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stars-and-the-min · 1 year ago

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☆ the wrong way to hard launch (8) | OP81

summary : oscar's girlfriend is a walking pr problem for literally everyone (including herself) social media au

pairing : oscar piastri x zhou!fem!singer!oc

a/n all aboard the speculation train

masterlist | last part | part 8 | next part

INSTAGRAM

selinabui

liked by oscarpiastri and 312,294 others

selinabui somehow @.rollingstone thought it would be an amazing idea to slap me on their cover?? anyways may 2024 🔜 it has an exclusive interview with urs truly p.s. whoever came up with that nickname for me deserves a raise ♥️♥️♥️ tagged: rollingstone, shotsbynadia, michealpollard, lilybeehair and jesszhang_

oscarpiastri Forgot how to breathe for a sec ↳ tina_kim @ oscarpiastri ur so real for this

linasgirl4 'the speakeasy siren'??? 😮‍💨

eb_jonno i'm confused by your dress ↳ selinabui @eb_jonno i was confused as well, don't worry about it, just admire how good i look

TWITTER

↳ kayla @luna_apocolypse · 49m fork found in kitchen, we had to wait over three years for a sophomore album, we'll live ↳ kayla @luna_apocolypse · 47m but then again... no 'new' music makes me think that lina is being sneaky again

oscalina real ?! @ emptyginbottles · 28m too many people talking about the 'no new music' bit of the interview and not enough talking about how oscar's going to drive lina to florence after imola ↳ oscalina real ?! @ emptyginbottles · 27m i didn't think it would be possible, but i think i just heard this woman giggle over a man through my phone via a printed interview

amie <3 @mieflrs · 2h it's actually so insane how smoothly the empty bottles pr team buried all the tommy talk. i didn't even notice bc they moved so naturally to 'chris and eb reunion??' and then the rolling stones cover + interview like they just dropped us better things to talk about ↳ amie <3 @mieflrs · 2h slay empty bottles pr team, i really appreciate y'all 🫶

r/EmptyBottles · Posted by u/luckyluna9364 5 hours ago Lina x Oscar Timeline

Has anyone worked out the relationship timeline for Lina and Oscar? I've been talking to some of my F1 friends, and there's so much confusion about how and when they met because these two people have barely been in the same country at the same time. This is, of course, if we go off the common perception that Zhou Guanyu was definitely the person who introduced them.

buisms84 · 4 hr. ago op i was literally just thinking about this!! lina's been pretty much stuck in california since the pandemic and oscar flies around for races all the time, it's pretty possible that they didn't meet first but rather started texting? but then when did they start going out because they clearly look familiar with each other. fantstic013 · 4 hr. ago streets are saying as early as silverstone 2023 👀 but we all know lina is super secretive about her current relationships (bar whatever mess thomas howard was)

summersweettea1389 · 3 hr. ago i think the confirmed timeline is what we've all been experiencing these past few months. like there seems to be no other indicator they were linked, even platonically, before that insane hard launch. luckyluna9364 OP · 3 hr. ago I know that Lina can be really sneaky but she also loves messing with us, so I'm convinced she was subtly soft-launching him and we all didn't notice. But you know what I found most strange? Right before the hard launch, a bunch of different new sites were publishing rumours, I'm not super online, but were there rumours earlier? whatthekermitdid · 3 hr. ago ur talking about the rumors of them over the holiday season when they both happened to be at the same party but that was debunked ages ago - they went with different ppl but they may have met there?

TWITTER

piaa⁸¹ @ papayaeightyone · 5h no, i don't think u understand, i'm actually SCREECHING over oscar's answer to the 'texting the wrong person' question from the never have i ever video

↳ piaa⁸¹ @ papayaeightyone · 5h I'M SO NORMAL ABOUT THEM I SWEAR 🥹

↳ kayla @luna_apocolypse · 2h 'most awkward conversation of my life'??? 'not the best way to confess'??? SELINA WHAT DID U SAY TO THIS MAN 😭 ↳ pookie piastri @op81ln4 · 3h NO I NEEEED TO KNOW HOW SHE REACTED

lina !!! @EB_selina · 48m everyone keeps tagging/sending me the clip of oscar talking about accidentally texting me about me. guys, i was there, i know it happened, and i will be taking my reaction to the grave ↳ Oscar Piastri @ OscarPiastri · 12m She's embarrassed because she ghosted me for like a week ↳ lina !!! @EB_selina · 11m sir why are u lying???

june @linafesting · 2h finding out that oscalina's talking stage was oscar giggling and texting his friends how much he liked her and lina ghosting him after an accidental confession is pure comedy ↳ june @linafesting · 2h oscalina, the couple that keeps on giving us anything but photos together

↳ clovie @ luvyouvie · 57m wait where did lina mention oscar? ↳ li(n)a @meliabelrose · 44m rolling stone interview, she mentions him like 8 times

r/EmptyBottles · Posted by u/luckyluna9364 3 days ago Lina x Oscar Timeline [read new comments]

whatthekermitdid · 5 hr. ago ok so my f1 friend just told me that the never have i ever video was filmed like in february (or earlier) which means that oscalina were going out since at least then BUT (and maybe i'm delulu) i couldn't help but notice that he's v calm about it like it happened a long time ago which is really no help to this timeline

niaphilia283 · 3 hr. ago not to sound clinically insane but have we considered that they've been together for a lot longer than we imagined? thinking logically, selina isn't the type of person to so publically acknowledge a new boyfriend - she didn't even mention tommy until like seven months - and judging by her recent behaviour (the hard launch, the dedicated performance, the birthday instagram post) she's either down so astronomically bad she'll never recover from it OR they've been together for at least two years luckyluna9364 OP · 3 hr. ago if they've been tgt for even longer than ONE year i'd actually lose it bc there's noooo way lina would be that quiet about it niaphilia283 · 3 hr. ago wait i just remembered that two years ago would be around when tommy got engaged and lina def would've made a big deal about any relationship my bad

TWITTER

clara @ zgy24 · 2h these photoshoots have the same vibe and it was the first thing i thought of 😭

lina for elle china zhou for champion

↳ lina !!! @EB_selina · 1h what a copycat @ZhouGuanyu24 😒 ↳ 周冠宇 | Zhou Guanyu 🇨🇳 @ZhouGuanyu24 · 1h I did it better

MESSAGES

from the phone of oscar piastri

TWITTER

lina !!! @EB_selina · 2h been feeling mean lately, how much trouble should i cause? ↳ EB BAR @theemptybottlesbar · 2h selina pls have mercy MERCY I BEG

kayla @luna_apocolypse · 1h it's been an hour since that cryptic ass tweet, i'm shaking lina what do you have up your sleeve

piaa⁸¹ @ papayaeightyone · 32m OH MY GOD WHAT DID SHE JUST SAY????

EB BAR @theemptybottlesbar · 43m We'd like to extend our condolences to @ McLarenF1, we're working on getting her media training, but it doesn't seem to be working ↳ McLaren @ McLarenF1 · 39m We're all in this together 🥹 ↳ oscalina real ?! @ emptyginbottles · 42m WHAT DID SHE DO???? IS IT THE LIVE?? WHAT DID SHE SAY IM AT WORK SELINA HOW COULD U DO THIS TO ME

amie <3 @mieflrs · 29m i just know that pr team has being worked TO DEATH this past week like RIP

INSTAGRAM selinabui started a live video

MESSAGES

from the phone of selina bui

r/EmptyBottles · Posted by u/luckyluna9364 6 days ago Lina x Oscar Timeline [read new comments]

luckyluna9364 OP · 1 hr. ago this thread is getting super active after lina's livestream so i'm doing my best to summarise what ppl are saying: - a much longer relationship than anticipated is highly possible; lina was still pretty vague with the timing all she really said was 'long enough' what long enough is to her is up to debate (most are keeping the benchmark at 7mo) - lina mentioned her aunt (zhou guanyu's mother) has invited them to have dinner in shanghai which means that not only has lina's family known and met oscar but also that lina is stopping over in shanghai for a bit before performing in shenzhen (exciting news for the oscalina stans) - her freezing up suggests that she and oscar were keeping a lot of the relationship private or even secret for a while and it was genuinely a mistaken slip that wasn't at all supposed to happen (one can only wonder how oscar reacted) - a couple people think that EB planned the tour schedule around the F1 calendar (there are quite a few overlaps in races and shows) which would mean that they were together BEFORE tour announcement which was back in november - one user is betting their life savings that they met before oscar's f1 debut, for that user's sake i hope it's true.

��･ﾟ: ✧･ﾟ:✧･ﾟ: ✧･ﾟ:✧･ﾟ: ✧･ﾟ:

taglist @ririyulife @ashy-kit @fionaschicken @namgification @cherry-piee @urfavsgf

#f1 #oscar piastri #oscar piastri x oc #oscar piastri x reader #oscar piastri fanfic #oscar piastri imagine #oscar piastri smau #formula 1 fanfic #formula 1 smau #f1 fic #f1 smau #f1 imagine #f1 social media au

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goldenlionprince · 4 months ago

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I wrote a little thing for @sorenphelps because their bodyguard AU is so good and I love the cheeky disaster flirt vibe James gives me in this and this (and if there is disaster James I'm always like 👀) and this just spilled out of me. I hope you like it!

The door opens and -

It's a shooting range. A small, private shooting range. James was hoping for something a little more romantic when Sirius was asking if he 'could take him somewhere' but actually, now that James really thinks about it, it makes a lot of sense. He should have expected something like this.

“Do you know how to handle a gun?” Sirius asks as he steps into the room after James, closing and locking the door behind them. The click of the lock shouldn't send a shiver down James' spine but it totally does.

With a confident grin James turns to Sirius, one hand going up to mess up his already messy mop of hair. “Well, no one has complained about it yet,” he says with a cheeky wink.

Sirius just looks at him completely unimpressed until the grin slowly slides off James' face and he drops his hand in defeat. “Fine, no I don't.”

Sirius nods and walks over to the table that has two guns ready and waiting for them to use. “I think you would benefit from learning.”

“Why?” James asks, following Sirius and watching as he picks up one of the guns. “I thought I have a top of the line bodyguard.”

“You do but I've never claimed to be immortal. If push comes to shove I want you to be ready to shoot and run. There is hope you'll never have to put that knowledge to use but I'd rather have you prepared.” Sirius looks at James and releases the safety of the gun. “You are my top priority.”

And yes, okay, that probably shouldn't be so hot.

Turning towards the target, Sirius lifts the gun and takes aim. “Watch and learn,” he says and then he shoots -

One right between the none existing eyes of the cardboard man.

One each where the left and right eye would be.

Another shoot right where the heart sits in a living person.

Sirius lowers the gun and James whistles through his teeth. “Impressive, Soldier Boy. Can you do his dick too?”

“I could do his left testicle if I'd want to. But this is not about me.” Sirius klicks the safety of the gun back on and sets it down. He nods to the other gun on the table in front of James. “Your turn.”

James takes a deep breath and picks up the gun. It's a little heavier in his hand than he had expected but he's not going to show it. It's probably a little stupid to want to impress a military man but James is committed to being stupid when it comes to Sirius Black.

Clicking off the safety like he has seen Sirius do, James raises the gun and takes aim. It's not as easy and effortless as it looked when Sirius did it but James is still trying his best to keep his hand steady, takes another deep breath, and shoots.

He was aiming for the shoulder of the cardboard man. His shot hits more the lower centre of the chest.

“Not too bad for a first try,” Sirius says and steps up close behind James. He reaches around James and adjusts his wrist a little along with the bend of his arm. Having him so close that he can feel his body heat right at his back does things to James that he tries to cover up by chuckling and leaning back into the other man.

“What are you gonna teach me next? Billiard?” James grin, because a stupid joke is all that can safe him now.

“If I'd want to bend you over a table I'd pick one a lot easier to clean up,” Sirius says and having his voice so close to James's ear is even worse. “Cum is a bitch to clean out of the felt on a billiard table.”

And how does he know that???

Strong fingers tap against James' hipbone, bringing him back to the here and now. “Be a good boy and focus, would you?” Sirius says in a low rumble.

James swallows thickly. “Yes, Sir,” spills out of his mouth before he can stop it.

Sirius laughs and steps away. “Try again.”

James takes a deep breath to steady himself and pulls the trigger a second time. The bullet connects around the area of the collar bone, not perfect but closer.

“Good,” Sirius says and the satisfaction in his voice sends a shiver down James' spine.

“Yeah?” James asks and lowers the gun, hungry for the praise.

“A promising start.” Sirius steps closer again and takes the gun back out of James' hand, their fingers brushing. “But I have to warn you,” he says, holding James' gaze as he snaps the safety back into place. “I'm going to work you hard until you can do it perfectly in your sleep.”

James swallows the whine that threatens to crawl up his throat. He has no complains about being worked by this man, hard or in any other way. None at all.

#please ignore that they probably should wear some kind of sound protection while shooting #this is fiction and I clearly don't know what I'm doing #prongsfoot #the bodyguard AU #my writing #I hope this is okay Lau #and I hope you like it

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bishiglomper · 2 years ago

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So we went to this theme park in Waterloo, Iowa. Lost Island. It started as a water park but now they have a theme park across the street. Opened a year ago. It's so cool, they put lots of thought into it! They have "realms" like water, fire, spirit, earth, air..

The spirit one is a bunch of kiddie rides and playground stuff. Each realm has a cool play feature. The fire has a fountain, theres 4 spots to place your hands that activate special parts of the fountain. And of course if all are activated at once, you get a bit of a show. The air realm has some music and more play stuff. There's splash pads and the earth realm has a sand pit with fossil features to uncover.

They have their own characters! And the app!!

They have an interactive app, and if you're one of those people who like to collect medals and arbitrary checkpoint things, you'll love it. Theres dozens of medals to earn in the app, and the animation is beautiful.

They have a 3D shoot-em cart ride. It keeps score and shows you the results. Its got a good story, not just the ride, but the whole park. You get bits and pieces of the lore on each ride. Its very cool. And the 3D ride has animatronics, since they're new they look SO good.

And also the rides are nice. More comfy and safe than some of the ones at Adventureland.

Like Adventureland used to have a log ride. You hop onto these constantly moving flumes, straddle a bench and hold on to slippery metal bars on the side. Then you go down two coaster hills.

This one had seat belts, covered bars and a board to brace your feet. The other log ride, there was no traction or support whatsoever.

And we got moderately wet. A nice even spray. Very nice.

This place needs more attention. It was totally dead. There were more staff than guests about.

Speaking of which, the staff were lovely. They were very diligent in doing their checklist duties. And they were all nice. Some were fun.

The only thing i wasnt impressed with was the food. They had some gourmet sounding shit, but... Some of it was super lackluster. Not all of it though. The noodle bowl was good. Expensive though.

Also the drink choices. The tea was the most disgusting thing ever, no one carried sweetener and the water tasted weird. I got diet coke out of desperation..

Also if you buy a souvenir cup, its free refills. So thats nice. Usually theres a charge.

But anyway. I liked it. It's a small park and it was dead so we didnt have any lines. One ride was broken but they got it fixed and we got to ride. It was one everyone was looking forward to and its one of my favorites now.

Also the weather was pretty good. It was a bit too sunny and warm only for like an hour. Otherwise it was pretty nice and overcast.

They had more than just characters to portray their story, they actually had cast! There was a show in the middle of the realms telling the story. I think I saw them all playing "Mother, May I" with some kids later. Their show was interactive too. I thought they were cool, so I got a pic with them. 😁

We're thinking about getting a few season passes next year. Its like 300 bucks a person, but its free admission into both the theme and water parks, and discount on food. Apparently 7 trips would pay for it. 👀 So we may do that instead of vacation next year..

I'm so sad they're so dead, its a good joint. The rides are good. I did almost get a concussion on a coaster, but.... 👀💧 Now that I know when to BRACE..

I really hope they get more attention soon or they're not gonna last long 😩

#lost island #waterloo iowa #theme park #amusement park

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jrheatriz · 1 year ago

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Got any more lore on the Glezra world? 👀 I know about Glory, Ezra, the instructer guy, and the assassin that Ezra had a crush on, but have you come up with any other characters for that world? Alsoo what office was Ezra working at? I know it’s set in a 70s noir sort of aesthetic thingy so I was thinking news paper vibes for him, but I realized I don’t think you’ve mentioned what he did specifically before getting caught up in all the spy stuff haha. Ooh also does Glory have like a specialty as a spy? Like is she really good at languages or a certain weapon? Gimme all the deats!!

shout out to melancholy once again for answering my prayers and rescuing me from the psychological torture house (not having attention) all day 😭

EXTRA CHARACTERS:

okay okay so. There aren't many characters other than the ones you listed because 1) i am a little lazy and 2) the story mostly revolves around glezra forming a companionship due to being stuck as roommates. HOWEVER there are other characters, i just need to flesh them out more. For instance, there is ezra's older sister and her baby, who i think will play a bigger part in the story once glory and ezra have more freedom to leave the apartment later in the story (i have long since decided that the aftermath of killing the instructor dude will be the preface for glezra to like. figure out how they actually feel about each other and what to do about it). both ezra and his older sister have the fact that they are in desperate need of a higher purpose, which ezra seeks out in the form of trying out espionage (and almost getting himself killed) and ezra's sister seeks out in the form of trying to be the perfect mother of her own family. both of them are not really satisfied at all, but from their family's perspective ezra's sister is far more successful than their kinda-loser son. oh well.

The next most fleshed out (but not that much) character is glezra's ex, whom glory seduced when she was on a mission when glory was still erm. employed by her old boss. i haven't decided on a name for this character yet, all i know is that they are a beautiful nonbinary princess bc i really wanted to have a beautiful nonbinary princess character (i will be calling them BNP for the purposes of this post). anyways for the mission glory had to get close to them to gather info on their father, and the bad part is that the two actually fell in love, but at the end of the day glory was on a job and was forced to leave when her mission was over. The REALLY bad part is that glory was terrified to let them go and waited til the last minute to choose between BNP or her assassin life, and so the day she ended up deciding to leave was their wedding day. TERRIBLE MOVE. glory literally was the gf BNP had at 19 that ruined their life. glory beats herself about it Still and she's literally 30. it's probably high on her list of the shittiest things she's ever done and as you know, glory's straight up murdered a ton of guys. it was truly that bad. anyways i have plans for them to meet in the future, but by that point BNP is over the fuckery and got themselves married to someone who didn't leave her alone at the altar. good for them!

EZRA'S JOB:

so the deal with ezra is that he thought he was working a normal desk job--and i mean technically it was-- but it had also been a front for the organization glory used to work for. he's just doing cubicle desk shit like data collection and looking at boring graphs. it's the very cheesy trope equivalent of like, working at a fast food restaurant and then it turns out there's a secret culty fighting ring happening below deck and the restaurant is just a cover for tax benefits. (i get to be a little more absurd with the premises of this story bc technically it's a futuristic noir spy-dramedy and very unserious.) but anyways for ezra, this is like the first job he's been fairly steady for cuz he really sucks at holding them down--this is cause for contention with his family and a main part of why they think he's a disappointing loser. so 3 months into having the job, ezra does the previously mentioned trope of like, stumbling into the basement of the fast food restaurant and getting a glimpse of a super secret cult secrets happening unbeknownst to the public, and instead of taking this as a red flag and dipping or just ignoring it to secure a bag, ezra decides to do some snooping. as you can probably guess, it was a bad idea, and he quickly finds out that some of the guys who work at HR literally do not gaf about killing his ass if he accidentally finds info they don't want regular people to know about. oops!

GLORY'S FIGHTING:

because glory was trained basically since birth to become an assassin, she's well versed in most weaponry. i mean, she probably wouldn't pull out an ax from her spy kit and try to whack you with it, but most other things are fair game. in particular though, and for convenience, her go-to fighting weapons are her dual-wield guns, her confusingly large array of daggers, and also hand-to-hand combat, which is basically a weapon in and of itself. and also, strangely, her "murder knife", which is just a really gnarly and unnecessarily scary looking knife that is solely for threatening people. i will be using this knife in the story mainly for joke purposes. and finally there is the age old weapon of using your environment. see a trashcan lid? hit a guy with it! that fancy vase? smash it over some guy's head! that conveniently placed yet seemingly innocuous bottle of ketchup? figure it out and get creative! the possibilities are endless!! (<- will also definitely be utilized for comedy purposes.)

aside from physical weapons in her arsenal, there are her traditional spy talents of speaking many languages and being very good at blending into situations. alot of this has to do with an obscene amount of prep that she does before each mission in the event of any hiccups. she also gets very upset of things get off plan, which sometimes they do and sometimes it's ezra's fault. (glory has undiagnosed autism and anxiety but she can't worry about that cuz she has a job to do. we'll put getting an evaluation on the back burner for now.) one super specific skill that puts her apart from most of the other assassins in the story is that she's also a fashionista, so not only will she beat your ass in battle, she'll beat your ass in a custom-made, perfectly tailored, mega fierce outfit. because what's the point of having a story set in a futuristic 70s aesthetic world if the characters can't look cunt?

#jrheatriz.ocs #jrheatriz.glezra #oc rant #long post #oc stuff

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helloalycia · 3 years ago

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⇇ chapter six ⇇

story masterlist | main masterlist | wattpad

⇉ chapter eight ⇉

author’s note: another day another update! hope you all like this one. calm before the storm… maybe? 👀

Almost five hours later, Nat and I finally reached our hotel in Edinburgh and were exhausted to say the least. Turns out sitting in a car doing nothing can make you tired, so we were craving the comfort of our hotel room.

Yelena was already there, having arrived earlier today, so that's who I heard when Nat unlocked the door and I was not far behind her, rolling my suitcase behind me.

"There you are! You took forever!"

I followed behind Nat, entering the room, and saw Yelena stood in the middle, looking to her sister impatiently.

"That was my bad, I kept needing toilet breaks towards the end," I admitted with an apologetic smile.

"Y/N!" she grinned, before rushing up to me to pull me into a hug.

I smiled widely and returned the hug, missing her more than I'd realised. We'd become closer since I left her to move to Yorkshire, having caught each other up regularly over the phone, so this meet-up was long overdue.

"It's been too long," she said when we pulled away.

"It has," I agreed, patting her on the shoulder. "I'm glad you're here, Yelena. It's really good to see you."

"Me, too," she was saying as Nat was closing the door behind us. "Especially because I don't think I can take meeting Natasha's besties by myself."

I resisted the urge to laugh as I glanced over at the redhead herself, seeing the way she rolled her eyes at her sister's comment.

"It'll be fun, they seem really nice," I told Yelena, thinking back to the brief moment I spoke to Wanda. "Be good, Belova."

She waved a hand dismissively. "Yeah, yeah, whatever."

After getting reacquainted with each other for a long time after that, catching up on everything we'd missed in each other's lives, Nat and I were too tired to stay up any longer and wanted to call it a night.

There were two beds in the room – one double bed and a single bed – so Yelena and Nat took to share the double bed whilst I got the single bed, immediately collapsing under the covers as soon as my head hit the pillow.

When I woke up the next morning, I sat up with a yawn and looked over to the other bed to see Nat still sleeping, red hair sprawled across her pillow. With half open eyes, I looked around and saw Yelena sat on the couch on the other side of the room, a menu in her hand.

"Good morning," I said as I joined her, falling into the cushions beside her and pulling my legs up, still half asleep.

She smiled up at me before continuing to peruse the breakfast menu. "Morning. How did you sleep?"

"Pretty good, actually," I realised. "And thankfully, neither of you snore, so decent overall. How about you?"

She rolled her eyes. "Fine until Natasha decided to kick me in my sleep. She's so lucky I didn't suffocate her..."

I chuckled quietly. "She must still be superhero-ing in her dreams."

Yelena snorted with amusement. "God, that's funny. But not funnier than that move she does where she–"

"Where she bends down on both legs, foot pointed out?" I finished with an urge to laugh. "I've seen it on TV. Never fails to impress."

Yelena laughed quietly. "Such a poser. I'm telling you now, I never would have thought she'd be so obsessed with herself."

"Hey, that's not fair," I chided lightly. "She's just... being the person she had to be."

Yelena quirked a brow. "Are you seriously telling me that she wasn't an overdramatic know-it-all when you grew up with her?"

I shrugged, leaning back into the couch. "I mean, okay, maybe a little..." I thought back to the times when she'd always correct me in training, or when she'd tease me for getting something wrong when we'd study together. "No, yeah, she's definitely a know-it-all."

"Knew it."

I rolled my eyes playfully, nudging Yelena in the side. "Be nice. She's still your sister."

"Exactly," she agreed, looking back to the menu. "And my job is to make fun of her. And that's what I'm doing."

I tried not to smile, but it was entertaining watching Yelena do just that. Nat had missed her so much... I was glad she'd finally got her back. Yelena was worth all the trouble.

"I'm thinking of getting the scrambled eggs with avocado on toast," she said, pointing to a particular order on the menu. "How about you?"

I took a look over and decided on a poached egg with toast, before we took the initiative to order Nat some pancakes and put the menu away. Yelena then asked me some more questions about what it was like growing up with Nat, and though it felt strange reliving it all, I told her as much as I could remember.

We were stuck between making fun of childhood Natalia and superhero Natalia, leaving us in a fit of giggles on the couch.

"I hope I'm not interrupting anything," Nat's voice came from behind us, and we silenced our giggles as we turned around to see her approaching us.

"Not at all," Yelena assured her, but not before exchanging amused smiles with me.

That girl was gonna get us both slapped, that was for sure.

Nat quirked a brow, trying to figure out what we were hiding, so I changed the subject before Yelena said something more to annoy her.

"We ordered you pancakes for breakfast by the way," I said, earning her attention. "Blueberry, with syrup. Should be up soon."

Nat hummed, glancing at her sister once more, before nodding. "Thanks... I'm gonna go use the bathroom."

Yelena shot out of her seat at this. "I'm going first!"

Nat widened her eyes and chased after Yelena, who had already began running to the bathroom door.

"Yelena, you've been awake for ages!" she shouted once Yelena slammed the bathroom door in her face. "Let me go in!"

"You snooze, you lose!" Yelena sang mockingly from the other side, and I covered my mouth with my hands so Nat wouldn't see me hiding my laughter.

"I really hate having a sister," Nat mumbled, looking to me with annoyance.

I shook my head, smiling widely. "No, you don't."

She sat beside me on the couch, crossing her arms with defeat because she knew I was right.

————————

After getting ready and avoiding World War 3 between Nat and Yelena, we all headed over to visit Wanda and Vision's apartment in the city. The plan was to stay over at theirs today, meet them properly (and catch up for Nat), then go and see the sights altogether tomorrow, before heading back home on the Monday after.

I would have been more nervous if it was just me meeting Wanda and Vision for the first time, but Yelena was here, too and she made everything a lot easier than it needed to be, so I wasn't as awkward as I thought I'd be when Wanda opened the door and immediately pulled Nat into a hug.

"I missed you, Nat," Wanda mumbled as she let go.

"I missed you, too, Wanda," Nat returned with a small smile, squeezing her hand before letting go.

Wanda smiled softly before looking behind Nat and to Yelena and I. Her smile widened and she approached us excitedly.

"It's so great to finally meet you both," she said. "I'm Wanda Maximoff. I–" She cleared her throat, smile faltering slightly. "I worked with Nat. Not so much anymore, obviously...”

"I'm Y/N," I introduced myself, returning her smile. "I used to work with her, too actually..." Hopefully Nat had told her exactly what I meant by that, since I wasn't particularly keen on delving into it myself. "Thank you for having us over, Wanda."

"Nat's family is always welcome here," she said sincerely.

I wasn't too sure if I could be considered her family, but I didn't correct her out of politeness.

"I'm Yelena," the blonde next to me introduced herself. "Her sister."

"Ah, the infamous Yelena Belova." Wanda's green eyes darted to Yelena. "It's a pleasure to meet Natasha's little sister."

Yelena seemed surprised. "She mentioned me?"

Nat was currently talking to Vision, Wanda's boyfriend who didn't look very human, in the kitchen, so completely missed the way Yelena was staring at her like a child looking at a puppy.

"She did," Wanda said, seeing the same look I did and smiling warmly at the sight. "Only to those she really trusted. I guess I was lucky I was one of those people."

Yelena smiled to herself, looking down, and I rested my hand on her back to let her know I was there for her.

"Please, come in, I'll introduce you to my– well, Vision," Wanda said, and I gently nudged Yelena forward so she zoned back into reality and followed Wanda into the kitchen.

After being introduced to Vision, who was just as lovely as Wanda was, the five of us took to the living room where Wanda was serving us tea, coffee and finger foods with her telekinetic abilities. I was amazed, I wouldn't lie, never getting used to the way she'd flick her hand and a hint of red would come through, doing exactly as she wanted without moving an inch.

The conversation started off as a group one at first, mainly Yelena and I sitting back as Nat had a well-needed catch up with her friends. Then both sisters started helping themselves around Wanda and Vision's apartment out of curiosity, leaving me to get to know them better.

It was here that I learned about Wanda actually being Sokovian and only using an America accent to blend in, courtesy of Nat's help. And she gave me a brief rundown of how she got her powers and why she was stuck where she was now, hiding in Scotland.

Admittedly, it felt strange knowing she knew probably everything about me from what Nat had told her, but I knew nothing of her aside from the fact that she worked with Nat. Same with Vision. But I tried not to wonder why Nat hadn't told me anything about them and simply let myself learn for myself.

Our conversation eventually moved onto the topic of where I was living now, and that's where I found myself showing them both pictures of my home on my phone.

"It's a lovely little village in West Yorkshire," I explained as I scrolled through my photo album. "I've been slowly decorating the place and doing it up how I like."

"That is lovely, Y/N," Vision complimented, amazed at the pictures I was showing of my upcycled wardrobe.

"Yeah, it looks beautiful," Wanda added. "Do you prefer the quiet life?"

I sighed contently. "Yeah, I really do. I mean, all my life, it's been hectic and busy and I haven't had a say in any of it. But now I get to choose what I want, and living a normal, quiet life is something I've dreamed about for so long. It's just great to finally have that."

Wanda glanced up at me, smiling in agreement. "It seems to make you happy. I can't say I blame you. It's been the same with Vision and I."

"Our own little bubble, away from the rest of the world," Vision agreed, wrapping an arm around Wanda.

I smiled at how cute they were. "That sounds wonderful. And I get what you mean. It's been nice, the peace and quiet. Plus, I love my job and my home and my neighbours and– it's all so normal."

"Kinda perfect, right?" Wanda asked jokingly.

I nodded. "Yeah. It really is."

Before either of them could say anything more, Yelena's laughter echoed around the kitchen and made the three of us look up, seeing her standing next to a flushed Natalia and bent over laughing.

"What's so funny?" Wanda asked, lifting an eyebrow.

Nat shoved her sister away, who was still laughing hysterically, and made her way over to us with a drink in her hand. "Nothing. Just Yelena being an idiot as usual."

"Phew!" Yelena said, her laughter ceasing as she wiped the tears from her eyes. "God, Nat, who knew you were such a joker?"

I looked to Nat with confusion, who shook her head as if to say don't bother asking, then took a seat beside me.

"Anyway," Wanda continued, looking back to me, "I was going to say, there's some sights you have to see whilst you're here in Scotland. And Vision and I are happy to show you around tomorrow. They're the most normal people thing you'll get."

I chuckled. "Sounds good to me, Wanda. Thank you." I nodded to Vision. "You too, Vision."

"Anytime, Y/N," he said with a nod.

Yelena joined us all in the living room, jumping next to her sister on the couch, before looking to Wanda.

"So, apart from moving things with your hands, what other powers do you have?" she asked curiously.

"Oh, God...," Nat mumbled, facepalming.

Wanda laughed. "It's okay, Nat." She looked to Yelena. "I can read minds, too."

Yelena's jaw dropped. "No way."

"Yes way."

Yelena pressed her lips together, narrowing her eyes suspiciously. "Tell me what number I'm thinking of right now."

"Please, stop," Nat mumbled between her fingers.

"Ten," Wanda answered.

"How about now?" Yelena asked.

Wanda tried not to laugh. "Six hundred and forty two."

"I'm begging you to stop," Nat complained.

Yelena crossed her legs with determination, never looking away from Wanda. "How about now?"

Wanda rolled her eyes. "You're not thinking of a number. You're thinking about the letter W."

"Damn, she's good," Yelena was convinced.

Nat groaned loudly, leaning back into the couch.

"Drama queen," said Yelena, looking to me knowingly, "what did I tell you?"

I stifled a laugh when I remembered our conversation from this morning.

"I hate you both," Nat decided, shaking her head.

"No you don't," Yelena teased, slapping her on the knee.

We stayed there for the rest of the day, simply getting lost in conversation and spending lunch up until the early evening talking about the randomest of things. At one point, Yelena was questioning Wanda and Vision about what Nat was like to work with as an Avenger, and admittedly, I was interested, too.

"Very scary at first," Wanda had said, nodding. "Intimidating, too. I don't think she liked me."

"You were wearing my clothes," Nat said like it was explanation enough.

"They were given to me," Wanda replied, and it sounded like they'd had this discussion many times beforehand. She shook her head. "Anyway, she was scary at first, but she warmed up to me. Taught me how to be a better Avenger."

"Did she ever do anything embarrassing?" Yelena asked, making Nat glower at her disapprovingly. "I need all the stories, Wanda."

And that's when I was certain Yelena wouldn't make it out of Wanda's apartment alive.

Surprisingly though, she did, and after a long but fun day of chatting Wanda's ear off, we headed back to the hotel with plans of going out for dinner.

As usual, Yelena dibbed the bathroom before Nat and I could even step into the room, immediately pushing past us to go in. I chuckled as Nat grumbled petulantly, and jumped on the double bed with a content sigh. I heard Nat follow after Yelena, no doubt exchanging words, but I ignored them both and rolled onto my back, staring up at the ceiling. And that's when I realised their bed was a lot comfier than mine. No fair.

"Okay, she refuses to hurry up and she's already talking about all the things she wants to test with Wanda's powers tomorrow," Nat said, walking back into the bedroom and falling onto the bed next to me with a sigh. "You'd think she'd grow up."

I chuckled quietly. "That's Yelena for you. And relax, we've got the whole evening to get ready. Are you super hungry?"

"I guess not."

"Patience is a virtue," I quipped, smiling up at the ceiling.

"Yeah, yeah..."

It went quiet as we lay there, staring into nothing above us, only the sounds of Yelena messing about in the bathroom and making as much noise as she possibly could to be heard.

"It was really nice meeting Wanda and Vision today," I said, breaking the silence. "They were really lovely."

"Really?"

Feeling her eyes on me, I tilted my head to the left and saw she was doing the same, watching me.

"Yeah... if they're any indication to what the rest of your Avengers family are like, then you've been in good hands. I'm glad."

She hummed, pursing her lips, and her gaze became distracted. I tried hard not to stare, though it was difficult since her lips were a bright pink, puckered and soft, and her eyelashes were delicate and long, fluttering with every blink, and her hair was a vibrant red, tickling her chin, and her eyes were a calm sea blue-green, so easy to get lost in.

"I'm gonna look up some restaurants nearby," I said suddenly, sitting up with a racing heartbeat.

"You okay?" she asked, but I didn't turn around.

"Yeah, yeah, perfect. Just hungry."

Stupid.

————————

Edinburgh was a wonderful place to explore, especially with Wanda and Vision as a guide.

We did the usual touristy things like visiting Edinburgh castle, going to the botanical gardens, seeing the art gallery... but we also explored the city on foot, merely appreciating how beautiful all the architecture was. I loved it so much and I'd never felt more ecstatic knowing I could do normal people things without having to worry about anything else. It was all I'd wanted.

At one point, after visiting the art gallery, we were let loose in the gift shop. I had a gander at what was on offer, wondering if it was worth buying anything or if it would just end up as clutter. I'd noticed that since being able to choose what I owned, I sometimes overthought it, like now.

A rack of postcards caught my eye and I took a look, amazed at how beautiful they all were, featuring some paintings I'd seen not long ago on the front.

"You gonna get one?"

I glanced over my shoulder, realising Nat had found her way to me, referring to the postcards before us.

"And send it to who?" I said jokingly, looking back to them, though it was true. "No, I'm not. But they're pretty to look at."

In particular, the one in my hand – a stunning painting of some flowers winding through the grass. It would've been nice to send to someone, since that was the whole point of postcards, but oh well.

"Probably gonna get a keyring," I decided, setting the postcard down and looking to Nat. "How about you? You gonna get anything?"

She shook her head, glancing at the rack of postcards. "I don't think so. The gallery was great though."

"Hmm, yeah, it was," I agreed, looking back to the postcards once more before nodding to the other side of the shop. "I'm gonna go find a keyring."

She nodded, giving me a small smile, and I walked away to do just that.

After we all left the gift shop, we went to grab a bite to eat at this cute little cafe that doubled as a bookstore. This was the perfect opportunity for Yelena to test Wanda's powers some more, to Nat's dismay and everyone else's amusement, and also the perfect chance for Wanda and Vision to share more embarrassing stories of Nat as an Avenger.

It was refreshing to hear, I wouldn't lie. Hearing about who Natalia was after she left felt like listening to stories of a different person. A bittersweet experience, but I felt like I was getting to know her more and more in a different way, which wasn't necessarily a bad thing.

After eating, whilst Wanda and Vision generously offered to treat us to the meal, Yelena dragged Nat and I to a photo booth in the corner of the store, begging to get some photos of us all because she wanted to remember the trip and had never used one before. I didn't mind, since she was too cute to deny, and I could tell Nat liked the idea, too.

Of course, after two of the five photos went off, Yelena got distracted like a child in a sweet shop and left the booth. Nat and I got through photo number three together, trying not to laugh, before Yelena called me obnoxiously loudly from behind the curtain. I told her one second, but she dragged me out as photo four went off and I was left to leave Nat alone for the final photo.

"What was so important, Yelena?" I asked, trying not to laugh at her impatience.

"Look how cute these hedgehogs are," she said casually, before pointing to a decorative family of bronze hedgehogs sitting on a bookshelf.

"Okay, they're pretty damn cute," I agreed, mumbling, and she put an arm around my shoulder cheerfully.

"See? I told you!"

I laughed, not bothering to hide it now. "You're crazy, Belova."

"I want my own set of hedgehogs," she decided.

I rolled my eyes just as Wanda and Vision approached us from the till.

"You all ready to go?" Wanda asked, before noticing the hedgehogs too and brightening up. "Cute."

"Oh, they are delightful," Vision agreed, squinting his eyes with amazement.

"See?" Yelena said, squeezing my shoulder. "I–"

"Told me, I know," I finished for her with a childish smile. "You said."

"Thanks for ditching me," Nat said, appearing behind us with an amused expression. "Really appreciate being left alone in a photo booth."

"Blame her," I said, nodding to Yelena.

"Just look at these hedgehogs," Yelena said to her sister, letting go of my shoulder to motion to the display once more. "Amazing, right?"

"Wow." Natasha resisted the urge to roll her eyes before holding out the photos from the photo booth to Yelena. "Forget something?"

Yelena grabbed it, narrowing her eyes as she looked them over. "These are just of you two."

"You left, idiot," Nat said with disbelief.

Yelena pulled a face before handing the photos back to Nat and looking to Wanda and Vision. "So, where to next?"

"I don't know about you ladies, but I could really walk this meal off," Vision said jokingly, patting his stomach.

Wanda rolled her eyes with amusement, knowing Vision hadn't eaten a thing because he was synthetic.

"Come on, let's go," she said with a hidden smile, tugging Vision along by his hand.

I was about to follow after them both, but Nat spoke up, stopping me.

"You should have this," she said, earning my attention and holding out the photos with a smile. "Maybe you can use it in your–"

"Oh my god, look at that dog!" Yelena exclaimed before slapping me on the arm and interrupting Nat's sentence. "Y/N, come on!"

Before I could retort, she'd already grabbed me and yanked me out the cafe, to the dog that was waiting on a leash by the street lamp.

I laughed, glancing at Nat to see her groaning but following along, then kneeled down beside Yelena to pet the dog.

Shortly after walking off our lunch, we came across an ice cream van and all got an ice cream each (save for Vision, obviously) before strolling through a green space in the open.

"Are you sure giving her sugar is the right move?" Nat asked me with a raised brow as she nodded to her sister.

"Let her have fun," I answered dismissively. "She's been working hard these past few months."

Nat gave me a knowing look. "Are you serious?" When she saw I was, in fact, serious, she scoffed. "You're the worst duo ever! I swear she brings out the worst in you."

"You're just jealous I prefer your sister over you, Natalia," I teased, tilting my head to study her.

"Keep telling yourself that," she said, rolling her eyes.

"It's true," I said, before licking my ice cream. "She's awesome."

"If you say so."

I smiled widely. "I do say so."

"She's lying, you're her favourite," Wanda cut in, looking between us with an entertained smile before settling on Nat.

Nat broke out into a grin, meeting my gaze satisfactorily. "I knew it."

My face grew warm as I avoided Nat's eyes. "In an ideal world, your friend here wouldn't be able to read my mind."

"Well, we're not in an ideal world," Nat said, and I could see her annoying grin from the corner of my eyes. She leaned forward, muttering, "Nice to know I'm still your favourite."

I'd be lying if I said I didn't get shivers at her raspy voice in my ear, but I would never admit that at that the time, so I simply rolled my eyes and ignored her smirk.

We were wandering the green space with our ice creams, enjoying the summer heat and slight breeze, when the topic of what would happen next came up.

"Wanda and I quite like it here in Edinburgh," Vision was saying to us. "And we can't exactly go anywhere else, so we'll probably stay here as long as we can."

Wanda nodded in agreement, hugging Vision's side with a distracted expression, before looking to Nat.

"What about you, Nat?" she asked her friend. "Have you seen any of the others since leaving?"

Nat frowned, shaking her head. "No, I haven't... I keep in touch with Clint of course. He's with his family. Seems happy. But nobody else. You?"

Wanda shook her head, frowning, too. "I think everybody has already moved on."

Nat didn't say anything, but it was obvious that she had her own assumptions about the matter.

"Do you think you'll go back to them?" Wanda asked curiously. "To Stark?"

"Not right now," Nat said, wiping the last of her ice cream from her mouth with her napkin. "I can't, for starters. But I also don't think I should. I've been helping Yelena. There's still Widows out there who need freeing."

I wondered how she still had any fight left in her after this long.

"What about you, Yelena?" Wanda asked, looking to the blonde. "You still going to be doing that?"

Yelena hummed, chewing on the last part of her ice cream cone before answering, "They need help. And I'm here to offer it." She glanced at me, adding, "Y/N, you're always welcome to join us."

I offered her a small smile, feeling slightly guilty at the fact that I didn't want to. "I know... I'm just– I'm so tired of it all. The fighting. The missions. The secret. It's probably selfish, but I like my life now. I like where I'm at."

"Hey, it's not selfish," Yelena assured me, nudging me in the side gently. "I understand. But just so you know, you can always tag along if you want a change of pace." She looked to her sister. "Right, Nat?"

Nat nodded, green eyes flickering over my uncertain expression. She was agreeing, but she knew me well enough to know I wouldn't change my mind. Thankfully, she didn't say anything about it and I was glad, definitely not wanting to have to explain why I wanted something more than being a hero. Or less, depending on who you asked.

"We're all on different paths, but it's okay," Wanda said, looking between us all. "As long as we're happy, that's all that matters, right?"

Relaxing at her words, I nodded alongside the others. She was right. And I was happy. The happiest I'd been in a long time.

————————

"This trip wouldn't have been half as much fun if you didn't come, too," Yelena said before enveloping me in a hug. "Natasha isn't all that interesting lately."

"Not like I'm stood right here or anything," Nat said from behind us, and I couldn't see her but I could just imagine the incredulous expression she wore.

I smiled as I returned Yelena's hug tightly. "I'm glad I came. I really missed you, Yelena." When we pulled apart, I continued, "And look, I know that it doesn't mean much, but I'm really proud of you for all the work you're doing with the Widows. I wish I had half the strength you did."

She mirrored my smile, though I could see the way she tried to hide her embarrassment at my complement and it was very cute.

"Thank you," she said softly, before nodding to me. "I'm proud of you, too. For building a life after everything. It's not an easy thing to do. But you're my favourite example to give to the Widows when they think they can't do it."

I snickered, raising my eyebrows with surprise. "Really? You use me as an example?"

"You're basically famous," she played along, making me laugh.

"Well, I appreciate it, thank you," I told her earnestly. "Now go on. I'll leave you to say your goodbyes with Nat. Be nice, Belova. And stay safe."

"You, too." She grinned, before looking over my shoulder to say her goodbyes to her sister.

I left them to it, getting into the jeep that Nat was insistent on driving again. The trip had come to an end sooner than I'd wanted, to my surprise, but we'd promised it wouldn't be the end. I wasn't sure if it was just one of those things people said, but I really did hope I'd get to see Wanda and Vision again. They were lovely.

Soon enough, Nat joined me in the car and we waved our final goodbyes to Yelena before setting off.

"Part two of the Scotland road trip begins now," she said once we set off.

I breathed out through my nose with amusement. "Can't wait."

"Don't sound too excited."

A chuckle escaped my lips and I got comfortable in my seat, leaning against the door.

"Thank you for coming by the way," she said after a moment, earning my attention. "You didn't have to, but you did and Yelena wasn't wrong. You made the trip better."

My insides went warm at her words, nervous and exciting all at once. "Thanks for inviting me," I said nonchalantly. "It was nice to get out. I don't really get the chance to leave my town much. Plus it was nice to spend time with you again."

She glanced at me when I said this, lips pulled into a half smile. "I'm always down for a road trip if you are, Y/N."

I laughed at the thought. Not because it wouldn't happen, but because I never could have pictured the two of us doing anything remotely similar to this. All I'd ever wanted when we were younger was to escape our lives and be normal, together, like this. And now we finally had it, a fantasy that once felt untouchable... it was amazing. And I wasn't sure I'd ever get used to it.

"I'll hold you to that, Natalia," I said between laughter.

The trip back was quite straightforward, with neither of us breaking off into petty arguments or winding each other up. We may or may not have stretched out the stops in between without admitting that it was because we wanted to make the time last as long as we could. Once I got home, she'd leave again and I knew I'd miss her.

Finally, we did reach my house and as much as it felt like home, sweet home, I already had bittersweet feelings towards our goodbye.

"Okay, this is everything," I said once I'd brought my things into my house. "You haven't left anything with me, right?"

"Not that I can remember."

"Then that's it," I finalised, before looking up to see Nat lingering in the hallway. "You know, it's a long way back for you. With the drive to the airport and the flight... are you sure you don't wanna stay the night and go back in the morning?"

She shook her head, smiling appreciatively. "I shouldn't. I've gotta return the rental, and have a few things to do before my flight. It just makes sense for me to leave now."

Breathing out, I nodded. "Okay... if you're sure."

"I'm sure." She looked up at me under long eyelashes, expression soft. "I'll leave you to it, Y/N."

I moved forward without thinking too hard about it, pulling her in for a final goodbye hug. "I'm gonna miss you, Nat. A lot."

She wrapped her arms around my waist, tugging me closer. "I'm gonna miss you, too. But you can always visit. You know that."

"I just might," I said as a joke, but when I pulled away and came face to face with emerald green eyes, I knew I would.

She flashed me her signature smile before letting go and reaching into her back pocket. "Before I forget... these are for you."

I watched with confusion as she pulled out a folded postcard – the one I was looking at in the gift shop – and the photos from the photo booth. She held them out to me and I raised my brows with surprise.

"I tried to give you the photos yesterday, but Yelena likes to interrupt quite a lot," she said lightheartedly. "But yeah. I thought that you might want to keep it. And also, you seemed to like the postcard and said you had nobody to get it for, so I got it for you. If you want."

"Nat, you didn't have to do that," I said, though I was touched at her thoughtfulness.

"I wanted to," she said with a shrug, but I noticed the pink dusting her cheeks. "And I thought you might wanna put them in your scrapbook or something. If you want."

I couldn't help but smile as I accepted the postcard and photos. Looking at the photos first, I loved that they were a complete mess. There was one decent photo of Yelena, Nat and I, another where Yelena got distracted, a decent one of Nat and I, a blurry one of me getting yanked out the booth and a final one of a grumpy Nat. So silly yet so heartwarming.

"I love this," I said with a stifled laugh, before looking at the postcard next. When I flipped it over, I realised she'd written a message and was surprised for the second time in that moment.

"Don't read it until I've left please," she insisted with a shy smile. "I'll probably melt into a puddle of embarrassment otherwise."

My smile widened as I nodded. "Okay, I won't read it until you're gone... thank you, Natalia." I shook my head, realising my mistake. "I mean Natasha."

"No, I like Natalia," she corrected. "Don't change it."

I sighed quietly, nodding, before pulling her in for another hug. "Last one, I promise."

She snickered and returned the hug just as tightly.

"Call me when you land, so I know you're okay," I said to her once she made it to the front door. "And text me when you're home."

"I promise," she said with a teasing smile. "Goodbye, Y/N."

I'd definitely miss seeing that annoying smile of hers in person for a while.

"Bye, Nat."

Once she was gone, the first thing I did was read the postcard. And I was left with a shit-eating grin on my face afterwards.

Dear Y/N,

I'm not sure if you'll think this is stupid or not, but I know you really liked the card, so I thought I'd get it for you. I just wanna say thank you for coming to Scotland with me, and for meeting Wanda and Vision. They're really important to me and it meant the world that you and Yelena were there to meet the other part of my life (even if Yelena was very annoying...).

I know that it must have been strange, especially since they're my family. But I just want you to know that you're my family, too. You always have been. And getting to spend more than two minutes with you in person, or fifteen minutes over the phone, was special to me. I hope it was for you, too.

Thanks again for putting up with me for so long. And sorry I'm sometimes a pain in your ass.

Lots of love,

your FAVOURITE Black Widow x

#marvel #marvel imagine #mcu #natasha romanoff imagine #natasha romanoff x you #natasha romanoff x reader #natasha romanoff #black widow x you #black widow #black widow imagine #scarlett johansson

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ideks-on-mars · 3 years ago

Text

This is gonna be the start of my YamaShira riot <3

ANYWAYS YAMASHIRA RELATIONSHIP EXPOSING HCS THINGS?? LET'S GO!!

- No clue how these mfs got together but they did

- Yamamoto's charms are just too good 😩

- That's what he likes to say anyway

- They kept their relationship a secret for quiet a long time 👀

- Nekoma's pretty chill but Yamamoto would be drowned in the slight teasing from the third years

- Shiratorizawa would declare a whole war

- No one's good enough for their setter 😤‼️

- So they decided that maybe they should keep quiet

- Not including Fukunaga and Taichi because they're just them, they have to know

- Taichi's highly amused. Fukunaga's just really damn surprised.

- Insert a random practice match with Nekoma and Shiratorizawa 👏👏👏👏👏

- Yamamoto and Shirabu eye each other down the whole match

- Tendō gets suspicious 🤨

- "You got beef with Nekoma's ace, Kenjirō?" "Wth? No? Why would I have anything to do with him?"

- Newsflash, he has a lot to do with Nekoma's ace actually

- Goshiki's a little fired up rn ngl. Is this weird man messing with his setter? 🤨 Cuz only he and his team can do that

- "I bet I'm a better ace than him Shirabu 😤 I'll show him." "You'll just make him look even better 😮‍💨."

- Goshiki tried 🥲

- The intense staring continues 👁👁

- Taichi wants to laugh

- After the match Yamamoto decides that he needs to take the chance to talk to his gorgeous boyfriend even if no one knows he's his gorgeous boyfriend because seeing each other is hard :(

- "Hi Kenjirō! :D" "Taketora."

- Shiratorizawa and Nekoma are very much looking like 🤨🤨🤨

- Taichi and Fukunaga: 🤭

- They go on to engage in a conversation after just casually being on first name basis, meanwhile their teams full on just thought they developed a distaste for each other in the matter of a few hours.

- This dude doesn't really seem like the type Shirabu would wanna hang out with willingly

- Ushijima decides to drag Shirabu away for a minute

- "I appreciate that you are trying to get along with the others who will also be taking the role of captain next year, but you don't have to force yourself." "Ushijima, I'm not forcing anything."

- Ushijima himself is confused now 😃

- "I wasn't aware that you spent your time with people like him."

- Shirabu looked slightly annoyed at this and Ushijima has never really had Shirabu annoyed at him. (Well he has but he wasn't aware of it. Shirabu was good at keeping things under wraps.)

- "Well I do. 😐"

- Shirabu goes back to spending the time he has with his secret boyfriend and Ushijima just kinda shrugs and goes on to discuss captain stuff with Kuroo

- Once it's time to go Yamamoto and Shirabu are feelings very :(

- They gotta say bye 😪

- They wanna hug each other, they wanna kiss, but they CAN'T 😤

- Well they can they just don't want the team to be there to witness that

- But I wouldn't be writing this if something juicy didn't happen 🙄💅

- They gotta say bye to each other like they're homies or sum

- So Shirabu, being the actor he is just goes, "Bye, see you later man."

- Yamamoto's not built like him tho 💀

- "Ok, bye Kenjirō. I love you."

- He does what now 😃

- Everyone stops dead in their tracks and Taichi almost falls over. He is DYING. This is embarrassing for him.

- Shirabu immediately covers his face. Yamamoto stands there in defeat. The teams lose their shit.

- Tendō, Yamagata, and Goshiki are harassing Shirabu, Taichi and Fukunaga are dying on the inside, Ushijima, Reon, and Kai are utterly shocked, and Semi, Kuroo, and Yaku are just like "That little fuck has a boyfriend?"

- Kenma doesn't give two shits but then again when does he

- Shirabu just shakes his head and goes over to Yamamoto.

- Yamamoto is scared that his boyfriend is going to be mad at him 😪

- All that fear is quickly squashed when Shirabu kisses him and tells him that he loves him too <3

- Omg, coincidently, it's raining outside 😱 how'd that happen?

- Yamamoto is quick to give Shirabu his Nekoma jacket which the other wears with absolute PRIDE 🙄💅 (like the king he is)

- Yamamoto is quick to cup his face

- "You need to come visit me more. Or I'll come visit you! I just wanna see you more, okay!?"

- Shirabu is quick to nod and agree to see him as soon as he can.

- Shirabu walks away to the bus with a bright red face as Yamamoto is yelling at him from the gymnasium doors

- "MAKE SURE TO TEXT ME WHEN YOU GET HOME! AND IF IT'S RAINING IN SENDAI THEN JUST SKIP YOUR MORNING RUN BECAUSE YOU MIGHT GET SICK! AND MAKE SURE TO TAKE CARE OF YOUR HANDS-" "OK TAKETORA I GOT IT!" "OK!! LOVE YOU!!"

- Dw, Yamamoto already told Taichi to take care of Shirabu for him while he's not there so that one's checked off the list too 💀

- The third years (aside from Reon who's trying to stop them) are glaring at Yamamoto all the way back to the bus because, excuse him, who does he think he is dating their kōhai? 🤨

- Yamamoto gets TEASED and also praised??

- It's a mix of "Yamamoto~~ how'd you manage that one?" And "YEAAAHHH TORA!!"

- Shirabu gets questioned like he's committed a crime

- "Who exactly IS he?" "How long have you known each other?" "How long have you been SEEING each other?" "WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL US??"

- "I thought I was your favorite ace. 😐" "Sorry Ushijima. 💀"

- They text each other on Shirabu's way home

- "Miss you already Kenji :(" "Take, I just left."

- Shirabu misses him too! He wouldn't be hugging his jacket so tight around himself if he didn't! 🤧

- THEY LOVE EACH OTHER

#haikyuu!!#shiratorizawa #nekoma #shirabu kenjirou #shirabu kenjirō #yamamoto taketora #yamashira #2nd gen captains

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secretarykang · 3 years ago

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Ooooookay but can we know a little more about the Xu Zhao dude? 👀 anything you'd wanna

Xu Zhao - all you need to know

i don’t have a face claim for him yet, but have a visual of him i made with this picrew

now some context in the xu family before i go deeper into zhao alone

the xu family is kind of new money, they raised to success around the time devyn’s great grandfather was alive and in almost a thousand years they became a part of the unholy trinity of the vampire land: the sakamakis are the head of state, the kangs are the military and the xus hold the economy. ofc it’s not noted somewhere, but it is well known.

how the xu family achieved that? they slowly occupied the whole alcohol industry, from their own liquor business, to buying every other similar business in that field. once that was done, they looked into other industries and did the same thing. they don’t have their name up front on every business, so only the elite knows that they own the kingdom’s industry.

now that we covered that, let’s start talking about zhao

he’s the youngest one of his brothers and sisters, he had two older brothers and three older sisters. not his family favourite kid also; his sisters would ignore his existence while his brothers would bully the shit out him

his father didn’t really cared about him tbh, he already had two sons who he was preparing to take over the family business so he told his wife to take care of him, did she do that? no. poor zhao had his nannies and later on dong hwa and devyn

another bit of context: dong hwa and zhao’s dad aren’t the best of friends :) and this bit of info is for the explanation on how little zhao got closer to the kangs; long story short: little zhao snuck in one his family’s balls that he was not allowed to attend, saw dong hwa in a corner, walked up to him and made conversation, lovely evening for both them. little zhao also followed him outside the manor and climbed into his carriage, going to the kang manor with him; why? bc he kinda knows that his dad and dong hwa don’t really like each other so who will look for him at the kang manor

devyn was actually there at that time and was so confused about zhao, straight up asked dong hwa if he brought her a brother

of course dong hwa brought him back, but at zhao’s please, the whole thing was done in secret so he won’t get in trouble. but zhao was a smart kid and learned the way to the kang manor so he could sneak out and go there from time to time.

you know that devyn wasn’t there most of the time, but that didn’t stopped zhao to visit, he would hang out with dong hwa.

when devyn moved her main residence to the main kang manor, they became inseparable and when zhao had the worst fight with him family and left home for good, yk devyn and dong hwa let him into their home and family officially.

looked and still looks up at dong hwa as a father figure and joked about being adopted a lot of times, doesn’t call him dad or lord kang or idk, it’s just simple old “uncle hwa” or just “uncle”

his father died soon after and his oldest brother had to take his place; now, his oldest brother was always paranoid and this led to his second brother’s death, yet never thought about doing the same to zhao ( homeboy thought that he’s out of their life for good )

zhao wasn’t even invited to the funeral, despite the rumour that his father asked for him on death bed

after that he went in a bit of a bad period where he would go to bars and brothels 6 days out if seven (making devyn come after him and get him home)

next time he sees his family again is at karl’s coronation, only briefly; he was with devyn, in the royal box (due to dong hwa being so close to karl, they got to stay there with richter, dong hwa wasn’t present in the box since he was heavily involved in the ceremony - someone had to put that crown on karl’s head)

what made zhao snap out of his mood and stop his activities a little was his brother not managing the business well; long story short, he planned with devyn to kill him, did that and took over the business

after taking over, zhao extended the business to the black market, therefore taking full control of the kingdom’s economy, and started businesses in the human world as well

hates karl. never liked him, never will, but tries to tolerate him for devyn

sees devyn as an older sister, but would marry her if it was needed

#✉️ㄱbscornersafeandaway #this took way too much to make #xu zhao #diabolik lovers #diabolik lovers oc #devyn kang #karlheinz sakamaki #dong hwa kang #diabolik oc

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zosociologist · 4 years ago

Text

"Dating George Harrison would be like..." Headcannon

(a/n: I'M BACK IN ANOTHER STRESSFUL COLLEGE SEMESTER AND WRITING IS THE ONLY THING THAT WILL HELP ME COPE. I'VE BEEN SITTING ON THIS HEADCANNON IDEA FOR MONTHS BUT DIDN'T KNOW HOW TO FORMULATE IT. I don't even care how many notes it gets, I just wanna write cause I missed doing it😩; *WwABRIM* but anyone is welcome to read😌💜)

Warnings: NSFW mentions in one area BUT nothing bad per say.

Time Set: For this specific one I'll go with early/mid '70s👌🏾

If there's one thing you didn't expect....it would be the fact that on some random Saturday afternoon, you'd be napping on a large picnic blanket in your backyard with George laying next to you with his legs crossed, hands behind his head and an open composition book filled with lyrics covering his face🥺💞

(a/n: PLSSKSKSKSK THAT IS SO CUTE I'M OVA HERE ABOUT TO LITERALLY BAWL WHY DID I PLAY MYSELF LIKE THIS PLS SEND HELP I-)

SO...you two crossed paths TWICE. You're a renowned lens jockey a.k.a music photographer AND videographer and any band that is a BAND, or singer that is a SINGER...is shot or filmed by you😌🥃

You lended your expertise to capture George and The Boiz🐞™️ during the production of the Get Back (Let it Be) sessions AND Abbey Road sessions

He peeped the quality in your craft and enjoyed your "contagious creative aura" so he started hanging out with you 💫platonically💫

Y'all got very close and I'm pretty sure he name dropped you in every other sentence of a conversation he had with someone that had to do with cameras and what-not

The footage and shots you got from those sessions would go down in rock history as being one of your most notable works..................................

THAT IS UNTIL................

A manager by the name of Peter Grant-

(a/n: oh yeah; iykyk😏 Top 10 Best Anime Crossovers)

Requested and commissioned you to be the photographer and videographer for a cute little band🙂..............

Zeppelin......the band was Led Zeppelin👀

It was a great experience and George was glad that you were out there dominating the photography field-

But sometimes you'd bring up in a conversation with him how Robert Plant also admired your work and you'd do solo shoots for him at his cute little country home, and uhh......he was a little jealous😔

And sure, at first George was all like "Ooooh, I think he's growing romantically fond of you😘🍸" AS A JOKE....but after a while.....he didn't think it was a joke anymore😞

Homeboy realized he was literally involved in a game of fastball now, so he went ahead and did the UNTHINKABLE

Not really...but it caught you off guard

You two were out at an outdoor farmer's market near your place just looking around-

When he pulls you into a nearly empty cobblestone bookstore nearby and kisses you for what you believe is a good 15 minutes, or at least to you it felt like it although it only lasted a few good seconds....but you were so mesmerized it felt like forever<3

When you finally caught your bearing and reality set in you kinda just covered your mouth in surprise and looked at him while he cornered you waiting for you to say something-

It's like it took you ALL THIS TIME to FINALLY get starstruck,

"Did you mean to do that?", "Yes I did, and I probably should have done it a long time ago.", "I didn't know you felt this way, I wish you would've told me sooner"

The way you said those words was enough to make his heart stop

"Oh no, are you two seeing each other? If so I do apologize-" *you had to calm this boy's nerves where he was so worried, bless his heart*

"Me and Robert?! Absolutely not, I haven't talked to him since I did their last shoot and I always talk to Grant first. You have nothing to worry about,"

That reassurance allowed him to exhale peacefully and actually express how he really felt about you, and you were able to do the same allowing for you both to finally fess up about your love for one another!

THE WAY YOU AND GEORGE COEXIST IS AMAZING! Truly a beautiful pair🤍

You both are creatives and travel a lot so the time you spend together is just that much more important and special

You two LOVE going to various exibits, festivals, concerts, film viewings, small get-togethers, LARGE get-togethers, you name it! You absolutely love the arts.

You two also have your days where you enjoy being home-bodies, you enjoy the peace and solitude of personal space, one on one time, and even prayer and meditation.

George especially loves spending time at your house most of all because of how peaceful he finds it to be, he is OBSESSED with your backyard specifically because of this secluded bushy garden area you have.

He likes to set up camp there with a picnic blanket and have you keep his company while he writes, or sings, or plays guitar, or reads, or even vents to you. And he appreciates that you always listen and he always does the same.

He loves to hear about your experiences and outlooks about life, what motivates you, what inspired you to get to where you are, your doubts, setbacks, and triumps, differences and similarities in cultures. He likes to talk about it ALL.

When I tell you this man is 👏🏾DOWN👏🏾BAD when it comes to you and embracing the melanin😩

He came in your bedroom one evening while you were sitting criss-cross on your big ole bed, tending to your hair while Ruler of my Heart by Irma Thomas was in rotation.

He didn't know if it was the smell of the coconut in the hair grease, the cocoa butter you just moisturized with, or even the raw emotions and soul that was pouring out of your record player, but he DID know that he was gonna do some sinful things to you that evening🥃

YOU ALSO VERY MUCH APPRECIATE THAT HE KNOWS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE TERMS "HARDER" AND "FASTER". VERY MUCH SO.

But I digress.....

Talk about excellent support system, you like to tease him sometimes by humming some of his old tunes, you sang 'Do you want to know a Secret' while dancing around your living room and he randomly joined in and that dumb starstruck syndrome thingy hit again...your knees almost gave out....he ended up turning the joke on you instead😖

Number one hype person regardless, you sang Crackerbox Palace with a group of randos once when it came on at a kickback you both were invited to, where you tipsy? Yes. But was it an out of body experience? Absolutely.

You know your feelings for someone is severe when your heart does a lil flip whenever their name is mentioned.

That's an effect that you both have on each other, whether you are in the same room or hundreds of miles apart.

What you two got going on? That's real love if anyone's ever seen it💞

#Yup...dis da one #headcanon #my writing #george harrison #the beatles #the beatles fanfiction #classic rock fanfiction #classic rock fanfic #the british invasion

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talkfantasytome · 3 years ago

Text

It Would've Been So Right - Chapter 2

Bryce and Connor have their long-awaited date.

Warnings: None | Word Count: 3,738 | Read on AO3

It Would've Been So Right Masterlist

a/n: For those of you seeing this for the first time, this has been posted to AO3 for a while. It has the first 22 chapters, all of which were written before HoSaB. I may take some things into consideration for the rest of the story, but generally speaking best to assume anything not known or learned in HoEaB will not be making an appearance here. And this story actually greatly conflicts with something learned in the second book. 👀¯\_(ツ)_/¯

"Ugh!"

A chuckle sounded from the living room, putting Bryce even more on edge.

"Either get in here and help me, or shut the fuck up, Danika," she scolded, poking her head out her open bedroom door.

Danika just laughed again. "I don't know why you're in such a fuss, Connor's not going to care what you're wearing." She didn't move from her spot on the couch, her eyes remaining on the television. "You could open up the door naked and he wouldn't care. In fact, he might prefer it." She turned her head and winked.

"Well aware, thank you!" Bryce shot back, the edge still in her voice. She went back to her closet and started to look through every one of her dresses. Again. For the third time.

She'd never had such trouble in preparing for a date. And Connor was her friend. Danika was right. She could probably wear jeans and a t-shirt and he'd be happy - goodness knows that's what he'd likely be in. But still, she couldn't do that. She didn't want to do that. She wanted him to take one look at her and know just how much time she put into this, to know she was ready to take this leap, whether she really was or not.

When I kiss you, I'm gonna make sure as Hel you remember it the next morning, the next year, the next century.

No, she was ready. As ready as she'd ever be to give him this chance. To give them this chance. After five years, they owed it to themselves, to each other. And maybe, just maybe, she owed it to herself to try something out that might actually mean more.

And when I bed you, I'm going to take you to heights you've never known. And I want you present for every. Single. Moment.

And then there was that. His promises had echoed through her head since Thursday night, and she was ready to collect. Gods was she ready. It was another reason why she needed to find a great outfit, one that made her demand to go out, to show it off. She didn't know if she'd be able to leave the apartment once Connor got here if she was only wearing jeans and a t-shirt. She'd probably just take him by the hand and lead him straight to her room.

Would be fun payback to Danika, for all her 'help'. But Connor, he asked Bryce on a date - she would give him that.

Two hours later, she stood in front of her full-length mirror and did a final check on everything. She'd opted for a dress in forest green. The skirt wasn't absurdly tight, though it did still show off her ass, and the torso was a tangle of fabric crisscrossing over itself on the top of her back, leaving the bottom completely open as it sloped into a thick V on her front, her hips bare as well. The dress was tight around the chest and stomach, and though it wasn't low-cut, it still showed off her generous breasts. Clean-shaven and well-moisturized with a sparkling lotion, her gold-dusted legs shimmered in the light as they led to the golden heels she'd chosen. A favorite pair of hers, a fabric so covered in rhinestones her feet reflected any light shining toward them.

She'd slid some small, golden hoops into her ears, not wanting anything too big or dangly, and kept her make-up more subtle. Well, subtle for her, trading her 'blow-job' red lipstick for a more flirtatious, 'come-play-with-me' pink gloss. She'd dusted her eyes with gold shadow and lined them with a sparkling black liner before brushing her lashes with her midnight mascara.

Having been able to dry and style it - thanks to convincing Jesiba to give her the afternoon off - Bryce left her hair down to naturally fall to her waist. She looked forward to seeing Connor follow as her hair directed his eyes to different points on her body. A wine-red beacon to a number of the places she wanted to feel his hands.

She was overdressed and she knew it, but Bryce didn't care. Besides, was it really overdressed…for her? When she wore four-inch heels to work on a daily basis and was almost always dressed to impress the wealthiest of Crescent City's residents. Not to mention, she relished at the thought of how Connor might react.

Her phone buzzed as she grabbed her chained, gold purse and started out her room.

Are you my new mommy?

Ithan Holstrom's text made Bryce laugh out loud, causing Danika to look up in confusion.

You're damn right I am, pup. Now finish your vegetables and go to bed.

She placed her phone in the purse and grabbed her keys as Danika gave her a loud cat-call from the couch. "You've proven me wrong. Connor may, in fact, prefer this to you opening the door naked."

Bryce flipped her off while she grabbed her wallet and double checked the money within. Danika just laughed right as a knock sounded at the door. Looking down, Bryce saw her phone switch from 5:59 to 6:00 and couldn't stop the smile that spread across her face.

Schooling her features, she threw her bag over her shoulders, across her body, and opened the door.

Connor Holstrom stood before her, the light bronze-skinned mass of a male with muscles for days, and she could hardly breathe. He wore a deep green button up shirt - unbuttoned with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows - over a well-fitted and non-wrinkled white t-shirt that did nothing to hide how chiseled he was beneath it. And on his legs - those were black slacks. Not jeans, not even black jeans. Actual trousers. Bryce didn't even know he owned those.

He still wore sneakers on his feet, though the canvas shoes with laces he currently had on wouldn't be much use in a fight or if he needed to chase someone. And his brunette hair remained tousled as it always was, flipping out at its edges by his ears. But Bryce preferred it that way, arrogantly unkempt. Gods help her, that probably said more about her feelings than her attire for the evening did.

Her eyes looked over his body a second time before finally meeting his golden stare, her smile growing wider at the look of awe on his face. Taking so long to get ready had been worth it to see that look. His eyes wide like a deer in the headlights, his mouth slightly open, and his body stiff as if she'd frozen him in place.

"You look..." he breathed, unable to finish his sentence as his eyes lowered at a slow pace, trying to take in every curve, pausing on the exposed midriff.

She beamed up at him. "Thank you. You look pretty hot yourself."

His stare shot back up to hers and he donned that mind-wrenching half smile. From behind his back he pulled out one long-stem red rose and offered it to her.

"Connor," she said softly, accepting the rose and sniffing it silently. "Thank you."

He just looked down at her, his eyes gentle and full of feeling. She had received a few bouquets from Reid in their two months of dating. All massive, all extravagant, and all delivered to her with a simple 'From Reid' on the card. Not one of them conveyed anything close to what Connor just had in offering her this single rose, likely all that he could afford. She kept smiling as she walked back into the apartment to find a place to put it, but Connor remained in the threshold, still stiff as a statue.

"You can come in," Bryce added, turning back to him for a second before she went into the kitchen to try and see if they had a vase in this apartment. She opened up the bottom cabinets - old take out containers they'd saved with the intention of using for leftovers. They never cooked, there were never leftovers to store.

His voice was still breathy as he replied, "I don't think I can." She looked in the top cabinets. A few mugs, some plates and bowls, a couple of glasses, and Danika's bong. That definitely wouldn't do.

"Why not?" She resigned herself to filling up an empty beer bottle with water and placing the flower in that. It may not be classy but, arguably, it did represent them well. She walked back into the living room and placed the bottle on the coffee table Danika currently had her feet on, her friend clearly pretending to be so engrossed in the reality show on the television she didn't notice them.

Connor swallowed as Bryce met his eyes. "Because if I come in, I don't think I'm going to be able to leave," he explained in a guttural tone that told Bryce exactly what he meant.

She felt her cheeks flush slightly, but just nodded in understanding as Danika coughed, the sound filling the apartment.

Bryce shot her a warning glare, which Danika met with amusement, her grin wicked.

"Shall we, then?" Bryce asked, making her way back over to Connor.

He smiled in response.

Bryce threw over her shoulder a, "See you later," to Danika.

"Take it easy on him, B," Danika teased, her eyes not leaving the television but definitely aware of the middle finger Bryce held up as she shut the door behind her.

Bryce walked beside Connor as they made their way down a busy street, glancing over at him every few seconds, knowing he was doing the same with her. But the walk was silent and he kept his hands in his pockets, almost as if restraining himself.

He was nervous. She could see it in his face, in his stride, even in how he held himself. She wondered if he could sense the same in her.

Connor led them to one of the pizza places they frequented, just a couple blocks away from her apartment, and opened the door for her. One of the owners, Dahlia, greeted them from the hostess stand as her partner, Jemma, waved from the open window that looked in on the kitchen.

"Just the two of you?" Dahlia asked warily. "Or will you need me to push together some tables for the rest of them?" Dahlia and Jemma enjoyed acting as if they disliked it when the full pack came here, but Bryce knew it was all for show. The wolves liked the idea of annoying the owners, and Dahlia and Jemma liked the amount of money the full pack could spend on pizza. And the clout that came with being reported as the favorite pizza place of the Pack of Devils. It was a game.

"Just Bryce and me, tonight," Connor explained. Dahlia nodded and led them over to one of the booths next to the window and placed the two menus on opposing plates.

Bryce slid into one of the seats, and Connor took the opposite one, quickly looking down at the menu, unable to keep one of his legs from shaking the table. But Bryce just stared at him. He tapped a finger on the surface as he studied the menu, as if he didn't know the full thing by heart. But his eyes didn't move, didn't read the words he was so diligently looking at. They just stayed in place. And even though they were looking down, Bryce could see the uncertainty in them. The fear.

She wondered if that fear was what kept him from speaking, from looking at her. Or if it was something deeper. Or if she was reading it completely wrong. Maybe he was already regretting this, asking her out. She didn't want to think about that. And she didn't want this to be so hard.

Without a second thought, Bryce stood, Connor's eyes flicking up toward her, true terror flashing across them until he saw that she wasn't walking away, but coming toward him.

"Scoot over," she ordered, the right side of her lips curving upwards. He did as commanded, and she sat down in the booth next to him, her body brushing against his, a question in his eyes. She explained, "Whether this is a date or a trial run, something had to be different than every other time we've come here to eat."

His eyes darkened slightly as a smile spread across his lips. "I think I'm going to like this," he purred, brushing some of her hair behind her ears before sliding that arm around her shoulders.

She leaned in to his body and savored the warmth and comfort she felt in his arms. "So, what should we get tonight?"

And that was that. After a 10 minute debate over what to get on the pizza, which ended with them compromising and getting the same toppings they always got, the conversation just flowed. They talked about Ithan and his sunball, about Bryce's work, about the pack, and so on, albeit with more blatantly flirtatious comments and a sexual tension that seemed to create an electric charge between them. It had always been there, but tonight…tonight it was different. Bigger.

Bryce remained in the booth with Connor, and his arm stayed around her in one way or another until the pizza came. And then it was a back and forth of teasing each other with their own slices, laughing, feeding each other due to different jokes that were being said. At one point Bryce wiped the grease that was on one of her fingers onto Connor's nose and then laughed freely as he moved to rub his grease-covered nose on her neck. Bryce couldn't help but think that, from afar, they probably looked like a montage from one of those cheesy romantic-comedies she enjoyed watching. She didn't mind.

"I will never understand how you walk in those things," Connor chuckled, looking down at her heels and taking her hand as they left the restaurant.

"I could always teach you, if you'd like," she teased, grinning up at him, her eyes dipping to his mouth where just a few minutes before she'd lifted her thumb to wipe away a bit of sauce that had remained when he finished the last piece. His eyes had stayed on her when she did, just as they had the night she'd cleaned up his split lip. It had taken a lot of willpower not to brush her finger across his lips and kiss him there in that booth.

Connor's laugh brought her back to the present, to the sidewalk they strode down, Bryce following wherever Connor was leading them. "No doubt I'd pull them off well, but I think I'm tall enough." And Hel, was that statement true. When in heels, her eyeline was just above his shoulders. She was just tall enough to be able to peer over them without arching her neck or going on her toes. He always commanded any space he was in, dominated it. Even with Danika in the room, he was the enforcer, the one that told others exactly what to expect should they mess with her. It wasn't just his height that created the effect, nor his muscles - it was his very being, and the power within, that made him such a presence. Such a standard, alphahole presence. But his height sure helped.

"Probably for the best. Lessons with me don't come cheap."

"Oh, I'm sure I could find a way to pay them off." He threw her a half smile, amusement shimmering in his gold eyes, and Bryce inhaled sharply at that look before responding with a coy smile of her own.

She looked back at the sidewalk and taunted, "Better be with something I like." She'd barely finished the sentence when Connor pulled her arm and lightly pinned her against one of the buildings lining the block, one hand still in hers, the other now gripping her waist.

A wicked grin lit up his face. "It definitely would be," he breathed, leaning in and tugging on her ear with his teeth. She couldn't stop the small whimper that escaped her lips, making his smile grow feral, even while his panting became uneven.

They breathed the same air, his eyes not leaving hers as they stood there. She inhaled deeply, the scent of spiced honey and the forest after a rainfall overtaking her, affixing all her focus to him, as if the world around them didn't exist. His own breath caressed her, consumed her, and she was about to lean in when he stiffened and his focus shifted. He turned his head slowly toward whatever distracted him, a predator in motion. And then he took a step back, dropping his one arm but keeping Bryce's hand firmly in his as they resumed walking.

"Everything okay?" Bryce asked, looking in the direction of Connor's eyeline. She couldn't make out much, other than a pair of wings poking out above the heads of passersby. But Connor didn't say anything as they walked, giving a curt nod to the blond Malakim that stood on the corner before they crossed the street and turned left to walk down that block.

"Alek," he finally said through gritted teeth, gracefully switching to be on Bryce's left, keeping himself between her and the cars on the street. "He and I got into it a few nights ago, it wasn't pretty…for him. He probably would've gladly used my being against you like that as an excuse to try and arrest me for harassment, or something similar."

"That's ridiculous, Connor," she chuckled. "He couldn't do that. The 33rd are the Governor's forces. It wouldn't look good for him to bring in the Second of the Pack of Devils on a false charge."

Connor smiled softly. "You're probably right. Still, he would have done his best to ruin our night with it."

"I thought you liked working with the 33rd?"

"More like I don't mind it. It's a hell of a lot better than working with the Fae Auxiliary, that's for sure. But, some of them are preening…alphaholes." He glanced over at her with a grin. "And a right pain in the ass, using whatever chance they can to try and pull rank. And maybe it's jealousy, or a desperate desire to try and feel a little less trapped, but it still sets my teeth grinding."

She frowned slightly at the look on his face, the tension in his muscles. She just leaned in a bit and rubbed her free hand against his massive arm in comfort. He loosened, somewhat. "So, where are you taking me?

"Dessert." His tone added an of course.

A small groan slid out. "I'm so full," she laughed. "I don't know if I can eat more." She'd had about two and a half pieces of pizza before declaring she was done. With two kinds of meat, peppers, onions, and a side-salad to share, she was amazed she could even attempt a third piece, which Connor finished for her no problem. He had a much faster metabolism than she did, just like all the wolves, and a vastly larger body to fuel. She supposed this had been a rather small meal for him, the six and a half slices and half a salad.

"Oh, come on! You always have room for ice cream," he crooned, pointing toward her favorite ice cream shop. It wasn't really a shop, more just a counter in the wall, putting the different flavors on display. No seating either, but it was still some of the best ice cream in the city.

"That's true," she murmured with a small smile. He laughed and led them on.

They each got a cone of their favorite flavor - mint chocolate for Bryce, chocolate brownie for Connor - and then started down a scenic route of the city, even walking along the river for a few blocks. Not that either of them were paying much attention to the sites, they'd seen them plenty of times before. No, Bryce's attention was firmly on her ice cream and Connor as they walked and talked, Connor sharing a rather ridiculous story about how he once tried to convince a group of lion shifters he was one of them on a dare. It didn't end well for him.

By the time they reached Bryce's apartment door, they were both grinning from ear to ear.

The smiles soon faded as she stopped and turned to look up at him, her stomach twisting, not entirely sure what to do. Did she invite him in? Gods did she want to. But, it was only a first date, maybe not even that. Not that she always waited longer, but still, that's supposedly what proper people did. Then again, she wasn't exactly proper, and she'd known and wanted Connor for five years. Of course, if she did invite him in, what exactly would they do with Danika in the next room? It had never really stopped Bryce before, but it seemed different with Connor, considering who he was and his place in the pack.

She continued to stare up at him, his eyes meeting hers, and similar questions seemed to dance across his irises. But neither moved, and neither spoke, until Connor brought a hand up to her and brushed his fingers into her hair. Bryce's heart thumped so loudly she thought it might be echoing in this hallway as he leaned in. She felt her own body pull itself toward him, her eyes set on his lips. They were so close and-

Her phone buzzed, the purse that held the vibrating phone laying between them, causing both to jolt back in shock.

She sighed, muttering an apology as she took a look at her phone quickly.

Payback time, bitch. Out with Fury and June. My turn to have fun without you. ;)

Bryce let loose a soft chuckle at Danika's message.

How dare you, she typed back, not meaning one word of it. It was funny, how Danika's payback seemed to be more of a gift.

She looked back up at Connor. "Danika's gone out," she explained, her voice low and breathy, unable to hide her nerves. "Would you like to come in?" His golden eyes widened at the offer and he nodded slowly, a very gentle smile resting on his face.

Bryce smiled back before turning to unlock the door and attempting to shove it open. It took a moment, and then Connor's hand was beside hers, pushing the door open with ease. She nodded a thanks and then led him into the apartment, shutting and locking the door behind her.

@boredserpent @live-the-fangirl-life @nesquik-arccheron @sayosdreams @a-court-of-milkandhoney

#crescent city #crescent city fanfiction #bryce quinlan #connor holstrom #danika fendyr #quinstrom #bryce x connor #canon divergence #canon universe #crescent city fic #house of earth and blood #cc hoeab #hoeab #first date #connor x bryce

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