and the scene where a monster commits blasphemy in a church by accusing a priest of committing blasphemy was good writing

lisa

she shows up to a stranger’s spooky home and scolds him for being rude. she really looked an ancient vampire in the face, told him he had no manners, then had a kid with him. what a phenomenal woman. 11/10, no notes

“start with me, and i’ll start with you.” you know what? i’d fall in love, too

dracula

this ancient, unfriendly vampire let a human woman walk into his home and tell him he’s got no manners. and that made him fall in love with her. just like that. lisa walked in and handed him his ass, and dracula thought “oh i love her”. and when she was killed (more on this in the bad section), he raised literal hell to destroy the world for doing it

speaking of lisa being killed, it fucks me up that it happened because she convinced him to leave the castle and experience the world. he left her alone to see what she loved so much, only to come back and find that the people he’d come to like- the people lisa had loved so much it drove her to help in a way that got her killed- had burned her at the stake. i love a good tragedy, and that’s good tragedy

the way he weeps when he has to fight alucard?? during a showdown in their home?? the “i must already be dead” moment in alucard’s childhood bedroom??? when he speaks to lisa about killing their boy, her greatest gift to him??? poetic cinema.

the trio’s dynamic

three bisexuals with two total brain cells and only alucard bothers using them. incredible

i went so hard for this ot3. it's right there and so good

sypha

she initially seems to be assigned the role of the adult™️ ie she's the only woman and gets stuck being responsible, but surprise! she’s just as annoying and dumb as alucard and trevor. she dropped a castle she didn’t understand on the ground and didn’t think too hard about it. then she argued about breaking it. i love her

if we don’t get an ot3, then she needs to have a dumb gf

alucard

he's got a stupidly low neckline and lower pants. they really leaned into ayami kojima’s redesign, as they should have. his little curl annoys me, though. why the fuck does he have a random section of hair that’s like three inches long when the rest is shoulder length or longer? love that he really looks like lisa

if you say he's canonically bisexual and polyamorous, no he isn't. yes he is. no he isn't :)

trevor

disgusting. a nasty man whose appearance mirrors his state of mind. he's 50 mental illnesses in a dirty jacket and his coping mechanism is… alcohol? maybe? he’s a mess, and i dig it

him trying his trick of kneeing alucard in the balls during their fight? and finding out it doesn't work? (which…… why doesn't it……?) juvenile but suitable

hector

his love of animals makes him my favorite. normally, i won’t touch anything with this much animal death, but i’m willing to set that aside because hector loves them so much. he’s so sweet and kind, and he loves his monster pets

yes he sided with dracula and has some really fucked up ideas about what constitutes humane treatment of people, and yet i love him. 11/10, but i have a lot of notes

isaac

i support him, including his murdering and his decision to support dracula. dracula throwing him out of the castle to save him was so cruel in that it was an attempt at kindness from a man who hated the whole world, but it was against isaac’s wishes

his time with the captain was great

idk enough about islam to know if he's portrayed correctly and haven’t seen any complaints, but given the show’s track record……… i wouldn’t be surprised if it’s not great

the forging

very cool. fresh and interesting! hector creating pet friends is cute and heartbreaking. love isaac for his dedication to reducing, reusing, and recycling

season 2’s big battle with all those vampires

the new version of “bloody tears” is phenomenal

this goes back to the animation, but listen……. it's so good. i loved the smoke vampire, and alucard’s fluid wolf transformations. his flying sword looked really good, and incorporating them together? super good to watch. and trevor’s whip?

the type and level of violence are suitable for what it is. it would be weird for a gritty show like this to be bloodless, but i don't think it would work if it were bloody to the extent of a slasher. it's also more clean violence, if that makes sense. you don’t linger just to look at gore; you see it because stabbing someone spills blood. the games weren't about extended, gritty scenes of realistic murder, so the show sticking with quick, slice and dice type fights fit with what i remembered of them

please watch this fight if you don’t remember it or haven’t seen it (part 1, part 2)

trevor’s whips

trevor’s weapons don’t follow the physics of normal whips, and they shouldn't. they’re heavily stylized and clearly a fantasy weapon, but they still have rules that they (mostly) have to obey. his morning star-whip hybrid in particular is so good 

it’s easy to follow, too. a lot of times, speedy weapons disappear, which is an understandable effect but one i find boring because there’s nothing for me to do. i’m just sitting on my ass with nothing to do

trevor’s whips don’t disappear. they’re fast, but you can always see them. and they have weight! you can see them slow down and gain speed. i don’t need physics to be real; i want movement to be pleasing, and that’s exactly what i get with the whips

don’t like:

fridging lisa

she could have been kidnapped (possibly make dracula think she was dead bc people want to lure out her scary demon husband, idk), then s2 could have ended with her and dracula reuniting as he died. she and alucard go on a trip together to attempt to make amends for the pain dracula wrought in lisa’s name. orrrr she dies a tragic death with him and we’re left to hope that they find each other in the afterlife. do vampires get to go to the afterlife? can alucard reintegrate? can he be happy with his new friends? or will he go back to his crypt and sleep again? will he ever be rediscovered? if so, what will he do? deep questions. i would prefer to cogitate on these instead of experiencing the shitshow that is s3

season 3

they should have ended it with dracula’s death. the quality of storytelling goes down immediately. just plummets. i’m sure there were problems in the first two seasons, but this one is so bad, i genuinely can’t remember

but i may as well get specific, so here we go:

abandoning alucard

trevor and sypha leave their friend alone in his childhood home where he just killed his father. where they helped him kill his father who, as i’ve said too many times, raised literal hell to get revenge for people burning alucard’s mother to death

yt they don’t talk about alucard. they don’t make any plans to touch base ever again. trevor’s entire family got killed. sypha’s culture, from which she’s now estranged, is family-centric. if ever two people should give a shit about alucard and know why alucard shouldn’t be left on his own, it's them

so what the hell is going on?

trevor and sypha’s relationship

look. it could be good. it would be better with alucard but they could be together and it could work fine

but this……….

trevor hates what they're doing. he hates traveling around and fighting. he's clearly tired and deeply depressed

sypha not only doesn't care enough to address it (did they forget the first two seasons?? sypha is annoying partly because she doesn't stop poking people) she might not even notice? yes, she's having fun, but trevor is basically dead on his feet in front of her

racism

hector, sumi, and taka all got done dirty 

sumi and taka

i hate the way they died. i hate that i’m certain that the plot won’t bring japan back into the narrative (or if it does, i don’t trust it not to be shitty). i hate the fact that by killing them off, i’m not going to get any more of them. they were interesting!!

speaking of the japanese vampire: the biphobia, arguably, given what happens with alucard

the addition of sexual violence

i don’t need or want lenore. if all she’d done was manipulate hector, i could have lived with that. she’s a villain, so she does bad things. that’s the point. but what she did was a massive escalation. we hadn’t had any sexual violence, and then the last few episodes gave us 

tumblr feminists who love her for how she treated hector need to be quarantined until their brain worms have been cured

everything that happens to hector

what was this shit? why did i open my netflix app and tap castlevania and find them making this man walk around naked in the cold to torture him? and starving him? he got manipulated, degraded, chained up, collared like an animal, and raped. and why? to show us how bad lenore is? that the other vampires are bad because they let her do it? i didn’t sign up for this

the holocaust reference

the imagery at the end of s3 when it’s revealed that the judge has been killing people he’s decided are undeserving to live and collecting their shoes in that barn was chillingly close to images of shoes taken from victims of the holocaust. there's no reason to invoke the holocaust here. it’s unnecessary and in bad taste

[spnfanficpond]

January Angel Fish Awards

Every month all of you fantastic writers work your asses off to post some truly incredible stories. Our Angel Fish Awards are the way for all of us, as a community of writers and readers, to lift each other up and give praise to those who have captured our attention and deserve a few kind words.

The monthly Angel Fish Awards are peer-nominated, meaning ANYONE IN THE POND CAN NOMINATE ANY POND MEMBER’S FIC. While the Pond was founded to support the Guppies, everyone in this community deserves to be showered with love and feedback, and we hope that by opening this up as a Pond wide system, we’ll be able to share the love as far as it can go.

NOTE: WE’VE BEEN HAVING OCCASIONAL PROBLEMS WITH ASKS GOING MISSING. Please use the Submit button when submitting your nominations and make sure you’re signed into Tumblr or your URL won’t show. (If the form asks for your name and email address, then you’re not signed in.) If you like, you can also send a message to Michelle or Mana to check and make sure we got your submission.

WITHOUT FURTHER ADO, HERE ARE THE FIRST ANGEL FISH AWARDS OF 2020!

Cabin Fever (a long oneshot) by @slytherkins​ was nominated three times!

I said all of this in my reblog, but this is FUCKING GOLD. It depicts life with chronic pain so beautifully, I read most of this with my heart in my throat. Have tissues, heed the warnings, but definitely read this! - @mrswhozeewhatsis​​

Tara is the Queen of Angst. She never fails to break my heart but this fic was something else entirely. I always feel like her stories could be canon and this is no exception!! Dean was exactly how I imagine he would be, Sam too. Without giving any spoilers: the scene setting - I was there, I could see them preparing dinner, sat around the table eating, I felt the coldness of the snow.

The raw emotions were sublime, I cried with Dean. I felt I could feel his pain, I was with him every step of the way, I felt his desperation. Love. Love. Love. Love. Love. Love. Love.  - @princessmisery666​​

O. M. G. I don’t expect anything less than incredible when I read Tara’s stuff, but this is on another level. The angst is painful (literally, sometimes), the detail is exquisite. She put heart and soul into this, and it shows. And as always, her Dean is spot-tf-on. Tara’s a brilliant writer, and this fic is amazing. ❤❤❤ - @risingphoenix761​​ 

Nominated by @manawhaat​

Satin (oneshot) by @wingedcatninja​

This fic has some out of the box, vulnerable, sexy, surprising Dean feels! I went into it expecting one thing and what I got was so different from what I could have imagined, but it was so wonderful and refreshing to read! 

Next Year (series) by @wingedcatninja​

Holy crap, the intensity and control in this fic is astounding. It’s so palpable from start to end and this is only the first fucking part. Seriously stellar and surprisingly reverential. 

Nominated by @mrswhozeewhatsis​

For Better or Worst (ongoing series) by @stunudo​​ 

There’s so much mystery and intrigue in this series and I just can’t stop wondering how it’s all going to work out! Sam made some kind of deal to save the world and the deal involved marrying this woman and getting out of hunting. But what was the deal, exactly? And where’s Dean? And who is this woman? What about Cas and Jack? I’m so freaking hooked and I can’t wait to find out!!

Nominated by @princessmisery666​

Love You To Death (series) by @negans-lucille-tblr​

I’ll be the first to admit I’m not into AU’s but this had me hooked from the beginning. I hate Y/N, I hope she gets whats coming to her, but I also so desperately want to be her, which is a testament to the wonderful writing of both Lisa and Bee. I can’t wait to see how this one unfolds.

These two together are a force to be reckoned with.

Nominated by @deanwinchesterswitch​

One And One Make Three (series) by @supernatural-jackles​ 

 This series was absolutely stunning, beautifully written, and an amazing rollercoaster of emotion. Jen handled some very sensitive subject matters with grace and wit. It has ALL the feels; I cried, laughed, and loved right along with the characters.

Nominated by @flamencodiva 

Skeptics and True Believers (series) by @d-s-winchester​ 

I love this story! It had me on the edge of my seat when I read through the master list. the way she wove the story together made me happy for the ending to the story!

Good Things (series) by @crashdevlin​​

This is Part one to four parts of writing GOLD! Cassie knows how to completely put you in the story and envision what is happening. 

How Do You Spell Forever? (series) by @kittenofdoomage​​ 

This is part one of a four parter and OMG! Can I say that this is sweet and cute and full of A/B/O goodness? because this is! and it should be read and shared!

Nominated by @girl-with-a-fandom-fettish​

Heathens (series) by @pink1031​ 

Why: I have been 1000000% hooked on this story since the first chapter was published. It’s a little bit twisted, a little bit wrong, a whole lot dirty, and a whole lot of amazing writing! At the time of this submission, the last chapter is in progress (don’t get me started on the fact that it’s ending D:). It is without a doubt, one of the few stories I stop what I am doing (life permitting) and read the new chapter when I get notified. READ THE WARNINGS CAREFULLY THOUGH, this is not a story for the faint of heart or those that get squicked out (is that even a term?). But if you like dark and dirty, this fic will absolutely be your jam.

Nominated by @risingphoenix761​

My Home (oneshot) by @kittenofdoomage​

Short and sweet, but it got me all choked up. To repeat what I said in tags, bless this fic and the hands that typed it.

Feels Like The First Time (oneshot) by @stusbunker​ 

This gets better every time I reread it. Sweet and sexy and kinda touching. Any time I need a Samwitch fix, I come back to this one. ❤

Nominated by @lovetusk​ ( @fictionalabyss​​ )

Turning Into Butter (oneshot) by @thing-you-do-with-that-thing

Lets be honest with this one, shall we? We’d ALL get that distracted by a half naked Dean. 

Please Don’t Go (oneshot) by @sorenmarie87​

Dawn tested out her Angsting abilities in this Adam x Reader fic, and I’m hoping we get to see more of it. Like why is Dean so angry? I NEED TO KNOW!

Someone You Loved (oneshot) by @ne-gans​

So glad ne-gans is now part of the pond because now I can nominate this beautiful thing that made me cry. 

Nominated by @impala-dreamer

Stupor (oneshot) by @dontshootmespence​

The hottest hot to ever hot in the hottest way possible - SOULLESS!DOM!SAM!! I ded. Very hot. Much smut. Very good.

Hurt So Good (oneshot) by @alleiradayne​

This was tasty. Pun intended. I have such a biting thing and Sam would be so amazing. Yes. Devour me, Winchester!! Loved it.

Nominated by @thegirlwhorunswithwinchesters​

Isn’t That My Line (oneshot) by @princessmisery666​

I went into this one intrigued by the concept and I got even more than I was hoping for. A little twist I didn’t expect here, a perfect ending there. Amazing.

Control And Release (series) by @thecleverdame​

I just needed to bring this one back. Started rereading the entire series and it’s still as amazing as the first time I read this masterpiece.

Photographs and Gasoline (oneshot) by @ne-gans​

Always gotta check the new pond member list when I’m making my rounds. Found this fic and fell in love. It’s absolutely heartbreaking but I loved every second of it. Guess if I have to torture myself, I prefer to do it with beautiful writing like this. 

Nominated by @thoughtslikeaminefield​​​

Smokes and Sex Toys (oneshot) by @wayward-and-worn​ 

This is delightfully fucking filthy. But that’s not all; Dean’s characterization is SO DEAN - flirty yet straightforward - it reminded me of the scene with the bartender in Defending Your Life, I love the simple yet creative premise, and I adore that it’s left open-ended. 

Sick Day - @fangirlxwritesx67​​ 

Viv wrote this for me - it’s true - but that isn’t the reason I’m nominating this; it’s because this is so warm and comfortable and just feels like Dean. Like I actually felt like I was in his lap while I feel asleep reading this. (Also, check out my girl’s other works. She’s fairly new but balls to the wall and bursting with ideas and words for just about anyone.) 

Nominated by @slytherkins​

Isn’t That My Line (oneshot) by @princessmisery666​

Short. Sinful. Sexy. It’s like a smutty snack that hits the spot. (And so does Dean.) 

Nominated by @kittenofdoomage​​

What Goes Bump In The Night (series) by @saxxxology​​

A phenomenal series, historic and dark, with all the fantastic detail you’d expect from Saxxy and more! Please heed the warnings though!

The World Doesn’t Know (oneshot) by @negans-lucille-tblr​​

A wonderful little smutty J2 fic, for those who enjoy that fantasy.

Marked (series) by @there-must-be-a-lock​

I’ve only read the first chapter so far, but hot damn! This is a spectacular start to a promisingly dark series. AND The Right Spot - a smutty smutty follow up to another oneshot that literally made me sweat.

Just Like A Pill  by @princessmisery666​​

The angsty sequel to In Spite Of What My Heart Says and you should totally read both parts, just keep tissues by you in case of heartbreak!

Nominated by @focusonspn​​

House Of The Rising Sun (series) by @kittenofdoomage​​

I’ve never liked BDSM themes too much but, OH MY GOOD!! This series is AMAZING!! It even has a sequel: The Ones You Love. Go and read it, you won’t regret it.

Yes, Sir (series) by @evansrogerskitten​​

Ash must be tired of me praising this fic but I can’t help myself, it’s one of my favorite series ever and deserves this recognition. This is a series that every John girl out there should be reading RIGHT NOW. It has everything! Smut, fluff and a tiny bit of angst and drama.

Good Vibrations (series) by @impala-dreamer​​

At first I wasn’t sure if I should bring this fic here because all the drama I heard it existed about it but, then I thought it twice, and I came to the conclusion that this fic definitely deserve to be part of these awards. This piece of writing was the first (after Dear John, I have to admit) that actually made me cry. It’s dark, it’s sad as fuck, it’s damn well written, and makes you easily get inside the characters and feel what they’re feeling. That being said, if you’re thinking of reading it, please HEED THE WARNINGS.

Take a Drunk Girl Home (oneshot) by @amanda-teaches​​

This fic is so beautiful and so well written that I promise you even can end up tearing up a little, but it’s so worth it that you won’t care a bit.

Nominated by @emilyshurley​​

His Property (series) by @negans-lucille-tblr​​

I freaking love this series to the point that i binged the series (and it’s sequel, Yours) in a single day.  

Just Me & My Baby (oneshot) by @deanwinchesterswitch​​

Can’t get over how adorable it is.

Guns and Ribbons (series) by @myinconnelly1​​

What can I say Dean Winchester deserves all the love in this world and so does this series.

I Can See Clearly Now (oneshot) by @katehuntington​​

I can’t. I don’t have words. This is perfection.

In the Heat of the Night (series) by @evansrogerskitten​​

Nominated by @impalaimagining​​

Goals (oneshot) by @atc74​​

Okay. It's been a long time since I've found Sam smut that really gets me into it. This though - it's a whole different level of wonderful. I love the way it explores a woman finding and embracing her own sexuality, and the frustration that can come along with it. It's obvious how much effort and research and actual planning went into this. My favorite kinds of fics are those that draw from real life experiences, which I think it what makes this one so special. And the end? Yes please!

Nominated by @fangirlxwritesx67​​ 

Everything (series) by @there-must-be-a-lock​ 

I can’t even talk about how great this J2 x reader series is without incoherent fangirl flailing. It’s wildly creative, sharply well written, and absolutely panty-melting filthy! And then just when you’re so hot and bothered that you can’t see straight, *boom*, it’s sweet and intimate and loving. I don’t think there’s a series out there I’ve read this many times!

Hark and Hush by @thoughtslikeaminefield​​

This is a luscious, dark and twisted fairy tale about Dean and the spirit of the Big Bad Wolf. It’s written so vividly that you can see and smell and taste the whole story. Sexy af, of course, and so intense- take the warnings seriously!

The Kind of Girl You Like (series) by @thoughtslikeaminefield​​ 

To me, MJ will always be the Queen of the Winchester threesome and this series shows exactly why. Smoking hot story about the brothers sharing a sub that quickly unfolds into something complex and beautiful. The last chapter especially is written with so much emotional depth- the first time I read it, I was swearing and crying and smiling all at once because it was so well done! Just the best!

Nominated by @supersassyprobablysad​​ 

How You & I Will Be (series) by @katehuntington​​ 

Hey so I wanted to do an angel fish award nom for Kate for her How You & I Will Be fic. In 5 parts she not only developed believable characters but by the end I was ugly crying (and I don’t cry a lot so that’s saying something). The ending feels totally necessary too, not like it was just done for shock value. Anyway I love it, it’s the best I’ve read in a long time.

Thank you all for the awesome work and great feedback!

As with the BFAs, these are not actual awards! This system is set up so everyone in the pond has a chance to share the love and promote a fic/author that has grabbed your attention. The more people that participate, and the more everyone remembers to submit their own fics after posting, the better this will be :D

THANK YOU ALL AGAIN, KEEP UP THE AMAZING WORK, AND AS ALWAYS, HAPPY WRITING!

[putschki1969]

Hikaru Tsumugu ~ Live Report

Notes: Got a 2-hour train ride ahead of me so I thought I’d use the opportunity to write up a little report. Please note that I was very exhausted during the live so I wasn’t able to pay as much attention as I usually would. Also, I didn’t know 7 out of the 17 performed songs so I had a hard time appreciating them properly. I didn’t cry which kinda surprised me. Maybe I was too tired. Hikaru did get a little teary eyed during the Kalafina section but aside from that, she was mostly happy and excited. Overall I think this live was much more powerful and cheerful in comparison to Hikaru’s birthday event from last year. Maybe that’s why it wasn’t as tearful. Then again, I know quite a lot of people who were sobbing like crazy. Anyways, let’s get this thing started:

Goods: I didn’t buy much tbh. The pamphlet, the tapioca set, the pen and the badges. The other stuff looked a little cheap if I am being honest. A little disappointed with the quality of the pamphlet. Quite expensive but very thin and it’s made up of some sort of rough paper material. Some pages have ugly printing marks (;_;)

Stage production: Pretty simple I’d say. The musicians were lined up on either side of a small staircase. There were some walls in the back and curtains/fabrics on top. They played the PVs of Hikaru’s songs during each H-el-ical// performance, it was nice to have the lyrics on screen to sing along. and for the other songs they mostly used elaborate lighting.

Hikaru’s look: As you can see from the pictures, she had her hair down for most of the live. It was styled very nicely with big curls. She wore a bold red lipstick. The live started with her wearing the white gown/coat. Pretending to take a drink, she went to her little table and all of a sudden she started stripping XD (it was like the Blue Day “signal” performance). She quickly dropped the coat during her MC before “Fili” and revealed a sexy red dress which was very reminiscent of the old Kalafina days (laces, corset style). After the instrumental she returned with a long blue dress that kinda reminded me of Kalafina’s 9+ONE denim style outfits due to the colour scheme. For her anisong section she surprised us once again by dropping the dress and revealing the sexiest outfit ever!!! Black high waisted leather pants and a black leather bralette. *nosebleed* During the encore she wore a black denim skirt and a long sleeved H-el-ical// shirt. Her hair was up. I wish they would have sold that shirt too since it looked much nicer than the normal t-shirts she was selling. As for shoes, she wore shiny black pumps with white laces. Speaking of laces, laces were definitely the main theme of her outfits that night. The coat, the dresses, her leather outfit and even her pumps had laces everywhere. Guess it all boils down to Tsumugu = Spinning. In her pamphlet you can see all the threads spinning around so I guess she was trying to go for the same vibe regarding her fashion. So glad Hikaru was kind enough to provide pictures of everything!!

Musicians: Everyone was in such a good mood!!! Gussy (Hikaru’s composer and one of the guitarists) was particularly hyped, he seemed to be really into it. Was a lot of fun to watch them perform.

Overall sound: I think for the most part, the live sounded great. Hikaru was in good shape and sang her songs well. If you don’t like the studio version though you won’t like the live version either. Hikaru pretty much used the same singing style which she used for the recording. The backing vocals were playing in the background to create a little more harmony. I think Hikaru was far more concerned about having fun rather than delivering a technically perfect performance! Hence, she ended up sounding a little off key or frail at times. Nothing that took away from the performance though. With someone as engaging as Hikaru I really don’t mind if the singing is less than flawless. Just seeing her having a blast was making up for any missed notes XD Wasn’t a particularly big fan of her anisong section because I didn’t know the songs and she got quite shouty there but I guess that was on purpose. Apart from some slightly screechy shouts she also did some very powerful shouts!

Random observations: The live was completely sold out! BANZAI!! The goods were also sold out (including the H-el-ical// CD). So happy for Hikaru’s “major debut“. I hope many people will watch the anime so she can have a lot of success as H-el-ical//. As has already been established, Keiko and LiSA were there to support Hikaru. They sat in the first row of the second floor (at the very left). Akihiro Tomita was also there. I think he might have taken up the role of producer. Masayuki Ohashi was also there. He was the one taking the picture of Keiko and LiSA. Then we have Takeshi Kato of course. I am expecting a SPICE live report very soon. When Hikaru did her infamous goods corner she also introduced her CD. Once again she mixed up Kalafina and H-el-ical// when she said that there were eight tracks by Kalafina included (during the SPICE broadcast she also mixed up the two if you can remember). It was super cute. Old habits die hard.

Amanhecer: Great start for the live, I LOVE this song. She sat on top of the stairs and sang it beautifully. It almost seemed like she was sparkling in her white coat. Like an angel.

Splendore: The pace really picked up here. Hikaru was running around on stage, jumping up and down. It was amazing to see her so happy. You can tell she was born to be a solo performer (something that cannot be said about Wakana XD).

粉雪 (Cover: Remioromen): Didn’t know the song but it was quite beautiful. Hikaru did a great job. Definitely one of the more memorable performances of the night.

WINTER SONG (Cover: Dreams Come True): Another song I didn’t know, unfortunately I didn’t particularly like it. Can’t really remember any details.

Fili:The first unreleased song from the CD. I loved it. Hikaru said it made her think of the earth. Too bad I can’t listen to my CD while I am in Japan.

Avaricia: Probably my second favourite H-el-ical// song. Awesome performance. Her dress was perfect for the more mature and jazz-y vibe of the verses. But of course my favourite part of the song is the chorus!

yolcu: Hands down the best H-el-ical// performance of the night (and my favourite song so far). This is such a good song!! Can’t believe how much I loved it! The way she was pushing her arm in the air, I literally felt power surging through me. Also, damn, Hikaru was so sexy moving to the exotic rhythm in her red dress.

Instrumental: That was kinda all over the place, didn’t really like it. It started with some sort of extension of “yolcu” and then it became very slow with just Hirotaka Sakurada and the violinist. Then the pace suddenly picked up again and everyone was playing. No idea if it was a special song or them just playing random stuff. I didn’t recognise it.

ARIA & blaze & sprinter: The Kalafina section was super special as expected. Hikaru said that she consulted Yuki Kajiura on the matter, about whether or not it would be a good idea to sing Kalafina songs. Everyone agreed that she should sing them if she wanted to, after all, they made these songs together (as long as the songs aren’t released on DVD/BD I am guessing Hikaru is free to sinf as many Kalafina songs as she wants). Only fitting that she should sing them. Also, her live is called “Tsumugu” which means spinning. It’s about the future of H-el-ical// which she is spinning right now but also about everything that has been spun so far and of course that includes Kalafina. It was just Hikaru, Saku-chan and the violinist. They used the acoustic arrangements from past performances. “ARIA” sounded different from her Birthday Event performance though. It was even slower and more dramatic. I LOVED it. Every time I hear a new version of “ARIA” I fall a little more in love with the song and Hikaru. If you have seen that short snippet of “blaze” in the 10th Anniversary Film then you get an idea of what it sounded like. “sprinter” was super emotional. Not as tear-inducing as during the Arena Live or during Hi’s B-Day Event but still, incredibly powerful. I definitely teared up and so did Hikaru!! “ARIA and sprinter” were shortened considerably since Hikaru didn’t sing any Kajiura-go parts. For the most part she also didn’t sing the Wa/Kei lines. I think she sang“blaze” in its entirety though (except for the bridge).

History Maker & Paradise Lost & 青空のナミダ: I have a hard time saying anything about these songs. I knew “History Maker” from the Birthday Event but the other two songs were completely new to me. No idea how the originals sound like but Hikaru certainly knew how to make the songs her own. I just wish she would have chosen songs better suited for her voice. Occasionally her singing sounded quite off. Or maybe I am wrong and the original songs simply sound like that. Most popular anisongs sound quite noisy to my ears. Whenever I am in Akihabara I have to cringe due to the loud not very pleasant sounding music playing in the background (I feel like it’s always something by Ao Eir or LiSA...no idea)...Hikaru was sexy as hell with her leather outfit so I mostly focused on that. Thank God I brought my binoculars. She was really bad-ass during the anime secret so it was a joy to watch.

Existence: I don’t remember anything about this song tbh, except that it had a very rock-ish vibe. I actually thought it was another anisong at first but then I kinda recognised Gussy’s trademark style and concluded that it must be the other unreleased H-el-ical// song. I probably won‘t be relistening to this a lot.

pulsation: Nice powerful ending! Nothing else to say about it.

EN

This is me: I had heard that song before but I couldn’t really place it. Either way, it was a very engaging performance! There are a lot of ooohhh parts in the song, Hikaru would sing one part and the audience would sing the other part. Everyone had a blast!! This was probably the most active song of the night in terms of audience interaction. Otherwise the audience was pretty tame I would say. Everyone remained seated during the entire live.

TSUMUGU: Not as emotional as I had expected, however, the lalala at the end killed me. We didn’t really sing along properly (neither were we asked to) but it was nice to have everyone waving. More teary eyes but no proper tears.

[dream-beyond-the-fantasy]

Pinkie here!! So now is your turn!! I want to know your top 5 female characters!!! Thank you!!

Phoebe Halliwell, Charmed - Even though I love all of the sisters and I am probably more like Piper, Phoebe was my favorite.  She is beautiful, sexy, and funny.  Phoebe has some of my favorite powers, premonition and empathy.  Levitation is pretty cool, too.  Phoebe is a style queen!  I love nearly all of her hair styles and clothes.  She has also had the most romances on the show.  Phoebe has grown so much in the show’s eight years.  And she is played by the ever awesome Alyssa Milano, a favorite actress since my childhood.

Leia Organa (Solo), Star Wars - One of my favorite characters since I was a little girl and one of the first main female scifi characters.  Leia was smart, strong, and sarcastic.  She cares about doing the right thing, despite the danger and cost.  Leia is a princess, a senator, a rebel/freedom fighter, and a mother.  I grew up reading the books and some comics of the Expanded Universe, now termed “Legends”.  The Leia I grew up with married Han, was a mother to three amazing and powerful children, went on to become the Chief of State of the New Republic (twice, I believe), became a Jedi, and just kept fighting for the safety and good of the people and the galaxy.  The new canon still has Leia as an inspiring figure as a general in the Resistance.  I also loved Leia’s various hairstyles and clothes in the films and on book covers.

Kimberly Hart, Power Rangers - Kim was one of my first female superheroes.  As the first Pink Power Ranger, she was very feminine and still could kick villain ass.  Kimberly could do almost anything: gymnast, Power Ranger, cheerleader, environmental activist, volunteer.  She could even sing and play the guitar.  I always thought that Kimberly was incredible beautiful and kind.  I loved her romance with Tommy and never forgave Power Rangers Zeo (or Kat) for breaking them up.  I even love her when she is briefly turned evil in the Turbo movie.

Martha Jones, Doctor Who - Martha is one of my favorite companions of the Doctor.  She is one of the few women of color on the show and to be a regular companion to the Doctor.  I love that she is a doctor in her own right.  Her family is important to her.  I hate how the Doctor didn’t see how awesome she was until too late because he was so hung up on Rose.  I didn’t mind her crush on the Doctor, because why wouldn’t you fall for him?  Martha grew a lot over the course of the show.  She was jealous of Rose in the beginning, but when she finally met her, she was so happy that Rose and the Doctor found each other.  I love how Martha made the decision to leave the TARDIS on her own terms.

Daenerys Targaryen, A Song of Ice and Fire/Game of Thrones - Dany is compassionate and strong.  She has gone through so much in her young life and keeps fighting.  She cares about the people, particularly women and children.  She tried to get the Dothraki to stop raping the women of the people that they conquered and pillaged.  Daenerys abolished slavery in Meereen.  She has a personality that inspires respect, love and loyalty, as seen with the Unsullied, Missandei, Jorah, and now Jon on the show.  I love the storied history of House Targaryen, despite some of its darker moments and rulers.  I love the dragons and how she brought them and magic back to the world.  Daenerys shares qualities with her ancestors, such as Aegon I and his sister-wives, Jaehaerys I & Alysanne, and Aegon V.  I also love the parallels with Jon and their love story.

And here are the additional five @cobrakaiseriesfan allotted me:

Fran Fine Sheffield, The Nanny - The Nanny was one of my favorite shows when I was growing up.  Fran was a style icon.  I always wanted to dress like her.  And even though my hair is dark and curly, I wish I could pull off some of her hairstyles.  But maybe not as big.  She is gorgeous and funny.  Fran is from a working class/working poor family, so she is easily relatable.  I love her relationships with love interest/boss Maxwell Sheffield, his kids, Niles, her own family, and Val.  Fran teaches the kids great lessons in unconventional ways.  She may not be book-smart, but she is street-smart.  Fran is such a warm and compassionate person.

Hermione Granger, Harry Potter - I relate to Hermione because she loves to read, is intelligent, and her friends are very important to her.  Hermione will also fight for who and what she believes in.  She can be a bit narrow-minded at times, but she does learn from her mistakes.

Usagi Tsukino/Serena Tsukino, Sailor Moon - I was a little girl when I first saw the English dub of Sailor Moon, which I loved.  She was one of my first female superheroes.  I love how much her friends mean to her and that she would do anything to save and protect them.  I loved the love story between her and Mamoru/Darien.  I love how she has a big appetite.  I also loved the clothes she wore.  Sailor Moon was my introduction to anime.

Dr. Robin Scorpio-Drake, General Hospital - Robin is a strong and compassionate person.  She has a strong moral compass, which she usually follows.  Robin has overcome many struggles in her life (”death” of her parents, HIV+ diagnosis and living with the disease, Stone’s death via AIDS, romances, being a hostage, postpartum depression, Lisa, etc.) and has come through them with grace.  I love all of her romances and how they are each an important chapter in her life, even though Patrick is my favorite.  Robin is a great friend to have, a dedicated doctor, and probably one of the most stable mothers on the soap.  Her story provides an education on HIV/AIDS.

Bianca Montgomery, All My Children - Much like Robin, Bianca is a strong and compassionate character that has seen many struggles.  She is the heart of her family, which includes her mother, daytime legend Erica Kane and her half-sister Kendall, but that doesn’t mean she is a pushover.  Bianca is an iconic character, in that she is the first lesbian lead on a daytime soap opera.  I have loved watching her romances with Maggie, Zoe, Reese, and to a lesser extent, Marissa.  Her baby swap story was one of the first soap opera stories to real hook me and get me hooked on two soaps at one time.

I am so sorry that it has taken me this long to finish this post!  Please forgive me.

[sultrysirens]

Please just go off and rant about your OCs! I just love them all so much (even the ones that haven’t been introduced yet) and want to hear more about them!

I hope you’re prepared for what you’ve just unleashed~!!

JOCELYN was the start of this avalanche. When I first conjured her up, I had just a few points in mind: I wanted her to be colored (though I hadn’t decided yet what her ethnicity would actually be), I wanted her to be a ballerina, and I wanted her to not be drop-dead fucking gorgeous.

One of these things did not hold up. X’D

My original intent was to just make a short story -- 10 chapters or so -- in which she gets with Raphael and they bang. That was the literal long and short of it, which you can kind of see considering how rushed the first few chapters were.

I didn’t mean for them to get so into each other and fall in love. They did that entirely on their own. And, to be honest, it’s been an amazing experience; I’ve learned a great deal and feel like my creativity has gone through the roof.

Considering I’ve always been crazily creative anyway, that’s saying something.

Initially I picked Raph for this story because I thought (in my ignorance) that he would have the least amount of love and sex-related stories. Oh, how foolish I was, lol. But I was also thinking he would be the easiest to write just falling into bed with someone, and while that is something I commonly see, in my story he very much did not do that.

It was really weird. X’D

While I was writing The Dancer, I was also writing a then-untitled sister fic/epilogue (which I later titled The Dragon). It was quite a few years down the line, so I went ahead and conjured up some future scenes and events. Among them: Lisa.

This fic started in Mikey’s POV for a few reasons, one of them being that I really wanted to write something from his perspective. Lisa was introduced to my story this way, and I quickly took a liking to her and started development on her character. One of the things I did first was write pieces of the first chapter of The DJ, just to get the start’s setting down.

Then all I had to do was get The Dancer to a point where I could connect the two. At the time I was only around chapter 20, so...yeah, it took a while. XD

With Jocelyn, one of the key decisions I made was to make her very unlike Raphael -- she’s flirty, often relaxed, has an incredible love for ballet, has almost no family (just a mother; no dad, no siblings), and has such a crazy obsession over shoes that she literally picks out what shoes she wants to wear before picking her clothing for the day.

With Lisa, I went in the opposite direction: be just like Mikey. She has low intelligence and knows it, yet is brilliant in an unconventional way; her sense of humor is one of her biggest traits and she laughs to defuse situations and deal with problems; her genre is 100% hip hop in nearly all ways; and I made her athletic pretty much entirely so she’d be able to keep up with the master of movement, Mikey. (Say that five times, fast.)

It wasn’t until after I really got into writing Lisa that I noticed something interesting about my two fics: the couples both view each other in the same light.

Jocelyn and Raphael think one another is sexy and bad-ass.

Lisa and Mikey think one another is cool and cute.

This is, of course, not the rule -- Raph has thought Jo is super cute before, and Mikey finds Lisa sexy as hell, too -- but it is their primary mindsets. And it makes me wonder if my remaining two couples will have the same kind of viewpoints. I can’t say for sure yet because I haven’t gotten to the part in either story where they’re actually dating, but it’s fun to consider.

Then again, maybe for Leo and Donnie’s relationships they’ll have opposite viewpoints as their lovers do. It would definitely be an interesting twist.

Progress with The Dragon is going very slowly, which is understandable given I still have a lot of world-building in The DJ to do first, but I do very much love the story. In fact, so far if I were to rank my fics based on my own favorites, it would go Dancer > Dragon > DJ (I have literally nothing written on the final fic yet cause I still haven’t even finished designing the final girl, lol).

As much as I love Lisa (and I freaking do holy shit), I just don’t quite love her the best. This is actually kind of weird considering just how close to being a self-insert she is -- an unintentional self-insert, yes, but the parallels are definitely there.

For example, Lisa is a white girl of mixed white heritage (like me) with a particular pair of beauty marks on her face (same as me, just in different places), she has brunette hair (like me) and blue eyes (mine are actually green, but my parents’ and brother’s eyes are blue and I’ve always been jealous of that), she’s a huge gamer (just like me; she’s just better at competitive games), she dislikes swearing (I swear a lot now, but at her age I was much more sensitive about it), she has an older brother (I technically have two, but one’s very distant and the other was always close), she has a distaste for meat (I’m not vegetarian but as a whole I dislike meat) and some serious compassion for life (same), she loves piercings (I’d have more but I’m seriously forgetful), and she has incredible ears for music (can name almost any song within seconds -- just like me).

Oh yeah, and she’s a Mikey girl. ♥

And more pointedly, I named her mother after my sister (deceased) and her grandparents after my paternal grandfather and maternal grandmother.

I named Jocelyn based on the character of the same name from A Knight’s Tale (it just occurred to me that they have the same tits lmfao); after seeing the movie I kind of became enraptured with this character and her smart tongue and haughty attitude and incredible elegance -- not to mention I freaking loved her name.

Lisa, by comparison, I named based on one thing: the Mona Lisa. Yeah, that’s right, y’all -- I named her after a famous painting by an Italian Renaissance painter. Hurr hurr. XP But though I never mentioned this, Lisa’s mother, Brandy, cites that she named her ‘Lisa’ based on The Simpsons, as Lisa was Brandy’s favorite character.

This cute, incredibly good-hearted and brilliant young girl? Yeah, Brandy loves that character and was hoping Lisa would take after her.

Hmmm, what else...

Well, I had a completely different story set up for Cecilia at first. I’m honestly really glad things didn’t go the way I’d planned, and here’s why: Cecilia was supposed to catch a glimpse of Jo and Raph having sex one day (before meeting him) and go kind of nutso.

You see, at first she claimed diabetes but was not diabetic -- she was doing cocaine, and saying she had diabetes was her explanation for when Jo would catch her shooting up. And with the cocaine in her system, Cecilia’s mind went right to demons and witchcraft.

Terrified for her daughter’s immortal soul, the original plan was for Cecilia to attempt to burn them both to death. To everyone’s surprise, however, Jocelyn didn’t burn -- only Cecilia.

This was the original way Jo discovered she’d been taking on Raph’s mutagen. It’d made her fireproof.

As you can see, I’m super glad I didn’t stick to that, lol.

As for Lisa, me making her a cutter was a spur-of-the-moment decision during that scene where she examines her reflection in her undies. The boob thing, though? That was planned from day one -- because I wanted her to very much be Jo’s opposite, and this included general color palette, skills, likes, personality, and body type.

Jo: tall and willowy, grace incarnate, dark skin and blonde hair, super thick lips, generally thin but with a killer ass, rounded face, freckled, minimal piercings, crazy flirty and confident to no end.

Lisa: barely taller than average, kind of stocky and curvy, shapely lips, wide hips and heavy tits, shapely lips and face, zero freckles, tons of piercings, jittery and mousy but also immature and raucous.

By comparison, so far Mei and Pinky are just people. (Note: Mei’s faceclaim so far is Lucy Lui, but Pinky doesn’t have one just yet.) Mei’s also skinny, but that’s cause she’s 100% Chinese and as far as I can tell that’s just how they are. I’ve done a lot of googling and pretty much all young people I’ve found that way are, in a word, skinny. X’D

I’m leaning towards Pinky being the shortest of the girls, maybe in the 5′1″-5′3″ range, but I’m worried about making her too short. The concept is still very much up in the air, lol. This is also the character I once said I was considering being half Puerto Rican, and while I still like that I’m not sure it’ll stick. It might be more fun to make her like Indian or something.

We’ll see. (I’m very much open to suggestion about her, btw, if anyone has any thoughts...and I know it’s not much to go on yet but there’s a reason for that.)

And then there’s Cassie. My redheaded best friend of my best girl, Jo. I really don’t have much to say about her; I introduced her almost entirely to expand the world a bit and give Jocelyn more ties -- a girl like her would damn well have ties, y’know.

I don’t know what it is, but I have a really hard time writing her. She feels very bland, and while that was kind of the intent, it makes it really hard to get a feel for her. Only a few things remain strong when it comes to her: she’s kinda weirded out by the turtles, she supports Jocelyn completely, and she’s just as much of a ballet-enthusiast.

These girls have been friends for almost their literal entire lives. And I think part of the reason why I wrote them like this was out of jealousy -- I’ve never had that kind of a friendship. The oldest friend I can recall was Jenny, when I was five, and she was a BITCH.

I only have two memories of her anymore: 1, she used to invent games for us to play then change the rules on a dime so she’d always be the winner, and 2, I once tried to leave her home and she slammed the door on my fingers.

I sincerely hope she grew out of that, man.

Suffice to say we were not friends for very long. And since then I’ve seen a constant pattern: I can’t keep friends for longer than a few years, and not because I don’t want to.

Because something always happens. They move, I move, someone’s interests shift, we lose contact, a misunderstanding occurs, etc.

I wanted Jocelyn to have something better than a constantly-shifting sea of semi-friends. I wanted her to have best friends, and then THE best friend -- the one who will remain her best friend for the entirety of her life. The one who was there through all the biggest troubles and best celebrations, the one who will be there for all of the troubles and celebrations to come, and the one who knows her better than anyone else ever has (at least until a certain mutant comes into her life).

Lisa, on the other hand, is...me.

Her friendships flagged, drifted, dissolved, changed, and so on. The only constants in her life have been her family. And even then a good portion of her family has never been there, a fact that hurts her whenever she pauses to think about it.

She hurts, she yearns, and there are times she feels completely alone, even in a full room. She’s constantly scared no one understands her or cares about her, and she gets through this by laughing -- at others, at herself, at that one missing piece of the jigsaw puzzle that makes it kind of look like a penis, and so on.

Lisa has always had the support of her family while needing true understanding and affection. Jo has always had affection and the understanding of her closest friend while needing support.

It’s amazing to think about. And while there’s a lot here that I never put into my fics, these are threads and pieces of my characters that have either always been there in the background or have developed as I wrote them. Maybe I never said Lisa was terrified of being alone, but it was in my mind every time I wrote her.

And I just want to take this moment to thank Anon for giving me this opportunity; I’ve always wanted to rant about my girls but never thought anyone would care, so what was the point, y’know?

Thank you, babe. ;)

[freedom-shamrock]

Jingle My Bell

Happiest of holidays to @rescue-satellite!  I’m your @mlsecretsanta secret Santa and I have some love squarish fluff for you Also posted to AO3 if that’s easier for reading.

"Evening M'lady," Chat said, landing lightly on their designated rooftop for the evening.  He caught her hand as he bowed, dropping a light kiss on her knuckles as he gazed up at her through his lashes, still coated with mascara from today's shoot, he realized.  

A hint of pink kissed her cheeks and she smiled at him.  It was only recently that she'd stopped passing his more overt affection off, and he rather liked the change.  The blushing was new, too.

"Good evening to you my Kitten."  She reached out and tapped the bell at his neck, making it ring.

He grinned.  "Bug, you totally ring my bell."

For some reason, she found this absolutely hilarious, and her laugh devolved into snorts that sounded oddly familiar.  "Yeah," she said, when she could finally talk around the giggles.  "Well you knock my spots off."

It was always nice when she was in a playful, punny mood, and now that he thought about it, that had been her tendency the last few months.  He couldn't chalk it up to anything specific.  They'd been partners for nearly four years.  Their team expanded about three years ago, which took some of the pressure off, but she was still the most intense and serious of them.  They'd all grown up a bit, sometimes as a result of horrible experiences fighting Hawk Moth's increasingly violent monsters of the week.

"You're happy," he said, leaning onto his staff and relaxing.  "It makes me happy."

The blush was back and she tried to look away before he could see it.  It didn't work, of course.  His night vision was too good.  "It's Christmas," she said.  "While I could do without being cold, I really love this time of year.  It's always seemed magical, even before I learned magic was real."

Chat Noir nodded.  His Christmases had been decidedly less magical in the last five or six years, but becoming a superhero and going to school helped make that a little less of a downer.  "I have your gift," he said, wiggling his fingers.  "Would you like it now, or are we going to run first."

She reached out and gently booped his nose.  "You're going to have to work a bit to find your real gift," she said.  Her other hand held out a small white box tied closed with a green ribbon.

He plucked the box from her hand.  "What's this, then?" he asked.

"Your first clue," she said, alternately bending and straightening her knees in a way that made her whole body wiggle.  How could she go from sexy to adorable like that?  She was giving him whiplash.

"My.  First.  Clue," he said slowly.  He shook the box, surprised to hear a muted jingling within.  He raised an eyebrow at her.

Giggling again, she leaned forward and dropped a loop of braided black yarn loosely about his neck.  It hung to the center of his chest and there were a number of shiny silver rings embedded in the braid.  "This will make it easier for you to collect all the clues."

He looked over the rings, not bothering to count them just now.  "That's a lot of clues, My Lady."

"The last clue will direct you to your real present."  She straightened up, clearly very pleased with all of this.

"Did you do this with your gifts for everyone else?" he asked, suspecting she hadn't, but wanting to be sure.

Ladybug shook her head.  "Of course not."  She shrugged.  "They're wonderful.  But they aren't you.  You deserve special treatment, and… I thought maybe you could benefit from a little fun this time of year."

"You know me too well," he teased.

"No," she said quietly.  "But I hope to know you better."

"I have a gift for you, too," he said.  "But I didn't bring it tonight."

She lightly booped his nose again.  "If your clues take you close to home, you can pick it up and bring it at the end.  Or we can meet another time."

"You're not coming with me?" he asked, puzzled.

"Nope.  I have to get things ready at the end."  She leaned in to whisper, "but you're a clever kitty, and I'm sure I'll see you soon.  Happy hunting!"  She spun away, her bandalore already soaring into the air.

Chat Noir watched her depart.  Any opportunity to watch His Lady was a good opportunity, really.  Once she was gone, he tugged carefully at the ribbon with his claws.  Inside the box he found a replica of his bell, roughly have the size.  It hung from a loop of red yarn and was adorned with a green bow that matched the ribbon he'd just untied.  When he held it up, he could see red embroidery on the ribbon's tails.

#1 Where I first fell for you

His sweet Bug was sending him on a scavenger hunt to find bells, and this was his clue.  He grinned and tied the first clue to one of the rings on the braid she'd draped over him.  Where she first fell for him?  Since he wasn't entirely sure she really had fallen for him, it must be a joke.  An idea sparked in his mind, and he scrambled across the rooftop, eager to reach the place where they'd first met.

Hanging from the top curve of a lightpost where Ladybug had first crashed into his life, he saw a glint of bronze.  A controlled ascent with his staff allowed him to quickly confirm it was another bell.  This one with green yarn and a doubled red ribbon with four tails.

#2 I was ready to give up You inspired me to stay Ladybug

Warmth blossomed in his chest.  They'd been partners for two years before she told him about this.  It had been during their first akuma, after they'd made mistakes.  She'd not been confident in her ability to truly be a superhero and planned to give up the earrings.  But something he said as they stood facing the anger of the police, with Hawk Moth at their backs lit a spark in her.  They were close friends by the time she shared this, and she'd picked a time when he'd lacked confidence in himself.

He happily pounced and bounded over to Trocadero.  He made sure to approach from the side where the police were lined up.  Sure enough, up on another lightpost, hung another bell, again with a green ribbon.  HIs Bug had a pattern.

#3 Pigeons are nothing to sneeze at unless you're a green-eyed blond with allergies

He laughed.  Mr. Pigeon was still one of the silliest and creepiest akuma.  He tried the park first, where they'd had their first stakeout.  Nothing there.  So he headed off to Grand Palais, where the final fight had taken place.

Getting in through the roof was easy for a superhero, and after a few moments his keen sight caught a glint of the bell hanging from the filigreed arch over the Great Staircase.

#4 In stormy weather I realized I will trust you to guide me, always

He tied the bell next to the others, all on one side of the braid.  It made for an odd necklace, and it slipped bell-heavy side down.  She was focusing on their early akumas, and this one was at the TV station.

He didn't find anything on the roof, and he rethought the clue.  She'd trusted him to guide her… oh.  He could see in the dark.  He once again found easy access from the roof, which took him right into the stairwell.  They'd had several chases through here, and he wondered why she'd picked this particular one.  Something about the line on that third tail stuck out to him.  This suddenly felt like she was making a point.

Down a few landings, he found it tied to the railing.  Glancing up and down, he smiled.  This was very likely the landing where she initially thought she'd be fine on her own, reconsidered, and let him take the lead.

He untied the red yarn and looked at the ribbon's three tails.

#5 I'm so sorry I scared you but I learned something important you give the best hugs

That one was easy.  He still had nightmares about her leaping into the mouth of a tyrannosaurus rex.  Sure, she'd done even scarier things since, but there was extra terror that first time.

The bell hung from one of the upper branches of one of the small trees across from Marinette's family's bakery.  The storefront was dark, and when he looked up, the only light came from her bedroom.  He smiled.  She was probably up late designing something amazing.  For a black cat, he was actually incredibly fortunate to be blessed by two such amazing women in his life.  While neither seemed romantically interested in him, their friendships were too important to risk pushing for something else.

#6 You've scared me, too. I still have nightmares where you vanish and I can't bring you back

Ouch.  That stung a bit.  But at the same time, it really spoke of how much she cared for him.  During the fight with Timebreaker he'd been so focused on the ridiculous joy of having two Ladybugs at his side, and to be fair, they'd featured strongly in a few of his fantasies.  But later… he'd remembered what it felt like to have his life force sucked out of him.  He'd ceased to exist, effectively died.  With time, and help from Plagg, of all people, he'd stopped having panic attacks every time he saw inline skates.

He made his way back to Trocadero, the other side of the tower this time.

#7 While some may try the best they can do is mimic I will always know which cat is mine

She'd never been duped by Copycat.  Though she'd asked questions to be certain, he'd always suspected that was more of a diversion than a real need.  The fact that she'd known he wasn't the thief when his doppelganger strolled in to steal the Mona Lisa meant the world to him.  That she chewed out the police over it still made him happy.

The Louvre was closed, and he wasn't ready to risk their security system, so he started out at Theo's studio.  Just outside, he found the next bell.

#8 You're an excellent gamer almost as good as me With your Catouken and my Tatsukitty we'll be an unbeatable team

He'd been surprised how well she could drive the mech.  It was like she'd been born to do it.  The next bell wasn't in the park where he'd rescued Marinette and met up with Ladybug.  He traveled their path from the battle as best he could from memory, eventually ending up at Parc des Princes.  The bell was dwarfed and tough to spot, hanging from the roof ring between two pennants.

He waited to read the clue until he was up on the roof.

#9 It may not have been memorable but it was my first kiss, too

He'd found out about the kiss later.  It had been bad enough that he'd been turned against his Lady on Valentine's Day, that he'd tried to use Cataclysm on her.  He shuddered.  But then to find out she'd cured him with a kiss?  And he didn't remember.  He wondered why she hadn't tried that technique for getting him out from under akuma control since?  Though to be fair, he'd learned to shake it off in the last year and a half.

The ribbon had four tails, but only two were embroidered.  As he ran his fingertips over them, he realized she'd used green thread for almost hidden embroidery on the other two tails.  He tilted them a bit.

I'm willing to try again if you're interested

He stared at the green ribbon, his eyes wide and an almost painfully huge smile on his face.  Apparently he'd been mistaken about his Lady's feelings toward him.

He laughed as he practically danced across rooftops on his way to the fountain, where he was certain the next clue waited.

#10 I'm sure you've realized I'm not 5000 years old We were born within months of each other

His breath caught as he read this one.  The last two lines were a little worrisome.  They roughly knew each other's birthdays, down to about a week.  But this… this was less about the day and more about the year, which really, neither of them should know.  Sure, he suspected she was around his age, but her words were so certain.

He took a breath and focused on the rest of it, trying to find the clue.  The only way he was going to get answers was if he followed this through.

It came back now.  The history book and the Egyptian exhibit.  Apparently the Louvre was still an option.  Fortunately, the bell was perched on the top of the glass pyramid, easy enough for him to get to.

#11 Your puns are no knightmare my father will wish to match wits But they may stand out when spoken by the other you

Again, this one suggested knowledge of him that she shouldn't have.  He didn't pun as often as Adrien, but it wasn't like he avoided it completely.  Nino and Marinette loved his sense of humor, though Alya merely put up with it and Chloe groaned in objection noting it was his one flaw.  Apparently Ladybug's father was keen on wordplay as well, and he wondered if he dared hope he was going to get to meet him.  Someday.  Soonish.

This clue took a little more time to work out, since it seemed to be isolated to the first line.  He was also not doing his best thinking now that it seemed his Lady knew who he was and might be willing to consider kisses.

The bell hung from the flagpole at city hall, and it was his third guess that took him there.

#12 You had a chance to see me But respected my wishes I know how hard it was to close that door

This one he knew right away.  He closed his eyes and recalled how it had felt.  Facing Alya as an Akuma had been hard, and of course she was brutally tough.  At the end, Ladybug dashed into a closet to hide when her miraculous timed out.  He was sure she'd meant to fully close the door, but it hadn't latched.  Reaching for the lever, he was struck by the strongest temptation to pull the door open.  To dart in after her.

Instead, he'd respected her words.  She'd share her identity when she was ready, and he could wait.  It had been hard to push the door closed and leave.  And she'd known and understood that made him understand better that it wasn't so much about what she'd wanted to do.  She just wanted to keep them safe.  To protect their families and friends.

He made his way to Le Grand Paris.  Fortunately he was a familiar enough face, that his arrival was not unusual.  Apparently Ladybug had spoken with the front desk staff, so they were also expecting him.  They smirked and wished him luck.

The bell hung on the lever to the very closet Ladybug had used.  It was the last one he had room for on the increasingly jingly necklace he was wearing.

#13 Visit your princess for your favorite pastries And receive the only gift worthy enough for you

Princess and pastry.  That was obviously Marinette.  He'd always had a vague suspicion that Ladybug knew Marinette, and apparently she'd left hisgift with his good friend.  He wondered what gift she could possibly be referencing.  Seriously, pastries and her time were all he wanted.  Okay, so maybe he wanted cuddles and kisses, too, but he had to be realistic here.  Maybe she'd commissioned Mari to make him something.  That would be awesome.  Marinette made the best clothes.

With jolting footstep and every leap, the bells over his chest rang and clashed together.  He rather thought he sounded like a whole team of reindeer all on his own.  Before long he'd reached Marinette's balcony.  Her fairy lights had been joined with decorations of holly and ivy made out of fabric.  The effect was festive and cheery.  Over her skylight a banner had been hung.  Red and green ribbons had been cut and sewn to spell out "Kitty Door."

Grinning at the clear invitation, he reached down and lifted the plexiglas cover.  "Hello, Princess?" he called softly.  It was late at this point, probably past midnight, and he worried about waking her or her parents.

Marinette popped out from under her bed and beamed up at him.  She was wearing black and green fleece pajamas.  "Chat Noir," she called happily.  "Come in.  I was beginning to worry."

Careful not to drag his feet over her bedding, he dropped in and came down the ladder.  Her room looked so different, which was strange since he'd been over just a few days ago after school.  The lighting was low and soothing and more red and green decorations adorned her walls.  In front of her chaise, she'd set up a small table with a plate of the bakery's best treats, in his opinion, and two steaming mugs of cocoa.

"Hmmm," he said, taking in the snacks.  "You must have had some warning for those to be hot."

She grinned, totally smug.  She was up to something.  She and his Lady loved elaborate surprises.  "Please have a seat."

He sat down at the table.  "And will Ladybug be joining us this evening?"

She giggled.  "You could say that."  She sat beside him offering him a plate.  When he took it, her hand reached out and ran over the bells he'd collected.  "It looks like you found all of them."

"All thirteen," he agreed.

"Were they too hard?  Too easy?"

"Just right," he said quickly.  How much had Marinette been involved in this project.  Now that he was thinking about it, the embroidery looked like her work.  "They reminded me of a lot of important moments."

"Did you have fun hunting for them?" she asked, smirking over the brim of her mug.

"You're mighty pleased with yourself this evening, Princess," he said.  "You're toying with me."

She giggled again, a sound she'd heard a lot this evening.  "I've learned from the best."  She set down her mug.  "But I'll stop now.  Just tell me what you're here for.  What did the last clue say?" she prompted.

"It told me to visit you for pastries and a gift," he replied, feeling a bit like playing with her now.

"What kind of gift?"  She spoke as if wondering aloud, her fingers drumming on her chin.

Chat Noir shrugged, making his bells jingle.  "I have no idea, though it sounded pretty impressive."

"Ah, yes," Marinette agreed.  She leaned forward to reach under the chaise.  She came up with a stiff green piece of paper in one hand and a gift bow in the other.  She looked at the bow for a moment before slapping it on top of her head while holding out the paper.  "Here's the tag."

He stared at her, puzzled for a moment before reaching for the oversized tag.

To: Chatdrien With love from: Maribug

He gasped, his breath wheezing in audibly.  His eyes flicked back up to her face.

"Hi Kitten."  She waved at him.  A little red being, smaller than Plagg, but clearly a kwami zipped out from hiding and landed on her shoulder, beaming at him with big blue eyes that matched his Lady's.  Marinette's.

He pointed at her for a moment, waiting for his mouth to come back on line.  Marinette was his Lady.  She was his precious Bug and she'd just revealed herself to him and…  "You… you know!" he blurted.

Her hand reached out for his cheek.  "I do."

"Is that why you…"  She cut him off with a shake of her head.

"I've known for a while."  She glanced away.  "I probably should have told you, but…"  She sighed.  "I'm sorry.  It wasn't right of me."

"You've nothing to apologize for," he said.  "God I'm dense.  I can't believe I didn't see you."  He caught both her hands in his.

"It was miraculous magic, actually," her kwami assured him.  

"It's just… there were too many coincidences and the glamour… for lack of a better word, broke."  Marinette shrugged.  "This is Tikki."  She scooped up her kwami and held her out toward him.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Tikki," he said, hoping she could see that he meant it.

Tikki let out a high giggle. "You're such a sweetie, Chat Noir.  You might be my favorite of Plagg's kittens yet."  She dropped down to a small cushion he hadn't noticed on the table, and picked up a macaron.

"You didn't tell me because you felt guilty, did you?"  That would rank near the top for awful reveals.

"Absolutely not."  Her voice was firm.  "I wanted to get you something you really deserved, something you wanted and needed, but… nothing was good enough.  You've always wanted to know who I am.  Without the masks in the way, maybe I can take care of you like you deserve."  Her cheeks went a delightful pink.  "I know you like me as a friend, and Ladybug as a bit more than that."

He snorted.  "I like all of you a whole lot more than that."  He ran one claw over his bells until he found the ninth one.  "This one turned me into a puddle of sheer joy on the roof of Parc des Princes."  He leaned in to press his forehead to hers.  "The sheer idea that you might be open to a real kiss, made me completely stupid."

She sighed, looking relieved.  "Yeah, well it's only fair.  You and your…"  She leaned back and waved at him with both hands.  "Everything, make me a mess.  You have no idea."

He let out a laugh, suddenly more happy than he'd been at any point in his life that he could recall.

"I know you're home alone for Christmas tomorrow," she said, reaching under the chaise again.  "How about you detransform and put on these nice jammies I made you."  She dropped a pile of black and red fleece in his lap.  "You're staying over.  It's a Dupain-Cheng family Christmas for you," she said firmly.

He gawked at her.  "R-really?"  He held up the pajamas, Ladybug themed to match her Chat Noir set.  He glanced at the shirt hem and, sure enough, found her sneaky little signature.  "Won't your parents find it odd to wake up and find me here?"

"Marinette told her parents you were going to be alone," Tikki said.  "They practically demanded that she invite you over."

Marinette's smile went shy.  "I was hoping tonight would go well, and you'd be happy enough with your present that you'd want to stay."

"I love my present," he said softly.  "I'm keeping it forever."

[violetevents]

slice of heaven

pairing: leonard snart/barry allen word count: 1543 summary: Barry works in a bakery. Len keeps coming in to pick up cakes for his sister. a/n: this took way too long to write lmao. but anyway, here is the next installment in my coldflash abc! and the c is for... cake :D i was origionally going to go for crying and then this... fluff fest happened lmao

read the rest of the abc here!

The bell above the door jingles, announcing the arrival of a new customer. Barry looks up from where he’d been carefully putting a freshly made cake into the display fridge, and nearly drops the whole thing when he sees the unfairly attractive man that has just entered the shop.

“Hello?” The man drawls, and god, even his voice is sexy. That’s just unfair.

Barry realizes he’s still crouching behind the counter, just staring at the man from between a red velvet and a carrot cake, and hastily gets up. “Yes! Uh, I mean, hi. Hello. Welcome?”

Unfairly Attractive Man looks entirely unimpressed. “I’m here to pick up a cake under the name of Snart,” he says, and okay, at least his name isn’t sexy. That’s like, a small relive.

“Right!” Barry says, “I’ll be back in a second,” he adds, and disappears in the back. When he locates the cake for ‘Snart’, he frowns. When he walks back out, he turns to Unfairly Attractive Man and says, “You’re not Lisa.” Thank you, brain to mouth filter, for absolutely nothing. “I mean, Lisa comes in her all the time to pick up stuff so I just assumed she would. I mean, not that I mind that you are… You did order a Victoria sponge, right?”

Unfairly Attractive Man looks disgruntled by the onslaught of unfinished sentences. “Yes, I am in fact here to pick up a Victoria sponge for Lisa Snart.”

“Okay, good, good,” Barry said, handing the box over to Unfairly Attractive Man, “It’s already been paid for, so here you go. Enjoy!”

“Thanks,” was all he got, and then Unfairly Attractive Man left, leaving the soft jingle of the bell echoing throughout the otherwise empty store.

--

It’s not the last time Barry sees Unfairly Attractive Man, who he soon learns is called Leonard, or ‘Call me Len’. Throughout the weeks after that he shows up more and more, each time to pick up stuff for Lisa. Lisa, who used to come in at least once a week, who Barry now hasn’t seen for at least a good month.

Len seems distant through every exchange, though Barry can’t help but feel that occasionally Len is flirting with him. Which is ridiculous, of course, because why would someone so attractive as Len flirt with someone as ordinary as Barry, of all people, but still. It’s the little things.

“You have flour on your cheek,” Len says, as greeting, effectively pulling Barry out of his train of thought.

“Wha-?” Barry says, incoherently, and absentmindedly wipes at his cheek.

“No, your other… Now you’re just making it worse, here, let me.” And then suddenly Len is leaning over the counter, his hand resting against the side of Barry’s face, his thumb brushing over his cheek.

“Hngjf,” Barry says, because from this close he can count the lashes that frame Len’s bright blue eyes, and if he reaches out he could trace the soft bow of Len’s lips, rest his hand against his cheek like Len is holding his right now.

Len’s hand lingers, and he’s smirking, and god, Barry is fucked. Barry is well and truly fucked. He feels himself swaying on his feet, leaning forward, forward, forward-

“Barry, I’m here with your delivery!” A voice yells from the back and Barry jumps away from Len so fast he nearly brains himself on the shelf behind him. He shoots a panicked look at Len, who looks as composed as always, like nothing even happened, like they didn’t almost kiss.

“I gotta,” Barry says, vaguely gesturing towards the back. Before Len can respond, he disappears, leaning against the kitchen counter as soon as the door closes behind him, taking a deep shaky breath. So. Maybe Len had been flirting with him all this time after all.

(To his utter disappointment when he comes back into the store, Len is gone. He didn’t even take his delivery, and he didn’t leave a note. Barry checked.)

--

Lisa keeps ordering cakes, but no one comes to pick them up. At first Barry thinks Len might be busy, but it doesn’t take long for him to realize Len is probably avoiding him. Which. That kind of hurts. After all, Len was the one who had been flirting with him. Len was the one who almost kissed him. It’s not fair to do all of that and then just leave Barry hanging like this.

It’s not that Barry’s moping, though. Okay, like, maybe a little. It’s just, he’s mostly just really mad at himself. He always does this, fall in love with incredibly unfairly attractive people that will never love him back. He had just hoped Len would be different.

A week after Len has started stopping by, Lisa Snart walks into the bakery. Barry hasn’t seen her in a while, with her letting her brother do her dirty work, but it’s unmistakably her. She struts up to the counter, takes off her sunglasses, and punches Barry in the shoulder.

“Why,” Barry whines, gripping his shoulder. Lisa has a surprisingly good punch.

“That’s for upsetting my brother. He’s moping.” She frowns at him.

Barry frowns back. “Well, that is fully on him. It’s not my fault he stopped coming in here.”

Lisa taps a long fingernail on the counter. “Listen Barry, I trust you. You’re a good guy. Otherwise I never would have tried to set you up with my brother,” Barry splutters at that, “But if you don’t start telling me right now why my brother has been a mopey mess this past week, I am afraid I am going to have to give you a front row demonstration of all the ways I know how to kill a man with various kitchen appliances.”

Barry gulps. “Right. Uh, I think. He came in here and we just, well, it was like,” Barry flails a little, and Lisa impatiently taps her fingernails on the counter again. “We nearly kissed, and then the delivery guy came in, and I fled to the back like an idiot, and then when I came back Len was gone.” Barry stares dejectedly at the counter. Clearly Lisa is going to think he’s an idiot, and she’s going to leave and never come back and he rather liked having Lisa around.

But instead, Lisa starts laughing. “Oh my god you two are so stupid,” she says, between bouts of laughter. Then she pulls a piece of paper and a pen out of her bag. “Here. This is Len’s address. You might want to use it for a special delivery.” She winks at him, and then turns to walk out the door.

“Wait!” Barry yells after her, “What do you mean ‘trying to set us up’?” But she’s already out the door.

--

Len isn’t moping, no matter what his sister says. He’s just… disappointed. In himself. For letting his feelings get the better of him. After all, he had actually started falling for Barry. And to see the panicked look in his eyes when their near kiss was interrupted, that hastily said plea for him to stay put that was clearly a dismissal, that had hurt. But it’s fine. It’s Len’s own dumb fault for falling for him in the first place.

After pestering him about it all week, Lisa had finally promised to let it go, and though he did not trust the mischievous glint in her eyes at all, he was glad to be left alone for the night. That is, of course, until the doorbell rings.

“Lisa, you horrible excuse for a sister please..” He pulls open the door only to reveal the one and only Barry Allen, looking slightly sheepish and holding a Victoria Sponge. “… fuck off,” he finishes lamely. “Barry,” he says, “Why are you here?” He feels hope blooming in his chest, but the logical part of him is telling himself not to be ridiculous. Barry is probably just here to tell him to leave him alone. Or something.

Barry stares at him for a very long time, like he’s not sure Len is actually real. “I got you a cake,” he eventually says, thrusting the cake in Len’s direction. “Well, I made you a cake. Like, by myself. It’s a Victoria Sponge, because that was the cake you came to pick up on the day we met, and I’ve never really been good at expressing my feelings, so I thought I would do it with icing and I-“

“It’s…” Len starts, but he finds himself at a loss of words, staring down at the cake in his hands, which reads ‘I like-like you’ in cursive blue icing. He looks up at Barry, who is still nervously hopping from leg to leg, and, with the cake still in his hands, he surges forward to press his mouth against Barry’s. “It’s perfect,” he eventually says, when he pulls away, leaving Barry dazed and wide eyed.

(The cake ends up forgotten on the counter while Barry and Len retreat to the bedroom. They don’t remember it exists until the next morning, when they eat it for breakfast.

The next week, Lisa Snart receives a cake in the mail. ‘Thanks for being a meddling little bitch’ it says, in cursive blue icing.)

[okimargarvez]

LOVELY SIDE EFFECT

Original title: Piacevoli conseguenze.

Prompt: Luke get’s hurt, settled during 14x13.

Warning: none.

Genre: family, comedy, romantic.

Characters: Penelope Garcia, Luke Alvez, Roxy.

Pairing: Garvez.

Note: oneshot 46 in Garvez collection.

Legend: 💑😘🐶🎵.

Song mentioned: Troppo bene per stare male, Tiziano Ferro.

GARVEZ STORIES

LOVELY SIDE EFFECT

 As soon as they land, Penelope runs out of the waiting room and doesn't stop until she reaches the jet ladder. She completely ignores the rest of the team and approaches the Latin agent. -Luke!- she calls him, a first time with a tone obviously anxious, but also a certain amount of reproach. -Luke, what have you done?- is a rhetorical question, because she already knows the explanation, but she needs to vent everything she has felt since she received that call.

He scratches his head, somewhat embarrassed, though also pleased, of this sudden flare of interest in him by the oracle of the BAU. -It's nothing, it's just a superficial cut...- he tries to belittle the thing, while his cheeks turn red, because they are not alone, and he can feel on himself the looks of others who are coming down now from the plane.

-It's not a superficial cut!- she blurts, silencing him abruptly. Meanwhile one by one their colleagues passing next to them, someone showing indifference, someone leaving a nice little smile declared to be painted on his lips. -Reid told me, that...- she holds back for a second, trying to reject the need to say a dirty word, but then just can't do it. When its needed its needed. -...that bitch stabbed you!- she shouts, stifling the anger she feels. Luke is even more shocked because he has never seen her so nervous, nor has he ever heard her say a non-kind epithet to anyone. But he doesn't have time to think abut it, because he feels himself being dragged by one arm, the healthy one, fortunately. -Let's go to the emergency room, c' mon.- she says, pushing him towards the parking area.

He doesn't know why he is protesting, why he not just accepting what happens, because it is nice to be at the center of Penelope's thoughts. But maybe it depends on the fact that he doesn't want to weigh on her, he doesn't want to make her waste time. For once, it's better to selfishly enjoy the situation. -But they have already settled me...- he tries to convince her, not very decisive, while they are walking briskly in the direction of a very particular car, as well as its owner. Here is the famous Esther, whom he has heard about.

In any case, she doesn't want to hear it. She stops in front of the passenger seat and opens the door for him. Luke laughs; how many times did he imagine doing the same for her? He willingly accepts her help, though he would be able to do it himself, and tries to focus on something other than the blond woman's thighs a few inches from him. Here, that little bear that hangs next to the rearview mirror is perfect for him. -Maybe they weren't careful enough. - he hears her say, as she starts the engine and goes, leaving the BAU headquarters behind. -It's better to be sure.- she adds, in a lower tone of voice. Her eyes never leave the road. For a while, he limited himself to admiring her while she drives. Why does he think this is an extremely sexy thing? But everything she does makes her sexy, damn it. Her fingers moving on the steering wheel as she takes a turn or signals, or changes gear to stop at the traffic light, and those legs, so uncovered, and yet not enough...

He clears his throat, because he feels dry, despite being practically drooling. -Penelope...- then he comes out from his mouth, nothing more intelligent, in spite of the thousand high thoughts that run around his head. He always ends up making the idiot, with her.

He sees her looking at him just from the corner of her eye, just a second. -What?- she asks, passing the tongue on her lips, a gesture that she does when is extremely concentrated, is what Luke deduces, the profiler no longer in training.

He sighs and takes courage. He must take advantage of this moment, maybe she will never be so worried for him again, he doesn't get hurt so often, fortunately, even if he would be willing to take a bullet for her... Stay focused. -Are you okay?- here, he did it again, another stupid thing. But basically it is what he really wants to know. And it's also the only thing that matters.

To his surprise, the woman bursts out laughing. But it is a bitter laugh and certainly not amused. -You ask me if I'm okay?- she answers in turn with a question, just shaking her head, her hair dancing on the shoulders, so sensual. She seems to wonder how he could have dared to say such a thing. But then she changes her mind. -Yes, of course I'm fine.- she's lying, but so clearly that maybe he should consider it a mockery. -If it were not that two of the people I love most in the world risked being killed, but... they're the professional risks, right?- Luke doesn't hear the second half of the sentence, because his brain repeats like a broken record two of the people I love most in the world. One was Rossi, who lived something worse than him, even though he didn't want to talk about it with anyone. And the second was him. There is no need to ask for confirmation.

The man gives another sigh, looks out the window, then at the bear that seems to return his look and give him the coward and idiot. -You look angry...- he ventures to say, in a low voice, a sad tone, hoping that this is enough not to make her alter even more. She rolls her eyes, before taking a left turn. Luke knows that road well, and he knows that they are almost there to their goal.

Penelope waits a few seconds on purpose, to make him anxious. -No, no, angry, why should I be?- her tone is clearly ironic, but he can recognize many nuances of a wounded person, suffering. But he can't believe it could be for him. -I don't understand how Lisa can handle all of this every time.- the woman adds, but almost in a whisper, so that he can't hear it and doesn't even ask her to repeat. He just misses an ounce of courage to put his hand on hers on the gear while she is taking the last street.

-Are you angry with me?- he merely asks, shuddering, waiting for her answer. This time she doesn't make him wait a long time, she bursts out completely, even giving a punch at the wheel.

-Yes, I'm angry with you!- she admits, but incredibly doesn't scream and this makes it even worse. -Do you realize you could have been killed?- she says, twisting her lips until them bleached. -Think if she would have hit you in the artery, or in the heart ì...- he doesn't have time to correct her, she understands alone -no, surely you were wearing the bulletproof vest, but... but she could have hit your neck!- she concludes, satisfied that she has proved the validity of her theory.

This time Luke doesn't let himself be stopped by his fears of being rejected. -Hey, hey, breathe.- he says, with a sweet and affectionate tone, while he caresses her fingers on the steering wheel, with his right hand. -It's all right, it's just the arm, I was lucky.- he adds following the same melody. Penelope doesn't answer anything, doesn't react in any way, pretends to be too focused in finding a parking space.

-Yeah.- she opens his mouth again, before putting the handbrake on. -We arrived.-

 **

 A few hours later, they go back to the car. This time she doesn't open the door and Luke resists the temptation to return the favor, because he knows that if he did it, she would blame him because the doctor said he must rest, and it would not do any good to remind her that he has two arms, and he can still do a lot of things without compromising the injured limb.

Penelope, again, looks at him as little as possible. -So?- he asks her, feeling a little more secure than before. -Are you happy now?- Luke, however, turns his head without shame in her direction, and imprints the details of her face on the retinas.

-Yes.- she replies in a rather neutral tone, something too strange for Garcia, suspicious, and even worrisome. He looks at her fingers go automatically on the radio knob, old-fashioned, very charming, like... like her. All without obviously looking away from the guide.

My dear love, I dreamed of you, tormented inundated by the sea, I woke up and I saw, it's a relief to go away, it's an offense to stay...

He doesn't let distract by music anyway, he stays focused on her, just for a change. -Mmm, you don't seem to me quiet.- he has the courage to point out.

Penelope seems annoyed, upset. -Alvez, please, try to shut up.- his first reaction to being called by surname is sadness. He is now used to being Luke for her too. But then, the malice takes over, the desire to prick her, because he loves their bickering and he missed a bit them.

...it's a crime remain closed in this dark place, a joy to find myself talking about the future... shame... rancor... refreshment... but now forgiveness, forgiveness.

He then frowns, and looks at her through the rearview mirror. -I am Alvez, now?- even the tone that comes out is provocative and flirting. She tries to show indifferent or irritated by his tricks, but a half smile escapes her, and she hurries to erase it.

-Well, the fact that you are hurt doesn't change your being unbearable.- she answers, shuts him up and clearly enjoying this quick success. In fact, Luke is not offended, on the contrary, he is in turn pleased with her ability to develop sharp and spot on answers. Another of the things he finds sexy in her. Probably (surely) even if he saw her throw a card in the trash, he would think how sexy she is. You will come back hurt seriously rather than offer a remedy and then heal... you will walk forever in silence rather than telling me even once "comes back to me"! It is for this reason if he is silent, paying attention to the words of that strange song for the first time. Too late to make it better, too better now to feel bad, I'm too good now to feel bad, I'm too better! And apparently, it's not the only one. -Look, even the radio is make fun about your stupidity!- she points out, just giggling. The man doesn't reply anything, he just smiles and enjoys that sound. Unfortunately, at this time the traffic is much little, so too early he sees the street where he lives. -We arrived.- in fact, Penelope says, parking a short distance.

Luke scratches his head, feeling that he should say something smart, at least now, before saying goodbye, something that makes her at least guess how much she impressed him and made him happy to receive her attention, so that maybe it can repeat in the future, maybe without he must get a stab... -Well, then... thanks for the ride.- but his brain, once again, doesn't want to collaborate. He curses himself, but tries not to show her own inner struggle, so as not to seem also crazy.

But Penelope still has a wild card to surprise him with. -What do you think?- she asks, looking at him perhaps for the first time in three or four hours directly in the eyes. How much he missed doing it. When he looks at her, something happens inside of him, it's hard to explain, it's not that everything around him disappears, but he can't see it perfectly. -I have to make sure you're not alone.- she says, speaking as if it were an obvious fact and he was a fool for not having understand it on his own. Luke doesn't feel like replying, but as a small personal revenge he slams the car door, still receiving a bad look. And he also opens the door. -Is Lisa at home?- she asks as they get on the elevator to reach the floor of his apartment.

He understands that this would be the right time to tell her, to let her know the big news, but then, he can't do it. -No.- he answers. -In fact...- just at that moment the doors open and he surrenders. Who doesn't know how, she is able take possession of the keys, she steals them and turns them in the lock, as if this had always been her home.

As soon as she enters, she is overwhelmed by an orange tornado. -Roxy!- she exclaims in a sweet tone, bending down to let himself be kissed. -Hello lovely!- she caresses her and makes some little cricket behind her ears. There was never a need for him to tell her that her dog loved that kind of pampering, she already knew it by herself. -Be a good girl, daddy is a bit battered...- she adds in a lower tone, but not enough for Luke, who hears it. The man trembles, feeling overwhelmed, submerged by too many emotions. Then she stands up and seems to notice some other details. -But... where are her things?- she looks at him, looking for some telltale sign, in search of the lie she thinks he will say. -Why is your house so... empty?- it's clear how she tried to look for another type of adjective, but she couldn't find it.

Luke sighs. This time it's inevitable, he has to tell her. And why he doesn't want her to know? He knows perfectly well that he will never have even a 0.000000001% of hope, until Penelope will continue to believe that he is involved with another girl. -Well, you know... we broke.- it's all he can stutter. Because he also knew that she would take it badly, certainly more than him. Because she thinks he's sad, maybe that Lisa was the love of his life... but it's not like that.

And in fact, this time no unexpected surprises, everything going as expected. -What?- she asks first, unable to conceive of it, blinking her eyes and opening her splendid red mouth wide. -When?- she adds, with the same expression on her face.

He is about to tremble. -It... it was shortly after that thing of the party at my house...- he explains, reluctantly, clarifying with his own way of making his discomfort and his intention not to add other details. She seems to give him a truce.

-And you didn't say anything to anyone?- is the third question in a row that she asks. It looks like an interrogation, but he survived to the polygraph, and it gave him less stress. -Or only to me?- she adds, suddenly, looking at him already with a wounded expression.

He can't allow her to believe that he doesn't trust her, that he was afraid that by telling her, in a while all the building would know everything, like that time with Tara's brother. -No- he is quickly to deny then -look, I...- but then he fails to add anything else, has a lump in the throat and although he is not about to cry, his eyes are still big and shiny, and she, believing that both are for the pain of having loosing Lisa, she feels the need to comfort him.

-Oh, Luke! - she exclaims with a tone so sweet, broken voice, which reminds him when he came out of the elevator to give her Lou, after... he doesn't want to think about it now. Penelope hugs him, holding him tightly against her. Nothing to do with their first hug, which he also had enjoyed immensely. But then she comes off suddenly. -Oh, sorry, I didn't want to hurt you!- she says, bringing her hands to her face, worried and guilty, although he hasn't even issued a moan of pain. -How are you?- she asks him, stretching out her hand as if to verify something, and then pulls away halfway.

He feels obliged to reassure her and once again he is forced to fight with his own fear. -No, no, I'm fine and even if it was painful, it would be worth it.- he can even add, amazing first of all himself. He expects her to laugh in his face, makes fun of him or finds a way to belittle what sounds like a half declaration, like "If I ever do become the someone...". Instead, Penelope blinks and bites her lips.

-Oh, how sweet you are!- she says, letting go to the emotion. -But then how will you do it, are you going to be ok alone?- she starts again with the concerns. If he wasn't afraid that she could misunderstand him again, Luke would giggle or at least smile. -Do you need help?- she asks him directly, and he certainly can't answer with the truth. -I don't have anyone waiting for me at home, except from Sergio, but he will survive... if I can do something for you...- again he can hardly hold back, but he feels a thrill of excitement when she, innocently, points out the fact that only her black cat awaits her, not another man, Canadian or of other nationalities.

He just shakes his head. -Uhu, Penelope, I don't know, you've already done a lot and...- it seems that without wanting to have said the right thing, he has expressed the correct magic formula. The woman lights up and returns to show decisive, as when she dragged him to her car, now a lifetime ago.

-C'mon, don't even joke.- she exclaims, only realizing at that moment that she is still wearing her coat. She goes to hang it where once there was a doctor's coat. -Now I'm going to make you a cup of tea, which is always a good idea.- it is clear that it is not a negotiable option. -Sit up, like a good guy.- she gives him a slight nudge, forcing him to execute her kind order. Then she fades into the kitchen, leaving him alone with his own thoughts. It is the first time that there are only two of them in his house. Except from Roxy, who looks at him as if she too thought he was a stupid, moreover without courage. Then he realizes that she has been away for too long and reaches her.

He sees first two steaming cups and then she, her shoulders bent and head bowed, her body jerking slightly. He has to be completely silent to catch her sobs. -Garcia?- he calls her a first time. -Garcia?- he tries again, but she doesn't move. -Penelope?- he exclaims then, in no way hiding his concern. -Penelope, are you... are you crying?- he takes a step towards her, and then another. She just turns around. She doesn't dry her eyes, like the other time, but she doesn't try to deny the obvious.

-No, yes... just a little.- she admits at the end. Luke just doesn't get there.

-Why?- he asks, stroking her shoulders and seeing her jump. -Did something happen that I don't know?- a thousand theories go through his head in those brief seconds.

-No, it's just that...- she still doubts whether to say it and then throws herself. -I realized suddenly that I really risked losing you.- she confesses, and takes a little too much to correct herself. -We risked losing you, I wanted to say.- he doesn't point out this to her, because he understands that it could only make the situation worse and risk that she could closing up even more like a hedgehog. -It'll pass.- she reassures him, but her cheeks are still red, like the eyes.

-You will not get rid of me so easily, baby.- it escapes him, without any premeditation, as it happens too rarely to him to get real results. She doesn't seem to want let him off the hook, and turns completely towards him, raising a single eyebrow.

-Baby?- she repeats, confused, but apparently not annoyed.

Luke knows that now the damage is done, then shrugs. -What, did I do wrong?- for his immense joy, Penelope shakes her head and smiles.

-No, it's just that it's... it's weird.- he agrees with her, nods. It's weird, but in a good way, it's weird because it's new, it's weird because he's not Derek and he feels more for her than the chocolate thunder. -Now we have to drink tea, before it becomes cold.- she can find a way to change the subject, grabs everything and moves to the living room, quickly followed by the man.

 **

 They didn't mention the moment when she should have gone to her house, because neither of them wanted it to come. That's why it's late-night, and she's still there, sitting on his couch, while he's gone to the room to change his clothes. -Urgh, I would like to know how the hell a person could take off a shirt with one arm only.- she can't hear every word, but especially catches his moans and his pain screams held back. -In the movies they make it seem so easy...- she gets up and stops at the door, undecided whether to knock, then the hand acts without asking permission to the heart.

-Luke, is everything ok?- she asks. -Can I go in?- but she has already opened the door, because in fact only in case he was naked she could stop.

-Yes, come in, even if I'm not a pretty picture.- Luke answers. For a moment she seriously thinks of beating him for the bullshit he said. In what condition, in which universe Luke Alvez could not be more than excellent sight for the eyes? But then she desists and only sighs, annoyed.

She notices first the sweat on his forehead, then his eyes, bright and his expression so depressed and disappointed. -What... why did not you call me?- she asks him, without waiting for an answer that doesn't really interest her, because she has her theories. -You shouldn't be ashamed of me. By now we are like brother and sister.- he can't bear this.

-Mmm, brother and sister?- he shakes his head and decides that he couldn't be more humiliated. -I don't think about you as a sister, Garcia.- he raises his eyebrows and gives her a clear and determined look. Penelope, however, is able to get out of hindrances.

-Ok, take a deep breath, courage...- she approaches and gently begins to pull out one arm, then the other and the head last, until he remains bare chested. -Huh...- even he, from the height of his ingenuity, he realizes that the moment of confusion is due to his pectorals, so he stops feeling embarrassed. -Here, done.- she exclaims, shivering, before recovering completely. -Yes.- she nods to herself. -Now we put the other shirt.- she speaks with a soft and calm tone, as if he were a child, and manages to make him perform the operation in a totally painless way. -Finished.- she sighs. Then she seems to realize the way Luke is staring at her. -Maybe... maybe now I should come back to my home.- she tries to take a step away from him, realizing that she is too much, too close him, although in recent weeks they have been very close, but not so much. But he stops her, grabs her by the arm, naturally using the right hand, the healthy one.

-No, wait.- she stops, giving herself the excuse that she does so not to make him do useless efforts. -Penelope, did... did you worry about me? But I mean really really worried?- the specification is necessary, because he doesn't want to live in the gray area anymore. He wants concreteness and security, he wants her to help him get dressed for the whole week in which he has to keep the bandage, and he also wants that she not go back to her house tonight.

-I..- she falters, feeling trapped. -...no, I was worried about Roxy and Lisa, that is, when I thought you were still with her, and then without you how I could do it, with whom I could make joke and...- she raves, and usually he loves hearing her talk, listening the sound of her voice, but he understands that there is also something else that he can love even more, so he catches her again, this time by placing his palm open hand on her back and pushing her towards him, until their lips meet, attracted like magnets from opposite poles. -What... but you were not hurt?- she doesn't ask him why he kissed her, her only concern is his health, and he almost lets himself be moved by seeing her so stubborn, but then malice overcomes because a kiss alone can not be enough for him. In fact, the hand remained on her back.

-Yes, but in the left arm, the right one is in great shape and I don't need much else to...- he winks, but then moves on to concrete facts, moving lower, slowly, just because he doesn't want to ruin everything because of the rush.

-Hey, honey, stay fresh.- here's the playful Garcia. -They told you that you don't have to force it, you don't have to make sudden movements.- she reminds him, trying to instill a little common sense to the man. Luke snorts, making her giggle.

-Imagine if I couldn't have this misfortune.- he exclaims, clearly annoyed. She keeps laughing. -But I'm not a mummy, I can still do a lot of things...- he knows it's a losing battle, but as they say, sometimes the best part it's in the journey, not in the destination. And in this case the best part is in playing with her even knowing the verdict already.

-How long have you like me?- she asks him, surprising him for the umpteenth time. The man scratches his head, for a moment, letting himself be panicked, as he would have done before kissing her. But then he remembers this little detail.

-Urgh, a question a bit too direct.- he comments, taking time and certainly not because he doesn't know the answer. -I think... since we met.- he reveals, not too embarrassed. Penelope nods, as if to say that she hadn't expected anything different, although nothing before the kiss had let him believe that she knew what he felt for her.

-Practically three years.- she points out in a decisive tone, as if she were simply quoting a case report. -You held on for three years, you can resist two more weeks, don't you think?- that's where she wanted to go.

-Ugh.- Luke snorts again, sitting on the bed with a thud. Roxy licks his hand, as if to share his pain.

-Come on, don't make that face.- Penelope affectionately scolds him, caressing his cheeks and sitting next to him. -There's always something we can do anyway.- she says, winking, before starting over where they had stopped.

TAGS: @theshamelessmanatee  @arses21434 @kathy5654 @martinab26 @reidskitty13 @jenf42 @gracieeelizabeth27 @silviajajaja @smalliemichelle99 @charchampagne14 @thinitta   @myhollyhanna23 @garvezz @mercedes-maldonado  @shyladystudentfan

[seungjiseyo]

Rose of happiness

//Chanyeol x Rosé// one-shot

The sky is cloudy, it looks like its about to rain . She could feel the wind blowing from the open window that caused her to feel chilly . Outside the window, she could see birds flying around and the sun began to sink between those two mountains . The school’s bell will ring in any time but she didn’t even feel like to go home . Why? Maybe its because of the quite environment that made her feel peace? or the beautiful scenery that she adores so much? or the cute guy in the field that have just finished their practice? yeah, probably the last one .

Chaeyoung looks outside the window with her hand on her chin and observe him . It was ridiculous of her to have a crush on someone, but this is her first time that she felt all giddy in her when he smile, laughs or barely does anything at all . Chaeyoung feels nervous and shy around him . She likes him . She sighed and put both of her hands on her chin . Its doesn’t matter, he’s a senior, why would a senior like her? She sigh again and look out the window, his team just finished practice and starting to pack their bag . She could see him clearly with his soccer tee and a huge 61 on the back .

Park Chanyeol

The guy that she has a crush on is him . Tall and bulky figure . Hair is now covering his eyes due to his sweats of practice (but personally she thought his hair looks good on him in any type of way and colours) . Such a fun personality, always the laughing guy in the group . Deep voice and cheerful . She likes him more for being just him, the dorky guy of the group, but no, others doesn’t recognized him by that, he’s Chanyeol, the handsome and popular guy that play the guitar in the group, the one who raps with his deep and sexy voice . The one that will never end up with a type of girl like her .

“CHAEYOUNG!”

Chaeyoung put her hand on her heart due to a mini-heartattack and glared to her sides knowing who just shouted at her . Her thougths were right, next to her is Lisa, Chaeyoung’s best friend, smiling devilishly at her .

“What is it Lisa? You startled me .” she replied with a tone of annoyance, but then again she is Lisa . How can you be mad at her even if she’s annoying she’s still lovable .

“Didn’t you hear me calling you a zillion time Chaeng? The bell just rang, didn’t you hear it? Let’s go home Chaeng . What were you dreaming about anyway? she shoot her with quetions while leaning towards the windows . Before she could even push her away, her looks already made Chaeyoung blush . She saw him . Lisa is the only one that she has ever told about her secret crush .

“I forgive you this time for not hearing me calling you, just because I know why” she snickered and I just looked away while packing my bag to go home . While packing, Lisa asked her a question that made her froze and stop packing to look at her .

“Why won’t you confess to him about your feelings Chaeng?” she asked slowly while looking her with sad eyes . Lisa’s attention is good, she just doesn’t want her to keep being like this . She sighed and looks at Lisa .

“You don’t understand Lisa, I’m not like you and the unnies” She said and picked her bag up . Chaeyoung wasn’t like Lisa, Jennie unnie and Jisoo unnie . She isn’t as popular as them . Doesn’t have all the charms that guys like . Lisa is beyond beautiful, she looks like a barbie doll, plus she can dance and god knows how damn good she is . Jennie is just as beautiful , with the cold ice princess looks, all the guys loves her . The way she can sing and rap attracted them . Jisoo looks killed them all, she pretty, probably the most prettiest girl in school . Her 4D personality attract the guys , she isn’t shy like her , everyone wants to be friends with her, and everyones is including Chanyeol .

Lisa doesn’t say anything, the last time she tried to say something about this topic doesn’t really went well for the both of them . So she shrugged it off and walked out of the class together with Chaeyoung . 

Outside the school gate they saw Jennie and Jisoo waiting for them . After catching up with them, we head back home, but before they stepped outside of the school gate, they heard someone calling Jisoo . Someone who Chaeyoung particularly fond of the voice . They turned around to see who it is except Chaeyoung . No, Please don’t tell me its him, please no . It can’t be him right? she thought and turned around . Wrong, its completely the person that she thought of . Lisa put a hand around her shoulder to make it look like its normal- while actually trying to calm her down . 

“Oh hey Chanyeol, ssup?” Jisoo said to him while giving a Hi-5 to which he replied it back happily . It made Chaeyoung feel unhappy because all she want is to be close and as relax as Jisoo with him . 

“Nothing much, your party is tonight right? I was just asking to make sure of it” he said somehow with a giddy tone to which confuses Chaeyoung . But the important question is JISOO INVITED EXO ? AS IN INCLUDING CHANYEOL? She could feel Lisa’s hand around her shoulder was even more tight and she was looking at her - Calm down Chaeng .

“Yep, its tonight at 7! Y’all better come, if you don’t ayy I going to-” before she could even finish her words, Jennie’s hands covered her mouth . “Don’t mind her, she’s always overreacting you know . Just make sure EXO come m’kay?” Jennie said to him while Jisoo was fidgeting around to get her hands off her . Chanyeol just laughed and nodded . Even Jennie unnie talk comfortably with him . Then Chanyeol looked towards Chaeyoung and Lisa .

“Hmm so should Sehun come eh ?” He laughed when he saw Lisa blushed . He can even joke around with Lisa . “Ahhhhh go away sunbaenim, stop teasing me!” Lisa whined and he laughed again, but then he looked at Chaeyoung and smiled .

“Hey, its Rosé right?” he said with a smile towards her . She sheepishly nodded at him . After that, he looked at Jisoo again . “So, I guess I see all of you tonight? Good evening m’ladies” He sarcasticly bowed with a laugh and jogged back to his group of friends . “Very charming Yeol ! See you” Jisoo waved .

On their way back to Jisoo’s house to help her with the party food and etc, Jisoo striked a question at Chaeyoung . “Whats up with you when you talked with Chanyeol back there? were you trying to be cute or what?” Chaeyoung panicked a bit , she can’t say that she was nervous to talk to Chanyeol . “She just nodded at his questions, whats wrong wtih that unnie?” Lisa covered her back, with her answer, Jisoo just ignore it and they quickly headed towards her house to get ready for the party . 

Around half an hour before people started to crowd in the house, they got themselves ready with their outfits . Jennie wore a white tee and a black ripped jeans, paired with a black leather jacket . Lisa wore a red checkered crop top with shorts, while Jisoo choose to wear a pink dress with flowers to match up her look . Chaeyoung sighed, she thought every clothing she wear will look ugly, so Jennie passed her a beautiful black dress that reach till her thigh . The dress were also patterned with red roses and Lisa was the one who make-up her . Lisa finish her look with a bronze-orange kind of eyeshadow to match up her hair and a red tint to her lips to match the roses on her dress . At least I look decent enough, I guess she thought .

Soon there were a lot of people at Jisoo’s house . Jisoo unnie sure do have a lot of friends huh . The place was crowded with people , some even not from school . Then she spotted him . EXO just arrived and they look gorgeous . Chaeyoung was shocked to see Chanyeol dyed his hair to a purpleish-blue kind of colour . Nevertheless, he looks incredible . 

Chanyeol spotted Chaeyoung and he came towards her . She started to panicked and look left and right to find Lisa or any of her unnies . “Damn, you look amazing!” he complimented her . Okay breathe in and out , I can do it ! .

“Well you look amazing as well Chanyeol” she said back with a smile . I hope he doesn’t notice that I’m nervous . He chuckled and thanked her . The both of them started a conversation and talked for quiet a long time , Chanyeol likes her company, he thought she was funny and every of his jokes she laugh . Chaeyoung started feeling a bit comfortable with him . They didn’t even notice that Lisa saw the both of them and smiled . She quickly back away from them so they could talk more, until she bump with a certain someone .

“Sorry, I didn’t see where I wa-” she said but caught off when she notice who he was .

“Its you” they both said in unison . She realized she just bumped with Oh Sehun . The atmosphere were awkward and the both of them were quiet, but then he started the conversation . “Soooo, you wanna dance?” 

“Yeah, sure”

Chanyeol didn’t notice the time and how long she talked with Chaeyoung . He feels like he had the time of his life talking to her . Now, he knows more about her and calls her Chaeyoung instead . But then Chanyeol remembered something, so he excuses himselft for a minute to get a drink . .

Chanyeol thought of today . The party-particularly Jisoo’s . He wanted to confess today . So he looked for her .

Chaeyoung was a bit lost in the house, the place were crowded so she had to squeeze in to walk through. So, she thought of finding the girls to talk with . What she didn’t expect is finding Chanyeol around the corridor looking towards someone . He looks sad, but why? . Chaeyoung came a little bit closer and thats when she knows why . She saw Jisoo and Suho, a friend of Chanyeol kissing each other . Chanyeol likes Jisoo unnie . She saw Chanyeol walked out, but she didn’t try to chase after him . 

She jumped when she felt someone’s hands on her shoulder , she spun around and saw it was Jennie unnie . “Go after him Chaeng” she encouraged her with s sweet smile . “W-what are you talking about unnie?” she laughed even though it sounded fake . Jennie sighed and said “There must be a reason you didn’t want to tell me and Jisoo and I completely understand if you don’t want to . You probably have told Lisa right?” and Chaeyoung just nodded at her . “I’m not as blank as Jisoo you know right? so go after him Chaeng . You can . Don’t think of me , Jisoo and Lisa . Think about you . Yourself . You’re great and if you don’t know it , we know . So go” Chaeyoung hugged and thanked her . After that, she chase after him .

“Still being the hero I guess?” a voice said behind Jennie . “Shut up Baek, let’s dance” and she took his hands towards where the music plays .

Chaeyoung ran and ran, even with her heels on, she ran to find him . It was dark so she look carefully so she wouldn’t miss him . It was probably near midnight, no wonder it was dark . Then, she saw a figure sitting near bench around the corner of Jisoo’s house . A tall figure with bright hair was sitting down . It must be him ! She walked carefully towards him .

“Chanyeol?” and he spun around, Chaeyoung suspected that he was crying . Chaeyoung didn’t know what to do . She never seen Chanyeol cried before, heck she never even seen a guy cried in front of her . “Are you okay?” to which he quickly replied with a yes . When Chaeyoung asked if he wanted tissue, he just shook his head as a no sign .

“If you don’t want to talk its fine, I can lea-” “Stay. Please Chaeng”

The way he called her Chaeng made her feel happy . Chaeyoung sat beside him and give him her shoulders. 

“I love her” Chaeyoung felt like she stopped breathing . Chanyeol confessed that he loves Jisoo , she feels broken but she smiled and try not to cry . She stroked Chanyeol’s soft hair to soothed him . Chanyeol kept rambling stuff about her and Chaeyoung tried to held in .

“Jisoo, I love her. To be honest, I even dyed my hair today to match hers . I didn’t know she was with Suho hyung. I love the way she cares for other , the way she smiles , how beautiful she looks in everything . Even her personality , she’s weird , but I like it . The way she laugh around you guys , she’s just-” 

“Enough!” she couldn’t take it anymore . She needs to believe Jennie’s words .

“Chaeng? what? fine, then , you can leav-”

“Don’t you get it !” 

Chanyeol was quiet and confuse . Chaeyoung took a breath and finally she let it all out .

“I love you Chanyeol , since the first day I got into school , you were helping the teachers file when us freshmens just got into school . You’re brave , handsome , popular . But I never saw you like that . You’re funny . You always make joke around your friends . You always help someone when they’re in trouble no matter who they are, the way you care for them touch my heart . The way you laugh with your deep voice made me laugh . Seeing you smile made me smile . If you’re happy, then I’m happy . Seeing you’re sad now , and because of my unnie made me feel sad, heartbroken but I tried to held it in . I want to support you . I’m not as pretty as Jisoo unnie , not as brave and talkative like her . She has many friends but I don’t . Now I’m just rambling, I’m sorry , I want to support you , I really want to, but I can’t . Just this time I can’t because its include with my heart breaking to see you sad to wanting to be with someone else but me . Chanyeol , I love you “ 

Chaeyoung turned around and started to walk away but something prevent her from it . The arms around her . Chanyeol was hugging her . She felt her heart skips a beat . Those arms that are touching her , turned her around to make her look at him .

“I didn’t know . I’m sorry that I hurted you , I’m sorry for everything . I don’t know what to say “ he started slowly . She sighed and took his arm off her . She looks at him again with a bright smile . A fake bright smile that Chanyeol sees through it . “ Its okay, as long as you’re happy, I’m happy right? 

“Can we start now?

“What??”

“I would be lying if I said I don’t like you, you made me feel happy at the party, and I don’t see why not to give us a chance Chaeng . I should probably move on from Jisoo, I should’ve known she likes my hyung though . How about you ? Do you want to give us a chance Chaeng?”

Chaeyoung started to teared up and Chanyeol’s huge hand came to cupped her face . He wiped her tears away and he could hear a soft yes from her , but knowing Chanyeol, he just have to tease her. 

“What was that ??? I can’t hear?” “Yes,you idiot”

“Oh so I’m the idiot now ?????” “Shut up”

Cute he thought, and finally they kissed .