#they can be sweet or spicy towards him because both those options are good
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valiantstarlights · 1 year ago
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We have all talked about Hob having a thing for goth twinks, but have we considered Dream creating wet dreams that look just like Hob?
Like, every time he gets thirsty for Hob, bam! Another wet-dream!Hob. We have a 1389 mercenary Hob, a 1489 Hob with ink-stained fingers, all up to a 2022 Professor Gadling. But that's not all! Because Dream also has an Ancient Greek Hob in a chiton (inspired by 2022 Hob cheekily calling him "Lord Morpheus," like ONE TIME), a Hob in fishnet stockings, garter belt, and a leather corset with his tits out (inspired by one of Hob's random dreams where he's poledancing in high heels)--there's just, there's a lot, okay.
And, like, Dream can't even send the wet-dream!Hobs out to do their jobs because he gets jealous. So now Dream has a harem--I mean, beg your pardon, Dream has a very respectable group of wet-dream!Hobs in the Dreaming who are increasingly feeling useless and, dare I say it, desperate to please their Creator.
I don't know where exactly I'm going with this, but I'm sure it's in a very spicy direction.
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noneedtoamputate · 7 months ago
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Flyboys and Flirting
I had a chat with @shoshiwrites earlier this week after seeing this photo of Callum Turner in a turtleneck (thanks @hogans-heroes for doing God's work.) I blame her entirely for my Bucky Egan obsession. Like Ellen, I am not one to like the bad boys, but there is something about him and his character development during Masters of the Air that got to me. I tagged the photo with something like Chuck wouldn't mind Ellen taking off her sunglasses to check Bucky out, and Shoshi said no one deserves to look that good in a turtleneck. Based on our chat, here's a little fun one-off I wrote about Colonel Egan stopping by the tobacco store.
San Francisco
October 1957
Afternoons were usually quiet in the shop, a good chance to catch up on pesky tasks like organizing receipts for the accountant. He called Chuck last week, and Ellen saw the headache start behind Chuck’s eyes. Chuck hated anything to do with taxes.
She decided to get a babysitter for Friday and come into the shop for the day. They’d get everything sorted and then go out for dinner, just the two of them, as a reward for a solid day’s work.
They were in the back room, Chuck at the desk and Ellen perched on the counter next to the sink going over August’s purchases, when the bell above the front door rang.
Chuck sighed and rubbed his temple.
“You keep working. I’ll go out front,” she said as she hopped down, giving his shoulder a squeeze before walking out into the store.
Her eyes widened at what she saw. She forced her mouth to remain closed though her jaw wanted to drop to the floor. 
A curly-haired man with a mustache, aviators, and a bomber jacket, looking better in a turtleneck than any man had a right to, stood in front of the high-end cigars. He must have heard her footsteps, because he looked her way, took off the sunglasses, and flashed her a smile, a smile she knew he put on for everyone and had nothing to do with her.
This was a Bad Boy.
Ellen never had gone for the Bad Boys. She’d always liked the honor roll students, the boys next door. She suspected Chuck had gone through a Bad Boy stage, but by the time she met him, he owned the store and shaved every morning and parted his hair just so and was always on time to everything. 
Every once in a while, she wondered what it would have been like to be with a Bad Boy, the boy who kept her out past curfew or had a motorcycle or had a mustache that normally didn’t do anything for her but made her hot and bothered. 
She congratulated herself on wearing a pencil skirt and heels today instead of her usual shirtwaist dress and flats. 
“Can I help you?” she asked calmly as she walked toward him. 
“Yes, I think you can,” he said slowly, still smiling. “I should introduce myself. Colonel John Egan, United States Air Force.”
“Ellen Grant, co-owner of this store,” she said, shaking his hand. “Cigars, I see. What flavor are you looking for today?”
“Perhaps you can explain my options,” he said. 
Despite whatever game they were in the middle of, she wouldn’t play dumb. She went through what made each cigar different, whether they were flavored with sweet Mexican vanilla or spicy Indian pepper, how each one was rolled slightly differently and had different shapes and filters, affecting their taste. 
“Which one is calling you? Sweet or spicy?” she asked coyly, barely believing those words came out of her mouth.
“A little bit of both, I would say.” He lifted his eyebrows just a bit. “Let’s take a box of each.”
They walked over to the counter.
“I just flew into Hamilton Air Force Base last night for meetings. I’m sure my colleagues will enjoy these tonight,” he said. 
“I’m sure they will,” Ellen agreed. “Any cigarettes? Luckies or Chesterfields?”
He looked at her quizzically. “Luckies. How did you know?”
She laughed. “It’s my business. But for most officers, it’s one or the other.” She rang up two packs. 
They made small talk for a few minutes, about the store and his Pentagon desk job, but mostly about flying.
“You seem to know a lot about planes,” he said. He looked down at her finger, the one with the diamond ring on it. “Is your … co-owner a pilot?”
“Well, he was in planes, but he didn’t fly them. A paratrooper,” she explained.
He looked impressed. “The 82nd?” he asked. 
“No!” Ellen almost shouted. “The 101st.”
“Sorry,” John apologized.
“You should be. Those guys in the 82nd were a bunch of amateurs.” She grinned as she handed him the bag.
“Well,” he said, a little deflated at the prospect of leaving, “This has been a delight. Thank you, Mrs. Grant.”
And with that, the spell was over.
“Likewise, Colonel Egan. Enjoy your cigars and the rest of your trip.”
He smiled, nodded, and walked out the door without a second glance. 
Ellen turned around to walk into the back room when she saw Chuck, leaning against the wall, arms folded on his chest with an amused look on his face.
“What?” she innocently asked as she walked past him.
“You were flirting with that flyboy,” Chuck pointed out. 
“I was not!” Ellen could barely keep a straight face.
Chuck couldn’t, and he laughed out loud. “I heard the whole thing. God, it’s so predictable. All it takes is a pair of fancy sunglasses and a leather jacket and all the girls fall for it.” He shook his head. “Here I was thinking my wife would be better than that.”
“Oh,” she said, closing the gap between them and putting her hands on his shoulders. “Are you jealous?”
“Of that guy?” he asked incredulously. “Please.” 
Ellen tilted her head. 
“I’m not jealous, but nobody should look that good in a turtleneck,” he conceded.
She playfully hit him on the arm. “That’s what I thought!” she said.
“I’m not jealous,” he said again, grabbing her by her hips. “I’m the one who gets to do taxes with you and go out to dinner with you and go home with you,” He gave her a slow, sultry kiss. “When is the babysitter off duty?” he asked
“Nine o’clock. The kids should be asleep,” she sighed as he found the spot on her collarbone that she liked. 
“I hope so.” His hands left her hips and roamed lower. “No, I’m not jealous of that guy who is going to be smoking cigars with the brass tonight while I get to be with you.”
“You know, you can be bad, when you want to be,” Ellen remarked. 
“Very bad,” he agreed.
Ellen didn’t want a bad boy. She didn’t want a hotshot pilot with a mustache. But she liked knowing her clean cut, responsible husband who didn’t own a turtleneck could be bad if he wanted to be. That was enough for her. 
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justsomeoneintoomanyfandoms · 2 months ago
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Hi there! May I request a match up? I’ve never done one of these before. So I’m super excited!
Fandom(s) Genshin & Tokyo debunker
Name (optional):Rena Aizawa
Pronouns: She/Her
Sexuality: Bisexual
Zodiac/MBTI: Leo & INFJ
Appearance: 5’3, has light blue hair with soft pink streaks. Her hair is long, but she keeps it usually in a ponytail. She also wears hair clips, ribbons, and hair pins. She changes the accessories depending on mood. She also has blue eyes with pink hues. And lastly, she has dimples and a birthmark under her left eye, in the corner.
Personality: She’s has many layers to her personality. She can be sweet, chaotic (funny way), a little cold when dealing with people who test her patience, she looks after her love ones and often comes to their rescue if they are in need of help or advice. Truly whoever she connects with she becomes friends with them easily. She’s fully of surprises, often keep her private life to herself though.
Likes: Sweets, cute things like teddy bears, animals, tiny cute things. Musicals, rock music, fashion, writing, reality tv shows, and hanging out with friends.
Dislikes: Pineapples, spicy things, sweating, people who test her patience, bullies, judgmental people, loud sounds, annoying sounds, thunderstorms, being alone, and bugs. Unless it’s butterfly and lightning bugs
Hobbies: Writing, listening to music, work at the recreational center, fostering animals with her family, practicing playing her guitar or the piano, babysitting, and hanging out with friends.
Any extra information: She foster animals with her dad since her dad is a major cat lover. Rena now has an orange gecko named Geo, two cats that are named Jasper (orange cat:male) and Dolly (blue shorthair:Female). She’s also called, “mom” or “mother” but her closest friends.
(thank you so much for this, don’t worry about rushing. Take your time, I’m sure you have a lot of requests to do. Have a wonderful day!)
Hi Rena! Thank you for your request! Sorry it took a while. I hope you like your matchups!
In Genshin Impact, I match you with...
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Mika likes that you’re such a layered person. He has to deal with a lot of people in his line of work but it’s nice being around someone like you.
I think he also has a fondness for cute things and animals so he can definitely understand your affection for them. When he’s away, he’ll collect cute things to give you when he gets back.
Will get rid of any bugs for you but he’s not going to be brave about it. There’s a lot of screaming from both of you when there’s a bug that needs to be dealt with.
Judgemental people are a pet peeve of Mika’s as well. His work is already challenging enough without those sorts of people around as well.
He really enjoys hanging out with friends and is more than happy to hang out with your friends or invite you along to hang out with his. It’s always a good time when you’re together and surrounded by friends.
In Tokyo Debunker, I match you with...
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Subaru is drawn to you initially because of how much you care for your loved ones. That sort of thing is hugely important to him and he finds it an admirable quality in others.
In the same way, he’s awed by your affection towards animals. He would definitely be up for fostering animals and will treat them like your children if you ever foster some animals together.
He’s definitely got a bit of a sweet tooth considering the copious amounts of snacks he keeps on standby for teatime. He’ll make a mental note of your favourites and stack up on them so you can have morning and afternoon teas together.
There’s always a lot of rain in Hotarubi and sometimes that can turn into thunderstorms. Whenever it does, Subaru will set aside his work and spend the time with you. He hopes his presence will help comfort you, even some small amount.
If you ever share your writing with him, he would be honoured and will read your work with respect and diligence. He loves everything you write and will tell you so.
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ciaossu-imagines · 1 year ago
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Love autumn but don't know which character to choose so prompt 15 but for anyone you think likes and/or has the strongest opinions about autumn please?
I’m with you on the loving autumn! Everything about it makes me so happy! I went with Poe from Blush Blush for this, because we all know this cute little emo-boy has all the feelings about autumn in general and spooky season in particular, so I hope you’ll enjoy the headcanons!
WOULD YOU RATHER?
Go apple picking V.S. Go on a hay ride
It would really depend, honestly. Is the hayride one of those haunted hayrides? Because if it is, Poe is really picking that option in a heartbeat, as he loves anything like that. But if it’s just a regular old hayride, he’s going to pass. Too peopley and little kiddish and he’d much rather go apple picking, if only because he enjoys eating the apples afterwards.
Scary V.S. Sweet
Scary all the way, one hundred percent. Poe is in love with everything macabre and dark and spooky, from books to movies to just the general aesthetic, no matter what the season is. He really does keep his Halloween spirit all year long.
Sweaters V.S. Boots
Oh fuck, that is like asking him if he’d rather cut off his left arm or his right arm! It’s an impossible choice for him because he’s equally attached to both things. He really can’t live without his boots. They’re comfy and broken in just right and he wears them every day, but he’s also a big fan of sweaters and layers because he tends to get cold easily and almost all his outfits in the autumn features sweaters of various types.
Halloween V.S. Thanksgiving
Duh! It’s Halloween all the way. There’s simply no other holiday worth celebrating, in Poe’s opinion…except maybe his birthday. It’s pretty cool when people remember and celebrate his birthday, though it’s even better if they remember and celebrate his unbirthdays too.
Bake Pie V.S. Bake Cookies
Controversial hot take on Poe’s part?? Pie sucks and isn’t even worthy to be called dessert – it’s just hot mushy fruit on top of usually dry crust. He’s team cookies all the way, particularly gingersnaps or molasses cookies, something slightly spicy on his tongue that pairs well with a hot mug of tea or coffee.
Rain V.S. Fog
Oh, this is another really hard one for him, because he’s a sucker for a great thunder and lightning storm, simply for the ambience and general aesthetic, but he doesn’t drive and the fog is easier to walk in, while still maintaining that great, gloomy aesthetic that he really loves.
Black Cats V.S. Owls
Owls are going to win out, simply because after spending some time as a bird, Poe feels he really needs to support his avian brethren.
Ghosts V.S. Wizards
As if it’s even a contest? While stories with wizards in them can be cool, Poe is more of a horror geek than a fantasy nerd and ghosts win out for him every day, especially if the ghosts in question are creepy and scary or delightfully tragic.
Harry Potter V.S. Halloweentown
Another hot take from Poe? Harry Potter isn’t a Halloween movie. It only had like, one scene that took place at Halloween but other than that, it’s just a fantasy movie. It’s a good fantasy movie, don’t get him wrong, but there’s nothing seasonal about it! Give him something at least related to Halloween, like Halloweentown is, even if the movie is a little juvenile for his liking (or so he says, though he really does enjoy it more than he’d care to admit).
Go Hiking V.S. Sleep in
Poe has troubles sleeping a lot of the time and does have some struggle with insomnia, so he’s going to pick sleeping in just because he needs the extra hours of sleep to catch up on the massive amount of sleep deficit he’s built up over the years.
Cinnamon V.S. Nutmeg
I think he’s leaning more towards nutmeg, though he does generally like both spices. A cinnamon stick in a cup of hot apple cider is great, but he eats more things that have nutmeg in them and it kind of wins because he prefers the smell of it slightly more.
Reading V.S. Writing
What fresh hell is this question??! Poe couldn’t choose. Like, his brain would break even attempting to choose between the two because they’re both necessary to him. He can’t survive without writing, whether it be in his journal or sitting down and trying to compose a new poem. But at the same time, to be a good writer, you must first be a reader and he does tend to read a lot, getting through at least a book a week that isn’t school assigned.
Hot Chocolate V.S. Tea
I think Poe leans more towards tea, especially black teas with added flavourings to them, like a nice London Fog or even just something as simple as a vanilla chai tea. He tends to drink them more towards the evening, when he’s kind of already overloaded on coffee but still wants a nice warm drink.
Live in a Cabin In a Forest V.S. Have it be fall 24/7
Both options really do hold some appeal to him, since becoming a tortured reclusive artist is among his dreams, but he wouldn’t be able to pass up the opportunity to make it fall all the time, because it’s got the best weather in his opinion and that would mean that Halloween would come about more often and he’s very much okay with that.
Candy Apples V.S. Caramel Apples
Neither. He loves apples, but just apples. He doesn’t want added sweetness to them and finds both caramel and candy apples hurt his teeth trying to bite them.
Blankets V.S. Pillows
Pillows. If need be, you can always layer jackets or clothing over you to keep warm but Poe’s tried using his jacket as a pillow once and it really isn’t as comfortable as his actual pillows, which he spent much more on than he would care to admit.
Roasted marshmallows V.S. Roasted Chestnuts
I don’t honestly think Poe has ever had a roasted chestnut, so he’d probably go more for those just to figure out what they taste like, since he’s heard about them in so many songs and such.
Coffee V.S. Apple Cider
Coffee is essential to life. Or at least Poe’s life. As previously mentioned, he really is always a little tired and never gets enough sleep, so caffeine has become a mainstay in his diet and he drinks way more coffee than a person really should.
Red Leaves V.S. Orange Leaves
Poe will think that the blending and juxtaposition of all the different coloured leaves in the fall is really what makes them really stand out and look as beautiful as they do, so he wouldn’t want to pick one or the other.
Braids V.S. Bows
If it’s on someone else, it’s going to be braids, especially if they’ve gone all fancy with their braids. On him? Neither please.
Scented Candles V.S. The Smell of Fresh Baked Goods
I do think that he’s going to go more for scented candles, simply because, no matter if he was full before, the smell of fresh baked goods always makes him instantly hungry again and he doesn’t want to be walking around constantly hungry. He tends to go for more spicy or earthy scents in the candles, like ‘pumpkin pie’ scented candles, cinnamon scented candles, or evergreen or cashmere scented candles.
Carve Pumpkins V.S. Make Pumpkin Pie
Because of his opinions on pies, he’s of course going to want to carve pumpkins. He really works hard to figure out a really scary design and he’ll put a lot of effort into his pumpkin, but someone else has to scoop out the pumpkin guts, because there’s something about the texture of them that makes him a little bit queasy.
Pumpkin Spice Lattes V.S. Chai Tea Lattes
Can he have both? It’s the only time he allows himself to be a basic bitch, when pumpkin spice lattes come out because he does find them really delicious but he’s also such a huge fan of any tea based latte.
Coats V.S. Oversized Sweaters
Poe kind of leans more towards oversized sweaters, but only if the weather allows for it. If the weather is really crisp, he’s wearing both, just to stay warm. He definitely has circulation issues he really should get checked out.
Beanies V.S. Berets
Neither. Despite getting cold easily, Poe will not wear a hat. There’s just something about hats that he really doesn’t like, whether it’s how they look on him or how they feel on his head or how his hair ends up afterwards but there is something. So he just generally avoids wearing any sort of hat. He can more easily see the appeal of an artistically tilted beret though.
Candy Corn V.S. Peanut Butter Cups
Candy corn is just brightly coloured Styrofoam and nobody will ever convince Poe otherwise. It does not taste good…so why can’t he stop eating it? Seriously, if there’s a bowl of it around, he ends up eating it handful after handful, despite complaining about how gross it tastes. It’s a problem.
S'mores V.S. Apple Crisp
I think Cole would lean more towards s’mores, mostly because apple crisp to him is very much the same thing as pie and falls under that same category of just hot, mushy fruit. Overall though, he’s also not a huge fan of s’mores, because of how messy they are to eat and how sticky his hands are afterwards.
Jump In a Pile of Leaves V.S. Swing on a Tire Swing
Swinging on a tire swing is more a summertime thing to Cole, for some reason he can’t fully explain, so it’s no wonder that he’s picking the more autumny feeling option and jumping into those leaf piles…or he is if he’s not the one who has to rake the leaves up in the first place or afterwards.
Corn Maze V.S. Haunted House
Okay, but there are not enough words in the human language to explain just how very, very, VERY much Poe desires to live in a haunted house. It is such a huge dream of his and it would make him so happy to spend any amount of time in any haunted house, even just a touristy one set up for the season, because it’s like living little sneak previews of that dream.
Bob For Apples V.S. Visit a Pumpkin Patch
He’s definitely visiting a pumpkin patch at least once, if not twice, during the autumn because Poe loves jack o’lanterns and, as previously mentioned, he puts a lot of work into churning out some really spooky looking ones.
Whipped Cream on Hot Chocolate V.S. Marshmallows on Hot Chocolate
Neither. I really don’t see Poe as drinking hot chocolate. It’s simply not his hot drink of choice.
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whatanoof · 3 years ago
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A Push in the Right Direction
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Rating: Explicit
Pairing: Cal Kestis x Reader
Word Count: ~7.6k
Warnings: fluff, smut, swearing, sexual tension, rough sex, sex pollen so by default it's dubcon, pining
Summary: Healing injured patients? Psh, easy stuff. Force healing? A little more tricky. Confessing your crush to your very close friend? Damn near impossible until a flower bush shoves you in the right direction.
A/N: Happy birthday my friend @marvelassassin221b!! I hope you are staying safe, and that your birthday will bring happiness and wisdom to your life. It's been a blessing talking to you and laughing at memes together <3 Thank you for giving me the push to get this fic done and posted, I couldn't have done it without you. Enjoy some of our favorite redhead Jedi ;)
You’ve always been terrible with directions. Like, it’s a miracle you haven’t gotten lost in more dangerous settings, but even your Jedi Master used to shake their head when you had survival exercises in your Padawan years. Greez too, makes comments about how atrocious you are at navigation. You hadn’t been allowed back to the holomap since a disastrous set of directions landed the Mantis on the more unfriendly side of the Outer Rim.
But even with all of your shortcomings at mapping, you have a solid crisis mode. You need to have one as a medic. It’s not a good idea to freeze when a patient is bleeding out on the ground in front of you, there is only one way that is going to end, and it’s not going to be a happy ending. Under pressure, all of the unsureness that surfaces during your attempts at navigation vanishes, and your body is moving before your mind even consciously thinks to. It’s your zen mode, almost your place of meditation, where you give into the inner instinct and allow the Force to guide you through the process. Too bad you can’t reach that state in any situation other than emergencies, maybe you would be able to navigate your moves in confessing a crush.
You had met Cal Kestis on Bracca. He’d cut his hand open on a jagged edge of wall paneling, and Prauf brought him to you, one of the few healers among the scrappers. You couldn’t tell what exactly it was that gave him away to you, but the instant his eyes met yours, you knew where he had come from.
Of course, you waited until Prauf had gone back to work to reveal yourself. Healing through the Force decreases the chance of infection, is painless, and is essentially instantaneous. While your normal supplies would have done the trick, the drama queen in you realized this would be the perfect way to show Cal he wasn’t alone. Force healing is tricky, but you’d had a surprising knack for it ever since your youngling years. The Order had trained you up in the way of Force healing and given you the tools to take advantage of your aptitudes. Cal’s face had been priceless when you simply waved your hand over his, and the wound closed within seconds.
There was a certain comfort in knowing you weren’t alone. Admittedly, in the long years after the Purge, you’d toyed with the idea that you had been the only Jedi to escape. Those had been dark days, where you could barely scrape together the energy to forage for food and water, laughing that the Jedi Order would die with a single Padawan who had lost her lightsaber along with everything she had known.
But then Cal stumbled into your little cordoned off area. You’d become close friends from that moment to the day Prauf died and the Ninth Sister shoved you both off of the cliff and onto the freight train below. The Mantis crew was surprised, to say the least. They had gotten reports of a single Jedi wreaking havoc on Bracca. But they welcomed you aboard and you had become the team medic, patching up Cal when he got back from missions and finding time in between to try and recover the Force abilities you had lost to time.
---
“Hey.” You look up from your work. Medical supplies lie strewn across the floor of your part of the room, bandages unwound and your meager supply of medication stacked methodically in the corner.
Cal looks down at you from the doorway, a streak of something across his cheekbone. You want to wipe it off, but you just smile back, “Welcome back. Find anything cool?”
His happy grin only widens, “You’ll have to come and find out.”
“What?”
He beckons you towards the main hull, “Come on!”
Cere and Greez are already there and seated around the meal table, and BD is perched on the table, chirruping animatedly as if talking to Cere. You take your place with them, noting the empty chair to your right. Merrin is back on Dathomir, searching for ancient texts about Nightsister magic and rituals. She’s been gone for several days, but you still find yourself seeking out her snarky comments and cool confidence.
“Okay.” Cal stands at the head of the table, rubbing his hands together in a way that makes him seem as if he is playing the adult. “I’m willing to bet you're all wondering why I’ve called you here today…”
“Spit it out Cal, you woke me up from a nap for this.” Greez eyes the redhead grumpily, and you fight to hide a grin. Cere also looks mildly amused, if slightly impatient.
Cal rolls his eyes, but continues, “Cordova left a message, saying something very valuable to our quest is locked in a vault in the Zeffo caves. I found the vault today and it matches Cordova’s description, but we need two Force users to access it.” He nudges BD, and the little droid projects an image of the vault door. It’s massive, with gold decorations swirling across it, and two obvious indents in the ground on either side for said Force users.
Everyone’s gazes flit to Merrin’s empty chair. It’s without question she would have been the best fit for this mission. Her combat style complements Cal’s perfectly, and Cere is still hesitant to use the Force.
Realization strikes you, and you glance up to see everyone’s eyes are now trained on you. You begin to shake your head. “That’s a bad idea--”
“We’ll be fine. I’ll lead us directly to the vault. I have my saber, and you have your Force healing. Worst case scenario, you have to patch me up in the field.” That is definitely not the worst case scenario, but there are no other options. This mission is time-sensitive, and you can’t wait for Merrin to get back from Dathomir.
You fix him with a stern glare. “I will come. But--” You hold up a hand when Cal opens his mouth. “You have to stick with me. No disappearing and popping out to scare me, because I will get lost We go in, and we get out.“
“I wouldn--” Cal protests.
“You would.” You snap.
“Yeah, he would.” Cere agrees.
“Sounds like something you would do.” Greez nods.
BD beeps cheerily from its place in the center of the table, clearly in agreement with you.
Cal shuts his mouth with an audible pop, and you cross your arms while staring him down. Yes he would.
“I need BD back here on the ship. I’m running diagnostics on the navigation programming, and I can’t do it alone.” Cere speaks up.
Cal hesitates. You understand; he never goes on missions without BD. The two are a package deal, but everything needs to be running at peak efficiency before you go to the Fort Inquisitorius. And there’s no way you’re willing to deal with a navigation error en route.
You speak up, “Yeah, it will be fine.”
Cal looks at you, “We need BD to unlock a shortcut. What happened to in and out?”
You wave him off, “We’ll take the scenic route. Cere needs BD back here, and we can manage without. We’ll have our comm units, it will be fine.”
---
Do you know that saying, “Famous last words?”
Yeah. You hadn’t realized just how famous those last words could be. It started when Cal realized he’d left his comm unit on the ship in the charging port. But it was fine, because you had yours. Until you dropped it into a puddle after tripping over a tree root.
The scenic route involved passing through the outskirts of a forest, and the terrain was a little trickier than you had been prepared to handle, obviously. So, commless and armed with a single lightsaber and two shared brain cells, you travel towards the entrance to the Zeffo caves.
A flower bush catches your eye. Its leaves are a shocking shade of red, with gorgeous blue flowers that seem to call you over to them. Cal keeps walking even as you stop and reach for the bush. You pluck the flower in the fullest bloom and turn it over in your hand, admiring the veins of deeper azure spider webbing across the petals.
Cal says your name behind you, “We have to keep moving if we’re going to get back before dark.”
Turning to face your companion, you tuck the blossom behind his ear and step back to admire how the blue contrasts against his hair. The word slips out almost without you noticing. “Cute.”
It’s almost comical how quickly his face blooms red. “Guh--”
“It’s a good look.” You reassure him quickly. “Adorable. Pretty. Cute.”
“--Thanks!” He ducks past you to the bush. “I’m just going to grab a seedling for Greez. He’ll like this one.” Cal grabs one of the large pods and breaks it open, removing a seed and sticking it into the pouch on his harness. “Okay, ready.”
But you’re distracted by the red pollen that explodes in a cloud around his head, dusting him with a fine mist that leaves scarlet traces on his face and shoulders. “What’s that?” You step forward and run a finger across Cal’s poncho, collecting the dust and rubbing it between your fingertips. You hesitate, then raise your hand to your face to smell the substance. The sickly sweet scent and underlying current of spicy musk sticks in your lungs. The back of your throat tickles, and you sneeze.
An echoing sneeze draws your attention. Cal leans against the flowering bush, one arm clamped over his nose as he sneezes over and over again. He glances up at you, coughing with watery eyes, “Wha--”
A spike of dread pierces through you. ‘Stars, was it poison?’ He won’t stop coughing, a dry rattle as his body tries in vain to purge the intruding red dust. You fall to your knees beside him. Panic fills your mind, blotting out logic and reason and you place your hands on his body, intent on Force healing him even though you don’t know what is wrong with him. Then, just as suddenly as the coughing started, it stops and silence rings through the trees.
“Cal!”
You're shoving your hand underneath his poncho in an instant to feel for his heartbeat. You hold your breath. You can’t feel a pulse. You scramble to rip his poncho off completely, dragging it over his limp shoulders and head. You shove your fingers against his throat again. There!
His heartbeat flutters delicately, beating a rapid tattoo against your fingertips. You allow yourself to breath. He’s alive. But his pulse is fast, too fast. You rip open his tunic, though you’re not entirely certain what it is you’re searching for.
Just as your fingers brush over his skin, Cal bolts upright with a gasp. “Wh-- where...?”
You swear you almost pass out from the relief that slaps you across the face. “Stars, I thought you were dead. I’m so sorry about the flower bu-- mmm!”
Cal smashes his lips onto yours, pushing you onto your back with the sheer force of the kiss. His tongue dips into your mouth, searching and probing and damnit you can’t breathe when he’s this close to you, this desperate. His hips jerk against yours with an unpracticed, aborted motion, dragging a very prominent erection against your body that makes you jerk back in surprise.
You push him away from him for a second, propping yourself up on your elbows as you search his face for some indication of… you don’t know what. But this isn’t like him. “Cal, what--?”
“Need you.” He groans, his hands roaming over your body without fear or shame and inspiring a wave of pleasure as he squeezes your breasts. “Maker, you feel so good. Smell so good.” You bite back a moan. This really isn’t the time, not in the middle of an Imperial occupied forest. But to be completely honest, he feels really good too.
You’d imagined this before. Well, not these exact circumstances, but the idea of being under Cal. You’d imagined the feeling of his hands scraping over your skin and squeezing your body wherever he would like. You’d imagined his lips on yours, and other places for sure. But you’d really only ever been able to envision Cal as a gentle lover, all quiet moans and hesitant movements and unsure expressions. But this rougher side? You moan raggedly against Cal’s mouth as he shoves a thigh between your legs, rubbing up against your clothed sex. This is amazing.
Streaks of heat flash through your body, converging between your legs. Everything is amplified, the sounds around you, the grass beneath your knees, the blueness of the sky overhead. But it all seems to pale when your attention lands on Cal, who’s more flushed than earlier. You feel the heat beneath your skin too, but he’s got to have it worse right now, because you’re not the one sweating like you’re stranded on a desert planet. Maker, the pollen was some kind of--
His name escapes your lips in a tiny whisper that morphs into a moan halfway through. You allow your head to fall back, and it thunks against the spongy moss across the ground, knocking you back to the present. Cal’s lost in you, his nose buried in the crook of your neck as he ruts weakly against your thigh.
You shake off the haze clouding your mind, crisis mode kicking into full gear. You have no comms, one horny Jedi, and a completely hopeless sense of direction. “Cal. We have to move.”
He whines high in the back of his throat. “No.” It’s almost pleading, but there is an undercurrent of steel that makes you pause.
“Cal. We’re out in the open. Troopers co-- could--” Stars, you can feel the lust pumping under your skin, so close to the surface that it could burst out at any second. But fear hovers on the edge of your mind, pressing in and suppressing the need to jump Cal and reminding you of the certain torture and death that would occur if you were caught.
Cal doesn’t seem to have any of the same restraints as you. His fingers are carding through your hair, “Just wanna feel you. Maybe more.” His teeth latch into your neck, and the dull pain pierces through the haze more firmly.
He got dosed more heavily with the pollen. You resist the urge to curse as you gently detangle from Cal and sit up, biting back a sigh of relief as his teeth leave your skin. “We have to find shelter.” You begin to look around, but all you can see is the forest. You need something better, a place where you can figure out what exactly is wrong with Cal. You try to stand.
“Noooo…” This isn’t going to work. You actually do curse this time. How are you supposed to find effective shelter while dragging a full grown man around hostile territory without compromising stealth, all while your libido is cottoning to the edge of your mind, clouding your judgment?
“Come here…” Cal’s arm wraps around your neck, dragging you back down to the ground even as you try to stand. Okay that’s enough.
“You’ll forgive me later, Cal.” You press your thumb to his forehead and concentrate. His skin is dry and burning to your touch, and your brow scrunches. That’s going to be an issue. You reach to tap into the Force, but you pause. Your Force connection is… foggy. That’s the only way you can describe it in words, but it’s muted and dimmer than usual.
Your Jedi Master taught you a metaphor for using the Force: a barrier exists between you and access to the Force. It’s a wall, and your mind must become like a sharpened sword to pierce through and reach the Force. You can feel the barrier, just as always, but it’s like a second layer exists around it. If the normal barrier is made of thin glass, the new layer is crafted from paper; it’s strange, and thicker than usual, but still easily pierced with extra… force if you can say that without making yourself laugh at the pun. You summon the strength and press your mental sword forward through the barrier.
Rest. Cal’s eyes roll back in his head and he falls asleep with a gentle exhale. He relaxes against you, and you relax in turn when you see the pained lines smooth out of his forehead. Jedi healing includes your own personal anesthesia on demand. It will keep him under for a little bit, though you can’t tell what kind of effect the pollen will have on the Force sleep.
Through some feat of the stars themselves, you struggle to your feet. Cal’s arm is looped around your neck, and you want nothing more than to just sink down to the ground again and give into the weakness and lust pulling at your legs, coaxing you to collapse and take your pleasure. And stars, Cal’s heavier than you expected him to be.
But you shake yourself awake. Can’t get distracted. You glance at Cal’s drooping head. He’s been strong for you this entire time. The least you can do is be strong now and find some shelter. But where?
Voices filter through the trees, and your head jerks up towards the sources.
“Yeah, she told me to take the bucket off, or she would charge the full payment and…” Stormtroopers. Kriffing hell.
“Come on.” You hiss underneath your breath. You gather your legs underneath your body and push. Your muscles scream in pain, but they ultimately obey and you stumble to your feet and begin to move away from the approaching voices. Cal is dead weight over your shoulders, pulling and urging you to rest. It would be so easy to give in, to sink back to the ground and let Cal do what he wants.
The trees blur together as you move through the forest. The stormtroopers’ voices are getting louder and you grit your teeth. You don’t know their patrol route. How are you going to avoid them? All you can do is place one foot in front of the other. Then the mossy ground turns to stone underneath your feet, and you slow. Caves. Perfect.
You hurry inside, fatigued legs forgotten in your relief. There’s a bend directly beyond the mouth of the cave, and you gently lay Cal against the wall. You’re completely hidden from anyone looking from the entrance. You sit opposite him, your head falling forward to sag against your chest. Now what?
Your comm unit is busted, and Cal’s is sitting back on the Mantis, so you can’t contact the crew. You hold a hand to Cal’s forehead. His temperature is getting worse. You don’t know what infected him, so your Force healing is out of the question. The only bright spot is you’re pretty sure the stormtroopers won’t find you. They’re not exactly recruited for their brains, and you’ll be able to sense their muted Force signatures if they get close.
Speaking of…
You trail off, contemplating Cal’s unconscious face. His head sags against the rock wall and there’s a line of drool leaking out of the corner of his mouth. His brow is finally relaxed, his breathing deep and even and it strikes you that this is the most peaceful you’ve ever seen him.
You reach out through the Force. It has become a habit for you, Merrin, and Cal to find peace in each others’ Force signature. Whether nightmares or difficult missions, the others would be there as a silent comfort.
Merrin’s is a mixture of whites and creams swirling against a dark maroon background. When she uses her Force magic, there is an unmistakable green tinge through it. Hers is powerful, with a sense of underlying safety in her strength. True to form, Merrin has been a protector figure in the Mantis.
But Cal’s is more diverse, a blend of warm colors against a grey background with blue tinging the edge. But while the colors are chaotic, Cal keeps a firm hold on his Force presence at all times, never allowing it to surge violently from emotion. He does not suppress it completely anymore, but you know he has the ability to make it nearly disappear from the senses of another Force user. You should know, because you can do the same. Merrin grew up without fear of having to hide her Force sensitivity, but you and Cal survived the Purge. You both have firm grasps of your thoughts and emotions projected through the Force. So in Cal, you found a kindred spirit that understands you better than almost any other person in the galaxy could. You’ve become more familiar with his presence than even your Master’s before the Purge.
But now, your brow furrows as you search for his Force presence over and over, pushing into every crevice of the surrounding environment without violating his privacy. You’re not mistaken. It’s gone, almost as if he has been turned into a droid before your eyes. Every living thing has a Force presence, no matter how minute. But Cal’s comforting whirl of light is gone, vanished as though he is no longer connected to the--
Cal’s eyes fly open and he sits forward with a quiet gasp. You jump. It’s worn off then. You secure his body with the Force, holding him loosely so as not to cause any lasting damage. You would have to tackle the Force connection problems later.
“I need you to focus.” He pushes against the bonds with a whimper, and you bite your lip as you struggle to hold him still.
“Cal!” Your Force bind tightens, and he stills with a grunt. “Talk to me. Fight through it.”
He shakes his head, eyes screwed shut. “Hurts.”
“What hurts?”
“Every-- ah! Everything. Can’t-- can’t th-think. Only thing-- makes it better… you.”
What? Your concentration lapses and the bonds loose. He lunges forward and buries his nose into your neck again, inhaling you as his hands scrabble at your clothes. “Hurts less with you. Smell so good--soft. Please?”
Stars, you can’t think straight with him touching you like this. You bite back a moan as his hands roughly squeeze your breasts through your shirt. Surely, it wouldn’t hurt to give in. Just for a little. Indulge, and then you can figure out a way back to the Mantis. Then Cal raises your shirt and licks a long stripe up your neck, and that’s all the convincing you need.
You melt into his mouth, your hands running under his shirt and harness. His chest is just as feverishly hot as his forehead, but you can’t bring yourself to care when he swings a leg over yours so he’s hovering over you, knees planted on either side of your body. His hands shove your shirt over your head before setting to work on the button of your pants. You raise your hips to allow him to pull your pants under your butt. Your own hands yank at his clothes, silently begging him to strip with you.
But he doesn’t. He kneels between your legs and pulls your underwear to the side, exposing your wet folds.
“Cal--!” You’re cut off as he drags his tongue over your pussy, flicking against your clit at the end. Your stomach muscles contract, and it’s all you can do to keep quiet as he licks deep into your core.
---
The world is blurred. It’s like something crawled into his head and messed with his brain, dragging his focus away from more important issues… he can’t seem to remember right now. He can’t even feel the Force. His connection is compromised, the colors of the world are off, and there’s this bone deep ache within his body urging him closer to you. And as he’s drinking in your taste, the pain subsides and he can breathe again.
What is this? What’s happening to him? It has to be the pollen, it has to be its effect on his body, that’s why he’s lost all control over his mind and self. It’s why he can’t hold himself back from your body and you.
You’re all he can focus on; you’re so beautiful writhing under him as he tastes you. He’s never done this before. He can’t figure out why he hasn’t done this sooner, because you taste amazing right now and how you sound as he slides his tongue through your folds is doing things to him that he’s never experienced before.
His hips are dragging against the floor unintentionally. The friction of his dick against the rough material of his pants is a small slice of heaven, and he whimpers at the pure electricity spreading down his spine. He doesn’t want this to end so soon, but his body is shoving him towards the edge of release and the relief he knows is going to come with it.
---
A moan keens high in the back of your throat as Cal’s mouth presses against your soaked core. It’s sloppy and clumsy, but Maker if he doesn’t make up for it with enthusiasm. The only sounds coming from him are tiny moans and grunts and you shudder as his fingers dig into the pillowy flesh of your thighs, leveraging them apart and holding them there firmly. Of their own will, your hips roll up into his face, chasing after his touch.
You’re completely unprepared for Cal to growl when you do so. His grip tightens, and you squeak as your thighs are spread even farther apart and his mouth completely envelopes your clit.
Is this what heaven feels like? You can barely manage coherent thought when his tongue is devastating you like this, but thequestion rotates around your lust dumb brain as your toes curl and your back arches. Your release rushes up and sweeps you away, your core clenching as waves of pleasure wash over your body. You hear Cal whine as you cum, and you hear your own moans as you ride out your orgasm.
---
Stars, why hadn’t he done this sooner? The sounds that he’s pulling out of you right now could make him come in his pants on the spot, and the taste of your release has him rutting against the ground all the more insistently as he chases his own high.
But he doesn’t want to come in his pants, he wants to be inside of you. He wants you, your body squeezing tight around him, to feel the wetness seeping around his tongue rather than tasting it, even if it tastes divine.
He grabs your hips and yanks you down so your crotch is flush to his. He nearly loses his mind when your soaked core meets the bulge in his pants. Fuck, he thought he could wait, but he can’t.
But--something is still off with the world’s coloring. Where is the Force? The comforting pressure is gone from the back of his mind, the constant reminder of balance that keeps him in tune with his emotions and surroundings. Panic edges around the perimeter of his mind. In an act of desperation, he reaches for the Force, searching for the whispers of memories that accompany his world. They’re gone. Where did they go?
You whisper his name again, and this time his eyes meet yours.
---
You watch Cal carefully. He’s flushed, trembling as he hovers over your body, hands bare centimeters away from your skin. His eyes are desperate, and you can feel the pain in them as clearly as if it was your own. A bead of sweat tracks down his temple to soak into the collar of his harness, and he fumbles to rip the rest of his clothing off, discarding it on the floor as though it burned against his flesh.
“Cal.” He looks back at you. “Take what you need.”
It’s all the permission he needs. Relief and something else flashes through his eyes before he looks back down and fumbles with his pants fastening. His cock is flushed dark red, and his hands tremble as he pulls it out of his pants, jaw clenched as he lines up with your entrance. He slides into you with a bone-deep sigh of relief, and you cry out at the stretch. Every inch sparks pure electricity up your spine, and your eyes roll back in your head. He bottoms out, and for a heart stopping moment you feel a connection to him you couldn’t describe in words. Your hips roll against his, grinding the head of his cock up against something heavenly. Light explodes behind your eyes at the movement, arching your back and curling your toes.
Cal chokes, a beautiful sound you’ve only heard a few times before; the one that sounds like its been pulled from the deepest parts of his being, like he’s just ascended to another plane above the physical. It’s gorgeous and so insanely hot you’re completely unprepared for his sudden movement when he lunges forward.
Cal’s hand shoots out and presses against your neck, effectively pinning your upper body to the hard ground. You inhale shakily through your nose, but his grip does nothing more than hold you. You can still breathe, but the pressure on your throat sends a shock of heat between your legs with the reminder of the control you just relinquished.
“Stop that.” His other arm slams onto the stone beside your head, and your eyes lock. Cal’s pupils are blown, so dark you can almost see your reflection in the dim light of the cave as he glares down at you.
He doesn’t give you time to respond before he drags his hips away from yours, inch by painstaking inch and rocks back into your body with an easy roll of his hips. He exhales gently as he bottoms back out inside of you, a low moan rumbling out of his throat when he reaches that same depth within your heat.
It’s the eye of a storm; a hurricane you hadn’t known you’d entered. He rocks back and forth again, only there’s fractionally more force and speed to the motion this time. Again, and your body shakes with the force. Another, and you have to bite your lip to stifle the scream when he slams back into your body. It’s like the tide, coming in gradually, but more and more with each passing moment. The force swells, each thrust pushing into you a little harder and making your body shake a little more with each thrust.
A shuddering groan rumbles out of him as he finds the rhythm. The hand not pressed delicately around your throat slams down on the rock next to your head. When you look up towards the cave ceiling, Cal’s flushed skin and tousled hair fills your vision.
His hair, which is usually swept out of his eyes. Cal’s hair has always been so well cared for, usually brushed and slicked back so it doesn’t dangle in his eyes. Now, it’s soaked with sweat and falling into his face as he stares down at you like you’re the only star in the sky.
---
Take what you need? Holy stars, he can barely think enough to comprehend it, but some inner part of him aches at the sentence.
As soon as he realized his heart jumped every time you smiled at something, or that his brain short circuited at the sound of your laugh, he’d sworn he would keep it under wraps. He’d promised himself he would wait until after the galaxy finishes imploding and collapsing around your heads. The first time he’d jerked off to the idea of your body, he vowed to satisfy himself with his hand until it was safe. He’d wait until after the holocron is safe and there’s nothing to worry about, because relationships are messy and complicated and--
Fuck, he doesn’t care. He doesn’t care about that promise, because how can he regret being balls deep in you while you’re whining and squirming underneath him, when you look at him with such trust even as he pins you to the floor by your throat? His eyes gravitate to the mark on your neck, red and irritated with the indent of his teeth, and he feels his cock twitch even as he continues to pound into you. He likes that.
The promise didn’t keep his eyes from wandering to your face at any opportunity. It didn’t prevent the pressure in his chest from growing over the weeks and months. It definitely didn’t keep Cere and Greez from noticing, and that was a conversation he would rather have scrubbed from his mind.
Take what you need. That one sentence is spinning his world on its metaphorical finger. Take what you need. As if he didn’t want it, but he needed to do it. In all honesty, it had really felt like he was going to die. The burning in his throat that caused the coughing fit, then the racing heart and the overheating; he thought he wasn’t going to make it unless he--
Well, unless he fucked you.
But even if he needs it, he wants it even more, had wanted it for too long. But everytime an opportunity presented itself, he pulled back. He remembers how he threw away the flowers he gathered on the mission instead of bringing them back to you on the Mantis. He remembers every time he denied spending time with you, because his emotions were too raw and close to the surface, and he couldn’t predict his control over his own tongue. Because he didn’t think he could have handled it if you didn’t want him back.
But you had offered to help. Maybe you’d wanted it too, because the whole galaxy could be shoving you in one direction and you would defy it. Nothing can make you do anything you didn’t want to, and that applies to Cal Kestis too.
---
Your orgasm swells up sharp and sudden, gripping you in its claws and shoving you into the attack of muscle spasms and searing pleasure that punches into your abdomen. Your body arches, accidentally hitting your head against the ground.
Cal’s rhythm stutters and his hips jerk forward. His hand leaves your throat as he drops to his forearms. His head drops down to press against yours gently, even as he whimpers and continues to grind forward into your soaking heat.
“Fuck.” Cal gasps, eyelids fluttering rapidly. “Fuck. ‘M gonna cum.”
There’s no time to respond before he’s drawing up and tensing against you. His hips piston in and out once, then he’s cumming and all you can do is lie there and take it. Fuck that’s hot.
You can feel him spilling into you, every warm spurt of cum and every twitch of his cock as he spends himself. Even better is the drawn out groan that trails into his upper register, ending in a tiny whimper. The tension drains out of his face and he sags down, sweaty skin pressed against yours. His arms wrap around your body and he hoists your limp body up as he rolls over. He sits against the wall of the cave, seating you on his lap, cock still firmly buried inside you.
You allow your head to sag back against his shoulder, relishing in the feeling of his body pressed so closely to yours. His hand paws weakly at the fabric of your shirt, and you raise your arms to slide it off. It’s better like this, skin to skin contact seems to calm him down. He buries his nose into your bare neck and mumbles something you can’t make out.
You nudge your head against his gently, “Hm?”
“Thank you.” His lips ghost over the delicate juncture between your neck and shoulder. “Thank you thank you thank you...” He continues to mutter the phrase into your skin, tickling your skin as he nuzzles closer to you.
You should say something. Confess, maybe, everything you’ve been hiding. “Cal, I--” You shift slightly, and something feels off. You furrow your brow and glance downwards at your joining point, “Cal are you still hard?”
He props his chin on your shoulder. “Uh--” He thrusts shallowly up into you, and you stifle a whimper. “Ye-yeah. Sorry?”
“N--” You gasp as his cock twitches. “No. Don’t be sorry. Do you need to go again?” Arousal stirs in your core again, burning a slow path through your nerves and reigniting the flames that had dulled to embers. Your breath catches in your chest and you grind your hips back into his.
“I--I think so.” His voice is strained and his breath comes in short gasps next to your ear. “Not-- not as-- as bad though.”
“That--ah!” Cal chooses that exact moment to pick a spot on your neck and latch on. He nips at the skin before soothing it with his tongue. His hands, roughened with callouses from his saber, climbing, and tinkering, scrape over your skin with just the right amount of friction. You bite your bottom lip. “That’s fine. Should I move?”
His hands find your hips and hold you firmly in place. That’s a no then. His hips rock up into yours gently, and you feel your cheeks warm at the wet sounds of your combined release. Cal grunts, “Let me.”
So you do. You lie back against his bare chest and just take what he gives you, whimpering whenever he brushes against that spot inside you that sends electricity up your spine. You’re gripping his arms so hard you’re sure he’s going to have bruises in the shape of your fingers.
---
Stars, you’re fucking perfect. Just lying here and giving yourself to him. He can feel the Force dimly, but it’s there. The pollen is leaving his system as he slowly fucks you on a cave floor in the middle of a dense forest while stormtroopers patrol outside.
You cry out with his next thrust, the head of his cock striking something inside of you that must feel good because you clench around him and--
Did you just come again?
The additional lubrication only increases the lewd squelch with every thrust, the mixture of his cum and yours only making sliding in and out of your channel easier. He can still feel the effects of the pollen at the back of his mind, and it keeps him hard and sensitive as he continues to fuck you.
He’s aware he should be at least a little worried about the implications, starting at the top with how he’s going to complete the mission and ending with what exactly fucking on a cave floor means for your relationship. Somewhere in the middle is the stormtroopers and the pollen, and the oath of the Jedi Order forbidding relationships. But he can’t grasp it.
Even if there are more pressing concerns, all he can do right now is continue pushing his hips up into your soaking core painstakingly slowly. He wants to enjoy this while he can, while he’s able to fool himself that you want him back. Unless…
---
The only solace you could find in the situation was that you could have Cal, even for these few short moments. Because as much as you may want to convince yourself, a tiny voice inside your head keeps whispering: it’s all the pollen. That’s the only reason why he wants you. And you force yourself to believe the voice, because it’s easier to block off any chance for pain and rejection.
But you know you’re in trouble the second Cal opens his mouth. The words are a harsh whisper, rasping out of his dry throat into your ear, “Beautiful. So gorgeous, giving me what I need, what I want.”
You arch against him and stifle the whimper rising in the back of your throat. His mouth is right next to your ear, so there isn’t anywhere for you to escape from the words that rumble into your brain; words you try to convince yourself are empty. You shove your hand against your mouth rather than allow any sound to escape.
He moans, “Want to do this again. Don’t want this to be just once.”
“Th--that--that’s the pollen talking.” You gasp when you feel his fingers graze over your clit, your own hand drifting back to latch into his hair.
Cal hisses when you tug with a little more strength than necessary, but he doesn’t tell you to stop. One hand supports your weight as he moves you up and down on his dick, the other rubbing little circles around your clit. His hips make up for the lost strength everytime they drive up into you at the lowest point of the rhythm, squelching with every thrust.
“Not--not the pollen. All you. All me.”
You blink, all temporarily forgotten when the words register in your hazy mind. “...What?”
“Wanted this. Wanted this for a while.” Cal finds your clit with his fingers, and you can’t prevent the way your legs jerk and your body seizes against his.
Fuck you’re going to cum. If the first orgasm was a flashfire, this one is a slowly simmering blaze. It creeps up slowly, burning a hole through your abdomen, curling around your ribs and inching down your legs. Your eyes roll back, and your head falls back against Cal’s shoulder.
“Cal. I--I thi--” You try to warn him, you really do. But words aren’t forming correctly right now, and it’s all you can do to hunker down and try to prepare yourself for this truly devastating crest that’s preparing to launch you over the edge.
If Cal gets your warning, he doesn’t show it. All he does is turn his head to the side, press a light kiss to your cheek, and groan, “I think I love you.”
Oh shit. Cal’s timing couldn’t have been more perfect if he planned it. Before you can respond, hell, before you can even begin to fucking process that last sentence, you’re coming hard. Maybe it’s the whiff of pollen you got earlier, or the fact that Cal is the one fucking you so sweetly and thoroughly, or the thrill of being mere steps away from discovery, or a combination of all of it, but this orgasm certainly feels like the most intense of your life.
Spasms ripple outward through your belly, curling you up in Cal’s lap as you ride out your high. Your legs straighten and your toes curl and you clamp down hard around Cal’s cock.
Cal shouts raggedly in your ear, pulling your body close. But even as you whimper and shake on the end of his cock, you remember that you can’t make too much sound.
As if he heard you, Cal burrows his face into your shoulder, his teeth once again finding a place in your skin to muffle his voice as he cums deep inside you once more. His body shakes as he spends himself again, the spasms slowly subsiding with every jerk of his hips into yours.
‘I did hear you.’ There’s a tinge of amusement to the nonexistent voice that echoes in your mind, and you relax back against Cal.
‘Feeling better?’ You nudge him back through the Force, revelling in the feeling of his colorful presence swirling around you once again. The pollen has worn off.
He doesn’t say anything in response, only pulls you close with his arms around you. His mind pushes at yours, and you let him in. You’ve done this a million times, usually on the tail end of nighttime panic attacks, but this time is different. This is the most loose he has ever been with his Force presence, and you allow it to fill the empty parts of your mind. Wait, he loves you?
He rushes over you in the same way the tide comes back to land, calming your fear at finally understanding the weight of his last confession. He’s relaxed, and the familiar energy has a new angle to it, a new emotion you hadn’t felt before in another’s Force signature. You grasp it gently, turning it over and admiring it in the eye of your mind. What is it?
The answer rushes to you just as Cal mutters against your skin, “Love.” The same thing you’d been feeling in the pit of your heart every time you looked at Cal, everytime he kept you safe from the nightmares in his arms and stayed with you until morning, every time you made him tea and did maintenance on his gear after a tough mission.
“I love you.”
You blink up at the ceiling of the rock cave, mouth open with the words just on the tip of your tongue. But they won’t come. The words are stuck in your throat, and try as you might, you can’t make yourself say them.
“Hey.” Cal whispers in your ear, and you shut your mouth. “You don’t have to say it back. But you know that I do, and I know a little of what’s going on up here.” His finger taps the side of your head lightly. "You don't have to figure out where to go from here. I'll navigate."
‘Thank you.’ You send the words through the Force, and he acknowledges them. Yeah, you're shit at knowing where to go when it comes to feelings. But at least with Cal, you won't have to worry about getting lost alone. You sit in peaceful silence for a few minutes, before a thought occurs to you.
“Cal.” His name is little more than a weak rasp off your tongue. You clear your throat and try again. “Cal.”
He grunts unintelligibly.
“Don’t bring that seed back to the Mantis.”
A/N: I will be the first to admit that this fic was hard, because I wanted to incorporate some previous feelings into this to make it less dubcon, and I didn't feel that all plot holes were filled. But that didn't make this any less enjoyable for me, and it was fun to explore a new facet of Cal's character.
Thanks for everyone who gave me inspiration and motivation to keep pushing this through the old brain up here. Smut isn't the easiest for me:)
Taglist: @alliterative-albatross
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jessikahathaway · 3 years ago
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Ambrosia - Prologue
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Park Jimin (Aphrodite) X Reader
Genre: GreekGod!AU, Genderbent Aphrodite!AU, Romance, Fluff, Angst, Slow Burn and Smut (Future)
Warnings: Mentions of terminal illness, Jimin in a SUIT, Namjoon being a lil nosy, profanity (if I forgot anything please let me know!)
Words: 3.1k (YA GIRL PROCRASTINATED TOO LONG AND DIDN'T GET THE FULL CHAPTER DONE SO WE'RE DOING A PROLOGUE. K? K.)
Summary: Cast out of Olympus with the task to find his one true love, Aphrodite is certain his match will come to him. But as the years drag on, what happens when the God of Love, gives up?
Days in a flower shop in the middle of a decent sized town can pass by fast or slow. There can be days with what feels like hundreds of orders coming through the tiny store, and then there are the days where the employees just wind up looking at their phones the whole time and not one soul passes through the door.
But on special days, all it takes is one person to walk through those doors and everything changes.
This is a story of one of those days.
--
Tuesdays could seriously go fuck off for all you cared. This particular Tuesday was proving to be a test on every ounce of your patience and every single time you heard that door bell ring as the gates of hell opened, your shoulders sagged a little more. Something about their flowers wasn’t right. The blue wasn’t like the sky but like the sea and that’s an issue. The flowers look wilted. Always something.
But, like you did every day you turned to the customer and gave them a huge smile, ready to help them with whatever they needed. Even if it meant losing your sanity little by little.
The day passed this way, going on and the clock didn’t seem to be moving at your desired pace. So, you sat on the chair behind the desk at the front and gazed out the window.
It was a warmer spring day.
The trees were budding and life was returning after a long winter. You loved this time of the year. Everything becoming new again, alive and welcoming. But, it also means more work for you. It’s never been a problem, but this past year has been particularly hard.
Your younger sister passed away.
She’d been fighting a long illness, one with a poor prognosis. At a young age you and Sana were placed in the foster system, living with a decent enough upbringing. The foster parents were never mean or cruel, but they weren’t your parents. Whom you barely remembered now. So when you turned eighteen you asked if you could become her legal guardian. Your foster parents had agreed, wishing you and her the best of luck...
But luck had never been on you or your sister’s side.
Her illness started to rapidly progress, causing more and more doctor’s visits and more money being pulled from your measly savings. It wasn’t enough. You were having to take out loans and everything just to keep the lights on in your apartment.
Sana, however, kept her spirits high no matter the situation. She was the positive one. The bright one that everyone gravitated towards in school. She was your light. And now your life is duller. Your sister loved to go through the streets in her wheelchair, looking at the budding leaves and flowers that were growing on the trees.
“Look Y/N!” she’d squeak. “They’re so beautiful. I want to open a flower shop, and I’m going to sell the most beautiful flowers to people.”
As her birthday present you decided to open the flower shop.
It was her last one.
Looking out at the spring blooming in front of you it was hard to be happy, knowing how much your sweet Sana would’ve loved it. Life often wasn’t fair, but you hadn’t expected it to be so. You weren’t a bad person, but bad things had happened. But you were alive, and had a life to keep living.
As much as the flower shop was Sana’s dream, you couldn’t sell it when she died. It had become your safe haven. A little place to call your own. Even if it was Sana’s dream, you had made it real. Real enough for the both of you, and now you gotta keep it going. Even if the loan to open it made your wallet want to cry, it was enough. Plenty.
Because it was yours.
A single tear fell down your cheek as you thought of your beloved sister, and her cute cheeks and beautiful eyes that never held an ounce of fear or regret. A few petals fell from the blossoming tree outside in the wind and fell to the ground in a swirl of pastel hues that made you smile.
More tears moved down your cheeks and you wiped them away in frustration. She wouldn’t want you to be upset, she’d want you to be happy and to continue with your life. Keep going and make something of yourself.
Sana used to say that you were always Y/N the big sister and never just... Y/N. And you knew it was true. You were supposed to take care of her, but now that she’s gone... T-There was no one to care for but yourself.
You’d have to be enough.
Suddenly, the bell above your door ran proudly, making your teary eyes refocus on the person entering the store. Those tears were quickly replaced with a look of wonder.
A man walked through the door, head held high and his eyes scanned the area like he was inspecting it. Wiping your already sweaty palms on your apron you approached him with a gentle smile.
“Welcome to Sana’s flowers, how can I assist you?” you asked, coming towards him. The man took in your appearance and a calm expression steeled over his face.
“Hi, are you Sana?” he asked, referring to the name.
“No, Sana was my sister,” you said, swallowing hard. The man seemed to understand.
“I apologize, I didn’t mean to impose,” he said, bowing lightly.
“You’re fine, no worries. How can I help you?” you asked, looking at his apparel.
He was dressed in a fine suit, tailored to his every inch, must’ve been expensive as hell. You could probably open a whole new section of your shop with the money he was dripping in.
You weren’t known for having an upper class clientele, not that the occasional businessman came in and asked for a bouquet of your finest flowers. Sometimes two... Shaking your head you focused on the man in front of you as best as you could. But, his features were so striking it was hard to keep your eyes from wander...
“Park Jimin,” he introduced, holding his hand out politely.
“Y/N,” you said, extending your own hand and taking his in yours. Shaking gently he gave a smile that could rival the very stars in the sky. This man was more breathtaking the longer you looked, making your palms start to sweat even more.
“A pleasure, Y/N,” he said. “I’m having an event to celebrate my family's company. It’s the 125 year of it’s business and we are looking to source from the local populace instead of corporations to provide a more intimate setting for the investors and other members of the company,” Jimin said, rambling off a lot of information for your sleep deprived brain.
“I see, so you’re looking for floral arrangements?” You asked, heading towards your book of options. Jimin followed you over, leaning towards you so close you could smell his cologne. A spicy scent that wasn’t overpowering but more... alluring? Inviting?
Shaking your head you pulled up your options of centerpieces and the like, showing him what styles you had available and Jimin paid close attention to each set. Asking questions about what flowers would look good in what vases and if they did better in foam or water.
“For events I prefer the foam personally. Less likelihood of someone knocking a vase over and water getting everywhere. But the flowers are more mobile in the water, so it’s about what you’re looking for in regards to the feel,” you said.
Jimin seemed to weigh his options for a moment. “I like the traditional styles you showed me. The simple little flowers decorating around the larger arrangements, it looks classy and provides the color I’m looking for,” he said, nodding.
Making a note you grabbed a notepad to start writing all the information down.
“So when is your event? A month, two?” You said, throwing out a few different times.
“Two weeks,” he said. You froze, swallowing hard.
“Ah, I see,” you said, biting your lip.
“Is that a problem?” He asked, looking up at your pained expression.
“It’s just, the flowers might take a minute to get here. And I arrange everything by hand, so it takes me a little longer. How many tables were you going to have and the garlands for the stairways as well?” You asked.
“Well as for tables I have 150 dinner tables, 50 cocktail tables and 8 large banquet tables. There are two main stairwells that wrap around to the main area so there will be about 400ft worth of garland necessary,” he calculated slowly.
“Okay,” you said, rubbing your temples slowly.
“How many people do you have on your payroll?” He asked, looking around and noticing the empty space.
“Just me. My friend Namjoon likes to come and help sometimes but he’s a full time nurse so,” you shrugged.
“Would you be able to do this in two weeks with just by yourself?” He asked, raising a brow.
“I can always try,” you said, giving a gentle smile.
“How much would it cost?” He asked.
“Depends on the flowers you want, you already picked the style so one second,” you said, grabbing your calculator and running the numbers really quick. “I can do expedited shipping on the flowers to get them here faster but then you run the risk of stems getting broken and not having enough. But I can order more to compensate but then that’s more money,” you said.
Finally you had a total and you frowned.
“It would be around $2,156 if we did the expedited shipping and ordered more flowers to compensate for the potential broken ones,” you said, biting your lip. That was a lot of money to spend on flowers for a simple dinner event. You knew it, but with everything he wanted and the time frame it was the best you could do... You didn’t even charge him for the probability of Namjoon helping. Because then it would jump up to the 3,000 dollar mark and you weren’t going to push your luck.
After a few moments, Jimin pulled out his checkbook and started writing the check out. Your eyes bulged when he pushed the piece of paper towards you, his pen clicking with a sense of finality.
“What kind of flowers should we get?” He said, a smile on his face. You looked down and almost flung the check right back at him.
$5,500
This man had just dropped over five thousand dollars without blinking.
“Th-This is too much,” you said, trying to push it back towards him.
“You charged me for base flowers, and it’s super short notice. Take the extra as a tip,” he smiled.
“I-I can’t accept over two thousand dollars as a tip. If I get audited I’ll be screwed,” you said.
“No you won’t, it’ll be fine. Please, take it,” he encouraged, placing the check back in front of you.
You swallowed thickly, trying to keep yourself from panicking. You did have a large loan payment coming up, and this would lessen that blow significantly...
But wasn’t it wrong?
“Alright...” you trailed off, taking the check and stamping it before putting it in your deposit bag.
“What type of flowers do you recommend using?” He asked, looking at you with a gentle gleam in his bright eyes.
“Peonies and hydrangeas are a great combo with complementary color palettes. I always love doing grass pieces as a nice natural moment but, baby's breath is a classic and more traditional if that’s what you’re looking for,” you said.
“Can we do the soft blue hydrangeas and white peonies?” He asked, looking at the sample photos you had.
“Yes, the white peonies would bring a nice fullness and the hydrangeas can add the color,” you explained.
“Perfect, let’s do that then,” he said, nodding.
“Okay! I’ll get the order to go in and get the expedited shipping and we should get them by the end of the week. They’ll go into the fridge and that should help keep them fresh,” you said.
“Here.”
You turned around to see a small card placed on the table in front of you.
“What’s this?” You asked, lifting the small thing to your eyes.
“My number,” he said, grinning. “Message me when the flowers come in.”
“O-Okay, absolutely!”
Jimin smiled then, a bright dazzle expression that had your mouth drying in longing.
“I look forward to hearing from you, Y/N,” he said.
“I look forward to it as well, Mr. Park,” you said politely. Jimin tutted and shook his head.
“No, Jimin will do just fine. Have a great day Y/N,” he waved, turning on his heel and heading out the door.
You looked at the numbers and sighed.
God you were so fucked.
“So, let me get this straight,” Namjoon said over the phone. “Hot guy in a suit comes in and orders a fuck ton of flowers you know you can’t do yourself and you agree because he dropped an extra few grand in the check? Y/N! You can’t do that, I’ll only be able to help you arrange the bouquets the day of. So you’ll have to put them all together yourself! When will you sleep? Eat? Poop!?!” He yelped.
“Firstly, my bowel movements are none of your concern,” you stated. “And second of all, I can’t refuse that kind of money! The next loan payment is going to fuck me over if I don’t have this padding. Please Joonie, tell me you can help me at least the night before,” you pleaded.
“I really can't Y/N, I’m working night rotation. So, I could maybe stop by in the morning but then the flowers have to sit longer,” he reasoned.
“Yeah I know... Can you switch?” You said, a soft voice replacing your whining.
“I wish I could, but there’s hardly any staff that night as it is. And we’re all pulling hours we don’t like. I can’t ask them to do more. Poor Taehyung has already covered me this month and I would rather throw myself in front of a car than ask again,” he said.
“I’m sorry. I know you’re busy and I’m desperate, but... I’ll figure it out,” you said, rubbing your face in exhaustion.
“What kind of asshat doesn’t come in until last minute to order a huge ass amount of floral arrangements?” Namjoon asked.
“An asshat named Park Jimin apparently,” you said, twisting the stem of a flower in front of you.
“You-You mean the Park Jimin?” Namjoon stuttered.
“I don’t know how many of them there are, Namjoon. I just know what this one looked like,” you said.
“Doesn’t he have like, neon pink hair or something?” He asked.
“Um, no? It was blonde-ish when he was in here,” you said.
“Plump lips?”
“Yeah?”
“Eyes that command the panties of women to drop?” He asked.
“Sir, my panties stayed firmly in place so I don’t know what the fuck you’re on about,” you huffed.
“For now, Y/N, for now. Anyways,” he said dismissively. “If this is the Park Jimin we’re talking about you need to be very careful.”
“What? What are you talking about,” you whispered.
“He’s like a sex God or something. He’s got game better than Jordan, okay? But he never commits to anyone,” he said, seriously.
You rolled your eyes, even though the man couldn’t see you.
“My heart isn’t in danger here, Namjoon. We’ll be fine. I can handle an attractive businessman,” you said.
“Yeah, but can your cum thirsty twat handle it?”
“Sir, I’m gonna hang up,” you warned.
“As a nurse I demand to know the last time you got laid,” he said. “It’s for you health of course.”
“That should be a HIPPA violation,” you complained.
“Yeah, not a friendship violation though. Tell me when was the last time you were left boneless between the sheets my guy,” he said.
“I don’t see how this has to do with floral arrangements,” you sighed. “But since your bitch ass needs to know it was about a year ago.”
“Well, maybe it is time to get back in the ring,” he reasoned.
“Namjoon, there’s no need to get me a suitor. You’re not my dad trying to get another cow on the farm or something,” you joked.
“Do you think Park Jimin would give me a cow if I gave him you?” He asked, sounding too serious for your liking.
“I’m really gonna hang up now,” you said, pulling your phone away from your face.
“Just, be safe Y/N! Don’t work too hard, I love you!” You heard screamed from the receiver.
“Yeah love you too Joonbug,” you said, hanging up and looking at the clock. The numbers glared back at you like they were judging you for being up this late. But you simply shrugged and went and took a much needed shower.
That man had you sweating like a sinner in church.
As you bathed you tried to think of your next plan of attack, but the water was too warm and soon you found yourself relaxing into the stream happily. Once you were done you cracked open a can of beer and sat down in your living room ready to start the night right, when a message floated across your screen.
Joonbug: IS THIS THE CULPRIT?!? Jpg.1013
You stared at the screen with an unamused face, but picked up your device anyway. Namjoon had sent you the picture and you could tell the fucker picked the first one off of google images like the lame hoe he was, but you looked regardless.
And, surprisingly, it was him.
The cherubic cheeks and wide smile, bright eyes and an alluring body. You sighed and texted him back.
Y/N: Yea, that’s him.
Joonbug: OH REAAALLLLYYYY???
Y/N: I hate you so much.
Joonbug: You can’t resist. THIS.
Y/N: I’ve resisted your rat poison for years, I think I got it.
Joonbug: EXcUSE MEEEE??? I am at least some kind of like, sexy poison???
Y/N: I’m dying either way, why do I care if it’s sexy or not?
Joonbug: :((((((
You left the conversation at that, but your mind began to wander. How were you going to finish this order and not embarrass yourself in front of a multimillionaire?
Maybe you bit off more than you can chew...
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wavesmp3 · 3 years ago
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[ksw] clouds
sunwoo x reader
wc. 5k warnings: medical inaccuracies, death, illness, hospitals, overall just a pretty heavy piece genre can only be described as an absolute mess inspired mainly by san junipero but also slightly by charlie kaufman and wong kar wai
a/n: this is supposed to be told nonlinearly but like the creation of it was very messy so i have no clue if it actually worked, so good luck trying to make this piece make sense of this :) 
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act iii. scene iii.
Sunwoo sits and watches the sun shift from pink and blue to an impossible shade of green. And it’s then he knows that without a doubt Clara has ruined the color green for him. Because instead of marveling at the color of the sky, Sunwoo is reminded of the doors in her apartment building.
“Thought I might find you here.” The voice of a stranger who Sunwoo loved once upon a time says behind him. He tries like hell not to turn around. Not to lean back towards the voice and wait for your hand on his shoulder or your shin knocking familiarly against his back. He focuses on the waves crashing below instead. The roar of the water beneath him is deafening, but only if you let it be. He does, and he almost forgets that you’re behind him.
“Where’d you go?” You ask, now sitting next to him, tugging at the long grass. 
“I’m right here.”
“And what about in there?” You bring a finger up and poke at the side of his forehead. 
He turns to you, facing you in full. He takes in your features like it’s the first time all over again. And, oh, he wishes he knew before how many firsts you already had together. This is just another. This is just the first time he’s seen you in the past six months and remembered the thousands of times he’s seen your face before. 
He studied your cheeks. The one he now recalls running the back of his palm over after you left for the Cloud. 
He memorizes, for the millionth time, your eyes. He used to swear they were darker than they are, but then he saw them in the sun. He was dying back then; then he saw your eyes and you saved him. Just like that. 
Mr. Choi was right of course. As he always must be. You and him are like an old married couple. Not like. You are. Almost were. 
“I had lunch with Mr. Choi today.” He tells you. 
You squint at him. “I know. It’s Thursday.” You pull out a piece of the grass. “What’d he make?”
“Ramen.”
“Was it good?”
“It was okay.”
“Too spicy?”
Suwnoo answers with a sigh, looking away from you and back towards the water. The deafening waves crash against the cliffside. “I know you looked at your file.” He finally says. You stop pulling at the grass. You still. “Mr. Choi told me.”
After he says it, there’s a silence that isn’t actually silent at all. The waves rage below his feet. The seagulls are there too, beneath, above, somewhere, everywhere. And then, of course, there’s you and Sunwoo, trying to be silent over the static in your heads and the machines you’re hooked up to in a universe far far away. 
“Did he tell you about my file?”
He looks at you again. “No.”
“Oh.” You look away, brows furrowed, lick your lips, and then turn back to him. “So why are you upset?”
“After he told me, I went and I…”
“You didn’t.”
“I looked at mine.”
There’s another silence, except that this time it really is quiet. Sunwoo read once whilst in a rabbit hole of medical research that true silence only happens in a vacuum, where there is no medium for sound waves to travel through. This must be that. This place, the files, Mr. Choi and Mr. Chan, Clara and her apartment building full of green doors--it’s a vacuum. And they stick people in it then call it the Cloud. They call it extra time. But it isn’t. It’s nothing and he’s stuck in the middle of it. So Sunwo stares at you, straight through the vacuum of time and space you’re both lost in, waits for you to say something, and then waits for himself to hear it. 
“You looked?” You finally say, voice folding in on itself. 
“Yes.” Sunwoo’s own voice is barely there. You must be reading his lips which you’ve always been good at anyways. 
“So you know now?” 
“I always knew, and now, I remember.”
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act i. scene iv.
There’s been an accident. 
That’s what they say when the sun falls out of the sky and the world starts spinning in the wrong direction. It’s how they show up at Sunwoo’s door painted in shades of blue and red, with authority in their arms and hands on their hips. How they prepare him for the looming moment where they rip past his skin, blood, bone to shoot a gun straight at his heart. I’m so sorry for your loss, they say leaving him with a bullet lodged somewhere between his left and right atrium. 
And those are the four words that play over and over and over in Sunwoo’s head as he gets to the hospital. Those are the words that crawl inside his open chest and turn him blue and black with infection. There’s been an accident, he remembers, staring at the extraordinary measures taken to keep your heart beating and lungs beating. This is it. Except that the accident isn’t that you’re dying, but that you’re dying. It’s always supposed to have been him. He’s supposed to be the one stuffed with tubes and hooked up to monitors, the one whose life is hanging on by a thread, and you’re supposed to be the one that saves him. It all feels like a play that’s gone horribly wrong because everyone switched parts after intermission without telling him. At what point did you steal the role of dying protagonist from him? 
We did everything we could, a stranger in a white coat says. Except that it’s not some stranger, it’s your colleague and co-worker because this is the hospital you work at and the hospital Sunwoo met you in. There was too much damage to the brain, they explain as the image of their tear-stricken face goes from your friend during intern year to the doctor who operated on you as your brain went dead. 
“We have two options, right?” Sunwoo is far too familiar with surgery and all this. He knows from his hospital days what’s supposed to happen next. But apparently, things have changed since then. 
“Actually, there’s a third option.”
Sunwoo doesn’t waste a second. He jumps out of the chair stained red from his bleeding heart and asks: “What is it?”
“We can upload them.”
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act iii. scene ii.
In fifty days of living in the cloud, Sunwoo has learned all about the people that he shares a building with. There’s Mr. Chan who lives behind a vomit green on the same floor as him and who hasn’t left his room since last January. There’s also Mr. Choi, who lives behind the emerald door and invites Suwoo over for lunch every Thursday. Clara lives upstairs, where the walls are painted in various shades of green--olive, seaweed, moss, hunter, shamrock, sage, and others that Sunwoo tries not to think too deeply about. He’s only met Clara once in the past fifty days and has no particular wish to see her again. He hadn’t expected her to be a kid. Cancer, you told him after their introduction in the lobby, poor girl was only seven. As said before, Sunwoo tries not to think about it. 
And then of course there’s you behind the forest green door who has been slowly showing him all the good places. There’s the beach where you spent the day making seashell necklaces. The  cafe which serves its tea too sweet for him, but sweet enough to be considered your favorite. Sunwoo just gets the chocolate bread. You took him downtown. To a club. The tallest building. And to midtown where the amusement park is. 
But his favorite place you’ve taken him so far is the cliffside above the beach, where the waves crash against the rocks in a way that can only be described as violent. That day you and him laid in the grass and stared at the clouds with your heads dangling just over the edge and water spraying the backs of your necks. That day you turned to him and told him you’re sorry. For what, he asked. I’m so sorry you’re sick, you said, but it’s nice to have you around here. I think in a sense, we’ve both been waiting for this. Then, you smiled and stole all of the blood from his body. So yeah, that day, that place--it’s his favorite. 
Today, you take him on a hike up a mountain. 
“Do you believe in an afterlife?” You ask him after having spent thirty minutes silently staring at the view from the best peak. 
“One after this?”
“Yeah. I guess. Although, I’m not so convinced this counts.”
“I don’t know.” Sunwoo shrugs. “Maybe.”
“Do you think we’d be able to be with our loved ones in it?”
His chest lurches. “If there is one, yes.”
“Do you think it’ll be different than this?”
Sunwoo turns to you finally. “Why are you asking about this?”
You shake your head. “Nevermind. It’s a stupid question.”
He turns back towards the view. From here, he can make out Clara’s building. He thinks about her, about Mr. Choi and Mr. Chan, who he recently found out were once married but who haven’t spoken since Mr. Chan read his file in January, and he thinks about you and about him. 
“I think,” Sunwoo says, loud enough so that you can hear after wandering a little bit away from him, “that whatever the afterlife is, if it does exist, it’ll be worth it.”
You turn to him, but don’t make any move to come near him again. “And if it doesn’t exist?”
“Then life will have been worth it.”
The corner of your lip lifts. “I like that.”
Sunwoo only nods at the sentiment, and after a long while, he builds enough courage to ask, “you’ve been here a really long time, haven’t you?”
“Time doesn't work as linearly in the cloud as it does in the real world. Sometimes it feels like I got here and then you arrived the very next day.” You turn back towards the view and exhale heavily. 
“But yes. I’ve been here for an eternity.”
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act ii. scene i.
Before he actually sees you, Sunwoo feels you. Not you, in particular, but something in the distance, a presence in the corner of the room and a pair of eyes watching him from somewhere far away. 
The scariest part is how much the feeling doesn’t actually scare him. 
--
Two days after that, he starts to see you in the flesh. He tells himself that his mind is playing tricks on him, that the person he saw in the produce aisle wasn’t actually you at all and was just a stranger with the same hair. 
He doesn’t go straight home from the store that day. Instead, he stops by the hospital and checks in on you, but even that doesn’t do anything about the fact that he sees a shadow of you behind the bed.
--
The day after that, you speak to him. Standing in the middle of his kitchen in broad daylight, you speak, you say hello, and the first thing Sunwoo thinks is that he’s dead. 
You aren’t, you reply. You’re a zombie, he reasons, here for my brain. I’m not. A ghost. No. Are you, here Sunwoo falters, fear flooding out of his body to make room for the briefest blotch of hope that’s crushed almost immediately by you saying: I’m not alive, Sunwoo. You saw me in the hospital yesterday. 
“So then,” he swallows, “what are you?”
I’m here. You look at him, stare at his face and without a sliver of doubt say, I’m here for you. 
Sunwoo knows it’s impossible. You can’t be here. You can’t. And yet, you are. 
Three years ago Sunwoo was told he had three months left to live, and he still remembers how impossibly you saved him from the brink of death. He remembers how impossible things happen all the time, and how impossibly possible it is that this is one of them. He steps towards you, touches your face, and feels the real, impossible thing against his hand. 
“You’re here.”
--
On the fifth day of your haunting, Sunwoo finally has the sense to ask why. 
Why what?
“Why are you here?”
I’m here for you.
“Stop saying that.”
But I am, you tell him. You asked, and that’s the answer. I’m a doctor, Sunwoo. I’m here for you. 
Then, finally, he hears what you’ve been saying for the past five days. You’re here for him. 
And the thing about doctors is that they’re there for you when you need them. 
“I’m sick.” 
Yes, you answer quietly, although it wasn’t a question. 
“Again.” 
I’m so sorry. 
“You’re a hallucination, aren’t you?” Sunwoo’s shocked by how sad that makes him, how disappointing it is. “I’ve been hallucinating.”
Find me in the Cloud, Sunwoo. There’s something I want to say. 
You’re gone by the time he gets to the hospital. 
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act iii. scene i.
Sunwoo stares at the hall of green doors, eyes darting from door to door in an attempt to stare down the shades until they confess which one of them is tea green.
“Clara, the landlord, likes colors.” A voice says from behind him. “Every couple of months she repaints all of the doors in different shades of the same one. Before the green, it was yellow.” 
Sunwoo turns around to face you. When your eyes find him, they go blank for the smallest of moments. You give him a look that goes right through him, turning him inside out like you’ve seen the underside of his skin. It irks him. 
“I’m Sunwoo. I’m new.”
You gulp. “You’re here.” He doesn’t know what to make of the statement. Do all people in the cloud act like this? “Why?”
Sunwoo nods, maybe you’re not so weird as much as you just have a weird way of posing questions. “I was told I’m sick.”
“I’m sorry.” You say, frowning like you actually might feel back for him. 
“Have you been here a while then?” You nod. “Can I ask how long?” You shake your head. Sunwoo doesn’t think too much about it. Instead, he returns your earlier question “Why are you here?”
“Brain dead.”
“I’m sorry.”
You ignore it and point to a door down the hall. “I’m forest green. You?”
“Tea green. But I can’t find-” 
You tap the door in front of him. “This one, genius.”
“Oh.” He laughs awkwardly. “Thanks.”
Your mouth parts as if to say something, and your face goes blank again. He feels his skin turning itself inside out because of it. “Have you read your file yet?”
He shakes his head. “I just got here.”
You inhale, softening, and mutter an ‘okay’. You continue down the hall towards your door. Sunwoo is stuck in place. “I can show you around here, if you like. Take you to all the cool places.”
Sunwoo takes you up on it.
A forest green door slams shut down the hallway. 
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act i. scene ii.
“Thank you for taking me out of the hospital.” Sunwoo says, exhaling. “I can’t remember the last time I’ve been to a park like this.” 
And it’s true, he really can’t. He’s been sick for so long now, and has been through a multitude of treatment plans and too many surgeries. When you’re sick and have 9 surgeons turn you down after asking them to save your life, you forget the joy of being outside and feeling the sun on your skin. You were the first doctor to agree to the surgery. You’re the only doctor to have ever treated Sunwoo like he wasn’t dying, like he was actually going to live.
“You don’t have to thank me. This is good for me too.” You say, head resting against the park bench and eyes closed. 
Sunwoo inhales, taking in the park with all his senses. A visceral sort of thing you learn to do as often as possible when you’ve been as close to death as frequently as he has. He feels the wood beneath his body and the grass beneath his feet. He feels the light on his skin and the wind pushing against his arms and nose. He listens to the kids screaming at the playground at the bottom of the hill and to the dogs barking within the dog park beside it. He takes all this in, relishes in it for the last time as a dying person. 
You sigh. “One more surgery.” 
“And then I’ll be done with this sickness.” 
You smile. He pretends not to see. “And then you’ll be done.” 
“Thank you for saving my life.”
“Don’t do that.”
“No. Seriously.” 
You smile again, this time at him. Sunwoo doesn’t have to pretend not to see. “I haven’t finished saving it yet.”
He leans back against the bench and closes his eyes. “But you will.” 
You tap on your coffee cup. “Honestly though, you did more work than me.” Sunwoo frowns while you take a sip. “The other nine doctors you called are good doctors, and they made the same judgement call I would have made for any other patient. No sane doctor would have agreed to treat you. But you were the reason I said yes. You had such faith that you were going to live and so much faith that I could do it that I believed you. I might be the one doing the technical saving, but you, Sunwoo, you’re the one who convinced me to do it. You saved yourself.”
He stares at you. The light hits your eyes like it’s finding a way to break through them. In truth, before Sunwoo got sick, he didn’t think he was scared of death, but he is. He’s terrified of it. Sunwoo realized it two weeks after his diagnosis and the day after he was wrongly told he only had three more months left to live. But now, for the first time since he was diagnosed, he doesn't feel so afraid of it. Despite how far he’s come and how close he is to beating this fucking illness, while staring at the light woven through your eyes, Sunwoo thinks he could live with himself if he dropped dead tonight. 
That thought alone, is almost as terrifying as death used to be. 
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act iii. scene v.
“I saw your ghost, you know.” It’s the first thing Sunwoo has said to you in over two weeks. “It wasn’t actually you though, was it?” You don’t even bother looking up from your cup of tea. Through the silence, Sunwoo orders a coffee. 
“I didn’t know that.” The coffee turns lukewarm. “It wasn’t me.” You push an uneaten half of chocolate bread towards him. “It’s in your brain this time. Symptoms can include hallucinations.”
“Think you can still save me?” You can’t. If you know that much, you know he’s out of medical miracles, and that this time, he really won’t survive it. But it’s a joke. And you laugh at it.
“Definitely not. I never really liked neurosurgery.”
And all at once, he’s painfully aware of your friend somewhere in the real world that does like it but watched anyways as your brain died before her, split wide open. 
“Anyways, how do you know all of this?” But what Sunwoo really wants to say is brains are killer. Literally. Figuratively. 
“I’ve known since we...“ you hesitate, mouth stuck halfway through a word he can’t place. “After last time, I read your chart and looked at your scans.” Sunwoo nods. He expected as much. He doesn’t ask how you got them. “I’m sorry you're sick again.” You say to him quietly. “I’m sorry you’re dying.”
“I’m sorry you’re dead.” As soon as the words have left his mouth, he regrets them. Because you aren’t. And he knows you too well to think you’d look past the technicality. 
You scoff, shake your head slightly, and with a spiteful smile say, “Can I say it?”
Sunwoo only sighs. “Let’s start over instead.” 
You nod. He pushes the chocolate bread back. 
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act iii. scene iv.
Mr. Choi was the one to recommend that Sunwoo give you and himself space. It’s been a month since you and him last spoke, since that moment hovering above the waves after he read his file and after he found out you read yours. He misses you, and has been for so long now. Mr. Choi was wrong. Sunwoo’s standing outside your forest green door to prove it. 
You open the door before he can knock. There’s no shock in your voice when you say his name, like you’ve been waiting for this day, expecting it. 
He looks behind you, at your apartment in Clara’s building that looks just like your apartment in the real world. The same one he cleaned out after you died, still filled with things he gave to your family or donated or took back to his place. He wants to crumble just looking at it again. “Can I come in?”
“It’s only been a month.”
And he knows what you mean by it. Three months is the recommended time off after reading one’s file. To reacclimate, they say, to process. But the insinuation that Sunwoo was supposed to go three months without seeing you makes him feel sick. The insinuation that after a year of being without you in the real world he was supposed to be without you here too, enrages him. Then he remembers how long you’ve been here, and how long you’ve been doing this and feels slightly murderous.
All he says is: “It’s been a lot longer than that for you.”
Your lip twitches. You lock and unlock the open forest green door five times before saying, “Are you sure?”
He nods. You let him in. 
Sunwoo used to imagine what it would be like to meet you again in the Cloud one day. He imagined tears and hugs and kisses. He imagined i love you’s and i hate you’s and i miss you. He imagined the scenario more times than can possibly be considered healthy. But he imagined something. He was waiting for the day. Waiting for this day. But this moment, sitting at your round wood table while you boil water for tea, is nothing like the million different ways he imagined seeing you again. 
And as you set down two mismatched mugs and take the seat across from him, he doesn’t even try to create one of them. “How long has it been since you read your file?”
You watch the steam rise from your tea for a long moment, then stand, grab the sugar and pour a spoonful of it into your tea. You take another spoonful and look at him expectantly. “Want some?” He nods, and you pour the sugar into his. You stir the tea then taste, then cringe, then add more sugar and then ask if he wants it. He refuses. You stir again. Sunwoo watches the whirlpool and waits the eternity it takes you to say: “I read it on my first day.”  
You put the sugar away, satisfied with the tea’s sweetness while Sunwoo marvels at how long you’ve known and how silently you’ve been carrying the knowledge of you and him since he came. And that knowledge is what makes him finally remember one of the reasons he came. “Is there something you want to tell me?” You look up at him when he asks it, exhaling like you’ve been wanting to bring it up for so long now, which Sunwoo guesses isn’t as much of a simile as he thinks it is. 
“Yes, actually. I…” you hesitate, flicking the mug as if the right words will come hopping out of the tea. Sunwoo watches for it. “I’ve just been here for a long time now, Sunwoo.”
“Two years isn’t that long.”
“Time doesn’t work the same here as it does down there.” You tell him tiredly. “It’s been decades.”
He doesn’t say anything.
“In the beginning, I didn’t mind the waiting. I knew you were on your way, but I just,” you hesitate, “I didn’t think it’d take so long for you to come back to me.” 
Sunwoo covers your hand with his. “I’m sorry.” You twist your palm into it, squeeze, then pull your hand away. Sunwoo swallows. “I came as fast as I could.”
“I know. I waited.”
“Do you regret it?” Sunwoo’s terrified of what the answer might be.
You don’t give it. “That’s not what I meant.” 
“Then?”
“I’ve been here for so long, and,” your head drops, voice breaking under the weight it carries, “it’s been so lonely.”
“But I’m here now.” Sunwoo says, leaning forward against the table. “You aren’t alone anymore.”
“I know you’re here. I know, and I thought that would fix it, but it didn’t. Seeing you in the hall that day was so bittersweet, because you were here but that also meant you were somewhere else dying. Because you were here and I still felt lonely.” You stop, chugg the remaining bits of your tea, and then wipe your cheeks. “Do you get what I’m saying?”
“No.” But it’s a lie. He does get it. He knows all about loneliness and the way it creeps inside, so slyly. The way it starts small and then grows, feeding on negligence, until it's too big for your body. He knows how it sits inside you, for all its enormity, and spills into everything. He knows how it lingers. How it has nothing to do with people or lack of them and everything to do with grief. Sunwoo knows all about loneliness. The day he read his file he felt a dam of it burst open within him. 
“I’m saying that in the real world I saved you, and now it’s your turn to save me.” You gulp. “I’m saying that I want you to unplug me.”
It takes a moment for Sunwoo to even register what you’ve said, but when he does remember the life support that’s keeping your body alive somewhere in a universe far away, he doesn’t say anything. He just stands and walks out of your apartment. 
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act i. scene iii.
“Doctor, please present.” The attending announces, stepping into Sunwoo’s room for rounds. 
“Mr. Kim,” a resident starts, flipping open his chart, “was diagnosed 14 months ago and has gone through several different treatment plans. When he came to us, the illness had spread and was deemed inoperable and untreatable by several other physicians. Our treatment plan was aggressive and grueling but ultimately, effective. Sunwoo is 20 days post op from his third and final surgery. The surgery went extremely well with no complications and his vitals were excellent. He has been a model patient all throughout recovery, and according to our latest scans, he is also now illness free…”
Sunwoo doesn’t even bother listening to the rest. 
--
“So, now that I’m no longer a patient, if I ask you out on a date, will you actually say yes?” 
“Well,” you say, signing his discharge papers, “only one way to know.”
“What is it?”
You look up at him, smiling. “Ask me again.”
He does. 
You say yes. 
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act iii. scene v. take ii. 
“I saw your ghost.” The first thing Sunwoo says after the last failed attempt.
You look up from your tea. “It wasn’t me.” 
“I know.” Sunwoo orders another coffee. “But the hallucination was how I knew I was sick again. It made me feel like you were trying to warn me, like you were up here somewhere caring from a distance. Right after I pieced it all together you told me to find you here and that there was something you wanted to say.” The coffee turns lukewarm again. Sunwoo can’t bring himself to say it. You sigh and push the same piece of chocolate bread back towards him. This time, he takes a bite from it. And with a mouthful of chocolate bread, he cries, “I just got you back, and now you want to leave all over again.”
You frown. “I didn’t want to leave the first time, and it’s different now.”
“How?”
“I want to go. Isn’t that worth something?”
“And what about what I want?”
“Oh, Sunwoo,” you say, “I’m sorry you’re sick. The hallucination was you and your head, but for what it’s worth, I have been up here caring from a distance. I still…” you don’t need to say the words. He knows. He never had to doubt it. “I never stopped.”
“I’ve been thinking about what you asked of me.” Sunwoo tells you. He made the decision last week but today, right now, with your confession still falling through the air, is the first time he’s had the stomach to swallow it. “And I’ll do it. I will. I just need some time. You’ve had so long and in comparison I’ve had nothing.”
“Okay.” You say simply.
“How long can you give me?”
You smile. “You know I’d give you an eternity if you asked for it.”
“I’m scared.” Sunwoo confesses then. “I know it’s what you want, but selfishly, I don’t want to let you again. I don’t know if I’m a big enough person to do it.”
“I do.” You say to him, leaning forward against the table and looking straight through him. “I know because I was your doctor. I have cut inside your body, seen all your organs, and during surgery two, I held your heart in my hands. I felt it beating. So I know exactly how big it is, and I know it’s big enough for this”
Sunwoo feels the heart you worked so hard to repair bursting inside of him. 
“God. Why’d you have to read your file so soon?”
You laugh. “I missed you. I couldn’t help it.”
And just like that, you’ve stolen the entire concept of fear from him. 
“I’m ready.”
“What?”
He looks at you and feels the loneliness slither away.
“Ask me again.”
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kindahoping4forever · 4 years ago
Text
I Want Your Midnights // Ashton Irwin
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Happy 2021 everyone! Thank you to everyone who feverishly (yet politely) requested a follow-up to Under The Christmas Lights; those holiday fics were really fun but kind of a lark and I didn’t expect that any of them would get that kind of reaction! I hope this continuation lives up to your expectations. 
Big, big thanks to @cal-puddies​​ for setting me back on the right path more than once while I was writing this - I honestly gave up about halfway through and she (lovingly) refused to let me give up so if you enjoy reading this, it’s because of her tbh.  
Warnings: Equal parts fluff, banter and smut, mentions of quarantine, frantic resolution of sexual tension, protected sex within a new relationship, references to consensual voyeurism, masturbation and oral sex on a male, oral sex performed on a female, discussion of and use of sex toys, single joking use of the word “Daddy”
Word Count: 5675
Hoe For The Hoe-lidays Masterlist
Masterlist // Taglist and Ko-Fi linked above
Let  me  know  what  you  think!
11:29pm, December 30
“So we really overestimated our self-control skills tonight, didn’t we?”
Ashton laughs raspily at your comment, the sound travelling from your phone speaker straight down your spine, giving you chills. You prop your head up on your pillow, gazing towards the direction of your window, towards his bedroom window, a sight you’d become quite accustomed to these past few nights.
You’ve talked to Ash everyday since your feelings for each other became obvious and ever since your Christmas encounter when your intentions for those feelings became explicit, you’ve spent your nights engaging in some sort of mutual self-pleasure either via text, phone call or window watching.
Tomorrow the quarantine you both agreed to will be over and you'll safely celebrate New Year's Eve together; earlier, the two of you decided you should forgo your nightly socially distanced rendezvous in the interest of building anticipation for your imminent in-person one. But you were already in bed when Ashton called to ask if there was anything he should bring tomorrow and one suggestive comment led to another and before you knew it, your hand was between your legs yet again.
“It’s my fault, I asked what kind of chips you wanted me to bring, I should’ve known that would get you hot and bothered,” he jokes, the sound of him pulling tissues from the box on his nightstand now a familiar tune to your ears.
“Pretty goddamn slutty of you, honestly,” you laugh giddily.
“Can’t imagine what you would’ve done had I asked if I could bring soda as well,” he cracks himself up.
You giggle, “Ohhh, listen, if you talk Dr. Pepper to me, I’ll have no choice but to break quarantine and have my way with you right now.”
“Explain how that’s supposed to deter me from the subject,” he teases. You hear his sheets rustling and know he’s settling back into bed. He exhales loudly before admitting, “I’m nervous for tomorrow.”
"Aww, why? It’s just me… just us.”
Ashton is quiet for a beat before answering. “I think part of it is it’s been a long time since I’ve had something to look forward to,” he ponders. “But also… I can’t remember the last time I wanted something… someone… this badly.”
Your heart feels like it skips a beat, like it always seems to around him, since the day you moved in over a year ago. “It’s gonna be good, Ash,” you quietly reassure him, reassure yourself. “We’re gonna be so good.”
10:45am, December 31
You wash your breakfast dishes in record time, focused on all you need to do to finish your work day and get ready for tonight; it’s only when you’re drying your hands that you mindlessly glance up and notice the sight before you.
You look up just as Ashton, midway through his daily workout, is reaching to peel off his white tee that’s mostly soaked through; you find yourself staring as his muscles flex, tighten and relax again as he pulls the material off his body and then uses the discarded shirt to wipe the sweat running down his chest and neck.
He takes a swig from his water bottle before he starts up again and you hear yourself audibly gulp as he bends and stretches, giving you the opportunity to admire his ass and thick thighs in his athletic leggings. You watch his body and lose yourself in thoughts of him hovering above you, moving over you the way he's moving over his mat on the deck.
The alarm on your phone set to remind you to clock back into work snaps you out of your lusty daze. You silence the noise and then quietly cackle to yourself as you type out a text to Ash: “Watching you stretch is really making me look forward to the stretch I’ll be feeling tonight.”
You hang by the window, waiting to see his reaction. He reads your message and a self-satisfied smirk spreads across his face; he looks towards your kitchen, hoping to catch a glimpse of you in all your surely flushed glory, but you’re already gone.  
4:07pm, December 31
Despite your mind's best efforts to distract you with wild thoughts about tonight, your work day finally ends and you head upstairs to get dressed. You stand in front of your closet, weighing your wardrobe options when your phone's text chime sounds out.
You scoop it off the bed, clicking on a message from Ashton reading, "If you need suggestions, you could wear your green dress… I’ve been thinking about taking that off of you for a while now.”
You shake your head at how instantly your heart speeds up once that image is in your mind. You bound over to the window to find him standing in front of his, waving with a cheeky grin on his face. You greet him by holding up the dress he mentioned in one hand and your middle finger in the other. “No spoilers” is your texted reply as you pull your curtains closed for the first time in weeks.
5:10pm, December 31
The doorbell rings and you’re shocked you can hear it over the sound of your heart pounding in your ears; you make yourself count to ten before you answer it. You take a deep breath and turn the knob, opening the door to reveal Ash beaming at you excitedly; one look at him and you feel any nerves that were nagging at you dissipate.
“Hey neighbor,” he greets you with a chuckle.
It takes you a beat before you realize you can reply with more than the shy wave you’re used to and you step forward to wrap your arms around his neck, pulling him into a tight hug. You breathe him in, grateful to finally decipher the scent you’ve caught occasional wafts of over the fence and have spent so long trying to pin down. It’s sweet, spicy, woodsy and fruity all at once; you can’t wait to have it all over you by the end of the night.
You pull back to study him, it’s the first time you’ve really gotten to look at him up close and he’s stunning. You never noticed his dark hair was dyed but now you see the light roots at his hairline, softening his face; some stray curls have fallen out of place and you sweep them aside, revealing the laugh lines crinkling around his eyes as he smiles at you. His eyes are deep pools of hazel you already feel yourself drowning in and his cheeks are much rounder than you realized, growing bigger the more he grins at you. His lips… well… his lips look soft and shapely and suddenly you feel like you might die if you don’t taste them this instant.
You place your hands on either side of his face, running your thumbs over his beard before closing the gap and pressing your mouth to his. It’s everything and nothing like you’d imagined your first kiss would be: soft, slow, cautious yet undeniably heated. You feel his tongue slide over your bottom lip and you allow him to deepen the kiss; he murmurs as your tongue connects with his for the first time and he pulls away to check in with you.
You offer him a sweet smile that quickly turns into something more frisky. “I think we can do better than that, we’ve spent the past week listening to each other cum,” you tease.
Ashton smirks at you, stepping inside; in one swift motion, he kicks the door shut behind him and scoops you in his arms, backing you up against it, lips crashing into yours. Suddenly it’s like your mouths can’t move fast enough, feverishly trying to make up for lost time. You kiss him like you’re trying to commit his taste to memory and maybe you are.
He breaks away to mouth over your neck, immediately licking and kissing over the parts of your skin his beard scratched moments before; you run your hands through his curls, marveling at the fact that’s something you’re allowed to do now. His mouth ends up sucking over a spot behind your ear that’s such a specific turn on for you, your mind races to remember if you told him that during one of your phone sessions or if he just knew. He bites down a little and you cry out, pushing him back, ready for more.
You slot your lips with his again, already missing his taste on your tongue. You walk him backwards as you kiss, trying desperately to lead him to the nearest surface, any surface where you can get him between your legs.
You make it to your desk at the other end of the living room and you thank your past self for taking the time to put away your work from earlier, although it would’ve been fun to see Ash do the cliché “impassioned arm sweep” to clear it. You hop up on the edge and spread your legs, pulling him close, needing as much of him on you as possible.
Ash groans when your hips move against his and you grin at the feeling of his cock straining against his pants, brushing over your clothed heat. “Hard for me already, eh?” You tease, biting at his lower lip.
He gives a lighthearted scoff. “Please, I’ve been hard for you since I saw you in this dress through the window before I walked over here,” he rasps, gliding his hands up and down your body in the form-fitting outfit to illustrate his point. “You look incredible, by the way.”
You rut against him again and you both moan. “God, I can’t wait any longer, Ash, I need you,” you rush out, breathless.
“Yeah?” He checks, looking over your face, noting the desperation in your eyes. “I have a - ”
“Yeah, please, Ash, fuck,” you pant, out of your mind with desire.
He kisses you hurriedly as his hands skillfully slide under your dress and tug your panties down your legs, setting them aside; he reaches to retrieve a condom out of his coat pocket. It briefly crosses your mind how absurd it is that he’s still wearing his coat and you’re about to move to help him out of it but then he’s pulling his cock out and you can’t focus on anything other than getting your hands on him.
You give him a feather light squeeze before starting an agonizingly slow rhythm on his shaft and reaching down to cup his balls like you’ve seen him do; he’s as thick and heavy in your hand as you imagined and you feel yourself becoming wetter with every stroke. He brushes your hands aside so he can roll the condom on and you capture his lips in a lusty kiss because you’re not sure what else to do.
One of Ashton’s hands cradles your head as you kiss him, the other trails between your thighs and starts teasing your clit; he murmurs into your mouth when he feels how wet you are, how after just a few touches, you’re already rocking into his hand. He breaks the kiss to push your skirt up over your waist so you can both watch as he lines himself up at your entrance. He glances at you and with your eager nod of approval, he starts pushing in.
You inhale sharply at the sensation and he pauses, eyes darting up to yours. “No, it’s good, more,” you insist, hooking your legs around his waist. He continues to slide in and you feel your eyes roll back, your teeth sinking into your bottom lip. It's obviously been a while since you've had anyone inside you but the fact that it's Ash and the size of him… what a way to get back in the game.
He groans as he starts moving in you, slowly at first, eyes trained on your face to make sure you’re comfortable. You pull him into a kiss that’s all tongue, tangling your hands in his hair, needing to feel as much of him as you can in this moment. You've started moving along with him, your body asking for more, so he carefully lays you back on the desk, gripping onto your thighs so he can ramp up his pace.
The sound of his hips hitting yours, your clothes rustling together and your intertwined grunts and moans of encouragement for each other fill the living room. He lets go of one of your legs so he can move his hand back down to your clit and as he rubs circles on it, you curse under your breath, stunned you already feel as undone as you do.
"I'm already close," you whisper, gripping his arm as he leans in, bracing himself on his hands on either side of you.
"First of many tonight," he smirks, trying to maintain his sexy cool demeanor but failing as you both burst into giggles at his remark. He lightly encourages you, "Tell me what you need."
You squeeze your clothed breasts and use your legs to bring him even closer to you. "Hard. Just. Hard," you pant.
Ash growls, grabbing your legs again, pushing them up towards your chest, fingers digging into your skin as he thrusts with force. You cry out at his renewed vigor, at the change in angle making him somehow feel even thicker and longer inside you. You bring your hand to your clit and it only takes a few seconds of pressure for your breath to catch and your body to start shaking.
"Ash… fuckfuckfuckfuck oh my god," you breathe, pawing at the collar of his coat, your back arching up off the desk as your orgasm crests.
You're not sure if he was holding off waiting for you to finish or if the intensity of your body climaxing around him does him in but Ashton follows you over the edge less than a minute later. He gasps your name as he cums like you've heard him do many times over the phone but hearing him say it as he hovers above you, knowing your pussy is the reason for his pleasure is a different experience entirely.
He collapses on you briefly and you revel in the tactile experience: his lips pressing gently against your neck as he comes down, the texture of his wool coat under your fingertips as you rub his back, the unexpectedly satisfying scratch of his beard on your skin.
Ashton's lips travel back up to yours in an unhurried, relaxed kiss before he pushes himself back over you, joking, "We've really got to work on that impulse control thing, don't we?"
7:52pm, December 31
The two of you enjoyed a nice dinner comprised of delicious food and compatible conversation; you’ve talked a lot over the past few weeks but being able to finally be so close, being able to touch his arm when he says something sweet, feel his laughter vibrate the wood of your table - there’s an air of normalcy and domesticity that wasn’t there before. It’s nice, almost like there aren’t strange global circumstances that led to this evening, like you haven’t been basically dating from a distance.
You stand up to clear the table and when you reach for his plate, he grabs your hand and pulls you into his lap, hugging you tight and thanking you for inviting him over. He helps you carry the dishes to the kitchen because of course he does and when he stands at the sink to rinse them, you wrap your arms around his waist and press your face into his back, because that’s something you've always wanted to do.
You move to the living room, coffee mugs in hand but they’re soon forgotten with the return of Ash’s lips to your neck and your hands in his hair. You’re not in the hurry that you were earlier so everything feels much more relaxed; you’re able to appreciate the little things more, like the way he hums into your kiss when you brush his hair behind his ears, the quick pecks he sneaks in as he’s pulling out of a long liplock with you.
He finally undresses you, laying you gently on the couch in your underwear. “For someone who said they’d been waiting to get me out of that dress, sure took you a while,” you tease, gasping as his hands massage your breasts through the lace you’re wearing and his mouth peppers kisses over your stomach.
“Looked too good, wanted to enjoy it a little longer,” he smoothly replies, hooking his thumbs in your panties, glancing up at you to make sure it’s okay for him to continue. You nod, lifting your hips to aid the process. He kisses his way back up your legs, beard dragging across your skin, murmuring, “Something else I’ve waited too long to do…” before pressing a series of wet kisses directly over your clit.
You squirm against his face, eager for him to get into it but Ashton seems determined to take his time, slowly teasing up and down your lips, moving over to nip at your thighs and then returning to your pussy, tongue lavishing attention everywhere except where you want him most.
You’re just about to speak up when his fingers spread your lips apart and his tongue starts fluttering at your clit, causing you to suck in a breath instead. “God, Ash, yes, like that,” you encourage, fighting to keep your eyes open so you can watch him work. It feels so much better, looks so much more erotic than you ever could’ve imagined.
His mouth remains attached as he slips a finger inside you; the way your hips start grinding against him tells him when you’re ready for another and you moan as his tongue and fingers find an alternating rhythm to please you.
You paw at your tits, pinching your nipples through your bra as he works you. He pulls off to catch his breath, pushing himself up near your face to check in. “This working for you?” He asks, panting.
You affectionately swipe over what you thought was sweat on his beard, groaning at the realization it’s actually moisture courtesy of you. “Are you fucking kidding me, dude?” You laugh. “The other night I came thinking about you doing this and it’s already better than both the fantasy and the toy I used.”
He grins with pride. “Good,” he winks at you before diving back in.
Ashton eats your pussy with confidence, attentively listening to your sounds to determine what you like best. It’s when he sets one of your legs over his shoulder, angling your hips up slightly, that you start sounding really desperate and he smirks to himself. “Aww, ready to cum already? I was just getting started,” he taunts playfully.
You let out a guttural moan at his remark, gripping his hair a little bit rougher, holding him to your body a little bit tighter. He grabs on to your hips as they try to speed up and you murmur incoherent praise as you cum on his tongue.
He continues to lick at you, cleaning you until you push him away, clamping your legs shut. He massages over your thighs tenderly before moving up to kiss you. With a twinkle in his eye, he asks, “So what other fantasies of yours can we best while I'm here?”
9:24pm, December 31
After an enthusiastic but quicker than either of you would’ve preferred blowjob on the couch, you and Ash end up back in the kitchen, ready for a snack. You giggle to yourself as you stand in just his shirt, digging through your kitchen junk drawer, searching for a rubber band to help grip the jar of nacho sauce neither of you seem to be able to open.
“It’s not funny, how humiliating that I’m showing such weakness on our first date,” he jokes through gritted teeth, trying his hardest to turn the lid.
You grin, enjoying the show of Ashton clad only in his boxers, pouting as he loses the battle against a jar of cheese sauce. “Yes, you’ve fed me, done my dishes and made me cum twice since you’ve been here but I clearly still need you to prove your worth as a mate to me,” you smirk, passing him the rubber band you discovered. “Although I have to say, if you want to keep trying to open that yourself, I don’t hate watching those tattoos dance while you struggle.”
He laughs sarcastically as he fits the band over the lid and effortlessly pops it open seconds later. “Easy, I don’t know why you were so worried,” he giggles loudly before he even finishes his sentence.
He begins pouring the cheese over the chips you set out and you slide yourself under his free arm, fitting easily into his side. “New Year’s resolution, you clearly need to work on your upper body strength,” you tease, playfully biting at his shapely bicep.
He snorts, smiling as he passes you the plate of food to put in the microwave. He leans against the counter, observing you fondly while he wonders out loud, “Are you a New Year’s resolutions person?”
You move to get the other toppings out of the fridge; you stop and think before passing him the goods. “I mean, I’ll make them but I never really follow through. It’s like after the first week or so it just kind of slips my mind... maybe I’m making the wrong resolutions, I guess.” You shrug, setting the heated plate on the counter. “You?”
Ash shakes his head, hopping up on the counter so he can easily look at you and dress the nachos at the same time. “I never really understood why the calendar resetting is supposed to be this all-powerful impetus for change. If you want to do something, you should just do it no matter what the date is,” he says passionately, with furrowed brow.
You nod, pouring two glasses of soda. “It’s important to make goals but the rigidity of a resolution kind of just chains you to one thing when the whole point of a new year is that you don’t know what it will bring," you point out. "I think that's what's slipped me up before. Instead of saying 'I'll work out five days a week' I should be saying 'I want to live healthier.' It shouldn't be about the thing, it should be about the change you want to see."
You notice he's gone quiet and you look up at him inquisitively. You find him gazing at you, enchanted. "I agree," he reassures you. "I was just enjoying hearing you talk about it."
You feel your cheeks get warm and you pause to take a sip to collect yourself. "What I do like about New Year’s is the opportunity to reflect on the year you’ve had and let that inform what your next year will be like," you share. "So. What's one thing you didn't do this year that you wish you had? And not something because of quarantine, that's a copout."
Ashton doesn't hesitate to say, "I wish I had gotten to know you sooner."
10:53pm, December 31
You chuckle at Ash's wide-eyed interest, “No, I haven’t used that one to get off with you yet.” You take the thick blue dildo from his hands and smack it on the headboard of your bed, yanking on it to demonstrate the suction cup. “It’s more of a shower toy… or sometimes I’ll stick it to one of my chairs and ride it.”
His cock twitches with interest and he absentmindedly gives it a subtle squeeze. “Well we’re gonna put a pin in that, I guess,” he mutters, peering back into the drawer. “Also I like that you said ‘yet.’”
You smile widely at him, enjoying his enthusiasm. You’d finally made it to bed and were getting ready to ride him but when you opened your bedside table to grab a condom, your toy collection caught his attention and curiosity took over; you’ve spent the last five minutes watching him eye your toys, eagerly asking which ones you’ve used during your phone conversations with him.
He jumps as a pink contraption he doesn’t recognize starts to rumble out of his grasp with the push of a button. You giggle and reach over, unfolding it, placing the top portion of it over the back of his hand. “I used this one last night,” you admit, clicking the second button, watching his jaw drop as he feels the toy start lightly sucking at his skin.
“You’ve definitely had a much more fun quarantine than me,” he laughs, shaking his head in disbelief as he turns up the settings of the vibe. “What do you even need me here for?”
“You’re a lot nicer to talk to,” you say sweetly, leaning in to give him a playful kiss.
“I also would’ve accepted ‘your cock is much bigger, Daddy,’” Ash deadpans. He waits a beat before bursting into loud laughter, clarifying, “I’m totally kidding.”
“Well we’re gonna put a pin in that, I guess,” you tease, reaching down to lightly give him a few strokes. “Although I don’t know if I can say that first part, you haven’t seen my other drawer… I’m totally kidding.”
He scoffs, kissing you hard, placing his hands on either side of your ass and moving you closer to him. ”What’d you do with that condom?”
You pat around the bed for a few seconds, triumphantly holding up the stray package you found lost in the sheets. You roll the condom on him while he continues rifling through your belongings. “This is cute,” he declares, rolling a purple bullet vibe across his fingers. “And tiny. We could probably use this right now, huh?”
You raise your eyebrows, surprised but impressed at his openness. “Yeah, if you want, that’d actually be great,” you agree.
He beams at you, tossing you the vibrator while he settles back against the pillows; you set it aside and sling your leg over him, leaning in to kiss him thoroughly. You lean your forehead against his as you line yourself up over his cock and start rolling your hips back and forth, teasing the both of you by running your pussy over him; you watch him bite his lip, not sure whether to cry out from pleasure or object in frustration. Finally, you reach to guide him inside you. You take him a little easier than last time but the stretch is still deliciously intense and Ash can see it on your face. He plays with your tits while you adjust, watching you closely to see what you like.
You eventually start moving, lightly bracing yourself on his chest as you get going; you set a moderate speed, eager to let him fill you but cautious of trying to pace yourself, trying to pay attention to what he seems to respond to. You switch from rocking to a bouncing motion after a couple minutes and his hands move to squeeze your hips, helping you along; you notice his eyes haven’t left your breasts since you started moving like this and you whimper, running your hands down your front, stopping to pinch and play as needed.
Ashton's hands soon replace yours again and you arch your back, allowing him easier access. He gives a low groan, you’re giving him such a show, he’s not sure where to look. You’re leaned back and bracing yourself on his thighs, hard nipples jutting out, begging for attention; you expertly work your bodies together and he finds himself hypnotized watching his cock disappear inside you over and over again.
You love how he’s staring at you; it’s making you feel wanted and bold and you decide to tease him a little. “Working so hard to take all this cock, does it look as good as it feels?” You murmur, lifting yourself off almost entirely and then sliding back down on him with ease. “You like watching me fuck you?”
A growl escapes his lips and his hands roam your body wildly. “Doing so good… look so fucking good riding me,” he says, voice rasping with desire. “Better than I ever imagined.”
He feels the overwhelming need to make you moan for him and he sneaks his hand between your folds; you jolt at the contact, letting out a yelp and he smiles at his victory. He reaches over and grabs the vibe, tapping your leg to ask if you’re ready. You answer with a breathy “uh-huh” as you continue riding him.
He clicks the button, setting it to the lowest speed and presses it to your clit to gauge your reaction; you shift your rhythm, slowing to allow yourself to feel the new stimulation. You lick your lips, mumbling, “Oh, that’s nice,” as you grasp his hand to move the toy over just a bit until you’re moaning outright.
Ash holds the vibe on you for a bit longer until you sit up to change position. After a short spell of trial and error, he slips the bullet between your bodies and you help him once again fit it against you until it’s giving you the kind of stimulation you need. You roll your hips a few times, testing the setup and within seconds you’re whining, his cock hitting inside you in just the right place and the vibrations making you squirm above him.
He runs his hands up and down your thighs, watching you work yourself on him, using his body and your vibrator to build your climax; he gently rocks up into you, not wanting to disrupt you but between your movements and the stray buzzing of your bullet, he’s starting to become overwhelmed himself.
“Ash! Fuck… good… fuck,” you mutter, falling forward, place your arms on either side of his head to prop yourself up as you keep fucking him. “Close. God, I’m so close. Please.”
He recognizes that tone of desperation in your voice and knows just what to say to help you over the edge. “Fuckin’ me so good… ‘bout to make me cum for you… need to feel you cum around me first,” he wraps his arms around your back, panting in your ear. “Come on, baby, you deserve it.”
Your breathing speeds up and you whine his name as you start to pulse around him, losing your rhythm, clawing at his shoulders. He holds you as you cum, riding it out until you can’t take it anymore and you reach between you, throwing the vibrator across the bed, not even bothering to shut it off.
Ashton chuckles softly at your frenzied action and notices what looks like a wince as you rock yourself lightly on him. “Hey, I can finish another way if this is too much for you,” he offers.
You shake your head vigorously. “No, it still feels good,” you tell him insistently. “I’m just tired. Maybe you could…”
He gathers your meaning and pulls you down into a sloppy kiss before you move your mouth to his neck, slowly sucking to leave a mark, humming as his beard scrapes your skin; he grips your ass tightly with both hands and starts fucking up into you. He begins cautiously, wanting to make sure you’re still feeling good and as the noises pouring from your lips reassure him that you are, he increases his speed, thrusting up with force.
Your moans blend together in perfect harmony until yours trail off as you lose your breath; before you know what’s happening, you feel yourself cumming again and hard. You bury your face in Ash’s neck, hands tugging roughly at his hair. Feeling you squeeze around him again and with such intensity is enough to set him off and with a few loud grunts, he’s filling the condom.
He sighs deeply, rubbing your back as the two of you come down; your breathing falls into a synchronized rhythm and you bask in how nice it feels just to lay with him for a minute.
"Well that was something," he comments, pecking the top of your head as he helps you off of him, laying you on your pillow.
You quickly pull him back in, planting a quick kiss on his lips before he gets out of bed. "No, you are," you coo.
12:39am, January 1
"Ash… Ash… we missed it," you laugh softly, pressing kissing along his collarbones until his eyes flutter open.
"Huh?"
"We fell asleep and missed midnight," you explain with an amused smile. "Happy New Year."
He lifts his head up, looking around the room in confusion. After you’d both cleaned up, you climbed back in bed, intending to relax and chat until it was time to watch the midnight countdown on TV. Evidently, once the cuddles started, exhaustion from the night's activities overtook you both and you awoke to the sound of fireworks going off in the neighborhood.
"Oh," he frowns, rolling on his side to face you. "Well. Happy New Year." He leans in and gives you a soft kiss that easily could turn into more but you pull back, wanting to say something.
You run your hand up and down his side and say, "I'm glad we did this." He raises an eyebrow, smirking at you and you playfully pinch his arm. "You know what I mean. I'm glad you came over. I'm glad you're here."
Ashton's face softens and he scoots closer to you, placing his head next to you on your pillow. "Me too," he responds sincerely. "Sorry we missed midnight though, wanted to kiss you."
“Well lucky for us, we’ll get another midnight in about 23 hours,” you grin, reaching over to scratch his beard.
He slips his hand around your waist, pulling you to his lips. He murmurs against your mouth, “Do over at my place? It’s a date.”
————-
Taglist issues again so my apologies if you get notif’d more than once (or not at all)
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seasonsofeverlark · 4 years ago
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Apple Cinnamon Buns
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Author: @hutchhitched​
Prompt: visual prompt [submitted by @mandelion82​]
Rating: T
Summary: Katniss and Prim enjoy a late fall day at a Christmas market when Katniss discovers a booth that sells the most delicious treats and run by a delectable man with deep blue eyes and wavy blonde hair.
Author’s Note: Visual prompt under the cut.
_________
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Katniss shivered and tugged her fleece jacket tighter around her shoulders. She was used to being up this early but not surrounded by people at this hour. The sun was barely over the horizon, but Panem’s Harvest Festival was already in full swing. Prim, her little sister, bopped along beside her, a grin on her face, as the Everdeen sisters prepared to take the world by storm.
Or attempt to get ahead on Christmas shopping, at least. It wasn’t that serious.
“Who do you have to shop for?” Prim asked, yawning as she spoke. She wasn’t a morning person, and the fact that she’d pestered Katniss for weeks to attend as well as gotten up early when she didn’t have to was evidence enough the Harvest Festival was important to her.
“Not too many,” Katniss answered, rolling her Christmas list like a movie trailer in her head. “Gale, Mom, Uncle Haymtich, you. The usual.”
“Gale, huh? Is that because…”
“We’re just friends, Prim. I’ve told you that a million times,” Katniss insisted. “I’m not interested in anything else. Neither is he. I’m like his little sister. He doesn’t look at me that way.”
“Maybe you’re not interested in anything else, but I’m about a thousand percent sure that he wants more than friendship from you.”
“Whatever.”
Katniss didn’t mean to be dismissive, but what Prim said just wasn’t true. Gale and she had been best friends for years, and there’d been nothing between them other than a deep friendship the entire time.
“Agree to disagree,” Prim chirped, thoroughly unconcerned. “I have to get something for Mom and Haymitch, too. Let’s work on those, and then we can take off on our own to finish shopping. Sound good?”
“Sure.”
They ambled together, strolling through the stalls, checking out crafts and decorations and all sorts of unusual things Katniss would never have thought would make good gifts until she saw them. They decided on an antique brandy snifter for their uncle and a basket of pampering products for their mother before separating to shop for each other. Katniss had just found and purchased a really cool pocketknife for Gale and the softest pair of cashmere gloves for Prim when she turned the corner and spied a refreshment stand. Her stomach rumbled at the sight.
“Oh, I need some of that,” Katniss murmured, her eyes wide.
She approached slowly, reading signs and sniffing the different aromas that wafted from the stand. Drawn by the promise of something delicious, she drifted close before stopping and staring. She could almost swear she was under a magical spell. Another customer jostled her as she stood, and she shook herself. Just then, she heard a deep voice, sweet and spicy like pumpkin pie.
“Can I help you?”
Katniss locked eyes with the man behind the counter, her eyes captured by his deep blue gaze. Kindness danced there and life and contentment. She wasn’t sure what he was selling, but she wanted all of it.
“I’m— I’m not sure,” she answered, moving a little closer and returning his wide smile. White teeth glimmered behind full, pink, kissable lips. Ashy blonde hair flopped in waves over his forehead, and he tossed his head to get it out of his eyes. Sapphire eyes deep as the mines from which they came sparkled. She wanted to tumble into them and fall forever.
“Hungry? Thirsty?” he asked.
“Yes,” came her immediate response before she blushed bright red. His smirk indicated he understood she’d been talking about another kind of hunger.
“If you want a little something of both, I can make suggestions.”
She nodded, eager for him to keep speaking, craving the sound of the rumbled baritone that filled her ears when he addressed her. Her eyes roved over broad shoulders under red and baby blue flannel sleeves that were rolled up to reveal strong forearms ending in masculine hands with long, tapered fingers. Artist’s hands, she thought. They had to be. When they gestured, she remembered he was talking and snapped to attention.
“Do you like sweet or savory?”
Katniss gaped at him, unable to speak. There was something about the way he’d said the word sweet that made her want to climb over the counter and jump him. Since that was completely inappropriate, she forced herself to answer.
“It depends. I like a little of both.”
His pupils contracted, and he cleared his throat. “Well, we’re known for our apple cinnamon buns, which you can see on the sign down in front. I’d suggest trying one with a scoop of ice cream, but we also have cheese buns if you’d rather try something savory.”
She hesitated, tempted by the idea of cheese buns because they sounded overly delicious, but if they were known for something else, who was she to turn it down?
“I’ll take the apple cinnamon bun, please.”
“Ice cream?”
“I guess?”
He studied her. “Yes, I think so. You’ll enjoy it more that way, I think. Very creamy. Evens out the texture and mixes well with the tartness of the apples. Or we have apple crisp, if that’s more to your liking.”
“No, I like buns,” she blurted and felt her face grow even hotter.
“Funny,” he said with a smile, “so do I. Now, for the drink. That’s harder. We have so many options, and you look like you’d appreciate several of them. My first instinct is apple cider, but that’s a lot of apple going on at once. What about hot chocolate? I think that could be more your thing.”
“I love hot chocolate,” she admitted with a grin. “It’s my favorite.”
“That doesn’t surprise me somehow. You have that look.”
“What look is that?” she asked and was mildly surprised it sounded a little bit like flirting. “Hot? Or Chocolate?”
Blushing furiously, Peeta stammered an answer. “N-no! Just…you… I meant… Yes, hot— That’s not what I meant. More like sweet. With some substance. God, kill me now.”
“Please let me have my bun and sweetness before you’re murdered.”
She ducked her head, embarrassed at her brazenness. What was up with her? This wasn’t her modus operandi with men. Usually, she kept as far from them as possible unless it was Gale. But there was something about this guy. He was gentle and funny and interesting, and she wanted to keep talking to him forever.
Unfortunately, the woman behind her coughed, indicating her impatience, and he hurried to get her food. His co-worker finished with his customer and motioned to the person behind Katniss in line who flashed a glare as she moved up to the register. Katniss didn’t bother to respond, she remained focused on the man warming up the apple cinnamon bun, topping it with a dollop of ice cream, and pouring a cup of hot chocolate. Before he turned back to the register, he counted out a few marshmallows and then added two more to her drink.
“Here you go,” he said. “That’ll be $7.50.”
Katniss fished in her wallet, produced her debit card, and tried to hand it to him. “What’s wrong?”
“I’m so sorry, but we only take cash.”
Her face drained. She didn’t have any on her. She rarely carried it, and she hadn’t even thought about pulling out any to bring with her today.
“I-I don’t have any. I’m so sorry.”
The other customer left with her food, and his co-worker, likely a relative since they were so similar in appearance, slipped out the back of the booth leaving them alone.
“Don’t worry about it,” he urged softly. “It’s my treat.”
“You can’t!” she protested. “I’ll find my sister and see if she has cash. I’m… This is so humiliating.”
“Hey,” he said, his tone gentle, “it’s my treat. I know you’re going to love this, and word of mouth advertising is worth more than the cost of a bun and drink. Take it. Please.”
“I couldn’t. Seriously.”
“Please. I insist.” She hesitated for several moments, until he confessed, “Please, because if you wait much longer, my brother’s going to be back, and he’ll see what I’m doing. He can be, uh, a bit of a jerk, so you’d really be doing me a favor.”
She inhaled and held it for a beat before accepting his offering. “Thank you, uh…?”
“Peeta,” he said with a smile. “Peeta Mellark. This is my family’s booth.”
“Katniss Everdeen. Merely a customer at Panem’s Harvest Festival.”
“Well, I’m glad you chose to patron us. It’s been a highlight of the weekend, so far.”
Peeta’s brother returned, and he straightened, standing upright instead of leaning toward her over the counter. “Come by again before you leave,” he suggested. “I’d love to meet your sister.”
Katniss backed away with a nod of thanks. He obviously didn’t feel comfortable continuing the conversation with his brother next to him, so she decided to take the win and go. Glancing at the time, she realized she should be thinking about meeting up with Prim soon. First, though, she was going to eat her apple cinnamon bun and drink her hot chocolate.
The first spoonful melted on her tongue, and she released an indecent moan that would have horrified her if she hadn’t been in the throes of an orgasm in her mouth. There wasn’t a word to describe the explosion on her taste buds, but it was something to the effect of every superlative she could imagine. The hot chocolate was even better. She briefly considered selling herself on the street to get another cup.
“What are you doing?” Prim asked when they met up again. Katniss sat in a stupor, high on sugar and calculating how much more she could eat without quadrupling her daily caloric intake.
“How much cash do you have on you?” she demanded, eyes rolling.
Confused, Prim stared at her. “Why?
“There’s this booth. Best thing ever. Have to go back. They only take cash.” The words tumbled out in a half-coherent babble, but she didn’t care. She needed more of what Peeta had given her.
“Okay,” Prim agreed, although she flashed Katniss a look that indicated she thought her sister was losing it.
Katniss bounced to her feet and grabbed her purchases. Dragging Prim along by the hand, she wound through the stalls until she found Peeta’s booth again. He was still there, helping customers with a friendly smile.
“Oh,” Prim breathed. “I get it now. He’s gorgeous.”
“His buns are better.”
“Well, I can’t see them from here, but I’ll take your word for it.”
Katniss smacked her on the arm. Indignant, she snapped, “His apple cinnamon buns! Get your head out of the gutter.”
“Hard to keep the thoughts pure when a guy looks like that.”
“You know what, Prim? You’re absolutely right. He’s stunning. Let’s go get some of that.”
Katniss had every intention of laying her hands on more of Peeta’s buns. With any luck, she’d get his phone number, too.
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enamoured-x · 4 years ago
Note
If it’s okay with u I would like to request #57 and #90 from the Smut list, if I can, I was wondering if it can be around like the reader is at college and Rio stops by to bring her lunch??
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Damn, I wish I had Rio to get me through my finals week. At least it’s over! Anyways, this was fun to write! (gif not mine)
Warnings: NSFW
Finals week. Those two cursed words that you dreaded at the end of every semester. Just like every other college student, you were running on coffee and just a few hours of sleep, most of your time spent cramming in as much information as you could retain. You were exhausted, jittery, nervous, and so damn stressed. 
You were currently occupying a corner in the upper floor of the library, away from everyone and anything that could potentially distract you. You had been at it for three hours now, your eyes were burning from constantly going over your textbook and highlighting key things to remember, which was basically every damn sentence. You had two more finals this week and then you’d be home free, ready for winter break. Well, free until next semester at least. Fuck, you were going to cry, again. 
You leaned your head against your fist, flipping through your notes. 
“You know it wouldn’t kill you to take a break.” You snapped out of your thoughts when you heard the voice. You turned your head to see Rio leaning against one of the book shelves, a brown paper bag in his hand. 
“Rio? What are you doing here? How did you find me?” You set your highlighter down and faced him. You had told him you would be at the library again today but never specified where.
He shrugged and placed the bag on the table in front of you. 
“You mentioned you come up here because it’s quieter than the main floor.” Perhaps you did. You couldn’t remember much of anything besides your notes this past week. 
“So I brought you dinner.” He said, further explaining why he was here when you couldn’t help but glance back at your notes, reading what was written there. You were just trying to read the last couple of sentences when Rio closed both your notebook and your textbook. 
“Hey! Rio!” You grumbled and went to try and open them again but he pushed them to the other side of the table. 
“You’ve been at it for hours and I know for a fact that’s your third one today.” He nodded to the now empty venti coffee cup. It was true, it was your third. 
“I need to study.” You explained. He shook his head and plopped down into the seat next to you. Taking out the food from the paper bag. Pad thai, from your favorite place. 
“You need to eat, mamas. This ain’t healthy. I know you’re studying and I love that you’re so driven but you won’t be able to pass those tests or even remember those notes if you don’t keep up your energy.” You refrained from saying the coffee was giving you energy but you knew he meant actual substance. And the coffee was draining you now. You knew it was bad, not eating all day and running on caffeine, but half the time you didn’t even realize you were doing it. You sighed and grabbed Rio’s hand. He always knew what was good for you. He was always taking care of you. 
“I know, you’re right. I just get so distracted and then I forget to eat.” He brought your hand up to his lips and placed a kiss to your knuckles. 
“Which is why I’m here to remind you.” He pulled away to start taking things out of the bag. Handing you small containers. You didn’t realize how hungry you were until you took in the spicy sweet smell of the food and your stomach growled. You quickly started to eat. You sat there with Rio, eating dinner while talking about his day, his way of making sure your brain took a little break from your work. 
Once you were finished, Rio collected all the scraps and threw them in a nearby trash can. 
“Thank you, babe. I needed that.” You told him and you stood up. You wrapped your arms around his shoulders as he leaned down to place a kiss to your lips. You hummed into it as he easily took control and slid his tongue in your mouth. You pulled away when you felt the familiar throb in your core. Rio barely had to do anything to get you started.
“Okay, okay. Stop.” You pushed him away, groaning. But there was still a smile on your lips and he laughed as he kept going in for more even as you playfully kept dodging him. He finally took hold of your face and brought your lips to his again. You let him. You had missed him this past week, you spent most of your time here and even when you were at home, you were still studying. You melted into the kiss as your tongue met his again. Your brain turned foggy as his tongue gently played with yours, dragging out the kiss, slow and sweet. 
“Rio…” You groaned. 
“Something wrong, mamas?” He moved his lips down to your neck, sucking at the sensitive skin just below your ear. You gasped and clutched on to his waist with one hand, the other resting on his neck. You didn’t know if you wanted to push him away or pull him closer. 
“We’re in the library.” You reminded him but made no move to stop his ministrations on your neck. You knew you’d have to cover up once he was through with you but you didn’t seem to care. 
“Then we’ll have to be quiet.” You pulled away at that. 
“Rio, we can’t…” you flushed and looked around, “we can’t have sex in the library.” You were convinced no one was even on this floor anymore, you couldn’t hear anything and it was already really late. Half the time you were the last one on this floor. 
“No? You don’t want me to take you against these shelves right here? Hmm?” He licked a strip up your neck. You shuddered. 
“Someone might see us.” There was nothing stopping someone from walking up to this floor and along the aisles. You would be right out in the open, even between the filled bookshelves. You felt yourself get wetter at that fact. 
Rio and you were no strangers to having sex in some semi public places but in the library? Where anyone could walk by? Where you could get in serious trouble? Rio smirked at you, like he knew you were thinking about getting caught. Like he knew you were just as turned on as he was at the idea of it. 
“Makes it more fun.” You huffed out a laugh at his words but there was no humor in his voice. Just solid and unfiltered need. He slid his hands down your sides, grabbing onto your waist and pulling you closer into his chest. Your heart was beating like crazy against your chest, were you really going to do this? 
He then grabbed your ass in his hands, messaging then squeezing. You gasped and bit your lip, not wanting any other sounds to slip out. 
“Just wanna help you relax.” He whispered his words against your lips and then tugged on your bottom lip with his teeth. You gave in, pulling him in closer. 
“If we get caught, I’m blaming you.” You disconnected your lips from his to get your words out. That’s all he needed to push you toward the aisle and then against the shelf. Your adrenaline spiked at the thought of someone walking by.
“Gotta be quick, corazón.” He whispered as you started to tug on his pants, his hands already unbuttoning your own pants. He tugged them down just enough to slide a finger inside you, you bit your lip and grabbed onto his shoulder as you bucked against his hand for friction. You pulled down his briefs and wrapped your hand around his now hard and leaking length. He moaned lowly and then swatted your hand away and pulled his fingers from your core. He quickly turned you around, you grabbed onto the shelf to steady yourself as he wasted no time sliding into you and bottoming out. You leaned your head against the shelf and tried to contain the moan that was threatening to come out. 
He dipped his chin into your neck and put his lips against your ear.
“Gonna fuck the stress away.” He said and then he was driving into you. Your nails scratched at the shelf as you tried to focus on not crying out with every roll of his hips. He grounded into you, keeping his thrusts as quiet as he could be. It was near impossible and the low slap of skin on skin was still present. You didn’t care as he kept hitting the spot that had you near dizzy. 
“Rio…” You whined under your breath. You let out a few whimpers at a few harder thrusts. 
“Feel so good for me. So wet, so fucking tight. Should make you take a break on my dick more often.” You moaned at his words but he didn’t stop. Instead he reached down past your stomach to rub his thumb over your clit. 
“Fuck, baby! I’m gonna come.” You were so close to the edge. So close to falling.
“Want you to come. Wanna make you feel good.” He grunted, his thrusts now sporadic. You knew he was at his end too. 
“Can’t make a mess…” You knew you weren’t exactly making sense. But you knew if Rio was close, he needed to choose where he was going to come because pulling out was not an option. Not that he never came inside you because it was most definitely a frequent occurrence, but you let him choose usually. 
“I’ll just have to come inside you then.” He said and then rubbed your clit faster. And that was it. You were falling, taking all the stress and worries down with you till all that was left was mind shattering pleasure. You pressed your hand to your lips, still whining but keeping the noise at the back of your throat. He thrusted into you a few more times before he stilled and growled, spilling inside you. You felt the tension slowly leave your body as you settled into your post orgasm high. He caught his breath as you did the same, then he finally pulled out. You quickly pulled up your panties and jeans, not wanting to have him dripping down your thigh and also not wanting to get caught after getting away with the main event. He pulled up his pants and buttoned them. 
“Feel better?” Rio cupped your face gently in his hands when he turned you around to face him again. You sighed and nodded. 
“So much better. Thank you.” You flushed at the fact that you just had sex with him in your campus library. 
“Let’s go home, mamas. Let me run you a bath, get you relaxed again.” That sounded like bliss, so you nodded and let him help you pack up your stuff. He took your hand in his and let him lead the way out. You bit your lip, you were sure every time you came to this little nook to study, all you were going to be thinking about was Rio taking you against the shelves. But damn, what a good distraction it would be. 
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tilltheendwilliwrite · 4 years ago
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Star-Crossed: Bound by Blood
Chapter Two
Master List / Read on AO3
Previous Chapter
Pairing: Mando/Din Djarin x OFC Baast’Mal
Warnings: I’m making this up as a go, Canon divergent from the series during chapter 13, mild violence
A/N: I make this stuff up as I go along, if I screw something Star Wars-y up, apologies in advance, I didn’t do it on purpose, but I’m new to this Fandom. I will be cross posting this story between AO3 and Tumblr except the smutty bits. Those chapters will only be available to registered users on AO3. (I’m trying something new for people who want to read here on Tumblr, but to also avoid the smut for minors controversy. We’ll see how it goes.)
*I do not have a tag list* Please follow the story on AO3 if you want email updates, or follow @tilltheendwilliwrite-library where I post the new/latest chapters of all my stories.
***
Baast woke to the scent of cooking meat. It made her stomach rumble and mouth salivate but also confused her. There had been no one in her life for many years. There should be no one to cook. Her eyes snapped open, prepared to fight whoever had found her.
Then her eyes fell on Din playing with Grogu, and it all came flooding back. He spoke softly through the modulator, encouraging the boy to float the small silver ball from Din's hand to Grogu's.
When the child succeeded, Din whispered a pleased, "Dank farrik!"
Baast almost purred, watching him with the child. He made an excellent father, and she was of an age to desire a mate, a home, a pride. But a warrior like him deserved someone better than a broken Zentari. It mattered not that her soul cried out whenever he touched her without the barrier of his gloves.
He'd stripped them off yesterday, and she could smell him—the spicy scent of masculine soap blending seamlessly with the musk of a man warm in his beskar. But the underlying scent of Din Djarin was that of the sandy dunes of her homeworld. He smelled of warm winds and dusky plains, of tall grasses whipped by fragrant breezes. 
He smelled like home. 
The stars were cruel indeed to drop her in the lap of the one made for her.
She watched them for a time as he encouraged Grogu. Their bond was strong, too strong if the Jedi were to be believed. Such attachments bred fear for the one they loved, and fear lent itself to the Darkside. 
The idea of Grogu's pure soul becoming tainted made her ache, and though she said she couldn't help them, Baast knew she must. Grogu deserved a chance to grow up on the side of good. 
She sat up, drawing Din's notice, the man turning toward her across the fire. 
"Morning."
Baast wondered at the voice behind the modulator. Would it be deeper? More robust? Would it be even more pleasing than this one that stroked fingers of violent want through her blood?
"Good morning," she murmured, voice husky still with sleep. 
Before she could ask, the canteen he carried on his belt was in his hand. "Drink?"
She nodded, catching it easily when he tossed it to her. "Thank you. I'm not used to morning conversations anymore. Or any conversations in some years."
"You've done well, evading capture until now. Now, the Tribe will help."
"The Tribe," she whispered. "I've been alone for so long." The idea of being part of something was both appealing and terrifying. "I look forward to meeting your Alor."
"She will be glad to meet you. They all will. Everyone will hope-" He cut himself off, busying himself with the lizard cooking over the fire. 
"Mando, they should not hope for what I do not think I can give," she sighed, lifting Grogu to her lap when he shuffled over.
"You don't know for sure you can't bond, Baast. Give it time."
Time was all she had. Life was a long thing for a Zentari alone in the universe. 
Small green hands gently touched her cheeks, causing her to look down at Grogu. He cooed a sweet noise as she gazed into big, dark eyes. They were expressive in their own right, and she felt herself falling, diving once more into his mind. 
The images came fast and furious. Din running, fighting, killing, but almost always alone. 
Baast closed her eyes as pain washed through her for the Mandalorian. "I cannot," she whispered to the child. "It would not be fair."
Grogu frowned at her before squealing loudly. More images filled her mind, these of a man reckless with his safety, one who had little to nothing to live for. 
She gasped and wrenched her face away from his hands, but it didn't stop the flow of ridiculousness. Kriff! The man had a death wish!
When Grogu disappeared from her lap, only then did he release her from his grasp. 
Baast sent the green menace a glare. "That was entirely rude."
He smiled and blew a raspberry. 
"I'm sorry," Din murmured, holding the child away like Grogu was a danger.
She held up her hand, continuing to glare. "Do not apologize for something he did. It sets a poor president. Invading my mind is bad manners, little one. Disregarding another's desires is a step down a dark path. This will not be allowed."
"Dark path?" Din asked. 
"The Jedi and the Sith. One force believes in peace and passivity. The other wants power and are often corrupted by that passionate desire, both use the Force. He has the potential to be extremely powerful, but with that power comes responsibility. It is a razor's edge to walk, one I am not confident I have the skill to help him navigate."
Din straightened, but his shoulders lowered, relaxing his posture. "You'll help him? I didn't want to bring it up, but I'm running out of options."
"Yes," she sighed. "I know of one who may be able to help him, but I do not know if he will come at my call. Where is your covert?" He said nothing, and Baast tilted her head in apology. "That was an improper question. Forgive me."
"Always," he murmured.
She wondered if that would still be true should he learn what Grogu already suspected. "If I am to make contact, it must be from Tatooine."
"Why Tatooine?"
"Because it is the planet we agreed upon." She turned toward the fire and the spit of roasting meat before looking up at Din. "Have you eaten?" 
The movement was subtle, a single negative action.
Baast hummed and reached for the cloth that tied her pants' to her calf and began to unwrap it. 
"What are you doing?"
She ignored him and continued until her pant leg fluttered free. The cloth was only a couple inches wide, but it was long and thick enough to make an adequate blindfold. 
She lifted it to her eyes, only for his hand to shoot out and grab her wrist. It felt odd for him to touch her with the slightly cracked but soft leather of a glove now that she knew the feel of his skin.
"You don't need to do that."
Baast blinked slowly, gaze drifting to his hand before returning to the visor where his eyes would be. "It is not a need but a want. I will do this, Din Djarin, so that you may eat freely with the child and I. This is the Way."
"It is unnecessary."
She unfolded, rising gracefully to stand before him, wrist yet held in his grasp. "When last did you eat?"
He said nothing.
She tilted her head and held out the cloth. "I have not shared a meal with another in many years. I would share this meal with you and Grogu. Allow me to honour your Creed."
There was no sound, no movement beyond what Grogu contributed to the conversation in small burbles of noise. The Mandalorian was still and silent, a hunter in all things.
Baast waited, quiet, calm. After so many years in a cell, the forest gave her peace, but those years had taught her patience. She could wait for eternity for his decision. She had the time, after all.
What went on behind the helmet, she couldn't know, but eventually, he set Grogu down, released her wrist, and took the blindfold. "Turn around."
She did so, pushing her hair back to uncover her ears. "If possible, try not to cover them. The tips are sensitive, and the fabric will feel abrasive."
The cloth came down over her eyes, hooked behind her ears, and crossed at the back of her head. 
"Again," she murmured. "I can still see."
Twice more, the fabric circled before he tied a knot. 
Her senses heightened, hearing, smell, and the sixth sense that had been with her all her life. The Force resonated in every living thing, glowing and pulsing, connecting all of them. She could see it like an orange glow, thin lines and thick, veining out around them. 
"Good?"
"Yes." The heat of the fire warmed her skin, but before she could move, Din took her hand and elbow. 
"Kneel. I'll get you some food."
Baast followed his direction, aware of the bright light that was Grogu coming to her side. He placed his hand on hers, flooding Baast with a gentle apology. She turned her hand over to hold his little claws.
A quiet hiss filled her ears, causing her to turn toward Din. The beskar blocked some of his energy, the Force somehow muted by it. Then he lifted off his helmet. 
It took every effort to restrain herself from gasping. He glowed white, the shining brightness of a sun. Shock left her mute as she tracked the supernova that was this Mandalorian as he set down his helmet and removed the spit from the fire. He pulled off a piece of meat, maybe a leg, she couldn't quite tell, and brought it to her. 
"Here." The deep baritone was like the softest of silk to her senses. 
Baast held out her hands for the meat. His bare fingers grazed her palm as the hot meal hit her flesh, and grease trickled through her fingers. 
"Thank you," she managed to force from a throat gone tight with emotion. 
"It's hot. Be careful."
She stuffed down the aching need to reach out and feel the lips that produced such a voice and smiled crookedly instead. "Too long have you travelled with only Grogu for company."
He chuckled. "Perhaps."
Another wave of needy desire hit her, but Baast fought it off. She would not doom him to a half-life with an unfinished bond.
She ate and made sure he ate once Grogu was fed, asking questions about the child and how they came to be together simply to keep him talking. His voice was a balm to a soul grown used to silence.
When they finally finished their meal, she waited for him to return his helmet and come to release the blindfold. His hands were deft, skilled, and careful not to pull her hair.
Baast blinked to adjust to the quickly blooming daylight, then retied her pant leg as Din smothered the fire. She reached for Grogu and stood, ready to leave. 
"I can carry him."
She tilted her head, already missing the gentle ebb and flow of the Force from him, now encased in all that beskar. "Do you object to me carrying him because you think I am weak or out of principle because he is your foundling?"
"Uh…"
She arched a brow. "Do not underestimate me, Mando. I live because I am jatnese be te jatnese. The best of the best."
"I know what it means," he huffed.
"Then stop being ori'buyce, kih'kovid," she smirked. "I will care for the child as you have cared for me."
"Atin," he muttered. 
She didn't protest because, yes, she was stubborn.
"Fine." She could almost hear a pout in his modulated voice as he turned and marched out of their temporary camp. "And I'm not all helmet," he grumbled, likely thinking she couldn't hear him.
Baast smirked and gave Grogu a wink. "Come along, ad'ika. We weak ones best keep up with the big strong Mandalorian," she teased.
"I will leave you behind."
She grinned at his back. "No, you will not."
***
By the time they reached the Razor Crest, he was sweating in his beskar again, but with the luxury of the fresher within sight, Din didn't let it bother him.
He disarmed the ground defences and lowered the hatch, heading inside to get them underway. He wanted off the planet before anyone else thought to come looking for Baast'mal. 
Hopefully, the Alor would know who to bribe to falsify a new chain code for her. Either that, or there would be an all-out war to eliminate the threat and bounty on her head. Or, she would spend the rest of her life hunted by the Empire.
He hated that thought. Baast was not a creature who should spend her life hiding. She should be allowed out into the light, a creature of hope and beauty. 
Though he hadn't seen the true colour of her eyes, the rest of her was so mesh'la, when he'd removed his helmet, it had momentarily taken his breath. And without the helmet, her scent had filled his nose like something he'd loved and long forgotten. It was warm, soft, and decadent, all things a Mandalorian put off when he put on the beskar. 
It was getting harder and harder to keep his hands to himself.
She closed the ramp and followed him to the ladder, climbing up with Grogu to slip into the seat back and to his right.
"Once we've left the atmosphere, you're welcome to the fresher, food, whatever you need," he offered, getting them airborne.
"Do I smell?"
He froze. "That wasn't what-"
Her laugher, that throaty purr, cut him off. "It's fine, Mando. An actual fresher after years of lakes and waterfalls will be pleasant."
"Hm. I have to make a stop on Nevarro, then another before we go to Tatooine. Is there anything you need?"
"Clothing. A cloak. And a weapon."
They cleared the planet, and he made the jump into hyperspace before turning around. "What kind?"
"Short sabres or staff will do."
He watched her pet Grogu's ears, gently using those long claws in such a fashion the kid was almost comatose in bliss. She sat with one foot propped on the seat, comfortably leaning on the armrest. He wondered if her skin would begin to lose its sun-kissed nature now that she was off-world.
"How did you learn to fight?" he asked, forcing himself not to think about her skin and how soft it was. 
"Mandalorians are not the only warrior race. Zentari are taught from birth; the rest I learned from the idiots who held me captive. They sought to make me a weapon or a slave, with that came training, but Zentari are not so easily coerced, nor do we forget the slaughter of thousands. I am no weak-minded individual to be controlled by some Sith," she spat.
"Sith?" He knew next to nothing about Force-wielders and felt the lack of knowledge acutely. 
"They oppose all things the Jedi stand for, desiring power over peace or balance. They corrupt what they touch.."
"And how does a Zentari hold out against someone so powerful?" He didn't wish to insult her, but surely a child against a master Sith couldn't win.
She sighed and looked away, watching the lights of hyperspace. "Zentari are neither good nor evil. We are Force neutral. The blood bonds distinguish much of our future. To avoid creating bonds with those that would bring harm was why Zentarus was so well hidden. But someone betrayed us. They used to brag about it, the Imps. How one who we trusted gave us up to the Empire."
"If you are Force neutral, why allow Mandalorians to know of Zentarus? Why let us come seeking mates?"
She shot those vibrant eyes back in his direction. "Because the Way was honourable once. Perhaps, at some point, Mandalore was led astray by their leader, but that was not our doing. Those that came to us knew the Way. They humbled themselves before us, and if they were denied, they left knowing such was not their destiny. Those who came knowing not the Way… did not leave Zentarus alive."
"Then I am glad I knew the Way," he murmured, wondering who would have won between the two of them had she not revealed herself.
"As am I," she nodded, looking as regal as the Sand Panther she claimed in her blood.
"Were the Jedi not part of your Way?"
She scowled. "The Jedi saw us as a threat. Naturally born Force users who required little training to do much of what they could, who lived for generations, and who were neither good nor evil. They feared what would happen if we were corrupted. An attempt was made to wipe us out. It failed, and we Zentari veiled Zentarus from those who knew not where to look."
"And that's why you didn't want to help us," he sighed, realizing the untenable position he'd put her in.
She stood, placing the sleeping Grogu down on her seat before taking the step she needed to stand between his spread knees. Her hands lifted to land lightly on the sides of his helmet, gliding over the metal. "It is no longer a want but a need. I will not watch Grogu fall to the side of the Sith because of my fear of the Jedi. He must be trained."
She leaned down and rested her forehead against his helmet as long lashes veiled her eyes. "This is the Way."
Without his permission, Din's hands found her hips and drew her incrementally closer. "I will protect you, Baast."
"We will protect each other."
He hummed his agreement and wondered at the low ripple of sound vibrating through his chest.
Next chapter
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helahades · 4 years ago
Text
Araña Picante
(A Peter Parker Drabble) // (Fem!Reader)
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Warnings: Light injury. Spanish song with literal translation that makes no sense. If ya know ya know! Peter with a crush.
A/N: I am aware I missed out on the title alliteration of Spicy Spider. It will haunt me later, no doubt. Also, Peter is 22.
Intended for a Spanish speaking reader, but anyone can read!
And the song she sings is a healing one my mom does when my brother gets hurt. Never fails♥️
To the unending entertainment of everyone around him, Peter Parker loves spicy food.
Mainly chips. Hot cheetos, Takis, (and most recently, Tapatio Doritos).
He also likes the spicy gas station pickles, the most searing flavor at the salsa bar, and the hottest hot wings.
Of course, while all good things have their limits, Peter has none. He will eat salsa picante and anything that burns until he’s blushed red in the face and with swollen cherry lips smacking and slurping and near drooling fire.
He loves spicy food, but he doesn’t know when to stop, and he refuses to admit when too hot is too hot.
He’ll sit in his chair, spacing out from conversation, only thinking about how the heat in his mouth feels like television static. It’s almost like he only likes food that hurts him. His interest was first piqued, leading to an eventual crush, when he saw you eat a gas station pickle without a jug of water.
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It’s hot outside. A sweltering, sticky heat wave is sitting over Nueva York, and no one can bear to be out in it unless it’s chased by the coolness of one of Stark’s infinity pools.
For safety reasons, the pool isn’t fully outside. Missile proof, one way glass separates its space from the open air surrounding the roof.
Sitting across from you, Peter can’t help but to stare. His skin is freshly dotted with droplets from the pool he had just pulled himself out of. Those droplets are warming both with today’s peak heat, and the rush of his blood as he watches you absentmindedly wrap your pretty lips around the cherry tip of a Firecracker popsicle.
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He doesn’t know where to look. There’s the blue droplet from the base that’s trailing down your chest and disappearing beneath the slick fabric of your one piece. There’s the way your legs are crossed at the ankles and the sheen of your coconutty sunscreen mixes surprisingly pleasantly with the other scents...jugo de sandía, salsa de mango, and the one that’s just barely detectable to the unenhanced that is driving him crazy—that fucking popsicle.
He’s a sweet boy, truly. He would never stare at you so openly, or try to make you feel uncomfortable. In fact, he takes pride in the fact that you don’t keep the same shield up with him that you rightfully do with other male agents—if that’s what he is.
So yes, he has a crush on you, and has since he met you in Germany, fired up and powerful. It was born of the same kind of awe that young guys have for lots of things they’ve never seen before, and only grew upon getting to know you. The smaller, realer you, as opposed to the larger than life reputation that often precedes your presence.
You’re smart, and you’re quick, which isn’t exactly groundbreaking for anyone around here, but his adoration bloomed from other things.
When he was in that airport in Germany, just meeting the Avengers and scared shitless, despite knowing his strength, you were one of the only unenhanced present, looking as if it were the most natural thing in the world! You’re resilient and adaptable.
When everyone was sure he couldn’t keep up when Tony named him an Avenger, that he would crack under the pressure, you smiled encouragingly, and decided to train him a bit. You’re quite the acrobatic fighter yourself, the swooping from the heavens backup—albeit without web shooters—and you had plenty to say about his form.
Just because you can withstand the force of a bad landing, doesn’t mean you should! That’ll catch up to you Peter!
His soul balloons when you say his name, he feels like he’s floating across the city with only sweaty palms for parachutes.
There are plenty of reasons to adore you, but also, he is only (semi)human, and at his most base form, his fast metabolism, his quick beating heart drum beating hot blood, and his dialed up senses make it very hard not to notice reasons to feel very attracted to you.
Peter finds you very pretty.
He finds he loves to listen to your voice. He asks you to explain things he already understands. He goes to every optional meeting if you’ll be speaking. He has, once or twice, listened to that video over and over that you sent to the group chat, telling everyone goodnight. You even say his name in it, chastising him lightly for some dad joke he made.
Your voice is gentle and soft and he loves to catch you singing.
You’re humming something now, onto the slightly wider whiter tip of the popsicle, and Peter thinks he has never known you to eat anything so slow. Turning towards him from your chair, which he senses quickly and looks away casually, you ask him if he’s tried the salsa.
He hasn’t, because even though he loves spicy things, he feels heated enough thinking about your lips that have finally pulled away from that popsicle, graced with cold and sticky sweet syrup. He’s trying not to think about how he could see your tongue working from behind your cheeks, or how you would hum while closing your eyes, reveling in your icy treat’s contrast to this steamy day.
His hand, in all its largeness, crinkles the sides of the bag as he reaches in, and it takes him embarrassingly long to grab one Tapatío chip. At his irritation at that, he scoops up a heaping, and entirely miscalculated scoop of your mango salsa, throwing the entire thing in his mouth.
A moment.
F u c k.
It’s half fruit! How can this be so spicy?
You’re looking at him, trying to gauge his reaction to your recipe, and he’s melting into his chair, hand not so subtly covering his mouth, but he tries to pass it off like he’s in deep thought. About what? Who fucking knows. Maybe about how the hottest woman he’s ever seen makes the hottest salsa he’s ever tasted and how now he just wants to be a popsicle so he wouldn’t ever burn up like this again and have to work so hard just to fail to hide it in front of you.
Then, you tilt your head, fond knowingness spreading across your features as you let slip a light chuckle.
“Oh, precioso,” you giggle, making his burning heart tender, “you don’t have to pretend. I know I made it a little spicier today.”
Then you’re up, handing him your popsicle, which he eats in a couple bites, and stroking his cheek lightly, and singing even lighter and elongating the words into calming poetry.
“Sana sana,
colita de rana
Si no sanas hoy,
Sanarás mañana”
Your touch lights him up, and he feels better actually, but just a little embarrassed, so he settles on smiling over thanks, cherry lips and all. You called him precioso, and he still isn’t over it.
He thinks about how he just wolfed down the popsicle you had been sucking on, and how your cool touch felt against his face.
“Let me get you some water.”
And you're up. Walking back inside, the light floral fabric of your swimsuit coverup swishes with each swing of your hips.
Peter grabs another chip, scoops some salsa—less this time.
He finds the sweetness.
(reblogs appreciated)
Im going through a bit of a hard time with the end of the semester, so if you’re wondering where all my “coming soon” s are, they’re coming! I just need time to get homework done :) love y’all! Thank you for reading.
mis amores: @xbuchananbarnes @saintsebastian-stan @honeychicana @avintagekiss24 @honeychicanawrites @invisibleanonymousmonsters @thorsthot
@fvckingavengers you made me love Peter so shoutout! I adore you
♥️♥️♥️
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simsadventures · 5 years ago
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Duties: Chapter 3: Princess or Not
Summary: You go about your day as usual in the castle, when a stranger’s scent hits your nose and encompasses all your senses. However, you have always been taught not to give in too easily. And that’s what you’re about to do. Probably.
Warnings: fluff, a/b/o dynamics, scenting, royal AU, medieval AU, my bad English
Word Count: 2425
A/N: More reader in this one. Hope you’ll enjoy this development in the series. What do we all think? And who do we think the reader is? xx
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Your steps were light and cheery. Today was the day of a feast for the King’s friend, a prince from Asgard, of whom you heard plenty. You were the help in the kitchen for quite some time now, and you couldn’t be happier with your newly assigned job. In your previous life, you didn’t have any freedom of choice, everything was lined up, and not in a good way.
But now, you were free and definitely joyous about it. You might not have had the luxury in your life anymore, but that didn’t matter to you none. You were simply happy for the second chance in life you have been given, and you were going to use it as much as you liked.
In the kitchens, everything had its place, and while usually life down there would be pretty calm and simple, today was narrating a different story. Everyone was running around, bumping into each other and having the bowls full of food fall to the ground, shattering in the process. The apprentices had to then run and try to clean it up before another person fell down because of the mess on the ground.
You navigated your way through the people, trying to stay clear of their paths while still maintaining a high tempo. You had to, after all, help bake all the bread and rolls for the entire festivities, and, that was a whole lot of baked goods if you said so yourself.
You began your work, kneading the pastry, working it till it was smooth and pliable in your hands so you could make different sized rolls out of it. You liked doing the regular, plain bread because it was simple and quick.
However, what you liked doing the most were the cookies, and different kinds of sweet pastry, in which you could actually show your baking genius. You would add things bakers before you wouldn’t even think of, such as dried fruits, or different home-made jams, and syrups, so that when you bit into the pasty, it would flow out of it like the most delicious sap from a tree. Princess Morgan especially liked your little doughnuts, filled with molten chocolate and powder sugar on top.
It took you and several other bakers a good few hours to bake everything that was supposed to appear on the feast, but when it was done, it was beautiful. Pastry, bread, rolls, and other baked goods laid everywhere you looked, and it was a look to behold. You even managed to bake a little more than was said, because you knew that whatever didn’t get eaten at the feast, king Anthony would send the food to the village below. You just wanted to make sure there was enough even for them.
It was simply in your nature. You always made sure that people around were happy before you made yourself happy. You used to do it from a young age, and your father always thought it was the most remarkable trait of yours.
You smiled sadly and shook your head to shake away the dark thoughts spreading through your mind. You didn’t need that today. Today was a celebration, and you were about to enjoy it, even if you were to just look after the food at the party.
The dress you picked for the festivities were simple, just like your every other dress in your wardrobe. They were plain blue, and the colour reminded you of the colour of the sky in spring when everything blooms and the novelty of life can be felt around you. On top of it, a simple embroidery was sawn, and it was that of a cherry tree, your favourite. There were only a few branches on the dress, but you loved it nevertheless.
You checked yourself in the small mirror in your room, and even though you could only see your neckline (that’s how small the mirror actually was), you smiled at yourself. Your skin was paler than it used to, because now you spent most your time in the kitchen, whereas a long time ago, you could actually run around the gardens.
But it didn’t take the radiance of it. Your cheeks were slightly blushed, and you pinched them some more just to keep that effect. You smiled at yourself one last time before heading towards the main hall, where the party had already started a few hours ago.
The hall was magnificent again. It was really true what most kingdoms said. King Anthony really did throw the best parties, and you were glad you could experience them, even if only as a help in the kitchen.
You walked between the tables full of food, between the people joyously chatting, and smiled at everyone politely, but not really making any eye contact with anyone. It was a habit you kept for quite some time now, just a precaution.
You checked on the tables with your bread, even took one of the rolls in your hand to check if it was still fresh enough, or if you should go back to the kitchen and bake some more. But everything was perfect, and you let yourself get lost in the rhythm of the music playing from the dance floor, where all the dukes and essential people from the country danced.
You liked watching them. You, of course, knew all the dance steps they did, but as only the help you couldn’t even come close to the dance floor. Not to the point of dancing, at the very least. You didn’t mind though, you just enjoyed the play of colours in front of you, and you let yourself smile at all those people enjoying their time there.
There was a nagging feeling in your stomach the whole day, but you couldn’t really decide what it tried to tell you. Your heat shouldn’t come for another few weeks, so it shouldn’t be that. Your stomach shouldn’t be upset because you only ate in your kitchen, and everything there was perfect. You tried to ignore the growing unsettled feeling as long as you could, but as you were watching the people dance, your head felt light, suddenly.
You turned around, telling yourself that it was from watching all that movement that you were suddenly dizzy, and your senses completely ignored the strong masculine smell invading your being.
It was until you came back to your bread, and looked up, that you caught the eye of the most beautiful man you’ve ever seen. He was tall and muscular, his hair was cut short, his stormy blue eyes standing out this way.
Then his scent hit you. You could swear your heart took a leap from the adrenaline coursing your veins. He smelled like leather, summer sea, and something spicy, which you couldn’t really put your finger on.
Your body called for him, and that’s when you realised what you were doing. Staring at a complete stranger, ready to be at his mercy.
You quickly looked back at the ground, and even though it pained you to scurry away from him, you didn’t see any other option for yourself. You almost leapt out of there, heading towards the corridor for help, praying that he wouldn’t follow you where he obviously didn’t belong.
But when you were halfway through the corridor, and you heard heavy footsteps behind you, you knew the handsome stranger didn’t care one bit for any rules at the moment. He was hunting you down, and although it did send sparks flying to your core, your inner Omega almost yipping with excitement after all those lonely years, you couldn’t afford this Alpha to just take you like that.
You were running now, feeling like you had to escape to save your own life. He might have been a good guy, a good Alpha, for all you knew, but he also could be some brute who would tie you to a bedpost and use you 1000 different ways till your body couldn’t take anymore.
You’ve heard the stories. And you were keen on not being one of them. Eager to save your life, no matter what.
You hurriedly took a right turn in the corridor, running towards your own room, finding the idea of your own space pleasing and calming enough not to break down in the middle of your run. You could still hear him somewhere behind you, and you just hoped his muscles were all for show because you couldn’t even imagine what would happen if he broke into your room. Just you and him.
You breezed in your room, shutting the door close behind you, and letting your body weight lean on the door, breathing heavily, feeling your heart beating like crazy. And you weren’t sure if it was beating so because you had to run all the way to your room, or because of this Alpha chasing you, which was both nerve-wracking, and exciting at the same time.
“Omega! I know you’re in there. Open up!” His voice boomed across the corridor in which he was standing and right into your core. The sparks were now a small fire, and you hated the nature for making you an Omega. You felt helpless, and as if you could never really win.
If he left, you knew you would be whining for him and for the overwhelming scent he was emitting, but if he came closer, you would hate yourself for letting him there.
What you thought was his fist hit the door, and it shook with the power of his punch. You whimpered, and closed your eyes, trying to find what was the right thing to do in your own heart. You tried to imagine your poor father, and what he’d think of you if he knew you let this strange Alpha in your room, just like that.
“Please, don’t hurt me, I beg you, sir,” you whispered, still leaning on the door.
“Hurt you? I would never hurt you, Omega. Please, just open the door so we can talk. I don’t want you to be afraid of me. I swear, if I do something that makes you feel uncomfortable, I will walk away, just like that. But please, talk to me,” the last words were hushed, and you knew his head was on the door, and you could only imagine the pained expression on his face. The same pain you felt from his strained voice.
You took a deep breath, and nodded at yourself, before unlocking the door, and the letting the tall Alpha in your little chamber.
You could see the relief on his face, and you had to smile at him. His scent wrapped around you like a blanket again, and you revelled at the feeling of it all. You have never felt like this in the company of a man, and you never even knew you could feel like this. Your mother always told you you would have to marry somebody for the good of it all, and that maybe you would learn to love that person, tolerate his scent.
But despite not knowing the Alpha in front of you, his scent calmed all your senses, and your brain was already playing the images of your wedding, as unlikely as it was.
He smiled sweetly at you, and when you closed the door behind him once again, he sat on the only chair in your chambers, leaving you to sit on your neatly made bed.
You played with your hands, your eyes glued to your lap, unable to look up and face the Alpha sitting across the room.
“What is your name, beautiful Omega?” He asked, his gruff voice making your skin tingle.
“Y/N”, you whispered immediately, still not looking up.
“Y/N,” he repeated, and for a brief moment, you never wanted anyone to say your name again unless it was him. It sounded so different, leaving his perfect pink lips.
“My name is Thor, and it would be my greatest pleasure if I could get to know you, Y/N,” he said, and this time, you actually looked at him.
“THOR?! You’re prince Thor of Asgard? The one for whom these whole festivities were organised? The one who is on a journey to find his mate and to bring her back home? THOR?!” Your voice was slightly raised with the panic settling deep inside your bones. This couldn’t be happening.
“What is the matter? I might be a prince, but that does not change a thing. I do not know if you feel the things that I feel, but there is a connection, certain chemistry between us if you wish, and I could not care less for your title. Princess or a maid that does not matter to me. You are the most beautiful woman I have ever seen, in my entire life, and if you let me, I would like to get to know you enough to ask you to be my mate,” he finished his speech, and your mouth was hanging open.
Not very lady-like, you were aware of that, but you couldn’t help it.
“This is not a good idea, your majesty, I should not-“
“Thor, call me Thor, please. Just give me a chance to show you the real me. I bet you have heard a lot of rumours here and there, and you think you know who I am, but if you just gave me one day to make you see the real Thor.”
You knew it was foolish. You should have told him to just leave you alone, go back to Asgard and to forget all about you.
But the nagging feeling you had since morning, now transferred into a nagging voice in your head, which wouldn’t let you tell him off. The little voice was telling you to just give him a chance. Give yourself a chance on the long lost happiness. Just for a day, and then you could ask him to leave Midgard and never to come back looking for you.
Or you could leave again. You were sure you could go to some other kingdom, and, in the very least, be in some small village bakery. You would work it out just like you always have. You just needed to spend one day imagining what it would feel like if your life took a different turn.
“Alright, you have one day,” you said with a firm nod, and Thor gave you the most breathtaking smile you have ever seen.
You were in some serious trouble.
/ Next Chapter >
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enkelimagnus · 3 years ago
Text
Pork
Bucky Barnes Gen, 1777 words, rated T for Hydra shit
Jewish Bucky Barnes, pre TFATWS, post Endgame
Coming out of that disastrous therapy session, Bucky comes home and tries to deal with some of his feelings.
TW: mention of torture and death, of family member deaths.
Read on AO3
Part 6 of Making a Home - the Jewish Bucky series
------------
The door slams behind him as Bucky storms into his house.
He has lunch plans but Raynor’s words and eyes and behavior stick to the corners of his mind, sickening like too-sweet candy he shouldn’t have eaten. Except he didn’t even want to eat it. It was shoved into his forced-open mouth. He tried to spit it out but he couldn’t. It was too late. It was already clinging to his teeth.
He rips the gloves off of his hands, then the jacket off of his back. There is light in the room, the light from the outside streaming in through the one window he keeps unshaded. There is the tv, playing an endless loop of soccer. The green and the gold bounce against the glass protecting the Smithsonian postcard he put up on the wall.
Steve Rogers and Bucky Barnes, laughing at some stupid joke he can’t remember. He’s looking at Steve like he hung the moon, and in that moment, he knows that’s exactly how he felt about this sun-kissed Brooklyn kid.
It hurts to think about this picture. To see himself smiling like this. To know he was already Hydra’s, even if he thought himself free. To know he’d probably already lost Steve.
He forces himself to take a deep breath. The expanding of his lungs is uncomfortable.
Why is this upsetting to you?
Because I don’t get to have secrets. I don’t get to be a person. My mind is yours to tear apart and put back together and you’re just Hydra wrapped in star-spangled banner paper.
This isn’t the first time he’s come back from seeing Raynor feeling like there’s a vice-like grip on his heart.
She doesn’t care enough to do her job properly. She doesn’t care enough to do the paperwork to get him someone who will be good for him. So he’s stuck, because she can’t be fucked to make life less terrible for him.
No one fucking cares enough. Not Raynor, not the people at the VA, not his superiors in the taskforce. And not Steve.
The Smithsonian postcard is an insult. 4 dollars and change for a snapshot of a memory. 4 dollars and change and you can bring home Captain America and Bucky Barnes, and look at the card and think you know what it was like to be either of them in 1944. Best friends since childhood. Inseparable. Bullshit.
Bucky wants to tear that card from the wall and throw it away with all of his strength. But he doesn’t. He knows he’ll regret it. He knows he’ll hate himself for it. He’s supposed to keep loving Steve even if he’s gone. He’s supposed to think of him as this… beautiful, glorious, perfect man. He’s supposed to be okay with this.
He told him he’d be. He told him he would be fine, that he could go, that he’d manage.
And now it’s been a little over 2 months and he’s not fine. He’s not managing. And he wants to slap himself. He should have told Steve to stay. He should have told him he needed him. But he hadn’t. Because Steve wanted to leave, and Bucky’s always been the one to tell Steve to pursue what he wanted. Because he made sure he could afford those art classes by taking that second job on the docks, because he kissed his cheek and told him he was going to be famous one day. That he was going to be respected, too.
Bucky’s never been an obstacle in Steve’s way. And he wasn’t going to stop now. So he told him to go.
And now he wants to scream for him to come home to him. To come get him. To come rescue him from this horrible fucking life he’s made for himself.
He knows Steve won’t come though. He didn’t come in ‘45, when the Soviets got their hands on him. He didn’t come in ‘50, when Zola bought him from the Soviets, in the same breath he bought a bomb. He didn’t come in the following years, and eventually, Bucky forgot the name Steve.
Some nights, he hears his own begging. Steve, Ma, HaShem. No one came. No one saved him. And no one is going to save him now, in 2024. He’s going to drown in the sorrow of too many lifetimes.
What else can he do? Once his brain stops coming up with names to add to the list, what will he do?
He has no idea. And he doesn’t want to think of it. Once he’s not useful anymore, what will he be? The list is his expiration date. Sometimes, he hopes the names keep coming.
There is pent-up energy in his bones, but he doesn’t know how to get it out. It’s broad daylight, and he can’t go on a proper run right now. People will see. He has no desire to go into the military base’s gyms right now. He can probably go into the guest room and pull out the punching bag and rip it to shreds.
He doesn’t have a lot of time. Lunch is coming up. It’s Wednesday. One of the names on his list is waiting. He needs to do that. To fulfill the promises he made. It’s his purpose now.
He feels like an open wound, standing in his living room, bleeding out everywhere, burning and stinging with every miniscule spasm of muscle, every brush of air.
When he shows up at Izzy’s, Yori will ask what’s wrong with him, and he’ll lie. He can’t tell him. Yori thinks he’s just a sweet, if a little lost, guy. Moved away for a while, only recently came back to Brooklyn. Ex-military. All things that aren’t exactly lies. They aren’t exactly truths either.
Izzy’s a Japanese restaurant. The building it’s in is old, the kind of old that Bucky actually remembers. In his day, it was a butcher shop, a non-kosher one. Before his mother died, Steve would sometimes be sent to get some leftover pork trimmings from there, to thicken the soup. It smelled bad at the end of the day.
Now it’s a clean and chic place, all painted in dark colors. It’s busy at lunch time, every day. It’s also busy at dinner time, when he walks by on his way back to work. Sometimes, he grabs something to go.
He’s starting to know his way around a sushi restaurant’s menu. He’s not an enormous fan of the rice, so he usually orders those thin slices of fish, the sashimi. Izzy’s has this plate, red tuna and salmon with a side of seaweed salad. The red tuna has a meaty quality that surprised him at first, but he really enjoys it. It tastes thick and fat on his tongue. He surprises himself with the diverse arrays of foods his palate accommodates.
Thinking about the food, about Yori, and Leah, the lady that serves them at Izzy’s somewhat feels good. They’re relatively untouched by the horrors of his mind. At least for now. One day, he’ll have to tell Yori he killed his son.
For now, he wants to be a little selfish. Yori’s old. The kind of old that makes Bucky feel comfortable.
He still has to watch himself, make sure he doesn’t talk too much like an old man, that he doesn’t tell stories he shouldn’t know about. When he says things about the old Brooklyn he grew up in, he says they’re his grandfather’s stories. If no one looks too close at the details, it works.
It doesn’t help the weird distant feeling he has sometimes when it comes to his life. It pulls him away from it. As if it wasn’t really his life.
He guesses he has little in common with the James Barnes of the 1930s. A name. Some memories. Nothing else. His family’s gone, his neighborhood’s gone, his friend is gone, his shul is gone.
He eats sashimi now, with that spicy green paste - wasabi. He watches soccer on a tv in color that he can afford. He has a computer - that he doesn’t use - and a mobile phone. He’s a soldier. He never went to college.
He was smart, back when he was James Barnes. He could have gotten into university despite the quotas. That was what his father used to say. And then he died.
He departed years before Bucky lost his mind to Hydra. He was 16 the first time he led the family in Shabbos prayers. He remembers the quivering of his voice as he stood at the head of the table, in his father’s place, and recited kiddush. He remembers the tears in his ma’s eyes.
He remembers his father teaching him how to shave with steady hands. He asked him to shave him when Bucky was barely a man, before even his bar mitzvah. His hands still remember how to use both the safety razors and the straight-edged ones. Even with decades of Hydra, he remembers it. He’s thankful for that, because the clippers and electric razors people use now are out of the question for him.
The clock ticks and tocks, minutes melting away as he stands there lost in feelings and memories.
Suddenly, he’s late to meet with Yori and he almost runs to the restaurant where the old man sits at the counter like he always does, saving a seat for him.
“You’re late,” Yori points out and Bucky finds himself sheepish.
“Didn’t see the time.”
He takes his seat by Yori’s side. They talk about sports and the papers, and the obituaries. Bucky finds himself looking through the names and wondering if he knew any of them, if they were the loud kids from down the streets when he was a teenager.
Leah comes over with a smile. Today’s special is subuta.
“What’s that?” Bucky asks in a hushed voice to Yori as Leah walks away with a smile and lets them think through their options.
Yori leans back towards him. “Sweet and sour pork. Very tasty. Izzy’s the best in town. You should try it.”
“Ah,” Bucky sighs softly. “I don’t eat pork.”
It’s a lie. He’s eaten a lot of pork in his life. Pierce loved his bacon. But it’s also true. He hasn’t touched pork since he’s left Hydra. The smell of it cooking makes him think of Pierce. And there’s something inside of him that avoids it, even if he doesn’t keep kosher in any other way. He hasn’t ever announced it that way.
Yori nods quietly, not realizing what those four words mean.
There’s no way he can know. It’s Bucky’s secret.
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hadestownmodern · 4 years ago
Text
Chopped, Junie Edition
Junie has an exceptional vocabulary but its cute to say roast-ey tatoes dont @ me. So is greenie beans
-A
“So which did you prefer. The pepper crusted or the rosemary garlic butter?” Hades looks over his list, making annotations by the most recent two recipes tried. Critiques. Flavor profiles. A solid no or a maybe. 
“Mmm, I like the pepper kind, daddy.” Junie decides, holding her little face on her hand as she leans on the kitchen island, her child sized fork still poised in her hand. “But the garlic is better with the roast-ey ‘tatoes.” Next to her is an additional print out of the list, where she makes her own notes with a purple crayon, circling her favorites and crossing out what they decide against. “The pepper kind might be too spicy for Ophie..”
“Orpheus isn’t one for meat, we don’t need to concern him. If he and Eurydice could have their way i’d be making chicken. And we are not a chicken at formal events kind of family.” He shakes his head, slicing a piece of the filet from the pan and placing it in front of Junie. “Tell me what you think of that, Junie.”
Junie claps when he offers her another bit to try, pursing her lips in deep thought in a way that strikingly resembles her mother. “It’s good, but the lemon is too much..” She decides, poking at the slice with her finger. “It’s too done, too, daddy. Well done steak is a waste of steak.”
“It was an accident, it’s about the flavor, darling.” He takes the pan off the heat and sits across from her, placing his notes out before her. “So you think we do the pepper crusted?”
Junie shakes her head, but continues doing a dance with her upper body as she enjoys her samples. “The pepper is the best, but it’ll be too spicy for Ophie and ‘Rydice. The rosemary goes good with the ‘tatoes!” Junie picks up a blue crayon this time, and circles the selected flavor. “But add extra butter.”
“Orpheus is a vegetarian, but I’ll trust you. Better than roast chicken, thats for sure.” Hades mumbles under his breath, changing his own pen color to indicate what they decided on his meticulously kept notes. “And are we going with the garlic green beans or the lemon broccoli?”
“Both!” Junie insists, giggling as she goes. “Ophie needs somethin to eat. And Amma too!” 
“Fair point. Do you think we should make a pasta dish?” He checks off the list, looking at the growing grocery items written in the margins of his paper. 
“Everyone likes Marinara. Even if they have no taste.” Junie points out, sliding her little plastic plate towards him, indicating she wants more. “And Ophie likes it.”
“Well, like you said, even people without taste…” He grumbles as he takes Junie’s wordless requests, crossing back to the stove. “Oh or should we do asparagus instead of the broccoli? You like it don’t you..”
“Broccoli. Oh! Daddy, you should make risotto!” Junie decides, hoping off of her chair and running over to stand next to him. “Or mushroom rice!”
Hades lifts Junie onto his hip, holding her with one arm as he searches through the pantry with another. “I don’t think we have any mushrooms right now, but people like Risotto right? We can try that-”
“Mama certainly likes Risotto.” Comes from the doorway of the kitchen. Both of their heads turn at once, to see Persephone there, still in her heels from work, bag still over her shoulder. “I didn’t know I was coming home to a chef’s tasting tonight.”
“Mama!” Junie cheers, waving excitedly at her. She giggles and shakes her head, sending corkscrew curls everywhere. “We’re plannin’ the wedding menu, mama! Not a tasting!”
“Oh, well excuse me, and why wasn’t I invited?” Persephone teases, kicking off her shoes into her hands as she walks over to them, kissing Junie’s nose over her husband’s shoulder. 
“Because you like anything, Junie is a critic.” Hades wrapped an arm around her waist to pull her closer, kissing her temple. “Not that I don’t appreciate your support.”
“What can I say. I can’t complain about a good meal cooked by an attractive man. I Couldn’t twenty some years ago, still can’t now.” She transfers Junie to her own hip, so his hands are freed to measure and add ingredients to a saute pan. “Whats on the menu tonight?”
“Pepper crusted steak, rosemary garlic steak, lemon steak,  roast-ey ‘tatoes, risotto..” Junie lists off her fingers, leaning her head on her mother’s shoulder, snuggling into her as she wraps an arm around her neck.. “Daddy made greenie beans at lunch, but I ate all of those… ooh and we tried glazed carrots but they were too sweet for a dinner.” 
“Sounds like you two had a busy day, have you settled on a menu?” Persephone mused, resting her head on Hade’s shoulder as he diligently stirred the toasting risotto rice. 
“Rosemary steak, roast-ey ‘tatoes, greenie beans and lemon broccoli, ‘cause Ophie and Amma need somethin to eat, risotto, Marinara pasta too, cause daddy says even people without taste like that!”
Persephone’s mouth fell open, though she tried not to laugh. “Hades! You can’t tell her that.”
“It’s true though. The girl already knew that the pepper steak was superior, and that steak is best when more rare, she can handle the truth about marinara as a sauce.” He promises, eyes intently locked on the side he was constructing, the conversation a background point to his concentration. 
Persephone laughs, shaking her head. “Those sound lovely. But are you at least going to make a chicken option? You know, for the, as you say, less refined palates?”
“Mama!” Junie gasps, leaning her head back to meet her mother’s eyes, gently placing her little hands on her mother’s face. “We are not a chicken at formal events kind of family!”
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worldofpokemonimagines · 5 years ago
Note
B F N K Q for Leon pls
Note: Suggestive/smut types of writing will be tagged as 'Spicy Berries' in case anyone would not want to see this sort of content. I'm just putting it here because one of the letters is suggestive.
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B: BOUQUET. does your muse like flowers? which ones are their favorite?
Leon adores flowers, but unfortunately, he sneezes uncontrollably when he breaths in their pollen. Luckily, he managed to get some help in finding one's that would not trigger his allergies. Because his fans send him gifts (one of them being flowers), Sonia and Raihan make sure to remind them to send flowers that are good for people who are allergic to the pollen. Leon's favorites consist of hyacinth and peonies.
F: FLIRT. is your muse good at flirting? how do they flirt?
Awkward flirt. Not painfully awkward; an endearing sort of awkward that you can consider to be cute. Funny how the infamous 'unbeatable champion' who has faced a wide variety of opponents and such confidence that seems unable to be surmounted, yet when it comes to the act of flirting, Leon is outmatched. He's more good with encouragement and compliments, so he leans more towards those options when wanting to 'flirt' in his own way. He believes that it would still express his feelings to you while not messing up in trying to be smooth. Other people are better in that sense and Leon is content with it.
N: NAUGHTY. what is your muse like in bed?
100% a giver. Leon will absolutely not think about his own pleasure until you're fully satisfied. The man practically worships you in the bedroom; praising and encouraging you. He's a pretty vanilla guy, but is open to new things just as long as it doesn't hurt either of you in anyway. Leon is a sucker for being told how good he's making you feel and having his hair tugged (this is figured out completely by accident). He is more fond of the deed being slow and passionate, but he will not deny your begging to go faster/rougher. Lowkey he is a tease, just loving how desperate you sound.
K: KISS. is your muse a good kisser? why/why not?
Leon usually gives you quick pecks on the cheek or lips due to his status as champion (and getting himself lost). He's not at Chairman Rose's level of work load, but it can compare. Not only does this leave you longing for more, but for him as well. To him, it's sort of a frustration not to enjoy the kiss. It leaves him in a lingering state of mind as he goes about his day. Nagging at him. So, when you two can finally have a good moment of peace, it's expected that his lips are pressed up against yours. It's uncharacteristic of him, since he always asks for your permission, but he just wants to fully lose himself in the moment before any force could disrupt it. Passion and longing is what the kiss holds in contrast to the usual short and sweet pecks he's been giving.
Q: QUESTION. would your muse ask the big question or expect their partner to?
Wouldn't hesitate to ask when the moment was right. There's nothing building up to the moment where he asks you about the chance of being together in a sense where you two are married. It's just after you've finished cooking some curry for both of your Pokemon as Leon watches you laugh and smile with your Pokemon in adoration. The question was pretty blunt and out of nowhere (like him, sometimes) and caught you off guard. No matter whether you're ready or not for such a huge commitment, Leon will happily go along with you; he's alright no matter the answer as long as he is still with you.
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