#thank god it happened today and not when i was 13

[dolokhoded]

i Cannot believe i just went to youtube to listen to cancer by mcr and got a razor ad

[reallyromealone]

Title: hazbin security

Fandom: hazbin hotel

Characters: hazbin hotel ensemble, male reader

Fic type: story - romance

Pairings: angel dust x reader

Warnings: male reader, reader insert, angst, rape themes, reader is a giant, reader is a sweetheart, mentions of nsfw, adult language, mention of kinks, hurt to comfort

Notes: bing bong

🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️

The hotel went quiet as a hulking demon stepped in, having to crouch under he door to enter "uhh, hi?" Charlie said putting on a friendly smile as the 13 foot tall demon stared at her quietly and held up a paper advertisement along with a resume "oh! You're here for the security position!" She said excitedly as the massive demon nodded, everyone too unnerved by his hulking presence to even begin to think about anything else.

Charlie and Alastor went to the back with him, husk looking at angel dust with raised eyebrows as the door closed "holy shit!" Husk said to his close friend who's sipped his martini, nodding "he's a fuckin' giant, seriously! He could crush us!" The spider demon said almost awe struck as he barely hit the demons chest, angel knew he was probably hung like hell... Something he could feel in his stomach.

Charlie busted in "everyone meet our newest security! (Name)!" Charlie introduced the silent demon as the others awkwardly waved to no response as (name) nodded softly, a passive expression on his face.

And that's how it was, everyone went about their days as (name) despite his size lurked quietly in the shadows out of view but angel always kept a keen eye on him, he stressed him out... Reminded him of the people val made him sleep with.

Especially since (name) always glanced at him, like he was suspicious of him... Angel hated it.

"Give me the word, I'll handle him" husk would back up angel dust and the spider demon smiled at his best friend "thanks husky" he smiled, happy he found a genuine friend in the bartender as (name) threw out some crackhead who pissed on the carpet in defiance.

It was late as Angel dust walked to the hotel, exhausted and drained as his heels clicked against the pavement, today was shit and he just wanted to go home...

"Excuse me?" A gravelly voice called as the spider turned to see an imp with an intense glare "you're... You're Angel dust right? I saw your work..." They said seriously and angel felt his hair stand on edge as he looked at the other "what's it to ya?" Angel hissed out as the imp stepped closer and angel stepped back "I really... Admire your work... You look amazing on the big screen though... It pales to the real deal" they said heatedly as Angel felt he needed to get away and fast "no you don't!" The imp hissed out as he grabbed angel dust and pinned him to the ground "I wanna see if you're like how you are on the big screen!" The imp said maniacally as he tore at angels shirt.

Angel felt tears well up in his eyes, fuck he didn't want this to go how it did...

No!

Shit!

"Show me your cute-- holy shit!" The imp was lifted as angel shook, looking at his savior and was surprised when he saw (name) throw the imp like a ragdoll before lifting angel into his arm, the spider secured snuggly in his bicep as he went back to the hotel without a word. Angel was shaking as he just let (name) take him wherever, he didn't care anymore... He just wanted this night to be over.

(Name) Put his sweater over the other, nights in hell we're ice cold and (name) seemed genuinely worried as he took the scared demon back to the hotel. (Name) Didn't speak a word as angel looked up at him fearfully as he processed what happened.

The lobby and the hotel was pretty empty as it was late as everyone was either at home or in their respective rooms, the massive demon just clicking the elevator button as he glanced down at the other before looking forward.

"Wait this isn't..." Oh god, angel panicked as they passed his room and He felt his fears confirmed as they went to (name)s room and he was plopped on the bed unceremoniously, closing his eyes and expecting the worst until a t-shirt handed to him and the white haired demon watched as (name) turned around, Angel realized he gave him one of his massive shirts that fit like a dress. He hid the smile on his face at the fact the massive demon wanted to respect his privacy even though every part of angel had been broadcasted across hell.

But it felt nice... Being respected.

Angel felt awkward as he spoke softly "I'm uh, I'm finished changing big boy" he hoped it wasn't some kink, a lot of demons loved seeing angel in their clothes and fucking like that but was more surprised when (Name) Left the room as angel processed what happened and was elated to see the massive demon gold a tiny piggy in his hand, setting him in angels lap "nuggie!" Angel smiled as (name) sat on the ground, even sitting he held perfect eye contact "thanks... Why did you help me?" Angel didn't get it, no one ever did anything in hell without wanting something in return and (name) tilted his head "why wouldn't I?"

"So do you wanna fuck as a thank you?" Angel asked bluntly and (name) just stared at him "no"

"Then why would you help me if you didn't want to fuck?!"

"You deserve to be treated with respect, i wasn't going to allow such scum to treat you with anything less" the demon grunted, angel realizing that this was the first conversation be ever had with the other, the demons voice soothing to his ears. "you aren't as intimidating as I thought" angel said genuinely as he slid down beside (name), smiling up at him "I intimidated you?" (Name) Seemed genuinely confused and angel cackled "we all were! You're a massive demon who never talks!" (Name) Looked down at his own body and seemed to be in thought "that must be why people run..."

Angel let out a genuine laugh and kissed the others cheek "you ain't intimidating at all anymore to me!" He teased and (name) seemed flustered a bit at the others actions "nuggie seems to like ya" angel said as the tiny piggy crawled into (name)s lap and promptly fell asleep, normally he stuck to angel and angel alone.

"I just admit I have been feeding him little treats, my apologies" (name) seemed embarrassed as angel felt his heart melt a bit, not only was this giant so sweet to him but his pet!

(Name) Let angel sleep in his bed, the demon trying to set up shop on the floor when angel practically forced him on the bed "it's big enough for both of us!" And angel didn't want to sleep alone, the night shaking him up as he snuggled into (name)s side.

Waking up, angel was being held like glass as (name) cuddled him close to his chest as If he were the most precious thing in the world.

Angel didn't want to move, the domestically sweet energy making him feel emotions he wasn't used to.

And god was (name)s chest the most comfortable thing ever, practically smothered by the large pectoral muscles and his massive arms keeping him secure.

Maybe he could close his eyes and enjoy this a little longer...

When (name) woke he gently tucked the spider in as he got out of bed, grabbing a sweater for the other and a pair of boxers for him to wear as he wasn't sure if Angel wanted to wear sleep clothes when he woke...

What he didn't know was angel woke and stared at him curious as the massive demon out together some clothes for him, already dressed for the day and a goody smile played on his face.

He was gonna fuck this demon.

But romantically.

Angel stuck to (name) all day, the bigger demon letting him sit on his shoulder as he went about his day, angel dust talking away as the other listened carefully.

Eventually (name) needed to attend to things as he set angel carefully at the bar and walked off to do whatever it was charlie and Alastor needed him to do.

"So like, you fucking the big guy?" Husk asked bluntly and Angel dust explained what happened, the massive demon being nothing short of a gentleman to the lustful demon "he's only touched me to give me clothes or if I initiated it!" Angel was confused, usually people touch him first and without asking but (name) always looked at him for assurance before doing anything to the white spider, it was nice.

He felt special.

"You deserve someone nice like that, he's always watchin' ya, at first I thought he was glaring but now I think he was worried for ya" it was true, (name) always kept an eye on angel dust and the spider thought (name) was suspicious of him but...

Angel returned to the security demons room that night and (name) looks like a surprised puppy as he let the other in, angel looking up at him expectantly "I wanna fuck you but romantically" angel said simply and (name) tilted his head "you know you don't need to fuck me to be with me" he said simply and angel looked suspicious at him "what? You into cucking?"

(Name) Just lifted the spider and set him in his lap, absolutely tiny comparatively as he turned on the tv and pulled the blanket over them, kissing angel dusts forehead sweetly. Though their relationship seemed a bit rushed, angel couldn't help the goofy smile on his face as he snuggled into (name)s chest, the larger demon kissing his head softly.

Yeah...

He could get used to this.

[edenesth]

The Way to His Heart [14]

Pairing: general!Seonghwa x wife!reader

AU: arranged marriage au (Joseon era)

Word Count: 3.8k

Summary: Life has been hell ever since your mother's passing many years ago. Despite being from a prominent family, you've never received the privileges associated with it. It only got worse with the arrival of your stepmother and her daughters. When the intimidating General Park was in search of a wife, your father seized the opportunity to dispose of you, simultaneously securing a connection with the powerful general—killing two birds with one stone.

Part 13 | Fic Masterlist | Part 15

"J-Jinjoo? Is that you?"

Your breath caught in your throat as you observed the scars scattered across her body, wounds that hadn't been there the last time you saw her. The severity of her punishment was evident, and judging by the marks, it seemed unlikely they would fade anytime soon, if ever.

The younger girl smirked bitterly, "Are you happy now? All five of us have been beaten nearly to death, left with scars that will likely never fully heal in this lifetime. Mother will serve until the day she dies, and the three of us will pay for a good chunk of our lives!"

As if anticipating your inquiry about the former minister, she shook her head and balled her fists, "Father has endured enough beatings and torture to render him almost paralysed, and guess what? He's been exiled to god knows where. If you want more details, perhaps you should ask your husband about it."

Your heart sank at the mention of Seonghwa, "Wh-what do you mean? Your punishments were determined by His Majesty. Why would my husband be involved—"

She scoffed incredulously, "Did you truly forget who General Park really is? He sat back and enjoyed the show while we suffered, allowing the torture to happen. That absolute monster—he did this to us; he ruined our lives forever. I mean, sure, we weren't great to you either, but look at you now, Lady Park. It's all thanks to us that you're who you are today."

Noting your silence, she continued with a sly edge, "Though I wouldn't celebrate too soon if I were you. Who's to say when he'll show his true colours once he's grown tired of you?"

Before you could respond, Hongjoong appeared at your side, his tone laced with disbelief, "Worry about yourself first, peasant. Oh, the audacity of this young lady. Do you even realise who you're addressing? How dare you try to twist this around and play the victim? You and your family got what you deserved. Count yourself lucky that you're still alive and well, hm?"

The dressmaker turned to signal the factory owner and the elderly man immediately rushed over anxiously, "S-sir, what brings you to this part of the factory? P-please, allow me to escort you out."

Halting the man, Hongjoong gestured towards your stepsister, "This one right here was being disrespectful to Lady Park. Would you mind teaching her a good lesson for me? Otherwise, I may have to reconsider our choice of fabric supplier."

Suddenly realising her mistake, Jinjoo trembled like a leaf under the owner's stern gaze. He bowed repeatedly at you and your friend, "O-of course, sir! Rest assured, I'll ensure she never forgets her manners again. You have my word!"

As Hongjoong guided you out of the store, you remained silent, your thoughts swirling from the disturbing revelation that the general had been involved in the punishments of your family.

Walking alongside the dressmaker, the weight of the revelation bore down on you like a suffocating blanket. The image of Seonghwa, once your loving husband, now tainted with the sinister aura of someone who could watch others suffer without flinching, haunted your thoughts. Sure, you were there to witness him extracting the confession from your father, but you never fathomed that he would actually be involved in the subsequent punishment.

Your stepsister's words echoed in your mind, stirring up a cocktail of dread and uncertainty. Could it be true? Have you really forgotten the true nature of General Park? The man you had once trusted implicitly now appeared in a new, unsettling light. The realisation sent shivers down your spine as you contemplated the implications.

Fear gnawed at your insides as you entertained the chilling possibility that if he could inflict such cruelty upon your family, what would stop him from doing the same to you if ever he grew displeased? The thought sent a chill down your spine, leaving you questioning everything you once believed about the man you loved.

Throughout the remainder of the day, you remained unusually quiet, your thoughts clearly elsewhere. Hongjoong opted not to pry, deciding to wait until you were back within the safety of your home before broaching the subject. Despite his efforts to lighten the mood and draw a smile from you, it seemed futile. He was acutely aware of the impact Jinjoo's words must have had on you, especially given your delicate emotional state. After enduring years of mistreatment, he could see how trusting others fully must be an immense challenge.

Later that evening as you sat down for dinner together, he finally broke the silence, setting down his chopsticks with a sigh, "What's on your mind, Lady Park? You know you can talk to me, right?"

You paused at his question, pondering whether to confide in him about your inner turmoil. How would he respond? Would he be disappointed in you? After all, the general was his close friend. It seemed likely he would take Seonghwa's side and defend him. Though your husband hadn't given you any reason to doubt his affection thus far, his decision to hide this information from you must carry some significance.

"It's nothing, Hongjoong. Maybe I'm just feeling a bit weary after our day out," You mumbled, resuming your meal and hurriedly stuffing more food into your mouth to avoid conversation. He frowned at your behaviour and gently intervened, placing a hand on yours, "Hey, hey, slow down. The food isn't going anywhere; it's all yours."

With his arms crossed over his chest, he shook his head disapprovingly, "Who are you trying to fool with that lie? You might be able to deceive anyone, even your dumb husband, but not me. You were perfectly fine until you ran into your... into her."

You froze, caught red-handed in your attempt to deflect. You should have known better than to think you could fool Hongjoong with such a feeble excuse. Instead of scolding you, he softened, uncrossing his arms and leaning in, his eyes full of understanding.

"Listen, I'm sorry I wasn't there by your side to defend you earlier. I should have prevented all of that from happening today; it's entirely my fault. When I heard what she said to you, I knew it would affect you. And now, seeing you like this, I can tell I was right. Don't you dare believe any of her ridiculous words, you hear me?"

Setting down your chopsticks shakily, you turned to face him, despair etched clearly on your features, "But Hongjoong, what if there's truth in what she was saying? Wh-what if he eventually grows tired of me? Will I end up suffering like all of them too?"

The dressmaker didn't have the heart to berate you, understanding your doubts despite the internal frustration he felt at your stepsister for undoing all the trust you had in Seonghwa with just a few words.

He released a deep breath and offered a smile, "Have you forgotten everything I've told you about how he's different when it comes to you? He would never do anything to hurt you; I can vouch for him. As ruthless as General Park can be, he reserves that side only for those who deserve it. Your family deserves every bit of the punishment they received for the harm they caused you. You shouldn't feel any guilt for them, you know?"

Hongjoong leaned in closer, his tone softening, "Trust me, she's just jealous of you. It's obvious she's envious of the life you have now, and she's intentionally trying to stir up trouble between you and your husband. Don't let her get to you. You and Seonghwa have something special, something she'll never understand."

As his words sank in, you felt a slight sense of relief wash over you. It did make sense that Jinjoo would resort to such tactics out of jealousy. After all, her resentment towards you had always been evident. You felt ashamed for entertaining the possibility of your husband hurting you when he had only ever been good towards you.

However, the memory of the scars on your stepsister's body lingered in your mind, knowing the ones on your father and stepmother were even worse than what you've seen. While you recognised that your family deserved the consequences of their actions, the realisation that Seonghwa had played a part in their suffering made you feel sick to your stomach. Your emotions were in disarray; it was difficult to act nonchalant after learning the unsettling truth.

Despite the turmoil raging within you like a storm, you didn't want to add to your friend's concerns. Putting on a smile, you nodded, "You're right, Hongjoong. I must be silly to let her words affect me like this." You forced a light chuckle and went back to your meal, hoping to change the subject.

Though the dressmaker felt somewhat reassured that you acknowledged his advice, he sensed you were still troubled by what you had learned. He could only hope that with time, you would be able to move past Jinjoo's words. The last thing Seonghwa needed upon his return from war was to find his beloved wife fearful of him.

Damnit, I shouldn't have taken her there.

"General Park hasn't arrived yet, you say? Well, who would have thought he'd become such a loving husband? This Lady Park must be quite remarkable for him to—"

Rolling his eyes, the general heard the familiar deep voice gossiping about him from outside the main tent, where meetings would take place. With a loud clear of his throat, he pulled open the flap and entered, his presence immediately causing everyone in the room to straighten up, "I'm here now, Mingi. It would be great if you could cease your idle chatter and get to work at once."

"S-sir! It's been a while, you look good—"

"Save it, Officer Song."

Acknowledging the command with a salute, the taller man swiftly proceeded to the central table, laying out numerous documents detailing the strategies he had developed, "Yes sir, here are some of the plans I've drafted thus far."

Seonghwa nodded approvingly and approached him. As he listened to his colleague's explanations, a satisfied smirk graced his lips, affirming his keen judgement in promoting the right individual.

General Officer Song had risen to become one of the most esteemed military strategists in Joseon, all thanks to General Park's recommendation. Your husband was notoriously difficult to impress, but Mingi's exceptional talents caught his attention during a particularly challenging battle many years ago. Despite being a mere low-ranking soldier at the time, he devised a brilliant plan that ultimately turned the odds in their favour, leading to an epic victory.

"Ruhon is known to be rash in their decision-making; their impulsiveness is evident in their sudden attack plans," The taller man explained, his fingers tracing over strategic points on the map, "We can capitalise on this by striking where they least expect us. Through my research, I've identified blind spots that will catch them off guard. May I have authorisation to deploy troops to these locations, sir?"

The general nodded decisively, "I have faith in your judgement, Officer Song. You've never let me down in all our years together; I'm confident this time will be no exception."

"Thank you, sir."

Once all the necessary arrangements had been finalised and everyone had been briefed on their roles, the meeting came to an end. While the other officers and soldiers hurried off to relay the information discussed and carry out their assigned duties, Officer Song lingered behind, sharing a knowing look with the general.

Taking a seat beside the person he considered his friend and mentor, Mingi offered a genuine smile, "Congratulations on your recent marriage, hyung-nim."

Returning the smile, Seonghwa gave the taller man a pat on the back, "Thank you, Mingi-yah. I hope you've been well these past few years. Once this is all over, might I hear news of your own wedding?"

Blushing faintly, the strategist shook his head, "Unfortunately, I haven't found my one yet. But I am happy for you, general. Everyone in Joseon seems to know about your new wife and her difficult past. I'm just glad you found each other. I heard you were granted a few days with Lady Park before coming here. How is she holding up?"

The mention of his wife brought a pang of discomfort, evoking memories of your heartbreaking farewell. Throughout his journey to the war site, your husband couldn't shake the image of your tear-stained face, "She's... she's handling it better than I expected, or maybe that's just what she's showing me. When I told her about my departure, she didn't break down. Instead, she smiled at me with understanding and simply asked when I would be leaving."

"Huh, did she really?" Mingi mused, a hint of admiration in his tone, "I suppose now I understand why you're so smitten with her. It seems she's truly as delightful as the rumours claimed." Even from the snippets of what he had heard, the strategist could tell that Lady Park was indeed an extraordinary person, and he could see why Seonghwa held you in such high regard.

With a nod, the general's expression grew sombre, "Indeed, she truly is. But I won't lie and say I'm not worried about her," He admitted, "When she first arrived, I treated her poorly. I mistook her for just another spoiled brat, only to learn she's suffered a life far worse than mine. I'll never forgive myself for that. From that moment on, I vowed to give her nothing but the best. You know, I had plans for a grand wedding, a chance to make up for everything..."

Officer Song's face mirrored your husband's solemnity as realisation dawned, "Then this war happened..."

"Yeah, but that's not all," Seonghwa continued, his voice heavy with worry, "I just... God, what if I don't return to her? I've only just found her..."

Bowing his head, the general felt overwhelmed by his concerns. Mingi placed a comforting hand on his friend's shoulder, "Have you forgotten who you are? You're General Park of Joseon, the King's most trusted warrior. If anyone can make it out of this war unscathed, it would be you. Trust me, you will make it back to Lady Park. And you better invite me to that wedding of yours." The strategist said, his words laced with a touch of humour.

Despite the weight of his worries, your husband chuckled softly, nodding gratefully at the reassurance, "Of course, Mingi."

Before the two could continue their conversation, a soldier barged into the tent, panting heavily, "General Park! Some of Ruhon's troops have been spotted approaching. We need you out there!"

Alright, let's get this over with.

Meanwhile, back in the general's estate, you found yourself in your usual spot in the pavilion. Lady etiquette books lay scattered around, forgotten as your gaze drifted distantly over the tranquil lotus pond.

Regardless of the overwhelming emotions that had consumed you the day before upon learning the truth about your family's punishments, you couldn't deny the longing in your heart for Seonghwa's presence. Being alone in the pavilion now felt even lonelier than before. Accustomed to his warm embrace, his absence left a void that seemed impossible to fill.

However, as you contemplated the absence of your husband's comforting presence, conflicting emotions surged within you.

No matter how hard you tried, you simply couldn't shake the unsettling realisation that the same hands that held you close were also stained with the blood of countless others. Hongjoong's reassurances echoed in your mind, yet a nagging doubt persisted. While he assured you that the general would never harm you, your moral compass grappled with the knowledge that he was capable of inflicting pain without hesitation, regardless of justification.

It just felt so... wrong.

"Ah, is this the famous lotus pond you've mentioned, Miss Jang?" The unexpected voice startled you out of your thoughts. Turning to confirm your suspicions, you let out a loud gasp at the sight of the fourth prince standing before you.

You scrambled to your feet immediately, performing the formal bow, "Y-your Highness! What brings you here?"

Rushing up behind Yeosang, the head maid panted heavily, bowing deeply before you and shooting an apologetic glance, "Mistress, I am so sorry for not alerting you of our guest! His Highness showed up spontaneously without making an appointment prior and wouldn't allow any of us to announce his arrival."

Eunsook nearly had a heart attack when one of the maids informed her that the prince had arrived unannounced, waiting to be greeted at the entrance of the estate. Jongho was absent, having gone out with a few other servants to replenish household essentials. Rushing over, she found that Yeosang had insisted on surprising you personally, leaving her flustered and anxious. With her master now at war, it was evident to her that His Highness was attempting to make an advance on you.

The prince couldn't help but grin at how adorably confused and caught off guard you looked, "Yes, that's right. I wanted to surprise you, Miss Jang. Are you surprised?"

Quickly regaining your composure and summoning the poise of a noblewoman, you nodded, "I guess I am, Your Highness," You said before turning to dismiss the elderly woman with an assuring smile, "It's alright, Eunsook. I was growing slightly bored anyway. Come, Prince Yeosang, let me show you around, and you can tell me why you've decided to pay us a surprise visit."

Recalling his fondness for flowers, you led him through the winding paths of the estate's gardens, each turn revealing a new burst of colour and fragrance. Sunlight danced through the leaves, casting dappled patterns on the well-tended flowerbeds, "Now, I know our humble garden obviously cannot compare to the ones in the palace, but I am very proud of our servants' hard work. What do you think, Your Highness?"

While your eyes remained fixed on the colourful flowers, the prince's gaze was captivated by you, his admiring gaze lingering on your graceful movements amidst the blooms.

"I agree; I think it's absolutely enchanting. While it may be humble, it surpasses the beauty of any of the palace's gardens." He remarked, his words carrying a subtle double meaning. He wondered if you could discern the implied compliment; he was indirectly comparing you to the royals in the palace. In his eyes, you outshone any of his sisters, his father's concubines, and all the potential candidates ever presented to him.

Yeosang found himself torn between amusement and slight disappointment as you appeared genuinely oblivious to the deeper meaning of his words. Your reply, however, pleased him, "Thank you, Your Highness. It seems you have good taste," You attempted a joke. Fortunately, he laughed in response, "I think I do too, my lady."

He halted his steps and turned to you, "I have a question," He said, and you nodded, encouraging him to continue, "Go on. Ask away, Your Highness."

"Even with all these beautiful flowers here, is your favourite still the lotus?" Your heart skipped a beat at the mention of the lotus, a symbol closely tied to memories of your husband. Determined not to show any hint of turmoil, you nodded and answered steadily, "Of course, my prince."

The prince kept his smile intact, "Hmm, I see. Is it solely because the general dedicated a pond full of them to you?"

When you remained silent, he clarified, "What I mean is, if you had the freedom to choose, which flower would truly be your favourite? Instead of accepting what's given to you, I believe you should have the right to make your own choice." It was another subtle suggestion that you should be able to choose your own path, including your life partner, rather than conforming to arrangements made for you.

It appeared that you had grasped the underlying meaning of his words this time. You blinked rapidly as you gathered your thoughts before letting out a chuckle, "Ah, I suppose that hadn't crossed my mind," Shifting the topic, you continued, "Anyway, let us move on from idle chatter. Why don't you enlighten me on the purpose of your surprise visit, Your Highness? With my husband away, I'm unsure if there's anything I can assist you with."

Sensing your slight discomfort, Yeosang decided to get straight to the point, "Right, I'm aware General Park is currently away, bravely fighting for our country. That's precisely why I'm here—I was hoping you would be able to represent him at my upcoming birthday banquet. Her Majesty, the Queen, has also expressed her desire to meet you in person."

Your eyes widened at that, "Sh-she has?"

« Preview of Part 15 »

Feeling like you were left with little choice but to agree, you accepted the prince's invitation to his upcoming birthday banquet, scheduled just a week away.

Since bidding him goodbye, you had confined yourself to Seonghwa's study, burying yourself in your studies. The weight of the upcoming royal event weighed heavily on you. It would mark your debut in royal circles, and facing it without your husband by your side added to your nerves. Could anyone fault you for feeling anxious?

You contemplated seeking help. While Eunsook was supportive, her knowledge of palace affairs was limited. Would Hongjoong or Yunho be able to offer insight? Perhaps Jongho, with his years of service to the general, might have some valuable advice.

A light bulb went off in your head when you remembered San, the King's royal secretary. Surely, he would be the most knowledgeable about the matters you needed help with. However, your enthusiasm waned when you realised you had no means of reaching out to him. Moreover, you doubted he would have time to spare for a little woman like you, given his busy schedule.

Palming your forehead tiredly, you suddenly noticed a shadowy figure loitering suspiciously outside the study. Their silhouette, visible through the paper walls, didn't resemble anyone familiar, and it sent a shiver down your spine. If it had been one of the estate staff, they usually would have announced themselves.

Jumping to your feet, you instinctively grabbed the inkstone from Seonghwa's desk, preparing to defend yourself. With cautious steps, you approached the entrance where the unknown person lingered, apparently trying to catch a glimpse of you, "Who's there? I know you're not one of my staff. If you do not reveal yourself, I won't hesitate to hurt you!"

Your yelp escaped when the individual abruptly swung the door open in response to your words, "Woah woah, it's just me!" He reassured, causing you to pause with the stone halfway raised as you blinked in recognition, "O-oh, it's you..."

Scratching the back of his neck sheepishly, he apologised, "I'm sorry for startling you, Lady Park. In case you forgot, my name is Wooyoung. I'm here on the general's orders to assist you should you need anything."

Dun dun dunnn! Wonder what Prince Yeosang has up his sleeves heeheeee anyway, I just wanted to tell y'all that I'm about to have another crazy week ahead. So, like this part, the next one is probably gonna take a while too😭

Also, Happy Lunar New Year to those of you who celebrate it! As always, thank you for reading and let me know your thoughts! <3

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All Rights Reserved © edenesth // DO NOT REPOST, TRANSLATE, PLAGIARISE OR REPURPOSE.

[star-girl69]

Because Of You

Clarisse La Rue x Fem!AphroditeCabin!Reader

—-

synopsis: years after your rite of passage, the boy who’s heart you broke just won’t leave you alone. clarisse, your girlfriend, quickly decides she’s not a fan.

a/n: should i stop procrastinating and then forcing myself to write shitty fics quickly? probably. but not today!! this is kinda just like an au of dont delete the kisses but… you guessed it… IDC!!!!!!!! from this ask

thank you all so much for patiently waiting i love y’all soooooo muuccchhhhhh 🫶🫶💋 as i mentioned on my acc i have the next week off from school, pls expect more content then!!

Because Of You - Lana Del Rey (Unreleased)

warnings: NOT PROOFREAD, this sucks so bad y’all sorry lolllll, y/n is a year round camper!, starts out very background heavy but i really don’t care 😭, creepy men UGH, ugly bitches not being able to let shit go, im gonna say sexual harassment just incase, swearing, usual demigod stuff y’all know what you’re getting into, jealous!clarisse YESSS, possessive!clarisse ik i screamed!!, protective!clarisse too, slightly graphic makeout scene, i think that’s all, tell me if i missed anything!!

—-

When you were young, you were thrilled by the thought of love.

The idea of belonging not only with someone- bodies fitting together like puzzles pieces- but belonging to someone- wrapping around you like a warm blanket.

Later, your half-siblings would describe mostly similar experiences to yours- an overwhelming desire to be loved, wanted, needed. Ever since you ran into camp with a monster hot on your heels and satyr shouting encouragement next to you- everyone’s stared at you. They poke and prod, they act like they’ve never seen a daughter of Aphrodite before.

It’s annoying, but it makes you feel good- but not quite.

Until Alek came along.

You were both 13, you still believed in soulmates, and you wanted nothing more than to be with each other for the rest of your lives.

You were 13, and he felt like the only one for you.

And when you had to break up with him to fulfill your rite of passage- it felt like the world was ending. You cried for days and begged your sister Phoebe to say it wasn’t a true, it was just a mean, mean prank.

But she couldn’t tell you that, and there were more types of love that romantic.

While you longed to hold someone, to be held- you also craved your mother’s approval like you were starving. You wanted her love, you wanted her to visit you in your dreams, you wanted gifts from her, you wanted everything and anything she could give you.

So, it hurt like you had never known hurt before, but you did it. Alek seemed entirely indifferent to it, almost ignoring you and pretending you hadn’t said it- but you felt a warmness around you, a dove flew between trees, you knew your mother was there and she approved.

Breaking up with Alek felt like the sun had exploded on top of you.

Being with Clarisse felt like the sun was wrapped around you.

—-

After Alek’s initial denial, he went through all the other stages of grief, mourned your relationship like you did, and you came out on the other side with a one-sided agreement to forget it ever happened.

Alek got stuck. Or went back. He started to believe that you were still meant to be, that much you could tell.

Until that day at the training fields when your hand slipped at archery and you almost shot Clarisse in the head- and she had glared at you so harshly while you ran over and examined her head, gushing out apologies and fretting over her.

She pushed you away, hand lingering for a second, eyes softening before she quickly looked away.

“Just… be more careful,” she had said, almost like a question, like she wasn’t sure the words were coming out of her mouth.

And, Gods, were you terrified it was all some secret plan. Make you think it was alright only to corner you in the woods and probably kill you, or something.

And when she asked the next day to teach you how to shoot a bow, you agreed with tears in your eyes, knowing of her reputation, and it took a lot of trust and a lot of swapped secrets for her to prove to you it wasn’t all some elaborate plan.

But even if her plan was to kill you the entire time, you fell in love over her fixing your stance, hands brushing as you accidentally grabbed the same arrow, stolen looks across the pavilion.

It wasn’t until a random kid bumped into you, making you fall and twist your ankle. Clarisse had this look in her eyes that was so genuine, so full of love and care for you, softly caressing your leg after she had punched the other kid in the face.

And you realize as she said you were doing great, limping while she helped you to the infirmary, that this was something.

And as much as you hated the violence being committed over you, it was the hottest thing you’ve ever seen, and the warmth in your chest was all you had ever wanted. This was what it was like to belong with someone, to someone, with her, to her.

This was what it was like to be admired. Loved. Wanted. Needed.

And when she softly told you goodbye, you had kissed the corner of her lips and thanked her- turning to walk into your cabin, ankle already feeling better thanks to the ambrosia.

She grabbed you by the wrist and turned you around, pulling you against her tightly and kissing you so harshly like she had just found the secret to the world in her lips on yours, her hands on your hips.

And when she finally pulled away, embarrassing strings of spit connecting your lips, she said she was sorry. Probably the first time she had ever said that to someone, and you smiled.

“Sorry. It’s just… once your lips were on mine, I don’t think I can ever stop. I don’t wanna stop.”

And she kissed you again and it was all you ever wanted out of this life- to love and be loved, to hold and to be held, and it was all because of her.

—-

The welcome back campfire is your favorite time of year.

It’s when the camp comes alive, when the Gods themselves seem to return to this place- even Mr. D is a bit more lively with all the pure infectious energy running through the first few days of camp. Everyone’s getting settled, classes haven’t started quite yet, and the year round campers get a much needed break.

As much as you and Clarisse wanted to keep things private, when she punches someone in the middle of the pavilion for accidentally bumping into you, it’s not hard to figure out Clarisse cares for you more than she does anyone else.

And after one of your younger siblings, Cara, a 12-year-old notorious for staying up late, saw you and Clarisse kissing that first night- it spread like wildfire.

But it was the winter, so it still felt secret, until summer rolled around and Clarisse kept getting more and more annoyed by every camper who entered the gates. She would grab at you in the middle of meals, drag you into her bed, even kiss you in public- do all these things that seemed so out of character for her, but she was a different person when she was with you.

Everyone had been looking at you oddly all night, shocked, confused, even Clarisse has cracked a genuine smile at someone who dropped their drink- squeezing your hand.

Maybe they had all heard the rumors. Maybe they didn’t believe them.

But it’s all cleared up when Clarisse leads you to the best seat, the log not too far from the fire but not too close, wrapping her arms around you and kissing your temple.

Your cheeks heat up, only because Clarisse is never this touchy in public, and never around this many people before.

All of the eyes on you feel weird- they feel so judging.

And you’re not used to that, however vain it may be.

“Everyone’s staring at us,” you mumble, shuffling closer to Clarisse so your legs are pressed together.

She leans her head against your shoulder. “‘S okay. Don’t worry about ‘em, baby.”

You huff. “Did no one ever teach them it’s rude to stare, though? Like… c’mon.”

She sighs dramatically, lifting her head from your shoulder.

“Stop fuckin’ staring,” she says. Not quiet shouting, but her voice is loud and forceful. Her voice carries weight.

And eventually, at the risk of Clarisse’s wrath, all the wandering eyes stop.

A few of Clarisse’s siblings laugh from around you, commenting that the stares were getting a bit ridiculous, everyone just grateful that you all might get a little reprieve from the overwhelming stares and whispers.

But, you still feel uneasy. Clarisse kisses your shoulder.

And while you look around at the faces very pointedly not staring at you, there’s one person who still is. You roll your eyes, open your mouth to comment on it- but your mouth quickly snaps close at the sight of Alek.

—-

You don’t mention it to Clarisse. Maybe because breaking his heart haunts you, maybe what could have been haunts you.

You try not to think of Alek or that night, you try not to think of the entire age of 13. You always knew that Alek never quite let you go. He still sort of believed that the two of you would come back together- subscribing to some abstract belief soulmates.

You don’t think about Alek. Everything you do is because of her, because of Clarisse.

Sometimes, knowing you have secret admirers makes you feel all happy, but now that Clarisse sneaks you into her cabin every night- it makes you feel weird. You really don’t want anyone except for Clarisse, the idea of even being near someone else kinda disgusts you.

But, you choose to believe that maybe he was just shocked, and he’ll get over it in a few days.

You spend your days in the summer sun with Clarisse, holding her hand on walks through the strawberry fields, still using your archery lessons to spend time together, staring at each other from across the pavilion at meals, dreaming about a future together when it gets dark and you’re forced to whisper softly.

Alek is just always lurking. Is it coincidence? Is he stalking you? Every time you’re with Clarisse, trying to enjoy a nice date, he’s there- staring at you like a lovesick puppy.

And if it wasn’t because of her, you would probably be flattered. But you have Clarisse, you’ve moved on, you’re in love and happy.

It’s the late afternoon, you’re trying to enjoy a long moment with her, breathe in the sweet smell and just feel how happy you are, know it’s because of her.

The fields are still crowded with kids who pushed off their chores until the end of the day, so you and Clarisse stay on the outskirts. Not too far into the woods that’s filled with satyrs and nymphs who have grown very hostile towards any two campers who make their way into the woods. But not too close.

You don’t even register that other people are there. You’re going on about your annoying half-brother, she’s pretending to listen intently- but it’s just enough to be here with her, and at least she’s listening to the sound of your voice. At least that brings her some comfort, and that makes you feel good.

“And then, he said-” you trail off, feeling like something’s crawling all over you, practically being able to feel the anger in the air.

“Hm, what?” Clarisse asks, snapping out of her reverie at your silence.

Alek is glaring at you, of course. It just feels so juvenile. You had received letters from him for years- ones that he didn’t sign- but you knew. He said that the two of you had so much more to give together, that a second chance was all he needed to make you forget about the rite of passage, about pleasing your mother.

Clarisse squeezes your hand, leaning closer to you.

You used to like the feeling of getting those letters, of knowing you were loved and wanted. But now, with Clarisse, because of her- it feels wrong.

She follows your eye line and Alek quickly looks away, back down at the strawberries he’s supposed to be picking.

Clarisse’s hand tightens around yours.

“Who the hell is that?” she huffs.

You suck in a breath. “Alek.”

“Al-huh?”

You smile, despite how uneasy you feel.

“Alek, Clarisse. From my rite of passage?”

“Oh,” she nods, nose scrunching ever so slightly. “The one who left you those creepy letters? Has he left anymore?”

“No, no,” you say, risking one more glance at his back- just to assure yourself. Maybe you’re just making it all up. “Not since last summer. I mean, he was staring at us the night of the bonfire too, he’s always around on all our dates- it’s just creepy, at this point.”

“Sounds like the fucker has a death wish,” she drawls. “I’d be happy to help him with it.”

You bump her shoulder with yours. “Yeah, yeah Miss Violence.”

She smiles back, but she searches her eyes and you can tell she doesn’t like what she sees.

“Hey, c’mon. I’ll kill him if he pulls some shit again.”

“Clarisse.”

“Beat him up?”

“Clarisse.”

“Physically threaten him?”

“Clar-”

She smacks her hand over your mouth. “Shhh,” she smiles. “Don’t stress. I’ll take care of it.”

“Clarisse!” you shout, laughing, but her hand is still pressed tight over your moth.

“Oh, sorry, baby, I can’t hear you!”

“Bitch,” you hiss, and she frowns.

“Mean.”

—-

Clarisse, unfortunately, is true to her word.

Alek finally leaves you a note. It’s simple, unsigned, but obviously him. You recognize his chicken scratch scrawl.

All it says is:

I miss you, we could be something

She writes him a note back, a long one- first talking about all of her accomplishments as a daughter of Ares, then detailing all the ways she’ll make him regret thinking about you.

She tells you now, whispers in her bed, she laughs and your mouth hangs open.

“Clarisse!” you gasp, scolding her with a soft hit to her shoulder.

She rolls her eyes and moves closer to you.

“What else was I supposed to do? Ignore it? You don’t know me if you think I could just ignore some random dude flirting with my girlfriend. He’s a fuckin’ weirdo, and hopefully that note will teach him somethin’.”

“I mean. I doubt it will,” you mumble after a moment.

She smiles, your heart squeezes- because her smile is so beautiful- and because Clarisse never smiles like this. It’s bloodthirsty. It’s almost inhuman. It’s Godly.

“Then I’ll have to teach him in… other terms.”

—-

Dinner this evening is slow and relaxed. It’s Friday, so you’ve all made it to the end of the first official week of camp. Chiron let’s the rules fade away tonight, cabin tables have been abandoned and everyone sits where they want.

A few Hermes kids volunteered to start a fire, Mr D is busy trying to get the new kids to sneak him some alcohol- but he’s hard pressed to find ones who haven’t already been warned not to.

The energy in the air is infectious. The promise of a late wake up tomorrow, a fun night, the feeling of the moon and the fire, warmth on your skin- it’s a recipe for lowered inhibitions, for everything to come a little easier.

Clarisse sits next to you a table in the pavilion. You’re surrounded by Silena and Beckendorf, a few Hermes kids, a few Ares kids- a big mosh of random campers squeezed together at this one table- but it works, for whatever reason.

There’s nothing like laughing at someone’s shitty joke and feeling Clarisse laugh with you, pressed close to her so you can feel her chest rumble, feel her arm squeeze around you.

“He did what?!” Silena screeches, looking at you with wide eyes.

You laugh at her shock, at the audacity of Alek.

She sneaks a quick glance at Clarisse, who seems entirely engrossed in her siblings’ arm wresting tournament at the next table over.

“Yeah,” you sigh, feeling sort of complacent with it now. It’s not like anything will change. You’re here because of her, because of Clarisse. Everything you do is because of her.

Breathing, eating, sleeping. Basic human functions and the need to survive has only strengthened with the motivation of staying alive for her.

“Anyways,” you smile. “Clarisse left him back this big, long note. All about how she’s the strongest girl at camp,” you roll your eyes, but you’re smiling too big to be anything but joking. Besides, everyone knows she’s probably right. “And then threatened him a whole bunch. So, hopefully, he’ll just get his head out of his ass and then everything will be good again.”

You breathe out at the end of your small rant, and Silena smiles sympathetically.

“Hopefully,” she echoes.

But, because of Clarisse, because of her arms around you, you don’t feel anything but peace.

—-

Of course, life is not straightforward for demigods.

At the end of the day, you’re doomed to fall in your parents footsteps- except there is no immortality for you to fall back on. You’re vain and you’re proud, just like your parents, and you step too far, jump too high, and you’re as left dust on the floor.

Even though the same path had been left out for you to repeat, doomed footsteps to follow in, you step where they stepped and expect a different end.

The night is pitch black, besides for the brilliant stars and the bright, bright moon. It makes everything feel so private and secret. It makes Clarisse relax, makes her hold you closer but looser.

It feels good to feel her arm loose around you. She’s not afraid of you disappearing, because she knows of someone dragged you away you would rise up from the waves and straight back into her, into her arms.

The Apollo kids are playing music, voices hum along, the night is on fire with the crackles and the rising smoke, on fire with the peace, the content.

It feels like nothing can hurt you here.

But you’re a demigod, and life is not that easy.

The seat next to you is abandoned, and you barely even take notice as it’s quickly filled again- but you take notice of the eyes on you, of the body leaning forward to speak softly to you.

The fact that he’s here, the fact that he blatantly didn’t listen- you suppose you could have felt some sympathy for before, craving a life that wasn’t his anymore. Living off of memories made him too hungry.

Your mouth presses into a thin line as you recognize the voice in your ear.

“Y/N, I jus’ wanna talk.”

The rest of the table has fallen silent, and you realize everyone had almost immediately taken notice of his entrance- and you could tell by the way Clarisse’s body was tense against yours- he would regret ever coming over here.

“Clarisse,” you mumble, shifting closer to her.

She hooks her head over her shoulder, shifting completely so she’s straddling the bench, pressed up against your back.

Her tone is genuinely confused.

“Are you, like, okay in the head?”

The table, previously silent with fear, now bubbles with forced laughter.

“It’s not of your business,” Alek says, staring directly into your eyes. You feel like a deer caught in headlights, just completely shocked, too scared to move like it will all become real.

Clarisse puts her hand on your forehead and floats it down across your face, and your eyes voluntarily flutter shut.

“You’re not even worthy of being looked at by her,” and you can hear the smile on her voice. She confidence seeping from her pores- you can feel it all with the way she’s protectively wrapped around you.

“Y/N,” he says again, ignoring her through gritted teeth. “I just want to talk.”

“If you say one more fuckin’ word to my girlfriend I’m gonna kill you.”

There’s no smile on her voice, no edge of a joke. Not even angry. She’s deathly calm. She’s focused, like a 20 pound weight sinking to the bottom of the sea. She cuts through whatever she has to and everything else knows to avoid her.

You don’t know why the hell Alek just can’t let the 13 year old version of you go, why he’s looking something where there’s nothing, and you’re just so done with all of this.

You open your eyes, sitting up, letting Clarisse’s arms fall around you in confusion.

“Alek,” you start, softly. “We dated for a month when we were 13. That’s all it was, that’s all it’s ever gonna be. It’s over, okay?”

“Exactly,” he breathes. “A month when we were 13- and we were that good together? We could do so much more now, I wanna show you.”

“Okay, I’m done,” you mumble, standing up.

And without you in between, Alek finally gets a good look at the daughter of war. She’s pure, streamlined muscle. Every inch of her body has been meticulously trained to kill monsters- Alek knows that killing him would be easy.

Clarisse cracks her knuckles and you almost laugh at how cinematic it is.

—-

You hum as you run the alcohol pad over her split knuckles. Clarisse likes to leave the scars like this, the small ones, let them heal on her own. Even though she winces at the feeling, you know she’ll be walking around, proudly showing off her scabs until they finally fade away. She’ll cross her fingers and hope they scar, probably.

Clarisse watches you with admiration, admiring your movements, your voice, even though you’re really not doing anything special. But, to her, everything you do is special.

“Did you see how bad his face was?” she asks, trying to remain calm, but eagerness slips into her voice.

“I did,” you laugh. “It was real bad, baby. Good job.”

She huffs, as if it’s common knowledge.

“I always do a good job, just matters what level of good I’m on. I think this was one of my best works though, huh?”

She admires her split knuckles and you roll your eyes, finally starting to put some bandaids on the clean wounds.

“You’re crazy,” you mutter.

She shrugs. “You’re the one who let me. You’re the one who loves me.”

“Yeah,” you mumble after a moment, not really wanting to lie to her, tease her right now. She smiles soft and sweet, placing her fingertips against your jawline and leaning forward.

“Did you like watching me?” she breathes, her low voice hitting you right in the stomach, breath against your lips.

You circle her biceps with your hands and run them up and down the tense muscle.

“You know I did.”

“Three months no dessert,” she smiles.

“Three months of sharing with you,” you laugh. She smiles wider before finally, mercifully, putting her lips on yours.

Everything you do is because of Clarisse. It feels so good to be close to her like this- practically in her lap- fo feel how strong she is, to know what she did for you today.

It feels so good to know she loves you.

When you pull away, trying to chase her, she dodges you and kisses your jawline, your neck, and you throw your head back and release the most unladylike sounds as she leaves hickies on your neck, seemingly determined to make them as dark as possible, as easy to see. And a lot of them.

“Jealous?” you say, biting your lip to keep in a moan.

“Just want everyone to know you’re my girl. Want everyone to know who makes you feel good, feel loved, huh?”

You stomach twists and your mind goes blank.

“Huh?” she repeats, sticking her face in your neck to breathe in and out, catching her breath. “Why you feelin’ like this, baby?”

“Because of you,” you breathe. “Because of you, Clarisse.”

—-

y/n walking around the next day looking like she got attacked by a vampire

silena trying to be happy for y’all but also concerned for your health

clarisse just being proud as hell

—-

this was small so idk if y’all picked it up but clarisse was jealous before alek even came along- jealous that there were more campers coming! like? she just doesn’t like unworthy losers looking at her girl 🙄

—-

possessive!clarisse i love you so much baby

—-

taglist:

@lvrue @t-wylia @laughingcheese037 @kroumi @urdeadpoet @colezb @rey26 @harmzilla @elliewilliamsbae @amberfreemansburntface @kyuupidwrites @neverwaakeme-up @shark1008 @liballer @heyimadison @nvirskies @pnsteblnme @mar2ss @restellsss @ravisinghs-wife @marsconer @evangelinexo @randomhoex @luvrrish @rebecca37 @saltair-and-palemoonlight @ace-spades-1

[the-thing-inside-your-closet]

Prompts I’ve seen/found online that I have used an inspiration for many things, but mainly DP X DC stuff.

There’s 200 prompts/quotes in there

1. They match each other’s freak to a degree that is dangerous to the public.

2. People often mistake me for an adult because of my age.

3. “I have a solution.”

“Thank goodness.”

“It involves fire.”

“Absolutely not.”

4. Why are you hiding behind me? What did you do?

5. We can’t have a crisis - my schedule is already full!

6. “What’s our exit strategy?”

“Our what?”

“We’re all going to die.”

7. That is a terrible, horrible, incredibly foolish idea. Let’s do it and see what happens.

8. “This coffee tastes weird.”

“That’s probably because it’s not coffee.”

9. “Can I bother you for a second?”

“You always bother me, but go ahead.”

10. “Are you mad?”

“No.”

“So sharpening knives at 2am is just a hobby?”

11. I’m going to give my inner child a gun.

12. Your inability to learn complicated handshakes is tearing this gang apart.

13. I get so affectionate when I’m sleepy it’s disgusting.

14. Leaving a watermelon on someone’s doorstep in the middle of the night is a pretty inexpensive way to occupy a portion of their mind forever.

15. No offence to myself or anything but what the fuck am I doing.

16. I would love to be mysterious but I never shut the fuck up.

17. The divorce rate amongst my socks is astonishing.

18. Adulthood is a scam I want to be a crow.

19. Good morning! God has let me live another day and I’m about to make it everybody’s problem.

20. My house is haunted because I live there.

21. That’s my emotional support entity of questionable moral standing.

22. God released me into the wild and now he’s hunting me for sport.

23. No, no you don’t want to get to know me, I’m better as a concept.

24. I can’t wait until I’m old enough to pretend I can’t hear.

25. Do birds every just fly for fun or are they always on some kind of mission?

26. The older I get the more I understand why roosters scream to start their day.

27. ‘You’ll understand when you’re older.’ I am older and I understand absolutely nothing.

28. Source? It was revealed to me in a delusion.

29. Why do drugs after 30 when you can just stand up too fast?

30. I won’t ever be the bigger person in an argument. God made me 5’ for a reason.

31. This meeting could have been a fist fight.

32. I’ve come to the conclusion that I’m never going to have a midlife crisis because my entire fucking life is a crisis.

33. Anyone fancy going off the fucking rails with me I’ve had enough.

34. Go ahead and get in the pond since you wanna act like a silly goose.

35. My life is like a romantic comedy except there’s no romance and it’s just me laughing at my own jokes.

36. Who the fuck decided to call it ‘emotional baggage’ and not ‘griefcase?’

37. I don’t have a nervous system. I am a nervous system.

38. “What makes us human?”

“Selecting all of the images with traffic lights.”

39. Don’t let anyone else ruin your day. It’s your day. Ruin it yourself.

40. The sixth love language is combat.

41. “I just told you 2 minutes ago.”

“I do not control the remember.”

42. Due to not wanting to. I will not be.

43. My flabbers be gasted daily.

44. “Are you seeing anyone?”

“Like a hallucination, a therapist, or a person?”

45. “You’re the most ridiculous person I’ve ever met.”

“Thank you I try my best.”

46. I tried to embrace my inner child today and the little asshole bit me.

47. I think my dark under eye circles are adding to the aesthetic actually.

48. Being smart has never stopped me from being a complete fucking idiot.

49. Next time I’m opening up to someone will be at my autopsy.

50. Too many songs about love. Not enough song about sword fights.

51. “You’re cute.”

“I’m feral and chaotic, don’t touch me.”

52. I’m not as unhinged as I could be and I want everyone to be great full for that.

53. How dare you know stuff about things.

54. “I have a plan.”

“Is it a good one?”

“I have a plan.”

55. “Are you decent?”

“Not morally, but I’m wearing pants if that’s what you’re asking.”

56. I may have the right to remain silent but I do not have the ability.

57. I don’t want to look ‘pretty.’ I want to look otherworldly and vaguely threatening.

58. If you ever feel safe please remember that I’m out there.

59. “I’m too good for revenge.”

“Well I’m not. Give me the gun.”

60. “You know I really feel like we aren’t seeing eye to eye.

“It’s because you’re taller than me asshole.”

61. “They rely on you.”

“I can’t be blamed for their lack of judgment..”

62. Well, aren’t you a little Ray of pitch black.

63. I can get behind murder but I draw the line at misogyny.

64. In my defence your honour, I simply do not vibe with the law.

65. Life is a tornado and I’m just the cow being spun around for cinematic value.

66. You can burn all the sage you want, I’ll be back.

67. I believe in holding grudges. I’ll heal in hell.

68. You know…they make medication for the way you act.

69. I like men with massive, throbbing vocabularies.

70. My swear jar could finance the fucking space program.

71. “Well if you want my opinion-”

“I don’t. I have my own.”

72. I’m awake but not operational.

73. Due to personal reasons I’ll be going back to sleep.

74. The bags under my eyes are Prada.

75. I identify as a threat. My pronouns are try/me.

76. Audacity must be on sale this year…

77. “Have you ever been handcuffed?”

“Sexually or by law enforcement?”

78. I don’t like salad or eye contact.

79. “Come here.”

“Why?”

“Just come here.”

“No you’re gonna hit me!”

80. “I didn’t catch your name.”

“I didn’t throw it.”

81. I have to keep reminding myself that I am an adult and will be charged as one.

82. Apparently ‘spite’ is not an appropriate answer to ‘what motives you?’

83. There is a fine line between my crazy and my intelligence. I use that line like a jump rope.

84. I don’t know where you got your opinion but I hope you kept the receipt.

85. Sometimes when I close my eyes…I can’t see.

86. Is being stupid a profession or are you just gifted?

87. Some days the supply of available curse words is insufficient to meet my demands.

88. I’m running out of reasons to not stab you.

89. When I said ‘how stupid can you be?’ It wasn’t a challenge.

90. Love at first sight? Tired, boring. Love at first assassination attempt? Spicy.

91. I’m sorry I don’t take orders. I barley take suggestions.

92. And that’s a wrap on another day where I acted like I knew what I was doing.

93. Now if you’ll excuse me…tonight’s bad decision isn’t going to make itself.

94. I take super hot showers to practice burning in hell.

95. I wanna be 14 again and ruin my life differently. I have new ideas.

96. Don’t be ashamed of who you are. That’s your parent’s job.

97. Being an adult is the dumbest thing I’ve ever done.

98. If I’m ever murdered, feel comfort in knowing I ran my mouth until the bitter end.

99. My spirit animal would fucking eat yours.

100. Some people will only like you if you fit inside their box. Don’t be afraid to shove that box up their ass.

101. I wonder if people look both ways before getting on my fucking nerves.

102. If I was a bird, I know who I’d shit on.

103. Giving a fuck doesn’t really go with my outfit.

104. I’m not insulting you, I’m describing you.

105. Life is full of disappointments and I just added you to the list.

106. And then I decided to take a detour to deliver an ass beating.

107. I wanna contribute to the chaos.

108. I’m gay and also stronger than all of you. So don’t try any shit.

109. With all due respect, which is none

110. What, pray tell, the fuck?

111. My arson charges don’t define me.

112. Those are bold words for someone in stabbing range.

113. I don’t understand your specific kind of crazy but I do admire your total commitment to it.

114. I am not above slashing my own tires to avoid going to this family brunch.

115. I don’t want to heal my inner child I want them to get revenge.

116. In order to insult me I must first value your opinion. Nice try though.

117. There’s someone for everyone and the person for you is a psychiatrist.

118. Keep rolling your eyes, maybe you’ll find a brain back there.

119. I think my guardian angel drinks.

120. In my defence, I was left unsupervised.

121. I believe in you. I also believe in Bigfoot so don’t get too excited.

122. If you figure me out I want an explanation.

123. I don’t think I meet the height requirements to ride your emotional roller coaster.

124. When killing them with kindness doesn’t work, try voodoo.

125. Another fine day ruined by responsibility.

126. You call them swear words. I call them sentence enhancers.

127. Stop petting my peeves.

128. What a year this week has been.

129. Don’t follow me I don’t know where I’m going.

130. Due to unfortunate circumstances, I am awake.

131. I didn’t say it was your fault, I said I was blaming you.

132. Please don’t interrupt me while I’m ignoring you.

133. Everyone has the right to be stupid but you’re abusing the privilege.

134. I just know I will die trying to pet something I shouldn’t.

135. At this point, if a clown invited me into the woods, I’d just go.

136. I told him to take care of his eyes because they’re the only balls he has.

137. The trash gets picked up tomorrow. Be ready.

138. My last words will probably be sarcastic.

139. We don’t have time to unpack all that.

140. I may have committed light treason.

141. How is ‘pretty boy’ supposed to be an insult? I’m the prettiest goddamn boy in this town.

142. I’m not interested in being polite or heterosexual.

143. “Based on statistical evidence, I’m immortal.”

“How so?”

“Haven’t died yet.”

144. I’m just here to establish an alibi.

145. Take the day off from being the bigger person and choose violence, you deserve it.

146. Forgive and forget? I’m neither Jesus nor do I have alzheimers.

147. People are so ungrateful. No one ever thanks me for having the patience to not kill them.

148. “I can see your bra.”

“Fucking good it was expensive.”

149. Sir, that’s my emotional support knife collection.

150. My idea of ‘help from above’ is a sniper on the roof.

151. “We’re surrounded!”

“Excellent, we can attack in any direction!

152. Lord give me patience or an untractable handgun.

153. Step back! I’m a professional idiot!

154. “Trust your gut.”

“I have anxiety. My gut is always telling me to abort mission.”

155. Keep your morals away from me.

156. Your existence gives me a headache go stand over there.

157. What, from the bottom of my heart, the fuck?

158. My heart is not a home for cowards.

159. Underestimate me so I can embarrass you.

160. “It’ll be easy. You just have to seduce them.”

“You’re kidding, right? I’m about as seductive as a cabbage.”

161. You’ve got heart, kid. Several hearts. Honestly, I’m a little scared of you.

162. It takes a very special kind of idiot to pull off what you just did.

163. I’m no doctor - but I think he’s dead.

164. I love you. You enormously stubborn pain in the ass.

165. “What brings you here?”

“A continuum of terrible choices.”

“You’d be surprised to know how often people say that.”

166. “I thought we agreed to tell each other when we were bleeding internally.”

“That’s a very specific promise I don’t remember making.”

167. “Did you really google how to flirt with a girl?”

“What? How’d you know that?”

“You do realise there’s a search history?”

168. “I’m gonna…”

“If you kick down the door, I swear…”

“I’M GONNA PUNCH IT WITH MY FOOT!”

169. “Is it still murder if I give them a heads up?”

“That’s a threat.”

“Damn.”

170. Surprise! I’m back from the dead! Isn’t that exciting?

171. Don’t mind me, I’ll just be in the corner, having another existential crisis.

172. I’d agree with you, but then we’d both be wrong.

173. You’re important to me you piece of shit.

174. “Why are your hands purple?”

“That’s a very good question.”

175. Can someone turn off the sun please?

176. “I had a thought.”

“Oh no.”

“I swear it’s a good one this time!”

177. I’ve met bread smarter than you.

178. “Please stop getting shot, it stresses me out.”

“Oh, well if YOU don’t like it.”

179. Dude, we are not asking the dragon for directions.

180. You’ve got as much charm as a dead slug.

181. For you, I could steal the stars - but I can also get them through legitimate means, if that impresses you more.

182. I am under no obligation to make sense to you.

183. You smile like an idiot when you’re talking to them.

184. Don’t you sign to me in that tone.

185. Excuse me. I have to go make a scene.

186. “Shut up.”

“I didn’t say anything.”

“Don’t care. Shut up.”

187. Now that I made it weird, I’m going to make my exit.

188. So uh, I noticed you’re kinda naked. Is that intentional or…?

189. “Do you trust me?”

“No.”

“Smart man.”

190. Well, if you’d woken up properly the first time I kicked you, I wouldn’t have had to do it four more times.

191. “I have NEVER been so insulted.”

“You don’t listen much, do you?”

192. “Don’t you know who I am?”

“Yup. I just don’t care.”

193. I didn’t really know what I was getting myself into. I just thought it would be amusing.

194. I would tell you to be yourself but that almost got us killed last time.

195. “Why aren’t you worshipping me, mortal?”

“Not interested. Thanks.”

196. “I’d rather be dead.”

“Then I have some good news for you.”

197. “Did you hear that scream?”

“Yes, I’m the one who screamed.”

198. “What happened to your-”

“I lost a bet.”

“Why-”

“I don’t want to talk about it.”

199. Reading way above my grade level didn’t get me as far in life as I had hoped.

200. Due to foreseen circumstances well within my control I will be late.

[sugarcoatedcherry]

void state progress and success!!!

I'm updating every day privately (now public) hehe

(scroll down and read pink highlighted paragraph for success story I had started attempting void much earlier than this)

day 1: tried but eventually fell asleep

day 2. did an extensive reasearch, like all day, read ton of success stories, got insane inspiration. believed void was real and manifestations are instant. I tried and got into hypnagogic state. but fell asleep

day 3: re read all the success stories again and again whole day and became more confident, I made mental notes on common symptoms I'd have, affirmed little. all night I played subliminals, binaural beats etc but got tired and fell asleep

day 4: still motivated, angry but persisting, I am affirming, made more mental notes on how I should go about void, did more reasearch on Hinduism interpretation on void, read about void on reddit, YouTube, explore astral projection and sleep paralysis video's comment section (they had similar symptoms just like void) became even more confident with void, tried methods but eventually i got exhausted and fell asleep

day 5: MADE MY OWN RULES. YES, no notes or anything, it's my way baby, it'll go how I want it to go, when I want it go. no more sending asks to bloggers, no more doubting, no more worrying the process. Just believing it will happen. not worrying about the circumstances. I'm very confident that today IS THE DAY 💅

day 6: I couldn't enter, i slept lmao

day 7: I got to the vibrational stage but my thoughts were distractibg and I slept

day 8: I learnt about sleep paralysis and tried that

day 9: last night didn't work, but I'll persist

day 10: i just slept, void is messing with my sleep schedule

day 11: spend A LOT OF TIME researching about void in Hinduism and got a lot of confidence but didn't enter

day 12: AGAIN SPENT A LOT OF TIME RESEARCHING about void in Hinduism but didn't make it

day 13: I'm getting closer to something very important and I need to enter void on a time crunch. I cried

day 14: everything is exhausting, but I still tried entering void but rolled over anf slept

day 15: i drank coffee to stay awake and I'm doing the meditation sitting up so that I don't roll over and fall asleep

(UGHHHHHHHHHH GOD )

day 16: I found a subliminal that made my body vibrate within first 2 minutes of listening?? and I looped it overnight but fell asleep sometime while listening but I'm still hopeful.

day 17: stupid exams

day 18: studied for my next stupid exams

day 19: I am so tired I didn't attempt I wanted to sleep peacefully

day 20: Literally my entire life is on hold because I am trying to get into void, I do realise this is unhealthy but at the same time I am so much confident that I can do it? I don't know how to explain this confidence but I know I will enter the void.

day 21: more exams and didn't attempt

day 22:

I DID IT GUYS I DID IT OMGGG THIS FEELS SO GOOD OH GOD JDKEODJDJDN I LOVE THIS FOR ME I FEEL UNSTOPPABLE I CHANGED MY ENTIRE LIFE THIS IS SO BIG TO ME Y'ALL DON'T HAVE A CLUE AHHHHH. I'M GONNA CRY. I HAVE EVERYTHING I EVER WANTED JSBSJDKDODKSNSN

quick thanks to all loass bloggers on Tumblr and Sammy Ingram (she shitted about void but it's okay lmao is her limiting belief but I'm thanking her for introducing the law to me) my fav bloggers are @rosellesworkshop @fleurlx @blushydior @stargirl-kira @multiversebaddie @zen-shu @prettymindset111 @luvforend @sa777urn @aphroditeapprenticee @gorgeouslypink @littlemissprettyprincess @sirensplayhouse thanks for answering my asks.

ANDDD all the anons who posted void success stories and thanks to @voidsuccess for compiling them!!! (i used to obsessively surf her blog day and night until day 10 lmaoo)

[stevenssacrab]

Collision

⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ☾ ⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ✧ ⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ*

Summary: On a routine bike ride through your local park, you meet a beautiful stranger in unique way.

Rating: PG-13

Warnings: Mentions of blood, and wound care, descriptions of a bike accident

Word Count: 1.0k

a/n: Just a lil short and sweet one, with the ever beautiful Natasha :D

⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ☾ ⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ✧ ⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ*

The cool autumn air gently nips at your skin, your cheeks round and rosy pink; you always loved a good evening bike ride around your local park; you first started it as a way to get the daily exercise, but you've grown to love the repetitive motion of pushing the petals, and the wind blowing past your face. Today was particularly beautiful; the sun was setting, a ray of crimson and amber painting the sky.

You like to use this time to unwind and think of nothing substantial, no deadlines, upcoming events, or obligations; be in the moment. As you round your 2nd lap around the park, you’re stuck on whether you should do another lap, while deep in thought, you don’t even see the person riding straight for you at an ungodly speed.

“Hey! Watch out!” A bystander yells, but it is already too late; time slows each second longer than the last as you come speeding toward this woman on her bike; there is no avoiding it; it is already happening. You collided with a painful crack, sending you flying over, landing hard on your shoulder, and tumbling forward.

When you open your eyes, you're greeted by a gorgeous woman, her face etched with worry. Her mouth is moving, but you can't hear anything she's saying. You're lost in her eyes, a beautiful mix of blueish green with flicks of amber; she slowly waves her hand in front of your face, snapping back into reality.

"Hello? Are you okay? I'm so sorry I didn't see you until it was too late." she said, her eyes scanning you for injuries, her face dropping when she saw blood coming from your forehead. "Oh my god, I have a first aid kit in my car; I'll be right back," she said quickly; you watched her run away and disappear momentarily behind the trees; you were inspecting the damage when you heard footsteps running toward you. Your eyes scan over her physique; you definitely overlooked that before.

"Okay, let me take a look," she said smoothly, setting the kit down next to you; she cracked open a water bottle and grabbed your hand; she softly put the water bottle into your hand.

"Here, take this," she says while grabbing a packet of ibuprofen; handing you the tablet, she patiently waits for you to do as instructed; you stare at her, mouth agape, "please," she says, gently motioning at the medication, you obey and swallow the pill, you're staring at her, thoroughly aware that you still haven't spoken a word.

"Th-thank you," you say meekly; you look at the palms of your hands.

"You're welcome," she chirps happily, "Let me take a look," she says, cracking open another water bottle; she pours it onto a towel and gently pats your forehead clean.

"So, what's your name?" she asks, focused on your wound.

"Y/N," you say gingerly, using the opportunity to take in every detail of her face, noticing the 2 moles on her cheek.

"You know it's rude to stare?" she quips, never breaking her focus.

"I-I'm not staring; you're just, in front of me is all." you defended

"Uh-huh, sure," she says cockily, flicking her eyes down to meet yours, you try to hold contact, but when she looks at you, you feel as if she's staring right into your soul.

"So, what do you do?" she asks, trying to fill the silence.

"I'm a firefighter," you say proudly.

"Oh, well, that's unexpected," she says, searching for the Neosporin, "how is a firefighter so clumsy?" she teases, her lips coming to a smirk.

"Clumsy? I'm pretty sure you ran into me," you laugh back.

"Why don't you let me make it up to you over coffee?" she says slyly, her eyes snapping to your lips and then back to your eyes.

"Hmm, I suppose," you tease back as you grab the Neosporin from the kit, handing it to her; she generously applies it, eyes watching your face for any hints of pain.

"Do you live around the area?" she asks, firming her hand on your shoulder.

"Yeah, like a 5-minute bike ride from here," you say; you're usually not this open with your personal information, but something about her, you know she's one of the good ones; she grabs a large bandaid and cautiously covers the wound.

"There you go, all better." She leaned back and started putting all the supplies away.

"Oh, let me help you," you say, suddenly moving to help, you knock over the entire box.

"I'm sorry, let me help you," you say; you kneel down and frantically clean up the mess.

"Y/N, relax," she says calmly; she kneels down and helps you clean up.

"Not clumsy, huh?" she says coyly, lifting her brow slightly.

"I'm not. I'm just nervous," you laugh, nervously staring at the ground.

"Do I make you nervous, Y/N?" she questions, slowly closing the space between you, inching closer like an apex predator. You don't know what else to do; you are reduced to a stuttering mess, slowly getting pushed into a nearby tree.

"I-No, I just-" you stutter out; you bump into the tree, suddenly aware of how close she is; you stare at her, eyes as wide as saucers.

"Shhh, it's alright, Y/N," she shushes, gently grabbing your hand; you jump at the sudden contact but instantly melt into her touch.

"Let's get you home, yeah?" she asks sweetly.

"Okay," you say simply, leading her out of the park.

"I'm Natasha, by the way," she says, bringing attention to the fact that you hadn't even asked what her name was; you smack your palm to your forehead, shame engulfing you; how did you forget to ask for her name?

"I'm so sorry, I didn't even ask your name, ugh," you sighed heavily, hitting your face with your hands.

"It's okay," she laughs, breaking any tension you had left in you. "I mean, I did crash into you, and you did land pretty hard," she says gently, thumbing over your knuckles.

"Thank you for taking care of me," you say shyly, avoiding eye contact, "Well, this is me," you say; you let go of her hand and reach for your keys; you do it slowly; you don't want this to end.

"I'll see you this weekend, right, for that coffee?" she asks, patiently awaiting your answer.

"Yes, definitely."

[msbigredmachine]

New To This - Chapter 13

MASTERLIST

"Customer at table five!"

“Got it!” Shouting to be heard over the chaos in the kitchen, Delilah sat a tray of empty dishes on the kitchen window and grabbed the order pad from her apron. Tying up her huge mane of dark hair more securely, she weaved expertly towards table five without so much as glancing up. The lunch hour rush was in full swing, and there seemed to be more customers than ever today thanks to the exciting presence of several American Idol-branded trucks parked in front of the local rec center a block away from Sharon’s Steakhouse, her second place of work. An exhaustive round of singing made people hungry, Delilah surmised, and she was more than determined to pocket as many tips as possible before the day was over.

Stopping next to the table, she flipped her pad open and glanced down to fish the pencil out of her apron. "Welcome to Sharon’s Steakhouse, what can I get you?"

"You tell me, Miss. What's good?"

The deep, familiar voice reverberated within her chest, shocking her into locking eyes with its owner’s smiling face. Oh god. "What the hell are you doin' here?" she blurted out.

Looking over the menu, Josh smirked and met her eye again. "Well, this is a restaurant, and I'm hungry…" he started.

It had been one month since she walked out of his house. Roughly seven weeks since their tawdry affair started. Not that she was counting. She thought she’d made it clear that he should keep his distance by cutting off all communication with him, but it was equally clear that he hadn’t gotten the memo, or didn’t want to. 

"You look good, girl," he spoke after holding her stare for a few long, tense seconds.

The blush crept up her neck as she forced herself to break eye contact. Yes, they had a passionate fling, and yes, she was sure that she had flushed Josh Fatu out of her system. She was over it, over him, and there was no need to revisit it. But here he was, in her life again. Showing up at her work unannounced. Invading her space. A part of her wanted him to leave. The other part wanted nothing more than to jump into his arms and show him just how much she missed him, but was well aware that half of the people in the diner were watching to see what would happen between little Delilah Parrish and her big-time wrestler friend.

“Well, our burgers are usually a hit among customers.” She avoided his compliment, determined to maintain the utmost professionalism. Although she was resigning from this job in a few weeks, she intended to leave on good terms. “You can’t go wrong with our smoked salmon either. Or you could try the filet mignon if you want something more fancy.”

Seeing that she wasn’t budging…for now, Josh nodded his head and forced his eyes to drift back over the menu. "Well then…Imma have the smokehouse burger, medium well, with chilli cheese fries," he requested.

Delilah jotted the order onto her pad and decided to play nice by adding an iced tea that he hadn't requested, but she knew he liked. "Comin' right up," she conjured up a smile that resembled a grimace instead, hurrying away from the table as quickly as she could. She had to get away, get out from under his scrutiny. Because as much as she wanted to believe that she could sweep their steamy tryst under the rug, seeing him again brought a throbbing to her body that she was better off ignoring.

Somehow she was able to go about her day as normal, a tougher task than usual given how she could feel his eyes on her the entire time. It was a relief when he finished his meal, and after he had signed a few autographs from some fans who recognized him, Delilah approached his table once again in typical courtesy to the customer. "Do you need anything else?" The wicked, iced-out grin he shot her sent chills up her spine. "From the menu, I mean," she quickly added.

Shaking his head easily, Josh fished out his wallet out of his pocket as she tore his bill from her pad and slid it over to him. "When do you get off work?" he asked.

"In an hour." Fuck! There her mouth went again, moving faster than her brain. However, despite swearing otherwise, she did want to talk to him, just like she knew he wanted to talk to her. But what could he possibly say that would change her mind about staying away, rightfully, from him?

He paid for his meal with his card and then pressed a fifty dollar bill into her hand. A generous tip. “A’ight. Meet me at the park when you’re done. We’re gonna talk, Dee, don’t run from me. I know where you live.” 

Was that some kind of a threat? There was no time to think it through as he slid from his seat and stood beside her, resting a hand on her shoulder. Another shiver. “The food was excellent. My compliments to the chef,” he added.

With as nonchalant a shrug as she could muster, Delilah answered, stiffly, as she watched him walk out. “I’ll be sure to let him know.”

---------------

This is a bad idea, she muttered to herself for the hundredth time, seated anxiously on her motorcycle. As his trusty Escalade came into view, she wondered why she agreed to this and didn’t just go home. Her resolve continued to chip away as he stepped out of the truck. Man, he was so handsome.

Opening up the back of his truck tailgate style, he slid his big body inside before holding out his hand to her. She shook her head. “I…I think I’m fine right here,” she insisted, tapping her handlebar.

Josh cocked an eyebrow, slightly amused by her attempt at resistance. “You don’t trust me not to touch you?”

More like she couldn’t trust herself. She was already an apprehensive mess. She didn’t need to compound it with his hands on her.

Leaning forwards, Josh crooked his index finger. “Come here.”

Fuck.

Hating herself for folding so easily, she took his outstretched hand, letting him pull her inside the trunk. She put as much space between them to keep their bodies from touching and rolled her eyes upon catching the smirk on his face; he noticed. Nothing got past him.

“Been a minute, pretty girl. I’ve missed you,” he said.

Delilah’s stomach fluttered, partly because of his suggestive comment and partly from the absurdity of this situation. “Does your wife know you’re here?” she went straight to the point.

Josh sighed in defeat, rubbed his nose awkwardly. “In Pensacola? Yeah. She does.”

“Okay, let me rephrase that. Does your wife know you’re here with me?”

“No, she don’t,” he replied, his voice eerily steady, “She don’t need to know who I’m with cuz it’s no longer her business.” At her questioning look, he chuckled dryly. “I didn’t think this was something to just lay out over the phone. But I don’t got a wife no more. Tameka and I are getting a divorce. We signed the papers last week.”

Delilah blinked, unsure of how to react to this information. “So should I say congratulations, or I’m sorry? Help me out here.”

Ignoring her snarky comment, he answered, “It was long overdue. We were wrong to keep carrying on like we could salvage what was left of our marriage. Those photos you saw were of us hanging out one more time before we went our separate ways for good. It was…nice. Fun,” he admitted, a small smile gracing his bearded face, “But the romance was gone and we both knew it. We’re gonna be friends and co-parents now.” He exhaled heavily, staring out into the horizon. “She met someone else, by the way. A doctor or some shit, with kids of his own. A normal dude. I’m happy for her. She deserves it.”

He looked sad. Resigned to his fate. But as much as she felt bad for him, she couldn’t help but wonder when she entered the equation. Before or after he found out about his ex seeing another man. Did it make him feel less guilty about starting an affair with Delilah? It didn’t really matter now, did it? That chapter was closed. She was happy with her man. She had everything that she wanted, and she hoped that Josh could be happy for her, too. 

Delilah allowed her disposition to soften just a little bit. “I’m sorry. Divorce can’t be fun, for anyone,” she empathized.

“It’s all good. I’ll get over it. As long as my kids are straight, I can handle anything, uce.”

"That's the spirit. And if all else fails, you at least got Rhea. I see y'all two hamming it up every week, everyone ships y'all like crazy," she pointed out.

Again, there was that cocky little smirk of his. "You jealous, bae?"

"Jealous? Ha, you wish," she retorted a little too quickly, clearing her throat and hoping she came off as convincing.

No such luck. "Riiiiight. So I'm in town for a couple of days. We could do something if you want," Josh informed her, adding with a sly wink, “Non-sexual of course. Totally platonic, I promise.”

"Sorry, but I have a date. With my fiancé," she told him, her grin faltering at the disappointment that clouded his eyes. "It’s horror movie night tonight," she added.

"Word? I ain't know you liked horror movies." Josh watched her carefully. There were so many things he didn't know about her. So many things that he wanted to know.

Delilah rolled her eyes good-naturedly. "I don't," she confessed, "But Andre loves ‘em. And we've been trying to enjoy each other's worlds a little bit more."

"And how's that goin'?" he asked, a little more gruffly than was necessary. He wanted to be happy for her, he really did. He was supposed to be. He was supposed to want what was best for her, even if it wasn't him.

For a brief moment, Delilah could have sworn that he was unhappy that her engagement was still going strong. But he was her friend. In hindsight, he had offered her nothing more than that. There was no reason for him to be jealous. And there was no reason for her to care if he was jealous. "It's great!" she forced a smile, wanting more than anything to assure him that even after everything, he was still important to her and wanted him in her life.

He seemed to force a smile of his own as he jumped down from the truck. "Well, if you get bored, you welcome to come on over," he extended the invitation once more. "And if not…then I guess it was good to see you again."

How she wished that she wasn't blushing. How she wished that his presence wasn't affecting her, that every bone in her body wasn't screaming for his touch. "It was good to see you, too…Champ," she winked, following suit and getting on her motorbike. Deciding against hugging him for…reasons, she did her best to ignore the butterflies in her stomach from his intense gaze as she drove away from her ex-lover and home to Andre. 

In one month, they would be in Orlando together. She would start her new life, pursue her dreams with the man that she was going to marry soon. She would forget about Josh Fatu eventually, at least in that way, and only regard him as a co-worker, a colleague. Because that was all they could ever be. 

Just friends.

----------------------

Pulling up to her trailer, Delilah felt her heart sink. She had brought surf and turf meals from the steakhouse for herself and Andre, along with a case of Bud Light, his favorite. But somehow she didn't think that was going to feed the owners of the four cars that were parked alongside the house.

"Great," she muttered, cutting off the engine and climbing off of the bike. "Just fuckin' great."

It wasn't that she minded his friends being around - she knew that he was spending as much time as possible with them before the move. But this was supposed to be date night. They were supposed to be alone. She wanted to snuggle up with him on the couch and hide in his bicep from all the jump scares while he giggled at how cute she was with her little screams. She was not in the mood to share her fiancé. At all.

She was well aware that her mood was primarily due to Josh's surprise visit along with the bomb he'd dropped on her. The rest of her day was spent trying to get his heady scent out of her nostrils. She struggled to get the smolder of his sexy eyes out of her mind. The deep, rough rumbling of his voice that she loved so much wouldn't clear out of her ears. And now she had Andre's dumbass friends to contend with.

The celebration was in full swing when she opened the front door, though she had been able to hear them cheering from outside. The smell of pizza assaulted her as she kicked the door closed and nearly drop the pack of beer on the ground.

"Oh, come on, tough wrestler girl," one of his friends, Jaleel, she recalled, taunted, as they all turned to ogle her. "Can't lift a case of beer, huh?"

Setting the case on the table, she ignored him and opened the refrigerator to deposit the dinners she had brought home. She then stalked off to her bedroom, slamming the door hard for effect and regretted it instantly as a headache started to form. Andre stumbled in just moments later, a dopey grin on his face that indicated he'd already had a couple of beers.

Irritated, Delilah sank to the bed, kicking her sneakers off and rubbing the soles of her feet. "Andre, what the fuck? I thought it was just us tonight."

With a shrug, Andre lowered his lean frame to the bed beside her. "That was before." He bit his bottom lip, as though that would help him contain whatever news was bursting inside of him. "I got some awesome news, babe," he said, grabbing her hand. "Ask me what I did today."

"You better say that you worked your ass off, the cable bill's due," she cut in with an attitude. "We need to make sure we're up to date before we leave for good," she reminded him.

Andre merely clapped his hands. "So...I went to the American Idol auditions this afternoon."

"You did what?" she asked, confused by this piece of information. He had never so much as mentioned knowing about any audition - she herself had only just seen the branded trucks for the first time today. Yeah, he had a beautiful voice that he displayed in church every Sunday, but there was never any talk of anything beyond that. "What the hell are you talking about?"

Andre stood and pulled her close. "Jaleel and Ralph told me about it and insisted that I go. So I figured why not? And I went for it. I sang for the judges."

Her mouth was agape. She could tell from his expression that he really expected her to be proud of him. "Why the fuck would you do that?" she demanded, growing more annoyed with his games. Because this was clearly what this was to him. "Andre, that is the dumbest shit I have ever heard."

But Andre wasn't done. The bomb he was about to drop was twice the size of Josh's. "I got called back, Dee. I'm going to Hollywood!" he announced, reaching into his pocket and brandishing the infamous Golden Ticket she'd seen numerous times on the program. Rolling his eyes, he assumed a defensive stance. "Why aren't you happy for me? Do you understand how big a deal that is? Or you just don't wanna see me achieve my dream?"

Delilah Parrish had done a lot of dumb shit in her life. In the wrestling ring and out, she had done more than her fair share of embarrassing things. But nobody and nothing had ever made her feel this much like a fool. Whatever transgression she had accused Josh of paled in comparison to this because it was coming from the person closest to her.

Andre had played along. He had convinced her that they could make it work. But the first chance he had to stick it to her, he had taken it. Even worse, the auditions had taken place near her workplace. This meant that he had been in her vicinity. He'd had the opportunity to come to her and disclose this asinine plan of his to her, and he chose not to.

"You motherfucker," she hissed, her rage boiling over. She'd had enough. Standing, she snatched the 'Golden Ticket' out of his hand and launched it across the room. "You selfish fucking asshole! I'm not a fucking idiot, Andre, I know what this is!" she shouted. "This ain't your dream! This is your revenge!"

"The fuck you talkin' about?" Andre bristled, glaring at his fiancée. "Revenge? Selfish? I went for something that I've always wanted to do, and I might be good enough to do it. Ain't that what you doin'? Why is it okay for you, but not for me?"

"Tell me Andre, when the fuck have you ever mentioned you wanted to be a professional singer? When? This is news to me, your fucking fiancée!" Incensed, she allowed all the emotions of the day to fuel her as she yelled at him. "You are unbelievable! We're supposed to be going to Orlando next month. Next month!" Grabbing a hooded sweatshirt from the floor, she yanked it over her shoulders and zipped it up the front. "That's a snake move, Dre. Shady ass shit! You're doing this to hurt me, not because you want it!"

His friends pretended to be focused on the TV when she burst out of the room, but Delilah couldn't give a flying fuck about their enabling, goofy asses. She just wanted to get away from the man who, in her eyes, had betrayed her in the most heartbreaking way possible.

"Not everything is about you, Delilah!" Andre yelled back, following her out the door as she grabbed the keys to her bike. "Where the fuck are you going?" He stood frozen, cringing at the look she leveled him with as she mounted her bike, so venomous it should have killed him on the spot.

"Fuck you," she spat. Kicking her bike into gear, she peeled out of the driveway and down the road, leaving his cowardly ass standing there.

Though Delilah prided herself on being a pretty mellow person, this was the first time she'd ever been pushed to her limit like this. She had never been so mad in her entire life. The dutiful spouse in her chastised her for being so harsh and tried to over-analyze and make excuses. Maybe Andre had gone to that audition on a whim. But she seriously doubted it. He knew exactly what he was doing. He deceived her, and that was unforgivable.

When she arrived at her destination, she knocked so hard on the door she thought her knuckles would fall off. The door had barely cracked open when she barged in, grabbed him by the shirt, and with superhuman strength, pushed him up against the door.

"The fuck?" Josh gasped, barely getting the words out before she crushed her lips to his, her tongue in his mouth. Taken aback, he'd only recovered for a split second before she pounced again, her hand snaking down the front of his shorts. "I...shit...I thought you had a date...with your man," he stammered, shocked by her forwardness.

Letting out a cynical scoff, she sank down to her knees and pulled out his dick. "Man? What man?"

---------------

Whew!

Thoughts?

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[finnsbubblegum]

Birthday Crasher (Part 2) (Joel Miller X Reader)

Pairing: no-outbreak!joel miller x f!reader

Warnings: fluff, sweet joel, domestic joel, rom-com

Summary (Series): reader as Joel’s neighbor. Joel’s wife left him so Joel asked his neighbor for help in babysitting Sarah. 

Summary: Sarah got sick on her first birthday.

Words count: 1.3k

A/N: I’m trying to make this as a rom-com, hope you like my new series! This is part 8 of Where It All Starts. But it can also be read as a standalone. I'm so grateful for all of you! Thank you for your comments, reblogs, and likes ❤️ There are still more chapters for this series so stay tuned! Love you!

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9 Part 10 Part 11 Part 12 Part 13 Part 14 Part 15 Part 16 Part 17 Part 18 Part 19 Part 20

“Fuck it.” You finally caved in and kissed Joel passionately. 

He kissed you back and pushed you to lean on the fridge. The fridge shook because of your weight and you gasped. But he ignored it so you put your arms around his neck and continued kissing him. 

But it felt like it was only for a second then you heard Sarah cry from her bedroom. Joel and you rushed to her to check on her.

“What’s wrong, babygirl?” Joel panted as he stopped at the doorway.

“Hey, hey. I’m here, sweetheart. I’m here.” You lifted Sarah from the crib and smelled her butt.

“Not smelling anything.” You were confused. 

You had fed her. She didn’t peed or poop. So what was the reason she was crying?

You felt something was off. Her cheeks were flushed. It was redder than usual. Then you put the back of your palm to her head and it felt warmer. 

“Joel, get the thermometer please. Hurry.” You were panting as you panicked.

Joel rushed to find the thermometer and handed it to you. You immediately checked her temperature using the thermometer.

“Joel..” You showed the thermometer to Joel.

“38°C?” Joel put his hand on his forehead.

“We need to go to the hospital, right now.” You rushed to get your jacket.

Joel got his keys and ran to the car. He drove as fast as he could to get to hospital and go to the emergency room. Sarah had a fever. On her birthday. 

“Help! Please! My daughter. I think she has a fever.” Joel begged the nurse.

“Please, she just turned one today.” You begged as you held Sarah in your arms.

“Okay, please come here.” The nurse guided you to a bed and called the doctor.

The doctor examined her and treated her. She was now sleeping on the hospital bed. You sat beside her as you caressed her head while Joel was doing the procedures and paid the bills.

“We can go home now.” Joel came beside you and rested his hand on your shoulder.

“Okay.” 

At home

“Hey, babygirl. It’s still your birthday today. I forgot to tell you, your mama told me to tell you that she said happy birthday.” You kissed her cheek.

“Ma-ma.” Sarah babbled.

Joel and you froze and stared at each other. Jaws dropped.

“Did she just-” Your eyes widened.

“Yeah, I think she just did.” Joel nodded.

“Say it one more time babygirl.” You bounced her a bit on your lap.

“Ma-ma.” Sarah repeated. 

You cried. You were not her mom but you felt happiness when the baby in your arms called you her mama.

“Oh..babygirl.” Joel caressed Sarah’s head. He took her from your arms as you wiped your tears.

“Try saying dada.” Joel cooed at his daughter.

“Ma-ma.” Sarah kept saying the word mama.

“No, no. Dada. I’m your daddy.” He snuggled his face to Sarah’s belly.

“Come on, sweetie. Try dada. Da-da.” You taught her how to say it.

“Da-da.” Sarah finally said the word.

“Oh my God!” You covered your mouth as you gasped.

“She just called me dada. Dada loves you, babygirl.” Joel kissed his daughter’s forehead.

You looked at Joel and Sarah and your eyes were getting teary. You were happy seeing Joel happy beside what had happened that morning. You leaned in and caressed Sarah’s head.

“Can I stay with her tonight?” You asked.

“Yeah, sure. But I-uh-I don’t have a spare bed. You can take my bed and sleep with her in my bedroom. I’ll take the couch.” 

“You sure?” You felt bad letting Joel sleep on the couch but there was no other way.

“I’m sure, darlin’.” Joel nodded.

“Okay,  time to bed, birthday girl. Come on.” Joel passed Sarah to your arms and you brought her to bed. 

Joel guided the way and opened the door for you. 

“You can change into this.” Joel put his white t-shirt and sweatpants on the edge of the bed.

“Thank you.” You were too tired from the busy day so you didn’t bother to stop by your house to get changed.

“I-uh-I’ll be downstairs if you need anythin’.  Good night, (y/n).”

“Good night, Joel.” You closed the door as you walked him out. 

You changed to his t-shirt. It was so big and you decided not to wear his sweatpants because his t-shirt was long enough to cover you. You raised the collar to your nose smelling his shirt. You smiled as you found that comforting smell again. 

“We’re having a sleepover tonight, sweetie.” You patted baby Sarah’s tummy gently as you laid beside her. 

Hours passed and you found yourself awake. You were lost in your thoughts thinking how Joel should be with his daughter tonight. Especially since it was her birthday and she was sick. You sat on the bed and decided to check on Joel downstairs.

“Joel, you awake?” You called him as you walked down the stairs.

“Joel?” You called him again as you walked closer.

“AHH!” Joel screamed in a high pitched tone.

“What?!What?!” You panicked.

“Fuck, I thought you were a ghost.” Joel covered his face in embarrassment.

“What the fuck, Joel? You thought I was a ghost?” You laughed. 

“How can I not think you were a ghost when you’re lookin’ like that?” Joel moved his hand up and down pointing at you.

You looked at yourself and realized. You were wearing his white t-shirt oversized hugging almost half of your body. And your long hair was let down.

“Sorry.” You chuckled.

“What is it? You need anythin’?” Joel asked.

“I was wondering if you wanted to join us upstairs?” You pointed to your back.

“Upstairs?” Joel raised his eyebrows.

“Yeah, I think Sarah needs her dad with her now.” 

“Yeah, sure.” Joel followed you upstairs.

“Ahh!!” You suddenly mimicked Joel’s scream earlier as you climbed the stairs in front of him.

“You do realize you just screamed like a girl, right?” You stopped and turned your head to him, teasing him.

“Don’t make fun of me.” He threatened you.

“Ahh!” You mimicked him again and laughed.

“Stop it.” He sighed as he covered his face.

“Fine. Fine. I’ll stop.” You chuckled and walked your way back to the bedroom.

“Where do you usually sleep?” You asked Joel which side of the bed was his.

“Here.” He pointed to the left side.

“Okay.” You climbed to the right side and laid down.

Your heart beat faster. Tonight was your first night sleeping with Joel in the same room and same bed with only a baby separating you both. You slept on your side facing him and patted Sarah’s tummy. 

Joel could feel his body stiff. He laid on his back with his hands folded on his stomach facing the ceilings. His heart felt like it would burst in any second. He cleared his throat as he moved to sleep on his side facing you. Both of you were now facing each other.

“Ugh-Hi.” Joel awkwardly said hi. He felt stupid for saying that.

“Hi?” You hi-ed him back with a questioning tone.

“Do you-uhm-do you think she’s sick because of what happened earlier in the morning?” Joel felt guilty after the fight with Sarah’s mom on his daughter’s birthday.

“It’s not your fault, Joel. Babies get sick. It’s normal. Don’t blame yourself.” You consoled him.

“I’m glad she’s okay. Thank you for today.” He put his hand on top of your hand that was patting Sarah’s tummy.

“Anytime.” You smiled.

He giggled and you giggled. You two felt the awkwardness sleeping in the same room but each of you felt butterflies on your stomach. The two of you started to forget about the bad things that had happened today. Joel and you even forgot to talk about “that one second kiss” that happened earlier in the day.

To be continued…

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[sesamestreep]

13 (Drunken/drugged/sleepy confessions) for Matt/Foggy

(from this list of prompts)

Matt wakes up with a violent start, feeling hazy and slow and just wrong somehow. He knows instantly that he’s not in his apartment, because the bed feels different—it smells different, clean in a dull, itchy, cloying way that he doesn’t associate with his usual detergent—and there’s a bunch of sounds that he can’t identify, but they’re not the city sounds he’s accustomed to or the shuffling, mundane sounds of his neighbors going about their lives. There’s people about, certainly, but a lot of them, he thinks, and they sound urgent, even though when they speak, it’s at a whisper and when they move, it’s never at a run. But if he tries to sense much more than that, he just…can’t. It’s like there’s a wall inside his brain and it’s made out of cotton balls. It’s almost nice.

“Did you just say ‘balls…nice…’ to yourself?” Foggy asks, groggily, from his left. Matt realizes belatedly that the heartbeat he’d heard up close was Foggy’s and he’s just so used to it that his mind unconsciously filtered it out as background noise. God help him if Foggy ever goes rogue and tries to smother him (or just comes to his senses and tries it finally), he’ll have an exceptionally easy time getting past Matt’s defenses.

“Cotton balls,” Matt replies, even though that doesn’t really explain anything. Trying to string words together is exceptionally hard at the moment; it’s like the right ones are floating above his head but reaching for them only knocks them further out of his grasp.

Foggy yawns. “Oh, sure,” he says. “You’re in the hospital, by the way. And on massive amounts of painkillers, in case that wasn’t immediately obvious already.”

That explained a lot, including why the world felt so small to him suddenly. Any medication stronger than aspirin dulled the edges of the world for him significantly. His senses just didn’t reach as far and his reflexes were much slower. This is why he avoided painkillers normally. He didn’t enjoy this feeling.

“What happened?” he asked, trying to sit up. His body doesn’t feel terribly sore—thanks to the medication, probably—but it does feel stiff and misused. He’s got a bandage on his forehead and a few on his torso that he can feel and when he shifts—yep, that pulling sensation is stitches. Great.

“I don’t know,” Foggy answers, sharply. “I was really hoping you might be able to shed some light on the matter for me, considering you were there.”

“There was a…trade being made. Down at the docks, a warehouse by the river,” Matt explains, even as the details seem hesitant to rise to the surface. “It was that weapons dealer I’ve been following. Maya tipped me off—Oh, God! Maya!”

“Maya’s fine,” Foggy interrupts. “She’s the one who brought you to me.”

“What? Did she say—?”

“My ASL is trash, Matthew, I don’t know! She texted me from your phone, I came and got you, she disappeared into the night. And looked much cooler doing it than you ever did, can I just say?”

“Is this your way of telling me to get a motorcycle?” Matt quips, holding his ribs.

“God, just what I need!” Foggy grumbles. Even with his dulled senses, Matt can hear the crunch of the bones in Foggy’s neck when he attempts to stretch and wonders how long Foggy’s been sitting there waiting for him to wake up. He feels suddenly very sorry, on top of everything else he’s currently feeling.

“What time is it?” Matt asks, sheepishly.

“Just past four. In the morning, that is.”

It’s not as bad as Matt was expecting, but it’s still not great. “You should go home, Foggy.”

Foggy snorts sarcastically. “Yeah, sure, that’s what I’ll do, buddy. You read my mind.”

“Well, what exactly is the point of you sitting here and watching me sleep? You’ve got—We’ve got clients coming in to—today and you haven’t slept at all, I imagine, and—”

“Karen will handle things at the office,” Foggy cuts in, “and the point of watching you sleep is watching you sleep.”

“That doesn’t…make any sense.”

Foggy doesn’t immediately try to explain himself. Instead, he sits in silence for a long moment, before he laughs. “Do you know, if I had to pick a superpower—any superpower in the world—I’d want to be able to put people to sleep. Instantly.”

“That’s pretty specific,” Matt says, carefully. “And a little silly.”

“Not really,” Foggy says. “I’d knock you out cold every single night. Hell, I’d put you down for afternoon naps here and there too, just to make up for the years you’ve neglected your sleep cycle. And then you wouldn’t be able to go out fighting bad guys every night and cracking your ribs and bruising that pretty face of yours. And I wouldn’t have to worry anymore.”

“But I wouldn’t help anyone anymore, either.”

“Is that how you see it?” Foggy asks, pained. “Is what you do all day with me and Karen that meaningless to you? You think we don’t help anybody?”

“That’s not what I meant.”

“I think I’d do the world twice as much good knocking you out every night as you’ve ever done as Daredevil,” Foggy spits, as his heart hammers away in his chest.

Matt winces, feeling his shoulders tighten and his blood rush in his ears. It doesn’t matter. He wouldn’t hurt Foggy, not for the world. Not physically that is. And he’s not exactly in the right shape to even try it right now, anyway. Still, he doesn’t like that anyone in the world has the cheat codes to make him this angry this quickly. It’s too dangerous.

“Foggy,” he says, breathing through his nose to calm himself down, “I’m the one on drugs right now. I’m the one who’s supposed to be saying shit I can’t take back. Not you.”

“Sorry, Matt, but you wouldn’t even be here, getting proper medical attention, if you had it your way. If you hadn’t been fucking unconscious, you’d have dragged yourself home and treated your fractured ribs and busted skull with baby aspirin! So don’t talk to me about—!”

“Hey, how are we doing in here?” a soothing voice cuts in. A nurse, Matt imagines, based on the unfazed energy and the sound her shoes make on the ground as she crosses to his bed. Foggy’s voice must have started to carry. “Good to see you awake, Mr. Murdock.”

“Thank you,” he replies, mostly to cover Foggy’s scoff.

The nurse proceeds to ask him a bunch of questions about his pain level (which he lies about as naturally as breathing), his symptoms (looking for a concussion that Matt can tell from experience he doesn’t have), and whether there’s anything he needs (to leave right now, but he knows he hasn’t engendered enough goodwill to broach that topic yet). She then looks at his chart and fiddles with his I.V. before urging him to sleep again if he can, which Matt suspects won’t be up to him at all if she, as he imagines, increased his drip.

“Can I speak to you in the hallway for a moment?” she asks, sweetly but with a hidden edge. Matt’s baffled by this for a second before he realizes she’s speaking to Foggy and not him.

Foggy clearly hesitates over whether to indulge her, given what he knows of Matt’s hearing, but clears his throat and eventually responds, “Of course.”

The hallways offers them no privacy from Matt, but it clearly affords the nurse some confidence, because she says, the moment they step out, in an urgent tone: “You know, I should kick you out of here for all that!”

Foggy sighs. “I’m sorry. I know. You made an exception…”

“And I’m regretting it now,” the nurse mutters. “That’s how you talk to your partner after he’s been mugged?!”

“He—this happens a lot more than you’d think…”

“I don’t care if it happens every night! He could have died!”

“I know,” Foggy replies, solemnly, and his tone clearly catches the nurse as unaware as it catches Matt.

“Is there something going on?” she asks, sincerely concerned now. “Are you…hurting him somehow? Do you need help for…something? Anything?”

“No. Nothing like that, I promise. But thank you.”

“Is he hurting himself?” the nurse asks, after a long pause. “Because we can find help for that too.”

“Not…exactly,” Foggy says, and Matt can hear him shifting uncomfortably, crossing his arms. “He’s just not as careful as he should be. I’m sorry. I wish I could tell you more and put your mind at ease, really, but I can’t.”

The nurse pauses, clearly making sure the coast is clear, because her voice is lower and more conspiratorial when she speaks again. It’s also shaking, for that matter. “Are you in danger?”

Foggy laughs, and then evidently regrets it. “Maybe, but I’ve got…a guardian angel of sorts.”

“Is that supposed to mean something?”

“Not to you, no,” Foggy says, and Matt feels himself flush. “I appreciate the concern, but if you make Matt rest for a few more hours and resist his charms when he asks to be allowed to leave, you’ll be helping me more than you can ever imagine.”

“Okay, then. We can make a deal there,” she replies. “You know, I usually have a good sense when it comes to people and I was going to be really mad if I misread you when you came in.”

“How did you read me?”

“Really good boyfriend,” she says, and Matt doesn’t detect the slightest hint of flirtation in her voice, which…doesn’t make any sense, given her words.

“Thank you,” Foggy replies, sincerely. “I’ll keep it down, I promise. I’m sorry for the outburst.”

“You’re worried. It happens.”

“Thanks.”

They part ways, then, with the nurse going off down the hallway and Foggy turning back to linger in the doorway. Matt flops his head back onto the pillows and waits. Foggy comes back in after a moment’s hesitation.

“What was that about?”

“Your dumb ass got me in trouble with the teacher.”

“Typical me,” Matt says, with a weak smile. “Always leading you away from the bright future you deserve.”

Foggy comes to stand by the bed, his fingers tracing anxiously over the starchy hospital sheets. “Matt…”

“You were such a nice boy before I came along.”

“I’m still a nice boy,” Foggy says, sadly.

Matt takes his hand because it’s slid close enough to capture and he can blame the drugs for it later if he needs to. Foggy squeezes his hand in reassurance before Matt can think twice about it. “I’m sorry.”

“I know you are.”

“But…?”

“What does being sorry mean if nothing ever changes?”

“The law was never going to touch the guys I went after tonight, Foggy. You know that as well as I do.”

Foggy sighs. “Yeah, I know.”

“There’s got to be some recourse for where the law leaves off, I’m just—”

“How are you having this argument with me when you’re on a truckload of painkillers? I saw the nurse give you more…”

“Years of practice,” Matt says, even though it is getting difficult to keep his eyes open. “You and that nurse are in cahoots against me.”

“I need all the help I can get,” Foggy replies, and Matt feels the mattress dip beneath him as Foggy sits down on the edge of it. “She wasn’t supposed to let me stay. No overnight visitation, normally.”

“But she let you anyway, because she thinks you’re cute…”

“What? No, I don’t think—”

“She called you a good boyfriend just now.”

Foggy laughs so hard and so suddenly that it makes him cough. “She meant I’m a good boyfriend to you, Matt,” he says, when he’s caught his breath. “You fucking moron.”

“Why would she think you’re my boyfriend?”

“Emergency contact. Different connotations of the word ‘partner,’ which I have shamelessly exploited before and I have no doubt I will again. The look of blatant horror on my face when I brought you in. Take your pick.”

“Huh.”

“If that bothers you,” Foggy begins hesitantly, like he’s about to apologize, “too fucking bad.”

Matt smiles, but doesn’t open his eyes. “Don’t make me laugh. I did something to my ribs, I think.”

“You think?”

“Yeah.”

“You’re lucky you’re pretty, Murdock.”

“Yeah, I assume that’s the only reason you’ve stuck around this long.”

Matt doesn’t hear what Foggy says to that, but whatever it is, he drifts off to sleep to the sound of his familiar voice, still holding onto his familiar hand.

[hbyrde36]

Times Like These (The Anniversary Edition)

CH 1 CH 2 Ch 3 Ch 4 Ch5 Ch 6 Ch 7 Ch 8 Ch 9 Ch 10 Ch 11 Ch 12

Chapter 13: Epilogue

WC: 5937 | AO3 link | Explicit

A soft knock on hollow wood roused Eddie from sleep. It felt strange to wake up normally, not crying out or gasping for air—actually, waking up at all felt a little foreign after weeks of hardly sleeping at all. 

“Ed?” Uncle Wayne’s voice carried through the door.

Eddie glanced over his shoulder. Steve hadn’t moved, was hopefully still fast asleep, so he gently extracted himself and pulled on the first shirt within reach. He tiptoed to the door, only opening it enough to look out, and used his body to hide the view of his bed. Wayne was safe, but he and Steve hadn’t even really labeled what they were to each other yet, let alone discussed if they were okay with other people knowing. 

Wayne looked down at Eddie's chest, frowning, “‘M sorry to wake you when you’re finally gettin’ some sleep, but the kids‘re here.”

“Like, Max?”

“Like, all of ‘em.”

Oh, what the fuck. 

Eddie scrubbed a hand over his face… and then nearly jumped out of his skin when Steve’s voice, mid-yawn and raspy with sleep, came from the bed behind him. 

“Ugh, what are they even doing here, do you have Hellfire today or something?” 

Wayne lifted a single eyebrow. “Who’s your friend?”

“Uh—”

There was a rustle of fabric as Steve moved around behind him, getting dressed. Well, putting a shirt on anyway—Eddie’s shirt.

Oh.

Eddie looked down and, yup, that was Steve’s polo shirt he had on. 

God he was such a dumbass sometimes.

Wayne craned his neck, trying to see over Eddie’s shoulder—and clearly Steve didn't care if the other man saw him or he wouldn’t have spoken up, so Eddie stepped back, letting the door open the rest of the way as Steve slid up beside him. It seemed this meeting was happening right here, right now, whether he liked it or not, so he might as well accept it.

“It’s nice to meet you, sir. I’m Steve, Steve Harrington.” Steve smiled, sticking his hand out for Wayne to shake, which the older man took—as if they weren’t all standing in Eddie’s bedroom doorway at who knew what time in the morning, in their fucking underwear!

But it was fine. 

“Good to meet you too, son. I hear you’re one of the people I have to thank for findin’ my boy and gettin’ him to help. Didn’t see you ‘round the hospital, else I would’ve shown you my gratitude sooner.” 

Steve's smile faltered—and fell. “No. I, uh—I wasn’t. I’m sorry I wasn’t there, I should have been. I–” 

Eddie took his hand, squeezing, and leaned in to press their sides together. 

Wayne shook his head. “You don’t have to explain yourself to me, and anyways it looks like whatever it was has worked itself out now. S’long as you boys are bein’ safe, that’s good enough for me.”

“Wayne!” Eddie hissed.

“Go see to your audience. They’re mighty interested in that fancy car out there, which I'm assumin’ belongs to Steve, so….” Wayne glanced between the two of them, chuckling. “Have fun with that.”

For the second time in as many minutes Eddie felt like an idiot. Steve’s car was parked right outside the trailer, hiding him had never been an option. Again, he reminded himself that Steve didn’t seem to mind, had known his car would be out there for all to see in the morning when he decided to stay last night.  

“Try and keep it down though, will ya? I’m gonna go catch some sleep before my shift tonight.”

Wayne shuffled away down the hall and back out to the living room where he’d spend the day sleeping on an old rollaway bed. Eddie felt a pang of guilt, like he always did when he thought about all the things Wayne had sacrificed to raise him, up to and including giving him the trailer’s only bedroom. He tried to give it up, on multiple occasions, but Wayne wouldn’t hear it. 

“I guess it’s time to face the music about disappearing, and—” Steve glanced down at their clasped hands.

Eddie looked down too, considering. This thing between them, whatever it was, felt so new, and fragile. It was one thing for Wayne to see them together, Eddie was already out to his uncle and accepted by him, and Steve had known that, but the kids? That was different—it was a lot. 

“We don’t have to tell anyone anything you're not ready for, Steve. We can always say you came over to hang out and it got late and you slept on the couch. They wouldn't think anything of it.”

“No. I don’t want to hide, not from our friends.” Steve chewed on his bottom lip. “Unless—you don’t want them to know?” 

“Sweetheart, I would tell the whole world how I felt about you if it was safe. Of course we can tell the party. I think we can trust them, and technically, all of them but Will and El saw us make out once already, not our fault they don’t remember.”

Steve grinned, and pulled Eddie in for a kiss. It was little more than a peck on the lips, a light little thing in comparison to all they’d done the night before, but it still took Eddie’s breath away.

They pulled apart reluctantly, and set about finding and putting pants on. Eddie wondered if he should offer to switch their shirts back, but he was sort-of loving seeing Steve in his clothes, and as much as the polo was something he’d usually not be caught dead in, it was much softer than it looked, and came with the added perk of smelling like Steve.

“So, um, what is it we’re telling them… exactly?” Eddie asked as he slipped his shoes on. Maybe It was silly to feel so nervous about asking the dreaded ‘what are we’ question after they’d already said I love you, but he couldn’t help it. It was all feeling a little too good to be true.

Steve strode right over, taking Eddie’s face between his hands. “Boyfriends?”

Eddie nodded, sagging in relief as he raised his hands to cover Steve’s where they cradled him. 

Steve leaned in the press their lips together one more time, whispering, “even if that word is too… small for what this feels like.”

For a moment Eddie could do nothing but stare in awe at the boy in front of him. He wasn’t used to things working out. He’d never expected to fall this hard for someone, and he’d certainly never dreamed that someone would love him with the same ferocity, but there it was being reflected back to him through Steve’s eyes. 

“You’re something else, Harrington. You know that?”

-

Just as Wayne had said, the entire group of kids, minus Erica, were clustered around Steve’s car almost like they were guarding it, or making sure Steve couldn’t take off and drive away without going through them first.  

As soon as they set foot outside, Dustin threw himself at Steve, wrapping arms tightly around his middle before suddenly pulling back to punch him in the chest.

Steve rubbed at the spot. “Hey!”

“You ignored me… for weeks! I was worried about you!” Dustin yelled, hitting him again.

“I know!” Steve shouted back, then sighed, deflating. “I know, and I’m sorry. I was going through some stuff, and I got really in my head about it, but I shouldn't have pushed everyone away. That—that wasn’t cool.” 

“What happened? And why did Eddie get to see you before I did?”

Eddie stepped in then, he couldn’t let Steve take all the flack when they were at least equally to blame for this whole mess. “Don’t be too hard on him, Henderson. It was my fault. I–” 

“No,” Steve cut him off, taking his hand and lacing their fingers together. “Eddie and I had a… misunderstanding, but–uh, we worked it out” 

Dustin’s eyes widened, tracking the movement, head tilting as he seemed to really look at them for the first time. “Steve, what are you weari—what the hell is happening right now?”

Eddie didn’t know what he expected, but It wasn’t quite the reaction he’d hoped for. “Look, if this is going to be a problem for you guys, at least—”

“No! God, no." Dustin shook his head, holding his hands up in front of him, placating. "I’m sorry. It’s not—it’s fine!. It’s… pretty awesome, actually.”

Lucas cleared his throat. “We’re just surprised, is all."

“Yeah! Because of Steve’s reputation and everything.” Dustin clarified. 

Max snorted. “I’m not.”

Mike, Lucas, And Dustin gaped at her, while El and Will quietly watched from the sidelines. 

“What do you mean you're not surprised?!” Lucas snapped.

She rolled her eyes. “Are you morons blind?”

Mike crossed his arms, face pinched as he rounded on Steve. “So what, you just decided to suddenly be gay now? Or were you gay this whole time and just messing with my sister before?”

Eddie had never wanted to snatch that little prick up by the back of his neck more. 

“Keep your voice down, Wheeler! Before you out us to the whole damn trailer park!” Eddie hissed quietly, realizing far too late that the front of his trailer probably wasn’t the best place for this conversation, but they were in it now. 

In his defense he hadn’t expected any outbursts. Surprise? Maybe… probably, but no outright hostility—though young Wheeler only seemed to be pissed at Steve rather than both of them, so maybe it was more of a personal thing than a gay thing?

“Sorry.” Mike grumbled. 

“And no, we’re not ‘suddenly gay’ now, and it’s not something you choose or decide, shithead. It’s more like something you discover about yourself, when you’re ready. Some people figure it out at a young age, like me.” Eddie tried very hard not to let his gaze flit towards Will, who in their limited interactions had started giving off a vibe. Instead he looked at Steve, and smiled warmly. “But, for others it takes a little time.”

“Like me.” Steve said, smiling back at him with a soft look in his eyes. A look that completely dissolved as he turned to Mike, “And I’m bisexual, Michael. So, no, I wasn’t messing with your sister. Liking Eddie now doesn’t mean I didn't like her then. I like boys and girls.”

“Wait, that’s… Is that allowed?”

Oh. 

Suddenly the boy’s anger at Steve might make little more sense. 

Steve softened. “Yeah, Mike. That’s allowed.”

After a moment of silence Mike bristled, realizing everyone was looking at him now. “Whatever. I’m going back to Max’s.” He kicked rocks, literally, and ran across the way to the Mayfield trailer, sitting down on its steps, sulking.

“Hey Steve, so now that you're talking and leaving the house again, can we have a sleepover?” Dustin asked. 

Steve gave him an unimpressed look.“ Shouldn’t you guys be going after him or something?”

Lucas waved a hand. “He’ll get over it.”

Dustin tipped his chin in agreement. “You know how he gets, he’s fine. Now, what do you say?”

“I don’t know guys.” Steve said. 

“Pleeeeeease?”

Steve slid his eyes sideways, looking to Eddie for an opinion. 

Eddie shrugged. As much as he wanted more alone time with Steve—like, a lot more—he knew he wasn’t the only one who’d been missing him.  

“Fine. But you all need to get your own rides, and give me a few hours to get ready. Seven o’clock at the earliest, you hear me? And make sure your parents know where you’re gonna be.”

The kids all lit up, even Max cracked a smile.

“Yes!” Lucas cheered, before turning with Max to go back to her house. 

“Thanks, Steve!” Dustin shouted over his shoulder, him and Will joining the retreat, only El lagged behind. 

“Everything alright, El?” Steve asked. 

“I am really glad you’re feeling better. I wanted to come see you right away but–”

Steve drew in a breath, a horrified look of realization coming over his face. "Oh my god, El, you remember too! I'm such an idiot, I didn't even think!"

Eddie squeezed the hand he was still holding and felt his own heart drop. With everything else it hadn’t occurred to him either.

"It's okay. Robin told me you were sad, too sad to see anyone.” El said. 

“I’m so sorry, sweetie, I should have realized—I should have checked on you. Are you okay?”

“I think so. I told my Dad everything. I felt bad… guilty at first. I thought it was all my fault because I was the one who failed to stop Henry so many times. He says it's not, and I am trying to believe him."

"He's right," Eddie said. "None of this was anyone’s fault but Vecna’s. Trust me, I felt the exact same way throughout the loops. I thought, here I was, given chance after chance and I just kept screwing it up. It wasn’t my fault, or yours, or Steve’s. We did the best we could, and yeah, it took a few tries to get it right, but we did. We did it together. El, you were absolutely incredible in there, facing him down on your own. I never would have gotten out if it wasn’t for you. You saved me."

“I think we all saved each other, but I am sorry that I did not remember, that must have been scary by yourself.”

"No. No more apologies. That’s not on you or Steve, and I won't have either of you feeling guilty about it for another second.” Eddie said, his gaze flitting between their faces. “Okay?”

El nodded, offering him a small smile. 

Steve sighed. “Okay.”

-

A short while later they were walking into Steve’s house. Eddie had snuck back inside to leave a note for his uncle about where he’d be before they took off in the other boy’s BMW.

“Sorry about the mess,” Steve said as they crossed the threshold into the living room, rubbing a hand nervously at the back of his neck. “I, uh, I didn’t realize how bad it’d gotten.”

Eddie looked around. The air was stale, beer cans strewn around the coffee table, a few left where they’d fallen on the floor, along with several pizza boxes, some dirty clothes, and the couch was piled up with a pillow and blankets in a heap. It was very not like Steve, but it also wasn’t that bad. “You call this a mess? That’s adorable. You’ve seen my place man, c’mon. This is nothing. We can have this picked up in ten minutes—tops.”

“No, this is my problem, and your arm–”

“Is fine.” Eddie insisted. “Why don't you go get us a couple trash bags.”

They worked together, and just as predicted it didn’t take long at all. He gathered up the laundry, tossing it all into the washing machine, while Steve took care of the trash and wiped down the tables, the two of them meeting in the middle to straighten couch cushions and fold blankets. 

“Were you sleeping down here?” Eddie asked.

“Tried to. I was struggling, and angry, and I missed you. Thinking about sleeping in that bed alone after all those memories came back just—” Steve shook his head. “Not that down here was any better. I know it was only a short time that you were here with me, really, but it’s like you seeped into the walls.”

When Steve finished with the blanket he was working on, he hugged it to his chest and sat down. “It was one of my happy memories, one of the places I went when I was running from Vecna. Here, on this couch, with you.”

Eddie tilted his head, taking a seat beside him. 

“You’d just cooked for us. I was so tired, and you tried to make me go to bed, but I wouldn't listen.”

“And you fell asleep anyway.”

“And you let me sleep on your shoulder for the whole movie. That night—that was when I really started to fall for you, in that loop at least.”

Eddie rested a hand on Steve’s knee. “Me too.”

-

They moved on to the kitchen next, which was in pretty good shape apart from a sink full of dishes, something Eddie couldn’t really help with, so he hopped up onto the counter to supervise and keep Steve company. 

Well, he tried to hop up on the counter at least, a task that was made much more difficult with the use of only one hand. After his second failed attempt, Steve gripped him around the waist and lifted him up on his perch before wordlessly getting to work. 

Eddie swallowed hard, feeling his cheeks warm. He could get used to being manhandled like that, and judging by Steve’s little smirk, the other boy felt the same way.

It should have been boring sitting there watching as Steve scrubbed plates and glasses, but as corny as it sounded, Eddie was just happy to be around him. Steve kept looking at him too, to the detriment of his task, as he repeatedly sloshed water over himself when he got stuck staring for too long. 

The third time it happened Eddie had to laugh. “What? Is it my hair?” He shook his head making his curls bounce around wildly. “Have I been walking around with bedhead all day and you didn’t tell me?”

“No, it’s just— a part of me can’t believe you’re here? I know it was my own doing, but I was going crazy all alone in this big fucking house.”

Eddie rested a hand on his shoulder, just able to reach from his spot. 

“I should be used to it by now, the whole being alone thing. I’m sure you’ve noticed that my parents aren’t around much. It’s… not a new thing.”

“I did.” Eddie admitted. “I figured you’d talk about them when you were ready.”

Steve smiled sadly, returning his attention to the sink as he went on. “I was eight the first time they left me alone for the weekend. I was terrified, slept with all the lights on, thought every bump in the night was a robber breaking in. The older I got the longer they would stay away. They’d swoop in every now and then, just long enough to make sure I knew how disappointed they were that I wasn’t living up to their expectations. When my dad found out I wasn’t going to college they stopped coming home altogether.”

“What about graduation?”

“They stopped by, about a week after the ceremony, to yell at me for not having a job yet, even though I’d already told them I had the interview at Scoops. That’s the last time I spoke to them in person.”

“Wait, they didn’t come home when you got hurt at the mall? I know they would have thought it was just a fire but, didn’t the hospital call them?”

Steve tensed, and very deliberately did not look at him. 

Eddie sighed. “You didn’t go to the hospital, did you?”

“Didn’t need to.”

“Baby, you were drugged and tortured.”

“That’s actually part of why I didn’t go. Didn’t think I could handle facing another guy in a white coat.”

It was hard to argue with that, and of course it was in the past now, but that didn’t stop Eddie from wanting to. “So you were just here alone after all that?”

“No, um, Robin–” Steve broke off with a breathy laugh. “Ok, this is going to sound fucked up but that was another one of my happy memories, actually. Robin, she snuck out of her house and into mine that night. She didn’t need to sneak, of course, it’s not like anyone else was here, but she didn’t know that at the time. It was crazy, this girl who barely tolerated me before everything went down—suddenly, here she was, climbing through my bedroom window, insisting on taking care of me.” He shook his head. “I don’t think I could live without her now.”

“Pretty sure she feels the same way about you, sweetheart. So it’s been almost a year since you’ve seen your parents?”

“Yeah, they bought a place in Chicago when my dad was offered a new position in his company there. Said I could stay here until they sell the place, as long as I had a job and kept it clean.”

“I’m sorry.”

Steve gave half a shrug. “It’s—I don’t need or want them in my life anymore. If anything I'm grateful it’s allowed me to still be here for the kids through all this shit without having to deal with them.”

“Still, you deserved better.”

Steve shut the faucet off, drying his hands before wedging himself between Eddie's legs where they hung off the counter, throwing arms around his waist. “Thank you.”

Eddie yelped at the contact, the front of Steve’s shirt was cold, and wet, and it was seeping into Eddie’s clothes now too, but he only held Steve tighter, and didn’t let go. 

“I think we’re both going to need some dry clothes after this.” Eddie said. 

Steve nuzzled into his chest. “How about a shower first?”

-

This wasn’t exactly how he had pictured it when Steve suggested they take a shower together. Not that Eddie would have turned the opportunity down, under any circumstances, but the plastic bag tied and taped around his casted arm, while necessary, was decidedly unsexy.

He looked ridiculous.

However, Steve didn’t seem to agree, if the hungry looks he was throwing Eddie’s way as they undressed were any indication.

Though Eddie was more than capable of washing his own hair one handed, had been doing so since the hospital, Steve insisted on taking charge from the moment they stepped under the spray together, working shampoo into his scalp until it formed a lather, letting it run through the end of his curls as it rinsed out. 

Eddie was in heaven, the feel of Steve's fingers combing conditioner through his hair was unlike anything else, and the occasional tug when he got caught up on a knot had a warmth blossoming low in his belly, and something else growing between his legs. 

He tried to hold it in but a quiet moan slipped past his lips as Steve coaxed his head back, rinsing it again, and it was all Eddie could do not to palm himself.

Suddenly Steve’s broad chest was pressed up against his back, mouth hovering just behind his ear. “Don’t hold back on my account.”

Eddie shivered, trying to press his ass back to feel if Steve was as affected as he was, but the other boy was keeping his hips a polite distance away. 

Tease.

Next, Steve took up a bar of soap and a washcloth, and began to painstakingly wash him from head to toe, reaching around to get Eddie’s front and finally pressing his own hard length against the swell of his ass. 

Eddie moaned again, long and loud this time so Steve would know exactly what he was doing to him. 

It was as close to being worshiped as he could imagine, and he’d never felt so cared for and so fucking turned on in his life, convinced that if anything more than water touched his cock right now, he’d be painting the shower wall in seconds with his release.  

Thankfully Eddie got a short reprieve as Steve stepped back to turn the soap on himself, and he took several deep breaths, purposely not turning around to watch the show that was happening right behind him. He thought he knew where this was going, and he didn’t want their fun to be so short lived because he couldn’t get himself under control. 

But then Steve was done, and in the blink of an eye he spun Eddie around, pinned him against the wall, and dropped to his fucking knees, and Eddie knew he was screwed. He would never last, but the exquisite image before him certainly would—seared into his brain forever. 

He wasn’t too far gone to check in though, to make sure Steve wasn’t pushing past his comfort zone. “You don’t have to.”

Steve licked his lips, glancing up at him through his eyelashes. “I want to.”

Jesus Christ

“Are you sure?” Eddie reached down to cup Steve’s cheek, running a thumb over his bottom lip. Steve’s eyes fell shut, the tip of his tongue darting out to lick at it like a reflex.

“Fuck.” Eddie breathed.

“Please?” Steve begged, letting his mouth fall wide open. He knew exactly what he was doing and any lingering worries Eddie had completely fell away.

“Since you asked so nicely.”

Eddie caressed Steve’s face one last time before letting it go, taking himself in hand, and began to feed his cock inch by inch between Steve’s lips. 

-

Predictably, Eddie had come embarrassingly fast, but so had Steve once they switched places, and after a final rinse off they both collapsed, naked and partially damp onto Steve's bed.

“We can’t fall asleep. The kids–” Steve mumbled.

“They won’t be here for at least another hour. I won’t let us fall asleep, I promise. I just want to hold you for a while.” Eddie said, throwing an arm over Steve, pulling him in close.

“This was one of my happy memories. Laying in here with you.”

Steve turned in his arms to face him, running fingers through his sodden curls.

“The last night before we went after Vecna, when everyone fell asleep in the living room but you and I snuck up here.” Eddie tucked himself under Steve’s chin, hiding his face. “Did you…”

“Did I, what?”

“Did you kiss me that night? On the top of the head?”

Steve groaned like he was embarrassed. “I thought you were asleep!”

Eddie chuckled. “Almost. I was never sure it wasn’t just a dream.” His lips dragged against the skin of Steve's neck as he spoke, and he was just starting to suck a bruise into the side of his throat when the doorbell rang. 

Steve groaned.

“They’re early,” Eddie grumbled as they both untangled themselves and got up.

Steve went right for the dresser to pull clothes out for them, and Eddie couldn’t help but notice a certain t-shirt in the other boy’s hand. 

“Mine.”  He snatched it up greedily. “But I’m not putting it on yet, my hair is still too wet.”

“As long as you put pants on. I don’t think we need to scar them like that—although maybe it’ll make them think twice before showing up early next time.”

“That’s an idea.”

In the end, Eddie did slide a pair of sweatpants on, for his own modesty, and followed Steve down the stairs to answer the door, a towel slung over his shoulders to catch any drips.

Steve grasped the handle, raising his voice as he threw the front door open. “I thought I said seven o’clock you—” And clicked his mouth shut abruptly when he came face-to-face, not with Dustin, Max, or any of the others, but Robin and Chrissy standing on his doorstep.

Robin crossed her arms over her chest, eyes narrowed as she took them in. “Dustin called me.”

Steve grit his teeth. “Oh that little–

She shrugged. “Scoops troop for life.”

“Wait, did he tell you about us?” Eddie asked.

“No, just about the sleepover. I–” Robin glanced over her shoulder at Chrissy. “We—assumed the other thing when he said where and when they’d run into the two of you.”

Eddie scoffed. 

Run into them, as if the gremlins hadn’t been lying in wait, ready to pounce.

Chrissy nodded. “Oh, and fair warning I'm pretty sure the kids also told Nancy and Jonathan about your little shindig too.”

“Great.”

Eddie wound his arm around Steve’s lower back, rubbing his thumb back and forth along his side. “Hey, like I said this morning. No one has to know that you’re not ready to tell. I can keep my hands to myself while they’re around, and we can make sure the kids don’t—”

“And like I said,” Steve gently cut him off, leaning into him. “I don't want to hide, and maybe I don’t want you to keep your hands to yourself.”

“Ugh,” Robin groaned. “You guys are gonna be gross about this aren’t you?”

“Don’t be homophobic, Buckley.”

“At least put a shirt on.” Robin rolled her eyes, shoulder checking him on her way by as she and Chrissy finally came inside.

“Fine.” Eddie whined, giving Steve’s side one last squeeze before he yanked the towel off and rubbed at his head. In a huff he headed for the bedroom, and Steve’s swim team shirt. At least time he could actually enjoy wearing the Harrington name like a brand across his back. 

“I’m really happy for you guys. It’s good to see you like this.”

He heard Robin say to Steve as he climbed the stairs, while the rest of them headed to the living room. 

“What, vertical?” Steve asked, a hint of laughter in his voice. 

“No, smiling.”

-

The sleepover turned out to be exactly what everyone needed. They had won the war, and now, finally, their little group was complete again. 

Nancy and Jonathan did eventually show, and stayed for quite a while, though they didn’t sleep over—they also seemed very unsurprised when he and Steve told them about their relationship.

Was it possible he and Steve were not as subtle as they thought?

Even Hopper and Joyce paid a visit on their way to dinner, taking advantage of their most trusted babysitters to have a night out for themselves. Steve was the one to share their news that time, again to less than surprised faces. 

Joyce got teary eyed, hugged them both, said how happy she was for them, and how it didn’t change anything. Eddie just hoped Will had been in earshot, so he’d know he had a mom who was ready to accept him whenever he was ready to accept himself. 

Hopper was pretty quiet about the whole thing, but made a point to hug Steve and shake Eddie’s hand before they left, which was a shock all on its own, and probably the closest thing Eddie was going to get to a stamp of approval. 

He’d take it. 

-

Later that night, or early the next morning depending on how you looked at it, considering it was nearing 2am by the time everyone else fell asleep and Steve and Eddie had snuck away, they were finally back in bed, as wrapped up in each other as they could be. 

“So, what do we do now?” Steve asked softly.

Eddie kissed the corner of his mouth, and reached down to knead his ass. “I didn’t think you’d want to fool around with everyone else right downstairs, but if you insist—”

“No,” Steve huffed a laugh, wriggling around till Eddie moved his hand. “I mean, you’re graduating soon, right? And I guess I’m wondering what your plan is, what’s next for you.”

“Stevie, I’m just starting to accept the fact that we’ve survived this insanity, I have no plans. I guess I’d like to get a job? Sort of over being the town drug dealer after all this, y’know?” Eddie reached up to tuck a stray piece of hair behind Steve’s ear. “What about you, big boy? What do you want now that the Upside Down is gone for good?”

He couldn’t help recalling how Steve’s last answer to a very similar question had been to make it to 21, and hoped that had changed now.

“I don’t know. Robin will be heading off to college in the fall. I thought once about following her, but I was too worried about being that far away if something happened. I never thought we’d be in the clear like this.”

“Where’s she going?”

“Indianapolis.” Steve heaved a heavy sigh, as though the nearby city was on another planet.

“That’s only like an hour away!”

“But, what about the kids?”

“You know they’re not really kids, right? And they have parents.” Eddie propped himself up on his elbow to look the other boy more solidly in the eye. “Vecna is gone, for good this time. They’re safe. Besides, the little shits will be driving before you know it, and until then you can visit whenever you want.”

Steve looked down, fingers playing along the sheet. “You trying to talk me into moving away, Munson?” 

“If that’s what you want.”

“What about you—us?”

“I could always come with you… if you’d want that.”

Steve’s eyes snapped back to his. A little wider than they were before. “B-but what about Wayne?”

“I’m almost twenty years old, I think it’s time for Wayne to have his bedroom back, and me moving out is probably the only thing that’ll make him accept it.”

“Isn’t it a little soon for us to be talking about living together?”

“Maybe—probably,” Eddie grinned, letting out a long breath. “But, we’ve established that we’re both crazy, right? And we have time, it’s not like it would be happening tomorrow.”

“Seriously though, you would do that?”

Eddie reached for him, and they shuffled around until they were wrapped up closely together again. “In a heartbeat. As long as you want me around, I'll be here. So yeah, I’m all in.”

-

Six months later found them, and all the belongings they could fit in the back of Eddie’s van, flying down the highway towards their new place—a two bedroom apartment in Indianapolis they’d be sharing with Chrissy and Robin while the girls went to school. 

The two friends had finally managed to get their own shit together after that first post-Vecna sleepover. Bolstered by how open Eddie and Steve were and how accepting the group had been of them, the very next morning Chrissy finally worked up the courage to make a move—to Robin’s immense relief. 

Then Chrissy received an acceptance letter from the same school Robin was attending, and all the pieces just sort of fell into place. 

Steve sold the BMW. They wouldn’t need two cars in the city, and it was worth more used than Eddie’s van would have gotten brand new. Indy wasn’t like Hawkins, there’d be plenty of public transportation, and the money he made would be more than enough for the two of them to live on until they found jobs. 

“Are you sure this is okay? That we’re not moving too fast doing this?” Steve asked from the passenger seat, as they took the final exit that would lead them to their future. 

It wasn’t the first time Steve had said those same words over the last few weeks. He’d also asked the day they put their deposit down, the day they told Wayne they were leaving, and the night they started packing. Steve seemed to think Eddie was going to suddenly change his mind or something, as if he was less than absolutely head over heels in love.

“You say that like we haven't spent every waking moment together since we got together. How many times do I have to tell you I'm all in on this, on you, before you believe me?”

“Sorry.” Steve sunk down in his seat, cheeks going a little pink.

Eddie held his hand out over the center console, whining and wiggling his fingers until Steve finally cracked a smile and took it, lacing their fingers together.

“Do you think we’ll be happy here? That it’ll feel like home someday?” Steve asked.

“I think wherever we are will always feel like home, as long as we’re there together.”

Special thanks to @penny00dreadful for being the best beta, friend and cheerleader.

Reblogs are always appreciated! 💜💜💜

Permanent taglist(open): @hitlikehammers @pearynice @penny00dreadful @bookworm0690 @wonderland-girl143-blog 

@goodolefashionedloverboi @themagicalari

Fic taglist: @cranberrymoons @thoroughlycollected @blubblesandink @finntheehumaneater @brbsoulnomming

@estrellami-1 @hellion-child @manda-panda-monium @spicysix @kikidoesfanfic

@dreamwatch @lawrencebshoggoth @stillfullofshit @lil-gremlin-things @mamafaithful

@klausinamarink @starlight-archer

[biggerbetterbat]

WITH YOU | masterlist

Summary: When Glenn brings back a girl, Daryl Dixon doesn't know that she'll be the most important thing in his life. Story about finding soulmate when the world is ending

Daryl Dixon x reader!oc (season 1-?)

General Warnings: adult language/content, violence, descriptions of blood/injury, characters deaths, typical TWD themes. It will follow the plotline - maybe slightly different at some points. There will be plotlines and dialogue from the show. There will be descriptions of reader and her character, because it's more of fanfiction.

DAYLIGHT ON WATTPAD

"Cause when you're gone, I've lost myself away And I've never wanted to feel so wrong When I'm in love with you"

Marissa&EMO 365 Days

PART 1

ACT 1: ATLANTA

[1] SHATTERED DREAMS

[2] THE DAY THAT WORLD WENT TO SHIT

[3] HOPE CALLED GLENN RHEE

[4] THANK GOD DARYL DIXON IS NOT A WALKER

[5] THIS IS NOT A SUMMER CAMP

[6] HELICOPTER BOY

[7] OPERATION MERLE, OPERATION LAUNDRY

[8] DIFFERENT OPINION

[9] THE END OF THE SHANELEADERSHIP

[10] GOOD LUCK TO US THEN

[11] WERE YOU AN ADULT FILMS ACTRESS BEFORE?

CHARLIE’S DREAM

[12] TS-19

ACT 2: THE FARM

[13] JUST NEVER STOP

[14] POOR THING, YOU ARE

[15] WE HAVE CANDIES

[16] THE CHICK

[17] AND DARYL’S HERE

[18] GLENN’s DAY

[19] A WALKER IN THE ROOM

[20] LOST AND FOUND

[21] I LOVE YOU

[22] THAT’S RANDALL

LESSON

[23] DYING IS EASY

[24] SORRY, BROTHER

[25] TO PROTECT GLENN AND DARYL

[26] OLD MCDONALD HAD A FARM

ACT 3 PRISON

[27] HOME SWEET HOME

[28] DEAL

[29] I PROMISE

[30] THE KILLER I AM

[31] I’M SORRY

[32] THIS IS NOT A GOODBYE

[33] THE SOUR TASTE OF BETRAYAL

THE DIXON BROTHERS

[34] OLD AQUAIATANCE

[35] DECISIONS

[36] GREATER REASON

ACT 4: LIMBO

[37] BACK

[38] A GUT FEELING

[39] THE MELODY

[40] BLESS ME FATHER FOR I HAVE SINNED

A DREAM OR NOT

[41] I WILL FIND YOU

[42] TERMINUS

[43] HOUSE IN THE MIDDLE OF THE FOREST

HIS REDEMPTION

[44] TODAY I BURY YOU

[45] AT THE END OF THE TRACKS

PART 2

ACT 5: ALEXANDRIA

[1] LET THE JESUS TAKE THE WHEEL

[2] WHAT HAPPENED AT THE LORD’s HOUSE

APARTMENT IN ATLANTA

[3] A TRAP

[4] PAYING THE HIGH COST OF LIVING

[5] FROM A FRIEND

[6] KNOCKING ON HEAVEN’s DOORS

[7] COMMUNITY

[8] WEAK

[9] SOMETHING INSIDE OF ME

ACT 6

[10] THEN

[11] IN THE MEANTIME

[12] NOW

[13] BETTER DAYS

[14] BIGGER WORLD

[15] TIME OF DECISION

[16] CAPTURED

[17] FORTIFICATIONS

[18] THE DEATH WILL COME

[19] THE NIGHT BEFORE THE END

[20] THE END

[ofmdrecaps]

11/01-02/2024 Daily OFMD Recap

TLDR; David Jenkins; Rhys Darby; Darby Foster Kittens; Taika Waititi; Kristian Nairn; Vico Ortiz; Nathan Foad; Samba Schutte; Leslie Jones Guz Khan; Anapela Polataivao; Erroll Shand; Adam Stein; Boris McGiver; NSFW: "DILF Awards"; Fan Spotlight: BabyKittenTeach; Love Notes;

= David Jenkins =

David's been reposting more fan tweets! This time this lovely cloud that absolutely DOES look like our boys.

Source: David Jenkins Twitter

Also too, David answers the hard questions, and yes, I agree, definitely 'Boy'!

Source: David Jenkins Twitter

= Rhys Darby =

New Full length episode of The Cryptid Factor (Episode 99!)! You can access it on The Cryptid Factor Patreon

The Cryptid Factor Patreon

= Darby Foster Kittens =

Apparently Bumbles and the Dog are literally breaking the Darby Foster kittens out of their room and then they're all breaking into the food.

Source: Rosie's Instagram

Source: Rosie's Instagram

= Taika Waititi =

Our friends over at @adoptourcrew brought this great article to everyone's attention! Agreed! It is VERY natural looking and good god is he hot in it! The wig department deserved an Emmy.

Source: Adopt Our Crew's Twitter

= Kristian Nairn =

Kristian's on his way back home!

Source: Kristian's Instagram

= Samba Schutte =

More halloween Shenanigans from Samba!

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Samba Schutte (@sambaschutte)

Source: Samba's Instagram

Are you going to be attending Samba's class on Saturday the 9th? If so, Momentus has sent out the recipe list! If you didn't get it for some reason, reach out, I got you!

Source: Samba's Instagram

= Nathan Foad =

Nathan reminiscing about Lucius and then showing us his gorgeous mug for today!

Source: Nathan Foad's Instagram

= Leslie Jones =

Leslie is going to be LIVE in Los Angeles on Nov 6th! Get tickets here!

Source: Leslie Jones Instagram

= Vico Ortiz =

Some fun from October with Vico!

Source: Vico's Instagram

= Anapela Polataivao =

More Auntie at the Pacific Institute of Performing Arts!

Source: Gaby Solomona Instagram

= Guz Khan =

Guz out in Instanbul!

Source: Instagram

= Erroll Shand =

Our Prince Ricky, Erroll Shand's show 'One Night' will be streaming on Netflix starting this month in Australia!

Source: Screenmedia_NSW Instagram

= Adam Stein =

One of our beloved writers, Adam Stein is in a production of Waiting for Godot at the Geffen Playhouse, Los Angeles. Nov 6 thru Dec 15 2024!

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Geffen Playhouse (@geffenplayhouse)

Source: Adam Stein Instagram

= Boris McGiver =

Father Bonnet has some BTS of his show Teacup, finally getting to see him smile-- it's so lovely!

Source: Instagram

== "DILF" Awards" ==

Well, apparently the "DILF archive" results that were going on, really left many of our crew frustrated with where our dear cast fell. Seven_sugars on twitter has rectified that issue and was kind enough to make some Our Flag Means DILF awards for our various D's out there!

Source: Ashley (Seven_Sugars) Twitter

== Fan Spotlight ==

= babykittenteach =

Idk if you've see it yet but there's an ADORABLE picrew that our dear @babykittenteach created, where you can make some pretty fantastic Ed picrews! I had such a blast with them-- it's so cute and fun, and thank you dear for sharing it with us all!

https://www.tumblr.com/babykittenteach/766039915755683840/hi-i-made-an-ed-picrew-and-you-can-play-with-it?source=share

Source: BabyKittenTeach's Tumblr

== Love Notes ==

Hey there lovelies. I wasn't sure if I was going to get these done in time tonight... what with how behind I am. I know that a lot of us are all very worried about what's going on in the world, and specific in the US with the presidential elections about to happen. No matter what the results are, I know it doesn't just affect the U.S., it affects the whole planet. So many of our crewmates from around the world have been sending support and love, and I'm so very thankful to have the honor of knowing you all. Just remember, that no matter what happens tomorrow the 5th, you all are just as strong, and resilient and beautiful as you were yesterday. We are going to make it through whatever happens. Remember to lean on your crew if you need help, we're here okay? We are stronger in numbers, and we care about you <3 Additional love note tonight from our friend @illustoryart with Nadja!

Source: @illustoryart's Instagram

[l33bang24]

OMG It’s You…(Part 13)

YouTube!Fem reader x Stray Kids

Summary: Y/N’s YouTube channel is taking off after her reactions to Stray Kids MV God’s Menu. Now she’s making videos nonstop along with working a full time job. What would happen if she got offered a job of a lifetime and met the boys of her succession?

⚠️Warnings⚠️: fluff, kissing, anxiety, nervousness, mixed feelings?? (not sure myself)

🏷️ : @laylasbunbunny @weirdowithaphone @silverstarburst @jusanontstuff @anxiousskylar @drewsandsebastianswife @amararosesblog @niaalove @blackbluerose666 @bangchansgirlsblog @yukichan67 @katsukis1wife (Taglist open)

(Authors note at the end)

Series Masterlist

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Y/N’s POV

I found myself in a moment of complete uncertainty. One second, I was worried about what Lee Know would think of me when we met. The next, he drew me close and passionately kissed my lips. I was initially taken aback and didn't know how to react. But as he started to pull away, I instinctively closed the gap and reciprocated the kiss. I could sense the smile on his lips as he deepened the kiss, and time seemed to stand still as we lost ourselves in each other. When we finally broke apart, it felt like an eternity had passed, even though it had only been a few minutes.

“What brings you here, Angel?" He asks with a sweet smile, keeping me against him. "Did you come all this way just to see me?" A smile crept across my face as I lowered my head slightly. "What if I told you that I've started a new job here in South Korea, and I've been living here for a little over a month now?” I nervously studied his response, observing as his expression shifted from astonishment to bewilderment and finally to a look of betrayal. "Are you telling me the truth, Jagiya? You've been here all this while?" I lowered my gaze and nodded in response. "I planned to surprise you guys after the race tomorrow, but I didn't anticipate the staff would detain one of you.”

I glance back at him before continuing, “I didn't mean to keep it from you, I promise. I-” I avert my gaze, feeling the weight of his disappointment sink in. I felt his firm grip on my chin, lifting my gaze back to meet his. In his eyes, I saw nothing but pure love and adoration. "Spill all the details, baby girl." he said, using one of his usual pet names for me. I recounted everything from the day MNet visited my old workplace to what I've been up to today. My cheeks were so flushed I felt like I was on fire.

“So, you're telling me you've been hiding from me all day? You're a very naughty girl.” He tsks, shaking his head. I push him back, but he tightly wraps his arms around my waist. "Well, I was going to show you where I've been all day, but I changed my mind now." With a mischievous glint in his eye, he reached out to tickle me, and I couldn't help but burst into laughter and double over. After a few playful moments, he finally convinced me to show him the room I had been hiding in. Stepping back, I took his hand and led him towards my secret room. As we entered, he looked around, taking in every detail of the hidden space.

"How on earth did they manage to accomplish this?" He inquires, his curiosity piqued as I diligently pack my belongings. With a smile, I turn to face him. "It required some time and effort, but we pulled it off with the assistance of the staff.” I respond. As I prepare to sling my bag over my shoulder, he intervenes, swiftly grabbing it from my hand and draping it over his shoulder instead. “I was sitting so close to the room where you and Chan were that I couldn't help but try to stifle my laughter. I did my best, but there were a few moments when I couldn't hold it in.”

He walks closer and whispers, "Have I mentioned how beautiful you look today?" I respond with a shy shake of my head. "Well, you are stunning, Angel," he declares softly, kissing my cheek tenderly. I feel the warmth spreading across my face as I thank him, my cheeks turning red. “Pictures don’t do you any justice. They are only a glimpse of your magnificence.” Now, I know my whole face and ears are entirely red.

“It's because of the makeup and wardrobe. Without all of this, I’m different.”I say with a wave of my hand. Lee Know pulls me back towards his chest, and I can't help but feel an undeniable attraction. "I know how lovely you are, even without anything on." As much as I wanted to roll my eyes, I couldn't help but smile as he wiggled his eyebrows suggestively. I gave him a playful shove, my hand touching his muscular chest. "Alright, alright, I got it. I might as well expect my face to explode from the heat you're insinuating."

His chuckle reverberates as he keeps his arm wrapped around my waist. "Now that we finally meet, does that mean I get to stay with you tonight?” I raise my eyebrow at him. “What? No way! You have to go home and keep this a secret. You can't tell anyone you met me. And tomorrow, when I introduce myself, you better act like you're genuinely surprised. Not a sarcastic surprise, but like it's the first time meeting me, kind of a surprise.” He huffs in annoyance.

“I’ll give you this. After tomorrow's race, I invite y’all to visit the house where I've been staying while filming these videos. I've already cleared it with your boss, so you can hang out with me before you return to your usual schedule. Does that make you feel better?" I ask, noticing the smirk on his face as he nods in agreement, already knowing he wouldn't turn that down.

After loading my vehicle, we said goodbye. He pulled me in for a tight embrace, gently kissing my lips. He held me for a moment longer, then pressed another kiss to my forehead, wishing him luck the next day. As we parted, my cheeks ached from the non-stop smiling throughout our time together. I returned to the house I'd been temporarily staying in and collapsed on the bed.

I never imagined that this day would arrive, but here it is. As I browsed through the photos on my phone, I came across the pictures I had captured with Lee Know. Just as he mentioned previously, photographs truly cannot capture his essence. Even now, I can still sense the lingering touch of his hand on my skin, almost as if it's etched into my very being. That evening, I drifted off to sleep with a contented smile.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lee Know’s POV

The smile on my face felt like it was etched there permanently, defying any attempts to remove it. I couldn't quite fathom why I was being restrained, but it didn't matter - I was elated. As I strained to catch a glimpse, I heard Y/N’s voice, and everything else faded. Y/N's presence stole my breath. As she entered the room, I couldn't help but be taken aback by her stunning beauty.

She was feeling a bit nervous, and I admit I was. But at that moment, I only wanted to show her how much I loved her. I pulled her close and kissed her as if she were the most refreshing drink in the world, as I had been wandering through a desert for days.

I had caught her off guard with my sudden actions, but as I started to withdraw, she drew me back in. I knew she wouldn't be able to resist me, especially when I found it impossible to resist her. As I gazed ahead, everything I had ever dreamed of was right before me, and I knew I would be foolish not to seize the opportunity.

When Y/N disclosed the reasons for keeping everything secretive, I felt disappointed that she doubted trusting me. However, after she reassured me that she did trust me and was trying to surprise us, I decided to let go of my misgivings. Despite my reluctance to return to the dorms, especially with her by my side, I complied with her request.

As I returned to the dorm, I carefully crafted a credible story to tell my roommates about where I'd been. Once I reached my room, I reached into my pocket and retrieved my phone with a smile. Earlier, Y/N suggested we take a photo together, and I happily agreed. I set that picture as my phone's wallpaper so I could see it every time I unlocked it.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The following day arrived with the sky adorned in thick clouds, yet my spirits remained undampened. The anticipation of reuniting with Y/N filled me with an exhilarating eagerness to embark on the day's adventures.

As we reached the filming location for the Lovers Race, I was filled with an overwhelming sense of excitement. When we finally made our way to the table prepared for us, my eyes landed on two beautifully decorated cakes, each one celebrating the birthdays of Jisung and Yongbok.

All I could focus on was the image of Y/N's face, yearning to see her again. I longed for her soft lips against mine and the perfect fit of her hand. Her eyes, crinkling with joy, flashed through my mind, inspiring me with the determination and resilience to navigate through today's event, knowing that at its conclusion, she would be mine once again.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Chan’s POV

I found it strange that MNet wanted to keep one of our members, Lee Know, behind. This was not something they had ever done before. When a staff member approached us and asked for Lee Know to stay, I immediately asked why. However, I only received a vague response about wanting to talk to him.

Jeongin mentioned that when Lee Know came back, he seemed noticeably happier than when he left, and his lips looked swollen as if he'd been kissing someone. It left me feeling unsettled because it didn't add up. I had intended to discuss this with Lee Know, but due to the upcoming filming schedule, I had to postpone the conversation until after the race.

I desperately hoped my assumptions were incorrect and everything was a huge misunderstanding. I will do my best to push these thoughts out of my mind. The girl who has captured my heart sends me a picture of herself smiling over a cup of coffee and wishes me good luck.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Y/N’s POV

As I sipped on the hot cup of coffee, I could feel my nerves acting up even more. The caffeine seemed to amplify my anxiety, making me feel ten times worse. As I glanced outside, the weather didn't look promising, and I couldn't help but hope and pray that it wouldn't rain and spoil the event we had planned.

I made it a point to arrive early in the morning to ensure all the cases were placed correctly and set up for filming. We had chosen the gorgeous WaveGarden water park as the location for shooting the Lovers Race, and I wanted everything to be perfect for the filming. Siheung, South Korea, is the home of an impressive WaterGarden Cove, known for being the largest of its kind among all the locations. This stunning spot is conveniently situated just thirty minutes from the Incheon Airport, making it easily accessible for travelers. We had reserved the whole day for filming so we could put out all the cases for the Lovers to find.

The moment my eyes landed on this place, I was captivated by its beauty. Its sheer magnificence amplified my enthusiasm. The expanse of the area offered countless hiding spots for these cases. I couldn't contain my anticipation of their reactions when they discovered that most of these cases were blanks.

Once all the cases were in place, we prepared for filming. To ease my anxiety, I spent some time practicing breathing exercises, knowing well that as we approached the end of the filming process, my anxiety would inevitably resurface. Until then, I'll relish their chaos's spectacle and delight in their entertaining silliness.

The time had come for us to begin. I had practiced a few of my openings before deciding which one to use. After filming my opening, we waited for the boys to arrive. Having already taken some pictures of the water park, we watched as the boys walked to the table presented with birthday cakes.

I couldn't help but smile as I recalled the heartwarming moment. It was a special day as Han's birthday was today and Felix's was tomorrow. I had asked if I could be the one to make cakes for both of them. Despite the staff's offer to have someone else handle it, I adamantly refused.

"Why should I let someone else make it when I've taken culinary classes and know how to make them myself?" I confidently asserted. I immediately regretted my words as I struggled to apply the frosting on the cake. There were moments when I contemplated tossing the whole thing out the window, but I couldn't bring myself to do it because I had promised to make it.

I successfully managed to complete both cakes. I remember feeling a sense of accomplishment as I finally finished them. After putting in so much effort, I slept soundly that night. My focus shifted when Han asked if the group could sing Happy Birthday to him and Felix. The cacophony of boys singing different off-key versions of the song filled the air, making it unbearable. I hastily removed my earpiece, not wanting to subject my ears to more discomfort than they were already experiencing.

Once they settled down some, I reinserted the earpiece just as Cupid began to speak. “Hello, we meet again! The Lover's Race will begin shortly!” The boys all clap excitedly. “Lovers are Changbin, Seungmin, Felix, and I.N, and the non-lovers are Bang Chan, Lee Know, Hyunjin, and Han. Please go to your corresponding starting points.” I laugh at the confusion on the guy's faces.

Once the group was split and taken to their respective areas, Cupid gave out their rules to the race, starting with the lovers. “Welcome, Lover! The Lover’s Race that only lovers can participate in will shortly begin! The lovers must find the cases hidden throughout the field! After obtaining the hint inside the case, guess the five-digit passcode and open the lock for the proof of love. There are only 15 cases with hints about the passcode!”

“Only fifteen? Then what’s inside the remaining 128 cases?” Jeongin asks as Seungmin counter-asks if they are just blanks. However, no one responds to them. “You have an hour-60 minute for the race! After the hour’s up, you must open the lock with the hints you obtained in 2 attempts. And the members who didn't become lovers have become fugitives who have to run away from the lovers. If you fail to open the case with the proof of love in an hour, you'll have to have a rematch with the fugitives for the proof of love! So you better find the passcode within an hour.”

We then move to the fugitives’ side as Cupid outlines their instructions. “Welcome to the Lover’s Race! Those of you who failed to become lovers and cannot take part in the race, you must become a fugitive and take part in the race. You, fugitives, throughout the hour of the race, will hold a card with an item written on it, go to the race location three times, ten minutes each, and run away from lovers. If the lover touches the fugitive, the item you're holding will be handed over to the lover immediately. If it requires the fugitive's help, he must do his best to help the lover. If the 10 minutes is up or you get your item taken, you'll go to the fugitives zone. You're not allowed to move until the next fugitive time.” The boys all nod as Cupid gives them the exact instructions about competing with the Lovers if they fail to open the proof of love in one hour.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

We had barely been 20 minutes into the adventure when a flurry of action began. Changbin searched high and low but came up empty-handed. Meanwhile, Felix and Changbin stumbled upon their skzoo plushies and decided to bring their skzoos along. Seungmin and Felix proved to be more adept at uncovering hints and clues.

As the excitement unfolded, the fugitives joined the race. Following their plan, Jeongin pursues Han, only to realize he can’t keep up. Desperate for help, he calls out to Changbin, only to find Changbin leisurely enjoying jelly alone.

As I observe the scene, I notice that some runners stealthily find hiding places while others(Chan) walk around carelessly. Suddenly, I notice Jeongin’s cameraman pointing the camera at Lee Know, who seems to have been caught. There is a sense of excitement as he calls out to the others, suggesting that he has found a hint, only to realize that it is a punishment. He accuses Lee Know of telling him it was a hint, only to have Lee Know correct him and say it was an item.

This went on for some time. The camerapersons did a fantastic job keeping up with them. I was in stitches, laughing so hard that I fell out of my chair a few times. A kind staff member had to help me back up! I had to dab at the tears to avoid smudging my makeup discreetly.

I would thank the staff for allowing me to do this afterward. I was confident the fans would be as thrilled about it as I was. In their interactions with the Lovers, Chan and Lee Know displayed their cleverness in various ways.

Not only did Chan trick Jeongin into thinking he had been caught, but he also played with Changbin after the latter lost his shoe while chasing Han. Their cunning actions added an intriguing dynamic to the situation. Lee Know was caught twice with punishment cards and even devised a plan to disrupt the Lovers before their time began.

Han was a whirlwind of chaos, darting between obstacles and concealed alcoves to evade the lovers. His heart pounded in his chest as he contemplated his next move, finally deciding to take a risk and sprawl on the ground, hoping to blend in with his surroundings and escape detection. His gamble paid off, to his surprise, and the lovers passed by him without a second glance.

During the game, Hyunjin displayed a great sense of humor. He was caught several times and impressively managed to hide in the first round for so long that when he was finally found, his time had already run out.

As for the "Lovers" team, they went above and beyond to uncover all the hidden clues. It was heartbreaking to see Changbin struggle to find any significant leads. Jeongin and Changbin pursued the runners while Seungmin and Felix meticulously combed through the area for hints. To everyone's surprise, Felix caught a runner a few times, and even Seungmin joined in the pursuit at one point.

By the end of the hour, the Lovers had only found hints for the first four numbers of the combination. They never saw the 5th hint. The first combination they put in was 24914 to celebrate Han’s birthday, and the second was 24915 for Felix’s birthday. When they pulled at the lock, it would not budge either time.

They found that the passcode was 24916, as Chan’s hint was the age at which he got his first license. After putting the code in, the lock finally opened.

Given that the Lovers did not succeed in their first two attempts, the lovers and the runners must travel to separate locations to determine whether to share the proof of love or keep it for themselves. If both teams opt to divide it, the proof of love will be evenly shared. However, if only one team chooses to keep it, that team will be granted the proof of love. If both teams decide to keep it for themselves, the proof of love will vanish.

Ultimately, the Lovers choose to possess it, while the runners decide to split it, meaning they take the proof of love. At this time, the staff takes me out of my hiding place and brings me closer to where the boys are. I wait until they end the filming before approaching.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I caught the staff asking the guys if they wanted to meet their actual host, and their faces were a mix of surprise and bewilderment. After nodding in agreement, they were asked to close their eyes. Hearing this, they sneak me in behind them.

Changbin eagerly inquired of the staff, "When can we open our eyes?” With a smile, I glanced at the cameras before replying, “Why don't you turn around and find out?” As the words escaped my lips, all the boys turned around in unison, their eyes widening in surprise. Suddenly, Felix dashed forward and seized me, spinning me around joyfully. Laughter bubbled up from within me, spilling out uncontrollably.

“OH MY GOD! IT’S YOU! IT’S REALLY YOU!!” Hyunjin yells out with excitement. After Felix gently places me back on the ground, I am immediately enveloped in someone else's embrace. I recognize the sound of Chan's infectious laughter and know that it's him. Each greets me uniquely, with Lee Know holding me tighter and promising to show me affection later. Felix keeps me close, and I find solace in his embrace, so I allow myself to lean into it.

I look at the camera, smiling, “Thank Y'all for watching, and I hope you enjoyed this as much as I did. For more of these videos, click down in the description below. Until next time, bye!” I wave at the cameras, as do the guys. After getting the cue from the director that we were done, I let out a breath.

I turned to the guys and asked, "So, did you enjoy yourselves?" They all nodded, but Changbin looked at me as if I had lost my mind. "You put all this together?" he asked incredulously. I nodded in response. “It was mainly MNet. I just got to video myself and watch you boys create chaos.” I point to the rings on Felix’s fingers. “The eight rings symbolize the idea that each person was originally meant to have one. It's like a representation of sharing your ring with the person you love the most, similar to how true lovers would share their love.”

At this, recognition crossed their faces, and I couldn't help the smile on my face. “So, is this your new workplace?" Seungmin inquires. I nod in affirmation. "I intended to inform all the guys at the house. I've already mentioned to your boss that you can spend time with me if you are interested. Though I prefer that if you’re gonna ride with me,” I gesture to their clothes, “you’re going to have to change into clean clothes. I'm not letting you in if your clothes are wet.”

"Wait, so let me get this straight. You’re saying we get to chill at a house you've rented?" I deadpanned to Han, the disbelief evident in my voice. "Yes, Jisung, that’s exactly what I’m saying. It's going to be awesome! So, are you in?" Han replies with a grin and a nod. “I’m not waiting all day!” I say, turning to walk towards the director and hug him. “Thank you,” I gesture to all the staff who stopped loading their equipment back up, “all of you for letting me do this. It was truly a delight to work with you all.”

I had carefully retrieved the envelope I had discreetly placed nearby earlier. As I handed it to the director, I couldn't help but feel a surge of gratitude towards the team for their hard work. "I wanted to express my sincere appreciation to all of you for making this experience unforgettable for me, Stray Kids, and our supporters," I said with genuine emotion. "Please, consider this as a token of my gratitude. I insist it's yours to keep. I sincerely hope to collaborate with all of you in the future." A warm smile spread across my face as the director accepted the envelope. He peered into the container and then turned to me, wearing a look of disbelief. "Y/N, you didn't have to go through all this trouble. You've often cooked for us – we don't need this. It's really too much."

“Regardless of the circumstances, this is for all of you. I understand the compensation you receive for creating these videos, and I wanted to provide a little something extra as a token of appreciation.” They graciously received the gift and wanted to collaborate with me again.

As I pivot, Chan looms behind me, wearing a mischievous smile. I haven’t had much time to assess the guys, but with Chan standing before me, it was hard to ignore the nervous energy flowing through my body. "What did you end up giving them?" I smile back and say, "Since I'm being paid extra for making my videos, I decided to give each of them 10 million won." I say it casually as if it's no big deal, but I can see the surprise on Chan's face as he processes what I just said. “Honey, that's quite a sum of money," I nod in agreement. "I understand, but they truly deserve it. Right from the start.”

As Chan pulls me close, a warm smile spreads across his face, and he gazes down at me. "You never cease to amaze me," he remarks. "First, I discovered that you've been here all along, and now you've astonished me and the others by being the brilliant mind behind all this. And now, you're graciously offering them additional money on top of what they're already earning. You're truly remarkable, my dear."

I hide my face in his chest, seeking a place to conceal the spreading of red across my cheeks. I meet his smiling gaze as he gently pulls my face away from his chest. I noticed his eyes drifting down to my lips, and suddenly, my body froze up, my brain sending signals to my heart to step back. As Chan starts to close the gap between us, Felix suddenly comes around the corner, causing Chan to step back instinctively. Doing so, I let out a deep breath I didn't know I was holding. Felix overlooked Chan's retreat as his face lit up with excitement upon seeing me.

"May I ride with you, Y/N Noona?" he asked hopefully. I couldn't help but smile and nod in response, "Yes, you may. Do you have your stuff?" I inquired. With a sense of determination, he lifted his bag to show me that he was all set. I gestured for him to follow me, and we made our way to my car together. I'm grateful that Felix appeared at that moment because it made me realize that not only had Lee Know kissed me just the day before, but Chan was also planning to do the same. However, he wouldn't do it before his fellow members as he stepped back.

Upon seeing Chan, I can't deny that I felt a strong attraction towards him. However, when I observed the expressions on both faces, it was as if neither knew of their interactions with me. "By the way, we had our clothes packed, but we didn't bring them. Do we need to go back and retrieve them?" I shake my head as Felix brings me back to the present. We returned to the car, and I loaded his belongings into the trunk. “They're delivering the bags to the house, and the cakes are already there. By the way, I put a lot of effort into making those cakes, so y’all better eat them.” We climb into the car, but Felix pauses and looks at me. “You made the cakes?”

He was an array of sunshine as I saw his eyes widen. I giggle and nod, “Yes, I spent too much time making those. I almost threw them off the roof from the frustration of putting frosting on them.” This makes him laugh, and I join him. “I will certainly enjoy it, especially if you make it.” I wave my hand in dismissal.

“When we return to the house, we'll have the opportunity to spend more time getting to know each other. Perhaps we'll discover shared interests and values that could lead to the development of meaningful friendships. It can be challenging to form connections when most of your time is spent in the confines of an office or an apartment.”

We laugh as we wait for the rest of the guys to come. I’m happy to have Felix to take my mind off the impending interaction that I know is bound to happen. Unless my gut is wrong, I can only hope that nobody gets into an argument while staying with me. Until then, Felix and I will make small conversions of our adoration for each other. I knew right then that Felix would be the best of friends.

(A/N: Soooooooooo, that happened lol. It was super long but I hope you enjoyed writing it! I'm hoping to continue the story up to a certain point before I ultimately run out of creative juices. Let me know your thoughts of the storyline so far!)

[bengals-barnesbabe]

Pairing: Joe Burrow x Singer!FemReader

Summary: When the secret relationship between a famous singer and a popular quarterback is revealed no one could be happier. But when lyrics to an unreleased song are released, the strength of their relationship is questioned and tested when fans, reporters and exes start coming into the mix. Will you get your happy ending or is this the beginning of the end?

Chapter 13: 'i love you, goodnight' tour

#Track9 Masterlist

Warnings: 18+, mentions of sex, foul language.

Part One🖤

Word Count: 1.2k

Anxiety courses through your veins like hot lava as you wait for your name to be announced. You haven't done a live appearance like this since before you and Joe went public with your relationship, not one with an audience that is. During rehearsals Jimmy reassured you that it would be more fun than stressful, but that does not include the buildup to it. Usually you’d be texting or talking to Joey right now but he’s knee deep in meetings across the country so thats not an option. So its just you and your nerves.

“For tonight’s musical guest, we have the incredibly talented and beautiful Venus, she will be singing her latest single off of her new album ‘Tell Me You Love Me,’ everyone allow me to introduce Venus to the stage.”

 I guess that’s my cue.

Walking out to the lively applause and the smiling host helps you shed some of the nervousness that plagued you earlier. You and Jimmy share a quick hug before turning towards the audience and smiling and waving back.

“Venus, everyone. Wow, they might love you more than me.” He jokes as you both take your seats.

“Well, I love everyone here equally.” You wink at the audience causing a wave of laughter. “Thank you so much for having me, Jimmy.”

“The pleasure is all mine, the last time you were here you had just won your first grammy’s and there was someone else with you backstage that we’re missing today.” He lightly smirked. Fantastic start right.

“Its crazy that it was only a little over a year ago when my life completely changed. Then even more so in the last few weeks, everything is absolutely insane and I wouldn't wish for it any other way.” You widely grinned, dusting off the last part of his question.

“Thats great,” he says then pulls up a photo of you at the SuperBowl. “You surprised everyone when you joined Usher at this year’s SuperBowl, tell us how this came about.”

Your eyes crinkled up as the memory flooded your brain. “Of course, so for those who don’t know Usher is one of the big industry people that discovered me way back when, so he’s been like my mentor ever since. He called me in about November and told me that he was going to

headlining it and I was ecstatic for him. It was about time we had an Atlanta centered show, and then he asked me if I wanted to join him. I immediately said yes, like Usher just asked me to perform with him, I don't care what stage we’re on or even the fact that I know him personally. The man is an absolute legend and it was an honor to share the stage with him. Being apart of his surprise guests was so exciting and I was starstruck the entire time.” 

“Thats incredible, you were amazing up there and I hope we see you headlining it someday.” He winked.

“Who knows what the future holds.” You chuckled.

Then a picture of you and a certain someone shows up on the screen behind you cause the audience to start hollering and your face to heat up a bit. “Oh what do we have here, I have no idea how that got up there.” You smiled then shook your head.

“I’m just going to ask the question and see how far you want to go. How did this happen, where did this romance come from?” He says hiding his face behind his cards.

“God, I’d like to say that I don’t know, but that’s not true. You can thank LSU for that, we met at the beginning of our senior year and became really fast friends. There was always some kind of attraction on both ends, but we didn’t do anything about that until two years later. And we’ve been together ever since.”

“That’s cute, you guys look great together. So were together during your first appearance?”

“Yea, he was backstage with me trying to stop me from freaking out about performing for y'all.” Everyone cracked up at that one.

“I don’t know how you could be nervous about this, you are absolutely killing it. Now lets talk about the album, this track 9 controversy, what happened?”

“My lack of media training happened,” you huffed. “Im joking, but not really. I was really excited to put out this project and even more ready to actually show the world who I dedicated it to. I worked on this album for a really long time, it was like journaling an adventure and the hardest part was finding a way to condense 5 years into one album. In the end, we were all satisfied with what we made then what I thought was going to be a fun little peak at track 9 turned into absolute chaos.”

“For a few weeks, it seemed like every media outlet could not stop talking about this song and really giving Joe a bad rep in the process.”

“One that wasn’t deserved at all. Joe was such a good sport through the whole thing because he’s such a laid back guy. While I was basically preparing for war, he was the one calming me down about it. Everything was so fresh to the outside world that people just took it to an extreme that it was no where near. When artists release a body of work, I think fans skip past the time element. That particular song was written before I was even signed, I was still working my regular 9 to 5 in Louisiana and using songwriting as a way to cope with my feelings. And its extremely dramatized. For something to be entertaining that might be banal to most, you amp it up and Track 9 was taken from a 4 to a 10 in one session. By the time we were putting together this album, Leon Thomas III, absolutely incredible musician and producer, heard it and decided to rework it. When he was finished, everyone in the room was in love with it, we almost made it a single.”

“Its funny how things like that happen. Before we let you go and hit that stage, give us a little about the song you will be performing in a bit.”

“Absolutely, earlier this week I released ‘Prayer for the Broken’ as a single because I wanted to be able to give to communities that are struggling right now. This song is about how love is the only thing that can fix our broken world so all the proceeds that it brings in will be donated to multiple charities around the world, to help people and communities in horrid conditions. These charities are on my website so if anyone wants to donate straight to them, please do. This song means a lot to me and I hope everyone loves hearing it live.”

“Tonight only?”

“Live tonight AND this summer when I go on my ‘i love you, goodnight’ tour. I hope to see you all there and maybe I’ll bring some friends along too.”

🝮

“Ladies and Gentlemen give it up once again for Venus!”

<<<Previous Chapter | Next Part>>>

Main Masterlist

[kiko---random-stuff-probably]

Dig a grave - a cotl oneshot

Another chapter about the bishops life before everything.

This time around, Leshy is 5, Heket 11, Narinder 13, Kallamar 30 and Shamura 42. Heket and Leshy do not have the crowns.

Shamura wouldn't had called themself superstitious: to connect a number or a simble to some kind of misfortune was just illogical.

So, the fact that today marked the thirteenth year from when they got the crown and, consequentially, started a war against litterally every god who ever existed wasn't the reason of their uneasiness: visions were the true cause of their state of mind.

From when Narinder got his crown, they kept having vivid images filled with ichor, and most of the times Narinder was the one covered in it.

Obviously, they knew better than just jump straight to conclusions, and after all their visions usually get confused with nightmares and the other way around. So, worrying about what the newest god, aka their own brother, would have done in a distant future was just am useless waste of time.

But still, they kept feeling like something was about to happen. But obviously their crown wasn't going to just answer their questions.

It took a messanger running to them while they were talking to their generals to finally unravel what was the reason for all that anxiety.

A messanger, and a note written by a panicking Kallamar.

Shamura basically ran towards the portal, quickly returning to their home.

They really hoped it wasn't as bad as the letter suggested, but whem they reached their youngest brother room, and saw Narinder holding Leshy as the little kid kept puking out blood, there was no reason to keep denying the truth.

- You're here!- Kallamar was in the room, and Heket was there, too. She also had a bucket nearby and looked pale, but more from her fear for what was happening to her brother then from vomiting her own lunch.

Naridner only then lifted his gaze from Leshy, staring at the eldest with pure horror. Shamura realized only then that the red crown was active, and that Narinder wasn't just helping Leshy stay up: Death was trying his hardest to not let his soul slip. And he couldn't keep doing that much longer.

- Thank the stars, I... we have to talk.- Kallamar quickly turned back to Narinder - Do not let him go- and left the room, as the blue crown morphed into a snake like thing and wrapped itself around the worm's arm, staring at him with concern.

- What is happening?- Shamura kept a calm attitude. They had to, especially when btoh Death and Pestilence were panicking as they kept trying to help the little kid.

- I don't know who exactly, but someone tried to poison our food.-

Shamura was about to add something, but Kallamr was faster than them: - I already ordered to not let anyone who entered in contact with the food, Astaroth and Allocer have the orders of killing anyone who they think may be the culprit. But right now, we have to focus on not letting our brother die.-

Shamura nodded, and crossed their arms.

Kallamar looked on the verge of tears, and problably found the stoic behaviour of the spider frustating at best.

- He and Heket started puking, while neither I or Narinder had any reaction.- Pestilence started fidgeting with his own bracalets - An amateurish attempt at best, if their objective was to kill us. Heket had some minor pain and other attacks of nausea, while Leshy...- the squid started to sob - I tried my best, I swear. But he is reacting badly to any antidocte, and without knowing what exactly he ingested I am basically filling him with random shit just for him to puke it and get worse!-

Shamura could read the irony of the situation: a notorious poisoner like Kallamar was about to lose his brother in the same way he killed so many others.

So, insult added to the injury. If they ever got the chance to put their hands on the culprit, they would had assured them the most slow, and painful death they could think of.

- Heket didn't react strongly to the poison, right?-

- No, she is fine, afraid and all, but still fine. Maybe it was because she puked the poison before it started to work...? I don't know, nothing of this makes sense, I do not want to bury him, he is five, for god's sake...-

- Kallamar, focus. Heket puked as soon as she started eating?-

- No, she was already feeling unwell, after she tried to eat some of the... leftovers you left, and hoenstly this might have been the best horrible idea she ever had. She still has some ichor in her, though.-

Shamura would had usually got upset about discovering that Heket tried to eat some of the godly flesh they got from their last battle, mostly because ichor wasn't surely something any mortal was suppsoed to eat. But somehow, her desire to try absorbe divine essence before she had a crown saved her life.

Shamura was still thinking about the situation, as Kallamar basically snapped back from his spiral of defeatism.

- She still has ichor in her- he repeated, and Shamjra lifted an eyebrow.

As soon as he turned towards the trophy room, Shamura understood what their brother was thinking.

- We can't just feed him ichor! We have zero idea on how his body might react to it! He is still a mortal, do you habe any idea on how blasphemous and irresponsible it is to feed him divine blood?- they grabbed Kallamar's arm, and the squid quickly snapped back.

- Well then, you are the one to tell Narinder to just let him go.-

They stared at each other, but Shamura was the first to look away and let go.

Shamura was standing by the door. Heket was standing beisdes them, as Narinder and Kallamar were basically spoon feeding Leshy with ichor.

- Will he be okay?- Heket muttered, not daring to look away.

Shamura patted her head, not saying anything.

Naridner then let their brother go, causing panic in everyone as he let Leshy lay down.

- He won't die- he quickly stated, wiping off some bloody tears, and Shamura realized only then that they were holding their breath.

They stared at Narinder's bloody claws. And the uneasiness returned.