#sleepy sleepy girl does not want to sleep yet though it’s pushing 4 in the morning

[lesbianfakir]

Have tutu on in the background while I work on other stuff and it’s cracking me up how drosselmeyer talks about fakir like his fatal flaw is being afraid to die when frankly that’s most normal thing about him. The boy is absolutely batshit off his rocker in countless other directions. Keeping another boy as a pet is normal in drossy’s books but god forbid his grandson be a pussy

[magicaldestinyharmony]

In Life and in Death Pt. 2

male!knight x female!count's daughter!reader part 2

CW: mentions of death, blood and self-harm

WC: 1.6k words

A/N: part 2 is here! I'm planning to make this a short series though I'm not sure how long it will be. Anyways, enjoy!

[Part 1] [Part 3] [Part 4]

You sit up suddenly and gasp. You blink at the sudden brightness. It appears to be morning. 

Taking a look around you, you realize that you���re in your room. At first, you were confused. How did you get on your bed? Didn't you die? Then it hits you. The Returner's Stone must have worked! 

Immediately, you turn to your bedside table and pick up the blue calendar you got as a gift. It's true! The Returner's Stone wasn't a legend after all. 

You take note of the day. It's 10 years in the past. You sigh in relief. Crisis avoided successfully. You smile and decide to reward yourself with 10 minutes of extra sleep before getting up for breakfast.

“Miss! My lady!” Violent knocking at your door rouses you from sleep. “My lady, are you still sleeping? You have to get up! Count Balcom will be arriving shortly!”

The door creaks open and you sit up, rubbing the sleep out of your eyes. Your maid, Aida, enters. “Oh good, you're up. Come let's get you ready to receive the count.”

“Wait, what about breakfast?” you drowsily ask, still a little sleepy.

“You overslept, miss! There's no time for that!” says your ever-helpful maid as she drags you to take a bath.

You suck up more protests and let Aida continue the familiar yet tedious steps to making you look presentable. 

3 dresses, 2 hairstyles and 6 accessories later, Aida deems the chosen dress, hairstyle and accessories passable. “Ta-da! What do you think, my lady?”

You glance in the mirror only to find a girl dressed in blue staring back at you. Your hair was styled immaculately with beautiful accessories decorating it. You smile. “Thanks, Aida. I can always count on you.”

Your only faithful maid grins, looking very proud of herself. She starts going on and on about how naturally beautiful you look and that she only enhanced your natural beauty, but you stop listening to her. 

You are truly thankful for Aida’s presence. As the fifth daughter, you had little to no influence. Not many maids wanted to side with you as that job came with little benefits. Only Aida remained, ever faithful.

“Oh my, miss! We must hurry! Count Balcom should be arriving soon!” Aida pushes you out the door and you let her, albeit reluctantly. 

You never really liked your father. Not only did he give off the aura of a ravenous beast, but his disregard for the law and basic human rights weren't exactly the best combination for a great father. 

As soon as you make it off the threshold of the stairs, the butler announces your father's arrival, “Count Balcom has arrived!”

You curtsy in greeting of the man who sired you and stand up. What you don't expect is to find grey eyes instead of black ones staring back at you. You frown in confusion.

Once you look up, you receive your answer. You find your father standing a little behind the boy, talking to the butler. This must be the day Lucca arrived at this gloomy mansion.

Your father nods, then loudly proclaims, “Hey, you!” He points to one of the maids. “Take the boy to the dungeons.”

The maid nods and immediately does as she's told, lest she incurs the wrath of the count. She drags Lucca away in the direction of the dungeons. 

And you? Well, you stand there, dazed, and watch as things happen exactly as you remember them.

◇◇◇

The sun has long set, but you remain awake staring at the dark ceiling of your bedroom. Lucca's unexpected appearance rattled you. Although, now that you think about it, this is the day Lucca entered this house and sealed your death warrant by association. 

You sigh. The relief you felt this morning didn't last long. How will you get out of this predicament? Maybe, if you appeal to his emotions long enough, he'll spare you? Doing something is better than doing nothing. 

You get up, resolved to your fate. You gather up some ointment and some bandages, to treat Lucca if needed. After you get your hand on some food, you sneak to the dungeons. You reach the cell where Lucca is held, successfully completing your stealth mission.

“My lady? What are you doing here?” You jump at the sudden question.

Turning around, you see the stern face of the prison guard. How did you forget about the guards?! 

The guard stands there waiting for your response, “Um, I wanted to see the boy?” You try your luck with the truth.

“You cannot, my lady. Please head back to your room. If Count Balcom catches you here, you might not escape punishment.”

How do you get this guard to cooperate? Taking off your sapphire bracelet, you hope bribery will work its magic. “Here, sir, have this. You should be rewarded for having to work the night shift,” you say and hand the guard your bracelet.

“Oh my, my lady! You are so generous!” The guard takes the bracelet, touched.

“You never saw me here, though, right?” you say, placing your finger on your lips.

“Yes, my lady! Of course, my lady!” The guard bows and you fear that his head might touch the floor.

“Just unlock the door,” you remark, not used to the sudden sincerity. 

“Right away, my lady!” The guard unlocks the door, gesturing for you to head in.

You sigh and enter the cell. Your face contorts at the smell of mould and blood. Once your gaze lands on Lucca you gasp. He's splayed on the floor, seemingly unconscious, with wounds and bruises littered all over his body.

“Oh, no,” you whisper. 

The sight makes you shudder. You brush your fingertips over a big purplish bruise forming on his shoulder. He must be in a lot of pain. Opening the ointment, you immediately get to work, treating his wounds.

There are so many. Bruise after bruise, cut after cut and lots of blood. You treat as much of Lucca's wounds as you can. 

After applying some ointment on an especially deep gash, Lucca hisses. He must've come to.

Subconsciously, you retract your hands and glance at his face. He blinks and stares up at you.

��Are you okay?” you ask. “I tried to be as gentle as possible. I'm sorry if it hurts.”

The boy eyes you in silence. “Here, I got you some food.” You rummage in your bag for the bread you were able to take from the kitchen.

There was no reaction from Lucca—only more silence. Awkwardness creeps in, so you place the bread under a handkerchief in front of him. 

He blinks. Once, twice, three times.

What's wrong with him? Does he think there's something wrong with the bread? “Don't worry! I didn't do anything to the bread. It's not poisoned or anything,” you try to reassure him, though you're not sure if it's working.

You sigh. There's no getting through to him right now. “Alright. I'll leave you alone.” You get up and dust yourself off. “I'll come back tomorrow to heal your wounds and get you some food!”

You leave the cell hoping that if you keep coming back every day until he leaves, he'll spare you when he comes back 10 years later.

You were wrong. So wrong. Lucca came back and killed you anyway. You woke up surprised to find yourself in the past again. This time you'll leave as soon as possible!

You still go down every night into the depths of the cold dungeons to check on Lucca and he still acts indifferent towards you.

This time, however, instead of sitting on your hands in that dreadful estate, you leave the empire as soon as you turn 18. 

Sad to say, Lucca still managed to find you and end your short life.

Imagine your surprise when you're met with the ceiling of your bedroom when you open your eyes in the past for the fourth time.

You sigh. This time, you resolve to abandon the Balcom name.

Helping Lucca at night became a habit. Before you go to sleep, you stop by the basement to take care of him.

Once you had your debutante ball, you busy yourself with finding a suitable marriage partner. You end up getting married to a countryside baron, hoping the distance from the capital will keep Lucca off your back.

Yet, your plan fails. Again. Apparently, Lucca doesn't consider your marriage an abandonment of the Balcom family.

Once your eyes drift open to your sunlit ceiling again, you've had enough. It's like all reason left your mind. 

As soon as your father arrives, you're in his office asking to find a way to drain your blood safely. 

No. You didn't ask him. You demanded to know. Your father frowns at you in displeasure while you stand there mumbling to yourself that this has to end.

Your father shakes his head, clearly thinking that you've lost your mind. He orders you to be moved to the Southern Balcom Villa under the guise of recuperating. But you know the truth. You've been deemed unuseful and tossed aside.

Not that you really care. You pore over thousands of books trying to get the Balcom blood out of you. Your body ends up covered in scars, still-healing wounds and unhealed cuts.

Yet you don't stop. Crazily obsessed and focused on the condition Lucca stated to spare you. You were found multiple times on the floor in a pool of the red liquid.

In the end, the maids reporting back to your father, chain you to your bed, successfully keeping you from inflicting more harm on yourself.

Once Lucca's dreaded arrival comes, you barely even register his presence. You're sick and tired of this vicious cycle. Death, life, death, life, death, life, on and on and on. 

When Lucca's sword eventually cuts you down, you hope with all your might that you won't be met with the mocking sight of your ceiling again.

[kyriethesquishysquid]

Betrayal Never Felt So Good (König/Fem!Reader) Chapter 6

You can find Chapter 1 here, Chapter 2 here, Chapter 3 here, Chapter 4 here, and Chapter 5 here!

Word count: ~6.5K

Rating: Mature

Pre-A/N: Thank you guys so much for reading and even commenting! You have been so dang sweet and I appreciate every single one of you. Your comments make my days so much better and help me stay on track with wanting to create. <3

Also, I got a DM suggesting I put the translations in italics next to the German- would that be more helpful? I'm totally okay with doing so if it'll help everyone be able to read it more fluidly!

A/N: Some soft morning smut with our beloved turning into some rough ass sex?? It’s more likely than you think! Come on, who wouldn’t hear that sleepy voice first thing in the morning and NOT think of sex?? König is the duality of man, so soft and gentle and yet also the most domineering brutal man. We love it. Continued COD and military inaccuracies galore.  

TW: We get a little into reader’s backstory with allusions to a negative childhood but nothing too in-depth yet! I will add triggers for that topic when it comes up! Smut! Soft sweet smut, rough dominating smut, and some deep-ass emotions. Breeding kink - yes, again, I promise it’ll go away for a while after this chapter lol- Unprotected sex, creampie, multiple orgasms, squirting, oral after creampie, MASSIVE overstimulation and forced (consensual) orgasms, dom/sub, dirty talk, size kink, overly powerful!König & weak!reader. Pet names (in English and German), bad German translations bc I’m STILL a lame monolingual American, and STILL no beta because we die like jackass Graves.

Crappy Translations:

Maus - Mouse

Mein schatz - My darling

Meine leibling - My love

Süßes mädchen- Sweet girl

Scheiße - Shit

Du kleine Füchsin - You little vixen

Scheiße, du fühlst dich so gut an - Fuck, you feel so good

Und ich liebe dich, mein Schatz - And I love you, darling

You weren’t sure what time it was when you woke but it was still dark when your eyes fluttered open, though the greyness of the morning sky was beginning to filter through the nylon of the tent. It was calmingly quiet in the forest around you, signaling that the others were still asleep, and a smile crossed your face. You could sleep in. That was a nice feeling. With a little stretch, you arched back only to smack something hard, said obstacle groaning as a heavy arm slung across your waist. 

“Stop moving, maus, s’too early.” 

Fuuucckk. König’s voice was pure fucking sex in the mornings. You’d always heard about the morning voice phenomena but you never really got to experience it before those first few nights with him. If you could, you’d record it and set it as your alarm, just to hear it again and again until you were able to have the real thing every morning. Reaching down, you gently rubbed up and down his arm, taking in the tickle of his arm hairs against your skin until he groaned and jerked you back into him. His groan immediately sent your thoughts from soft morning cuddles to something much darker as you felt the familiar hardening of his cock. 

“Good morning to you too,” you teased quietly, slowly shifting your hips against his.

Though he didn’t react at first, it didn’t take long for you to hear his breaths coming out heavier as his dick pushed harder into your ass, as if instinctively searching for release. A well-placed arch of your hips was all it took, a low warning growl rumbling against the top of your head and fingers digging into the soft flesh of your stomach as he thrust forward. 

“Du kleine Füchsin.”

“Hmm?” you asked back. 

The silky fabric of your nightie was suddenly bunched up above your hips before you felt his big hand cup your sex.

“I said, you are such a little vixen,” he moaned quietly, sending shivers up your spine as his middle finger slid between your lips, “Ooh, you are already so wet, schatz. Does my sweet girl need me?” 

“Ah, ha- fuck!” 

“Shh, shh, shh, I’ve got you, leibling,” he purred lowly, “Don’t worry your pretty little head.”

All hopes of replying were thrown out the window when he started stroking soft circles around your clit. Without a second thought, you moved your top leg back over his with a low moan, symbolically opening yourself to him as your eyes shut once more. 

“Mmm, good girl.”

Your heart lurched in your chest and you decided immediately that him uttering those words first thing in the morning should be illegal, lest you have a heart attack or your ovaries explode. Reaching between your bodies, you were happy to find that he’d removed his pants in the night and his boxer briefs were the only barrier between his cock and your hand. 

He chuckled lowly in his throat as you struggled with the underwear and finally helped remove the annoying cloth, muttering, “You’re so impatient in the mornings.” 

“Only- Only impatient when it involves delaying you fucking me,” you shot back breathlessly. 

The way his dick flexed in your hand at that had you grinning until he smacked it away and palmed your ass, gently guiding your top leg up more so he could easily line up his cock with your entrance until he froze.

“Wait, I should prep-”

“I’m fine, promise, just want you to fuck me,” you cut him off, “Bitte.”

A wiggle of your hips had you both gasping as it pushed his head hard against your cunt. He let out a grunt of understanding and then his hips suddenly snapped forward, burying him in with just one motion. The cry you let out was embarrassingly loud but before you could cover your mouth, his arm curled up under your head and his hand was there instead, two fingers slipping into your mouth while the remaining few pulled your jaw closed around them. 

“You need to be quiet, maus, can’t have them waking up and ruining our fun,” he demanded, amusement obvious in his sleepy tone as he thrust forward again, causing you to moan around his fingers. 

As you instinctively began to suck on his digits in hopes of keeping yourself silent, he let out a broken swear. The hand between your thighs once more took up their gentle caresses and you nearly came on the spot. It took everything in you not to reflexively bite on his fingers when he prodded the back of your mouth but you just barely managed, a muffled gag followed by a heady moan vibrating through your throat earnestly.

 “Ja, that’s it, suck on my fingers just like that, liebling. Fuck, look at you,” he crooned gently, “It’s like you were made for this, to take me just like this. Isn’t that right? Hmm?” 

You managed a weak nod but not much else, your brain lost in the fog of the orgasm building steadily in your core. The sounds of him fucking your dripping wet heat were nothing less than pornographic, slick and loud with each thrust of his cock. It was so much different than last night, softer, sweeter, with the haze of sleep still clawing at the edges of your subconscious. You couldn’t resist grinding back into him as he quickened his calloused fingers across your sensitive nub and whimpered softly.

“That’s right. My perfect little cock hungry slut, made just for me and only for me. Scheiße! Du fühlst dich so gut an.”

That caught your attention, walls instinctively clamping down around his dick and eyes rolling back. God, this man knew each and every dirty little thing you craved before you even did, and you fucking loved it. As much as you wanted the moment to last forever, you knew logically that everyone else would be waking soon, and it wasn’t like he was giving you much option with the way his cock rubbed against your sweet spot with every rock of his hips. 

“Fuck, you squeeze me so perfectly, maus,” he groaned brokenly, “I’m getting close, I need you to come for me.” 

That time you gave an emphatic nod, licking up between his fingers before sucking on them faster. Your nails found his bare hip behind you and held on for dear life as you felt that familiar spark taking hold, teetering so close to the edge that it hurt until his fingers started fucking your mouth. The double stimulation was too much. Free hand slapping over his, you cried out muffled screams behind his hand when it hit, pleasure only increasing as you clenched down around him. Every thrust sent you spiraling farther and farther from reality, lost in your own mind, drunk on ecstasy and everything König.

“Scheiße, Scheiße, mein Gott!” 

It wasn’t seconds later before he was whimpering your name, body shaking against yours while his cock throbbed with every shot of his cum and your hips rocked into his. Your motions were stopped with a heavy hand and he snapped your name in warning. A playful smile came to your face when he shuddered as your walls fluttered around him again. 

“You are trouble,” he hissed.

You groaned quietly when he finally pulled out and released your mouth. 

“If every morning starts like that, I’m defecting from Graves as soon as this is over,” you joked quietly. 

He didn’t respond but before you could figure out why, you were suddenly shoved from your side onto your back, your giant of a lover climbing between your legs and lying on his stomach. Your thighs, strong as they were, were no match for him when he forced them apart and began to place soft kisses across your mound. 

“Oh my god, what are-” your words fell prey to a wrecked little cry when you felt his tongue lapping at your clit. 

“We’ve got time,” he panted against your skin, “Nobody is up yet.” 

“B-But- oh fuck.” 

Brows furrowing, you let your head fall back into the blankets and covered your mouth as a broken sob fled your lips. It almost hurt, how good the overstimulation felt. Your face flushed dark as you realized there was no doubt he would come in contact with his own cum, as the fluids practically gushed out of your cunt with each pulse of your walls, and yet he didn’t stop. Didn’t it bother him? 

Two thick fingers easily slid into your core, tearing a whine from you as you pointlessly fought and tried to rip away from his hold. It felt sinful, knowing his fingers were essentially just shoving his cum back inside you with every motion, and his words from last night reverberated loudly in your mind. 

“Mine to love, and protect, and fuck, and breed.”

“J-Jesus fucking-” 

“I’m not stopping until you cannot stand,” he retorted, eyes wild with hunger as you met them, “I went too long without you and I don’t know how long it will be until I can have you like this again. I’m going to make every- second- count. Understood?” 

You knew there was no arguing with him. Not that you really wanted to anyway, not with the way his fingers stuffed you so perfectly. You knew this was his way of checking in, giving you the option to say no and he would stop, but fuck was the alternative too tempting.

“O-Okay,” you whined quietly. 

Despite the way you bit your lips, muffled little squeaks of pleasure sounded like screams in the still quiet morning. Lips met your leg gently, quickly giving way to a hot tongue and sharp teeth as he bit and soothed little marks all down your thighs. 

“Before we leave here, I am taking a video,” he huffed out, voice tense and low against your skin, “Of you just like this, spread out all perfect for me, so soft and beautiful, making those sweet little noises.” 

Any chance you had of replying was demolished the moment you felt his tongue between your folds again, finding your throbbing clit with deadly accuracy and tearing a shrill cry from your throat. There was no keeping quiet with the sudden flush of bliss that raced through your limbs. Toes curling into his back and fingers tearing at the blankets, your body arched violently into his touch, earning a guttural moan from the man buried face deep in your thighs as he shoved you back onto the ground. 

“S-Sh-Fuck, König, please!” you squeaked, twisting violently in his hold.

You tried your damndest to escape the overwhelming sensations but he was having none of it, his arm reaching between your thighs to pin you down with a forearm to your stomach and his elbow and hand bracing your thighs apart. There was nothing you could do, no matter how hard you pushed or pulled or wiggled. König had you in his capable clutches at his mercy. It was like he couldn’t even feel the way you kicked at him and fuck did you love it.  

“Please, please, I- I can’t-!” 

His only response was the demonic growl that rumbled against your cunt as his lips wrapped around your tender nub and sucked, his fingers taking back up their previous motions in your core. 

Pleasure became pain and back around again as you stared down at him through teary eyes. It should have been terrifying. It should have made you second-guess trusting him so much, and regret not establishing limits. And yet, you weren’t scared, or upset. If anything, you were in awe of him and his strength, his abilities; how, despite instinctively hating being weak, you loved that he took charge of what he wanted. 

As tears leaked down your cheeks, all you could do was watch on in reverie as the blonde-haired god of your new world worshiped you with a devotion previously unknown to mankind. The way his head moved as he suckled and nibbled on your clit was too much to handle, your body falling back in mortifying defeat as he pulled out whine after whine, dragging you toward another high as if it were as easy as breathing. 

“König, please, too much,” you whimpered, shoving at his head.

You nearly cried at the loss of his fingers when he suddenly snagged your wrist away, pussy throbbing at the feeling of slick transferring from his skin to yours. 

“I am not done, maus,” he growled, finally giving your body a slight reprieve as he lifted up just enough to pin you in place with heavy eyes, “Now, hands above you... Ja, just like that. Good girl. Stay like that until I am finished with you, schatz.”  

Without warning, he went right back down. Three fingers slipped in this time, the stretch still nothing compared to his cock but the surprise made you clench down on him as he toyed with your clit mercilessly. Your arms twitched above you, practically aching to grab him or shove him away. It was a mind fuck. Technically you could move, your arms were free, but he had ordered you to stay. Oh, but it was so damn hard when you felt the way his fingers pressed right up against your spot at the same time as he pushed down on your belly. 

“K-König, please!” you keened, unsure exactly what you were asking for. 

Did you want him to stop? Did you want him to make you come again? It was all too much and your head was floating away with every thrust of his digits pushing you higher and higher, that familiar knot growing impossibly tight. 

“Mmmm, that’s it, kleines,” he moaned, “That’s it, good girl, come for me.” 

Just the change in temperature of his breath across your slick nub was enough to throw you over. 

“Fuckfuckfuckfuckfuck-”

You barely registered your body being bent before his hand slammed over your mouth, his body holding yours up at an awkward angle that only made the pressure of his fingers in your cunt feel ten times stronger. It was hard to breathe and you could feel the sweat pooling across your forehead and chest, but god you wouldn’t stop him even if you were going to suffocate. 

You felt a flash of confusion when he lifted back up onto his knees but it was easily quelled when he began to shift you around, directing you onto your side until your top thigh rested over his as he straddled the other. 

“Been dreaming of taking you like this for some time now but I was worried you couldn’t take it. Do you think you can, kleines?” he asked warmly, running his cockhead against your lips teasingly. 

Oh but why was that so fucking hot? The allusion of being breakable; the knowledge that he could utterly decimate you with his size. 

“God yes,” you groaned throatily, wiggling in his hold eagerly.

As he slowly pushed into you, your eyes rolled into the back of your head out of sheer disbelief. You blindly reached out for him and held onto his wrist, relishing in the grounding touch as he sent your senses into overload. He was always big but in this position… it was earth-shattering. 

“Are you okay, maus?” he questioned breathlessly.

“Fuck yes!” you gasped, “So okay!”

His answering chuckle was dark and delicious. Fingers dug hard into your thigh and held you in place as he finally slammed his hips into yours, shoving his cock so deep that you would have flown away in shock if not for his embrace. 

He was right to be worried, you realized, his large size overwhelming and borderline painful even as it sent you immediately into another screaming orgasm, barely muffled by his massive hand. 

“Oh, coming again for me already, süßes mädchen ?” he growled, “Does it feel that good?”

Brows furrowing in concentration, you whimpered out a mess of unintelligible noises mixed with his name and “Don’t stop”.  

“Fuuuck,” he moaned deeply, “What a good little slut you’re being for me.”

It was funny. There were so many kinks you didn’t know you were into before König, like being called a slut for example. Or were you into them because they were with him? That would be hard to decipher, really. Your train of thought was abruptly derailed when he released his hold on your leg and landed a sharp smack on your ass, ripping a hiss from deep in your chest. 

“‘M gonna cum, maus, you going to take it all again?”

Face reddening at the mental image of how messy you were going to be after it all, you barely managed a little nod before he was slamming ruthlessly into you. Gone was the care of being heard. All that mattered was the little world the two of you created.

“You like when I come inside you, don’t you?” he panted weakly, a devastated whine escaping beneath his words, “My sweet little breeding maus. So- Scheiße- So perfect for me.”  

A little giggle escaped before you whined out, “Could ask you the same.”

Another, much harder, smack landed on your ass and you instinctively jerked from the stinging pain, crying out as it only served to shove him deeper. 

“I asked you a question, klienes.”

Shivers ran down your spine in delight and you quickly replied, “Yes, sir! I love feeling you come inside me. I love being so full it runs out!”

The way his fingers dug into your ass cheek and the throaty groan he gave in reply was well worth any embarrassment your words caused. 

“Me too,” he moaned brokenly, “Me too.” 

With one last powerful thrust, he buried his cock as far as possible in your core with a gravelly moan of your name that set off one final rush of ecstasy, your head falling back and your mind going completely blank. You felt everything and yet nothing, your senses seemingly no longer connected to your brain. 

 There was a comfortable silence in the air as you both caught your breath, his fingers stroking wherever they could reach on your body until he finally pulled out. A weak whimper escaped your lips as he gently laid your leg down before collapsing on the sleeping bag next to you. You weren’t sure how long you laid there for but, somewhere in the back of your mind, you registered that he was moving around after a while and heard the crackle of a plastic bottle. A low groan escaped your parted lips when he forced you onto your back but he shushed you softly. 

“I’m going to clean you up, schatz, I’m sorry if you’re sensitive.”

With a little nod of understanding, you braced for the touch but a little hiss still escaped as you felt the wet fabric come into contact with your thigh. His gentle apology took some of the sting out of the shock as he carefully wiped your thighs clean, warning you before doing the same with your overly sensitive cunt. True to his word, his touch was purely clinical, feather-light touches and little murmurs of praise as he worked until you were clean. The sound of the cloth hitting the side of the tent was the only precursor to him collapsing onto the ground next to you, his arms wrapping you up and tugging you in close until you were forehead to forehead with him. 

After a few moments, you forced your eyes open, unable to stop the little smile that snuck out when you found his beautiful icy blues staring back. Pure adoration shone through his gaze as he reached out, fingers tracing along your soft jawline gently before he grabbed your chin and tilted your head back, pressing a tender kiss to your forehead, nose, then lips. 

“I’m surprised you stayed,” you whispered softly when he pulled back. 

His chiseled features were still soft with sleep and you couldn’t resist reaching out to rest your hand on his cheek, thumb stroking along the short blonde hairs starting to grow back. König was always beautiful, but there was something almost glowing about him in the mornings. You wanted to frame him and stare at him forever.  

He gave a non-commital noise suddenly, drawing your eyebrows up in confusion only to earn a warm smile from the Austrian. 

“I love you, meine schatz,” he rumbled lowly, “If I do not have to sleep without you, I am not going to.”

“And if they notice-”

“Then they will keep their mouths shut,” he retorted, eyes sending a ruthless glare toward the tent door before softening back on you, “Horangi and Amy will say nothing. Max will-”

At that, you gasped out and smacked his arm gently, earning a shocked look from the big man. 

“Max!” you hissed back, “Why didn’t you tell me he was one of yours?!” 

There was a flash of guilt in his expression before he quickly smoothed it over, a heavy sigh leaving his lungs. 

“I- I want to keep you safe, liebling, and sometimes that means keeping information away from you,” he explained softly, “If Max were to be found out, you would truly have no information to offer them and you would be safe from any repercussions.” 

Rolling your eyes, you nudged him and muttered, “I love that you’re so protective but you have to learn to trust me.” 

“I do trust you, and I need you to trust me to do what is best for you. Everything I do is with your best interests in mind.”

“I know, I know,” you sighed before assuring him, “I’m not mad. I just- I want to be a part of decisions that affect me, you know? I am a fully functioning adult that can take care of herself.” 

The look of disbelief that flooded his face sent your mouth open in shock. No way. He was not about to-

“Are you sure about that, schatz? You seem to be a magnet for trouble. I have never known a woman who trips or runs into walls as much as you do. You practically need protection from yourself sometimes,” he teased, “And let’s not even start on the serious troubles you end up in.” 

Pouting your lips out, you scooted back to attempt to make room, only for his arms to tighten around you and draw you right back in. You were in no way shape or form able to resist the pull, still extremely boneless from your recent activities. Any attempt you made to vocally admonish his playful ribbing was silenced by soft little kisses across your face, fingers slowly dragging up and down your spine and sending goosebumps over your flesh. 

“I am sorry,” he huffed with a little laugh, “You are just so cute when you get flustered. I promise, in the future, I will try to keep you informed on anything that I can. Just- Just trust me to protect you and trust that I am doing right by you, ja?”

Your fingers, so small against his face, traced up his jaw until you could mimic his hold on your face and pull him into another kiss. 

“Of course I trust you. I love you, König. Thank you for listening and being willing to compromise some,” you whispered. 

A heavy breath rushed out through his nostrils as his arm tightened around your back and pulled you in until there was not an inch of space between your bodies. 

“Say it again,” he purred softly. 

Lips quirking up coyly, you planted a soft kiss to scar over his nose and murmured a little louder, “I love you. I love you so, so much.” 

When his eyes finally opened, you were distraught to find tears glistening over them. Your concerns were silenced by a much hungrier kiss, teeth and tongue overpowering in their mission until you were both in dire need of breath. 

“You, meine liebling, meine engel, are perfection,” he hummed softly as his nose rubbed against yours, “I am so lucky.”

Now it was your turn to get teary-eyed. Damn it, you didn’t want to cry first thing in the morning. You took a deep breath and tried to blink away the tears, only to let out the most hellish screech as the tent began to shake and bang around you. 

“Up and at ‘em, lovebirds, unless you want everyone else to know you’re fuckin’ like rabbits in there,” Max teased quietly, “Which, by the way, what the fuck? Didn’t know you had it in you like that, sir.”  

As your heart raced in your throat, you glared at the tent flap as if you could incinerate him through the fabric with your gaze alone. König chuckled softly, planted a kiss on your lips, and climbed to his knees with a groan. 

“Dankeschön, Max, you may leave now,” König instructed. 

“Sir, yes, sir,” Max jeered, voice trailing off as his footsteps receded. 

“I’m gonna kill him one of these days,” you warned König with a sigh. 

The big man grinned at you but said nothing, going about gathering his discarded clothes into his arms. Everyone always talked about the sex appeal of someone undressing, and you definitely enjoyed that sight, but there was something about watching König get dressed that was just as appealing. Watching his thick muscles work with every movement, practically eating up every last inch of his slim waist as it disappeared beneath the black fabric of his shirt, drooling over the flex of his thighs as he pulled on his cargos… Fuck, he had such a nice ass. He was a visual decadence. You realized with a flush that he wasn’t wearing his underwear anymore and almost questioned it until you saw him pick up the dark, damp fabric. Ahh, so that’s what he’d cleaned you with.  

“As much as I enjoy your staring, maus, you need to get ready as well.”

Mouth snapping shut, you offered him a meek smile and nodded in understanding. 

“I’m going to get changed. I’ll see you out there soon, ja?” he asked. 

“Of course, I-”

Strong hands pulled you in by the waist and his mouth claimed yours gently, a warm rumbling groan escaping against your lips as you cupped his face. 

“I love you,” you whispered, grinning ear to ear. 

“Und ich liebe dich, mein Schatz.”

Once his tall frame was out of sight, you zipped the tent back shut and took a deep breath. God, you’d have to thank Graves for sending you on this silly mission. Maybe you’d send him a fruit basket with your resignation letter. Digging through your bag for fresh clothes, you thought about all the possible ways you could get out of the Shadows with a grin.

…

“Okay, so, it seems like there is only the one point of entrance,” Luke sighed, collapsing onto the log next to you with a groan, “We’re definitely going to need more time to get an exact study of their rounds and how many people are on-site at one time.” 

Horangi and Max made a noise of agreement, the latter of the two dropping down on your other side. As you looked up at him, you felt a pang of guilt rise in your gut. You and Amy had been left at camp, the men claiming that there was no use wearing you all out with the walk since it was just recon at that point, but it was painfully obvious just how arduous the journey had been on them. Not only had they made the three-mile walk there and back, but they had been watching the building for almost ten hours and it was already darkening out when they got back to camp.

“Good thing you left the two who can cook back at camp I guess,” Amy teased.

There was a sudden tension in the air, the intensity between the two palpable as she passed him over a plate and let her hand run across his back. When she retreated back, you gave Max a not-so-subtle nudge and grinned. 

“Don’t start,” he groaned quietly, a surprising heat rising to his cheeks as he bit into the cornbread.

“Oh, I won’t,” you snickered, “I already heard all I need to from her.”

His eyes widened, and you could practically see how he struggled to swallow the bread before he glared at you. 

“Women and your fucking gossip,” he muttered then added on, “You’re one to talk about hearing. ‘~Oh König. Don’t stop~’.”

You reflexively backhanded him in the chest and shushed him, eyes darting nervously around the camp. You knew König had said Max, Horangi, and Amy were safe, but you still weren’t one hundred percent comfortable with just shouting it out to everyone. Thankfully, Luke had headphones in as he shoveled his food into his mouth, and Horangi and Amy seemed to be having an intense discussion about the river the guys had passed on the way through, possibly using it to fish for fresh meat. 

“Wait, where is König?” you asked, a sense of concern tightening your throat.

“He’s on the phone with the head honcho,” Max replied with a shrug, “I already filled in Graves.” 

“Ahh, okay, that makes sense,” you sighed.

There was a calm silence around the camp, only the soft murmurs of the other duo and the soft crackles of the fire making any real noise. It took you back to your younger years- well, the good parts of them. The few camping trips you got to take with your family before everything went south, how you and your sibling would sneak out at night and go “bear hunting”, or the pancakes you guys would make on the griddle in the morning. If only you could have had more of those simple nights. 

“Hey, you good?” Max asked softly. 

Head snapping up, you gave him a confused look to which he gestured at your face. 

“You look sad. You good?” 

Flashing him a little smile, you nodded and replied, “Yeah, just remembering the camping trips I took as a kid. Makes me wanna do this more, to be honest. Without the whole “spying-on-the-enemy” thing.”

He huffed out a laugh and said, “Fair. Maybe sometime in the future. I’m sure it wouldn’t be too hard to get time off between all of us.” 

His optimism had you grinning, bumping your shoulder into his as you agreed quietly. You could only hope that he was right. After you finished up the last five months with Graves and the Shadows, you could find a permanent place closer to König, maybe even with him, if he wanted that. But where would that leave Max? Would he stay with Graves? Would he eventually be back with KorTac at some point? Was it selfish to want to back out of this lifestyle while leaving all the ones you cared about still serving? 

“Y/N!” 

König’s voice broke apart your melancholic thoughts and you unconsciously jumped up to attention as he approached. 

“Yes sir?” you asked. 

“Come, I need to speak to you about something.”

That was never a good sentence. Sending Max a questioning look, you only got a similar one back as you followed König toward the tents. 

“What’s going on?” you questioned.

He didn’t answer at first, frustrated grunts and curses falling out around him as he leaned into his tent. When he finally pulled back, he hung a blanket over his arm and let out a sigh. 

“Just follow me.”

He reached out for you and you quickly wrapped your smaller hands around his big one, looking up at him in curiosity. His expression betrayed nothing as he led you past the edge of the camp. You walked for a good ten or so minutes before he pushed through a dense thicket of trees, the sound of running water disrupting the silence as he held back the branches like the gentleman he was. Once you made it through, you saw a river rushing down the hill, the area around it wide open and beautiful with flourishing flora. 

“This place is gorgeous,” you whispered in awe, eyes lifting to the sky. 

The moon was bright and full, twinkling stars clearer than you’d ever seen in the city. You were startled from your admiration of the cosmos when he suddenly tugged you down and you fell into his lap with a squeak. 

“When I came through here, I just knew I had to bring you,” he murmured quietly, arms wrapping tight around your waist as you leaned into his solid form, “I knew you’d like it.” 

You couldn’t help but grin at that. 

“Of course you would, you stalker,” you teased gently, earning a displeased noise but no argument from the man.

You carefully slid your fingers between his and tilted your head back, taking in both the sight of the endless night sky and the flawless outline of his features. The night was a tad bit chilly but the heat he radiated was more than enough to keep you comfortable. It also provided even more of an excuse to stay glued to him. You watched as his lips parted and then stopped, a little uncertain breath puffing from him before he looked down with pink cheeks.

“What?” you asked. 

“Do you know the constellations?” he questioned. 

“Mmhmm, my- uh, my mom taught me them,” you answered quietly, swallowing through the lump in your throat her name caused, “Would you like to know some of them?” 

It was a sensitive topic, your family, and yet this was the second time in the same night you’d thought of them. Maybe it was the comfort of being with someone who made you feel safe, maybe it was the nostalgia of being out in the woods. Whatever the reason, you couldn’t differentiate if you liked it or hated it. 

“Ja, bitte.”

The tension her name had brought up slowly melted away as you pointed out the simple ones such as Orion and Gemini before moving on to some of the more complicated ones. The longer you spoke, the more confident you felt. It was like riding a bike. His little questions and hums of understanding prodded you on longer and longer. It was almost like you’d never purposefully forgotten the celestial bodies. 

When you felt his gaze on you, you stopped your little monologue long enough to catch his gaze and the expression in his eyes was enough to make your cheeks burn hot. Had you been rambling on too long? Were you boring him?

“What?” you questioned meekly. 

“Nothing, please continue.”

“No, no, if I’m talking too much or-”

He cut you off quickly.

“You could never talk too much,” he retorted sharply, his voice softening after a moment, “I enjoy hearing you talk, especially about something that obviously makes you so happy. You are even more beautiful when you are like this.” 

Lips parting with a little “oh”, you melted into him and quickly averted your gaze back to the sky. Praise in bed was one thing. Praise where it didn’t feel like it was earned… that was harder to accept. 

“So, you are going to teach our kids this then, ja?” he asked, voice somewhere between teasing and hopeful.

Mortification had you hiding your face in his chest with a giggle. 

“You can’t just say things like that, König!” you squealed. 

His laughter bounced your head into his sternum a few times before you stubbornly held on tighter and gave him a little bite on his firm pec. 

“Scheiße, I talk about breeding you and you don’t blink an eye. I mention you mothering our kids and you turn into a tomato,” he snickered proudly, “You are adorable.” 

Groaning, you jammed your finger into his ribs and muttered, “Don’t tease me! You’re evil, you know that?” 

“Mmm, you knew this when you agreed to be mine.” 

Pulling back, you made an obvious show of rolling your eyes and pouting up at him. It didn’t take long for your faux tantrum to melt away as his hands cupped your face and drew you into a soft kiss. Your forearms rested over his shoulders as you shifted onto your knees to sit on his lap. A sense of serenity settled deeply in your chest when you welcomed his tongue between your lips, the calming sound of the rushing river humming through your ears as you soaked his touch and branded the feeling into your memory. When the need for air became too strong, you rested your forehead on his, a content smile curling up your lips. 

“One day, I’m going to need you to tell me all that you know about me,” you sighed after a moment, thoughts flickering back to his earlier admission, “The fact you know I like astronomy is a little concerning, considering I never had a reason for that to be in my records with Graves.”

The noise he let out brought your eyes open and there was a tinge of shame in his intense blues when you caught them. You knew he’d done a deep dive on you, him having glossed over some of the traumatic things you’d experienced the first night you’d been allowed to see him fully. It was just fucking with your mind to understand the depths of the knowledge he had on you. 

“Again, not mad,” you assured him, “I promise. Just… if you know that, then you probably know all the- the bad things too, yeah?” 

He nodded once and it made your chest hurt. You’d kept all of that shit away from your professional records, easily having the court documents from your minor years sealed. Just what the hell was this man capable of? 

“I do. It changes nothing, except it makes me want to protect you even more,” he murmured, “And tells me just how strong you are.” 

A little sigh rushed from your nostrils as you nodded once, pushing away the anxiety and worry in favor of maintaining a gentle atmosphere. You could go deeper into that topic later. You were on borrowed time here and you wanted every bit of it to be good. 

“You’ll just have to make up for it by telling me more about you, like…” you could see a flicker of anxiety rush through his eyes as you debated on a question and it made your heart thump in empathy, “What is your favorite meal to celebrate with?” 

The way his body nearly collapsed in relief told you that you had made the right choice in lightening the topic. 

“You mean besides you?” he asked smoothly. 

“God damn it, König!” 

[sambvcks]

redefined, b.b. x reader

summary: just because those ten words no longer wreak havoc on his mind does not mean they are gone. just redefined.

warnings: mentions of food, blood, gunshot wound

word count: 3.7k....whoops

author’s note: first standalone! i’m also itching to work on a sam story next. the last episode still lives in my mind rent free and this is a reworking of that which diverges from civil war and we get one big happy avenging family that aren’t dead :)

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Longing

An Avenger.

The concept was still so foreign to Bucky, despite dozens of successful missions under his belt and a permanent residence in the tower. Still, every morning he sprung up in bed expecting to still be in some run-down apartment halfway across the world, on the run.

Instead, he would awake on a plush mattress that offered little back support. He would shuck on the first shirt his bleary eyes could see and pad into the hallway, the smell of fresh coffee overtaking his superhuman sense of smell. You would be perched at the kitchen counter, pouring over mission files stained with coffee rings that Tony would later complain about.

Steve and Sam would have already come through on their way to their morning run, the coffee pot running dangerously low. You’d already placed his favorite mug nearby, two packets of sugar emptied into the bottom. A routine.

Bucky didn’t think he’d ever have a routine again.

His hand would press against your shoulder in a familiar greeting as he passed, you’d grin up at him with sleepy eyes and a lazy smile before returning to your work. Your cereal sat forgotten beside you, the overly sweetened kid’s choice growing soggy.

It was a silent and comfortable interaction. Neither worked to fill the quiet or felt the need to. Even with Steve, there was always talking and planning and ‘what about this’. With you, it was so natural to just exist how he was in that moment. No excuses, no whispered apologies.

He pushed his back against the sink as he sipped at his coffee, eyes immediately settling on your distracted figure. Your pajamas were wrinkled, mouth formed into a perfect concentrated from as you hunched uncomfortably, hand scribbling furiously. He swallowed and decided you were the most beautiful person he had ever seen, especially with your coffee breath and fingernails chewed to nubs.

He wanted so desperately to move across the kitchen and press himself perfectly against you, to push aside your paperwork and demand your sole attention. His hand clenched into a fist as he longed to feel your soft, round cheeks in his hands, how warm you would feel against the cool metal of his left and how you’d nuzzle closer still.

He hadn’t heard the dragging footsteps of Steve and Sam returning from their run and didn’t even notice them until they were settled at the doorway, watching him watch you.

“Morning.” Steve grinned, all knowing. Bucky cleared his throat and refocused on his mug.

“Morning.” Bucky replied with a look that said ‘don’t say anything’.

Rusted

Bucky learned that if you weren’t cooped up in your room or camped out on the kitchen island, you were tucked away in Tony’s garage. On slow days where it seemed everyone was off in their own little world, Bucky would know to find you under the hood of one of Tony’s vintage cars, each kept in pristine condition, but you claimed that ‘there’s always something to work on’.

Bucky was never a car guy. His family was too poor to even think of ever owning his own car. He didn’t even have his own license and technically couldn’t legally ride his bike either. He found out quickly that being an Avenger meant the term legal could be bent a bit. So, he wasn’t a car guy. But the sight of you with streaks of grease across your face and your raggedy workshop clothes would have him buying one just to see you work on it.

You were notoriously protective of your little hideaway, the music loud and the sound of metal ringing as you fixed and fiddled with every little thing. Steve nearly got a wrench to the face when he tried to distract you from Tony’s antique Chevy.

Bucky was different, though. He was always different.

He would sit himself on a tall stool positioned next to one of Tony’s many rolling tool chests. You’d call out a tool and he’d rifle through the collection until he found what he thought was the right one and only slightly tease him when he’d emerge with the wrong one. Typically, you’d spend these afternoons in silence, the thumping of the heavy base of whatever crazy metal album you picked the only soundtrack to your work.

Sometimes, though, you’d play gentle rock music. Bucky would ask questions on what you were doing, how you learned to do all of this, why you did it when Tony worked on these cars enough for the both of you.

You’d fish your rag from your pocket, concentrating on scrubbing the grease from under your fingernails as you answered.

“I like using my hands. I like fixing things. For every car that Tony has in this garage, there are hundreds just like it sitting in junkyards gathering cobwebs and rust.” You looked up at him from under eyelashes and Bucky knew you were speaking about much more than just hunks of metal. “They’re worthy of love and care.”

You were talking about him, too.

Seventeen

Bucky didn’t think this superhero business would have so many parties. There seemed to be a celebration for everything. Galas, fundraisers, full on parades whenever Tony happened to wake up in a good mood.

At least this one is a holiday, he thought to himself as he nursed his third beer of the hour. Not that it did anything other than keep his hands occupied.

The year was coming to a close, and the top floor of the Avengers Tower was decked in golden confetti and banners to ensure no one forgot. The music was obnoxiously loud, and the lyrics made little sense, but everyone seemed to be having a good time mingling and even venturing to the dance floor.

No matter how many times Sam tried to drag him in with an invisible rope, Bucky was not going to dance. Well. Maybe he would if you asked.

The party had been in full swing for hours now, with only ten minutes until the ball a few blocks up finally dropped and he could sneak away to his room without a teasing ‘bedtime already, old timer?’ from Nat.

Still, the party raged on and he eyed the glass door to the balcony. He downed the last of his beer, brushing past enthusiastic partygoers with his shoulders hunched forward in some attempt to minimize the space he took up in the room that only seemed to be getting smaller. He caught Steve’s eye on the way out and plastered on a smile in response to his disappointed look.

He let out a breath he hadn’t known he was holding as soon as the glass door slid closed behind him. His eyes closed as he leaned back against it, the chill of the December New York air blew his hair in every direction.

“Fancy meeting you here.” You were sat in the far corner, so well hidden he hadn’t even noticed you, though he had been on the lookout for you all night. “Tired of the festivities?”

“And Tony’s music.” He grumbled as he fell into the seat beside you.

“Been waiting for you for the past thirty minutes. Honestly, you made it a lot longer than I could’ve in there.”

You were waiting for him. You wanted him to be there, with you, tucked away from everyone else’s prying eyes. He wanted that, too. Sometimes he wanted it so much it scared him.

“Sorry to keep you waiting, doll. It’s not polite for a gentleman to make a girl wait.”

“Hmm, I think I’ll find it in myself to forgive you.” Your shoulder pressed against his, eyes focused on the smattering of buildings surrounding you. Identical parties were happening in each of them, you were sure. “Can you believe another year is gone?”

“I can’t believe I’m about to make it to 2017 and my back hasn’t given out yet.”

You laughed, loud and unabashedly in a way only Bucky could make you laugh. Head thrown back and eyes glittering from the city lights, Bucky wanted to spend every new year you would allow him to by your side, trying his best to make you laugh again.

“Well,” You stood to peer over the glass railing, Bucky close behind you. You could hear the drunken cries inside as the countdown begun. “I’m glad you did.”

“Me too.” Bucky offered his hand to you. You took it easily.

5, 4, 3…

He wanted nothing more than to pull you close, to finally press a kiss on the lips that had thrown teasing remarks at him during missions. To once and for all end this little dance you both loved so much. But you looked so perfect.

Bucky wasn’t ready to ruin that perfection with everything wrong with him quite yet.

“Happy 2017, Bucky.” You whispered as the fireworks started, but Bucky couldn’t pull his eyes from you.

“Happy 2017, doll.”

Daybreak

The mission had been long and grueling. The week-long stakeout turned into two and quickly turned into a month away. You can’t remember the last time you’d had a good night of sleep that wasn’t interrupted with Bucky’s hand on your shoulder, telling you it was your turn to keep watch.

It wasn’t a horrible mission, more of an exercise in patience and restraint than anything. Bucky’s stories kept you entertained enough, and he was a good partner. Which is why you were paired together more often than not.

Still, it was nice to finally collapse into your familiar bed, not even bothering to kick of shoes or take a much-needed shower. Your sleeping schedule was all out of whack and you tossed and turned, despite the exhaustion seeping through your bones.

After fifteen minutes, you finally huffed a sigh of defeat and stumbled back to your feet. You showered, which was a few good days overdue, and dressed in your largest, most comfortable pajamas.

You weren’t surprised to see Bucky up as well, sitting at the dining table with a mug of fresh coffee.

“Couldn’t sleep?” His foot kicked out the seat beside him as an invitation.

“Sleeps overrated, anyways.” You shrugged, slumping into the seat and pressing your face into the cool glass of the table.

“Sleep is good for you.” He insisted, reaching forward to brush aside the hair that had curtained over your face. “You deserve a good night’s rest.”

“So do you, Buck.”

He stayed silent for a while, just sipping at his coffee and stealing glances at you, face trained out the floor to ceiling windows. He really didn’t know what he deserved, anymore. Sure, he had made some semblance of peace with what the Winter Soldier had done with his body. He was better, that was certain.

Worthy of you and all your unwavering sweetness? He wasn’t so sure.

You idly chatted about nothing for hours, filling comfortable silence with talks of the mission and the food poisoning he had given you when he tried to make dinner two weeks in. You sat side by side until day broke the next morning, eyes squinting at the sun peeking over skyscrapers and finally finding the need to fall shut in rest.

“I guess I should say ‘good morning’ instead of ‘good night’.” You were the first to stand, shuffling towards the hallway that led to your bedroom.

“Good morning.” He answered as you padded away, deciding he would be just fine losing sleep every night if it meant he could watch the sunrise by your side.

Furnace

“Doesn’t Tony make enough money to keep this place at least habitable?” You grumbled as you fell into the couch beside Bucky.

“I’m fine.”

Bucky sat in his patent jeans and t-shirt, unphased by the temperature that practically had your teeth chattering. You were bundled in multiple layers, including one of the many sweatshirts he’d wear jogging on cold mornings and blankets you had stolen off his bed. Your glare from under your cocoon of warmth rivaled even his.

“I’m not a muscle-y super soldier-”

“You think I’m muscle-y?”

“-that runs so hot you’re basically a personal furnace.”

“Oh, so now I’m hot.”

“I would strangle you to death right now, but I’m about to lose my fingers to hypothermia.” You burrowed further into your smattering of blankets with a violent chill running down your spine. Bucky simply rolled his eyes and marked the spot in the book he had been reading before you stormed in.

“C’mere.”

He balled up a fistful of one of your blankets, tugging you even closer to him. You opened your arms to allow for direct contact, sighing contently as your face pressed into his shoulder and legs tangled with his. You sighed contently as you welcomed his warmth, shimmying as close as you could get.

“Better?”

“The best.”

Nine

“Do you ever think what your life would be like? If you’d gotten to go home?”

Even a year ago, this question would have turned Bucky into a brooding mess. He would have delved into every little moment he had missed, every plan that had been turned upside down when he fell from that train all those years ago. But he was better now, more contemplative. He wouldn’t drown in the idea of what could have been because he knows what it’s like to be on the other side.

“I like to think I would’ve gone to college.”

“Really?”

“You calling me dumb, doll?”

“No! You’re the smartest person I know. I’m just picturing you at college. Carrying textbooks and wooing all the dames.” You fell into him at the thought, a fake swoon overtaking your face.

“I’d be too busy studying for dames.”

“Studying what?”

“I always liked math. Maybe engineering or something. Wanted to be a teacher before the draft.” He shrugged like the information was no big deal, but to you it was everything.

“Professor Barnes. Kind of sexy.”

“Oh, shut up.” But his words held no malice. Instead, he was grinning that cheeky grin that pulled his cheeks into perfect rosy apples and his eyes crinkled in joy. “I wanted to have ten kids.”

“Ten?!”

“So we’d be a dozen. My own little army of mini-Buckys to take over the world. Couple sets of twins, maybe. Definitely as many girls as I could manage.”

Of course Bucky would be a girl-dad. Playing dress-up for fake tea parties and scaring off boys when they’d come ‘round for first dates. You could imagine how he’d learn how to take care of their hair and plait intricate braids when they asked. He would make breakfast for the whole bunch, kiss his wife goodbye before escorting them to the bus stop and taking off for a day of teaching classes. Bucky would be an amazing father.

An amazing husband, too.

“I think ten may be pushing it, Barnes.”

Bucky pictured it, too. A little more modern than maybe the image you conjured up. Teaching was replaced with small missions. The gaggle of kids were smaller, and he wouldn’t have to kiss his wife goodbye. You’d be in the car next to him, headed to the tower for your morning briefings together.

“I’ll settle for nine.”

Benign

If you were to ask any New Yorker what they think the Avengers do on Friday afternoons, they would probably say something like ‘kicking ass!’. None would get even close to what your actual routine looked like.

None would imagine The Winter Soldier lounging in a bathrobe, hair knotted into a bun at the top of his head as his fellow world-saving Avenger spread some green goop over his face. Chinese takeout boxes littered the living room coffee table, his feet were bubbling in warm foot spa.

“To keep your youthful complexion!” You had promised him. He didn’t comment on the obvious sound of your phone’s camera clicking.

He knew he must have looked completely ridiculous. But as you sunk into the couch next to him with identical spa treatments covering you, he couldn’t find it in himself to really care.

He never thought in a million years that he would have the chance of boring, completely benign afternoons. He thought he would be sidelined to violent missions for the rest of his life, to being thawed out like a microwave meal every time he was deemed useful. Sure, he felt a bit ridiculous when you reached over to adjust the slices of cucumber placed over his eyelids, but he also felt so relaxed.

As you settled even closer to him, head tilting to rest on his shoulder, he would happily take the teasing remarks from Sam when you showed him the pictures.

Homecoming

Peter wasn’t crazy about the idea of getting ready for his senior year homecoming dance at the tower. But Aunt May was upstate on vacation with Happy and he still didn’t know how to tie a tie.

“Oh, you look so handsome, Peter!” You gushed as your fingers worked on his tie. Bucky stood to the side, holding MJ’s corsage in a delicate plastic container. Peter had been careful to find the perfect color, with a little guidance from you. The white dahlias matched perfectly with Peter’s light green tie.

“Thanks, Ms. (Y/L/N).”

Peter, ever the polite kid.

“Be safe, kid. Have her home at a reasonable time and no wandering hands.” Bucky handed over the corsage with a supportive slap to Peter’s shoulder. He was quick to promise that he would follow all the rules before making a dash to the door, just as you were about to ask for pictures.

“Don’t wait up!” He called as the elevator dinged behind him.

“They grow up so fast.” You sniffled. “I didn’t even go to my homecoming dances.”

“Why not?”

“Nobody ever asked me.” You shrugged, collecting the other ties Peter had picked from and hanging them carefully over your arm. Tony didn’t have to know that Peter was taking one of his priceless Versace neckties to a homecoming dance.

“To be fair, I would’ve been scared shitless to ask you to a dance.” Bucky followed close behind. “And I fought a war.”

“That’s sweet, Buck.” You brushed him off as you retreated into Tony’s closet.

“No, really.” His hand caught your elbow. “I would’ve been the luckiest guy in town if I had you on my arm.”

You fell asleep that night imagining you and Bucky twirling around a dance hall without a care in the world.

One

Steve’s hand was firm against your shoulder, his tactical glove soaked and dripping with your blood. Your eyes were unfocused, head lulling every so often when the fight to keep it steady just seemed too difficult. Sam was at your other side, cracking jokes to try to keep your attention on him and not of the literal bullet lodged in your shoulder.

You were escorted from the jet in a flurry, doctor’s hands replacing Steve’s. You barely winced when you were administered painkillers and the ache begun to subside. Before you could blink, you were lifted onto a gurney in the medical bay and the clink of the bullet that had been dug from your flesh rang through the room as it clattered into a metal dish.

Bucky ran in just as the doctor finished maneuvering a long roll of gaze around your shoulder, scheduling a time for you to return to have it cleaned and reapplied again.

“What happened?” He brushed past the doctor without a second glance, eyes trained on your figure pressed against the sterile hospital bed. “Steve said-”

“It’s nothing. Steve likes to be dramatic.”

“-that you were shot!”

“Oh, well. Yeah, that happened.” You moved to sit up, your arm immediately giving out under the weight. Bucky moved even closer to help you, hand careful on your back like you were made of glass. “But just the one time.”

“As far as I’m concerned, one is too many.” He watched the gauze turn darker against your skin; your eyes screwed shut in pain as your knuckles turned white against the sheets. “And you’re never going on a mission without me again.”

Freight Car

“You’re free.”

He remembers those worlds so clearly, it’s like him and Ayo are still sat next to that crackling fire in Wakanda. He thought that had been it. He would never again worry about those ten phrases that erased Bucky Barnes and allowed a machine to emerge from his memory.

As he stole glances of you from the corner of his eye, shadowed by his unruly hair, he knew those words still very much existed in his mind.

They weren’t a means to an end, anymore. He didn’t have to grit his teeth and clench his fists to fight them off. They were new, now. He saw each of those words in you and realized just how important they are now they they’ve found a new meaning.

His love for you came easy.

One second, he was looking at his friend. She was looking back at him and he felt safe.

Your fingers brushed over his shoulder, where flesh turned to metal, and you looked away as though you hadn’t just made him fall in love with you with a single touch.

It took three years for Bucky to make a move. Another party, another escape plan to the balcony where you were waiting for him, like always. The last time you had found yourselves in that position, he had been too unsure. Too wary of what it would mean and if it was too soon.

Now, he didn’t care. He just wanted you and to be selfish and not think about consequences when he leaned forward and finally pressed his lips to yours.

You pulled back, but not far.

Something clicked.

Your love for him hit you like a freight car. Swooping in from nowhere but really, you should have felt the rattling of the tracks beneath your feet. You should have seen all the signs that you loved him and he loved you back. In stolen glances and easy afternoons, in hard missions and bloodshed. He was there, and he looked at you like that. Like everything his body had done was to finally make it to you in this moment.

He waited, patient. He had waited this long, what was another few seconds as the realization washed over your features?

“Oh.” Was your clever whisper.

“Yeah.” Bucky’s hands cradled your face, “Took you long enough.”

taglist: @bibliophilewednesday @teti-menchon0604​ @thiswasnevermylifefromtony​ @spid3rgwen​ @beautyandthebleh​ @victoriabaker112213​ @orthellqs @phasma-trash​

[someonewhowannadielol]

My name is JK (Alien!Jungkook! x Human!Reader)

PART TWO (SEQUEL TO ‘MY NAME IS 01001010 01001011′)

CLICK HERE FOR PART ONE

LINK TO MASTERLIST

Warning: Tooth-rotting fluff, Jungkook being a cutie, ok the real warning tags are Daddy kink, birthday sex, innocent reader being trained (???), lots of hicks and marking, cunt slapping, oral sex, uhh and jk being a competitive baby.

Genre: Fluff, Smut, if you squint and look closely, a little bit of humour.

Word Count: 5.6k

Pairing: Jungkook x Reader

It had been a week since Jungkook had, ahem, dicked you down. And it has been the best week of your life so far – he showed you things you had never seen before, the most beautiful scenes that your eyes feasted upon. You both had gone to the Neon Valley, it was a vast blue-purple lake that lit up at night due to the minerals on the sand bed below, and the lilies residing there would dance every night.

They fluttered, swung and swayed – and simultaneously, Jungkook and you too, had danced – he took you in his arms and as you both slow danced to the humming of the diva-crackers, you couldn’t help but look at his gorgeous face, adorned with a smile that you’d never replace for anything in this universe. You could feel yourself falling for him, he twirled you with ease, and as you stumbled back into his arms, he lost his balance trying to save you from falling and splash! 

You both had ended up in the hot water, and despite the current situation, you both had burst into boisterous laughter which echoed across the plain field around. In the shining moonlight, Jungkook’s face was more lit up than the neon water they were in, his long hair sprawled across his forehead, as he pushed it back with his left hand, while holding your waist with his right arm.

Jungkook looked at you with such intensity, you didn’t really know how to react. both of you knew you wanted more than just cuddles on your couch that was too small for Jungkook, more than grocery shop romances, and trekking on the artificial mountain, and more than watching movies together,, more than cuddling under the tree at the main park, more than making fun of each other, you wanted each other so much more badly.

“Kiss me,” Jungkook whispered, his face getting dangerously close.

“I’m scared,” Of course you were, but you didn’t move away from me.

“Of what?” Jungkook’s eyebrows bunched up like they always do when he’s confused.

“Of falling. Of drowning,” you answered as you looked into his eyes, how could someone not fall for him?

“Well, I’m already drowning, so don’t be scared, silly,” Jungkook’s eyes formed from his usual doe eyes to half-moon crescents and, you were no longer afraid to fall.

Because he was there, he will always be there, right beside you.

Fuck. You couldn’t help but curse as you saw the red spot on your lavender sheets, they were my favorite sheets. You had really bad mood swings when you were on your period, and you were basically uncontrollable. You saw Jungkook’s figure on the left side of the bed, sleeping peacefully, his chest heaving up and down as he breathes consistently.

“Baby,” you whined, as you almost pushed him off the bed. There was no way that you were going to the pharmacy to get the goods, so he was your only choice possible.

He stumbled as he got up, sleep still swimming in his eyes, as his hands went up to rub them, trying to get rid of the slumber that had taken over him.

“Yes, princess?” he asked in his hoarse voice – which turned you on (especially a lot now, since your uterus was sad, lonely and angry). His eyes travelled to the blood on the sheets, and it would be an understatement to say that he had a heart attack.

He immediately engulfed you in his arms, “Are you hurt anywhere?” he said, unable to breathe, because fuck, if anything ever happened to you, he wouldn’t know what to do with himself.

The worry in his eyes was making you feel guilty; did he even know what was happening?

“Jungkook, chill,” you laughed a little before directing him to the side of the bed, telling him to sit.

“Humans – well, only females – have to go through a period of time where they bleed. From down there,” you explain, and watch him go into a slight state of shock.

The poor baby just woke up 2 minutes ago, so this was probably hard to digest.

“You… you’re bleeding… and you don’t go to the hospital?”

“Does it hurt?” he asks in the timidest voice ever, careful not to offend you. He remembers once he asked you about body hair and since it was your biggest insecurity (cue Middle School flashbacks when you were the only girl with a slight unibrow and mustache), you couldn’t help but lash out on him.

“Yeah, it hurts a lot in my tummy,” you said on your way to the bathroom, “I need my supplies though, could you get them for me?”

Half an hour later, Jungkook returned with five bags of chocolates, chips and snacks – enough to feed a small village. The entire week, he kept studying you (you swear you saw him looking at you and writing notes in his small notebook, like a detective. Sigh) and your mood swings and tendency to eat the weirdest food combinations – he couldn’t help but gag when he saw you dip a whole cucumber in peanut butter.

“Kookie, cuddle with me,” during the day you would make grabby hands at him, and get him to massage your back, but at night you’d be the complete opposite – wanting to sleep as far away from him as possible. He also noted that you were more sensitive to jokes during the week, so he kept them at a minimum, and his praises at a maximum.

“Baby, you know, you look so cute in my arms,” he cooed, as he kissed your cheek while cuddling. He didn’t miss the blush that crept on your cheeks either.

Also, despite all the bleeding, you were ready to jump his bones anytime. He hasn’t had this much sex with anyone in one week. Not that he minded it.

You were more than ecstatic when you saw your favourite-est food in the world stocked in the human section of the grocery store. Spicy Hot Korean Ramen! You still remember when eating this used to be a challenge, back on Earth.

As you stacked the basket with half the stock, Jungkook couldn’t help but look at the ingredients – what was it that made you love them so much?

He was well, more than shocked to see all the different kinds of spices that humans could barely tolerate, chili flakes, red pepper oil, habanero flavored seasoning… he couldn’t let you eat this!

“Baby, this is too spicy for you, maybe we should buy this,” he pointed to the boring chicken and cheese flavored ramen. No! You were going to buy the spicy one and that’s finalized. Of course, Jungkook looked at you, and couldn’t argue. He doesn’t think he could argue with you even if he tried to.

Back at the apartment, Jungkook bit his tongue, trying not to say “I told you so,” as you fought your tears while eating the horrendous noodles. You were positive you could never feel your numb tongue as you chugged down the glass of strawberry milk that Jungkook handed you.

As expected, Jungkook was prepared for the stomach ache you experienced throughout the night, and gave you medicine to recover.

Before sleeping, you heard him sigh before saying, “I told you so,”

Jungkook had noticed you a lot, ever since you moved in with him. You didn’t have much belongings anyways, because you were only allowed to carry 100 pounds of baggage on the space craft, so you only carried the essentials. (Yes, you brought an oven. Yes, it was 77 pounds heavy. No regrets.)

While getting accustomed to his cozy, but huge apartment, you couldn’t help but trip over furniture. At first, it was his coffee table in the kitchen, next to the refrigerator. Every time you would get something to eat, your pinky would hit the leg of the table, causing you to splutter nonsense and then cry about it.

His bed was also higher than you expected it to be, so every day, for an entire month, after waking up you would underestimate the height – and always, always fall down from it.

He was extremely shocked by your ability to ignore pain, and to continue suffering every day because of the same cause at the same place. It’s okay, because now he’d hold you as you stepped out of the bed, and moved the coffee table to the other side of the kitchen.

He also noticed that humans don’t always have a thought out sleep schedule, they did as they pleased. Last night, you were pretty much half asleep at 4 AM, as you tried to finish the last episode of the new Netflix series.

“You were so sleepy, yet you continued to watch it without even understanding what’s happening?” he asked as soon as you woke up, to which you shrugged.

Again, next week, you forced yourself to get up at 5AM in the morning, so you could go for a jog. After all, you were thinking of getting more fit, all you did was lay on the couch. But as you headed in the bathroom for a shower after the run, he couldn’t help but think that humans are weird.

The first time Jungkook heard you crunch your bones, he was so scared, you almost though he would faint. He threw his game controller on the floor, as he ran towards you – thinking you had dislocated a limb, or something.

“Kookie, I was j-just stretching,” you could barely make out the words, trying to hold in your laughter as he tried to make sure you were okay.

With a sigh, he ran his hand through his fluffy – much longer – hair now, as he headed back to continue his game, “Baby, you’re so weird,”

“But you still love me?” you asked as you joined him on the couch, laying your head on his lap.

“I will always love you. Even if your bones crack,”

Bonus: When you got up at night for a midnight snack, you were surprised to see that Kookie wasn’t in bed with you. You later found him in his office, studying about how a human’s joint makes loud popping or cracking sounds because of the gas gathered there. He was finally content to ensure that you were safe.

Of course, you smothered him in hugs and kisses, because he always looked out for you. Always.

After a few weeks of being in Corellia, you had started to well… miss Earth. It was natural to do so; you’d lived your entire life there.

“I miss the sunsets, they were so pretty,” you spoke as you showed him a polaroid of you and your sister with the sunset behind you both. You pointed towards the one sun you had, and the purple, pink and orange hues of the clouds.

In an attempt to make you happy, Jungkook gave you a chocolate, they always made you happier, and he’d read somewhere something about chemicals in it making humans happier. But he was surprised to see you dancing (terribly) to a pop song, that seemed a little annoying, but he could deal with it.

The song had seemed to lighten your mood a lot, as you danced along with him happily, and as you looked at him, you felt happier. His long, wavy hair bounced as he danced with you. His eyes were smiling, and it was so pure that you laughed along. You were happy finally.

Until two weeks later, when you came across a photo of you and your high school class, trekking up a mountain on your senior trip to the north. Jungkook saw you sad again, missing Earth and your loved ones. Some were dead, some didn’t make it here, and some lived on the hotter side of the planet.

He put up the same pop song again, and cuddled with you on the couch. For the first time ever, you really felt grateful to God for something. You felt grateful that you were alive, and that you had Jungkook along with you. He looked how he looked every day, wearing a casual white t-shirt and grey baggy sweatpants. You adjusted yourself on his lap, and looked at him, and looked into his brown eyes. As you traced his face with your finger, he laughed, “Princess, do you feel better?”

You smile at the word of endearment, kissing his cheek, “You make me realize the difference between a house and a home. A house is a place, made with bricks and concrete, and materialistic items. But a home, is so much different. A home is where you feel belonged, a home is a place where you get that feeling of love. You make me finally realize how Earth was more of a house for me, but here, in your arms, I finally feel like I’m at home,”

You never thought Jungkook would be an overprotective boyfriend. Or a way too over protective boyfriend. During sex, he would go crazy on your body – sometimes treat you like a china doll, fragile and easily breakable, and sometimes it would be rough and harsh, not that you minded it.

His apartment was well, more suited for Jubal people because the ceilings, the bed, and of course, the kitchen cabinets were all bigger in height and size in comparison to your apartments back on Earth. Often, without thinking Jungkook would put food on the top most cabinets, and you often either felt too embarrassed, or too stubborn to ask for his help.

Which resulted in you – dangerously – climbing on the shelf to grab your precious food. This was a routine now, so you didn’t exactly pay attention to your limbs – just letting your muscle memory do the work for you. Right foot on the counter, and then you push your left knee as well, until you’ve made yourself stable on the counter top. Then, you stand up, holding the cabinet handle. Today was the same, but Jungkook had recently scrubbed clean the shelves, so they were more slippery than usual, and there was a fleeting moment when you thought you were about to fall (which would, by the way, give you the nastiest head injury), and before you realized it, Jungkook had looped his arm around your waist.

You were still shocked – chips in hand – when he settled you on his lap, almost like a child.

“Princess, what were you thinking?” he says as he lets you turn around, so you straddling his lap.

“I just wanted some chips, Kook,” you say with an amused grin. He was obviously distressed, as he sighed while running his hands through his hair, like he would when he was frustrated.

“Baby, you have to tell me if you need something from there, okay? What if you had hurt yourself?” his voice seemed to get louder with every words, and just like that, your amused grin was replaced with a pout, as you lowered your head.

 You didn’t mean to make him angry like that.

Looking at you, he knew he couldn’t ever stay mad at you. It was physically impossible for him. He hugged you, and your head rested on his cheat, feeling his fast heartbeat morphed into a more, stable and steady beat, “I’m just always worried for you. Even if everything is wrong, it’s alright, you’re the only good thing in my life,”

It had been ages since you had gone to a festival, and there was going to be a carnival-like festival in Corellia soon. You didn’t think Jungkook would be that interested, so you were quite surprised to see him… so excited about it.

“It comes twice in a year, you have to come! I’ve heard they’ve made it more human themed this year, so you feel welcomed, but we’ll have our traditional rides too!” he spoke with a gleam in his eyes, as you both got ready.

Jungkook of course, made sure you were wearing at least five layers of clothes, two pairs of gloved, and three pairs of socks. It was night time, and he couldn’t help but chuckle at the sight of you looking like a walking marshmallow.

“Baby, you look so cute!” he exclaimed, holding your hand. The dead town looked really alive tonight, as the red, yellow, purple and other multicolored lights lit the place up, to make it feel even more alive. You were really shocked at the amount of people present, but that’s what made it even more fun.

The first thing had to be food, you got two plates of fries, because, well, is it even possible or human to share food? And that too, fries? No way. 

Jungkook had recently discovered ketchup, and now he would dip everything in it before eating. Ramen, dipped in ketchup. Chips, dipped in ketchup. Bread, dipped in ketchup. And now, you saw him cover every single chip in ketchup before eating it. While you thought this was disgusting, you were still amused by his new found love for it.

You both scared a giant cup of strawberry milkshake, that looked like it was out of a romcom, cotton candy pink color, with whipped cream on top. And naturally, the cherry. Your noses touched, as you both drank at the same time, and you couldn’t help but want to live in the moment forever.

You both had spent the night, either enjoying rides that were too scary, and hazardous to experience but at the same time too fun to miss out on, or competition with each other to the next level. You knew Jungkook had always been a competitive little shit, whether it was about who would cook better and faster, or about who loved the other one more, he was always in a competition. This was no exception either, as you both we immersed in a car racing game, where you were well, obviously losing.

You had never really been the best at arcade games, and this car games was extremely frustrating, because the goddamn seat was too big and your legs could barely reach the pedals on the bottom while holding onto the steering wheel simultaneously. He laughed as you struggled to multitask, and at one point you didn’t realise you were going the wrong way until you heard Jungkook laughing so hard, he was struggling to breath. Three tries later, Jungkook had had his fair share of victories as he put you in his lap, and told you to focus on the steering only. He’d handle the pedals part. Together, you guys had broken the fastest record of the day and of course, he had to congratulate you. And the congratulations came in a form of a heated kiss – which wasn’t liked by the Jubals waiting in line to play the game.

Later, you both had way too much fun beating others in basketball as you paired up, and beat a Jubal power couple. Then came the bumper cars. The same Jubal power couple had hit your and Jungkook’s car so hard that you almost flew across the set-up, if it wasn’t for the seatbelt, and Jungkook’s arm around the waist. It was safe to say that Kook took his revenge by hitting their car repeatedly, as he shoved them into a corner. You kissed your over protective boyfriend on the cheek, he was just so fricking cute.

You both ate more food than you could handle, and as you were walking, Jungkook bought a donut and tried to feed you.

“No! No, Kook, I swear!” you tried to get away from him, but he held your waist as he pushed the donut in your mouth, smearing it over your cheek in the process.

“Kook!” you exclaimed, as he kissed you, and licked away any leftover icing.

You couldn’t help but blush when he smirked, “Sweet.”

At the end of it all, you pushed Kook into a small photo booth that sat on the other end of the carnival.

“Please? Come on!” you tried to show him your puppy eyes, and turned your lips into a pout.

“But baby, I don’t look good in photos!” he whined as you inserted the money to take a four portrait photo.

“Please? Just this once? For me?” you pouted again, and pushed him in with you, and you tried to drag his arms.

“You can’t give me the puppy dog face! You know I can’t say no to that!” he whined, adjusting you in his lap.

“Just pose, Kookie,” you said as you closed the red curtain on the side. In the first one, your arms were around his neck as you laughed and looked in the camera, and he looked at you, pouting. The second one, you both looked at each other and smiled, his hands in your hair. The third had been him grabbing your face, squishing you cheeks and bringing you closer (but because of the movement – it was also blurred, at which you were disappointed, but Kook assured you it looked good), and lastly, in the fourth one, you were kissing passionately, while Jungkook smiled in the kiss.

You both climb the small hill, where people are buying and lighting their lanterns in an orderly manner. You both buy one, and you end up writing “JK X Y/N” on it with red paint, and before Jungkook lights it, he adds a red heart, and “4EVER,” underneath which looks so cheesy, that it makes you laugh.

He looks at you, and kisses your forehead. Around 10:30, everyone lets go of their lanterns, and you both also let go of yours, letting it fly in the sky, as Jungkook cups your cheeks and pushes your hair back, before kissing you, sweet and slow.

The night had come to an end as all the Jubals were leaving too. You didn’t know exactly what time it was, but it was definitely i-can’t-walk-o’ clock, as Jungkook gave you a piggy back ride without any questions when he saw you stumbled into others. In one hand you held the teddy bear he had won from the water gun thingy, and in the other you held a cotton candy like sweet – but it wasn’t exactly cotton candy. It was blue and purple, and shined because of the crystallized sugar on it.

The last thing you remember was resting your face where his shoulder and neck met and mumbling, “This was the best day of my life,”

If someone had told you that you’d have a cook off with an alien in two months’ time, you would’ve laughed in their face. But. Here you were. Trying to cook the best alfredo pasta he would ever taste in his life.

You tried to glance on his cooking station multiple times, only to be pushed back, “Baby! It’s supposed to be a surprise!”

Jungkook really seemed to be absorbed in the cooking process, and you were starting to feel deprived of his love and adoration that he would usually shower at you when he was not working in his office.

30 minutes later, he brought you his favourite dish, the one that his mother used to cook for him when he was younger. It was orange red-ish coloured deep fried small cutlets, that smelled… amazing. You couldn’t exactly pinpoint what it tasted like, it was salty, but in a different way. And so, so, yummy. You were a little insecure when Jungkook took a bite of your pasta, and showed no emotion.

Oh no, you had tasted it and it felt pretty normal, juts how you’d make it on Earth. Was he allergic to something in it?

“Baby, what did you put in this?” he asked, but he didn’t seem to stop eating it. He didn’t speak anything until, well, he finished the dish.

“Can you make that for me every day?”

It had been over six months, since you and Jungkook had been seeing each other. Naturally, as a couple you both did fight – mostly over stupid stuff, like which restaurant to go to, or disagreements on what to buy etc. But you both would always sort it out, no matter what it was, he was always by your side.

It was his birthday, and Jubals never really celebrated their birthday – “Why would you celebrate this? I’m just one more year near death,” he said as you told him about ‘Earth Traditions’.

Albeit to whatever he said, you made yourself busy when he went out to meet the gang. You’d met them a couple of times before, being much closer to Taehyung because he never really questioned whatever you did, and just went along with it. You had enjoyed Jimin and Jin’s company as well (mostly because they cooked for you, not gonna lie).

As you hung up the balloons that said, “Happy Birthday!” individually, you had started to well, decorate yourself as well.

You knew how Jungkook always looked at you as if you were the most pure creature in this universe, his innocent little baby, so you decided to dress the part. Dressed in white panties, with a small bow on them, you adjusted your pink tinted, bra that came along with it. It left little to the imagination, as it was see-through, but there were small bows on each nipple, making you look like a present. You’d never really been the one to dress up in stockings as well, but here you were, tweaking your garter, as the pink shaded white see-through material latched on your legs as a second skin. Now, you waited patiently.

He finally came, around half past seven, and looked better than ever. You’d worn your silk robe that you would usually wear around, so he wouldn’t suspect anything. He looked so happy, his eyes crunched up into its usual crescent shape as he laughed while blowing the candles and eating your home-made cake. He had always loved your baking, so when you made his favourite Oreo cake, he was really, really happy. You’d made him a teddy bear – you were bad at sewing, but hey! A for effort.

“Kook, there’s a present in your bedroom too,” you said as you took his left hand and guided him in the bedroom. You had given him several gifts already, so why were you giving him another one?

“Baby, you didn’t have t-“ he stopped as soon as you dropped your robe in front of him, letting him take in the sight of you, clad in your lingerie that he had only imagined in his wildest fantasies.

The light hearted aura around him seemed to vanish, as a darker shade took over his eyes. Without speaking anything, he carried you bridal style, to the bed and laid you down softly on it.

“Gonna let me taint you, angel?” he asked, and at the sight of him, you couldn’t help but moan and nod.

“Use your words, baby,” he said as he let his fingers roam on your figure, and lit a fire in your core, making you overwhelmed.

“Yes, Daddy, please make love to me,” you whine, but he tsks on your choice of words.

“Angel, my princess,” he says as he leaves a trail of wet kisses from your neck to you collarbone, sucking on it, “I’m not going to love to you today, I’m going to fuck you, baby”

You gasp as he circles around the bow on your nipple, before ripping the thin material completely, letting the cool air hit your vulnerable skin.

As Jungkook just keeps looking at you, his long hair shadowing in front of his eyes, you can’t help but feel needy, “Daddy, please, touch me,” you whine, trying to get ahold of his hand.

He gently brings his mouth down, sucking on the little tip of your nipple, as his tongue works magic around it, and you’re already starting to get wet.

“It’s u-unfair that you’re all d-dressed up,” you moan, as you try to take off his white t-shirt. He chuckles as he takes off his shirt, letting you look at his god-like body. You were speechless when you first saw him, and you still are every time you both have sex.

His lean body, is just perfect in every way, and the way the moonlight hits his face, giving his face the shadows that come along with the highlights, you were dumbstruck at how breathtaking he was.

While Jungkook loved to mark you, mark your body, make you his, today was harsher, much more aggressive as he bit your chest, making you cry out in pleasure. He painted your body in hues of purple and bright pink, using his tongue to make each bruise feel better. As soon as he reached the hem of your underwear, he stopped, and that resulting in a whine from you.

“It’s my birthday, and you said I deserve anything on this day. So, princess,” he said, unbuckling his belt, and you swallow hard before he lets his cock free, ”let me fuck those beautiful tits,”

He pushes himself into your mouth without any warning, letting you groan and whimper as you produce enough saliva to make him sopping wet, “Good baby,” he whispers as he lets his dick between your tits.

You smiled, as you held your breasts together, and he slides his hardening member between them, “fuck baby, you’re so soft, so pretty for Daddy,” he murmurs obscene praises as you whimper in pleasure from the friction between your breasts.

He places his cock between them, and first experiments with his movements, and as time passes, he becomes faster, and messier. You both didn’t mind the mess, as his pre-cum lands on your chest, collarbone and nipples, and you can only whine in pleasure while letting him use your body.

His movements go from steady and fast to uncoordinated and stuttering, as he pulls out and pants, letting him catch his breath.

“Fuck, baby, they felt like heaven, but there’s something else, way better,” he grins as pulls himself down on your body, and looks as you underwear, directly. It makes you whimper, when you feel his hot breath through the thin material. He laps his tongue on it, and it feels so good, but not good enough, and you wish he would just take it off.

“Daddy, please, take it off,” you whine and he pulls your legs further apart and digs his face between them.

He smirks and looks at you, already fucked out as a blush stays on your cheeks. Angelic.

“Keep the stockings on, okay, sweetheart?” he says as his finger traced down your leg, as you shiver under his touch.

He comes up to you and cups your face, pressing a kiss against your cheek – and it felt so chaste in comparison to what you both had just done.

And before you could realize, he slips his fingers under the hem of your panties, and shreds them into pieces.

“What do you want from Daddy?” he stops in front of your clit, spreading your lips, waiting for your answer. He knew you were shy, too shy to speak vulgar words, but you were just so needy right now.

“Daddy, I need your tongue,” you speak, and let his tongue sit flat on your bud, it gave enough stimulation, but at the same time not enough, and you just needed more. You couldn’t help but buckle your hips into his face, and that resulted in his getting up and looking at you, making eye contact.

“You’re being ungrateful now, huh?” he says as he smacks the bud hard, where seconds ago he let his tongue rest. It’s painful, but at the same time, it just feels so, so good. He smacks it two more times before letting his teeth sink in your inner thigh, as you let lewd noises escape your mouth, as he further marks your thighs, and you knew, for sure that they would last a long time.

After a lifetime of teasing, he lets his tongue slurp the cum that escaped your pussy, as he went to town on it, eating you out as if he’s been starving for years. You let your moans escape as he slips his tongue inside you, and lets his nose rub against your clit. You were so close, just about to fall off the edge as he pulls himself away, and you whimper, grabbing the sheets as if your life depended on them.

“Your cunt is always, always so pretty and tasty for Daddy,” he smacks between your thighs again, making you gasp, “always ready for Daddy,”

His ruffled, brown hair shines in the dark of the room, the moonlight being the only source of light, illuminating his face.

He lets his dick enter you, gently, until you reach your limit and instead of waiting like he always does, he rams back into you again, letting you adjust with his steady movements, as you grab his hand and hold it. He always holds your hand when he’s being rough, to let you know that he can stop anytime. (but u is a hoe)

He slides out until only his tip is inside you, and lets himself into you all at once, fast and reckless. Wild. It isn’t long before your walls clench around him, “Daddy, I-I’m so close,” you say as your rub you clit, slowly with a continual movement.

You orgasm starts first, hot and sticky liquid, dripping down you thigh, staining your perfect stockings, and soon Jungkook follows, as his head buries in your neck, and he groans before letting himself loose.

“Happy Birthday, Kookie,” you whisper before letting him take you to the tub, where you both well, fuck again.

LINK TO MASTERLIST 

A/N: It’s always so fun to write alien!jk, and I hoped you guys liked it. Also, a huge thank you to @bisoo-ausucre for supporting me so much!

Could you please help me decide what to write first? Frat boy!jk OR titanic!au with Jimin as Jack? 

As always, requests are open, and so is my inbox. See you next time!

[lunar-girl-fic]

Against All Odds- Week 1

Warning: Harrassment/assault, language, suggestive, threats

Y/N POV

Word Count: 2530

A/N: As mentioned before this is based on my personal life. Even though not everything in this story happened, some of the more serious topics actually did. So a quick warning, there is content in here than can make the reader uncomfortable, specifically se**** harassment/assault. My intention in mentioning this in the series is to make people aware that this kind of stuff does actually happen in places you might not think it happens in. Also I try write relatable content. In my opinion Y/N reaction was kind of realistic. I reacted like that as well but instead of telling a boyfriend I told my close friend who worked with me and his reaction was the same as Eunwoo’s. Soooo in conclusion I hope you don’t think I’m writing this to be insensitive. I’m just trying to be as realistic as possible since it is based off my life.

A/N 2: I am a brown (If ya wanna know my exact ethnicity you could ask and I'll gladly tell :)), curly hair girl and since this is based on my personal life/experience I'm gonna write this series with those details in mind.

*Beep beep beep beep*

Your turned to your side to turn your alarm clock off. When you turned it off you gently pried the hands that were on your waist off. Even though your boyfriend was going to school the same time and place as you, you wanted to get ready first so you could make breakfast.

You took a quick shower and put on some home clothes because you didn't want to mess up your new uniform. After dressing you woke up Eunwoo.

"Eunwoo wake up" You said while shaking his shoulder.

He lifted his head towards you and barely opened his eyes, "Mmmh 5 more minutes", he mumbled dropping his head back onto the pillow.

You understood why he was so tired. You guys had stayed up late finishing the homework assignment that was due today. Had you guys known it was going to take so long you would've done it a week before but there's no point in dwelling on the past.

You shook him again, "Eunwoo, you have to get up. Class starts in an hour." He turned onto his back and whined.

"Morning sleepy head."

"Mornin’“

"You should start getting ready. We don't know how this man handles lateness."

"But I'm soooo tired." He said as he grabbed you and pulled you back onto the bed.

"I know, so am I."

"I can think of a couple ways to help us feel more energized." He said while caressing your thigh.

"So can I and it's called a shower and breakfast." You said while slapping his hand away.

He pouted, "You're no fun."

"I'll be sure to remind you of that next time you wanna have se-"

"Okay okay you win."

"I always do, now hurry up and get ready. You have about 15 minutes to shower and eat."

"Hmph, unlike you I don't take an hour just to shower."

"Wh-what?!? I don't take an hour!"

"How would you know if you've never timed yourself?"

"Well-I-you-"

"My point exactly." He said with a smirk as he closed the bathroom door.

You scoffed in disbelief but then thought about it. Maybe you did take an hour to shower but who cares. At least you were thorough when you cleaned yourself. You put your school uniform on and packed you and Eunwoo's lunch. Even though your school was close to fast food places, you guys needed to save up to pay for necessities. Plus who knows if your professor is actually going to give you a long enough break to buy food in those dreadfully long lines.

Just as you finished packing lunch Eunwoo walked out of your shared room fully dressed. You looked down at your watch and realized it was time to go if you guys wanted a seat close to the front.

As Eunwoo went to take a bite of his breakfast you snatched it out of his hand and bagged it.

"Hey! I was about to eat that."

"I don't think so, you took too long to get ready so now you have to eat it on the way."

"Sounds like too much work." He said as he tried to grab his food out of your hand. Of course since you were smaller than him you were able to escape and quickly ran to your bookbag to put his food in it.

After you zipped up your bag, you turned to look at your pouting boyfriend.

"As I said before your going to eat on the way there but since you'll be driving I'll feed you. How does that sound?"

His face beamed at your offer, "Let's get going then."

As you promised you fed him on the way there. By the time you arrived you had about 5 minutes to spare. Before you guys entered the gym you saw one of your classmates you made friends with when you took Pharmacology.

"Hey Laura!"

Laura turned around to see who was calling her name. When she saw who it was she instantly smiled. "Y/N! How are you?"

"I'm good, how have you been?"

"Pretty good, can't really complain." She said but then looked at Eunwoo who was just standing there looking like a teen whose mom just saw an old friend. You wouldn't have mind at first since this would be the first time she ever saw him. But the look she was giving him ignited a fire in you that only happens when you get jealous and that doesn't happen often. So you just stood there and tried your best to keep smiling and act like nothing was wrong.

"Who's your friend?"

"This is Eunwoo, my boyfriend." You said making sure to put emphasis on the boyfriend.

"It's nice to meet you." He said sticking his hand out for a handshake. She shook his hand. An action that is generally an innocent and friendly greeting seemed so wrong in that moment that you couldn't take it anymore.

"Ohh would you look at the time, we should probably go find a seat before all the good ones are taken." You said while pulling on Eunwoo's arm.

"Maybe we can sit together." Laura said as she tried to catch up to you guys.

"Mmmm I don't think we'll be able to." You said while you scanned the room for a row with only two seats available.

Bingo you thought when you saw row 3 only had 2 seats. You quickly pulled Eunwoo to the spot. You looked back to see what Laura was going to do and saw the look of defeat on her face. Which of course brought a smile to your face but quickly dropped it for a look of remorse.

Once you both pushed your chairs closer to each other you sat down and pulled out your syllabus, textbook and notebooks. You didn't even have a chance to talk to Eunwoo because it just turned 8 o'clock.

"Okay, Let's get started." The class immediately got quiet. "Welcome to Process 1, this is where you will learn the fundamental skills of nursing. I covered most questions in our previous zoom meeting so I will not be answering any today unless it has to do with the material. As I said before you must abide by the rules because this is Nursing and we need to shape you into future nurses. I will NOT baby you because this is college and if your looking for an easy class then you can go do Business Administration."

Oh great, another smart a**, you thought.

"Now let's get down to business. Today we're going to be watching videos of what you are going to do for your head-to-toe assessments. But before we do that I am going to let the other clinical instructors introduce themselves."

After they introduced themselves your professor started the videos. At first they seemed interesting but then after a while you started to get sleepy. And you weren't the only one. You looked over at Eunwoo and he was already sleeping. You gently pushed his shoulder and he woke confused about his surrounding until he realized he was still in school. Thankfully your professor finally gave you guys a break from watching videos.

"Okay now we are going to practice what you just saw. I want you to take a finger and find the 1st intercostal space and then the 2nd and don't stop until you get to the 5th one. You will do this on yourselves first and in a few minutes on your partner. But when you are with your partner you will only go to the 2nd one. "

That shouldn't be too hard, it's literally just the space between your ribs, you thought. But boy were you wrong. You couldn't tell if what you were touching was a space or something else and it started to hurt because you were putting a good amount of pressure. You looked over at Eunwoo and surprisingly he seemed to know what he was doing.

The few minutes were up and your professor told you to find a partner and find their intercostal spaces. Obviously you chose Eunwoo as your partner.

"Did you find it on yourself yet?"

"Yepp, it was actually pretty easy to find."

"Can you help me please?"

"Are you sure you want me to touch there?" He said with a smirk.

You narrowed your eyes at him, "Fine. I'll ask someone else. Maybe that guy by the projector... "

"No don't do that."

"Then help me and don't you dare try to do anything."

"Yes ma'am."

He took his pointing finger and started in the upper middle of your chest and dragged it side to side. In a non sexual way of course. He found it to be bit difficult to find it because of the fat in your boobs. However he finally found it.

"Ah, there it is."

"You found it?"

"I found two of them. The other 4 are a bit difficult to find since they’re underneath your top. The only way I can find it is if I stick my hand in your top."

"Eunwoo." You warned.

"What? I was just saying. I never said I was actually going to." He said feigning innocence.

"Could of fooled me."

He just shrug his shoulders, "Give me your finger so I can help you locate it."

It took a minute before he was able to locate it again but when you finally felt it you let out a breath of relief. You knew you needed to find this for your finals and if you weren't able to you surely would fail the class.

"Do you feel it?"

"Mhmm"

"Good, now find mine"

Since Eunwoo had a flatter chest than you it was easier to find despite him laughing from being ticklish. Before you had a chance to tell him your finding, your professor interrupted you.

"Fooling around isn't going to get you to pass my class."

"But we-" You said.

"Aa! Talking back isn't going to help you pass either. Now go find another partner. You need to practice on your other classmates because your not going to know who you'll be testing with until testing day."

You felt your insides boiling. You had to deal with this crap in high school and now your dealing with this in college. When he left you let out a strained sigh and Eunwoo instantly rubbed circles in your back to calm you down. Normally you would welcome this but you didn't want the professor coming back over to scold you so you pushed his hand off. He looked at you clearly hurt by your actions but you brushed it off and went to find a new partner. Unfortunately the only person available was actually the guy by the projector but at this point you didn't care.

You walked up to him and tapped his shoulder, "Excuse me, do you uh have a partner?"

He turned around to see who tapped his shoulder. You expected him to answer but then he started to check you out with a smirk on his face. "Well hello there, what can I help you with beautiful?"

You rolled your eyes, "I asked do you have a partner?"

"Oooo sassy too, I like"

You narrowed your eyes and turned to walk away, "I don't have time for this."

"Wait! I'm sorry I was just surprised you asked me when you have your boyfriend."

"Not trying to be mean or anything but I wouldn't had asked you if I wasn't forced to choose another partner."

He looked at you slightly deflated by your confession, "Ah... I see but since you need a new partner I'll gladly take the spot for now." He said as he got up to make his chest more accessible.

"...okay... thanks I guess."

At first it started off fine., You were able to find it on him rather quickly. However when it was his turn that's when it turned into a problem. He found the first one and gradually went lower until he reached the beginning of hem of your scrub top. You expected him to stop there but when he started to put his hand lower in your top you instantly jumped back.

"Wh-what are you doing?!?!?!"

"Just doing what we were told to do."

"You were supposed to stop at 2."

"Was I? Must've misheard, my bad." If you weren't paying attention to his tone you would've thought he was being sincere just by his facial expression.  

Not wanting to cause a scene the first ay of class you excused yourself and went  back tp your seat to think about what just happened. Was this something you would need to report or were you over exaggerating? Should you tell Eunwoo? What if the guy was right and made you get in trouble for not listening to instructions? All those questions raced through your mind until Eunwoo saw your troubled face and left his partner to comfort.

"Hey, you okay?" He asked as he placed a comforting hand on your back not caring if the professor saw.

"Yea... actually no."

"What happened?"

"I was working with that guy over and he was about to put his fingers down my shirt before I stopped him."

Eunwoo's gaze instantly hardened and if looks could kill that guy would no more. But you couldn't have your boyfriend fighting your battles for you. You gently cupped his face with your hands and made him look at you.

"Promise me your not going to do anything."

"I don't know..."

"Promise me."

"I can't promise I won't do anything but I do promise to not intervene over something you can handle."

"I guess I can take that."

"You'll have to because I am not about to just let some guy touch you like that without your permission. He's lucky I wasn't there because he surely would've been picking his teeth off the floor."

"You know, I never took you as the violent type."

"I can promise you I'm not but this is a different story."

That was the end of the conversation because your professor continued on with the rest of the lesson which was fairly easy. He dismissed the class an hour earlier since it was the first day. However when you guys went home instead of relaxing you started your clinical homework because you didn't want a repeat of what happened last night.

It was about 11 o'clock when you finished half of the assignments. Eunwoo was starting to lose focus so you decided it was time to go to bed. After you finished putting on his t-shirt and your curls in a bun, you went to join him in bed. He pulled you closer to him so that there was barely any space between the two of you. You knew this was his way of silently comforting you. He wasn’t going to lie. He was looking forward to having sex with you but after todays events he knew you probably weren't going to be in the mood and just want to sleep off the days problem. You were thankful but deep down you knew you weren't going to get much sleep that night...

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the photo’s used. I got them off of Google.

A/N: Soooo sorry for the long wait. I had so much to write that Ii realized I couldn’t put everything in this one post. On that note I’m hoping I can have the next post up by next week. :)

[angelruel]

4 am

       summary: the reader wakes up in the middle of the night and just wants to be away from Ruel, but he wants the exact opposite.

masterlist

Word Count: 1.2 k

       After tossing and turning for a solid thirty minutes, Y/N finally sat up in the bed she shared with Ruel. If it weren’t for his overbearing snoring, she would’ve forgotten that she had even traveled the day before to visit him in Sydney. 

       She was exhausted from the 16-hour flight and unexpected layover that kept her awake much longer than she intended. She ended up arriving in the morning and was welcomed with open arms. The only downside to visiting Ruel was that he always wanted to make the most of her stay, which included various activities with his friends and family. Y/N loved spending time with the love of her life and she understood that he just wanted to make as many memories as possible with the time period they were given, considering that she was scheduled to leave only two days later.  However, once the sun started to set, she felt her body begin to shut down for good and was overwhelmed with a feeling of lethargy. Ruel understood her body language right away and they called an early night ending with her falling asleep on his chest 15 minutes into the first episode of Rick and Morty. 

       He didn’t mind, though. Ruel could tell that Y/N was tired from their shopping trip and visit to his old high school to watch him play a few scrimmages with friends. As much as he loved having his girlfriend around his family in the place he grew up and held so dearly, he didn’t want to burn her out. Besides, watching Rick and Morty with a sleeping Y/N was much better in person than over Facetime like usual. So he let her rest and followed suit about an hour later. They laid there in a warm embrace on his bed with his arms wrapped tightly around her shoulders and her dainty hand pressed against his chest. 

       Too warm, actually. Because there she was, drenched in sweat, wide awake and still stuck in Ruel’s arms. He looked so sweet and comfortable. She didn’t want to disturb him. However, the warmth was getting unbearable. Australian summers were no joke. Y/N managed to turn her head and read Ruel’s digital clock which read the time as 4:15. She sighed in frustration after deciding that she needed to get out of this grip before she had a heat stroke. Ruel was a deep sleeper so he barely reacted to his arm being moved and shifted into a position of hugging himself. She smiled at his softness before turning so their backs were facing each other. The last thing she wanted to do was wake him up because Ruel had tendencies to be extra clingy when he first woke up and she was already hot enough without his added body heat. 

       She started to slowly shed her body of her shirt and pants to try and minimize her discomfort without making too much noise. Naturally, she grabbed her phone off of his nightstand and opened twitter to keep herself entertained while she cooled down. 

       That didn’t last long, however. Ruel was moving entirely too much in his sleep. She wasn’t sure if it was because of her absence or if there was something else bothering him. Regardless, Y/N put her phone back down and turned to wrap her arm around his lanky figure. Burying her face into his back, she embraced the comfort she felt from this one man who had changed her life in so many positive ways over the past year. She loved being the big spoon even though it wasn’t something she got to do very often. She knew he secretly loved it although he always insisted on being the big spoon. It wasn’t long before she felt hot again and reached for her phone once more to play Mario Kart, still facing Ruel. 

       She wasn’t far into her first race before she felt Ruel shuffling once again. She didn’t hear when his snoring stopped, but in a matter of seconds he was facing her with squinting eyes. 

       He still seemed disoriented and it was clear that he was trying to figure out why Y/N was wide awake. She tried to ignore him and finish her race that she was a little too focused on. 

      “Hmmm what are you doing?” Ruel hummed. The deepness in his voice was stirring a feeling deep inside of her that was all too familiar. Nevertheless, she ignored it and tried to complete her race.

       Ruel huffed at the lack of attention he was receiving and pushed her phone down. Although he was sleepy, he moved her phone with enough force to block her from grabbing it back quickly. 

       “What the fuck? I was winning,” she hissed before being interrupted by Ruel’s lips smashing into hers. She kissed him back with hesitance because she was still annoyed that he ruined her game but she missed him. Ruel wrapped one of his arms around her neck, pulled her closer, and began to shower her with multiple sloppy kisses. It was kinda hot, but not as hot as the temperature in the room at the moment. 

       Y/N tried to halt the little makeout session to get some distance from him.

       “Stop, your breath stinks,” she said in an attempt to repel him.

       “Hm, so does yours,” He retorted quickly in a chuckle. 

       She responded by covering her face with her hands in a shy manner which he removed quickly to kiss her again. She only fought back a little, but not enough to actually get away from him.

       “Why your lips so soft, huh” he asked with a love sick look on his face. She loved when he got like this. Y/N loved the way Ruel would treat her first thing in the morning or after he woke up from a nap. He always seemed so happy to turn around and see her right there and have her all to himself. The way he behaved in a cheerful yet sloppy manner after just waking up almost made it seem like he was drunk off of her. 

       She laughed back at his actions and went to grab her phone but was met by Ruel’s hand grabbing hers.

       “No,” he said. He wrapped his arms around her tightly but she pushed her way out against his chest almost immediately. He looked equally hurt and confused. A fully conscious Ruel would’ve picked up on the fact that she was uncomfortable, but the half-asleep Ruel that she was dealing with had no idea why his girl wanted nothing to do with him. 

       “Ugh, it’s just too hot, baby. I’m too hot right now. Look, I’m sweating.”

       Almost immediately, Ruel ripped the duvet blanket from them both and onto the floor, exposing their half naked bodies.

       “Ahh what the fuck-now it’s gonna be too cold Ruel.”

       He voice murmured in response, “Yeah, you’re welcome.”

       He pulled her in once more against his chest and this time she doesn’t fight back at all. As frustrating as it was, she couldn’t help but give the man what he wanted. So they laid there, both of them half naked, half asleep, in the dark resting in each other’s silence. She soon found comfort in Ruel’s embrace and fell back asleep. 

[cherrysung]

mon amour

pairing: jisung x reader

genre: strangers to lovers au / fluff

warnings: mucho fluff

prompts: none

summary: a short walk to the convenience store paired with your clumsy feet gifted you the world’s biggest heart, and an answer to the question that had always haunted you.

not requested.

word count: 1.6k

note: this is my first scenario, I hope you enjoy it!

cherrysung’s navigation

Love is a very strong word, with many different meanings at that. One people use too much sometimes, and one people regret not having used. How do you know when you love someone? Do you mean it? Do people mean it? How do you even know when you mean it?

You often wondered as a kid what the word and action—love—meant.

Strangely enough, you weren’t thinking about love that one day your mom sent you out on your way to the convenience store in need of some eggs for your dinner. You also weren’t aware of how clumsy your feet generally are as you mindlessly walked back home, the sun that set behind the mountains providing you with a last bit of warmth before cool nighttime took over.

And so; your mind somewhere else, your feet struggling to find a nice pace, and the bag of eggs in your gentle grip dangling from side to side—you tripped.

Not surprising.

What was surprising, though, was the fact your body never hit the ground, but was rather caught by what felt like two strong, lean arms.

“Are you okay?” The person who was once nonexistent in your life, and then suddenly a stranger, asked with genuine concern. He looked young, almost your age, but his beauty was definitely something out of this world. His face was flawlessly highlighted by the last rays of golden sunshine, thin rimmed glasses resting on the bridge of his nose, and his white earplugs dangling by his ears after lightly taking them off.

Quickly pulling away from his grasp with tinted cheeks, you nodded, avoiding the stare that was calmly taking in your flustered expression with a hint of amusement.

“You... dropped this?” The boy smiled sheepishly, realizing the bag you were previously carrying, was full of eggs... that unfortunately cracked.

If anything now your face was completely red without a doubt, unable to deal even with the smallest amounts of embarrassment. “Don’t worry about it.” You managed to speak up. “I can buy more.” But your worries only increased as you noticed the sun had completely set, and your mind began filling with thoughts of your stressed, preoccupied mother that pondered over your lack of early arrival.

The freakishly tall boy smiled again, his narrow eyes creasing ever so slightly and his nose scrunching up in an attempt to push his glasses up. “Here,” your eyes watched as he raised his arm a tiny bit, noticing the bag of eggs that his hand, unlike yours, actually held tightly. “Don’t go to the store, it’s late already, which is not safe at all. Take these, I have more at home so it’s fine.”

Your mind was telling you to decline his offer. Yes, it was only a bag of eggs, but your mom always warned you to not talk to strangers, much less accept something from them. But, something in your heart told you to take them. He looked like a very kind boy—timid, but very nice. Also, why not? Your mom was going to beat you if you got home without them.

Reluctantly, your hand reached out, grabbing the bag of white and beige eggs before a smile etched its way onto your face, “what’s your name?”

“Park Jisung.” Your new acquaintance, or at least you hoped he was, answered as his lips mirrored your own, quickly throwing in a small folded, ripped paper into the bag held by your much smaller hands, unknowing to you. “I have to go, but I hope we can meet again.”

Your eyes watched as who used to be nonexistent in your life, then a stranger and now an acquaintance, calmly turned around and began making his way home. You panicked, wondering if you’d ever actually meet him again, “wait! My name is Y/N!”

Now you find yourself here, laying in bed, remembering how you met the boy who you once thought was only someone you randomly crossed paths with on the streets because he offered some of his help.

You didn’t know you’d get home that day only to be yelled at by your mother, or that you would find the ripped piece of paper Jisung smoothly dropped into the plastic bag when you weren’t looking. Much less did you ever think his phone number would be messily written down on it.

More so, you did not think you would actually text him.

As you stroke the sleeping boy’s hair next to you, you realize that’s one of the best spontaneous options you’ve decided to choose. A simple action brought so much joy into your dull life.

Little did you know so much would follow; little hangouts—whether it be at his house or yours, a couple parties and late reunions at shady diners. Your life became so colorful with Jisung in it, so interesting and so full of happiness, you didn’t even notice the day you caught feelings. Even Jisung himself didn’t notice when he caught feelings for you either.

After many hangouts, parties and late meetups at shady diners, same routine after same routine—followed little, cute study dates neither of you dared admit were really just dates, with the study excuse excluded. Eventually came your actual first official date arrived when Jisung finally found the courage within his system to ask you out.

By your fifth romantic occasion, followed your first kiss, a day engraved in your mind you will never forget and certainly one of the most special. Maybe it was the innocence of the moment and how you both were inexperienced with no idea on how it worked, or maybe it was the millions of butterflies that created chaos in the depths of your stomach as Jisung leaned down to press his lips to yours. He was intoxicating, the faint scent of strawberries and baby shampoo in his messy locks filling your entire senses as your lips molded against his slowly.

It was a very short and sweet kiss, with accidental teeth clashing initially due to your lack of experience. Even still with many small mistakes, it was full of trust and love and pureness that you wouldn’t change for anything else.

Yet again, you didn’t notice the day you fell in love, neither did he.

Realization eventually dawned upon you, when you started hearing in your ears how your heart thumped crazily against your chest every time your eyes landed on him no matter how many times you had already seen him before. How you felt like your world was complete if he was in it, and how you felt sad when he was sad, or happy when he was happy. Every single little thing he did was enough for you to burst out into excitement; but most importantly, his presence or voice alone could make your heart do so many consecutive leaps.

You came to the conclusion that it was indeed love, when anything that you did together took a special place in the secrecy of your fragile heart and emotions. Jisung could take you to a cheap restaurant, write down adorable letters instead of gifting you expensive jewelry or Valentine’s Day chocolates. The two of you could simply stay at home after ordering questionable takeout from the corner chicken shop while you watched cringey movies with awful scripts, the list could go on. In spite of any of those things who anybody would deem wrong, you love him. At the end of the day, you’ve saved and appreciated all of those memories sincerely; and still do, like now.

As your fingers kept running through his brown locks gently, you finally understood this was the meaning of love that you had been searching for all along. Love for you wasn’t what you heard in the movies or read in the books. Love, for you, is Jisung. Your love lives in him, he is your love.

A soft whine brought you out of your endless thoughts, your head turning to look at the very sleepy boy beside you as his eyes opened slowly to look up at you.

Your heart did a leap, as always. Even with a tired, swollen face, messy hair and an angry pout, Jisung still looked flawless in your eyes.

“Y/N, what are you doing awake at 4 in the morning, it’s so late?” Your boyfriend slurred, his eyes struggling to remain open.

You sent him a small smile, shifting on the soft mattress until your arms were carefully secured around his waist and his head rested happily on your rising chest with every breath you took.

“I was thinking about something called love. it used to be a mystery to me.”

His head turned to look up at you slightly, hair sticking in all directions and some covering his forehead, it was a sight you never wanted to forget. “Used to? Did you find your answer?” He asked, but spoke up once again with a playful glimmer in his honeyed eyes, “oh, I know. You love me.”

An unsurprised chuckle left your lips at your boyfriend’s cocky words, but you nodded your head anyways, “I don’t only love you, Jisung. You are quite literally the love of my life, I’m sure of it.”

“I don’t only love you either. You are also the meaning of love, to be frank, I am impossibly infatuated with you.” Jisung answered with blushing cheeks. “Love really is unpredictable and can come from nowhere, even from meeting a strange girl whose eggs cracked because she wasn’t aware of her ungraceful walking.”

You cracked a laugh, jokingly smacking his head softly. “Yes, and because of a boy who basically slid into my DM’s in real life.”

Gentle snores sounded throughout the room as they slowly left Jisung’s slightly parted lips, head still on your chest as your hand resumed with its massage on his scalp. You whispered quietly before closing your eyes.

“It was you all along. The one you love defines love.”

That’s how your journey on ‘what does love mean?’ came to a finish.

The answer was very obvious. It was your boyfriend, Park Jisung. Your love.

[ikeromantic]

Shingen Vignettes

This post is for @thesirenwashere who requested some scenes from Shingen’s route that might happen if he seduced MC in Chapter 8 - I didn’t realize that when I replied privately the ask would disappear xD

I hope you like this - it’s my first try at writing Shingen!

4 vignettes - approx 1500 words, fluff, some angst.

The Morning After

Yukimura stood outside the dining room. His arms were crossed, and his frown furrowed deep lines across his forehead. Sasuke approached, his lord Kenshin in tow. The ninja looked tired, and perhaps, a little hungover. Uesugi looked the way he always did, cold and imperious.

Soft laughter came from the room beyond Yuki, and the clatter of plates.

“Don’t go in there.”

Sasuke stopped, his flat expression conveying a lack of interest to any but the most discerning friend. Only the slight twitch of his brows gave away his curiosity.

Kenshin’s expression of distaste didn’t shift either, but he did stop. “Why?”

“It’s . . . disgusting.” Yuki took a deep breath. “If we wait, I’m sure they’ll finish. Then we can eat in peace.”

“I’m hungry now.” Kenshin started to push past, but Sasuke grabbed his arm.

The ninja caught on a little faster than his lord. “Why don’t we train first? I remember hearing it’s more effective to do so first thing in the morning.”

Yukimura nodded. “I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I’d rather go practice with you two than to go back - in there.” He glanced at the closed door, the opaque rice paper looked golden in the morning light, as if only good things lay past it.

Kenshin considered this offer. He almost looked swayed, but then he shook his head. “No. Let go of me.” He pulled his arm from Sasuke’s grasp and began to slide the door open.

Beyond it, in a world of sunlight and drifting blossoms, Shingen and his angel were having breakfast together. The warlord was dressed in his nightrobe, bare legs sticking out under the table. And the girl’s clothes were disheveled. Her kimono hung half off her shoulder, revealing the tender curve of her collarbone, the beginning swell of a breast.

“Is he . . . eating a strawberry off her neck?” Sasuke’s voice sounded strangled.

“No. Just licking the juices,” Yuki groaned, shutting his eyes.

Kenshin slid the panel closed. “I want to go train. Now.”

~

Goodbye to My Angel

Yukimura brought his lord another bottle of sake. He knelt beside the table and poured them both a full cup. He sat down across from Shingen and watched him toss back the cloudy drink in one gulp. 

“Don’t you think you’ve had enough tonight? You aren’t trying to match Kenshin are you?” Yuki frowned as Shingen held his cup out for a refill. 

His lord said nothing, just held the cup out.

“You could at least wait until I have a chance to drink too,” Yukimura grumbled.

“I can’t.”

“You can’t wait?” 

Shingen filled his own cup. “No. I can’t . . .” His mouth twisted, his eyes closed with sudden pain.

Yuki was to his feet in a heartbeat. “Is it - is it your illness?”

“No. Sit down, Yukimura.” Shingen turned his face away, taking several breaths to bring his emotions back under control.

They were a frightening several moments for Yuki. Though he teased his lord about his various indulgences, he’d never seen him lose control of himself for even a moment. Takeda was a fortress - unassailable. But the walls of his heart were breached, and it showed.

When Shingen turned back, he wore a grim smile. “I am considering our plan. There has to be another way - a better way.”

“Better than what?” Yukimura drained his own cup quickly, hiding his discomfort.

“I can’t just send my angel back to the devil king.”

“Is that what this is about? The girl?”

Shingen’s eyes flashed in the lamplight. “Goddess. Angel. Not a mere ‘girl’ Yukimura.”

“Yes, my lord,” he answered, almost automatically. “But - didn’t she want to go back?”

Shingen sighed, looking down again. “She asked to see them.”

“Then let her.” Those three words gave voice to a thousand concerns. All of the talks they shared about the future of the Kai. Shingen’s illness. The possibilities inherent in victory or defeat. 

“I can’t.” The pain in Shingen’s voice hurt Yuki to hear. 

With all the compassion he could manage, Yukimura replied. “You must. For her sake.” His lord did not reply.

~

Princess of the Oda

Mitsuhide and Masamune sat at the campfire. Their chatelaine was in the nearest tent, where Kojuro and Kyubei sat watch.

“Glad to have the lass back.” Masamune poked the fire with a stick. 

Mitsuhide nodded. “As am I, for however brief the visit.”

“Brief?”

A new voice interrupted before Mitsuhide could reply. “My luck charm will stay here until I decide otherwise.” Nobunaga’s jaw was firm, his mouth drawn in a frown, but his eyes laughed.

Mitsuhide gave a half bow from where he sat. “As you say, my lord. I’m sure she’ll be obedient to your will.”

“She couldn’t be obedient if her life depended on it.” This, from Ieyasu, as he sat down beside Masamune.

Mitsuhide raised an eyebrow. “I imagine she’s quite biddable. For some.” 

This comment earned him a laugh from Masamune and a smile from Nobunaga. 

“What does that mean?” Mitsunari’s innocent question floated out of the nearby darkness. “I was going to my tent, but I heard you talking about the chatelaine.” He looked from Mitsuhide to Masamune for an answer.

Ieyasu scowled. “It doesn’t mean anything. Go to bed.”

“It means the lass has been compromised. I suppose she admires something other than Takeda’s tactics or his horsemanship.” Firelight reflected from Masamune’s eyepatch, giving it a red glow. It was quite menacing, with that wild smile he wore.

“Oh, I’m sure she’s a fan of his riding skills,” Mitsuhide disagreed.

Mitsunari smiled. “Oh? Do you think she’s learned how to ride during her time in Kasugayama?”

“I’m sure she has,” Nobunaga answered. 

“That’s wonderful. Maybe she and I can ride to Sawayama together one day.” Mitsunari glanced toward her tent. “She would like it there, I think.”

Masamune laughed so hard his eye teared up. Even Mitsuhide could not hide a wide smile.

“You are disgusting.” Ieyasu huffed. “Come on, Mitsunari. We need to rest for tomorrow. Let’s go.” He stood and grabbed his friend’s arm. 

“Riding skills,” Nobunaga shook his head. 

Mitsuhide shrugged. “Should I put a watch on her during the battle tomorrow?”

Nobunaga considered this. His carnelian eyes were opaque, impossible to guess what thoughts he had in those moments of silence. “No,” he said finally. “I think I will let her have her head. And I think . . . if you force a luck charm, it will only break.”

“That’s right. You have to win them over. Another reason to challenge Takeda. I can’t wait!” Masamune’s fierce excitement made his lord smile.

“Good luck with that,” Mitsuhide replied.

~

Medicine

Shingen’s throat still held the stitches from his surgery. He touched them with a fingertip.

“What are you thinking about?” His angel rolled over to look at him. Her face was framed by loose hair, her eyes half-lidded and sleepy.

Shingen could not help but brush a kiss to her lips. “I was thinking I needed to hear my goddess before I sleep tonight.” 

She shivered, and that half lidded gaze suddenly looked a lot less sleepy. “How do you do that?”

“Mmmm?” He pulled her close and stroked her side lightly, enjoying her curves, even through the fabric of her night robe.

His angel snuggled closer to his chest. “Distract me with . . . mmm, just a kiss. You’re a dangerous man, Mr. Takeda.” She laughed softly, her breath ticking the sensitive skin of his chest.

“I could ask you the same.” He looked down at the top of her head. “You asked what I was thinking. Just, that I came so close to losing my goddess. I still can’t believe I - I let you get away from me. Twice. And yet, you came back to me.”

She nodded, settling an arm against his side. “I knew that we would find each other again.”

Her simple faith and unwavering trust made his heart pound. She really was an angel, he thought. 

Moonlight streamed through the curtains, painting the bed in its silver glow. “Just like that first night.” Shingen smiled. His hand slid under her gown to caress skin.

“You’re supposed to be resting.” That’s what she said, but her hand made its way down to his hip, where she drew lazy circles with her fingertips.

“Love restores us.”

His angel laughed. She looked up and kissed him as he rolled her onto her back. “Shingen . . . what about your stitches? And - “

She didn’t have any other words as he began to kiss her belly. He loved the taste of her. And the sounds she made when he gave her pleasure. That was all the medicine a man needed. 

[entomjinx]

Here's 1554 words on Why Gray/Juvia is toxic for both parties + receipts and a small personal anecdote about why I'll never shut up about this: 

Google doc Or click keep reading:

Firstly, Juvia gets very little growth as a character, to the point that even by the end of the series, she is still entirely obsessed with Gray and it's basically her only character trait(in canon). Everything she does is in someway related to Gray. Had she gotten real character development, I think I really would have loved her, but instead she was made to be nothing but someone who has an obsession with Gray. (Which clearly stemmed from hero-worship, and had it only lasted a short time with her coming to her senses and apologizing for it, then it might have been a good subplot!)

Secondly, even if she had gotten better, that would not erase the fact that she is a stalker and never even apologized. Even if she had apologized, Gray isn’t obligated to forgive her. Gray rejected her multiple times in canon(see bottom), and she continued to come on to him. If their roles were reversed, and it was Gray doing this to Juvia, everyone would be disgusted by the ship. There's a double standard around it. During the one year time skip when she forced him to live with her for 6 months while he was emotionally compromised, there was emotional manipulation similar to what is found in  Stockholm Syndrome patients. In several fields of psychology, it's been tested(and confirmed) that in 99% of cases where a person dates their stalker, it is because of their manipulation during moments of high emotion(typically negative, chapter 416) often caused by the stalker themself but sometimes by outside elements(like with Gray(chapter 416), and yet again, is similar to Stockholm Syndrome). They only thing that happened between them is that she emotionally manipulated Gray into being complacent. 

Thirdly, SHE WAS A STALKER. Period. There is NO justifying that for any reason. She made him uncomfortable in canon. He openly said he was uncomfortable IN CANON. She followed him around to places he thought he was safe, and made those places unsafe, and it affected his mental state in a visible way. 

Fourthly, Gray is someone who cares deeply about his nakama, which makes him ignore a lot of his own problems if that means helping them, which is why he tried to let her down easily at first. He still protected her, because even though she made him uncomfortable, she's still a member of Fairy Tail. 

Fifthly, she has several delusions about Gray, as are shown in canon, which are vastly different to how Gray actually is. Which means she's likely in love with her own idea of him, and not Gray himself (Again, this stems from the hero-worship and obsession). So while the delusions are played up for comedy and don't accurately depict Gray, they do accurately depict Juvia's VIEW of Gray. 

Sixthly, she freaks out anytime he so much as speaks to another girl, which is a red-flag. That's not the kind of relationship anyone wants to be in, because it's over controlling and there's no real trust. It also speaks volumes about her codependency issues, which shows that being with Gray(an extremely independent individual) is also bad for her! The ship is toxic both ways. 

Receipts

(and please note I only used a few for each because I could have pulled out more.)

Point 1 (little character growth):

-chapter 48: Juvia's debut chapter. She's depressed after what has clearly been years of abuse and is later reinforced in the few flashbacks we get of her (people leaving because of the rain and other reasons.) 

-chapter 116: this is during the battle of Fairy Tail arc, and while Juvia has a little bit of character growth here, she goes right back to being overly jealous of everyone and trying to control who Gray interacts with as soon as the arc is over. Character development isn't development if it doesn't stick.

-Chapter 424: Juvia is in the exact same headspace as before, making herself sick over someone who rejected her multiple times. She could have gone to others for help! Lucy had a lead on Gray, so refusing that help and keeping to herself only shows that she was obsessed with the idea of doing things herself. This is a toxic mindset and would big a massive red flag in a real relationship, as it shows a desperate need for control over the other person. 

-ft100 chapter 1: she still gets into the same headspace when Gray leaves. This is further proof that the relationship isn't just toxic for Gray, but for Juvia as well. (Extreme codependency is terrible)

Point 2 (emotional manipulation): 

-Chapter 340: Juvia tells Gray that he's rude for being upset. She tells him that he should be smiling! She's blatantly ignoring his feelings and trying to control him. 

-chapter 416: Gray is obviously distraught over what happened, and Juvia tries to make her guilt more important than his grief. She says "Juvia doesn't have the right to love you anymore," which is an obvious guilt trip. She's attempting to get him to respond positively instead of getting the negative responses she usually gets from him by using his grief weakened mindset against him. And that's not even mentioning that she stalked him to his parents grave all the way in Isvan. He clearly didn't invite her. Gray's too private of a character for that, and he obviously expected to be alone, considering his surprise when she shows herself. ("juvia! You followed me here?")

Point 3 (stalking, general abuse)

-see 416 above (how else would she have known he'd have gone back to an entirely different country when he obviously didn't tell anyone, let alone her.)

-episode 50: Juvia attempts to drug Gray with a love potion. This would make him love her regardless of his own feelings, basically making him a slave to her whims. 

-chapter 67: she's clearly shown stalking him before joining Fairy Tail, and she never apologized or grew enough as a character that we can definitely say she wouldn't do so again. 

-episode 129: Juvia stalked Gray when he went on a job with Erza.

-chapter 432: Gray's "why are you here?" Is a clear indication that she shouldn’t be there, and that she most likely followed him.

-there's also multiple sexual harassment issues, such as when Juvia asks Gray to punish/spank(depends on translation) her on Tenrou(chapter 249: "I don't have those kinds of hobbies!" Gray says, and then she responds with "I do") and when she admitted to sleeping with him without his knowledge during the Avatar arc(chapter 424: see Gray's rejections for the quote)

Point 4 (Gray is a softie and tried to let her down easy before being blunt):

-literally the entirety of Fairy Tail.

-Lullaby arc: he protects Lucy and Happy from some of the Eisenwald guild members, and openly worries about Erza pushing herself to hard to finish the mission.

-Galuna arc: he protects Lucy, Natsu, and Happy from Lyon, and he attempted iced shell TWICE to protect them from Lyon's plan.

-Phantom Lord arc: Gray is so adamant about protecting Lucy from Phantom that it's literally what starts Juvia's obsession with Lucy as her "love-rival."

-Tower of Heaven Arc: he's incredibly anxious about getting Erza when she's captured, and arguably the most urgent to get her back to protect her

Do I need to keep going or do you get the picture here?

Point 5(delusions):

-Do I even need to track all these down? There’s one ever dozen chapters or so, so we’ve all seen them.

Point 6(abuse and mistreatment of other characters): 

-Lucy: chapters 77, 79, 86, 103, ect (there's so many more, all for the sake of getting rid of her "Love-Rival")

-Chapter 202: Juvia's is rude to Lisanna even when she's being kind and offering to be Juvia's partner, because she thinks Lisanna might "take" Gray. Gray isn't an object and shouldn't be treated like one, and that shouldn't be Juvia's priority here anyways. She can't see past her obsession to be nice to anyone else.

-chapter 208: Juvia puts Gray's safety over everyone else's and intended to lie to everyone so that she could go find Gray on her own to be his savior. 

Some of Gray's rejections: 

-chapter 271: This is one of the gentler rejections. Juvia brings a sleepy bag for her and Gray, and Gray says "No way am I getting in that." 

-chapter 322: Gray asked her to let go of his hand and she refused.

-chapter 338: "Gray-Sama! I love you!" Was met with Gray's "I don't."

-chapter 424: "slept together.... well tried to. He kicked me out." Quoted Directly from Juvia. 

One last thing: As someone who has been stalked TWICE, I can attest for how it fucks up your mental state. While it was still nowhere near as extreme as some of the lengths Juvia went to, it STILL has lingering effects on me. I still have difficulty even talking about it at times, because of how much it's fucked me up and given me paranoia. I literally live out in the middle of fucking no where and the though of my window now being covered terrifies me. What Juvia does is not okay, and I refuse to shut up about how toxic they are.

[everlarkficexchange]

All the World's a Stage

Prompt 31: “We never see you two so much as kiss in public but last night we all heard you having sex.” Submitted by Buttercupbadass

Rated E (Explicit): Mainly for language because Johanna is a potty mouth and so are other certain characters whilst mid coitus okay I don’t make the rules here so there’s more than one f-bomb therefore we rate it E. Also sexual content.

Written by: @katnissdoesnotfollowback

Beta reading by: @stjohn27

************************

Act 1

Johanna Mason loves her neighbors. That is to say, she loves the entertainment they provide her with. It’s a rotating show of fabulous, ridiculous, and delicious drama, and she has a window to each and every one of their lives. Literally.

Victor’s Square is not exactly a square. It’s more of an elongated rectangle shaped building consisting of thirteen apartments, a workout room, a community center, and an office, with a hollowed out central area for a pool. Honestly, the pool is the reason she picked this place instead of The Arbor, which is pretty damn swanky but somehow they forgot to include a pool, of all things, when they added their five thousand luxury amenities. Since Johanna likes sunbathing and not golfing (ugh boring!), Victor’s Square won out.

The three story design of the building, and her luck in snagging the single apartment on top of the office, means that at some point in the day, barring sun glare on glass or inconvenient curtains, she can see directly into every other apartment on the rectangle. Hence the entertainment.

She’s been privy to all sorts of great shit, and none of them seem to know exactly what they’ve given her. The best part is, they’re clueless. As soon as she realized they were basically living their lives on a stage for her, Johanna started parading around her own place with the curtains wide open…while naked. Stark fucking naked. Just to see what would happen.

And nothing changed. No one complained. Which granted, she’s got a banging body. Axe wielding will do that, but she can think of at least half a dozen residents who’d be put off by her exhibitionism. And yet… nothing. No one started suspiciously keeping their curtains or blinds closed when they hadn’t before. Since they’re all too dumb to figure out that their lives are her parade, she just popped the popcorn and settled in for the show.

Tonight, however, Johanna is in no mood for the show. After a late night shift ending a bitch of a week, all she’s in the mood to do is swim a few laps to get the grime off of her skin then lay back in one of the lounge chairs around the pool, listening to the hum of the air conditioners in the sweltering Carolina night, swatting at the mosquitos because she’s too damn lazy to light the citronella torches, and stare up at the rectangle of starry sky she can see.

It’s quiet tonight. She swims her laps, and it works wonders to relax her tired bones and even more tired soul. After, she lays out on one of the squeaky lounge chairs. The hum and the warm air make her drowsy. Inevitably, she begins to doze, with only a vague awareness of the passage of time and the sounds around her.

It’s the loud click and the whoosh that wakes her. Just for a moment. Not long enough to place it at all before she fades back out into half slumber. 

Her psyche is a bitch tonight, dropping long breathy moans into her dreams. The sex so good you can’t quite keep it in kind of moans, even though you’re trying. Completely aware that she messed up a truly great thing just days ago, she tells her subconcious to fuck off and stop reminding her of the one she let get away. Because she was stubborn. Unfortunately, her subconscious is not listening to her. Stupid fucker.

Scrunching up her nose, she refuses to move. She’s sticky with sweat and pretty sure that she’ll lose two layers of skin off her back and thighs when she goes to stand up from the lounge. Besides, there’s a low moaning noise that makes her wonder if maybe she wasn’t actually dreaming those sex sounds. 

The moans in her mind grow louder and slightly more frantic until she can place the heavy feeling in her limbs. She’s awake after too little sleep. 

Damn it. She’s not actually dreaming this shit. Which means one of her neighbors is on the brink of a seriously great orgasm. She’s not sure if she’s annoyed by the fact that she herself hasn’t had decent sex in far too long, or if she’s amused at yet another dramatic chapter in life at Victor’s Square.

The real question is… who’s doing the nasty tonight?

Act 2

A slight shiver and a thrill goes through Johanna as she finally opens her eyes and stares up at the canvas of stars above her.

Another moan ends in a slight squeal and fuck it, Johanna is hooked on the mystery. Shame she doesn’t have any popcorn down here, because given the sheer volume, and the way the sounds are magnified by the shape of the rectangle around the pool, she’s pretty sure whoever it is, they’re fucking with the windows open.

Kinky.

And a lot more interesting than her job. She does a happy little shimmy and settles in to guess who it possibly could be. First things first… she glances around the pool and discovers to her dismay that every apartment has at least one window open, but they’re all dark. Not surprising given that it’s well past midnight. But it’s unfortunately unhelpful. The air conditioner must be out again. That’s probably what that loud noise was earlier.

She closes her eyes again, hoping to pinpoint the direction of the sounds to figure out which of her neighbors is getting lucky tonight. But the shape of the building makes it impossible. Sounds just carry weird in this rectangular bullhorn. They could be coming from anywhere.

“Ung, yeah, right there… oh-oooooh!” The last sound is hitched and breathy. That’s a woman’s voice, Johanna thinks. 

“Yes. Don’t — don’t stop! – I –” The word is pinched off in a desperate sort of ecstasy and Johanna smiles. This could be fun.

It can’t be Caesar and Claudius, the two radio talk show hosts who live in apartment 6. They’re gay. And men. And a couple. But truthfully, she’s not at all disappointed that she can rule them out. She already knows more than she’d like to admit about their sexual habits. Usually she’s not one to kink shame, but electrodes on nipples is a little too close to the realm of torture for her tastes.

“Yes! Please!” the woman begs and Johanna feels her body flush with the erotic sounds, she’s half aroused but fully invested in figuring out who this is. She could of course, get up and walk around to triangulate the sound, but what’s the fun in that?

She quickly rules out Mags in apartment 5. She’s the sweetest old lady, surprisingly spritely. From what Johanna has seen from old pictures of her, Mags was a fucking dish in her youth, but now she’s gotta be pushing ninety. Besides the wrinkles (shudder), Johanna would be worried about heart failure if Mags were the one getting her boots knocked around with this much vigor.

The long moans shift to the choppy, catch breath ones that mean she’s close, whoever the lucky bitch is.

Cinna in apartment 3 is out. He’s ace. Asexual and aromantic. Claims that he’s in a love affair with his work. Well if she could design clothes like the ones Cinna does, Johanna would be willing to give up sex too. She snorts a little and turns her ear, hoping for a better angle on the sound. She’s pretty sure it’s coming from one of the upstairs apartments, but can’t be sure.

Whoever it is, she lets fly a single high pitched note. And then a long stuttering moan that just sounds exactly how it feels to come back down from a really good orgasm. Satisfied, relieved, a little sleepy and a whole lotta euphoric. 

Lucky bitch, Johanna thinks again. Her legs feel heavy and her toes tingle in empathy.

Now if only she could catch something of the partner’s noises…unless the woman is masturbating. Possible, but the directions to not stop earlier make it less likely.

A low pitched murmur and a deep masculine laugh helpfully nix that thought almost as soon as Johanna has it. 

Not flying solo, but also Johanna can now rule out Enobaria and Lyme from apartment 2. She’s never understood them exactly. On the surface, you’d think they’d be perfect for one another. Their personalities mesh in a weird kinda way. Enobaria is louder while Lyme is more dignified, but they’re so often bickering about politics… and the truth is, they have an open relationship.

Or at least Johanna assumes they do based on the number of not-Lyme women Enobaria has entertained shoved up against the glass door leading to their balcony…but if not, Johanna is perfectly willing to offer up herself as a rebound to Lyme when the inevitable shit hits the fan. That woman is built like a house and fucking sexy in a domineering sort of way. Like Brienne of Tarth hotness.

She can order me to submit anytime she wants, Johanna thinks with a smirk.

As if confirming her thoughts, a long deep moan drifts down to her ears, slow and almost silky. Delighted and yet a little astonished, like he can’t quite believe his luck. Definitely a dude. Blowjob or penetration? Either way, this guy’s pent up, she thinks. She’s also guessing that the girl’s orgasm was from fingering or cunnilingus, which means the show is not anywhere near to being done.

There’s only so many people left who it could be…

Her phone vibrates on her chest and she finally opens her eyes again, lifting it above her face and squinting at the overly bright screen.

Finnick: I can’t believe you’re sleeping on this. Do you hear this?!

Johanna frowns. The time stamp is right now. Which rules out Finnick and Annie in apartment 4. Damn it. They were the most obvious choice for a man-woman pairing going at it with this much abandon, and while Johanna is pretty sure they have mind numbingly, porn worthy good sex, they’re unfortunately discreet about it. 

It’s maddening.

Whenever she talks about Finnick and Annie, Johanna’s therapist always hums that way therapists sometimes do when they know you’re engaging in something destructive or unhealthy — such as a minor obsession with your best friend’s love and sex life — but the therapist wants you to figure it out on your own. Johanna can’t help it. Finnick’s a walking sexual fantasy for almost every woman out there. Even her lesbian friends find him hot. And Annie’s gorgeous. Johanna can’t help it if she not so secretly wants them to sandwich her. She’s got a good strap on that Annie could borrow to get it done.

But alas, or maybe fortunately, Finnick’s text eliminates them as the current lucky couple. Pity. She was hoping for something new to add to her spank bank.

Johanna: Where are you?

Finnick: Well we were asleep.

Johanna: Boring. You could be giving them competition.

As if to punctuate her point, a steady cadence of low, slow moans begins filling the air. They weave through the humidity and now Johanna is just angry.

Johanna: Do you know who it is? 

Finnick: Nope. I have my theories…

Johanna: Ugh spare me. 

There’s three potential couples left, and of those three, Johanna’s got a good guess who Finnick thinks it is, or at least wants it to be.

Johanna: I’ll gouge out my eyes if it’s them.

Finnick: Say it. Call them the name.

Johanna: I’m not using that stupid nickname, you absolute child

Finnick: Like you’re any better. 

“Fuck fuck fuck, stop. You’re gonna make me come,” the lucky man gasps. The woman must say something because he chuckles and whispers back to her, the tone traveling if not the words.  Johanna sets her phone down then, perked up by shuffling noises that sound maybe like a position change. 

So who is left…

There’s Haymitch and Effie. Those two… residents of apartments 9 and 11 respectively…they pretend like they hate one another, and maybe they really do. While Johanna enjoys their epic fights, she’s not overly fond of their making up sessions. She’s pretty sure Effie was some kind of tantric goddess or pretzel in another life with the way that woman can bend.

It’s…unnatural.

Her phone vibrates again and Johanna lifts it in front of her face, this time it’s a notification from Facebook, sent out to all the residents in the group.

Effie: I have already filed a complaint with Mr. Heavensbee in regards to the broken a/c. He says there will be a repairman here first thing in the morning. In the meantime, we should all attempt to be cordial in our behaviors and not disturb the other residents since all will likely have the windows open for the night.

A text almost immediately after let’s Johanna know what her friend thinks of that.

Finnick: Where’s your sense of fun, Effie?

Johanna bites back a snort. Although the notice does rule out the exuberant woman as a candidate for Porn Queen tonight, so Johanna texts Finnick again.

Johanna: My money is on Cashmere and Gloss

Johanna sends the text and waits for the response. She’s not disappointed. She cackles internally at the flood of barf emojis and angry exclamations she gets back. Cashmere and Gloss of apartment 1, or as Johanna likes to call them, The Lannisters. Because they may be brother and sister, but they’re totally doing the nasty. Really nasty.

No one believes Johanna about this, though, and she’s not about to tell the other residents how she knows it’s a fact, not just some cockamamy theory of hers. People get pushed off walls for things like that. 

Not to mention then they’d all figure out that she can see into their apartments as well and there goes that bit of fun. 

“Fuck,” the lucky dude draws the word out into almost a croak, and there’s a soft sigh from her.

Finnick: Something is wrong with you

Johanna: Do you think he’s well hung? Whoever he is?

Finnick: Who cares as long as he knows how to use it?

Johanna shakes her head at this, easily able to picture her friend wiggling his eyebrows. 

Johanna: He sounds well hung. It could still be Haymitch, sans Effie

After all, Haymitch isn’t officially tied down, and at the last residence brunch, Peeta’s good friend Delly was visiting and wasn’t at all subtle about her attraction to Haymitch. The girl was deceptively sweet, bubbly and innocent, but with those knockers on her chest and the way she kept laughing at Haymitch’s worst jokes, Johanna is pretty sure Delly has a thing for the much older man.

Finnick: I’m going to ignore your obsession with Haymitch’s junk for now. And also nope. Annie says she can see Haymitch through our window, sitting on his balcony, drinking.

Finnick: Alone.

Well damn. There goes that theory. Just to be sure, Johanna turns her head and cranes her neck. Sure enough, Haymitch sits on his balcony, lounged back in his chair with a glass in hand. After a second or two, he must feel eyes on him because he looks down towards Johanna and lifts the glass in toast.

Which is when the wall pounding begins and the lucky man’s moans start to grow out of control. Damn. They’re really into it now. 

Finnick: You know I’m right

Johanna: You’re ridiculous.

Finnick: It’s Peeniss. How much you wanna bet?

Johanna rolls her eyes and shakes her head. Finnick has some crazy theory that Peeta Mellark, baker and all around way too nice guy of apartment 8 is somehow secretly dating Katniss-I-Will-Shoot-You-If-You-Touch-Me-Everdeen of apartment 12. Not that the girl doesn’t need a good fuck. If anyone is desperately in need of a body shaking, mind blowing, toe curling orgasm, like the one currently building in the summer night, it’s that perpetually scowling and uptight bitch. 

Johanna just seriously doubts that the woman now moaning in cadence with the steady headboard thumps and the increasing volume is Katniss. She sounds way too into it, relaxed. Whoever she is, she’s getting nailed five ways to Sunday and is ecstatic about it.

It could be one of Katniss’ lovely roommates. Katniss lives with her younger sister and one of her best friends, Madge Undersee, in apartment 12. They’re crammed into it somehow… but before Johanna can suggest it to Finnick, she dismisses the idea. 

Prim’s at college, left three days ago…so it won’t be her. Shame. She’s been living under her big sister’s overprotective arch so long that the poor girl has got some catching up to do in the sex arena. College will be good for that, but it means she’s not the woman–

“Fuck yeah.” A resounding slap and the accompanying whimper make Johanna’s eyes go wide. “Lift that ass for me. Fuck yourself on my cock. Love it when you do that.”

Whoa. Okay.

It could be Madge. Or Gale who lives right next door in apartment 13, but they’re almost as unlikely candidates as Katniss. Johanna is pretty sure Madge is a lesbian. Closeted still, unfortunately, because Johanna wouldn’t mind burying her face between those creamy thighs. And Gale… well it could be Gale, Johanna supposes, with some lucky girl who doesn’t live in Victor’s Square. 

Maybe Delly.

Shame it’s not me, Johanna thinks and risks stretching a little. It has been her before, in her own apartment, because while Gale is usually down to fuck, he’s never down to doing it in his apartment. 

That’s because he’s got a massive boner for Katniss and isn’t willing to risk her knowing that he fucks around with at least half a dozen girls that are not Katniss. Masochist. That’s what Gale is. But it’s also why Johanna doubts that Gale is the guy currently balls deep in ecstasy. He’s too loud for someone who wants to keep his sex life secret from his neighbor.

As for Peeta…well it could be Peeta with a girl who isn’t Katniss. He’s handsome and sweet enough to get plenty of pussy, if he tried—

“No! Don’t stop!”

“You don’t get to come again just yet,” the man growls and Johanna automatically clenches her thighs at the commanding tone.

More shuffling and grunting. One yelp from her, then the pounding resumes. And doesn’t let up.

“Harder!”

Faster and faster, his moans keeping pace. The resounding slapping of skin.

 “Gonna – gonna!”

A chorus of “yes’s” and desperate pleas.

“Fucking yes! Peeta!”

Her phone goes off with a stupid amount of speed.

Finnick: I TOLD YOU!!!! 

Johanna types madly at this. 

Johanna: So it’s not the Lannisters, but that doesn’t mean it’s Katniss up there with Peeta. 

Finnick: Oh come on! Who else could it be? You know he’s got it bad for her!

Okay yeah, there is that. There’s also the fact that Johanna shouldn’t be so bitter about this. Just like Katniss is in dire need of a good fuck, so is Peeta. But based on the sounds and the things they said…

Whoever she is, she’s still squealing and the thumping hasn’t let up yet. Damn that’s a long orgasm, Johanna thinks with more than a little jealousy.

“Come for me. Fucking come inside me. Now. Peeta!” 

Those aren’t the words of a sexually frustrated prude talking, Johanna wants to say. Nor are they words of a couple going at it for the first time. Nope. This couple is way too comfortable with each other for it to be a first time. This couple has fucked before. Maybe often.

Go baker boy, Johanna wants to say, but she can’t imagine who he’s with. He hasn’t so much as brought a date home in a year.

A series of texts from Finnick crop up on her phone. Flame emojis and winking faces. An eggplant or two and the three drops of water people use to represent cum. Johanna slouches in her chair, a little miffed that she can’t shut Finnick up yet until…

There’s a deep growling, animalistic sound. A long string of curse words mixed with moans and then— 

“Katniss. Fuuuuuuuuck.”

The curse word takes him about a minute to get out all the way. Damn it, Johanna thinks. Now Finnick will be impossible to live with. She can’t even look at her phone as it blows up again, knowing that he’ll be gloating. Instead she turns it off. 

As carefully as she can, Johanna peels herself off the lounge chair and tiptoes towards the stairs, intent on reaching her own balcony. Not because it sits caddy corner to Peeta’s apartment and if they’re in his room, it’ll be easier for her to hear any pillow talk. Not at all.

She hurries and nearly gives herself away with the door, but manages it. She stands in the shadows of her balcony and nearly chokes on her tongue at the first thing she hears, besides the unmistakable sounds of coming down thrusts or sucks, maybe kissing, quiet aftermath moans.

“Hold still. I’m not done.”

“Feels too good,” he pants. “Can’t take much more, Katniss.” 

“Mmm, you’ll take it and you’ll like it.”

“Yeah, I will,” he says and she giggles. 

“Are you braiding my hair?”

“Can’t help it. You look so gorgeous sucking yourself off my dick… I can stop…”

“No… go ahead.”

Another few seconds of suction noises and then Peeta sighs in relief.

There’s the fwump and creak of a bed under weight. Johanna can practically see them all cuddled up like a cute little couple in his bed. Sighing and kissing and caressing in their afterglow. 

Disgusting.

“Such a cute ass, and all mine,” Katniss says and there’s a slap then a gasp.

Fucking hell, Johanna thinks, eyes bulging out of her head.

Who would’ve thought the two of them would be so wild in bed? Who would’ve thought they were actually fucking each other?

Johanna wrinkles her nose then, finally forcing herself to go inside her own place. Just out of curiosity, though, she chances one last peek at Peeta’s place. The curtains are drawn, but a helpful gust sucks them out the window just long enough for Johanna to catch a glimpse of two naked bodies on his bed, illuminated in the soft glow of a lamp. Katniss with her head tipped over the edge in the direction of the window and a smile on her face as Peeta kisses a lazy path over her body. Her fingers plucking absently at the tangled sheets.

Well damn and fuck.

Johanna heads to bed after that and prepares a salvo of taunting for tomorrow morning. There’s no way she’s letting something this juicy go unremarked upon, especially since literally everyone who was home would’ve heard it.

Act 3

In the morning, Johanna is up early and down at the community center well before the once a month residents’ brunch that Effie insists on hosting. Poor thing is pinch faced and pale this morning, flummoxed when Johanna offers to help set up.

“I suppose. Since no one else appears to be out and about yet. Nothing funny with the vegetables this time,” Effie chastises and Johanna salutes. She’s got better things planned than erotic displays with the produce.

Honestly, she couldn’t care less about the flower arrangements or the energy inherent in the order of food laid out on the table. Helping Effie this morning affords her a prime view through the community center windows of each stairwell and of everyone arriving this morning.

And not just for brunch, she thinks with a smirk as she spots Gale, still wearing his work shirt, sneaking up a stairwell towards apartment 13. 

Where have you been all night? Johanna wonders. Not with Katniss, the girl he’s so obviously got the hots for. Even better for the impending drama. She wonders if he’ll find his neighbors present or if Katniss is still cozied up with Peeta in post coital bliss. They’re probably totally morning sex people, Johanna decides.

Slow, sweet morning sex with loving words. Ugh, gag me, Johanna rolls her eyes at her own thoughts.

Preparations move swiftly after that, even with Effie on her case every few minutes. The pending drama is just too great to dampen her mood.

Peeta’s one of the first to arrive, conspicuously alone. He chats with Johanna for a few minutes, friendly as always, and then moves off as more of the residents arrive.

It takes everything in Johanna’s energy reserve to not throw something at the back of his head. He acts like he didn’t have the fuck of his life last night. It befuddles her and also infuriates her because it means Finnick could be right. 

Oh my god, Finnick could be right about them! They might actually be dating. Who’s to say they aren’t if they can keep their sex life together such a secret. If the air conditioner hadn’t failed…

Peeta’s nonchalance this morning throws all her arguments against Finnick’s stupid Peeniss theories out the window. How is that even possible? She had Peeta pegged as a total softie. Hand holding, nose rubbing, and obnoxiously cute, borderline clingy PDA type of guy, not a rail you into the bed then pretend I don’t even know you the next morning type of guy.

Huh. Pegging. Wonder if he’s into that, Johanna thinks then has to forcibly shake the image out of her head. Because not only does it make sense in a way, but the image is also…sexy as fuck. And she doesn’t need yet another happy dappy ass couple to fantasize about and maker her therapist hum at her in that knowing way.

Fuck Finnick and his stupid theories.

When the tenants of apartments 12 and 13 finally arrive together, Madge splits off to talk to Mags. Gale and Katniss are both suspiciously wet haired. If Johanna didn’t know any better, she’d guess that they were the culprits last night, especially when Katniss doesn’t even so much as look in Peeta’s direction.

Her cheeks are flushed, but she’s avoiding her fuck buddy, talking to literally everyone else, twisting the damp ends of her braid around her finger.

“What do you make of it?” Johanna asks Finnick, bumping her hip into his. He shrugs, with that insufferable smirk on his face that he always gets whenever he’s right.

For two people who were so clearly intimate last night, Katniss and Peeta are doing a pretty good job of acting like the other one doesn’t even exist.

“They’re just… both very private people. But the signs are all there for anyone paying attention.”

“But that’s the thing… the signs aren’t there!” Johanna protests. What game are they playing, she wonders.

“I just don’t get it,” Johanna says and Finnick glances down at her.

“What?”

She waves her hands at Peeta, who looks for all the world like he’s fascinated by whatever Caesar is talking about. But why would he be when Katniss is literally right there.

“They act like nothing happened.”

“Well we know something happened,” Finnick says conspiratorially. Then his smile slips. “Actually, everyone here knows about it.”

“Huh?”

“Yeah. Apparently everyone was home last night…”

“Not Gale,” Johanna adds and lifts one eyebrow. Finnick’s eyes go wide and his mouth turns round.

“Oh my. Delicious.”

“Isn’t it?”Johanna says. “But still… you wouldn’t guess it from the way they act.”

“They can’t stop looking at each other.”

Johanna turns her head and motions at them. Absolutely not looking at one another.

“Are not.”

“You missed it. Gotta be quick with these two.”

Johanna shakes her head as she watches Katniss, and Gale who is placing some kind of food on her plate. She’s nodding and listening to him but subtly shifting the food off to the side of her plate while picking up something else and nibbling on it straight away.

And finally, Johanna can’t take it anymore. She stomps over to the tables and loads up her own plate, absolutely not eavesdropping on their conversation.

“Thought you were gonna text me when you got off work?” Gale says.

“Oh. Something came up… Prim. Prim needed to talk.”

“Everything alright?” Gale asks.

And this time, Johanna just catches the quick dart of gray eyes towards blue. Peeta’s shy smile. Katniss’ swift flutter of lashes and nibble on her bottom lip before returning her attention to Gale.

“It is now.”

“Usually is after a seriously good orgasm or two. And by the way, that’s low, using your baby sister as an excuse,” Johanna snorts. She doesn’t mean to, but it just sort of slips out.

Katniss whips around to face her. Dark rouge staining her high cheekbones and her lips pinched together.

“My sister isn’t an excuse.”

“Oh please. Cut the crap.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Katniss hisses.

“I’m talking about the fact that we never see the two of you so much as kiss or even hold hands in public, but last night, I heard you having sex. Loud sex. Phenomenal, shake the rafters loud, sex.” Johanna smirks at the pair of stunned faces looking at her. And the dozen curious faces plus Peeta’s mortified one. All of them focused on her. Center stage, she thinks with a grin and waves a half eaten croissant around at the gathered crowd. “We all heard you. Except for Gale here who was probably out getting consolation tail since you didn’t text him. Really, Brainless, what do you expect if you and baker boy are gonna bang with the windows open?”

There’s ten seconds of stunned silence before Finnick shouts, “I figured it out first, by the way!” Then he grunts as Annie elbows him in the gut.

“Baker boy?” Gale practically growls and Johanna sashays away as Peeta steps over to stand behind a now scowling Katniss. Her hand clenches into a fist as she faces Gale. She leans back against Peeta’s chest, as if she knows he’s there before she even sees him. Good for her. At least she’s not going to shy away from it. But now they’re going to be every bit as insufferably disgusting as Finnick and Annie are.

Love’s a bitch, oh well. Time for that popcorn, Johanna thinks.

[girlmeetsliv3]

Head Over Heels II (Finale)

Killing Me Softly Sequel!

Yandere Hoseok x Reader ; BTS Member x Reader

Rating: Mature

Word Count: 5,626

Release Date: December 21st, 2019 @ 12 am (GMT-4)

Three years. It took three years for some semblance of normality to return to your life. It took three years for you to begin to see the world, not by it’s bad but it’s good. Three years and you were finally moving on. Three years wasn’t enough to stop his obsession. After three years, he was tired of waiting - you would finally be his.

Trigger Warning: The following story contains mentions of manipulation, abuse, harassment, and child k*dnapping. The behavior and mindset of the characters in this will be incredibly yandere and toxic. This is a work of fiction and doesn’t represent the character of bangtan sonyeondan. Enjoy ~~~

The last person you expected to see standing at the foot of your bed was Park Jimin. His hair had grown, but the blonde locks didn’t roughen him up, if anything they made him even more beautiful. A maniacal grin had spread his cheekbones wide apart and crinkled his eyes, it was as if the past three years had never occurred. You were beginning to wonder if prison had been nothing more than a temporary home for the men - and not the terrible punishment for actions you assumed it would be. “What? Didn’t you miss me?” He pouted, lips stretched out sensually. Park Jimin had always been aware of his allure. Even now when you were absolutely terrified of him, a part of you longed to kiss those lips. At your lack of response, Jimin rolled his eyes and walked to the side of your bed where he had better access to you. The closer he got the more you tried to wriggle away, but your attempts were useless Jimin grabbed your legs and pulled you towards him with ease. Not noticing, or caring, how unwilling you were to be touched by him.

“Now now. It’s best you behave. Wouldn’t want someone to be punished by your recklessness, would you?” He tilted his head pointing towards your nightstand, and your eyes dragged to the framed picture of Sun-Hi and you at the beach. That was all it took to set you off. You desperately tried to push against him and tried to hit him with your bound hands, exhaustion had worn away, as had fear. All you were concerned about now was about getting your daughter away from the lunatics that had ruined your life. “I swear to god if you touch a hair on her head -” Jimin laughed. A boisterous ‘ha ha ha’ sort of laugh. “Calm down momma bear. I won’t hurt our little girl, what kind of man do you think I am?” You hadn’t missed the ‘our.’ None of them knew whose daughter it was, that meant none of them would hurt Sun-Hi...for now. Jimin bent down to meet your eyes, “God how I missed you.” It was whispered so quietly, almost as if he was speaking to himself. His hand caressed your cheek softly, “I almost went mad when I thought we’d lost you and then we did.” He sounded so broken. You thought for a second you could see tears brimming in his eyes, but assumed it was a trick of the light.

“When you left, the first time, I didn’t know what to do with myself. But then we got you back just like Hoseok-Hyung said we would, only to lose you again.” He had stopped caressing your cheek. The hand now beginning to tighten on your jaw. “Do you know what it was like all those years? Without you? Without them?” All the sadness in his eyes had quickly disappeared and was suddenly filled with an intense rage. “Jimin - ” You tried to speak, but his hand only kept tightening on your jaw, forcing you to remain quiet. “I had to stand trial and listen to them call me a pimp, a kidnapper,” By now he had abandoned your jaw and instead had grabbed your clothes, hoisting you up in front of him. “A fucking rapist, Y/n. That’s what they said. They said we raped you.”Jimin yelled, his face mere centimeters from yours. Tears were now flowing freely down his face. Park Jimin had never been more broken or terrifying than he was to you at that moment. “You know what the worst part was? You never showed up. Not even once.” His voice had lowered significantly until he was whispering again. “You see that’s what really killed me. You didn’t even care enough to show up.”

Jimin threw you back onto the bed as if you weighed nothing. As if you were nothing. “I’m sorry Jimin. I was scared. I was so scared.” The words tumbled out of your mouth, as you sought a way to console him. “I- I-” You wracked your brain trying to find something, anything, that would help you get out of this situation. That would help your daughter get out of this situation. “I was afraid for Sun-Hi.” Jimin who had been pacing back and forth trying to control his anger came to a halt. His brows furrowed and confusion flashed in his eyes, “What?” This was it. “When I found out I was pregnant I freaked out.” Your hands began to tremble and you tried to interlace them together to make it less noticeable. “I wanted to tell you, but then I heard about the fighting. About how all of you were pinning the blame on each other and I was nervous.” Your eyes danced around the floor, as you tried to come up with something else. One more detail to make the lie seem believable. By now Jimin had begun to approach you, time was running out.

“I thought that if you found out I was pregnant by one of you. Then the rest would be mad and…” Jimin sighed, a small smile on his face. “You don’t have to be worried about that Y/n. After all, you can always have more kids.” Whatever little hope you had to reason with the madman died then and there. It appeared absence did make the heart grow fonder, for all of the men seemed more obsessed with you than ever before. “Jimin, where is Sun-Hi?” He shrugged before turning around and walking around your room, taking in his surroundings. “With her dad. Making up for lost time.” You jumped at his statement, “How do you know Hoseok is her dad?” Jimin chuckled though it lacked warmth, “Of course she would be his. You love him the most, it only makes sense.” No, that wasn’t it. It couldn’t be. “We also had a paternity test done this morning.” He casually added, as if it was a comment on the weather. “What?!” How had Hoseok even had the resources to do something like that? How had the rest of them when they were in prison? As if Jimin could read your mind, he answered all your questions.

“You’d be surprised what money can buy. Honestly, it wasn’t too bad. We all had our private cells, had food delivered, could read or watch television. Shit, the guards even looked the other way when one of us felt lonely and sought the other out.” It was a harsh slap of reality, but it was one that you needed. The system had failed you. They were supposed to keep you safe, but now you were tied on your bed with your daughter missing and the men who claimed to love you bringing havoc upon your life once more. Maybe things would be different if you had chosen a different path?

A phone went off startling you out of your thoughts, a smile broke out onto Jimin’s face. “Hi, sweetheart. How are you?” Immediately you tried to lunge at him but remembered that your feet were bound once your face hit the floor. Jimin tried to stifle his laughter, “I’m just here with Mommy. She’s talking about how much she misses you, maybe if she’s good you’ll see her soon.” You glared at Jimin with all the willpower you could muster, but it seemed to affect him very little. “You want to tell her goodnight? Um, I’m not sure Mommys' awfully busy. She’s all tied up now.” He giggled at his own little joke. “Jimin, please. Please let me speak to her.” You begged and even tried to crawl your way towards him, you couldn’t care less about how pathetic you looked groveling at his feet. “Hm…” His finger tapped against his chin, simulating deep thought. “You know what Sun-Hi, it seems Mommy can speak with you now.” Jimin crouched down and pressed the speaker button.

Nothing could be heard until a shy sleepy “Mommy?” was mumbled. You almost burst out into tears again. “Hi sunshine.” You tried to keep your tone light, but it took what little strength you had to do it. “Momma when are you coming? I miss you.” She extended the last part in a whine. Sun-Hi had a habit of becoming grouchy when she was tired. You tried to blink the tears away before Jimin could see them, but his eyes were glued to your face. Gauging you for any sudden movements or decisions, you decided to test your luck. “Mommy’s on her way. You’ll see me the second you wake up tomorrow morning.” Jimin’s tsked. “Really? I can’t wait. I miss you so much Mommy and so does Daddy.” You didn’t know how to respond to that. “Good night, baby. Sweet dreams.” Sun-Hi responded back enthusiastically, though you could still hear the sleep in her voice. “Goodnight Sunshine. Uncle Jimin will see you soon.” Then he hung up.

 “Why sunshine?” Hoseok turned towards you, a confused yet intrigued smile on his face. You, on the other hand, were desperately trying to hide your reddened cheeks in his chest, whilst also making a grab for your phone. “I don’t know. It’s just a nickname.” You once again tried to reach for your phone but Hoseok easily outmaneuvered you. Your phone was being held above his head and his other hand had crept towards the back of your neck. “Nope. Baby or Babe would be a nickname.” He slightly pulled away, so that he could see your face. “But sunshine. That has to have meaning behind it.” If possible your cheeks became even redder. Hoseok laughed and tenderly kissed your lips, you melted into him like butter. You always wondered how he managed to do that to you - make you forget everything but him. Refusing to let the playful air die he continued, “Is it because I light up every room I walk into?” His eyebrow cocked and a teasing smile made its way onto his lips. “Shut up.” You rolled your eyes, playfully shoving him. “Or could it be because your world revolves around me?” Hoseok's smile only grew wider as you scoffed, “As if.” His hands trailed down towards your ass, where they rested before giving a firm squeeze. You jumped in surprise. “Is it because I’m hot?” He whispered into your ear, trying to be seductive.

You shoved him back softly, “Don’t flatter yourself. It’s just a nickname.” You tried to play it cool, refusing to let him know the effect he had on you even if it was far too late already. “Oh, so what, you call all your boyfriends Sunshine?” He was still trying to tease you, keep the mood light. But of course, you were far too worried about your feelings being exposed, especially when Hoseok wasn’t interested in you that way. “You aren’t even my boyfriend.” It had slipped out before you could even register what you had said. “What?” His voice had dropped several octaves, the way it usually did when he was angry. Immediately you turned around, holding your hands up. “I didn’t mean it like that. I meant that you’re special and - ” Hoseok was smiling, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “Cut the crap, sweetheart. I know what you meant.” It was moments like these that you wondered exactly what you were doing. Moments like these when you were afraid of him but didn’t know why. “I’m sorry Hobi. I really am. I made a mistake, it won’t happen again.” You reached out to touch him, but he recoiled as if disgusted by your touch. “Don’t ever say that again. You have no idea how special you are to me. I would do anything for you.” You nodded at his words and kept apologizing. Too naive to understand the weight behind what he said until it was far too late.

 Jimin hadn’t trusted you enough to tell you where you were going. After, the call ended he merely threw you over his shoulders and back onto the bed, before disappearing into your closet. He emerged a few minutes later with your emergency suitcase, then he went out of the room into the one across. Coming back in with a small bag and Sun-Hi’s favorite stuffed animal a blue-ish horse with its nose in the shape of a heart. It worried you, the ease with which he had been able to know which toy to take, Sun-Hi’s bed was littered with them. Yet, he had known. “One more thing before we go.” Jimin had your phone in the palm of his hand, he flashed it in your face before the screen unlocked for him. “You’re going to call the police officer and say Sun-Hi has been returned and that the search can be called off. You’re also going to say that you’ve decided to take a break from the city given everything, but that you’ll be back in his office Monday morning to discuss everything.” He didn’t even give you a chance to agree, before dialing the number and holding it up to your ear.

After three rings, the gruffy voice of Officer Park answered, “Hello, Park speaking.” You repeated everything Jimin had told you to say, never straying from the script as his eyes bore mercilessly into yours. A part of you prayed that the officer would notice how strange all of this was, how calm your tone was compared to hours before. “Well alright child. I’ll see you Monday then.” The click signifying the end of the call was almost mocking. A scream threatened to claw its way out of your throat, but you swallowed it back. “Now that’s done.” Jimin turned off your phone before slamming it to the ground and stepping on it. There was so much force and aggression in every one of his movements you forgot the man in front of you was capable of being sweet, had been sweet, until he lost you. An uncomfortable feeling set in as you finally became aware of something: this isn’t like the last time. There’s no escape now.

Kim Namjoon toyed with the device in his hand, he wasn’t supposed to have it. Not really. But the guards had looked the other way whenever he and his lovers came into possession of certain items, as long as their pockets were lined with money they didn’t really give a damn. They hadn’t even been aggressive to them the first day, a little rough but that was nothing more than a scare tactic. The device vibrated in his hand and Namjoon unlocked it, reading the singular text.

Unknown: It’s been dealt with.

Namjoon smirked, he placed the phone under his pillow - if it could be called that - and laid on his side as images of what might happen next played in his head. Jungkook had been ecstatic during dinner today, barely able to contain himself until he saw his Hyungs. He’d spilled all the juicy details about how you’d finally come to visit him and how you hadn’t denied that Sun-Hi was theirs. Jungkook was practically bouncing with joy, and it would be a lie to say the youngest’s enthusiasm wasn’t contagious. It had been rough in the beginning, the idiotic lawyers they hired suggested that it would be better if they put the blame on each other rather than be tried as a group. Coming up with varying statements that clashed made it difficult for the prosecution to convince the jury, not to mention the lack of evidence. Namjoon had always been a cautious man, but even he made mistakes - he let his guard down around you. That wouldn’t happen again.

The device vibrated again, Namjoon frowned before his hand slipped under his pillow to drag the device out. This time it was two texts, each which sent him over the moon in different ways. Namjoon went to bed that night entirely anxious for the good news the morning might bring. Positive that for the first time in three years things would go his way.

Lawyer Lee: The committee has agreed to a hearing. If all goes well, you’ll be out of there in no time.

Jiminie: I’ve got her. We’re on our way now.

 You could distantly pick up on the rhythmic sound of waves crashing, the roar of the ocean and wind arousing you from a deep slumber you didn’t even know you’d fallen into. As you stretch out your limbs, only to not feel them bound, another more quiet sound could be heard in the distance. It was giggling, the small bell-like laughter that could only come from a child, you tore your eyes open and tried to leap off of wherever you were only to be stopped by a hand wrapping around your forearm. There he stood, the man of your dreams, father of your child, and tormentor of your dreams. A pregnant silence hung between the two of you, as one waited for the other to speak. It was Sun-Hi’s giggles that broke the tension, your eyes darting past him towards the window. Outside in the gloomy weather, you could see Sun-Hi running around the beach smiling and laughing, whilst Jimin tried to catch her. Sun-Hi was always a bright child, but she seemed to radiate like never before. Hoseok cleared his throat drawing your attention back to him. Unconsciously you flinched, prepared for anything he might throw at you.

Instead, Hoseok only sighed, leaning forward to press a chaste kiss on your forehead. “I’ve missed you. I’m so glad you’re home.” You would always wonder how he managed to disarm you in less than ten words. A moan of pain escaped you, as he continued his assault. “I’ve longed for so long to hold you in my arms, Y/n. I nearly went mad.” His hand skimmed all over your body, but his touch was soft - as if you were made of glass. Of paper. “Seeing Sun-Hi grow up without knowing her dad and how much he loved her…you can’t imagine how much that hurt me.” It was as if every time he opened his mouth, he plunged even more daggers into your heart. He wouldn’t stop until you admitted your guilt, so you finally decided to spare your pride. “I love you Hoseok. I always have, I just…” don’t love them. Not the way you want me too. Tears streamed down your face and sobs violently shook your body.

“I can’t be with them, Hoseok. I’m sorry I can’t.”

He shook his head, hands coming up to cup your cheeks. “But you love me, don’t you? Wouldn’t you do anything for me?” Yes. Yes. Yes. “But not that.” Any sympathy Hoseok may have felt for you or shown you, dissipated. “We’re a package deal, Y/n.” His voice lacked any warmth. Your time was running out and you found yourself at a fork in the road: one decision would damn your soul, but the other your heart. So you tried to reason with him, not for you but for the only other thing you could find, “What about Sun-Hi? She won’t understand. She has friends, classmates,” You desperately pleaded, “She might not understand why she suddenly can’t go back to that life anymore.” Hoseok only laughed at your worries, “She’s three Y/n. The only thing she needs is her parents, a roof over her head, food, and love and affection. She has plenty of that to go around.”

Alright, so option two then. You let out a long sigh and sat back on the bed seemingly resigned. “Please let me see her.” Hoseok raised an eyebrow as he folded his arms across his chest. “She’s my daughter, dammit. Let me see her.” You yelled at him, a mixture of frustration and exhaustion causing more tears to flow. He crouched in front of you, his hand tucking a loose strand of hair behind your ear. “Not like this, you’ll scare her. Let’s get you cleaned up, okay?” The Hoseok you knew was back: your sweet, loving, affectionate sunshine. You melted like putty in his hands as he escorted you to the bathroom, giving you your privacy but making sure you knew not to take too long. On the way there you passed another window, one that displayed a narrow road shrouded with long trees on either side. Deja-vu welled up in you. You’d been here before.

“Mommy! Mommy!” Sun-Hi ran straight into your arms, her short stature and low-weight making it easy for you to pick her up with ease. “Oh, my baby. How I’ve missed you.” You kissed her face all over, as she tried to push you away softly. “Look, Mommy. I found a seashell.” The shell in her hand was white with a bold stripe of grey running through it. “It’s beautiful, Sun-Hi.” Her cheeks reddened at the compliment before her eyes caught onto someone else. “Look, Daddy. I found a seashell.” Sun-Hi was desperate to be free of your arms, so she could run into her father’s, so you set her down with much reluctance. Immediately Hoseok scooped her up, congratulating her and blowing raspberries on her stomach until your child was hollering with laughter. “Aw aren’t they the cutest.” Immediately, you stilled as Jimin wrapped his arms around your waist. “I can’t wait until that’s us.” He murmured in your ear, lightly nipping at the lobe until it became red and you lightly hissed. Satisfied with your response, Jimin chuckled before making his way over to Hoseok before whispering something in his ear and kissing Sun-Hi on the cheek.

“Uncle Minnie will be back soon, okay?” He spoke, the toddler nodding before returning her attention to her father. Hoseok nodded at Jimin before both of the men’s eyes landed on you. Jimin walked towards you, gripping the back of your neck and harshly planting his lips on yours. “See you later, Darling.” With that he walked out the door, leaving the three of you all alone as you planned your escape.

             A children’s movie played on the television which took up much of the wall. You recognized the bright colors and cheery music, it was your daughter’s favorite - it seems he knew even that too. Sun-Hi was between the two of you, eyes glued to the screen, with you on her left and Hoseok on the other side. His arm was thrown over the back of the couch, whenever you shifted too suddenly for his liking he would grip your shoulder. Other than that, it was a nice normal evening. You had to act fast. “Are you hungry, Sun-Hi?” She briefly turned towards you, nodding before gluing her eyes back to the screen. “Hoseok,” you whispered trying to draw his attention, not that it wasn’t already on you. “She has to eat.” You didn’t give him a chance to respond and made your way towards the kitchen, opening the fridge as you pretended to search for food. When you didn’t find anything useful, you opened the drawers and cabinets.

           “I told Jimin to bring food.” His voice startled you. Of course, he wouldn’t leave you alone, you had counted on as much. “She needs to eat real food, not takeout. I can cook.” You began to rummage again, this time finding some beef, pasta, and tomato sauce. “See look. I’ll have it done in no time.” You crouched down to search for a pot or pans and were beyond relieved when you found them. Fingers danced along your sides, as Hoseok came to rest his head above your shoulder. “Y/n. Don’t treat me like a fool.” Your hand tightly gripped the metal handle on the black pan. You would wait patiently and then hit him over the head with it. One blow, maybe two, and you would be able to escape. Hoseok sighed, “I think there are several things you’ve left unaccounted: for one, Jimin might be on his way. Two, Sun-Hi might not react in a positive way of seeing mommy bash daddy’s head in.” Your grip wavered.  Focus Y/n. This is what he wants.

           You refused to reply, to play his games. You should’ve known better. “Turn around.” It was an order, something not to be disobeyed. Yet, you stood your ground. His lips ghosted the shell of your ear, hot breath fanning it. “Please, darling. Please~” He all but whined, but it was obviously a farce. You swallowed thickly and tightened your grip on the steel pan. It seems Hoseok had enough, “There are other ways for me to punish you now…” His voice trailed off, clearly implying something. That was only confirmed when his head moved from your shoulder to glance back at your daughter. Immediately you turned around. Just one strike and he’s out. Hoseok saw the fire glowing in your eyes and smirked, clearly enjoying this game. “I’ll tell you what, you can go.” What?! “What?” You spoke, shock evident on your features. For a brief moment, you forgot what you were planning to do and that was all he needed. Just a brief moment, to completely trap you in the intricate web they’d sewn together.

           “You can leave. I know that’s what you want. To run far away from here with Sun-Hi and never see each other again. If that’s what you truly want Y/n. I’ll give that to you.” Hoseok leaned back against the countertop, “Go do it now before Jimin comes back. He’s only ten minutes out, but if you head east you’ll find the main street and I’m sure you’ll be able to figure it out from there.” There was nothing in his voice or eyes to indicate that he was toying with you. Nothing in his beautiful hazel eyes that displayed anything other than honestly. “Why?” You should’ve known better than to question things, you should’ve just taken Sun-Hi and runaway. Unbeknownst to you, a step was taken to close the gap between the two of you. You were still reaching for him - longing for him. You still loved him.

           Hoseok rolled his eyes, as if the answer was the most obvious thing in the world. “Because my love for you will never die. No matter what.” The distance between the two of you, which was short, to begin with, kept decreasing. “I know you better than anyone else does Y/n. When the going gets tough you run; from responsibility, affection, love. But I also know that you are one of the most selfless people I know.” Hoseok took another step forward, this time your chests were touching and your faces mere centimeters apart. “You would never sacrifice someone else’s happiness for your own well-being.” You should’ve known better than to believe he’d show you mercy. No. This is what he’d been waiting for all along, the moment he could use your biggest weakness against you. “You can run away, but we’ll always chase. You’ll never have a normal life… and neither will your daughter.” The frying pan slipped from your hand, the loud ‘clang’ it made echoing loudly against the room. Sun-Hi was clearly frightened, she jumped off the couch and ran towards you. “Mommy, are you okay?” Her soft chubby hands wrapped around yours as she gazed up at Hoseok. He smiled reassuringly, “The pan was just too heavy so it fell.”

           Sun-Hi looked up at Hoseok, her brow furrowed in confusion before she looked at you again. It took all your strength not to break under her innocent gaze, you had experienced so much growing up you couldn’t bear to have her live through even a quarter of it. Aren’t parents supposed to provide a better life for their kids? You owed her that much. Slowly, you crouched in front of her a forced smile on your face. “That’s right it was just too heavy. Don’t worry sweetheart, I’m alright.” After a couple of seconds, the toddler nodded seemingly accepting what she had been told at face value. She was barely a child and couldn’t understand that not everything was as it seems, you didn’t want her to lose that innocence just yet. “Go back and finish watching the movie. Mommy and Daddy will be there shortly.” You gently guided her out of the kitchen, content when she returned to her previous spot and focused on the graphics in front of her.

           All you could do was stare at her from the threshold, wishing things were different. Wanting to have made better choices. Regretting certain decisions. Your time had passed, things were no longer about you - nor could they ever be any more. Hoseok stood beside you observing Sun-Hi with a tender smile on his cheek, “No harm will ever come to her. She’ll grow up loved and cared for, just like you should’ve been.” Cautiously he pecked your cheek, pleased when you didn’t recoil away. Not that you could, you had become numb to it. The decision you made settling deep into your core. Hoseok’s fingers hooked under your chin and forced you to look at him, “Come on now, sunshine. Don’t you love me?” Once again, he managed to disarm you with so little effort. You practically melted into his arms.

           Lights suddenly shone from outside, before they suddenly disappeared. The door opened a couple of minutes later and in strolled Park Jimin with two bags of takeout and a new stuffed toy for his favorite niece. Jimin would make it a habit to always bring something home for Sun-Hi, until the day when he brought something for his own child. For now, he settled on the current situation though hope did bloom in his chest at the sight of your pouty lips pressed against Hoseok’s even if it was just for a second or two.  

             Monday morning rolled around and Officer Byunghoo Park sipped on his coffee as he waited for his next appointment to roll around. The Sun-Hi case had been an absolute disaster, but his commissioner didn’t seem the least bit concerned in a child disappearing only to be returned the same day. Nor did he seem to care that the child’s elusive mother had all but disappeared. To be fair, Park had his fair share of drinks that night and when his phone had rung at such a strange hour he picked up more out of a sense of duty than want. It should be of surprise to no one that he barely picked up on what the women said, it wasn’t until the next morning that he entered his office and saw the file that he recalled the strange conversation.

           Immediately he attempted to contact you but had no luck. His partner was completely useless as always, but any questions he had would be answered today, in about ten minutes or so. A quick knock on the door, disturbed his train of thought before he grumbled a ‘come in.’ A well-dressed man in a tailored suit with a black briefcase entered the room, he gave a curt bow and introduced himself as Mr. Lee. “I’m here in place of Ms. Y/l/n. She didn’t feel safe coming in, I hope you understand.” Park furrowed his brows, “Why wouldn’t she feel comfortable? Her daughter’s back isn’t she?” The lawyer chuckled humorlessly, “Oh yes, especially after the kidnappers were caught. But still -” Park jumped out of his seat almost comically, “What do you mean the kidnappers were caught? I’m in charge of the investigation and have never heard about any of this?!” Lawyer Lee attempted to hide his disdain for the man, but his patience when dealing with cretins could only extend so far.

           “Oh were you not aware that the Gangnam police were also running their own investigation? See the day-care from which the child was taken happens to lie right at the border between your jurisdiction and theirs, so they took up the case.” The words flowed so smoothly out of Lee’s mouth as if it were the most obvious thing. “I’m supposed to be notified when another sector wants to undergo the same investigation. Why wasn’t I notified?” Park scattered through his notes, searching for a map of the city and Gangnam’s contact information. “Now Mr. Park, I believe that is something you should take up with them. I’m nothing, but the messenger.” There was something Park didn’t like about Lee’s tone - the sardonic nature of it. As if he were speaking down to him. “The perpetrators turned themselves into Gangnam police and the child was returned.” Before anymore question could stumble out of Park’s mouth, Lee stood up and opened his briefcase taking out a manila envelope and placing it on the officer’s desk.

           “I am sorry, but I do have a very important meeting with another client across town. Ms. Y/l/n only sent me here to say thank you for everything you’ve done. After all, because of your skills, her family is now reunited.” Lee bowed before quickly excusing himself. Park had wanted to question the man over the contents inside the bag but recalled encountering a similar situation on his past. He didn’t need to know what was inside the envelope, all he knew was what he needed to do. Rather quickly Park found Sun-Hi Y/l/n file and typed in whatever information he deemed fit, before moving his mouse over to a red button at the top corner. There was no hesitation in his clicking of ‘close.’ Nor in the depositing of the case file into the resolved folder. After all, your family was reunited once more - wasn’t that what you wanted in the first place? Who was he to question it?

[okayoonoh]

headbands™

“A bright yellow headband on his head, dimples appearing on his cheeks, his bouncy toddler showing off her boundless energy on the padded floors, Jung Jaehyun knows he’s home.”

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- pairing: jaehyun x reader - genre: super duper family fluff - rating: e for everyone!!! - word count: 3,170 - warnings: only the possible heart attacks one may face imagining jung jaehyun as a dad (i am writing this from the afterlife)

a/n: here’s the first part of the nct as dads: return of the superman! i touched on this subject a bit in lani’s description but i definitely want to go more in detail!

here is where you can find all things nct dad related! i have a ton of other parts out, so go and binge, i won’t judge ;)

[ navi ]

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note: lani just turned 3 years old in this scenario :)

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“I know you know this, but please do your best to keep her fed. She gets super upset whenever her tummy growls.”

“I know.”

“Also, she knows where all the snacks are, so make sure you keep an eye on here. She’ll even climb on her own so you gotta make sure you watch her if she’s in the kitchen.”

“Mmhm.”

“And she’s been super fascinated by the TV, but make sure she doesn’t watch too much.”

“I got it.”

“Oh! And before I forget, I cooked you enough food for the weekend, so don’t forget to eat, okay? All of it is in the fridge. It can be pretty tiring and sometimes you forget to eat for yourself.”

“Thank you, I won’t forget.”

“Am I forgetting anything? ...Oh! And--”

“--Y/N! Don’t worry so much; we’ll be okay!”

Jaehyun laughs at your mildly stressed out complexion; it’s not your fault that you’re more nervous than he was. You stand near the front door, the simple and quick task of putting on your shoes to leave the house taking way longer than expected as you begin to have second thoughts about leaving. Today marks the start of the 48 hours your loving husband will spend with your adorable little daughter. A weekend with the purpose for you to relax and not stress about your baby, but for some odd reason, it’s giving you the complete opposite effect and you haven’t even left the house yet.

It’s not that you didn’t trust your husband and his skills with your daughter, in fact, you knew better than anyone that Jaehyun is more than capable enough to take care of your daughter. It’s simply the fact that this is the longest you’ll be apart from her ever since she was born 3 years ago. Becoming a mother has been equally rewarding and exhausting; you realize that the bags under your eyes get heavier by the day and the ache in your muscles become agonizing by the second. A weekend for you is definitely long overdue, but 48 hours seems oh too long to be apart from your cheeky dimpled little girl, Jung Lani.

Oh, and Jaehyun. You’ll miss him a bit as well.

From the second you announced your pregnancy, Jaehyun was aching to be on this show. Of course, his favorite memories made with his daughter included you, but as his schedule gets filled by the daily, he finds that he doesn’t spend as much time as he’d like his little girl. He finds himself coming home late at night, post-concert/practice exhaustion hindering his ability to play with his daughter the way he’d like. Being able to step away from the idol limelight and just be Jung Jaehyun, father of Jung Lani, for a mere two days is a godsend for him. He’s fully aware that it won’t be easy, but he’s always up for the challenge, especially if it means making fun memories with his precious daughter.

“Don’t be so nervous, Y/N. You’ll just be a phone call away in case anything serious happens, but I’ll make sure Lani is safe and happy throughout the entire time.” Your husband reassures you in an attempt to lessen your nerves. It doesn’t really work, but you appreciate the effort.

“I know, I know.” You pout, “It’s just been three years and the longest I’ve been apart from her has been, like, 4 hours. I don’t know if I can take it.”

Jaehyun laughs again, the simple details of your pout seeming almost identical to the details of your daughter’s pout. He pulls you into a hug, placing a hand on your head to smoosh your face into his chest. “Look, if it makes you feel better, I’ll FaceTime you every time we eat so you can see that Lani is all okay.”

You wrap your arms around his waist, keeping your face against his chest, your voice muffled from the position, “Promise?”

“Promise.” He finishes with a small kiss on your head. You relax for a beat longer in the arms of your husband, all before the little pitter patter of tiny feet catches your attention.

“Eomma! Appa!”

You hear the adorable voice you live for each and every day approach you until a small figure hugs your legs.

“Oh? Did you sleep well, Lani?” You ask, gently pushing Jaehyun aside so you can kneel down and pick up your daughter. Once in your arms, you smooth over her messy bed head, sweeping her thick dark locks to try and tame them.

She rubs the sleepiness from her eyes and nods, “I dreamed about a tiger who was upset because a goblin turned it into a kitten!”

You gasp, “That’s crazy! Was it a bad tiger?”

Lani nods at you enthusiastically, “Mhmm! It fought with the other tigers so the goblin turned it into a kitten so it wouldn’t fight anymore!”

Your daughter's immense imagination never ceased to amaze you and Jaehyun. Her ability to recount the smallest details of her creative dreams have become a part of your morning routine with your precious little girl.

“That seems like a scary dream, Lani!” You overreact, but you know she enjoys these morning debriefs. “Were you scared?”

“I wasn’t scared at all, eomma!” She says, proudly. “Appa was there and he protected me from the angry tiger!” Lani giggles as she says it, two dimples forming on her soft cheeks. You glance over at your husband, identical dimples on his face as he smiles at his appearance in Lani’s dream.

You turn so Lani faces her father, “Oh really? What did appa say in your dream?”

Lani smiles when she sees Jaehyun, reaching her arms so she can be held by him instead. You hand her to him, Jaehyun instinctively kissing her head while she sits in his arms. “Appa said, ‘Don’t worry, Lani! The tiger is strong, but appa is stronger!’”

Lani deepens her voice as she says this, seemingly trying to imitate her father’s baritone voice. You and Jaehyun both laugh at her impersonation; her cheeky personality always brightens up your mornings.

“Ah, did I say that, Lani?” Jaehyun asks.

“You did! You were so cool, appa!” Lani gushes in the arms of her father.

“Is that so?” You say, walking back over to Lani to attempt in fixing the rebellious strands of hair that popped back up even though you just fixed her bed head. “It seems that appa did a good job at protecting you! You should thank him for protecting you from the angry tiger!!”

Lani puts her hands together and she bows her head a bit, just like she learned from you and Jaehyun. “Thank you for protecting me from the tiger, appa!”

“Give him a kiss!”

Jaehyun puckers up his lips as Lani dramatically leans over and gives her dad a big kiss. He instantly holds her close and plants a million small kisses all over her face, causing Lani to giggle oh so sweetly. You smile seeing your entire world right in front of you. From this moment, you know that everything will be okay.

After Jaehyun had his fill of morning kisses, he keeps Lani in his arms as you place a hand on Lani’s back, deciding now is as good time as ever to actually leave.

You sigh as you try your best to maintain a happy voice for the sake of your daughter, “Okay, Lani. You know how I mentioned I’ll be going on a little vacation?”

Lani nods in response, her big eyes looking into your’s.

“Well, Eomma has to leave now! Be good and play with appa! I’ll be home in 2 days.” You rub her back in a circular motion as she looks at you, trying to process the information.

“Okay, Eomma!” She says as you lean over and kiss her cheek. You finally put on your shoes and grab your bags with your clothes as Jaehyun walks towards you.

“Go and give Eomma a big hug and kiss!” Jaehyun whispers in Lani’s ear. You put your head near Lani’s as she grabs both of your cheeks and plants a big kiss on your lips. You smile, looking up at your husband.

“I’m leaving now,” You say, opening the front door.

“Okay, stay safe! Don’t worry about us,” Jaehyun says and leans down, giving you a quaint little peck before you leave. You wave your hand one last time, say your “I love you’s”,  and shut the door, heading to your car to start the 48 hours.

Jaehyun heads back inside the house, placing Lani on the ground. He starts his way to the kitchen as Lani speeds past him towards the living room. She notices all of the cameras in the room, an adorable shocked expression on her face.

“Go and say hello properly, Lani,” Jaehyun says with a smile, entertained by his daughter’s expression.

Lani faces one of the self-moving cameras and folds two hands over her belly and does her best bow, saying a small “Hello.”

“Go and say hi to your uncles and aunties in the tents.” Jaehyun adds. Lani immediately runs towards the camera men and women placed around the living room, leaning over and saying her hellos like she did with the other camera. The cameraman responds and she smiles, jumping up and down in excitement.

“Appa! I said hello!” Lani exclaims as she runs to her father.

“Good job!” Jaehyun smiles, squatting down to her height, “Should we wash your face and get ready for the day?”

Lani nods and wraps her arms around Jaehyun’s neck with a giggle. Even in the morning, she keeps her cheerful and happy personality. Jaehyun lifts up his daughter and heads towards the bathroom, getting ready to help her wash her face and brush her teeth. Jaehyun kicks her little step stool near the sink and opens the drawer directly under the sink, letting her choose which headband she’ll wear for the morning.

Lani stands on her tippy toes to see the headbands inside, instantly reaching for one of her newest ones, “I want to wear the yellow one! You too, Appa, wear a yellow one too!”

Jaehyun smiles and grabs one of his yellow headbands, slicking his hair back so it doesn’t get into his eyes. Headbands are for sure the aesthetic of your happy little family; a headband on each of your heads whenever any of you are home. Lani smiles when she sees her dad in his yellow headband, happy to know she’ll be matching with him soon. Jaehyun puts Lani’s headband on her head, the bright yellow headband holding her messy bedhead away from her face.

“Okay, Lani, get up!” Jaehyun taps the countertop that surrounds the sink and starts the water, putting his hand under the running water to gage the temperature. Lani carefully climbs on looking at her reflection in the mirror. Jaehyun flicks some water on Lani’s face, causing her to clench her face at the surprising attack. She giggles and leans over the sink, knowing that it’s time to wash her face. Jaehyun supports her back, making sure she won’t fall, and washes her face. Lani didn’t inherit much from Jaehyun, but her rice cake cheeks and deep dimples are for sure from her father.

After he finishes washing her face, Jaehyun quickly washes his own as Lani waddles off to get him a towel. She runs back into the bathroom, moving back onto her stepping stools as Jaehyun dries his clean face, thanking his daughter for completing her little task. Jaehyun then grabs his toothbrush and Lani’s, putting her child friendly toothpaste on hers and his normal toothpaste on his and they begin brushing their teeth. Jaehyun looks at his daughter’s face through the reflection in the mirror and makes a funny face, all while brushing his teeth. Lani giggles and does her best to imitate the face, causing Jaehyun to smile as well. These simple morning details will never leave you or your husband’s memories; your adorable daughter making simple tasks fun.

Once all of the morning routines are finished up, Jaehyun takes Lani back to the living room, both of their headbands on their heads. “Lani, go and play by yourself for a little bit, okay? Appa is going to make you and your uncles and aunties something delicious.”

“Okay appa!” Lani says as Jaehyun heads off into the kitchen. He gets started on making some food for Lani and even making something for the staff while Lani heads off to play around in the living room with the staff.

Lani smiles, showing off her deep dimples, and walks over to one of the cameramen, poking inside the tent.

“Hello!” she says, happy to meet the new person.

“Hello,” the cameraman says.

“Did you eat breakfast?” Lani asks, bringing her face even closer to the camera; a little habit she picked up from her dad.

The cameraman smiles, “Yes. I ate before I came here.”

Lani looks up at the cameraman, seeing him move some of his hair out of his eyes. Lani furrows her eyebrows in concern, “Is you hair bugging you?”

“Just a little bit, I’m going to get a haircut soon.” he replies.

“I have an idea!” Lani cheers, quickly moving out of the tent and heading to the bathroom. Lani moves her step stool and pulls open the drawer, reaching in and grabbing one of Jaehyun’s headbands. She runs back excitedly towards the cameraman, putting her face close towards his camera. Lani hands the headband to the cameraman, her eyes showing her excitement.

“Here!!” she says, the biggest smile on her face.

The cameraman laughs, flustered about this situation, “No, it’s okay, I don’t need one.”

Lani’s eyes show a bit of sadness, “Please, Uncle?”

The cameraman laughs again and concedes, Lani’s cuteness too much to handle, “Okay, okay.” He reaches a hand and grabs the headband, taking off his headphones to put the headband, holding back his hair. Lani looks at him excitedly, happy to see that she helped him get his hair out of his face.

“Thank you, Lani!” He smiles, reaching a hand to pinch her cheek. Lani giggles, running to the middle of the living room while looking at the cameraman, happy to see the headband on his head. She jumps around excitedly, her joyous laughter filling the air. The other camerawoman laughs quietly as well, doing her best to film the excited toddler.

Lani’s attention is caught by the laughing camerawoman, giggling and running towards her tent now. She brings her face close to the camera as well, sticking her head in the camerawoman’s tent.

“Lani, don’t disturb your aunts and uncles! They’re busy working,” Jaehyun says from his spot in the kitchen, his face staying towards the carrots he’s currently cutting. Lani seemingly ignores her father’s words and proceeds to shove her face right into the camera, giggling at the new object.

“Excuse me!” Lani says, her attention now on the camerawoman. “Would you like a headband too?”

The camerawoman smiles gently at Lani, “No thank you. I’m okay!”

Lani frowns at the rejection, literal puppy eyes appearing on her face. “Bu-But! Uncle in the other tent has one, Lani has one, appa has one… you’re the only one that doesn’t have one!”

The camerawoman giggles, “Alright. Go and get me a pretty one, Lani!”

Lani’s features brighten up immediately as she cheers in excitement, immediately rushing back into the bathroom to get a different headband. Lani finds one of your white headbands, deciding this is the perfect color for her new auntie. Lani has a wide smile on her face as she runs as fast as her little legs can take her back to the camerawoman.

“Here!” Lani giggles, putting her face in the tent, the headband in her hand.

The camerawoman looks over to her colleague, the headband sitting proudly on his head. He’s filming the adorable interaction happening as he just laughs behind the camera. He nods at the camerawoman, silently telling her to just accept the headband.

“Alright. Thank you so much, Lani!” The camerawoman gives a gentle smile to the bubbly girl, grabbing the offered headband. She puts on the headband, making sure it’s still visible even with the headset on.

Lani runs to the middle of the living room, an even brighter smile on her face. She jumps up and down and dances in delight, so pleased that everyone in the house has headbands on their heads now. She stops jumping for a brief second, wanting to show her father her newest accomplishment.

“Appa! Appa!!” Lani cheers as she rushes over to the kitchen. Jaehyun holds a plate with some gimbap he prepared, doing his best to walk carefully with his daughter practically hugging his legs.

“One second, Lani. Let me give this to Uncle and Auntie then you can tell me. Appa doesn’t want to spill this.” Jaehyun says as Lani grabs a hold of his sweatpants as he walks towards the tents. Lani nods and stays quiet, figuring out that it might be better as a little surprise for her dad.

Jaehyun reaches the first tent and carefully hands him the food he prepared, a smile on his face. “Please enjo-- wait a second... I don’t remember you wearing a headband when you walked in?”

The shock is evident in Jaehyun’s face as the cameraman laughs. “I’m sorry, Lani came by and gave it to me and I couldn’t refuse.”

Jaehyun looks over at the insanely cheerful expression on his daughter’s face and he smiles as well, “No! Don’t apologize! This entire thing is actually really funny! How did I manage to miss her doing this?”

Jaehyun ruffles his daughter’s hair and kneels down at the text tent, moving the curtain back to give the rest of the food to the camerawoman. He takes a look inside and realizes that she also has a headband, causing him to let out a hearty laugh. “You too?”

The camerawoman just nods. Lani jumps on her dad's back, giggles fill the air as she shows just how happy she is about everything. Jaehyun stands up with Lani on his back, spinning around a bit as she hangs on for dear life. Jaehyun kneels down again, letting Lani plant her feet on the ground again, kneeling down and holding her close as she giggles so brightly, something about this situation just puts her in a laughing mood. 

“Good job, Lani! My daughter is so thoughtful. Who did you get that from?” Jaehyun says, hugging Lani close.

Lani smiles, “From eomma and appa!” 

Jaehyun opens his arms, allowing her to wiggle free and jump around the living room in delight. The dad of three years watches his pride and joy with a smile on his face, his heart filled with a happiness he’s never known before. All of the nerves and negative thoughts about his abilities to watch his daughter on his own completely leave his mind; even a glance of Lani’s smile is enough for him.

Jaehyun knows that in this very moment in time, he’s right where he’s meant to be. He wouldn’t trade any of this for anything.

A bright yellow headband on his head, dimples appearing on his cheeks, his bouncy toddler showing off her boundless energy on the padded floors, Jung Jaehyun knows he’s home. 

---

aaannndd that’s a wrap on jaehyun’s first return of the superman scenario!! i hope you guys liked reading it as much as i liked writing it!

my request box is open! don’t be afraid to pop by and request anything you want!

thank you so much for reading and i hope you guys enjoyed this fluffly little piece!

- amy <3

[eushiloh]

⟨ SYDNEY SWEENEY. CIS FEMALE. SHE/HER. ⟩ though the mist might prevent some from seeing it, SHILOH MONROE is actually a descendent of H Y P N O S. it’s still a question of whether or not the TWENTY-THREE year old DANCE MAJOR from COPENHAGEN, DENMARK has taken after their godly parent completely, but the demigod is still known to be quite EMPATHIC & INDECISIVE.

howdy howdy howdy, i’m h and lemme just start by saying how excited i am to be here and bring this sweet little baby to life. i’m gonna keep this little section short and sweet because there’s HELLA info below (if you read it all, bless u sweet angels) so without further ado, let’s get into it, shall we?

BASIC INFORMATION

FULL NAME shiloh josefine monroe NICKNAME(S) shi, sj OCCUPATION cashier at eonia theater/dance major SEXUALITY: bisexual AGE 23 DATE OF BIRTH march 3rd NATIONALITY danish RELIGION spiritual THREAT LEVEL 3/10

PHYSICAL INFORMATION

FACE CLAIM sydney sweeney HEIGHT 5′4 EYE COLOR blue HAIR COLOUR + STYLE dirty blonde, typically in messy/loose waves DOMINANT HAND left DISTINGUISHING FEATURES big, sleepy eyes, full lips, wide smile, strong dancer legs ACCENT + INTENSITY danish accent (here is a video for reference of how it sounds) TATTOO(S) she has three tattoos, they are all fairly small and dainty. one is a pair of pink ballet slippers on her ankle, then a cresent moon with clouds on the inside of her right wrist, and lastly (her biggest one) is a dream catcher along her left side of her ribs. SCAR(S) one along her right knee from when she fell off a bike as a child and cut her leg open PIERCING(S) five in each ear, she has a nose hoop but forgets about it all the time, and her belly button.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

HOMETOWN copenhagen, denmark CURRENT RESIDENCE athens, greece LANGUAGE(S) Danish/English SOCIAL CLASS middle BASIC EDUCATION high school COLLEGE EDUCATION currently a junior in college DEGREE(S) N/A PARENT #1 sofia monroe PARENT #2 n/a PET(S) white cat named cloud RAP SHEET? squeaky clean PRISON TIME? yeah right

VICES + HABITS

SMOKES? yes DRINKS? yes DRUGS? only weed VIOLENT? no ADDICTION(S)? sleeping? maybe? SELF-DESTRUCTIVE? sometimes HABIT(S) humming to herself, bouncing her leg, rubbing her lips together, not making eye contact when she speaks, cracking her knuckles HOBBIES dancing, sleeping, binge watching shows in her bed, yoga LIKES native american flute music, the color blue, soft lighting, dance clothes, sleeping in, and reality television DISLIKES loud noises, violence, people staring for too long, and heavy metal music. OBSESSION(S) dancing and sleeping, once again COMPULSION(S) leaving events early to be alone?? does that count?

MISCELLANEOUS INFORMATION

HOUSE hypnos ZODIAC pisces ELEMENT water ANIMAL panda

P O W E R S

when it comes to her powers, the strongest that shiloh has come to obtain would be hypnokinesis , though she tries not to take advantage of it too much. trying be the key word there, because there’s something so entrancing about living in somewhat of a dream like world, which is usually what she likes to use the power for. it first started out with delving into a fantasy land, a place for her to escape to and get lost in, and slowly she found herself falling deeper and deeper into her own rabbit hole. even as a young lady, she’d always heard people refer to her as their “dream girl” and once she realized she had the ability to somewhat make some dreams come true, she couldn’t help but sink into her title. once she got the hang of it, she couldn’t help but use it to her advantage here and there, if she had a crush on somebody she would appear in their dreams more and more. a sucker for romance, it was basically how she swayed her suitors, although sometimes it was for nothing whenever she realized it was all fantasy and never reality. still, living in dream worlds was too delicious not to become wrapped up in, that it became something she mastered perfectly. whether it was astral projecting herself into other settings while she was sleeping, or into other dreams, it seemed shiloh was entirely infatuated with living in her own little dream worlds. although, something that came hand in hand with dreams were nightmares, an area that shiloh hated getting stuck in.

something that she is wanting to dip her toes into more, would be her shapeshifting abilities. the blonde has only been able to do such in a limited ability, only recently being able to do so whenever she is fully awake. it’s uncomfortable, sure, but there’s something so mesmerizing about taking on the form of something else….or better yet someone else. often there’s many eyes on her, so being able to blend into a background and garner less attention is a rush of relief for her.

the girl has also always excelled in the levitation ability aspect of her life, shiloh has always been rather light on her feet, it was almost as if she was always floating. almost a picture of grace, it brought her face to face with something she adored at a rather early age: dancing. enrolled in classes from the age of 8, shiloh practically could float across a dance floor with elegance, something she now contributes to her levitation aspect of her powers.

P E R S O N A L I T Y

with wide eyes and a soft smile, shiloh had always been rather quiet yet somehow still garnered the attention in a room. she wasn’t the type of girl to command it though, often keeping to herself, there was something magnetic and glowy about her that made her fall into the social hierarchy without really trying to. the blonde had always prided herself on being a good friend to those around her, even if they never gave her the same respect back, and soon realized that she was becoming a doormat to those around her. she kept everyone’s secrets, harboring them inside her like a vessel and remembering the little things others might have even forgotten they’d told her. soon enough, shiloh had realized she had enough dirt and ammo on those around her that if they ever did cross her, she’d use against them if need be. but luckily, thus far, the girl never had to shoot her shot to the heart just yet. a part of her always wondered if she had the guts to do it anyways, to cross those who she’d held nearest and dearest, or if she’d end up chickening out from the fear of hurting them too much. a never ending battle of right and wrong within her, she often finds herself torn and defeated by the end of the day. it makes her almost come off as flaky and aloof, although her intentions are typically anything but pure, her own overthinking tends to be her downfall. never letting anyone close enough to pick her brain, she is a beautiful mystery with expectations that had always been built upon her back. to be perfect, to be a vision of grace and poise, but sometimes she just wants to let loose and say fuck it to everything that had ever been expected of her and prove that she’s anything but a delicate flower. she has thorns that she’s never shown, and she fears if anyone gets to close, she’ll draw blood without warning.

EXTRA THINGS LOL

shiloh is on the dance team, obviously, the girl lives for dancing and when she’s not dancing....she’s probably napping. 

also she has a job at the eonia theater as a cashier, so you’ll see her little sleepy self behind the counter and sometimes sneaking into the show to sleep in the back.

her mother was the type to live vicariously through her, always putting pressure on her to be “perfect” and put together. there was even a time in her younger years whenever her mother would put her into pageants, which shiloh absolutely hated, it was too much energy towards something she hated which ultimately left her feeling even more drained than normal. in fact, any pictures remaining of that time in her life are privately stored away and she refuses to revisit that memory which she even went lengths to alter from people’s brains whenever she figured out she had that ability.

the only good thing that she found from pageants was her love of dance, something that shiloh has passionately pursued all her life. she was enrolled in ballet mostly but soon fell in love with contemporary dance, and it was something that satisfied her mother, a win-win.

even though she was accepted as someone that was a part of the “in-crowd” in high school, celeste suffers from social anxiety, instead of hanging out at parties she often finds herself slipping away and disappearing. she’s much more of a homebody than someone who enjoys going out, being peer pressured is something she often falls victim to because she’s afraid of coming off as flaky, although she tends to do so anyways due to her disappearing acts.

the relationship she has with her mother is strained, because while she loves her mom, the constant pressure to “perform” and the way her mother sort of pushed her and talked so highly of her has her nervous to disappoint those around her. she constantly feels as if she has to be some sort of social butterfly, when the idea of getting close to people terrifies her, leaving her in a never-ending cycle of what she SHOULD be and what she WANTS to be.

speaking of relationships, most of celeste’s tend to fizzle out quickly once her partners discover she’s not all that they dreamt her up to be. it could be her fault, inserting herself into people’s dreams to learn more about them, that most of her relationships die out after the honeymoon phase...making her fear commitment all together.

she’s a pisces, because....well, obviously.

shiloh is bisexual, although she is a little nervous about dating women seeing as her mother wouldn’t quite understand, most of her public relationships have been exclusively with men due to her fear of disappointing her mother.

[captainscanadian]

Better | Bucky Barnes x Reader (Part 6)

My Masterlist

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5

Summary: Bucky Barnes is ready to fix the mess that your parents had created, but he doesn’t want you to know about it.

Word Count: 7076

Pairing: Doctor!Bucky x Doctor!Reader, Doctor!Bucky x Doctor!Steve (Platonic), Doctor!Steve x Lawyer!Peggy

Warnings: Swearing, Mentions of Abuse & Alcoholism, Surgery, Organ Donation, IV & Needles, Emotional Distress, Physical Pain, Drugs, Hospital Stay, Homelessness, Mentions of Death & Cancer

A/N: Recently a lot of people have been asking me if Bucky can murder the reader’s parents. As much as I understand your strong hatred towards them, the answer is no. Sorry not worry. This one’s dedicated to Naynay for being the reason why I started posting all of my crappy writing on here. <3 Pic & gif are not mine, credits to the respective owners!

It was only a matter of time before Dr. James Barnes had been paged down to the Emergency Room for a consult. A patient had come in complaining of chest pain and shortness of breath. This eventually led him into the OR to repair the woman’s dissecting aorta, a surgery that typically lasted a few hours with no complications. It was a procedure that he had performed many times before. He need not fret over it, despite it being an emergency procedure than a pre-planned one like the one this morning. Perhaps, it was the unpredictable nature of heart surgery that had been so attractive to him. He could not deny that he liked the adrenaline rush that came with literally racing death itself and beating it fair and square.

By the time he had gotten out of surgery, it was way past lunchtime and Bucky was starving. After getting Shuri to inform the patient’s family about the patient’s current status, he found himself grabbing a salad from the hospital’s cafeteria and retreating to the doctors’ lounge for some rest before he was to get hit by the next cardiovascular crisis at hand. The unexpected circumstances that came with the job were perfect for a guy who had once wanted no commitments. But now to say that his attitude had changed would be quite the understatement. Nevertheless, Bucky sucked it up and went about his day like any other surgeon in the hospital.

While a part of him was feeling uneasy, thanks to the escalation of things that he had returned to, he knew that all he had to do was push through it all until his shift would finally be over. But he was unsure what to do next. He wondered if he should go back down to the post-op ward and see you. As much as he wanted to return to his place at your bedside, a part of him was hesitant. He was unsure about whether you would want him there, especially after what had happened with your mother coming to see you. He did not want to risk being shooed away by you.

After all, it made him wonder if you could not even trust your own mother, how you could be able to trust anyone else. All of a sudden, your hesitance to become close to anyone in the hospital made sense to him. After all, your mother had been the source of all of your trust issues. And as much as he was willing to accept that you might never ever trust him and let him into your life, he could not deny that it would hurt like a bitch either way. He was not ready to put himself through that, at least not yet.

“Steve, you’re still here.” Bucky noted upon seeing his best friend lying down on the sofa once he entered the lounge. “Your shift ended hours ago. Why haven’t gone home, you punk? You’re one of the only ones who actually have a life outside of the hospital. Why are you even here right now?”

Sleepily flipping through the channels of the television to find something decent to watch, Steve looked up to see his best friend and gave him a weak smile. “I wasn’t planning on going anywhere, Buck, not after what happened to Y/L/N. Being her emergency contact is a huge responsibility and I feel like I should stick around, you know, just in case... I don’t want any her to have any other complications.” He told him with a sigh and a shrug of his shoulders, sitting up to face his best friend who sat down in front of him.

“How is she?” He asked, biting down on his bottom lip as he picked at his salad for a moment.

“She’s... awake, talking. No further complications, no infections. She’s in a bit of pain but she’s a little hesitant about the amount of drugs she puts in her body. Nat redid the sutures herself and closed her up so they’re all... still in place. Wanda’s sitting at her bedside to make sure she doesn’t move at all, just to keep them still intact. Thor’s watching the door to make sure no one comes in or leaves without being noticed.” He explained. “She’ll be fine, Buck. She’s... recovering.”

Nodding as he bit down on his bottom lip once more, the dark haired doctor continued to pick at his salad. “You should go home, Steve. I’ll be here and... I’ll call you if anything happens. Just go home, get some sleep. You haven’t even seen Sarah in two days. At least, spend the night at home for her and come back in the morning.”

“No, Buck, it’s fine... I don’t mind sticking around the hospital for a few more hours. I’m way too sleepy. It’s definitely not safe for me to be driving home on my own and Peggy had a meeting at the firm this afternoon. She said she won’t be back until she’s picked Sarah up from daycare, so I’m just hanging out here, waiting for my girls.”

A soft chuckle escaped Bucky’s lips as he finally took a bite of his salad, leaning back in his seat and putting his feet up against the coffee table. “You’ve really got your shit figured out, Steve. Work-life balance, marriage and kids...” This was true. Compared to him, his best friend really did have his whole life figured out. The two of them had always been competitive despite being best friends since childhood. From the SATs to their undergraduate years to the MCATs to Columbia Medical School, even their surgical residencies thereafter, Bucky and Steve had always come in neck and neck at the top of their classes. But when it came to family life though, it seemed like Steve was already way ahead of Bucky.

“You know, you could have that too if you really wanted to.” Steve reminded him, a sigh escaping his lips as he fidgeted with the remote in his hand. “If you’re willing to commit and sacrifice being a complete workaholic to make time for a wife and kids, you could...” He was not an idiot. He knew that Bucky wanted the kind of life that he had with Peggy, even if he had denied it countless times before. He could not help but want that for his best friend too. After all, he knew that not only did Bucky want to settle down and have family, but that a part of him also wanted it all with you.

And knowing of your past, Steve wanted that for you too. He knew that you deserved to be unconditionally loved by someone, for you had not experienced unconditional love ever before. He wanted that for you because he understood how much Bucky loved you. If only things did work out in your favor and the two of you finally accepted your feelings for each other. Steve can only hope or sit back and watch, for he was certainly not a meddler of things.

The dark haired doctor let out a sigh before shaking his head, taking another bite of his salad and trying to ignore Steve’s words. “Yeah, well... that’s not what I want.” He lied, even though a part of him knew that the other could see right through his bullshit. “I mean, I do love her but... I don’t think she’d ever love me back, Steve. I know for a fact that she won’t ever accept me. So if it’s not her, then it won’t be anyone else.”

Before Steve could even say anything in response to that, the door burst open with a rather annoyed Peggy Carter entering the doctor’s lounge. “I got your text, darling, and I must admit that I’m not surprised at all.” She announced, plopping down on the sofa next to her husband. “Hello, Barnes.”

“Peggy.” He gave her a nod, continuing to pick at his salad before taking another bite.

“Where’s Sarah?”

“Her cousin Sharon wanted to get her some lunch. She had just woken up from a nap when I picked her up from daycare. Seemed a little cranky because she was hungry.” The woman replied with a shrug. “And I didn’t think she should be here when we’re talking about this, you know? Sharon said she’ll bring her back in an hour or so. Gives us enough time to talk, you know?”

Bucky grew confused at her words and raised his eyebrows at Steve. “Talking about what?”

Peggy turned around to look at Steve. “Have you told him yet, Steve? Because he sure does look too calm to know what happened.”  

Steve let out a sigh as he rubbed his eyes. “I’m way too tired to deal with how he would react so I thought I’d wait until you were here. You’re better at breaking this kind of bad news than I am.” This was partially true. Being a doctor, a cardiothoracic surgeon at that, Dr. Rogers had certainly been trained on how to deliver bad news to his patients. Most of the time, such bad news included the unforeseeable factors: the patient’s condition receding beyond the surgeon’s control, surgical complications and even death.

But with what Steve was forced to deal with at that moment, though certainly not as bad as patient death, it was Peggy who was much more equipped to deal with such dilemmas. She was a Cambridge-educated attorney who happened to work at one of the most reputable law firms in New York. She was certainly used to dealing with extortion cases, not to mention that you had also approached her for legal advice on becoming an organ donor to your abusive father.

“What the hell is going on?” Bucky asked as he sat up on the sofa and set down his food, turning over to look at his best friend’s wife. “Peggy, what is it?”

Peggy let out a sigh as she sat back in her seat. “I’ll tell you but I want you to promise me that you won’t go off on a complete fit of rage or do anything absolutely stupid.”

He let out a sigh as he ran his hand through his hair. “If this has something to do with Y/N, then I'm not making any promises I know I can't keep.” He told her before turning to Steve. “Did she tell you something? Did she... tell you what happened with her mother?”

Steve bit down on his bottom lip before leaning forwards in his seat. “Her mother... told her that her decision to come forward and donate her liver to her father lead to... them having hundreds of thousands of dollars in medical bills. And now she’s emotionally blackmailing Y/L/N to pay for them because they couldn’t afford the surgery.”

To say that Bucky was completely unsurprised by this revelation would be an understatement. After all, this had exactly been his suspicion ever since he had found out about your parents coming down to Brooklyn Hospital in the first place. They had not come searching for better medical treatment from Dr. Romanoff. They had come in search of a way to extort money from you. But finding out that your mother’s attempt at extortion was the reason behind you bleeding out like that only made the man feel angrier at your parents. But he did not show it. “I mean, I saw that coming.” He said with a shrug, returning to his salad.

His calm and composed reaction made Steve and Peggy turn to look at each other for a moment.

“What?” Steve asked, blankly.

“I got suspicious.” Bucky replied with a shrug of his shoulders. “When Y/N told me that her formerly abusive slash estranged father was admitted here, I was... a little surprised. I knew she was from this small town near Philadelphia so, how in the world did they manage to get all the way to Brooklyn, let alone at the hospital where their daughter worked? I mean, it all did seem like a coincidence but... I didn’t think that there was any way that they did not know... that their daughter worked there. I... had no reason to trust her parents, right? And I was... right. I mean, they tracked her down... they came here... and I don’t think a liver transplant was what they came looking for. I think they came here to tie Y/N down... emotionally... and try to get money from her to pay for the outstanding medical bills that they have in Philly. But their plan didn’t work. Y/N volunteered to get tested because she... has a heart. She cared about doing the right thing and being the better person. She cares... about... everyone but herself, even her abusive parents. When Y/N volunteered to get tested, do you remember what happened, Steve? Her mother wouldn’t even accept it at first, because she knew that the surgery would mean more medical bills and they weren’t financially stable. She’d just lost her job and they don’t have insurance. Y/N had to get Romanoff to explain how long they would have to wait until UNOS found him a match just so that she would agree. This has been their motive all along... to get money from her. Because they... went bankrupt when Y/N was a little kid and the mom had to work as a maid to keep things going, dad drank away all of their money and now that mom doesn’t have a job anymore, hey... look, the child we abused who ran away from us is working as a doctor in New York and making six figures so why don’t we just go over there and do what we always did best... emotionally abuse her and get her to pay us a large amount?” He could not help but roll his eyes, huffing as he leaned back in his seat. “Fucking pieces of shit, they are...”

Peggy Carter’s eyes grew so wide at Bucky’s speech that Steve almost feared that they might have popped right out of her skull. “Holy shit, Barnes.” She covered her mouth as her jaw dropped. As a mother to a little girl herself, she could not understand how anyone could put their own child in such a situation. To say that she was disgusted by your parents would be an understatement. She was beyond glad that you had managed to break free from their abuse when you did, but the fact that they were still very a part of your life at that moment pissed her off. She needed to find a solution to all of this and make sure that they never bothered you again.

“How do you know all of this?” Steve asked. “How do you know about them going bankrupt when she was a kid and that she ran away from their abuse?” After all, he was well aware that you had not disclosed these events of your past to anyone but him and his wife. He knew of your circumstances with your parents, because he was your emergency contact. You had told Peggy in case there was a legal dilemma to your decision. You wanted to ensure that the fact that you had reported their abuse all those years ago did not get in the way of you donating your liver now. But how did Bucky know all of this? Steve had no idea.

“Yeah, the whole ‘outstanding medical bills in Philly’ thing is news to the both of us.” She agreed, looking at her husband before turning over to his best friend. “I don’t think she intended to tell anyone about this, not even to Steve and I. And... as much as I would like to believe that she trusted you enough to tell you any of this, I think she would have at least told us that you were also aware of her past. But we know Y/N and she wouldn’t have just told you any of this that easily. So, let’s just cut to the chase... What did you do, Bucky?”

The blonde haired doctor’s eyes grew wide as he realized the change of tone in his wife’s voice, for he knew that this was the tone she often used in court. “Bucky... please don’t tell me that you...” A part of him did know what his friend might have done, but he still refused to believe it until he admitted it himself.

“I got Becca to look into her parents.” He confessed.

“Bucky!”

“Are you insane?!” The hospital’s in-house attorney exclaimed, her British accent rolling off of her tongue with such ease and poise despite the fact that she was fuming at the man’s actions. “You fucking hired a PI to look into a patient?! Do you even realize how many potential lawsuits could possibly come out of that?”

“You violated Y/N’s privacy, Buck!” Dr. Rogers added, shaking his head in a slight disappointment. “How do think she’d feel if she ever found out what you’ve done? She’s already got a lot of trust issues and you’re not making this any easier for yourself!”

“I mean, I had to do what I had to do!” The dark haired doctor defended himself. “I get it, Steve. I violated her privacy by hiring Becca to look into her parents and her abusive childhood with them. Sure, she might hate me for it. I don’t care. I only did it because I care about her, Steve. I knew that something wasn’t right when her parents showed up at the hospital. As much as I wasn’t okay with her donating her liver, I respected her decision and her bodily autonomy. She had the right to do whatever the fuck she wanted and I had no say in that whatsoever. But that did not stop me from being suspicious about her parents. I mean, I couldn’t ask her because she wouldn’t tell me. I knew that you knew a lot more about her past than any of us, Steve. Of course, she tells you everything. But is she going to tell me if I asked? Not even a chance. And are you going to tell me if I asked you what was up with her and her parents? Also no, because you’re the most righteous human being on this entire fucking planet who cares about honor and all that bullshit and you trained your God damn fellow to be just as honorable and righteous and follow in your footsteps... which has now cost her a piece of her liver and a whole lot of blood.” Bucky paused to take a breath before turning over to Peggy. “And of course, you knew everything too, Peggy. Y/N told me that she came to you for legal advice, just in case. But I also knew not to ask you either, because you would have given me a whole lecture about attorney-client privilege and I saved us all a hell of lot of time by just going ahead and hiring Becca to do the work for me.”

Steve let out a sigh as he stood up from his seat. “I need a cup of coffee.” He announced as he walked over to the kitchenette and started to make himself a cup.

“Can you also make me a cup of tea, please darling?” Peggy asked Steve as she rubbed her temples, her eyes not leaving Bucky’s. “You’re insane, Barnes. You’re absolutely insane and you know that. And to even call you the godfather of my child, good lord, what have we done? You’ll be such a terrible influence on her when she’s older, I’m sure of it.”

Dr. Barnes finished the last of his salad and nodded, chuckling softly at her remark. “I know, Peggy. They say that love makes you crazy... and I’ve been doing some pretty crazy things lately. I won’t even deny it.” This was true. After all, Bucky had been doing more than just sit at your bedside while you were asleep. A week after he had found out about your make shift clinic at the homeless shelter, he had made an anonymous donation of a million dollars to the shelter in hopes that a part of it would be able to fund your cause. And for the next two years, he would go on to do much crazier things when it came to you.

Whether it was buying an extra cup of coffee every morning and bringing it over to you just to see you give him a sleepy smile in gratitude, or waiting for you to get out of surgery every other night and lying about a late night craving for Indian food just so that he could give you a ride home, there were certain things that he had started to do that would make anyone think he was crazy. But to him, it was all a part of him trying to become a better person, because you had made him want to be a better person.

Even last year, he had startled the entire surgical department meeting by suggesting a fundraising gala to help raise money to increase the number of pro bono surgeries that were being performed at the hospital. Chief Stark had been surprised that Dr. Barnes had been the one to even make that suggestion; his bet would have been on Rogers. But without much debate, the gala had been approved by the hospital’s board of directors. Tony had put Bucky in charge of throwing the ball itself, which the man had surprisingly managed to pull off.

James Barnes had made yet another generous donation to his own cause this time, while also convincing his three sisters in helping him organize the event so that others could also take part in the act of giving back. He had approached his retired parents in hopes that their contacts could help him find more sponsors. And thanks to you, he had hired the lovely Indian couple who owned the restaurant you had been living above to cater the event. The rest of the event had been paid by him, with some of the doctors also pitching in.

It had been a rare occurrence for Dr. James Barnes to take part is such formal events, so there was no denying that his attempts at organizing one and showing up at that was quite refreshing to see. He had donned a designer tuxedo, his luscious long hair coiffed into a neat bun. He looked prim and proper, to say the least.

But if one had observed him rather closely that night, they would have noticed that his bright blue eyes were constantly darting towards the entrance throughout the whole event. Even when he had taken to the stage to make a speech and had commanded the attention of an entire banquet hall, no one had noticed how his gaze was constantly wandering towards the double doors that led his guests inside. Perhaps no one except Wanda Maximoff was able to figure out that this entire event had been Bucky Barnes’ attempt at channelling his inner Jay Gatsby.

The bottles of champagne had been popped, poured into flutes and emptied long before, dinner and dessert served promptly thereafter. It was not until after the DJ had opened up the dance floor did James finally receive the long-awaited arrival of the woman he loved. And in an instant, his lips curled into a smile at the sight of you in your silver-grey evening gown. He knew that the shimmer and sequins were very unlike you, but he appreciated the effort you had taken to follow the dress code.

As you noticed the host of the evening upon your entrance and made your way towards the dance floor to greet him, you could not help but notice that he cleaned up quite well, in his tuxedo and his hair in a bun. Oh how attractive he looked in that bun, you could not deny it. You rarely saw him put his hair up, except for that one time when he had showed up to a consult with his hair tied up with a Hello Kitty hair-tie a while back.

You felt your cheeks heat up at the thought of how handsome he looked that evening and you quickly shooed away your thoughts, walking up to him with a bright smile. “James, hey... I’m so sorry I’m late. I didn’t mean to miss the dinner and half of the party. I had a last minute consult at the ER and I had to do an Endarterectomy. It took longer than expected and by the time I got home, showered and got ready... it took me a while. I’m sorry.”

“Hey.” His smile was genuine and one that brought you a sense of calm. “Hey, it’s okay. I get it, things like that are not always in our hands. I wasn’t even sure if you’d show up, to be honest. I know that... social events like these are not really your thing. At least I’m glad you decided to spend the rest of your evening here instead of being cooped up in your little clinic. It means a lot, doll, really... thank you for being here.” He bit down on his bottom lip rather nervously as he leaned in to place a gentle kiss on your cheek. It was an act of politeness to say the least, a sign of gratitude that you had even bothered to show up late than never, even though you did have an excuse to not be there.

You felt your cheeks heat up once more, a sense of warmth in your heart as you felt his lips against your cheek. There was something gentle about the way his warm breath lingered against your skin, but you quickly looked down to hide the blush. You could not help but grin widely at his understanding nature and you looked around the ball room.

It seemed as though a majority of the guests had already left. The DJ had been playing a slow song and naturally, Steve and Peggy were at the center of the dance floor. You must have heard a thousand times during your bi-weekly dinners with the Rogers’ of the story of their first date and their first dance. Even after years of being married, the two of them still looked so in love. You could not help but want that for yourself. But you felt slightly greedy for it. After all, you had always believed that you did not deserve to be loved by anyone.

The blonde haired doctor noticed your gaze on him and gave you a wave, his wife still leant against his shoulder as they swayed along to the song. You chuckled, shooting him a quick thumbs up before turning to James. “Looks like you’ve really pulled this off, Dr. Barnes.” You noted, seeing that the gala had been quite the success. “I must say that I’m impressed.”

“I couldn’t have done it without your help though, doll, thanks to you and your undying loyalty to the Singh’s.” He politely remarked. “The food’s a big hit- hey; have you even had a chance to eat anything since you got out of your surgery?” It had taken Bucky a moment to realize that it was way past dinner time and knowing you and the way you had rushed to get here after your surgery, you might not have eaten.

“Um... no.” You shook your head.

“Come on, let’s get you in the kitchen and grab you some of that delicious food.” It had been a rather impulsive move on his part, when he had just casually grabbed your hand and lead you away from the dance floor.

You had been caught off guard by his actions but you paid no heed to them anyways. You had assumed that it was just his way of being a host, making sure that all of his guests were well fed and taken care of. After all, you had paid for your ticket to attend this gala and he probably just wanted to give you your money’s worth. You would not have imagined that his actions were a sign of his undying love for you.

He walked out of the ball room before turning down the hallway to where the kitchen was, complimenting and thanking a few of the wait staff along the way before entering the kitchen.

You stood at the door, watching as he made his way over to the head chef who was also your landlord. He really was a wonder of a man, you thought. How thoughtful and kind had he really been, for as long as you’ve known him? To think that the two of you had managed to not get along in the OR at some point seemed to surprise you. But that fall out had only made the two of you become the closer. There was no denying that.

After asking the woman to fix you a plate of food, he walked back to you with a cheeky grin on his face. “I told them to set aside your plate in case you showed up. They’ll just reheat it in a moment.”

You could not help but let out a chuckle at that, raising an eyebrow nevertheless. “How did you know that I would even show up though, James?” You asked, curiously. “After all, I do have a tendency to make plans at first and bail on people.”

“I just had a little faith that you would be here... considering that it’s for a good cause and you’re not the kind of person who turns away from doing something to give back.” He replied, grinning widely as he realized that he really did know you well. “Plus, you did pay for the food, the champagne and a little dancing. As a responsible host, I wanted to make sure you did get your money’s worth.”

You rolled your eyes playfully as you walked past him to enter the kitchen, greeting the lovely Indian chef with a hug before taking the plate from her. “Well... since I’ve got my food here now, where’s my champagne?”

As the banquet was wrapping up, Bucky had excused himself to check on the clean up. The red carpet had been rolled up, the table linens piled up and the chairs stacked neatly on top of one another. The DJ had taken down the speakers and loaded up his equipment in his van, the cleaning staff was busy sweeping the confetti off the hard wooden floor.

You found yourself wafting down your plate of food in the kitchen while the staff got busy with doing the dishes. Chatting away with the lovely Indian woman who continued to pile up the remainder of the food onto your plate, you managed to eat until you were full. You did not realize how hungry you had been until you had eaten second and third helpings of the Singh’s signature biryani, but you were grateful to the woman for wanting to feed you well. After all, this was the closest experience you had to a mother’s love.

James had not returned until an hour later, having sent off the last of his guests home before dealing with the payments for the DJ and the linen rentals. He let Rebecca take care of the rest before excusing himself for the night, grabbing the last remaining bottle of champagne from the fridge before making his way over to you. “Sorry that took a while, doll.” He told you as he chuckled, holding up the bottle. “But I got what you asked for...” He could not help but notice the aluminum tray of food that you were holding and he raised his eyebrow at you.

“What? I had three plates of food but there was still some left over. There was no way I was going to let some good biryani go into the trash. Plus, I figured that you wouldn’t have had a chance to eat anything either, being a good host and all. So, what do you say, we get out of here and find ourselves a really nice late night view of the bridge and... have a little picnic?” You wiggled your eyebrows at him before letting out a laugh.

“I... think I’d like that.”

Bucky was taken by surprise that you had even made this suggestion, but it was not very unlikely of you to be concerned about wasting food or watching someone else go hungry either. Having left the venue of the banquet together, the two of you somehow managed to end up on the roof of your loft home somehow. You had been the one to suggest it though, for you wanted him to see the view from up there.

It was a mid-August night, the air was breezy. You kicked off your heels and sat down on the concrete step as you looked up at the stars. The night was quiet, even though there was the occasional laughter of passerby’s walking past the restaurant that stirred up the silence every now and then.

He had taken off his coat and wrapped it over your shoulder, in case you got cold, a plastic fork in his hand that was picking through the aluminum tray as he ate the food that you had packed up for him. “Did I tell you how lovely you look in that dress, Y/N?”

“Did I tell you how much I like your hair like that, James?” You asked, teasingly. “I have to admit, you clean up real nice.”

“You too.” He chuckled as he took a bite of his food, looking around the neighborhood that he had been so familiar with when he had been younger, but now he felt like a stranger. After Steve had moved in with him, he rarely came down to this part of town. While it was home to his best friend, to him it had been an insignificant part of Brooklyn, at least until you had moved here. Nowadays, it seemed that he came by this neighborhood every few days whenever he’d offered you a ride home and to see that these trips only made him miss his former nanny would be an understatement.

He missed her dearly, for the woman had raised him as her own. He knew that it was people like her who needed the care and concern of people like him. It was why he had thrown this gala in the first place, not even Steve knew about how close this was for Bucky.

Perhaps if Sarah Rogers had the money to afford the best care in Brooklyn, her doctors would not have managed to misdiagnose her with pneumonia. Her cancer could have been caught sooner and she might be alive. These pro bono surgeries were just a way for him to prevent such tragic deaths that could have been easily avoided.

You popped the bottle of champagne, laughing heartily at the fizz that spilled slightly on your gown. But you could care less about it. “You first.” You told him as you held the bottle towards him.

Taking the bottle from you and taking a swing, he turned over to look at you with a smile. “Why do you still live here, Y/N?” He asked you, curiously. “You’re not a fellow anymore. You’re a board certified cardiothoracic surgeon and a good one at that. I’m sure you can afford a nicer apartment with the amount you get paid.”

“I mean, I could... but I don’t really want to leave my little loft.” You replied, shrugging as you took the bottle from him and took a sip. “It’s been my first real home in forever, James. It’s the first place that I moved into... that wasn’t a campus dorm or a sorority house. It wasn’t supposed to be some kind of temporary accommodation.” Like a foster home. “I mean, I could find myself a bigger apartment but... it’s just me. I don’t take up that much space. I don’t like taking up too much space. I’m fine living here. It’s nice and cozy. It’s home.”

“But aren’t you worried about the safety hazards, Y/N? You live above a restaurant, the stairs are too narrow. In case of an emergency, you won’t be able to get out quickly.” He noted.

You let out a sigh as you handed him the bottle. “You know, after spending a cold winter night in the street... any other place can feel the safest.” You admitted, biting down on your bottom lip. “Plus, I work so much that I’m barely home anyways. It’s fine, James. I’m fine here.”

“Alright... if that’s what you say so.” He nodded, giving in since he knew that he could not change your mind that easily, taking a sip of the champagne before setting it down for a moment. He set down his tray and stood up from his seat on the step. “Anyways, I think the roof has enough space for just the two of us.” He remarked as he pulled his phone out of his pocket. “And I think I owe you a little dance. So if you wouldn’t mind, Dr. Y/N/N... shall we?””

You could not help but roll your eyes at that. “I believe you do.” You remarked as you stood up, brushing off the back of your dress before slipping back into your heels.

Bucky put on a song before setting down his phone, holding out his hand with a bow of his head. “M’Lady.”

You giggled softly as you tried your best at a curtsey, only to trip over your gown and grab onto the man’s hand as you laughed.

He let out a hearty laugh as he helped you regain your balance, his arm wrapped around your waist as he began to slowly sway along to the music.

You blushed slightly as you held onto him, your ear pressed gently against his chest, the sound of his beating heart bringing you a sense of solace as the song began.

You look so wonderful in your dress I love your hair like that The way it falls on the side of your neck Down your shoulders and back We are surrounded by all of these lies And people who talk too much You got the kind of look in your eyes As if no one knows anything but us Should this be the last thing I see I want you to know it's enough for me 'Cause all that you are is all that I'll ever need I'm so in love, so in love So in love, so in love You look so beautiful in this light Your silhouette over me The way it brings out the blue in your eyes Is the Tenerife Sea And all of the voices surrounding us here They just fade out when you take a breath Just say the word and I will disappear Into the wilderness Should this be the last thing I see I want you to know it's enough for me 'Cause all that you are is all that I'll ever need I'm so in love, so in love So in love, so in love

 “Well, the fact that you deliberately admitted that only makes me wonder what kind of crazy thing you’re about to do next, Barnes.” Peggy noted as she took her steaming cup of tea from her husband. “Because I know that look on your face. You’re planning something, aren’t you?”

Bucky let out a chuckle as he stood up from his seat, tossing away the container that had held his salad in the trash can before walking over to his locker. “I’m not planning anything, Peggy. I’m just... coming up with a solution to Y/N’s dilemma.” He told her with a shrug as he retrived his lab coat and put it on over his scrubs.

“Also known as planning.” Steve clarified as he sat down next to his wife and took a sip of his coffee. “Spill it, you punk. What are you going to do?”

“Well, right now... I’m going to go down to the pediatrics ward because Clint asked me to cover his shift for the afternoon.” Rolling his eyes, Dr. Barnes grabbed his stethoscope that hung on the hook in his locker. He turned around to look at Peggy for a moment. “Peggy, out of curiosity, how long will it take for you to draft a contract?”

The lawyer gave him a confused look. “It really depends on what the terms on this contract will be?”

“How about something along the lines of... ‘by accepting these two million dollars and an additional allowance of three grand’s per month... we, the Y/L/N’s agree that we will leave our estranged daughter alone for the rest of her life, we’ll never try to contact her and we won’t try to extort any more money from her,’ or something like that?” He asked her, smirking as he tossed his stethoscope over his neck and crossed his arms against his chest.

“Bucky, no.”

“I pay off her dad’s medical bills and give them a little extra so that they don’t come crawling back to her ever again.” Bucky stated with a shrug. “Steve, you and I both know what Y/N does with her hard-earned money. This clinic is... her everything. If she pays them off, she won’t be able to keep it going. I don’t think I can let that be taken away from her.”

Steve let out a sigh as he pondered Bucky’s suggestion for a moment. “As much as I agree with you, Buck, this isn’t your call to make. It’s hers. And even if she did find out about you wanting to do this, you know she won’t let you. Hell, she wouldn’t even let me pay them off when I offered to do it this morning.”

“She... doesn’t need to know, Steve. That’s why I’m telling the two of you. Peggy drafts a contract; I write a cheque, the Y/L/N’s sign the contract and take the money that they came for. Y/N will be happy once they are out of her life for good and that’s all that fucking matters.”

“But... Bucky, what even is the point of you doing all of this if Y/L/N doesn’t even find out about it?”

[be-ready-when-i-say-go]

Best Friend Pact- Part 4: But Never Forgot They Are Human

Calum attempts to drink the sadness away one night at a party, but his friend, Neveah, doesn’t let him completely. And in their stalled journey off sobriety, they make a secret pact. Black!OC. 

CW: Over the course of this series, there are mentions of pregnancy, birth, death, and death related trauma. Please skip as necessary. 

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Three days, Neveah's been home three days. But it feels longer. It's just exhaustion and some worrying messing with her sense of time. Joy's a big help, sparing her an extra hour of sleep here and there when she can. However, her nipples are still sore. Her intestines still feel like they could fall out of her at any point, which at this point, they are. Almost. The doctor called it lochia, a fancy way of saying that her body is still getting rid of leftover tissue and blood from the placenta detaching itself from the uterine wall. Not that she didn't drop nearly all of her uterus in the delivery room. What more could be left?

But what really throws her off, including the fact that even at the slight cry of Ettie her body wants to expel milk, is that both her and Ettie came home in diapers. She thought maybe the discharge would only last a few days, but she was very wrong. Months of tissue cannot be expelled in one week. It's starting to taper off from such a heavy flow, but it's still a pain. Every time Neveah moves positions, she's reminded that her body has taken the hardest hit it's designed to take and keep going. Parts of her are sore that she never knew could be so sore before. It'll be a month before her body gets itself together. While that's not comforting, she can be patient with herself.

Ettie settles down on Calum's bare chest, after feeding and Neveah reclines into the couch, exhaling. That's when she remembers she out to change her own diaper of sorts. "This is embarrassing," she huffs, finally pushing herself up. "My body's crumbling from the inside out."

With his foot, Calum taps her leg before she passes by him completely. "It's gonna be okay."

She smiles. He can see how tired she is. He is too. Even with his parents around, he wants to be there for everything. He has to be, to make even a dent in the guilt for missing so much before. She backtracks, brushing her lips over his forehead, then down his to his cheeks. Her breath ghosts over his lips before she kisses them too. "Thanks. Rest. She'll be up before long."

God, his gut still twists at the feeling of her lips on his. She disappears down the hallway. "My son, what are you doing?" she laughs as Duke trots along beside her. "I'm okay, boy. I'm okay."

Calum runs his fingers over Ettie's back. "Daddy loves you. You know that?" He keeps saying it, the phrase falling over his lips like a prayer. But he truly means it. He loves her so much. It's almost how unreal how fast he fell for his little girl. God, he'd do anything for her, go through any lengths for her. His ladybug, his star guiding him now. A small whine falls from her lips and he wraps his hand gently around her. "I'm right here, baby girl."

The noise quiets at the warm touch. The lower half the sofa dips. His mother sitting at his feet now, phone trained on him. "Don't look at me," she reprimands. "I'm not here."

"What are you doing?"

"A grandmother's duty. Getting all the pictures and videos that I can."

Calum chuckles, directing his gaze back to the sleepy baby. "Nanna's going to have album's full of your baby pictures. Get ready."

Joy pats his knee. "Just remember you're human too, son." A reminder that he has to take care of himself too in order to take care of Ettie. A reminder that he does, in fact, have so much time with his daughter, an entire lifetime. But guilt is a heavy mongrel. He is ruthless on Calum's soul some nights.

Calum hears his phone buzzing against the coffee table. He doesn't have to answer. But Ashton has been calling once a day just for a niece update. They'll introduce Ettie to the rest of the boys within the next week or so. Right now, they're just trying to get any sort of a routine. So Calum usually always answers. Just as he starts to stretch himself out, shimming just ever so slightly, another hand grabs his phone first. Neveah answers, smiling at the screen. "We haven't died yet," she answers.

"How you two holdin' up?" Ashton asks.

She looks to Calum, his eyes slowly closing. She knew he'd never make it too long laying on the couch like that. The sight makes her body warm. She flips the camera around. "We're doing alright. I think Ettie has him down for the count though. He can't even tap out."

"God, she's the cutest thing ever. She rivals Calum now."

"He did make her. The Hood genes are strong. All thanks to Momma Joy."

"I try," Joy laughs.

Another voice floats in from the phone. "She's so precious. You sure we can't see her sooner?" It's Michael's voice. Neveah wishes they could meet Ettie sooner. She would them too. But she needs more time to become human again herself. "I found the cutest little socks the other day. I know she'll lose them in like three seconds, but they've got little ducks on them and I just couldn't not get them."

The boys talk about themselves, Luke huffing in the background about not seeing his niece. But she starts to tune that out the longer she stares at the sight in front of her. Calum's chest rises and falls steadily, hand still placed on Ettie's back. She's a goner. This is her family. Unconventional in some ways for sure. But it's hers. Was this all Calum wanted? Was he just as elated as her? Was this what he needed?

The call ends and she settles into the one person seat next to Calum, gently running her fingernails through his hair. His face is utterly relaxed in his sleep, brows never furrowed, lips never pursed. She finds her phone, snapping a picture of her, Calum, and Ettie. Opening Instagram is a mistake. She already knows the comments are flooded with snarky remarks. Some are sweet and encouraging. Neveah knows if she posts this picture, even as a story, the world is going explode. But this is her family, this is her moment. The quiet moments....World Meet Ettie; Ettie Meet World. 

"What if I drop her?" are the first words out of Ashton's mouth two weeks later. He and the rest of the boys finally have the opportunity to come and meet Ettie. They know they won't be staying for long, but it's about time.

Calum shakes his head. "You won't. Promise. I had the same fear."

Ashton holds his arms out, tensing as Calum slides the tiny body fully into his hold. He keeps the head supported, a bright smile taking over his face. He had always seen himself as the first to have kids. But Calum beat him to the punch. Maybe it was for the best. Maybe Ashton needed not to worry about anyone but himself for just a little bit longer. Being a second parent to his siblings was enough the first time. He can have a niece, someone to love, but ultimately does not have to raise. "You're gonna be so spoiled, Ettie," he chuckles, rocking her gently.

"She's got so much hair. I'm jealous!" Luke laughs, ever so gently brushing his fingertips over the top of her head. They talk to Ettie's sleeping figure in soft voices, introducing themselves, stating promises to always be there. Calum knows those words aren't empty either. He knows that they will do their damnedest to be there. He knows they're all human too, they're all bound to make mistakes. But there is no mistake in the effort.

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The day is still young but to them, having seen the rising of the sun, it feels like they should be at the end. Calum, as they're paused in the line at the street vendor's stand, wraps his arm around Neveah's shoulders, playfully pushing at her cheeks. She puffs her cheeks out in retaliation, making him exert more effort. His chest rumbles with the soft laugh and drops the poking. "You're no fun," he teases.

"I'm plenty of fun." Her voice is a little soft. He hates the way she sounds. Her dad called earlier and told them not to come by to visit today. Another bad day. They happen so much more frequently. She still went and has been down ever since. He watches her clutch the amethyst gem around her neck. "Something just feels off," she whispers as they shuffle up in line.

"Off how?"

"Not good. I just have a bad feeling about something. It's been just...too many bad days in a row. You know?"

Calum pulls them out of the line, to some benches nearby. He doesn't like the way she's talking, so definite about things truly unknown. Sure death is inevitable, but it doesn't always come in one final sweep. Things can turn around before it goes bad. Calum turns the stroller towards him, keeping one hand on Ettie's tummy, the other resting on Neveah's knee. "Hey, I know it's hard. But you've gotta stay positive. Besides, things were looking up. She might turn around." Two months actually. Two months of her mother doing better. Though recently it has gone on a downward spiral.

She doesn't blink rapidly; there's a distinct lack of a lower lip wobble. She's sad for sure. She knows when she actually hears that her mother is gone. But something sits in her gut like the period of a sentence. It's final, no questioning, no taking it back. Her mother is going to die. Calum notes her silence, the faraway glaze to her eyes. "No, stay with me," he urges, pulling her face to look at him. "She's going to pull through."

"I just know," she whispers. Before her mother had her to fight for, her brother to see graduate. Her only goal this time around was to meet Ettie and that's done now. The only thing her mother would be clinging onto at this point is the pain.

The thought hurts him much more than her. Maybe it's because he's reminded of his mother's own mortality. No one lives forever. It's just a terrible thing to see them go so soon, in such a horrible and painful too. He opens his mouth to speak, to combat her knowing with his own. But there are no words. There is nothing he can tell her. The truth is the truth. He pulls her into his chest, wrapping his arm tight around her shoulders. "I'm here. I'm always here," he whispers into her hair. That is something he can promise, something that is also the truth.

"I love you, Calum." The confession is soft from her lips, but he hears it. He catches onto every syllable. Her breathe tickles his neck a little as she speaks.

"I love you," he returns. There's no hesitation in the phrase. He always thought he'd be terrified to tell that to anyone, to feel this deeply for anyone. But not to her. The truth is so much easier with her. He remembers the house party when he was feeling like everything was taken from him when he felt like he had nothing left. Now he has everything.

__

The next day, they go back to the hospital. Her mother tries to tell them they should've have wasted the gas. That's she's in the same old shape. But anyone that saw her mother yesterday and then say her today knows the truth is very much different. They don't stay long. Her mother yawns every few seconds, clear that her body is tired. Neveah hugs her mother tight to her body, now the tears are threatening to run down her cheeks. She can see the pain. "Rest, Momma. Let go. Don't hold on for us. Let go for you. I love you. Forever and always."

"Forever and always."

When her phone rings a couple of days later while eating lunch, Neveah doesn't reach for it immediately, busy with a grabby Ettie. Calum reaches across the table, taking the baby. "What do you see, Ladybug? What's got your attention?"

Her phone in one hand, she pauses watching Calum chat away to the baby. She remembers one of their running-on-four-hours-of-sleep-and-Ettie-has-finally-settled-for-a-nap conversations. He mentioned how he finally had something to pour into that poured back into him. That thanks to her and Ettie he didn't always feel like he was running on fumes and just getting by. Even though they were running on fumes. Having a baby is stressful. They carried the huge responsibility of such a tiny life, but there's something rewarding watching her discover the world around her. There is nothing selfish in her awe, just a pure wonder.

Having a baby didn't replace all the negatives in the world. It didn't magically erase all the insecurities and fears that Calum has. What it did was give him something to better himself for, it gave him something else for which to live. "You're going to miss that call," Calum notes, finally getting Ettie to release her grip on his necklaces. The grip of a baby is nothing to play with they found out when Ettie almost ripped out one Neveah's earrings from her earlobe.

She rolls her eyes, but steps away from the table, unlocking the phone and pressing it to her to ear. Calum gently pulls at Ettie's hands again, to let go of the chains again and to keep it out of her mouth. "No, let go, Ettie." He gets her grip free again. "When you're older, I'll get you one, okay? Pinky promise. Just no eating it."

He grabs the small cup of fruit puree, scoping some onto the spoon. She reaches out for the spoon. "Soon I'll give you control of the spoon, baby girl," he laughs, finally getting her to take the spoonful. "How did you, you know what, it doesn't matter," he sighs, wiping some of her food out of her hair. Things get everywhere with her. He's not shocked anymore by the fact. He gets the last of her small cup full onto the spoon.

Ettie turns her head, intrigued by the silver fork on his plate. "One more spoonful, baby," he says, going in for a second attempt. She whines in his hold, reaching out for the fork again. He sets the spoon down into the cup and shifts her closer to the plate. She will never settle until she can get her hands on it. "That's a fork," Calum explains, then proceeds to point to the pasta on his plate. "I made Mum and I chicken alfredo."

Ettie babbles, her small palms hitting the table. "Yeah," he agrees. "It is quite good." He points to the cup of fruit. "More? One last scoop."

Ettie's not paying attention, still eying his plate. Calum figures he'll try one last time with the spoon and if she refuses it this time, he'll call it good enough. He holds the spoon out in front of her, she watches it for a moment. The attention doesn't last long before she shrieks, clapping. "Yeah, it's mama," he laughs without even looking up. When he does, he can already see the news on Neveah's face before she can speak. His throat dries, tongue feeling too thick for his mouth. God, what can he say? His mind is just utterly frozen in shock.

"She stopped doing chemo. I never even knew," she whispers. She's not even staring at him or the phone clutched in her hands. Calum finally gets his bearings, mind finally getting back into gear. He places Ettie into her high chair and crosses into the living room. "I don't whether to be sad or relieved."

Calum kisses her forehead, hands cupping her cheek. "I'm so sorry, babe. So so sorry. She loved you. She positively loved you."

"I-I know."

__

There are very few tears from Neveah at the funeral home as they get arrangements in order. She cries a little bit more during the wake. There are no tears at the funeral, even as she marches down the aisle of the church to pay respects to her mother's body one last time. She clutches to Ettie's blanket, though. Calum can see the way her knuckles have lightened around the material. 

Neveah wore it over her shoulder, burping Ettie outside before the procession. He stood with her before he had to duck inside. They agreed Calum and Ettie would sit just a few rows back and she would sit with her family. He didn't want to intrude and knew Ettie would be full of babbles, taking in all the new colors, smells, and such.

He was out way longer than he should've been, so he rushed inside. And only as Neveah was lined up the coordinator did she realize that the blanket was still around her shoulder. Instead of passing the blanket along, she holds onto it. It feels a little silly to hold onto this blanket, but she doesn't have it in herself to give it up. 

She wishes she could cry, but all it is left is just an ache. One she always knew was there, but just now felt, staring down at her mother's body. She's going to miss her mother. "Forever and always," she whispers, before turning and taking a seat next to her brother. She leans into him. Even though she's older, he provides her with comfort.

In reality, it's just a hole, a holding place for her mother's bones. But it is final. "Why do the living care so much for the dead but not the others that are still living?" Neveah asks from the top of the path. She can see the workers lowering the casket from here.

Calum is unsure how to respond, still trying to keep Ettie at bay in his arms. Neveah notices the whines and takes the child. "Momma's right here, darling. She's right here."

"I can take her. She might be tired of me holding her, but if you need a moment."

She shakes her head at his offer. "My moment's over." 

There is nothing for her to do now. Her mother is dead, three, maybe four feet deep now and counting. Soon they will throw dirt onto the waxed coffin. The type of wood will mean nothing to the dirt and worms that will crawl over it. The earth takes no prisoners, only temporary flesh and permanent bones. Her moment will be sealed up and marked with a tombstone.

"People care so much about the dead because they don't want them to talk bad about us. No one cares about what the living say, their opinions still have time to change. The dead speak in eternity and nothing can change theirs," Calum says.

"Ever thought about writing poetry?"

"I never have too much to say."

"You speak volumes with very few words. Ought to give it a shot," Neveah returns. 

__

The ache of missing someone is a slow disease, but persistent. Some days Neveah does well; she cooks breakfast for all of them. She goes to work with a smile. She walks with tours to make sure everything's going smoothly. She can interact with children with light in her heart. Calum sees the nanny that comes in during the week, and Neveah relieves them. Some days she even brings Ettie in while she works for part of the day.

Then other days, getting out of bed is a drag. Neveah picks at her plate, getting just enough not to be met with Calum's firm glance for her to eat more. She doesn't talk much. On those days, Calum gives her space. Ettie notices something is up. Though she lacks the words, the feeling is still there to her. She climbs into her mother's lap, babbles, attempting to console. It will not ever completely dull the ache, but the effort is appreciated. It is enough to get her to smile again.

Calum peers into the living room. Ettie's laughing, reaching for some of her toys on her stomach. Neveah sits cross-legged onto the floor, smiling at their little girl. "Babe, watch!" she calls out, watching Ettie pushing herself up.

Calum wipes his hands on a dish towel, walking out of the kitchen. Ettie smiles, upon seeing him. "Hey, Ladybug."

"Say hi to Dada," she coos. "She can almost roll over, though."

"She's growing up fast." Every week is an adventure. They watch her for a few more seconds. Ettie pushes up again and then one moment she's on her stomach and the next she's on her back. Calum cheers, dropping the kitchen towel before pressing kisses all over Ettie's face and tummy. Ettie giggles at her father's actions, reaching for his hair. "You're getting so big, Ettie. Look at you, rolling over onto your back." The cheering alerts Duke who lifts his head and stands up. He settles back down, taking watch again.

Neveah watches with tears in her eyes. Joy will get a video later today. They'll set her down for tummy time again later and Calum will coax her to do it again for Nanna. Her father will get a video as well. Neveah knows he will race to the cemetery. He will sit on her mother's plot, screaming to the high heavens about their grandbaby being the smartest around. Neveah claps with clouded eyes at the achievement.

As they settle in for the night, Calum pulls her in a little closer into his chest. "Your mother is still smiling down on you."

The ceiling tiles blur in her vision. She inhales deeply, trying to blink back the tears. "You think so?"

"I know so," he whispers, kissing the skin of her neck. "I know it's not easy. But I'm proud of you."

She never thought about dealing with death as a thing to be rewarded for, to be praised for handling. Death is just a part of life. "Why are you proud of me?" she asks, turning her head to look at him. It's dark, but Neveah can see the outline of him, she knows over time the bumps and lines of his face.

His fingertips dance at the hem of her pajama shirt. "You get up every day and you're still a mom. Even when you're off, you still manage to get through it. On your off days, I don't expect you to jump at every cry. I don't expect you to find the energy to sweep, to cook. And yet you do, sometimes. And yet despite all the pain you carry, you still find the capacity to be on. And you let yourself have your bad days. You know your limits and you communicate that and it's hard having a young baby to step away. But you know ultimately some days you have to. And I am proud that you're not just feeling your pain, but trying to heal from it too. I am proud of your progress."

Her palm rests over his cheek, running her thumb up and down the stubble. Her brain is propelling her before she can fully calculate her actions. Lips pressed to his, she trails her nails up into his hair. "Thank you," Neveah exhales before pulling away.

He squeezes at her waist, lips finding hers again in breathy kisses. "You're very welcome."

__

"I'm taking you out tonight," Calum announces as he walks in through the threshold. He slips out of his boots and takes Ettie, kissing her cheek. "Miss me, baby girl? Love you." Duke trots over, greeting Calum as well and getting some scratches before going back to the edge of the playmat. He takes watch, some of it is uncertainty about the newest addition, but it might be an old instinct to protect still. When Calum looks down to Neveah, he raises an eyebrow. "Put on something nice."

Out? She's forgotten what the phrase means. Neveah hasn't been out in years. Put on something nice? She just barely fits into anything besides her work clothes. All her nice clothes don't fit her anymore. Part of her wishes she was more active about losing the baby weight, but in reality, the stretch marks don't bother her, the extra little gut is just there as far as she's concerned. Her body's just in a new phase. "It's takeout night," is her only rebuttal.

"Exactly, so I'm taking you out."

"Who's going to watch Ettie? Viv went home."

"Michael offered to watch her."

"Michael? I'm shocked it wasn't Ashton."

"Ashton would've put he had other plans tonight. He said he might stop by after them, regardless of whether we're back or not."

"Where are we going? The only things that still kind of fit me are work clothes and some old, old jeans. I can make it work."

He hasn't seen in her jeans very much lately. The moment she gets home she out of her work clothes and into sweatpants. "Whatever you're comfortable wearing."

"Well good thing I was gonna pump anyway. When is Michael coming over?"

"Half an hour, might be a few minutes more." Pushing up from the floor, Neveah walks into Ettie's room, grabbing the double pump and then settles back down in the living room. She can check through the last of her emails and edit that pamphlet for the latest exhibit. She didn't want a double dump at first, but Calum argued that if she was going back to work and still wanted to use her breast milk, having a double pump would be the most effective. She was concerned about price but knew that in the long run, using formula was more costly.

Calum's situated on the floor, reading to Ettie. When Neveah settles down next to them, she pinch the fat of her baby's cheeks. Calum laughs. "Do not distract Ettie. She is learning."

With a chuckle, she reaches up and pinches his cheeks too. It'll annoy him, but that's okay. His smile behind the huff is reason enough to keep it up. Neveah's thankful to have her pumping bra still handy. But it's not like Calum hasn't seen her half asleep with one breast pulled out the side of her shirt trying to feed Ettie. 

She rolls the t-shirt up and folds it over the back of her head, so her arms are still through the loop, but her chest is exposed. Thankfully getting the latch is simple and after a few seconds the machine whirs to life. Even though Calum is still quietly reading to Ettie and she's on her computer, the moment feels right and intimate. This is her life, her family. After a few minutes of listening to Calum more than actually reading the words on her screen in front of her, Neveah shuts her laptop screen and rests her head onto his shoulder.

The action pauses the words in his throat. He sees the soft smile on her lips. He knows it's not always the most comfortable thing in the world to do, to have a machine hooked to her chest, but's effective. He finishes the book a few moments later. She's just quietly resting beside him,  basking in the moment. He picks Ettie up and holds her horizontal, rubbing her nose against her mother's cheek. "Love you, mum. Even though I poop my diapers and on you sometimes, you're still the best," he coos in a high pitched voice.

Neveah laughs, opening her eyes, holding her lips over her teeth as nibbles on the end of Ettie's nose. "Love you too, baby girl. Even when you poop on me. Know why you're named Ettie?" she asks.

Calum bounces her on his thighs. "I'm curious too."

"Because that's your Daddy's North Star. Right when everything was slipping away from him, you pulled him in the right direction." She boops Ettie's nose, looking up to Calum. She's right. Ettie's the thing that keeps him in line. It was hard to quit smoking and especially after all the late nights and early morning sometimes he can feel his lungs aching for that inhale of nicotine but then Ettie smiles, or laughs and it's all over him, the ache disappears. He's a giver and no one really ever knows how to give back to the giver. Hell, he has to give to Ettie, for Ettie. But it doesn't hollow him.

"Star, the force behind his dreams, the force of life. Ettie Aroha, that's what you are," she whispers. "Bound to be the world's best footballer, because you've already got some strong legs on you, girlie. Bound to do great things. You owe the world nothing. There is no bargain for life, nothing in exchange for existence. Just existence and you can do whatever you want with it."

"Clearly, finishing school is a good thing. Don't pull a me, kid," Calum says, with a small laugh.

"Or do. Who knows what the universe holds?"

"Don't. Finish school. There's room for one uneducated person in the family and that's me. Mum's got two degrees, not including primary."

"Okay, definitely high school. But like, anything after that is truly up to her. College kind of sucked. It's learning and lots of money."

He huffs. "We are trying to sell education here, okay. Sell it."

Neveah laughs. "I take that back, Ettie. It was a magical time and I definitely didn't consider dropping out at one point."

"We need to work on your salesperson's skills."

Finally finished with both bottles, she turns off the machines and screws on the tops to the bottles. "I think they're just fine. Thank you."

Calum lugs the machine to Ettie's room again. "Mum's very smart okay. Don't let her fool you. She's one of the most intelligent people I know. She's very intuitive too. Listen to her gut feelings, even though they might seem a little naggy."

Michael shows up about twenty minutes later and they scurry out of the house. The first time in months that they can escape to themselves. Calum opens the door to his truck. Even for a fifteen-minute outfit change, she looks stunning in the green blouse, dark jeans, and black heels. She even managed to throw on some earrings, though she did steal his leather jacket. But it looks good on her. She looks good, she always does.

He originally intended to take her to an upscale place on the other side of town. But the more he thinks about it, the more he's willingly to tame down the gesture. It's their first outing alone in a long time. He thinks to the little breakfast diner, she loves. It's closed right now, but there is another little mom and pop hole in the wall that he really likes. It's not the healthiest spot on earth, but he thinks it'll be perfect for them.

The lights are low as they enter, hand in hand. Sports coverage is on every single screen in the place. But it's not crowded. He didn't expect it to be on a Tuesday evening, especially so early too. The hostess seats them quickly and Calum orders a stack of onion rings. "God, I shouldn't," Neveah huffs, mouth watering a little at the smell of them as they're brought out.

"You've got enough pumped for the next day. I mean," Calum teases, sliding the plate with a couple onion rings out to her. "Go wild, right?"

"You, sir, are a bad influence."

"No, I'm a voice a reason."

"Just a couple." A couple is all she eats too, though Calum tries to get her to go for the last one. To split the stack evenly but she doesn't fall for it. As their entrees come out, she's compelled to ask. Things are going well between them and for them. They both have feelings for each other and admitted it. But the baby is usually their focus.

"So, do I just live with you forever as your lover and the mother of your child?" She's not opposed to it; she's not opposed to never legally taking any steps. But she just needs to know where she stands. They are not just lovers on escapes through the Californian coast. They're parents. They have jobs. They're adults in bigger regard than legality. She just needs to know the truth. She can handle that.

"No," he answers without pausing, setting the glass of water down. "I know things are a little backward. But hopefully, eventually, you live in our house as my wife with our child."

"And that's the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth?"

Calum holds up one hand, holding the other a few inches above the table. "Swear it on the Bible."

She scoffs a little finishing her bite of chicken before speaking. "Too bad I don't have one right now."

Calum nods to his left. "Bookstore right next door. Sure they have one."

She pauses. He is deadly serious, reaching into his wallet. She's practically done, so used to eating as quick as she can to tend to Ettie. She watches the fifty with another twenty on top falls onto the table. The meal was 30 at most, neither one of them ordering an alcoholic drink. "C'mon," he says, sliding out of the booth.

"You've barely eaten. Sit back down. I believe you."

"I'm not Ettie. You cannot scold me."

Neveah takes his outstretched out. "I surely can nag you though. You're going to be hungry later," she reprimands as Calum leads her around the tables to the front door.

"I'll eat leftovers."

"You'll have wasted that money."

"It's a tip for her great service."

The door chimes above their heads as Calum opens it for her, having to break the hand holding. But he reaches for it the moment he steps inside. "When we get back, I've got to finish those edits. You'll be with Ettie for a few hours without me."

"I'm her father. I don't babysit my child. I raise her, I take care of her just like you do when there's those few hours between you getting home and me leaving the studio," he says, reading quickly over the signs. He finds the religious heading and starts for it, trailing her along.

"I didn't mean it like that. I'm just–everything's so different now."

"You're a mum now. You're still the sarcastic asshole I fell in love with. But now you nag me about eating. I get it."

Almost instantly after rounding the corner of the bookshelf, he finds a Bible. He gently pulls at the hardcover spine and pulls it from the shelf. She holds it out, his left palm rests on it and his right hand is raised. "Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?" she giggles.

Calum tries to keep the smile from cracking his facade. But his giggle leaves him and he drops his head as the laughter shakes his shoulder. "You fucking idiot, I'm trying to be serious," he huffs.

Neveah fakes her offense, brows pulled together. "First I'm an asshole, now I'm a fucking idiot, you ought to burn where you stand for such language, asshat."

"I should burn huh? Sounds like you're burning with me."

"If I go, who takes care of Ettie?"

"Should've thought of that before you swore." He clears his throat, licks his lips and finally gets the smile off his face. It takes a moment because she keeps giggling. But finally, the amusement dies down. "Now, when I said I wanted you as my wife with our baby in our house," his breath leaves him for a second, staring into her eyes. They've finally got a small twinkle to them. He's missed that. "I was telling the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth," he concludes in a whisper.

Her gaze flickers around his face, before landing on his lips. "Sworn on the Bible," she grins, half of the smile lifting higher than the other.

"Told you I would." He knows he doesn't have to ask anymore. "Are you going to say anything snarky if I kiss you right now?"

She shakes her head, blindly placing the book on the shelf. "I would say something snarky if you didn't."

Calum cups her face, kissing her hard. Is it unconventional to be nearly 33, kissing like teenagers in the middle of a bookstore? Probably. But at that moment all he can think about is her kiss, her touch. She smells like honey in his nose, probably a new shampoo or lotion. He's not sure. Her hair products are a constant rotation.

 All he is sure is that her lips feel like heaven on his, soft even a little chapped and warm. Her nails dig into his forearm before she wraps them around his midsection, grabbing a fistful of his shirt. Their tongues slip over each other before they part, breathing heavy and still clutching each other.

Neither one can fully open their eyes, trying to just keep breath in their lungs. Neveah tilts her head again, capturing his mouth, the tip of her tongue running over his lips. As she parts, Calum pulls her back, mirroring the same action on her. He slides his arms over hers, slipping them between her shirt and his jacket. He's not connected to his body anymore, he thinks, watching the way she grins at up at him. No, it's not him holding her so close. It's not him that gets to wake up next to her each day. It can't be. But when she pecks his lips, the reality comes rushing back. It's him. It's actually him living this life.

"Hate to ruin such a precious moment. But I'm going to ruin it. We close in like ten minutes," an older gentleman warns.

"We just really love Jesus. Sorry. Have a great night," Neveah rushes out, taking Calum's hand and pulling him out of the aisle and out of the store.

He laughs from behind her. "We just really love Jesus."

"Didn't you go to some fancy private Christian school? You saying you don't love Jesus."

"That is utterly beside the point."

"Then tell me what utterly is the point?"

Calum's phone starts to ring. He reaches into the pocket, noticing Michael's number. "The point is that we got caught making out in a bookstore." He hopes everything's okay but stops on the curb before they hit the parking lot. "Is everything okay?" he asks answering.

"She's just a teensy fussy and I think it's teething. It woke her up from her nap," Michael relays.

Calum can hear the cries in the back. It's not skull piercing just yet. But he's gotta act fast. "A lot of drool?"

"Definitely. I'm going to need a new shirt."

"She'll getcha for sure. Rubbing her gums helps. You can use your finger or take a damp gauze pad. But if you're not comfortable with that, there are some teething rings in the fridge."

"I love Ettie, but I don't think I could rub her gums like that."

"If the ring doesn't work, call me back. And you might not want to change out of that shirt just yet either. She'll keep drooling, so try to keep that as clean up as possible."

"Got it. Sorry to interrupt your date."

"It's alright. We were interrupted once."

The cries subdue and Calum relaxes, finally feeling the soothing strokes of her hand on his back. He hates hearing his baby cry. "What happened?" Michael laughs.

"I'll tell you when I get back to the house. Has Ashton been by yet?"

"Nah, he texted me though saying he should be by in the next hour."

Calum wraps his arm around her shoulders. "Okay. Thanks again for watching her."

"It's not a problem, dude. She's pretty chill. Besides teeth are a pain. I have all mine and I still wish I could suck on a teething ring sometimes."

Calum laughs. "I'm going to pretend I didn't hear that." As they hang up, she's already mentioning getting back home. Calum pulls her back. "It's okay. Just teething. Michael's gonna give her a cold teething ring. If that doesn't work then we'll go back. Right now, we should see how many other places we can get caught kissing."

"How many drinks have you had? What have you done with Calum?"

"You telling me you don't want to go into that convenient store, hide in the chips for a second and kiss?"

His smile is contagious. It's like their 23 again, but instead of sitting at house parties and helping him sneak off for a cigarette and to spill his guts, they sneak off from being parents for a couple hours and they are kids for just a moment. Neveahshakes her head, grinning at herself. "And we ought to buy cheap lime-a-ritas and I'll just bottle feed Ettie tonight."

"You can buy one, I'm driving."

"Now you're a rule stickler," she scoffs. 

"Younger me did not have a baby to get home too."

"Fair. I'll go with something smaller. Lime-a-rita's bound to fuck me up completely now."

"Lightweight."

She swats at his chest as they start to the car. "I know what I am and I'm okay with that."

__

 Calum unlocks the door to the house and barely gets his two feet in the door before there's a shriek and a tiny body is waddling up to him. "Dada!" Ettie shouts, all year and a half of her colliding into his chest.

"Hey, Ladybug! Oh!" he laughs, lifting her up. "How are you? I missed you!" Ettie wraps her arms around his neck and he carries her into the kitchen. Neveah sits at the counter, cleaning off papers. He takes hold of the back of her neck, to still her. He hums, kissing her deeply. His gut and chest warm. He's finally home from all the droning of business.

"Hon, tell me that's your beef stew I smell?" Calum asks, pulling away from their kiss.

She shrugs. "I don't know. You tell me."

He presses another kiss to her forehead, shaking his head at the comment. As they eat, Calum keeps glancing to Neveah's left hand. He hopes she catches the hint. But he's praying she hasn't found the box either. He tried to put it high, knowing she's less likely to be snooping up that high in the day to day chores. She mentions how the programs for the kids at the museum are gaining a lot more attractive now thanks to the change of distribution amongst elementary and middle schools. He talks about promotion and tour dates. They have to travel for the latest album.

She nods, breaking off more biscuit for Ettie. "We'll be okay."

"I knew I'd be gone. Just, not so soon," he whispers.

"I'll have Viv to help me out some. I'll call my dad and see if he can help."

Calum reaches across the dining room table and takes her hand. "I know you can make it. I'm just sad to leave you guys. I know I can't convince you to leave the museum and tour the world with me. I wouldn't even try."

She shrugs. She was convinced to have his kid of out a pact. She moved in with him. She's fallen in love with him. There's truly not much more she couldn't be convinced to do. "I love my job. But I love my family more. You nearly died leaving when I was pregnant. I can't have you going through that again."

His jaw drops. Would she really leave her job? "You can't not be doing something. I know you. You're too antsy. Stay home."

"We've only got a couple more years of Ettie not being in school. A few months and she can see the world."

"It's rough. She needs such a strict schedule, time zones are crazy. It's best if you stay home, work, keep this schedule that we have going."

"I've got some vacation time. Maybe not the whole shebang. But for a couple of weeks, we can hang out."

That's reasonable. That'll help him keep sane during tour. Calum nods. "We'll see when you can get time off during the U.S. leg. And maybe later I'll take you guys abroad."

"If it's Europe, I gotta see Switzerland."

"You got it."

"Also, I've never been to Australia."

"One thing at a time, Honey. One thing at a time."

"This was about your parents! They need to see Ettie too."

Calum surely did not miss the mischievous twinkle to her eyes. "Uh, sure." They finish eating and Calum loads the dishwasher, thinking about that top corner of his side of the closet. He can't wait anymore. He finishes with the dishes before heading to the bedroom. He finds the bag it's in easily, double checking that nothing has been disturbed. Positive nothing has been messed with he walks back into the kitchen. How the hell should he ask? On one knee. God his knees just ache thinking about that.

As he walks into the living room and notices Neveah's back turned he figure his this is shot. So he wraps his arms around her waist, burying his face into her shoulder. She laughs. "What are you doing?"

"Givin' you some loving. I see you looking this good in sweatpants." He playfully teases the drawstring. She taps at his knuckles, laughing. They've become much more intimate over the months. He holds the ring out in front of her.

All the air presses out of her lungs. "What is this?"

"I make good on my promises. So," he pulls away and turns her to face him. "Will you be my best friend literally forever, my love, not just lover? Will you be my wife?"

"Yes," the word leaves her so softly he barely catches it. Her nod is the thing that lets Calum know her answers. He slides the ring onto her finger, pulling his bottom lip between his lips. "So we went from best friends to lovers, became parents, and somehow we've made your way back to lovers."

"Some say that's the best love story around."

__

 The clouds pass by yet again. Calum's off of the sidelines with some other dad's. Neveah watches him pace on the field. They came in separate cars. She picked up Ettie from school and got her ready for the game. Calum came directly from the studio. He ought to be saving his voice. His voice coach will be pissed about all the shouting he's done during the game. But of course, he's gonna shout. This is his ladybug's first game of the season. "C'mon!" he shouts.

"Save your voice, Cal," Neveah whispers from the stands before watching the field again. She couldn't watch the game with him yelling in her ear, so she told him that she would sit somewhere else during the game.

Ettie's dribbling the ball downfield when she takes a push from another girl. Her team is up a goal and there are only a couple minutes left in the game. Nothing is called against the offensive move. "C'mon ref! She was pushed. My baby was pushed!" Neveah shouts.

Calum turns from the sidelines to find her, standing up, leaning over the other parents, hand cupped around her mouth. If she thinks he's bad, she ought to see herself. As she settles back down, they lock eyes, smiling at each other. They know the real reason why they don't sit next to each other. It's because the shouting becomes tenfold. Not only are they shouting at the game, but they will also bicker with each other.

"Your daughter is on the field!" Neveah calls out to him. "And she's been pushed. But clearly, none of the refs are wearing glasses."

Calum chokes on his laughter, waving at her to simmer down. They're about to get kicked out for the rest of the season and it just started. The last minute of the game is tense. But thankfully Ettie's team manages to keep their lead. Calum cheers from the sidelines. Neveah races down from the bleachers to his side and collides into with a hug. They know not to intrude on the field, letting Ettie have her moment.

The teams line up and give out high fives before they grab their bags. Ettie walks up to her parents, grinning. "Next time, stay in the car," she teases. 

"But you won!" Calum shouts, lifting his little girl. She refused soccer for a long time. They tried it when she was 6, but she wanted to keep dancing. But now at eight, she decided that maybe dance wasn't everything she wanted and asked Calum to help her so she could try out for the team.

Ettie laughs at the smiles her parents' sport. They were just like this about dance. Much less loud, but still very enthusiastic about her interest. Calum learned how to perfect the ballet bun and how to prevent a run in tights. Now with soccer, Neveah learns not to freak at grass stains and keep a fridge stocked. "You two are embarrassing," Ettie teases but looks down as she kicks the grass. "You sure I can't get a piggyback ride?"

Calum pulls out her sneakers. "Change out of your cleats and that ride is all yours."

Ettie takes the shoes and heads to the closing game huddle. Her coach congratulates them on the win and talks about practice next week, what to expect, the new drills. She walks back to her parents, Calum kneeling for her to jump onto his back. They walk back to their cars, debating where to go in celebration of the victory. "Ice cream! Before dinner?" Ettie questions. 

Calum's not always an easy one to crack. But he gives in quickly. Ettie turns her attention to her mother, jutting out her bottom lip. Neveah doesn't even need to look up. "Put that bottom lip back in. We have to go because you're going to go with Dad. And if you go with him, he's going to sneak off and do it."

"You guys are the best."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," Calum and she chorus, laughing. They're not always perfect parents. But they do their best, like agree to ice cream before dinner after soccer games.