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the-goddess-of-mischief-writing · 11 months ago

Text

Phantom pain

Summary; Price said he would be back before Christmas, but you didn't think it would be like this.

Pairing: Cpt. John Price x reader (sunshine!universe)

Rating: Mature

CHAPTER NO/ONESHOT: Onehsot

Word; 9k

Warnings; angst, injury, copious amount of fluff

Author; @the-goddess-of-mischief-writing

A/N: Surprise update everyone! I've been feeling so festive this year, there's so much snow and everything's just so cosy, so this chapter comes as a little hurt to feel-good thing on the third of advent. If you don't celebrate Christmas or don't like the festive period, I simply hope that you have a great December nonetheless🥰

SUNSHINE UNIVERSE MASTERLIST

It had been a slow morning. Despite snow greeting you on the ground and in the air, you'd felt warm huddled in your jacket and the thought of cosying into one of the plush armchairs at your coffee shop. It had been serene; not many ventured outside in this weather. Yet, you'd smiled behind the lapel of your jacket when something other than cloudy skies and rain doused everything in a hue of grey.

You'd been in such a good mood that when you returned home with some pastries to go, saffron and caramel the main components in the golden danishes and tarts, you started a deep cleaning of your flat.

With the least Christmasy of Christmas songs playing from your speakers, you put up some festive lights, the warm glow softening every hard edge.

Although, while you're balancing on your stool, using some double-sided sticky tape to fasten a string of light behind your curtains, the music from your speakers is cut off by your phone ringing. You didn't think twice about heading to your phone, believing it was Marissa or one of your other friends. Yet, you stall when spotting the caller I.D. lighting up your screen.

Two weeks. John said his deployment would last two weeks. Of course, you would've been happy if he returned home earlier on any other occasion. But something made your stomach twist and your brows furrow when John now was calling less than a week and a half after he left.

"John?" You ask tentatively after answering the call and putting it on speaker.

"Sorry, lass, probably not the John ya wanted". Your heart fucking drops, your face falling in record time when it's a Scottish accent and not the easily recognisable British variant greeting you.

"J-Johnny?" Your voice breaks halfway through, unable not to. Even tears managed to well in the short seconds you realise what this call might be.

"Hey, easy, Price is alive and kickin'-"

"Oh god", you choke out the words, dropping to the couch behind you as you'd remained standing since you answered, for some reason. The tears that collected in the corner of your eyes trail down your cheeks upon your eyes shutting, more so from the sudden burst of relief than the fear that brought them.

"Fuck, you scared me, Johnny".

"Should've started with that", he excuses with a slight, strained chuckle before he clears his throat. "But... still callin' for a reason".

"Yeah, gathered that much", you return, wiping away your tears with your shirt sleeve.

"Captain got downed durin' the mission, nasty shot in the shoulder".

"What?" Your motion stills when you register what Johnny said, gaze falling to stare at the call-time ticking away tauntingly slow.

"Last time I saw him, he was in the infirmary and had just returned from a quick surgery".

"But is he alright?" You bring your phone closer to your face as if it somehow would make Johnny feel how you pressed for an answer.

"Huffin' and groanin' 'bout it but fine otherwise. He wanted me to call ya, knowin' the pain-meds he was forced to take wouldn't help him give good 'nough explanation of things".

"Okay, okay", you mumble. He's alive. Hurt but alive.

"He'll need to stay a while. But ya can come to see him if ya want".

"I can?"

"'Course, we'll be able to get ya a visitin' pass".

"Oh, thank you, Johnny", you breathe out.

"Nothin' to thank, lass. Can't stand the Captain's grousin' anymore". You chuckle half-heartedly at that. "I'll send you the details 'bout the visit and some information that's needed".

"Yes, yes, absolutely". You nodded along even if the Scot couldn't see the motion. "Send it over, and I'll fill out whatever's needed".

You don't know how much of a shit show things had turned into for them to return home early. Although, it must have been bad if not only John didn't go unharmed from it, but even Johnny seemed to have seen better days.

It was hard not to notice his roughened-up look when he met you by the army base's outer perimeter about two hours later. There were a few cuts and bruises littering his face, and even though the Scot didn't hesitate to bring you into a comforting hug as you jumped out of your car, you noted the slight wince he waved off as a 'bruised everything'.

Even if you'd been shaken after ending the call with Johnny, you attempted to calm down, telling yourself 'John's fine' before leaving your flat. Yet, those nerves flared right up when you entered the small visitors' centre beside the road. Thankfully, the very man who'd given you the news of John seemed to notice that the military surroundings were vastly unfamiliar and unnerving for someone not used to them, especially considering why you were here.

Johnny kept close the entire time, helping you with the needed papers for the visitor's pass by pointing to where your signature was required, even if he talked familiarly with the armed guards all the while.

You took deep breaths to steady yourself numerous times, feeling the Scot's attention fall on you each time he noted the same unease he previously only caught over the phone. You knew you weren't succeeding in hiding your nerves. Nevertheless, between being in a strongly off-limits zone for usual civilians and the fact you wouldn't be here if John wasn't in a hospital bed, you don't think Johnny or any of the other soldiers blamed you for it.

When everything was finally signed and read through, Johnny scribbled his signature on the dotted line beside yours on the last page.

With the I.D. around your neck, you exited the smaller building and jumped into your car again, only now the Scot hitched a ride back with you.

Your fingers rapped against the steering wheel once you were let through the gates and rolled forwards, teeth worrying your lower lip, eyes trained on the main compound further ahead.

"Lass", your eyes had swiftly adverted to Johnny, noticing his eyes shifting to your hands. You stopped with a tight lipped smile, your gaze having adverted forward again. "Price is roughened up but fine. He's been through much worse".

"I know", you sighed, having to hold yourself from going back to biting your lip. You'd seen John's scars, some on worryingly critical places on his abdomen. "But I haven't been there to see that...", you mumbled, eyes fixed on the parking lot ahead.

You and Soap didn't share much chatter as you parked, nor more than needed as he guided you through the building closest to the parking lot. However, he offered a reassuring squeeze of your shoulder when he saw you hesitate in the elevator upon reaching the medical wing.

A327. That was the room John apparently was in.

You looked at each door you passed, waiting for the right one.

324. 325. 326.

Your heart thudded hard in your chest as you finally reached 327.

With hands intertwining hands, fingers wringing each other, you merely stand rooted before the door. All of a sudden hesitant to step inside.

"He's gonna be fine, lass". Johnny's comment makes you look up at him. A gentler smile than usual meets you, causing you to release the breath you didn't know you held as you nod. "Let's get ya to meet him". The Scot gives you an encouraging smile as he opens the door, motioning for you to enter.

John's already facing your way when you step into the room that nearly shines white and beige. But your gaze only briefly meets his before it drops, flittering over his form.

He rests beneath multiple blankets that reach his stomach, his upper body clad in a soft white t-shirt that doesn't look like his own. Your jaw clenches when you spot his arm in a sling, stabilising it against his chest. As your eyes trail further upwards, a distressed sound bubbles up in your throat upon spotting the bandages peeking from beneath the left sleeve.

"John-", you don't manage to say anything more before you stutter to a stop, chest heaving on a sharp inhale.

"C'mere, love", his voice is hoarse, strained, barely more than a grating sound, but you move forward as on command.

You can't help how your mouth purses at how tired he looks, the hint of pain in his eyes so evident when you stop beside the bed.

"M'fine", John raises the arm of his healthy side, even so, he winces, eyes shutting tightly for a brief moment before they open again.

"Don't lie, I see that you're not", you murmur as you take hold of the hand that tried to reach your face, allowing his upper arm to drop and rest along the bed, instead meeting him halfway by bending down to kiss his knuckles.

John exhales deeply, eyelids fluttering close, the crease between his brows never smoothening. God, it hurts to see him like this.

You step closer, the side of the bed pressing into your thigh, planting a kiss at the very centre of the furrow. When you look down at John again, his features have softened, but his eyes still have a troubled look when that blue gaze meets yours.

"I'll leave ya two to it". You look over your shoulder, sending Johnny a look of gratitude.

"Thank you, Soap", John says. The Scot only nods in return, giving you a last look before he exits.

Once you're alone with John, you exhale almost painfully before gazing down at him.

"You don't know how scared I got when Johnny called", you admit. This time, John pulls your hand rather than face towards him, tipping his head forward to plant a firm kiss against your knuckles. "Thought-"

"Sit down, love". Upon catching your distress, John pats the side of his bed with a gentle voice. Although his attempt does little to ease your nerves, seeing how the slight move of his legs sideways to give you space only makes his features twist.

"Not a chance", you protest with a shake of your head, fearful of accidentally hurting him more. Instead, you glance around the room, finding a pair of chairs along the wall.

John doesn't hold you back as you release him and move towards them, but you guess it's more because he can't then don't want to.

You pull the chair along and put it as close to the hospital bed as possible, not hesitating to lean over the low metal railing at the side to hold John's hand again after sitting down, your other hand settling on his forearm, rubbing soothing motions.

You gaze up at the blue-eyed man, those pretty eyes of his duller than usual, exhaustion shining in its own faded might. His brown hair is one of the few darker accents in the room; the screen of the heartbeat monitor is the other source. Yet, it's matted, fallen to its own will against his forehead rather than styled into something casual by his fingers running through it and pushing it backwards.

Leaning forwards, your card your hand through John's hair, not nearly correcting it to how he usually does, but better nonetheless.

Your gaze flitters to meet his when you settle back in your seat, noting the smile adorning his lips.

"Happy to see you again, love". Not daring to test your voice, you kiss his knuckles in return. This time, you're positioned low enough that John's hand goes to cup your face when you lean away again, brushing his thumb over the apple of your cheek. "Even if it could've been under better circumstances".

You don't notice it until John's thumb paints a streak of wetness over your skin, but he redirects a stray tear rather than letting it follow its natural path.

"You're here. That's what matters". You squeeze John's wrist, leaning away to wipe your cheeks yourself, offering him a smile with a breathed chuckle.

"Was never not close to return". John wraps his hand over yours, letting them drop to the bed as he reflects your smile. "Shoddy shot whoever they were, used a handgun in close combat and still missed the brachial artery and brachial plexus", John releases one of those huff-chuckles of his. You shake your head, having no idea what difference it would make if whoever shot him hadn't missed those points, only that it probably would've been a lot worse.

"What- what went wrong?" Your gaze flickers to his injured side.

A heaved sigh escapes him before he speaks.

"Mission was bumpy from the start but went fine". You knew he let confidential details out, but you didn’t want to know anything apart from what happened to him. "Needed to wait out exfil in an abandoned buildin'. Remained remarkably silent until we got the call to move to the pick-up point. Got ambushed, absolute shitshow". He shakes his head with a grunt.

"How's the others?" You'd seen two of the four men, though Ghost and Kyle's absence suddenly irked you upon hearing what John told you.

"Bruised but none too badly". John ran his thumb over your hand. A low, partly amused, partly exasperated huff escaped him as he continued. "My turn to take the brunt for the team, it seemed".

Even if you could've wished for a better outcome for John, at least none of the others had gotten off worse.

You suck your lower lip between your teeth as you really try to take in his state, trying, only try again to find your words. Seeing John like this almost feels wrong.

You'd witnessed his soft side, but this wasn't soft. This is hurt. He wasn't sluggish as when you managed to keep him in bed rather than rise with the birds on the occasional weekend. This was exhaustion, one he tried to hide, but the lines on his face exposed nonetheless.

Barely anything could've pulled your attention from John as you tried to find your words, any consolidation that wouldn't sound like pity. And yet, when a knock sounded from the door, soon after swinging open, both your and John's eyes are pulled to the entrance.

When you spit the woman striding into the room, your brows jump up.

"Kate? Didn't think you would be here". Upon noticing you sitting by John's side, the American woman stalled, the computer beneath her arm pulled in front of her.

"I was involved in the mission the boys went on". She juts her chin towards the man at your side. "Mind if I speak to him?" Her tone wasn't stern, nothing hinting at malice or desire to break you and John up. Still, it didn't really sound like she asked.

You looked from Kate to John, not really stunned compared to feeling how a bubble unexpectedly broke. "Oh, yes, of course, I'll wait outside".

Considering how neither stopped you as you stood, John only squeezing your hand before letting go, you took it as an affirmation this wasn't a conversation you had any clearance to be present for and that one way or another would've happened either way.

Even so, Kate offers you a kind smile as you pass her on the way out. Yet, you note the blonde woman's features looked tighter than on the night of the party, without a doubt due to the predicament making John end up in a hospital bed.

When the door falls shut behind you, you lean against the wall just to the left of the entrance. It's silent to a degree you would guess the room John's in is semi, if not entirely, sound-proofed. Considering it isn't an emergency wing, you wouldn't disregard the possibility.

You sigh, eyes falling close. What a fucking day.

You don't know how long you stand like that, but you're only dragged out from whatever trance you entered once you catch the elevator stopping on your floor and the steps coming closer soon after. Considering you'd anticipated a nurse or the like, your brows rise when the pristinely white surroundings suddenly stand in stark contrast to the person dressed in dark army clothing.

"Heard from Soap you would be around". You smile as you push off the wall, meeting Kyle as he closes the distance between you. "How are you holding up?" The question brushes past your shoulder as he brings you in for a hug before keeping you within arm's distance, studying what must be your tired features.

"As good as can be". You smile in return. The young Brit rubs your upper arms reassuringly as he nods, seeming content with your answer as his arms drop to his sides. "You here to visit John?"

"I was, got some gaps in my schedule", Kyle confirms before cocking his head. "But I guess I'll have to wait, considering you're not there with him".

”Kate is paying him a visit”. He looks at the door with a furrowed brow before his attention tracks back to you and it smoothens. ”If you wanna greet him, maybe you have enough authority to”. Kyle only shakes his head.

”If Laswell wanted to talk to him first, there’s a reason. The rest of us will know in due time. Hopefully, he ain't such a grouse by then”. He shrugs, and you can't stop your laugh. This time, it's not half-hearted nor forced.

"All of you laying it on thick about how grumpy he is".

"He isn't such a charmer when things don't go his way and he isn't surrounded by pretty faces". You swat Kyle on the arm as he sends you a look. "Only telling you the truth, not all of us get special treatment".

"Yeah, yeah, alright", he nudges your shoulder with his knuckles before stepping backwards.

"Send the Cap'n my regards, have to be on my way".

"Will do. Have a good day, Kyle". He gives you a nod of goodbye in return as he turns on his heel, heading back to the elevator he came from a few minutes ago. You offer him a last wave before the door closes.

Alone again, you look at the clock on the wall. But, considering you have no recollection of when you exited the room, you can't tell how much time has passed since Kate arrived, only guessing it must be at least a dozen.

You scan the corridor, finding sporadic rows of chairs along the wall, similar to the ones in John's room. Not knowing how long John and Kate's unofficial meeting would continue, you move to one of the seats across from where you'd stood, fishing up your phone to make time pass faster as you sit down.

Taking note this time, you know another ten minutes have passed before the door opposite you opens and pulls your eyes from your screen.

You slip your phone into your pocket as you push up from the seat and head towards Kate, Even though she’s keeping the door open with one hand on the handle, you barely catch the end of John's sentence before it ends.

Just as you reach her side, Kate's attention trails from John to you, giving you space to enter by stepping out of the room. Flashing her a brief smile, you move forward but suddenly gets halted when her hand slips around your upper arm.

"It's good to see the Captain's got someone with him", her voice is lowered, only for you to catch.

Your lips tug upwards in a genuine smile. Without really knowing how to answer that, you offer Kate a nod and a small 'thank you' in return.

The smile she reciprocates with is much less strained this time around. "Take care of him now".

"I will". And with that, she nods goodbye, heading down the hallway while you re-enter the room.

"Spoke with Kyle". You begin while closing the door behind you. "He says hello". You forward his message to avoid forgetting.

When your eyes fall upon John, whom you barely catch an answer from, at least not more than a hum, you notice how he's sunken deeper into the bed.

"You tired?" You retake your place in the armchair as he hums again. As John scoots closer to your side and stretches his hand towards you, you settle your elbow on the bed and intertwine your hands again.

"Laswell was worried, wanted to check in and inform me some things that needed finishin' could wait". The pauses between his words were prolonged, and the pronunciation drawled as he briefed you on his conversation with Kate. "Should finish them, though", he grunted, trying to sit up straight against the pillows, but you settled a hand on his stomach.

"You need to rest, John. If Kate said things could wait, trust her". He stilled, looking back at you with slow, almost drowsy blinks.

"Fine", he agreed, settling into the bed again.

As he sighed, eyes fluttering close, you felt something bleed from your body, making your upper body relax forwards, head settling on the verge between John’s hip and his lower stomach. Feeling the weight, his eyes flutter open, head tilting forward as he gazes at you.

"Mm, talk to me, love, what you've been up to".

"Not much, really. I worked and met up with some friends. Oh, Marissa and I went on a little investment spree for Christmas".

"Investment?" John humours in a low voice, the twitch in his mouth unable to pull his lips into a complete smile compared to only tilting the edges upwards.

"If they're going to be reused yearly, that's an investment". He chuckles deeply, and you release a chuckle of your own.

You continue talking about what you've done in the week and a half you've been apart. Some Christmas baking, putting up decorations as of today, noting how most things out of the ordinary related to the holiday season.

Gradually, you notice how John's eyes fall close. Even so, he's still invested in the conversation with few-worded responses. But even those soon become nods and hums when his hand relaxes in yours. As you move to gently trail your fingers up and down his forearm, all while continuing to talk, the soothing motions make him heave a sigh.

Soon enough, the only sounds he lets out are the breaths escaping his parted lips, his softened breathing followed by the rhythmic movement of his chest.

You trail off in your sentence with a small smile, watching John's sleeping features. No furrow pulls his brows together, no involuntary twinge in his features letting on his pain. He looks at ease, and it finally settles your nerves as well.

In stark contrast to how you notice John's consciousness slipping, you don't detect yours slowly doing the same.

Your movements up and down his skin slowly grow shorter, from trailing between his wrist to the crook in his arm to only rubbing the spot your hand eventually stills on. The tension in your neck releases from the claws of whatever emotions had built throughout the tumultuous day, your head feeling heavier as it rests against his stomach. There's a fine line between when your blinking turns from slow to prolonged, even slimmer to when you can pinpoint your last conscious thought.

You're not the first to wake up. John's the one who stirs when a knock sounds from the door.

If not for the pain in his shoulder, despite being suppressed, he wouldn't blink his eyes so blearily and feel his mind sluggishly awake compared to what's expected of someone like him. Even so, his senses are sharper than yours as he notes your form slumped over the bed and your head resting on him, serene features remaining much like your steady breaths bleeding through the blankets.

His eyes trails to the door, releasing a low sound that must have sounded like a grunt to whoever was on the other side, but he couldn't care. The door swings open, Soap stepping through it much like he'd done a few hours earlier, but then with you by his side.

Now, the Sctosman closes the door behind him gently upon noting your sleeping form before his attention settles on John.

As Soap steps further into the room, John's eyes flit down to your sleeping form before rising again. With a swift look at the clock, he knows what the Sergeant is probably here for. He softly settles his hand upon your head.

You don’t remember falling asleep, only that John did, so when you’re roused from a dreamless nap by a hand cradling your scalp, you feel groggy when sitting up straight all too suddenly.

You blink repeatedly as your vision focuses again, finding John looking at you, his hand sliding down to the back of your head and down your arm.

"Sleep well?"

"Mhm". You roll your head, twitching at the twinge in your neck from your not-so-ergonomic sleeping position.

"Not the comfiest spot for ya". The Scottish accent catches you off-guard, as last you checked, only you and John were in the room.

You turn around, spotting the very Scot who'd spoken. "Oh, hi, Johnny".

"Hey, lass", he chuckles in return. "Just came ’bout to inform ya there’s a room waitin' if ya want to stay the night".

Your brows lift, eyes shifting to John, who's already watching you. "You don’t need to. I’ll be holed up here either way".

"It will just be less travel tomorrow", you shrug, turning back to Soap as you confirm you'll stay.

"Come on then, lass, visitin' hours are over soon". He opened the door slightly as he spoke, showing you he would guide you to your room for the night. You nodded, shifting out of your seat to stand, not without looking down at John.

"Go, get some proper sleep", he nudges your hip. You give him a brief smile before bending down, pressing your lips against his. They're chapped, but their plush warmth is soft. As you part from him, you mumble a 'goodnight' against him, an equally low 'goodnight, love' murmured against your lips, warming you further before you pull away.

You place the chair back where it's meant before fetching your things from beside the bed and offer John a last parting smile and a 'see you tomorrow'.

Just before you pass through the door, you look back at John, offering him a small wave, one he answers with a warm smile.

"You really turn the Captain into a love-sick man", Johnny's comment comes seconds after the door closes. You turn to him, seeing the amused look he sends you.

"Oh, shut up". You swat Johnny's arm, making him bark out a chuckle.

"Ain't nothin' bad, lass", he mused, nudging you back with his elbow.

The Scotsman lead you to another part of the compound, a freestanding building just across the one you exited, at the other side of the parking lot.

It had begun snowing. Fat constellations of powdery white fall through the air as you trudge through what's already covering the ground. You flick up the lapel of your coat, burrowing your nose in the fabric as you protect your eyes from the snowflakes desiring to stick to your lashes.

When you entere the building you'd been heading toward, the warmth inside was a welcoming change, and you shrug away the snow that had yet to melt into the dark fabric enveloping you.

This time around, there was no need to sign papers as upon your arrival, Johnny simply led you straight to the room appointed for you, handing you the key when stopping outside the door. As you entered, you were surprised, not knowing what you'd anticipated, but certainly not a space similar to a hotel room.

A low whistle pulls your eyes to Johnny. "Aye, not bad", his eyes rove over the room before settling on you.

"Much better than I thought", you agree, stepping inside, shrugging the bag off your shoulder, and simply putting it on the floor.

"Didn't think we would put ya in the barracks, did ya?"

"Never experienced military hospitality before, but didn't expect much", you shrug, smiling in return as you turn to face him.

He shakes his head. "That's the thanks", he quips, yet his grin deceives him. "I'll see ya in the mornin', lass".

"Johnny!" He halts in the step he'd begun to take, watching you with raised brows. "Just, thank you for... everything today". His fingers rap against the door handle as he shifts the weight on his feet.

"Knew it probably would be tough for ya and that Price probably hadn’t even thought ‘bout having ya visit here yet. S’jus' wanted to make it as smooth as possible for the both of ya. Know he would've done the same for the rest of us", he shrugs with a gentle smile. Johnny's consideration warming your heart.

"Thank you, really".

The side of his mouth bows upwards. "Ya are welcome". And with that, he closes the door.

***

When you wake up in an unfamiliar room, remembering where you are takes a few seconds. Then it comes rushing back as you see the visiting pass on the bedside table. Johnny’s phone call. John’s injury. The military base.

You sit up with a jawn, peeking out the room's sole window.

It’s utterly white outside, with no cloud in the sky as the sun just about peeks over the horizon, suggesting today will be considerably colder than yesterday.

Slipping from bed, you’re quick to dress yourself. The t-shirt you slept in gets stuffed into your handbag as you only shrug on the hoodie from yesterday, slipping into your pants not soon after.

You move to the bathroom, lamenting the lack of anything to freshen up. Even so, you splash your face with water, trying to tame your hair before sighing heavily, simply fetching the hair-tie you’d remembered to take off your wrist before bed.

Moving around the room, you remember the package of gum you’d thrown into your bag a few days ago, hoping you hadn’t chewed through the whole package when it would ease your mind about morning breath.

You rummage through your bag, cursing what yesterday didn't feel like a lot of stuff, but now does as you search for what you need.

A swift two-rap knock echoes from the door just as a triumphant sound escapes you when you spot the silvery package. Popping a gum into your mouth, you move towards the entrance, not surprised to find Johnny on the other side as you swing it open.

”Good morning”.

Johnny cocks his head as you smile at him before he splits into his own grin. ”Ya seem cheery this mornin’.”

”Seeing that John’s doing good helped me sleep better”, you shrug, catching a hum from him as you turn around to collect your stuff around the room. ”And then the bed was surprisingly good”.

”These ones are heaven in comparison to those in the barracks”.

”Yeah?” You turn towards the Scot standing with his hands behind his back, waiting at the doorstep.

“Aye, happy to not be rookie anymore”.

”Understandable”, you chuckle as you and Johnny step out into the hallway before tracking the same path you’d done yesterday. You could’ve done it yourself but had an inkling that you couldn’t move freely on the base.

”So you’re my guide while I’m here?” Blue eyes flicker down to you as he lets you pass out the door to the courtyard first.

It’s indeed colder today than yesterday, the chill biting your cheeks.

”Aye. Concernin’ Price was bed-bound; I needed to sign those papers in his stead”.

”And you don’t have better things to do?”

”L.T. gave me five minutes to spare”.

”From what?” The snow crunches beneath your shoes.

”Whatever drill he set up to run us into the ground”. You let out a surprised laugh at that, making the Scot grin. ”Yaself then, lass, goin’ to keep an eye out on the Captain for us when he leaves?”

Your eyes widen, switching to look at Johnny once evading an ice-spot as you cross the parking lot. ”He’s cleared to go home?”

”Haven't got any confirmation on it. But he's got no vital injury and has stayed close to two days, so it’s probable he’ll get to go home”, he shrugs.

The warmth rushes against your face as you enter the main building, much like yesterday, taking a right towards the medical wing.

”Feel like I’ll need to. Otherwise, he’ll stress the injury”.

”Wouldn’t be the first time any of us did that”. Johnny rubbed his neck as you raised your brows at him. He positioned himself opposite you as you stepped into the elevator, giving you a sheepish shrug. ”Comes with the job sometimes despite medical leaves”, the Scot excused the habit, only making you roll your eyes with a disbelieving huff.

”Then I’ll definitely have to ensure he takes it easy”. The doors close, and the elevator smoothly rises.

”Price won’t be able to say no to ya, never has since he met ya”. When your head dips into a shake this time, a smile adorns your lips that you try to hide. Even so, the Scot slung his arm around your shoulders with a laugh as you exited the elevator upon its chime and the doors opening.

The walk to John’s room seems much shorter than yesterday, without a doubt, because you know of his stable state. So when Johnny drops his arms from your shoulders, it’s not with bathed breath you open the door.

Unlike yesterday, your eyes don’t lock with John’s the second you enter the room designated to him. His gaze remains cast downwards on the tablet in his lap, even if his head tilts your way to show he noted someone had entered. Not until the Scot behind you offers a ’Mornin’ Captain’ does the man in the bed look up.

”What was that about makin’ him take it easy?” Johnny chuckles lowly, making you send him a look before he departs with a mock salute. You only shake your head at the man before entering the room.

”Aren’t you meant to take it easy?” You watch John with a raised brow, catching how the door slides close behind you while you slip out of your coat.

”I am”.

”Let me rephrase”, you chide him with a smile. ”Shouldn’t you relax, no work?” You move to the side of his bed with one of the chairs dragged along behind you.

”I-

”Don’t say that you are John. I know that look on your face”, you remark with a finger towards the easing purse of his lips and the furrow between his brows that’s not brought on entirely by pain like yesterday.

He sighs heavily, a locking sound coming from the tablet as he drops it screen-down in his lap. ”You’re right”.

”I know I am”. John releases a huff of laughter through his nose at your comment, softening your smile. ”Did you sleep well?”

He hums. ”Woke a few times ’cause of this-”. He jerked his head to his shoulder. ”Bed probably goin’ to set off my back”, he scoffed in annoyance at having to deal with the twinge in the lower part of his spine that you’d learnt most often came and went more frequently after he returned from a deployment or a bad mattress.

You hum, leaning forward to card your fingers through his hair that had fallen across his forehead after his previous jerky movement. While you do, you catch John returning the question, but your answer is an undeveloped ’good’, all your attention upon the locks your fingers card through.

His hair feels matted, and when your eyes briefly flicker over his face, you note his beard is untamed, not grizzly, but it’s lost the shine it usually always has.

”When was the last time you showered?”

”That's your way of tellin’ me I smell?” Your nose scrunches, hand falling to rest on the metal railing as your gaze locks with John’s amused one.

”No, at least that wasn’t what I was getting at”.

A chuckle precedes the more serious answer you get. ”About a week ago at the last safe-house, haven’t been able to have one after returnin’. Can’t wet the bandages”. You purse your lips, gaze momentarily switching to his shoulder before trailing back.

”How long before you can take them off?”

”The Doc visited before you came around and said I’m clear to leave, but the bandages needed to stay on until tomorrow”.

You nod. ”Johnny betted you would be able to go home today”.

”We know how these thing goes. Instructions about wound care, then sent off on med-leave before even attempting to come back and get shot at again”.

”Jesus, John”, you let out a chuckle of disbelief, shaking your head. When you raise it again, there’s a slight tug in the corner of his mouth and a knowing, truthful, look in his eyes. "Better we get you home and start the arduous wait, then." You offered him a smile and a raise of your brows, silently wondering if he was ready to pack up.

"Can't wait".

It wasn't a hassle to get John out of bed. He groaned and gruffed to himself as he pushed himself upright with your hand steadying him on his back, but that was about it. As he rose from the bed, you helped him into his boots and gently slung the jacket draped over his duffel-bag on the other side of his bed.

You'd sent him a look when he'd noted you of the bag's presence, remembering it wasn't there yesterday, to which he only explained Kyle got around and dropped off his things just after the Doctor had visited.

Although standard issued and didn't seem too heavy once you made the proposition to carry it instead of him, you cursed in disbelief when slinging it over your shoulder, not anticipating its weight. It had given John a good laugh before offering to take it regardless. However, you remained stubborn, motioning for him to take the lead out of the room with a 'you don't know how heavy our purses can be sometimes'.

But you don't enjoy a second of it as you trudge through the building; you more than John slowing the tempo. He catches you grumbling under your breath numerous times about what he's got in there, falling back to walk beside you once you reach the parking lot, mentioning he doesn’t desire looking back and find you toppled over in a heap of snow. He'd gotten another glare upon that comment.

You'd thought the drive home to John's would've been less arduous, but you'd found yourself unable to relax just as much, but for entirely different reasons.

With each turn of the car, you noticed how John braced his feet against the floor so as not to move in his seat, his free hand slipping beneath the seat belt to keep it from digging into his injury at times.

The way he acted made you all the more cautious in your driving, even picking routes that had more straight for his sake. You knew John noticed when you didn't take the usual right about halfway through the drive by the glance in your direction.

By the time you pulled into his driveway, the sky had darkened, and snow had started falling, making your and John's retreat into the house from the car hasty. Nonetheless, he managed to escape the weather that was worsening by the second much quicker compared to you as you fetched his bag from the booth.

You don't take more than a few steps into the foyer before you slip John's bag to the floor. When the pressure of the straps disappears, you sigh in relief.

John's chuckle makes you send him a glare. However, it melts away when your gaze finds the absolute disarray of his hair, now a combination of dirty and wet from the snow.

"Come one, I'll help you freshen up". You say, closing the door behind you, shielding you from the chilling cold.

"No need, love". You send him a look over your shoulder as you take off your coat, finding John stepping out of his barely laced boots.

"Why? You always have a shower when you get home?"

"If you have forgotten, can't get this wet for a day more". John nods to his shoulder as he faces you. "Can just wait 'till tomorrow".

Your brows furrow, and your hand falls to your hip while hanging up your coat. "John, I know how religious you are about your routine once you come home. There is no need to skip it just because you can't do it yourself when I simply can help".

You see his resolve falter somewhat as he regards you. "You don't mind?"

"Not at all", you shake your head. "Wouldn't mind a hot shower to warm up in this cold house of yours". A smile tugs in the corner of your lip when you end the sentence with an exaggerated wink.

It makes John chuckle as he shakes his head before those blue eyes rise to follow you when you approach. "Don't think I could supply that need now".

"Out of us two, I'm the one who can go a bit without being dicked-down". You kiss John's cheek as you slide the jacket from his shoulder, catching the harsh sigh as you wander to hang up his piece of clothing beside yours.

"That a challenge?" He hums as his un-injured arm sneaks around your waist as you finish your task, gently turning you around to pull you towards him. "Besides, I got other ways to satisfy you".

"Oh, I know". You give John a softer look as your hand slides down his forearm before gripping his hand, moving it to hang beside your bodies. "But let's listen to the doctor for now and let you heal up first". You offer him a smile as you back away and head into the house, John letting himself be led by you as you steer towards the stairs.

Not until you've reached his bedroom do you let go of his hand, ushering him to the bathroom as you move to his dresser. You swiftly dig through it for a new pair of pants, opting not to bring a shirt, believing neither of you could bother the hassle of attempting to put it on.

"Strip", you wave your finger towards John as you step over the threshold to join him in the en suite.

"Thought Doc's orders applied". You catch the smugness in his voice, sending him a humoured look, one he answers with a wink as he moves to sit down on the lid of the toilet. While John rid himself of the pants he'd gotten from the hospital, you place his own pair on the sink.

While he kicks them aside, your attention falls on the white shirt still covering his upper body. A furrow enters your brows, lips pursing. It would be challenge to take it off even if you helped him, being an uncomfortable and possibly painful process no doubt.

"Just cut it off". Your eyes meet John's, checking if you heard him right. With his head falling sideways in a nod, you move to the sink drawer to fetch the scissors, silently agreeing it might just be the easiest thing to do.

Mindful of the sling and bandages, you rid John of the thin cotton shirt, leaving him in only his boxers briefs.

While you turn around to throw the strips of his shirt into the bin, John stands, moving around you toward the shower. By cocking your hip, you swiftly close the drawer after putting back the scissors.

As you turn to say something to John, you catch him stabilising himself on the edge of the sink, knees just about to bend. Realising what he is about to do, all your previous thoughts are promptly cut short.

”You’re not kneeling on the floor." John stalls in his movement, looking at you. If he says anything in return, you don't catch it as you're already on your way out of his room.

The spare bathroom, which was under renovation the first time you visited, has now been finished. But you remember the stool John had used was yet to be taken to the spare room downstairs. Although you'd reminded him about it every time you'd been over, now you were thankful as you could fetch it as something John could sit on rather than the floor.

With a slight shuffling step, you bring the stool along with you and to where John waits, leaning against the sink, his eyes finding you the second you're visible through the open door of his en suite.

"Sit”, you motion to the stool you brought once John had moved to the side and let you set it down inside the shower's glass doors. A slight tug that doesn't evolve into a smile is present at the edge of his mouth as he follows your command.

When John makes himself comfortable on the stool, you gently nudge the back of his head with your fingers, urging him to bow forward to make it easier for you. Even sitting down, he reaches your stomach.

Pushing up the sleeves of your hoodie, you turn on the tap, testing the water steadily flowing from the showerhead on your hand. When finally finding the perfect temperature, you keep the stream gentle so as not to splash the bandages covering his left arm but rather trickle forward and down to the floor.

Small groans of appreciation escape John as you wash his hair, fingers running over his scalp to wet every single strand before setting down the showerhead and massaging some shampoo over his head. Earthy and clean scents fill the warm air as it steams every reflective surface inside the bathroom.

You do a double cleanse, not because you think John needs it, but because he seems to enjoy the gentle pressure off your fingers as they run up and down his scalp.

After washing away the last sudds, you take a towel from the rack and cover his head. Your laughter fills the air as you hear the huff of amusement from beneath the fabric draped over him as you attempt to dry his hair as much as possible by ruffling the fabric.

Ultimately, you slide the towel from his head, letting it hang around his neck to catch any stray droplets from reaching his shoulder. John turns towards you upon having his vision uncovered again, and you instinctively step closer when he does, inspecting his face.

”I don’t trust myself trimming your beard”, you card your fingers through the brown strands on his cheek. A low huff pulls your eyes to the blue ones steadily watching you.

”Can do that myself in a day or two. You’ve done plenty enough, love”. John’s about to stand, but your hand softly settles on his healthy shoulder.

”I only said I don’t want to go near the best part of you with scissors”.

”The best part, eh?” He pinches the back of your lower thigh, a squeak slipping out of you as you bat his hand away with a lower lip curled between your teeth.

”Don’t bite the hand that feeds you”, you chide with an evolving smile.

You catch John’s chuckle as you switch your attention to the counter, eyeing his products as neatly lined up as usual and the set of your own products beside them. Stepping away to the sink and out of his reach, you grab one of the face towels from the stack he’d bought for you to always have at his place, along with the other products needed.

When you turn back, you set the things on the sink-edge beside you.

”Said I can’t shape it up, but that doesn’t mean I can’t make the most out of what I can do”.

”You pamperin’ me?” Your eyes flit sideways, meeting a blue gaze watching you with a tilted head.

”I’m taking care of you, John”, you corrected him as you turned to wet your hands beneath the tap and squirted some cleanser into your hands.

John doesn't respond, only remains quiet when you start coating his face in the milky substance, merely staring up at you for a few seconds before his eyes flutter close when you cock a brow down at him.

You gently rub away the invisible grime on his face, staying clear of his beard as you lather his face. Humming gently, you wipe away the suds after a few dozen seconds and continue with the beard shampoo.

You’d seen the man, who now lets his chest deflate with a content sigh as you easily angle his head backwards with a few fingers beneath his chin, do his beard-routine a few times. It wasn’t difficult to remember, and you’re happy you didn’t need to ask John and bring him out of the relaxed state he’d entered as you used one of the brushes to rub the product into his beard.

Using the opposite edge of the towel, you also dry off his beard.

You wash off the white foam from the brush as you discard the towel before coating his skin in your moisturiser, only to continue by dropping some oil into your palms before you settle them over his lower face, smoothening them over the strands.

As you shift to the sink again, you reach for his comb, only to find John’s eyes had fluttered open when you turn back.

Those blues of his are soft as you gently comb his facial hair with slow movements. His hand settles on the outside of your thigh when you pick up the beard balm, warming it between your palms. The vanilla white lotion softens and warms between your hands before you work it through his beard.

Slowly, John's hand moves to the back of your leg while fingers lightly start tracing the line of his beard and skin, both much smoother than previously.

The moment was soft, gazing at one another in silence, before you cupped John's cheek and bent down. A gentle smell of something nutty from John's beard invades your nose as you press your lips against his.

Even if you end up trading multiple kisses, the pauses never let you drift further away than for your lips to rush against one another.

John felt the last bit of tension leave his body. Something awfully soft had infiltrated his heart as you fussed around him, your hand leaving gentler touches than even the Doc had done when he’d returned from the field with his shot-up shoulder. He’d tried to ward off your help and doting, but now he realised he needed this.

He’s been on 24/7 for over a week. He’s run on less food than at home. Countless times, his mouth had watered when thinking about the roast you’d shared before his deployment. He’s run on minimal sleep for several days in a row, barely more than half asleep when given a moment of tranquillity and nowhere near as relaxed as when having you in his arms. He’d looked over his shoulder for more than double the amount, only to be hit by a bullet in the end anyway, coming home broken.

John pulls away, cupping one of the hands that rests on his cheek, turning to kiss your palm. But, when he gazes at you again, your brows draw together.

”Don’t”.

"I didn’t say anythin'"

You only shake your head. "I know what you’re thinking, and no, you're not a burden".

"But I'm a broken man at the moment, love. Just see how much you've needed to do today", he scoffs, letting go of your hand, letting his fall onto his lap. You stop John from turning his head to the side, away from you, instead forcing him to watch you.

You look down at the man who meets your gaze with an almost sorrowful look. "And you think that bothers me?"

"Why wouldn’t it? It’s not your responsibility. Should just not have gone about gettin’ shot-".

"Jonathan Price". The use of his government name shuts his grumbling right up, his eyes even widening the slightest bit. "What bothers me isn’t that you got shot. I know the dangers of your work. What does bother me is seeing you in pain".

"I appreciate it, but there’s no need for you to do all this, to care for me". His voice is softer, but you still shake your head.

"Yes, there is because I love you". You barely notice the weight of what you say, those three chosen words leaving your lips in a too-natural fashion to be the first time. But rather than reluctance preceding and nerves following them, there's a sense of them being long overdue in the first place.

"I hate how much it hurts seeing your pain, so it’s not that I need to do anything for you. I very much care because I want to, John".

Compared to a few moments ago when John wanted to turn away from you, now he can't take his eyes off you. Whatever murky emotion which clouded his eyes has lifted, those blues clearer than ever as he stares right back at you, lips slightly parted.

"I’ve said it before, but you're too good for me".

"They say you get what you deserve". You offer John a smile, and something just crumbles then.

"God, you don’t know how much I love you, darlin’".

Your chest swells, heart suddenly pumping much warmer blood through your body. "So let me take care of you now when you need it".

"I- of course", he breathes, voice remarkably thin to support his gravelly cords as he shuts his eyes tightly. John gives you a single nod instead of attempting to continue his sentence, and you lean down to press a kiss against his forehead.

His arm loops around your waist the best it can from his slumped forward angle, pulling you close so his head rests against your upper stomach. Despite his hair being wet, you card your fingers through it, kissing the top of his head, his warm exhalation warming your skin despite the thick sweater.

"Goin’ to be one hell of a Christmas". The first half of the sentence is mumbled into you, the second half clearer as John looks up at you again.

You hum, feeling how one of the strands at the back of his neck drips water onto your fingers. "I only see more of a reason to have a lazy day".

"Where you do everythin’".

"Hush, now you’ve allowed me to do the work for once". You twirl the hair at the nape of his neck, looking back into those blues.

"Still don’t want you workin’ yourself to death". He gives you an honest rather than pointed look.

"I should say that to you", you only muse lightly in return, not needing to avert your eyes to his bandages as they shine like a beacon in the corner of your vision. "And I reckon it’s going to be fine either way".

"M’sure”, his reply is hummed into the sparse space between your faces before your lips press against his in a fleeting kiss. Before you lean back and straighten, however, his hand cups the back of your neck. "Thank you for all of this, love".

"You know it’s nothing". Although John doesn’t answer as you step backwards, you don’t catch any guilt, no trace of the previous gloom in his gaze. He believes your words, the crows-feet at the edges of his eyes and smile-lines around his mouth further proof.

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dreamyinception-world · 6 months ago

Text

𝔅𝔲𝔯𝔫𝔦𝔫𝔤 𝔇𝔢𝔰𝔦𝔯𝔢

pairing: Choi Jongho + Song Mingi

w/c: 3.1k

Genre: Firefighter!AU, Smut, Slight Angst

Summary: Once a week, Mingi comes to the Central City Fire Station to give gifts to head chief officer, Jongho, for saving his family home from a raging house fire. However, after being thanked for longer than expected, Jongho becomes suspicious of what’s really behind the tall boy’s desire to show his gratitude.

Tws: Swearing/Foul Language, Mentions of Poverty/Low Income, Snippet of the Disaster (includes short details from people that were involved in the house fire)

Sws: (Everything of course is consensual) Ass Rimming, Fingering, Blowjobs, Handjobs, Slight Begging, Unprotected Sex, Throat Fucking, Crying, Semi-Public Sex, Gagging, Splitting, Doggy Style (only for a sec), Cum Eating/Swallowing, Cum Swapping, Hair Pulling, Slight Dom/Sub Play, Gaping/Streched Rim

Rating: 18+

𝕒𝕦𝕥𝕙𝕠𝕣'𝕤 𝕟𝕠𝕥𝕖:: Hello everyone! Thank you for all of the love and support that you have been giving to my work. I really appreciate it. This shot is for all of my lovely Jongho and Mingi stans. There needs to be more Jongho fics in the world, and this is my take on adding him into the pile. As always, if you would like to see another part of this fic in the future, please feel free to message me! Otherwise, enjoy the story and let me know what you think! Thank you!

𝕋𝕒𝕘𝕝𝕚𝕤𝕥 𝕚𝕤 𝕒𝕥 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕓𝕠𝕥𝕥𝕠𝕞. 𝕄𝕖𝕤𝕤𝕒𝕘𝕖 𝕚𝕗 𝕪𝕠𝕦 𝕨𝕒𝕟𝕥 𝕥𝕠 𝕓𝕖 𝕒𝕕𝕕𝕖𝕕!

As a reminder, my work is only for those who are eighteen years or older. Anyone who attempts to interact with my work or blog who is underage will be blocked immediately. You have been warned.

©𝒅𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒎𝒚𝒊𝒏𝒄𝒆𝒑𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏-𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒍𝒅 2024 || 𝒑𝒍𝒆𝒂𝒔𝒆 𝒅𝒐 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒓𝒆𝒑𝒐𝒔𝒕 𝒐𝒓 𝒖𝒔𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒚 𝒐𝒇 𝒎𝒚 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒌 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒕 𝒎𝒚 𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒎𝒊𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏. 𝑻𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒌 𝒚𝒐𝒖 ♡

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“So let me make sure I’m understanding this correctly. Your mother asked you to come here every Friday with a gift to show her appreciation towards myself and my team.”

“Yes.”

“And she asked you to bring it directly to me as opposed to..simply handing it out to the team in the main office?”

“That is what I said isn’t it?”

Jongho couldn’t hold back the smug smile that was crossing his face, lightly scratching the back of his head.

It was midday at the fire station that he called his home– being that he was the head of the entire province division. It had been his job every day to not only care for the lives of the people in his town, but also every single one of the individuals that crossed the plane between the outside world and the life of a firefighter.

Every single one of them had been his responsibility. Almost as if they were his own family.

In the fleeting months since his promotion, he had seen a lot of unfortunate incidents, but nothing came close to the one that involved the boy standing in front of him– Song Mingi– whose mother had been preparing dishes for their family get together when their gas stove burner raged a huge fire, sending all of them barreling out of the house.

Being that he lived not far from their neighborhood, he noticed the smoke whilst washing dishes in his kitchen during his day off, immediately calling the department and running full speed over to their house.

Due to his swiftness, his boys were able to get to the scene quickly and douse the fire, saving what could have been tens of thousands of dollars in damage to their home– and given the area that they lived in, it would have been costly to fix.

Since then, the eldest son had taken it upon himself to come every day presenting gifts of gratitude for his help on his day of rest, which Jongho wouldn’t have thought any more than just a kind gesture until now.

“Haha, yes it is. I was just clarifying so that my next question will be easier to answer.” Mingi raises a perfectly groomed brow at him, noticing a small tape recorder in the center of his desk. Without a word, the chief presses the play button.

“I’m sorry to disturb you, I just wanted to bring in some coffee, snacks and fresh kimchi that my sisters and I made yesterday.”

It was his mother’s voice.

“Well that sounds delicious! I’m surprised to be receiving anything so soon, since you asked your son to bring us something the other day.”

“My son? Song Mingi?”

Mingi’s eyebrow twitched.

“Yes! He brought us some desserts from the nearby cafe. They were delicious.”

“I could barely get him to take any leftovers of what we have cooked next door! But he’ll bring some food here no problem. That boy!”

“Oh! I’m sorry! Am I to understand that you didn’t ask for him to bring the cakes?”

“No no no. If he were to bring anything, it would be homemade! Not those fancy little pastries! I’ll have you know that—”

The recording abruptly ends with a press of Jongho’s finger, relaxing himself back on his chair. Noticing Mingi’s flickering eyes, the chief can’t help but let a small laugh pass his lips, immediately getting fixed with a hard stare.

“Do you have a thing for me?” The chief questioned.

“A thing for you?” Mingi’s eyes narrowed.

“The act of liking someone in an otherwise platonic manner? Having a crush on, feelings for, lusting after-“

“Lusting after?!”

“Whatever phrasing you want to use is fine with me. I’m just curious.”

Mingi let out a short laugh with a look of pure disbelief.

“Look, I don’t know what the hell you’ve got going on in your head that I’m thinking about sleeping with you or something. Are you crazy?”

With hands tucked into his pockets, Jongho rose from his chair to lean against the front side of his desk. His eyes trailed up and down Mingi’s frame, noticing a particular area with a languid head tilt that seemed to defy the boy’s faux anger. By the time their eyes met again, his face was almost completely pink, with an ounce of desperation in his eyes.

Hm..interesting. He thought to himself. Fine then, I’ll play along.

“And what if I am? Are you going to do something about it?”

Mingi’s hands trembled, palms slightly sweaty, one of them resting against the doorknob.

His eyes fell between the door and back at the desk where Jongho watched him with a smoldering look, with a hint of challenge in them.

Are you going to stay or run home to your mother?

The sound of the door lock clicking in place brought a wide smile to Jongho’s face, beaconing Mingi closer to him with one finger.

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“Y-You’re bold enough to– god fuck– do this in the office. You’re a g-goddamn whore.” Mingi bantered through strews of moans and curses, his face twisting with pleasure pressed against the desk. He clawed onto any edge that he could reach as Jongho tongue dipped in and out of hole with content hums in between.

The way his tongue twisted and curled in and out of him, slinking his tongue out to watch his own spit dribble down the boy’s balls, only to follow the trail eagerly back to his quivering hole. Kneading his cheeks between his hands, a deep set growl lunged from his mouth at Mingi’s legs buckling.

Since when were firemen so skilled?

Mingi was so sure that this type of ability was bordering inhumane. Mapping out every inch of him as if he knew exactly what was driving him completely off the rails.

How on Earth could he know his body so well?

“The question isn’t how I know it so well,” Jongho mused, not seeing the way Mingi’s eyes widened at his tone and the fact that he actually said that shit out loud, slicking up three of his fingers without much thought and plunging two of them inside of Mingi without much resistance. A laugh bubbled up in his throat at the way his body shied cutely away from the intrusion, yet so eager swallowed with each dip in and out.

“I think it’s more so of how your body responds to me. It’s almost like it was..made for me.” His tongue swiped against his bottom lip, toying with one of Mingi’s balls in his mouth and lightly jerking him off.

The elder boy’s back arched against the desk, a hand coming down rather abruptly against the wood in an effort to ground himself. He made no effort to keep himself quiet, yet when he felt that familiar tension reach his hips, he gritted his teeth and tensed his muscles.

There’s no goddamn way that he was going to cum this soon and let himself be embarrassed. Not after he was sure that the firefighter would be busting before him. He already reeked of desperation for far too long. He had to hold it for just a little longer.

But unfortunately for him– Jongho, of course, was a bit quicker than him.

By the thrust of his third finger, Mingi had been completely maneuvered around onto his back with an arm thrown over his eyes, not allowing Jongho to catch a glimpse of them rolling from every swallow around his length.

Don’t fucking look down, Song Mingi. Don’t you dare.

Regardless, Jongho fixed him with a heated stare, enjoying every tense, trembling lift of Mingi’s hips when his tongue rolled in circles around the tip before heaving out a long, feverish moan, feeling the constricting heat travel all the way down to the base of his dick. He sharply sucked in a breath when the man held his head down, pushing and curling his fingers in and out of his hole.

“Oh my–GOD, fuck! You’re such an–AH!” Mingi’s face burned red at the desperate choked whine that left his lips, gushing cum down Jongho’s throat. Without a missed beat, the chief immediately let out a muffled chuckle, slurping his way to the tip with small pulsed suckles.

He yanked him off by his brown locks, hearing the man’s wicked chuckle at full force now.

“Y-You f-fucking asshole..” Mingi tried to catch his breath, jaw tensing when Jongho easily overpowered the grip on his head, moving and kissing the dip between Mingi’s left hip.

“Aw, you don’t like me anymore? And here I was thinking that you were just starting to enjoy yourself.” He bared over the boy’s partially naked body, kissing his shoulder whilst rutting his very obvious boner on him.

“You sure you don’t want him? He’s been waiting patiently for you to let him in.”

The taller one turned his head away to avoid the very obviously teasing look on the chief’s face.

“F–Whatever. J-Just get on with it and stop teasing me.”

“Tsk, tsk.” Jongho wagged a single finger in front of him, holding himself up by both arms on either side of him.

“If you’re to know anything about me, Song Mingi, is that I’m quite..meticulous. I like to savor every last little bit. Maybe you’re used to someone who will do what they want and then be done with you– and they are a coward.” In the heat of the moment, his tone became rather serious, punctuating the last part, as if to prove something to Mingi about his choice of words. Whether it be because he thinks Mingi deserves better or was speaking from personal experience, the boy couldn’t tell– as his expression couldn’t hit anything to him.

Mingi gnawed lightly on the inside of his lips, averting him out of sheer embarrassment again.

They were supposed to be fucking, not getting serious. Yet, maybe there was something right in what he was saying.

God, I have to manage my expectations and priorities.

Jongho didn’t give him too much time to think about it, tilting his chin to look at him straight on. For the first time, since they had started messing around, he bared a small smile though his eyes were still relatively heated. The gesture made Mingi’s body relax, guiding his arms comfortably around his midsection. The chief placed a lingering kiss to his lips, nibbling on his bottom before giving him a lazy smile.

“When we’re finished, won’t you tell me how good I did? Well..if you’re still with me by the end.” Mingi immediately knocked him with his heel in a feigned annoyance, Jongho chuckling at the pout on the boy’s face. Leaning back enough to put himself into Mingi’s complete line of sight, he tugged his belt free from the loops, snapping his pants open and letting the garments drop to the floor.

Good fucking god..

Now, Mingi had been with quite a few men before ending up in the fire station, bent over the chief of the department's desk. But never, not fucking once, had he ever been with someone the size of this man– so much so that he didn’t realize his eyes were bugging out of his head until Jongho’s laugh cut through his thoughts.

“Not to sound conceited, but I’ve seen that look before. But, don’t worry. He won’t hurt you.” He swiftly scooped up his legs, admiring the pulsed tension that his fingers left behind as they traveled down to his hips, giving them a sudden tug forward. Pulling open his side drawer with one hand, he fished out a small, clear plastic container, squeezing the contents onto himself and onto Mingi’s hole.

“Take a deep breath in for me.” Jongho commanded, rather sweetly.

Letting the air slowly fill puff up his chest, he felt them get caught the moment he began inching himself inside. The sheer girth and length of the man filling up, pulsing and stretching him wide open, barely had Mingi processing a damn thing– let alone hearing anything that was being said to him.

“Breathe out~” Jongho groaned out, rolling his hips forward the moment a whorish moan ripped out of Mingi’s throat. His hole fluttered around him, gritting his teeth through every clench until he started to feel his muscles loosen. By then, sweat began to slick his hair to his face and drip down the sides of his body, keeping his leg held firmly in his grip and pressing light kisses to the areas he could reach.

It felt like something was burning in between them as they kept their eyes locked on each other’s, admiring every chance in their facial expressions and desperation to make themselves feel blissfully good. Their bodies rolled in unison, meeting each other halfway without a second thought.

Having his body nearly folded in half and being yanked down feverishly by his hips, Mingi struggled to keep his focus or his eyes open to see everything that Jongho was giving to him, especially when he angled himself slightly to the left, the head of his cock just brushing against where he wanted.

“Fuck, I wish you could see this.” Jongho breathed out with his eyebrows pulled up, watching every ripple of Mingi’s ass travel up to the top of his thigh to the way he continued to swallow more and more of him so eagerly. A peek of his tongue poked out from his mouth as he slung both legs onto his shoulders, pistoning himself faster. The moment Mingi’s moans reached a new pitch, he focused on that spot whilst chasing his own high.

“Please don’t stop!! Please!” Mingi cried out, his blunt nails digging into Jongho’s knuckles when the boy reached around and jerked him off quickly in tune with him. Within a few seconds, Mingi’s arm slammed against the table with a sharp gasp. A shock ripped through his body down to his pelvis, jolting his hips upward and sputtering cum all over Jongho’s fist and abdomen.

“YES~” The man heaved out and curled his fingers around Jongho’s, moving his hand faster to catch every last drop and snatching him up to his mouth. He kept his eyes on him, curling his finger around every digit once his pace had slowed down, not leaving any bits behind.

“You take me so well, Mingi-ah. Maybe I’ll have to keep you.” Jongho ran his fingers along Mingi’s spine after pulling out of him, guiding him upright through sloppy kisses. His hands skillfully kneaded every tense, sore muscle by Mingi’s hips and sides, only stopping when they separated, a small string of spit connecting them together.

“Then let me be your gift from now on.” Mingi purred, pressing him back onto his chair with one hand.

Slinking down to the floor obscured from view of the door, Mingi wasted no time sliding Jongho half way in his mouth and mapping out every inch of him with his tongue. Their fingers ran up and down each other’s upper bodies from what they could reach, Jongho’s hands finally resting on either side of Mingi’s head, guiding him up and down with sharp inhales. Upon hearing the sound of his tip hitting the back of the man’s throat, his fingers instantly tightened around his head.

Mingi looked up at him from between his lashes, spitting all that he had saved up down Jongho’s cock with a small smirk. “Don’t hold back.”

Jongho let out a drawn out groan when he was enveloped in Mingi’s mouth again, practically bouncing the boy’s head up and down on his cock, feeling his balls slowly draw up from every brush of his tongue against the sensitive areas of his tip. With a shaky exhale, the chief sat up straighter with a booming moan, cupping Mingi’s neck and fucking his cum down his throat.

“That’s it. Take it all.” His eyebrows pinched upward, a wicked smile crossing his face as tears brimmed at the corner of Mingi’s eyes, wiping them away with his thumbs. Once he was fully satisfied, Mingi slowly let go of him with a loud pop, making an effort out of wiping the corner of his lips and sucking lightly on his fingers before crawling back into Jongho’s lap.

The two shared heated, yet fleeting kisses with Jongho’s hands resting comfortably on Mingi’s globes with a short hum.

“So, how did I do?” Jongho spoke once separated, raising an eyebrow at the faux debating look on Mingi’s face, finding the ceiling more interesting than him for only but a second, humming before looking back at him. Dancing his fingers up his arms to hanging loosely around his neck, he leaned in close to his ear, smiling from ear to ear.

“Round two?”

✧ ▬▭▬ ▬▭▬ ✦✧✦ ▬▭▬ ▬▭▬✧✧ ▬▭▬ ▬▭▬ ✦✧✦ ▬▭▬ ▬▭▬✧✧

𝔗𝔞𝔤𝔩𝔦𝔰𝔱: @atiny-piratequeen @kimnamshiks @atiny-dazzlinglight @little-lazuli

✧ ▬▭▬ ▬▭▬ ✦✧✦ ▬▭▬ ▬▭▬✧✧ ▬▭▬ ▬▭▬ ✦✧✦ ▬▭▬ ▬▭▬✧✧

#ateez fic #ateez smut #mingi smut #jongho smut #kpop smut #kira kira

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myloveforhergoeson · 1 year ago

Text

That's All She Wrote - Chapter 18 (Part 2)

Previous chapter

Find me on wattpad + ao3!

Show: Big Time Rush

Pairing: James Diamond x Original Female Character

Chapter 18: Jump Then Fall (1.18 - Part 2) ~ 13k

“So… There might have been a few things I lied to you and your dad about.”

Those were certainly the words Roxy wanted James to say to her as they stood outside the door to apartment 2-J.

After a particularly harrowing plane ride, something about it being a red-eye flight had made it far worse for Roxy’s airsickness, the only thing she wanted to do at the moment was get all her stuff into her apartment and take a nice, long nap in her wonderful, fluffy bed. It had been quite some time since she last slept and since James had been kind enough to stay up on the flight to make sure she was okay, she assumed he wasn’t feeling all that great either.

In lieu of a response, the girl only coked her head.

“First of all, it doesn’t seem like Hawk has the same kind of funding Gustavo has… So when we visit the record company tomorrow, I’m not sure how much he’ll be willing to pay you for your, um, assistant job.”

She wasn’t fond of how easily he had cut “songwriter” out of her job title, but Hollywood was Hollywood. It’s not like she was a songwriter-assistant when she first started at Rocque Records, simply an assistant who also wrote songs. There, Roxy had earned her title and she would gladly do it all over again if it got her closer to the music James would be making.

“Next, here’s your room key.”

Holding up the small brass key, James flashed a sweet smile before dropping it into her palm. Upon closer examination, she noticed 2-J etched into the bow when she nervously twirled it around between her fingers.

It made her laugh a bit, before she held it back out to him, pointing at the other key he was holding. “You mixed them up, silly, this is the one for your apartment. Give me the one you’re holding.”

Silly? Since when am I the kind of person to say ‘“silly?”

“Remember what I just said about funding? One newly renovated room at the Palm Woods is cheaper than two.” The boy deadpanned, taking the key in his hand and sliding it into the lock. “Welcome to Casa Diamond-Somerset.”

At the notion of sharing a hyphenated last name, Roxy had to steady herself on the handle of her suitcase.

“Ah…” The writer gently said, following him into the refurbished apartment as she did her best to look anywhere besides where James was standing.

Instead of the traditional Crib she had been so used to spending her days in - bright, flashing arcade games, guitars lining the wall, giant, yellow swirly slide - she was met with a modern sleek-style layout. Dark oak floors with ocean blue and stainless cool grey steel accents were littered around the apartment, complete with a large portrait of the wannabe on the back wall of the apartment… James had 2-J transformed into the bachelor pad of his dreams without even consulting his brand-new roommate.

All she was able to manage to get out as she gazed up at his gigantic picture was, “Good thing you didn’t mention that bit to my dad.”

“It’s probably a good idea to keep it that way since my mom isn’t coming, either.”

At this point, Roxy had done a pretty good job at concealing the slight tremor popping up as she spoke, and her shaking hands gripping the box of tapes she had carried up to the moving van to kept any unsettled movement from showing, but with that new piece of information, all her progress was lost in a matter of moments.

“W-what?”

The box practically slipped through her fingers, landing on the floor with a loud thud. Most of the tapes overflowing the top of the box clattered out onto the wood, scattering this way and that under the new modern appliances and furniture Hawk had installed.

“Aw, Roxy, are you that tired? Why don’t you go pick out one of the rooms and go to bed or something - you look like you’ve been up for ages.”

She had been up for ages, considering she couldn’t sleep when the only night they spent back in Minnesota was interrupted by an impromptu cross-country flight with an expected layover, but that was the least of her concerns at the moment. Squatting down to pick up as many of her tapes as she could, she did her best not to dwell on the fact that she and James were now both living and working together. That, and the concern she felt radiating off his words.

I need to see Jo and Camille, was her first thought, but considering their flight had landed around 3 am and she was still fighting off the jetlag, she decided to heed James’ advice.

“Good idea.” The assistant smiled toward the ground, finally standing again once she had gathered what she had dropped. “I’ll probably take Carlos and Logan’s room… It’ll be nice to have a window facing the pool.”

For a moment, James' smile flickered at the mention of their friends. “Got it… I’m gonna try out the new entertainment system; I’ll keep the volume low so it doesn’t wake you.”

With a thumbs up, she went to grab the handle on her suitcase and move towards the hallway, but James cleared his throat.

“Oh, I forgot, to tell you, Hawk mentioned I’ll have some sort of butler on retainer, so he’ll be here in the morning.”

In response, the girl yawned and nodded, even with her back turned to him.

Finally getting down the hall, she turned left at the door that connected 2-H and 2-J and into the new space she would be calling her own.

When Roxy flipped the light on, the emptiness of the room startled her.

Only one day ago, the colorfully painted walls held decorations fit to both Logan and Carlos’ tastes - sports posters, science diagrams, pin-ups of beautiful movie stars - and now, it was empty, void of any signs that anyone had lived there up until now. Logan’s overflowing bookshelf was missing from its usual corner, Carlos’ hockey jersey display and helmet rack weren’t hanging beside the window, and the glow-in-the-dark stars she had put up for them their first week in town while precariously balancing on James’ shoulders were nowhere to be found.

It’s wrong. She told herself. This is wrong. All of it. Everything.

Barely even setting her things down, Roxy found her legs moving without her permission, dragging her back out straight through the hallway, and into James and Kendall’s room.

Similar to what she had found in the other room, this space was also lacking signs of life. Kendall’s neatly lined binders of sports trading cards were absent from the nightstand beside his old twin bed, not to mention the disappearance of the framed pictures of him and Jo covering the walls above it. The vanity James had installed on the opposite side of the room by his bed was also gone, most likely moved into the master bedroom by Hawk’s renovations, though there was still the faint smell of his cologne hanging in the thick air.

I can’t do this.

Now Roxy was on the move again, pacing back to the other room and picking up the only CD in her box of tapes she had been desperately trying to hide from herself. If she hadn’t dropped everything BTR, Big Time Rush’s first and only album, wouldn’t have made its way from the bottom of the pile to the top. Holding on tightly to the sides of the plastic jewel case, the girl blinked back the well of tears filling her eyes and ignored the pain knotting her insides as she stared at her friend’s smiling faces.

James, Kendall, Carlos, and Logan all looked right back at her and the memories of their months in Los Angeles came flooding into her mind. From being fired on their first day at Rocque Records, to meeting Jo and Camille, to mansion-sitting, to chimp-napping Lo-Lo, to every other little thing that made their time together so special…

Hardly able to control where her mind was spirling, the girl found herself tearing through the hallway and into the living room, not stopping until she found herself directly in front of a very confused James who was trying to get through a round of Biohazard Blast.

“Roxy?” He tried, squinting at her before setting down the platinum controller. “Is everything-”

Flinging her arms around his neck, she practically fell into him, feeling the soft plush of the couch break their fall. Right now, nothing about how she felt about him mattered; she needed a friend, one of her best friends, to hold her, and tell her everything was going to be okay.

“We can’t do this without them. It’s not right.”

A light stream of tears began to flow down her cheeks as she buried her head into the crook of James’ neck.

Beneath her, she could feel his muscles tense, from shock at her actions or anger at her words, she didn’t know, but after a few moments of processing, James wrapped his arms around her waist to pull her closer. His game all but forgotten, the boy gently rubbed circles on her lower back, giving her time to get all her emotions out.

All the alarms that normally set off in her head, telling her she was too close, too emotional, too irrational, dissipated at his comforting touch. The warmth radiating off his fingertips combatted the chill from the air-conditioning vent blasting air out above them; the only sound heard in the room over the sobs raking Roxy’s body.

“We’re in this together, okay? You and me, Roxy. That’s all we need.”

Time seemed to blur for her, his hands on her back, running through her hair, wiping the drops streaming down her cheeks, until eventually, she didn’t feel anything at all - just the calming lull of sleep beginning to overtake her senses as she finally closed her eyes, allowing her body to tell her exactly what she needed.

***

At the sound of an annoyingly loud gong going off, Roxy felt her pillow shift under her as she snuggled deeper into it, squeezing the sides to fluff up the area in which she laid her head.

Despite not opening her eyes, she could lazily tell the sun had risen as the sunlight flooded through the window and reflected on the back of her eyelids.

Perfectly cozy, she tried to drift back into sleep before she heard, “Rox, I’m not gonna be able to breathe in a second.”

Her eyes shot open, the memory of last night filling her mind.

Where did I end up?

The answer, of course, was on top of James Diamond.

Sharp rapping at the door brought her out of her head as she sat up, scrambling onto the cushions of the black couch as fast as humanly possible. Trying to look anywhere but the couch below her, she glanced toward the windows only to find the large portrait of James staring back at her.

Jesus fucking Christ.

Thankfully, he didn’t say anything more as he slowly picked himself off the cushions and trudged towards the door, wiping the sleep out of his eyes.

With his back turned to her, the assistant was able to slip out of the room and back into the one she was supposed to have taken refuge in; a million thoughts running through her head, mostly centering on how good his arms felt as they had tightly encircled her, how hot his hand felt as it settled on the center of her back under her loose t-shirt.

There was the sound of a handful of individuals speaking in the other room, but for now, Roxy just tried to run through the events of last night. It wasn’t like her to do anything like that, yet, for some reason she had, and it sent her insides spirling into a twisting, turning mess. What few thoughts ran through her brain were hard to decipher, but they all lead down the path to What will he think of me? and I need Camille and Jo.

Kicking the pile of items she had left in the room from the night before, the girl frantically searched for her phone inside her bag, which she quickly found underneath the sweatshirt she had worn on the plane.

When she opened it, she noticed first of all, that it was the middle of the afternoon, and second, that she had a handful of unread messages from every single one of her friends.

One day back in Hollywood and she had wasted half of it sleeping in when she should be helping James grow into the pop star he deserved to be.

Ignoring the messages from the boys back in Minnesota, she quickly scanned through the group chat she shared with Jo and Camille.

J: Bitters just told us the worst thing…

C: he came right up to us at the pool, grimace on his face, and told us you and james moved back into the palm woods

J: But we said that obviously couldn’t be true considering you didn’t tell us at all!

C: as if he could prank us that easily

Those messages had been sent mere hours ago and when Roxy moved to type out her own message, she couldn’t even begin to formulate all that she wanted to say.

R: Hi, Bitters is right. We got back into town early, early this morning and I ended up sleeping in much later than I wanted to

R: I really need to see you guys, when can we meet up :)

While their responses were normally immediate, she didn’t receive any back in the usually short time span.

So, until they did, she resigned herself to get ready for the upcoming day and map out their schedule for their meeting with Hawk in the afternoon.

Though she hadn’t spoken to him at all herself, James described him as an odd man who was very obsessed with himself - which she thought to be quite funny coming from the wannabe. As he had told her, Hawk’s scheduling was much different than Gustavo’s, preferring to work in the afternoon rather than the morning. While everyone in Hollywood certainly worked in different ways, she found it strange she hadn’t even met the man responsible for bringing her back to L.A. yet and eagerly looked forward to their meeting.

After making it through her morning routine, Roxy made her way into the front room in order to reach the bathroom through the kitchen, but instead found a pair of sushi chefs clogging up the walkway as they prepared James’ lunch.

I need to speak with Hawk about his overspending…

“Sebastian! Stop the car,” She heard James call, spotting him back in front of the TV, however, this time, an older man was sitting in front of him holding a remote control steering wheel. While her friend had taken time to change into a nice, blue robe to kick back in, Sebastian was dressed in a very sharp gray and black uniform. “There’s someone I need you to meet.”

The girl wasn’t able to squeeze through the fast-paced chefs running around the kitchen before James caught her arm and pulled her over to meet his new butler. At his touch, she felt her heartbeat quicken and did her best to keep her breathing under control as he presented her to the man in front of her.

“This is Roxanne - Roxy - Somerset! Anything she needs, she gets… Got it? Oh, and speaking of there's someone else here you need to meet…”

Whatever he said next, Roxy accidentally tuned out as his words inadvertently sent her heart into overdrive once more. Sebastian was his butler, after all, that was a very thoughtful request of him to make.

Anything I want, I get… And if I want our friends back?

“Of course, Sir,” Sebastian answered in a perfect British accent, giving Roxy a small bow.

At his actions, the girl held out her hands, shaking them in an attempt to stop his motion, “Oh- Oh, wow, that’s too much, Mr. Sebastian… I’m here to help James, just like you.”

“Would you like me to ask the chefs to prepare you a meal as well, Miss?”

That seemed like quite a bizarre question.

“They’re… Right behind me… I can ask myself.” Turning her head to the boy beside her she chided, “Don’t let this newfound fame go to your head. You’re not too good to speak to anyone in this room.”

Shrugging, the wannabe brushed her off, “He’s just doing his job. Speaking of, wanna take a drive through L.A. with me? We’ve got it all hooked up to the TV.”

Buzz buzz

Having to ignore her messages for a minute, despite how her hand twitched to grab her phone from her back pocket as it buzzed, Roxy cocked her head, confused.

“The game is quite fun, Miss. Much easier than driving around the real streets of Los Angeles.”

What she wanted to say next was swiftly cut off by the sound of the gong doorbell once again resounding off the walls of the apartment.

“Sebastian, can you get that? I want to try my hand at a dramatic entrance from the staircase!” James called, reminding Roxy of his usual self as he ran up the steel steps to the loft once housing the swirly slide.

Without anywhere to go herself, the assistant resigned to take a seat at the breakfast bar to relax for a moment and check her phone.

C: WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU’RE BACK?

J: So weird, Carlos, Logan, and Kendall stopped by to say hello before you did…

R: Not fair to try and prank me either :( Where are you two?

When Sebastian opened the door, Roxy heard a collection of shocked gasps.

“May I help you?”

“Yeah…” A familiar voice spoke out, though with a very questioning tone as he looked into his former apartment. “We’re looking for Roxy and James.”

In a flash, the girl was out of her chair, listening to Sebastian invite the newcomers in.

Once the man moved, Roxy found herself smiling ear-to-ear as she gazed upon Logan, Carlos, and Kendall.

Anything I want, I get.

“You came!” She practically screamed, launching herself into Logan and nearly toppling him over through sheer force.

After a small ��oof!” Logan was happy to return her hug, “Well, considering you called us about a hundred times, we figured you were up to something important.”

“A text message works just as well!” Carlos added, practically pulling his friend off of Logan and into his own arms.

“Sure,” She jokingly grumbled, “I was just a little bit upset with you three.”

Rolling his eyes, Kendall let out a small chuckle as Roxy let go of Carlos and wrapped her arms around his waist, “Understandable, but we did make the right choice in the end! Now… what did James do to our old apartment?”

“Irasshaimase!” The two chefs in the kitchen called, welcoming them to the space and holding up full plates of food.

It startled the boys, causing their heads to turn and examine the new, tricked-out kitchen, with Logan expertly stating, “Those are sushi chefs…”

“Well, our producer is doing all he can to make sure his new star client is happy - including feeding him his favorite food 24/7.” The girl shared, gesturing towards James, who was now dramatically making his way down the steel stairs.

This, however, was the least interesting thing about where Roxy was motioning as Carlos let out a small scream, “Oh! What happened to Swirly?”

His comments were quickly forgotten as James practically skipped down the stairs toward his friends, a smile plastered to his face, who he also wasn’t expecting to see so soon, “Hey! What are you guys doing here?”

It warmed the writer’s heart to see him so happy to see the boys, but felt her stomach drop when he tried to mask his smile with a distinct frown, “I mean… What are you guys doing here?”

“Big Time Rush is back together!” Kendall proudly shared, glancing between the pair as the news set in.

“What?!” Roxy whipped around, eyes wide as she found herself jumping up and down in excitement. “That’s incredible!”

“Yes! So…” Logan gave James a quick glance up and down, “Let’s get dressed and go.”

Feeling a comforting hand slide onto her shoulder once the boy reached the end of the staircase, Roxy finally settled down, turning to James with an irreversible grin, waiting for him to agree.

“And what happened to Swirly?” Carlos asked again, more upset this time as if the answer weren’t obvious.

Still looking back at her friend, Roxy felt her heart skip with anxiety as the boy stuck out his bottom lip in thought.

In an attempt to hurry whatever James was going to say next, Kendall motioned towards the door. “We gotta get back to Rocque Records to get ready for the concert.”

“Yeah!” James lit up, though his tone was dripping with sarcasm before following with, “No! You see, Hawk wants to sign me to a three-record deal, modified the crib to suit my new personal style, and gave me… Sebastian!”

From the hallway leading to the bedrooms, Sebastian emerged with a silver tray full of fluffy white cloths. “Hot towel, anyone?”

As if the conversation at hand wasn’t incredibly important, the three newcomers let out a chorus of “thanks!” as they accepted three towels. Though, when they unfolded them and laid them over their faces, a distinct sizzling sound echoed off their skin as the boys let out pained shouts before falling to the floor.

Immediately, Roxy was at their sides - even if she loved the feeling of James’ hand on her shoulder - to help them remove the source of their pain.

Without as much as a blink in their direction, James continued, “Ooh, and, as I recall, you were the ones who told me to get real and move on, so I did.”

“Seriously?” From where she was kneeling, Roxy looked up at the wannabe in protest. “They came all this way-”

“Megaphone for emphasis, Sir?” Sebastian asked, coming to James’ side in the blink of an eye with a large megaphone on a different silver platter.

With a smile, James graciously accepted the device as his friends finally collected themselves off the floor.

“I rock!” He yelled into it, sharp electrical sound pulsating in the teen’s ears at his misuse of the speaker.

Taking a moment to collect himself, Kendall uncovered his ears with a sigh, practically pleading with his best friend. “James, I was mad, okay? We shouldn’t have broken up the band, but we’ve always promised since we were peewee hockey players that we would stick together! We even made Roxy promise the same the first week we were here!”

“Ooh, and you’ve never broken a promise?” James bit back, absentmindedly playing with the collar of his robe.

For a moment, it seemed as though the three were pretty sure they hadn’t, before their faces fell, eyes widening as though they had just remembered something incredibly important.

Glancing side to side, Logan noticed Carlos and Kendall were feeling similarly, before straining, “We might be horrible people-”

“We’ll fix it!” The blond cut him off, “But first, we need to fix the band. James, Roxy, we’re sorry… Now, let's go!”

“Come on!” Carlos agreed, pointing towards the door.

The minute the boys had walked in the door, Roxy had forgiven them for everything they had said in Minnesota, but she wasn’t ready to discount James’ feelings about the situation either. They had come here together and she intended to leave there together on the same path to the greatness she know he deserved.

Besides, this was a disagreement between him and the other boys, it had nothing to do with her, and that was made evident by the hostility with which James spoke to his friends.

Turning to face him and gauge his thoughts, Roxy noticed two figures making their way down the steel staircase.

“He’s not going anywhere,” A well-dressed man declared, voice clear and commanding as he grew closer to the teens. Despite being indoors, he wore dark sunglasses, ones that matched his dark hair and clothing. Behind him, a younger, beautiful, blonde woman followed, carrying a black ledger to match her black dress and leggings. “Because he’s got everything he needs here. Right James?”

Immediately, she knew this to be Hawk, and the way he clapped James on the shoulder, pulling him away from the rest of his friends made her stomach turn.

Before James was able to answer for himself, Sebastian was at his side once again, “Some toys or money, Sir?”

Take the money and run!

Grinning, James picked up a Rubik’s cube, earning Hawk’s praise, “Excellent choice!”

Standing between the two groups - Hawk Records and Rocque Records - Roxy could feel the tension between them. Three of James’ oldest and most important friends had been very clear in their feelings towards his dream, and when James had heeded their words, suddenly they up and changed their minds. She couldn’t possibly imagine what it would feel like to be in his position, but she would stick by him in whatever choice he made.

While her own decision entirely, that choice scared her quite a bit.

Across the room, she locked eyes with the singer and gave him a subtle nod to convey her feelings. We’re in this together. You and me, James. That’s all we need.

Shuffling a few lines of the cube in his hands, he glanced upwards towards his friends. “You guys told me to move on, so… I did.”

“And now my assistant, Rebecca, will show you the door.”

The blonde woman beside Hawk smiled, showing off her perfectly white teeth.

At the notion of being kicked out by such a gorgeous person, Carlos scoffed, pointing between the band and the assistant, “She’s gonna show us the door?”

That comment was enough to upset Roxy just a tad as she scooted over to the side of Hawk Records - though she desperately wished to leave and join team Big Time Rush.

It was just a bit funny to watch Rebecca kick the absolute crap out of the three boys who underestimated her physical prowess out into the hallway.

“Alright, James, get changed.” Hawk almost demanded as he lightly pushed James down the hallway of 2-J. “It’s time to get to work!”

***

The ride to Hawk Records was about three times as long as the one the teens normally took to Rocque Records - not only that but instead of the skyscraper that housed many divisions of the RCM/CBT/Global-Net/Sanyoid family, Hawk’s facility was more like a small office building.

As the group walked through the halls, Hawk and Rebecca led the way as James, Roxy, and Sebastian trailed behind, they admired the cool gray aesthetic of the interior. Similar to their previous place of employment, there were numerous posters boasting the talent working among them at the label though, none of them were as famous as anyone who had worked with Gustavo.

“And now,” Hawk concluded the tour as he stood next to a poster covered with a black curtain, “The newest addition to Hawk Record’s line of pop superstars… Jamez!”

With a woosh, the man pulled the curtain away from the larger-than-life image of the wannabe, Rebecca proudly holding her hand up to show off their handiwork.

Had the poster looked anything like her friend, Roxy might have found this to be an emotional, heartfelt moment, considering Gustavo hadn’t even put up a Big Time Rush poster in his halls yet, but whoever had done the photoshop work on this image had horribly butchered it. James' normal, perfectly proportioned face was now taken up by a large, noticeably fake pout of his lips, which were far too enlarged to look real. Not only that, they unnecessarily changed the spelling of his name, replacing the “S” with an unpleasant “Z.”

“Woah,” Roxy tried to joke through her own feelings about the poster, noticing James' face visibly pale as he looked at the image. “Someone went a bit too hard on the lip filler.”

With a nod, James bit at his bottom, normal-sized lip, “Yeah… and you spelled my name wrong.”

“No, I didn’t.” The producer affirmed, a sickening grin forming on his features as he faced the teens. “You’re Jamez with a ‘Z’ now. It’s ‘awezome!’”

“I don’t think anyone has ever used that term before, Mr. Hawk.” The assistant tried to add, but her comment was swiftly ignored as the man waved her off.

Beside the teens, Sebastian was also examining the poster, bringing up a great point. “Isn’t that technically Ja-Mez?”

Grin falling, Hawk quickly darted his eyes towards Rebecca; The woman gave him a strained smile back and a little nod, confirming the older man’s pronunciation.

“I don’t pay you to speak, Sebastian!”

Not bothering to defend his butler, James squinted, leaning in a bit more to look at the poster with a bit more scrutiny, “Circling back around… What’s wrong with my lips?”

“We added new ones,” Rebecca stated, British accent rivaling those of the Americans around her. “We wanted something fuller. Yours are too thin.”

Roxy had to bite her tongue to hold back her thoughts on his lips.

“And check out your new ‘zingle.’” Hawk shared, switching the subject, as he trotted over to a stereo system he had set up on a desk in one of the many lounges Hawk Records had to offer. Pressing the play button, a simple, yet very electronic tune filled the room. The words were elementary, repeating “Girl” over and over again, followed by “You so fine” to round out the melody.

“But I haven’t recorded anything yet!” James protested, trying to figure out how Hawk had already put something together for him,

“Not only that,” His assistant scoffed, “Those lyrics are so simple! A child could write something better.”

Shutting the tune off, Hawk swiveled back and forth in his chair, “Well, thanks to digital enhancement, James will never have to record anything and Roxy will hand her songs over to me. And together, we are going to crush Gustavo and Big Time Rush!”

Noticing the menacing tone the producer took, still swiveling in his chair, Roxy began to realize part of the reason Hawk had been so adamant about getting James down here. While they knew that Gustavo certainly didn’t like him, she didn’t think Hawk shared the same feelings - their old producer always dramatized parts of his life, and she had just assumed this feud was a result of that. Now, it seemed as though Hawk felt just as much disdain for Gustavo as Gustavo did him.

Gripping the straps of her bag a bit tighter, she grew more uncomfortable the longer they stayed in Hawk Records. It was James who brought her out of her head, stepping forward to level with his producer.

“But I don’t want to crush Big Time Rush. Those guys are our friends…” He said, glancing over his shoulder to give Roxy a weak smile which she was glad to return. “Or, they were.”

They are, She thought. No matter what.

“Music isn’t about crushing other artists… It’s about art and expression! Plus, my songs are my own. I don’t just hand them over and they don’t go anywhere without my consent.” His assistant added, stepping up to join him as they stared down Hawk and Rebecca.

“That too!” Agreed James. “No need for this digital enhancement stuff. I just want to record good music written by a real and awesome songwriter.”

It seemed that none of these important statements meant anything to their new producer or his assistant - certainly a major red flag that further compelled Roxy to try and get the hell out of dodge.

“Ja-mez, do you want to have friends or do you want to be famous?” Asked Rebecca, motioning to the numerous silver records Hawk had decorating the walls behind them.

Taking a bit too long to answer that question for himself, the boy just shook his head, glancing toward the carpet.

“And besides,” Hawk chimed in, handing this morning’s newspaper over to the wannabe. “If they were really your friends, would they be searching all over town for your replacement?”

Page open to the classified sections, James and Roxy spied the Big Time Rush logo plastered on the bottom right of the page.

Big Time Rush

Open Audition

Gustavo Rocque is holding an open call for a tall, athletic, pretty singer for a pop/rock group. Must be 16-18 and available immediately for rehearsals, album recording, and tour.

Please contact: Rocque Records

Reading the ad nearly broke Roxy’s heart. Did they think James could be so easily replaced? Could they even call it Big Time Rush without him?

When they flipped the page to see if there was anything more on the other side, Roxy felt her chest constrict when she noticed the logo once again on the top left page. It read similarly to the other ad, but something about this version told her the boys were in charge of the text, as opposed to Gustavo.

Big Time Rush

Open Team Position

Kendall Knight, Logan Mitchell, and Carlos Garcia are holding interviews for a new songwriter-assistant (emphasis on the songwriter). Must be 16-18, cute, play the guitar, write songs, and have a cool first name but go by a nickname which we will further shorten.

Please contact: Rocque Records

Serious Inquiries only.

Whatever the boys were planning, these ads were enough to light a fire under the singer, who threw the ad back down onto the table.

“I want to be famous.”

Not bothering to waste any more time, James promptly turned on his heel, grabbing his assistant’s hand, pulling her out of Hawk Records as fast as humanly possible.

As James had done this, Roxy, after a few moments of not being able to process anything but the feeling of his touch, thought this meant he was finally ready to forgive his friends. So much so, she began to ask Sebastian to route their stretch limo to Rocque Records, before the long-haired boy swiftly cut her off, asking to return to the Palm Woods for dinner.

Any time she tried to talk to him, maybe even nudge him in the right direction by asking him his feelings about the situation, he just let out a long-winded sigh. After a while, it started to feel like she was trying to talk to a brick wall. Knowing that she stood fully and completely with him was hard, especially when she was somehow also rooting for the other team. Now was not the time to play double agent, even though she had no idea what lay behind enemy lines.

When they arrived back at 2-J, the sushi bar was still open, prompting the writer to wonder if Hawk was just paying them to stand around in an empty apartment. James, who hadn’t said anything since his declaration, took about three full rolls from his personal chefs and moped over to the couch.

Requesting a fresh Philadelphia roll, his assistant grabbed two pairs of chopsticks and sat down next to him as Sebastian pulled a chair in front of them from the dining room table. Taking the steering wheel remote control once more, he booted up the driving game he had been playing earlier while his master took a sorrowful bite of his first California roll.

After a few minutes of aimless driving around the track, Sebastian confusedly asked, “Uh, where to now, sir?” as he kept the wheel steady.

“Just… Turn left here.” Responded James, the usual confidence with which he carried himself seeming to dissipate as he sighed. The sushi piece he had picked up to eat before he spoke was moved to the left, clutched between his chopsticks, almost absentmindedly hitting his assistant right in the face.

The sharp screeching of the virtual wheels on the track scratched Roxy’s ears, causing her to jump.

More silence followed until Sebastian asked, “Are you alright, Sir?”

James’ reply was immediate, though neither of the people in the room believed his words. “I’m good! I got Roxy, I got you, and I got sushi. Everything’s awesome.”

Click

Screen in front of them going black, Sebastian swiveled around in his chair, facing the teens as he stood. “Yes… And you seem so awesome.”

His actions were suddenly far different than they had been in the morning, the once reserved, level-headed man adding a different inflection in his voice causing James to chuckle, “Are you being sarcastic? ‘Cause you sound like Logan!... Who I don’t miss, just like I don’t miss Carlos or Kendall.”

“Of course, you don’t,” The butler agreed with a roll of his eyes, throwing his arms out to the side as he continued. “Just like I don’t long for a life away from the smog and shallowness of this town.”

Though a bit of a downer, Roxy thought she was beginning to catch Sebastian’s drift. Perhaps now was a good time to bring up her own feelings about the situation, and compare them against James’ to find somewhere they could agree.

As she went to open her mouth, James narrowed his eyes, setting down his plate of food. “We still talking about me here?”

“How do you teens say it today?” Now he was addressing Roxy, completely ignoring the wannabe as he tilted his head to the side. “Whatever, Ja-mez!”

“Hey! Hawk is gonna make me famous.”

“Sure he can, but don’t you think we always do better together?” His assistant murmured, catching the singer by surprise once he understood who she was referring to. “You and I aren’t the best problem solvers, like Kendall. Nor are we as brilliant as Logan, or as tough as Carlos. I think we all balance each other out.”

“A whole life with your friends or a whole life filled with fake lips and fake vocals… Wake up, James, and do enjoy a hot towel.”

Bracing herself based on how the last hot towel fiasco went down, Roxy covered her ears and ducked away from her friend, who screamed once the white cotton cloth met his face.

Thankfully, it seemed to have the effect Sebastian wished it to, as when the singer was finally able to pull it off of his red, splotchy face, he motioned to his assistant. “Are you sure this is the best idea for us?”

That was almost the last thing she expected him to ask her; just the fact he was checking in and making sure his decision mattered to her as well made her heart rate spike. That, and the word “us” used perfectly in his sentence.

“Gustavo’s only let us down once, and it seems like he’s trying to fix it… I certainly trust him more than Hawk.”

Hand moving to rub his jaw, James took in her words. “Sebastian, do you mind taking us to Rocque Records?”

“Not at all, Sir.”

***

Though the back of the stretch limousine was ultra-comfortable, as Roxy stepped out of the vehicle and shielded her eyes from the sun to gaze up at the skyscraper that housed their old recording studio, she couldn’t help but miss her bright red Pontiac GTO.

If everything went according to plan, hopefully, the keys would be back in her hands soon enough.

As the two managed their way into the building, pleased to know that their Rocque Records ID badges hadn’t been shut off, they were silent as they entered the elevator. Hearty dings filled the small space as they ascended, waiting for what felt like ages to get to the correct floor.

“Do you think they’ll forgive me?”

James’ words were sincere, and when Roxy glanced over at him, she noticed how intently he was staring at the numbered control panel.

Without thinking, she gently reached out and grabbed his hand, giving it a comforting squeeze. “I think your best friends miss you… Besides, Big Time Rush is hardly Big Time Rush without one of its founding members. Try as they might to replace you, I’m not sure anyone else in the world has your wonderful voice, incredible sense of rhythm, or your effortless boy band-y charm.”

His reply was simple, calmly lacing his fingers between hers, “It’s not Big Time Rush without you either.”

“Oh, yeah?” Feeling the heat of his palm against hers almost sent Roxy’s knees buckling. For whatever reason, her first instinct was to try and deflect his comment, “Gustavo’s a great songwriter…. I haven’t even come up with any new song ideas recently, for Ja-Mez, Big Time Rush, or otherwise.”

The sound of laughter filled the elevator for a second, confusing the assistant as she turned to find its source. James, who had pulled his hand away from hers only to cover his face, was now nearly doubled over at her words. “God, I don’t ever want to hear the name Ja-Mez again!”

Fighting back her own smile, Roxy felt her shoulders begin to shake as well, “Then don’t mess this meeting up! Play your cards right and Gustavo might be begging on his knees for your return.”

Though seeming to sober him up a bit, the boy was finally able to move a few of his fingers, peeking down at the girl beside him. “For the return of both of us, Roxy.”

If he noticed the small flinch in her posture as he rolled out her name, he didn’t say anything, though she did continue to feel his eyes on her until the final ding let them know they had finally arrived at the studio floor.

Before she stepped out, James caught her arm, pulling her closer to him.

The swiftness of the motion scared her a bit, trying to find any explanation written on his face as she met his gaze, though, she only found a flicker in his eyes, glancing down a few centimeters. She was just delusional enough to believe he was surveying her lips and slightly leaned in, just to see what he would do.

Her answer would have to wait for another time, thoroughly and unwelcomly interrupted by the elevator doors beginning to slide closed, as James moved to keep them open before exiting and rushing off towards the studio.

In an attempt to keep his pace, she managed to shoot off after him, trying to pretend whatever had happened between them, didn’t really happen.

There's no way… Right?

Chain of thought half-disrupted as “Famous” began to blast out of the speakers of Studio A, Roxy tried her best to focus on the song, not the one clear message running through her mind stating: I want to kiss him.

However, it was easy to ignore her own feelings, staring at James’ back as he got closer and closer to the studio doors, considering the vocal work the three boys were rehearsing sounded next to terrible. The high energy, adrenaline-pumping practices the band used to have sounded like a thing of the past; the spirit of Big Time Rush lost before they heard Gustavo’s signature screaming from the booth and the track cut.

Now would have been the perfect time for James to declare his presence, confidently saunter into the studio, and easily earn his old job back, but before he entered, he turned around. With a lazy toss of his head towards the commotion, he smiled at Roxy. “Ready?”

“As I’ll-”

“Oh, you’re such a turd…”

From the studio, the lifeless performance of “Famous” was quickly replaced by Kendall singing the opening bars to the tune he had written the night of their audition in Minnesota. Though the songwriter felt the words were a bit cheap, as Carlos and Logan began to join in, she could practically hear their sardonic smiles and the new life the song was breathing into them. Though the song was just a warm-up, they sounded much happier together this time around.

Even if it had stunned both her and James into silence, as the boys rounded out the small tune Roxy felt herself reach out both of her hands, placing them on the boy’s chest and shoving him into the studio. Without even discussing a plan, James immediately caught on, rounding out the last line with a beautiful drawn-out ending note.

Suddenly, a verse managed to wedge its way into Roxy’s brain as she watched on, frozen, recognizing the ear-to-ear grin forming on James’ face. He hadn’t looked that excited about anything in days, and now, his reunion with his best friends was practically causing him to shine. No doubt, the writer had many thoughts about this, but more than anything, it made her so elated to see him this way.

Not wanting to miss out on this critical moment in their friendship, but also not wanting to lose her verse, the writer managed to pull herself out of her daze, rip her songbook from her bag, grip her favorite red pen, and scribble out her thoughts. It was good to be back.

You, you walked into the room,

On a Friday afternoon,

That’s when I saw you for the first time,

And I was paralyzed.

Of course, it hadn’t been the first time Roxy had seen James, but as she read over the words echoing in her mind, she came to a long-awaited realization.

I have a crush on James Diamond.

Despite being rooted in place outside the studio doors, songbook clearly in hand, Roxy’s petrification was soon undone as Carlos rushed towards her, picking her up and spinning her around until she landed right in the middle of her best friends. A clap on the shoulder from Logan, a hand on her head from Kendall, and a wink from James later, Roxy was happy to stuff her book back in her mini backpack and savor the euphoric feeling of this moment.

Everything was exactly as it should be, captured best as Carlos let out an excited, “Big Time Rush is back together - Whoo!”

“Yeah, I felt bad knowing how much you all missed Roxy and me.” James quipped, giving his helmet-wearing friend a hearty slap to the chest.

Matching his sarcastic tone, Logan smirked, “And you’re not gonna miss the cool pad, the hot towels, and Sebastian?”

“Oh, I’ll miss Sebastian.” Roxy jumped in with a raise of her hand, loving the airy feeling in her chest. It felt like a huge weight had been taken off her shoulders as she let the energy of her friends flow through her.

With a nod, the long-haired boy pointed to her, before answering with his own, “Yes, no, and yes.”

“Well don’t sweat it, because once we nail the concert, we’re gonna go back to the Palm Woods and get our own Sebastian, right?”

Kendall’s question was directed towards Gustavo and Kelly, who had finally managed to make it out of the control room with Katie and Mrs. Knight in tow.

As his words sunk in, Roxy managed an excited, “The concert’s back on?” that overlapped with Kelly’s “And what about Hawk?”

Like normal, Gustavo let out an annoyed sigh at the influx of comments, “We’ll talk about your Sebastian later. And we’ve got bigger problems than Hawk: As in the concert is in two days and we haven’t sold a single ticket and all the advertisement posters are now wrong!”

Motioning towards the back of the room, the teens turned their heads to find the fliers Gustavo had made in James and Roxy’s absence. An image of the band, Carlos, Kendall, and Logan, stood against a sad white background, adorned with the Rocque Records and Big Time Rush logos in the bottom two corners. Hideous red text in the middle reading Sunday 8 pm @ The Music Box Theater was almost impossible to read.

Not only that but as Roxy finally took some time to take in her surroundings, she noticed the studio which was often filled with instruments and recording equipment was close to empty. In the place of the normal adornments, brown, cardboard boxes stood in their place.

“Don’t worry!” Mrs. Knight lit up as if a lightbulb had gone off above her head. “Katie will donate her posters!”

Taking one from one of the many hundreds of boxes her daughter had ordered full of Big Time Rush merchandise, the woman rolled out a brand new poster - proudly displaying James in addition to the other three.

With a scoff, the young girl rolled her eyes, “No, I won’t!”

“Katie, donate them!”

Letting out a scream loud enough to rival Gustavo’s, Katie was quick to concede to her mother's demands, popping out of the room as fast as her little legs could carry her to find the rest of the poster boxes.

Promptly moving onto the next topic, Gustavo glanced over to his talent scout. “Kelly, what money do we have left in the budget for street team advertising and local TV and radio spots?”

Rummaging in her pockets for a bit, and pulling out a few things, Kelly listed them out: “One, two, three, four, five bucks and a punch card for one free Schmetzel’s Pretzel.”

The noise their boss made sounded somewhere in between a shocked gasp and the silent, pained cries of an individual choking on their food.

“We’ll go back to the Palm Woods and get some street team volunteers!” A brilliant idea from Kendall.

Nodding, Logan offered, “And I think I may know a way we can get some free TV spots.”

“Don’t worry about the radio either, I’ll call up some local stations in the morning.” Roxy confidently stated, hoping her knowledge of call-in radio shows would be enough to skirt some free advertising in the Los Angeles area.

Once no one else brought anything to the discussion, their talk swiftly came to an end.

“Well, what are you waiting for? I can’t sell this band to investors if we don’t sell out the concert! Go! Go! Go! Go! Get out of here!”

***

Roxy had hoped that her reunion with Jo and Camille would have been more heartfelt and comforting, but as soon as she crushed her friends into a giant hug, promising she had important information to tell them later, she put her feelings on hold for the time being.

In the morning, she had appointed herself as the leader of the street team, and the girl was now far more focused on distributing the correct posters to multiple groups containing her friends and other Palm Woods residents - marking everything out on a lovely list in her journal and a large map of Hollywood spread out on the dining room of 2-J. Even among the chaos of everything, she had tuned into most of the local radio stations, waiting for them to share their call-in phone number, and derailing every conversation she had on air to mention the concert.

Big Time Rush had managed to put together an eclectic collection of people from the hotel, but everyone was more than willing to lend their help in putting posters up on street corners, handing them out in front of shops and restaurants, and even bringing ads to their own auditions or practices over the course of the next 48 hours.

While the teens were taking care of advertisements, Gustavo also had his assistant set up a handful of meetings with some of the largest entertainment investment companies on the west coast: Giant Corp, Huge Corp, and, of course, Huge Giant Corp.

While still running her command center out of the apartment, Roxy even managed to get on the streets herself, standing outside of Amoeba Records on Hollywood Boulevard and passing out colorful fliers to anyone who walked by.

At one point, she even caught a glimpse of the news show Mrs. Knight was watching on the large entertainment center of 2-J, where Camille, using her expert acting skills, managed to get some air time. After claiming to have been abducted by aliens, local anchor Ted Garcia was eager to televise her story, before he was cut off by a mob of other teens, all holding up sign advertisements for the concert, as Camille repeatedly yelled the time and location of the show.

By the time the night of the concert rolled around, though Roxy was exhausted, she still managed to get herself over to the Music Box and join the rest of Team Big Time Rush to watch the marquee be changed from “ON SALE NOW” to “SOLD OUT” right in front of their eyes.

As cheers roared around her, she felt like taking a good, long nap. Hopefully, after tonight, it would be one in her bed in 2-H.

Once the celebration died down, the band and their friends went their separate ways - both groups needing to prepare for the concert. In just a few hours, the band would be proving they have just what it takes to make it to the big time, but for now, they needed to sound check the venue and get oriented with their new surroundings.

Watching the venue staff inside rush around, much like they had been doing for the past few days, from the stage felt a bit strange. It was even stranger as the five took in the sight of their bosses; one furiously texting away on her blackberry, the other nit-picking every little thing about the room.

“Okay,” Gustavo finally sighed, looking up at his band on the stage in front of him. There was a moment of reminiscence to the first time he had met them in Minnesota. “All that’s left to do is - oh, right - the concert!”

“Gustavo…” Kendall trailed off before the rest of the band picked up his sentence. “Have we ever let you down?”

I need to get better at this mind-reading thing they have with each other.

“I’ll let you know after tonight… Now, get your butts to your dressing room and get ready to rock this place for your fans and for my big investors.”

With a motion towards the VIP area in the back of the venue, the girl felt her heart squeeze. All they had known was the parental company guidance of RCM/CBT/Global-Net/Sanyoid; hopefully, another company would be able to provide them with similar attributes.

Though once James wrapped a hand around her wrist and pulled her towards the dressing room with the rest of the band, she felt her worries wash away. All the chaos surrounding the teens over the last few days gave her little opportunity to fully see him, considering he was staking out street corners with Carlos throughout the Hollywood area to hand out fliers, and now, even as she took in the sight of his arm reaching towards her, she was grateful for the few seconds of joy buzzing through her veins.

Entering through the two large, grey doors labeled Dressing Room: Big Time Rush, she didn’t bat an eye at the red velvet curtain they pushed through, leading to the minuscule room.

“No way this is supposed to service five people…” She managed to choke out just as James let her go.

On the same wavelength as his assistant, Kendall did a little 360 to examine everything, “Smaller than I imagined.”

As if on cue, something mechanical kicked in, the air conditioner maybe, and the slight walls of the room shook.

“And it’s rumbling?” Carlos questioned, before the telltale sign of an engine turned over, emanating from the back wall of the room.

That was when the four walls began to move, pulling away from the venue, revealing Hawk’s assistant, Rebecca as she emerged from behind the red curtain.

With an evil smirk, she daintily waved to the five, “Make yourselves at home-” before reaching above her head and pulling down what looked to be the back slider of a moving truck.

“And it’s a trap!” Logan yelled, he and the band launching forward in an attempt to stop the slider from hitting the truck bed to no avail.

Watching, frozen in fear, Roxy felt the container begin to move faster, knocking her to the floor, while the rest of the boys let out pained cries, pounding on the back wall in hopes anyone would be able to help them before it was too late.

And too late it was, before 20 minutes into the drive - and Roxy’s subsequent claustrophobic breakdown - the engine finally turned off and the five were roughly hauled by Hawk and Rebecca into an empty warehouse.

Though, thanks to the Judo techniques Jo had taught Roxy in order to keep their sporadic sparring matches at the gym fair, the writer didn’t go down without a fight. After thrashing around as best she could, she successfully broke some skin on Hawk’s arm with a Judo-illegal biting technique and managed to pull out a fistful of Rebecca’s hair. Unfortunately, the two adults ended up overpowering her and her strong, hockey player friends, quickly subduing them in order to move them out of the truck.

Mini backpack left behind and cellphones pulled from their pockets, the five were helpless against the two adults.

What was worse, being tied down to the uncomfortable wooden chairs, ropes bitterly biting into their arms and wrists, or the single, bright spotlight casting light down on the middle of the room, blinding the teens as the adults shared a maniacal laugh, Roxy didn’t know.

First to voice his self-preservative concerns, James grimaced, tugging as best he could against the white chord holding him down. “Are… are you gonna kill us?”

“No. Don’t be stupid!” Hawk bit back, standing beside a now shocked Rebecca.

Oh, she definitely thought she was going to kill us.

The boys’ collective sigh of relief was much too soon as the producer continued, “But when Big Time Rush misses their first concert, your music careers will be dead.”

A blood-curdling scream emerged from James at the prospect of losing something more precious to him than his own life. Tied up next to him, Roxy didn’t appreciate the fact she couldn’t cover her ears as the sound echoed off the high ceiling of the facility.

“And more importantly,” Hawk was still talking, which allowed the assistant to catalog as many details about their location as possible. “So will Gustavo’s chances of ever topping me on the charts again!”

“You seriously needed to kidnap us to further your chances?” Roxy found herself laughing, laughing, at the man’s ridiculous words. “You hired a real, genuinely talented singer to make music but tried to use your stupid fake songwriting and electronic vocal producing machines instead. There’s a reason Hawk Records hasn’t ever produced a single hit, you idiot! Both you and your fashion-challenged sidekick will never be on the same level as Gustavo.”

She regretted her words the second Rebecca took a step toward her, fearing the woman’s vice-like grip that could easily damage any part of her body. Thankfully, the woman didn’t dignify her words with a response, only casting a sidelong glance at the five teens in front of her. “We’ll tell Gustavo where to find you and your phones once the crowd boos and abandons the concert.”

“When you mess with the Hawk, you get all ten talons!” The man finished, holding his fingers out in a claw-shaped fashion.

“Hawks actually only have eight talons.”

Logan’s factual correction was met with a scream: “I don’t care!”

“Okay… Just telling you…”

God, they should just kill us.

“But I do want to catch your concert so I don’t miss the look on Gustavo’s face when he loses everything.”

Producing another sinister laugh, and two strange caws, Hawk and Rebecca swiftly made their exit through a small door on the opposite side of the warehouse they had entered from - suggesting to the girl that was the way to the main road.

At this point, she had no idea what time it was, where in Los Angeles they could possibly be, and how they were going to get out of this with a viable career at Rocque Records.

However, any chances she had at forming an escape plan were instantly shattered as she heard James let out a cry for help. The raw emotion contained behind his scream sent a spike directly through her chest; so much pain, sadness, confusion… All things she was feeling, but his wail also contained something else she was having trouble deciphering.

“James,” She tried, in between his desperate attempts to regain air back into his lungs before another go. “Don’t damage your voice, please.”

Regardless of whether or not her comment was self-serving, she tried very, very hard not to think of what his raspy voice might sound like.

“Don’t worry, best friends of mine!” Carlos interrupted her train of thought, which was welcome considering they had bigger issues at the moment than Roxy trying to sort out her confusing feelings. “For this looks like a job for-”

Using all of his strength, he was able to hop his chair toward the right side of the warehouse, letting out a little “Hup!”

“Carlos, not now.” Kendall tried, his tone of voice sounding utterly defeated as well.

“Yes, now! ‘Cause it’s time… for…”

This time, James cut him off. “Carlos!”

“I can do this!” The boy continued, still moving farther and farther away from his friends as he did his best to get his superhero act together.

Watching his movement, the other four teens registered his quick pace and were in awe he had managed to get so far away from them. There was only one problem; he was heading towards a wide-open door, which boasted a cautionary sign reading STAIRS.

Even if it lead to their salvation, there was no use in getting out of the warehouse with broken limbs or cracked skulls.

Good thing Carlos is wearing a helmet.

“Dude!” Roxy called, a bit of hope hidden behind her concerned cry. “Keep going!”

“What?” Logan hissed, whipping his head around to face her. “No, Carlos,” His attention was back on his friend again, “You don’t understand!”

“No, you don’t understand!” Kendall’s annoyed tone bounced off the walls again, “Carlos, we’re trying to help you.”

“I’m trying to help you!”

“And you are! Just a bit farther-”

“You’re not looking where you’re hopping!” Cautioned James, brow furrowed in worry.

Finally at the doorway, Carlos let out a few shallow breaths, no doubt tired from his sudden display of athleticism across the warehouse floor. “I can do this. It’s time for… Ahh!”

There was clattering, shouting, crashing, rattling, and even the sound of a pained cat’s yowl before there was silence. No sign Carlos had broken free, or at this point, even managed to survive the fall unscathed.

“Well, we tried to tell him.”

“Is this really the time for sarcasm, Logan?”

“Oh, big talk coming from the girl who insulted our kidnappers.”

“They deserved it! Hawk’s a loser and Rebecca’s dress and leggings combo is so 2003-”

Rustling from the doorway alerted the teens to someone entering the warehouse on foot, turning their heads to see Carlos, and rope, and shattered pieces of a wooden chair, standing triumphantly in the doorway.

Excitement swirled in the assistant’s chest, she knew he would get it, as James practically shouted in her ear, “You really are a superhero!”

“No!” Carlos’ tone of voice changed, deeper, and more confident as he stood, arms at akimbo facing his friends. “I’m a pop star… Who wants to rock that concert, get our album released, and get chased by lots of girls.”

Aw… The power of the boy band.

“Then untie us!” Kendall screeched, uncomfortably straining against the ropes burning into his sides as his friends joined in a chorus of agreement.

Roxy had never played the guitar with robe burn around her wrists. Hopefully, it wouldn’t affect her performance.

This was the perfect chance for Carlos to boast about the knot-tying merit badge he had earned in boy scouts, which he promptly reminded each of his friends about as he ran around untying them. Thanks to this, in no time, the five were barreling out the door Hawk and Rebecca had taken and found themselves on a busy street with a bus stop a few yards away.

The sun was still setting, and though Roxy wished she and the boys had the time to admire it, this told them the show was supposed to start any minute now. Without their phones, they were practically stranded in a random part of town, unable to call anyone to come pick them up and race them to the venue. Even the map at the bus stop was hard to read, riddled with sun-bleached spots bubbling off the glass and cigarette-burn rings.

Logan was the first to figure it out, unable to mask his anger as he let out a frustrated growl, “Oh, we’re downtown! We’re never gonna make it to the concert in time!”

“No concert means no album means no Big Time Rush!!” James astutely pointed out, adding his panicked cry to the mix.

“Guys, we’ll make it, let me go flag someone down and ask to use their phone-”

Cut off by a large, black limousine pulling up to the bus stop, Roxy was more than happy to shut up the moment the driver rolled down the window. There, in front of them with a more than optimal vehicle to take them uptown was Sebastian, looking as wonderful as a fairytale knight in shining armor.

“Anyone need a ride to the Big Time Rush concert?”

Just as shocked as she was, James was a bit weary after their kidnapping encounter, questioning, “Sebastian? You- You work for Hawk.”

With a shrug and a wry smile, Sebastian simply stated, “I quit. Now, get in.”

Not wasting any more precious seconds second-guessing the decision, the five teens piled into the back, practically vibrating with anticipation. Bracing themselves for a speedy getaway, they buckled in, before realizing they were almost surrounded by the sound of honking horns and screeching tires.

In an attempt to ease some of the tension he could feel from the backseat, Sebastian chuckled, “Oh, how I hate L.A. traffic… and superficiality and-”

“Sebastian, we’re late!” Kendall, Logan, and Carlos chorused, sending Roxy’s leg into an anxious bounce overdrive. It also didn’t help that James had taken the seat directly next to her, squishing her so tightly into the curve of the seat that his acid-wash jeans roughly hit her calf with every bounce.

Her anxious movement seemed to literally rub off on the boy. “We have to get there! Just, please!”

Loudly swallowing, Sebastian simply nodded and put on a pair of dark-tinted shades. “I’m going to lose my California limousine license for this.”

How he could still be cracking jokes at a time like this, the assistant found herself in admiration of, following his lead, “You never liked it here anyway, did you?”

“No, I didn’t, Miss. How hang on.”

Tires screeching loud, and the smell of burning rubber filling the backseat, their driver sped off, practically flying down the streets of Los Angeles.

At some point in the ride, Roxy felt her motion sickness coming on - be it from nerves or reckless driving - and placed her head in her hands for the remainder of the ride. Looking out the window would probably do her more harm than good.

Seconds, minutes, hours, maybe even eons went by before someone slipped their hand into hers and roughly pulled her out of her seat.

Weakly letting out a “Thank you!” Roxy made a mental note to send a fruit basket courtesy of Rocque Records to Sebastian. Hell, at this point, she’d even write a song about him if it meant expressing her undying gratitude.

Just as she was trying to figure out the best way to get his address, the band pushed her through the back doors of the venue, through the winding hallways to the stage, and up a small set of stairs before she found herself trying to hold up a fainting Gustavo.

There was a chorus of comforting words from the band as they pushed their producer back into the upright standing position, and in front of them stood Hawk and Rebecca, mid-evil laugh.

The look on their faces was priceless as they realized the band and their assistant had escaped their trap, jaws dropping to the floor, hands gripping the hems of their clothing… It was a wondrous sight to see, that Roxy wished to savor longer, but had to pretend to ignore as they prepared to make their way to the stage.

“Sorry we’re late, Gustavo!” Kendall apologized, giving the man a few reassuring pats on the shoulder.

Nodding in agreement, Logan said “Yeah, we got a little tied up,” before shooting the nastiest death glare toward the two adults in front of him.

“About that,” Roxy sucked in a breath, “Can one of you call the cops? We’d like to report a kidnapping.”

As Gustavo and Kelly went wide-eyed at her words, something distracted them.

“Oh… The people are leaving!” Carlos expertly noticed, examining the room behind their kidnappers, a flash of panic in his eye.

Roxy knew this was her cue, but as more and more people continued to turn away from the stage, she felt herself freeze.

They had survived a horrific band break up, a terrible solo break out, a wonderful best friend reunification, a haunting kidnapping, and the dangerous Los Angeles rush hour traffic, and a crowded room of people leaving the concert venue had been the thing that sent Roxy over the edge.

Feeling her blood run cold, she gaped a bit like a fish out of water, especially as her chest constricted, making it more difficult for her to breathe.

Our last shot at the big time… and everyone is leaving.

It wasn’t until James covertly slipped his hand into hers, lacing their fingers together with a tight squeeze, that Roxy was able to find herself back in the present.

“We’re gonna need some microphones,” was his gentle reminder ghosting the shell of her ear, and she took off like a flash, rummaging around their equipment bins to find the four pieces of equipment she had packed and labeled from the studio. Right behind her, Kelly was able to magically produce the microphone stands, and the duo worked together to get the boys exactly what they needed to hit the stage.

“Gah!” Hawk screamed, before shoving Rebecca in front of him as if she were a human shield, “Do something!”

Too busy making sure her friends were properly equipped for the show, she didn’t even see Sebastian shuffle backstage. “Hot towel, sir?”

With his expert aim, his famous fluffy, white-hot towels managed to cover both Hawk and Rebecca’s faces, making them easy to rush past on the way to the stage.

Grabbing her in-ear monitors, Roxy slipped them in before slinging her electric guitar around her shoulder.

From the side stage, the band gave her a thumbs up, and she checked with bass player, Mick, and drummer, Austin, who gave her slight nods, before kicking one of the guitar pedals at her feet and beginning to play the opening riff to “Famous.”

The moment the boys ran on stage, expertly hitting their marks as they began singing out the first lyrics, the crowd reemerged, piling in from wherever they had gone, cheering and holding up their handmade signs for the band to see.

As the song played, visions of bigger stages, stadium crowds, and, hundreds of new cities flashed through the songwriter’s mind. Big Time Rush was back, and now all they had to do was find a new parent company to keep them on the track toward their shared dream.

That won’t be hard at all, Roxy thought to herself, effortlessly banging out the chords she had played hundreds of times while finding it difficult to keep her eyes off James. This is the best show they’ve ever played.

In the blink of an eye, the set was halfway over, and the band and their assistant ran off the stage as the lights dimmed, signaling a costume change before “Count on You.”

Rushing into their dressing room, the boys had about a minute to change and prepare for their next song as a pre-recorded guitar track connected the songs, and Roxy used this time to refresh her lipstick in the mirror hanging just offside stage. Since this song was an acoustic breakdown to show the investors some of the boys’ versatility, she didn’t need to hop in for another five or so minutes to start up “Any Kind of Guy.” Kidnapping wasn’t all that good for flawless makeup upkeep, so this time would be used to perfect her rockstar glam look.

Just as she had finished placing an extra coat of red over her lips - a shade she, Camille, and Jo had found while out shopping that perfectly matched her guitar - the band ran back past her, ducking behind the drum kit to make an entrance on the opposite side of the stage without being seen by the crowd. Oh, the wonders of backstage magic.

“Rox, you coming with?”

James’ words startled her, almost making her ruin her perfect coat as she jumped in the mirror. When she turned around to answer him, she sighed, “You know this show inside and out. I’m not on until-”

“No, I know, I just…I don’t know-”

Now he was fiddling with the zipper on his black jacket, time was slowly running out for him to make his mark. “James?”

When he took a few hasty steps towards her, she instinctively moved back before finding herself hitting the cold, brick wall. The chill bit onto her bare arms, but once James reached his hands up, cupping her face and leaning in, the bitter sensation quickly burned away once she realized what was happening.

Tilting her head up, she let out an involuntary gasp as the boy leaned into her, the shadows of the low backstage lighting streaking through his long, perfectly styled hair.

James was going to kiss her, and she was going to let him, in their own private corner of the loudest, most packed room Roxy had ever been in, under the cover of the set-change darkness.

God, he really knew how to get her heart rate going, and he knew it, letting out a soft, breathy laugh as she finally dared to grab the sides of his jacket and pull him in, roughly slotting herself into his warm, sickly-sweet lips.

And, for the first time in her entire life, Roxy literally felt like she was floating as she continued to lean up into him, pulling him down towards her, keeping him close as he kissed her again and again…

“Was it so, totally magical? Did you feel sparks fly?”

Jo’s words from months ago sped around in her brain, interrupting the euphoric sensation flowing through every inch of her body.

Then, Camille’s: “Like, the gods of love were showering us in a mist of rainbows and butterflies!”

Abruptly pulling away from her, Roxy immediately tried to stop James, running her hands from his jacket collar to lazily hang around his neck, worried he could somehow read her mind; He would probably be less than pleased to learn her mind was wandering at a time like this.

This, however, caused Roxy to open her eyes, which she didn’t remember shutting, to a blinding display of multicolored light. Rainbows emanated off the lights from the stage, indicating the next song was going to begin in about 30 seconds. As for the butterflies, they had weaseled their way from the top of her chest to the pit of her stomach, and she worried that if she opened her mouth, they might just fly out, removing the perfect, buzzy sensation she was basking in.

“I love the way you say my name.” He told her, just loud enough to hear even with the bulky monitors poking out of her ear canal, and she thought she might never, ever breathe again.

When he let her go, she felt the chill creep back up her spine as she reluctantly detached herself from him in return.

James was tall, just so perfectly, tall, giving her the perfect line of sight to his lips, which she so desperately wanted to find herself in again. His lips, which just so happened to be covered with her red lipstick.

Lord, give me strength-

Taking a few steps back, he sheepishly glanced back toward the stage.

“James!” Roxy found herself calling, inadvertently giving him exactly what he had wanted as she pointed to her own lips, trying to warn him of the stain.

The sound of “tsk, tsk, tsk” emanated from the clicking of his tongue against his teeth, “We’ve got a job to do, Roxanne, give me a break.”

Had Roxy not been wearing what felt like a pound of stage makeup, he might have seen the way her cheeks completely flushed. “No, um… You’ve got-”

Gently, he took the side of his thumb and wiped his bottom lip, dragging it to remove the makeup he’d stolen off of her, looking his assistant straight in the eye.

Then, just like that, he was gone, sprinting to the other side of the stage as the tack countdown began to play in her ear, though, she couldn’t hear it as she leaned into the wall behind her, his voice replaying over and over in her mind.

I love the way he says my name.

And the musical journey continues…

:) Thanks for sticking it out to the end of the first part. Original chapter 19 out next week before we dive into the second part <3

As always, comments, votes, literally any form of interaction with my work is so, so, so appreciated I don't even have the words to describe it. Tell me what you think here on tumblr!

Also, to the person who gave me the 'mangerine' friendship bracelet at btr vegas, this chapter is for you. Thank you! <3

#thats all she wrote fic #big time rush #btr #james diamond #james maslow #kendall knight #kendall schmidt #logan mitchell #logan henderson #carlos garcia #carlos penavega

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swagdinner · 1 year ago

Text

right so here come the

CONSEQUENCES

Gains:

a cool band dogtag

ability to jump (believe me, I never had the mental force to simply jump on concerts, it's always just bobbing up and down on my feet or smth)

knowledge

Losses:

2 badges from my backpack

3 days worth of my part time wage at a supermarket

that dude with a guitar who I met in the line who I exchanged names with and that cutie pie who stood besides me during a couple songs who I SWEAR had the spark in her eyes. lost to time 4eva yeahhh

Conclusion:

gotta get a fucking band shirt man. Any band. Decided not to get one cuz moners

gotta learn how to skank (vividly imagining myself skanking would be enough, the first steps at being able to dance freely were just made)

next time you bet I'm joining that slam. I did receive a fair share of pushes and punches by being close enough to the pit but I want moar

also yeah next time I'm gonna sew the badges to my backpack. Tape was not enough. Not taking one is also an option tbh but it's the only rly punky thing I own

Counters:

battle jackets: 14

red-black plaid skirts: 9

shoes in the air: 4

toy capybaras in the air: 2 (?)

times the wheelchair guy has been in the air (figuratively): like 10

pairs of boobs freed: 3

pretty women w coloured hair: practically uncountable

Boy is my ass tired

(This will probably be made into a separate post with a certain tag cuz i wanna save my thoughts)

and with this,

THREAD END

(probably?)

in da metro rn going to the show and it's so cool just seeing random punky-looking ppl presumably heading the same way. more than usual at least

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killerlookz · 2 years ago

Note

This is me asking you to explain the lore of Norwegian metal to us because after your Eddie AU and ur last post im intrigued.

ANON BECAREFUL WHAT YOU WISH FOR BECAUSE I LOOOOOOVE EXPLAINING THINGS...... but this is just an abridged version of events... but i figure context will also help with the au! this is essentially just how black metal "took off" and became what it is today .... also my heart is so full over the fact someone asked LMAO

warning: under the cut will contain mentions of self-harm, suicide and, murder.

underlined sections just contain links to pictures i thought would help visualize the story better! they're all tumblr links so they shouldn't take you out of the app/site

okay so the story goes way back to the early 80s in sweden actually, (i promise this context is needed- sorry this story may seem a little far off at the moment) essentially it "all starts" when Per Yngve Ohlin (also known as 'Pelle') at the age of 10 is beat up so severely by bullies his spleen is ruptured which causes internal bleeding and he's taken to the hospital. while in hospital, he's pronounced clinically dead for a period of time before doctors are ultimately able to save his life.

But after this incident, Pelle was never the same. He soon after developed a deeply morbid fascination with death. He'd later describe later on in his life instances where he essentially believed he was a corpse. leading many to believe he actually had developed cotards syndrome- which is a very rare disorder where the sufferer believes that they are already dead and are essentially a walking corpse.

well, due to the bullying Pelle had to change schools, and he later met a group of people he shared common music interests in and they formed a death metal band called Morbid. the band never really went anywhere as it was essentially a "high school band" as Pelle would later describe it, but it did kickstart Pelle's music career and the musical identity he would soon develop. it was in this band where he began to do "corpse paint" which is probably the one thing MOST synonymous with the aesthetic of black metal. and while there are many potential influences on corpse paint, Pelle is credited with creating corpse paint as it is known in the scene today. (you can see Pelle's paint and his old band morbid here, he's the one with crimped hair and thick black makeup around his eyes!)

Well- Morbid never went anywhere, and Pelle began to take interest in even darker music having become unsatified by death metal having become overtaken by "posers" and through this interest found out the black metal band Mayhem in norway was in need of a new vocalist after the vocalist that did their first EP left- so he sent in a demo tape, and whaddya know! he got the job. so in 1988 at just 19 years old Pelle Ohlin packed his bags and moved to norway to begin his career as the new vocalist for Mayhem. by the point that Pelle had joined the band Mayhem was not the massive infamous name it is in metal today, they were simply a local band made up of a bunch of teenagers and they had one EP out called Deathcrush. and perhaps one of the most infamous names in all of metal is the "leader" of the band at this time, and that is guitarist Øystein Aarseth, better known as 'Euronymous' (pictured in the red sweater in the middle)

seemingly, Pelle was a good match for Mayhem. Pelle's facination with the macabre and death paired perfect with Mayhem's proposed dark image and they began to work on songs together and Pelle is perhaps responsible for writing some of Mayhem's most famous songs. and during this era, Euronymous would create a guitar tone that would forever influence the sound of black metal to this very day.

though while on the outside this partnership seemed like a good thing- behind the scenes things weren't great. things were moving slowly with the band, they weren't recording, and they had a lot of problems with booking shows. essentially, not much was going on with Mayhem.

though- they were able to score some shows during this time. and this is where the image of Mayhem as we know them today really begins. the band would dress up in corpse paint (most notably Pelle and Euronymous) and perform truly intense stage shows. Pelle was known to cut himself on stage and let his blood drip onto the crowd, and they would also throw pigs heads they had bought into the crowd in order to "weed out the posers" (pictures from one show can be seen here they're not graphic but you can see a small smidge of blood on Pelle's hand in the 8th picture, and a fan holding one of the pigheads in the 3rd)

and while all of this madness seemed like an image just to be "edgy" or "hardcore" ... mayhem took themselves VERY seriously. they lived this lifestyle. and especially to one Pelle Ohlin, this was not just an image. you see.. the way Pelle lived his life on stage was very true to how he felt as a person. as mentioned prior, Pelle's near-death experience as a child lead him to have morbid fascinations and even, perhaps believe he was truly dead. and this would eventually lead him to earn the stage name 'Dead' - he would dress up in corpse paint, bury his clothes before shows so they would rot, and even asked to be buried in a coffin himself in order to "get death fungus under his eyes" (his brother's words, not mine)- he would smell a dead crow before going on stage to perform "with the scent of death in his nose", he starved himself to make him look more dead and pale, and he had severe self-harming tendencies. by all accounts, pelle was incredibly depressed, suicidal, and FASCINATED with death.

and all of this, combined with the incredibly poor treatment he recieved at the hands of Euronymous who had taken advantage of his suicidal ideations and constantly bullied him into going through with it. and, on april 8th, 1991, Pelle would attempt suicide by self-exsanguination. though given the temperatures of norway, his blood froze, and he was not able to bleed himself out. due to this, Pelle would eventually grab Euronymous's shotgun and shoot himself once in the forehead, ultimately, ending his life at merely 22 years old.

Euronymous would soon come home to the house they shared together and stumble upon Pelle's dead body. but instead of calling the police right away, Euro would leave the house, drive 20 minutes out to a store and buy a disposable camera where he would then come back home, and pose Pelle's body in various positions and taking pictures of his "friend's" corpse. and THIS is essentially THE catalyst for the rest of the tragic story of norwegian black metal.

the pictures would eventually be developed, and euronymous would also collect fragments of Pelle's skull and make necklaces for his inner circle of friends using the bones. understandably, and as edgy as norwegian black metallers were at the time... a lot of people were disgusted by euro's reaction to pelle's suicide. and bassist 'necrobutcher' was so appalled by euro's behavior he'd left the band. euronymous then promised to destroy the pictures- but he did not, he kept them hidden in his record store, and mailed some to a pen pal of his. this pen pal would then go on to use one of the pictures for an album cover of a bootleg live album called Dawn of The Black Hearts (released in 1995 it is a recording of a 1990 performance Mayhem did in Sarpsborg, Norway) the band HAS condemned the usage of pelle's post-mortem photos on this album cover. while unfortunately easily found on the internet, i do not encourage anyone to look at the album cover, while it is somewhat difficult to make out it is definitely very gore-y given the violent nature of pelle's death- and both Mayhem and Pelle's family do not want that picture spread on the internet any further- which is why i will not be linking it, and advise you not to seek it out yourself.

with no bassist and no vocalist, euronymous decided to take on other ventures such as his record shop Helvete (norwegian for hell). (more pictures here)it was here that the story of how black metal got its satanic and evil image began. in the basement of helvete. euronymous began what he called "the black circle" and it was essentially just a bunch of late teenage- early 20 edgelord musicians trying to "out edgy" each other.

during this time, euronymous was also in contact with varg vikernes, soul member of burzum. and, ill be honest, i cant stay objective right now. FUCK pretty much everyone in this story BUT MOST OF ALL... i cannot stress this enough FUCK VARG VIKERNES. okay... i wont apologize i just had to get that out. most of the people in this story are disgusting, but varg is truly god awful bigoted facist scum. fuck that man. and fuck his stupid shitty band.

BUT... euronymous enjoyed varg's work so much he decided to sign burzum to his record label 'deathlike silence' and also make varg the bassist for mayhem. euro would also get a new vocalist for mayhem, and they'd begin recording their first LP, Dom Mysteriis Dom Sathanas (i spelt that right first try, go me!)

so... while this is going on as i mentioned ... the whole "black circle" is essentially trying to out-edgy each other, and varg essentially decides to take the cake for this one and burns down a church. it's presumed to be multiple, actually, and varg wants everyone to know that these church burnings are a result of black metal, and black metal's protests against christianity. simultaneously, faust, another black circle member- from the black metal band Emperor kills a man. and varg believes everyone should know that this is also a result of black metal. and on the outside, euronymous is encouraging all of this... he wants black metal to have this notorious name and he wants it to be a dangerous art, he doesnt want new comers , he doesnt want fame, or glory, he wants to keep black metal "sacred".

but varg decides to go to the press and confess under the guise of anonimity that these crimes are a result of black metal-ers in the area. AND THUS... this interview is where we now get the association of black metal and all things evil and satanic on a widespread scale. but since varg is the biggest fucking idiot on the planet AND DECIDED TO DO AN INTERVIEW WITH THE PRESS ABOUT CRIMES HE COMMITTED he was arrested, but - essentially the norwegian authorities didnt have enough on him to actually tie him to the church burnings... so he was not convicted and subsequently released.

but with this negative press on black metal, the norwegian scene now has more eyes on them and this SCARES THE HELL out of euronymous. who closes helvete in 1993 because he doesnt want to be implicated in any of this. so, now euronymous is pissed at varg because he "ruined" everything for everyone by going round to the press. and varg is pissed at euro... because varg hasn't seen any of the money from the burzum albums that were released on euro's lable.

so, tension begins to arise between the two friends... and apparently... allegedly, euronymous makes a threat that he wants to kill varg and make a snuff film out of it.

this info gets back to varg. who... upon reciving a contract from euronymous, transferring the rights of burzum's music from deathlike silence to varg- he decides to travel the six hours from where he lives in bergen norway, to euronymous's flat in oslo norway to "sign the contract"

but, in reality, varg had no interest in signing said contract, and instead, when he went over euronymous's house that night in august 1993, he would stab euronynous killing him.

varg was quickly linked to the crime, and unsuccessfully pleaded self defense (in reaction to the snuff film threat) - but, literally no one drives six hours from their home to someone elses home and stabs them as many times as he did in self defense. varg was since convicted and served 21 years in prison (norway's max sentence)

this coverage, due to the extreme nature of euronymous's murder is what made black metal go GLOBAL no longer a scene with small little subsections in small areas of the globe, it became an internationally recognized and huge metal genre just as death metal did before- something ironically- the black circle had been fighting against the whole time.

necrobutcher eventually rejoined mayhem and they're a pretty normal band now... they tour the world and do like normal interviews. they have a decent amount of monthly spotify listeners and have released music as recently as 2019. varg is out of prison and lives in the woods of france with his wife and 8 children and creates table top role playing games. he also used to upload youtube videos where he would spew just the most outright stupid fucking disgusting hateful alt-right garbage (i reiterate, FUCK BURZUM AND VARG VIKERNES. SERIOUSLY) and he's also been arrested multiple times since being released for euro's murder.

and while euronymous is credited for creating "true norwegian black metal" his death was actually a huge relief in the scene and wasn't exactly mourned. i know movies like Lords of Chaos paint euronymous out to be a super innocent dude but... he was also an incredibly disgusting person. just about nobody in this story is "innocent" and they should not be romanticized!!

but... that is pretty much where the story ends

and to anyone who read all the way through.... hiii thanks for listening to my spiel!

#anya talks💕#like a lot #holy shit she talks a lot #my inbox 💌

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watchmegetobsessed · 4 years ago

Text

Never Have I Ever - Harry Styles (part 4)

i hope yall enjoyed the last part, we took a sudden and quite dirty turn ther,e but we are heading down romantic street and its all sweet and cute with a little hotness. let me know what you thought about the part!

pairing: Harry x actress!reader

word count: 4.7k

SERIES MASTERPOST

masterlist

Harry Styles managed to leave quite the impression in you following his late night visit after the Emmys. He surely surprised you with not only the unbelievable orgasm he gave you with his talented fingers, but also with how big of a gentleman he really was, so keen on taking you out on a date first before he would kiss you. The timeline got a little messed up and he did apologize before he left at two in the morning for getting too carried away, but you assured him he didn’t do anything you didn’t want him to. To be honest, you wouldn’t have had a word against him kissing you right away, but you liked the respect he had for you, not something you’ve had plenty of lately. The men you dealt with in the past year were eager to get into your pants without the respect part, only hungry to earn fame through you, trying to blind you with sex so you wouldn’t realize their ugly motives.

This was not a threat when it came to Harry, he was just as famous as you, maybe even more. He had his own career, his own money, his own life apart from yours and he clearly wasn’t trying to use you and it was quite a refreshing change for you.

He stayed and the two of you talked so much, just sharing crazy stories from your life before and after fame, enjoying that you had someone who shared more or less the same background as you. Apart from Florence, you pretty much kept your old friends when your career took off, afraid to make new ones, always feeling a little paranoid that new people would have unholy motives when they try to befriend you.

Though you truly love your friends, they don’t really see behind the life you are living, while Harry completely does. His company is the best you’ve had in a long time, he is able to make you completely forget about everything outside the room you two are in.

You tried your best to hide your disappointment when he left that night. After offering him to stay in one of your guest bedrooms, he politely turned it down, and even though you could tell he wanted to stay, the urge to be a gentleman was greater in him, something you admire him for.

He left with the promise to see you soon on a real date and he got you as excited as a little school girl on the day of a fieldtrip.

However, given the lifestyles you two were living, finding a suitable evening for the both of you turns out to be a bigger struggle than you expected. Harry reaches out right the next day after his little visit. A good morning text waits for you by the time you open your eyes in the noon and by the evening he asks you out, however you have to realize the date has to wait a little.

You have two trip outside the city upcoming in the next two weeks and he is also planning to fly back to London for a while, the trips totally crashing in the timeline, not even having just the smallest window that would fit the both of you.

Accepting the fact that it would have to wait a little longer, you keep in close touch, eager to find the date that would finally be suitable for you and him as well. Endless texts, sweet calls and sneaky FaceTimes scatter through the days you spend apart and you find it hard to think of a time when he wasn’t hitting you up all the time.

On a Thursday evening, after a long day of fittings for upcoming events, you find yourself sitting on your couch with a sweet glass of wine, scrolling through your social media feeds when something catches your eyes.

Harry has been away in Los Angeles in the past few days and he mentioned having an interview the other day, but you didn’t think it would be out so soon, but here it was, a short video clip cut out by some random page that had a rather interesting title.

“Harry Styles talks about next album and mystery girl in his life.”

Your curiosity is way too strong not to click on it and have a look at it, so taking a sip from your wine you tap on the link and let the video load.

“It’s been some time since your last album came out, have you been working on new music lately?” the interviewer asked from behind the camera as Harry sat on a lilac sofa, wearing black high-waisted pants with a pink and white floral printed shirt tugged into it, his suspenders topping the look perfectly. His green eyes are fixed on the person asking him as he nods.

“Yeah, I think I never really stop making new music. I do have sessions when I’m trying to put a new album together, but I also write in the meantime as well, whenever I have an idea or inspiration. I don’t hold back,” he adds with a cheeky smile.

“Have you found any inspiration lately?” the question is heard and Harry nods once again.

“I have, actually,” he answers shortly, but his smirk gives it away that there’s a lot more behind his words and you feel your heart flutter in your chest. Is he talking about you?

“Has it been a person?” the reporter inquires, making Harry’s smile grow wider.

“A lot of things and people inspire me.”

“Alright, and is your latest inspiration something or someone new in your life?” the guy tries again, even though it’s well known that Harry likes to give vague answers instead of straight yeses and nos.

“Kind of new,” he simply answers and the reporter realizes he won’t be sharing more about the topic so he moves on with the next question and the video cuts out right there.

Though it wasn’t mentioned that he was talking about someone in particular, his fans drew the assumption that he is definitely seeing someone who has been his inspiration behind his new music. Feeling bold and a little flirty, you open up your messages and send him a quick text.

“A kind of new inspiration, huh?”

His reply comes almost right away, as always.

“Have you been stalking fanpages about me?”

“Would it be weird?”

“From you? It’s flattering. Little scary, but in a good way.”

You can’t help but chuckle reading his words. He never fails to make you laugh, you find his humor your favorite kind, never hurtful, but a little spicy, if you could say that, a lot of irony laced into it.

“Back to the topic: what’s your inspiration? Or should I ask… who is your inspiration?”

“Not gonna beat around the bush and just admit it…”

You wait and wait… and wait, but nothing comes afterwards and you are dying to have him admit that it’s been you, but not even the three dots appear at the bottom, so you take the lead again.

“Well, do it. Admit it, Styles!”

The fucker likes your message right away, meaning he has been in the thread all along, waiting for you to write something.

“Alright, but don’t tell anyone, because she is kinda famous and I don’t want the media to find out about it.”

“You have my silence.”

You watch the three dots dance at the bottom, holding your breath while you sink your teeth into your bottom lip, trying to contain your wide grin that’s been plastered across your face this whole time.

When the text finally arrives you snort loudly, almost spilling your wine, laughing so hard you are happy you don’t like in a tiny apartment anymore with paper walls, because your neighbor would have definitely heard your laughter all the way down the hallway.

“It’s Betty White. Fuck, she is all I can think about.”

You need a minute to stop the laughter and type your reply.

“She is hot, gotta give you that.”

“Right?? I hope she is not afraid to date younger guys though.”

“I’m sure she would make an exception for you.”

“I hope so too.”

There’s a short pause, where you just read back his lines, chuckling to yourself some more. He always has a witty comment or comeback, no matter what you’re talking about and not once has he made you laugh madly on a set, at a meeting or just lying in bed before going to sleep.

“Joke aside, would it scare you away if I said I have definitely written about you?”

“Is this another theoretical question? Like the one you asked me on Ellen?”

You smile to yourself thinking back at the conversation the two of you had on the show when he was trying to figure out if you’d be up to give him your number.

“Maybe. So theoretically, would that be weird to you?”

“No,” you write, but quickly send another text. “But you know, it’s just theory. You’d have to tell me for real to find out.”

“Should have saw that coming…”

“Yeah, you really should have,” you muse to yourself, finishing up your glass and you carefully put it to your coffee table before sliding further down on the couch to get back to the conversation with Harry. You see that he hasn’t sent anything after his last one, so you decide to actually answer his question.

“Joke aside from my part, I wouldn’t find it weird. I think it’s flattering.”

“Okay, because I was ready to burn all my notes if you said it would be too much.”

“What if you’d be burning a Grammy worthy song though?”

“Would be a shame. But I would still burn it for you.”

“You are such a flirt…”

“Can’t help it! Or should I not be?”

“I like it. So don’t change.”

“Noted.”

Your little conversation has to come to an end since he is about to go into a meeting, but when you say your goodbyes and decide it’s time to head to bed, you already know a text will be waiting for you when you wake up in the morning.

Days and even weeks go by and you start to have a little too much on your plate. No matter how much you love your job and that it has always been your dream, sometimes you just need a breather. In the past week you’ve been in and out of auditions for a movie they keep top secret, you didn’t even get a script, just a few pages you had to memorize and they’ve been asking for more and more tapes from you with kind of absurd requests, but your agent told you it’s something major, that’s why they are so secretive. However, when they ask you to come in for another reading for the fifth time in seven days and you still don’t know what you are really auditioning for, you are kind of starting to have enough with all your other projects running at the same time. Your days start at six in the morning and rarely end before eleven in the night.

An entire month after the night Harry came over to your place, you kind of lose patience. The frustration that’s been building up inside you just simply bursts when your agent texts you on your way home that you’d have to go in for another casting in the morning for the same mystery movie.

“Have they not seen my face enough?” you snap, hands meeting the wheel as you keep your eyes on the road ahead of you.

“I’m sorry, Hun. I know it’s annoying, but they requested you, that means you are still an option for them.” Mona’s voice comes through the speakers of the car since your phone is connected to it.

“Do they need me to read the whole fucking Bible in front of a camera or what?” you growl.

“I have a good feeling about this last one, alright? And if they still can’t decide after that, we can always just say that we want out.”

“Then I would be labelled as the problematic little princess,” you sigh, knowing well how this industry works. Just one mistake and you can easily end up in a theoretical ditch.

“Just hold on a little longer, okay? I’ll send you the details in email and we’ll talk more tomorrow.”

“Yeah, thanks.”

“Bye, girl.”

Mona is an angel. She’s been your agent for about five years now, she is the one who gets you into castings, well, at least that’s what she was doing before you managed to reach your breakthrough. She got your name on lists you couldn’t even dare to dream of and she is the reason why you are here today. Now she mostly handles requests for you to go in for castings, creators started to reach out to you a while ago, though Mona still works her magic sometimes to get you into castings that are still out of your league.

By the time you get home, you are desperate to do something. Anything. You’ve been nonstop working these past weeks and you just need to get out of this loop that sucked you in. Before you could even think through what you’re doing, you dial Harry’s number.

He is back in the city, that you know of because he texted even before he got home. You both ditched the idea of having your date today, because you just knew it would be a long day for you, and it’s the truth, it’s past ten, so not quite ideal for a date, but you ran out of fucks to give.

“Y/N? Everything alright?” he asks, noticing that you called, which is not what you usually do, or at least not without checking in if he is free to talk.

“Yeah, sorry I called so randomly. Are you busy?” you ask, feeling a little out of breath, even though you definitely didn’t do anything physically hard. You just can’t help but feel anxious since you are about to ask him out on a spontaneous date.

“No, just… packing and all that. What’s up?”

“So you don’t have anything to do right now?” you clear up.

“No,” he chuckles.

“Alright, so then… what do you say we have that date now?”

Even with him always being so blunt and open about how interested he is in you, it still makes you perfect to ask him out. The silence that comes from his side doesn’t necessarily help either and you are already preparing yourself to get rejected.

“You know it’s ten pm, right?” he then asks, a little unsure if you really thought it through.

“I am aware, yes.”

“Don’t you have work in the morning? I know you always start your days so early, I don’t want to be the reason why yo—“

“Harry,” you stop him midsentence. “I do not give a fuck about what I’m doing in the morning,” you bluntly tell him and you can tell he is smiling on the other end of the call. “So the question is still the same. Do you want to have that date now?”

He doesn’t ask anything else, just simply say the following: “I’ll pick you up in thirty.”

“Make it twenty,” you tell him and end the call before he could protest.

Ignoring the adrenaline rush you that just washed over your body you quickly make your way to the bathroom to take the quickest cold shower before putting on some clean clothes. You really don’t want to overdo it, knowing well since it’s so abrupt he wouldn’t be taking you anywhere that would require you look spotless. You choose not to put on any makeup, not just because you don’t have the time, but also because you feel a weird urge to just be bare, be yourself around him. The same goes for your outfit. You put aside all designer clothes and opt for a simple pair of jeans, a black tank top and a bright yellow knitted jumper over it, looking awfully casual, but feeling rather comfortable.

It takes Harry 22 minutes to get to your place, but you choose not to comment on those two extra minutes when you get into his car. Luckily, he isn’t dressed to impress either, wearing a simple pair of jeans with some kind of washed out, vintage printed tee shirt with his Bode Jacket he has worn in his famous SNL episode. His hair looks a little mess and even wet, making you wonder if your call caught him in the middle of a shower or he showered after you agreed to meet up.

“Long time no see,” he smiles at you, his boyish smirk making your heart flutter so easily as he eyes you while you buckle yourself up.

“You had plenty of paparazzi photos to look at in the meantime, Mr. Styles,” you smirk at him teasingly as he starts the car and leaves from in front of your complex.

“My favorite was the ones of you where you were walking out of a restaurant wearing that silk dress and the coat.”

“So you did see pap pictures?” you ask chuckling, you didn’t mean it entirely, but you find it funny that he actually saw pictures of you.

“You know, it’s been hard to avoid you online, especially because I keep liking all your posts so my phone thinks I’m interested in you. Which is true, and I’m not complaining about the content I’ve been seeing about you lately,” he admits chuckling and your eyes wander down to his ring clad fingers on the wheel. Your thoughts take you back to when they were touching you at places you haven’t been touched in a while. How they felt inside you and how desperate he could make you with just his hands.

You force yourself to look away from his hands and focus on the present time before your arousal becomes way too evident.

“Sorry I’m everywhere,” you smirk at him, enjoying the situation maybe a little too much.

“Don’t be,” he chuckles, glancing in your way for a moment, his green eyes meeting your gaze. “I don’t mind it,” he adds and those damn butterflies as quick to act up again in your stomach.

You don’t try to get him to tell where you are headed, wanting it to be a surprise yourself, so you just stare out at the night city as it runs past you, still quite a lot of people walking on the streets even though it’s now nearing eleven.

What you know is that you’re still in Manhattan and it seems like you won’t leave it either. Harry navigates his way through the city easily, he is not even using GPS, something you could never do. No matter how long you’ve been living here, you’ll always get lost in this jungle some call New York City. About fifteen minutes after leaving your complex, Harry parks the car down in a spot he found along the road, and looking out the window you’re trying to figure out where you are, but it doesn’t ring a bell. Seems just like a usual part of the Upper West Side, so now he has you curious about his plans.

“Where did you bring me, Mr. Styles?” you ask him as the two of you meet on the sidewalk and he glances at your with a sly smirk.

“Since you gave me such a short notice about our date, I thought I would show you one of my favorite places in the city and I hope you haven’t it.” “Well, I can assure you I don’t know it, because I have no idea what could be here,” you admit.

Harry nods at you to follow him and you walk side by side until the next corner.

“I think you already know that I’m English,” he starts off, making you chuckle.

“Yeah, it’s pretty evident,” you nod.

“So, in the past decade I haven’t spent as much time in the UK as I wanted, and a few years ago I discovered a little piece of my home in the city.”

Trying to figure out what he meant by that you don’t even realize where you just took a turn to. Harry stops and you snap out of your thoughts, looking up and seeing a charming little street ahead you, looking totally out of place in the city’s fashion. The townhouses all the way down look like they’ve been placed here straight from England, the Tudor style complex is a refreshing change in the fast paced, busy streets of Manhattan.

You can’t help but gasp at the sight in front of you, taking in every tiny detail with your eager eyes as the feeling of being in a fairytale takes over your mind. If only it weren’t for the busy noises of the streets around the micro-neighborhood, you would completely believe that you’ve been magically teleported to England.

“It’s called the Pomander Walk. Always makes me feel like I’m home away from home whenever I miss my family and my hometown.”

Harry starts walking down the narrow pavement that runs between the houses, lined with quite some greenery, something you noticed right away. There are just so many plants and flowers down the street, it’s pretty clear the residents keep them in good care.

You catch up with Harry, eyes still taking in the pleasant contrast Pomander Walk has to offer for any visitors.

“I feel like we are invaders,” you tell him. It looks so secluded, makes you feel like you weren’t even supposed to be here.

“Don’t worry, it’s totally public. The people who live here are pretty nice too. Love it when someone comes around.”

“How did you find this place?”

“A friend told me about it and just came to see it for myself one day,” he tells you as the two of you slowly make your way down the street, slow enough so you could see everything. “There are 61 units and they were built in 1921 by Thomas J. Healy. He originally wanted to build a hotel here, but didn’t have the money to just yet, so he built these instead to make some cash for the hotel. He never got to do that though, died a few years later, so Pomander Walk stayed.” You listen to him, soaking in every word that leaves his lips, finding his oddly specific knowledge about this place quite exciting and… kinda hot. You could listen to him talk about historical facts for days without getting bored.

“The whole complex was renovated in 2009, they restored a bunch of architectural details that lost through the years.”

“Looks fantastic. I wonder what they look like on the inside,” you muse, your eyes wandering over the colorfully painted old school window blinds on most of the townhouses.

Walking down the pavement you realize there’s not a single soul around here, something you don’t get to experience too often in the city.

“It’s not too well-known, right? I don’t see any tourists and all that.”

Harry shakes his head, eyes ahead of him as he hides his hands in his pockets.

“No, ‘s quite hidden, not often listed in sights to be seen in the city. That’s why I like to come here so much.”

“Easy to stay unnoticed,” you add with a smile as your eyes meet his gaze and he nods, returning the smile.

You walk back and forth on the street at least five times, just talking and sharing and laughing, finally falling out of the misery of your everydays. He still amazes you with how good of a company he is, with his broad view of life and many experiences, you can truly connect with him on a level you haven’t been able to reach with anyone in a long time.

It’s way over midnight when you head back to his car, holding hands that happened at a point earlier, but you can’t tell who reached for who. It was kind of mutual, but now you didn’t want to let go of him… ever. You let your fingers play with his S ring on his pinky while he keeps running his thumb over the back of your hand whenever he has the chance. It’s a little disappointing when you have to let go of each other when you climb back into his car and head back home.

“I know this date wasn’t much, but I hope you liked it,” he smiles at you shyly before his eyes snap back at the road ahead of him.

“Shut up, this was literally the best date I’ve had,” you tell him making him chuckle. “Thank you for showing it to me.”

“Now it’s your secret place too. Maybe we’ll run into each other here one day.”

“I’ll definitely come back,” you admit smirking.

The city lights pass by you faster than you want them to, and you arrive to your complex way too early. Well, not according to the time, because it’s way past half past midnight now, but you just don’t want the night to end. However, you know Harry would not come up if you asked. He is way too big of a gentleman and he wouldn’t want to make you miss your appointment in the morning, but you are definitely collecting that kiss he promised a month or so ago.

“Walk me up, will you?” you ask him softly when he parks down in front of your building. He nods and follows you inside without a second thought.

You both know it’s about to happen, the air thickens between you two in the elevator and neither of you can hold back the small smiles on your lips. Harry walks next to you until you reach your front door and you turn to face him, his green eyes already examining your every move.

“I’m happy we finally got to do this,” you tell him, feeling a blush warming your cheeks from the way he looks at you now.

“I’m glad you called. Was starting to think we would never meet again,” he chuckles making you laugh as well. It really did feel like the universe was plotting against you, but you bet it didn’t expect your sudden move tonight.

There’s a longer pause where neither of you knows what to say or do next and your patience is running low, especially when you see him run his tongue over his pink lips. You just can’t wait any longer to taste them.

“Harry,” you breathe out, the frustration and desire at an all-time high now in your system. Never in your life did it take this long for you to get to a kiss with a guy you were clearly interested in and who returned the feeling as well.

“Yeah?”

“Swear to my lost Emmy Award if you don’t kiss me right now I’ll—“

You don’t get to finish, you don’t even know what you’d have said, but it’s all forgotten when Harry kisses you hard, hands cupping your jaw on both sides, angling your head to grant him the best access to your lips. You return the kiss without a second thought, hungrily tugging and pulling on his lips, your tongues meeting in the middle and fuck! He really knows how to make your toes curl with just a kiss. You grab a fistful of his t-shirt at his stomach, pulling him close and the cold touch of his rings on your skin makes you shudder. Everything about him makes your legs turn into jelly and you are willingly offering yourself to him without a doubt.

He pushes you against your front door, one of his hands wanders down to your waist and he gives it a gentle squeeze that makes you open your mouth more for him. You are a mess and so is he. You have no idea how long you make out, but when you eventually pull back, your chest is heaving and your lips feel swollen. Harry pecks your lips two more times before forcing himself to let go of you.

“Good night, Y/N,” he murmurs in a low voice as he starts to back towards the elevator.

“Good night, Harry,” you say a little out of breath. He smirks at you one last time before walking into the elevator and the doors close, officially ending your first date.

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lepusrufus · 3 years ago

Text

Double edged scalpel ch. 7

Ch.1 ch.2 ch.3 ch.4 ch.5 ch.6

Summary: in which Cassandra gets bullied and other sappy shenanigans

---

"Oh Nicole dear, so happy to see you again!" Duke's voice was cheerful as ever, tone masterfully crafted over years of being a businessman.

Nicole, taking small steps inside the ornate and now full of items room, greeted him with uncharacteristic giddiness.

"Duke! How's business?"

"Same as always, I'll be heading to Beneviento later tonight to deliver some tools for her," he took a long drag of his cigar and, noticing green eyes scanning over multiple items and said, "I also have your order."

With a childish grin on her face, she approached him, hands shuffling inside the small bag attached to her belt that all staff members had. She pulled out the money owed for her package and, in return, the Duke placed a decently sized box in her arms. With an oof she shifted it in a less precarious position, it's heavy contents seeming to plot against her small frame.

"Unfortunately I can't stay, duty calls. But thank you Duke."

"No worries, I do understand that your employers can be quite," he took another drag of his cigar, looking for the right word. "...demanding"

Nicole chuckled. That was one way to put it.

"Well until next time dear. Or if you find yourself in need of something else, I'll be here until six."

---

She was only wearing a long white towel when she heard a knock on the door. Assuming it was another maid, or even Anita inquiring about whether or not she'd be joining the rest of them for dinner, she opened the door just a crack.

It was a surprise to see none other than Cassandra standing there, her elegant frame in odd contrast with the modest corridor. She flung the door open, letting the brunette inside and took a quick glance down the hall, making sure no maid was on the floor after fainting due to fright.

"What are you doing here?"

"Aw, are you not happy to see me?" She was pouting, but her tone was joking.

Nicole rolled her eyes, but the small smile on her lips betrayed that she was indeed happy to see her. Cassandra only laughed instead, a beautiful melodious laugh, so unlike the dark cackles heard by prisoners down in the dungeons.

"Just sit down, I need to get dressed," Nicole pointed to the bed before moving to the small dresser and pulling out a clean uniform.

Cassandra went to sit on the slightly disheveled bed, eyes following the redhead's form as she let the towel drop to her feet and started to put on the various layers of her uniform. Then golden eyes darted to the box sitting on the bed. The tape sealing it had been cut not long after Nicole brought it back to her room to make sure all its contents made it safely. Not that she didn't trust the Duke, but postal service was postal service.

"What's this?" Cassandra inquired, trying to read the label but having no success as it had been scribbled over with a marker.

Nicole stilled for a moment, hands frozen on her white button up. She cleared her throat and shyly admitted:

"Actually that's for you. Do open it if you want."

Cassandra's eyes widened, a faint blush appearing on her cheeks. The gesture had really caught her off guard. She gingerly lifted the lid, inspecting it's contents for a moment and then hummed.

"And here I was thinking you like my hair. With how much you love to pull on it and all that."

Nicole, now fully clothed and sporting a deep blush, marched to her and plucked the two boxes of red hair dye from gloved hands. She placed them on her nightstand and, with her voice just slightly more high pitched, she turned to the brunette.

"Those are mine, I meant the rest of it." And, after a chuckle, "I mean have you seen my roots? They're horrible!"

Cassandra only gave her a deadpan look and, after a long moment, said: "I think your hair is beautiful."

She didn't wait for a reply, not that it would be anything more than a stammered mumble of course. Instead she chuckled and returned her attention to the box. She examined the rest of its contents and then gingerly lifted one of the few tomes inside. The cover was glossy and malleable, it's pages shiny and with a distinct typography smell to it. It was so unlike her other books, it's pristine white state making it feel extremely out of place in the castle. She glanced at Nicole inquisitively.

"I do appreciate the gift, don't misunderstand me, but surely you know there's a small bookshop's worth of medical books in this castle."

"With all due respect, from what I've seen most of them are at least somewhat outdated. Interesting, yes, but I thought you'd like to learn something more...modern." Then she pulled out another book. "This is the same one I used while studying forensic pathology. It would make teaching you some things easier. Uh… assuming you want that."

Nicole averted her gaze, suddenly unsure of the usefulness of her gift. Cassandra however grabbed her chin between two fingers and pulled her gaze back on her. She smiled, finding the shy demeanor beyond endearing.

"I'd love that."

A small smile appeared on thin lips and Nicole leaned in to kiss Cassandra. It was soft and short, but no less intimate than the deep kisses they shared so many times in Cassandra's bed.

They had to go anyway.

---

Let's go to the library, Cassandra said. It'll be empty, she said.

When Cassandra swung open the intricate door, only to find the other two sisters lounging on one of the couches, it's not like they could do a one eighty and leave the room. That would've been both impolite and highly suspicious.

Instead, Cassandra grabbed her arm protectively and led them to the reading spot farthest from the other two. They placed one of the textbooks on the small desk and Cassandra took out a notebook. This would've been a lot more fruitful with an actual body on hand, but there were still a couple days until the human flesh supply had to be replenished and Cassandra was beyond eager to start on some things. So, for now, they had to settle for theory alone.

It took all of five minutes for the other two sisters to make their way to their desk. Daniela had a giddy yet curious expression on her face, while Bela seemed as unreadable as ever, if not for a glint in her eyes that betrayed her interest.

"Whatcha dooooing?" Came Daniela's voice, who cocked her head not unlike a curious puppy would while looking at the book's contents.

"Working," Cassandra replied, a slight growl accompanying her words.

"Could've fooled me," Bela spoke from behind the youngest sister, eyeing the hand protectively placed on Nicole's waist.

Cassandra snapped her eyes at the blonde, looking ready to throw her notebook at her head but Bela ignored her sister's ire and addressed Nicole instead.

"What are you studying?"

"I uh- just some basic anatomy concepts. Thought it would be a good idea to start with the things that the older books in the castle don't cover."

Bela only hummed, grabbed an ornate chair nearby, and plopped herself at the desk, opposite from the pair. Daniela mimicked her sister, but instead chose to sit down right by Nicole on the small couch. It took more willpower than she would admit not to glue herself to Cassandra's side when Daniela's face came uncomfortably close so she could look over the book's diagrams. She stood still as a statue though. After a couple seconds of silence and Nicole trying to figure out what she was supposed to do, Daniela drew her head back, looking at her with what was possibly the most serious expression she had seen on the youngest sister.

"You do realize we're not going to hurt you right? How could we lay a finger on our dear sister's lover hmm?"

Nicole's breath caught in her throat. She wasn't sure if it was due to the word used to describe her or how Daniela apparently knew that she was utterly terrified of her. Cassandra sighed beside her and, seeming to at least partially read Nicole's thoughts, clarified:

"Your heartbeat."

Oh. Yeah. Yeah her heart was beating a million miles an hour. And apparently the other three vampiric occupants of the room were able to hear it loud and clear. It did very little to ease her mind.

"Please do calm down, it feels like someone is having drumming lessons. Bad ones," Bela complained, head resting in one of her hands like she was already bored.

"Then shove a sock in your ears," Cassandra snapped.

Bela simply leaned back in her seat and stretched her arms above her head. "And risk not hearing my beloved sisters sing along to some pop song?"

Cassandra shut her mouth, a blush now slowly spreading across her cheeks while Daniela burst out into laughter. Even Nicole couldn't help betraying the brunette and letting out a giggle.

"I didn't know you could sing."

"I can't."

"Au contraire dear Cassie! Should I remind you of the last time Dragostea din tei came on the radio? The pathos!" Daniela reached over Nicole's lap to lightly shake her sister's knee through her giggles.

Cassandra only let out a long groan, face now hidden in her palms. "I hate you both."

"Mhm, we love you too," came Bela's reply, accompanied by a chuckle.

Nicole couldn't keep a small laugh while she snaked her arm behind the brunette to show some form of support against the merciless assailants. Maybe not a complete betrayal.

The scene really had something deep within her heart aching beautifully. It reminded her of the countless times she and Alex would mercilessly tease each other, but still have each other's backs through thick and thin. And for this familiarity to come from people that any sane person would consider bloodthirsty monsters? Hell, maybe they should start considering her a monster too, for the only word she could use to describe them in that moment was endearing.

"So," Bela lightly clapped her gloved hands. "Now that your pulse isn't giving me a headache anymore, what are we doing?"

She had a confident smirk on her face, but her eyes betrayed curiosity. Same for Daniela and, although mixed with a hint of annoyance, Cassandra. She opened the book in front of her, one of general human anatomy, and decided that the digestive system would be a good enough starting point.

---

Their little impromptu lesson didn't last more than two hours. Two hours that proved to Nicole just how oddly human all three sisters can be. Of course she had gotten familiar with Cassandra, intimately so, but the other two still felt like two looming monsters hiding in the shadows. At least up until now.

Bela seemed oddly intrigued by Nicole's explanation, although unlike Cassandra, she seemed to view it more like a story than anything. Daniela seemed slightly more interested, asking questions here and there and even starting to giggle like a middle schooler when they got to the rectum section. That got an eye roll from the other two. Nicole just laughed, finally understanding Mrs Hawkins, her private biology teacher from before she was allowed to step foot in any public school.

After they were done, Bela simply stood up and bid them good night. Danila instead excitedly proposed the skeletal system for next time and picked up the books she abandoned earlier. Then, with a small tower of tomes she went through a door tucked at the very back of the room. Her study, Cassandra had pointed out as they made their way out of the library.

"I didn't know your sisters were interested in medicine too." Nicole kept her voice low, almost as if talking too loudly would disturb the shadowy hallways.

"More or less. Daniela likes it and has a bit of hands-on practice but she has her nose in romance novels more often than not. Bela finds it interesting but botany is what she really loves. That and classic lit." She added the last part with a grimace and Nicole had to wonder which author had offended her personally.

Before she could continue that train of thought though, her gaze moved to the windows, the cloudless sky beyond thick glass panels full of twinkling stars. Her mind kept going back to a few hours earlier and at what Daniela had said. Lover. Did Cassandra truly see her as one or was the youngest sister just being her over the top self. Did she see Cassandra this way? Nicole had not allowed herself to dwell on that up until now, the idea that the brunette saw her as more than an over glorified lab partner with whom she occasionally scratched an itch seemed almost laughable. But the small gestures of affection shown in ways Cassandra seemed to know best were undeniably there. And the familiar flutter in her chest at each of said gestures was also undeniably there.

"What's wrong?"

Cassandra's voice, accompanied by the slight echo through the empty hallway, snapped Nicole out of her thoughts.

"Oh um- nothing." She sounded as convincing as someone trying to sell you a fork while showing you a spoon.

And Cassandra didn't seem to buy it. She moved in front of the redhead, walking backwards with no concern over possible furniture to collide into along the way.

"You always get this… face when something's bothering you."

"I do not-" the indignation in her tone was weak, little more than an attempt to change the subject.

"Mhmm you do. You normally look focused. Kind of like, if someone tried to scare you by throwing an eyeball at you, you'd laugh." She would. "Now? Now you look like a rabbit that has no time to run and is just laying low hoping whatever's hunting it passes by."

Nicole shut up for a moment, only looking at the brunette in front of her incredulously. Maybe she was far more attentive than she gave her credit for.

"Uh. Just thinking." At a raised dark eyebrow, the no shit went unsaid, so Nicole tried to elaborate. "About earlier. When we were with your sisters and Daniela uh- Daniela called me your lover."

Saying that the words felt awkward on her tongue was close to the year's biggest understatement. It felt like pulling out teeth would be an easier task. Nicole had never been good with her words, having learned since childhood to keep her mouth shut. But the fact that Cassandra seemed to share her struggle brought some semblance of comfort.

"And?" As if they were talking about the weather.

"And… was she right in describing me as such?"

She couldn't help a small gulp when the brunette stopped walking, looking at her with a frown. Any sane person would be at the very least somewhat afraid in this situation. Sanity however was scarce these days as Nicole was afraid, though not of the bodily harm that may come from her inquiry, but rather of Cassandra's answer.

"Nicole, your tongue has been in my mouth." Amongst many other places.

The redhead's cheeks turned a slight shade of crimson and she mumbled for an answer. She wasn't sure how to tell her that sleeping together did not automatically make them lovers. But then again, Cassandra's thoughts remained a mystery more than anything.

Thankfully the brunette took the metaphorical reins of the conversation and stepped forward. She wrapped her hands around Nicole's arms, gentler than one would imagine possible from her, and bent down to whisper no more than an inch away from her ear.

"I'll have you know, I'm not particularly fond of letting anyone I don't deem important touch me. Especially not the way you do."

The words made something flutter in Nicole's chest, an unfamiliar and comforting warmth. Said warmth got chipped away at the slightest bit when Cassandra pulled back to look her in the eyes.

"Should I take it that it's not mutual then?" Cassandra's tone was nonchalant, almost as if she didn't truly care about the answer. She could keep doing whatever she wanted either way, afterall who was going to stop her? But to someone who got familiar with all her small quirks and habits, the waver in her voice was more than clear.

"No." The world slipped from her lips with no hesitation.

No hesitation, because the more she thought about it, and she didn't need to think a lot mind you, the more Nicole realized that she couldn't remember a time when she felt the way she did here. Sure the initial threat of death looming over her head was anything but pleasant, but once that melted into affection and nights spent in Cassandra's arms the thought of leaving didn't as much as graze her mind.

"No, no. It is," she repeated, more certainty making its way into her tone.

At that Cassandra smiled. A small, almost shy one would say if they knew her well enough, smile. Her shoulders seemed to lose some of their tension when she leaned down again, her lips stopping not even an inch away. Nicole wasted no time leaning forward, their mouths meeting in a kiss that mixed softness and need beautifully. Their lips slid against each other until, surprisingly, it was Cassandra to pull back and sigh.

"Come sleep, we have some cutting up to do in the morning."

Nicole frowned. "Tomorrow? Wasn't that supposed to be due in a few days?"

A devilish grin appeared on black lips, fangs shimmering ominously in the low light. "Bela caught a foolish man-thing sneaking around the forest on the castle grounds. She's really excited to turn this one into a nice steak."

The redhead only let out an oh in acknowledgement. Foolish indeed. At least they could finally put into practice a few autopsy tricks Nicole had been itching to show her.

She let herself be guided back to Cassandra's chambers and into her bed, that she had grown intimately familiar with. The last thing she felt before falling asleep was the brunette's cool skin, pressed against her own. A welcomed comfort among the myriad of soft pillows that surrounded them. Nicole wondered briefly if being undead meant it was hard to keep yourself warm, but the thought quickly slipped away as she fell into a dreamless sleep.

#cassandra dimitrescu x maiden #unhinged maiden™ my beloved #bela dimitrescu #daniela dimitrescu #double edged scalpel #fanfic #the dimitrescu daughters

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issaxcharlie · 4 years ago

Text

You’ll always be the answer

Pairing: Charlie Gillespie x Fem Reader

Requested: YES💚

Summary: For the first time Charlie and Y/N have to do an interview together and things get pretty interesting and chaotic as always with the couple.

*In the wired autocomplete section the part of the question that was covered will be in bold*

Pretty much based in the we say we’re friends world, (yes, again😤 I love their dynamic I’m sorry) you only need to know that Y/N is a musician by profession, wrote the JATP soundtrack, a childhood friend of Charlie and now his current girlfriend.

The couple is completely excited because today they have their first interviews after the confirmation of the second season of Julie and The Phantoms, and usually they are not on the same interview team so this is new. Charlie always does them with the band and the singer usually does them with director Kenny Ortega representing the people behind the scenes.

“Hello everyone, I’m Charlie Gillespie and I play Luke in Julie And The Phantoms.”

“And I’m Y/N Y/L and I play Daniela in Stardust.”

“Baby, you are here today as the songwriter of the album.”

“I know?” She thinks for a few seconds until she realizes what she said. “Oh. Well, this is embarrasing. Make my selfpromo accident worthwhile and watch Stardust after watching JATP!”

“Nice safe, beautiful. Pretty natural.” Her boyfriend teases as she smiles proudly.

“I like to believe I could be an actress.” Charlie begins to laugh at the seriousness with which she answered and looks at her, full of happiness. He loves that they can enjoy moments like this where their careers can go exactly on the same track.

They know that it will not always be this way so they should make the most of the experience.

“I’m excited to have you back, Y/N. And a pleasure to meet you Charlie. You both sure are full of amazing energy, I love it. Let’s start with the questions. Charlie, this is your first leading and in a fairly complete role, you acted, sang, danced and even wrote one of the songs, how was the experience?”

“Pure magic. They are all incredibly talented and so supportive of us, they worked so hard to unleash our full potential in an accelerated manner. They had a lot of patience with me in the dance part, they taught me to use my voice properly, they supported me in the change to electric guitar, it was simply a dream to work with every single person in the project.”

“Sounds amazing. Next question is for you, Y/N. Much has been said about the unreal chemistry between Julie and Luke. How was it for you as his girlfriend to have to witness it live? As I understand you were present throughout the recording."

"Oh man, it was awesome!" Charlie laughs at her pure response and the interviewer looks at her in disbelief.

"I'm Team Juke all the way. I know I may sound like a liar or something since I'm the girlfriend, but here's the thing.

I can't see my Char in Luke. Charlie is so good at bringing him to life that I can't believe that cool rockstar is my adorable goofball. It’s like Clark and Superman with the glasses thing. Beanie and electric guitar? Oh, hi Luke. You are so hot, wait... don’t tell Charlie I said that! Bandana and acoustic guitar? Hey baby, give me a kiss in the forehead and sing me to sleep.

What I was saying again? Oh, yeah. So... I see Juke and I’m soft, they are perfect for each other.”

“So you think Luke is hot, huh.” he pretends to be jealous and folds his arms.

“What can I say, I have a thing for rockstars, my legs melted during now or never."

He snorted a laugh. “Good to know.”

The interviewer cannot contain a laugh of her own.

"It's always a pleasure to have you here, Y/N. You are such a character and I always enjoy listening to you, and I love that even though the years go by and you are no longer so new in the industry you continue to have that fresh and iconic personality."

“Thank you so much Maria, If I can be myself here it is thanks to the beautiful atmosphere that your interviews always have.”

“My pleasure, ‘golden star’. Let’s continue. Y/N, We know you already knew Charlie, but who did you get along with better from the rest of the cast?”

“Oh my, definitely Owen. He was Charlie's roommate throughout the project so we hang out together a lot in our free time taking turns as third wheel. I'm pretty sure he's going to apply the same card to me this second season now that I'm gonna be the roommate.

But it’s okay, I totally deserve it. May the best third wheel win, Joyner!” Charlie grins and does a fistbump with his girlfriend who looks really hyped about going back to Canada with the band.

“I’m rooting for you, girl! Let’s go back to Charlie a little bit. The album that Y/N wrote is a resounding success and a very important piece for the series to be as brilliant as they are. I imagine that the four of you have a special affection for the album, but how do you feel that your girlfriend was the one who wrote a soundtrack of that level for such a special project in your career?”

Charlie looks so proud. He looks at her in a way that makes the young woman blush.

“I’m just so blessed that the things happened they way they did. She’s the love of my life, you know? I couldn't be more proud to sing her songs. She has always been insanely talented and nothing gives me more happiness that knowing she gets to do what she loves and is able to share it with the world.”

The singer's eyes water and she puts her head on the actor's shoulder, who kisses her hair sweetly.

“You two are so pure and so cute to watch, I have a new favorite celebrity couple.”

They continue the interview for a few more minutes and then they have to move on to the second section, in which they are handed some boards with the most searched questions on the internet regarding them.

“Okay guys, introduce yourselves again. I’m not going to be in the segment this time so you’ll have to help each other.”

Both agree without confessing that they have seen videos of this segment until 5 in the morning when they have nothing to do the next day and have sleepovers.

“Hi, we are Charlie Gillespie and Y/N Y/L and will be doing the wired-autocomplete interview today!”

“Okay handsome, let’s start with yours.” Charlie smiles and takes the sign in his hands, while his girlfriend removes the first tape and reveals the first question.

“Does Charlie Gillespie have a girlfriend?” Charlie smiles proudly and kisses his girls nose.

“I do, and she’s so adorable.” He touches gently her cheek and she closes her eyes at his touch.

He gives her a light kiss in the forehead and then uncovers the next question.

“What is Charlie Gillespie like in real life.”

“I’ll answer this one, Char’s a total goofball. He is cheerful, funny, always full of energy, talented, caring, and really, really hot. All done, next question!”

He laughs while blushing and reveals the next one. “Is Charlie Gillespie married?”

“Well I tried but someone ate the ring.”

“I would do it again, it was really good. Answering the question, he is not yet, but he is taking too long, maybe one of these days I will declare myself.”

He opens his eyes wide, he knows very well that his girlfriend is capable of doing it, and honestly he wants to be who does it, so he makes a mental note to prepare everything soon. Thank god he is working on the rings already.

“It’s Y/N still dating...”

“If the question says Ross Lynch I’m goin’ to lose it. No shade though, man.”

She laughs, after the James Larkin show, a lot of people showed anger as they felt that she was a much better match with the blonde, and Charlie couldn't help but feel a bit offended.

“...Charlie Gillespie! Yes, baby!” Both high five, Charlie looks almost relieved, is adorable.

“The answer is always yes folks, get use to it.”

“Who is Y/N’s best friend?”

“Well, this one is easy.” She turns to see Charlie and gives him a flirtatious little smile. He blushes and reaches out to kiss her, but she answers the question just before their lips touch.

“Ross Lynch.” She leans over and presses her lips against his for a few seconds as Charlie reacts to her response and then gapes in disbelief.

“You did nOT.” He laughs and and wrinkles his nose feigning annoyance.

“Yes I dID. But to be honest, has to be this man right here. Not a lot people know this but we’ve been best friends all our lives, so yeah. You baby, of course.” He blushes and kisses her hand, clearly happy with the answer.

“Is Y/N going to be in Julie And The Phantoms S2?”

“Will you?” He asks, genuinely curious. She never tells him what Kenny secretly confesses her about the project so as not to be unfair to the other members of the band.

“I will, but probably still back the scenes, guys. I'm really enjoying this part and learning from the best of the best so I am very happy not to be in front of the camera for now.”

“And you are doing an amazing work, love.” She grins and kisses his cheek.

“Thank you for watching us being ridiculously corny for 30 minutes, don't forget to watch Julie and the Phantoms Season 2 only on Netflix! I feel sorry for that poor people that will have to see how cheesy we are.”

“We were still recording Y/N, but never mind. The editing team has a lot of work ahead.”

“Well, damn. I’m sorry guys!” Charlie laughs for the thousandth time today. There is nothing better in life than sharing your days with your best friend. He can't wait to formalize that ‘forever’.

Thank you for reading✨

NEXT PART HERE

Taglist: @writerinlearning , @ghostofmgg, @strangerthanfanfiction713, @thebloodthirstyvampress, @kinda-really-lost, @kcd15, @magnet-girl, @aliandthephantoms, @stxrkspidey, @pinkrockstar19, @s0uz4s, @shycupcakealissa, @cookiebuba, @fangirlangioma, @sageellsworth05, @twist3dtinkerbell, @sunsetcurvenotsunsetswerve, @caitsymichelle13, @ifilwtmfc, @luckylouiebug, @bibliophilewednesday, @totomoshi, @siennanoelle01, @lunashadow6955, @bookfrog247, @morganayennefertyrell, @kiss-themoongoodbye, @rachelle3musicals, @imsydneywalker, @really-dont-forget-it

#charlie gillespie imagines #charlie gillespie fic #charlie gillespie fanfic #charlie gillespie x y/n #charlie gillespie x reader #charlie gillespie one shot #charlie gillespie fanfiction #charlie gillespie imagine #luke patterson fanfiction #luke patterson oneshot #luke patterson imagine #luke patterson x y/n #luke patterson x reader #jatp one shot #jatp fanfiction #jatp imagine

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thatmultifandomhoe · 4 years ago

Text

It’s You

Pairing: Changkyun and Reader

Group: Monsta X

Word Count: 7,433

Genre/Rating: Valentine’s Day AU - Quarantine AU - Friends to Lovers AU - Fluff - Angst - PG-13

Overview: The last thing you planned to do was celebrate Valentine’s Day. Being single on a holiday that glorified love, especially during a pandemic, was the perfect sign to stay at home to guarantee avoiding having a broken heart. Especially when Changkyun, the one who held it, seemed to have plans of his own.

Warning: Mention of past unrequited love and having a broken heart - swearing -

A/N: Happy - early - Valentine’s Day sweet peas! And yes, Changkyun from Monsta X was the winner of the “Who Do You Want to Spend Valentine’s day With,” and I had so much fun working on this piece. I’m personally not a fan of the holiday - for reasons you’ll read below - but I hope that those of y’all who do celebrate have a happy Valentine’s day, and I hope that y’all enjoy this piece and get all the chocolate that you want this year!

Tagging: @srvdyv @skyys-universe @kpophoneybunny @wheein-whanders @ezralia-writes

Music Playlist:

Main Master List:

Pinterest Mood Board:

The First Installment of the Hoe Catalog.

©thatmultifandomhoe 2021. Do not repost, translate, or use my stories without permission.

“Are you okay?”

Glancing over at the cell phone that was propped up on the dresser, you raised an eyebrow at the black screen. “Yeah. Why wouldn’t I be?”

“You do know what day it is, right?”

Fingers pausing, you pressed your lips together, staring down at the button of the black jeans you had been in the middle of putting on. You had known what day it was when you went to turn off the alarm that had set for that morning. It had been painfully obvious, and as the pre-recorded song of birds chirping increased in volume, you had stared at the date for longer than you normally do.

February fourteenth.

Valentine’s Day.

“I’ve only been awake for an hour,” you said, stepping towards the closet for a shirt. It had been a miracle that Changkyun had called instead of his preferred method of randomly video calling. While it was true, you had been up for an hour, you had only started moving about to get on with the day about five minutes ago. And currently you were only wearing pants and a black lacy bra. Although, knowing him, he wouldn’t have complained.

There was rustling on his end and the clinking of a spoon hitting a glass. “I know, but I just wanted to make sure. You seemed pretty upset the other day.”

“It’s not that I’m upset…” You slipped your head through the hole of a black smocked square blouse with red flowers printed on it, adjusting the top so it sat properly. “I just...don’t like the holiday.”

Which was putting it mildly. It was more than a dislike, but as you went to look in the mirror to make sure there weren’t any tags sticking out, you silently thanked him for calling. You never hated Valentine’s Day. At its core, it was rather a sweet concept, one that year after year, a part of you hoped that maybe you’d be able to have someone to enjoy the holiday with. But after years of being single on the most romantic day, and having it ruined by dates turned sour, more often than not a dark cloud hovered overhead while you tried to simply get through the day.

You tried to find some spin on it to turn it around. Starting tomorrow and for the next week, chocolate was going to be anywhere from fifty to seventy-percent off. Sales were always fantastic no matter what the reason was. There were only so many chocolate hearts that you were capable of eating though.

“Why are you calling so early?” You said, turning the conversation back to him. It made sense why you were up – even on a Sunday there was always work to be done – for him to be awake before noon, that caused a bit of worry.

“Ah,” there was a thump that echoed on the call like he had dropped his phone, his voice sounding distant. “I have some things to get done today.”

“Yeah, but it’s nine in the morning. I thought you weren’t even coherent before noon.”

Changkyun forced out a laugh and you lightly smiled, gathering your hair into a bun before carrying him into the kitchen. Even though it was a simple phone call and was a bit distorted, it did nothing to dull the fluttering going on by the butterflies in your stomach. His lazy grin came to mind, and only ten minutes into the hour and you were smiling like a fool while stirring your coffee.

That was another reason why you weren’t entirely fond of the holiday. The entire day was dedicated to love, to telling someone that you love them, and here you were, having fallen for your friend and yet you refused to tell him. It was hard to pinpoint when these feelings began, but it was possible that they had been growing since the day you two met.

There was no doubt that you were a workaholic, always feeling weird if you bummed around for more than a few hours, so it made sense that on the rare day off that you took, something had to crash it. You had been indulging in some binge watching of your precious Inuyasha when your phone lit up with an incoming video call from Messenger. Immediately you had been hesitant. None of your friends ever video messaged you since unlike them, your cell was an android.

You hadn’t planned to answer him. Not only did you not recognize the name, or his picture - despite how attractive he appeared - but you didn’t normally answer requests from strangers. With that in mind and mildly annoyed in having to pause the episode, you were ready to hit decline and be on with the day. Except, you were a dumb ass, and hit accept by accident.

Turns out he had meant to call someone else and had been equally shocked when you answered. In fact, he had been less than classy upon seeing you in instead of his friend, the words, ‘oh, fuck me,’ slipping out before he could stop himself.

In normal circumstances, you might have rolled your eyes, or told him to go fuck himself, but it had been six months into the pandemic and he was the first new person that you had met in a while.

“I don’t usually fuck strangers,” you had said instead, not missing the way his eyebrow rose and how his mouth curled upwards in a smile. “But if you wanna buy me a grinder and have it delivered to my place; I might eventually be persuaded.”

There had been a tense moment, but when he let out a breathless chuckle, somehow you knew that you were in the safe zone. Turns out, the two of you had a friend in common who he had meant to call, but he hadn’t been paying attention to what he was doing and accidentally clicked on your profile. The call only lasted for a few more minutes before Changkyun apologized and with an awkward wave, ended it. You stared at his profile picture and next thing you knew, you were scrolling through his pictures, oohing upon finding an old one of him with silver hair and an eyebrow piercing.

A couple hours later, there was a knock at your door and after slipping on a mask, you were greeted with a delivery man that looked no older than sixteen, announcing that he had a grinder for you. Before you could say that you hadn’t ordered anything, he promised that it had already been paid for, tip included. Not one to turn down free food, you accepted it, and saw the note that was taped to the paper bag.

I’m not a weirdo I promise. Jooheon passed along your address, and I’m not about to let someone go hungry. From, a friendly stranger who hit the wrong button.

There was no second guessing on your part. You pulled his profile back up and hit the video button, only having to wait a few seconds before his face filled the screen, locks of black hair falling across his forehead as he ruffled it up.

“Did you seriously send me a grinder?”

“You sounded hungry.”

There was a brief pause, and suddenly you were giggling, shoulders shaking as you sat down on a chair, his own deep chuckles joining in not long after. It was odd, but after that – and after confirming with Jooheon to make sure he wasn’t a creep, which you were assured he wasn’t – the two of you fell into the habit of video chatting. Some days there was nothing to say. With the pandemic raging on and everything closed, it was nice to have someone simply be there after all this time.

Fast forward five months later, the pandemic had only grown worse, and not only had Changkyun proven to be a good friend, but he managed to worm his way into your heart.

“What about you,” Changkyun suddenly asked. “You’re not actually working today, are you? Forget the holiday, it’s Sunday.”

Rolling your eyes, you went back to the bedroom with the black coffee in one hand, and him in the other. “Not all day. I have a few graphics that I want to finish up or it’ll bug me. Should only take a few hours to do.”

“Only a few hours,” he teased. “I’m willing to bet you’ll still be working tonight.”

“Will not.”

“Will too.”

“Not.”

His end grew silent, and he suddenly cleared his throat. “We’ll see about that.”

There was something about that sentence that stopped you from entering the password to your computer. Glancing away from the screen, you stared at Changkyun’s picture, wondering why his voice had softened when he had said that, as if he knew something that you didn’t.

“What is it that you have to do?” You found yourself asking him again, not looking at the keys as you logged into your laptop, the bleeding hearts screensaver appearing as the icons loaded one by one.

“Just some…stuff. I’ll probably be off my phone most of the day.”

“Oh.”

With the amount of phone calls and video chats the two of you had, it had become normal to hear from him a couple times throughout the day. The text chat was filled with various memes, emojis, and conversations that ranged from how much is too much fabric softener? - all the way to late night conversations involving stories about crazy exes, to insecurities, dreams you’ve always wanted to do, and whether or not the world would ever go back to the normal that you both had known prior to March 2020.

Wetting your lips, you leaned back against the desk chair and cradled the mug in both hands. “Well, have fun with whatever you’re doing,” you said, keeping your voice light so he wouldn’t notice the shift in your mood.

It was suddenly so obvious why he wasn’t saying what he had to do. With the holiday approaching, Changkyun had asked if you had any plans for how to spend the day, and with that came your explanation for why you weren’t overly fond of this particular day. The blind dates that ended terribly and being single had been part of the reason why, but there was one particular instance from the past that was determined to ruin Valentines every year for you.

In all the years, there was one person that you had confessed to on Valentines. Jungkook was someone you considered a friend, but you had only told him the truth to get him to shut up about his girlfriend. Up until that afternoon she had been the ex that, from your understanding, despised being in the same room as him anymore. According to him, she showed up at his place with the usual, ‘I miss you,’ and ‘let’s try again,’ and somehow that all managed to lead to wild and hot passionate sex that was, ‘insanely good.’

If only that had been it.

Whether Jungkook got caught up in reliving the moment and forgot who he was talking to, he gave you a play by play of their reunion. From the way she arrived at his door, to the way she felt around him, he told every detail all while you were on the other end of the phone, fingers twisted and tugging at your hair as you sat on the floor of your childhood bedroom. On all the days, the last thing you wanted to hear was your crush talking about having to move to the living room because his bedroom reeked from all their fucking.

The conversation didn’t last much longer, thank god, but you hadn’t been able to grieve because in the other room mom’s voice could be heard as she talked about her day at work. Instead, you forced back the tears and it took everything to not break down when she smiled and handed you an orange teddy bear holding a red heart that said I love you, along with a bag of Lindt chocolates. She was unaware, and while everyone slept, you buried your face into a couple pillows to muffle the sounds of your crying. You were only eighteen and yet you swore your heart collapsed in on itself before exploding into a million glass shards.

“That fucking dick,” Changkyun had said when you told him.

The screen had been bright as the two of you video chatted, and you rubbed your eyes, tired but not ready to go to sleep. He had been doing the rounds of locking up and shutting off the lights while you spoke, only wearing a thin pair black and blue flannel pants. At least he held the phone pretty leveled so you weren’t forced to stare at his torso, but there had been several times where you found your gaze lingering on his muscular body.

“I mean,” you ran a hand through your hair, shrugging as he looked back at you. “It happens to everyone.”

Changkyun frowned though. “No,” he said, his voice gentle but firm at the same time. “No, it doesn’t. And that shouldn’t have happened to you.”

Blinking, you forced the memory away, shifting in your seat to get comfortable once again. Just because you didn’t enjoy the holiday, or didn’t have anyone to spend it with, didn’t mean that was the case with Changkyun. Why else would he be reluctant to say what his plans were? He was probably just being nice and didn’t want to appear like he was rubbing salt into an old wound that refused to heal.

“Hey,” Changkyun’s voice softened again, and as much as you knew you shouldn’t, you wished that he was here, in the apartment with you for him to hold you. “It’s still early in the morning. For all you know, there’s a Mr. Right, who’s going to stumble into your path today.”

You scoffed, the clicking of your mouse echoing in the bedroom. “I mean, I don’t have plans to go out.”

“Surprises can happen you know.”

“Alright Changkyun,” now that the internet was up, you glanced back at the phone. “I gotta get to work. Stay safe out there.”

“Always am. Talk to you later.”

“Bye.”

There was a pause, and when you looked back over, the call was still going. It wasn’t out of the ordinary for either of you to leave it going while doing work, the silence was never awkward, it was more comforting than anything, but this time there was a sense of something being left un–

“You look pretty today,” Changkyun said suddenly.

Blinking, your fingers tightened around the mouse as your heart raced. “What? You can’t even see me Changkyun.”

“So?”

“I could be wearing my pajamas for all you know,” your voice faltered, and despite the constriction of wearing jeans, you pulled your legs up on to the chair to hug them to your chest.

“I’ve already seen you in your pajamas,” he joked. “You’re still pretty though.”

He was smiling. You knew for certain that he was, and that made your palms turn clammy, forcing you to wipe them against the pant leg.

“Maybe I’m not, wearing clothes?” Internally you slapped yourself, instantly regretting those words, and perhaps your entire existence at this point. It was still early. Instead of work, maybe you could possibly bury yourself under all the blankets and never answer his phone calls again.

Hearing shuffling coming from the phone, you pressed your lips together, not entirely sure if you wanted to hear what he had to say.

“Are you trying to keep me from my plans today?” His voice deepened and if it weren’t for the fact that you were already sitting down, you were certain that you’d be on the floor.

“No, I’m just stupid,” you blurted out, slamming your hand over your mouth.

Changkyun chuckled, and suddenly the phone seemed closer to him because his voice became clearer. “I think you’re trying to seduce me.”

Oh god. No. It was absolutely the other way around. He was the one who had the advantage on his side, between the lip bites and the selfies he sent that captured his jawline that was perfect to cut glass with. Whether it was his godly features, or when the two of you were video chatting and he rolled onto his stomach and face planted himself into the pillow, you fell for him every time.

“Know what?” You rushed to say, ignoring his laughter. “I have work and you have things to do. Stay safe, and I’ll talk to you later. Bye!”

There was no hesitation. This time you slammed your finger on the end call button and for extra measure, tossed it away and on the bed, letting it disappear among the sea of messy blankets.

Shakily sighing, you slid further down in the chair as the edge of the desk pinned your legs to your chest to keep from falling to the ground. He had never said anything like that before. Sure, there were times where he’d see you do something or when you’d ramble on about a show or work, he’d might say cute, but that always felt like an afterthought.

“Damn it Changkyun,” you said, glaring at where you had thrown the phone and hating the fact that his words kept circling around your mind, making you feel incredibly warmer than you had been ten minutes earlier. Hating that while he was probably going to be on a date with some pretty girl who was worth his time, you were at home, working on a Sunday, wishing that the guy you hadn’t even met in person was here and telling you that in-between kisses.

You ran a hand over your face with a groan, fingers of course getting caught in the bun briefly as you sat up. There was work to be done, and with a click of the mouse, the programs you needed quickly opened up. It was fairly easy, and if you focused, would only take an hour, maybe even less to get done. But with Changkyun on the brain, all you wanted to do was curl back up under the messy blankets and daydream about him. About what it would be like to hug him, to hear his voice in person, and perhaps, spend a Valentine’s day with someone who wouldn’t let you down.

That wasn’t going to happen though. It was a daydream and nothing more.

Lacing your fingers together, you quickly turned them inward, groaning in satisfaction at the loud crack that emitted from the joints. Outside the window that the desk was placed in front of, the sun had already begun its descent for the night. The sky was painted in splashes of orange with lazy clouds slipping in, the remaining bits of blue falling steadily behind.

Despite what Changkyun had predicted, he was only partially correct. With him swimming freely in your mind, you had been distracted, lost in a hazy daydream that made it impossible to focus on the graphics that you were trying to finish up. More often than not you stepped away from the desk, feet guiding you to the other room or in small twirls with the faintest lovesick smile. It was impossible to get anything done. So, you said fuck it. It was Sunday after all, and you weren’t expected to have those scheduled to be posted for a few days. Where was the harm in having one day to yourself? One with no work whatsoever to stress you out?

With work out of the way and having no other plans, another cup of coffee had been made and in the spirit of the holiday, your gaze had lingered on the makeup that sat on the dresser. Most of it had gone unused as the weeks melted into months. Tubes of lipstick and eye shadow palettes once loved had been forgotten about, and as you recalled, the brushes that you typically forgot to clean had been washed out of pure boredom. It was with new motivation that you grabbed a majority of the collection and hopped onto the counter in the bathroom, music playing from a playlist filled with songs from your younger years that held nostalgia, and simply played around with the colors.

By the time you were done, an hour had gone by, and you gained two cut creases with glitter, contoured cheeks, painted your lips, and looked like you were ready to go out for a date out in the city to be wined and dined. Instead, you slipped on a pair of fuzzy socks and slid into the kitchen with plans to see what frozen meal the freezer had to offer. If anything, it had the bare bones of a date. The location? Your couch. The hot leading man? Most likely the main character from whatever show you finally decided on after you gave a good scroll through Netflix. All you needed was utter disappointment and it could be considered a success.

You were torn between making the decision for frozen lasagna or chicken Alfredo, but a sudden and loud knock at the door stopped you. Eyebrows pulling in confusion, you carefully set the food on the counter, taking a moment to slip on the mask that you left hanging on the doorknob for situations like this. Not that they occurred often. With the exception of having food delivered, once the world realized that this pandemic wasn’t just a simple flu and doctors encouraged people to stay home, you hadn’t invited anyone over. It was lonely, and you missed your friends and family greatly, but this wasn’t a situation to take lightly.

“I’m sorry,” you said, opening the door once the fabric mask was securely on. “I think you might have the wrong…”

And you stopped. Stopped talking and stared. Stared at the man leaning against your door frame, wearing a black as ink suit jacket, a pristine white button up shirt was tucked into matching black pants, with the top several buttons undone to reveal a tanned and toned chest that you knew he took pride in considering all the gym selfies he sent. The black fabric mask he wore hid most of his face, but the corners of his eyes were crinkled together.

“I think I’m right where I’m supposed to be,” Changkyun said, his deep voice sounding better in real life than you had expected, and dreamed of.

He pushed off of the frame and it was then that you noticed the things in his hands. In the left, was a plastic bag stuffed with packaged containers, and in the right…in his right wrapped in pink tissue paper was a bouquet of red and pink carnations with babies’ breath mixed in. There had to be at least a dozen, perhaps a baker’s dozen, if not a few extra.

There were no words. After all the books you consumed to pass the time, articles you searched for work, and even countless texts sent to friends, everything escaped you at that very moment because he was here. He was actually here and standing in front of you.

“I know you said you haven’t had anyone over since this started. But I got tested a couple days ago, came back negative, and we’ve both been working from home this entire time so if you want…” Changkyun lifted the bag he held into view and this time, you could see that even though it was triple bagged, you were able to make a red dragon printed on the cartons. “I have Chinese food, and I’m willing to bet that Netflix has something for us to watch. If you’re not comfortable though that’s fine. I have plenty of food that we can—”

Except he didn’t get to finish what he was saying before you tugged him into the apartment by his arm. Immediately, your arms wound their way around his waist and you pressed your face into his chest, tightly hugging him.

“It’s you,” you said, feeling his right arm carefully rest on your back to hold you close, all while being mindful of the flowers that he was carrying.

There was a soft chuckle from above as he laid his head on top of yours. “It’s good to finally see you too.”

Smiling, your arms tightened around him once more before you stepped backwards, letting him enter the apartment completely. “You didn’t have to bring flowers you know.”

“And show up empty handed?”

You gestured towards the table for him to set the food down, taking the flowers and going to the sink. “You bought Chinese food. That more than would have made up for no flowers.” But while the vase filled with water and you trimmed the stems, gently adding them in one by one, there was a warmth spreading within your chest that came right from the heart, even more so when he chuckled. The only people to ever buy you flowers on Valentine’s day were your parents.

Like always, the silence that followed felt natural. The only difference was that you were aware that Changkyun was moving around in the kitchen with you, getting plates and silverware out without having to ask where things were because he had seen you do the same thing countless times before while video chatting. You just never thought he was actually paying attention.

When they were all in the vase, you tossed the ends in the trash and turned around, only to see that once again, he was watching you.

“Why are you staring?”

Changkyun shrugged, running a hand through his hair as the black locks fell right back into his eyes. “I was right.”

Tilting your head, you walked over to the table and set the vase in the center. You were already so close to him, but he leaned his head down, the black fabric of his mask brushing against the top of your ear.

“That you look pretty,” he said softly. “And it’s not because of the makeup. I had a feeling you might dress up today; you look beautiful.”

The air that you had been breathing was instantly stolen, and when you made the mistake of looking up at him, you realized just how close the two of you were. If it weren’t for the masks you both wore…

“You don’t look half bad yourself,” you teased, trying to not glance at where his lips would be. “You’re a lot taller than messenger video makes you out to be.”

He rolled his eyes and scoffed. Straightening up, Changkyun slipped his suit jacket off and set it on the back of a chair to undo the buttons on his cuffs, taking the time to roll each sleeve up to his elbows. “You’re meaner in person.”

Good god. You knew that he worked out, but damn. Maybe not for the first couple weeks, eventually Changkyun fell into the habit of sending selfies while he was working out at the gym. It shouldn’t have been a surprise, but seeing his tanned arms and the white sleeve making its way up to his elbow, it sparked the butterflies and gave them a newfound fluttering energy.

“Do you wanna eat or not?” Not thinking of it, you reached up to unhook the elastic from around your ears, removing the mask and setting it back on the counter. With a glance up at him, you saw him raise an eyebrow before he mimicked your movements to take off his own mask, revealing the jaw that tempted your daydreams in more ways than you wished.

He smiled, and you handed him his plate and together, the two of you fixed up heaping plates of Chinese food, using the concept of needing to eat to distract yourself. Everything was still hot and as you settled on the couch, steam curled its way up into the air.

“Were you able to get your secret plans done today?” You asked, glancing over at him while Netflix loaded up on the TV screen.

“Why are you so interested in what I had to do?” He was focused on the dumpling that he held with the chopsticks, not meeting your gaze at all.

It wasn’t that you meant to be focused on that. But he had acted so suspicious on the phone earlier, and now he was here, having dinner in your apartment with enough Chinese food to cost a small fortune, along with sixteen carnations – yes, you counted while cutting them – on Valentine’s Day. There had been no warning, and as much as you wanted to believe that he was here for more than a friendly drop in, the idea of him having been on a date earlier in the day and was here to talk about it, about the possible other girl, killed the butterflies. You had already been through this once, you didn’t want to go through it again. Not with him.

Scrolling through the list of suggestions, you didn’t notice Changkyun looking over at you, or the way his face softened. His fingers tightened around the chopsticks and he leaned back against the cushion.

“What’s that one about?” He nodded towards one of the movies that was in the watch again section.

You raised an eyebrow, scrolling over to it. “Please don’t tell me that you’ve never seen Love Actually?”

“If I did, would I have asked what it’s about?”

Unable to stop yourself, an undignified sound escaped you as you wildly gestured with the remote. “How? It’s like the sweetest romance, Christmas movie ever. They play it every year. It even has Liam Neeson, the man promising to find and kill everyone, as a sweet dad who doesn’t kill anyone! That alone is a true Christmas miracle by itself.”

The thought of him being with someone else dissipated at the sound of his laughter. Even caught up in the excitement of this particular movie, you couldn’t stop the smile that grew. No matter what, even in real life or over video, you always found yourself grinning the second he laughed or smiled. He was without a doubt contagious, in the best way possible.

“What are you waiting for?” He said, gesturing towards the screen with the chopsticks, shoulders relaxing at the sight of your smile and apparent joy for the film. One that he had in fact, seen a few times over the years. “Press play.”

There was no hesitation. You were determined to culture him in what you deemed to be a classic in romance films. So, as you comfortably settled in, belly growing full of warm and delicious food, you once again missed Changkyun’s wide smile. It was the kind of grin that no matter what he did, or how serious he tried to be, simply wouldn’t go away.

The empty dinner plates sat long forgotten about on the coffee table as another movie played, this one involving an action pack fight scene with aliens in New York City. Hours had passed since Changkyun arrived at your door, and despite it growing late and Valentine’s Day was nearing its end, his polished shoes were unlaced and tossed on the floor. A wine bottle had been opened up, and you sat much closer to him to share a blanket with him. You were blaming it on the wine for being so bold because when he stretched an arm on the back of the couch, you didn’t think twice about gently leaning your head against it.

You couldn’t even really blame it on the wine. It was the first glass for both of you, and you were a slow drinker, so you were as sober as a newborn lamb at the moment.

It was just like when the two of you would video chat with the same movie on, but so much better. Having him here, you were noticing the smallest things that you’d miss when on the phone. At the base of his neck was a small mole that you never realized he had, or that he was wearing two thin silver chains – a pair that, now that you thought about it, he never went without. Behind you, he’d occasionally rub his fingers together and the metal of his bracelet would lightly clink against itself. With the few glances that you stole, his attention was solely on the movie and his jaw appeared to be pressed together.

Feeling a sudden weight, you turned to see him settling his arm around your shoulders. His wrist was now hanging over your arm, and it took all your willpower to not reach up with a free hand to lace your fingers loosely with his. When you glanced back up at him, he was in mid sip of his wine, throat bobbing with each swallow.

Shit. This was not helping the butterflies that seemed to have multiplied since his arrival.

Changkyun raised an eyebrow when he lowered his glass, softly humming in question, but you only shook your head and focused back on the movie. Except, now you were hyper aware that he was looking at you this time.

“What’s wrong?” He murmured, his thumb and fingers lightly rubbing against your arm.

That was another thing. His voice was deep. In the calls, the phone occasionally cracked and had made it seem lighter, but it appeared to be just the opposite. He was blessed with a voice that was able to drop lower than a bass, sending your insides to mush when he spoke. It was the type of voice that was destined to recite poetry and old sonnets, to hold three in the morning conversations that went wherever and everywhere. When he called your name, it never failed to send tingles running the length of your body. It was his voice, and you knew that you’d never grow tired of hearing him talk.

“Nothing. I was just thinking,” you said, leaning your head back, his arm comfortable and warm as you looked up at the ceiling, trying to avoid his gaze for a few seconds.

His fingers didn’t stop. The gentle caress, a small reassurance that he was in fact here and this wasn’t your imagination, made it harder to stay where you sat instead of curling into his side like you wanted.

“Thinking about what?”

Letting out a breathless scoff, you tilted your head towards him. Changkyun was a sight to see and you knew that if this was the only time you got to spend with him in person, you were never going to forget this moment.

Your smile softened. “That you’re actually here, after all these months of texts and video calls. You actually came here, and you’re real.”

“Did you think I was a robot or something?” Changkyun teased, but his fingers stopped moving, and that lock of hair fell back into his eyes again.

“Well, you did accidentally call me instead of Jooheon and last time I checked, we look nothing alike.” There was no thinking as you reached up and mimicked his movements to push that damn lock back, feeling how soft his hair was. It brought you a little bit closer to him and in that second, the world suddenly felt like it was no longer moving when you glanced down at his lips. Those pink lips that you wondered and dreamt about night after night, too curious for your own good on what it would be like to kiss him. Now was your chance to find out, especially when he didn’t lean back and appeared to be getting closer.

“Cookies?” You suddenly asked, leaning back to see his eyebrows start to pull together in confusion. Heart racing, you set your wine glass on the coffee table and walked around the couch to step into the kitchen. With only your back to him, you quietly let out a shaky breath. “I know I have some for us to munch on…”

Opening up a cabinet, you stretched on to your toes to search for the package of cookies that you knew were in there, mentally slapping yourself at having done that. He hadn’t backed away, hadn’t tried to stop you, in fact, if you allowed yourself to believe it, you would have recalled that he had started to lean in when you randomly brought up cookies. As much as you wanted to, the last thing you wanted was to lose your friendship.

You were pushing aside a box of crackers when his hand captured your wrist, halting your search. It felt like your heart was about to leap out of its cage when his fingers gently wrapped around your hand, and when his palm settled on a hip, it was equally as comforting as it lit a spark inside you. There was nothing you wanted to do more than to melt into his embrace.

“Sweetheart, do you really think I’m here to just hang out?” He asked, his voice low as he spoke into your ear, his body stepping closer to yours.

“You’re…you’re not?” You weakly asked, nervous because you didn’t want this all to be a joke.

The idea of this being a one night only thing thanks to the holiday left an ache in your bones. You wanted more nights like this with him, wanted to hear him call out your name with that gentle smile of his over and over again. Dammit, you wanted to wake up and have the blankets be stifling hot but not care as you crawled over to his side of the bed, searching for morning cuddles because fuck the person who decided that the workday would start at eight in the morning. The only person you wanted to spend this quarantine with, to be able to touch, to be worried and even scared about all this with, was Changkyun.

Changkyun’s breath hit the back of your neck as he softly chuckled, sending a shiver down your spine. “God, I thought I was being obvious. Let me try this differently.”

Still holding on to your wrist, he turned you around and once you were facing him, let go of your hand to step closer until your back was against the counter. With each breath your chest brushed against his, and when he pushed the hair that had fallen in your face behind your ear, fingers brushing against your cheek, you almost forgot to breathe.

“I know you’ve always had a pretty crappy Valentine’s day,” Changkyun softly spoke. His gaze was steady with yours, and even though he was being serious, there was a softness to his features that had the corner of his mouth curling upwards. “And I thought that the best way to keep that from repeating this year, would be if you spent it with someone, who loves you.”

Who loves…oh.

It suddenly all made sense. Why he didn’t want to say what he was doing to celebrate, him calling you pretty, the food and flowers, the coaxing touches, he could have rented a billboard and put up a neon flashing sign and you probably still would have been blind.

“Changkyun,” you whispered, reaching up to cup his cheek.

He softly smiled as he closed the remaining space between you to rest his forehead against yours, his palms sliding along your body until he had you wrapped in a hug. “There you go, now you get it.”

Giggling, you rolled your eyes out of habit. It was like him to be a smart ass during a moment like this. With that being said, the butterflies fluttered their way up to your heart, and all the daydreams that you entertained and thought nothing would come of them, now had the possibility of becoming reality.

“I love you too,” you said, running your thumb along his cheek as you watched his smile widen.

There was no hesitation, or smart ass comments this time. Instead, when his lips met yours in a kiss, your heart stopped racing. The butterflies finally calmed down and the world around you went out of focus as your fingers slid through his hair. His lips were soft, and thanks to the red wine, there was a lingering tangy sweetness that reminded you of raspberries. You found yourself becoming addicted to his taste, the kisses melting together until you lost track of how long the two of you stood there, content with doing nothing but being wrapped up in each other’s embrace.

A clock chimed out in the apartment, breaking the kiss which only served to make you pout at the loss of his lips. The gesture didn’t go unnoticed by Changkyun, who smirked before leaning down to give one more kiss, which quickly turned into two, then three.

“Don’t you have work in the morning?” He murmured, resting his forehead once more against yours.

“You trying to kiss and dash?”

His fingers gently pressed into your sides and you squirmed at his touch, giggling at his antics. However, he leaned his head back and sighed. “Like hell I’d do that. But you usually wake up earlier for work, and trust me, I’ll end up keeping you awake if I stay the night.”

There was no doubt about that, and to be truthful, you’d have no issue if that was the case. He was right, but as ideas turned in your mind, you shrugged. “You can’t go out driving though,” you said softly. “You were drinking.”

Changkyun frowned, head tilting as he removed a hand from your back to run through his hair. “Not even a whole glass.”

You raised an eyebrow. It took him having to say he loved you for you to understand how he felt about you despite his dine and wine attempt, and here he was, completely missing what you were suggesting. Either you were absolutely perfect for each other, or equally dense.

“Well, we also broke quarantine,” you said slowly, slipping a finger through his belt loop at the same time to bring him closer. “Isn’t the recommendation to stay at home for what, at least three days?”

He started to tilt his head, mouth opening to question what you were saying until he saw the smile growing on your face. Closing his eyes, he pressed his lips together before looking back at you.

“That was horrible,” Changkyun said. He slipped his arms back around you, pulling you away from the counter. His grin said otherwise. “At least I tried being romantic.”

“Well, I mean, if you really want to go back to your place by yourself…”

He didn’t let you say another word, his lips reclaiming yours again, because there was absolutely nothing that felt better than kissing you after months of dreaming what it would be like.

“Don’t go,” you softly murmured against his lips. “Not when you just got here.”

Maybe it was selfish. But you didn’t want to be alone again. Not when he had gone through so much trouble to make this night special, not when you finally knew that he felt the same way about you. After almost a year of staying inside the apartment whenever you could, of going without hugs or get togethers, being able to touch and kiss Changkyun felt like you were relearning what those were all over again. All you wanted was a few days with him.

Changkyun hummed, his arms tightening around you. “Sweetheart, I wasn’t planning on going anywhere,” he said, gazing down at you as if he had considered the same thing.

The clock that had rang out to announce the hour of a new day and that Valentine’s day was over, continued to quietly tick in the other room. The Earth continued to spin, and outside, the world was exactly how it had been this morning, full of fear, what ifs, and the unknown of a pandemic that didn’t seem to be going anywhere any time soon.

But inside that small apartment, wrapped in Changkyun’s arms, giggles and laughter filled the walls when he pulled you to the middle of the kitchen and spun you around for a late-night dance. It might not be the thing that changes the world, but for the first time, in a long time, hope began to blossom alongside the butterflies in your stomach. The memories of past Valentine’s days melted away at his kiss, until only the memory of him at your door remained.

Even when it hadn’t felt like it, love and hope had always been there. And now it was here promising lovelier days to come.

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harrypotterbrainworms · 4 years ago

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Nights in White Satin

Summary: songfic request, “Nights in White Satin” by Moody Blues

Pairing: Remus Lupin x Male Reader

Key: (Y/N)- your name

Word Count: 1096

A/N: it might be a little unedited, apologies.

⋅•⋅⋅•⋅⊰⋅•⋅⋅•⋅⋅•⋅⋅•⋅∙∘☽༓☾∘∙•⋅⋅⋅•⋅⋅⊰⋅•⋅⋅•⋅⋅•⋅⋅•⋅

Nights in white satin Never reaching the end Letters I've written Never meaning to send Beauty I'd always missed With these eyes before

⋅•⋅⋅•⋅⊰⋅•⋅⋅•⋅⋅•⋅⋅•⋅∙∘☽༓☾∘∙•⋅⋅⋅•⋅⋅⊰⋅•⋅⋅•⋅⋅•⋅⋅•⋅

He stared into the deep blue night, the warm summer air settling in his throat as he watched the small owl swoop down, letter in its talons.

“Good boy, I’m sorry I’ve kept you up all day.” He stroked it gently with one hand as he impatiently opened the letter in the other.

“Dear (Y/N),

Thank you for the letter. I’m not sure how to respond. Your feelings are unexpected to say the least. I can't say anymore. I don’t think I could answer you in letter. Let’s meet alone in the express next week.

Sincerely, Remus Lupin.”

“Shit.” He whispered to himself. Of course he wasn’t going to feel the same. He wanted to cry, imagine not wanting to reject someone in letter, stupid bastard. He couldn’t simply avoid him now.

A week had passed since he heard back from Remus, his nerves were reaching an end as he strolled pushing his luggage in front of him and occasionally throwing a treat to his owl. The joy on his face when he saw his friends waiting for him where they always met at the station was immediately drained out as he saw Remus hiding behind them.

“Hey, my boys… my men, ah- men, right?” he nervously spoke out as Sirius wrapped his arm around his shoulder patting his back harshly as he usually did.

“What the hell is with you?” His voice boomed as he helped (Y/N) drag all his luggage onto the train and into their compartment.

“Nothing of course” He spoke under his breath, trying not to bring too much attention to his mood. Sirius frowned, looking down at his friend as he stuffed the last piece of luggage into the overhead.

“Bet there’s a girl” James suggested wiggling his eyebrows, which made him blush intensely.

“Stop teasing him.” Remus said rather seriously, making all the other marauders look a little baffled, but intrigued. They all settled in for a long train ride to Hogwarts.

Peter immediately dug into his luggage pulling out candy for all his friends who immediately stopped worrying about what the other two men were going through and tore through the packages greedily.

“Let’s go, while they’re distracted. Come on.” Remus whispered and pulled (Y/N) to an empty compartment leaving their friends behind and making (Y/N) almost piss his pants as his heart rate picked up, drumming in his ears.

Remus ushered (Y/N) into the compartment.

“You wanted to- uh- speak?” He sat down, gesturing towards the seat in front him.

“Y-Yeah.” Remus fidgeted with his hands, looking down at his feet.

“Cool, cool... cool.” He looked out of the window at the trees zooming by, avoiding eye contact. It had stayed quiet for quite a while before (Y/N) spoke up, speaking with haste.

“I’m sorry I sent it. I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable and with all you have going on, it was stupid of me to-“ He looked down as he rambled looking rather guilty, it was his last intention was making one of his best friends and uncomfortable with anything he had to say in those letters but he was interrupted as Remus laughed.

“Please stop talking” He laughed, reaching a hand on his shoulder to ease the tension, moving his positioning on the opposite seat to lean more into his friend.

“What?” he blanked, blinking furiously.

“You say so much all the time, yet nothing at all.” he remarked, running a hand through his hair a small blush forming on his face as (Y/N) looked at him with confusion.

“I do?”

“Yeah, it’s r-really annoying” He moved his hand to (Y/N)’s neck pulling him closer, licking his lips unintentionally.

“Then… Shut me up.” His breath hinged with anticipation. He wasn’t sure what happened in the span of the last week they had talked, but it seemed to be good. (Y/N) moved his hands to Remus’s neck as well, pulling him closer.

“My pleasure.” Remus barely had time to react before they smashed their lips together, he really did like him, he wasn’t sure at first lightly brushing his lips against the (Y/N)’s as the sound of the train became white noise to their thoughts.

Neither of the men could think of any better possibility than this, Remus would have written the letters to him but it just seemed as though no time was the right time. (Y/N) had become more comfortable in the last five minutes they had been kissing and now was running his hands under Remus’s shirt. Neither of them had had a first kiss but this was as great as they hope it will be. It was awkward and sweaty and overall very wet, but they never forget this moment even if it was a little strange to be kissing in a train compartment next to their best friends.

“S-Shit. You don’t wanna know how long I wanted that.” they broke apart looking at each other and what the hunger of never being able to kiss someone like that, (Y/N)’s stomach was fluttering as he watched Remus not able to take his eyes off him, he felt like he would vomit was all the excitement building up on him.

“I h-hope it was everything you hoped f-for.” He stuttered nervously, Remus Laughed in relief.

“Oh, how I love you” he whispered as he leaned in to kiss (Y/N) again, not getting enough of the taste of his lips. (Y/N) no longer wanted to vomit, thank Merlin, But He still wrung his hands together nervously as Remus looked out the window as the scenery sped past them.

“Those letters were very romantic. Nights in white satin, never reaching the end” He recited the lyrics he’d written all over the back, (Y/N) slapped his arm playfully, scoffing at him.

“Oh shut up, bloody bastard.” He laughed and realised nothing had really changed between them. Remus grabbed his hands and rubbed his thumbs in circles around his knuckles softly. The action comforted both of them as they sat there, basking in each other’s presence.

“I’m only teasing, there’s letters upon letters I’ve written for you. You could’ve just sent a tape with the song on it” Remus looked up from their hands and pushed their foreheads together coming in for another kiss.

“Maybe I will.” He smiled into it as he spoke, just feeling the moment they both had together and realising there was nothing that he could have prepared for that would’ve led to this.

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hamueltobin · 4 years ago

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behold! i didn't see any otgw icebergs, so i made my own :)

if you think i should add something, lmk!!

Explanations under cut :)

First layer:

▪︎Beast!Wirt au - very popular au in which Wirt stays in the Unknown, possessed by the Beast to some extent.

▪︎Bad End Friends - Crossover AU of Beast!Wirt teaming up with Ice Finn from Adventure Time and Bipper from Gravity Falls; sometimes other 'bad end' au characters are thrown in such as a glitched Gumball from TAWOG

▪︎Irl Copies of the For Sara tape - Limited copies of the For Sara tape were sold at two points. They have yet to sell for a third time. (🤞🤞🤞)

▪︎Tome of the Unknown (pilot) - The Pilot of the series. Can be watched on YouTube.

▪︎Wirt Staying in the Unknown - In a scrapped ending, Wirt was to stay in the Unknown, saying that facing your real problems was scarier than staying there.

▪︎Mystery Kids - Crossover AU with other child-late teens aged characters from sources based on mysterious and supernatural themes such as Gravity Falls and Psychonauts.

▪︎Quincy Endicott's grave - Quincy's grave can be seen in the graveyard that Sara and the others are hanging out in.

▪︎Original Beatrice Voice Actress - Beatrice had a different VA in the pilot, Natasha Leggero. Melanie Lynskey voices her in the actual series.

▪︎The Woodsman's Daughter is Named Anna - The comics have several issues focused on his daughter, in which her name is revealed to be Anna.

▪︎Jason Funderburker's Ax Murderer Story - At the gathering in the graveyard, Funderburker is telling a story about a man with an ax; this story is believed to have influenced the existence of the Woodsman.

▪︎Full Versions of Songs in the OST - A handful of the songs are cut down for their appearances in the series and can only be heard in full on the OST. The most notable example is Old Black Train , which is actually 2 minutes and 15 seconds long, but is only in the series for about 15-20 seconds.

Second Layer:

▪︎Sara is named after the Fleetwood Mac song - Listen to it here :) it is notable that it includes lyrics about "drowning in a sea of love" and that Sara is "the poet of [the singer's] heart."

▪︎OTGW Reanimated - a reanimated project for the first episode. Got taken off of YouTube, but can be viewed on Dailymotion.

▪︎Baby Wirt Audio - In the For Sara cassette, there is a small section of audio that can be heard in about the middle of the recording of Wirt's father talking to him as a baby.

▪︎Funderburker/Funderberker - The two Jasons's surnames are spelled slightly differently to avoid confusion.

▪︎The Brothers Never Ate or Needed to Rest - Although Greg expressed being hungry, neither of the boys actually ate anything (outside of one spoonful of bland potatoes and inedible items such as dirt and leaves) and never laid down to rest, only sleeping when night came.

▪︎Book on Interior Design in Wirt's Room - In Wirt's from, a book on interior design can be seen laying on the floor, backing up the knowledge he displayed when analyzing the interconnected mansions.

▪︎Mad Love was Based on a Dream - The plot of Mad Love came from a dream that Pat McHale had about house hunting. In the dream, while exploring one of the houses being shown, he ended up wandering into someone else's home.

▪︎Beatriceoftheday - A blog dedicated to our lord and savior Beatrice, known for its strange shitposts and intense praise of the titular bird girl.

▪︎Wirt is Jealous of Greg's Popularity - Shown in the Circus Friends issue of the comics, Wirt is jealous of Greg's ability to make everyone laugh and have fun. This may factor into his dislike of his brother.

▪︎Greg was Feeding Fred at the Tavern - At first watching, one may be confused as to where all the food Greg was gathering went, why Fred was wearing lipstick and why he was refusing to talk to Beatrice. Shown in a deleted scene, this all explained, as Fred tells Beatrice that he didn't talk to her because Greg was feeding him.

▪︎Elijah Wood Voiced the Crazy Driver - Exactly what is says on the tin, the nutty driver was voiced by Wood.

▪︎Cloud City is Heaven - A popular theory that Cloud City actually represents Heaven.

▪︎Greg is Greg Universe - A headcanon/theory that has mostly died out that Greg is the same Greg in Steven Universe.

▪︎Bee Beatrice - Beatrice was originally cursed to become a bee, but was changed into a bluebird to match better with the seasonal autumn theme.

▪︎Pat McHale Voiced Wirt's Voice Crack - Wirt's voice crack when asking the Beast Are You? was actually done by McHale, not Wood.

▪︎The Other Actors Harassing Elijah Wood When Singing Wirt's Song - In order to make the performance as awkward as possible, the other actors were asked to yell and demand Wirt to sing. This can be heard in the episode.

▪︎Come Wayward Souls Has the Same Melody as O Holy Night - The song shares a cadence with "O Holy Night", and can be sung to its tune.

▪︎Black Turtles Origin/Purpose - No one knows why the black turtles exist, and McHale has said that they're just one of the unexplainable things of the Unknown.

▪︎Anna Never Left the House - In the aforementioned comics, it is shown that Anna had never left the house, living on her own until the Woodsman's return.

▪︎Sailor Suit Greg - Greg originally wore a sailor suit, but was changed later on to his current, Johnny Appleseed inspired outfit .

▪︎Beatrice Missing Being Able to Flip People Off - In the Art Book, Beatrice's introduction states that one of the reasons she hates being a bird is because she no longer has hands to flip people off with.

Third Layer

▪︎Jason Funderberker is Visually Based on a Teen Pat McHale - As seen here, Funderberker was designed after McHale.

▪︎Babes in the Wood is Based on an Old Alice in Wonderland Cartoon - You can view the original 1923 cartoon here! Starts at 4:25.

▪︎Wirt and Sara are Dipper and Mabel's Parents - A popular AU/hc where Dipper and Mabel of Gravity Falls are the future kids of Wirt and Sara.

▪︎The Tune of Wirt's Song is Improvised - In addition to the aforementioned harassment, in a further attempt to make the performance as awkward as possible, Elijah Wood was not given a tune to sing, only the lyrics.

▪︎Wirt's Costume Origin - As said in the art book and on his tumblr, Wirt's cone and cape come from an attempted rock and roll persona from McHale's teen years.

▪︎Greg is Based on Pat McHale's Son - It has been claimed that Greg is based on McHale's son, but Greg existed before him. The similarities are simply coincidental.

▪︎Old Scratch - The original name of the Beast.

▪︎The Beast Killed the Woodsman's Wife - Shown in the comics, The Woodsman's wife was mortally injured, with her attacker implied to be the Beast.

▪︎Wirt and Greg Staying in the Unknown Until Christmas - Another scrapped ending, in which the brothers stay in The Unknown until Christmas, with their absence unexplained.

▪︎Tome of the Unknown (original plot) - Early concepts had the Beast ( then known as Old Scratch as mentioned earlier ) scattering the pages of the titular book for the brothers to collect. Each page would come to life and the brothers would explore each story.

▪︎Dante's Inferno Comparisons - Check out these videos for full analysis!

▪︎Wirt Panty Shots - In the aforementioned Circus Friend comics, Wirt dons a dress as part of a disguise. Later on, he rips off the bottom half off, revealing that he is wearing bloomers.

▪︎The Beast's True Form was Inspired by Trypophobia - As stated in the art book, The Beast's hole-filled appearance was inspired by Trypophobia, the fear of many small holes.

▪︎The Fight is Over is About Drowning - Give the lyrics another read.

▪︎The Beast Last Minute Design Change - The Beast had a very different design, and it was changed into the current one at the last minute.

▪︎Gnome in Cloud City Representing Wirt - Many people believed that the Gnome with the lantern in cloud city was a parallel to Wirt, or a glimpse into his future. However, this was debunked.

▪︎Send Me a Peach - This song is included in the ost, but isn't in the actual series.

▪︎Fred and the Highwayman's Backstory - The comics expand upon the story of Fred the Horse and his involvement with the Highwayman.

Fourth Layer

▪︎Babes in the Wood Title Origin - The name of this episode comes from an old story of a pair of children getting lost in the woods, dying, and being buried in leaves by robins.

▪︎poorlydrawnotgw - This was a blog created during the poorly drawn series meme period. It consisted of poorly drawn and very strange shitposts and has since been deactivated. I was a part of it as mod Goopy Wirt and only have a handful of images saved from it.

▪︎Read and Listen Book Lost Audio - A read and listen book was created, with the book being read by Greg's Frog, who would stop every now and again to talk about being a frog. The pages can be found online, but the audio is currently lost.

▪︎Skinless Witch - A scrapped episode concept involved a skinless witch that kidnapped Greg and rode him like a horse.

▪︎Gentleman Burglar Wirt - A scrapped concept in which Wirt breaks into a woman's home, who is charmed by this young man who has come to visit her.

▪︎Animal Transformation - It was originally planned for Wirt and Greg to be turned into a bear/dog and a duck and remain that way for several episodes. This was later used in the comics.

▪︎The Unknown is influenced by Wirt's mind/interests - The Unknown is influenced by those who walk in it, in this case, Wirt. This includes the old timey mystical nature of it, as Wirt has been stated to have an interest in old folk tales.

▪︎Good Guy Beast/Black Train Scrapped Concept - In an earlier draft, the brothers were on a train, heading to what they assumed was death. They jump off, ending up in the Unknown. The Beast tries to get them back on the train, which turns out to be heading back to life.

▪︎Evil Woodsman - At one point, the Woodsman was intended to be under the influence of the Beast and tried to sabotage the brothers's attempts to return home.

▪︎Lorna Reading the Tome of the Unknown in the Epilogue - In the epilogue, Lorna can be seen reading the titular book from the aforementioned scrapped plot.

▪︎The Beast was Originally the Devil Himself - The Beast was first designed as a devil-like character, the aforementioned Old Scratch.

▪︎The Brothers Never Went Home/The Hospital is Part of The Unknown - a theory based on the fact that the edges of the screen are still blurred at the end of chapter 10, the rushed narration, and the lack of consequences of nearly drowning.

▪︎Beatrice Seeing Wirt Nude - In one of the comics, Beatrice accidentally sees Wirt while he is washing his clothes in the river.

▪︎Sara is a Descendant of Lorna - A theory that Sara is a distant relative of Lorna.

▪︎Exists in the Same Universe as Clarence and Home Movies - The most well known piece of evidence is the overhead shot of the town matching the town that Clarence is set in. Wirt and Greg also have a cameo in another episode, and one of the final episodes shows Brendon Small of Home Movies runs a movie rental store in the town, connecting all three series together.

Final Layer

▪︎Beast x Wirt - Also known as Poetree.

▪︎Candycone - Greg x Wirt.

#otgw #over the garden wall #iceberg #iceberg meme #iceberg image #otgw iceberg

287 notes · View notes

imagines-r-s · 4 years ago

Text

sticking it - j. farabee

chapter 6

a/n: now you’ll all see why i said be excited for ch. 6 lmao. (also, with ch. 5 not showing up in the tags for a minute, some might not have seen it, so i’ll link it here) but anyways, this chapter was difficult to write bc i’m not used to writing anything but angst lmao. and huge shoutout to my baby gracie for helping me out with this chapter. please enjoy and i’d love to hear feedback

also, like i told an anon, this is in memory of bee’s hair :(( (he still looks good with the new hair, don’t get me wrong)

taglist: @butgilinsky @barbienoturbby @sunsetholland @lovenhlboys @sortagaysortahigh @hockey-racing-fubol @oopsiedoopsie23 @iwantahockeyhimbo @dreamsndior

warnings: (2) your mom jokes, jealous!joel?, once again simp nation for the both of them, swearing (it’s a problem ngl), idiocy

sticking it masterlist

wc: 4.1k

(gif not mine)

When you told Marcus and Michelle that you had to be out for a month, they advised you to only come to the gym three times a week for two hours for the first two weeks and you’d figure out a plan for the two weeks after, that way you could take a much needed break out of the gym. The thing stressing you out the most was gym and they obviously realized it, so they were hopeful it would give you a chance to breathe.

You planned to go to the gym Mondays, Tuesdays, and Fridays from 6-8am and then you would spend the rest of your day at home doing whatever you needed to do that day. The first Monday you spent those two hours doing ab workouts and helping the other girls around the gym, then you went home and stayed in your room for the rest of the day. You put your phone on do not disturb, so no one heard from you, which caused Kevin to come to your apartment to make sure you were okay.

Tuesday played out the exact same way, early practice, then going home and staying in bed, and Kevin coming to make sure you were alright. Kevin even invited you to come out with him and some of the boys, which you politely declined saying they should have their time together. Wednesday, you simply stayed in bed, choosing to actually keep your phone on today, you were just tired and felt drained from everything going on right now that you couldn’t really muster up the energy to talk to anyone.

Wednesday night, as you were rewatching Marvel movies, your phone started ringing with a call from Ryanne. Quickly answering it, “hey Ry.”

“Hey babes, how’re you doing?”

“I’ve been better, I’ve also been worse, so.”

“Me and Claude were wondering if you’d want to come over and hang out with us and Gav for some of the day, we’ll provide food and such, but we miss you, babe. So, we figured we’d ask while you have a chance.”

In reality, Ryanne had heard from Claude that you wouldn’t be able to do extensive training for at least a month. She might not have known much about gymnastics, but she knew you well enough to know that you were always constantly training - she was well aware that if that ever got taken from Claude that he would be devastated if he was out for that long and with two weeks to prepare for a big game.

She had checked in to see how you were with Kevin one day after practice and when he mentioned everything that was going on, she was worried about you. She knew that she likely wouldn’t be able to help much, but she did know that there was one part of the equation she could help. Knowing that she already had a plan to have a send off party before the boys went on a roadie and also knowing that everyone on the team would be there, she somehow conveniently planned to invite you over a few hours before it started.

“Oh, yeah, I’d love to, honestly. What time do you want me over?”

“Anytime after three is fine. I’ll see you then, hun. Oh, and wear something cute.”

“Why exactly?”

“Just do it,” Ryanne said, not having time to think of an excuse, “bye.”

As you were about to say something else, the ring that told you she had hung up rang out.

…..

Joel wasn’t doing as good as he wanted to be recently and with an upcoming roadie, he knew he needed to spend more time on the ice before the game. Having asked a few of the guys to work with him during an unscheduled morning skate, he was able to work on what he needed to.

“Wait, so she’s out how long?” Joel overheard Travis ask Kevin as he made his way into the locker room.

“Like four weeks, but two weeks with the brace and basically no training, then two weeks with athletic tape on her knee and no hard landings. But she’ll only have two weeks before Championships, so she's not feeling too great about it. Plus, she has to use her brace and crutches again and she didn’t enjoy that the first time,” Kevin replied.

“Is she going to be okay?” Joel hadn’t meant to ask his question aloud, but as soon as Kevin heard his voice a smile grew on his face.

“Yeah, Lover Boy, she’ll be fine. She hasn’t really been up to do anything recently, but other than that I think she’ll be okay. She has to use her crutches again, which is honestly very entertaining,” Kevin stated before turning to leave the locker room, turning right as he got to the doorway, “random question, are you planning on going to G’s for the send off party tomorrow night?”

“Yeah, why?”

“Just wondering,” and with that Kevin was gone, leaving a confused Joel behind.

Kevin knew that you had a lot on your plate right now and that you wouldn’t want to go to anyone about your problems. He also knew that the both you and Joel, were simply too stubborn to fix the problem going on between you on your own, hence why he had mentioned something to Ryanne. He knew that Ryanne would jump at the chance to be able to help you feel better and as soon as she mentioned the party set-up idea, he was in. The plan was then mentioned to most of the team, knowing that the help of many was needed in order to help the two idiots.

…..

After sending Kevin a quick text that you were leaving, you left your apartment and made your way to Ryanne and Claude’s house. Gently knocking on the door, you smiled when Ryanne opened the door, “awe, babe, I’m so happy you’re here, I missed you so much.”

“I missed you, too. Not to be rude, but where is the tiny human?” you asked, looking past Ryanne to see Gavin walking towards you, “hi, bub. Oh my god, you’re getting so big.”

“Well if you came around more often, you’d get to see him more,” Ryanne mumbled, watching you play with the boy in front of you.

“I heard that,” you said, in a sing-song voice.

“You were supposed to,” she replied, mocking your tone, “anyways, Claude is on his way back from the store, so he’ll be here soon, but I haven’t talked to you in forever, how’s everything? How’s gym?”

“Oh, well. I’ve been better, this last meet definitely wasn’t all that great and not being able to train doesn’t really help my case either, but I’m making the most of it,” you said, shrugging.

“And you’re actually having to listen to Adrian this time around?” she said, pointedly, causing you to chuckle.

“Yeah, I have to actually listen to Adrian this time,” you smiled, “I hate that I have to actually wear my knee brace, though. And I have to use crutches. Can you believe that?”

“Considering it’s you, I’m more shocked that you’re actually using them.”

“Ry, shh, let’s not call me out too much today,” you replied.

It wasn’t too long before you heard the front door open, Claude walking in a few seconds later, “awe, it’s my favorite babysitter. Come on, babe, let’s leave while we can.”

“Haha, I almost forgot how funny you are, G,” you said, sarcastically.

“I’m sure, I’m sure. You know what would be nice though?”

“What?”

“Helping me put the groceries up,” he said, smiling sweetly causing you to groan.

“Are chores and babysitting all I’m good for to you?”

“Well,” he looked up to the ceiling, as if he were thinking for another answer,”hm, nothing comes to mind, y/n/n.”

“Oh, that was mean,” Ryanne said, playfully elbowing Claude.

“Thank-”

“She’ll never babysit again if we’re mean to her,” Ryanne smirked.

“Oh, wow, I see how it is, don’t worry,” you said, the three of you laughing.

As the three of you were setting out groceries - you mostly sitting on the kitchen island, taking things out of the bag - the three of you caught up. Claude talking about his hopes for these next few games, Ryanne talking about how Gavin was doing - not missing the few times Gav ran through the kitchen -, and you talking about whatever you could.

“Ok, so we haven’t brought this up yet, but I was just wondering if you had any idea what’s going on with Beezer? I know you guys had gotten closer recently and he’s just not himself, so I’m asking if you know anything,” Claude asked, closing the fridge before turning back to you. Both him and Ryanne had a pretty good idea of what happened, but if they were missing something, they wanted to know.

“Oh, um, well, about that one,” you sighed, gathering your thoughts, “me and him kinda haven’t talked since I told him I only wanted to be friends.”

“Ok, but from the looks of it, it looked like both of you wanted to be more than friends?”

“Yeah, but, there’s a lot more to it, you know.”

“No, actually, I’m a tad bit lost, y/n/n.”

“Look, I can’t have any distractions right now and I was worried about it affecting gymnastics, so I told him I only want to be friends.”

“That’s dumb,” Claude replied, quickly.

“Thank you, many people have mentioned that.”

“He has no place to talk in a situation like this,” Ryanne finally spoke up, causing you to look between the pair confused, “when his life was just hockey, hockey, and hockey, nothing could fill those spots. So, when our relationship was first starting he did the same thing to me that you’re doing to Bee.”

“This was supposed to be a philosophical moment and you messed it up,” Claude replied.

“I didn’t mess it up, you’re just mad because you basically called yourself dumb. But pushing him away isn’t a smart option and it just hurts both of you in the process,” Ryanne said before walking back to where Gavin was.

“Look, I know you said you didn’t want distractions, but this seems to be having a worse effect on you than you hoped. From the looks of it, when you started pushing him away, it affected your performance. Just pointing that out for you.”

“Yeah, I know. You didn’t have to point it out, you know.”

“Yeah, but you would have continued to ignore the obvious fact that you were just scared of a relationship in general,” he shrugged.

“I don’t even know how to talk to him about it or at least how to start the conversation.”

“Well, lucky for you,” he looked down to check his watch, “the guys are all coming over in like 10 minutes, so you’ll see him then.”

“Huh?”

“Yeah, it’s a send off party for the roadie this weekend, why do you think we got so many groceries?” and with that he left you in the kitchen by yourself.

…..

Joel sat in the backseat of Kevin’s car, Nolan in the passenger seat, as they made their way to G’s house. By the time they got there, most of the guys had already gotten there, seeing a few familiar cars in the driveway, but one stood out in particular. He knew that it was yours from some of the times he had seen you driving, “what’s y/n/n doing here?”

Nolan and Kevin both chuckled at that, “she came over here earlier to watch Gavin, I think,” Kevin said.

“Oh, cool,” Joel replied, attempting to sound nonchalant as possible

“Don’t try to act like you’re not freaking out. You aren’t slick, dude,” Nolan added, shaking his head, “you two better talk, too. Because everyone is tired of the two of you being idiots and not talking shit out.”

“We’re not idiots.”

“You are,” the other two said in unison. Joel didn’t try to argue as he followed the pair inside their captain’s house.

As soon as he entered the house, he took note that almost all the team was here, most of the team was outside, but he immediately found you sitting on one of the barstools with Gavin sitting on your lap as you talked with Ryanne. “Go talk to her,” Nolan whispered, causing him to jump.

“God, Pat. What the fuck?” Joel said turning around.

“I said what I said. You’ll have to talk at some point, might as well just do it. Plus, she’s on crutches, so like, if she wants to run away it will take her a while.”

“Um, that’s- I mean, that’s valid, but-”

“At some point today, you should talk to her. I obviously can’t make you and it’s up to you, but I think it would help fix things,” Nolan said, shrugging.

“Yeah, I know, I know. I plan on it.”

You and Ryanne had stayed inside with Gav since the boys were grilling outside, so when Nolan, Kevin, and Joel walked in, you were one of the first people to notice. Kevin made his way over to you almost as soon as he came in, “so, you enjoying the party?”

“Considering I didn’t know it was happening, sure I’m having a great time, Kev.”

“Well, I guess it’s a surprise party then,” you quickly shot him a glare, “surprise.”

As you heard the back door open, you looked up to see Joel already looking at you, shooting you a quick smile as he followed his teammate to go outside. “I swear, if all you guys do tonight is spare glances at each other and don’t talk, I’m going to lose it,” Ryanne said from beside you.

“I think everyone will, to be honest,” Kevin added, “well, I’m going outside. If you need any help, just let me know.”

The boys had a few different plans in place to get the two of you to talk; conveniently sending Joel in to help while you were inside, telling Joel to go help out inside, asking Joel to get Gavin, and as a last resort, make Joel jealous.

When everyone had been done eating, Claude asked some of the younger guys to help him clean up and bring out the cooler with drinks that was still inside. Joel had somehow conveniently avoided going inside while helping and when he did, he went straight to the kitchen and right back out. He wasn’t wanting to avoid you all night, but he didn’t know what to do. Shortly after, Claude had asked Joel to go in and get Gavin, somehow right as you had left Gavin with Ryanne, which also ruined that plan.

Ryanne knew that it would be suspicious if they kept trying those same plans. So instead, she basically forced you to go outside with her. She helped you get outside, Kevin shooting up from his chair to help you get down the stairs of the deck, “you don’t have to help me out, Kev.”

“Knowing you, you would trip and break something. You’re already hurt enough,” he said, causing you to roll your eyes. As Kevin looked up, he didn’t miss the way Joel lit up as he saw you, “hey, your boy is looking over here.”

Looking up, your eyes once again met his, to which you sent him a light smile, “yeah, he’s been watching me since I stepped out here.”

“y/n/n, you would only know that if you were looking at him, too.”

“Yeah, I never said that I wasn’t though.”

“You know, it’s obvious the two of you aren’t mad at each other or anything like that. So, why the fuck haven’t you talked yet?”

“Oh, um. Words are hard,” you said, walking away towards Travis and Nolan on your crutches.

“You’re literally on crutches, you aren’t moving that fast.”

“You know who else isn’t moving that fast?”

“y/n. I swear, if this is another your-”

“Your mom,” you yelled back to him.

“What is up with you and making your mom jokes?” Nolan asked as you got closer to them.

“They’re funny?”

“y/n/n just has the sense of humor of a middle school boy, that’s why her and Beezer got along so well,” Travis added, helping you move your crutches so you could sit down at the table they were at, “how are the crutches?”

“How’s your mom?” you laughed, causing the two of them to groan, “nah, they’re not fun. In any way shape or form.”

As you were talking to Nolan and Teeks, Kevin and Ryanne realized that none of the plans they had tried were working. Both of them knew that the only plan that would probably work was to make Joel jealous, so Kevin texted Carter, Morgan, Nolan, and Teeks to let them know that was the plan that they were going with.

“y/n looks really good today,” Carter said, causing Joel to spit out his drink.

“Better watch yourself, Hartsy,” Joel replied, shooting a glare towards his friend.

“I was just being honest, she really does. There’s nothing going on between you guys anymore, right?” Carter watched as Joel visibly tensed at the mention of what was happening between the two of you, knowing that the plan was working he continued, “I mean, if nothings going on between you two, then she’s single, right?”

“Well, I mean-” Joel stuttered out, “we haven’t talked in a while, but that doesn’t mean-”

“I’ll be right back, okay?” Carter said, making his way over to the table you were at, causing Nolan and TK to chuckle as they saw Joel’s face drop, “hey, y/n/n.”

“Hey, Hartsy, it’s been a minute. How is everything?” you smiled. You kept talking to the group around you for a while, not noticing the way Joel was becoming visibly angry. He didn’t want to seem jealous, but he assumed that Carter had been flirting with you this whole time, so he made the executive decision to talk to you now.

Since your back was facing him, you didn’t see him coming, but the three boys around you did, only trying to hide their smiles since the plan was actually working. “Hey y/n, can we talk?” he asked.

You turned around to finally face the boy you had been avoiding, “yeah, hold on a sec.” As you continued some of your conversation, Joel was getting more and more irritated, mostly because Carter was sending looks his way that he couldn’t exactly read. Joel, being the impatient person he was, pulled the chair you were sitting at away from the table, pulling you up to stand before lifting you up over his shoulder, “Bee, what the fuck?”

He simply ignored you as he carried you up the stairs and back inside his captain’s house. You tried pushing yourself off as he made his way up the stairs, but it was deemed useless when he just tightened his grip, “Farabee, I swear to god. I will hurt you.”

Eventually, he opened the door to the guest bathroom and gently set you down on the counter before locking the door, “what the fuck was that for? If you want to talk, you could have just waited a second. But no, you had to be all dramatic about it,” you said, rolling your eyes.

“Are you done?” Joel asked, crossing his arms and leaning back against the door.

“I mean, yeah. Are you?”

“Yeah, but I’m tired of us ignoring each other and I miss you, so we need to figure stuff out.”

“Awe, you miss me? That’s cute,” you smiled.

“y/n/n, I swear, now is not the time for that one.”

“Ok, sorry. I’ll be serious now,” you said, crossing your arms to mock him.

“I just want to know what happened at the lake?”

“Oh, we’re going straight to the point, alright,” you sighed, “look, what I said at the lake wasn’t true. I got this idea in my head that if you were in my life, you were a distraction from what I wanted.”

“How’d that work out for you?” he said, smirking.

“Oh, no, see that’s what we’re not going to do. No need for the attitude. Anyways, I had this idea that if anything happened between us, that I would mess it up and it would mess everything in my life up. So, pushing you away was the safest option.”

Joel took a moment to gather his thoughts before pushing himself off the door and made his way closer to you, ending up standing between your legs with his hands on either side of you, “look, I’m saying this and I mean it. I understand where you’re coming from with the fear of distractions thing, but I want you to know that I would never intentionally keep you from your goals and dreams. I’m just extra support, you know.”

“Yeah, I realized that after you ran from the lake house. We could have had this figured out by now, if you had stayed,” you said, sarcastically. Rolling your eyes for added dramatic effect.

“Oh, shut up. You have no place to talk, babe,” he said, smiling when he heard you giggle, “what was that for?”

“I kinda missed you calling me babe, I guess. Kinda crazy, dude.”

“Awe, so you did miss me?”

“I never said I didn’t,” you said, quietly reaching up to wrap your arms around his neck. You saw the way that his eyes went from your eyes to your lips, “I also missed this,” and with that you pulled him closer until your lips met in a long awaited kiss.

As the two of you broke away, your foreheads were still together, “hey, Bee?”

“Yeah?”

“You know who else I missed? Your mom,” you laughed.

“Way to ruin the moment, babe,” he smiled, “That was funny though, so I respect it.”

“Dude, I’m so funny sometimes.”

“Looks aren’t everything, babe,” he said, laughing at the gasp you responded with.

“Oh, that was rude. I’ll get you back one day though,” you watched as he went to leave the bathroom, “hey, Bee. I’m not supposed to walk without crutches, hate to break it to you.”

Rolling his eyes, he made his way back to you, turning around right in front of you, “here.” You leaned a little bit forward, wrapping your arms around his neck once again as he readjusted his grip on the back of your legs, so he could give you a piggyback ride on the way back outside.

“You know, they didn’t tell me there was a party,” you spoke as he made his way back towards the door.

“Oh, they said it was teammates only and then I saw your car,” he replied, pausing a moment as the two of you realized what had happened at the same time, “so, this was-”

“Yep.”

“And Hartsy saying he was going to ask you out was part of it?”

“Hartsy said he was going to do that,” you started cackling. “Wait, were you jealous of him?” you asked laughing even harder.

“It’s not funny.”

“Oh, yeah. I know, it’s hilarious.”

“I will drop you right now,” he said, as he opened the door for outside, “and you’ll stuck right here, Ms. ‘I can’t walk down stairs right now’.”

“That’s a low blow,” you said, as the two of you made your way back to the table you were at.

“Oops, sorry, babe,” he set you down close to your chair, but sat down before you could.

“Oh, so now you steal my chair, too?”

“Oh, shut up, you’re fine,” he said, pulling you to sit in his lap, “there you go.”

“So, I see the two of you made up?” Nolan asked, pointing at the two of you.

“We also made out, in case you were wondering,” Joel replied, earning an elbow to the stomach, “ow, that hurt.”

“Sucks to suck, babe,” you replied, causing the smile on his face to grow even more.

When Kevin and Ryanne watched the two of you walk back outside, they were happy to see that the plan worked. Ryanne simply laughed and shook her head as she heard the exchange between the two of you, “they are so in love and I don’t even think they realize it.”

“Ryanne, that is a big word, that I’m not prepared for. So, please, let’s not do that today,” Kevin replied, earning a laugh from Ryanne, “they’re happy though, that’s all that matters to me.”

#sticking it #joel farabee #nhl imagines #nhl imagine #philadelphia flyers #joel farabee x reader #joel farabee imagines #hockey imagines #hockey imagine #beezer #joel farabee x gymnast!reader

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mortedeveles · 4 years ago

Text

Valentine’s Day, but make it illegal!

SUMMARY: Denki has been planning for weeks on how to ask his dearest crush, you, on Valentine’s Day. But once the holiday has arrived, luck doesn’t seem to be on his side...

PAIRING: Denki Kaminari x fem!reader

THEMES: Fluff, humor, slight angst but overall lighthearted. [ONE-SHOT] [CUPID��S ARROW WRITING EVENT]

WORD COUNT: 4.7K (around 4702 words)

TAG’S AND TW’S: Illegal activity (don’t try this at home kids) trespassing, mentions of insecurities, blood and minor injuries, a bit of hurt comfort but mostly fluffy, romantic pining.

before you read (!!!): this fic is part of the writing event, Cupid’s Arrow! check out our masterlist if you’re interested in more Valentine Day themed works <3 please support the event with REBLOGS, likes and follows!!

Out of all the things Denki Kaminari considered himself to be, brave wasn’t exactly one of them. Sure, he could muster up the courage to tease Bakugou about something silly, then run away in fear, or pull off some stupidly dangerous stunts, but when it came to you, it felt like all the adrenaline and courage in the world abandoned him.

Left him to fend for himself, stuttering like an idiot, or simply being way dumber than his usual self. He would race off with burning cheeks after making a mistake in front of you, attempting to forget the fool he made out of himself. And you never brought it up, which he was extremely grateful for. It was just another reason why he had the biggest, fattest crush on you. You never judged him for his chaotic antics, never insulted him, or felt ashamed of him.

Denki knew he was a big flirt, and even though he would occasionally try a cheesy pick-up line on you, it never worked. You would only laugh and pat his shoulder, telling him it was a good pick up line to use on someone. Why didn’t you see that the only person he wanted to conquer with his lines was you? That’s why he always told you them, always tried to be as romantic as one could, but you never picked up on it.

Every unintentional rejection of yours left him to mope alone and disappointed. He had tried everything- tried using all the pick-up lines he knew of, would try to invite you on a date, but you always waved him off, almost as if you didn’t even believe him.

As the months came by and quickly left, February was here in a blink of an eye. The cold weather continued, some days were chillier than others, and on some days, there would be the occasional sunny view. Not much warmth, but at least some sunlight.

The number fourteen on Denki’s calendar haunted him. Valentine’s Day was approaching quicker than he’d like, but he had decided that he would ask you out, for once and for all, on the upcoming day. The thing was, he still hadn’t completely made up his mind. Unsure of what to do for the special holiday, he decided to consult Kirishima, Sero, and Mina after class. When Denki brought up the topic of asking you out, Bakugou merely snorted and walked out of the classroom, not before muttering, ‘’Just ask her out dunce head, it’s not that hard.’’

His shoulders slumped with a dramatic sigh, and the remaining of his friends watched him with sympathetic gazes. They found themselves sitting in the 1A classroom, just after the final school bell of the day had rung. You had quickly left, walking away with Uraraka and Midoriya. Denki and his friends huddled in the center of the classroom, sitting on some desks that weren’t theirs- but since Aizawa-sensei had left early for the day, there was no one around to reprimand them.

‘’I don’t know what to do,’’ he groaned into his hands, ‘’I can’t screw this up- it has to be perfect. But…’’

‘’You don’t know what to do.’’ Sero completed the sentence for him, and Denki moaned in response.

‘’Well, I don’t think you have to do something extraordinary, bro,’’ Kirishima piped in. ‘’Y/N likes you for who you are, not for some facade of sorts. Just be you, and you’ll be fine.’’

Mina tapped her fingers on the table, remaining to stay silent for once. Sero hummed, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. ‘’You’re not wrong Kirishima, but knowing Denki, Y/N might kiss him and he’ll end up accidentally electrocuting her.’’

Kirishima laughed heartily at this, while Denki pouted. Mina gasped loudly, raising a finger in the air. She then grinned and clasped her hands together, rubbing them vigorously.

‘’I know what you should do, Denki! I’ve just thought of something,’’ she leaned towards the blonde, whispering into his ear. Kirishima and Sero watched the exchange, as Denki’s droopy eyes quickly widened.

‘’No!’’ He yelled out, and Mina cackled as his face went bright red. ‘’I’m not- I’m not doing that!’’

‘’What did Mina suggest?’’ Sero asked and Denki grumbled.

‘’She told me to-to put a trail of roses in Y/N’s room, and sit on her bed, a rose in my mouth and half-naked!’’ He cried out, and by how flustered he was, it wouldn’t be long until steam puffed out of his ears.

His friends laughed loudly, while he rubbed his ears, feeling the warm skin against his palm.

‘’I am not doing that,’’ he stated and Mina snickered.

‘’Okayy...’’ she sang-song, ‘’I was just trying to help you out!’’

Denki huffed, shaking his head. ‘’I may be a big flirt, but that’s… waaay out of my boundaries.’’

Sero chuckled. He then began to shoot small strips of tape out of his elbows, absentmindedly placing them on the desk. Kirishima hummed in his seat, his sharp teeth poking out.

‘’Well,’’ the red-hair started. ‘’Y/N’s quirk has to do with nature, right? Maybe you could take her to a camping site. Or a park, but I think maybe she’d like to spend a night outdoors.’’

‘’Kiri…’’ Denki trailed off. ‘’That’s the best idea I’ve ever heard!’’ He quickly scrambled out of his seat.

‘’Wait- where are you going?’’ Kirishima and Mina called after him, watching as their friend tripped over a seat before racing out of the classroom.

‘’I need to plan this date!’’ He shouted. ‘’If I want everything to go as planned, I need to start working now!’’

The remaining U.A. students chuckled at their friends’ antics, before returning to look at each other.

‘’Do you think the date will go alright?’’ Mina piped in.

Kirishima shrugged. ‘’I don’t know,’’ Sero responded. ‘’Knowing Denki, they might end up in trouble, or lost somewhere.’’

Kirishima laughed, slapping Sero on the back. ‘’Let’s have a little bit more faith in our human Pikachu, Sero. Who knows? They might end up dating after Valentine’s Day.’’

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Today was the fated day. It was February 14th, and Denki didn’t think he could be any more nervous than he already was. With a rose in his hand and a box of chocolates in another, he slowly trudged into his first period, eyes immediately landing on your seated figure. You were smiling, laughing, and nodding along with whatever Mina was talking about. But when the pink girl spotted him, she grinned, before bidding goodbye to you.

Aizawa-sensei hadn’t arrived yet. The blonde took a deep breath, feeling his heart ready to explode. This was it. He was going to walk up to you, give you a charming smile, and ask you out without hesitation.

‘’Here goes nothing,’’ he told himself before approaching your desk. Your head was ducked, focused on a notebook you had just pulled out.

Denki cleared his throat and straightened his posture as you looked up at him with a welcoming smile.

‘’Hey, Denki, what’s up?’’ You saw the flower and chocolates in his hand but didn’t say anything.

‘’Um…’’ he felt just like when he’d overuse his quirk, dumb and unable to say anything. You were just so damn pretty, and he was speechless every time he met your gaze.

‘’Would-would you like to go out with me today?’’ His voice was much squeakier and nervous than he’d like, but Denki mentally clapped himself on the back for being able to do it.

Now, it was up to you. Your eyes widened in surprise, lips slightly parting open.

‘’Wait...that’s for me?’’ You pointed at the flower and chocolates. Denki suddenly became aware how most of his classmates had gone quiet, and were watching the two of you. Not trusting himself to speak, he nodded in response.

‘’Do you, um, wanna be my Valentine’s?’’ The blonde cursed as his voice escaped as a squeak yet again. But when you smiled widely, his worries were washed away in an instant.

‘’I would love to!’’ Some of his classmates began to cheer, while you stood up and wrapped your arms around him, pulling him into a tight hug. Your perfume suddenly invaded his senses, and his mind was foggy, unable to focus on anything but you.

Wait... you accepted-?! Denki couldn’t stop the dopey smile that spread across his lips as he returned your hug, basking in your lovely scent.

‘’Grea-great!’’ He stammered but felt his confidence return quickly. ‘’I’ll pick you up at your dorm at four o’clock, is that okay with you?’’

His heart stuttered at your bright smile. God, you were so cute.

‘’That works with me!’’

For the rest of the school day, Denki could not stop thinking about you. The rush of confidence and happiness he felt was still there, but so was something else. He felt his insecurities creep onto him.

What was he going to say during the date…? Should he dress in any particular way? Wait- he was the one who had decided on the location, so he should know. Should he bring you more flowers? Did you even like the flowers and chocolate he gave you? What if you’re allergic to flowers and he didn’t know-?! You had accepted the gifts and thanked him nonstop, but what if you were just pitying him…?

He was growing nervous and antsy. Unable to stop thinking about the future, he sat on the lunch bench next to Kirishima, tapping his leg up and down. Sero and Mina were talking, but Denki had his mind on other things.

He had decided to go with Kirishima’s idea, a date at a camping site, which was in a fairly popular park near U.A. Denki had checked the park’s website, reading over the type of events they had. He had also heard that there was a beautiful view at the park, but it was extremely dangerous so it was restricted. But Denki would find the way to show it to you, he was sure of it.

And before he knew it, the blonde found himself standing outside your dorm, extremely aware of Mina and Kirishima watching from the wall corner down the hall, murmuring excitedly. He swallowed nervously, feeling small beads of sweat form on his forehead. This is it, he thought as his fist fell upon the wooden door.

‘’Hey!’’ You greeted him cheerfully as the door swung open. Denki’s mouth opened, jaw slackening as he stared at you, eyes trailing over your outfit. You felt slightly scrutinized under his gaze but felt your cheeks warm up as well.

‘’Hey... you look really nice.’’ He murmured, nervously scratching the back of his head. You smiled, hands tightening around your backpack straps. Denki was staring at you in awe as if you were wearing the finest of silks and jewelry. But really, you were just wearing a comfortable grey tracksuit, paired with some black running shoes, a backpack with some essentials, and a sleeping bag hung around your shoulder, you were ready to go. He’d told you during English that you would go camping, so you decided to prepare for the trip.

‘’Thanks, you look good as well.’’ The blonde was sporting a black jacket and black sweatpants, with a yellow lightning bolt sewn onto the upper left shoulder, sporting a pair of black sneakers similar to yours. His hair was slightly ruffled and you resisted the urge to reach out and hold the golden locks between your fingers.

’It’s nothing,’’ he waved you off, but the soft blush that spread across his cheeks made you smile. ‘’Anyways, uhm, are you ready to go?’’

‘’Yeah!’’ You adjusted the bag around your shoulder, stepping out of your dorm, locking it behind you. ‘’Let’s do this.’’

Denki smiled brightly, and you felt your heart stutter. He outstretched his hand and with a shy smile, you took it.

The two of you quickly walked out of the dorm buildings, your friends cheering and whooping behind you, and you couldn’t help but laugh as your face grew warmer. Denki glanced at you, and the two of you shared a bright smile.

‘’So, where are we going? You told me to we’re going camping, but you didn’t say where…’’ You questioned, your hand that was intertwined with Denki gently swinging back and forth.

‘’Oh! Well, I was thinking about it for a long time,’’ he paused. ‘’Like a really, really long time,’’ you giggled. ‘’So uh, I thought we could spend the night at this national park! They have a camping area, a local store and so on. What do you think…?’’ He stopped for a second, staring at you as he awaited your reaction.

‘’Oh, cool!’’ The idea truly did excite you. ‘’Sounds great, I haven’t camped in so long.’’ The blonde smiled widely, and the two of you continued to walk away from the campus, and into the streets, where a car awaited.

‘’I order a taxi for us,’’ Denki explained. ‘’Let’s go!’’

➴➵➶➴➵➶➴➵➶➴➵➶➴➵➶

‘’Wow, this place is beautiful…’’ was the first sentence that left your lips as the two of you stepped out of the taxi, which quickly drove away. The scenery ahead of you left you speechless. So much nature, trees, it was nearly impossible to describe it in mere words. A sea of tall and towering trees surrounded the park, with a cement trail a few ahead of you, some bushes and rocks littered between trees. From the corner of your eye, you saw a squirrel climb up a tree, and grinned, forcing down a squeal of excitement.

‘’I love it!’’ You turned to look at Denki, who was already looking at you. His head jolted back in embarrassment, cheeks blooming red.

‘’Yeah? I’m glad you think so. Come on, let’s go find our camping site. I made a reservation, so we should be fine.’’

‘’Oh my, okay then,’’ you walked beside him, your backpack gently bouncing on your back with every excited step you took. ‘’You planned all of this out, huh Denki? It’s amazing, I love it.’’ You stopped in your tracks, and the blonde did the same. He smiled nervously, shrugging his shoulders casually.

‘’It was nothing,’’ but you saw how he shied away from your gaze. ‘’But I’m glad you love it.’’ He gave you a warm smile, radiation so much genuine happiness and pleasure that you nearly melted into a puddle.

‘’Well then,’’ you cleared your throat, looking away with burning cheeks. ‘’We have to go find our site, right?’’

The blonde nodded silently, and the two of you continued to walk in the stone path. Eventually, the path led to a widespread area. There were two small wooden housings at your left- what you assumed were the local convenience stores, and in front of you, stood an array of camping tents, and three campfires.

It wasn’t particularly crowded, with only a few people in the area, chattering animatedly. No one paid mind to you both as you walked to the camping tent on the farthest left, which was also the closest to the trees. The tent was a bright yellow and shaped like a triangular pyramid, a column of sticks holding it up from the center on the inside. The color reminded you of the blonde on your left, and you smiled.

‘’So, the tents here are kinda small, sorry ‘bout that. But I did rent the biggest size they have, hopefully, it’ll be comfortable enough for the two of us.’’ Denki explained. The two of you dropped your bags on the ground, kicking off your shoes and opening the tent. It was rather cramped, but you didn’t mind.

‘’Sounds good to me!’’ You replied. Your eyes trailed over the inside of the tent. It was empty, and the two of you began to unpack, first unfurling your sleeping bags and laying them on the ground. It was a tight fit, and the implications of it made you swallow nervously. There was no space left between the two sleeping bags, which meant you’d have to sleep really, really close to Denki. The thought of it made your stomach twist and your heart stuttered.

Once the bags were spread and your backpack definitely felt lighter, the two of you set them on top of the sleeping bags and sat down.

‘’So,’’ you traced your fingers on the tent’s flooring, a thin grey carpet. ‘’What’s the agenda for today?’’

‘’Okay, so first we’re going to walk on a trail with a tourist guide, do whatever we want, maybe some birdwatching and eat dinner? And then once it’s night time, return and roast some marshmallows over the bonfire. How does that sound?’’

‘’Lovely,’’ you smiled and Denki nodded. ‘’Yeah, so…’’ he pulled out his phone and nodded to himself.

‘’The tour begins in twenty minutes, so we’re here just in time. In the meanwhile, want to go outside and get to know the park?’’

‘’Sure.’’ You said. Denki stepped out of the tent, and you followed, about to get up when he outstretched his hand towards you.

‘’Would you do me the honor, m’lady?’’ He then bowed dramatically, and you giggled as you took his hand, standing up on your feet.

‘’Alright then Romeo, let’s go exploring.’’

➴➵➶➴➵➶➴➵➶➴➵➶➴➵➶

After hours of walking, one bird attack, and some roasted marshmallows later, you were curled up in your sleeping bag, the night calm and steady. Denki was right about the tent being tight, and honestly, you weren’t sure if you were thankful or just a nervous wreck.

He was so close to you. His warm breath was fanning your closed eyes, and you swallowed nervously. Somehow, you ended up sleeping on your side, facing him, and now your hands were brushing against his, knees bumping every now and then. Slowly, you opened one eye and peeked at him. He was sound asleep, snoring. You giggled. You followed after, gently closing your eyes and falling into a deep slumber. That is, until you heard Denki’s hushed voice, and your shoulders gently being shaken by him.

‘’Psst! Y/N, wake up,’’ he murmured, and you slowly opened your eyes, mumbling in confusion.

‘’Denki?’’ you murmured, sitting up and leaning your elbows. ‘’What’s going on?’’

‘’I have to show you something,’’ there was a gleeful smile on his lips. ‘’Can you get up? Let’s go, we have to sneak out.’’

‘’Mmm..’’ you groaned in protest, but eventually got up, dusted off your clothes, and trudged behind Denki, exiting the tent. You slipped on your running shoes, and he did the same.

Crickets were chirping, the wind was gentle tonight, and it was mostly ark tonight, other than the moon shining down. You looked up and smiled. Being away from the city and deep into nature, the stars in the sky were much visible. It was a beautiful sight.

‘’Wow, it’s beautiful out here.’’ You commented. ‘’Yeah,’’ Denki replied, but he wasn’t looking at the sky. His gaze was pinned directly on you, a soft smile on his lips. ‘’It is.’’

His unwavering gaze made your face feel hot. So with a slight tremor in your walk, you went up towards him, waiting for him to take the lead. You stood next to one of the campfires, which had already been put out earlier, and there was nothing but some wood and ashes.

‘’What did you want to show me?’’ You piped in, wringing your hands nervously, unsure how to feel with Denki’s sudden quietness and intense stare.

‘’Oh, it’s this way. C’mon.’’ Without any further warning, the blonde slipped his hand into yours, walking further away from the camping tents and into the sea of trees. Denki’s hand was really warm, and how he took your hand without hesitation made butterflies swarm in your stomach.

You didn’t know where you were going. Lost sense of direction, and only clung to your friend’s hand. He was holding a flashlight in his other hand, leading the way. You stepped over tree branches, dead leaves and heard small critters chirp around you.

A few more minutes went by until you heard a noise. It was faint, but only grew louder the more you walked straight ahead. The unmistakable noise of water. You perked up, the haze of sleepiness clouding you quickly diminishing, and focused on the noise. You felt it too, how the air became cooler, and the sound of falling water slowly surrounding you.

You saw a gleam of water in the distance but was met with a wired fence in front of you. Confused, you turned to Denki.

‘’Here, hold this,’’ he handed you the flashlight, before gripping the fence, slowly climbing upwards.

‘’Wait, Denki-!’’ You exclaimed when you realized what he was doing. Then your eyes swept to your sides, and your blood ran cold as you saw the big, bold and red warning sign that read; RESTRICTED AREA. ANY TRESPASSERS WILL BE ARRESTED AND FINED.

‘’Denki!” you hissed as he jumped over the wired fence, eyes darting around to make sure there wasn’t anyone else around. ‘’Are you sure this is legal?!’’

He nodded quickly,- a little too fast for your liking, which made your suspicions heighten. ‘’Of course, it is!’’ he responded eagerly, offering you his hand. ‘’Why wouldn’t it be?’’

You sighed. ‘’Because, it’s already dark, there’s no one here, and I’m pretty sure that sign to my left says that this area is off-limits.’’

‘’Pfft, that old thing?’’ The blonde shrugged and shook his head in denial. ‘’Doesn’t matter. We’ll be fine!’’ He waved you off.

‘’Anyway, can you throw over the flashlight? Then climb over here.’’ With a defeated groan, you threw the flashlight over the wired fence- which wasn’t too tall, around one and a half meters at most.

Denki caught it in his hands, and you began to climb. Days, months of training helped you move quickly without any major difficulties, and before you knew it, you were on the top, springing towards the floor. Except, you didn’t notice the top of the fence had particularly sharp wire ends, and pressed your hand against it, before jumping down to the ground.

‘’Fuck!’’ You hissed when pain sprang from your palm and watched as blood seeped out of it. ‘’Oh god.’’

‘’Are you okay? What happened-oh.’’ Denki’s mouth fell shut when he noticed your bleeding hand. Then his eyes widened and he sprang into action.

‘’Oh, shit! Does it hurt a lot? I’m so sorry,’’ he began to ramble, and looked around at his surroundings, anything to stop the bleeding. ‘’Fuck, shit,’’ the blonde took off his jacket and your eyes widened.

‘’Wait, no Denki-! That’s one of your new jackets, it’ll get stained with the blood!’’ But he didn’t listen to you and insisted, wrapped one of the sleeves around your palm and gently pressed down, the cloth soaking up the blood.

‘’It doesn’t matter,’’ he stated. ‘’You’re hurt, and it’s my fault. I can’t just stand here and do nothing about it,’’ the last part of his sentence came out as a whisper, but you still caught the words with a frown.

‘’Hey,’’ you gently reached out for his arm, squeezing it reassuringly. ‘’It’s not your fault, okay? Don’t worry about it. It’s just a minor cut, I’ll be fine.’’

‘’But it is my fault,’’ he looked at you pleadingly, almost desperately. Your chest ached.

‘’I’m so dumb, this is all my fault. If I hadn’t insisted on us trespassing, none of this would’ve happened. Fuck, I’m so sorry, I never meant for you to get hurt, I’m lucky enough as it is that you gave me a chance today -,’’ you stopped him with a finger against his lips, frowning at the sight of his watery eyes.

‘’Hey, hey, everything is okay,’’ you said gently, dropping your now wrapped left hand to the side, and held Denki’s chin with the other.

‘’Everything will be alright. You’re not dumb, okay? Don’t ever say that,’’ his lip wobbled. ‘’And what do you mean, you’re lucky enough I gave you a chance? I would’ve said yes anytime, Denki.

‘’Wait...really?’’ He looked genuinely shocked, and it made your heart ache.

‘’Yes, I’m serious Denki. I’ve liked you for so long, didn’t you know?’’

‘’Oh.’’ His sudden silence from the shock made you giggle. But then his eyes drifted to your wrapped hand, and he frowned.

‘’Hey, hey,’’ you murmured, bringing his attention from your hand to your face. ‘’My hand’s all wrapped up now, I’ll get it cleaned up on the way back, why don’t you show me wherever you wanted to go first?’’ Denki was quiet and didn’t remove his eyes from your face, and your heart stuttered when his gaze fell open your lips.

‘’Okay,’’ he said but made no moves to step away. The blonde and you suddenly became aware of how little distance there was between the two of you. You couldn’t stop thinking about how tempting Denki’s lips looked, and his thoughts weren’t too far from yours.

‘’Can I..can I kiss you?’’ The words left his mouth before he could even register them. You smiled, and instead of answering, you leaned forward.

A needy, almost desperate ghost of a groan left Denki’s throat when you met his lips, and you noticed how his eyes widened, but you merely smiled against his mouth. He wasn’t rough, but his movements were fast, desperate as if this would be the last time his lips met yours.

Your hands trailed to his hair, gently toying with the tips, and Denki melted even more into the kiss. It was enthralling, kissing your friend, but before you could get carried away, you pulled away, hands resting on the blonde’s chest. It was heaving up and down, and you smiled at the sight of Denki’s pink lips, now swollen and reddish.

‘’You know, when you asked me out earlier today, I didn’t expect things to end up like this,’’ you commented, and the boy chuckled.

‘’Yeah, me either.’’ He slowly took your hand in his once again, and the two of you began to walk forward. Your surroundings were pretty much the same as before, walking in a multitude of trees and nature, with no clear path ahead.

‘’I heard water,’’ you said. ‘’Earlier, when we arrived at the fence. Is there a lake or something here?’’

Denki gave you a sly smile. ‘’Maybe. You’ll have to wait and see for yourself, Y/N-chan.’’ You smiled at his response, and the two of you fell back into a comfortable silence, feet trudging along the grass and dirt.

‘’We’re almost there,’’ he said, and you could tell. There were fewer trees as if forming a path straight forward. Finally, you caught the sight of the water, and let out a breathless sigh. It was a beautiful sight. There was a waterfall across the forest, the water pouring down into a lake below, and with the moon shining on it, it left you mesmerized.

‘’Oh, be careful,’’ Denki held you back when you walked forward, eyes pinned on the waterfall. ‘’It’s a cliff here, so we don’t want to walk too far and fall, but we can sit on the edge if you want to.’’

‘’Yeah,’’ you agreed and smiled. The two of you walked forward, hands clasped together tightly. Soon enough, you reached the edge of the cliff and tentatively, peeked at the bottom. Your stomach lurched a bit, seeing the distance, but instead, you ripped your gaze away from it and sat down with Denki.

‘’I really enjoyed today,’’ you commented, swinging your legs back and forth. Denki looked at you, and his hand slowly crept to yours as he gave you a nervous smile.

‘’I’m glad,’’ he said. ‘’I wanted it to be special for you.’’

You exhaled with a small smile, before quickly leaning towards the blonde, landing a brief kiss on his mouth, and pulling away. Despite kissing earlier, his face still went red as a tomato.

‘’Oh-oh wow,’’ he looked dumbfounded before his face brightened. ‘’… does this mean I get horny rights-?’’

You sighed but cracked a smile. ‘’Say that again and I’m pushing you off this cliff, Denki.’’

‘’Okay, okay,’’ he raised his hands in surrender, and gave you a lopsided grin. ‘’It was worth a try.’’

a/n: ahh!! this was my first time writing for denki, i hope it’s okay!! i struggle with characterization a lot. anyways, check out the Cupid’s Arrow masterlist if you want more Valentine’s Day themed content!

if you enjoyed, please leave a like, REBLOG, comment, and/or follow! all the support is greatly appreciated <3

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ladyblogger-margie · 4 years ago

Text

Permit Pending - Part 4

Pairing: Will Miller (Triple Frontier) x F!Reader

Summary: When Will tries to push you away, you turn to the Morales’ for help.

Words Count: 3304

Rating: 18+ ONLY (PTSD related issues, shower sex, unprotected sex, cream pie, PinV penetrative sex) Some angst.

a/n: Thank you to everyone whose been reading, sharing, and liking this series! If you’re struggling with mental health, it’s okay to reach out for support. Take care of yourselves!

Series Master List

All In

“You’ve reached, Will Miller. Please leave your name and number after the beep and I will return your call as soon as I am able,” Will’s voicemail spoke to you, just as it had all day when you tried to call him.

The morning after you witnessed the true weight of Will’s PTSD symptoms you had woken up alone. You knew that his PTSD was something he struggled with; you had noticed him wince at a car backfire when walking through the park one day, and a few other small moments, but this was different. He called this an episode. You’ve never been with someone with PTSD before and didn’t know the etiquette, you were waiting for him to talk to you first.

That being said, you had done some research and felt so stupid for forgetting everything you had read the moment he woke you up in the middle of the night. It was just so unexpected, the night before had seemed totally average. You guys watched some mindless science-fiction movie you didn’t care about; you were barely paying attention as Will had spent most of the time with his hand gripped tightly around your hip which had been way more interesting for sure. He was quiet before you went to sleep, but you just assumed he was tired. In retrospect, you could see the slightest hint of the signs peeking beneath his calm exterior. Signs you promised you’d never miss again.

You checked your phone, rereading the two texts you’ve already sent him in response to the simple message you’d woken up to instead of your boyfriend’s warm embrace. “Sorry about last night. I’ll call you,” was all it said, but it’s after dinner and he hasn’t called you all day.

You puttered around your apartment catching up on housework you’ve neglected as a result of spending so much time with Will lately. Eventually it got late enough that you knew he’d be asleep - he was so set to a routine that you could picture him following it exactly and it broke your heart to feel so removed from it. You’d thought you were part of that routine now. Since you had started dating you’d rarely spent a day apart, none of those days were unscheduled. He certainly had never forgotten to wish you goodnight.

Will laid in bed, thoughts of you swirling around his head. He knew you were at home, comfortable in bed, and he longed to be with you. All his thoughts were wrapped up in you. He felt that what he was doing was right, but he missed you so badly the ache in his chest was nearly unbearable. He couldn’t sleep, agonizing over the idea of you home alone thinking that you had done something wrong. In his eyes you were perfect, and you didn’t deserve what he was doing to you.

You went to bed where you tossed and turned for several hours. You felt that you and Will had something special together, and you had believed that he cared about you, and you clung to that as you forced yourself into a restless sleep.

You swore to yourself that you would never define your life by a man, but here you were, checking your phone compulsively, just waiting for some indication that your feelings weren’t one sided.

You did impeccable work every day, your parks were in good order, your permit applications were completed on time and in good standing. Yet, here you were, aching for William Miller to call you, or simply text you back. You knew his brothers called him “Ironhead” and now you were beginning to understand exactly how stubborn that man could be.

It has been a week since you heard from Will, and you weren’t sure what else to do, so you called Maria.

“Hello! So good to hear from you,” her sing-song voice rang through the phone, her chipper mood exactly opposite to yours, “What’s up?”

“Hey, has Frankie talked to Will lately?” you asked, pinching your nose, feeling embarrassed for having called, “it’s just I haven’t heard from him and he said he’d call me.”

“Let me ask,” she said and you heard her set the phone down. You waited for her to come back, biting your nails - a habit you thought you were long past - until she picked up the phone again. “You know that martini bar on 12th street? It has a stupid name?” she asked, her voice much more serious now.

“Um, Martiny’s right?” you asked.

“Yeah, meet me there,” she said and hung up.

At Matiny’s you had a martini and your friend in front of you when you asked her, “What’s this all about?”

“Will isn’t going to call you,” she said sadly.

You felt the air drop out of your lungs, totally blindsighted, “He’s trying to ghost me?”

“Basically, yes. He’s, he’s a good guy -” she started before you interrupted.

“I know he’s a good guy, well I thought I knew he was a good guy, this is coming out of nowhere!” You said before you took a large drink from your chilled glass.

“He’s trying to get out first,” she tried to explain.

You were even more confused now, “Get out first?”

“These guys carry a lot of burden thanks to who they are, and they all carry it differently. Will takes it the most personally, sees it as a personality flaw he tries to hide,” she said.

“He thinks I’m going to break up with him because he has PTSD?” you asked.

“Wouldn’t be the first time,” Maria said with a sad smile.

“I - It never even occurred to me. I’ve always known he had PTSD, it seems he completely underestimated me,” you said, a little angry.

Maria smiled at you and you couldn’t figure out why.

“What?” you snapped.

“You’re a fighter.”

You smiled back, “I need the chance to show him that I know him better than he thinks I do, prove to him that he’s worthy of this love I have for him.”

“Love?” she winked at you.

You felt your cheeks get hot and you wouldn’t look at her, but it was true. You were in love with Will Miller and you were determined to prove it to him.

“Yes,” you barely whispered, “I’m in love with him,” you said before you downed the rest of your drink.

“He’s at the gym with Benny, Frankie went to see him when I left to meet you. I’ll drive,” she said, as you signaled for the cheque.

At the gym Benny caught Will off guard with an overly aggressive rib-shot which knocked the wind out of his lungs.

“The hell was that?” he grunted at his baby brother.

“You’re the one who said you wanted a distraction,” Benny smirked.

Frankie shook his head from ringside. “I told you this wasn’t the answer, Will,” Frankie sighed,

“It wasn’t going to work out, it’s better this way,” Will said firmly.

“Ghosting? Come on man, I’ve seen how you look at her. You’ll never go through with it,” Benny said.

“That’s why it has to be this way. If I see her again, I won’t be able to say goodbye,” Will said, licking his lips frustrated.

Frankie lifted his hat and ran his fingers through his hair, “I know what your ex did to you messed you up,” he said.

“She was right,” Will sighed.

“She didn’t want the life you had, she didn't know what it means to be a warrior, what it does to a person,” Frankie said, “But the right girl, she’ll understand.”

“Are you saying I’ve already found the right girl,” Will said, his voice sharp, “What makes you think you know anything about my relationship?”

Frankie put his hands up in a mock surrender, “I’m not saying I do, only you can know that. I’m just asking you to talk to her before you decide on her behalf how she feels.”

Benny wanders over, removing the fight tape from his hands, “I’ll drive you,” he offers before he gives a playful punch to Will’s shoulder.

Will shakes his head, “What if she doesn’t want me anymore?” He knew his voice sounded weak, but these guys were his brothers, literally and metaphorically in all the ways that relationship could mean and they knew him better than he knew himself. He needed these guys to help him see there was any hope you could love him back, and assure him he'd be okay if you didn’t.

Frankie claps a hand to Will’s shoulder, “Then at least you tried. All I know is that finding Maria, making it work with her, it’s the only thing keeping my head above water most days,” he said, “You deserve that too.”

“If she rejects you, we’ll get hammered,” Benny promises. Will knows Benny’s playing things light now but when push comes to shove, if things got dark for him again after this, Benny would be there every step of the way, just like last time. “I have a feeling she’ll say it back, I saw you two at Thanksgiving,” Benny said.

Will nods, “You drive, my hands are shaking,” and he pushes Benny forward and they head out.

They reach the door before Frankie says, “I guess I’ll clean and lock up?” and the Miller brothers waved him goodbye, tossing a “Thanks” over their retreating shoulders.

Frankie was about to lock the doors when you and Maria walked in.

“Is he here?” You ask before even saying hello.

“What are you doing here?” Frankie asked after giving Maria a quick kiss hello.

“She’s here to get her man,” Maria explained.

Frankie beamed, “I knew I liked you,” he said.

“I like you too, Frankie, but I’m looking for Will, where is he?” You ask, craning your neck and looking around the obviously deserted gym.

Frankie laughs, “He’s headed to your place.”

You burst out laughing, “You’re kidding?”

“You missed him by 10 minutes.”

Maria shakes her head, “Let’s go, I guess I’m still your driver,” and the three of you file out of the gym.

It starts raining as Maria drives you home. When she drops you off at your building, “Go get him,” she says before she kisses your cheek.

You raced through the rain to the front door of your apartment, and you were drenched before you made it there.

Standing in front of your door was Will, also soaked from the rain. You rushed into his arms and he pulled you in so tight and hard you were lifted clear off your feet. He crashed his lips into yours, only breaking away to repeat, “I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” into your skin over and over again.

“I went looking for you,” You tried to explain, but he cut you off with a deep kiss that cleared your brain and quickened your heart rate.

“Frankie texted me,” Will said, keeping his body pressed against yours.

“We should go inside, talk this through,” you said, your voice serious. You turned your back on him to unlock your door, hoping for a break to collect your thoughts. This was serious business and you needed to have your wits about you, but whenever you looked into those piercing blue eyes you would get lost in the moment and would forget the bigger world.

He followed you into the apartment, his hands never leaving your body. He helped you remove your wet jacket and hung it in the closet.

After, he sat next to you on the couch, he’s hand settling on your knee. He needed to feel you, be near you. You had gone looking for him, you didn’t give up on him, and so he didn’t know what to do now other than cling on tight.

But then you looked at him, and he backed off. He saw the seriousness in your look and knew he was not off the hook.

“I owe you an apology,” he started.

“Yes, you do,” you replied to him simply, clearly waiting for the real thing.

“I’m sorry,” he said with as much sincerity as he could muster, “I should have explained why I left.”

“Why did you? Did I do something wrong? Should I have brought up your PTSD sooner so we could’ve talked about it? I didn’t want to push,” you said, matching his sincerity in a question that stunned him.

“You knew?” he asked.

“The day we met you said you had your good days and your bad days, I believed you,” you said simply.

“You remember what I said the day we met?” he asked, floored by you.

“I remember everything.”

“I love you,” he found himself saying. There were thousands of better ways he could have told you that would’ve been more romantic, more thoughtful, but he just couldn’t help himself. He loved you and he wanted you to know.

His words flushed over you and sent tingles through your whole body. You closed the small distance between your bodies and kissed him. You let him pull you onto his lap, your legs straddling him as you brushed your fingers through his short, wet hair, dropping your hands to his shoulders. He ran his hands up your back, leaving a trail of fire beneath his touch.

Suddenly you broke the kiss and pulled away. He clung to the back of your shirt, gripping the fabric tightly.

“Wait,” he begged in a whisper.

“I love you too,” you said.

“Oh,” Will said, and he kissed you again, “Come on, let’s get you out of these wet clothes.”

He stood, keeping your legs around him as he carried you into your bathroom.

“I love you,” he said as he finally dropped you to your feet.

“I know,” you said, trembling from the cold and something else you couldn’t describe but knew was all Wil’s doing.

You pulled Will’s shirt off over his head and exposed his perfectly sculpted chest. You took advantage and placed a series of kisses across his skin.

He quickly stripped you until you were complete naked then you stripped him completely naked as well. You grasped his already erect penis in your hand. You pumped him as you kissed him, losing yourself in him completely.

He gently pushed you away, more gently than you’ve ever been pushed. As he started the shower you reached for him, needy.

“I’m sorry, baby,” he said as he returned to you, “I just thought you’d want it warm when you stepped in.”

You followed him into your curtained shower as the hot water started to rain down. He pulled you in close as the water fell over your heads. He pulled you in tightly to his chest, and after a moment you pulled back.

“I love you,” you said, “I want you inside me, now..”

Will looked into your eyes and saw that you meant what you said. He kissed you hard and fast. You broke the kiss and spun around, grinding your ass against him.

“I love you, baby,” he said.

He pushed you forward, rougher than normal but in a way that sent waves of excited pleasure through you. You felt the warm water hit your skin until he blocked the stream and pushed you against the shower wall, forcing you to brace yourself with your hands. You waited there with your ass out and hands on the wall as Will admired you.

“Touch me,” you basically begged.

He pushed you up against the shower wall, “Are you ready for me?”

“Fuck me, baby,,” you actually begged him this time.

“Anything for you, sweetheart,” he said as he lined himself up to your entrance from behind.

You were barely able to take it when he entered you with his hands wrapped around your hips. You gasped as his full length entered you, filling you completely. You braced yourself against the shower wall as he pounded into you. You felt his grip tighten, fingers digging into your flesh.

You pushed back against the wall, trying to match his pace but you barely kept up. He wasn’t his usual patient self, you knew this was a race to a release so you brought your own fingers to your clit.

You were so wet and so full of him, it wasn’t long until your orgasam sent flutters through you and you clenched around his cock. As you struggled to stay standing on your weak legs, Will supported you and he came himself, deep inside you.

You felt him twitch before he pulled out. You moved to stand up straight, but he put his hand on your back and kept you bent over.

“Let me look at you,” he whispered, barely audible over the running shower.

You clenched at his words and he moaned as you felt his cum dripping out of you and onto the shower floor beneath you.

Your legs were shaking as he cleaned you up, and held you in his arms. He took your body wash and lathered you up with his hands, caressing you as he went.

When he finished cleaning you up, he turned the shower off and stepped out, wrapping a towel around his waist. He grabbed your towel and wrapped you up tightly in it, rubbing your shoulders through the fluffy material.

He kissed you gently, then trailed his lips across your jaw before travelling down your neck. He nipped at your throat then ran his tongue across the spot.

He kissed you again and then helped you dry off before he pulled you out of the bathroom and into the bedroom. He pulled back the sheets so you could slip under them. When he was sure you were comfortable he went to the kitchen and returned quickly with a glass of water and handed it to you which you accepted gratefully. When you finished he set the glass on your dresser and joined you in bed.

You snuggled in close to Will’s side, breathing him in as you brushed your fingers across the smooth skin of his chest. After a few minutes you sighed and pushed yourself up on your elbow.

“We still need to talk,” you said seriously.

He kept a hand on your hip. “Okay,” he breathed, sounding tense.

“Why’d you try and ghost me?”

“I’m not proud of it,” he started, “I thought it would be easier if I ended things before you could break it off.”

“Why did you think I’d break up with you?”

“I had a fiancée,” Will said, his voice thick.

“I know, 4 years ago, right?” You said, recalling the news you learned at Thanksgiving.

“She left me when I was really struggling. I don’t blame her, things were really bad then, and besides that we just weren’t right for each other.”

He paused and you decided to take a guess, “but those reasons didn’t matter until your PTSD got bad, and she used that as her reason to bail,” you finished, angry on his behalf.

“Something like that,” he forced a smile.

You took his head in your hands, “I’m not her. I’m not going anywhere.”

He smiled at you and kissed you passionately.

You broke the kiss, “Promise to talk to me from now on. I need you to trust me, and I need you to tell me what’s going on. I don’t want to be blindsided again.”

He nodded, solemnly. Then he traced his thumb across your check and held your face in his hand. “I swear I’m going to make this up to you. I won’t make decisions for you anymore,” he said, and you believed him.

“I’m not going anywhere, I’m all in,” you said before you sealed the promise with a kiss.

He took you in his arms and you felt at peace

Part 5

#Will Miller #william miller #william miller fanfiction #triple frontier #permit pending series #permit pending part 4 #will miller x f!reader #william ironhead miller x F!Reader #william ironhead miller

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