#the final crew count comes out to twelve

[wolfsbaneandthistle]

Image ID: A few of the sapient aliens of the Little Bird, as represented by a couple of the crew members. At the left is Tinnsali, a Tias alien. He is tall and insect-like with long jaws, compound eyes, and a hard carapace. They’re about 6 feet tall at the shoulder. Below Tinnsali is Narihl, a common corldaxian. They’ve got a centaur-esc body plan, as well as scaly arms, long spines at their neck, and a bunny-like mouth and nose. They’re about 3 feet tall. Next to Narihl is Gary, an Atistke alien. He looks like a lobster got vertically stretched. He’s also the shortest in the lineup, coming in at a whopping one foot tall at the shoulder. Next to all three of them is Diaf, an umblan and the tallest of the group. She is slug-like, with no distinct head. She does have a horn, or maybe a stalk, that she holds upright to reach a height of nearly ten feet. But at the shoulder she’s like. 5 foot. To the right is Clatter, a zoronxie alien. She’s bipedal and raptor-like with a long tail, wings, and a segmented neck. She stands at around 4 feet tall. Finally is Hán Huì Qún, a human. She stands at around 5 foot and 6 inches tall. End ID.

Finally decided to do a lineup of most of the species that’ll feature on the Little Bird. Each originating from different planets with vastly different biology and cultures, they’ll tell you they have nothing in common.

Which isn’t really true, of course. The Little Bird is made for an oxygenated environment- there are a lot more sapient aliens in this setting, but many of them physically cannot live on the ship. So the crew all has to be at least similar enough to live in the same atmosphere. :)

[formulawolff]

xvii. facing reality - t.w.

pairing: female driver!reader x toto wolff

word count: 2.9k

warnings: cursing, age gap relationships, (slight) sexism, unfair treatment of drivers, toto being down bad per usual, mentions of divorce, allegations of infidelity, james being a dick, yadayadayada

a/n: i am aware that it is solely up to the drivers in terms of contract talks, negotiations, etc. however, let's just pretend that we do not see it and that there are some restrictions when it comes to our golden girl. okay? okay cool :p

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the only noise was the dull roar of the engine, and well, the occasional shuffle of papers as he flips through his notebook, careful not to produce much movement in his shoulder.

nestled on his right shoulder was your head, your breathing rhythmic, both arms cuddling his bicep. 

turning his head, his mouth places a kiss on your temple, “i love you, sweet girl.”

˖⁺‧₊˚♡˚₊‧⁺˖✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧˖⁺‧₊˚♡˚₊‧⁺˖✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧˖⁺‧₊˚♡˚₊‧⁺˖✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧˖⁺‧₊˚♡˚₊‧⁺˖

the ease in which the words flowed from his lips sent a ripple of bliss throughout his chest. the warm, cozy feeling only intensifies tenfold as you wrinkle your nose, nuzzling into the fabric of his button-up. although you’re deep in slumber, you respond, voice thickened with exhaustion.

“i love you, toto.”

“get some rest,” he murmurs, “i’ll wake you when we make it to montreal.”

sometimes the bustling season schedule had its perks. since drivers were not required to fly in with their teams to races, typically everyone flew separately from their respective locations. so, toto had you accompany him on his jet to canada, where the two of you could be alone for just a little while longer.

approximately twelve hours longer, where you would have to go your separate ways once landing. it was arranged that theodore would be driving you to the track, where you would be able to reunite with alex and the rest of the williams crew.

meanwhile, mr. wolff had a few business obligations to attend. one was a meeting with a few potential investors for the 2025 season, while the other obligation was a little more personal.

someone had to recognize your accomplishments over the last few weeks. 

and he was going to be that person.

to add to your bracelet, toto arranged a meeting with a private jeweler where he would pick out four more charms to add to your bracelet. 

one for sazuka. one for miami. one for emilia romagna. and finally, one for monaco. 

the initial plan was to gift you the new charms before qualifying, so that you could have a few more additions to your bracelet. in toto’s mind, he liked to imagine that the bracelet was your good luck charm. 

after all, it seemed to be working. 

with the current driver standings, you were at the top of the board. max was behind you, trailing by a decent amount of points. at his tail was charles leclerc, lando norris in fourth. although your name was a hot topic in the world of formula one, rumors flying that you were the main contender for the title, it was still too early to make any definitive judgments. 

formula one was ever-changing. a single race could shift the leaderboard, as many drivers were close in points. a single weekend could also shift the team standings, as williams was now thrust in the mix for the second or third spot, fighting tooth and nail with red bull, ferrari and mclaren. 

it was all thanks to you. your reflexes, your critical thinking, your ability to remain level-headed under pressure, and your exceptional knowledge of the cars and the sport were the reason why williams was in their position.

it was the sole reason why you were the leader of the pack. sure, the car helped, but a majority of the credit was due to the american driver. 

the first american female driver to ever win points. the first to ever win a grand prix. the first woman to win five consecutive grand prixes.

the only woman to ever win a grand prix. 

you were one of one. 

additionally, you were the second woman in the history of the sport to ever score points, decades after lella lombardi paved the way. 

there was so much at stake, so much weight to be carried on your shoulders. 

yet, here you were, lightly snoring, your lips parted as your brows twitched, lashes fluttering. 

it seemed the closer the two you got, there was always something that tried to pry you further apart. 

hours ago, toto received an email in his inbox from the mercedes public relations team, formally asking the team principal if he could maintain his distance from the williams driver. this was mainly for the sake of the image of the team as a whole. 

to manage this, he needed to refrain from speaking to the driver in either one of the garages, in the paddock, in any area of the track or designated team areas. this was to be during press conferences, and well throughout any public interaction with the driver before, during, or between racing events. 

of course, mercedes supported the decisions he made in his personal life wholeheartedly and wanted nothing but the best for him when it came to his romantic and personal endeavors. however, with the current public perception of his romantic relationship with the williams driver, it was best that he focused solely on the team and their potential accomplishments for the time-being. the team was his top priority for the weekend. 

oh, and the most crucial aspect of the entire email. 

we hope that you abide by our advice and take the necessary precautions. we are hoping for a great weekend in canada!

some fucking email that was.

although there was no formal threat of repercussions, the team principal was not going to take any risks. 

even if it slightly killed him inside to do so.

it appeared that in order to have access to you, toto was going to have to tread carefully. there would have to be thoroughly coordinated meetings, where he would have to sneak away just to even catch a glimpse of your gorgeous face. he would have to slip into your motorhome in the late hours of the night, just as he used to in jeddah, suzuka, and miami. 

however, since that kiss in monaco, things were a little more intense. 

there were eyes now. on both of you. 

eyes that would follow his every move, watching as he departed from the paddock or garage. eyes that were trained by pr teams to ensure that the delicate mercedes reputation remained intact. eyes that were determined to keep the two of you separated, no matter his frustration or protest. 

you were going to be so close, yet so far. 

he would be able to look, but not touch. 

and fuck, was that shit was going to drive him absolutely insane. 

on a similar note, you had gotten the notification from the williams public relation team just as you were boarding the jet. 

although you received the same sort of message within the email, you also happened to get a text from james. 

that one was far more threatening, laced with a sour bitterness that had toto’s blood boiling, his fists tightening on the armrests, knuckles tinged white. 

i do not want to see you look in the direction of the mercedes paddock while we’re in montreal. and if i catch you talking to him between practices or the race…

as much as toto prompted you to get into contact with the human resources department to report the text, you protested. mostly due to the fact that you were already in hot water with williams. despite their reassurances that you were not to face consequences for monaco, there was still that anxiety gnawing away at you, an ever-looming thought in the back of your mind. 

even if you weren’t in trouble for your romantic pursuits, williams had made it very clear that they did not approve of the relationship. 

at least, their public relations department, some members of the board, and james, your team principal, had made it very clear. 

and to you, that was enough to keep you on your best behavior. 

however, there were approximately eleven more hours of the flight before you made it to your destination. 

for the mercedes team principal, that meant he had to savor your presence for eleven more hours before the two of were forced to go your separate ways. 

fuck the mercedes pr team for suggesting those pitiful rules. fuck the williams pr team for reminding you of their disapproval. 

and most importantly, fuck james vowles for speaking to you that way. 

˖⁺‧₊˚♡˚₊‧⁺˖✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧˖⁺‧₊˚♡˚₊‧⁺˖✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧˖⁺‧₊˚♡˚₊‧⁺˖✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧˖⁺‧₊˚♡˚₊‧⁺˖

“there she is!” 

“hi,” you wave, suppressing a giggle as he waggles his brows, pointing finger guns in your direction.

“how’d it gooo? did you two lay under the starlight and give one another googly eyes until the sun rose over the beautiful mountains of monte carlo?”

alex is peering at you, his gaze honed in as you shrug, “it was fine.” 

he scoffs, rolling his eyes, “you guys spent days together and you can’t tell me a single detail?” 

carefully, you scan the room, taking in your surroundings. currently, you were in the williams paddock, situated next to alex in one of the many debrief rooms. james was going to arrive any minute, ben in tow, along with members of the core crew. 

keeping your voice low, you fidget with the sleeves your hoodie, grateful for the traces of citrus and spice that lingered, “james texted me before i boarded my flight here.” 

alex straightens in his seat, leaning forward so that your voice didn’t have to carry, “no shot. what did he say?” 

“he said that he didn’t want me to even look in the direction of the mercedes paddock,” the words are shaky, brimmed with apprehension, “the text had a really off-putting tone to it. toto wanted me to report it but i’m not sure if i should. i’m already in an awkward position with williams and i don’t want to complicate things further.” 

alex’s tongue runs along his lower lip, the driver’s brows scrunched together. there’s concern glittering in his gaze, his fingers resting on his chin. 

“that’s really shitty of james considering i was there at that meeting following monaco. everyone seemed to be in good standing with one another. i remember patrick reminding you over and over again that you weren’t in any sort of trouble. maybe he said that so you could focus on the race this weekend?” 

“probably,” you mutter, slumping into the chair, “it just fucking sucks, you know? all of this back and forth. it’s like having fucking vertigo. one minute i feel like i’m on cloud nine, and the world loves me. james is over the moon, and the crew is hoisting me up into the air. within seconds, everyone is avoiding me. they’re shooting me dirty looks or spreading shit about me on social media. they’ll murmur under their breath that i’m a homewrecker or a slut.”

before you know it, alex has several tissues is his grasp, gently laying them on your thigh. raising your read, you feel the slickness of tears on your heated cheeks, your palms clammy as you wipe them on your sweats.

“i cannot imagine how fucking hard this must be for you.” 

“it is,” your lower lip trembles as you dab the tissue on your lids, “why do you think i flew out to monte carlo? why do you think i’ve been avoiding wantage? ignoring the emails? i just don’t feel like my relationship with williams is genuine anymore. sometimes i regret that race in monaco–”

“hey,” a thumb massages your shoulder, his voice light, “don’t ever feel guilty about that race.”

you shake your head, the words spilling out of gritted teeth, “if i would have let charles overtale me, he would have won. i would have never left that podium. i would have never kissed–”

“everything okay in here?” 

a voice rings through the room, your head swiveling to the doorway.

james enters the room, the williams crew following in suit. using your sleeve, you brush away the tears, exhaling as alex tosses the tissues in the nearest trash bin. he scrunches his nose, nudging you with his knee.

“you’re welcome for that.”

“what would i do without you?” a laugh bubbles up in your throat as he wraps his arm around your shoulder, bringing you in for an affectionate embrace. 

his mouth hovers by your ear, eyes darting to james before shifting back to you, “we can talk more later. i promise. i want to know how you and your pookie bear are doing!”

“okay you two,” james clicks his tongue, “i hate to interrupt gossip hour, but it’s time to discuss racing strategies for the weekend. unfortunately spilling secrets about a certain team principal does not get us anywhere in terms of winning.”

at his snide remark, you feel a twinge of frustration brew in your stomach, churning it into a knot as james’ attention falls on you, his arms folded across his chest, brow arched ever so slightly. 

“can you promise us that you’ll be one hundred percent focused on the race this weekend? one hundred percent dedicated to williams and only williams?”

your jaw clenches, brows knitting together, “isn’t that what i’ve been – yes. i can promise you that.i’ll be dedicated to the team this weekend, just as i’ve always been.”

“good,” james’ expression is unreadable as he tuts, “okay! let’s get started. ben, would you like to begin with the latest upgrades to the cars?”

mirroring the others, you slide the headphones over your ears, ben’s voice drowning in your ears as dives into the subject at hand. 

as much as your mind wanted you to pay attention, to listen closely, you were not present. 

not one bit.

your thoughts were elsewhere, wandering back to that one individual.

toto. 

fuck, did your heart absolutely ache. 

how were you supposed to maintain your distance for an entire weekend if you could barely keep it together after merely hours apart? 

you could sense your knee bouncing, your teeth gnashing into your cheek, chewing away at the flesh. 

fuck, this was going to suck.  

your thumbs itch, urging you to fish your phone out of your pocket. yet, you know that shouldn’t, as there were numerous eyes right along with you in the room. there were a few times in which you did glance at your phone in the past during debriefings, but that was to simply check notifications, pull up footage, or type a quick response to send back to toto. 

if james happened to catch you peeking at your phone? oh god, he would probably treat you like some sort of child and have you sit right next to him. just so that he could observe your every move and ensure that you were honed in on the tasks at hand. fuck, if he was frustrated enough, he would probably snatch that phone right out of your hand, keeping it until you all were finished. 

the treatment you were receiving since monaco was becoming more and more insulting. almost degrading, really. 

sure, you were at the top of the leaderboard. sure, you were one of the best drivers that the team had signed in a years. sure, you were writing history with every record you shattered. 

but when you were involved with the team principal of mercedes, those things didn’t really matter. you were treated like a petulant child, disciplined for something that was beyond your control. 

there was no reason to punish you over the man you were in love with. 

yet, that was just the reality of the situation. 

as harsh as it was, it was probably wise to keep the two of you separated. although the pr teams were working overtime, busting their asses to squash the rumors, to silence those whispers, there were still the ever-looming truths.

one, you were engaging in a romantic relationship with a man thirty years older than you. 

two, toto was recently divorced. that was not a good look for each party involved. it raised the questions of how long the two of you were really talking, how long you had been tiptoeing around. the heated debates if you actually knew about the divorce or if you were a homewrecker.

and of course, the third and final truth.

the mercedes amg petronas was searching to sign their second driver for the 2025 season. toto especially, as he was their main scout, announcing numerous times that he had spoken with a menagerie of drivers, even beyond formula one. 

the hot gossip was that you were to be that second driver. you were the prized pick, a valuable asset to any team on the grid. the apple of toto’s eye. the object of his every desire. the final piece to his puzzle. 

although the entire world was under the impression that they were just speculations, they were blissfully unaware that it was indeed the truth. 

toto was going to approach james after the canadian grand prix with his proposal. 

all he needed was that blessing, the nod of approval to begin the contract talks.

however, there was that one uncertainty. the one thing that both of you were unsure of, waves of anxiety pumping through your veins each time your mind wandered. 

there was that possibility that james could say no. that there would be no contract talks.

even though it ultimately was up to the driver, the fia had made it very clear there were to be no private meetings, nothing left in the dark. especially if you were to depart ways from williams and sign with mercedes. 

so if james said no, you would be fucked. 

majorly, utterly, completely fucked. 

˖⁺‧₊˚♡˚₊‧⁺˖✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧˖⁺‧₊˚♡˚₊‧⁺˖✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧˖⁺‧₊˚♡˚₊‧⁺˖✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧˖⁺‧₊˚♡˚₊‧⁺˖

taglist: @k3ira13 @prettiest-at-the-party @annewithaneofthegreengable @zoeyjadetice2010 @sinners-98-world @statuewoman @laura-naruto-fan1998 @nebarious @joalslibrary @swifth0lic @strangegirl974 @thatgirlthatreadswattpad @msbyjackal @annaaepf1 @paigelouise @bborra @bblouifford @s-awturn @upsteadsstuff @omgsuperstarg @younxii @toldyouitwasamelodrama @kravitzwhore @persona1lies @pucksandpower @gisellesprettylies @wonderwolffs @xxforeverinadayxx @theseerbetweenus @simply-the-best23 @ringdingdingdingx @leilanixx @marknolee @rylieverstappen-sargent @whoisss @ajthefujoshi @m-1234 @ihateyougunthersteiner @nicaeno @racecardilfs

as always, thank you guys for the endless support on this series! let me know if you would like to be tagged! we have about three chapters left! i love you all!! <33

[sanjoongie]

𝔻𝕒𝕪 𝕋𝕙𝕚𝕣𝕥𝕖𝕖𝕟: 𝕌𝕟𝕚𝕗𝕠𝕣𝕞

🥀Pairing: Park Seonghwa x Reader (f)

🥀Genre: Smut

🥀Rating: 18+, Minors Do not Interact 

🥀Au: royal, navy, space, sci-fi

🥀Trope: role reversal

🥀Summary: When your first mate successfully enacts a mutiny, you're left with one simple task... to be his cum bucket

🥀Kinks: uniform kink, oral (m), masturbation (f), degradation kink, mean dom! seonghwa, brat sub! reader, spitting, deep throating, choking, thigh slapping, creampie(s), overstim, marking, fingering(f)

🥀Word Count: 1,541

🥀Betas: @mejuii

🥀Day Twelve: Mommy Kink 🥀Mini Masterlist 🥀Day Fourteen: threesome/ritual

Seonghwa strode into the Captain's Quarters, his heels clacking purposely against the polished-with-wear metal. He tossed a long strand of hair out of his face, eyes looking for you. He stood in all his powerful glory before you in the bed. The leather of his outfit creaked despite the gold embroidery. He was clad in such from the tops of his shoulders starting with his long jacket, the corset like adornment along his ribcage, the straps that held the sheath for his sword and guns, and finally the pants and boots, that left nothing to the imagination, to be honest.

You were where he left you, naked and in bed. You had only the stark white sheet hiding your bare skin, but even that seemed to irk the man that used to be your first mate.

The U.S.S Utopia had been your ship, and you, its Captain. You had sailed her all along the Milky Way, plundering and stealing, after the American government fell to the people during a coup d'état. Then Seonghwa, with an evil grin, had convinced the crew to mutiny against you. You loved the Utopia and had pleaded that you would do anything to remain on board and not get plunged into the freezing depths of the dark sea, aka space. Seonghwa gave you one choice: remain as a useful tool, as a cum bucket for him, and he would allow you to stay. You agreed immediately and had remained so for several months now. And he had not tired of you yet.

The now-captain ripped his sheets off your body, eyes searching still for the dried cum on your skin. He seemed enamored with leaving his mark on you, in more ways than one.

“Lover,” he said in a sing-song voice, clueing you in that he was in a cruel mood. “I told you to remain here, in my bed, with my cum on you.”

“I did, Seonghwa!” You insisted.

Seonghwa waved a gloved hand in your vague direction. “I see nothing.”

“I was cold!” You insisted, trying not to look eager. “Perhaps the sheet brushed it off!”

You had washed his cum from your body as soon as he had left the room. You wanted him to come back and punish you. You looked forward to it, in fact.

Seonghwa sighed heavily, undoing his pants. “I don’t know how you ever were in charge of this ship. I’ll just have to repeat my handiwork and then some.”

There was some type of cruel kink for enjoying Seonghwa fucking you in an almost carbon copy of your captain’s outfit made to fit him. You loved the feel of the leather against your bare skin. There was something dirty and cheap about the way that Seonghwa couldn't be bothered to disrobe while he fucked you. You were addicted to being used by your past first mate; you simply could not get enough of it.

“Suck me off,” He said lowly after he had undone his pants just enough for his cock to be pulled out.

You took his soft cock and pulled him into your mouth. You stared up at the cruel captain with wide, eager eyes. You knew everything that he loved--and exactly what set him off. Your tongue curled around his head as blood rushed to his cock, and then he commanded you to touch yourself. You made loud noises of pleasure as you rubbed a finger against your clit and his cock grew in length even faster. Soon you were able to bob up and down him, hollowing your cheeks so that he could feel all of you.

Simply put, Seonghwa just wished to order you around. You had spent most of your career belittling him and his self-worth. So now that he was captain, he took every chance to return the favor. It never made him feel less than the whimpering second in command he always saw himself as, but still he pushed forward.

Seonghwa’s fingers floated over your head, a pretend-softness before he grabbed your hair harshly. When he pulled you off his cock, you kept your tongue out of your mouth and he spit onto it. Then he shoved you back on his cock, practically face fucking you. He wanted to see those tears form in your eyes and hear the chokes as you barely managed his length in your mouth and down your throat.

“You love sucking my cock, don’t you, you pathetic whore,” Seonghwa spat. “Always eager to have a dick in any hole you can get.”

Case and point, you pushed a finger inside of yourself, moaning loudly. That made anger burn in Seonghwa’s dark eyes. “I didn’t say to fill yourself, did I?”

Seonghwa pulled you off his length again, and you began to protest. “Seonghwa!”

“That’s Captain to you!” He snarled, and your mouth snapped shut.

He began to pace in front of the bed, brewing up a plot. How did he want you now? How did he want to cover you with his cum? There were so many options but he knew he needed to walk the ship again later, to keep an eye on his crew that had been so easily swayed to mutiny against you.

“Captain, please,” you begged. “I’ve been good.”

“Puh-lease, you don’t know the meaning of good,” Seonghwa spat his words. He pulled at his corset, and you saw your way in.

“Doesn’t fit you as well, does it, Seonghwa? Too snug at your ribcage or too small for your waist?”

“I wear this outfit better than you ever did,” Seonghwa roared, eyes like coals in his head.

Seonghwa made you ride his cock while he laid down on his bed, fully clothed of course; made you stare at him in your old captain’s outfit tailored to fit his body. He commanded you to speak of how he is a better captain than you and if you were interrupted by a sharp thrust of his upwards, you got a slap on your thigh with his leather glove. And when he came inside you, he held you down on his cock, a cry leaving his plush lips. Only once all of his cum had been pumped in you, did he allow you to raise yourself up, watching as his cum clung to his cock and poured out your cunt.

But that wasn't enough for Seonghwa, oh no, he wanted more.

He painted your body with bruises and cum, never tiring of abusing your body and seeing the stars light up in your eyes as he did. Because make no mistake, he was well aware that you loved to provoke him and what followed. But he was too drunk on his power, too drunk on you, to stop himself from giving you exactly what you wanted.

Seonghwa fucked you against the headboard, gloved hands wrapped around your throat, chest peeking above the corset, looking like a debauched pirate captain that ever sailed the Milky Way. His evil grin was apparent, eyes traveling all over your face as you made choked noises.

He released your throat, but you only whined, moving his hands back. “Please, Seonghwa, more,” you said with a raspy voice.

“Such a slut for me, aren't you, lover?” Seonghwa grinned in triumph.

“Yes, Captain,” You agreed, rocking your hips eagerly forward.

Seonghwa squeezed his hands around your throat again. He gauged by your face how close you were to your climax, and when he let sweet air invade your lungs again, you came so hard for him that your eyes rolled into the back of your head.

You were drowning in pleasure and still, you groaned about him making a further mess of your pussy. Seonghwa looked you straight in the eyes and fucked you through your orgasm. He drank in every scrunch of your nose and whine about it being too much (it was everything you wanted), until he came inside of you again. You both felt his cum slip out of your hole as he fucked your cunt, following his pleasure. There simply wasn’t enough room for all his cum and yet still he continued to unload into you.

“You exist to be my cum bucket, lover, and don’t you forget it,” Seonghwa whispered into your ear.

Later, when you were passed out in his bed and only the lights of the stars left to reveal all the ways you belonged to him, Seonghwa admired his handiwork. His cum was all over your body, marks of his teeth and hands painted on your skin. And still it wasn't enough. You had screamed his name hoarse, sounding bittersweet from your lips, red after the blowjobs and biting. But it never erased your jeering face of old from his memory.

So he pushed his hands between your legs and patted your cunt. Your body jolted and you groaned as you woke up. Seonghwa's lithe fingers played with your pussy, still wet with desire and his seed. And after everything he put you through, you reached between your legs and pressed his fingers further into your body.

Seonghwa smiled, the first one of pure glee rather than cruelty. You were programmed to be greedy for him, and that was enough.

🥀Day Twelve: Mommy Kink 🥀Mini Masterlist 🥀Day Fourteen: threesome/ritual

[amywritesthings]

CHAPTER 16: PEACE

The POINT A TO POINT B Series

Pairing: Din Djarin x F!Reader ( The Mandalorian ) Word Count: 2.7K Summary: You and Din take a travel break for a wintery surprise. Tags: Sensuality, Anxiety, Wintertime themes, Helmetless!Din, Kisses A/N: Welcome to The First Day of the Twelve Days of Amymas! It's been a while, Mando. Enjoy this fluffy, feel-good winter-themed update as our fearless Duo get cozy one week after last chapter's events.

Previous Chapter. / Next Chapter. | Series Masterlist.

CHAPTER 16: PEACE

.

“I told you not to look.”

The modulated voice catches you before your hand can touch the cockpit’s steel ladder.

On a ship as small as the Razor Crest, you're not surprised the Mandalorian has caught you in the act of defying his request:

Stay in the belly of the ship until his say.

(As if there is anywhere to go.)

Don't look out of portholes.

(As if there are any.)

Don't peek at the cockpit.

(As if you're constantly lounging in it.)

But his request, as silly as it may seem, comes with a caveat.

It's a surprise — whatever that may be.

At first, you're worried that the end is closer than you thought.

Maybe, just maybe, he's decided to beeline straight to Coruscant. After all, everything came to a head last week.

You still haven't spoken about the incident on Trask. Your run-in with Bo-Katan and her crew. The freighter.

Too close of a call; you thought you'd lost him, and in turn, he thought he'd nearly lost you.

Such turmoil could convince him to finish the job faster, if only for your best interest.

However, it isn't like either of you have tried talking in the last several days — not when your mouths are busy elsewhere.

(Blindfolds, eager kisses, sweat-slicked skin, fumbling hands, whispered promises.)

You could chalk up his sudden change in gear to finally sleeping with you, though with the amount of hours you've laid lazily in his bed rather than your makeshift closet, you very much doubt he regrets the change of pace.

(You sure as hell don't.)

Still, the worry festered the longer he keeps this 'surprise' from you.

Had something gone wrong?

Was he trying to keep you ignorant from growing danger?

Had he caught wind on Moff Gideon's location?

So many variables.

So little time.

Din, of course, reassured this is a good surprise the second he saw that thousand-yard stare begin to surface on your face.

(You're still not used to calling him Din, not really.)

Instead of spiraling, then, you listen — for the most part.

Clearly he overestimates your patience when saddled with scrubbing blasters for the day.

Now you're here, caught red-handed at the cockpit ladder.

To keep the growing smile to yourself, your chin drops to your chest.

“I thought you were up there," you begin, airy in tone, "so I thought I’d come to say hello.”

“Really?”

The punctuated syllables tells you he’s unconvinced.

“Really,” you lie.

The clanking of shifting beskar armor moves closer to your back. You stay staring forward at the ladder to avoid the budding laughter in your throat.

Then an orange-tipped glove reaches past you to tap twice against a little red knob on a square console.

"Funny you say that," he begins, and you snort with suppressed laughter, "because a steady red on the occupancy indicator usually means—”

“Okay, okay,” you relent with an amused sigh. "I knew you weren't up there."

"Thought so."

Guilty as charged: he calls out your white lie with a little joke of his own.

You've noticed he's more at ease these last few days. Lighter. More open to this, whatever this is.

The heel of your boot finally turns clockwise until you're approached to face the Mandalorian in full. His armor gleams under the faint overhead lights of the Crest. One hand sits square on his hip while the other drops to his side.

“Maybe I wasn’t looking for you, but you have to understand: I’m restless, Mando. You’ve had me cooped in cargo for hours.”

“Din,” he corrects, “and it’s barely been an hour.”

“Feels like it’s been four, Din,” you quip, cheekily chirping his first name back to him.

Din Djarin; the name rolls off your tongue, more intimate that a kiss.

He clearly loves hearing it.

Both of your hands raise in surrender. The white flag has been raised.

“What’s so special about where we’re going, anyway?”

The chin of his helmet tilts ever so slightly to the left.

“I told you: it’s a surprise.”

“So much of a surprise that I can’t even look? You know, even if I did look, I couldn’t tell you which planet is what anyway.” You tap your temple. “Memory’s gone, remember?”

Din chuckles, disengaging.

“Be patient, Princess. We’ll be landing soon enough.”

You want to keep asking questions, but a curious coo from a blanket-bundled nest breaks both of your concentrations.

The Child stares up from his comfy cocoon, observing you both with bleary, beady eyes. He's only half awake, clearly only checking to see if all is well in cargo.

“Right, kid? You agree with me,” you tease, pointing to the Mandalorian as he passes you.

Din gently pushes your index finger out of his way with a filtered huff, before his boots clank against the metal ladder.

“He tells us not to look then expects us to actually listen." You lean into towards the Child when he coos happily, seemingly on your side even if he's sleepy. "The nerve of this guy.”

“I heard that,” he calls back to you once he reaches the upper level of the ship.

Then an exhale of a door sounds above, only to seal seconds later with a clean zip.

The red dot on the occupancy indicator flashes green.

"Cute, Mando, very cute," you mumble under your breath.

For an hour you pace the tin can of a ship with little restraint.

Every time you round the ladder, you're half-tempted to climb up yourself and remind him that you don't have to point towards the window of the cockpit if he simply lets you sit on your knees to—

In a flash, everything shakes and wobbles.

You can tell you’ve breached an atmosphere, but the lack of portholes in the cargo belly makes it impossible to see exactly what's going on.

It’s a slightly bumpy descent — not enough to warrant seatbelts, but you do hold onto the cargo straps near the Child’s bedding to make sure you and the kid stay put.

"Everything okay up there?" you call to him, but Din doesn't respond.

The mouth of the ship, however, does.

Slowly the mechanics wheeze to detach from their locks, detaching from the Razor Crest's frame to open the cabin to something blindingly bright.

You wince and take a step back, shielding your eyes with your left forearm from the outside light as the landing pad continues to lower from the ship.

A foreign freeze meets you, chilling you to the bone.

Cold licks and clings to your body.

The landing ramp begins to extend, revealing... a sea of white.

Wait.

Your arm drops like lead, eyes widening when you realize a belated breath too late what stands before you.

Or really... falls.

Gentle white flakes float from the sky to a pillow-soft ground, covering any grass that could have been in sight.

Large trees are littered with slippery domes, solidified from the cold.

Ice.

What covers the tree branches are what they call icicles.

One foot in front of the other, you're slow to investigate the mouth of the ship.

Even if you hear heavy boots descend the ladder in decided clunks, you cannot look away from the scenic atmosphere ahead of you.

Then you remember:

I know there's planets out there full of oceans.

Two nights ago, you'd been lying in bed naked with the Mandalorian recovering from another round of exploring what it means to be alive.

Your black blindfold was discarded carelessly across his bare chest, sheets barely hiding the patch of hair trailing under his belly button.

You'd chosen to lay over the sheet, too overheated from the night's activities.

His breath puffed gently through the modulator while his naked thumb absently stoked your bare shoulder.

As he came back down from his high, he let you talk to fill the silence.

About anything.

Everything.

Legends of cities born underwater, forests that survive through endless white… it's silly, but I'd love to see them all. To travel the galaxy and then some.

He never interrupted you.

He just let his fingers explore, dance, along your skin like his need for discovery ended right here.

Maybe once I'm there I'll remember that I've been there before, but experiencing that sort of stuff for the first time?

He hums with acknowledgement.

Content.

I hope to see as many as I can before I’m back to Coruscant.

(The unspoken caveat was three words: Only with you.)

"Forests that survive through endless white," you whisper to yourself, cautiously walking down the ramp closer to the flurry of white.

You reach out a palm to catch the tiny flecks as they descend.

One hits your palm, cold to the touch, and you draw your hand back to your chest in surprise.

“Naboo isn’t always covered in snow.”

Your attention finally breaks from the woods ahead to look back.

Din finally reaches the bottom of the ladder.

The metal jostles as the bounty hunter drops his arms and makes his way towards you.

“This is Naboo?” you ask, unable to hide your excitement.

Din settles beside you, his metallic helmet tilting high to watch the gray sky above the ship.

“I thought Naboo was full of cities. This looks deserted.”

“Naboo is densely populated, yes, but it also has its untouched biomes,” he explains. "The entire planet doesn’t experience snow, but some parts do. It isn’t an endless white, but—”

You can't help it.

You rush towards the forest floor.

The bounty hunter’s voice cuts with concern when your boot slips a little at the bottom.  

“Careful, Princess.”

“I’m fine, Mando!” you call back once you’ve found your footing, invigorated by the sights and sounds before you. "Sorry — Din!"

You grin from ear to ear, feet walking in a circle to take it all in.

He listened.

He really detoured from the original travel plan to bring you here.

Something cold and wet hits your cheek, your chin, and you flinch on impact.

The flecks from the sky — you gaze up into the cloudy, cold gray with palpable wonder.

Snowfall.

You twirl again in pure joy, giggling softly.

“Mother of Moons, this is… I’m…”

Perfect.

Maybe you had visited a snowy planet in your past life.

Maybe the old version of you would have found something so miraculous to be so trivial.

Yet here, now, you cannot think of anything more perfect that this: the crunch of snow under your boots, the blanket of silence that seems to envelope the forest around you—

And him.

The Mandalorian willing to offer such a gift when so much is already at stake.

“What do you think?” you finally ask, spinning back to face him. 

The Mandalorian is no longer staring at the sky.

His chrome visor simply watches you.

“It’s beautiful,” he answers quietly, contemplative.

Your heart swells.

"How long can we stay?"

"An hour," he replies. "Maybe two. Not long."

"That's plenty of time," you reassure, already feeling the cold swell on your fingertips.

For what feels like forever you step around the blankets of snow, admiring how the fluff crinkles under your boots. You shift back and forth, toe to heel, to memorize the sound.

You're well aware that your clothes, your hair, are quickly becoming damp.

It doesn't matter.

Eventually the circle you've created with your feet takes you back to the Razor Crest. The shoulders of your tunic are quickly turning a peppered tan and white.

Din is also covered head to toe in the gentle flurry, though the little specks melt on impact against the beskar armor.

You grin.

"Hold still."

"Hmm?" He listens nonetheless, straightening his posture at your command.

Reaching with chilly fingers, you wipe away a rogue snowflake from his visor and laugh under your breath.

"Did that make it worse?"

"I can't feel the snow," he responds. "I'm not cold."

"No, I meant your vision, Din Djarin," you reply with a snort.

"Oh. I..."

"Here, let me fix it."

He drops his chin obediently when you pull at your tunic sleeve to wipe the streak of water from the chrome visor.

After a moment passes, you drop your arm back to your side and stare into his helmet.

“...thank you, for taking me here,” you murmur. “You didn’t have to stop here just because I wanted to see—”

“I did,” he interrupts with complete certainty.

His hand rises, mirroring your motions. Din crooks his orange-tipped index finger and lifts your chin to meet his visor.

“No need to thank me.”

You can’t help but melt like the snow between you. 

Always so chivalrous and thoughtful; something has changed in the Mandalorian since that fateful day. Where he once looked at you as cargo now sits a warm aura in a profoundly human way.

And it's touched you, too. He isn't just a bounty hunter, but an ally.

A partner.

A lover.

His quiet considerations have only wanted you to become a better person.

(And for the Razor Crest to never make its final destination.)

You could spend all of your days, you realize, traversing the galaxy just like this: with a bounty hunter and his ward and this imperfect ship, with no final point of descent.

“Close your eyes.”

The modulated command is but a whisper.

Without delay, you obey — your eyelids flutter closed, allowing the silence and light scent of frozen water to overtake you.

Then you hear a mechanical wheeze overhead.

You continue to keep your eyes shut, but the smile that grows on your lips is telling:

You know exactly what Din Djarin is about to do.

Although you cannot see him shifting above you, you imagine the way he lifts his Mandalorian helmet just over the bridge of his nose. The strong lines of his jaw, peppered with bits of facial hair…

You have never seen his face yet Din is a crystal-clear image in your invisible sight.

Then something warm tinged with ice presses to your lips.

The tip of his thumb drags along your lower lip, tugging it away from the seam.

You can’t help but huff a breath of anticipation. "Do I have something on my face?"

"Something like that," he replies in his noncommittal way, unfiltered by his helmet. "Let me help catch it."

For seconds it’s just this: sensation, feeling, trust—

And then his lips brush against yours, pressing plush and eager.

He is drastically warm compared to you, and you press back to soak up his heat.

Your cold fingers glide along his chest plate, blindly searching for that cowl of his. Your fingertips quickly snag and curl around it, pulling him closer.

The message is loud and clear — his free arm encircles your waist, dragging you into his armor.

Din’s kiss is adoring, gentle, and you linger in the high of his boldness.

His trust.

(The blindfold never left his pocket.)

Desperate to feel him, you keep your eyes shut tight and meet his deepening kisses, unable to stop the breathy noise in the middle of your throat when his tongue flick against your lower lip.

Then he pulls away, and you find yourself tumbling closer.

A naked laugh, smooth as velvet, vibrates through your whole body.

"Easy."

"Come back."

"We have to go," Din murmurs, and you lift your chin to follow the sound of his bravado.

"Can we warm up together, at least?"

"Was that not always the plan?"

You grin, eyes still closed.

A beat passes, and his gloved hand gently runs along your chilled cheek.

“Happy?”

His voice is so small.

You nod, brushing your bare nose with him, and reply just as small.

“Very.”

And you could be, for all of your days, if he chooses to never let you go.

.

[plutoccult]

HAIKYUU X THE OFFICE AU — EPISODE ONE: JAPAN PULP AND PAPER, THIS IS Y/N

pairing: sugawara koushi x female reader

description: chaos ensues when the miyagi branch of japan pulp and paper allow a documentary crew to capture their day-to-day lives in the office.

word count: 3.3k

also available to read on my ao3 here

author’s note: another work from my ao3 that i really wanted to share! i posted this back in july, and i definitely intend to write more. i refuse to let this go without writing casino night. like, come on. it’s too good! for some context, you as the reader are essentially pam, while sugawara is jim, ukai is michael, the list goes on. some characters don’t really reflect any office counterparts, but that’s okay. you can imagine i’ll be going through the motions of that torturous jim and pam slow burn but with my own pizazz. also, text in bold and italics are the interviewing part, if that makes sense. hopefully it’s a smooth transition. anyway, i hope you enjoy!!!

“are we rolling?” ukai asks the camera crew and they nod in response. “alright, cool, cool, cool.”

he takes a deep breath before doing various ridiculous vocal and physical exercises, some you would take straight out of a children’s choir practice. he even got out of his chair and tried to squat before he realized he could rip his pants right at the beginning of the documentary. one could hope it wouldn’t make it to the final edit, but it probably will anyway.

“ahem.” he coughs. “i’m keishin ukai, regional manager. um, i’ve been working at japan pulp and paper for about twelve years now, but i’ve been the regional manager for the past few years.”

“let’s try taking a tour of the office floor.” a camera guy proposes since they were currently cramped in ukai’s office.

“oh, you want a change of scenery? yeah, i can do that. come on, let’s go.” ukai stands up and allows the camera crew to make their way out before he exited as well. there was much, much more room to film around, thank god.

“welcome to my humble abode, aka the office floor.” he began, then made his way to the reception desk where you sat. you kind of hoped you wouldn’t be filmed right off the bat, but here you were with a camera now in your face. “starting off here, we have our receptionist, y/n. say hi to the camera, y/n.”

“hello, camera.” you shyly wave, then try to hand ukai a piece of paper. “by the way, you have a fax.”

“unimportant.” he immediately brushes it off.

“it’s from corporate—“ you try to say, but he interrupts you.

“y/n over here notoriously once dated a guy named mad dog. seriously. that was his name.” ukai whispers to the camera, although you could hear him clear as day, same with the microphone one of the crew members held above you two.

“i thought we agreed to never talk about that again, ukai.” you groan.

“i’m not known to be a truther, y/n.” he shrugs. “anyway, that doesn’t matter anymore because she’s engaged now. well, she’s been engaged for three years. bummer.”

“i’m just going to shred this fax—“

“woah, woah, woah. let’s not do that!” ukai interrupts you, reaching out for the fax you threateningly held over the shredder. “come on, gimme the fax.”

you stare into the camera and hand the fax to ukai.

•••

“as you can tell, i don’t exactly love it here. i mean, it pays alright, but i don’t think anybody dreams of becoming a receptionist.” you say to the documentary crew, forcing a laugh as you’re being interviewed separately. “i wanted to be an actress. as you can tell, that’s not going so well since i still work here. at least there are a couple of good things that come from working here, i suppose.”

•••

“i have to go to the bathroom.” hinata and kageyama announce at the same time. the camera crew turns their attention from you and ukai to them instead. this could be good… maybe.

“i bet i can make it to the bathroom faster!” they yell, again, in unison and rush through the doors to race to the bathroom. unfortunately, it was a tie like always.

“don’t mind them, that’s just hinata and kageyama. always got this weird ass tension, those two.” ukai rolled his eyes. “welp, anyway.”

as ukai scanned the office to think of who else he could bother, ahem, introduce to the cameras, a certain gray-haired salesman quietly whispered to himself at his desk, hoping he wouldn’t be next. after seeing what you went through, he didn’t want to be the next victim. “no, no, no, no, no…”

unfortunately, he was next.

“ah, perfect.” ukai clapped his hands together. “suga! my favorite prematurely gray sales guy!”

“how many times do i have to say my hair is ash blonde?” the young salesman groaned, pouting towards the camera.

“whatever helps you sleep at night.”

suga grumbles at his boss, who blissfully ignores him. “ah, tanaka, assistant—“

“sir, ukai, sir!” tanaka gets up from his chair quicker than one could blink, standing up as straight as possible, almost as if he’d break his spine if he tried to stand any straighter, with his hand to his forehead like a soldier speaking to his captain.

“why are you saluting at me? this is a paper company, not the army.” ukai says in disgust.

“because it feels right...?” tanaka replies hesitantly, slowly slouching back to normal posture.

“ugh, get out of my face. you ruined your intro.” ukai scoffs as he walks away, leaving tanaka with a pout.

•••

later when tanaka speaks to the documentary crew, he breaks out into tears, almost a little too dramatically. “i try so hard to receive that man’s approval. and kiyoko’s love…”

the poor guy thinks he’ll get nominated for an emmy because of this.

•••

a tall man walks in with a man bun. one could even compare him to a samurai, you think. his presence startles everyone in the office upon his arrival, but you keep your cool. well, unlike someone else you know.

“oh, my god! please don’t murder me, i’m begging you!” yachi screams out at the top of her lungs as she runs out of the office in a flash.

the mysterious man stands confused over the blonde rushing out. he looks at you shyly, so you greet him nicely and decide in your head that today was not the day to use your pepper spray.

“hi, can i help you?”

“um.” he coughs. “i’m azumane asahi from the temp agency. i was sent down to start today.”

oh… that checks out.

“oh, yeah!” you say cheerily as you waive those previous thoughts away. “i’ll get you introduced to mr. ukai.”

you show asahi to ukai’s office, knocking on the door before you’re allowed in. “hey, ukai?”

“mhm?” he looks up from his computer.

“this is azumane asahi. he’s from the temp agency.” you inform him.

“nice to meet y—“ asahi begins to speak before his words are interrupted.

“my god, how old are you?” ukai stands up to inspect asahi’s face. you could sense the poor new temp screaming in his head for dear life, so you mouth to him to just roll with it.

“twenty-three…” he stumbles with his response.

“jesus! you look like you’re heading toward a midlife crisis!” ukai exclaims.

you gasp at your boss and pull him away from asahi whose face is as red as a tomato. “ukai! you can’t just say that to people right in their face! you’re such a meanie!”

•••

“you know, people say i’m very harsh, but i think i just simply state what i think, and i think a lot of crazy shit.” ukai laughs at the camera. the crew quite literally thinks he’s clinically insane. “unless hr says something to me, i’m not stopping this ol’ noggin of mine. just like how i refuse to quit smoking...”

•••

knock knock on ukai’s door once more. it’s takeda this time around, who’s the sole part of hr. ukai’s relationship with him isn’t a love-hate one as the love part of it is dead silent. takeda thinks it’s all in good fun, unfortunately.

“ukai, i think we need to have a discussion,” takeda speaks calmly.

ukai slams his hands on his desk and stands up. “specs, you ignorant slut. i’m going out to smoke a cigarette.”

the camera crew proceeds to follow ukai as he goes outside to smoke. he’s unaware that they’re right behind him, so when he looks around to see if anyone is watching him, his soul almost leaps out of his body when he sees a bunch of filming equipment surrounding him as he tries to light a cigarette.

he takes a couple of puffs before addressing the camera, waving around his cigarette as he spoke, which made the crew worry as they tried oh so carefully to protect their extremely expensive equipment.

“yeah, i smoke.” he rolls his eyes. “i’ve tried quitting plenty of times, but it’s like mcdonald’s. even when you say you don’t want anything, you still find yourself stealing somebody’s fries.”

ukai had to make note of how oddly deep that sounded.

after finishing his smoke, ukai headed back inside the office, only to be met with chaos thanks to tanaka and nishinoya annoying kiyoko, a particularly drop-dead gorgeous employee, like always.

“daichi! pry tanaka and nishinoya away from kiyoko! their flirting skills are pathetic and we don’t need any lawsuits around here!” ukai yelled out first thing, pointing his finger at daichi to stop the embarrassment that was his employees.

“on it…” he sighed as he grabbed the two men by the backs of their shirts and dragged them away despite their pleas.

•••

“that was flirting?” kiyoko laughs hysterically at the camera. the camera crew shrugs. unfortunately, their googly eyes and drooling mouths as they asked how her day has been was flirting.

•••

“look, me and tanaka have been trying to woo kiyoko for years. one of us has to succeed, right? and by one of us, i mean me.“ nishinoya says confidently and the crew can’t help but snicker at him based on what kiyoko said to them earlier. he gives them the death glare in response and they immediately stop.

•••

long after the chaos died down, tanaka opens his desk drawer and reveals a plate with his stapler inside jell-o. he’s ultimately taken by surprise, almost unable to form words as to why this has happened to him.

“what…?” he asks himself quietly.

suga, sitting at the desk across from him, tries his best to resist the urge to grin while he plays dumb. “what? what’s wrong?”

“my stapler… is in jell-o,” tanaka says, staring at the plate.

“jell-o? lemme see!” hinata perks up from his desk and runs over to see the phenomenon, just as entranced as tanaka is.

“woah, how did that happen, buddy?” suga continues his act, this time cracking a smile as he watched hinata crouch down and poke the jell-o.

“stop poking it, hinata.” kageyama scoffs, but hinata doesn’t waver one bit.

“i… don’t know,” tanaka replies. it was like his brain literally couldn’t wrap around the situation. how could this be? he didn’t know how to put two and two together. suga found it insanely hilarious, but when he looked over and saw your little snicker as you quickly covered your mouth, it made it a million times better for him.

“obviously, suga did it, you idiot.” tsukishima rolled his eyes as he looked over at everybody with his classic resting bitch face.

“tsukki!” yamaguchi scolded him. “don’t ruin it…”

•••

“i did not get this job to endure immature pranks, especially from someone whose hair went gray before their balls dropped,” tsukishima said in a monotone voice, staring down the camera like it would become his murder victim.

•••

“how do you feel about tsukishima?”

“i’m gonna put his glasses in jell-o next,” suga said to the camera with a smile, proud of his previous work.

•••

as the day progressed, you went into the break room to eat a mid-day snack, but when you opened the fridge, you found that it was gone. “oh, no…”

“y/n? what’s up?” suga asks as he walks in, noticing the look of disappointment on your face.

you shut the refrigerator door and cross your arms, scanning the faces of your fellow employees in the break room. tanaka and nishinoya were too busy eating the jell-o from earlier in hopes to access the stapler, so you assumed it wasn’t them, but then again, you had your doubts. yamaguchi silently sipped his coffee and avoided your gaze, but you found him to be typically shy anyway, so you crossed him off.

“who ate my yogurt? come on, that was my favorite yogurt. who did it?” you ask aloud.

silence.

“meanies.” you roll your eyes and walk toward tanaka and nishinoya. “gimme a bite of that stupid jell-o.”

“mine!” they yell in unison, protecting the gelatin treat as if it were gold.

“ugh.” you huff, accepting defeat and walking out of the break room. no snack for you.

•••

“what’s y/n‘s favorite yogurt?” suga repeats the camera crew’s question, laughing nervously as a result. “why would you think i know that? i mean, it’s mixed berry, but still…”

•••

“suga said mixed berry? heh, he’s definitely onto me…” you smile at the thought of your favorite coworker knowing you so well, but then that very thought leads you to the worst possible conclusion. “hey, wait! i bet that dummy ate my yogurt!”

“we can confirm it was yamaguchi.” a crew member says to you, quickly debunking your theory, which you found to be shocking.

“what? really?” you gasp.

“we found him crying in the bathroom after you discovered somebody ate it.” they reply.

“oh.”

•••

when the work day was finally over, you start to collect your things, logging off your computer for the day and making sure you have everything before you leave. you look up and see a familiar face waiting behind your desk with his warm smile that never grew old.

“hey,” suga said, coat draped over his shoulder as he held his briefcase in his hand.

“hi.” you reply, voice shaky. he gave you butterflies for some reason…

“you walking out?” he asks. sometimes you stayed a little later than usual if there were extra things to do around the office, and suga hated to leave you hanging there. he hated sitting at the bus stop alone even more since it meant you weren’t there with him.

“yeah, lemme just get my coat.” you say softly as you grab your purse from under your desk then get your coat from the coat rack. suga waits right behind you, his shadow right in your vision.

“um, wanna stop by the convenience store on the way to the bus stop?” he adds on. it was typical of you two to grab an after-work snack, usually something indulgent like candy and a soda. suga has tried so hard to figure out what your favorite sweets were, but you were always switching it up in times you get something, so it was impossible to solve the puzzle.

“oh, yeah, sure.” you nod with a smile. “let’s go.”

you two walk out of the office building, beginning your short walk to the store and then the bus stop. it was one of the only times of the day you could share a moment with suga like this without any craziness going on from your coworkers. you liked talking to him just as much as he liked talking to you. sometimes you thought he was only your friend out of convenience and proximity, you were his coworker, after all, but it didn’t dawn on you how much you meant to him.

“so tell me.” you start the walk home conversation. suga perks up and looks over to you in anticipation of what you’re about to say, itching to hear more of your voice. “you put tanaka’s stapler in that jell-o, didn’t you?”

“what?” he laughs in your face, putting on a little act that you never failed to crack a laugh at. “what makes you assume such a thing? i’m offended, y/n. truly, honestly offended.”

“well, sorry!” you huff, also pretending.

“i mean… i totally did that to his stapler.” suga admits, and the two of you bust out into laughter. it was always easy to feel like a kid again when it came to suga. you didn’t grow up with him, but the two of you clicked on your first day like it was the first day of kindergarten.

as you arrived at the convenience store, you insisted to suga that you would wait outside while he got something. he pestered, asking if you were sure you didn’t want anything, but you said no and told him to not waste his money on you.

suga hated that you saw yourself as a waste. he knew what—or should he say who—made you feel that way, and he would be damned if you ever felt that way with him. suga knew who the real problem was, and it wasn’t you. it never was.

when suga came back outside, he had two bags. one was definitely for him, but the other one turned out to be a little surprise. “i know you said not to waste my money on you, but—“

“what, what did you do?” you questioned as if he did something bad.

“i figured you deserved this after what happened earlier.” he grinned, handing you one of the bags in his hands. when you opened it, it was your favorite, mixed berry yogurt. it was even the good kind mixed with vanilla. you couldn’t believe he’d remember such details.

“oh my god, suga, thank you.” you quickly hug him. suga’s heart felt like it was going to leap out of his chest while you moved on from the close touch so quickly like it was second nature. “how much was it? i’ll pay you back—“

“no, no. it’s on me.” he interrupted. he wanted to say more, say that anything spent on you was never a waste, but that would be going too far, wouldn’t it?

“really?” you ask with puppy dog eyes. suga nods. “thank you.”

the two of you share a long pause in each other’s eyes. suga’s pupils dilate, and so do yours, but it was too dark to notice. it was like you were both in an unwavering trance, but it couldn’t last forever as the sound of your phone ringing startles you both.

“shit, i gotta take this.” you say, walking a few steps away from suga before answering the call.

“oh, yeah, go ahead.” he looks down, giving you space.

“ryo?” great, it was your fiancé, and he was pissed again. he was so sweet in the beginning, but now you were stuck. at least, you felt stuck.

“what are you talking about?! you never said anything about picking me up after work today!” you yell into the phone.

suga tries not to overhear the conversation, but from the sound of your voice, he assumed your asshole fiancé was being rude towards you again. god, he couldn’t stand it. he almost wanted to grab your phone out of your hands and tell ryo off himself, but suga had to remember his place as just your friendly coworker and nothing more.

“fine, just… drive over to the bus stop. yeah. okay. alright. bye.” you sigh as you hang up, walking back to suga like nothing happened. you always brushed off these things, and you didn’t know how to stop them. “sorry about that. let’s just… go, shall we?”

“yeah,” suga says awkwardly and continues the walk, doing the same as you; acting like nothing happened. you had that in common.

the two of you sit at the bus stop in awkward silence, your bags from the convenience store acting as a barrier between you. you wanted to tell suga what happened on the phone with your fiancé, but it was easy for him to get the gist when he saw ryo skirt down the road like it was fast and furious.

“y/n! get in the car! i don’t got all night!” he yells from the driver's seat. you quickly yell back that you’re “coming!” and run to the other side of the door, ultimately forgetting the yogurt suga bought you. ryo gives you no time to put on your seatbelt and immediately drives away, leaving suga waiting for his bus alone.

suga looks over at his surroundings, finding that the documentary crew had been recording the entire walk here. he knew that was part of the deal, he and the rest of the office signed a contract after all, but he didn’t imagine embarrassing himself in the pilot episode like this.

“you guys recorded all that, didn’t you…?”

the film crew nods awkwardly.

“damn.”

© plutoccult / 310802. please do not copy, repost, modify, or translate any of my content in or outside of tumblr. reblogs are appreciated <3

[imtrashraccoon]

Here's another fic idea I had that I'll likely never actually write. This was my original plan for Bad Sansuary actually, but the prompts wouldn't have worked and I knew seven chapters for each of them wouldn't be enough to develop their characters. I also only got as far as writing down an idea for Killer...

It was inspired by @/popatochisssp 's fic, The Skeleton Crew, which I highly recommend!

Bad Sans Prison Oneshot Idea

The idea is there is a maximum security prison where monsters and even humans are kept. Monster's magic is suppressed with both a drug that they must take regularly and with an on site machine that makes a barrier that no monster can enter or leave without being allowed to. Only the worst humans are sent to this prison and it is basically considered a death sentence because even without magic, monsters are incredibly dangerous.

MC is journalist that is part of a crew making a documentary on several of the monsters in the prison. Generally she interviews the monsters and asks them questions. Although she is almost never alone with any of them, the documentary is taking several months to film and her coworker begins to get lazy, sneaking away during the sessions to meet with a member of staff they've been eyeing. While MC is frustrated at first, she lets it go because the additional privacy lets the monsters she's interviewing open up a bit more. She is particularly interested in three prisoners with almost no documentation but each have a rap sheet a mile long.

Killer

He was captured about a year ago and charged with the murder of twelve people, as such he was sentenced for life. Almost nothing is known about him though, such as the true number of his victims, where he came from, what his true name is, etc. Killer of course refuses to answer any of these questions, and often mocks the guards about his true victim count yet never admits to anything. He tends to make light of the situation and doesn't seem to believe, or maybe refuses to, that he'll be locked up for much longer. He claims his boss will come for him and then everyone will see.

Over time though, MC begins to see how frustrated he is becoming with being locked up. Despite what he'd let you believe, he is beginning to worry that Nightmare isn't coming for him. The thought is beginning to drive him mad too and while he may appear friendly, he is one bad day away from snapping.

Killer flirts relentlessly with Reader and often makes jokes, which really gets to her at first. She pushes through for whatever reason and eventually begins to see a different side to him. He is definitely a dangerous person and he definitely killed those people and likely thousands more, but she still feels a little sympathy for him. His charisma begins to get to her.

One day, MC is about to leave when a prison riot breaks out. She is caught in the middle and a monster attacks her. Killer shows up and defends her, although in doing so, she gets to witness everything he was rumoured to be. He doesn't even need to use his magic and nearly kills the monster, although hesitates in landing the final blow. He decides not to kill in front of Reader and sits with her until the riot ends.

This does change her opinion of him drastically and she makes an effort to keep seeing him, even outside of her work hours to get to know him a bit better.

[alovesreading]

Constant Repeat | Part 13

Summary: Having worked at Focus Creeps for a year, Ella knows that as a production assistant and part of the crew, there’s one important rule: don’t interact with the talent unless it’s needed. But once she meets Arctic Monkeys, and the recording of the music videos for their upcoming fourth studio album starts, the band seem to become her exception. Not only because they treat her more like a friend than just someone else they’re working with but when Alex continuously makes her blush with his flirting, so enthralled by her that he forgets he’s got a girlfriend, Ella finds herself growing closer to him. As videos are filmed, wrapped and edited, the friendship lines become blurry. Situations unfold, secrets are told and others are kept under lock and key, but how long can Alex and Ella endure being stuck in each other’s minds on constant repeat.

Word Count: 24.9k

Story Warnings: Throughout this series there will be suggestive talk, jealousy, cheating, alcohol and drug use, angst, smut.

A/N: Well hello... It's the one we've been waiting for and I'm actually fucking jumping in my spot as I write this. Cannot wait for you to read this, and yes the pictures in the moodboard are what you're thinking. Safe to say it’s gonna get a bit steamy, enjoy ;) xx

Masterlist

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | 

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Ella woke up slightly terrified yet excited that Saturday morning.

She hadn't gone on a first date since the one she went with her ex at the start of the previous year and after everything that had happened with him, the prospect of going on a date, even if it wasn't more than a last minute plan, was wracking her nerves.

The feeling had made her almost miss breakfast, her appetite almost gone until she started feeling faint and she realized that if she wanted to actually not have a miserable day then she'd have to eat.

She had gone downstairs to the hotel's restaurant in a zombie-like state, ordering herself some scrambled eggs and pancakes so the homely feeling of the food made her feel better. And it did.

When she got upstairs, she took a shower and lounged in bed, still in her robe and letting her hair air dry, until it was at least half past twelve. The date wasn't until four but she figured she'd slowly get ready so she'd not freak out about the date and bail out of it at the last minute.

Ella had been absentmindedly straightening her hair and curling the ends of it when her phone rang, and it was none other than Mrs. Healy.

"Good afternoon Miss Hayes, are you ready for today?" Flo greeted her with a chipper tone in her voice, Ella could practically see the beaming smile on the artist's face just from her voice.

Biting on her bottom lip, she let the phone rest on her lap as she continued with the next section of hair and admitted, "I'm actually nervous..."

Flo cooed at her, "Good but also don't be. He's an absolute dream."

The tiny piece of information only made Ella more curious about the person's identity, who she now knew was a male but that being the only hint she'd gotten had her somewhat obnoxiously asking, "Are you finally gonna tell me who it is?"

But all she got was another vague answer, "All you have to know is that he's fit and I know you'll get on with him perfectly well."

At least the reassurance that they would get on well was easing Ella's nerves a little. Not as much as she wished though, but that was because she knew herself and when she first met anyone, she got shy and was a bit awkward, so she was praying that she'd be able to get a bit of courage not to make a fool out of herself.

Thankfully Florence had stayed on the phone with Ella as she finished doing her hair and she'd actually video called her when was doing her makeup, making her laugh throughout it all and somehow making her forget about how tense she had been for a bit.

Matty had just come back from a meeting when Ella was showing Flo the dress she had gotten in Manchester for the date and, to Flo's dismay, he had almost slipped and told Ella who it was that she was seeing in merely an hour from then.

"Matthew!" Flo had exclaimed loudly before the name fell from his lips and he had quickly thrown his hand over his mouth with wide eyes.

His honest, "I'm so sorry." sounded muffled behind his hand and it only got an eye roll from his wife.

Ella was gutted that her only chance to find out had gone that way, telling Flo, "Why are you so fast?" with a sorrowful voice which had the British woman laughing.

Flo took her husband's close mishap as a sign to let the girl go, "You're gonna have to get faster Miss, it's quarter past three and it's a twenty five minute walk over there."

"Shit, right." Ella cursed under her breath, realizing she needed to get dressed already and leave as soon as she could so she wasn't late.

"You're gonna look stunning, hun." Flo reassured her since she seemed to start growing panicky, "I'm gonna leave you now so you can change but you have the best time Ellie, alright?"

Ella pursed her lips at the camera and clutched her chest, "Thanks Flo, love you."

Flo grinned sweetly at her American friend and reciprocated, "Love you too. And let me know how it goes, alright?"

"Will do, but I don't promise anything too interesting." Ella made sure to make that point clear, she didn't have much expectations for the date just so she wouldn't end up feeling defeated for it not meeting whatever she could imagine it to be if she allowed herself to.

But Florence was in heavy doubt of it not being interesting considering she knew who Ella was meeting with. So she offered Ella a gallic shrug, "Yeah, well... We shall see about that."

The artist looked as if she was holding back laughter so Ella narrowed her eyes at her and sternly inquired, "What?"

Which wasn't answered because Flo played dumb and simply said, "Okay byeee! Love you!" loudly before hanging up the phone.

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Ella walked the best she could in her high heeled chelsea boots which were not a great pick when mixed with how nervous she was and how far she'd had to walk. She had debated getting a taxi when she was walking through the hotel lobby but decided against it when she realized that if she did, she'd get there quicker and she wanted to stall as much as she could.

She wasn't even late yet, ten minutes left for the clocks to strike four in the afternoon and she was merely five minutes away. The whole walk, she had been practicing in her head whatever she could say to the guy she was meeting with, just to prevent embarrassing herself. If anything went wrong though, she had brought her camera with her and a few rolls were stuffed in her pocket so that she could at least take the opportunity to take pictures.

She had gone from any topics she could come up with about herself, deciding against being the one to mention her tragic love life and definitely not touch the subject of her lack of driving skills when it came to manual transmission—she had enough with the Monkeys teasing about it even after two years—, and picking a few questions that could be interesting to ask the guy.

But all the inquiries and words she had been rehearsing died in her throat when she rounded the corner on the end of the restaurant's street and she saw the tall guy smoking a cigarette, leaning on a lamppost right by the entrance of the establishment.

Ella thought of making a run back to the hotel, hesitating which way to go and how it would work with her long dress but his eyes fell on her before she could make up her mind and when he smiled sweetly at her, cigarette perched between his lips, she knew it was too late.

On Ella's face a shy smile broke and she gave him a little wave before approaching him, faking confidence as she got closer until he was only a few feet away so she said, "Oh hi, I wasn't expecting you."

Her face was burning and she knew he could see it because he smirked down at her, and cheekily asked, "Were you hoping for someone else?"

Looking up at him through her eyelashes, Ella smiled harder at his playfulness and in a rush of braveness she chose to play along, "Do you really want to know the answer?"

He took a drag of his cigarette and let the smoke out steadily as he shook his head, "I'm just hoping you remember my name."

And how could Ella forget, "Of course I remember you, George."

George hummed, taking one last drag as he took in her appearance and he grinned mischievously when seeing the dark satin and lace of her dress contrasting on her skin, her leather jacket making her look even more stunning and coincidentally matching the one he was wearing.

"Glad you haven't, Ella." The drummer replied with a wink, dropping the bud on the ground and stepping on it before taking something out of the pocket of his dark jeans, "Flo sent this for you."

An involuntary "Oh." fell from Ella's lips, entirely intrigued by what could be that friend had wanted to tell her that couldn't be said on the phone because George handed her a folded piece of paper that only said Ellie x on the front.

Ella carefully opened it, trying her best to avoid George seeing it—which was a bit of an issue since he was so tall he could've easily read if he looked down—and she instantly blushed harder when she read Get the nice kind of messy ;) x

A flashback of the moment at Glastonbury when she had been gawking at George and she had let slip how fit she found him came to the forefront of her mind and she couldn't help herself getting a little flustered at the mere thought of it.

In an attempt to try and play it cool, Ella folded the note and shoved it in one of the pocket's of her leather jacket, clearing her throat, adjusting the strap of her camera on her shoulder and tucking a strand of hair behind her ear like it was all fine.

But George could see her cheeks bright pink, the rush of color even going to the tips of her ears which she had just let show with her last action. "What did she say?" He had kept his promise that he wouldn't open the note when Florence gave it to him earlier that day, even though he had been really tempted too, especially when he realized Matty knew what it said for he was giggling when his wife handed it to him.

Ella didn't give him an answer though, only a little cough that acted as a coverup of her avoiding his gaze and a subtle shrug, "Just a little joke."

"Can you share?" He tried further, his hand coming to nudge her softly in the arm.

Not even that helped her answer change. She shook her head and said a shy, "Not really."

"I see how it is." George had narrowed his eyes at her and added, "S'alright, I'll remember that." which was a promise that had Ella biting her tongue.

"Shall we go inside?" The drummer said then, watching her struggling to come up with a response to his previous statement.

The new question was much easier to reply to, a soft "Yes." falling from her lips, breathlessly.

And he took her breath even more when he let her walk ahead, only to rest his hand on her lower back delicately and casually comment, "You look beautiful by the way. Really like that we're matching with the leather jackets."

The opportunity to not acknowledge the compliment was perfect because she felt like she was going to explode under George's attention. She giggled and nodded, "What a great coincidence huh?"

His answer being, "Hot coincidence." accompanied by a wink didn't make it easy for her though and she found that being on a date with George Daniel meant blushing every five minutes even if the chat was about mundane topics.

They had talked about their hometowns, to which George had found the opportunity to say how much he liked cowgirls and comment on how good she looked at Glastonbury with her boots. They had exchanged stories about their jobs, Ella asking all that came to her mind about producing music which she found fascinating that he was the one to produce all of his band's songs. They had told each other how they had ended up doing what they were doing currently, Ella cooing constantly when George told her how the guys became friends and how the band had come together, George being fascinated about her knowledge on films and everything to do with photography and cinematography.

Then he had asked her about her hand tattoo, smirking when he rubbed his thumb over it and asking if she had any more which ended up in them sharing the amount of ink they had on their bodies which George beat her to by an incredible amount. They both had ended up taking their jackets off and showing each other each piece they had on their skin.

Eventually, the chat had come back to the band and Ella had asked him whereabouts they had toured so far, her jaw dropping the more his list continued and she genuinely had a hard time wrapping her head around them being relatively new to the mainstream scene when they were already going to all those places.

She'd been so amazed at every place he'd mentioned that she'd ended up telling him it was her first time in England.

"Really? First time here?" He asked intrigued before taking a sip of his wine.

She nodded because she had a bit of food in her mouth and she waited until she swallowed to correct him, "Anywhere outside the States really."

George was quite surprised about that, "No way. Are you liking it here then?"

"Yeah, it's quite nice." Ella admitted with a soft smile, "Love how different it is from what I've grown up seeing."

He hummed, "Have you been anywhere else other than London and Glasto?"

And she nodded, her smile growing as she said, "Went to Sheffield and Manchester yesterday and the day before."

"Ohhh, big up Manc." He smirked, liking hearing that she'd visited the city he held dearest to his heart, but then he traced back to what Ella had said and with an eyebrow raised added, "Sheffield though... Did the lads take you?"

"Alex did, yeah." She mindlessly answered as she gathered some more food with her fork and took it in her mouth.

"Right, Turner." The drummer nodded, and before he could let the subject go he had to mention, "Thought you two were going out actually. Surprised me when Flo called me and asked if I wanted to go on a date with you."

"Oh no, we're not. But god, that's embarrassing." Ella winced at the information, both pieces of them.

George smirked playfully, "Dating Turner?"

Ella laughed in response to that, shaking her head before clearing up, "Flo asking you if you wanted to go out with me. You know you could've said no."

He frowned at her, like she had just said the most outrageous thing and he wholeheartedly asked, "But why would I?"

"Oh George, stop it." Ella warned him, pursing her lips and narrowing her eyes at him.

"What's wrong sweetheart?" George reached his hand out to touch hers, the one with her 'Pure Desire' tattoo again, and she almost shivered under it.

Ella let her fork down beside her plate and fanned herself with her hand as she said, "You're making me blush."

But that was nothing that would keep him quiet, because he honestly admitted, "Yeah and I quite enjoy doing it."

The rest of the date had been spent between good food, good wine, laughter, a picture she had taken of George, and chatter that had been really nice. Getting to know George had been like a breath of fresh air, that's why when they had left the restaurant, the drummer had offered to walk her back to her hotel and Ella hadn't even doubted to accept.

He had taken a few detours, taking her around to places that she hadn't seen from where he had hilarious and very wholesome stories of his childhood and teenage years when he would come around to London with the lads and other friends just mess about.

And Ella had been grateful for the anecdotes because she was making sure to capture each place in its unique beauty and she knew behind each shot she'd have the memory of what George had shared with her.

George watched her closely every time she took a picture, taking in all that she did every time she wanted to take a picture. She was so adorable to him, the way she lit up when she'd pressed the shutter and looked at him excitedly when she rolled the film.

The two had walked through a gorgeous park, one that was bustling with people. Some were running, others having picnics, some walking their dogs, some biking past everyone and some just leisurely taking a stroll like they were.

They had been approached by the cutest dog who had strayed away from beside their owner who was sitting on a bench and excitedly walked up to them.

Ella cooed as she crouched down, petting the husky's head and put on a funny baby voice to greet the dog. George had chuckled, crouching down right beside her and showered the dog with attention as well.

From the bench, they heard the owner apologize to which they replied that it was alright and complimenting him on how gorgeous his dog was.

They asked about it, which ended up being her and called Daisy, which had Ella and George cooing again.

She had asked the owner if she could take a picture of Daisy and he had nodded right away, telling her to please do so. Ella had the biggest smile on her face as she looked through the viewfinder and tried focusing the shot, George had helped her by waving his hand right on top of the camera so it looked like Daisy was staring into the lenses perfectly.

Before they could continue walking after managing to get a few pictures of Daisy, Ella asked the owner for an email address so she could send the pictures to him and she was so glad the man had one.

After saving it on her phone's notes app, Ella and George waved the man and Daisy goodbye. The dog wagging her tail around as she stayed sat beside her owner on the bench this time.

Ella blew the husky a kiss and said loudly, "Bye Daisy darling!"

That just made George's chest swell and in a lack of any more self control, he wrapped his arm around Ella's waist and pulled her into him, her chest hitting his chest and making them both stop.

"Oh hi." Ella giggled at the sudden action, her hands had subconsciously ended up on his chest after that.

But any other words died in her throat when he dipped his head and trapped her lips with his.

Ella hummed into the kiss, which was a dizzying combination between sweet and determined. His left arm stayed wrapped around her waist, pulling her flush into his chest but the other one came up so his hand cupped her jaw and kept her at the perfect angle for him to kiss her.

Her arms slowly moved up until they were wrapped around his shoulders and she let her fingers tangle in his hair. It was soft and slightly long which she really liked. His tongue brushed against her bottom lip, his fingers clutching her tighter and she let her mouth open so they could taste each other.

She had completely forgotten where they were until a cyclist rushed past them and rang their bell multiple times, startling them out of the kiss. Yes we are in the middle of the road but that was fucking rude, she thought. She had really enjoyed that kiss, and it showed in the way she looked up at George with rosy cheeks and something written on her face.

"I liked that." George cheekily stated, getting ahold of her hand and resuming their walk.

Ella hummed, trying not to giggle because of the feeling that was bubbling inside her. "Yeah, I liked that too."

She felt like a teenager. Blushing to herself while she walked hand in hand with the person she had a crush on, and it was so ridiculous but so relieving at the same time to feel that kind of pathetic elation instead of despair and heartache.

Their chatter resumed, only it was getting more and more flirty and she liked where it was going until they managed to get to the hotel she was staying at and she sighed sadly when they were a few feet away from the big glass doors.

"This is me." Ella mumbled, squeezing his hand in hers but he didn't let go.

He hummed as if hesitant of believing what she'd just said and instead he suggested, "Don't you wanna take another walk around the block?"

"George, my feet hurt." They had been hurting for a while but she hadn't said anything just to not ruin things.

The drummer came to a quick solution, "I'll carry you."

Which made her chuckle, "Sure you would." She genuinely didn't want the date to end so in a bit of a rushed decision, she bargained, "Don't you... Do you wanna come upstairs?"

He got a kick of excitement inside him but he wanted to play it cool, so he joked, "What, are you gonna take my picture?"

Ella held back a snort of laughter, and shrugged as if it was fine by her that he only wanted that. "If that's what you want." There was a little voice in her head that told her not to but there was another one that purely encouraged her to have fun.

"Yeah, that works." George casually said, like he wasn't praying that he got lucky to even get another kiss out of her.

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"Where'd you want me?" George turned to look at her as she dropped her camera on one of the bedside tables and shed her jacket off to perch on the back of a loveseat close to the door.

Ella took one of the new rolls out of her pocket and changed it for the one she'd almost fully used earlier that day. "Wherever you're comfortable." She indicated the drummer, focused on perfectly lining the roll before she could turn to him.

"Bed's quite comfy." She heard George say from behind her and when she looked up to see him, she found him lying on his side, head perched on his hand and a smirk on his face. "Paint me like one of your french girls." He teased, resting his other hand dramatically on his forehead.

The American girl giggled at his antics, "You're such an idiot." She shook her head as she came up to the bed, and tried looking at the scene through her lenses but she wasn't quite convinced by the shot.

George watched her struggle, stepping backwards and forwards, to the sides before sighing. He reminded her, "I'm not used to being the one to pose for the camera. You're gonna have to guide me."

"Okay." She thought about it as she bit on her thumb and once a vision came to her, she started instructing him, "Lean into your forearms, sideways so you fit in the bed." But she found what was bothering her and it was that his legs were half hanging off the bed.

"Why are you so tall, oh my god." Ella went over to the drummer and prompted him to go further into the bed, perched one of his sock-clad feet up on the bed and the other leg stayed stretched on the bed. "There, now look at me."

George looked at her with a blank face first to which she complained about him not smiling but when he smiled he started giggling and if there had been something she had learned about George quite early into her date was that his laugh was incredibly contagious so she found herself shaking with laughter as she tried to take his pictures and she had to call him out for it.

"Don't laugh! You're making me laugh!" Ella scorned him, struggling to sound serious between her giggles.

"Sorry, sorry." He apologized halfheartedly, swallowing his laughter until he went back to a stoic face and he gave her the perfect soft smolder.

Ella hummed in satisfaction of that frame and then she moved onto instructing him to do the next pose, "Throw your head back a bit and close your eyes." He silently listened and did as she said which earned him a sweet, "Just like that." from her.

Her words made George give her a look though, one that had Ella lightly blushing which she hid behind her camera. "What?" She asked into the air, and warned him, "Don't look at me like that."

George chuckled to himself, wondering if she was that naive or if she was playing dumb but she took another picture of him and, purposely, he complained, "My leg's cramping." to then throw himself back on the bed, ending up completely splayed over the duvet and breaking the pose.

"George!" Ella scolded him, a bit of amusement sneaking through her words.

He groaned in response and without moving, told her to "Just take a picture like this."

Ella clicked her tongue and shook her head, "I can't even see your face."

"Come here so you can see it." He resolved easily for her, making her roll her eyes but in the end having to do just as he said because he really wasn't moving.

She tried getting a picture from above while standing beside the bed and she just couldn't. "That's an awkward angle, look at me." She tried to get him to turn to his side again but he closed his eyes and shook his head. "Need you on your side." She said explicitly this time but he didn't let up either.

Instead he suggested, "Why don't you just get up here?" He patted the bed, right next to his hip and she blushed just thinking about it. At her silence, he opened his eyes and turned his head to the side to encourage her with a "C'mon."

He offered his hand so she could use it as leverage to kneel on the bed on each side of his hips and hover above him. She struggled as she did so because she was growing nervous and therefore clumsy. "Fucking hell, George." She cursed under her breath, seeing him from above was an angle that she didn't know if she could handle.

"What?" George bit his bottom lip to not let a smirk break on his face.

Yet, not even that kept her from knowing that he knew just what he was doing but she wouldn't say anything, because she was enjoying this a lot more than she intended to. So she stuck to just replying, "Nothing." as she took yet another picture of him.

Remembering his tattoos, Ella bit her bottom lip for a few seconds before hesitatingly asking, "Why don't you take your jacket off?"

George let his hands rest right above her knees and squeezed her legs as he teased, "Is that code for something?"

She hoped her blush wasn't obvious so she could play off her nonchalant, "For 'I want to see your tattoos', yes."

It went right over his head though, because he kept smirking as he sarcastically replied, "Right, right."

She moved so he could take the piece of clothing off without her hovering over him but when he was done and laying on the bed again, he patted his right side so she could move her left leg there and have her hover over him properly again.

"How's that look?" He asked cheekily as his hands went to touch her legs again, the skin up to her mid thighs showing because her dress slit allowed it to open and rise up in the position she was in.

"Amazing." She breathlessly compliment, making him raise an eyebrow at her.

The shutter went off again and, as she rolled the film, he tested the waters, "Do you want to see them all?"

"Sure." The word came out so soft it could've gone with the wind, his hands leaving her thighs for a second to come grab the bottom of his shirt.

"Top's coming off next then, is that alright?" He asked for confirmation first and she nodded eagerly, her pupils dilating in anticipation.

He shed himself off his shirt in the constricted space he had, Ella was so spaced out that she hadn't moved but it wasn't a problem for George. If anything, his smirk grew at her inability to act and it got bigger when he threw it somewhere across the room and Ella was shamelessly gawking at his naked top half.

After a minute of Ella's eyes wandering everywhere, George brought her back to reality by letting his hands come over her thighs again. She trembled at the same time as the drummer said, "Ella?"

"Yeah?" She asked, slowly coming back to reality. Her brain had been completely taken over by the view of the taut muscles of his arms littered by colorful ink, a pair of symmetric 'broken' tattoos on both sides of his collarbones and his torso beautifully chiseled with a defined six pack.

"When are you taking the picture?" He reminded her trying not to smirk too hard not to put her off.

"Shit, sorry." She said under her breath and, quickly focusing, finally took a picture of him like that.

There was a heavy silence that hung over them, the trail of his fingers making her skin grow hot and her throat going dry at the growing need for anything at all. So Ella found herself surprised when he broke the silence to ask her, "Can I take your picture?"

"Mine?" She repeated like she'd heard wrong.

But George nodded entirely sure, and let her know, "You look really pretty from here."

In a feeble attempt not to have him do that, Ella reminded him, "You don't know how to."

"Matty had a film camera a few years ago, I know how to." George surprised her even further when he explained and just to try a bit harder, he pouted at her and said, almost begging, "Please?"

"Okay." She let herself accept, her mind too distraught by the view beneath her to even fight.

Once she handed him the camera, he lifted it up to his eyes and let out a chipper, "Smile." as an instruction, which she followed only just a bit shyly.

She was about to get the device back from him when he pulled it away from her grasp and pleaded, "Another one please?"

She sighed at the drummer's exaggerated pout, so it turned into a giggle and that was when the shutter went off. Her cheeks burned again when he complimented as he rolled the film, "Stunning."

Letting the camera rest beside them, George tried his luck and let his hands rub on the skin of her thighs a bit further up. She didn't refuse it, he could clearly see the growing hunger in her eyes as she looked down at him so he continued, letting his gaze trail down her body to drink in all of her but when he reached down to her legs was when he caught a slight glimpse of red ink on her left thigh that made him ask, "Do you have more tattoos?"

He didn't remember her mentioning any other tattoos than the ones she'd shown him at the restaurant. So when she nodded, he couldn't help but ask, "Where?"

"One, right here." Ella grabbed his right hand so he could touch over the fabric of her dress where the one on her rib was. Her eyes were looking right into his and his lips drew open further when she continued, "And this one here." lifting the fabric up to show her 'Divine Feminine' tattoo on her leg.

George let his right hand fall until it reached the one on her thigh, Ella still clutching the satin in her first so he could fully see it. He rubbed on the red ink on her skin as he stared at it, eliciting goosebumps to break on Ella's entire body.

He looked up and asked with a low voice about the only one he hadn't seen yet but she'd let him touch over her dress, "What's the other one?"

"A word." She vaguely said, as if he was encouraging him to continue asking about it.

"Which word?" His fingers were trailing further up, making her knees go completely weak. They had been hurting from hovering over him for so long but his touch had been the thing to finally have her sit on his lap.

And that was when she had felt him growing hard in his jeans.

His fingers had already been making her every thought go straight down to her core so Ella was driven by lust when she fully lifted the satin up and shed the dress off her body, leaving her only in her underwear and in full show for George.

It was involuntary, his hip jerking forward and pressing on Ella's center, his mouth agape at the sight and he grew even more breathless when Ella rolled her hips against his hardening cock.

"Fuck." He cursed under his breath, taking one quick look at the strange word on her rib before perching himself up on his left forearm to wrap his right hand around her neck and pull her in for a hungry kiss.

She leaned further into him, one arm wrapping around his shoulders and digging into his hair to pull on it as their lips moved with each other. Her fingers tugging on his hair made him groan into her mouth and, as payback, he tightened his fingers around her neck, eliciting a loud moan from her.

George pushed himself up with his left hand until he was sitting on the bed, his right arm wrapped around Ella's waist to keep her flush against him. Their tongues tasted each other and their breaths grew heavy when they started rolling their hips, meeting in the middle and creating a delicious friction that soon enough forced them to break the kiss only to gasp in pleasure into each other's mouths.

His fingers came to graze the ink on her left rib, her desperate side having her sink her hips down to roll against him and turned his, "What does it mean?" into a gorgeous moan. Their lips brushed as he asked and Ella responded to his sound with a mewl of her own and when that reached his ears, George forgot ever asking anything for he couldn't wait any longer to feel her lips on his again.

The kiss grew needy then. His hand went from her ribs down to knead the flesh of her ass, fingers harshly digging into her skin and encouraging her to move against him. Her clit was getting so stimulated from only being covered by the thin material of her lace thong against his jeans which meant she couldn't kiss him any longer.

A string of moans fell from her as she quickened her pace, getting louder as she went but her actions were interrupted when George clutched her tightly by her middle and swiftly turned them around so it was Ella resting on her back on the bed with him hovering right over her.

Her breath hitched in her throat at the sudden change of positions, her hand flying to cup his face and bring his lips back on hers and wrapping her legs around his waist to pull his hips into her core in a desperate attempt to have the friction back.

The feeling of his hard on coming down to rub harshly against her every time he bucked his hips forward was making her head spin. He started off by teasing her with the friction and leaving her hanging for a few seconds before going back in but when she started gasping into his mouth, he kept himself close to her and relentlessly rolled his hips on hers, hard cock pressing deliciously against her throbbing clit.

The pace grew faster, making it impossible for her to continue moving her lips with his so he took it as a sign to continue on with what he wanted to do first. Unfortunately, that meant his hips stopped moving and left her throbbing and clenching around nothing but he made it up to her with his lips all over her.

Wet kisses trailed down her neck, his lips taking their time to give every bit of her skin attention on the way down. Kissing, sucking, licking. His fingers ran down her sides until they clutch tightly on her hips, fingers pressing hard on the skin there and making her cry out in pleasure even louder.

Her breath was heavy by the time he stopped sucking bruises all over her chest and abdomen, her fingers tangled in his hair and tugged on it so he could come back up but instead his tongue ran flat from just above her belly button agonizingly slowly up until his nose bumped against the hem of her bra.

George looked up at her through his lashes, teeth coming to bite on the fabric and tugging them the slightest bit down so she knew what he wanted to do and Ella desperately nodded.

Without much of a proper attempt to take the piece of clothing off, he just tugged down the lace cups on it and let her tits spill out freely for him. He groaned from the pits of his chest, hips bucking forwards into the mattress harshly in search of some relief for himself.

But not letting any more seconds go by, George dove to suck one of her nipples into his mouth. Groaning around it, the vibrations of the noise causing white heat to run straight down to Ella's throbbing wet cunt.

He switched the sucking for flicking it with his tongue, blowing cold air and smirking as her nipple hardened at his actions, ending with a soft bite and tug that had Ella loudly saying his name in call for mercy.

She needed something, anything. She felt herself clenching around nothing and it was almost torturous. But her cries fell on deaf ears for he moved onto her other nipple and repeated his process. Ella was only ruining her underwear further, so wet she felt uncomfortably sticky with her thong still on.

"George, baby, please–" She pleaded in anguish when he started sucking bruises on her tits, biting them until she whimpered loudly under him.

"What do you need Ellie?" He asked sweetly, a stark contrast to his vicious attack on her chest.

"Anything. Just–" She tried to say, her words catching up in her throat as her desperation for release clouded her logic and made her sound stupid.

So she relied on grabbing one of his hands from her hips and guided it down to where she needed him most. The simple graze of one of his fingertips on her swollen clit eliciting a pathetic mewl out of her.

"Oh sweetheart," George tutted, "Made quite a mess, haven't you?" His pointer finger ran up and down her clothed core slowly and so faintly Ella didn't know if she was imagining it.

Applying a bit more pressure assured him to hear every one of Ella's needy sounds and feeling like she had waited enough, he left a light feather kiss over her center.

"Need help cleaning up this mess, yeah?" His words were sweet, like he was finally taking pity on her. The thought of him doing absolutely anything at that moment sounded so fucking good her hum in agreement sounded more like a whine, barely able to make eye contact with him in her hazy mind.

His long tongue ran flat over her underwear, wetting even more than it already was and he moaned at the taste of her soaking through it. His fingers tugged the fabric down her legs and threw it somewhere behind him in record time, and he found himself almost drooling at the sight of Ella completely exposed for him.

If Ella'd had any hint of inhibition left in her, she would've tried to close her legs under his attentive gaze but he was entranced and she'd had it with waiting any longer so she propped her legs wide open and squirmed in her place.

"George, please."

Her pleading was so sweet, so desperate, he couldn't deny her. So he dipped his head in between her legs and started lapping at her like a starved man. At the first proper taste he had moaned loudly, tongue running up and down her slit to gather as much of her as he could and enjoying every drop of her on his tongue.

"Are you not gonna continue taking my picture?" George interrupted his task to tauntingly ask, going back to using his tongue on her, this time flicking it up and down quickly on her clit and making her shiver.

Her words caught in her throat when he didn't relent his actions, "Right– F-fuck! Right now?"

Only allowing himself to stop for the amount of seconds it took him to say, "Yes baby, be a good girl and take my picture."

That 'good girl' had made Ella roll her eyes in utter pleasure. Her head turned quickly to see where he'd left the camera and brought it to her eyes to take a picture as fast as she could. Her thoughts were already becoming clouded by the growing heat in her lower belly.

His disheveled dirty blonde hair in between her legs, his arms underneath her legs and hands clutching her thighs in place was what she captured in that frame. The shutter went off letting George know she'd done as he'd said and he congratulated her by praising her with a proud, "Such a good girl." and a few kisses to her clit which made her jolt.

He went back down, trying to clean up the mess of slick and saliva that was dripping down her inner thighs and onto the duvet and a desperate Ella had started rocking her hips against his face, trying to steer him back to where she wanted him to be and, to her satisfaction, he followed the silent instruction by going back to her center and this time pointing his tongue and dipping it inside her.

Her legs instinctively closed around his head, eliciting a breathy laugh from him that hit her core as he continued tongue fucking her. His hands came to spread open her legs again, holding her limbs down on the bed strongly, not allowing her to move any longer.

The feeling of his wet tongue dipping in and out of her had her growing louder, begging and pleading with him not to stop, but he did.

In that moment, Ella swore she could cry as she'd felt herself nearing closer to the edge but just before she could pathetically let her frustrated tears roll down, his lips wrapped around her throbbing clit and he sucked on it applying the perfect amount of pleasure. Enough pressure for her to let out a string of moans of his name and then a bunch of "Yes! Fuck yes!", hands flying down to tangle her fingers in his hair and keep him in his place.

"I'm gonna cum!" She yelled out loud, eyes shut tightly since the pleasure impeded her from keeping them open, and when George started humming as he sucked her clit, she was done for.

Her legs trembled under his hold, toes curling and her fingers surely tugging his hair tighter than she was before. She blacked out as her orgasm hit her hard, the oxygen in her lungs leaving her entirely as her back arched off the bed and she came back when his incessant sucking became too much for her oversensitive self and she pulled him back off her.

He giggled, completely entranced by her fucked out state. Watching her cum had been an experience but god didn't she look beautiful with her chest heaving, bruises looming on her skin, a flush to her face and chest, a thin coat of sweat making her body and face shine.

But before he could give her any more attention, his gaze fell back to her cunt and it was glistening with arousal. She tasted so good to him, so he wasted no more time to lick her clean. Her legs trembled at the resumed contact of his tongue on her sensitive core, whimpers stubbornly leaving her as he went.

Her fingers had left his hair alone but her left hand cradled his head as he lapped up at everything she gave him and after a whole minute of him meticulously licking clean every inch of skin that had been wet with her arousal, he started a trail of kisses from her mound until he reached her belly button.

Flashing a smile up at her, George rested his chin on her lower stomach and she couldn't hold herself back from brushing his messy hair back almost adoringly, post orgasm haze making her extra appreciative of him and his skilled tongue work.

His fingers rubbed circles on the top of her thighs, "Feel good?" He asked before leaving more soft kisses on her lower stomach.

"Very." She answered with a smile, fingers brushing through his hair.

He hummed at the feeling of her touch, "Good to know, pretty."

Turning to see where she'd left it, Ella reached out to grab her discarded camera, melting into the duvet under George's gentle touch and his lips pressing on her skin leisurely. She went to lean on her forearms so that she could get a better look at him, and he looked up at her with a dizzying smirk that she managed to capture.

His lips tickled the skin of her lower stomach when he pointed out, "Didn't even have to tell you this time."

Putting the device back down on the bed, Ella shrugged, "You look good."

"Do I, now?" He teased, dropping his hands from her thighs and pressing them on the mattress so he could slowly push himself up and crawl his way up to hover over Ella again.

"You always do." Her words came laced with lust, his eyes darkening as he got closer and she just couldn't wait any longer to have him in more ways. "Come here." She instructed by wrapping a hand around his neck, fingers pressing on the sides of it until he groaned loudly in pleasure and when he let the sound leave his lips, she smirked and warned, "My turn."

Pulling him in by his neck meant that their tongues met instantly when they started the kiss, and when Ella tasted herself on his tongue, she moaned so loudly George groaned just as loud in response.

The kiss was all teeth clashing, spit dribbling down to their chins, noses bumping, deep exhales sounding loudly and trying to overpower the sounds of their swollen lips moving together.

It had been George the one to grow louder when Ella's hand dropped from his neck, down his naked torso to the button of his jeans, which she undid with quick fingers and pulled the zip down before she could palm him over the fabric of his boxers.

"F-fuck..." He let out when her nimble fingers squeezed him and stroked him up and down, he was so hard that her touch was making him shiver.

Ella could feel him so swollen under her hand, her mind already spinning about how big he was but she wanted to have him unravel under her so badly, she pushed any worries about his size to the back of her head.

His hips moved slowly, as if he was helping with her movements, clearly wanting to reach his high but she wanted to taste him and she wanted it now. So she left his cock alone to instruct him to, "Lay down, baby."

They switched positions, so George was laying on his back and Ella was kneeling between his legs. He panted as he watched Ella shamelessly gawk at him, her mouth going dry at the clear outline of his cock.

"Fucking hell, George." She cursed as she tugged on the top of his jeans so he could lift his hips up for her to take them off him.

He did as instructed and Ella just was too impatient to wait any more, she wanted to feel him heavy on her tongue already. His boxers came off quickly after his jeans, his hard cock springing up to touch right by his navel.

Ella gulped. He was thick, angry red tip already leaking from how aroused he was. Intimidating but so inviting. She dipped her head down to start kissing his hips, kisses that went from sweet to wet and messy the more he squirmed under her.

"Ella..." George pleaded, hand coming down to cradle her head. Not to push it towards where he wanted her but to have her look up at him and see just how fucking desperate he was for her.

Ella felt that look go down straight to her core, mewling at the feeling. "I know baby, I know." She said in a coo.

Her fingers wrapped around him, the pressure of them making George huff with his lips pressed together. He felt so heavy in her hand, veins popping for her to see how pained he was.

"You're so big." She trailed off, a bit of wander in her voice. She had no idea how he'd fit in her mouth, he was by far the biggest dick she had ever come across but she liked a challenge.

Her tongue licked a bold strip from base to tip, eyes rolling to the back of her head when she tasted the salty arousal that had already been leaking from him. He had cursed under his breath at the feeling, but the breathy words turned into a loud moan when she wrapped her lips around him and sank her mouth down onto him.

Barely able to fit half of him in her mouth until he hit the back of her throat, Ella pulled back to catch a breath, her hand taking over for a few seconds as she inhaled deeply and went back in. She gagged around him when she managed to get him deeper, George moaned loudly as she did so, trying his hardest not to buck his hips upwards.

His hand went back to hold her head but this time, his fingers tangled in her hair, only to pull her up so she could breathe. But she didn't want to have it easy, she wanted to see how much of him she could take and hear every one of his moans.

So she went against his hold, sinking her mouth further down and gagging around him again. Her hand stayed at the base of his cock, stroking the rest she couldn't get to, as she continued bobbing her head up and down on him.

George was a mess of groans and moans, gasping for air whenever she gagged and moaned around him, her throat tightening around him was driving him insane.

He lifted his head up slightly to look down at her, pulling her hair so she would come off him and meet his eyes. And George was met with a panting Ella, pink wet swollen lips, saliva dripping down her chin and neck, tears falling out of the corner of her eyes, hair disheveled but pupils dilated and a satisfied smirk at it all.

Her hand kept stroking him up and down, fingers applying the perfect amount of pressure and he moaned at the combination of her touch and his view of her, "Fuck, you're so perfect."

The praise only encouraged her more, for she leaned back down and licked a strip up his cock again, this time looking up at him through her lashes. An innocent look in her eyes as she lapped at the tip of his cock.

He exhaled in awe, "Look at you– Shit!" He cursed loudly when she sank slowly back down until again he reached her throat, his hips bucking upwards involuntarily and making her gag loudly.

She gasped out for air for a mere second before she did it again, until she managed to control her gagging a bit better and encouraged George to fuck her mouth with a simple squeeze to his hip.

"Oh fuck– Such a pretty filthy girl." He praised as he obeyed the silent instructions and rocked his hips forwards slowly and ever so slightly. "You like it when I fuck your throat?" His question was thrown out into the air in between groans.

She answered with a hum that vibrated around him and that was when he started feeling like he was losing control. His hips grew erratic and Ella noticed so she hummed and moaned around him even more, causing him to get closer to his high.

"Ellie m'gonna cum!" He warned her loudly, the wet squelching sounds of him going in and out of her mouth and their moans bounced off the walls.

And when her hand dropped from around the base of his cock to play with his balls, he was sent over the edge. He pushed his hips forwards and stilled as he came, dick twitching in her mouth and his cum coated the walls of her throat with a warmth she appreciated with another low moan.

His hips fell back on the bed but she didn't relent just yet, sucking him off for a little longer to take everything she could. But he pulled her off him by her hair when he couldn't take it anymore, cursing and calling out her name like he was scorning her.

"Fucking hell." He mumbled, still dizzy from his orgasm but completely entranced by the way she came off him with a whimper and a satisfied smirk.

She wiped the drool off her chin with the back of her hand and slowly crawled up until she was laying on her side right beside him, staring right into his eyes with hunger still flashing in hers.

"Feel good?" She asked just what he'd asked her but in a mocking manner.

It got her a chuckle in response before one of his big hands came to cup her jaw and crashed their lips together.

Kissing George had Ella dazed. His lips were soft but firm when moving along with hers, they were wet and swollen, warm exhales leaving his parted lips for her to swallow, tongue peeking through them to meet hers. He'd moaned so loud when he tasted himself on her tongue, fingers digging into her cheek and making her mewl in response.

Her skin grew hot the more they kissed. He didn't even let her get a proper breath whenever he pulled back for a brief second, because he was back on her mouth—lips smacking and tongues licking at each other.

Ella's hands had gone on a path from his face to his head, the back of his neck, his shoulders, and eventually to his back, fingers digging into it when he started nipping at her bottom lip, at the same time as his right hand dropped from her jaw down to pinch her nipples, eliciting gasps out of her.

"George..." She let out in a gasp when he had her nipple pinched and twisted between his thumb and index finger.

He was smirking right over her parted lips, amused at the way she shivered every time he went from one nipple to the other. Her nails clawed at his back when she felt the electric shocks that his touch gave her travel all the way down to her center, feeling herself growing wetter and that familiar knot in her lower stomach forming.

His lips slotted between hers again, distracting her from his missing touch from her tits and it going down to tease her cunt.

With his thumb, George started rubbing circles on her clit, making her pull back from the kiss with a loud gasp that turned into a cry of pleasure. She could feel herself throbbing already, and it got worse when he picked up his pace.

He wasn't going too fast but not slow either, the speed in which his thumb rubbed at her had her writhing her hips in response, subconsciously trying her best to get closer and closer to her high.

And Ella had felt herself start clenching around nothing when he slid a finger inside her. "George! Fuck!" His fingers were thick and long, curling inside her and making her see stars already, half lidded eyes catching him smirking at her and heavy breathing at her reaction.

"You like that?" He asked her teasingly, pecking her lips as her face scrunched up in pressure.

She hummed in response to him but he found that not good enough, so he added another finger, stretching her out easily and making her back arch as she moaned loudly. "Yes! Yes!" She encouraged, and when he curled his fingers again, knuckle deep inside her, she felt herself be completely overcome by pleasure and unable to grasp at her inhibitions, "Oh my– Fuck! Your fingers feel so good."

His fingers were slipping in and out of her easily, her hips erratically moving as he thrusted them inside her, "That's it, cum on them baby."

The praise had Ella completely fucked over, "George, I'm so– Fuckkkk!" She couldn't help but scream out when he pushed a third finger inside her, feeling completely stuffed with him.

It felt so good how much he was opening her up, and he was loving the way whenever he pulled his fingers back her walls pushing him off and having to slowly sink his fingers deep inside her again. "I know, I can feel you clenching hard around them." She was squeezing his fingers so tight, his throat went dry just thinking about her milking his cock, "Can't wait to fill you up and feel how tight you're around my cock baby."

She agreed, so drunk in pleasure she just wanted to feel even more of him, "I need you. George, I need–"

But he tutted, "You're cumming on my fingers first." She was about to cry out like a brat, about to beg for him to stuff her up but his words beat hers, "Come on baby, give it to me like the good girl you are."

His voice was low in her ear, so sultry and inviting she felt it deep in her core and she just couldn't say no. So she let go. Her toes curl as his fingers kept pumping in and out of her, hitting that spot perfectly for her to see stars as she came, white heat enveloping her and taking ahold of her body, "Fuck, fuck! Oh– George!"

"That's it, baby. So fucking stunning." He encouraged, watching his fingers continue to disappear inside her tightening cunt, her legs shaking and her hips moving clumsily to meet his hand.

She gushed all over him, slick drenching his hand and dripping down her cunt onto the duvet. He couldn't let it go to waste, so he pulled his fingers out and sucked them clean, moaning around them when he tasted her again. Soft and sweet. He wanted more.

Ella felt his fingers gathering her mess and she managed to peel her eyes open to watch him as he sucked it all off his fingers again.

Shamelessly, she just watched as he dipped down time and time again until he deemed his work of cleaning her up was done, the last one being offered out to her and Ella obeyed, wrapping her lips around his fingers and sinking her mouth on them to suck them clean. Her eyes stayed on his as she did so, moaning loudly around them while she batted her lashes at him.

The view made George's dick twitch. So he reached out behind her for the forgotten camera and when she was trying to catch her breath, eyes closed in bliss, he took a picture of her.

Her eyes snapped open at the sound of the shutter going off and she looked at him all startled like she needed an explanation. "You're so beautiful like this." He quickly justified, lifting the device back up to his eyes and adjusted the focus to take another one as he added, "All fucked out. Fucking gorgeous."

"Stop." She whined when the shutter went off again, hand coming up to grab at her lenses and force him to put it down, "I must look a mess."

His head shook, tongue swiping at his bottom lip with his eyes taking her in again, "You don't. You look hot." Skin glowing due to the thin layer of sweat their activities had caused, lips swollen and a hot pink color that matched the flush of her cheeks and chest, the gorgeous pattern of every bruise he'd sucked on her skin which were darkening more and more, hair disheveled and splayed over the pillows.

"I'm confiscating this." That was the brief ultimatum she gave him, grabbing the camera and turning the action on him instead.

She took just one picture of him and he allowed it, only to complain by saying, "You have enough of me." and taking the camera back.

She rolled her eyes, faking being annoyed and kissed him quickly before pushing herself up and off the bed, telling him, "Gonna go to the bathroom." making a beeline for her suitcase and getting herself a new pair of underwear first, adjusting the cups of her bra so they held her breasts again.

It wasn't longer than five minutes that she took, coming back to him wearing his boxers again and laying over the bedsheets—he'd discarded the duvet and left it a big crumpled knot on the floor by the foot of the bed—, a hand behind his head whilst the other was scrolling on his phone.

His position looked inviting, so she crawled on the bed and sat on his lap with a mischievous smile on her face. She reached out to get the camera he had placed on the bedside table at the same time as he dropped his phone there and his hands went up to hold her at her hips.

"Put your hands behind your head again." She instructed him softly, almost a mutter that sounded so shy, the corner of his lips tugged into a smirk.

She took a picture of him like that and another when he ran a hand through his hair but she stopped when his hands came back to grab at her skin, going from her waist until they softly came down to rest at her hips.

With a soft squeeze on her sides, he tilted his head to ask, "Am I allowed to smoke?" to which Ella nodded and got off him to open the balcony door and get him a cigarette and a lighter.

Getting back on top of him, she placed the cigarette between his lips but before she could give him the lighter, she grabbed the camera again just so she could capture the moment he lit it alive.

George looked so fucking hot lighting it up: cheeks hollowing ever so slightly, brows furrowing, long fingers that made the lighter look minuscule in his hand, lips pursed around the stick. She snapped away and captured the moment he blew out the smoke upwards, taking another drag and then blowing it in her direction.

The familiar scent of the tobacco and just how arousing she found it all, impulsed her to start moving her hips slowly on him. The sudden movement made his breath hitch in his throat, causing him to erupt in coughs when the smoke went up the wrong hole.

That's when she guided his hand to her mouth so he could place the cigarette in between her lips for her to take a drag. His mouth opened agape as she did so, the rolling of her hips only growing more intent and he started twitching and getting hard in his boxers.

He could feel her heat, the way she was wetting her underwear and starting to wet his own, the pulsing of her swollen clit. He could see how her nipples grew hard through the lace of her bra, and the way goosebumps rose in her skin as she went. Soft gasps that turned into hush whimpers that he wanted so badly to turn into those loud moans of hers that he was quite enjoying getting drunk on.

"Have you brought a condom?" She asked breathlessly, camera being once again forgotten somewhere on the bed for her to be able to rest her hands on his chest as leverage.

A flip switched inside George, the simple hint of him finally being able to sink himself deep in her making his blood rush down to his cock. "Yeah." He nodded eagerly and it was a relief when she quickly got off him so he could rush to get it, not without running out to the balcony so he could put out the cigarette on the ashtray outside and closing the balcony door behind him the second he stepped foot back into the room.

He had thought it was foolish of him to pocket a couple condoms before he left his flat earlier that day, fully scorning himself for being so ridiculous as to assume Ella would want to shag after their date but oh was he glad he had right then.

Condom in hand, George went back to the bed but not without shedding himself off his boxers first. Ella bit her bottom lip as she got her bra off to throw it on the floor behind her, seeing him wrap his hand around his length and pump it slowly as he watched her almost naked figure. Her hands went down to her hips so she could quickly tug down her underwear, eagerly taking it off and throwing it on the same spot on the floor she had dropped her bra.

Crawling up to the edge of the bed, she hummed as she watched him stroke himself up and down, her mouth watering for another taste of him. And when she got right in front of him, she dipped her head down until her mouth was right before his hardening cock and sticking her tongue out, she licked his head slowly.

He grew heavy on her tongue as she went, twitching in her mouth when she wrapped her lips around him again, his head thrown back at the feeling of her wet mouth enclosed around him and sucking him off patiently.

But he had to use an incredible amount of self restraint to pull her off him, a hand delicately coming around her neck to have her let go off his dick with a pop and pull her up to face him.

"I'm fucking you now."

George wasn't asking, he was simply informing her and that made her squirm under his gaze. Thighs pressing together and eyes drinking in the way lust made his behavior change. But Ella wanted a bit of control, even if it just was for him to ruin her.

"Can I ride you?" She asked innocently, puppy eyes that she prayed would get her a yes.

She took the way he pulled her in for a messy kiss as one.

In no time he was laying on his back with his head resting on the pillows, teeth ripping the condom wrapper open while Ella had her hand wrapped around him waiting for him to put the latex on. The anticipation grew and hung in the air like a heavy cloud as George rolled it down his length, sighing at the feeling of it around him.

She caught a glimpse of her camera through the corner of her eye and thought there wouldn't be a thing that was better than capturing his pure ecstasy in a picture so she grabbed it before she straddled him again.

Ella lifted the camera up to her eyes with one hand while the other got ahold of his cock to line him up, rubbing his head on her clit and making herself gasp at the feeling. She clenched around nothing as she did so, and she could feel herself drenched.

Even after he had stretched her out with his fingers, it was slightly challenging for her to take him when she started sinking into him. Her jaw dropped in a loud gasp when every inch of him started stretching her out, eyes watering at the feeling and trying to get her to shut them tightly but she did her best to not let her eyes close entirely so she could capture the way he groaned loudly with his head thrown back as she let her cunt swallow him.

Breath hitching in her throat, Ella sank down completely until she could feel him so deep it had a pathetic cry of pleasure slipping past her lips.

She drew her hips up and back down on him slowly, testing the waters on his size and what angle would be best for her to feel the best, and they both moaned loudly at the feeling. He was so big, he was filling her up in a way she'd never felt before so her walls were clenching hard around him which had his head spinning.

"Ella–" He breathed out, hands flying to her hips and clutching them tightly just to show how bad he was holding himself back from just thrusting up into her, or better yet just flipping them around and fucking her into the mattress.

"Fuck–, I know. I know." She said in a high pitch tone. One of her hands fell to rest flat on his chest and use as support, "I– oh, fuck..." She cursed as she rolled her hips forwards and then backwards this time, making her completely still at the insane sensory overdrive she was getting from it.

George knew she needed a second or two but she stayed frozen for longer than he could hold so he pleaded, "I need you to move baby, you're so tight."

"Just–" She tried to say, rolling her hips again and mewling loudly. George moaned back in response, his hands sliding down to her thighs as her head hung in pleasure.

Ella established a slow place, George's fingers digging into the flesh of her upper thighs grounded her into the moment and allowed her to take another picture. A picture that captured her legs on each sides of his toned chest, his fingers turning the skin under them white, his adam's apple bobbing as he gulped back a moan, the box tattoo on his thumb right next to the red ink of her 'Divine Feminine' tattoo on her thigh.

But after she pressed the shutter on that one, barely being able to clumsily roll the film, Ella just tossed the camera to the side mindlessly and used her new free hand to rest on his chest as well and the second hand of support helped her start moving her hips faster.

It was fucking delicious the way he kept hitting her g-spot from that angle, and when he started bucking his hips upwards, meeting her in the middle, she couldn't hold back the noises she let out. "George, fuck!" She cried out, clit feeling a bit of pressure every time she rolled down and he hit her pelvis.

His hands ran up from her thighs to mercilessly grab her ass, fingers harshly digging into her skin and stinging just in the best way. "Just like that baby. You feel so fucking good." He praised her with a groan, helping her sink down harder into him.

"You're so– Oh fuck–" She was cock drunk, her thoughts stupid and leaving her without even being able to finish a sentence.

"Tight little cunt, can barely fit inside you." George could feel himself meeting the hilt inside her every time, her cries growing in volume the faster the pace got. "You love it huh, being filled to the brim?"

"Yes, fuck! Yes, I love it, love your cock." She was dripping all over him, the noise of the wetness and their skin slapping every time they met bounced off the walls and, combined with their moans, made for a pornographic symphony.

"I know you can go faster. Can you do that for me baby?" He genuinely could feel himself not lasting any longer with how tight she was squeezing him.

"I can, I can." She promised almost desperately, wanting to be good for him. So she picked up her pace, her hands moving ever so slightly so she could straighten up a bit and when she did so she cursed out loud at the new angle, "Ah fuck!"

Her hips grew erratic, her knees helping now when she bounced up and down his cock ever so slightly, enough for her to incessantly gasp in a high pitch every time he hit that spot.

"Such a good girl for me." His hands stopped groping her ass to spank her, making her jolt forward with a loud gasp that turned into a mewl and a whine that tried to pass as a 'yes'. His dick twitched inside her at that reaction so he did it again and again, feeling her walls flutter around him with every hit, "You're squeezing me so tight baby, you gonna cum all over my cock?"

"Yeah, yes..." She gasped, and if she hadn't been so adamant on chasing her high, she would've noticed George quickly getting the camera and snapping a picture of her riding him. Hair a mess covering up her face but her mouth wide open in a moan, tits bouncing as she rode him, hands on his chest as support.

He'd just about managed to put the camera back down when he felt her squeezing him the tightest and that was when she came. "George! George! Ge–" She cried out, his name breaking down into a loud moan that tipped him over the edge along with her cunt milking him into the condom as she sloppily continued to ride him.

"Fuck! Ella!" He moaned loudly back, his hands going to her ass again to help her continue as he came, his dick twitching the more he spurt out into the condom, sweet relief making him see stars.

Unable to uphold herself any longer, she collapsed over him, chests heaving in sync as they came down from their highs. It was hard catching their breaths when their skin burned from the heat and stuck together from the sweat. And George knew she was rather uncomfortable from the way she groaned into him, her fingers lazily trying to brush the hair out of her face but huffing as it stuck to her sweaty forehead.

He brushed her hair back for her, fingers delicately grazing her face and earning a soft smile and a sigh from her. But then his hold went down to her hips so he could lift her up and off himself, to set her beside him, she whined at the loss of him.

Ella didn't even try to open her eyes, completely spent from their activities and snuggling into the pillows to find some comfort in the post orgasm haze.

George shed himself off the condom and tied it so he could throw it away, groaning as he pushed himself up and off the bed to make way to the bathroom.

He took about five minutes there and when he came back into the room, he smiled, finding a sleepy Ella struggling to keep her eyes open and smirking at him. He giggled as he walked up to bed and after taking her camera and placing it on one of the bedside tables, he carried her bridal style to take her to the bathroom.

Yes she was still on cloud nine but she had a bit of sense in her then so, after thanking him with a kiss, Ella told George she was alright from there and he could wait for her in bed.

She had realized what she'd said as she was washing her hands after peeing and she was cringing just thinking about him being gone once she went back into the room, but she found that he hadn't left and instead he had gone under the bedsheets and was waiting for her to cuddle up to him so they could get some rest.

Ella giggled when she got under the sheets and he hooked his arm around her waist to push her flush into him, her back pressed to his chest and he nuzzled into her neck from behind. Their legs tangled together and their breaths synced and slowed down as the minutes went by until they succumbed to their slumber.

✦✧✦✧✦✧✦✧✦✧✦✧

They got startled awake around ten in the morning when someone knocked on her door horrendously loud.

For a few seconds they stared at the door as if they were waiting for that person to knock it down and come into the room but then they announced who they were with a "Hello! Housekeeping!" and Ella sighed in relief.

Ella had to spring up from bed, calling out "Coming!" so that the staff member wouldn't come into the room, and after hastily grabbing her robe from the hanger and putting it on, she opened the door just enough to poke her head out and apologized.

"Sorry, can't come in yet." She said with an embarrassed flush on her cheeks.

But the lady outside her door waved her off and offered, "I can come back in around an hour or so."

The American nodded with a smile, "Sure, that'd be great. Thank you!" To that, the woman nodded and started walking up to the next door, so Ella closed the door and locked it again, her soul coming back to her body.

George laughed at her mortified expression which she scowled at him for but then she confidently shed herself off her robe and walked back to get in bed and she was met with a smirking George just taking in every inch of her body.

"Come here gorgeous." He invited her back into his arms and she didn't have to be told twice for her to go back being the little spoon for him. She'd had such good sleep being completely enveloped in him, heavy limbs acting like a weighted blanket and it was utter bliss.

But after seeing her naked again, skin littered with love bites he had left all over her, hair messy and tits perky and bouncing as she walked, George felt the need to show her a bit more of the appreciation he had shown her the day before.

His hand brushed her hair to the side so he could have access to the skin on the back of her neck. Goosebumps breaking on the skin there when he started pressing open mouthed kisses on it, fingers ghostly running down her back and stopping right on her lower back that had her back arching into him. Her ass grazed his dick every time, making it twitch and start to harden.

In search of friction, he pushed his hips forward and she reciprocated by pressing her ass against him. She couldn't help the passing thought of this being how it could've gone the morning after the wedding with Alex, if they wouldn't have freaked out and just let it happen. But all thoughts of the singer went out the window when George pressed himself against her again and had her mewling out loud at the feeling, "Hmm, George."

"Yes, baby?" His lips brushed against her skin, a shiver running down her spine and making her shudder, "You're so fucking beautiful, please let me make you feel good."

"Yeah..." Ella nodded quickly, it was a no-brainer. Her breath caught in her throat when she pushed his hips forwards again at the same time as she did and the tip of his cock grazed her entrance.

"Yes?" He moaned in her ear, hand coming around her front to play with her tits, "Can I make you cum again, sweetheart?"

She nodded eagerly, swallowing a moan as he pinched her nipple and when he cupped her whole tit with one hand, kneading it harshly, her "Please." came out in the form of a whine.

"Good girl. M'gonna make you feel so good baby, I promise." His hand continued playing with her tits as they kept grinding on each other, and when his cock was hard enough it had come up to rest heavily on his lower stomach, he let his fingers trail down until they hovered over her mound and he breathlessly asked, "D'you trust me?"

"Yeah, George..." She was basically pleading him to continue, hand coming to clutch his and guide his fingers down to her soaked cunt and when he felt just how wet she was, he groaned and pulled away.

"Wait." George instructed her, leaving her alone on the bed to get a condom. Ella heard the wrapper rip and him moaning as he put the condom on, stroking himself up and down a few times before he tugged the sheets off her and turned her from her side to her front so she was facedown and he could hover over her from behind.

His knees were on either side of her hips, forearms pressed on the mattress next to her shoulders and he kissed and sucked all over her back as he praised her for how gorgeous she was over and over. He kept bruising her up until Ella pushed her ass up and begged him to do something, the ache in her cunt too unbearable.

So George let go of the patch of skin he was bruising and did as she asked for, spreading her legs open as he knelt in between them and rubbed his tip up and down her slit.

"Don't tease, please." She cried into the mattress, her cunt fluttering around nothing and it was painful knowing just how good he felt inside her but he wasn't allowing her to feel it yet.

But then he just let himself slowly slip inside her and his jaw fell at her tightness in that angle, "Oh Ellie... Fuck–" He felt like he could barely fit in, but she was dripping with slick so it made it a bit easier for him to bottom out.

"George–" Ella choked out, head turning to the side to catch a glimpse of him. Her hands clawed at the sheets beside her head for dear life.

"I know. You're so tight." He cried out in pleasure, barely able to move an inch out of her because she was so snug it felt like she was pushing him out.

"Move baby, please." She begged again and he started going then, a slow pace at first that grew in speed rather quickly and had her cursing out loud, "Fuckkkkk!"

He gasped into her ear with every thrust, and it was soon that the sound of their skin slapping drowned the room along with their moans. "Gonna miss this tight little cunt so much." He said into her neck, sucking a bruise on the back of it before asking, "Gonna miss me too?"

"Ye– Yes! Oh!" She gasped when he hooked his left arm under her leg, pulling it upwards slowly and allowing her to stretch a bit more so she felt him deeper, "Gonna miss you so much!"

He chuckled smugly, "I know you will."

"Oh fuck!" She cursed as he hit her g-spot perfectly from that angle, his hips hitting her ass and reminding her of how sore the skin there was from the spanking he gave her the night before. "Yes, yes! Don't stop, please!"

"If you could only see yourself right now!" He cursed under his breath when he looked down to see himself disappear into her, over and over. If he kept looking at how he kept sliding in and out of her so easily, he would burst right then so he looked back up to her face and praised her once more, "Taking me so well baby."

"Harder, please." She asked for and stilling for just a second to get a better standing on his knees, George did as she asked, making her instantly get even louder when he hit that spot with more intensity, "Oh my– Fuck! Right there, yes!"

"Just like that, yeah?" His smirk grew on his face, feeling how it kept getting easier to slide inside her which meant she was fucking drenched and dripping all over him, her walls fluttering around him already making him see stars.

"Yes! Yes!" She chanted like a broken record, the coil in her lower stomach tightening by the second and threatening to snap at any moment, "I'm so close!"

His left arm lifted her leg even higher and then left it there to be able to bring his fingers down to rub at her clit and send her over the edge, "C'mon baby, cum for me sweetheart!" He encouraged her as he rubbed fast circles on her throbbing clit, which earned him choked out moans that turned into a throat ripping moan of, "F-fuckkkk! George!"

George felt her squeeze him so tightly as she came, making it so much harder for him to continue thrusting in and out of her which ended up with him stilling his hips as he came a few seconds after her with a loud, "Ah shit! Ella!"

His thrusts became sloppy and messy as she spasmed around him, whimpering as the aftershocks of her orgasm had her legs trembling under him and her white knuckle grip on the sheets faltered.

Letting his weight fall over Ella slightly, George sighed in complete bliss and he kissed the back of her head and her cheek multiple times to say, "Did so good for me sweetheart." He dropped a kiss on her lips for the first time that morning and praised her once more, "Pretty girl."

The way he spoke to her made Ella's stomach flutter, and he felt it when she clenched around him, "You like that huh?" He teasingly asked, to which she only mewled in response.

He pulled out, hearing her whine this time when she felt upsettingly empty again but her rubbed circles on her hips soothingly and asked, "Shall we go take a shower? Do you want me to help you up?"

Ella had barely managed to reply with a quiet, "Mhm..." when a loud ringing snapped them out of their bubble.

She didn't recognize the ringing so she figured it was George's. The drummer didn't do a thing to go and get it though, as he came to lay down beside her and shed himself off the condom they'd used.

He got up to discard it in the bathroom and just as he crossed the threshold of the room, he heard his phone start ringing again. He didn't listen to it, taking his time in the bathroom until he heard Ella call out for him.

A grunt left his lips when he came back to the room and picked up the phone and read his sister's name on the screen so he answered with a meek, "Y'alright?" to let her know he wasn't in the mood for constant ringing.

Ella heard pure silence surrounding them for a good half minute before George sighed a, "Fucks sake." The American opened her eyes to see him and moved onto her side to watch him as he spoke. "Right now? Really?" He asked, entirely unamused. "Yeah, really busy actually." He said sternly, looking at a naked Ella in front of him with wide eyes. That made Ella purse her lips not to laugh but what broke the giggles out of her was when he sighed loudly and muttered, "I hate you." to whoever it was. It was barely another half minute that he ended the call with an impatient, "Yeah, yeah. Sure. See ya'."

"What's wrong?" Ella asked curiously, her fingers playing with the ends of her hair.

George rolled his eyes at the situation, "My sister needs me for something. She says it's urgent but I doubt it." He shrugged then, ignoring the importance of whatever it was she needed him for, he had only been half listening really. "I can stay though, it wouldn't be the first time I ignore her."

That had Ella snorting in laughter, "Go, you idiot."

"But–" He tried to argue as he came to hover over her, head dipping to steal a kiss out of her which Ella broke after a few seconds by pushing his shoulders slightly so she could reassure him it was fine.

"It's okay. I had the best time with you, and that's all I wanted." Her hands came to the back of his head, fingers digging into the hair at the nape of his neck and scratched his scalp softly.

George clicked his tongue and he pouted to joke, "Knew you only wanted me for my body."

Ella cackled at his antics and told him to "Shut up." only to do it herself by pulling him into her so they could share one last kiss. It was sweet but it wasn't soft, their lips moving together with intent as if to prove they'd need to do it again because it was just too good.

But she had to stop it before it could turn into something more. She pulled on his hair so their lips separated with a smack and with the sweetest smile and looking at him with those gorgeous hazel green eyes of hers, she said, "Thank you George."

"I had the best time Ellie." He replied wholeheartedly then, agreeing with her previous point.

"Me too." She nodded softly to reiterate her point, hands coming back down to cup his jaw, thumbs rubbing circles on his skin.

One last short kiss was all they got in that bed before they both stood up and got dressed. Well, George did, in the same getup as the day before, while Ella put her robe back on and tied it around herself slowly as he finished getting his shoes on.

"I'll see you soon, yeah?" He said when they got to the door, a glimmer of hope in his eyes. "When are you leaving again?"

"Friday."

He nodded, it was very soon but there was still time. "We have a week then." He winked right as he opened the door, stealing one last peck from her and leaving her with a stupid smile on her face that only got bigger when she closed the door behind her and she looked at the mess they had left the bed looking like.

And it got even bigger when she finally reached for her phone, which she had put on silent, for the first time since before the date and she found her most recent notification being a message from Florence which made her cackle.

When she opened that message conversation, she giggled loudly for she had messages from the day before and Flo hadn't taken the time that passed between the texts she sent lightly.

(13/07/2013 18:38) How did the date go? Hope he behaved for you x

(13/07/2013 18:52) No, I actually hope he didn't ;) xx

(13/07/2013 20:51) Okay, it's almost nine now... You better be ignoring me for the right reasons Miss Hayes x

(13/07/2013 23:46) I'm about to go to bed but I've driven Matty crazy tonight because I'm so intrigued about this. Answer woman! I'm going mad!!!!

(14/07/2013 08:22) Good fucking morning you lucky bitch! Still no response? You better tell me all about this later!!!! xx

(14/07/2013 09:35) Should I start getting worried?! If you don't answer in an hour, I'm texting him just to ask if he didn't fuck this whole thing massively x

That text had been sent almost an hour before, and Ella knew Flo was faithful to her promises so she typed an answer the quickest her fingers allowed her to.

(14/07/2013 10:18) Hello... Why does this text feel like a walk of shame? Hahah x I'm sorry for just now replying, I had my hands a bit full...

Ella laughed loudly when a minute later, when she had been choosing what to wear after taking a shower, Flo replied.

(14/07/2013 10:19) Eleanor Hayes!!!!!!!! Tell me every dirty little detail right now!!!!!

(14/07/2013 10:19) I'm gonna take a shower right now but I'll call you as soon as I'm out x

(14/07/2013 10:20) You're just now showering?! Did you go again this morning?!

(14/07/2013 10:21) Why do you want to spoil this story for yourself?

(14/07/2013 10:21) I'm actually so fucking jealous right now, it's an issue x

(14/07/2013 10:22) HAHAHA Give me five minutes and I'll call you as soon as I have dried my hair. Get your popcorn ready x

(14/07/2013 10:23) Will do you, lucky bitch! CAN'T WAIT!!!! xxxx

Ella took the quickest shower she could, just because she was actually dying to talk about it all with someone and who better than Flo.

So the second her hair had gone from wet to just damp under the hot blow of air of the hair dryer, she ran back to the room and ringed her up.

The call had been hilarious and had elongated to almost an hour because Flo asked for every little dirty detail and Ella had used the call as an opportunity to process what had happened so the artist had gotten things Ella wouldn't normally tell anyone.

But the end of it had been entirely mortifying because Ella had found out that Matty had been listening too when she was talking about what had taken place that morning. And just when Flo had been trying to tell her it was fine because Matty was George's best mate and he was her friend now too, Ella's phone started ringing with another incoming call from someone she'd tried not to think about yet.

"Erm, sorry Flo, Alex is ringing me." She apologized like she had too, her insides being coated by nervousness.

"Oh it's alright hun," Flo waved her off, and with a mischievous tone assured her, "We'll continue this later."

Ella's hands had started to sweat and she let a little nervous giggle before reminding Florence, "Next time warn me when your husband is there so I can keep a bit of dignity to myself."

Flo cackled at that but Matty was the one to reply with confidence, "No dignity lost here Ella, you're a fucking legend."

That answer made Ella snort in short laughter, "Thanks Matty, I doubt it." As soon as she let those words out, she felt Alex's call go to voicemail and here phone stopped vibrating in her hand, so she cursed, "Fuck, call went through. I'll go now." She sourly let them know, and Ella smiled softly when they assured her it was alright so with a sigh, she added, "Love you guys, bye!"

"Bye Ella!" She heard coming from the other side of the line and with that, she ended the call.

Her fingers hovered over her screen with doubt, debating whether or not to make the call back but Alex rang her up again, answering that for her.

"Hi Al, sorry, I was on the phone." She apologized first and foremost as soon as she picked up.

"S'alright." Alex reassured her, and he was about to ask how the previous day had gone because he had texted her a few times and he still hadn't gotten a response, when Ella interrupted him.

Her nerves made her sound breathless when the words came pouring out of her lips, "How are you? Did something happen?"

"No, I, erm..." He frowned a bit at her behavior but didn't really know if he should pry on anything yet, so he stuck to bringing up the topic of one of his texts, "Doesn't Ben and the crew arrive later today?"

"Oh, yes." One of her clammy hands came up to her forehead and she closed her eyes just to think of when that would be but her mind was a knot of thoughts. "I think I have Ben's itinerary here." She remembered in a lucky spark of logic so she took her laptop out of her suitcase and opened it quickly to find the ticket reservations somewhere on her desktop.

She hummed to herself as she looked for it and snapped her fingers when she found it, "Yes, they're landing around three."

"Are you going to get them?" Alex asked shyly, not really knowing what was the plan for the Focus Creeps crew when they got to London.

"No, they're actually staying here too so I'll meet them downstairs when they arrive."

Ella noticed how recoiled he was being when he softly inquired, "Do you think Ben would mind me intruding?"

"Absolutely not." She reassured him, though she had no idea why he'd want to come over to meet Ben when they had the shoot planned for the following day. But she got an idea as to how to make the day productive if he was to come over, "We could have a little meeting considering we're shooting two days in a row starting tomorrow. You know, run over the last few things and make sure everything's alright and meets your expectations."

The clicking of his tongue and his little scoff made her giggle, "Darling, it's you and Ben directing, I will definitely love it."

"You better boss." She said as she closed her laptop, putting it back in her suitcase.

"Shush." He said with a giggle managing its way out through his words. That wasn't why he had called her though, so he pushed with what he actually had been meaning to ask, "Have you got any plans for earlier today?"

In all honesty, Alex had spent the previous day wondering and wondering if everything was okay then. He hoped it was, and thinking back to the previous two days when they'd been in Sheffield and Manchester, it seemed like it. But he couldn't help but wonder, what if it isn't? So he had anxiously waited for the day to pass until it was late for him to text her and not interrupt her plans—eight in the evening had been decent enough for him—but he'd gotten no response and he'd tossed and turned all night overthinking.

He'd only managed to get some sleep around three in the morning and that was why he had woken up rather late and only been able to wait just another half hour after his eyes peeled open and he saw there was still no response, before calling her up.

His heart had sank with the worst feeling, his brain just telling him she was completely ignoring him but he was stubborn, so he decided to call again and thankfully she had picked up. He hadn't been more relieved to hear her voice before.

"Right now?" She asked, biting on her thumb and blushing when she looked up and was met with the mess her bed had been left as after George went away.

"Yeah."

She hesitated, not really remembering what it was that she was doing, a long "Ermmmmm," coming from her until her eyes fell on her camera which was propped up on her bedside table and it clicked, "Oh, just going to pick up my pictures I sent to develop. Might take the ones I took in Manchester and Sheffield to develop as well before I leave."

Alex tried his luck, carefully asking, "Mind if I intrude in those plans too?"

To his relief, she chuckled and replied with a relaxed, "'Course I don't." One that really contrasted the way her insides were churning at the fact of having to face him after what had happened merely an hour before. She turned her back to the bed, trying to will her memories of the day before and the morning out of the forefront of her mind.

Clearing her throat, she suggested, "Wanna get some breakfast first? Haven't eaten anything yet and I might faint if I go walking around London on an empty stomach."

"Absolutely." He smiled at the thought of going out for breakfast with her but in the back of his mind he wondered why she had yet to eat. Shrugging it off, he turned back to his room to get his sunglasses and a jacket so he could leave, "I'll be there in fifteen."

She hummed, slightly panicking about getting ready that quickly but not sounding it at all as she forced a smile that she knew he couldn't see, "Amazing. See you soon then, sweets."

"See ya' darling."

When Ella shed herself of the towel and saw her reflection in the mirror, she blushed instantly at the trace George had left on her. Love bites everywhere on her chest, neck, inner thighs and when she turned around she caught a few lingering around her back, along with the faint print of his hands on her ass. She started getting hot at the memory of it all, and she had to force herself to focus on the task of getting ready before Alex could arrive.

She'd ended up choosing a black turtleneck with long sleeves and some black jeans just to make sure nothing would peek through and cause any type of conversation that would end wrongly.

Not that she owed Alex anything, but she would rather avoid any arguments like the one at the pub if it had been sparked by him finding out she was messing about instead of spending time with them.

When Alex had arrived and knocked on the door of her hotel room, she'd been making sure if she'd gotten all the rolls she'd used with her. She was debating whether or not to take the roll she had in her camera as well as she tucked it back inside its case and placed a new roll inside her Minolta, when Alex knocked again and she just panicked, shoving her latest used roll inside her bag along with the rest.

"Coming!" She yelled as she grabbed her phone, wallet, cigarettes and lighter, the room keys and her leather jacket.

He had barely heard her but before he could knock again, the same housekeeping lady who had knocked the door earlier walked right by him and warned him, "She was busy."

Alex frowned quite confused, she had a brow raised at him and almost like a smirk on her face, but he didn't have much time to ask what the lady meant when Ella came out of her room, opening the door just enough for her to walk out and she froze when she saw the housekeeping lady right behind him.

"Hi sweets." Ella greeted him tensely, her eyes going warily from the lady to Alex as if she was a prey about to be pounced on.

Alex was still confused, his smile crooked as he greeted her back with a soft, "Hi darling." and not even sure if he should hug her when they had prying eyes over them.

But before they even tried to, the lady cleared her throat and asked, "May I come in now?"

"Oh yes, I– erm," Ella stuttered under Alex's intent gaze. He noticed the way her cheeks warmed and turned pink as she lowered her voice to apologize, "Sorry about the duvet, it's on the floor."

Ella didn't miss the way the lady looked from her to Alex and chuckled like she knew a secret, and nodded, "That's alright."

"Thanks!" Ella let out breathlessly, before grabbing Alex by the hand and pulled him to where the lifts were.

Before she went into Ella's hotel room though, the lady turned to look at the hold Ella had on Alex and shook her head. She'd seen George walking out of Ella's room earlier, and if the duvet was on the floor then she could imagine what had went on, but hearing Alex call her darling made the lady start making assumptions that made Ella look bad. She just laughed about it, turning the key in the lock so she could walk into the room and do her job.

Ella couldn't stay still while waiting for the lift and Alex was just dead silent, entirely confused about what had just happened. In his head, he was just hoping he was being too creative and driven entirely by jealousy when going on about his theories, silently praying it was anything but what he was thinking.

Entirely distracted by her own nerves and the lift doors opening in front of them, Ella didn't see the way Alex eyes her up and down for signs of anything that could prove what he was thinking of but he found nothing that could confirm his suspicions.

It wasn't like it was much he could see anyway, he frowned at how her clothes covered her almost entirely. Not even her neck on show with the turtleneck she had on.

He sighed when the doors opened again when they got down at the lobby and decided to just ignore it all so he could enjoy being in her presence like he had wished for all day yesterday. So he just intertwined their fingers as they walked through the lobby, giving the receptionist a quick smile and wave goodbye before leaving the hotel.

They missed the way the receptionist frowned, having seen that the guy Ella had brought in the day before had just walked out an hour before in the same clothes. The receptionist had laughed to herself and shook her head at what she imagined Ella had done, "Americans."

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Barely a few minutes had passed as they walked the busy London streets when Alex just couldn't bite his tongue any longer. The complete silence from her part the day before, her hesitation to answer when he asked about it, and what she'd said to the housekeeper. All of it was making his curiosity grow inside him until it became uncomfortable to keep it in any longer.

"How was yesterday? You had fun?" He started off easy, thinking that would be the best way to get anything out of her.

But all Alex got was a hurried and stuttery, "Oh, I'm– Yes, I did."

"What did you do?" The singer tried again, looking at her to try and see if she gave anything away with the look on her face.

But all he saw was her avoidant stare and her blushing cheeks, "Just, you know– Had lunch." She paused for a little bit until she eventually added the rest, "With a friend." almost with regret to have said it after a second of it slipping past her lips.

"Oh right." He nodded with a soft smile, confused as to why it was being so hard for her to say that. In another attempt to understand, or scratch that itch in his brain more like, he asked, "Where'd you go?"

She hummed as she thought about it, giving herself a bit more time to act put together, "This restaurant in Covent Garden. Think it was called Cora Pearl."

A surprised "Oh." came from him in response and just to give a chance to prove his theories wrong, he suggested, "Romantic, wasn't it?"

Ella stiffened and Alex noticed because he was still holding her hand. He frowned at her reaction and she giggled nervously, "What?"

"That place. It's a bit romantic innit?" From what he remembered, the last time he went to that restaurant, it had been a very cozy and romantic setting so it made him suspicious.

"No, not really. It was alright," She toned it down with a click of her tongue, only to shrug lazily as she added, "Food was good."

"Right, right." Alex let her have it that time, and switched topics to tell her, "I texted you yesterday."

Her hands had started getting sweaty and she hoped he wasn't noticing—he had—but she played it cool. "Did you?" She asked back, she'd barely glanced at her notifications that morning, the first one being from Flo and therefore the only one to grasp her eye so she'd fully put off checking the rest as she catched the artist up on what had happened.

"Yeah, but s'alright. Just wanted to know when Ben was coming." His fingers squeezed her hand softly as if to calm her clear nerves out and she sighed slightly before dropping his hand and reaching for her cigarettes and her lighter because she needed a smoke desperately.

"We have a bit of time until then, don't we?" Ella mumbled as she placed the cigarette between her lips and lit it up, taking a long drag and offering it to him. Alex took it from her and nodded, she watched as he took a drag and said, "Let's just go somewhere to eat, I'm starving."

Their shared cigarette had been stomped over on the asphalt when they stumbled into a cute little cafe five minutes later. It was small and cozy, the smell of coffee inviting and the look of the different flavored croissants and pastries made their mouths water.

Before Alex could continue asking about the previous day, like she knew he was dying to, Ella started asking him about the album release and tour. She'd kept him distracted by asking about the album rollout and which songs they had decided as singles along with 'R U Mine?', 'Do I Wanna Know?' and 'Why'd You Only Call Me When You're High?'.

When he'd shown her the schedule they had so far for the tour, up until the end of the year, her heart sank at the sight of how after she left, she'd only have a couple chances to see him and it'd only be because they'd be having a gig in LA.

They'd left the cafe almost an hour later and made their way to the photolab. It was almost a half an hour walk but it had been spent smoking, talking and taking pictures.

Once they got to the photolab, Ella was greeted with two envelopes thick with pictures she'd printed out, a USB with all of her scans and the sleeves with her negatives inside.

"Oh thank you so much!" Ella said with a big grin on her face, she couldn't wait to see them all. "I have a few more I want to develop, if that's alright."

"Of course." The man behind the counter said, "Do you want them scanned as well? So I can keep the USB and put the new ones in there."

Ella nodded, "That'd be perfect, yeah." She let her bag slide down her shoulder to hang on the crook of her elbow and rummaged around to see the used rolls she'd brought. "Erm..." She let out as she tried remembering which one was the George one, not knowing if she really wanted to leave it or just develop it when they got back home.

"How many are there?" The man asked intrigued by the way she was frowning.

"Only four I think." She really was trying to remember which one was from the day before but she couldn't for the life of her remember, so she just sighed and took them out of her bag and left it on the counter, "Just these."

"We could have these ready for you Wednesday afternoon, maybe?"

Ella waved him off as if not to worry him about rushing, "I'll be here Thursday morning, no need to rush."

The man flashed her a smile, "Thanks doll." He went on to click a few things on his computer to get her order ready, printing a spreadsheet with what she wanted for her order and turned back to her, "Are you paying in advance again?"

"Yeah, much easier that way." She instinctively dove into her jacket pockets for her small card holder but she only fished out the note Flo had sent her with George the day before. Ella blushed, leaving it on the counter mindlessly under the gaze of the man in charge of the photolab, and went to look through her bag again.

Whilst she went around looking for her credit card, Alex's attention was completely caught by the folded piece of paper. His eyes magnetized to the Ellie x written on top of it, he had to fight the urge to grab it and read it.

Alex's trance was broken when she snatched the note off the counter, shoving it inside her bag quickly and then turning to the man to offer her credit card up to him.

The transaction was fast, and with a promise to send her an email once they had her pictures ready, Alex and Ella left the place. Her bag was heavy with the weight of the photos she'd printed but it lit up this feeling inside her that she loved. There was nothing like picking up your prints and scans and just admiring every frame up close.

Ella knew what she had in there though, Alice's pictures were definitely in there somewhere and she wouldn't take her chances pulling the pictures out in front of Alex. But the singer wanted to see the pictures, taking her to a park that was a bit over five minutes away from the photolab and sitting down with her to encourage her to show the prints.

She took one of the envelopes out, opening it slowly and peeking through to see if anything she didn't want Alex seeing was there but she was thankfully greeted with the first batch of film she'd take when she'd arrived.

"Awh, these are from Glastonbury!" She exclaimed and pouted, taking a handful out of the envelope for them to see.

The first one was of Bre and Matt dancing around in the backstage area, right next to the drinks tent that was up for the artists to grab. There was one of Flo and Matty with Adam, George and Ross around them, all of them cheering after the 1975's set had finished. One of all the girls together, drinks in hand and big smiles on their faces during the Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds set. A few of everyone lounging around the tour bus, sunglasses on to not show their tired hungover eyes.

"Look at Jamie's face." Ella pointed out before a loud cackle managed its way out of her lips. It was a picture of Miles in his Union Jack tracksuit, jumping in the air and Jamie just so happened to be behind him with a terrified look on his face.

Alex's giggles joined hers when he caught a glimpse of the picture, "What was Miles doing?"

She barely managed through a new wave of giggles, "Dunno but this one's hilarious."

They continued flipping through the handful of pictures, tucking them back inside the envelope once they had seen them all and taking another handful out to see.

It was when they were flipping through the pictures Ella had gotten at the London Eye that her phone pinged with a new message and had interrupted their appreciation for Ella's photography.

With quick fingers, she unlocked her phone and read what Ben had just sent her, telling Alex what it was with a simple, "They've landed."

"Ben?" Alex asked pointlessly, there was no one else coming other than the Focus Creeps crew.

She nodded, putting her phone back inside the pocket of her jacket and then placing the pictures they had been looking at back in the envelope, "He just texted me that they're at baggage claim. They're probably getting to the hotel in an hour, shall we head back?"

"Sure." Alex nodded, watching as she placed the envelope inside her bag.

He stood up from the bench and offered her a hand. She took it with a smile and, hand in hand, they walked back to the hotel.

It probably took them around thirty minutes to get back and since they calculated they still had enough time until the crew arrived, Ella thought it would be good to book a conference room for a small meeting.

She walked up to the reception desk and sweetly asked, "Hi, sorry could I get a conference room?" She'd seen they had them back when she had booked her room but, if she wasn't mistaken, there were only three in total.

The girl behind the desk smiled back, "Of course, can I have your name please?"

"Eleanor Hayes."

"For when would you like to book it?"

She fiddled with her fingers, looking up at the big clock perched in the lobby's wall. It was almost half past three and she reckoned her co-workers wouldn't arrive until four so she ended up settling for five. "Is there any available around five?"

"Yes, I have one available then." The girl clicked away on the desktop and wrote something down in a spreadsheet to her left.

Ella gave her a grateful grin, "Oh amazing."

The typing away filled in the few seconds of silence and then the receptionist looked back up at her to say, "Alright Miss Hayes, you can just come around by then and I'll walk you over to the room."

"Thank you so much, see you then." Ella left her with a double tap of the desk.

She heard a faint "You're welcome." behind her as she turned back to the lobby's lounge area, where Alex was occupying half of a two seater settee.

Once she settled beside him, Ella let her bag fall in between the both of them and looking down at the envelopes peeking through the top of it, she asked him, "D'you wanna keep looking at the pictures?"

Alex nodded, wanting to see how the pictures he had taken of Ella had turned out, so she pulled out the envelopes and was about to open one of them to inspect it when ruckus coming from the hotel doors made them look up and they were surprised by the crew carrying multiple suitcases into the place.

"Oh my god! Hi!" Ella sprung up from her seat, shoving the envelopes quickly inside the bag and leaving it forgotten there as she walked over to help the crew.

She'd gotten two of the cases that looked to be carrying their filming gear whilst Alex came around to help Tyler, their camera man, with a bag he was struggling with along with a suitcase he clumsily was managing to roll around.

When they properly came inside the hotel and into the lobby, the crew left the cases alone to greet their missing co-worker. "Ella! We missed you!" Ben said before hugging her tightly and swaying her side to side.

Ella cooed and chuckled, because she felt the same. Ben had gone from being her boss to her mentor and he had been so incredibly supportive when she had gotten promoted to a director, their relationship had turned into one that felt like they were siblings.

They had started working as a duo since Ella had officially been promoted and that was why they shared a PA now, but that meant their creative brains were in sync and they spent more time together, therefore their trust in each other grew so much they had become almost inseparable and it hit Ella how much she missed having him around when he walked through the door. "Awh missed you too Ben! How was the flight?"

Ben let go and huffed in exhaustion, "Too long."

"I know." She said sympathetically, looking around the rest of the crew with a pout before going over to each one of them to greet them.

"Alex, hi man!" Ben said to the singer enthusiastically.

"Ben, nice seeing you again." Alex said with a genuine smile and pulled him in for a brief strong embrace, waving at everyone behind him briefly.

"How are you? Glastonbury was brilliant!" The director hadn't missed the chance to compliment him because he had thoroughly enjoyed their set a lot, it had been stunning.

Alex waved him off like it wasn't needed but he still appreciated the comment, "Thanks mate. I'm alright, how are you?"

"Tired but we're here." Ben sighed, the heaviness of the long flight now weighing down on him. But when Ben looked up at Alex, he found the singer to have his eyes stuck on Ella who was hugging her PA last with a soft smile. Just to tease, Ben cleared his throat and said, "Hope Ella's been behaving."

Ella had heard that as she turned back to him and Alex, rolling her eyes to call him out, "Oh shut up Benjamin."

But Alex didn't find it hard to admit, "She has been, she's a gooden."

"She is." Ben agreed, a slight smirk on his face which earned him another roll of Ella's eyes. He chuckled before turning his attention back on his crew and suggested, "Right, let's check in everyone, yeah?"

"You sound like a teacher on a school trip Ben." Ella pointed out with a raised eyebrow, almost like she was scolding him for it.

Tyler made it worse for the director when he added fuel to the fire by pointing out, "He was worse at the airport."

To which Ella winced and shook her head, "Oh god." She sighed as if the information pained her but let them move onto the reception desk and check into their rooms. They all got their respective room keys and once everyone had them in hand, Ella stood in front of them all and informed them, "I got us a conference room at five so we can go over everything and have it all ready for tomorrow, just so we don't have to cut your well needed rest short and run around in case something goes wrong."

Ben smiled at her with narrowed eyes, "Always thinking ahead. That sounds great."

Ella looked smug at Ben's reaction, flipping her hair exaggeratedly to make a point of how she always was right. Ben shoved her playfully out of her smugness and it made her giggle. But she turned serious again when Lydia yawned loudly behind her hand, "I'll let y'all settle then? I'll text the chat when I'm back down here so we can go."

The crew nodded, completely satisfied with the idea of at least a short rest before the meeting took place and Ben was the one to eventually accept, "Sure, yeah." His gaze fell on Alex though, and he asked, "You leaving Alex?" just to know if he had to say bye before going up to their rooms.

But Alex shook his head no, brows slightly furrowed, "No, no. I'm gonna intrude on your meeting. Ella said it was alright."

The choice of words made Ben chuckle but he nodded in agreement, "More than alright, that way we can double check everything."

"Brilliant." Alex said, slightly relieved at yet another confirmation that it was alright that he stayed for the meeting.

Ben was a bit nosy, and eventually let his curiosity win when after a few beats of silence, he inquired, "Are you leaving and then coming back?"

Before the singer could answer, Ella let out that, "No, he's coming upstairs with me." and that answer was enough for her co-workers to grow curious.

"Right." Ben replied with a smirk growing on his face, and he repeated another "Right." as if the first one hadn't been given in the best tone. It wasn't needed, because it was written on his face how he was enjoying hearing that for it gave him something to taunt Ella about.

So the director nodded slowly and offered them a gallic shrug, "See you at five then." to then grab their stuff and start to walk up to the elevators.

"See ya'!" Alex said a bit loudly as they walked away, a giddiness bubbling up inside him when knowing this meant he could go upstairs with Ella sooner then.

Ella added to the short farewell with an enthusiastic, "Bye guys!"

Alex watched as the crew disappeared into the lifts and Ella went back to the lounge area. He turned to see her grabbing her bag and once she had it perched on her shoulder, she walked back to him.

With a "Let's go." and a pat on his back, she encouraged him to follow her upstairs. She'd slowly opened her door, peeking through the barely cracked open door to see if the room was no longer a mess of tangled sheets and thrown duvets and she was glad to see it all in place like that morning hadn't happened. Seeing the bed, even if it was tidy, made her cheeks heat up though.

She pursed her lips watching as Alex toed off his shoes by the door and went straight to lay down on the bed. Her mind played tricks on her that weren't doing more than quicken her heart beats and tinting the tips of her ears as red as her cheeks.

"You can turn on the TV if you want." She invited, giving him the remote after she'd gotten a cigarette out of the pocket of her now forgotten jacket she'd perched on the back of the settee in her room.

Opening the door to the balcony, she pointed out, "M'gonna go for a smoke." and once he nodded with a smile, she escaped to the small area.

Five minutes of mindlessly going through channels with shit programmes on was enough for Alex to get up from the bed and walk outside with her. He got a cigarette out from his pocket and lit it up, silently smoking beside her.

The newfound silence between them was giving them time to think. They'd had silence before, comfortable ones where they settled and somehow it felt like they could silently communicate through looks and lingering touches. But this one was strange, it was a silence that just emphasized the distance between them and how their eyes didn't meet to talk wordlessly anymore.

Alex looked at her as he took his first drag and she turned to him to give him a fleeting smile, turning back to watch the people walking the English streets and the cars driving past. Ella felt his gaze burning on the side of her head but she forced herself to pay it no mind, what could she do? She hated having to walk on eggshells around him but after realizing they had never been acting properly like just friends, she was trying to navigate what that meant for them from then on.

It was weird feeling how she just couldn't talk and talk to him like she usually did, scared she could say something that could give him the wrong impression or that could set him off like before. Yes, he had apologized and promised it wouldn't happen again but she didn't want something going wrong because of something she could've prevented.

"Are you alright?" Alex ended up asking her, noticing just how tense she was.

Ella was taken aback by the question, "Yeah, why?"

Alex shrugged, the corners of his lips tugged down in a soft pout that he ended up switching for pressed lips as he mustered the courage to say, "You're quiet."

"Oh, sorry." The smoke left her lips as she spoke, turning to look at him while leaning into the wall on her back, "Just thinking about the video and how I'm leaving on Friday."

"Don't remind me." He pouted before taking another drag of his cigarette. Having merely five days left with her was an actual cruel joke. "Is Breana leaving on the same flight?"

Ella nodded, "Yeah, eleven in the morning so we're gonna have to be early at Heathrow." At least she would have Bre with her on the way back to assure her of not going crazy on such a long flight. "Matt's taking us, by the way, so you don't have to drive us."

"But I'm coming with." Alex chatted back, eyebrows raised at her and offended at the fact she was even giving him an out.

"It's gonna be really early." She warned, not really wanting to bother him about waking up so early just to go to the airport.

But Alex would never not go, "Don't care." He stubbed out the remaining of his cigarette out on the ashtray that was placed over the coffee table and walked over to her.

Wrapping his fingers around her wrist, he pulled her off the wall for her to walk into his arms, which she did without a peep of complaint, melting in his hold like she was used to.

Alex's fingers clutched her tightly, keeping her close to his chest and Ella let her head rest in the crook of his neck, drowning in his scent and closing her eyes to relish in the feeling.

"Don't want you to leave." He admitted with nerves bubbling up inside of him. He just wanted to let his words run loose and slip past his lips easily but god was he scared of her not reciprocating.

Ella hummed, the noise making her chest vibrate against his, "Don't want to either." She admitted right back and those words were enough to spark something inside him.

Would it be selfish of him to just ask her to leave it all behind for him? Would that be what his confession end up meaning to her?

The fear of rejection turned into a fear of asking too much from her, enough to drive her away, and just because of how much he was overthinking that sudden train of thought, he bit his tongue and stayed silent.

Silence which ended up in Ella sighing at the lack of response and choosing to add, "But I have to." in the end.

Those words came like heavy bricks over his heart, a confirmation of his worries being valid and right. He couldn't do that to her. He couldn't just ask her to go with him because of his feelings, not when she had so much waiting back home for her.

How badly he wanted to be selfish, to have this go his way, but it would be cruel to even lay that down in front of her and put her in the difficult position of having to even make that decision—if it even was a possibility for that to be a debate within her because he was still struggling to wrap his head around the chances of her feeling the same way about him.

Why is everything so complicated? He hated how he just couldn't let the words slip without thinking of the consequences, but there was just too much to lose and he had to weigh down if it was even worth it to risk it.

Flo's words came back to him. The moment he had finally let out how he felt for Ella for the first time came back to him and how good it had felt to get that off his chest. He clutched her a bit tighter when that flashed in the forefront of his mind and he smiled to himself when he felt Ella wrap her arms around his waist.

He thought then, it wasn't that he felt like it was a weakness to let it out, no, it was just how who he was wouldn't allow him to give Ella what she deserved. Because in the best of outcomes, she reciprocated, but what could he give her if she was in California and he was traveling all over the globe with no rest until the end of the year. And he was sure the next year would be the same, a plane from one country to another, day in a tour bus touring all across continents and no stability to give her the time she deserved.

Alex wanted to pull his hair out. He had done distance before and it had only been so long until he moved all the way to New York for his then girlfriend. Would Ella drop everything to join him? Would Ella let go of her dream job to follow him around the world? Would Alex be able to ask that from her?

Ella felt him drop a kiss on top of her head and his lips stayed there for a minute, his breathing slowed and got heavy and eventually she had to look up at him because it felt like something in the air had shifted.

"Are you okay?" She was the one to ask this time, and he saw the soft furrow of her brows and her lips slightly pursed when she pulled back to see his face.

He nodded, but he looked full of sorrow so Ella had to make sure, "Are you sure?"

"Yeah, why?"

She took a step back, going to stub out the burnt out cigarette she had been holding and when that was done she stood back in front of him. "You're quiet." She repeated his words to him with a hint of a smile, like she was trying to cheer him up.

He caught onto it, offering a tight lip smile as he shook his head. The knot in his throat started tightening and it was like she had noticed without him even giving a sign of getting upset, so she wrapped her arms around his shoulders and hugged him tightly.

"I'm gonna miss you so much, sweets." She promised him with a whisper in his ear, goosebumps breaking on his skin as his arms wrapped around her waist. "But we have this week left so let's not get ahead of ourselves okay?"

"You're right." Alex nodded again, Ella squeezed him a bit tighter and after a few seconds she broke the embrace, pulling back and smirking at him.

"I told you I always am."

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It had been almost five when Alex woke her up. She had fallen asleep with her head resting on his shoulder as they watched some British show on BBC, not long after they'd come back inside from the balcony. Ella apologized profusely when she'd gotten back into her senses, apologies which he didn't accept.

They had made their way down to the lobby after Ella got her laptop and a little journal, texting the crew's group chat with one hand to let them know she'd be waiting for them there.

Fortunately, the small group had made an appearance at the lobby not long after she'd sent the text and they had gone into the conference room they'd been assigned at merely a quarter past five.

Ella settled with Alex to her right and Ben to her left, across the table sat Lydia, the new PA, Tyler, the cameraman, Margaret, the sound recorder, and Cameron, the lighting specialist. It was a small crew but it would do, plus they were the ones to come all the way to London because they were the best they had, the heads of each of their departments back home.

Whilst she opened her laptop to pull up the list of things she needed done for this shoot, Ella felt a gaze burning on her and when she let her eyes up to see who it was, she found Lydia staring at her and then at Alex.

She didn't give it attention until she looked up again and she found Lydia still gawking at Alex shamelessly. Ella thought it might've been because she hadn't been properly introduced to the singer so she took the matter in her own hands.

Interrupting her clicking and typing on her laptop to do so, Ella startled Lydia out of her trance when she turned to Alex and said, "Alex, this is Lydia, our new PA."

Alex looked up at the new face and smiled softly, "Nice to meet you."

Lydia's face seemed to light up at the attention and Ella had to hold herself back from scowling. The new PA waved shyly at him and said, "Such a pleasure to meet you Alex. Big fan."

"Thank you." Alex said kindly, before dropping his gaze back to Ella's laptop screen.

"I'm sure you remember everyone else." Ella said before continuing, knowing everyone had met Alex already at the same time as Ella had so there was no need for new introductions.

And Alex confirmed that when he nodded, "I do. Great seeing you again."

Everyone reciprocated the kindness and once that was over, Ella smiled at everyone and asked, "Right, so let's dive right in then?" to which she got nods that gave her the green light to start going over every bullet point.

Firstly, she had noticed the gap in her checklist where it said Stylist/Hair and makeup and just to make sure that was covered before moving onto what was confirmed already, she turned to Alex to ask, "Is your stylist coming tomorrow?"

Alex hummed, "Yeah she is." They had let her know she was needed for the shoot since it had been arranged, but it probably slipped past someone's mind to confirm that.

"Is she also taking care of hair and makeup?" Ella asked for the full confirmation.

And to her relief, Alex replied positively, "She is."

"Oh perfect." It was relieving checking that off and having the list look complete, "Okay so we have Lamie Stewart, she did the casting with an agency here and we had the video sent over, she's brilliant you'll love her." The model had been so brilliant and professional, an absolute laugh when she'd gotten to do the video call with Ella and Ben and it had been very refreshing to have such an easy going person as their main talent.

Alex smiled and nodded softly, completely trusting Ella's judgment about the main girl for the video. And with that approval, Ella moved onto the main point, "Let's go over the video concept again." She drummed her fingers on the table before they opened up the journal she'd brought with her and flipped through the pages until it was opened on the video.

Her eyes went over the words written in the preface for the project swiftly and she cleared her throat to start reciting it back, "We're gonna have you drunk out of your mind walking out of the pub, texting 'Stephanie' for a booty call. And you're gonna be hallucinating she's getting, erm, fucked as you walk up to her house. But you end up in the wrong house just across her street."

Alex chuckled when she'd weirdly said the word fucked, amused by her shyness coming back in front of her co-workers. With a smirk, he nodded, "Yep. Just like we talked about back in May."

"Nothing you wanna add or take out of it?" She layed out the chance for him to do anything to it, just in case it would be needed to arrange something else before it was too late.

But he shook his head, nothing really coming to mind, "No, I trust your vision on it."

"Good." Ella smirked at him, entirely satisfied with his words, "Lydia could you please phone the pub for me to make sure they know we have the place booked out for tomorrow to shoot?"

"Yeah, sure." Lydia nodded gracefully as she pulled out her phone and looked through her own journal for the number of the place. But before she could actually dial the number, Ella asked for another task to be done, "And please give the agency a call as well so they can notify Lamie and the extras when and where the shoot will take place."

A nod of Lydia's head was enough for Ella to deem that done, so she turned to Alex, "The lads know when I want them there tomorrow right?"

Alex's honest, "I wouldn't trust them." made Ella sigh and nod in defeat.

"You're right." She replied, thinking maybe Jamie would be the only one to remember that, "I'll send them a text right now, then."

But Alex let his hand come over hers to ease her worry about it and took the task off her by offering, "I'll do it for you, don't worry."

A tight lip smile was what he got in exchange and a soft, "Thank you." since Lydia's phone had started ringing as she called the pub. "Tell them to be there at 5pm sharp." Ella whispered to Alex while she watched him start to type away on his phone.

"Ben, anything you wanna add?" She turned to the director, a bit shy after realizing she hadn't let him do a thing.

It wasn't like it bothered him though, because he smiled big at her and shook his head briefly, "No, you covered it all Ella. Good work."

She gave him a toothy smile and a quick "Thanks." before she fell silent when Lydia had started speaking on the phone, everyone looked at the new PA expectantly as they heard only one side of the call.

They watched as the call lasted a few minutes and she thanked them before ending the call, but before Lydia could debrief anything, she got a call from the agency.

About five minutes later, when the agency had let her go, she finally let them all know that, "Pub says we can head there around five and we have four hours to shoot and the agency is sending emails out and contacting everyone to confirm they're coming tomorrow and Tuesday if needed."

Ella frowned and hummed, thinking about how much four hours would give them, "Four hours, alright. We need to wrap everything at the pub first thing, the rest of the band will only be needed tomorrow then."

Whilst Ella continued thinking about which scenes to record first, Ben pointed out another checked item off the list that most definitely needed a double or triple check before the recording, "Make sure to double check the bikes, please."

"We're having bikes in there?" Alex's curiosity sparked, knowing Ella had come up with it back when they recorded the Suck It And See videos and having loved those clips.

"A little scene, yeah." Ella nodded, biting her bottom lip to hide the excited smile at the thought of her vision for it, so she timidly asked, "Is that alright?"

Any worry about it not being what Alex wanted was out the window when he gave her a big grin and a wink as he decided it was "Perfect."

A wink that only made her chuckle and quickly turn to look at Ben to inquire, "Okay so do we have all the gear we need?"

Ben's slow nods were accompanied by, "All we need and a bit more just in case." which completely settled her, knowing that the director had all that covered before they'd gotten there was another big breath of relief.

"Amazing." Ella muttered, glancing over the checklist again and finding it all talked about, "Well, perfect then, team. We shall have a good shoot tomorrow and the day after will be even better."

"Damn right." Ben agreed proudly, eliciting smiles from the rest of the crew. Ella let her laptop close and closed her journal, putting it over her closed electronic device and then looked at everyone else's tired expressions and pouted.

"Are y'all having lunch anytime soon?" She asked them, it was getting quite late and she was hungry so she could imagine the just arrived would be too.

"Yeah, definitely." Cameron answered, he was starving and tired after the flight but he would rather use the last of his energy to eat. "Any recommendations?"

Ella tilted her head to the side slightly as she tried to think but eventually settled for an easy and good answer for them, "The hotel restaurant is quite good actually."

Ben nodded, too exhausted to even think of making a decision of where to go to have a bite of food. "Think it'll be that today, we're too tired to go somewhere else." The last statement was one that everyone agreed on, Alex and Ella smiled sympathetically when they hummed and mumbled in agreement.

"Bless you, I'll come with you." Ella settled, having missed her familiar crew after a while away from home. But she didn't want Alex to feel left out so she offered, "Alex, wanna join?"

He hesitantly looked around the group as if to silently ask for permission to intrude but they were all neutral as they looked back at him so he used his words to ask, "If that's alright?"

Tyler clicked his tongue and smiled at him, "'Course man, the more the merrier." which got the same enthusiastic response from the rest of them so he gave in.

"Cheers mate." He thanked, and followed as they all rose from their seats.

Quickly going upstairs to leave her stuff in her room, Ella came back downstairs and walked into the restaurant to find them all sitting down at a big table. It didn't take them long to make a decision on what to eat, entirely driven by hunger and the need to just get back to their rooms as soon as they could.

And just as quick as they ordered their food, they ate it. With conversation in between bites, but regardless of it, they had only taken forty minutes to ask for the bill and get out of there.

"That was lovely." Margaret said kindly, after Alex had offered to pay for their meal and they had reluctantly agreed he could.

Ben agreed with a soft groan, "It was, but I'm exhausted now."

"Did you manage to get any sleep on the way here?" Alex seriously asked, Ben's undereye bags looked heavy and dark.

Cameron beat the director to an answer when he snorted in laughter, "Only think Tyler did, we were all pretty restless."

Tyler chuckled, a smug look on his face since he was the one who looked least like a zombie, "Knocked out most of it."

"Lucky Tyler." Ella shook her head in an attempt to taunt him and it got her a middle finger which made her laugh.

Soon enough, the waitress came back with Alex's card and receipt and they were all good to go. They slowly walked out and into the lobby and just as they got to the lifts, Alex turned to Ella and then Ben and decided he would go.

"I'll leave you guys to rest." He said softly, watching as everyone but Ella and Tyler looked at him through half lidded eyes, "See you lot tomorrow." He took his time to briefly hug everyone goodbye.

"Goodnight Alex." Ben said as he patted his back, letting go of him a few seconds later.

Alex wrapped his arms tightly around Ella then, and she did the same, savoring the feeling by closing her eyes, "Bye Alex."

"Goodnight darling." He dropped a kiss on her cheek before wishing her "Sweet dreams."

His words had a toothy smile breaking on her face and she just couldn't not say it back, so she pulled back and wished him, "Sweet dreams, Al. See you tomorrow." with a soft nose scrunch and a little squeeze of his shoulders.

That was enough for him to melt inside so he left feeling all warm and fuzzy, a grin stayed on his face as he walked away and turned to wave at them one last time in the middle of the lobby before he disappeared from their view as he went.

But then Ella was met with a bunch of intent looks, a few smirks and raised eyebrows. It was like she'd been caught red handed and she didn't like it.

"What?" She asked, annoyed at the silence and the unwavering looks on their faces, pressing aggressively on the button to call down the elevator.

"Nothing." Ben replied innocently, but his smirk grew bigger in contrast so Ella sighed exasperatedly.

"You know what? I didn't miss you, I take it back."

Ben took that as an opportunity to taunt her further though, so he teased, "Yeah, bet you're having the best time here aren't you?"

The crew laughed at the words and Ella let her mouth open and close as her confusion grew, "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing." Ben said again and it made her roll her eyes harder.

The elevator's door opened and she was the first to go in, calling them out and scolding them with a stern "Y'all should go to bed." that made Tyler and Margaret snort out in laughter. Ella paid them no mind and asked, "Which floor are you on?"

"Fourth."

She was selfishly glad their taunting would be cut short by the fact that they weren't floor neighbors and she faked a pout as she said, "Awh, okay. I'm on the third."

The lift didn't take long to take them up to the third floor and when the door opened, she walked out quickly and wished them, "Goodnight guys!" with a blown kiss to follow with "Love y'all!"

The crew said, "Goodnight Ella!" in unison right as the door started closing and with a sigh she made way back to her hotel room.

It had been a very long day but at least she was glad that the two following days would be filled by her doing what she loved and it would serve as a great distraction to the looming ache of her homecoming approaching faster than she wanted it to.

Five more days was all she had, and she wasn't sure if she was even prepared for what they would bring.

✦✧✦✧✦✧✦✧✦✧✦✧

A/N: Ella's UK trip is coming to an end :'( How are we feeling about it? What do you think is gonna happen? Some of you actually guessed who the date was with and I fucking love that! Hope you enjoyed that, it was really fun writing it to be honest and I'm really excited to see your reactions. Thanks so so much from the bottom of my heart for reading and commenting and voting/liking, sending asks and messages about this story, it makes me so happy beyond words to see y'all enjoying it *cries* Love you lot and see you soon with the next one! x

Taglist:  @imagine-that-100 @red---moon @kennedy-brooke @faveficz @indierockgirrl @ladydraculasthings @moonvr​ @unwantedlovergirl​ @eaglestar31 @nikisfwn​ @funniestpersoninnyc​ @andrearroe​ @justacaliforniandreamer​ @alexturnersgf69 @yourorganiccigarette

Let me know if you want to be added to the taglist! x

[thefrontofmymind]

Proof Positive 3

a/n: wtf??? i'm updating something 2 days in a row?? this is so unlike me

series masterlist

The morning after, you got out of bed around the time you always did and you got ready for work. With a gentle whisper to a half-awake Ross that you were leaving, you were out the door. 

You tried not to think about it, you hid it in a cupboard in your mind but that didn’t mean it was banging on the locked door. It must’ve been expectant mothers day on the tube because you counted no less than five pregnant women sitting in your carriage. Well, six, actually.

You kept laser focus on your work all day, even through the nausea and exhaustion. It wasn’t until you looked at your schedule did you realise that the tour that you’d been painstakingly organising every little detail of would begin in a mere two weeks. Ross would be leaving in two weeks. Twelve days to be exact. It gave you a jolt; you needed to act, and quickly. You booked an appointment with your GP for the day after tomorrow. You googled what to do, what to say to her, what she’ll say to you. You wanted as much control as you could get.

She would probably ask for either a blood test or a urine sample and she would test you herself. And then she would explain all the options you had. You knew it was early days, it was still an embryo, it didn’t even have a heart, it’d barely grown a brain. It had no thoughts and no pain receptors, it made you feel a little better. It wasn’t a baby yet.

You got a text from Ross at around 4 PM, ‘had to go back to mine to get some clothes, youre free to come over?’. You typed out a quick reply, ‘sounds good. see you soon xx’.

You placed your phone onto your desk and finished writing an email to some venue manager who had questions about the band’s rider. Another ping erupted from your phone, you took a quick glance at the new message from Ross; ‘how are you feeling?’, you didn’t know how you felt, so you didn’t answer.

︵‿︵‿︵‿︵︵‿︵‿︵‿︵︵‿︵‿︵‿︵

As you entered Ross’ flat, using the key he gave you a year ago when he moved in, you heard…talking. More than one person. In the living room was Ross, along with Adam and Carly. Like a switch that flipped, you were bright and happy–you couldn’t let them know what was happening.

A chorus of surprised greetings, questions on why you’ve shown up at Ross’ flat.

“She just can’t resist my cooking…” Ross joked. You didn’t fail to notice the inflection he had, you just prayed that Carly and Adam missed it.

There was some chatter between the boys–something technical with a song they were in the process of recording–and between you and Carly. You were telling her all about the tour, you could pretty much whip up any detail for the next ten months from the top of your head. And she had many questions about where her fiance was going, and when. You got to thinking…There was very well the possibility that things regarding the tour would have to change. In about eight months or so yours and Ross’ lives could change drastically. 

Ross slowly made his way to the kitchen, prepping ingredients for a stir fry. The couple got the hint, making a polite exit and telling you both to enjoy yourselves–whatever that meant.

You silently watched Ross cooking, sipping on the glass of squash you made yourself. He kept stealing glances at you, you pretended to be oblivious.

It felt like your bubble burst. The bliss you felt, this honeymoon stage, it was all over. Everything had been so natural before–the kisses, the casual touches, the pillowtalk–but now it was all just so forced. 

You picked at the food on your plate, you didn’t want to tell him the smell of it made you nauseous. You told him about your day at work, how the final plans for the tour were going.

“So we’re just not talking about it?” He asked after yet another story from you about a rude venue manager or a misunderstanding with your travel agent over the band and crew’s visas.

“I made a doctor’s appointment for Friday…she’ll tell me if it’s…real,” you answered.

“You wanna go alone?”

“You wanna come with me?” It was a genuine question.

“I told you I’m here for you,” he said. “However you want me, I’ll be there.”

You were looking right into his eyes, and he was looking in yours. At the unwavering eye contact you were comforted, you knew there was a shred of falsehood in his words.

“It’s at three in the afternoon…” You told him. “You could meet me there?”

“I’ll pick you up from the office.”

︵‿︵‿︵‿︵︵‿︵‿︵‿︵︵‿︵‿︵‿︵

The waiting room smelled like bleach. Like the linoleum floors had been scrubbed recently. The loudest sound was emitting from the small TV anchored to the wall in front of you and Ross–some daytime soap opera with characters you couldn’t understand the relations of, no matter how hard you tried.

Sitting across from you was a young guy, probably around 25 or so, cradling a little girl who was drifting in and out of sleep. She was tiny, a toddler still with the chunky limbs of a baby, and a mess atop her head of golden ringlets that probably hadn’t been brushed that day.

As the doctor called your name, you immediately jumped up. You didn’t see the large form next to you rise with you.

“Do you want me…” Ross trailed off from his seat, gesturing towards the corridor you were about to walk down.

“Please.”

Once you and Ross sat down in her office and got comfortable, she began to speak in a light and friendly tone. “So what brings you in?”

“Well…” you started. “I…my period was late so I took one of those early detection tests and it was positive.”

“A pregnancy test?”

You nodded.

“Okay.” She began to type out some notes on her computer. “Is your cycle regular?”

“To a tee, I’ve never been even a day late before.”

“So how many days?”

“Four.”

“And how long has it been since your last period?”

You thought for a second. “About a month?”

“Right.” She finished typing and turned back towards you. “I’ll get you to do a test here if that’s alright. I’m guessing this is the…father?”

“Yes, right, this is Ross,” you said. They exchanged a polite greeting.

The doctor handed you a small plastic jar. “Bathroom is just down to the left, you can’t miss it.”

About 10 minutes later the results were ready. Instinctively you grabbed Ross’ hand as your doctor looked at the much more clinical looking test. 

“Two lines…which means it’s positive,” she said. Your brain began to tick into overtime, it was like time slowed almost to a stop.

In that moment, knowing it was real, you felt a sense of comfort. You didn’t know how, but somehow you got the sense that you could do it, and it would all be alright, you could make it work. A warmth spread through your abdomen–though that was just your mind. You became aware of the hand you were holding in a vice-like grip. Ross was with you, you wouldn’t be alone, you could very well have a family with the man next to you. You could be there for each other through all this, you were a team.

“Oh my god…” was all you could say, a soft smile spreading across your face. You looked at Ross, mirroring your smile.

“I should talk to you about options,” your doctor said after a minute of letting you bask in the happiness.

“I want to keep it,” you said instantly.

You smiled at Ross again, he raised his eyebrows–silently asking “really?”–you nodded.

“Well then,” she laughed. “I’ll give you the name of a good OB, he’s the one who delivered my two girls…” She was messily writing on a notepad. “And this is a good brand of prenatal vitamins.” She opened a drawer of her desk and retrieved a pamphlet. “And here’s just some guidelines for the early stages, what not to eat, symptoms you might have, all that.”

“Thanks,” you said after she handed you the bundle of information.

“I’d suggest booking within the next week, you might just be far enough along for a proper ultrasound.”

You didn’t say another word until you were out of the building and walking to the closest tube station, to the line that would take you right to Ross’. “A baby…”

“I know,” he chuckled.

“Are you okay with this all? Sorry…I didn’t know what my answer would be in there…”

“Listen to me.” He stopped walking, taking your hand in both of his and fiddling with your fingers. “There is no one else I would rather do this with.”

“Out of everyone in the entire world?” You laughed.

“No one else.”

“Not even Waugh?”

“Don’t tell him that I pick you…” He said in a hushed tone, to which you couldn’t help burst out laughing.

You couldn’t describe the joy you were feeling. The bubble of bliss was back for you both.

That night you slept easy, in the arms of the father of your baby, the three of you together–at least for now.

[moonlit-trolls]

The indomitable Human Spirit

Word Count: 5733 CW: Death, Abduction (alien kind) (ask to tag any others) HUGE thanks to Howl for helping me out with the first few drafts. Docs for your eyes

Act 1: Abduction

Within a small apartment near the Franklin D. Roosevelt park, Lucia was getting things ready for her daily commute to the University of Southern California. Her packing order was easy and simple: a notebook to write things down quickly, her old Dell laptop that she inherited from her older brother, a big bottle of water so there would be no need to buy more, and lastly, four facemasks. After all, the pandemic has been going rampant.

The apartment was just large enough to fit her and her bed in it. Everything was cramped. The TV that was there was a housewarming gift, and it almost hit its sides on the bedroom walls. Lucia’s college was closed due to the pandemic, but recently an email had rolled out with the warning that classes would slowly be rolled back in with less students. That got her excited; she didn’t bust her ass to get that scholarship to study from home! Before getting ready to head out a call arrived from a friend of hers.

— Hey Lulu, we’re headed to the starbucks near the college, you wanna meet us there? — The question came from Ash, one of the few people in a group that Lucia liked to interact with. Before she could answer Ash piped up again, — don’t worry, we’ll pay for you. — This mentioning felt rude to Lucia. She assumed Ash meant nothing by it, but it felt very rude.

This did, however, go well into Lucia’s plan. The Starbucks near the college had the most beautiful barista that she had ever seen; their eyes were green like moss, which is something she kept to herself. Even if she found everything beautiful, calling someone’s eyes moss colored could be considered rude.

Putting on her best clothes she made an effort to hide the wear and tear with her older brother’s hoodie; the zipper was banged up but it wasn’t cold enough where it needed to be closed. The day outside was beautiful, the clouds hiding most of the sky but Lucia liked it that way. The cool breeze rushing through made her consider putting on gloves, but it would be far too much of a chore.

An idea did hit her. Already heading for a bus ride, and with flower shops in the bus’ way she would only have to walk ten extra minutes to get there. Walking wasn’t a problem. After all, it was a part of her routine ever since she was twelve when her dad’s car broke down and the bus was the only option, alongside walking to school every day.

Too much time had passed after Ash’s call, which prompted a message, several messages in fact

— Heyhey when you coming? — 

— C’mon speed up!!! we gotta eat —

— Girl it’s gettin’ cold we’re waiting inside —

Reading it, Lucia immediately decided to not answer. She was close by, just needing to get the flowers before finally heading to the Starbucks. She didn’t know the name of the barista; Lucia thought of asking it once or twice, but was never brave enough to get that far. The nametag didn’t help; every day the barista wore a different name tag to trip up customers. Lucia just called her Nyx in her head, it kept the mystery alive.

Meanwhile, outside of Earth’s atmosphere, just behind the moon, an explorer class ship approached the planet. Smaller in size and crew but capable of traveling at faster-than-light speeds with less energy consumption. The current captain of this explorer class is Lieutenant Brikel. Her mission was an exploratory one: to acquire a sample of life from any of the planets that have it. Fauna, flora and—if the planet has it—intelligent life.

With the blaring horns that start each day, the lieutenant crawled out of her sleeping pod. She shook the slime away from her hair with a yawn. 

— Lieutenant Brikel to Docking bay. Docking bay? Over. — 

— Docking bay to Captain’s quarters, What is your inquiry? Over. —

— Are we close enough for the processes to begin? Over. —

— We are not close enough but we have the means of approaching. Their detection tech is low grade enough where our cloaking should be just sufficient. Waiting for further orders. —

 The docking bay workers started preparing for the acquisition. First sending two cloaked drones down to earth’s surface to acquire soil samples and fauna, as well as some flora.

— Intelligent life detected. — The voice from the docking bay sounded almost excited; that meant they would have the chance to experiment on it.

— Select one randomly, — Brikel commanded while walking over to the clothes hanging in  the closet. 

— Prepare the stun collar, — she barked while putting on the cloak adorned with glowing insignias and medals similar to one you would find on a Navy Seal back on Earth. Looking further, these creatures could be considered humans that evolved to achieve space travel; were it not for the massive orange horns on their heads, perhaps you could have them confused. No, they had a different name, and were united under a completely different flag than humanity. In fact, they were united under Her Imperious Condescension. Said name inflicted horror in the hearts and minds of nearly a billion different sentient species.

Lieutenant Brikel walked out of her quarters and checked with the med bay for their supplies. After the drones had quickly scanned the general features of the planet, she had wanted to make sure they had what was required for dissections and blood synthesis from the sentient creatures on the planet. This was impossible due to the lack of access to human test subjects. The drones that were still down could steal blood from humans, but not without raising attention– not that Brikel or the fleet cared about attracting eyes. Attacking a town openly wouldn’t lead to anything, human weapons couldn’t hurt their ship even if they tried.

The ship inched closer, just above Earth’s mesosphere. With its cloaking device fully active, there was nothing mere Earth sensors could do to detect it.

The drones acquired the soil, flora, and fauna samples before attempting to arrive at any human settlement. Unlike where the ship was located, around the west of the United States, the drones were sent down deep in the north of Europe where, after getting what they had to, they were sent to slay and drain the blood of several humans for further testing. 

On the other side of the world though, Lucia had just gotten her flowers, and was rushing to the café to meet with Ash and their friends, as well as Nyx the barista. Her steps were quick as her friends waved her over. 

— C’monnn Lulu we’re starving over here! — Ash shouted from the outside table they were seated on, which prompted her to go faster.

— Abduction protocol. Begin. — A robotized voice said inside the docking bay.

Lucia couldn’t hear Brikel’s voice, but she could feel what came next: a bright red beam, in the middle of the city lifting her up, and nothing else, screaming and kicking she was taken away from the floor, it all felt, even for a moment, like a Hollywood production.

— WHAT'S GOING ON? — Lucia screamed down at Ash.

Ash jumped the small wall of the Starbucks alongside the group of friends that were just waiting for her to arrive. They grabbed Lucia’s hand and shouted

— I don’t know Lulu, but hold my hand okay? Just hold on! — Ash mustered all her strength as their friends tried to pull them both back to no avail. 

With a sudden jerk they were knocked flat on their backs, and Lucia was skybound. For about forty five seconds all that could be seen were the streets getting smaller, and all that could be felt was the air getting thinner. The Red Dreadnought, which was the explorer-class ship in low Earth orbit, titaned over her as she approached it, consciousness flickering in and out from lack of air. All that was in her vision was the bright white trident, glowing against the vessel’s red paint job.

Being taken into the ship, the bright red outer shell was substituted by the off-gray piping and glowing screens. The tall lieutenant stood in front of her at the arrival platform and spoke in plain and perfect English.

— How strange. It doesn’t have any horns.  — Brikel leaned in to speak, as if mocking that fact, as she looked over at the woman’s head at an angle that revealed her own pair of horns. These creatures were clearly not human, but Lucia had hoped they had some sense of humanity.

— I. You. You speak English? I’m not supposed to be here, — the pleading was met with a back handed slap to Lucia's left cheek. Before she could stand to attempt to fight back, two cold and clawed hands pulled her arms back, forcing her to a kneeling position. 

— You listen, worm, — the lieutenant spoke back, her words holding poison. Lucia would have talked back had the coldness of the alien’s hands not morphed into the coldness of metal. A pair of handcuffs, magnetically locked, held her hands behind her back.

— I- — She was cut off with another backhanded slap.

— Nuh uh uh, what did I say? You listen, you do not speak, unless allowed. — Brikel said with a smile that betrayed her cruel enjoyment. — Begin the tagging process. — Brikel said, completely ignoring the attempted pleas and tears forming in Lucia's eyes. A cold metal ring clamped around her neck, making it extremely uncomfortable to breathe. A quick shock knocked her down, still conscious of her surroundings but too stunned to move or speak.

— Starting the tagging process — Lucia heard with a click similar to the one of a walkman. — Creature’s skin is thin. Its height measures at 176 centimeters, around the height of a rust blood, if not shorter. Its hair is brown. Its eyes seem similar to bronze, slightly lighter than the average, and its blood — she felt a prick on her arm — Deep Rust. —

Lucia felt horrible after that blood was taken, but it wasn’t the end. Her ear was pierced with a heavy titanium tag. That same prick as before came but instead of taking her blood they were injecting her with something. She was then dragged against the metal floor and thrown into a cell, or rather, into a solitary confinement unit. No one but her there. These creatures seemed to have some sort of messed up version of law. Still, hope lingered that this was going to be some sort of catch and release, where she’d be tagged and sent back to enjoy her life as normal.

Unfortunately, four hours later when she woke up with her head spinning due to what they injected into her arm, and missing both the shock collar and the handcuffs, she finally noticed the room. Thick black walls, with a transparent window to the right side showing the adjacent cell empty. In front of her was an eight inch thick ballistic-grade glass. She tried kicking it but it did less than nothing.

— WHY ME? THERE’S BETTER PEOPLE ON EARTH, — her voice echoed through the halls. Even if they did hear her, they didn’t care to respond.

Act 2: Prison years

Three years have passed since the abduction. Three long and hard years. From the small window in her cell Lucia could see the planets flying away within the first two hours of her time in the cell, and as the planets were quickly left behind so was her hope of ever seeing that bright blue marble ever again. With three years counting that hope was not only long gone but it had reshaped itself into hatred; a white hot rage for these creatures that abducted her.

The first year was the easiest one, and it was the quickest to pass by. She didn’t have a proper time between when she left and the time when the tests started. Lucia just remembered having slept at least seven times beforehand. Lucia divided the first year in her head with three separate testing processes. 

1st: technical tests. They tested her vision, her reaction times, how fast she could run and for how long. They tested her resistance to certain drugs. It was hard but that was just the first layer of hell.

2nd: physical tests. Unlike the technical ones, these were made under threat of electric shock. They were resistance tests to see how long she could last running with the treadmill shocking her at certain intervals. They tested her resistance to specific voltages– it only ever went up to 42 volts after they figured out through simulations that any further voltage could result in brain damage which would greatly reduce their testing ability.

3rd: combat tests. These were the true start of the decline in Lucia’s tests, and in her physical and mental health. They put her in a combative situation with several grunts. Lucia managed to win once or twice, but once they started getting larger and larger she had more broken bones than unbroken ones. 

These were the tests conducted in the first year during three month intervals each, and she had three months of rest before the second year battering started.

That last test, however, had left her with an idea. Lucia would never be able to surpass the big opponents, but she could become just strong enough to fight back against some of the smaller ones, just strong enough to fight against the ones that bled deep red and green. Thus, Lucia's training started. 

They were feeding her the exact amount needed to survive in rations, if not slightly more to make sure she didn’t start losing testable muscle mass. That meant extra energy for her to burn while working her body down to the last drop.

The second year started off with writing tests. They seemed to be able to read English properly, but they had their own written language in documents and posters. She managed to write what they asked and was let go with very few shocks and bruises. 

The second part of the tests were the most ruthless ones: combat tests with weaponry. First came melee weaponry. They had put her in a ring with a sword and a shield against a bastard with a heavy hammer. The only reason she didn’t die was due to the stimulants the med bay had which accelerated the healing process and dampened the pain to a dull itch. After the melee weapons tests guns were introduced. Heavy and strange, she wasn’t allowed to wield them; she was target practice. The scientists placed a helmet on her head to make sure she wouldn’t die in an accident before setting grunts to shoot her. That day she had more lead on her limbs than any soldier, and again the med bay removed it all and fixed any issues that the shots could have led to. Strangely enough when the situation required healing her they treated it all with extreme care, not because she was important but because she was part of the research.

During her frequent visits to the med bay though, she overheard a conversation that would haunt her. The third year was fully ballistic tests, with the added negative of plasma weaponry being introduced to it. She endured having limbs burned and healed for almost two hundred days before the true horror of what she heard hit her.

— Lieutenant of the 57th ship from Her Imperial Armada reporting to the High Commander of the Fourth Imperial Armada Her Wrathful Destruction. — Lucia saw Brikel through the glass, she seemed scared. Lucia smiled for the first time in these three years seeing Brikel scared.

— Reporting my findings has proven itself a success, it seems like Admiral Vorkev, titled Deadshot, was interested in the weapons tests. I have contacted Admiral Avaaci and General Faeria, titled the Intoxicant, about the drug tests. They all showed relative interest, but the tests are only nearly done. We will finish testing plasma and then begin the discard.—

These last words hung in the air for what felt like an eternity. After plasma was done she’d be discarded? Her heart had never sunk so deep; was all that suffering for absolutely nothing? Lucia didn’t think of that until the mention that the plasma tests were over, nearly nine months later into the third year of captivity.

The words kept repeating themselves in her head. We will finish plasma testing, and then discard. It felt so wrong. Yes, everything was hell for her here, but that felt worse. Maybe it was the finality of it: they didn’t consider her necessary cargo anymore and the research was done.

Time felt like it was coming to a crawl when the doctor stepped in front of her cell and said, — The Med Bay is ready. — The pit in her stomach felt so large it could sink the ship. — You will be allowed a last meal, we are not monsters after all, — the doctor's smile was sinister. She was led to the dining hall, and her eyes widened. She’d never been here before, and the grunts who shot her several months ago were staring.

— Can I ask for whatever I want to eat? — she said in an almost-mumble. The doctor looked down on her and responded with a hiss, — of course. — There was a false attempt to connect with her, just to make sure that her suffering would be worse when the time came for the execution.

Lucia asked for a T-bone steak. Though they were planning on killing her, and she was hatching a plan in her head to not make it so easy. The meal came and went but when they were taking the plate away she bumped into it, making it fall. She had little time to properly execute her plan, but she slid the bone under her sleeve before getting up.

While walking to the med bay, she had to remind herself to keep the facade if she wanted her plan to work. She played meeker than she was. — Am… Am I going to die? — she asked, tears pooling in her eyes before being slapped with a backhand again.

—Silence inferior, — the facade dropped immediately from the doctor. It wasn’t worth it to fuck with her head with her death just around the corner.

As the impending doom became ever so clear, Lucia clenched her hand on the bone in her sleeve. Remembering the entirety of her life –and how could she not when her mind was already set on dying– her heartbeats became irregular. Remembering her first kiss, her first bike crash, the good emotions and feelings she shared with her older brother, Lucia couldn’t help but feel like it was all for nothing. 

Being  seated on the stretcher, she felt the cold on her arm as they inserted the IV needle on it to run her final living tests. She remembered the emotion she felt when she fell in love, true hopelessness. As soon as she saw the deep crimson from the blood on her arm, she also saw that disgust formed on the face of the man conducting the tests.

The doctor got a syringe out of the packet, fresh as it could be before pulling the plunger on an ampoule of what she could only assume would be the tranquilizer. At that point, with options limited, Lucia had one shot at surviving and even if trying meant death. She had to try.

Act 3: The Indomitable Human Spirit

— This is not how a human dies — a voice spoke to her — A human doesn’t lay down curled up and let the world kill it. — her heart felt like it was burning when these words were spoken inside her mind.

With her heart beating so fast it felt like it was about to burst. Lucia slipped a hand in her sleeve, pulling out the bone from the steak she had earlier. before the syringe even touched her skin she was already tackling the doctor. The sound was horrible, where the bone met flesh it made a wet squelching sound, the green liquid oozing from the doctor’s neck where he had been stabbed, it was reminiscent of moss, and it made her think of someone that was now a distant memory. Lucia not only stabbed this doctor’s neck, she completely brutalized his face, as a monument to how much life there was left in her. 

Hearing a grunt running to the Med Bay, she knew she made enough noise to alert them. but that too was according to plan, as she grabbed the syringe from the corpse’s hand, and rushed to stand on the side of the door. As soon as the grunt barrelled in, he was stabbed in the neck and injected with the contents of the syringe. Immediate muscle relaxation was what this did, in less than 10 seconds the grunt was down, but not before shooting a shell into the nothing in front of him.

That alone was enough to alert the entire section of the ship. Remembering the times spent in the shooting range with her father, Lucia knew enough about guns to know what to do in this situation, as she grabbed the grunt’s shotgun, cocked the next shell in. Took the knife from his boot, and the pistol from his side.Now armed to the teeth and not ready to go down. Although this was just the start of what was to come.

Lucia moved the O2 tank to the side of the entrance, and rushed to the side room of the med bay. The grunts marched in, Lucia aligned the shot with the tank and pulled the trigger. The explosion was loud and strong enough to blow that side of the wall down. The bodies were just a mash of Orange Purple and Blue. If these were humans Lucia might have had qualms about what she was doing, but she had already decided these things were nothing but demons a long while ago. 

Lucia did though, forget to account for the size and material of the tank, she didn’t feel any pain when it happened but the entire right side of her torso and leg were filled with metal shards from the tank, glass from the windows and other debris. When she tried to step her knee almost failed to, it nearly crumbled under her own weight.

— Fuck fuck fuck fuck — Lucia muttered when she heard the next wave of grunts rushing in, this time she didn’t have a good plan. 

— Explosion at Med Bay Four — Lucia heard one of the grunts saying — Entering engagement range. Draw your weapons — her panic made her do a stupid decision, the command to draw their weapons meant they weren’t already drawn. Lucia had a shot at getting this right, and she just needed to be lucky.

Steeling her resolve Lucia started screaming when forcing her weight on the bad leg, using it as a headstart for a charge against the grunts, luckily enough where they were still getting the weapons out of their backs, she didn’t stop at a decent range, grabbing the gun she stole from the first grunt by the barrel and using the extra reach to completely shatter the first grunt’s jaw, screaming in both fear and rage.

The group of grunts stood in shock at seeing the squad leader knocked down by what was by all means an inferior species, a wounded one at that, that gave her enough time to grab the gun improperly for a shot, she could feel her wrist coming close to shattering when the trigger was pulled, the shot wasn’t precise but it got at least one of them out of the fight. Two down, one to go. 

As the grunt aimed down his gun at her, he felt something he never felt before, not when dealing with inferiors, he felt afraid. The blank eyes that looked at him were filled with pure hatred, his hands were sweating and shaking as he pulled the trigger all that was heard was a Click. He hadn’t disengaged the safety, the last thing on his vision was Lucia charging with the gun held like a hammer, slamming into the side of his head, the Alien felt every second when his skull shattered against the butt of the gun.

— Hello? Hello. Is everything okay? we heard an explosion on med bay five — The communicator of one of the grunts rung out, Lucia just stomped it out with her good foot before limping to the med bay, even if half of it was destroyed she remembered where they kept the stims, even when incapable of reading the language she knew what they looked like well enough, By torturing her for that long these monsters had given her all the tools she needed for killing them one by one.

The stimulants were a mix of Epinephrine, and nano agents that closed wounds from the inside, she managed to scrounge up four, as she stabbed herself in the neck with one and clipped the other ones on her belt. Being able to walk within seconds of the injection was a miracle, but instead of that she decided to run, run over to the other med bays that were emptied by the grunts before attempting to kill her, Lucia found six extra stimulants before heading out to other wings of the ship.

While that was happening Brikel was seeing through the cameras. what her eyes saw made absolutely no sense, this inferior was weaker than a Bronze blood she could not have possibly shattered the jaw of two Indigos and shot a purpleblood down. And worse of all Brikel saw this inferior walking straight to the Docking bay. 

— Brikel to docking bay. The inferior is headed there. — Her voice showed less worry than she felt at that moment 

— What? — was the first response — The inferior was set to die today. what you mean it is headed here — 

— I MEAN IT IS HEADED THERE WHAT DID YOU NOT UNDER- — her voice cut out when Brikel saw the head of the communications officer get blown off. These men were unarmed, but they were complicit in what happened to Lucia, as she killed each one of them with extreme brutality. 

— What do you plan to achieve with this? — Brikel said over communications, she could hear all around the room as Lucia just breathed heavily. — You won’t survive if we’re dead, you know that. — Brikel wasn’t lying when she said that, Lucia barely knew how to drive, let alone pilot an alien ship.

— I don’t care. — Lucia responded coldly before starting to walk out.

This ship was outfitted with ten grunts. The first one killed in the med bay, the three first backups that got blown up, and the three that were brutalized by her on the outside of the med bay wing, meaning that three more had to die. The ship was, although, fitted with nearly twenty scientists, not men of combat. Lucia was not like these people. she wouldn’t kill them, and decided that ignoring them was the best course of action, heading straight for where Brikel was.

The three grunts suited up, the heaviest class of armor as they rushed to the outside of the Lieutenant’s quarters, the armor was heavy enough where Lucia felt them running by the shaking of the floor. She popped another stimulant on her neck screaming out, the sound echoed the halls stopping the grunts in their tracks as they aimed down sights to get her.

Lucia was prepared for that, as she went up the stairs, she threw her jacket first before going, which prompted the trigger happy grunts to unload on it, hearing the click of two magazines leaving the gun, but she knew she had heard three footsteps before. which meant there was one of them that held their guard, Lucia ran in shooting the one that hadn’t shot yet, hitting him in the head. The sound was painful to hear, that ding meant that she shot the equivalent of a steel wall that was the grunt’s helmet, the shot didn’t penetrate, as he unloaded the mag on her torso. Lucia had the benefit of being resilient but she wasn’t made of steel, these shots hurt as she gripped the gun with one hand, and the wound with the other. The grunts lowered their guns as the one that shot her down walked up to grab her by the neck,kicking and punching at the armor to no avail.

— You got far for an inferior. But it was all for nothing. — The creature manhandling her said tightening the grip on her neck — Your journey ends here. Maggot. — the alien said in her direction.

Lucia’s mind was going numb with the lack of oxygen, she had a pistol but she couldn’t shoot it there, the gun was dropped as soon as she was lifted up, she was going to die then and there until she noticed. The underside of the helmet doesn’t have any armor. all the grunt could see was a smile coming across Lucia’s face as she grabbed the knife from her boot, and stabbed under the grunt’s chin. The grip weakened immediately as motor functions ceased, and the others unloaded another mag into the back of their compatriot, the clinking sounds the armor made when it deflected. Another click, as they began reloading she popped another stim, her heart was nearly exploding after this one as the application was followed by another scream and her rushing them down with the knife.

— WATCH OUT — the one on the left screamed as lucia leaped to the one on the right, they spun in place with their back facing the ally as she stabbed the underside of their jaw. When the body fell lucia used that momentum to jump at the other, but it wasn’t enough, he grabbed her in the air and punched her out. gun on the floor he took a combat stance. Lucia’s nose was broken, blood filled her mouth as she spat out two teeth.

— I WILL NOT FALL TO AN INFERIOR — the grunt said walking towards a still standing Lucia — Neither will i — Lucia barked back. before running towards the grunt.

This fight was unbalanced, enough so where as soon as she got close to him he grabbed the arm that had a knife and broke it, like if it was a twig. and threw her back. as she collapsed on the floor, her one good hand held something that the grunt only noticed when he walked to stomp her head. Lucia rolled over her broken left arm, and shot him under the jaw with the pistol. the body fell back with a thud as she stood up. her pupils were the size of the point of a needle as she marched forth, her arm that should be in excruciating pain was nothing more than a numb tingling at the shoulder.

By all means this should be the tale of how a young woman was taken from earth, tortured and murdered in cold blood. Lucia had to be lucky ten times to get this far, and so on she was. She walked to the door where the lieutenant stood. Brikel stood proudly behind the door. she knew she was better than that inferior, and she was about to show it. gun in hand she waited, aimed at where the head would be when the door opened.

Lucia on the other hand, ripped one of the helmets off of the guards, it barely fit her head but it was a guarantee that she would not die in one single lucky shot. as she walked into the room.

The first shot hit the helmet, Brikel was surprised she didn’t keel over and die then and there. She shot two more times, once in the chest narrowly missing her left lung, and the other one hitting her shoulder. Lucia kept walking towards her.

— You, you should be dead. you shouldn’t be WALKING RIGHT NOW — all the confidence fell through the moment she got closer, Lucia was around four feet away when she shot Brikel in the shoulder, Brikel dropped the gun in pain.

Lucia was silent, she closed her hand into a fist and struck Brikel in the center of her face, busting the nose immediately

Brikel shouted — YOU'RE A SPEC, YOU'RE NOTHING — before punching her back in the bullet wound, Lucia’s blood pooled on the floor around her from the wounds, But before Brikel could get another word out, she got a fist in the jaw.

— Then I'll become something and kill you. Right here. Right now. — Lucia threw her gun away and grabbed Brikel by the neck. — I am part of the species meant to inherit the stars. Not you. You’re here now on a barely valid invite. — her hands tightened as Brikel began to suffocate, fighting was futile at that point — WE ARE MEANT TO INHERIT THE STARS. NOT YOU. NEVER YOU. — Lucia shouted, pulling Brikel’s head back and slamming against the wall leaving violet bloodpats in it. 

After Brikel’s death, painful and agonizing as it was, Lucia walked to the dashboard near the wall of her quarters, she pressed every button until she heard the slight feedback from the microphone, and she sent a message to all fleet ships that could hear.

— You are flying with borrowed wings. My name is Lucia from Earth, and i Alone have taken over your ship. — The quirky English major became the extermination of this entire ship. The ones that were left alive were soon sent to die in the void of space. She was almost alone, save for one particular creature that she felt she couldn’t kill, as it was connected to the entirety of the ship with some strange tubings.

At this point lucia had accepted her fate, that she is just waiting for death to crawl to her. She didn’t know how to control the ship, and the fact that space is mostly empty didn’t help, she couldn’t tell if the ship was turning, or going straight with the controls. there was enough food for her to last for several more years now. So, she just decided to rest. for a little while.

[callsign-daydream]

Girl's Night Out - TGM

Summary: Halo is back in town, and the girls are ready for a night of fun! Who knows? The boys might even miss them.

Warnings: Starred out swearing, yelling, general Navy/Military inaccuracies, alcohol, no plot in sight, inconsistency between names/callsigns, just silliness, OC included (about her here), mild Hangman/OC

Word Count: 1471

Girl's Night Out --- “We’re going out tomorrow.” Phoenix strode into the apartment, typing something out on her phone, stepping over some boots in the middle of the floor, and snagging an apple out of the basket on the countertop.

Daydream stopped humming along to Caterina Caselli and looked up from the her salad. “Was there someone at the door? Nah. Couldn’t be. Nobody knocked.”

“Not my fault you never lock your door.”

Hallie grumbled but couldn’t deny it.

“Anyway,” Nat sat on a stool, “tell Bagman you can’t hang out this weekend.”

That caused Hallie to snap her head up again. “Who says I’m doing anything with Hangman?”

“Because you’re usually doing something with him on the weekends, and for some reason the medics haven't figured out yet, you like him.”

“Do not.”

“Liar.”

Hallie chucked a tomato over the counter. Nat managed to catch it, promptly tossing it into her mouth.

“What’s the special occasion anyway?” Hallie poured some vinaigrette over her bowl before turning the music down on her phone.

“Halo’s coming to town.”

Hallie's eyes widened. Halo had been reassigned after the Dagger Squad’s first mission, before Maverick decided on adding an eighth member. Hallie had been in the same TOPGUN year as Halo, but hadn’t seen her since.

“What for?”

“Extra training. She gets in tonight, and we’re going out for a girl’s day tomorrow. No ditching.”

Hallie scoffed and picked up her phone. “You know I’m in.”

Nat smirked and raised an eyebrow at the blonde woman typing on her phone. “Who are you texting?”

Hallie looked up, opened her mouth several times, and then grimaced. “...Jake.”

“I knew it!”

Another tomato went flying.

--- “Where’s Fee and Dream?” Rooster asked as he joined the crew in the corner of the Hard Deck. Payback and Fanboy were currently testing how many peanuts Bob could fit in his mouth, while Hangman and Coyote were haunting the pool table as usual.

Hangman didn’t look up from his shot. “Girl’s night. Halo’s in town.”

“And they didn’t come here?” Rooster sat with his beer.

Coyote chuckled. “Probably didn’t want us crashing their night.”

“We wouldn’t crash it—”

On cue, a spray of peanuts flew across the space. One hit Rooster’s face. One fell in Coyote’s open cup. One ricocheted off the window. A mess rattled across the pool table, eliciting a curse from Hangman, who bombed his shot and sunk the cue ball. Bob was coughing severely as Payback and Fanboy cheered and high-fived.

“Forty-eight,” Payback confirmed.

Rooster nodded. “Yeah, I see it now.”

Penny was quickly at their side, handing out cups to pick up the nutty missiles, as well as collecting thirty dollars from a grumbling Payback after finding out Bob hadn’t passed fifty.

“We got another bet going, if you want in,” Payback said to Rooster.

“What’s up?”

“When the girls will call about needing a ride home.” He glanced at the clock and grinned. “Fanboy’s already out.”

Rooster shook his head. “You gotta give them at least till midnight.”

“That’s what I said,” Coyote agreed.

“I thought they’d drink faster!” Fanboy protested.

“Phoenix said two in the morning,” Bob said.

“I say one,” Rooster said. “Give or take fifteen minutes.”

“You’re all wrong.” Hangman set his now-full peanut cup down on the pool table. “They’ll be drinking more because of Halo, but Phoenix is somehow more stubborn when she’s drunk and will have them hold out until twelve thirty, which is when I’ll get a call from Daydream about how much fun they’re having. She'll finally ask for a ride around twelve forty-five.”

“Oh, right.” Rooster smirked. “I forgot you’d know your girlfriend better than us.”

“Not my girlfriend.”

“Then how’d you know who I was talking about?”

Hangman threw the cup of peanuts at Rooster, earning one laugh and several groans at the new mess.

They all turned out wrong. At around twelve forty-five, Hangman’s phone vibrated on the table, “Dreamgirl” glowing across the screen. Rooster whistled as Hangman glared and answered it.

“Seresin here.”

“Jake!” Hallie’s voice was loud enough without even being on speaker. “Guess what!”

He chuckled. “What?”

“I can do a tequila shot through my nose!”

Bob’s eyes widened. “That doesn’t sound safe.”

Hangman waved a hand. “You should join the circus with that trick, Hal.”

Hallie gasped on the other end. Her next words were quieter as she evidently spoke to her physical companions. “We should all join a circus!”

This was met by loud agreement from the voices of Phoenix and Halo. Hallie chattered and shouted with them as they yelled about their new performing careers and imminent success. Hangman held the phone away from his ear for a moment before attempting to cut back in.

“Hal. Hallie. Hal.”

“Hi!” She paused. “Is this Jake?”

Phoenix made a loud wolf whistle, causing Rooster to waggle his eyebrows. Jake shoved him hard, making the aviator fall back into Payback and Fanboy.

“It’s me,” Hangman said. “You called me.”

“Oh, right!” Hallie laughed for a few minutes before Halo could be heard smacking Hallie’s arm.

“I’m asking! ****, Halo!”

Jake rolled his eyes.

“Anyway,” Hallie went on over more giggling, “I really, really, really don’t need to be driving…or Fee…or Halo…”

“I’ll come get you.” Jake stood. “Tell me where you’re at.”

“No!” Phoenix’s voice interrupted. Judging by the sounds of a protesting Hallie, the former must’ve successfully obtained the phone. “I don’t want to be driven by Bagman!”

“Send Bob!” Halo cheered.

“Nooo!” Hallie whined.

Jake rolled his eyes as his other companions chuckled at him. Distracted, Rooster wrestled the phone from his hands. Some of his beer spilled as he slapped Hangman away.

“Hey, Fee. Rooster. Where are you at?”

“Bradshaw! Where are you?!”

“The Hard Deck.”

“Get over here! This place is crazy…it’s…Halo, where are we?”

"Burning Sun.”

“Burning Sun!”

Jake looked up and groaned. “That’s half an hour from here.”

“No worries, Bagman,” said Bradley, hanging up the phone. “I’ll pick up your girl too.”

“Not my girl!” Jake stood, snatched his keys, and stomped after Bradley, who was already dashing out the door.

---

Thirty minutes later found Rooster and Hangman at the entrance of the Burning Sun. It was newer than the Hard Deck, with no Navy uniforms in sight and a karaoke station in the back; the last item was likely the reason behind the ladies’ choice in venue. The Daggers scanned the space, searching for the trio.

Rooster yelled over the noise. “How are we gonna find--”

Daydream’s Italian yelling cut him off, followed by Halo cheering and an unknown, male voice yelling just as loudly in a much less victorious tone.

“Found ‘em,” said Hangman. He pointed at a large crowd to their right.

The duo pushed through to find a scene worthy of a Baroque painting. A man as tall as Hangman was on the ground, rubbing his jaw that was quickly turning purple. Daydream was standing on a nearby table, cheering and nearly knocking down a collection of glasses. Halo sat at said table, oblivious to the imminent danger, a beer bottle in each hand. At the center was Phoenix, standing over the man and basking in the crowd’s applause.

Rooster nudged Hangman’s ribs. Across the room, a bartender was beginning to sidle over.

“Alright, show’s over, folks!” Hangman announced as he clapped a hand on Phoenix’s shoulder. “Come back again tomorrow!”

Phoenix immediately shoved him off.

“Jake! You came!” Daydream cried.

“Gross,” said Phoenix. “We had…have…have it under control.”

“I’d say,” Rooster chimed in, brushing Hangman away from Phoenix's fighting stance. “That guy’ll feel it tomorrow.”

“Serves him right.” Halo stood and swayed. “Nat just gave his **** back to him.”

“**** straight!” Phoenix yelled.

After more yelling, a bribe to the bartender, and more yelling, the five aviators were situated in their proper vehicles. Phoenix and Halo had started up a rendition of “Evacuate the Dancefloor” that was just the chorus over and over in the back of Rooster’s Bronco, while Daydream was wiping away some tears from saying goodbye to the two in Hangman’s passenger seat.

“Over and out,” Rooster saluted as he drove out and joined the singing.

“You okay there, Dreamgirl?” Hangman glanced at his passenger.

Hallie nodded, then sat up straight. Jake raised his eyebrows.

“My name and Callie's rhyme! We're like…name twins!”

Jake laughed and shook his head. “Might as well be related.”

Hallie laughed and then settled down, evidently very interested in the pattern of the leather seats. The only sounds came from the wind through the cracked windows and the mild country singing from the radio. For a moment, Hangman thought she’d fallen asleep.

“...thanks for coming,” she mumbled.

“Anytime, Dreamgirl.”

---

Phoenix, Halo, and Daydream all woke up the next morning in their respective residences with matching headaches. Phoenix was the first to recover out of the three women, leaving the following text:

🔥 Phoenix 🔥: same thing next weekend? 😜

---

[440mxs-wife]

Treasure Quest, Chapter 6: Consequences

Pairing: Captain Dean x Rhaya Payton (OFC, eventual) Other Characters: Sam Winchester, Jessica Winchester, Captain Keira, Ellen Harvelle, Lord Darius Payton, Lord Ashton Kane (OMC's) Carissa Payton, Darcy (OFC's).

Word Count: 4591

Warnings: Angst, Discussion of Feelings, Threats, Holding Hostage, Reunion, Scheming Stepmother, Annoying Fiancé

Series Summary: Rhaya Payton is the daughter of the governor of Ochana. She grew up listening to her father tell her stories of pirates and treasure maps. At a gala one night, her stepmother, Carissa, announces Rhaya’s engagement to Ashton Kane, a wealthy nobleman. Only problem is, no one checked with Rhaya first. After overhearing plans made by her fiancé, Rhaya decides to go on the run and stows away on Captain Dean’s ship. What will happen when he finds her?

This Chapter: Captain Dean and a few of his crew team up with a few of Captain Keira's crew with a plan to rescue Rhaya, who has been returned home. While her father is happy to see her home safe, her stepmother and fiancé have a plan of their own to make sure she doesn't take off again. Will Captain Dean arrive in time to save Rhaya and tell her of his feelings? We shall see....Enjoy!

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Locked up in Lucifer's office with no means of escape, Rhaya decided to put her time to good use and check out her surroundings. On the other side of the door, Lucifer and Ketch weren't paying much attention to her. They were too busy discussing what to do with her until the ship reached Ochana. She decided to take advantage of this fact and try a little misdirection. Her goal was to keep them away from the treasure, in case they caught wind of its location or its existence.

She walked over to Lucifer's desk with the stack of papers and maps he had strewn about and carefully leafed through them. Some of the maps were marked with shipping routes and ocean currents that were similar to what she'd memorized from The Shadow Pirate's map.

On one of the unfinished lines, Rhaya took the mapping pencil and extended the markings to lead Lucifer off track from the treasure. Satisfied with her endeavors, any items she used were returned to their rightful place on the desk, hopefully unnoticed by Lucifer.

Sometime in the twelve to fifteen hours after she was taken from Alcaria, Rhaya was finally moved out of Lucifer's office and into her own quarters. A room about 7 feet by 10 feet, enough space for a single cot and a hard wooden chair tucked under a desk, but not for much else. Her bag had been dumped out on the cot, left for her to reorganize after its contents had been examined for anything dangerous. With a heavy sigh, she set about the task of refolding her clothes and putting them in some sort of order.

She was sure that her dagger and a couple of her other knives were now the property of Red Dragon crewmembers. Can't be helped, she thought, but....maybe they didn't find everything. She felt around the inside and let out a small squeal when she found one of her blades she had hidden in a secret pocket sewn into her bag. At least she would have some protection, should anything worse come to pass, the mere thought of which caused her to shudder.

After organizing her small space, Rhaya sat on the edge of her bed, twirling her knife, while she tried to think of a way to escape. Once the ship docked in Ochana, there would be nothing to stop Carissa from declaring that the wedding should be held without further delay. Lord Darius would be unable to oppose his wife, regardless of however much he wanted to protect his daughter. Carissa and Lord Ashton would get their way, leaving Rhaya stuck in a loveless and miserable marriage. That is, until her husband got tired of her and followed through on his plans for her to meet with an "accident".

At least Captain Dean was in possession of the treasure map instead of Lord Ashton. Her heart clenched at the thought of her captain and how he must have felt when he learned she was missing. She could only imagine the emotions Dean would have gone through. Anger that she was taken from him through force by his enemies. Worry that she could be hurt or that he might not ever see her again. And possibly a bit of guilt that he wasn't there to protect her and keep her from being taken in the first place.

Rhaya felt tears brimming in her eyes, longing to reassure Dean that none of this was his fault. When she blinked they all escaped and silently slid down her face as she considered the situation she and Captain Dean were in. It wasn't fair that she was being forcibly transported back to Ochana to marry a man she would never love. She knew she would be used as a tool for political reasons. Or worse, paraded around on Lord Ashton's arm like nothing more than an accessory.

She craved a life of adventure, sailing on the open seas, not one where she floated among the gossip circles from one gala to the next. She wanted to spend her days with someone who valued her opinions, who listened to her ideas and who could calm her, merely with his presence. The only man who had so far met this criteria and the only one who ever would was Captain Dean. She only hoped to escape her prison or be rescued from it soon, so she could see him again and tell him.

***

Dean went back to his apartment above Harvelle's to grab his already-repacked bag, then headed towards the docks. He still wasn't completely convinced that this was the best course of action. It was in direct conflict with his instincts, which was to rescue his girl first, then go after the treasure. But Rhaya trusted Keira, so he agreed to do the same. He only hoped they would reach Ochana in time to stop any pending nuptials.

A small crowd had gathered at the docks to say their goodbyes to the few crew members making the journey to find treasure and to rescue Rhaya. In attendance on this voyage were Sam, Dr. Jimmy Novak, Benny, and Jack. The crew joining from The Aurora included Captain Keira, Donna, Jody, Charlie, and their healer, Rowena.

Off to one side, Sam and his wife were standing together, as Jessica fussed with the collar on her husband's shirt. She continued to fidget with it until Sam clasped his hands to hers until she stopped. He gave her a light chuckle and as soft smile. "Honey, it's all right. We'll be back before you know it, so try to worry too much, okay?"

Jessica placed her palms flat on Sam's chest, his hands still covering hers. "I'll try to keep the worrying to a minimum. Hurry back, though. I know you want to be here for when this little one makes an entrance into the world," she pointed out.

Sam moved one of his hands to rub her belly, then he leaned down and placed a kiss to it. "Hey, kiddo, I have to go away for a little bit, so don't give your momma too much trouble," he murmured. Jessica's fingers threaded through Sam's chestnut locks and when he stood up, her hand slipped down to rest against his cheek. "I love you," he whispered.

"I love you too, Sam. Go and find that treasure, so you can rescue Rhaya," Jess replied before giving him a lingering kiss.

Dean was securing the fasteners on his bag and tightening the straps when Ellen approached him. He looked up and gave her a half smile. "Hey, Ellen," he greeted her.

"Hey there, Dean. So. How long you gonna be gone for this time?" she asked.

He gave a final tug on the straps of one of his bags before slinging it over his shoulder. "Why, you wanna know what to tell Jo?" he wondered.

She shook her head. "Nope, I'm askin' so I know when I can stop worryin'. I know you're settin' out to finish what your father started," she guessed.

"How did you--" he blurted.

Ellen threw him a look that said, are you kidding? "People talk, Dean, and I'm a good listener. I also know you're headed to Ochana after that to go after your girl. Not gonna lie, though, I thought for sure you and my Joanna Beth would get married at some point," she remarked.

Dean nervously rubbed the back of his neck. "Yeah, I know, and I'm real sorry that it didn't work out between us like that, but--"

Ellen interrupted him by putting a finger to his lips. "Listen, Dean, Jo's already a bit heartbroken that she's lost you, but she will eventually realize it was for the best. You can't help who you fall in love with. The heart wants what the heart wants, and I can tell yours wants Miss Payton."

He thought for a minute about his feelings towards Rhaya. Nights spent stargazing, telling each other stories about growing up, and the agonizing pain of losing a parent. Dean couldn't imagine a life without Rhaya in it, and he realized it wouldn't be much of one unless she was a part of it. "Yeah, you're right. It does want her, I-I mean I do as well," he admitted hoarsely.

"Then you've got to do everything in your power to make that happen. As long as she makes you happy, that's all that matters," she affirmed, giving his biceps a quick squeeze. "You take care now, and come back safe." She pulled him into a fierce hug. "Go get your girl," she whispered.

"Thank you," he replied. When they broke apart, Dean noticed that Keira was walking up to him. "Hey, Ellen, I want you to meet Captain Keira from The Aurora, she's Rhaya's best fr--er, sister. Keira's going to help us do what we need to do for this rescue mission. Keira, meet Ellen Harvelle, owner of Harvelle's and longtime family friend."

"Pleased to meet you, Ellen," Keira stuck out her hand and firmly shook Ellen's in greeting. "We have a wealth of experience between our two crews. That said, we should accomplish our mission in no time," she declared. She scanned the horizon and made mental notes of the weather conditions. "Sorry, Captain Dean, but I came over to tell you we should probably head out. The Dragon has more than half a day's head start on us. Sneaky bastards," she mumbled then gave Dean and Ellen a quick smile before heading to the dock.

Dean gave Ellen one final hug then picked up his other bag and rounded up his crew to board their ship. As they sailed away from the dock, everyone stood at the rail, waving to their family and loved ones. Those watching from onshore prayed for a safe and quick return, as well as success in their mission.

Jess hoped Sam would return in time to see their baby being born. Ellen held a soft spot for Dean and Sam, being John's sons, and loving him for so many years before losing him. Kelly worried for her son Jack, the youngest crew member, going into such a dangerous situation. Each one of the women may have only just met Rhaya, but they knew what she meant to each of their loved ones. As the ship set sail, the women huddled together, hoping all would go well and that everyone would return safely home..

***

Two days at sea have gone by, but it might as well have been two weeks for as slowly as the time has passed. Rhaya was mostly kept locked in her room, except for meals, and even then, she was confined to the Captain's Mess. Lucifer wasn't all that keen about letting her walk around the ship unaccompanied, and none of his crew wanted babysitting duty.

Whenever she did leave her quarters, Rhaya scanned her surroundings for possible escape opportunities. It was reaching the point at which she was considering sneaking overboard and taking her chances on the open sea. However, with the dangers lurking below the water's surface and the lack of land formations, she decided against it. The best she could do is bide her time until she reached Ochana. There were hiding places aplenty, to which she alone held the knowledge of their location, as long as she could slip away from the ship.

Unfortunately, this was not possible, since Connor and a small contingent of the governor's guards were waiting on the docks. They were sent to meet Lucifer's ship at the docks for diplomatic reasons, as well as to escort Rhaya to the mansion and her father. Upon her descent from the gangplank, Connor gave her a short bow. "Welcome home, Miss Payton," he greeted her warmly, then led her to the carriage that would take them to the mansion.

"Thank you, Connor. I suppose it's good to be home. I'm looking forward to seeing my father," she replied as she took her seat opposite the captain of the guards.

"I'm sure he is anxious to see you as well, Miss. He hasn't been quite himself since your disappearance," he mentioned.

Rhaya felt a pang of guilt at Connor's observation. "Yes, well, I hope he will soon forgive me, considering I have been safely returned," she murmured, staring at her hands folded in her lap.

"I believe all will be well as soon as he sees you for himself, Miss," Connor insisted.

The rest of the ride passed in silence, with Rhaya gazing out the carriage window. When they reached the mansion, Connor guided her through the kitchen. His reason for doing so was to cause as little fanfare as possible and not disrupt the day-to-day operations of the house. Secretly, Rhaya was thankful because it also minimized her chances of running into Carissa before seeing her father.

As she walked to the study, she wondered how her father would react when he sees her. Will he greet her with open arms and hold her close, not wanting to ever let her go? Will he be angry that she left without telling him? Or, worse yet, will he refuse to see her at all, ignoring her return? No, she told herself. Connor said he hasn't been himself since I left. I'm going to take it that he'll want to see me, she reasoned. She took a deep breath and knocked on the door to her father's study.

***

Lord Darius was in his study after dinner, trying to catch up on some paperwork. He was just about to sign his name on the document before him when he heard someone knock on his door. He dropped his pen on his desk in exasperation and barked, "I told you, I am extremely busy. I do not want to be disturbed!"

The door creaked open and he saw a head of strawberry-blond hair poking through. The head slowly lifted to reveal the chocolate eyes and wary smile of his missing, but now returned daughter. Lord Darius gradually rose from his chair, tears springing to his eyes. "Rhaya?" he whispered.

Rhaya opened the door wider and stepped through. "It's me, Papa. I'm home," she replied softly.

Lord Darius swiftly closed the distance between them and engulfed his daughter in his arms. "I wasn't sure I'd ever see you again. I've missed you so much," he remarked.

Rhaya could feel the shoulder of her tunic getting wet and realized it was from her father's tears, which caused her own tears to fall. "I'm so sorry, Papa, for sneaking away like that," she sniffled.

Her father pulled back to gaze at his daughter, keeping his hold on her as if she'll disappear again if he were to release her. His hand cupped her cheek while his thumb brushed away her tears. "I know, sweetheart. Come, let's sit down over here and you can tell me about your travels," Darius coaxed. They walked over to the couch and sat down, facing each other and holding hands.

Rhaya told her father about sneaking out of her room and stowing away on The Black Diamond, where she met Captain Dean. She explained that they weren't on very good terms at first, but that she'd like to think of him now as her friend. She was about to tell him about "borrowing" the treasure map for The Shadow Pirate, when the door burst open, the doorknob banging into the opposite wall.

"Darius, you must have a talk with the head chef. He routinely ignores my every--" Carissa stopped short when she saw who sat next to her husband. Pasting a look of profound relief on her face, she rushed over to the couch. "Rhaya!" she exclaimed, pulling her stepdaughter into a tight hug. "You're finally home, safe and sound!" Though in Rhaya's ear she hissed, "If you ever pull a stunt like this again, I'll lock you in your room and forget where I've hidden the key." She stepped back, a beaming smile on her face in direct contrast to her irritation with the young girl.

"Now, what were you saying about the head chef, dear?" Lord Darius tried to diffuse the tension now growing between his wife and daughter.

Carissa waved her hand, her eyes never leaving Rhaya's face. "Oh, it wasn't that important Darius. So, Rhaya, tell us all about your terrible ordeal, being kidnapped on your engagement night," she drawled.

Before Rhaya could respond, someone else was barging into her father's study. He had a batch of papers in his hand, which he was reading as he walked and mumbling to himself. "Darius, I must speak with you about--" Ashton abruptly cut himself short. "Rhaya, my darling, you're back!" he gushed.

Rhaya rolled her eyes at his fake sentiment and held up her arms in protest to his attempt to embrace her. "Yes, Ashton. I'm home, I'm safe, no harm came to me. Right now, all I want is to take a long, luxurious bath and to wash my hair. Maybe something to eat afterwards, but I am definitely looking forward to sleeping in my own bed. So, if you will excuse me," she added as she attempted to side-step her unauthorized fiancé.

But Ashton was quicker. When she tried to walk past him, his hand shot out and grabbed her by the elbow. "Allow me to escort you to your chambers, my dearest," he gritted out, squeezing her arm in the process.

She winced at the pressure, but finally managed to wrench herself from his grasp. "That won't be necessary, I know how to get to my room," she retorted with a glare. She took two steps forward, then was met with someone she actually wanted to see. "Darcy," she breathed. "Oh, it's so good to see you again, my dearest friend." Leaning close, she whispered, "Please get me out of here before Ashton insists again on walking me to my room."

Darcy gave an imperceptible nod and sly grin to Rhaya before placing the folder from her hands onto the desk. "My apologies, Lord Darius, I was unaware that your daughter had returned. Will you need me for anything else, or may I accompany her to her room?" she asked.

The governor smiled warmly and assured her that her duties were completed for the day, and to assist Rhaya with whatever she needed. Darcy nodded and gave a slight bow before linking arms with her friend and leaving the room. "I have so much to tell you," Rhaya grinned.

Darcy returned her smile and quickened her pace. "There is much to discuss with you as well. Come on, let's get to your room where we can lock the door and speak in private," she muttered. At her suggestion, both ladies picked up their skirts and rushed to Rhaya's chambers, locking the door behind them. "Okay, now spill," she demanded.

***

Captain Dean stood at the ship's rail and gazed at the stars, same as he'd done countless nights before this one. The only difference was, on this night he stood alone, instead of having a beautiful woman by his side. The ship felt empty without her, and the days passed more slowly since he hadn't seen her smile. Even the nights seemed colder because it had been so long since he'd heard her laughter. "Sweetheart, if you can hear me, try to hold on. I'm coming to rescue you from Ashton. Just please don't marry him, Rhaya," he murmured to himself.

"E-Excuse me, Captain?" a voice from behind him sounded. Keira slowly walked up to where Dean was standing at the rail, his eyes turned skyward. "I'm sorry if I'm interrupting. I can go if--"

"No, it's fine, I don't mind the company," Dean cut in. "Whenever I can't sleep, I come up here to relax, look at the stars." He gestured towards a couple of crates for them to sit on while they conversed. "It's how Rhaya and I got to know each other a lot better," he chuckled ruefully.

"Yeah, I can imagine that. She was always interested in astronomy. It was one of her favorite subjects out of all the ones her tutors were there to teach. Chemistry was another big one, along with Literature, but Mathematics? Mmm, not so much," she giggled.

"She told me about her mom. S'another thing we have in common," he revealed. "My dad never remarried, so I don't know what it's like to have a stepmother. Ellen's pretty close, but Carissa sounds like a real doozy."

Keira rolled her eyes. "You have no idea. After I inherited my captaincy from the previous one on The Aurora, I came back to Ochana. I tried to convince Rhaya to pack a bag and leave with me, travel the world, have adventures we'd only dreamed about. But she couldn't, or probably more like wouldn't, leave her father alone with Carissa and all of her schemes. So I left, but I promised her that when I returned again, I would not leave without her."

"You're a good friend, Keira. How the hell did you two meet, anyway?" Dean wondered. 

Keira laughed before launching in to the story. "Well, my mom worked for the kitchen staff, one of many sous-chefs. One day I was hanging around in the kitchen until they kicked me out, so I decided to wander the grounds. The estate had many trees that had been there for at least a hundred years or more, and I had found a favorite one. Used to love to sit under there and enjoy the sounds of nature, or read a book."

"Sounds peaceful," Dean commented.

She nodded. "One day, after they chased me out of the kitchen, I went out to my designated tree. I had just opened my book and found my place to start reading, when I heard a rustling above me. Lo and behold, it's Rhaya, trying to steady herself on the branch above me. I asked her what she was doing up there, but before she could answer, a couple of the governor's guards had shown up."

"Let me guess: they were looking for Rhaya, who was probably absent from some lesson," Dean surmised.

Keira chuckled warmly and nodded her head again. "You guessed it, she was on the run from her mathematics teacher. Remember I told you she didn't do so well in math? Well, that's because she ditched her lessons whenever she had the opportunity."

Now it was Dean's turn to laugh. "So what happened next?"

"The guards asked if I'd seen her. As I'm a bit of a mischief-maker, I told them nope, hadn't seen her at all. After they left, Rhaya made her way down to the ground, and thanked me for not snitching on her. Then we sat down under the tree, started talking and we've been thick as thieves ever since," she grinned.

"Well, Rhaya's lucky to have you. Most of the guys on my crew, I've been sailing with them for what seems like forever. They're the ones I brought with us on this mission, because I trust them with my life, and they trust me with theirs. This is too important to leave anything to chance," Dean affirmed.

Keira looked at Dean for a long few minutes, then tilted her head as if in confusion. "You love her. Don't you?"

A blush crept over Dean's cheeks, right to the tops of his ears. "What? I don't know who or what you're talking about." When Keira refused to look away, he hung his head and nodded sheepishly. "Okay, yes. I feel something for her. Not sure yet if it's love or not, but it's unlike anything I've ever felt for any other woman. You happy now that you know?" he snarked.

"Yup, I'm good. Between you and me, I'd be okay with the two of you together," she smirked. "Goodnight, Captain Dean!" she called over her shoulder as she walked back to her quarters.

"Great. Wonderful. I have her sister's blessing," he mumbled under his breath. "Goodnight, Captain Keira!" he replied as he shook his head, then returned to his own quarters.

***

After a fitful night's sleep, Rhaya was awakened at 8:00 a.m. for breakfast. She hoped it would only be her and her father at the table, at least for a little while. She wanted to tell him about what happened to her after she snuck out of her room, about her adventures with Dean. She needed her father to understand that she didn't want to marry Ashton because of how she felt about Dean.

As bad luck would have it, Carissa and Ashton were in attendance, thus throwing her plans out the window for a confessional with her father. The minute Rhaya crossed the threshold into the dining room, Ashton leapt from his chair to rush to her side. "Good morning, my gorgeous fiancée," he gushed. He reached for her hands only to have her pull them back at the last minute.

"I'm perfectly capable of finding my way to my chair at the breakfast table, Ashton, thank you," Rhaya noted coldly.

His lips pressed into a thin line as he bit back on making a comment. "So, dearest, what do you have planned for today?" he asked.

Carissa held up a finger to draw everyone's attention. "To answer your question, she is going wedding dress shopping today!" she exclaimed gleefully.

"But the wedding isn't for almost a year from now, Carissa. It's much too early to be dress shopping," Rhaya stated.

Carissa shared a look with Ashton, who turned to Lord Darius. "Excuse me, Darius, but there's a business matter I wish to discuss with you. If you're finished with your breakfast, may we take some time and go over it now?" Ashton pleaded.

Lord Darius checked his pocket watch and polished off the rest of his buttered toast. "I believe I have a few minutes before my first meeting," he nodded and rose from his chair. He pressed a kiss to the crown of Rhaya's head. "Come see me in my office when you have a few moments, love," he murmured before gesturing for Ashton to lead the way.

Once the men were gone, Rhaya turned to Carissa. "What exactly is going on, Stepmother?" she demanded.

Carissa took a leisurely sip of her morning tea before responding. "Do you honestly think I'm going to allow for you to have an almost year-long engagement? No. Your wedding will be happening two weeks from now, thus, today we will be choosing your wedding dress," she stated matter-of-factly.

Rhaya's fork clattered against her plate at the news. "T-two weeks from now?!? Is my father aware of this change?" she gasped.

"Your father will do what is best for you, and if I say getting married sooner is best, well, then," she trailed off.

"I will NOT marry Ashton Kane!" Rhaya shouted.

Carissa slammed her hand on the table. "ENOUGH! This decision is FINAL! You WILL present yourself for choosing a wedding gown or I will choose one for you," she seethed. After a few calming breaths, Carissa rose from her chair to leave the room to attend to other matters.

"You can't do this," Rhaya whispered.

As she passed by Rhaya, she leaned down close to her ear. "This wedding will happen, so you'd better get used to the idea. I suggest you don't fight me on this. Your mother got in my way and....well, we all know what happened with her." At her last comment, Carissa swept out of the room.

Rhaya stared at the table, her mouth hanging open in horror at this turn of events. She had considered this a possibility, that Carissa would move up the wedding date, but this? What am I going to do? she wondered as tears sprang to her eyes. She had to find a way to stop this wedding, or any sort of chance for a future with Captain Dean would be lost forever.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

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[twistsandtwizzles]

Stars on Mars: The Finale

Holy shit, y’all. We made it.

After twelve weeks of watching “celebrities” pretend that they are astronauts on Mars, we have come to the final episode. Tonight we will learn, at long last, which one of them is “The Brightest Star in the Galaxy.”

Shatner kicks us off with a series recap, and I had honestly forgotten that Richard Sherman was on this show. Then we get a brief moment with each of our final five crew members, starting with:

Adam: “In my sport, it was: become a National champion, go to the Olympics,” he tells us, over footage of him twerking with Porsha, running through a dark cave, and riding on a rover. “And these are the tools that I’m going to be counting on to go all the way.” Then a hero shot in slow motion of Adam in full space suit, walking down the hab hallway.

Cat: “When I am in a competition, there’s something that clicks in my brain,” she says as we see her driving the rover and high fiving Lance. “I always have in my mind that I am going to win.”

Porsha: She walks down the hallway in full glam. “I came here to do some things I’ve never done before,” says her voiceover. Clips of her celebrating with Tinashe after a mission, rappelling down a cliff, and pretending to wrestle with Ronda. “You don’t make it this far and not be a warrior.”

Paul: “I went from the poor house to the penthouse,” he says. “Bottom three to Base Commander.” Most of his clips are just him standing at the airlock door? Sorry Paul, but you really did just kind of stand around a lot. “The simple fact that I’m still here is saying a lot.”

Tinashe: “I’ve always kind of felt like an underdog in my life, maybe because I’m quiet sometimes. But I think I’m going to surprise everyone.” She smiles at the camera and I have to say that I have really become fond of Tinashe. She gives us our last slo-mo hero walk before we cut to the show logo.

“Sol 19 - Second to last day of experiment,” reads the text on the screen, as we find Shatner just . . . sitting on the edge of his bed, in his leather jacket, appearing to be waiting for instruction. Lady AI obliges, and tells him that it is time for him to go address the crew. Shatner has some trouble with the door latch on the Base Commander suite, but eventually makes it out and summons the crew to the kitchen.

On his way he passes a big red button on the wall that says “DO NOT PUSH” that I swear to God we have never seen before but apparently it’s been there the whole time?? We even get a bunch of flashbacks of crew members pushing the button as Lady AI tells Shatner that the button controls all the hab life support functions, and was placed there to test the crew’s self-control. “That did not go well, and I disabled it on Sol Day 1, but it has now been reactivated,” she says.

Shatner tells Cat that he really, really wants to press that button.

Adam and Porsha are hanging out in the living room and Adam tells Porsha that he has really loved getting to know her: “You’re such a good person.”

“Aw, thank you,” Porsha says, touched.

“It will be so sad when you leave the competition,” Adam continues, grinning. They both dissolve into giggles.

The group gathers and Shatner tells them they are at the “moment of truth.” This morning, they are going to reduce the five remaining contestants to three. And then tomorrow, those three will be reduced to one, who will receive the “Brightest Star in the Galaxy” patch. (We see a picture of the patch here, and I just have to note that it only says “Brightest Star” on top and then on the bottom it says “Stars on Mars.” I would demand to have one that specifically says “Brightest Star in Galaxy” as Shatner promised.)

Shatner goes on to say that the winner of that patch will then have the opportunity to “speak to the world.” You can tell that the group was sort of hoping that the additional prize might be like, cash. Or a vacation somewhere that is not the Australian desert. “A message coming from your heart,” Shatner continues. “It could be the biggest and best thing you’ve done with your life.”

Porsha and Cat play along and tell Shatner that it is an amazing prize. Adam meanwhile is trying really hard not to smirk.

Shatner says the process starts now - they are each going to get to ask the other players one question, and then they will vote for the three people who will continue on in the game. The group splits up to write their questions.

Adam tells us that he loves Porsha, but he’s still kind of stung that she chose to be in a group with Marshawn instead of him last week, and that he feels like the dynamic between the two of them has changed.

Cat says she wants to be strategic; Tinashe says that Cat has been playing the game and seems to be the only person who wants to win “by any means necessary, and I think that makes her a threat.” Tinashe also says that she’s noticed Porsha and Paul bonding and that they may be playing a bit of a game as well. Porsha tells Paul she thinks it’s shady they have to ask their questions in person and would prefer that they were anonymous.

Shatner has Tinashe ask the first question. Tinashe asks Cat if she made every decision here “for the right reasons” or if she was more focused on strategy. And honestly I am THRILLED that we did not let a full season of a reality competition go by without someone pulling the “right reasons” card. Cat says that she came in knowing that alliances had already formed, and she’s tried really hard to focus on what was fair in all of her decisions. Then we get flashback footage of Cat telling Paul that she’ll nominate him for Base Commander if he makes her Mission Specialist and her getting mad at Andy and kicking him off of Mars, and I LOVE when the editors get shady. Cat also adds that she cooked for the group, which wasn’t really part of the question but okay.

Adam asks Porsha who she thought would make it all the way to the end at the beginning of the experiment. Porsha says she thought Tinashe would.

Porsha asks Adam if he truly thinks that he is the “Brightest Star” over everyone else at the table, and why. Adam says that he thinks he’s proven that he shouldn’t be underestimated and that he can be a serious competitor. We see a flashback of Adam promising Tinashe and Porsha that there is no way they’ll be in the bottom three if he’s Base Commander, followed by footage of him talking Andy out of putting the two of them in the bottom. We also get a clip of Adam winning the challenge last week. “And I’m so proud of myself that I made it this far,” Adam continues. “And in my own eyes, I feel like, yes, I am a bright star.”

In his voiceover, Adam says, “I’m going to be honest. At this point, I don’t know if Porsha sees me as a serious contender or a serious crewmember.”

Paul asks Tinashe how she deals with failure. Tinashe says that she’s faced a lot of moments that she could have taken as a failure, but that in those moments she chose to be resilient. 

Tinashe asks Paul if he feels like he deserves to win over people who have been there longer. Paul responds by telling a story about getting stabbed and almost dying in his early twenties, and then William Shatner asks him if that experience helped him on Mars. (Yes, Captain Kirk. Surviving a murder attempt definitely carried over into pretending to be an astronaut for a week and a half.) Paul says his life has always been about starting at the bottom and rising above.

Question time over, Shatner tells them that they are all wonderful. He instructs them to go put on their spacesuits, because the time has come to cast their votes for the most mission critical crew members, and the two people with the fewest votes will immediately be extracted. 

Adam says in his confessional that when push comes to shove, he will fight for what he wants, and that he’s stronger than he looks. “People are going to have these subconscious biases about keeping their friends in the experiment,” he continues. “But here’s the thing: at this point, it’s just about who has played the game the best.”

When the crew gathers again they are all pretty nervous. (“I’ve peed 100 times today,” Adam tells the others.) Cat is feeling confident which seems silly because she’s clearly outnumbered by the Porsha/Tinashe/Adam faction. Lady AI tells them to rank the five remaining players, including themselves, from 1-5 (most critical to least).

Shatner collects their ballots and pretends to do the math in .5 seconds but you know we had a cut while the producers figured out the tallies. Anyway, he announces the first person who is safe: Tinashe. Not a surprise at all. Girlfriend made it through this entire experiment without ever being in the bottom three!

The second person who is safe is Porsha. She’s thrilled.

We’re dealt an excruciatingly long reality tv pause before the next name. (Adam: “I feel a little like I might have diarrhea, but I think that I’m going to hold it in, because I’m wearing white.”)

And the third and final person advancing to the final part of the experiment . . . is Adam!!!! Yay! 

“OG Three! OG Three!” chants Tinashe. Adam gives everyone hugs, as his voiceover says that it just feels right that the final three are all original crew members, and how happy he is that he gets to be there at the end with two of his closest friends from the entire experience.

Cat and Paul say their goodbyes. Cat says she really thought she was going to go all the way, but gives credit to Adam, Tinashe, and Porsha for a game well-played. Paul says it’s been a fun ride.

The final three embrace, grinning from ear to ear. 

“It’s so dumb, I’m so excited,” Adam says, pretty much summing up the entirety of the Stars on Mars experience.

Shatner tells them that what he didn’t tell them earlier is that all three of them got the exact same score when the votes were tallied.

“Look at that,” Tinashe says. “Teamwork.”

Later that evening, the remaining three are having drinks and celebrating together. Tinashe says she suspected it would be the three of them at the end. Porsha says she knew it too: “I wrote it down so fast I had to slow myself down.” 

Porsha does add that she put Cat above Paul, Adam says he did too. Tinashe says she had them reversed: “I saw what I needed to see earlier. I respected the fight, but . . . even picking Lance as her mission specialist. I was like, ‘this is a strategy, because this doesn’t make sense.’” Tinashe also says it rubbed her the wrong way that every time Cat cooked she made a big deal of letting them all know how lucky they were she was cooking for them.

The group says goodnight to Lady AI and Lady AI tells them that she is very happy to have the three of them there.

After commercials, the crew is waking up on Sol Day 20 and the very final day of this lunatic experiment. Tinashe and Adam are shown working on their message “to the world.” (LOL.) Adam asks Porsha if she’s done hers yet. She says no, it’s just thirty seconds, and Adam is APPALLED that she is apparently just going to wing it.

We get another montage of the final three walking in full glam and slow motion down the hallway in their spacesuits. Porsha has put her long wig back on. Shatner is making them wait, and they pace nervously in the command center until Shatner appears with three tablets under his arm.

“It’s a big day,” Shatner begins, running down all the things they’ve endured to get to this point. And then, the final mission assignment. Out there in the “Martian desert” there are two satellites, which will be used to broadcast their message to the world. The first person to assemble their satellite and transmit their message will be the Brightest Star in the Galaxy. But before they can get to the satellites, they have to take a quiz about Mars facts. The first two people to answer enough questions correctly will proceed out of the hab to the satellites, and the last person will be eliminated.

Adam says that he read the Mars manual “every chance he got” but that the facts might be a little muddy.

Shatner passes out the tablets, and then leaves - punching the “Do Not Push” button on his way out with a “WOO!” He really is charming and I cannot get over the fact that this man is in his nineties. He saunters out of the hab with a “good luck!” as the hab begins at countdown to the end of life support systems. The group has five minutes to complete the quiz.

“Damn,” Adam says. “That’s what that button did?”

“Yeah,” Porsha replies. “I pushed it the first day.”

Everyone laughs.

The quiz starts: “I feel like I’m taking a written test at the DMV,” Adam tells the others.

I’m not going to run down all of the questions that are on this quiz, because listen, you can just google Mars if you want to learn about it. But five questions in, everyone is tied with three correct answers. “I really thought I knew this stuff,” Porsha says.

“Me too,” Adam replies.

Adam takes the lead with the sixth question, and needs just one more question correct to advance. He gets the next question wrong and Porsha and Tinashe get it right, so now everyone is tied again. Everyone is VERY NERVOUS.

The next question is “Who was the first person to see Mars through a telescope?” with the choices Copernicus, Galileo, and Johannes Kepler. Galileo is correct. Tinashe curses.

“Mission complete!” Adam shouts, excitedly. The other two cheer for him as he sets his tablet down and hustles out of the hab. Adam leaps on his rover, saying, “Let’s go, baby!” and he looks like a little kid in his glee. It’s cute.

The next question is about the diameter of Mars. Tinashe gets it right. “I love you!” she yells to Porsha on her way out the door. “I’m on your ass, Adam!” she shouts as she gets on the rover.

Porsha heads out of the hab for her extraction, saying that she’s ready to go home and conquer some stuff. “For my daughter to see this, it would be such a positive and motivating thing for her.”

Adam is racing through the desert on his rover. “I want to win this experiment so badly,” he says. “Because I love patches.” LMAO.

He pulls up next to the satellite assembly station, where Shatner is waiting. Shatner tells him that there’s a brief with instructions in the back of his rover. Lady AI informs us that each contestant needs to hook up a series of cords and wires to the satellite, but each cord goes in a specific spot. The instructions illustrate what goes where. After the satellite is assembled, they will insert the disc with their message to Earth. The first satellite to begin broadcasting will be the winner.

“In my entire life I have avoided all instructions,” Adam tells us, as we see him start to unload cables and plug them in. “And I thought, ‘why would I start today?’” 

As someone who has watched literally every season of The Amazing Race, I know that not reading the instructions ALWAYS comes back to bite you on the ass. So this is not a great start for Adam here.

Tinashe is still driving. She says she’s feeling very zen as she pulls up to Shatner, who congratulates her on her driving and cool skidding stop.

We watch them put together their satellites for a while. Adam pulls out to an early lead, but we do see Tinashe actually reading her instructions which she says was “very helpful.”

This is when Adam realizes that the cables have to go in specific places. “Oh, Adam,” Shatner says as one of the satellite pieces falls over. “You have to have the right length cable!”

“Got it, mister,” Adam says, sounding annoyed, and I wonder if this is also how he responded when Raf gave him a correction that he had already identified himself. 

“Am I having a lot of trouble?” Adam asks us. “Uh, yeah. The issue is that I didn’t read the directions and I really should have.” 

So Adam starts redoing his cables, and Tinashe begins to catch up. Shatner alternates between heckling and encouraging them both and I desperately wish he would have said “Come on, buddy!” just to make the world’s most niche joke for fans of The Runthrough. Adam is spinning in circles looking for one of his cables. “Where is this bitch?” he mumbles to himself.

“Oh Adam, for God’s sake,” Shatner says, his head in his hands, as we go to commercials.

When we return, Adam is explaining that he was feeling frazzled. “Some of my cables were in the wrong place. William Shatner was yelling at me. And now Tinashe is going to win!”

Tinashe says she knew right away that the cables went in specific places, and that she could tell she was catching up. Tinashe connects her final cable and officially pulls ahead of Adam, and moves on to connecting her wires.

Shortly after, Adam gets his last cable connected. Tinashe is struggling figuring out the wires, and so is Adam: “Are we still using wires?! It’s 2023!” (“Go the *bleep* in!” he tells the wire he’s working with, trying to get it to connect.)

Adam takes the lead again and Tinashe says she was disappointed she couldn’t hold her advantage. She’s frustrated and finally asks Adam for a hint. “Just flip them around, you’ve got it!” he tells her. She gets her first wire connected.

All three of them - Tinashe, Adam, and Shatner - are sweating. Shatner has more flies landing on his face. “Oh my god, I’m doing all this for a *bleeping* CD-ROM!” Adam exclaims, as Tinashe laughs.

They are neck and neck until: Adam gets his final wire connected. Triumphant music swells and at this moment my friend messaged me, “Oh my god is Adam going to win Stars on Mars?!”

The answer is yes, yes he is. And Adam is as incredulous as we are: “I can’t believe it.”

Adam inserts the DVD with his message on it into his satellite. He pumps his fist as Tinashe and William Shatner cheer. Then - and this is so freaking funny - we see the message he has recorded, but the producers have CGIed it so that it appears like the message is playing to packed crowds in Times Square, Red Square in Moscow, Vatican City, and Sydney Harbor.

Here is his message in full: “From Mars, this is Adam Rippon. When I began my journey here on the Red Planet, I had no idea what to expect. I quickly learned that being hot doesn't make you a great astronaut, which feels like it should a little bit. More importantly, I learned that life is all about the journey and the connections you make. So let the ones you're close to know how much they mean to you as often as possible. I'm sending you so much love and I can't wait to see you back on Earth.”

I appreciate that Adam opened and closed this series talking about his hotness. Never change, Adam.

“You have won,” Shatner says, as Adam and Tinashe high five and celebrate. “Adam, my darling. You are wonderful.” He hands Adam his grand prize, which is literally just . . . a patch in a little plaque. I need you to understand that on first viewing I did not stop laughing for basically the last ten minutes of this episode because it is, forever and always, just. So. Dumb.

Tinashe says, “Honestly, I’m so happy that Adam won. He’s had so much growth over this competition - I’m really happy for him.”

Adam spins in a celebratory circle, and gets the final word of the series: “I’m Adam Rippon, and I’m the brightest star in the galaxy.”

But the final shot belongs to one of the robot dogs, who has wandered to a billboard welcoming us to Coober Pedy, Australia. Banjo music swells as we pan back to see a highway. GASP. You’re telling me we’ve been on Earth this entire time?!

And so that’s it. We have reached the end of our Mars adventure! Adam shared some behind the scenes pictures on his instagram that made me laugh, below, and he also gave this great interview to Entertainment Weekly that I’d encourage you to read if you haven’t.

The funniest thing about this entire stupid show? I’m actually going to miss it. Who saw THAT coming??

Thanks for coming along with me on this dumb ride, all two of you who read these. 😂 I can promise that if there is a season two of this show, you will not find any recaps here.

[green-fifteen]

YOTP January: First Kiss, Fake Dating

Title: emotional rollercoaster (of love)

Fandom: Star Trek AOS

Pairing: Kirk/Spock

Word count: 3,761

Written for: @yearoftheotpevent

read on ao3

Jim woke up in a good mood. The stars outside his window were bright. His uniform fit him like a glove in all the right places. He was on the greatest ship in the 'Fleet and his crew were the best in their fields.

It was just that kind of day.

His mood didn't sour throughout the first part of his shift, even when they recieved an urgent communication from the local diplomats of Horace Twelve.

"We cannot beam aboard today," said the attache to the Chief Matriarch. "The Matriarch is not well. I'm afraid you will have to join us on the planet. We apologize for the inconvenience, Captain."

Jim didn't feel inconvenienced. He was looking forward to seeing the place.

He had Spock send him a data packet on surface conditions, then went to fetch his Starfleet-issue parka. He met the rest of the away team on the transporter pad. Uhura, Sulu, Kilroy, and Benison stood waiting for him. He laughed at their puffy coats and furry hoods, then they all beamed down together.

The team from Horace Twelve was supposed to come to the Enterprise to finish negotiations. This was the final day of talks surrounding their admission into the Federation. There was very little left to do and Admiral Komack had already given Jim leave to take any legal action required to come to an agreement. Jim had read the briefing they sent about this little world and thought Starfleet might actually overlook any action taken to secure that much raw dilithium, legal or otherwise. It felt good to have that kind of creative freedom.

They were led to a podium inside a building that reminded him of a breezy open-air temple. It was freezing and the humans (plus Kilroy, a Betazoid on his father's side) instictively huddled close like penguins. Strangely, no one emerged with any paperwork or a list of concerns, as Jim had been expecting. There were really only formalities left to cross off the list.

Instead, the Chief Matriarch herself appeared, towing a younger female Horatian behind her. She led her to stand in front of the podium and then took Jim's hand in her own.

"If you will come with me, Captain Kirk," she intoned gravely. Jim went where she led him, right next to the girl. He quirked an eyebrow at her, but she only cocked her head in a curious movement.

"Captain, the negotations have proceeded well. We are grateful for the work you have done to facilitate our entry into your Federation of Planets. Therefore, before we finish these negotiations, we have decided to give you a gift." Her attache took something from the Matriarch's hand and came toward Jim and the young girl.

Jim was beginning to get a strange feeling about this. He felt the same generosity of spirit and lightness he had upon waking, but now he thought he might need to call Spock.

The attache lifted Jim's hand to place it atop the girl's. Before he could manage, he heard Uhura's voice snap through the silent hall.

"Wait," she called, voice bright with authority. Jim looked at her, smiling a question. She looked back at him with a concerned expression.

"The Captain must consult with his command team before accepting your gift, although it is very generous," she said politely. Jim was tugged away from the podium and a few steps away. "Let us take some time to discuss it."

The Chief Matriarch looked upset. The girl at the podium simply smiled at Jim as he was manhandled away by a grimacing Uhura.

She waited until they were out of earshot to round on him.

"Respectfully, Captain, what do you think you are doing?"

Jim looked to Sulu, whose boggled expression plainly said, No, actually what the hell is wrong with you? Jim almost laughed at the way his eyebrows pinched in like that. Sulu had a very expressive face.

He said, "I was trying to finish up negotiations. So we can all go home." As he said it, it didn't feel quite true. After all, why should he be in a hurry to leave Horace Twelve? Horace Twelve was lovely.

Wind from the open stone doorway dragged his hood away from his face and he hissed at the biting cold.

Uhura wasn't finished. "They were marrying you. Captain. I'm sure you noticed."

Jim had not, in fact, noticed. He looked back at the podium and saw that the attache was holding a pale blue ribbon in one hand. He remembered seeing one just like it in the dossier on Horatian cultural norms and mores. It was protocol for each member of an away team to be familiar with basic things like 'how to avoid getting married by accident' before interacting with a new civilization. Jim laughed to himself about the near-miss. What would he have said to Spock if he'd let himself get hitched on a diplomatic mission? A distant part of his mind remarked that he probably wouldn't find it very funny.

He said, "I think we should call Commander Spock."

+++

The away team stayed on the planet and made reassuring remarks to the Horatians as Spock consulted the admirality on board the Enterprise. Approximately two Standard hours after he recieved Uhura's transmission, he appeared in the doorway to the temple.

He greeted the group with a nod, then said, "Captain."

"Commander," said Jim. He tried to push his pleasure at seeing him into his voice. "Report?"

Spock's eyebrow twitched. "Admiral Komack requests that we use any means necessary to conclude negotiations and secure access to this planet's mining operation. He is aware of the situation, as it stands."

Uhura made an outraged noise. "Is he saying the Captain should go through with this?"

"Perhaps it might be best to discuss the matter with the Horatian Matriarch before making decisions," he remarked, dry as ever.

Discussions did not go well.

They were led to a wide stone table in a different chamber within the temple, where the Enterprise team sat on one side and the Horatians sat on the other. Jim said things like "Terran customs dictate..." and "...happy to find a suitable alternative..." but each time the Matriarch replied with a rebuttal (I'm sure it's the only way. and You insult my fair daughter, Captain. and Shouldn't we unite our cultures for real intergration?) he found himself seriously considering her argument. If he weren't feeling so damn good, he was pretty sure he would be alarmed by that. It was too confusing. Why was he so disoriented?

Not even 10 minutes into talking, he wordlessly pleaded for Spock to take over. Spock caught his look and took control of the conversation. Gratefully, Jim tuned out the Matriarch to watch his First Officer command the attention of the room.

That old feeling bloomed in his chest. The one he'd been very good at ignoring. It was difficult to remember why he hadn't liked feeling it, as he looked at Spock now. Spock was cool, confident, in control. Having him around made Jim feel safe and supported. It didn't make sense to resist him.

Something must have shown on his face, because Kilroy was looking at him strangely. Actually, Kilroy was half Betazoid, right? Maybe he could sense his sudden outpouring of fondness for Spock.

Spock was trying to get his attention by tapping his foot under the table. Jim tapped back, delighted.

"On that point, you are misinformed," Spock said to the Matriarch's attache.

Every head turned to look at Spock, and then at Jim.

In a slow, deliberate movement, Spock lifted Jim's hand to his face and pressed his wrist just under the hinge of his jaw. The air exited Jim's lungs. The rest of the table seemed to be having a similar reaction as Spock placed his own wrist near Jim's left jaw.

He knew what this was, of course he did. Just as the away team knew how to avoid being married, they also knew how to avoid intimate and romantic gestures. This was to prevent anyone getting into the alien planet equivalent of a good old-fashioned bar fight over somebody else's girl. It was not so that first officers could perform them on their unsuspecting captains in the middle of negotiations.

Spock was definitely misusing the cultural dossier. Jim's heart beat much faster than normal.

The Matriarch went an interesting shade of violet.

"This was not disclosed to us in the personnel briefing."

Spock lowered their arms, but didn't let go of Jim's hand.

"Our relationship was deemed irrelevant. We acknowledge the oversight," he said, primly.

Uhura had a resigned expression on her face. Sulu was clearly trying not to laugh. Benison was stoically gazing at them and Kilroy's mouth was doing something strange.

The Matriarch looked stubborn, but her features softened minutely as Spock pulled two fingers across the palm of Jim's captured hand. Jim thought he might faint from bewildered happiness. There was somethng wrong with him. Then again, maybe there was something wrong with Spock. He'd just been Vulcan kissed.

The Horatian Matriarch relented easily after that, allowing them to close discussions the standard way, with signed agreements and such. Her face was back to its usual healthy crimson.

Jim knew that smiling like a love-struck idiot was inadvisable, so he attempted not to. It was very difficult. He could feel Lieutenant Kilroy's eyes on him.

Finally, after what left like an eternity sitting at Spock's side and holding his hand, it was over and they could beam back aboard the Enterprise.

When they reached the transporter room, he removed his parka and pulled his clothes away from his skin where'd he'd sweat into them. It was weirdly quiet when he finished and he looked around to see that no one had done the same. They all still wore their heavy coats and they were all staring at him.

"What?" he asked. He'd been having muzzy thoughts about taking a water shower in his quarters and then passing out, as his shift had ended more than an hour ago. He could see from their faces that he might have to reschedule.

"Spock to Medical," Spock said into his communicator. "Captain Kirk is showing signs of abnormal behavior. I am bringing him to Medbay. Spock out."

Jim blinked and he was being herded toward Medical by Spock.

Bones yelled when he saw him and he knew they were both asking him questions. The lights of Medbay seemed intolerably bright. He didn't remember them being that bright, before.

"Can you say that again?" he said, maybe slurring a little.

Bones scowled in that way of his. It meant I am concerned about you and it's your fault. Jim smiled to see it.

"How do you feel, Jim?" Bones asked. It sounded like it wasn't the first time he'd asked.

Jim thought about the question. How did he feel? Well, he was happy to be with Bones, his best friend. He was happy that Spock had come with him because he was always happy to be around Spock, even if they were just standing around in the Bridge on duty. Especially then. He loved to watch Spock work-- he was brilliant. And he liked it that Spock backed him up whenever he had to make Captain-y judgement calls.

"Great," he said truthfully. There had been some unpleasant business on Horace Twelve, he was pretty sure, but Spock had helped him to take care of it and now they were home on the Enterprise. His eyes were heavy, so he closed them.

He heard Bones and Spock discussing something, maybe asking more questions. He heard a different voice speak up from the door to Medbay.

"Commander Spock. Lieutenant-Commander McCoy," it said. It sounded like Lieutenant Kilroy.

Jim heard "strange reactions" and "projecting all over the place, I didn't mean to invade his privacy." He wanted to tell Kilroy he didn't do anything wrong. Probably. It was Jim who was wrong, right? Something was wrong. His hearing was going wobbly.

Unable to fight the sudden dizzy feeling in his head, he decided to just stop listening.

+++

Jim woke up in a terrible mood. He was in Medbay, which was already awful. On top of that, his head was pounding.

The machines picked up his brain activity and Bones was next to him immediately.

"Gur," Jim croaked. "What the hell happened?"

He checked a readout and shined a light into both of Jim's eyes before answering.

"You were drugged," Bones said tersely. "Flooded up to your eyeballs in happy, suggestible chemicals. I couldn't get you to stop smiling and then you almost cracked your fool head open on the floor in front of me. We're lucky Lieutenant Kilroy was able to tell me your symptoms."

Jim started to remember. They'd beamed down to the planet because the Matriarch said she wasn't well. They'd worn those ridiculous puffy coats. Jim had stood next to someone who he didn't recognize and almost held her hand. Was that a Horatian marriage ribbon? Oh no. The rest of the afternoon played behind his eyelids in perfect clarity. He covered his face.

"Please tell me I'm not actually married to anyone." He could hear how pathetic his voice sounded. He was too busy being embarassed to care.

Bones snorted in an unfriendly way. "Nope. Not married."

Jim dropped his hands from his face to look at him, relieved. Bones only smirked and jabbed something in his neck.

"Your boyfriend is waiting outside to talk to you, however."

Jim hissed and jerked away from him. "Damn it, Bones! Wait, who... Spock?"

The doors opened to admit his first officer, who strode to stand next to the biobed.

"Captain," he said. "Are you well?"

He thought about it for a moment. "I feel like hell."

Spock gave a quick nod. "I am gratified to hear that."

Bones laughed, because he was an asshole.

+++

Obviously, they had to launch an investigation and renegotiate the terms of Horace Twelve's admission into the Federation. Jim was pissed off and already tired.

He let Security deal with the first task and stared gathering crew members to help him with the second. When the Horatians beamed aboard, they were greeted by Jim, Spock, Uhura, Sulu, Kilroy, and Jana, a science officer from Betazed. Spock had instructed Jana to notify Doctor McCoy immediately if she noticed any abnormal changes in mood among the Enterprise group. Kilroy was told to monitor Captain Kirk, specifically. Jim rankled and ordered him to also include Spock in his observations.

They'd had a moment of eye contact after that, Jim thinking I'm right at him and Spock giving nothing away, as usual. Jim had looked away first, unable to stop remembering the feeling of his fingers on his palm whenever he saw him. If he wasn't careful, he knew it would distract him all day, and they needed to be alert. He resolved to keep a careful distance and to minimize eye contact with Spock. For his own sanity.

His plan was promptly ruined when the Matriarch took one look at them, standing stiffly next to the transporter pad and said, "Ah, the lovers." She sounded sardonic. Jim could hear Komack's voice in his head saying "The dilithium, Kirk. I want you to woo that planet." Resigned, he smiled at her and moved closer to his First Officer.

Jim's mood only got worse as discussions progressed. There wasn't much to be learned from them that Security hadn't already gleaned in their initial interviews. Apparently, the drug they'd given Jim was always given to a bride or groom the night before a wedding to ease their nerves. According to the Matriarch, wedding celebrations on Horace Twelve could last anywhere from 3 weeks to 2 Standard months. The dose they'd given him would have lasted a Horatian an entire week and would not have affected them so intensely, but they hadn't accounted for Jim's human metabolism. It was that kind of carelessness that earned planets fourteen extra contract clauses.

Spock was keeping up their romantic charade admirably, but Jim knew he was making it difficult. Spock stayed by his side at the table during each session of talks. He touched his wrist when he referred to him. As they filed out of the room during breaks, Spock ostentatiously lifted his hand for Jim to rest two fingers there. If it weren't so painful, it would be sickening.

There was a weird tightness in his chest as he thought about Kilroy sitting on his other side, listening in on his emotions. Could he sense the way Jim's heart kicked up when Spock looked at him? Did he know that Jim's skin felt electrified just before Spock put his fingers on him? That feeling he had been unable to supress on the planet-- it was back. It was like letting it loose had only made it stronger. Like letting himself feel it only made it more difficult to stop. He did his best to push it away and out of reach of empaths and touch telepaths. Oh God, could Spock feel it? Jim was sure he wouldn't violate his privacy on purpose, but that wasn't as reassuring as it should have been. What had Kilroy said the day before? He'd been 'projecting all over the place.' Was that just because of the drug? Was he still projecting now?

When they resumed the discussion after the midday break, Jim couldn't stop himself from flinching away every time Spock reached to touch him. He didn't meet his eyes. Spock must have noticed, because he stopped finding Jim's wrist on the table top. When the final session ended and the Horatians had beamed back down to the planet, he only put a hand briefly on Jim's shoulder before he strode away.

Jim clenched his eyes shut and told Uhura he had a headache. Kilroy said nothing.

In the evening, after his shift, Jim decided to work through his goddamn emotions. He considered taking a page out of Spock's book and meditating in his quarters, but he was a restless kind of upset. He didn't think he would even be able to start the breathing exercises before he was up again, pacing. Instead, he walked to the observation deck.

+++

Seeing the stars like this always made him feel weirdly at home. It hadn't made sense to Bones when he mentioned it to him. He'd just named ten different kinds of viral infection he could catch in space and called him an idiot.

But maybe being born in space meant he belonged there. Then again, maybe he just inherited it from his mother.

He wasn't alone for long before he heard someone sidle up to him. A quick glance showed him Spock, buttoned up and straight-backed. He was looking out the window.

"I apologize," he said. Jim's whole body twitched and he started to protest.

"I apologize," Spock said, holding up a hand to quiet him. "For my actions on the planet."

Jim stopped, confused. His actions on the planet?

"I wish to be honest with you, Captain." He knew Spock well enough to see the tension in his muscles. "There was a 73.7 per cent probability that the situation involving the Matriarch's daughter could have been resolved satisfactorily in another way. However, I chose the most efficient option, not anticipating that it would cause you discomfort. For that, I apologize."

Jim's eyebrows bunched together. "What's done is done, Spock," he told him. "It's probably for the best that you lied to them. I was just a few minutes away from having my fainting spell."

"Twenty-one point two one minutes," Spock corrected.

"Exactly. Any longer at that table, I might not have been able to make it back to the Enteprrise by myself."

"I would have carried you back."

Jim blinked. "But I'm glad you didn't. That would be too embarassing, especially on a diplomatic mission like this."

Spock looked even more rigid. "Indeed."

They stood together and watched the darkness outside the hull. Jim could feel the balloon of emotions rising to the surface and held it down desperately.

"I know it probably made you uncomfortable today, having to touch me so much. Vulcans aren't big on PDA, right?"

Jim saw Spock incline his head out of the corner of his eye. "In general, no, Vulcans do not engage in affectionate displays."

There was a moment of silence.

"I was not, however, uncomfortable."

Jim looked at Spock and Spock turned toward him. "I'm--" Jim started.

Spock interrupted him. "I had no indication that you would lose consciousness on Horace Twelve and thus there was little need for haste, when I made the decision to decieve the Chief Matriarch."

He looked down. Jim stared at the top of his First Officer's head.

"I am a touch telepath. According to every precept of logic, I should not have chosen to touch your hands or kiss you in the Vulcan manner. Nevertheless, I did." He gazed at the observation window again.

"It did not displease me to touch you, Captain."

Jim couldn't say anything. He didn't want to leave Spock hanging after what was clearly an emotional confession, but he was having an internal crisis. The balloon was rising faster than he could stop it and he held onto it for dear life, trying not to blurt something stupid before he fully understood what was happening.

"Do you--" he cleared his throat. "What do you mean, exactly?"

He hoped he knew. He didn't think he could hold on very much longer.

"When you fell to the ground in Medbay, before Lieutenant Kilroy informed us of the situation, I was... emotional. I was reminded of your most recent loss of consciousness."

The last time he'd, what? Passed out? That must have been after... oh. Had it really only been a year since Khan? Jim remembered the feeling the cold glass warming under his and Spock's hands. He remembered Spock had called him his friend. His friend.

"Although it was illogical, I felt regret, that I had not told you of my regard before I kissed you on the planet. I was determined to rectify the situation when you woke."

Jim was losing his grip. "Regard, Spock?" he asked, softly. "What are you telling me?"

His eyes lifted to find Jim's. "I am in love with you."

Jim's smile felt like instinct. He moved closer to Spock and took his hand. The feeling in his chest started to leak out and he didn't stop it. He kissed him instead.

+++

The next morning, during the first break in meetings, Kilroy submitted a warning to Doctor McCoy.

It read:

Notice-- CPT Kirk and CDR Spock way too happy. Please advise.

[citrusreadstoa]

Reading The Dark Prophecy: Chapter 26 (SPOILERS)

I had a thought this morning because Commodus lives rent-free in my mind for some reason: I am convinced that if Commodus hadn't been assassinated, he would have faded into a mania. 100%. His paranoia reminds me of Reyna's father's paranoia, though they probably got that paranoia for different reasons.

"my first instinct was to shoot. Usually this worked out. (Unless you count the time Hermes burst into my bathroom without knocking." Why would it not work? Seems like it would get the message across pretty well. "And, yes, I always keep my bow handy when I'm on the toilet. Why would I not?)" Maybe Commodus and Mr. Ramirez-Arellano aren't the only ones who are paranoid. And here I thought Apollo was the chill one, but turns out he's just as bad as Artemis.

"Do I flirt with my sister's Hunters and risk getting slapped" I think they would do more than slap you. They have you and Artemis's same penchant for arrows and pointy things.

"a pit crew in togas rolled another Formula One car onto the track" Oh, please don't make the twelve year old drive. "a golden number 1 on the hood." Oh thank goodness, it's just Commodus's.

"like the striking surface of a matchbook . . . wasn't an antenna. It was a giant match" HOld on, hold on. This is too comical. This is Looney Tunes type stuff! Is this going to just be a thing -- Triumvirate god-emperors having an affinity for over-the-top, ridiculous methods of immolation?cc

"then circle back and hit you and Apollo with my car." That was very blunt. (Just like the front of the car as it hits you!) Does he think they're just going to be standing there waiting to be struck? And if they die today, how will they be killed in tomorrow's event? Also, coming down to drive a car greatly endangers him to easy assassination by Meg's swords and Peaches's claws if they free him. Hope he's invulnerable via some godly magic and whatnot.

"If only I could block his path with something large and heavy." Do not sacrifice the elephant. I repeat: DO NOT sacrifice the elephant. "I am sitting on an elephant." DO NOT! "She trumpeted" She understands English? Apollo speaks elephant? Godly magic?

"bowling over a herd of ostriches" NOT THE OSTRICHES!

"But it will take more than this to kill me." But Peaches will also not be set on fire now.

"I wouldn't have had to kill Claudius." Is Claudius another elephant? Did he somehow think that killing another elephant would improve her performance? "I did warn her" Did she understand you?

"I knew she wanted to charge, but after seeing Commodus toss a race car" Wait, he tossed a race car? <<<Rewind<<< "He grabbed the chassis of the ruined race car and lifted it over his head . . . He tossed the car aside, flattening an unfortunate Cyclops." Oh. Oh no. Anyway, CHASSIS (n.): the base frame of a motor vehicle or other wheeled conveyance

"We will get him . . . Just wait." Livia's going to fight with them in the final battle tomorrow.

"as if the Hunters had been toying with their target" You see, it's a show of strength that the Hunters have the leisure to play with their prey but, uh, they failed to eliminate the prey.

"Lityerses bowed awkwardly. 'My lord.' Commodus and I spoke in unison. 'Yes?'" Apollo, why tf would Lityerses be referring to you?

"What would you advise, Apollo?" That you not kill him. Demote him, fire him... either of these options would be just fine. "He will ALWAYS HAVE MY BLESSINGS?" LMAO THAT WAS SO SUDDEN AND UNWARRANTED

"Hold Lityerses's arms for me while I cut his throat." Why, is Alaric not as good as cutting heads off as Lityerses is? Lit got to carry out his own predecessors' "demotion" but Alaric doesn't. That is unfair. Alaric should get to carry out Lit's execution.

[cophene]

026 || ☆ ⁺ « TELEPORT US OUT OF HERE.

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pairing : vento aureo x gn reader summary : with virtually nothing left in their credit account, a gang of space thieves turn to the richest man in the galaxy to give them  a job worth millions. too bad those never come easy, even with stand abilities and pretty-faced crew notes : sci-fi au, multi-chapter fic, sfw, doesn’t follow canon plot word count : 3.2k+

★˚⋆ IT FELT LIKE YOU HAD been searching for him for ages. 

Finding him felt like a splash of nepenthe. A daydream you had never let yourself linger in.

He felt like finally coming home.

He met your embrace eagerly, swinging you up off your feet and leaving you breathless. You laughed as he set you down, his eyes the scattering of the sun on water.

“I found you,” you couldn’t help saying. “I can’t believe I found you.”

“I’ve been waiting for you,” he said. He pulled you down onto the swing beside him, pushing off the ground to set it rocking.

“There’s so much to tell you. I don’t know where to start.” You drank in his face like a person parched. He looked exactly as you remembered. His eyes and his mouth and the way his dark hair gently framed his face. It was incredible how little he had changed.

He brought your hand up to his cheek. A ring glinted dully on one of your fingers. Only then did you realize.

“Where’s your mask?”

“I didn’t want you to see me in it,” he said quietly.

Inexplicably, thunder roiled overhead. He looked naked without his mask, now that you thought about it. That teardrop jewel that hung beneath his eye was a part of him now.

“You’re taking too long,” he said, kissing your knuckles. Kissing the ring. “I’m tired of waiting.”

“I’m doing my best.”

He gave you a mournful look. “I told you not to get involved with me. Now you’re paying the price.”

He worked the ring from around your finger and then threw it over his shoulder. You cried out but he ignored you.

“I’m tired of waiting,” he said again.

You woke at the sensation of a cool hand on your forehead. Trish smiled wanly at you, her skin pale and her hair limp.

“Sleep well, Captain?”

You were in a healing pod, the foam around you still cool. You squeezed your eyes shut, then mustered all of your strength to sit up. Various little wires were hooked up to you. A monitor beeped nearby. “What happened?” you asked hoarsely. Trish passed you a cup of water before answering.

“Fugo said it was gas poisoning. Your helmet wasn’t screwed on properly, so when the pod door opened, some of the gases from outside mingled with your oxygen. You finished your transfusion a while ago. Any longer out there and you probably would have gone loopy for good.”

“How long was I out?”

“Twelve hours, give or take.”

You leaned back against the pod. “Did everyone make it alright?”

“Mhm. JoJo’s resting. Mista, Fugo and Narancia are working on cracking the hard drive we got from Polpo. We should be getting a ping from them any minute.”

Trish checked over your vital signs on the monitor, then released the wires from your body and shut off the monitor. The med bay went suddenly quiet.

“Trish,” you said. “Do you think . . . do you think I’m not myself?”

Trish stilled. “What do you mean by that?”

You didn’t really know yourself. “Do I seem different? Ever since we accepted this job from Zero?”

“You still care about us, Captain. You’re still as reckless and as daring as ever.” She smiled but it didn’t reach her eyes. “I think we’ll all be better off once this job is done.”

Trish hadn’t answered the question. You opened your mouth, but was cut off by your holopad going off. You took it from the nearby table, scanning the message.

“Summons from Fugo the bridge,” you told Trish. She nodded, and less than five minutes later, you had joined your crew on the bridge. Mista and Narancia were clustered around Fugo by his console, Coco sitting on one of the screens. JoJo stood off to the side, looking a little overwhelmed but interested nonetheless.

“Cap, you’re up already? Are you sure you shouldn’t be resting more?” Narancia looked up at you, wide-eyed. You were glad to see that neither of his eyes looked worse. Actually, he looked hell of a lot better than everyone else did.

“I’ll be fine. This is a lot more important than rest.” 

You found a spot between Mista and Narancia behind Fugo. Put simply, your engineer looked like flack. He probably hadn’t slept at all since you’d gotten back on the ship. He tapped one last line of code across his screen before it dissipated, leaving behind a crisp new screen with only a few lines of information.

“We did it!” Mista shouted, high-fiving Narancia. “We cracked the drive!”

“You didn’t do anything,” Fugo grumbled. He rubbed his eyes. “All you did was get in my way and drop Coco Jumbo. Five times.”

“Eh, call it moral support. What have you got for us?”

Fugo looked ready to collapse. “The drive was a set of complicated commands to input into Coco Jumbo. It effectively put it into a lockdown state and paused all of its other processes. From there, I had to work with the bare bones of its computer to produce this set of coordinates and this message.”

He projected his screen into the air. A line of numbers, and beneath that, simply:

Congratulations. I eagerly await your arrival. JPP.

“The code is constantly shifting,” Fugo said. “That set of coordinates was recently updated. As of now, it’s Polnareff’s most current location.”

“And where is that?” Trish asked.

[ I CAN HELP WITH THAT. ]

Coco overlaid Polnareff’s image with a holograph of its own, focusing on a planet a few star systems away from where you were presently. 

[ PLANET 857, JUST A FEW CLICKS AWAY FROM BEND GATE III. VIRTUALLY UNINHABITABLE. VERY HOSTILE. HOME TO A FEW RESEARCH BASES AND NOW POLNAREFF. ]

Mista frowned at the hologram. “Never heard of it.”

[PROBABLY NOT. IT’S A VERY DESOLATE PLANET, ONLY OF INTEREST BECAUSE OF ITS EXPANSIVE OCEAN AND UNDERWATER SYSTEMS. AND IT’S EXTREMELY FAR AWAY, BESIDES. IT’LL TAKE AT LEAST THREE DAYS TO GET THERE. ]

The crew began chattering among themselves. You stayed quiet, a bad feeling settling in your stomach. 

“Does this planet have a name, Coco?”

[ YOU CAN CALL IT MINOS IF PLANET SO857 IS TOO MUCH OF A MOUTHFUL. ]

You didn’t outwardly react to this information. But inside, you felt something tear.

Minos. Of all the planets, why did it have to be that one?

You didn’t let yourself think about it. You couldn’t. If you thought about it, someone would notice it playing across your face and start asking questions.

All you had to do was find Polnareff and get the Stand Arrow. That was all you had to do.

A ping went off at the comms station. Trish went to answer it, her forehead wrinkling. 

“Who could be pinging us all the way out here?”

As it turned out, the last person you could have expected.

“Captain, I hope you’re aware that you’re currently flying into one of the most dangerous zones in the galaxy known to man?”

It had been a while since you’d heard Zero’s voice. It was lower, rougher than you remembered. He enunciated every damn syllable.

“Damn, nice to see you too,” Mista muttered.

A hologram of Zero displayed itself over your ship’s main screen. Zero was dressed as he always was, in his mask and dark robes. Only the prickle of irritation in his voice was new.

“Do you plan on killing yourselves before the final stretch? Are you that tired?”

Fugo clenched his jaw. “I don’t know what you’re implying, but we’re not doing anything like that.”

“No? Then kindly tell me what you’re doing in the Black Zone, Passione.” 

The temperature on the bridge lowered by ten degrees. Your breath got caught somewhere in your throat.

Fugo hastily brought up a map of the ship. You saw him zoom out on the ship’s location, take in its surroundings, pause on the yawning pit of black off the port bow.

That was stupid. There was no way.

“Is this some kind of trick?” Trish said, her voice pinched. “We couldn’t be in the Black Zone.”

“And yet you are,” Zero replied. Every word was tightly controlled. He was trying not to lose his composure. “I am just as confused as you are, Passione. Which is why I ask again: do you plan on killing yourselves?”

“Hey, you gotta help us out of this,” Narancia said. “What are we supposed to do?”

“Get out of there.” 

Mista yelled, “But how could this even happen? We weren’t anywhere close to the Black Zone.”

“Unfortunately, there’s nothing I can do for you in this situation,” Zero said. In an uncharacteristic move, he put a hand over his mouth, sighing angrily. “I’d threaten you with death but it seems like that will happen anyway. I don’t know what to tell you except that you’re being a bunch of imbeciles.”

You didn’t know what to say. Narancia was at the pilot’s console, probably trying to turn the ship around. Not that would help much.

“I hired you for a job. I expect it to be completed. Because once it is, everything will be different. Absolutely everything. I will not beg, but I will implore you to rethink your priorities, Passione. You’ve closer than any other thieving crew I’ve employed thus far. It’d be a waste to throw that all away.” 

Zero shifted, the teardrop jewel at his cheek twinkling. “There’s a Bend Gate beyond the Black Zone, if you can get to it. I’d wager that’s your best chance at survival. I hope this doesn’t end up being the last time we see each other.” His voice was strangely soft. He opened his mouth, but whatever it was he wanted to say next, he decided not to and ended the call.

You sat down in the captain’s chair, numb. Your ship. In the Black Zone. It was unthinkable. Impossible.

No one was really sure how the Black Zone had come about. An imbalance of energy and matter or some kind of freak collision of two stars. At any rate, it had left a yawning pit of space behind, one that made tech faulty, and the laws of gravity and physics all weird. People likened it to the Bermuda Triangle of the Old World. Ships, no matter their make or model, vanished here without a trace. There had been various attempts to better research this area, but those had all been scrapped when the vessels invariably failed and disappeared. The best approach had been to leave it alone and avoid the Black Zone at all costs.

How had your crew flown to the very edge of it?

“I can’t believe you,” Fugo snarled from his chair. “What kind of a pilot flies face first into the flacking Black Zone?”

“It wasn’t on purpose,” Narancia snapped back. “I was distracted. I left the ship on auto-pilot. You’d think the engineer would have mapped a better course.”

“I’ve been awake for the past thirteen hours working on the hard drive. Do you think I had time to map anything?”

“I didn’t do this on purpose! I’m turning us around right now.”

“And what would that do? We’re going to lose at least another three days turning around. We’re already running out of time as it is.”

“Well, what do you want me to do? Teleport us out of here?”

“Might as well, with the shit flying you’ve been doing!”

“That’s enough,” you said, cutting the two short. “We need to stay calm and think about this.” Narancia and Fugo fell silent, glowering at their respective screens.

“If turning back will take too long, what can we do?” Trish said quietly.

The answer seemed to be obvious. JoJo surprised you by saying it for you.

“We go through,” he stated plainly. “Zero said there’s a Bend Gate on the other side of the Black Zone. Seems like it’s the only shot we’ve got.”

It sounded way worse out loud. “Coco,” you said, “what are our chances of success if we go through the Black Zone?”

The turtle didn’t answer right away. That was enough to put you on edge.

“Coco?”

[ YOU’RE DEFINITELY GOING TO DIE IF YOU DON’T GO, THAT’S FOR SURE. ]

You looked at Fugo. It pained you to admit just how helpless you felt in this situation. If anyone could figure this out, it would be him.

Fugo pursed his lips. He looked at his console, then swiped it to the left.

“Tell me how that looks, Coco.”

The bridge was deathly quiet while you all waited. Finally, Coco said, [ IT’S ROUGH, BUT IT SHOULD WORK. I MADE A FEW ADJUSTMENTS, BUT FOR THE MOST PART, IT’S WHAT I WOULD’VE COME UP WITH TOO. ]

Fugo read over the notes. He looked over at you, presumably for permission, and at your nod, he stood up.

“Alright, everyone, here’s what we’re going to do.” Fugo projected his screen onto the ship’s main display. A detailed map of the Black Zone came into view, a blinking red dot denoting the ship’s current location.

“Going from partial monitoring and simulations, scientists were able to figure out that the Black Zone has a kind of current. Because of the nature of its energy, it naturally flows toward the Bend Gate.” At this, a green dot showed Bend Gate XIV’s location.

“All of the ship’s power and propulsion will shut down when we reach the Black Zone. We can’t risk further damage to the ship’s internal engines than necessary, so we’ll shut it off manually. Then we’ll ride out the currents. At best, it’ll take us less than five hours to reach the Gate. At worst . . .” Fugo didn’t finish the sentence. “What we’re banking on is a burst of power here, right at the mouth of the Black Zone. That’s what will propel us out of the Zone and the current.” He tapped the spot decisively.

“Ships like this don’t allow manual shut-downs,” Narancia said. He scratched at his eyelid. “There always has to be some level of power running through it.”

“Coco and I will be bypassing that,” said Fugo.

“The ship will treat that like an internal failure then,” said Narancia. “The only way to restore power . . . would be a switch outside of the ship.”

You were starting to understand now. “You’re going to need someone to activate that switch.”

Fugo nodded. “It’s unlocked by an iris scan, no less. No bot we send out there could do it.”

It seemed like a no-brainer to you. “I’ll go.”

“Absolutely not,” Fugo said immediately. “We just need a human iris scan. You don’t need to be risking your life.”

“I’m just going to be here sitting on my ass anyways. I’ll do it.”

“You don’t send your general out into battle. You’re staying here.”

You scoffed. “I’m not doing shit, Fugo. You’ve already done all of the heavy lifting. I’ll activate the switch, no sweat.”

“It’ll be like a flare storm out there, Captain,” JoJo said. You’d almost forgotten he was there. “The most powerful one you’ve ever seen. The chances of you getting thrown from the ship—”

“—are exponentially high,” finished Fugo flatly.

“Look, I’m not arguing about this, okay? The Captain has to pull their weight. I’m activating the switch, end of discussion.”

“Someone should go with you then,” said Trish.

“I’ll do it,” Mista said before Trish had even finished. He grinned at you. “We went through training together. It’ll be just like the sims.”

Aside from the occasional rumble and bit of turbulence, you could hardly tell you were in the Black Zone. The ship had been cut off completely, filled with a silence and darkness you’d never truly experienced before. Use of your holopads was extremely limited; all they were good for was the signal from Fugo to activate the power switch.

You and Mista waited in the bay of the ship, fully suited up to brave the outside. You weren’t sure how long it had been. Strangely, you didn’t feel much, only a dull ache settling in your stomach. You were too nervous to feel anything else.

 A firm tether would hold both of you against the ship, and should one of you fly away, the other would be able to grab them.

Was what you hoped anyway.

“You nervous, Cap?” Mista asked. It was too dark to make out his face.

“A little. Are you?”

“Nah. I know we’ll get this done fine.”

You weren’t the religious type. If you were, you might have prayed.

“Mista, can I ask you something?”

“Of course.”

“If something happens to me, swear you’ll continue the job. Swear you’ll get everyone to Minos and get the Stand Arrow. You deserve those credits. You’ll get them for me, right?”

“Woah, calm down. Nothing’s gonna happen to you.”

“Swear it, Mista.”

“ . . . I don’t wanna jinx anything.”

“Swear it.”

Mista exhaled, a lonely sound in the darkness. “I swear, Captain.”

“Good.”

Mista found your hand. He ran his fingers over your forearm, where your scar would be.

“Can I ask you something?”

“Sure.”

“Grab a drink with me when all of this is over.”

You laughed. “Really?”

“Yeah. When we’re filthy rich. Would that be so bad?”

“No. I’d like that, actually.”

Your holopad went off then. Fugo’s voice was terse when he said, “Let’s go, Captain.”

You went through it all in a daze. You got up. Secured your helmet and tether. Properly this time. Mista pulled the small maintenance door to the outside open and it all went silent. 

There were no stars in this vacuum. No light. You could barely see in front of you. You had to feel your way along the ship, gripping the railing outside like it was your lifeline.

Because it was.

Was this what flare storms felt like? It could almost be peaceful. Only the mad whipping of the tether against your space suit let you know otherwise.

You thought you felt Mista’s hand against your back. He was still there. Good.

You found the switch. Your heart leapt. You lifted the cover, smooshed your helmet up against the slit and wondered if it would be able to scan anything, let alone your eyeball. You drew back. Waited.

Green.

“We’re good. Get back inside,” said Fugo over your helmet speaker.

You and Mista rushed back along the railing. That hadn’t been too bad. Almost easy.

Mista paused. He was pulling at something.

“Why is the door closed?” you asked. Did anyone hear you? Didn’t it lock from the inside?

“What’s wrong?” Fugo.

“Open the flacking door!” Mista.

You were thrown against the side of the ship. Slammed, really. You crumpled to the railing, barely hanging on to the tether.

Stars, that hurt.

“I’ll be right there.” Fugo.

“Hurry!” Mista.

You tried to get up. Mista reached for you. The ship lurched, and the railing beneath you switched itself for empty air.

Empty space?

Your speakers had broken in the earlier collision. You couldn’t hear anything. You saw Mista reach for you. He was all of a sudden too far away.

You reached for the tether. Where was it? That white cord that was supposed to save your life?

Maybe you screamed. You couldn’t hear it. Maybe Mista screamed. Impossibly, you thought you heard it, echoing in the vast space around you.

Not “Captain!” but your name. 

When was the last time anyone had used your name?

Swear it. 

Swear it.

The vacuum picked you up. Not gently. It didn’t want you with the ship, with your crew anymore. It flung you off to the side.

Something snapped.

And for a while, you soared.

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[gothicwidowsworld]

Next adventure C.M

Platonic!Cillian x Platonic!Reader (father/daughter like relationship)

Y/N L/N’s wouldn’t call herself an emotional person, hell she could probably count on one hand the amount of times she’d cried in the past 3 years… other than work of course. 8 years, 96 months, 417 weeks or 2922 days however you wanted to look at it they were significant numbers. And the life that had become her norm was coming to an end. It could be seen as dramatic but it really was the end of an era. The sixth and final series, the y/h/c young woman’s journey as Viola Shelby was coming to a close. Goodnight Vienna so to speak. 

Scrolling through her phone the y/s/c 20 year old frowned, she loved watching the edits and fan theories regarding the show and soon that would cease to exist as well. Sighing heavily Y/N stabbed at her lunch miserably. “That was a mighty big sigh” Cillian teased, taking a seat from across the girl, concern filling his sharp features at the lack of response from the young actress. Over the years Cillian had become protective of Y/N, he was practically her work parent at this point. They’d met pretty early on in the show’s production, the casting directors wanting to make sure they could work well together considering how large a part their characters played into each other's storylines. The then twelve year old had been wide eyed and in awe of the cameras, makeup trailers and sets. “Are you ok?” Cillian asked gently, The Irishman often spent his lunchtime with the girl if neither of them were filming. Despite still wearing his character's familiar wardrobe his concern and soft spoken nature was like night and day. 

“It’s just… I can’t believe it's going to be over.” Y/N sighed again placing her phone down. “Are you going to miss me even just a little bit?” the young woman asked, nibbling her bottom lip anxiously at the thought of it all ending. “You guys are like my own little family now…” Y/N added quietly, her plate of pasta seemingly forgotten. “We’re still going to talk… You’ll probably still facetime me at insane hours. Nothing’s going to change.” Cillian replied reassuringly. His eyebrows furrowed slightly as he watched Y/N absorb his words. “It’s not the end of the world sweetheart.” Cillian added quickly, the nickname slipping out before he could stop it. He’d begun calling Y/N sweetheart after a couple of days on set up until her 18th birthday when she claimed she was too grown up for a nickname any more… at least one that was ‘super cringe’. The actor had to routinely remind himself Y/N wasn’t a little girl anymore, she’d grown up before his eyes into a lovely young woman. 

“Have you got any project’s lined up for once this wraps?” the dark haired man asked, taking a bite of his own lunch. Shaking her head Y/N laughed “Not yet but Mum thinks I should focus on Uni just so I have a back up ‘if the acting thing doesn’t work out.’” the woman explained mimicking a small extract of her mother's lecture. “Your Mum’s a wise woman.” Cillian praised chuckling at the young adults' face of disagreement. The displeased look was paired with Y/N’s infamous scowl and a roll of her y/e/c orbs. “Since when has acting and education gone hand in hand for me. You know I only auditioned for Peaky to get a day off school…. Had a maths test.” The girl shivered slightly at the memory of the Year 8 mock test. Maths had never been her strong point, in fact while revising for her math GCSE’s Joe had offered to help her with the homework… let’s just say he never offered again. Y/N had all these memories, memories full of cast members, crew and soon she’d never see some of those people again. It was a bit scary leaving the safety of Peaky Blinders. Leaving the little family she’d built over the years. She just had to remember to look for the next adventure. 

“Well I'm sure whatever you turn your hand to you’ll be fantastic. No, I know you’ll be fantastic.” Cillian corrected himself. The man was sure Y/N had a brilliant career ahead of herself. He’d seen her grow from an awkward, excitable preteen to a confident, talented and devoted young woman. He didn’t want to seem too soppy but he held a torch of Father-like pride towards the girl and he couldn’t wait to see her next chapter.

 Memories