#state dinner with china

[thesixthduke]

[matan4il]

An incomplete "there's a good chance the icon you love and support is a Zionist" list

🌟 Raphael Lemkin, a Jewish Holocaust survivor, whose family was murdered during it. Lemkin is responsible for coining the term "genocide," and for every legal provision that exists today against it. His work against genocide was inspired by his Zionism.

🌟 Martin Luther King, Jr., who did not only support Israel and its right to security, a fellow participant at a dinner with MLK shortly before his assassination quotes him as having stopped a student attacking Zionism, and replied, "When people criticize Zionists, they mean Jews. You’re talking antisemitism." He also encouraged Americans in 1967 to support the Jewish state, as Egypt blockaded the Straits of Tiran, endangering Israeli citizens by cutting the country off from its oil supply.

🌟 Emma Lazarus, a Jewish American poet, whose words ("Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breath free") are engraved on the Statue of Liberty's pedestal, after they helped raise the money needed for its completion. Drawing from the value of Jewish solidarity, she also wrote, "Until we are all free, we are none of us free," adopted as a slogan by intersectionality (while many in the movement exclude Jews from it). She was a great supporter of establishing a state for Jews in the Jewish homeland, having argued for this idea years before the word "Zionist" was even coined.

🌟 The 14th Dalai Lama, the leader of the fight against the occupation of Tibet, who was invited in 1994 to Israel, at a time when China's communist regime did its best to prevent his visits anywhere in the world, and who came to Israel more than once, talking about the 2000 years long Zionism of Jewish culture in exile as an inspiration and role model for Tibetans. "Among Tibetan refugees, we are always saying to ourselves that we must learn the Jewish secret to keep our traditions, in some cases under hostile circumstances."

🌟 Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who spoke more than once about how her pursuit of justice is a continuation of that very same thing in Jewish tradition. She had repeatedly referred to American Zionist Jews as sources of inspiration. For example, in 2018, during her fifth visit to Israel, in a speech she gave when receiving the Genesis Award, she mentioned two such women, Emma Lazarus and Henrietta Szold.

🌟 Nelson Mandela had an ambivalent view of Israel, but repeatedly recognized its right to exist, which makes him a Zionist, he also called upon Arab states to do the same, and was favorable towards the Zionist Jews who supported him during his underground days. Mandela being critical of Israel and still a Zionist is an apt reminder that criticizing the Jewish state and opposing its very existence are NOT the same thing, and only one's antisemitic.

🌟 Felix Salten, the Jewish author of Bambi (the book Disney's movie is based on). The tale was originally a metaphor for Jews suffering antisemitism, something Salten personally had to cope with. He was also an ardent Zionist, feeling the self-liberation at the core of this ideology suited his idea of how to deal with Jew hatred.

🌟 Sun Yat-Sen, who helped end the rule of China's last imperial dynasty, was its first provisional president, and is nowadays honored as an important Chinese leader in both China and Taiwan (sometimes referred to as "Father of the Chinese Nation"). He was an enthusiastic supporter of Zionism. Among other instances of expressing that, he wrote in a 1920 letter to a leader of the Jewish community in Shang Hai about Zionism that it is, "one of the greatest movements of the present time. All lovers of Democracy cannot help but support wholeheartedly and welcome with enthusiasm the movement to restore your wonderful and historic nation, which has contributed so much to the civilization of the world and which rightfully deserves an honorable place in the family of nations."

🌟 Magnus Hirschfeld, a gay Jewish sexologist, nicknamed among other things "The Einstein of Sex" and "The Father of Gay Liberation," because his medical and scientific work on human sexuality, as well as social advocacy for women's, gay and trans rights, was nothing short of pioneering. He was persecuted by the Nazis to the point where he died in exile. They broke into his institute of sexual research, where the world's first clinic performing sex reassignments surgeries was located, and burned down the institute's library. Hirschfeld had attended a Zionist conference following the Balfor Declaration of 1917, and his work on sexual liberation found inspiration in young socialist Jewish Zionist workers he met during a visit to the Land of Israel in 1931-2.

🌟 Marcia Langton, a professor and prominent Aboriginal rights activist from Australia, who has been leading the fight against racism and for her community. She spoke out against the hijacking of native rights movements by terrorist sympathizers and antisemites, and has clearly stood against all loss of life, including that of Israelis.

🌟 Felix Zandman, a Holocaust survivor whose work on resistors is integrated into many smartphones, laptops, cars, satellites, hospital ventilators (saving many Covid patients), airplanes and more. Whenever the anti-Israel crowd is scrolling social media on their phones, they're enjoying the work of a Zionist, who enthusiastically supported the State of Israel, and even introduced an important improvement to the Israeli Merkava tank, which has likely saved many Israeli lives, Jewish and non-Jewish alike, and others like him, since Israel's high tech is considered only second to Silicon Valley (going back to at least the 1990's). If they truly wish to boycott everything that's been "contaminated" by Zionism, they should probably just boycott technology.

🌟 Rosa Parks, an African American leader of the civil rights movement (and someone who personally demonstrated how one can resist without turning violent). She was one of 200 notable black American leaders who publicly organized to express their support and respect of Zionism as the Jewish right to self-determination, and Israel as the manifestation of that right.

-> Like I said, this is VERY incomplete, even just in terms of how the overwhelming majority of Jews are Zionist, and have been since the inception of Judaism, which is itself Zionist. Over the years, this led to many non-Jewish human and native rights champions to be supportive of Zionism, too. Take note of who is being vilified, when the term "Zionist" is ignorantly used as if it means anything other than belief in the equal right of Jews to liberation and self-determination in the Jewish ancestral land. Especially when it is used as being inherently evil.

(for all of my updates and ask replies regarding Israel, click here)

[flowersandbigteeth]

Your wolf king husband defends your honor

General Plot: A visiting king and his son start trouble with Joel and Sterling

Wolf King (Sterling) x female bunny reader

Word Count: 2.5k

💕 SFW MASTERPOST 💕

W: sfw werewolf fluff, some fighting

“I’m going to grind you into mush!” Joel shouted and your attention flickered from the servant holding china patterns for you to choose across the garden where he should have been playing. 

“Joel! Get off of him!” you howled as you rushed across the lawn in your fluffy dress. You hurriedly tried to peel your newly adopted son off of the lion cub he was pummeling. Hearing your voice he threw another solid punch into the cub’s nose before standing in front of you defensively, growling and frothing at the mouth. 

“She’s not a real queen!” the lion cub, who happened to be the son of a visiting King pouted, smearing the blood that was running down his nose across his face. Joel had done a number on the slightly larger cub, leaving him with a big black eye in addition to the bloody nose. 

“I’m telling my father! We’ll- we’ll go to war with you and then I’ll eat her for dinner!” he cried as he ran away. 

You sighed watching the little prince go before turning your attention to Joel. 

“Baby, what’s going on?” you asked, turning his face to you to examine the little scratches the cub had given him trying to fight back. 

“He said you’re not my momma and that a herbivore can’t even be Queen, but he’s wrong. You are Queen and you are my momma!” 

You sighed, pulling him into your skirt and giving him a hug before reprimanding him. 

“While I agree with you,” you stated, “being a Prince means you have to use your words not your fists. You can’t start a whole war over me!”

He pouted up at you. 

“Yes I CAN!” he snapped back at you. 

You frowned and he at least looked a little contrite. 

“Do not raise your voice at me Joel,” you said firmly. 

He pouted but nodded. 

“Now let’s get you to the doctor to look after your cuts,” you said, taking his hand and leading him out of the castle garden. 

“He doesn’t know anything,” Joel said to you, squeezing your hand as you made your way through the castle, “he’s just a stupid lion. If he starts a war with me, I’m starting a war with him and MY daddy will win!” 

“There will be no wars,” you assured him, carefully hiding your smile. It was sweet that he was so protective of you. He’d declared himself your hero and went all around the castle correcting anyone who dared disrespect you. 

“We still have to have dinner with King Harold and his son this evening. It’s your duty as a prince to receive your guests with kindness and grace.” 

“But he disrespected you!” he argued. 

“Lots of people disrespect me, but I don’t go around punching every one of them in the nose!” you replied. 

He laughed. 

“Of course not! You’re a bunny! That’s my job! I’m a strong wolf. I will protect you.”

You wouldn’t lower his self esteem telling him he wasn’t quite a strong wolf, yet. 

“Sometimes we can protect people with words,” you explained, “you don’t have to fight everyone.” 

Joel bit his lip and you hoped he’d heard what you were trying to teach him as you showed the doctor the cuts and bruises he’d gathered. 

“How dare you?!” a high pitched voice echoed in the doctor’s office and a very angry looking lion Queen came barging in holding the lion prince in her arms as if he were just a baby despite his size. Her eyes immediately focused on you as you placed yourself between her and Joel. 

“That child is a monster! Look what he did to my boy!” she snarled and the sniveling prince peeked out over her arms looking as pathetic as he could, “he’s just like his mother! Unhinged! Unstable! A complete disgrace!”  

You had to hold in your sigh as the little boy appeared to be just fine, just with a few bruises, but everyone knew about Joel’s biological mother. How she’d gone mad and tried to set the castle on fire, in the end killing herself and several servants. She’d never been well liked to start with. She was a cruel wolf despite Sterling’s attempts to tame her and her legacy hung over Joel like a dark cloud. 

“I'm very sorry Amelia,” you said trying to placate the visiting Queen, “the boys were just roughhousing and I think things got out of hand. Joel is very sorry.”

“No I’m not!” Joel announced from behind you.  

“Well of course the boy is running wild with a weak mother…if I can even call you that!” she snapped, glaring at you, “and it’s QUEEN Amelia to you.” 

You tried not to narrow your eyes at her, Joel was technically in the wrong, but the little cub should have been well trained enough not to insult another prince in his own castle. Trying to be diplomatic, you brushed the insults away, turning your attention to the doctor. 

“I think he’s finished with Joel, Amelia,” you said evenly, “let’s have the doctor have a look at those bruises. I’m sure a lion cub can withstand a couple of bumps, don’t you? Or is Joel that much stronger than him?”

Amelia looked like she would have eaten you whole if she could, but you didn’t bother sticking around to continue taunting her, picking Joel up and plopping him on the floor so you could guide him out of the doctor’s office.  

“I told you lions are jerks,” Joel pouted as you made your way to your living quarters, hoping to keep the precocious pup occupied until dinner. 

“It’s not right to say all lions are jerks, you don’t know all lions,” you said and then gave him a little smile, “only she is a jerk.” 

Joel grinned up at you and you gave his hand a conspiratorial squeeze. 

—

Dinner started about as well as you had expected, which was not great. Amelia shot lasers at you from across the table, while Joel made faces at the little lion cub, whose name was Harry, after his father. 

“The chicken is dry, take it away and bring me another,” Amelia complained to your servants and with a flick of your eyes you gave your servant your approval to replace it. 

It had taken some time for the carnivores in the castle to accept you as their Queen, but the herbivores, which made up most of the staff adopted you immediately, thrilled to have a bunny represented in the aristocracy. They were always hovering around you, worried that you weren’t being cared for properly. 

A sheep servant gracefully set a new plate of chicken in front of Queen Amelia and you smiled your thanks. 

“I heard the boys had a bit of a tussle today,” Sterling said as he worked on his steak and you winced, hoping no one would bring it up. 

“Yes,” Amelia snarled, “your brat attacked my son and his so-called mother did absolutely nothing about it!” 

“Well of course not, Amelia,” Harold spat, “she’s just a bunny with a crown, what do you expect her to do with a wild wolf pup? He needs a carnivore mother to keep him in line.” 

“Maybe the boy is just too young to play with Joel,” Sterling commented, “Joel’s quite a bit stronger. I’m sure he didn’t mean to hurt the young prince. He just doesn’t know his strength and didn’t realize he needed to be delicate with him.” 

“Are you implying my son is weak?!” Harold snapped. 

Sterling shrugged.

“I’m only stating the obvious,” he said, “your boy lost the fight, he’s clearly not at Joel’s level.” 

Harold’s eyes flashed and his fork dropped. 

“My boy is NOT weak! Your son is a little monster, just like his mother,” he snapped. 

Sterling held back a growl, but he bared a sliver of fang. 

“His mother is sitting at the table with us and she is very gentle, I assure you,” he said, glancing over at you. 

You gave him a small pleading smile to stop this nonsense, but he only winked at you. 

“It’s unnatural,” Harold growled, “a herbivore mothering a carnivore…” 

“Your son’s nanny is a herbivore, is she not?” Sterling went on, poking the proverbial bear, “I’m sure she does more mothering than Amelia. I’m told she spends most of her time drunk…that’s probably why your son is so weak. He’s got poor role models.” 

Amelia growled, but it couldn’t be denied that she’d already had a whole bottle of wine by herself, not to mention whatever she drank before dinner. 

Trying desperately to guide the conversation elsewhere you inquired after Amelia’s meal. 

“Is the chicken better?” you asked, looking up from your mushroom bolognese. 

“No,” she snapped, “but of course a staff full of herbivores wouldn’t know how to cook meat properly. It’s disgusting. You should have carnivore cooks.” 

She glared at Sterling. 

“Are you letting this silly herbivore drain this castle of what’s left of its dignity?” 

“Queen (Y/N) has arranged a healthy, delicious meal that suits our tastes just fine,” he snapped, “perhaps the wine has dulled your senses.” 

“What are you implying?” Harold growled. 

“I’m not implying anything,” he snapped back, “I’m very clearly stating that your drunk wife can’t taste anything but spirits. Our cooks can’t perform miracles!” 

At that Harold jumped up from the table and bared his teeth. 

“Say that again, I dare you!” he snarled. 

“Your wife is a lush, and that’s why your son is soft,” he hissed back. 

You quickly looked at Joel who was watching the whole interaction with interest. When you glanced back Harold was flying across the table at Sterling, who was happy to receive him with a punch to the jaw. The two of them hit the ground in a pile of fists and fur and you quickly gathered Joel as your guards surrounded the two of you. 

For his part Joel was cheering his dad on, grinning from ear to ear. 

You couldn’t help but be frightened by the fight, but Sterling was significantly more fit than the lazy lion king and quickly had him pinned, while the rest of your guards surrounded Amelia and her son. Sparing the children the sight of his throat being ripped out in front of them, Sterling had the foreign king arrested and taken to the dungeon, while his wife and son were sequestered in their quarters. 

—

“What sort of example are you setting for Joel?” you pouted as you swabbed one of Sterling’s cuts with some cleanser, “I just got done telling him he can’t fight everyone!” 

He gave you a big grin. He didn’t need you to patch him up, but he liked when you did. So he’d forgone the doctor and you were standing in his bedroom while he sat on his bed applying ointment to his cuts. 

“He came at me first!” he argued, smirking at you, “I had to defend myself!” 

You crossed your arms and gave him a look. 

“You provoked him and you know it!” you said. 

He snorted and waved his hand, sweeping you towards him by the waist with the other. 

“He provoked me,” he said, one hand drifting up to play with your ear, as he seemed to like to do, “no one insults my Queen and the mother of my child and certainly not in my own castle.” 

“Fine,” you said, sighing, “but what now? You’ve probably started a war!” 

He shrugged. 

“We were going to war anyways. They came here with a bad attitude, intending to start trouble, not to make peace.” 

His fingers dropped to cup your chin. 

“And it was worth every lick to defend your honor.” 

Your cheeks warmed and you fluttered your eyelashes finding somewhere else to look.

“I’m not worth a whole war,” you muttered, focusing on his shoulder and brushing off a bit of dirt. 

He made a noise in the back of his throat. 

“Look at me,” he said a bit more gently, holding your chin between his large fingers he met your eyes with his shining black orbs, “you are worth this whole kingdom and more. You’re the glue that holds this family together and always have been, since Joel was just a baby and Gina…It doesn’t matter what you eat or what kind of teeth you have. You’re worth a thousand of those lions.” 

You balked a bit that Sterling didn’t even refer to her as Joel’s mother anymore. 

“I can’t do what I need to do without you and I don’t want to,” he went on, focusing on you again, “you are everything to me and Joel.” 

He leaned in to you and brushed his lips over yours. You gasped into his mouth as this was the first physical affection he’d shown you since you’d become Queen. You didn’t think romance would be part of your new job, that it was all just for Joel’s sake, but your heart pounded in your chest as warmth spread over you. He gave you another light kiss and leaned back to look at you, fingering your long ear gently. 

“So yes, I will take an insult to you as if I’d been insulted personally and I will defend you until the day I die,” he promised, squeezing your waist and holding you to him, “even if I have to go to war to do it.” 

Then he winked at you, his usual mischievousness returning. 

“And don’t bother fussing about it,” he said, “we’re going to show those lazy lions exactly how wolves protect what’s theirs, and we’ve already captured their King, so I anticipate it will be short. You’re a strong, elegant, beautiful Queen and the people love you. Don’t ever doubt yourself.” 

You nodded a bit weakly at him, a smile sneaking its way onto your lips. He gave you a gentle look and smiled back. 

“Momma! Did you see how Daddy took down that stupid lion!” Joel exclaimed, barrelling into the room, oblivious to the rising tension. 

“Yes, I saw,” you sighed, gathering Joel in your arms and giving him a little smile, “your father is very, very impressive and we are lucky to have him.”  

tag: @pinkrose1422

[dilemmaontwolegs]

The Perfect Life || CL16 {4}

Summary: The plan is set and it's time to get things into motion. Warnings: angst, swearing, sarcasm, abusive parents WC: 2k

One || Two || Three || Four || Five

Two Weeks Later

You were barely through the ornate arch that separated the foyer entrance from the dining room when a fist of razor sharp fingernails cut into your upper arm. 

“Hi,” you greeted your mother as she dragged you into the room lit by a gilded chandelier. You were late to the regular Friday night dinner but time had slipped away from you at Arthur’s apartment. Charles had picked you up after flying in from Maranello and taken you to Monaco to finalise the plan after officially signing a contract his lawyers had drafted. The risk of exposure was too great to be an employee through his Ferrari team so everything had gone through his personal solicitor.

“Don’t ‘hi’ me you ungrateful little-sweetheart, you didn’t tell me you would be bringing a guest.” Your mother’s eyes widened as Charles stepped in behind you, his palm warming the small of your back. “I’ll have one of the maids set a place for you, Charles.”

You had coached Charles through the cutlery he could be expected to use, even in an informal setting such as a family dinner. The variations of forks would no doubt be a test that your mother would use to judge the latest guest. In return, he had posted cleverly taken photos throughout the week to ‘soft launch’ the relationship. 

“Madame Florence told me that you missed your piano session this afternoon,” your mother said sweetly, but her nails dug deeper into your skin. 

“That was today? It must have slipped my mind, you know what a ditz I can be.” Your aloof tone only set to anger her more but you knew she wouldn’t lash out while Charles was around. She always had to maintain the perfect image, like how her bruising grip was hidden by the sleeve of your shirt. 

“You play piano?” Charles asked as your mother turned on her stiletto heel and took her place beside your father at the head of the table. 

“Not by choice,” you muttered.

“Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and others have greatness thrust upon them,” you mother quoted Shakespear like the actress she had failed to become. “She might not be the first, but my daughter could achieve greatness if she applied herself and actually attended the lessons.”

“That must be the nicest thing you have ever said,” you commented as you took a seat opposite them. Charles pushed your chair in before taking his beside you where Alicia had placed a setting for him, an appetiser already waiting. “Charles is staying over so perhaps I can have some greatness thrust upon me tonight.”

Your mother choked on her negroni and the oyster fork slipped from your father’s hand, clattering to the fine china plate. Even Charles looked a little shocked but he quickly recovered.

“If that is alright with you of course, not the uh thrusting, but staying the night,” he said after clearing his throat. 

“This isn’t a hotel,” your father stated. “Or a brothel.”

“Not sure about that since everything around here is completely fucked,” you whispered to Charles and caught the hint of a smile before turning to the head of the table. “Father, Charles is my boyfriend - get used to having him around.”

Charles’ fingers laced with yours and he kissed your knuckles. “At least until you move in with me.”

“Let’s just take a step back,” your father chuckled. “Boyfriend?”

You nodded and watched the amusement fade. 

“You are dating the boy you spent weeks, months, crying over?” your mother asked with a laugh. 

“Really?” Charles asked behind the napkin that he patted along his clammy upper lip. 

“I was an emotional teenager, but I grew out of it - don’t take it personally,” you lied. 

The dishes were swiftly taken away and replaced with the main course and Charles frowned when he saw the child size portion on your plate. “We can share,” he offered, thinking that his sudden arrival for dinner meant the kitchen was short of food. 

“She’s on a diet,” your mother tutted. “It’s Social Season and we can’t have all those lovely gowns ill fitting.”

You stabbed the salad fork into a sweet cherry tomato and watched the seeds and juice splatter over the lettuce, morbidly imagining it was a certain someone across the table. You didn’t bother to even finish the plate of rabbit food before you excused yourself. 

“You can stay,” you said to Charles when he rose to follow. “They’ll let you have dessert.”

“I’d rather your company,” he replied before turning to your parents. “Enjoy your evening.”

You felt his presence following closely up the stairs and you knew he was biting his tongue from the waves of discontent that seemed to physically roll off him. The second floor of the mansion was quiet as you walked the hallway and turned a corner to see Alicia step out of the staff stairwell. 

“Rough night,” she said with a sad smile and held out the tray of food Chef Alain had prepared. This time there were two portions of dessert. Her eyes darted to Charles and she started to speak before closing her lips. Finally, she worked up the courage and asked, “Are you alright? I can call Franco.”

You smiled genuinely at her concern and placed a hand on her shoulder to reassure her that Charles was a welcome guest. “I’m fine, thank you, no need for the big guy. But, could you please let him know we’ll be heading out the south entrance tonight?”

Alicia nodded and relaxed slightly. Unable to fight the habit, she bobbed sedately and ducked back into the shadows of the stairwell. Your parents may have acted like the house staff didn’t exist but they were always around, and they always saw what the outside world didn’t. You would have lost your sanity long ago if it weren’t for their help, even if it meant risking their jobs. 

Charles took the tray from your hand and you opened the plain white door that looked just like the others down the hall. He remained silent as he cast his eyes around the room that dripped lux from every surface. The plush carpet absorbed his footsteps as he stepped into the sitting room and the sheer curtains wavered in the breeze coming in from the sea beyond the wide balcony. In one adjoining room a large canopy bed spread across a wall decorated with blue and silver hand painted damask designs while an equally large desk sat in another connected by open glass doors.

“Hmm,” he hummed as he placed the tray on the coffee table and continued his quiet judgement walking around the rooms. 

“Still not up to your standards?” you asked as you followed him to the bed that he sat comfortably on, toeing his shoes off before kicking them up and reclining back among the pillows.

Charles smirked and shrugged his shoulders. “I think I like the dump better, at least it has some personality. You don’t even have any photos on the wall.”

You thought about correcting him again for calling your sanctuary a dump, but gave up on the idea. Instead, you reached under your bed for the duffle bag you kept there and disappeared inside your wardrobe to pack. “You’re in luck, that’s exactly where we are crashing tonight.”

You dumped the bag on the floor in your spacious closet and dropped to your knees before rummaging around the bottom shelves. You pushed aside a box of Prada pumps you hadn’t yet worn and found what you were looking for as a shadow dimmed your light.

“Why aren’t we staying here?”

You looked up to find Charles towering over you and sat back on your heels, pulling the gym gear onto your lap. “It’s Friday, I have a fight.”

You stuffed a sports bra and shorts into the duffle bag before adding a pair of sneakers, knuckle tape and Vaseline in too. Lastly, you grabbed the hoodie Charles had given you and tossed it on top. 

“You don’t have to fight anymore,” Charles said, blocking your exit from the small room. 

“I’ve never been forced, the whole point is that it is my choice. Now move aside.”

He ignored your request and stayed planted in the doorway as you stepped closer. “Your mother said you cried over me. Why?”

Your back stiffened and you swallowed at the memory. “You’ve seen my family, I had plenty to cry about. Maybe I blamed you one day when she caught me.”

“I don’t believe that.”

“Believe what you want, I don’t care.” You tried to duck under his arm and escape but he was quicker and dropped it, catching you around the waist and tugging you against his body. You could feel the warmth of his breath on your cheek and just how strong his body was as his arms tightened their hold. 

“I think you’re lying and I want to know why.”

“What good would the truth do?” You craned your neck to look him in the eyes and wondered when he had grown so tall. “Do you enjoy feeling guilty?”

Charles’ eyes bored into yours and you noticed the little crinkles around them as his frustration grew. “Just tell me, please.”

Your resolve broke and you shoved against Charles until you had the space to breathe. “I never got to say goodbye to him.”

His brows pinched together in confusion. “Who, Jules?”

“God, I hated you,” you laughed humorlessly as you sat on the edge of your bed and looked at your hands fidgeting on your lap. “Things were great before you came around, not here, obviously, but with the Bianchi’s. We would go karting on the weekends, Mélanie would let me help her bake. I didn’t know what a home felt like before then.”

The bed dipped as Charles sat beside you and took your hand. It was one thing to act as if there was a relationship but your heart stammered a little when he brushed his thumb over your knuckles. “I’m sorry.”

“I know now that my father already had plans for Jules before you met him, but that was when I noticed things started to change. Whenever I went to their house he would disappear, then there were no more karting days. Whenever I asked, he was busy karting with you. I thought you stole him from me.”

“That wasn’t your fault.”

“But it made you cry.”

Your shoulders jumped with a clipped laugh and you shook your head. “You know, I never went back to the hospital after that day.”

“What day?” Realisation dawned on his face and his hand slipped out of yours as he covered his mouth. 

“I never got to finish the story. I never got to say goodbye,” you whispered as your voice broke and fresh tears burned your eyes. “And that is why I need to fight. There is so much anger inside me that I don’t know what else to do. It’s just sitting here,” you beat your fist against your hallow chest, “burning a fucking hole through me.”

A sob cracked the room as you admitted aloud for the first time something even Arthur didn’t know. You let Charles see just how close to the edge you really were and how little it would take for you to break. Strong arms enveloped you and pulled you onto his lap as you fell apart. You tried desperately to shut yourself off from the emotions but you had let too many through that it was impossible. 

“I hate you,” you rasped as you hit his chest. The punches were weak without the space to swing your body behind it, but somehow it served to hurt him more. He knew you were stronger and seeing your feeble attempts crumble cleaved his chest apart more than your words. “I hate you, Charles. I fucking hate you.”

“I know,” he whispered as he held you closer and took each hit he more than deserved. “I hate me too.”

Part Five.

[motleyfam]

Living with a houseful of nocturnal crime-fighting vigilantes means that Duke’s come to expect a certain amount of solitude in the mornings—particularly on weekends, when even Alfred is rarely seen before ten—which is why he’s more than a little thrown when he enters the Cave at 6:30 on a Saturday to find Tim sitting up on one of the beds in the medical unit. He’s hugging his knees, forehead resting against them, keeping so still that for a moment Duke isn’t sure if he’s awake or asleep.

“Uh...Tim?” he says cautiously as he approaches the cot. “Are you okay? Do I need to call someone?”

“Nah…” Tim mumbles into his knees. “‘M fine. Just psyching myself up.”

“What exactly are you psyching yourself up for?” He takes in Tim’s unnatural pallor, the sheen of sweat on his face. “You didn’t get hurt on patrol last night, did you?”

Tim huffs out a breathy laugh. “Didn’t even patrol last night.”

Duke frowns. “Why not?” Friday night is prime time for the Bats; the entire night shift is on the roster (except for Steph, who thanks to some horrible luck with her college registrar was forced to take an eight a.m. sociology class on Saturdays).

“Benched, remember?” Releasing his legs, Tim tugs the sleeve of his oversized sweatshirt up just enough to reveal the gauze wrapped around his left hand.

Duke winces as it all comes flooding back to him. Three nights ago, he and Tim had been loading the dishwasher after dinner when Tim had accidentally dropped a salad plate. He’d tried to catch it mid-air, but the plate had hit the edge of the counter, shattering on impact and leaving him clutching a six-inch shard of broken china instead. The slice to his palm had required five sutures.

“Did you rip your stitches or something?” Duke asks.

Another huff of air—the ghost of a laugh. “No, but I’m about to.”

At Duke’s puzzled look, Tim sighs and explains, “I uh, woke up about an hour ago feeling kinda lousy.” A shiver runs through him. “Like, feverish lousy.”

“Shit,” Duke says, grimacing. Regardless of how careful they are with cleaning and dressing Tim’s wounds, his immunocompromised state will always put him at an increased risk of developing infections. He’d had three last year alone.

“Yeah,” Tim agrees with a tired sigh. He looks down at his gauze-wrapped hand again and grimaces. “Just psyching myself up to deal with it. ‘M kinda nauseous.”

“So…just to check if I’ve got this straight, your plan was to come down here alone, cut your own stitches, debride an infected wound, and redo the whole thing—all while running a fever and trying not to puke?”

“Uh…” Tim rubs awkwardly at the back of his neck. “That about sums it up, yeah.”

There’s a beat of silence between them.

Duke lets out a heavy sigh. “Alright.” He heads for the sink. “Just give me a minute to scrub in…”

[dinogoofymutated]

Blue over you - 97' Wolverine/Gn! Reader

Wolverine's not even my guy, and I finished this in a day! Haven't finished anything in a while, so this was an accomplishment! This was mainly inspired by the song Blue over you by mason ramsey, and Too sweet by hozier!

Let me know if Logan is to OOC. I'm trying my best to learn how to write for him!

Tw! Alcohol consumption, Light angst. Open-ending.

You can’t sleep.

Maybe it was because of the excitement of the day, the stress from grieving the professor, or what you ate for dinner. Either way, it was nearly 1 am at this point, and your pursuit of rest was fruitless. You let out a frustrated sigh, sitting up in bed and rubbing your eyes. You wonder if you could convince Jean to help you out, but you’re sure she’s asleep right now, and you don't want to wake her up. Especially not after she announced her… condition, at dinner.

It’s not that you weren’t excited. In fact, you were over the moon for your friends. Jean and Scott are important to you, more like siblings to you than they ever were just friends or classmates. Even so, after the cheers and congratulations and the celebration… The news left you with a melancholy you couldn’t quite shake. A baby. Jean and Scott, two people you basically grew up with, are having a baby- and here you are. Alone. You don’t have a partner, or a husband, or any romantic prospects, really. You’ve spent so long learning about yourself and how to protect others, you just never let yourself open up to someone like that. Sure, you’d met many people during your time as an X-man, but you had always been a hopeless romantic, and there had only ever been one man you had things for. But even so, you just… couldn’t help but feel like you were falling behind.

After a long stretch, and another sigh, you get out of bed. Maybe a drink and some air would help. The path to the little china cabinet in your room is familiar and automatic. It was a gift from the professor when you mentioned that you missed collecting things like funny-shaped teapots and such, a habit you picked up from your grandmother. You wonder if he knew that you used the wooden bottom cabinets to store alcohol. You laugh a little when you think about if he kept the information to himself, letting you have at least one little secret. He most definitely knew, you decided. You grab a random bottle of amber liquid, unable to see the label in the dark. You shrug it off, figuring that you’ll find out what it is at some point.

The halls of the mansion are dark and quiet as you make your way over to the balcony, stepping outside and eagerly breathing in the cool air. Your eyes are starting to droop already as you turn to shut the door, but you've come this far and you figure you might as well get a drink in.

You're rubbing your eyes again as you turn back around, only to jump at the sight of a figure sitting on the railing.

“Fuckin’ Christ!” You wheeze. “Logan, you scared the shit out of me!” The mutant hums, the corner of his lips tilting just slightly before falling again. You walk over next to him, setting the bottle down at your feet as you lean against the railing.

“Can't sleep?” You ask. Logan shakes his head, and you frown at him. As gruff as the guy is, he’s normally more talkative. At least, with you he is. You can tell that something wrong, and it doesn't exactly take a telepath to understand what it is.

“...You were the one who found out, weren’t you?” You ask, almost state. Logan Huffs at your question, hopping off of the railing to pace on the balcony. He presses his palms into his eyesockets, growling just slightly in frustration.

“Her smell was off. S’been off. Didn’t think anything of it until I heard the heartbeat.” He rumbles, setting his arms down. “Don’t know if I want to strangle Scott or throw him off of the roof of the mansion.” Logan’s hands flex in a way you know he’s just dying to unsheath his claws. You’re not entirely sure what to say at first as he sighs, and sits up against the far wall. He rests his head in his hands, and it hurts to see him like this. You open your mouth, before closing it again. You glance down at your feet, picking up the bottle you had grabbed earlier.

Logan doesn't seem to mind as you sit next to him, brushing against his shoulder. You screw off the top of the liquor, taking a swig straight out of it before offering him the bottle. It burns deliciously on the way down, and you smile cheekily as he raises an eyebrow at you. Nevertheless, the takes the bottle from you, hand brushing your own.

“You’re not gonna like it, by the way.” You laugh. Logan rolls his eyes, less than a ghost of a smile on his face.

“ ‘still liquor, ain’t it?” He hums, taking a swig. His face screws up as he swallows, holding the bottle out afterward to try and read the label.

“What is this?” He asks, disgusted. You can’t help but laugh at him as he gives you a tired look.

“Butterscotch Schnapps.” You answer him. “I told you that you weren't gonna like it, it’s too sweet for you.” Logan shakes his head, almost trying to get rid of the taste as he hands the bottle back and playfully shoves your shoulder.

“Not my fault you drink shitty liquor.” He grins. You feel a flutter in your chest as you smile back at him, taking another swig to mask whatever he could possibly pick up from you- The problems of pining for a man with super senses, you think, laughing slightly at your own thought.

“Guess it’s all for me then-” you start to joke, right before Logan snatches the bottle back.

“Gimme the damn bottle.” You’re giggling a little at this point as the alcohol starts to settle in just slightly. Logan rolls his eyes, still smiling as he takes another swig despite the fact he very clearly hates it.

The two of you go back and forth like this for a while. Take turns until the bottle is run dry. Your giggles have settled down, and the infamous wolverine has relaxed as you lean against him. The two of you sit in silence for a minute or two, both simply breathing in the cool night air.

“It’s okay, you know.” You mumble at some point. Logan, able to hold his liquor a lot better than you, cocks an eyebrow. He’s not sure if you even know you're talking at this point. You look like you’re bout to fall asleep, nuzzling against his shoulder with a pout on your face. He hums questioningly in response.

“It’s okay to hurt knowing that Jean’s pregnant.” Logan had almost forgotten about that, having been caught up in this moment. His face falls immediately, and he looks away from you, staring into the trees that surround the mansion. You feel your chest squeeze painfully, but either due to the drink or due to your lack of self-awareness, you continue talking. He needs to hear it, you drunkenly decide.

“It’s hard to watch someone you love be with someone else. It’s even harder to watch them move on without you. I know it hurts to watch her move on to the next stage of life without you. But at this point, the best thing you can do for her is support her because you love her, not covet what you wish you could have.” You know you sound like you’re drunkenly rambling, and maybe you are, but really, all of this is something you wish you could have said years ago. You’re sure you sound like Nightcrawler, talking about coveting and love and righteousness, but you’re not as much of a good person as Kurt is. You know that you’re no better than Logan, Pining after him for so long as he continues to pine for someone else. To be perfectly honest, You’re jealous of Jean. You’re jealous of her relationship, her happiness. You’re jealous of the fact that if she would turn around and throw everything away to be with Logan, he would take her in without a second thought. But she’s your friend. Your sister. You love her, and you cherish her happiness much more than you could ever resent her for it. You let out a pitiful chuckle, eyeing the last minuscule drop in the liquor bottle.

“Believe me, I would know.” You mumble. Logan’s brow furrows, taken aback by that. You’ve always been such a standalone, unbothered, always positive. It didn’t make sense to him.

“What do you mean by that?” He asks, but when he turns his head to look at you, you’ve fallen asleep against his shoulder.

The next morning, you wake up in your bed with one hell of a hangover. You groan at the light that drifts through your blinds, rolling over. When you finally open your eyes, you're greeted by the sight of a glass of water, and a bottle of painkillers. You’re confused at first, and then flooded with bashfulness and embarrassment when you realise who exactly had put them there. You roll onto your stomach, shoving your face into your pillow, unable to handle the embarrassment of knowing you said WAY too much last night. You can't help but smile a little though, knowing he must've cared enough to carry you back here and get you meds.

Maybe it wasn't all bad.

[pfhwrittes]

price doesn't understand how people can relax at home. how can he? when home to him is always the ticking of the clock above the fireplace and china cups rattling on saucers.

home is sitting on hard backed chairs to save the upholstery on the sofa for guests that never arrive.

home is being scrutinised for flaws at every turn.

home is the silence of a room being broken by the pages being turned in the times and a low scoff at the headlines.

home is the way his mum sneaks a sip of sherry in the kitchen and the way his father runs a fingertip over a spotless side table and huffs about the state of the house.

home is where dinner is served at 5.30pm exactly and television is for mindless fools.

[radiofreederry]

happy birthday, Mao Zedong! (December 26, 1893)

One of the 20th century's most influential figures, Mao Zedong was born in Hunan province to a wealthy farmer. Mao's political education began by reading the works of liberal reformer Zheng Guanying and later joined the rebellion against the Qing. Mao began associating with Chinese Marxist Li Dazhao, and soon came to embrace Marxism himself. He became an early member of the Communist Party of China and joined it in taking up arms in the name of revolution and helping to organize the Chinese Red Army. Over the course of the long Chinese Civil War, Mao's theoretical acumen, organizational skill, and tactical intelligence gained him respect and, ultimately, leadership of the party. He would lead the communists to victory against both the invading Japanese and the conservative republicans, proclaiming the People’s Republic of China in 1949. Mao set to work modernizing China and laying the foundations for socialism, instituting land reform and an industrial program while politically transforming Chinese society and suppressing reaction and liberalism. Through his leadership, China was transformed from a still semi-feudal state into a world power. Mao provided a number of contributions to Marxist theory, and his ideas are variously interpreted through such tendencies as Marxism-Leninism-Maoism and Mao Zedong Thought. He died in 1976.

"A revolution is not a dinner party, or writing an essay, or painting a picture, or doing embroidery; it cannot be so refined, so leisurely and gentle, so temperate, kind, courteous, restrained and magnanimous. A revolution is an insurrection, an act of violence by which one class overthrows another."

[babyleostuff]

let me take care of you | XU MINGHAO

summary | taking care of Minghao after a long day of schedules

pairing | minghao x gn!reader

genre | fluff & comfort

word count | 1.3k

author’s note | honestly, I just want to take care of this man after seeing him having like 4 flights in a week

Soft tunes of "I Don't Understand But I Luv U '' were coming from the speaker in your living room, while you were finishing cooking a very late dinner for your boyfriend, who should land in Korea any minute now. With this being his fourth flight of the week, even he couldn't hide the exhaustion from you, no matter how hard he tried. Minghao did everything he could not to worry anyone about his well-being, as he was a very independent person and could take very good care of himself. It's great, you really admired that in him, but sometimes, you wish he’d lean a little bit more on you and let you take care of him.

"Just landed. Can't wait to see you."

You read the message with a huge grin on your face, while your heart skipped a bit - it has been so long since you got to have some time together for longer than an hour before sleep.

You never complained though, you knew what you were getting yourself into and even while being separated from your precious boyfriend for so long you wouldn't change it for a second.

Putting the ramen and other food on the heat to get ready, you went to your shared bedroom to put out some comfortable clothes for Minghao, so he could change into something more comfortable than his airport outfit, which you knew would be very fashionable, as per usual.

Speaking of, you quickly typed in your boyfriend's name in the Twitter search bar and to no surprise, he looked as dashing as usual.

Even seeing this short video of him, confidently walking in his long black coat, brought butterflies to your stomach.

You were so grateful that the landing in Korea was so much more peaceful than the one in China, feeling so bad for him as you saw so many people basically suffocating him during his previous flights.

Looking at all the girls surrounding him, you couldn't suppress a smile knowing that the only person who would hold him tonight is you. Not to be possessive, but he was yours, and only yours.

Being so busy with getting things ready for Minghao's arrival, you didn't even hear him entering your house.

“Hello? Anyone here?" he called out the second he noticed that there was no one there to greet him.

"Darling?" he tried again.

"Hao, is that you?" he heard your voice coming from the kitchen. Not a second after he saw your head appear from behind the kitchen island.

"What are you even doing dummy?" he asked in a jokingly offended tone, giving you one of his famous side eyes. Not caring about responding to him, you threw yourself in his embrace making him take a couple steps back, as he didn't expect the force.

"I swear, if they're going to make you fly one more time this week, I'm going to sue them," you said, nuzzling your head further into Mingaho's neck.

You could feel a slight chuckle vibrate through his body, as he lightly patted the back of your head, in a loving manner.

"I think you'll have to, darling. I'm going back after we finish filming on Monday," he gently untangled the two of you and took your face lightly in his hands, almost as if he was afraid to hurt you.

His gaze told you everything you needed to know without him actually saying it - how much he loved you and was happy to see you, how guilty at the same time he felt for leaving you so often, but also how exhausted he was. Even in spite of his tired state, he still looked at you like you were his entire world.

Being so close to him, feeling the smell of his expensive cologne, brought you so much peace and comfort. In no time, Minghao closed the space between you, capturing your lips in a delicate kiss, you both yearned for. In that single moment you felt as if nothing else existed in the world, but for the two of you, simply the feeling of her soft, perfect lips.

It is when you truly realized that he is yours and you are his. His hands stayed at the sides of your face, stroking your cheeks lightly.

"Come, I made you something to eat," you dragged your lovestruck boyfriend to the living room, making him sit on the sofa comfortably.

"You didn't have to do it, I mean it. In fact, you should be long asleep by now."

"Of course mum, whatever you say."

"I really can take care of myself, you know. This is unnecessary," he said as you put plates with food on the table. Not going to lie, you felt a little bit hurt by his statement - the only thing you wanted to do was to take care of him.

Almost as he could hear the thoughts running through your mind, he grabbed your slightly shaking hand.

"Hey, look at me," you didn't, feeling way too hurt to look him in the eye. "Darling, please. I didn't mean it like this. I'm just tired, this wasn't supposed to come out like this."

"But that's the thing Hao!" you exclaimed.

"You're tired, you just had a long flight for the hundredth time this week, and not once did you let me take care of you. I know that you like to be independent and think that you can do everything by yourself, I get it. I really do. But once, just once let me take care of you," you explained.

"I'm so sorry," the guilt in his eyes was even more noticeable now. "I just don't want to be a burden to anyone-" not letting him finish what he was about to say to you pressed a soft kiss to his silky lips. It was quick and innocent, but told Mingaho everything.

"You're not a burden to anyone Hao, and especially not to me. I'm your girlfriend, I love taking care of you, I really do," you smiled at him, caressing his cheek.

Pouting slightly, he nuzzled his cheek further into your hand, kissing it lightly.

"I love you. I'm sorry for being a pain in the ass sometimes."

"You're a pain in the ass everyday Xu Minghao," you laughed at his offended reaction. "But you're mine-" he didn't let you finish.

"Stop being so sappy, please. It's disgusting, bleh," now the both of you were laughing loudly, cuddling into each other.

After finishing your meal, you quickly did the dishes and turned off all the lights in the kitchen and living room, settling in the bedroom for the rest of the night.

While Minghao was taking a shower, you caught up with some emails and did some reading. A couple of minutes later he came out wearing the clothes you left for him.

"Ready for sleep?" you asked, putting all of the unnecessary stuff aside.

"Definitely. And please, no one disturb us till the evening tomorrow," he hummed as he got under the duvets on his side of the bed.

"Oh, I can guarantee you that," you said softly, as he laid his head in the crook of your head and put his strong arm over your waist.

Your hand automatically found its way to your boyfriend’s hair, stroking it gently. It made him sigh in relief, as he finally got to properly relax.

"I love you very much. Thank you for taking care of me."

"I love you too Hao. And thank you for letting me do so."

This was easily the best night of his week, soundly falling asleep in the arms of his one and only love.

You.

[evilminji]

The Anti-Ecto Acts... could literally start WW3

I am sitting here, contemplating China. The country. Literally one of THE OLDEST countries. With a truely massive population. And... I will admit my ignorance. But from what I have heard? They are big on honoring the Dead.

Their Dead.

The Dead of China. Hundreds of millions of souls. Which, statistically, would mean the average human ghost has a good chance to come from the region. And they are not alone.

Again, my ignorance curses me, but if my general knowledge is to be believed? It is a common practice in Asianic Countries. Oh sure, they won't argue there might be BAD ghosts. But that's to be expected! There are bad PEOPLE! They die.

They have monks and priests for such things. Specialists. Ancient problem, tried and true solutions. They move on and have lunch, consider what options there are for dinner. Business of the day and all that.

But THEN.

Fanatics from the West. Painting themselves as Men Of Science, not only dare to play god, but tear open a hole to THE AFTERLIFE? And start ATTACKING indiscriminately? They stand before an international stage and spew clearly bigoted pseudoscience, to justify their genocide, while ALSO letting God's and demons run roughshod over the WORLD, just so they can try to convince everyone they have the right to MURDER YOUR ANCESTORS?

They OPENED THAT GATE! They LET THEM OUT! There is a difference, culturally, for many of your countries between the soul of a dead man (powers be damned) and a SPIRIT OF LIVING STORMS.

You are not IDIOTS. Tigers are dangerous. Wolves are dangerous. But someone walking into a crowded mall and releasing frightened wild animals DOES NOT mean we go into the wilds and start killing! We charge the madmen you attacked innocent people!

The fact that tigers and wolves are dangerous IS NOT NEW. The fact that the souls of the dead are dangerous is ALSO not new! It is not malicious. It is INHERENT. A state of being. That is why they are not encouraged to linger! We love them, but this world is not built for them. It is fragile and barren, built for the living.

But dear sweet FUCK, the WROTH.

How? Many countries EXACTLY. How many religions? SPECIFICALLY honor and protect the dead. Declare in no uncertain terms, the SANCTITY of the soul?

How many people have LOST somebody? A friend, a lover, a CHILD.

And in one breath you give them hope then THREATEN it? "They may still be out there... we are going to brutally torture them to death. Because your loved ones are animals to us."

The UN would have the SINGLE most ugly, barely contained, riot imaginable. Spiritual Leaders would be tearing CHUNKS out of the US. The Pope, the Dalai Lama, you name it. You can NOT invade THE AFTERLIFE and not have it IMMEDIATELY become a religious concern.

Not to mention the international SAFETY concern. One countries actions? Unleashing beings that can effect the GLOBAL ECOSYSTEM? The ENTIRE planets weather? Plunged EVERYONE into Eternal Sleep??! How can that not be considered DILBERATE after the first one!

Your grand idea is to ANTAGONIZE them? Make MORE of them come through??

"Kill death itself". You fanatical NUTJOBS! That's not even a NEW hypothetical! That ends HORRIFICLY for literally EVERYONE. Eternal starvation, suffocation, crushing, and worse! We suck the planet dry, over populate so horrifically we end up BURIED UNDER OUR OWN CHILDREN, and suffer FOREVER without the release of death!

You fucking MORONS! Eternal life is a well known CURSE!

Their science is shaky at best, hardly peer reviewed. DEEPLY unethical. And clearly dangerous! Radioactive!!! In a population center?! How many innocent people have been exposed!?

And if the Ghost are reaching OUT? Imagine meeting long dead countrymen, who come to you fearing for their very SOULS. Who have lived in peace. Unknown to you, for CENTURIES. Who beg you, in YOUR native tounge, to help. Talks of people disappearing. Fear and desperation.

This is not to say world leaders are great and benevolent figures, free of greed or sin. Nor their governments. But it is quite another thing entirely, when they talk... and all you can think is "you are talking about my dead father. My late wife. My deceased son."

When they spew their HATE. And back hand your loved ones by doing so.

What powerful person has not lost SOMEBODY.

All this? And I have not even TOUCHED on the shit storm DC would add on top. The Drama? The IMMEDIATE near certain SMITING? You want to MURDER Superman's FAMILY??? I'd say pick a god and pray, but you've already made enemy of ALL of them.

So... good luck and get fucked?

@hdgnj @the-witchhunter @stealingyourbones @nerdpoe

[jensettermandu]

maneater - lalisa manoban

genre; smut

pairing; g!p lisa x female reader

content; fingering, slight edging, semi public (they have sex in a public bathroom), p in v :D, idk i don't think i missed anything

wc; 6.7k+

masterlist

Expensive cars, luxury brands, trips worldwide, houses on every continent, and events for the elites. 

These were just some of the things in Lisa’s life. 

A long line of generational wealth. 

Sitting at a charity dinner wasn’t unusual for her despite only being 23. She was next in line to take over her family business once she would be suitable enough to do so. Those were years yet to come–five maybe seven before she would get to even touch that power. 

Of course, it all came with rival companies worth multiple billions who would always stand in the way, steal deals, and be competitive.

The ballroom was filled with chatter as everyone conversed and even if it was charity, for most it was just a chance for new business. She wasn’t invited as a plus one anymore but got her invites because her name would be important in the future. That was why she was sitting at another table, far from her father. 

Eight different people sat at the round table. 

There were so many different tables and close to 300 people at the charity. 

Out of all the seven different people she could have been seated with, right beside her was the 21-year-old Zhou Y/n who came from an even bigger line of generational wealth after being part of an old Chinese dynasty. 

The only heir of one of the biggest oil companies from a conservative family from China. 

Conservative media-wise until Y/n came along. 

The last headline Lisa could remember was the girl getting a DUI and she knew that there was so much more but her family covered every little trace, but driving a car into a pole right before the media would be hard to cover. 

Where Y/n went chaos followed.

What Lisa couldn’t phantom was how someone like her was set to start working by her father’s side in just four more years. Takeover in a couple more. Quicker than Lisa.

Smart. Y/n was incredibly smart despite everything else. 

She somehow balanced chaos and intelligence. 

Aside from that the girl was the daughter of Lisa’s father’s biggest competitor, arch-rival at this point as there was nothing but bad blood which automatically put a wall between her and Y/n. 

She hated the entitled and spoiled brat beside her, she was born to hate her and she would do so to carry on the legacy of hate as Y/n hated her just as much.

The only difference was that Y/n had a different approach to hatred. 

She made sure to make Lisa’s life miserable every time she had the chance while Lisa tried to hate her from her corner and not cause any trouble. 

It wasn’t like they saw each other often. 

Y/n was studying in a different state.

She knew these things because she simply did, it wasn’t like Y/n had somehow caught Lisa’s interest after she grew some boobs. Definitely not. 

Lisa had tried to keep her conversations going with the other five people at the table because the sixth was already being in Y/n’s trance which was Kim Jisoo. There didn’t seem to be a single person to fall for it.

Aside from that the rest of the table was filled with men and women in their early to late 40s.

However, she had found herself glancing over at the two girls now and then. Unfortunately for Lisa, the girl who smelled of sweet floral heaven beside her was sexy. Y/n was the definition of sex appeal. 

Everyone had something they liked, and Lisa liked women who were of the standard that Y/n was. Not many were but whatever was close enough. Now one that was of the highest standard was right beside her. One that was off limits to her which only made it that much more cravable.

Her glances had been subtle, only pretending to look around to maybe catch the girl’s exposed clavicles in the black dress and some of the cleavage. Or she would fix her chair to try and catch her legs in the black sheer tights. The way she would flip her hair back gently and only expose herself more all while having a conversation with Kim Jisoo who was just as lost in Y/n as Lisa was. 

Y/n was a big and seductive flirt is what Lisa had caught on to. 

She always led men and sometimes women on at these parties for fun. 

She had seen it herself and she had run into these victims who would ask Lisa if she had seen the girl who she would prior see leave the place with that resting bitch face.

Lisa had never fallen victim to Y/n’s misleading that she did for entertainment. These events could get boring at times. 

Although, she wasn’t sure if she wanted to fall victim either. 

Whatever subtle glances Lisa had thought she had gotten away with had all been obvious to the soul-sucking vampire beside her as she left everyone heartbroken with her games. 

Lisa jumped in her seat, getting startled in the middle of her conversation with the woman who was sitting on her left. She quickly put down the glass with champagne to not spill anything on her clothes after whatever brushed along her leg had made her flinch at how sudden it was. 

“I’m sorry, what was it that you said?” She apologised to the woman and leaned somewhat closer to hear her better, trying to play it off as if she hadn’t heard her. Lisa continued to listen to the woman, brushing it off as an accident despite the only possible culprit being the woman who had a husband beside her or the siren on her right. 

Whoever it was it had to be an accident–

Just a few seconds after she felt it right again but it startled her less. Lisa cleared her throat and leaned back in her chair, nodding to what the woman had said. She subtly glanced under the table and it had to be Y/n who was sitting with her right leg crossed over her left. 

Accident.

When she looked over at Y/n she was showing off that perfect smile to the man who sat across from her and Jisoo. 

She let out a sigh and reached for her champagne glass. It would get overwhelming way too quickly otherwise. The woman would have been able to take that sip of expensive bubbles if it hadn’t been for the foot that ran right up her shin and she forcefully gulped it down. The thin glass almost slipped from her hold and she placed it right back down. 

Just as Lisa turned to not glance at the entitled girl but actually look at her, the woman felt a heat run over her spine in the worst way possible considering this was Y/n. She did not need these reactions because of her.

“I’m so sorry–” Y/n apologised, her body was now turned to Lisa who widened her eyes as the vixen had placed her slender hand right on Lisa’s thigh to show her concern. “It’s just so tight here and I tried to make myself more comfortable, didn’t mean to startle you, Lisa.” Lisa clenched her jaw at the teasing in Y/n’s tone as the girl’s eyes were playing an innocent and apologetic look which was far from what her lips were releasing. 

Lisa huffed from her nose, nostrils flaring as the hand clasped on her thigh was warm and firm with the grip. “It’s fine.” Y/n gave her a smile at that, Lisa’s whole body tensing up at the squeeze she gave her before she let go. Her eyes watched Y/n for a few more seconds, seeing that glint in her eyes and smile that meant no good. 

“Mrs. Park, I have no idea how I missed you,” Y/n exclaimed and Lisa leaned back into her chair. The scent of the vixen was strong and it was running ideas in Lisa’s head from the sexual appeal it drove further. She was invading Lisa’s space on purpose, her hand holding onto the back of the woman’s chair, her modest chest just a mere inch from touching Lisa’s arm.

It left her trapped. 

“Oh God no, me and Chaeyoung have been studying day and night.” Lisa scoffed under her breath at the words she knew were lies. Her guy and girlfriends were obsessed with observing what the elite beside her was up to. It all included wild parties with booze that could fill pools. Her little group of friends were all taking part in it so Chaeyoung wasn’t studying day and night. 

Y/n hummed to what Mrs Park said while Lisa toyed with the knife on the table to not interrupt them by trying to talk with someone else. “Is that so?” Y/n questioned and Lisa was dying in her chair at the hand that moved from the backrest of the chair and onto her shoulder, the foot right back to brushing against her leg–it wasn’t even slightly subtle the way it went higher and higher up, dragging up her slacks before letting them fall back down. 

Lisa was trying to find a reason to excuse herself as she was starting to get overwhelmed by Y/n. All while trying not to do any abrupt movements. The girl was all over her and out of all the times now was the time she had no control over her cock that was starting to react to someone she despised. She cursed Y/n for her good genes. 

Her eyes trailed along her bare skin, hair in waves and falling over her shoulders, but Y/n moved it with her other hand. All that hair went from her left side and onto the right, it only showed off her smooth and slim body more to Lisa. The dress was accentuating her small chest, pushing her breasts together and Lisa moved her brown eyes up at her sharp collarbones, a diamond pendant resting between them. Her neck was slim and perfect and Lisa was growing harder the longer she looked at Y/n. 

“Oh this, ring?” There was a drop of mischievousness in her tone.

Lisa found out why it was there right away. 

Y/n’s hand ran down her shoulder and along her arm, until her left hand was planted right by her crotch, thumb merely brushing over the forming bulge as she leaned forward and stretched out her right hand that Mrs Park grabbed to look at the diamond ring. 

“Daddy bought it for my 21st birthday.” She happily replied, adding more pressure on Lisa’s thigh who was growing into a mess. 

“Excuse me.” Lisa excused herself, the chair dragged along the flooring louder than necessary and Y/n sat right back when she broke the contact between her and Mrs Park. Ultimately removing Y/n from herself before she disappeared. The girl excused herself from her conversation with the older woman before she looked at the one beside her.

“See, it doesn’t matter if they hate me, Jisoo…No one can resist my appeal.” Y/n said with a giggle and bit her lower lip as she looked back at Jisoo. “I won the bet, so…The number please.” The girl took her designer clutch purse and reached for her phone while Jisoo clicked her tongue.

“Do I have to give it to you?” Jisoo asked to make sure as the bet was her cousin’s number and the last thing she wanted was for Y/n to seduce poor Jennie too. 

“A deal is a deal.” She handed over her phone and leaned back into her seat before looking over her shoulder where Lisa had disappeared. Winning the bet she had made with the girl beside her. 

“I thought Lisa would be better than this.” Jisoo sighed and handed the girl her phone back, only hoping that Jennie wouldn’t be as stupid as Lisa and she had been. 

The bet?

Seduce Lisa and get Jennie’s number. 

Don’t succeed within five minutes, Jisoo gets Y/n’s number. 

God, Jisoo was pissed that she had to give her cousin's number to Y/n when she wanted it. She thought it would be an easy bet to win as she knew about the rivalry between the two families and how that created a feud between the heirs. It didn’t seem to matter as Y/n could get anyone to crumble before her. 

She watched Y/n who put the phone away and gently slid her chair back before excusing herself to leave as she stood up. “Where’re you going?” Jisoo asked and grabbed hold of her wrist. Not wanting the girl to leave her company.

Y/n gave her a little smile. “Finish what I started?” She said and Jisoo gave her a look. 

“What? She’s hot compared to the rest. Don’t be jealous.” Y/n defended and slipped out of Jisoo’s grip as she usually just left everyone right after, but Lisa was hot even if they were meant to despise each other. 

Jisoo sighed and leaned back in her seat as she watched Y/n walk away, realising that she had been played with just as much as Lisa tonight. The only difference was that Lisa got lucky this time and Jisoo didn’t.

Lisa unlocked the door after spending a good minute trying to tuck her erection right to hide it. She was both pissed at herself and even more pissed at Y/n while trying to grasp how she let the girl affect her. It just so happened that the girl she despised was utterly attractive. 

The woman pushed the door open while finishing to buckle her belt, but looked up at the voice.

“Everything alright, Lisa?” The voice came out angelic, with so much worry, concern, and innocence that Lisa would have almost believed it if it hadn’t been for the person behind that voice. Her eyes landed on Y/n who was sitting on top of the marble counter, one leg crossed over the other while leaning back against her palms. She did not look concerned, worried, innocent or angelic. 

She looked like the sexy she-devil herself.

“Why wouldn’t it be?” She tried to play it off because her ego was too big to feed into Y/n’s and admit that she had caused her an erection. Never. The woman could feel the siren eyes following her as she walked over to the black marble countertop and turned on the faucet to wash her hands. 

“Are you sure? You just ran off all flustered.” She hummed at that, keeping her gaze on her hands and avoiding looking at Y/n at all costs. 

Y/n watched how Lisa swallowed, her eyes trailing further down where she had done a poor job hiding her erection. With her lower lip trapped between her teeth, she leaned forward, gripping the edge of the countertop with her hands before letting go with one and reaching over to Lisa.

“Do you hate me, Lisa?” She mumbled, fingers dancing around Lisa’s shoulder who stopped washing her hands. She raised an eyebrow and looked at Y/n who was already looking back at her, grey eyes staring deep into hers, hypnotising her, distracting her fully from the haughty little smirk she was sporting. 

“What’s there to like?” Lisa asked back with a scoff, unflatteringly drying her hands on her slacks. Her eyes were hard yet still exploring whatever she could with them as Y/n was extremely close now.  

“There’s only so little you can see, but so much more to explore.” The words caught her off guard and she grabbed hold of the wandering hand that was running down her bicep. Lisa dropped Y/n’s slender hand and licked her lips as they stood in the empty restroom that was lit by a golden-like yellow, with black marble, accentuated by gold. Their bodies reflected in the big mirror that was on the wall and a second-long silence fell upon them. Lisa's dick twitched at those stupid words she was falling for because there was no way Y/n was offering herself to her. She probably wanted to make a fool out of Lisa for even thinking about it.

“I’m not falling for your games, Y/n.” Y/n smiled at that with a hum and Lisa took it as her queue to leave. 

She was stopped though, her eyes snapped up at Y/n with confusion. The girl stretched her long leg out and blocked the way. It sent a shiver over her whole body when her calf brushed over her hard cock and she stepped back when Y/n pushed more into it.

“Help me down? Wouldn’t want to break a heel.” With a deep inhale Lisa decided to assist the girl after she pointed with her head towards the black heels she had on. Her lips were pursed and she looked in the mirror behind Y/n instead while she gripped her waist and the girl held onto the lapels of her blazer. She was light as a feather as Lisa lifted the slim figure off of the counter.

Y/n giggled as she purposely lost balance and her hands grabbed hold of the hem of Lisa’s pants. Her body pressed into Lisa’s who strained a groan when her dick got rubbed at by accident and she angrily looked down at Y/n who looked as amused as ever. 

“Y/n.” She warned and pushed the girl up by her waist who was taller than her with heels on and without them she was just an inch taller. 

“Yes?” The vixen questioned, fingers teasing and hooking around the hem of Lisa’s pants. Looking at her through her lashes and still sporting that faux innocence that always got her out of trouble. The poor girl could cause no harm, could she? Not when she was playing a kitten that was kicked to the curb and standing in the pouring rain.

“Stop.” Lisa would only give her one last warning and then she knew that she would snap because of how sexually frustrated she was. 

“Or what?” Y/n challenged. 

“Or you will regret it.” She earned a breathless chuckle that fell from Y/n’s plump and glossy lips.

“I don’t think I will.” There was that deeper tone back, the one that was like a melody of sex and drew Lisa in further. Y/n’s normal voice and not the sweet one she did to play along in her games. That innocence washed away and everything Lisa should repent when it came to Y/n coming to light. Things that made her cock strain.

Lisa almost got lightheaded when a sneaky hand cupped her, squeezing at her erection enough to elicit a moan from the back of her throat. 

Y/n feigned a gasp, knowing very well what was coming when she got pinned against the counter. Her hands gripped Lisa’s blazer and she pulled her even closer to her while the older woman grabbed hold of her hips. Lisa’s eyes were hard on her as she stood pressed against the girl, staring her down while watching the way Y/n bit her lower lip to try and contain the haughty smirk that still broke out on her plump and glossy lips. 

“Do you always get what you want?” Lisa questioned, watching how Y/n ran her one hand down along her upper body, and down her stomach. The touch was slowly sending Lisa into a frenzy as she couldn’t deny the fact that Y/n was gorgeous and that many would pay to even be in this place that Lisa was, if not kill for it. 

This was the daughter of the elite of elites which meant that she stood above all too. 

“I’m daddy’s girl so yes.” 

And Y/n got what she wanted once again when she cupped Lisa through her pants, the woman groaning and muffling it by pressing her lips against Y/n’s. The older used her strength to raise Y/n back onto the counter, making her wrap her legs around Lisa’s waist and pulling her into her. Her grip tightened on Y/n’s slim waist while her other hand tangled in the silky hair at the back of the girl’s head, tilting her head and pushing her tongue between Y/n’s parted lips. 

The girl welcomed her into her mouth, swallowing Lisa’s tongue and sucking on it while her hands tugged onto the belt, blindly trying to unbuckle it. 

“God, you’re so eager,” Lisa grumbled after slowly pulling away with Y/n’s bottom lips between hers as she tugged on it before letting go. 

“I don’t have the whole night to waste on you.” Lisa could strangle the girl who knew how highly she stood above all. Lisa would always be a waste of time unless she would show her that she wasn’t. She was sure the girl had had her fair share of fun and that it would be hard to be the best, but Lisa always liked to prove herself. Her lips trailed Y/n’s smooth skin who tilted her head back, leaving her slim neck to be kissed along. 

“Waste?” Lisa questioned. Her words were a whisper in Y/n’s ear as she was right by her pulse point. Her tongue came out and the belt was undone, licking at the skin, being able to feel it pulse against her slick muscle before she wrapped her lips around the skin. It elicited a light sigh from Y/n who unzipped Lisa’s pants after undoing the button on them. 

“Unless you manage to impress me.” Y/n teased, teeth tugging Lisa’s ear who shivered at the gesture. Her hand came down from the back of her head to the back of her neck and she pulled Y/n away, making her look her in the eye. “Pretty eyes won’t work on me though.” Y/n continued, hand coming up to cup Lisa’s face, thumb running over her wet lips and tugging it down as she pulled her face closer to her. The two were a few mere inches away.

Anyone walking in and they both would be in trouble. 

Lisa would be in deep mud and her father’s business included if Y/n’s father found out that Lalisa Manoban had touched his princess. That the daughter of his biggest rival had touched his daughter. Lalisa Manoban would be dickless for the rest of her life. 

Too bad his daughter never followed the rules and was spoiled rotten.

Her thumb ran down to the woman’s chin and Lisa attached her lips right back onto Y/n’s. With that, her hands ran to the hem of the dress and she started to pull it up, bunching up its expensive material at the girl’s waist. Y/n’s fingers fiddled with the hem of the briefs, slowly inching inside them until her slender fingers wrapped around Lisa’s scalding cock that was warm and heavy in her hand. 

The small whimpers were muffled by Y/n’s mouth as the girl squeezed the length in her hand, stroking up and gathering precum that she smeared down the hard cock. It was followed by two thuds as she slipped off the designer heels to get off the sheer tights–Lisa had other plans. The material ripped when Lisa ran her hands between the girl’s thighs, tearing the thin black material apart.

“Not impressive,” Y/n mumbled as she pulled away from Lisa’s lips, the woman trying to chase for them but stopping at the way her tip got squeezed. The girl caught the way her eyelids almost fell closed and a moan pushed from the back of her throat. 

“Not everyone is here to please you.” Lisa rasped, gripping Y/n’s thigh and squeezing it in her hold while running the fingers of her other hand along the girl’s inner thigh. She could feel how she fought the way she wanted to close them at the teasing. It tugged at the corners of Lisa’s lips as the two stared at each other, Y/n slowly working the length in her hand while Lisa’s fingers brushed over the lace material. It worked a barely there sigh from the siren, Lisa being able to feel the slick slowly seep through the material of her underwear.

“Or maybe you just don’t know how to please me?” Y/n fueled a fire that grew in Lisa who slowly pushed the lace aside, her hips barely staying still as Y/n hadn’t stopped stroking her cock. The girl was making it hard for Lisa to stay nonchalant about this, making it hard to make it seem as if she wasn’t trying to impress her.

The girl caught how Lisa’s eyebrow twitched, fighting the dilemma she was in, but dismissed it for now. Her eyes focused on Y/n’s face when she ran her fingers through the girl's slit, parting her wet folds and smiling at the way her plump lips parted with a gasp. It made her hand movement stop as she removed her hand from Lisa’s briefs and grabbed hold of her forearm, the other clutched onto her shoulder.

The woman ran her slender fingers through the wet folds, slowly teasing the girl, wanting to put her through some suffering for what she had done. Lisa leaned in, pecking the parted lips, Y/n’s eyebrows creasing and her chest heaving at the way she was getting something, but not nearly enough. Lips pressed against hers, tracing to her cheek, and jaw before Lisa dipped her head and kissed along her neck all while taking in the small gasps that Y/n let out that were turning whiny.

“Fuck–” Y/n cursed, Lisa being stronger and not letting the girl guide her hand when she teased her two fingers over the swollen clit. She only nudged it and could feel nails dig into her forearm through the blazer. 

“What is it?” Lisa mocked, running her fingers down and circling the hole that was clenching as she gathered more of the slick. Y/n exhaled deeply through her nose and looked at Lisa who pulled away from her neck. There was a stupid smile on the woman’s lips, the younger unable to close her legs because Lisa was between them, the pressure growing and her clit only got circled again.

“Poor Y/n isn’t getting what she wants.” She said with a chuckle, hissing when the girl held onto the side of her neck and dug her nails into the skin. 

“Poor Lisa won’t get her dick wet if she doesn’t stop acting like an asshole.” 

Y/n was truly making it hard for Lisa to not obey her every word–

With a huff, Lisa dipped her hand down, two fingers intruding into the clenching hole and slowly pushing inside the heat that sucked her in and throbbed around her. 

Her eyes fell on the siren ones, it made her dick twitch at the look in her eyes, those parted lips glistening as each expression was so erotic that Lisa was ready to just pull her fingers out and replace them with her cock. Her fingers curled, being knuckles deep inside the girl’s pulsating cunt that tightened with each stroke and Y/n moaned as fingers pressed against the spongy spot.

“The daughter of an elite is having her pussy fingered in the middle of a charity event in a bathroom—You couldn’t get any hotter with how dirty you are.” Lisa caught Y/n’s lips right after, the kiss got sloppier as Y/n was doing a poor job of containing herself. Her moans bounced off the empty walls of the marble bathroom at the way Lisa was circling her clit with her thumb, rubbing against her wall and slowly the tension grew in her body. 

The girl was far from a saint, and Lisa was loving every second of it, especially since she was fucking thee Zhou Y/n. 

The squelching of her snug pussy mixed with her whimpering moans, Lisa doing scissoring motions to stretch and get her ready for her cock. “So good,” Y/n whined. She pulled away from Lisa’s mouth who licked her lips, collecting any saliva and getting another taste of what was left of the girl’s lip gloss. Her forehead fell on Lisa’s shoulder, scratching along her neck with each zap that ran across her spine and her hips merely bucked into the thumb that was playing with her aching nub. 

Lisa hummed at those words that were boosting her ego, but she wasn’t aware of the smile that tugged on Y/n’s lips. Her walls fluttered around the two fingers that were spreading her tight hole, caressing at her g-spot. Lisa looked in the mirror, mesmerised by the way Y/n’s back arched like a cat, her ridges perfect. 

“Shame that I’ve had better.” Y/n sighed, leaning into Lisa’s neck with her breath fanning the skin. She bit down and pulled, making Lisa groan at the pain as somewhere between the lines they still had to hate each other. “Fuck, you’re a bitch.” She sucked air through her teeth and grabbed Y/n’s shoulder, pulling her away from her neck. 

The girl let out a breathless giggle, the fingers still working her cunt and Lisa sped up her thrusts, watching the way it made Y/n’s press more into her.  The hand that gripped her forearm tightened around her and so did the walls as the girl let out whiny moans, being brought right to the edge with Lisa’s fingers deep within her walls.

“Oh–Oh fuck.” It started to wash over her, stomach tightening and Lisa slowed down her movement, removing some pressure from the girl’s clit. It made Y/n whine in frustration at the high that got disrupted, her snug walls now throbbing uncomfortably.

“You want to be a tease?” Y/n questioned, grabbing hold of Lisa’s blazer and pulling her into her, making Lisa stop fully. Her fingers pulled out of the snug confines of the slick pussy. The woman bit her lower lip, forehead pressed against Y/n’s while she ran the same hand down to her boxers.

“Who was teasing me under the table?” Lisa questioned, trying to catch Y/n’s lips again because they moved so smoothly against hers and the way the girl sucked on her tongue made her lightheaded. Y/n moved back though, leaving her to a chase that she lost when Y/n held her back. 

“I can’t help that everyone folds so easily for me, Lisa.” 

Y/n’s hand came over to Lisa’s helping her pull down the briefs as she closed the gap and caught Lisa’s upper lip between hers, having her lower one sucked by the older. It went smoothly as Lisa propped herself up by planting her palm against the mirror behind Y/n who led the swollen pinkish tip towards her sopping wet entrance. 

It made Lisa shudder and Y/n tugged on her lip at the stretch that came, thighs trying to close but were unable to with Lisa between them. 

“Can you take it all?” Lisa asked through a deep breath as she pushed her tip inside the walls that were squeezing hard enough to almost push her back out. The blazer bunched in Y/n’s fist by the woman’s frail shoulder and she wrapped her legs around Lisa’s waist.

“Don’t let it get into your head.” Y/n moaned at the way Lisa pushed everything in all at once at her answer. It shot a heat through her spine and she pulled her closer with her legs. The stretch came painfully yet it made her want more as Lisa slowly started to move her hips with a chuckle at the words. 

“Haven’t had anyone stretch you out good enough, fuck–I will make sure your pussy fits my cock perfectly.” Lisa groaned, wrapping her arm around the slim waist of the girl, holding her close and burying her face in the crook of her sweet neck as the scent drove that carnal desire further. 

Y/n’s moans grew louder within a few seconds as Lisa wasn’t waiting around. Her thrusts were slow and deep, going at a steady pace and the gasps were falling from Y/n’s lips. The girl’s back arched into her, pressing her chest against Lisa’s as her eyes closed. Each gasp and moan came right into Lisa’s ear. Grunts pushed through the back of her throat each time she fucked her cock right back into Y/n after pulling out as much as possible.

She rolled her hips in a perfect and hard rhythm, each time making the girl’s breath hitch. The walls were filled to the brim, her dick curved perfectly to rub at her g-spot and reach every single spot she needed to reach as her cock was stuffing Y/n perfectly. Lisa was losing her mind over how tight the girl was, fingertips pressing against the mirror as she groaned.

It was hard not to think about who exactly it was that Lisa was pounding her cock into. Y/n was moaning right under her, walls squeezing her cock, being able to feel the other throb with need after each stroke. The idea that this could end so badly drove Lisa even further, wanting to fuck Y/n good enough to want more of the thrill of fucking someone she shouldn’t.

“Fuck, Y/n, your pussy is so good, isn’t it—could fuck it right every day,” Lisa mumbled, her voice turning into a gruff one as she pulled away from the girl’s neck. 

“Have to make me come to fuck me again.” Y/n moaned out and it made Lisa run her hand away from her waist. Her fingers found back to the slick clit and Y/n leaned back, palms planted against the marble behind her. Her eyes were intense on Lisa’s who was still fucking her, each thrust making the girl move who unwrapped her legs and spread them further for the cock that was abusing her throbbing pussy. The eyes that looked in hers were in a full haze as Lisa was getting closer with each second.

“Gonna have you run back for more.” Lisa forced the word out with another grunt.

The eye contact broke as Y/n threw her head back, her back arched and heat covered her whole body. The cock inside her was throbbing, dragging along her snug walls, caressing them and the wetness was running down further with each of the thrusts.

Their moans grew louder, only hoping that no one would be heading towards the bathroom or walking past it as the event was in full force with the main part of it starting any second now. Yet it left them both curious about what would happen if someone did catch them. It only made them fuck that much better. The ruffling of their clothes mixed with the wet sounds of Y/n’s pussy and Lisa’s dick filling the clenching hole that was sucking her in. 

The woman leaned down, unable to keep herself away from the clavicle that was on full display for her and the little cleavage. Her lips wetly kissed along the skin, sucking gently to not leave any unwanted marks until she reached the soft cleavage of the girl. Gently she nipped at the skin, feeling the way it made Y/n squeeze her length and whine, her chest pressing more into Lisa’s face. 

“Close ‘m so close, Lisa.” Y/n cried, this time not wanting the high to end before it could peak. Lisa kept up the movement of her hips while sucking on the soft skin of Y/n’s chest. Probably leaving a hickey here and there after herself. 

“Fuck, come on squeeze my cock and come, Y/n.”

Her pussy clasped tightly around the hard cock, back arching and a train of moans slipping out of her mouth that grew in pitch. The tension grew hard enough to break and Y/n was right at the high before falling at such force that her eyes rolled back. Her thighs quivered around Lisa as they closed in on her again. She slowed down her movement, looking at Y/n who was heaving for air while coming undone before her.

Her stomach flexed to hold herself until Y/n gripped onto her to stop. The girl swallowed down her dry throat, whining at how Lisa was still fucking her through the uncomfortable aftershocks. 

“I’m gonna–” She was cut off, groaning when the girl pushed her back without a second thought. Her cock slipped out of the warmth of her and Lisa barely managed to grab hold of her dick before cum started to spurt out of her tip. Her hand balled into a fist as she planted it on the wall beside her after losing the leverage of the mirror. Y/n felt the warm cum splatter against her thigh, seeping through the sheer tights, staining more than them as Lisa had no aim whatsoever. 

“Great.” Y/n deadpanned, the woman was still lightheaded and trying to catch her breath when she got shoved back by the girl's foot against her thigh.

“What?” She breathed out, fingers gripping the wall to not fall as she looked down. The mess was on the girl’s black dress, covering the hem in her creamy and sticky cum–Lisa cringed at the amount she released, more than usual. It made her quickly tuck her cock back inside her pants, not having time to zip them up as she reached for the paper towels. The faucet turned on as she wet it before reaching over to the girl’s dress.

Y/n leaned back as she hadn’t been expecting it and rolled her eyes while waiting for Lisa to finish.

“Sorry.”

“Shut up,” Y/n said and clicked her tongue, looking at Lisa with a face that held disgust as she still didn’t like her despite the good orgasm she gave her. She pushed her back again and Lisa leaned against the wall while Y/n got down the counter to remove the sheer tights.

Lisa’s mind still trying to comprehend the fact that she had just fucked the girl everyone wanted to be or be with. She even ruined her dress. Lisa felt stupidly proud as she grinned.

Y/n discarded them in the trash and slipped her heels back on.

“You ruined my dress, time to cut the charity short so I can go home.” 

“What’re you doing?” She questioned the girl who walked over to the door and opened it. The big corridor was empty, but the loud chatter from the ballroom was still filling it as she followed right after Y/n who was looking through her clutch purse. Lisa’s eyes were glued to Y/n who was walking fine, more than fine as she looked like she was on a catwalk while Lisa’s legs felt numb. It made her lean against the door frame with a frown, unable to bring herself to walk much more just yet. Her hands quickly worked to button up her slacks before anyone would see her this messy.

Y/n turned to her with that devilish smile on her face as she stood by the wall opposite of Lisa.

Where Y/n went chaos followed. 

“It’s for a good cause, Lisa–here’s my card in case you ever need a job, I guess you could walk my dog or something.” Lisa’s eyes winded, a private business card being flicked at her chest before it fluttered onto the floor and she watched Y/n reach for the fire alarm. The blaring alarm went off, the chatter getting drowned out before it was followed by panicked voices, and fire sprinklers going off. Her eyes were on Y/n who was already walking away while Lisa subconsciously crouched down and reached for the card. People slowly starting to pile the corridor.

Lisa did text.

She just never got an answer.

[inkedroplets]

You Owe me a New Desk

“I know I sprang this on you—” “Because you knew if you didn’t I would say no,” Kara said hotly, wondering if she had also purposefully chosen to tell her at the DEO to stop her from making too big a scene. She glared at Alex, hoping to see a hint of guilt on her implacable face, annoyed when she found none. 

“It's dinner, Kara. you act like I’m trying to marry you off,” Alex said, arms already crossed over her chest, having expected resistance and prepared accordingly. 

“Not yet, anyway,” Kara replied, shaking her head again, her hands still on her hips, fingers digging in to stop her from mimicking Alex’s pose, knowing she would cut a far more intimidating figure. “But at the rate, you’re going …” “It is one date,” Alex said. She snaked her right arm free and held up her index finger, although Kara suspected she would have much rather held up the middle one. “You don’t even need to think of it as a date. Think of it as a night out.” “A night out,” Kara repeated. “Yeah. Do you remember those?” “I missed a few game nights,” Kara said, her already fraying patience dissolving to nothing as they slipped back into the same quagmire they had been stuck in for months now. It seemed no matter what topic, whether it be something as banal as the weather or a metahuman attacking downtown like all roads lead to Rome. Every conversation with Alex always led back to Lena and how (in Alex's words) she needed to move on. As if it could ever be that simple. Although to everyone else it certainly seemed that way. Life for everyone else had simply seemed to have gone on. As if Lena's sudden absence was something that had happened a long time ago. 

There had been a few desultory outings where the conversation often lagged and some of the takeout that normally disappeared so quickly remained untouched. She remembered a game night that had fizzled out after a brief game of Exploding Kittens and turned into an impromptu movie night that had been something Kara had needed to get through rather than enjoy.

But the group (minus Kara) had found their footing soon after that. Karaoke where lyrics were belted out (oftentimes offkey) and at the appropriate eardrum-shattering decibel. Game nights filled with laughter interspersed with the occasional howl of indignation when someone invariably pulled too far ahead in points or when a house rule had been broken whether on accident or on purpose. 

Kara had watched it happen in a state of incredulity, bearing witness to the speed at which things had returned to normal for everyone else, at how fast their fractured circle had closed in reaction to Lena's absence. Life had simply gone on for them. But not for her. And seeing her friends joke and laugh, and have spirited debates over who out of the group would have the best chance of surviving a zombie apocalypse and what were the superior pizza toppings, turned her incredulity to white-hot anger. Anger that had all the forethought of a bull in a china shop. It rampaged around in her chest, seeing red everywhere, looking for something to smash, to gore. It was why she had eventually stopped going to game night, (even if all she had done since Lena’s absence had been to act as a scorekeeper). 

“You’ve missed six,” Alex countered “Six then.” “And every time someone tries to make plans with you, you always find an excuse not to—” “Me being busy is not an excuse,” Kara fired back and gave her cape a hasty flutter, drawing attention to it the same way a magician might before attempting some sleight of hand. In truth, it was an excuse, but with how busy she had kept herself, it would have been hard to accuse her of lying. She had practically begged Andrea for more work, happily snapping up whatever puff piece or blogpost that she threw her way. Andrea had been far too happy that her Pulitzer-winning reporter had suddenly come around on soft news after being so vehemently against it to question why she was now more than happy to pen an article about ‘What your favorite kind of tea says about you’. She had also redoubled her efforts as Supergirl, spending more of her time patrolling the city. Anything to keep busy, to keep herself distracted. Not that it was ever enough. “You can take one night off, Kara…” Alex let out a sigh that sounded like it had been kept under pressure for a very long time, almost a hiss as her gaze that had been so steely just moments ago softened. “I know this has been hard…” No, you don’t.

“I know you miss her.” “I don’t miss her!” Kara shouted. The ensuing silence and the feeling of suddenly being watched as everyone in the room turned to look in her direction made her cheeks burn. Doing her best to ignore the fact that to the others in the room, she and Alex had become the only two players on the stage of a sold-out show she stalked forward so that she could lean close enough to whisper to her. “Kara…” “I do not miss her,” Kara murmured. She pressed a hand flat against her forehead and let it slip over her eyes briefly like a shroud. In the transient darkness, she saw herself. Not a perfect reflection but her as she had looked trapped in the Fortress’ defenses that Lena had reprogrammed on the fly. Defenses that had been put in place originally as a Luthor failsafe… “Okay,” Alex said placatingly. “You don’t miss her. After what she did to you—” And what did we do to her? Kara thought, the image of herself fading from her mind’s eye as she let her hand fall back to her side. “Can we not, Alex? Please?”

“Why don’t you head home for the night?” Alex suggested as if she wasn’t the reason that Kara had stopped by the DEO in the first place instead of heading straight home after her patrol. “Just think about it, okay? The date… or not date.” “Yeah,” Kara said, already beating a hasty retreat towards the door. She could hear the indistinct whispers of some of the agents in the room as clearly as if they were whispering into her ear instead of someone else’s, ignoring the looks of concern on many of the faces she passed. 

I’m fine, she told herself. She repeated that to herself with each step like a prayer. And when she had put the DEO behind her, had flown up high enough so that the city below had become a bed of glittering jewels, she repeated it aloud with the same quiet desperation one might have when earnestly wishing on a star. “I’m fine.”

Kara wasn’t fine. How could she be when there didn’t seem to be a single potsticker in all of National City? She had tried all of her usual places and been turned away for one reason or another at all of them. Catching them as they were closing for the night, being swamped with orders, and just being plain out of food (although Kara could have sworn she smelled something cooking in the back).

She had however been offered an apology each time she had been turned away. Five apologies of varying sincerity did little to blunt her disappointment at being denied one of the few things that might bring her a tiny bit of comfort. It wasn’t until she had returned home defeated that she realized how strange it had been that every place had known her by name. Not that she didn’t frequent any of them enough for them to know her name, but she knew for a fact that none of them did. She had been a regular customer by virtue only, always having to give her name (sometimes several times) whenever she picked up an order. Not that she minded. But it had been odd to suddenly become a known entity at all five restaurants. Even stranger that a few of them had done a very noticeable double-take when she had walked in as if they had been expecting her.

The words: Could this day get any worse? trembled on her lips when she collapsed onto her couch, still in her Supergirl suit. She didn’t dare speak them aloud, though. She knew better than to tempt fate. Knew from experience that life could turn on a dime and be unimaginably cruel. Krypton’s destruction. Having to watch her home be destroyed before her eyes and at that moment (and for a long time after) a selfish part of her had wished she had been destroyed along with it. 

Compared to that, how could a squabble with Alex and being denied her favorite food ever measure up? Only, she knew it wasn’t just that. It was being faced with the fact that her passion for journalism, something that had fulfilled her in a way that Supergirl never could, had seemingly vanished and her attempts (that had become more and more desperate) to recapture it had only made her more sure that it might be gone for good. It was the distance growing between her and all her loved ones and how little she seemed to care as she watched it happen. It was the unimaginable bitterness that ate away at her like acid from how she had hurt Lena and how Lena had hurt her. It was how at times there seemed to be no bottom to her pain. It was the recurring nightmare she had frequently of being back in the Fortress. Watching Lena disappear into the portal with Myriad. Trapped once more in that glittering cage. Even the most vivid of nightmares couldn’t replicate the pain of kryptonite, but what it could do was convince her sleeping mind that she was trapped there. Trapped with no way of escape. And when she woke up drenched in a cold sweat, she wasn’t sure whether she was in her bed, in the Fortress, or back in the Phantom Zone… 

“It’s the potstickers,” she muttered. Her stomach gave a very loud rumble a few moments later, making it that much easier to pretend that’s all it was. She had plenty to work with in her fridge. At a quick glance with her X-Ray vision, she saw leftover pizza, Thai food, and half of a burrito that looked about the same size and general shape as a small anaconda. But no potstickers. “Maybe if Alex didn’t invite me to the DEO under false pretenses to set me up on a blind date,” she muttered, finding it easy to imagine a scenario where if she had arrived only ten minutes earlier her favorite place wouldn’t have run out of food. That very likely outcome annoyed her almost more than Alex trying to dictate her love life. Lena would understand. The thought was like a bolt from the blue, too quick for her to stop herself from thinking it and too ingrained in her to be surprised that she had. Lena had been the one she had always gone to when she wanted to vent, especially if it was about Alex. She had always seemed to know when Kara simply wanted her to listen to her vent and when she wanted advice. Something that Alex still hadn’t mastered. While she meant well, Kara thought she approached helping her with all the subtlety of a wrecking ball at times. Her hamfisted attempt at getting her out of her funk by setting her up with a stranger was evidence of that. 

Alex is being so annoying today! You wouldn’t believe what she did. She actually tried to set me up on a date!! Sometimes she just needs to mind her own business!! And every Chinese place in the city is out of potstickers. And when I say ‘every’ Chinese place I mean every single place. I checked them all.Writing the text was cathartic, the modern-day version of writing a letter that you had no intention of sending. The relief would be fleeting, of course, although Kara had no idea just how fleeting. 

She had tossed her phone aside and begun taking mental stock of what she had in her cupboards and fridge, trying to figure out what to do for dinner when her phone chirped weakly from underneath one of her throw pillows. 

She swiped her finger lazily over the screen and felt her stomach enter freefall.

“Oh, no no no no…” Kara squeezed her phone hard enough to produce an ominous cracking noise that made her drop it directly onto her face. Flinching, she let it slide down into the crook of her neck before scooping it up, careful not to crush it (regardless of how tempting that sounded at the moment). 

She dragged her index finger over the screen and stared open-mouthed at the message she had never meant to send, but had done so anyway. She let her eyes unfocus and slowly zero in again as if that might make the message disappear. 

When her vision sharpened again and she saw the message was still there, Kara let out a low moan, wishing she could have willed it out of existence through sheer desperation, certain that if such a thing were possible she would have no trouble at all pulling it off. 

But it was the message just below it that made her do a double-take. 

I couldn't care less about the potstickers, but please, do go on about how awful Alex is… 

The message was so unabashedly Lena that Kara had no trouble imagining her speaking the words aloud, the imagery so vivid that she could have sworn she heard Lena's voice echoing in her head. 

She stared at it a moment longer before she typed out a very hasty, I'm sorry, not sure what else she could say. Her thumb hovered over the send button, a bitter smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. That wouldn't get a response. She was certain of that. Not when the other apologies she had sent had never once elicited a response from Lena. The apologies she had agonized over sending in the first place and regretted on the days when her anger at Lena outweighed the pain of missing her, of hurting her. 

[octuscle]

Studying has been so stressful lately ? Have you got something to help me relax ?

Thursday morning, 8:00 a.m. You park the old Toyota Prius that you took over from your mother in the student parking lot. Thank God it's the weekend soon, you think. But you don't feel like going to the microeconomics lecture right away. Integration of AI in the pricing of inhomogeneous markets. Unfortunately, you're not one of those nerds who can jerk off to the lecture notes. But you have to go through it now. Before you go in there, you surf through Instagram a bit. An ad for Chronivac TimeTravel pops up. It looks silly… Kind of like a role-playing game. You have to choose a character. You think about how your dad always raves about his college days. Maybe it would be cool if it was 1983. And if you were a bodybuilder. A stupid meathead. You choose that as your character. You'll worry about the rest later. Your lecture is about to start. And you still have to fight your way through the group of activists protesting against the climate policy.

The lecture is really too complicated for you. AI is a complex subject. But in combination with microeconomics? Whoever came up with that… You breathe a sigh of relief when the lecture is over. As well as you can with your face mask on. This pandemic is really exhausting. But it's good that at least there are lectures in presence again. This videoconference crap is really not mature yet. Next lecture is Spanish for Business. That's more your thing. The professor is really hot. Good motivation to go back to the workout later. You've been spending every free minute in the gym for two months, and you're starting to see results.

During the lunch break you sit with the lads from the wrestling team. Wrestling is not your thing. But the lads look like bulls. And you like that. You talk about the legalization of cannabis in Canada. That would be a cool thing here too. You've pretty much given up smoking and alcohol since you got into bodybuilding. But you don't think there's anything wrong with a little weed now and then.

At 4:00 p.m., university is over for you for the day. You sit down in the five-year-old VW Jetta that you took over from your mother. It's really embarrassing. You feel ashamed every time you drive it to the gym. Let's see, maybe you can at least put a cool matte black finish on it…

The workout was awesome again. You totally forgot the time. You're back in your car at 9:00 p.m. and drive to your dorm. You turn on the news while you prepare your dinner. China's Vice President Xi Jinping is appointed vice chairman of the Communist Party's military commission. The 57-year-old is seen as a potential successor to state and party leader Hu Jintao. Boring stuff… You certainly don't have to remember that name.

The alarm clock rings at 5:00 am. Breakfast. And off to the gym. The car radio is talking about a possible invasion of Iraq. Many of your buddies from the gym were in the army or navy… Their nerves are on edge. You can understand if you still have friends or family who might have to go to war. But 09/11 must be avenged!

Before university, leg training is the order of the day. You are proud of your colossal thighs. Many of your buddies only work out the upper body. You have the best proportions here. You've only been lifting iron for two years. But for you it's not a leisure activity, for you it's a religion.

You're just in time for your lecture. Game theory. You take your pad and pen and start taking notes. A laptop would be really cool right now. But you know four or five people on campus who have one. It's just incredibly expensive… But you won't need much longer for your bachelor's degree in sport management. Then you will hopefully be able to afford something like that. And hopefully also a new car. Your Jeep Wrangler is a cool car. But it's also eleven years old. Built in 1980… At least it gets you to the gym at 4:00 p.m. reliably.

Some dumbass turned on CNN instead of MTV on the workout floor. Some shit with the Soviet Union. Apparently everything is falling apart there and the former Soviet republics are forming a new union. Boring shit. Fortunately, someone quickly switches back to MTV. Good Vibrations with Marky Mark. Cool guy. But quite a weakling. You do a double bicepz pose in front of the mirror. You've been here every free minute for almost three years. Maybe you should be in one of those music videos.

After your workout, you wanted to go straight to bed. But it's Friday night. 10:00 p.m. The lads ask if you'd like to go to the late show of the new film with Michael J. Fox. Back to the Future. Why not. The movie's pretty funny, too. Time travel. Strange conception… But you like the idea…

Saturday morning, October 22, 1983. At 10:00 you're back at the Gym. On the way here, you've been listening to the radio about peace demonstrations in Europe. The Russki is once again threatening nuclear war. And we are stationing Pershings in Germany. Bonnie Tyler's "total eclipse of the heart" is playing from the speakers in the gym. Fuck the Russki and fuck the Germans. You're all about getting your muscles burning. At 2:00 p.m., your shift at the counter begins. Tonight you and your pals are going to wrestling. That would be a cool alternative. You as the new Hulk Hogan! But until that happens, you help out at the gym on weekends. And during the week, you'll drive a backhoe on a construction site. Hey, it's a cool life. You don't want any other!

[ehliena]

I read that in ancient china, a woman who likes polishing mirrors is euphemism for lesbian sex soooo....

Imagine Kyoshi saying she used to polish mirrors where she and Rangi used to live and Rangi gets red as her armor.

When she explains it to Kyoshi later, Kyoshi is all, oh. Well. We're dating now so why would that embarrass you.

And Rangi would go, I know we're dating Kyoshi but announcing our sex life in the middle of a state dinner is hardly appropriate.

[determinate-negation]

and why are israelis talking about going to china like its a threat

“Rosenfeld arrived in China with one of his brothers, but did not integrate into the Jewish community in the city. His political leanings led him to seek out the local Communists, as did a small group of other Jews. The latter included the reporter, Hans Shippe, who greatly influenced Rosenfeld’s views, and the Jewish-Austrian physician, Richard Frey, who had experiences similar to those of Rosenfeld. The Chinese Foreign Ministry website, which provides added proof of the country’s great respect for Rosenfeld, posted an article that quotes him as saying that he did not come to China to lead a comfortable life, but that he came to join the revolution. And he did in fact do that.

[…] The Chinese Communists considered Rosenfeld one of their own. He was close to the highest-ranking officials in the party, including Liu Shaoqi, who would later become the President of the People’s Republic of China after Mao Zedong’s death, and to Mao himself. He also forged a deep friendship with the Communist commander, Chen Yi, who would later go on to become the Mayor of Shanghai and Foreign Minister of China. The two shared a love of literature and poetry, took hikes together, and had long conversations in French. Chen Yi also wrote poetry, and an anthology of his writings includes a “Letter to Comrade Rosenfeld,” in which Chen Yi supports the decision made by his friend, the European doctor, to join the struggle of the People’s Army of China.

Rosenfeld believed that the Communist Party would free the Chinese people from both the Japanese invaders and the Kuomintang. In 1942, he became a member of the Chinese Communist Party, and he is still considered a national hero in China.

At the end of 1949, after the People’s Republic of China was founded, Rosenfeld decided to return to Vienna. His Chinese friends advised him to remain in China, claiming that Europe no longer had a place for him. But Rosenfeld wanted look for relatives who had survived the Holocaust. At a farewell dinner held for him before going back to Austria, Chen Yi spoke about his friend’s huge contribution to the revolution and awarded him a badge of merit.

After a short time in Austria, Rosenfeld tried unsuccessfully to return to China. He also tried to emigrate to the United States, but was denied a visa due to his ties with Communist China. In 1951, he moved to Israel, settled in Tel Aviv, and worked at Assuta Hospital. It appears that he was actually waiting for a visa to return to China, but within less than a year he died of a heart attack at the age of only 49.”

and he didnt even want to move to israel. zionism and its alliance with antisemitic movements (like american anticommunism) is the negation of the diaspora. slightly tangential to this post but the red scare disproportionately targeted jewish americans. post war us jewish institutional leaders choose to move to the right in their dedication to israel and support for the us government, betraying socialist and anti zionist american jews

[ballad-of-birdy-lamb]

heyyaaaaa can i pretty please request for an atticus x reader? maybe atticus grows a little liking for his new neighbor (reader) and has been inviting them over for dinner a little too often and his kids are like “you sure you don’t like them 🤔?” And atticus tries to brush it off but it’s very obvious

You never knew how much I really like you.

Atticus Finch x Gender Neutral! Reader romantic headcanon to (small) fic Summary: Atticus's feelings were beyond noticeable, even to Jem and Scout Warnings: None Word Count: 1.4k ₊˚⊹ᰔಇ.

The first time Jem and Scout see Atticus so red in the face is when they are walking back from returning Dill to his house. Their father was standing by your fence, smiling happily as you talked about your day. His cheeks were red as he admired you. When the two got close enough, they heard him ask you to come over for dinner. You accepted it as any good new neighbor does, said your goodbyes, and went back into the home.

“You’re real red-faced, Atticus,” Scout would point out, squinting to look up at her father. Atticus looked over at them and wiped his face, not realizing how obvious it was. He picked her up carefully and walked down the sidewalk back to their home.

“It’s from the sun,” he justifies casually. They felt it was off, he was in the sun all the time, grew up in the south, and they never saw him sweat or undone. His justification made little sense to them.

Atticus spent the night helping Calpurnia set the dining room up for dinner later that night, setting the table with the fine China the kids barely saw outside of very nice holidays or very nice guests. Each moment made Scout and Jem question him more.

“They’re just a new neighbor, why do they get the good China?” Scout would ask plainly, though her tone carried an odd judgmental characteristic. Atticus shook his head and set another plate in Jem’s usual spot.

“They’re still new to the town, it’s good to show them that they’re welcome,” Atticus answered and gave the girl the forks, motioning for her to help set up too.

The dinner was spent with Atticus (a little too cheerfully by Jem’s idea) asking you questions about your life before coming to Maycomb, what you did for a living, and how you were as a person. Scout and Jem would occasionally pipe in and ask you questions, mostly having to do with how you feel about random things (things they like, the Radleys, etc.).

The dinner would end well… that’s what Jem and Scout would say if they didn’t have to go to bed before you left. While they got ready for the night, they occasionally would hear your laugh with Atticus’s, and the sound of the dishes being put away. Just before you left, they got to their bedroom window, watching you leaving the house with a smile. Atticus was probably smiling too, again, a little too red-faced for Scout and Jem to think it was nothing but the sun.

Weeks would go by and seeing you over in their home wasn’t new at some point. The two would wait, watching the corner for Atticus to come home, getting bored from it, and look around to find him talking to you. You stood by your white fence and spoke with great joy on your face, a similar expression on their father's face. They could only guess what was offered by Atticus once they saw the fine China later that night.

“Do you think adults cannot have normal adult friendships?” Atticus asked, sitting down in the living room chair, the accusations of adoration finally spilled by Scout. The sound of sizzling food in the kitchen filled the home with a warm glow, not only from the smell but also from the warm orange light. Scout stood with a blank face and shook her head.

“No,” she said aimlessly. Atticus smiled slightly at her bluntness.

“You had them over twice last week alone,” Jem chirped as he walked from the dining room. “And all the food Calpurnia keeps making for you both are very nice.”

“I treat my guests well,” Atticus stated simply, picking up his book, and opening one of the pages. “I am nothing more than a friend.”

The dinner was spent again like the weeks before, Atticus getting more comfortable with the talking points, and accepting whatever witty comment you made with a chuckle. Scout would fake a gag if a topic changed to something more romantic than she would want her father to be a part of and Calpurnia would pull her away and give her a talk about being kind to her guests. But you weren’t a guest at this point! You essentially live here!

Atticus couldn’t hate you, neither could Jem and Scout. You were kind, even if their father found you fond in a way beyond friendship, it was slightly understandable. You spent your time telling them interesting stories about your life before Maycomb, odd stories about how you’d live before the simplicity of now.

“Atticus likes them,” Jem would say, sifting through his pyjama drawer. You had arrived that night barely an hour before their usual bedtime, only giving them a small amount of time to chat and ask questions.

“I know,” said Scout honestly.

The dinners get more personal, later in the day, there is more time for you and Atticus to be alone without the children needing entertainment, allowing adult talk. Jem and Scout being gone meant he was left with you, getting your attention more to how he truly acted.

The redness of his cheeks, the smile on his face most of the dinner didn’t just get past you. You have been over so many times there wasn’t a moment when you didn’t notice those things. By the end of the dinner, you found your way to the swing on the porch.

“How do you feel about me?” You asked after several seconds of awkward silence. The night had grown quiet, the only sound was the chirps of crickets and cicadas. Atticus sat so close the warmth of your thigh was felt by his own.

“What do you mean?” Atticus asked after clearing his throat. He gently took his glasses from his face and wiped the lenses with a handkerchief. You hesitated momentarily, wondering if you were overreacting and overthinking, or if your ideas were true.

“I mean…,” you trail off, turning your eyes to your hands. “Do you like me?”

Atticus wiped the lenses of his glasses carefully, smiling slightly at the idea. “I do like you,” he admitted, looking away from his glasses for a second to look at you. “You’re very kind, a good neighbor if you will.”

You muse at his answer and shake your head. “No! I mean to have feelings for me. Do you like me like that?” You hastily specify, watching him closely. Atticus moved slowly, taking his time cleaning one of the smudges from the left lens. It was horrific how slow he was moving to answer. “I’ve seen how you look at me.”

“I am glad you can see,” Atticus jokes with a small smile, placing his glasses back on the bridge of his nose. “I have grown a fondness for you… I wouldn’t say it grew as time went on, I thought you were attractive when I first saw you.”

Your eyes stayed on him as he spoke, taking in his words silently. “I’m sorry I couldn’t tell you at a romantic moment, over a nice dinner or something you would have preferred. But since you asked, I might as well confess,” his words flowed out naturally, like he was in front of a jury, confessing something minute.

“Prove it,” you challenge. It was mostly a joke, very obviously too, but part of you wanted to know he wasn’t just saying those things to get your hopes up. No, Atticus wouldn’t do that. Then again, you only knew so much.

“A kiss then?” He straightened himself and sighed. “I usually wait a bit, but lord only knows how long I’ve got. I might as well kiss you before I can’t.”

Your head went from a slow to a quick nod. Yeah, that is true. Getting a kiss in wouldn’t hurt anyone, definitely not you. Your face was beyond warm and if Atticus dared to touch your face now, he might ask if you’re sick, which wouldn’t be preferred for obvious reasons. “Yeah… yeah, that will do,” you mutter with a smile.

Atticus nodded and moved until your thigh squished against his. It was very obvious he hadn’t done such a thing in a long while, he was beyond rusty with you in his hold, his hands moving from your shoulders to your upper arms. The smell of sandalwood filled your nose as he moved his glasses to his head, letting them sit carefully before leaning in just enough.

His lips were warm, thankfully. You could only hope yours were too since it seemed your spirit left your body at that moment. Atticus was just as gentle when he kissed as when he spoke, keeping it intense enough to be romantic but not too much to be something more. Your hands, almost like instinct, help his lapel, needing to keep him close.

If only he could kiss you forever.

₊˚⊹ᰔಇ.

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