#the disappointment when he got only a single grape

[pineapple-frenzy]

Hoshi was so ready to sell out his tiger agenda ndjiwxmkajsks too bad Minghao didn’t pay him enough

[because-its-eurovision]

i love how after everything that has happened, he STILL somehow thinks people won't turn up to his gigs. what a guy

Here's the thing: he hasn't actually seen everything that's happened. He hasn't had time to take that all in.

Before UMK, some dozens or tens of people came to his shows and he has made fun of it, saying that his gigs never have a back row because there are so few people attending. He even organized a joke contest in his IG stories, and the winning one was along the lines "I don't like crowds, that's why I only go to Käärijä's gigs". Then after UMK his gigs were suddenly sold out, but most of them were still on small venues and nightclubs that could fit maybe a few hundred people. He got big hype before UMK and even bigger after winning that of course, but he really didn't have time to react to anything as he was doing as many shows as possible and doing hundreds of interviews and podcasts and challenge videos and what have you, and practicing singing and dancing and performing before leaving to Liverpool.

Then he was in Liverpool for two weeks without almost any time off, again every day filled with interviews and promotion videos and parties and rehearsals, and the hours he had off he didn't spend on social media but with Joker Out and other contestants, just to relieve the stress and pressure. So he wasn't in Finland, and he wasn't on social media that much, so he didn't see the actual craze that took over this country. Kids dressing in green and practicing Cha Cha Cha on music classes, stores running out of piña colada and Malibu and pineapple juice and everything green including grapes, all landmarks and statues in every city either dressed up in green boleros or lighted up with green lights, people dying their hair green and getting bowlcuts, people getting Käärijä tattoos, people sewing so many green boleros and other outfits that the biggest fabric store chain ran out of all green fabrics, people with green make-up and nails, the fan art everyone was making, even the government offices and political parties changing their logos Käärijä green on Instagram and Facebook, the support messages and posts, literally every store from clothing chains to grocery stores and art supply stores putting their neon green and pink stuff on display in the window - hell, even my local pet store had their neon green fluffy cat toys on the prime spot!

He said in an interview that he heard rumours of all that happened, but of course he hasn't seen it. He said that he has around 100.000 notifications unread and he won't have time until maybe autumn to start checking out what has actually happened this year.

When you think about it from his point of view, six months ago he was a broke-ass musician with a day job, living in a tiny apartment. Some dozens of people used to come to his shows, and then suddenly after Cha Cha Cha he was selling out venues, small ones, but still. Then he left for Eurovision with the single goal of winning, and he didn't achieve that, so he thought himself as a loser, that he had disappointed everyone who supported him. From his point of view he is still the same broke-ass musician living in a tiny flat, but now he's unemployed and Eurovision loser so even more of a failure. So why are there thousands of people suddenly coming to the shows and wanting to see him? Of course it would be baffling to him. He wasn't there when he became a national hero, and he doesn't yet understand that he is no longer a failed musician, he is an international phenomenon.

[postsforposting]

BRILLIANT! Pardon me while I fling myself into the pillars of creation

Grapes and wine in the Bible have heavy symbolism. Conflicting symbolism. One of the obvious ones is the blood and sacrifice of Jesus, is what he tells his disciples at the last supper: this is my body, this is my blood. It's part of communion: "Very truly I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you” John 6:53. The only thing we know about Jesus in GO is that he told people to be kind to each other, and got killed for it. A character who drinks wine, then, would be following in that tradition--this isn't about being perfectly kind, because Crowley is laughingly not that.

However, Crowley was doing this long before Jesus got offed and I don't think he would be keeping it up if the intent was to say he believes in Jesus. It could be that we're being told his affinity for wine, long before Jesus got involved, is to say that he has God's blessing, he is the single representative of ethics on earth, and doesn't know it. Except we also know that, in GO, Christians believe wine is sinful--and crucially, angels in heaven, presumably also God herself, thinks human wine is bad, untouchable, the source of drunkenness. Not something to partake of. Jesus and God are on opposite sides of the wine question, it seems.

So is it really God's blessing that the wine represents, or is it the metaphor of morality, "be kind to each other"? Surely it is significant that the only two who defend earth are the wine drinkers Crowley and Aziraphale; Crowley, who from before the beginning had his own moral compass higher than God herself, and Aziraphale, who partook of ox in the Job flashback, even if he wasn't yet ready to grab freedom by the horns and give up his allegiance to God fully--wasn't yet ready to turn from God into "be kind to each other", aka the wine metaphor of your own ethics.

God is a teetotaler, Jesus is a drunkard. Crowley is a drunkard. Hmmmm.

Who else mentions wine? Job's kids. They're disappointed that the angels show up without the wine for the party, and tell him to go get it. Wine is missing, and the the house gets destroyed....and the kids are saved by the wine drinking demon. Not by the angel, not by god. And the demon parties with his wine while Her Holiness destroys everything.

While Jesus may not be part of the direct symbolism here, sacrifice itself may be, as Crowley lost everything in the Fall and has been pivotal to the history. The point of the wine may be to draw a comparison between Jesus and Crowley: the only thing he indulges in is the single holiest/most ethical thing on earth, one of two foods Jesus directly commands his disciples to consume.

Here's where grapes get a dual purpose in the Bible: they're both wrath and good works.

Revelations has a passage about the end time/apocalypse, "So the angel swung his sickle to the earth and gathered the clusters from the vine of the earth, and threw them into the great winepress of the wrath of God”, meaning justice will come from man's blood, as wine from grapes when God's vengeance falls upon the evil of man. Lemonade from lemons, essentially, except for some reason god gets to be pissed off about having been given lemons (ie people not doing what god wants) when we humans recieving lemons are supposed to smile and thank God for the same act (let's remember Job here). /eyeroll Anyway. These are the famous "grapes of wrath": god's mashing everyone up, as they deserve, to make something good of otherwise useless crop. Grapes are not a useful food except in making wine.

We could say that invoking wine like this in GO means that God believes ethics are useless except when she's the one in charge: this is why God declares wine "the source of drunkenness", not to be touched, and yet will make her own wine come the apocalypse. Rules apply to thee and not to me. I do what I want, etc. Think of Adam and Eve and the apple, another thing Crowley is responsible for: wine is for Me and Me alone, to be kept from ignorant people because they would ruin My Plans.

Grapes are also good works. Those who are faithful prosper by God's good will, and those who are faithful spread God's word by doing good works. A good crop means God favors you; your sin and god's wrath is shown in a bad crop. Here Job pops up again--Job assumes he had to have done something wrong because that's what he's been taught these things mean. It can't just be that God did this for funsies.

But God did. God ruins Job's crop and doesn't deliver promised wine for a party She ruined. The great plan is going to kill everyone on earth in the Apocalypse because God's pissy humans didn't do what she wanted, despite her never showing up to say anything otherwise.

In S1, we see Aziraphale drink wine and alcohol; I think this means he had no problem with opposing the Apocalypse, but we don't see him drink in S2, because he no longer is sure of his moral compass. His heart is in the right place in wanting to help, but his actions aren't in keeping with truly helping, because he's running over people trying to force things rather than letting them make their own choices as Crowley did with him. I think we're going to see him do the same thing in heaven to the other angels: attempt to force them to change, when this stuff has to be their own decision, as Crowley let him make all his and never forced anything. As Crowley let him make his own decision at the end of S2.

Seeing the stars bla bla, but has anyone discussed that we have never once seen Crowley eat food? he just drinks alcohol and coffee. Hey guys, what were God's words to the serpent of Eden?

The LORD God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this, cursed are you above all livestock and above all beasts of the field; on your belly you shall go, and dust you shall eat all the days of your life.

Hmmm dust you shall eat (I'm tastefully ignoring he walks around on legs still lol) but anyway theory that all food tastes like ash or dust to him. discuss.

[highreevess]

Crawl: Part Two

Part one

Warnings: Smut, use of sex toys, dom/sub themes, bondage, sub!reader, dom!Rafe Cameron, minor overstimulation.

Summary: After her first scene with Rafe, the reader has been anxiously awaiting the next one. And when the day of her next scene finally comes by, she repeats the process of stripping and kneeling in her dominant's room. She anxiously waits for Rafe Cameron to enter and bring her what she desires.

Word count: 2,203

The ac is set just as low as it was last time. The hard floors made of wood dig into my knees just as they did last time.

My chest rises and falls in slow, deep breaths, my nipples hardening under the weight of the cold air around me.

It's been fifteen minutes since I've disrobed and gotten on my knees, and I haven't heard a single sound. Not even a door close or open. All I can hear is the sound of my breathing, and it makes my heart race.

I risk a glance at the door that leads into the hallway, and I see the light shining through it. I don't see any moving shadows that would lead me to believe Rafe is near, and my bottom lip curls downward in disappointment.

But I quickly shake the disappointment off and redirect my gaze back to the floor. He'll be here. I had to wait longer last week, and he eventually came. There's no reason for me to worry.

I adjust the way I'm kneeling and crack my neck as I wait for Rafe.

And a few minutes later, I hear the door creak open.

I can't control the small smile that stretches across my face when the scent of Rafe's cologne reaches my nose.

I hear the door shut behind Rafe, and it takes everything I have not to look up at him.

After a few moments of silence, Rafe asks, "how are you feeling?"

Swallowing, I answer, "like my heart is going to explode out of my chest."

"And is that a good or a bad thing?" Rafe asks me.

"Good, sir," I answer without hesitation.

He makes a humming noise before slowly walking over to me. He pauses for a moment before slowly starting to circle me. "I was reviewing your list before you got here and while you were waiting. Your kinks. And I saw how high bondage was on your list, amongst other things." There's a hint of amusement in his voice that causes anticipation to rise in my stomach.

"I also reviewed what you were interested in trying that you hadn't before. Sensation play was very high on that list."

He stops walking when he stands right in front of me. Then, he speaks. "Look at me, Y/N."

I immediately meet his dark gaze.

"Stand."

I quickly get off of my knees and stand up, craning my neck to look up at Rafe, who stands at six-foot-two.

"What are your safewords, Y/N?"

"Grape and cupcake, sir," I answer, and he nods. "Very good."

He reaches out and gently grabs my wrist. Then, he walks over to his walk-in closer with me behind him. And when he opens the door to it, I gasp.

Inside his walk-in closet are hundreds of different pieces of equipment for all things BDSM. Whips, paddles, canes, chains, handcuffs, and so much more no doubt lying inside the drawers within his closet.

"I always wondered why you had a wardrobe when you have a walk-in closet," I say to Rafe as I look around the large closet.

I see the corner of his lips kick up. "Now, you know."

I turn to face him. "Why have you shown me this, sir?"

He looks past me and at a long length of rope. "Because I am going to be using these things on you. Today and every other time we meet."

He walks over to a rack with canes hanging from it.

I swallow when I see him admire a black cane made of wood. "Sir, are you going to use that on me?" I know I agreed to caning in my contract with him, but I thought it would only be as a punishment.

"Why do you ask? Are you scared?"

Swallowing, I shake my head, but when his eyes narrow, I avert my gaze and say, "a bit if you're going to use it on me."

He is silent for a few moments, but eventually, he lets go of the cane and says, "I'm not. Not today anyway."

I can't help the breath of relief that passes my lips.

"Then, what are you going to use on me, sir?" I ask cautiously, keeping my voice meek so I do not sound like I am questioning his authority.

I see him smirk. "Nothing you won't like."

I go to ask him to be specific, but he speaks before I can. "Get onto my bed. On your back with your arms and legs spread. Keep your eyes closed, and do not move or speak until I tell you to."

I nod. "Yes, sir."

I quickly turn around and exit Rafe's closet. I make my way over to his perfectly-made bed and run my fingers across the black silk sheet. My brows raise a bit when I feel just how soft it is.

I lift my leg and climb onto Rafe's bed, quickly settling into the soft, silk sheets. I spread my limbs as Rafe told me to and close my eyes. I rely on my hearing to tell me what is happening as I wait in Rafe's oddly comfortable bed.

For about five minutes, I lie in absolute silence, my skin prickling with goosebumps as my anxiety rises.

Then, I hear Rafe close the door to his walk-in closet and walk closer to me, his shoes making the floorboards quietly creek. I feel Rafe grab my left wrist and pull it before attaching something smooth and cold to it, locking it in place. A leather handcuff.

He cuffs the other wrist as well before cuffing both of my ankles. When he's done, I'm cuffed on all wrists and ankles, making it impossible for me to close my legs or my arms. All I can do is slightly move my limbs up and down.

"Lift your head."

I quickly obey and lift my head, making sure to keep my eyes closed. I feel something being placed around my head and over my eyes.

A blindfold.

Suddenly, I feel something soft and ticklish drag across my left foot. I recoil on instinct but keep my eyes closed.

"Don't move," Rafe's cold, hard voice orders, and I swallow. I force myself to remain still, even when I feel that same, tingly feeling in my foot from whatever Rafe is touching me with.

He drags whatever he is using slowly up and down my left foot, and it takes everything I have not to jerk away.

After a few moments, he switches to the other. After that, he switches to my legs. He slowly trails whatever he is using up one leg and up the other. Then, he drags the object in his hands gently over my breasts, causing my breathing to quicken.

He seems to notice because he asks, "you like that?"

I nod my head. "Yes, sir."

He stops touching me with the object.

I can't help but frown, but when I hear something loud turn on, my frown quickly goes away, and my interest piques.

I listen closely to the sound as it gets closer to my body. It sounds like a small machine or something like that.

I feel something on my left thigh, and my mouth falls agape when I realize it's a vibrator. A powerful one.

Rafe drags the vibrator up and down my left thigh before switching to the left one. Once he gives both of them equal attention, he drags the vibrator up my stomach and toward my breasts.

He drags the bulbous head of the powerful vibrator across the nipple of my left breast, and I shudder in pleasure.

"Sensitive here," Rafe murmurs, more to himself than to me.

Slowly, he drags the vibrator away from my left breast and toward my right one, placing it directly on my nipple. I shudder again when he makes contact.

He circles the vibrator around my breast for a good five seconds before removing it and dragging it back down my stomach.

This time, he doesn't go to my thighs. He presses the toy against my slit, just below where I need him.

I want to whine so badly, to tell him that I need him to touch me or put the vibrator where I need it, but I force myself to remain silent. If I order him to do something, he'll either do the opposite or punish me—probably both.

Eventually, he raises the vibrator and presses it against my clit, and I can't hold back the moan in my throat.

He just chuckles when he hears it. "Never used one of these before, Y/N?"

I shake my head, biting down on my lip to keep from making too much noise.

I feel a harsh hand smack my thigh, and I yelp.

"Words, Y/N," he hisses.

I swallow and quickly say, "no, sir, I have not used one of these before."

He presses the vibrator harder against my clit, and a moan escapes my lips. "Oh, fuck."

I've gotten off by myself a lot, but I've never gotten so close to cumming so quickly before. Rafe has been using this on me for less than a minute, and I already feel that tightening feeling in my lower stomach.

I begin to grind my hips against the vibrator, moaning as I get closer and closer. "Sir, may I cum? Please, may I cum?"

He makes a humming noise. "You don't have to ask tonight. Cum all you want."

His words cause the coil in my lower stomach to snap, and I cum with a loud moan, my back arching off the soft mattress.

My body wracks with shudders as I cum, and Rafe just chuckles as he watches me.

When I finally come down from my high, which takes forever, I relax into the mattress and let out a happy sigh. When Rafe hears my sigh, he takes a vibrator off my clit but doesn't turn it off. He allows me to catch my breath for about twenty seconds before asking, "safeword?"

I shake my head, a small smile forming on my lips. "No, sir."

Something in the air shifts, and before I get the chance to even worry about it, Rafe places the vibrator back onto my clit, and I gasp.

"Oh, fuck. It's too much," I whimper as I try to move away from the vibrator, even though I know it's impossible because of how I'm cuffed to the bed.

"You know your safeword," he says darkly, pushing the vibrator harder against my clit.

"Oh, God," I breathe as my second orgasm builds. "I'm gonna cum." My head falls back into the soft pillow, and my mouth parts in a cry as my orgasm crests.

My thighs try to close as I become more and more sensitive with each passing second, but the restraints on my ankles make it impossible.

When I relax into the mattress, I quietly whisper, "too much." With the vibrator still against my clit, I'm starting to hurt.

He lifts the vibrator off of my clit but once again, doesn't turn it off.

"I can't take any more," I tell him.

"You can take one more," he tells me, and I shake my head. "I can't, sir."

He just presses the vibrator against my clit again, and though I can't see anything, I just know he's smirking as he does it. I moan when I feel it, and my muscles are too tired to allow me to try to move away from the toy Rafe torturously holds against me.

It only takes about half of a minute for my orgasm to hit me, and when it does, a whine escapes my lips, my eyes flutter closed, and my back arches off of the mattress.

When I come down from the orgasm, I fall back into the mattress, and Rafe removes the vibrator before turning it off. He also removes the blindfold, allowing me to see again.

My eyes flutter open, and I see Rafe hovering above me, his narrowed eyes observing my every facial feature. After a few seconds, he meets my gaze and asks, "did I do too much?"

For a second, I think I should say yes, but as the moments pass, I realize that he didn't. If I wanted it to stop, I would've used my safeword.

I shake my head. "I would've used my safeword if I really wanted you to stop. You didn't do too much, sir."

I know that submissives aren't the only ones who need reassurance. Being a dominant comes with a hell of a lot of responsibility. It comes with the responsibility of caring for your submissive and knowing when to stop. And sometimes, dominants need to know that they didn't fail their submissive, the same way submissives need to know they did not disappoint their dominant.

He tucks a lock of hair behind my ear, his calloused fingertips making me shiver. "You did so good, Y/N."

I smile at the praise. "Good enough to continue this?" I ask, repeating what he said to me last week once our scene was over.

The corners of his lips kick up. "Same time and place."

Taglist: @phildunphyisadilf @houseofperfecttaste @onmykneesforrafe @ailee-celeste @i-always-come-back-xoxo @outerbankspov

[willwrite4mora]

Diluc x Reader: Date with a Hero

"And he saved a group of adventurers from a horde of hilichurls last night! He's just so amazing!" you were gushing about your crush, the Darknight Hero, again. "And so mysterious," you said, drifting off into your own daydreams.

You were sitting at a table in the tavern near the bar with your colleagues Amber and Kaeya. Amber rolled her eyes in annoyance, having heard you talk about the Darknight Hero a million times already. Kaeya only smirked and let you continue rambling on.

"I wonder if he's single," you mindlessly gushed.

Kaeya started laughing. "Oh, he might be. I know someone who knows him."

You perked up. "You do?" you asked in disbelief.

"Oh yeah, Diluc knows the guy. Right, Diluc?" he turned around in his chair to look straight at Diluc who was cleaning glasses before being interrupted. He jolted in shock, not expecting to be called out like this. He glared at Kaeya as soon as he got over his initial shock.

"Wow, I knew Diluc had many connections, but I didn't know he did to this extend!" you exclaimed in surprise. Diluc just stayed silent, still glaring at Kaeya.

Kaeya just laughed again. "He sure does! I bet he could set you up on a date!" he said and continued his laughter.

Diluc's cheeks hot red. He tried so hard to stay calm, but Kaeya was trying to test his limits again. He was sure Kaeya knew about his crush on you, and this was just his stupid little way to make a fool out of him.

But you looked just too happy to resist. "Would you really do that for me?" you asked hopefully. He tried to hide his blush from you by hiding the lower half of his face behind a hand. He stayed quiet and looked away.

When you got no answer, you felt your heart sink. "Oh, I see," you said, disappointed. "I don't think the Darknight Hero would like me like that anyway. I have nothing to offer..."

Diluc's heart broke hearing you talk about yourself like that. He quickly tried to regain his composure. "I could set you up," he blurted out.

Your smile returned. "Really? Thank you so much!" you said.

Kaeya was laughing again, but Diluc decided to ignore him. "I'll prepare a luxurious dinner for the two of you at my winery. How about tomorrow night?" he asked.

"Yes!" you answered full of enthusiasm. "I'll be there at six!"

Diluc nodded. "I'll send the message," and with that he continued his work behind the counter. You continued enthusiastically conversing with Amber about your upcoming date while Kaeya couldn't seem to catch his breath laughing.

The following day at six, you were knocking on the front door of Diluc's mansion. It was a huge place, perfect for a romantic dinner. You had dressed up nicely for your date and you had done your hair and makeup as well.

A few seconds later, Diluc opened the door. "Ah, Y/N, please come in. The Darknight Hero hasn't arrived yet, but he let me know he'll be here soon," he said. He stepped out of the way for you to walk inside. Then, he closed the door behind you.

He led you into a large dining room with a large table of which only two seats at one end were set up. A candelabra with three burning candles stood in the middle between the two plates. Diluc pulled out a chair for you, directing you to sit down. He pushed the chair back as you placed yourself on it.

"Dinner will be served soon. Just a little patience," he said, before walking out of the room.

It was quite. You sat in silence and only heard the clock tick and your own heart hammer. You were so nervous to meet the amazing hero of Mondstadt. After a few minutes, you heard footsteps in the hallway near the dining room. Your heartbeat sped up.

The door opened and you looked up to see a mysterious man with an owl mask on. He really came. You were at a loss for words, only able to mutter out, "Darknight Hero..."

He looked into your eyes at the mention of his name. His flaming red hair was pulled back into a high ponytail and his clothes were black. That was probably to increase his stealth in the night, but damn, did it also simply just look good on him.

"Yes, I am the Darknight Hero," he stated simply before taking a seat on the chair opposite of you. He spoke with a familiar voice, but you just shrugged off the feeling.

"So Diluc does know you personally! He never ceases to amaze me," you were thinking out loud. "I can't believe he got a real mysterious hero to go on a date with me."

He chuckled and you blushed at the wonderful sound. "I wouldn't want to miss this opportunity for the world. Fine dining with a girl as pretty as you is a rare opportunity," he charmed.

You swooned. He was such a smooth talker, sweeping you off your feet with just a few words.

A few maids stepped in with plates filled with different different dishes and set them down on the table between you. One of the maids brought in a tumbler of water and another one brought out a bottle of grape juice, filling the Darknight Hero's wine glass with it.

Once the maids stepped out of the room, you asked, "do you like grape juice more than wine?"

"I certainly do," he answered. "In fact, it's one of my favorite drinks."

You were thinking to yourself. "What a coincidence. I think that's Diluc's favorite as well."

"I-is that so?" he stuttered. He tried to avoid your eyes as he was speaking. "That certainly is a strange coincidence."

"It sure is," you said, before getting some food from the buffet the maids provided onto your plate. The Darknight Hero sighed in relief as you apparently didn't press the issue any further.

During your dinner, you two were talking about Mondstadt affairs and the like. After a few more bites, you were starting to crave some wine. You gulped down your food and said, "I think I know a wine that would go really well with these dishes. I think I'll go ask Diluc if we could get a bottle."

You got up from your seat and the Darknight Hero quickly got up as well. "Y-you don't have to ask!" he said with panic in his voice.

You were confused. "Nonsense. I can't just raid his cellar without permission," you tried to argue. "I'll go to his office and just ask. It will only take a second." You got up and quickly made your way out of the dining room, then up the stairs. Once you were outside Diluc's office, you knocked on the door.

And you waited a good few minutes without an answer. You could hear some noise behind the door, but you didn't know what was happening. "Diluc?" you asked concerned.

Seconds later, Diluc opened the door. He looked a bit disheveled. There was a small branch stuck in his hair. You felt a cold breeze come in through the open window. "Hello, Y/N. How can I help you?" he simply asked.

You stared at him for a second. "Since when do you wear your hair in a high ponytail?" you asked. You didn't think you've ever seen him with his hair up like this.

Diluc starteled, feeling his head for where he wore his ponytail. It was indeed high up. He cursed quietly, then straightened his posture again. "I sometimes do when I'm doing paperwork," he quickly said.

"Oh, alright then," you said. "I was wondering if we could get a bottle of wine from your cellar. I know one that would be great with our dinner. If you don't mind, that is."

He nodded. "Of course. Follow me." The two of you took off to the wine cellar.

Once inside, Diluc lit a candle. "Which one?" he asked.

You told him which bottle you wanted and he took it out of a large rack for you, handing it over into your hands. "Thank you so much!" you thanked him enthusiastically. "Now back to my date!" You turned around and ran up the stairs, back to the dining room.

The Darknight Hero wasn't there anymore, though. Your heart sank. Did he bail on you? He wouldn't, would he? You thought you were getting along with him just fine. You sat down on your chair, feeling defeated.

Then, through the open dining room window, in came your date. He also had a twig stuck in his hair. His mask was on a bit crooked and he was missing one glove. You were happy to see him, though, and got up from your spot in order to help him in. Not that a strong hero like him needed your help.

"Oh my! What happened?" you asked. "Did someone attack and did you have to leave?" You sounded so worried.

The Darknight Hero hastily shook his head no. "Please, don't worry. I uuuh... I just wanted to... see if the weather was nice enough for a walk," he improvised.

"A walk?" you questioned. Then you smiled at him. "What a romantic idea!" You clapped your hands together before turning around. "I'll go tell Diluc we'll be off. He's probably still in the wine cellar," you said, before turning around and making your way out of the room.

The Darknight Hero groaned loudly, but you kept going. Once in the cellar, you couldn't find Diluc anywhere. The candle was still burning. You decided to put it out before making your way back up. Once out the door of the cellar, you saw Diluc standing in the hallway, seemingly out of breath.

You ran up to him. "There you are, Diluc!" you exclaimed as you got closer. His hair was still in the high ponytail and the twig was also still stuck. He had no gloves or jacket on. You wondered where those went. Anyway, you continued to inform him, "the Darknight Hero and I will be taking a walk around the estate. I just wanted to inform you before leaving the mansion."

Diluc huffed loudly. "That... is alright..." he could barely speak between pants.

Then you noticed something that stuck to his shirt. You came closer and stepped to his side, taking a good look. Once you saw what it was, you plucked it off.

Diluc was confused at first, then saw what you were holding. It was the mask of the Darknight Hero. He just stared at you wide eyed, not sure what to say or how to get himself out of this mess.

You looked up at him and held up the mask for him to see. "Care to explain?" you asked accusingly.

He gulped. "Well..." he started, but he really didn't know what else to tell you but the truth. He took a deep breath before finally saying, "I guess you could say I've been leading a double life of sorts." He looked away guiltily, scratching with one hand behind his head.

"So you're saying that you've been the Darknight Hero all along?" you asked.

"Yeah..." he admitted.

There was a short silence between the two of you before he continued.

"I know I shouldn't have abused my position as the Darknight Hero like this, but I've liked you for a while now," he said, cheeks getting red from embarrassment. "I know whenever you were talking about the Darknight Hero, your compliments weren't for me, though they indirectly felt that way. I felt happy that you liked me back, even though it was a different version of me... I hope you aren't too angry with me."

"I cant believe the Darknight Hero likes me back!" you squealed.

Diluc was confused for a second. "You're not mad at me?"

"Oh, I'm very mad, but also very happy," you said with a smile on your face.

Diluc smiled in return. "Then how can I make it up to you?"

"Continue our date," you demanded. "But this time as Diluc."

[sweetcathedral]

🖤Hero Academia — Aizawa🖤

Note: I thought I’d post an old work here. Also, b/c I’m seeing a lot of minors migrate to ao3, I’m thinking of switching all my works to here since it’s easier to monitor, which means I’m deleting my ao3.

⚠️: bulge, breeding, somnophilia, cnc

He’s late. Just as you thought, but that’s expected of Pro Heroes and you can’t blame him for being one. You knowingly accepted your common law conditions, so you can’t complain. You reached for your phone hoping to see his name tangled within the notifications.

NekoZawa: late

Was the only message that caught your attention with a little bit of disappointment. Deep down you already knew it’d come to this, but you still can’t help feeling let down a bit. As you were about to change out of your getup a series of sharp knocks startled you, catching you off guard.

“It’s mee!” shouted the familiar voice.

Midnight?!

You rushed to open the door.

“Kayama? You’re ba—,”

“Ahhhh! So cute, so delicate, just youth!” she huffed in excitement at the sight of your longline lace bra and single-ruffled panties.

“Ah! Wai—youth? You know we're not that far in age,” you said, as you try to hide behind the door.

“Please, I'd kill to be 5 years younger, and don’t even try hiding from me. Even though he doesn’t care much about looks this definitely falls within his tastes,”

You blushed at the compliment, wishing it had come out of Aizawa’s mouth instead.

“Anyways,” she continued, “how about some bubble tea? I got your favourite,” she whipped out a bag of drinks from behind her. You wonder if she knew of your plans and came to cheer you up.

Who am I kidding, she’s an R-rated hero. Her sixth sense is basically her sex sense.

“Yeah, I could use some company,” you smiled in relief, thankful for her sharp intuition.

Before you knew it, 9PM became 11PM in what felt like 30 minutes and that heavy feeling weighing on your chest left after a couple of laughs here and there. You couldn’t help but feel better in the presence of Kayama, you have no choice but to feel better in her presence.

“And after I showed his class a pic of you, that grape idiot said ‘ if that raggedy ass man of a sensei is able to snatch a woman like that then there’s still hope for me, right?! Right?!’ in that stupid lisp of his! I couldn’t help, but cackle in his face! Hahahahahahahaha!”

“Grape idiot?!,” you laughed, almost choking on your tapioca.

“It caused this huge uproar which took Aizawa an hour to settle down,”

“Sounds like an exaggeration to me,”

“Really? Then I’d have to ask Principal Nezu for permission to let you visit. Hmmm, maybe a surprise visit during his birthday, I’d get to see that purple shit bleed from his eyes again. Hah!” she said, her sadistic side twinkling in her eyes.

You could tell she wasn’t lying about the surprise visit as she hummed her thoughts between sips of beer. Although you know how much Aizawa likes to keep his private life separate from his professional life, your thoughts couldn’t help but ponder in curiosity at how he acts around his infamous class 1-A students. All he ever does is complain about them every time you ask, but just thinking about him acting like the strict teacher Kayama says he is . . . makes . . . you . . .

“Oi, oooii . . . I said OI!”

“Gah!”

“What the hell’s got you blushing like a dazed mess?”

“Blushing? . . . !”

You clasp your hands over your face, as if you’re trying to keep your thoughts and daydreams from escaping. You let your imagination run wild just from thinking about Aizawa as a teacher — his strict demeanour and cold eyes piercing through you . . . his deep growls muffled at the base of your neck as his grip tightens around your waist and hair . . .

“Oh! What time is it?” Kayama exclaimed, disrupting your thoughts.

You reach for your phone to check the time, seeing 11:17PM illuminating from the screen before flipping it to Kayama.

“Perfect!”

You cock your head to the side trying to think of what could make Kayama that excited, but before you could react, her quirk had already taken hold of your consciousness.

Aizawa let out a heavy sigh staring at the time on his phone. It wasn’t the first time he’d let you down like that, even though it’s out of his control he still can’t help feeling disappointed in himself. Pro Heroes always have unpredictable schedules, but still, he’d wish his schedule had gone his way today.

“Thanks as always, Eraserhead. I’ll send the details your way once we’ve confirmed the date,” Tsukauchi reassured, dismissing him for the day. Aizawa nodded in response, finally, he thought. As he walked out of the station, his phone vibrated.

Ugh, what now?

He reached for his phone and unlocked his screen.

Kayama? Probably just more cat pics.

But much to his surprise, the series of pics caused him to stop in his tracks.

Kayama: Bon appétit! *kissy face*

Was the only message that followed at the end of the series of pics. After Kayama used her quirk to put you to sleep, she happily cleaned the place up and settled you prettily onto the bed in an innocent, but also, somewhat tempting position. Who could blame her? She had a knack for setting up tempting situations for her best friends. Aizawa tapped on each pic, examining the details of your delicate lace bra and fluttery panties. He really wished his schedule had gone his way today. The longer he stared at each pic, the bigger his temptation and pent up emotions grew — frustration, doubt, confusion, jealousy, anger, greed, love, lust, it was causing him to lose all sense of logic. You were causing him to lose all sense of logic and he hated it. It’s his first time experiencing something like this, he’d never romantically loved anyone until you came into his life. At first you were just like any other Pro Hero he teamed up with in previous missions, but the mission you two took on escalated into an emotional high profile case, which caused him to spend more time with you. One thing led to another and now, you’re each other’s common-law spouse. Both of you could care less about the huge wedding traditions of planning a wedding day, banquet halls, invitations and all that, but unexpectedly, he did buy you a wedding ring — a customized designer ring at that. Not only does he not care about appearances, but he also doesn’t seem to care about prices, so long as it serves its purpose.

“Uh, Eraserhead? Everything okay?” Officer Sansa tapped on Aizawa’s shoulder, breaking him from his thoughts.

“Huh? Oh, Detective Tsukauchi already settled on a date already?” Aizawa quickly locked his phone and tucked it back into his pocket.

“Um, no, he was actually worried about you . . . you’ve been standing still here for a while now, just staring at your phone . . .”

The logical Pro Hero himself didn’t even realize that he stopped walking and was surprised to see the station still behind him. Tch .

“. . . yeah, I think I should head home now. Someone’s waiting for me. Thanks, Officer Sansa.”

He waved at the cat officer before tucking his hand back into his pocket, unconsciously digging his fingernails into the palms of his hands in frustration. He hated this feeling . . . and he can’t wait to take it out on you .

Aizawa hesitates to open the door, unsure of how he’d react when he sees you for himself. He carefully turns the knob, making sure not to make a noise that’ll wake you from your peaceful slumber. You were just like the pics Kayama sent him — back exposed with the soft glow of the city night lights highlighting your dainty shoulder blades . . . arms clutching the pillow from underneath that pretty little head of yours . . . one leg hitched up to the side while the other was elongated and tucked half way into the sheets . . . As he reached to caress your face, he noticed his hand trembling from suppressing his temptation. Tch. He pulls his hand back in frustration.

“ . . . mmph . . . Shou . . . ta . . .” you murmured in your sleep in between heated breaths.

That was enough for Aizawa to let go of any sense of logic and common sense he had left, and before he knew it, he was hovering over you — the weight of his body sinking into the duvet. His eyes trailing over your features, watching your chest rise and fall with every breath you take — a reassuring feeling that you’re real and very much alive to him. He annoyingly hears his name from the teachers at UA all the time, but when it whispers out from between those pretty lips of yours, it made him experience a feeling he wasn’t used to controlling. He gave in, leaving trails of kisses that slowly turned into hickeys and then bite marks. He felt bad for leaving those marks on your supple skin, but he also wished they were permanent, as if the wedding ring doesn't speak for itself anymore. Aizawa’s grip tightened on your thigh at the thought of anyone else touching you, pinning your leg to your chest. His rough hand traces down your curves before slipping them in between your thighs — a wet sopping mess.

Ah, her panties are ruined . . . shame, he thought as he ripped a slit open, big enough for what you’re about to take in. Whoops . . . I’ll just get her a new one.

The temperature of your body was rising as he continued to press up against you, leaving marks on your collarbone and teasing your insides with his thick calloused fingers. A wave of pleasure ripples through your moonlight kissed skin, slowly pulling you back to your senses. You bat your eyes a few times to shake off the heaviness weighing on your eyelids.

“ . . . Shou—haa . . . !” your body twitched as another wave of pleasure came over you, shaking off your sleepy numbness, awakening your sense of touch as you grip his forearm trying to get him to slow down. It was no use given how enamoured he was with your reaction, your measly grip is as light as a feather against his strength.

“Haa . . . wait . . . slowdow—mmph!,”

Aizawa places his hand over your mouth, silencing your relentless begging. You finally noticed his flushed face and entranced eyes — a face you’re not used to seeing.

“Shut up, if you know what’s good for you,” his deep voice reverberated in your ear, sending a ripple of shivers down your neck. He was a completely different person in a completely different headspace. The only thing that can bring him back to his senses is your safe word, but you know that if you give in he’d completely stop and resist touching you for days as penance for losing control. But . . . you love it when he loses control along with his sense of logic, so you melt into your favourite position, signaling him to release all his pent up emotions in you — a mating press. You bite your trembling lower lip, begging with your wet eyes as a smirk played across his face. He gently kisses your forehead before pulling down his bottoms, revealing his thick throbbing cock. Your cunt twitched at the sight of it, squeezing out your fluids, dripping down like honey.

“How badly do you want it?”

“. . . badly . . . Shou~ta~ . . .” you cooed.

His cock twitched at the sound of your light and airy voice, precum drips onto the sheets.

“Not yet,” he said as he began stroking his cock on your clit, making sure not to let an inch slip inside you. The sensation drives you crazy as you whimper and whine for him to fill you up inside, desperately begging with your hips. But Aizawa’s firm grip on your thighs won’t let you, and keeps you from getting what you want. You miss the feeling of being bred full . His strokes were getting faster, his panting turning into growls. Your body tensed and toes curled as the feeling came closer, letting a desperate sigh escape from your mouth.

“Already? But I’m not done with you yet,” he playfully whispers in your ear before ramming himself inside you.

“Haa!” you yelped.

Your plump walls twitch at the sudden movement, tightening itself around his cock.

“That’s my good girl,” he chuckled, cockingly.

Tears well up in your eyes as you bite back your whimpering. He grabs your hand and firmly places it on your lower abdomen,

“Do you feel me? I’m right here.”

With your hand firmly placed on your stomach, you can feel his bulge every time he strokes his cock in you. He keeps it there, so that you have no choice but to feel it until the very end — up until his cum fills you up inside. His long strokes began to shorten, each stroke getting harder than the last and unable to hold in your pants and moans. Not only can you feel the warmth fill you up, but you can also feel his cock releasing globs of his milk from the bulge protruding from your lower abdomen. Your fingers dance around it making him twitch, his bruising grip tightening around your wrist.

“Fuck,” he grunts, looking down at the mess you both made.

Your cunt was swelling at the amount of cum it’s trying to keep from spilling, gushing out every time your sticky walls twitch. Before Aizawa was about to pull out, you grab his arm,

“Wait . . . not yet,” you must’ve been pouting when those words fell off of your swollen lips cause you’ve never seen his features soften like that before. He lowers himself, feeling his weight sinking into the bed as he tenderly kisses your forehead, brushing your slick baby hairs from your face . . . the warmth of his forehead resting against yours . . . the reassuring feeling of his hand gently cupping your flushed cheeks . . . You reach for his face, thumbing the scar under his eye, diving in for a deeper kiss and wrapping your arms around him. His heart begins to beat harder as you begin to feel his cock swelling up again from inside you.

[poormeowmeowcollector]

When In Doubt, Be A Snake

Warnings: snakes, physical contact with snakes, selective muteness

Pairing: Loki x Reader

Summary: Loki is having a bad day and you decide to comfort him. But you didn't expect certain copying mechanisms from them

Notes: inspired by this work by @bouncydragon also, the gif is not what Loki looks like, but it has the vibes

Read on AO3

You knock on Loki's door, balancing the tray of fruits and tea in your hand. "Can I walk in? I've got you some treats," you ask.

As you expected, no one answers.

"I'll count to three, if you don't say no, I'm walking in," you decide, slowly counting out loud. And, as you promised, you open the door after saying three.

The room is quiet, not a single sign of Loki. You sigh and sit on a nearby couch, waiting for something.

Until something shiny catches your eye in the bedroom. You walk closer, surprised when you see a green snake, just a bit longer than your arm, slithering around on the wooden floor.

"Hello, little one. How did you get here?" you ask. Snakes can hear, right? And they probably smelled you as well.

They turn their head to you, sticking their tongue out and wiggling it. "Are you friendly?" you wonder and kneel, watching as they stay still and stare at you. "You didn't attack me, so friendly. I have some snacks, your owner doesn't want them. Some fruits and things. Are you interested?" you ask as if the snake can answer. They crawl closer, bumping their head to your fingertip.

"The owner, as you idiotically said, is right here," Loki's voice echoes in your head, clear as a bell but with his actual accent instead of the Allspeak one. You stare at the snake again, noticing the black pattern and the golden patch on its head, almost like Loki's helmet.

"Loki, are you the snake?" you ask, regretting whatever life choice led you to this point. And the snake nods a yes. Okay, you're going insane.

"Okay, em… do you still want the fruits and tea? And, could we sit anywhere but the floor?" Loki lays his head on your hand this time.

"Yes, of course. Just go on the couch, I'll be there shortly," they hum and move back, waiting for you to leave. You nod and do as he said, waiting on the couch.

Instead of the snake, the actual Loki comes and sits beside you, handing over a piece of paper. You nod and start reading, letting Loki take your left hand and play with it since you know that they will start picking their own hands if you don't let them.

"Okay, and why did you turn back?" you ask, but your hand is more fascinating than your words. "You know, you could just cut off my hand and keep it," you scoff, almost to yourself.

But this time, Loki does respond with a low hm. "I said, why did you turn back? You wrote you're more comfortable as a snake," you repeat.

"Oh, it's easier to write when having hands," he answers, again using telepathy instead of language, and leaving your hand aside. Their green light covers them as they turn back to a snake, and snuggle near your thigh. "You can have the tea," he informs you.

You let them get comfortable and go fetch the tea from the coffee table, but Loki decides to crawl into your hand and towards the tray. "You can just ask for some," you sigh, feeling his retreat in your lap. "Do you want the whole bowl or just pieces?" Loki points at the bowl with their tail. You nod and leave it beside him on the couch.

But no matter what size Loki readjusts as, they cannot get a bite from there. "Could you lend me a nice mammalian hand?" he asks, staring at you with his big green eyes and flicking his tongue at you. You chuckle at the demand since being called a mammal is not exactly easy to get used to, and fetch a grape from the bowl, giving it to Loki.

As they try to eat it, their fangs bite you, venom making the wound sting. "Hey, be careful," you growl and press the bite, hoping the bleeding will stop. Loki bumps on it with his head, making it heal on a tickling light. "Thank you," you smile and pet their head before choosing another fruit.

This time, you lay the strawberry piece on your hand and let Loki take it from there. And he didn't bite you in the process. You let them tangle themselves around your armpit and rest their head near your wrist, ready for the next treat.

Apparently, snake Loki is much more gluttonous and has less impulse control than Æsir Loki. You didn't manage to take maybe five sips of your tea before he emptied the bowl. You know that actual snakes need to go hide in a hole for a few days after eating, but Loki doesn’t follow that pattern. Instead, they crawl in you and yank the rest of their cold and slippery body into your shirt, resting their head in your shoulder.

“If you even think of spitting those out on me, I will skin you and make gloves,” you snarl.

“Relax, I’m not a snake on the inside,” he reassures you. You sigh and choose to believe them, hoping they are right.

"Well, did anything happen?" you ask, taking a sip of your tea and watching as Loki gets bigger and snuggles harder against you.

"Why are you asking?" his voice never gets lower or higher, but you can feel how relaxed he is.

"Because, usually, something happens and you go mute. So, did something happen?" you don't consider thinking before speaking. But Loki has been used to this, luckily for both of you.

"Just remembered old things, nothing bad. It should be better after some time," they hum, trying to keep the calm tone. You don't answer, but move your hand up and scratch Loki's neck with your fingertip, feeling them relax under your touch, their tail flickering happily like a dog's.

"Do you feel like discussing them?" you ask, knowing all so well how much venting helps Loki. But he nods a no against your shoulder and hides beneath your sleeve.

There, they stop moving altogether, and you're sure they're falling asleep. So, you stop moving as well and act like the good pillow you apparently are.

He starts relaxing their body and gets crushed by his weight as he turns back to Asgardian, still clenching on you and ripping your shirt in the process. You sigh and decide not to move them, you don't know if the "remembering" of this old thing allowed them to get some decent rest and you won't take it away from them.

But you do remove his shoes and lay down, letting him fall with you and adjusting his body into something more comfortable. They react by moving in their sleep, turning to their side and changing your role from a pillow to a teddy bear. You hug the cold hands that hold you there, gazing at the moss green wall in front of you before the lack of movement makes you sleep as well.

You wake up at three in the morning, Loki still holding you close as he slowly wakes up as well. You turn around, giving in to the smile creeping out at the adorable image. Their eyes are still half-closed, trying to adjust to bring awaken, their lips are puffed and rosy, barely closing their mouth. His hair is in messy knots, edges pointing out here and there and his cheek has the texture of the knitted pillow printed on it from staying there for too long. You move a lock of hair away from their face, brushing their scalp as you pass it behind their ear.

"You know, you look adorable right now," you grin, almost disappointed at how he scoffs away your compliment. "No, I mean it," you insist. They turn away and hide their face in the pillow, but you can still see the blush turning their ears bright red.

"It burns like Hel, I hate you," he groans, voice low and throaty from either the sleep or the lack of usage.

Without thinking, you throw your arms around them and into a tight embrace. He freezes for a second, before curling back to you and holding you just there.

"You deserve a treat for feeling better. How about some ice cream?" you smile against their shoulder.

"It's three in the morning," he argues.

"Oh, yeah, I forgot. Crepes?" you snuggle on their neck.

"Crepes it is," you feel their chest shaking as they purr the words, pushing you away only so they can get up and straighten their shirt. You pass your elbow through his, grinning as you pace towards the kitchen to make those precious crepes.

~~~~~

Taglist[open]: @lucywrites02 @electroma89 @the-emo-asgardian

[dream-a-little-bigger-x]

Drawings on Ice (Part Two) | Charlie Gillespie

A/N: Part two to the Hockey Player! Charlie x Artist!Reader au! Hope you like it! :) You can read part one HERE

Pairing: Hockey Player!Charlie Gillespie x Artist!Reader

Warnings: a fight, mentions of blood, curse words

Words: 3,948

There hasn’t been a day you didn’t spend together. You go to every single one of his hockey practices and games, after which you head to the café for some coffee -- or in Charlie’s case, hot chocolate. He joins you and Andrea on your study dates, mostly to just annoy you by poking you with his pencil, begging you to go somewhere else. On nights where he doesn’t have practice and you’re not in the library to study, the two of you spend time in either one of your dorms to watch movies or tv-shows, cuddled up on the bed. 

Though a lot of people started thinking  you are a couple, you hadn’t talked about that with Charlie yet. Even after him telling you about that reputation of his, you still wanted to be cautious. Your heart has been broken many times, you didn’t think it could handle another. Especially with a guy like Charlie. “Hey, Gorgeous,” Charlie greets flirtily when you arrive at the ice rink to watch him practice. You’ve got your sketchpad clutched to  your chest, ready to work on some of the Hockey Team’s drawings. “Hi, Char,” you say back, unable to withhold a giggle at his pet name for you. He’s been calling  you Gorgeous since the day after you went to the coffee house for the first time after the game. “Don’t you have to go and listen to what your coach is saying?” you ask, noticing the other’s gathering to listen to the coach’s instruction. He glances back at the team, then turns back to you with that charming, flirty smile of his you’ve come to love. “Nah, I’d rather say hello to a beautiful girl than listen to the coach blab about strategies that don’t work.” You roll your eyes at his obvious flirty behavior. Lately, though, he’s only ever flirting with you. You haven’t seen him talk to many other girls except you and Andrea, and between the two of you, he only ever flirts with you. Mostly because Sam will kill him if he does flirt with Andrea. “Hey, will you stay until after practice? I wanna show you something!” Charlie is always excited about everything, but this time, it tops all the others. His eyes are sparkling with hope and excitement, the hazel color turning more gold than brown, and his mouth is curled up into the brightest, widest smile you’d ever seen. “Yeah, of course!” you reply, trying to match his excitement. “Gillespie, get your ass over here!” Coach yells at him, which Charlie rolls his eyes at, making you chuckle. His gloved hand takes yours, basically ripping it off your sketchpad, and kisses your knuckles before giving you a wink and then skating off to join the team. All the boys welcome him back with a teasing uproar of cheers and wolf whistles. You chuckle, rolling your eyes amusedly, and then make your way to the bleachers where you continue working on your drawings, glancing up every now and then to watch Charlie on the ice. There was something about the way he skated around. So elegant. So peaceful. Charlie really is in his element on the ice. It’s the most adorable and attractive version of Charlie you know of. It’s the side of him you love the most since it’s the side you draw him in the most. Practice is over sooner than you thought it would and it only takes Charlie about fifteen minutes to come out of the dressing rooms, showered and ready to go. “Are you ready?” he asks, taking your hand to help you up from your seat. “I have no clue where we’re going, but yeah?” you reply as he leads you out of the rink, still holding your hand while your other clutches your sketchpad. He takes you across campus, going way faster than your feet can take. Your giggles fleet through the night sky, making some heads turn of students on their way to a party or their dorms. He takes you into the astrology building, through hallways and corridors until you reach the auditorium. He lets go of your hand and pushes the heavy doors open. You’re amazed those doors aren’t locked, but you’ve learned to just roll with whatever Charlie’s doing. The sight you’re met with right now is a breathtaking one. Blankets and pillows on the floor, food spread all around it, a guitar on the side, fairy lights scattered all around to illuminate the dark room, and, most importantly, a breathtaking view on the night sky. You scuffle inside, giving your eyes the time and pleasure to take it all in as Charlie stands back, watching you with an endeared, tender smile on his face. Once you feel you’ve seen everything, you turn around to Charlie. “Wha--? Charlie?” He laughs at your surprised and confused face before walking up to you and taking your hand again, now leading you towards the pile of blankets and pillows. “I’m buddies with the astrology professor, he gave me the keys and Andrea and her friends helped me put all of this in here,” he explains as the two of you sit down. With your mouth a little ajar, you look up to the beautiful stars above you. Charlie’s hand comes into your peripheral as he’s pointing up to show you something. “That’s the Big Dipper up there, right above us,” he informs you. “And that one over there,” he moves his hand slightly, “is Sirius, it’s considered to be the most beautiful star, but I beg to differ.” You look at him, finding him already looking at you with that flirty smile on his face again. “Oh, shut up.” You slap him on the chest playfully, unable to hide your smile or the blush that’s creeping up on your cheeks. Charlie definitely notices, but doesn’t say anything. Just knowing he has that effect on you, is enough for him. “So,” he opens the basket and takes out a bottle of white wine. “Andi told me you liked white wine, so… I told her she could buy a bottle she thinks you’d like and I paid her.” You chuckle at his explanation and nod your head. “I do love a good white wine.” He pours some of the goddess liquid into two glasses, and hands one to you. “You really are a charmer, Gillespie,” you say as you clink your glasses together, looking in each other’s eyes. “Is it working yet?” he asks while you take a sip. You let out a small moan at how good this wine is before looking up at Charlie again, a little confused at what he’s hinting at. “Is what working?” He chuckles nervously, twirling his wine around and staring at the whirlpool it’s creating. “What?” you chuckle, trying to capture his eyes. He finally looks up at you, his eyes sparkling with joy and hope, his mouth curling up into the most tender smile you’d ever seen. “What, Charlie?” you try again, getting a little insecure. “I thought it’d be pretty obvious right now that I’m insanely in love with you?” he blurts out with a nervous quiver in his tone. You’re taken aback by this answer. You knew he kind of liked you and his flirty behavior has increased over the days, but you thought that was it. A crush and a bit of harmless flirting. Nothing quite as serious as being in love. “Oh…” you manage to bring out. “Charlie, I--” he shakes his head, shutting you up. “No, I get it, Y/N. It’s fine. You don’t want to date someone with a reputation like mine. I get it…” You exhale slowly and place your glass of wine on the floor before grabbing Charlie’s hands in yours. He looks up at this, unsure of what’s happening. “It’s not you, Charlie.... I don’t care about the reputation you have because I get to see who you really are… And I like you, but I’m trying to be cautious with who I’m dating. My heart’s been broken many times before, and before you say ‘I’m not going to break your heart’, I know. You’re probably not, but… I just…” You heave in a deep breath, trying to think of something. “Just give me some time, okay?” You place a hand on his cheek and rub your thumb against the soft skin as it wrinkles into that beautiful, charming smile again. “Yeah, okay,” he replies, placing his hand on yours on his cheek. “We still… We still get to hang out though, right?” he queries carefully. You chuckle at this, retreating your hand, and nodding. “Phew! And you’re still coming to the game tomorrow?” “Yeah, of course. Wouldn’t want to miss it,” you reply and grab a grape from the basket. “Good, because I’m going to need my lucky charm when we play against St. Mary’s.” You shoot him a questioning look, tilting your head slightly. “They’re our biggest rivals. They’ve won against every other university, including us last season. We really have to beat them tomorrow.” You nod your head understandingly. “I’ll wear my best cheerleading outfit,” you say jokingly. Though, judging from Charlie’s eyes nearly popping out of his eye sockets, you know he’s not opposed to that idea. “I don’t have a cheerleading outfit, Char,” you tell him, just to be sure. His face falters, clearly disappointed. “You’d look hot in that though,” he mutters under his breath, but you heard him, loud and clear. With an amused smile plastered on your face, you shake your head at him. Even after his confession from earlier, nothing has changed between the two of you.  And for now, that’s all you need. 

Dressed in black skinny jeans, Charlie’s Canada sweater he left in your dorm one night, and a beanie over your ears, you go to the ice rink. Andrea has already taken a seat in the bleachers, so you go up and join her. “How was your date last night?” she asks immediately without missing a beat. “It wasn’t a date. But it was really fun. Thank you, by the way. The wine was divine.” She chuckles and taps your thigh twice. “You’re most welcome,” she says. “Oh, look! Here come the boys!” she points to the ice where the team skates onto the field, ready to kick St. Mary’s ass. You lock eyes with Charlie as he gets into position. His lips turn up into a somewhat relieved smile, like he was scared she wouldn’t turn up after his confession last night. You offer him a wave and then a thumbs-up, shooting some encouragement his way. The first half goes really well. Charlie and Sam score most of the goals, but by half-time, they’re tied with St. Mary since their right and left wings are amazing players too. The coach calls the team to gather as you and Andrea make your way down to say hi afterwards. “St. Mary’s left wing has a weak knee,” you tell Charlie when he’s skated up to you, taking his helmet off and shaking his hair out. “Hello to you too,” he chuckles, placing one gloved hand over yours as they clutch the rink. “Sorry, hi! I saw their number 12 buckle a little when you accidentally hit his knee. I think you could use that to your advantage.” You’d never paid this much attention to a game, but knowing the team has to win against St. Mary, you figured you could use your observation skills to your advantage to find one for them. “Look who’s paying attention,” he smirks at you, which you amusedly roll your eyes at. “Thanks,” he adds when the ref blows his whistle to signal the start of the second half. “Good luck, Char,” you say and lean in to plant a kiss on his cheek. His eyes widen slightly at the sudden display of affection, unable to hide his cheeks reddening. You can’t help but smile as he skates off, ready for the second half. “You can’t tell me you’re not in love with him, Peaches,” Andrea says as she snakes an arm around your shoulders whilst you both walk back to your seats. “I am not in love with Charlie, Andi,” you reassure her, but you’re not even so sure anymore yourself. You’ve caught  yourself thinking about Charlie on more occasions than one, dreamt of kissing him, wished you could just spend more time with him. You knew you were slowly, but surely falling for him. Even after many attempts of occupying yourself with other thoughts. Nothing really seemed to work. But you were still going to deny it. To Charlie. To Andrea. But mostly, to yourself. You were so preoccupied by talking to Andrea, you didn’t even notice what was happening behind  you as you were getting back to your seat. “Yo, Gillespie,” St. Mary’s number 12 captures his attention, “Isn’t that new love of yours the weirdo artist kid that draws everyone they see like a stalker?.” Charlie’s jaw clenched as his hands balled up into fists. Sam intervenes before his buddy can take as much as a step forward, placing a hand on his shoulder. “It’s not worth it, man. Let’s just finish this game, okay?” Sam suggests. Charlie nods his head, calming down slightly as he starts making his way to his spot on the ice, only for number 12 to add some fuel to the fire. “What’s wrong, Gillespie? You’re not even going to defend them?” Charlie halts, trying his hardest to refrain himself. “So, you agree with me that they’re a fucking creepy stalker?” Charlie’s hands are back into fists, gripping harshly onto his hockey stick. “I can’t wait until after the game, so I can--” before number 12 finishes his sentence, Charlie drops his helmet and harshly tugs his gloves off before hitting the guy in his knee with his stick, making him tumble over onto the ice. He sits down on top of him, lashing out at the boy underneath. The ref whistles again while Charlie’s teammates try to get him off number 12, to no avail. Number 12 then takes over and rolls the both of them over, Charlie underneath him now, and punches him in the face a few times. You watch the spectacle from half-way to your seat, staring at the boys on the ice in pure shock and horror. You’re frozen in place, unsure about what to do. Though Charlie looks extremely hot, yet it looks so horrible. Why is it when boys fight, does it look so horrible, yet, feel so right? Soon enough, the boys are pulled apart by their coaches. There are blood splatters everywhere. On the ice, on the boys’ clothes and faces. Even on some of their teammates. The two are taken off the ice, another one filling in for them. Upon seeing this, you run down to where Charlie and his coach are, worry filling up your entire body. “Charlie!” you yell, but he doesn’t even look up. Sam comes up to you and tells you they’re thinking about taking him to the hospital. “Fuck,” you mutter. “Thanks, Sam.” You rush over to the bench where a doctor is taking care of Charlie’s wounds. “Charlie,” you whisper when you reach him. Another one of his teammates makes room for you to sit, which you do with a thankful smile towards them. “Is he gonna be okay?” you ask the doctor. “We’re gonna take him to the hospital for some check-ups, mainly to make sure he doesn’t have a concussion. But other than that, he’s fine.” You exhale slowly, then turn to Charlie again, grabbing his cold, bloody hand. “Hey, what happened?” you ask softly. He relaxes again upon hearing your melodic voice filled to the brim with worry. “Char, talk to me…” He looks up at you now. His right eye is punched shut and turning blue, his lip cut open and blood running from his nose. “He was saying things about you, Y/N. I couldn’t not do anything. He just made me so fucking angry,” he growls, tearing his eyes away from you again. You place your other hand onto the one you’re holding, trying your hardest to warm it up a little and to comfort him. He was defending you from God-knows-what awful things that number 12 was saying about you. He defended you in your absence. And looked so hot while doing it. “Alright, let’s go, Gillespie,” the coach says and hands him his shoes. You let go of his hand, so he can exchange his skates for his shoes, and look up at the coach. “What hospital are you taking him to?” you ask him. “Horizon’s,” the older man replies, and then helps Charlie up his feet since his leg has been brutally attacked by the number 12 too. “Come on,” he mutters. You get up too, and watch as Charlie limps by his coach's side. You turn and rush to Andrea again, only then realizing there were tears running down your face. She wipes them away with her thumbs, and looks into your eyes intensely. “Go! You can take my car.” She hands you her keys, kisses you on the cheek, and lets you go. You run to Andrea’s car and drive a little past the speed limit to get to the hospital as fast as possible. You know what you’re doing isn’t very safe, but you need to get to Charlie. You need to see him and make sure he’s okay. “I’m looking for Charlie Gillespie, he’s been brought in a little while ago?” you breathlessly ask the woman behind the front desk. You’re still panting from running from the car to the building. Your heart is going ten miles an hour, but it’s been doing that since the moment the fight broke out. “He’s gonna be in room 403, they’re still doing some tests, but you can wait for him there. It’s up to the fourth floor, you can take the elevator down the hall, there.” You nod at the woman, offering her the most thankful smile you can muster before making your way to the fourth floor. Your feet are getting sore from all the running, but you try your hardest to ignore it. There’s no stopping now. You have to be at Charlie’s side. Room 403 is empty, except for a wardrobe, a nightstand and a single armchair. He’s not here yet. You take a seat on the armchair for a few seconds, but then get back up and start pacing the room. Your nerves don’t allow you to sit still. You comb your fingers through your hair, muttering curses to the hospital staff to hurry their stupid tests. Something must be wrong with Charlie. There’s no other reason why they’d take so long. Not that you have a lot of experiences with hospitals except for maybe seeing a relative die in one, but never ever something like this. “Hey, Y/N, right?” a voice makes you snap out of your train of thoughts. It’s Charlie’s coach, carrying some of Charlie’s clothes in his hands. “Uhm, yeah, hi.” He offers you a smile as he walks in and places the clothes on the armchair. “They’re finished with the tests, he’s gonna be here in a few,” he informs you. “I’m gonna get something from the cafeteria, do you want anything?” You jam your nervous hands into the pockets of your jeans. “Oh, no, thank you,” you say and shoot him a stiff smile. He nods curtly before moving out of the room and leaving you alone again. This time, though, it doesn’t last too long. Within a minute, two nurses wheel him into the room on a hospital bed. You quickly move out of the way. He looks so fragile and broken on that hospital bed with all his wounds and bruises, and his eyes drooping from tiredness. “There you go, mister Gillespie,” the young man says as he puts the brakes on the bed, to make sure he doesn’t roll away again. “Ring if you need anything.” The other turns to you and says, “All tests went well. He has a slight concussion and some broken ribs, but he’ll be fine. Just make sure not to talk too loudly because that’ll give him a headache.” “Okay, thanks,” you give the two nurses a smile and let them walk out before you move to Charlie’s bedside. He looks at you from underneath his lashes, noticing how nervous you are, and reaches for your hand. “Hey,” he croaks out. “How are you feeling?” you ask. Your voice croaky from the tears you’re holding in. “I’m okay,” he answers, “Please, tell me that asshole looks worse than me.” He chuckles, then whinces at the pain his laughter causes to his ribs. “I’ve got no clue. I didn’t really look at that dude, I was too worried about you.” He smiles at you tenderly and brings your hand to his mouth to kiss your knuckles. “Charlie, I--” you start, but cut yourself off, not knowing how to say what you want to say. “Hey, come here,” he scoots over clumsily, giving you some space on the bed. You debate the option, but after looking into his pleading eyes -- or pleading eye since one is pretty much just punched shut -- you get on the bed, one leg dangling off. “What was he saying about me that made you so mad?” you ask, not at all what you wanted to, but you’re going with it for now. “He called you a fucking creep and a stalker because he somehow found out you draw the people you see?” Your heart skips a beat. He defended you for the one thing you were bullied about in high school. “I just… I know how much you hated that when it happened to you in high school, and because, you know, I’m in love with you and I don’t ever want you to feel that way again…” You smile a little at his second reason whilst butterflies well up in your stomach. “Charlie…” you start, making him turn his head at you. “Remember when I asked you for some time?” He nods his head slowly and carefully. “That was yesterday, so yes, I remember. I only have a slight concussion, babe.” You grab his hand in yours, rubbing circles on the back of his hand as you bite your lip nervously. “I don’t think I need any more time…” you carefully look up at him to see his surprised, and hopeful reaction. His eyes are sparkling again. Much like the stars you were watching last night. “So, does that mean I can finally kiss you?” he tries. One corner of his mouth curls up, and when you nod, the other follows. “Fucking finally!” he exclaims before gingerly grabbing your face with the hand you’re  not holding and bringing you closer to him to press his lips to yours in a long-awaited, passionate kiss. One that ends too quickly with a hiss from him. “That hurts doesn’t it?” you ask worriedly. “Only the normal amount,” he shrugs and kisses you again before you can say anything else. “The normal amount is no pain, babe,” you mumble against his lips. Charlie doesn’t listen though, and instead, deepens the kiss even more. He’s been waiting for this to happen for weeks. Weeks of constant flirting and taking you on stargazing dates or coffee dates or pointing at you whenever he made a goal. Weeks of pining for the most beautiful artist he’s ever met in his life. And now, he’s finally kissing you. Finally. 

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[half-bakedboy]

Evan “Buck” Buckley/Eddie Diaz | Rated T | Chapters 1/11 | Posting Every Other Day 

When Maddie showed up at the one-eighteen covered in bruises and needing a place to stay, Buck didn't hesitate to let her into his home and the new life he had created in L.A. While he was happy to have his sister back, he was tired of insisting to her that he wasn't as lonely as she accused him of being. So when she assumes he's in some secret relationship with his coworker and best friend, Eddie, Buck decides it couldn't hurt to tell a little white lie, especially when it meant his sister could focus on something that wasn't her own past.

Now Buck is stuck trying to navigate through a ruse of his own creation while dealing with newfound feelings for his best friend that seemed to sneak up on him.

Oh, and did he mention the mysterious accelerant that kept finding itself in his path, putting everyone he loves in danger?

read chapter one on ao3

“I’m just worried about you, Evan,” Maddie sighed into the phone. Buck’s heart did that stupid little stutter directly correlated with disappointing his sister and he held the phone away from his face as if that would lessen the guilt he felt. 

“Mads, I’m—”

“You’re not fine.” 

Buck sighed. “I wasn’t going to say fine. I was going to say—” Buck thought for a second, but his sister was right—as she usually was—and who was he to argue with her? “Alright, I was going to say fine, but it’s because it’s true!” Buck urged, hoping that the more times he said it, the more likely she’d be to believe it. (Maybe he could convince himself of the fact along the way.)

“It’s been almost two months since Abby—”

“Really, big sis? You just gotta bring that up?” He complained, groaning more than audibly as he stared up at the firehouse ceiling. He had found in the last few weeks of overtime shifts that counting the tiles and slabs that made up the structure was a great way to pass the time. 

“Yes, little bro, I have to bring it up because I’m—”

“—Worried about you.” Buck finished the sentence with her and prepared for annoyance or, at the very least, another deep sigh, but instead, she stayed quiet as if giving him the chance to speak up. 

Another sigh resonated before Maddie said, “You’re all alone in this big city with no family. You have to understand my worry.” 

“I do, I really do, but I’m finally finding myself here. The 118 has really taken me in as their own; they’re friends who almost qualify as family at this point!” Buck argued, running a hand through his hair. Maddie couldn’t possibly understand what his fellow firefighters had meant to him. 

“Have you at least started dating yet?” Maddie asked. Buck resisted the urge to hang up on her and took a deep breath as he considered her question. He could tell the truth, which was that he hadn’t so much as touched a woman since Abby tore his heart out of his chest and stomped it into the ground. 

Or…

“I’m dabbling,” he decided to say instead. 

It wasn’t completely a lie. He had decided a few days ago with a lot of pressure from Hen and Karen that he needed to at least attempt to get back out there and downloaded one of the most popular dating apps he could find. He set up his profile—albeit very scarcely—and had been waiting for those likes to come in. What he wasn’t expecting was almost complete radio silence and for his ego to take a direct hit when Chim got a date within the first hour of downloading it. 

“Anyone I should know about?” For some reason, Buck wasn’t expecting the question. He thought that Maddie would shy away from asking or just be happy that Buck had divulged even just that little bit of information, but no. She just had to put her brother on the spot and have him panicking about what to say. 

“Soon?” He sputtered, immediately regretting his words the moment Maddie’s small squeal echoed through the speaker. 

“Evan Buckley, I knew you were keeping something from me the second you said you were fine! You knew that I wouldn’t just take that laying down, right? You must’ve!” The happiness in her voice broke Buck’s heart a little further and he couldn’t back down; not when her joy was so obvious in her rambling and the way she giggled into the phone. 

“I— It’s really new, Mads,” Buck muttered as he tilted his head to the side and let his phone rest against his cheek. 

“New is good and you deserve good, Buck,” Maddie said, the words like a gentle caress to his cheek that he would have leaned into if she was there. As if an idea had just occurred to her, Maddie gasped and said excitedly, “I’m gonna come visit. I’ve gotta meet this family of yours and you can’t avoid introducing me to whoever is making your life a little less lonely if I show up at your door.” Buck was annoyed that she had a point, but the prospect of having his sister around after a few years of space had his heart warming in his chest. 

“You’re welcome here any time, Mads. I’ve really missed—”

“I’ve gotta go,” Maddie said, her voice quieter and a bit more panicked than Buck would ever have wanted to hear. “Doug needs me to— Well, he just needs me. Will you please stop being such a stranger and let me in on your life from now on, little brother?” Buck rolled his eyes at the term of endearment but agreed easily anyway. 

“You know everything there is to know, sis.” 

He wished he could be surprised when he got the text a few hours later that a trip to L.A. just wasn’t in the cards for her.

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

The one-eighteen was quiet—though Buck wouldn’t dare say the word—for the majority of his shift a few days after his call with Maddie, which he was grateful for because Bobby was tabling his famous pasta bar as Buck skipped up the firehouse steps. The rest of the team was already seated in their usual spots and Buck took his next to the newest recruit, Eddie, elbowing his side as he leaned to scoop up the first piece of lasagna. 

“Ay, the rest of us eat first, unless you’re planning on serving me, Diaz,” Buck teased with an over-exaggerated wink.

“You know I just live to serve you, Buckley,” Eddie shot back easily and Buck couldn’t help the laugh that bubbled up inside of him. It had been their thing since the new guy started. Buck would flirt with him until the rest of the team groaned or stopped it and apparently, Hen was at her wits end already if the piece of bread that slammed into Buck’s head was any indication. 

“ Jeez , Hen, we’re just having some fun,” Buck pouted, taking a large bite out of the piece of food that landed on his plate. 

“Do you always have to flirt with the newbie? It’s honestly sickening,” Hen complained with a roll of her eyes but Buck knew there was no heat in her words. He realized that look was all too similar to the one his sister would have given him. Buck laughed and tossed a grape tomato in her direction in retaliation. 

“There’s no stopping us now,” Buck assured her with a wink.  

And there really wasn’t. Buck and Eddie had been like that since the very beginning, and they only grew more comfortable and in sync in the few months they had spent working together. Eddie had joined the team as an openly gay single dad with no hesitation and Buck had respected that immediately. He was not one to hide his interest in any and all genders, but he wasn’t exactly waving a flag when he started at the one-eighteen. 

There was about a minute of silence when Eddie introduced himself before Buck decided that the best way to smooth him onto the team dynamic was to hit on him. Buck made a ridiculous come-on about a firehose that was brushed aside by the rest of the team, but Eddie laughed and gave it right back. The two had been fast friends ever since, much to the dismay of the rest of their team. 

“What’s everyone’s plans for the next three days off?” Buck asked as he stacked both his and Eddie’s plates full of food, tossing an untouched piece of bread behind his back that Eddie caught seamlessly just before it landed in his salad dressing. 

“Christopher and I have a Marvel marathon planned that I couldn’t even try to get out of,” Eddie offered, slurping up a spaghetti noodle as Buck sat back down. “Which reminds me that he wanted me to ask you if you could come?” Eddie asked, peering at Buck out of the corner of his eye. Buck wasn’t sure where the sudden shyness had come from, but before he could ask or answer, Bobby was chiming in. 

“May and Harry are with Michael so I will be finally showing Athena that my cooking skills are not just for show,” Bobby said with a large smile on his face. Buck liked seeing him like that, unapologetically happy for the new life he was starting. 

“I’m planning on sleeping until my alarm goes off in three days,” Chim laughed from where he leaned back in his chair. “What about you, Buckaroo?” 

“Well, I was going to try and find a date because my sister won’t stop bugging me about being single, but…” He trailed off, cupping Eddie’s shoulder tightly in his hand, “I just got an offer I’d be a fool to refuse.” 

Eddie smiled and shrugged off Buck’s touch with a fond roll of his eyes before they focused on his plate. Buck glanced around at his team with an uncontrollable smile on his face as they bantered and laughed and listened intently to whatever story Hen was telling about her son, Denny. He thought back to his conversation with Maddie and how worried she had sounded for him, as if he was alone without Abby. 

He wasn’t. His team—their laughter and camaraderie, their friendship and love, their shared stories and experience—was everything he needed.

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

Buck was stuck with the dishes once the table was cleared, but he didn’t mind. He liked to get lost in the mundane task of scrubbing and cleaning, the clanging of the dishes a friendly reminder that he had spent much-needed bonding time with his team. Plus, doing the dishes meant he got to decide where they would go out after their shift and he had the best places in mind. 

“Ma’am, are you okay?” Buck heard Chim’s voice softer than he expected from the second-floor terrace. 

“I’m— That’s just the question of the day, isn’t it?” Buck’s heart dropped as he recognized the all too familiar voice and before he could think twice, his legs were bringing him down the stairs in a sprint. “I’m looking for—”

“Maddie?” Buck asked. When she turned, he caught sight of the bruises littering her face and peaking out from underneath the collar of her shirt. The long sleeves did nothing to hide the darkness around her wrists and she didn’t even try to cover up the gashes on her cheek and lip.

“Hey, Evan,” she said weakly, a forced smile tugging at her lips. Buck had her in his arms before her legs could fully give out and he held her tightly to his chest, careful of the soreness he knew was probably hidden underneath her clothes. 

“Hey, hey, I got you. I got you, you’re okay,” Buck whispered into her hair as she sobbed, nails clawing at his back that probably would have hurt if he wasn’t so focused on providing his sister comfort. He caught Chim’s eyes over her shoulder, EMT bag in hand, and shook his head, searching the room for Hen. Chim seemed to understand exactly what he was doing and ran to the back where Buck was pretty sure Hen was resting. 

“I didn’t know where else to go,” Maddie choked out as she tried to pull away. Buck wouldn’t let her, though, as he threaded his fingers through her hair and kissed her temple softly. 

“Here is perfect, okay? Don’t worry about it,” Buck reassured. He wasn’t sure exactly what to say to her. He had known her relationship with Doug wasn’t the best and there was no doubt in his mind that that monster had hurt her. The way her body trembled and her voice shook had Buck feeling uneasy himself as he led her to one of the more comfortable couches in the station. 

“Hey, sweetie, I’m Hen. You’re Buck’s sister? Maddie?” Hen said as she approached, carefully as if walking up to an easily spooked animal. Buck appreciated it as much as it hurt him to see. 

“That’s me, the overbearing big sister,” Maddie attempted to joke, but it fell flat to everyone that had gathered around except for Buck. 

“I don’t think I ever used the word ‘overbearing’ specifically. Maybe persistent, annoying was probably dropped in there a time or two,” Buck teased. He was too grateful when Maddie’s hand came up to swat his shoulder to focus on the wince on her face at the movement. 

“She can’t be worse than you, Buckaroo,” Chim chimed in from where he stood a few feet away, flanked by Bobby and Eddie, who Buck noted was paying closer attention to where he kneeled beside his sister than he was at Maddie like everyone else. 

“I promise I’m not,” Maddie said weakly. Buck held onto her hand delicately as Hen settled beside her, the EMT bag on her lap. 

“Any family of Buck’s is family of ours,” Bobby stated, nodding at Hen as if giving her the okay to fully check up on her. 

“He’s told me a lot about you guys, his family away from family. I—” Maddie’s breath hitched as Hen pressed her thumbs over the bruises along her collarbones and she pressed her lips together to compose herself before she continued. “I’m sorry for barging in this way, looking like—”

“—Like a Buckley?” Eddie offered, easing the bit of tension of what wasn’t being said in the room. Buck sent him a thankful nod as he squeezed his sister’s hand. “We’ve heard y’all are prone to accidents. The number of times I’ve had to patch up this one on company time is too many and counting.” Buck laughed and tossed a friendly finger in Eddie’s direction, smiling when Maddie seemed to relax at the banter. 

“This one is always tossing himself into the fire quite literally, huh?” Maddie asked. Buck could tell she was relieved to have the conversation moved away from her and he didn’t mind being the target for her benefit. 

“I’ve only been here for a few months, but I’m pretty sure Buck would put anyone before himself.” Eddie’s voice was a lot closer than Buck had expected and he didn’t realize how much tension was building up inside of him until Eddie’s hand landed in between his shoulder blades. He glanced up to catch his friend’s eye, smiling softly at the steady and comforting press on his back. 

“Yeah, that’s exactly who he is,” Maddie muttered. When Buck glanced up at her, her eyes were narrowed and darted back and forth between him and Eddie accusatorily. That was not good . Buck cleared his throat.

“Can you guys give us a minute?” Buck asked.

Eddie ran his hand up to Buck’s shoulder, squeezing gently and Buck couldn’t resist reaching up to let his palm brush over the back of Eddie’s hand, letting him know how much the gesture was appreciated. Bobby and Chim hesitantly nodded in response before they all disappeared, leaving an even more tense Maddie and nerve-filled Buck alone with Hen who was treating the cut on Maddie’s cheek. 

As if scared for Buck to ask, Maddie offered, “It had been a few months, Buck. I thought— I really thought he had changed.” Buck sighed and rested his forehead on Maddie’s knee, relaxing only marginally when Maddie’s hand patted the back of his head. 

“What was it this time? Did you argue with him a little too hard? Maybe you didn’t reach the level of perfection he always required of you?” 

“Buck—” Hen warned, shooting a look that could kill in Buck’s direction. 

“No, it’s— It’s okay. He’s right either way,” Maddie relented with a deep sigh. “It had been building since I said I wanted to visit you in L.A. I told him that you had alluded to seeing someone and that I wanted to see if it was true. He said I couldn’t go, that he was the only family I needed, and when I argued against that…” Maddie trailed off, gesturing to her face and that was enough for Buck to put together what happened next. 

“He did this because of me?” Buck’s voice shook as he glanced back at his sister, reaching a hand up to stroke a finger over the dark bruise on her jaw. Maddie grabbed it and turned toward her brother, leveling their eyes together with a protectiveness in them that provided him the calm he needed. 

“This was not your fault, Evan,” Maddie said sternly. 

“It’s neither of your faults,” Hen added, resting her palm on Maddie’s arm softly. Maddie nodded and smiled at Hen as brightly as she could given the circumstances. 

“She’s right and I came here because I can’t have this happen anymore,” Maddie stated, holding onto Buck’s hand a little tighter. “You mentioned your captain’s girlfriend was a cop?” 

Buck nodded and wrapped his arms around his sister, wishing he had never let go in the first place.

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

Athena had arrived at the station quicker than Buck had expected her to. Upon seeing him, she pulled him into a tight hug that he didn’t realize he had needed so much before disappearing into Bobby’s empty office with Maddie. He didn’t trust just anyone with his sister, but the second the door shut, he felt like he could finally take a breath. 

He was flanked by both Hen and Eddie in a flash while Chim paced in front of them, chewing on a piece of beef jerky to stay occupied. Bobby watched from above, silently observing his team, and looking ready to step in if Buck needed it. They were all there for him and when the door finally opened after what felt like hours later, the smile that tugged at the corner of Maddie’s lips told Buck she had seen just that. 

“Again, I’m really sorry for—” Athena shook her head and pointed a finger at Maddie, effectively stopping her unneeded apology. 

“You’ll only have to be sorry if you don’t let this one take care of you the way you deserve,” she said, raising her eyebrows like a challenge. Maddie pressed her lips together and nodded bashfully as she leaned into the arm Buck had thrown around her neck. 

“Buck, shift’s just about over. Why don’t you show your sister where she’ll be staying?” Bobby said. It was an order as much as a suggestion but Buck was going to take him up on it either way. 

“Yeah, that sounds great. Let me know if you need me to come back in.” Bobby silenced him with one look.

“We can survive the next hour without you, man,” Eddie chimed in. He walked over and pulled Buck into a one-armed hug as if he knew nothing could pry him away from his sister. Buck was grateful for the extra warmth Eddie provided him, either way.

“If you guys need anything, you know where we’ll be,” Hen assured, rubbing a gentle palm down Maddie’s arm until their hands were connected. Maddie squeezed it tightly and mouthed her thanks at Hen who brushed it off with a wave of her hand. 

“I can’t thank you guys enough,” Buck began, but he stopped himself from saying any more before any of his team could argue. “I’ll see you in a few days?” He asked, directing his attention to Bobby so he could let his captain know that his sister arriving wouldn’t impact his work. As if he already knew, Bobby nodded and wrapped an arm around Athena’s waist. 

“We’ll probably see you before then,” Bobby offered with a slight wink and Buck laughed. 

“You guys sure I can steal my little brother away early?” Maddie asked nervously. 

“Now that you’ve teased us with him leaving, you can’t take it back,” Eddie said from beside Buck. They both had to laugh and Buck punched Eddie’s arm in retaliation only for Eddie to grab onto his hand tightly, not letting him pull away yet. His voice was low as he muttered, “You’ll let me know if you need anything?” 

It was meant to be a question, but Buck knew it wasn’t. Everyone around them was so focused on Maddie and her injuries—which Buck couldn’t blame them for—that none of them really stopped to think how tough the next few days may be for the Buckley’s as a whole. But not Eddie. Just one glance from his friend told Buck that Eddie was well aware of the toll this might take on Buck’s good-natured mind and that Eddie was going to be there through it all. 

“Yeah,” Buck confirmed, resting a hand on Eddie’s neck in a friendly gesture of comfort, “I’ll call you.”

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

“I’m not going back there,” Maddie said the minute the door to Buck’s apartment shut. 

“I know you’re not,” Buck agreed because even if she hadn’t made the choice herself, he wasn’t going to see his big sister hurt like that again. 

“I grabbed what I could before I left and it’s going to take me a little while to get back on my feet, but—”

“Hey,” Buck said gently, wrapping his arms around his sister once more, “we’re gonna figure this out. It’s always been just the two of us, right? Sure, a few years have gone by, but you’re still the most important person in the world to me and we’re going to figure this out.” He repeated, believing the words so fully that Maddie must have, too. Her shoulders slumped in either relaxation or defeat, Buck couldn’t be sure which, and she pulled away enough for Buck to press a soft kiss to her forehead. 

“Can I stay here for a little? Just until—”

“Maddie, stop. You’re staying here whether you like it or not,” Buck said with a laugh, ruffling her hair in his hand before she could swat him away. 

“I just don’t want to impose on any guests you might have around,” Maddie said, crossing her arms over her chest and glancing around his apartment as if looking for signs of additional life. 

Buck sighed, “Go take a shower while I make up some dinner.” Maddie’s laugh was so refreshing, the tension of the last few hours seemed to fall right off of his shoulders. 

When he heard the water turn on, he busied himself with finding dinner even though he was still full from the large lunch at the station. He wasn’t sure when the last time Maddie had eaten was but her skin was too pale even through the bruises for him not to offer her something good. He rummaged through his cabinets for way too long, losing track of time as he listened to Maddie’s voice stop and start in the shower. 

He used to love listening to her sing. She had always been carefree and beautiful and that was always something he admired. He could hear the hesitance in her voice as she weakly sang through the chorus of one of her favorite country songs and wished he could heal whatever it was inside that had her balking. Buck loved her more than anything in the world.

With a deep breath, he reminded himself that she had made that first step, the one he had wanted her to so many years before. He smiled to himself, grateful that she made it back to him mostly in one piece. Even though she didn’t have that fire in her eyes that he remembered, he knew that her deciding to come home to him was the spark she needed to light it back up. 

A knock at the door had him cursing because the water had shut off and he still didn’t have dinner on the table. When he opened the door and saw Eddie, two pizza boxes in hand, he thought he might cry. 

“I figured you usually go grocery shopping with Chris and I and we’re running low on food for two so—” Buck interrupted him by wrapping him another suffocatingly tight hug. 

“Man, you could not have arrived at a better fucking time,” Buck sighed with relief. “I can’t believe you did this for her,” he muttered mostly to himself. Eddie opened his mouth, but before he could respond, Maddie trotted down the stairs, patting her hair down with a towel. 

“Eddie, right?” She asked, a twinkle in her eye that Buck wasn’t too fond of given the situation. “Did you bring us dinner?” 

Eddie nodded and mumbled, “Yeah, for, uh, you actually.” Buck took the pizza boxes from his hands and Eddie immediately ran his fingers through the hair on the back of his neck as if suddenly bashful. Buck thought he looked more adorable than usual but brushed it aside. 

“That is so sweet of you,” Maddie said, knocking her hip against Buck’s. “Isn’t that so sweet of him, Evan?” Eddie snickered and Buck knew it was because of the use of his first name. He shot an unimpressed glance at Eddie who pressed his lips together in return as if holding back more laughter. 

“Eddie’s just a regular old saint if you ask anyone,” Buck explained with much more sarcasm in his voice than he really intended. Maddie didn’t seem to notice as she smiled up at Eddie. 

“Are you staying for dinner? I’m sure Buck would appreciate the company,” Maddie said happily, side-eyeing Buck as if he’d even thought to go against her words. 

“Oh, no, I gotta get back to my kid,” Eddie said, gesturing with his thumb over his shoulder. Buck knew Christopher wasn’t with him or else he would have asked them both to come inside. 

“You have a kid?” Maddie asked, mouth agape for reasons Buck didn’t know but would definitely ask her about later. 

“Yeah, Christopher. He’s—”

“—The best kid in the entire world,” Buck interrupted, turning to his sister. “Maddie, this kid is a spitfire and he’s got jokes and comebacks for everything, I swear! And he’s like the smartest 8-year-old I’ve ever met, not that I’ve hung out with many 8-year-olds, but still. You’re gonna love him!” Buck decided. He must have been rambling as both his sister and Eddie were staring over at him with amused looks on their faces. “…What?” 

“I mean, I was just gonna tell her his age, but I guess all that stuff is true, too,” Eddie teased. He flinched when Buck swatted at him with the hand that wasn’t holding the pizza. 

“He sounds incredible. I hope I get to meet him?” Maddie asked. Buck nodded quickly and a smile Buck wasn’t sure he had ever seen before tugged at the corner of Eddie’s lips. Buck was just about to offer for them to come over the following night when he remembered what he had already agreed to. 

“Oh, crap. The Marvel movie night!” Buck exclaimed as he finally set the pizzas down on the side table. “Did you already tell Chris I was gonna join?” 

“Yeah, but it’s totally fine. I’m sure he’ll understand that your sister is here and—”

“Nonsense! You promised that kid a movie night, he’s gonna get a movie night!” Maddie shouted as she opened up the pizza box and helped herself to a slice. Buck was glad she seemed to still have the appetite he remembered. “I don’t mind having a night to myself. It’s been too long since I’ve been able to just cry over a sad Hallmark movie with a glass of wine, you know?” Buck didn’t, but he also really wanted to hang out with the Diazes. 

“We can always reschedule. Marvel isn’t going anywhere,” Eddie offered, but Maddie just shook her head and slapped Buck’s arm like it was his job to convince Eddie he would be a fool to do that. 

“I’ll be over tomorrow at five with sandwiches to pay you back for tonight, okay?” Buck said softly, holding Eddie’s bicep in his palm. A blush covered his face and Buck wasn’t sure why he was being so nervous all of a sudden; they bantered and touched like that all the time. 

“Yeah, okay. Maddie, thank you for letting me steal him and enjoy the pizza. Buck, I’ll, uh, see you tomorrow.” He waved as he backed away and Buck watched as he jumped into his car and drove off. 

Once the door was shut, Maddie smacked him on the arm and Buck recoiled, sending a confused glance at his sister. 

“What the hell was that for?” Buck asked, rubbing his skin even though it really didn’t hurt that bad. 

“I can’t believe you didn’t tell me you were dating a coworker !” Maddie shouted, gaping at Buck with joy in her eyes that he had missed more than he realized. He was so focused on her happiness, it took him more than a few reasonable moments to realize what she had said. 

“I’m— Wait, what?” Buck asked, pausing mid-bite on the piece of the pepper and sausage pizza he made a mental reminder to thank Eddie for tomorrow. 

“Eddie?!” Maddie repeated in a squeal. “I knew after our conversation that whoever you were dating wasn’t just any old person, but another firefighter? A male firefighter at that? No wonder you didn’t want to tell me yet!” Buck blanched and finished chewing his pizza carefully so as to not choke. 

“Maddie, I mean this with no malice and all confusion; what the absolute fuck are you talking about?” Maddie scoffed and grabbed the pizza boxes, wandering to the living room and placing them on the coffee table. She made her way into the kitchen to grab two beers from the fridge before settling down next to Buck who had to sit on the couch and think before he fell over. 

“Oh, you cannot even pretend that you guys aren’t head over heels for each other. The hand on your back at the station? The side hug? Bringing you pizza after a rough day? The blushing?!” Maddie raised her eyebrows at Buck and he honestly didn’t know how to respond. 

He should have said it was nothing. He should have said they were the only two openly not-straight men that he knew of who worked at the LAFD and were closer because of that. He should have said that they were just friends who put their lives at risk for each other every day so their relationship was bound to be special. He should have said all of that. 

But Maddie looked so happy and carefree so instead, he lied. 

“It’s… really new,” he said, echoing the words he had told her before she came to L.A. Her squeal of delight was enough for any regret he might have had to wash away and for his heart to soar that he could put that bright smile back on his sister’s face. 

“Evan Buckley, you have to tell me everything !”  Maddie crossed her legs on the couch and settled back against the cushions, making herself comfortable in the place Buck had started to call home. Even with the bruises and cuts littering her face, she looked at ease, and Buck smiled over at her widely. 

“There’s nothing to tell, Mads. He started at the station a few months ago and we just… hit it off. Like I said, it’s new and he’s… good.” He wasn’t sure why he had hesitated but he hoped she didn’t read too much into it. When she rested a gentle hand on his bicep and squeezed, he knew she had believed every word of what he had said. The fact it wasn’t a total lie was the only reason he didn’t let his guilt build up too much just yet. 

“I’m really proud of you, you know?” Maddie said softly, moving her hand up to cup the side of his face and brush her thumb along his cheekbone. He melted into the touch and closed his eyes, the words resonating through him as the ones he always longed to hear. 

“What for?” Buck asked. 

Maddie sighed and said, “For being you.” She tapped his nose with the tip of her finger before she added, “Now tell me all about him!”

[luvskywalker]

tis the damn season- peter parker x reader

word count- 3.6k

warnings- mentions of injury, language, insecurity

a/n: the timeline is kinda weird, peter + reader are about 19, but civil war and endgame never happened, the avengers defeated thanos in infinity war, so there is no blip. it kinda makes sense, i explain it a little, but the main focus is the relationship! i hope you all enjoy this one, it took me a while because i didn’t know just how i wanted to bring peter and the reader together. feel free to request something or leave feedback!!💞

god, you had missed new york. especially the cold that always fogged up your window glass and that forced you into wearing socks to sleep like a heathen, and the wind chill that made you want nothing more than a warm drink and a nice movie.

you had missed upstate the most, the clearer and less crowded air, the serenity that can only be found there, and most importantly your family.

it had been a year since you’d left for los angeles, going on a mission to bring down a branch of HYDRA that had been implanted in the golden state itself. the job wasn’t easy, but no one could keep you away from taking it. you missed your family. it put a heartache in you, and it also gave a certain brunette boy one too.

peter parker had liked you since the day he met you. it was his freshman year, and you were in his study hall. you barely even spoke to him, yet he had swiftly become captivated by the perfume you wore, the way you parted your hair, every single quirk that made you who you were. you’d like his posts on instagram or even text him (though that was quite rare, you’d probably texted him once in the four years he’d known you), and he swore his heart bursted every time you did. when he found out you left for california, he couldn’t help the heartache that followed. he spent each day hoping and wishing to every star for your safety, and they were all answered when you pulled up to the avengers compound on a cold december day.

you swiftly pulled the black audi in front of the cabin that was the closest thing to a home you’d get. it was where tony had raised you since he had adopted you, where you came to be a normal family for.. well... whenever you had the time. he knew you were there, he always seemed to know things before they even happened, claiming he had a “sixth sense” though you were sure it was just friday.

you got out of the car with the brightest grin on

your face, noticing his presence on the porch of the home.

“is that my dad or is that a woodland creature? cant seem to tell the difference!”

you were, in every way but blood, his daughter.

he rolled his eyes but you didn’t miss the small smile as he rushed you into the house, and you could tell he was in his mother hen mode.

“what about my bags?”

“get them later, there’s someone i want you to meet.”

you were now curious, who could have him in this much of a rush?

he lead you into the large living room of the home, just for you to see peter parker sitting quite uncomfortably on the couch.

“peter?” you tilted your head to the side, confused as to how your dad knew peter.

guess i missed a lot, you thought.

“wait” your dad paused, looking between you and peter accusingly “how do you two know eachother?”

you knew what he was assuming and peter just looked confused.

“NO not like that, dad” you started frantically, because no you did not know peter like that.

peter joined the conversation suddenly,

“he’s your dad?” he said quietly at the same time you spoke, surprise and confusion evident.

“so how do you two know eachother?”

your dad ended the chaos of the conversation, and peter explained for you.

“we used to go to school together, until she graduated early.”

you nodded along with his quick explanation and your dad let out a sigh of relief.

you had graduated high school three years early, and though you didn’t have many friends, you kept in touch with peter over the years. it baffled you that he never seemed to put the pieces together, i mean (y/n) starr wasn’t exactly the most incognito cover name, and your face was plastered over at least one magazine a week for both your hero persona inferno and your civilian self.

“for a second i was worried.. nevermind.” tony said, waving his hand at the now ridiculous thought.

you knew what he thought and you laughed at his small outburst.

“so why is peter parker here?”

“he’s spider-man.”

oh.

“what? peter parker is spider-man??”

the boy in question looked at you now, offended that you were acting like him being spider-man was the most ridiculous thing you had ever heard.

tony simply rolled his eyes, used to your theatrics because well, you got them from him.

“just told you he was, kid. you’re going to train him as long as you’re over here, the team figured you’re the best suited because of your age.”

great.

you had said peter parker was your friend, and that much was at least sort of true, but you came to new york for a break. you’ve been working nonstop for the better part of a year. however, you brushed off your disappointment because at least you didn’t have to train with natasha.

“sounds good. want to head over there now peter?”

he glanced up from the carpet he seemed to find very interesting.

“yeah, that sounds fine.” he said, nodding quite eagerly.

“see you kids later. glad you’re home, mini me.”

you gave your father one last hug and a smile before taking the bag by the door that you know has most of your gear in.

peter followed you into the audi, marvelling at the interior that you had customized yourself. you were such a stark, peter noted in his head, unbeknownst to you.

“so what are your powers?”

you could feel him look at you, almost confused as to why you were asking. haven’t you heard of spider-man?

“i like to hear coming from you, rather than just assuming.” you said, glancing away from the road just briefly to offer him a smile.

“no one has ever really asked before, they all seem to know already.” he returned your smile, and you felt for him. you knew what it was like- when you had first displayed your powers everyone seemed to know more about you than you yourself did.

“well i’m asking” you said, smile still present, “what can you do, spider-boy?”

you watched him run his hands down the leg of his jeans nervously.

why was he so nervous?

“um,” he started, still fidgeting with the leg of his jeans, “i have super strength, and i can shoot webs out of my hands?”

that much you knew, but it still piqued your interest.

“have you ever tested how strong the webs are?”

his head tilted slightly and he reminded you of a puppy when it did.

“no, but i think they’re pretty strong, i mean i did the thing with the ferry a couple years ago.”

you almost forgot about that. almost.

“what’s your favorite part about all this? it can be a little overwhelming and weird, but it’s still fun most of the time.”

he nodded at that, agreeing with you.

“i don’t know, really. i started out being a friendly neighborhood spider-man, i refused the avengers offer mr. stark gave me, and then the stuff in space happened and now i’m here.”

you nodded along with his explanation.

“i’m so glad i was in wakanda instead of up there.”

you had been allowed to visit wakanda on both an invite from king t’challa and stark industries business, and during your extended stay you also had to defeat an ugly and angry grape guy.

“wait, you went to wakanda? what was it like?” his nervousness was slowly fading away as you got him to open up a little more.

you spent the rest of the drive to the facility geeking out about wakandan technology and the things shuri has created.

you parked in your personal spot, making a note that steve’s car was parked in his own spot, meaning both he and bucky were here, and nat’s motorcycle was here as well.

“looks like you’ll get to meet some of the team too!” you said, eager to say hi to natasha and america’s favorite duo.

“as long as they’re as nice as you i’ll be fine.” he told you with a smile that you thought shone brighter than the sun and you ignored the way your heart fluttered at the comment.

you lead him into the facility, running into steve and bucky along the way, introducing the three, and after the introduction the fossils adopted the nickname queens for peter.

“they’re so boring.” you spoke, fighting to suppress a smile. you didn’t actually think that, you were really close to steve and bucky, you just liked to make fun of them.

he looked at you questioningly.

“do you not like them?”

he then noticed you trying not to laugh and realized you were only joking.

you showed peter around the facility, as well as showing him everyone’s rooms, stopping outside each door for him to see without invading the privacy of your fellow avengers.

natasha strutted out of her room down the hall, like the drama queen she is.

“hey kid, welcome back sparkles.” she sent you a smirk, and then walked by just as quickly as she came.

you turned to look at peter.

“hi natasha” you said, rolling your eyes at her nickname of choice.

“why did she call you sparkles?” he asked through a small laugh. he didn’t know? it was kind of obvious.

“i’ll show you later, let me show you my room!”

you loved your room in the facility, and you grabbed peter’s hand to eagerly lead him down the hall to your room.

it was then that both you and peter decided you both liked the feeling you got when you had grabbed his hand.

you showed him into your room and he looked around curiously.

“you have a cat?”

the little white cat sat atop a plethora of pillows at the top of your bed and blinked at you.

“no, that’s bucky’s little monster, alpine. she’s not supposed to be in here.”

peter just smiled at the cat, stroking her fur softly.

“i like your room, it’s super ni-“ he cut himself off, “hey is that a star wars poster?”

you could feel yourself flush with the warmth of embarrassment.

“the empire strikes back is my favorite movie!”

you breathed a sigh of relief, he wasn’t going to make fun of you.

“it’s mine too!” you said, a big smile on your face. “the poster is signed!”

you both shared your excitement at your signed empire strikes back poster, and you even offered to get him one.

“i could never accept that, (y/n).” he said, shaking his head.

“good thing i’m not giving you a choice” you replied, smirking at him.

and that was the kickstart of an even closer friendship with you and the brunette hero.

you bounced back from los angeles and new york quite frequently the past eleven months. because of your success with the HYDRA mission given by SHIELD, and wanted you in their west coast division more often. you went away to california at least twice a month.

now, however, you sat in a nice apartment in queens, a popcorn bag popping between the warmth of your hands. you still remember the day peter found out about your powers.

“look.” you had said, and then your finger lit up, just like a candle.

“how did you do that?” he asked you, not even considering the fact that those were your powers.

“i can set things on fire, with my mind and with...” you paused, and then your whole hand started to glow red. “myself.”

“like a super-arsonist?”

“i mean, i guess you could say that.”

“wait! you’re inferno???”

when the popcorn was done popping, you passed it to peter before getting up from the couch quickly. peter grasped your forearm and you thought your heart would bust out of your chest because of the contact.

“what’s up?” he asked with a small head tilt and a furrow of his brow.

“i just have to go get something, pete” you reassured him with a smile, before walking over to his room to get your bag, trying to calm yourself down because he could probably hear your heart pounding.

inside was a tiny little cylindrical package wrapped in paper with your superhero self all over it.

you grabbed the mini item and sized it back up using a disc you’d borrowed from scott. you took a deep breath before walking back to the living area and your movie.

“merry christmas peter!” you said, a huge smile on your face.

“what is this?” he was surprised, you could tell.

“open it!!” you slid back onto the couch next to him and handed him the wrapped box.

when your hand touched his, peter willed himself to relax because you’re his best friend but also you’re so pretty and you smell like literally everything nice ever created in the universe. he snapped himself out of it, blushing a little at his inner monologue before grabbing the gifts from you.

“you know christmas isn’t for two weeks right?” you could hear the nervousness in his voice and you wondered why. why was he so nervous?

“tis the damn season, i say.” you said with an over the top arm swing, he just rolled his eyes at your antics.

“just open it already, before i” you raised your voice now, because may was in her room down the hall, “tell may about the time you-“

“okay i’ll open it!” he rushed out, covering your mouth with his hand before you could finish because he did not need aunt may knowing about that.

your chest heaved a little at the touch, and his hand was pulled away quickly. you noticed his face flush red and his breathing become a little quick, but brushed it off as him being worried you’d tell may.

“i like the wrapping paper by the way.” he commented, giving you a smirk that made your body swarm with butterflies.

when he opened it, an empire strikes back poster was revealed, complete with signatures from all the actors.

you saw his face light up and his mouth part in shock, and you’d give the world to see him that happy every single day.

but you didn’t need to, because for peter, just having you was all he needed.

“no way” he gasped, shaking his head a little with a smile of disbelief on his face.

“(y/n), you didn’t!”

you just smiled. it was then that peter swept you up into his arms, giving you a hug that made both of your hearts race.

but, good moments never last forever.

the next day, you were sent to athens on a mission with natasha and steve, one that might not let you be back for christmas.

you had completed the mission in time, done the day before christmas eve, but that doesn’t mean you finished it well.

it went messy, and both you and natasha sported a few gashes, but steve took the worst of it, always the gentleman. it also took a toll on you, being gone for two weeks was nothing abnormal, but it was what was said over those weeks that bothered you.

“oh little stark, you’ll never be their real family. you aren’t even a real avenger!”

it wasn’t true. you were one of the more original avengers, being taken on the team despite your dads worries, and you were their real family. but it still hurt you, it still stuck with you, replaying over and over in your mind as you tried not to let the words tear you apart.

you flew the quinjet the fastest it’s ever been flown, and debriefed with fury at SHIELD, letting steve and natasha go to the lab for some patching up.

when you got back to the compound, peter was the first person you saw. you walked over to him, and he brought you into his arms. it made you feel all warm and fuzzy inside, something you needed after the mission.

peter could see how down you looked and he hated it, so did all he knew how to do.

he held onto you tight, not saying anything to you, just providing the support you needed.

you knew the insecurities you had were a little silly, but you also knew that it was okay to feel like this, because even the strongest avengers have bad days. it made you feel more human, even though it also made you feel a little sad.

peter brought you comfort in this moment, whispering things that made your heart soar even if you knew they were just him being a good friend.

“you’re the best friend i could ever ask for.”

you smiled into his chest, and pulled yourself away, albeit reluctantly, from his hold.

“thanks peter” you said, more soothed now.

“i needed that. you really are an amazing person.”

he put his arm around your shoulders, giving you a little side hug.

“only for you.” he said, giving you a wink, one that you rolled your eyes at.

the day flew by, as it always seems to after a mission. the three of you sent off healed up quickly, just in time for the gift exchange you always forced everyone into on christmas eve.

after the exchange, you took your newly keychain-filled keys (thanks to nat, clint, sam, and bucky) and drove home. peter had left early, hitching a ride from your dad, which was a little odd to you but you brushed it off.

when you got home, all you saw was pepper on the couch with an excited smile on her face and a wave in greeting, and then you heard tony but lost your sight due to a black cloth being wrapped around your eyes.

“mom, what is he doing to me?”

you heard her laugh at your comment.

“just let him lead you, honey.”

you wished she and tony could see you roll your eyes.

he guided you up the stairs, telling you when to step so you wouldn’t fall, and you were quickly ushered into your room.

“why do i need this thing anyway?” you inquired, but the question was dropped when you felt someone new untie the blindfold.

peter.

you blinked your eyes a couple times, adjusting again to the environment of the room.

“is peter supposed to be a surprise? should i act surprised?”

the situation was a little confusing, no one was surprising you with a gift; tony and pep always waited until christmas, and you and peter exchanged gifts at the compound.

so what was going on?

“peter is not the surprise.”

and with that, tony left the room. if your back wasn’t to him you would’ve saw him wink at peter, but you did see peter’s face start to flush.

weird, because tony never left the room for surprises. little did you know, tony has been desperately waiting for one of you to make a move on the other after watching you pine within your friendship, and when peter mentioned giving you a necklace and confessing his feelings he nearly jumped for joy.

“i’m not the surprise, but i have a surprise for you.”

he looked a little nervous, compared to his usual comfort around you, and his hands started to fidget with his pockets.

“what is it?” you questioned, looking up at him and realizing suddenly that he was really close, which made your heart start to beat a little faster.

you saw him reach into his pocket and suck in a breath.

“titanic was the first movie you watched with me, i remember you insisted on it because it was your favorite at the time,”

you were a little confused, so you just nodded, albeit a little dumbly.

“i also remember how you said you’d kill for a necklace like the one rose wore, and you talked about the history of what it was modeled after for a good ten minutes”

you laughed, but you didn’t know what he was leading up to.

“and i knew that you could talk to me about anything, for however long you’d want, and i’d listen, because i got to see that look on your face when you were excited about something”

he was smiling at you as he reached into his pocket.

“peter parker i swear to god if you pull out a replica of that necklace i will kill you. or kiss you. or both.”

he laughed, and held out the palm of his hand, which lie a necklace that looked exactly like the blue hope diamond, and your mouth parted in shock.

“holy shit.”

“i, uh, wanted to give you something special, to show how special you are to me.”

you felt your eyes well up with tears at his words, and you smiled as he clasped the necklace around your neck.

recalling your words from moments ago, you took in a breath for confidence.

“i think i owe you a kiss.” you said, still smiling.

“as long as you don’t kill me after.”

and with that you pressed your lips against his, feeling your body ignite but not like when you were using your powers. this was a warmth in your heart.

peter kissed you and he swore it was the happiest moment of your life.

you kissed him with everything you had, bringing your hands around his neck.

it was like you fit together perfectly, and one would even say two hearts became one in that moment, but for you that was far too cliche.

you separated reluctantly, and you both smiled at each other. the smile you shared was worth a million words.

“tis the damn season, i guess.” you heard tony and pepper giggle like children outside the door that was half open, and the four of you laughed.

—

“peter, how did you even afford that necklace?”

he looked at you with a cheeky grin.

“turns out inferno is celine dion’s favorite superhero.”

your jaw dropped.

“kid, you’ll catch flies.”

“thanks for the warning dad.”

[pressedinthepages]

Beneath Each Other's Bones

My fic entry for @eskelbigbang <3

Please also check out @drachedraws two amazing pieces of art that they made for this fic!

Relationship Tags: Eskel/Geralt

Character Tags: Eskel, Geralt, Lambert, Vesemir, Lil' Bleater

Other Tags: smut, established relationship, oral and anal intercourse (m/m), some very soft smut. what can i say.

Summary: Winter at Kaer Morhen can be brutal. But Eskel and Geralt find warmth in each other in an effort to stave off the cold.

The stones of Kaer Morhen sighed as the sun rose over the winter-frosted valley. The birds and harpies had long since traveled south for the cooler months, and the draconids had nestled themselves in the depths of the mountains around the aging keep. The castle itself was full of its Witchers, who were patiently waiting for the first snowfall to blanket their surroundings in layers of quiet white . With the last witcher having finally arrived a few evenings prior, the pack were all finally able to rest peacefully with the knowledge that all were safe.

The first thing that Geralt felt was cold. His nose, the tips of his ears. The rest of him was encompassed in warmth, but the chill rudely nipped him awake, undaunted by his furry woollen fortress. He squinted one eye open with a grimace, finding his bedroom washed in the cool sunlight that streamed in from the window. It was still early. The morning sun had barely breached the horizon. Lambert would still be snoozing away, cocooned in the safety of a warm and familiar bed, but Vesemir would likely already be down in the kitchen preparing for the day.

Geralt’s ears, barely poking out from under his blanket, picked up the steady thunks of wood being chopped, and he grunted as he sat up, letting the blanket pool around his waist. His chest was bare, pale, scarred skin reluctantly exposed to the early winter air as the witcher roused himself. Still sitting in his bed, he turned and scooted to the windowsill, peering at the courtyard below.

Ah, fuck. Geralt’s morning arousal became actively invested in the sight that met him. Eskel had a stack of freshly chopped logs at his side, with one propped up atop a large stone. Geralt could see his muscles strain against the thin linen of his shirt as he swung the sharp ax high over his head, its honed edge glinting with the emergence of the sun as it met its apex, only to fall again with breathtaking force. The log split in two, and Eskel gathered the halves off to the side, stacking them neatly with the others on a long piece of thick canvas with handles on either end.

The ax found a resting spot for a moment as Eskel wiped the sweat from his brow. Geralt set his chin in his hands and his elbows on the edge of the windowsill and held in a low groan. Eskel had reached for the neck of his tunic and lifted it up over his head, revealing the olive-toned flesh of his stomach and the dark curls of hair over his chest that drew a delicious line below the band of his trousers. It was clear he’d been the first to return to Kaer Morhen. A comfortable roll of belly fat protruded from the confines of his belt, proof he’d had plenty of time to rest and indulge over the past weeks. His skin shone with perspiration and his thighs flexed and pushed at the fabric when he lifted another heavy log onto the chopping stone. Hells, the haphazard seam of one of the trouser legs was coming loose as his thigh threatened to free itself.

Eskel breathed in and swung again, driving the ax all the way through the thick log in a single stroke. As the two halves hit the ground he turned, dropping the ax and facing the little patch of green that remained before the frost. Lil’ Bleater was happily bounding through the grass, pouncing off of crates and rubble like it was her sole duty in life. Eskel smiled wide as Geralt did the same from his perch. The sun glinted off of Eskel’s back, dancing over the drops of sweat that dripped into the hollows of his muscles. Geralt swallowed thickly, unable to look away when Eskel’s arms came up to sweep the hair out of his face. The muscles of his shoulders and down the line of his spine flexed and shifted beneath his olive skin as he moved his hands to his hips.

“Alright, Bleats,” Eskel laughed as she came bounding over to his feet. He leaned down and offered a few sweet pats to the top of her head, “Think we’ve given Geralt enough of a show?”

He glanced over his shoulder with a cheeky grin to where Geralt was watching from the window, jaw agape and gobsmacked. The goat bleated as Eskel turned back and waved, and Geralt truly couldn’t help the smile that crept up his face if he tried.

“Fuckin’ tease,” Geralt grumbled half-heartedly as he watched Eskel drape his tunic back over his head. He was picking up the straps to the carrier for the firewood when Geralt finally tore himself away from the window, willing himself calm.

It only took a moment of deep breathing and a lifetime’s worth of practice, but Geralt soon found himself presentable to pleasant company. He threw on his usual winter attire, soft trousers and an even softer loose-fitting tunic tucked into the waist of his pants, his lined boots, and his cloak thrown over his shoulder. He tied his hair back off his face and let the rest hang on his shoulders in long silver waves. Finally, Geralt grabbed his swords and scabbards before heading down the stairs to the small kitchen space.

As expected, Vesemir was there with a steaming mug, poring over a book that was almost certainly older than Geralt himself.. He grabbed an apple and plopped down on the bench next to Vesemir, the both of them wordlessly grunting a greeting at the other. Geralt ate in relative silence for a bit, only the latent thrumming of the older Witcher’s heart and the crackling of embers in the fire accompanying the crunch of apple between his teeth.

That is, until Eskel butted open the doors to the hall and dragged his firewood haul in with him. Lil’ Bleater was riding the pile of wood like a pirate would her ship, the stack being almost as high as Eskel’s shoulders. Speaking of Eskel’s shoulders, Geralt couldn’t tear his eyes away from the visible line of sweat that trailed its way down his back, darkening the linen of his shirt and making it stick in all the most tempting places. He felt his mouth water at the sight and the piece of apple still in his mouth felt thick and hard as he choked it down.

Eskel grunted as he got close enough to the fireplace to relinquish his load, letting the heavy pieces fall haphazardly as he dropped the canvas sheet. The apple slipped from Geralt’s hand and bounced on the table before falling to the floor. “Dammit,” he growled, pointedly ignoring the disappointed sigh that escaped Vesemir’s nostrils.

He picked the fruit up and dusted it off, slicing off another piece as Eskel approached the table. Eskel smelled...like he needed a bath. Salt and sweat clung to his skin and wood dusted the strands of his hair, but he still carried that deep, musky, earthy scent that shone with a hint of citrus. It was the scent that kept Geralt awake at night, kept him sane on the Path. It was everything.

Eskel reached over and plucked a handful of dried fruits and nuts, as well as the jar of honey. He dropped the fruits and nuts into a bowl and carefully swirled a generous portion of honey over top. His fingers shone with the golden, sticky sweetness as he grabbed a dried grape and popped it between his lips. The scar turned his mouth upwards at the edge and pulled oddly at his lip while he ate. Geralt remembered how long it took for Eskel to be comfortable eating in front of him again after he got that scar, and he treasures every moment that he gets to see.

“Geralt?” Vesemir peered over his mug at him.

Geralt hummed in response, already dreading the day’s assignment.

“Oh don’t give me that. I need you to go out and put salt on the training grounds before the dirt frosts, and freshen up the wards around it. I don’t need the goats going in and licking it all up again. After that, the day’s yours.”

“And me?” Eskel asked around his mouthful.

“You can be done, you’ve already chopped enough wood to last us a good few weeks. I’ll get Lambert to-”

“NO. Don’t go giving my assignments before I even get to the table, old fart,” Lambert called down the stairwell.

Vesemir blinked slowly and sighed once more. “I’ll get Lambert to do SOMETHING ELSE today, though if you want something to keep busy, I’m sure there are some books that need rebinding.”

Geralt watched Eskel nod and swallow, his adam’s apple bobbing in his throat. “Yeah, alright. I may take some time later and see what I can do about those books. Lay them out for me?”

“Of course.”

Eskel smiled over at Geralt, his deep amber eyes meeting Geralt’s sunrise gold. Geralt’s moon and stars rested in those eyes, a whole universe tucked away in the depths of Eskel’s soul, bared just for him. They smiled at each other before Geralt tore himself away, draping his cloak over his shoulders and striding quietly towards the door.

Eskel watched him haul the heavy bag of salt up onto his shoulder with a grunt. He shook his head with a smile and polished off the last of his breakfast. The stool scraped on the floor as he pushed away from the table, ready to go fall into a warm bed somewhere. Eskel heard the door shut from Lambert’s room as his feet pounded down the stairs, so he made haste in avoiding that breakfast discussion.

***

Why’s Geralt back outside?

Eskel rounded the corner of the staircases, following the fresh scent of Geralt trailing out to the courtyard. It was far past noon by this point, and Geralt had already taken care of the training grounds. He had come back in right as the sun reached its highest point in the sky, climbing the spiral stairs in search of a snack.

Eskel shouldered open the heavy wooden doors and turned to the east, following the light footprints over the balding grass. He smiled to himself as he heard soft whispers coming from the stables, low and not meant for anothers’ ears. Well, another human’s ears.

He stopped just short of the doors, now close enough to make out the words being murmured.

“-n’t give me that look, I was just wanting to braid your mane.” Geralt’s honeyed tenor drifted over the heartbeats and huffed breaths behind the stall. “I know Eskel doesn’t normally do it, but it’ll help keep it from matting over the winter. I bet you’d hate for our big softie to have to cut off old chunks of your mane, wouldn’t you?”

Eskel heard Scorpion huff heavily from his nose and he chuckled, pulling on the cool steel handle and closing the door behind him. The whispers stopped as Geralt peered over the short wall between the stalls, his hair shimmering golden with the light of the fire roaring in the fireplace. He held a hardy brush in his right hand and had his other resting lightly on Scorpion’s flank, and his hair was tied up high and away from his face.

“Don’t stop on my account,” Eskel rumbled, crossing to where he could see into Scorpion’s stall. He let his back hit the wall behind him and slid down, his bottom thumping audibly onto the ground.

“Just gonna sit there and watch me?” Geralt grumbled, resuming his brushing of Scorpion’s mane. The great warhorse stamped his foot impatiently, butting his head into Geralt’s chest.

Eskel quirked his brow and nodded, “Figured you wouldn’t mind after you ogled me this morning.”

The tips of Geralt’s ears flushed a pretty pink as he hummed noncommittally in his chest. Not denying it.

“Your man’s a smartass,” Geralt mumbled to Scorpion, and the horse fucking snickered, I shit you not.

“Ay,” Eskel laughed, watching a little smile threaten to pull at Geralt’s lips, “no need to turn my horse against me, I’ll need him come Spring.”

“Don’t wanna talk about Spring,” Geralt sighed, carefully running his fingers, long and delicate, so unlike Eskel’s, through the wispy strands of Scorpion’s mane.

“Me neither.” Eskel pulled up his knees and rested his elbows atop them, his eyes drifting down Geralt’s body. Gods, but he’s so gorgeous.

If you asked him, Eskel would say that he couldn’t pick a favorite part of his Geralt. Everything was his favorite, it was impossible to choose. But Eskel did have a favorite, and he very well kept it to himself, thank you very much.

That damned waist. The way that Geralt’s shoulders, broad and sharp, sloped in and down over his stomach and into a glorious handful for Eskel. Nothing about Geralt was dainty, not in the slightest, but Eskel loved that he could wrap his arm over the soft line of his waist in the dead of night, or grasp desperately onto it while lost in the throes of passion.

Eskel sat there quietly, listening to Geralt mumble to Scorpion while he busied his hands. He leaned back and closed his eyes, letting the idle sounds of the castle and nearby woods overtake his mind and senses. He could hear Lambert’s heavy footfalls from beneath the castle, down in the labs. A pack of wolves patrolled the treeline past the castle walls, jaws snapping as they called to each other under the low afternoon sun.

He heard Geralt’s footsteps grow close to him, stopping just where Eskel’s hips met the floor. Geralt’s fingers brushed gently through Eskel’s thick, dark hair and Eskel couldn’t hold back the quiet moan that spilled from his lips. Geralt chuckled and knelt at his side, running his hand down Eskel’s cheek and thumbing over the line of his brow.

“I know you went down to the springs and got clean earlier,” Geralt rumbled lowly, “but maybe you’d want to join me for a bit?”

Eskel smiled and opened his eyes, two golds meeting and melding into one. He nodded and Geralt leaned down, pressing their foreheads together. Geralt reached and grabbed onto Eskel’s hand, pulling him to stand and brushing the stray bits of straw from his backside.

Eskel chuckled as he batted Geralt’s hand away, though not before he got a solid squeeze in edgewise. “Hey, if you wanted to touch my ass, all you had to do was ask.”

Geralt shrugged as they walked through the doors to the castle and down the center spiral staircase that led to the hot springs, “I always want to touch your ass. Doesn’t really matter.”

Eskel shook his head and laughed heartily as he felt the air change. It felt thick, musty, warm with minerals and moss that grew in sharp brushstrokes up the walls. His lungs filled with the comfort of home, the air that was unique to this one spot of the castle, and only ever really meshed with his soul when Geralt was around to share in it.

He watched Geralt peel his shirt from his body, his pale skin a stark contrast to the dim caverns lit only by the stray candle or two sporadically placed in the cracks of the stones. Eskel reached out, his hand guided only by the raw urge to touch, to feel Geralt’s skin yield under his fingers, and he felt the warmth before he even made contact.

Geralt’s sigh tingled under his fingertips, vibrating through his bones with a summer long lost. Eskel stood flush to Geralt’s back, his hand resting over Geralt’s heart and his neck bent to rest his forehead at the nape of Geralt’s neck. He invaded Eskel’s every sense, every fiber of his being, just by existing in the same space. He smelled of sweat and horse and hay and happiness and home, and Eskel just wanted to...breathe him in. To take him into his lungs and never let him go. He felt Geralt’s fingers intertwine with his where they rested on Geralt’s chest, long and thin and pulling him up to Geralt’s lips. His lips were cool and chapped from the chill outside, but Eskel felt the warmth being pulled from his soul into the sweet press of Geralt’s lips.

“C’mon, let’s get into the baths,” Geralt mumbled, his lips still pressing into the pads of Eskel’s fingers. Eskel hummed noncommittally, honestly fine with just standing here, Geralt in his arms and close enough to finally feel. Geralt turned and stepped back, just out of Eskel’s reach with a grin as he reached for the ties on his trousers. “I’d like to get clean before I die of old age, so you best get naked.”

Eskel smirked and shucked his own shirt to the side, undoing the bright ties on his codpiece and letting the thick leather fall away. His trousers fell and were kicked away with his boots and the air embraced his skin with a welcoming grasp. He padded towards the pools, slipping into the water with a grateful sigh that one would expect from the sight of a long-lost friend.

He peeked over his shoulder and found Geralt standing where he was left, mouth slack-jawed and his hands hovering with his trousers half-undone. Geralt blinked and cleared his throat, adjusting himself through the leather of his trousers before untying them the rest of the way and letting them fall away. “I...it always surprises me just how much I can forget…”

Eskel crooked his head as Geralt stepped into the water beside him, rippling the waves over and up the stone sides. “What do you mean?”

“Just...you,” Geralt murmured, dipping under the water to soak his hair, “you are always so much more...real than I can ever keep in my mind. Whenever I think of you, it always pales in comparison to actually seeing you in front of me.”

Eskel felt his cheeks flush and he smiled, running his damp hands through his hair before lounging back into the edge of the pool. “I can never really get how you feel right. I know how good it makes me feel, but actually touching you? Or hearing your heart? My brain can’t replicate that. Not well enough, anyway.”

“Exactly. And it always is a bit of a shock. But a good one.” Geralt soaped up his hair quickly, batting away Eskel’s hands when he tried to help. “No, I want to get this part out of the way so we can relax. We can do that next time.”

Eskel thought back to a couple of winters prior, when Geralt had requested that he wash his hair for him. Albeit, with a bit of a caveat. Eskel spent an hour washing Geralt’s long, thick silver locks with his cock buried to the hilt in Geralt’s ass, the both of them gasping and clinging onto each other by the time his hair was rinsed. Eskel smiled at the memory as Geralt ducked back under the water, leaving his hair dripping wet and free of suds.

Geralt peered over at Eskel with a smirk playing at his lips as he reached his hand for Eskel’s thigh. He felt the muscle tense briefly under his fingers as he moved up slowly, his other hand sliding up and onto Eskel’s neck. Eskel sighed gently, a pull of air from deep in his lungs as Geralt played with the little curls of hair on the nape of his neck. Geralt’s hand moved over his hip, warm and soft and just a tad squishy beneath the water, and splayed over his stomach, tracing idle swirls through the hair that led down to his groin. Before he could get far, though, Eskel caught his errant hand with his own and brought them to his lips.

“We should eat first,” Eskel rumbled, his lips brushing the sensitive tips of Geralt’s fingers with every whispered word, “then I’d like to take you to bed properly.”

“Hmm,” Geralt traced down the scars on Eskel’s cheek and into his lip, watching the tiniest little shudder shoot over his nerves, “Lambert cooking tonight?”

Eskel nodded and ran his hands down Geralt’s spine and the swell of his backside. Not pushing or pulling with any direction, just feeling the skin that he so craved, even in his sleep. Geralt bent down, just barely pressing his forehead into Eskel’s and brushing their noses together. “You’ve kept me waiting all day,” Geralt sighed with a smile, “I suppose I could wait a bit longer. Not much though.”

Eskel chuckled and pecked Geralt on the cheek, “I promise. Once we’re both warm and comfortable and full, then I’ll take you upstairs and show you just how much I’ve needed you.”

“If you don’t let me go now, there’s no way I’ll be able to stop myself,” Geralt growled and nipped at Eskel’s chin. Eskel laughed and playfully shoved him back, watching the crystalline water drip down the dark hairs over his chest and into the dip of his waist. He had been feeling the stirrings of arousal all day, but it was getting more and more difficult to ignore.

Eskel followed Geralt as he clambered out of the springs, his hands and feet striking roughly against the weathered stone beneath them. He smirked at the quite obvious state of arousal that Geralt was in, his skin flushed and his cock straining upwards from between his thighs.

Geralt could feel Eskel’s eyes on him as he strode towards their pile of clothes and drying sheets. He peeked over his shoulder at him, finding Eskel hauling himself out of the bath with his arms, the muscles dipping and pulling as he rose to his full height, soaked to the bone and sporting a very pretty erection of his own. Geralt’s mouth watered as he wrapped a sheet to hang low on his hips before gathering his worn clothes into a bundle in his arms.

Eskel followed suit, feeling the drafty air whistle through his legs and cool the drips of water that still wore their path down to the floor below. They traveled through the halls together, still shoulder to shoulder even though the walls were just a tad too close together to accommodate them both comfortably. They didn't mind though, drawing their warmth together and letting their souls mingle in the approaching evening.

As they climbed the spiral staircase that led back to the main level of the keep, Eskel could smell the dinner that Lambert had been working on, something with chicken and hearty vegetables, along with bread and fresh butter and citrus chutney. They continued on up the stairs until they reached the door to Eskel’s chambers. They did typically end up sharing the room over the winter, but Geralt still liked to have his own little private space for himself. Eskel knew how loud the world could feel, and he liked having his own space too sometimes.

He kissed Geralt sweetly on the shoulder as he moved to continue up the stairs to his own room, leaving a tingle of his lips to keep him company. Geralt shook his head with a light hearted huff and slowly climbed up the spiral, and Eskel waited until he heard the heavy thud of his thick wooden door to open his own. He threw his clothes onto the chair by the fireplace before flicking his fingers out and up in the sign for Igni, feeling the warmth from the fire bloom from his palm and onto the wood, bathing the room in a pale glow.

Eskel dressed quickly, throwing soft trousers over his underthings, followed by a knit shirt that stretched across his chest and held tight. He left his swords propped by the door next to his boots before padding back down the stairs into the dining area. The three fires roared beneath bubbling pots and sizzling pans, sending rich scents swirling softly around the room. Lambert stood over one, giving it one last stir before grabbing onto the handles. Eskel lowered himself onto the bench at the table just as Lambert set the steaming cauldron down onto the nearly-black wood.

Vesemir grabbed the other pan and brought it over, lifting the lid to reveal several chicken breasts that had been seared and seasoned to perfection. Lambert began to ladle some of the stew from his pot onto his plate and tore a chunk of bread for himself before tossing the loaf to Eskel. It was warm in his palm and he smiled, the bread soft and yielding as he tore off some for himself as well. Vesemir declined, so he set the rest of the loaf in Geralt’s spot and began to heap his own plate with Lambert’s delicious looking dinner.

Geralt joined soon after they began to eat, dressed comfortably with his silvery hair pulled up and away from his face. Geralt swung his long legs over the bench and sat down next to Eskel, humming as he picked up the bread.

“Yeah, pretty boy, saved that bit for ya. Dig in before it all gets cold.” Lambert chucked the ladle down in Geralt’s direction, sending stray bits of stew flying to the walls. Vesemir rolled his eyes as Geralt caught it without looking and gave it a spin, rotating it flamboyantly around his fingers before plopping it straight into the great pot.

The four of them ate in relative silence, only the gentle scraping of utensils or grunts of acknowledgement breaking the fragile quiet. Vesemir was the first to be finished with his meal, leaning back in his seat and breathing in deeply. “Delicious as always, Lambert. Thank you. I'm headed to the library, gonna try and go through some of the old tomes.”

Lambert nodded and the others hummed, no one willing to part with their plates quite yet. Eskel wiped his plate down with the remainder of his bread, sopping up the stew and downing it all in one satisfying mouthful. Geralt watched with a raised brow and a smirk.

“Alright lovebirds, I’m off. Try to keep it down, at least a little, huh?” Lambert winked as he stood and wandered off, likely back down to the alchemy labs for more of his...experiments. Eskel chuckled as Geralt lobbed an old apple at the back of Lambert’s head, more for effect than anything else. Lambert batted it away into a corner and Eskel sighed. He stood and retrieved it, knowing that it would be long forgotten if he didn’t. He set it back onto the table before stretching his arms up above his head and turning to the door that led to the staircases.

Eskel held his hand out to Geralt, who looked at it through hooded lids. “Join me?”

Geralt smiled and lept to his feet, the last few bites of his dinner instantly forgotten. “Fuckin’ finally, you tease.”

Eskel laughed as the two of them bumbled up the stairs and into Eskel’s room. Geralt could feel the warmth emanating before they even swung open the door, his cheeks flushing and his arms shivering with the welcome change in temperature. Eskel shut the door behind him and led him to stand before the fireplace, his olive skin glowing in the flames.

Geralt sighed as he felt Eskel’s hands on his hips, his fingers toying with the hem of Geralt’s shirt and just glancing to the skin of his stomach beneath. Eskel slid his hands up and pulled Geralt’s shirt with him, lifting it over his head and letting it land with a soft thud in the cushy armchair in the corner.

Next Eskel moved to Geralt’s trousers, sliding the ties open and letting them fall to the floor. He gave Geralt’s bum a little pat and nodded to the bed. “Go on, I’ll be just behind you.”

Geralt reached to push down his smalls but Eskel caught his hands and dropped them back by his side. “J-just wanna hold you for a bit...that okay?”

Geralt hummed, pressing his lips to the junction between Eskel’s neck and shoulder, “Of course, Wolf. Don’t take too long though, gonna get cold without you.”

Geralt smiled as he climbed onto the wide bed draped in thick furs and soft knit blankets. Eskel loved textures, and tried to surround their bed with as much comfort as he could find. His golden gaze found Eskel once more as he too stripped down to his smallclothes. Geralt leaned back onto the soft pillows as Eskel slid up next to him, resting his head on Geralt’s chest and breathing in deeply. Geralt wrapped his arm around the breadth of Eskel’s shoulders and held him close, feeling the rise and fall of his chest against his side. Geralt could see out of the little window cut into the stone, revealing the sun setting in bright oranges and deep purples between the craggles of the Blue Mountains.

Eskel ran his hands down Geralt’s chest, tracing those same swirling patterns as before while he peppered kisses up and down the line of Geralt’s neck and over his collarbone. Geralt could always feel the little crook in Eskel’s lip from his scar as it traced over his skin, grounding him home in warm arms and soft eyes that held endless love and patience.

Geralt threaded his fingers into Eskel’s hair and gave a little scratch at the nape of his neck, chuckling a bit when he felt the full body shudder that Eskel granted him. Geralt felt the gasp of hot breath ghost over his collar when he tugged gently on the handful of hair that he had, and a possessive kind of growl erupted from behind his teeth. Geralt didn’t often let this part of himself show, this need to hang onto every thread of his partner, but with Eskel, it felt safe, known, instinctual.

Eskel pushed himself up and pressed his hand firmly in the center of Geralt’s chest, breathing with the steady thuds of the heart that rested just beneath his fingers. Eskel’s eyes were dark with lust and hunger and something so deep and innate that it escaped such a simple name. Eskel slid his hand up and wrapped it gently around the back of Geralt’s neck and leaned down, pressing their foreheads together as he climbed between Geralt’s legs.

Geralt lifted his leg and wrapped it around Eskel’s hip in an attempt to get him to maybe speed things up a bit. “Eskel,” Geralt hummed, “Gods, you’re killing me…”

Eskel smiled and ran his nose down the line of Geralt’s jaw and into the hollows of his neck. His lips traced along the tendons and veins and his teeth just barely glanced over his pulse point and Geralt felt his cock thicken and throb where Eskel pressed into him.

“Can I have you like this?” Eskel asked, his voice still muffled in Geralt’s neck, “Just wanna be able to look at you…”

Geralt swallowed thickly and nodded, turning his head in search of Eskel’s mouth. He finally, finally, slid their lips together, breathing each other in and holding onto each and every piece that they could reach. Geralt wrapped his arms around Eskel’s waist and stroked up and down the hard lines of his back, tracing the scars he knew better than his own.

“Lift-nng” Eskel tried to say, though Geralt nipped and tugged at his lower lip to keep him in place, “Lift your damn hips, you great oaf.”

Geralt chuckled and did as he was bid, letting Eskel run his fingers through the ties keeping his braies on and loosening them. They slid down his thighs and Eskel let him rest his bum back on the bed. Eskel shimmied himself backwards and fully pulled the smalls off of Geralt, sending them careening through the room to land somewhere in the shadows. Geralt’s cock lay hard and flushed and weeping on his stomach and Eskel took a deep breath in through his nose, grounding himself in the lust on the air and the taste of Geralt already on his tongue.

Eskel stood up and turned to face the fire as he undid his own smalls, pushing them down quickly and without any dramatics. But Geralt found himself drooling over him anyways, seeing the beautiful bronze skin revealed inch by glorious inch, the swells of his backside just begging for his teeth to sink into. Again. He then grabbed the little vial of oil that spent most of the year gathering dust on the mantle, but in the winter found a new home atop the little table next to their bed.

And oh fucking shit I’ve missed that so much, Geralt thought as Eskel turned back to him with his cock hanging heavily between his thighs. Eskel crawled onto the bed and prowled over top of him, his chest already heaving and pressing into Geralt’s. Eskel sat up on his knees and Geralt braced himself on his elbows, watching Eskel uncork the oil and slowly drip a generous amount of the cool liquid onto their cocks where they rested together. Eskel’s hand was warm when he reached down to rub the oil around, wrapping around them and tugging and pulling and-

“-Fuck, Eskel,” Geralt spat through grit teeth when Eskel just barely thumbed the slit of Geralt’s cockhead. “If you’re gonna do all that shit, I need you in me now.”

Eskel laughed breathily and kissed Geralt hard, all teeth and tongue and rushed whispers of affection. “Alright, alright. I’ve got you, Geralt. I’ve got you…”

Eskel poured some more oil between Geralt’s legs and Geralt felt it slowly trickle down to his entrance. Eskel’s fingers followed soon after, languidly rolling his balls around in his palm before trailing down between his cheeks. Geralt sighed as Eskel started pressing around his hole, not pushing in yet, just massaging and loosening the tight muscle.

“Gods, Geralt,” Eskel murmured, dragging his free hand down Geralt’s flank and across his stomach, “you’re so tense…”

“No one’s been back there since Spring, Esk…”

Eskel blinked up at him and Geralt could taste the new wave of arousal that poured off Eskel. “You’ve not had anyone? All year? Geralt, I...you-”

Geralt’s head hit the pillow and he sighed, trying desperately to put the words together in his head. “I-fuck, Eskel, I just want you. You’re...you’re the only one who I can...who I can be comfortable with.”

Eskel surged forward and captured Geralt’s lips between his own, tasting of salt and honey and fucking unending love. “Geralt. Fuck. You can’t just say shit like that out of nowhere. Fuck, I love you so much it hurts. It fucking hurts, and then you just go and say that? You’re gonna put me in an early grave-”

Geralt’s world twisted and turned as Eskel’s hands gripped onto his hips, his fingers digging into his skin as they rolled and shifted on the bed, winding up with Geralt laying on his stomach and Eskel’s lips pressing into the skin at the nape of his neck. Eskel dragged his mouth down, leaving hot wet kisses down Geralt’s spine and over the swell of his bottom.

Eskel’s breath ghosted over Geralt’s skin as he slid his finger back down to press against his entrance, finding only a gasp of resistance as he pushed in to his knuckle. He worked Geralt open slowly, kneading and licking and nipping the soft flesh of Geralt’s ass while he slid in another, and then one more finger. He relished the little noises that clawed their way out of Geralt’s chest unbidden, gasps and moans and keens that he felt more than heard.

Meanwhile Geralt was warring with his own mind, torn between wanting so desperately to grasp into Eskel’s hair and haul him back up to feel his lips cover his own, trailing down over his jaw and neck and chest, but also needing to feel more of him, deeper, harder-

Their words broke off between gasps for air and fisted sheets and Eskel quietly continued his task of working Geralt open on his fingers. Geralt’s breath hitched in his throat when Eskel crooked his fingers inside of him, warm and slick and hitting up against that devastating bundle of nerves. But all too soon it was not so nice, his fingers sliding in and out and not being close to enough for Geralt. “M-shit, more, Eskel.”

Eskel hummed and bit down into the tender flesh of Geralt’s bum, feeling the fluttering of his walls play at his fingers. He looked down and watched his fingers slowly slide in and out, stretching him in preparation of what was to come. Eskel had his own wars inside of his head, his need to shower Geralt with soft touches so rarely afforded to his battle-worn skin clashing against the feeling tugging behind his belly to find the breaking point nestled so deep inside of Geralt’s body.

Geralt’s hips thrusted softly against the bed beneath them, chasing the release that had been teasing at them both all damn day. Eskel chuckled when a particularly hard thrust made him bonk his nose into the crease of Geralt’s asscheeks, and he shifted himself to sit up with a sweet pat to the swells of muscle.

“Roll back over, wanna look at you-”

Geralt sighed when he felt Eskel’s fingers slip out of him, leaving him oddly empty and aching and wanting. It took him a moment to find his bearings, but he flipped over soon enough to meet Eskel’s fiery eyes. Eskel hovered over him, his chest heaving with hot breaths and his medallion clinking against Geralt’s. Geralt ran his fingers through the soft dark hair over Eskel’s chest, pressing his fingers into the yielding flesh over his heart and giving it a squeeze. Eskel growled with a sinister grin and moved faster down his body than Geralt had anticipated.

Eskel leaned down and lapped his tongue up the underside of Geralt’s cock just as he slipped his fingers back into him. Geralt shook when Eskel wrapped his lips around the tip and sunk down, teasing and licking while his fingers hit that precious bundle of nerves nestled so deep inside of him. Eskel’s mouth moved with his hand, pushing in and out and up and down and humming against him and Geralt could feel the pearly arousal dripping onto Eskel’s tongue with every slick slide of his lips.

“Ah, ah, Esk-g...gonna-fuck...”

Eskel only hummed, low and hard from his chest, and Geralt arched up off the bed in pleasure when Eskel zeroed in on that spot within him, holding there and sucking and slurping every bit of spend that Geralt had to give. It just kept coming, shooting down Eskel’s throat and spilling out the sides of his lips messily. Eskel felt the haze of his own pleasure tease at the edges of his eyes as his hips thrust lazily against the bed, his free hand holding tight to Geralt’s hip.

Geralt sagged back onto the bed in a haze, tender and sensitive and already craving more. He pulled Eskel back up to him and ran his thumb over the corner of his mouth, gathering his own spend onto his finger. Geralt slipped his thumb between his lips and licked it clean as Eskel watched with great gasping breaths and eyes so dark there was only a little ring of gold shining in the night.

“Geralt, fuck, c-can I-” Eskel stuttered over his words, his hands running over Geralt’s shoulders and down his chest, his cock dripping down into the hair above Geralt’s own half-hard cock.

“Yes,” Geralt breathed and fit his hand up onto the nape of Eskel’s neck, his fingers pressing firm while Eskel shifted on the bed to line himself at Geralt’s entrance.

Eskel gasped into Geralt’s skin as he just barely pushed into the rim, wrapping his arms around Geralt’s waist to hold him as close as possible. Geralt’s fingers tightened in Eskel’s hair as he started to gently thrust inside of him, Eskel’s chest rumbling with a low purr as he smothered Geralt with his body.

“G-Geralt,” Eskel murmured, his hips already losing rhythm, “I’m, fuck you’re so-”

Geralt hummed and nodded, running his hands down Eskel’s shoulders and back up again around his neck. “Go on, Eskel. You’ve been on edge all day. Give it to me.”

Eskel’s voice went high and strained, tight mumbles escaping from between his teeth as he ground his hips deep against Geralt’s, spending inside of him. Eskel rubbed his face into the tender skin of Geralt’s neck as he finally, gloriously released into him, feeling the way that he fluttered and flexed around his cock. He saw great stars shooting behind his eyelids as his climax tore through him, unrelenting and all-encompassing.

Geralt kept his hold firm on Eskel as he went limp in his arms, Eskel’s mind blanking and blind for a blissful moment. Geralt felt the pressure of Eskel everywhere, on top of him, around him, inside of him, leaking out of him. The only thing that could ever gather him enough strength to move was Eskel himself, and he didn’t really seem up to that quite yet.

Or, well, maybe he did. Eskel didn’t even soften a little bit in Geralt, his hips already rolling deep and slow inside Geralt. His bones sang out to Eskel in ecstasy, yearning for him, craving him.

Geralt’s cock rested hard once more on his stomach, steadily dripping his arousal into a little pool. Eskel’s hands tightened on his hips and pulled him into each and every thrust, slow and hard and deep and addicting. Eskel couldn’t keep his hands still as he dragged his cock inside of Geralt, only just barely shifting back and forth as he tried to stay buried in his tight, wet heat as much as possible.

“Ger-nnng,” Eskel gritted his teeth and clenched his eyes shut as he felt the pressure of Geralt around him clench and smother every last bit of him with every soft move of his cock. Geralt smirked and bore down farther, tightening his hold on Eskel’s arm and around his neck as he pulled him down so that their faces were held with only the space of a breath between them.

Geralt could feel the tight coil of release draw taut as he dragged his hands down Eskel’s chest and to his own cock. Eskel’s eyes followed him, branding his skin with the fire behind them, watching as Geralt took himself in hand. Geralt shuddered as his climax came closer and closer into view, only needing just a little more, a little something to push him over the edge-

“Fuck, Geralt, I...I can’t hang on much longer…” Eskel ground out, brushing his nose down over Geralt’s and pleading with his eyes.

“Let go, Eskel. I want it, please-”

And then he did. Eskel thrust hard and deep a handful more times as he hit his peak, his cock pressing against that devastating bundle of nerves nestled deep inside of Geralt each and every time. Oh, and then when his release finally overtook him once more? Gods, his cock flexed and spilled and hit Geralt like a punch in the gut over and over and over, until finally Geralt too climaxed with his cock in his hand. Long stripes of spend spilled and painted his chest while Geralt groaned from low in his stomach.

The two of them laid there for Gods know how long, just lingering in each other, the scent of their combined arousals making them feel almost drunk from the heady way it went straight through them. Eskel was the first to move, slipping from the tight embrace of Geralt’s body and flopping down onto the bed at his side. Geralt reached out and tangled their fingers together while their chests heaved in great gulps of air, their minds still addled and off-kilter.

Eskel swallowed thickly and focused his mind on the feeling of Geralt’s thumb running over the back of his knuckles, back and forth and back again… “Gods, Geralt,” he murmured, peering over at him, “I’ll never get tired of that.”

Geralt chuckled without opening his eyes, already feeling the threads of consciousness being steadily pulled from him. “You better not. I plan on getting fucked like that until I die.”

Eskel hummed and reached out blindly with his free hand, groping for the spare scrap of cloth that he kept by the bed. Once he found the soft fabric he gently swept it up over Geralt’s stomach and chest, feeling the vibrations of his hum beneath his fingers. Eskel reached back between Geralt’s thighs and cleaned there as well, knowing that although Geralt would never really say anything about it, he wouldn't enjoy being sticky in the morning.

Eskel tossed the rag away and shifted underneath the blanket, reaching out to pull Geralt into his chest. “C’mere, you. Wanna hold you.”

Geralt grunted and rolled over onto his side, burying his face into the hair on Eskel’s chest. Eskel wrapped his arm around Geralt’s waist and held him close, pressing his nose into the silver hair atop Geralt’s head. Woodsmoke, spice, pine. Home.

Geralt sighed into him and wrapped his own arm around Eskel, snuggling in and quickly letting sleep take him away. Eskel felt the shift, the way that Geralt’s shoulders relaxed and his hips fell further into the bed, his mind finally quiet and his hands still. He pressed his lips softly to the crown of Geralt’s head and held it there for a heartbeat or two, pouring everything he could into those soft moments before he himself fell into the warm embrace of sleep.

[adhd-disaster-willie]

like lemongrass and sleep; chapter 1/?

summary: "Julie was 5 years old and overflowing with spirit when her teacher sat her beside the spitfire Flynn Miller. She remembers taking one look at this girl’s wild smile and neatly braided curls and deciding that she wanted to be able to look at her every single day for the rest of her life." or, Julynn childhood best friends to lovers

word count: 1,516

warnings: none

notes: Flynn will be using she/her pronouns for the first chapter or so, cause they haven't started thinking about gender or come out yet.

---

Julie was 5 years old and overflowing with spirit when her teacher sat her beside the spitfire Flynn Miller. She remembers taking one look at this girl’s wild smile and neatly braided curls and deciding that she wanted to be able to look at her every single day for the rest of her life. It was quite the profound realization, but at the time, she didn’t really care to recognize the depth of it, only that she had found herself a best friend and she had to show Flynn the tree in her backyard. And so that was that, they were attached at the hip and 5 years flew by in a blur of scraped knees and pinkie promises and friendship bracelets and breathless laughter.

Flynn swung her neon-bandaid covered legs over the highest tree branch and grinned down at Julie with a sparkle in her eyes. “I win!” She cried giddily. “That’s-”

“3 for you and none for me,” Julie finished with a pout, hoisting herself up to join Flynn and wrinkling her nose at the height. “I still won at uno.”

“Because it’s a stupid game!” Flynn protested. “You can’t win at a game that’s all luck!” She threw her hands in the air and narrowly avoided going careening off the branch.

The sun was slowly setting and Julie knew dinnertime was fast approaching, the scent of her mom’s cooking wafting in from the back door that’s been left open (she’ll worry about that later when she gets mosquito bites in her sleep.) Julie beamed up at the pink sky and shoved Flynn lightly. “Ms. Nelson said there’s gonna be a new student next week.”

“I hope it’s not a boy,” Flynn replied. “Boys are gross.” She picked at a piece of bark before tossing it over the fence and watching with a giggle as it landed in the neighbors pool. She swung backwards until she was hanging off the branch by her legs, her curls bouncing slightly as she swayed back and forth. Julie bit her lip anxiously, this was the exact thing that got Flynn sent home from the hospital with a bright red cast in 2nd grade. Granted, she wasn’t too bothered by it, because having a broken arm in 2nd grade means you’re the most popular kid in the school for at least 2 months, and she didn’t have to write a thing while it was still healing. But, still.

Flynn swung back up, wobbling slightly, and blew at the loose hair hanging in her eyes. “Ha, didn’t break my arm that time!” She exclaimed pridefully. Julie raised an eyebrow.

“The new kid's name is Alex Mercer.”

Flynn’s eyes widened and she quickly took to mouthing the alphabet. “Oh good, we’ll still be next to each other.”

“Hmm, I’d change my last name if we got separated,” Julie said, as if it’s the most obvious thing in the world.

“You mean it?” Flynn asked, beaming.

“100 percent. No one can split up double trouble.” Julie held out her pinkie to prove it and Flynn giggled, locking their fingers together.

There was a sort of childhood wonder hanging in the air, like pixie dust. It’s strange, how as children, no one seems to recognize it. They’ll sit perched on the highest branch without a care in the world, until the streetlights turn on. And the whole world will go silent before midnight, curled up in tattered sleeping bags in the living room with a flickering night light to ward off ghosts. It was all so awfully simple.

---

Alex Mercer was lanky and blond and had a worried crease between his eyebrows that your average 10 year old doesn’t tend to have. He clutched a baggy, too-big fannypack to his chest, and Julie desperately wanted to know what was in it. Surely it had to be something interesting; maybe he was a wizard and that was where he kept all his potions and spellbooks. Flynn was incredibly disappointed that the new student was a boy, but still let herself be dragged over to him at recess, where he was sat anxiously on the curb, fiddling with the hem of his loose pink hoodie that was way too warm for September in LA.

“Hello!” Julie pulled Flynn down with her and sat beside Alex. “I like your bag.” She leaned in conspiratorially. “You can tell me if it there’s a magic wand in there.” Alex only shook his head.

“No there’s just”- he opened the zipper and showed her the quite disappointing contents- “tissues and- and my inhaler.”

“And a pen.” Flynn pointed out. She reached in and grabbed the pen, clicking it gleefully. “It’s pink.”

Alex flushed slightly. “Uh yea…”

“Cool!” Flynn poked Julie with the end of the pen and laughed. Julie snatched it from her hand with a stern look.

“It’s a very nice pen,” Julie said, handing it back to Alex. “I like gel pens, they write so much smoother.” She held out her hand the way Carrie’s dad, Trevor, told her to do, because it was good manners. “I’m Julie.” Alex took her hand and shook it gingerly.

Alex was, as Julie quickly learned, a mess of way too much anxiety than should be able to fit in one person. He’d moved last week, and it wasn’t much of a change, but enough that he had to switch schools. He had three best friends back at his old school (Luke, Reggie, and Bobby) that would be going to their same middle school, his favorite color was pink, and he liked to dance. These are all things that Julie filed away in her mind. She liked to remember things about people, like how Carrie hated grape candy, and Flynn had the prettiest smile of anyone Julie knew. Remembering things about people meant you cared, and they would stick around.

---

It doesn’t snow in LA. It hadn’t snowed in LA since 1962 and the only time Julie had seen it was the winter she was six and her family went up to Oregon for a week. But one crisp December morning in 2014, Julie rolled out of bed and pressed her face to the fogged over window only to find a blanket of fresh white snow covering everything as far as the eye could see. She hardly had her coat on before she was out the door, wriggling from her mother’s grasp because “Mom it’s snowing! I don’t need breakfast!” Donning purple rainboots and a matching wool scarf that was way too long and dragged behind her as she ran, Julie bolted to Flynn’s house as fast as her legs could carry her, clad in three layers of jeans.

There was snow! Falling in big fat flakes and landing on the trees and the tops of houses and Julie’s hat. She had to squint a bit, as the snow melted on her glasses and blurred her vision, but it was more than worth it. Julie reached Flynn’s house in a flurry of mismatched winter clothes and wild eyes, and Flynn was already on the porch, bouncing impatiently as her dad wrapped a thick scarf around her neck.

“Hi Mr. Miller!” Julie chirped with an enthusiastic wave. Flynn’s dad waved back before turning to zip up Flynn’s bulky coat.

“Daaaad,” Flynn whined, scratching at the knitted hat covering her ears. “Can I please go into the snow now?”

“Yes Flynn,” he sighed, patting her atop the head once for good measure. “Be careful-”

“Bye dad!”

“Bye Mr. Miller!”

“Let’s goooo!”

It was as if the whole world was holding it’s breath, capturing Julie’s little suburban town in a bubble. Julie grasped Flynn’s mittened hand and dragged her through the blanketed streets, with a laugh perpetually on the tip of her tongue. There were snowflakes in her eye lashes and sticking to the top of her hat like velcro. Stumbling into the field by the school, Julie swung Flynn around in a circle, both of them shrieking with uncontained laughter, heads held to the gray sky. She didn’t know it at the time, but this moment would forever live in a corner of Julie’s mind. The place where she sets aside things she doesn’t want to forget; things like Flynn’s 10th birthday and the days when she’d sit at the piano with her head on her mom’s shoulders and hum along to songs she’s heard a hundred times and could listen to a hundred more.

Julie collapsed into the snow with a deep exhale and an infectious grin, Flynn quickly following suit. “Hey Flynn?”

“Yea.”

“Do you think that if I close my eyes I’ll wake up in Narnia?” Julie asked, her voice soft and full of wonder.

“Aren’t you supposed to walk through a wardrobe?”

Julie shrugged. “Maybe.”

Flynn hummed, mulling it over for a minute. “Sure. But only if I get to come with.”

“Of course, stupid.” With a lopsided smile, Julie intertwined their pinkies and shut her eyes. Maybe she would wake up in Narnia, but she would rather stay here if it meant Flynn was next to her.

---

I really wanted this chapter to be longer but like, I felt like this was a good place to leave off. I hope you liked it! comment or send me an ask if you want to be added to the tag list! :)))

[brandywine-tomatoes]

Jimmy Neutron (Tech) Head Cannons

Masterlist

- His goggles definitely have a blue light filter, though before he got them, his eyes were always strained and his eyesight was blurry as frick which affected his training as a cadet.

- On missions with the Batch, he was the team medic. The funny thing is no one assigned him the role, he just is.

- He knows what to do in most situations that require medical attention.

- He's no surgeon, but he can deal with battlefield wounds like no one's business in a record amount of time. (@icedcoffee101)

- HE 👏 HAS 👏 ADHD 👏👏👏

- He was really self-conscious about his hyper fixations and how much he’d talk about them, but the batch made sure he knew he could talk about them once they found out.

- ADHD mood: he can hide his emotions pretty well, but it’s absolute hell for him to, he’d gone deep into a depressive state when he was on Kamino.

- The batchers didn’t really know until his first mental breakdown after a high-stakes mission.

- After that, they always (gently) asked him about his true thoughts which lead to the normalization of him expressing his emotions.

- Tech = gay as 👏 fuck.

- Attraction to women? Never heard of her.

- Men on the other hand... *sharp inhale* (@icedcoffee101)

- After the Empire fell, he moved to Coruscant to open his own mechanic shop (it’s not very well known, but his clients are frequenters there).

- He also met his boyfriend of 3 years from the mechanic shop! His name’s Azar, he’s a pilot for the Republic, and he was *so awkward* when he first met Tech.

- He brought in an older speeder he couldn’t really understand how to fix.

- From the moment he saw Tech, he was smitten. Same for Tech, but he’s better at hiding it (those days on Kamino really shone through 🙁) (Azar oc from @bonethief)

- Tech’s also a free-lance researcher! He’s definitely known for that, to the point where he has to turn down jobs.

- The Republic commissioned him to re-structure the archives, and oh. my. god.

- He closed his mechanic shop for 2 months, he halted his other commissioned research projects, he spent every single day in their physical archives creating (FROM SCRATCH) a sorting and organizing system.

- Once he was given access to the digital archives, he stayed up for 4 straight days organizing them (they were a disaster, thank god for Tech, the Empire really didn’t organize anything)

- Every senator and staff member thanked him for his work (it was a long day of excepting flowers and gifts)

- He helped Leia re-structure the political and economic system based on his vast knowledge of what positives and negatives every system has.

- His stress habit is juicing. Yes, you heard me right, juicing.

- Strawberries, oranges, lemons, limes, grapefruits, pineapples, blueberries, grapes, apples, you name it, he’s juiced it.

- On a tight deadline? Juices cucumbers to infuse in water for lowering blood pressure.

- Frustrated with a project? Juices oranges to help to clean the intestines and pulls cholesterol from the body.

- He brings his clients smoothies since they’re all basically besties.

- He’s one of the best players in the tri-annual paintball games because of his extensive knowledge of different environments and how to work with them.

- Y’all, I’m sorry to say, but Tech did eventually have to close down the garage, his love for it evaporated 4 years into running it and he sold it for a hefty amount of credits.

- But let me tell you a story of how he found his new passion.

- The Batch were all together on Wrecker’s planet, celebrating his job offer from the Republic to be a part-time weapons expert.

- They went out to Wreckers favourite bar to celebrate there

- But the bartender there quit that day because of a salary dispute

- So everyone was all around disappointed and Tech hated seeing Wrecker like that on one of the best days of his life.

- So he asked the owner if he could try it out

- And the owner reluctantly said yes.

- He quickly searched for a few basic rules of serving drinks, different properties of them, and he was serving up drinks in no time!

- The night was saved thanks to Tech!

- He found his second calling.

- He loved how precise the measurements of different ingredients had to be and the way his brothers loved every concoction he gave them.

- Soon after that night, he signed up for classes on mixology and was soon certified!

- After a few gigs for high-end parties and business meetings, he was hired by his longtime friend, Leia Organa, to work as the head mixologist on one of the starships hosting a galaxy-wide summit.

- Almost every being there gave him their personal commlink channels in case they ever needed a mixologist.

- Tech usually gets an extra ticket for off-planet jobs, so of course he brings Azar along when Azar can take time off from his reputable taxi business (he's one of the only services that don't charge a ridiculous amount of money)

- Tech and Azar live blissfully together with their 4 fish and many succulents. Rest assured, they're very happy.

[lilbabycee]

may we be blessed with a smutty birthday drabble w Steve where he has everyone pretend they forgot readers birthday when in reality there’s something big planned 🥺👉🏼👈🏼 never had a big bday so I will be living through this lolz

change of plans // steve rogers 

↳ pairing: steve rogers x reader

i’m actually sorry this took so long and sorry that it’s so long too lol:

you don’t know if you’re ready to face today.

it’s your birthday and you’ve never done anything big or extravagant - you think that maybe you’d like to keep it that way, though you’ve never had a big celebration before so you don’t even know how that’d feel. maybe there’s something comforting about the predictability of how today is going to go, but you can’t help the part deep inside of you that longs for something new.

waking up to an empty bed, you brace yourself for some kind of over-the-top present from tony but as you head out of your bedroom, you find the rest of you and steve’s apartment entirely unchanged. you tentatively walk through empty hallways into the kitchen and everyone is standing around aimlessly, chatting to each other about insignificant things and attempting to make themselves breakfast.

“hi guys,” you smile at all of them and they return the sentiment. “what are you making?”

steve breezes by you to press a brief kiss to your forehead before shoving a piece of burnt toast into his mouth. his voice is muffled when he says, “mornin’ doll.”

“looks like it’ll be cereal cause none of these idiots know how to cook,” natasha sidles up to you, narrowing her eyes and shaking her head playfully at the group of men crowding the kitchen. “sam’s still working out and we don’t wanna have to wait until he’s done. we probably should’ve though: he’s the only one who knows how to make anything decent in here.” she nudges your shoulder, “any plans today?”

you’re momentarily thrown, blinking in confusion because natasha always remembers your birthday. 

“uhh,” you shake your head and plaster a smile on your face, “no, nope. not up to much really. how about you?”

bruce strolls by and waves at you while natasha plucks a grape from his bowl, popping it into her mouth. he gives her a look but she just smirks as she chews slowly, ignoring him and turning back to you. 

“actually, fury called not too long ago. he’s got some important mission lined up for us somewhere in alaska... surveillance or something.”

“oh,” you frown, brow furrowing because you thought that you would’ve heard about it. “should i go suit up or...?”

“actually,” natasha swallows her grape and stands up straight, “it’s only some of us going. sam and bucky are staying here with you: the rest of us are heading out in about an hour.”

your heart sinks at the thought of not being able to spend your birthday with the whole team, though it seems as if they’ve forgetten anyway so maybe it’s not that big of a deal. but the thought is fleeting because you realize that you’re going to be able to spend some quality time with two of your favorite people who will definitely have remembered your birthday. 

when the quinjet takes off an hour and a half later, sam, bucky, and yourself are all left standing on the launchpad, bucky’s hair blowing dramatically in the gust of wind that it leaves behind.

“so,” bucky rocks back on his heels and stares at you with a mischievous smile on his face. “what do you wanna do?”

“neither of you have any plans?” you look at them skeptically but they both shake their heads. you look down, disappointed because they always do something fun for you on your birthday. sam always bakes a cake and bucky always lets you win when you’re sparring but since neither have happened today, you’re assuming that they’ve forgotten... just like everybody else.

sam shrugs noncommitally.

“nope,” he adds, giving you a charming gap-toothed grin. “i mean, i’ve got some paperwork to do and i’m sure bucky’s got some knives to sharpen or something-”

bucky pins him with a glare but then looks back to you. “-but otherwise, we’re totally free...so, doll?”

“we could watch a movie?”

“yes!” sam exclaims excitedly, already sprinting inside. you and bucky are still staring at the door he burst through when you hear him call out: “i’ve got dibs on the first pick!”

that makes bucky’s eyes go wide and he quickly starts to chase after him. 

“fuck no- sam!”

you’re sandwiched between your two heavily muscled best friends, cuddled up on the sofa with your body spread across the laps of both sam and bucky. a thick blanket is draped over all three of you while die hard plays in the background, but none of you are paying attention because you’re all making each other cry with laughter which drowns out the sound of the movie. 

“we should go out tonight,” bucky casually suggests during a lull in the conversation, grabbing a handful of popcorn from the bowl on the table.

“true,” sam agrees, nodding his head. you look at him in shock because his default state is to always disagree with bucky. “the others aren’t supposed to be back for a couple of days so i don’t wanna stay all cooped up in here. you down, sugar?”

“yeah, i’ll go,” you nod, playing with your fingers because you’re still so shocked that they’re just casually making plans like today isn’t your birthday. of course you’re not going to point it out to them - you don’t want to make a big deal out of it, but you think that it’d be nice to be wished a happy birthday at least once today.

hours later, you’re wearing your favorite outfit - “we’re going to dinner, darlin’,” bucky let you know earlier - and just touching up your face when bucky and sam pause their incessant bickering to call you downstairs. at this point, you’ve come to terms with the fact that not a single person in your life has remembered your birthday. you’d shed a couple of tears in the bathroom not because you are dying for a huge birthday celebration, but rather because it goes to show that you don’t hold a lot of relevance in these people’s lives. 

nobody on the team has ever forgotten a teammate’s birthday, so it cut deep this morning when they all went about their day as normal and barely even acknowledged your presence. you tried to brush it off but the moment you were alone, it all hit you like an oncoming freight train. 

ready to forget this disappointing day and move on, you come down the stairs as quickly as you can and head to the front door only to see sam and bucky dressed impeccably and... still arguing. they stop when you stand in front of them. sam whistles loudly which makes you roll your eyes playfully while bucky just nods his head.

“you look great, doll,” he smiles at you and not being able to take any more compliments, you clear your throat loudly and step in between them.

“let’s go,” you say and grab a coat, stepping into the garage. once you all pile into one of tony’s many cars, you take off into the night. 

you’re too distracted by your racing thoughts to notice the moment that you pull up outside of an extravagant hotel. you frown as you get out of the car because you thought you were going for dinner at the restaurant on the other side of town. 

“change of plans, lil bit. tony recommended this place to us a few weeks ago and we just never got around to going.” sam smiles at you, offering you an arm as bucky flanks your other side. when you step foot inside of the luxurious building after handing the car keys to the valet outside, a well-dressed usher leads you down a hallway to an entirely separate part of the ground floor. you don’t think much of it because you’re used to private dining when tony’s involved, but you manage to lose both of your friends by the time you’ve made it through the labyrinth of hallways. 

“excuse me, have you seen the two men i was with just a second ago?” you ask the usher kindly. he looks back at you and just smiles.

“this way, please,” he gestures for you to open the doors however, something doesn’t feel quite right. you’re on high alert but you tentatively push open the heavy gold doors anyway, hand ready to grab the knife that’s resting snugly in your thigh holster.

what you’re not expecting is a lounge filled with balloons and a chorus of “surprise!”, so loud that your bones threaten to jump out of your skin.

the room has been decorated in all of your favorite colors, lights strung up everywhere and banners in bold letters that say happy birthday, y/n!, as well as all of your favorite people with beaming smiles on their faces. sam and bucky are standing with rhodey in the corner and as you stare at them disbelievingly, bucky just throws you a wink.

“wh-what,” you stutter, teary eyes round with confusion, “what the fuck?”

“happy birthday, angel,” a very familiar voice comes from behind you and you spin around to throw your arms around your boyfriend’s neck in glee.

“all this?” your voice is muffled in his shoulder. “for me?”

“all for you, baby,” steve murmurs, rubbing his hand up and down your back. “you didn’t think we’d actually forget, did you?”

“i- i mean,” you exhale, shaking your head, “maybe? i just didn’t know how important it was to you guys-”

“y/n,” he takes your face between his hands and stares at you solmenly, “you are the most important thing in my life-”

bucky clears his throat in protest but steve ignores him.

“-and i would be a fool not to celebrate you everyday. it really got me thinking when you told me that you’ve never had something big done for your birthday. you deserve something extravagant and over-the-top because you deserve to be appreciated every second of your life because you’re so loved by everyone here. are we clear?”

you can’t help but kiss the stupid lopsided smile off his face because you love this man more than you’ll ever be able to articulate. to give the two of you some privacy, everyone else has started drinking and dancing, speaking to their friends animatedly as they avert their eyes from you and steve’s private moment.

when steve slips his tongue in your mouth and his hands wander down to grab your ass, you moan into the kiss only to pull away seconds later, blinking up at him as you both try to catch your breaths.

“steve, we’re in a room full of people,” you remind him.

“then let’s get out of here,” he presses you into his front and you can feel the hardness of his cock against your stomach. 

“but i haven’t said hi to anyone else yet,” you whine, not wanting to be rude. 

“we’ll come back, baby,” he brushes his nose against the curve of your jaw. “just a couple minutes. you look so fuckin’ good right now i don’t know if i’ll be able to last any longer without getting my cock in that tight little-”

“steve!” you gasp, swatting his arm and then looking around to see if anybody’s heard him, but he just chuckles low in your ear, soft lips dropping kisses on your even softer skin.

“c’mon, doll,” his teeth catch on your earlobe and your bite your lower lip, contemplating whether or not you should give in to your horny boyfriend. “they won’t even notice we’re gone-”

“uh, we definitely will,” tony strolls over and butts in with a smirk on his lips and a drink in his hand. “happy birthday, babe.”

“thanks, tones,” you give him a one-armed hug because steve still won’t let go of you. 

“your real present from me is over there,” he gestures vaguely to a huge pile of presents that makes your eyes go wide again, “but out of the kindness of my heart, i can also give you the gift of my wonderful storytelling so that people won’t notice that you guys have gone off to f-”

“thank you, tony!” you kiss his cheek quickly and proceed to drag steve towards a hallway that you assume leads to the bathrooms. you wave to your other friends briefly as you walk out, finding that the hallway you’ve gone down doesn’t lead to the bathroom, but rather a set of elevators. you and your boyfriend both pause, taking a minute to look at each other and you can almost see the lightbulb that pops over the both of your heads.

steve presses the up button and then his lips are on you, hands roaming your body eagerly against the closed doors of the elevator. slowly, his fingers travel underneath your clothes and start to massage your bare skin. you do the same, one hand gripping his hair and the other undoing the button to his slacks, shoving your hand into the band of his underwear desperately to palm at his manhood.

he hisses, stopping his assault on your body to throw his head back at the feeling of your deft fingers stroking him like that. you’re about to pull his lips towards yours again when you hear a chime and promptly stumble backwards, taking your supersoldier with you. 

you cry out a laugh as you fall into each against the wall, drunk on desire and your adoration for the flustered man in front of you. chuckling, steve stabs the first button on the panel and is immediately kissing you again, tongue delving deep into your mouth as his large hand tightly grasps your jaw. 

as the doors close and you start to move upwards, steve wedges one of this thick thighs in between your legs, pressing the muscle of his leg into your core. 

“ride it, darlin’, c’mon,” he breathes into your ear, leaving wet kisses down your throat and framing your hips between his hands. you do as you’re told, pushing your hips down onto his thigh to get some friction to relieve the heat that’s building in your stomach.

“so good for me, that’s it sweetheart.”

it’s a quick ride to the top but with steve rutting against your hip with your hand down his pants and you against his leg with his fingers in your underwear dancing over your center, the two of you gradually push yourselves to a climax, almost there until there’s that same chime again. your boyfriend swiftly picks you up and you squeal, wrapping your legs around his waist and arms around his neck. his hands massage the globes of your ass as you walk across the roof, onto the edge of the balcony that overlooks the upper east side.

he rests you against the ledge and you keep one of your legs around him as he gets both of your clothes out of the way so that he can run the tip of his hard cock along your needy hole.

“shit, baby,” he spits right onto it, slapping his cock against your swollen skin, and you groan loudly, involuntarily clenching around nothing. “m’not gonna last.”

“neither am i,” you reassure him. “please steve, i need it.”

“i’ve got you, doll.”

he doesn’t say anything else because his eyes are glued at the mesmerizing way that his bulbous tip gets swallowed by your tight entrance. he rocks his hips back and forth, burying himself deeper and deeper into you until he bottoms out with a loud moan.

there are tears in your eyes from how good it feels; the open air on your nipples and the fact that someone could see you like this, vulnerable and open with a cock buried deep inside you, makes you shudder, trails of water spilling onto your cheeks. 

“oh my god, sweetheart,” steve murmurs reverently. usually he takes a minute to let you adjust to his size, but the two of you are so close that he just goes for it, the sound of your lovemaking echoing into the night sky. 

“yes, yes- fuck, steve, please,” you blink up at him and he uses his thumbs to wipe the tears off your face, pressing kisses to both of your cheeks. 

“i know, baby, i know,” he reassures you, his own skin slick and cool in the evening air as he continues to drive into you relentlessly. you ignore how uncomfortable the exposed stone on your naked body is because you’re almost there and you know he is too.

“m’gonna come, honey,” he tells you, hands coming up to pinch your nipples at the same time he bites into your neck. “you gonna let me come in you? give you my birthday present?”

you can barely speak, babbling incoherently as your eyes almost rolling to the back of your head but you nod eagerly, nails digging into his back as he uses you to chase his orgasm.

“come for me, baby - c’mon, milk my cock, s’all yours.”

his words push you over the edge, your entire body convulsing as your breath is snatched from your lungs. you contract around his length and he stills entirely as he spills his release into you, the guttaral moan that leaves his chest raw and animalistic.

“fuck,” he drawls as he presses his forehead against yours. 

“right?” you agree, looking right into his pretty eyes, brighter than the lights behind you.

he presses a chaste kiss to your lips.

“happy birthday, baby.”

“thank you,” you kiss the corner of his mouth and run your fingers through the hair at the nape of his neck, “i love you.” 

as his chin rests on your shoulder, you take a minute to appreciate how thoughtful the big blonde man in your arms and you don’t think you’ve ever loved anyone this much in your life. 

“can we do this every birthday?”

you laugh at his suggestion and tug lightly on his hair, heart about to explode from adoration.

“sure we can.”

“hey, lovebirds!” tony’s voice makes the two of you jump in surprise. “i’m not gonna turn the corner because i know for a fact that you’re not wearing any clothes, but i should definitely warn you that bucky and sam are on their way up with their phones... so unless you want a pornhub feature, i’d haul ass and get back downstairs if i were you. happy birthday, y/n!”

you both look at each other and then the mess that is your pile of clothes, and in unison you both realize that you’re fucked either way. but you know that it’s worth it since you’ve had the best birthday surprise ever, but you still don’t know how much steve is gonna love having his ass on display for his best friends.

“y/n! stevie! wh- oh fuck, are you kidding me?!”

that’s bucky, sounding traumatized as he sees the two of you stark naked. 

“wh- damn, i didn’t expect you guys to actually be fuckin’.”

sam sounds genuinely shocked but simultaneously looks impressed. you close your eyes in amused mortification because steve’s body is shielding yours entirely and now, sam and bucky have a full view of his pale backside.

“guys,” he groans, blood rushing to his cheeks. 

a flash goes off and steve cries out in protest. you laugh in disbelief, staring at bucky holding his phone up with a grin.

“happy birthday, y/n.”

[rq-s]

Title: Lucid Dreams - Chapter 2

Word Count: 2962

Warnings: Mingyu is featured heavily in the first few chapters and is directly involved in significant plot events. Due to recent events, I understand if reading these chapters may make you uncomfortable, but be aware that you’d be missing core story elements by skipping them. (Details)

Notes: While this chapter is part of a larger story, it can also be read (I hope..) as a standalone Mingyu x F!Reader (Light angst & Fluff) ! 

Lucid Dreams Masterlist

Chapter 1 | 

Yn followed Mingyu’s lead as he guided her through ordering. It wasn’t too dissimilar from a regular café, but he still walked with her to and from the lockers, letting her take the pillow and put her phone and wallet inside, smiling widely when she trusted him to keep the key while she slept. Clearly that was a boost to his ego, especially after his low mood just minutes ago. Yn sat and waited at her table; it wasn't long until the drink was ready.

“Here you go,” Mingyu set the glass bottle in front of her, along with a white napkin and a glass straw. “One Sleepy Mingyu!” There was already an awkward blush on his cheeks, but his smile was wide as he clasped his hands together with pride, like this drink was his child at its first recital.

Yn couldn’t help but want to laugh at the sound of a drink being named after someone like that, and how said person was the one who served it to her. The entire situation felt absurd. And yet she didn’t feel as nervous as she had felt when she walked in. Perhaps it was Mingyu’s vulnerability earlier and knowing that she wasn’t the only one who was nervous, but now she felt unusually comfortable.

“Thank you.” Yn smiled back to him and examined the drink. It did, in fact, look as was advertised. The glass of the bottle and straw were nearly crystal clear, and the hue of the soda itself was a powerful royal purple. The way the bubbles ran up the sides and sizzled at the top made it seem especially refreshing and sophisticated, and there was a bit of condensation on the bottle from how cold it was.

Mingyu still stood by the table, hands held in front of him expectantly. She could hear his breath hitch when she finally took a drink.  

It tasted like a mix of all the familiar grape flavors Yn knew. It was a strangely fitting mix of two distinct flavors from her memory: the artificially sweet grape juice from school lunches, and the bubbly grape spritzer from family gatherings. However, this was much better than either of those, creating its own memorable taste. It was ice cold and rich in flavor, with the perfect about of fizziness to disperse it enough and make the strength of it bearable. It tingled as it went down, as if actual light sparkles were in it.

Yn moved away from the straw just enough to be able to speak, tilting her head to look Mingyu’s way.

“This is really good.” He sighed with relief, putting a hand to his chest as if his heart had been racing. He mouthed vague praises for a moment before returning to his professional state.

“That’s good to hear! Please enjoy it, we'll keep you safe while you rest.” Yn giggled and thanked him, letting him practically skip back to the register in his glee.

Yn leaned back in her chair, holding the bottle and letting the straw rest between her lips, trying to relax. Sleeping in a public place wasn’t on her list of things that were easy for her to do. She worried that if the sleep aid couldn’t make her drowsy enough to sleep now, then she’d have trouble getting back home. Would Mingyu be crushed if I don’t sleep after drinking his drink? She didn’t mean to have thoughts like that; it felt cheap, like she was pitying him. But something about this place, about how Mingyu and Junhui acted, drew her in and played on her curiosity. She wanted to understand what unique experience they were talking about. That meant giving herself to the process, as strange as it was.

Her worries were needless, as not even two minutes after setting the empty bottle aside and leaning forward to rest her head on the pillow on the table did Yn fall asleep.

There was a jazz band playing, but she couldn’t see them. Yn couldn’t see anything, actually.

It smelled like lobster, rice, and wine. She heard some distant chatter and the sound of dishes being cleaned.

“So, how did you like it?” A voice spoke clearly, as if it was right next to her. Everything around her slowly came into view with each blink.

She was at a restaurant. An expensive and modern one. The ceiling was high, with full length windows, sheer black curtains, and crystal chandeliers. Her feet clicked against the marble floor as she shifted in her seat, and she noticed she had on expensive black stiletto heels. The dress she wore was a bright purple fabric with a black lace layer over the body and sleeves. The outfit wasn’t hers, but was one she could only dream of owning, as it flattered her body perfectly and made her feel dignified and rich.

The voice Yn had heard was coming from a man in the seat across from her. His shirt was fitted and ironed, a beautiful royal purple with a black lace collar and cuffs, matching the black of his dress pants. His face looked familiar, and his name was on the tip of her tongue.

There was an empty plate in front of them both, yet she could smell what should have been there. There was still wine in the glass though, and it smelled just like the kind she had at home.

“It was really good actually.” Yn spoke without thinking; not having thought at all.

“That bracelet looks really pretty on you.” The man spoke again, gesturing to her wrist as she held the stem of the wine glass. It was a small and simple bracelet, with square cut amethyst gems laid in hefty silver. It was perfectly sized to her wrist, and looked brand new, or at least very well cared for. It wasn’t hers either.

“Thanks Mingyu.” His name slipped from her lips, and she were shocked to hear it, finally able to recognize him. He smiled to her shyly, tilting his head with a sparkle in his deep brown eyes.

Why him?

Neither of them said anything for a few moments. Mingyu's gaze lingered on Yn while she nervously observed her surroundings. There were other tables with other couples or parties of guests all enjoying their meals, but they were all faceless. Their chatter got louder when she looked at them.

What's going on?!

“Wanna go outside?” Mingyu asked suddenly, urgently, and right on cue when the chatter began to make Yn anxious. Her senses caught up with her by that point and it felt like they were in overdrive. It was begging to overwhelm her, so she was grateful for his perfectly timed offer. Yn held onto his arm when he offered it, oddly without hesitation, and followed him into the chilly night of the terrace. The chatter stopped completely, the jazz music was stifled, and the dishes were replaced with the sound of cicadas in the distance.

“Oh wow, this is beautiful Yn.” He was audibly impressed, as if the night sky was something she had handcrafted. The terrace was at the back of the restaurant, and it seemed like nothing else existed other than what she could see. There wasn’t any light pollution and not a single wisp of a cloud, only twinkling stars and planets of different colors. The moon was a warning crescent, but was bright and sharp, high above them. Yn was in awe, just as he was.

Mingyu moved his arm out from hers and to the back of her shoulders, fingertips barely touching the fabric of her dress. It wasn’t as cold outside as she'd expected it to be, but Mingyu’s presence beside her was still warming. Any encroaching anxiousness she had felt had been washed away, much quicker than she had expected, and was replaced with wonder.

“What do you see?” He asked with an incredibly soft tone and volume, making her heart flutter.

It was hard to make out any shape or figure. Even the constellations she thought she knew weren’t visible. Mingyu waited for Yn's answer, but after a glance at her confused expressions, he spoke up.

“Look up there, at that cluster of stars.” Mingyu leaned in closer, now holding onto her shoulder, and pointed up into the sky. Yn followed his finger across the stars and found the cluster he saw.

“Now trace my finger with your eyes, okay?”

“I’ll try.” Yn chuckled, but he remained focused and slowly began tracing what he saw for her.

“Oh! It’s a puppy face!” She exclaimed as he finished the second floppy ear. The cluster had been the puppy’s nose.

“Yeah! He looks like he’s having a lot of fun up there.” Mingyu commented with a smile, finishing off the picture with a goofy tongue hanging out of the puppy’s mouth.

Yn kept searching the sky for something to show to him, but all the blinking lights seemed to keep shifting. She was still grinning as her eyes scoured the sky desperately.

She could feel Mingyu’s fingers against her shoulder, the weight and size of his hand on was unfamiliar, and she felt every tiny movement acutely. It wasn’t helping her focus at all.

“It’s okay.” He said kindly, letting go of her shoulder to rub the lower center her back, trying to offer comfort. It felt like he’d given up on her drawing something for him like he had for her. The butterflies in her stomach froze at the thought of his disappointment.

“Wait! Look there, under the moon.” An airplane suddenly came into view, flying slowly in the distance, its lights slowly blinking just like the stars in the dark night sky were. Mingyu stayed silent.

“When I was a kid, I thought airplanes in the night sky were shooting stars.” Yn admitted openly. Mingyu hummed with his hand held still against her, excluding his thumb, which massaged the middle of her back carefully. The motion was almost mesmerizing, threatening to melt her heart if she focused on it long enough. A stranger should not have this kind of power over her, intentional or not. She knew that, yet she didn’t feel afraid, or put off.

“Make a wish.” Mingyu said offhandedly. It came off as a teasing joke, but that’s exactly what Yn did as a child. Wishing on stars was the kid-friendly way of asking the universe for mercy. That’s what she told herself as a teenager, finding comfort that way. At the very least it was fun, and gave her something to hope for.

Yn thought for a moment before answering, choosing to take his teasing seriously, but did not know why her response had come to her mind.

“I wish for you to not be afraid of making mistakes or being wrong.”

She felt his stare move to her suddenly, and the touch of his hand on her back was gone. Still, she continued.

“You’re doing fine, Mingyu. You have good ideas, and you work hard. The only person you should ever have to prove your worth to is yourself. You’ll be alright.” She had no basis for what she said. No reason for him to believe her.

“Thank you.” He whispered.

It felt like it was what he needed to hear.

“Yn? It's time to wake up.” Someone was shaking her shoulder. It didn’t feel like Mingyu’s hand. It wasn’t Mingyu’s voice.

“It’s been a little over two hours Yn. If we let you sleep any longer you won’t feel very good.”

Yn groaned from having slept upright in the chair and her face tingled when she lifted her head from the pillow, as if she hadn’t moved at all in her sleep. The fact that she hadn’t fallen out of the chair was a miracle in itself. She rubbed her eyes a little too roughly and blinked as they adjusted to the light.

“Junhui?” She asked, having only that option to go off of at this point. The man chuckled.

“Nope, he clocked out about an hour ago. My name's Chan.” He pointed to the name printed on his collar with pride. That smile wasn’t one Yn could forget, and it clicked in her head that she’d seen him before too. He was the one who noticed her and let her pass on the sidewalk before, and Junhui must’ve been with him.

“Oh, okay.” Was all she managed to say. He chuckled again, understanding her grogginess.

“I’ll give you a few more minutes to wake up. I’ll be right back.” Yn merely nodded, noticing that the bottle had already been cleaned up. Eager to stretch her legs, she stood up and walked around.

It was about noon now, the store was warm and the music was still as lo-fi as it was two hours ago. The two girls from earlier had also left, and there was no one else around.

Yn's eyes went to the coolers. They weren’t fully stocked, maybe three or four of each of the juices and sodas, only two of each smoothie. I guess things like that are hard to stock when you make them all yourself, and don’t get many customers.

“We make them ourselves, you know.” Chan piped up from behind her, startling her slightly. Mingyu was with him.

“I told her that.” He pouted. Chan seemed younger than Mingyu, yet talked to him like they were the same age.

“Oh, well from what Jun said, you could barely even make it through the example run.” Chan teased.

“Hey-“ Yn and Mingyu spoke at the same time. But she didn’t pause like he did.

“-he tried his best. And Junhui was really nice about it.” It sounded more defensive than she meant it to, and Chan raised an eyebrow at it, but conceded all the same.  

“Sorry, it’s his first time having a new customer. We just like to keep him humble.” Chan elbowed Mingyu’s side, and the taller boy played along, but looked at her with a look that assured her it was fine. As sincere as his smile was, Yn still noticed the redness and puffiness of his eyes.

“Let’s get you rung up, huh?” Mingyu suggested, waving her over to the register as he quickly went behind it. Chan mumbled something about coming off like the bad guy, but she was too focused on Mingyu.

“How did you sleep?” He asked softly, just loud enough for the two of them. As if anyone was around to hear. Yn instinctively leaned in a tad closer.

“Pretty well, actually. I’m still a bit fuzzy-headed but I feel more rested than I usually do when I take naps.” Yn failed at small talk, as usual. Mingyu nodded along regardless.

“How does your stomach feel?”

“Uh.. fine? I can still taste it in my mouth but it isn’t bad, and my tummy isn’t upset or anything.”

“Okay good,” He seemed happy to hear it, “We just want to gauge how each visitor handles each drink so we can change how we mix it for them if we need to.” He justified. Ah, right, just standard procedure questions.

“Are your eyes okay?” Yn's question was blatant and caught him off guard. He didn’t answer right away.

“You look like you’ve been crying.” Why does it hurt so much to see it? He’s a stranger. And yet she knew that she’d worry about it all day if she didn’t ask.

“Ah, I’m fine. Nothing to worry about.” It was a dismissive response, but it felt inappropriate to press on.

“So… oh! Since this is your first visit, we’re only gonna charge you half price of your total! So if you’d like to get anything from the cooler, or order something else, now’s the time!” The mention of the coolers made Yn glance to them and she felt embarrassed at what drink caught her eye instantly.

Yn walked to the cooler and grabbed two bottles of Mingyu’s grape soda.

She then walked back up to the counter and set them both onto it a bit too harshly. Mingyu held back a laugh, and she held her hand out.

“I need the key to get my wallet.” Yn felt her face heating up from embarrassment. Luckily, the key was just under the register, and he handed it to her quickly. She heard him scanning the two drinks with a hand scanner as she strode over to the lockers.

“Chan already got the pillow.” He said amusedly as he watched her look for it by her table. Yn tsked at him and went back to the counter, finding her card easily.

Mingyu read her the total, asked if she wanted a paper bag, put the drinks in the paper bag, took the key back from her, and handed her the receipt all in a quick and practiced flow. Yn had already put her wallet away in her back pocket, along with her phone, but it was when she reached for the paper bag that she hesitated. Mingyu did too.

“Yn?” He was asking for her attention when she was already staring at him. She didn’t answer, despite feeling the urgency to.

“Do you still make wishes on shooting stars?”  

“…” Mingyu began to panic as soon as the question left his mouth. His eyes darted over Yn features, searching for any sort of answer from her. After a painfully long moment, she finally did.

“I haven’t seen one in a long time.”

“Make a wish on an airplane then. For me.” It wasn’t really a question, but not quite a demand. Mingyu regretted it even before he finished, and he felt sick at the sight of her fearful expression after her quick and unexpected response.

“I promise.”

[extremelyblackandwhite]

the unseen one - 24

Pairing: Hades!Bucky Barnes x Reader

Warnings: none

A/N: although fairness is a very archaic term for it, whenever i use it in this fanfic it means beauty not the modern meaning of fairness. just thought it should point it out. enjoy xx

Next Chapter

      - I did not know you could just walk out of the Underworld. - Y/N took his hand as he led her into the ferry that would supposedly take them to the entrance of the Underworld. - If we can, why can’t I return home?

     - It’s complicated, sunflower. - his other hand caressed her cheek. - You are bound to the Underworld, best I could do was take you home for a few hours but you’d have to return. 

     - What would happen if I left the Underworld? - she questioned but James didn’t want to reply to that, choosing to ignore her questions and just squeeze her hand. She wondered how bad it was for him to be shielding her for the truth, but yet again, this was something he constantly did whenever something was too hard for him to explain or to let her know. Y/N decided to let it go, making a mental note to question him about that later. The ferry docked in white sands and he helped her out and into the coarse white grains. She wondered how come she’d never ventured here, it looked peaceful, almost as if those waiting to board the ferries had accepted their fate and peacefully awaited judgement. 

She walked with him out of the underworld but instead of seeing the mortal realms that had birthed here, she saw clouds of cotton like structures and golden gates surrounding here. Her eyes shined at what looked like every single depiction of the entrance to Eden. James smiled as he saw the little smile lines on her complexion. 

    - Enjoying the Olympus gates? - her wrapped his flesh arm around her waist, stopping his path to allow her to take in the sheer beauty only reserved for those blessed with deity like status. - Trust me, sunflower. It’s the only good thing about it. 

     - It’s still beautiful. - she leaned her head on her shoulder, considering spending eternity with him staring at the golden gates but they still had to reach their dinner. He returned onto his path, fully knowing almost by heart where they lived due to the amount of times he had to return Psyche whenever she got sent on a ghost hunt by Aphrodite. They lived in a gather humble home for someone close to the Olympus but Y/N thought it looked beautiful in white stone with a rose quartz like stone covering the path to the door.

James gave her a look before he knocked on the door, almost begging her to return home and not attend what he thought would be a disastrous evening. However, as per usual, Y/N was set on attending and be there for the mortal turned goddess. Psyche opened the door in all her beauty like glory, after all, one does not gain the ire of Aphrodite by being completely ordinary. 

     - I’m so glad you came. - she smiled, ushering the couple inside where James immediately spotted Dionysius sat on the coach, chalice in hand which wasn’t an unfamiliar sight. - Not a lot have arrived, but you can stay here in the living room for the meanwhile.

     - Do you need any help in the kitchen? - Y/N followed Psyche onto the kitchen where another woman was. She had long honey blonde hair, lightly wavy and pushed away from her face by silver pins. The woman was also draped in a purple shapeless yet somehow fitting her waist. - Oh, hi. 

    - Ariadne, this is Y/N. She’s Hades’ date. - she still found it odd to listen to James’ being referred by that name, nevertheless, that was what he was. The woman gave her a warm smile, one of the first ones to do so whenever someone heard her name close to that of the one belonging to the God of the Dead. 

Ariadne, however, was a familiar name to Y/N. She had been the one behind Theseus victory in defeating the Minotaur and for some moments had even been his bride until he stranded her in Naxos. Afterwards, Dionysius found her and bewitched by her charm took her as a bride. One of the few love stories existing between gods and mortals that did not end up in pure tragedy.

    - You’re a mortal. - she stated, almost as if her own mortal soul was on display for everyone to see. Maybe it was, maybe it wasn’t, she did not know. What she knew was that when communicating to a god she did not know a lot as they preferred to speak in riddles than speak normally. - Welcome to the club. 

    - Thank you? - she said but it came out more like a question than a true statement. - I’m really glad you invited me. 

    - Everyone is very curious about you. - Ariadne placed a golden bowl of grapes in front of her, taking a seat on the island silver high chairs where Y/N was already sitting. - He doesn’t like anyone yet he seems to be very found of you. Yet again, I don’t blame you, mortal men are fairly disappointing. 

   - It isn’t like gods aren’t disappointing either. - Psyche took a seat next to the two women. - You just have to be lucky at who you pick. 

   - Ladies. - a blonde man entered the kitchen, going to wrap his arms around Psyche, immediately kissing the top of her head. Y/N could not deny he was beautiful. Not beautiful in the way Bucky was, he just looked exactly like the type of person you’d cast to play Romeo but never the misunderstood character. Plump skin and lips made him look much younger than the gods she had come in contact with and she couldn’t deny the display of public affection with Psyche was adorable. His dark blue eyes moved up from the golden locks of his wife to Y/N who was trying not to stare at them. - Honey, did you bring another nymph into our house again?

     - No. This is Y/N’s, she’s Hades’ guest. 

     - Oh, it’s a pleasure to get a face to the name. - he extended his hand to her, a sheepishly child like smile on his face as she took and shook it. - More guests are arriving, we should get back to the living room. 

Ariadne mouthed “welcome to the wolf’s den” as they left the kitchen and returned to the living room to see a room much fuller than when she left it. She could see Zeus by the corner with a chalice in a conversation with Dionysius and other deities whom she couldn’t say who they were yet, however that which caught her attention was James in what looked like a rather interesting conversation with a woman whose face she could not see due to her back being the only thing turned her way. From what she could see, the woman had  silk like blonde hair cascading up to her lower back which pearls spread in an asymmetric matter. Her body was dressed in a loose somewhat see through white fabric with a pearl belt wrapped around her waist. 

Now, Y/N never considered herself a jealous person, maybe due to most her relationships being ended by her partners rather than herself which never allowed her to see them with someone else. However, she was in the middle of various goddesses which were always reported to be the most beautiful maidens ever created. She decided to ignore the sight, instead being thrown into the mix of various deities by Ariadne who had taken a particular liking to having another mortal in the pantheon. 

     - Darling. - Ariadne reached Dionysius who had left Zeus’ side to go refill his chalice which Y/N found rather odd. You’d think the god of comedy and wine could somehow make wine appear but sadly that didn’t look like the case. Disappointing. - This is Y/N, she’s Hades’ partner. 

     - Well, I don’t ... - that was a question Y/N couldn’t fully answer, what she and James were. She knew they weren’t just friends, if they were they were very intimate friends but she also did not know if James’ saw her as a long time partner. Both of them kept saying they would figure it out but truth was, none of them knew how they would figure out how to keep their relation once she was freed back to the mortal realm. - I think so.

     - I’ve heard a rumour he made quite the display of power in front of Zeus. That is some feat you’ve got there, miss. - he pointed his finger at her, not letting go of his chalice. The snarky yet comedic nature known to him was present in his voice as he embraced his wife. However, Y/N was still very much interested in the conversation Buck was having with unnamed blood woman, noticing this, Dionysius chuckled. - Jealousy is a terrible emotion. 

    - I’m just curious. 

    - That’s Aphrodite. - Ariadne stated, standing by Y/N’s side. - The biggest contender to the crown to the Underworld. 

    - I thought Aphrodite was married to Ares. - in all honesty, Y/N didn’t know much about Aphrodite, mainly due to various myths and tellings contradicting each other. What she knew was that she was the most beautiful goddess and if someone decided to contradict that would be terribly punished. 

    - She is but she is also Zeus’ daughter. No mother. You can only expect someone who is fully his offspring to be hungry for power. No one’s more powerful than the Queen of the Underworld herself. He’s denied her proposal many times so I wouldn’t be worried. 

Her eyes were still glued onto the two of them, only diverting the gaze once James caught her staring, his light blue eyes shimmering once he noticed his Y/N had returned. Y/N forcefully turned her face to look at Dionysius and Ariadne and try to pretend she was listening to whatever story they were discussing. However, since James had noticed she was back, he was immediately back to her side, wrapping his arms around her which she didn’t know how to react to. She was jealous, and for the first time, which meant she didn’t exactly know how to deal with all the feelings she had been taught never to feel. 

    - Ah, he’s back. - Dionysius cheered. - Good lady you have here, Hades. Enjoyable. 

    - Well, won’t you introduce me? - Y/N felt James tense up as the blonde, now known to be Aphrodite, joined the conversation. His arms left her, yet her hand was still being held by James. 

    - Y/N, this is ...

    - Aphrodite, I know. - she didn’t mean to sound as crude as she sounded, but once it left her mouth it couldn’t return. 

    - I must say, for a mortal, you’re sure blessed with a certain amount of fairness. - she didn’t know if to take that as a compliment or not, but assuming she was speaking with the goddess of beauty herself, Y/N decided not to take any conclusions. - I’m afraid dinner is about to begin. 

Y/N didn’t make any sound as James caressed her hand and led her to the table, pushing the chair for her to sit in which she did. She felt like a deer in a field of lions as her eyes moved from one end to the other to see Zeus standing next to a redheaded woman who she believed was probably his wife Hera, to Aphrodite sitting next to whom she thought was Ares. She’d heard stories and myths but standing in their presence was nerve wrecking, and she’d rather play with the sprouts on her plate than join the conversation they were having about being consequence free immortal beings.

   - Tell me, Y/N. - Zeus called out for her attention. - What do you think is the purpose of mortals?

   -  Well, I ... - she scratched the back of her neck, not entirely sure how to answer a question that had been discussed by several philosophers and scholars. James gave him a scorched look. - I believe I can’t answer that, that’s almost like wondering what is the meaning of the existence of all living things. 

   - Mortals are a complicated bunch. - Zeus continued, not even caring she had given him an answer. - However, mortal women are a gift. They’re absolutely great in carnal pleasure. 

   - Cut it. - James almost growled, and Hera for a change, was on his side, giving her husband a glare. 

   - Well, there is a reason some weaker gods prefer mortal women to goddesses. - Aphrodite added, breaking Y/N’s resolve to sit through everything speechless. Abruptly, she left the table, turning to the kitchen where she had seen some windows that led into the garden. She carefully open them, stepping into the greenery of the garden. 

Y/N huffed stepping further into the garden, mumbling about her state and how she ended up in this situation. Suddenly, James begging of them staying home sounded like something she’d rather be doing, despite the fact that the mortal comment was surely something directed towards not only her but also Ariadne and Psyche who had been mortals before turning into goddesses, and with that in mind, probably some mortals who had been reincarnated into mortals too. 

   - Oh ... - she stopped once she noticed a richly dressed woman crotched over a bush of white roses. - I’m sorry, I didn’t know someone was there. 

   - Not to worry, just fixing their garden. - the woman had a woman like nature to her. - You seemed to be rather lost in a rant. 

   - I’m sorry, I’m not having a very nice dinner. - she sat by her, looking at the beautiful fresh roses in front of her. 

   - Dinners with a bunch of gods aren’t always the best. Gods have lost contact with living things. 

   - That’s what happens when someone lives forever. 

   - Alright dear, close your eyes. - Y/N scrunched at the request but considering she was in the Olympus and the woman was much to beautifully dressed to be a servant or nymph, she decided to do so as not to be turned into stone, beetle or any other sort of thing that wasn’t herself. - Meditate on your power to control living things. Everyone even those who have finite lives can control and be affected by living things

The woman led her hands to the grass and Y/N found it rather odd but somehow comforting to be touching the only mortal thing in the whole house. She certainly missed home, the normality and odd routine she had of doing the same thing every single day. Here, things were almost as if never planned to happen and everything was followed by century old rules. She was lost in her own thoughts until she heard her name being called by two different voices. Y/N opened her eyes and looked around, the woman gone as James and Psyche came rushing into her vision field. 

   - Are you alright? - James crotched to help her get up. Y/N nodded, being surprised by James quickly pecking her lips, not used to public displays of attention that personal, specially in front of Psyche. Psyche however was more interested in the white roses weirdly growing from grass as they walked back inside. She would probably have to question Demeter about that. 

Once again she was on the living room sat in the coach, lost in thought as not to get mad at criticism thrown at her kind. She was mostly numb throughout the encounter, only ever so slightly smiling at Ariadne and Psyche whenever they spoke to her. Aphrodite took the opportunity to sit by her side once James was called out by Zeus. 

   - Have you ever wondered why? - she started with an open question which was sure to pull Y/N’s attention is. Once the goddess of beauty noticed her attention was on her rather than the mortal’s own thoughts, she decided to continue. - Have you ever wondered why out of everyone he chose you?

   - I guess ... - her gaze slightly lingered on James who stopped his chat to give her a short smile. - I guess you could say he loves me.��

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