#this has been tough lately I need a new job already

[ayrtonswnna]

ʚïɞ "a podium to celebrate" OP81

⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀oscar piastri x redbull!driver!oc

summary: in witch aria won't let oscar's first win be ruined.

warnings: fluff all the way down!!!!! this is all fiction and i mean no hate towards lando, i'm a mclaren fan and like both their drivers. swearing, english is not my first language, had to sacrifice lewis 200th win for this.

word count: 1k

"Oscar Piastri, P1! Oh my god! Always on my way!" Aria jumps in excitement as she enters the cool-down room, a cold towel around her neck as she smiles at the Aussie.

They are good friends; physically close, yes, but always professional and caring towards each other. Two rookies from the 2023 season, they've been racing each other since their earlier categories.

"It's my first job ever, you know." he chuckles softly, with a small shrug and a strange tension in the air as he approaches. "Good race to you too! I saw Babybull in my rearview the whole time."

"I’ve got to keep the pressure up," she jokes, wrapping her arms around his waist as he hugs her over the shoulders, playfully. "What happened? Is the car okay?"

"Yeah. Just team stuff." He shrugs again. "We’ll talk later."

And then it hits. A furious Lando Norris storms into the room, a frown on his face as he throws his Pirelli cap on the floor, his helmet making a loud noise as it hits the surface.

"Yeah, you guys surely can talk later." the Brit growls. "Good race, you guys."

"Would’ve liked your place, but yeah." Aria teases, something she often does.

Even a grumpy Max Verstappen on his worst radio days would crack a smile around her in the paddock. But not today, not the race vice-winner.

"Maybe if you asked... I was really supposed to give in. It'd be no news."

"Lando had to give me the position on the last lap." Oscar explains, trying to ease the tension and stop the sarcasm. "The team messed up."

"Oh— Yeah, that’s tough, guys." She sighs, now sitting down in her third-place chair, exchanging glances with the papaya boys. "I’m sorry. But hey! Double podium! Double the points, double the reason to celebrate!" Aria tries to lighten the mood, as the three of them now watch the race highlights on the big screen.

"Don’t act like Babybull and Madmax haven’t done this too many times."

Aria gets it. It’s a fucked-up feeling; swapping spots so late in the race might feel like a P20, it might be terrible. She usually gets along very well with both McLaren drivers, and that’s probably why she’s a bit surprised by the harsh tone in the older boy's voice.

Even the “Babybull” nickname feels off. She was given that name after winning her first race in her rookie year, driving for Red Bull and crying like a baby. Both RB drivers were together in an interview when Max jokingly called her a "baby driving a fast car." The name stuck.

"Never too many." she decides to let the conversation fade, trying to catch Oscar's eyes but failing.

The train of thought has its chance to choo-choo along until they’re getting ready for the podium.

She knows the Aussie driver well enough. He might be feeling terrible, and doesn’t even need to hear the whole situation to feel like the worst teammate in the world. Her head tilts up when she sees her engineer, as the winning trio walks up to the trophy ceremony, their bond strong enough that he knows what she wants to know, even from a distance as they prepare the backstage for the podium.

"Piastri had the lead, they messed up the pit call and Norris stayed out with the lead." the older guy explains, his lips moving just enough for her to read them. They had people in the way, so she has to use a bit if effort to understand. "They told him to switch, he didn’t want to. Obviously. Obviously. It took time to convince him, almost went downhill."

Her mouth forms a perfect "O" before the staff calls her up for the trophy. Aria could already think it was something like this. Mclaren been fooling around with their team decision and even though Oscar is just too polite when talking about it, she did hear some complains. This box call thing is a recurring issue, she listened to him talking about it and could notice the papaya cars having this problem during the races.

Minutes later, Norris is popping the champagne like he hasn’t in the past few races, while Aria’s mind holds her still for the papaya boys to celebrate their double podium. She slowly sets her trophy away from the chaos the area might become, looking at the center of the podium as nothing big happens. No big celebrations, just Oscar holding his trophy while Lando sprays the champagne with force, as he usually does, even if he hasn’t been in the mood for it in recent weeks.

Then Norris heads to spray the cheering crowd, leaving her best friend to celebrate alone. — Of course, if Aria wasn’t there. Her bottle spilling alcohol for a few seconds before she throws it towards Oscar, yelling a loud "2000s for the win!" and laughing as the boy is caught by surprise.

"You’re ridiculous." he jokes, spraying the liquid on her as they start to chase each other like two kids on a playground; their playground, the Hungarian podium of the Formula One championship.

For a while, the guilt and angst Oscar feels over such a controversial win can fade away, and that’s the thing about his friend, or whatever they don’t mind being called.

She is a stream of light — that’s what she does to people in her orbit. The boy is now grinning from ear to ear, finally celebrating his win, something he almost felt he didn’t deserve.

"Future’s looking bright, huh?" She sets the bottle down as they wave a last goodbye to the crowd. "I like sharing this life with you."

Osc nods, a few seconds delayed before he lets his eyes meet his friend's.

It really is like sharing a life; they’re around each other all the time, prefer eating in the common areas in the paddock just so they can have lunch together. They know each other’s parents, celebrate each other’s wins, and visit each other’s hotel rooms late at night. Physical intimacy, it might be happening tonight.

"Yeah, me too," he says, smiling, soaked in champagne, his hair hidden under his cap, his eyes squinting in the sun. "Thank you."

"For what?" Aria chuckles as they’re called off the podium.

"You know what for. I’m lucky to have you."

"We’re lucky to have each other."

ʚïɞ

[cuteskunkz]

╭──────────.★..─╮

One Night With You

╰─..★.──────────╯

(Mike Schmidt x Reader)

Summary~ Mike is a very touch starved man. He spends all his nights at work and the daytime caring for Abby if not sleeping. He hadn't been with a girl since his junior year, making him feel like a total loser. The amount of times where Mike went back and forth with his inner thoughts, convincing himself that he was the problem was getting pretty intense and it was clear that he just needed a night out to clear his mind and prove those thoughts wrong.

You've been a "dancer" for the past few months at the downtown strip club, just trying to make ends meet. There was a tough competition working against you. You were new to this line of work whereas the other girls had been in the game for a while now, but you kept pushing on desperately. How else were you going to make rent or keep the lights on? The nights were slow and building a consistent flow of clientele proved itself to be a challenge, that is until one night when you meet a new guy outside of the nightclub.

Tags~ Stripper reader, Mike is a SIMP!!!, lowkey enemies to lovers but not really, no smut (YET...)

Note~ This took me much longer than I thought since I've been super burnt out of writing lately, but I hope you guys enjoy! As always if there's anything in particular you would like to see in chapter 2, please lemme know

⊱✿⊰

Mike felt confused with the lack of responsibilities and errands to run on this warm summer night. Abby was off at a sleepover and Steve finally hired a second night shift worker, leaving him all alone with his reoccurring self doubt introspections. Dude gets one night for himself and simply cannot think of a single thing to do to pass the time. He laid there in his bed tossing and turning unable to fall asleep. He jolts up feeling frustrated with himself, "Ughh... just fall asleep already bro..." He shifts around in his bed and grunts, "I can't do this-". He sits up and sulks his way into the living room, plopping down on the couch. Mike pulls out his phone and begins to scroll.

He isn't really the social media type but had made an anonymous instagram account a while ago for mindlessly scrolling. After what seemed like hours, Mike stumbles across a video of you. You were practicing a routine for the club, twirling and moving seductively. Mike felt himself grow larger in his pants and put the phone down in shock. He stares up at the ceiling in disbelief, damn you really got him feeling this type of way this quickly? He looks down at his lap and feels helpless. He wrestles with his feelings for a while and ultimately picks his phone back up to look more into you.

He clicks on your account and "researches" a bit. There's multiple videos of you practicing, photos of your skimpy outfits, and the most captivating selfies he's ever seen. One of your posts has a location tagged in the top corner, "Deja Vu Showgirls". He looks further into the club, finding that it's not too far from the pizzeria. "Fuck it. Why not..." he whispers to himself. Mike ensures he's well groomed for the occasion. if you're there he wants make a good impression. He showers, dresses in the best outfit he can come up with, and slaps some product in his hair. He finally felt content with his appearance and hopped in the car.

You weren't surprised to see another night play out typically. Maybe 2 or 3 cheap lap dances and a couple short sets up on the stage for less than 50 bucks. This clearly isn't working for you, at this point you've spent more on outfits and shoes than you've made while working here. An older gentleman walks up to you reeking of alcohol and cheap cologne, you couldn't help but gulp at the thought of providing your services for him. Yeah you were a stripper but you still had standards that made doing your job successfully hard at times.

"Well aren't you something?" he slurs while damn near tipping over from intoxication. You sigh and snap into your persona. "I'd hope so, this outfit ain't cheap y'know!" you reply in a flirtatious tone. You grab him by the hand and lead him to a booth, preparing for the worst. He starts groping on your sides which makes you shudder. Maybe this place isn't for you after all. "H-hands off baby.... Use your eyes and focus on me" you redirect with confidence. Times like these made you wish someone could just scoop you off your feet and save you.

He drives to the location with his heart pounding out of his chest. He'd never been to strip club before so Mike felt nervous even making his way closer to where you have the slightest chance of being at. He pulled into the parking lot and shut his car off abruptly, taking deep breaths to calm his nerves. "What if she isn't here? I don't even know the girl why am I acting so fuckin' weird about this.... I really need to get out of the house more" he thinks to himself while gripping onto the steering wheel. After a few mental pep talks to himself, he finally musters up the courage to get out and make his way in.

Just as he goes to push the door to the club open, you storm out with eyes welling with tears. Mike stumbles back a bit not wanting to startle you. You're holding your pricey Pleaser heels in hand, walking barefoot and trying your best to keep it together. All you want is to curl up into a ball and quit at life. You thought that creepy dude would cheap out on a dance, not grope and hurl insulting names at you for rejecting his advances! You look up from the ground and lock eyes with a man you've never seen before. He's cute... too cute to be wasting his time at some dingy place like this.

"Can I help you?" you snap at him with a shaky voice. It was hard not to notice the concerned look on his face. "No I'm-" he stutters before you promptly cut him off. "Leave me the fuck alone then." His face goes pale hearing you say this, he didn't even get a chance to meet you yet and he feels as if he already blew it. You pace towards your car and pop the trunk, filling it with the all the contents of your locker. You pick a T-shirt out of your duffle bag and drape it over your revealing outfit. His presence is burning a hole into your back so you swiftly turn around to meet his gaze.

He walks over slow and bashfully. There's a pink tint to his cheeks and he can't keep his hands still out of anxiousness. "Dude are you good?" you ask. He looks as if he's going to break a sweat, "Yeah... I'm good. Are you though? You looked pretty shaken up back there." You assumed he was just another guy looking to get lucky with a dancer after a shift change. "Look, if you want to get some action, walk your ass into the club. I'm not who you're looking for" you reply. His stomach drops hearing your voice. It was one thing to see you for the first time, but to hear your voice even if it be out of anger made Mikes head spin. He didn't want to sound like a complete creep stalking you out to your job for a closer look but you were exactly who he wanted.

"That's not why I'm here. Fuck- look... To be totally honest, I'm not a strip club type of dude. I just- I saw a video of you on instagram and I was- y'know... impressed by your talent and beauty." Typical response coming from a man trying to bring a stripper home for the night you think to yourself. "I'm not shocked by your reaction. You realize that's what I hear like- 10 times a night, right?" you say with a sarcastic tone. He seemed a bit more genuine with his words than the others but men will do and say anything when they're in need of a quick fuck. "Not that type of girl sir. Try one of those cheap hookers down the road" you point down the street and close the trunk.

"Please... I know how this sounds, believe me I know how dudes are but-" He sighs and continues, "But I don't have a lot of experience with girls so- I thought coming here... to meet someone new would help" he says looking very serious, almost to the point of desperation. If he weren't so damn handsome you'd turn him down in a heartbeat but something in you is screaming to give him a chance. He seems to be telling the truth and damn is he starting to fluster you with the whole innocent act. "Fine. I'll give you my number but don't you dare think about blowing my phone up." You scribble your phone number into his palm with a pen from your bag and blow him a kiss while getting in your car to drive away.

Mike smirks and waves at you, watching you drive off into the distance. "That was easier than I expected...huh..." he whispers. He gets back into his car and texts you, already so eager to see you again. The message reads:

Hey it's Mike, the guy from earlier. You doing anything tonight? I could take us out to a bar or something? :)

His cheeks start to blush again from imagining you two hanging out. He desperately craves a deeper connection with you but doesn't want to come off as too interested off the bat, it could scare you off for all he knows! His phone dings and he reads it:

Shitttt I'm free as long as you're gonna be on your very best behavior!!

⊱✿⊰

*Read part 2 and part 3 here!*

It might take me a bit to get part two posted, but I'll try to give you guys as many updates as possible!!! Keep in mind I am a new writer. This is my third fic put out so far :))

[elizabethsnuts]

Late Nights

Calex x Daughter!Reader

Summary: You and Alex have trouble getting to sleep so the two of you play games while you let Casey rest.

———

The apartment was quiet except for the occasional hum of the refrigerator and the distant sounds of New York City nightlife filtering through the closed windows. The soft glow of a lamp on the side table cast shadows around the living room, creating a cozy, dimly lit, environment.

Alex sat on the couch, her eyes heavy with fatigue but her mind refusing to let her rest. Insomnia had become an unwelcome but not unfamiliar companion, making the nights feel endless. She glanced at the clock on the wall—it was nearing 2 AM. Beside her, you were sitting restlessly. You were going through a sleep regression, waking up multiple times each night and demanding attention. It was exhausting for both Alex and Casey, but Alex insisted on letting her wife sleep.

Casey had been through a particularly gruelling week at work with back-to-back cases, uncooperative witnesses, endless paperwork and very many court sessions demanding every ounce of her energy and focus and Alex knew she needed her rest. She had promised herself that she would let Casey sleep through the night, even if it meant staying up and keeping you entertained. It’s not like she could sleep anyway.

You squirmed on the couch, your tiny fingers clutching your favourite stuffed duck. "Mummy, want Mama," you whispered, your voice plaintive.

Alex smoothed back your soft hair and kissed your forehead. "Mama needs to sleep, sweetheart. She's had a tough week. How about we play a quiet game instead?"

You pouted but nodded, your tired eyes shimmering with curiosity. Alex reached for a stack of picture cards she kept nearby for such moments. They were simple, colourful illustrations of animals, objects, and scenes designed to capture a toddler's attention.

"Okay, Y/N, let's play 'Find the Animal.' I'll describe an animal, and you have to find the right card. Ready?" Alex explained.

Your eyes lit up, and you sat up straighter. "Ready!"

"Alright," Alex said, suppressing a yawn. "This animal has a long neck and eats leaves from tall trees. Can you find it?"

Your face scrunched in concentration as you sifted through the cards. "Giraffe!" you exclaimed, holding up the correct card.

"That's right! Good job!" Alex praised in a whisper, feeling a small burst of pride despite her exhaustion.

The both of you continued the game, your giggles and excited answers filling the quiet room. As the minutes ticked by, Alex found herself smiling more and worrying less about the late hour. This moment, despite the fatigue and the challenges, felt precious.

Eventually, your energy began to wane, your movements slower and your eyelids drooping. Alex gently guided you to lie down on the couch, covering you with a soft baby blanket. She sang a lullaby in a hushed tone, hoping to lull you into sleep.

But you were not ready to give up just yet. "Mummy, want Mama," you murmured again, reaching out with your tiny hand.

Alex took your hand in hers, holding it gently. "I know, my love. Mama will be here in the morning. How about we count the stars on the ceiling? That can be our game until you fall asleep."

You nodded, your eyes already half-closed. Alex gently lifted you to rest on her chest and began to count in a soothing voice, pointing to the glow-in-the-dark stars they had stuck on the ceiling months ago. Slowly but surely, your breathing evened out, and you drifted off to sleep.

Alex sighed in relief, her own eyelids feeling unbearably heavy. She leaned back on the couch, intending to stay awake a little longer to make sure you were truly asleep. But the warmth of your little body on her chest and the soft hum of the TV lulled her into a deep, much-needed sleep.

———

When Casey emerged from the bedroom the next morning, she was greeted by the sight of you and Alex curled up together on the couch, both sound asleep. She smiled tenderly, her heart swelling with love and gratitude.

Quietly, Casey walked over and draped a blanket over Alex, who stirred slightly but didn’t wake. She kissed the both of you on the forehead before walking into the kitchen to start breakfast, feeling more refreshed and awake than she had in days.

As the smell of coffee filled the air, Alex's eyes fluttered open. She looked around, momentarily disoriented, before her gaze settled on Casey bustling in the kitchen. You were still asleep on her chest, clutching your stuffed duck.

"Morning," Alex whispered, careful not to wake you.

"Morning," Casey replied, leaning down to kiss Alex's forehead again. "You should go back to sleep. I've got Y/N."

Alex shook her head, stifling a yawn. "It's okay. I'm already up." She carefully disentangled herself from you, which earned her a quiet, sleepy whimper.

Casey nodded, giving her a soft smile. "How did it go last night?"

Alex stretched, feeling the remnants of fatigue in her muscles but also a sense of accomplishment. "We managed. Y/N/N had a hard time settling, but we played some games, and she eventually fell asleep."

Casey walked over with a cup of coffee, handing it to Alex. "Thank you for letting me sleep. I know it hasn't been easy."

Alex took a grateful sip of the coffee, savouring the warmth. "You're welcome. You needed the rest. Besides, it wasn’t like I could fall asleep anyway."

You suddenly stirred, your eyes fluttering open. You looked up at Alex, then over at Casey, a sleepy smile spreading across your face. "Mama!"

Casey scooped you into her arms, showering you with kisses. "Good morning, baby. Did you have fun with Mummy last night?"

You nodded, still half-asleep. "We play 'Find the Animal' and counted stars."

Casey looked over at Alex, her eyes filled with love before she looked back down at you. "Wow! That sounds like so much fun."

As the three of you sat together, enjoying the quiet morning and each other's company, the tiredness of the night before disappeared.

[kthecutest]

hi yūka! i hope you're doing fine ♡ could i request a headcanon about husband!k? soft and hard thoughts if possible 🤭 thank you!

·͙̩̩͙˚̩̥̩̥̩̩̥͙　✩　̩̩̥͙˚̩̥̩̥̩̩͙‧͙　Husband ! Kei　.·͙̩̩͙˚̩̥̩̥̩̩̥͙　‪♡　̩̩̥͙˚̩̥̩̥̩̩͙‧͙ .

Pairing : Husband!k x Wife!f!reader Genre : SFW & NSFW (づ ᴗ _ᴗ)づ 🥕 A/N ೃ⁀➷ New Year gift for my lovelies ₊˚⊹♡

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Soft Thoughts °𖤐⭒���࣭ ⭑⁺˚⋆｡°✩₊

Morning Routines : First of all, let’s start with morning routines. Before you both decided to tie the knot, Ej always warned you, “Gurlie, if you get married to this man, the job of waking him in the morning – it’s yours now” and well you never took it seriously. Until now that is, “Kei! C’mon! wake uppp! Your manager is blowing up the phoneee!!!” your yelling is doing barely any damage to your half-asleep husband who’s still squirming and fidgeting around in his bed. “Honey.. five more..” – “no no! No five more! Wake uppp you sleepy head!” Probably would have to drag Kei’s huge frame straight out of bed and push him into the bathroom, shoving a toothbrush into his mouth.

Clingy Texts : And then there’s the ‘sending you texts 24/7’ phrase that your husband has started since your dating days. You’re on your laptop, not that you’re focused or anything but obviously! You cannot focus at all – when your phone’s notis kept blowing up non-stop. And you know who it is – no hints needed – “Babyy, have you had your lunch? – Kei” – “Hun, how’s the work going? Missinggg you – Kei” And you can’t even complain honestly cuz he’s just the absolute sweetest to the point that you’d melt just looking at Kei’s messages. No matter how busy he is, he always texts you, and no matter how busy you are, you check and reply to his messages without being annoyed even for a bit. Your husband may not be the most expressive when in the eyes of the public, but you know more than anyone else how much this man treasures you.

Back from Work : Then, there’s the clingy big baby phase of Kei as soon as he gets back home and gets to cling onto his wife. “Loveee! Guess who’s back!”, you’re already waiting at the front door with your arms out, ready to give your beloved husband a warm welcoming hug. Kei would run into your arms immediately even picking you up into the air with his arms alone at times cuz your huge husband just can’t control his strength. “Eww.. you better take a shower before you come to bed”, obviously you were holding back your laughter trying to act tough and strict with him especially when he gives you those puppy doe eyes. “Awwe I see I see my baby doesn’t like me being sweaty, butttt….” – “buttt…?” – “You’re coming with me AHA!”, yeet, up you go on his shoulder and you bet you’re gonna have to spend at least an hour in the shower again with this big puppy boi who can’t even shower on his own alone without his wife. “Yah!!! Kei! Ughhh!!”, Kei chuckled at your attempt of whines and complaints – I mean after all, if you really hate the idea, why would you wait for him every late evening without taking a shower, obviouslyyy just so you could join him in the shower, mhm mhm definitely can’t be coincidence.

Cooking : Next thing that comes to mind is …. FOOD. Kei just has everything to do with food; it’s either him cooking for you or you’re both in the kitchen with him nagging at your every failed attempt to make a proper dish. Obviously, you knew you could never compete to this mans and his cooking skills. Kei has been a brilliant chef his whole life basically, “At this point, I can’t tell if you’re the wife or I am”, your husband looks at you with a ‘I’m so done’ face. “Hey! No need with the flexs sir, ughhh just how do you make thissss?!!”, Ke would complain, but of course if there was to be someone who would run to your assist in a span of mini-seconds, that’s gotta be him.

Healthy Food : Anddd right, let’s not forget, Kei over here is a fricking DIETISIAN. This mans has been doing researches on healthy food since high school alright, and now that he’s sharing his cozy home with the love of his life, that means…. Shared salad bowls.. yea.. “Love- I know you like being healthy and all, and I know you care for me, buttttt can’t we get fried chicken instead, c’mon plsssss”, your sparkly doe eyes would work in any situation – except this one. “Uh huh, right, nope, hun salads are healthy for you and you’re gonna have it alright, end of discussion”, a salad bowl arrives in front of you available for instant consumption. Your husband just won’tttt let you off when it comes to healthy food mhm.

Exercise : There’s also the other half of the ‘keep his wife healthy’ agenda for Kei, because no matter how busy this poor mans can get, he would drag you out to take a jog with him in the park either in the morning (which rarely happens cuz he cannot wake himself up) and often in the evenings. You’re the type of be on your laptop all day; which your husband does NOT like at all, cuz he wants you to be active and healthy just like him. You’d whine and complain to stay at home cuz you’re too lazy to touch the grass and fresh air outside but it won’t make much of a difference when Kei yeets you up his shoulder and carried your struggling frame out the house. During the jog, you’d even look at Kei with widened eyes like ‘how tf is this mans still jogging faster than you effortlessly after a long day at work!?!?’ – Kei and his monster stamina is just built different.

Dates : You both barely ever get any free moments to go on a full-on date and all, but that doesn’t stop you two from arranging small dates in every given opportunity. Mostly, it’d probably be something like star gazing. It’s 10 p.m.; Kei’s only gotten back home just now, guess he was pulling a longer shift today at the practice room but you’re a bit surprised to find a wide grin plastered across his face instead of his normal whiny and clingy self. “Babe, there’s something I gotta show you”, his tone is excited like no other and he’s practically almost dragging you out the front door, in a rush, at this point. And then you two would end up at a small high-land hill in a pretty quiet park, who would have known, there’s already a cropped picnic blanket set up with a few snacks and cozy blanket. Kei looked at you with a look of nervousness, obviously it wasn’t an actual picnic or a star gaze experience or anything- but poor Kei didn’t have the time to go all out. And well, you notice it. “Baby, it’s amazing! Ah!! I’m so happy!”, giving him a warm reassuring hug. Kei would probably even tear up from your gesture but would end up sniffling and acting all big and touch like “I- I’m not crying! You are.” – with a pout. Gosh who could ever hate him, he’s too precious. You  both would spend the rest of the night tighter, under a night sky full of stars, would probably trace the constellations until you both fell asleep to each other’s voices.

Competition : Whether it’s just a small card game or a game you two have chosen at an arcade, this mans will NOT give in, Kei is probably the most competitive person you’ve seen, and wife or not, mans have no intention to give up his position of first place. You’ll only ever get a small chance of taking the win if you could whine and plead with puppy eyes for the first place from your husband. Obviously, he wouldn’t be passing the thrown in just a few pleads but once you started sniffling, you know for a fact his character’s gonna break. Kei just can’t watch you get hurt in any way or form even worse if it’s coming from him. This factor also adds on to how gentle he would treat his wife when competing against you in games.

Cuddles : Cuddles are random between you two. It could be anywhere, anytime, anyhow. You could literally be busy in the kitchen, cooking up a storm for a plate of dinner, your beloved husband who rushed back home from work early would give you a backhug. “K?! Aish, you should have alerted me love~” You pouted complaining as you kept your hands busy. “Aww but surprises are more fun~” He whined back in response, nuzzling his head on your nape, his hands tightly wrapped around your waist and torso. Sometimes, if it’s not for the case of surprises, it’d be a warm cozy hug you two share on the couch while something plays on the TV or you working on your laptop with a clingy kangaroo stuck to you.

Kisses : Kisses are mostly just friendly pecks on the lips, accompanied by cozy cuddles. Though, sometimes it does get heated pretty quickly, tongues slipping through lips, teeth clashing and all but if you two wanted to put a stop to the situation from escalating, then you could. You and K aren’t some high-school love birds no more and are properly wedded couple so you each are aware of your own self-control. But of course, K always have the upper-hands and at times, your teases would do no damage to him but his teases would get you all riled up.

Hard Thoughts °‪♡⭒๋࣭ ⭑⁺˚⋆｡°✩₊

Kitchen counter : LINK

Visitation hours : LINK

Stress Relief : LINK

Breeding hours : LINK

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[lovestay-channie]

Recharging Kisses - Lee Minho

Pairing: Lee Minho x gn!reader

Genre: fluffy

Summary: minho needs some extra loving as he has been preparing his comeback

Word Count: 804

Warning: n/a

Comeback season can be pretty tough for Minho. The constant late night dancing sessions, recording and re-recording schedules, days long music video shooting, and schedules upon schedules upon schedules. There was a routine for these hectic days. Wake up at 7AM, have a busy day, and come back around midnight or 1AM. He wishes this season of time was less busy, but in order for everything to be perfect, it had to go this way.

He can’t help but feel bad for his poor fiance at home who barely sees him. All he hears them say is, “Have a good day at work… Let’s get you to bed… I love you, goodnight bubs.” He felt like such a bad partner who can’t be home for his lover. 

Thankfully, today was finally a day where the only thing they had to do was interviews. However, by the end of the day, Minho is drained. The constant same questions, being in the same room all day, only moving to change seating positions, go to the bathroom, or have a quick bite to eat. With it just being interviews, he is actually able to come home for dinner for once.

Minho enters his shared apartment to smell an amazing home cooked meal. He instantly scans his eyes over to the kitchen to see you jamming out to your music while cooking. A slight smirk creeps on his face. He loves to see you happy. He quietly sets down his backpack and takes off his shoes. With soft steps, he creeps up behind you. He looks over your shoulder to see what you were cooking: spicy chicken with rice and kimchi. A simple yet comforting meal. He then carefully wraps his arms around your waist. This causes you to slightly jump since you didn’t know he was home yet. “You scared me a little,” you chuckle. 

“Sorry,” Minho mutters into your neck. Your heart flutters at the affection you have been missing. 

“Aw, it’s okay,” you smile. You set down the fork and knife that was in your hand to turn around to face your partner. You snake your arms around his shoulders to give him a nice, warm hug. “Welcome home, my love.” 

You play with the ends of his hair. You know how hard he has been working lately. You feel so proud of him, yet you also feel so bad for everything he has to do to prepare for a new comeback. He loves his job, and you know that. But sometimes you can’t help but think every now and then that it’s too much for someone to handle. 

Before wanting to turn back to finish plating his meal, you place a sweet, soft kiss on his cheek. You go to turn around, but the arms around you tighten. You smile at Minho’s clinginess. Your lips meet his cheek again before attempting to continue what you were doing. “One percent,” Mihno sighs.

Giggles escape your throat at Mihno’s words. “What?” 

“I’m at one percent,” he says, taping his cheek. You roll your eyes and peck his cheek a few more times. “Hmm, three percent.” 

“Minho!” you giggle into his neck. 

“What? I had a long day, and I need recharging. Only your kisses can recharge me!” he exclaims. 

You smirk at his explanation. You love this side of him. He rarely admits that he needs some love to feel better. He normally likes to play a guessing game where you have to figure out what he wants because he won’t say it. Since he is so tired, he is vulnerable to saying what he wants. 

“Whatever you say, bubs,” you say before peppering his cheek with more kisses. Your lips move all around his face: his cheeks, forehead, nose, jaw, neck, everywhere but his lips. 

You look at Minho to see  a smile plastered on his face, “Hmm, 75%. I am almost at full battery.” 

“I think I have an idea to get you to 100%,” you say. 

“And how are you going to do that?” 

“Close your eyes and find out.”

He follows your instructions to close his eyes. Once his lids are shut, you delicately place your lips onto his. Your hands cup his cheeks to bring him a little closer as if he wasn’t already close enough. Light kisses like this show the love you have for each other. They are pure. It makes both of your hearts flutter with love. These kisses had all kinds of different meanings. Some kisses were saying ‘I love you’. Some were saying ‘I’m sorry, but I’m here now.’ Some were saying ‘Thank you.’ Words he has a hard time expressing sometimes, but you can feel them in his kisses. 

After several kisses, he pulls away to kiss your cheek. A final ‘Thank you’. 

“100% completed.” 

[shuahoonie]

solace | joshua hong

pairing: non-idol!joshua (svt) x fem!reader

notes: slice of life, fluff, bit of swearing, pet names ft. seventeen, domestic lyf , the one where reader isn’t aware that their definition of comfort is joshua hong— really just self-indulgent because i’ve had a rough week at work.

word count: 2.8k

summary: joshua hong, no matter how busy life can get, will always set aside time for you. no matter where you two both are, what time it was— comfort exists in the mould of him.

joshua hong is solace, personified.

playlist | shuahoonie masterlist

-

life hasn’t been extremely kind to you. first week in your new job and it has already made your life a living hell.

“i mean it’s only been a week,” you said over the phone, trying to appease yourself that maybe it’s just a bad day “maybe it’s just something that i need to get used to.”

you literally just clocked off work when joshua sent you a message, asking how your day was. always like an angel, always in perfect timing.

work was starting to get frustrating and you considered quitting too, but talking to joshua made it bearable for you.

he would send you messages in the morning, would try calling you during your lunch breaks. and if he has time, he would try to visit your place or he would ask you to come over to his.

and when you replied to his text with a sole sad smiley face, he immediately called you.

never in your life would you have expected for shua to be so patient when it came to you, even more so to the people he deeply cared about.

“i don’t know, love,” there are noises on the other side of his line “you’ve been having trouble sleeping.”

“is that yn? tell yn i miss her!” you can hear jeonghan yell on the other line, making you laugh.

“no, tell her yourself!” joshua whines childishly on the other line “it’s my time to be on the phone with her.”

“it’s always your time on the phone with her!” jeonghan whines back. there were a couple of indiscernible words before you heard the phone being passed. “yn!” jeonghan manages to steal the phone from joshua “i miss you! you don’t visit us anymore.”

“had a tough week, bub.” you say softly “i’ll make sure to visit when i have time.”

“how come joshua always gets to see you?” you could feel that han was pouting. “even when we have meetings that run late…” he mutters the latter part but you caught it loud and clear.

“he’s always checking up on me, han,” you whispered all of a sudden, feeling shy. “i actually don’t know how he does it.”

“i know how,” jeonghan says in a teasing manner before you heard the phone being snatched again.

“lovey,” joshua coos “do you want me to call you as soon as you get home?”

“you’ve been really fond of that nickname, huh,” you teased shua, but you could feel yourself turning red.

“only because we’re each other’s lovey,” he murmurs over the phone. “but do you?”

“it’s okay, lovey,” you said, fighting back a smile as you entered the busy subway. “i’m on the train now, i’ll talk to you later.”

“okay, text me when you get home,” joshua says on the other line. “love you.”

you hummed and said “love you too” softly before hanging up.

the train ride home was enough to make you feel numb— maybe it was the exhaustion or maybe it was a bustling friday night. whatever it was, it’s enough for you to forget about the resentment you felt from your job.

with your airpods in, you endured the ride home listening to the curated playlist that you and joshua curated.

you were aware of how your music taste differed from each other— so when home by one direction played, you were a little startled. it’s almost as if you accidentally added the song on the queue.

a small smile was practically tattooed on your face when you saw that it was joshua who added the song to the playlist.

you must’ve done something good in your past life because you can’t possibly think of a reason for you to have joshua hong in this life.

“love you?” jeonghan teases joshua, making him roll his eyes. “what’s the deal with you and yn again?”

“we’re friends, han,” joshua says as he walks over to the other side of jeonghan’s place to grab his water bottle that he left on the kitchen counter.

jeonghan has been friends with joshua for years— he knows when joshua’s trying to avoid something.

“yeah, i know,” jeonghan says following joshua “i mean i’m friends with yn too, but i don’t text nor call her every day.”

“maybe because you just suck at using your phone,” joshua teased han, hoping that his friend would drop the conversation.

“says the guy that barely responds the group chat and has over 500 unread messages?” jeonghan shots back, amused at shua’s insinuation. “face it, shua, ynnie is—“

“she’s special,” shua finishes. “everything just feels lighter around her, you know.”

“ahuh,” jeonghan agrees in a low hum, watching joshua’s expression turn bright as he receives a text update from you. jeonghan knew what joshua felt about you, he’s just unsure if his friend knew it himself. “i know.”

you and joshua have been friends for a little while now— and your friendship with him had stood the test of time. it seemed like it was too good to be true, because he came to your life when everything felt hazy.

you moved to a new place all by yourself, not knowing anyone, trying not to cry as you dropped a piece of kimbap on the convenience store floor— then comes joshua, who happens to be at the very same convenience store and saw how you stared at the piece of kimbap on the floor for a while.

that night at the convenience store, what you needed was a friend or kimbap.

joshua, who was supposed to only buy a quick snack, unconsciously chose to sit and eat at the convenience store instead.

he sat a few chairs away from you, eating his ramen quietly while he watched you pick clean up the mess you made.

after you finished cleaning up— and quietly cursing the universe as today wasn’t going well— you sat back down, fighting back the tears from your eyes and continued to eat your lukewarm ramen.

joshua heard your quiet sniffles while you were eating. he didn’t want to be invasive and ask you if you were okay, but he could sense that you were having a rough day.

joshua has always had a knack when it comes to people— he would always get a sense of what they’re feeling.

he quietly slides you the extra kimbap that he bought for later and says, “i accidentally bought an extra one and i’ll probably forget about it in my fridge if i take it home.” a lie, of course.

as soon as your gaze reaches his, you bursted out crying— which definitely caught shua by surprise.

not knowing exactly what to do, he sat next to you and carefully patted your back every now and then.

“sorry,” you said in between tears, letting out an embarrassed laugh. “i don’t know what came over me.”

“hey, it’s okay,” joshua says comfortingly “you’re okay.”

you hurriedly wiped your tears with your hands, however, it seemed that your tears aren’t quite done yet.

“oh god, this is so embarrassing,” you said, tilting your head back— fanning yourself as you tried to stop yourself from crying. “it’s just a really rough day.”

“it’s okay, you’re safe here,” he gives you a reassuring smile “sometimes, we just really need to let it all out for everything to start making sense again.”

that night at the convenience store, what you needed was a friend or kimbap— the universe gave you both.

as soon as you got off the train station, a familiar physique was leaning against one of the pillars— arms crossed with a bright smile plastered on their face.

“what are you doing here?” you asked, surprised to see him at the station. “weren’t you supposed to be on a date?”

“we see each other at the office everyday,” he scoffed, easily grabbing your tote bag and casually puts on his shoulder. he’s so used to doing it, it’s feasible at this point. “and it’s just with jeonghan. he can live without me, so i left.”

“so, are you saying that i can’t live without you?” you raised an eyebrow at him and he laughs, almost pleased that of your insinuation.

“maybeee,” he practically sings. “c’mon, do you wanna get something to eat?”

“i thought you and jeonghan already ate?” you asked him, linking your arm with his.

“we had snacks,” joshua answers “what do you want to do, love? do you want to eat out or should we just get take out and eat at yours?”

“my place?!” you gasped “i thought we were going to your apartment this time?”

“you have a comfier couch,” joshua mumbles as he pulls away from your linked arms, quietly slipping his fingers in between yours instead. you can’t deny that physical touch brings you comfort— rather, joshua brings you comfort.

“then why did you get that ugly ass white couch then?”

“it’s cute and you know it,” joshua pouts “plus it works well with my living room interior.”

“babe, it’s solid as a rock.”

“so if we ever move in together, you’d force me to throw it out?!”

you practically choked on his statement. “move in?! who said anything about moving in?”

“i think it’s bound to happen anyway,” joshua says casually. “didn’t we make a pact when we were 23?”

“i thought that was just the alcohol talking,” you said quietly, feeling shy all of a sudden.

“i meant every word i said,” joshua smiles at you— the kind that makes your heart beat a little faster, the kind that makes your insides melt. “but i’m also more than happy to yield, if you’re retracting your statement.”

“if we’re 30, and have not found any significant others, should we just get married?” you asked shua after finishing your second bottle of soju.

“i thought you don’t believe in marriages,” shua teases, resting his chin on his dominant hand. his eyes were sparkling in anticipation.

“i don’t,” you smiled at him “but if it’s with you, what’s the worst thing that could happen?”

“okay,” joshua says softly “as long as you’re okay with it, then i’m happy to spend the rest of my life with you.”

you smiled upon hearing what joshua said. “yeah, you’re not getting rid of me that easily, joshua hong.”

“great because i’ve already pictured the perfect proposal.”

you and joshua were quietly eating dinner back at your place— sitting on the living room floor, backs pressed against the couch, with modern family playing in the background.

shua was watching you the whole time as you ate your tteokbokki with a mindless look on your face. he knew that you were checked out and he felt bad that nothing could lift up your spirits.

you were painfully exhausted that you can’t even enjoy your comfort food with your comfort show.

you caught joshua staring at you as you nibbled rice cake slowly. “what?”

“do you want to talk about it?” he asks you softly.

“talk about what?” you feigned innocence. to be fair, you weren’t in the mood to talk about work and the last thing you want was to pester shua with your work rants too.

“c’mon, yn,” he pats the space between you two, urging you to sit closer to him. “you know you can tell me anything, right?”

“mhm,” you hummed as you placed your chopsticks down and snuggled closer to shua— your head resting on the crook of his neck. “i’m just tired,” you say quietly.

“i know, my love,” he whispers, knowing that you weren’t just physically tired. shua knew that your new job was taking everything from you and you didn’t want to make it seem like it is. “i wish there’s something that i can do to make you feel better.”

you lifted your head to turn towards shua. “you’re already doing great, bub,” you said with a fond smile. “having you here with me is enough,” you hummed.

joshua returned the smile, pulling you closer to him— if it was even possible. you two sat in silence, tucked under shua’s embrace.

you’ve always found comfort within joshua hong. when people ask you what he is in your life, you would smile and tell them that he’s your comfort person.

“so, like the love of your life?” ichan asks with a confused look, not really understanding your answer.

“sure, something like that.”

“are you two dating then?” he asks as you two wait for your work computer to finish updating.

“nope.”

“but he’s always at your beck and call?” he clarifies and you nodded. “god, you two are confusing.” chan mutters, leaning back at the office chair.

you laughed. “babe, you’re just saying that because you haven’t met the person who makes you feel comfortable.”

chan playfully scoffs at your comment and says “well, i’m sorry if i haven’t met my soulmate at a convenience store.”

soulmates. maybe joshua hong is your soulmate.

“shuji,” you called his name softly, resting your chin on top of his shoulder.

“hm?” joshua hums as it prompts him to turn his head and look at you— the distance between your faces were unbearably close. “you know i hate that nickname right?”

“i know,” you answered, not moving from your position. “but you still let me call you that.” your chin planted on his shoulder as you practically bit every word that came out of your mouth.

joshua laughs because you’re right. he hates it when people call him that and yet, he doesn’t mind when you do it.

joshua’s attention was back to the tv, watching the modern family episode when mitch and cam got married.

you removed yourself from joshua’s embrace—propping your elbow on the table and resting your head against your hand. you couldn’t help but watch joshua— having him here next you was nothing new but you still can’t believe that someone like him would be so patient around you.

there’s definitely a sense of selfishness that boils inside you. you want joshua to stay in your life forever, but that’s not possible. especially if he finds a significant other.

“yn,” shua calls your name softly, eyes still glued at the tv. “is my face really that great to look at?” he asked teasingly. you scoffed, playfully rolling your eyes. “because ahjumma gave me extra fishcakes because of that.”

“and i thank you because of that,” you grinned.

joshua turns to you, mirroring your position as he props his elbow on the table and rests his head against his hand as well.

“what’s bothering you, my lovey?” shua asks as he tucks a stray piece of hair behind your ear.

“do you love me?” you asked joshua. a bold move on your part— but you only did it because he can either spin it as something strictly platonic or it can become something more.

he wasn’t even caught off-guard. instead, he smiles at your question— as if it was just a normal and casual thing to ask. “i do,” joshua answers because it’s true. “i think i love you a little too much.”

“how much?”

“like i would let you run the ac on full blast,” joshua mutters with a smile on his face, playing with the ends of your hair.

you let out a small gasp, “really?”

“really.”

“but you hate getting cold,” you pointed out.

“yeah, but you love the cold— like right now, it’s freezing here,” joshua laughs as he pulls the sleeves of his hoodie further.

“shit, i didn’t even notice—“ you were about to stand up to turn down the ac but shua pulls you back down.

“it’s okay,” he says softly, “c’mere." joshua pulls you closer to him, similar to the position you were in earlier. this time though, you're sitting between his legs— your back against his chest, his arms wrapped around you.

“shua, let me turn the ac down,” you said, trying to get up but he tightens his arms around you— briefly forgetting how big shua’s arms has gotten.

“no,” he whines childishly “just stay here with me,” he mumbles in your ear. “you’re very warm.”

“i think that’s why i feel hot all the time,” you said nestling in his arms.

“yeah,” joshua chuckles “but i also think you’re a very warm person, ynnie.”

“hm?”

“yeah, i mean you make every room brighter, ynnie. you make everything feel as if you’re the calm in this chaotic world. if i could keep you by my side at all times, i’d do it.”

you rolled your eyes playfully “now, you’re just making fun of me.”

“i’m not,” joshua rests his chin on the top of your head “why do you think jeonghan and seungkwannie kept asking for you?”

“i think it’s because i feed them,” you joked, making joshua snort.

“trust me yn, if i can keep you all to myself, i would.”

“so why don’t you?”

hi hi friends! i know i've been mia, but ya gurl is working 2 jobs now 🥲 as much as i would love to write frequently, i end up only writing a couple of words here and there— and that's when i'm not immediately passed out. i hope u all understand! ♡

[serahlink]

🚨 EMERGENCY COMMISSIONS OPEN🚨 tw // homeless / some med talk but not much

Reblogs are greatly appreciated!!

Making a new post to hopefully get some work for my family and I so we have somewhere to stay for tonight, since work has been very slow lately. I'm Link, and I'm a 22-year old artist, and my family and I (me + my father and younger sibling) have been homeless since November 2021. It's a long story. TL;DR version is at the same time, while I was living with a friend and my dad + younger sibling was on the road (he drove a van at the time) he had gotten into a diabetic coma and was fired by his job. Being fired meant he or my sibling didn't exactly have a home to go back to, as our relatives on both sides refused to help. At the same time, I was going to have to find someplace else since my friends grandmother was entering the late stages of her life and they had to transfer her to the nursery, meaning there was a lot of things his family had to take care of and I couldn't be there. They allowed my father, sibling and I to stay there for two weeks to give us time to find someplace else.

While I was there, I'd been doing commissions to help their family out with food, and since it was either the streets or living under a roof; I told my friend to take us to a nearby motel since we had enough for a day, and we could figure things out from there. So since then, I've been keeping us here by doing commissions ever since. Either of us haven't been able to obtain a job yet due to how hard it is for us to get our documents to get an id (we dont have a car at the moment, and saving money for the room and food is already tough as is), but recently we think we might be able to get my father's ID so he can work, were waiting on his lung condition to recover fully and get money saved up for the documents and all that before we apply to get them. So hope isn't fully lost for us, we just need to take care of some things for a while longer until then.

Recently, things have gotten worse again. We were paying weekly thanks to the help from my followers and commissions I was getting, but when we weren't able to pay for another, we went back to paying daily again. And immediately we were set back. For the past few days, we haven't been able to pay for one let alone food. We were able to pay most of it to at least stay here, thanks to the kindness of the staff, but they called us earlier to tell us if we couldn't pay everything tonight, then we'd have to leave. We owe 120 by 11pm tonight, and I thought maybe making a new post might help us since posting on my other socials hasn't done much for us lately.

My commissions are open, and if you're interested in helping us out via a commission you can contact me through my Tumblr dms since it's the easiest way to get to me. But if you can't help financially, which I totally understand, I know the economy is tough on all of us right now, please don't feel bad or anything. Reblogs also help us a ton, and it always means a lot to us.

For the commission info itself, I have it all packed into this link right here, along with examples of my art and prices. I draw mainly fantasy pertaining to the Dragon Age Series and although I know little to nothing about Baulders Gate, I have done some art of tavs before! I also do DnD work as well, so I'm used to drawing pretty unique characters. I'll also put some examples I have below. If you want something outside of that, I'm sure I can provide, just let me know upon your request! And I think that's all. Much love to you and thank you for reading, I hope you have a wonderful day/night :)

[yesbutmakeitgay]

No One Breaks My Heart Like You

GIF by dailyflicks

Carol Danvers x Reader

We’ve Loved A Thousand Lives

Same beginning, different story every time.

Part 7.5 | (Part 7)

Angst, Injuries, Divorce.

A/N: Best of luck to all of us...

Beta'd by @cordeliasdarling 💜

Word count: 6.7k

Masterlist | This collection | AO3

It’s been weeks since your disastrous break up with Carol, and she has spent every moment of that time trying to reach you unsuccessfully. She can’t track your devices, and you won’t answer any of her calls on your phone or at work.

In a deep moment of defeat, she decides to contact Fury, "Are you missing any agents?" she asks him suspiciously.

Fury doesn’t show any emotion, "Are you asking me if I've misplaced a whole person lately?"

Carol is unsure how to phrase her question without admitting to breaking the rules, "Have you?"

"There is an agent who hasn't come in for a while, is that what you're referring to?"

"Perhaps," The Captain gestures with her arms, "she's about this tall, great at her job, gorgeous."

"Carol, did you lose your wife?" he deadpans.

"My—what?" She tries to play it cool as nerves take over her entire body.

"Oh, come on, I’m not a fool, and you're not that sneaky."

"I have no idea what you're talking about!"

Fury still seems completely unbothered, "She’s always with you when she's off work, you take your vacation at the exact same time, and there's a picture of her in your house."

"It's not a picture of her, it's a picture of us," Carol mumbles, avoiding eye contact.

"Whatever, I already know."

"So, you're not gonna tell me off?"

"She doesn't work for you, it's okay."

Carol shoots him an angry look, "Why didn’t you ever say anything?"

"I figured I'd let you keep it up for as long as possible."

"You could have saved me a divorce!" That certainly catches Fury’s attention.

"Wait, what?"

She shows him two wedding bands, "I have both of these, I’m only supposed to have one!"

"That bad? What did you do?"

"Why do you assume it was my fault?"

"You're the one holding the rings."

Carol puts the bands on the table and responds in an aggressive tone, "She said I don't have enough time for her, which, did she not know she was marrying the single Avenger in charge of protecting the entire universe?"

He squints his eye, "What did she say exactly?"

"Something about my availability to everyone else."

"Did she give you a whole explanation and that's all you got from it?"

Carol remains silent, trying to remember your last conversation, "That's not the point, help me!"

"What do you want me to do?" he responds bluntly.

"I don’t know, page her? Say it's an emergency."

Fury sighs and looks at her with sympathy, "For you, I will try, but you should know that once she's off the grid, she's impossible to track down."

"That's gotta be an exaggeration."

"Like you just said, she's great at her job," he pauses, "my best spy doing desk work, that must have been a tough choice for her, I wonder why she did that," his tone is taunting, making Carol’s features turn to guilt, "I would hope that whoever pushed her to make that decision made up for it by spending lots of quality time with her," he suggests not so subtly.

"That's bullshit, if I had known we didn't need to hide from you—" Carol is interrupted by an alarm going off in Fury’s office.

"Hold that thought, I have to go. I will page her, but I'll stop at five attempts, if you don't hear from me, that's because I didn't hear from her."

He hangs up, and Carol is left alone once again.

A few days later, Carol arrives unannounced to New Asgard, she confidently makes her way to The King’s office and demands, "Take a walk with me."

Valkyrie’s eyes reluctantly travel away from her work to look at Carol, "You think you can just show up and ask for whatever you want? I am a King, I have responsibilities." It is clear in Valkyrie’s voice that she is still not on the best terms with her.

Carol completely disregards Val’s displeasure in favor of getting what she wants, "Like what?" she challenges.

Valkyrie looks around trying to produce a response and coming up empty, "…A walk then."

They take a stroll around the palace, mostly in silence, Val knows Carol just wanted an excuse to look for you in every corner of her Kingdom. After rounding the entire building, they return to The King's office.

"You're missing a ship," Carol points out as they enter.

"I know exactly where all my belongings are, do you?"

"She doesn't belong to me," The Captain murmurs.

Valkyrie swiftly sits on her chair and crosses her legs, "But you learned that the hard way."

"Can you just tell me where she is?"

"Why? So you can piss her off again?" Val bites.

"You have no idea what happened." Carol’s eyes bore into Valkyrie’s, but The King isn’t fazed by the action.

"I have no idea where she is," Valkyrie asserts smugly, "as your friend, let me just tell you, sometimes you can be really stupid. I say it with love," The Captain huffs at the hypocrisy, "and she's not here, at least not anymore."

Carol feels her heartbeat race, "But she was?"

"She stayed for a few days after I picked her up, didn't tell me where she went." The king's assistant knocks on the open door to announce their presence, Valkyrie nods to them and directs herself to Carol, "You should go."

Carol leaves the palace, but decides to stay in New Asgard for a bit, having nowhere else to go.

After a few hours of mindlessly roaming the town, Carol gets a call, "Fury, did you find her?" she answers hurriedly.

"There's been a strange object hovering Earth, can you check it out, please?"

"On it," she accepts, thinking it’ll be a good distraction. She flies to the coordinates and finds a spaceship.

Captain Marvel enters the familiar ship carefully, she points her lit up fist in a general forward direction as she scans every inch of the vessel with her eyes.

She feels someone jump down and land behind her, "What took you so long?" she immediately turns around startled, her mouth slightly agape with surprise, "Did anyone see you come in?" you mock, making her features flatten.

"Very funny," she deadpans, "how long have you been here?"

"Since I left New Asgard."

Her brows furl, "You’ve been here for four weeks?" you simply shrug in response, looking anywhere but at her, "Does Val know you have her ship?"

"Obviously, I wasn't about to steal from The King."

"How come nobody knows where you are?"

"I’m a trained spy, remember? And a damn good one," She walks in, putting her fist and guard down as she relaxes into her surroundings. "Fury called you." It's not a question.   "He thought you were a threat."

"I had to unveil the ship, I was getting bored up here."

"How was I supposed to know you were hiding somewhere outside the Earth's atmosphere?"

You eye her daringly, "You don't recognize the coordinates?" she stares at you in confusion, "Look down, Captain."

She peeks out a window and realizes what you mean, "It’s our home," she barely whispers.

You nod, "When was the last time you went home?"

Your words strike a nerve within her, "Don’t try to guilt trip me, what I do is important," she says between gritted teeth.

You didn't even mean it like that, but her aggressiveness has always been contagious, "Shut the fuck up, Danvers!"

"Hey!" she warns, "I get that you're angry, I get that I hurt you, but you cannot speak to me like that." She takes an offensive stance.

You cross your arms and give her a challenging look, "Why not?"

"Because we have a relationship based on respect."

Her response makes you loudly scoff in disbelief, "Respect? Since when? Since you visit your convenience husband more than you visit me? Since you spend 99% of your time buried in your work somewhere in the middle of space? Since you don't even have the decency to tell me you're coming to Earth to see some coworker's family?"

"They are my friends!" she objects.

"And I am your wife," you retaliate.

Carol drops the power trip, "You are?" she hesitates.   You feel all your confidence disappear, "I hardly think what I did counts as a real divorce."

"But, you want one?" Her voice only grows smaller.

"I don't know, it's not like I wanted to leave you."

She can’t believe she used this reunion to start a fight with you again, "I’m sorry, I don't know what's been happening to me." She gently hugs herself.

"You bit off more than you could chew." You follow her example and compose yourself, your gaze fixated on a wall.

"I promise to be better, what if we don't have to sneak around anymore, what if we could just be together in public? Would that make a difference?"

You respond by giving her a silent look, pleading with her to not toy with your heart anymore.

She approaches you and tries to hold your hand, "Angel."

"What are you doing?" You immediately back away from her touch.

She stops her movements, "I thought that's where this was going."

"It certainly is not."

She hides her face in her palms in shame, "I’m sorry, I’m just gonna go, it's fine, we're fine—"

"We're not fine," you interrupt.

"Right, whatever, bye." She exits with no destination in mind and simply remains floating in space at the mercy of the stars.

Carol has never felt like such a failure before, not when she harshly yelled at Kamala prior to being properly introduced, nor when she couldn't reach Monica, resulting in her being stuck in another universe. Even when she fails, she always knows exactly what she needs to do to fix everything, except for this, except for you.

You decide to turn your brain off and get some sleep, you think you might have to return Valkyrie's ship after this fiasco, but that's a problem for tomorrow.

A while later, Carol’s comms ring, and she picks up out of habit, still zoned out.

"Carol—" a small, quivering voice calls out through the device, followed by heavy pants, it sounds completely terrified.

Carol's eyes shoot open, "Kamala?"

A loud knock on the door wakes you, "Please, open up!"

"Carol?" You murmur under your breath as you get up. Her knocks only get louder and more desperate as you make your way to let her in, "It's four in the morning," you croak, rubbing your eyes.

She quickly enters, "If you choose to live in space you don't get to work in a time zone." It is only once you close the door that you realize she is carrying an unconscious body.

"Tell me you sang her to sleep," you hope, already dreading the scene that’s about to unfold, Carol only stares at you impatiently.   "There's a medical room in the back." You guide her to the room, and she lays Kamala on the bed. You immediately take charge of the situation.

You were always the one patching Carol up after rough missions, and she felt some guilt every time she was unable to return the favor, "What the hell happened to her?" you ask.

"I don't know." Her tone is somewhat apologetic.

You get to work on the girl to the best of your ability. Her injuries, although nonlethal, are enough to give you goosebumps, they seem to have been caused by a weapon, but not any human weapon that you know of. You doubt Ms Marvel was just hanging out in the streets past midnight when an emergency alien attack took place, which leaves you with a single theory, this was a planned mission that went horribly wrong.

"I think she should wake up on her own, I just have to clean her up," you tell Carol, gesturing towards the numerous bruises and cuts on Kamala's body. She chooses to wait outside to not obstruct your work with her pacing.

"Why didn't you go to the Avengers?" you question Carol once you come out of the room, wiping some blood off your hands with a rag.

She halts her movement, but doesn’t make eye contact, "It seemed easier—faster to just keep going up," she couldn't think of anyone else who could help her in the moment, "her mother is going to kill me."

"No more dinner with the Khans for you," you fake a pout, when you see she's genuinely distressed, you clear your throat and straighten your tone, "is this your fault?"

She shakes her head, "It was already too late when I arrived."

"If they didn't call you, then it's not on you," you reassure her. It is only now that you actually take a good look at Carol, her eyes are red, her skin pale, and her back is hunching, "Have you slept? Or eaten? Or sat down in the past month?" There is genuine worry in your words.

She silently stares at you for a moment and mutters, "What does it matter."

"I'll take that as a 'no.'"

"I’m invulnerable." She tries to stand up tall with the little energy she has.

"Which means you can't die, not that you can go on living like…that."

"I’m doing fine," she argues, but you know better than to believe her.

"You're on the verge of tears, this close to collapsing," you gesture with your fingers, "but you are much too stubborn to do anything about it." Your voice remains velvety soft, you can read her like an open book, and she doesn't like that.

"You were always so good at reminding me to take care of my human side."

"You're all human, down to the fuck ups," the small smile that formed on her face flattens, "sit down," Carol looks toward the medical room tentatively, "she's gonna take her time, sit down," you repeat gently.

She obliges, "Are we gonna pretend you didn't just tell me off earlier?"

"We don't have to, but you can't leave now, so there's no point in being hostile." She nods gratefully.

You offer her a cup of tea and a snack, and invite her to take a warm shower, "If you wanna go through the closet, Val has a good selection of sweaters."

You didn’t even realize you fell asleep again, until a beeping sound wakes you up. You open your eyes to see it's Carol's comms, which prompts you to search for her from your spot on the couch. As you focus further, you hear her voice coming from the med room talking with Kamala, and a subtle smile tugs at your lips.

You're about to ignore the sound and go back to sleep, when a thought occurs to you, nobody calls Captain Marvel just to chat, your sense of duty insists you pick up, "Hello?"

The Avengers director recognizes your voice immediately, "Where’s Danvers?"

"Fury?" You panic, he can't know Carol and you are together.

"Is she with you?" he presses, making your palms sweat.

"I, uh, um—"

"I know about you two, you can calm down."

His words make you freeze in place, "You do?"

"Yes, she's not your boss, it's fine." He glosses over it like it’s nothing as he doesn’t have time for this right now. You find such information difficult to process, but you try to leave the implications for later.

"Okay, why are you calling?"

"Do you know where Kamala is?"

You had momentarily forgotten about your impromptu visitor, "Yes."

"Where?" he demands.

"What’s it to you?" you sass him, deciding to be uncooperative given the circumstances that brought the girl to you in the first place.

"She works for me."

"That’s what I thought, but then, it makes no sense how you assigned her a middle of the night mission without any intention to send backup."

"She wasn't alone, she had Bishop!" he argues.

You feel your body’s temperature rise, "Oh, she had Bishop? Another rookie? And where is your archer now?"

Fury remains calm in the face of your anger, "Right here, too shaken up to actually tell me anything that happened."

"Good news for you, if Kamala's mom doesn't have your head on a stick by morning, Belova definitely will," you warn him, "better sleep with your eye open. Kamala is in good hands, I'll send her your way once I decide she's ready." You aggressively end the call.

Carol comes out of the medical room right as you're setting her comms down, "Who was that?" she asks.

"Fury, he wanted to know where Kamala is, but I’m not telling him." Your jaw is stiff with residual rage.

"Why?"

"He put her in danger, I don't trust him with her." You pull both of your legs up on the couch and cross them.

"But he’s your boss," Carol objects, making sure to maintain a gentle tone so as to not anger you further.

"Yeah, and apparently you aren’t, he knows about us." She meets your gaze and gives you a subtle nod.

Your response comes out louder than you expected, "You knew?"

She breaks eye contact, "It’s recent, I asked him about you."

"So what? We never needed to keep it a secret?"

She kneels on the floor in front of you, "That’s what I've been trying to tell you, we don't need to hide anymore."

"You had many opportunities to hide with me, but you always chose to hide from me." Your voice cracks as you feel your skin cool down.

"You should have said no, you should have pushed back," you search for the meaning of her words in her eyes, "when I asked you to quit your job," she clarifies, "I had no right to do that."

You sigh deeply before responding, "The moment you brought it up I decided I would, because I worry the exact same way every time you go on a mission, I figured it would be better if only one of us had to go through that."

Carol’s eyes travel to the ground, "So, are you gonna get back now that we…?"

"I haven't really thought about it," you confess, "about not being with you anymore."

A few hours later, Kamala calls for Carol, and you go check on her. She looks at you as you enter the room with what you can only describe as disappointment.

"I forced Carol to take a nap, so I’m gonna be looking after you for now," you feel the need to explain, she gives you a light nod and a smile, "how are you feeling?"

"Like an alien used my body to mop the floor." Her smile doesn’t go away.

You chuckle at her words, walking fully into the room and closing the door behind you, "I know what that's like, you're doing great, though."

"I didn't know you were a doctor."

"I’m not," you shrug.

"Carol said you're really good at patching people up."

"With Captain Marvel as your partner, you kinda have to get good at it." You inspect Kamala's bandages, they're sloppy, barely hanging on.

"Did she do these?" you ask rhetorically,

"She means well."

"I really should have checked on you sooner, I'm sorry." You get to work changing them all out for fresh ones.

"Are you guys done for good?" she blurts out as you wrap up her arm, making you shoot her a stern look, "Sorry, it's the painkillers," she quickly apologizes.

"I really don't know." You don't know the answer and you don't know if you wanna talk to a kid about it. You continue to patch her up as an awkward silence takes over.

When you’re almost done, she speaks again, "Can I tell you something?"

Her timid tone makes you worry, "Sure."

"After my first unintentional mission with Carol, Fury asked her to take me in for a few months to train me," her eyes fixate on her lap, "I lived on her ship, and we went on lots of missions together. Once a month, she would make a point to bring me back to Earth, so I could be home and see my family, I thought maybe she became exhausted of having a teenager in her home all the time, so she would use that break to rest, but I think she actually used that time to spend with you."

You nod while listening to her, you knew about this already.

"Eventually, I joined the Young Avengers and moved into the compound, I would constantly ask Fury to let me visit Carol, and I guess he found it cute, so he would help me show up unannounced in her ship, I thought I was doing a good thing, I thought she must get lonely…"

You did not know about that, your mind starts racing.

"What I’m trying to say is, I think Carol stopped spending time with you for fear I might show up at an inconvenient time," your features change abruptly into something she can't quite recognize, she starts to ramble, unable to stop herself, "I’m really sorry, I didn't know, I was just trying to be a good friend. On mother's day, I had to practically beg her so she would accept my invitation, please don't be angry." Her eyes meet yours again and she looks so scared for her life.

You cover your mouth with both hands to avoid saying anything impulsive and take a few deep breaths as you collect your thoughts, your delay only making Kamala grow more nervous.

"Thank you for telling me," you hesitate, carefully measuring your every word, "you couldn't have known, of course I’m not mad at you," your heavy breathing and your nails digging into your palms exposing your real feelings, "I’m gonna bring you lunch."

She mouths, "Okay," trying to calm herself down, and you exit the scene as fast as your feet allow you. When you come back, she's dozed off again.

Carol comes out of the bedroom after her much needed nap, you’re sitting on the couch and don’t bother greeting her before demanding, "I spoke to Kamala, is it true?" Carol becomes instantly alert, "You stopped letting me come visit you for fear of her showing up?"

"Yes," she simply concedes.

"You never said anything."

"I didn't want to seem ungrateful, and she hangs onto my every word, I felt like I had a responsibility towards her."

"And, when I confronted you?"

"She was right there, I couldn’t." To both of your surprise, this conversation plays out a lot more civilized than you expected, given the topic.

"What about earlier?"

Carol exhales heavily, "She's just a kid, she wanted to spend time with me, I don't think she should be blamed for that."

"Hold on," you stand up, the gears in your brain turning, she's confused but decides to let you go through your process, "Fury was the one helping Kamala in and out of your ship, right?" you continue.

"Uh, yeah."

"And he knew about us all along?" Carol nods, trying to catch up with your train of thought, "He also knew when I was with you because I wasn't at work."

She takes a few steps closer to you, "What’s your point?"

"There is no way Kamala and I would have run into each other unless he wanted us to, and we never did." The puzzle pieces finally fall into place.

Carol flares up, "That son of a bitch!"

"Calm down, Captain Marvel."

"He was messing with me, on purpose." Her voice goes up an octave.

You have inadvertently unleashed a monster with your plausible deductions, "You don't know that, I’m sure he has better things to do."

"Like sending his teenagers on a midnight run to get their asses kicked?"

"Okay, that wasn't his brightest moment, but still."

"Who’s side are you on?" Carol’s powers only become more aggressive.

"I’m on the side of 'this is Valkyrie's ship,' and if you throw a fire tantrum I’m gonna be the one paying for it." You set your foot down on the very real implications of her behavior.

In an instant, you both snap your neck in the direction of Carol’s comms that still rest on the couch, you reach for the device, and she slaps your wrist out of the way, you grab her arm with your other hand, and she lights it up so you immediately let go, "That's cheating!" you yell, making her laugh. Taking advantage of her distraction, you kick her arm sending the device flying into the air and catching it behind you, stuffing it in your back pocket.   Carol follows your movement with her eyes and stares at your ass for a bit afterwards. A month ago she would have reached for the device without a second thought, but today, she wouldn't dare, still, that doesn't stop her from being a tease and biting her lip at the sight.

"Perv," you snark, knowing exactly what she’s doing.

She cocks a grin, "When you have something for so long and then lose it all of a sudden, you're bound to miss it, I’m all human, after all," she uses your own words to taunt you, "come one, give me a little spin."

You give her a death stare instead, "Are you sure you want those to be your last words?"

"Sorry." She feigns remorse, her grin still plastered on.

You turn around and walk to the kitchen with a huff, knowing you’re giving her what she wants. In times like these, it's nice to be appreciated. Her smirk turns into genuine delight, underneath her depraved ruse, she's happy to know you're still willing to play along with her.

You start slicing some veggies, much to her confusion, "I thought Kamala already ate?"

"It's for us, you dumbass."

"Oh," she's pleased, 'us,' sounds so sweet coming from your lips, "let me help you," she offers, and it’s now your turn to smile as you observe her every move.

You fall into a good rhythm cooking together until the ship’s door opens, triggering you both into combat mode, Carol's fists light up, and you grab the biggest knife you can find in a vice grip.

King Valkyrie waltzes into her ship, making you exhale in relief and put your weapon down.

"Val?" Carol calls to get her attention, Valkyrie turns in your direction, and you can immediately tell she’s pissed.

"I need my ship back," she orders.

"You promised you weren't gonna track me," you protest in return.

"And I didn't for a whole month," Val interjects, "that’s how good a friend I am, but your boss is on my ass about getting you back home, something about a double assassination attempt," she explains as she closes the door.

"A what?" Carol utters.

"Don’t worry about it," you mumble, knowing what Val is referring to.

"And I could really live with not having to deal with your shit for once," The King continues with a weak snark.

Carol can’t help but tease her, "Since when do you let Fury push you around?"

"You see my face?" Val asks rhetorically, "Do I look amused?" She is not in the mood to be messed with.

You bite the inside of your cheek, watching their exchange, "Do you wanna—?" you gesture for Carol to continue working in the kitchen and guide Val to walk further into the vessel, "Double assassination? That's a bit much."

"He may have been exaggerating," Val shrugs.   "If it were up to me, we would be out of here in no time, but we have an extra passenger." You open the door to the medical room to reveal a sleeping Kamala.

"Shit! What did you do to her?" Valkyrie exclaims.

"I saved her life," you hush with pride.

Val lowers her voice to match yours, "She looks awful."

"You should have seen her when she arrived."

"Poor thing," Valkyrie slowly closes the door so her shock doesn't wake Kamala up, "so, are you two working together for little Marv's sake?"

"Yeah, Carol seems convinced that everything is Fury's fault."

"This?" Val points to Kamala’s door alarmed.

"Well, yes, but also with us," you hesitate.

"How so?"

_____

Carol, Valkyrie, and you are sitting at the table eating together, Val agreed to have a taste after you reassured her you did most of the cooking.

"Explain it to me again," The King asks, still unable to grasp Carol’s reasoning.

"Fury has been letting Kamala into my ship at random times so I grow paranoid of sneaking around with my wife."

"That makes no sense, did you talk to him about it?" Valkyrie responds, prompting Carol to shoot you an angry look.

"I took her comms," you tell Valkyrie, "she’s so livid, there is no way for that conversation to end well, regardless of his answer." Val hadn't noticed Carol's temper, she's good at concealing it, but she can't keep anything hidden from you, you know her much too well.

Your meal is interrupted by a beeping sound coming from Valkyrie’s pocket, "Speak of the devil." She silently excuses herself as she gets up to answer, walking towards the bedroom for some privacy, "What do you want, Nicholas?" despite your efforts, you can only hear half of the conversation, "Yes I am here."

Carol and you follow Val with your eyes until she's out of sight and you can no longer hear her voice.

"We can't leave until Kamala gets better," Carol almost commands you.

"I know that."

"We’re gonna need to stall." Her tone turns suggestive.

A devilish smirk forms on your face, "You got it, Captain." A rush of excitement takes over your body, it almost feels like old times, plotting and sneaking around.

With a loud swing of the door, Val comes back out and announces, "Alright, that's settled, I’m bringing you all home and then taking my ship with me."

Carol leans in to whisper in your ear without taking her eyes off Valkyrie, "Distract her, I have an idea."

You stand and get really close to Valkyrie to take her undivided attention, "But, what about Kamala?" As soon as you speak, Carol stealthily makes her way to the ship's engine.

"I am awfully sorry, but I really don't have time for this, her parents will have to forgive me," Val responds with no real remorse.

"What would Thor think about your decision?" You try to provoke her.

Val scoffs, "Do not bring the beefcake into this."

"So, you're really just gonna let Fury tell you what to do?"

"Whatever allows me to be back home and out of this mess the fastest."

"You’re growing soft, King," you mock.

"You’ll get old one day, too."

"I bet, how old are you this year? Five thousand and three?" Valkyrie begins to make her way to the control panel when Carol comes back up, panting.

"Oh, hey, you're still here?" Carol loudly asks, Val eyes her with suspicion as she keeps walking, "I was just making sure that your ship was all set to return home, turns out we're really low on gas, won't even make it halfway." She fights to catch her breath.

Valkyrie stops with a huff and turns to stare at you both, she's not stupid, "Look at you two conspiring assholes, almost made me forget you're in the middle of filing for divorce." Carol and you look at each other and smile.

"I’m sorry, Val, but we can't go back yet," you state in the firmest tone you can manage.

Valkyrie crosses her arms and sucks on her teeth as she realizes you’ve outplayed her, "Fine, do whatever you want, but I’m not dealing with this anymore," she takes her comms and gives them to you to add to your now growing collection of other people's devices, "I need a drink and a long bubble bath, do not even think about disturbing me." She takes a brand new bottle of Scotch from the kitchen and enters the bathroom.

Carol hadn't felt this good in a long time, the rush of pulling a half thought out plan followed by the satisfaction of it working out just right, with the added bonus that she got to do it by your side, "Good job," she congratulates you.

"Likewise." You have that smile on your face, the one that made Carol fall for you all those years ago, the one she has missed so dearly, not just in the past month, but long before that.

You go back to finishing your lunch in a somewhat comfortable silence. After a moment, Carol speaks, "It wasn't all about Kamala visiting at random," you look at her with a frown, "every time I saw you, I couldn't shake the fear that it might be the last."

"And not seeing me at all was a better choice?" you retort.

"Everyone else could come and go, but I could never deal with losing you, I don't know what I was thinking, I made you a vow and I couldn't keep it, I feel like such a failure." There is something in her eyes that you can’t fully identify, woe, perhaps.

"Why were you so adamant about blaming Fury for this?" You find some respite in knowing that, deep down, she didn’t actually believe it to be true.

"It was easier that way, I didn't have to admit that I’m scared that way," you give her a flat hum in response, "I’m really sorry, I don't expect you to forgive me, but please know that I am very, truly sorry, it's all my fault and I’m owning up to it, as soon as Kamala is better we can go home, and you don't have to see me ever again, if that's what you want."

It would break her heart if you said you didn’t want to see her anymore, fortunately, or not, you refrain from responding and finish the rest of your meal quietly contemplating her every word.

There is so much you wanna say, so many questions you want to ask her, but, would it even change anything?

As much as you want to lift her chin up and reassure her that you can work things out and everything is going to be okay, as much as wish, and hope, this isn’t something you can do on your own, you learned that the hard way, and it hit you like an alien mopping the floor with your body.

Despite your aching chest, you can’t just give her what she wants, it would come at too high a price from you, and you know you deserve better than that.

A few days later, you check on Kamala and conclude that she is stable enough to sustain the trip back. You come out of the room to an awaiting Carol, "I think she's ready to go home," she nods in response, "what did you do with the fuel? Because we're gonna need it about now." With Valkyrie having politely locked herself up in the bedroom since the night she arrived, it’s been on you to take charge once again.

Carol begins to think of all her options, "I’ll figure something out, don't worry about it."

"I worry about a lot of things when it comes to you." You tentatively walk closer to her on the couch.

She looks up at you with curiosity, "Like what?"

"Like if you're eating the right amount, or working too hard, or whether I'll ever be able to trust you again," you mumble the last part.

"I said I’m sorry, what more can I do?" she sighs.

"'Sorry' is not enough, Carol," you no longer have the energy to yell at each other, "what if Dar-Benn had said sorry, would that have made it all okay?"

Her features turn stern as she objects, "She tried to destroy every place I call home."

You look at her with sadness in your eyes, "Sometimes, I feel like that's exactly what you're doing to me." You slump on the other end of the couch and rub your temples.

"What if I took some time off?" she blurts out, making you snap your neck in her direction and you heartbeat race.

"What about your job?"

"I could ask Monica and Kamala to take over for a bit," she suggests nonchalantly.

"That doesn't sound right."

"I can talk to Val."

"She’s a King, she won't just take over because you asked." She seems too comfortable delegating the duties of the strongest Avenger.

"What about The Guardians?"

"The Guardians?" you repeat, "yeah, right."

She runs out of people she’s willing to sacrifice for you, so she gets a better idea, "Then, move into my ship with me!" Your brain stops working and you're unable to respond for an instant, "I don't hear a 'no,'" she insists.

"I didn't say 'yes'"

"What would it take?" you remain silent with a piercing gaze, "I’ll do anything, please." She turns her whole body to face you.

You feel very privileged to be seeing Captain Marvel begging, it makes you feel special knowing she's doing it just for you, so you give her a chance, "Soundproof your room."

"Done," she responds immediately.

"I wanna meet Yan," you continue.

Carol is taken aback with surprise, "Really?"

"He’s the most beautiful man in the universe."

That’s all it takes to convince her, "Okay, yeah, sure."

You worry your lip between your teeth and take much longer to speak this time, "I still want a divorce," you whisper, almost able to hear her heart breaking all over again, she nods sadly and her eyes travel to the ground.

Without any fuel left, Carol’s solution to get you back on Earth is to push the vessel from the outside herself.

You arrive safely to the Avengers compound and help Kamala into the med bay to let an actual doctor treat her for the rest of her recovery. Once you make sure Kamala is taken care of, and Carol has refueled Valkyrie’s ship, you get back in to make your way to New Asgard. All too quick for Fury to intercept.

As soon as you arrive to the Kingdom, Valkyrie exits her ship and all but kicks you out along with her, "I would love to say it was a pleasure, but it really wasn’t," she deadpans, retrieving her comms from you, much too exhausted to make her annoyance noticeable.

Carol and you both know she’s exaggerating, but you also know that you exhausted her trust, you’d better not need anything from her for the next three to five years.

It is only now that Carol realizes a flaw in your trajectory, as you take in her frown, you begin to work things out yourself,  "We’re stuck here," you say her thoughts out loud.

She hesitates slightly before responding, "There is one option…" It’s almost like a pre apology.

"Seriously?" You squint your eyes in dread, succumbing to your faith.

Carol picks you up bridal style and flies off. It only takes a few minutes for you to land on the front lawn of your shared home. She gently puts you down on the ground, and you step away from her, taking a moment to recompose yourself from the intimacy of being carried by your ex.

"Thanks," you say awkwardly, stretching your neck.

She gives you a tight lipped smile, "No problem," you both stand there in silence, unsure of how to act, "so, is this goodbye then?" she crosses her arms, bracing herself for your departure.

"No, I’m moving in with you," you state matter of factly, the confusion in her face is evident.

"What about the divorce?"

"Oh, yeah, we gotta do that." You had forgotten for a second, flying at Captain Marvel speeds always renders your mind hazy.

She retreats further into herself, lowering her gaze, "We can go first thing tomorrow."

You cradle her face with both hands, gently caressing her cheeks until her eyes meet yours, "I am giving you another chance to offer me that ring in the future, to help me trust you again."

Her eyes glimmer like the brightest stars, she turns her face to kiss one of your palms and leans into your touch, "I won't let you down this time, I promise."

@wolf79

[octuscle]

hey mate, just got back to Stansted from Majorca and fuck i don’t wanna go back to uni. i wish i didn’t have to leave this chav body and go back to studying i just enjoy this way too much. And being able to just not worry about work or being clean or anything has been amazing! would be a real shame if i couldn’t turn back 😏

Mate, I'm heartbroken. But your last persona has already been pre-booked. I can't return that one to you. But go to the baggage claim, I'll see what I can do.

After waiting for half an hour, you start laughing. Fuck, where are your thoughts! Apart from your hand luggage, you didn't have anything with you. You grab your bag, leave the security area and look for a place where you can smoke a cigarette. Holy crap, vacation is a cool thing. But why are you not allowed to smoke on planes anymore? Drinking is okay, too. Hehehehe! You briefly check the connections on your cell phone. There's a bus leaving from the Aiport Coach Station in 20 minutes. You can do that. You can even manage a second smoke. When you ask the bus driver for a ticket, he waves you off. Are you new? Employees don't need a ticket. You have no idea what he's talking about. But hey, you don't force him to take your money. Fortunately, the bus is pretty empty. Amazing, actually… "Next stop Marks Tey Railway Station". What the hell? Where the hell is that? You go up to the driver and ask him if this isn't the bus to Liverpool Street in London. The driver grins. And asks you what you want in London. If you don't want to go home, as usual. Of course, right. Or how? Why do you live in Marks Tey? And where the hell is that? "Bruv, must have been a tough day for ya," says the driver. "get some rest, i'll make sure ya don't miss yor stop." You say thank you, take your seat again, and soon fall asleep.

"Connor, we're here!" the driver calls. "Thank you, mate," you reply, grabbing the bag of sneakers you bought today in the duty free area and walking to the platform. The bus was late, you only have five minutes left. Okay. It's 20 minutes. The train is also late. There's even enough time to get a can of Dr. Pepper and a pack of cigarettes and smoke another fag.

It's only eight minutes to Colchester Station. Just enough time to take a quick look at a newspaper that has been left lying around. The job at the airport is tough, but well paid. And you have a lot of fun with your colleagues. You can't imagine having an office job. You need the smell of kerosene on the tarmac in front of the terminal. Only the way in the morning and in the evening sucks. But the apartment is cheap. And your boyfriend is still studying at the University of Essex. But if things go well, you can soon persuade him to finally give up his studies and take the job as a tanker driver at the airport. Then you would have three hours more a day to fuck! You've got a boner again. You can't wait until your college boy puts on your hiviz gear. If he's going to give you a blowjob, he should at least look and smell like a real man. Just like you do…

Nice pic found @legrand89

[satantica]

someone hitting on you — with haikyu boys

characters: coworker!kuroo, roommate!oikawa

cw: fem!reader

coworkers!kuroo

“What?” you asked irritated by Kuroo staring at you with a smirk on his face. “Just trying to figure out if you are this tough at home.” You stared back at him wordlessly saying to fuck off. “I swear you are at your sweetest at home” Kuroo finally turned to his computer but never got the smirk off his face.

“Hey, Yn. I need your help with filling out these forms.” It was your coworker who made working in the office less insufferable although you couldn’t say that it was just a friendly intention. “Yeah, sure” you smiled at the man who made Tetsurou wait to start a small talk again. “I can help you with that. She’s already all truly evil with getting all these papers done. Wouldn’t want to see a murder right next to my desk” Kuroo rolled his chair over to be closer to your coworker than you were. “I really want Yn to help me with this” the guy said obviously confused. “Oh, that’s really not a problem. I wasn’t busy anyway.” Tetsurou smiled disarmingly while taking all the papers from your coworker.

You were observing interested in what was going to happen next. Kuroo has never been that extremely friendly to anyone. He was always saying that this job was never going to be his future but yet he was still there sarcastically treating everyone especially you. “So, Yn, I was just wondering if you are busy this evening” your coworker interrupted your track of thoughts.

“I—“ you started. “She can’t.” Tetsurou was still looking at the forms he usurped. “Why are you speaking on my behalf?” It was unbelievable. Kuroo was already a pain in the ass but that was way out of line. “You forgot about our date tonight?” Tetsurou looked at you finally distracted from looking at the forms. “What?” you asked losing you patience. “Oh excuse her she almost forgot with all this work. I asked her almost a week ago if she would go with me to this new italian place.”

Tetsurou even remembered your phone call to you friend and you telling how much you wanted to go try italian food but had to work. “You didn’t ask me, moron” you said and watched the coworker walking away. “Heartbreaking. Sure I did. You just never liked the idea. But don’t worry we will work on this. Now please stop distracting me, I am trying to help our coworker, so he wouldn’t steal my date.”

roommate!oikawa

“Tooru, what the fuck. When are you going to go to sleep?” you said furiously looking at the volleyball player. Oikawa was drilling the screen “This tone doesn’t scare me, sweetie. It’s the last match.” You stood up “You said that 40 minutes ago and I didn’t see the lights go off.” Tooru almost started the answer when your cell rang. “Who can be calling you this late?” Oikawa looked up in confusion. “Watch your match” you said and answered the phone.

“Yyynnnnn, honey, you finally picked up. Listen, before you say anything, I wanted to tell you that I loooveeeee yooouuuuu.” The drunk voice was very familiar despite that it was an unknown number. “Is that your fucking ex? Give me the phone” Oikawa paused the match and jumped out of the bed. “What?No” you tried to resist so Tooru wouldn’t reach the phone. “Listen, fucker, you are not allowed to call this number. Isn’t it fucking obvious that if someone blocked you they don’t want to hear your bullshit. You had your chance so suck it up and stop bothering my precious roommate. Ciao!” Oikawa gave you the cell back.

“What the fuck was all that?” you were waiting for an explanation. Tooru was closing his laptop and innocently glanced at you a little surprised “What? I’m very protective of my space. Luckily, you’re a part of this room so I think I’m kinda protective of your stupid ass too.” You were still shocked with his reaction “I didn’t ask you to do this.” Oikawa turned to you and made face full of true suffer and almost whined “And that’s all what a knight gets for saving the princess.” You rolled your eyes and then noticed Tooru’s clothes “Oh my god, you are sleeping in this shirt for two months. Tooru, that’s gross even for you.” Oikawa looked confused and gave you a frown “Do you want me to take it off?”

You giggled but felt a bit excited by that offer “Yes, sir. I missed those abs. Haven’t seen them in 7 hours and 34 minutes.” Your roommate covered the body with his hands being absolutely terrified “Why wasn’t I warned that I would have to live with such a pervert? If only I knew that overprotective guys turn you on.” You opened your mouth pretending to be offended by the comment “That wasn’t your move on me? I happily thought that words “you had your chance” meant it was your turn. I’m so sorry, mister protector, for misinterpretation of your speech.” You noticed a quick serious look on Oikawa’s face as you said it. He was getting in the bed saying only “I thought you desperately wanted to sleep.”

[penvisions]

garnish {chapter 7}

Pairing: Chef! Joel Miller x Bartender! Reader

Summary: Reeling from a tense encounter with your professor, your emotions get the best of you. Self-destruction always makes for a good show to coworkers who don't have the whole picture.

Word Count: 4.9k

Warnings: violence, language, threatening behavior, misogynistic behavior, sexist language, threatening ultimatum, abuse of power, academic stress, academic anxiety, degrading talk from male characters, self-destructive behavior, home invasion, attempted break in, description of injuries, blood, injuries in the kitchen, dangers of sharp knives, intense emotions, readers internal monologue gets apathetic, reader has depressive and isolating thoughts, talk of injuries, self-depreciation, secret relationship, work relationship, power dynamics (due to job rankings), sexual content, allusions to sexual content, allusions to past feelings of inadequacy, reader gets in her head about life path, reader is having a tough time ngl, invasion of personal space, restaurant lingo, triggers associated with the food industry, smoking, cigarettes, use of tobacco, childhood trauma, reader reveals parentage issues, abandonment issues, past trauma, major angst

A/N: been struggling with this chapter for real, y'all. but the remainder of this fic is outlines and i'm beyond excited to get down to the nitty gritty with it. hope this feeds you well and happy holidays ♡

ao3 link || series masterlist || main masterlist || kofi

“Yes, my brother. He’s been keeping a low profile lately, trying to avoid suspicion that could land him in the hands of the authorities. He’s explained to me that you’re under the impression that he came onto you too strongly for your comfort and decided to submit a police report against him with the help of your boss.”

Surprise colored your features, not expecting this to be the reason why you weren’t being considered for something that would further your academic career, help you to establish yourself in your field of study.

“He put his hands on me in two different situations. He didn’t back off when I verbally told him I wasn’t interested. Then he proceeded to put his hands on me, attacked me outside of my place of work.”

“That’s what he said you would play it off as, but seeing the way that you interact with the gruff boss of yours, playing hard is what seems to be your prerogative.”

“If you want the internship, you need to drop the report. Tell them it was a lover’s spat or something, I’m not really too concerned with how you spin it. But drop it, or I will deny your application and tell my colleagues that while you’re a gifted student, you stir up trouble.”

You watched your phone ring for the umpteenth time. The name of the restaurant popping up, Millie’s name, Joel’s name, Mary’s name. A text from each of them in quick succession.

But you were numb, still seated in the chair across from the desk in the classroom. The sun had set already, the warm lights of the lampposts scattered around the campus the only source. The door still resolutely closed after your professor had left after delivering his two choices for you.

Scrambling as if waking up from a dream, you rushed through the campus and made your way to work.

“Use your safety words!” You shouted, disguising the rising of your voice at the sharp sting of the knife blade slicing through your skin in the heated words. You watched as the slice from the knife turned white before the cells caught up and blood began to bead, spilling from it quickly. The cutting board became stained, and blood made a sticky webbed pattern of splatter on the blade.

“I said behind, it’s not my fault you didn’t hear me!” The new guy had the audacity to raise his voice back at you. His face contorting into something ugly as he dropped the façade of keeping his cool.

“I would’ve heard you if you did say it!” You snarled as you whipped around, the towel normally kept tucked at your hip wrapped tight around your hand. Blood blossomed through the fabric almost immediately. You brandished it at the man. “This wouldn’t have happened if you had proper etiquette!” 

“Don’t blame me for not knowing what the hell you’re doing!”

You took a step toward him, good hand about to fly out and grip the front of his shirt. But you were stopped by the sound of the office door opening. Joel Miller filled out the doorway completely, his broad shoulders nearly brushing each side and it would be so easy a reach for him to touch the top of it. He glared around the kitchen, eyes hardening when they landed on the sight of you clutching a towel to a bleeding hand.

You had snuck in the day before, after the stressful interaction with your professor. The restaurant had been too busy to steal away any time with him and you were gone before he had been able to step outside of the kitchen. Overwhelmed and on autopilot for most of the night as the words of your professor echoed in your mind. You had texted him a perfunctory message, saying you had a migraine and would see him the next day and then proceeded to call Nia and vent to her over two bottles of wine that had been too sweet for your empty stomach.

You had snuck in today too, knowing he had to make an order before service started. This was your first time seeing him directly in nearly three days.

“What’s with all the hollerin’?” His eyes were hard, the brown of them dark as he took in the scene, the emotion and tension in the air. The sight of you worked up and a snarl pulling up one corner of your lips.

Before you could even open your mouth, the new guy was speaking in a mocking tone.

“Little miss bartender herself, chef.”

“I wouldn’t have if you had used your fucking safety words.” The words were low, vicious as your patience wore thin. You didn’t need this, especially not today. It had been hard enough to get into the headspace for work, let alone show up, and now you’re injured because some asshole thought he didn’t need to let people know where he was at as he moved around the kitchen space.

The already silent kitchen seemed to grow even more quiet at the harsh words that had fallen from your mouth. Taken aback by the breaking of your normally cool and collected demeanor, in face of the attack all those weeks ago, this was the only instance where you showed your raw emotions. Joel had taken a few steps from the doorway and began to make his way toward your station. His feet stilled when you spoke, the way you did so giving him pause. The manner in which the words had fallen from you stoked real worry deep in his chest. You never raised your voice, let alone spit words out in such a heated way.

Save for that one time you ripped him a new one about his inappropriate behavior when you had first started helping out in his kitchen. You were always polite and professional, cordial and jovial with those you were on closer terms with. This….this was foreign and it had warning bells going off in his head immediately. He hadn’t even seen you slink into the kitchen, the last concrete contact he had with you about maybe being late for work.

He was about to say something, to break up the confrontation when the new guy decided to dig his heels in and make an even bigger mess out of the situation. Joel noticed the way you didn’t step back as the younger man’s features morphed into a cocky grin and he took a step closer to you, getting into your personal space.

“You knew I was behind you, sweetie, you always have an eye on me and push that nice ass out toward me. Don’t play dumb. I know you like what you see. Too bad I don’t waste my time on pathetic, easy girls like you.”

The silence in the kitchen was deafening, the tension thick as everyone stopped what they were working on and watched you two stare each other down. It was no secret he hadn’t made any friends in the three weeks he had been here, too full of himself for people to want to talk to him. From the glares being aimed at him now, the feelings of ire flowing from everyone else in the kitchen. Joel felt the nerve in his jaw jump as he accessed the scene alongside everyone. He wanted to step in, but he felt frozen on the spot, his emotions a whirlwind inside of him and his anger making his mind blank out.

“Fuck this.”

His words stung, as much as you wish they didn’t. The entire week taking its toll on you and culminating  into an overwhelming tidal wave that finally crested and made an impact. You felt angry, hot tears prick at your eyes. You hated that they were visible in the fluorescent lights of the kitchen and that everyone could see the shine of them as you felt your face heat up. That Joel could see them when you frantically glanced around the room, trying to keep them at bay.

A smug grin on the man’s face was the last thing you saw before you turned on your heel and walked out the back door. You let it slam behind you as you walked past the dumpsters and the recycling bins lined up along the back of the building and some of fence that lined the back lot for employee parking.

Digging the keys out from underneath your apron, you unhooked them from your belt loop and unlocked your car. You didn’t look back when you heard the door open, just hopped into the driver’s seat and drove off from the restaurant.

The waiting room was crowded with screaming children and crying babies. An assault on your already overwhelmed senses. At the sight of blood dripping down the length of your arm, a nurse at the front desk hopped up from her chair and tended to you before taking your information and telling you to wait for a room to get stitches. That it would be wait, they were busy. You nodded, taking your injured hand and pride and settled into a vinyl chair with silent tears trailing down your cheeks.

Alone.

Always alone.

Fighting for the smallest things, always fighting, always trying, always pushing yourself.

Seemingly for no reason.

Everyone had someone, waiting with them, waiting for them. But your apartment was empty, your friends at work. No text sent out to let them know what had happened because it would be hours before anyone saw it. Evening, before you would inevitably return to wallow in the confines of your own apartment to nurse your bruised ego and aching heart.

I think I need some space, I’m sorry.

The woosh of the message sending was lost in the sounds of the waiting room. A couple close by, whispering to each other. Looked like the guy had broken his arm, holding it tight to his body. The girl fussing over him in a way you wish someone would pay attention to you. Joel was…he was great. When not at work, when in your own little bubble of connection and creation together. But he was an absent texter, would call and leave messages on your phone during class times, but they were mostly silence followed by a huff before the dial tone.

You weren’t sure what that was about. He had far more going on in his life. A restaurant to run, family in town, family out of town, an old business he kept up with, friends he would see on a semi-regular basis.

But you?

Alone. No family nearby or in general. Nothing but school that seemed to have been a giant mistake to continue. A job field you hadn’t wanted to return to. A man who could only seem to give you half of himself when not at work. Different personal spaces and paces of life, shared moments that always came to an end far too soon only to be swept under the rug when clocked in.

And it hurt, dammit.

He didn’t respond. And you hadn’t expected him to. It was service hours, after all.

It hurt, even as your heart pleaded at you to give him a call and ask him to come sit with you.

You called the manager as you turned into your apartment complex parking lot. The gate squeaking as it closed behind your truck. The hospital had seen you in three hours, the tirage taking a while despite actively bleeding. But you had shiny new stitches that stretched from the top of your left index finger knuckle to the middle of your palm in a painful way, twelve all in all.

You explained to her that you didn’t want to file any complaints or for workers comp but would need the week off to get stitches and let the injury heal a bit before you handled anything confidently. She agreed to pay you for the missed shifts, not taking it out of your PTO as they hadn’t had any issues with your attendance in the year you had worked there. You thanked her and apologized for any inconvenience once again.

You ignored the sound of a car pulling up along the curb outside the gate, used to random people parking around to get to the concert hall a few blocks away or a visitor for one of the other many apartment buildings lining both sides of the street.

“Just…expect to be taken off of prep. Chef doesn’t take lightly to people who bail, you know that.”

“Heard, see ya in a week.”

You were just out of the shower, having tried to keep your injury out of the spray of the hot water. You had asked them not to wrap it up as you got discharged, telling them you were going to shower the second you got home. They sent home the appropriate dressings and instructions on how to keep it all clean and avoid infection.  You were comfy in a large T-shirt with some hiking graphics on the back of it and a pair of boy shorts, just stepping into your slippers when there was a knock on your door.

You sauntered over to it, tired from the day and a little loopy from the cortisone shot they had given you at the hospital. When you pulled the door open you were greeted by the large figure of Joel. The crown of curls around his head lit up from a light post further down by the curb.

“Wh-why are you here?” You let your shock show in the slight parting of your lips, the heavy exhale at the image of the man you were yearning for displayed right in front of you. As if you had summoned him with thoughts alone.

“You got hurt,” He shuffled on his feet, bringing a hand up to rub at the back of his neck as he looked at the visible stitches on your left hand. His other one held a large paper bag, but you were more focused on the nervous energy he was exhibiting. As if he was worried he wasn’t supposed to be here, knew he wasn’t supposed to be here and hadn’t been able to keep away. You had been holding it close to your chest, not wanting to accidently knock it on anything as you walked around. “Wanted to check on ya.”

“I told you I needed some space.” You moved to begin swinging the door shut but his free hand shot out and stopped the motion easily, thick fingers and wide palm spanning the wood.

“I came to check on you.” He said with a little more force, reminiscent of him being in the kitchen as calling for hands or for dishes right that fucking second. When you didn’t move or say anything he cleared his throat and talked on, softer now. “Brought you some food. Your stomach is prolly turning from havin’ nothing in it when they gave you the shots needed for stitches. I know you might not be hungry or able to eat but it’ll be there for you when you want it.”

“How-“ You found yourself stepping back as he advanced into the doorway and then a few paces into the apartment. The front door opened up directly into the living room, the kitchen just beyond it, separated by a breakfast bar and the small doors that kept the washer and dryer hidden. He set a hefty paper bag on the couch underneath the window beside the door. The scent of greasy Chinese food made your stomach gurgle to life and your mouth water.

“Used to be a contractor, seen my fair share of bad injuries. There was a lot of blood left on the cutting board, just figured.” He looked around over the top of your head and took in the colorful but controlled palette of your belongings before his gaze landed back on you. Reading something in the space you couldn’t quite figure out. “Didn’t get a text from you, but if you really want me to, I’ll leave right this second.”

Your eyes softened, seeing how earnest he was. All you could do was shake your head, heart thudding in your chest at the realization that your text hadn’t been sent. A silent thank you to shitty hospital cell service.

The sound of the door shutting and locking behind him was the beginning of a quiet evening curled up on the couch with him and whispered words of comfort against your temple as his moustache tickled against your skin.

The shattering of glass was loud, jolting you from your sleeping position curled up in front of Joel, his arms around you and his legs tangled with your own. He was up on his feet in seconds, telling you to stay in the bedroom while he cautiously peered into the small living room. He shuffled on his feet as Sweet Pea came hurling into the room, puffed up as big as she could get, eyes blown out. She jumped atop the bed and you watched Joel’s back disappear in what little light from the street lamps filtered in through your sheer curtains and thick blinds.

“Who the fuck do you think you are?” Joel was hollering, the bat you had set aside just outside the bedroom door all those weeks ago still there. He grabbed a hold of it and you could hear him swinging, making contact with something metallic. The crack of the wood was loud, making you jump to your feet and you scrambled to get your phone from where it was buried in the sheets.

There was a yelp, followed by the crunching of glass and harsh breathing. The operator was calmly trying to get your attention, hearing the commotion from the other side of the line as you had put it on speaker. The sounds of heavy thuds on the metal stairs outside rattled the walls and your dizzy head. Joel seemed to have followed them, a second set of steps sounding right behind the first.

“Ma’am, are you safe? What’s going on?”

“B-break in, someone broke into my apartment.”

“Is the person still there?”

The line was silent as she waited for an answer, the heavy footsteps of someone coming back up toward the apartment startled you. Hands flailing to catch Sweet Pea as she jumped into your arms. The phone clattered to the hardwood floor.

“Ma’am? Are you still there? Are you okay?”

“My-my boyfriend is-“ You bent down to pick it up, cuddling the small creature close to your chest as she shook in your arms. Joel walked back into the room then, blood smeared on the bat and sporting a gash to his cheek. “He scared them off.”

“Ma’am, I’m sending a police car, what’s your address?”

Joel took over the situation as they arrived, meeting them down at the gate. He walked them through the event, told them the car he had seen the guy rush to and then sped off in. The glimpses of dirty blonde hair underneath a cap, the sound of his voice reminiscent of the one he had protected you from at a bar all that time ago. Of the open investigations you both had over the encounter at his restaurant.

They seemed to take all the crumbs and piece them together, saying it was most likely a stalking situation and you had dropped the mug of tea you had just made at the word. It had been advised that a car were to patrol the street on a more regular basis, but ultimately that you should stay with someone for a while, until things calmed down and your window was repaired.

Hours later, as the sky began to lighten from the deep blue of nightfall to the pastel oranges of early morning, you and Joel found yourself tucked back into bed and curled up with each other. Shielding each other from the rest of the world.

“You gonna tell me what happened at your meeting?” Joel’s voice was careful as he regarded you across the cab of his own truck. He was driving toward his house just outside the downtown area. A suburb that hadn’t felt the effects of gentrification that had so many others had fallen into. It was quant and cozy, neighbors friendly with each other after living there for so long. A good home for his daughters as he raised one and then adopted the other in their teens, sharing the safe place he had crafted for one daughter with another who had never known such a thing. A kind and caring man, now offering to take care of you in the wake of your personal space feeling tainted.

Sweet pea was in your lap, curled up in your crossed legs, preventing Joel from being able to rest a hand atop your thigh while he drove, both hands firmly on the steering wheel. He had been stealing glances your way since you both loaded up, along with three packed bags. Two for you and one for the small cat, with the promise to get her a little box after dropping her off.

Your demeanor shifted from relaxed and boneless in his passenger seat to rigid, shoulders pulling taught as you sat as straight as you could, lower back aching with the pressure after having sat for so long in cheap, hard waiting room chairs the night before. The hot sensation of embarrassment and shame bubbled up your chest to your throat, preventing words even if you had them.

You shook your head, focused on the world passing by in a blur outside the window.

He seemed to realize it was the wrong moment, to have asked such a thing from you because one of his hands was reaching over and tangling with your own.

“That’s okay, whenever you’re ready, yeah?” He chewed on his bottom lip, coming to a stop at a red light. “Or even not at all, okay, if you don’t want. Whatever you need, baby, I’m gonna try my best, alright?”

You nodded, not able to meet his earnest stare, you both startled when a horn honked behind his truck, urging him to drive through the now green light.

“I’m here for you, you gotta know that. Even if you don’t ask me.” He spoke as he turned into a quiet neighborhood, just outside the bustle of the city. A suburb that reminded you of the one you grew up in, the one you hadn’t been back home to in a decade. Wasn’t welcome back to in wake of family drama and endless fighting.

“Did you know my dad got remarried when I was young?”

“No, darlin’, I didn’t.” He said softly, unaware of why this was what you decided to tell him. But he listened all the same, as he parked in a clear drive and helped you down out of the passenger side of the truck. Making sure that Sweet Pea was cuddled tight to you and safely ushered through the doorway into his home.

“She didn’t like me, the woman my dad had been dating. Said…said I was so smart it was blinding. That I’d never find a man who would want to be with me because I always intimidated people. Too independent, too heavy to attract anyone, too much of all the wrong things.”

You stood in the threshold of the living room, watching as your small cat explored the new space. With a cautious curiosity, as if worried about hidden threats behind every corner. Chirping as she went, looking back at you every few minutes to make sure you hadn’t abandoned her.

“I don’t know who this woman is, but she’s wrong, darlin’. She had no business telling you those things at such a young age.”

“If only she could see me now,” You scoffed as your stitches throbbed underneath thick bandages, pain dulled but breaking through the medicine you needed to take once again. “Got a stalker who won’t leave me alone and a professor who deals in ultimatums.”

The bags he still held dropped to the floor and he was suddenly in front of you, his hands on your shoulders as he gave you all of his attention.

Your eyes met his and the words came tumbling out in a rush.

“I was so stupid to think that she was just spewing bullshit, because she’s right. Smart mouth getting me in trouble, getting me into situations where I’m sleeping with my goddamn boss, barely scraping by for a degree that doesn’t mean anything now. He’s-he’s going to tell the entire board that I’m trouble and they’re both right. I always mess everything up, it’s why I’m alone. Can’t disappoint people who aren’t in your life, right?”

You chuckled wetly, face hot and hands shaking as Joel carefully took them in his own.

“Hey,” Joel’s voice was firm, his eyes focused as he brought you to his chest and held you. “Don’t go saying any of that alright. She’s not right. She don’t know you, what you made of yourself. It doesn’t matter what she thinks, what matters is how you feel.”

“I feel like she’s right, she got my dad to believe her. Haven’t spoken to him since I moved out at eighteen. But not from their house, I had been dumped with my grandparents because she wanted kids of her own and it was either space for me or space for them.

A-and it feels like all the hard work I spent years focusing on is all up to a man who has all the power. The ability to spin this entire situation to his needs and wants, to protect those in his care. Everyone has someone looking out for them, helping them, guiding them. But…but, I don’t…I don’t have anyone…”

Your breathing was slow and deep. Controlled as you calmly spiraled, mania from the past few days winding down into a resolute conclusion of bitter acceptance for the things that have happened and taking the blame for them because there was nowhere else to place it.

“You have me,” Your name was a plea on his lips and all you could do was cling to him as he pulled you into his chest. It was easy to fall into him, but you pulled away just as quickly as you had reached out. For his warmth and reassurance, his kind words that you didn’t deserve. “You have me, okay?”

“You-you’re my boss. And he was right, told me I’m just a messy girl who likes to play hard to get. That’s why he’s going to tell the entire board that I’m unfit for the internship, that I’m trouble to have in class, a risk that shouldn’t be considered. A waste of potential crumbling because I’m too self-righteous and tried to stand up for myself in that bar.”

“Look. No, you look at me and hear me okay.” He grasped your shoulders again and pivoted you from where you had begun to turn your attention away from him, feeling utterly hollowed out and bared for him to see all the ugliness you hid inside the beneath your skin and bones. All laid out for him to pick through like a predator to find the best parts and take take take what he wanted. But it was all rotten, it was all tainted, turned. Bad.

“I will file the appropriate paperwork in both our files, have Mary look it over and sign as a witness, stating that we are in a consensual relationship. That there were no contingencies of promised payment, position, or promotion regarding the development of it. I swear to you, baby, I will do it. To show you that it’s important to me, that you’re important to me. That this isn’t just some fling.”

“I was so close,” Your voice broke, hoarse and tapered off into a sound that didn’t sit right in your ears. It was startling how foreign it sounded. As if the woman speaking was someone else and not yourself, feeling small and childish and helpless as you watched your bags get taken from a car and placed around you by a woman smiling brightly and a man who wouldn’t look directly at you. Spoken words of, ‘this is for the best’.

“I was so close.” The woman repeated, and you felt your knees give as the weight of her words hit you and your vision faded out.

This is for the best.

previous chapter || next chapter

dividers by the lovely @/saradika / saradika-graphics

[waitmyturtles]

To my taggers @hughungrybear, @ranchthoughts, @he-is-lightning-in-a-bottle, and @telomeke, this one's for you!

GET TO KNOW ME TAG :)

do you make your bed?

Not until I sleep in it!

what's your favorite number?

Feel like I don't want to spill it because I use these numbers in passwords lol

what is your job?

Executive management

if you could go back to school, would you?

Such a good question. I already did it once, mid-life, and it was THE BEST DECISION I EVER MADE, and one of the first decisions I truly made just for myself. Would I go back AGAIN? I would have considered it if I didn't know so many PhDs who are at various levels of happiness with their decisions. So: maybe. What I really look forward to is being retired so that I can take free classes at local colleges and have all the time in the world to read through the syllabi.

can you parallel park?

Fuck yes, who do I fucking look like, someone that can't parallel park? /end-East-Coast-road-rage

a job you had that would surprise people?

Hmmm. I don't think I have one that fits this category!

do you think aliens are real?

I think humanity's definition of "life" is too limiting

can you drive a manual car?

UNFORTUNATELY NOT, and I really wanna learn

what's your guilty pleasure?

Watching dramas, honestly. I shouldn't feel guilty about it, but I'm Asian, so I feel guilty about everything

tattoos?

Love them on other people, never made up my mind on what I wanted to get, and I feel like that ship has sailed for me

favorite color?

My kids ask me this all the time: pine green, rich purple, deep pink, all oranges, aquamarine blue, and black

favorite type of music?

I can't choose one. My playlist is all over the place. Korean hip-hop and New Orleans bounce (THANKS @bengiyo) have been my workout go-tos lately

do you like puzzles?

I will when my kids have more patience to do them

any phobias?

HEIGHTS :(

favorite childhood sport?

Ice hockey

do you talk to yourself?

Absolutely, and I've needed to use meditation to manage the inner monologue over the years

what movies do you adore?

Oh gosh. All I think about lately are Thai BLs, so I think a lot about the impact of The Love of Siam and Dew, two movies that are so tough to digest, but are really well done. I've also had two wonderful Japanese movies on the mind for no reason, Like Father, Like Son: Soshite Chichi ni Naru, and Drive My Car.

coffee or tea?

Both, all the time, often mixed

first thing you wanted to be growing up?

I wanted to be a journalist. I was such a rabid sports that I thought being a journalist would get me the closest to sports that I could go without being an athlete. And I actually got to do sports journalism for a while, and it was fun! (But I quit media, which is a whole other thing, and now I'm much happier)

Who hasn't been tagged? How about the old Only Friends Ephemerality Squad, how y'all doing?! @lurkingshan (I think you already did this Shan) @neuroticbookworm @twig-tea @slayerkitty @thatgirl4815 @distant-screaming @clara-maybe-ontheroad

[mountsmase]

Omg yes dad Mase is my fav! (sorry in advance I didn't realize it was so long I was a little too inspired 🙈)

Let’s say you met Mase when he was younger when he was starting his professional career at Chels. He wasn’t as famous as he is today so more he was approachable and you started dating and both fell in love very quickly. Despite the ups and downs in your relationship, the difficulties linked to his new popularity, all the girls around him and the fact that he was less present and available, your relationship held up and you remained as in love with each other as ever.

By a happy accident, one day you learned that you were pregnant but you were terrified because you were still so young (around 19/20yo), you were still studying and Mason’s career was still building even though he was already becoming more and more famous across the country. You were so afraid of how he would react and that he would tell you that he didn’t want the baby or that he would panic and decide to abandon you with the baby. In the end you felt stupid for thinking that because when he found out he was the sweetest and most reassuring with you and assured you that he would support you no matter what decision you wanted to make and after a long moment discussing it together you decided to keep the baby.

During your pregnancy he was so kind and caring, he made sure to be as present as possible despite his career, he constantly reassured you and was as supportive as possible, he didn't want you to lift a single finger and took care of you like a princess. When you found out that you were expecting a little girl, he had the biggest smile on his face and teary eyes, he looked so happy. After that, he couldn't stop having his hands on your bump, caressing it and talking to it, he was really on cloud nine and thought he couldn't fall more in love with you.

Today, years after giving birth, you live in Manchester, you graduated and recently started your dream job, Mason has become a football star and won many of trophies, he's had some tough times in his career but is stronger than ever and your little girl has grown up (she's around 5 years old) and can walk and talk, she's the most adorable little girl in the world. Mason is the best dad possible with her, he's super close to her and they're like two besties. You and her are the two most precious and important humans in his life.

One evening when you come home from work, you find them both in the kitchen preparing your favorite dessert to surprise you. They didn't hear you come home and you listen to them chatting about everything and nothing together while Mason carries her so she can mix the preparation and you can't help but smile at the cute scene before your eyes. They start talking about you and how exhausted you seem lately and that they hope their surprise will please you and that they need to take better care of you. As you look at them, you think back to everything you've been through with Mason and how you were when you learned about the arrival of your little princess and you tell yourself that you're so proud of what you've accomplished and the little family you've started with him.

Oh I loved this 🥹

And when you get home Mason has already gotten her already for bed and has done bath time with her because she’ll be going to bed shortly after you get home and he didn’t want you to worry about it 🥹 so she’s got her little jammies on and Mase is in his comfies and it’s just the most precious little moment ever

and then after you’ve eaten you take her up to bed together and you all pile onto her little bed, letting her snuggle up between you and you both read to her, taking turns to read each page to her and she falls asleep pretty quickly but neither of you want to move, quite happy and content cuddled up with your little family 🥹

I’m so sorry I missed this the other night! 🫶🏻

[lunarubra]

Life update

This past week has been incredibly tough for me, and I'm using this blog to vent and release the sadness, frustration, and grief I've been feeling. It's like therapy, but cheaper.

If you'd rather skip the heavy stuff, feel free, I don't want to bore no one. And I fell this might be a long one.

Lately, life has been intense both at work (I teach at a language Gymnasium) and in my personal life. I'm already stretched thin trying to balance everything, and then unexpected things happen that make me feel silly for thinking my own issues are significant.

Just two days ago, one of my students tragically passed away. The weather had finally turned nice, and he and a friend went for a bike ride. He lost control and fell down a steep slope at the side of the road.

After teaching him for two years and seeing him and his classmates every day, I can't help but feel a sense of responsibility. While I'm not their parent and I'm not much older than them, most of the time, I feel more like an older sibling than a professor. Even though I sometimes jokingly refer to them as a "herd of dunderheads," they mean a lot to me, and I deeply care about them—they are my kiddos. It's tough witnessing his classmates' reactions to what happened; they're devastated. Despite wanting to support them and be there for them, I find myself at a loss for big speeches or grand gestures.

I'm well aware of the larger issues in the world, but this loss really shook me. Returning to work afterward felt daunting, and even though I discussed it with friends and colleagues, it almost feels like old news already.

Teaching often feels like an uphill battle. You see so much potential in your students, but then they hit the teenage years and start doing the same silly stuff you did at their age, which brings a smile to your face. You try your best to support them in a world that isn't always kind to young people, encouraging them to appreciate the beauty around them and stay connected. And let's not forget, you still have to actually teach them something—it's your job, after all, not just babysitting. Balancing all these roles can feel like a constant struggle, but those moments when you really connect with them, when you witness their growth and development—those moments are pure magic.

Maybe that's why this loss hit me so hard. I saw so much potential in him, and now it feels wasted.

On top of everything, my partner got accepted to a prestigious hospital in Sweden for her specialization in pediatric surgery. I'm incredibly proud of her and fully support her dream, but her leaving means big changes for us. Maybe because of the recent loss or maybe just because it's been a rough time, I find myself slipping into old thought patterns that scare me.

Right now, I'm feeling sad, overwhelmed, and at my limit. I'm not sure how to handle it all. I think I need to start therapy soon, although it's not easy finding a good therapist here in Italy.

So, if you notice I'm not as active as usual, that's why. I already wasn't very active, but if I'm even quieter than usual, I apologize. I just don't have the energy or enthusiasm right now. It feels like I'm avoiding dealing with what happened.

Monday is the funeral, and I don't know how I'll be afterward. I'll probably take a break from blogging and writing for a while.

To my friends here, I always appreciate your messages and your support. I might not be super responsive, but I value each and every one of you. <3

[lingering-42-long]

I’ll be home for Christmas

Soap x f! reader

I don’t know what happened, but the original one either got accidentally deleted or I just never posted it! This is the first of the series. I’ll be home for Christmas. Enjoy

Warnings: none

John winced when he got the call from headquarters saying he would need to leave for duty on Tuesday, witch meant be on a flight to the shitty hell-hole of a place tomorrow. He hated being called at last moment. Being left out of the loop irked him to no end.

Soap looked over at the clock and noticed that his girlfriend would be home soon. She worked at a local pub by night in Sterling and her shift was nearing the end. Just as he was thinking about her his phone buzzed with a text. It was from (y/n). ‘Hey Johnny, I’ll be home in a bit on my way.’

John texted back ‘ok love. See you here.:)’ He noticed she called him Johnny not hunny or babe. She must be tired. He thought to himself as he got up to finish dinner. He hated having to leave her behind in such short notice.

The Cock-a-Leekie soup was almost finished when John heard keys outside jingle and the lock opening. (Y/n) came in on this chilly night.

“Brrrr. It’s cold out there” she shivered and hung her jacket on the peg by the door and was in the process of taking her wet shoes and socks off, when two arms snaked around her waist. “Aye mo leannan (yes my sweetheart). You’re cold aren’t ya?” His thick Scottish accent rolled off his tongue as he kissed her neck. A giggle could be heard from her lips “Already trying to flirt with me this late? “Lass if I was try’n to flirt with ya, I would’ve put more effort into it.” He gave a little nibble to her earlobe. (Y/n) smiled as she slipped on a pair of house slippers. “Something smells amazing. Are you making what I think your making?”

“Aye ghràdh (love).” Soap smiled as he dished out two plates.

“You really didn’t have to do that. It’s so late…” It was true. It was around 1:45am, but John didn’t matter. He knew he did not have much time with his Beloved. “No I don’t mind,” he smiled then his face dropped, “Also I got to tell you something.”

A frown formed on (y/n)’s face. “Let’s talk about it after dinner, ok?” John gave a quick nod and touched her cheek gently “tha gaol agam ort (I love you).”

A light blush formed over (y/n)’s face “I love you too”

Dinner was amazing and the two of them talked about (y/n)’s job and who was at the pub that night. John gave a slight snort when she was telling him about the idiot who kept flirting with her. “Did ye tell ‘em yur with meh?”

“Of course I did but you know how men are, he saw that as a challenge”

“Next time I’ll show him a real challenge” he huffed.

“No need. I took care of it quick.” She chuckled. “I got Bruce to start waiting on him.” The man Bruce, she was referring too, was a big hulking of a man and could scare anyone into submission if it came to one of his colleagues getting uneasy with a drunken idiot.

“Well at least he has been delt with.” John nodded. He was very happy that she could stand up in a fight. That’s one of the many things he loved about her.

“So…. What’s this bad news you have to dump on me?” (Y/n) asked already figuring it out but waiting for the confirmation.

“Lass I got called in for a mission… I know it’s bad timing.” So close to Christmas. It was both there favorite time of the year. It was going to be tough on them.

“Yeah really bad timing.” She bit her bottom lip trying not to let her tears fall. “I had made plans and everything too…oh well”

“Hey now mo aingeal milis (my sweet angel). Yer can still do those things, and the plan is to be home for Christmas… if all goes to plan tha’ is.” A simple touch to the shoulder almost sent (y/n) crying. She was a tough-ie but things that were very important to her still got to her. “I know…I just worry if you will be ok…if you will make it…”

“Aye Bonnie I promise ye I will com back home in one piece yeah?”

“Alive?” She asked

“Alive and well.” He chuckled. “Now go get ready fer bed. I’ll clean up and be there in a bit.”

She shook her head “I want to help…”

“Your tired. You’ve been working all night. Let me do this fer ya.”

“Fine.” (Y/n) trudged upstairs to their room and washroom were she took off her makeup and jewelry. She had worn the necklace and matching earrings that John had given her last year as an anniversary gift on Valentine’s Day.

She looked at herself in the mirror, tears still threatening to spill, a long night and now this? Pull yourself together girl. (Y/n) told herself but to no avail. When she made it to the bedroom to get changed for the evening, the thought of her boyfriend leaving her made the waterworks start as she burst out crying into her pillow, sobbing away. Perfect timing for Soap to walk in, catching sight of his overtired, crying girlfriend.

“Hey hey hey! What’s this Love?” Gently kneeling beside her side of the bed and placing a hand on her back.

“I’m sorry I must be tired, but the thought of you leaving for the holidays…” (Y/n)’s voice broke again as she tried to regain her composure.

“No don’t apologize, ghràdh (love). I wished I could have told you sooner.” He kissed her head gently. “I know this will be h’rd on both of us but we can work this out, yeah?” John got up and walked to his dresser to get on a pair of pants. He liked to sleep shirtless.

As soon as Soap opened the covers to get in, his girlfriend clung onto him. “Aye lass I got ye.” He chuckled and stroked her head. “I’ll wake ye up when I leave ok?” No reply just a nod into his chest. Softly, as if she would shatter in his arms, he hummed an old song and gently rubbed her back. This made (Y/n) break down and cry again. “I got ye let it out. Shhhhhh.” John murmured, now his own eyes betraying him as they stung with salty water threatening to hit his pillow and his girlfriend. He held (y/n) tightly, letting her cry to sleep, knowing that would be the best for her. Soon he was following in that pattern.

It was 6:30am when John began walking to the door with his sleepy girlfriend in tow, holding his arm. Soap opened the door, with his duffel bags in hand gave his (y/n) a kiss. “I’ll be back in a few weeks, you’ll see”

(y/n) nodded sadly. “Be safe out here ok? Kick there asses.”

He gave a small smile “I always do.”

John turned around to head for his car don’t turn back, dont fucking turn back. But he did and saw (y/n) standing there “fuck” he muttered a small choke. He dropped his bags and swiftly dashed back to her.

“Oh lass I am going to miss ye so so so much!” He was shaking. Trying to hold it in, trying to be the big tough Sargent he needed to be.

“It’s ok. You told me last night we got this, it’s not like we haven’t been in this same boat before. If we did it 100 times before we can do it one more time. I’ll be waiting here for you when you get back ok?” A smile laced with sadness stretched over (y/n)’s face.

He pulled himself up and nodded. She was right. With a final lasting kiss he went back to grab his bags once more and this time made it to the car without look back. Setting his stuff in the back seat, he then got into the front, starting the engine, and slowly driving out from the driveway. He could see her silhouette in the dim light coming from the living room as she stood outside watching him. Soap drove down the road towards the airport with one thought on his mind.

When I get back love, I’m going to ask you a question… I hope you say yes.

[batsplat]

i just remember something i meant to ask ages ago but why did Valentinos relationship with Honda end so bad like was he already wanting to switch bike for the 2004 season or was he happy to stay at Honda if things didn't go sideways. Cause I know why he left Yamaha for Ducati, i just haven't found definite sources and reasoning for his Honda to Yamaha switch. (also while i'm here I am going to start a vale career watch once I finish Marcs (upto 2019 atleast i dont think im ready for the honda dark years just yet so i'll make myself feel a little better by watching Vale who will also be joined by Dani, Jorge and Casey)) so excited to watch caseys 2007 season when I get to it, i'm Australian and i've always been aware of him i saw an advert of his on my train the other day so that was fun this ask got so sidetracked sorry, but i'm definalty going to go over your race rec tag but i'll probably just end up watching whole seasons cause i like having the context of things if something in a previous race is going to set up tension in later races.

okay, so this is MOSTLY covered in the sete post. which I understand is a bit long lol so I'll try and give the sparknotes version here. he was getting kinda miserable at honda! winning felt too routine... the way he frames it is that he didn't feel like honda particularly appreciated his efforts and thought it was mostly just their bike doing the trick, not the rider. he talks about it in this autobiography excerpt - he felt like nobody was really getting enthusiastic about his victories anymore, that it was just expected of him, and honda didn't really give a shit if it was him or someone else doing the winning. throw in the press who were also giving him a tough time in early 2003... it just wasn't fun anymore. valentino needs stimulation, he needs challenges, he wants to feel like he's part of a team and he wants to feel loved by that team (and love them in return). it's partly an ego thing and partly just... a question of passion. winning felt too easy and it felt like it had lost his meaning - like it was just a job

and y'know, yamaha did actively court them. which even valentino at the beginning was deeply sceptical of... even though he already felt dissatisfied with honda over the winter of 2002-03, switching to another manufacturer just felt like competitive suicide. he was also being courted by ducati - and even though it doesn't seem like he seriously considered that, until quite late in the season it looked like he might go any of three ways. iirc ducati was willing to throw a particularly obscene amount of money his way lol. but in the end, valentino felt that ducati would be much like honda in their disconnect from its riders and their refusal to listen to them (gosh, could someone not have read his own words back to him in 2010). yamaha was willing to build their whole team around him... and it was also just a special challenge. it'd be something new!! valentino isn't really built for easy domination I reckon, like he just has a trigger in his brain every 2-3 years that starts making him a bit restless idk

and yeah, I always think watching full seasons is well worth it!! there's some seasons that really live and die by the complete storylines, the sense of tension and build-up - especially the first half of 2003, 2004, 2006 and 2008 don't work anywhere near as well without context I reckon. and obviously I'm a massive casey fan... though I will warn you that for reasons entirely unrelated to casey, there is a massive drop-off in average race quality between 2006 and 2007 lol. I'm actually intending to go back over the winter break and fix up my casey race recs list because it was the first I did and quite casual when compared to the later ones - I thought I could do that one without consulting my notes, which in retrospect was a bit high on the hubris and I feel like I want to do that one justice. casey's actually already a really fun presence in 2006!! it doesn't show as much in the results because he'd often drop back or crash, but you see quite a lot of him - including the first few fights with valentino. he has a very pedro-like rookie season if you want a cheap and easy comparison... results are a bit worse on paper but the vibe is quite similar, including the spectacular early season form that trailed off for various reasons. but I do have a lot of fondness for 2007, even if it has some absolute howlers. qatar, mugello, catalunya, assen, donington and estoril the highlights as I recall. still wish we'd gotten casey/valentino with a continuation of the 2006 engine regs and just like. dogfights galore featuring those two... but on the plus side, I suppose laguna 2008 wouldn't have hit quite as hard if it hadn't been such a contrast to everything else happening during that time