#sorry this is gonna get like 2 notes but it's about personal satisfaction

[nomisong]

actually magic is awesome

[charlieeenby]

i'll give you my half life so you'll see tomorrow

whumptober day 8 and a part 2 one person asked for

bruce finds someone raping dick. they deal with the aftermath and the aftermath of my day 8 whumptober entry

warnings and tags: underage rape, hospitals, medical inaccuracies, angst, hurt no comfort, stalker tim, sibling bonding, referenced child prostitution, good dad Bruce, non explicit murder

title is from half life by livingston

Bruce sighed as he rounded the corner, startled when he tripped over something. Looking down, he found a suit jacket.

Picking it up, he realized it was the one Dick had been wearing that night. Bruce frowned. He hadn’t seen Dick for a couple hours now, so why was the boy’s jacket here?

Bruce looked up and saw another suit jacket laying a few feet away, this one much bigger than Dick’s.

Dread dug it’s icy claws into Bruce. He moved forward, stepped past the second jacket and listened, though he wasn’t sure what he was listening for.

Then he heard a soft cry further down the hallway. He moved closer to it and noticed the door to his study was cracked.

A thud came from the room, followed closely by a whimper. Bruce moved much quicker now, practically jogging over to the room and throwing the door open as he reached for the light switch and flipped it on.

The sight in front of him was horrifying and made his stomach churn, but it took him only a moment to react.

Dick, sweet 14 year old Dick, was pinned to the desk, with a man double his size over him, pants around his ankles.

Bruce lunged, grabbed the man’s collar and yanked back hard, finding a sick satisfaction when the man gagged.

He threw him to the side, his head slamming into a bookcase and went to Dick, who had fallen to the floor, tears streaming down his face with a white substance.

Bruce winced inwardly, but didn’t let Dick see, not wanting to upset him.

“Dick, chum, can you look at me?” Bruce asked softly.

The boy looked up. “B,” he croaked. “It hurts.”

“What hurts?”

Dick flinched.

“Oh, sweetheart. It’s gonna be okay. Please, tell me where it hurts so I can help.”

“I – it – I’m sorry.”

“No, chum, don’t apologize, this isn’t your fault.” Bruce paused, trying to figure out what to say. “Do you want to go to the ER, chum?”

It took him a moment, but Dick nodded.

“Okay. Can you stand up?”

Dick shook his head and reached out to Bruce. Very carefully, Bruce put his hands under Dick’s arms and lifted him up gently.

His pants were gone, and there was blood running down his leg.

“Okay. Do you want me to get your pants?”

Dick shook his head. “Hurts.” he whispered and Bruce knew exactly what they were going to the ER for, knew why Dick didn’t want to tell him.

“Okay, chum. How about a blanket?”

That got a nod. Bruce stepped over to the couch where he kept a soft blanket and then went back over to Dick.

Gently, Bruce wrapped Dick up.

“Alright. I’ll have Alfred meet us there with a pair of pants and underwear, is that okay?” Bruce asked.

Dick nodded.

“Okay. Are you ready to go?”

“Can – will you carry me? Please?” Dick asked so quietly that Bruce could barely hear him.

“Of course, sweetheart.”

When they got to the ER, it was overcrowded and Bruce held Dick close to his chest as he made his way to the front.

The nurse there was speaking loudly and Dick flinched closer to Bruce.

When she saw them she waved them closer and Bruce stepped up to the counter.

“What’s your emergency?” she asked, and Bruce noted how tired she sounded.

“My son was…” for the first time that night, it really hit Bruce what had happened to Dick. Sure, he know what was happening, what he needed to do, but reality set in right there, in the ER.

“Sir?” the nurse asked.

“Sorry. Um, my son was raped.” the word tasted like poison in his mouth.

The nurse’s eyes went wide, then looked at the bundle in Bruce’s arms.

“O-okay. How old is he?”

“Fourteen.”

“Okay. Did – jesus. Was the assault penetrative?” the nurse winced as she spoke.

“Yes.”

“Was there any damage? This is worded horribly. I’m so sorry. I think it means was there physical damage internally?”

“I – he didn’t want me to look. I saw blood running down his leg.”

“Okay, and how long ago did the assault happen?”

“Twenty, thirty minutes. We came straight here.”

“You’re sure?”

Bruce ground his teeth at the question. “I pulled the fucker who did this off of him, yes, I’m sure.” he gritted out, trying not to snap at the nurse. It wasn’t her fault, she was doing here job.

She gave him look that was both empathetic and horrified.

“Okay. I can get him in right away, but protocol states that we’ll have to separate you two and have and investigation done since he’s a minor.”

“That’s fine. I just want him taken care of.”

The nurse nodded again. “I need patient name and date of birth.”

“Richard Grayson. March twentieth, 1995.”

The nurse typed in the information. “Okay. I’m going to have you go sit down and a nurse will be out in a minute to get you. Do you have a preference on gender?”

Bruce sighed. “A woman, if possible.”

“That’s why I asked, hun.”

Giving her a nod, Bruce turned around and looked across the ER for an empty spot, but found none. Resigning himself to standing, he moved over to the wall where there was an empty spot and leaned agains it, still holding Dick to his chest.

“How are you doin’ chum?” he asked quietly.

“It hurts, Dad.” Dick croaked.

Bruce’s heart ached for Dick. “I know, chum, I know.” he whispered into the boy’s hair.

part 2

Dick started sleeping in Bruce’s bed and he only slept when Bruce was there, which made going out as Batman difficult.

So instead of forcing Dick to adhere to his schedule, Bruce called Clark. They weren’t very close, more acquaintances than anything, but Bruce needed to take care of his son.

He invited Clark over for lunch one day, rather out of the blue, and when Clark arrived, it was clear he was concerned.

Bruce had Alfred take Dick out to the garden and he and Clark sat at the table, but neither of them ate.

“Bruce, why did you invite me over? Are you okay?” Clark asked finally.

“I’m fine. I do, however, need your help.”

Clark blinked in shock. “Oh, of course. What do you need?”

“I need you to be Batman.”

“What?”

Bruce sighed. “Something happened to Dick. I need to be here for him and he’s having a hard time sleeping without me being there, which means I can’t be Batman right now. So I’m asking you to fill in for me.”

“Dick? What happened?”

“That’s not relevant.” Bruce said, gritting his teeth. Dick didn’t know he was doing this, and Bruce wasn’t going to tell Clark without Dick’s permission.

Clark frowned. “It’s preventing you from being Batman, it seems rele-”

“It’s not.” Bruce interrupted. “And if it’s going to be a problem, you can leave.”

For a minute, Clark was quiet, and Bruce thought he might leave, but then he nodded. “Okay. I wouldn’t be able to go out every night. I still have to be Superman.”

“I know. And that’s fine. It’s just a few times a week.”

“I can do that. I’ll need a suit.”

Bruce nodded. “I’ll adjust one of mine. If it ends up being long term, I’ll make you one.”

“Hey, B.”

Bruce hummed, glancing at his son.

“I wanna – I have a question. Request?” Dick said, frowning.

“What’s up, chum?”

“I’m going to kill him.”

Bruce froze. “What?”

“My – him.”

His rapist. That’s what Dick was talking about. Bruce didn’t know what to do. On one hand, he didn’t agree with murder. It’s illegal for a reason. But this was is baby’s rapist. He couldn’t forgive that and he doubted that a beating would stop the monster or even feel good.

And it wouldn’t do anything for Dick.

“Okay.” Bruce said, because he didn’t really have anything else to say. Then, “Will you let me… supervise?”

Dick looked confused, shocked. Then he nodded. “Yeah. Yeah, you can do that.”

“Ward of Bruce Wayne Assaulted at Charity Gala”

“Batman’s Violence Increases”

“Richard Grayson’s Rapist Found Dead”

Tim flipped through all the headlines, frowning. Batman wasn’t supposed to kill. But he was pretty sure that he’d killed a man. Granted, said man was a child rapist and had raped Batman’s son, but still. That wasn’t something Batman did.

He was also pretty sure that Batman was a different person.

As he sat on the roof, waiting for Batman to appear, he heard footsteps behind him. Tim froze, then looked behind him.

There was a kid there, maybe a few years older than him. He looked like a street kid.

“Hey.” Tim whispered, wanting to make sure the other boy knew he was there. The boy jerked, looking over at Tim, who waved. “Hi.”

“Who are you?”

“Tim. Who are you?”

The boy hesitated, then said, “Jay. What are you doing up here?”

This time, Tim hesitated.

“Are ya doin somethin bad?” Jay asked.

“No, I’m waiting for Batman.”

“Batman?”

Tim nodded. “Yeah. I need to talk to him.”

Jay’s face scrunched up. “Why would you want to talk to Batman?”

“I have some questions for him.”

“You’re weird.” he said, but it was too soft to really be an insult. Jay looked around. “Um, do other people come up here?”

“No, just me, and now you.” Tim said. “Why?”

Jay shrugged, but Tim could tell he was a little uncomfortable. “Can I hang out here with you for a while?”

“Sure.” Tim said, excited to have someone with him. “I can show you my pictures if you want.

“Pictures?”

“Yeah, I take pictures of Batman and Robin.”

That made Jay roll his eyes, but he walked over and sat down next to Tim. “I guess, but they better be good pictures.”

Tim grinned and pulled out his camera. “They are.”

And for the next hour or so, he showed Jay all his pictures. They didn’t stop until there was a very soft scraping sound behind them. Both boys jolted and turned around to see Superman.

“You’re not Batman.” Tim said, a little confused.

“No, I’m not.” Superman said with a smile. “I’m helping Batman out, though.”

Beside Tim, Jay, glared at Superman.

“Oh. Well, would you mind telling Batman that I’d like to talk to him? And the real one, not the fake one.”

Superman tilted his head. “What do you mean, the fake one?”

Tim huffed. Adults asked stupid questions. “For the last three months, there’s been a different Batman. I don’t want to talk to him.”

“Why do you think there’s a different Batman?”

“Because I know what the real one looks like. This one’s different.” Tim said, very annoyed. Jay smacked him, and then shushed him.

Superman frowned. “You know what Batman looks like?”

A hand clamped over Tim’s mouth. “He’s only six. Kids say silly things, ya know?” Jay said, and Tim thought he sounded a little panicked.

“Right. What are your names?”

“I’m Mark and he’s Tom.” Jay said, and Tim tried to glare at him, but Jay wasn’t letting him turn his head, so it didn’t really work.

“Okay. Well, why don’t I take you two home? Are you brothers?” Superman asked.

Tim shoved Jay’s hand off his mouth and said, “Yeah, we are.”

“Okay, where do you live?”

“I’m not supposed to tell strangers that.” Tim said. He wasn’t sure why Jay was scared of Superman, but he didn’t want to make his new friend uncomfortable.

Superman smiled. “Well, that’s right. But I’m Superman. I’m someone you can tell that to.”

Tim shook his head. “No. Mom said not to tell anyone.”

That was apparently not the right thing to say because Superman gave them a strange look, then said, “Are you homeless?”

“No.” Jay snapped.

“So you want to see Batman’s secret base? I can take you there.” Superman asked and Tim knew he didn’t believe them.

“No thank you. We need to get home or else our mom is gonna worry.” Tim said.

Superman frowned. Then Tim saw a blur and then realized that he and Jay were in Superman’s arms and being flown across Gotham.

Tim screamed.

Then Superman descended into a forest that looked familiar. It took Tim longer than he wanted to admit that they were in the forest behind his and Bruce Wayne’s houses.

There a was a well hidden cave and Superman flew into it, arriving a few minutes later in what Tim was pretty sure to be the Batcave, as Robin called it.

Superman set them down, but kept a hand on their shoulders, holding them in place. When Tim looked over at Jay, he realized that the other boy was terrified, looking around frantically.

Bruce Wayne was glaring at Superman. “What is going on?” he asked, clearly unhappy.

“I think they know Batman’s identity.” Superman said.

“So you brought them here?”

“Well-”

“Why are there kids down here, B?”

Tim looked over and saw Dick Grayson standing on a staircase. He waved, excited at seeing Robin. Dick smiled and waved back.

“Superman kidnapped us!” Jay yelled, and everyone froze.

“What the hell?” Bruce asked, moving towards them.

Tim got nervous and said, “It’s okay, we live next door.”

Everyone froze again.

Bruce walked over and knelt in front of Tim. “What’s your name?”

“Um, Tom?” it came out like a question.

“Okay. And where do you think you are?”

“A cave.”

Bruce smiled a little. “You live next to a cave?”

“No, I live next to Wayne Manor.” Tim said, then his eyes went wide. “Shit.”

This time, Bruce laughed. “Uh huh. And are you Tim Drake?”

Somehow, Tim’s eyes got wider, jaw dropping a little. Beside him, Jason flinched. Bruce looked over, concerned. Then he looked back to Tim.

“Are you Tim Drake?”

“Yeah.” Tim whispered.

“Okay. And who are you with? Because I know you don’t have a sibling.” Bruce said gently.

“He’s my friend.”

Dick suddenly said, “Wait, Tim Drake? The neighbor kid? Bruce!”

“Yes, Dick, the neighbor.” Bruce said, looking over at Dick, who had run over to them.

“You know me?” Tim asked, eyes going wide again, this time in wonder.

Bruce smiled. “Yes, Tim, we know who you are.”

Tim didn’t know what to do with himself.

“Tim, how did you know where you were?”

“Well, when Superman flew us in, I recognized the forest.”

Behind them, Superman coughed. “Oh.” he said quietly.

“Hey, I have a question.” Tim said, remembering why he’d been on the roof tonight.

“What’s that?”

“Why did you kill Dick’s rapist? I thought you didn’t kill. I mean, I get why, and I think it was the right thing to do especially considering his history, but you always say you don’t kill.”

Bruce looked more than a little shocked, but then he looked over at Dick. “Do you want to tell him?” he asked softly.

Dick shook his head. “You can.”

Bruce nodded and turned back to Tim. “I didn’t kill him. Dick did. I just made it look like it was me.”

“Wait, what?” Superman asked, letting go of Tim and Jay. Jay immediately stepped closer to Tim. “You let him kill a man?”

“I let him kill his rapist.” Bruce said firmly, standing up. “If that’s a problem, then I suggest you leave.”

Tim looked over at Dick, who looked a little pale. “Hey.” he whispered. “Are you okay?”

Dick looked at him, then shook his head.

Jay moved, and punched Bruce in the ribs. “Hey, asshole. Your kid need you.”

Bruce looked down at Jay, then turned to Dick, kneeling down, and reaching out, though he didn’t touch him. “Dick?”

“Why’s he so angry?” Dick whispered, eyes darting between Bruce and Superman.

“He didn’t know, sweetheart. He’s a little shocked.”

“No, I’m-”

“Shut up, fuck face.” Jay snapped, glaring at Superman. “You’re a kidnapper.”

Superman blinked.

Tim giggled, then looked over to Dick and Bruce. “I’m sorry I brought it up.” he said to Dick, feeling bad.

“No, that’s not why I’m upset.” Dick said, giving Tim a small smile. Then he looked at Bruce. “Can Tim and…and his friend come upstairs with me?”

“That’s fine, chum. I don’t know how long they’ll be able to stay.”

Dick nodded, then hugged Bruce, who returned it, a half relived look on his face.

When they pulled apart, Dick, offered his hands to Tim and Jay. Tim took it eagerly, but Jay hesitated, eyes darting between Tim and Dick.

“Hey, it’s okay. Do you wanna go play on my xbox?” Dick asked gently.

After a moment, Jay nodded, though he still didn’t take Dick’s hand, but Dick just smiled, then led him and Tim up the stairs he’d come down earlier.

At the top of the stairs, he pushed on the wall, which opened, revealing a sitting room. Once they were all in the room, Dick turned and Tim realized that the wall they’d come through was actually a grandfather clock.

“Wow…” he whispered quietly. Dick turned and smiled.

“Pretty cool, huh?”

Tim nodded.

“Alright. I have Mario Kart and… actually that’s all I have right now. Do you wanna play that? Or we can find something else to do.” Dick said, looking between Jay and Tim.

Jay shifted on his feet. “I don’t know how ta play tha’.”

“I can teach you. But if you’d rather do something else…”

When Dick crawled into Bruce’s bed that night, he hadn’t expected him to sit there and glare at him in silence.

After a couple minutes, Bruce asked, “Is there a reason you’re giving me a death stare?”

“Yes.”

Bruce couldn’t help but chuckle. “And would you like to tell me what that reason is?”

“I have a… demand.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah.”

“And what is your demand?”

“That you adopt Jay. And maybe Tim. But definitely Jay,”

To say Bruce was caught off guard would be an understatement. “What?”

Dick shifted. “Jay’s homeless and I think he – I think he’s a prostitute. But he’s only 13.” there was pain and heartache in Dick’s voice and Bruce couldn’t help but pull him close.

“Oh, sweetheart.”

“He doesn’t have anyone, and we have so much space and -” Dick was talking fast and his breathing was picking up, so Bruce interrupted him.

“Dickie, breath, baby.” Bruce said gently, rubbing Dick’s back.

Dick pressed his head against Bruce’s shoulder.

“Okay. Here’s what we’re gonna do. In the morning, we can talk to Jay about being adopted and figure out what’s going on with Tim.”

“Okay. Thank you.” Dick said quietly.

Bruce smiled. “Of course, chum.”

Bruce adopts Jason and Tim. Dick goes to therapy and gets better over time. Superman comes to his senses and gets over the fact that dick killed his rapist. When Jason finds out his mother wasn’t his bio mom, he tells Tim, who makes him talk to bruce. Bruce believes him and helps him figure out who his real mom is, then reaches out to her. When she responds negatively, he’s able to gently explain it to Jason. Jason doesn’t die.

Bruce adopts Cass and Duke, Damian joining the family. And then batman retires, works with his kids to make Gotham a safer place via Wayne Enterprises.

They all live happily ever after.

[averagewriter-inthedark]

Catch Me If You Can, Spider | Spider-Man Series P.5

Follows the events of Spider-Man

Catch up on parts 1-4 -> Series Masterlist | Marvel Masterlist

Characters & Pairings: Tobey!Peter Parker x female!reader/ Black Cat (romantic), tobey!peter x Mary Jane Watson (only for S1), Harry Osborn, Gwen Stacy, Eddie Brock, Norman Osborn, Otto Octavius, J. Jonah Jameson (pretty much every character from the Raimi trilogy)

Content warnings: profanity, light angst, flirtatious banter, violence | female reader (she/her)

Premise: It’s supposed to be a normal night on patrol for New York’s masked vigilante, but things take a shift in his normally scheduled program after he runs into a robber with a knack for leather fashion and cat like reflexes.

Note: I know it’s been a minute and I’m sorry. Creative inspiration for writing has been a downer lately & I’ve been reading a lot of books more plus watching a lot of Netflix. I’m gonna keep up with this of course just it might be longer than planned. Luckily after this chapter I’ll be starting the events of Spider-Man 2!

—————————————

“All unites, there’s been a disturbance down on fifth avenue….”

“Reports of a business on fire near…”

“There’s been a call of a suspicious persons by a jewelry store…” The calls came one after another. Peter remained crouched on the ledge of a nearby building overlooking the grounds, cursing to himself by how rapid the reports were on the police radio after silently murmuring how quiet it had been.

He should’ve known that once you say the word ‘quiet,’ all hell brakes loose.

Too far from the house fire and with many units responding to the fifth avenue disturbance, Peter aimed his focus on responding to the suspicious person scouting a jewelry store. It was past midnight, a typical time for jewelry robbers to begin their nightly heist. Standing from his position, Peter shot a web out and swung off the building—letting the air glide him away in the direction of the reported location.

It was only a few minutes before he reached the destination. Peter landed quietly on the roof of the store before scaling down like a spider to peak through the window. No broken glass indicated that if their was a robber, they didn’t need to use exceeded force to get in. Finding the back entrance, Peter located the deadbolt had not been removed.

‘Maybe it was a false alarm,’ he thought. It was dead quiet on the street, which was uncommon for this area was known for robberies and incidents. Peter gave one last glance around the alley before making his way back to the front.

Considering there was no one around, he figured it was okay to leave. But then something unusual caught his eye in the window of the store.

Peter’s eyes focused on a dark figure in the back corner. Their back was toward them and he could’ve sworn he saw a flash of white despite the darkness surrounding them. What little light peeling in from the street lamps into the window was enough to confirm his suspicious.

There really was someone in the store.

And they had broken in without a trace.

‘What the?’ He squinted his eyes beneath his mask, as if to see if they were playing a trick on him. The windows hadn’t been broken into and with the back door sealed he didn’t understand how this unknown person was able to break in. Above this store were the typical apartments and the entrance was on the opposite side. But even then it wouldn’t give access to inside the store.

Although he was unable to see what the burglar was doing, it wasn’t hard to guess considering there was a large duffel bag strapped to their side. No alarm had been triggered, so they must have scouted beforehand to disarm it.

Peter knew he needed to either get inside the store or intercept the burglar as they made their escape. He didn’t want to break in and leave a trace, considering they managed not to do so, so Peter’s only option was to see where they would go.

About five minutes passed until the burglar felt satisfaction by the goodies they had smuggled. Zipping the bag, they secured it tightly and strutted to the back end where they employee exit was. Peter scaled up the building in a hurry. There was no sound indicating if a door opened causing worry to flood him at the thought the burglar escaped before he could catch them.

But what the vigilante did not expect was to face his culprit on the roof of the building.

Peter nearly fell back of the edge when his gaze landed on a woman dressed head to do in black latex catsuit with blinding white hair past their shoulders. Feeling himself become flustered, he fought it by moving his attention to what he was looking for. The duffle bag, containing the stolen goods, was settled against their side. And what Peter immediately noticed upon landing his gaze on her face was the tiny black mask framing her bright blue eyes—which he could not tell if they were contacts or not, and a scarf covering the lower half of their face.

“Well, well,” her voice was laced with amusement, “if it isn’t the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man. Such an honor to make your acquaintance.” She gave a mock bow.

‘Well this is different,’ Peter thought before clearing his throat, “Uhh, Hi?” He had to stop himself from waving, remembering this woman just committed a crime. “Uh Miss, you know it’s against the law to rob jewelry stores, right?”

“I’m aware.”

Her nonchalant tone had him tilting his head. “So may I ask why you are in fact robbing jewelry stores at half past midnight?” The slight lift of the scarf was a sign she smirked beneath the material.

“Oh you know, I was in the area and saw how pretty the diamonds were. Not to mention the gorgeous sapphires and rubies. I just knew I had to have them.”

“And you couldn’t wait until the store opened tomorrow so you could, you know, pay for them like everyone else does?” Peter could not believe the conversation he was having with this woman. And how calm and playful she was by the situation.

She gave a shrug, “Where’s the fun in that, Spider?” Peter again had to fight the blush under his mask by the sudden nickname she’d bestowed on him.

“The deadbolt to the back door was locked and know windows were shattered. How did you even get in?”

Their was smugness in her reply, “I guess you could say I’m quiet as a cat.” She looked him once over, Peter having to look away by her gaze. “It’s not like anyone was really going to buy these jewels. They’d been there for so long. I’m basically doing the owners a favor by taking them—and I didn’t leave a mess, unlike every other burglar these streets have seen.”

“Well I’m afraid that’s now how it works. I’m going to need you to return those and if you comply, then I’ll let you leave here without getting the cops involved.”

“But aren’t you a cop?” She challenged, brow raised. “Or is the rumor true that you’re giving the NYPD a hard time by being the star of the crime fighting business.”

“No, I’m not a cop. I just help them.”

“Even though they’d rather arrest you?” His nod made he drop her shoulders. “Shame, I was looking forward to a little good cop, bad cop action. Guess it’ll have to wait.”

Peter sighed. This was not gonna be easy. “Look, you seem like a nice girl—uh lady—or uh whatever you consider yourself. But the matter at fact is you’re breaking the law and I can’t just let you take those jewels.” He took a step forward, raising his arm as if to say, ‘just hand me the bag and you’re free to go.’

He should’ve known she wouldn’t comply. The scarf once again lifted slightly and their was a crinkle by her eyes. Her grip tightened on the bag and Peter tensed. “Since you want to rain on my parade—,” Peter didn’t realize her other hand had removed something from her hip until she raised her hand in the opposite direction, “Catch me if you can, Spider.” Pressing the trigger, the grappling hook released from the gun and the woman was lifted off her feet.

As she soared through the air to the opposite building, Peter cursed and shot a web in her direction. From there a game of cat and mouse ensued with Peter having to chase after the female burglar as she continued to use her grappling hook to take her between buildings. At one point she surprised Peter by jumping off the building and aiming the hook across the street.

When she made a turn, Peter made a turn.

If she hit the ground, Peter hit the ground.

Apologies spewed from his lips each time he stumbled into a bystander or if they were pushed by the woman. They were getting closer to downtown Manhattan and the risk of innocent bystanders being injured heightened. The thought caused worry to flood Peter, hoping he would catch her before she could cause harm on anyone.

“Ma’am, please!” He shouted when she lifted off the ground again. “Please don’t make this anymore difficult than it has to be!”

Her laughter agitated Peter. How could a burglar be so amused by a chase that could end with them in jail. She must be a newbie or has gotten away for so long she expects she will get out of doing time.

Before long Peter was loosing his patience, but she was not showing any sign of slowing down. No police had stepped into the chase, so it was just the vigilante against the cat burglar. Eventually she made her way down a subway station and Peter sped up when she managed to get some distance between them.

Several people had just landed at the stop causing a bottleneck to occur. Peter struggled, loosing sight of the white-haired thief before ultimately gaining passage through the crowd. Catching his breath, Peter’s head snapped back and forth to find her. The next train had closed it’s door and Peter stood amidst the station platform.

He didn’t know where she could have went, but Peter was given the answer when his eyes landed on hers as she stood inside the train waving her fingers to him. The last thing she did was point downward to the ground, making him confused between the waves of defeat. She disappeared from his view, Peter dropping his head in frustration.

That’s when his eyes caught sight of a piece of paper by his feet.

Taking it in his hands, Peter unfolded the crackled paper and read over the scribbled handwriting with a red lip stain next to it: ‘Thanks for a fun night, Spider. Let’s do it again sometime. 💋’

Tag list: @todaywasafairytale07, @r0bynsblogins, @edgycatx, @andrewgarfieldsloml, @fuck-goes-on, @m-1234, @secretsthathauntus

[hyuckssunchip]

Blooming Pt. 1

Pairings: Jisung x Reader, ft. nct dream, lucas (honorary member of dream)

Words: 7.5K

Warnings: Language (there is almost always language in my writings), angst, fluff

Synopsis:

Love isn’t as easy as it seems, Park Jisung is an advocate of that. A blooming relationship that has prematurely ceased can be re-sparked years later, or can it? Will Jisung be able to overcome his fears in order to succeed in what he deems love?

Part 1 | Part 2 

Freshman Yr.

Hey Jisung,

I know that this is kinda random and I only have the guts to do this now because I probably won’t see you again but here goes. I think you are a really sweet and cool guy and I wish I had gotten to know you better, probably because I had a big crush on you... I just thought I would send this to you because I know it’s nice to know and it’s probably a little bit of a confidence booster. (I also kinda wanted to get this off my chest). Sorry for the essay and you don’t have to respond to this if it’s awkward … I hope you stay safe especially with what’s going on right now 

You held your breath, panicking at the loading sign on your phone. Welp, it was too late now.

You were pacing back and forth in your living room, nail very much in your mouth as you bit them anxiously.

“I just sent it.” You breathed out, “Oh my god, I just sent it.” At this point you were nearly in tears you were so nervous.

“That’s good. It’s like one a.m. though, so don’t be too worried if he doesn’t answer right away.” You nodded into the receiver, and although your best friend couldn’t see you, she still understood your silence.

You had called your best friend earlier to ask for her advice about the guy you had told her about months ago. It was the last quarter of school for this year and you finally had the courage to confess to him. 

Your best friend Megan was a little bit more experienced than you and she laughed when you had told her you wrote drafts, and you promptly sent it to her.

“He’s not writing back.” You told her, staring intently at the screen, refreshing it every few seconds as if that would make him answer. 

“Well of course not, you literally sent it ten seconds ago. Besides I told you, it’s late, he might just reply in the morning.” She sighed at your panicked state.

“Oh my god! He read it.” You bit your lip, staring at the numbers below your text.

“Oh.” She giggled, “Cute, he has read receipts on like you.” 

You barely had time to comprehend what she had said when you gasped out, “Oh my god. He’s typing, he’s typing! There’s bubbles.”

She laughed, “Wow, that was fast.”

You weren’t exactly paying attention to her, focused very much on the bubbles that were still there. Then suddenly they stopped.

“They stopped.” You felt the need to relay everything to her.

“That’s fine, he’s probably just reading over it.” You nodded, trying to convince yourself. But you couldn’t because nothing ever came. It was almost 25 minutes later that you heard the familiar ding of your phone.

Hey Y/N! thanks for letting me know, it really is not easy but rip coronavirus really is kinda messing with everything. i think you’re a really nice person and if circumstances would have allowed, i would have wanted to get to know you more too. everything is kinda hectic rn and i wish you the besttt and stay safe too!!

Immediately you called Megan again. “It doesn’t look good…Listen to what he said.” You read the text, heart dropping with every word you read.

“What are you talking about? That’s a good thing. Y/N he said he wants to get to know you better too. That’s sweet. I think he’s just keeping it open though, cause there’s not much you guys can do anyways.”

“Yeah.” You tried to not let out how dejected you were, but it was clear to her.

“Hey don’t worry about it. If he doesn’t like you then he’s not worth worrying over.”

“Right.” You pouted despite what she said making sense. “Look I’ll call you later, I’ve got to go now.”

“Okay, Y/N, don’t stress too much about it, okay?”

You hummed back, mumbling out your goodbyes.

The moment you hung up, you threw your phone on the bed, falling next to it. You sighed, trying not to overthink everything.

That’s why you confessed now, so that if you were so badly rejected, you wouldn’t have to see him again. Right?

You groaned, closing your eyes, hoping that sleep would make you feel better. Or perhaps you would wake up and find that this was all a dream. 

You woke up and of course with habit, the first thing you did was look over at your phone. You rubbed the sleep out of your eyes, grinning at the screen. 

You weren’t thrilled that it was in reality a dream, but on the other hand things had become very real very fast.

NOTIFICATION

Park Jisung            5:18 a.m.

oh, are you still going back to school next year?

You smiled at the text, heart immediately choosing to beat faster than you would’ve liked. With a glance at the clock you realized it was 8:07 a.m. and you couldn’t stop yourself from replying the moment you saw it.

yeah, i’m planning on living off campus tho… are you gonna live off campus too?

You panicked, staring at the screen, knowing damn well that he wasn’t about to reply at 8 in the morning. You had to restrain yourself from calling your best friend that very moment, you were in a happy mood and waking her up would not keep that.

The entire day you were buzzing, constantly checking your phone for new notifications. For the first time you understood what phantom texts felt like. Every couple of minutes you were sure that you felt a text, but alas it was your imagination. 

It wasn’t until 4 p.m. when a real text came through, ringing loud and clear. You had turned your ringer on and off, making sure that it was working just in case.

yup! I’ll be living by the shopping complex in downtown. how about you?

Restraint was not easy for you, and you replied after a few moments passed. Megan had constantly told you to let at least a few minutes pass, but you couldn’t help it. Besides, read receipts were not in your favor.

Conversation seemed to come really easy to you, and after an hour of texting non stop he said he had one more final to take.

You understood and immediately felt bad, realizing that you had taken up precious study time for him. You wished him good luck and spent the rest of the night relaying every detail to Megan over the phone.

Little did you know that that conversation would be the last for a long time.

3 months later

It was time for a break. And what better way was there than a small kickback with your best friends after midterms?

“I brought the good stuff.” You were startled, laying on the daybed of your other friend, Camille’s room. It was the perfect spot for a kickback. A couple hundred feet from the main house, and completely stocked with all that you needed. 

You sat up glancing at the armfuls of alcohol Megan had snagged, don’t ask how she got it.

You giggled at the thought, watching as Camille helped unload. “Let the games begin.”

“Truth or Dare Y/N?” You groaned, turning away from the both of them. 

“You know I hate this game.”

Megan didn’t let up. “Camille has a pond.” 

That was enough information for you. You took a glance out the window, noting that it was freezing outside. You were not taking a chance on her intentions. “Truth.”

“Boring.” She sang, but nevertheless had a question set. “Have you talked to that boy since the last time you called me about him?”

You grumbled to yourself, taking a shot and grimacing. “No.” 

“Why not?” Camille asked, reaching for the bottle still in your hand.

You rolled your eyes. “I don’t know, I’m too much of a coward to text him now. But he could text me first too you know. Especially cause I took the first jump. It’s probably because he doesn’t like me.”

You sighed, staring at the bottle again, tempted to take another shot.

“I’m sure that’s not the case.” You missed the look Megan shot Camille, already coming up with a new idea.

In the end you caved, choosing that perhaps another shot could bring you happiness. But it just burned your throat.

“Megan truth or dare?”

“Dare, duh.” You watched the proud look on her face.

“I dare you to… snapchat that dude that sent dick pics to fuck off.” Camille said, watching Megan’s face contort into delight.

“Hell yeah! It would be my pleasure.” She giggled, and you noticed that she was feeling the alcohol as well.

You felt the need to roll your eyes again.

“Done. And blocked.” She tossed her phone in the middle of the group with satisfaction.

“I don’t know why you just didn’t block him right after he sent them.” You commented, chewing on a gummy worm. 

She just shrugged, “I don’t know, it was kind of fun I guess. Anyways. Camille, truth or dare?”

“Truth.”

“Do you really only see Carson as a friend?” Camille sputtered at the question, spitting out a bit of juice.

“No, I see him as a brother. That’s disgusting, besides he’s dating Bailee.” She shook her head, working to clean up the mess.

“Doesn’t mean you can’t like him.” Megan muttered, before dropping it and turning back to you.

“Y/N truth or dare?”

“Truth.” You mumbled out, not really paying attention.

“Come on, do at least one dare. It’s not fun if you only answer truth.” She whined, pushing another cup of jungle juice towards you.

You hesitantly sniffed the cup before taking a sip. A moment of silence passed as they waited for you. You let out a deep sigh, “Fine, dare. What do you want?”

“I dare you to text him.”

You froze, you knew that’s what she was going to say, but you were so out of it that you let it slide.

“You know I can’t do that.” You answered, wide eyed.

“It’s a dare.” Megan nodded at the window, insinuating the punishment.

“No, I really can’t. I’ll give you my phone though, but I can’t do it.” You dug the phone out of your backpack and tossed it next to hers, which she grabbed immediately typing in your password that she had memorized.

“Deal. I’ll just start it, then you can keep the conversation going.” You waved her off, choosing to drown yourself in as much alcohol as you could in hopes of forgetting that this happened tomorrow morning.

“Done. I just sent hey, with like three y’s and a smiley face. Not the emoji though.” Your mouth dropped at her.

“That’s so not me though. You know I use emojis, and I don’t do the all, heyyyy thing. He’s gonna know.” She just shrugged, sliding the phone back to you.

You sighed, staring at the empty screen, the other two returning to the game.

But it was three minutes later when your phone dinged, a text from Jisung lighting up your screen.

“Is that him?” Camille asked, peeking over at the screen.

“Yeah. I don’t wanna read it though, you do it.” You pushed it away, pulling your knees into your chest.

“I got you.” Megan paused. “See. Guys like the hey thing. He did it back, I don’t know what you were talking about, he’s totally into you.”

You grinned, crawling forward to see for yourself. The phone dinged again seconds later.

“Ooh, that’s hot. I like it when a guy texts in multiple bubbles, it shows they just text you what they think. They’re not planning it out or anything.” Megan commented, already typing in a response for you.

You watched over her shoulder, glancing at Camille who was doing the same. 

“Is this good?” You just nodded back, sitting back on your heels to take a break.

“Oh, wow. That was fast. He texted back.” Although she sounded impressed, she frowned at the text.

“What? What is it?” You asked, panicking at her expression.

“Nothing. He’s just… dry. Was he always a dry texter?” She asked, handing the phone back to you.

“No? I don’t know, I didn’t think he was dry, we texted for like an hour straight that one time.” You mumbled, looking at the phone disappointed.

“Well he seems pretty dry to me. Maybe you should text him, maybe you were right, my texting was too different from yours.” You bit your lip and nodded, trying to come up with a response to him.

You didn’t know if it was because you were drunk, or that he could tell you were drunk, but while the conversation did get slightly better, he seemed dry to you as well. It was after twenty minutes of texting that you couldn’t keep the conversation any longer. You became frustrated at the dwindling conversation.

You had chosen to contact him again after three months of ghosting each other, and now he was making it difficult to carry a conversation. Maybe he really doesn’t like you. You felt your face heat up in embarrassment. Fine, you thought, you weren’t reaching out anymore. You didn’t want to be seen as pathetic, you could catch a hint. He just didn’t like you and was being nice. If he did actually like you, he could reach out to you.

This didn’t stop you from thinking about him for the month following the drunken incident. 

2 years later  Junior Yr.

“I swear if you’re late for this one too, I’m not setting you up on anymore blind dates!” You winced at the sound of your roommate cursing at you.

“I’m going!” You yelled back, slipping out the front door before she had a chance to attack you again. 

You managed to close door without hearing what ever else she had in store for you. 

Your keys jangled as you quickly tried to lock the bright red door, giving it one last tug of reassurance when you turned on your heel to find your car.

“Oof!” A body collided with yours, you were partially, well mostly at fault. 

“Oh my gosh, I’m so sorry. I should’ve paid more attention. It’s just, I was in a bit of a rush…” You trailed off, finally getting a good look at the other person’s face. “Jisung?”

He simply stared back with a blank look on his face, mouth hung slightly open. “Y/N?”

You hated how your heart quickened at the sound of your name from his lips. 

“I-I… wow…” You stuttered out, not quite able to act as natural as you had hoped. “Do you live here?”

“Uh… yeah, I live next door.” He pointed to your left, and when you followed his finger sure enough it was right next to your apartment. You missed the way that he looked you up and down, gulping at the sight of you in years. 

“Oh. Wow, what a coincidence, I guess.” You laughed out nervously, hands playing with your lanyard.

“Yeah.” He nodded back, not really making eye contact. Not that you were trying either.

“Well…”

“Yeah.”

There was an awkward silence between you two, and you cleared your throat to break some tension.

“I was actually on my way out, so… I’ve got to get going. But I’ll see you around.” You put on a fake smile that didn’t really reach your eyes, and shot him a wave before rushing off to your car. Once under the safety of your car, you sighed and tried to discreetly glance at the boy you hadn’t seen or thought of in years.

You shook your head, starting the ignition. It’s time to forget him, you told yourself, besides I’ve got a date waiting for me right now.

It wasn’t until Jisung was positive you could no longer see him, having driven off minutes ago, that he threw his head back and let out the deep breath he didn’t know he was holding. The blush he had been so desperately holding out finally came over his face, as he felt the heat burn his ears.

He had just begun to forget about you, from time to time, pausing over your conversation stream. Although it was torture, every once in a while he would read back all the texts, hating the way that they abruptly stopped. On occasion, mostly when he was drunk, but there were times when he was sober, he would even type out a text but fail to send it.

Jisung was never the outgoing type, he envied those who were. Those that could just strike up a conversation and carry on like it was second nature. But it was hard for Jisung. It took work and energy, and sometimes he didn’t have that. It was stressful and scary to Jisung.

It was a godsend when you reached out to him years ago, claiming so boldly your feelings for him. He wasn’t going to admit it, but then he had asked for his friends help in responding. It was Mark’s wishy-washy personality that had unbeknowingly sent your mind in circles that night.

It was Haechan’s straight-forward nature that had forced him to text you at 5 a.m. the next morning. He was tired of hearing about Jisung’s concerns as to why you didn’t reply earlier, complaining that if he was that worried just text her.

So he did.

And it worked. 

It worked so well. That hour he had spent texting you had butterflies dancing in his belly. He had never felt happier or more connected than at that moment. It wasn’t until his alarm rang, notifying him that he had five minutes until his last final did he stop smiling.

He was more than disappointed when nothing came out of the conversation. Of course he knew that it wasn’t just your fault, after all he had a phone, he could text you too.

And he tried, he really did. Multiple times. But every text he drafted was soon deleted and so the conversation ran dry. That was until three months later, May 16th.

But you always seemed to catch him at a bad time. It was Saturday, but his professor had given him an extension on his paper and it was due at midnight.

Your first text came at 10:58 p.m. 

It took all he had not to answer the text, and eventually he did cave. But as much as he wanted to focus on you he couldn’t, after all he had begged his professor to extend his deadline, he had to finish this. 

Maybe that’s why this time you didn’t seem so responsive. Maybe that’s why this time it only took twenty minutes for the conversation to end.

Maybe that’s why, after it took him forty-five minutes to respond to your last text, you left him on read.

“What’s with the long face dude?” His best friend, and housemate asked, slapping his back passive-aggressively.

“Nothing. And I don’t have a long face.” He pushed back, shoving him softly out of the way.

“Who was that? At the front door?” Jaemin asked, shoving a cookie into his mouth. 

“No one, just someone I knew.” Jisung muttered back, reaching out to steal one from the jar.

“Just someone I knew.” Chenle mocked back, leaning against the wall of the kitchen. “Right. We all could see the look on your face, that’s not just someone you knew.”

Jisung shrugged. “She was a girl I was texting.” He tried to pull it off nonchalantly, but it was evident to his housemates that it wasn’t nothing.

“Shit. Was that that girl you were talking to freshman year? The one you were head over heels for?” Jeno asked, grabbing a seat on a barstool, his laptop tightly in his grip. It was obvious he was working on something.

“Y/N?”Jaemin asked around the crumbs that filled his mouth.

“Ew. Gross. Have some manners dude.” Renjun said shoving Jaemin off the counter where he was perched, “And how many times do I have to tell you not to sit on the counter, that’s not sanitary. We have chairs for a reason.”

Jaemin made a face, but still moved to take a seat next to Jeno.

“Yeah.” Jisung frowned at the rest of the guys. “Did I make it that obvious?”

Renjun laughed, pulling a plate out of the cabinet. “You just talked about her everyday for a month. But no, not that obvious.”

“You should talk to her again, does she live close by?” Jeno asked, typing away at his computer.

“Yeah, she’s… uh… she’s our neighbor.” He rushed the last bit out, knowing that they would take advantage of the situation.

“Ooh! Our Jisung’s little girlfriend lives next door guys!” Chenle cackled out, “Guys, this is fate. And it’s our job to help out.”

Jisung scowled at him, knowing that Chenle meant what he said, “No. Guys leave her alone. Don’t make things weird. We’re going to be neighbors for the rest of the year, I don’t want to have to avoid her.”

“Avoid who?” 

“Haechan, how many times did I tell you to give me that key back?” Renjun asked, narrowing his eyes at the boy.

“Too many.” Haechan shrugged, letting Mark close the door behind him. “You can have this one back though, I’ve got two more copies at my apartment.”

Renjun threw his hands in the air, “I give up.” He picked up his plate of leftovers, opting to sit at the bar next to Jaemin.

“Who are we avoiding though?” Mark asked, settling against the wall next to Chenle.

“Y/N.” Chenle said, giving Mark a knowing grin.

“Y/N? Wait isn’t that...?” Mark furrowed his eyebrows, sporting his signature confused face.

“Uh-huh.” 

“Why are we avoiding her?” He asked, turning to Jisung, who had been awfully quiet.

“We’re not.” Jeno spoke up, finally shutting his laptop. “We just found out she’s our neighbor and Jisung doesn’t want us to do anything about it, cause he doesn’t want to avoid her.”

Haechan grinned, pulling out a glass and filling it up with water from the fridge. “So you still like her?”

“No.” There was an empty silence. “Yes.” 

Jisung sighed at the commotion his confession caused. 

“Well, don’t you think it’s our duty, as your friend, to help you out? After all, I feel like I am very invested in this budding relationship. I did help send the text that set things in motion.” Haechan boasted animatedly, accidently spilling some of his water, which he wiped up with this sock.

“No. I don’t think that it’s your duty. And please stay out of it?” He all but begged the rest of the boys. Much to his dismay, none of them looked like they were swayed. 

Jaemin clapped his hands together standing up, “Okay, how about some neighborly cookies? Everyone likes cookies.” 

Jeno rolled his eyes with a smile, but stood up anyways. “Sure I’m down, but no more of those peanut butter ones, those are shitty. Can’t we just do chocolate chip?”

Jaemin frowned, digging through the pantry cabinet. “You’re lucky we’re out of those. Chocolate chip it is.”

Haechan strolled towards Jisung, wrapping an arm around his shoulder, “How about we get drafting then?” He snorted, “I think a nice love letter should do it.”

Jisung shoved him away with more force than necessary, “Get off me. And no. Stop it with the love letter thing, I was drunk and sad okay?”

Mark butted in before the two of them would really start fighting, “Actually I don’t think that’s a bad idea. I think she’d like that, like, slip it in with the cookies or something. Just say you’d like to see her again, and hang out.”

Renjun stood up, placing his dishes in the sink, “Dude this is why Jisung sent mixed signals in the first place, ‘i’d like to see you again’, ‘let’s hang out’. Can you get any more confusing than that?”

Mark frowned and cocked his head, opening his mouth to retort, but Haechan beat him to it.  “Then what would you say Renjun? ‘Oh how beautiful your eyes compare to a midsummer’s eve. May I court you this evening?’”

Renjun glared at him. “You’re not funny. And no. I was going to say, just tell her it was a missed opportunity. That you’d like to take her out on a date now that you can.”

Jisung shook his head violently at the sound of that. “How am I supposed to do that? That’s way too straight forward, what if she says no?”

“Dude, she likes you. Remember? She sent you that text. And if her feelings aren’t there anymore then… well… I don’t know. But the chances are low.” Jeno tried to reassure him, not doing a very good job of it.

Jisung sucked a breath in, ultimately letting out a hissing noise. 

“Trust me on this one Jisung. I make a mean cookie, we’ll just head over there later today and rekindle whatever you two have.” Jaemin cooed at the boy with a big smile.

“Right. Like I can trust all of you.” He muttered to himself, choosing to escape to the confines of his room.

“So… how was it?” Your roommate asked expectantly, a far change from the way she was speaking to you earlier.

You shrugged, “I dunno, he was nice I guess.” You shook your head. “I don’t know why you guys are all pushy on this stuff. Like I get it, but it’s weird trying to date someone that I’ve just met you know?”

Your roommate Alex just shook her head, waving you off. “Whatever, so did you like him or not? Is there gonna be a second date?”

You laughed at her, she was way too invested in your non-existent love life. “I don’t know, I think so. He was sweet and stuff, but like I said it’s weird.”

“Well, that’s the furthest you’ve gotten so far.” You sent her a glare. “I’m just saying. You always either end up leaving the date, or never seeing them again.”

“Shut up, I don’t-”

You were cut off by the sound of the doorbell ringing. Alex and you exchanged glances, you weren’t expecting anybody.

She stood up, grabbing the bat next to the door, that your mother insisted you bring, ‘just in case’.

You huffed, moving past her, “You know, you could just look through the peephole.” You leaned forward squinting into the door, only to find a group of boys that seemed your age.

“Who is it?”

You pulled back, tilting your head, “I don’t know, just a group of guys.”

You unlocked the door, peeking out through the crack slightly, and you were greeted very enthusiastically by the boy in front.

“Hi!” He grinned, showing off a perfect set of pearly whites. He was waving very aggressively with his free hand, the other seemed to be holding a plate of cookies. “I’m Jaemin! We’re neighbors.”

After his quick introduction he shoved the plate towards you, never letting the smile leave his face.

“Uh… hi?” You weren’t quite sure what to say. 

Luckily Alex did, “Hi, I’m Alex and this is Y/N. That’s so sweet of you.” She smiled back, taking the plate from you. “Do you guys want to come in? We can crack them open right now.”

You stepped back, watching the trail of six- no seven guys just stroll into your apartment. 

“What the hell?” You muttered to yourself, closing the door softly behind the last boy.

“Hi Y/N.”

You looked up to see Jisung again, and you took a slight step back, startled at the sight.

“Jisung. Oh.” You barely let out.

“Sorry, we didn’t mean to overstep or anything. The guys just wanted to meet you… all. They wanted to meet all of you… cause you’re our neighbors, and all…”

You blushed realizing that he had heard you comment, completely ignoring the way that Jisung was stumbling all over his words.

Haechan took no time in introducing himself, and taking the honor of introducing everyone else as well.

“I’m Haechan, this is Mark, Jeno, Chenle, and Renjun. You already know Jaemin, and I’m aware that you already know Jisung.” He grinned proudly after gesturing to each of the respective boys.

“Jisung?” Alex asked, eyebrows raised. You hadn’t told her about him. For one, it never came up, and secondly, it’s not like it was anything important now. That was years ago, you didn’t feel the need to inform her of every detail of your life, like him.

Haechan cocked his head, “Yeah. You didn’t know they knew each other?”

You furrowed your brows at him. “And how do you know that?”

Jisung shyly raised his hand next to you, embarrassed that he was outed for spilling the details to his friends. “Sorry, that would be my fault.”

You turned slightly, mouth dropping at his face, “Oh. I didn’t mean it like that. I..I- That came out wrong. I’m not mad or anything, I was just shocked.”

You bit your lip feeling guilty about the way he responded.

“Anyways.” Jaemin interrupted the awkward silence. “We just wanted to say hi and stop by. Maybe we can all hang out and stuff and be neighborly.”

He grinned, looking around at the group.

“Right.” You nodded slowly, “Thanks for the cookies, and it was nice meeting you all.” There was a forced smile on your face, but none of the boys seemed to notice or care.

Eventually the boys filtered out one by one, and you closed the door, sighing against it.

“They were nice.” Alex said, taking a bite in a cookie. “Oooh, and these are hella good.”

“Yeah.” You mumbled, moving to sit on the couch.

“Why do you look like that? You don’t like them?” She asked, grabbing a glass for milk. “You and Jisung already know each other though. By the way, how do you know him?”

You rubbed your hand over his face. “It’s a long story.”

“Well, I have the rest of the day.” She sang back, taking a seat on the cushion next to you.

And so, now that Jisung was back in your life, you were left no choice to fill her in.

“Damn! That’s awkward as hell.” Her eyes were widened to the max.

“Yeah, I know. But I didn’t want them to feel super weird, cause you know, neighbors right? I just can’t believe my luck though.” You sighed leaning back, slouching down.

“Yeah, but do you like him though?” She asked, to which you whipped your head towards her.

“What?”

“Do you like him? I mean this could be really good for you. Actually it’s a win-win for everyone here. I can stop forcing you on blind dates and you can date the boy you’ve been pining after for years.” She shrugged like it was obvious.

“Okay, I have not been pining after him for years, and we’re not going to date just because I liked him two years ago. I mean, didn’t you get it from what I told you? He doesn’t like me.” You tried to shut her down.

“What are you talking about? Did you see him today? He couldn’t tear his eyes away from you.” You frowned at her observation. You didn’t remember it the way she did, every time you looked at him, which wasn’t that often, he was desperately trying to avoid eye contact.

“No he wasn’t.” You nevertheless blushed at the idea. 

“Ooh, you’re blushing! Someone has a cru-ush!” She raised her voice, and you slapper her.

“Shut up, they’re right next door remember? They’re our neighbors.” She simply winked at you. 

“And no I don’t.” You added as an afterthought.

The small restaurant was bustling with energy, something the boys loved.

“Dude, why haven’t we been here before?” Mark asked, eyes wide with excitement, smacking Haechan’s shoulder unnecessarily hard.

Haechan tried to move away from him, but to no avail.

“I told you, Jeno always said this place was pricey.” He muttered back, giving in when he realised Mark’s habit wasn’t disappearing anytime soon.

“We shouldn’t have trusted Jeno’s cheap ass.” Renjun snorted, “The prices here look decent.”

“Hey!” Jeno tried to defend himself. “I’m a college student, everything is expensive.”

Jaemin threw an arm over Jeno’s shoulder, trying to comfort him. “Let’s just grab a booth.”

As they trudged down the busy pathway, Jeno spotted a familiar face.

“Hey isn’t that Y/N?” Jeno asked, elbowing Jisung in the side. But Jisung was already aware of your presence, he had been the moment they stepped into the restaurant.

“Don’t point.” Renjun slapped the boy’s hand down.

“I wasn’t-”

“Shut up.” 

“Wait… who’s that with her?” Jaemin asked the obvious, slurring his words at the end, as if just understanding the situation.

It seemed as if you were on a date, and Jisung’s heart dropped. It felt like his entire world came crashing down, like any and all hope he had in you went out the window.

Of course you would have a boyfriend, it’s been two years since you last talked, and it’s not like you were even an item. You texted for an hour. 

Jisung closed his eyes for a second, but the picture was still searing in his brain. Hell, he wasn’t even sure if he told you that he liked you.

“I guess we didn’t think about that. That she could have a boyfriend.” 

“Yeah, I mean it has been two years.” Mark nodded, agreeing with Jaemin.

“Guys, not helping.” Renjun said between gritted teeth.

Jisung bit his lip, silently running over the image of you. 

Is that your boyfriend? How long had you been dating? Was it after he ran into you? If he asked you out then, would that be him? 

He had so many questions he wanted answered, but he would never get them.

Chenle pulled his arm roughly, trying to drag him into the booth. “Jisung you’re staring. Try not to make it so obvious.” He teased.

Jisung quickly averted his eyes, choosing to sit where he could watch you from his seat. His stomach felt queasy, maybe that was a bad idea. Suddenly he lost his appetite at the sight of you smiling so widely at something funny your date had said.

Mark glanced up from his menu, staring at Jisung who was now downing his water. He elbowed Haechan who was concentrating on the menu. 

“Dude, say something.” He hissed at him, trying to get Haechan to lift the mood. But for some reason, today of all days, he wasn’t having it.

Haechan just shrugged, shaking his head, “What do you want me to do?” Then he went back to his menu.

Mark bit his lip nervously, feeling uncomfortable at the sight of Jisung so anxious. He shot a look at Renjun who understood and at least tried to spark up conversation.

“So Jeno, who’d you come here with again?” He asked, an attempt at diverting attention from the elephant in the room.

“Uhh… some girl…” Jeno mumbled back, blushing furiously.

“Jeno’s blushing!” Chenle shouted out, his loud voice carrying across the restaurant. 

This had Jisung cracking a smile. 

“Dude, not so loud.” Jeno groaned out, sinking into his seat. He turned to glare at Renjun, “Did you have to bring that up?”

Renjun shrugged, but sent a small apologetic smile. ‘Sorry’ he mouthed at the embarrassed boy.

You had Chenle to thank for alerting you of the group’s presence. You pulled away from your conversation with Lucas and craned your head to get a glimpse of your neighbors.

“Do you know them?” Lucas asked, following your gaze.

“Oh, yeah, they’re my neighbors.” You said back, tearing your eyes from their booth.

“Yikes, they’re kind of loud.” He chuckled, “That must be rough on you.”

You gave him a smile, accompanied by your own giggle. “Lucas, in case you didn’t notice, you’re loud.”

He let out a fake gasp, holding his hand against his chest, “Me?”

You laughed, “Lucas, on our first date you thought we had so many complaints about the ‘loud dude in the booth’ that they asked us to leave.”

He frowned, “It’s not my fault my voice carries. And I have a very pleasant laugh, they should’ve been happy to hear it.” He pouted, “But we got ice cream to make up for it.”

You bit your lip, holding back your grin at the memory. “Yeah and it was freezing out.” You paused watching his expression, “But it’s never too cold for ice cream, besides, I wouldn’t have gotten your jacket out of it. And by the way, I’m keeping it. It’s soft.”

He smiled widely, immediately agreeing with you. “I’m just gonna use that excuse to see you again.”

You returned his sentiment, it wouldn’t be all that bad to meet Lucas again. You seemed to enjoy yourself every time you met.

“Oh. Jisung, hey.” You let out surprised.

“Hi.” He smiled at you shyly, staring back at you.

“Hi.” You blushed at the awkward tension between the two of you.

You turned and locked the door quietly before facing your neighbor again. “I was just heading out.”

“Right.” He mumbled, retreating back towards his apartment.

“I was going to the bookstore to pick up some things…” You trailed off, watching his expression, “If you’d like to come…?”

You immediately regretted your offer, ducking your head to hide your embarrassment. “You don’t have to, that was-”

“Sure.”

You froze, quickly snapping your head to meet his gaze.

“I uhh… have some things to take care of too.” He stumbled over his words to accept your offer.

“Oh, okay.” You smiled shyly at your feet, a strange feeling in your stomach turning.

You nodded in the direction of campus, trudging forward slowly at first to let him catch up. Soon enough the two of you were keeping pace.

A few minutes passed before Jisung cleared his throat, “So what are you getting from the bookstore?”

You nodded to yourself, “I have a textbook I ordered. It’s ridiculous isn’t it? How insanely overpriced it is, and it’s not like it’s even possible to pass the class without it. I mean I’m paying enough for college, now I have to pay on top of that.” You took a breath and chuckled nervously, “Sorry, I didn’t mean to rant on you.”

Jisung grinned at the way you were so worked up, “No not at all. I totally agree. It’s a rip off, I mean why not just make it part of tuition, we’re paying enough as it is.”

You nodded, “Right? It’s not right to make it required, like I could totally pirate it online, but if the professors make our homework using the online site to turn it in, that’s not even an option.”

You sighed exasperated, and missed the look on Jisung’s face. He seemed to enjoy the way you raved on about something as simple as a textbook.

You paused at the sound of his laughter from beside you, and you turned to look at him with a smile, enjoying the sound. 

It was a fifteen minute walk to campus, and another five to the bookstore. And before you knew it the building was looming over your heads.

Jisung jogged a few paces before you, reaching for the door. You paused, watching as he stood aside, holding the door for you.

You blushed, perhaps, as they say, chivalry isn’t dead. “Thank you.”

You reached your hand up, pressing your cold fingers against your burning cheeks, an attempt to chase away the color.

“So which class is it for?” He asked, looking around, and thankfully not noticing your heated face.

“Economics.” You replied, lifting your head in search of your department.

The two of you wandered around for a few more moments, not searching particularly hard for the book in question.

“Look, introduction to Korean Pop Music.” He laughed, pointing at the textbook. “Can you believe there’s a whole course on that?”

You smiled, looking. “I dunno, it seems interesting. Besides, there’s classes for classical music, and pop music, why not K-pop?” 

He nodded back, giving you a glance.

“Here, economics.” You mumbled out, walking down the long corridor. You ran your fingers along the spines of all the books, stopping at the familiar title. “Jesus, 98 dollars.”

He frowned, sidling up next to you. 

Sighing you reluctantly pulled the book off the shelf. “Ready?”

Jisung looked at you under heavy brows.

“You’re going to get it?”

“It comes with the online version. I mean I have to get the online portion, might as well get the hardcopy for free with it.” You nodded towards the check out, stepping towards the staircase.

He followed in suit, stuffing his hands in his pocket. He ran into your back after you stopped abruptly, suddenly remembering something.

“Oh, didn’t you have to get a book?”

Jisung’s eyes widened, “Oh yeah.” At that moment he reached out and grabbed what seemed to be a random book from the closest table, but you chose to ignore it.

He raised the book, and gave you a smile.

Your eyebrows shot up, “Introduction to the female reproductive system?”

Jisung suddenly turned very pale, as he tried to play it off. “Yeah, ummm… for my biology class.”

You grinned, nodding like you believed him. But you chose to continue up the stairs, unable to watch as his face contorted. While you weren’t looking he quickly flipped over the cover, gulping at the sight of the price.

“80 dollars?” But he shook it off, trudging after you.

“Anything else for you?” A boy around the same age as you was checking you out.

“Nope, that should be it.” You smiled, fumbling around with your purse to find your wallet.

“Economics huh? Are you a ManEcon major?” He asked, leaning towards you slightly, ignoring Jisung who had arrived nearby.

You looked up from your bag, “Huh? Oh, yeah ManEcon. You?”

Your hand was still deep in your back when he replied. “Same, I’m a Junior, I managed to switch in last year.”

“Really?” You raised your eyebrows, “Was it difficult?”

“No, I mean I knew I wanted to switch early on, so I already was taking the classes I needed.”

You nodded back, “That makes sense. Have you taken macro yet? I’m signed up this quarter but I’m a little nervous.”

“I had Zeggert last quarter, she was pretty good.” He smiled, nodding, “She likes it when people go into office hours, really tries to help.”

You cracked a smile of your own, “No way, I have Zeggert. Thank goodness, I’m definitely going to use her office hours a lot then.”

You took a moment to successfully dig out your wallet, sliding him your card.

“That’s good, well, I’m here basically all the time. So if you ever need help, you know where to find me.” He winked at you, returning the card.

You murmured out a quick thanks, and stepped aside to let Jisung pay for his books.

Jisung didn’t take long, and you noticed that he was particularly cold with the cashier, who in turn wasn’t nearly as friendly with him as he was with you.

“He was kind of flirting with you.” Jisung mumbled out, picking at the brand new spine of his unneeded textbook.

You glanced at him, stepping through the door that he once again held open, not knowing how to respond to him.

“Don’t you have a boyfriend?” He asked under his breath as you caught up beside him.

“What?” You shot him a puzzled look.

Jisung raised his eyebrows, “Your boy...friend?” He slowed his words, questioning them himself.

“I don’t have a boyfriend.” You let out, not pausing in your steps. The same couldn’t be said for Jisung.

He jogged slightly to catch up. “But your date…?”

“My date?” You asked, now choosing to stop and face him. You shook your head, confused, “What date?”

“The- the guy you were with at the restaurant Wednesday.” He studied the sidewalk intently, flustered at his confession.

“You saw me?” You leaned down slightly, trying to catch his gaze.

“I-uh… I mean I didn’t mean to watch you. But we just happened to go to that restaurant.” He mumbled, choosing to walk forward and escape the situation, but you quickly caught up.

“He’s not my boyfriend, I mean, we were on a date, but he’s not my boyfriend.” You felt the need to defend yourself, or at least clear things up. Although you didn’t know why you felt the need.

“Oh. A date.” He mumbled. He was overjoyed at the fact that you weren’t dating anyone, but couldn’t help but be disappointed at the mention of a date. From what he remembered, you seemed to be enjoying yourself then.

The silence grew until you reached your doorstep. It had taken Jisung fifteen minutes to decide, fifteen minutes to pluck up the courage he needed.

“How about a date with me?” Although he refused to meet your eyes, you felt the genuinity.

Part 2

© Copyright 2021. hyuckssunchip. All rights reserved.

[slashingdisneypasta]

Damien Dalgaard x Experimenting!Fem!Reader || Drabble

Plot: You want to safely experiment with recreational drugs but Damien wants to keep that from happening so he stretches his power in the world of drug sales to prevent anyone of note from selling to you.

Warnings: References to responsible recreational drug use, drug dealers, slightly controlling/possessive ways. Sexual references, also. Its mostly fluffy though

I stand one bisexual drug dealer

~~~

"Jacob, please. Come on. I have the money, I have my drivers licence- you know me! I don't want anything crazy, just something fun! And safe!" You press your hands together in a 'praying' gesture and set the hulking figure with a pleading gaze. "And I have plans to take it, at home, with my sober mum in the room. Really, I have no precarious plans!"

"I know, I trust you sweetheart. But I just cant sell you anything." He shrugs, turning his body towards the bar exit so he can escape you- but your hand flies from your side and to his forearm, gently, to stop him. He whines. "Come on, Y/N... "

"Jacob... " You fire back, in the same pleading tone. Then an awkward smile slips across your lips and raise an eyebrow in question, crossing your arms over your chest. "Come on," You tilt your head to the side. "What's really going on? You're the 4th person that's refused to sell me anything and I'm running out of notable dealers."

Jacob rubs the back of his thick neck, the skin stretching under his palm, and he grits his teeth together. "Look, I... " Making a frustrated noise, he lets go and shakes his head, avoiding your gaze. "Someone... doesn't seem to uh... be too pleased, at the idea of you... " He tilts his head to one side, then the other. Choosing his words carefully- not that he has to. Understanding is starting to sink in as he speaks, anyway. Finally he drops his arm and sighs out a frustrated sigh. "Buying any drugs."

Damn it.

As Jacob says sorry and slips away from you successfully this time as you sigh and lean back on the pillar behind you. A certain blue eyed devil boy, who was unknowingly to you, keeping an eye on the exchange between you and Jacob from the bar, picks up his drink and slips through the crowd to you. As soon as you see him, you roll your eyes. Of course he's here, on top of everything else!

You refuse to even say hello to your stalker and give him the damn satisfaction, and just glare at up at him from the pillar instead. Although, you're careful not to pout- lest you only cement his juvenile opinion of you.

"Sorry, sunshine. Got to him a few minutes before you got through the door."

You huff. "Damiennnnn." A smirk flickers at the corners of the raven haired dealer's lips, just like any time you would groan out his name; The context be damned. "Why're you doing this?"

"For your own good, baby. You know tha- " Before he can even finish that sentence, you're rolling your eyes and moving to leave him right there in the bar, but he manages to side step you and get in front of you again. His hand curls around your arm, gently. "You wouldn't like it. I know you wouldn't, you're a good kid. I'm just saving you from a bad experience."

"That's not your choice to make." You snap back, gaze meeting his and, for once, being the icier party. "Damien you're not my mum. And you're not my boyfriend- neither of which would change a damn thing about my decision, if you were in fact either of those things to me."

"Well that's just too bad sweetheart, because alert the presses, cuz I seem to have just beat the system." Like the hot douche he tends to be, he makes a show of looking you over, from head to toe. "Because I don't see any fucking drugs, on you."

You growl, and exclaim hopelessly. "I would if you would just sell them to me!"

"Not gonna happen."

"Why!?"

"I told you." Damien moves closer, hunching over you. You can feel his breath on your forehead, but still you stay firm. He's annoying, and frustrating, and a pain in the ass. Your personal brand of sexy, yes, but all those other things first and foremost. "You're a goody-two-shoes, and you wouldn't like what it does to you." Oh, he says it like its scientific fact. And it seriously grates on your nerves. Why is he so insistent??!

You roll your eyes deeply, enough to really feel it before talking again. "I wouldn't or you wouldn't?"

A slow, mischievous grin slips over his face. But its just a show and does little to cover up the unsureness in his eyes. "Sweetheart. Does that distinction really matter that much?"

You cross your arms. "It does if you're thinking like a boyfriend but refuse to act like one, jerk." For a moment he doesn't say anything. His mouth opens a little, like words should come out immediately - a deflection, a denial. Something clean and easy, - but he just... gets stuck. Freezes. Realisation of how real those words you just spat out must truly be slowly dawn on you, and you revert your gaze from his. The anger from before kind of just, slips right out of you. "Cuz... you come to see me a lot. You try to protect me. We're having regular sex, you bring me my (Chosen drink) for no conceivable reason other then to make me happy... " Things start to make sense to you as 2 and 2 come together. Your eyebrows knit together and your gaze flickers up to his, then away again. Then you shrug. "But then again, that cant be it, right? You don't do relationships, right?"

"Right." He replies back, quickly this time. Too quickly.

"Right." You say back, then chew on your bottom lip and look around. You cant see much of the rest of the bar, and the partyers being loud as hell around because Damien's so close and is shielding you from everything, but you don't know quite what else to do, now. He's frozen, and even when he defrosts you're not sure he's going to have anything remotely productive to say and might just brush you off actually which would be sucky, so... Maybe, you should... go???

But just as you move to slip around Damien and leave, he seems to gather his wits and clenches his grip harder down on your arm. "Hold on, wait a moment, there." He looks up and finally meets my eyes again; You raise an eyebrow expectantly. What? He sighs, and leans forward, rests an arm on the pillar above your head - caging you in, - and squeezes his eyes closed for a moment, controlling himself. "Where are you going?" For gods sake.

"Home- there you go thinking like a boyfriend again though! Why do you need to know where I'm gonna be??"

"Why do you answer me, in the first place?" He shoots right back this time, causing you to blanche up at him. A slow smirk spreads across his lips again- this time, real. There's a definite mischievous sparkle in those blue-blue eyes. "Do you want me to be your boyfriend, Y/N?"

Sputtering, mostly to waste time so you can find the right response to a bold question like that, you say nothing. What? What? This is not about you- Why don't you feel violently ill at the concept, though?

Must be just because he's standing so close. He's pretty, that's it. Your own personal, addictive brand of pretty. That's all- "Maybe?"

... what??

For a moment all the mystery, mischief, good old bad-boy energy and just, plain, darkness just leaves him. Its unbelievably endearing and all you can do is stand there like a doll watching Damien laugh, quietly, at your response and probably the fact that you must look like a startled baby bird right now too. Briefly you let yourself dip into that box pushed into the very back of your mind, hiding away all the things that you shouldn't think about regarding Damien, and wonder if that's what he looked like all the time, before. When he was all geeky and book-nose-y. A 'goody-two-shoes' himself. You read about that part of his life on Gossip Girl. He didn't talk about it, for damn sure.

Then you shut that down because its in that box for a reason. Its not appropriate for you to dig that deep, with him.

But also you're totally confused, with where this conversation might be going. Should you pick up that box? Its becoming dangerously close to being appropriate.

"Maybe?" He asks, clearly amused. Like a chameleon, his colours change back again to drug dealing dickhead. You don't mind. You like both.

You tilt your head to the side, raising an eyebrow. "... Well, do you want me to be your girlfriend?"

He rolls his eyes, smirking, and chooses to torture you with his own 'Maybe', making you huff. He's amused by it, before setting you with a serious, questioning look. "If I did, though... What would that mean about your little drug quest you got going, here?"

Oh.

You're back here again.

Wonderful.

"Well," You take a deep breath, and reach up to cautiously hang your arms loosely around his neck; Something you've done plenty of times before but never so intimately. Not this kind intimately, anyway. Absolutely not. This kind, is what makes you nervous. More then when you met him, your first time at a bar on your own. More then any of the times someone dangerous approached you both when you were with him, definitely more then when you had sex - no matter where, - . More then roller coasters and giant swings. "I don't think it would go away totally," You say, carefully. "if I was your girlfriend, or anyone's girlfriend. Then, I think I'd be... too preoccupied, to think about that. For a little while, at least."

After a moment of letting your words sink in, Damien makes a thoughtful 'Hm' sound and wraps both his arms around your waist- gathering you up against him. "Sounds like time that could be used convincing you not to try."

"You could see it that way." You grin, rolling your eyes. But like a light switch, those words seem to ease the whole situation. Damien's hands on you, the feel of him close, isn't anything new to you. But it feels different all the same. Like you're really allowed to like it, now. In all the most innocent ways possible. "But good luck."

"I think I'll take my chances with that option." Damien proclaims, and for a moment you just stand there together. The bar's music blaring in your ears, making them pink and hot, the material of his dark coat cosy to the touch and making you feel enclosed in it and safe despite all the chaos that bars encase, Damien looking around the room; Not assessing possible sales for once or checking for danger. Just... stewing in his satisfaction. The frustration bleeding from the both of you earlier seemingly evaporated like it was nothing, as you grin down to yourself. "Also," He pipes up again coyly after a few minutes, catching your attention by squeezing you a little bit, also. "With you as my girlfriend," Girlfriend, girlfriend, girlfriend- "now, I can do this any time I want."

Then he leans down and presses his lips against yours - less needy then usual. Not looking for anything more. Just kissing you to feel your lips against his, - in a kiss that sends tingles all over your body, and forces you to get up onto the tips of your toes to reciprocate with as much passion.

BONUS:

"Welp, I'm gonna get going now." You exclaim once the kiss is over, or you just cant hold your breath anymore, and reluctantly pull out of his arms, fixing your bag on your shoulder. You flash him a grin, tilting your head to the side. "Probably see you tomorrow?"

"Where are you going?"

"Home!" What does he mean, 'Where are you going?' ??? "I told you. I have cookies there, and my sister will eat all of them if I stay away all night."

Damien just stares back at you, waiting for some punch line, apparently. When no punchline comes after too many moments, he holds up a hand to slow you down- as if you had moved at all, with him staring at you like that. Any dose of those blue eyes are lethal. "Wait, you're really going home?"

"Yep." You pop the 'p', equally confused with him as he is with you. What does he mean, 'Wait, you're really going home'?????? Of course you're going home. That's what you said? Twice?

He just continues to stare at you. "What?? Cookies, Damien."

"I can buy you cookies." He assures, but you shake your head.

Tempting, but- "Mm, not these. I baked them."

"I can buy you ingredients."

"But then I have to wait for them to bake, and cool, when I can just take a 15 minute tram ride home and eat them now."

"Okay- " Damien sighs, kneading his forehead. "Alright, I might be new to the boyfriend thing Y/N, but don't people in relationships traditionally spend a- well, an obscene, amount of time together?" You smirk and giggle, at that. Oh, that's the issue. He thought becoming your boyfriend would be a bigger thing.

Hmm, you look away and wonder how to word this...

"Damien. Heads up, but as far as I'm aware, you've been acting like my boyfriend for months now. We've just labelled it now- not much is gonna change, except maybe I'll use the 'boyfriend card' sometimes with you. Don't sweat." With that, you lean up and peck him on the cheek as he smirks; relieved. Then you step back totally, resigned to not touching him again tonight even if you want to. That was goodbye. "Now, I'll text you later? Have a good night!"

"Night." He chuckles, pocketing his hands and turning to watch you leave.

[matsuoclan]

the night is never long enough

pairing: mason x det. marist hoang (MF) rating: explicit (MINORS DO NOT INTERACT) content: explicit sexual content, kissing, oral sex, p in v sex word count: 4.9k

notes: Wanted to do a rewrite of Mason and the detective’s canon first time in book 2 to make it more specific to my detective and her personality and the backstory I envision for her. I don’t think I’ve written anything for Marist before, so I guess this is her introduction? She’s super different from Lucy. Enjoy!

tagging: @agentnatesewell @ejunkiet

[ read on ao3 ] [ masterlist ]

Mason’s eyes are hungry.

He steps in close, close enough that she can smell smoke and musk of him, close enough that their shoes bump and she can feel the press of his cock against his zipper, digging into her belly. They haven’t even done anything, haven’t even kissed, and he’s hard. For her. The knowledge zings down her spine, trailing pleasure and power down its wake, and then she fists her hands in his shirt and tugs his mouth down to hers.

He may be hungry, but she’s hungrier.

The kiss is hard and demanding from the start. Her mouth parts in a gasp because this — this is so much better than she imagined. His tongue slides hot against hers, his hands threading into her hair as he crowds her until her back hits her front door. Marist rolls her hips against his with the little room she has, blood heating when she feels his cock give an almighty twitch.

Mason’s low growl of satisfaction makes her go lightheaded. Any restraint he seemed to have before disappears as he wraps large hands around the backs of her thighs and pins her against the door with his body, kiss turning ravaging and aggressive and wild. She moans against his mouth and pleasure bursts behind her eyelids when he grinds his cock against her pussy through her jeans.

She can’t get enough. The feel of his hard body against hers, his hot mouth possessing hers, his hands burning her skin through her clothes. It’s never been like this, not with anyone, and all she wants is more.

Her neighbor’s front stoop light turns on suddenly, startling her into sinking her teeth into his bottom lip.

“Fuck, sorry,” she gasps, when Mason grunts and moves his mouth to her neck.

“You good?” he rumbles into her skin, biting down lightly.

“Yeah, but, oh fuck,” she says, eyes drifting shut as he gives another roll of his hips. “We should get inside unless you want to give my neighbors a show.”

Mason presses his lips to hers in a quick, hard kiss before setting her down on her feet so she can unlock her door. Her body sways slightly at the loss of contact, hands shaking as she digs in her purse for her keys. An inappropriate laugh bubbles up inside her. Hopefully her neighbors never find out how close she was to asking Mason to fuck her through her front door.

Somehow they make it into her apartment unscathed, and this time it’s Marist pushing him up against the door he just kicked shut. Mason allows her to do so with an infuriatingly indulgent smirk.

She doesn’t respond, only stands on her toes to take his mouth again and kiss that smirk away. In this position, she has more room to explore and she takes advantage of every inch, running her hands along his strong arms and through his hair before resting them on the hard muscle of his chest. Mason’s breath is ragged by the time she shifts back onto her feet to run her tongue along the freckles on his neck.

Fuck, his freckles. She wants to see all of them, wants to know how low they go under his shirt, wants to know where else on his body she can find them and sink her teeth into them. She wants her mouth on every part of him he’ll allow.

“Off,” she demands, grabbing at the hem of his shirt.

Mason obliges, yanking it off over his head and throwing it to the floor. He’s fucking gorgeous like this, an expanse of tan, freckled skin and muscle with a light dusting of dark hair over his chest that narrows into a downward line, disappearing into the front of his pants where his massive erection presses.

Marist’s mouth goes dry. She squeezes her thighs together in an attempt to ease the acute ache between her legs, imagining how fucking good it’ll feel when he finally gets inside her. 

“Like what you see, sweetheart?” he asks.

She scoffs to cover the momentary lull, leaning in and sucking one of his nipples into her mouth. Satisfaction settles in her stomach when Mason’s hips jerk up reflexively and his head bangs back against the door with a hoarse “fuck.”

“It’s beneath you to fish for compliments.” She scrapes her teeth against his nipple and when he hisses, swirls her tongue around it to soothe any sting. “But yes, I do, very much so.”

Slowly Marist trails her hands down his chest, relishing the way his chest heaves at her touch. Her mouth follows the path laid out by her hands and she flicks her tongue at the freckles dotting his skin. Mason exhales harshly through her exploration, jaw tense. It’s an incredibly heady, powerful feeling, seeing him so affected.

Her hands move lower and lower, and she palms his cock through the front of his pants. Mason’s eyes go lidded when she drops to her knees before him.

“I want to suck you off,” she murmurs, his dick inches from her face.

Even kneeling, she can see the way his pupils blow wide with interest at her words.

“Fuck, of course you can,” he breathes, the corner of his mouth hitching up in a crooked smile. “As long as I can return the favor afterward.”

“Deal.” Methodically she undoes his pants, sliding his belt off and carefully pulling his zipper down. When she sees he’s not wearing any underwear, she almost snorts, but then she draws his cock out and any trace of amusement flees.

He’s fucking huge.

His cock is hot and hard and thick and beautiful in her hands and she wraps her fist around his base, shivering when the tips of her fingers can’t meet her thumb.

Glancing up, she meets Mason’s dark gaze. He’s not smiling anymore, lips pressed tight together now as he looks at where her mouth almost touches his cock. His hand slides into her hair, pulling the strands back into a makeshift ponytail.

Marist shivers again.

His hand in her hair doesn’t apply any pressure, doesn’t do anything except hold her hair back from her face. He’s letting her set the pace while making sure he has an unimpeded view, and fuck if that doesn’t make her pussy throb.

She leans in and swirls her tongue around his fat head, heat spiking through her when he quietly groans. He feels impossibly huge on her tongue and pulses when she takes him in deeper. There’s no way she’ll be able to fit him entirely in her mouth, jaw already aching, but she tries anyway, sucking him down until he bumps the back of her throat and working him with her hands where he doesn’t fit.

Drops of precome leak onto her tongue as she bobs her head, switching between deep strokes and shorter ones. Mason’s thighs shake slightly, like it’s taking all of his effort to stay still and allow her to work, and she moans around his cock. He curses at the vibration, hips jerking forward seemingly involuntarily, and the head of his cock goes dangerously deep.

“Fuck, sorry,” he groans when she pulls back for a recovery breath, resting his tip on her lips. “That felt so good.”

“You can fuck my mouth, you know,” she says, running a teasing tongue along his underside. “If you want to.”

He curses and throws his head back against the door when she takes him into her mouth again. “Shit.” His hand in her hair tenses just slightly to keep her head in place as his hips start to move, pushing forward and retreating slowly at first before speeding up. His cock saws hard and fast into her mouth and skirts close to her gag reflex. His chest heaves with pleasure and the sight of it is so hot, seeing him undone like this with his face screwed up in ecstasy, that she tears at the button and zipper of her jeans with a free hand, desperate for any sort of relief. She almost sobs in need around his cock when her fingers brush her clit inside her panties, already sopping wet.

He fucks her mouth in hard, quick strokes and she rubs herself to his rhythm, hips jerking down on her hand.

“Fuck, Marist, fuck, are you touching yourself?” he grunts. She makes a sound of affirmation that comes out as a hum around his cock. He shudders, grip on her hair tightening to the point of pain. “That’s so...hot, fuck, sweetheart, I’m gonna—”

He pumps one, two, three more times before his entire body seizes as he comes, breath stuttering from his lungs. His cock jerks, filling her mouth in spurts, and she swallows him down eagerly. He’s thick and salty and perfect on her tongue.

Mason’s hand falls from her head after his climax leaves him, so spent that he pants as he rests against the door behind him. She flicks her tongue on his cock one last time as he slips from her mouth, making him jerk from oversensitivity.

The look he gives her sends a thrill down her spine. He yanks her up to him and licks into her mouth, not at all caring about his taste on her tongue. He swallows her moan, clutching her to him, and then rips his lips from hers to close around the fingers she had on her clit, sucking her wetness from her skin.

Marist whimpers. It’s the most erotic thing she’s ever seen.

He hauls her up effortlessly in his arms, capturing her mouth again as he stalks down the hall into her bedroom. She’s unceremoniously dumped and then pushed back onto her bed. There’s only a split second glimpse of hungry eyes before he’s on her again, kissing her deep and hard as his body presses her into her bed.

“That was fucking amazing,” he says against her mouth. He moves down her body slowly, burying his face into the side of her neck. “But it’s my turn now.”

“Yeah?” she says breathlessly.

He draws back until he’s sitting on his haunches, bringing her up with him so he can grasp the bottom of her shirt and lift it up over her head. The sharp exhale he gives at the sight of her in her bra heats her cheeks.

“Yeah,” he says, meeting her eyes again. He traces his fingers along the tops of the lacy cups. Message received. She reaches behind her and unhooks the band, tossing the bra aside. He helps her wiggle out of her jeans and panties, and then she’s naked before him.

Mason stares at her with unabashed lust, gently pushing her back down onto her bed as his hands skate up her sides. He leans in and brushes his lips over the column of her throat. “My turn to explore,” he murmurs into her skin. “My turn to make you come on my tongue. I bet you’re gorgeous when you come.”

Marist stiffens for a second, body flooding with anxiety, but then forces herself to relax. But of course Mason notices, immediately pausing and drawing back.

“What’s wrong?”

She squirms. “Nothing.”

“Look, sweetheart, if you’re not into this anymore, it’s fine. I can go—”

“No, I am, it’s just…” She sighs, embarrassment crawling up her neck, even though she has nothing to be embarrassed about. She may as well tell him. “I don’t come.”

Mason stares at her like she grew a second head. “Excuse me?”

“I don’t have orgasms with other people, ok?” She can hear herself sounding defensive and tries to soften her tone. “I can get myself off just fine by myself but I’ve never come while having sex with a partner. It’s ok, I still enjoy sex, but don’t take it personally when I don’t have an orgasm, ok?”

Whatever she’s expecting to see in Mason’s face — disappointment, skepticism, irritation — isn’t there. Instead a blindingly arrogant smile spreads slowly across his face as he lowers himself back down on her. “So you’ve only fucked idiots then.”

She can’t exactly argue against that considering the diseased reporter currently laid out in the Agency’s healing ward, but still. “Hey—”

“Don’t worry,” he says, trailing a hand down between her breasts. “I’ll make you come so many times you’ll forget anyone else who’s ever touched you.”

A spark of alarm flashes through her, because those aren’t at all the words for the hookup that they both agreed this was. But any unease is shelved for later when he parts her thighs and settles in between them to cup both her breasts and tease her nipples with his thumbs.

She may doubt he can bring her to orgasm, but judging from his deliberate touch, he has none of her misgivings.

“It’ll happen,” he says, latching onto a nipple and sucking hard before releasing her with a quiet pop. “Give your pleasure to me, sweetheart, I’ll take care of you.”

His touch paired with his low tone makes her almost believe him.

He nuzzles into the valley of her breasts, scraping his stubble over her skin. That...feels good. Then he sucks her nipple into his mouth again, sucking and swirling his tongue, and then bites down hard.

Marist jerks at the sharp sting, but he soothes the ache with a slow glide of his tongue, and shit, that feels even better.

“Was that ok?”

“Yes. Yes,” she whimpers when he nips at the bottom of her breast.

His smile brands itself into her skin. Mason gets to work, lavishing attention on her breasts like he wants nothing more than to spend the day between them. His mouth nears her other nipple, licking around it slowly, and the anticipation makes her tremble.

This time when his bite comes, her back arches off the bed.

“Fuck,” she gasps.

Again he soothes the sting with his tongue and it makes pleasure buzz in her veins. Slowly he slides a hand down her stomach, following behind it with nips from his mouth as he moves down her body, and each one has her belly clenching. The sharp little pains have the spikes of pleasure spiking even higher.

By the time his hand makes it down to her pussy she’s soaking and trembling. Mason makes an appreciative sound and spreads her thighs open wide as he settles in.

Other partners have gone down on her before. It’s nothing new to her. She’s enjoyed it in the past, has come close to orgasm from being eaten out before, but all of them gave up when they couldn’t get her over the edge.

Mason doesn’t look like he cares.

He slides his hands up her inner thighs to her pussy and parts her lips with his thumbs, expression ravenous as he bares her to him. She trembles even harder.

When he lowers his head to swipe his tongue along her wet heat, she gasps, thighs going taut. Mason makes a rumble of appreciation into her pussy, hands going underneath her ass to bring her closer up to his face.

“Fuck, you taste good,” he says, and shoves his face right back in and inhales her. He runs his tongue over every inch of her pussy, flicking sharply at her clit, circling at her entrance.

He’s...savoring her. Marist can’t think of a better word to describe it.

Mason takes his time learning her, changing up his technique as he discovers what makes her jolt and moan and melt. His fingers dig painfully into her ass, then come up to score up the insides of her thighs. The fire left behind by his fingers blends with the pleasure from his mouth on her pussy, and it leaves her writhing and keening on the bed.

Shit, he might actually get her there. 

Her sounds throw him into a frenzy and his hands are everywhere after that, shifting her legs to hook over his back, sliding over her trembling stomach, latching hard onto her breasts and pinching at her nipples. His tongue slides inside her and it feels like heaven and hell together as one. She fucks his face and does as he says, giving him her pleasure, because no one’s ever brought her this much.

It’s so overwhelming that she closes her hand around one of Mason’s on her breast, squeezing to ground herself. His mouth closes around her clit, sucking rhythmically with a hint of teeth, and that little tease of pain with an overabundance of pleasure makes her back bow.

She lifts her head then, peering down at Mason over the curves of her body. He’s fucking beautiful like this, eyes closed in bliss, strong shoulders beneath her thighs.

And his hips grinding mindlessly into the bed as he tastes her pussy.

She throws her head back onto her bed and moans helplessly as heat sparks low in her belly, feeling all at once dangerous and powerful. She did that, she did that to him, reduced him to fucking his cock into her sheets just from pleasuring her. The sight of his urgent rutting and the tight, painful grasp of his hands on her breasts and the dizzying flutter of his tongue and teeth on her clit set her alight and spiral her higher and higher until, finally, she breaks.

Her orgasm is savage and razor-sharp, tearing through her body and leaving her shaking from head to toe. She cries out with abandon, overcome in the best possible way, and distantly she feels Mason lap up her wetness and lick at her clit, prolonging her pleasure. Her orgasm rolls on and on until finally it starts to recede and leaves her gasping on the bed.

Holy fuck. He actually did it.

Fucking hell.

Maybe he was right after all, and she wasn’t necessarily a woman who had difficulty achieving orgasm. Maybe she had just fucked lazy, incompetent people.

Either that, or he’s just that good.

“One,” he says proudly, shaking her from her post-orgasm haze.

She props herself up on unsteady elbows. “What?”

He grins in a way that can only be described as smug, and presses a quick kiss to her mound. “I’m keeping tally.”

“A tally of...oh my god.” She collapses back onto the bed when he runs his hands along her thighs. “Is that necessary? You’ve already made your point.”

“I’m going for three,” he says, and her eyes go wide.

Three. Three? That’s fucking ambitious. The first one was difficult enough, but bringing her to orgasm must’ve inflated his ego.

She clears her throat, eyes fluttering shut when he traces a finger down her pussy. “You’re more than welcome to try, but I wouldn’t hold my breath.”

He huffs out a low laugh, and the sound makes her shiver. “I already got one. What’s two more?”

His words are cheeky but there must be something to them, because the windup the second time around is easier. This time he uses his mouth and his hands in tandem at her pussy, touching and stroking and sucking. If she thought his mouth before was deadly, it’s nothing compared to what he can do when he adds his hands.

“You’re so wet for me,” he says against her clit, slowly easing a finger inside her pussy. “So fucking wet.” The words make her clench around him. She can feel how wet she is, can feel it dripping onto the bed, and it makes for a smooth glide when he adds a second finger.

And then finds her G-spot like a fucking champion.

Her loudest moan yet slips from her throat as he works her with his fingers and his mouth. He gives a pleased grunt into her flesh, tongue fluttering at her clit again while his fingers thrust. She’s still slightly sensitive from her first orgasm but her body must instinctively recognize Mason now as someone to trust with her pleasure, because it starts building up rapidly inside her once more.

Her brain may have doubts, but her body doesn’t. No, her body happily submits to his touch and hurtles itself straight toward the cliff without any resistance.

It might concern her if it didn’t feel so fucking good.

Her second orgasm catches her by surprise. The stroke of his fingers and the press of his tongue are bliss and she knows she’s that not far off, but then Mason takes his free hand and scrapes his nails hard down the sensitive skin of her inner thigh, and the flash of white-hot pain catapults her over the edge.

Her pussy clamps down hard on his fingers and a cry bursts from her lungs. She’s shaking so hard that Mason braces a hand on her stomach to keep her in place. He licks her through it, keeping his fingers firmly lodged against her G-spot.

She’s never come this hard in her life.

Recovery this round is slower. By the time she slumps back onto her sheets, panting and spent, Mason’s crawled up her body to bury his nose into her neck. In the end, though, it’s his scent that grounds her.

“Two,” he says proudly.

“Jesus,” she whispers. “How on earth…?”

There’s a scrape of his teeth on her skin. “You’re smart, sweetheart.” The rumble of his voice so close to her ear has her toes curling. “You’ll figure it out if you haven’t already.”

She’d laugh if she had the energy. No one’s ever spoken to her with that much arrogance and smugness, much less in her bed, but seeing as he just brought her to orgasm no less than twice, a feat she previously thought impossible, the tone is well earned.

“Could you sound any cockier?” she says, smiling slightly.

“Easily,” he says, lifting his head to brush his lips against hers. “You’ll hear it after I make you come a third time.”

“You sound confident.” 

Mason’s eyes light up with challenge when he pushes up off her to get on his feet at the side of her bed. He yanks her to him, angling her so her legs frame his hips and his cock — hard again, jutting out from his opened pants — rests on her stomach. He grinds once into her, a short grunt sounding from his throat.

Marist’s blood heats.

“I am,” he says simply. He backs up a step or two, shoving his pants down to his ankles and kicking them away, completely naked now. A foil packet is plucked from his wallet and within seconds he has a condom rolled onto his cock and he’s back between her legs, bending over her. His hot breath wafts over her lips. “A third orgasm will be easy for me, sweetheart. You’ll come on my cock and it’ll be the hottest thing I’ve ever seen.”

He leans back and stands up straight, gripping the base of his cock with his hand and teases her clit with his head. By the time he notches his cock at her entrance, Marist is shaking with anticipation.

“Mason, shit,” she says, voice hoarse. “Mason, inside, please.”

He groans at her words and does as she says, slowly pressing his huge fucking cock into her pussy. She’s plenty wet after two fantastic orgasms, and still she’s not quite prepared for his size. Mason’s face contorts in pleasure as he wedges himself deeper inside.

“Fuck,” he grits out. “You feel so good.”

She clenches around him at his words, going hot all over when he makes a strangled sound. He forces himself in little by little until finally she’s taken him as deep as she comfortably can. She’s spread open, impaled on what will probably be the biggest, hardest cock she’ll ever have inside her, and Mason’s body is shaking as he holds himself still.

Allowing her to get used to his size.

“Fuck me,” she says in a rush. His eyes snap to hers, going stormy. The ache inside her is overwhelming, a dull pain mixed in with her pleasure, and she wants more. She wants to be fucked and filled and stretched and made to come so hard she can’t breathe. “Mason, fuck me.”

He grabs her thighs, pressing them down as he withdraws from her and then advances again. It’s almost unbearably slow for the first few strokes, like he’s afraid of breaking her, and then his hips snap forward hard, shoving his cock deep into her and driving her into the bed. 

Marist’s eyes roll back into her head. He fucks into her like that again and again, fucking her boneless, making her desperate with his deep thrusts. Whimpers fall out of her mouth, volume increasing as Mason’s pace does, until he’s rutting furiously into her, the slap of his skin against her echoing about her room. 

She’s never felt more wild.

“Shit, sweetheart, you look so good like this,” Mason grunts, gorgeous eyes feasting on her body as he fucks her. “Fuck, there’s nothing hotter.”

The words erupt into a fire low in her belly, that familiar buildup there once again. She moans loudly when he leans down and pushes her breasts together, tugging on a nipple with his teeth. The angle of his cock is perfect, and with the sting of his mouth on her breast hurtles her even closer to orgasm.

It’s frantic and unrestrained and feels so fucking amazing she might never recover.

Mason continues pumping into her, his cock so hard and thick inside her, and finally the warning signs of her orgasm appear. Her entire body tenses, pulse pounding in her ears, going haywire with anticipation, but she doesn’t—

she can’t—

“Mason,” she gasps. “Mason, I need—”

Before she even finishes speaking, he hooks his hands under her knees and presses them all the way to her shoulders. The stretch burns, but it allows him to thrust deeper into her, past the point of comfort, where each thrust gives her a delicious pinch of pain mixed with overwhelming pleasure. She cries out in ecstasy, feeling that plateau disappear, and then he bends down and sinks his teeth into the crook of her neck.

It’s a bite, a true bite, one guaranteed to leave a mark because it definitely broke skin. She fucking breaks apart around his cock, thrashing and possibly screaming as her climax floods her limbs. She can’t breathe, can’t think, can’t do anything except feel and feel and feel.

This is what he figured out before she did, before she could even put words to it. That she needs that little bit of pain to give her biting, untamed pleasure.

She goes a little floaty in the aftermath, lightheaded with bliss, but eventually she becomes aware when Mason starts moving between her legs again. Each thrust grounds her and brings her back, bit by bit, until she manages to peel open her eyelids and lock eyes with him.

His expression is fierce and satisfied, looking down at her with so much pride she almost breaks eye contact. He grips her hips hard as he keeps driving into her, grunting in time with his thrusts. It’s so fucking carnal, so fucking male that she clenches around him.

He’d given her three orgasms, but this? This is entirely for him. This is him using her body for his pleasure after he made sure she got hers.

He pumps deep a few more times, face tight with ecstasy, before he pulls out and yanks the condom off. Above her, he fists his cock and jacks himself furiously as his entire body goes rigid and he comes.

Fuck. Mason might think she’s gorgeous in the throes of climax but she’s sure she has nothing, nothing, on him. His jaw clenches and his eyes go half-lidded and fuck, he comes so hard his thighs jerk forward in time with the spurts of come from his cock. It lands hot on her stomach as his chest heaves from exertion and briefly — just briefly — she wonders what it would’ve felt like if he had come inside her bare.

What it would’ve felt like to have him leaking out of her afterward.

The last of his come drops onto her skin as he wrings the last bit of his orgasm from his dick. “Fuck,” he pants. “Fuck.”

Fuck is right.

In the following minutes Marist continues to float in that post-orgasm space, exhausted and utterly sated. She flinches at the touch of a warm washcloth on her stomach. Mason raises an eye at her as he cleans his spend off of her skin. Sometime while she’d been out of it, he must’ve cleaned up in her bathroom and returned.

His touch is gentle and thorough when he cleans her and he leaves the bed briefly to discard the washcloth and then comes back to climb into her bed. He wraps his arms around her, lowering his head for a kiss.

So at odds with their frantic pace from earlier, this kiss is tender, slow, and sweet. One meant for closeness and grounding. They kiss with no goal, no agenda other than to kiss. A worry sparks in the back of Marist’s mind because this is another thing she’s definitely done with a hookup, but she shoves it away to just...enjoy. She can think about what it means later.

By the time Mason lifts his head, both their breathing has returned to normal, mostly. He noses his way across her cheek, down her jaw, and presses his lips to the bite he left behind from earlier. She can feel the spread of a smile against the tender mark before he opens his mouth and says,

“Three.”

[stargazer-balladeer]

Hi hi!! Can i request Bennett, Xingqiu and Chongyun for the chubby s/o hcs?? Can I just say that you are so kind and I'm obsessed with your writing!!!!

Chubby S/O (part 2) [Genshin Impact]

Characters Included: Bennett, Xingqiu & Chongyun

Notes: uwu thank uu 💞💞 i really hope i live up to your expectations with this one— Hope you’ll like this!

Reader’s Gender: Female (tho I think that I used gender neutral pronouns while making this—)

Warning: Mentions of insecurity, negative thing, body shaming. Minor spoilers for their character story and quest.

Part 1 | Part 2 |

Bennett

— When he sees you, Bennett will probably be so intrigued by you. His mindset instantly went to adopting you in his Benny’s Adventure Team. You’ve probably heard him from the Adventure’s Guild, him being notoriously unlucky. He payed your body mass no mind and just ask you to join just like he has done with other people.

— Bennett will smother you with affection. You look so adorable that he couldn’t help himself! So expect hugs, kisses and cuddles from him. He is a bit cautious around you though, because he never knows when his bad luck will show itself.

— He’s actually frightened at the idea of him roping you with his notorious luck, that it might lead you to your death (poor bby-). So you might need to comfort him in this times. You also need to be cautious and pls stir him away from danger—

— Bennett is seen as a happy-go-lucky person, which he is. And with that kind of persona, he’s easily excited. So after a day that he didn’t get to see you, he will get excited when he sees you. He will literally ran up to you, along the way he might trip. Whether on you or to the ground. If he successfully managed to get to you without tripping (wow-), he will wrap his hands around your waist and lift you from the ground. It will either result in you two falling or you accidentally slapping him (whOOPs—). He’ll laugh it off either way.

— If someone insults or make a comment about you, Bennett will be confused. I mean, he didn’t even realize that his teammates have left him- (😢 poor bby-). So he’ll be confused when someone says that, and probably remarks about them being rude and all. Though he may be confused and all, he pays attention to your feelings. So if you feel depressed or insulted, Bennett will snap at that person (oh snap.. Bennett’s mAD—!)

— If you feel insecure about your body, Bennett will also be confused. He doesn’t see anything wrong with it. Afterall, you’re like a literal Goddess in his eyes. He practically worships the ground you’re walking on- “Why would you think like that?! You’re so beautiful that it makes me feel so lucky to have you-!”

Xingqiu

— When he first sees you, he’ll be immediately intrigued by you. It was, afterall, not common to see a person like you. So he approaches you in the best way possible, making sure he gives you his best first impression. You might be wary of him at first (he IS pretty suspicious-), but you soon find yourself warming up to him. It isn’t long till you two started dating. (And you also found out his heritage-)

— Whenever you two hangout, Xingqiu always find a loophole to escape his house. No matter how much the servants and people inside try their best, it’s hopeless. He loves travelling with you, exploring new places, sightseeing, exploring a cave and more. The place where you two hangout the most is a place near a waterfall, in a forest surrounded by different kinds of flowers. You two can be seen there with Xingqiu either leaning on the tree or laying his head on your lap. He always reads out loud so that you can also listen to the story.

— Xingqiu loves hugs the most. Not because you’re very comfy and warmth, like a teddy bear- but because its you. He loves hugging people he loves and cherishes, and you are no exception. It might ruin his image as a cool and collected second son, but it doesn’t matter to him. He will embrace you in public and ain’t embarrassed at all.

— I can see Xingqiu as an expert in making flower crowns. He will literally make you a flower crown to put on your head. When you ask why he does it, he’ll just reply “because I was bored and decided to make a flower crown”. But in reality, it’s because you look so elegant while wearing it. It makes his heart melt at the sight of you in a flower crown. And if you decided to return the favor, Xingqiu will happily wear your flower crown :D

— As if someone will dare insult or make comment about you. Before they could even utter their sentence out, Xingqiu is already staring at them with a innocent smile and a deadly glint in his eyes. Making the person say something nice towards you. Its usually effective but towards people that have more guts (or idiocacy), he will innocently make his sword appear and inspect it. Yeah.. no one’s gonna mess with you while he’s around-

— If you start to feel insecure about your body, Xingqiu will emphatize with you. Even though he doesn’t know what it feels like in your shoes, he can still sympathize with you. He will pull you into a comforting hug and cradle your head with his hand. “The world may be cruel, my love. But you shaldn’t succumb to their works. Stay true to yourself, alright?”

Chongyun

— (Ohmaygawd— I’m sorry if he turns out OOC 😖)

— When he sees you for the first time, Chongyun will be indifferent with you. So what if you look like that? It doesn’t bother him. And with that, he will carry on with his day. You might not be able to meet him unless you approach him first. But even then, he’ll brush you off. But fret not! He will warm up to you (eventually..). He still acts cold but atleast he isn’t anymore walking away—

— Chongyun is special. He can’t eat spicy food, wear warm clothing, etc. So he appreciated things that you do for him. You gave him food that is just right, also giving him his favorite popsicle :D. He always blushes whenever you dote on him, he just isn’t used to it. If you thought this guy woudn’t dote back on you, you are gravely mistaken. He will dote on you just like you dote on him. He will ask things like, “are you feeling comfortable?” “Is your clothes too warm?” “Is the food temperature alright for you?”.

— Chongyun, like Xingqiu, likes exploring. Though, he prefers staying near Liyue Harbor than adventuring beyond. Though he wouldn’t mind if you want to go beyond it, he will still accompany you. His favorite place so far is on a cliff on Mt Tianheng. He loves the view of Liyue Harbor there, so he’ll drag you there sometimes just to watch the sun set while making Liyue Harbor glow aesthetically.

— He loves your hands. He often wonders why they were so soft yet so rough from all the training you’re doing. He also loves putting it on his cheeks, feeling the warmth of your hand seeping to his cheeks. It gives him an odd satisfaction. He also loves running through your hair, it makes him calm. (He’ll also appreciate it if you return the favor—)

— If someone comments about you or insult you, Chongyun will definitely glare at that person. He doesn’t care who that was or what status they hold, if they insult his s/o, their dead. His glare is like a stormy thunder-filled rain, its actually quite scary to look at. That person better apologize or else his Claymore will be at their throat—

— If you feel insecure about yourself, Chongyun will understand. He himself felt insecure about his own as well, since his condition is quite unusual and frightening. Not everyone is acceptable. So, in order to cheer you up, he will drag you to the cliff previously mentioned. There, as you watch the horizon, he will give you Glaze Lily that he found laying around. “Look at these flowers. Their as beautiful as you. So bright, colorful and full of life.. even as many seasons pass, they will continue to blossom. So, just like them, don’t ever let something, or someone specifically, let you down. If you ever need help.. I’m always here.”

[x] Main Page || [x] Mondstadt Page || [x] Liyue Page

[trashyswitch]

Horror Movies on Valentine's Day

Thomas is celebrating Valentine's Day with all the sides individually before the 14th actually comes around. Today is his 'date night' with Virgil and as it turns out: horror movies have become the new romantic genre!

This prompt was put together during a roleplay with Pumpkinpaw. With her permission, I could create (and edit the hell out of) this fanfic! I hope you enjoy the fanfic, Lu!

And Happy Valentine's Day to all my friends, online friends, and followers on AO3 and Tumblr! I know there are some people who don't like Valentine's Day because it's turned into a money grab and expectation creator, but hey: the whole holiday started out in Rome and included sacrificing 2 men named Valentine. This happened a few times during the third century! 

Sooooooo: Fuck off love! (THIS IS A JOKE!)

Thomas had been trying to hang out with all the sides as Valentine's Day showed up. He often tried to save the Valentine’s family/friends stuff on actual Valentine’s day, and would celebrate with the sides before the day. He adored them and wanted to show his appreciation for all the parts of him that made him Thomas Sanders.

He had started out with Patton because he had known him the longest. He made Valentine’s crafts and cards with the Dad, and had a snuggle party with all of Patton’s stuffed animals! They even made little palm-sized heart pillows! They were so cute and a couple of them ended up with googly eyes and pink lipstick!

For Logan, Thomas had put together some board games to play and shared a cup of red wine with him. Logan often liked simple and enjoyable, so Thomas offered that to him. He also...may or may not have drawn little hearts and cheesy messages on Logan’s face by the time he fell asleep from the wine...

When he moved onto Roman, Thomas threw a red-themed Valentine’s Day fiesca for him. Roman happily enjoyed the endless chocolate bits, the cute little edible hearts and absolutely loved the roses he received for Valentines day. “I no longer feel single this Valentine’s Day!” Roman had reacted, crying a tear or two.

Now, it was Virgil’s turn. He didn’t really know what exactly to do because of his ‘darker’ aesthetic. But, he knew Virgil would help him figure out what they could do together. Thomas called him and had him summoned in front of him.

Virgil stumbled a little as he was summoned. “Oh- Jeez! Warn a dude, Thomas!” Virgil reacted, thrown a little off guard by the sudden change of scenery.

Thomas bit his lip in both guilt yet amusement. “Hi Virgil. Sorry about that.” Thomas replied, waving.

Virgil adjusted his sweater and moved his bangs back into his eyes. “‘Sup Thomas. Whatddya need?” He asked.

Thomas chuckled and handed him a card that said ‘Valentine I’m batty for you’ with a cute bat and a few black and purple hearts below it. Virgil smiled a little at the gesture. “Thanks Thomas. You didn’t have to.”

Thomas laughed at that. “I wanted to! I wanted to hang out with you!” Thomas told him.

Virgil raised his eyebrows. “Say what now?”

Thomas giggled. “I want to hang out with you.” Thomas repeated.

Virgil looked around a little and shrugged his shoulders. “Alright.”

Virgil took his invite, but his eyes said something a little different.

“You okay?” Thomas asked.

Virgil bit his lip and looked away. “Why the hell do you wanna hang out with me of all people?” Virgil asked.

Thomas’s face softened as he opened his arms to him. Virgil reluctantly took the hug, and grew surprised when he felt Thomas sit him down. “Because I’m celebrating Valentine’s day with all the sides!” Thomas replied.

Virgil lifted an eyebrow. “But...Why me? Anxiety? Hello?” Virgil asked, a little more bluntly. “Why not Patton?”

Thomas smiled at that. “Cause I’m in the mood to hang out with you!” Thomas replied. “And I already hung out with Patton recently.”

Virgil blinked in surprise. “Uh…okay…”

Virgil shifted in his seat, not sure what he had planned. “So...What do you wanna...y’know...do?” he asked.

Thomas shrugged his shoulders. “I have no idea. What do you do on Valentines day?” Thomas asked.

Virgil scoffed and smiled. “Horror movies are usually my go-to.” He admitted.

Now it was Thomas’s turn to be surprised. “Really? You watch horror movies?” Thomas reacted.

Virgil smirked and snickered. “I watch them all the time.” Virgil replied.

Thomas bit his lip. “I...but you’re…”

“I’m fight or flight? Yeah, funnily enough: I don’t get spooked easily.” Virgil added.

Thomas widened his eyes and clapped his hands. “Alright! Let’s watch a horror movie!” Thomas replied, turning on the TV. “Any specific horror movies you wanna watch?” he asked.

Virgil shrugged his shoulders. “It doesn’t really matter.”

Thomas soon came up with ‘The Silence of the Lambs’.

Virgil laughed when Thomas considered that one. “Do I look like a Remus to you?” He asked.

“No, but I do know you like cult classics. And this is as classic as it gets.” Thomas replied. “And: it was released on February 14th.” He added.

Virgil looked at the screen with a confused and surprised face. “Why was that the release date option for this thriller movie?” Virgil asked.

“Maybe we can watch and find out ourselves?” Thomas offered.

Virgil chuckled. “Oh BoY! I cAn’T wAiT!” Virgil declared in his best Remus impression. Thomas bursted out laughing at that. “Oh! I have an idea.” Virgil added suddenly. Thomas slowly stopped laughing and looked at him. “Let’s turn this into a game. First person to get scared gets tickled for an hour.” Virgil suggested.

Thomas raised his eyebrows. “Really?! Where the heck did that come from?!” Thomas asked.

Virgil froze up a little and bit his lip. “Remus and I used to play it.” Virgil admitted. “It was a challenge option that suited both of us, and we would make challenges based on the movies.” Virgil explained.

Thomas smiled and poked his side. Virgil jumped and shot him a warning look with a smirk. “The movie hasn’t started yet! That’s cheating!” Virgil yelled at him.

Thomas threw his hands up. “Fine, fine! Okay.” Thomas turned on the movie.

“Good luck.” Virgil purred in a teasy, smug voice.

Thomas smirked. “Good luck to you too.” He replied. Virgil gave Thomas a push as the production logos finished playing.

The movie started off with Clarice training and running in the woods. The movie moved right along to Clarice getting the case all the way to her seeing the information about Dr. Hannibal Lector and meeting him. The meeting was mostly quiet and as a result, it had been turned up quite loudly to catch the dialogue.

Partway through their first meeting, Clarice calmly throws a comeback to Dr. Lector’s personal and over specific observations about Clarice. Virgil smiled at Clarice’s intelligence. The feeling of satisfaction filled him as he looked away for only a minute, before the sound of something screeching made him jump and look back over.

The screeching was only a desk. A bloody desk. The movie had been so quiet until then.

Thomas laughed at this and started wiggling his fingers menacingly. “60 minutes of tickles is a gooooo!” He declared excitedly.

Virgil yelped and leaned back. “N-No! Nah! I-I wasn’t ready!-”

Thomas giggled and brought his fingers closer and closer to Virgil. “No one’s eeeever ready for jumpscares…” Thomas reminded him slyly.

Virgil bit his lip as a wobbly grin appeared on his face.

“Hey Alexa! Set a timer for 60 minutes!” Thomas yelled to the Alexa in the kitchen.

Virgil widened his eyes and punched his arm lightly. “You ass!”

[Setting a timer for 60 minutes.] Alexa replied.

Thomas immediately started tickling his sides and ribs first. Virgil grunted and bucked his hips, refusing to give him what he wanted without a fight. Thomas snickered at his determination. “I should’ve known the ticklish emo would hide his giggles.” Thomas said with a sly voice. “Am I gonna have to work to get any laughter out of you?” He asked as well.

Virgil glared at him, pushing Thomas’s shoulders while he fought. In response: Thomas grabbed his wrist sleeves in one hand, and pinned them a couple feet above Virgil’s own belly.

Virgil fought to pull his wrists away. “You won’t get me laughing.” Virgil angrily vowed, struggling to pull his sweater sleeves out of Thomas’s hand.

Thomas giggled at that, and took a mental note of the unzipped sweater. “There there, we’ll see about that!” Thomas dug his fingers into the open armpit. “A tickle-tickle-tickle-tickle-tickle!” Thomas teased as he moved his hand down to his upper ribs.

Virgil blushed a bright red from the teasing alone, and bit his lip hard as he writhed under the man.

Next, Thomas moved his hands to his belly and started drumming and squishing it. “Look at dis wittle bewwyyyy! It’s so squooshy and adorable!” Thomas teased even further in a baby voice.

By now, the teasing and tickling was starting to get to him. Virgil had started letting out a few little giggles here and there. “Shuhut uhup!” Virgil shot back.

Thomas gasped excitedly. “Was that a giggle I heard?” Thomas teased, still treating Virgil like a little kid.

Virgil just growled at that. “F-Fuck off.”

Thomas just continued to tickle him, going higher and higher pitched to baby him even more. “Was that a giggle I heard?” Thomas moved his hand to his side and started squeezing. “Was that a giggle giggle giggle I heard?” Thomas teased with his face closer to Virgil’s. Virgil clenched his teeth and started slightly tittering as his lips stretched and loosened. “I think it was!” Thomas answered his own question.

Virgil’s throat was letting out little titters and giggles while his lips were working against him and creating a smile despite his attempts to stop it. “Sh-Shuhut uhup! Ahass!” Virgil shot back hollowly while kicking and bucking to get Thomas off of him.

Thomas giggled and took another look at the unzipped sweater. The reality of the situation was that Virgil could easily get out of there. He could easily slip his hands out and run away without his jacket. So Virgil was either super connected to his jacket, or Virgil didn’t want to escape!

“Hey Virgil?” Thomas asked.

“Whahahat?” He responded.

“Do you like being tickled?” he asked him.

Virgil scoffed at that. “Whahat gahave yohohou thahat idehea?” Virgil shot back with a deepening red blush.

Thomas smirked and leaned in. “Don’t make me do it…” He warned. “Dooon’t make me do the raspberry thing!” Thomas warned, leaning closer and closer with a big smirk on his face.

Virgil glared defiantly at him. But...there was the slightest smirk on his face that told him everything: “Fuck. Off.”

Thomas smiled as he listened to that reply, and blew a BIG raspberry on Virgil’s covered belly. Virgil threw his head back and SCREAMED!

Thomas bursted out laughing at him as he lifted his head away from his belly. “Here lies Virgil Sanders. A beloved person with a blunt yet secretly caring attitude towards life. May his soul and cohohonfidehehence-” Thomas had to pause to let himself laugh at his own stupid joke, “Rehest in peheheace.”

Virgil punched Thomas in the arm with his ‘bound’ arm lightly. “Shuhuhut the fuhuhuck up!” He yelled back at him.

Thomas smiled in pure amusement as he resumed tickling his side. The man leaned in again and blew another belly raspberry on his ticklish victim.

Virgil started squealing and kicking as his laughter finally broke free from his lungs. “FAAAHAHAHAHAHAHACK!”

Thomas gasped excitedly and threw his fist in the air! “YES! I DID IT!” he shouted before returning back to tickling. Virgil just hissed through his laughter and shook his head.

Thomas quickly started tickling up and down his ribs and sides. He wanted to get as much laughter as he could out of Virgil, before the hour ended and the movie resumed.

Virgil threw his head back as he laughed harder, while squirming and shaking his body back and forth.

“Listen to his laughter! You can surely tell he’s experiencing heaven!” Thomas declared proudly.

Virgil glared right at Thomas again, kicking his legs uselessly behind Thomas.

Thomas took this as evidence to the truth. “Or maybe, this IS his heaven!” Thomas offered. “Is getting tickled by your main Sanders your ultimate choice of heaven?” Thomas teased.

Virgil’s face was bright and shaded with blush from forehead to collar bones. “I HAHAHATE YOHOHOHOU!” He shouted back.

Thomas sent Virgil a fake pity face. “Awww, I don’t think you hate me that much, do you?” Thomas asked, before giving Virgil’s belly button a poke.

Finally, Virgil pushed against him and tried sitting up. “Yehehehes!”

But Thomas gasped in hurt and offense. “How DARE you!” He reacted. “That hurts my poor, weakened heart! How dare you say such nasty things!” Thomas reacted dramatically, almost replicating a Roman move.

Virgil completely paled at his expression and immediately tried scrambling off the couch. But Thomas was fast! The man wrapped his arms around Virgil’s waist and pulled him right back into his ticklish demise. This time: in his lap.

“Screw you dude!” Virgil shot at him.

“The hour isn’t up yet, Virgil!” Thomas reminded him.

“I don’t care!” Virgil argued, squealing as Thomas was already getting back to work.

Thomas wrapped one arm around Virgil’s waist and used the other hand to squeeze and dig into Virgil’s hip. Virgil threw his head back against Thomas’s shoulder and laughed his heart out. This made Thomas smile happily. Listening to Virgil’s laugh was like a treat to anyone. So Thomas made it a point to listen to it without his own teasing drowning out the pretty sound.

Virgil continued to push against him, but his force had lessened quite dramatically from earlier. As an ending finale, Thomas made his other arm join around Virgil’s waist and blew a raspberry into his neck.

Thomas was expecting a loud scream, a burst of cackles or a snort of some sort!

But all he got was a short giggle fit. Though it was a lackluster finale, Thomas still applauded the sound of Virgil’s giggles.

Thomas lifted his head back up and noticed there was STILL no alarm going off to indicate the end of the timer. So, he decided to ask. “Het Alexa! How much time is left?” He asked.

[There is 10 minutes left on the timer. Would you like to stop it, Gay Lord?] Alexa asked.

Virgil wheezed at the unexpected nickname. THAT WAS THE ALEXA’S NICKNAME FOR THOMAS?! IT WAS PERFECT!

“GAHAHAHAY LOHOHOHORD!”

Thomas snickered at that too. “Ihi forgot I set that as my nickname!” he admitted.

Virgil snorted at that and continued to laugh hysterically at the nickname.

Yehehehes, stop the tihimer!” Thomas replied to Alexa.

[............You will need to connect to the internet first-]

Thomas leaned forward and bursted out laughing at that, while Virgil shook his head. “FUHUCK YOU, ALEXA!” Thomas yelled at the AI.

[But...But…]

Virgil leaned his head back against Thomas’s chest and laughed himself to tears. Virgil’s entire body was shaking and spasming from how hard he was laughing. Thomas was also just allowing himself to die of laughter. As it would turn out, the tickling he got from Thomas was nothing compared to Alexa’s stupidity! Alexa’s stupidity seemed to make him laugh even more!

Well, make that both of them.

Thomas soon stopped laughing and patted Virgil’s back to help him get it out so he could breath. Virgil had been tickled AND thrown into more fits of laughter after. So he was in more dire need of breath now than before.

Virgil eventually stopped laughing and was left with heavy panting. “Ahahaha...oh...oh my gosh…” Virgil tried to speak. “I...I’ll admit...I…” Virgil was starting to confess something to him.

Thomas allowed him time to get his words out and rested his head on the back of the couch. Thomas took the time to stop the movie that was still playing while they had the tickle fight.

Virgil bit his lip. “I...had a lot of fun…” He finally got out.

Thomas smiled genuinely at that. “Yeah?”

Virgil turned to look at Thomas behind him, and nodded. “Yeah.”

Thomas hugged Virgil from behind and rested his chin on his shoulder. But Virgil turned himself around and gave Thomas a tight hug. Virgil’s eyeshadow had turned a purple color from the love and affection he was getting. But there was still one more thing he wanted to tell Thomas.

“Thomas?” Virgil called.

Thomas tilted his head. “Yes?”

Virgil purred. “Uh...I uh…” He closed his eyes. “I love you.”

Thomas smiled and gently fluffed his hair. “I love you too Virgil!” Thomas replied.

Virgil cuddled up against Thomas and allowed him to play with his hair more. Virgil started to purr and melt into the touch he was being given. Before they knew it, both the boys had fallen asleep.

Later on, Roman had walked out of the room and noticed the two cuddlers. He giggled and took a picture before sending it to the others. After that, Roman draped a blanket on top of them and sat down on the other side of the couch.

Logan: [I’m delighted to see Thomas and Virgil spending time together.]

Janus: [This is totally not the cutest thing I’ve seen in ages.]

Roman laughed at Janus’s reaction and replied: [I know, right?!]

Remus: [Awww! Cuties! 💚💚]

Patton: [Look at my two adorable kiddos cuddling!! 💖😻 I set it as my lock screen!]

[ofbardsandmonsters]

Fill for square N3 - “free space” for the @stb-bingo. read it on ao3 here

This is fill number 5 for me AND it gives me my first BINGO!!

***

“Do you have your inhaler?”

“Yes.”

“What about the backup inhaler?”

“Ned has it.”

“Did you pack clean underwear?”

“Dad, come on. Of course I did.”

“How many pairs?”

“Dad.”

Tony holds up both hands, smiling at Peter, who scowls back. But Tony refuses to be sorry for worrying about his only son going on his first overnight field trip. It’s been just the two of them since before Peter was even born. And this would be the first time they’d been apart more than a few hours in fifteen years. So even if he wasn’t an omega, Tony feels like he’d be entitled to a little parental panic.

Peter’s phone beeps, and he glances at it before zipping up his backpack and slipping it onto his back. “Ned and his parents are here.”

The elevator opens without prompting, and the two Starks ride it down to the ground floor. Tony can see the Leeds’s car sitting at the curb, and Ned jumps out of the car as soon as they approach. The two boys perform some complicated handshake that even Tony’s genius brain can’t follow. He rolls his eyes, smiling fondly at the boys’ obvious bond, and goes around to the driver’s side to finalize details for picking up the boys at the school in a couple days with Ned’s father.

He’s standing on the curb with his hands in the pockets of his dress pants, watching the Leeds’s car drive away, when his assistant Darcy comes up beside him. The beta’s got a tablet in her hands, a sight that always means it’s time for him to actually do some work. And with Peter gone for the next several days, she won’t be letting Tony get away with using him as an excuse.

“Kiddo all packed off? Gonna be weird without him underfoot.”

Tony snorts. “You love having him underfoot. You spoil him almost as much as I do.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Of course, Miss Lewis. My mistake. What’s on my agenda for this morning?”

Darcy follows him back into the tower, pulling open his schedule on her tablet as they walk to the elevator. “You have three meetings before lunch. R & D requested you for a demo at 2:30. Tonight is your monthly visit to Maria Stark House, Colonel Rhodes is meeting you there at six to help serve dinner.”

The last item on the agenda makes warmth spread through his chest. He had established the Maria Stark House for Omegas during his pregnancy with Peter, and once a month he goes over to help cook and serve dinner to the residents and their children. Most of the men and women living there have been recently separated from their alphas, whether by death or by choice, and have no support system to catch them. Many are in various stages of pregnancy, and some come with small children clinging to them. The Maria Stark House provides support and housing either until the baby is born or until they’re back on their feet.

It’s his pride and joy, other than Peter of course.

As he and Darcy approach his office, Tony can see a tall figure in what appears to be military dress through the frosted glass of the windows. “Darcy, why is there someone in my office already?”

“That would be your 8:00. The new army liaison? He’s been waiting a little while, but I told him you had a personal matter that needed attending to and he seemed perfectly content to wait.”

Tony groans, dropping his head back to stare at the ceiling before scrubbing his hands over his face. “Rhodey just had to go and get that promotion. Couldn’t be happy spending the rest of his career as our liaison.”

“Do I need to remind you how much you cried at the ceremony? I’m sure I could get JARVIS to project the video on the nearest wall if you just—”

“Nope! No, I’m good, thank you Darcy. But you know how I feel about the military. Bunch of puffed up alpha assholes with an overinflated sense of importance.” Obviously his assistant didn’t know the full story behind Tony’s disdain for anyone in a uniform that wasn’t Rhodey, but she understood nonetheless.

“I’m well aware of your feelings, Tony. But if you want to continue providing tech and armor and medical supplies to the military, then we need a liaison. Just go in, get to know the guy a little, and then I’ll swoop in and save you and send him on his way. Okay?”

Tony sighs, deflating a little as he nods.

“Good. Now, before you go in there, hold still.” Tucking her tablet under one arm, Darcy steps into his space to straighten his tie and smooth out wrinkles in his jacket that only she can see. Then she slides her fingers into his hair to tousle the silvering strands. She steps back with her hands on her hips, admiring her handiwork before nodding in satisfaction.

“Want to tell me what that was about, Miss Lewis?”

“Captain Hottie in there is an entire buffet. And you’ve been starving for way too long, boss man.”

He rolls his eyes, crossing his arms and raising an eyebrow at the younger beta. “Darcy, I cannot sleep with our liaison. Pepper would string me up by my toes, and Peter is too young to be without a father. Besides, no hotshot army alpha is going to want to waste his time on an aging omega with a teenager.”

“You’re not aging, Tony, jeez. You’re thirty-five.” Darcy’s blue eyes soften, and she reaches out to squeeze his arm. “Look, I know Peter is your entire world, yadda yadda yadda. We all love him. But you deserve some happiness too.”

Before he can respond, she turns him around and nudges him toward his office door, slapping his ass with a resounding crack. “Now, go get ‘em, tiger!”

He glares at her over his shoulder, watching her stalk off on her criminally high heels, probably on her way  to torture some poor unsuspecting interns. When she disappears around the corner, he turns back to his office and takes a fortifying breath. Whoever this guy is, Tony isn’t going to let himself be intimidated. He’s Tony Stark. And Stark men are made of iron.

The door opens silently as he steps inside. “Sorry to keep you waiting, captain. I had something that needed to be sorted and it couldn’t wait, so I—”

The other occupant of the room turns around, and it feels like time stops. Between one breath and the next, Tony’s twenty years old again, a positive pregnancy test in his pocket and excitement to share the news with his alpha swelling in his chest. Excitement that dies a swift and fiery death just minutes later when the alpha breaks his heart and walks out the door.

The very same alpha standing across from him in full military dress, hands in his pockets, shifting nervously.

“Hey, Tony.”

Even after all this time, Tony still knows Steve Rogers’s face better than his own. How could he ever forget, when he’s spent the last fifteen years seeing those features reflected in his son’s face? A son that he’s spent nearly two decades raising alone.

Tony does the only logical thing.

He bolts.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Darcy finds him twenty minutes later in the hidden corner of his workshop that only a select few people have access to. He hears the click of her heels first, before she comes around the corner and inputs her code. The glass doors to the restricted area slide open, and she spots Tony easily where he’s sitting on the floor with his back against the wall, knees tucked up to his chest. She crouches until they’re eye to eye. He’ll never figure out how she manages to execute a perfect squat in those heels.

“Hey, boss. Did the meeting with Captain Hotpants go that bad? JARVIS said you turned tail and ran almost immediately. What gives?”

Tony drops his head against his knees, trying to hide the way tears have started to gather in his eyes at just the mention of Steve. But he knows Darcy’s not going to let it go, and no one else sees through his lies and misdirects the way she does. So he tries to form some kind of coherent response, but all that comes out is, “Peter’s father.”

“What does that worthless nothing have to do with this?”

He clears his throat, gathering his courage to actually look his assistant in the eyes. “It’s him. The-the guy. The liaison, it’s… he’s Peter’s father.”

Darcy rears back like he just punched her in the gut, and she stares at him in wide-eyed shock for a minute. Her features soften as she shifts onto her knees and reaches out with both hands to grip his shoulders. “Oh, Tony. Wow, what a shock. That is some kind of wild—”

A strange look crosses her face before she picks her tablet up off of the floor and starts scrolling through it. As she reads, Darcy’s face slowly changes from confused to startled before her pretty features twist into a mask of rage. It’s a look Tony very rarely sees on her face, and it makes him sit up straight.

“Darcy? What is it?”

He hears a low growl, and that’s how he knows she’s really pissed off. Betas don’t growl like omegas and alphas do, not unless they’re pushed over the edge. His instincts kick in, helpless against the clear distress of someone he cares about, and soft soothing noises emanate from his throat.

It takes the younger woman a few minutes to compose herself, but eventually her scent shifts from furious to simple anger. She takes a breath, and then hands Tony the tablet. It’s open to the file on Steve they’d received from the army rep that had arranged the appointment to SI military liaison. He browses it, but nothing that could explain her anger pops out. When he looks back up at her, confused, she taps on a note at the bottom.

“He requested this position. I didn’t think anything of it when I read the file the first time, just assumed he was a career guy who was sick of combat and wanted something more cushy. And the rep said he thought Rogers was a perfect candidate. Tony, if I thought for even a second that he had an ulterior motive I would have made sure he couldn’t get within even a thousand feet of the building, I swear.”

Tony doesn’t respond at first, too busy reading and rereading the rep’s note. Captain Rogers entered his own name into the running for this assignment before we could even gather a list of acceptable candidates, but it is my personal opinion that he would make an ideal candidate for army liaison. Why in the hell had Steve suddenly decided he wanted a position that would force him to work alongside the omega he had abandoned fifteen years ago?

He was damn sure going to find out.

“JARVIS, is St… Captain Rogers still in the building?”

“Yes, sir. Captain Rogers is still in your office.”

“Good, keep him there.”

He pushes off the wall and stands up, Darcy following with a whole lot more grace, and he hands her back the tablet. She watches him straighten his jacket and do his best to smooth out his hair that’s gone wild from the number of times he’d run his fingers through it.

“Tony, are you sure it’s a good idea to confront him right now? You’re upset, and I don’t need the entire building gossiping about another one of your shouting matches with an alpha.”

“I’m good, I’m fine. I’m going to walk in there, calmly, ask him what his game is and then tell him to get the fuck out. Piece of cake.”

Darcy’s entire face practically screams how much she doesn’t believe anything that he’s just said, but she doesn’t try to stop him. What she does is give JARVIS specific instructions once Tony’s out of earshot.

“JARVIS, blackout mode in the boss’s office as soon as he shuts the door.”

“Of course, Miss Lewis.”

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Tony’s entire plan to be calm and mature goes out the window as soon as he walks back into his office and sees Steve standing there.

“Tony—”

“What the fuck do you think you’re doing? Fifteen years, Steve. You walk out of my life like I meant nothing to you and I don’t hear from you for fifteen fucking years, and now you think you can just waltz in here like everything’s cool and just expect me to work alongside you? What the fuck, Steve?”

“No, Tony, that’s not—”

“I thought this was just some weird cosmic coincidence, the universe playing a joke on me. But you requested this position. Why? What the hell is your game?”

“There’s no game Tony, I wouldn’t—”

“Is this about Peter? We didn’t have to go through all this song and dance. I would have let you see him.”

“Peter? Your son, Peter? What does he have to do with—”

“Oh, don’t play stupid, Steve. It’s not a good look on you.”

“Tony, I have no idea what you’re talking about. Why would I be interested in your son?”

“Just because you’ve been off playing soldier for his entire life doesn’t mean you get to pretend he isn’t yours.”

Steve freezes, then sits down in one of the plush chairs across from Tony’s desk like he’s a marionette who’s just had all of his strings cut. He’s paler than normal, making his bright blue eyes stand out. “He’s… mine?” Steve’s always been a pretty terrible liar, so Tony knows the shock on his face is real. He sits down behind his desk, feeling similarly off-kilter.

“Of course he’s yours. I haven’t, um… I haven’t been with anyone else since… well, you. Raising Pete on my own was a full time job, I didn’t really have time for dating. He’s not really a secret, so I just assumed you knew he was yours.”

Across from him, Steve slumps in his chair, his gaze going far away. But after a minute or two, he seems to shake himself and he shifts forward, blue eyes locking on to Tony’s. “If I had known, I never would have let you go through all of that on your own, you have to believe me. I… why didn’t you ever say anything?”

Tony sighs, breaking eye contact. “I was going to. The day you… the day you left, I had the test in my pocket. I just… never got the chance. When the media got wind that I’d had a child and the news was everywhere, there was no word from you. So I assumed you wanted nothing to do with us.”

Steve looks stricken, and he scoots to the edge of the chair. Both hands reach out, almost like he wants to reach for Tony, but his strong fingers close around the edge of the desk. “Jesus. Tony, god, no. If I had known that Peter was my son, our son, nothing could have kept me away.”

“But you said—”

“I know what I said. Trust me, I remember everything I said. I’m never going to stop hating myself for hurting you like that. Every time I close my eyes, I can see that devastated look on your face. Tony, I’ve missed you every minute of the last fifteen years.”

“Then why—”

“Because I wasn’t good enough for you!”

Tony flinches back like he’s been slapped, and he’s not sure which of them is more surprised by Steve’s outburst. But his surprise quickly twists into anger. “That’s bullshit and you know it.”

“No, Tony. It’s not. You were so far out of my league, in every way possible, and your father took every opportunity he could find to remind me of it. And I was able to brush it off for a while, but it kept building and building until I couldn’t take it anymore.”

“Steve, I never thought that. You were everything I wanted and—”

Steve is out of his seat and around to Tony’s side of the desk before he can even think about what he’s doing and whether it’s appropriate or not, his instincts leading him as he recognizes the scent of distressed omega. He sits on the edge and reaches out to tug the smaller man up and against his chest. Surprisingly, Tony goes without resistance.

“I know. I know and I’m so sorry. I’m sorry I wasn’t strong enough to keep him out of my head.”

“You should have talked to me.”

“I know.”

“My parents died a year after you left, Steve. Why didn’t you come back?”

Steve sighs, pulling the omega tighter against his chest until his scent starts to soften into something less harsh. “I couldn’t. The idea that I needed to be a better alpha for you was so deep into my brain that I couldn’t shake it. I had to keep pushing, keep working towards higher ranks until I felt worthy. And… part of me thought I would never reach it, not after the way I’d treated you.”

He feels a sharp jab to his chest, and Steve leans back a little to rub at the spot and pout down at Tony, who’s glaring at him.

“You were always worthy, you big stupid alpha. All you had to do was love me to be worthy. I was the one who was lucky that you took a chance on such a messy, broken omega.”

Steve lets out a fierce growl that echoes through the room. He shifts his hands to cradle Tony’s face. “There is nothing messy or broken about you. And I know I don’t deserve it, but if you’d let me, I will spend every minute of the rest of my life showing you.”

Tony shudders at the promise in the alpha’s voice, and he presses his face against Steve’s chest to hide the tears gathering in his eyes. “I shouldn’t. Pepper’s gonna kill me. Rhodey’s gonna kill you. And Peter will be an orphan before he turns sixteen. But…”

He looks up at Steve, and lets his hands come up to twist in the material of the alpha’s  starched green jacket. “I don’t wanna do this without you, Steve. I’ve done it alone for fifteen years and I can’t anymore. Not if there’s an option to do it as a team. It’s gonna take work, and you have to give me time to trust you again. I want to, but you have to show me that you won’t hurt me again, Steve.”

Steve tugs him close again, leaning down to press a kiss into his dark curls. “I’m so sorry, sweetheart. Brilliant, strong omega. Raising a kid i running a company, all on your own? You’re perfect. How did I ever give you up?”

He can feel Tony trembling against his chest, so Steve shifts them around until he’s sitting in Tony’s ridiculously large desk chair and can pull the omega into his lap. Tony lets out an audible sigh, and Steve chuckles when he feels nimble fingers start unbuttoning the large buttons on his dress coat. He doesn’t resist, letting the omega push it off his shoulders and tug it free of his arms. When the coat is off, Steve wraps his arms around Tony and hugs him tight to his chest.

“This better, Tony?”

The brunette nods, and it isn’t long before Steve’s ears pick up the sound of Tony purring softly. The grin that splits his face makes his cheeks hurt.

They stay like that for a few minutes, Steve basking in the warm, comfortable scent of happy and content omega. This was more than he ever could have hoped for. When he requested the assignment to SI as the army liaison, he had only dared to hope that Tony would talk to him. Never could he guess that he would have Tony curled up against him like this, especially not after his initial reaction to seeing Steve after so long. And now, he thinks there’s only one thing that could make this better.

“Hey, Tony?”

“Hmm?”

“Can I… Peter. Can I meet him? You don’t have to tell him who I am right away, I just… I want to get to know him if I can.”

Tony tries to sit up, but Steve tightens his hold, and he settles back down with an amused huff. “Of course you can meet him. He’s your son too, and he deserves to know both his dads. He’s in DC on a field trip for a few days, but I’ve already got a couple days blocked off in my schedule when he gets back. The three of us can spend that time together.”

“You’re sure? I don’t want to get in the way—”

“You won’t be. You’re going to love him, Steve. He’s so smart, and strong and brave and good. He’s the best parts of both of us. JARVIS, give us some pictures up on the wall, please?”

A slideshow of pictures projects onto the empty wall across from them, starting from Peter’s birth and slowly moving year by year. Steve can’t help the tears that form as he watches the little boy, his little boy, grow up.

“He’s beautiful, Tony. I can already tell what an amazing job you’ve done with him. I can’t wait to get to know him. And get to know you again.”

After the pictures, JARVIS starts up some of the home movies Tony’s taken of Peter over the years. Gradually, Steve can feel the omega growing more and more relaxed against him. He loses track of how much time passes before Tony speaks again.

“You’re fired, by the way.”

Steve barks out a laugh, looking down at Tony, whose eyes are still watching the video currently playing on the wall. “What do you mean, I’m fired?”

“It seems unprofessional for you to technically be an SI employee if you’re going to be sleeping with the head of the company.”

One large, calloused finger hooks under Tony’s chin and tips his head back so Steve can meet his eyes. “Tony, I want to make it clear that this isn’t just about sleeping together. When you’re ready, after I’ve groveled and worshipped you and done everything I can to earn back your trust and your love, I want to be your alpha. I want us to be a family. Permanently.”

Steve’s declaration is so serious, so clearly heartfelt and earnest, there’s nothing stopping Tony from melting completely. He surges forward, capturing Steve’s lips in a kiss that’s fifteen years overdue. The alpha startles and freezes in shock, but he returns the kiss before Tony has even a fraction of a chance to second guess it.

The kiss only lasts a handful of seconds, but it leaves both of them dazed and grinning like fools. Tony settles back down against Steve’s chest, and together they watch the memories that Tony had captured play out on the wall, the room overflowing with the scents of warm and happy alpha and omega.

Darcy comes searching for Tony an hour later when he doesn’t show up for his second meeting of the morning. JARVIS directs her to the office, where she finds the two men deeply asleep, wrapped up in each other’s arms.

“JARVIS, snap a picture of that, please.”

“My pleasure, Miss Lewis.”

Darcy still plans to threaten the good captain, viciously, with her sharpest pair of stilettos. But her love for Tony goes far beyond the care of an employee for her boss. Tony is the older brother she never had, and his happiness—and Peter’s— means more to her than the joy she derives from threatening alphas bigger than her and watching them cower.

With a swipe of her finger, she clears the rest of Tony’s schedule, and heads down the hallway to her own office to await the email from Pepper requesting an explanation that she knows will be on the way before too long.

When her computer dings, she sends off her response with just one sentence.

I promise you, it’s worth it.

[vinciwolf]

Stress Relief

Pairing: Rex x Cody x fem!Reader

Warnings: 18+, nsfw, porn without a plot, threesome, anal sex, cum eating, masturbation, vaginal fingering, oral (female receiving), creampie everywhere~

Notes: I was very stressed so my thirsty brain told me to write this lmao enjoy~

Note 2: Sorry that it took me forever to post this. The right side of my chest began hurting Sunday night and progressively became worse. I went the doc this morning and got meds. He said it’s just a pulled muscle and not coronavirus. Yay!! So, now I’m back to writing~

           Your whole body needs relief and there is only one person you know who can give you satisfaction. Rex was most likely in his barracks, so you headed there. The closer you got to his quarters, the more desperate your body became. While rounding the corner, you halt suddenly. Noise came from Rex’s barracks. You place your ear to the door and listen to the lewd sounds coming from the other side.

           The door easily slides open and you peek into Rex’s room. Everything is quiet except for the noises coming from the captain sitting on his desk chair. Heavy pants echo from his location. He tilts his head back, eyes screwed shut, and murmurs curses into the still air. Looking down at his hands, you notice that Rex is lazily jerking himself off. The sight of his legs splayed out while he milks his swollen cock spreads heat through your ears. After quietly walking into the captain’s room and closing the door, you slowly make your way towards his vulnerable form.

           “(Y—Y/N),” Rex murmurs, eyebrows knitting together.

           Eyes wide, you realize Rex is masturbating to his girl, to you. A smile creeps onto your face and you bite your lip between your teeth. To let your presence be know, you gently kiss the captain’s lips. His body tenses in surprise but soon melts into your embrace. You gently cradle Rex’s head as he jerks off harder, whimpering loudly as he nears his high.

           “ssshhh, cyar’ika, I’m here. What do you need,” your breath brushes against his ear.

           “In-inside you, please,” he pleas softly, laying his head against your shoulder.

           With a hum, you stand up and strip down to your underwear. Rex whines and roughly snakes his arms around your hips, kissing your exposed stomach. Breathless curses escape his lips when he accidentally jets himself everywhere. Your skin crawls with shivers as you look at the sight of cum dripping down your legs. Tilting Rex’s chin upwards, you place a gentle kiss onto his lips.

           “Have all of me, Captain.”

           Datapads and paperwork scatter everywhere on the floor. The soft skin of your ass bounces when Rex roughly sits you on top of his desk. He quickly begins assaulting your neck and sucks bruises along your collarbones. A defenseless yelp breaks the air when your underwear is ripped off by Rex’s strong hand. You hook your legs around the captain’s waist as he starts massaging your clit. Gasping sobs escape your throat when Rex frantically pushes harder into your bud, heat blossoming inside your core.

           “Maker, you’re so wet,” he whispers against your chin, “S’ready to be fucked.”

           You scream and grip Rex’s armor when thick fingers shove into your slit. The stretch burns but is soon replaced with pulsating fire. Flopping back onto the desk, tears brim your eyes when Rex pushes his fingers deeper into you. Suddenly his fingers retreat. As he stands up, you pout and whimper beneath him on the desk. Rex smirks and begins dropping pieces of his armor. Once he is down to his blacks, he reaches for his heavy cock and lines himself up with your sore entrance.

           “I’ve been waitin’ for this,” he purrs against your ear.

           The tip of his cock strokes up and down your wet slit and lubes itself with your arousal. You cry out, back arching sharply, when Rex slowly sinks into you. His large cock slowly edges through your tight walls and stretches you open. This. This is what you needed. The stress from your day finally dissipates with the help of Rex stuffing you full. When he experimentally rolls his hips, you dig your nails into the edge of the desk. Your eyes roll back when Rex begins thrusting into you. The lewd slap of wetness against his cock only increases as his hips pound harder.

           “Ah ah—you’re so tight! That’s it—taking my cock so well,” Rex proudly exhales before biting his lip as he begins desperately hitting harder against the back of your pussy.

           “You-you’re just too big—hah,” you spit out and screw your eyes shut as the coil in your stomach winds up.

           Rex grips the back of your knees and pushes his body flush against yours. You bounce against the desk as he violently pumps his cock inside you. At this point, wet slaps of skin and breathless moans fill the heavy atmosphere. You desperately pant for air and grip the edge of the desk as your orgasm erupts through your stomach. Rex spits out a string of curses into the crook of your shoulder. He tenses as white-hot shots of cum paint your walls. Both of you collapse against each other and pant for air. The slow sensation of his cock pulling out makes you shutter. Rex steps back, admiring his milky cum seeping out of your entrance.

           “You give one hell��ova stress relief...” you relax against the cold desk.

            “Comes with practice,” he winks and leans down to kiss you lovingly.

           After a brief embrace, your captain disappears into the refresher for some towels. Moving your fingers over your slit, you happily sigh when you touch cum spilling out of your hole. Massaging your already blossomed bud, the waves of your previous orgasm slowly crash into you again. You bite your lip between your teeth and choke back a moan. Suddenly, the door to Rex’s quarters slides open and Cody walks in peering down at a datapad.

           “Rex, I have the new reports you or—” Cody looks up and steps back, eyes going wide.

           The datapad in his hand loudly hits the floor as he takes in the sight of you… on the captain’s desk… with your fingers between your legs… fresh cum dripping from your pussy. Heated pleasure washes over your body when the idea of Cody taking you too swims inside your mind. Reaching a hand towards the commander, you repeatedly whimper his name and encourage him forward.

           “Please, Commander, I need you too,” you tilt your head back and work another orgasm. “I—I know. It’s okay,” you coo reassuringly towards him.

           Heat flushes Cody’s cheeks as he realizes what your mean. You know about his hidden infatuation. Confronting his feelings for you was not an option because he knew that you belong to Rex. Many nights, the commander would jerk himself off in the empty refreshers, thinking about fantasies of you screaming beneath him. A fantasy he’d never have… or not until now apparently.

           “You heard her, Commander~” Leaning against the refresher threshold, Rex amusingly mocks his stunned brother.

           Cody slowly walks towards you, eyes filled with curious desire. Abandoning all shame, he kisses your knee while pressing himself against your wet opening. Heat spreads throughout your cheeks and ears and a yearnful cry chokes out of your throat. One of your hands grips his armored bicep while slowly rutting against his plated crotch. Behind the commander, Rex walks to his bed and sits down. He is only wearing pants and easily springs his cock free. Slowly, the captain works himself as he watches you embrace the commander.

           Cody reaches down and detaches his crotch plate, letting in drop to the floor with a light thud. Turning your head to the side, lip between your teeth, you whimper as his tented bulge rubs against your slit. From the corner of your ear, you hear the lewd, wet sounds of Rex gently working his cock. The commander leans down and snakes his arms around your torso, gently lifting you flush against his cold armor. You wrap your arms around his neck. He tightly grips your ass and kisses your feverishly. Cody’s tongue plays with your lips before delving inside your mouth.

           Everything happens fast. Tongues sloppily dance and gasping mouths breath each other’s air. Cody roughly sucks your lips as you remove pieces of his armor with trembling hands until he’s down to his blacks. A growl rumbles from the commanders chest when you grind your dripping pussy against his protruding arousal. Your limbs cage around Cody when he picks you up. He gently sets you down on Rex’s lap and gets on his knees. The captain nips and sucks along your neck as you lean into his hard chest.

           “Hold’er up,” Cody lifts your legs up and kisses the soft tissue of your inner thighs.

           Rex firmly grips the curve of your knees and spreads your legs wide open. Turning your head, you lock swollen lips with the captain and rake you finger over his buzzcut. Between your legs, Cody litters your thighs with open mouth kisses, his hot breath dancing above your drenched hole. Rex releases your lips only to reach one of his hands up to hold your jaw. He forces you to look down at Cody, who smirks up at you and winks before delving his face into your wet pussy.

           Breathless sobs exhale from your lips as the commander eats you out. With a shaky hand, you grip Cody’s hair. The way his tongue works your clit sends bolts of heat through your core, making your walls push out more arousal. While the commander sucks your swollen bud, he shoves two fingers inside you.

           “Hah! P—Please, Commander,” you choke out, breathe hitching just when Cody’s fingers massage the rough patch along your velvety walls. Your walls squeeze together in defiance.

           “Cody, ah, enough—I can’t—I’m gonna—!” you helplessly try to push his head away, but the two clones hold you close. The overstimulation makes you squirt all over Cody’s face. Head flying back, you rest against Rex’s shoulder and gasp repeatedly.

           “She’s a messy one,” Rex chuckles while gently releasing your shaking thighs. The sight of your white cream spilling down the commander’s face sends shivers up your spine. With an unflinching stare holding your gaze, Cody lifts his face to your lips.

           “Lick it up,” he demands.

           Shamefully you lick the expanse of the commander’s face. Your salty cum gathers on your tongue, but before you can swallow, Cody tilts your jaw upwards.

           “I wanna watch you do it,” he states calmly and rubs his thumbs over your chin. The white line of cum on your tongue disappears inside your mouth and you seductively swallow. With wobbly legs, you try to stand up, but Rex snatches your waist, humming in disapproval.

           “We ain’t done, are we Captain?” Cody remarks amusingly.

           With a deep growl, Rex squeezes your hips. “Not even close, Commander.”

           Rex’s grip on your waist loosens when Cody helps you onto the bed. Slack from your orgasm, you lazily collapse onto the soft mattress only to be hoisted between the two clones. Remaining garments are discharged and flopped onto the floor somewhere. Cody positions himself in front of you and Rex gropes your soft ass from behind.

           “Now be a good girl and take us both,” Rex commands sweetly into your ear.

           While fondling your soft breasts between his calloused fingers, the head of Rex’s cock slowly breeches the tight ring of your ass. Soft cries release from your writhing body as he fully sheathes himself snuggly inside you. You pitifully yelp, back arcing, when you feel Cody’s cock effortlessly glide into your slippery cunt. Loud gasps tremble from your lips when the two clones start slowly rocking their hips. Your body bounces as your holes are brutally stuffed to the brim with each thrust. Cody litters your throat with bruises as Rex bites into the crook on your neck, holding back a huge groan. The commander’s lips brush against yours before slamming in for a rough kiss. Rex lifts your legs higher only for your to squeeze around his cock from the sudden pleasure.

           Cody releases your mouth and painfully gropes your hips, jamming his cock deeper into your pulsating wall. You arc your body with a loud wail as wave after wave of orgasm splits through your body. Both clones’ grunt and hiss from release as thick ropes of cum squirt into your heavily stuffed walls. Cody presses his head against your shoulder and heaves loudly. Rex simply flops onto the bed and blissfully sighs, cock sliding out of your ass with a lewd pop. Cody leans back, carrying you with him, not allowing a drip of his seed to leak out of your slit.

           “I—I love you, (Y/N),” Cody breath brushes against your ear. You peck his cheek gently.

           “You can have me, Cody. Both of you can,” you gently sigh into his arms and caress your fingers over his scar. After his cock softens inside your walls, he pulls out. Slowly, you stand up on wobbly legs and head towards the refresher.

           “You took us so well,” Rex exhales proudly, watching the mixture of cum seep down your legs, “We might get addicted to this.”

           Bracing against Rex’s desk, your knees begin to go limp.

           “Uh, boys… you might need to help me clean up the mess left inside me…”

           In the refresher, clean up is given a whole new meaning.

[wiypt-writes]

Riding On

Ch 9- A Labour of Love

Summary: Fliss and Frank receive some news from Boston and Bean’s due date, arrives…and passes, with no sign of him making his bid for freedom just yet. Fliss is frustrated and poor Frank doesn’t know what to do for the best. 

Warnings: Bad Language words. Smut (NSFW, NO UNDER 18s!).

Pairing: Frank Adler x OFC Fliss Gallagher

A/N:  Bean is just not playing ball, is he? As always, I hope you enjoy and I love reading all your thoughts.

Disclaimer: This is a pure work of fiction and classified as 18+. Please respect this and do not read if you are underage. I do not own any characters in this series bar Fliss Gallagher and the other OCs. By reading beyond this point you understand and accept the terms of this disclaimer.

Riding On Masterlist // Main Masterlist

Chapter 8

Touch me, take me to that other place. Teach me, I know I’m not a hopeless case.

 August 2019

The alarm had become a bit of a pointless feature in the Gallagher-Adler household, certainly over the last 2 weeks or so. As Fliss headed into the final throes of her pregnancy, her sleep patterns were all over the place. So it was no surprise to Frank that he felt her climbing out of bed at little past 5 am. Blinking sleepily he made a noise of protest because, after all, it was a Saturday, and she chuckled and leaned over to gently kiss his head.

“Stay here.” she instructed, “I’ll be fine.”

He wasn’t going to listen, he really wasn’t but his eyes dropped shut of their own accord. When they opened again it was almost 10 and he gave a start, because Fliss was due to leave in little over an hour. She was off for a Pre-Baby pamper session with Verity, Roberta and Sian, which included a manicure, pedicure, haircut, facial and fuck knows what else. To be honest, Frank had zoned out when she'd reeled off the list of treatments last night over dinner and just nodded in all the right places because he wasn't interested if all truth be told. As long as she enjoyed herself. With that in mind, he jumped up and after a quick shower he headed downstairs.

“Why didn’t you wake me?” he asked as he wandered into the back of the house. Fliss, who was stood by the bay window seat, her eyes roving over the garden, didn’t answer.

“Lissy?” He spoke again and she jumped slightly and turned to face him as he chuckled and crossed the room to give her a kiss. “Sorry, didn’t mean to scare you. Where’s Mary?”

“She went up to the stables for a lesson with Joanne before it gets too hot.” She replied, taking the peck he offered with a tight smile. Her voice was flat, emotionless and her entire demeanour unnerved him a little as he prided himself on normally being able to read her very well but at that moment he really couldn’t get a lock on her at all.

“Baby, what’s wrong?”

“I had a message from Boston Police…about John.”

Frank made an angry noise in his throat “What about him?”

She looked at him and Frank felt his mind whirring about what there was left that the ass hole could possibly put her through. He was inside, for a long time and he wouldn’t be getting parole this time round either but when she answered, he hadn’t been expecting her to drop the news she did.

“He’s dead.” Fliss said flatly as she looked at Frank. His face contorted into a frown as he looked at her.

“Dead?”

She nodded “Apparently got in a fight with another prisoner and it got a bit nasty. He was stabbed and…” she swallowed “Bled out. Nothing they could do.” Frank watched her carefully as she was clearly pondering something. He wasn’t sure how she was going to be feeling here. She had been married to him after all but, well, Frank was struggling to feel anything other than a sickening sense of satisfaction. If anyone deserved to die it was that fucker.

“You ok?” he asked her as he stepped towards her and pulled her into a hug.

“Yeah. I feel nothing.” she said simply, pulling back to look at him. “Absolutely nothing. I’m not happy he’s dead but I don’t care he is, either, and I’m certainly not upset about it.” She paused, biting her lip “Does that make me a bad person?”

“Bad?” Frank spluttered “Fuck, no honey, of course not” She let out a sigh as he pressed a kiss to the top of her head as she snuggled her face into his chest.  “If you think feeling nothing makes you bad then me feeling what I do means I’m going straight to hell.” Frank moved and tilted her face to look at him with his finger a thumb gently holding her chin “He was a nasty, vile bastard Lissy, and he put you through so much, not to mention nearly fucking killing you less than a year ago. If anything you have a right to be throwing a damned party now.”

“Not sure you’d find many places with Congratulations Your Piece Of Shit, Wife-Beating Ex-Husband Is Dead banners or balloons.” she quipped.

“The internet is dark and full of terrors.” Frank smiled back and Fliss snorted at the Game of Thrones reference “Never underestimate it.”

She stayed silent for a moment before she pulled back and looked up at him. “You know what else I will never underestimate?” she asked, and Frank was pleased to note that familiar shine had returned to her face and eyes and he arched an eyebrow. “The power of a back massage.”

Frank smiled “Good job you’re heading off for one then isn’t it.”

“Hmmmm…” she teased, her hands tracing his chest through his t-shirt. “Thing is, unlike your back rubs this one won’t have a happy ending.” “It better fucking not do.” He shot back and she grinned.

“I should go get ready.”

“Ok, you want any breakfast before you go?” he asked and she smiled

“We ate, but there’s some pancakes in the oven for you, you just need to warm them up.”

He smiled “You’re too good to me.” “I know” she shrugged, standing on her toes to give him a kiss. With a chuckle he watched her leave, Thor trotting behind her before he let out a deep breath.

“Does that make me bad?”

The fact that she was even asking that, after everything, was enough of an answer in itself. Bad? There was nothing further from the truth and he hated that she had even entertained the idea. But, as Frank realised when he poured himself a coffee, now the bastard was dead, there was nothing else he could do to her. That particular shadow was now well gone.

And Frank didn’t give a shit whether being happy or, dare he say it, amused at the fact the fucker had died in prison, made him a bad person or not.

*****

An hour later Fliss was collected by Bill, the poor bloke was on drop off and pick up duty and Frank didn’t envy him dealing with all 4 of women. Out of courtesy, Frank had offered to run one way but Bill had waved his offer off, pointing out that he had to collect his mother later that afternoon from the aiport.

He walked out to the car with them, taking a side glance at his girl who was dressed in a pale pink and blue maxi dress, which was quite low cut and made her pregnancy boobs look fucking amazing. He smiled as he opened the door for her, Fliss sinking into the front seat- being basically 40 weeks pregnant and ready to pop awarded her certain perks such as her mother surrendering her usual position in the passenger side.

“Have a nice time.” He said, leaning over to give her a peck.

“We will.” She smiled “I left Mary some Mac and Cheese for lunch, she was asking before so I pulled it out of the freezer.”

Frank smiled “I’ll fight her for it.” “No need.” She grinned “I got you some out too.” “You spoil me”

Smiling, she reached up and cupped his cheek before he straightened up and shut the door. Once he was sure it was closed he jerked his head to Bill who was bent giving Thor a pat and signalled for the man to walk with him a little, taking a few steps away.

“Everything ok?” Bill asked.

“Yeah, well, sort of. She’s probably gonna tell you herself but just in case she doesn’t, she had a call this morning. John’s dead.” Bill blinked, before he gave a snort “Good.” “Yeah, that was kind of my reaction too.” Frank scratched at his neck. “Fliss, however, well she says she didn’t feel anything. Not happy, not sad, just complete indifference. Which, to be fair, is probably a good thing for her. I’m just a little worried she’s numb because it hasn’t sunk in yet.” Bill nodded “If she doesn’t mention it herself on the way I’ll tell V on the quiet when we get there.” “Thanks.”  Frank smiled as the two of them headed back to the car. Frank grinned at Bill, as he could hear the chatter from the 4 women even through the closed doors and windows of the car.

“Good luck!” he said, nodding towards the vehicle.

Bill snorted before he frowned a little “How come you haven’t gone with Steve and the boys up to the Water Sports centre?” “Mary didn’t want to.” Frank said “I think she’s still a little, self-conscious, I suppose is the term, around the twins but she’ll come round. You know what she’s like” “Well, when they move over in January she’ll have plenty of time to get to know them properly” Bill shrugged “Right, best get this rabble to the hotel. See you later son.” Frank smiled, nodding at him. As the Range Rover pulled off up the drive he tossed a hand at the tailgate before he looked down at Thor.

“Come on boy, let’s go find Mary.” It didn’t take them long to locate her. Having finished her lesson she’d been busy grooming Monty and then helping Joanne with a few chores, or bugging the shit out of her Frank suspected but Joanne was always so patient with her. The young woman was god-send, having really stepped up over the last 2 months especially. Frank knew why Fliss liked her so much.

He practically dragged Mary home, but it really was getting ridiculously warm and he wanted her to have a few hours inside to keep cool a little. In the end, as always, they haggled reaching a compromise that she could have a little while in the pool provided she sat in the shade quietly to eat lunch. As always he was roped into the pool with her, such a hard life he led, and after 30 minutes of teaching her how to dive they both climbed out and ate before changing and heading to the airport to collect Evelyn who was coming to stay for a while.

He greeted her with the usual nod and smile as Mary gave her a hug, before he took her bag from her and they headed back to his truck, Mary gibbering on about anything and everything, his mother listening and replying when needed. The last time Mary had seen Evelyn she had gone to Boston for the weekend the previous month, something that had set Frank on edge after the last time, but as Fliss had reasoned with him, he knew that he couldn’t allow that to stop him from letting her go. This meant that Evelyn hadn’t seen their house since they had moved in back in June. Mary showed her round, Frank following, and when they got to Bean’s room he saw her stop and look round, smiling softly.

“You’ve done a good job, Frank.” She turned to look at him and he smiled back.

“You sound surprised, mother.” “Not at all.” She shook her head. “I expected nothing less.” “Makes a change.” He couldn’t help the sarcastic shot back and she narrowed her eyes.

“Are we not passed the sniping yet?” she said, tiredly.

Frank held his hands up, “Sorry.” After she’d seen the attic and Mary’s room, they headed back downstairs, Frank showing Evelyn to the Guest Apartment over the Garage which he had put the finishing touches to the week before. Fliss had stocked the fridge fully for her, meaning she had everything she could need for snacks and drinks, and whatever else she needed for a comfortable stay. He left her to unpack, telling her to come over to the main house when she was done, which she did a little over an hour later.

Frank poured her a glass of white wine, and they headed outside, taking a seat at the table as Mary was in and out of the pool freely as the sun wasn’t quite as high as it had been given that it was half four in the afternoon. Evelyn took the opportunity to ask Frank if they were ready for Bean to arrive and he smiled, shrugging.

“As ready as we can be.” He said, “We’ve had all the hospital tours and found the place Fliss prefers so…” “Where have you chosen?” Evelyn asked.

“Bayfront in St Pete’s” Frank said, pulling out his phone “They have a suite called the Baby Place.”

He flicked through his phone’s internet browser to the bookmarked page and handed it to Evelyn who put on her glasses to scan the information.

"The separate family lounge offers some of the amenities of home, such as a game table, bla bla bla and room enough to host celebrations and enjoy time with loved ones." Evelyn read from the website. "It looks like a hotel not a hospital" she mused as she handed the phone back to Frank. "Well, that's kinda the idea mother." He said, tossing his phone onto the table. "It’s actually a state-approved level 3 Regional Perinatal Intensive Care Centre." Mary appeared at the side of them, picking up her towel. "The program is one of only 12 in the state of Florida" Evelyn looked at her, cooking her head to one side as Frank gave a chuckle. "There is that too." He said as Evelyn turned to him. Mary, wrapped herself in the towel and hopped up onto his knee. "We originally discussed a birthing centre with the midwife but Fliss was too worried about what could go wrong or if she decided half way through she wanted an epidural..." he rubbed at Mary’s shoulders slightly, drying her off with the towel. “So when the midwife suggested this it seemed like a perfect compromise. She gets a private recovery area and should make her feel more at ease. She doesn't have fond memories of hospitals." He shrugged "Who does?" Evelyn looked at him, taking a sip of her wine. "Well Fliss has some particularly bad ones what with her back injury and operation, not to mention all the times he put her in one." Frank said, pausing for a second. That reminded him.

“Hey Stack, can you go grab me a can of soda?”

“Only if I can have one.” She bargained.

“Fine, but grab the no sugar. You’re already hyper enough as it is.”

Mary jumped down and headed through the door into the kitchen. As soon as she was out of earshot Frank looked at his mother.

“John’s dead.” He said bluntly “Fliss had a call this morning. He was stabbed in prison.” Evelyn looked at him for a second, before she gave a snort “Couldn’t have happened to a nicer guy.” She said sarcastically “How has Fliss taken it?”

“Well she wasn’t leaping for joy but she’s not upset, says she feels nothing.” He shrugged, looking up as Mary came back. She handed him a can as she hopped back on his knee and opened the other one herself.

Evelyn studied Frank for a second as if she was considering something before she smiled "I take it the fact she's due to drop tomorrow is the reason you're on soft drinks and not beer." Frank smiled "Just playing it safe. I mean so are you right? That's why you're here for the next 2 weeks." Evelyn shrugged "is it a problem?" "No." Frank shook his head before he grinned cheekily "Why do you think I finished the apartment above the Garage?" "Bill says in England they would call it a Granny Flat" Mary said as Frank gave a snort. Evelyn chuckled a little. "I’m aware of the terminology, thank you, on account of being from England myself." She looked at Mary "You know, people build them on their property when they want their elderly relatives to move in with them so they can look after them." she turned to Frank, smirking "So I'm honoured, Francis..." "I didn't build it just for you." He rolled his eyes "it was half done when we moved in so it made sense to finish it." He picked up his can "It’s a place for anyone to stay, although I'd be lying if I said you weren't at the forefront of my mind when we did it" Evelyn looked at him, shocked, "me?" "Yeah..." he shrugged, grinning "Fliss told me that I wasn't allowed to let you stay in a hotel or at Bill and V's now we have room so this was the best way of actually keeping you out of the house..." "Oh piss off!" Evelyn looked at him, slapping his arm as he laughed. She shook her head and before she could shoot a sarcastic response back, the sound of an engine coming up the drive hit Frank’s ears and a soft smile crept across his face. His girl was home. Thor gave a loud bark and stood up, running to the gate, Frank following him. He opened it, striding out onto the path through the lawn which led round the side of their house to the front. He smiled as Fliss pushed herself out of her dad's range rover and he instantly spotted that her hair was a lighter colour than it had been that morning and was flowing round her face and shoulders in perfectly styled waves. It was evident she had enjoyed herself, as she looked relaxed for the first time in weeks. "Well I would ask if you had a nice time." He smiled, dropping a kiss to her cheek "but I can tell from the way you're grinning that you did." "Oh it was amazing." She smiled as his hands fell to her hips. “Just what I needed. I feel relaxed and absolutely ready to push a baby out of my vagina.” Frank gave a loud laugh as he shook his head. “Well, your hair looks great." "Aww thanks Frank." Roberta slapped his shoulder as she walked past him into the yard. He rolled his eyes as Fliss laughed, tugging on Frank’s hand as she led him to the trunk of Bill's car. Bill was stood with it open as Verity and Sian were looking in each of the bags before Verity pointed at one and handed it to Fliss, Frank immediately taking it from her. He peered inside.

"Because you don't have enough toiletries" he deadpanned. Fliss shrugged. "The lavender stuff they said would help me sleep, which in case you haven't noticed I've been struggling to do over the last 2 weeks." "Hard not to notice when you wake me up at 3:30 am to tell me" "I did that once because I felt sick. And besides, you did this to me..." she pointed to her now really rather large bump "...you should also be feeling the consequences" Bill snorted as he shut the trunk of his car and looked at Frank as he glanced at the older man, almost pleading for help "Sorry lad." Bill chuckled "You got her pregnant and wanna marry her, she's your problem now." "She is here..." Fliss glared at her father. "Oh, trust me Titch, we are all well aware you are." "Rude" Fliss looked at her parents as they headed into the garden. "Steve and the boys will be here in about 5." Sian looked at Fliss having just got off the phone to him. "Said to tell you he is picking up some real meat on the way over...whatever that means Frank?" Frank laughed "he means fillet steak. I got Sirloin. A man's cut. He's being a pussy" Sian looked at Fliss who simply shook her head. "Meat is a big issue for Francis." She said sombrely, patting his chest.

“I just know what I like.” He shrugged. They made their way through to the back in time to see Verity giving Evelyn a warm hug in greeting. It made Fliss smile softly, noticing how different it all was to the stiff handshakes shared when they met for the first time little over a year ago.

Frank dropped a kiss to her cheek and headed inside to put her bag away before he came back down just as Steve and the boys turned up. Then the usual thing that happened at BBQs went ahead, the men crowding round the grill, the women bustling in and out of the kitchen setting out the sides and accompaniments, the 3 kids bombing in and out of the pool.

“You should have come with us today Mary.” Steve said to the girl as she sauntered past in her bathing suit. She paused to look at him.

“What did you do?”

“We did Kayaking, skiing, the boys went bodyboarding but I sat that one out.” Steve said.

“I didn’t know if I would like it.” She shrugged, dropping her eyes slightly. Frank watched carefully as Steve crouched down.

“Me neither, but you know what? It was fun, and the best thing is, if there’s something you don’t wanna do, you can sit it out and watch.” Frank could see from her face she was mulling this over. She looked at Steve “Are you going again Uncle Steeby?”

“Next Friday.” He nodded.

“Ok, I wanna go next time.” She announced. “Mind your manners.” Frank instructed, gently, pointing the tongues he was holding at her.

“Please.” She added. Charlie and Joel both erupted into noise, demanding that their father allow it and Steve gave a chuckle.

“You’re welcome any time Stack, as long as Frank and Fliss say its ok.” He said, standing up. “Fine by me. In fact you can keep her if you want.” Frank shrugged and Mary rolled her eyes.

“You always say stuff like that, pretend you don’t want me here but we all know the truth. You do, that’s why you’re adopting me.”

“Smart ass.” Frank narrowed his eyes at her as she stuck her tongue out and ran off. Bill and Steve chuckled as Frank shook his head, snorting.

“Thanks Steve.” He looked at the man who waved his thanks away.

“You know, she’s getting more like Fliss was every day.” Bill said “you want to watch that, Frank. She was a sassy little swine as a kid.” “Mary was already a sass bag before she met Fliss.” Frank shrugged, turning over the steaks on the grill. “Lissy just encourages it.” “Have you had any luck with her biological father?” Steve asked and Frank shook his head.

“We’re not expecting to yet. We’ve only given him notification of our intent. I suspect when Greg actually starts the process officially we’ll hear something.”

“But you don’t expect him to object?”

Frank hesitated before he shrugged “I can’t see why he would. He’s never been interested in her, at all. I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t a slight worry but like Fliss keeps telling me, we’ll cross that bridge when we get there.” “No point worrying about something you can’t control.” Bill said wisely, before he drained his beer “Right, I need another drink. Anyone else want one?”

“Yeah, I’ll come with you” Steve said “Frank?”

“I’m good, thanks.” “You can have one or two, surely?” Steve looked at him.

“Leave him alone.” Bill said, shoving his son on the shoulder, “That’s your sister and my little girl he’s looking out for…” “Fuckin’ pussy…” Steve snorted playfully and Frank threw the burger flipper at him.

Bill and Steve walked away, playfully squabbling and a few seconds later Frank felt a familiar pair of arms wrap around him from behind, Fliss pressing her lips to the space between his shoulder blades.

“Hey gorgeous.” He said, moving so she could slide under his arm. He pressed a kiss to her head “You ok?”

“Yeah, fine.” She smiled, looking up at him. “You know I really do I love your hair." He said, taking in the lighter colour even more in the now closing light of day. Over the past two years, her vivid auburn had gradually tone down and was now a light brown, laced with copper and blonde.

“Thanks.” She said, a little shyly and Frank frowned.

“Don’t you like it?”

“No, I love it…it’s just, well, actually it doesn’t matter.” “Lissy.” He looked at her sternly, and she sighed, her hands worrying one another so Frank put the cooking utensils down and took them in his. “Tell me what’s going on.” “John hated me changing it.” She shrugged “Which is why I went so bright red in the first place. Once I left him I just fancied doing something wild. I’ve always liked it a bit lighter. He insisted I kept it dark…”

“Well you can do what the fuck you want with it.” He assured her, “Unless you want to shave it all off. Then I might raise some objections.” “Sorry. She said gently and he frowned.

“What for?” “Raising him again” she shrugged “We’ve been together almost 2 years now and…” “Hey.” He said, “Don’t ever apologise. I’d rather you tell me when you’re feeling like this. You know that.”

“Of course I do, I just wonder sometimes if it’s ever gonna stop.”

“So what if it doesn’t?” Frank looked at her. She blinked and he shrugged “I’ve told you, you can always talk to me. Nothing you say is gonna make me mad.”

She smiled at him as he dropped his head, gently giving her a peck. “I know, I just get fed up sometimes. Stupid little memories and flashbacks.” “I know.” He smiled at her, kissing her head softly “But they don’t rule your life anymore, not like they used to. They’re just…”he hesitated “A minor annoyance, a bit like him really, insignificant.”

“He’s even more insignificant now.” She grinned “He’s fucking dead.”

At that Frank let out a snort “I take it you’re not longer feeling numb then.”

She shrugged “Mum said exactly the same as you before, that we should be throwing a party so…”

Frank chuckled again, pulling her into him even further as he turned back to the grill.

******

Despite it being her due date the following day there was no sign of Bean. And he didn’t make an appearance on the Monday either. On Tuesday they headed in for an assessment at the hospital, and after an examination the Midwife smiled at Fliss as she lay on the bed.

"Well, Miss Gallagher... he is in the right position." The midwife smiled. “Dropped and ready.” "He needs to hurry up." Fliss grumbled "He was due two days ago.” "Your due date is never exact. I wouldn't worry. His heartbeat is strong, he'll arrive when he is ready." "Already taking after his father." Fliss shot a side glance at Frank who raised an eyebrow. "Ok so if there's no sign of him by the morning of the 28th then just call" the woman said and Frank bit back a smirk at the look of utter disgust on Fliss' face "We'll check everything and do a sweep to get things moving." "Is there anything we can do?" Fliss practically whined "Spicy food? Pineapple? Speed bumps?" The Midwife laughed "I'm afraid they're only old wives tales. The only one with a shred of credibility is sex." Frank grinned and Fliss shot him a glare. "Semen contains prostaglandins" the midwife shot Fliss a wink "It can trigger the release of oxytocin which is a hormone that can help contractions." At that it was Fliss' turn to grin. "So all I need is your sperm and a turkey baster Sailor. Unlucky." Frank rolled his eyes and mentally cursed the midwife for her damned scientific explanation. "But in essence if your body isn’t ready to labour, nothing you do will necessarily get you going." She smiled "Sorry, you're just gonna have to ride it out." Despite the joking there was no activity in the bedroom that night other than a lot of tossing and turning as Fliss was really struggling to get comfortable enough to sleep. Frank hated seeing her so tired and fed up but when at 3:30 am he sleepily asked her if she needed anything she simply asked for a cuddle which he was more than happy to provide.

“I’m sorry.” She mumbled.

“What for?”

“I know I've been a pain these last 2 weeks.”

“You’re heavily pregnant and fed up.” He said, kissing her head

“I wouldn't be able to do this alone. I don't know how my mum did.” She said softly. Frank sighed and pulled her closer, remembering how upset she had been a week or so back when their conversation one evening with Mary had turned to Frank telling her how he had been with Diane when she was born. Hormones be damned, it had set Fliss off about how nice it was that Frank had been there and stood by Diane and how she wished her own mom had that, but instead Verity’s parents had kicked her out and left her alone and pregnant at the age of 19.

Frank knew Verity had been young when she had Fliss, although he had never expressly asked he had worked it out from the fact she was 9 years Bill's junior. He also knew there was a lot of bad blood on that side of the family and that Fliss had never met her maternal grandparents, even when they reached out to her later down the line. She had rather impolitely told them to fuck off, Verity doing the same. When asked by Mary why she hadn’t forgiven them as they were family, Fliss had shrugged and simply replied that family isn't and never would be about blood, but instead it was about those people who saw you at your absolute worst and wanted you just the same. "You've nothing to be sorry for.” Frank gently soothed her, “And you're not on your own. You never will be." "I know." She looked up at him, smiling as he gave her a soft kiss.

Things continued much the same for the rest of the week. Every so often Fliss would get a twinge, and the pair of them would get excited, thinking this was it, only for nothing to happen. On the Friday, almost a week post her due date, Frank called the midwife who arranged for them to come in the next morning. Evelyn, who was being particularly helpful, even if Frank was loath to admit it cooked for them all that night, but Fliss had struggled to eat her meal, declaring she felt a bit sick. After a profound apology to Evelyn she announced she was heading for a bath and then going to bed.

“Do you want me to come with you?” Frank asked and Fliss shook her head.

“It’s not even 7. I might be back down in an hour or so if I feel better.” “Ok, can you manage-“

“Frank!” she said, exasperatedly. “I’m fine.” “Well, you’re-“ he began and Evelyn laid her hand on his arm and shook her head gently. For the first time in, well, as long as he could remember, he obeyed an order from his mother and stopped. “Alright. Just shout me then if you need anything.”

She gave him a kiss on his cheek, her way of apology for snapping and headed off.

“You won’t need that appointment tomorrow.” Evelyn said after a pause and Frank turned to her.

“What makes you say that?” “Because I felt the same the day before I went into labour with you.” Evelyn said “Queasy, tired, just generally off.” “Well, I hope you’re right because she’s fed up.” Frank sighed “He’s fully cooked now, just being a stubborn little bastard.”

“What was it you once said to me about an apple and a tree analogy?” she looked at him, arching an eyebrow and Frank snorted.

“Yeah ok, you got me there” he conceded.

Fliss didn’t come back down after her bath. Frank popped in on her a few times and she was simply led in bed, trying to get comfortable, tearfully complaining that her back ache was particularly bad. Frank led besides her for half an hour or so, gently working at the lower part of her spine that was giving her the trouble before he realised she’d fallen asleep. He left her to it, heading back down to his mother and Mary, before a few hours later, just before 10, they all decided to go to bed as it had been a long day. Fliss didn’t wake up when he slid in besides her, nor when he dropped a kiss to her cheek. He watched her for a moment as she lay, facing him, before he too closed his eyes.

***** His baby was sat on his knee, grinning up at him. He smiled down at the boy, whose hands were wrapped tight around his index fingers. He glanced up, looking around for Fliss but there was no sign of her. Nor Mary for that matter. Hoisting Alex up onto his hip he headed out to the garden and gave a start as he saw both Fliss and Mary floating face down in the pool.

“No, no…” he began to mutter, before his muttering became frantic yells “No, this…not my girls…not…”

With a start, Frank sat bold upright in bed, breathing deeply. He glanced at the clock on the side which read 23:30, damned he hadn’t even been asleep an hour! What the fuck…

He wiped his clammy brow and lay back, feeling Fliss stir besides him.

“Frank?” she asked softly, “Are you ok?” “Bad dream.” He mumbled, turning onto his side and sliding his arm under her neck, pulling her back into his chest.

“You wanna talk about it?” she asked.

He shook his head with the air of a small child, pressing his nose into her neck, breathing in her smell and comfort. As he nuzzled at her, he felt her sigh a little and push back further into him.

“Stop it.” She muttered.

“Stop what?” he asked.

“That, on my neck…”

“Why?” He teased, his nose being replaced by his lips as he gently trailed open mouthed kisses up to her ear.

“You know why…”

“You ready to try what the midwife suggested?” he grinned, his mouth nipping at her ear and she gave a laugh.

“I'm willing to try anything. Just make it quick, I’m not bothered about coming. I only need your sperm.” “Charming…” he snorted as she gave a soft chuckle. His hand that had been resting on her bump softly moved down a little as he shifted, snaking his leg in between hers, opening her up slightly. He hooked her leg up over his hip, his fingers softly trailing up her bare thigh, shifting her sleep shorts to one side as he slipped his hand gently into her folds. She bucked harshly.

“Easy baby.” he muttered.

“Can’t help it.” she let out a soft sigh “Sensitive…” With a smile, he used his other hand to tip her head round so he could catch her mouth with his own, kissing her gently, his tongue softly sliding against hers, swallowing the moans and groans she was eliciting as he worked her with his hand. Had she been a little more with it, she might have been slightly embarrassed at how pathetically short a period of time it was before he had her clamping down around his fingers, shuddering as her release washed over her, but she was too gone to care. She’d hardly even come down from her orgasm when Frank eased her shorts down, then his boxers and with a gently push forward slid into her, the pair of them letting out hushed sighs as he began to slowly slide in and out of her. There was no haste to his movements, no rush, nothing, it was gentle, sweet, loving as he kept her held close to him, his lips lavishing affection on her shoulders and neck. Before long he heard and felt he breathing falling into that tell-tale staccato panting and she let out a low, quiet but downright filthy noise from her throat and Frank’s lips curved into a grin against her neck.

“Come on beautiful…” he mumbled, the heat in his own belly was sending spikes of fire up and down his body as he fought to keep control for a little longer “Come on.” And she did, her head tipped back and with a stuttering whisper of his name he felt her tighten around him, her legs quivering as he himself came, his hips slowing to a stop as he gently bit down on her shoulder. The pair of them lay still for a while, his hand softly curving up and around her bump, over her hip, down her thigh and back again, gently repeating the motion.

“You ok?” he asked and she nodded, humming in contentment. He pulled out of her, righted their items of clothing as Fliss hardly moved. He kept her pressed close to him as he closed his eyes, drifting off again.

He was woken 3 hours later, just before 4 am by Fliss shaking his arm.

“Frank…”

He groaned but didn’t open his eyes.

“Frank…Bean…I think he’s on his way…”

He let out a grin and turned over “My sperms worked then…” he mumbled into the pillow.

Fliss looked at him, waiting for the moment her words registered in his sleep-addled brain, which happened roughly 10 or so seconds later when he suddenly sat straight up, turning to face her.

“Penny dropped?” she asked arching an eyebrow.

He blinked “He’s…” She nodded, “Yeah…” He blinked again before he swallowed, and with a grin stuttered out a single word.

“Shit!”

**** Chapter 10

[gogoseijoh]

losing: pt. 2 - kageyama x reader x tsukishima

 summary: tsukki is taken with you, and your best friend is not a fan of that fact

genre: fluff, with a dash of angst at the end

warning(s): tsukishima’s self doubt, kageyama tryna fight

a/n: tsukki’s pov this time :))) i do be loving both of these men. also thank you for all the support i’m sorry it took me so long to get this out! this isn’t very long, but the next chapter will be :)) 

word count: 1.9k

part 1, part 3

Tsukishima counted himself incredibly lucky. He hadn’t thought that he would find someone like you in high school, so he didn’t even think to look, but here you were, stumbling into his life with open arms and sweet words that turned his ears the most vibrant red he’d ever seen. You left kisses on his cheeks that burned into his skin, and he would lay in bed after he walked you home, fingers brushing over the spots in belated shock that you wanted to touch him. And then there was the sweaters. You liked to wear them, the sleeves swallowing you, because his arms were ridiculously long. They made you feel safe, but you always gave them back to him at the end of the day, and when you did, he was always consumed by the scent of your skin. Tsukishima hadn’t expected himself to be so taken with a girl, but now here he was, looking forward to seeing you every day at school. Even on the weekends he saw you, when for years the only person he hung out with both in and out of school had been the intensely loyal Yamaguchi. Now, though, he shared his time with you as well, and it was lovely. He didn’t think he would ever forget the first time you hung out in your living room, a documentary on the television and his arm draped over your shoulders, wanting to pull you closer, but not wanting to push your boundaries. You were both so nervous to speak, instead feigning interest in the screen in front of you. You had never been alone like this together, typically meeting in parks or cafes, where the ambient noise of others chatting spurred on your own conversations. Here though, it was all up to you two, so you both resigned to the comfortable silence. When the documentary ended, you had turned to look at him, “I feel so safe with you, Tsukki.” At that moment, he decided that you two didn’t need words all the time.

Your first kiss was on your front porch. Tsukki had decided to take you on your first real date, and the two of you had spent hours talking at the coffee shop he brought you to. He walked you home, hands tangled together in between you as you made your way down the street. Tsukishima, not usually one for physical affection, found himself so taken with you that he couldn’t help himself. He never understood the appeal of kissing, and then he saw your lips, covered in peppermint chapstick and always looking so soft. His hand didn’t leave yours when you reached your house, and when you turned to him, the look in his eyes was one you hadn’t seen before. He looked nervous but happy, and before you could ask him if he was okay, his voice broke through your thoughts, “Can I kiss you?” He was overjoyed when you nodded, and suddenly, one hand was cradling the back of your neck and the other held the curve of your waist as he leant down to meet you. He saw your eyes flutter closed and felt your hands snake up to your biceps, and he let his eyes fall closed, too. It was a gentle kiss, only lasting a few seconds, shy lips pressed to each other. Tsukishima basked in the blush of your cheeks when he pulled away and thanked you for a nice day. You just beamed back at him, pulling him in for one last hug before slipping into your house. Tsukki walked back home feeling as if he as walking on air, a feeling only you could give him.

That was a Saturday. Tsukishima was back to being his typically distant and sarcastic self by Monday, preserving the most gentle parts of himself for when you two were alone. In the mornings, he walked to school with Yamaguchi, while you were always accompanied by Kageyama. Tsukishima had been loathe to admit to the feelings he had for you because of your choice in best friend, but he saw that you had the same effect on the setter as you did on him. Kageyama wasn’t exactly subtle about his feelings, and the change in his personality when he was around you was enough to make Tsukishima wary of him. Spending time with you allowed him to hear about the friendship shared between you two, and it helped him understand. Kageyama was your best friend, the only person in the world outside of your family that you knew would be there for you for the rest of your life. Your tie to him was impossible to sever, and you swore up and down that you knew him better than he knew himself. It was still scary, knowing that someone who despised him was so close to you, having so much influence in your life. Tsukishima despised the brunette too, but Kageyama had been in your life longer. Would Kageyama’s opinion of him be the end of your relationship? Tsukishima tried to soothe himself into believing that Kageyama cared enough for you that he wouldn’t do that, but there was still a fear in him. 

Tsukishima was always shocked by the way you looked at him. No matter where you were or what was going on, your eyes always held the softest admiration in them when you saw him. No one had ever looked at him like that. You looked at him as if he had put the stars in the sky, and he felt triumph when he noted that those eyes were reserved for him, not even Kageyama gaining your attention like he did. There was a sense of pride in him when you kissed his cheek in front of the gym before practice, and he watched with a smirk as Kageyama scowled and stalked by you two, not that you had noticed. Tsukishima knew that when it came to volleyball, he wasn’t as talented as Kageyama, but here, with you smiling up at him, he felt like he had finally won against the King. In his mind, he knew it was juvenile to think that. He knew you were no prize to be won, nothing to be paraded around like a trophy in front of someone who Tsukki considered to be a foe, but he couldn’t help the satisfaction that seeped into his bones when Kageyama was close by. There was a conflict in his brain, a battle between the part that wanted to make Kageyama’s life harder and the part that understood how it would feel if the roles were reversed. He grimaced at the thought of having to bare witness to you and Kageyama doing the same things he did with you, but he just couldn’t help himself. You hadn’t noticed the added tension to their relationship, or lack thereof, but the rest of the volleyball club had. For the most part, they were their usual selves, but both of their voices now held an extra edge when they jeered at each other. Tsukishima could feel Kageyama’s steely gaze cutting through him whenever he turned his back, and he returned it when the brunette sought you out after practice and you handed him a snack with a brilliant smile. Still, Tsukishima knew that at the end of the day, you’d be walking home holding his hand, no one else’s. It was the most comforting thing he had ever known.

After five dates with you, Tsukishima figured out how to kill two birds with one stone. He was going to ask you to officially be his girlfriend. It was perfect, because not only would it show you how much he cared for you and that you were paramountly important to him, but it would also settle some of his fears about not being good enough for you if you said yes. Tsukishima’s feelings of uncertainty in himself had carried over from volleyball to his relationship with you, which he wasn’t thrilled about, but his faith in you relieved a lot of that pressure from his mind. He knew you liked him just as much as he liked you, so why should there be doubt in his head about you saying no? 

That doubt festered when Kageyama approached him in the club room one afternoon before practice, scowl drawing deep lines on his face and making Tsukishima stand up from the ground when he had tied his shoes. “Need something, your Majesty?” Tsukishima sneered, one hand coming up to push his glasses up the bridge of his nose.

“When are you gonna cut the act?” Kageyama snarled, eyes narrowing even further at the middle blocker. 

Tsukki scoffed, “What on Earth are you talking about?”

“I know you’re just dating (y/n) to mess with me,” Kageyama accused, taking a step forward, “Just leave her alone.”

“Wow, are you that conceded?” Tsukishima chuckled, shaking his head at the thought, “This may come as a shock, but everything isn’t about you, King. She has a life outside of you. I’m dating her because I like her, and, not that it’s any of your business, I’m going to ask her to be my girlfriend.” He didn’t miss how Kageyama’s face dropped at that, but he kept going, “Nothing I’m doing has anything to do with you. I seem to have underestimated your selfishness. I will never understand why she chooses to stick with you.” He began to make for the door but not before he turned and in his cool voice, he said, “And for the record, it’s not my fault she doesn’t want to date you.”

Before Tsukishima had a moment to step out the door, Kageyama surged forward, hand locking around the front of Tsukishima’s shirt, “I could say the same for you. She deserves so much more than you, and if you hurt her, I swear-”

“You’ll what?” a timid voice spoke from the door, and there you were standing, eyes widened to the size of dinner plates at the scene in front of you. Ukai had sent you to check on what was taking the two of them so long, and here you found them, at each other’s throats because of you. 

Kageyama let go of the taller boy, who turned around to face you. Both of them began to speak, sputtering nonsense that you couldn’t understand until you held your hand out, to which they both shut their mouths. “We will talk about this later. Go to practice,” your voice was barely a whisper and you wouldn’t meet either of their gazes, which Tsukishima knew to be your tells when you were extremely nervous, like before the grammar exam you had taken a week earlier, but you seemed less nervous and more so in a state of deep thought. You weren’t a stern person by nature, and this was the most serious he had seen you since the two of you had met. He tried to reach out to you, but you turned on your heel and were already heading for the gym. In a moment of unity, the boys shared a grimace before following you to what was sure to be a tense practice. They were in trouble.

Thoughts swirled in Tsukishima’s head as he made his way down the stairs to go to practice, thoughts he had been trying to put to rest. What did you see in him?

---

taglist: @kiritokunuwu​

[whats-rambled-rambled]

Long Nights - part 4

Neil x Reader

Chapter 4: World gone mad

(see chapter 3, 2, 1)

summary: inverted heist calls for inverted training

warnings: 18+, explicit language, gun mention, crackheadery, and possible whiplash

author’s note: Hi, yes, I know, took me ages, but hey, I hope it's worth the wait! 5.2k words, how even--

Anyway.

The song for this part is Bastille - World Gone Mad

Enjoy! All feedback is greatly appreciated, let me know what you think?

——————

Tag list: @cxnnienikas @neutron-stars-collision ​ @ergunbilge @invertedneil @wanderedaway @mellifluous-cosmos @wonderwoman292 @buckysgoldenheart @townmoondaltwistle @theriverbeneaththeriver (please let me know if you want to be added/removed from the list)

-----

The fact that you knew how to handle guns wasn’t equal to you being very good at it. Or enjoying it, for that matter. Sure, you could more or less hit the target, especially with some useful tips you got from Neil regarding a trigger finger discipline, but still - you’d rather avoid reaching for a pistol altogether.

You put back the weapon you’d been training with and Neil handed you another one. You couldn’t really tell the difference, at least until you checked the magazine. The lack of ammo meant you finally got to the fun bit that Neil teased in The Protagonist’s office and you smiled, looking back at your companion. He grinned at you, the gaze sparkling behind yellow-tinted safety glasses as he pointed at the wall next to the targets you used for practice.

“Just aim and pull the trigger. ” Seeing your nod, he added, “Okay now, be careful, it might feel--”

The bullet whizzed back into the chamber of your pistol and your eyes widened.

“Oh fuck me sideways,” you hissed under your breath.

“-- a bit weird, yeah.” Neil chuckled at the shock painted on your face. “All right?”

“Yeah, just processing.” Trying to blink the consternation away, you asked, “How do you make these? You put it into that...turnstile and voilà?”

Neil shook his head. “No, it’s not that simple. We receive a stash every now and then, we don’t know how to manufacture those,” - he smirked - “at least not yet. I do have a few theories I’m working on in my spare time, but...” hesitating for a moment, he raked a hand through his hair and sent you a nervous smile. “Wouldn’t want to bore you to death, though.”

“Dude, come on, with that smooth and soothing voice of yours? You could read the yellow pages to me and I’d still listen like that--” you mocked a dreamy heart-eyes expression, watching with satisfaction as that remark pushed Neil further into a flustered state.

Apparently, when explicit teasing got a little-to-no reaction now, you could still make him blush with a more wholesome compliment. As you started laughing, he rolled his eyes and scrunched the nose slightly, joining you with a stifled giggle. Grinning, you continued a little softer, “I’m not gonna lie - I probably wouldn’t understand a majority of the physics jargon, but I’d still want to hear all about that.”

A thankful look you got in return made your chest clench painfully, and your mind wandered off to those breaks near the river, and Neil’s animated rants. You knew one thing. Anyone who had ever ridiculed him for his passion for even the nerdiest things could rot in hell, and you’d gladly see to it personally.

A disgruntled huff coming from behind made you both snap out of the moment.

“Oi, lovebirds, I’d appreciate it if you could leave all that to after I prep you for the mission.”

Bottling down your annoyance, you batted your lashes at the commander, who’d just come back with keys to one of the conference rooms near the range.

“Oh, I’m terribly sorry, you have my full attention now.”

Ives nodded, waving at you to follow him. Meanwhile, Neil’s small smirk let you know that he noticed that faint undertone in your voice, but he said nothing, patiently waiting for the events to unfold.

Another person was waiting for you at the door. You recognized the woman who’d driven you to that abandoned factory on your very first day - you’d never gotten properly introduced, but you remember asking Neil about her once and he called her Wheeler. To be honest, with these guys you never knew if they used their real names, nicknames, codenames, or whatever. Not that you cared, quite used to it in your own line of business. You exchanged a court nod with her and went into the room.

As you sat down at the big table and Ives booted a projector, your eyes bore into the man. Definitely one of those types who enjoyed his beret and the paramilitary structure of the field branch of the organization. Probably a bit too much. You bit back a smug grin.

Those were particularly fun to mess with.

Ives caught your piercing stare and stopped the brief of the location.

“What?”

“Nothing,” you said, propping the chin on your palm, a polite smile on your lips. “It’s fascinating.”

He furrowed his brows, perplexed.

“What is?”

“How your commanding presence literally adds you inches,” you said, using all your willpower to keep a serious face. “I wonder if it works only for your height or--”

Neil’d futile attempts at masking an amused snort with a cough didn’t go unnoticed. Ives shot him daggers and then glared at you. “For fuck’s sake, would you focus?”

Your eyes flared up at the threat in his voice and you pouted, taunting him further.

“Or what, you’re gonna spank me?”

“No, I’m gonna shoot you,” he deadpanned.

You raised a brow.

“Kinky.”

Ives groaned, turning to Neil.

“How you survived this long without choking her is beyond me.”

Neil puffed his cheeks and gestured vaguely, but as he opened the mouth to answer, you chimed in, with a shit-eating grin plastered on your face.

“Oh, he very much did so, all right.”

The awkward silence that followed was pretty satisfying.

“Can we keep her?” asked Wheeler casually, leaned back in her chair, fiddling with a bullpen.

Ives gaped at you all, then slumped his shoulders in defeat, sliding a hand through his features. He was so done you could almost hear The Sound of Silence playing in the distance, but apparently, his sense of duty was stronger than the urge to leave you without finishing the briefing, so he just drew a deep breath and continued.

“...anyway…”

You caught Neil’s glance and you couldn’t help but poke the tip of your tongue out at him. The mischievous sparks in his eyes reflected your own as he shook his head, tugging the bottom lip between the teeth. Wheeler’s curious gaze flitted between you two, and as you didn’t feel like drawing too much unnecessary attention to yourself anymore, you focused on the plan that Ives was persistently going through.

Time frames. Blueprints. Entry points. Exit routes (you spotted at least one additional way he left out, but you weren’t sure if you could drag Neil through there, judging by that alley performance, so you didn’t bother to mention it out loud). Everything seemed clear enough. You still had no idea how being inverted would affect the lockpicking, but when you voiced that, Ives promised you some time to figure it out before the mission.

The mission. Huh. It wasn’t that much different from your usual assignments - at least if you forgot about that tiny insignificant detail like moving backwards in time - but something in this paramilitary and/or espionage vibe made your heart beat faster with excitement.

It had been quite a long time since you had company at the job. Working alone had its perks, but you wouldn’t mind a trusted partner in crime having your six for a change.

Another thing that you certainly wouldn’t mind - seeing Neil in tactical gear. Not that either of you would need one, but the image got planted in your head and suddenly you wished you’d had a bottle of water.

You realized that everyone was looking at you expectantly. Shit, was there a question or…?

“I’m good,” you said, shooting in the dark, hoping that would be enough to cover your distracted ass.

Ives squinted, but fortunately, that was an acceptable answer.

“Well, as you two can proceed straight from here - Wheeler, they’re all yours.’

“Okay,” - she smiled and stood up - “we don’t have any turnstiles on-site, but there’s one in the base outside the city, I’ll talk you through the basics on the way.”

So that little daydream cost you a chance to come back home to prepare? Grand. The problem was - you needed your heavy-duty tools, but you’d rather eat rocks than back away in front of Ives. Luckily, he called on Neil to wait for a moment, so that was your chance.

“Umm, Wheeler?” you asked quietly, following her outside.

She glanced at you curiously.

“What’s up?”

“I know I said I’m good, but could we stop by my apartment for a second, please?” An awkward grimace ran through your face. “I gotta pick up my tools. You know, just in case.”

She wasn’t surprised by your request. Moreover, she sent you a knowing smile.

“Sure thing,” she said and winked, and then it was your turn to present a slightly flushed face. “I’ve got you.”

----

You didn’t know what to expect from the whole inversion process.

The first time your brain stuttered was when Wheeler pointed at something she called the proving window, just in time for you to see the three of you coming out on the other side. You caught inverted-you glancing back at your present self; the schooled expression, but with the gaze shining with anticipation.

The second time was when it was you on the other side, looking at your wide-eyed past self. Feeling the incoming headache, you took a deep breath and followed Wheeler and Neil to the stand with oxygen masks.

“How are you feeling?” asked Neil, handing you the equipment.

“Weirdly normal.” You shrugged. “Or maybe not more backwards than usual, if that makes any sense.”

He smiled lightly.

“It’s the airlock. When you see the outside, you’ll get a whole new perspective.”

Wheeler nodded. “What he said. And to recap: you’re inverted, the world is not - all forces will be pushing back on you. Besides gravity.” She double-checked the oxygen bottle secured to your belt. “Just mind things that might be rising instead of falling.”

You furrowed the brows.

“Wait, didn’t Ives mention the rain?”

Neil smirked from behind the mask.

“Afraid of getting wet?”

“Never.” You grinned, meeting the sparkling blue eyes. “Should know that by now.”

Wheeler snorted and shook her head, walking to the panel near the exit.

“You’ll have plenty of time to finish the job before you move far enough to catch up on that. Although, if you ever find yourself in the inverted rain, here’s a tip: pop your collar.”

“Why would you--” Oh. The sole thought of the water going up from the ground to the sky made you nauseous. You swallowed with effort, leveling your breath in the mask. “...right.”

Wheeler opened the door and you almost gasped at the view. The golden rays of sunset (...or was it technically a sunrise now?) flickered on the training grounds’ equipment as the sky painted the scarce pools of muddy water with greyish violets and reddening oranges. Leaves shuffled in the wind, their dance almost satirical with that inverted spin.

Wheeler’s voice stopped your mind from wandering further into the landscape.

“Okay, ready? Ives asked me to remind you not to try any cowboy shit, you need to be in one piece at the end of the training.”

“Yes ma’am,” you mocked a salute and stepped outside, stretching your limbs, readjusting to the reality being slightly off. Neil stood right beside you watching you warming up, ready to take you to the obstacles section.

But as soon as the airlock’s doors closed behind you, you spun around, tapping his shoulder - “Tag, you’re it!” - and without waiting for his reaction, you leaped towards the assault course.

Surely that turned out overly optimistic. You counted on the element of surprise and a head start, but Neil had an experience with running while being inverted, while you… well. You tried.

“B+ for effort,” laughed Neil, catching up on you even before you reached the first obstacle and tapping you back. “But you can do better than that.”

“Just you wait!” you retorted and vaulted over a low hurdle, the mild confusion caused by the dumbfounded senses slowly eased up as you tuned out the brain and let the muscle memory guide your movements. Because hey, in the end? Yes, the natural forces were acting up against you. Yes, Neil had years of inverted training behind him. But you’d been challenging different obstacles your whole life, and courses like this one were your favourite playgrounds.

You caught on him by the next wall, playing dirty and tugging at his leg, pulling him down before he could jump to the other side. The exasperated huff he gave you in protest got lost in the squelch of mud under your feet, the sound more like a suction instead of the much-expected splash. Shuddering with disgust at such abomination, you rushed to the set of monkey bars, hearing Neil following up closely. You gritted your teeth, swinging your body to help yourself get through the part, and that’s when you felt a light tap on your foot.

You glared to your left, where Neil was gaining an advantage over you.

“Damn you and your infinite legs, man! It doesn’t count!”

“Losing looks good on you,” he said, landing and then instantly ducking under your reached out hand.

“Too bad it’s not gonna stick,” you scoffed as you ran after him to jump on one of the parallel logs. Balancing was easy enough, even with inversion; it gave you the perfect opportunity to plan ahead, while Neil had to maintain full focus. “Must say - all that sass definitely makes you like... ten percent hotter.”

But you’d taught him well, apparently, and instead of losing his pace, he only shot you a quick glance accompanied by an arched brow.

“Only ten?”

“Dunno, come over here and let me take a closer look,” you teased, getting a short chuckle in response. “No?” - you sighed - “Alrighty then.” And you leaped to the side straight into Neil, pushing him off the log. He yelped and grabbed you by the shirt, the momentum sending you both straight into the mud. You landed on top of Neil, collapsing into his arms for a moment to catch a breath and to stop laughing.

You leaned back to look him in the eyes.

“Okay, maaaybe fifteen,” you panted, booping his mask as you would do to his nose.

Neil snickered and nodded.

“I’ll take it.”

When your gazes met, his features softened, and he tucked a strand of hair behind your ear gently. You smiled behind the mask and sat up, straddling his waist. Neil was studying you closely, his hands grazed your sides and rested on your hips. Nibbling at your bottom lip, you leaned over him again and slowly reached out, and--

“Simba…” you choked out with reverence, brushing a muddy thumb across his forehead.

Tears from the held-back laughter threatened to spill any second as you observed Neil blanking out in utter confusion. The five stages of grief ran through his expression and then he closed his eyes and sighed theatrically.

“The fate of the world is in the hands of a complete madwoman.”

...the what now?

You tilted your head, grinning.

“Aren’t you a little dramatic?”

Then, without a warning, Neil shifted under you, rolling you off him and pinning you down.

“Birds of a feather and all that,” he said, clearly enjoying the way you squealed and squirmed as the mud got under your shirt. “You think you got a hang of the inverted movement already?”

“I don’t know,” you shrugged. Neil realized your intentions a second too late. A handful of mud splashed on his face and you chuckled with satisfaction. “Yeah, now I think I’m ready to go.”

You turned up at the airlock soon after, looking like something that cat dragged in, but beaming widely. Dreaming of a hot shower and a clean set of clothes, you put down the mask and the oxygen container and headed to the turnstile.

Wheeler was waiting for you near the machine, and seeing the state you were in, she just gaped at you both, trying to come up with an adequate question.

As you noticed her quizzical look, you gave her a thumbs up and smiled.

“If you ain't dirty, you ain't here to party! Wooo!” you whooped, throwing your hands up and trotting past her straight into the turnstile.

Right before reverting yourself back to your original state, you heard Wheeler’s hushed question.

“You two all right?”

And then Neil’s answer.

“Don’t worry, we’re good.”

--------

The truck’s engine hummed steadily, which could only mean you were on some sort of highway. At least the container stopped wobbling, so you could practice in peace.

No wobbles meant no excuses, though. You sighed, readjusting your grip on the tools.

Neil had fallen asleep some time ago, after making sure you figured out the locks and hearing your solemn promise that you would follow him soon.

One day after that eventful night, then inverting and going straight back without proper sleep. You knew he was right and you needed at least a nap. But you couldn’t. Not before you were absolutely sure you got it. The usual locks weren’t that bad. The inverted ones were a whole other story.

It’d taken you long enough to crack them in the safety of your own apartment, without the weird physics, ever-present even within the air-locked container. Without the pressure.

The fate of the world.

What the fuck was that supposed to mean?

You didn’t even know what was that thing you were supposed to retrieve soon. It was okay, you didn’t need to. It was a quite common situation in your work history. That kind of knowledge could be dangerous, after all.

The pin clicked and you sighed again, squeezing your eyes shut to stop the burning sensation even for a moment.

Besides, you were doing it for Neil. The memory of that panicked look on his face when he’d seen the documents was enough to keep you going.

But did he have to say that?

You had to do it. Not only because you felt responsible for him, in a way. What you’d told the boss was true and you weren’t the only one at fault for Neil not being fully ready for that assignment. He was your friend, wasn’t he? And there was no way you’d leave a friend in need.

You pressed your lips together, forcing yourself to breathe.

Probably a stupid joke, nothing more.

But what if he was being serious? What if that thing out there was really that important? And you were about to fuck everything up because you couldn’t get your shit together fast enough to figure out the bloody inverted mechanism again. And with every minute wasted and not spent on resting there was a higher chance of messing up at the actual location.

Hell of a locksmith you were, huh?

The feedback from the tools came with a final warning like a sobering slap. If you were to continue, they would snap any second now.

You let out a shaky breath and retraced from the lock, hiding your face in the palms.

A gentle touch on your shoulder almost made you flinch. Of course, he had to wake up in the middle of your breakdown.

“Go back to sleep, we still have a few hours left,” you muttered into your hands, trying to collect yourself.

“Not before you talk to me,” said Neil as his fingers slid down your arm. He was crouching right beside you, the blue eyes boring into you with concern. “What is it?”

You sighed and shifted in your seat to face him.

“Wanna make sure I got it, that’s all.”

Neil’s brows knitted together.

“But I saw you open that lock once, why--”

“Once! And that’s exactly the problem!” you fumed and glared at the table. ��I can’t crack it again, I--” your voice wavered and you gritted the teeth in frustration. “What if it was a stroke of dumb luck? Should I start praying for another one to happen there?”

Another delicate touch, this time on your knees, was enough to make you look back at Neil. A shade of smile tainted his lips as he searched your gaze.

“Someone used to tell me all the time that if you did it once, you can do it again.”

You hung your head and huffed, “Maybe that someone was full of shit.’

“I know for a fact that she wasn’t,” he chuckled, taking the tools out of your clenched fists and putting them back at the table. “She was utterly brilliant,” he continued, reaching for your cramping, trembling hands and taking them in his, ”and always reminded me to take a break instead of agonizing over a stubborn lock.”

That you did, all right. Your laugh sounded awfully close to a sob. God, if you weren’t exhausted.

Mustering enough strength to look him in the eyes, you squeezed his hands, trying to convey all the gratitude in the gesture. And hide that bit of embarrassment, too.

“I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay,” he said and his thumbs brushed over your knuckles. “Scoot over.”

You moved back on the provisional bench, making enough space for him to sit next to you. And so he did, not letting go of your hands even for a second. He started rubbing small circles into them and you grunted softly. Neil gave you a knowing smile and soon enough, his fingers glided between your forearms and fingertips, applying pressure to the tensest places, careful strokes and precise moves bringing a much-needed release. You couldn’t help small groans escaping your mouth, every one of them adding to the self-satisfied grin hiding in the corner of Neil’s mouth. But then, instead of teasing you, his features softened and you caught his glance, warm and sheepish.

“I don’t think I properly thanked you for offering to help me with this mission.”

“I couldn’t let you have all the fun,” you laughed and winced as Neil’s thumbs worked on your wrists. “Don’t thank me yet, we still need to pull it off first.”

“Well, maybe we already have, from the typical point of view,” - he pondered, lighting up - “seeing that we are moving back--”

“Neil, please, I’m all for discussing it later, but right now it’s about to give me a pounding headache.”

When you met his eyes, you noted with relief that he didn’t mind you cutting him off like that. He knew that you were tired, nothing more.

“Right, sorry.” Then he looked at you with determination, suddenly serious. “Whatever happens… thank you. It means a lot.”

“Of course,” you said quietly as your heart ached with unexpected fondness.

Neil smiled, shaking off the sentimental moment. His hands cupped yours and gave them a light squeeze.

“Now would you please get some rest?”

“Will you tuck me in?” you grinned and batted your lashes at him, earning an amused snort in return.

“I can even sing you a lullaby if that means you’ll fall asleep faster,” he said, standing up and tugging at your hand.

“Ah, I’m afraid I’m gonna crash too fast to properly appreciate it,” you giggled as he kited you all the way to the resting area at the front of the container. “But I’m definitely taking a rain check on that.”

“Sure.” One final brush of his thumb over your fingers and he let go of your hand, smirking. “Now sleep, I’ll wake you up when we get there.”

-------

Neil proved to be an excellent companion.

You disabled the alarms simultaneously, paying attention to all the possible silent traps. Forcing the main locks went smoothly, almost surprisingly so. For having something of such importance hidden there, the owners of the place seemed strangely old-fashioned; it shone through the antique decor of the lofty apartment as well as the security choices. Too easy. Tuning out an intrusive thought rattling in the back of your head, you scouted the dark rooms, careful not to leave any traces of your presence.

There.

The office you saw in the photos.

...but they’d redecorated.

“That’s one fancy safe they got there,” you said nonchalantly, eyeing the ornament piece of metal lit by your flashlight, “Too bad it somehow got left out at the briefing.”

Neil’s face dropped when he followed you inside the room.

“Christ, and what now?”

Good question. You’d worked with safes before, hell, you’d cracked a fair share of them using simply manipulation. But never going bloody backwards in time. How would that even work? Was it normal or inverted?

Well, there was only one way to find out.

“I’ve got this.” And that’s how you felt, despite the initial panic. There was a method to it, and you had most of the things you needed with you. Perks of overpreparing. The only issue was-- ... “It might take a while, though.”

Neil nodded.

“Let me know if you need anything.”

“Keep an eye on the time for me, I gotta focus,” you said, reaching into your backpack and accidentally pulling on the thin tube. Right. “...and maybe on the oxygen levels as well?”

“Will do.”

Your brain switched into the challenge mode, and your fingers tingled to give it a try. Armed with a sound amplifier and a little notepad, you sat down next to the safe and got to work.

Figuring out your way in was meant to be a hit and miss, doubly so with the goddamn inversion. But minute after minute, click by click, you determined the first contact points, and the years of experience took you from there. You scribbled numbers and variations in the notepad, fully focused on the task. Almost there.

Another combination. Inhale. Exhale. Pull.

Gotcha.

“Neil?” you called out in the hushed voice as the beam from the flashlight landed on a small metal box of a peculiar shape.

He was next to you in no time.

“That’s it,” he said, kneeling down. He reached inside and took out the box, then carefully placed it inside his backpack. The blue eyes glimmered in the dim light. “Good job!”

“Thanks,” you smiled and closed the safe. “Now let’s get out of here.”

You gathered and packed all your stuff, double-checking for any leftover signs of your entry.

Then you heard it. A faint, slightly off patter against the huge windows. You froze in place as your mind tried to grasp the view of trickles of rain coming up the glass.

Neil glanced outside, not mindful of the absolutely bonkers scene that wiped any coherent thought from your head. Although judging from how quickly his face lost all the colours, the view he got was even more disturbing.

“Christ…” he uttered, shooting you a panicked look. “We’ve got company.”

You dashed to the window to see for yourself. A group of people was crossing the empty street, moving pretty much normally, and that only meant...

Fuck.

“The owners?”

Neil shook his head. “Impossible. The third party, probably.” With his hand already on the holster, he hesitated, considering the options.

But there were only two: fight or flight. The problem was - the numbers didn’t look good for you to try pushing through the crew downstairs. And as for the second one, your initial exit routes seemed to be cut off already.

Although, there was still one path left. You almost smiled to yourself. He was not going to like it.

“Let’s go through the roofs.”

Neil’s eyes widened. “Are you sure?” he asked, scanning your face for any sign of doubt.

There was none.

“Yes, but we have to leave right now.”

He swallowed with effort and nodded.

As soon as you bolted out of the apartment and rushed up the stairs, the footsteps coming from the lower levels quickened. Time was running out.

You were about to barge outside when Neil grabbed your hand as if he sensed what was going to happen next. The doors opened and you lost the momentum, startled by the view. Heavy showers replaced the drizzle you saw through the window, intensifying the nauseating effect.

The last strands of sanity threatened to leave you, but Neil’s touch was like an anchor, grounding you and keeping you from spiraling further.

“Which way?” he shouted through the hammering, almost deafening rain.

You blinked rapidly and looked around to match the data from the brief to the actual location.

“Over there!”

Wishing you’d had a goddamn collar to pop, you leaped to the side, guiding Neil through your only escape route. You let go of his hand to vault over the vents, and just as your feet touched the surface again, you heard distant yells behind you. Shit.

The high density of the area was working in your favor, but only for so long. There was meant to be a gap between the buildings sooner or later, and one of them was coming right up. The jump was doable, even for Neil - all you needed was speed and a decent launch.

But when your companion noticed the edge of the roof, he slowed down and stopped by a low parapet wall, cursing.

“No fucking way!”

“Yes fucking way, Neil, come on! We don’t have time!” you urged him as the voices behind you grew louder.

He swallowed with effort, too transfixed on the gap. You bit back an impatient groan and grabbed him by the shoulders, forcing him to look at you.

“Neil, listen to me. You can do this. All you need is a run-up.”

He didn’t seem convinced. You gritted your teeth, trying to keep your own rising panic in check.

“Do you trust me? Yes or no?”

He met your eyes and his features hardened. There.

“I do.”

And when you opened the mouth again, the first bullet whizzed past you. You flinched, but maintained the eye contact, afraid to lose Neil’s newfound confidence. “Then go first, I’m right behind you.”

Neil nodded and backed away quickly. Watching him jump, your heart skipped a beat, but he landed on the other side without too much trouble. Good. Your turn.

You dashed towards the rim and another bullet missed your legs by a hair’s breadth, hitting the parapet wall right ahead of you. A little close to the top, as you noted, jumping on it to leap across the gap.

But the realization came a moment too late. The wall crumbled under your feet.

Enough for you to not make it to the other side.

Someone screamed.

Was it you?

It didn’t matter.

The world dissolved in a flash of agonizing pain.

And darkness.

----

Static beeping. The smell of disinfectants. And your every particle throbbing in dull pain.

Somebody was having a quiet conversation nearby. The Protagonist… and Neil?

A wave of relief flooded over you. He’d made it.

Grunting, you opened your eyes and squinted, waiting for your sight to readjust to the poor light. Weird. Why would they keep you in such a pitch-black room?

“Gents?” you called out, carefully shifting upwards, wincing. “Would you mind getting the lights?”

The conversation stopped and you heard a gasp.

“Lights? But it’s the middle of the day?” said The Protagonist, but Neil cut him off.

“You’re awake!” Footsteps and a sudden touch on your hand. Neil’s voice trembled slightly, as well as his fingers. “Are you okay?”

You bored into darkness, hoping to see the familiar face.

To see anything.

To see.

(next chapter ->)

[arhvste]

TSUKISHIMA KEI - INSUFFERABLE AND IMPOSSIBLE

requested by jaceyandme on wattpad

summary - after spending more time with a classmate, tsukishima finds himself caring more than what he’d like leading to you both reaching your limits - angst

warnings - cursing

an - i might do a part 2 i really wanna. this is also kinda rushed i’m kinda under time pressure rn so i might improve later or go into more depth in a later part

Your usual routine in the morning would be to get ready, meet your boyfriend outside your house, walk to school together (Wednesdays and Fridays Yamaguchi would join the two of you), change your shoes at your lockers and finally say your short goodbyes as you both departed to your separate classes. That was how things usually ran.

Not for the past two weeks however.

Tsukishima was a man of routine. He liked things to be in order and found satisfaction in things fitting in place, the fact that the usual routine the pair of you shared had been broken recently did not sit well with him and he knew exactly who was the ultimate cause of it.

Hara Itsuki.

His teeth would grit whenever he heard that name, a discreet but stewing anger would boil inside him and it didn’t help that sometimes you were oblivious to the middle blockers change in demeanor.

In your defense though you sometimes found Tsukishima hard to read. He was a sarcastic piece of shit with a tongue too sharp for his own good. It wasn’t rare for your boyfriend to take a hit at people out of nowhere. Tsukishima wasn’t the type to openly express genuine emotions either so it would’ve been hard to pick out his particular distaste towards Hara.

Hara Itsuki was a boy in your class who had recently come to ask for your assistance in literature. You, being the kind and helpful girl you were raised to be, agreed to help him after school while your boyfriend would be at practise.

You hadn’t intended to spend time with your classmate outside of the one hour after school you tutored him in, but the more you spoke with the boy, the more you found you had in common and found him easy to confide in.

At first Tsukishima didn’t care about your new friendship with your classmate, he wasn’t insecure or bothered by it and it’s not like he had any valid point to argue against it at first, but those one hour tutor sessions became 2 hour meet ups after school and a few lunchtimes a week you would be missing from your regular spot at your usual table as you would be eating elsewhere with your new friend.

This began to raise concern with Tsukishima but his pride wouldn’t allow him to confront you just yet at least.

It wasn’t until 4 weeks into your sudden new bond with Hara, Tsukishima felt himself edge towards the end of his relatively thin patience. The two of you rarely spoke due to Tsukishima’s everlasting bad mood and when you did speak, all you’d talk about is how great this Hara Itsuki was and quite frankly, the middle blocker would rather rip his own ears off than listen to what you’d have to say about this boy.

Yamaguchi would sometimes bring up your absence of late but it would always end in Tsukishima telling him to “Shut up.” and the boy would comply.

It wasn’t just Yamaguchi who noticed the effect your absence had on your boyfriend. The rest of the volleyball team noticed the tall middle blocker had become more hostile and cold towards everyone. Rarely talking to anyone and snapping at them when he did. Kageyama and Hinata made mental notes to keep out of his way for the time being and hold back on the provocative comments and snide remarks.

“Tsukishima, are you -uh, well you know -”

“Spit it out already.” The middle blocker spat.

“Are you missing Y/N?”

Everyone in the gym went silent. Tanaka took a step back from Tsukishima once he saw the look in his eye from his question.

“What sort of question is that? I couldn’t care less about the girl and who she's hoeing about with.”

The team stood wide eyed not sure on how to respond to such hostility.

Sugawara took it upon himself to attempt to diffuse the heavy tension in the air.

“Hey, If Tsukishima-san says he’s fine then we should just take his word for it and let it be.”

“But he’s obviously not fine. His blocking has been off and he’s not as observant on the court like he usually is. Quite frankly it’s annoying he can’t get it together, if we were playing in real matches right now we’d be thrashed within the first set because he can’t get a grip.”

All eyes turned to Kageyama. In truth, Kageyama had only said what was on his and potentially most of the team’s mind. The genius setter held a glare towards his teammate as he awaited a reply for his blunt comment.

“Sorry not all of us are fucking geniuses with no emotion. I don’t want to hear anything from you when your middle school teammates didn’t even want to play with you because of how selfish and obsessed you were. If Y/N wants to be a whore that’s fine I’ll deal with it myself, but I don't need any of you nosy imbeciles invading into my personal life!”

Tsukishima’s patience had finally snapped and nobody dared speak a word.

“I think we should call it a night. This isn’t a good atmosphere to be training in and I think we all need to clear our heads.” Daichi spoke up as both Asahi and Sugawara nodded.

The gym was cleared in silence and the team began to slowly disperse out the gym.

“Hang on a minute Tsukishima. I think we should have a quick chat.”

Tsukishima mentally cursed but approached Daichi anyway. Who was he to deny his captain and upperclassman’s request.

The two were the only ones left in the gym and Daichi patted the bench next to the court as they sat down.

“Listen, I know you’re going through a rough patch with your girlfriend right now and I’m by no means trying to invade or involve myself into your personal life but, from what we witnessed tonight it’s clear to me that it seems to be affecting the teams dynamic and that is my concern.”

Tsukishima couldn’t quite find the right words to respond to Daichi. It’s not like he could pull out a snarky remark about how he didn’t care about his girlfriends actions because deep down he knew he did in fact care and apparently more so than what he led himself on to believe.

“I’m not telling you what to do. Only you can decide how to handle the situation but I advise talking to L/N about how you’re really feeling. I know you’re not the most expressive person, but I also know that you do have a genuine concern for others whether you show it blatantly or not. Talk to her so you can both figure this out. I’m not just saying this for the best interest I have for our team but rather my best interest in you. Regardless if you want it, myself and all the others are concerned for you and want you to feel like you can rely on us.”

“Yeah. I’ll have a chat with her tonight.” The middle blocker stared at the ground as he began to rise from the seat. “I’ll have a think about everything.”

Daichi gave the first year a soft smile and patted his back.

“Good. Nobody’s mad at you, we’re just worried. Even Kageyama.”

To this Tsukishima snorted. “Whatever you say.”

“The kid’s blunt but he does care about you in his own way.”

After Daichi finished locking the gym up, both players said their respective goodbyes and went their separate ways.

Tsukishima made his way home but was stopped by the sight of you and Hara talking and laughing outside the school gates. Just from having that pep talk from Daichi was enough to encourage him to finally confront you. Not because he cared but for the greater good of the team, well that’s what he told himself anyway.

“Oh hi Kei...”

You nervously smiled at your boyfriend's irked expression.

“Oh so you do remember my name?” he sharply hissed at you.

Tsukishima had initially intended to have a civil conversation between the two of you, but seeing that bastard Hara standing there with a smug expression fuelled his hostility towards the whole situation.

“W-what? Of course I remember your name! You’re my boyfriend!” You replied as you fidgeted under his intense stare.

“Oh am I? Because from the way I see it, this loser over here seems to be your boyfriend rather than me.”

“What are you talking about?!”

“Don’t play clueless with me Y/N! If you wanted a side hoe you could’ve just said so and we wouldn’t have wasted time!”

“Side hoe?”

“Yes side hoe! And if you’re degrading me to second best to that thing -” Tsukishima pointed to where the now uncomfortable Hara stood . “- then I don’t want any association with you!”

“You’re insufferable!”

“And you’re impossible!”

Tears began to pool in your eyes as your anger began to flare.

“You know why I spend so much time with Hara-san? I’ll tell you why. He isn’t rude, obnoxious or judgemental. He is always considerate and never brings people down with snide comments and unnecessary insults. I love you Tsukishima, I really do, but right now you’re showing a perfect example of what I’m talking about.”

“If you really loved me we wouldn’t be having this argument. If you really loved me my team wouldn’t have to point out my lack of focus recently. If you really loved me you would’ve just told me the things about me that bother you so much. But none of that has played out has it? So tell me Y/N, do you really love me or am I just a test subject for you to use and compare to other people before you decide to settle down?”

You were in shock. You knew you were spending an increased amount of time with Hara but you didn’t know how big the effect was on Tsukishima.

“Uh, I’m gonna go.” Hara said suddenly as he began to turn to walk away.

“No you’re not. While Y/N is busy thinking about whether she really loves me or if that was just shit pouring out of her mouth, you’re going to tell me what exactly was running through your head approaching a girl who obviously is in a relationship.”

“For literature, I needed help.”

“And you got it. So why are you still hanging around her like some lost puppy?”

You finally had enough. Snapping your gaze up to Tsukishima you gave him a deadly glare.

“Will you shut up? Questioning my love for you like I’m some sort of slut who tests the water with every boy. I have never ever once complained about any girls approaching you to confess their love for you. I’ve never once stepped out of line. I’ve always supported you Kei.”

“Dont ‘Kei’ me L/N. You have no right to complain about the confessions I get because I turned each and every one of them down and for you. I know I was genuine to you but it was clearly not reciprocated. You’ve wasted enough of my time I’m fucking done. Messing up my performance in volleyball and making me look stupid, I’m done with you L/N, go have fun comparing Hara to other boys when you’re done trying him out.”

And with that Tsukishima turned around and stormed off out the gates.

You stood there speechless. You knew Tsukishima could be cold and make uncalled for remarks but this hurt. Him denying your feelings and calling you out to be like some sort of whore.

Hara wrapped his arm around you and pulled you into his chest.

“Hey it’s gonna be okay. You deserve better than that four eyed loser anyway Y/N.”

You didn’t particularly want to be comforted by Hara right now. In fact you wanted to be away from the boy who had contributed in homewrecking your first real relationship whether that was his intention or not but, you also didn’t have the physical or mental strength to push him away just yet. You needed someone and Hara just happened to be there.”

Sniffling into his chest you nodded slightly as you wondered if Tsukishima was upset or if this whole break up had no effect on him. You thought the latter as your anger towards him grew.

“He probably doesn’t give a shit anyways. It’s not like he can’t have a replacement for me by now anyways. He probably does have a girl waiting on the side for him as we speak.” You snarled as Hara pulled you closer to him.

“Probably, what a man whore. He doesn’t deserve you Y/N.”

You walked home with Hara that night trying to take your mind off of what had happened. The thought of Tsukishima not being bothered or phased by the break up lingered at the back of your head though.

What you were unaware of was that Tsukishima had immediately let his tears fall as soon as he reached the safety of his own room, and rather than watching dinosaur documentaries or studying, he spent the whole night in his room silently sobbing and wishing he could turn back time. He had loved you in his own way and would’ve worked on improving his snarkiness for the sake of you if only you had brought it up to him. But you didn’t and for that, Tsukishima stayed up all night tear stained wondering if you had ever really loved him the way he loved you.

part 2

[with-love-anu]

Chances

Pairing: Sirius Black x Reader

Summary: Sirius is the asshole of your group who seems bent on pissing you off

Warnings: Swearing, Sirius being a bully

Word Count: 1,848

Asshole. He was a complete nauseating asshole. Honestly you didn’t know why you let him get that much to you. You tried to breathe. That fucking man-child Sirius just ruined your notes. Those notes you spent so much time creating and what was his response again? Ooopsie.

“(Y/n), you’re really scary when you are angry.” Sirius said performing spells to repair the damage.

“Am I?” you scoffed. “Perhaps, if I would have been, people would not try to test me!”

“Hey calm down, chill, okay?” He said with a smirk that made you wish to rip his mouth. “Here’s your notes; as good as new.”

He looked smug at the moment, gesturing the notes towards you as if trying to calm a rabid dog. Argghhh. Maybe you would become one, Sirius was in fact capable of bringing out worst in people. You snatched your notes and went away with a huff.

“You can thank me later!” Sirius called after you.

He hated you. That had become a well known fact. Why? You had no idea. You remembered being actually friends with him once. Good friends. Then one day, he just turned cold. You had tried to talk to him. But between him ignoring you completely and him shouting, “Are you that dumb, I don’t want to talk to you; move along!!” in front of the great hall you got the message. You remember running into the washroom and crying your eyeballs out. After that you stopped talking to him. You still hung out with Remus and James. Whenever he would be in the group, he would sometimes make snarky remarks at you, or ignore you otherwise. You would reply back with a scoff or just roll your eyes and continue your conversation with others. It hurt, it really did; but you had mastered to not let it show.

It was the potions class. Professor Slughorn had placed a golden yellow potion in front of you all. It looked gorgeous. Bubbles burst around, making it look heavenly. You fidgeted in excitement. You knew what it was.  

“Can anyone tell me what this is?” the professor asked. You shot your hand up immediately.

“Yes, Miss (Y/l/n)?”

“Felix Felicis, also called "Liquid Luck", is a potion that makes the drinker lucky for a period of time, during which everything they attempt will be successful. It is meant to be used sparingly, however, as it causes giddiness, recklessness, and dangerous overconfidence if taken in excess.” You said in one breath.

“Oh, so you took it today before coming to class?” Sirius sneered and everyone rolled out laughing causing your cheeks to burn. You stared straight ahead not wanting to give anyone the satisfaction. You bit your tongue. Your mother taught you, bullies would always try to get on your nerves, to reply or remark back will only make them stronger.

“Be nice to them, it will have a far greater effect. Help everyone and never speak words full of hatred. Doing that you not only hurt the person you say it to but also yourself. We don’t get to choose people who come into our lives, they maybe good or bad. Most of them will disappoint you, hurt you; but you must remember- you are stronger. I am in no way am telling you to let people take advantage of your generosity. You will be stronger because you didn’t cause the same pain which made you want to kill them, smack them, kick them in the shins so they cry out.” You giggled. Your mother smiled.

“Let go. Move on. Ignore them. It takes strength, it’s a power that belongs only to the greatest of men.”

But urge to smack him right in the face so his jaw broke was so damn strong. You took a deep breath, in and out.

“Mr. Black! How dare you! You just insulted one of my best students. You need the potion much more than she does, even to pass this class! So, I would insist you to take out your book and start studying.”

You did not expect that. People around you snickered and snorted. You didn’t dare look at Sirius. You wanted to smile, but you couldn’t. You remembered him sitting for hours in the library with Remus to work on potions. Perhaps, this was a bit too harsh.

***

You were all sitting in the library, talking about the upcoming hogsmede weekend.

“My Lily flower here, has finally agreed to go out with me as a couple!” James said putting an arm around Lily. Lily blushed.

“Well, you did promise me anything I want from honeydukes.” She told him leaning into James embrace.

“(Y/n) what about you, got any plans?” Remus asked.

“You’re asking (Y/n)? I doubt she could get a date in a million years being the know it all, we all know she is.”

You sucked a breath. James and Remus glared at him and were ready to launch when someone put an arm around you.

“(Y/n), babe?” you turned to see Sebastian standing close behind you.

Sebastian and you were weird friends. You were completely honest with one-another, understanding each-others choices and flirted with each other for fun. You would definitely count him as one of your best friends.

“Guys can I borrow my girl for a moment?” Sebastian said flashing a grin towards your friends. My girl? What was he doing?

Everyone nodded and Sebastian took you a little away, but you were sure everyone could still see you. You raised an eyebrow at Sebastian when he placed his hands on the sides of your waist.

“Listen (Y/n), I heard that ass-hole talk shit about and I couldn’t help it. You’re one of prettiest, kindest girls in school and I would have taken you out any day but that would just have complicated things between us.”

He was helping you?

“God! Am I that pathetic?” You said looking away not sure what felt worse.

Sebastian rolled his eyes and scoffed. “I am just going to assume you didn’t say that. Really? You believing that piece of shit now?”

You let out a small laugh smiling at Sebastian.

“You’re the best!” you said sniffing.

“Of course I am! I am bloody perfect, darling!” he said kissing your cheek.

“Okay, so you are coming with me next hogsmede weekend. We’ll show those fuckers what a perfect couple looks like.” He said with a glint in his eyes.

You laughed.

“Is that so, honey?” you said playing with his tie.

“Oh yes, baby girl!” he said with a wink, leaving.

Unknowns’ to you Sirius watched your interaction with Sebastian with narrowed eyes and a clenched jaw. He hated it. He hated himself. He was in love with you since the 2nd year and in the process of realizing it he panicked. He thought maybe if he was mean to you, you would hate him and return the favor. But you never did. You continued to behave civilly to him and even came forward to help him when he was struggling. And how did he repay you? By being an ass. His heart clenched every single time he teased you to get on your nerves and his stomach twisted in knots. He could never have you. Not someone as sweet as you.

***

You were going through the corridors when you heard shouts. You turned and sprinted towards their direction. You saw Avery and Mulciber dueling with Sirius. They shot a spell towards him and he fell back.

“Expelliamus!!” you shouted and caught their wands. They widened their eyes.

“You’ll get these back from Slughorn” you said in a sharp tone that left no arguments. They huffed and walked away. You turned towards Sirius. Shit he was bleeding.

“Fuck- that’s a nasty cut Sirius!” you said concerned. You concentrated and performed some healing spells. Sirius watched you intensely.

“This is going to sting, okay?” you said to Sirius but all he did was stare with an expression you couldn’t quite place. So, you returned to patching him up, trying not to squirm under his gaze.

He hissed. You gulped and tried not to shake. After you finished, you helped him stand. You looked at him and noticed he was still watching you.

“I’m gonna go and give these to Slughorn,” you said indicating the wands. “You go back to the common room and eat something, preferably chocolate.”

“Why?” he said his eyes not leaving you.

“Why what?” you asked confused.

“Why did you help me, even though I am so awful to you?” he asked.

You huffed. So, that is what this is about. As angry you were at him all the time, you couldn’t see him being beaten mercilessly.

“I am a prefect. I am supposed to stop fights.” You said as you turned to leave.

“I’m sorry” he called out loud. You turned and said, “What?”

“I’m sorry. I’m sorry for being the biggest pile of dip-shit you’ve ever seen. For every single mean comment I said not meaning it. I’m sorry for being a pain in the ass, for being so bloody damn rude even though all you’ve ever been was sweet to me.”

You stared at him. He was apologizing?

“You’re a great person (Y/n), I don’t think I’ve seen anyone match your beauty or your wit. You’re so generous that I sometimes wonder if it’s humanely possible, whether you’re real. You help anyone and everyone if they need it, never asking anything in return. And I’m grateful and thankful for how you’ve treated me and am insanely humiliated at my own behavior.” Sirius huffed. It felt like every single thing he had pent up was coming out. He wanted to shout, to scream, to let this wonderful girl standing near him know, know that she was amazing, that he was sorry, that he… he liked her so damn much it had started to hurt him. Breathing deeply he looked at her.

You were stunned. You didn’t know what to say. Your ex-friend was giving you all these praises and compliments and sincerely apologizing for being a goddamn git. You knew for a fact that the word “sorry” never came out of Sirius’s mouth; not even for teachers.

“Well, say something?” Sirius said in a small voice.

“I don’t know what to say. You’ve been so rude to me since so many years that I started to be disappointed on just seeing you. Now, you’re saying all these things, which are flattering but, how could I forgive you in just one day? How could I forget what you did to me?”

“Don’t. I want to ask for a chance, to remedy what I did wrong. I know it can’t be done overnight, but I’ll makeup for it eventually. I promise.” He said sincerely.

“Work for it. If I think you're as sincere and want my friendship as much as you say, I'll give you a chance. Not a moment before.” You said. Sirius nodded slowly. You took a deep breath turning and leaving. What did you just agree to?

A/N: Let me know what you think!

[if-you-built-yourself-a-myth]

Check Ignition: Part VIII

The Sobbe fake-dating Hogwarts AU that one person requested and I dove into headfirst

First part // Previous part // Next part

Send me requests for other fics, ideas for this one, opinions, whatever! My apologies if the quality seems to have one downhill; I'll be doing minor edits for the sake of readability when I have a good chunk of free time.

“Shhh, guys, leave it,” Jens said. Everyone’s comments died on their tongues. Zoë and Moyo herded the superfluous students from the room and left as well, shutting the door behind. Moyo almost clapped a hand on Robbe’s shoulder, but seemed to think better of it in favor of a saddened smile. It didn’t really help. Robbe wasn’t sure if they ended tonight on good terms.

“We’re going to bed early,” Aaron suggested. “We have to get a jump on those damn exams.”

“Leave it,” hissed Jens.

“I was just saying, we’re—”

“Leave it.”

“It’s a good idea,” said Robbe. “We’re going to bed early.” He hadn’t realized how angry he was all week until faced with its culmination. And now—now he was tired. Stupid and single and tired.

There were still no sheets on his bed; he hadn’t gotten around to doing anything with them. He could perform a cleaning spell on the mattress if it got too bad in their absence. Whatever. Robbe couldn’t be bothered to rifle through his trunk for a cleaner blanket, so he crossed the room and grabbed the one off the fourth bed.

Motherfucker. It smelled like Sander. He really couldn’t win, could he? Robbe threw the blanket to the decimated floor and curled up without any covering at all.

“He wasn’t that attractive,” said Jens, breaking his own rule. “Had to get those roots done again.”

Robbe clamped his pillow over his ears. “Shut up.”

“We haven’t been to Hogsmede in a while. Might be nice to go tomorrow. The four of us.”

Hogsmede. Robbe’s eyes burned.

“I need to stop at Honeyduke’s,” Aaron agreed. “It’s Live It Up week.”

“I’d fancy a pint at the Three Broomsticks.”

The Three Broomsticks. Robbe was not going to cry over this. It brought him back to Sander explaining their fake love story to Zoë, all the little accurate details, all the possibility… that’s all it was. A story. You don’t like me. He cast the Muffliato charm across his four-poster before the tears started flowing. Once they started, they didn’t stop until morning.

“You don’t have to tell us a thing,” Jens said. “We understand.”

I want to, Robbe thought. He rolled over and faced the wall for the remainder of the night.

***

As much as he would love to hardcore sulk, Robbe had never been that kind of person. Sander was gone. They weren’t even together for that long, so there wasn’t much sulking warranted. He took Saturday and Sunday as unofficial off-days before exams, in that he spent them with Jens, Moyo, and Aaron, pointedly not talking about Sander. They did not go to the Three Broomsticks. Jens passed a whole afternoon in Honeyduke’s, attempting to sample every flavor of Bertie Bott’s Every-Flavor beans.

Okay, Robbe sulked. But not hardcore.

Robbe resolved that one Monday he would snap out of it in time to guard his outstandingin his five classes. What should he do? What had he learned? He could start there. Starting there was something.

1. He should never drop a class for someone he wasn’t really dating.

Robbe’s Potions exam was the first on Monday, and he went into it grossly unprepared, despite hours of common room studying. There was a large difference between reading theory and enacting what it said. Plus, a lot of his library time focused more on Sander’s eyes than on the written material.

Everyone else chopped up their beans and sprinkled them into their brews without difficulty. Robbe couldn’t remember how many he should use. In the end, he dumped a whole handful in completely whole and stirred counter-clockwise. How much could it hurt, anyway? He left fifteen minutes before the exam period was up, and the Potions master did not bother to stop him. The Drought of Living Death he prepared could probably kill the whole class, Britt and all, even if not in the way it was meant to.

Why had he stopped attending in person? What could Britt have done to him? It hit him—she probably knew the dating thing was fake from the beginning. Sander might have planned it all out to make Robbe look like an idiot.

That wouldn’t account for that night in the workshop.

Fuck that night in the workshop.

Sander waited outside the Potions classroom, his back on the wooden doorframe. Britt would be done soon. It didn’t give Robbe any satisfaction to brush by Sander without speaking—or at least, not until he saw Sander rubbing his arm in the aftermath. Robbe must have hit him with the door.

“Sorry,” he called over his shoulder, hoping it sounded blasé.

It could have been anyone there, he thought. Sander wasn’t special anymore. Then he went to his bedroom and stared at the wall over it.

2. He was not straight.

The specifics were, as of yet, unclear. He was in love with Sander, which meant he liked boys, but he’d kind of liked Noor too. Not romantically. Or even sexually. But like, he enjoyed her company.

Sometimes.

He wasn’t in love with Sander anymore, though, definitely not. Robbe figured if he told himself that at least four to five times a day, it might become a little more accurate. Two weeks was too short a time to fall for someone.

After all this, he needed to get Jens alone and lay it all on at once. Bad phrasing be damned. The boys began packing their belongings on Wednesday, after a mostly uneventful Transfiguration exam (Moyo turned his cockroach into a pair of earrings that still moved their spindly antennae—he seemed satisfied). They would leave on Saturday afternoon. Aaron tried a simple cleaning spell, Scourgify, and ended up scattering his belongings to the four corners of the castle. He scurried away to pack the rest manually, Moyo at his heels to help.

Jens and Robbe were alone. Robbe was ready to talk about it.

“Why is Moyo always here?” asked Jens, in a way that made it sound like he was breaking the tension.

His plan failed, of course, because Robbe was already speaking. “We have to talk about something.”

They stared at each other. Jens blinked.

“There’s a lot I haven’t told you,” Robbe began. “I wanted to, but it was always so complicated.”

“Uh, sure, okay.” Jens shoved a crumpled shirt into his trunk, followed by a pair of ripped slacks he could never wear to class again.

“This thing I had with Sander… it was fake to him. But, well, uh, to me—”

Jens nodded. “I know.”

Damnit, no.

“Jens,” Robbe tried a second time, “I’ve realized some things about myself recently. They kind of explain other things, from earlier, so…” He switched tactics. Who knew how long until Moyo and Aaron returned? “Do you remember when you and Jana broke up? How you found out about what’s-his-name and—”

Another shirt in the trunk. Some more destroyed pants. “Yeah.”

“Cool. So um, you should understand that it was—” It was never this awkward to talk to Jens before. Jens was supposed to be easy. Robbe folded his shirts by hand, like his mother did, and placed them carefully in his own luggage as he thought of how best to phrase this. “I did it on purpose. She was gonna tell you and I—well I said—”

“You’re not making sense.”

“I know things about myself now. Learned them. From that. and this.” Here it came, the big jump. Even though Robbe knew Jens, Aaron, and Moyo outlined a whole plan to get him and Sander together, he still worried about what they’d say when confronted with the reality of it. “Jens, I’m—"

“I know.”

No, that wouldn’t work. Again, “Jens, please, I’m—”

“It’s okay, Robbe, I know—”

“I don’t want you to know!” Robbe flopped a shirt down harder than he intended. “I want you to let me say it.” He took a deep breath. “I’m gay. That’s who I am. With or without Sander. Okay? I need you to understand that it’s like that with or without him.”

“I—”

“Don’t say you know. You’re my best friend.”

“Okay,” said Jens. “I understand.”

“Good.”

Jens closed his trunk on top of some clothing that spilled out the sides. He sat down on it to close the latch. Then he reached out and gathered Robbe into the tightest hug ever. It wasn’t nearly everything that Robbe wanted to say, but it was some, and Jens didn’t run away from him. Sexuality crisis, somewhat had. Robbe was sure there would be more later.

3. You don’t like me.

Robbe’s final exam was History of Magic. Luckily, his cramming paid off. He breezed through the questions on the first and second wars faster than any of his peers and was out the door within thirty minutes.

Most students were trapped in their classrooms for another half-hour or more. Empty corridor stretched in all directions, and Robbe didn’t have anything to do for the rest of the day. He knew where he wanted to go.

Sure enough, his astronomy tower perch was vacant. Bright sunlight dyed the campus in shades of yellow and gold, made the upper turrets appear as drawings from a children’s book. Robbe noted in passing that someone had collected Sander’s picnic blanket from its forlorn position on the roof. That made sense. Filch himself must have cleaned.

From overhead, soft music played. Robbe was sure he was hallucinating. He sat down on the sill.

Oh fuck, maybe not hallucinating. Noon cast a shadow of someone above onto the roof below.

Sander’s blanket wasn’t where he’d dropped it on night one because Sander sat on the overhang above the window. He had it splayed across the shingles, a compact player oozing the final lines of that same damn song on a loop, his wand gripped in his hands.

Robbe couldn’t escape him. Couldn’t escape how he felt about him. He could bring it under his control if he made it look purposeful.

“Hey,” he said. “Don’t you have class?”

Sander startled.

This was a mistake. Never mind. Robbe should go.

He leaned even further out the window for a better view of Sander’s setup. A stack of textbooks balanced precariously, end on end, held aloft by a complicated charm of some sort. A quill rolled down the roof and stopped as if by an invisible wall. Sander had created a bubble for his things.

“Cheers to exams,” Robbe said, a bit louder. Sander did not look at him. The music cranked itself up to mask Robbe’s voice—perhaps it was spelled to muffle all noise Sander did not want to hear. That wasn’t fair. “This is my spot.”

“You said you didn’t want to be friends,” said Sander. He didn’t sound upset. Why did Robbe expect him to be upset?

“Can you turn down the music?”

“Britt’s going to join me.”

“That isn’t really what I asked.” Robbe wondered if interactions like this would ever stop hurting. But he didn’t feel as bad as he felt last week. Or on Friday night. Maybe the finality of a no was all he needed to move on. He recalled Sander’s speech word-for-word, mostly the end. You don’t like me.

It hit Robbe in a moment of irrational bravery, when Sander’s music dialed up in volume. Their first night in the astronomy tower, together, illuminated by Britt’s wand. The CD playing in the background. Sander knew what he was wearing on a specific double-date on a specific day—there was no denying something existed between them.

And to have Sander talk like that, say it was nothing… it wasn’t nothing, not to Robbe, and Sander needed to hear it.

So he said it. No introduction, no nothing. “I liked you.”

The Major-Tom-planet song quieted. Definitely some kind of magic there.

“I liked you so much,” he said again. Now that it existed, now that it was said, there was nothing to stop him from continuing. “You can’t tell me I didn’t.”

One of Sander’s quills rolled to the edge of the bubble, only this time, it dropped out and fell the length of the tower.

“We made it up, we agreed,” Sander whispered. “I’m sorry.” He slid down from the roof, landing beside Robbe on the sill, then jumped to the floor. His belongings trailed behind him in a floating line.

Robbe stood his ground and blocked the staircase. “It’s not your thing to decide.” His voice softened. “I liked you. So that’s that. And it’s done.”

Sander scuffed the floor with his shoe.

“Good. You never have to see me again.” Robbe pointed down the stairs for dramatic effect. “I have class. Bye.”

He felt lighter than he had all week when he descended the staircase. Any lighter, and he would have missed it when Sander said, “I liked you, too.”

4. He was a jerk to Noor.

Robbe sought her out on the train home, abandoning his friends in their own little compartment. They had plenty to discuss without his involvement. Pranks and whatnot. The usual. Noor was alone in a compartment near the back of the train, a dozen or so scrolls of parchment dispersed around her. She wrote on one with a broken quill.

She wasn’t a bad person. Robbe should have just told her. The least he could do was tell her when everything was over.

“Hey,” he said, taking the seat across from her.

She looked up, surprised. “Hello.”

“You seemed like you could use some company.”

Noor blushed. “No, I—Britt’s sitting elsewhere, and I have a lot to do.”

“With Sander,” Robbe supplied.

“What?”

“Britt’s with Sander.”

“Oh, um, actually—”

Robbe wasn’t in the mood for the nitty-gritty details of whatever Britt and Sander had going on. Obviously it was toxic. Not his problem. Besides, this conversation was for Noor’s sake, not his own.

“Listen, about me and him,” he said. “I need to apologize. It wasn’t fair of me to lead you on.” He hoped it wouldn’t get awkward. The extent of his recent planning was pretty much just say it without warning and hope it works out.

“I don’t read smoke signals,” said Noor curtly. She set her quill down on the seat next to her, ink stains bleeding into the cushioning. “But I get it.”

“No, it was fucked up. I’m sorry.”

“It’s alright.”

Awkward silence. Robbe wasn’t built for prolonged chatter with anyone besides Jens, Moyo, and Aaron. The girls’ group was the exception, and only when Jana and Zoë were present. He fiddled with the beginning of a hole in his yellow sweater.

“I suppose I should apologize too,” said Noor, after a while. “That was fucked up, to say he’d get bored of you. I was a little—well, you know.”

“If it helps,” Robbe said, “you were right.”

Noor frowned. She sat up in her seat, and her parchment fell to the carriage floor. The sweets trolley passed by their sliding doorway without stopping—its driver could likely sense the tension. Robbe explained, “He’s back with Britt.”

“No, he isn’t,” said Noor. “Where’d you hear that?”

“Jana said—”

“Who would know better: Jana, or me?”

Robbe fumbled for something to say in response. Actually, now was a pretty good time to get out, before the topic became any more serious. He said, “He broke up with me.”

“It wasn’t for Britt. She helped him through some stuff, sure, but everyone knows that train’s come and gone.”

“I guess I’m just boring,” Robbe said.

“Bullshit.” Noor picked up her parchment again. She dipped her quill into her ink and began her writing anew, on whatever mess this was. Robbe couldn’t read fucking cursive. “I don’t believe it. Britt says he adored you.”

Robbe didn’t know what to make of that. There was no way he could segue into his next point, which was, of course, that their dating arrangement wasn’t real in the first place, especially after something so honest from Noor. He gave a bullshit excuse, something about chasing the sweets trolley, and got the hell out of there.

***

Robbe said goodbye to Moyo on the train platform. Jens and Aaron lived close enough that their parents parked in the same general vicinity, meaning that they could walk over as a trio. Robbe considered awaiting Sander on the platform as well. Every time he learned something new about Sander’s behavior when he wasn’t there, he got more and more confused. What fake relationship could be convincing enough to have Sander’s ex lamenting its reality?

The boys shared idle gossip on their way to the parking lot. Nothing substantial. Robbe’s head was too full of thoughts, most of them Sander-related. He wasn’t angry, or upset, or tired right now. How did knowing one little thing from Noor make a difference in his overall mood? They split off to their respective parents with casual goodbyes and a promise to write at least once during the holidays.

“Hey,” called Jens, just as Robbe opened the shotgun side.

Robbe turned back, his rucksack swinging off his shoulder. He swiped a hand across his eyes.

“Were you in love with him? Actually?”

They spent two weeks together. Two weeks, plus months and months of pining from afar that couldn’t count for much. It was supposed to last longer. What had Sander said, that day after their date? He wanted it to continue through the holiday break. And now, nothing. Robbe summarized this feeling the only way he knew how: “Yeah.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Yeah.”

He climbed into his mother’s waiting car, and with that, it was Christmastime at the Ijzermans house.