#sorry I'm so slow... I feel really bad for how long this has taken...

[meownotgood]

chapter one word count = 34k, chapter two word count = 36k

that means finally, 70k word count in total 🫡

[cowboybeepboop]

Always Been You

“Tell me this isn’t a one time thing,” you mumble against his tan skin as you cuddle closer to him.

“This is definitely not a one time thing,” he reassures you, his voice soft yet firm.

Pairing: Tyler Owens x fem! Reader

Genre: romance/smut, kinda fluff at the end

Word count: 3180

Summary: Tyler is your childhood best friend and just so happens to be your first love, the one man you can’t get over. The feeling is mutual, and after almost screwing it up, he makes the first move.

a/n: It fr is a Glen Powell summer, twisters has brought back my obsession with him 😭 I do take requests so send any you have my way! Hope you enjoy 😊

The summer breeze carried a hint of coolness as the sun began its descent, casting a warm glow over the lake. You shivered slightly, feeling the goosebumps rise on your arms. You and Tyler had been coming to this spot by the lake since you were kids, sharing secrets and dreams under the shimmering stars. Now, in your early 20s, your friendship had only grown stronger, but something else was simmering just beneath the surface—something you were both afraid to acknowledge.

Tyler, ever attentive, noticed your subtle shiver and instinctively pulled you into his embrace. It felt natural, right, and you sat in comfortable silence, the warmth of your bodies blending as the sun continued its slow descent. In that moment, you felt an overwhelming surge of emotions—love, desire, and a longing that had been building up for years. Snuggling into his chest you sigh contentedly.

The familiar scent of his cologne fills your nostrils, making your heart race. His strong arms around you, the steady rise and fall of his chest, the sound of his heartbeat, it was all so familiar.

Tyler tightens his arms around you, holding you closer. He rested his chin on top of your head, his breath tickling your hair as he began to speak, his voice soft and earnest.

“Can I ask you something?” You look up at him with curiosity in your expression.

“Yeah? What’s up?” He pulls back slightly to meet your eye, his gaze is intent and sincere. His hands slide down to your hips as you turn to face him, his thumbs absentmindedly tracing circles on your skin.

”We’ve been friends for so long now,” he begins, pausing to gather his thoughts. “And lately.. I’ve been feeling different.” His fingers grip you tighter, his thumbs still tracing lazy circles on your hips.

”Ty? What do you mean?” Your eyebrows scrunch as you look at him with worry. “Different how?” You move out of his arms he looks taken aback. He lets out a sigh and rubs the back of his neck nervously.

”Damnit, I'm not good at this,” he mutters, more to himself than to you. He looks at you for a moment, his eyes filled with a mix of vulnerability and determination. “I mean I’ve been having… thoughts. About you. Thoughts that maybe we shouldn’t be friends anymore.” He groans at the realization of what he said.

Your eyes fill with hurt as you stand up, “Why?” His hands move to grasp your arm. You yank your arm away, “Why are you saying that?” Tyler winces at your reaction, he hadn’t meant to hurt you.

He runs a hand through his hair, a frustrated look on his face. “I didn’t mean it like that, i just mean…” he struggles to find the right words. “I don’t want to just be friends anymore.” He takes a step towards you, his hand going to your cheek.

“I want.. more than that. He says softly, his eyes pleading. “I want us to be… more” you relax a sigh escaping your parted lips.

”More than just friends?” You giggle, he truly is bad at this, he made you think that things were over between you both.

Tyler gives a sheepish smile, his shoulders relaxing at your light-hearted reaction. His thumb gently brushes your cheek. “Yeah, more than just friends,” he confirms, a hint of relief in his voice.

“I’m sorry I didn’t phrase it well,” he says, a hint of a smirk tugging at the corners of his mouth. “But I really do mean it… I want us to be more than friends.” He steps closer to you, his other hand resting on your hip. “I want you,” he murmurs, his eyes never leaving yours.

You wrap your arms around his neck, standing on your tippy toes as you pull yourself closer to him. “I want you too,” you whisper into his ear. “You don’t know how long I’ve been waiting for you to make a move.”

Tyler’s heart races as you pull yourself closer to him, your words sending shivers down his spine. He wraps his arms around your waist, pulling you flush against him. His eyes darken with desire as he gazes down at you.

“Really?” he whispers, his voice gruff. “You’ve been waiting?” He leans down, his lips hovering just above your ear. “How long?” he murmurs before gently nipping at your earlobe.

”Years...” You moan softly as his hands explore your body. “How long are you going to make me wait for a kiss?” You mumble. Tyler growls in response, his grip tightening on your waist. He pulls you even closer, his chest pressed against yours.

“You want a kiss?” he teases, his lips hovering just millimeters from your own. “All you had to do was ask.” He leans in, his breath hot against your skin. “But I must warn you, once I start, I might not stop.”

You press your lips to his in a passionate kiss, your hand going to the back of his head. Pulling away you whisper against his lips “Who said I would want you to?” Your other hand sliding down his back as you lean in for another kiss.

Tyler lets out a guttural moan as your lips meet his in a passionate kiss. His hands grip your hips tighter, fingers digging into your soft flesh. He leans into the kiss, his tongue seeking entrance between your parted lips. He pushes you backwards, backing you up against a nearby tree.

Breaking off the kiss, he trails kisses down your jawline, nipping at the sensitive skin of your neck. “You’re driving me insane sweetheart” he whispers huskily. You moan softly as he trails hickeys down your exposed skin.

”Tyler..” you moan his name as he slides his hands up your shirt. His name falling from your lips in a soft moan sets his blood on fire. He continues to kiss and nip at your neck, his hands roaming beneath your shirt, his touch leaving a trail of fire on your skin.

He sucks a particularly sensitive spot just under your ear, causing you to arch into his touch. “Baby, you don’t know what you’re doing to me,” he groans against your skin. You press your fingers into his back, pulling him closer to you.

”Then show me what I’m doing to you,” You mumble into his ear. Your words against his ear send a jolt of electricity down his spine.

Without warning, he lifts you off the ground, gripping your thighs and pressing you against the tree. He devours your mouth in a heated kiss, his tongue exploring the seam of your lips, seeking entry.

His hands grip your thighs tighter as he grinds against you, the growing bulge in his jeans pressing against you. “This,” he murmurs, his breath ragged, “this is what you do to me.”

”Fuck,” you moan, your head falling back against the tree.

Encouraged by your response, Tyler deepens the kiss, his tongue dancing with yours as he moves his hands to cup your breasts. You gasp into his mouth, the sensation sending waves of pleasure through your body. His thumbs flick over your hardened nipples, making you squirm against him.

You wrap your legs around his waist, your core pulsing with desire. He breaks the kiss to gaze into your eyes, which are glazed with lust. "Take me home," you murmur, your voice thick with need. "Now." Tyler's smile widens, his eyes dark with passion.

"With pleasure," he whispers, scooping you up into his arms and carrying you away from the lake, towards the promise of a night filled with long-suppressed passion and the unraveling of a love story that had been waiting to be told.

The short drive home seems like an eternity as you can't resist the urge to explore Tyler's arousal. With the car still moving, you unbuckle your seatbelt and slide closer to him, your hand deftly moving to the bulge in his jeans. Tyler's eyes widen in surprise, but he doesn't protest.

Instead, he groans as you unbutton his pants and pull out his hard, throbbing erection. You lean in, wrapping your soft, warm lips around the tip of his length. His grip tightens on the steering wheel as you begin to suck, your tongue swirling around him in a way that makes his hips jerk involuntarily.

The car swerves slightly, but you don't stop, taking him deeper into your mouth. The sensation of his smooth skin against your tongue and the taste of him is intoxicating. Tyler's breathing turns ragged as he watches you in the dim light of the car, his eyes dark with desire.

He adjusts his position, allowing you better access, and you eagerly take advantage, bobbing your head in a rhythm that has him moaning with pleasure. You feel powerful, knowing you're the one driving him wild with need, and you can't wait to feel him lose control completely in your arms.

With a final, desperate thrust, Tyler's body goes rigid as he reaches his climax, his warm release filling your mouth. You swallow eagerly, savoring the taste of him as he gasps your name.

He parks the car with trembling hands, and the moment it's in park, he pulls you over to straddle him, his hands tangled in your hair as he deepens the kiss. His hips buck up into you, his arousal still palpable against your center. "Inside," he whispers, his voice hoarse with passion. You nod eagerly, not breaking the kiss as you both fumble with the car door.

The anticipation is almost unbearable as you stumble towards the house, your hands roaming over each other's bodies, unable to get enough. The door slams shut behind you, echoing through the quiet night as you both race to the bedroom, shedding clothes along the way.

The air is thick with desire, and the promise of a night filled with passionate exploration and the discovery of each other's bodies. As you fall onto the bed, you know that nothing will ever be the same between you again, but you're ready for this new chapter in your relationship. The love that's been simmering for years is finally ready to burn bright and fiercely, and you can't wait to see where it will take you.

The room is filled with the sound of your moans and his grunts as Tyler's strong body covers yours, his eyes never leaving yours as he pushes into you. He takes his time, savoring every inch of your wet heat, filling you completely. His hips move in a steady rhythm that has you clutching the bedsheets, your legs shaking with the intensity of each thrust.

Your eyes roll back in pleasure as he hits that perfect spot, your breath hitching in your throat. "More," you beg, and he obliges, his pace increasing, his strokes growing more urgent. Your walls tighten around him, your body desperately trying to hold onto the feeling of him deep inside you.

His hands grip your hips, guiding you to meet his every movement, and together, you find a rhythm that feels like it was made just for the two of you. The room is a blur of passion and desire as you both give in to the explosive chemistry that's been building for so long.

The love that's been simmering just beneath the surface of your friendship now burns hot and wild, and you know that this night will be the first of many where you'll explore the depths of your newfound love and lust. Each thrust feels like a declaration of passion, each touch a promise of forever, and as your bodies come together in perfect harmony, you realize that you're exactly where you're meant to be—in the arms of your best friend, now your lover, as you both cross the line from friendship to something far more intimate and profound.

With each powerful thrust, Tyler loses more of his self-control, his passion for you overwhelming him as he feels you tighten around him. His eyes are squeezed shut, his teeth gritted, and his breathing turns ragged as he approaches the precipice of his own climax.

He can feel your nails digging into his back, your moans growing louder, and your hips bucking to meet his every movement. The bed creaks beneath you, a testament to the intensity of your love-making. His grip on your hips tightens, his strokes becoming more erratic as he fights to hold back the tide of pleasure threatening to consume him.

But the feeling of you, so wet and warm, your body responding to his every touch, is too much. With a final, guttural growl, Tyler surrenders to the explosion of ecstasy, burying himself deep inside you as he releases.

Your walls clench around him, milking him for all he's worth, and he collapses onto your chest, his breathing heavy and uneven. For a moment, the world stands still, your hearts pounding in sync as you both bask in the aftermath of your shared passion.

Then, with a soft smile, Tyler kisses your forehead, whispering, "I've been waiting for this for so long." You wrap your arms around him, feeling the same overwhelming love and satisfaction, knowing that this is just the beginning of a love story that has been years in the making.

Tyler flips onto his back, bringing you with him so that you straddle his waist, his still-hard length nestled between your thighs. He brushes your hair off your sweaty forehead, his eyes filled with a mix of awe and love as he looks up at you. "You're so beautiful," he murmurs, his voice still thick with passion.

You lean down to kiss him, your breasts brushing against his chest as you move to capture his mouth with yours. The kiss is gentle, filled with the sweetness of a love that's been realized.

His hands slide down to your hips, his fingers tracing the curves of your body as you begin to rock against him, his length sliding through your slick folds. He groans into the kiss, his body responding to your movements. You break the kiss, looking down at him with a smoldering gaze.

With a newfound confidence, you guide Tyler's still-throbbing cock into your wetness, straddling him as you begin to ride his length once again. Your hips move in a slow, sensual rhythm, taking him deep inside you as you gaze into his eyes, which are now filled with a mix of love and unbridled desire.

His hands grip your waist, his thumbs pressing into your hips as he lifts you up and down, urging you to go faster, deeper. The friction sends sparks of pleasure through your body, igniting a fire that seems to never die out. Each movement feels like a declaration of love, a silent promise that this is where you both belong.

Tyler's eyes never leave yours as he watches you take control, his admiration for your beauty and strength growing with every moan that escapes your lips. You lean forward, pressing your chest against his, feeling his heart hammer against yours as you move in perfect sync. The room is filled with the sounds of passion—the slap of skin on skin, the wetness of your union, and the unspoken words of love that hang in the air like a sweet, intoxicating perfume.

Tyler's eyes flare with desire, and with a smirk, he takes control, his hips rising to meet your every move. The intimate dance of your bodies continues, each of you learning the other's rhythm, the other's needs. The room is filled with the sound of your skin slapping together, your breathy moans and his deep, needy groans.

The tension builds again, coiling tighter and tighter in your bellies until you're both on the edge once more. Then, with a final, desperate thrust, Tyler arches up into you, his eyes squeezed shut as he finds his release, his body trembling beneath yours. You follow shortly after, your orgasm crashing over you like a wave, leaving you both gasping for breath as you collapse into a tangled heap of limbs.

The only sounds in the room are your panting breaths and the soft whispers of "I love you" as you lay there, wrapped in each other's arms, the weight of your shared love and passion pressing down on you in the most delicious way possible.

As the intensity of your shared passion subsides, Tyler showers your face with gentle kisses, his love for you written in every tender touch. His arms wrap around you tightly, holding you close as if he never wants to let go. You melt into his embrace, feeling the warmth of his body against yours, the steady beat of his heart a comforting reminder of the connection you now share.

The room is bathed in the soft glow of the setting sun, painting the walls with shades of pink and orange. With a contented sigh, you snuggle closer, feeling the weight of the day's revelations and the promise of a future filled with passion and love.

As the night stretches out before you, you know that this is just the start of a journey you'll take together, hand in hand, heart to heart. The air is thick with the scent of your combined arousal, a scent that fills the room with a sense of belonging and desire that neither of you can ignore. With one final, lingering kiss, Tyler rolls over, pulling you with him so that you're both lying on your sides, your legs entwined.

“Tell me this isn’t a one time thing,” you mumble against his tan skin as you cuddle closer to him.

His arms tighten around you as you cuddle against him, his fingers gently tracing patterns on your skin. He tilts his head down to kiss the top of your head, inhaling the scent of your hair. “This is definitely not a one time thing,” he reassures you, his voice soft yet firm.

He pulls you closer, his arms encircling you like a protective cocoon. “I want this, I want you. For as long as you’ll have me.” A smile creeps up on your lips as you kiss his chest.

”Then will you take me on a proper date tomorrow?” Breathing in his scent as you close your eyes. Tyler gently pulls the covers up higher, enveloping you in a comforting warmth. He strokes your hair idly as you settle against his chest.

"Of course, sweetheart," he murmurs, his heart swelling with affection. "I'll take you out for the best damn date you've ever been on." He kisses the top of your head, his lips lingering for a moment. "I'll make sure it's perfect, just like you."

He whispers sweet nothings into your ear, his breath warm and comforting, as the rhythm of his chest rising and falling lulls you into a peaceful slumber. The world outside fades away, leaving only the two of you, lost in the warmth of each other's arms, basking in the afterglow of your first night as lovers.

[honeqq]

Y'know what, my bad for asking.

Okay, i did not expect to go from "😄" to "☹️" so quickly. I regret formulating my thoughts/j.

Okay, but that's very interesting, to say the least? I really like that idea, but it just feels actually wrong (like, uh, Bill's pov stated), it would have been nice if they could co-exist, Clifford is himself, Clifford is well.. "Cliff," our sweet little golden retriever of a painter. He has yet to live HIS life and not continue the life of someone who is long time dead.

So,, in the end, does Cliff just *poofs* out of existance or he manages to at least.. live with it and be himself-?

Which I guess not with how he was "taken over by Ford."

Okay, im in need to write something regarding this, I ought to let it marinate and cry a few more nights.

—Duckling (i'm sorry for the consecutives asks. I'm just hyperfixiating badly and need to ramble a bit-).

Wwww don't worry this route Suppose to be slow burn so that's not the ending! It's just the conflict !

[bellysoupset]

"Hold this," Max said, fishing out one of his many plastic bags from the glovebox and passing it to Vince. The man was leaning against Max's white pickup, more than a little pasty, with a green tinge to his complexion, his lips almost camouflaging against his skin so devoid the color they were.

"What is it for...?"

"Because you look fluorescent green," Max rolled his eyes, "puke bag."

"I'm not gonna be sick," Vince groaned, but got inside the car. He leaned back, closing his eyes and Max quickly circled the vehicle, getting inside as well.

"I beg to differ, you're one of those weird people who genuinely turn green," Max's was a little amused by how transparent Vince was, metaphorically speaking. The brunette kept his eyes closed, but frowned.

"So I've heard..." he gulped down when the car started moving and Max stole a glance at him, focusing on the drive. He hated the uncomfortable silence, Vince wasn't a quiet person and this was unnerving.

"Sooo... What's wrong, is it a bug?" Max poked his bicep and Vince sighed, opening his eyes, seeming a little annoyed Max didn't let him just sleep. The blonde shrugged to himself, Vince could be annoyed all he wanted, as long as he didn't pass out again.

When Max had barged in the classroom, the sight of Vince crumbling down to the ground had been more than a little frightening.

"No, I don't think so," Vince, in the present, said, staring out of the windshield. It took Max a second to realize he was keeping his eyes on the horizon, probably due to the nausea he was clearly feeling, even if denying it, "I didn't have time for breakfast this morning and has to skip-" he gulped down, pressing his lips in a line when a weak gag jolted him. Vince opened the bag in his lap, but didn't bring it up to his mouth, breathing slowly "skip lunch. I think it's just my blood sugar."

"You should keep some energy bars on you," Max scoffed, "aren't you an athlete? I thought your people lived on those."

"My people," Vince snorted, then groaned loudly as nausea caused his arms to get covered in goosebumps, "stop talking about food, please."

"Sorry," Max drummed his fingers against the steering wheel, feeling a stab of guilt. He was so bad at this, he had never taken care of anyone before and it showed. Hell, most days he could barely care for himself!

He also hoped Vince hadn't realized that Max didn't ask for his address, he had driven him and that friend of his home that one time at 3 AM and it was terribly embarrassing that he had memorized it.

They stopped at a red light and Max turned to look at Vince, immediately frowning, "You're shivering," he pointed out. All the windows were closed and the car felt rather stuffy, there was no way Vin was cold, "are you feverish?"

"No," Vince rubbed at at his forehead, "don't think so..? I just feel really cold..." He was pitiful to look at, white as milk and shuddering like he had just gotten out of a frozen lake. Without thinking, Max leaned in to feel his forehead, then realized what he was doing and froze with his hand mid air. Vince snorted, looking at him through his dark lashes, "you can check it, it's fine. I don't think it's a fever."

Max's ears burned and he wanted to die from embarrassment. Instead, he slammed his hand harshly against Vince's forehead, then pulled it back quickly, "yeah, you don't have a fever, you're freezing."

"Low blood sugar," Vince breathed out through his mouth as the car started moving once more, swallowing convulsively and fidgeting on his seat, "are we almost there?"

"Almost," Max sped up a little bit more, they weren't far out, "you're still feeling faint?"

Instead of answering him, Vince simply nodded, too busy taking slow breaths. He leaned forward, mouth hanging open over the bag, causing Max to cringe in sympathy.

"Almost there," he repeated, squeezing Vince's nape without thinking and leaving his hand there when the man didn't shrug him off immediately. Actually, Vince seemed weirdly welcoming of the touch, something that shouldn't surprise Max given Monacelli had been all over him when he was sick, but that did anyway.

As soon as he parked in front of Vince's place, the man shoved the door open and leaned out of it...Then fell.

"Shit, Vince!" Max cursed, jumping out of the car and running around it. Vince had fallen to his knees and he had an arm wrapped tightly around his stomach and was dry heaving on the grass, "shit-shitshitshit-" Max sunk to his knees, holding Vince's shoulder, "hey... So much for not gonna puke, uh?"

As if to answer him, Vince retched once more - silently, he was a really quiet puker - and a splash of bright yellow bile fell in the grass.

Max rubbed his hand up and down the man's back, sighing in a defeated manner. Vince coughed once more, than let out a string of little tiny burps that seemed completely out of place for a dude like him, and was left panting, an arm still around his stomach, his free hand coming to wipe his mouth.

"Sorry," Vince's voice was shot by the acid, raspy and barely above a whisper, "that was gross."

"I see puke weekly, you're fine," Max thumped his back in a lighthearted manner, "you're done?"

"Think... Think so," Vince nodded and the blonde grabbed his arm, struggling to pull him up on his feet. The moment he did, Vin stumbled, but stayed standing with great effort.

"You're sure this is just not eating?" Max made sure he wasn't gonna fall, before grabbing Vince's bag and digging through it to find his keys.

"It's unlocked," Vince answered after a minute of searching, "I... Forgot to lock it."

"I know Doveport is pacific, but geez, Vince," Max frowned, pushing the door open. He had never been inside and it was striking the difference between Vince's place and his own.

Vince's tiny house was smaller than Max's place, everything cramped in one open floor. Nevertheless, it felt like a home. His living room area was a light beige and had a big brown couch, with a small TV rack dividing the "living room" from the "bedroom", a flat screen on top of it and a bunch of books under it. The coffee table was a little wobbly and Vin's fresh laundry was sitting in a bowl there, to be folded and stored away. His kitchen had barely any cabinets, instead everything was inside of jars in open shelves. His bedroom had a pink wall, a bunch of books and one of his football jerseys had been framed and put on a wall, covered in signatures.

"Okay, lie down-" Max guided Vince to the couch, but the man shook his head, pointing the bed.

"Couch's... too small," he stumbled in and finally fell on the bed with a relieved sigh, "thanks, Max, you don't-"

"Where's your food?" Max interrupted Vince before he could say the predictable you-don't-have-to-stay. He didn't wait for an answer, turning around and going through Vin's stuff in the kitchen.

He had almost no junk food, which again was the opposite of what Max expected. A bunch of spices and pastas in all sorts of shapes...

"Here," he found a box filled with energy bars next to his microwave and walked back to the bed area, sitting on the corner, "have a bite."

"No," Vince wrinkled his nose, "too queasy."

"You're queasy because there's nothing in your stomach," Max rolled his eyes, tearing the bar open and breaking a piece of it, "open up, c'mon."

Vince glared at him and Max sighed, lowering his hand. He was being too forceful, he knew that. It was just... Weird being around Vince when he was existing in this weird limbo of crushing on the guy, getting to know him and taking care of someone for the first time. He was both worried and overthinking it all.

"Help me out here, man," Max said quietly, "I don't know what to do."

Vince's shoulders moved down and he nodded, rubbing his face in a frustrated manner, "uhm... Energy bar is too rich," he said after a minute, making a disgusted face, "I have saltines in one of the jars."

"Alright!" Max leaped for them, going through all the jars. Part of him was enjoying the snooping around, he couldn't remember the last time he had been in someone's house... Well, except for his tinder dates, but those barely counted, "who needs that much pasta?" he whispered under his breath, then raised his eyebrows at the fancy set of pans inside the only cabinet. They were all baby blue and looked expensive as hell, "these are cute..."

"Max," Vince sounded amused, "saltines?"

Oh yeah. Max found them in the smallest jar, next to a metal tin filled with cookies, and he came back to the bed, holding five of the crackers as well as a Gatorade bottle.

"Here you go..." He fidgeted, watching as Vince started taking tiny bites, in between small sips of the electrolyte, "better?"

"It's been twenty seconds," Vince snorted, closing his eyes, "sit down, you're making me nervous."

"I'm making you nervous? You're the one who collapsed like a victorian lady," he rolled his eyes, crossing his arms, "are the crackers staying down?"

Vin shrugged, not moving a muscle and Max simply stared, since the man had his eyes closed. Vince occupied most of the double bed and he looked... Weird. Not just the paleness and slight shivering, there was something off that Max couldn't figure out what it was. His curls had escaped the low ponytail and were around his face, making him look oddly like an ancient statue...

"I like your place," Max paced around, like a caged tiger, "are you gonna nap?"

Vin opened his eyes, looking a little amused, "can anyone nap when you're yapping?"

"Oh fuck you!" Max cried out, his cheeks heating up, "I'm just checking if you're alive, forgive me for giving a shit-"

"You helped so much already," Vince interrupted his outcry, moving slightly on the bed, "but I think I'll just nap now, you should go Max."

"Okay..." He really didn't want to leave. Not only he didn't trust Vince to stay alive when he was still that white, but he simply didn't wanna leave this tiny, cozy house.

"My mom is gonna be here in five minutes," Vince warned him, yawning, "you should leave or she's gonna rope you into coming over for dinner, it'll be a whole thing."

Max didn't hate the idea of going to the Monacelli's place for dinner. Still, he let out a huff, "yeah, I should go," he moved around, fishing Vin's phone out of his bag abandoned on the couch and then back to the bed, shoving the device on the man's hand, "get my number, I want you to text me you're alive later."

Vince let out a sigh, before unlocking his phone and handing it back to Max, a clear message for him to do it himself. Once that was done, that was really no other reason for Daniels to stay around a minute longer, so he patted Vince's arm in an awkward way, "text me. I'm serious, or I'll text your mom. I got her number, this is a threat."

Vince scoffed, looking more than a little sleepy, "yeah yeah..." he yawned, "Max? Thank you. Really."

He sounded so earnest. Max nodded stiffly, he needed to get the hell out of there. Liking Vince was a landslide, not even a slippery slope.

"Yeah, no problem," he walked to the door, "but start eating breakfast, Monacelli."

[holidaywishes]

a hard loss

Requested: 👍

Summary/Request: uhm i don’t know if your requests are open i’m sorry if they’re not but i would love a fic where auston has like a really shitty loss and he’s pissed and you just get absolutely railed 🙏🏼🙏🏼

Warning: smut, really basic dirty talk, pretty self-explanatory I think 😊

Author's Note: This one was from an anon WAYYYYY back, so hopefully they find it and are still interested lol. I'm sorry it's taken so long but life gets in the way of things sometimes. Anyway! Here is this little fic. Enjoy! Also, part four of Hate Sex is finally up so find that and enjoy it, if you want 😜 <- you can tell how long it's been since I wrote this because Hate Sex part four has been up for a while now 😂

Fun Fact: I started writing this in the back of an Uber almost a year ago now and only had time to follow through with it now 😅, so I apologize for the long wait but hey! we got something lol.

masterlist

the other masterlist

xx

They made it to the playoffs again. But you were always waiting for the other shoe to drop because, well, it’s Toronto. It didn’t take long and Auston came over to your house in a fuming rage

“Okay, let’s take a breath before we break something” you said calmly when he flung open your door to let himself in

“Take a breath? Did you see what the fuck happened?” He shouted

“Honestly?” you winced, “no.”

“Seriously?!”

“I was working! I couldn’t watch the game,” you admitted, “I’m sorry. I heard it was rough though”

“Gee, thanks for the update”

“Auston, sit down,” you shook your head, gesturing to the sectional beside him. You understood why he was so worked up, they would always get so close before ultimately coming up short; you felt bad for him but you didn’t know what to say to make him feel better. “What do you need?” was all you could think to ask

“What?” he questioned, leaning his elbows on his knees and dropping his head to hands briefly

“I don’t know what to say to make you feel better so,” you continued, “is there something I can do?” He smirked as he corrected his posture, bringing you between his legs silently

“Oh there’s definitely something you can do” his smirk grew to a grin while his hands gripped your ass and his face buried in your chest. Of course, you thought to yourself, rolling your eyes when his head was down.

Sex. It’s always that simple.

You placed your forefinger under his chin to lift it, catching his lustful stare once his eyes found yours. The moment was charged but you decided to take it slow, taking your time removing his shirt and kissing his neck as you undid the button of his pants, unzipping the zipper almost tauntingly. Auston had other plans. He tore off your shirt and nearly ripped off your fleece shorts before pushing you onto the couch; your eyes grew wide as his narrowed. He kissed you harshly as his hand pushed down your underwear and your body jerked toward him. He let his hand slowly move up your thigh while your breathing increased, your chest moving up and down at the sensation he was giving you. When you finally caught his eye again, you could tell from his smirk that this wasn't going to be a "romantic" night, it's not what he needed - this was all about letting off steam - so you grabbed his shoulders to pull yourself up onto his lap and took at least one small moment of sweetness before you were bent over the back of the couch. Your back arched as he pulled your hair and thrust into you quickly, his moans louder with each intense push while you gripped the couch to steady yourself.

“Fu-uck” you screamed out, voice catching as his thrusts grew harder and his hands moved from your hair to grab your hips. You felt his nails digging into your skin as you pushed back into him,

“You like that?” Auston said breathlessly as your moans turned to whines as you took all of him in, “take it, my little slut.” You weren’t one for dirty talk and neither was Auston, so his words took you a bit by surprise, leading you to attempt to turn your head to face him before he slapped your ass harshly; you let out a yelp coated in pleasure and his pace increased again once more. The sound of spanking echoed through your living room and Auston would continue his dirty talk, “fuck yeah, take my big cock you dirty slut”

“Fuck me,” was all your mind could come up with to say in return but it led Auston to grab your hair again and pulled your back to his chest, his hand then moved to your neck as the two of you moved in tandem, breathing harshly, before you looked into his eyes, hand lightly against his that was resting on your neck, “harder, daddy,” you finally said as you allowed his hand to tighten around your throat. You kept your eyes trained on him as best you could while he choked and fucked you from behind.

“That’s it, baby, keep looking at me,” he said with a smirk, his voice rough like a growl, “I want you to look at me as I make you cum.” His grip never got too tight around your neck which allowed your head to lob back onto his shoulder and your hands to reach back to his waist, keeping your bodies close so that the sensations of him inside of you could be intense for the both of you. Your eyes drifted away from his for a second and he tightened his grip around your neck and increased his thrusts just enough to grab your attention one last time, “I said keep looking at me.” Your pleasure grew more with each tug at your throat and each movement of your hips into his.

“Fuck,” you breathed, eyes still locked on his, “cum with me. Fuck, baby I’m coming.” Your eyebrows moved together as you struggled to keep your eyes on Auston as he requested and your moans took over as his grip around your throat tightened for a moment while he came inside you. He kissed your neck gently before kissing down your back and turning you around to face him, picking up his shirt along the way to wrap it around you as if to return to the gentle man you knew him to be

“Was that okay?” He blushed, holding your hands in his and you smiled shyly

“What do you mean?” you giggled, “of course it was okay, was it not okay for you?”

“I mean the words,” he clarified, “you know I don’t think of you that way right? Like a.. slut” his hesitation led you to place your hand on his cheek and kiss his lips softly

“I know, baby,” you smiled, “it was in the moment”

“I love you” he added, bringing you to sit on the couch as he kissed your shoulders and your cheeks

“I love you, too” you smiled, bringing his face to yours to kiss him slowly before thinking to yourself ‘maybe this was how losses should always be handled…’

[whydoyoucare866]

Moonlight

PAIRINGS:

Titans!Jason todd x reader

SUMMARY:

Bruce has taken in Jason Todd as his youngest son and the new robin some months ago, Bruce’s goddaughter also came back to Gotham after being away for a year.

Some months after meeting Jason she starts a friends with benefits relationship with him, suddenly Jason has to move to the Titans tower and two weeks later Bruce sends her too, but, why is Jason ignoring her and acting like he doesn’t know her and why does it get worse when Rose Wilson arrives to the tower??

A/N: in this story Dick and Jason will not have such a big age gap as they do in the show, Dick will be 23 while Jason will be 19, but for the sake of the plot it will, also ignore that there’s already a dc character called moonlight, also the powers I made up for her make no sense at all but we’ll have to deal with it.

TWS: slow burn, angst, blood, canon violence, mentions of death, anxiety, jealousy, friends to friends with benefits to enemies to lovers?, maybe death of a main character (haven’t decided yet) change of plot

Keep in mind that English is not my first language, I also know nothing about guns, human anatomy or fighting in the language so I'm sorry if I make a lot of mistakes

Story Masterlist / Main Masterlist

Superman by Eminem was playing as the car Bruce sent to get you from the airport approached the gothic styled manor you hadn't seen in a year or so, the way everything looked the same brought you a sense of comfort, you knew Dick wasn’t Robin anymore, you were really close to Dick and he had told you all about how Bruce was a bad father and how he didn’t want to become him, you understood him, although you couldn’t help but feel bad for Bruce, you knew he was trying his best and he may not have been the best father, but he was a great godfather, it probably was because he wasn’t 100% responsible of you, he didn’t have to teach you about emotions, life, problems, or shit like that, he just had to spoil you and talk to you, so it was probably easier for him.

As you grew closer to the manor you noticed that Bruce and Alfred were already waiting for you by the door with some guy, he looked a little bit younger than you, but not too much, you couldn’t see him very well from the distance, but he seemed to be in casual clothes so you assumed he lived here, he was probably another stray that Bruce took in after Dick left so you paid it no mind. Eventually you arrived to the mansion and you could cry, it had been a year since you had last seen Bruce and Alfred, it had been a year since your dad had died, he was the only parent you ever knew, your mom wasn’t a deadbeat who abandoned you or anything like that, but she wasn’t “normal” she had special abilities (which you also have) that you didn’t know were special until you showed them to a boy in kindergarten and made him cry out of fear, at that moment you didn’t get why the boy had cried when you just tried to show him how your hands could glow, you then got a long talk from your mom about how most people don’t have the same abilities as you, therefore you have to keep them a secret, otherwise people would be scared or even worse it would put you at risk because there were bad people who wanted those abilities for themselves. You learned to take the talk seriously when your mom got killed by some scientist who wanted to have her powers and it was all thanks to not hiding them too well, leaving your dad and yourself on your own.

The sound of the car’s door opening pulled you out of your thoughts, and you immediately started getting off the car, you started walking towards the entrance of the Manor and all of the memories came flooding back making you emotional, you approached Bruce and just crashed into him with a hug, he became stiff, but he tried to comfort you as you cried in his arms, you hadn’t seen him ever since your dad had died, you had ran away from your problems and went to Europe for a year thinking it would help, but it didn’t, you were completely alone at Europe, at least here in Gotham you had Bruce and Dick and Alfred, you weren’t completely alone, but over there you were, and it just made you realize how much you missed and appreciated them.

When you calmed down, you moved on to Alfred who looked just as neat as always and also hugged him tight, after all Alfred reminded you of a loving grandfather and always gave you comfort, Alfred pulled away and excused himself to bake your favorite desserts, just like he always did whenever you were sad, it all felt so familiar that you felt comfort for the first time in a year. After hugging Bruce and Alfred and breaking down you realized there was still a boy who probably didn’t know who you were and had to witness you being a mess as his first impression of you, poor boy probably would be really uncomfortable after seeing a stranger come into his house and break down while he just stood there, the thought of it made you feel embarrassed making the atmosphere really awkward as you just stood staring at each other not knowing what to do, or say, Bruce took on the tense atmosphere and started introducing you to each other in hopes that the tension would fade away. You learned that his name was Jason Todd and he had just gotten taken in a year ago, some months after you left for Europe, Bruce also told you about how he found him and how he was now the new Robin, Jason have you a short nod as his way of saying hi and then Bruce started telling him about you, he told Jason about your abilities and how you were the vigilante known as moonlight which made Jason look excited, Bruce seeing Jason’s reaction told you how he was a fan of Robin and Moonlight and it sparked a bit of pride inside of you, but then made you feel embarrassed as you realized you had probably disappointed the boy by showing him how weak you actually were.

After the introductions finished, Alfred came out telling you all to get inside and to let you go to your room and accommodate, which you thanked him, You loved Bruce and Jason seemed nice, but you were exhausted after flying and you just wanted to get some rest, Alfred guided you to your room as if you hadn’t bern there a thousand times and insisted on carrying your luggage for you even though you said you could handle it.

“Here we are Miss (Y/N), you already know where Master Bruce’s and my rooms are in case you need anything, and if you ever need Master Jason his room is the one that’s right in front of yours in Master Dick’s old room .”

You thanked Alfred who excused himself and went to the kitchen and you decided you were too tired to unpack and that you would do it tomorrow, so you took the book you were reading and your headphones out of your bag and laid down to read a bit, you were really tired and after some pages your eyes started to get really heavy and you felt yourself drifting off to sleep.

taglist:

@fairyeoll @singitoutgirl26

[ladykailitha]

Grief (A Friend Indeed) Part 10

Just two more chapters to go and then this little story is done. I'm glad I wrote it. It was very cathartic for me. I hope it brought some comfort to you too.

Here we find out who Steve has been grieving this whole time and that Eddie mourned them too.

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9

****

Steve was quiet and contemplative on the trip back. And Eddie let him be. That was quite the roller coaster of emotion he had gone through and he knew Steve needed time to sort out all of his thoughts and feelings.

As they neared Ashland, Eddie asked, “Are you okay? It got pretty heavy back there.”

“Sorry,” Steve murmured.

“I wasn’t asking for forgiveness,” Eddie admonished gently. “I was asking if you were okay.”

Steve sighed. “I guess I just had so many things bottled up that it all came out in a rush.”

“So talk to me,” Eddie said softly. “I know you think you can’t talk to anyone else because they’re all younger than you. But I’m not. So spill.”

Steve let out a long shuddering breath as if he had been holding it in for years.

“It’s just there have only ever been two adults involved in the whole Upside Down shit,” Steve murmured. “Well, there have been others, but either they haven’t been trustworthy or they’ve died. And I’m not going to lie and say I’m not bitter about Mrs Byers taking her family out to California and leaving me as the remaining adult.”

“Oh shit,” Eddie said softly. He hadn’t even thought about that. “That wasn’t right. I get she was trying to get Will and El as far away from Hawkins as she could, but considering the frequency of the U.D. coming back, it does seem selfish when looked at from your point of view.”

“El wasn’t the only one grieving Hopper’s death,” Steve spat out. “Why were only her feelings taken into consideration? Why was his funeral ‘a private family’ affair instead of one benefiting a hero where the whole town could attend? Why was El the first one that got to see him? Why did it take days before anyone else was informed?”

Eddie saw a shoulder and pulled off onto it, the Bimmer crunching the gravel as it slowed to a stop.

“It must have been so hard on you,” Eddie murmured. “You mentioned back at the diner that he always looked out for you and then suddenly he was gone and no one thought to ask you if you needed time to grieve, right?”

Steve nodded. “I just felt so stupid after it was announced that he was alive, you know? Like how dare I mourn someone who hadn’t even died. But I thought that once everything settled down we would get a chance to talk, but nope. He went off to California with the Byers. They’re supposed all be back before school starts, but who knows if that’s even true.”

“Steve it isn’t stupid you grieved,” Eddie murmured. “But I bet if you told him what you’ve been feeling, he’d pretty upset that he hurt you like that.”

Tears started streaming down Steve’s face. “I just want to be loved as much I love them, is that really too much to ask for?”

Eddie unbuckled his seatbelt and pulled him in for a hug. “Of course it’s not. And I don’t doubt if you stopped to really think about it you can name at least a half a dozen people who love you as much as you love them.”

Steve let out a watery chuckle. “I could probably fill up all ten of my fingers, if I was honest to myself.”

Eddie wiped away his tears. “There you have it, big boy. But it’s okay to cry and if you feel like you need to fall apart, call me. I’ll come over with beer, weed, and bad horror films to mock until you laugh.”

Steve wiped his nose on his arm. “You promise?”

Eddie leaned back far enough to hold up his pinkie. “I pinkie promise.”

Steve hooked his finger around Eddie’s and shook on it.

“You ready to face the road again?” Eddie asked.

Steve nodded. After a moment or two of silence, he spoke up. “You remember when ‘fake’ cried for Keith?” He used his fingers around the word fake to put it into air quotes.

Eddie, who was about to pull into traffic again, cut the engine. “Holy shit. It was Hopper, wasn’t it? That’s who you were remembering.”

Steve nodded. “It’s easy to cry when thinking about him, you know?”

“Because it’s new and even though he’s not dead, you never got your resolution?”

Steve nodded again. “I just feel so selfish about the whole thing, you know. He wasn’t my dad. I wasn’t related to him in anyway. But I thought I meant something to him, you know?”

Eddie turned the car back on and eased into traffic. “I’m sure you meant a lot to him, but there could be extenuating circumstances that prevented him from expressing that. Like I said before, I bet if you told him how you felt he’d be gutted.”

Steve just shrugged.

Eddie glanced over at him and then back at the road. “You tell anyone about this and I’ll tell Dustin about the time you flirted with his mom to get the brownie recipe.”

Steve’s went wide. “That was not flirting! I was just buttering her up a bit. That’s not the same thing.”

“Oh I know that,” Eddie said with a grin. “But would Dustin know the difference?”

Steve thought about it for a moment. “You drive a hard bargain, Lord Eddie.”

Eddie giggled. “You know, sometimes I forget you like ‘Star Wars’, you just aren’t great with their titles.”

“The third one is my favorite, after all.”

Eddie cleared his throat. “So back when I was just little metalhead, dealing for the first time one of my best customers was the Chief.”

Steve blinked. “Oh wait, I think I did hear something about that. I’m surprised he wasn’t fired.”

Eddie shrugged. “He wasn’t up for re-election. Sheriffs are elected. And small town like Hawkins, change is difficult. Hop would have to straight up murder babies in town hall and smear their blood over the church walls to get people to not vote for him.”

Steve snorted. “I doubt even then. It would take him being soft on homosexuals before they ousted him.”

Eddie laughed. “You’ve got me there.”

Steve smiled at him.

“So,” Eddie continued, “the reason I bring it up is that despite what people think, I’ve never been arrested for dealing and Rick hadn’t either until Hop ‘died’.”

Steve straightened up in his seat. “What do you mean?”

“Hop always said it was better to steer Rick away from certain places because he could,” Eddie said, “then it was to arrest him and have an all out war with the new supplier.”

Steve’s eyes went wide. “That’s why Rick didn’t get arrested until Powell took over because he didn’t have the same philosophy that Hop did.”

“Right in one,” he said. “And it did get bad with people trying to fill the void he left behind. Uncle Wayne convinced to stop selling once I was out until Rick was released because I couldn’t trust the new suppliers not to cut their shit with something dangerous.”

“Holy shit, yeah,” Steve agreed. “So why are you telling me this?”

“Because Hop looked out for me, too,” Eddie said. “Especially when my old man rolled into town. He would make sure he got to the carnage first and made sure I never got a record.”

Steve scratched his cheek thoughtfully. “That makes since I always wondered why the police or Jason never brought up your arrest record. It’s because Hop made sure you never got one.”

“So this is me saying,” Eddie finished, “I get it. I get mourning him. Because in my own way I mourned him, too. Because between Hop and Uncle Wayne they made sure I could get out of Hawkins when the time came.”

“This is exactly why I pushed for a public funeral,” Steve grumbled, sinking back into his seat and crossing his arms. “I don’t know who had the final say on that, but it makes me mad that just because they didn’t have a body people in town wouldn’t want to come see anyway. It blows.”

“Here’s that,” Eddie agreed.

Too soon they were pulling up the Nelsons’ and the sun was starting to set.

By silent agreement they both got out of the car and sat on Steve’s hood to watch the sunset in a beautiful array of blues and purples until the sky darkened and the stars came out.

“Thank you for today,” Steve murmured. “For all of it. Getting me out here, taking me to my grandmother’s grave, sitting with me when I talked to Uncle Percy. Helping me with my grief even though yours is far more fresh and painful than mine.”

“Grief is grief, Stevie,” Eddie murmured. “You don’t get to decide when it heals over. You were there for me when my dad showed up, so I was more than happy to return the favor with your family.”

“Thanks, man,” Steve said.

“So...” Eddie said. “You want to tell me why you and your uncle weren’t keen to let your other uncle see you?”

Steve snorted. “He’s the one that was the most against my mom getting any kind of inheritance. He didn’t think she should have gotten anything because she was a girl child. He kept saying that she got her money in the form of the lavish wedding she had when she married my dad.”

He ran his fingers through his hair.

“He’s sued her at least three times that I know of. If he had seen me he would have started screaming about how my mom didn’t deserve that money and that I was just as complicit in its ‘theft’ as she was.”

“But he got the house or whatever it was, right?” Eddie asked.

He nodded. “Yeah and the two acres of land it sits on. If he were to sell it would go for at least a few million, easy.”

“I’ll bet,” Eddie said, whistling long and low. “Which means Percy got the business?”

“Which another thing that upset Uncle Jasper,” Steve said. “But Uncle Percy is the oldest and had the best business sense, but he can’t let it go that he thinks his siblings got the better deal.”

“I heard this quote once about how some people are content in life, but that others just can’t be. That they will always seek more. Nothing will ever be enough.”

“Uncle Jasper is definitely one of those.”

Penny poked her head out the front door. “Come on in, boys, it’s really getting late.”

Eddie and Steve stood up and walked back into the house, feeling lighter then they had since before March.

****

Pt 11|Pt 12

Tag List: @spectrum-spectre @estrellami-1 @zerokrox-blog @artiststarme @swimmingbirdrunningrock @gregre369 @pyrohonk ​@a-little-unsteddie @chaosgremlinmunson @chaoticlovingdreamer @messrs-weasley @goodolefashionedloverboi @maya-custodios-dionach @val-from-lawrence @i-must-potato @danili666 @carlyv @rozzieroos @emly03 @wonderland-girl143-blog @justforthedead89 @bookworm0690 @itsall-taken @bookbinderbitch @redfreckledwolf @vecnuthy @littlewildflowerkitten @scheodingers-muppet @mira-jadeamethyst @cinnamon-mushroomabomination @gutterflower77 @genderless-spoon @hel-spawn @ellietheasexylibrarian @anne-bennett-cosplayer @mamafaithful @yikes-a-bee @dragonmama76 @flaming-reauxster @r0binscript @awkotaco24 @ilikeititspretty

[rorywritesjunk]

Oh, go to sleep, Little Skylark. Fly up past the stars

After breaking your heart, Buggy is cursed to be a kid again. The last thing you want to do is be involved with this.

Rating: PG-13ish. Warning: Arguing adults, hurt feelings, apologies. A/N: Last chapter! Thank you all who have been reading it! It was fun to write something different for Buggy as a kid. <3

Title comes from “Little Skylark (safe at home)” by S.J. Tucker.

Chapter 1 + Chapter 2 + Chapter 3 + Chapter 4 + Chapter 5 + Chapter 6 + Chapter 7 + Chapter 8 TAGLIST: @lostfirefly @fluffybunnyu @plethora-of-fickleness @ane5e @valen-yamyam16 @lavanderdreamve  @jollycandyruins

Chapter 8

“What?!” He looked shocked by that statement. “I… I never cheated on you!”

“Then who ever the flowers for?!” You demanded.

“I was getting them for you! To apologize!” He told you. He took a few slow, deep breaths again before taking a seat beside you on the bed. You scooted away from him, giving the two of you space. “I… I felt bad. I didn't think you would leave.”

“You… you thought I'd stick around after how you talked to me?! Buggy, you called me a useless cook and ridiculous!” You reminded him. “You thought stealing flowers from a witch was the way to go?!”

“I didn't know she was a witch at the time! And… and you like flowers and they were your favorite colors so I thought that would be a start!” He said. “I'm not good at this sort of thing, okay?! Having a relationship is still new and… weird. I don't know what to do “

“Fucking talking to your partner is a start.” You grumbled as you rubbed your nose. “Insulting them isn't really the best thing.”

“Well now I know.” Buggy shot back. “But I'm… sorry.”

You paused, making him wait a minute in silence before you turned to look at him. “Do you remember any of the conversation from this morning? Or… or what has taken place the last few days?”

“Yea.” He hesitated. “Thank you.”

“For?” You asked. You needed to hear him say it.

“Taking care of me. I probably would have ended up dead or kidnapped if you weren't around.” Buggy said as rested his hand on the bed beside you. “And… I'm sorry for how I spoke to you. And treated you. And everything else.”

You nodded and reached over, patting his hand gently. “Thank you for apologizing.”

“Just everything was stressful and crazy for a while and I took it out on you.” He mumbled. “I was a dick.”

“You really were. You hurt my feelings.” You told him. “And maybe I was a bit petty in how I left, but I felt justified. Richie deserved that steak.” You rubbed your nose and sniffed. “My things are still at the inn.”

“I'll send someone to grab it.” Buggy said. “We need a cook on the ship.”

“I don't know, Buggy. I spent the last few days planning to leave, but I don't know where I'd go.”

“Can you stay? You… you're the best cook. I wouldn't be able to find anyone else.”

“I want a pay increase.” You told him. He nodded. “And… that pantry in the kitchen? It's huge. We aren't even using it. That's going to be my bedroom.”

“Oh.” He frowned. He apologized, you two talked about it, but you wanted your own bedroom? “Yea, okay.”

“Buggy, we aren't a couple anymore. I'm not sharing a bed with you.” You said firmly. “At least… not now. I need space from you.”

“Well, how long do you need space from me?” Buggy asked with a frown. “A few months? Weeks?”

“Just give me my space.” You sighed. “This has been a hard week for me.”

“You?! What about me?!” He demanded. “I was a child and almost kidnapped!”

“And? I was dragged back into this by Mohji because he didn't know what else to do!” You snapped. “I took care of you while trying to make myself hate you, Buggy! I didn't want to do it!”

“Then why did you even bother?! You're obviously terrible with kids!”

“Because there's some part of me that still loves you, you idiot! I didn't want something bad to happen to you!” You stood up from the bed, seething as you started to pace back and forth. Your arm was throbbing, you were angry, and you wanted to lie down. You were feeling just a bit lightheaded. This wasn't how you wanted the conversation to go but it wasn't too surprising. This wasn't the best time to have this talk. “This is dumb.”

“You need to sit back down.” Buggy’s hands went to your shoulders, steering you back over to the bed. “Take it easy.”

“Don't tell me what to do.” You hissed as you sat back down. He grumbled something about being stubborn as he pushed you to lay down and lifted your legs onto the bed. You curled away from him while he tucked a few pillows under your injured arm to elevate it. You didn't want him taking care of you, you weren't even asking him to, but he wasn't saying anything as he checked your stitches again before pulling a blanket over you. 

“I'm going to check on the crew.” He said as he went to grab a shirt. “Just stay here.”

You didn’t want to listen, you wanted to get out of the comfortable bed and leave, but you were also just feeling drained. The last week was exhausting, the conversation had been exhausting, and just… you wanted to close your eyes just for a bit and maybe wake up in a few days. Maybe the last few months were just some nightmare you had to live through, and you’d wake up tomorrow and everything would be fine. 

~

Someone was touching your arm, poking at the stitches gently, which was disrupting your sleep. You lifted your head from the pillows, groggy and confused as you tried to figure out where you were. Buggy was sitting on the edge of the bed beside you, holding your arm carefully as he made sure your injury was healing okay. When he saw you waking up he lowered it back onto the pillows.

“I brought you something to eat.” 

“Who cooked it?” You mumbled as you buried your face back into the pillows. “I don’t want it.”

“It’s just soup.” He grumbled. “I made it.”

You lifted your head just a bit to look at him before sighing loudly. You gave yourself a moment before you started to sit up. He was trying. You had to give that to him. And he apologized, that was a start. You weren’t sure of your feelings on the matter still, but he was trying. Once you situated yourself against the headboard, he picked the bowl up and dipped the spoon in before holding it out to you. 

You could feed yourself but you were too tired to fight him. He gave you the first spoonful, waiting for a reaction, and it… was okay. It was just broth with some veggies, and at least the veggies were cooked. The broth was warm, making it easy to swallow without the risk of burning your mouth. You nodded at him, cradling your arm to your chest as he continued feeding you.

“It’s good, thanks.” You told him, trying not to react as a smug expression crossed his face. 

“Well, I was sleeping with the cook, so I learned a few things.” He teased as you rolled your eyes. “What? She was pretty handy with a knife.”

“I’ll show you how handy I am with a knife.” You shot back, though with no malice. “I’m glad you remembered how much salt to use, and you chopped the carrots evenly. I’m glad you were listening that day.”

“I listened.” Buggy muttered as he stirred the soup a bit before offering another spoonful for you. “Just not all the time. I’m trying, y’know.”

You didn’t want to get into another fight, you were too tired. You just nodded, reaching over to pat his arm gently as you let him feed you. 

“Thank you for the soup.” You said. 

“Are you going to stay for sure?” He asked. “We… can turn the pantry into your bedroom. I just want you to stay.”

“I mean, I don’t have a job lined up yet.” 

“I had Mohji get your things. They’re here in my room until we can get your room ready.” Buggy told you. “I just don’t want you to leave.”

“Well, if I’m not fired for feeding the lion a steak or being mean to you when you’re a kid… guess I can stay a bit longer.” You told him with a shrug. “And you owe me flowers that aren’t stolen from a witch.”

He looked just a bit hopeful and nodded. “I’ll steal them from someone else.”

“But we’re not together, Buggy.”

“Not yet, anyways.” He smirked. “But you’ll get some apology flowers. I’ll keep apologizing until you’re happy.”

That wasn’t really what you wanted, but you just nodded. You figured in a week he’d forget about getting you flowers, forget about all of this, and would go back to trying to get back together with you, or give up entirely, you weren’t sure. And you weren’t sure what you would want from him either, but you knew you needed space. For your own sanity you needed boundaries with him, to make sure there wouldn’t be any repeated arguments, fights, anything. 

~

Your room was ready a week later with a bed and some shelves put up. You didn’t specify what you actually wanted, but it worked. The first time you went into it when it was finished, you were surprised to see flowers everywhere in there. The smell was a little overpowering, but Buggy looked so proud of himself that you didn’t say anything.

You had taken to cooking for the crew again, but simple meals due to your arm, and no one complained, which was probably because Buggy would glare at them as you served the food. They wouldn’t make any comments in front of him, even if you served the same meal three days in a row while the ship was out at sea. And Buggy was back to saying your food was amazing, that it was the best meal ever, and you were okay with it. You knew he was wanting you to be happy, and you kind of were.

Until your room had been ready, Buggy was having you sleep in his bed, even allowing you to put a wall of pillows between them. You ignored the hurt expression on his face when you suggested it, but it was what you wanted and he begrudgingly allowed it. It wasn’t like he was going to cuddle, but you knew how much he could move in his sleep.

Your first night in the room was… different. It reminded you of being back at the inn when you were a miserable wreck. Cold, alone, empty. You tried for a few hours to sleep in there but to your own surprise and Buggy’s, you were knocking on his door after midnight.  He let you in without a word and went to grab pillows to create a barrier, but you hesitated.

“Don’t, it’s fine.” You muttered as you headed over to what was your side of the bed once more. 

“You don’t like your room?” He frowned. 

“It’s not that, just… didn’t want to be alone yet.” You told him. “I’ll sleep there tomorrow night, if that’s okay.”

“Whatever.” Buggy shrugged as he went to his side of the bed. You crawled under the covers and rolled onto your side with your back to him. This was fine, just one more night and then you would be able to sleep in your own room. It was what you wanted. You didn’t want to be doing this but you wanted to sleep, to feel comfortable, but you didn’t want the loneliness that came with having your own room. 

And you fell asleep without any problem shortly after, sleeping through the night and into morning. When you finally woke up, Buggy was behind you, fast asleep as he clung to you. Maybe you would ease into having space from him, considering ever since you said that, you two spent more time together. He was taking care of you, checking your injury, even helping you in the kitchen. If all it took was a witch’s curse to help your relationship, you wondered if you could enlist her help if there were problems again.

[kyoness]

Raw Emotion

Chapter three of A Silent Cry

Wc- 1,401

Warnings- flashback, teen gojo, flirting, the slow burning is burning. (None of these are really warnings)

"Y/n!" Suguru called from afar. you see him waking towards you, an annoyed look on his face. You look behind him and see his two friends already staring at you. They quickly look away, gojo whistling while looking at the pretend watch on his wrist, and Shoko "reading" a book. You raise an eyebrow at Suguru who now stood in front of you.

"Wanna go to a cafe with me, Satoru and Shoko? Satoru has been practically on his hands and knees begging me to ask you" he sates as he shakes his head in an annoyance, pinching. His temple.

"sorry-" you begin to say, though, the desperate look in Sugurus eyes makes you feel bad.

"Y/n. He won't shut up" He pleads.

"yea, I'll go" you sigh. You didn't want to question why Gojo wanted you there so bad, you just brushed it off as him wanting to annoy Suguru.

Arriving at Dans Cafe, you instantly get hit with the smell of pastry's and the overwhelming sound of a crowded area making you dizzy. The sounds of children Laughing, people yelling, coughing, it was overstimulating. You looked around awkwardly for your friends, walking down to the end of the cafe. You instantly noticed a tall, white haired boy sitting at the booth. When you got a closer look Suguru and Shoko were there too. You sit next to Shoko across from the two boys. Suguru gave you a worried glance.

"Sorry y/n, I didn't know so many people would be here today." He troubled. You gave him a reassuring smile

"I'm okay" You respond, tho it is barely audible due to Gojos babbling about who knows what. You look to your right to Shoko who's pretending to listen and to Suguru who's now engaged on what he's saying, giving a light chuckle here and there. A part of you felt misplaced, why would they want you to be here with them? You only hung out with Suguru after class sometimes, because he was usually hanging out with Gojo and Shoko. And for these two, you've hardly ever had a conversation with them. Your thoughts as well as Gojos rambling are cut short tho due to Sugurus phone randomly blowing up with text, after text after text.

"woah, what girl did you upset?" Shoko jokes, making Gojo chuckle.

"yaga." his eyebrows furrow in confusion at the screen. He opens the text thread and faces the phone to Shoko. He turns to you and Gojo. "He wants me and Shoko to call him."

"Glad I'm not being called by that old man" Gojo scoffs, half joking. The other two sigh.

"He's probably calling about somthing YOU did.Don't do anything stupid while we're gone, looking at you satoru." Surgru sarcastically remarked.

"Hey! I'm not that bad!" Gojo pouts, making Suguru roll his eyes. Shoko and Suguru  walk away as he holds the phone up to his ear. You stare off in the direction they walked to, pondering many things. You thought about your next mission, what it would Entail, and what cursed tool you would use. How the weather was slightly more chilly than yesterday which means fall is coming. You couldn't not think about how damn loud people were in this area. Gojo examined your expression briefly.

"Whatcha thinking about pretty?" Gojo smirks while leaning his head back on the chair. You came back to reality, raising your eyebrow at the nickname towards you that came from his lips. You didn't bother to interrogate him tho.

"my next mission-" you falter. Gojo had taken his sunglasses off revealing his ice blue eyes. You stare at them, maybe for a little too long because of how Gojo made a cocky joke of some sort. They were beautiful, that's not why you were staring at them tho. In this moment you feel a faint sadness in Gojos eyes, almost like it was oppressed. Despite it being distant, it was oh so powerful. You could feel the isolated emotion that radiated off of his eyes.

"Gojo-" you commence.

"Call me Satoru" he smiles at you as he leans his cheek onto his palm.

"Satoru are you... lonely?" You surprisingly say, catching Satoru and you off guard.

"huh." He gave a dumb smile, he was confused on  your sudden statement.

"Heyy" Shoko shouted, waving at you. Suguru smiled with two plates in his hand. Satoru gasped at the food, looking down on it in awe.

"Did you get somthing for yours truly???" Satoru points to himself using his thumb.

"Yea, I knew you would say somthing like that." He shakes his dead with a smile, handing Satoru the plate.

"yay!" He cheers, leaning too far onto the table to grab the plate that  had a vanilla piece of cake on it. He looses his balance and falls directly onto the plate that wasn't stable in Sugurus hand. The plate fell to the floor along with Satorus face. The cafe goes silent, your eyebrows raise and you try to stop your impending smile. For your first time being here, you burst out laughing. Your raw smile making everyone else follow suit. Your eyes flutter closed, stomach hurting from laughing so much.

What you didn't see though, was Satorus frosting filled face looking up at you. Studying your pretty smile and the way your lashes fell onto your gorgeous cheekbones. His eyes whipped around your face for any imperfection, like he would see in other girls. There was none. He then found himself inspecting your facial harmony so he wouldn't forget it.

That moment was right before Suguru broke. Of course you noticed when he was depressed but he didn't dare to talk to you about it. It was also before a blue eyed lanky man stood in front of you. You process his words, examining his face for any type of joking manner but the eyes never lied. For the first time, or for the first time you thought, Gojo looked at you with a raw expression. It kinda freaked you out.

"Yea." You sniffle. A slight,faint smile almost formed on your lips as you wipe away your tears."I should be asking that to you."

"mm" he doesn't respond with a answer, he knows you would know anyways. You two stood in silence  for a couple of second's.

"If you ever need to talk, you know I'd be there for you." You mumble, a slight blush from embarrassment lies on your cheeks. You don't know why tho, you've always had no problem asking people if they were okay. With Gojo it was... werid?

    "Why?" He queried as he scratched his head, His eyebrows furrowed.

    "I-" you look at him at a loss for words. A question you asked yourself and never got the anwser to it. "I don't know." You finally put out. He just nods with a smile.

    "How come we never talked after that day?" He smirks, tying to lighten the mood. It's unnerving how well he can achieve that.

    "What day?" You tilt your head to the side with a confused smile. You knew what day, you knew because after that day you saw an unfamiliar glimmer in Gojos eyes. It was a mix of vulnerability and understanding, nevertheless you never knew what it was, You only knew it was a good feeling. After Suguru, that glimmer faded away, you never expected it to last anyways.

    "Nevermindddd" he acclaimed, waking up to you and handing you the papers that he never wanted to do himself. Gojo liked having someone who let him have no responsibility, and that person was you. His lanky fingers briefly brushed against yours. "My students are waiting on me, cya y/n!" He shouted because he was already somehow at the end of the hallway. You waved goodbye in return.

   

    suddenly you hear a beep on your phone, looking at the light you see a notification from a unsaved number. The text read "ya free tomorrow?" you smiled at your phone, a warm feeling washed over you for a millisecond. You knew who this was from.

End of chap 3!!

Authors note: I tried writing a different side of Gojo here, his character is actully really complex when I get to write vulnerable moments. I honestly thought it would be easy because on the surface, his personality is straight forward.

[paladin--strait]

Prompt 5: “listen to me, everything is going to be alright.” W/ Jamie Drysdale @ reader

sorry this is so short! i couldn't really think of what i wanted jamie to comfort reader for and i'm sorry for it taking me so long to get this out!! seriously, so sorry! y'all i literally cried writing this...

tw: bad car accident, surgery, mentions of death, readers best friend is implied to be a christian but it's not said, comfort

-

when i got the call from my best friend's boyfriend that she had been in a horrific car accident early this morning and that she was the only one still living, my heart sank.

he told me they had taken her into emergency surgery and that she's been in there for a while. but he knew she would want me to be there, even though i would be freaking out.

jamie helped me pack a few things, not knowing how long we would be there and then drove me to the hospital. my leg bounced up and down and my nails were bitten down to a quick. my breathing was heavy and ragged, waiting for the nurses, doctors, and her boyfriend, adam, to tell me that she's gonna be okay.

when we pulled up to the hospital, we got out of the car quickly. jamie grabbed the bags, and we made our way inside. when i tried to sign us in, writing down names, addresses, and phone numbers, jamie had to set down the bags and write for me.

my shaking hands could no longer function from the amount of anxiety i was under. i can't even imagine what adam and her family must be going through.

the walk to the waiting room was long and despite the blazing heat outside, surprisingly freezing. earlier before we left, i snatched up a blanket from the couch in the living room, not sure if it was going to be cold in the waiting room or not. and now i'm glad i brought it.

adam's head perks up when he sees jamie and i, walking over to us. "adam, how is she? is she going to be okay? how are you holding up? where's her family?" my mouth is running at a hundred miles per hour before jamie stops me.

"baby, slow down, let him answer all your questions and then maybe you'll feel better." jamie sets down the bags in a chair, walking over to me and holding my hand. "i'm sure he knows the answers to your questions." jamie says with a smile, trying to comfort me.

i look back at adam, waiting for him to speak. but i don't see the face jamie made at him, hoping that he has the answers or to just make something up for now for my sake. adam sees how worried i am, and begins to speak.

"she's still in surgery, but as far as i know, she's doing well and she's gonna be okay. her family is on their way, a couple hours out on the plane." he says, slowly, making sure i process all the information.

"and you? how are you, adam?" i place a hand on his elbow, looking up at him with a disheartened expression. i nods, telling me that he's okay, just hoping that she makes it out of the surgery okay.

i nod, taking in the information a little bit at a time. a few minutes later, we're in our seats in the waiting room. jamie is holding my hand and rubbing my palm with his thumb. he's talking to me about afternoon skate from yesterday. he always tells me about it when he comes home, but i was asleep last night.

i hear what he's saying, and i'm processing the information, but it's like it goes in one ear and out the other. "baby? did you hear what i said?" jamie says, poking his head out in front of mine, trying to search for attention from my distant eyes.

"yeah, uhm..." i say, snapping back into reality and rubbing my temple. "he took a really big fall and had to go to the medic..." i say, recalling the story about his teammate from my memory and turning to face him.

jamie has always cared about me on a deeper level than the usual boyfriend. he knows me inside and out. every flaw and every perfection. but, i've never seen him look at me like this before.

his face has contorted into a look of genuine concern and sadness. the waterline of his dark eyes is full with sparkling tears that have not yet fallen down his chubby cheeks. "baby...i'm sorry, about your friend. she's gonna be okay, i just know it." his words are soft like velvet, and smooth like caramel.

my eyes water, tears threatening to fall. "jamie...i'm so scared..." he pulls me into his arms, wrapping me in tight embrace. "what if..."

"sweetheart, no what ifs. only a when. when she's better, i'm sure that she'll be grateful to you for being here." he pulls away, cupping my wet face in his soft hands. "i'm sure of it. listen to me, everything is going to be alright." he pulls me into his arms once more while i cry, my anxious tears finally being let out.

-

hours have gone by and i'm now on the floor. i'm accompanied by jamie, who's behind me, leaning against the wall to prevent my back from hurting as much. his hands are resting on my hips while his face is nestled in my neck.

a nurse busts through the doors, and the three of us whip our head up, as we've been doing for every nurse that walks in. she looks at adam and calls my best friends name, we all stand quickly, walking to the nurse and waiting to listen to what she has to say.

"the surgery...was a success." her words calm us. i put a hand of my heart, feeling my steadying heartbeat. "but, unfortunately, she had a brain bleed, which we had not caught. it spread quickly throughout her brain. and...i'm so sorry, but..." the world around me buzzes while it becomes blurry.

i don't need to hear the rest of her words, only the cries of adam, while he falls to his knees on the white, cold, floor of the waiting room. tears leave my eyes slowly. it's unusual, you would think i would be sobbing, screaming my best friend's name while i fall backwards.

but instead of that, i find myself almost at peace with her passing. i can almost see her standing over adam, a hand on his shoulder while he cries. she's looking at me, no emotions on her pale face. i can tell that she was fighting. fighting for her life. but, the world had other plans for her.

she always loved the quote, "take her to the moon for me." and i can hear her saying it to me, speaking about her boyfriend, who kneels alone on the cool floor. i smile, tears barely falling as i kneel down to place an arm around adam.

"adam, she fought. she fought harder than her and we ever thought she could. her body was tired, and it needs its rest. i can tell you right now, she's always going to be with you. she wouldn't want us to be sad, she would want us to be happy that she's no longer in pain anymore, thats she's going to a place where she won't feel pain at all." my words soften his cries while he looks at me, eyes bloodshot and lip wobbling.

he thanks me, hugging me tighter than he ever had before. "thank you...thank you..." i nod and rub his back, sniffing.

i stand back up and look at jamie and he's looking at me, i can see the tears threatening to fall from his eyes. i can tell he's unsure of whether he should cry or not, he barely knew her. but my jamie is a sweet boy, who cares about anyone and everyone that he's ever met or never met before.

i nod at him, signaling that he can let his tears go. he breaks down, sobs racking his body. i sniffle and hold him while we both cry in each others arms.

i can't help but imagine that she's there, waiting for us to leave so she can hand me her memories. the ones that i don't remember but she does, and the ones neither of us remember at all. she's waiting for me to be alone to remind me of all the good and bad times we've had. each of those moments creating a memory that may be forgotten, but truly lasts forever in our hearts.

[seung-mong]

hyunchan - guilty guilty pt. 2

includes: sub! hyunjin x dom! bangchan x switch! fem reader, slightly darker themes, CHAN IS SO MANIPULATIVE IN THIS LMAW, mentions of infidelity, dacryphilia, heavy angst, oral (f and m rec), cum play, spit play, praise, hyunjin is soooo subby, some mxm action, use of "sir", use of petnames, slight degradation, fluff to make up for it at the end<3

a/n: finally!! someone decided to get off their ass and actually start writing! sorry it took so long i wanted, nay NEEDED it to be perfect and my creative juices were not juicing so i had to wait for inspiration to come to me JHDJSH but anyway here it is! i hope you enjoy it, i had so much fun writing it and tbh im blown away by how well received the first part was!! okay bye love u

wc: 4143 :0

hyunjin stares blankly back at bangchan, blinking slowly as he tries to process what he just heard. he almost feels like he's in a dream, but everything's too real and suddenly he's hyperaware of every little detail, as if all his senses are heightened. the silent hum that hangs in the silence. the way chan's eyes are honest, sincere, tired. the sound of his own shoe hitting the leg of the chair he's on as he nervously (subconsciously) bounces his leg.

"im... im sorry you want me to.. what?" hyunjin is taken aback by his own voice, surprised that he actually gathered the courage to repeat the question that's been on his mind. he's proud of himself for not screaming the question at chan, his friend, the way he's been screaming internally at himself.

"to fuck her." chan's voice is gentle, but it's a slap to the face and a punch to the gut as hyunjin winces, eyes squeezing shut as he tries t control his breathing, willing himself to calm the fuck down. obviously, he misheard his hyung. no one, i mean, no one. would ask for their friend (who is obviously in love with his girl by the way!) to fuck said girlfriend. hyunjin swallows thickly, convincing himself this is some sort of sick joke, a way for chan to test him.

"i dont know what you're talking about. why would i want to fuck y/n?" hyunjin's laugh is hollow, and he almost feels pathetic when chan smiles sadly at him, shaking his head.

"you dont think i've noticed how you look at her hyune?"

hyunjin feels sick to his stomach. if this is some kind of cruel prank, chan has gone too far. but. but if there was even a small chance any of this was real, hyunjin's still equally fucked. you noticed? god he feels like such a creep, he thought he was being discreet.

"chan, i-"

"it's okay, hyune." chan chuckles, scooting his chair closer to hyunjin, placing a heavy hand on his shoulder and giving it a reassuring squeeze. "look, i- i'm not exactly the most present boyfriend." hyunjin looks up at his hyung, can see the bitterness in his still somewhat gentle eyes, and hyunjin almost pities him. "i'm always busy, never home, i try to make time for her, god do i try. and she's always so sweet, so patient and understanding and it's unfair for her." chan rambles, shoulders drooping as he shakes his head.

"i want her to feel loved. even if i'm not the one doing it."

hyunjin swallows but his throat has gone dry and it feels like sandpaper. he can feel his heart ache a little when he sees how sad chan is, tiredness evident in his very being, his eyes, the slowness of his breathing, his posture.

"but.... how's that fair for you?" hyunjin's voice is small.

chan shakes his head, running his fingers through his messy hair. "that doesn't matter to me right now. i just need to know she's happy. cared for. you can do that for me, can't you hyune? you'll take care of her for me, won't you?"

hyunjin frowns. chan's using his sickly sweet voice, the one he knows holds so much power over hyunjin, knows hyunjin could never say no to him when he pouts. it's unfair really, chan knows how bad hyunjin wants to be good, eager to do anything just for a little bit of praise and attention.

"f'course." hyunjin mumbles, eyes fixed on the plump of chan's lower lip as it juts out.

"see? knew i could count on you. you're a good boy f'me, aren't you hyune?" chan smiles, placing a hand on hyunjin's head and gently ruffling his hair. hyunjin scowls at him, but he can't hide the blush that spreads to his cheeks at the praise.

oh, he's so fucked. why did he even agree? how the hell will he manage to fuck you take care of you when he can barely hug you without wanting to tell you how down bad he is for you? it's all so messed up, how chan knows how he feels for you, and yet asking this of him? his self restraint can only go so far.

"there's just one more thing." chan clears his throat, placing a gentle hand on hyunjin's still bouncing leg.

"you can't tell y/n. promise?"

"chan."

your voice is barely even a whisper, pure fear settling at the pit of your stomach, your heart is beating so loud you can feel it in your head, can literally feel your blood run cold as you sit up in bed, hugging your knees to your chest in an attempt to put as much distance as you can between you and hyunjin. you dont even dare to look his way, gaze fixed on your boyfriend who stands in the doorway, letting his duffel bag hit the floor with a loud thud.

you hope you can play it cool, praying it doesn't look like hyunjin was just fucking your brains out. but there's no way to hide it, the way you're both slightly covered in sweat, sticky. chan wasn't stupid, could easily put two and two together once he registers that you're naked under the covers, hyunjin still shirtless and just in his boxers that were quickly shimmied on. you feel like imploding, want the ground to open up and swallow you whole. god, anything to get you out of this situation.

chan cant help but feel a little mean, the way he enjoys watching you shake as sobs rack through your entire frame, eyes full of guilt slowly pooling with fresh tears. you bite your bottom lip in worry, unsure of what to do, what to say. chan decides to play it out a little, taking a small step towards his side of the bed, eyes coldly fixed on you, completely disregarding hyunjin.

"chan." you repeat in a pathetic whimper, hands shaking from fear, pain, guilt. the whole situation is so overwhelming to you, and you hate that you can't read your boyfriend's stare, so intensely fixed on you yet no emotion can be read.

you let out a little sob, and chan can feel blood rush to his cock. he's dizzy now, feels so powerful with how you're looking at him. there's so much chan wants to do, with so little time and no idea where to start.

"hyung. say some-"

"quiet, hyunjin. didn't say you could talk. did i?" chan harshly cuts him off, glancing at him as he sits swakwardly on the edge of the bed.

"no, sir." hyunjin hangs his head, can feel the blood rushing to his cheeks in embarrassment as he sees you turn curiously to him in his peripheral vision.

"i told you to fuck her. not profess your love for her like some pussy drunk slut." chan's words sting, but he manages to say it in a cool, gentle tone, which somehow makes it worse for hyunjin, but he can't stop the shiver that goes down his spine. he simply nods, mumbling a small 'sorry, sir.'

you look back at chan, confused, but the tears have not yet stopped flowing, cheeks yet and silent sobs escaping you as he approaches you.

"and you? my poor, sweet, baby." chan's tone is surprisingly sickly sweet as he places a knee on the bed, hand reaching up to wipe away your tears. you can't help but nuzzle against his palm, desperate for some sort of affection from him, a silent promise that you were okay, that he could somehow forgive you despite the horrid thing you've done to him.

"what happened to my sweet, good girl, hmm? where'd she go?" oh chan feels so mean, guilt tripping you for something he's so masterfully orchestrated.

"i'm still your good girl." you whine, shifting so you're sitting on your knees, a pathetic attempt to prove your point, hoping to show chan you still remember how to be obedient.

"no, no." chan tuts at you, watching as fresh tears pool in your eyes, threatening to spill over and down your round, rosy cheeks. "my good girl would never do this." oh he's so mean, it makes him hard as a rock watching your lower lip slightly quiver.

"sir, please." you whine, your last attempt at proving your obedience to chan has hyunjin's eyes growing wide. huh. chan had you calling him sir too.

"you need to make it up to me. understand, baby?" chan whispers, leaning towards you, hand wrapped gently around your throat. not putting any pressure, but still a reminder that you were his. you nod in understanding, but chan just clicks his tongue at you.

"yes, sir. i understand."

chan seems pleased with your answer because he finally kisses you, soft lips latching onto yours and you suddenly realize it's the first time chan has kissed you in so long. your heart aches at the realization, and you start to sob against him.

"oh my poor baby," chan mumbles against your lips, cradling you into his arms, settling you in between his legs, your back pressed against his chest. "you just missed me, isn't that right angel?" he hums, gathering all your hair and swooping it down over your shoulder, allowing him access to one side of your neck. you rest your head back on his shoulder in instinct, hands searching for his.

"miss you so much, channie. m' so so sorry." you whimper, eyes closing at the feeling of chan's puffy lips leaving open mouthed kisses down your neck, onto your naked shoulder.

"no, no. no need to be sorry, baby. i'll take care of you now. we'll take care of you, promise." he whispers against your skin, arms wrapping around your waist and pressing you against his chest.

he reaches down with one hand to spread your legs, leaving your cunt exposed to the cold air and heated stare of hyunjin, who still sits cautiously on the edge of the bed, cock straining in his boxers. chan pins your legs under his, fingers now ghosting just below your belly button, leaving you squirming against him.

"hyunjin." chan calls, his tone low, commanding. "don't be selfish. don't you see how she needs you?"

oh chan is so fucking evil.

"tell him how much you need him, pretty."

"please, hyune." you call for him, and hyunjin groans low in his throat at how pathetically needy you look. "need you to do anything. touch me."

"no, i think you deserve hyunjin's mouth." chan grabs both of your hands, muttering a low "keep them there." as he pins it under your thighs.

"hyunjin. come over here." chan coos, watching with a small smirk as hyunjin crawls over, gaze still unsure and confused. his eyes meet yours, glazed over and still full with tears, and hyunjin can feel his heart tighten. oh, he can see why chan was being so mean now. you're too pretty when you cry. hyunjin lowers himself in between your thighs, nose just barely grazing your clit. he's just about to dive in when chan stops him with a scolding click of his tongue.

"what do you say, hyunjin?"

"thank you for the meal."

a gasp leaves you when hyunjin eagerly laps against your cunt, tongue licking once from your slit to your clit, groaning lowly at the taste.

"smell so good," hyunjin hums when he fully buries his in between your thighs, nose nudging at your clit while he thrusts his tongue in and out of your hole.

"what do you say, baby?" chan lightly slaps your thigh when you try to close them from the pleasure, pinning down and granting hyunjin more space to move around as he laps at your cunt like a starved man.

"th-thank you." you whimper, squirming under chan's hold as hyunjin's full lips wrap around your clit and suck, tongue flicking just the way you like and your eyes roll to the back of your head.

"so pretty like this, angel." chan hums, nudging your jaw with his nose, a gesture too romantic for the situation you find yourself in. "hyune's making you feel good, hmm?"

"yea, f-feels so good." you moan, hand instinctively going to reach for hyunjin's hair in an attempt to ground yourself, but chan holds you back. you whine from the back of your throat, and chan just clicks his tongue at you.

"is he making you feel better than me, hmm?"

chan's question catches you off guard, and you try to twist away from his hold. you feel like you can't breathe, from the sudden pressure hyunjin's hand places on your lower stomach, holding you down so he can lick into you more violently.

"n-no, channie. only you. you- you make me feel best." you're not sure if you even sound coherent, and chan only chuckles at you.

"but our hyune's doing such a good job." he coos down at the blonde who's eyes are fixed on you, so wide and full and glazed over and you feel the coil in your stomach tightening when hyunjin groans against your pussy.

then chan reaches down, fingers tangling in hyunjin's hair and holding him down against you. this takes both you and hyunjin by surprise, has you cumming violently in hyunjin's mouth as he ruts into the mattress, cock hard and raw and so painful.

"finish your meal, hyune." chan commands in a low tone, sending a shiver down your spine as hyunjin licks you clean, to the point of overstimulation that has you writhing in chan's hold.

"en-enough. please, too much!" you sob, closing your legs around hyunjin's head. he finally pulls away from you, lips wet and shiny with your slick, cheeks red from being in between your thighs.

"my good girl." chan hums, hand coming up to cup your cheeks, forcing you to turn your head towards him as he kisses you with vigor, leaving you breathless. "what do you say to hyunjin, love?"

"th-thank you, hyunjin." you mumble, limbs going slack from your orgasm.

"but we aren't done here, baby. get on all fours." chan moves from behind you, slipping his shirt off and throwing it off your bed. you whine when chan manhandles you on all fours, already tired from the effort of keeping yourself up.

chan's hand lands on your ass with a harsh slap, sending you forward and almost collapsing into the mattress.

"so hyunjin gets to fuck and taste you, and i get nothing? i thought you wanted to make it up to me, hmm?" chan harshly reminds you, palm of his hand going over the red mark on your cheek, soothing the sting with his gentle touch. you can only nod, arching your back against him and wiggling your hips in apology.

"see? you can be a good girl." chan hums, rolling his sweatpants down his legs before kicking it away. "now, you're gonna take what i give you while hyunjin fucks your mouth, okay baby?" his hands find purchase on your hips, gripping so tight as his fingers dig into your skin, making you wince. you can only nod, shy eyes looking up at hyunjin, who's already kneeling eagerly in front of you.

chan holds the base of his cock as he teases you, tip leaking with precum dragging against your folds until it catches at your entrance, but he refuses to slide in. he chuckles meanly when you squirm against him, pushing your ass against him in hopes of enticing him to just fuck you already.

"stop teasing," you whine, turning your head to look back at your boyfriend who only smiles at you. he leans forward, lips finding yours in a sweet kiss. "but it's my pussy, baby. i get to do what i want." he coos, licking at your lips before he pulls away. he lines himself up with your entrance, spitting directly on top of his cock before he slides in, pushing all the forward until his hips are flush with your ass.

the initial contact makes you both groan, jolting you forward and against hyunjin's thigh. he cups your cheek with his fingers, forcing you to look up at him while you adjust to chan's cock.

"gonna suck me off good, baby?" hyunjin whispers, thumb swiping across your lower lip before he pushes it in, lips instantly wrapping around the digit and sucking. you nod up at him, hooded eyes staring right into his soul and he feels guilt eat at his stomach. wasnt he just telling you he was in love with you just an hour ago? now here he was, about to fuck your face like you were nothing but a slut.

the thought makes his cock stir. he lifts his tip to slap against your cheek, sticky precum leaving a stain on your skin. he gently eases the head into your mouth, watching in awe as your mouth stretches around him.

from behind you, chan's trying to keep his composure, trying to resist the urge to just hold you down and fuck into you until you can't walk straight. but he decides to have mercy on you, pulling out to the tip before he harshly shoves himself in, making you moan in surprise around hyunjin's cock.

with chan's every thrust forward, it sends you to choke and gag even deeper around hyunjin's cock. your eyes start to water every time hyunjin's tip hits the back of your throat, and you struggle to breathe, but god hyunjin's moans were worth it. eyes closed and head thrown back, hyunjin loses himself in the feeling of your throat wrapped around his dick, and he almost wants to cry from how good it feels. teeth sinking into the plump of his lower lip he decides to risk it and look down at you, all teary eyed and obedient for him.

"chan, 'm gonna cum." hyunjin's voice is strained with the efforts of not blowing in your mouth. he pulls out of your mouth, edging himself as he slowly pumps his shaft with one hand, the other looking at chan for directions, a command.

"hold it." chan groans, not even sparing hyunjin a look as he continues to fuck you, tip kissing your cervix so good it brings tears to your eyes. he can start to feel your thighs shake, a telltale sign that you were close. chan decides to pull out, making you almost scream from the loss of contact. you open your mouth to protest but chan maneuvers you onto your back before you can get a word out. he gives hyunjin a look, and he immediately scoots closer to you, settles in between your legs as chan pumps himself from beside you.

"just the tip." chan tells the younger, nibbling on his lower lip when hyunjin slowly pushes into you. hyunjin wraps his hand around what isn't in your pussy, pumping himself as he watches you with hooded eyes.

"fuck, i'm gonna cum." hyunjin gasps, hips stuttering against his own hand as he empties himself in you, a high pitched moan leaving his lips as he holds himself over you with his other hand, careful not to crush you. hyunjin has no time to rest before chan is shoving him out of the way, eager to sink back into your pussy.

"my turn, baby. you can take my cum too, can't you?" he asks so sweetly, hyunjin's cum making it easier for him to slide in until his hips are flush against yours.

"cum for me channie," you coo, fingers tangling into his curly hair as you pull him in for a kiss.

he groans against your mouth as his thrusts pick up, heavy thighs slapping against yours at the sheer force as he fucks you deeper into the mattress.

"m-missed this pretty pussy." chan slurs, and you know he's close. always got this way before he came- he loses his filter and starts to ramble. "almost go-got me crying, baby. hyunjin can fuck you all he wants but you're.... you're fucking mine. and mine only. arent'cha baby?" he drools against your neck, hair tickling your chin as he thrusts frantically against you.

"only yours, channie. promise." you whisper against him, kissing his cheek as he looks up at you.

"i love you so much." he groans, hips stilling as he cums, making sure to finish as deep inside you as he can, silently wishing for it to catch so he could tie you to him forever.

there's a beat of silence after chan pulls out, nothing but the sound of heavy breathing filling the room. hyunjin lays beside you, staring up at the ceiling as he tries to still his pounding heart. you quickly glance at him, eyes landing on his plump lips as his tongue darts out to quickly lick it. you're about to turn to him when chan's arms wrap around you, pulling you closer to him and overwhelming you with his embrace.

"me. only me." he mumbles into your hair as he wraps himself around you.

"only you, channie." you kiss his chest, clinging tightly onto him until there's no space between you.

"i'm- i'm sorry. i'm never around anymore." his voice breaks towards the end, and you look up at him, surprised to see a single tear rolling down his cheek.

you quickly shush him, grabbing his face with both hands and forcing him to look at you. "don't you dare. don't apologize channie, there's nothing to be sorry for." you whisper before you lean in and kiss him.

"you deserve someone who takes care of you, y/n. not someone you can barely call a boyfriend cuz he's missing so much from your life." chan sniffles, and hyunjin's heart drops to his stomach when chan's eyes flicker quickly to him.

but you shake your head, wiping away the tears that continue to flow from chan's face. "don't say that, baby. i knew from the start what i was getting into and it doesn't matter to me. not when i can call you mine." you coo, pressing a soft kiss on his cheek. from behind you, hyunjin awkwardly shuffles and sits up on the bed.

"i... i guess i'll get going now." hyunjin's voice is small, but he doesn't move right away, as if hoping either of you would tell him to stay. and to his surprise-

"shut up and get back here," chan orders, his tone soft yet playful. "come here and cuddle my girlfriend or i'll kick your ass."

hyunjin's cheeks go warm when he cuddles closer to your back, arm wrapped around your waist in an awkward embrace. he flinches a little when he feels chan 's hand rests on his, fingers grazing his wrist as he hugs you too. then hyunjin can't stop the smile that finds its way to his lips, and he buries his face against your back, planting a soft kiss on your nape. briefly, he wonders what it would be like to call you his, for you to call him yours, if it was just the two of you safe in your little bubble. but then he looks at chan, who's eyes are closed in pure bliss and watches the steady rise and fall as he breathes and then there's a new thought. one he quickly shakes away as heat rushes to his cheeks.

subtly, he grazes his fingers against chan's palm.

you fall asleep like that, chan's strong arms wrapped securely around you with hyunjin's lips pressed to your skin. you feel at peace, sure in yourself that all the questions the three of you have would be answered when the sun rises.

taglist: @prettyboyyoongs @n034sy @felixbrownies143 @148-seungmin @beomgyusonlywife @kidrauhlschik @hwunjinhyang @ner9z @littlestarhyun @abcdefgiwsmcty thank u for letting me tag u !! lmk if u wanna be added or removed teehee

[tangledinink]

Chapter Fourteen of I'm Sorry, Teenage Mutant What Now? is up! Everyone has a great time and continues to experience emotions and situations. Raphael has an anxiety attack in a Chuck E. Cheese. Read it on ao3 or below the cut!

[ prev ]

When Donnie next woke up, they realized quickly that they were somewhere cold and dark, and, upon shifting slightly, also realized that they were incredibly sore.

“Ow,” he muttered dryly, and immediately, four (almost, mostly, kind of) familiar faces were moving into his field of vision.

“Guys, he’s awake!” Mikey gasped.

“Oh, thank god,” Raph sighed.

“How you feeling, Dee?” April prodded gently, her brows pinched together with worry.

“Nasty,” he mumbled, beginning to sit up. “But it’s not that bad. Just sore.” It was worse with the movement, however, and he winced slightly. Ugh, whatever position he had been sleeping in had not helped. He realized vaguely that he was no longer wearing his hoodie or his backpack, and he wondered if his family had removed it or if it had been taken from him. 

“Whoa, hey, slow down, dude,” Leo scolded. “I’m, like, 80% sure you’ve got a concussion or something, and your back looks gross, so chill.”

“Oh, good, Leo isn’t falling anymore,” Donnie deadpanned, leaning back slightly and rolling his shoulders a bit. Ow. He kept doing it anyway. “How long was I out? What the hell happened? And where are we?”

“Not that long. You’ve kinda been in-and-out for the past, like… I dunno. Half hour,” Leo explained.

“Please don’t pass out again!” Mikey added.

“But, uhhh, I think we’re in a literal dungeon?” Leo added, looking around thoughtfully.

“We’ve been jailed? Oh joy,” Donnie sighed. “This is no fair. If I’m going to be thrown in prison, it should be for my scientific advancements…”

“Donnie, that’s not something you’re supposed to hope for--” Raph hissed.

“Did we get our asses kicked?”

“Okay, well, look at the bright side,” Leo said instead of answering. “You gave, like, at least three of the guys on the other side concussions, too! And they probably look just as fucked up as you do right now!”

A loss, then.

“Let me see.”

“See what? Your back?” April raised a brow. “I dunno if that’s a good--”

“It’s my back,” Donnie defended. “Let me see.”

April sighed deeply, rolling her eyes. “Okay, fine. Hang on, I’ll take a picture…”

Donnie shifted a bit to allow room for her to photograph, frowning to himself. He was quietly surprised that their phones hadn’t been confiscated when they got thrown in here, but he was sort of willing to bet that they wouldn’t have any service down here, wherever they were. He’d have to check later.

“Okay, here. See?”

He did see.

He did not like it. 

There were no lacerations or mangled bones or anything-- the injury really wasn’t that bad, all things considered, just horrendously bruised. That wasn’t really what bothered him. If someone showed him a picture of his own shoulders looking like that, all discolored and black and blue, it really wouldn’t be an issue. But they weren’t shoulders. Instead there was this plane of a vaguely leathery, flesh-like surface, gently bumped and freckled olive green-- not quite skin, but not exactly carapace like his brothers now had, either, just something in between, all dotted with little markings. His spine was clearly outlined, and, in this moment, darkened and mottled with bruising.

“Right. Thank you,” he said quickly, looking to the side and scowling. April sighed a bit, almost visibly resisted the urge to say ‘I told you so,’ and pocketed her phone again, settling back down beside him.

“You gotta be more careful, Don! You coulda been seriously hurt!” Raph pressed.

“Oh, I’m sorry!” Donnie scoffed, rolling his eyes. “In the future, I’ll simply allow enemies to curbstomp our little brother! Silly me!”

“I would have been fine! You don’t have to protect me!” Mikey immediately protested.

“Look, hermano, I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but apparently, literally all the rest of us have straight-up built-in body armor,” Leonardo said with an accusing gesture. “You don’t!”

Donnie bristled a bit, hunching his shoulders. Right. Of course.

Of course it would work this way.

Turtles. They were, apparently, literal fucking turtles, of all goddamn things, and so of course he would be the only one who didn’t have the signature feature that turtles usually had in the form of a hard shell. Of course he would be different and vulnerable. Why was he surprised? When didn’t things work out this way? Story of his goddamn life!

And it made sense, too! Wasn’t he the only one out of all of them who had ever been, like, actually injured? He had watched Mikey fall down three flights of cement stairs one time and pop up at the bottom with a thumbs up. Raph was basically an immovable object. And how many times had Leo wiped out on his skateboard with no consequences? Or, perhaps more pointedly-- how many times had Leo literally kicked his ass in martial arts tournaments? Admittedly, Donnie was still, generally speaking, hardier than the average high-schooler, but…

He was still the only one in the family to have ever broken a bone. The one who fell ill the most frequently. He was the only one who had ever cried and thrown up because the hems of his pants got wet and nasty, for god’s sake--

He vaguely remembered that Draxum guy from earlier, their so-called creator, claiming that they were experiments. He wondered what exactly his intention was, and if he would meet expectations if evaluated or if he would objectively be classed as a failure. Clearly there was a gap between himself and his siblings.

“Look, it’s fine, Don. We just don’t want you to get hurt,” Raph said, resting a hand on his uninjured shoulder. “Just… let us take the heavy hits, okay? That’s all.” 

“Fine,” Donnie muttered.

---

Donatello whined softly, burrowing his way further into his Dad’s arms, hanging onto fistfuls of his shirt. Yoshi sighed, idly running his hand up and down the child’s spine. 

“I know, Purple,” he hummed, adjusting his grip on the other slightly, rearranging the blankets they were all but nested in. “The medicine will start working soon.”

The child sniffled miserably, peeking up just enough to give their father a rueful look. “You lied,” he accused, and Yoshi couldn’t resist a tiny laugh at the amount of rage his six-year-old could manage to put into his eyes. 

“When did I lie?”

“You said that if I took the medicine I would feel better. And it was disgusting. And I still feel bad,” he whimpered petulantly, burying his face into his dad’s shirt once more, and Yoshi chuckled softly, stroking his shoulders.

“That was ten minutes ago, Purple. It takes a little bit longer than that.”

“That’s stupid.”

“Maybe a little.”

“I’m gonna invent better medicine that works right away.”

“I’m sure you could.”

Purple always got this way whenever he managed to pick up any sort of bug from their various classes or after-school activities. Given how many children he had, how busy they were, and the fact that he, too, worked with a bunch of germy kids, they were, quite frankly, blessed with how rarely they were brought to their knees by some virus or another. Yoshi had always attributed this to the whole ‘mutant super soldier’ thing, and considered himself lucky that he hardly ever had to deal with nastier things like strep throat or bronchitis. Thank god. He didn’t think his heart could take it, quite frankly. But there was still the occasional cold, flu, or stomach bug, and almost invariably, it was either himself or Donatello who ended up bringing it home when they did.

And every time, Purple would be so damn pathetic about it.

Yoshi did feel bad for him, really, each and every time, because he knew that his kid didn’t feel well and wasn’t able to do all the things he usually did, and that was distressing to him, but oh my lord, was he dramatic. He’d always whimper and whine and carry on like he was dying, even if he just had a cough and a small fever, clinging to his dad and refusing to walk anywhere. Now, snotty, hacking children were not exactly Yoshi’s favorite things to snuggle up with, but he would admit that, as he so rarely received any physical affection from his purplest child on a day-to-day basis, it was a little nice to have him so clingy now. Especially given that when he was ill, Donnie was much more inclined to lay around and watch Lou Jitsu movies rather than science and math documentaries, or, even worse, partake in activities such as attempting to rewire the house, as he was apt to do. This was by far Yoshi’s preference. And though he did wish Donnie could enjoy it properly, he wouldn’t sit here and pretend like he didn’t enjoy spending the day curled up in his bed with his child in his lap watching movies together (now that he had been assured by their pediatrician that it was just a bug…) Even if he was sure he was going to get sick, too. 

It should be noted however, that even in his feverish, clingy state, Donnie was still quite particular about exactly what touch was and was not okay, which was evidenced by him literally hissing at his twin brother when he snuck into the room and attempted to join the pair on the bed.

“Use your words, Purple One,” Yoshi hummed, even as he redirected Leonardo to the foot of his bed, giving the two children a wide berth. Donnie only grumbled in response, but given the fact that he was sick, Yoshi let it slide this time. He couldn’t help but always feeling so… sorry for Donnie like this. It always scared him a bit when he got sick, even once he was sure it was only something minor. Just another reason he relished being able to bundle him up and hold him close. “I don’t think Purple wants to be touched by anyone else right now, Blue.”

“When’s he gonna be done being sick?” Leo sighed loudly, flopping down over his father’s legs. “I’m bored. Mikey and Raph don’t play right.” 

“Since when? You love playing with Mikey and Raph.”

“Yeah, but I wanna play Hot Wheelz and Donnie is the best at that game!” He complained. “Mikey and Raph are playing ‘Ninja Horse Tea Party Orphanage’ and I don’t wanna play that!”

That did sound like the type of game those two would play.

“If you give him a day or two, I’m sure he will be ready to play Hot Wheelz then.” 

“But that’s so LONNGGG!” Leo groaned loudly, sulking. “Can’t you make him better faster?”

“No, Donatello has not invented the medicine that works right away yet. It’s on his to-do list,” Yoshi explained calmly, squeezing the purple child just the tiniest bit. 

“Can I invent it, then?”

“I’m sure you could try,” Yoshi said with a shrug. 

“I want him to get better. And not be sick,” Leo explained, just in case it wasn’t clear.

“That’s very nice, Blue.”

“I bet I could find out a way to fix him.”

“Oh? Are you going to be a doctor, then?”

Leo wrinkled his brow, scrunching up his mouth and considering this for a moment before he shook his head. “No. I’m gonna be an actor. Or a ninja. Or a magician. One of those.”

“Ah. Well, you know what would probably be helpful right now?”

“What?” Leo immediately questioned, his eyes lighting up slightly.

“If you got your brothers to help you draw some get-well cards for Purple. I bet Mikey would be excited to help you if you asked.”

Leo latched onto the new ‘task’ right away, over the moon to do something to be helpful for his brothers, like he always was. It was one of the easiest ways to distract him. “Okay!” He replied, jumping back down off the bed, scampering off to go and find his remaining siblings.

He was almost gone, in fact, when Yoshi sneezed.

Leo stopped short, whipping back around and gasping loudly, pointing an accusing finger.

“YOU SNEEZED!”

“I don’t know what you are talking about.”

“YOU DID! I HEARD YOU!” He shrieked, taking off down the hall. “Guys! GUYS! Dad sneezed! I heard him!”

“Dad sneezed!?”

“Code Green! This is a CODE GREEN!”

Yoshi sighed softly, his head flopping back down against the pillow. Leo came skidding back into the room a moment later, his eyes wide.

“DAD! Can we go to April’s house!?”

“What?” He scoffed. “No! April and her parents are not even home!”

“Yeah but we gotta QUARANTINE!”

“It was just one sneeze--”

“LEO! Leo, you gotta disinfect! I found Donnie’s hand sanitizer!”

“Hey,” Donnie picked up his head to whine.

This always happened.

“Donnie, you have to get better quick so you can take field notes! We need your research, okay!? You’re the only one who can spell ‘pathology!!!’”

Donnie mumbled in reply, laying his head back down, but gave a tiny thumb’s up before Leo went sprinting back out the room to re-join his healthy (for now) brothers. His other three boys never brought home sickness. But they always caught it when it came from him.

Well, at least they were not bored anymore.

---

April was having a bit of trouble keeping track of time now that they were in prison. 

She didn’t think they had actually been here that long, though she wasn’t exactly sure. She had long ago shut off her phone to conserve battery once they realized that they may be a while. Maybe 24 hours?... It was just that at first, when they still weren’t sure if Donnie was going to be okay or not, everything seemed to happen so fast. And now that they were all just cooped up here with nothing to do… everything happened so slow.

They had already formulated and executed multiple escape plans now, to no avail. They had attempted to teleport to freedom with the help of the yellow yokai, who April had recently begun referring to as “Mayhem,” but were sorely disappointed to find that the prison was teleport-proof. Leo had tried unsuccessfully to talk their way out. Raph made an effort to physically break them out, attempting to smash the bars that held them, but this too resulted in failure.

The only thing that really clued her into the passage of time was her and her brothers’ internal clocks. Donnie had gone down first, though his head injury may have had something to do with that. Mikey had followed shortly after, curling up with Raph’s flannel tucked under his head as a makeshift pillow, and then the oldest brother, too, eventually succumbed to sleep, until she and Leo were all that remained.

“Okay,” she whispered, keeping her voice low, careful not to wake anyone else up. “I’ll admit it. You were right.”

Leo hummed softly in response, and neither of them took their eyes off of Mikey, suspended peacefully in the air, just a few inches off the ground, a soft orange glow coming off of him in waves as he slumbered.

“It’s a little weird to watch,” she sighed, tilting her head slightly to the side. “Sort of spooky.”

“At least he’s getting some rest,” Leo mumbled, resting his head in a cradle of his arms and knees, all curled in on himself.

“Yeah,” April agreed, smiling a tiny bit. “We should probably try that too, huh?” She leaned over, just barely nudging Leo’s shoulder with her own.

He flinched, a visible shiver running up his spine as he immediately stiffened, pulling sharply away from the other. April frowned.

“Hey, are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” Leo muttered, drawing his arms even tighter around himself.

“You’re not hurt, are you? Because I swear to god, if you got hurt and didn’t tell anyone--”

“April, I’m fine!” He bit out, a bit sharper this time, hunching his shoulders. “I’m not hurt, okay? I just… I’m not in the mood to be touched right now.”

April’s brows pinched together.

“Leo…”

“Don’t ask me if I’m okay again,” he hissed.

“Alright.”

“I’m not.”

“Okay.”

“Obviously, I’m not!”

“That’s okay.”

“Everything is so fucked up,” he hissed, digging his nails into his arms, drawing his head down to his chest. “Jesus christ. This-- fuck. And I got us all stuck in here!”

“Leo, you didn’t get us stuck in here. It’s not your fault.”

“I did!” He insisted, and April could see a few tears lining his eyes before he squeezed them shut. “This was my stupid plan. And Donnie-- Donnie almost got really hurt, and Mikey could’ve gotten hurt, and-- and I couldn’t help at all. I couldn’t help him at all when he was panicking. I can always help! I’m supposed to be able to help him when he’s like that! And I-- I can’t even help my own brother because I look like a fucking freak now!”

“Leo, you’re not a freak. It’s gonna be okay.”

“It’s not!” He snapped, bristling. “It’s not going to be okay. Stop saying it’ll be okay. How is any of this okay!?”

April bit the insides of her cheek. She didn’t have a good answer.

“I hate this,” he hissed. “Everything feels fucking awful. I can’t walk right, I keep falling, everything feels swollen and clunky and I-- I miss my face. I miss my body. And it’s just gone. I didn’t even like my body to begin with!” He laughed ruefully, struggling to keep his voice quiet. “I didn’t even like what I had, and-- fuck, April, I was so fucking excited. I was so fucking excited to change it. I’ve been waiting since I was fucking five to change it. I didn’t even know what I wanted to change then! I just-- fuck. Dammit. We had-- we had an appointment--”

He paused just long enough to draw in a heaving, shuddering breath that shook his entire frame.

“God. I just. I thought-- I thought I was used to this. I thought! I thought that I knew what it was like, to be quote-unquote trapped in the wrong body or whatever the hell, and I thought-- and it sucked and now this is just. This is just a million times worse, April. And it’s still wrong. Now it’s just more wrong!” He hiccuped weakly. “We were gonna fix it. We were finally gonna start fixing it, like, for real fixing it. We had an appointment. And. And Dad was g-gonna take me, and now it’s-- it’s just so much worse. Everything is so fucking bad now.”

“I know,” she whispered. “... Maybe you still can. You guys could still change back! I mean,” she glanced down at the silver bracelet still circling Leo’s wrist. “... We don’t know for sure that they’re broken. Maybe you just have to… to turn them back on…”

Leo bit back a sob.

“But now I know it’s not real.”

April was almost relieved when Leo fell into her side, hiding his face against her to cry, because she wanted so, so desperately to grab him and hug him and hold him tight, but he had said he didn’t want to be touched. But now that he was curled up against her, she wrapped her arms around him, and they sat quietly for a while like that. 

It took a while, but eventually the sobs died out, and Leo just laid with his head in her lap, all wrung-out and tired. 

“I meant it, you know,” she whispered. Leo didn’t reply, but he glanced up at her.

“I don’t care if you guys are freaks or mutants or whatever,” she continued. “That doesn’t matter to me. You were already sort of freaks when I met you, anyway. You’re my brothers, alright? No matter what. Even if things change. I’m not going anywhere.”

Leo sniffled a bit, staring at her for a bit longer before his gaze fell back down, staring off into the middle distance, looking at nothing in particular except for the pale orange light that lit up the room.

“Do you think he’s dreaming?” Leo finally spoke again, his voice scratchy and raw as he watched his baby brother sleep.

“Probably,” April said, leaning her head back to rest against the wall. 

---

“Daddy! Daddy!”

His father looked up from the dishes he had been washing, turning off the faucet to instead greet his youngest as he came excitedly racing into the house.

“Ah! Hello, my son. How is skateboard practice going?”

“Good!” Mikey chirped, excitedly holding up one leg so that he could proudly show his father his bloody, scraped knees. “Look! I did a kickflip.”

Mikey watched as bright red blood dripped down his younger self’s leg, and he thought to himself,

“So you did,” Dad said, sighing softly. “Go sit at the table. I will get the first aid kit.”

How strange.

“I want the orange band-aids! With the stars!” He yelled from his seat in a pulled-out kitchen chair, leaning over to call out his demands down the hall.

This was one of his dreams. Mikey was sure of it. Well, not a dream, exactly. A memory. Both. A memory inside of a dream. 

“Ah, yes, of course. Orange for Orange,” Dad assured, returning to the kitchen with first-aid kit in tow.

But this one was different from the rest.

“That’s my life color!” Mikey said happily, settling in the chair, sitting properly so his dad could clean and bandage his wounds.

The perspective had changed.

He wasn’t up above anymore, watching his father and his memory down below.

He was right here. He was standing right here on the same level-- right next to his dad, watching him tend to his younger self. No more than a few inches away from him.

He could almost touch him.

He reached out to try.

“Dad…?”

Mikey woke up with a gasp, falling heavily onto the floor and immediately sitting stark upright, scrambling a bit and looking around wildly. Donnie and Raph were asleep, but he quickly spotted April and Leo huddled together in the corner, both seeming slightly startled by his sudden trip back to the waking world.

Thank god someone else was still up.

“Guys!” He bit out, near breathless. “Dad is here! I can feel it! He’s really close by and-- and I think he might be hurt.”

---

Yoshi was getting very tired of the taste of blood.

There was a time, back when he was young, within his first year in the Nexus, when he could actually find joy in it. There was a time when he would face down unbeatable odds and come out the other side victorious, and would feel pride at what he accomplished, and not worry about those on the other end of the equation. There were times, in fact, when he would beat other competitors to unconsciousness just so that he could turn around and lounge in the luxury box, above it all, with his girlfriend-not-girlfriend in his lap. Just so that she would be pleased with him. Just because he wanted her to be happy. More specifically, happy with him.

He was still tempted, even now, now that he had gotten tired of the taste. Tempted to want her to be happy. It was so much easier when she was happy. When she was upset, he would always be miserable, but when she was happy things had always been so good.

It would be so easy to sit here and pretend like he didn’t feel that way anymore; to simply wave a hand and call his younger self a fool and distance himself from him, as if he were someone else entirely. But it wouldn’t be true. No matter how much he was loath to admit it at times, that young man was still him, and every action and stupid decision he had ever made was his to hold and wear on his chest.

He didn’t like the way blood tasted anymore. He had gotten tired of the taste years and years ago, way before he had returned to the Battle Nexus, before he had even become a father, back when he couldn’t even begin to imagine his path leading in the direction it had, before he could even picture himself raising children--

(Though, god, hadn’t there been a time where he thought, ‘but if she really wanted them, if it was with her…?’)

But he still couldn’t so definitively say that he didn’t like her, and that was what really upset him. Here he was, slumped against a wall in an empty locker room, not completely convinced that he wasn’t bleeding out given the increasingly unsettling blotch of color beneath his skin climbing steadily up his abdomen and the tell-tale lightheadedness, and he still wasn’t sure. He would kill to be sure either way, which was almost funny, given how many times he had killed for her. But to this day he didn’t think he’d actually be able to decide when it came down to it.

He didn’t want to be here. He wanted, desperately, to leave. He had wanted so desperately to leave for years the last time he had been stuck here. He had tried to escape so many times-- but then again, there had been so many opportunities to run that he hadn’t taken… 

He missed his children. It wasn’t a matter of choosing between them. If it were a contest, he would choose his kids every single time, and this he knew for certain. That was the only reason he was here to begin with, after all.

But god. The emotions were all so much easier when they were apart. When he wasn’t around her, it was easy to remember all the reasons why they didn’t work, to remember all the ways she had hurt him and how awful things had been-- to pretend that nothing lingered between them, that he didn’t care about her anymore despite all his best efforts. But when they were face-to-face again?...

He hissed softly, letting his head fall back against the wall with a dull thunk. Everything felt fuzzier than he would like it to. Colder, too.

Jesus.

He had really been in love with her.

“To the left a little.”

“Like this?”

“Mmmm… no. Now that’s too far. Move it just a smidge back?… No, that’s a skoosh, I said a smidge-- ooh! Ooh, yes, perfect! Just like that, Muffin!”

“Okay, alright. Just like this. Can you pass me the nails, Bug?”

It had taken them hours to get all their things moved in, even with the movers, and to re-arrange everything that allowed space for both of their extensive wardrobes and shoe collections. Divvying up space in the bathroom alone had been a nightmare, despite the sheer size of it, and they had had to make a detour to drive to the nearest department store and invest in a storage cabinet that could house all their hair care products. And Yoshi had been so confident that he was completely capable of putting together their new bed frame by himself…

“Okay. It says we need part 3-E… It has… The little spinny part at the top, and, ah, the spiral bit…”

“I don’t see it.”

“Well, it has to be somewhere.”

“Cuddlekins, hon, didn’t we use that part earlier? To screw the two corners together?”

“What? No, that was part M. With the cross-y bit at the top.”

“But isn’t this one part M? See. Look. It’s the same as the picture here, isn’t it?”

“Shit…”

It had taken a bit longer than he had originally anticipated. But it had, eventually, gotten done, despite the blood, sweat, and tears that it had cost them, and was now hosting their new, California king-size mattress, an absurd number of blankets and sheets, and many, many throw pillows. The kitchen had been unpacked already, (the easiest job of the entire move, given that neither of them cooked,) the TV hooked up in the living room, and all the furniture arranged just so…

And thus they had embarked on the last leg of their journey. And the one, Yoshi was well aware, that his girlfriend was the most particular about.

Decorating. Or, as she might say, interior design.

All he had needed to be happy was a few of his favorite movie posters framed and mounted on the wall, and she was perfectly willing to comply, even adding a few of her own selections to the collection in the living room they now shared. After that, she had free reign-- and reign she did indeed do. Of course, they could have easily hired people to do all this for them, but it just wasn’t quite the same as handling it on their own like this. Maybe she wanted the control. Maybe he wanted the experience. But either way, here they were… and they had been at this for a while now.

“Alright,” Yoshi sighed, taking a step back into her waiting arms so that they could examine his handiwork together. “What do you think? Good?”

She hummed happily, leaning over to press a kiss against the side of his jaw. “You didn’t even do it crooked this time!” She teased. He snorted softly in response.

“Sassy,” he mumbled, even though he kissed her forehead in return.

“It’s perfect, Noodles. Doesn’t it just ribbon up the whole room together so handily?”

He laughed, giving a shrug. “Something like that.”

“It matches the couch throw!” She insisted.

“I still cannot believe you insist on keeping that thing.”

“I adore it! It was a gift from you!” She protested.

“It is ugly!” He laughed. “I don’t know why I thought it would be a good gift. I just wanted to get you something and it was the best thing I could find.”

“It’s not ugly! It’s precious,” she insisted, as if lovingly defending a child, slipping out from his arm so she could stroke it affectionately, smoothing it out over the couch and straightening its corners. “I love it, cuddlekins, really, it just has this certain… crinkum-crankum to it, you know?” She said with a fond sigh, glancing back over at the other. “Besides, you got it for me. It always reminds me of my handsome cuddlemuffin whenever I see it.” 

He chuckled, holding out an arm with an inviting gesture. She agreeably returned to his side, fitting easily under his arm, looping her own around his waist in turn and resting a hand on his hip. “If you say so,” he hummed, leaning his head against hers. “I do enjoy the painting. I like surrealism… It’s a bit like, uh, René Magritte, don’t you think?”

“If you say so,” she echoed, shooting him an almost mischievous grin, and he scoffed in response, still smiling.

“Okay. What is next? Anything you need, my darling lovebug, and I will handle it for you!” He declared boldly, pulling away in order to strike a dramatic pose, knowing it would elicit a snort of laughter in response. “I have at long last mastered the ancient art of hanging pictures on walls! Just say the word!”

She snorted softly, plucking the hammer from his hands, placing it to the side.

“Noodles, that was the last one.”

He blinked in surprise.

“The last one?”

“Yes. That was all.’

“Then… we are all done moving?”

“Mmm-hmmm.”

“We are moved in?”

“We are,” she confirmed, wrapping her arms around his shoulders, letting her body relax as she leaned into him-- trusting him to keep her steady and hold her up against him. He did.

“Then…” He paused a moment before a wide smile slowly, surely stretched itself across his face, his hands moving to rest on her waist. “This is officially our apartment.”

“Officially.” 

He grinned, the two of them swaying back and forth in the middle of the living room of their new penthouse apartment, rocking to the rhythm of nothing but the distant sound of the city as a backdrop. Their feet shuffled against the carpeted floor, echoing the motion of each other. He spent a bit of time just looking at her, memorizing how she looked in this moment and what joy looked like on her face and reminding himself that this person belonged to him, and he belonged to her, and now both of them belonged to this apartment, together, before he leaned in to close the close the gap between them. He could feel her smile against his lips.

Right now, Yoshi could not think of a single thing that he would want to change about his life. If things could stay exactly like this forever, then he would surely have everything he could ever need. For the first time ever, he thought, this is something I built for myself. He thought, this is something I choose. He thought that, for the first time ever, that he had finally found his person and his place in the universe. What more could he ask for than this, really? What more could he ask for than to be loved with no strings attached, with no expectations or traditions or sacrifice or ‘destiny’ tied to it?

This was perfect. Just the way it was. 

The moths in the painting he had hung for her stood a silent vigil over their celebration from their new perch.

---

Yoshi’s vision was fuzzy when he opened his eyes, so he closed them and tried again, repeating the process until the world came into shape around him. His body was sore, but, surprisingly, less sore than it had been lately. A quick glance around told him that he was in the Battle Nexus’s medical ward. He had been here many times in the past, though this was his first visit on his most recent tour. It was an odd place, equal parts necessary and ironically useless given the line of work of its clientele. Sparsely stocked and staffed, yet equipped for the most dire of emergencies all at once. 

He supposed he must have passed out, then. 

He winced a bit, looking to the left, catching sight of a Nexus Nurse, already busy with some other poor soul who had found themselves down here. A glance to the right, however, surprised him, and Big Mama looked up at the movement, immediately catching his eye and making her way to his bedside.

“Oh, Muffin!” She tsked sympathetically, a hand reaching out to cup his face. “Are you alright?”

His heart absolutely swelled. Quite frankly, his head was still spinning, all stuffed full of cotton, and he didn’t have the presence of mind required to feel disgusted with himself for how excited he was that she was here. How fucking thrilled he was to have her attention-- to have her eyes on him, let alone her skin. He forced a very weak laugh, waving her off her concerns. 

“I am fine!” He mumbled with a shaky grin, his voice slurring slightly as he tried to get his tongue to move properly in his mouth. “A little internal bleeding never hurt anyone…!”

And she smiled, actually smiled at him, patting his cheek gently. “Oh, of course you are. That’s my handsome, fearless warrior,” she cooed. Yoshi chuckled very softly.

She had always done this. Laughed at his stupid jokes, raved over even his dumbest of movies, and showered him endlessly in praise. And, admittedly, he had always loved it. He had always soaked up the attention. 

That was what scared him the most, really. The thought that, maybe, that was all this ever really was at the root of it all-- just him wanting someone to pay attention to him and give him compliments. Maybe that’s why things were like this; because of his own selfishness poisoning something good. Because he was too broken and greedy for anything else. Maybe moments like these were the most he could ever hope for, realistically, and he just had to accept that.

Her hand left, and he heard her move away. Pathetically enough, it broke his heart. He was dimly aware of her hailing down one of the nurses out of the corners of his vision. 

“Make sure he’s well enough to perform in tonight’s line-up, understand? I want him in tip-top shape as soon as possible. No jiggery-pokery or bafflegab or anything else. And fetch me if anything else happens with him, won’t you?...”

He sighed, letting his eyes slide shut again.

---

“Okay, Red, listen to me very closely, okay?”

“Okay.”

“I will be gone for three hours. Okay? Three hours. Do you know how long that is?”

“Uhm…”

“That is the whole Scooby Doo video tape played twice.”

Raph nodded a bit, his eyes wide. Right. Dad would be gone for two Scooby-Doo’s.

“I’m going to go get some more food and things for you and your brothers, and then I will come back.”

Raph blinked widely up at his dad. “More tuna?”

“Yes, I am going to try to find more tuna cans for you,” his dad assured. “But listen. Okay? This is very important. I need you to watch your little brothers while I am gone. Okay?”

Raph glanced back over at his three younger brothers, who were all still asleep in their respective boxes. He was the only one who had been rudely awakened by their father, much earlier than they would usually arise on their own, but he had been gifted a peppermint candy for his troubles, so he couldn’t be too upset about it. 

“If you’re quiet, they should sleep until I get back. But if they wake up, I left breakfast out for you all. Right over there where we usually eat. Remember how I’ve shown you how to help feed Orange?”

Raph nodded. He’d fed Mikey lots of times before, repeatedly begging his father to let him hold his littlest brother in his lap and give him his breakfast. He knew how.

“And make sure Purple does not eat all of Blue’s food.”

Raph frowned.

“But… Donnie’ll bite me…”

He heard his father sigh, very softly, under his breath.

“I have told him not to bite today, okay? But Blue needs to eat, too. And besides, you are very tough and brave, aren’t you, Raph?” He hummed, smiling a tiny bit, leaning over just enough to rub his son’s scaled head. Raph beamed at the praise, nodding excitedly. Tough and brave? Of course he was! He wasn’t afraid of Donnie! Even if he did bite really hard.

“Good boy,” he said. “The Scooby Doo tape is already in the TV. Purple will help you rewind it and play it again when it’s over, okay? So you boys can watch while I am gone.”

“Okay.”

“But you have to make sure none of your brothers wander off, okay? You have to stay right here in this tunnel the entire time I’m gone. Understood? No exploring. You must be sure to watch Mikey.”

“Okay.”

“Red?”

“I’ll watch, Daddy.”

“Good boy,” he said again. “And if I don’t come back before the timer starts beeping--” he gestured to the kitchen timer that lived by his bed. Raph wasn’t that great with numbers yet, but he recognized the “eight” at the front. “Then bring your brothers and come find me, okay? But not before the timer goes off. Understand? Only if you hear the timer beeping. Do you understand, Raph?”

“Yeah.”

“Repeat it back to me, please.”

“Uhm…” He chewed on his fingers, looking to the side and shuffling his feet a bit. “Uhm, if the time… beeps. I’ll come find you…”

“By yourself, or with your brothers?”

“With my brothers...”

“But not before the timer, okay?”

“Yeah.”

“Okay.” Their father sighed very deeply, leaning over and kissing his forehead. “I will be back soon, my son. Take good care of your brothers.” 

---

“Come ON.”

“Raph, stop. It’s not gonna work,” April sighed.

“It will if it knows what’s good for it!” He snapped, reeling back and throwing himself at the bars of their literal cage once more with a loud crash, the very walls shaking in response. “Come on! Open already!!!” 

“Raph--”

“We’ve gotta get outta here!” He hissed, his tail whipping behind him, and the sharp movement threw him off balance, nearly making him stumble to one side. Goddammit. He swore softly under his breath, bristling, the anger scratching underneath his (foreign, strange, uncomfortable) skin only pitching higher in response. They had already been here for-- what?! Two days? Three?! They were so close, and now they were just stuck here, completely vulnerable, completely at the mercy of an actual, literal crime boss--

“Raph. Stop,” April said again, firmer this time, reaching out to grab his arm. “You’re hurting yourself.”

Raph yanked his arm away from her, whipping around to look at her, growling, his lips drawn back over his fangs in a snarl. April didn’t flinch away or back off. Her hand chased after his.

That was almost worse, and Raph’s snarl almost immediately gave way to a cracked little half-sob. His body slumped slightly, unclenching tight muscles to instead wilt in exhaustion.

“I have to get us out of here…” he insisted weakly, looking away from her again, hiding from her eyes out of shame. He didn’t want to look at her. He didn’t want her to look at him. Jesus, what did he look like right now…? His clawed feet scraped against the ground beneath them. Earlier today he had accidentally stabbed Leo with one of the spikes of his shell after moving too fast and left a bruise. A fucking bruise.

Yeah, sure, fine. Maybe his brothers were freaks now. But he was even worse. He was a monster. A useless one.

He sobbed properly this time.

“Raph, it’s alright,” April tried to comfort, moving close enough to rest her hand on his arm, and looking at how tiny she was compared to him made him feel sick. He was pretty sure he could bite off her hand if he really wanted to. Even if he didn’t want to-- what if he still did somehow? “We’ll figure a way out of here--”

“It’s not alright!” He hissed, his chest tightening. “I have to fix this.”

“Raph, we’ll fix it together,” Mikey spoke up, almost cautiously moving to Raph’s other side. “I’m sure we can figure out--”

“No!” He snapped, and he hated to interrupt Mikey, and he felt bad as soon as he did it, but he couldn’t help it. He wasn’t-- panicking, exactly, but he was close to it. Next to it. “I’m-- I’m supposed to protect you guys, and I can’t even--”

“Raph, you don’t have to always protect us!” Mikey protested.

“But I want to!” Raph cried in protest. “I want to protect you guys, I wanna keep you safe, and I-- I didn’t! I’m supposed to take care of everyone! I’m supposed to be in charge when Dad isn’t here, and I-- all I did was bring us to some magic crime city, get us locked up like animals, and turned into mutants!--” He barked out a strained, teary laugh. “And I can’t even get us back out!”

A few tears tracked down his face. “Dad trusted me to take care of everyone when he wasn’t here and I just let him down.” He could feel the panic breathing hotly down his neck. “He’d be so disappointed in me--”

“Raph, stop.” Mikey hissed, his voice hard, so very much so that it quite nearly surprised Raph out of his spiral. 

“That’s not true at all,” his younger brother hissed, his own face kind of flushed and teary as well. “None of that is even your fault! And even if it was, I still wouldn’t care and neither would Dad! And you are protecting us! We’re all still here, aren’t we?” 

“More or less,” Leo mumbled softly, bitterly, and Raph looked ruefully down at his claws, shifting his joints closer and biting down a hiccup. Mikey glared.

“We are!” He insisted. “Look, we’re still the same people, even if we do look different now! Right? None of that other stuff matters so long as we stick together--”

“Mikey, stop it!” Donnie snapped, bristling a bit, his head jerking up so sharply that it was likely painful. “Just stop, okay!? Stop saying it doesn’t matter! Stop saying that we’re ‘still the same people on the inside,’ stop trying to find the dumb silver lining, okay!? Just admit that this sucks! Okay!? Just because you’re apparently all hunky-dory about being a fucking box turtle--”

“You think I like this?!” Now it was Mikey’s turn to snap, rounding on his siblings, his hands clenched into angry fists. “You think I’m happy about this!? Because I’m not, okay!? I hate it too! Does that make you feel better!? I’m fucking miserable. I hate this. I’m scared and I don’t know what’s going on and I’m really, really sick of falling over because I don’t even know how to walk anymore!”

Mikey sobbed loudly, plopping back down on his rear.

“I hate this,” he hiccuped weakly. “I hate it too. I’m just. I’m j-just… I’m trying my best…”

Another sob wretched itself from his throat as he buried his face in his arms.

For one long moment, quiet veiled the space.

Raphael was careful and calculated in his movements, taking care with the spikes and sharp edges of his body as he scooped his brother up in his arms, wrapping him up tight. Mikey wept, clinging to his brother in return.

“Sorry,” Raph mumbled, very softly.

Leo joined them quickly enough, burrowing in against his brothers’ side. “Me too,” he whispered.

Donnie didn’t join the embrace, but he did sit close by, hugging his legs to his chest and staring to the side, down to the ground. “Me… too,” he sighed, frowning a little, twitching uncomfortably. “... Sorry. This. This just really sucks.”

“It does suck,” Leo agreed.

“Yeah,” Raph mumbled.

“I keep dropping things b-because I-- I only have three fingers,” Mikey warbled softly.

“Me too,” Donnie admitted. “And I can’t really sleep, because I don’t know how to get comfortable anymore.”

“I keep accidentally biting my tongue,” Raph said.

“Every time I sit down, I crush my own tail under my ass, ‘cause I’m not used to it being there,” Leo confessed with a small laugh. “Isn’t that stupid?”

“My back hurts because of the shell. I’m just not used to it being there. It’s so heavy.”

“Everything smells so much stronger now. I hate it. It’s nauseating.”

“I still can’t figure out how to balance like this.”

“I just feel so stupid. How could we not know?”

“It’s all so overwhelming. I mean, just, everything. I can’t believe there’s so much that we forgot.”

“It seems so obvious now, looking back…”

“My skin is so thick now. It’s awful. I feel all swollen all the time, like I can’t bend any of my joints properly. I feel stiff.”

“If that guy made us, if we’re his ‘creations,’ experiments, then we’re not yokai, right? We’re something else. Mutants, I guess. Is there anyone else like us?”

“How did Dad even end up with us? What happened?”

“Do you think he’s a mutant, too? God. What else don’t we know? What else didn’t he tell us?”

“Do we still count as Hamatos? Are we Hamatos at all…? Do you think Ghost-Sensei knows?”

“I’m glad we know. I mean, mostly. We should know, but I just… part of me wishes we didn’t.”

“We can’t ever go back.”

“Our entire life was just, like, a lie. It was a trick. The whole time. And we fell for it. I can’t believe we all fell for it--”

“We just have to be different now.”

“We were always different, but at least before, we didn’t have to… to carry it. I don’t even know how I could even talk to people now. Even if we do fix the bracelets. How am I supposed to just talk to normal people when I’m in the back of my mind, like, ‘oh my god, they don’t know I’m a turtle’ the whole time?”

“I think I’m sort of glad Dad didn’t tell us. I mean. I’m upset, too, but I just… I dunno. Everything feels so complicated now.”

“I can’t believe we forgot.”

The longer they talked, all five of them bunched up together, the less tears there were, and eventually, during a moment of quiet, Mikey sighed, taking Raph’s big hand in his own smaller one.

“You hurt your knuckles,” he observed, noting the swollen, occasionally bloodied skin around the joints. Raph gave a very soft huff of laughter.

“Yeah, well, guess we match, then,” he said, though Mikey’s own knuckles were mostly healed by now, only bearing a few small scabs. Mikey smiled, just the tiniest bit, just for a second, before he sighed, laying his head back slightly. 

“I know this sucks,” Mikey mumbled. “... Like, it really, really sucks. But at least we’re still together. And that counts for something, doesn’t it? I think so long as we’re together, then we… we’ll be okay.”

Leo gave a wry smile, elbowing his brother ever-so-slightly. “Wow, Mikey, when did you get so wise?” He teased.

Mikey grinned, chuckling a bit and laying his head back again to stare at the ceiling, and then stare out the bars of the door that contained them. Raph sighed, his gaze following after his little brother’s, gazing out into the empty halfway. He had no idea why they were being kept here or what they were planning on doing with them. None of the guards would even speak with them. It was terrifying, if he was being honest.

But they had come here for a reason.

He believed what Mikey said. He did. If they were all together, they’d be okay. But that meant all of them.

“We’re gonna find Dad,” he finally said. “We are. And he’ll know how to help fix it. I know he will.”

---

“Raph.”

He wasn’t meaning to ignore his Dad. He wasn’t. He just--

“Raphael.” 

Mikey whined loudly, pulling against his older brother’s grasp, attempting to wriggle away from the iron grip Raph had on his wrist.

“Raphael.” This time, his father reached over, physically removing Raphael’s hands from his younger sibling. Mikey immediately went darting off, and Raph’s heart jumped up into his throat, his eyes growing wide.

“Dad--!”

“It’s okay, Red.”

“Dad, he’s too far!” He hissed, his voice strained with panic as he turned desperately to his father, grabbing at his pants leg. 

“No, he’s not. It’s okay, Raphael. Here. Look.”

He hoisted his child up in his arms with just a bit of effort, holding him up to his chest.

“See, my son? We can still see him from here.”

From up in his dad’s arms, Raph could watch Mikey throw himself into a pit of brightly colored foam balls with a squeal of excitement from across the play area. Leo wasn’t far off, immediately moving to join his little brother’s side, eager to show him all the blue balls he had collected. Dozens of other children scampered about nearby, clambering over play equipment and chasing one another. Raph frowned, grabbing fistfuls of his father’s shirt and fidgeting, chewing on his fingers nervously.

“What if he gets lost?”

“He won’t.”

“What if… there’s somethin’ dangerous?”

“There is nothing dangerous here, Raphael.”

“What if there is?” He pressed. “It’s big.”

“It’s okay, Red,” Dad soothed, readjusting his grip on his child, drawing him a bit closer. “I promise it is safe here.”

Raph looked down at the floor, clenching and unclenching his fists, the tiniest whine escaping from him. His father sighed softly.

“You have done a very good job looking after our family, Red,” he hummed, rocking them back and forth just the tiniest bit, idly swaying as he spoke. “But things are different now. Okay? Nothing here is going to hurt Michelangelo. And even if it did, I am right here to help. I am not going anywhere. I will not leave you alone. I swear I will take care of you and your brothers. Alright?”

Raph sniffled a bit, nodding the tiniest bit.

“If we are ever anywhere where it might be unsafe, I will tell you, okay? So you can watch out for your little brothers. Like when I tell you all to hold hands when we cross the street, right? Would that help?”

He nodded again, swallowing the lump in his throat as he laid his head down on his dad’s shoulder.

“Good,” he sighed, rubbing a few small circles along his back. “Do you want to go and play? There are lots of things here that I think you would like if you tried them. I think you’d have a lot of fun if you would let me handle looking after your brothers.”

Raph shook his head, burrowing further into his father’s embrace. He did want to go play, really. They had never been anywhere so cool before! They had been to the playground a few times now, but this was like a playground inside-- and they even had video games! And prizes! And he wanted to follow after his brothers, to stay close to them, but…

They kept going in opposite directions. And this place was so big and he couldn’t follow all of them, and, and--

“Okay. That’s fine,” Dad assured. “How about this? How about we sit and watch together for ten minutes, and then we can try going and playing something with one of your brothers. Do you think that would work, Raphael?”

Raph sucked in a deep, shaking breath, wiping at his eyes a bit before he finally nodded.

“Uh-huh.”

---

Though he had, in fact, performed in the Battle Nexus as scheduled that same evening, and then the following day as well, he was not actually ‘released,’ so to speak, from the infirmary until now, three-and-a-half blood transfusions later. Yoshi supposed he had no real complaints, given that the infirmary had actual beds in it to sleep upon, but the staff there were not exactly friendly, and he had quickly tired of being awakened at all hours of the night by other screaming patients. Not to mention that it was very awkward to share the same sleeping space with someone who’s leg you had recently broken in four different places…

But Big Mama had visited him each evening he was there. 

The guard escorting him was really a formality at this point, Yoshi suspected, and he almost dared to hope that he would be allowed to move freely through the Nexus in the near future. Surely Big Mama knew he would not try to run away with his children relying on her protection, right?

If he were permitted to wander without supervision, he might be able to corner a spectator and inquire about the current state of the Hidden City police’s hunt for Baron Draxum. He didn’t expect Big Mama would be informing him of such things, but if Draxum was apprehended, then there was a chance he might be able to find a way out of here and get himself back home, get those four remaining years like he had planned, or at least go visit his children and make sure they were okay… he hated that he had left without saying goodbye first, and had no doubt scared them with how he had disappeared.

 He had been researching for quite some time now, in between parenting and managing dojos, alternative sources for cloaking crystals. If he was able to pay for new ones, he could return Big Mama’s to her and perhaps argue to lighten his ‘sentence,’ or maybe even get out of it somehow. It was a long shot, but worth a try. Maybe this time could count towards that? He had had the crystals for ten years… did that mean he owed ten years time as a champion in return…? Ten years was still not as bad as a lifetime, assuming he lived through it all… 

He frowned as he calculated, shuffling his feet through the cold halls. 

The deal had still been worth it. He didn’t regret it. If a lifetime in the Battle Nexus was the price for his children’s lives in the world, then it was a price he was more than willing to pay.

He just regretted the pain he knew he inflicted on his family. It had always bothered him, sitting on his shoulder and hissing in his ear for the past ten years of his life. Every wonderful moment, every birthday, every movie night and dance recital and field trip, he still thought about it. Thought about how he would have to leave one day, and how it would hurt them. 

It was a shame. They deserved better than that. He had already done everything he could, even now, to prepare and to soften the inevitable blow as much as possible. Tucked away in the back of his nightstand back home, he already had hand-written cards for each of his sons’ college graduations, wedding days, and the birth of their first children, preparing for every scenario, just in case, since he knew he likely wouldn’t see most of them should they come to pass. He had had everything prepared, legally, for years now, so things would be taken care of in the event of his ‘death’ or ‘disappearance,’ and so that his children would have to shoulder as little of that burden as possible. He had invested in a hefty life insurance policy back when they were still in elementary school, ensuring that they would always be taken care of financially in his absence. 

He had even penned a letter, years and years ago, that could be delivered to his children once he was gone. He had been ready to die for a long time now.

But he still wasn’t prepared for how heavy the guilt would feel.

He, likewise, was not prepared for the shriek that pierced through the air a moment later as he passed by one of the dungeon’s many hallways, so sharp and sudden that he stumbled slightly.

“DAD!!!”

He absolutely froze in his tracks, his heart stopping still in his chest as he whipped around to face the familiar voice. His eyes widened so dramatically he was half afraid that they would fall from his head.“April!?” He cried, spluttering slightly. “Boys!?”

[ next ]

[spookymystery67]

I Wish I Could Walk In Heels

AN: Wow, I missed posting last week. I'm a loser. Sorry. Truthfully I was not fully in it last week, or this week for that matter. But I wanted something posted and it's freaking confession time so I persevered and did it! Whoo! This chapter is a tad bit shorter and I have never, ever written a scene like this before so it was an experience. Hopefully my reading experience didn't make it suck as bad. I'm trying. I really am lmao. Enjoy!

The next morning, you said your goodbyes to Jill as she had to leave to finish her mission while you had to make your way back to the hotel you and Ada were sharing. You were sad to leave your friend once again, and you could only hope that life will be kinder to her. Maybe you will run into each other again at some point in the future.

Chapter 18:

Maybe once Umbrella was gone for good.

You were nervous to walk through the door of the room you shared with Ada. You wanted to tell her how you felt, but your doubt and insecurities were going to make it ten times harder to do.

You took a deep breath and tried to ignore the negative thoughts, before doing the secret knock you and Ada came up with early on, as she has the only key to the room.

You listened for movement from inside as the door abruptly opened and Ada stood in front of you with a deadpan look on her face.

“Y/n. How was your little sleepover?” She asked, tone nonchalant as she walked away, back facing you. You could tell from the way her shoulders have tensed that she was bothered by something.

“Uh, it was good. It was nice catching up with her after so long.” You said as you walked into the room, keeping your eyes on her as you shut and re-locked the door behind you.

Ada huffed as she sorted and packed her things in her duffle bag. “I'm glad you had fun. Start packing your things. We're heading out soon.” She aggressively shoved a dress into her bag.

You hesitated. “Are- are you okay?” 

“Fine.” Ada dismissed.

You hummed, watching her as she was still turned away from you. “You know, we talked about you last night.”

“Did you now?” Ada drawled, uninterested in whatever you and Jill talked about.

You took a slow, hesitant step forward. “Yeah. She brought something to my attention. Something about you.”

Ada paused before slowly turning to face you, arms crossed, hip jutted to her right. “What about me?” She asked, ready to defend herself as she assumed the worst.

You took a deep breath and another hesitant step forward. “She told me you were jealous.”

She raised a brow. “Jealous?”

“Mhmm. Jealous.”

“Jealous of what?”

“Of her. Jealous of the way we interacted with each other.”

She huffed and rolled her eyes. “Right.”

You walked closer to her, now only a few feet apart. “You shouldn't be jealous of her. She's only a friend.” You said before she could speak.

“I'm your friend.” She snapped, arms still crossed as her frustration rose.

You can't help but smile, her feelings for you becoming more clear now that Jill had helped you open your eyes. “You are. And you know I can have more than one friend, right?”

Ada scoffed with an eye roll. “Uh huh.”

You decide to just tell her right now before she becomes more upset. “But… maybe me and you can be something more than just friends.”

Ada's face fell in shock, completely taken aback from the sudden turn in the conversation. “Y-you… I'm sorry. What?” 

Huh, she stuttered. It wasn’t often that you got Ada Wong to stutter.

You take a deep breath. “Look. I've never done this before so there is a good chance that I might embarass myself by saying this but, I like you, Ada. I really like you. And I think I have for a while now. I have always admired you. Even when we first met. The entire time we were in Raccoon City together I was trying to convince myself that I hated you, but I didn't. I don’t. I've always found it very hard to hate you.” You paused, looking down and away from Ada who just stared at you with a look you couldn't quite decipher. You quickly lost what courage you had started with when you couldn’t figure out what she was thinking. “But, um, if you don't feel the same way as I do then that's fine. Just figured I should let you… know.” You finished awkwardly.

From the corner of your eye you saw Ada take a slow step forward, as if she was afraid she would frighten you, before taking another more confident step. Then another, and another.

Once she was close enough, she reached her right hand down to take your chin in a gentle grasp with her pointer finger and thumb, carefully moving your head up to make eye contact with her.

She gave you a moment to allow you to pull away from her if you so choose, before her straight, unreadable, face broke into a warm, gentle smile that she has only ever shown to you.

“Can I kiss you, Y/n?” She asked, her warm smile and gentle grasp on your face still there as she patiently waited for your response.

You were dumbfounded, completely caught off guard, having not at all expected this outcome. Fully expecting to be denied. Not embraced.

Your cheeks flushed as you worked through the brain fuzz her touch caused, quickly nodding your consent. “Yes.”

Her smile widened before she slowly closed the space between the two of you. Her warm, glossed lips, connected with yours almost hesitantly in a slow, but affectionate kiss. Giving you time to get used to it. Used to her. She kept you in a weak hold in case you decided to pull away.

You responded to the hesitation by moving your arms around her to hug her waist, bringing her closer to you in encouragement. Wanting to show her you truly meant every word of your confession. 

You wanted to be more. You wanted to be with her.

She responded to the encouragement with eager, yet gentle, enthusiasm. The hand on your chin moved to be placed on the back of your head as her other hand came up to cup your cheek in her palm, urging you to be closer to her.

The kiss was pure bliss and felt like it lasted for hours, but in actuality it only lasted a few short minutes before you had to pull away. You both gasped for the air that you neglected during the moment you had both waited years for and thought would never happen. Ada looked at you with pure joy and admiration in her eyes that you returned, before she pulled you forward once more for a quick peck on the lips.

“So, that's what you and Jill talked about? Us?” Ada asked after a few moments, your face still held in her hands.

You nodded. “She helped me realize that you might feel the same way I do.”

Ada hummed as she leaned forward, resting her forehead against yours. “I might have to thank her whenever I see her again. She was right. I do like you. In fact, I might even go as far as to say that I love you, Y/n.”

You smiled wide as you laughed, face flushed with pure joy as you pulled your head back slightly to face her properly. “You just had to one up my confession, didn't you.” You teased her.

Ada shrugged with a grin. “I mean, you get full points for admitting it first and getting the ball rolling. But I didn't think you would admit your full feelings for me if I didn't do it first.”

Leave it to Ada to notice that you avoided the L-word for the word like. She was right. You didn't say it first because you didn't want to scare her off for good.

“You're right.” You admitted.

“As usual.” Ada teased, still hugging you close.

“Shut up and let me confess.” You playfully shoved her shoulder, before taking another breath. “I love you too, Ada.”

Her teasing smile softened as she pulled you in for another slow kiss, before pulling away and placing a short peck to your head.

“I’m glad you admitted it first. I had convinced myself you didn’t feel the same way and that it would never happen. Was just going to continue living in the friend zone for the rest of my life.” Ada said as you two separated, her dragging you to sit beside her on the edge of the bed.

“Funny. I was the same way. When Jill first brought it to my attention, I didn’t believe her.” You said as you grabbed her hand in yours.

Ada seemed surprised by your statement. “Why not? You’re smart, hilarious, and kind. Not to mention gorgeous. But I see you for more than just your looks. You’re the first person I’ve met in a while to accept me for me. You don’t try to change every part of who I am. You understand that not everything in this life is simply just black and white. You actually take the time to understand my thoughts and opinions in situations where we disagree.”

“You do the same. Like what happened with the files and Jill.” You pointed out.

She nodded, squeezing your hand. “The point is, you taking the time to have those conversations just proves that you care. That I’m not just a pretty face to you. That I actually mean something to someone. Something to you. It’s been a long time since I’ve had that. So, I love you, Y/n. I mean it.”

You nearly wanted to tear up from her words. The honesty and vulnerability she was showing you right now was something you never thought either of you would have with one another. The fact that she was comfortable enough with you to tell you this made your heart hurt in the best way. 

Instead of crying, you smiled, pulling her into an embrace that made you want to hold on tight and never let go. Ada immediately returned your embrace and held you with the same amount of strength that you held her in. Usually you could only stand hugs with people for a short amount of time. But with her, you would happily stay in her arms forever if she wanted you to. 

“And I love you, Ada.”

[behoright]

could you do a kids night blurb for brady skjei? 🥺

kids night with fiancé! brady

this is late SORRY but I mean who doesn't want this at any point. so. warnings: smut, smut, smut. breeding/ pregnancy kink n cursing lol

hahahhaha sooo

basically

you guys have been dating FOREVER

recently engaged tho

you had the most beautiful proposal

stuff from your dreams

brady is the sweetest man but honestly

he's wild in the bedroom

he likes sex to be really dirty and nasty most of the time

you guys are veeery private about it

usually no public sex or anything like that

because he likes to have his space and privacy to

literally say and do the nastiest shit to you

and not have to worry about it

he's very good at hiding his arousal in public

there's only been a couple times that you saw it affect him

he'll just play it cool until you get home

we will say this

brady loves the shit out of you

he is 100% sure you're the only one for him forever

the only reason he took a while to propose is

bc he wanted every. single. thing. to be perfect

he feels the same about your wedding

you plan to be engaged for a while and take it slow

take as long as you both need with the planning

he has very much big heart eyes for you

and yes

he does dream about seeing you pregnant or as a mom

he thought about it beforehand but

it took him by surprise when it SPIKED after the engagement

seeing that ring on your finger just does something to him

he dreams about the most domestic shit

coming home from a roadie and seeing you play with your kids

or in bed rubbing your belly

he's actually been dreaming about it

a lot

and he's very overwhelmed by it

every single night a new wholesome dream but it gives him a huge throbbing hard on

he hasn't said anything to you bc its just a phase and

lowkey scared of putting pressure on you

so he's shhh

but uh kids night rolls around

and seeing you mess around with the kids

or hold TWO babies at once

feed them a bottle oof

the fantasies plague him all day long

he's so disconnected and people notice

especially you

but he's "fine, all good. no worries."

he squirts a lil extra water in his face throughout the game bc

he legitimately cannot stop thinking about you so happy with those babies

what if one day you guys have twins

two baby boys that would look ju-

THE GAME FOCUS FOCUS

during the surge tbh

yes there's many kids around but

he knows where you sit in the crowd and he finds your gaze

looks at you ALL THROUGHOUT

does not break eye contact with you from the ice

everyone notices it

you squirm a lil in your seat sjkdfkjdc

he pins you to the wall as soon as you get home

his tongue deep in your mouth

while he grinds up into you

when he takes you to the bedroom he's still kissing you

you're lucky you don't stumble and fall over anything

as soon as he's pushing his leaking cock inside you

he knows he has to say something god damn it he can't hold it back anymore

and that's when it happens

"god, brady, I just kept thinking about you filling me up and getting me pregnant the whole day"

he's so taken back

his eyes, widen. pupils huge

and his whole face and chest get red and splotchy

it takes him 3 seconds to process what you said before he starts hammering into you

"oh, y/n, that's so fucking hot"

"yeah? is that okay? not weird?"

"fuck no. I've been dreaming about you, as my wife, as a mom and it's fucking driving me nuts, baby."

his head in the crook of your neck

he'd move his hands to grab and play with your tits

"I cant wait till these swell up for me too"

"you want a baby, yeah? you want it so bad, huh, baby?"

"I'm the luckiest man in the fucking world, fuck"

"you feel so good, inside, you're so hot for me, for my cum"

sweat dripping from his hair and forehead

eyes are squeezed shut bc

as soon as he makes eye contact with you as you cum

his cock starts twitching inside you

"oh, brady, are you close, baby? you want to cum, inside me? i love it when you fuck me without birth control baby, I love that you can feel how ready my body is for your cum. breed me, breed me, breed me."

he fucking LOSES IT

legs tense

they TWITCH

he fully bottoms out with his legs fully extended all of his weight onto your pelvis

and he sees stars

his eyelids fluttering he's never heard you talk like this usually its the other way around

he groans for a couple of minutes bc it lasts that long

when he comes back down to earth he just stares at you incredulous

"did you like that brady?"

"I'm so dizzy"

dfjdhakljfh he legitimately has to lie down and YOu have to clean him up this time

bc he's so sweaty and lightheaded

new kink unlocked and he might um

attempt to speed up the wedding a lil bit

just to get to the next chapter of your life teehee

[honeysuckleharringtons]

Part Five: "Seasonal Specials" ~ S. Harrington

Summary: (Then) Christmas Eve has rolled around, and unfortunately for a very pregnant Reader, she is stuck at home with a migraine. Luckily for her, her younger brother doesn't make for too bad of company. — (Now) A slow shift at Brew and Me turns out to be a good night for advice and a call from everyone's favorite nursing student.

Pairing: Nurse!Steve Harrington x Fem!Byers!Reader

Word Count: 1,900

Content Warning: teen pregnancy, discussions of homophobia, discussions of abuse and allusions to physical abuse, discussions of slut-shaming, Reader is lowkey bad at advice when it comes to these topics LMAO, explicit language, food consumption (Reader drinks hot chocolate), not really a warning but Will is gay and autistic in this series, as always lmk if i missed anything!

Extra Notes: this should've been posted way earlier, i am so sorry it wasn't. hope you guys enjoy though!

Originally Written: 12/21/2023 through 12/25/2023

honeysuckleharringtons' main masterlist can be found here!

'brew and me' series masterlist can be found here!

[ Then, December of 1987 ]

Christmas Eve. It was Christmas Eve and you were stuck at home with an excruciating headache.

You supposed it wasn't all bad. After all, staying at home was preferable over the rare occasion that you did leave the house, when everyone would stare you down like some caged animal at the zoo. Unfortunately, the same could be said for your family—no, not your immediate family, who'd helped you more than ever since you'd entered your third and final trimester—whose reactions had ranged from disgusted to sympathetic.

When you'd gone to the family's end-of-summer family reunion, you'd tried your best to hide the tiny bump you were sporting at the time. However, your aunt Judy had taken notice of your particularly round belly, and immediately figured out that it wasn't from one too many hot dogs at the cookout. Ever since then, you'd heard every comment in the book, everything from "whore throwing her life away" to "so sad she thought that was her only option."

So, instead of listening to the endless insults from your distant relatives, you'd prayed for some way out of the gathering. Unfortunately for you, God had a sense of humor, hence the excruciating headache.

The sound of the microwave beeping in the next room over set you off all over again, the noise like a hammer to the head. "Will, can't you tell that thing to shut up?" you groaned, covering your face with the compress he'd made you.

"Unfortunately, I don't think that's going to help," he joked. You couldn't tell if you wanted to laugh or kill him for his sense of humor. "Here's your hot chocolate."

You sat up ever-so-slightly, taking a small drink of the deep brown liquid. Almost instantly, the warmth of it made you feel a little better. "Thank you." You reached a hand over, ruffling his already messy hair. "By the way, you didn't have to stay home with me."

"And listen to Uncle Howie tell me how we're both going to hell? I'd rather have that headache of yours."

A snicker escaped your lips, knowing exactly what he meant. "Okay, maybe Uncle Howie is a bit too opinionated on the sex lives of sixteen and eighteen year olds, but you don't have to listen to him. I mean, you're missing out on Grandma's fruitcake, which is your favorite part of the holidays."

"After last year, listening to half our cousins tell me I'm fruitier than the cake, I don't think I'll ever eat it again." Will pulled his knees up to his chest, his face overtaken by an expression that looked a lot like longing. "Besides, it's not really worth it to me."

You set your mug aside before placing a hand on his knee. "What do you mean?"

"The way the family talks about you… I thought I was the black sheep of the family. You might as well be a purple sheep."

Your pregnancy hormones must've taken over, because instead of a normal reaction, you found yourself beginning to cry from his words. No, not because of pain from his statement, but rather comfort in knowing that he'd rather miss out on the finer things of life if it meant sticking up for you.

Will, and his lack of social cue skills, stared at you for a moment, unsure what to say. Eventually, he landed on, "Sorry if I made you more upset. I didn't-"

A small huff of amusement left your mouth as you shook your head. "No, Will," you smiled, reaching up to wipe away your excess tears, "I'm just… I'm really happy to have you."

He flashed you a closed-lip smile, one that felt so genuine and unapologetically Will. "I know you'd do the same for me."

[ Now, December of 1991 ]

"I would, kiddo. I really would."

Aster Bay was a different kind of beautiful at the holidays. Sure, the small college town was normally beautiful, but upon seeing the small-town glow overtake the place, you were sure you hadn't seen anything like it.

Apartments and beach-side condos decked out in Christmas lights, a tree as high as the clouds in the town square, students dressed in Christmas and Hanukkah sweaters, their dogs in matching attire. The town felt like your own personal snow globe, tiny flakes flooding the ground beneath your feet with every step.

The magic of the holidays of course carried over into your favorite little coffee shop, decorations of red and green covering the walls and counters while the smell of peppermint wafted through the air. Unfortunately for you and Max, the one thing your little coffee shop was lacking this Christmas Eve was customers.

Neither of you were really sure why the store was open. Nearly everyone had gone home for the holidays—students, patrons, and other baristas alike—and the store was dead quiet, aside from the soft sound of Sinead O'Conner playing on the overhead speaker. Silent Night is accurate, you thought to yourself.

"So, where's your lover boy at this Christmas Eve?" Max joked, breaking the long-winded silence.

You sighed, secretly longing for the nurse she spoke of. "Apparently they gave him a week off from the hospital so he went home to see his folks." A small wave of loneliness had come over you when Steve had told you about his departure a few days prior, when he stopped by to grab a latte for the road.

"That's nice. At least he's hopefully having a good time, not working on the holidays like some of us," she said lightheartedly. Though, you could've sworn you heard a hint of sadness in her tone.

"Hey, how come you aren't at home with your folks?" The question had been a simple one, but when Max looked up at you, you could tell her answer was about to be anything but simple.

Her arms folded tightly in front of her chest as she looked at you, a sigh falling between her plump lips. "It's… complicated."

You placed a loving hand on her shoulder. "I know we're only coworkers and we aren't really supposed to bring our personal lives to work with us, but you know you can talk to me, right? I'm your friend, plus I'm a mother so I have problem solving skills now."

She huffed in amusement at your last remark. "It's just… I can't really say a lot but my life in California, it's not as good as my life here. And as much as I love my mom, there's just… well, it's just better for me to stay here even as much as I miss her. Besides, it's not like I make enough to fly home and Neil certainly isn't going to pay for my flight."

You could tell from the clear distaste in the way she said Neil that she didn't like to say his name anymore than she had to. Unfortunately, you knew all too well what that was like, and there was a certain name that left a bad taste in your own mouth the same way Neil did for Max.

"I can't give you much advice because my dad was the one that left, but I promise, it does get better," you empathized. "You made the right decision by staying here. I'm proud of you, Max."

She began to fiddle with the sleeve of her flannel, her eyes darting away. "I hate being here though. I can't help my mom from here. There's no telling what he does to her when me and Billy are away."

You knew exactly what she meant by that too. "I know it doesn't seem like it, but that'll change too. Eventually he'll get tired of you and your mom fighting back and he'll leave. That's what my dad did anyway."

"The thing is," she paused, licking her lips, "I'm not sure my mom wants to fight back. It's like she wants to deal with Neil's bullshit. I mean, she divorced my dad over not making enough money and then she married Neil, who is still scraping at the bottom of the barrel to keep the lights on every month. Not to mention, she dated like ten guys in between and broke up with them for way less, but she'll always find a way to justify his actions."

You shrugged your shoulders. "My mom put up with it for seventeen years before she started to truly fight back." A small wave of silence came over the room before you continued, "I'm sorry I don't have much advice. I guess my situation was just a little different than most survivors'. One thing I can tell you though is that I'm proud of you for making the best decision for yourself. I know it's hard to put yourself first sometimes."

Max gave you a crooked smile, finally looking up at you again. "As much as it sucks that we've both been through a bad thing, I'm glad I have you to talk to about it."

"Of course, love. You're like a little sister to me."

Cutting your conversation short, the phone began to ring, the sound grating on your nerves. You loved your job, but it was Christmas Eve, damn it. In all honesty, you really just wanted to be at home, drinking hot chocolate with your girl in your lap and a movie playing on television.

Still, you picked up the phone, answering with the signature, "Happy holidays from Brew and Me. What can we do for you?"

"Can you tell me your seasonal specials?" said a familiar voice, his smirk audible in his tone.

"Steve! You're supposed to be on vacation," you scolded, though internally you were extremely happy to hear his voice. What is wrong with me? you pondered silently.

"I am, but I couldn't resist calling and ordering something."

Your brows furrowed at his statement. "How does that work?"

"Order anything you'd like and I'll pay you back when I get back to town. Think of it as a Christmas present, or whatever you celebrate."

"That feels like cheating, Harrington." Your eyes narrowed, despite his inability to see it.

"You don't have to tell me what it is, just how much I'll owe you," he replied. You could hear a fireplace crackling quietly in the background, and you could easily imagine him curled up in front of it, his skin covered with a thick Christmas sweater, glasses perched on his nose as he read a novel. "Same for Max or whoever else is working. Treat yourselves, courtesy of me."

"Well, thank you, Steve. We appreciate it," your lips curved upward into a smile as you spoke. "I hope you're enjoying your time off."

"I am. I'm sorry you have to work on Christmas Eve." You could almost hear the frown on his lips as he sympathized with you.

"It's not all bad. After all, I'm getting to hear from you."

"Careful, Byers, or I'll start to think you like me back," he smirked. Butterflies went off in your belly, your cheeks warm and surely rosy.

You were sure full sentences had escaped you, considering Steve had the ability to take your breath away and make you blush like no one else could. So, you stuck with what you knew you could say without stumbling over your words. "Happy holidays, Doc."

"It's a very happy holiday when I get to talk to you, Y/N."

So tumblr hates me...

I went over 24 hours thinking this chapter posted, only to find out tumblr ate it somewhere between my drafts, my queue, and my posts 🤦🏻‍♀️ this app loves to embarrass me

Anyway, I hope this was worth the extra long wait. It sucks that I'm posting it after the initial Christmas magic is over but I hope you guys liked it regardless! I will see you back here on Sunday for chapter six, which will be posted on time, fingers crossed!

-> taglist: @dungeons-are-too-cold @ducky-died-inside @awkotaco24 @liberhoe @princesseddie @corrodedseraphine @manuosorioh @esoltis280 @hazydespair @frostandflamesfanfic

[dreamsgazer]

OK SO mine isn't really a request because I have ideas but I can't write so they go nowhere and stay in my head because I'm incapable!!! anyway, I was thinking about a situation where reader and tangerine met on the train and they hit off right away like there's something special between them eheh, like they like each other but turns out that they're both on a mission and have the same goal - so they fight because reader steals the WHATEVER IT IS IDK that's in both their interest and manages to get off the train right under tangerine's nose when he was about to stop them, doing so in a fight reader rips tangerine's necklace, and basically breaks it and ultimately keeps it (and fixes it) . just in case. because they like him. genuinely. in fact she's very sorry for ruining the mission of the twins but it's a matter of life or death sooo rip AND they're also indirectly but maybe directly? the cause of the nasty scar tangerine now has on his neck because he risked his life because of this failed mission. and then I mean we all know what happens canonically but we Dont Care do we.... it's all a scar and a memory in the end.

ANYWAY they finally meet again when they're forced to team up by their handlers for another mission and like tangerine and lemon are mad mad because everyone was about to die on that train!! because of reader!!!! duh. also R feels very guilty because all that has happened / could've happened. and tangerine of course is angry because he was losing his life but also because he kinda was disappointed in their behavior and maybe in himself for trusting so easily a person.. anddd idk maybe there could be some angst because I love it and that's it THIS IS SO DUMB AND LONG I'm sorry I know I'll probably look to this request in a while and cringe so bad. but I'm just curious to see how you would continue it, like what do you think would happen, what are the first things they say to each other, how does it evolve things like that 🥰

of course, if you don't feel like writing anything that's totally fine and don't worry at all❤️❤️

p. s. : im sure ive taken the prompt where reader steals / ruins tangerine's mission from other fics as well so kudos to whoever came up with the idea :)

Dear Anon, first of all, thank you so much for your patience. I’m usually slow to answer, and with things being very busy at work I’m even slower. Please, do not cringe, it was awesome to read your ideas, and I was so happy you sent this message. Thank you so much ❤️ , and I hope you enjoy how this turned out!

A Darling Mess

"Fuck, fuck, fuck!" you groan, letting your head hit the wall behind you. The golden necklace glints between your fingers.

You didn't mean to steal it. You really didn't. You didn't mean to run into the Twins and most certainly didn't mean to hook up with the moustached one in one of the bathrooms on that cursed train either.

More accurately, you shouldn't have wanted to hook up with him, but as soon as the two of you had crossed paths in one of the carriages, you knew it was going to happen. And when it happened it was quick and glorious and earth-shaking, and you hoped you were going to see him again. 

Then everything went to shit, you two fought for that damned suitcase - his hands apparently were really good for many different things - and you barely ran away from that train with all your limbs.

Your smartphone buzzes incessantly. It's your handler.

"Where are you?"

It's not like him to sound so distressed.

"Not sure about the exact position, it's an alley near Nagoya station. I think I need a lift."

He tells you about a derailed bullet train and how it seems a lot of people - assassins like you, but still... people - died. One of the Twins as well, according to the info he got. The moustached one. You feel a pang of pain in your chest, which is stupid because he was just a stranger you fucked on a train.

A year has passed. Tokyo has slowly just started to become a mission you will remember with regret for a long time when you find yourself pointing your weapon at Moustache Guy again. While he's doing the same. And his brother is aiming a gun at you as well.

Shit.

You are more surprised to see him most definitely alive than to have him threatening you.

“You owe me a great deal,” he hisses, low and dangerous “You fucked up our mission, stole my fucking necklace, and almost got me killed. Almost got my brother killed as well! Why shouldn’t I murder you on the spot?”

You frown “First of all, the necklace got caught in my jacket while you were using me as a human punching ball. Second,” you add, eyes only quickly flickering on the huge, angry scar on his neck “one of you is going to kill me for sure, but I can guarantee you I will take the other down with me.”

Anger blazes in his eyes and you push further, adrenaline pumping in your veins “Third, asshole, you and your brother here screwed up since the moment you decided to leave the suitcase and the boy you were supposed to escort unguarded! What utterly morons do that?”

A pause and then you decide to further test your luck “Last but not least, I’m sorry you two almost got killed. I can apologize for my part in that, even if it’s a small one. But I won’t accept you blaming me for the rest, Moustache Boy!”

His nostrils flare, and he glares at you. It’s unfair that he looks even more ravishing with that savagery seeping from him in hot waves. Also, you probably shouldn’t get distracted by that, since the danger of being shot is a very real one.

Lemon’s laughter is short, and he nods at you, interrupting the impasse “This one got quite a temper, uh? I kind of see the fascination with the... situation.”

Tangerine snarls an insult at him, but it carries no real venom. 

In the end, after some calls from your handler and his reminders to the Twins that they have to collaborate with you on this mission and an offer to triple the pay for all of your messed up trio, guns are put away, hands tentatively shaken, and scowls mostly kept under control. 

You know they still blame you for your part in the train debacle. Yet, true to their professional reputation, they carry through the mission. It’s a long one.

Living in such proximity inevitably leads to some kind of tepid intimacy. Lemon is the first one to soften up a bit. He starts to ask you if you want some coffee. He asks you about your favourite book, once he spots you reading it to fight your insomnia. He thanks you after you retrieve a USB pen that will help with the job. And one day he gives you a sticker of some train and tells you that despite everything you are not a Diesel. You are not sure what it means, and Tangerine indeed scoffs at the words, but after that things are a little less tense, between the three of you.

Tangerine slowly stops glaring at you and once he almost compliments your ability in combat, after you knock out a goon that was going to stab him. 

The progress is little but steady, and one night, for a hilarious twist of the events, the moon finds you two looking outside the same window, in the little apartment you have been given as a base.

“I’m sorry you got shot.”

He nods at your words, slightly sniffing and making his moustache move over his very kissable lips. 

“Thanks,” he hesitates before quickly murmuring his own apology about blaming you and only you “I think my ego got a tad hurt realizing you shagged me just because of a honeypot mission.”

“I didn’t,” it's the quiet murmur that gently interrupts his gruff confession. 

He scoffs “I very much think we did it in that bathroom, love.”

“Not that,” you roll your eyes at him “I meant it wasn’t a honeypot mission. I- I did not hook up with you because of work. I didn’t even know you and Lemon were the ones having that cursed briefcase, at the time.”

Tangerine just looks at you, and you look back at him “I have your necklace. It got a bit damaged, but I had a jeweller fix it. I know it’s stupid, but I thought-”

Your voice dies down a bit and you are not really shocked to feel his calloused hand gently cupping your face, making you look at him “What did you think?”

You swallow “I thought I was going to find out where Lemon put your grave and bring the necklace there.”

You feel a tear roll down your cheek, and then another, and another. He kisses them, one by one, his lips lingering on your soft skin, and you sob “I’m so stupidly glad you didn’t die.”

He chuckles against your lips “So am I, my darling.”

You kiss him and he kisses you back, and the morning after Lemon is not surprised to catch you coming out from Tangerine’s bedroom.

Sensing your hesitation, he winks at you “Glad it happened. Be good to him, ya?”.

And of course, you nod back, with all your heart.