#sorry if that sounds really big headed or whatever cause I wrote it I'm just happy with how it's turning out haha

[ashes-of-ailell]

yall I just wrote oc fluff for the first time in ages of Lucien and Lunaris and. idk if this is odd for me to say considering they're my ocs and I wrote it but they are so so so so cute they love each other so much and just yeah-

[fandomrewrites]

Legends Chapter 8: Signets

Hello Riders! Sorry for the late update, I head to rethink a very important part of this chapter at the last minute because I didn't want to go with my original thought. Which meant deleting a section of what I already wrote and having to figure out a good place to put my new idea-after I figured out that new idea. Anyways, I hope you all like this chapter!

Chapters 22-24 in Fourth Wing Pairings: Xaden x Younger Sister, Liam x best friend Warnings: Mention of death, swearing, violence, *Big spoilers from the book series* Word Count: 9,894

Legends Masterlist

Signets usually say a lot about the rider. It's why I'm not surprised my signet is shadow wielding. I keep a lot of secrets, I need to in order to survive. But what do you need, (Y/N)? Whatever it is, I have no doubts that you'll be among the strongest. -Recovered correspondence from Cadet Xaden Riorson to (Y/N) Riorson

Once battle brief ends, I quickly pack up my things and rush out the door, the sound of my squad calling after me fading in the distance. Nyx and Aether are silent for the moment, waiting for me to reach my room.

I rush through the halls, mind racing. I know what's happening, but I don't want to believe it. It can't be true. I make it to my room and lock the door behind me, throwing my bag on the floor by my desk. "Nyx, please tell me my signet isn't what I think it is." I say through our bond. I need confirmation.

"I will not lie to you, Night Orchid." Nyx's velvety voice floats into my head.

"Please say it. I need to hear it, because if I don't I'll keep trying to deny it."

"You're an inntinnsic. You have telepathy to be exact." Nyx answers, voice strong.

"They'll kill me."I whisper aloud, falling to my hands and knees in shock. Knowing it's telepathy doesn't even register in my mind. I only focus on the fact that being inntinnsic is a death sentence and even though I usually put on a brave face, I don't want to die. Not yet.

"I will not allow them to harm you. I will destroy every human and dragon in my path if they even breathe wrong in your direction." Nyx assures.

"But-"

Nyx cuts me off, "You will learn to control it in secret. You are strong and smart, I would not have chosen you if you weren't." My breath hitches at her words, "No one will know except those you choose to tell, though I recommend keeping it to yourself. Now rest, you need it after developing your signet."

"I have still have one more class, and I'm already late." I try to argue.

"Skip, resting is more important at the moment." I don't argue anymore. I slowly stand up, kicking my shoes off and climbing into bed. I'm asleep as soon as my head hits the pillow.

*_*_*_*_*

I'm awoken by knocking on my door. "Go away!" I yell. I'm terrified of who could be on the other side. Of the possibility of the person finding out.

"(Y/N), open up." Liam calls back. I groan but untangle myself from my sheets. I hesitate, my hand hovering over the door knob. "(Y/N), come on." I can't ignore him, even though part of me really wants to.

I crack my door open, "Finally." I hear Liam's voice but his lips don't move. "Are you okay? You skipped the last class. And you missed dinner." He holds up a plate of food, "I brought you some in case you were hungry. Gods I hope she's alright."

I keep my mind carefully blank as I watch his lips move. Making sure the only words I acknowledge are the ones actually coming out of his mouth. "Thanks." I mumble. "I have a really bad migraine, it started in battle brief. Nyx said resting was more important."

"Did you go to the healers?" Liam asks, causing me to shake my head. "Maybe you should, they could give you something-"

"Liam, I love you. But all I want to do right now is eat and go back to sleep. So thank you again for the food, but leave me alone." I step back, closing the door in his face before he can say anything else. I hate being rude to him but I'm so nervous he'll find out.

I can't slip up, telepathy is more than just being able to read other's minds. I can project my thoughts into their head as well. One slip up and I'm dead. I sit down at my desk, beginning to eat the dinner Liam brought me as my mind races. I doubt Liam would tell anyone but I can't put that burden on his shoulder's.

Once I finish eating the food Liam brought me, I pace my room. Mind still racing, thinking of all the ways this can go wrong. "Enough, Night Orchid. You're driving me insane." Nyx huffs. "Burning alive sounds more fun than having to hear your worrisome thoughts. I already told you no one will harm you."

"You can't promise that, Nyx." I sigh, shaking my head. "You can't be with me 24/7. Carr snapped a kids neck the other day because he was an inntinnsic."

"That kid was weak, he showed his signet to everyone and was killed for it. You managed to hide it and will continue to hide it for as long as we live." Nyx growls.I groan in frustration, but I know I need to hide it or I'm as good as dead.

I bite my lip, closing my eyes and stepping into the library at Riorson house. I focus on the window with the comfy reading nook below it. Through that window I see the shimmering white light that represents Nyx's power. I slam the window shut, locking it, then open my eyes back up, keeping one foot in the mental library.

I need to block Nyx out or she'll try and talk me out of this. But I need to do this, I can't do this by myself and there's only one person I trust with this information. I pull my shoes on and rush out of my room, passing by Liam who sits outside of Violet's door. He quickly stands up when he see's me. "(Y/N)? Where is she going?" There's a pause between his thoughts, "Fuck, I can't leave Violet."

I ignore his call, climbing the stairs and heading towards Xaden's room. I knock once, then open the door before Xaden can answer. Xaden, Bodhi, and Garrick all turn to look at me.

"What is she doing?" Xaden narrows his eyes, his voice sounding in my head. Clearly, I'm struggling to block out all of Nyx's power.

"I need to talk with you. Now." My eyes are wide as I look Xaden in the eyes. My gaze flickers to Bodhi and Garrick, "Privately."

"Come on, 'cuz. It's just-" Bodhi starts, a playful smile on his lips.

"Out. Now." I glare.

"You can't just order them out of my room, (Y/N)." Xaden rolls his eyes.

My glare turns to Xaden, "I just did." I turn back to Garrick and Bodhi, "Now get out before I resort to violence."

Garrick stands up, "Well Chradh just told me to leave unless I want to get eaten by Nyx so…" He trails off, clapping Bodhi on the shoulder, "I suggest we leave."

"What did Chradh say to you?!" My eyes widen in panic. Logically, I know Nyx didn't tell Chradh anything. This is a secret she's keeping between me, Aether, and herself. But I can't help the panic that seeps into me. But somehow I control the power enough to not let my worries reach anyone in the room. Probably with Nyx's help.

"Exactly what I said," Garrick exchanges looks with the others, worry evident on his face. "He didn't tell me why Nyx would eat me, he just said to leave." Garrick shrugs. "What the fuck is going on? Is she okay?" His eyes are focused on mine, begging me to tell him what's going on, but instead of asking he pulls Bodhi with him, heading for the door. "See you in a bit, Xaden."

Xaden nods, turning to me once the door is shut behind Garrick and Bodhi. "Well?" He asks, eyebrow raised. "What is so secretive that she had to kick them out of the room?"

I start pacing in front of my brother, "Will anyone be able to hear us if they're trying to listen in or do we need to find some place where no one can hear us?"

Xaden's eyes narrow, "My room is warded so no one can hear what's going on in here with the door closed. What the fuck is going on?"

"Good, good." I mumble, "I got my signet today during battle brief."

"Okay? Why is that a secret?"

My lip wobbles, the minute I tell him there's no going back. I stop pacing, turning to look him in the eye, "You know why." I can't bring myself to say it out loud.

Xaden tilts his head in confusion, "A secret signet. She's panicked. Oh my gods, is she an inntinnsic?"

"Yes," I say, answering his unspoken question. I force the word through my mind, into his.

Xaden's eyes widen, "How did she? No, she can't be."

"I am. Nyx already confirmed it. I'm telepathic, inntinnsic." A tear falls out of my eye before I can stop it, "They're going to kill me, Xade." I say out loud, voice cracking.

"No." Xaden says, moving towards me and gently grabbing my arms. "No, no one will lay a hand on you. How many people know?"

I shake my head as more tears fall, "You're the only one I told."

Xaden pulls me into a hug, he presses my head against his chest as I sob. He slowly lowers us so were sitting on the couch. "You'll develop a second signet, no one will have to know about this." His hand brushes over my hair, trying to soothe me.

"What if I don't?" I choke out between sobs, "People will begin to wonder why I haven't exploded!"

"You will!" Xaden's arms tighten around me, my head tucked under his chin. "And if you don't we'll sneak you out of here, to Aretia. You'll be safe. I promise."

"Even if that works, how am I supposed to learn to control it? I'm already on the verge of going crazy from having to keep my mind blank so I don't talk to anyone!"

"I'll help you learn."

"How are you supposed-"

Xaden's voice floats into my head, cutting off my panicked question. "I'm an inntinnsic too."

I finally pull away from Xaden when I hear his thought, "What?" I ask confused, tears finally slowing down.

"I developed my second signet not too long after the shadows. I knew I had to keep it a secret because they'd kill me if they found out. I can't read thoughts but I can read intentions. It's a form of inntinnsic." Xaden pauses, "I can- will. I will teach you."

"Who else knows?" I whisper.

Xaden shakes his head, "No one. You're the only person I've ever told." I blink, shocked by this new information but happy I'm not alone. He reaches up a steady hand, brushing away the last of my tears. "Now the first lesson, you need to know is control. You already learned grounding, correct?"

I nod, muttering, "Carr taught us."

"That light that connects you to Nyx, there should be a line flowing from it. That's your signet. You need to block the flow from that line. That way you block the signet but not her full power." Xaden gives me clear instructions, making sure I understand every word.

I take a breath before thinking back to the Riorson library. I find Nyx's power and the line of magic flowing from it. I snap the door shut, blocking the signet from being used. "Okay, it's done."

Xaden nods, "Now you just need to get used to holding it all the time. You can't let it slip. And if it does you need to close it as quickly as possible." I nod in understanding.

*_*_*_*_*

It's an hour after curfew and I still sit in Xaden's room practicing my shielding. We've been talking and playing games, trying to distract me so I can practice holding my shields in place for everything. Spoiler alert, it didn't go very smoothly, but at least I'm letting it slip with someone who already knows what's happening. And the longer I practice the better I get.

"Okay," Xaden says, standing up and stretching his legs, "I'll walk you back to your room. I need to meet with Garrick and Bodhi."

"Are you guys doing a weapons drop?" I ask. Xaden told me about helping the fliers a while ago. They need more weapons to fight the venin so the marked ones have been making the weapons here at the school then periodically meeting with them to hand them over.

Xaden nods, "We need to leave soon so we can make it back in time."

"Let me come with you." Xaden opens his mouth like he's about to argue, "Please?" I ask. "I don't want to be alone right now, and it will be great practice."

"What if you slip?" There's a brief flicker of worry behind his eyes before he quickly masks it.

"Then I slip. I can't hide in my room forever. Nyx blocked me before, if I can't get under control quickly enough, she'll do it again." I reassure. Of course I'm nervous about others finding out, but I need the practice and I trust Nyx to help if I need it. Plus if I slip in front of Bodhi and Garrick I trust that they wouldn't say anything, though ideally they won't find out.

"Of course I'll stop you from using your powers if I need to." Nyx says to me, "I'll meet you on the flight field. It will be nice to fly with Chradh for one of these weapons drops."

I smile at her words, "Nyx already said she'll meet me at the flight field, so no arguing."

Xaden sighs, "Fine." He opens his armoire, pulling out two flight jackets. He holds one out for me. I grab it, slipping it over my shoulders. "There should be an extra pair of flight goggles in the pocket." Sure enough, I stick my hands in the pockets and feel the flight goggles.

"Thank you," I say, smiling once more. We quickly make it out to the flight field. Sticking to the shadows so Xaden can hide us if necessary.

Garrick and Bodhi are already waiting with the dragons, "How are you feeling?" Bodhi asks once he sees me.

"Better now. Sorry for how I reacted earlier. It was important." I say, looking between the two riders.

"We figured," Garrick replies, shrugging. "At least you're alright now."

"Let's go." Xaden says, stopping Bodhi, Garrick, and I from continuing the conversation. He runs up Sgaeyl's leg, settling on her back.

I run towards Nyx, mounting without issue. "Aether was worried, he wanted to come but for once in his life he listened." Nyx says once I'm settled.

I pull my borrowed flight goggles down, "I'm alright, Aether. I'll visit you tomorrow." I call out to him.

"You better." Aether huffs, making me smile. Nyx launches into the air, she allows Sgaeyl to lead the way, flying close to Chradh. It takes three hours to get to our meeting spot. It's the longest I've ever flown and my legs are starting to go numb. We are just beyond the wards, the magic is wilder out here. It's something you don't notice when you're not bonded.

"Stay." Xaden says, eyes meeting mine.

I scoff, but do as he says. That is until I see the fliers coming towards us. I scan the group, and immediately notice Syrena. "Syrena!" I yell, I quickly stand up, jumping from Nyx's back, rolling so I don't hurt myself.

I stand up quickly, rushing towards the flier, and fling my arms around her. "Wow, (Y/N). You've gotten even more beautiful then were when you were 15." She says, hugging me back. I may not be able to stand Syrena's sister Cat, But Syrena is amazing. She definitely got all the good traits.

Before I can reply, Xaden scolds me, "I told you to stay mounted."

I roll my eyes, pulling away from the hug, "I'm not a dog. And Syrena is a friend." I turn, looking at the other riders, "And any friend of Syrena's is a friend of mine." I lean forward, towards the other fliers and drop my voice to a whisper, "She has good taste, she likes me after all."

The fliers all smile at me, "This the infamous (Y/N) Riorson?" One of the fliers asks.

"At your duty," I playfully salute with two fingers. Despite the distraction, I've been doing really well with keeping my shields up. I only had one slip up during the flight, and luckily it was only into Xaden's mind. I take a moment to remind myself to keep a mental foot in the library to continue to block the power.

"No wonder Syrena talks so highly of you," Another flier says, "Older Riorson should take some notes." A playful smirk pulls at the fliers lips.

I shake my head, "I tell him all the time, he's just always so… broody." I poke Xaden's cheek on the last word. Bodhi snorts at my words and Garrick's lip turns up into a smirk.

Xaden slaps my hand away, glaring. "Here's the weapons, we'll reach out in a few weeks about another drop." Xaden says, bringing the conversation back to why we're here. There's four bags of weapons. Garrick, Bodhi, and Xaden drop the bags at the fliers feet. "We have to head back."

"Thank you." Syrena calls out as we turn away, heading back towards our dragons, "(Y/N)." I turn to look at her. "It's good to see you. Especially on a badass dragon like that," She nods her head at Nyx. "We all knew you'd amount to great things."

I smile, "Thanks, Syrena. It's good to see you too. Stay safe."

"We'll try."

*_*_*_*_*

As November turns to December, I make sure to practice with my telepathy every day. Because if I don't I will be greeting Malek sooner than I would like. I don't slip up anymore. My shields are incredibly strong, the strongest in my year. And I've been practicing reading minds without letting my thoughts enter the other person's. Which I've also excelled at, though it takes more focus than just shielding myself from using the signet.

I still haven't manifested a second signet which is making me incredibly worried. Xaden keeps having to reassure me that I will and nothing bad is going to happen to me. Nyx and Aether try to reassure me too, but I have my doubts. I mean why hasn't the second signet manifested yet? It's been a month since the first one showed up, and if it doesn't manifest soon people are going to start questioning me.

Currently the squad is in the gym, practicing hand-to-hand. Dain made mandatory practice sessions every Tuesday night to prepare for the Squad Battle. Not that Liam or I need it. I'm still undefeated in challenges and the only time Liam lost was to me.

Rhiannon and Violet are practicing together with staffs. The staff is far too big a weapon for Violet but it's a practice session so I say nothing. Rhiannon stops short from hitting Violet, "You're distracted tonight." Rhiannon says, backing away. Her gaze flickers to Liam who is sitting next to me carving a new piece of wood.

I have a book in my lap, a romance novel about a princess who falls in love with the knight tasked to be her personal guard. It's a cliche but it's cute. I go back and fourth from reading to watching the practice matches around me.

"But you're faster than you used to be." Rhiannon continues, "Whatever Imogen has you doing is working."

"As if there was ever any doubt," Imogen calls from the mat next to them. She has Ridoc pinned in a headlock. Jack and some of the members of his squad are a couple of mats over, also practicing. It's why Liam isn't practicing himself. And because Liam's out, I don't have a partner.

"You're taking it easy on me." Violet says. Sawyer and Quinn are circling each other, Emery and Heaton are coaching the new members we gained after Threshing, and Dain is watching the matches unfold.

Dain's eyes meet mine, "(Y/N). Join someone. We're here to practice, not read."

I roll my eyes, then look around the room before bringing my attention to Dain once more, "I'm sorry, is there a new squad member we magically acquired? Because if you haven't noticed, everyone is already paired up."

Liam smiles, but continues to focus on his carving and Violet. Dain glares at me, but before he gets the chance to answer I speak again, "Unless you're offering to be my partner, squad leader?" I smile innocently.

Dain's jaw ticks, "Fine." He gestures to the open mat beside Imogen and Ridoc, "Let's go."

I smirk, placing a dagger in my book then gently putting it on my chair. "This will be fun." I mumble, just loud enough for Liam to hear me. One of the reasons I've been practicing reading thoughts with my signet is so I can hear my opponents thoughts when fighting. If I can hear what they're thinking without sending my thoughts back to them, matches will be even easier to win than they already are.

I walk towards the mat, standing to face Dain, "Weapons?" He asks.

"I'm fine with anything. Or nothing." My smirk widens, "Choose whichever you think will help you win. I don't mind being at a disadvantage."

Dain rolls his eyes, "You're already at a disadvantage, I'm taller, stronger, and have more practice than you."

"Maybe so, but I'm faster and more agile."

Dain sighs, "No weapons. Just our hands."

"And mouths." I grin, "What makes you tick, squad leader?" I slowly start to circle him, "I'm very good at pushing buttons if you haven't noticed."

Dain takes a deep breath, clearly trying to make sure I don't rattle him. "Don't give her a reaction. That's what she wants." Dain's eyes follow me around the mat. "Are you going to talk or are you going to fight?"

I raise an eyebrow, "Have you never heard of a verbal battle? A battle of wits?" Out of the corner of my eye I see Garrick and Xaden enter. Xaden does a double take when he sees who I'm facing but doesn't interfere, instead he focuses on Violet saying something to her as he passes.

"This is hand-to-hand combat. Not a debate."

"True. But that doesn't mean I need to move first. Especially because the conversation is so… stimulating." I shrug, indifferent.

"She's so irritating. She's really not going to make the first move? She does this almost every match." I cross my arms, waiting for him to move. Dain's jaw ticks. "You're seriously just going to stand there?"

"I'll stand here all night, Aetos." I raise a brow in challenge.

"This fucking woman. I swear to the gods." Dain's frustration is palpable. Even if I couldn't read his mind, it's easy to tell he's annoyed with me. Good, just let that annoyance come out in the fight. But I know Dain is smart, and it's going to take a lot to get him to react. "Fuck it. Looks like I'm offense."

Dain moves quick, trying to kick my legs out from underneath me. But he's not quick enough. I uncross my arms, jumping out of the way, we circle each other before Dain moves again. I block his punch, interlocking are arms. I swipe his leg, making him fall to the mat.

Dain rolls away from me, quickly standing back up. "Still feeling confident, squad leader?" I taunt. We dance around each other again, throwing punches and kicks. Dain's a good fighter, but I know I'm better. Even without my secret signet.

I move my right arm up, blocking another blow. Then I switch, too quick for Dain to keep up. Instead of fighting on defense like I have been, I move to offense. I attack quickly, pushing Dain towards the edge of the mat. I aim low, sweeping his legs from below him. He lands with a thud. I quickly move on top of him, pinning him below me, in a tangle of limbs.

My grin widens as I watch him catch his breath, "Fuck me." He takes one more deep breath, "You're fast." He whispers. "I yield. Only because I need to get back to watching everyone else."

I roll my eyes, "Sure, that's the only reason why. Just admit I'm better than you." I tease, still not letting up.

This time Dain rolls his eyes, "Probably in more ways than one. Just let me up, Riorson."

I pout, "What's the magic word?"

"Fucking- Please." He says through gritted teeth.

"Actually the magic word was, 'you're right'. Technically though that's two words, three if you count the-"

"(Y/N)!" Dain scolds, still laying beneath me.

Our eyes meet, "Fine. Fine. I'll let you up." I stand up, offering Dain my hand which he accepts. When we look at all the other matches, everyone is distracted by either us, or Xaden and Garrick, who are currently sparring shirtless.

"Get back to work." Dain orders, "We still have another half hour." I reclaim my seat next to Liam as Dain goes back to watching the matches.

Rhiannon and Violet start back up again, but Rhiannon quickly sweeps Violet's legs from under her. "Shit, I'm sorry, Vi." She drops beside her. "Just relax and give it a second."

"And yet that is the rider Tairn chose," Jack sneers, "I'm starting to think he chose wrong, but considering I haven't seen you wield any powers, I bet you're thinking the same thing, too, aren't you, Sorrengail? Shouldn't you have twice the ability to channel with two dragons?"

I roll my eyes, it doesn't work like that with feathertails but of course no one but Violet and I know that. Liam and I stand, Liam puts himself between Violet and Jack while I hang back but make sure I'm available to do something if I need to.

"Simmer down, Mairi. I'm not going to attack your little charge. Not when I can challenge her in a couple of weeks and accidentally snap her scrawny neck in front of an audience." Jack folds his arms across his chest, "Tell me, though, you are getting tired playing nursemaid, aren't you?" His squadmate offers him a piece of orange, Jack shoves his hand away, "Get that noxious shit away from me. Do you want me to end up in the infirmary?"

"Walk the fuck away, Barlowe," Liam warns.

"She's only alive because of you," Jack spits out, eyeing Xaden who moved closer to the group.

"Right, because I'm the one who buried a dagger in your shoulder during Threshing." Xaden sarcastically replies.

Violet scrambles to her feet, finally gaining back her breath. "We could settle this now," Jack says, sidestepping Liam to look at Violet. "If you're done hiding behind the big, strong men." I roll my eyes at his words. Garrick steps towards Violet's left. Imogen has also inched closer, Jack knows he can't do anything with all of us around. "That's what I thought." Jack says, blowing Violet a kiss.

"You ran," Violet snarls, "That day in the field, you fucking ran when it was three on two, and we both know when it comes down to it, you'll run again. That's what cowards do."

Jack's face flushes. Dain mumbles, "For fucks sake, Violet."

"She's not wrong." Xaden says. Garrick laughs, and a smile pulls at my lips. Liam maneuvers Jack off the mat. Jack's shoes squeak against the floor as he fights, unsuccessfully to hold his ground, and Liam forces him from the gym.

Xaden flicks his hand, shutting the doors with his power, locking Jack out. "What the hell were you thinking, egging him on like that?" Dain scolds, marching towards his childhood best friend.

"Oh, now you feel like talking to me?" Violet lifts her chin in defiance.

Xaden steps in between them, eyes meeting Violet's, "Give us a second." Rhiannon and Dain step back.

Garrick walks towards me, pulling his shirt over his head, as Violet and Xaden begin a heated discussion. "Did you win against, Aetos?"

I smirk, "Of course I did."

"Wingleader Riorson," Dain calls, "She's just not used to the bond yet. She'll learn how to block it out."

Xaden rolls his eyes, "You choose the oddest times to defend her, Aetos, and the most convenient times not to." I bite my lip, damn Xaden, go for the throat.

Xaden turns back to Violet, "Do us both a favor and put the fucking armor back on." He turns away from her. When Violet's eyes see his back, she gasps. Violet noticed the 107 scars littering his back. 107 scars to represent the 107 marked ones.

Xaden tenses for a brief moment before grabbing his shirt from Garrick's outstretched hand. They leave the gym together, not looking back in any of our directions.

*_*_*_*_*

It's the next day and Violet has pulled me into Rhiannon's room to talk with us. "So, what's up?" I ask when we're all seated.

Violet awkwardly rubs the back of her neck. "As you know, Tairn started channeling last night." Violet told us this at breakfast but we could all tell she was holding something back. "Something else happened but before I say I need to ask you a question." She looks me directly in the eyes.

"Shoot." I say, waiting for her to continue.

"Do Nyx and Chradh ever…" She trails off, "You know? Get intimate?"

I crack a smile, "You want to know if my dragon and her mate fuck? Of course they do."

Rhiannon smiles, but Violet's the one who responds, "Have you done anything because of that?"

"Wait? Did Tairn and Sgaeyl have sex after he started channeling?" Rhiannon asks.

Violet nods, "It felt like I was on fire, I'll never look at Liam the same."

I blink in shock, smiling faltering, "Did you and Liam-"

Violet cuts me off, "Gods no! But when I looked at him I wanted to." My shoulder's sag in relief. Liam and Violet can do whatever they want. I don't know why I'm happy that they didn't, but I don't focus on that. "I slammed the door in his face before I did something I would regret."

"So what? You want to know if I've ever done anything I regret because of Nyx's emotions?" Violet nods at my question. "Luckily no. The first time it happened, it woke me up in the middle of the night. I just got out of bed and went for a cold shower when I realized what was happening."

There's a brief pause, "The second time it happened, I locked myself in my room and handled things myself. I don't need someone else to please me."

"You didn't even go to Sawyer?" Rhi asks.

I shake my head, "Even though I enjoy my time with Sawyer, I'd feel guilty if we had sex because of Nyx's emotions. It wouldn't feel like I was 100 percent in control. And that's not fair to Sawyer."

Violet sighs, "That's what I'm nervous about." She pauses, looking down before looking back at Rhiannon and me. "Gods this is awkward… but last night after I slammed the door on Liam and told him to go to bed… I ran into Xaden." I raise an eyebrow waiting for her to continue, "We kissed. I don't even know what I was thinking."

"Well you weren't. At least not clearly." I shrug, "You find Xaden attractive, Xaden finds you attractive-"

"He does?" Violet interrupts.

"I mean… he didn't actually tell me that but I'm not dumb, and he's not either. He absolutely finds you attractive he just doesn't know when to admit his feelings… Fucking men." I roll my eyes. Most men never know when to admit their feelings, at least not until months, possibly years, of pining. "But anyways, your dragons emotions were adding on top of your own, it made it more difficult for you to resist, especially when the channeling is so new."

"I can't believe you waited this long to tell us." Rhiannon says. "And that's not judgment. Far from it. I'm all for you exploring… whatever it is you want to explore."

"Agreed, I approve. Xaden could use someone like you." I smile.

"I've been with Liam from the second I walked out the door this morning, and last night I was a little too discombobulated to put it into words." Violet rolls her shoulder, adjusting how she's sitting, "Between Tairn channeling and then everything else, it was just a night."

"Good point." Rhiannon says, then her smile widens, "Was it good? Tell me it was good. That man looks like he knows exactly what he's doing."

I laugh, "Oh gods, do I want to hear this? You know what? Just don't give details, yes or no?"

Violet's face flushes, "It was just a kiss… But yeah. He knows exactly what he's doing." Her brows furrow in thought.

"Second thoughts?" Rhi questions. "You look like maybe there are third thoughts, even."

"No," Violet shakes her head, "Well, maybe? But only if it makes stuff weird between us."

"I don't see Xaden letting a kiss become weird." I say.

"Yeah." Rhiannon agrees, "You guys are stuck together for the rest of your careers. Lives, too. Have you guys talked about what happens after he graduates?" Rhiannon turns to me, "Or you and Garrick for that matter?" She turns back to Violet, "Oh, I bet you get the choice of duty stations. Wingleaders always get to pick."

"He'll get to pick." Violet grumbles. "I will have to follow. Tairn and Sgaeyl haven't been separated for years. Her last rider died almost fifty years ago, and as far as I know, she flew wherever and whenever she wanted to be near Tairn before Naolin - his last rider - died in Tyrrendor. It's a two-day flight to that part of the border, depending on where he's stationed, so what are we going to do next year and the year after that?"

"He'll probably choose somewhere close so it's easier to get Sgaeyl and Tairn together. I don't know what Garrick and I are going to do." I reply.

"Not sure," Rhiannon shrugs, "Feirge said we won't be able to be apart more than a couple of days, so does that mean one of you always has to follow the other?"

I shrug as Violet answers, "No clue. I think that's why most mated pairs bond within the same year, so they don't have these issues. How am I - we -" She changes her words, looking at me, "supposed to stay competitive next year if we're constantly flying off to the front line with Tairn and Nyx? How is Xaden and Garrick supposed to be effective if they have to fly back here all the time?" Violet's face scrunches, "Xaden's the most powerful rider of our generation. He's going to be needed on the front, not here."

"For now," Rhiannon stares at Violet, lifting her brows. "He's the most powerful rider in our generation for now." She turns to look at me, just as intensely. She's indicating that Violet and I are going to be more powerful.

"What-" Violet starts but a knock stops her from continuing.

"Rhi?" Liam asks through the door, panic evident in his voice. "Is Sorrengail in there with you? Because-"

Rhiannon opens the door causing Liam to stumble inside. He catches his balance, eyes sweeping the room, stopping on Vi. "There you are! I went to the bathroom, and you disappeared!"

"No one's trying to assassinate her in my room, Mairi." Rhi rolls her eyes. "You don't have to be with her every second of every fucking day. Now give us five minutes and then we'll start walking to class." She pushes his chest and he retreats. His mouth opens and closes, trying to form an argument. But before he can, Rhiannon closes the door on his face.

"He's…" Violet sighs, "dedicated."

"That's one word for it," Rhiannon mutters, "You'd think that guy owes Riorson his life or something, the way he sticks to you like glue."

I look down avoiding eye contact, "He does." I whisper, "We all do." Violet and Rhiannon's gaze flicker to mine. The unasked question floating between us, "Don't worry about it. Story for another time." I wave my hand, brushing off the lingering looks.

Rhiannon hesitates but decides against trying to ask more, "Oh!" Her eyes light up, "Something happened with me last night, too."

"Do go on." Violet says, intrigued.

"All right," Rhiannon takes a deep breath, "I've only done it three times. Twice last night and once this morning, so be patient for a second."

"Of course," Violet says, nodding.

"Absolutely," I agree.

"Watch the book on my desk." Rhiannon says, nodding towards the book.

Violet and I both turn, focusing our gazes on the book. A minute passes but nothing happens, just as I start thinking that nothing will, the book disappears from the desk. My jaw drops open as I stare at the empty spot. Violet jumps up, whipping around to look at Rhiannon, "What the hell, Rhi? What just-"

I turn to look at Rhiannon as well, she's holding a book with a wide grin. "Is that the same book?" I ask, standing next to Violet.

Rhiannon nods, "I guess I can summon!"

"Holy shit!" Violet grabs Rhiannon's shoulders, "That's amazing! That's… incredible! I don't even have words for what this is!"

My smile stretches across my face, "Fucking brilliant!" I laugh.

"Right?" Rhiannon clutches the book to her chest, "I can only to it from a few feet away, and I can't go through walls or anything."

"Yet!" Violet and I say in unison.

"You can't go through walls yet." Vi continues, "Rhi. That's the kind of rare signet that's going to make your entire career!"

"I hope so." Rhiannon stands, putting the book back on her desk, "I just have to develop it."

"You will." I say. Minutes later, the three of us plus Liam are joined with Ridoc and Sawyer as we walk towards the academic building.

"I finished this for you." Liam says, handing Violet a wooden figurine.

It's Tairn, "That is… incredible. Thank you," Violet says.

"Thanks," Liam smiles, dimple popping. "I wanted to carve Andarna first, but I'm not around her as much, you know?"

"She's pretty private," Violet says.

"Unlike Aether, who always needs to be nearby. He's very clingy." I grin.

"You love it." Aether huffs.

"Of course I do." I reassure.

"Really, I love it. Thank you." Violet says again. The hallway clears as we walk closer to Professor Carr's room.

"You're welcome." Liam replies, he turns towards Rhiannon, "I'm starting Feirge next."

"Make sure to get her full badassery." Rhi jokes. Violet looks behind us, lost in her own thoughts. "We're going to be late," Rhiannon says, bringing Violet back into the conversation.

"Vi, can we talk?" Dain asks, coming up behind us.

"Now?" Violet asks.

Dain grimaces, nodding, "I tried to catch you after formation, but you disappeared pretty quickly, and after what happened last night, I figure now is better than later."

"It might be convenient for you to want to talk after weeks of ignoring me, but I have class right now." Her grip on her bag tightens.

"We have a couple of minutes, please?" He doesn't look at the rest of us, choosing to stay focused on Vi.

Violet glances at Rhiannon and I. Both of us glaring at Dain, "I'll be right in." We nod, Rhiannon turns around, walking into the classroom. I hesitate for a brief moment before following Rhi, and making sure to grab Liam to bring him inside the classroom too.

We wait just inside the door for Violet to finish her conversation with Dain. Once she walks through, her eyes scan the room. "Finally ready to join us, Cadet Sorrengail?" Carr asks.

"Yes, sir." She nods.

"Signet power?"

"Not yet." Violet shakes her head, we slowly make our way to our seats as Violet and Carr exchange words.

"I see." Carr clucks his tongue, "You know your siblings were both gifted by extraordinary signet powers. Mira's ability to manifest a ward around her and her squad has been an absolute asset to her wing, and she's been highly decorated for her valor behind enemy lines."

Violet forces a smile, "Yes. Mira is an inspiration."

"And Brennan…" Carr continues, "Menders are so very rare, and to lose one so young was tragic."

"I think losing Brennan is the tragedy." She lifts her bag higher, "But the loss of his signet was a definite blow to the wings."

"Hmm." Carr hums, "Well, it seems the Sorrengail line is blessed, even in a rider as… well, delicate as you are." What an asshole. "With Tairn having chosen you, we'll expect nothing but an earth-shattering signet from you. You can start with the lesser magics through your relic."

"No pressure." Violet mumbles.

"He had a very similar conversation to me when I started the class because of Xaden's powerful signet and Nyx being powerful." I roll my eyes.

"Don't stress." Rhiannon mutters back, "That's what I was trying to say earlier. You are Tairn's rider. And you Nyx's."

"What do you mean?" Violet asks.

"You're all worried about the integrity of the wing because Riorson might have to visit to keep his dragon happy, but Violet, he's not the most powerful rider of our generation. You both are. Bonding not only extremely powerful dragons but two dragons."

Violet looks at me in shock, "She's not wrong." I shrug, indifferent.

"Now let's begin." Carr says from the front of the room.

*_*_*_*_*

December has turned to January and I still haven't developed a second signet. It's been three months since I first started channeling which means I have three more months for a second signet to develop without people questioning me.

Violet is also still waiting for a signet to appear but at least she only started channeling last month. She still has five months before she needs to develop a signet. Ridoc can wield ice, a common signet but badass nonetheless. Liam has farsight, he can see an object or person from miles away. Rhiannon and Sawyer both practice their signets daily, and the growth in their power shows.

Xaden helps me with my telepathy as much as possible, usually 2-3 times a week. I've grown so used to shielding that I don't need to think about it anymore. I can easily infiltrate others minds without sending my thoughts to them as well. But I don't usually do this unless it's during a fight. The only person I practice sending my thoughts to is Xaden. No one else knows about my secret signet and I plan on keeping it that way.

There's no flight field today, the dragons have deemed it too cold. I'm not the biggest fan of the cold but I hate not having flight lessons. We'll need to know how to fly in all types of weather once we're out of the quadrant. Plus no flight field means I don't get to see Nyx and Aether.

I stand beside Liam, Ridoc, and Violet. Emetterio is calling out matches. Rhiannon is already on a mat fighting a first year from Second Wing. Sawyer is on another mat fighting a first year from Third Wing. "Mat seventeen, Jack Barlowe from First Wing versus…" Emetterio's brows raise, "Violet Sorrengail."

"Absolutely the fuck not." I say, eyes wide as I look between Jack, Violet, and Emetterio.

"No fucking way," Ridoc mutters.

"Finally!" Jack throws his hands in the air.

"Let's do this." Violet says, rolling her shoulders and heading towards the mat.

The three of us follow Violet towards the mat, "Tell me I can break my promise." Liam says to her.

My eyes narrow in confusion, "The third years are off doing third year things," Violet replies, "You can't get to him in time, but I know what it means to you to keep your word. Especially with him. Go ahead."

Liam turns towards me and Ridoc, "Guard her like you're me."

"You mean like I'm six inches taller and built like a bull?" Ridoc gives him a thumbs up, "Sure. I'll do my best. In the meantime, you'd better run."

"Quickly." I add.

Liam looks back towards Violet, "Stay alive."

"Working on it, and not just for my sake." Violet smiles at him, "Thanks for being a great shadow." Liam rushes out of the room at her parting words.

"He's going to try to kill you, you need to go for the weak spots. Knees, throat, eyes, and groin." I say before she walks on the mat. She nods in acknowledgment.

"Barlowe and Sorrengail," Emetterio calls from the opposite side of the mat. "Weapons?"

Jack bounces on the balls of his feet, "Anything she can hold in those puny hands of hers."

"No wielding," Emetterio reminds them, eyeing Jack. "Tap out or knockout earns you a victory." Jack is going to go for killing blows and we all know it.

Jack and Violet face each other. Jack only has one knife in his hand, "You're kidding, right?" Violet asks him, "Only one?"

"I only need one." Jack replies, a sadistic smirk on his face.

"Keep it clean." Emetterio warns, "Go." I watch with baited breath. Ridoc is tense beside me. Jack lunges for Violet, she slices her dagger across the back of his hand, earning first blood.

"Shit!" He jumps back, out of striking distance.

"Come on, Vi." I mutter.

Jack kicks out, aiming for Violet's midsection. She narrowly avoids the blow. "Bet you wish you could throw that blade, don't you?" Jack taunts.

"Bet you wish you didn't know what it feels like to dig out one of my knives, don't you?" She retorts.

Jack's lips tighten. He surges forward, using his strength and size to his advantage. He easily kicks Violet's dagger out of her hand. I suck in a breath, she needs to win this. She uses her speed, ducking and diving to swipe her other dagger at him. "Damn it!" He yells in rage.

Jack catches Violet off guard. He flips her over his back to the mat. He keeps her arm locked, thrusting his knife at her chest. Thank gods he doesn't know about her armor, it just saved her life.

"He's using death blows!" I call out.

"That's not allowed!" Ridoc shouts.

"Pull it back, Barlowe!" Emetterio bellows.

Jack has Violet pinned, but then she listens to my advice, kicking him right in the balls. He falls to his knees allowing Violet to stand up. Where the fuck is Xaden and Liam? "Tap out." Violet says, she picks up the dagger she dropped. "I can cut you open at any second. Both you and I know if this were real life, you'd be done."

"If this were real life, I would have killed you the second you stepped foot on the mat." Jack seethes.

"Tap. Out." Violet repeats.

"Fuck off!" He yells, throwing his dagger.

Violet throws her hands up, the knife lodges in her forearm, blood falling from the wound. "No throwing!" Emetterio scolds. My heart is beating fast in my chest, I swear I can hear it. Jack's fist slams into Violet's cheek. His knee rams into her stomach. His hands clasp her face. A scream, guttural and loud, rips from her lips.

"He's using his powers!" Ridoc yells. Ridoc, Emetterio and I all stop forward. They both try and grab Jack's arms to pull him away, but when they touch his skin, they hiss in pain, tearing their hands away. Violet shakily reaches her arm up, shoving her closed fist at Jack's mouth.

Jack jerks away, falling to the ground. But he can die for all I care, my focus is on Violet. I catch her as she falls forward, gently laying her on the mat. I feel a sudden surge of power as I gently cradle her face. I watch as the scrape on her cheek closes, then the knife wound on her forearm where Jack's knife once was.

"What the hell is wrong with him?" Someone asks from behind us. Ridoc is kneeling at Violet's other side, watching her wounds close in amazement.

"Oranges," Violet whispers. Her breathing is coming a little easier, but I can tell she's exhausted. "He's allergic to oranges." Ridoc relays the information to Emetterio and not a moment later, Xaden and Liam come through the door.

I look up at them, "She'll be fine. Or at least I'm pretty sure she will be." I look towards Ridoc then back at Violet, before finally looking back to Xaden and Liam, "My signet manifested… I'm a mender." Xaden's eyes light up.

For a brief moment I open my mind to him, "Focus on Vi, we can talk about this later."

Xaden kneels beside Violet, picking her up, "We'll definitely be talking about this later."

*_*_*_*_*

Liam

It's a couple hours before curfew, a week after Violet's match against Barlowe. She's gone to bed early because she's been training nonstop with Xaden. I knock on (Y/N)'s door, we haven't had a lot of time to hang out, just the two of us, since I've been told to watch over Violet.

She answers after a few seconds, "Hey," She says, looking past me, "Where's Vi?"

"Her room. Said she was tired, wanted to go to bed early." I reply.

(Y/N) nods, then grabs my wrist, pulling me into her room. "Xaden's been really working her. I'm not surprised she's tired. But she needs it."

I nod, "It's only going to benefit her in the end. She's stronger than she gives herself credit for but…"

"She's still not as strong as she should be as a rider." (Y/N) finishes for me, "What she lacks in strength she makes up in intelligence. If it wasn't for her weaponizing oranges she probably wouldn't had survived. Though I do wish she just let Jack die."

I chuckle, "Definitely would had made the rest of our lives easier." I sit down on the edge of her bed as she reclaims her spot against the headrest. "So, how's your mending practice?"

She rolls her eyes, "You know how it is. We sit next to each other in Carr's class."

Before I can reply her door opens, Xaden walks through. He pauses as he looks between his sister and me, "Where's Violet?"

"Her room, she went to bed early." I reassure. Xaden nods, his eyes lock on (Y/N). They're both silent but it looks like they're communicating. There's subtle changes in their lips and eyes.

Finally Xaden moves, he grabs the chair at her desk, "So… mending." He pauses, "I haven't gotten the chance to talk with you about it."

(Y/N) shrugs, "It's a signet."

I roll my eyes at the casualness of her words, "It's an exceptionally rare signet. One that's powerful and important."

"Exactly." Xaden agrees, "How's it coming along?"

"Fine, Carr wants me to start working with Nolon. Instead of going to the classroom, I'm going to be going to the healers quadrant. I start Wednesday." (Y/N) replies.

"You didn't tell me that, is that why he held you after class today?" I ask.

(Y/N) nods, "I'm not sure if I trust Nolon. I mean I'm sure he'll teach me fine, and what better teacher than someone with the same signet? But I don't know… he gives me bad vibes."

"Well, you don't need to trust him, just learn from him." Xaden says. "I'm glad the signet is working out for you. You're going to be in high demand. Once you graduate, Garrick is going to have to follow you whereever you're needed."

I involuntarily tense at Xaden's words. I know Garrick is going to do everything he can to keep (Y/N) safe, not that she necessarily needs the protection, but knowing that they're bonded for life…

Deigh huffs, "When will you admit you love her?"

I roll my eyes, "Of course I love her, she's my best friend."

"That's not what I meant and you know it."

"How's the farsight coming?" (Y/N) asks, breaking me out of my thoughts.

I nod, "Good." I pause, rubbing the back of my neck, "Actually, I wanted to tell you both something."

"What's going on?" Xaden asks, back straightening.

"I developed a second signet… I can wield ice. I've been practicing on my own, but I'm not very good yet. It only showed a couple of nights ago."

"That's amazing, Li!" (Y/N) exclaims, smile lighting up her face.

"Keep working on it in secret," Xaden says, "The leaders don't know about the marked ones second signets, it'll be used to our advantage when it really matters."

"But not all the marked ones get second signets, right?" (Y/N) asks.

Xaden nods, "Most do, but not everyone." He pauses, "We should all get to bed, it's getting late." Xaden stands up, walking towards (Y/N)'s door.

I stand up too, following behind him, "I'll see you tomorrow, (Y/N)."

"Goodnight." She says back, waving from her spot on her bed.

*_*_*_*_*

(Y/N)

February flies by in a blur. I'm still keeping up on telepathy practice with Xaden but now on top of that and my usual course work, I also am required to complete hours in the healers wing with Nolon to train my mending signet.

I've also been taking a lot of time to keep up with sparring practices. I've defeated everyone in the squad, and even got the help of some of the other marked ones to continue my training. Once it clicked that my signet being mending wasn't going to help me in battle, at least in the sense of fighting, I wanted to focus on my own strength without my signet. Well, without my second signet. My telepathy is still very helpful when fighting and keeps me at an advantage against my opponent.

We stand in formation as Captain Fitzgibbons reads off the death roll, "Sharla Gunter, and Mushin Vedie. We commend their souls to Malek." I shiver as a cold gust of wind sweeps past.

"Vedie?" Violet asks. He was a Second Wing first year.

"You didn't hear?" Rhiannon says, pulling her cloak tighter around her neck, "His signet manifested in the middle of Carr's class yesterday, and he burst into flames."

"He… he burned himself to death?" Violet's eyes widen.

Rhi nods, "Tara said Carr thinks he was supposed to be a fire wielder but it just overwhelmed him in that first rush…"

"And he went up like a torch." Ridoc adds, "Kind of makes you glad your signet's still hiding, huh?"

"Please, I was where Violet was not too long ago, and I was internally panicking the whole fucking time." I say, puffing warm air into my hands.

"You? Panicking?" Sawyer asks, "Unlikely."

I roll my eyes, "I'm just good at hiding it. Can't let anyone know my weaknesses."

"Smart to hold any weakness close to your chest." Nyx's voice enters my head.

"If you have any…" Liam mutters.

"You didn't just pick me for my good looks." I reply to Nyx.

"We chose you because you're brilliant." Aether says.

I smile. "Way to feed my ego."

Rhiannon waves her hand at Liam, "Exactly. He's known you since you were kids and even he doesn't think you have any faults. I'll say it again. Not. Human."

I giggle, "I'll take that as a compliment."

Rhi rolls her eyes, "I will say though, knowing what happened to Vedie, kinda makes me want to skip class today."

"No skipping class," Dain snaps, "We're weeks away from the Squad Battle and we need every single one of you at your best to win."

Imogen snorts, "Come on, Aetos, I think we all know Second Wing has that squad in Tail Section that's going to smoke the rest of us. Have you ever seen them sprint up the Gauntlet? Pretty sure they've been out there even though it's still covered in ice."

"We're going to win," Cianna, the squad executive officer, proclaims, "Sorrengail here might slow us down on the Gauntlet," she wrinkles her nose, "and probably in the wielding department, too, at the rate she's advancing-" I narrow my eyes in a glare.

"Gee, thanks." Violet deadpans, crossing her arms.

"But Rhiannon's skills more than make up for that." Cianna continues, "And we all know Liam, (Y/N), and Heaton are going to decimate on the mat for the challenge competition. That only leaves flight maneuvers, which from what I hear, (Y/N) is doing incredible at. And whatever the wingleaders come up with to judge this year."

"Oh, is that all? Man, I thought it was going to be hard." Ridoc says, sarcasm dripping from his lips.

Dain glares at him, "We're down to eleven of you," he glances at the group, "Thirteen of us in total, which puts us at a slight disadvantage against a couple of other squads, but I think we'll manage-"

We lost two of the new additions last week when the smaller one's signet manifested in battle brief. They both froze to death in seconds, nearly taking out Ridoc. It was a perfect opportunity for me to practice my mending. I healed Ridoc's frostbite in seconds, which he was very thankful for. Now Nadine and Liam are the only two left from the group we acquired after Threshing.

"But in order to manage, I need you guys to get to class." Dain nods at Violet, "Especially you. A signet would be great, you know. If you can make that happen." I roll my eyes, yeah because it's that easy.

Xaden walks up to our group, "She's going to miss Carr's class today." Sawyer clears a path for him, stepping closer to me.

"No I'm not." Violet shakes her head.

"She needs to go," Dain argues, "I mean, unless the wing has more pressing matters for Cadet Sorrengail, her time is best spent developing her wielding skills."

"I think we both know she's not going to manifest a signet in that room. She would have already if that was the key." Xaden glares, "And yes, the wing has more pressing matters for her."

"Sir, I'm just not comfortable with her going a day without at least practicing her wielding, and as her squad leader-"

"For Dunne's sake." Xaden interrupts. He reaches into his pocket and takes out a pocket watch, holding it in his outstretched palm, "Pick it up, Sorrengail." She glances between the two before stretching out her own hand, holding it above the watch.

"You got this." Rhiannon encourages.

"Let her concentrate." Sawyer chides.

The watch plummets to the ground, but Violet snaps her hand back, yanking the watch towards her. She catches it with her left hand. "See? She's practiced. Now, we have things to do." He places a hand on her back, guiding her away from the squad.

Taglist: @littleemissperfecttt @galaxystern08 @thegirlwiththepurpleshelves @lagrandeourse @justannadahfanfictor

[loveshotzz]

pretend i wrote this when you were sick - pretend it's also not this long. also sorry if it looks like there are parts missing.

He's on his third call while he waits at the door in the early spring breeze, unbottoned work shirt billowing with him -- silently chastising himself for not throwing on a sweater since you told him to do it before he left. He presses the bell again, hearing it go off in the house for the second time, anxiety brewing in his chest. He'd never seen you so sick, and even though the doctor said it was just a bad flu, seeing you in bed like this made his heart pound. He wasn't sleeping, had been working from home the past few days. He'd set up shop right outside the hall of the bedroom, ignoring his office so he could hear if you called out to him -- Bandit dutifully keeping watch over you at the end of the bed. It was something he wasn't expecting to affect him like this, his thoughts getting clouded with the sound of hospital monitors and oxygen machines.

You did your best to understand and assure him you're okay -- you're just kind of a baby about being sick. Lucky for Steve, he's been loving a chance to get to baby you - despite the ache it causes to see you like this.

But the babying would start even quicker if the front door of the house he was in front of would open.

"Honey, am I gonna have to file a report? You can't just be showing up to my house -- I got a wife at home," the tease comes from a familiar smoky voice, "Do you really want her to find out about us?"

"I called three times," Steve huffs, "I said I'd only be gone for ten minutes."

"Do you really think she's counting? She's probably asleep. Plus, you're a minute man," Eddie winks, beckoning him into the house, "And if she calls you can run right home, you're around the fuck--effing corner."

"Yeah, you're around the effing corner, Big Guy," Gwen's tiny voice repeats from the island in the kitchen.

"Gwendolyn," Eddie warns. "Sorry," she whispers back, "I won' say id again."

"Thank you, doll," he smiles, "Can you ask mommy to bring the soup and meds we packed up for your aunt so we can give it to Steve?" She patters away with her light up sneakers glinting pink and purple with every step, disappearing into the house only to run back winded a few minutes later. "Mommy said you have two hands that work just fine so you can get it," she smiles, not fully understanding what she means, "And then she said to say please after. Please!"

Steve snorts, "Yeah, loser, go grab my shi--stuff."

Eddie rolls his eyes, "Whatever."

As her father leaves, Gwen climbs back up on the bar stool and looks up at Steve curiously, "So when does she get to come back over?"

"When she feels better, angel," he smiles, "Why?"

She shrugs, "I dunno, I like when she comes over 'cause then it's not just you."

His mouth gapes with a smile, "What do you mean? Am I not enough for you?"

Gwen shrugs in the way four year olds shrug when they're feeling sneaky, "She's juss funner, Big Guy." "Do you hear this?!" Steve gasps as Eddie re-enters, "She doesn't think I'm as fun."

"You haven't been playing 'Cool Barbies' with her, lately," Eddie shrugs, popping the two tote bags filled with sick day amenities on the table, "Ow, ow Lu, don't pull daddy's hair, please." "It's okay Luce, you can do whatever you want," Steve coos to the baby on Eddie's hip, grabbing the bags and putting them over his shoulder. He leans forward to kiss her only for Eddie to step away.

"Dude, not with your potential flu germs -- they're picking up enough sh--stuff at daycare," Eddie says, taking the baby's pudgy hand and waving, "Say byyyyeee Big Guy." "Bah," Lucy gurgles in her post nap haze, head resting heavily on Eddie's shoulder. "Bye, Big Guy," Gwen smiles, hugging him at the knees, "Tell Auntie-I-said-hi-and-I-miss-her-and-love-her-and-that-she-is-so-pretty-and-that-I-have-new-Barbies."

"I will tell her, thank you for the message," Steve nods, chest hammering again at the thought of you sick and bed without him. He flicks his head up at Eddie, "Tell Peach I said hi."

"Yeah, I'll tell her somethin' alright," he half grumbles, hoisting Lucy higher up on his hip. Steve blows Gwen a kiss before making it back to you in the quick trip is takes to get back to your place. He knocks softly before stepping in, hearing your soft 'hm?' that sets his whole body a buzz with affection. "I have..." he starts, opening the bags, "Two quarts of Peach's famous 'sick soup', a shit ton of orange juice, 800mg motrin, a card from Gwen, a drawing from Gwen, three new pairs of fuzzy socks, a toy for Bandit? Okay..." He lists off the rest of the care package before looking at you with a smirk, "And absolutely nothing for me." "I can gib you someding," you murmur out with a stuffed nose, "I can gib you a kiss." "Ooh, how about I give you a kiss tough girl?" he asks, chestnut hair falling into his eyes as he leans down to kiss your forehead. His lips are warms against your clammy skin, enough to soothe you back into a cozy half sleep under the covers, "How're you feelin'?" "Dired," you admit, "Bud I could really use thad soup." "Okay," he nods, "I'll heat it up for you." He gets back to the door looking back with a soft gaze on you, thinking of Lucy's face and how it looks when you hold her on your hip, how you look when you play Barbies with Gwen. How it would look when there's a baby that's the perfect blend of the two of you bouncing on your lap, when there's a baby monitor in the bedroom, when you're both complaining about germs at daycare. He opens his mouth to say something, but closes it before going downstairs. Right now, babying you is just enough.

CAROL!!!! Stop 😩 I physically cannot handle this amount of yearning. What have you done to me?!? I’m still sick (it won’t go away) so this was still perfect. Of course he’s imagining getting me pregnant while taking care of me, ILL GIVE THAT OLD MAN ANYTHING HE WANTS!!

Also shout out to the number one couple here and that’s ocs!eddie and airwiy!steve. I love that the little glimpse we get of them living close to each other now and the little growth of the munson family 🥺

[their80smichelle]

Hiii I got a request! Orginally I had this idea down even wrote it on my masterlist but just wasnt working out after I tried to rewrite it.

Anyways, they chilling at his place and Dave Mustaine teach reader French (it's okay if u dont use french words lol) after hearing his recent song A Toute Le Monde, she wanted to learn as well. Feel free to do whatever lol 🙏

look at him go

a/n: Hiii! I. love. It. As a first request it’s really cool.🔥🩷

Sorry it’s long I was inspired- hope it’s okay and not too bad and that I respected your request (I feel like I rushed it at the end) (I'm always scared to post stuffs I write.)

Of course I used French words cause… I am French🤧

Time to tell you French is absolutely not sexy when YOU ARE French💀(I made myself giggle while writing this request though.)

🥖🇫🇷Also, Dave said the lyrics meant “to the entier world, to all my friends, I love you, I must go.”

But I would have translated it as “to everyone, to all my friends, I love you, I have to go.” Cause “to the entier world” in French it’s “Au monde entier.” There’s not a big difference but it’s still different. And for “je dois partir” it means you HAVE TO. But again, there’s no big difference.

Warnings: grammar obviously, French, fluff, is it cheesy? It definitely is, cliché lol

Anyway, hope you’re going to enjoy it!! 🩷

You and Dave were at his place chilling, eating popcorn and watching TV. You were sat on the couch and Dave was on a chair checking a magazine.

Megadeth just released their new song “A Tout Le Monde” and you already love it. But since the title and some lyrics were not in English you were wondering what it meant and why he wrote it in another language.

“Hey Dave…” he looks at me and smile, “Hey you…”

“Can I ask you a question about your song?” You ask turning your head toward him. “Sure, which one?”

“Hmmmm…” You hum and narrow your eyes unsure on how to pronounce it. You could see his smirk forming on his face. “The last one.” You speak. At least you were sure to not mispronounce it. Dave nods and looks at you, that little smirk still painted on his face. “The last one?”

“Ah no. Don’t make me pronounce it.” I tell him amused “Aw too bad... I can’t answer your question if I don’t know what song you’re talking about love…” Is that ginger mocking you or daring you??

“Aw… too bad for you too… for once someone was caring about your music.” You obviously didn’t mean that. You just returned it against him…

He opened his mouth wide and scoffed. Dave almost laughed but he quickly took a serious face and narrowed his eyes looking directly at you.

“Say it.” You narrow your eyes too “No.”

“Yeah, say it.”

“Nah.”

“C’mon say it!”

“Nuh uuuuh”

Dave looks at you and purse his lips “Hmm.” You mimic him and purse your lips too.

He wasn’t going to answer your question. You raise your eyebrows.

“Well. Okay.” He smirks again as you say it. “You’re evil. What’s the name again?” You feign not remembering it… but he’s not stupid so you roll your eyes.

“Hmmm, aaaa… tu- touuut, le… monde.” You say with an accent. Dave raises his hands in the air “Yeaaah”, but he laughs. You grimace “Hey don’t mock me.”

“Okay okay...” he stops his laugh and looks at you again “So what was that question?”

“Ah! Why the title and some lyrics are in French or whatever is that damn language?” he smiles. At least it’s a good question. “We just wanted to try something, and we tried in a lot of different language. We had Spanish and French, but French is the one that sounded better, and that was probably easier to sing.”

“Ah yeah cause French is easy…”

“That’s not what I said. And I have French ancestors anyway.”

You smile at this information. That’s actually a fire sentence to say.

“Sooo what does the lyrics mean in English?”

French is supposed to be a sexy language. Not that he’s not already sexy but he could be even more…

“Well, the title is in the lyrics… A tout le monde, à tout mes amis, je vous aimes, je dois partir. It simply means to the entier world, to all my friends, I love you, I must go.” He explains to you.

You were listening carefully to understand the meaning “I don’t know how… to explain that but, it’s simple words but deep lyrics.” He smiles again at your kind of compliment.

“Hey, do you know something else in French??” You happily ask curious. Not that You wanted to learn French, but it was still interesting.

He shrugs “Huh… I’m not fluent but I know some basics yeah. Why?” You look up and smile. “What?” he laughs (cutely. help). You shrug and purse your lips to hold your smile “Teach me French.”

He laughs again “Like what? I only know- “

“-Everything you know.”

He gets up and walk toward you. “Well, I know, bonjour…” he looks at you giggling at his accent “I know… Je m’appelle Dave…” You giggle and look at him in the eyes as he sat beside you. He looks at you too “salut…”

“Salut…” You repeat in a whisper. You couldn’t help the smile on your face.

“Tu es magnifique…” He says with a warm voice. You laugh again trying to hide you red cheeks. He laughs too “Why are you blushing? You don’t even understand!”

He takes a flirty face and raise his eyebrows up and down “Am I sexy?” it made you laugh even more. Is French funny or is it him being sexy? No. You’re not answering to that.

“Maybe! But out of all of this, what can I learn ??” He thinks about it for a second. “Hm. I know some curses too.”

“Dave! C’mon!” You slap his arm slightly “What?? You want to learn French to make me blush too??” He complains more amused than offended.

“HE- No?” You stop and say innocently “Sure… Okay repeat after me. Je, m’appelle.”

You repeat words after words, and you actually find it easy. He learned you how to say your name, your age, your gender, where you live.

“Stop laughing! How do you even pronounce that!”

“Aujourd’hui, je visite New York. Today I visit New York. Come on!”

You try to mouth the words as he says it. Yeah, well okay maybe French is hard. You then say the sentence Dave told you.

“No don’t say New York with an accent. French don’t do that…” You laugh a bit surprised “Why are they so complicated with their useless muted letters and their apostrophes?”

That French lesson ended with you not being able to pronounce anything anymore and Dave laughing at you trying to pronounce “Écureuil” because he thought it would be fun to teach you that word.

You both were now laying on the couch watching TV again your head on his shoulder and his head on yours.

“You know you can still try to learn curses… it’s easier…”

[ridestomars]

THE PERFECT GIRL – E. MUNSON

𖥻 summary: in which eddie makes a mixtape for you. 𖥻 pairing: eddie munson x alt!reader. 𖥻 warnings: this is part of my alt!reader concept, but can be read as a standalone. poor grammar possibly. not proofread.

💭 liv's thoughts: a big thanks to @saintlessmunson for reading my first draft <333 i only function on sudden urges and this is another one of them. just a compilation of songs that were important to the development of your relationship w eddie. it was supposed to have 5 songs, but i wrote about 3 bc i'm lazy <3 really hope you enjoy it! the fic's playlist.

DO NOT INTERACT WITH THIS WORK IF YOU'RE UNDER SIXTEEN.

IS THERE SOMETHING I SHOULD KNOW? do you feel the same 'cause you don't let it show

Eddie almost regretted stepping foot inside the old record shop that day, especially when the music coming from the speakers was so loud that it could be heard from across the street; the annoying sound of Simon Le Bon's voice piercing through his ears as he miserably made his way inside. Walking with his head low to keep people from staring at him, he went straight to the Weird Al Yankovic section, trying to get this over with already. 

His fingers expertly went through the selection of records, even though he knew he wouldn't be able to find whatever record Dustin didn't have because he simply didn't know what it was. It would've been so much easier if he could just gift the boy the new D&D book, or some great figures – but what could he possibly give to a kid who already has everything? His favorite artist's new album, of course. And that's what he intended to do if only he knew what his latest record was called. 

"I always took you for a Judas Priest type of weird. Didn't know you were taking a step further," a familiar voice said, getting closer. He slowly looked to his side, realizing that you were walking towards him, in your full gothic attire; a cute lacy dress, with fishnets and heavy boots, all in black, of course. Eddie wasn't really in the mood to bicker, but for you, he could make an exception. 

"It's not for me, Dracula," he muttered, still very focused on going through the endless records in front of him – half of them were just copies of the same title, which made more sense than Weird Al making so many records. "I'm buying this for Henderson. The small kid, curly hair, always with a cap". 

He absentmindedly explained, going through the kid's most striking features. 

"Yeah, I know who he is. And he already bought Polka Party last week". 

"I'm sorry?" he turned to you, a big confused frown on his face. 

"Polka Party," you repeated slowly, even though he still didn't understand what you said, "you know… his latest record? That's what you're looking for, right? Henderson already bought it."

"Shit," Eddie lamented, wincing slightly. "That's what I was going to buy him". 

"That's too bad. Maybe you should try Tiny Tim, then", you suggested and saw that Eddie contemplated the idea, before rejecting it vehemently. "Well, then I have something that he might like". 

"Yeah? And what is it?" he asked as he let go of the records, turning his body around completely to face you. 

"It's called Licensed to Ill by the Beastie Boys. It just came in, so I highly doubt that he'd have it already", you explained as you guided Eddie to the newest releases shelves. "It has everything a teenage boy would like, I guess. Beer, girls, idiotic screaming…"

"Seems cool enough. What are they? A rock band?"

"They're rappers", you said and that didn't ring any bells for the metalhead. "Oh my God, don't you watch MTV at all?" 

"Only the Heavy Metal Half-Hour. Don't really like any of the VJs", he shrugged. "Why do you sound so surprised? I mean, Duran Duran has been playing and I don't see you complaining. Aren't they out of fashion already?"

"Well, Marie's the one picking the music today, so if I say something I'd probably get fired", you put your hands up, showing that you are defenseless. "But don't you think you're a bit too close-minded?"

"Because I don't know the Beast Boys?"

"Beastie Boys", you correct him as you hand him the record. A jet is crashing into the side of a mountain on the cover, which definitely caught his attention. As he analyzed the album, you smiled lightly, finding the way his brown eyes scanned the cover to be very cute. "But it's like you live in your own little metal world… doesn't it get boring sometimes?"

"With Ozzy Osbourne? Never." he offered you a sly smile as his eyes shoot up to look at your face. 

"You know, some people wouldn't even consider Ozzy to be metal," you teased him slightly and he loudly gasps, absolutely offended by your affirmation. 

"Don't you ever say that again!"

"Oh, but I will! And I can even argue that you, Edward Munson, aren't metal at all." 

"And why is that?" he asked, genuinely curious. "Because you just said that I am a close-minded metalhead, sweetheart". 

"You know exactly what I mean! C'mon, half of the bands you like are hard rock, and I am including Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath on that list".

"Sure, Vlady." he rolls his eyes at you, walking to the nearest listening booth, with you on his tail. Eddie was already taking the vinyl out of its sleeve before asking you, "Any suggestions?"

"Rhymin' and Stealin', or No Sleep 'Til Brooklyn. They're the most metal of them". 

"Nah, no metal. 'Cause now that I am a fully open-minded person, thanks to you, I think I'll go with…" he taunted you for your fruitless try to start one of your bickerings.  "Hold It Now, Hit It". 

"Great pick", you encouraged him, even though you knew he wasn't going to like it. 

CRAZY TRAIN. i'm living with something that just ain't fair.

"Haven't you had enough of following me around, weirdo?"

"Nope. In fact, I would like to follow you some more", he answered as he keeps trailing behind you, putting up Madonna's True Blue cardboard cut-out next to the album shelves. "Killer jeans, by the way". 

"Gross," even though you tried to seem annoyed by his statement, the smile on your face betrayed you. Thank God he couldn't see it. "But I'm afraid you won't have much time to appreciate it, since I'll be leaving in… five minutes".

You said after checking your wrist clock, then helping him to stabilize the life-size Madonna on the floor. Then, you took a few steps back to appreciate the result of your teamwork.

"What? I thought you worked until five!" he exclaimed as he let go of the cardboard. The abrupt motion almost took it down, but you swiftly put it back to its original place. "Sorry".

"Stalker much?" you playfully ask, making his cheeks blush lightly. When you were finally done with the Madonna cardboard, you walked to the store's counter, leaning down to get your backpack. As you started to organize your things, you explained, "I worked overtime yesterday, so Marie is covering for me today". 

You felt his gaze follow you intensely, watching how your hands moved as you grabbed your own cassettes, your coat, and a few fanzines and stuffed them back into your bag. To be quite frank, you were actually enjoying having his attention on you, seeing the things you liked – maybe he could get to know a bit more about you by seeing your Echo and The Bunnymen tape. 

"Do you- um…" when he sees you sling your backpack on one of your shoulders, he begins to muster up the courage to ask, but as he senses your eyes on him, his voice falters a bit, "do you want a ride?"

"Is your van clean?" you asked as you start to walk towards the exit, Eddie following you closely. "I don't really feel like sitting on another pack of Doritos today".

"Fuck off", it's hard to miss the humor in his voice, "And I did. It's as good as new". 

"Alright, then. Lead the way", you say as you open the store's door. Now, you were the one following him, trying to keep up with his long, quick steps. You almost miss the van, only stopping because of Eddie's sudden stop. "Why is it blue?" 

"I painted it. Got tired of red". 

"Nice. Why don't you paint it black next time? You know, to fit your aesthetic". 

"Noted," he acknowledges your suggestion, walking up to the passenger door and opening it for you. "M'lady". 

"Thank you, good lord." you graciously answer, getting inside the (thankfully clean) van. It only takes Eddie a couple of moments to sit in the driver's seat, and he founds you curiously eyeing the whole vehicle. 

"Found any Doritos yet?"

"No, but I found this" you pick up a little zip bag that was carelessly laid on the van's floor, next to your feet. "Do you just leave this stuff all over the place? You should be more careful, you know? I heard Hopper is after your ass". 

"Jesus H. Christ!" his eyes were wide as pies as he sees the marijuana bag you held, taking it in a rush. He almost drops it as he hurriedly stuffs it in his jacket pocket. "How d'you know that?"

"It's impossible not to. Everyone loves to talk about the resident freak's latest ​​shenanigans." you smile playfully at him again, finding out that he was already staring at you, with an amused look on his face. "And when you work at a place that the whole town visits, you end up knowing lots of stuff".

"Yeah? Like what?" he starts the van, maneuvering out of its parking spot. 

"Well…" you think about it for a while, trying to remember the hottest piece of gossip you know. "Heather Maxwell was almost arrested for, one, driving while drunk and two, for having sex with Stuart Mills on her parents' car at the side of the road. Hopper was less than pleased". 

"Stuart? As in-"

"Her best friend's boyfriend, yes!" you excitedly interrupt him, and he audibly gasps as he hears the missing piece of information. 

"I always knew Heather was up to no good," Eddie commented. "I mean, wasn't she the one who spiked our middle school punch without telling anyone?"

"Yeah," you laughed, "thank God Mrs. O'Donnell confiscated it."

"Oh, but it tasted so good!" 

"You drank it?" you ask and watch him enthusiastically nod, and your eyes widen slightly, "That explains why you were dancing to the Bay City Rollers, then".

"That wasn't because I was drunk! I actually really like them".

"Shut up!"

"I'm serious!" he confirms, laughing. You lean towards him as he makes an accentuated curve, brushing shoulders lightly. "You know, bye, bye, baby, baby goodbye!" 

You laugh harder as he sings the band's song completely out of tune, and the resounding sound of your laughter quickly infected him and you both entered a long fit of giggles. After it died down, though, it wasn't as awkward as you thought it would be; comfortably sharing the silence until you motioned to the radio, and picking up on that, Eddie asked, "d'you wanna turn on the radio? I have no idea of which tape is in, though". 

"It'll be a surprise, then. I bet it's Motorhead".

"And I bet it's Dio".

"Let's see!" you pressed the on button and the beginnings of Ozzy Osbourne's Crazy Train filled up the whole van. Eddie's sound system always impressed you with how powerful the music reverberated through the small space. "Fuck, not even close".

"Yeah, but it's still great!" he observed, looking at you quickly, "Crazy, but that's how it goes". 

"Millions of people living as foes," you started to sing along with him, earning another glance from him, only a surprised one this time. That was enough for you to turn the music louder. 

"You know this one?"

"Hell yeah, dude! It's, like, one of his only good songs".

"No, it's not!"

"It's not a good song, you mean?" you tried to trick him, but of course, he wouldn't fall for it.

"It's one of his greatest, Y/N!" he observes, thumbs tapping against the steering wheel accompanying the beat of the song. "You know, for someone who works at a music store, you should really start appreciating Ozzy more."

"Sure, Munson." you rolled his eyes. "I've listened to preachers".

"I've listened to fools", he stepped even harder on the gas, making the van speed along the street, making dust and leaves go up in the air, trailing along. Everything about this moment made you smile; from the wind that blew right at your face to the sounds Eddie made to emulate the song's guitar.

"I've watched all the dropouts who make their own rules", you pretended to hold a microphone, and then offered it to him, letting him sing the next line into your hand. And he did it with the biggest and brightest smile on his face, dimples deepening as he mouthed the words. He looked so pretty like this, all smiles, doe eyes, and hair flowing wildly. 

To the people who watched the van speed through Hawkins' streets, you seemed like two maniacs. The laughter, screams, and out-of-tune-singing were enough for everyone to look at you as the freaks they considered you to be, not that you cared for that right now, especially when you're by Eddie's side. 

You cried out loud as you spotted your house at the end of the street. 

"Oh no! Can you go around the block? Just until the song ends, please?" you ask him, pleading almost. You were having too much fun to be interrupted now. 

"If I could, I'd drive around the whole state for you, sweetheart. But is the highway enough for you?" he asked, slowing the van down to look at you. As you nod at him, in an almost desperate manner, he laughs loudly. "Rewind the song, then!" 

Crazy, but that's how it goes…

PERFECT GIRL. i think i'm falling, i think i'm falling in…

"Hey, Y/N! Your freak is here!" Marie announces as the plops her head inside the employee's room, which made you roll your eyes in a way that you thought they wouldn't go back to their place. Your body didn't care too much about Marie's unnecessary nickname, since it was too preoccupied with reacting to the fact that Eddie was here. Your palms were suddenly sweaty and butterflies were all over the place; you doubted you could even take two steps before starting to smile like a maniac. 

"Don't call him that," you scolded her as you passed by, going directly to the store's counter. Your eyes scanned the place quickly, not taking long to spot the untamed mane of the one and only Eddie Munson, who was going through the alternative section – something that has become surprisingly normal these past few weeks. "Eds!" 

"Hey, Vlady!" he cheerily greeted you, skipping his way to the counter. "Nice earrings. Are those bats?"

"Yeah. Made them myself". 

"Could you make one for me, maybe?" Eddie put his hair behind his right ear, showing you the small silver hoop he usually wore. "I feel like it's time for a change".

"Sure thing", you offered him a sweet smile and made a (very highlighted, sparkly, shiny) mental note to make the best earring you could ever create for him. "Had fun at the alternative section?"

"Yup! In fact, I was meaning to ask you: have you listened to the new The Cure album yet?"

"No, but my friends said they liked it, so I'm excited".

"You should be. It's actually great".

"What!? You've already listened to it?" 

"Fuck yeah", he replied like it was obvious, and continued, with a taunting smile, "Now who's the one that isn't up with the news?"

"Hey! I just didn't have the time, ok? College is kicking my butt." you explained while you gathered the cassettes that were laid out on the counter. As soon as your hand touched the first one, you saw Eddie's pale hand also collecting a few – always so eager to help. "It was just a surprise, you know? You got to hear my favorite band's new album before me". 

"I'm just keeping up with the times, sweetheart. Oh, how'd you say it?" he took a while to remember the exact term you had used a while back, "Yeah, I'm opening up my horizons". 

"You're such a weirdo", you rolled your eyes before handing him a Frank Sinatra tape, a identical copy to the ones he was organizing. 

"Thanks" he muttered, "Like the gloves, by the way. Very metal… or should I say, totally goth?"

"Shut up" you giggled and moved out of the counter, on your way to put the tapes in their usual place. You heard Eddie's boots thumping loudly against the floor, meaning that he was following you. 

"You know, I came here to give you something".

"What?" you suddenly turn around, in surprise, and drop a few tapes when you crash right into his chest. And before you can lean down to catch them, he has already collected all of them and is standing up slowly, in a way that makes you hold your breath; his hair actually brushes against the hem of your skirt, lifting it up slightly, and you're pretty sure you felt his knuckles graze lightly against your knee. And then, he's standing close… dangerously so. You can actually feel his warm breath against your face, the small puffs of air hitting you as he talks... and you don't pay attention to a single word he said. "I-I'm sorry?"

"I said it's a gift," even though you were pretty sure Eddie would find the whole situation amusing and make fun of you for being so strange, he isn't. And he seems to be just as affected as you are, with burning red cheeks. "You know, a thing that one person gives to another as a token of their appreciation?" 

"I know what a gift is, dumbass. I just don't understand why you would give me something". 

"I just explained it to you, Dracula. A token of my appreciation." he smiles softly at you, his dimples showing. You did your best to actually organize the cassettes instead of just throwing them everywhere, but that didn't matter right now, not when Eddie was searching his pockets looking for something; your gift. Then, he handed you a small tape, very similar to the ones you were just holding. "It has one of The Cure's new songs in it… it really reminded me of you. So it would be nice if you listened to it." 

"Sure", you couldn't fight the big smile that appeared on your face, feeling your face heat up as your fingertips brushed against his hand as you took the cassette. "I'll listen to it today, and then I'll call you and tell you what I think, yeah?"

"Perfect". 

+++

As soon as you stepped foot in your bedroom, you didn't wait another second before plopping the tape into your boombox and anxiously fast-forwarding it until you stumbled upon Robert Smith's sped-up voice. You felt bad for not paying attention to the little details Eddie put into it, like the adhesive tape he glued and the name of the mixtape, but you just couldn't wait – couldn't even waste time listening to the other tracks, really, too set upon hearing the new song. Acting like that, it may seem that you've never had a mixtape made for you before, but it was quite de contrary: your friends made you tapes all the time, but this... this was different. This was Eddie's tape. And that was reason enough to keep you giggling like a schoolgirl, almost kicking your feet in the air in your state of giddiness. Laying down on your bed, you hugged one of your pillows bringing it to your chin, a perfect tool to use to muffle your lovesick laughter as you finally heard the little unknown do-do-do's. 

The fuzziness you felt in your whole body distracted you from actually paying attention to the music, because you were too busy still trying to wrap your head around the fact that Eddie Munson – The Eddie Munson – listened to a whole The Cure album for you; heard this specific song and thought of you; and spent time making this mixtape for you. All because of you. You had to take a few breaths to bring your mind back to the song, or else you'd spend the whole night rewinding the poor tape. 

You held your breath as Robert Smith sang 'you're such a strange girl, I'd like to turn you upside-down', and your eyebrows involuntarily shot up. A familiar heat crept up your neck and took hold of your cheeks while a smile kept dancing on your lips. Once again, your pillow came into action, muffling a fit of giggles as it hid your flushed cheeks from the cold air of your bedroom. 

It was unnecessary to wait too long for your next hysterics to come through because as soon as you heard 'you're such a strange girl, the way you look like you do. You're such a strange girl, I want to be with you', you were absolutely gone; laughing excitedly as your eyes widened and your own body didn't know whether to feel extremely lovesick or surprised. But you couldn't just sit and wait for it to decide, so almost unconsciously, you reached for the phone and dialed the number you had already memorized.

"You reached the Munsons! It's Eddie".

"Hi." that's all you could say before giggling again.

"Hey, Vlad. I take it that you've already listened to the tape?" 

"'m still listening".

"Cool," he commented, starting to become a bit uneasy. "A-and what did you think?"

"Well, I think that Robert Smith is a genius." you paused a bit, just for the dramatics, and heard Eddie's heavy breath on the other side of the line. "And that you and I should go on a date sometime". 

"Y-yeah, that's exactly what I was thinking", you could practically hear his smile and that made you laugh once more. "Benny's Burger?"

"Perfect. You're free on Friday?"

"For you? Always". 

"Great. I'll see you at seven then." 

"It's a date".

"It's a date", you confirmed, biting your lower lip, trying to keep your smile from getting any wider. 

I think I'm falling… I think I'm falling in… I think I'm falling in love with you. 

LIKES, REBLOGS AND FEEDBACK ARE APPRECIATED!

eddie masterlist | main masterlist | navigation ── hey! wanna talk? leave me a message after the beep. currently accepting requests for steve, nancy and eddie. 

𖤐 taglist: @oncasette; @kinqsteve; @metroiras; @dragon-ash13; @virgoyves; @stevesmixtape ; @Darkened_Writer; @thedixon04 ; @eddiemvnsonss ; @falsegodsaltar ; @liltimmyst ; @juggernort ; @saintlessmunson ; @wrenniebaby ; @hoennislands ; @ssahotchnerswife ; @summer-may

if you'd like to be removed from my taglist, send me an ask or dm me! if you want to be added to my taglist, just click here.

[en-hale-archives]

Me with You ~~

pairing ⑅ bestfriend!Jake x fem!reader

genre ⑅ friends to lovers, fluff, slow dancing, suggestive/smut

words/read time ⑅ 3.9k/12-19 mins

warnings ⑅ 18+ content, light cussing

synopsis ⑅ Jake is back in his hometown to spend time with his closest friend. During some fun and frivolous dancing, things start to heat up...

author's note ⑅ I’m really proud of how this story turned out. I'm not a huge fan of second person, so I wrote in first, but if anyone asks, I can copy and post again in second person. It's more fluff than anything, but it does get a bit steamier towards the end, so I’m just going to go ahead and put a warning.

————✧————

When the back door finally slammed shut and the cacophony of barks faded down the street, I could finally let out my sigh of relief that I had been holding in since this morning. I tapped on my phone. How many days had we been watching Mrs. Chen’s pets? And just how was I able to put up with hours of barking, the smell of fresh turd lying across the lawn, and dog walks till dark? Including their rigorous feeding times and bathroom breaks -- I’m surprised I haven’t exploded yet.

I had so much planned the minute they left my house, but instead, the sudden silence felt all too relaxing and I laid my head against the cold countertop. I could finally stop stressing, stop thinking, and stop worrying about reprimanding for chewing on my shoes or peeing in the house or the continued barking that never ended. I was free. I felt like I could’ve stayed laid on the countertop forever, drowning in the evening sun. Who knew watching five dogs would take such a burden out of a person. Jake and I had taken on the job of dog sitting for Mrs. Chen while she visited some family in Tokyo. We both switched off every other day; some of the dogs at my house and the others at his; until we realized it would be easier if he just spent the few days at my house as we co-doggy sat. He got up bright and early to take them on their walks while I prepared their highly detailed and specific meals. Then from there, we spent the rest of the day making sure they didn’t run off somewhere or cause too much destruction in the house. But alas, Mrs. Chen came back early from her getaway and picked up Toby, Caleb, Khao, Sofia, and Pickle on her way home. Although I was exhausted from watching 3-foot dogs all day, the pay was amazing for me, and it would help tremendously for all the online classes I was going to be taking next semester.

The warmth of the sun cast a comforting trance over my heavy eyelids, and soon enough I was fast asleep, standing in the middle of the kitchen with the soft sound of nothing surrounding me.

By the time I had fluttered my eyes open, I had realized I was now seated in my dining chair and a large black jacket was placed over my shoulders. I sat up and let out a yawn, wincing at the bright light coming from the tv and shaking my now numb arm awake. I must have been sleeping for a while because the evening sun had turned to pitch of black. The moonlight beamed through the window and danced along with the sways of the large oak tree out front. I stood up and walked over to the refrigerator in which I grabbed two water bottles and some leftover pasta.

I was sure that Jake hadn’t eaten since lunch, seeing as he only ate if someone sat food in front of his face. I dragged my feet up the stairs until I heard the slamming of a book and the fast typing of a keyboard come from the living room. I turned and looked behind me. Jake had settled his things on the coffee table and floor, large books, folders, and several amounts of crumpled up pieces of paper found their way around Jake, himself slouched up against the edge of the couch. He had changed clothes since the last time I had seen him, he now wore a plain blue shirt with grey sweats, his eyebrows furrowed as he worked hard on whatever he was getting at.

“Oh yes, I was starving!” Propping himself up on the couch, he took the plate of pasta. I placed the waters on the coffee table and settled comfortably on the couch beside him.

“I can’t say that I’ve ever seen anybody sleep standing up before. Look,” Jake took his phone off the charger. “I got a picture.” He pushed the screen in my face, and of course, there was my unconscious body laying on the counter, mouth open and all. I playfully pushed it back his way as his face lit up with a smile I was all too familiar with.

“What are you doing down here so late, it’s almost 12 in the morning,” I asked. Jake’s smile disappeared when he was reminded of the work he had been doing seconds before.

He let out a large huff of air. “Trying to get some words on paper but instead it turned into a paper massacre,” he jokingly replied, “sorry for the mess.”

“Don’t worry about it,” I replied, taking a swig of water. I was going to ask if he wanted to watch a late-night movie, or pull an all-nighter and talk endlessly until the sun rose, but I could tell by each passing second that Jake was worried about this, and he wanted the time he had now over the summer to work on his music. I wished I was motivated to work on my own music, but unlike Jake, I wasn’t in a globally popular boy band. My complicated best friend for over 10 years had been working his butt off since middle school. It was his annual time to sit back and relax while he had the time to, but instead, he chose to use that time to help watch a bunch of dogs with his hometown bestie. God, I loved him.

Jake pulled himself off the couch and right back onto the floor, leaving the rest of the pasta to me. He picked up his pen again and started scribbling down words as quickly as he could, trying hard not to forget the lyrics that had floated into his head. Until he stopped, closing his eyes for just a split second, and let out a powerful sigh. Crumpling up the sheet, he stacks it on top of the others in frustration and started frantically tapping his pencil against the table.

“Maybe it’s best to just try again in the morning,” I advised, taking a small bite of the pasta that was left by my side.

“How come I’m having such a hard time with this?” He gazed up at me frantically for a clue, as if I had the answer to fix a problem as big and as important as his was. I looked at his doleful eyes and the bags that were starting to grow underneath them. I couldn’t help but think, because I made you sit up and watch a bunch of dogs with me.

“Do you want me to see if I could come up with something?”

“If you want. But, hold on, I think my thoughts are coming back up.” He quickly grabbed another piece of paper, his eyes narrowed in concentration.

I tried my best to keep occupied by watching videos on my phone, but I found myself suddenly bored out of my mind. I laid out on my back and picked up one of Jake’s folders. Briefly looking through it, I couldn’t help but feel a bit jealous at the amount of fan art and letters, praising him and the other members. Followed with that were just more and more engene stuff, full of nothing but kind words and heartfelt messages. Part of me wished that I was able to travel with Jake and see the world like he was. How fun would it be to meet people that praised you? And how cool would it be to see that you had fans? I couldn’t help but plaster on a huge smile as I skimmed through some of the notes until I finally came to one with familiar handwriting.

Remember Me were the words written on the top of the paper in bold and bright colors. But the message written underneath is what caught my attention:

To the person that makes me the luckiest guy in the world, this song is for you. It’s okay if you don’t feel the same, but please just remember me -- it was Jake’s handwriting.

I didn’t feel like I was breaking any crime reading his stuff until this moment, but curiosity killed the cat, and right now I didn’t mind being a feline. I checked to make sure Jake was still busy, and he was, almost like he had teleported into his own world. I quietly turned back to the sheet and started reading. It was about a girl, presumably his crush I’m sure. She was someone important to him, someone who made him love so much that it hurt. But this was far from a happy song, in fact, it was terribly heartbreaking. She didn’t understand his love, she wasn’t able to interpret it like he wanted her to. But he confesses that he was scared of what telling her would do, worried that she wouldn’t feel the same. So instead, it was like he was apologizing, and asking that she forgive him for not being brave enough to tell her, and if he did ever get the courage to, for her to remember him even if she wasn’t able to love him like he wanted her to.

The song ends like how the title began, and I find myself flabbergasted at the beautiful mixes of rhymes and metaphors that read like a poem. This was the first of Jake’s songs that made me feel this way, like I had just finished watching a tragedy movie with Ryan Renolds starring. I blink back the tears that I didn’t realize were forming. How come he never told me this? We never kept secrets from each other, like ever. It never mattered the subject or the severity, we had always promised that we would be open and honest with each other. I wish I would’ve known this sooner, maybe I could’ve saved him from feeling this way. And what girl could it possibly be? I knew for sure I was the only girl he was presumably close to; but was there someone else?

I glanced down at Jake, who was still in a focused state of mind with the pencil in his mouth and mumbling lyrics softly under his breath. I tried picturing my bubbly Jake writing these agonizing words and miserably failed.

Jake looked up at me as if he could feel my gaze on the back of his head. “I think I’ve found the chorus, but it’s the rest of the song I’m not able to get, and how come it’s so hard to find another word that rhymes with severe? Beer? Sphere? Revere? Appear? Gosh, rhyming sucks some serious ass!”

“This song is beautiful.”

Jake furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. “Huh?”

“This song I found in your folder.” I glanced back at it in my hand. “Remember Me.”

Jake’s gaze leaped from my eyes to the sheet, and I felt his body tense. “Where’d you get that from?”

“I was just going through one of your folders. Did you accidentally get it mixed up in your fan folder? Cause this is -”

“Did you read it?” He interrupted.

“Yeah, and it’s perfect.”

Jake glanced at me for a split second before turning back around, obviously uncomfortable. “I was watching one of those Kdramas you love so much and it inspired me. Could you help me rhyme with severe now?”

I knew Jake like the back of my hand, so I knew continuing on with this conversation would get him upset if he’s clearly avoiding it. But, I wasn’t going to just let him off that quickly. “Jake, come on, you can tell me anything. Who is this about?”

Jake looked back at me with a hint of something in his eyes, something I’ve never seen before, and something I wasn't able to decipher. “Nobody, I was just feeling really inspired, that's it.” His tone had switched from calm to agitated.

I give him my I’m-not-stupid look and he comes back with his own you’re-being-delusional stare. “It’s seriously nobody, truthfully and honestly.”

“Okay, okay I’ll back off.” I could tell he was starting to get defensive, and when he got like that, it took him at least a few hours before returning to normal. I watched Jake's Adam's apple move up and down, a way in which I could tell he knew I was not convinced in the slightest. “Well, sometimes we go through things that can remind us of situations like that, but not necessarily in that same exact context, you know? It has to be amplified for that audience appeal.”

“Okay...but have you ever felt this way before? Not exactly like how it’s written, but maybe somewhere along these lines?”

I thought I was going to get another vague answer, or worse, an aggravated one. But instead Jake looked down at his pencil as he tapped it along his wrist. “...maybe, but I think everyone can connect to the words in some way. I mean, everyone feels some kind of heartbreak in their life, right?” Jake's answer was still pretty vague, but at least I was able to get something out of him.

“Okay, but you know you can tell me anything, like, anything ever because you know that you’ll never actually have to feel this way, right?” I said, maybe too much in a hurry.

“Of course I know that.” He replied, giving one of his awkward grins.

“And if anyone has made you feel this way, then you know you can tell me that too cause there a sucker to lose out on a perfect person like you.” I teased in a sing-song way, poking his shoulder hard. Jake chuckled and poked me back.

A weird silence grew in the room, and Jake went back to trying to find rhyming words. I tried getting back on my phone, but I knew I needed to say something to let go of the tenseness in the air.

“Hey, crystal clear rhymes!”

He leaned his head back and looked up at me. “Nevermind, I give up for tonight.”

I could see the stress that played on his face. “Don’t worry, you’ll figure it out.”

“Yeah, but by the time I do, it’ll be too late.”

“What do you mean?”

Jake pulled his knees up to his chest and spoke. “This was going to go on our album comeback that needs to be finished in the next four months. By the time I think of something, it'll be too late and I’ll have to wait until the next four months. But by then, I'll have forgotten. This always happens and I have no idea how the hell to fix it.” I couldn’t tell if he wanted my help or just a bit of comfort.

“Did you try asking the other guys to see if they had any ideas?”

“Yeah, but they’re working on their own parts, I can’t ask them to do this too.”

“I’m sure they’d be willing to help if you asked,” I assured him.

“I know they would, but I just don’t want to. I always ask them for help, I thought being away from the studio and being back home would help my brainstorming abilities.” He gave a weary chuckle that almost sounded like a groan.

“Well, maybe tomorrow will come with better results.” I did my best to give him some motivation, but I could tell I was failing miserably at that too.

Jake watched as a car zoomed past the window, a low bass sounding off as it zoomed away. “I bet it’s easier to just listen to music than to try and come up with it. I remember when I would just blare NCT all day long and jam out in my room. It seemed so much easier back then to come up with stuff than it does now. I miss it.” He took a slight pause before continuing. “ Did you know that song you read was the easiest thing I have written in my life? I remember writing too. I just had this super weird feeling in my chest one day so I basically locked myself in my room and took maybe two hours and just wrote a bunch of words down and connected them to sound like a song. For once my mind had just gone blank and I couldn’t stop thinking and feeling that song, like I knew what it was supposed to sound like, I knew what the lyrics were supposed to mean. I just knew everything. And I miss that feeling, that feeling of like- '' He broke off his sentence when he looked back up to my eyes. It seemed like he was talking more to himself than to me. He swallowed hard and looked back at the pencil still in hand.

“Well, I'm sorry you don’t feel free anymore. I wish there was something I could do to make you feel like that again-”

“No, please don’t feel like that. It’s just something that had just recently started happening, something I really just can’t fix…” His voice gets softer and softer the more he spoke.

“Have you spoken to your manager about it?” I asked. “He’s super nice from what I understand. And he’ll probably have better answers than your friend who can barely play the piano, let alone produce an entire song.”

Jake laughed before I had the chance to. “ See, now you're underestimating yourself. Remember that song from freshman year? The one about-- what was his name, Josh?” Jake teased. I grabbed a pillow and slammed it into the back of his head. “Oh my gosh, I thought we promised we’d never bring it up again!”

Jake chuckled and laid his arm on the couch completely turning towards me. “How about we sneak out and go get ice cream and try to not wake up your mom in the process?”

I suddenly jumped to my feet when I have the perfect idea on how to cheer up the gloomy Mr. Shim. “Or, we could do something even better!”

“Urgh!” Jake groaned.

I grabbed my phone and hooked it up to the speaker. I was going to turn on his hit song Drunk-Dazed as a joke, but Jake needed this break from his career, so instead, I crunk up Beyonce as loud as it could go without disturbing my mom who slept upstairs. I turn back to Jake and reach out for his hands, already moving my hips to the music.

He shook his head and threw it back onto the couch as if throwing a temper tantrum. “I literally dance for a living.”

“Okay but this will be different, I promise.” I grabbed the piles of papers on the ground and threw them in the trash, I then pushed the coffee table near the wall and piled his folders and books neatly on top.

“Come on, cowboy!” I grabbed his hands and helped him up. He was reluctant to get up, but he threw one last groan before standing on his feet.

“This will get the brain juices flowing again!” I told him. I go back to my phone and switch it to one of my favorite Beyonce songs that she covered, At Last.

I sang dramatically to get Jake to smile, and luckily, it worked. I placed both my hands over his shoulders and swayed us back and forth, still miming the song as overly exaggerated as I could. Jake still couldn’t help but smile, and it didn’t take him long to join me in the rhythm and sway naturally with me. I learned at our middle school dance that Jake had perfect rhythm. He was able to impress the rest of the crowd when he busted out moves from BTS. Everyone was impressed, including me.

Now we were on a steady roll. I accidentally stepped on his feet a few times, but it was fine seeing as I was wearing foam flip-flops and he was barefooted. After a while, the song switched and played another of my favorites that didn’t match our style of dance, but we still moved slowly to the beat. Jake tried twirling me, but since I have two left feet, I almost ended up hitting the wall each time and Jake laughed loud at my clumsiness. The moonlight from the kitchen had now switched to the window in the living room. It gleamed through and glistened on Jake like a spotlight, just like the ones on the stage did for him. In a split second, I was reminded that he wouldn’t be here forever, just like he wasn’t here for the past year. I tried to not let it settle on my face that I was scared to see him go again, so I played up on the fun we were having now. Jake looked like he was at ease; finally, since he’d been here, he looked genuinely happy and I wasn’t going to ruin that.

After another handful of songs full of laughs and giggles, we were soon sweating and taking deeper breaths than normal. Each song was different from the one before, but it didn’t stop us from sticking to our style of dance. Even with the simplicity of the moves and the slowness of the steps, I had to take a minute to relax. I hooked my arms around his neck and rested my entire body on his. I could feel Jake’s own sweat seeping through his shirt, But I didn’t mind the wetness that was now attached to my cheek. I thought he would act awkward and ask for me to pull away, but instead, he gripped tighter on my hips and started slowly moving me side to side. I let out a long overdue sigh, trying my best to match the steady breathing of Jake’s with my own. It was actually therapeutic: hearing his heartbeat in one ear and the softness of the music in the other.

I tried to continue our steady breathing together, but his had picked up a bit, almost out of nowhere. I felt the heat of his breath on the nape of my neck, and it made my entire body tingle in a way it never had before. After this sudden feeling, I realized just how close we really were. His leg hair tickled my legs, I could feel the bone of his foot connecting to mine, I could feel his thin waist against mine as well. I felt like I needed to back up, but instead, I couldn’t and continued to sway softly against him. A few seconds later, Jake’s hands rose a little higher, planting themselves on my waist and tightening their grip as if they were trying to pull me closer than we already were.

The sensation hadn’t stopped though, it clung to my body like my damp shorts did on my thighs. Sooner or later I felt pressure on the lower part of my stomach and thought for sure that Jake was messing around and wasn’t feeling what I was, which indicated that I needed to pull back before this feeling became too much.

This is so embarrassing. I thought. How could I let myself feel like this? How was this in any way okay? I finally pulled back, the sensation becoming too unbearable, and glanced up at his face. His pupils were large in a way I hadn’t seen before. His mouth was slightly open and a drop of sweat slowly traced down his forehead, onto his nose. That pressure I was feeling on my stomach had now doubled in force, and Jake's face had switched from calm and subtle, to alarmed and panicked...

————✧————

(part 2 possibly...?)

Thank you guys so much for reading! I hope you enjoyed it! Please, leave any constructive criticism you have on helping improve my writing!

————✧��———

None of the images are mine, They all belong to their rightful owners :)

[littleoddwriter]

Hii ^^

How are you doing? I hope you're doing great <3

Could i request a Eli Sunday x male reader? I had this scenario in my mind where the reader is someone who was in a very low point in his life but Eli kinda saved him and the reader visists him to say thanks and ends up confesing his love for Eli by accident. The reader actually thinks that Eli would hate him for feeling like that and is scared but Eli reciprocates his feelings towards him. Just a little bit angsty but really fluffy.

Sorry if i wrote too much tho, sometimes my brain just won't stop thinking. Have a good time!

The Path that Led Me to You | Eli Sunday x Male!Reader

Hello there! Aw, thank you! I'm just terribly overwhelmed and exhausted, to be honest. I do hope you're doing well/great, though! <3 Absolutely loving this scenario. Thanks for the request! I really hope you like what I've done with it! It may have gotten more angsty than fluffy, I'm sorry if so! ^^" <3 And no need to apologise, you did great and I don't mind it at all when people write more in their requests. :') Take care! <3

summary; See above.

notes; Male!Reader; Planned Suicide Attempt (Implied/Referenced); Suicidal Tendencies; Religious Themes; Religious Guilt; Being Saved; Angst; Hurt/Comfort; Fluff; Falling in Love; Love Confessions; Kisses.

All your life you’ve been feeling this crushing guilt. Guilt for things you hadn’t done, things you had done, things you had no influence on, and so on and so forth. And when you didn’t feel guilty, you felt nothing. A suffocating kind of emptiness. It was an endless cycle and you wanted out. You didn’t know what else to do anymore. You had no one. You were no one. 

So, you decided that you were going to kill yourself. To end it once and for all. All this suffering you’ve been enduring for virtually no reason. 

Had you done something terribly wrong in your previous life? Was God testing you? No, was He punishing you? And if so, for what? 

Whatever the answer to any of those questions was, you would never know. 

Before you did it, though, you went to church. You wanted to ask for forgiveness before your deed. You were weak and you knew you were going to Hell for it. And so the least you could have done was apologise.

You thought you’d been alone in the church, kneeling before the big cross.

Tears were streaming down your face, as you sobbed out your apology, “Forgive me for what I’m about to do, Lord. You may be testing me, but I can’t do it anymore. It’s too much. I can’t- I’m so sorry. Please, oh, God, please. Forgive me!”

The sound of hurried footsteps on the church’s wooden floor made you jump, startling you out of your apology and instantly causing you to stop crying. 

“Y/N?” It was Eli.

Bowing your head in shame, you wiped away the tears with your sleeve, attempting to look more put-together than you were. It was stupid and useless, though, wasn’t it? He’s obviously heard you already.

“I’m sorry, Eli. I’ll be out of your hair now,” you said, getting up from the floor and walking past him with your head kept down. Or, at least you tried to walk past him, but Eli stopped you with a gentle, but firm, hand on your shoulder.

“Y/N,” he said sternly, tilting his head to attempt to meet your gaze. You wouldn’t let him and only lowered your head further. “What’s going on? What for were you asking the Lord for His forgiveness?” 

“It’s not important. Please let me go, Eli,” you told him, pleading with him. You sounded pathetic to your own ears. 

“You do know that suicide is a sin, don’t you?” Eli spoke firmly, as though he was preaching, and in a way he was. To you. Just you.

“I know,” you whispered, “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t apologise. You haven’t done anything yet. And for as long as you don’t, you won’t have to ask for forgiveness from anyone. Especially not our Lord,” Eli told you kindly. “Sit with me.”

Defeated, you followed him and sat down in the front pew with him. At last, you looked at him. Compassion was basically written on his face. You didn’t know how much you needed to know that he wasn’t judging you harshly. The relief you felt bloomed in your chest, making some of that crushingly suffocating guilt go away. 

“Why did you want to commit suicide?” Eli asked softly, then.

You spent a little while explaining everything to him. And all he did was listen. He nodded in understanding. He showed you compassion. He put a friendly hand on your shoulder, your back and your thigh throughout, letting his palm travel to each of those places and squeezing your flesh to show you that he was right there and that you were not alone. And strangely enough, it helped you more than you could put into words. 

Once you were done talking, Eli sighed heavily, rubbing your thigh soothingly, where his hand still rested. 

“I’m sorry you’ve been feeling this way. I can only imagine how difficult that must be. But do you really think that killing yourself is the right choice? Do you not think that there’s something worth living for? Even if it’s just finding out why you’ve been made to feel this way all your life thus far?” 

Eli’s words rang through your mind. Perhaps he was in the right. Perhaps ending it so soon wouldn’t be good, if it kept you from finding the answers you’d been searching for. And perhaps there were things, people even, worth living for. You could currently think of one at least. Eli himself. 

Nodding, you once again used your sleeve to wipe away the tears that stained your face from your retelling. “You’re right, Eli. I- I actually think, no, want to find out. I want to keep going. I’ll try harder now, I promise.”

“Good,” Eli smiled at you, “I assure you, it’ll be worth it. If not for yourself, stay alive for the community. For me. For God. He’ll want you to keep going, I’m certain of it.”

“Yes, of course,” you said, smiling back at him.

“Will I see you at the sermon tomorrow, then?” Eli asked after a few moments of silence.

“You will.”

______

Months later, you’ve been going to every sermon again. 

Shortly before you had wanted to commit suicide, you hadn’t gone as often anymore. 

And every time you showed up, Eli smiled at you. He made eye contact with you, smiled at you, touched your shoulder, thanked you for coming, and asked if you were going to come back the next time. 

And every time you felt valued. You felt like you had a place you belonged to, like you weren’t just wasting away under those crushing emotions you’ve been feeling. 

Not only that, though. 

By now, a new feeling was added to the pile. A good one. It was love. 

At first you didn’t know how to identify it, since it would only ever come to the surface when you were around Eli. But soon you could put your finger on it. And once you did, you only felt it become stronger every time you saw him. 

You thought it was bad. It had to be. You were two men. You weren’t supposed to be in love with him. And besides that, he was a man of God. No one else existed for Eli, never has. He would certainly hate you if he knew.

So there was no chance for you to be with him. And that was okay. You had made your peace with that. 

The only thing that you still felt was long overdue was your gratefulness, though. You realised that you had never truly thanked him for saving you all those months ago. So you wanted to finally do that. 

You were on your way to him, nervous and with your heart racing. You only wanted to thank him. No big deal. And yet it felt like something far bigger. 

Knocking on his door, you waited. 

You kept tugging at your suit and fixing your hair nervously. 

Eventually the door opened to reveal Eli. He looked surprised to find you at his door, but smiled at you, asking you to come inside.

He offered you to sit down at the kitchen table with him, as he brought you a glass of goat milk. 

“So, may I ask what you’re doing here?” Eli asked, once he sat down across from you. He sat at the head of the table and you sat on his right.

“I, uh, I wanted to thank you. For saving me,” you said, averting your gaze, “You pretty much breathed new life into me, in a way. I’d really been at my worst then and you- you found me and you helped me. And I can’t thank you enough for it. I love you so much, Eli, you have no idea. You’re amazing, you- Oh.”

Once you realised what had slipped out in-between all your grateful gushing, you interrupted and stopped yourself, curling in on yourself.

“I’m sorry,” you whispered.

Eli was sure to kick you out of his house, the community, the church, the town. You shouldn’t have said that. You wished you hadn’t. He was going to hate you. He-

He laid his hand on your thigh and squeezed it gently.

Looking up at him in shock, you saw him smile shyly at you. His face was completely red, like he was blushing. Was he?

“How do you mean it when you say that you love me?” he asked, sounding cautious, like he almost didn’t want to know the answer, but not for the reason you had previously thought.

“I mean that I’m in love with you,” you responded without thinking about it. This was what would seal your fate. Be that for better or worse.

Eli closed his eyes and sighed in relief. You almost couldn’t believe it.

Smiling, he opened his eyes again and looked at you. “I love you, too,” he admitted, “I’d thought I was very obvious about that, but maybe not, considering how scared you just were.”

“I thought you were just being friendly. You know, making sure I don’t go and kill myself this time, if you show me enough kindness. I- I don’t know. It just made sense to me. You’re always so good to everyone,” you explained your view of things, shrugging awkwardly.

Eli agreed that you had a point, chuckling softly. For a split second you thought you had died and were in Heaven now. This must have been Heaven. What else could it have been? 

“May I kiss you?” he asked after a few moments that you two just smiled at each other. 

Putting your own hand on his, which still rested on your thigh, you nodded, “I’d love that.”

Eli leaned forward until he couldn’t anymore without falling from his chair, and you followed him suit. And then he cupped your cheek in his free hand and placed a chaste kiss on your lips. You reciprocated it as soon as it happened, kissing him again and again, ever so lovingly and sweetly.

“Thank the Lord for leading us together,” Eli murmured against your lips, pecking them.

You'd never been this happy to be alive.

[froggy-frogz]

please write ANYTHING that's reagan x reader i am dying to read more about her. i dont know if this request is too general for your taste but if it is, feel free to ignore this aaa

thank you anyways<3

-AJ

A/N: It's not too general!! I wanted an excuse to write more Reagan lover fics ahjksdhfshdf- If this fic is a little too thrown together I wrote this at like 1 am helpppp- I hope you enjoy!!

You had an embarrassing secret, one that was making it so difficult to get any work done. You had the most giant crush on your boss, and it made it so that you couldn't even be around her.

"So what do you think about it, [Y/n]-"

You jump at the mention of your name, letting out a small squeak of surprise, and flip your head up to see some very worried faces.

Jesus, now you must look like a weirdo to them. Not that they could judge you cause they were a bunch of weirdos, but still, you couldn't help but feel embarrassed at your lack of awareness today.

"Sorry, sorry, didn't sleep well last night." You half-lie. Well. It was more of a truth than a lie. You couldn't sleep, but it wasn't for insomnia-related reasons or anything. It was because you were thinking about her again. You were almost at that point where you felt like a school kid with a very innocent crush on their best friend.

"Huh. Well, I can't say I blame you, but you have to pay attention, this next mission is kind-" You drown out her words as they just all now sound the same, but continue to nod along.

She was stunning. Sure she was covered in coffee stains, probably hadn't showered for a reasonable amount of time, and her hair was a complete mess but hell, you were in love with her.

"Ughhhh-" You quietly groan. You had early thought about telling her how you felt, so that maybe after she rejected you things could go back to normal, but it was so nerve-wracking. You didn't want to be the cause of ruining your relationship with her altogether.

In your train of thought, you hadn't noticed that everyone was now done for the day, and they all knew either cleaning up to leave or loudly chatting with each other.

Everyone but Reagan though.

She was standing right next to you.

"[Y/n]-"

You jump in your seat, and turn your head to her, trying your best to hide the noise that caught in your throat.

"Can I talk to you real fast? Like in my lab if you don't mind."

Her lab?????

You had never really been in her lab before- well, alone with her anyway. The thought of being alone with her drove your heartbeat almost immediately up the wall.

"Sure, m' not busy." You get up and follow her, praying to whatever God was listening that this wouldn't be the end of you.

"What's up? I figured I'd ask, try to check in on you now that I'm officially your boss now." Reagan snorts, pouring herself a cup of coffee, before passing you a fresh one.

You take it gratefully and sigh, leaning yourself against the wall, "I don't know. Intrusive thoughts I guess. It's not really a big deal, I just need get over it."

Reagan raises an eyebrow and takes a sip of her coffee like she was waiting for you to talk more.

"It's nothing really. You don't have to worry about it."

She clears her throat and snorts at your statement. "That's bullshit. [Y/n] I've known you for a long time now, I can tell when something is actually wrong. You can talk to me, I'm not going to judge you like other people would."

Talking to her was one thing, sure, but telling her that you liked her? Yeah, a whole nother thing. Grr. Why is relationship shit so hard?

Was this the universe's way of it trying to prompt you to tell her? Cause it felt like the universe was trying to peer pressure you because you felt your resolve crumble around you.

"Er, yeah you're right." You set your cup down, but you seemingly can't make eye contact with her, it was sorta hard to find the courage to look her in the eyes. "It's well, I was wondering-"

"Mhm?"

"Didyouwanttogooutsometime?" You slur your words together, wincing at what a fool you just made yourself out to be.

"Uh, sorry?" Reagan blinks and you can see the apparent confusion on her face.

Oh god, you had to repeat yourself- C'mon Reagan.

"I was, was wondering if you wanted to go out sometime? Like, on a date?" You wince again, the words rushing out of your mouth.

There was a silence that filled the lab, and you could feel a pit growing in your stomach, making it churn.

Only after what felt like an eternity did Reagan finally open her mouth, "A date? I, with me? I mean sure- I didn't really think you saw me like that.... Like, hol.. holy shit."

You blink and look up to her, and even though you let out a giggle, out of everything you could have responded with, "Uh for a brilliant scientist, sometimes you're a little clueless."

"Yeah, I guess I am." She smiles at you, and you manage to meet her gaze.

Jesus, her smile was really pretty.

"Would tomorrow work? We can go grab dinner. There's this Italian place I've been wanting to try." She says after finally looking away from you, and you had to squint, but you thought you could see the tiniest bit of red on her cheeks.

"Yeah! I'd.... I'd love that." You finish your coffee and hand the cup back to her, "Thanks for uh, agreeing to go out with me, and thanks for the coffee."

She rolls her eyes at the part, but smiles, "Anytime."

[edna-skiffens]

The Best Medicine

Summary: You are in the hospital, but you can never sleep in hospitals. Good thing you have a very attractive night shift nurse who is willing to help out.

Word Count: 4.5K

Warnings: hospitals, light med talk, bad medical writing, fluff

A/N: Please ignore the plot holes or the fact that this isn’t the most realistic and also I know this isn’t how discharge works at the hospital.. It’s called fiction for a reason, darling. Also, I left the reason the reader is in the hospital open ended bc some of us may have medical conditions/reasons that we can attach to this, but if not I tried to keep it vague enough on purpose so that you can imagine whatever. Also if you like Nurse!Tom and have requests for him lmk bc i’m happy to write for him.

Toss and turn. Toss and turn. The routine was getting old. This was your third night in the hospital and sleep just wasn’t coming to you.

Maybe it was the medicine they had you on. Maybe it was the constant symphony of sounds and people passing in the hallway. Maybe it was because you weren’t at home in your own bed.

Maybe it was just because you were in the hospital.

You couldn’t be sure. What you were sure of is that you weren’t falling asleep anytime soon.

Feeling another presence in the room, you looked from the ceiling to the doorway where you saw Tom, one of the night shift nurses, standing cautiously.

“I didn’t wake you did I?” He asked as he eased his way inside.

“Nope.”

“So no sleep again, huh?”

“Nope.”

“Sorry darling. Let’s go ahead and get these vitals over with.” He took your blood pressure, oxygen levels, temperature and wrote it down in your chart. Putting the clipboard back on its hook at the end of the bed, he looked up at your tired face. “Okay. So now about that sleep. What do you think will help?”

“Not being in the hospital.”

He chuckled lightly while walking back towards your bedside.

“I know. You hate it here. You’ve made that very clear and I try not to take too much offense to it.” You let out a slight laugh and held back the fact that he was the best part of this whole experience. He almost made it worth it. “I’m sorry we can’t give you any sleeping medication. Do you think it’ll help if I talk to you?”

“You mean tell me bedtime stories?” You couldn’t help but tease him at the adorable suggestion, though it sent a swarm of butterflies off in your stomach.

“I was thinking more like bore you ‘till you fell asleep. But whatever works.”

“You’re the nurse. If you think it’ll help.” You both sat there smirking at each other for a moment. Something unspoken floating in the air between you two.

“Well, I need to finish my round of vitals first. I’ll come check on you when I’m done and if you’re still up we’ll see about those stories.”

“I’ll be here.”

About fifteen or twenty minutes later you heard a light tap on your door followed by “Still awake?”

“Always.”

“You up for a chat?” Tom asked as he made his way to the stool then rolled slightly closer to your bed.

“Got nothing better to do.” You teased again.

“Okay. Well you should probably lay down.”

“Oh. It’s going to be that kind of story, huh?” His laugh was so beautiful and you were happy you were the cause of it.

“No.” He corrected in between laughs “The goal is to get you to sleep. So sitting up won’t help.”

“Right. Right.”

“Well.. anything in particular you’d like to talk about?”

“Why did you choose to become a nurse?”

“Ahhh. Good question. So I actually went to an art school.” You couldn’t help the brief expression of surprise that crossed your face. “I know. Shocking. I did training specifically in dance and gymnastics and I loved it.”

“Wait, so what happened?” You asked, turning on your side to face him more comfortably.

“Well one day we were rehearsing for a show and I fell. Ruined my knee. Had to do physical therapy for months. I tried to get back into it, but it just wasn’t the same. However, through that process I learned a lot about medicine and the health side of things. It really turned me on to it. And when my Plan A got a bit messed up I thought ‘hey, this could work’. So far it’s treated me pretty well.”

You smiled at Tom, admiring his passion for his career and the determination he had to keep pushing after his accident. You enjoyed hearing him talk about it too. If you didn’t know any better you would say it was helping you relax.

“My story that boring?”

“Obviously.”

“Your sarcasm has no end.”

“Oh… goodness.. you thought that was sarcasm?”

Tom only laughed and shook his head the way he often did with you.

You may just have been his patient and he may have just been your nurse, but you both bonded. He kept you company and gave you comfort. In return, you kept him entertained during the quiet night shifts.

“I’m not going to sleep. I'm just resting my eyes. But still listening.” You told him as you nestled further into the hospital bed, trying to find a position that would make it comfortable.

“Okay, darling.” He grinned at you.

“Tell me more. What kind of-” You had to stop to yawn, “What kind of art stuff did you do?”

“Oh. Well, I was in a few musicals. I really enjoyed dancing. I did ballet ever since I was young and I love the control I have over my body. The tricks I can do with gymnastics or the turns and leaps. I mean I can’t do them to that level anymore, but I try to stay active.” He glanced up and noticed you hadn’t moved, “Are you still with me?”

“Mhm.” You barely respond.

“Okay. Well it was a performing arts school so we really were trained in many areas. We had classes in acting, singing, dancing, all of it. It was a lot of fun and I met my best friends there.”

Tom began telling stories about his time at school. Before he knew it, he lost himself and track of time. He looked back at you, quiet and still.

“Y/N?” You were finally asleep. “Goodnight, darling.” He whispered as he gently made his exit.

Because Tom worked the night shift, you never saw him when you woke in the morning. Instead, Tanya, a sweet nurse that felt like a big sister, or Linda, Nurse Ratched in the flesh, came in for morning vitals and meds.

You counted down the days until your release. Life in the hospital was pretty uneventful with the limit on visitors and limited activity. There’s only so many sitcoms one can take in a given timespan. The only thing that you really looked forward to each night was when Tom clocked in.

“Hi Y/N.”

“Hi Tom.” You would smile at each other.

“How are we feeling today?”

“Better. Ready to get out of here.”

“Well, I’m glad to hear you are feeling better and still ready to jailbreak.” He smiled while writing something down on your chart. “They should be bringing up your dinner tray soon and then I’ll bring by your evening meds after that.”

“Okay.”

“If you need me you know what to do.” He called to you before walking out the door.

You were disappointed when Shelley brought your evening meds by later. She was a nice enough nurse. She just wasn’t Tom.

You’d grown accustomed to mainly having him as your nurse during the evening shift. At first you weren’t sure if it was coincidence or on purpose, but after a few nights of staying up and talking, you grew closer to him. You saw less of the other nursing staff and more of Tom.

You tried not to build anything up in your head. You were sure everything he was doing was in his job description and a part of being a good nurse.

He would sneak you extra pudding cups from the cafeteria and bring you an extra heated blanket because you could never stay warm. If you needed a new IV, he held your hand to ease the anxiety. He kept you company and made you feel less alone in such a sterile and intimidating place. And when he noticed you had trouble sleeping he chose to sit with you to help you fall asleep. You couldn’t help the butterflies that built in your stomach.

It became a sort of routine. He checked on you during evening vitals, even if someone else was doing them, and you were always still awake. He would then come and sit with you and chat for a bit, telling you different stories until you eventually fell asleep.

Some nights when you were extra restless he would help you walk the halls.

“The doctors have to see you’re stable enough before you can be discharged. Plus, maybe it’ll tire you out.” He suggested.

He would help get your IV pole ready so you could walk with it. He helped you into your slippers and eased you out of bed after passing you your robe.

Walking the hall slowly, Tom knew he had to remain professional, yet he found a few excuses to graze his hand across your back to ‘steady you’ when you turned corners or he thought you were looking tired.

“It might take me a while to get back to my usual jogs in the park, huh?” You laughed in spite of yourself.

“You’ll get there. Baby steps.” He encouraged, as you turned around the Nurse’s Station. You missed the faces the other night shift nurses were giving you both, but Tom was sure to subtly flick them off. “So, do you like running?” He asked as you headed back towards your room.

Throughout your late nights together, he told you of his three younger brothers and his dog named Tessa. You spoke about what you would do when you were out of hospital. He talked about his friends and flatmates and the adventures they had. He told you many stories, but each morning when you woke up he was clocked out and the day shift nurses were there.

Tonight was your last night. You’re set to be discharged tomorrow and while you are ecstatic to go home, you’re going to miss one thing about this place.

“I bet you’re too excited to sleep tonight. I don’t know if my stories will even help.” Tom said as he sat down next to you.

You smiled up to him sweetly.

“What are you looking forward to the most once you get out of here?”

“Sleeping in my own bed.”

“Well that’s no surprise.” Tom laughed, a contagious sound making you giggle as well. “Isn’t there anything you’ll miss about this place?”

“Yeah.” He smiled “There’s one thing.”

“What’s that?” He asks.

“The pudding cups.”

“Ahh the pudding cups of course.” You giggled while fiddling with the IV line.

“They just don’t taste the same in the outside world.”

His smile grew wider as you giggled.

“No, but really. As much as I give this place grief and say I’m ready to get out of here - which I am,” You gave him a pointed look to which he held his hands up in mock surrender, fully believing you, “it hasn’t been too terribly awful I guess.”

“Oh, well, I’m glad we could make your stay not too terribly awful.. I guess.” He teased. “Do you have anything exciting to look forward to once you’re a free woman?”

“Nothing huge planned, really. The doctors did say to take it easy.”

“That’d be wise.”

“Yeah. I’ll just lay low for a while. My sister said she may try to come visit me though so that would be nice.”

“Oh that would be nice. She’s your older sister right?”

“Right. She moved away last year to be closer to her boyfriend.”

“Ah. Do you like him?”

“Sorry?”

“This boyfriend. Do you like him?”

“He’s alright, I suppose. He makes her happy.” Tom nodded along.

“And do you have a boyfriend that makes you happy?”

“N-No. No I don’t. Not at the moment.” You began fiddling with the IV cord again.

“No boyfriend or not a boyfriend that makes you happy?” He asked.

“Neither.”

“Well that’s a shame.” If the heart monitor was connected you would’ve been screwed. “I just mean someone needs to look after you once you get home. I hope this sister comes through for a visit. You’ve got to take it easy.”

“Oh I’ll be fine.”

“I’m sure you will be.” He smiled.

“How has your shift been tonight? Busy?” You asked, fighting back a yawn.

“A bit busier than usual. There was a slight emergency earlier which is why Shelley handed out meds tonight. Sorry I didn’t come around.”

“It’s alright. I know you have other patients.”

“Yeah, but none like you.” You were sure he said that to all of his patients. After all, you’ve heard similar lines ever since you went to the pediatrician as a child. But it still gave you butterflies.

“Are you getting sleepy?”

“A little. But it’s okay.” He gave you a pointed look but continued to talk anyway. “It’s the last night. One final request for storytime. Make it a good one.”

You thought for a moment before asking your question.

“Do you ever wish that life turned out differently? That you never had your accident and you could’ve followed your dreams to be a dancer?” You asked while turning on your side and getting more comfortable.

“Sometimes. At least, I used to. But I think I’ve accepted it now. And I really can’t see myself doing anything but this.” You nodded taking in his answer “I look at it this way. If it wasn’t for my injury then I never would’ve changed my career path and found my love for medicine. I never would have made so many of the friends I’ve made or the memories I’ve made. I never would have met you.” He finishes with a sweet smile.

“That’s a very positive way of looking at it.” You told him. “Be honest, are you a therapist during the day?” He laughed out loud.

“No. I’m not. I guess I’m a big believer in ‘everything happens for a reason’.” You nodded while covering a yawn.

“So I’ve been curious to ask you,” He began, “Do you usually have this much trouble sleeping? Because you can get help for that you know?” You smiled at him.

“What? I thought a night nurse talking to you was the cure?” Tom smirked and shook his head. “I’m kidding. No, I normally don’t. It’s just the stiff sheets and hospital sounds I think.”

“Darn hospital.” He rolled his eyes and joked. “So this time tomorrow you’ll be sound asleep in your own bed then?”

You knew it was meant to be a happy statement, but you were a little sad at the thought of not having any more late night chats with Tom.

“Yes. Thank God.” You forced a smile.

You felt another yawn coming and tried to hold it back. It was already past the usual time that you fell asleep.

Tom could tell you were exhausted so he launched into a story from nursing school, hoping to lull you to sleep.

You yawned your way through listening, trying to soak up every last moment with Tom. In the morning he wouldn’t be here. You’d leave and likely never see him again.

When he finished, your eyes were half open and he wondered how you were still awake. Or maybe why.

“Why are you fighting it? The point is to sleep. Give in.” He told you gently after another yawn.

You looked up at him, half asleep and rubbing your eyes, not finding the confidence to tell him the true reason you were trying to stay awake.

“I’m happy right now.”

He smiled down at you.

“I am too. But you need your sleep, darling.” You weren’t sure what to say and you didn’t have much energy left in you anyway. “How about this. I’ve probably been in here too long as it is. Let me go check in at the Nurse’s Station and then I’ll come back and check on you soon and see if you’re still awake okay?”

The thought that he was leaving gave you a sad feeling in your stomach. You tried to remind yourself that he was just your nurse. Nothing more.

“Okay.” You smiled at him, sleepily, while settling further into the bed.

He stood up and instead of walking towards the door he walked closer to you. He grabbed the thin, white hospital blanket and pulled it closer around your shoulders.

“Goodnight, Y/N.” He whispered before he walked to the door.

“Tom?” You called out just before he opened it. He turned around with an expectant look, “Thanks for everything.”

Even though the room was dim you could see his smile.

“You’re welcome, Y/N. Get some sleep.”

You don’t remember much after that. You don’t know if Tom came back to check on you. You just remember falling asleep with a smile on your face.

When you woke up the following morning it felt like any other morning in the hospital.

The hallways were much louder. Beeps, chatter, and phones were constant. The lights were brighter.

But you were quickly reminded that it wasn’t any other morning. You were going home today.

The door creaked open and Tanya, one of your regular daytime nurses, poked her head in.

“Oh good you’re up.” She made her way inside and over to the gloves. “How’d you sleep?”

“Pretty good. Thanks.” She gave you a smile, something hidden behind it.

“I’m sure.” She said quietly to herself. You gave her a questioning look. “Oh I just mean I’m sure you’re excited to get out of here.”

You nodded as she took your vitals one last time.

“Everything looks good. What do you say about getting this IV out?”

“I say that sounds amazing.”

She took it out and bandaged up your arm while informing you of how the morning would go.

“Dr. McCoy is making rounds now then he’ll be by soon to go over your discharge. You can get dressed whenever you’re ready. If you need help, buzz me. You’ll still have a breakfast tray come, but you don’t have to eat it.” She gave you a wink while taking off her gloves.

“Thanks Tanya.”

“Of course, sweetie. And in case I don’t see you before you go, you’ve been a wonderful patient. Take care of yourself.” You smiled at her as she left you to change into some leggings and a sweatshirt.

You were packing your remaining things into your bag when your doctor walked in.

“Y/N! How are we doing today?”

“We’re doing great because we’re going home.” You smiled while taking a seat to rest for a few minutes.

“I know you’re excited.” He laughed before explaining the conditions of your discharge. You had medicines to take, a follow up appointment, and strict instructions to rest for the next few weeks. After signing some forms he left you with a stack of papers. “Is someone coming to pick you up?”

“Yeah my neighbor should be here within an hour.”

“Sounds good. Don’t hesitate to call us or come back in if you have any trouble or questions.”

“Will do. Thanks.”

A few minutes after he left a nurse brought in your breakfast tray. There wasn’t much of a point for it but since your discharge wasn’t technically until 10:30 am you were still a patient during breakfast.

You took the pudding cup that you requested with every meal off the tray before sliding it away. Smiling to yourself, you tucked it away in your bag. All you had left to do was wait for 10:30.

Tanya came in to check on you again and told you to buzz the Nurse’s Station when you knew your ride was here. At 10:27 you had a text from your neighbor that they were out front in the pickup zone. So you hit the call button.

“Yes?” Linda, the scariest dayshift nurse, answered.

“Um hi. Tanya told me to buzz in when my ride was here so I could go down.”

“Okay we’ll be right in.”

Not even a minute later you heard your door open. Expecting to see Tanya or maybe even Linda you looked up.

An audible gasp left your lips when Tom stood in your doorway with a wheelchair.

“I hear someone needs a ride?” He smiled as he made his way closer to the bed.

“Tom. What are you still doing here?”

“I pulled a double.” You wanted to ask why, but decided against it. You were still in a little bit of shock from seeing him again. “If you’d rather I can go get Linda to walk you down?” He pointed back towards your door.

“No! No.. I’m just surprised s’all.”

“Well come on. I thought you’d be running out of this place once the clock hit 10:30.” Glancing up you saw it was now 10:34. Your neighbor is probably tired of waiting already.

You grabbed your discharge papers and reached for your bag when you heard, “I got it.” Smiling at him, you sat down in the wheelchair. Tom placed the bag around his shoulder and kicked the brakes off the chair. “Ready?” You nodded up at him.

He rolled you out of the room that felt so small for a final time. You passed the Nurse’s Station and waved bye to the staff. He turned by the elevators and when you looked up at him in question, he read your mind. Looked down at you he said, “We’re taking the staff elevators.”

When you made it there he hit the button, turning you around and backing you in once the doors opened. He hit the button for the Lobby and leaned up against the wall of the elevator, briefly glancing at you, as you rode down together.

“Well you made it. You’re a free woman.” He smiled shyly.

“Yippee.” He met your eyes for a moment before looking back to the floor. The dynamics felt different. It wasn’t like your late night talks together.

“Listen, Y/N.” Tom began as he stood up from the wall and faced you. He was about to continue when the elevator ding cut him off, signaling you had reached your destination.

Maybe that was what was different. You had reached your destination.

You had a fun time talking with Tom and entertaining each other when you were both up late at night. He was fun to get to know and you enjoyed having someone care for you. He was easy to banter with and certainly easy on the eyes. But your time at the hospital was up. You knew it would be eventually. You wanted it to be.

Tom was a nurse. He was just doing his job. He was helping take care of you. He was being nice. He was trying to make your stay more comfortable. There was nothing to read into.

Your time being his patient was up and your time with him was up.

You tried to remain realistic, but the sadness still crept up as he rolled you closer to the door.

Once outside, you saw your neighbor exit the car and wave you over. Tom steered in the direction and slowed before rolling to a stop and hitting the brake locks on the wheels.

“Hi, I’m Taylor.”

“Tom.” They shook hands as Tom passed off your bag for Taylor to put in the backseat.

“I’m sorry for the circumstances, but it really has been a pleasure having you as a patient and getting to know you, Y/N.” Tom admitted as he walked around to face you. He grabbed the papers from your lap. “Take care of yourself, okay?” You had shared many smiles with Tom, but this one felt sadder.

“I will. Thank you for everything, Tom. I mean it.” You reached up and squeezed his hand. He gave you a light squeeze back while smiling down at you. Taylor returned from the backseat of the car and Tom turned to them.

“These are her important papers about follow up appointments, medications, what to do at home, all of that so please make sure she doesn’t lose any of them.” He emphasized the point.

“Got it. Thanks.” Taylor held onto the stack while Tom turned back to you.

“If I can’t handle a few papers on my own, then maybe I shouldn’t be going home yet, Tom.” You laughed.

“I know, I just wanted to make sure they made it home with you.” He walked closer. “You ready to get in?”

“Yeah.” You nodded. He helped you up, supporting you just as a precaution. Once seated, you took a moment to catch your breath as you pulled the seatbelt down. He met your hand, taking it from you to buckle you in.

“You good?”

You nodded with a smile, “Just a little tired. No biggie.”

He looked you over before returning your smile, though his didn’t quite reach his eyes, “If you need us, call us. Otherwise go home and rest.”

This was it. This was goodbye.

“Thanks, Tom.”

“Goodbye, Y/N.”

He shut the door. He walked back to the wheelchair, released the brake locks and headed inside. He looked back only when your car was driving away.

“Here’s those papers that are so important.” Taylor handed you the stack after they got in.

“Thanks.”

“So how are you feeling?”

“Better. Thanks.” You felt them looking at you as they joined traffic.

“You sure? You sound like you feel awful.”

You try to remind yourself to forget the sweet and attractive nurse and start moving forward.

“Yeah. Yeah I’m okay.” You decide to distract yourself by reading through your discharge paperwork, when something caught your eye. On top was a sticky note with the hospital’s letterhead. You were sure it wasn’t there before. Looking closer it read,

Y/N,

In case you need someone to talk to when you can’t sleep.

555-5555

P. S. I have a connection to some pretty good pudding cups too.

Tom

The smile that grew on your face was undeniable. All the feelings you suppressed came flooding in. He wasn’t just being nice. He actually liked you.

One thing you knew for sure was that even though you would be in your own bed tonight, you still would be up, talking to a very special nurse.

Lmk if you want to be on my tag list

[quackisinnit]

What Dream, George, Sapnap, Karl, Quackity, c!Techno, Wilbur would get you for Valentine's Day

Note: probabaly the biggest headcanon i've ever wrote KDSHJS i'll only do this when theres a speacual occasion. sorry it came out so late!!

Genre: fluff, romantic, irl and in-game, gender neutural, they/them

Warnings: none

Navigation

Dream

Heart Shaped Balloons and Flowers

he would bring you to a fancy restaurant

like he would go all out

anyways

he gives you the gifts like before you leave the restaurant

he payed for the check

and he just stands up and says "wait here, i'll just get something real quick from the car"

you're so confused cause like

he already brought you to a fancy place?? what other surprise does he have for you

and he comes in with the balloons and flowers

and you're all like

"dream you're too sweet, i'm gonna cry"

"aww no dont cry D:"

when he gives it to you he kisses your cheek and say some romantic stuff

"i love you so much y/n"

"i'm so grateful for you, thank you for sticking withme theough thick and thin"

George

Chocolates and A Teddy Bear

you would both be at home

just hangin out

cause why go out if you can just stay at home an watch movies together??

he'd even make you pick the movie

which is pretty rare

cause in his words,

"you always pick the worst movies"

"wdym??? i pick the best movies D:<"

and while watching

he gets up and you dont really expect anything

cause yaknow he could be going to the rest room

and when he comes back,

he calls out to you, gifts in hand

"y/n,"

you then look at him and he smiles at you

"happy valentines day:)"

and he'd give you the tightest hug in the world

"aw george thank you, you're the best"

"i know😏"

"oh shut up"

Sapnap

A Big Teddy Bear and Flowers

he would try to plan something big

like a big banner with "happy valentines day!", lots of flowers, etc

but he couldn't cause he was busy:((

and a few days before valentines day he'd just buy you flowers

he planned to give it to you before you wake up

so he woke up earlier than you

he tried to make breakfast for you

but he was so nervous so it was pretty hard

like he would be trying to make you some eggs but heended up burning them on accident

in the end he just made you a sandwhich

when he went in you were still alseep

and after a few minutes of deciding,

he called dream LMAOO

"DREAM HELP WHAT DO I DO"

"JUST WAKE THEM UP"

and so he did

you were greeted with a very happy and nervous sapnap

"happy valentine's day:)"

and he'd give you the flowers and sandwhich

later on in the day you both went to a carnival and win you a big teddy bear in one of the games

cause he felt bad for just getting flowers djshsj

Karl

Cupcakes and A Teddy Bear

he'd first greet you in the morning by peppering your face with kisses and handing you the bear

"here you go love, happy valentines day"

and he'd be all giggly that day too

for the next surprise

he would make this a bonding experience

like you would both make the cupcakes

maybe even make a contest and see who makes the better cupacakes

and it'd be so much fun

he'd throw flour at you, try to mess up the color of your icing by adding more food color in it, etc

like you'd be mixing and he just comes up behind you and probabaly throws an egg at your head LMAOO

"okay so i nee-" you feel something hard hit your head and then hear a cracking sound

you turn around to see that karl has thrown an egg at your head

but it didnt break, it only broke when it finally hit the ground

"oh karl you're in for it now-"

you'd be throwing different ingredients at eachother

maybe even spoons and spatulas

"HA get recked y/-" he pauses

"y/n."

"did you just hit my head with a fork?"

"... maybe"

just really chaotic honestly

and cleaning up would be pretty hard

like there would be flour and icing everywhere

but the whole experince was fun<3

Quackity

Flowers and Song/Poem

he'd be stressed about it

like "will they like it?" "is it good enough??"

just lots of thoughts racing through his head

when he gives it (the flowers) to you

his hands would be sweaty

he clears his throat and gets a piece of paper from his pocket

and its the poem

he starts readibg the lines

(spoiler, its a joke poem)

"y/n, the first time i saw you, i pissed my pants"

"and i like ants"

or somethimg like that KSJAK

he'd just say stupid stuff to make you laugh

then after that comes the real gift

the song

this man makes his own song and tune

nothing was taken from the internet

like he wrote the lyrics himself and the tune

and he'd sing it seriously

when done with the song, he looks at you

"did you like it??"

"like it?" you scoffed

his heart fucking STOPS

"i loved it:)"

and he'd just let a sigh of relief

"dont ever pull that shit again i thought you hated it >:()"

Techno

Going on Picnic and Poem

at first he wouldn't know what to give you tbh

he'd be asking phil what to give you

"phil what should i give y/n?"

and phil would help him

"just give them anything, i'm sure they'll love whatever you get"

"but phil what if-"

he'd want something good enough for you

like he doesn't want to get you just flowers

it needs to be something better than that

but at the same time he's just too lazy to plan anything that big

so he just decided on going on a simple picnic

and he also decided to write you a poem

so you're picnic takes face in a large field

in the middle of nowhere

"techno, where are we?"

"you'll see"

you both to a hill where you find a blanket and a basket, filled with various kinds of food and drinks

"aww techno, thank you. you're so sweet:D"

and he'd be all flustered

"yeah but its just a picnic.."

you both sat down and just talked about things

and before you left he told you he had one more surprise

he reaches to the bottom of the basket where a paper lays

he gets it and begins reading it to you

spoiler alert, its the poem

when he's done, just like quackity, he looks at you

"did,, did you like it?????"

"i loved it techno" and you peck him on the lips

and techno?

boom, his heart explodes

"i'm glad you liked it"

he's so awkward and flustered brrr

Wilbur

Chocolates and a Song

with the song he just speedran it

but at the same time he didnt

like he made the tune quickly

but he took a long time with the lyrics

trying to find the perfect words

but it was hard

because you were so perfect and lovely to him

also cause you were always around him

and you might see what he was doing:((

obviously that would ruin the surprise

so he tried his best to keep it a a secret

and he was able to do it

soon valentines day came

and he sang his song to you

in a blanket fort he made

out of chairs, blankets, and pillows

the fort was filled with stuffed animals, snacks, drinks etc

anything you could think of, it was probably there JSJAJSJ

and if you had a pet

they would just be chilling in the fort

he sang his song there

after, he gave you choclates

cause why not??

he loves you so much so why not more gifts???

[foxtricksterwriting]

Writing Dump; Hurt + Comfort

Pairing: Platonic

Media: Interactive Fiction(@mata-aetara-if)

Author's Note: I needed some comfort, so I wrote it! I'm gonna write something for Eiichi next probably.

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

Hayanori watches the sky, idly flapping their fan. He couldn't hear a thing from inside their dad's restaurant from their place on the flat rooftop. Most days they'd try to help out, but on busy nights like tonight it quickly got overwhelming. The light from the sun catches their orange hair, making it shine a golden hue. He brings his feet to his chest, thankful that the sun's finally setting and giving him a break from the merciless heat. Somewhere below him he hears footsteps scuffing against the rough dirt path. Must be leaving, he thinks. "Ah, you were right! This place is great!" a lady says loudly. "I know, that's why I was making you come with me!" Another chimes in, laughing. "Good thing that creepy kid wasn't in there this time," a third person says, making Hayanori tense up.

"What creepy kid?" the first lady asks, confusion staining her voice. "The owners kid, I think. They work in there sometimes. Big, bulging blue eyes and no expression whatsoever. They just..... stare," the second answers. "Geez, that does sound creepy."

Hayanori shrinks in on himself, curling into a little ball. He can see the three now as they walk down the street. He desperately hopes they won't look towards him.

"They're so monotone, too. I thought they were a robot when I first heard 'em talk," one continues. "Y'know, I've heard that kid sets up traps and shit, trying to tangle people up and hurt them," the third murmurs, trying to keep their voice down to no avail. "Really?"

"Yeah, they try to torment everyone around them. I doubt they have any real friends," the second says, resentment hinted in her voice. "I'm glad we didn't run into them, then!" The first lady brings a hand to her cheek. Her friends laugh as they keep walking.

Hayanori stays on the roof, motionless for what feels like hours until he's sure they're far, far away. Then they silently slip down the slanted part of the roof and gently steps onto some random boxes stacked against the wall. They jump down onto the ground, making a soft thud as they land. He sprints off down the street, destination already set in their mind.

He skids to a stop just before running right into the person he was going to see; Niko. They startle a bit, "Hey, Nori! Wasn't expecting you!" They give him a smile then ask "What's up?"

"I'm sad," Hayanori blurts out, still a bit breathless. Niko frowns, "what's wrong? What happened?"

His words swell in his throat and they shake their head, wordlessly holding his arms out. Niko pulls him into a hug and squeezes him comfortingly, "It's okay. I'm here now, it's okay." The two stand there in the street, hugging each other until Hayanori decides to speak. "I heard some people talking about me again," he states, voice barely above a whisper. Niko scoffs into his shoulder, "really?"

Nori hums, squeezing his friend. "Whatever they said, they're wrong!" They bark out a little too loud. "It's always the same things..." he says, throat tightening again. "And they're always wrong!" Niko squeezes them harder, making him squirm a little. They mumble out a little sorry before Nori gently starts to pull away. The two untangle themselves. "What were you doing before I almost ran into you?" he tilts his head to the side. "Was looking for you, now you're here!" Niko smiles brightly. They both seem to realize that neither have any ideas on what to do now that they've found each other.

"Want to go find Asahi? Maybe cause some trouble somewhere?"

"Yes, to both of those."

[jasonsthunderthighs]

Encounter

I got bored again and wrote this. Sorry that it's not DC related. I have another one in my draft, but I don't want to lose any followers cause of it. I'm sorry for some sad shit and my rants. I honestly have no where to rant but here.

It's Gravity Falls related, by the way. Sorry. As always to all of my stories, the reader is always Non-binary.

Word count: 2,051

Let's just say life isn't easy on you in the slightest. And neither is fate. From the abuse and neglect of your childhood, getting kicked out of home as a teenager, barely making it in high school, (considering you were one of the smartest students there, you didn't have the place and time to really make it, even from all the couch surfing you did and avoiding the cops tryin to find you cause your abusive parents miss you as their punching bag.) bein homeless to gettin caught in a Time War in the year ~207012 (pronounced "twenty snyevendy twelve").

It wasn't meant to happen when you ran into the weird, sweaty, stuttering, bald man, who happened to be a time traveler. Always time hopping and even managed to skip a few dimensions when you found out how to. Eventually, you accidentally broke the time device, causing it to keep you at the age of barely 21. Even worse when you don't look like an adult as much as you really look like a teenager.

That doesn't stop you from skipping dimensions, getting yourself into trouble with everythin and bein an outlaw in a lot of the dimensions you entered.

With the huge bounty over your head, it makes it more exciting for you; the adrenaline rush of possibly gettin caught, using your skills you've learned and getting stronger from it. You weren't just a Human; you're a powerful Sorcerer and nobody stands in your way, that's what makes the hunt for you so much more interestin.

You weren't the only one causing mayhem throughout the dimensions, you've heard the name of Ford Pines, but only in stories. Never have you ever thought of actually running into him after one of your chaotic plans took place.

He was also running from the same law, for an unrelated crime, not taking any acknowledgement of you when you both hit a dead end at the same time from two different ways.

“Over here!” You hissed at him, easily creating a hole in the wall to make an opening to another dimension.

He jumps into the hole with you, the hole immediately closes before the beings caught up with you both. Running out of breath, you two look at each other. In shock, as you were both huge outlaws throughout the dimensions.

“I've heard ‘bout you.. Thought you were just a ghost sorry.” He looks at you, as if seeing an actual ghost. You'd expect him to be in his late 30s, not well into his 50s. From all the things you heard, or sounded like what you've would've done or at least someone in they're 20s bein stupid.

But this man was tryin to survive. He's not doin this for fun. He's not enjoying the chase like you are.

“So have I, Stanford Pines. You've got quiet the bounty over your head, Friend.” You jab a finger at his chest. “You're a big deal in a lot of dimensions. Be lucky I helped with that.”

He scoffs at your comment, batting your hand away from him, “So are you, ‘Friend’.. Acting a fool for no reason, just like the child you are. Act your actual age.”

“Ouch, you're welcome.. Cocky aren't we? No need for the attitude. Don't know what your deal is, but I'm not the enemy. C'mon, at least we can try ta help each other.”

He looks at you, “‘Help each other’? Kid, you're not here for anyone but yourself and it shows from how little you care when you cause chaos. You'll only get in my way. I'm not goin to babysit you and save your stupid ass when you get into a mess you've created.”

You watch him turn on his heel, back to you as he walks away, “Thanks, I guess.”

“Tch. Whatever, old man. Not even knowin’ where you're at.” He was difficult to talk to, that's not wrong from what you heard. A man with a huge ego and a person who's just in it for the rush don't go

together. You may be ageless now, but that doesn't change how you can still be serious. It won't get in your way.

You two split paths without a word to each other, not caring where he goes or what he does. What a jerk he was. On a few points he was right; you do cause chaos. What can you say? You love the thrill, even if your age isn't 21 anymore.

You continued hoping dimensions over the next decade, still causing the chaos from before; but in actually saving other beings from bein sold out in auctions.

This one auction was different from the others, seeing Bill Cipher in the flesh as he sits in the high booth of the area. This'll be interesting.

Sneaking your way into the building, carefully watching what was goin on and the captives-

You couldn't believe your eyes. Stanford Pines himself was one of 'em. He finally got caught and is bein sold out. You wanted to help him. It's the right thing to do. Why should you help him when he'll just push you away and barely even thank you, like he did the last time? That's what you were gonna do; save the others and let him fend for himself, since he's so great at it.

He wasn't in his getup that he usually wore, instead he was shirtless and chained up in glowing blue chains that he can't seem to pick at on his neck, wrists and ankles. You expected him to have scars, but not THIS many on his body. You suppressed a laugh when he turned and you saw his neck tattoo. What a stupid little tattoo he got from that gang he was in.

Nonetheless, you weren't gonna save him. He's got it covered, Mr. Know-it-all. Nodding your head in agreement, you quietly and cautiously made your way to the captives, using a spell to unlock their chains, Ford watching you and seeing his restraints not off yet.

As you helped the last of the captives go safely into their own dimensions, the guards start walking back to where you're at, and you looked at Ford, watching him struggle with his restraints, as he didn't have anythin to actually pick the locks with.

You groan, running to help him until you saw the guards and quickly hid away, watching Ford be taken away into the auction area. “Fuck my life...”

“And for our first auction, the one you've all wanted, as he is wanted in more dimensions than you can count. A hard find and interesting Human, Stanford Pines.” The auctioneer greeted with a smile, you see Bill's eye widen up seeing Ford's face. This is not good. Not one bit. You suck in your breath, and ran down the hallway, jumping up on one of the guards, burning him in the process as you flip over him, kicking the second guard away from Ford, and ran to him. The whole crowd of auctioneers go wild what was happening, as they all immediately recognised you, moving down into the pit where you're in towards you two.

“What are you doin’ here? Are you insane?! They'll go for you too!” Ford yells as you free him from his restraints and grabbed him by his arm, pulling him back into the hallway where he was in the beginning.

“Just shut up an’ run, ya idiot!” You barked, making another portal in the wall and pushed him into it, following behind him and closing the hole again before being found.

You look at the older man, he's gotten older that's for sure, his grey hair actually coming in with a white stripe around his head to show that time had passed since you've both last encountered. Looking into your bag you carried and found a shirt he can at least wear and not feel humiliated, tossing it to him.

He looks back at you when he caught the shirt, seeing as you haven't changed a bit, but only your attire and sporting more scars than before from past fights, “I see you haven't changed.”

You scoff, he hasn't changed a bit, “You're welcome..”

“What you did was stupid. And now there's more looking. I could've-”

“You could've what? Try ta pick your chains with what? The little instrument you were usin’ that didn't work? Get real, Stanford. You were fucked an’ I helped you. Just, for once, swallow your damn pride an’ ego an’ realise there's people who'll help you if you give ‘em a chance, instead of throwin’ it all away and actin’ like the know-it-all, lonely hero.” You threw his clothes you've managed to grab from your bag, looking at him in annoyance. He needed to get knocked off his high horse for once. It is hard in the dimensions, but it's also great to get the help once in awhile. To know you're not truly alone.

Seeing him actually speechless as he puts the rest of his clothes back on, placing his goggles on his head, “Thanks.. I appreciate what you did. But now you're as big as a target than I am. What you did was still stupid. Are you hurt?”

You shrug it off, “I don't care if I'm a target. I've been doin’ this for a decade instead of my chaotic bullshit.. Ta lay low, y'know? An’ no, I'm not hurt.”

Seeing Bill Cipher at the auction was fearful, as he is one of the most strongest. You've heard stories and don't want no part of it. The posters you seen of Ford and to give to Bill made it more dangerous for him now, since everybody will be looking for him.

“Hey. I've been meanin’ ta ask ya.” You looked at him shooting his head up at you from tying his laces on his boots up, “What's with Bill Cipher wantin’ ya? All the posters say ta give ya ta him.”

He sighs, sitting down on the ground, putting his hands on his head, you could see all twelve of his fingers. So the rumours are true. “Almost thirty years ago, I made a deal with him. To build a portal for him in exchange for knowledge and truths of the secrets of the area I was in. An old friend of mine and I built the portal and an accident happened to my friend, causing him to quit the project. He saw the nightmare realm. I should've listened to him. But I didn't and ended up here, hopping dimensions and wanted in so many of ‘em for the next thirty years.”

That answers the question. He's been in this realm for thirty years. Still with fight in him. “I'm sorry ‘bout that, mate. You've been at it for years. Gettin so far in this hellhole. You're not alone on this.” You smiled at him, wanting to give a chance of actually helping someone.

“I don't know, Kid.. It's just-” He stood up seeing a spark appearing in the air, getting closer to inspect it, holding his arm out to you to keep at a distance.

You realised what was goin on, standing back as the spark comes back a few times, and opened up a portal to somewhere.

“What the Hell?” Ford looks closer and sees it clearer, “It's a portal..”

“To where?” You looked at him, just as confused as he is.

“Somewhere.. We need to take it. I have a feelin’ on this..”

“What??? We don't know where it goes! At least when I do this, I know where I'm at!” You argued, that dimension could lead you to another dimension of unimaginable horror or worse. The portal starts to close up.

“I'm goin in! With or without you!” He yells back, putting his goggles back over his eyes, his scarf over his neck and mouth and his hood over his head before jumping in and disappearing into the mystery portal.

You cursed at yourself, running after him before it closed in on you, seeing Ford walking out calmly as you jumped out and behind a huge fallen chunk of rock to hide what was happening, only to hear voices on the other side.

“What...? Who is that?”

“The author of the journals... My brother.”

[sunjaesol]

THE MANY CRUSHES OF LUKE PATTERSON... AND THE ONE THAT STUCK

💌💌💌💌💌💌💌💌

1982

Luke Patterson's first crush ever was Haley Martin. He adored the colour of her hair — like the clementines his mom bought — and the way she finger-painted, enough for his four year old eyes to stare at her in awe.

He watched her make mud pies in the sandbox from the monkey bars, only to ruin them to get a rise out of her. He couldn't understand why she didn't like him the way he did, so he nagged his mom to explain.

"Teasing girls should be fun for them too, sweetheart," she soothed. "This Haley clearly didn't like it."

He blinked. "Huh?"

Her smile stayed warm, similar to hot chocolate and whenever grandpa conjured candies from behind his ear. "Why don't you share your grapes with her tomorrow? I'm sure she'll like that."

His nose scrunched up. "Why?"

"Because it's sweet, Luke."

"I don't get that," he shrugged. "But I'll try."

The next day, he sat beside her during storybook time and that seemed to help a little already. By the time it was lunch, her mood was lifted, which excited him too, and urged him to offer the grapes.

It earned him a featherlight kiss on the cheek.

Luke squeaked in surprise, flushing a firetruck red, to which she giggled and plopped another grape in her mouth.

Three days later, his crush was gone from his mind and he began sharing his grapes with his new friend Reginald instead.

1986

"Can you ask Jessica what she thinks of me?" Luke hurriedly whispered, eyes flickering between Reggie and the girl from across the courtyard.

Normally, Luke Patterson exuded confidence. The resident class clown, always opening his jaw to react to the teacher without raising his hand, catching fights with stupid classmates, sneaking into dad's stationwagon to create mixtapes.

Fearlessness was his freaking middle name. (It was actually Beck, but whatever. He wished it was something cool like Duran Duran though.)

But when it came to girls... he got so nervous. Because they were girls! He didn't understand them! They hated rambunctious boys and only listened to stupid pop music and blabbered about how they stole makeup from their sisters.

Jessica, however, somehow made his heart flutter and his stomach twist up. She just looked cool in her dungarees and she had a pretty smile and she didn't wear that overwhelming, sugary perfume that was now popular.

Reggie snickered, in the way only eight year old boys could. "You liiiiiiike her!"

"No!" He scowled. "I–I'm just curious."

"Sure," he drawled, but then shrugged in agreement, the oversized leather jacket rustling on his shoulders. He stole it from his older brother after he saw him kissing (!!!) some girl and figured it held some magic to impress the ladies with.

"Just do it!"

With a dramatic flourish, the boy left their hiding spot, Luke lurking around the corner of the alcove to watch. Jessica looked up from her hard work of creating friendship bracelets and smiled at Reggie.

Oh, gosh. She was pretty.

A minute later, a sheepish Reg slowly crawled back to him, cheeks red and fiddling with the zipper of his jacket.

Luke grabbed his shoulders, urgent. "What did she say?"

"Uh... well..."

"C'mon, dude!"

Reggie sighed. "She... likes me, buddy. Sorry."

His hopeful face crashed into one of devestation, quickly covering it up with a laugh and a squeeze of the shoulder. Oh, man, what would Steven Tyler do?

"That– that's dope!"

In the end, Reggie and Jessica were boyfriend and girlfriend for a week while he wrote an angry poem about how stupid dungarees were.

Huh... it was surprisingly good.

1988

"Hey, Luke," Gwenn greeted, shy, tucking her hands in her Camp Wacky Rocka hoodie. "I really liked that song you made about your guitar."

Jumping from the tree branch to the ground, Luke dazzled her with an appreciative smile. From above, Reggie and their new friend Alex watched on curiously.

"Thanks!"

Who would've thought that summer camp would be the first time he made a real, girl friend! Gwenn was super cool and she played the saxophone and she liked Joan Jett and her hair was all curly and big and it reminded him of pretty clouds.

Looking over her shoulder, he noticed a gaggle of girls staring at them. Like they were waiting.

Gwenn stared at him. "Can you close your eyes?"

He frowned. "Why?"

"Just 'cause."

Whatever. Maybe she wanted to show him something cool and would stick it in his hand. Complying, he closed his eyes and impatiently waited, bouncing on his heels.

"So?"

Suddenly, he felt a light, warm touch on his mouth and — oh! She was kissing him!

Luke staggered back in surprise, gawking at a blushing Gwenn as she squeaked a sorry and ran back to the now giggling and screeching girls. They ran away like a flock of birds.

It was a dare! His first kiss, stolen by a dare!

His boys jumped down beside him, awed.

Reggie hollered. "You kissed Gwenn!"

"I don't get it," Alex muttered.

Luke's face twisted up in a sour expression. Camp Wacky Rocka should be all about the music and becoming legends and Gwenn ruined it!

He stuck his tongue out. "Whatever. Let's go to the mess hall!"

1989

When Luke turned eleven, he kissed someone for real.

His birthday party was at the arcade, loud chatter and robotic sounds clashing together in an amazing cacophony. His parents hated the place, which is why Luke loved it.

Of the twenty guests, Yasmine clapped the loudest after he finished his song with the boys — Math Is For Losers! — and grabbed his hand as they walked to a duel game.

Luke felt fuckin' giddy the entire time. (Freakin' in front of his parents, fuckin' with friends.) The swoop in his stomach, his cheeks stretched into a wide beam.

Freshly eleven and the king of the arcade, he boldly asked if he could kiss her.

She smiled, her purple headband glittering in the neon lights, and nodded.

It was short and warm and her lips tasted like pink lemonade and sour gummies and it gave him an entirely new buzz. It was exciting.

He kissed her a couple more times the days after, eager and curious, until she claimed she was now only interested in twelve year old boys.

Since Luke now held the record of most kisses between him, Alex and Reggie, he wasn't too bothered by it. They shook hands, complimented each other on the kissing, and that was that.

1992

"Are you or are you not my boyfriend?" Olivia bit, crossing her arms.

Luke sighed, lazy gaze drifting from her to his band waiting by their bikes. Damn, he thought having a girlfriend would be way easier. Why was she so tense?

"I am," he said. "Why do you think I'm not?"

"Because you ignore me, like, all the time!" Pouting, she fiddled with the hem of her tartan skirt. "And now you're going to be with your band!"

He shrugged. "You can come with us and listen, if you want."

Luke met Olivia this year as deskmates in French class. Her raven hair was long and thick and her lips were all shiny from lip gloss and maybe he got a little cocky, thinking he could be dating the hottest girl of freshman year, so he naturally asked her out.

Maybe he should've considered beforehand whether they had anything in common, but he'd always been the overzealous type. And besides... she was a good kisser.

She scoffed. "That's not any better. Whatever. I'll just hang with Tina and Priscilla then. Laters!"

Plopping a kiss on his lips, she turned around and stalked to her whispering friends. Luke puffed, adjusted the beanie and made his way to the boys.

Girls were confusing.

"I bet dating boys is easier," Alex mused. "Like, equally terrifying, but also... easier. I think. Maybe."

Bobby laughed. "How's the girlfriend, Luke?"

"Ha ha," he deadpanned. "Let's go. I got this new song, Crooked Teeth, and it's a fucking banger!"

Olivia broke up with him after Sunset Curve's first, official gig at the arcade with the explanation that he loved music more than her. He never loved her to begin with, so maybe that was the problem.

She made out with Bobby that same night.

Holy shit, man. He supposed that bitter feeling at the sight of them tasted like rock 'n roll, the one thing he actually craved.

What a funny, funny feeling. (He wrote a hell of a lot of songs about it after. He never quite looked at Bobby the same way either.)

1995

"Hey, Maisie." Leaning against the locker beside the girl, he shot her a million dollar smile. "You comin' to our gig tonight? It's at The Orpheum."

Maisie was fucking awesome. Always in short, flowery dresses and fishnet tights and thick eyeliner like a rockstar, always listening to something new on her walkman. She came from a rich family, but that didn't hinder them from becoming friends.

Her jaw fell slack in awe, him instantly gaining more confidence. Ducking his head to meet her eye, he leaned a little closer. He knew damn well what he was doing, and he got a thrill every time it worked.

"Really?" She gasped. "That's awesome! I'll so be there!"

"Sweet," he grinned. "And stay after too."

A brow quirked up, intrigued. "Why?"

He shrugged. "Just 'cause."

"Right," she drawled. "Nothing is 'just because' with you, Luke."

"And that's why you gotta stay," he teased, nudging her shoe with his. "To find out."

If they rocked that gig and he felt like a fucking legend, he hoped it would end with the two of them hooking up. He wasn't interested in dating — having learned his lesson after Olivia — and he knew she wasn't either, but she was fun.

And that was the most important to him: to have fucking fun. Luke Patterson was here for a good time, not a long time.

And if nothing happened between him and Maisie, then he'd still feel like a legend. In a couple of hours, he was going to play at The Orpheum! How gnarly was that?!

2022

Twenty-seven years later, Luke was still seventeen years old. While he preferred to not question the science behind ghostly activities — he flunked physics anyway — he was happy that he froze at this age.

Because Julie was seventeen, too.

And, man. He was madly in love with her.

He loved everything, from the babyhairs curling around her ears, to her voice and compassionate soul, to her beautiful smile, all the way to her cute, doodled sneakers.

Her epic music taste, her snark, the way she always found his gaze, the way she finished his lyrics, the way she always knew what to say to make him feel better.

His heart melted to a flickering candle whenever she hugged him, a raging wildfire erupting between every kiss. He was a fool for her.

"Stop moving," she giggled, one hand coming up to hold his chin.

He grinned, "Sorry, Jules."

Shifting closer, she dabbled more glitter on his cheeks. They were playing at a black-light club tonight, so Julie and Flynn bought all the glow in the dark makeup available at the store for the occasion.

They looked ridiculous in daylight, Julie's weirdly pink lipstick claiming all his attention, but he knew they'd look fucking cool once the lights went down.

"You want to watch a movie after the gig?" she whispered.

Luke rolled his eyes, playful. "You're gonna fall asleep."

"Yeah." With a bashful tilt of the shoulder, she leaned in closer. "But then you'll be with me."

"Julie! How scandalous," he teased, though his chest swelled at the thought of having some alone time, some cuddle time, with Julie.

"So?"

Murmuring a yes, he closed the little distance to kiss her, sealing the deal, only for her to chase after him — an attempt to wipe the lipstick stain off his lips.

"Nah, keep it." A smirk grew. "So the people know."

She tsked. "Idiot."

"You like it."

"I'm still taking it off though, seeing as you're supposed to be a hologram," she pointed out. "But... you can kiss my lipstick away after the show."

He sighed, dreamy. "I love you."

Finishing his glitter and removing the stain, she dazzled him with a satisfied smile. "Love you too."

She rose up from the couch and went to search for Reggie, the boy likely with Carlos. For a moment, Luke was alone in the studio, allowing himself to sink into that warm, fuzzy feeling.

No matter how many blunders he went through with girls — Haley, Jessica, Gwenn, Yasmine, Olivia, Maisie — they all prepared him, in one way or the other, for Julie.

To not only recognise when an awesome girl was standing right in front of him, but also how to treat her — because Julie Molina deserved the fucking world.

Even if that world now included the supernatural.

Whatever. They were all a little crazy.

💌💌💌💌💌💌💌💌

@bluefirewrites @blush-and-books @pink-flame @ourstarscollided @constantly-singing @unsaid-emily @willexx

[billyandbope]

Connect the Dots - a style fic!

thats right ladies and gentlemen we can in fact expand our range beyond bunny fluff :] i wrote this a while ago and then forgot about it so it's probably a little cringe and i'm not proofreading it so sorry if there's typos !

681 words, fluff!

funny story. one of our friends saw this drawing out of context and thought it was p0rn. so. it's not p0rn.

Kyle Broflovski’s freckles were one of Stan’s favorite things about him. Kyle had a loving personality and frankly, great hair, but his freckles had piqued Stan’s interest since they were little kids. He used to trace little lines like constellations on Kyle’s arms and legs with his pinky finger, imagining shapes and creatures hidden among the peppered splotches in Kyle’s skin. More recently, though, Stan had taken to tracing the freckles with real marker. It gave the shapes in his mind life- Kyle complained, of course, but he loved the memory of it. He’d search the lines for logic while he lay in bed and fall asleep studying them.

“Stan. Stan! Get off of me. I’m trying to do my homework.”

“Homework is lame and weak, dude. I’m creating art right now.” Stan hugged Kyle’s arm tighter, pulling it away from the paper Kyle was writing on. Tingles shot through Kyle’s arm as Stan ran a marker along the length of it.

“Why do you insist on doing this? You know my mom will hate it when I come home with marker on my arm.” Kyle whined, shifting his focus from the paper in front of him to his best friend. Stan laid his chin down on Kyle’s arm, giving the taller boy puppy dog eyes- those puppy dog eyes. Kyle could never say no when it came to those eyes. He couldn’t say no when it came to Stan, in general. The dark-haired boy’d had a hold on him since they were just little kids. Kyle groaned, rolled his eyes, and let Stan have his arm. It was just dry erase marker anyways.

“Stan, that is dry erase marker, right?” he inquired.

“Whatever floats your boat, bestie.”

“Stan!”

Flashing lights and the sound of gunfire filled Stan’s bedroom as the boys furiously tapped on their controllers.

“C’mon, man! Why’d you have to die like that?” Kyle groaned. “I can’t do this by myself!”

“Sorry, didn’t mean to. I believe in you!” Stan put his controller down and looked at Kyle, whose eyes were focused on the screen. Stan’s eyes, however, searched once again for patterns in Kyle’s freckles. He squinted, turning his head to the side.

“Kyle, where’s my marker?” Stan asked. Kyle, still focused on the screen, motioned vaguely to the desk. Stan nodded, standing up to go grab it and coming to sit back down next to Kyle. In an attempt not to disturb Kyle’s game, Stan delicately uncapped the marker and squinted. He reached out to grab the side of Kyle’s face, eliciting a sound of discontent from the taller boy. Leaning closer, Stan started tracing the pattern he saw in his mind.

“The fuck are you doing right now, man?” Kyle asked in a gruff voice. Stan made a shushing noise.

“Bestie. Dude. I think I’m seeing the Big Dipper on your face right now. I gotta tr-” Stan started, but lost his balance mid-sentence, falling over onto Kyle. Stan sat back up almost immediately after falling, shifting to hover over Kyle.

“Stan, get off of me!” Kyle squirmed under the focused gaze Stan had on his face.

“Just lemme-” Stan paused for a moment, sticking his tongue out slightly. A tickling sensation ran through his cheeks, causing him to go red. “There. That wasn’t hard, was it?” Stan poked Kyle’s nose, backing off and giving him room to sit up. Kyle, face still pink, shifted to sitting.

“Stan, love. Why?” Stan flushed at the nickname, looking at the ground.

“I think…” Stan’s sentence trailed off, unintelligible.

“Hm?

“I think your freck…”

“Lover, I can’t hear you.”

“I think your freckles are really cute, okay?” Stan yelled, still looking at the ground. Kyle put a hand out to grab his chin, picking his gaze up off of the ground. Kyle tilted his head, smiling a little.

“I think you’re really cute, Stan.” Stan’s eyes went wide, then softened as he grinned. He glanced over at the TV screen.

“Kyle, you lost the game! How could you?”

“Oh, you are so not blaming this on me, Stan.”

i hope you enjoyed this :)

[tinyboxxtink]

"....So I Married A Monster" *Chapter 3*

So I gave you a LITTLE lovin' at the end, give me a break. I'm loving all the angsty comments I'm getting. Really gives me a rush relishing in your pain. MWAHAAHAHAHAHA. I'm kidding I love you all please don't leave me.

Chapter 2

Chapter 4

Tag List

@madamsnape921

@lolliepopsicle

@chasingeverybreakingwave

@milkshqke

@wanniiieeee

@gibbs274

@sassyada

@aprildecker-blog

@bookishfanfic

@stars-in-the-skies-world

@stars-trash-18

@omgsuperstarg

@objection-argumentative

@thatesqcrush

@shittanyy

@mrsrafaelbarba

@word-scribbless

@storiesofsvu @believinghurts

-------

The next morning

As soon as you dropped Kylie at daycare and Maggie at school, you headed to work. You worked as an executive at an advertising company, so it gave you a lot of freedom to work from home. Really helped the whole "single mom" thing.

But today you had to go into the office for a meeting, and you were dreading it. The one day you could really use to yourself, you had to go and be around people, pretending to be okay. This was going to be hell.

During your meeting, you felt your phone buzzing in your pocket. You immediately went for it, thinking maybe by some miracle Rafael had figured out a solution super fast. But to your horror, it was a text from Billy.

LUNCH?

Oh god. He knew didn't he? He knew everything. There was no way in hell he was getting you alone in your house right now. You quickly texted him back discreetly.

I'M AT THE OFFICE TODAY.

*BUZZ*

THAT'S HALFWAY TO THE CITY. COME ON, I PROMISE I'LL HAVE YOU BACK IN TIME TO PICK UP THE GIRLS.

Was he serious? He wanted you to meet him in the City? Closer to Rafael? What kind of game was he playing? Well, at least you'd be in a public place. He couldn't murder you in front of an audience. And he promised you could pick up the girls, surely he was just going to let you leave after lunch. Right? While you were thinking it over, your phone went off again.

MY TREAT

His treat? Well, that would be a first. Sure he took care of them when they were married, but since their divorce he hadn't offered up a penny more than his legally obligated alimony and child support.

"Miss Y/N, do you have somewhere better to be?" Your boss interrupted your thoughts, you noticed that the whole boardroom was staring at you.

"No sir, sorry sir," You shook your head as you typed a quick OK back to Billy before shoving your phone back into your pocket.

-------

After your meeting you headed to the restaurant address Billy texted you. You sat in your Uber running your fingers nervously through your hair and checking your makeup. Though you really weren’t sure why-- Billy wasn’t the cute harmless man you fell in love with anymore, you had to remember that. No matter how much his smile made your knees weak.

You walked into the restaurant to see Billy already at a table. He smiled and waved at you, you walked towards him and joined him.

“Hey, sweetie,” He went for a hug, but you went for the handshake.

“Hey, Billy,” You nodded as you sat down across from him. “So, what’s up?”

“I just wanted to make sure you were okay,” He kept that hundred watt smile focused on you, you felt yourself blush.

“Okay?” You tried to act nonchalant as you picked up a menu and browsed it.

“Yeah, you know after I found out you were with that animal, Barba,” He picked up his own menu and began to peruse it. You were glad he wasn’t looking at you in that moment because as soon as he called Barba the animal as opposed to himself, your fists clenched.

“Oh? Yeah it was no big deal…” You tried to keep your voice calm.

“So what did he say about me?”

“N-Nothing, I kicked him out as soon as I hung up on you, Billy,” You glanced up at him. You weren’t lying, you did kick him out right after you hung up. And it was the biggest mistake in the world.

“Really?” He looked genuinely surprised, but elated. “You just believed me over him, just like that?”

“Well, of course Billy,” You nodded as you put the menu down. “You’re the father of my children, I’ve known you for almost a decade. I...loved you,” You gulped as you sipped the courtesy water. You didn’t know if it was a great idea to toss that in, but you figured you needed to throw him as far off the scent as you could.

“...Loved?” Billy asked curiously.

Shit. Abort Abort.

“I mean, I’ll always care about you Billy,” You put a hand over his, giving him the sweetest smile you could manage.

“And Barba?” He gripped your hand a little tighter. “Do you love him?”

Shit. Alright, stay calm.

“I thought I might,” You nodded sadly. “Before you told me what a...monster, he is,” You hated even saying the words, but he needed to buy what you were selling.

“Oh, honey,” Billy gave you a sympathetic smile. “You know that’s what I’ve always loved about you. Always so trusting, and loyal...those are really great qualities in a woman,”

“...Thank you?” You sounded offended.

“Gosh,” He chuckled. “You know I am starting to forget why we even broke up,”

Oh God.

“B-Because you were always working, and you thought it would be unfair to keep going like we were going on the kids, and me,” You reminded him.

“I did say that, didn’t I?” He half laughed. “Gosh, you know I think I...I really messed that up,”

“...What?” You nearly choked on your drink.

“I think I made a huge mistake, choosing my...work, over you and the girls,” He gave you a genuinely apologetic smile.

“Oh, Billy you--” You tried to dissuade him, but he wasn't having it.

“No, you know what Y/N having the girls this past summer, it reminded me how much they mean to me. How much you, mean to me,” He took your other hand in his so he was holding them both now.

“But you know what? No more. Screw my job, I’m choosing my family this time,” He gave you the most loving smile and look you’d ever seen on him. You were starting to be even more confused than ever.

“...R-Really?” You blinked in disbelief. “You’d just...give up, your...job, for us?”

“Yes, I would babe,” He nodded, rubbing the back of your palms with his thumbs.

Suddenly, you remembered what kind of “job” he actually had. How could you get out of this? What would make sense? Wait, a thought occurred to you.

“...No,” You removed your hands from his.

“....No?” He repeated, his tone shifting. “What do you mean, no?”

“I mean, I’m not going to let you back into our lives, back into the girl’s lives. Get their hopes up that we can be a happy family again, and then you just take off again when you start itching to get back to work!”

“....Itching?” His nostrils flared. “Is there a reason you used that...specific phrase, Y/N?”

“No, it’s a term, Billy. Look it up,” You were getting more brazen, knowing you had a crowd of eyes around you. He wouldn’t try anything.

“You sure that’s not a certain lawyer talking, sweetheart?” He didn’t let up.

“....How do you know him, anyway Billy?” You suddenly changed the subject.

“Excuse me?” Now it was his turn to blink in disbelief.

“You knew him, when you called me,” You reminded him.

“Well yeah babe, I know he’s a--”

“A monster,” You finished.

“Yeah, I told you--”

“But, how would you know that?” You asked again.

“What?”

“He’s a prosecutor, Billy. You’re a...whatever it is you are,” You crossed your arms. “So how, do you know him?”

“Because….” You saw the wheels turning in Billy’s head. “Because he and the NYPD set me up!”

“They set you up?” You asked curiously.

“Yeah,” He sniffed and rubbed his nose as the waitress came and took your orders. He eyed her nervously as she wrote down your requests and left the table once more.

“You gonna elaborate?”

“Look right before I met you, I was living in the city,” He sighed, starting his story. “And I was on a harmless jog in Central Park, and these tourist girls got spooked and this bitch detective brought me in, started getting her whole squad zoned in on me for some reason, including your man Barba,”

“Just for no reason?” You gave him a look.

“Yes!” He pounded the table, causing some stares. He took a deep breath, and repeated himself. “Yes, babe,”

“Uh huh,” You nodded as the waitress brought your drinks. It was only lunch but you had ordered a martini, you needed it to get through this.

“Look I thought you said you believed me,” Billy’s eyes narrowed. “...Or was that a bunch of bullshit?”

“N-No,” You suddenly sat straight up, remembering you needed to keep up your act.

“I’m just trying to understand the whole situation, baby boy,” You threw your old nickname at him to diffuse the situation.

“Right…” He licked his lips with a smile as the waitress came and sat the food down in front of each of you.

“Anyway, babe they set up this whole thing. They went on a vendetta against me, I swear to God. They-- they started pulling all these records of me from places I lived, trying to pin me to something, anything. And then their Captain…” He stopped and chuckled, but not his normal chuckle. This was more...sinister, darker.

“She just had this...thing, for me,” He smiled as he remembered her, the “Good times” they had. “She begged me to spend this bender weekend with me and when things didn’t go her way, she tried to say I ‘kidnapped’ her, raped her, did all this nasty stuff to her,”

“....Why would she make that up?” You took a bite of your food. He was just spilling all of this information without you even prying, this seemed too easy.

“Because she’s a BITCH, that’s why!” He suddenly yelled again and pounded the table, more people turned to stare this time before he quickly got himself together once more.

“Billy, I’ve never seen you like this,” Your voice shook as you spoke.

“I’m--I’m sorry, Y/N,” He blinked back tears. “They just...they put me through hell,” He began to show you scars on his face and pointed to his ear. “She...when we went on our little bender, she got so hopped on pills and booze that she beat me within an inch of my life,”

Your hand went over your mouth as you saw his injuries for the first time. You put your other hand and traced the scar, tears in your eyes. He couldn’t have just faked those scars, there was no way for him to know you’d start questioning him like you had.

Maybe...maybe he was telling the truth. You had just taken Rafael at his word, and those articles at theirs. Stories could always be spun, and if it made the NYPD look good, that would make the best story, right?

“Billy…” You wiped his cheek with your thumb, tears were spilling down them. “I am so, so sorry…”

“It’s fine,” He sniffed, wiping snot from his nose as he pulled himself together. “I just...I just want to move on,”

“Yeah…” You nodded, patting his cheek gently with a small smile.

“So, will you let me come home?” He asked you with a sad smile.

“I…” You looked down at the table, mulling everything over. You really, really didn’t want to believe Rafael had been the liar here, just covering up for his best friend.

But...Billy seemed genuine, you had known him so much longer than any of them, maybe you knew him better than they did. You knew he was the wrong guy they should have tried to send away, maybe he was just the victim of their dirty captain. But the whole…”job” aspect, you weren’t sure of. You still didn’t know what he did, and why he had been gone all the time. Rafael’s explanation seemed logical.

“...I’ll think about it,” You looked at him with a small smile.

“You’ll think about it?” He quirked an eyebrow.

“Billy, you really hurt me,” You felt tears come to your throat. “You have to know that,”

“I know, babe…” He gave you a sad smile back, taking your hands again. “I get it, I have to earn your trust again,”

“Yes,” You nodded, glad he wasn’t going to press it. He nodded and looked at the table for a moment, then looked up at you with that smile of his.

“...You know, if you want the afternoon off honey, I can pick up the girls,” He offered.

“E-Exucse me?”

“You want to go see Barba, don’t you?” He was now smirking. “You want to verify what I’m saying, right?”

“I...um…”

“Go for it darling, that’s how confident I am you’ll make the right decision,” He encouraged you.

“...Right,” You nodded, downing the rest of your martini. “And if I don’t, you’ll have the girls as leverage,”

“Aww now Y/N…” He kept his smirk, it seemed more evil now when you looked at it. “I won’t need leverage, will I?”

“....No,” You gulped. You didn’t entirely trust him now, but you weren’t about to turn down a chance to see Rafael. Besides, if what he said was true, Billy would never harm the girls.

“Good then, so we’ll see you at home?”

“Sounds good,” You nodded as Billy laid down his card on the check. You got up and headed to the door, dialing Rafael’s number. You remembered that he had said not to contact him first, so you thought you’d do him one better.

-------------

Rafael was in his office putting together his opening argument when you knocked on his office door.

“Come in,” He said nonchalantly, thinking it would be his assistant with a memo.

He glanced up from his desk as the door opened and dropped his pen when he saw you. He blinked a few times, making sure he wasn’t hallucinating as he stood up from his chair and approached you slowly.

“....Y/N? What are you--?”

“Shut up,” You cut him off with your words before catching his lips in yours in a hungry, aggressive kiss.

You didn’t care what Billy had said, or what events led up to right now. You just knew at that moment you needed Rafael. And you took him, no regrets. You two spent several seconds just kissing and drinking each other up, hands roaming all over each other’s bodies.

You’d think you two had been separated for months, not barely 24 hours. But you both had been sure it would be ages, maybe ever before you saw each other again, and like you had said before you’d never been out of each other’s lives for more than a day since the day you met. Fine, maybe you were a little overdramatic.

“What are you doing here, tonta?!” He suddenly broke apart from you and chastised you. “I told you, it’s too--”

“Billy sent me,” You simply said, breathless from the kissing.

“...’Billy’, sent you?” His eyes narrowed. “And why exactly did Billy send you?”

“...We need to talk,” You bit your lip nervously. “But...but I just...I just want us to be us, for a little bit longer,”

“...A little bit longer?” Rafael’s eyebrows furrowed. He didn’t like the sound of that one bit.

“Just...please, Rafa?” You begged him, your doe eyes wet with tears. You knew what you were about to have to do, and you just wanted to be happy for a few more minutes.

“...Bueno,” Rafael sighed, before he grabbed you by your waist and carried you over to his couch, before resuming making out with you like two teenagers.

He didn’t like the sound of where this was going, but he knew he wanted to put it off as long as possible. And he had missed you like crazy, even if it had just been 12 hours. He loved you so much, and so fast, it scared him.

You didn't know what you were going to say to Rafael once his tongue was out of your mouth, but right now you didn't care. You just wanted this to go on forever---

And then there was a knock at the door.

[catzula]

always there to help

Synopsis: You suck at math, and who could be better suited for the job to help you, other than your brother's best friend, the born genius, Bakugou?

Genre: fluff

Pairing: Bakugou Katsuki x (Kirishima's sister)Reader

Warnings: Swearing, maybe some bad writing

A/N: So, I'm back! I'm sorry I haven't been writing anything lately, I just didn’t like anything I wrote, so, sorry about that. This one might seem a little all over the place too lol, but it’s because I inteded it to be a small drabble. but accidentally made it a 5.1k fic. So, it might not be one f my better works, but I had a lot of fun writing it!

BY THE WAY, 100 followers guys! Thank you so much for that!

You were working on your homework when you heard the doorbell. You sighed deeply, standing up and going to the door, not expecting to see your brother and his friend group to be standing on the other side.

One specific friend caught your eye, his spiky, ash blonde hair hard to miss. You could feel your heartbeat rising almost instantly, cheeks now a bit warmer than before. You wished you had worn something else, anything but pajama shorts and an oversize shirt, maybe combed your hair and wore perfume or something, but how could you know your brother was going to bring his friends home? 

Okay, maybe you should have known since they were over almost every day.

But since there was nothing you could do now to change the situation, you just smiled, inviting them in -you noticed how Bakugou hadn't even glanced your way once, and though this wasn't different then always, it proceed to hurt and disappoint you every time. It's not like you were expecting for him to have feelings for you or something, but at least noticing you were there would be nice for a change.

Your brother was the last to enter, hugging you so tightly that you couldn't breathe for a few seconds, squirming between his arms. "Eiji lemme go!" You screamed, though your voice muffled by his tight hold. 

"Sorry, just missed you." He told you, letting you free. A cheeky, innocent grin was on his face, the one he knew that made you soft. You answered by a "Hmph," turning to his friends, who were already in the living room, doing their things. Mina was the first to notice you when you entered the room, the cutest smile on her face. "Oh, hey Y/N!" She caught you by the wrist, pulling you to the couch to sit with her. Of course, Bakugou was right next to you.

Feeling self-conscious -when was the last time you had a shower? Yesterday? You could only pray you smelled nice- you scooted a bit more to Mina, putting some distance between Bakugou and you, though it pained you to do so since he smelled like caramel. Honestly, why did he smell this good? It only caused your thoughts to be fuzzier, and for you to be even more excited around him. 

Though he seemed to have noticed your shift towards Mina since he sent a small glance your way, a 'tch' sound coming out of his lips, heating your cheeks.

"Hi, Mina-san." You mumbled, trying to forget the boy -your big brother's best friend- sitting next to you. "Oh, y/n-chan, I told you many times, you can just call me Mina! We only have a year between us anyway." You nodded, though still feeling a bit uneasy. “Sure.”

"I- I should go now, I have to finish my math homework." You told them with an apologetic smile, Mina and Kaminari pouting almost immediately. "Oh, come on, sit with us for a bit," Denki protested, his eyes wandering on your bare legs for a second, earning a deadly glare from your brother and a nudge from Sero. 

"What homework?" Your brother asked you, coming closer to you to block Denki's view. "Oh, you know, the one I was doing this morning." You shrugged, you've been working on the same sheet of paper practically the whole day, but you just didn't know the subject even a little bit, staring at the paper without knowing nothing didn't help much.

"Wait, you still didn't finish that? I thought I helped you yesterday." He pouted. Yes, he did try to help you, but you were sure he also had no idea how to do it, and he had just repeated the question to you again and again, until you had said, "Ah, I understand it now! Thank you, brother," without being able to do anything. You knew he meant good, but it still didn't change the fact that your brother was as clueless as you were.

"I-" You had started to say something before a deeper voice intruded yours. "Oi, shitty-hair, you know you suck at math, how do you think you could even help her?" 

Your eyes shifted to Bakugou -you couldn't help but giggle at the nickname he had for your brother, oh, you had to remember that one- he had an annoyed look in his ruby eyes, his eyes not leaving your brother once. "Well, I-" Eiji had started to talk, his eyes widening slightly after, understanding what Bakugou meant. "Oh, you should have told me!"

You shrugged. "Well, you just looked so happy finally being able to help me with something, I didn't want to make you feel bad." 

Oh no, did that come out wrong? You were about to apologize when your brother pulled you in a hug once again. "Oh my god- lemme go!"

***

"So -uhh- if you do it this way, you can, maybe?.. No, okay, I got it, so if you add this to... Nope, that's wrong- umm, oh, how about-" 

Mina bit the back of the pencil you had given her, fully concentrated on the papers in front of her. "Oh move over, I can help her!" Denki told her as he pushed Mina aside.

"You?" She told him in disbelief, "Don't make me laugh, you're even worse than I am!" 

"No, I'm not!" The blonde boy answered, pulling the sheet of paper. "Yes, you are," Sero also joined the fight, pushing himself between the two. "Oh, you shut up, you're even worse than him!" Mina pushed Sero with all her might, panting. 

"Umm, what is happening?" You asked your red-headed brother, watching them with a smile and clearly enjoying the show. "Oh, don't worry, this happens all the time." He answered, patting you on the back, giggling when Mina pulled Denki's hair, making the poor boy scream. 

Oh, that makes it all better then. 

"Oi, dumbasses, shut the fuck up before I do it." You jumped in surprise when you heard Bakugou screaming right behind you, and surprisingly, three of the grown-ass people that were just wrestling on the floor froze. 

"Sorry, Baku." Mina was the first to stand up, fixing her disheveled clothes and running a finger through her soft-looking hair. Sero and Kaminari struggled for a second or two more, but one look from Bakugou and they were up on their feet too.

"Well, thanks I guess." You told the people who literally just fought each other to help you, though instead of them, it was Bakugou who answered you. "Whatever, you shouldn't be asking these idiots anyway."

You weren't sure what to say since the gratitude wasn't intended for him, but you smiled awkwardly. "Guess I'll have to ask someone tomorrow."

"Oh, Baku, can't you help her? You always help us and you're the smartest." Eiji perked his head with the idea that suddenly came to his mind.

"Damn right I am!" Bakugou answered without missing a beat, though he realized his mistake almost instantly. "Oh, that's great, then, you can help her." Mina cheered, clapping her hands with a wicked grin on her face, eyeing both you and the now furious looking boy. Bakugou would have said no immediately, but everyone in the room -even you- knew his pride wouldn't let him.

"For fucks sake," he muttered, his hand massaging his temples. "Give me that stupid fucking paper."

***

"Oh, okay, that makes much more sense!" You told him, even though you still had no idea how he did it, but you tried your best to hide the confusion in your face, not wanting to seem dumb in front of him. But it took one look and his burrows furrowed, lips curling into a snarl.

"If you're just acting like you understood I'll fucking-" A fake cough came from your brother's way, making Bakugou growl. "I'll explain it to you again and again until you understand it." He finished his sentence, making both you and Eiji grin.

"So what didn't you understand?"

Good question.

"I- uh... anything?" You could feel your face heating as you answered, causing him to grimace. "Oh my fucking God." He muttered, pinching his nose bridge with annoyance.

"LOOK-" Oh, he was pissed. "THE QUESTION IS TELLING YOU TO DO THIS, SO YOU JUST FUCKING ADD THIS TO THAT, AND-" His spiky hair looked like it was ruffling up when he got angry, like an angry bird, the thought making you giggle. As he heard your giggle he stopped screaming, and seeing him so quiet was somehow scarier than him shouting.

"What the fuck is so funny?" He asked gruffly, though his crimson eyes weren't as angry as they were before. "You know it doesn't help when you just scream everything at me, right?" You giggled again because he looked really confused.

"Okay, look." He sighed, "see this? This actually just means you should do this." His pencil moved on the paper, his writing surprisingly neat and pretty- especially for a boy as impatient and angry like him. "Oi, you listening?" He pointed the pencil to you when he noticed you weren't looking at the paper, but at him.

"Oh- yeah, I'm listening." You answered, looking at what he recently wrote and trying to understand what he probably said. His eyes narrowed, but he didn't question it further. "Good."

"As I just said," he stated -making you grin since he probably noticed you weren't, in fact, listening to him, "you should do it like this and that's the answer." 

You couldn't understand why, but suddenly what he was talking about seemed to make so much sense. "Oh my god." Your eyes widened, looking at the sheet of paper, you pulled the pencil he was holding without thinking much on it, quickly writing down what was on your mind before you forgot.

After you finished writing, you turned your gaze to the boy that was sitting right next to you, though he concealed the amazed look he had sent you almost immediately. "Is that... right?" You asked him, feeling anxious, if it was wrong, you probably would look like an idiot.

"Yeah," he muttered, quickly glancing your way and noticing the smile on your face. "Fucking finally." He added, trying to get you to stop from smiling since he couldn't stop thinking about how pretty it was, though to his surprise you only smiled brighter. He could feel his heartbeat picking up, not sure why. Were you always this pretty? Smiled so softly, that made him feel all warm? Looked at him like this, like he was the most amazing person you've had seen?

For him, you have always been the sister of his best friend. He hadn't the slightest interest on you, though he could feel that was changing, the thought terrifying him. No, you were only and only Kirishima's sister, no one else.

***

"Hey, Bakugou-Kun." Bakugou was taking his jacket off as he entered the house, his caramel scent making you dizzy.

"Hey, idiot." He answered without thinking, the rude nickname slipping from his lips, he pressed them together instantly as if he could un-say it. He looked at you with slightly widened eyes, expecting you to be sad, or get mad at him, though he could have never thought you would giggle instead.

"Yeah," you told him smiling, "guess I deserve that."

"No." A sudden answer came his way, causing you to be the one shocked this time. "I- I didn't mean it that way..." He rubbed the back of his neck, looking very uncomfortable. "I just-"

"It's okay!" You told him, finally ending his misery. "I know you didn't say it to be mean."

Now, that was a first.

"Yeah, whatever." He muttered, entering the room, though regretting it immediately, was that rude? Maybe he shouldn't have stormed out? Did you think he was rude? Mean? An asshole?

He had no idea you were only happy because, for the first time, he had stopped to talk with you instead of ignoring you altogether.

You entered the room, noticing the rest was there too, and you wondered when they even entered the house. "Hey, Y/N!" Denki beamed, though noticing the look Eiji sent him, he quickly corrected himself. "-chan. Y/N-chan."

"Hey, Kaminari-Kun." You answered, making him pout. "Oh come on, you can just call me Denki!" A small glance was sent your brothers way, "Denki-Kun. You can call me Denki-Kun." He corrected, smiling widely.

"Oh, okay." You told him. "Would you like something to drink, Denki-Kun?" You asked, making him grin wickedly. "She's just too cute!" He whisper-yelled, nudging Sero. "Anyone? I can make tea."

"Oh, just sit with us instead!" Mina told you and you did as she said, knowing she would force you anyway. Once again, you were stuck between Bakugou and Mina, though this time you were prepared and had worn perfume. She looked at you excitedly, like she wanted to say something, but before she sent an angry look to Bakugou.

"Hey, Baku, can you go sit with Denki or something? We're gonna talk and you're preventing us."

"Haah?" Bakugou yelled. "I was the first one sitting here! And I'm not fucking preventing you, I'm just fucking sitting here, it's not like I wanna hear the stupid shit you'll talk about."

Oh, but he, did. He was dying to hear what you would talk about.

"It's not stupid shit, its girl talk!" She defended, grinning when Bakugou stood up. "W-what do you want to talk about, Mina?" It took a lot of willpower for you not to say Mina-san. "A little bird told me you have a slight liking to a certain angry boy." She finally told you, waiting at first for a bit of suspense.

"W-what, who?" You blurted, immediately noticing the mistake you did. "I mean, that's not- that's not true!"

"Oh come on, don't try to hide it!" She giggled, nudging you. "I know you have a crush on bskdhdhdh!" You slapped your hand on her mouth just in time, a sigh of relief coming out your mouth when you stopped her from saying the name. Though, you couldn't stop her from screaming about you having a crush.

"You what?!" Eiji screamed, standing up.

"Ooh, our little Y/N-chan has grown so fast," Denki told as he wiped the nonexistent tears off his eyes.

"So, who's the lucky guy?" Sero asked, grinning.

"Oops, I may have made a mistake," Mina said, giggling.

The only one that hadn't said one word was Bakugou, though that was somehow even more uncomfortable. His gaze lingering over you, you felt like you were going to die of embarrassment (and why did he have to wear that black t-shirt? It only made you even more flustered, and you just couldn't help but think about how nice he looked)

"It's nothing." You smiled awkwardly, face heating up. You glanced away, looking at anyone but him. "It's a misunderstanding." A fake giggle and all should be good, right?

Well, apparently not.

"No, don't you try to laugh your way out of this. What is this crush?" He looked so angry, it was one of those rare moments that he looked plain out scary.

"It's an innocent crush, Eiji! Nothing to worry about, okay? Now sit down, I need to do my homework anyway." Eyes narrowing, his gaze stayed on you a little more, though he dropped the subject soon after.

"If anything happens, you'll tell me everything." He told Mina, though it sounded more like a threat.

"It's not my place to do so." She answered, grinning wickedly.

***

You peeped your head from the door, trying to take a look of inside. What were they doing?

You've been doing your homework the past hour or two -it was only 10 minutes, but it felt like an eternity- and you came downstairs to seek help.

"Hi, guys." You finally entered, only to find them all snuggled on the couch, watching the greatest show ever been made, Avatar the Last Airbender.

Eiji knew the consequences of such actions, desperately trying to close the TV, but he was late, you could recognize Uncle Iroh's voice from a mile away.

"How dare you!" You gasped, now feeling all eyes on you.

"Wait, what's going on?" Sero looked as confused as the rest of his friends.

"Eiji, how could you do this to me?" You ignored Sero altogether, eyes fixed on your red-headed brother.

"I'm sorry, I'm really sorry, sis, it's just we had nothing to do and-"

"I can't even see you right now." You told him, turning your back to exit the room, leaving three very confused people after you.

"No, Y/N, wait!"

***

And that's how you found yourself to be snuggled between Bakugou and Denki.

It was really comfortable, you had to admit, but also very maddening. You couldn't even watch the show anymore, your senses filled with the boy sitting right next to you, his body touching yours ever so slightly, his hair tickling your face every time you moved to get a bit more comfortable.

"So you're telling me," Bakugou suddenly spoke up, though your eyes didn't leave the screen, you could feel his ruby eyes on you. "That you have a crush on this guy?"

"She does." Your brother mumbled from the other side of the room. "She even-"

"Shut up, or you won't be able to speak ever again." Everyone in the room suddenly froze, no one able to understand how the hell you just turned in to the most threatening person they ever saw.

"Well, damn, okay." Sero laughed, sending a small glance your way. "I don't know, man," Denki muttered. "Sokka is much better than Zuko. He is a nice dude, everyone likes him, has solid jokes, and is pretty smart. He's kinda like me, actually." 

"Yeah, he is like you!" Mina suddenly cheered. "Except for the being-liked-by-everyone, having nice jokes and being smart parts, of course." 

"Yeah, that's what I'm telling yo- hey!" He exclaimed, making everyone laugh. "If there's anyone that resembles any of these characters, it's Bakugou," Eiji muttered thoughtfully.

"What?" He snarled. Eiji shrugged. “You’re pretty similar to Zuko.”

"Wait, that's very on point!" You told him, causing Bakugou's brows to furrow. "Just think about it, you're very unreasonably angry all the time, keep picking useless fights with everyone, and are very rude!" Mina cheered.

Bakugou would have punched every one of you for even implying something like this, though now the only thing he could think about was if you thought this way too. 

"I- I didn't mean it that way, though." You told them. "He always tries to look so tough from the outside, but he's actually sweet. He tries to act like he doesn't like the gaang or his friends, but in reality, he really likes them. Don't you guys think so too?"

"Now that you put it that way..." Mina muttered, the topic closing and everyone focusing their gazes on the screen once again, though, even though no one realized, a small smile was on Bakugou's lips.

***

After the Avatar marathon, you stood up, about to go upstairs to continue the dreadful math homework when an idea fell upon you. You turned your gaze to the boy, who was sitting on the couch like it was a throne instead. Spiky hair looking softer than usual, you wondered what it would feel like to run your fingers through them. His eyes were closed, and he looked tired. Under the dim light of the small lamp that hung from the ceiling, you were practically in awe of how pretty he was. 

Cheekbones high and defined, a sharp jawline, like it indicated his sharp personality, delicate brows furrowed, buried in thought. 

As if he felt your eyes on him, his eyes snapped open, crimson eyes finding yours. You probably looked like a rabbit caught in the headlights, causing him to smirk. "What's your problem?" 

"I- uh, I was wondering if you could help me with... math?" 

"Again?!" That was a valid question, but it wasn't your fault math was too hard!

"It's okay, Y/N-chan, I can help you instead." You heard Denki's voice, a hand wrapping your shoulder, causing you, Eiji and Bakugou to jump in your places. 

"You don't know shit." Bakugou growled, his gaze suddenly predator-like, making Denki wince and pull his hand back. "Don't do me dirty like that, Bakubro," Denki whined. "I'm just trying to help-" His voice suddenly muffled by the hand on his mouth, a hand that belonged to your bother. 

"You come here for a second." Eiji told him threateningly, pulling him out of the room with force. "No- no, Kiri, don't do this to me!" The door closed behind them, though, a muffled scream or two could be heard every once in a while.

Everyone ignoring the whole ordeal, went back to what they were doing. Bakugou turned to you, his eyes on the sheet of paper you were holding. "So, does this mean you're helping me?" 

Bakugou knew the second you turned to him with that pleading look in your eyes, he was already going to say yes. "Tch," he rolled his eyes, pulling the paper from your hands. "Whatever."

This time, he sat a bit closer to you. 

You sat side by side, arms almost touching whenever he wrote something. "Did you understand this one?" He asked, the pencil he was holding pointing to the second question. Surprisingly, you did understand it. When you nodded, he smiled, it wasn't one of those cocky smirks, this one was a genuine, small smile that took your breath away. 

"Then do this one yourself." 

You gulped, tearing your eyes away from his face as you felt your face heating up. It took you a bit to get focused on what was in front of you, but you were able to use what Bakugou had explained to you, and eventually reached the answer. 

"That's... That was pretty good." He told you as he inspected what you wrote. This time, it was you who smiled brightly, taking his breath away. He could feel his heart suddenly going crazy, hammering his chest as if it was trying to set itself free. And why did he have this weird feeling in the pit of his stomach? This dreadful but also... warm feeling? 

He didn't like this. He didn't like it at all. 

He stood up, his face suddenly angry, causing your smile to drop. He gritted his teeth when he realized he wanted to sit right back and apologize, to make you smile again. But instead, he picked his phone up from the table and turned his back to you.

He exited the room in a hurry that didn't even let you say anything, or thank him.

"Oi, shitty hair! I'm out." You heard him scream to your brother. 

"So soon?" Eiji asked though the door already shut mid-sentence.

***

Although Bakugou had promised himself that he was going to stay away from you, as far as he could, this thing -whatever this was- went on for weeks. He wanted to stop, Bakugou really tried to not think of you whenever he saw a fucking number, but it didn't take long for him to realize he couldn't.

So instead, he came to see you every day, with or without the Bakusquad and helped you with math even if you didn't ask for him to.

You always asked him to, though.

On the other hand, you weren't thrilled about this whole situation either. At first, this was a normal, innocent crush, but as you spent more time with him, you found yourself falling for him. Hard.

"Hey, Bakugou!" You greeted him (you had dropped calling him Bakugou-Kun sometime, though you weren't really sure when), a big smile that you couldn't drop on your face. "Hey, idiot. I brought this shitty thing you like." 

He meant donuts. 

He didn't want to admit it, but he had only bought it to see the way your eyes sparkled when you held one in your hand, about to take a giant bite out of it. 

The rest of the group was already here and settled, so you checked the paper bag in your hands if it had enough for everyone. You smiled brightly when you noticed it did, making your way to the kitchen.

You noticed Eiji standing, leaning to the door, and watching you both with furrowed brows. "Oh, don't look so mad, I'll give one to you too." You told him giggling, interpreting it wrong. 

His face softened, also smiling. "Don't forget to give me the strawberry one!"

"We'll see about that!!" You answered as you exited the room.

"Oh, Bakugou-Kun, did you buy us the shit we like too?" Sero said mockingly, making the others snicker. "Shut the fuck up, tape face."

"Oh, but Bakugou-Kun-"

"I said, shut the fuck up!" Suddenly his heart was beating really fast. "Relax, Baku, having feelings for someone is nothing to be ashamed of!" Mina told him, though she already knew the answer he was going to give.

"I don't fucking have feelings, dumbass." Bakugou didn't have feelings, especially not towards you, the sister of his best friend. But still, he couldn't take his eyes off of you, he couldn't stop his heart from racing whenever you smiled, and he couldn't stop feeling like he would do anything for you to smile again when you don't.

"Sure you don't," Mina answered, a sly grin on her face when she noticed Bakugou's confused expression. It wasn't that Bakugou didn't want the feelings, he just couldn't understand them.

They would have taken it further if you hadn't entered the room with a plate full of donuts in your hands. "Nobody touches the Nutella one!" You told them, letting them take a donut.

You narrowed your eyes and sent a threatening look when Denki tried to take the one you were going to eat.

"You're not eating?" You asked when you noticed Bakugou not taking one. He shrugged. "I don't like sweets."

Your brows furrowed in confusion, "Really? Can I eat yours then?" Bakugou found himself smiling to that, thinking about how adorable you looked with a donut in your hand, a shirt that was too big for you, probably stolen from Eiji and sugar powder smeared on your lips. He couldn't help but wonder, what would you do if he just leaned in and kissed you, right then and there? Would you flinch back? Scream at him? Maybe even be disgusted by him?

He decided he didn't want to lea the answer.

***

"Oh, you're staying late?" You asked with a small smile on your lips, making them look so kissable, Bakugou had to look away. "Yeah." 

"You have homework?" He asked when you didn't say anything. He didn't want you to leave. "Nope, already did them." 

Oh.

"But I kind of wanted to talk to you." You looked nervous, your hands clasped together, anxiously biting your lip. His eyes narrowed, crimson gaze wandering over you like he was trying to read your mind. 

"I have-" You started to say, but stopped mid-sentence so he finished your sentence for you internally. ...feelings for you. 

(You actually had an upcoming math exam, and you were hoping he could help you study for it, but you didn't want to make him uncomfortable.)

Oh, he wasn't going to let you be the first to confess, so without thinking about it, Bakugou blurted. "I like you." There it was, he did it before you! But why did you look so shocked?

"You what?" You asked, eyes wide, just staring at him. Bakugou could feel his heart getting heavier by the second, hands turning cold and a dreadful knot forming in the pit of his stomach. Weren't you saying the same thing just then?

"I-" should he just tell you to forget about it? No, he wasn't the kind of man to just back off. "You heard me." He told you gruffly. "I like you." 

Much to his annoyance, you stayed quiet, not giving him the chance to be happy or sad about it. Just silence. "And? What's your answer?!" 

For the first time in this conversation, you looked at him properly. You hadn't noticed how his crimson gaze shined with uncertainty, confusion, and anxiety. He was afraid of your answer, you realized. Even the great Bakugou Katsuki was afraid of rejection. 

So instead of giving him a verbal answer, you leaned in instead, your lips touching his softly. 

His eyes opened wide with the contact, not being able to understand what was going on. Your lips were so soft, it molded perfectly against his, and he was afraid that if he moved even an inch, you would realize you were making a big mistake and pull back. So he froze.

"Bakugou?" You pulled back slightly after a few seconds, making him want to pull you back and never let go. "Won't you kiss me back?" 

To this, Bakugou grinned, his hands suddenly on your back, pulling you towards him. The last thing you remembered before you lost yourself in the kiss was how soft his lips were, and how amazing he smelled.

***

"You know we still have to tell Eiji, right?" You told him, running your fingers through your messed up hair, trying to look like you didn't kiss a boy for the past... well, you weren't sure how long, actually. 

"Yeah." He answered, lips slightly pink. 

"You know, I think I have the perfect idea of how to tell him."

"You do?" He asked, now slightly intrigued. You nodded, standing up. Eiji was in his room, so you pulled Bakugou by the wrists up the stairs. "Come on." You told him when he hesitated. "This will work."

You knocked on your brother's door, opening it just the slightest when you heard him tell you to come in. "Hey, Eiji." 

"Hey, sis." He smiled widely, not aware of Bakugou behind the door. "What's up?"

"Oh, nothing much." You shrugged, "Just wanted to tell you that Bakugou and I are dating, okay bye!" You shut the door after you without giving him the time to say anything, running down the stairs, and pulling Bakugou after you. 

Your brother opened his door, running after you, his face as red as his hair. "You what?!"

"You idiot!" Bakugou screamed. "So this was your great idea?"