#sitting here in awe at sunburn and i still get the feeling i did my first time listening
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ghoulish-art-tendencies · 1 month ago
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no one gets Muse’s album Showbiz like i do. sigh
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starflirts · 5 months ago
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THINK FAST prompt 9 with frenemy luke castellan
here comes the final piece of the sunburn event! enjoy!<3
luke castellan x demeter! fem! reader
“You know, for a child of Demeter you’re not that bad with a sword.”
Putting the weapon back in its sheath, you sigh before turning around.
���Castellan ! What an awful surprise. I started to think I wouldn't hear your voice today. Guess Hermes had other plans for me.”
His frown is deep enough for you to understand that he doesn’t like that answer. You nudge his shoulder.
“Wanted to see me fail eh ? Sorry Luke, not today.” you grin as you walk away.
He’s by your side in a few strides, hands in his pockets.
“I mean, it’s fun seeing you struggle against me when we’re playing capture the flag, but no. Silena wanted to organize some kind of party or gathering and she told me to tell you that you’re invited.”
“You’re also a postman now ? Impressive. Did you get your own invite ?”
Luke shakes his head, fighting back a chuckle. “Of course I'll be there. I can’t let you miss me too much.”
“Yeah right.”
You and Luke have always been like that. Endless rivalry accompanied by friendly banter. No one really knew whether you hated each other’s guts or were simply concealing feelings to hide others. And no one really questioned it anyway. They knew that one was always in the vicinity of the other, whether you liked it or not.
“Where are you going ?” he suddenly asks, hands still in his pockets.
“Why do you care ? Do you have something to say to me ?”
He tilts his head and you can see his jaw tick.
“No…? Can’t a guy just walk with a girl ?”
You stare at him, eyebrows raised but you don’t grant him an answer, simply giving him a smirk. Luke shakes his head, chuckling.
Silena’s party was great. Luke was sitting next to you in front of the bonfire but to everyone’s surprise, you didn’t mind. His company was enjoyable, the absence of snarky comments surprising your friends. Your eyes strayed over to his face, his sharp features illuminated by the firelight. As if he felt the weight of your gaze, he turned his head, a knowing smile on his lips.
“Like what you see ?”
You nudged his shoulders. “Shut up.”
You didn’t move away, shoulders touching, hands grazing each other.
The fire was fading to a small flame, a few people going off to bed. Only Luke, you and a couple of your friends remained outside. The low chatter and the warm summer breeze lulled you to sleep. You tried to fight the tiredness but to no avail. Your head slumped to the side, unknowingly meeting Luke’s shoulder.
“Your girlfriend’s fallen asleep Luke.” Charles laughs at Luke’s startled face.
“She’s not my…girlfriend.” he frowns, looking down at your sleeping form.
“Yeah right.”
Luke doesn’t miss the knowing glint in Charles’ eyes but no one around the campfire misses the soft smile gracing his face.
Yet, he thinks.
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hugsandharrystyles · 1 year ago
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Are you wet right now? Pt. 2
Well... Here we are again.
Warnings: This is just really filthy and kinky, and a bit vulgar, so if you're not into like really dirty stuff, I suggest not reading. (I try not to give away the plot with the warnings, so this is my warning.)
Word Count: 6,000+
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Tension. Burning tension.
It's been two whole days since you and Harry confronted each other's feelings, and the heat between you two is enough to kill. Your parents have left you both alone to do whatever you want while they do whatever they want, so you've been stuck with Harry glued to your hip for the last forty-eight hours.
He likes to think he's sly about it too.
The way he doesn't even bother 'sneaking' touches but full on putting his hands on you when it's not appropriate. You wish you could complain, but you physically can't.
He guards you like your precious cargo and won't let anyone so much as glimpse at you.
Through all of this, he still hasn't broke into the tension first, and neither have you.
"Where are you going?" You hear Harry's voice from behind you.
"It's an hour before the sunset, so I figured I'd go down to the private beach," You explain, ignoring his burning eyes on your body.
"Um, can I come too?" He asks, just in his swimming trunks. He comes behind you to lightly tread his fingers against the fabric of your bathing suit.
"Not like I have a choice, huh? You'll come anyway," You laugh and bat his hand away.
"Well, I thought it'd be polite to ask," He jokes and grabs your beach bag for you.
"That's a first," You comment and go to take your bag from him, but he moves it out of your reach.
"I got it, babe," He says and presses a wet kiss to your cheek. You sigh, frustrated, as he walks towards the door.
"Wow, there's like no one out here," You say in awe as you and Harry find your spots in the sand. You both smooth it out to lay your big towel down.
"It is a private beach, genius," He remarks, and you glare at him.
"Thanks, dipshit, but it's a private beach for us and other narcissistic people who can't go to the normal beach," You explain and lay down on your stomach on the towel to watch the sunset slowly start to meet the horizon where the ocean lays. You feel Harry lay his head in the middle of your back. "Hey! Get your big head off of me," You complain and roll over on your back. Harry now rests his chin on your stomach, right where your bikini bottoms start. His hands rub all over your thighs.
"I can show you real big head," He says, a mischievous grin on his face as he bites the fabric of your bikini. Heat is spread between your thighs, and you pray that he doesn't feel it.
"That has to be the worst thing you've ever said," You laugh and shove at his head, making the bikini bottoms snap against your skin as they're released from his mouth.
You moan.
God, you moan.
You can feel your face heat, and Harry's staring at you with wide eyes.
"Did you just-"
"Shut up," You cut him off.
"But-"
"Let's just watch the sunset," You plead, and he nods his head, suddenly quiet. You both move around, so you're sitting up with your arms propped behind you to watch the waves.
After a minute of silence, you look over at Harry who has his eyes closed. His cheeks are pink from sunburn and what looks like bashful blush. His abs are shining with light sweat, and you want nothing more than to lick him clean.
That's when, when you look a little further down, you see what he's concentrating so hard on in his mind- why his eyes are shut so tight.
He's hard.
He's large and plump in his trunks, and you can tell. You almost want to say something, but you don't want to embarrass him. You both feel the tension, the wanting.
To hell with it.
His legs are spread enough for you to quietly get between them, so you do. Your hands come in contact with thighs first, and his eyes are bulging out of his head. You're slipping your hands under the fabric to feel at his soft thighs.
"Oh, God. What are you-" He's breathless and out of words. It's easy to see what you do to him.
"I'm done with the games, Harry. I might've given in first, but I'm winning, so I'm going to do whatever I want to you right here on this beach, m'kay?" You ask, though you don't really care for a response. You're already leaning you're body weight on him to press him down onto the towel, so you can start your descent at his pretty face. His eyes are wide and begging.
"Yes- yeah- do what you want," He pleads, his hands fidgeting in the air.
"I will, sweet boy." You straddle him and take his hands in yours, playing with his much larger ones. You clasp your hands together and smile. "You'll be good for me, won't you? Let me hear all your pretty sounds. Know you're loud because you never stop whining, huh?" You ask, leaning down over him to talk against his lips, pinning his hands lightly above his head with your hands still together.
"I'll give you everything," He promises and puckers his lips to quickly press a kiss against your lips. You lean away before he could do it again, causing him to pout. You release his hands and run yours all over him. You press and feel against his abs before running your fingers up his warm body and tangling your fingers in his hair.
"Beautiful, beautiful," You whisper and kiss all over his face. He sighs before letting out a small, angelic laugh. You lightly flick your tongue over his lips, almost as if caressing him. His head is thrown back, and he seems to be succumbed to a state of euphoria.
"Kiss me," He whispers, opening his mouth to flick your tongue with his. For once, you listen to him and press your mouth onto his. It's wet and messy, but neither of you would have it any other way. His hands caress the soft skin of your body and find your hips to press you into his crotch. He bites down on your bottom lip and sucks it into his mouth. You can already feel how sore your lips are becoming, and it excites you. You pull him away from you by his hair, and he huffs in desperation. You start to kiss down his neck, finding his pulse point and sucking a harsh hickey into the skin there. His moans only spur you on. As your mouth is preoccupied with his neck, your hands slide down to his pecks, and you tweak his nipples in between your fingers. "Oh, fuck. No one's ever done that," He laughs but is broken by a moan.
"Want me to stop?" You mumble against his neck.
"No, please no," He whimpers. You smirk and kiss down towards his chest, now flicking your tongue against his nipple and biting down gently on it. His hips involuntarily buck into yours as he tries to find some relief for his groin.
"Impatient?" You giggle and press kisses down his abs, letting your tongue lick up the light layer of sweat that's secreted against his abs.
"Baby- fuck, you're dirty," He breathes. "Best I've ever had."
"You haven't even had me yet," You laugh and sit up to stare at him. Your hands press and skim all over his tummy.
"Already know. You do what you want instead of the same ol' boring shit. And, it's you, so," He blushes.
'Those girls not treating you right, hon?" You ask, faking sympathy and sinking your fingers into his love handles, something you've always wanted to do.
"They're so fuckin' vanilla. They rush into it and just want me to fuck em'," He pouts.
"Oh, you poor baby," You laugh.
"I'm serious! I'm not even hard when they want me to stick it in. What does a guy have to do to get some foreplay around here?"
"Okay, I'm leaving," You joke, but he plants his hands on your hips and squeezes.
"Let's get back to it, yeah?" He changes the subject. You nod your head with a grin and sneak your hand into his shorts. "Oh!" He gasps in shock when you wrap your hand around him and take him out of his shorts to where you can just see his length.
"Oh, you're a big boy," You say, already feeling yourself start to drool. Of course his cock is huge, and of course it's beautiful. "So pretty, wow," You sigh and weigh it in your hand, loving the heaviness.
"Stop it," He says, flustered. "Y/N, we shouldn't do this here," He whimpers, even though his body betrays him and bucks into your hand.
"No? Who's going to stop me? I don't see anyone, baby," You egg him on. "You keep lookout, okay?" You say and immediately bend down to take him into your mouth.
"Oh, fuck," Harry moans. He had totally forgot about the possibility of people seeing the two of you, but he couldn't find a bone in his body that cared enough with the way you were sucking on him. His hands found your hair and guided you down on him gently. He tried his hardest to keep his noises at bay, but he's already noisy in bed, and it's you that sucking his dick, so he's hopeless. His moans are loud and hot- needy and whiny.
"You gotta keep that pretty voice of yours down unless you want everyone to know what we're doing over here," You say, jerking him off as you catch your breath. His dick twitches in your hand. "Oh, you would like that, huh? Let everyone know who Harry Styles really belongs to," You say slyly and press a kiss to his tip.
"You have to stop talking," He whines, hips stuttering as he tries to make your hand go faster.
"No, I think you do," You correct him and with your free hand, shove two fingers into his mouth. He gags for a moment before moaning around your fingers, sucking on them like a good boy. "There you go, sweet boy," You encourage him and flex your fingers against his tongue. You jerk him off quicker and move your fingers from his mouth, instead letting your hand rest lightly around his neck as you put your mouth back on him.
"Baby," He whines, almost sounding like a cry. Your hand caresses the side of his neck lovingly, working him through the pleasure. "Fuck- suck on my balls, please," He cries. Never has he asked for that during sex, but he has a feeling you're super into the naughty side of things. You immediately obey his command, despite you being the one in charge. You suck one of his heavy balls into your mouth and fondle the other one, using your free hand to jerk him off rapidly. "Y/N- I'm gonna fucking cum," He cries, his hips stuttering. "I want to cum on your t-tits," He begs.
"Yeah?" You ask, your voice raspy. He nods his head quickly. You quickly sit up and undo your bathing suit top without hesitation. You throw it to the side before leaning down and holding his big dick between your boobs. "Fuck my titties, baby," You encourage him, and he moans before sitting up and fucking his hips up. You help him by squeezing your breasts around him and moving up and down quickly. You stick your tongue out to lick his tip whenever you can catch it.
"I'm cumming," He groans loudly and starts shaking. He's stopped moving but you're still moving your boobs up and down over him. His cum is painting your breasts, and it's safe to say you've never seen anything so hot. Harry is utterly beautiful when he cums- unlike anything you've ever seen before.
"Fuck, look at you," You giggle as he starts to come back down to Earth. His dick is still twitching, and you remove your boobs from him before leaning down and kitten-licking at his dick to clean him up. He's whimpering in overstimulation as you, as gently as you can, tuck him back into his swim trunks. You're on the verge of saying something until you're suddenly being pulled up to sit on his lap, and there's a warm tongue lapping at your breasts and chest where his cum is. "Oh, good boy. Cleaning up your mess," You praise and run your fingers through his hair as he licks you up, clearly drunk on you with his eyes closed and lazy mouth.
"Fuck, thank you, baby," He whispers before kissing the skin between your breasts. He reaches to the side to retrieve your bikini top, and he helps you put it back on. "Let me eat your pussy," He begs, looking up at you with puppy dog eyes.
You laugh before answering him. "Not here, baby. It's getting dark," You answer while leaning your head in the crook of his neck. He rubs your back soothingly and nods his head against your own.
"Are you wet right now?"
"Of course I am, but think of how much better this would be in a bed," You offer.
"You sure? Positive you're soaking your bikini bottoms right now," He says and gives your butt a light tap. You blush and shake your head, beginning to stand up.
"Let's get back to the hotel, and we can do whatever. Does that sound good?" You ask, and he nods his head quickly.
"I swear, the walk back up from the beach is always the worst," Harry complains as you walk through the hotel doors.
"It also probably doesn't help that I just sucked your cock until your legs started shaking too," You say bluntly, and Harry chokes on his own spit.
"You-"
"Y/N! Harry!" Harry's cut off by his own mother's voice. Yours and Harry's eyes are wide as you come face to face with Anne and your mom.
"We've been looking all over for the two of you!" Your mother exclaims.
"Eh, sorry, mom. We just went down to the beach to watch the sunset," You explain, leaving out the details.
"Well, I just overheard from a few tipsy teenagers that there's a party up on the roof lounge, where the pool is. Doesn't that sound fun?" Your mom asks, and you internally smash your face into a wall. Your wetness is starting to collect in your bottoms, and it's getting uncomfortable.
"Harry?" You say, not even look at him. You shove his shoulder when he doesn't say anything.
"What- Oh! Yes, yes. That sounds great," Harry smiles, and now you internally smash his face into a wall.
"What?" You ask and finally meet his eyes.
"I-"
"Great! It will be good for you two to talk to people your ages. Also, Anne and I will be using your room for girl's night until you get back, so don't come back!"
"Wait-"
"Bye!" Your mom and Anne yell in unison and head up to presumably, your room. Your glare is set on Harry.
"I'm going to kill you."
"I didn't even process what she said until after I had spoke! Sorry if I'm a little distracted!" He pouts sassily.
"You promised you'd help me, and now we have to go to a stupid pool party with stupid people and pretend to have a stupid good time!" You complain and stomp away from him, towards the elevator.
"I'm sorry!" He apologizes and grips your wrist.
"I'm horny!" You whine back, getting a disgusted look by an elderly couple who descend from the elevator. You and Harry walk in, tapping on the roof button.
The doors are barely closed when, suddenly, Harry full-on drops to his knees, pulls your bikini bottoms to the side, spreads your legs, and presses his face into your crotch.
"Oh my God!" You exclaim and try to gain your balance. His face is properly shoved into your pussy, and he's moaning as if you're the best thing he's ever tasted. His head shakes back and forth, and he shoves his tongue into your sopping hole. You watch nervously as the elevator floors continue to rise until it's finally coming to a stop. The ding sounds and Harry quickly gets up, wiping his face, and steps out of the elevator. Your mouth is ajar, and your legs are slightly shaking. He doesn't even look back, just holds his hand out to you. You shyly take his in yours, and he walks the two of you out onto the roof.
You're quite spaced out from his scene, and it makes it hard for you to comprehend anything happening around you. You're snapped out of it when Harry presses a kiss to your temple, making you blush harshly.
"Sorry," You mumble with an embarrassed laugh.
"I'm about to drop to my fucking knees and eat your sweet pussy right here in front of all these people," He whispers into your ear. You mask your gasp with a cough.
"Shut the fuck up," You whisper back.
"Harry?" You hear an annoying voice call from behind you. You and Harry both turn around to find the girl who Harry had taken to your room with looking between the two of you with a glare.
"Oh, uh- hey..." Harry says quietly. You roll your eyes and start to walk away, but you feel Harry's arm wrap around your stomach. His large hand splays against your stomach and holds you to him.
"It's Sydney," The girl says blankly, clearly annoyed. "I thought you two weren't dating."
"We aren't," You clarify because Harry hadn't made it official yet by asking the big question.
"No?" Harry asks, pulling you tighter against him. "I just shoved my face in your pussy, and we're not dating?" He whispers in your ear, and you elbow his ribcage. "Not yet, then," Harry finally answers the gawking girl.
"Well, just so you know, he called me some other girl's name while we were together. You're not as special as you think," The girl, who's name you've already forgotten, bites.
"Yeah? Who'd he say?" You ask, pushing your ass roughly against Harry's crotch.
"I don't know. Y/N or something like that," She says, harboring significant sass.
You laugh. You bust out laughing in the girl's face, and it takes Harry basically dragging you away to settle down.
"Funny is it?" He asks, irritation clear in his voice.
"Oh, it's hilarious! Poor baby was dreaming of me," You fake pout at him and pet his head.
"Let's get in the pool," He quickly changes the subject. Harry pulls you to the pool, never letting his hands leave your body. You both step into the expansive pool and are delighted by the water's temperature. "Over here," Harry tells you, and you both swim to the pool's waterfall. There's a couple people in the pool, but nothing like how crowded you thought it was going to be.
"Harry, I can't touch over here," You complain. He looks at you for a moment before reaching down and circling his hands around your thighs to lift you around his waist. You circle your legs around him and run your fingers in his hair. He presses a chaste kiss to your jaw. "You know, you still haven't asked me."
"Asked you what, baby?" He asks.
"To be yours," You clarify.
"You know your mine just as much as you know I'm yours," He expresses and goes to kiss you, but you dodge him. He grunts in response.
"I know, but I want you to ask," You laugh.
"Yeah? You want me to ask you to be mine forever? To be my girlfriend?" He asks, kissing your throat.
"Yes," You breathe shallowly.
(I recommend turning on "I want you" by The Beatles at this point)
"Please, baby. Will you be my girlfriend?" He practically begs. You nod your head, giving him your best doe eyes.
"You my boyfriend now?" You basically purr, lightly ghosting your lips over his cheek.
"Yes, yes," He whimpers. He suddenly twirls you around so your back is pressed against his front. "Hold you breath," He says in your ear, and before you could question him, you're suddenly under water, and Harry is taking you through the waterfall to the hidden side. You can't even get a word out or wipe your eyes of water before you feel fingers slipping into your bikini bottoms and pressing against your clit.
"Harry!" You whisper-yell. He doesn't say anything in return, just slides two of his fingers into you without warning. You quickly wipe your eyes and hold onto him by the back of his neck. "Harry, people are on the other side of the waterfall. A-Anyone could swim back here and s-see," You pussy clenches at the thought, and you're barely able to form a coherent sentence as his fingers pound into you.
"Didn't care about that at the beach," He bites back, suddenly kissing you roughly.
"There weren't-" Kiss. "People-" Kiss. "At the-" Kiss. "Beach," You finally get out while his lips are still nailing yours. He bites your bottom lip, and you whine.
"Turn around," He says quickly, and you do. His fingers sadly leave you, and you turn in his hold, rubbing your crotch against his. You feel movement behind you, and you're about to question him, but you're suddenly halted when you feel the thick tip of his dick push past your entrance.
"Oh!" You moan, and Harry quickly cups his hand around your mouth. His cock is so big and fat that it's taking everything in you to not scream. He's pushing in slowly to make you feel all of him. Your hand reaches back to push at his hip, but he just groans in your ear. Once it's finally all the way in, and his pelvis is pressed against your ass, he unclasps his hand from your mouth. "What are you doing?!" Is the first thing you say, though you grind your hips back against him.
"M' sorry," He whines and bites down on your shoulder. "I'm gonna cum- Oh, God," He whimpers.
"You better fucking hold it," You bite, and you feel his arms encircle around your stomach and squeeze you tight to him.
"It's s-so tight and warm. Y/N- fuck," He cries.
"Hold it," You demand and squeeze his hip. "You're the one that stuck it in," You say.
"Couldn't wait. M' sorry."
"Just fuck me, yeah? I want my boyfriend to fuck me in a pool filled with people," You beg, and he nods into your shoulder. He pulls out almost to the tip before, as harshly as he can with the water in the way, snaps his hips into you.
As he starts to consistently thrust, one of his hands reaches down and rubs your clit to give you more pleasure.
"I'm not going to last long, baby," He whines.
"Me neither, it's okay," You reassure him and twist your neck back to kiss him. He moans, and his hips continue to thrust into you. "Stretching me out so good- fuck," You cry against his lips.
"Best pussy I've ever had- Oh, God," He groans. "I need you to cum for me," He begs.
"It's okay, baby- just cum," You assure him.
"No," He whines, but you can tell he's close. His hips suddenly stop, and his hand is roughly rubbing at your pussy. The pain mixed with pleasure drags you so much closer to your own orgasm, and you can't help but squirm in his hold. Once he feels as though you're close enough, his hips start again, though his hand never stops. "Cum, sweetheart. I'm gonna cum," He whimpers. You nod your head and smash your lips against his so neither of you make a sound.
The orgasm that hits you seems to never stop, and the same for Harry. His hips are stuttering against yours, and you have to drag his fingers away from your clit to get some relief.
"Baby, breathe," You whisper in his ear, and you feel his breathing start to calm back down.
"Oh my God," He laughs.
"Harry?" You ask.
"Yeah?" He replies.
"How do we get out of here?"
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pixeldistractions · 9 months ago
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In the morning, Jordan put some aloe on his sunburn. It was time to get back to the grind.
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The morning session went as well as it ever did, which was not to say he made much progress. There were no notable falls to mention, and nothing actually broke, but the sunburn made every movement torture. So he ducked out of the session a little early and went to hide.
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He already had a favorite spot in the adventure park. It was a small rock ledge that was flat enough for sitting, covered by the shade of a lone tree, and had a spectacular view. He paid a hefty price tag for these classes, so he would rest when the climbing got the best of his bruised body and ego. The best part—this was the only spot in the park where he got a good cell connection.
He checked his texts. Maria had sent a picture and an emoji kiss. 😘
The emoji was sweet, but it left him wanting. Her pictures left him speechless, but also filled him with ache. He knew the real thing, and nothing less would do. Not anymore, not after six weeks apart. He wanted her real lips on his, her warm skin under his fingertips, he wanted to squeeze her supple thighs and wrap her legs around his hips.
As it turned out, they both wanted dates on the calendar.
He called her back.
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“I have good news,” Maria said. “I mean, I hope you’ll think it’s good news. I can have five days off on November 5th. Steph said she’d cover some of my shifts after Justin finished his exams. Or else a weekend on October 22nd.”
“Really? That’s next weekend.”
“But the train ride is almost ten hours each way, so I’ll only get to see you for about… twenty-four hours?”
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“I would absolutely pay good money to be able to touch you for twenty-four hours.”
“It would be cheaper if I can get someone to watch Johanna.”
“And more time for touching,” he said. “A better bang for my buck.”
“Hmmm,” she mused, “Why does this sound like hiring a prostitute?”
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“Ha, I’m in Nevada,” he said. “It’s totally legal here.”
She giggled. “Can you afford that? The train tickets, I mean, not the prostitute.”
“Well, I mean, I could probably afford it once.”
“Once,” she said somberly.
“Or both? I’ll pick up some jobs. We can do both.”
“No, you don’t have to,” she said. “I mean, I can pay for one of them.”
“Then both?” He felt unreasonably excited. She could be here so soon, and that was more optimistic than he’d felt about anything in weeks. Just ten more days. “What do you think? Then I can see you next week… But, I guess, only for twenty-four hours.”
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“Oh, God, it sounds awful when you say it like that,” she said. “Would you be okay with that? I don’t know if I can do that. Twenty-four hours together and then just, like, going home? How can we do that?”
Then, as if to torture him, the morning sun moved over the lone tree and blasted down its midday rays on his burnt skin. His favorite spot in the park now felt like the fires of hell.
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“Wait, please try,” he pleaded. “Please? We’ll have so much fun, you won’t even think about it. And It’ll get easier. In December, training breaks for the winter, and I can come to Wisconsin for a bit.”
“How long is a bit?”
“Longer than five days, I promise.”
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“And then? After that?” she wondered. “Weekends here and there. Twenty-four hours at a time. It’s not even really about the money. I don’t know if I can keep taking long weekends and vacations. Unless I quit my job.”
“I would never ask you to do that.”
“You wouldn’t?”
Somehow that must have been the exact wrong answer, because she went quiet in the way she did when she was trying not to cry. He knew the difference; he’d unfortunately been the reason for her crying a few times now.
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“Maria? What is it?”
She was silent for seconds more, but he could hear her breathing, shaky and slow. Then she said, “It does feel like putting it back on the shelf. It’s going to feel that way every time.”
“I know,” he said. “And I’m so sorry. But are you still gonna come? You can think about it. If you want, we can just do the November week when you can stay longer. I don’t want you to be sad.”
“Well, now I’ll be sad if I don’t come, too,” she said.
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“Okay, then come,” he said. “You won’t regret it, I promise.”
He knew she wouldn’t be okay with this. He knew it before they even started. But he’d been hopeful when she wanted to convince him otherwise. Now there was a growing realization of what this would feel like long-term. It wasn’t the carefree dream life he imagined.
— from “boxes and squares #4.1: first fall apart” (2/5)
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multi-kpop-fanfics · 3 years ago
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Ice, Ice Baby
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boyfriend!Mingyu x fem!pale!reader
genre: smut, fluff, slight crack
warnings: swearing, ice play, soft dom Gyu, slight fingering (f rec), unprotected sex (stay safe y’all), mentions of sunburn (pls use sunscreen, it’s good for you), cocky af Mingyu
word count: ~2,4k
Summary: Y/N and Mingyu go to the beach on a hot summer day and Y/N gets a sunburn. Luckily, sweet boyfie Gyu knows exactly how to soothe her burning skin ;)
repost from my old account!
Author’s note: I literally got inspiration for this fic bcs I got a mf sunburn and I wished I had someone to apply ice or after sun balm on my skin :”)
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It was a usual hot summer day outside, the air-con in your apartment was working since early in the morning and you were beyond thankful for the cool atmosphere in the living room - otherwise you would be sleeping in the fridge with the water bottles. Thanks to that, you were able to wear a light tee and a pair of shorts rather comfortably.
Your boyfriend, however, had apparently forgotten the existence of shirts and was roaming around the house shirtless. Which wasn’t exactly a bad thing, because you got free eye-candy - although Mingyu would relentlessly tease you whenever he caught you checking him out, and you would end up looking like a damn tomato.
“The last time I checked, I did the laundry two days ago and most of your t-shirts were in there”, you state, hands resting on your waist as you watch your once again shirtless boyfriend plop on the couch.
“Aw come on, Y/N! It’s so hot in here, what do you expect me to do?!”, Mingyu whines, “Besides, it’s not like you hate seeing me shirtless 24/7”, he wiggles his eyebrows and you scoff.
“One, the air-con has been working non-stop for three days. Two, I don’t mind seeing your torso, but you sweat buckets and you leave stains everywhere!”, you throw the kitchen towel to Mingyu and he hits him on the face spot-on.
“What do you suggest we do then, my dear stingy girlfriend?”, Mingyu asks.
You stand there, thinking for a few seconds and a light bulb lights up in your brain.
“How about we go to the beach? It’s just a fifteen minute walk from here and I have the day off today, so why not take a dive? Might as well get a tan”, you chirp as you look at your pale-as-a-sheet skintone.
Mingyu perks to your suggestion. “That sounds like a really good idea, actually. I haven’t gotten the chance to go to the beach in a very long time. This golden body has been kept away for too long”, he shows off and skips to the room. “Aren’t you coming, babe? You can’t go to the beach without a swimsuit”, “Shut up, Kim Mingyu”, you whine.
Approximately thirty minutes later….
“Whew, you were 100% right, Y/N, the sea is amazing!”, Mingyu dries his body, the stray droplets cascading on his golden, toned body. You try your best to not stare at him, as you keep yourself busy with applying your tanning oil. Mingyu glances at you with a slightly worried look in his eyes.
“Hm? What’s wrong, Gyu?”, you ask. “Babe, are you sure it’s a good idea to use this oil? I mean, you’re still pale and you might get a sunburn”, he rubs his neck and you gulp slightly. “O-Oh! Don’t worry Gyu, I’ll be fine! I may look pale, but I tan very easily! C-Can you put some oil on my back now, please?”, you stutter and ask him with puppy eyes to help you. “I can’t say no to my pretty baby now, can I?”, Mingyu smiles and sits behind you, taking the bottle in his hands.
You feel his hands slowly apply the oil on your back with very soft motions and you bite your lip. Damn, why do his hands always feel so fucking good, you think and suddenly, a series of not so innocent mental images start forming in your brain, your cheeks starting to heat up (not because of the burning sun).
Coincidentally, Mingyu was in a similar situation just behind you. He could feel his fingertips slide down your smooth skin, which was now glistening under the hot sun, thanks to the tanning oil. Not to mention the heavenly scent of coconut and chocolate - it was driving him crazy. Fuck, I could eat her alive right now, he thinks and it takes all of his self-control to stop his blood from flowing all the way south. The last thing he needed now was a raging boner in his thin swimming pants.
“U-Uh, Y/N, I think I will go dive again into the sea, you c-can stay here and sunbathe, babe”, he stutters and rushes to the sea once again. “Mingyu, you just- ugh, this dumbass”, you mutter as you watch your boyfriend dive into the sea. You decide to give up to his antics and lay back to sunbathe. Little did you know the reason Mingyu went back to the sea was none other than you.
The day passed in a blur, the occasional dives into the sea, chatting with Mingyu, flirty remarks, a lot of sunbathing and a few glares from other girls towards you because “Where the fuck did she find a hot ass guy like him?!”, you heard one of them say and you couldn’t help but smirk to her direction. “Y/N, you are lowkey scary right now”, Mingyu stares at you and you pull him for a kiss, catching him off-guard. “No need to worry, babe, I’m just lucky to have you”, you smile sweetly and he smirks, kissing you again, with a hint of tongue. “Me too, babe”.
Everything was fine - until you returned home with a stinging pain on your entire body. You were lucky your t-shirt and shorts covered the parts of your body that were seriously burned, or else you would most likely get lectured by Mingyu. And honestly, that was the last thing you wanted now - because you absolutely hated not how cocky he would get every time he was right about something.
You were only in your bathing suit, hissing every time you touched even a sliver of your skin and you instantly stepped into the shower, in an attempt to wash off the remaining sea salt and somehow soothe your skin under the cold water. You only used a bit of shampoo to clean your hair, because using shower gel and a sponge to rub your skin at this moment would be absolute hell.
You finish your shower and wrap a towel around your naked body, slowly opening the bathroom door, checking whether Mingyu was present or not. You release a breath you were holding and tip-toe your way towards the bedroom. “Oh my God, Y/N, what the fuck is THAT?!”, you hear the familiar voice of your boyfriend behind you and you nearly scream. “Mingyu, what the hell! You scared me, you idiot!”, you whine and Mingyu glares at you. “That’s ironic, coming from you, young lady”, he raises his eyebrow.
“How bad is it?”, “I-It’s just my back, n-nothing serious-”, you stutter. “Bullshit, let me see”, he insists. “Gyu, you don’t have to, it’s o-”
“Y/N, take off the damn towel and let me see”, he demands in a lower octave and you gulp audibly, intimidated by Mingyu’s tone. You slowly peel off the towel from your body and you stand naked in front of him, his eyes wide from your damaged skin. He flicks your forehead and you whine in pain, but you don’t get the chance to bite back, as he lifts you in bridal style and he takes you to the bedroom, placing you carefully on the bed. “Stay here, I’m bringing ice”, he says and you nod silently.
A few minutes pass and Mingyu is back with a bowl full of ice cubes and he sits next to you. “Do me a favor and lay with your back facing me”, he orders and you comply, your muscles screaming in the meantime. “Care to explain, Y/N?”, he asks while taking an ice cube in his hand and placing it carefully on your burned skin, the cold feeling making you hiss. “I…”, “Yes..?”, “ I just wanted to get tanned skin fast, so I thought using this oil would help..” you mumble. “Sweetheart, you know very well that working on a tan takes time”, he states. “I know, but still! Why do you get to have such beautiful golden skin and I’m stuck being a fucking ghost? It’s unfair- Ah!”, you moan faintly and Mingyu chuckles while dragging the ice cube down your spine. ”Aw, is my little baby jealous of her boyfriend? So cute”, and you hit him sideways with your leg, making him drop the ice cube, which cascaded down to your lower back.
You had to bite your lip and suppress a moan, because deep down, you were embarrassingly turned on by the whole situation. And Mingyu being shirtless next to you was making everything way worse for the pooling heat between your legs.
As if on cue, you feel a brand new ice cube being dragged on your skin excruciatingly slowly and Mingyu’s lips following the trail of water it left. “Turn around for me, sweetheart”, he purrs and you oblige, as you lay flat on your back, Mingyu is hovering over you, eyeing you like a starved man. “You know, Y/N, back on the beach”, he trails the ice cube from your neck to the valley of your chest and you breathe shakily, “Your skin was glistening under the sun thanks to that goddamn oil. And don’t even get me on the scent, because fuck, I could have eaten you alive right there and then”, he growls and softly bites the skin on your collarbone, eliciting a soft moan from your lips.
“G-Gyu..”, you mewl, “Yes, sweetheart?”, “M-More ice…”, you breathe and Mingyu grins like a Cheshire cat, a dangerous glint flashing through his eyes momentarily. “Yes, my lady”, he complies and picks two more ice cubes from the bowl. He holds one in his mouth and the other in his right hand. “Gyu, please- Mmhh!”, you moan as you feel his left hand and mouth touch your breasts, the ice cubes circling your sensitive nipples. The combination of your red hot skin and the water droplets from the ice cubes is a mix of whiplash and pure bliss, and Mingyu’s experienced lips and hands are definitely working their magic.
Despite the attention your breasts are receiving, you realize that your aching core is still neglected and the arousal between your legs is getting worse by the second. You try to rub your thighs together and get some friction, but Mingyu is fast enough to catch onto your motions and separate your legs with his knee. “No!”, you whine helplessly and Mingyu stares into your eyes, the ice cube in his mouth now half-melted, water making his pretty lips glossy. He smirks knowingly and you are taken by surprise, as you feel the familiar cool sensation trailing your inner thighs, closer and closer to the spot you need it the most.
Your silent prayers are answered once you feel the cube touch your aching clit, the sharper edge dipping between your lower lips and circling back to the clit. “Fuck, oh fuck, right there”, you moan and Mingyu groans. “Shit, Y/N, I’m so fucking hard, babe, you’re doing so good”, he coos as he slips the cube into your hole and you nearly scream from the brand new wave of pleasure. Mingyu brings his mouth back to yours and nearly devours your tongue. The kiss is beyond messy, teeth occasionally clashing and the temperature difference making it even sexier, all while he was playing with the ice cube in your pussy.
You were so close to cum, only for Mingyu to slip the cube out last minute and your orgasm to evaporate in thin air. “W-What was that for?!”, you chastise him and he shushes you with a finger on your lips. “Patience baby, relax and I promise to give you an orgasm you’ll remember for the rest of your life”, he purrs and you are certain he’s dead serious from the way he has been eyeing your naked body. He peels his shorts and boxers off in one go, his fully hard cock hitting his taut stomach. Even though you’ve taken Mingyu before, you can’t help but marvel at his impressive size.
“My eyes are up here, babe”, he laughs and he lines himself with your entrance and pushes with one powerful thrust, the sudden stretch bringing you pain, but more on the pleasurable side, stealing your breath away. Mingyu stops at his tracks, worry written all over his handsome features. “Y/N, are you okay? Did I hurt you-” “Move”, you croak. “What?”, “I said move, you big ass idiot, ram my insides!”, you yell at Mingyu’s face and he’s left stunned, but quickly recovers once your words sink in. “Your wish is my command, princess”, he growls.
You don’t know whether you should congratulate or curse your brain, because the pace Mingyu sets is indeed ramming your insides. You’re grasping his shoulders tight enough to leave nail marks and you feel the sheets stick on the skin of your back. It’s stinging you, but you don’t care - all you can think of is Mingyu fucking you so good you could cry. He lifts your thighs and puts them around his waist and then holds your hips as leverage. He then sits on his knees and he continues fucking you and the new angle has you seeing stars. His cock repeatedly grazes that one spot inside you that brings you closer to the orgasm you were denied earlier. “M-Mingyu, I-I’m close, wanna c-cum..”, you stutter and his hips start faltering as well. “Y-Yeah? Wanna cum on my cock, baby?”, and you nod feverishly, your inner thighs starting to tremble.
“Gyu!”, you scream, as you let your orgasm wash over your body and Mingyu braces himself on top of you, thrusting into your core in a sloppy manner, helping you ride out your high. He groans loudly as his cock throbs inside your pussy, his warm seed filling you to the brim. He still has some strength left in him and he manages to not crash on your limp body, a thin layer of sweat covering his sculpted body. He slowly pulls out and you wince at the emptiness between your thighs.
“Oh my, you were serious earlier”, you pant and Mingyu laughs, kissing your cheek softly. “Damn right I was! What kind of a boyfriend would I be if I couldn’t take care of my precious girl?”, he smiles. “Speaking of which, I’m not done with you yet”, and you look at him with wide eyes. “What do you mean?”, you say while Mingyu stands up and wears his boxers. “Hello? You have a raging sunburn! I’m going to get more ice and a bit of aloe”, he states and you smile. “Aye aye, sir. But no funny business this time!”, you point your finger to him and a smirk spreads on his plush lips.
“No promises on that, baby”
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omgsquee2001 · 3 years ago
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Stay By Our Side: Part 4
After having put up a pretty good fight against Shigaraki and Dabi, and unfortunately, loosing, your world turned to black. You had no idea where you were now, or if Kirishima and Bakugou were even still alive. 
“So,” a familiar, scratchy voice said. “This is the right kid, right?” Shigaraki asked. 
“Yup,” Dabi responded. “Made sure of it.” Dabi said. Shigaraki hummed in delight. 
“Good. Their quirk will be pretty useful for the Nomu we’re trying to make.” Shigaraki said. You opened your eyes, and saw Shigaraki and Dabi standing in front of you, backs turned to you. You tried to move your hands, finding them tied behind a chair with some metal cuffs. You closed your eyes and pressed some of your fingers against the cuffs, trying to bend the metal to your will. However, you didn’t feel a connection or pull from the metal, which is what your normally felt when you activated your Quirk. 
They must be using a kind of pure metal. You thought. One of the limits to your Quirk, was that you can only control impure metals. Copper, zinc, tin, lead, chromium, nickel, silver, and gold are just a few impure metals that you can control. You can control impure metals because they have traces of rock in them. When you control the metals, your powers hone in on the little traces of rock in the metals, thus allowing you to control the metal. Platinum is the only metal that you can’t control, due to it being so pure, it has no traces of rock in it. You looked at Dabi and Shigaraki.  I wonder how long it will take for them to notice I’m awake. You thought. Dabi sighed and lifted his head up to the ceiling. 
“All we gotta do now is just wait for Twice to get his ass back here so we can all leave this island.” Dabi said. It must have been Toga who transformed into Izuku to trick you, Kirishima and Bakugou into leaving the resort. Shigaraki nodded. 
“I sent Kurogiri and Toga to go look for him. They better not take long. This island is too hot,” he complained. He groaned slightly and scratched at the skin on his neck. “I hate it here. I think I got a sunburn.” He grumbled. Dabi looked at him. 
“Oh, you got a little burn?” Dabi mocked, faking sympathy. “Aw, you poor thing. Suck it up. My whole body’s burnt.” Dabi said. You resisted the urge to snicker at Dabi’s words. Shigaraki glared at Dabi. He growled. 
“Dabi. You’re a real jerk. Working with you is insufferable.” Shigaraki complained. Dabi shrugged. 
“Well, you let me into the league.” He said. He then hummed in thought. “You know, I should have brought my bathing suit. We could really use a vacation, don’t you think?” Dabi asked. Shigaraki growled slightly. 
“No, Dabi. You really think we have time to just, sit around and do nothing all day?” Shigaraki asked. Dabi scoffed. 
“Tch, says you. You basically do nothing all day when we’re at the bar. You literally sit on your ass and play video games the second we get any down time.” Dabi said. Shigaraki glanced at Dabi. 
“I didn’t hear you complaining about that when we were playing Mario Kart the other day,” Shigaraki said. Dabi’s eye twitched slightly in irritation. “I saw you having fun. You could pretend you weren’t, but I saw it.” Shigaraki said. Dabi glared at the blue haired man. 
“You didn’t see shit, crusty.” Dabi said. Shigaraki scowled. 
“I told you to stop calling me that.” Shigaraki grumbled, scratching at his neck. 
“Yeah, you remember what I said?” Dabi asked. Shigaraki grumbled, looking away. “What did I say?” He asked again. You finally decided it was time to make your presence known. As much as you enjoyed watching them bicker, it was time to get some answers and try to find away out of here. 
“He told you to stop being crusty.” You said, making the two whirl around. You smirked slightly. “What? Did I startle you? My bad.” You said, shrugging. Shigaraki smirked. 
“Oh, looks like they’re finally awake again.” Shigaraki said, walking up to you. Dabi followed. Shigaraki narrowed his eyes at you. “Are you going to try and attack us again? Or are you going to accept your fate already and calm down? I’d really hate to have to deal with you again, so you better shut up and sit still.” Shigaraki said. You shrugged, the cuffs making a clinking sound as you did. 
“Well, there really isn’t much I could do. I tried getting out of these cuffs, but my Quirk won’t work on them. Which makes me think you two used a pure metal, something I can’t control, am I right?” You asked. Dabi smirked. 
“You’re smart. You’re right, we did use a pure metal. We used Platinum to make the cuffs, the only metal we know you can’t control.” Dabi said. He then scoffed. “If we didn’t need to steal your Quirk, I’d roast you to a crisp,” he said, sighing. “Such an annoyance, fighting so damn much on the way here. Like you even stood a sliver of a chance against us.” Dabi said, smirking. You narrowed your eyes, frowning. 
How did they even know about my Quirk and what my limitations are? There’s no way they could have gotten ahold of the Student Records, right? You thought. 
“If I would have let my powers take complete control, you two wouldn’t have stood a chance against me.” You said. Shigaraki chuckled. 
“From what we read on your file, you don’t let your emotions get the better of you too often, or your powers take control. It must have been hard when Kurogiri warped your two friends into the ocean,” he said. You growled, your eyes flashing white for a split second. Shigaraki smirked. “With all that fighting and all that power, you’ll be a great addition to our new Nomu.” Shigaraki said. Your eyes widened, fear shining in them. Shigaraki was going to turn you into a Nomu, the thing that had attacked the USJ and nearly defeated the Symbol of Peace, All Might. If he turned you into a Nomu that had the power that you did, Shigaraki would be unstoppable. Shigaraki again, seeing the fear in your eyes. “Aw, don’t be scared. You’re going to be a part of something great. Haven’t you always wanted to do great things?” He asked. Dabi smirked. 
“They look so scared.” He said. You narrowed your eyes. Now wasn’t the time to be scared. 
“What happened to Kirishima and Bakugou? Where are my friends?” You demanded. Shigaraki glanced at you. 
“Huh? Where did your friends go? Oh, you’re worried about those two brats, are you?” Shigaraki sighed. “Of course you are. Well, they’re probably still swimming back to shore by now, or maybe, they’re sinking to the bottom of the ocean right now,” a cold sweat trickled down your neck at the thought of Kirishima and Bakugou at the bottom of the ocean. Bakugou would never get to try and become the Number 1 Hero, and Kirishima would never get to enjoy his time with his friends again. You pushed those thoughts aside. Shigaraki shrugged. “Who cares, really. It’s not like it exactly matters now anyways, does it? You’re going to become a Nomu. They won’t recognize you anymore after the procedure is complete,” Shigaraki said. He smiled darkly. “Who knows, maybe you’ll meet them again in the future, and hopefully, put an end to them.” Shigaraki said. Tears came to your eyes at the thought of having to kill your friends as a monster created by a villain. Dabi’s eyes widened slightly, glancing at Shigaraki. 
“Damn, Shigaraki. That’s dark, even for you.” He said. Shigaraki glared at Dabi. 
“Do you think I care? I only want one thing and I’m not letting anyone stop me. No one’s gonna get in my way.” Shigaraki said, narrowing his eyes dangerously. Dabi rolled his eyes. 
“Yeah. I know. But right now, the only idiots getting in our way right now are Twice and Toga. The hell are they taking so long for?” Dabi asked, glancing at the entrance of the warehouse you all were currently in. “They knew the meeting spot, right? We’re gonna have to end up leaving their asses behind on this island,” Dabi said. He sighed in frustration. “The hell did you send Kurogiri off for anyway? He’s our only way out of this.” He said. Shigaraki groaned, scratching more and more at his neck. 
“I know that, Dabi. I thought he would have found those two by now. Until he comes back, we’ll wait here with the student,” Shigaraki said. “We need them for our Nomu, they’re the only student in UA that has the Quirk we need.” He said. Dabi sighed. 
“Can’t we just find someone else?” He asked. “We’re putting ourselves at risk of getting caught if we stay here.” Dabi said. You nodded. 
“I agree with burnt chicken nugget here,” you said. Dabi glared at you and growled. “You two are putting yourselves at serious risk of getting caught. Just let me go. I’m sure there’s tons of people out there who have almost the exact same Quirk that I do.” You said. Shigaraki glared at you. 
“You shut up! This doesn’t concern you!” He turned his attention to Dabi. “How do you expect we do that Dabi, huh? We have a copy of the UA Student Records so it makes it easy to find the Quirks we need. How do you think we’ll find someone off the streets with the exact same Quirk we’re after, huh?” Shigaraki asked. You sighed. 
I stand corrected. They do have a copy of the Student Records. Toga probably snuck in and made copies, pretending to be a student or a teacher. You thought. Dabi sighed. 
“Look, if we stay held up in this warehouse for too long, we’re gonna get caught. I’m sure those two idiots already alerted the pros. They’re gonna come looking for them.” Dabi said. Shigaraki stood firm. 
“No. We’re not leaving. We need this Quirk.” Shigaraki said. You hummed. 
“Hmm, you know, you remind me of Bakugou. You’re really stubborn and don’t really take no for an answer.” You said. Dabi glanced at you. 
“For once, I agree with the kid. You’re childish as hell, Shigaraki. Like a kid who’s too stubborn for his own good,” he said. Dabi sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. “Can’t believe I’m even letting someone like you be my boss. If we get busted, I’m leaving your ass here to fend for yourself.” Dabi threatened. Shigaraki glared at Dabi. 
“You chose this path on your own, Dabi. I’m not even holding you hostage. I don’t even need your help anyways.” He said. You scoffed, chuckling. Dabi and Shigaraki looked at you curiously. 
“That’s a complete lie if I’ve ever heard one. From the way that you bring Dabi along to almost every heist you try to pull, I think depend on him more than you let on.” You said. Shigaraki glared at you. 
“I thought I told you to be quiet.” He said. Dabi rolled his eyes. 
“Whatever. This is stupid. I’m gonna go look,” his sentence was cut off when a huge explosion was heard, shaking the warehouse. Your eyes widened. Either the Pro Heroes were here, or Bakugou and Kirishima were alive. You did manage to text them your location before Dabi tied you up with out being spotted by some miracle. Dabi and Shigaraki looked around the warehouse. 
“What was that?” Shigaraki asked. Dabi looked at him. 
“Shigaraki, cover the student’s mouth so they can’t call for help. I’ll go check it out.” Dabi said. Shigaraki nodded. 
“Got it.” He said, as Dabi took off in the direction of the explosions. Now that you were alone with Shigaraki, you were terrified. Shigaraki’s Quirk could disintegrate any part of your body within seconds if he lowered his fifth finger to your skin. Shigaraki smirked and walked up to you, placing his hand over your mouth. Every finger but one rested over and around your mouth. “I’m gonna need you to stay very quiet for me, okay. You make one little peep, and I’ll lower my fifth finger. You’ll turn to dust, got it.” Shigaraki said. You nodded. Shigaraki looked away from you. “I swear, if it’s heroes, we’re going to be severely outnumbered.” Shigaraki said. 
“Argh! Die!” A familiar voice shouted as another explosion shook the warehouse. Your eyes widened. Bakugou was here. Was Kirishima was him? Did they bring other Pro Heroes? So many questions ran through your head. Shigaraki growled. 
“Damn it, they’re here.” He said. He growled and whined a little bit, using his other hand to scratch at his neck. “How? Why? Why does nothing ever go my way?” Shigaraki asked. Dabi ran back in, trying to catch his breath. 
“Boss, we got company. It’s just the two brats though. We can take them. Come on and help me fight.” Dabi said, turning to face the opening of the warehouse. Shigaraki growled and released his hand from over your mouth, going to stand right in front of you. That was their first mistake. Not covering your mouth. 
“How did they find us?” Shigaraki asked. Dabi shrugged. He held out his hands, igniting blue flames. 
“Who the hell knows.” He said. Suddenly, Bakugou came running in. 
“Stop running from me, you damn villain!” Bakugou shouted, bending his arms and opening is hands, ready to make an explosion. “Come on, fight me! Are you scared of something?” Bakugou teased. Kirishima came running in a second later. He was trying to catch his breath. He looked up and smiled. 
“Hey! Thank God you’re here, [Y/N]. Thanks for texting me your location.” He said. Dabi and Shigaraki’s eyes widened. They looked back at you. You smiled and shrugged innocently. 
“I forgot about their damn phone!” Shigaraki shouted. He looked at Dabi. “Dabi, why didn’t you take it from them when you were tying them up?” He asked. Dabi narrowed his eyes, engage in battle with Bakugou. 
“Now isn’t the time to be scolding me. You take the red-haired one. I’ll get the,” Dabi didn’t get to finish his sentence. Bakugou ran up to him. 
“Ah!” He shot an explosion at Dabi, the villain managing to dodge the attack. “Let them go, you washed up losers!” Bakugou shouted. Kirishima looked at Bakugou. 
“Be careful Baku, ah!” Kirishima shouted as Dabi shot flames at the two boys, smiling sadistically. 
“You’re gonna die, both of you. You shouldn’t have even bothered coming here.” Dabi said. Bakugou growled. You smirked. 
“You know, for villains, you two aren’t very smart,” you said. Dabi and Shigaraki glanced at you. “If you had truly read my files, you would have known that I don’t just control my Quirk with my hands. I can control my Quirk with any body part I choose.” You said. You glanced at Bakugou and Kirishima, silently warning them to back up. They did so. You took a deep breath in, taking in as much air as you could. You then blew out, sending a huge gust of wind towards the two villains.   
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//Not Mine//
Shigaraki and Dabi grunted, putting their arms in front of their faces as the wind blew them back. The gust wasn’t nearly as powerful as it would have been if you were able to control the air. Just as soon as the gust had started, it ended. Kirishima’s eyes widened. 
“Holy! That was awesome, [Y/N]!” He shouted. Shigaraki growled. 
“Damn brats. Always getting in my way.” Shigaraki grumbled. Kirishima glared at Shigaraki. 
“Let them go, Shigaraki. I don’t want to have to fight you, but I will if that’s what it comes down to. I’m not letting anyone lay even a finger on my friend.” Kirishima said, narrowing his eyes. Shigaraki hummed. 
“You really want to fight me, huh. Your Quirk is Hardening, right? Doesn’t sound very threatening.” He said. Kirishima raised his arms, activating his Quirk. 
“It might not sound like much, but I won’t hesitate to take you down in order to save my friend.” Kirishima said. You smiled at Kirishima’s bravery. You also worried about him. He didn’t have a Quirk like Bakugou’s that can be used from somewhat of a distance. His Quirk required him to be close to the villain, and that gave Shigaraki an advantage. The closer Kirishima was to him, the better chance Shigaraki had to turn Kirishima to dust. Shigaraki smirked. 
“Fine then. I’ll turn you to dust, you brat.” Shigaraki said. “Let’s do this.” He ran at Kirishima, engaging in battle. A few steps away, Bakugou was still engaged in battle with Dabi. They were both running out of steam, more so Dabi than Bakugou. 
“Damn villain, get up and fight me! You think you’re so tough, but I can tell I’m winning. You look warn out as hell, like your own Quirk’s frying you.” Bakugou said. Dabi growled, igniting his Quirk again. 
“Idiot. You don’t know anything about how my Quirk works,” he said. He glanced at Shigaraki. “Shigaraki, we need to go. The stupid kid isn’t worth it. We’ll find someone with a similar Quirk.” He said. Shigaraki still wouldn’t budge. 
“No. I’m not giving up yet!” He managed to get the upper hand on Kirishima. 
“No! Get off!” Kirishima shouted, trying to defend himself. Shigaraki growled. 
“Stop moving you brat. Stay still while I disintegrate you.” He said. His hand touched Kirishima’s arm, almost completely disintegrating it. Your eyes widened. Your friends. Your classmates. They were getting hurt because of you. You groaned, you could feel your powers taking over. You tried to fight it. Bakugou’s eyes widened, watching you struggle.
“[Y/N]! Hang in there! Don’t let your Quirk take control!” He shouted. He ran over to Kirishima. “Kirishima! Get off of him you bastard!” He shouted. He sent and explosion towards Shigaraki, who dodged the attack, leaving Kirishima on the floor. Your breathing was becoming labored. You were having a hard time keeping your Quirk from taking over. Your eyes were flashing between [e/c] and glowing white.  
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//not my gif// 
Dabi growled. 
“Damn it boss. We’re getting the hell out of here now.” He said. He rushed over and grabbed Shigaraki, pulling him up. “Get the hell up and let’s go.” He said. Shigaraki glared at Bakugou and Kirishima. 
“You all. Ruining my plans.” He growled. Dabi rolled his eyes. 
“Let’s go, you idiot. We need to regroup. Learn to let things go would you?” Dabi said. Shigaraki glared at you. 
“We’ll get that student’s Quirk. It’s only a matter of time.” Shigaraki said. The two then disappeared. Bakugou growled. 
“Hey, where do you think you two are going?! Get back here!” He shouted, running after them. Kirishima groaned in pain. 
“Bakugou,” Bakugou stopped in his tracks, looking over at his injured friend. “Hey. Don’t go. We need you here.” Kirishima said. Bakugou looked back to where Dabi and Shigaraki had left. 
“Huh? They’re gonna escape!” He gasped as he looked at Kirishima’s injured arm, said male getting up with a struggle. Bakugou sighed in frustration, walking over to Kirishima. “Damn it. He got you. Your arm’s all messed up.” He said. Kirishima shook his head. The both of them turned in shock as you let out a cry. You were barley holding on. A few more minutes, and you would be completely gone. 
“I’m fine. The decay isn’t spreading. Listen to me, [Y/N] needs us. They’re almost gone. Go and calm them down, and then unchain them.” He said. They could feel the wind picking up as your powers got closer and closer to taking over. Bakugou sighed and raced over. He knelt down beside you. With gritted teeth, you turned your head over towards Bakugou, sensing another presence. You eyebrows were drawn together in fear and anger. Bakugou sighed and gently placed his hand on your shoulder. 
“Hey. Listen to me. You’re stronger than this. You’re safe now. You don’t need to let your powers take control. Just listen to my voice,” he moved his hand to cradle the back of your neck, pressing his forehead against yours. “Come back to us.” He whispered, closing his eyes. Your eyes widened. You could feel your head clearing, the urge to protect your friends faded and your eyes returned to their normal [e/c] color. The wind subsided. Feeling the wind die down, Bakugou opened his eyes and smiled. “There you are.” He said, smirking. You smiled slightly and glanced over at Kirishima. Your eyes widened. 
“Kiri, your arm. It’s hurt.” You said. Bakugou got up and walked over to the cuffs around your your wrists. Kirishima smiled. 
“It’s nothing I can’t bounce back from,” he said walking up to you. “How about you, [Y/N]? Are you hurt? Did they do anything to you?” He asked, worry clear in his ruby red eyes. You shook your head. 
“No. I’m fine,” You said. You sighed in relief as the cuffs loosened around your wrists. Bakugou walked back around to look at you. 
“Can you stand? We need to get Kirishima some help.” He said. You nodded. 
“I think I can stand. Normally, my powers almost taking control of me takes a lot of energy out of me.” You said. You stood on shaky legs, using the chair as balance. 
“Do you still have your phone on you? Let me see it.” He said. You reached into your pocket and took out your phone, handing it to Bakugou. Suddenly, you felt light headed. You gasped, your eyesight getting extremely bleary. Bakugou looked at you. His eyes widened. 
“Hey, you good?” He asked. You started to sway on your feet. Kirishima’s eyes widened. 
“Hey, stay awake, [Y/N]. Are you okay?” He asked. Your ears started to ring. Your eyes were starting to close. Bakugou put your phone in his pocket, more worried about you at the moment. 
“Hey! Hang in there!” Bakugou shouted. Kirishima looked at Bakugou. 
“They look like they’re going to pass out!” Kirishima warned. 
“Hey!” Your eyes closed and you started to fall. Bakugou quickly caught your falling form, supporting your head so you didn’t hit it. He held your limp body in his arms. He growled. “Damn it! This isn’t good. We need to call for help now!” He looked down at you and brushed some hair away from your forehead. “Just hang in there a little longer, [Y/N].” 
~~~
Taglist: 
@eijiandkatspebble​
@winchestersbitch-dm
~~~
//I hope you guys like chapter 4. If there’s anything you think I could add to the story to make it more interesting, please don’t be afraid to comment down bellow. I’d love to hear your guys’ ideas and what you might like to see more of. The reader is going to spend some time with Izuku and Todoroki in the next chapter, so stay tuned for that. Have a lovely day/night! ❤❤❤
I also want to mention that I do not own the plot of these stories. They are inspired by the YouTuber, Yuzuya, who voice acts the series. The only thing I own is the reader’s Quirk, which is not specified in the YouTube Series. All credit for the plot of the stories goes to Yuzuya.//
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multi--kpop--fanfics · 3 years ago
Text
Ice, Ice Baby
boyfriend!Mingyu x fem!reader
genre: smut, fluff, slight crack
warnings: swearing, ice play, soft dom Gyu, slight fingering (f rec), unprotected sex (stay safe y’all), mentions of sunburn (pls use sunscreen, it’s good for you), cocky af Mingyu
word count: ~2,4k
Summary: Y/N and Mingyu go to the beach on a hot summer day and Y/N gets a sunburn. Luckily, sweet boyfie Gyu knows exactly how to soothe her burning skin ;)
Author’s note: I literally got inspiration for this fic bcs I got a mf sunburn and I wished I had someone to apply ice or after sun balm on my skin :”)
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It was a usual hot summer day outside, the air-con in your apartment was working since early in the morning and you were beyond thankful for the cool atmosphere in the living room - otherwise you would be sleeping in the fridge with the water bottles. Thanks to that, you were able to wear a light tee and a pair of shorts rather comfortably.
Your boyfriend, however, had apparently forgotten the existence of shirts and was roaming around the house shirtless. Which wasn't exactly a bad thing, because you got free eye-candy - although Mingyu would relentlessly tease you whenever he caught you checking him out, and you would end up looking like a damn tomato.
"The last time I checked, I did the laundry two days ago and most of your t-shirts were in there", you state, hands resting on your waist as you watch your once again shirtless boyfriend plop on the couch.
"Aw come on, Y/N! It's so hot in here, what do you expect me to do?!", Mingyu whines, "Besides, it's not like you hate seeing me shirtless 24/7", he wiggles his eyebrows and you scoff.
"One, the air-con has been working non-stop for three days. Two, I don't mind seeing your torso, but you sweat buckets and you leave stains everywhere!", you throw the kitchen towel to Mingyu and he hits him on the face spot-on.
"What do you suggest we do then, my dear stingy girlfriend?", Mingyu asks.
You stand there, thinking for a few seconds and a light bulb lights up in your brain.
"How about we go to the beach? It's just a fifteen minute walk from here and I have the day off today, so why not take a dive? Might as well get a tan", you chirp as you look at your pale-as-a-sheet skintone.
Mingyu perks to your suggestion. "That sounds like a really good idea, actually. I haven't gotten the chance to go to the beach in a very long time. This golden body has been kept away for too long", he shows off and skips to the room. "Aren't you coming, babe? You can't go to the beach without a swimsuit", "Shut up, Kim Mingyu", you whine.
Approximately thirty minutes later....
"Whew, you were 100% right, Y/N, the sea is amazing!", Mingyu dries his body, the stray droplets cascading on his golden, toned body. You try your best to not stare at him, as you keep yourself busy with applying your tanning oil. Mingyu glances at you with a slightly worried look in his eyes.
"Hm? What's wrong, Gyu?", you ask. "Babe, are you sure it's a good idea to use this oil? I mean, you're still pale and you might get a sunburn", he rubs his neck and you gulp slightly. “O-Oh! Don’t worry Gyu, I’ll be fine! I may look pale, but I tan very easily! C-Can you put some oil on my back now, please?”, you stutter and ask him with puppy eyes to help you. “I can’t say no to my pretty baby now, can I?”, Mingyu smiles and sits behind you, taking the bottle in his hands. 
You feel his hands slowly apply the oil on your back with very soft motions and you bite your lip. Damn, why do his hands always feel so fucking good, you think and suddenly, a series of not so innocent mental images start forming in your brain, your cheeks starting to heat up (not because of the burning sun).
Coincidentally, Mingyu was in a similar situation just behind you. He could feel his fingertips slide down your smooth skin, which was now glistening under the hot sun, thanks to the tanning oil. Not to mention the heavenly scent of coconut and chocolate - it was driving him crazy. Fuck, I could eat her alive right now, he thinks and it takes all of his self-control to stop his blood from flowing all the way south. The last thing he needed now was a raging boner in his thin swimming pants.
“U-Uh, Y/N, I think I will go dive again into the sea, you c-can stay here and sunbathe, babe”, he stutters and rushes to the sea once again. “Mingyu, you just- ugh, this dumbass”, you mutter as you watch your boyfriend dive into the sea. You decide to give up to his antics and lay back to sunbathe. Little did you know the reason Mingyu went back to the sea was none other than you.
The day passed in a blur, the occasional dives into the sea, chatting with Mingyu, flirty remarks, a lot of sunbathing and a few glares from other girls towards you because “Where the fuck did she find a hot ass guy like him?!”, you heard one of them say and you couldn’t help but smirk to her direction. “Y/N, you are lowkey scary right now”, Mingyu stares at you and you pull him for a kiss, catching him off-guard. “No need to worry, babe, I’m just lucky to have you”, you smile sweetly and he smirks, kissing you again, with a hint of tongue. “Me too, babe”.
Everything was fine - until you returned home with a stinging pain on your entire body. You were lucky your t-shirt and shorts covered the parts of your body that were seriously burned, or else you would most likely get lectured by Mingyu. And honestly, that was the last thing you wanted now - because you absolutely hated not how cocky he would get every time he was right about something.
You were only in your bathing suit, hissing every time you touched even a sliver of your skin and you instantly stepped into the shower, in an attempt to wash off the remaining sea salt and somehow soothe your skin under the cold water. You only used a bit of shampoo to clean your hair, because using shower gel and a sponge to rub your skin at this moment would be absolute hell. 
You finish your shower and wrap a towel around your naked body, slowly opening the bathroom door, checking whether Mingyu was present or not. You release a breath you were holding and tip-toe your way towards the bedroom. “Oh my God, Y/N, what the fuck is THAT?!”, you hear the familiar voice of your boyfriend behind you and you nearly scream. “Mingyu, what the hell! You scared me, you idiot!”, you whine and Mingyu glares at you. “That’s ironic, coming from you, young lady”, he raises his eyebrow.
 “How bad is it?”, “I-It’s just my back, n-nothing serious-”, you stutter. “Bullshit, let me see”, he insists. “Gyu, you don’t have to, it’s o-”
“Y/N, take off the damn towel and let me see”, he demands in a lower octave and you gulp audibly, intimidated by Mingyu’s tone. You slowly peel off the towel from your body and you stand naked in front of him, his eyes wide from your damaged skin. He flicks your forehead and you whine in pain, but you don’t get the chance to bite back, as he lifts you in bridal style and he takes you to the bedroom, placing you carefully on the bed. “Stay here, I’m bringing ice”, he says and you nod silently.
A few minutes pass and Mingyu is back with a bowl full of ice cubes and he sits next to you. “Do me a favor and lay with your back facing me”, he orders and you comply, your muscles screaming in the meantime. “Care to explain, Y/N?”, he asks while taking an ice cube in his hand and placing it carefully on your burned skin, the cold feeling making you hiss. “I...”, “Yes..?”, “ I just wanted to get tanned skin fast, so I thought using this oil would help..” you mumble. “Sweetheart, you know very well that working on a tan takes time”, he states. “I know, but still! Why do you get to have such beautiful golden skin and I’m stuck being a fucking ghost? It’s unfair- Ah!”, you moan faintly and Mingyu chuckles while dragging the ice cube down your spine. ”Aw, is my little baby jealous of her boyfriend? So cute”, and you hit him sideways with your leg, making him drop the ice cube, which cascaded down to your lower back. 
You had to bite your lip and suppress a moan, because deep down, you were embarrassingly turned on by the whole situation. And Mingyu being shirtless next to you was making everything way worse for the pooling heat between your legs. 
As if on cue, you feel a brand new ice cube being dragged on your skin excruciatingly slowly and Mingyu’s lips following the trail of water it left. “Turn around for me, sweetheart”, he purrs and you oblige, as you lay flat on your back, Mingyu is hovering over you, eyeing you like a starved man. “You know, Y/N, back on the beach”, he trails the ice cube from your neck to the valley of your chest and you breathe shakily, “Your skin was glistening under the sun thanks to that goddamn oil. And don’t even get me on the scent, because fuck, I could have eaten you alive right there and then”, he growls and softly bites the skin on your collarbone, eliciting a soft moan from your lips.
“G-Gyu..”, you mewl, “Yes, sweetheart?”, “M-More ice…”, you breathe and Mingyu grins like a Cheshire cat, a dangerous glint flashing through his eyes momentarily. “Yes, my lady”, he complies and picks two more ice cubes from the bowl. He holds one in his mouth and the other in his right hand. “Gyu, please- Mmhh!”, you moan as you feel his left hand and mouth touch your breasts, the ice cubes circling your sensitive nipples. The combination of your red hot skin and the water droplets from the ice cubes is a mix of whiplash and pure bliss, and Mingyu’s experienced lips and hands are definitely working their magic. 
Despite the attention your breasts are receiving, you realize that your aching core is still neglected and the arousal between your legs is getting worse by the second. You try to rub your thighs together and get some friction, but Mingyu is fast enough to catch onto your motions and separate your legs with his knee. “No!”, you whine helplessly and Mingyu stares into your eyes, the ice cube in his mouth now half-melted, water making his pretty lips glossy. He smirks knowingly and you are taken by surprise, as you feel the familiar cool sensation trailing your inner thighs, closer and closer to the spot you need it the most.
Your silent prayers are answered once you feel the cube touch your aching clit, the sharper edge dipping between your lower lips and circling back to the clit. “Fuck, oh fuck, right there”, you moan and Mingyu groans. “Shit, Y/N, I’m so fucking hard, babe, you’re doing so good”, he coos as he slips the cube into your hole and you nearly scream from the brand new wave of pleasure. Mingyu brings his mouth back to yours and nearly devours your tongue. The kiss is beyond messy, teeth occasionally clashing and the temperature difference making it even sexier, all while he was playing with the ice cube in your pussy.
You were so close to cum, only for Mingyu to slip the cube out last minute and your orgasm to evaporate in thin air. “W-What was that for?!”, you chastise him and he shushes you with a finger on your lips. “Patience baby, relax and I promise to give you an orgasm you’ll remember for the rest of your life”, he purrs and you are certain he’s dead serious from the way he has been eyeing your naked body. He peels his shorts and boxers off in one go, his fully hard cock hitting his taut stomach. Even though you’ve taken Mingyu before, you can’t help but marvel at his impressive size. 
“My eyes are up here, babe”, he laughs and he lines himself with your entrance and pushes with one powerful thrust, the sudden stretch bringing you pain, but more on the pleasurable side, stealing your breath away. Mingyu stops at his tracks, worry written all over his handsome features. “Y/N, are you okay? Did I hurt you-” “Move”, you croak. “What?”, “I said move, you big ass idiot, ram my insides!”, you yell at Mingyu’s face and he’s left stunned, but quickly recovers once your words sink in. “Your wish is my command, princess”, he growls.
You don’t know whether you should congratulate or curse your brain, because the pace Mingyu sets is indeed ramming your insides. You’re grasping his shoulders tight enough to leave nail marks and you feel the sheets stick on the skin of your back. It’s stinging you, but you don’t care - all you can think of is Mingyu fucking you so good you could cry. He lifts your thighs and puts them around his waist and then holds your hips as leverage. He then sits on his knees and he continues fucking you and the new angle has you seeing stars. His cock repeatedly grazes that one spot inside you that brings you closer to the orgasm you were denied earlier. “M-Mingyu, I-I’m close, wanna c-cum..”, you stutter and his hips start faltering as well. “Y-Yeah? Wanna cum on my cock, baby?”, and you nod feverishly, your inner thighs starting to tremble.
“Gyu!”, you scream, as you let your orgasm wash over your body and Mingyu braces himself on top of you, thrusting into your core in a sloppy manner, helping you ride out your high. He groans loudly as his cock throbs inside your pussy, his warm seed filling you to the brim. He still has some strength left in him and he manages to not crash on your limp body, a thin layer of sweat covering his sculpted body. He slowly pulls out and you wince at the emptiness between your thighs. 
“Oh my, you were serious earlier”, you pant and Mingyu laughs, kissing your cheek softly. “Damn right I was! What kind of a boyfriend would I be if I couldn’t take care of my precious girl?”, he smiles. “Speaking of which, I’m not done with you yet”, and you look at him with wide eyes. “What do you mean?”, you say while Mingyu stands up and wears his boxers. “Hello? You have a raging sunburn! I’m going to get more ice and a bit of aloe”, he states and you smile. “Aye aye, sir. But no funny business this time!”, you point your finger to him and a smirk spreads on his plush lips.
“No promises on that, baby”.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Taglist:  @moonshineboyz​ @yeongwvnhi​ @faeriecobie​ @badboyjuyeon​ @intokook​ @bluejaem​ @jenossslut​ @silkentragedies​ @deobis-moon​
Interested parties: @rr0zu​
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belphies-cuhm-sluht · 4 years ago
Text
Vacation (Belphie x GN!Reader) Slight NSFW
(Did I go extra hard on the beach fic? Yes. Yes I did. Are my posting hours absolutely horrid... also yes. It's 3:30AM and I finally finished this fic though! YAY! I also did not read through this before I posted. I'll read it when I wake up to check for mistakes. I need a nap.)
Word Count : 5.1K
You loved the beach, everything about it was so relaxing. The sound of the waves crashing onto the shore, the smell of saltwater that was carried to your nose with the ocean’s breeze. The only thing that made being there right now better was the fact that Belphie was there with you. You loved Belphie, everything about him screamed perfection, even though he disagreed most of the time you said he was. His disregard for most of humanity aside from yourself, his constant scowl which he probably thought was menacing and scary but you just found it adorable.
It was shocking at first that he actually agreed to go with you, and you thought for sure that he’d want to stay home and just sleep while, but, much to your surprise, he jumped at the opportunity to go to the beach with you. He even said that it would be fun, which… well he wasn’t wrong… but hearing him say something like that… even if it was mumbled, it was kind of shocking.
“You got a room… in a hotel… that’s on the beach… with a balcony that overlooks the beach?” Belphie said, looking around the room as the two of you walked in. As soon as the door was shut, you dropped your bags to the floor and ran to the balcony doors, throwing them open and running out to lean over the railing with Belphie following close behind and quickly wrapping his arms around you. “Don’t do that. You could have flipped over the edge… dork.”
You could only laugh at his worry, but then again, according to him you were fragile, and humans were inherently clumsy most of the time, so you didn’t really blame him for thinking that you’d accidentally lean too far over and do a front flip over the railing… but it was still kind of funny. “I’m not going to fall over the edge, Belph. I’ve done this a lot. And…” You turned in his arms so you could wrap your own around his waist. “Yes, a balcony with an ocean view. The weather said there would be a thunderstorm this week, and I’m hoping they’re right. I love watching the lightning hit the water… the thunder is so loud. It’s amazing.” He chuckled softly, rolling his eyes as he grabbed your hand and dragged you back into the room, not wanting to leave you on the balcony unattended any longer.
“The storm better not hit until the last day. I want to go surfing.” He said as he grabbed his own bag off the floor and moved it onto the bed, quickly pulling out his bathing suit. You were stuck on the whole surfing thing though because… well… it doesn’t need to be explained. It’s just fucking hot. He snapped his fingers to get your attention after you hadn’t responded, rolling his eyes when you blinked a few times and focused back on him. “You alright? You zoned out for a second there.”
“Mhm… I’m good.” You whispered shyly, dragging your own bags away from the door so you could pull out your own bathing suit. “It’s a good time to go down… everyone is clearing out for the day and the sun isn’t going to be beating as hard.” You weren’t really sure if he was listening, you could still hear him rummaging through his own bag as you talked. You were mainly talking to yourself though, looking up out the balcony doors and watching as the umbrellas on the beach slowly dwindled as everyone started heading back to their own hotels.
“You still need sunscreen.” It actually sounded like he was scolding you, and it wouldn’t be the first time he called your ass out for not wearing it. “I’m not having you get burnt on our first day here. You’ll spend the rest of the vacation in pain, and then I’ll have to hold back from saying I told you so because you won’t be in the mood to hear it. Plus…” He tossed the sunscreen onto the bed that was closest to you before squatting down behind you, trailing his fingers along your neck and down your shoulders. “If you got burnt… you wouldn’t enjoy me touching you as much…”
God damn if he wasn’t right, and you hated that he was right. “Hmph… fine.” You groaned, and honestly, you just hated the way the sunscreen felt. It made your arms stick to your sides and you just felt… sticky… and you could never get it off your hands after putting it on. It was a pain in the ass… but he was right, and you wouldn’t be able to enjoy anything if you got burnt, and you definitely weren’t going to spend an entire week in a nice ass hotel with an ocean view and not at least cuddle with him. “You’re putting it on me though.”
“I never said I wouldn’t.” He said it teasingly, kissing your neck before standing back up. ���Go change. The waves look pretty good right now, I want to get down there.” He had already started pulling his shirt off and unbuttoning his shorts as you got up off the floor. It was one thing for him to change in front of the balcony doors, he didn’t really care if anyone saw him naked… But he didn’t want anyone else to see you that way. Only he could, and if someone did happen to see you that way, he’d have to kill them and then it would ruin the vacation and neither of you wanted that.
Of course he held your hand on the way down the beach. He wasn’t going to let anyone else look at you, and even if they did, they’d see that your hand was in his and you were his, so they better just fuck right off with their thoughts and their intentions because it isn’t going to happen and you aren’t going to do the things that they are thinking with anyone but him.
“I hate walking in the sand with flip flops…” You mumbled as your feet sunk into the sand with every step, struggling to take steps because the sand kept basically absorbing your flip flop which is the most annoying shit.
“You could always go barefoot.” He said, as if you didn’t already know that… but also walking barefoot on the beach after the sun had been beating on it for hours wasn’t the most pleasant experience either.
“I’d rather not burn my feet… How close do you want to get to the water anyway? I usually stay close to the top so I don’t have to be around all the people.” Which was the truth. You hated being surrounded by other beach goers, and most of them smelt an awful lot like spray tan or beer or both. The ocean breeze would miraculously always start up whenever they were spraying their spray tans on and it would get in your eyes or your mouth, and you’d just rather not be anywhere near them. Plus… who puts on spray tan at the beach? Just lay in the sun. It’s easier and looks more real because it is real. Ugh… people.
“Close enough that I can still see you from the ocean. Right here should be good…” He stopped right at the middle of where the line of umbrellas started and where there was nobody. It was like an invisible line in the sand, and Belphie decided that he wanted his spot to be on both sides of it. He stuck the umbrella into the sand to mark the spot and you finally let yourself sit down before even putting down the towel. You were tired. Walking through the sand is a workout. “Don’t get too comfortable. You’re forgetting something.” He practically cooed the last part to you, and you knew exactly what he was talking about, but you wished that he had forgotten.
He started digging through the bag that you had loaded with drinks and snacks because the beach experience isn’t complete unless you’ve tried to eat a sandwich while a multitude of seagulls stand at the edge of your towel and squawk at you to feed them. (But you don’t because it’s not healthy for them. Please don’t feed the seagulls your food.) “I don’t need sunscreen. I’m just gonna be sitting under the umbrella the whole time.” He hummed softly, knowing that you were wrong. Who goes to the beach and sits under the umbrella the whole time? You knew that you weren’t going to, but damn… you really hated the feeling of sunscreen. It makes you cringe. Why is it so sticky????
You laid out the towel and decided that it would be pointless to even try to argue against him. He was right in the hotel room about the sunburn, and it wouldn’t be as bad if he was the one rubbing it on you. “I’m sure a little sunscreen is better than a sunburn…” He said as he squirted it onto his hands. “Lay down, I said I’d put it on you.” You quickly obliged, laying on your stomach and resting your head on your arms as he rubbed it together between his hands before placing them on your shoulders. The feeling sent a shiver through you, and you weren’t sure whether it was just because the sunscreen was cold or if it was his touch that made your body respond that way. “You’re cute… relax babe… this isn’t the first time I’ve touched you.” He teased as his hands made their way down your back, squeezing your sides lightly before rubbing slowly over your entire back and then working down to your legs. Luckily your face was hidden in your arms so he couldn’t see your blushing. His touch was doing things to you that you knew you couldn’t act upon on the beach so it would probably be a while before you got up anyway. “Alright, roll over.” He didn’t really wait for you to roll over, taking it upon himself to do it and then smiling smugly when he saw the flustered look on your face.
“I think I’m just gonna…. Stay here for a little bit… while you go out and…” He had already started running his hands over your chest which had made your sentence get cut short. It would be too noticeable that he was making you flustered if you just covered your face now, so you tried to keep calm as his hands continued to work. You let out a gasp as his thumbs accidentally flicked over your nipples, a quiet hum escaping him as he watched them perk up. “Belphie…” You whined, but he only laughed in response, moving his hands lower until they were at your hips. Your eyes grew wider, and he knew exactly why, and for a second you thought he’d just tease you more, but he knew that if he did that you’d just be begging him to take you back to the room and those activities were for later.
He had finally finished, and part of you wished that he hadn’t because obviously you loved having his hands on you like that, but also you were in public and it couldn’t go any further than that either. “So do you want to go down there with me or do you need a minute?” He joked as he got up, grabbing his surfboard and holding it under his arm. “Would you rather me stay up here wi-”
“You can go! I just… Just need a second.” Your voice cracked as you said it, further accentuating just how flustered he had made you. You ran your hands over your face and sighed, to which he laughed at. “Don’t laugh, it’s not funny.” You grumbled. You were now thoroughly turned on, it was hot out, you were covered in sunscreen, and he looked really good standing above you like that.
“It actually is really funny. I’ll meet you down there… oh wait… hold up…” He leaned over, booping your nose with his pointer finger which still had sunscreen on it. You wrinkled your nose at him, sticking your tongue out before rolling over onto your stomach. “Aww, you’ll thank me for it later when your nose is sunburn free and not peeling.” He started walking off, that much you could tell as the sun that he had been blocking finally hit your back.
It didn’t take too long for you to gain back your composure. Now that he was off walking down to the ocean, you could actually focus on calming down and relaxing in the sun that was practically baking you because the umbrella wasn’t blocking out anything now that the sun was setting. The sound of the waves crashing against the shore and the warmth of the sun against your skin had you close to dozing off, but you wanted to see him, you wanted to watch him, so you fought off the urge to fall asleep and pushed yourself up off the towel and started heading down.
The beach had almost completely cleared out aside from the few people who, much like yourself and Belphie, wanted to enjoy it without the screaming children who’d run through the sand and kick it back onto the towels and bodies of unsuspecting people. It was a lot calmer during the evening, and Belphie had a lot of room to do what he wanted to do. Not a lot of people here actually surfed, it was mainly people boogie boarding close to the shore line and riding the smallest waves inland. You on the other hand, you didn’t use a board at all, instead wading out into the deepest part of the ocean until your feet could barely touch the floor, and then when a wave came, you’d jump and ride that shit up to the shore… or get knocked out completely and wash up on the shore looking like you’ve just seen death itself. Either way it’s a blast, and boards held no appeal to you… BUT…
Belphie on the board was a completely different story though. There was something about… him in general that made you so fascinated. Your eyes were basically glued to him, watching intently as he got onto his board and started paddling out deeper. You saw the wave that he was going for, it was forming further back, almost on the horizon line and you knew that it would be huge, which is exactly what he was going for. Go big or go home was always his thing, whether it was with food, pranks against his brothers, and with this as well…clearly. Were you worried, even though you knew that as a demon, he couldn’t actually get severely hurt? Absolutely. He’d probably laugh at you later for worrying, but you also cared about him a lot, so could he blame you? Absolutely not.
You watched as the wave drew closer, and for a second you were beyond worried that it would just crush him since he was sitting there just wading in the water, but as it started closing in, he began paddling again, his board rising with the crest of the wave until he reached the top and stood up. Now, it’s not that you had never seen people surfing before, it’s just that everyone else was boring and you didn’t like them and they weren’t interesting, and they were just… people. Belphie was different. This was your demon and here he was absolutely fucking ripping it, and not only was was he doing it flawlessly, but he looked so fucking good doing it. You wanted to cheer for him, but you also didn’t want to throw him off or anything, so you let out a quiet “yay” as you continued watching. The wave crashed down and broke around him, pushing him closer to you and for a second you thought that he’d ride it all the way up to you, but then he saw you. He pointed at you, the typical finger guns, and then promptly decided to purposely fall back off his board, which made you gasp because like… what the fuck man? Why?
BUT ALSO GOD DAMN. When he reemerged from under the water, he looked fucking…. Hot. And not like, “oh shit it’s summertime and the sun is making things hot” kind of hot… no, it was “holy hell I need to get this man back into the hotel room before I fuck him right here on the beach” type hot, which is still an understatement because there is no way to actually capture the essence of how absolutely hot he is through words. He’s just fucking… hot. He quickly pushed back his hair which was soaked and hanging in his face, and now it was slicked back, which wasn’t a look that you’d usually go for, but on him, again… HOT.
Were you aware that you had been holding your breath as he walked up to you? Nope. But as soon as he reached you, you exhaled sharply and gave him a sheepish smile. “That was… you did… it was great…” You couldn’t think straight and you couldn’t form coherent sentences, and the way you were acting had that smug little smile returning to his face. He knew damn well the way you were feeling, the way he made you feel. He didn’t have to wait for you to fall asleep and see your dreams to know what you were thinking either. But he wasn’t going to let you have it that easily either, he was going to tease you and drag it out as long as he possibly could.
“Come on…” He grabbed your hand, pulling you out into the water which was freezing. It was so cold, your entire body kind of froze up as soon as it reached your mid calves. “It’ll be more cold if you try to slowly get used to it. Just dunk yourself under real quick.” He stopped pulling you long enough to watch you, and what he was suggesting was quite possibly the number one thing you didn’t want to do right now. “I can do it for you if you won’t do it yourself.” He coaxed, stepping a little closer to you. He was serious too, he’d dunk you, whether you were holding your nose or not.
“I-I got it… I can do it…” You mumbled, slowly lowering yourself and then shooting back up when the water reached an area that had been dry before. You could almost see the timer in his head ticking down to the moment where he’d just take over and sweep you off your feet in the most unromantic way just to get you used to the water faster. “Don’t look at me while I… You’re making me nervous!” It was a good excuse. He scoffed and turned away from you, humming the jeopardy song which only made you feel more rushed. “Shush! I’m doing it… I just need a second.”
“You’ve had many seconds. It’s gonna be dark soon.” He joked, tapping his fingers along the water as he started humming louder. You groaned loudly before taking a deep breath, holding your nose, and dropping under the water. And, not surprisingly, it was fucking freezing, and when you quickly pushed yourself back up, the breeze that had really picked up didn’t help… like at all. “There you go. It wasn’t that bad, was it?”
“No… it was worse.” He snorted softly, shaking his head. You couldn’t understand how he wasn’t fazed by it. Whenever he was in bed he’d complain about it being too cold when he was too lazy to reach down and grab his blankets… but swimming in an ice cube tray apparently doesn’t affect him. It made absolutely no sense, but… he looked happy, and he was having fun, and as numb as your body felt from the water, seeing him this way made you feel warm, at least in your heart, where it was important. “So why am I actually in the water right now?” You would have been perfectly fine staying just above where the waves broke, but he must have had something in mind.
“We’re tandem surfing.” He drummed his hands lightly on the board as he looked excitedly over at you as if you knew what that meant. He could see the confusion on your face though, and he sighed softly, pulling you closer to himself and the board. “You’re gonna be on the board with me.” That… sounded like a trainwreck waiting to happen. It would not go well, you knew that much. You wouldn’t be able to even sit on the board without wobbling, and you sure as hell wouldn’t be able to stand on it. “You’ll be fine.” He could see how put off by the idea of it you were. No amount of his arms wrapped around you would make flipping off a surfboard in the middle of a wave worth it.
“Mmmm… Nope… that’s not gonna… Nuh uh….” You were shaking your head quickly, trying to keep your footing even when you were flat on the ground as the waves crashed around you. They were strong, as was the current that was pulling you deeper into the ocean without you even realizing it. “I can just go stand back up there… I’ll watch you. That sounds like a good idea.” You nodded to yourself, turning to start walking away, but his arm was around your waist, holding you close against him and keeping you from walking away.
“I’m not gonna let you fall off. We’re not going far out… and we’re both sitting the whole time.” He murmured against your neck, knowing exactly what he was doing. “Plus… It’s cold out there… and I want to do this with you.” He made you so weak, it wasn’t fair at all. His fingers brushed lightly across your hip as his lips lingered against your skin. He was waiting for an answer, but he already knew what it would be, he just wanted to hear you say it, and he was having way too much fun teasing you like this. “Fine… just… hold it still.” His hand quickly moved away from your waist and he was wearing the biggest smile as he held the board in place as best he could. The waves crashing around it were the biggest issue, and every time you were about to jump up onto it, another wave would push it against you and make you stumble back. “Belphie… It’s not gonna work.” You whined, your head falling back as you sighed loudly.
“I’m holding it as still as I can, you just need to get on. I’ll tell you when, so the waves won’t knock you off.” He was being really persistent with it, which, in it’s own way, was kind of cute. Either he really wanted you on the board with him, or he really wanted to see you fall off. Sure, he liked you, but even you knew there was something… comical… about watching someone fall off a board… especially if they were just sitting. That’s even funnier. “If you do it… we can go right back to the hotel after we’re done… I know you want to do that.” He’s god damn right you want to do that. Not just for… reasons, but the thought of warm dry clothes and being under a blanket and cuddling with him sounded so amazing right now.
It was motivation enough for you to try again, timing your jump before the next wave came and then gripping onto the board like your life depended on it, because you really thought that it did, once you were on. “Okay…. Now what?” Your voice was kind of shaky, and really, you thought you should be rewarded with the hotel just for getting on the board alone. The waves were rocking you, and you felt like you were going to tip at any moment if Belphie let go, and you were really hoping that he wouldn’t, but when you turned to look at him, he was already behind you, getting ready to jump on the board. “Sh-Shouldn’t I be in the back…?” It was a pretty bad time to realize it considering you were already on it, but you still had time to jump off and switch positions.
“Oh… No. If you’re in the back, you’ll just hide your face in my back as soon as the wave starts pushing us, and that’s the best part.” He climbed onto the back of the board, scooting as close to you as possible. “Now hold on, okay? I’m gonna get us a little further out.” Your head whipped around to look at him, your eyes going wide. You were pretty sure he just said that you wouldn’t go out far, but now he’s saying he’s gotta get out further? He chuckled lightly, shaking his head as if he knew what you were thinking. “Not as far as I went. Just far enough to actually have a wave. The swells aren’t going to do much except rock us around a little bit.” He was already paddling out and your hold on the board turned into a death grip.
Once he felt like it was far enough out, he turned the board around, and that’s when you realized just how far you actually were. “I’m gonna die…” You whispered, which only made him laugh more, leaning in to kiss along your shoulder. “That’s not gonna make me feel better.” Your nails were practically digging into the board and your knuckles hurt from how tight you were holding it, but you didn’t really care, you just didn’t want to fall off.
“Oh, the waves coming! Hold on.” As if you weren’t already doing that, and you couldn’t possibly hold on any tighter than you already were. The wave began pushing you up, and you didn’t, not even for a second, enjoy the sensation of it. “Keep your eyes open.” His arms were wrapped tightly around you, and even with his urging, your eyes were shut as tight as possible, already prepared for when you’d fall off. You didn’t want salt water in your eyes, it burned, it hurt, and you were like 99.5% sure that you’d be falling off at some point.
His arms stayed wrapped around you, as tight as possible, ensuring that you wouldn’t fall off the board and you were beyond thankful for that. In a strange way, it didn’t last that long, but at the same time it felt like you were riding the wave forever. You had opened your eyes once, but the sight of the beach growing closer and closer to you was terrifying and you didn’t like it. “Is it done?” You quietly asked, not wanting to open your eyes yet, but you also felt like you’ve slowed down and you could feel the rocking of the waves beneath you again.
“Yes, it’s done. Your eyes were shut the entire time, weren’t they?” He joked, squeezing your hips which made you squirm and fall off the board anyway. His laughter was so loud you could hear it from under the water, and you quickly pushed your feet up against the edge of the board to try to tip him off as well, which didn’t actually work. You got back up, wiping the water from your eyes and glaring at him, still sitting on the board and smiling down at you. “You thought you’d be able to tip me over… that’s cute. You’re cute. Come, we’ll go back now. We can both take a nap before dinner.”
The sand had finally cooled off now that the sun had practically set behind the horizon line, lighting the waves up in pretty pink, orange, and blue hues. If you weren’t so cold, you’d have loved to stay on the beach and watch the sun continue to go down with Belphie right beside you. That could be done another night though, and you were aching to get back inside and take a shower to get the sand off of you, and then just relax in bed.
“I call dibs on the bathroom first.” You called out as you swiped the card to get into the room, rushing ahead of him to drop your beach bag on the floor and run straight into the bathroom. The sand was sticking to you, not just from being in the water, but also the damned sunscreen. It was itchy and it was everywhere, and you wanted to get it off of you as quickly as you could.
“You don’t have to call dibs, I could just get in there with you.” He said it so matter-of-factly that it made you pause for a second. He wasn’t wrong, and it’s not that you’d mind him getting in with you, so you weren’t going to say no. He walked in just as you were getting into the shower, and no matter how many times he had seen you that way, you still got really shy, which he would constantly say is adorable, but it just made you flustered and even more shy than you already were. “Did you have fun?” His voice was soft now, and you could hear that he was becoming tired. You were sure that he’d end up falling asleep on the beach after being in the ocean, it was enough to even knock you out most of the time, but he held onto enough energy to get up into the room.
“Mmhm… I liked watching you more though…” You heard him hum quietly behind you, his hands roaming over your body as he helped get some of the off. You could have done it yourself, but he did it so much better. “Did you have fun?” It sounded like he had fun, and it definitely looked like he had fun. He was laughing and smiling the whole time which was enough for you. His happiness made you happy, as cringy and dorky as that may sound… which is why you never told him that. He’d call you a dork and laugh it off which would just make you flustered and feel silly.
“Mmhm… I have one more thing to do though.” You were confused because you were pretty sure he was talking about dinner and that was supposed to come after the nap. He finished rinsing the sand and soap off you and himself before turning off the shower and stepping out. He didn’t bother with towels, grabbing your hand and pulling you out of the bathroom and pushing you down on the bed, situating himself between your legs and smiling up at you. “I teased you enough on the beach… I think I should finish what I started.”
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mrvelfan · 4 years ago
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Sunburn
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pairing: bucky barnes x reader
word count: 2.1k
warnings: basically fluff, some kissing
authors note: this is my first fic ever, so please be nice and enjoy:) (gif is not mine!!! all credits to the owner)
I DO NOT GIVE PERMISSION TO REPOST MY STORIES ON ANY OTHER PLATFORM. Reposts are appreciated.
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It was such a great day at the beach. Hot mid summer day, spent in a bathing suit, finally relaxed from all the Avengers pressure. You had gotten ready kinda early in the morning, not wanting to waste any minute of your day off. You bumped into Natasha returning to her room after her workout and after chatting for a bit, letting her know of your plans, she decided to join you. It was an opportunity to spend time together, so you both decided to invite whoever else wanted to come along. It resulted in Steve, Sam and Bucky joining you, which actually led to a day full of fun.
You were now on your way back to the compound with Steve and Nat in the front of the car and you, squeezed between Bucky and Sam in the back seat. Everyone was tired after a whole day of swimming, sunbathing and playing games so there was a comfortable silence and you were about to fall asleep. Suddenly you felt Bucky moving and grunting on your left side.
“Are you okay? Do you want me to move?” you said moving to your right thinking that Bucky didn’t fit. After all he was a pretty big guy.
“No no, I’m fine, I’m okay” he said with a half smile, shifting in his seat. You looked at his posture remembering that from the moment you got into the car, he sat very still, without his back touching the back seat. You could tell there was something off, but he looked rather uncomfortable and you didn’t want to ask him infront of the others.
Bucky was shy and quiet around the others, even though he was living at the compound for quite some time now. His room was next to yours, so when he had nightmares his first days here, you were always there to ground and comfort him. Since then you became really close, and you were one of the very few people he let touch him. It was honestly a surprise to everyone the first time they ever saw you sitting really close and he didn’t move away. You didn’t mind that he was always near you or touching you, because you realized that it made him feel safe. You liked the physical contact and the time you spent together, and little by little, your crush to Bucky developed.
You just nodded and gave him a reassuring smile. His flesh arm was pressed on your side, his hand on his thigh, so you felt his muscles tensing with every slight movement. It hurt you to see that he was in some kind of discomfort or even pain from the grunts that left his lips every now and then, but you let it go, deciding to ask him once you were alone.
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After about 30 minutes you arrived and once the car stopped everyone sighed because you would finally go to sleep. You gathered your stuff and started walking to your rooms talking about your day.
"I had a great time. We should do this more often." Nat said to all of you, stopping outside her room.
"Me too, it was a great idea Y/N. Didn't know you actually had these." Sam teased you before entering his room too, laughing and leaving you speechless.
"Did he really-?" You turned your head in shock finding Steve and Bucky trying to hold in their laughs.
"Yeap he did... and i can already see the wheels in your head turning, coming up with a way to get him back tomorrow at training." Steve added and started walking again.
"Don't you worry about that." You said with an evil smile hearing them chuckle again.
Yours and Bucky's room was right next to each other so after saying 'goodnight' to Steve you were walking in silence.
"Are you really okay? You looked strange on the ride back home." You finally asked him, stopping on your tracks outside of your rooms. He didn't answer and he looked like he was deciding whether he should tell you the truth or not. But your concerned face made him feel bad for lying on the first place.
"I um... I got a... I got sunburnt on my back..." he said looking at you to see your reaction. The frown on your brows became even more visible as you walked closer to him. His eyes never left yours as you reached out with slow movements and lifted his shirt a little, revealing his skin. It was red and looked sore, making you realize that this was why he wouldn't sit back in the car.
"Oh my god Bucky! This looks really bad." You looked into his beautiful blue eyes, trying to think of a way to help ease the pain.
“Don’t worry doll, it will be healed by tomorrow.” he shrugged and turned his body to open the door of his room.
"Listen, I have a gel that will cool down your skin and reduce the redness." You said and opened the door of your room, leaving some space for him to enter. 
“You really don’t have too” he said looking back at you. 
“Yes, but i want too. At least let me help you feel more relaxed, even for a few hours.” He hesitated for a moment, but the awful feeling of his shirt touching him was irritating and he couldn't wait to get it off.
He walked in your room and stood at the end of your bed, leaving his bag on the floor near a wall. You quickly shut the door, throwing your stuff on the bed and going into the bathroom attached to your room. Once you found the aloe gel, you walked back out seeing Bucky still standing looking around.
"You can sit on the bed if you want." You offered and waited for his next move. He sat on your bed softly, very close to the edge like he didn't want to intrude into your personal space, even tho you had let him in the first place.
"Can you please take your shirt off?" You asked with a soft voice,not wanting to startle him, knowing how self conscious he was about his metal arm and scars.
He slowly nodded, without looking at you, winching when he moved his arms to remove it, because of the pain. Once it was off, he put his hands on his lap playing with his shirt, too afraid to look up to you and see your reaction to his scarred shoulder. 
He was nervous. You could tell by his body language. You moved closer, sitting behind him so you faced his back. It was very red, especially on his shoulders and shoulder blades. You opened the cap of the tube and squirted some gel on your palm and fingers, before closing it and tossing it next to you.
“I’m going to touch you now okay?” you figured that it would be better for him if you told him exactly what you were going to do.
“Okay” he wispered, on the verge of tears, afraid that when you touched him you would feel disgusted by him.
You lifted your hands after barely hearing his response, and warned him that it would be cold. He nodded and you slowly pressed your palms on his back. You heard him hiss and shiver, but you didn’t move. He would feel much better after this.You spread the aloe all over his back massaging his skin, focusing on his shoulders were it was more sore. 
How could this have happened? He didn’t even take his shirt off nor he is burnt on his face.
You asked yourself after rembering that he wasn’t shirtless at the beach. You were totally fine with it, just like everyone else. Not one of you would pressure him into doing something he didn’t feel comfortable doing.
“Hey Bucky...do you mind me asking how you got burned, since your face is fine and... you didn’t take your shirt off?” you asked him and grabbed the gel bottle again to add more to your hands. He tried to swallow the lump in his throat and hold back his tears so you wouldn’t suspect anything.
“No um...I actually took it off to get into the sea, but you were all sleeping... so that’s probably why you...didn’t see me” he said and shifted akwardly on your bed. The truth was that he actually waited until everyone was asleep, so he could take off his shirt for literally ten minutes, to get into the water.
“And i put sunscreen on my face so...yeah” he added and waited for your response.
“Why didn’t you wake me to help you?” You said concerned and slightly suspicious because you had an idea of why he didn’t.
“Like i said, you were sleeping and i didn’t want to bother you” he sat up after you told him you were done and looked back at you.
“Listen, i dont want to pressure you, but you know you can tell me everything right?” you crossed you legs looking at him and waited for his responce.He knew that you knew. After all you knew him really well to notice when hes lying.
He closed his eyes sighing and sat next to you on the bed. “The truth is...that...” he trailed off and you put your hand on his ,that was resting on his thigh, and squeezed it, as a sign to continue.
“...I just didn’t want anyone, and especially you to see me shirtless... to see my scars and remember that i am a monster.” He said and wiped a few tears that escaped his eyes.
You weren’t entirely shocked to hear that. Only because deep down you knew that this was his biggest insecurity and he wouldn’t open up to anyone about it easily, even if he refused it. 
“Oh Bucky...” you hugged him tightly, your hands caressing the back of his head. He wrapped his armaround your waist, hugging you back even more tightly, burying his face into the crook of your neck and you felt some tears wetting your shirt. After a few moments you pulled back, wiping his tears stained cheeks, with you thumbs.
“I could never see you as a monster Buck. You are far from that. What you did all those years was not you...you are the kindest, most giving man I know who always puts himself first to protect others. I’m not disgusted by your scars Bucky and i will never be. They don’t make you a monster and they don’t define you. They prove that you are a survivor. And i know that you will see that one day too. But until then, i will always be by your side to remind you.”
He stayed silent for a few seconds, looking straight into your eyes, until he finally did what you both wanted for a long time. He leaned in and left a soft kiss to your lips, staying there for a little until he realized what he was doing and quicly moved back and sat up.
“I’m so sorry about that! I’m sorry if i made you uncomfortable... i should probably leave.” he said quickly and started gathering his things.
You stood up and made your way over him, took his face into your hands and smashed your lips to his. He dropped he things he was carrying and put his arms around your waist bringing you closer so that your chests were pressed together. Your lips moved in sync and your hands make their way up to the nape of his neck, playing with the hair there. He licked your bottom lip asking for pesmission and when you opened your lips he slipped his tongue into your mouth. After a while you both pulled back and stared into eachother’s eyes.
“Been wanting to do that for a long time.” you said biting your lip smiling, looking back at him.
“Did you now?” he chuckled and pecked your lips once more. “Thank you. For everything you said about me. I really appreciate it. I really appreciate you.” he smiled and pressed his forehead against yours.
“Of course Buck. I’ll always be here for you.” you smiled back and looked at his lips again. “So...you wanna do that again?” you giggled.
“Absolutely” he smiled and leaned in again capturing your lips into his. His hands moved down to your ass giving it a squeeze, before hissing and pulling back because his back had just collided with the wall. He looked at you with furrowed brows, pretending to be angry because you had pushed him all the way back.
“Oops...”
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attllhak · 3 years ago
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So I just got settled after getting home from camping, and I had forgotten that I hadn’t posted this before I left. I remembered in the middle of the weekend and felt bad, but I ended up not having time the morning I left. So have it now, since I did promise it!
Also, @tortilla-of-courage I promised to tag you in all the merAU stuff I posted, and so I’m tagging you. We now figure out what happened to Warriors.
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“Is he alive?”
“Yeah, you can see him breathing,”
“What is he even doing here?”
“I don’t know, I just found him,”
“We should tell Grandma,”
“Obviously, but we can’t leave him either,”
“Oh, I can go tell her, and you can watch him!”
“Oh that’s a good idea!”
“Okay, I’m gonna, hey! He’s waking up!”
“Huh?”
Warriors squeezed his eyes and blinked, squinting at the sun above him.
A pair of round faces appeared over him. Kids, probably.
He groaned, reaching a hand up to his head. He tried to remember what had happened.
He’d been with his pod, and a ship came by. Poachers. They singled him out, and their captain had him fished out of the water. The rest of his pod tried to help, but the poachers had guns and harpoons. He had seen at least one of his pod mates impaled by one of the harpoons through their tail.
His pod had no choice but to flee.
He remembered sitting in a net for hours under the sun until he’d dried and his scales began to flake.
Eventually he was swung onto the deck and dropped there. He had managed to pull himself onto shaking arms when his face had been wretched up, sharp nails digging into his cheeks.
He immediately felt sick when the woman, the captain of the ship, looked at him. It felt like he was being examined, like some kind of object on display. He felt oddly exposed under her gaze.
It was only years of training as a guard for his pod that allowed him to keep from panicking.
“Oh aren’t you pretty,” the human purred, and Warriors struggled to swallow. “You’ll look so pretty in my home,”
I’m going to die, he had thought.
Her plan for him was worse.
This woman, Cia, wanted a pet. Some pretty mer she could dress up in fancy things and put on display for all her guests to awe at.
He learned this after he was shackled to the deck with a thick chain attached to a cuff on his arm. Occasionally someone would be by to dump a bucket of water on him, but only after another woman, who looked very similar to the captain, warned that he’d be dead by the time they got to shore if they didn’t.
By the time the sun finally set, he’d been laid out flat on the polished wood, his skin and scales burned from the sunlight and lack of water, feeling dizzy and unfocused.
Sun sickness, he’d heard some of the merrow in their pod talk about it. He never thought he’d have it.
Once the sun had well set, the woman who had told them he needed water returned with keys.
Had he been stronger, he would have tried to fight her off. As it stood, all he could manage was to bare sharp teeth at her.
“I’m sorry,” she said. “I didn’t realize she’d be so cruel. I’m going to report her when we dock, but the authorities don’t release poached mer. So I’m getting you out tonight,”
He watched as she undid the shackle on his arm, and he dragged it slowly back to himself, trying to comprehend that.
He hissed and squirmed when she started dragging him, his burned skin and scales awake with pain as they ran over the unforgiving surface.
They got caught by one of the other poachers, and he and the woman argued and shouted. The poacher had some kind of fire, and didn’t hesitate to attack them.
He was thrown overboard, but the fire still hit his arm. He screamed, the first sound since he was brought aboard, and fell.
The cold water was a shock to his sun burned body, and he was out in an instant.
Well, the sun sickness explained his headache. And why his body was aching.
“Who,” he tried to croak, but his throat felt like it was lined with coral and filled with sand, and speaking hurt.
He went to move his hand to it, but cried out in further pain as the fire burns shifted on the sand. He squeezed his eyes shut to beat back tears, all but whimpering in pain.
“Go get Grandma! Now!” One of the kids, the boy, shouted, and he heard a splash as the girl left.
He was on a shore, not land, since he could now feel the water lapping at his tail. He moved his right hand over his body, reaching for where his left arm stung and stabbed with pain.
“Hey! Don’t do that!” Small hands grabbed his wrist and he opened his eyes again, blinking to see around tears at the boy leaning over him. “Don’t worry, help will be here soon,”
He decided to believe that, focusing on the boy’s face to try and distract himself from the pain.
The boy was young, maybe twelve or thirteen. Big, bright blue eyes, and sun bleached blonde hair. The boy was grinning, but visibly nervous.
‘Who are you?’ He flashed, not wanting to deal with his damaged throat.
“Me?” The boy blinked. “My name is Link! Do you have a name?”
Warriors smiled. ‘My name is also Link, but I’m not the only Link in my pod. They called me Warriors,’
“That’s such a cool name!” Link grinned.
Warriors smiled.
It took too long, as far as he was concerned, for help to arrive. Wind, Link’s new nickname since he wanted a cool name too, had done his best to keep Warriors distracted, when a very old mer climbed onto the beach next to them.
She hissed when she pressed a hand to his head, and Warriors found himself following her hand when it pulled away, chasing the cool wetness with a weak whine.
“Sun sickness,” she pronounced in an old, creaking voice. “And some very bad burning. He needs medical help,”
She slipped back into the water and the young girl replaced her.
Not long after he found himself gently, but no less painfully, picked up by a pair of merrow and transported back into the water.
He couldn’t help the whimper of relief as he felt the water around his body again, and did his best to bite back any cries of pain as they washed the sand from his body and burns. His spaulder was removed so they could treat his injuries, but he was promised its return.
He was far too gone to care about his property anymore, gripping the arm of one of the merrow supporting him with his good hand and pressing his head to their soft, cool skin.
They helped him down into the water, and set him up in an underwater cave where the sun couldn’t reach him. It was cool, and dark, and Warriors almost instantly curled up and passed out again.
He was in and out of consciousness for the next few days, hiding curled up in the coldest corner of his cave and letting healers come in and out to treat his burns. His skin peeled and scales flaked due to the sunburns, and they rubbed cooling salves into the burns. They treated the burn on his arm with even more care.
When he finally properly came to, he spent a long moment sitting in his cave and looking himself over.
His left arm had been pretty badly scarred, and the fin was frayed and damaged, but hadn’t been cut short. That surprised him a bit, he knew a few people whose fins were so badly damaged that it was better for their health to cut them shorter and he would have figured that had happened. Maybe this pod didn’t do fin cuttings for some reason?
The rest of his burns had healed well, and his throat didn’t feel like hurting him anymore.
He looked up when a mer snuck in, and he smiled when he saw Wind.
‘Hi, Wind,’ he waved, smiling.
This was when he noticed Wind’s fins were much smaller than his, and his scale pattern was different.
Wind was a coastal mer.
That explained the lack of fin cutting.
‘Are you feeling better?’ Wind asked, giving up all form of secrecy as he approached and plopped down right next to Warriors. He guessed Wind wasn’t supposed to be here.
Warriors shrugged. ‘More aware than I was before,’
‘That’s good!’ Wind grinned. ‘I’m sorry we couldn’t fix your fin,’
Warriors lifted his arm, frowning at the damaged fin. ‘You tried to fix it?’
‘Yeah?’ Wind tilted his head, equally confused. ‘Why? What did you expect us to do?’
‘Cut it back,’ he answered honestly. ‘It’s too damaged to save, so back in my pod we would have just cut back the fin and got rid of the damaged parts,’
Wind looked horrified. ‘Why would you do that?!’
Warriors blinked back, not sure what was so bad about what he said.
‘We have very big fins,’ he tried to explain. ‘Dragging around damaged fins can be really annoying, and sometimes detrimental to your health. So anything we can’t heal, we usually cut back,’
Warriors and Wind shared a long look.
They agreed not to talk about it anymore.
‘What happened to you?’ Wind asked instead. ‘Aryll and I found you on the beach and you were really out of it. Gran said you might not remember that,’
‘I do remember that,’ Warriors smiled. ‘Thank you for that, by the way. You didn’t have to help me, but I’m grateful that you did,’
Wind shook his head. ‘Of course I had to help you! You needed help!’
Warriors ruffled Wind’s hair, laughing at the squawk Wind made. ‘You’re a good person, Wind,’
Wind huffed, fixing his hair. ‘So, what did happen to you? We don’t get a lot of tropical mer around here,’
Warriors frowned. Just how far was he from his pod?
‘I, uh, I didn’t leave my pod willingly,’ he didn’t want to scare Wind at all, considering he didn’t know if poachers frequented this area or not.
‘You were kidnapped,’ Wind nodded.
Sure, they could say that.
‘Something like that, yes,’ Warriors nodded. ‘I was on a ship for a while, and the humans weren’t very good at keeping me hydrated. One of them took pity on me, and dumped me over the side once the sun set. I, don’t remember anything after that, until you and your sister found me on the beach,’
Wind reached out and, after a second of hesitation, wrapped his arms around Warriors in a hug. ‘I’m sorry. Usually the bad humans don’t come here,’
Warriors startled a bit, he didn’t usually get hugs from people, but he carefully set his arms down around Wind in turn, not even trying to fight the soft smile on his face.
He liked this kid, he thought.
Wind was chased out by healers not long after, apparently he’d been slipping in and making a nuisance of himself since Warriors arrived, and they looked him over and asked more questions.
After a while, the healers left and the very old mer from earlier returned. Her blue scales had been dulled by age, and her grey hair was pulled up in a bun. She squinted at him through the wrinkles in her face, and he instinctively straightened up. This woman was the matriarch of her pod.
‘My grandson told me you were aware,’ she flashed at him.
He nodded, trying his best to be polite.
‘He also told me you were kidnapped,’ she continued. ‘By humans,’
‘Poachers,’ he confirmed. ‘I got lucky,’
She nodded. ‘Do you know how far you traveled?’
‘I don’t,’ he shook his head, and looked down to his hands. ‘I don’t even know how long I’ve been away from my pod,’
‘A while at least,’ she said once he looked up again. ‘You’ve been out of it for a few days here, and we don’t know when you washed up on the beach. Not to mention that there aren’t any tropical mer pods nearby,’
Warriors nodded, looking down again.
He was probably very far from his pod, and it would take a long, long time to find them again. He wasn’t particularly fond of the idea of heading out into the open ocean with no direction either. Who knows how far he’d traveled. Who knows how far he’d travel in order to find his pod again. If he found his pod again. He might never get back to them.
He looked up when a gentle hand rested on his shoulder.
‘Don’t look so defeated,’ the old mer smiled at him. ‘We’ll help you get back to your pod. And until we find them, you can stay with us,’
Warriors looked at her, kind and helpful and comforting, and smiled back. He nodded.
He could do that.
(---)
Warriors got his spaulder back, and was quickly sussed out by this pod’s, very lacking, guard, and ended up employed. Mostly he was just retraining them, since they needed some help.
He liked having a spear in his hands again. It was a relief to be able to have a weapon.
Wind and Aryll had both attached themselves to him as well, and after a week they were introducing him as their very pretty big brother. Wind had even managed to convince Warriors to teach him how to fight.
Some days Warriors didn’t even mind that he might never get back to his original pod.
He did learn that Wind happened to be friends with a human pirate, however, and that stressed him out immensely.
Maybe he should talk to that therapist Gran had suggested he see. He hadn’t had issues with his podmates speaking to the marine researchers before he was poached.
But, pirates.
It never hurt to be cautious.
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sophie-i-guess13 · 3 years ago
Text
Deal
|Words: 1607|
|Characters: Buck Merrill, Sodapop Curtis, Mr. Curtis, Sylvia|
|Genre: No Idea. Fluff Maybe?|
|TW: Canon-Typical Violence|
Tag! @mjmacchio1991 @apricot-colored-feathers @pepsi-and-cigarettes @the-kneesbees @ralphmaccchiato 
’m sweating something awful, even tucked away in the corner, hidden from the hustle and bustle that comes with rodeo season in Oklahoma. Shadows dance between us, but all I can pay attention to is his boots grinding into the red dirt and the sweat winding down the back of my neck.
“C’mon, Rich, we had a deal. One-fifty if I entered under your team, an’ I did.”
He’s got shifty eyes, pupils that are too small to cover that much grey when they narrow into thin slits and the corners of his lips curl upwards. His rings hold on to the little sunlight they can find, shining like fool’s gold when he pops the collar of his raw-hide jacket. Spit mingles with tobacco and whatever else sits in the flask at his side when he chuckles, just enough that I can feel my hackles raise and something in my gut twist. “I said the money was yours if you won. An’ you didn’t, Buck.”
If I couldn’t already feel the blood drumming like hooves against gravel behind my eyes, I woulda assumed my heart had stopped. Sure, I knew there were other ways I could pay for the bar, groceries, and everything else I’d need to survive, but hanging around here was at least something I enjoyed doing. Besides, at sixteen, I ain’t old enough to sell folks booze without the cops swinging by. Everyone knows it’s been a while since Bill Merrill came back into town.
My throat is dry and my hands begin to shake, even as they twist the rag back and forth against my scarred palms- rope burn stings like a bitch, lemme tell you. “Second place’s gotta count for somethin’, don’t it?” I ask. I really hate the way my voice cracks on the last word, it’s like a reminder that I’m still my daddy’s kid playing grown-ups with all his buddies while he’s down in San Jose. “How ‘bout you just give me half? I-I’ll win next time, you know that-”
He laughs again, a wet cackle too high-pitched for a man his size. It fades to cough before too much time has passed and he goes right back to staring me down, like the bulls one corral over. “You ain’t gettin’ a second chance,” Rich groans, as if it was hurting him to say he was letting me go.
I should’ve just walked away right then and there, counted my losses and search the grounds for either someone willing to give me a chance, or my cousin. But for the time being, I’ll blame the adrenaline pumping through the veins under my skin, the sweltering heat, and my own damn desperation. “Rich,” I start, willing the words over my tongue before they could melt all together, “you can’t do this to me, man, y-you an’ my old man go way back, don’t you?”
I’m getting real desperate at this point, grasping at straws I don’t have. Richard Cassidy rolls his eyes and scoffs, sending the fat hanging below his chin-wagging back and forth. “We shook on it, Rich,” I spit, “you owe me my cut!”
His face goes an ugly colour after that, one I can’t describe. It’s like a dark mix of red and purple, starting on his cheeks and spreading all the way up to his forehead and down his chin like a bad sunburn. “Shakin’ don’t mean a damn thing, boy,” he growls, fingers dipping into his pockets before revealing the crisp green bills that were supposed to be mine, “what do you think this is, school?”
I feel sick all of the sudden. Being out in sun this long couldn’t have been good, especially after I hit the dirt. The front of my shirt and jeans were stained and filthy, but I was just glad neither were ripped. Bronc riding ain’t for the faint of heart, I guess.
“Christ,” Rich cackles again, this time sounding more like the lone coyotes prowling the outskirts of town than a man nearing fifty. “Y’know what, kid?”
I look up at him, teeth digging into the torn skin of my bottom lip before it can start to bleed. “Maybe if you had some money, people’d forget how damn stupid you really are.”
***
“You’re doin’ just fine, kid, just a few more steps.”
Shapes all mingle together on the outskirts of my blurry vision as Mr. Curtis yells out. Who he’s calling to, I can’t tell yet. Probably one of his kids, he’s got about five or six. They pop outta the ground like fucking daisies, I’m tellin’ you.
I run my fingers along the splintering wood of a bench when he loosens his grip and I sink down beside some kid I can’t remember the name of. His oldest is Darry, I know that much. But the kid with dirty blonde hair and brown eyes? No clue. I do, however, recognize the kid sitting behind him. Dirty old converse, and a jean jacket of mine laying across her lap.
“I’m tellin’ you, Soda,” Sylvia says, not even sparing her bloodied cousin a second glance, “Kathy’s got it bad for Keith, she’s just too scared to say anything!”
Soda doesn’t say anything to me, even if his dad just drug me over from behind the ticket booth, but he does pass a bottle of coke my way. It’s lukewarm under the sun, but it’s better than nothing when I pop the cap off and rinse my mouth.
“I’ll let him know,” Soda responds, even if he’s looking at me dead-on now, eyes wide. “Hey, uh, Sylvia?”
Her shoe digs into my back and it takes all I have in me not to whip around and tell her I get it. Soda Curtis knows your name. But before I can do anything, the bleachers creak and she hops to the ground, pausing just in front of me. “What’s up, Sodapop?”
“Keith goes by Two-Bit now, said it has a nice ring to it.”
Sodapop and Two-Bit, I swear. We all sound like some real hillbillies tucked on the bleachers when Mr. Curtis returns, a bag of ice wrapped around another rag in his fist when Sylvia waves over her shoulder to us and vanishes into the crowd.
“At least you got a few good licks in,” he chuckles. This time, it’s a real laugh, not just poorly disguised malice. I nod along, too busy watching the familiar head of blonde hair duck and bob through the hoard of cowboys gathered around. Where she’s off to, I can’t tell. “Kids, huh?” Mr. Curtis tries again, “a bunch of little buggers. Got the missus at home with the rest of them, though it would be nice for me and Soda to spend some time together ‘till Dick Cassidy started screaming.”
I smile at that as I drag a hand down my face, trying to wipe away the blood. It doesn’t feel like anything’s broken, but I know the tip of my nose ain’t where I left it. “Yeah,” I agree, tryna get used to the way my teeth ache with every word, “damn good thing I can throw a punch better than stayin’ on a horse.”
“I think you did just fine,” Soda interrupts. He’s on the edge of his seat, squinting through the bright sun and studying the bruise forming under my right eye. “Came in second place, didn’t you?”
I don’t bother explaining that second-place winners don’t get prize money; especially from sleazy old fucks like Rich Cassidy. I don’t even explain that it means instead of heading over to Aunt Carol’s, like I try to do every Saturday night, I’ll be holed up in my bedroom in my dad’s old bar, watching the neon sign flicker outside my window and try my damnedest to figure out how I’m gonna make it another month until his next check comes in the mail.
I slap my knees and get to my feet, ignoring how dizzy I’ve become all of a sudden. “Thanks for what you did back there,” I tell Soda’s father. I try extending my hand to him, the way Dad always told me to, but he just waves it away. “Better head out and find Syl,” I explain plainly. She’s got a real knack for winding up in trouble, and I ain’t the least bit proud to think she’d gotten it from me. “You’ve met Dallas yet?” I ask them both.
Sodapop shakes his head, boyish bangs falling down in front of his eyes.
“Now that’s a wild kid,” I mutter. It hurts to smile, but I end up doing just that when I turn to leave, eyes raking through the crowd for my jacket. I only get a few feet- far enough that Sodapop can’t hear, before a hand clamps down on my shoulder and I raise my fist, ready to strike.
Easy, Buck,” Mr. Curtis says, one hand up in surrender while the other is stuck in his pocket. Before I can begin to apologize, he interrupts me. “I know things ain’t exactly a walk in the park for you right now-” he pulls his hand back from his pocket, and I’m left staring at the crumpled bills clamped in his fist.
“I’m not takin’ your money, man-”
He shakes his head, just like his son had moments before. I’ve heard people say he and Darry could pass for twins, and I really am starting to see it now. “This is your money, Buck.” The bills are damp and stink of copper and tobacco when he presses them into my hand. “You and Rich shook on it, didn’t you?”
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maxdark158 · 4 years ago
Text
Wooo! Writing shoes are back on and i’m actually really happy that i’m finally able to write again. This chapter is a bit shorter than normal but the next two are heavy hitters so it’s alright
Angel in Gotham: Part 1 ~ Part 2 ~ Part 3 ~ Part 4 ~ Part 5 ~ Part 6 ~ Ao3
Demon in Gotham: Part 1 ~ Part 2 ~ Part 3 ~ Part 4 ~ Ao3
Fanart for AiG: Riddler ~ Joker thank you @thegreysman
Please tag me in any fanart you draw for this guys ^^
oooOOOooo
Damian typically liked patrol.
Jumping from rooftop to rooftop under the cover of the night was always exhilarating. Parkour just wasn’t the same without a belt of weapons and a costume, it was always a good way to burn of excess energy and get his mind focused.
Sure, it was his job to protect Gotham so he couldn’t be joking around, but he had to admit he liked the physical activity. He took his job seriously but taking it seriously didn’t mean it had to be unenjoyable.
Patrols were a time when he didn’t feel constrained, didn’t have to play a part or meet expectations. Nothing could ruin the cool gotham city nights on the rooftops.
Well, almost nothing.
After all, Damian’s father had the insane habit of adopting shitty ass kids for his crime fighting ring. Which meant Damian had this awful sickness called siblings. And the only thing that could ruin his nice patrols were the chortling of the other costumed idiots.
The worst nights were when all his brothers went.
Every. Single. Brother.
And what made it worse on top of that?
When they had something they felt they could tease him about. And when they were all teasing him about the same thing at the same time.
He was going to snap and stab one of them. His father might be anti murder but he didn’t have to know…
Damian shook his head. Bad thoughts.
“Thinking of your Angel?” Drake seemed to have a death wish and Damian was all about granting fucking wishes right now.
“Why do you all insist on being here?” he grumbled to himself. Because really they didn’t have to be. No bat signal, probably a few minor purse snatching crimes that one or two could handle easily. Why were they all in costume? Take the night off, stop fucking bothering him.
Annoying Fuck #1 snorted next to him when he said that, clearly not planning to be reasonable. “What, don’t like us teasing you about your Angel, demon spawn?” Todd snorted.
Damian ignored him. “Batman, shouldn’t he not be allowed to patrol with us?” His father could at least tell Todd to go home. Then when his back was turned he wouldn’t witness what happened to Dra-
“C’mon, I haven’t killed anyone and I want to hang out with my little bro! It’s not every day that Robin gets his first crush!”
Annoying Fuck #2, Drake, nearly slipped and fell from laughter.
Damian’s face warmed under his mask. “I do not have a crush you-“
“Focus on the job,” As always, father was on his side. “You can make fun of Robin later when we aren’t patrolling,” the traitorous bastard added.
Damian didn’t want to be the fucking blood son anymore.
He glared at Batman, scoffing to himself. “Then if you’ll excuse me, I’ll take my own route.”
“I’ll go with you little bird!”
Fucking fuck fuck.
Because of fucking course Grayson suggested that. And of fucking course Damian momentarily forgot that Grayson was back and patrolling too, leaving him unprepared for the suggestion. Grayson’s uncharacteristic quietness was the worst thing at times.
Fucking hell why’d they all have to be here tonight?
Proving himself to truly be a traitor, his father nodded to Grayson’s suggestion. So Damian, previously wanting to get away with his brothers and dream of murdering them alone, now had a tagalong stopping such a fun activity.
At this rate he’d have frown lines at 23.
Damian went off, not waiting for Grayson. He knew he’d easily keep pace though, so the halfhearted dream of being fully alone wouldn’t happen.
“Robin, wait here a second.” Oh fuck no. That’s Grayson’s I want to talk voice. Too bad for him because Damian did not want to talk. At all. Especially about anything Grayson might want to talk about. Because Grayson wanted to talk about French Angels and Riddlers and Spars and-
“Robin, are you listening?”
“No, Nightwing, I’m not.” Damian stared at him and raised a brow. “What is there to talk about?”
Grayson huffed, annoyed. Good. Fucker deserves it after what he and the others put him through these last few days. “I was asking if you actually had a crush or not. They’re teasing you but I’ve been,” at WE all day, Damian knew, “busy all day. I can’t tell if they’re making something out of nothing and I’d rather hear it from the horse’s mouth, so to speak.”
There was a time when Damian would have said he wasn’t a horse. When he was younger, he didn’t know idioms and expressions that well. He considered saying it now, to try and change the subject, but he also knew Grayson didn’t let things go easily. Which wasn’t very good.
Because Damian wasn’t sure how to answer.
He wasn’t sure he wanted to answer it, even to himself. His weedkiller wouldn’t arrive for a few more fucking days, he wasn’t prepared for this.
Though maybe that in of itself showed the answer to Grayson’s question…
Fucking fuck fuck.
He shook himself from those thoughts. Grayson was waiting on an answer and he didn’t have time to get lost in thought about his Ang- Marinette. Marinette.
Damian settled for glaring at Grayson. “My private life is not any business of yours.”
Grayson snorted. “Suure little bird. She’s one of the French students, right?”
“Don’t say that right now,” he snapped. Not while they were in costume, not while they could be listened to. “Focus on the job, Nightwing.”
Grayson put his hands up in surrender. “Race you to Wayne Enterprises?”
Damian didn’t wait for an answer, jumping to the next roof and making his way as fast as he could. He was determined to beat his adopted brother’s sorry ass, not that he cared about winning. It wasn’t that he was competitive, he simply didn’t want to continue this discussion. That was all. That’s fucking it.
Grayson laughed behind him, and the race began.
-----
They were taking a break near the Batcave. No activity yet, but they stayed suited up incase that changed. The night was still young, after all.
Batman instructed them to meet there through the comms. Damian and Grayson, further from the cave, made it there last. Grayson luckily hadn’t brought up and other conversation during patrol, and Damian hoped that would hold ou-
The other two idiots were waiting like the fucking lunatics they are.
Fucking fuck fuck.
“Did the demon spawn tell you about his precious Angel?” Todd clearly decided that he would die in seven days by saying that, big dumb fucking grin on his face and hair messy from removing his dumbass helmet.
“What was her name again? Mary?” Drake knew her name and was just being a little bitch. Damian decided not to give him the fucking bait, going over to a place to sit-
“Marie something, French and I think with brown eyes?”
“They’re blue,” Damian bit out. Fuck, their stupidity had infected him, he spoke before thinking. Was there a cure? He doubted it as they were all still stupid and have been for years. Fucking fuck the last thing he needs is to be on their level of idiocy.
“Right, right,” Jason’s wolfish smug grin was showing exactly how much of a fucking bitch he planned to be. Damian wanted to kick his face in.
“Little bird was pretty tight lipped on patrol,” Grayson said lightly as if he didn’t just stab him in the back.
“It’d be rude to kiss and tell,” Damian was going to strangle Drake with his own two hands.
“I haven’t kissed her!” He snapped again. His face was very warm, did he get sunburned somehow?? “We’re friends you imbeciles!”
“Friends that hold hands,” Drake pointed out.
“And tour Gotham together, alone.” Todd shortened his life span even more.
“And invite each other over to their house, where they never invited anyone before, to eat lunch.”
“Look how red his face is!”
“Little bird probably even planned to buy her ice cream! That’s why they were there when the Riddler showed up!”
“I’ll bed demon spawn-“
Damian stormed out of the room. Blood was roaring in his ears and he needed to- he just. He fucking needed fucking out of here. Away from those fuckers. Or he’d actually follow through with his thinly veiled threats and he’d rather not get blood on his costume.
He hated siblings with a passion. If his father ever considered adopting again Damian would fill all of his shoes with centipedes and rip the third seam out of every pair of pants he owned.
I don’t have a crush on her. I don’t. She’s wonderful and amazing, an angel, but I don’t like Ang- Marinette like that. She’s a friend I made and that is all.
Damian grabbed some throwing knives for target practice. Not on his brothers this time. He wanted to clear his head without those fucks nearby.
He threw one. The aim was a bit off, and he frowned. His aim was impeccable, why was he off right now? Why is having a crush on Marinette a bad thing?
No. He shook his head. He didn’t want to think those fucking thoughts right now. He threw another, harder. It went deep into the target, still off by more than he was happy with. He growled lowly.
Ange- Marinette is pure and good and wonderful. I was raised by assassins and I can’t completely shake their ideals.
Another knife. Damian’s grip on them tightened. Why was he missing?
I’m a vigilante and Damian Wayne. I have blood on my hands and money to my name and she wants to make her fashion empire herself.
Damian got more knives. His frustration was growing with each thought. They kept coming back as he tried to dismiss them, kept distracting him from the target.
She’s a talented designer. She’s incredibly smart, knows how to fight. Beautiful, dark hair and freckles and blue eyes.
Another knife sailed through the air.
I’m not anything of note without my last name or costume. She’s amazing without needing either.
Damian walked over and began taking the knives off the targets. Maybe they were fucking with his aim. He should get rid of them. Focus on removing them. Stop thinking about her.
But no matter how many fucking times he tried to redirect his thoughts, they came back.
She doesn’t have to tolerate me.
She’s wonderful and innocent.
She doesn’t deserve to be dragged down.
I don’t want to hurt her.
Damian’s hands were on his face, pushing at his eyes and trying to stop the thoughts. His Ange- Marinette was wonderful he knew that, but he didn’t think the other things. Not constantly anyway, he helped people as Robin. He was his father’s blood son. He wasn’t unhappy with himself.
But that doesn’t mean I’m good enough for Marinette.
He grabbed a knife from the table he set them on and threw it blindly, as if throwing the thought itself out and away.
It hit the center perfectly.
Damian took a deep breath. Everything was fucking overwhelming right now, and he didn’t want to think about it anymore.
But it seemed he’d have to.
Fucking fuck fuck.
Okay, okay. He… He might have a crush on Marinette.
Admitting it, oddly, seemed to lift a weight off his shoulders. Damian took another deep breath.
He has a crush on Marinette. But he values her a friend very much. He isn’t going to do anything about his crush, because she deserves someone as amazing and angelic as her, and Damian isn’t that.
But that’s okay. Because he already loves being her friend. And his weedkiller isn’t too far away.
Damian calmed down. He threw some more knives. They were all on target.
She’ll always be my friend and Angel, if I have any say in it. I’ll make sure whoever she choses is worthy of her.
Damian had just thrown his third when his father spoke through their comms. “Poison Ivy sighting at Gotham Hotel.”
The six words turned Damian’s recently found peaceful mood onto its head. Ice water poured into his and filled his limbs with dread. His chest was tight, as if someone was grabbing at his lungs and they were closing. The weeds of worry were strangling him.
That’s my Angel’s hotel.
He had dropped her off there with Alfred just earlier that day. She was staying there with her class. They were supposed to be safe and protected, she was supposed to be safe and protected.
Damian’s knives hit the ground but his feet hit it faster as he ran through the cave to the exit. Ivy best not lay a finger on her or she would lose her entire arm.
His Angel wouldn’t get hurt, not if he could help it.
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plant-flwrs · 4 years ago
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i just read house unity and i am in tears!! it's so beautifully written, you must be an author bc that is pure TALENT 😭✨ if you don't mind can i request george x soft hufflepuff reader? she's kinda pure and george is like ily let's be together. thx!!
budding romance // george weasley
masterlist!
a/n: um UR TOO NICE!!! thank you so much!!! I do not mind in the slightest, so I hope you like it hehe! um i also love hufflepuffs so much they are like the best house (coming from a ravenclaw) my sister is a hufflepuff and like three of my good friends are hufflepuffs so y’all are the best and i have a major soft spot for u. 
i’ve always found something about botany and plants incredibly romantic, so if this just sounds like a fanfiction for plants, you know why lol. I also made George a bit soft in this so i hope you don’t mind that either <3 n e ways, i hope you enjoy this! thanks for requesting! also sorry this took so long :( i had a bit of a hard time finding a solid idea but i think it worked out :) like, reblog, or leave any feedback if you’d like!
summary: George needs a tutor for Herbology, but has no plans on learning.
(3k)
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The back of your neck was particularly warm, and you hadn’t decided if it was because of the blazing sun shining through the Herbology classroom glass ceiling, or the fact that George Weasley was staring at the back of your head.
Your delicate fingers traced the back of the Dittany plant, feeling the bumps and lines of the veins that trailed to the stem. You wrote down some observations in your worn notebook, before glancing back at the plant. You picked up a pair of garden scissors, prepared to cut the plant at the stem.
“George Weasley is looking over here,” your friend whispered to you, casting a glance over her shoulder.
“I know, he does it often,” you replied, using a pair of tweezers to pull apart the Dittany.
“Do you think he needs something?” she asked, returning back to her own plant.
“I just figured he was copying what I was doing,” you wiped a bit of moisture off of your hand and onto your apron, taking the opportunity to look over your shoulder.
George’s eyes met yours, and his face flushed with an embarrassed blush. You offered him a kind smile, your eyes falling down to his mangled Dittany plant. You looked back up to his eyes, this time sympathetically smiling at him.
You returned to your own plant, jotting down a few more notes in the stained journal next to you.
Herbology was a strong suit of yours, you had always found it relaxing and simple. The plants offered so much to people, and all you had to do was understand how to care for them properly.
After your eventual dismissal, you rubbed the back of your neck and felt a sunburn, cursing yourself for not bringing some sort of sunscreen in your bag.
You heard an awkward cough from behind you, followed by a weak “hello”. You turned to face the noise and was a little surprised to see the tall redhead it came from.
“Hello,” you said kindly, closing your bag.
“Hi,” he repeated, and you waited for him to continue.
An awkward amount of time passed before he realized he had already said hello.
“Oh, right, um” he coughed again, clearing his throat, “well, I just wanted to introduce myself.”
He paused, holding his hand out for you to shake.
“I know who you are, George,” you replied before he had the chance, smiling at his sentiment, “we’ve gone to school together for 6 years.”
“Yeah, I just usually say it formally,” he retracted his hand after he held onto yours for what he felt was too long, “you know, with an identical brother and all.”
You nodded your head, still smiling at the nervous boy.
“Well, I wanted to ask you something,” he said, his hands gripping the leather straps of his bag nervously.
“In addition to the introduction?” you said, trying to make him less nervous.
He laughed lightly, shifting from one leg to the other.
“Yeah, if you don’t mind.”
“I don’t mind,” you pushed a piece of hair behind your ear, finding it impossible to wipe the smile off your face.
“I was wondering, since you seem so good at it, if you would help me out in Herbology?” he spoke fast, and you nearly missed what he said.
“Oh,” you were surprised by his question. He and his brother had a bit of a reputation at this school, and tutoring didn’t seem to align with it.
“I get if you can’t or something, I know you must be busy with your own studies,” he began, but you waved your hands, cutting him off.
“No, no, I don’t mind,” your smile widened as he let out a relieved breath of air, his chest deflating.
“So you’ll tutor me?” he asked, a crooked smile dawning upon his lips.
“Yeah, I don’t see why not,” you replied easily, nodding your head.
There were many reasons not to tutor George, you found later. For one, you fell in love with him. Not that you could be blamed, he was incredibly charming and adorable. The other reason was that he actually had very little interest in the plants, and his efforts seemed more geared towards you.
You had asked Professor Sprout if you and George could meet in the Herbology room every Wednesday after her classes. She was skeptical, but she trusted you and allowed you access as long as you promised to keep George in line.
This particular Wednesday seemed no different than the others, besides the growing crush you had formed on George. You waited for him at a stool by the door, a textbook open in front of you, along with your Herbology journal, a few quills, your apron, your gardening equipment, and a dying Dittany plant you planned on showing George how to save. You had been waiting for a while, but George was usually late. You had pulled some Arithmancy homework from your bag and worked on it in the meantime.
“Sorry!” George burst through the door of the greenhouse, a book falling from his fumbling hands, “Sorry, I got caught up with Fred, I’m sorry I’m late.”
More and more apologies flooded from his mouth, like they did most days, as he made his way to the stool next to you.
“It’s alright,” you put away your homework and pulled your textbook to rest on the table between the two of you.
You stood from your stool and began putting on your apron, and moved over to the cabinet with the spare aprons. You got one for George and his hands fumbled behind his back, his focus on you. He watched the side of your face as you peered into the textbook, your fingers tracing the words as you read. You lightly tapped it, pointing it out to George.
“We’ll start here,” you said, sitting back down in your stool.
Your wand hovered over a watering jug on the table, and you cast the Aguamenti charm. Water poured from your wand, filling the jug.
George watched you, nervously turning his fingers over in his lap. He glanced down, noticing the habit, and smoothed his hands over his legs. He brought his hands to his hair and raked them through the red locks, rolling his shoulders back, trying to relax in your presence. He never was able to, and he knew this, but it didn’t stop him from trying.
George couldn’t care any less than he already did about Herbology. He thought it was boring and useless. Not many of his pranks required extensive knowledge about plants, and when they did, the plants were already in use. But, when he saw you from across the room, your glasses teetering on the edge of your nose, your fingers tracing over the lettering in the textbook, hair falling into your face, and that wonderfully sweet smile etched onto your beautiful face, he had to talk to you.
It took him a week or two of staring at the back of your head before you even noticed him. The first time that beautiful smile was for him, he could only think of you for the rest of the day. Fred was tired of it, honestly, George was desperately infatuated with you. George had worked up the tutoring plan with Fred, with the promise that he wouldn’t actually study anything. “We have a reputation to uphold, Georgie!”
“Okay,” your sweet voice pulled George from his thoughts, and his eyes flickered from your face to your hands on the book, “so this is a Dittany.”
Your hands moved from the book to the dying plant. Its previously green leaves were now brown and wilting. Your fingertips moved over the delicate leaves, to the stems, and you raked your fingers through the dry dirt.
George leaned forward on the table, putting his chin to rest in his palm. He listened to you talk about the plant, describing just about everything there was to know. He wondered how you knew all of this from memory, and admired you even more than he thought possible.
You reached over the table to grab the garden scissors, but they were just out of your grasp. George leaned forwards and picked them up, turning them to you. You hadn’t retracted your hand, so when he pulled them from the table, they slid open and you felt a sharp pain on your fingertip.
You pulled your hand away and nursed it in your lap. A red stain appeared on your apron, and soon it spread as your fingertip was flowing with blood. You heard the scissors clatter on the table and George turned to you, already spouting apologies.
“Shit!” he cursed, his body turning towards you and he slouched to become eye level with you in your seat, “I’m so sorry!”
You whimpered involuntarily, bringing your finger to your mouth to suck away some of the blood. You removed your finger and wiped it on your apron, only for the blood to continue flowing.
George was panicking, he felt absolutely awful.
“Can I see it?” you looked up to see his creased brow and guilt- flooded eyes.
You swallowed hard and nodded, offering him your hand timidly.
He gently placed his hands over yours, they were so large they nearly covered them completely. His hands were warm and calloused on the palms from years of gripping his Beater bat. He brought your hand to him, holding it close to his chest as he looked at the small cut.
“I am so sorry,” he repeated, and he rubbed his thumb soothingly on our palm.
He pulled out his wand and looked at you for wordless permission, which you granted him curiously. He hovered over your finger and mumbled a spell you hadn’t heard before. The broken skin on your finger began to mend together, and the stinging had been replaced with an odd numbness. There was still the remains of blood, but George brought his apron to your finger and wiped it away. He still held your hand, looking at your face.
“How did you know that spell?” you asked, surprised when your voice came out as a whisper.
“You learn a lot when you have siblings like mine,” George responded in a whisper, looking at you sheepishly.
His hand was tightening around yours, and his palm rested against the back of your hand. You wrapped your fingers around his thumb, squeezing it lightly.
“Thank you,” you mumbled.
George’s eyes flickered down to your lips, and it was so fast you had thought you might have imagined it. Your eyes moved to his lips, noticing that his bottom lip was trapped between his teeth.
“Well, it’s the least I could do,” he responded coolly, dropping your hand back into your lap and straightening his tie as if it had become too tight.
You looked down at your aprons, each stained with small drops of your blood.
“Ew,” you said, trying to wipe off the dried red stain, “Sprout will kill me!”
Pulling his wand back out, he placed it on the table.
“Here,” he moved close to you and wrapped his arms around you. You stiffened, breathing in deeply as his mouth was inches away from your ear. You felt him fumbling with the bow that tied your apron, and his hands grazed your lower back.
Soon the bow was untied, and George hovered for a moment, and he couldn’t help but smile as he smelled your wonderful perfume.
Your apron became lose and he pulled back, his hands moving to your neck as he pulled it off. He did the same with his own and laid them both on the table.
“Tergeo,” he said, pointing his wand at the aprons.
Your apron was as good as new, and so was his, all the dirt and blood removed from the cloth.
You swallowed hard, trying to push the moment of intimacy from your brain. You forced a smile at him, thanking him as you took the apron from him.
“You’re a much better student than you let on, George,” you said, holding the apron loosely in your lap.
He made a scoffing noise, but a genuine and flushed smile fell on his face.
Neither of you felt inclined to nurse a dead plant back to life, in fact, you had no idea what to do. George just stared at you, as if he were waiting for something.
“Um-” George spoke at the same time as you, and you closed your lips.
“No, you go ahead,” he said, bowing his head to you slightly.
You laughed and insisted that you weren’t going to say anything important.
“I was just going to ask if you wanted to take a walk around the grounds,” he said, already standing from his stool, “it’s awfully warm in here.”
George was right, the greenhouses seemed to be particularly warm. You thought some fresh air would be nice.
“Not very interested in the Dittany?” you teased, standing from your stool and moving to clear the table.
“Oh no!” George said nervously, hoping he didn��t offend you, “No, its wonderful-”
“I’m only teasing George, I know Herbology can be boring,” you smiled at him and laughed to yourself when you saw him visibly relax.
He was always so nervous around you, no matter how hard you tried to make him comfortable.
The two of you put away all the supplies, cleaning the table off for Professor Sprout. You had used the water left in the watering jug on any dry looking plants. George watched you going around the greenhouse, the sunshine making you seem like you were glowing. You held your hair behind your shoulder, peering into each pot.
“Alright,” you dusted your hands and tucked away your apron, “let’s go.”
George held the door open for you, and you ducked beneath his outstretched arm as you crossed the threshold. You followed his lead as he led you down a hallway.
“So you like Herbology a lot, right?” George asked you, casting a glance down at your side profile.
“Yeah, I do,” you replied.
“There’s a boy in my house, Neville, he’s great at Herbology,” George spoke fondly, his eyes turning to look out the tall windows.
“Sprout has talked about him,” you said, looking at George’s side profile, “says he’s quite talented.”
“Yeah, he’s great,” George said awkwardly, feeling quite uncertain in your presence.
“What’s your favorite class?” you asked, still trying to make some conversation.
George raked his mind, trying to decide if he should make up an answer to sound smart or be honest. He decided to be honest.
“I quite like lunch,” he said, casting a smile down at you.
You giggled, rolling your eyes playfully. He bumped his shoulder against yours, and you giggled even more.
You were eventually able to fall into a comfortable conversation, walking around the castle with ease. His hands tucked themselves into his pockets, and you crossed your arms over your chest. You eventually stopped in the courtyard, and George led you over to a bench under a large tree.
You sat close to each other, and he was painfully aware of the way your leg rubbed against his. He looked down at the spot where your skirt ended and your tights began, a lump forming in his throat. He looked at the side of your face, you seemed wonderfully content. Your eyes scanned the array of plants in front of you, looking at each of the vibrant flowers that were beginning to bloom.
“I really am sorry about your hand,” he said, partly as an excuse to pick up your hand and pretend to look at the healed cut.
Your felt tingles shoot down your arm at the unexpected touch. You looked at the hair that fell over his forehead as he peered down at your hand, holding it delicately.
“Oh, it’s alright,” you said reassuringly, “accidents happen.”
He smiled at your kindness, your eyes meeting. This time, you were sure he was looking at your lips. Your eyes danced around his face, and you felt your lips curling into a smile as he watched them.
“Would you mind if-” he croaked out, but the words seemed to be caught in his throat.
You giggled, and he dropped your hand, his head rolling back as a bought of laughter came from him. He suddenly seemed the most relaxed he had ever been.
Suddenly, when his head came to face yours again, his hands snaked up to hold your cheeks. Your eyes widened, and your smile did too. He brought your face to his, and you had realized what he was going to ask you just a second ago.
His hands were warm, and the callouses felt nice against your soft cheeks. His kiss was soft and gentle, and he waited for you to reciprocate. Your hands traveled up to wrap around his neck, and the second your fingers tangled themselves in his hair, his kiss intensified.
One of his hands traveled down to your neck, and his thumb grazed your jaw. The other slithered to your hair, and he lightly pushed your face even closer to his. Your nose pressed into his cheek and you leaned closer, your shoulder bumping into his. His tongue trailed over your bottom lip, and you sighed, opening your mouth to his.
“Ew! Get a room!”
You heard two voices shouting towards you. You pulled away, much to George’s dismay, who stayed in the same place with his eyes closed.
You looked over George’s shoulder and saw his brother and his friend.
“George,” you nudged him, casting your blushing cheeks and sheepish smile down at your lap, “I think you’re needed.”
George groaned, opening his eyes slowly. His hand was still tangled in your hair, and he slowly removed it. You felt chills as his hand raked over your neck and down your yellow tie, attempting to keep your close.
“What?” he said so poisonously, that your eyes widened.
“Keep it in your pants!” the younger redhead called out, shoving his shoulder against his friends, laughing.
“I swear to-” you heard George mumbled, already moving from his seat next to you and off to his brother.
The smaller redhead shoved his books into Harry’s chest, setting off in a run. Harry laughed loudly as George chased after his younger brother. George pulled his wand from his waistband, pointing it at Ron and easily casting a spell that bound a rope at Ron’s feet. Ron fell to the ground with a thud and George stood over him, smiling evilly.
He looked back at you, watching as you covered an entertained laugh with your hand. His face melted into pure admiration, and he abandoned Ron, leaving him tied up in the grass. George broke out in a jog, determined to hear your sweet laugh.
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chamomileteainabuttercup · 3 years ago
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Dincobb Week Day 2 - Hurt/Comfort (SFW)
Welcome to my Dincobb Week fanfic posts! I've written stories and scenes of varying lengths and tones. For clarity I should say that most of these exist as miniature AUs of their own and have no continuity with each other or with anything else I've written about these characters, so in different pieces they may be described having different physical features, personal possessions, preferences, et cetera. (There are three exceptions which I'll note as such when they come out.) Thanks to @djarining, who helped me a lot with brainstorming and discussing my ideas!
For today I have two pieces, an SFW and an NSFW - the NSFW is scheduled to post an hour after this one. The SFW is the first of the three linked stories - the other two are SFW and NSFW for a finale (but the SFWs can stand alone if you prefer not to read the NSFW one).
Hurt/Comfort - Sunburn and Grief
“Oh, partner,” Cobb says with rueful sympathy. “Look at the state of you.”
Din doesn’t know how his face looks, but from the hot, tight feeling of the skin he guesses it’s much like what he can see of his arms, shoulders, chest — burned crimson. Even his eyelids feel burned, and puffy to boot. He’s feeling pretty angry with himself. Just because he’d been enjoying the newfound warmth of the sun on his face was no reason to decide to take his shirt off and feel it all over the top of his body. It was a dumb impulse and the fact it had felt blissfully good, so much so that after he lay down to bask on the patch of sand behind Cobb’s house that he jokingly calls the garden, he fell fast asleep, did not excuse it. This is his natural punishment, he guesses, for getting into a “nothing matters any more so I’ll do whatever I feel like” state of mind, exacerbated by day-drinking. He’s not sure if the splitting headache is because of the sunburn or more of a hangover symptom. Either way, he knows he deserves it — and he doesn’t deserve how gentle Cobb is being with him, guiding him into the cool shade of the house with a hand carefully on his unburned back.
“You don’t have to look after me,” Din says. “I deserve this.”
“You’re under my roof, so yes I do,” says Cobb. “We take hospitality seriously out here. Sit down.” He guides him into a chair by his kitchen table and looks him over again. “You’re already blistering, you poor dummy. Well, first things first, you’re dehydrated.” He brings him a tall glass of water. “Slow sips, now. You gulp it down and you’re liable to throw up. I once found that out the hard way.”
Din doesn’t want to be fussed over but he still has enough of a wish to survive that he takes the glass gratefully. He takes a first sip to wet his mouth and throat, then another that he tries to hold in his mouth for as long as he can before swallowing. Cobb’s left the room; he thinks he can hear him in the bathroom, opening and shutting the cabinets. It’s so hard to think clearly; his head aches and he’s still not really sober. He can’t think what he should be doing. Is this sunstroke? What are you supposed to do for sunstroke again? He doesn’t think he’s ever been sunburned before, maybe it always feels this awful and he just wouldn’t know. Not really a Mandalorian problem. And he’s not really a Mandalorian now, so it’s become his problem. He drinks the rest of the water, probably too fast, but if he throws up he probably deserves that too.
Cobb comes back with a handful of washcloths and a big jar of something pale yellow and waxy-looking. “Let’s get you cooled down,” he says, and goes about efficiently filling a big bowl with water, throwing in some ice from the freezer, soaking the cloths and laying them spread out on Din’s chest and arms. They feel shockingly cold at first and he flinches, but almost immediately they seem to grow warm from the heat of his skin. Cobb’s humming softly as he does it, a constant soothing sound. “Head back,” he says, and lays a wet cloth over Din’s face, then leaves again and comes back with something that he sets on the table beside him. There’s a click and a whirr and a fan is blowing across his body, helping to chill the wet cloths again. Cobb keeps re-dipping and replacing them. Quiet minutes pass. The coolness is so merciful. Din opens his mouth a bit and sucks some water from the cloth over his face. His lips really hurt, but it’s still comforting somehow. He remembers how Grogu was hellbent on sucking soapy water out of the washcloth whenever he gave him a bath, and the memory stabs him under the ribs. Why does he have to remember stuff like that? Stuff that was annoying and a little gross and worried him at the time, but that he’d now give an arm or a leg to have back in his life?
“Okay,” says Cobb, peeling the wet cloth back from his face, “I want you to drink some more water. I put some rehydration salts in this glass, so it may taste a little funny, but you need the electrolytes or whatever.” Din accepts the glass and drinks, obediently; he’s starting to feel very slightly better physically. “And I bet you have the mother of a headache, so take these too.” He gives him a couple of white capsules to swallow.
“Thanks,” Din says, his voice even more subdued than normal. Cobb is watching him with his elbow on the table and his chin on his hand. He looks concerned, which makes Din feel guilty, but also irritable because Cobb doesn’t have to concern himself. Yes, Din asked if he could stay here, but he could always have said no, he can always ask him to leave if he becomes a burden. He should leave, it was so selfish to come here just because he was miserable and didn’t want to be around anyone else. He doesn’t know where else to go, though. He can probably go and find Boba. He would give him a job. He should probably have stuck with him anyway, but he felt like he’d imposed on him a lot already. Or followed Bo-Katan and tried to sort out all the Darksaber political nonsense. Not come here just because he wanted to see Cobb. Because he missed him and wished he could have spent longer with him in the first place. And all he’s done since he got here is act like a depressed asshole. And for reasons unknown Cobb is putting up with it. Yes, he’s a good, kind person, and maybe he feels like he still owes Din for his help over and above giving him the armour, but he still shouldn’t put up with it. Maybe he won’t for much longer. Whatever good opinion Din bought back then must be eroding fast. And that thought stabs at him, too.
“Okay,” says Cobb, taking the washcloths off Din’s left arm, closer to him, resting on the wooden arm of the chair. “This is good for sunburn, windburn, you name it. The all-purpose old-fashioned Tatooine skin balm.” He takes the lid off the jar, scoops out a generous amount on his fingertips, and begins smoothing it onto the burned skin on the back of Din’s left hand. It looks waxy, but it’s so soft that it melts into his skin almost immediately. “Mind you, you’re bound to peel, as crispy as you are, but this’ll soothe the pain and help your skin recover.”
Din’s cracked lips tremble, and if he wasn’t dehydrated he’s pretty sure there would be tears in his eyes. Cobb’s hands are so gentle. Being touched on the sunburn hurts, too, but it’s the gentleness that makes him want to cry. Cobb quietly, patiently, continues up Din’s arm to the shoulder, then moves his chair to do the same on the other side. He’s humming all the while, an old Tatooine folk song, Din thinks. Or for all he knows, last summer’s big pop hit, it’s not like he keeps up with these things.
“Sure do have a lot of scars,” Cobb remarks as he reaches the top of Din’s arm. “Looks like some of these wounds were cauterised.”
“I can’t exactly give myself stitches,” mumbles Din.
“Life’s been like that, huh?” Cobb says sympathetically. “Been there. Things are better now.” His voice softens further. “Things do get better, if you give it time and don’t lose heart. Turn your chair towards me, I gotta get your front.”
When he removes one of the washcloths from Din’s chest, Din takes it from him and drapes it over his face again. Being covered is such a relief, even if he has no right to it now. It’s particularly a relief because Cobb’s hand stroking his belly and chest with soothing balm is… embarrassing. His face would be red even if it wasn’t burned. He’s not used to this kind of physical intimacy with… anyone really. The fact that it’s still somewhat painful to be touched and his head still aches is keeping him from enjoying it in any unseemly way, but he wishes he’d laid down to bask on his front. He could just have a burnt back then. Much less… confronting to have your back touched. Cobb’s hand is stroking his neck now; he’s even burned under his chin, which feels ridiculous.
“Okay,” says Cobb, “I need to see your face again.” He takes the washcloth and Din lifts his head again, but keeps his eyes closed. Cobb begins by smoothing a dab of balm over each puffy upper lid. Now he thinks about it, he must look pretty hideous, not just red but swollen. It’s not the sort of thing he’s used to thinking about, or caring about, but it does bother him a little to have Cobb see him look like this. Gentle but firm fingertips spread balm over his forehead, down his nose, across his cheeks, down to his chin. He must have absorbed enough water by now from the two glasses he drank; tears are sneaking from the corners of his eyes and stinging his skin painfully. He feels Cobb’s thumb brushing balm across his chapped lips, the last place on his face, and thinks that will be the end of it, but then he feels hands cupping the sides of his head, thumbs stroking his temples. “Look at me, Din,” Cobb says quietly.
Reluctantly, he opens his eyes. He isn’t prepared for what he sees in Cobb’s eyes, the tenderness and affection but also the trouble and fear.
“Don’t hurt yourself like this again,” Cobb says. “Please.”
“It wasn’t on purpose,” Din says, although his voice comes out weird, choked and husky.
“Wasn’t it?”
“Trust me,” he says with a little grim smile, “if I wanted to hurt myself I know a lot more efficient ways to do it.”
“But —”
“If I wanted to hurt myself I could just go out back and eat my blaster. Quick and easy. Roll down the dune and let the wind cover me up.”
“Please don’t talk like that,” Cobb says urgently. “Don’t be so flip like you don’t matter.”
“I — I don’t matter,” Din says. “I don’t matter any more. I — I’m nothing any more,” and then the dam breaks and he’s crying. It hurts, it hurts to stretch the burned skin of his face, it hurts where the tears cut through the balm, but it hurts worst inside his chest, around his heart.
“Oh, no,” says Cobb, and pulls him forward, pulls Din’s head to his shoulder, hugs him close, and Din feels his hands stroke his back, his unburned back where thank heavens, he can feel some real comfort from the touch. He still can’t stop crying. It’s a raw, ugly sound that tears his throat, a stupid, inarticulate a-hur-hur-hur. “No, darlin’, no,” Cobb’s telling him, “you’re so wrong, you matter so much to me, you are everything to me. You don’t know how happy I was to see you. To see your face! Or how broken up to see you so miserable. I wish I knew what to do for you, what to say.”
Din still can’t stop crying, but if he’s ever able to do so, he’ll want to tell Cobb that he’s doing and saying it now.
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joyfulsongbird · 3 years ago
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broken not shattered
in the year following Vecna's defeat, Percy starts to notice that Cassandra is displaying the same attributes that he had in himself in his darkest time. Percy helps pull her through her anger and darkness, knowing what it is like, and makes sure she doesn't spiral the same way he did.
the cassandra-centric self indulgent fic i was born to write <3
ao3 link!! (content warnings listed in the notes)
***
You learn things, when you get to a place where your mind is no longer your own, let alone your body. You learn how to survive, when there is nothing you can do but save yourself.
You learn more than how to hold a blade, more important skills than how to dress yourself in armor, or tie your hair back by yourself because mother was still doing it for you when she died. Vesper always said it was ridiculous how much her little sister depended on their mother. “I was braiding my own hair before I even got to the double digits!” she’d say indignantly, but Cassandra never listened. She refused to learn. Being the youngest didn’t mean as much as many think. She was not doted upon as much as the twins were, she was the smallest, the least interesting, and being left in the dust made her starve for attention. No one could blame her, she was a child. A child who would not regret the minutes in the early morning when Lady de Rolo would braid her youngest daughter's hair into a neat plait. She did not regret the fuss she had made, not when it gave her just a few more minutes with her mother. So she taught herself how to braid her hair.
When she got older, maybe 15 or so, she was braiding her hair every morning. She’d spent two years with the Briarwoods, growing more and more numb every day. She had doomed one rebellion already, and she did not know that she would doom another yet. There was very little she could do that would make any sort of lasting impression, besides string herself up on the Sun Tree in the same place they had hung her family's corpses. Despite herself, she could not bring herself to. There was still a self preservative spirit inside her that she could not quell. The only rebellions she got at that time were silent, not even rebellions. Lady Delilah did not know that the way she wore her hair was in honor of her mother. Honoring her deceased family was strictly forbidden and Cassandra was quite sure the De Rolo name had not been uttered in the Briarwoods presence, maybe at all, in well over a year. She still did it. She wore the stockings gifted to her by her father even though they had been meant for 12 year old feet and had been darned and patched many times over. She wore her mothers braid; and when her fingers wound her hair tightly into the simple braid, she could feel the ghost of her mothers hands in their place.
She honored the De Rolos. Her mind was broken, her body did not belong to her anymore. But she honored them by existing. In the mirror she looked into the eyes of the dead. That’s the thing about big families, they all look at least a tad bit similar. You could look up at the portrait that used to sit in the grand hall. The dark hair, the strong jaw, the striking eyes, even the freckles. On some they showed more than others, but they were there. She remembered how in the summer, when they vacationed South where the sun was so much brighter and stronger, they’d come back sunburned and freckled. She’d laugh at Percy, who hated how his skin got so dotted and peeling from lying in the sun. Cassandra rarely wandered outside the castle walls, her freckles were non-existent. Still, she was comforted by the fact that if she did wander the gardens more often, her nose would soon look just like her grandmothers. She, too, was long gone and Cass barely remembered her, but in the few memories she had, her freckles stood out.
Cassandra learned to brave the cold. Even when it meant giving up her honorances. Lord and Lady Briarwood were not dumb, they were quite the opposite. There was a reason they had made it this far, a reason they had managed to convince so many that the murder of her family was just an awful tragedy. Her socks were burned. Her mind picked apart until she confessed to every thought she had of her family, every death wish to those who hurt them, every inkling of rebellion. She learned to brave the cold even when it meant forsaking the ones she loved. They were not here to see her betrayal, the guilt persisted anyways. Her mind did not belong to her. She was never alone. She forgot what her family looked like. How was it possible, some might ask, that she forgot what they looked like when she saw them every time she looked in the mirror? Maybe it was that she did not recognize herself, either.
She was 13 when the Briarwoods came. She was 14 when she was tortured until she told Anna Ripley everything about the first rebellion. 15 when her mind started to wane. 16 when she wasn’t sure how to breathe anymore. How do you breathe when there is no air to consume inside of the castle? On the outside, she was perfect. Perfect, lovely brown curls. Bright, alive, attentive eyes that shone like sapphires. She grew into a beautiful young lady. That’s what they all said. The little girl who had run through the halls and caused a riot grew into a lady who would fetch a fine husband someday.
The years passed slowly, the second rebellion came and passed. She didn’t even try to resist the questions when they came. They asked “where are they planning to meet?” She told them everything. “What is their plan?” She told them everything. She bore the scars from the last one, the white in her hair was proof enough, how could she even attempt to put herself through that ordeal again? She could not bring herself to pray, she didn’t even think to ask for any kind of holy assistance until late one night and pushed the idea away quickly. If a god wanted to help her, they would’ve already. It was too late for her, she had supposed long ago, no god could destroy her when there was nothing she felt was worth destroying.
She learned there was nothing she could do, but go along with the plans placed in front of her. She was their puppet. She was their little doll they played dress up with, they stole not just blood from but her soul itself. It was not a quick realization, that she was without hope or future. It came slowly, when she was maybe 17 it entered her mind, fully formed.
She was a Briarwood now.
The De Rolos were no more.
Years and years later, she will lie awake in the late hours of the night, wondering how much of that realization was mind control and how much of it was sheer, unadulterated mental exhaustion on her part. She was so tired. Tired of getting flashes of her brother's bloodied body every time she glanced at the doorway leading down to the dungeon. Tired of seeing her parents mangled corpses’ every time she met Dr. Ripley’s eye. Tired of sharp slaps when she let the wrong thing slip off her tongue. Tired, tired, tired. Better to leave it all behind. Better to let it fade away. She was a Briarwood. That was the reality.
She learned much, in those five years in that dark, bloody castle. How could she not? Every day was a lesson, every day was a test. Failing meant dying. She would not fail.
Maybe if Percy had come any later than not too long after that realization, she would have been too far gone to be saved. He came months later, but what were months when she had spent years in the dark? He had failed to pull her from the snow once, this time he dragged her from the cold and she was almost warm again.
It was strange to have been stuck in the dark recesses of the castle, something more than lonely, something more than lost, and then to suddenly be shoved into the light. Be faced with a brightness that hurt her eyes and left her feeling blinded and stumbling for something to grab hold of. But she was strong, and she was resilient, and she was her mothers daughter. She would not succumb to this darkness inside of her, this persistent voice that sounded like some odd mix of her own and the whispered, sultry tone of Delilah Briarwood. It crooned, it cried, it begged for a bone to be thrown its way. If she paid it no mind, it would slowly wither and die. She held her head high, lifted her chin even when she faced her captors, refused to cry when the nightmares came after years of silent nights. There was nothing she could do about the pain that continued to rack through her body now that she was coming to.
She was essentially a child leader. She saw the looks from other council members, the sideways glances of even her own citizens. She was barely grown. It showed in her face. She’d always had full cheeks, but as a child that was normal. Now, when she’d gotten older and lost her baby fat, she’d held the youth of her face. She looked like a child, felt like a child especially when she was surrounded by so many politicians with years of experience, but she refused to let her intimidation show. She was firm, strong in a way that brought others comfort. Whitestone was in her hands and her knees were shaking under its weight. But she had yet to crumple, even through all of her pain, and this weight would not break her. She gained respect every day that passed by and when Percy returned for good, she had grown from a step below a child queen to a ruler who knew how to hold her shoulders just so, how to shake a hand the correct way, how to smile while appearing confident but not overbearing. She learned many things, after the Briarwoods.
You learn things, when you are trapped and have been trapped for a long, long time. You learn or you break. Cassandra was lost, and lonely, and yes, quite a bit broken, but Pelor help her, she refused to shatter.
He surprised her with a hug, when he arrived. She had been resting in her room after the ordeal with Vecna and being… well, you know, killed . She’d be lying if she said she wasn’t at least a little shook but surprisingly, she was very calm. Her body was tired but her mind was alert. The only reason she was in bed at all was because her maid, Margie, had taken one look at Cassandra upon her return and said she looked like absolute hell and needed to be taken care of at once. Cass relented and let herself be bathed and fed and dressed in her night clothes despite the early hour. She sat upright in her bed, flipping absently through some book about the history of taxation in Tal’dorei which had been recommended to her by a council member. It was incredibly boring and her eyes only took in every other word or so. It was a welcome intrusion, then, when there was a knock on the door and she could gratefully dogear the page.
“Come in!” she called, grabbing her blankets in preparation to cover herself if need be. But when her brother cracked the door open, she let the blanket fall and stood immediately. She hovered there for a moment, halfway between sitting and standing, as she stared at her brother. He looked more shaken than her, dirt caked and bone tired. He looked wrecked and like he had just arrived back home moments ago.
Nobody spoke for a moment. Then he made several long strides (he was quite tall, with long gangly legs that she remembered Julius had teased him about) to meet her at the edge of her bed. He did not speak, barely met her eye before tugging her into a messy but not unwelcome hug. A little shocked, for Percival was not one to veer on the side of physical affection, it took her a moment to reciprocate. But when she finally came to her senses, she wrapped her arms around his neck, placed a comforting hand on the back of his neck and felt him shaking just a little under her palm.
It did not last long, even when he was in a particularly touchy feely mood, it didn’t seem like it stayed around for very long. He pulled back, looking at her with eyes that mirrored hers to the point where it was uncanny. How she’d forgotten how similar the De Rolo children were. Beautiful children, all lined up prim and proper. Each ball they went to, they were praised. The seven of them were the bright stars of Whitestone, though some were brighter than others. Now, just two remaining, she found herself looking into his eyes and seeing herself reflected back. Pained. Afraid. Lonely, but learning to love again.
“I…” he licked his lips. “I’m glad you’re alright, sister.”
She nodded. “And I you.”
He let go of her shoulders which he had been holding tightly. “I have to go to Vex. I’ll be back to discuss. Have a well needed talk. Maybe over tea. I swear.”
She smiled and voiced her assent. Of course, they would. Of course, they needed to catch up. Wonderful idea, Percival. Looking forward to it, Percival.
The next day came. She saw him over breakfast and she put on her practiced smile for her overwhelmed brother and a grieving Vex’ahlia. She was good at this; putting on a facade, knowing what people wanted to see and adjusting based on their reactions. It was easy. She had done it for years, shoved down her fears so that she wouldn’t be questioned, disguised her thoughts and covered her emotions in layers of small talk and politeness.
They did not have that discussion over tea that day. Nor the next. Nor the next week.
They talked, of course they talked. But it was always in surface level ways. She knew that he wanted to see deeper, to look at her and be able to understand her. But she didn’t even understand herself. Days, then weeks passed and she was spending more and more time absorbed by her work. This was what she had to do. Spent hours in her office, locked away until she barely saw the sun anymore. Give her a project, she got it done in a day. Give her something to do, she finished it in record time. For the first time, she was good at something that didn’t hurt anybody.
The bliss of finally being of use lasted maybe two months into the year after the defeat of Vecna. Percy and Vex were busy as usual, but now more than ever because of the baby. Their child wasn’t due for many months but the couple was determined to get everything done as soon as possible, to prepare and plan every instance. The nursery was ready and waiting for the child not long after Vex began to show. Cass was one of the first to know, as the only other family member who lived with them. She was happy for them, she really was, but there was a twinge in her heart when they came to her with grins on their faces and brightness in their eyes. This child would continue the line of the De Rolos, this child would honor them. For years, Cassandra had lived out of the belief that she was the last of her kind. That she was the last of her family and therefore needed to survive. She was not the last. The line would continue without her.
The bliss of being constantly busy ended over breakfast. Vex was rambling about the gift that Pike had sent over, some baby rattle that Cassandra had yet to see, and Percival was nodding along, listening intently. Her brother’s wife was still obviously in mourning, there were bags under her eyes and more often than not, Cassandra saw her looking in the mirror and cringing away. She empathized; there is nothing more difficult than being unable to look at yourself without remembering all that you have lost. But she had Percival, and she had all of her family, that was enough to keep her going. She still smiled and laughed daily, that consoled them all.
The door to the dining hall opened with a creak, the three of them looked up from their food. Vex’s words were cut off immediately as a guard entered the room and left the door ajar before opening his mouth to speak.
“We've captured somebody on the outskirts of the forest, a man who we suspect assisted the Briarwoods in the coup against the De Rolos.” Cassandra's eyes immediately found Percival’s, they were wide and blue and determined. She and him stood at the same time, pushing their chairs back and starting towards the guard. Cassandra glanced over her shoulder and saw Vex, standing as well and grabbing Percy’s hand. He gave her a glance, pressed a kiss to their entwined fingers as they walked to meet Cassandra at the door. He did not reach for Cassandra, he had that expression on his face, one that she only saw every once in a while when a memory resurfaced. She couldn’t do anything to make it go away, the memory would still exist. They would always exist.
They followed the guard down the hall, silence filling their chests. It was pressing, suffocating but Cass was good at miming the act of breathing. She kept her eyes forward, ignoring the memories that appeared in her peripheral vision. The 13 year old with dark hair curling behind an old set of armor and sobbing into her skirts. The maid tried to clean up the blood that was smeared on the floor with a mop. It had stained the carpet. She’s pretty sure the Briarwoods burned it. This castle was filled with ghosts and in her day to day, she was usually able to ignore them or avoid them entirely. But this short walk to the dungeons was the worst it had been in years. Hearing the name “Briarwood” out loud had made it so the halls had awakened again, the memories that had faded somewhat into the background reappearing with a fervor.
They walked through the castle, making their way to the stairs that lead to the dungeons. As they descended the stairs, she heard Percy let out a tiny, almost imperceptible shaky breath. Yes, this was where he had spent most of his time between the attack and his escape. She tried not to remember in detail what she had found when she’d come to break them free. She wanted to turn around and comfort him but Percy was often not one to openly accept comfort, maybe just from Vex. Maybe he’d accept some from her but not when they were in front of a guard. It would feel too intimate to him, and to Cassandra as well if she was being honest.
The guard led them to the small series of cells until they were standing in front of a small, shadowed cell. Whoever was inside was shrouded in darkness and none of them (except perhaps Vex'ahlia, with her elven blood) could make out the prisoner. The guard lit a torch and suddenly they were all flooded in golden light. Cassandra blinked at it, leaning forward slightly to get a better look at the figure that was curled against the stone wall. He was stripped to his basic layers, ragged looking tunic and pants, bare socks riddled with holes. His hair was long, blonde, matted and unkempt. He looked like one of the poor civilians she used to see all over the place years ago, before Whitestone rose again. She almost let pity bloom in her chest before she remembered why he was in this cell. No pity would be born on this day.
Moments passed, and she was close to saying something to get his attention, before he lifted his head. His face appeared out of the shadows and was flooded with light.
And suddenly, she was a child again.
She was 8 years old and laughing because one of the guards was playing with her, holding her doll high above her head and she was jumping to try and get it back. He was tall and smiled at her.
You see, the De Rolos were a powerful family, yes, but they were a family nonetheless. They valued every member of their staff, they were as close as family with many of them. And most of them loved the family right back. Cassandra had a few vague memories of being held on a maid’s hip and walked around the castle, her thumb in her mouth. Of playing tag with the cook’s children. And of this. Of a relatively young guard teasing her.
There was more. As there always was.
She was 11 and the guard was still around. He worked for them for as long as she could remember. He helped her with her studies when she became frustrated. He pointed out her mistakes and worked through them with her. He was kind to the spaz of a girl that she was.
He gave her candy. Snuck them from the kitchens and slipped them to her when no one was looking.
She was 13. She was crying. Screaming. Begging for her father. And he was… looking at her. The man who had been kind to her since she was small. He was looking at her and she realized, probably for the first time, that there was nobody left to save her. His eyes were brown, and they were empty, and he stared at her for many moments. He opened his mouth, and for a second, for one beautiful second, Cassandra thought he was going to call for the people holding her down to let her go. Her friend. Almost a member of their family; he had been loyal to them for years . But when he spoke, it was nothing. He turned to Lord Briarwood and asked what his next order was. She could hear them clearly as anything.
“Dr. Ripley needs assistance. Go to the dungeons and see what she needs.”  And he left without sparing her another glance.
He was there. For the first three of those five years, he was there. There were a few times, in the beginning, when she had tried to get him to help her. She learned quickly there was, and to her it seemed like there had never been, no affection for her or her family. He left, after a few years, and she can’t quite remember how, maybe from the snooping into Ripley’s journals she often did, or just from an overheard conversation, that he was the one who slaughtered Whitney. That he was the one who assisted Ripley in the torture of her siblings. She had no affection for him after that. The memories from her childhood tasted like bile, and to her chagrin, the faint flavor of lemon candies.
“Luther.”
She took a few steps forward, her hand coming to rest on one of the bars of the cage. She could look through them easier this way, see his face and every angle in it. Every line and wrinkle, every twist in his expression.
He tilted his head to the side, recognition flooding his eyes after a few moments of tense silence. His lips twitched like he was trying not to smile. “Cassandra.”
She stood there, clenching her hands around the bars to keep them from visibly shaking. She had never experienced anything like the pounding in her mind, the undeniable flood of feeling that coursed through her entire body. She did not like it; didn’t like the way she no longer had control over her limbs. She knew that her voice would shake if she tried to speak at this moment, so she kept her lips pressed together and body stiff.
Percy stepped forward next to her. The last of the De Rolos, side by side.
Luther did smile now. “Ah- Percival. I barely recognize you. Though I heard a few stories about you… thought they were false, of course. Why would that boy I knew be traveling with- what was it- Vox Machina ?”
His tone felt too casual, as if they were three acquaintances just getting caught up on each other's lives after years of separation. Percy was frowning, his eyebrows furrowed. “I remember you. I remember what you did.”
Luther’s smile falters. “Yes. The Briarwoods were quite the villains, weren’t they?”
Percy shifted his weight from foot to foot. “‘Villains’? That’s quite a perspective change, sir.”
He shook his head. “They had control of me. They had control of us all. I wish I could’ve done more, but alas, I-”
“Liar .” Cassandra found her voice without meaning to. The word came out strangled and snarling, like a wild animal fighting against its captor.
His eyes turned to hers again, he blinked slowly, so docile, so calm. It only made her rage even more. “I remember you so well. I desperately wish I could’ve saved you.”
“You’re a liar.” she breathed, her voice coming out a whisper but it felt like a shout. She took a step back from the bars and turned to the guard. “Let him out, keep him in chains but lead him out with us. I want to see him up close.”
“Cass-” Percy’s voice came from behind her, she held up a hand to stop him. It was enough to silence him, and he did not speak or protest as the guards fiddled with his keys and opened the door to the cell. Luther was unchained from the wall, but the cuffs keeping his wrists behind him stayed on. Cassandra pointed to the ground in front of her silently, and he was led there, standing before her.
“On your knees.” she ordered, using the same tone she’d use in a meeting with politicians. Luther looked at all the while, he stumbled a little as he dropped to his knees in front of her. She stared at him. He was older now, many years had passed since she had last seen him, but so many that she couldn’t take his face now and warp it into the expressions of the man she knew back then. He had broken his nose since leaving Whitestone, and his hair was thinner than it had been.
“Do you remember,” she began, her voice unshaken now. “The day you buried Whitney?”
He shook his head. She clenched her fist.
“No?” he shook his head again. “Let me paint you a picture.”
She took a step forward until she was just a few inches away from him. In the last moment before speaking, she reached forward and took a fistful of his hair, yanking it back so that he was looking right up at her. She might be small but from this angle, he needed to crane his neck to look directly at her. She made sure he was staring into her blue, De Rolo eyes. She wanted to make him see them all, make him see the children who once ran through the halls, the leaders who ruled so peacefully; see the people he helped to slaughter.
“There’s a reason you don’t remember.” she said a little too sharply and a little too loudly, so that when the words came out it sounded a little unhinged in her anger. “You took her down from the tree, I’m sure you remember this. You took them all down from the tree, you can say more than I can what you did with the rest of them, but Whit, she was still in one piece. Remember? Remember how you killed her? And what did you do with that little girl’s body, long after she was gone? Bury her respectfully? Burn her and spread her ashes in the garden? I know how the Briarwoods worked, Luther, they don’t control you all the time. I watched you do it.”
He swallowed under her gaze, trying to turn his eyes away from her eyes but she ripped hard at his hair so that he winced and his eyes watered. But he looked at her again.
“What did you do?” she asked, not really asking. She was ordering again.
“I-I don’t remember.”
“I know you do. I broke a lot of rules to try to reach you, to try and get your attention outside the castle, but instead I watched you. What did you do?”
His eyes were watering more now but it was something else besides the pain making him do it. His whole body shook. “Cut her hair. Took her clothes. Sold it.”
None of the others had salvageable clothes or hair, Cassandra had realized back then. They had been covered in blood, ripped apart, unclean and unprofitable. But Whitney, she had been killed the most cleanly. Not the most mercifully, of course not, none of them were capable of mercy. But Whit still looked most like herself and that was dainty, pretty, clean. They took even that away from her. Cut off her long curls until she had shorter hair than father’s. Took her clothes so that she had no dignity, even in death. And then, only then, could her sister be taken back to where the rest of her deceased family was. It had stuck with Cassandra, for the rest of her life. The way the men had talked and even laughed as they did this to a child. She couldn’t hear a lot from her hiding spot but she could see their faces and that was enough. It was mind control. And she still didn’t know why they were so horrible. She had more nightmares about that memory than any other.
“Why did you do it?” She knew her voice sounded more hysterical than she would like it to but the image of her sister’s white corse floated over her vision. “Why? Why us?”
He did not answer for a long time. “Gold lined our pockets for what we did.”
“No.” she bit out. “Why did you hate us?”
He looked at her with dull eyes, his eyes were still half full with tears but his eyes held hers with no emotion in them. “No ruler is well loved by all. We did what we wanted, for the first time in years. The children were just in the crossfire… we got carried away.”
She leaned back, letting go of his hair. Carried away. Carried away .
She didn’t even try to stop herself. Her punch was filled with a power she didn’t know she had. She swung hard and hit him square in the jaw, the momentum carrying his body to the ground as he was unprepared for the hit. When she saw the blood on his cheek she realized that she had hit him with the hand that she wore her ring with the Whitestone crest on it. Poetic in an odd way. She did not regret the gash that she had left on his face. She hoped it scarred, hoped it would stay there forever.
There was a ringing silence as she shook out her fingers that buzzed with the impact.
“Give me a reason not to slit your throat.” she let her left hand rest on the blade that hung on her belt. “Because there has not been a word out of your mouth that has convinced me you are deserving of another minute of life.”
“I wasn’t in control-”
She wrapped her hand around the hilt of the sword.
“I could’ve killed you, I could’ve-”
Pulling the blade out, she watched the torch light glint off the blade. Metal is oddly beautiful, especially when the promise of vengeance sits on its tip.
“I’ll do anything, I’ve become a better man!”
Cassandra placed the tip of the blade on his throat. Over the past few years she had gotten to be far more skilled with a blade. Thanks to Vex’s tutelage and her own determination to defend herself against any sort of danger, by now she could join Vox Machina and hold her own. But this was not a test of skill by any means, he was directly in front of her, chained and shaking out of fear. It felt good that he was so afraid that tears started rolling down his cheeks, that she held power over him. It felt good to be powerful. Never in her life had she been this strong in the face of somebody she used to fear.
“Cassandra!” Percy’s voice was the only barrier between her and slicing this man’s body in two.
“Brother, shut up.” she bit out. She felt a hand on her shoulder and tried to shrug it off but he stayed firm.
“I know what you are feeling. I truly do. And if I were myself at any other time in my life, I would be right next to you. But I can’t let you do this, Cass.” His voice was the most sincere she had heard him in a long time. The softest he had ever been in her direction since they had defeated Vecna.
“Yes, you can.” she said, pressing the blade in a little harder so that a dot of blood appeared right between his collarbones. “You can step back and be silent for once.”
“He can’t and neither will I.” Cassandra let out a half sigh, half laugh, as Vex’s voice joined alongside Percy’s. “Darling, you need to give me the sword.”
“You can’t take this away from me.” she snapped. “Just let me have this one thing.”
In her peripheral, Percy was standing there, hand on her shoulder and face dead serious. But on her other side, she could see his younger, crumpled, bloodied body. The body she had seen and thought he was gone like the rest of them until she saw his rising and falling chest.
“I can’t.” he said softly.
“You can. You can . He let them destroy us, Percy. He killed Whitney. He helped Ripley. He’s one of them. Why do you get to kill them all and I get nothing? Let me have something for once in my life!” she let her voice rise, finally, shouting at him even though he was right by her. She wanted to scream. To cry. To beg for her family even though her only family was right here.
“I wish I could.” His voice was so eerily calm, so sad in a way that made her want to shove him away even harder. “I need you to put the sword down, Cass. Or I’ll have to do something I don’t want to.”
“I hate you.” she said, staring directly at Luther but not sure who exactly she was saying it at. She knew that she sounded like a petulant child who wasn’t getting what they wanted and was throwing a fit but her whole body trembled with need . She needed to destroy this physical manifestation of everything the Briarwoods did to her. She needed to hurt him in a way she couldn’t hurt them. Killing Delilah wasn’t enough to quell this need in her soul. She needed more.
“He deserves it.” she argued, her hand that held the word trembling.
“He does.” Percy agreed. “But I will not let you become what I was on the path to. I swear to all the gods, I know what you’re feeling intimately. Killing this man will not make things better. Give Vex the sword.”
She felt tears sliding down her cheeks. “I can still see them.”
“I know.”
A hand that wasn’t Percy’s gently pried her fingers off of the hilt of the sword. She let it happen.
“I’m so tired, Percy.”
“I know.”
And then the sword was out of her grip, and she let out a strangled sob as she shoved Luther hard in the chest. It sent him tumbling back to the ground, onto his back, his hands still behind his back. Leaving him completely vulnerable. But her hands were empty, and the world wasn’t fair, and she could barely see him through the wall of tears obscuring her vision.
She placed a knee on his sternum, leaning into it enough to hurt. Tears dripped off her chin and landed on his face. She wanted to kill almost more than she had ever wanted anything.
“This world will be brighter when you are gone.” She spoke impressively clearly considering all that she was feeling. “And I will be that much happier.”
He swallowed, his Adam's apple bobbing. She did not let him speak, when he opened his mouth to say something, she pressed harder onto his chest and shortened his breath. He simply let out a pained squeak and she let herself smirk in satisfaction. She straightened back up, adjusting her blouse before turning back to the guard that had led them to the dungeons in the first place. Her cheeks were still soaked with tears, she didn’t bother to wipe them away. They would dry eventually.
“I want him chained, hands and legs, and gagged until his trial date. Thank you.” the guard nodded his head in confirmation, his eyes just a little wide. No doubt in shock at the display from his ruler he had just witnessed. She knew that she should care that he had just seen her at her weakest but she couldn’t be bothered to. All she could do was watch as she made sure he was bound correctly back in his cage before turning on her heel and climbing the steps back up into the corridors. Her body felt hollow, each movement felt like a ghost inhabiting her body.
She made it maybe fifteen paces before Percy caught up to her, grabbing her upper arm and turning her to look at him. She didn’t speak first, her face spoke enough for her. For the first time, Percy really saw her. It was like he hadn’t truly looked at her in months. She looked wrecked, cheeks splotched and wet. But more than that. There were dark bags under her eyes, a hollowness in those eyes and she looked exactly as she had said. Tired. Just exhausted to a point where anyone else would be dead on their feet.
“It’s alright.” it was all he could think to say. What was he supposed to console her with? There was nothing good about the situation they had found themselves in. He tugged her into a messy, awkward hug. “It’s alright, Cassie.”
She buried her face into his chest, breathing in the scent of her brother. Black powder and the hint of Vex’s perfume and smoke. He was so much taller than her, all legs and arms. Her body didn’t fit quite right into his like it felt like it should. In all books, when people were family or close to family, they fit together like puzzle pieces. Their hugs felt just right. This didn’t feel perfect, it wasn’t “just” right but it was definitely right. There would be an indent on her face from pressing her face into a button on his vest but she was caring less and less about dignity. It had been so long since she’d properly hugged Percy and he hadn’t had to rush away for whatever reason. He held her for a long, long time. She got the impression that he had decided in his mind that he would not be the first to pull away.
Eventually, one of them had to and Cassandra pushed off him with a sigh. She saw Vex hovering a little ways away, trying to look like she wasn’t watching but glancing over every once in a while. Percy was looking at her fondly but with worry in his eyes. She reached up and brushed hair off of his forehead, distracted by the hair that had almost fallen into his eyes. He needed a haircut.
“I’ll be alright, Percival.” she murmured. “I promise. You don’t need to worry.”
He shook his head. “Don’t. You have to let me help you now. Let us help you.”
“My darkness is not your darkness.” she told him. “We are not the same.”
“I know,” he said earnestly. “But you’re my sister. And I will not be able to go on if I don’t help you now.”
She pursed her lips, looking away. “I know.”
“Cassandra?” She lifted her eyes back up to his. “I care about you. Very much.”
“And I you.” she said, the response she always said in response to intimate speeches.
“What he’s trying to say is that he loves you dearly.” Vex had walked up to them now, standing beside Percy and looking at Cassandra with a knowing look in her eye. “Right, Percy?”
Percy tucked his chin against his chest for a second, smiling. “Right. Love you, sister.”
She hadn’t heard that in a long time either. “I-I love you too.”
It almost felt wrong on her tongue. And she hated that it felt wrong. Hated that she was so unpracticed in love that she didn’t know the correct way to say it. That the cadence of her words was all wrong. That her tone wasn’t sincere enough.
“You look a mess, dear.” Vex was the first to speak after a bit of a silence, she wrapped an arm around Cassandra’s shoulders and started walking them down the hall. “Come. Let’s go for a walk, hm?”
So Cassandra let herself be led through the halls and into the gardens. With her sister-in-law on one arm and her brother on the other, she felt fully secure. Each step forward brought her closer to herself and though she was still shaking with anger, her hands itching for the hilt of the sword Vex had left behind, her mind scrambling to cope with all that happened in the last twenty minutes. She let herself be led around by her loved ones, Vex at one point pressing a kiss to her cheek and smiling before turning forwards again and continuing on with some story about Trinket. She did feel loved and was surprised to find that after months of being holed up in her office, it was nice to step out into the sun and breathe.
That night, when she lay in her bed wide awake, she wondered what exactly the darkness in her chest was. Percy had Orthax in him whispering desires of vengeance into his ear, urging him to do horrible things. But she had no monster inside her. She had no odd dreams and no voice in her ear telling to cut that man’s head off. She had wanted that, herself, her mind. It had been her own desires and need to quell that need inside her, not some outside force. Did that make her worse than him? She did not think herself a terrible person for having the desire to hurt those who had hurt her worse. But even Percy had let his revenge empty from his body when Orthax had left.
She pulled herself out of bed, walked barefoot down the hall, down all the steps until she reached the door that led into Percy’s workshop. At this time of night, it was a toss up on where he would be. Sometimes Vex was able to drag him to bed at a decent time but still, even with the pressure from her and Cassandra, more often than not Percy could be found bent over some contraption he was spending far too many hours perfecting. She knocked on the door and when she didn’t hear an answer, gently turned the doorknob and peaked inside.
He was there, so absorbed in his work that he didn’t hear her knock. She stepped inside, and it was only when she closed the door that he lifted his head and turned around. Confusion immediately knitted his eyebrows together. Seeing her in her nightgown, hair completely down and loose around her face, no shoes on her feet, was probably the oddest thing he had seen in awhile. Cassandra almost never let her appearances slip on purpose, and the few times she did were either accidental or something forced her to. Her skirts always had no wrinkles in them, her sleeves always buttoned, her hair made just so. But she had come to him, vulnerable and looking so very not-Cassandra.
“Cassandra.” he said, meeting her gaze. “What can I do for you?”
“Might I just sit and watch for a bit?” she asked.
He blinked, taken aback before rushing to answer. “Uh- yes. Yes, of course.”
He grabbed a stool and placed it next to his work table, patting it awkwardly. “Come sit.”
She did. Lifted herself up and watched him work on some clock-like machinery. She was fascinated by his work, even if she didn’t completely understand. Sitting here with the heat of the furnace close and only Percy’s soft humming, she felt more calm than she had in a while. Especially not after how emotionally taxing the day had been. She wanted to ask about what he was doing but didn’t want to break the silence, and anyways, she was too caught up in her own thoughts to be able to follow any complicated explanation at the moment.
“Percy?” she said after a long time of just silent working. He hummed in response, a confirmation that he had heard and was listening. “Did you still… want to hurt people, after Orthax? Want to kill those who forced us to lose everyone?”
His hands stopped moving and he let them rest on the table, completely still. He stayed that way for an uncomfortably long amount of time, letting the silence stretch and stretch until she felt it was going to snap. Instead of breaking it with a word, he let out a heavy sigh. Leaning his head back so that he could look up at the ceiling.
“It’s a good question.” He finally said. “The thing about Orthax, about the darkness, is that it didn’t create the want in my mind. He didn’t make me want to murder those people, Cass, I wanted to. I want to. He gave me the tools and then it was just a matter of me saying yes. In the state I was in… of course, I said yes.”
She nodded along, listening intently. “But after. What about after he was gone?” He tapped his fingers on the table, chewing on his bottom lip. “I think… I think by that point I had gone so far for my revenge, I had experienced it to the point where I was both satisfied and hungry. I knew I had done what I set out to do, but part of me still wanted more. I knew then, and it was only thanks to my friends that I was able to, that revenge was not what would fix me. As much as they deserve it. As much as I wanted to make them hurt for what they did. It was not what would bring me joy.”
He looked over at her then, her pale skin golden from the small lamps that were littered around the room and the fiery furnace. He considered her for a few moments, taking in his baby sister who he had had no idea how to approach all of these months. He had been so afraid that she would realize that she hated him for leaving her behind, that she had grown so far away from him that there was no closing that gap. He looked at her, and the white streaks in her hair that would always remind them of what she had gone through, and saw himself reflected back. It was too hard to explain, even to himself. But in her eyes, if he looked deep enough he could see that hunger that had drawn him to Orthax in the first place. In the set of her frown, in the clench of her fist. His sister was strong, she had always been that way. Her darkness would not overcome her.
“I truly wish I could let you kill him,” he said with a humorless chuckle when she did not respond right away. “But this world doesn’t need another De Rolo on a destructive streak.”
She cracked a smile at that. “Yes, from what I hear, that would not be the brightest idea.”
She was breaking inside, a little. Cassandra De Rolo, strong, fearless, always held her head up high, had cracks spreading through her chest. She was afraid they would show on her face. She wanted nothing more than to burn and burn and burn until she felt happy or she was gone completely. She wanted so much. So much she couldn’t have. But one thing she could have, she wanted. So she did it.
She reached for Percy, placing her open palm on the table as an invitation. He reached and took it with both of his, holding it tightly. She whispered to him, even though there was no one else around, “I hate that it’s just us. I hate the quiet.”
He nodded. “I do too.”
“It was awful, when you were gone after the Briarwoods.” she told him, for the first time. Admitting something she knew he didn’t want to hear. “I was… lonely. So lonely, Percy. In this cursed castle, having to remember-”
He squeezed her hand tightly when her voice started to have an edge again. She had lived her entire life in this castle, she had known it in its prime, she had known it in its darkest hour, and she would know it for the rest of her life. It was the hardest thing, every morning, to get up and face the rooms where she faced horrors for five years. And when it was over, it was still as if she had to face them every day. She hated it, seeing their faces, seeing the bodies hanging from the Sun Tree. There was nothing from her to do but move through each day and ignore the painful chasm in her chest.
“I’m here now. Vex is here now. We’re not going away.” he told her. “You don’t have to be alone anymore.”
She wanted to cry again but instead she half smiled. Lovely to hear him say that, lovely to hear his voice at all. She needed to treasure that more often. For years, she had thought she was alone, the last of the De Rolos. And finally, her brother sat before her once again, he was at her disposal all of the time and yet she didn't hold him tightly everyday, she didn’t treasure his every word. But maybe that was a good thing. It meant they were healing. It meant that they had become a normal part of each other's routine again. She didn’t need to hold every moment with him dear because they had years to find happy moments with each other. It brought her some peace, to remember they had so much time. The clock did not feel as if it was ticking down every second anymore, and they could breathe in these minutes of silence.
“I’m very tired.” she told him finally. He slackened his grip on her hand, but still held it loosely with one of his.
“Let’s get you to bed, mother would be so unhappy with the hour.” Despite the pang of sadness the mention of their mother brought her, she laughed.
“She would, wouldn’t she?” she replied. She made him turn off the furnace and put all his things away before they walked out of the workshop, in the hopes that would force him into bed. They walked through the dark hallways, Cassandra’s arm looped through Percy’s. He brought her back to her room, opening the door and leading her inside. She hadn’t known Percy to ever be the most affectionate person but over the last few months it was like he was practicing for his child. Giving more hugs, giving more kind words, going out of his way to make his intent clear. It made her proud, made her happy, that her brother was healing alongside all of his friends. She felt left behind sometimes, that he was making strides in his journey to happiness and she had inherited his gloom. But it still made her happier, when he sat down on the bed next to her and pinched her cheek playfully, the way he used to when she was a child. He’d been only a few years older than her, but old enough to tease her and remind her he was the elder of the two.
“Goodnight, Cassandra.” he said as he got up. “Sleep well.”
“Sleep well.” she repeated as he left and closed the door softly. The room felt fuller now than it had when she had left to find Percy. Warmer.
After she blew out all her candles, she laid in the dark, staring up into the expanse of her ceiling. The darkness felt heavy after all the discussion from the day. It was closing in on her and she closed her eyes to fight against it, now looking at the back of eyelids instead of her pitch black room. Maybe it was her subconscious or maybe it was her tired mind beginning to descend into dreams or maybe those are the same things but regardless, moments passed and then, clear as day, she heard the woman who had ruined it all.
“You could’ve been my daughter.” Lady Briarwood crooned in a sing-song voice. That voice that had been used against Cassandra for so many years, that voice that had haunted her dreams, and her waking hours, and never seemed to leave even when she was alone.
She was a De Rolo. She tried to scream it but her throat wouldn’t work, her mouth wouldn’t work.
I am a De Rolo .
She would wake up tomorrow and she would still be a De Rolo. She had always been. Even when there was nothing to keep her chained to her family, she had this castle, she had their memories, and she would not let them go. She planned on living a long life, one that honored her family in every decision she made. She wanted to make them proud, make her living family proud, and make her home a home for the continuation of their line. There was so much to do and every day she had to remind herself she had time. Beautiful, sweet time. And when Delilah’s voice grew stronger in her head sometimes, she would turn her head and Percy would be there. If the ghosts got a little too strong, she’d turn her cheek. The visions didn’t go away, how could they, after all of these years of persisting and festering in her head? But she lived with them.
She hurt. She’d always hurt, she supposed.
She was broken but not shattered. She refused to shatter. That would have to be enough until she was whole again.
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abbysfrenchbraid · 4 years ago
Text
Beach Day Imagine
alright I give up on trying to find a header for this one, there are no nice pictures of Abby with short hair.
anonymous said:  I have a request for a beach day imagine? It could be after the end of the game, just a nice day on the beach heh :)!
This is set after the end of tlou2, Abby and Lev have arrived at the Firefly base on Catalina Island and the reader has gotten to know them over the last weeks. Today they’re taking the two newly healed outsiders to the beach. 
This is the first thing I’ve written in a while so I apologize if I’m not fully back in my best form, feedback is very welcome!
Warnings: light swearing, pushing someone under water playfully, mention of injury by being crushed under something heavy (ask to tag!)
about 5.6k words of pure fluff :)
“Hey, look what I got!”
You looked up from the gas canister you were currently using to fill up a truck’s tank and felt a warm rush of happiness fill your chest. Lev had just entered the garage and was holding out a red backpack.
“The teacher gave it to me so I finally have my own. And it’s even my favorite color!”
You stopped pouring the gasoline and screwed the lid back on the canister. 
“Hey, you. So what are you bringing in your new backpack, then?”
The scrawny boy jumped on the back of the truck and crouched down, flipping the bag over and dumping its contents on the platform. With quick fingers, he arranged all the items to lie in a neat line, tapping them as he listed: “Water bottle, sandwich, apple, lighter, knife, towel, swimming trunks. Abby said not to take the bow because it’s a secure area.”
You nodded. “Good job, you’re fully equipped.” Catalina Island was a completely safe zone, the Fireflies had made sure of that. During the last few years, patrol teams had combed through the entire island killing infected and now anyone coming in from the mainland had to spend two days in quarantine to ensure their health. Carrying around a knife or gun at all times was just a habit none of the people who had ever fought infected or other groups would ever let go of. 
“Lev? You in here?” Lev had been concentrating on putting all his supplies back into the backpack and you both jerked up when you heard the familiar voice in the corridor. It had been weeks and she still had the same effect on you. The tall blonde stepped through the doorway and your breath caught in your throat. She was wearing green cargo pants and black combat boots as always, but you could see the blue fabric of a swimsuit peeking out at the neckline of her grey t-shirt.
“Oh hey, there you are. Are we ready to go?”
“Your hair!” you exclaimed, in awe at the beautiful freckled face that was looking at you with excitement. Abby smiled and instinctively rubbed the back of her head that was now cut short. When she and Lev had arrived three weeks ago, they had looked horrible, dehydrated and full of bruises and cuts, their faces marked by the sun and the pain they had had to endure. Abby hadn’t said a word about her obviously violently cut hair but Lev had told you that she had always worn it in a long braid before the rattlers captured them. You tried to imagine her with long hair but it just didn’t seem fitting for the woman standing before you. 
“I got it done today, Mario is a saint. Do you like it?”
Lev squinted at her for a moment, then he solemnly said: “It suits you very well.” 
She had apparently finally gotten around to visiting your colleague, another mechanic who also worked at a barber on the side. Most men and some women just pragmatically shaved their heads themselves, but there were always a few people who wanted something more complicated. When Mario had visited you at the medical station after your accident and gotten to know your two new roommates, he had immediately offered his services if they ever wanted a haircut. Lev had declined, explaining that he always shaved his head himself, but Abby had thanked him and promised to come around when she was allowed to leave medical. 
You smiled at her and before you could stop yourself you blurted out “You look hot.” 
The blonde laughed and even though you felt yourself blushing, you knew you had said the right thing. She really did look hot. Mario had shaved her sides short and fluffed up the top, letting a few strands fall into her face. You wanted to reach out and gently brush them back, but you stopped yourself and snapped out of your daydream. 
“Okay, my bag’s already in the front. You all set?”
Abby nodded and put her backpack on the back of the truck, positioning herself to jump on.
“Wait, can I sit in the back? I’ll be careful, I promise. I’d just really like to see what it feels like,” Lev pleaded. You looked at Abby who just rolled her eyes and grinned.
“Alright, kid. But no standing up, and if it gets bumpy you hold on tight!” 
She squeezed the boy’s shoulder and grabbed her bag, circling around the back of the car to get into the passenger seat. Lev gracefully jumped in the back and closed the hatch, looking at you with a glint in his eye you had never seen on him before. For the first time since the two had arrived here, he seemed genuinely happy and excited. 
You sat down in the driver’s seat and started the truck, maneuvering out of the parked cars around you and giving the porter a signal to open the garage door. Your hand still felt weak and fragile as you switched gears and drove through the two front gates or the base, absentmindedly clenching your fist and stretching out your fingers to get rid of the sensation.
In the corner of your eye, you could see Abby giving you a slightly worried look. 
“You okay there? I can drive, too, if you want me to.” 
You bit your lip in frustration and shook your head. 
“Thanks, Abby. I just need to get used to using this stupid hand again.”
The blonde rolled down her window and let in the salty breeze, leaning her head against the frame and closing her eyes as the sun kissed her face. 
“Alright. Just let me know.”
Turning onto the road down to the beach, you sighed and tried to let go of all of your anger and discontent with one long exhale. It would get you nowhere.
You had been lying underneath a car to fix some spots that had rusted through when your lifting jacks had made a weird noise. Even though you had been quick to try and slip out from under the car, you hadn’t been fast enough. The wheels had been taken off to change the tires and as the jacks collapsed, the side of the vehicle crushed your arm, your ribs and left you with internal bleeding. 
It had been no one's fault, just a terrible misfortune. After undergoing several surgeries and spending four weeks in a hospital bed, two battered strangers had been carried in and kept you company for the next few days. 
The WLF soldier also had a few broken ribs, several cuts and stab wounds. Other than a few bruises, dehydration and the extreme sunburn they had both suffered, the small Seraphite was surprisingly well off, and while you two older women had been laying around in your own misery, he had started trying to cheer you up, help your recovery and motivate you to look forward to the days to come.
Both of you had started carefully training your injured limbs again and encouraged each other on the tiresome, difficult journey back to health while Lev had explored the base, made some friends and working with a trainer to teach others how to shoot with a bow and arrow. Now that you were finally out of the medical wing and able to move without being in excruciating pain, you had decided to take the two out for a deserved day off. 
You rolled your window down and inhaled the fresh sea breeze, immediately smelling the salt and hot sand, the earthy aroma of the bushes lining the road and the sun warming up the air and promising you a wonderful day. Without thinking, you let out a scream of joy and laughed into the wind that pulled on your hair and invited you to play. You turned to beam at Abby, who looked amused and a little surprised. Before you could say anything, you heard an attempted wolf howl from the back of the truck and looked in the rearview mirror. Lev was kneeling in the middle of the platform, his head thrown back and his hands at his mouth to amplify his cries. He took a big breath and howled a second time, laughing afterward and stretching out his arms to the side.
A small noise drew your attention back to your passenger. Abby was looking out of the window and her torso was shaking slightly. For a split second, you thought she was crying, but then her little chuckle grew into loud laughter and she whooped, also stretching out her arm and making wave motions with her hand. 
“Jesus, Y/N, you’re amazing! This is amazing!”
She looked at you, eyes wide with excitement and a grin stretching across her entire face. You felt like your heart was going to explode. This really was amazing. You took another turn and there it was: the sea. Blue and wild, sparkling like millions of diamonds and dancing in the sun, calling out for you and inviting you to jump into the waves and join the celebration. 
You decided to just drive down all the way onto the sand; the truck was made for the terrain and there was no reason to walk if you could just drive up to the perfect spot. 
“Lev,” you yelled, “wanna choose a good spot?”
“Yes,” he screamed back, “over there by the palm tree?”
“Got it, boss!” You geared down and drove onto the sand, carefully testing the terrain. The car seemed to have no problem with the ground and you pressed down the gas, whirling up the sand behind you and making Lev scream with excitement. You came to a halt next to a sturdy palm tree and the boy had jumped off the back before you had stopped the engine. 
He had taken off his shoes and immediately started hopping to the patch of shade, cursing about the hot sand and letting himself fall onto the cool safe haven provided by the tree. Abby laughed and got out herself, opening her backpack and throwing him a big blanket. 
“Here, make yourself useful.”
Lev jumped up and started stretching out the fabric to make room for everyone, then he unpacked his towel and swimming trunks. You grabbed your bag and went over to the two of them, putting your towel down and stopping in your tracks when Abby suddenly pulled her shirt over her head, revealing a sporty blue bikini top. Her abs had practically exploded in only a week; the last time you had seen her stomach had been when she had gotten rid of the hospital gown and announced she was going back to training. Her skin was ivory, a ton of freckles spreading over her shoulders and arms. There were still a few bruises on her ribcage, already yellow and almost completely faded, and her upper arm was marked with a fresh, pink scar.
“What are you staring at? Don’t you wanna go swimming with us?” 
Abby laughed at you and hopped around as she tried to take off her tight pants without falling over. You shook your head to get your brain running again and side-eyed her, trying to hide a grin. 
“Sorry. You’ve already built so much muscle, it’s amazing.”
The blonde looked down and lightly slapped her stomach. 
“Thanks, must be the food here. I’m getting back on track.”
You had already slid out of your pants and quickly took off your shirt now, a little shy about your black bathing suit. But there was no need to worry, now it was Abby’s turn to stare. Her mouth was slightly ajar as she looked you up and down, her hand hovering about her abs as if she had frozen for a second. Finally, she snapped out of her admiration and raised an eyebrow.
“You don’t look too bad yourself, without the bandages and all.”
While you two had been busy drooling over each other, Lev had already changed into his swimming trunks and now seemed to be calculating how many steps it would take to get to the water and cool his burnt feet. 
Abby stepped closer to you. 
“You ready, Lev? Bet I can beat you both to the water.”
The boy didn’t hesitate one second. He started like lightning, his red pants blown up by the wind as he yelled “ouch, fuck, ow,” trying to lengthen his jumps. Abby winked at you, then she started sprinting after him. 
“Come on, Y/N!”
You quickly took off your socks and ran after them, loosening your ponytail and enjoying the feeling of the warm, soft hair dancing on your skin. Lev had beat Abby and was squealing as he jumped into the waves. The ex-WLF reached him a few seconds later, running into the sea and immediately diving under just to come up again with a scream of joy. She opened her arms as you came running towards her, cursing the hot sand and ready to tackle the blonde with full force. 
She turned to the side and dodged your blow at the last second, letting you crash into the waves and jumping on top of you, pushing you under the surface for a second before pulling you up and blowing a mouthful of water into your face. You gasped for air as the two laughed at you, already plotting your revenge. 
You slapped Abby’s shoulder but her rock-hard muscles easily took the hit. She raised her eyebrows at you and gave your shoulder a seemingly light push that made you topple back into the water. How was she so fucking strong?! You let yourself float on your back for a second, then you dove under and grabbed the surprised soldier by the ankles, digging your fingernails into her skin and pulling her feet out from under her. Pushing off the sand with your feet, you dragged her legs with you so she was pulled underwater. She managed to free herself and you both came up at the same time, laughing and coughing. 
“That’s what you get, shark,” you grinned at her. 
“Wait, are there sharks here?” A half-panicky, half-excited voice from further out told you that Lev had swum quite a bit and was now suddenly overcome by the realization that you three weren’t the only ones in the sea. 
“Yeah, big ones,” Abby yelled, “you better watch out.” 
She winked at you, then she took a deep breath and dove in Lev’s direction, who was facing the opposite direction and didn’t notice the big figure swimming towards him. As expected, he suddenly shrieked, started flailing his arms and fought with something that was pulling him under. When he realized what was going on, he couldn’t stop himself from laughing as he yelled Abby’s name over and over, trying to get her off. Her head broke the surface next to him and she shook her head, water spraying in all directions as her hair danced in the sun. 
She was roaring with laughter and held out an arm for Lev to hold on to while he caught his breath. 
“Believe me, kid, as much as you love them, you don’t wanna meet sharks face to face.”
He sighed and turned to look at the open water. 
“I know. Maybe we can drive out with a boat sometime and try to see them.”
Abby rubbed his shaved head. 
“You are unbelievably okay with danger, young man.” 
He smiled at her with so much love and admiration in his eyes it made your heart feel like it was going to explode. These two had found each other. You slowly swam towards them and turned on your back again to float, Lev immediately copying you and looking at Abby to do the same. 
“We shouldn’t be in the sun for too long, you two are still not fully healed.” 
Abby groaned and splashed some water in your direction. 
“Let me just have this for a moment, please.” 
You felt a twist in your stomach. She had just been having fun for the first time in forever and you had to ruin it by reminding her of what she had been through. Why couldn’t you just shut up and let her be? You turned to look at her and were surprised to see her smiling at you, nothing but warmth and appreciation in her face. 
“You’re right, Y/N, I know that. Thank you for taking us here and worrying about us.”
Lev had his eyes closed, but he nodded and mumbled something in approval. 
“Come on.” Abby lightly tapped your arm and nodded in the direction of the beach. 
“Let’s head back.” 
“Can I stay here a little longer?” Lev sounded far away, completely at peace as he soaked up the sun and the salty air. 
“Of course, but make sure you don’t swim further out, okay?”
The boy just hummed happily. Both of you didn’t say a word as you and Abby swam back, your mind spinning faster again as she took her last steps out of the water in front of you. Droplets were running down the back of her neck, the curves of her back muscles, butt, and thighs highlighted by the reflections of sunlight on the wet skin. 
She turned around and absentmindedly slicked her dripping hair back, showing off her biceps and abs as she stretched and waited for you to come out of the water. 
“You think the sand is gonna be less painful under wet feet?”
You stumbled out of the waves with little elegance but managed to stay standing up as a wave crashed around your calves. 
“I don’t know, I think we should make a run for it.” 
“Fair,” she nodded and held out her hand. “You ready?”
Ignoring the jump in your chest, you took her hand and she held yours tight, encasing it completely with her cool fingers. 
“Let’s go!” Both of you started running, squealing and laughing as the sand burned your soles once more. You almost fell several times but Abby’s steel grip caught and held you up every time. Slightly out of breath, both of you reached the shade of the palm tree and let yourselves fall on the towels. Abby still hadn’t let go of your hand and you tried to hold your fingers completely still so she wouldn’t notice and let go. 
You were both lying on your backs next to each other, panting and looking up at the green branches above you dancing gently in the sea breeze. Watching Abby out of the corner of your eye, you promised yourself you would always remember this moment. The heat of the sun peeking through the branches, the last drops of saltwater running down your torso, the stickiness of your skin as it dried and left behind tiny salt crystals, the rushing of the waves and the cries of the seagulls. The beautiful blonde next to you, her chest moving with every breath, the little specks of sunlight on her face and her mouth, slightly open as she looked at the sky, deep in thought. 
It felt like this was the first day of your life, like you had been somewhere else every day before, somewhere grey and bitter and hard with little joy and too many worries.  You never knew life could feel like this, like riding a wave, like soaring through the summer air, easy laughter, and warm touches. You were free. 
You suddenly noticed that Abby had turned her head to face you, her eyes burning into your skin like the salt that was prickling your cheek with tiny needles. Holding your breath, you slowly turned towards her and were immediately pulled in by her gaze. 
This woman had been by your side almost constantly for three weeks and you had known for a while. What you felt for her was deeper than any connection you had ever had with anyone. She understood you without words and she was never too much for you, as others often were. The blonde made your heart skip beats and your brain often stopped working when she was around, but you still wanted to be by her side every possible second. Through all the pain and trauma and all the terrible things that had happened, you two always found something to laugh about and a way to forget everything for a while, just enjoying each other’s company. 
As you finally released the air from your lungs, you could hear the shakiness in your breath and the rush of your own blood in your ears. It was so loud that you were sure Abby could hear it, too. Your fingers twitched slightly and she immediately tightened her fingers around yours. Slowly, her eyes wandered to your lips and now it was you that could hear her breath catch up in her throat. The distance between your faces was small, maybe a hand’s width, but it felt like miles. It was the feeling before doing a handstand or jumping off a high platform, a move you had seen others do countless times but felt impossible to you, like an invisible wall in your chest stopping your breath and movement at the same time. 
Abby softly ran her thumb over yours, her hazel-green eyes piercing yours. Your racing thoughts came to a halt. You could count every freckle on her face, every tiny salt crystal on her lashes, the faded scars from past battles. She was breathtakingly beautiful. 
Just as she lifted her head ever so slightly to move even closer, there were distant thumps on the sand and you could hear Lev crying out in a mix of joy and pain. You expected Abby to snap back and let go of your hand, but instead she just smiled, sat up and yelled: “Come here, quickly! You don’t want me to have roasted children’s feet for dinner, do you?”
Out of the corner of your eye, you could see Lev speeding up towards you.
“I’m not a child, Abby!”
He came to a halt in front of Abby, quickly glancing at your intertwined fingers before frowning at her. She patted the towel next to her. 
“Alright then, sir. Come sit with us, we’re currently being hypnotized by the palm branches.”
“What’s hypnotized?” he asked as he let himself flop on the towel. 
“Lay down and you’ll see,” Abby said as she lifted her free arm and rested her head on her hand, staring up at the sky again. 
“It’s the feeling of watching something - or someone - and completely getting lost in what you see. Your head gets all quiet and you’re willing to do anything the person hypnotizing you says.”
Her thumb was drawing circles on the back of your hand.
Lev let out a big breath as he solemnly folded his hands over his stomach and looked up at the leaves waving back and forth. 
You all lay there for a while, not speaking, just soaking in each other’s presence and the untainted beauty of the world in this very moment. Abby’s touch sent electrical waves through your arm right into your heart, filling your chest with liquid gold and having you fight down an ecstatic squeal of happiness. Did this mean she actually felt the same way? 
In the midst of all the joy you felt in that moment, there was a tiny voice in your head telling you that this was just an exceptional situation and things would go back to the way they were once you returned. Abby liked you, that much you were sure of, but was she really willing to go a step further and open up to you like that? Trust someone with that kind of vulnerability?
You swallowed hard, trying to fight down the tiny storm of panic brewing in your throat. There was absolutely no reason to ruin this moment for yourself. You let go of Abby’s hand to prop yourself up on your elbow, turning your body towards her. 
There was confusion in her eyes and a slightly worried look.
“Everything okay?” she whispered.
Looking up over her shoulder, you saw that Lev had fallen asleep. He looked like a little vampire, pale from the lack of sunlight on his newly recovered skin over the last weeks, lying stone still in a perfectly straight line with his hands still folded. 
You lay back down just a little bit closer to Abby than before, this time facing her completely. You could feel her breath on your lips and couldn’t stop yourself from raising a hand to push a strand of hair out of her face. She closed her eyes for a second at your touch, then she leaned into your hand. You cupped her cheek, drawing your thumb over her cheek and her bottom lip.
“More than okay,” you breathed as you ran your fingers through her hair and down the back of her neck, making her shiver despite the heat. 
Slowly this time, you sat up and whispered “Come with me.” 
Both of you stood up and now it was you that held out a hand. The Firefly took it and you both hurried towards the water again, trying not to be too loud and wake up the boy in your care. 
Finally on wet sand, you sat down and pulled Abby down with you as the water lapped at your ankles. 
You took a deep breath, glancing at the blonde’s questioning look and quickly looking down at your feet. 
“I’m so glad we finally got out of the base and came out here. You guys haven’t even seen all the beautiful places on Catalina. We could do this more often, I know my way around the Island.”
Abby drew circles in the sand, the tracks of her fingers immediately washed away by every new wave. Squinting against the sun, she softly said: “Yes, I’d like that. It really is beautiful here.”
Your heart was pounding again. What were you thinking, taking her away alone without even knowing what to say? She was obviously waiting for you to tell her something Lev shouldn’t hear. You wanted so badly just to tell her how you felt, but your head was just completely devoid of words. 
She had mercy with you. “Where else would you like to take me?” 
Her? Alone? You bit your lip, trying frantically to come up with something good. 
“There is a bay called Little Harbor, the water is bright turquoise and it’s on the west coast, so you get some amazing sunsets there. There’s a hunting cabin there, too, back from when we hadn’t fully secured the island yet. I could get a friend in admin to give us a check-up mission, let us check the electricity and stock up the hut. Only if you’d want to, of course.”
Abby nodded. “That sounds amazing. I’m cleared for missions starting next Monday, I need to start doing my part anyways. We could go whenever it fits your schedule.” 
You smiled at her. “Great. I’ll let my friend know.”
“Are we going to stay there overnight, then?” 
You could hear the amusement in her voice. She knew she was making you all flustered and nervous and was just teasing you now so you elbowed her, stifling a laugh.
“It could be arranged.”
She placed her hand on your knee, looking at you to catch your reaction. You couldn’t help but blush and pressed your lips together, trying to hold it together. 
“Y/N.” 
Her face was now directly next to yours, her breath warm on your cheek again. It took everything in your power to turn your head and look her directly in the eye. Well, you tried to, but her eyes were on your lips again, her tongue quickly running over her bottom lip only to disappear again. 
And finally, after weeks of uncertainty, of pining and yearning and trying to get her out of your head, she grabbed the back of your neck and gently pulled you in. Her lips were incredibly soft, cushioning your movement as you pressed your mouth on hers, desperately trying to stay in this moment forever. She tasted like the sea, but her warm skin still smelled like the forest. It always did. 
You leaned into her, deepening the kiss as she put her arm around your shoulders and ran her hand over your thigh. Nothing had ever felt better than this. 
The blonde pulled away slightly, peeking at you through long eyelashes and licking her lips again. 
“I’ve been wanting to do this for a long time,” she confessed, never releasing your gaze.
“Me too,” was all you got out under your shaky breath before she kissed you again, sweet and smiling, placing tiny kisses on your cheeks and jawline before moving up to graze her lips over your nose and forehead. 
“I’m so lucky,” she mumbled against your temple. “After everything Lev and I have been through and of all the places in the world…”
She wasn’t the type to speak much about her feelings and this was probably the most you would get from her for now, but it was more than enough for you to understand. You rested your head on her shoulder as you both stared out to the open water. 
“I’m not going anywhere. I’ve never felt like this with anyone before.” It felt like a weight had been lifted off your chest. You knew this was a lot to reveal, but you trusted Abby to not get scared away easily. 
“You know, Lev is going to be so relieved.” Abby snorted and turned around to see if there was any movement in your little camp, but the little Seraphite seemed to still be enjoying his afternoon nap. 
Your brows almost hit your hairline. “You’re gonna tell him right away?” 
She laughed and slapped your thigh before tightening her grip around it.
“Sure, he’s been listening to me debating my next step for the last week. He was so excited for today because he thought you’d make a move.” You couldn’t believe what you were hearing. 
“He has zero faith in me, you know. He knows I easily face any kind of danger and I always win my fights, but he thought I didn’t have the guts to kiss you.”
You rolled your eyes. “Okay, Miss Warrior, you’re the toughest. I remember Lev telling me something about crane bridges?”
She acted shocked. “I trust him with all my secrets and he just goes and tells you about them? What a little brat.”
You both had to laugh; it was clear that no one loved Lev more than Abby and no one could ever really be angry with him. 
“No seriously, I tell him everything. He’s all I got left.” She looked down and smiled to herself, no bitterness or sadness in her voice but a deep appreciation and nothing but love for her partner through thick and thin. 
Her last sentence stung a little, but you knew it was going to be a while before Abby would know just how much she could count on you to be there for her. Trust had to be earned. 
-
You spent the rest of your day in the shade with Lev, eating the fruit you had brought, playing cards, reading, and stealing kisses while the boy went for another swim in the ocean. Lev was sad you couldn’t light a bonfire as it got dark, but you had to get back in time for dinner. 
Both you and Abby promised him another beach day with stick bread at the campfire as soon as you both found the time again. Meanwhile, he could try to find some friends to come along. 
As you packed up your things, the sun was setting behind the green hills of the island and painting the sky pink, orange and purple, delivering a spectacle almost as wonderful as the one going on inside you. 
Lev jumped on the back of the truck without asking this time and both of you got in the front. The drive was quiet, all of you deep in thought, reminiscing about the day you had had. 
“Thanks again for doing this,” Abby said, playing with a strand of your hair. The windows were rolled down and the cool evening air was dancing through the cabin, filling your lungs and clearing your mind. 
“You’re very welcome.”
“I can’t wait for our cabin trip. A sunset just for the two of us,” she remarked, looking at you from the side. 
Finally back on the main road, you placed your hand on her thigh. You had wanted this for so long and now you would do everything in your power to win Abby’s heart entirely. 
“When do I see you again?” you asked, scared to hear the answer. 
“Tomorrow morning? You could pick me up from the gym for breakfast if you want. I’d offer to train with you but I think your doctors would feed me to the sharks.”
You laughed at the thought; it had taken forever to convince the medical staff to let you go today. It was going to be a few more weeks of physiotherapy to get your body back on track. 
“Okay. I’m pretty sure they’re making pancakes tomorrow. A commander’s birthday, I think. Pick you up at 8?”
She placed her hand on top of yours and squeezed it. 
“I’ll be waiting.”
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